iStock/Thinkstock(SEATTLE) -- Jenny Stansel, an Alaska Airlines flight attendant, has battled chronic kidney disease for the last 15 years, but things took a turn for the worse last March when she became ill on a flight.



"I had to take a passenger's seat on my last flight," Stansel, 38, said in an interview with ABC News on Friday. "I knew something was very wrong, but I thought that maybe I had been working too much and overdoing it like I always do."



She soon learned that her disease had progressed and her kidneys were functioning at just 6 percent of their capacity.



Her doctors ordered her to immediately began dialysis, an intensive treatment for end-stage kidney failure. Her only way off dialysis was to find a kidney donor.



Stansel created a Facebook page "Keep Jennie Kickin with JoDiva the Kidney" and sent out a company-wide email to see if anyone would be interested in helping her.



She said at least three of her co-workers agreed to take a compatibility test, but only one of them was a match: Captain Jodi Harskamp.



Stansel and Harskamp, both based in Anchorage, Alaska, had become close friends after Harskamps home caught on fire a few years ago.



"I didnt know her that well back then, but I heard about the fire, so I took her some dinner and a few bottles of wine," Stansel said. "I had a house fire when I was 15 years old and I know how devastating it can be."



Doctors confirmed Harskamp was a viable match and scheduled the surgery right away. The transplant is set to take place on Monday.



"I was elated! It was like a huge weight lifted off of me," Stansel said. "I suddenly started feeling better when I heard that she was a match."



Harskamp was not immediately available for an interview with ABC News, but she recently told ABC News Seattle affiliate KOMO-TV that she was happy to help her co-worker.



"I mean, I lose a kidney. She gets to live, I'd say it's a pretty fair trade, right?" Harskamp said in the interview.



About 26 million U.S. adults have chronic kidney disease, which can be fatal if left untreated, according to the National Kidney Foundation.



Now, Stansel said she is encouraging others to register for organ donation. She said shes already connected one person with two possible donors via social media.



"Im going to help other people get kidneys," she said. "I know that I have a bigger mission ahead of me."



A spokesperson for Alaska Airlines did not immediately respond to ABC News request for comment.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Twelve is a magic number for Beatrice Fire and Rescue.

Twelve paramedic firefighters is the goal, and reaching that mark is key to keeping Beatrice safe during medical emergencies, the department said. After losing two firefighter paramedics to the Lincoln Fire Department and with several members of Beatrice Fire and Rescue reaching retirement age, attrition is an issue that needs addressing, as is keeping current paramedics.

An upcoming effort, said said deputy chief Jake Carrel, will be trying to get Beatrice students interested in joining Beatrice Fire and Rescue.

Part of our strategy is going to be to reach out to the high school, among other places, to get folks excited about the profession and see what it's all about, Carrel said. It's much more than fighting fires now.

Firefighters in Beatrice and in surrounding areas dont just put out fires. Theyre a part of emergency medical services that come to the aid of people in need. If you see an ambulance in Beatrice, its probably a firefighter behind the wheel.

Its what Carrel calls an all-hazards job. Even though their official title is firefighter, emergency medical services are a major part of the job. Everyone who joins Beatrice Fire and Rescue has to at least have EMT certification, and ideally their paramedic license as well.

It's a good career, said fire chief Brian Daake. You get to help people and you don't have to spend four years in school. That makes a difference to some of us. It's a decent starting wage.

Getting potential firefighters educated early is part of the strategy, Carrel said. It starts with EMT training, which can take several months. Then its onto paramedic school which, he said, can take between a year and a half to two years to finish.

You're making yourself very marketable at that point, Carrel said. There's a shortage of paramedics in the area and the region.

Then its back to school for a fire associate degree for another year and a half to two years. After that, he said, all training is done on the job through probationary periods and academies.

The job is much more than what might have been referred to in the past as an ambulance driver position, Carrel said. So much care is given on scene, he said, that paramedics are a vital part of the emergency medical service.

Getting local folks would definitely be a goal, he said. If they're born and raised here, they've got a vested interest, not that there's anything wrong with bringing people in from outside. We've got some great employees now that we've brought in from outside.

Another issue, Carrel said, is retaining paramedics. Burnout is a huge problem for departments across the country. The national average career span of a paramedic is six to eight years, he said, which leads to turnover.

The short career expectancy length, he said, is due to stress, from the things paramedics see and deal with, as well as long hours.

Daake said the department has recently reached out to the guidance counselor at Beatrice High School, as well as career counselors. The ideal candidate, he said, would be a person with an eye out for the greater good.

It's a good career, Daake said. You get to help people and you don't have to spend four years in school. That makes a difference to some of us. It's a decent starting wage.

If anyone is interested, Carrel said, drop by the station, and hed be happy to give them a tour and show them what the job is all about.

The focus right for the moment is on students within the community, Daake said, but theyll be expanding their recruitment area in the coming years.

We'll also reach out to the neighboring schools, Daake said. But it's an elephant, so we're just taking one bite at a time.
Have you wondered with modern solar energy installations if this would be feasible and pay off for you? University of Nebraska Extension has the answers with a seminar at the Saline County Extension Office, 306 West 3rd Street, Wilber, NE on Monday, March 20, 2017 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The program brochure can be found at: http://go.unl.edu/solarmtg

The seminar Considerations for Installing Photovoltaic Solar Systems is being conducted by F. John Hay, Department of Biosystems Engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Jeff Carpenter, Energy Coordinator, USDA Rural Development.

This program is open to the public and will focus on application of solar photovoltaic (PV) for farms, ranches, residences and rural businesses. Participants will learn about connecting solar PV to the electric grid, economics, basic design considerations and feasibility.

Participants will also learn how to use basic online tools to model their own locations and learn about economic considerations such as payback, grants, tax credits, and depreciation. Incentives are available including the USDA Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) grants and low interest loans from the Nebraska Energy Office. This program will cover local, state, and federal incentives for solar PV and other renewable systems.

Pre-registration is required by Friday, March 17, 2017 to plan for meeting room space. Pre-register by contacting Nebraska Extension in Saline County by phone (402) 821-2151 or e-mail lou.hajek@unl.edu. The cost is $5.00 at the door.

For additional information, contact F. John Hay, phone (402) 472-0408, or e-mail jhay2@unl.edu
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New Delhi [India], Mar 11 (ANI-NewsVoir): The Honorable Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N Chandrababu Naidu unveiled the master plan for the new and fast upcoming SRM University, AP - Amaravati, which is set to commence programs in engineering from August of this year. "SRM is embracing a new method of learning, not seen before in India. We will emphasize practical and application oriented learning via projects and lab courses rather than monologues that are the typical feature of our classrooms. We would like to create a world class environment for our students here at SRM University, AP - Amaravati; and we want to help them create tomorrow," said Dr. P Sathyanarayanan, President of SRM University, AP - Amaravati. To help them in this endeavor SRM University, AP - Amaravati has brought in many multinational institutions. Perkins + Will, a reputed international architecture firm with many decades of experience is conceptualizing the design of the university. This will be constructed by the eminent Shapoorji Pallonji Group. Aiding them in recruitment of senior administrative and academic members are international search firms Perret Laver and Society, who specialize in the higher education space. SRM University, AP - Amaravati is currently establishing partnerships with reputed international universities from the US, the UK and Singapore. With support from these international institutions, there will be a significant focus on both pure and applied research in areas of renewable energy, space technology, IoT, blue economy, nanotechnologies, and many more. "Developing research led universities is fundamental to the progress of the state and the nation. We aim to do just that by bringing solutions to the problems that plague today's world," said Dr. Narayana Rao, Pro - Vice Chancellor of SRM University, AP - Amaravati. This university is aimed to become first integrated inter disciplinary institutions offering courses in Engineering, Management, Law, Medical Sciences, Pure Sciences and Liberal Arts. Additionally, SRM University, AP - Amaravati, along with the Chief Minister of AP, is launching an incubation centre "SHRISTI" - SRM Habitat for Research and Innovation in Science and Technology for Industries to make its university a hub of innovation of development. SHRISTI aims to create 100 companies and generate 10,000 jobs in next 10 years. This innovation centre will provide customized build-up space and research infrastructure with supporting services. (ANI-NewsVoir)
As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - that heads the ruling NDA at the Centre - swept Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand in the state elections results on Saturday, the corporate fraternity said it expects better coordination between the Centre and the states in the coming days. Congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah on its victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, ASSOCHAM President Sandeep Jajodia today said one of the important takeaways of the poll outcome is that a far better coordination is expected between the country's largest state and the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance at the Centre. The BJP is running neck-and-neck with the Congress in Goa and Manipur, while in Punjab the Congress was headed for a two-third majority. "Besides, Modi's agenda on economic development and to take on the challenges, upfront, has gone down very well with the people of the key states who are looking with a new hope for an economic development of the states. Most of the states are now being ruled by the BJP and its allies and far better level of development coordination is expected," Jajodia said. Naushad Forbes, President, CII, said: "CII warmly congratulates the winning political parties in the states of Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh for their performance. By and large the results ensure that the process of reforms would gain further credence, support and momentum at the central level." --IANS ag/rn ( 252 Words) 2017-03-11-16:40:07 (IANS)
With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) crossing the halfway mark in Uttar Pradesh and leading in 278 seats of the 403-member assembly, celebrations have begun and it seems the politically crucial state is all geared up for a saffron Holi this time. The BJP workers have begun celebrations in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's parliamentary constituency Varanasi and the state capital Lucknow. The early trends clearly indicate that Uttar Pradesh has yet again voted for Prime Minister Modi, who had come under sharp criticism post the November 8 demonetisation drive. In Prime Minister Modi's parliamentary constituency Varanasi, the BJP workers were seen dancing and celebrating outside the party office. "Bharat Mata Ki Jai, Bharat Mata Ki Jai, Modi-Modi, Modi Zindabad," chanted the party workers as they played Holi with saffron colour and distributed sweets to the passerbys. Similar scenes were witnessed in BJP's Lucknow office situated near the Vidhan Sabha. The BJP workers were seen dancing and celebrating, shouting slogans of "BJP Zindabad, BJP Zindabad" and "Modi Zindabad". Meanwhile, BJP MP from Unnao, Sakshi Maharaj, insisted that the party was hopeful of a thumping win, adding this victory will act as a morale booster for them. "With due respect to the exit polls, I want to say that the slogan which we gave this time that 'ab ki baar 300 paar ' will prove true and we are going to form the government in Uttar Pradesh with majority," Maharaj told ANI. He also took a dig at Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, saying the day he inaugurated the incomplete Agra-Lucknow Expressway and Lucknow Metro, it became clear that he would not be forming the government again. "When Akhilesh Yadav inaugurated the incomplete Expressway and Metro that very day it became quite clear that he is not going to form a government in Uttar Pradesh. That was the first time he lost the battle. Second time, he lost it when he joined hands with the Congress Party. This simply means that even like Centre even in Uttar Pradesh there will be no strong opposition in the assembly," he added. Meanwhile, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya also expressed his jubilance over the win, saying that there was no doubt in their minds about conquering the throne of Lucknow. "We had said this earlier that we will win 200-250 seats in Uttar Pradesh. We were confident of winning the election because we had leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah," Vijayvargiya told ANI. He also insisted it is the BJP's team work, adding this win is a testament to the fact that the people of India impose their faith in the saffron party. "We have raised the issue of development. Prime Minister Modi just tried to highlight the areas where the development was taking place. He just highlighted that how much development is being done in cremation ground and similarly in graveyard. This should not be considered as polarisation, nor it should not be considered as the politics on the basis of religion," he added. BJP MP from Gorakhpur, Yogi Adityanath, told media that this win is for development and a result of hard work. "The SP-Congress alliance has been rejected by the people. The people are fed up with the BSP and don't want them either," he added. Uttar Pradesh went to polls in seven phases in the months of February and March. A total of 4,854 candidates are in fray for 403 assembly constituencies. (ANI)
An otherwise media-friendly RJD supremo Lalu Prasadremained incommunicado today after BJP's landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh Assembly poll. Media persons' bid to seek Mr Prasad's reaction went in vain as gates of 10 circular road, official residence of his wife and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, were kept closed. Even, Mr Prasad, a regular on his official twitter handle, did not post any comment on the poll outcome, although, he yesterday rejected exit polls giving an edge to the BJP in UP, saying the SP-Congress alliance would sweep the poll and form the government in the state. Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Prasad Yadav, the youngest son of Mr Prasad, too did not either meet media persons or posted his comment on his official twitter account. Mr Tejaswi and his elder brother Tej Pratap Yadav, the Health Minister, were also conspicuous by their absence at a function organised to mark birth anniversary of freedom fighter Jubba Sahni in Patna for reasons best known to them. RJD chief Mr Prasad had played a vital role in forging SP-Congress alliance in UP and also campainged actively for SP candidates, ridiculing PM Narendra Modi and top leaders of BJP led NDA, UNI KKS IS SJC -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0212-1184391.Xml
Theatre veteran, Arun Kakade has been conferred a Lifetime Achievement honour for 2017 for his contribution to Indian theatre. The prestigious award was presented to him as the week-long extravaganza of theatrical events reached its culmination on Friday evening at the red-carpet awards gala of the 12th Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META). "I am so happy that META has been promoting Indian theatre for the last 12 years. There is diverse variety in the plays that come here. I have staged my plays here thrice before, but at the age of 86, I wasn't expecting any award really. I am thankful to the META Festival organisers for this prestigious honour," Kakade said. Like every year, this year's short-list of META was diverse and showcased the best of Indian theatre. For a week, the festival staged 10 nominated plays that revolved around motifs ranging from mythology and caste to complex love stories and human emotions. The line-up featuring plays in English as well as several Indian Languages including Hindi, Bengali and Malayalam, among others received an overwhelming response from the audience as the shows ran to packed houses. The Jury comprised of theatre stalwart Dolly Thakore, Mahesh Dattani, Sachin Khedekar, Seema Biswas, Avijit Dutt and Maya Krishna Rao. The annual awards, which recognise excellence in theatre nationally, celebrates the intrinsic diversity and rich cultural traditions of India. META has emerged as one of India's most comprehensive award and a premier honour for the theatre fraternity, awarding on-stage and off-stage talent across 14 award categories, including the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award. While "Mahabharata" bagged the award for Best Production along with Best Director and Best Choreography, "I Don't Like It As You Like It," won Best Ensemble, Best Stage Design and Best Actor in Supporting Role (Female), and "Elephant in the Room" won Best Actor in a Lead Role (Female), Best Costume Design and Best Light Design, giving them three awards each. "The journey of META has been one of the most artistically fruitful and soul-satisfying for all of us. META 2017 brought together some of the finest theatre from across the country. From the heartwarming story of an upper caste person breaking bread with a Dalit to the machinations in a corporate office, from the saga of the Mahabharata to the inner musings of Ganesha, the actors transported us across time and space and reflected the diversity and cultural richness of India," said Festival producer Sanjoy K Roy. The award for Best Actor in a Lead Role (Male) was jointly presented to Anirban Bhattacharya (Awddyo Shesh Rajani) and Rajendra Panchal (Katha Sukavi Suryamall Ki). --IANS ss/vm ( 447 Words) 2017-03-11-15:54:07 (IANS)
The University Grants Commission (UGC) today granted recognition to the Mahatma Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Dental Sciences, Puducherry under section 2(F) and 12(B) of the UGC Act 1956.According to an official release, the institution was now eligible to receive central assistance under section 12(B) of the UGC Act 1956 for academic, research and infrastructure development. UNI XR PS SNU 1540 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0421-1184479.Xml
The leading Indian Aviation Company Jet Airway's contact centres in Britain and Canada will remain closed on Saturday and Sunday, due to maintenance.According to an update by the Airlines, its contact centre will remain closed between 0330 hrs on March 11, 2017 to 0430 hrs on March 12, 2017 in Britain, while the Canada centre will be closed between 1030 hrs to 2330 hrs on Saturday only.The Airline said that during the period, passengers may get all the info on the website or through the App. UNI ADP RJ SNU 1535 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0429-1184388.Xml
FAIRBURY  Jefferson County Rescue was awarded $231 for the communitys participation in last summers Nebraska Community Blood Bank Hometown Heroes blood drive campaign. Jefferson Community Health & Life exceeded its blood drive goal, collecting 33 units, and earning funds to support first responder equipment and training.

The 16 communities that participated in this summers Hometown Heroes campaign collected a total of 900 life-saving units of blood. These Hometown Hero communities helped ensure a stable blood supply this summer and Nebraska Community Blood Bank awarded more than $5,000 to be used toward community projects.

The Hometown Heroes campaign  held each summer encourages Nebraska Community Blood Bank communities to host blood drives during the summer months, a time when the need for blood donors is great. Blood drive sponsors that meet collection goals can earn up to $1,500 toward funding a project within their community. Learn more about our Hometown Heroes campaign at ncbb.org/heroes or contact Jami Kassebaum at (402) 486-9406.

Nebraska Community Bloodbank is the blood supplier for Jefferson Community Health Center, and other facilities in six counties throughout southeast Nebraska.
Suspected Naxalites today massacred at least 11 Central Reserve Police Force personnel in an ambush in the jurisdiction of Bhejji police station limits, around 20 km from the district headquarters of Sukma in Chhattisgarh. According to police, the massacre took place at 0900 hrs when a patrol party of CRPF's 219 battalion was out for a road opening operation near Kotacheru village. The Naxalites also looted ten weapons and two radio sets from the killed securitymen, officials said.Officials said the security personnel were trapped in multiple Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blasts followed by heavy gunfire.In New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed sadness over the killings and directed Home Minister Rajnath Singh to rush there to take stock of the situation."Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Mr Modi said in a tweet.Mr Modi also spoke to Home Minister and said, "He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation". For his part, Mr Rajnath Singh said, the Centre is in "direct communication" with the state government. "Those who perpetrated this incident in Sukma will be brought to justice," Mr Singh wrote in the micro blogging site."Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased," he said in a series of tweets.Mr Rajnath Singh also spoke to state Chief Minister Raman Singh regarding the ambush in Sukma . "The state government is providing all medical assistance to the injured," he said.The injured have been... picking up from para one, line one of DR 13 Insurgency-Chhattisgarh-Naxalites Two Last Raipur.UNI XC SDR RP1550 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1184511.Xml
Eleven CRPF personnel were killed and five injured as Maoists ambushed a patrol party with gunfire and explosives in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh on Saturday. The Maharashtra-Andhra border areas have been sealed, officials said. The five injured have been brought to Raipur by helicopter for better treatment. Special Director General (Naxal Operation and Special Intelligence Bureau) D.M. Avasthi told reporters that 110 jawans from Battalion 219 of the Central Reserve Police Force were on a road opening duty when they were ambushed near Kotacheru village in Bhejji of Sukma district, in tribal Bastar region. "The ambush was followed by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack in which 11 jawans died," Avasthi said. The Maoists also looted 11 rifles from the jawans killed in the two-hour long gunfight, which is ongoing. Inspector General of Police for Bastar Range Sunderaj P. said the bodies of the jawans killed -- Assistant Sub-Inspector Hiralal Jangde, Constables Narendra Kumar Singh, Mangesh Pandey, Rampal Singh Yadav, Gorakhnath, Nandkumar Atram, Satish Chandra Verma, K. Shankar, V.R. Mandey, Jagjit Singh and Suresh -- have been brought to Bhejji police station. Condoling the deaths, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: "Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly." "Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said. The Home Minister said: "Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased." Praising the personnel who died, Chief Minister Raman Singh said: "The CRPF jawans have displayed immense courage and indomitable spirit." Congress President Sonia Gandhi strongly condemned the killing of the CRPF men and described it as a dastardly and cowardly act. She saluted the sacrifice of the CRPF men "for their supreme and unforgettable sacrifices" and said her thoughts and prayers were with the families of the victims. "India stands united in fight against the terrorism and the government should give a befitting reply to the forces spreading terror in India", she added in a message, according to tweets by the Congress party. --IANS hindi-vgu-ao/rn ( 381 Words) 2017-03-11-17:34:09 (IANS)
A key Opposition leader and known votary of anti-Narendra Modi politics, Omar Abdullah today sought to caution about the impending political challenge, saying there was hardly any leader "with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi".The National Conference leader and the former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir in a series of tweets, said, "In a nutshell there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi & the BJP in 2019".Mr Abdullah, who was part of the NDA-1 under Atal Bihari Vajpayee and had walked out of the coalition after the Gujarat riots of 2002, also said that criticising the PM will not take the Opposition very far, nor fetch in electoral dividends. The comment could be seen as a veiled attack on top Opposition leaders, including from the Congress, Left and the regional parties, who notwithstanding pursuing anti-BJP politics, have so far failed to create a common platform to fight the saffron party, which particularly is in a resurgent mode electorally, since 2014. Reacting to the winning spree of BJP led by Mr Modi, Mr Abdullah said, "At this rate we might as well forget 2019 & start planning/hoping for 2024".He also said, "I've said this before & I'll say it again the voter needs to be given an alternative agenda that is based on what we will do better. Criticising the PM will only take us so far. The voter needs to know there is an option available to them that has a clear +ve road map".Terming the landslide victory of BJP in UP as "tsunami" the National Conference leader said, "How the hell did almost all the experts/analysts miss this wave in UP? It's a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond".Stating that this victory would have implications in the Rajya Sabha and the Presidential elections, Mr Abdullah said, "Positives for BJP - obviously UP & Uttarakhand & the overwhelming mandate. Implications for Rajya Sabha & President V/President elections".The former Chief Minister further went on to say, "All our elections are won with a first-past-the-post arithmetic & let's not deny that BJP has clearly won the hearts of the majority of UP".BJP today swept Uttar Pradesh polls by leading 324 seats, which is a record in the history of the state. UNI RBE-DEVN RJ 1923 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0427-1185166.Xml
The results of the assembly polls to five states, especially Uttar Pradesh, appear to mostly have accentuated difficulties for the Congress and raised questions about party Vice President Rahul Gandhi's electoral appeal but also provided a ray of hope for the party for its revival. The Congress was decimated in Uttar Pradesh - the home state of its chief Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi - and faced a severe drubbing in Uttarakhand where it was in power. But while finishing as the single largest party in Manipur, where it was in power, as also in Goa, its main comfort came from Punjab where it performed credibly under the leadership of state chief Capt Amarinder Singh, scoring its first major victory after its debacle in the 2014 Lok Sabha election. The party's decimation in Uttar Pradesh - the country's most populous and electorally significant state - has serious implications for the party's ambition to emerge as a credible alternative to the BJP in the 2019 general elections. Uttar Pradesh sends 80 MPs to parliament and the Congress has been reduced to a lowly fourth position with only seven assembly seats and 6.2 percent vote share. It failed to perform credibly in Amethi and Rae Bareli, parliamentary constituencies of Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi. The party could not stop the BJP from coming to power in the state despite abandoning its plan to contest on its own and allying with the Samajwadi Party to contest 105 of the 403 assembly seats. There have been several worrying factors for the Congress including the BJP's sustained efforts to woo poorer sections that have traditionally supported the Congress, while also making deep inroads in Congress bastions in the northeast. The BJP is also set to increase its numbers in the Rajya Sabha where the party-led central government lacks a majority. With Sonia Gandhi keeping away from the campaign for the five states due to ill-health, the elections were very much about Rahul Gandhi's ability to steer the party's fortunes. He campaigned extensively in Uttar Pradesh but the issues he raised including demonetisation and his efforts at portraying Prime Minister Narendra Modi as "pro-rich" did not find resonance with the people. The Congress performed better in states where it has a strong state leader. In Punjab, Capt Amarinder Singh led an effective campaign while in Manipur, Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh put up a strong fight. The party also fared better in Goa where it had fielded several former Chief Ministers. The victory in Punjab has provided the Congress an opportunity to rebuild itself and prepare forcefully for polls in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh at the end of the year. The Aam Aadmi Party's defeat in Punjab and Goa will also help the Congress in BJP-ruled Gujarat. Analysts said that the Congress winning Punjab was not a great consolation and Modi had improved his chances in the 2019 elections after the BJP's unprecedented victory in Uttar Pradesh Political commentator and senior journalist S. Nihal Singh said Uttar Pradesh was a minus point for Rahul Gandhi as his campaign was not too effective. "It is a defeat for him in that sense. Congress dilemma is clear because its leadership is one from family traditionally. That is his (Rahul's) plus point in the sense of keeping the party together. The minus point is that if you have a person who is not a politician by heart and is slow in learning the job, then obviously you are stuck," Nihal Singh told IANS. "I do not see any immediate solution to this problem," he added. Subrata Mukherjee, a political analyst who has taught at Delhi University, said that the Congress was down but not out and has to look beyond the dynasty to find a way out of its present "crisis" as Rahul Gandhi lacks credibility among the masses. "He is taken as a chocolate leader. It is time for Congress to go beyond dynasty," Mukherjee said. An option for the Congress was to make an arrangement where Rahul Gandhi heads the party while there is a different prime ministerial candidate, Mukherjee added. Congress leaders talked of introspection in the wake of the results in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand but noted that results in Punjab, Goa and Manipur were a lesson to those who spoke of "Congress Mukt Bharat (Congress-free India)". They said the party requires fundamental rethinking of strategies but also noted that the BJP had sought to communalise the campaign in Uttar Pradesh. Rahul Gandhi, in his response to the poll verdict, said the party will continue its fight to win the hearts and minds of the people. (Prashant Sood can be contacted at prashant.s@ians.in) --IANS ps/vd/bg ( 792 Words) 2017-03-11-20:24:07 (IANS)
Police said Elangovan had cultivated paddy on his land after availing loan from the Cooperative bank. The paddy crop withered owing severe drought.

Elangovan was found unconcious on the farm with froth coming out from mouth. He was rushed to a nearby private hospital, where the doctor declared brought dead.

His family members alleged that Elangovan committed suicide due to crop failure and debt. He was in a depressed mood for the past few days, they said.

This is the second case of suicide by a debt-ridden farmer in Tamil Nadu this week. A septuagenarian farmer S.Vembu Krishnan committed suicide by consuming pesticide after being chided by bank officials for non-payment of crop loan at Keezha Pillaiyarkulam village in Tirunelveli district on Thursday. UNI GSM PS 2028

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0421-1185264.Xml
At least 22 civilians were killed on Friday and dozens wounded when a Saudi-led coalition air strike hit a market in western Yemen causing a fire to break out, a local official said.Missiles launched by fighter jets of the Arab alliance hit a market selling the mild narcotic leaf qat, which is popular among Yemenis, near the Red Sea fishing town of Khoukha.Rescue workers on Friday night were battling a blaze in the market caused by the attack and pulling bodies out of the rubble some of which were burnt beyond recognition, according to Hashim Azazi, deputy governor of Hodeidah province."All of those killed were civilians, none were holding weapons," said Azazi.A coalition spokesperson was not immediately available to comment.Khoukha and the nearby city of Hodeidah are controlled by Iran-allied Houthi fighters who in 2014 overran Yemen's capital Sanaa and forced the Saudi-backed government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee into exile.Yemeni government forces backed by Gulf Arab troops recaptured control of the southern Red Sea city of al-Mokha last month in a push that paved the way for an advance on Hodeidah, the country's main port city.The Saudi-led coalition was formed in 2015 to fight the Houthis and troops loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh who have fired missiles into neighboring Saudi Arabia.Friday's attacks were the latest in a series of coalition-led strikes that have hit schools, hospitals, markets and private homes.In December, the coalition acknowledged that it had made "limited use" of British-made cluster bombs, but said it had stopped using them.Nearly half of Yemen's 22 provinces are on the verge of famine, according to the U.N. World Food Programme, as a result of the war that has drawn in regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia. Reuters CJ VP1400 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-1184043.Xml
"In Pakistan and in the world, hate is being spread in the name of Islam. It is the responsibility of religious scholars to free the name of Islam from terrorists," The Dawn quoted Sharif as saying while addressing a seminar.

Sharif also claimed his government had brought the political leadership, the Army and police together, and that the Pakistan's fight against terrorism had brought peace in the country for the most part.

"However, terror incidents continue to happen sporadically. We need religious leaders to come together and help the state eliminate terrorism in this final battle," he added.

Speaking about the chaos spread by what he termed incorrect interpretations of Islam, the PM urged the scholars present to disseminate the "real narrative of peace" through religious seminaries and reject the narratives that preach secular hate and the "distorted concept" of jihad.

He also stressed that religious leaders should preach tolerance. (ANI)
Syrian rebel groups called for the postponement of Russian-backed peace talks in Kazakhstan this month and said further meetings would depend on whether the government and its allies adhered to a newly declared March 7-20 ceasefire.The third round of talks is due to take place in Astana on March 14-15. The previous meetings aimed to shore up a widely violated ceasefire between the sides that was brokered in December by Russia and Turkey, which backs the rebels.Russia backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the conflict, and launched recent diplomatic efforts after its air force helped the Syrian government to defeat rebels in Aleppo in December - Assad's biggest victory of the war.In a statement, the rebels said they had received an invitation to a third round of talks in the Kazakh capital Astana but this should be delayed until after the end of the ceasefire."The continuation of the meetings is linked to an assessment of the results of the ceasefire and commitment to it," the rebel groups said.The rebels said the government and its Iranian-backed militia allies were continuing to bombard opposition-held areas near Damascus, Homs, Deraa and Idlib, and preparing to storm two districts on the outskirts of the Syrian capital.This was going on "before the eyes and ears of the Russian guarantor", the statement said. Russian warplanes had also bombed civilians, it said.The March 7-20 ceasefire was declared by Russia's defence ministry and applies specifically to the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta region near Damascus - one of the areas the rebels said remained under attack.The ceasefires do not include the jihadist group Islamic State or the group formerly known as the Nusra Front, which was al Qaeda's official affiliate in the war until it formally broke off ties last year. REUTERS SHS BL1951 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-1185249.Xml
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said US forces in Syria were "invaders" and he had yet to see "anything concrete" emerge from US President Donald Trump's vow to prioritise the fight against Islamic State.Assad has said he saw promise in Trump's statements emphasising the battle against Islamic State in Syria, where US policy under President Barack Obama had backed some of the rebels fighting Assad and shunned him as an illegitimate leader."We haven't seen anything concrete yet regarding this rhetoric," Assad said in an interview with Chinese TV station Phoenix. "We have hopes that this administration in the United States is going to implement what we have heard," he said.The United States is leading a coalition against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.In Syria, it is working with an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias. Their current focus is to encircle and ultimately capture Raqqa - Islamic State's base of operations in Syria.This week, the US-led coalition announced that around 400 additional US forces had deployed to Syria to help with the Raqqa campaign and to prevent any clash between Turkey and Washington-allied Syrian militias that Ankara sees as a threat.Asked about a deployment of US forces near the northern city of Manbij, Assad said: "Any foreign troops coming to Syria without our invitation ... are invaders.""We don't think this is going to help".Around 500 US forces are already in Syria in support of the campaign against Islamic State.Assad said that "in theory" he still saw scope for cooperation with Trump, though practically nothing had happened in this regard. He dismissed the US-backed military campaign against Islamic State in Syria as "only a few raids", and said a more comprehensive approach was needed.The U.S.-led coalition is currently backing a campaign by its Syrian militia allies to encircle and ultimately capture Raqqa, Islamic State's base of operations in Syria.Assad noted that the Russian-backed Syrian army was now "very close" to Raqqa city after advancing to the western banks of the Euphrates River this week - a rapid gain that has brought it to the frontier of areas held by the U.S.-backed forces.He said Raqqa was "a priority for us", but indicated that there could also be a parallel army attack towards Deir al-Zor in the east, near the Iraqi border. Deir al-Zor province is almost completely controlled by Islamic State, also known as ISIS.The Deir al-Zor region had been "used by ISIS as a route for logistics support between ISIS in Iraq and ISIS in Syria, so whether you attack the stronghold or you attack the route that ISIS uses, it (has) the same result", Assad said.INTELLIGENCE COOPERATION WITH CHINAWith Russian and Iranian military support, Assad firmly has the upper hand in the war with rebels who have been trying to topple him with backing from states including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United States.UN-led peace talks in Geneva ended earlier this month with no breakthrough. Assad said he hadn't expected anything from Geneva. He added that deals brokered locally with rebels were "the real political solutions" since the war began.The so-called local "reconciliation" agreements are the government's preferred method for pacifying rebellious areas, and have often been concluded after years of government siege and bombardment.In some cases, the rebels have been given safe passage to the insurgent-dominated province of Idlib. The opposition says the agreements amount to forced displacement."We didn't expect Geneva to produce anything, but it's a step and it's going to be a long way," Assad said. He added that it would be up to Syrians to decide their future political system, and there would be a referendum on it.Assad also praised "crucial cooperation" between Syria and Chinese intelligence against Uighur militants who have joined the insurgency against him. He said ties with Beijing were "on the rise".China and Russia last month blocked UN sanctions on Syria over accusations of chemical weapons attacks during the war. REUTERS SHS BL2209 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-1185571.Xml
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is expected to address a public meeting in France tomorrow, a local official said, a day after the Netherlands barred his plane from landing in a row over Ankara's political campaigning among Turkish emigres.Cavusoglu is scheduled to speak in Metz, eastern France, an official at the Moselle regional prefecture told Reuters today, adding that there were currently no plans to prevent the meeting from going ahead."Our job is to make sure there's no threat to public order, and there is none," the official said. French police will maintain a protective presence at the eventThe gathering was also announced on Facebook by the Metz chapter of Ditib, a Turkish state-backed Islamic association.Earlier on Saturday, the Netherlands barred Cavusoglu's plane from landing in Rotterdam after the minister declared that he would fly there in spite of a decision by Dutch authorities not to authorize a planned rally.Authorities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland have also banned Turkish campaign events in the escalating dispute.Erdogan, who described the Dutch as "Nazi remnants" after Cavusoglu was turned away, has chafed at Western criticism of mass arrests carried out in the wake of a July coup attempt.Erdogan is looking to Turkish migrs across Europe to help clinch victory in the April 16 vote, which promises to shape the future of Turkey and its role as crucial NATO member in strategic proximity to the Middle East.REUTERS SHS GC2255 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-1185597.Xml
The explosion occurred in a residential building in a district in Ardabil a few days before the Chaharshanbe Suri -- the Iranian festival of fire, Xinhua cited Press TV that quoted Ardabil's chief prosecutor, Nasser Atabati, as saying.

The explosion happened due to the carelessness of a teenager while he was producing handmade fireworks and explosives inside the residential building.

Some materials used for the production of explosives were found beneath the rubble, Atabati said.

The teenager and six other family members were killed and four others were injured.

Chaharshanbe Suri is an Iranian festival celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday before Iranian new year or Nowruz.

During the Chaharshanbe Suri celebrations, Iranians traditionally jump over bonfires and set off firework.

This year's Nowruz falls on March 21.

--IANS sku/

( 161 Words)

2017-03-12-01:08:07 (IANS)
Muhammad Ali Jr, who spoke with members of Congress about being detained at a Florida airport last month, arrived at Reagan National Airport in Washington on Friday for a flight to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, New York Times reported.

He gave his Illinois identification card to an agent to get his boarding pass, said his lawyer, Chris Mancini, who was travelling with him.

Almost immediately, Ali was told that there was a problem and that the agent needed to call the Department of Homeland Security, Mancini was quoted as saying.

Ali was asked his date of birth, where he was born and his Social Security number. He was told that his Illinois-issued identification card was invalid for flying.

"The same state ID from Illinois that he travelled to Washington on was rejected," Mancini said.

Ali then produced his passport, which was accepted and went through security and boarded the flight with his mother.

--IANS sku/

( 186 Words)

2017-03-12-03:20:08 (IANS)
BRUSSELS, March 10 (Xinhua)-- The European Union (EU) will strengthen its trade ties with China in a bid to maintain its economic recovery against a backdrop of rising protectionism, a conclusion document released by the President of the European Council showed on Friday.

"Trade relations with China should be strengthened on the basis of a shared understanding of reciprocal and mutual benefits," the document read.

The leaders of EU member states are gathered here for a two-day summit on Thursday and Friday to look at a number of the most pressing issues, with growth, jobs and competitiveness at the top of the agenda.

"Trade remains one of the most powerful engines for growth, supporting millions of jobs and contributing to prosperity," the document stressed, adding that the bloc would remain strongly committed to a robust trade policy and an open and rules-based multilateral trading system with a central role for the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The leaders welcomed the positive vote in the European Parliament on the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), saying it was "a clear signal at a time when protectionist tendencies are re-appearing."

The leaders agreed that the bloc should continue to engage actively with its international trade partners. The single-market bloc said it would resolutely advance on all ongoing negotiations for free trade agreements, including with the regional trade bloc Mercosur, Mexico and Japan.

At the same time, the leaders stressed in the conclusion that the EU had to equip itself with modernized, WTO-compatible tools to tackle unfair trade practices and market distortions.

"We will not hesitate to defend ourselves against unfair trading practices, wherever necessary. We want to set the global standard for free and fair trade," European Council President Donald Tusk said at press conference after the first-day of discussions.

Besides, EU priority measures for growth, the single market strategy, including digital markets and the banking union are among the topics being debated by EU leaders at the two-day summit.

"Economic growth has now returned to all 28 member states and the outlook is encouraging, both for the euro area and the EU overall," the document said, stressing that the benefits of economic growth needed to be "spread more widely and fairly."

Uncertainties persist, however, and the leaders underlined the importance of ensuring the sustainability of the recovery.

"To this end, structural reforms aimed at modernising our economies must be pursued, public finances strengthened and investment promoted, including through the swift extension of the European Fund for Strategic Investments, also with a view to making special efforts to fight unemployment in member states with particularly high levels," the document read.
NEW DELHI, March 10 (Xinhua) -- The Indian parliament has passed a law that increases paid maternity leave from the previously granted 12 weeks to 26 weeks, officials said Friday.

The bill was passed on Thursday by India's lower house of parliament (Lok Sabha) nine months after the upper house (Rajya Sabha) approved it.

"With this new law, working women will now be able to avail the 26-week leave," an official said. "This 26-week leave will be applicable only for their first two children and beyond that they will be entitled to just 12 weeks of paid leave."

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday described the legislation of the bill as a "landmark moment."

"Passage of the Maternity Benefit Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha is a landmark moment in our efforts toward women-led development," Modi wrote on twitter.

"Maternity Benefit Amendment Bill ensures better health and wellbeing of the mother and child. Increase in maternity leave is a welcome provision."

The new law will apply to all establishments employing 10 or more people and also requires every establishment with 50 or more employees to provide creche facilities within a prescribed distance.

"Employment of women is protected thanks to Maternity Benefit Amendment Bill. Mandatory provision of creche in offices is laudable," Modi said.

The bill will benefit about 1.8 million women in India.

India's Labor Minister Bandaru Dattatreya who brought amendments to the old law - Maternity Benefit Act - said the law was "a humble gift" to women.

"This is my humble gift to women, a day after the world celebrated the International Women's Day," Dattatreya said in parliament.

The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, protects the employment of women during the time of her maternity to take care for her child and entitles her to full pay during the absence from work.

India's maternity leave is now the third longest duration in world, after Canada and Norway, which give 50 and 44 weeks respectively.

The bill will be sent for presidential assent to become a law, which is a mere formality.
ISTANBUL, March 10 (Xinhua) -- A commercial utility helicopter went down on Friday in Istanbul, killing all the seven onboard including four Russian nationals, the mayor said.

Mayor Kadir Topbas disclosed the figure at an event. Five were confimed dead earlier in the day in the tragedy, in which the ill-fated copter, a Sikorsky S-76 owned by a private company, crashed in the outlying district of Beylikduzu.

The helicopter was carrying two pilots, two female and three male passengers, press reports said.

According to Turkey's Ministry of Transport, Maritime and Communications, the copter crashed after hitting a TV tower.

Heavy fog was reported in the disaster area, but the ministry said weather conditions were normal at the time off takeoff.

Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin told the press earlier that the mishap occurred about five minutes after the chopper took off from the city's Ataturk Airport.
ARUSHA, Tanzania, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Villagers in Tanzania's western district of Nkasi have been living in fear following the invasion of hippopotamuses strayed from the shores of Lake Tanganyika, authorities said Friday.

Kanchui is one of the affected villages with hippos in the district located few kilometers from Lake Tanganyika, the world's second deepest lake after Lake Baikal in Siberia.

Richard Salezi, a resident of Kanchui village said that hippos have been roaming around the village for the past three weeks now.

He said: "People have been living in fears due to the increasing number of hippos that have been damaging our rice farms."

"As villagers, we want the animals confined within their habitat so as to give us room to continue with our farming activities uninterrupted."

"We are forced to go inside our houses as early as 5 p.m. for fear of our lives. Hippos have been storming into our homes every evening, putting our lives in danger," he stressed.

Salezi said the challenge for the villagers is that they are not allowed to kill these animals as the law is on hippos' side. "We're appealing to the responsible authorities to protect us from hippos that have so far destroyed our properties."

A local leader in the area, Asante Lubisha said that the hippos stray from the shores of Lake Tanganyika and causing destruction.

"I have informed district authorities on the new challenge, but there is no quick response," said Lubisha, who is also the Kabwe Ward Councilor.

Said Mtanda, Nkasi District Commissioner also confirmed on the hippos invasion, saying his office has already dispatched a team of wildlife experts to addressing the challenge, by ensuring that the animals are chased into their sanctuaries, without causing harm to villagers.

He urged villagers to be careful with hippos, pledging that the government will end the problem very soon.

Nkasi is one of western Tanzania's districts located on the shores of Lake Tanganyika which is shared by Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Zambia.

After the elephant and rhinoceros, the common hippopotamus is the third-largest type of land mammal and the heaviest extant artiodactyl. Enditem
DAR ES SALAAM, March 10 (Xinhua) -- A lightning strike on Friday killed five people, including two pupils, in Tanzanian southern region of Lindi, local official said.

The lightning strike followed heavy rains that were accompanied by strong winds, said Shaibu Ndemanga, the Lindi District Commissioner.

Ndemanga added that three people were admitted to hospital following injuries they sustained after a roof of their house collapsed due to the strong winds.

Ndemanga said at least 53 houses were destroyed by the rains leaving at least 250 families homeless.

Juma Mohamed, chairman of Muungano Primary School Committee, said the rains destroyed five classrooms of the school leaving at least 500 pupils stranded with no classrooms.

He said following the incident, the school was forced to close down to pave way for rehabilitation of the classrooms.

"We don't know how long the exercise will take, but we hope to do the repairs as quickly as possible," said Mohamed. Enditem
European Council President Donald Tusk (R) and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker attend a joint press conference after the European spring summit in Brussels, Belgium on march 10, 2017. The leaders reportedly discussed how the EU should function in the future and how to maintain unity amid severe political and migration pressures during the two-day summit. (Xinhua/Gong Bing)

BRUSSELS, March 10 (Xinhua) -- A two-day summit of European Union (EU) leaders and heads of state here concluded on Friday, but the fierce debate on the direction of Europe is likely to continue for a longer time.

TUSK'S JOB ROW

Polish fury over the re-election of European Council President Donald Tusk overshadowed the two-day EU summit.

Tusk was given the green light to continue in the post until 2019 despite fierce opposition by the Polish government, which had put forward its own candidate.

Afterwards, French President Francois Hollande said: "I don't see how one country could oppose this solution when all the others are in favor."

But Poland's government argued that Tusk supported the domestic opposition in Poland and has failed to protect the country's interests in the EU.

Speaking on Friday, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo refused to accept the summit's conclusion to reappoint Tusk, saying "Poland doesn't agree with this. And I definitely won't accept any document from this summit."

Instead of the traditional conclusions by the European Council, there were merely conclusions "by the President of the European Council." As such, the summit ended without the customary accord on a final document.

DEBATE ON EU FUTURE

After Thursday's decision to reappoint Tusk, prime ministers and presidents of 27 EU members states reassembled for a second day after British Prime Minister Theresa May had left.

EU leaders were meeting for the first time in the Europa building, a new 321-million-euro (341 U.S. dollars) summit venue in Brussels decorated so as to symbolize the "united patchwork" of Europe.

However, when the bloc approached the subject of the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, which paved the way of European integration, the debate on which path the post-Brexit EU should follow became increasingly fierce.

Some EU member states, such as France, Germany, Spain and Italy are calling for a multi-speed Europe, wherein some members could deepen their integration faster than others. However, the bloc's eastern members, who fear they will be excluded from deeper integration in the future, are against the idea.

The divergence was also seen between the EU institutions. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said a multi-speed EU scenario was not going to create an "iron curtain" in Europe.

"(For) some of our colleagues, this (multi-speed Europe) is seen as introducing a new dividing line, a new kind of iron curtain between the east and west. That's not the intention," Juncker said at a press conference with Tusk on Friday.

However, Tusk, who chaired the debate on Friday, urged EU member states to strive towards maintaining political unity after Brexit.

"When discussing the various scenarios for Europe, our main objective should be to strengthen mutual trust and unity among 27," Tusk said at the press conference.

Talking about the "multi-speed" version of future, Tusk said he understood the reasons for the debate.

"However, considering the interests of the community of 27 countries in the context of the upcoming Brexit negotiations as well as the long-term strategic interests of the EU, I will be urging everyone to strive towards maintaining political unity among the 27."

"It is clear from the debate that the unity of the 27 will be our most precious asset," he stressed.

As no document on the future of Europe emerged from the meeting of 27 EU leaders on Friday, the debate on the issue is likely to continue. The picture may only become a little clearer later this month when EU's leaders minus Britain are due to make a declaration on Europe's future at the Rome summit, in which they are expected to set out a post-Brexit road map.

BREXIT CHALLENGE AHEAD

The summit was the last attended by Theresa May before she triggers Article 50 at the end of this month, the start of a two-year process that will see the UK leave the EU, and Brexit cast a long shadow over proceedings.

Since the Brexit referendum in June 2016, the British government has so far refused to offer any formal reassurance to the 3.1 million EU citizens living in the UK, insisting it could harm its effort to secure the rights of the 1.2 million British nationals estimated to be living in other EU countries.

On the margins of the summit, the chief Brexit negotiator at the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, said British citizens should be allowed to keep the benefits of EU membership.

Speaking on Friday, Verhofstadt said allowing individuals to keep rights, such as freedom to travel and vote in European elections should be a priority.

The former Belgian prime minister said Brexit had been a "tragedy" and a "disaster" for people in the UK and EU.

Meanwhile, Juncker hinted at the possibility of readmitting Britain as EU member, saying he hoped Britain would one day rejoin the union.

"I do not like Brexit, because I would like to be in the same boat as the British. The day will come when the British will re-enter the boat, I hope," he said.

ECONOMY AND OTHER ISSUES

During the summit, the leaders noted that for the first time in almost a decade, all 28 EU economies were expected to grow over the next two years. They agreed that this "good outlook" needed to be sustained by continued structural reform efforts and "determined action."

"Trade remains one of the most powerful engines for growth, supporting millions of jobs and contributing to prosperity," a conclusion document released by Tusk read, adding that the bloc would remain strongly committed to a robust trade policy and an open and rules-based multilateral trading system with a central role for the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The leaders welcomed the positive vote in the European Parliament on the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), saying it was "a clear signal at a time when protectionist tendencies are re-appearing."

The leaders agreed that the bloc should continue to engage actively with its international trade partners. The single-market bloc said it would resolutely advance on all ongoing negotiations for free trade agreements, including with sub-regional trade bloc Mercosur, Mexico and Japan.

"Trade relations with China should be strengthened on the basis of a shared understanding of reciprocal and mutual benefits," the document stressed.

At the same time, the leaders stressed in the conclusion that the EU had to equip itself with modernized, WTO-compatible tools to tackle unfair trade practices and market distortions.

"We will not hesitate to defend ourselves against unfair trading practices, wherever necessary. We want to set the global standard for free and fair trade," Tusk said.

In addition, EU priority measures for growth, migration, and the situation in Western Balkans were among the topics debated by EU leaders at the two-day summit.
Indigenous people from numerous tribes attend a protest in Washington D.C., the United States, on March 10, 2017. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

WASHINGTON, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of protesters, many of whom are Native Americans, took to the streets in Washington D.C. on Friday to oppose a pipeline project which they say may harm the environment.

"Water is sacred," protesters of the Native Nations Rise march chanted as they proceeded down the Pennsylvania ave in a light drizzle, demanding the U.S. government retract a decision to lay the 1,172 mile long Dakota Access Pipeline which cuts across the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's reservation.

Indigenous people from numerous tribes attend a protest in Washington D.C., the United States, on March 10, 2017.(Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

The longstanding debate over the project has rallied environmental conservationists and other Native American tribes to join the demonstration, and pressured former President Barack Obama to temporarily stall the project, before U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the construction to resume in the first days of his tenure.

"We came here to protect mother Earth," Ronald Day of the Swinomish Tribe said, "We are also concerned about the conservation of the Salish Sea area," Day said, referring to a network of coastal waterways adjacent to the Swinomish historical lands north of Seattle, Washington.

Indigenous people from numerous tribes attend a protest in Washington D.C., the United States, on March 10, 2017.(Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

Ricky Boyd, who is from the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe tribe in Minnesota, said "lots of nations came out today to honor their land and their beliefs, because not just the Dakota Pipeline but projects of all over are threatening the environment."

Indigenous people from numerous tribes attend a protest in Washington D.C., the United States, on March 10, 2017.(Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

The Dakota Access Pipeline is an underground oil project that begins in Northwest North Dakota and runs Southeast to Patoka, Illinois. The project is 87 percent complete but a portion in the Standing Rock Indian Reservation, which was blocked by local Native Americans citing environmental concerns.
File photo: U.S. President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address after he was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States during the presidential inauguration ceremony at the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C., the United States, on Jan. 20, 2017. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

By Matthew Rusling

WASHINGTON, March 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump may have trouble pushing his healthcare revision through his own party, as the Republican Party (GOP) has blasted Trump's plan as a watered down version of the Obamacare that they dislike, experts said.

Democrats and opponents have blasted the new president on a number of fronts. At the same time, some in the Republican establishment also criticize the New York billionaire on parts of his agenda.

The latest of those is Trump's healthcare re-vamp, which revises former President Barack Obama's healthcare overhaul. The plan, known as Obamacare, has been heavily criticized by Republicans since it was passed several years ago.

Now, the GOP is upbraiding Trump's plan as "Obamacare light" -- a watered down version of the plan that supporters dislike.

Trump is going to have difficulty getting the healthcare bill through Congress. It is being blasted by GOP conservatives as too liberal and not a meaningful repeal of Obamacare, Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua.

"They are upset that it likely will cost more while insuring fewer people," West said.

"As of right now, it does not appear the bill has the votes to pass. What likely will happen are amendments that ease some of the concerns that Republicans have. Democrats are likely to vote 'no' across the board, since nearly all of them support Obamacare as a preferred alternative. They do not like the cutbacks on service and the high price tag of the GOP alternative,"West said.

The Republican bill seems to have many of the negative features of Obamacare without its positive features. There are estimates that as many as 10 million Americans will lose health insurance and that premiums likely will go up by quite a bit.

"That negates the supposed benefits of repealing Obamacare," West said.

Obamacare has long been a major source of contention between Democrats and Republicans. The GOP has said it would repeal and replace the law, but experts have maintained that doing so might not be so easy.

The landmark legislation was seen as part of Obama's legacy, as the controversial health care plan aims to get health insurance to millions of low income people. But critics have blasted the plan as imposing unfair and very expensive tax burdens on the middle class.

Pushing "Obamacare light" might also put Trump in hot water with the very supporters who cast their ballots for him in November.

The law is seen by many Trump supporters as yet another example of what they say is government overreach and meddling in the private affairs of citizens.

One problem is that each provision of Obamacare affects big parts of the health sector. Getting rid of Obamacare may lead people without insurance to go to hospital emergency rooms for medical care. This will create enormous financial problems for hospitals, some experts said.

The Obamacare stipulates that all Americans must purchase healthcare coverage or pay a fine, a very controversial measure that critics have blasted as government inappropriately overstepping its boundaries.

Related:

U.S. Republicans unveil bill to replace Obamacare

WASHINGTON, March 6 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Republican Party (GOP) on Monday unveiled a healthcare bill that it says will replace the Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act (ACA), taking a step further in trashing what former President Barack Obama hoped would be his biggest legacy.
With the Midterm Elections less than one week away: What do you consider the top issues that you will be voting on to be corrected by your better representation?

Education Crime Big Government getting Bigger Biden /Democrat controlled Spike in Energy Cost Inflation created by Legislation of Majority in Power Gender Reassignment Corrupted Bureaucratic /Service (DOJ, FBI, etc.) Institutions Abortion Discredited Legacy Media Ending the Corruption of Dishonest Politicians Corruptive Influence of Social Media Wide Open Southern Border
MANAGUA, March 10 (Xinhua) -- A captain in Nicaragua's army died Thursday in a firefight with drug traffickers in the country's Southern Caribbean region, the army announced in a statement on Friday.

The statement said that Captain Manuel Javier Gutierrez and his soldiers had engaged a drug trafficking gang which was seeking to establish a base in the region.

Tragically, Gutierrez lost his life in the municipality of Punta Gorda during an operation to track and capture gang members in the area.

"The Army of Nicaragua will continue following the containment wall strategy, which is the first strategic ring of our national security. It has as its objective to contain, divert and capture a large quantity of drugs ...to avoid the circulation of the same in populatd areas. This will avoid serious impacts on our security," read the statement.

Central American countries are an important corridor for drug, weapon and people smuggling. The Nicaraguan army is currently carrying out a number of campaigns as part of its "containment wall" strategy to fight back against these crimes.
U.S. President Donald Trump attends a healthcare meeting with key House Committee Chairmen at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 10, 2017. (Xinhua/REUTERS)

By Matthew Rusling

WASHINGTON, March 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump may have trouble pushing his healthcare revision through his own party, as the Republican Party (GOP) has blasted Trump's plan as a watered down version of the Obamacare that they dislike, experts said.

Democrats and opponents have blasted the new president on a number of fronts. At the same time, some in the Republican establishment also criticize the New York billionaire on parts of his agenda.

The latest of those is Trump's healthcare re-vamp, which revises former President Barack Obama's healthcare overhaul. The plan, known as Obamacare, has been heavily criticized by Republicans since it was passed several years ago.

Now, the GOP is upbraiding Trump's plan as "Obamacare light" -- a watered down version of the plan that supporters dislike.

Trump is going to have difficulty getting the healthcare bill through Congress. It is being blasted by GOP conservatives as too liberal and not a meaningful repeal of Obamacare, Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua.

"They are upset that it likely will cost more while insuring fewer people," West said.

"As of right now, it does not appear the bill has the votes to pass. What likely will happen are amendments that ease some of the concerns that Republicans have. Democrats are likely to vote 'no' across the board, since nearly all of them support Obamacare as a preferred alternative. They do not like the cutbacks on service and the high price tag of the GOP alternative,"West said.

The Republican bill seems to have many of the negative features of Obamacare without its positive features. There are estimates that as many as 10 million Americans will lose health insurance and that premiums likely will go up by quite a bit.

"That negates the supposed benefits of repealing Obamacare," West said.

Obamacare has long been a major source of contention between Democrats and Republicans. The GOP has said it would repeal and replace the law, but experts have maintained that doing so might not be so easy.

The landmark legislation was seen as part of Obama's legacy, as the controversial health care plan aims to get health insurance to millions of low income people. But critics have blasted the plan as imposing unfair and very expensive tax burdens on the middle class.

Pushing "Obamacare light" might also put Trump in hot water with the very supporters who cast their ballots for him in November.

The law is seen by many Trump supporters as yet another example of what they say is government overreach and meddling in the private affairs of citizens.

One problem is that each provision of Obamacare affects big parts of the health sector. Getting rid of Obamacare may lead people without insurance to go to hospital emergency rooms for medical care. This will create enormous financial problems for hospitals, some experts said.

The Obamacare stipulates that all Americans must purchase healthcare coverage or pay a fine, a very controversial measure that critics have blasted as government inappropriately overstepping its boundaries.
LONDON, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Zookeepers at Britain's Chester Zoo released Friday the first pictures of a new baby Sulawesi crested macaque, one of the world's most endangered primates.

The tiny youngster named Amidala, has been born at the zoo in northern England to mum Lisa and dad Mamassa.

It was dad Mamassa's fourth offspring since arriving at the zoo in 2015, with officials saying he had become an instant hit with female members of the species at the zoo.

Just 5,000 of the monkeys remain living in the wild, with conservationists from Chester Zoo working with local communities in Sulawesi to help protect forests and the species who live there.

Officials at the zoo described Amidala's birth in January as a welcome boost to the European endangered species breeding program that is working to protect the charismatic monkeys, which are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

A spokesman at the zoo said the illegal wildlife trade and large scale habitat loss, due to illegal logging on its native island of Sulawesi in Indonesia, has pushed the Sulawesi macaque to the edge of extinction, with fewer than 5,000 now estimated to remain.

The species' wild number is believed to have plummeted by around 80 percent in the last 30 years.

The zoo spokesman added: "The new arrival at the zoo increases the number of Sulawesi crested macaques living in its islands habitat to 18, including four offspring for new dad Mamassa..."

"Sulawesi crested macaques are known for maintain relationships by grooming one another and communicating with grunts. They smack their lips as a greeting sign," said the spokesman.
by Hummam Sheikh Ali

DAMASCUS, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The United States seems to have chosen the Kurdish-led Syrian rebel fighters to be the force capturing Syria's northern city of Raqqa from the hands of the Islamic State (IS) group.

During the course of the six-year-old war in Syria, the United States supported several rebel groups, which it called "moderates," but such groups failed to live to the exceptions, in part due to their direct or indirect links to the jihadi-themed rebel groups, and due to their failure in scoring a victory against the IS militants.

But when Kurdish People Protection Units (YPG) emerged as reliable factions, the U.S. opted to render support to this group, and allied rebel fighters, which emerged later, such as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which comprises of Kurds, Arabs and Assyrians.

Such groups have apparently been favored by the U.S., largely because they are consistent, organized, and more importantly have no jihadi background or religious motive behind their cause, Ahmad Ashqar, a Syrian journalist, told Xinhua.

The U.S. backed the YPG in 2015 to recapture areas that fell to the IS in predominantly-Kurdish areas in the northern countryside of Syria's Aleppo province in northern Syria.

The YPG with the support of the U.S.-led anti-terror coalition succeeded to recapture almost all Kurdish areas that had fallen to the IS in northern Syria, and also spread further to have a bigger goal, which is eliminating the IS presence in any Syrian area, including Raqqa, the de facto capital of the terror-designated group.

Last year, the SDF, a YPG-supported group, announced a wide-scale offensive against IS positions near Raqqa, and the initial stage of the battles was to capture areas in the northern countryside of Raqqa, to separate the city from its countryside.

The battles continued for months, until recently, when the SDF with the air cover of the U.S.-led coalition succeeded to cut the road between Raqqa and the IS positions in Deir al-Zour province in eastern Syria on March 6.

With the advance of the SDF, the IS has lost all routes out of Raqqa, save for one through the Euphrates River, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group.

When that the near-besiege of IS in Raqqa was achieved, Washington sent military gears to the Kurdish-led groups and deployed forces on ground near the city of Manbij in Aleppo countryside to defuse the tension between the Kurdish-led groups and the Turkish-backed ones and to support the campaign toward Raqqa.

The Washington Post said several hundred U.S. Marines have been deployed to Raqqa to assist local forces on the ground in a bid to recapture the city.

The newspaper said that the troops will help in the upcoming battle to oust IS from Raqqa, adding that U.S. Marines will be temporarily stationed at "an outpost from which they can fire artillery guns."

Their positions will be about 20 miles away from IS-controlled areas.

The deployment of the U.S. soldiers is part of a new plan put forward by the Pentagon recently under the order of U.S. President Donald Trump, who pledged to expand the fight against the militants in Syria, Iraq and beyond, during his presidential campaign.

On Friday, the SDF said they have enough forces to capture Raqqa from the IS with the support of the U.S.-led coalition.

"The number of our forces is now increasing, particularly from among the people of the area, and we have enough strength to liberate Raqqa with support from the coalition forces," the SDF spokeswoman, Jihan Ahmed, said.

The SDF also said that IS started moving top commanders out of Raqqa, in apparent anticipation of tough confrontation and possibly the city falling out of the IS control.

For his part, Colonel Talal Silo, the spokesman of the SDF, told Xinhua in a recent interview that the SDF fighters have become in control of 30 percent of the territory in northern Syria with the help of Washington.

He added that the U.S. forces "are our partners within the anti-terror coalition and they have been with us in all of our operations."

Meanwhile, Rami Abdul-Rahman, the head of the Observatory monitor group, said that the major battle for Raqqa is "very close."

He said his monitor group documented the entry of hundreds of vehicles of the U.S.-led coalition to Syria coming from Iraq and headed toward the countryside of Raqqa.

Abdul-Rahman added that the Kurdish-led groups and the backing U.S. forces have besieged Raqqa from several directions.

He added that the IS brought in 230 fighters from the countryside of Hama province in central Syria and Aleppo in the north in anticipation to the battle.

In Deir al-Zour, the SDF continued to advance against IS in the countryside of that oil-rich province, capturing four towns there on Friday following intense battles with IS, according to local Qasioun newspaper.

The report said the SDF fighters have become four kilometers from the key town of Basra west of Deir al-Zour, and 30 kilometers from the city center, which is under the Syrian government control.

With the advance of the SDF, the Turkish forces and allied rebels of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) have been trying to shell positions of the SDF out of Ankara's reluctant to allow the Kurdish-led groups have any role of capturing more areas in northern Syria and Raqqa, as Ankara wants the rebels its backing to do the mission to curb the advance of the SDF and put down any growing Kurdish influence in northern Syria.

Still, the United States, which is an ally of Turkey also, seemed to have drawn the red lines and made itself clear by deploying forces to back the SDF and separate the SDF from the Turkish-backed rebels to avert any fully-fledged confrontation between both sides.

As for the Syrian army, the SDF operations in Raqqa and elsewhere could be a positive thing since there is an undeclared coordination between both forces, observers say.
UNITED NATIONS, March 10 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Friday welcomed the mediation efforts by the UN special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to bring all warring Syrian parties to a negotiation table and looked forward to the early resumption of the intra-Syrian negotiations in order to end the Syrian crisis, which enters its seventh year this month.

"The members of the Security Council welcomed the conclusion of a further round of United Nations-facilitated intra-Syrian negotiations in Geneva on 3 March 2017," the 15-nation UN body said in a press statement.

"The members of the Security Council looked forward to the early resumption of the intra-Syrian negotiations and encouraged the Syrian parties to return to talks in good faith and to engage constructively and without preconditions on the agenda set out by the UN special envoy when talks resume," the statement said.

After briefing the Security Council, De Mistura told reporters here Wednesday that a new round of Syrian peace talks is set to take place on March 23 in Geneva.

The fourth round of Syrian peace talks ended on Friday with no breakthrough achieved towards reaching a political solution to end the country's six-year war.
UNITED NATIONS, March 10 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Friday welcomed the mediation efforts by the UN special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to bring all warring Syrian parties to a negotiation table and looked forward to the early resumption of the intra-Syrian negotiations in order to end the Syrian crisis, which enters its sixth year this month.
NEW DELHI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- India's national carrier said Friday that one of its passenger aircraft flying to London went off the radar while flying over Hungary and had to be escorted by Hungarian fighter jets.

The Air India flight AI 171, with 231 passengers and 18 crew members on board, lost contact with the Air Traffic Control due to "frequency fluctuation", a spokesperson for the state-owned carrier told the media.

"The flight, which departed from Sardar Vallabhai International Airport, landed safely at London's Heathrow airport with all passengers and crew safe," the spokesperson added.

This is the second such reported incident of an Indian aircraft losing contact with the Air Traffic Control in the European airspace in a month's time.

In February, a flight of the Indian private carrier Jet Airways -- no 9W-118 from Mumbai to London -- had lost communication with the Germany's ATC on its way to Heathrow airport. German fighter jets escorted the Boeing 777 aircraft and communication was restored eventually.

Dramatic footage of the incident was also posted by Aviation Herald website, showing the Jet Airways flight being escorted by two fighter jets -- vapour trails billowing in their wake.
by Xinhua writer Zhong Qun

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- In Xiaotuoluo Village in southwest China's Guizhou Province, women of the Miao ethnic minority sing folk songs while embroidering fish tails, dragon heads and butterflies.

In the Miao tradition, fish tails represent affluence, dragon heads encourage people to reach the top, and butterflies bring luck.

Miao embroidery has a history dating back more than 2,000 years, and is intrinsic to the culture.

Xiaotuoluo is the center of the distinctive art, added to a national list of intangible cultural heritage in 2006.

The craft, however, is little-known and faces a crisis. Poverty has driven many skilled people to seek work far away, allowing the skill to lapse

Cai Qun from Xiaotuoluo has come to Beijing every spring since 2013 as a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC), the country's legislature. This year she wants to draw lawmakers' attention to the "dancing fingers" of the Miao women.

"Many skilled embroiderers leave for big cities but they usually wind up doing simple, repetitive jobs: making toys, shoes and electronics on production lines," Cai said.

"What is worse is that they leave their children and old folks behind to fend for themselves."

Guizhou is home to about 4 million Miao people, 42 percent of the country's entire Miao population, according to the sixth national population census.

Cai, 36, went through some difficult years herself. In 2000, she went to provincial capital Guiyang, to try to earn more money, but ended up picking garbage. She then tried her luck in a factory in Zhejiang Province, but was unhappy and felt trapped.

"I was always tired and making very little money," she recalled. "My daughter was a stranger to me because I was not home taking care of her."

Guizhou had about 875,000 rural "left-behind" children in 2016. More than 10,000 of them were completely alone. Most are taken care of by grandparents or great-grandparents.

Cai is luckier than most of her peers. She won a prize for her embroidery in a 2007 competition to select designs for consumer goods in Guizhou. Inspired, she decided to start her own business and bring women in her hometown together to make embroidered panels for garment manufacturers.

Now, she has her own embroidery company and says business is "good." But she wants do more, so has brought the issue before the national legislature.

The NPC is China's supreme body of state power. Deputies are part-time, come from a range of backgrounds and are considered the key channel for community voices to be heard.

At the annual session, they can submit ideas which can lead to legislation or policy changes. Last year's session received around 460 motions and over 8,600 suggestions.

They also review and vote on important legal documents and personnel changes, including electing the president and vice president of China for five-year-terms.

Cai has submitted several suggestions in the past four years, most related to protection of intangible cultural heritage. This year, her suggestion is about small businesses in rural areas.

"I want to help people find jobs in their hometowns instead of having to go to faraway cities," she said. "In this way, they will not only pass on the art of embroidery, but can stay close to their loved ones."

People in her hometown want to work in embroidery but, without government support, they have almost no choice but to become migrant workers.

Yao Xiaoying, another NPC deputy, agrees. She wore a Miao embroidered blouse to the session this year. The images look like a flower from a distance, but close up, become a butterfly.

"This unique picture is a symbol of Miao culture, and this is a culture which we need to protect," Yao said. "Only through our joint efforts can more people feel its charm."

Yao wants support for such distinctive products, and to use local culture to help people out of poverty. Central and local governments are already taking action.

The ministries of culture and education plan to train 100,000 people to work in intangible cultural heritage by 2020.

Guizhou began support for development of the ethnic handicraft industry in 2013 and has since helped about 500,000 women to find jobs. Last year, it spent 7.5 million yuan (1.1 million U.S. dollars) training 4,000 embroiderers, and more than 10,000 women were freed from poverty.

"I hope that one day, Miao embroiderers will no longer need to leave home to find jobs," Cai said. "They will be happily stitching while singing about their good lives." (Xiang Dingjie and Lv Qiuping contributes to the story)
MADRID, March 10 (Xinhua) -- A new case of mad cow disease was found in Spain, local media reported on Friday.

The Ministry of Agriculture had found a new case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy or mad cow disease, which does not pose a threat to the Spanish health system, according to the Europapress news agency.

The case was indentified in the village of Horcajo Medianero in Salamanca Province. The ministry has informed the World Health Organization.

Mad cow disease causes a degeneration of the brain and spinal cord in cattle, which can be transmitted to humans through eating beef. Britain was seriously affected by an epidemic that also affected other countries, including Spain, where 741 cases were detected between 1995 and 2007.
Collector Hu Shuqing displays her collection of tiger-head shoes in Zhengzhou City of central China's Henan Province, March 10, 2017. Hu collected more than 10,000 tiger-head shoes. This type of shoes is traditional Chinese folk handicraft used as footwear for children with the hope that children will become as robust and dynamic as tigers. (Xinhua/Zhu Xiang)

ZHENGZHOU, March 11 (Xinhua) -- For centuries, tiger-head shoes were all the rage for children in north China, if not the entire country, until about 30 years ago.

Now, like the animal itself, the traditional footwear is on the edge of extinction.

Hu Shuqing, 51, from central China's Henan province, has spent 17 years collecting more than 10,000 pairs of the shoes.

"I will give most of these shoes to public museums, so that our next generation and the one after can see them," she said.

Chinese people began making tiger-head shoes in ancient times. In China, the tiger was seen as king of all animals. People used to believe that its image would protect toddlers from evil.

Some parents told their children a folk tale about the shoes. A wicked official abducted the beautiful wife of a boatman. Missing his mother badly, her son went to see the official in a pair of tiger-head shoes. The official refused to let the woman go and the shoes suddenly turned into two tigers and killed him, so the family were finally reunited.

Tiger-head shoes had many variants. Some people use frogs or peacocks, while others sewed obnoxious animals, including spiders, snakes and scorpions.

Hu was born into a family of paper-cutters, but her mom and grandma both made tiger-head shoes. "My daughter grew up wearing the shoes her grandma made," she said. Back then she was too young to see the shoes as special.

In 2000, she was attracted by a pair of tiger-head shoes at a temple fair, a festival at Chinese New Year which often features performances and folk markets.

"The tigers on the shoes were embroidered according to paper-cutting patterns," she said.

From that day forth, she has collected the shoes, first in Qixian county, her home, then farther and into other provinces like Hebei and Shandong.

Normally she travels between September and December. "Kids wear tiger-head shoes in winter," she said. "They are pretty and warm."

An intangible cultural heritage inheritor herself, Hu earns about 200,000 yuan (about 29,000 U.S. dollars) a year. She spends most of her money on traveling and purchases.

A pair of shoes can cost anything from 12 to 150 yuan, but they are not easy to buy.

She remembers a granny in her 70s in a nearby village. "I visited her three times, but she refused to sell the shoes," Hu said. The granny was making the shoes for her grandson.

"The shoes were handmade and unique." Hu decided to try again. The fourth time, she bought gifts for the family. Touched by her persistence, the granny gave her two pairs.

Four bookshelves and two basement rooms in Hu's home are now piled high with tiger-head shoes, mostly red and yellow.

Women in the countryside normally make tiger-head shoes during off-season for farming. One woman can make more than ten pairs a year.

As China develops, young parents prefer more fashionable clothes and shoes for their children. Even Hu's granddaughter did not wear tiger-head shoes when she was a toddler.

"There are less in demand. As a result, fewer people still want to make them," Hu said.

The craftsmen with best skills are in their 80s or 90s, and even the youngest are over 60. "They are dying out," Hu said with a sigh.

Ten years ago, she met a centenarian at a temple fair. Her nephew was selling the shoes she made, with unusual spider and lizard patterns.

"I liked her shoes so much that I bought six pairs," Hu recalled. "The next year I visited her, only to be told that she had already passed away."

Also an inheritor of cultural heritage, Hu feels the pain. Her 32-year-old daughter is learning paper-cutting, and her five-year-old granddaughter, too. But Hu cannot make tiger-head shoes.

She is worried that the craft may perish along with its inheritors. In the last two years, she has not found a single pair of new shoes.

"Apart from those I am going to give to museums, I will keep some at home, and tell the children the stories behind the shoes."
For many years, I have tried to capture my feelings when a music Icon passes. I usually try to write a contemporaneous note and compile them at end of the year. I do this just as a reminder that all things must pass and musicians mark the mood of the times with their music. The Icons for 2016 are listed in groups below. Click on a group or Navigate from page to page at bottom of each section.

George Michael December 25, 2016

Leon Russell November 13,2016

Okie, Hippie Extraordinaire and Redneck "Mag Dog" Leon Russell is Dead at 74.

I love you in a place where there's no space or time

I love you for my life you're a friend of mine

And when my life is over

Remember when we were together we were alone

And I was singing this song for you.

George Michael and Leon Russell on this page.To a younger generation George Michael and Prince were the poster boys for the changing music scene with George starting his career near the end of Prince's major career. While I was not a fan of either's music, it was perhaps more generational than snobbery, or at least I hope that is the case. Both were talented musicians and performers. It is ironic that they both passed on the same year.Details are still sketchy but indications now are that George passed on Christmas day of an apparent heart attack. Below is the official video release of Faith, which was his biggest hit in 1988.Leon Russell died today, November 13, 2016. He was 74, in failing health for years, yet he continued to play his music where ever he was welcome.Born Claude Russell Bridges in Lawton, Oklahoma, Leon Russell went from studio musician (i.e Beach Boys), to band member (i.e. Joe Cocker), to recording artist, producing 31 albums, as Leon Russell and Hank Wilson, exploring genres from rock 'n' roll, blues, country, and poignant ballads. As a rocker, Leon Russell, the pianist and vocalist /songwriter, played with John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Willie Nelson, Elton John and many others.As a recording artist, Leon was such a lion in his formative years making some really great music: "Masquerade", Tight Rope", "Ballad of Mad Dogs and Englishmen", "Lady Blue", "Song for You" "Delta Lady" , a great cover of "Wild Horses" , etc., etc.Leon Russell is one of the acts of my generation that I saw on multiple occasions, and every show was an experience; usually involving an extensive band, a white baby grand piano, and Leon clothed in a white suit, his pre-mature graying hair and beard flowing. These memorable shows gave me everything I wanted and expected, perpetuated my youthful experiences to a near the perpetual youth that I still harbor as an older gentleman, blessed with outstanding fortune of good health.Just tonight, upon hearing of the death of Leon, I whipped out my acoustic guitar, and learned one of my favored ballads, "Song for You" (a favorite of mine with my sweet bride). Now, as an older picking novice, I poignantly play the melody, and sadly sing Leon's now prophetic words:




SANTIAGO, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Finance ministers from Latin America's four-member Pacific Alliance on Friday reaffirmed their commitment to greater integration through free trade.

Gathering in Chile's capital Santiago, finance chiefs from Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Chile, said that the rise in nationalism and protectionism in the United States and other parts of the world was all the more reason to promote open economies and spur international commerce.

"We have a more complicated global scenario that makes macro management especially important," Chilean Finance Minister Rodrigo Valdes said.

The situation calls for "strong management," as well as "defending and pushing for integration, because the truth is that it benefits all of the citizens of our countries," added Valdes.

His Colombian counterpart Mauricio Cardenas noted that the members of the bloc are in a position to further promote integration and counter protectionism.

Alliance member countries outperformed average Latin American economies last year. Our "solid frameworks for managing macroeconomic policy" enabled us to "withstand the fluctuations of the global economy, and "we want to defend this principle of free trade," said Cardenas.

Alliance members also expressed their support for Mexico, which is about to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement with the Trump administration of the United States, which claimed the two-decade deal has unfairly benefited Mexico.

"We can help Mexico negotiate, so that it is not a confrontation, but a negotiation," said Peruvian Finance Minister Alfredo Thorne.

"Issues can be resolved in a peaceful and harmonious way that can lead to greater growth for both economies," Thorne added.

The finance chiefs met in the lead up to the upcoming meeting with their counterparts from the signatory countries of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, scheduled from March 14-15 in Vina del Mar, Chile.
Miao Wei, Minister of Industry and Information Technology, answers questions at a press conference on "Made in China 2025" plan for the fifth session of the 12th National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, March 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Li Xin)



BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese regulator on Saturday offered detailed clarifications on the "Made in China 2025" plan, stressing equal treatment for domestic and foreign companies after a European business group criticized the strategy for discrimination against foreign firms.

"The strategy and its related policies are applicable to all businesses in China, be them domestic or foreign," Miao Wei, minister of industry and information technology, said at a press conference on the sidelines of the annual parliamentary session.

The remarks came after a lengthy report from the European Union Chamber of Commerce claimed that China's support for high-tech manufacturing would lead to worsening treatment of foreign companies, while allowing government-subsidized homegrown players to compete unfairly.

The report said foreign suppliers of electric cars and other goods are under pressure to turn over technology to China.

Miao refuted the accusation, saying entry policies in sectors such as new energy vehicles are not only targeting foreign firms, but domestic businesses alike.

The intention of such policies is to prevent some businesses to cheat on government subsidies, instead of forcing foreign firms to transfer technology to China, Miao explained.

As for the target set for the market share of domestic brands in some sectors, Miao said the government is not "deliberately seeking" such goals when drafting the plan.

The targets are of predictive nature, not mandatory, Miao added, reiterating the decisive role of market and the guiding role of government during the plan's implementation.

The ultimate aim of the "Made in China 2025" plan is to satisfy domestic demand for high-end equipment and industrial goods as Western countries still impose export bans on some of the products to China, he said.
MEXICO CITY, March 10 (Xinhua) -- The government of Mexico's central state of Puebla announced Friday that the police had seized 87 suspects linked to kidnappings and fuel robbery, with the involvement of a mayor and police officers.

According to the government, around 500 police officers joined in the operation in response to the group's killing of three agents from Puebla's anti-kidnapping unit on Thursday.

Puebla's Secretary of the Interior, Diodoro Carrasco, told a press conference that the operation aimed to dismantle the group, thought to be an offshoot of the cartel, Los Zetas, and led by "El Buchanans."

Carrasco revealed that the Mayor of the town Atzitzintla, Jose Isaias Velazquez, and the local police had been offering protection to the gang.

State prosecutor Victor Carranca added that the three agents were investigating a crime which took place in February, when they were turned over to the criminal gang by the local officers. The three were later shot dead in the village of San Jose Cuyachapa, with their bodies abandoned on a road.

Carranca added that "El Buchanans" had managed to escape during the operation early Friday. However, the raid turned up 16 rifles, five handguns, three fragmentation grenades, 4,600 bullets, and 30 vehicles the gang used to steal fuel.

The Puebla government is now preparing to charge those arrested with crimes including homicide, kidnapping and fuel theft.
Miao Wei, Minister of Industry and Information Technology, communicates with journalists after a press conference on "Made in China 2025" plan for the fifth session of the 12th National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, March 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese regulator on Saturday offered detailed clarifications on the "Made in China 2025" plan, saying that accusation by a European business group of discrimination against foreign firms is a misunderstanding.

"The strategy and its related policies are applicable to all businesses in China, be them domestic or foreign," Miao Wei, minister of industry and information technology, said at a press conference on the sidelines of the annual parliamentary session.

The remarks came after a lengthy report from the European Union (EU)Chamber of Commerce claimed that China's support for high-tech manufacturing would lead to worsening treatment for foreign companies, while allowing government-subsidized homegrown players to compete unfairly.

The report said foreign suppliers of electric cars and other goods are under pressure to turn over technology to China.

Miao refuted the accusation, saying entry policies in sectors such as new energy vehicles are not only targeting foreign firms, but domestic businesses alike.

The intention of such policies is to prevent some businesses from cheating on government subsidies, not forcing foreign firms to transfer technologies, Miao explained.

As for the targets set for the market share of domestic brands in some sectors, Miao said the government is not "deliberately seeking" such goals when drafting the plan.

Most of the the targets quoted by the EU group are not in the government plan, but in a greenpaper issued by an expert consultation panel, and the panel had made it clear from the beginning that such targets are of predictive nature, not mandatory, Miao added.

The ultimate aim of the "Made in China 2025" plan is to satisfy domestic demand for high-end equipment and industrial goods as Western countries still imposed export bans on some of the products to China, he said.

"While allowing the market to play its decisive role in developing economy, the government is also playing a role of guidance, which is an international practice," the minister said.

To boost domestic manufacturing, the EU, the United States and Germany have all come up with similar plans in recent years, Miao said, hoping for more bilateral and multilateral exchanges and cooperation in the area.

China introduced the "Made in China 2025" blueprint in May 2015, listing several tasks for the high-tech manufacturing industry, including boosting innovation, fostering Chinese brands and service-oriented manufacturing.
WASHINGTON, March 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to visit the White House soon and told the Palestinian leader that he believes the time has come to make a deal on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the White House said.

In his first phone call with Abbas since he took office, Trump emphasized his "personal belief that peace is possible," according to a White House statement.

"The President noted that such a deal would not only give Israelis and Palestinians the peace and security they deserve, but that it would reverberate positively throughout the region and the world," said the statement.

According to official Palestinian News Agency WAFA, Abbas reiterated to Trump his commitment to peace as a strategic choice to establish the Palestinian state living side by side with the state of Israel.

The White House statement also emphasized the long-lasting U.S. stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that a peace agreement must be negotiated directly between Israel and Palestine.

That took an indirect jab at a UN resolution passed last December that demanded Israel stop building settlements on occupied Palestinian territory to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution.

Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, let pass that resolution in a major departure from the U.S. tradition of shielding Israel from UN reproaches despite then President-elect Trump's adamant opposition.
CHANGCHUN, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Dinosaur tracks have been found in northeast China's Jilin Province, according to an announcement by scientists from China, the Republic of Korea and the United States.

The tracks were found on a rural mountain road in Longjing City in the Korean Autonomous Prefecture of Yanbian, Jilin in August 2015.

"The tracks include footprints of hadrosaurs that are 55 centimeters long. The trackmaker's body could have reached 7 meters long," Xing Lida, associate professor from China University of Geosciences, told Xinhua.

Several tracks of carnivorous dinosaurs were also discovered with various footprint sizes ranging from 43 to 21 centimeters, Xing said.

The discovery will help with research to understand the region's landscape during the Cretaceous period, Xing added.
BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has barred nearly 1,000 entities that have been sanctioned by other leading development banks from participating in its projects.

In its anti-corruption effort, the AIIB has voluntarily adopted the list of sanctioned firms and individuals under the Agreement for Mutual Enforcement of Debarment Decisions (AMEDD), effective on March 1, 2017, according to the China-initiated multilateral development bank.

With the move, firms and individuals that engage in corrupt, fraudulent or other prohibited practices can be blocked by the AIIB, either permanently or for several years.

"Creating a culture that lives up to our core value to be 'clean' is crucial for the AIIB because we are ultimately the stewards of taxpayers' money from all of our members," said Hamid Sharif, director general of the AIIB's compliance, effectiveness and integrity unit.

The AIIB was established in 2015 and started operation in January 2016. With 57 signatory countries and authorized capital of 100 billion U.S. dollars, it aims to provide financing for infrastructure improvement in Asia as a "lean, clean and green" bank.

The AIIB's institutional arrangements help the bank to "react and deal with any suspicions of corruption or unethical behavior in our projects," said Sharif.

During its first year of operation, the bank approved loans of 1.73 billion U.S. dollars to support nine infrastructure projects in seven countries.

In 2017, the AIIB will focus on three major areas -- sustainable infrastructure, cross-country connectivity and the mobilization of private capital -- according to an earlier statement from the bank.
BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- No photos are allowed in the exhibition, so Ou Xiaoyang took out her sketchbook and drew the shadow puppet on display.

It was Saraba, a character from the ancient Indian epic, the Ramayana. In the poem, Saraba aids a prince in his attempt to rescue his wife from a demon king.

The puppet was made on the Indonesian island of Java in the early 19th century.

"I never knew that Indonesia made such beautiful shadow puppets," said Ou, a senior student at Beijing Forestry University.

"I am impressed by the brilliance of many civilizations. They each have their own colors and shapes. But they are interconnected because they all represent humanity's pursuit of beauty," she continued.

The puppet is one of the items which comprise "A History of the World in 100 Objects," a travelling exhibition tour curated by the British Museum, which arrived at the National Museum of China in Beijing on March 1.

This exhibition showcases 100 objects from the British Museum's collection of more than eight million items.

STORIES OF THE WORLD

The selected objects are as diverse as the exhibition's title implies, ranging widely in age and origin: from a 1.8-2 million year-old stone chopping tool from Tanzania's Olduvai Valley, to a 3,000 year-old statue of Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II, to a plastic solar-powered lamp created in China just seven years ago.

The exhibition was inspired by a 100-part radio series made by the British Museum and BBC in 2010. The program was a hit in Britain, achieving 1.1 million listeners at its peak.

In 2011, the British Museum published A History of the World in 100 Objects through Penguin Books, and in 2014 the namesake touring exhibition began in Abu Dhabi.

Thus far the exhibition has visited the United Arab Emirates, Japan and Australia, and the British Museum now invites Chinese audiences to explore this special presentation on the history of the world.

DIALOGUES BETWEEN CIVILIZATIONS

The 100 objects come from five different continents, and span two million years. Together, they create a colorful image of the world.

"Cultures from all around the globe should be represented and be able to be viewed side by side," said Belinda Crerar, exhibition curator from the British Museum.

"We hoped to illustrate how similar concerns and desires have motivated the development of human societies in all parts of the world and are reflected in the objects that they have made," she told Xinhua.

"The exhibition, with this unique approach to history, leads the audiences through the world's close cultural ties and makes them understand the importance of dialogues and mutual respect between civilizations." said Lyu Zhangshen, director of the National Museum of China.

Lyu added that the equality and balance between different civilizations offered wisdom and strength, and will ultimately contribute to global harmony and prosperity.

The National Museum of China added a 101st object to the exhibition -- the wooden hammer and pen used during China's accession to the WTO in 2001.

The final object was selected in collaboration with the host venue, said Crerar. "It allows the exhibition to end with an object that resonates personally with the local audience."

A MAJOR COLLABORATION

In 2012 and 2013, the National Museum of China hosted a porcelain exhibition with the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

In September 2015, before the China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue in Beijing, George Osborne, then British Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced that A History of the World in 100 Objects would be coming to the Chinese mainland, marking the beginning of a new collaboration.

"We have been preparing for this exhibition since then," Yan Zhi, the exhibition curator of the Chinese side, told Xinhua. "This is among those that have taken the longest for the museum to prepare."

Yan said that he was impressed by the professionalism, seriousness and meticulousness of his British colleagues.

"We handle every item with extreme caution," said Karen Birkholzer, senior conservator at the British Museum.

She cited six Lewis chessmen on display, discovered on the Isle of Lewis of Scotland in 1831. The delicate chessmen, fashioned out of walrus ivory during the 12th century, need stable humidity and temperature, requiring the staff to be quick to put them into the gallery case.

"It was a huge pleasure to visit Beijing and to receive such a warm welcome at the National Museum of China. Working with the team there has been a great experience," said Crerar.

She added that it was a real privilege to view the collections in the National Museum of China detailing China's long and rich history.

CULTURAL EXCHANGE

Barbara Woodward, British Ambassador to China, said that the exhibition is an excellent example of positive cultural exchange between China and Britain.

"We have reached a golden era in our global relations," said Woodward.

She paralleled the strong UK-China relationship with a three-legged Chinese Ding (an ancient Chinese bronze vessel): "We have a strong government-to-government relationship; we have a strong economic and business relationship; and we have a relationship that fosters beneficial cultural exchange."

"It's wonderful to see the objects, and it's wonderful to have a chance to think about history: the past, present and future," she told Xinhua.

Woodward also said the Chinese objects in the exhibition "celebrate China's role in global history."

This trip was Birkholzer's first time in Beijing. She expressed her fondness of Chinese civilization, and managed to find time in her busy schedule to visit the Temple of Heaven and the Palace Museum.

"Every culture has something special," she said, adding that she is delighted that audiences around the world have the opportunity to experience the diversity of the world's civilizations.

"The development and innovations of the world's civilizations are grounded on shared aspirations. We have all encountered similar opportunities and similar challenges," said Long Feifei, a sophomore at the Communication University of China.

"No civilization is superior to another and different civilizations should learn from each other and seek the road to common development," she said.

Zhang Ying, an educator and mother of two, brought her sons -- two and nine years old -- to the exhibition.

"I want to impart the importance of history to my children," she said. "Knowledge of history makes a person wise."

"I don't expect them to understand everything at this age. But if they remember traces of the exhibition, it may change their future understanding of the world."
BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese regulators have approved several infrastructure projects funded by public-private partnerships (PPP) to raise funds through securitization, a move that aims to attract private investment to such projects.

The country's stock exchanges have reviewed applications from the first group of nine PPP-funded infrastructure projects that intend to issue securities, and have given the green light to some of them, according to a recent statement from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).

The approved projects include a tunnel construction project that will raise 1.2 billion yuan (174 million U.S. dollars) and a heating project to raise 700 million yuan, said the Shanghai Stock Exchange in a statement.

The Chinese government has encouraged the adoption of PPP, a collaborative investment model between government and private companies, in infrastructure projects amid concerns over heavy local government debt.

Authorities began to allow asset-backed securitization for PPP-funded infrastructure projects in December 2016, exploring a new way of tapping private funds for those projects.

The securitization of PPP-funded projects can help expand funding channels, lower financing costs and better attract private capital, the CSRC said.

By the end of 2016, a total of 11,260 PPP-funded projects were registered, 1,351 projects of which were signed with a combined investment of 2.2 trillion yuan, according to the China Public Private Partnerships Center under the Ministry of Finance.
OTTAWA, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Canada is making it easier for companies to hire highly skilled foreign talent by fast-tracking work-permit applications through a new initiative, announced the federal government on Thursday.

Under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, the "Global Talent Stream" will identify qualified high-demand occupations, help Canadian companies complete the application process to hire top foreign talent and prepare a labor market benefits analysis within 10 business days.

The program aims to ensure that when companies apply to hire skilled workers from abroad, they will demonstrate "how they're building knowledge in Canada," Canadian Labor Minister Patty Hajdu told Xinhua in an interview on Friday.

Once an employer's plan is approved, the work-permit application will be processed in 10 days, and the hired foreign worker could be in Canada within four weeks from the start of the process.

Currently, it can take a Canadian employer up to a year to hire a skilled foreign worker, which can stall a company's growth.

Hajdu told Xinhua the story of Peraso Technologies Inc., who is among the companies expected to benefit from the new program.

The wireless semiconductors designer once tried to import a technician who can help make the company's chips run faster. But the work-permit application got caught up in Ottawa's red tape, and after seven months' waiting, the prospective employee accepted another offer.

"We're trying to prevent situations like that," said the minister.

Hajdu anticipated that the "Global Talent Stream" initiative, which will be launched on June 12, will mainly receive demands from the technology industry.

By 2019, the information and communications sector will expect a need of 182,000 workers in Canada.

Meanwhile, the country's agriculture, forestry, mining and environmental engineering sectors also rely on emerging technology and will have to look overseas for talent, said Hajdu.
Charging fewer 16-year-olds committing minor offenses as adults can prevent crime and save money, sponsors say



Rep. Chuck McGrady, R-Henderson, on Wednesday introduced legislation to raise the age of juvenile offenders. The bill has garnered strong bipartisan and public support. (CJ Photo by Kari Travis)

RALEIGH - Juvenile offenders 16 and older are charged and tried in North Carolina as adults, no matter how minor the offense.State lawmakers call the law outrageous, and Gov. Roy Cooper agrees.House Bill 280, sponsored by Reps. Chuck McGrady, R- Henderson; Duane Hall, D-Wake; Susan Martin, R-Wilson; and David Lewis, R-Harnett; would classify all delinquents with minor offenses - up to the age of 17 - as juvenile offenders.McGrady said in a news conference Wednesday.Republican and Democrat lawmakers packed the legislative conference room in support of raising the age. The juvenile system is designed to prevent repeat offenses by offering counsel to families of troubled teens, McGrady said.North Carolina joins New York as one of two states that continues to charge and prosecute older juveniles as adults.Legislators on multiple occasions have introduced legislation to raise the age, but those bills failed. The debate has gone on for 90 years, lawmakers say.Pushback mostly has centered on concerns over costs to taxpayers, William Lassiter, North Carolina's deputy commissioner of juvenile justice, told Carolina Journal.Some legislators worry aboutLassiter said.he said.New legislation would include only lower-level felonies - petty theft, littering, or drug possession, for example, Lassiter said. Violent crimes such as assault, rape, and murder still would place a 16- or 17 year-old offender under the full judgment of the adult system.Eight thousand 16- and 17-year-old offenders last year faced 20,000 charges, and just 187 from that group were charged with serious or violent offenses. The remaining 7,813 kids would have fared better in the juvenile system, he said.Reform would remove minor juvenile offenses from offenders' permanent records.Lassiter told CJ, pointing to the effect a criminal record has on college and job opportunities.Young people forced into the adult corrections system are often bullied, abused, or recruited by gangs, Lassiter said.Raising the age likely would cost several hundred million dollars over a three- to five-year period, said McGrady. Much of the additional money would go to infrastructure and legal training for law enforcement and juvenile system workers.Such measures may incur long-term savings. Already, a reduction in juvenile crime has saved the state money, Lassiter told CJ.The bill would take effect Dec. 1, 2019.H.B. 280 will see significant support across parties in both the House and Senate, said Rep. Kelly Alexander, D-Mecklenburg.Alexander said.Cooper issued a statement Tuesday afternoon backing the proposal.the governor said.
NEW DELHI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- At least nine Indian security forces personnel were killed in an attack by left-wing Naxalite rebels in the central state of Chhattisgarh on Saturday, a police official said.
COLOMBO, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka sent the largest ever contingent of food and beverage exporting companies to 'Gulfood 2017', the world's largest annual food and drink exhibition event in Dubai, to promote its tea, food.

At the event held at the Dubai World Trade Center, the country used the opportunity to promote its world famous Ceylon Tea and other food-related exports to the UAE and Gulf region as well as other global markets, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement Saturday.

Twenty-three Sri Lankan companies participated in the exhibition displaying their products consisting of various food items under the national pavilion of "Export Development Board of Sri Lanka". Nineteen tea exporting companies also participated under the national pavilion banner of "Sri Lanka Tea Board".

A total 45 tea companies from Sri Lanka participated as exhibitors which was considered as an all-time record for any location in the world, the statement said.

More than 120 countries participated in the Gulfood 2017 and representing these countries, over 5000 exhibitors displayed a range of diverse products at their dedicated national pavilion.

During the five-day event, more than 95,000 business customers representing various food sectors visited the exhibition.
OUAGADOUGOU, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of school teachers on Friday held a silent protest in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou against rising terrorism in the country.

The march was part of a nationwide demonstration called for by the unions of teachers, after a teacher was killed by unidentified gunmen on March 3 in a school in Koursayel village in Soum province close to the border with Mali and Niger.

Teachers marched to the Ministry of National Education and Literacy, where they staged a sit-in to express their anger.

According to bystanders, a similar silent march protest was held in Koloko municipality, 400 km west of Ouagadougou and close to the border with Mali.

Unions demand all public and private schools in Soum be kept safe so as to ensure normal teaching activities.

Beginning this week, public agents of all sectors of Soum province suspended activities for days to protest against the upsurge of terrorism in the area. Some even abandoned their posts, citing threats from the Burkinabe jihadist Malam Ibrahim Dicko.

Malam Ibrahim Dicko had claimed responsibility for several previous attacks in the country. Among those was the one on the Tongomaye and Baraboule police stations in the province on Feb. 27 where one person was injured.

Northern Burkina Faso has been facing an escalation of jihadist attacks over the past few years.
In this file photo taken on Dec. 12, 2012, nurses hug newly born babies at Cama Obless hospital in Mumbai, India. (Xinhua/Stringer)

NEW DELHI, March 10 (Xinhua) -- The Indian parliament has passed a law that increases paid maternity leave from the previously granted 12 weeks to 26 weeks, officials said Friday.

The bill was passed on Thursday by India's lower house of parliament (Lok Sabha) nine months after the upper house (Rajya Sabha) approved it.

"With this new law, working women will now be able to avail the 26-week leave," an official said. "This 26-week leave will be applicable only for their first two children and beyond that they will be entitled to just 12 weeks of paid leave."

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday described the legislation of the bill as a "landmark moment."

"Passage of the Maternity Benefit Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha is a landmark moment in our efforts toward women-led development," Modi wrote on twitter.

"Maternity Benefit Amendment Bill ensures better health and wellbeing of the mother and child. Increase in maternity leave is a welcome provision."

The new law will apply to all establishments employing 10 or more people and also requires every establishment with 50 or more employees to provide creche facilities within a prescribed distance.

"Employment of women is protected thanks to Maternity Benefit Amendment Bill. Mandatory provision of creche in offices is laudable," Modi said.

The bill will benefit about 1.8 million women in India.

India's Labor Minister Bandaru Dattatreya who brought amendments to the old law - Maternity Benefit Act - said the law was "a humble gift" to women.

"This is my humble gift to women, a day after the world celebrated the International Women's Day," Dattatreya said in parliament.

The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, protects the employment of women during the time of her maternity to take care for her child and entitles her to full pay during the absence from work.

India's maternity leave is now the third longest duration in world, after Canada and Norway, which give 50 and 44 weeks respectively.
WENCHANG, Hainan, March 11 (Xinhua) -- A Long March-7 Y2 carrier rocket arrived at a launch center in south China on Saturday in preparation for the launch of China's first cargo spacecraft next month.

After about a week of ocean and rail transport, the carrier rocket arrived at Wenchang, Hainan, where it will undergo assembly and testing prior to the April launch of China's first cargo spacecraft Tianzhou-1, said China's manned space engineering office.

Tianzhou-1 is expected to dock with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab three times and conduct propellent refueling in orbit as well as other space experiments before falling back to earth. Tiangong-2 will remain in orbit and continue its experiments.

The Long March-7 Y2 is a medium-sized rocket that can carry up to 13.5 tonnes to low-Earth orbit. It is able to carry cargo spacecraft and man-made satellites. It made its maiden flight in June 2016.

The launch of Tianzhou-1 will complete the second phase of the country's manned space program, a crucial step for China in building a space station by 2020.
QALAT, Afghanistan, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Insider attack claimed the lives of eight local police in the southern Zabul province in Afghanistan on Saturday, provincial governor Bismillah Afghanmal said.

"Two members of a local police checkpoint in Loi Khara locality of Shinkai district opened fire on their friends early today morning and fled the area," Afghanmal told Xinhua.

According to the official, the attackers apparently had affiliation with the Taliban outfit. Investigation has been initiated into the case.

Local police is community police force composed of villagers to defend their villages against militants in areas where the government forces presence is slim.
YANGON, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Curfew has been imposed on two townships in the Kokang region in Myanmar's northeastern Shan State, which have been hit by armed conflicts.

The information committee of the State Counselor's Office announced Saturday that the curfew took effect in the towns of Laukkai and Gongyang from Friday night from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. local time.

Renewed armed clashes broke out in the Kokang region Monday with the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) launching offensive on the main town of Laukkai, resulting in dozens of casualties including civilians.

At least five traffic police officers and five civilians were killed when the MNDAA attacked police posts and residential area in Laukkai. Four other traffic police officers were taken away by the MNDAA as hostages.

MNDAA attacked Laukkai with small and heavy weapons , destroying some residential buildings, hotels and military camps and burning vehicles.

Government troops have been making area clearance operation following the incident. Security forces found 20 charred corpses of the MNDAA soldiers and 10 pieces of weapons after the attack.

Following the renewed outbreak of armed clashes, nearly 2,000 local residents have fled Laukkai to other nearby towns, taking refuge in 11 relief camps opened in Lashio, Thibaw, Namthu, Kutkai and Muse.

The clashes followed a series of attacks by local armed groups on government military posts in the Shan State in November last year. At least eight people were killed and about 30 others injured, including civilians in those attacks.
SEOUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Almost nine out of 10 South Koreans supported the constitutional court's decision to oust President Park Geun-hye, a local survey showed on Saturday.

The court's Friday ruling permanently removed Park from office. Park became the first South Korean leader to be ousted through impeachment.

According to the Realmeter poll, 86 percent of respondents said the court's ruling was right. Only 12 percent said it was not right, with 2 percent declining to reply.

Even in North Gyeongsang province, a traditional support base for Park and her party, 75 percent saw the court's ruling positively. Among those in their 60s or older, the key supporters for Park, 74.6 percent replied Park's ouster was right.

The result is based on a survey of 1,008 voters conducted Friday. It has 3.1 percentage points in margin of error.

A whopping 92 percent said people should accept the court's decision to uphold the impeachment motion. Those against the ruling took up just 6 percent of the total respondents.

Meanwhile, 69.4 percent replied that Park should be taken into custody and be investigated by prosecutors. Those in favor of investigation without detention were 17.8 percent, while just 9.6 percent was against any investigation.

Regardless of Park's arrest or not, almost 90 percent demanded prosecutors' investigation directly into Park.

Prosecutors have branded Park as an accomplice to her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil, who is now in custody for multiple charges including bribery.

Park will be subject to criminal prosecution and detention as she lost her immunities following the court's ruling to force her out of office.
NEW DELHI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- At least 11 people including five women were killed and two others injured Saturday in a deadly minibus-truck collision in India's western state of Maharashtra, police said.

The accident took place early Saturday at Uralikanchan village near Pune city, 180 km east of Mumbai, the capital city of Maharashtra.

"Early today at around 4:00 a.m. (local time) a minibus crashed into a truck and killed 11 people including four couples and a child," a senior police official told Xinhua over telephone from Pune.

"The accident occurred after the driver of the minibus while trying to avoid hitting a wild boar crossing the road rammed into truck."

Officials said the two injured were immediately removed to hospital for treatment. The driver of the minibus also died.

Earlier this month 17 people including three women were killed and six others injured in a jeep-truck collision in Rajasthan.

Deadly road accidents are common in India often caused by overloading, or due to bad condition of roads and reckless driving.

India's ministry of road transport in 2015 said 146,133 people were killed and 500,279 others injured in 501,423 road accidents across the country.

Global Road Safety Report 2015 released by WHO last year however said India accounts for more than 200,000 deaths annually due to road accidents.
SEOUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Support scores for the political party of ousted South Korean President Park Geun-hye tumbled after the constitutional court's unanimous decision to uphold Park's impeachment motion, a local survey showed on Saturday.

Approval rating for the Liberty Korea Party tumbled to 6.9 percent from 13.5 percent tallied earlier this week, the local pollster Realmeter survey showed.

The party's ranking sank to the fourth place as its support scores were cut by half. It followed the court's ruling to force Park out of office. Park became the first South Korean leader to be ousted through impeachment.

The result is based on a survey of 1,008 voters conducted Friday. It has 3.1 percentage points in margin of error.

The Righteous Party, which had splintered away from the Liberty Korea Party, ranked fifth among the five major parties with 5.4 percent in approval scores. It was down from 6.0 percent recorded earlier this week.

The biggest opposition Minjoo Party kept its top post with 45.7 percent in approval rating. It was followed by the minor opposition People's Party and the Justice Party which gained 11.5 percent and 8.6 percent respectively.

The Justice Party won the third place for the first time as disenchantment with conservative politicians grew after the corruption scandal embroiling the ousted president.
Why would I resent the term FLY-OVER-COUNTRY?

DELTA IS READY WHEN YOU ARE.

It is common for conservatives to use the term 'Fly-Over-Country' to describe that base of support that cannot really be identified with any specific beliefs but seem to all reside somewhere between the two political left coasts of New York and California.I am not an expert on geography but it occurs to me that everyone in the United States or maybe even the rest of the world actually lives between two coasts. Before you point out to me that some people live on the water, I would assert that they live between two coasts as well. It is just that their two coasts are not separated by a land mass but by water. Everything on the earth is between two coasts. By inference that would make everyone living anywhere to be living in FLY-OVER-COUNTRY or FLY-OVER-WATER. Even a person living at the beginning or end of a runway is in "FLY-OVER" something. Planes will fly over them when landing or taking off.The obvious question then is:The answer is simple. I live in Atlanta. Atlanta is the only place on the earth that is'FLY-OVER-COUNTRY. Anyone who has ever made a trip in an airplane knows that you cannot fly over Atlanta. You must first stop, change planes, walk about five miles to the next gate andboard another plan that is heading for "FLY-OVER-COUNTRY."
File photo shows Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari (R) talks with guests during his daughter's wedding reception in Abuja, capital of Nigeria, Dec. 16, 2016. (Xinhua/Olatunji Obasa)

by Olatunji Saliu

ABUJA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian leader Muhammadu Buhari on Friday pledged to rededicate himself to the service of the west African nation in an address he delivered few hours after he returned to the country following a prolonged medical vacation in the United Kingdom.

Upon his arrival in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, Buhari, though frail-looking, said his health had improved significantly and expressed gratitude to Nigerians for their prayers and show of goodwill.

"The best way for me to repay you is to rededicate myself to serving you, protecting your interest and keeping your trust," he said.

However, there may be the need for him to embark on another medical trip, "for further follow up within some weeks," he added.

Buhari had left the country on January 19 for a vacation in London, during which he had a routine medical check-up.

The holiday was extended based on doctors' recommendation for further tests and rest.

Before leaving Nigeria, Buhari had sent a letter to the National Assembly requesting a 10-day vacation. He transferred power to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo as Acting President.

Buhari could not resume his duties earlier in February when he was expected to return to Nigeria. A letter requesting an extension of his vacation was sent to the Senate. The president said he required further medical tests.

In the past two weeks, Buhari had been quite busy receiving visitors from Nigeria and making phone calls home.

Early February, he had a phone conversation with the U.S. President Donald Trump, and later in the month he received a call from the Moroccan king.

Earlier Thursday, the presidency published photographs of his meeting with the Archbishop of Canterbury in London.

Upon his arrival in Abuja early Friday, Buhari held private discussions with Osinbajo and later, he and Osinbajo had a meeting with some top officials of the country.

Thereafter, he addressed the nation and retired to his presidential residence "to rest for the weekend before resuming work on Monday."

In a statement released Friday, Nigeria's governing All Progressives Congress party said it believes Buhari has returned with new vigor and optimism to fix the challenges facing the people and fulfill the electoral promises of the party.
DUBAI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The President of United Arab Emirates sent a cable of condolences Saturday to Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani on a hospital attack in Kabu, UAE state news agency WAM reported.

The attack on Wednesday left 30 killed and at least 50 others injured.

The UAE President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan reiterated UAE's "rejection of violence and terrorism in all its forms and manifestations," and called for further international cooperation to eradicate it.

Afghan Defense Ministry said the Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attack on the largest medical facility in the war-torn country.
South Sudanese President Salva Kiir (C) gestures at the John Garang Mausoleum in Juba, capital of South Sudan, March 10, 2017. South Sudanese President Salva Kiir on Friday prayed for forgiveness during national prayers as the war-torn country seeks to heal and reconcile from ethnic divisions caused by the more than three years of conflict. (Xinhua/Gale Julius)

JUBA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- South Sudanese President Salva Kiir on Friday said his government will release political detainees as the war-torn country prepares for national dialogue.

Kiir also revealed that he was aware of only three high profile political prisoners being held by his government.

"People are talking that I have political detainees, I don't have political detainees. If they are there I will free them," he said in Juba.

The three political prisoners mentioned include former Wau state governor Elias Waya Nyipuoch and his ex-deputy General Andrea Dominic who were arrested on accusation of inciting the violent tribal clash in Wau in June 2016 that killed over 43 people and displaced 12,000 people.

Although, he didn't mention whether the detained James Gatdet Dak former spokesman of rebel leader Riek Machar who was deported last year from Kenya would benefit from the amnesty.

South Sudanese women pray with a cross in hand at the John Garang Mausoleum in Juba, capital of South Sudan, March 10, 2017. South Sudanese President Salva Kiir on Friday prayed for forgiveness during national prayers as the war-torn country seeks to heal and reconcile from ethnic divisions caused by the more than three years of conflict. (Xinhua/Gale Julius)

South Sudan held national prayers on Friday that will pave way for the much lauded national dialogue geared toward forgiveness and reconciliation of warring factions following more than three years of violent conflict.

South Sudan descended into violence in December 2013, following political dispute between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar. The war has killed tens of thousands, displaced more than two million from their homes.

However, renewed violence in July 2016 threatened to tear apart a fragile 2015 peace agreement to end the conflict and intermittent fighting in once peaceful Equatoria region led to massive refugee influx of 1.5 million people fleeing brutal atrocities into neighboring countries.
The 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, a member of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), delivers a speech at the fourth plenary meeting of the fifth session of the 12th CPPCC National Committee in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu Saturday lamented some Buddhist temples and monks are being eroded by commercialization and called on followers to behave correctly.

He made the remarks as he took the podium inside the Great Hall of the People and addressed thousands who attended the plenary meeting of the fifth session of the 12th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee.

The Panchen Lama, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPPCC National Committee, said with commercialization, some monks went after money and power, instead of guarding Buddhist ethics or concentrating on Buddhist pursuits.

"Some temples are treated as money-making machines, or shopping malls; some phony monks or fake 'living Buddhas' tout ambiguous 'Buddhist preaching' to cheat money from believers," he lashed out.

The 27-year-old senior monk, also vice president of the Buddhist Association of China, said though such incidents and people were not the mainstream, they had left an "extremely bad" influence.

The image of Buddhism was tainted, the otherwise pure and divine religious sanctuaries blasphemed.

The Panchen Lama said he was also concerned about insufficient efforts in nurturing talent that some temples had monks but no instructors, Buddhist scripts but no teaching. Preaching is impossible without a good team of Buddhist instructors.

"Some temples are busy erecting Buddha statutes, building splendid temple halls. But they forget about nurturing 'real Buddhas'," he said.

The Panchen Lama also said the interpretation of Buddhist doctrines struggles to keep pace with the needs of the time.

He said Buddhist doctrines should be interpreted in ways compatible to the country's reality and social progress, so that the religion can play its positive role to advance social and economic developments.

"We particularly lack in efforts to find religious theories that go with socialist core values," the Panchen Lama said. "In that, we fail to meet the majority of our followers' expectations."

The Panchen Lama said he felt "a mission of our time" is to be patriotic, to love religion, and contribute efforts to the Chinese nation's rejuvenation and the well-being of humankind.

The Panchen Lama said he believed, with combined efforts of Buddhist monks and followers, Buddhism can play its role in advancing the development of the nation, including to enhance the sense of identity among followers with the leadership of Communist Party of China, socialism with Chinese characteristics, and the Chinese nation.

He said religion can mobilize the public to voluntarily safeguard national unity, ethnic solidarity, and actively take part in social and economic developments of the country, as well as boost the public moral standards and ethics.

The Panchen Lama, born with the secular name Gyaincain Norbu in 1990, was approved by the central government as the reincarnation of the 10th Panchen Lama at the age of five, after a traditional lot-drawing ceremony among three candidates held in the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa.
by Xinhua writers Liu Chang, Deng Yushan

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Some 2,100 years ago, or 1,600 years before Italian explorer Christopher Columbus found the New World, ancient Chinese General Zhang Qian braved a world of uncertainties to open up a trade route now known as the Silk Road.

Along the Silk Road and other networks linking up remote corners of the world, nations sharing the planet have marched a long way in global interconnection and reached unprecedented levels of development, while having also become more closely intertwined and interdependent than Zhang Qian could ever have imagined.

To deal with the numerous problems and uncertainties troubling today's world, China has decided to give greater scope to the time-honored Silk Road spirit and launched, among others, a modern-day land and maritime Silk Road initiative to promote win-win and shared development across the globe.

Underpinning Beijing's endeavors for global development and integration is the vision of building a community of shared future for mankind, which is championed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and, in the eyes of many, represents the ultimate goal of human development.

China will not close its open door, and will keep on opening up on all fronts, Xi reaffirmed at a panel discussion with Chinese lawmakers at the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC).

"THE ONLY FUTURE FOR HUMANITY"

More than two millenniums after Zhang Qian blazed the international trail, isolationist and confrontational elements are still haunting the world, despite the enormous benefits globalization has brought to human development.

A sluggish global growth and widening development gaps are exacerbated by armed conflicts, Cold War mentality and power politics, and mixed with such non-conventional security threats as terrorism, major communicable diseases and climate change.

To ride out those numerous challenges and increasing risks, "China's proposition is: build a community of shared future for mankind and achieve shared and win-win development," announced the Chinese president in a keynote speech at the UN Office at Geneva (UNOG) in January.

"To achieve this goal, the international community should promote partnership, security, growth, inter-civilization exchanges and the building of a sound ecosystem," added the president.

In the government work report Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivered at an NPC plenary on Sunday, Beijing declared once again that it stands ready to work with the international community to foster a new type of international relations with win-win cooperation at the core and make new contributions to the building of a community of shared future for mankind.

Xi's vision "is the only future for humanity on this planet," said UN General Assembly President Peter Thomson in an interview with Xinhua.

Both Thomson and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have pledged that the United Nations will work with China to promote world peace and development, and realize the goal of building a community of shared future for mankind.

As a clear sign of the increasing global recognition of Xi's signature concept on human development, the 55th UN Commission for Social Development (CSocD) approved a resolution in February that calls for more support for Africa's economic and social development by embracing the spirit of building a human community of shared future.

Philipp Charwath, chair of the CSocD, told Xinhua that the concept "basically is an acknowledgment that we all depend on each other."

ADAPTER TO CURRENT WORLD ORDER

To those with a propensity for zero-sum thinking, China is strategizing to dethrone the United States and dictate a new world order as the world witnesses a power shift from the West to the East.

Beijing has addressed such suspicions with both words and deeds. In his visit to the UNOG and other international organizations in Switzerland, Xi reaffirmed China's commitment to peaceful development and pledge not to seek hegemony, expansion or sphere of influence.

The president's Switzerland trip "sent out a clear message of China's strong commitment to multilateralism and strong support for the UN-centered international system," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told a press conference Wednesday on the sidelines of the NPC session.

In a move clearly indicative of Beijing's commitment, China took the lead in establishing in 2015 the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which is meant to supplement -- rather than supplant -- the international financial system and help fill the huge funding gaps for infrastructure construction.

Likening the international order to a building, Wang said: "What we should be doing is to renovate the building rather than constructing another structure."

That is what Joseph Nye, a Harvard professor and prominent U.S. foreign policy expert, has concluded through observation.

"If you look at the Chinese behavior, they have not rejected the world international system," he noted at a recent seminar at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, adding that China just seeks to adapt itself to the current world order, not to overthrow it.

Evan A. Feigenbaum, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a U.S. think tank, also pointed out that China is not "a revolutionary" power.

China's size, wealth and policy lead it "to demand significant changes to existing institutions, but it does not seek to overturn the current international order wholesale," he wrote in an article published in the January/February issue of U.S. magazine Foreign Affairs under the title of "China and the World."

A PATHWAY OF COOPERATION, WIN-WIN

Xi has backed his grand vision with concrete actions.

For example, China has been making great efforts to build a community of shared future with its neighbors. Among the initiatives is the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) mechanism, which has designated 45 "early harvest" programs.

"We hope LMC will become a flagship initiative in China's efforts to build a community of shared future with our neighbors and contribute more to the narrowing of disparity and the promotion of integration in our region," said Wang Yi, the foreign minister.

Substantial progress has also been made in the building of a China-Africa community of shared future. Since the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in late 2015, China has disbursed or arranged nearly half of the 60-billion-U.S.-dollar funding support it promised to Africa.

In addition, the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway, Africa's first modern electrified railway China helps build to link the Ethiopian capital with Djibouti's Red Sea port, has been up and running. So will the Mombasa-Nairobi railway in Kenya, a China-funded standard gauge railway (SGR) ranking as the biggest infrastructure project in the country since its independence.

The flagship of China's endeavors is the Belt and Road Initiative, which comprises the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road and is aimed at promoting common development along the ancient land and maritime Silk Road trade routes and beyond.

So far the initiative, which was proposed by Xi in 2013, has gained the support of over 100 countries and international organizations, and more than 40 of them have signed cooperation agreements with China.

"China's initiative to jointly build the Belt and Road, embracing the trend towards a multipolar world, economic globalization, cultural diversity and greater IT application, aims at being highly efficient in terms of the allocation of resources, and at achieving a deep integration of markets among the countries concerned," said Keith Bennett, vice chair of the London-based 48 Club Group.

"It will thereby jointly create an open, inclusive and balanced regional economic cooperation architecture that benefits all," the British business leader told Xinhua.

Gerrishon K. Ikiara, a senior lecturer at the University of Nairobi, noted that the Belt and Road Initiative will provide unprecedented opportunities for the economic and social development of China and all other countries involved.

"It is the way leading to the community of shared future for mankind," said Ikiara of the modern-day version of the trail General Zhang Qian blazed about 2,100 years ago.
SINGAPORE, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Two special exhibitions at National Gallery Singapore showcasing the evolution of Chinese ink painting and its impact on Singapore art history opened to the public on Saturday.

Entitled "Rediscovering Treasures: Ink Art from the Xiu Hai Lou Collection", the exhibition is the first comprehensive survey by a national museum to focus on collections from Xiu Hai Lou, one of the most important ink collections in Singapore.

The exhibition offers important insights into how art collecting and patronage developed in Singapore during the early 20th century, and provides visitors the chance to see rare masterpieces by prominent artists such as Chen Hongshou, Qi Baishi, Xu Beihong and Zhang Daqian.

Chen Chong Swee was one of the first artists in Singapore to use Chinese ink painting techniques to depict local landscapes. The exhibition "Strokes of Life: The Art of Chen Chong Swee" is a major retrospective survey of Chen's artistic career spanning six decades, and it focuses on his key contributions to artistic developments in Singapore from the 1950s to the 1980s.

"Many of these masterpieces are rarely seen in public. In these exhibitions, visitors can look forward to a visual feast of masterful brushwork, inventive approaches and distinctive styles," said Low Sze Wee, Director (Curatorial, Collections & Education), National Gallery Singapore.

The exhibitions will run till Dec. 4, 2017. National Gallery Singapore will organize a series of complementary programs to encourage greater appreciation of ink art, including lectures by respected academics and practitioners, and hands-on activities for visitors of all ages.
A mother and her two children sit under blanket in the outskirt of Mogadishu, Somalia, March 3, 2017. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has launched an appeal of 24.6 million U.S. dollars to help more than a million Somalis affected by drought.(Xinhua/Faisal Isse)

MOGADISHU, March 11 (Xinhua) -- A global aid agency, Save the Children, has warned of an increase in cholera cases in Somalia which has claimed 200 lives since January amid a looming famine.

The charity said its health and nutrition clinics are reporting "all the early warnings signs" of an avoidable catastrophe, with deaths from cholera and acute watery diarrhea rising sharply.

"These diseases are death sentences for children whose bodies have been weakened by hunger. More than 8,400 cases of the diseases have already been confirmed in 2017, 200 of which have been fatal," the charity said in a statement.

Save the Children officials are warning that the scale of the suffering is even greater than at the equivalent stage in 2011.

It also warned that the international community is repeating the failures that led to the deaths of over a quarter of a million Somalis in 2011.

"The surge in deaths during the 2011 drought happened in April -- and the drought was less severe then. The international community ignored the early warning signs, failed to act decisively and waited until July to declare a famine. They are now repeating all of the mistakes from the 2011 playbook," said Hassan Saadi Noor, Save the Children's Country Director in Somalia.

A boy suffering diarrhea lie in bed at Banadir Hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia, March 9, 2017. One out of seven Somali children dies before its fifth birthday, and acute malnutrition weakens the immune system, which makes affected children more susceptible to disease such as measles, a UN spokesman told reporters here Tuesday. (Xinhua/Faisal Isse)

The number of cases has relentlessly increased since the drought began late last year; from fewer than 200 in the first week of November to nearly 1,400 in the second week of February.

Save the Children has dispatched an emergency treatment team to the epicentre of the cholera crisis, across the Bay region and its capital Baidoa, where 72 percent of the cases have been reported.

"Saving these lives and rebuilding livelihoods will require concerted action by the international community, and that action needs to start now," Noor said.

The charity and other agencies are reporting a dramatic deterioration in child health and nutritional status.

Some 6.2 million people, around half of the country, are in urgent need of support.

"Given the weight of evidence, the scale of suffering and the memory of 2011, the international community's response to the crisis facing Somalia's children is indefensible and unforgivable," said Noor.

Save the Children called on donors to deliver immediate financing for Somalia. "We need to see the G7, other donors, and UN agencies drawing up a plan for delivering real money," said Noor.
KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia will soon start formal talks with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) about the release of its stranded nationals, Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said Saturday.

The announcement came after the Malaysian police formally identified the deceased DPRK man as Kim Jong Nam, the half-brother of DPRK top leader Kim Jong Un.

The ministry is now communicating directly with the DPRK embassy in Kuala Lumpur over the issue, the minister told reporters after a meeting with family members of the nine Malaysians who were barred by the DPRK side from leaving.

As part of the fallout of a diplomatic row over the death and investigation of Kim Jong Nam, both countries have expelled the ambassador of the other side and banned each other's citizens from leaving.

Anifah said the dealings with the body of Kim Jong Nam will also be in the discussions with DPRK, "because we don't want to keep the body more than what is necessary, that does not belong to us."

The DPRK side had demanded the release of the body immediately after the airport killing but Malaysia refused to comply, prompting the DPRK ambassador in Malaysia to issue a strongly-worded statement, accusing Malaysia of "colluding with hostile forces."

Anifah said the DPRK side had assured the Malaysian government that all the Malaysian nationals in DPRK are safe and are free to live their normal life.

He said in the wake of the diplomatic row, many countries have offered to mediate, "but we don't need a third party for the time being."

Before the start of the negotiations, Malaysia still needs to establish a lot of facts, said Anifah, without elaboration.
DAMASCUS, March 11 (Xinhua) -- At least 32 people were killed and tens more wounded on Saturday when explosive devices ripped through their busses in Shaghour area in the capital Damascus, near a big cemetery where Shiite shrines are located, a well-informed security source told Xinhua.
U.S. President Donald Trump attends a healthcare meeting with key House Committee Chairmen at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 10, 2017. (Xinhua/REUTERS)

NEW YORK, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Almost two months have passed since Donald Trump took office as the U.S. president. Among hundreds of promises and pledges Trump has made in his presidential campaign, what has he kept? Let's take a look.

1. Halt Muslim entry into the United States

On Jan. 27, Trump signed an executive order named Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States, suspending entry of those whose countries do not meet adjudication standards under U.S. immigration law. U.S. Homeland Security lists these countries as Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Trump on March 6 signed a revised executive order temporarily banning travel from 6 nations -- Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, removing Iraq from the original list.

2. Block Syrian refugees

In the executive order that Trump signed on Jan. 27, Syrian refugees was indefinitely suspended entry into the United States. The revised executive order Trump signed on March 6 suspended admission of refugees, including those from Syria, into the United States for 120 days.

3. Build a border wall between The United States and Mexico

On Jan. 25, Trump signed an executive order named Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements, ordering the immediate construction of a border wall with Mexico and aggressive efforts to find and deport unauthorized immigrants. Trump planned to build the wall with federal funds and then seek reimbursement from Mexico, an idea Mexico had rejected.

4. Improve relations with Russia

Trump has repeatedly expressed admiration for Putin and a desire to work alongside Moscow. In his presidential campaign, Trump has called Russian President Vladimir Putin "a leader far more than our president (Obama) has been." After Trump took office, Putin said in an interview that Trump "is a clever man and will quickly understand his new responsibilities."

On Jan. 28, Trump made first phone conversation with Putin. "The presidents spoke out for establishing real coordination of actions between Russia and the U.S. aimed at defeating ISIS and other terrorists groups in Syria," according to a statement released by the Kremlin.

5. Withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)

In his campaign, Trump has called the TPP "a potential disaster" and has vowed to pull out of the world's largest trade deal on his first day in office. On Jan. 23, Trump signed an executive order, officially withdrawing from the TPP.

6. Repeal and replace Obamacare

Before he took office, Trumps has vowed to replace Obamacare with a plan that would envisage "insurance for everybody." Within hours of taking the oath of office, Trump signed an executive order, which directed the U.S. Health and Human Services secretary and the heads of other agencies to minimize the financial burden of Obamacare on Americans, states, insurers, health care providers and others to the maximum extent permitted by law.

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Dear Secretary Kelly, Attorney General Sessions, and Director Comey:

We write to underscore the need for swift action with regard to the deeply troubling series of anonymous bomb threats made against Jewish Community Centers (JCCs), Jewish Day Schools, Synagogues and other buildings affiliated with Jewish organizations or institutions across the country. We thank you for your recent efforts and ask that you inform us of the actions that your Departments plan to take to address threats against these and other religious institutions. We stand ready to work with you to ensure that these centers can continue to serve their communities free from violence and intimidation.

It has become clear that threats of violence against individual JCCs are not isolated incidents. According to the Jewish Federations of North America, in the first two months of 2017 alone, at least 98 incidents against JCCs and Jewish Day Schools at 81 locations in 33 states have been reported. These cowardly acts aim to create an atmosphere of fear and disrupt the important programs and services offered by JCCs to everyone in the communities they serve, including in our states. In addition to reports of incidents at JCCs and Jewish Day Schools, there have been incidents at cemeteries in both St. Louis and Philadelphia involving the desecration of Jewish headstones. This is completely unacceptable and un-American.

We are concerned that the number of incidents is accelerating and failure to address and deter these threats will place innocent people at risk and threaten the financial viability of JCCs, many of which are institutions in their communities. Your Departments can provide crucial assistance by helping JCCs, Jewish Day Schools and Synagogues improve their physical security, deterring threats from being made, and investigating and prosecuting those making these threats or who may seek to act on these threats in the future. We encourage you to communicate with individual JCCs, the JCC Association of North America, Jewish Day Schools, Synagogues and other Jewish community institutions regarding victim assistance, grant opportunities or other federal assistance that may be available to enhance security measures and improve preparedness. We also recognize the anti-Semitic sentiment behind this spate of threats and encourage your Departments to continue to inform state and local law enforcement organizations of their obligations under the Hate Crime Statistics Act and other federal laws.

We are ready to work with you to address this pressing issue, and we look forward to your responses about the actions you intend to take to address, deter, and prevent this threat.

Contact: Daniel Keylin

Daniel Keylin daniel_keylin@tillis.senate.gov

WASHINGTON, D.C. Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Richard Burr (R-NC) joined all their Senate colleagues in urging the Trump Administration to take action in response to the recent anonymous bomb threats made against Jewish Community Centers (JCC's), Jewish Day Schools, and Synagogues. In the bipartisan letter sent to Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and FBI Director James Comey, the Senators stressed the importance of these centers within their communities, and offered suggestions for deterring the threats of violence.According to the Jewish Federations of North America, in the first two months of 2017 alone, at least 98 incidents against JCCs and Jewish Day Schools at 81 locations in 33 states, including North Carolina, have been reported. Charlotte's Shalom Park, the Jewish Community Center in Asheville, and a Jewish Day School in Durham have all been evacuated in recent weeks due to threats.wrote the Senators in the letter.continued the Senators.The text of the Senators' letter is available below and here:
Colombo, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka will open tenders next month calling for international bids for an energy project on liquefied natural gas, a government official said on Saturday.

The project is intended to generate 300 megawatts of electricity to the national grid. Spokesman for Sri Lanka Powers and Energy Ministry Sulakshana Jayawardane told Xinhua that the government had agreed to proceed with the project, to be implemented in the Colombo suburb called 'Kerawalapitiya'.

"We are now working on the tender process. We will open tenders calling for bids in April," he said.

Sri Lanka depends on hydro, coal and thermal power in main for its energy requirement. However, the prevailing dry spell has reduced the contribution of hydro power to ten percent of the national grid. Otherwise, it remained at 50 percent when rainfall was abundant.

Sri Lanka operates one coal power plant established with financial cooperation from China. The government has now decided not to go for any coal project in future. Instead, it will opt for green energy sources.
Colombo, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka will import 5,000 heads of high yield cattle from Australia in May to boost local daily production, a minster said on Saturday.

Minister of Rural Economic Development P. Harrison told Xinhua that around 6,000 heads of cattle had been imported in the past.

"They are being reared at the government farms. We will get their offspring hopefully by next year. We will import another 5,000 in May to be distributed among farmers. We will plan for more imports of cattle from Australia depending on the success of this project, " he said.

Sri Lanka produces only 40 percent of its dairy requirements. The rest is imported from the countries such as New Zealand.
ANKARA, March 11(Xinhua) -- The Netherlands canceled a flight clearance for Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu just hours before his flight on Saturday, local broadcaster CNNTurk reported.

Cavusoglu was scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday despite recent steps banning Turkey's several ministers from holding public rallies.

Earlier in the day, the foreign minister said in a interview with CNNTurk that Turkey would impose severe sanctions on the Netherlands if his flight permission is cancelled.

Cavusoglu also said that he could travel anywhere as a foreign minister.

"I could visit the Netherlands following April 16 constitutional referendum if my Dutch counterpart Bert Koenders invites properly," the foreign minister said.

Last week, Foreign Minister Cavusoglu's planned rally in Rotterdam was barred by Dutch officials.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Thursday that they do not want Turkish Foreign Minister to hold rallies.

Relations between the Netherlands and Turkey has soured over Turkey's planned "meeting with citizens" campaign events ahead of the April 16 constitutional referendum.
Turkey's Minister for Culture and Tourism Nabi Avci and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu at the International Tourism Trade Fair ITB in Berlin, Germany , March 8, 2017. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

ANKARA, March 11(Xinhua) -- The Netherlands canceled a flight clearance for Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu just hours before his flight on Saturday, local broadcaster CNNTurk reported.

Cavusoglu was scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday despite recent steps banning Turkey's several ministers from holding public rallies.

Earlier in the day, the foreign minister said in a interview with CNNTurk that Turkey would impose severe sanctions on the Netherlands if his flight permission is cancelled.

Cavusoglu also said that he could travel anywhere as a foreign minister.

"I could visit the Netherlands following April 16 constitutional referendum if my Dutch counterpart Bert Koenders invites properly," the foreign minister said.

Last week, Foreign Minister Cavusoglu's planned rally in Rotterdam was barred by Dutch officials.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Thursday that they do not want Turkish Foreign Minister to hold rallies.
THE HAGUE, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Dutch cabinet Saturday decided to cancel the landing rights for the plane of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in the Netherlands, preventing Turkish officials from campaigning in the country.

"After a public call by Turkish authorities to Turkish-Dutch citizens to join a public meeting in Rotterdam on Saturday, the public order is at stake," the Dutch government stated in a press release.

According to the Dutch government, both Turkish and Dutch sides were in talks to move the rally or make it smaller.

"But before the talks were finished Turkish authorities threatened with sanctions," the Dutch government said, adding "That makes a reasonable solution impossible."

The Turkish government plans to campaign in the Netherlands, and for instance also in Germany, for a referendum to give President Recep Tayyip Erdogan more power.

To urge Dutch citizens with the Turkish nationality to vote for a stronger position for Erdogan, Turkish FM Cavusoglu planned to speak at a rally in Rotterdam on Saturday.

The Dutch government had already objected the campaign by Turkish officials and made several attempts to prevent them from coming.

The Turkish minister faced similar approach from Germany but managed to address Turks in Hamburg at the Turkish Consulate General on Tuesday after permissions of two halls in the city were cancelled.

The past weeks have witnessed several such cancellation for Turkish politicians seeking to hold rallies in Germany.
by Birhanu Fikade, Wang Shoubao

ADDIS ABABA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- In rural and urban Ethiopia, Chinese contractors are busy building railways that are counted upon to speed up the industrialization of the east African country. Their presence has brought the locals life-transforming opportunities.

To achieve the goals set by the government of Ethiopia that targets 2,750km railroads by the end of 2020, many Chinese firms aided by Ethiopian laborers are working around the clock to meet the deadlines.

Ethiopia aims to link 49 cities across the country through the construction of six main railway lines. A 752km modern electric railway, linking landlocked Ethiopia with the port of Djibouti, came into service in October last year.

In all the efforts, Chinese firms have been playing vital roles. Their work has changed not only the landscape of Ethiopia, but the lives of individual Ethiopians.

Tewolde Tikue, aged 40 and an engineer by training, employs more than 200 manual workers after being sub-contracted to offer civil works at the road construction sites by the China's Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC) three years ago.

He has 15 permanent employees. Tewolde says he has benefited a lot since he started working with Chinese firms in Ethiopia. Previously, he was with another Chinese company, CGC Overseas Construction Group (CGCOC), where he fostered his entrepreneurial spirit.

He now has his own private company called OMIC Engineering PLC which provides electromechanical and civil works services.

At Lebbu Railway Station at the peripheries of Addis Ababa, Tewolde and his team are busy finishing up the construction of drainage channels and ditch covers that stretch more than one kilometer parallel to the interconnection road to the railway station.

Driving his SUV four-wheeler, Tewolde monitors his workers and is so far happy with the output as he is very strict on deadlines. The current works have to be done before the end of this month.

"There are workers who have been continuously working for us for three years. You can see changes in their lives. Their living standards have improved to some extent. The quality of jobs they deliver has been improving and they have acquired the needed skills," Tewolde says.

"Personally I have benefited from the project as well. I have upgraded my contractor license," he adds.

Apart from the monetary benefit that has come with getting contracts from the Chinese firms, Tewolde says it is the technical and managerial skills he has acquired since he started working with the Chinese that he values the most.

"On one hand, Chinese companies have created employment giving our people hope, while on the other, the skills we have acquired so far will go a long way in building our economy. We have learned things we could never even think were possible," he adds.

Tewolde's workers too are living testimonies to the positive changes the Chinese presence has brought about to their lives.

Ismael Keddir, one of the senior manual workers in Tewolde's team, says companies like CREC in Ethiopia have created jobs for the fresh graduates joining the workforce each year as well as a good number of manual workers like Ismael himself.

Ismael now being a full-fledged mason and has plans for the future.

He says he is saving a portion of his wage with an eye to setting up his own business.

"I have been working with CREC for the past two years. Before joining this company I have not really been in good shape. But now I have been able to save some money for the future. I am paid some three thousand birr (about 130 U.S. dollars) per month. This is a fair income for my field of work," he says.

Tsegaye Hailegnaw, another of Tewolde's employees, says his life took a different turn immediately after he landed the job. Being his third year with the company, Tsegaye says he has been able to save some money with which he intends to start a business and build his own home in the future.

"I have a plan to establish my own business in the future. I try to get five hundred birr (about 21 U.S. dollars) per day out of the line work I am assigned," says Tsegaye, impatient to get the shovel he is holding to work.

Tewolde plans to establish a steel manufacturing plant by next year, a milestone he has achieved, thanks to his partnership with Chinese firms. The prospect of being able to create more jobs fills the engineer with tremendous joy and pride.

According to the Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC), there are 43 Chinese firms operating in Ethiopia. Investing close to two billion U.S dollars, the companies have been recognized by the government as the leading job providers among 120 foreign investors, employing tens of thousands of Ethiopians.
KABUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- A suicide bomber targeted an airport in the eastern Khost province Saturday afternoon, triggering gun battle, Afghan TV channel Tolo reported.

"A suicide bomber detonated his explosive-laden car in the eastern gate of Khost airport and the attack followed by gun shots," Tolo reported.

Meantime, provincial police chief of Khost province Faizullah Ghirat confirmed the incident.

"An insurgent attacked the military base in Khost province at 2:30 p.m. local time (1000 GMT)," he told Xinhua.

Without giving more details, the official added that the attacker was killed by security personnel.

A contingent of the U.S.-led foreign forces has been stationed at Khost airbase. Khost province, with Khost city as its capital 150 km southeast of Kabul, has been the scene of Taliban-led insurgency over the past years.
ISTANBUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- China has been playing a prominent role in world affairs as closer cooperation among nations is needed than ever to cope with global problems, Turkish analysts said.

China has been contributing to the world stability over the years "by playing its cards carefully, by giving prominence to the soft power and by not claiming to be the 'gendarme of the world,'" said Yasar Yakis, a former Turkish foreign minister.

In his opinion, China is increasing its capacity to play role in the global governance," he said, adding "The soft power that it projects in various parts of the world is the best tool to assume bigger responsibility."

He spoke of the "very positive roles" China is playing in new mechanisms emerging in recent years, or nascent international organizations dealing with important technical challenges facing the world.

"China has the potentials to contribute more to the work of these organizations," Yakis added.

In the view of Cahit Dilek, director of the Ankara-based 21st Century Turkey Institute, China should make use of the "positive perception" created by its relations in various fields in the international arena to help settle global and regional problems and clashes.

Fikret Baskaya, a professor of economics and president of the Istanbul-based Free University, observed that China led the so-called emerging countries and changed the balance of power in the world.

"As far as global geopolitics is concerned, that stands for a positive change," he noted.

Baskaya said the formation of institutions, like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the New Development Bank BRICS and the Silk Road Fund, has the potential to change the management and physiognomy of the world economy.

As unprecedentedly strong cooperation is needed among nations to solve global problems at the current stage, while opposite tendencies have started to emerge, "it is more important than ever to multiply, popularize initiatives such as the 'Belt and Road,'" he said.

"We are at a time when a new perspective and understanding toward the problems of the humanity is called for, because global risks are getting so big as to threaten the future of the humanity and the civilization," the professor added.

The Belt and Road Initiative, put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, aims to build a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient Silk Road trade routes.
MALINDI, Kenya, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's anti-terrorism police officers are on Saturday holding six terror suspects in the coastal town of Malindi.

A contingent of special units raided a house on Friday night and managed to arrest the six suspected of funding the Al-Shabaab terror group.

"Six people arrested and seven mobile phones recovered that are held for several suspicious cash transfers to individuals linked to Al-Shabaab in Somalia.

Malindi police commander Muchangi Matawa said the six are being interrogated by anti-terrorism police officers detectives over alleged links to the group.

According to police the suspects are part of terror network behind the recruitment of youth to join the Al-Shabaab militant group.

The suspects include women believed to be targeting young girls who are lured to cross over to Somalia to become Al-Shabaab brides. Kenya authorities are in higher alert over possible attacks by the Somalia-based militant group.

Last year, the police warned that at least six Al-Shabaab fighters had been dispatched from Somalia to carryout the attacks on unspecified locations in Kenya.

According to police, the Al-Shabaab militia is planning to use suicide bombers to execute the attacks targeting key government facilities and popular public places which the police said should be put under vigilance to foil any possible attack in Malindi.
ISTANBUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at the Netherlands on Saturday for stopping his foreign minister's plane from landing in the country.

"The Netherlands should now think about how their planes will land in Turkey," the president said at an event in Istanbul. "They are the Nazi remnants, fascists."

The Netherlands revoked landing permission for the plane carrying Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to the country, where he was scheduled to address the Turkish diaspora in the city of Rotterdam to garner their votes in the April 16 referendum on Turkey switching to a presidential system.

On Thursday, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said "no" to Cavusoglu's plan to hold rallies in his country.

Speaking to CNNTurk before his departure to the Netherlands, the top Turkish envoy threatened the northern European country with harsh economic and political sanctions in case he was not allowed in.

Ankara is already embroiled in a row with Germany over a similar ban on rallies, which has chilled their bilateral ties to a new low.

Related:

Dutch government withdraws landing rights for Turkish FM plane

THE HAGUE, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Dutch cabinet Saturday decided to cancel the landing rights for the plane of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in the Netherlands, preventing Turkish officials from campaigning in the country. Full story

Flight permission for Turkish FM cancelled by Netherlands
Captain William Chrismon

Washington Police Department

On Thursday at 10:30p.m. Washington Police Fire and EMS responded to the 800 block of Van Norden Street due to a 911 call. Investigation determined that two men had been engaged in an altercation on the 300 block of West 7th street. The altercation resulted in one person being stabbed. James Earl Griffin age 37 of West 7th street was transported to Vidant Washington Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The victim in this investigation is not cooperating in the investigation at this time. The investigation is ongoing.
File photo shows tourists purchasing locally made handcrafts in Malindi, Kenya. (Xinhua/Mbuyu Cazeiya)

MALINDI, Kenya, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's anti-terrorism police officers are on Saturday holding six terror suspects in the coastal town of Malindi.

A contingent of special units raided a house on Friday night and managed to arrest the six suspected of funding the Al-Shabaab terror group.

"Six people arrested and seven mobile phones recovered that are held for several suspicious cash transfers to individuals linked to Al-Shabaab in Somalia.

Malindi police commander Muchangi Matawa said the six are being interrogated by anti-terrorism police officers detectives over alleged links to the group.

According to police the suspects are part of terror network behind the recruitment of youth to join the Al-Shabaab militant group.

The suspects include women believed to be targeting young girls who are lured to cross over to Somalia to become Al-Shabaab brides. Kenya authorities are in higher alert over possible attacks by the Somalia-based militant group.

Last year, the police warned that at least six Al-Shabaab fighters had been dispatched from Somalia to carryout the attacks on unspecified locations in Kenya.
File photo shows Chinese artists dancing during the celebration of the Chinese lunar new year in Antananarivo, capital of Madagascar. (Xinhua/Mika Rajaonarison)

ANTANANARIVO, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese TV programs, including 52 movies, will be broadcasted on Malagasy national television (TVM).

Madagascar's minister of communications Vonison Andrianjato and Chinese ambassador Yang Xiaorong signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the broadcasting of the TV programs on Friday.

"The broadcast of these 52 movies, 10 television series, 5 cartoons and 7 Chinese documentaries will attract great attention of the Malagasy people," the Chinese ambassador said during her speech.

"I hope that the two peoples will know each other better and the traditional friendship between the two countries will be renewed constantly," Yang added.

For his part, Andrianjato said during his speech that this MOU is the renewal of a similar one in force from July 2013 to July 2015 between the two countries.

"These Chinese programs will help the Malagasy people understand and appreciate Chinese culture," the minister said.
Chinese Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan answers questions at a press conference on structural adjustments and innovation for the fifth session of the 12th National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, March 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said Saturday that his recent visit to the Philippines reaped fruitful results in deepening trade and investment cooperation.

The new minister visited the Philippines earlier this month with a mission to follow through the broad consensus reached between the two countries' presidents last October.

Zhong said he met with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and several ministers, and had friendly and practical conversations with them.

The two countries reached broad consensus on strengthening bilateral economic ties, such as in trade, investment, industrial park and infrastructure construction as well as cooperation at multilateral and regional levels, according to Zhong.

While in Manila, Zhong co-hosted the 28th Chinese-Philippine Joint Commission on Economic and Trade Cooperation (JCETC), the official bilateral mechanism for discussion of trade, investments and economic cooperation, with Philippine Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.

The JCETC was convened after a five-year hiatus.

Zhong said trade between the two countries has gathered steam since Duterte's visit to China.
BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Liu Weichang's latest policy proposal -- to urge China's budget hotels and cheap eateries to install barrier-free facilities -- was inspired by a friend.

Last October, his friend, who was using crutches, stumbled in a budget hotel toilet. Unlike upscale establishments, the hotel apparently did not bother to install handles in its toilets.

The accident prompted Liu to survey small restaurants and hotels in several cities in his home province of Hebei.

He found that almost none of them were accessible to the disabled.

"Handles and ramps for wheelchairs are not expensive. We just still don't have that kind of public awareness to care for the disabled," he said in an interview with Xinhua.

There are about 85 million people with disabilities in China.

In Beijing, where attention to accessibility only started to increase after the 2008 Olympics, barrier-free facilities are still not easy to find in places other than high-end venues or in urban districts.

"But most disabled people can't afford luxurious lifestyles, so it is more important to have handicap facilities installed in inexpensive public places," said Liu.

Liu is in a position to bring his concerns to a broader audience. The 50-year-old farmer, who does not have a political party affiliation, is a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, China's top political advisory body.

His proposal, together with those of more than 2,000 other members submitted at the advisory body's ongoing annual session, will be transferred to government bodies for reference.

Under the system, the CPC and non-Communist parties work together rather than opposing one another. The political advisory system plays a role in political consultation, supervision as well as handling of state affairs.

HEADMASTER, ENTREPRENEUR

Born in a small village in Hebei, Liu has had trouble walking since he suffered polio at age one.

As the youngest of six siblings, Liu didn't get much special treatment when growing up, despite his disability. His parents insisted he go to school and do farm work like the others with the hope that he could live on his own as an adult.

In junior high, he would wake up early to bike to the nearest town miles away, selling vegetables in a market before going to school.

"The experience taught me perseverance -- a lifelong fortune," he said.

In 1991, Liu started the county's first private school.

Unlike traditional exam-oriented rural schools, Liu insisted on teaching students subjects such as science, arts and music, and helped them form lifelong exercise habits like running.

His students later enrolled in prestigious universities and went on to become lawyers, teachers, and successful businessmen -- a rare accomplishment in his rural county.

Liu's school has become immensely popular. Today, it has 2,500 students and ranks high in national academic achievements. Later in his life adventures, he opened a school for deaf children and started other businesses that employ disabled people.

SPEAKING FOR DISABLED PEOPLE

Liu became a member of the CPPCC National Committee in 2013 and has since championed disabled people's rights at the national level.

Liu was thrilled this year to see that Premier Li Keqiang's government work report included a line he had suggested in a proposal, submitted in 2013, to grant living and nursing subsidies for 17 million poor people with severe disabilities.

"I don't think it's due to my personal suggestion, but because of increasing government awareness," he said.

The government will also continue to help disabled people find jobs, according to the report.

Since last year, multiple inspection teams sent by CPPCC National Committee have investigated and supervised barrier-free access in places like Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Hainan, making construction and use of the facilities one of the top agenda items for the CPPCC's supervision work.

"One of our disabled team members couldn't get into a subway station until a station worker was called to start the long-suspended elevator," said Wu Mingjiang, an inspection team member.

Shi Dazhuo from the Jiu San Society, one of the eight non-Communist parties, said blind-friendly sidewalks are often blocked.

"Compared with developed countries, we still have a long way to go in caring for disabled people," he said.

The CPPCC National Committee last year organized a total of 92 tours to study, supervise and advise on the implementation of the 13th Five-Year Plan.

More than 4,200 proposals of national CPPCC members received responses from government departments in 2016 -- a reply rate of up to 99.84 percent of proposals submitted.

Next year, Liu plans to research the nursing situation for elderly disabled people to prepare for a proposal. He is thinking about suggesting building nursing homes at county-level places for them.

"Some of them end up dying alone as they can't even find a spouse. They need extra care from society," he said.
RIO DE JANEIRO, March 10 (Xinhua) -- It is still necessary to have more academic exchanges between China and Latin American countries, like Brazil, though they have done a lot in this regard in the past years, a Chinese scholar told Xinhua here.

Not many Chinese economists study the economies of Latin America, and it is necessary to increase knowledge about those matters, said Prof. Qi Hao, from Renmin University's School of Economics, who attended an international conference here on Thursday and Friday.

"In 2015 I participated in a conference on China and Latin America's economic relations in Beijing, and saw that in China we do not have many economists studying Latin America," said Qi, who attended the conference on China's political economy.

"We need to understand more about Brazilian and Latin American economies," he said. "I came here and saw that Brazilians know more about us than we know about them."

The conference was organized by the Laboratory of Political Economy Studies of China (LabChina), a group based at the Institute of Economics of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, one of the oldest and more prominent universities in Brazil.

Qi praised LabChina and considered it important to have such an academic exchange between Brazilian and Chinese institutions. He also talked about how Brazil and China can work together to achieve mutual benefits.

"China and Brazil are big economies. There are many common benefits these two economies can pursue together. Both of us are in the lower end of the global value chain," he said.

"We need to cooperate more to promote our positions in the global economy and promote our long-term value. I hope there will be more cooperation in the future," he said.

In the two-day the conference, participants discussed the economic strategies of China and its importance to the emerging nations and to the world economy as a whole.

They also discussed the challenges and advances in the Chinese economy, as well as innovation, environmental matters, and labor. The Brazilian participants stressed the importance of Brazil's relations with China and the two countries' partnership at trade and multilateral organizations such as BRICS, a group that consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
by Xinhua writers Liu Chang, Deng Yushan

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Some 2,100 years ago, or 1,600 years before Italian explorer Christopher Columbus found the New World, ancient Chinese General Zhang Qian braved a world of uncertainties to open up a trade route now known as the Silk Road.

Along the Silk Road and other networks linking up remote corners of the world, nations sharing the planet have marched a long way in global interconnection and reached unprecedented levels of development, while having also become more closely intertwined and interdependent than Zhang Qian could ever have imagined.

To deal with the numerous problems and uncertainties troubling today's world, China has decided to give greater scope to the time-honored Silk Road spirit and launched, among others, a modern-day land and maritime Silk Road initiative to promote win-win and shared development across the globe.

Underpinning Beijing's endeavors for global development and integration is the vision of building a community of shared future for mankind, which is championed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and, in the eyes of many, represents the ultimate goal of human development.

China will not close its open door, and will keep on opening up on all fronts, Xi reaffirmed at a panel discussion with Chinese lawmakers at the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC).

"THE ONLY FUTURE FOR HUMANITY"

More than two millenniums after Zhang Qian blazed the international trail, isolationist and confrontational elements are still haunting the world, despite the enormous benefits globalization has brought to human development.

A sluggish global growth and widening development gaps are exacerbated by armed conflicts, Cold War mentality and power politics, and mixed with such non-conventional security threats as terrorism, major communicable diseases and climate change.

To ride out those numerous challenges and increasing risks, "China's proposition is: build a community of shared future for mankind and achieve shared and win-win development," announced the Chinese president in a keynote speech at the UN Office at Geneva (UNOG) in January.

"To achieve this goal, the international community should promote partnership, security, growth, inter-civilization exchanges and the building of a sound ecosystem," added the president.

GENEVA, Jan. 18, 2017 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech at the United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland, Jan. 18, 2017. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

In the government work report Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivered at an NPC plenary on Sunday, Beijing declared once again that it stands ready to work with the international community to foster a new type of international relations with win-win cooperation at the core and make new contributions to the building of a community of shared future for mankind.

Xi's vision "is the only future for humanity on this planet," said UN General Assembly President Peter Thomson in an interview with Xinhua.

Both Thomson and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have pledged that the United Nations will work with China to promote world peace and development, and realize the goal of building a community of shared future for mankind.

As a clear sign of the increasing global recognition of Xi's signature concept on human development, the 55th UN Commission for Social Development (CSocD) approved a resolution in February that calls for more support for Africa's economic and social development by embracing the spirit of building a human community of shared future.

Philipp Charwath, chair of the CSocD, told Xinhua that the concept "basically is an acknowledgment that we all depend on each other."

ADAPTER TO CURRENT WORLD ORDER

To those with a propensity for zero-sum thinking, China is strategizing to dethrone the United States and dictate a new world order as the world witnesses a power shift from the West to the East.

Beijing has addressed such suspicions with both words and deeds. In his visit to the UNOG and other international organizations in Switzerland, Xi reaffirmed China's commitment to peaceful development and pledge not to seek hegemony, expansion or sphere of influence.

The president's Switzerland trip "sent out a clear message of China's strong commitment to multilateralism and strong support for the UN-centered international system," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told a press conference Wednesday on the sidelines of the NPC session.

BEIJING, March 8, 2017 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi answers questions on China's foreign policy and foreign relations at a press conference for the fifth session of the 12th National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, March 8, 2017. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

In a move clearly indicative of Beijing's commitment, China took the lead in establishing in 2015 the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which is meant to supplement -- rather than supplant -- the international financial system and help fill the huge funding gaps for infrastructure construction.

Likening the international order to a building, Wang said: "What we should be doing is to renovate the building rather than constructing another structure."

That is what Joseph Nye, a Harvard professor and prominent U.S. foreign policy expert, has concluded through observation.

"If you look at the Chinese behavior, they have not rejected the world international system," he noted at a recent seminar at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, adding that China just seeks to adapt itself to the current world order, not to overthrow it.

Evan A. Feigenbaum, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a U.S. think tank, also pointed out that China is not "a revolutionary" power.

China's size, wealth and policy lead it "to demand significant changes to existing institutions, but it does not seek to overturn the current international order wholesale," he wrote in an article published in the January/February issue of U.S. magazine Foreign Affairs under the title of "China and the World."

A PATHWAY OF COOPERATION, WIN-WIN

Xi has backed his grand vision with concrete actions.

For example, China has been making great efforts to build a community of shared future with its neighbors. Among the initiatives is the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) mechanism, which has designated 45 "early harvest" programs.

"We hope LMC will become a flagship initiative in China's efforts to build a community of shared future with our neighbors and contribute more to the narrowing of disparity and the promotion of integration in our region," said Wang Yi, the foreign minister.

BEIJING, March 10, 2017 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (L, front) and Cambodian ambassador to China Khek Caimealy Sysoda (R, front) attend the launch ceremony of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) China Secretariat in Beijing, capital of China, March 10, 2017. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)

Substantial progress has also been made in the building of a China-Africa community of shared future. Since the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in late 2015, China has disbursed or arranged nearly half of the 60-billion-U.S.-dollar funding support it promised to Africa.

In addition, the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway, Africa's first modern electrified railway China helps build to link the Ethiopian capital with Djibouti's Red Sea port, has been up and running. So will the Mombasa-Nairobi railway in Kenya, a China-funded standard gauge railway (SGR) ranking as the biggest infrastructure project in the country since its independence.

ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 4, 2016 (Xinhua) -- A train runs on the Ethiopia-Djibouti railway during an operational test near Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Oct. 3, 2016. (Xinhua/Li Baishun)

The flagship of China's endeavors is the Belt and Road Initiative, which comprises the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road and is aimed at promoting common development along the ancient land and maritime Silk Road trade routes and beyond.

So far the initiative, which was proposed by Xi in 2013, has gained the support of over 100 countries and international organizations, and more than 40 of them have signed cooperation agreements with China.

"China's initiative to jointly build the Belt and Road, embracing the trend towards a multipolar world, economic globalization, cultural diversity and greater IT application, aims at being highly efficient in terms of the allocation of resources, and at achieving a deep integration of markets among the countries concerned," said Keith Bennett, vice chair of the London-based 48 Club Group.

"It will thereby jointly create an open, inclusive and balanced regional economic cooperation architecture that benefits all," the British business leader told Xinhua.

Gerrishon K. Ikiara, a senior lecturer at the University of Nairobi, noted that the Belt and Road Initiative will provide unprecedented opportunities for the economic and social development of China and all other countries involved.

"It is the way leading to the community of shared future for mankind," said Ikiara of the modern-day version of the trail General Zhang Qian blazed about 2,100 years ago. Enditem
BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese enterprises hired some 1.5 million foreigners overseas in 2016 amid their rapid global expansion, China's commerce minister said Saturday.

Overseas Chinese enterprises recorded 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars in sales volume last year, bringing 40 billion U.S. dollars of taxes to host countries, Commerce Minister Zhong Shan told a press conference on the sidelines of the annual parliamentary session.

China has always encouraged its enterprises to "go out," the minister said, noting there are some "blind and irrational" outbound investments that require enhanced government regulation.

China's outbound direct investment (ODI) has grown quickly in recent years, with non-financial ODI soaring 44.1 percent to 170 billion U.S. dollars in 2016, official data showed.
BAGHDAD, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi government on Saturday said that up to 40 Iraqi Shiite visitors were killed and 120 wounded in the deadly bomb attacks in the capital Damascus.

"The terrorist criminal attacks targeted busses carrying Iraqis visiting the holy shrines in the Bab al-Saghir in Damascus, and initial reports indicate that nearly 40 Iraqis killed and 120 wounded," Ahmed Jamal, Iraq's foreign ministry spokesman said in a statement.

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry is cooperating with the Syrian authorities and will send planes to retrieve the bodies of the victims, that statement said.

The ministry also calls on the international community to denounce the terrorist crime that targeted Iraqi civilians visiting the holy shrines, it added.

Earlier in the day, a Syrian security source said that two explosive devices struck two busses carrying Shiite visitors near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery between the Shaghour neighborhood and Bab Musalla area, leaving at least 40 people killed and some 100 wounded, and most of them were Iraqi nationals.

In Bab al-Saghir cemetery, there are 11 Shiite shrines, usually a visiting spot for Shiite visitors.
Zhang Dejiang, executive chairperson of the presidium of the fifth session of China's 12th National People's Congress (NPC) and chairman of the Standing Committee of the NPC, presides over the first meeting of executive chairpersons of the presidium at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Ma Zhancheng)

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Executive chairpersons of the presidium for China's annual parliamentary session met Saturday for the first time to review important documents.

Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) and one of the executive chairpersons, presided over the meeting.

The executive chairpersons heard a report on how lawmakers thought about the government work report and what to be revised, as well as a draft resolution on the government work report.

They heard a report on lawmakers' opinions about the implementation of the 2016 national economic and social development plan and the draft 2017 national economic and social development plan, as well as a draft resolution on the matter.

They also heard a report on lawmakers' opinions about the implementation of the 2016 central and local budgets, and the draft 2017 central and local budgets, as well as a draft resolution on the matter.

They also heard reports from the NPC Law Committee on lawmakers' opinions about the draft general provisions of the civil law, the draft decision on the quota and election of deputies to the 13th NPC, and the draft methods for electing deputies to the 13th NPC from Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

They decided to submit these documents to the second meeting of the presidium.
Demonstrators against South Korea's ousted leader Park Geun-hye attend the last candlelight rally at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, South Korea, March 11, 2017. Hundreds of thousands of South Koreans took to the streets on Saturday night for a last, festive candlelight rally to celebrate former President Park Geun-hye's ouster. (Xinhua/Lee Sang-ho)

SEOUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of thousands of South Koreans took to the streets on Saturday night for a last, festive candlelight rally to celebrate former President Park Geun-hye's ouster.

The constitutional court handed down a unanimous ruling Friday to force Park out of office. Park became the first South Korean president to be ousted through impeachment.

The streets and roads along the Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul were crowded with people welcoming the court's decision. Some took a selfie in celebration of the historic moment, with others setting off fireworks.

Groups of musicians rollicked around, playing traditional South Korean percussion. During the main event, jubilant people with a candle in their hands cheered each other as they took part in the rally that lasted ever Saturday night for the past five months.

It was the last candlelight vigil as the scandal-hit president was permanently removed from office. Participants called for Park's imprisonment and the transfer of presidential power.

"It was a victory in the square and the politics of candlelight," one speaker said on the main stage. He demanded Park be imprisoned and the presidential Blue House be searched over an influence-peddling scandal.

Park, 65, was subject to criminal indictment and detention as she lost her immunity as the head of state. Prosecutors have branded Park as an accomplice of Choi Soon-sil, Park's decades-long confidante who is now in custody for multiple charges including bribery.

According to a local pollster survey, 69.4 percent respondents said Park should be taken into custody for investigation. Those in favor of probe without detention were 17.8 percent, while just 9.6 percent people were against any investigation.

An overwhelming majority of South Koreans, both liberal and conservative, demanded in one voice that corruptions and unfairness be cleared away.

"The ancient regime symbolized by Park Geun-hye came to an end, and a new era will be ushered in," said Peter Lee, an office worker who attended the boisterous candlelight vigil.

Lee said both progressive and conservative voters shouted in union for the end of the Park government, which he said would be the best legacy left behind candlelight vigils. Park's ouster means justice still prevails in South Korea, he added.

But the possibility of conflicts still remains. Hundreds of meters away from the square, loyalists to Park held a separate rally, refusing to accept the court's decision. They claimed that Park is innocent and the trial is unconstitutional.

Three Park supporters died in the pro-Park demonstration on Friday as enraged protesters clashed with riot police following the court's ruling to uphold the impeachment motion.

According to the Realmeter poll, 86 percent of people believed the court's ruling was right. Only 12 percent said it was not right, with 2 percent declining to reply.

A whopping 92 percent said people should accept the court's decision. Those against the ruling took up just 6 percent of the total respondents.
iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- In the wake of recent allegations that members of the U.S. Marine Corps shared illicit photos of female colleagues without their consent, a new report by Business Insider contains allegations that members of other military branches also engaged in the practice.



"Hundreds of nude photos ... from every military branch" were posted to a message board dedicated to military personnel on a pornographic image-sharing website called AnonIB, according to Thursday's Business Insider report.



Users of the website allegedly asked on numerous occasions for nude photos of specific female service members, some of whom were identified by name or the military base at which they were stationed. The photos shared on the message board are said to date back to 2016, according to Business Insider.



Prior to the new report, the Pentagon had already launched an investigation into allegations that Marines shared nude photos of current and former female service members through a private Facebook group called Marines United.



Kally Wayne, an ex-Marine who has accused her Marine ex-boyfriend of posting their private sex tape to the Marines United page, told ABC News she wants "justice."



"I felt like my privacy had been taken away from me," Wayne, who was dismissed from the Marines in 2016 for unrelated misconduct, told ABC News earlier this week. "I just want to get justice."



Wayne, who is also featured on the AnonIB site, added, "It's about time the Marines have been shown they have been doing wrong ... I'm glad everyone is ready to stand against it."



Capt. Ryan E. Alvis, a spokesperson for the Marines, said Thursday it was unclear if any Marines had also participated in using the AnonIB site.



"We are not able to confirm that Marines are participating in the site AnonIB," Alvis said in a statement to ABC News. "Allegations of misconduct are thoroughly investigated."



Marine Sgt. Maj. Ronald Green spoke to Congress on Wednesday about the allegations.



"I understand how everybody wants us to come out and be outraged," Green said in a response to a comment from Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida that the Marines' initial statement didn't contain an appropriate "level of outrage." "And we are outraged. We are."



The office of Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) alleged that while the alleged illicit behavior may go beyond the Marine Corps, the Marines nonetheless account for more cases of such misconduct that any other branch of U.S. Armed Forces. Speier is now pursuing legislation that would make it illegal to share illicit photos online without consent.



The Air Force, Army and Department of Defense each issued statements after the allegations concerning the AnonIB site were reported by Business Insider. The Navy deferred comment to the Department of Defense spokesman.



Air Force spokesman Zachary Anderson said his service is looking "further into the matter and taking it seriously, but cannot immediately verify any details about the site, the source of its content, or whether there has been any involvement by any airmen." Anderson added that "airmen or civilian employees who engage in activities of misconduct that demean or disrespect fellow service members will be appropriately disciplined."



Army spokesperson Lt. Col. Jennifer Johnson said the Army "is a values-based organization where everyone is expected to be treated with dignity and respect." She said "soldiers or civilian employees who participate in or condone misconduct, whether offline or online, may be subject to criminal, disciplinary, and/or administrative action."



Lt. Col. Myles Caggins, a Defense Department spokesperson, said the alleged behavior "is inconsistent with our values." He added, "over the past few years, the Defense Department has issued policy guidance to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and hazing, and we are currently developing a comprehensive workplace harassment prevention and response policy that will reinforce the department's commitment to eradicate these type of problematic behaviors."

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Contact: Amy Holcombe

Amy Holcombe amy.holcombe@vidanthealth.com

GREENVILLE A now healthy and thriving 4-year-old, Austin Nahrebecki's life looked very different just a couple years ago. At 19-months-old, he became the youngest transplant patient at Vidant Medical Center when he received a kidney from his mother.Austin was born with a blockage in his kidneys, and he needed a transplant. While no parent wants to see their child go through what Austin experienced, his parents say,March 9 marks World Kidney Day, a global campaign aimed at raising awareness of the importance of our kidneys. The light tower at the James and Connie Maynard Children's Hospital at Vidant Medical Center will change color from blue to lime green in recognition of World Kidney Day at 6:30 p.m.Changing the light tower is a both a symbolic gesture and a conversation starter to raise awareness about the risks, dangers and burden of kidney disease.his mother, Rebecca, said.Chronic kidney disease (CKD), which is predicted to increase by 17 percent over the next decade, is now recognized by World Health Organization and other groups as a global public health issue. The trend is specifically true in North Carolina as the number of people diagnosed with kidney disease has continued to increase since 2010.said Dr. Cynthia Christiano, division chief for nephrology and hypertension at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University. She added that minority populations, including African-Americans,Kidney disease also affects children, and is prevalent in eastern North Carolina. In pediatric cases, the causes of end stage renal disease are different than in adults.said Dr. Guillermo Hidalgo, section head for pediatric nephrology and director of pediatric transplant at Brody. He explained that other causes can also include infection, nephrotic syndrome, systemic diseases, trauma and urine blockage or reflux.Rebecca said she never thought the day would come when Austin would be a "normal" kid. If they could give any words of wisdom to other families going through a similar experience, the Nahrebeckis say,The aim of celebrating World Kidney Day is to raise awareness of the importance of our kidneys to our overall health and to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems worldwide.
The 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, a member of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), delivers a speech at the fourth plenary meeting of the fifth session of the 12th CPPCC National Committee in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese political advisors gathered Saturday to pool wisdom for religious belief, cross-Strait relations, food safety, financial governance, judicial reform and united front work, among other topics.

Fourteen members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee addressed a plenary meeting at the Great Hall of the People.

Yu Zhengsheng, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, attended the plenary meeting.

During the meeting, the 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu lamented that some Buddhist temples and monks are eroded by commercialization and called on followers to behave correctly.

The Panchen Lama said that with commercialization, some monks went after money and power instead of guarding Buddhist ethics or concentrating on Buddhist pursuits.8 The 27-year-old senior monk, also vice president of the Buddhist Association of China, said though such incidents and people were not the mainstream, they had left an "extremely bad" influence.

The Panchen Lama said he was concerned about insufficient efforts in nurturing talent as some temples had monks but no instructors, Buddhist scripts but no teaching. Preaching is impossible without a good team of Buddhist instructors.

To keep pace with the needs of the time, Buddhist doctrines should be interpreted in ways compatible to the country's reality and social progress, so that the religion can play its positive role to advance social and economic developments, he said.

The Panchen Lama said he felt "a mission of our time" -- that is to be patriotic, to love religion, and contribute efforts to the Chinese nation's rejuvenation and the well-being of humankind.

Jiang Liping, on behalf of the Central Committee of the Taiwan Democratic Self-Government League, called on Taiwan authorities to acknowledge the 1992 Consensus and conduct consultation and cooperation with the Chinese mainland under the one-China framework.

Jiang said that the Chinese people take a clear-cut and unwavering stand when it comes to major issues concerning national reunification and lasting development. "There will not be any compromise or sway."

The league is one of the eight non-Communist parties in the Chinese mainland. It consists of Taiwan natives living in the mainland and was founded in 1947. It has more than 2,700 registered members.

Jiang praised the Chinese mainland's favorable policies, which have helped Taiwanese youth in studying and accomplishing better development in the mainland. However, cross-Strait youth exchanges have been impaired since Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party administration refused to recognize the 1992 Consensus.

Gao Youdong called for efforts to improve intellectual property protection through better legislation and create a credit system under which infringement acts will be recorded.

Cai Dafeng said the government should further disclose information in accordance with the law and improve the integrity management system so as to boost government credibility.

Liu Xiaozhuang proposed carrying out comprehensive census on agriculture-related water and soil pollution and reducing pollution by the use of advanced technology.

Liu also urged more efforts to revise the law on the safety of agricultural products so as to ensure food safety.

Wang Dongsheng advised that China participate in global financial governance in a higher level and help boost global financial reform.

Wang also noted that China can contribute its wisdom to building an innovative, mutually beneficial, shared and inclusive international financial order.
ANKARA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Foreign Ministry summoned Dutch charge d'affaires in Ankara on Saturday, after the Netherlands cancelled the landing clearance for Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's flight, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

Earlier in the day, the Netherlands revoked landing permission for the plane carrying Cavusoglu, who was scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam.

Dutch Foreign Ministry announced in a statement that Cavusoglu's flight permission was cancelled on grounds of "security" and "public safety."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later slammed the move, describing the country as "Nazis" and "fascists."

"How will your country's (diplomatic) flights come here now after not granting permission to our foreign minister?" Erdogan said during an inauguration ceremony in Istanbul.

"They neither know politics nor international diplomacy. These are the remains of Nazis. They are fascists," he added.

Omer Celik, Turkey's EU minister and chief negotiator with the bloc, said on Saturday that the reasons the European authorities offered "had racist, fascist, anti-democratic, anti-human rights, Islamophobic and anti-Semitic approaches" in their backgrounds.

Kemal Kilicdaroglu, chairman of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party, said it was his country's right to impose sanctions on the Netherlands over the latest developments.

Relations between the Netherlands and Turkey have soured over Turkey's planned meeting with citizens campaign events ahead of the April 16 constitutional referendum.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) talks with French President Francois Hollande during a meeting on the second day of the European spring summit in Brussels, Belgium, March 10, 2017. (Xinhua/Ye Pingfan)

BRUSSELS, March 11 (Xinhua) -- A two-day summit of European Union (EU) leaders and heads of state here concluded on Friday, but the fierce debate on the direction of Europe is likely to continue for a longer time.

TUSK'S JOB ROW

Polish fury over the re-election of European Council President Donald Tusk overshadowed the two-day EU summit.

Tusk was given the green light to continue in the post until 2019 despite fierce opposition by the Polish government, which had put forward its own candidate.

Afterwards, French President Francois Hollande said: "I don't see how one country could oppose this solution when all the others are in favor."

But Poland's government argued that Tusk supported the domestic opposition in Poland and has failed to protect the country's interests in the EU.

Speaking on Friday, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo refused to accept the summit's conclusion to reappoint Tusk, saying "Poland doesn't agree with this. And I definitely won't accept any document from this summit."

Instead of the traditional conclusions by the European Council, there were merely conclusions "by the President of the European Council." As such, the summit ended without the customary accord on a final document.

DEBATE ON EU FUTURE

After Thursday's decision to reappoint Tusk, prime ministers and presidents of 27 EU members states reassembled for a second day after British Prime Minister Theresa May had left.

EU leaders were meeting for the first time in the Europa building, a new 321-million-euro (341 U.S. dollars) summit venue in Brussels decorated so as to symbolize the "united patchwork" of Europe.

However, when the bloc approached the subject of the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, which paved the way of European integration, the debate on which path the post-Brexit EU should follow became increasingly fierce.

Some EU member states, such as France, Germany, Spain and Italy are calling for a multi-speed Europe, wherein some members could deepen their integration faster than others. However, the bloc's eastern members, who fear they will be excluded from deeper integration in the future, are against the idea.

The divergence was also seen between the EU institutions. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said a multi-speed EU scenario was not going to create an "iron curtain" in Europe.

"(For) some of our colleagues, this (multi-speed Europe) is seen as introducing a new dividing line, a new kind of iron curtain between the east and west. That's not the intention," Juncker said at a press conference with Tusk on Friday.

However, Tusk, who chaired the debate on Friday, urged EU member states to strive towards maintaining political unity after Brexit.

"When discussing the various scenarios for Europe, our main objective should be to strengthen mutual trust and unity among 27," Tusk said at the press conference.

Talking about the "multi-speed" version of future, Tusk said he understood the reasons for the debate.

"However, considering the interests of the community of 27 countries in the context of the upcoming Brexit negotiations as well as the long-term strategic interests of the EU, I will be urging everyone to strive towards maintaining political unity among the 27."

"It is clear from the debate that the unity of the 27 will be our most precious asset," he stressed.

As no document on the future of Europe emerged from the meeting of 27 EU leaders on Friday, the debate on the issue is likely to continue. The picture may only become a little clearer later this month when EU's leaders minus Britain are due to make a declaration on Europe's future at the Rome summit, in which they are expected to set out a post-Brexit road map.

BREXIT CHALLENGE AHEAD

The summit was the last attended by Theresa May before she triggers Article 50 at the end of this month, the start of a two-year process that will see the UK leave the EU, and Brexit cast a long shadow over proceedings.

Since the Brexit referendum in June 2016, the British government has so far refused to offer any formal reassurance to the 3.1 million EU citizens living in the UK, insisting it could harm its effort to secure the rights of the 1.2 million British nationals estimated to be living in other EU countries.

On the margins of the summit, the chief Brexit negotiator at the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, said British citizens should be allowed to keep the benefits of EU membership.

Speaking on Friday, Verhofstadt said allowing individuals to keep rights, such as freedom to travel and vote in European elections should be a priority.

The former Belgian prime minister said Brexit had been a "tragedy" and a "disaster" for people in the UK and EU.

Meanwhile, Juncker hinted at the possibility of readmitting Britain as EU member, saying he hoped Britain would one day rejoin the union.

"I do not like Brexit, because I would like to be in the same boat as the British. The day will come when the British will re-enter the boat, I hope," he said.

ECONOMY AND OTHER ISSUES

During the summit, the leaders noted that for the first time in almost a decade, all 28 EU economies were expected to grow over the next two years. They agreed that this "good outlook" needed to be sustained by continued structural reform efforts and "determined action."

"Trade remains one of the most powerful engines for growth, supporting millions of jobs and contributing to prosperity," a conclusion document released by Tusk read, adding that the bloc would remain strongly committed to a robust trade policy and an open and rules-based multilateral trading system with a central role for the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The leaders welcomed the positive vote in the European Parliament on the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), saying it was "a clear signal at a time when protectionist tendencies are re-appearing."

The leaders agreed that the bloc should continue to engage actively with its international trade partners. The single-market bloc said it would resolutely advance on all ongoing negotiations for free trade agreements, including with sub-regional trade bloc Mercosur, Mexico and Japan.

"Trade relations with China should be strengthened on the basis of a shared understanding of reciprocal and mutual benefits," the document stressed.

At the same time, the leaders stressed in the conclusion that the EU had to equip itself with modernized, WTO-compatible tools to tackle unfair trade practices and market distortions.

"We will not hesitate to defend ourselves against unfair trading practices, wherever necessary. We want to set the global standard for free and fair trade," Tusk said.
NEW DELHI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won an astounding victory Saturday in assembly polls in the politically important northern state of Uttar Pradesh, which is seen as a bellwether for 2019 general elections.

The BJP garnered over 300 seats in Uttar Pradesh's 403-member assembly, leaving less than 100 to be shared by all other parties, including the state's ruling Samajwadi Party that had entered into a pre-poll alliance with the main opposition Congress party.

The BJP also won in assembly polls in the northern state of Uttarakhand, adjacent to Uttar Pradesh. In the other two states -- Goa in the west and Manipur in northeast -- that went to polls along with Uttar Pradesh, there were direct contests between Congress and BJP.

Modi, who had personally led the campaign in Uttar Pradesh, said he was overjoyed with the "unprecedented mandate" in India's most populous state. "This is very humbling and overwhelming," he said in a series of tweets.

In Uttar Pradesh, BJP did not announce a chief ministerial candidate and Modi has been central to his party's election strategy. He had aggressively campaigned on a promise to bring growth and modernization, and root out corruption. The party has also credited the victory to his leadership.

"It proves that Modi is the most popular leader since Independence," said BJP chief Amit Shah in his victory speech at the party headquarters in the Indian capital. "The results are a victory of Modi's leadership and the mandate will take the country's politics in a new direction," he said.

Experts said the prime minister had turned the Uttar Pradesh contest into a test of his personal popularity and his radical notes ban to eliminate corruption and black money.

"The win is seen as a ringing endorsement of his high-risk decision last November to scrap 500 and 1,000 rupee notes (7.5 U.S. dollars and 15 U.S. dollars, respectively) worth 86 percent of the cash in circulation," said Prof Ajay Sharma, a Delhi-based political analyst.

"The win in Uttar Pradesh boosts his chances of winning the next general elections. It's clear he is the undisputed popular most leader of India at this time," he added.

The victory will also help improve the BJP's strength in the Rajya Sabha or upper house of Parliament, where the government is in a minority and has trouble in pushing legislation because of opposition unity.
Top Communist Party of China and state leaders Xi Jinping , Li Keqiang , Zhang Dejiang , Yu Zhengsheng , Liu Yunshan , Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli attend a gathering with ethnic minority deputies to the 12th National People's Congress ( NPC ) and ethnic minority members of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference ( CPPCC ) on the sidelines of the ongoing annual sessions of the NPC and the CPPCC National Committee at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping attended a gathering with ethnic minority lawmakers and political advisors Saturday evening on the sidelines of the annual national legislative and political consultative sessions.



Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, along with other Party and state leaders, arrived at the banquet hall of the Great Hall of the People at 7:45 p.m. to the enthusiastic applause from the lawmakers and political advisors in ethnic costumes.

"Good evening, general secretary!" Gesang Zhoigar, a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC) from Tibet sitting next to Xi, greeted him warmly.

Xi was pleased to learn about improved life in her village, where big changes in education, medical services, elderly care and housing have taken place.

He asked her to convey his regards to the villagers, wishing them an even better life.

After being briefed by a deputy from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on local development, Xi told him to make solid efforts for ethnic unity and lead people in pursuing a well-off life.

Other leaders, including Li Keqiang, Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli, all members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, also attended the gathering.

They had cordial conversations with the lawmakers and advisors, encouraging them to contribute to the Chinese nation's rejuvenation.

The gathering was chaired by Qiangba Puncog, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee.

Sun Chunlan, head of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee, said that the CPC Central Committee attaches great importance to ethnic work and has made a set of decisions and arrangements to support ethnic regions.

"We must closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core," Sun said, calling for joint efforts to build a community of shared future for the Chinese nation.

Attendees of the gathering also enjoyed performances showcasing China's ethnic arts.




HO CHI MINH CITY, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Vietnamese officials on Saturday discussed a plan to build the Bac Van Phong Special Administrative-Economic Zone in central Khanh Hoa province.

The special zone in the north of the Van Phong Economic Zone will cover an area of 66,000 hectares, the provincial authorities said. It is expected to become an international hub of seaport, financial, tourism, medical and educational services.

Late last year, the Vietnamese government decided to build three special administrative-economic zones, including Bac Van Phong in Khanh Hoa, Van Don in Quang Ninh province, and Phu Quoc in southern Kien Giang province.

Khanh Hoa leaders suggested a law be drafted for the three special zones. The draft should be submitted to Vietnam's top legislature for approval in 2018.
MOSCOW, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Russian servicemen have delivered 2.3 tons of humanitarian aid to 3,250 Syrian civilians in the past 24 hours, the Russian Center for Syrian Reconciliation said Saturday.

The aid was distributed in the provinces of Aleppo and Hama, the center said in its daily bulletin posted on the website of the Russian Defense Ministry.

Russian aircraft also delivered more than 20 tons of UN-provided food to the city of Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria, it said.

Russia has been providing Syrian residents with medical help and regular humanitarian aid despite the continuous chaos in the war-torn country.
The Republic Square is seen after a rainfall in Yerevan, capital of Armenia, June 4, 2016. (Xinhua/Lu Jinbo)

YEREVAN, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Armenia is currently in negotiations with southern neighbor Iran over plans to establish a free economic zone in Meghri, a town in the country's southern region bordering Iran, Armenian Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan announced on Friday in Syunik.

"For year 2017, we have prepared an investment package of 830 million U.S. dollars," the prime minister announced. "55 million of these funds will be invested in Syunik's mining, agricultural and other industries," he added.

Prime Minister Karapetyan said that an exporting company would be founded jointly with the Iranian side, which would be purchasing products from the Armenian market and sell them in Iran.

Karapetyan's announcement came following the establishment of an Iranian halal meat certification office in Armenia. This is expected to create more incentives for the exports of Armenian meat products to Iran.
LAGOS, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian government is looking for new methods to probe the 661 pump action rifles seized by handing over the rifles to the country's secret police.

Jerry Attah, the spokesperson for Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in charge of Federal Operations Unit Zone said the rifles, seized on January 22, were handed over to the Department of State Security (DSS) for further investigation on Friday.

The rifles were hidden in a truck conveying a container before it was intercepted along Mile 2/Apapa road, Lagos, Nigeria's economic hub.

The truck was immediately taken to the premises of FOU Zone A, Ikeja, where physical examination revealed 49 boxes containing 661 pieces of pump action rifles were concealed with steel doors and other merchandise.

Attah added that three suspects were arrested in connection with the illegal importation.

The 661 pump action rifles and the suspects were handed over to local security authorities. Enditem
ISLAMABAD, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Saturday visited the Headquarters of Special Security Division (SSD) responsible for security of Chinese on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and non-CPEC projects.

The army chief reiterated Pakistani Army's commitment to ensure security for the CPEC and the work force involved. He emphasized on the value Pakistan attaches to the Chinese help and assistance extended in making this projects a success.

General Bajwa was given a detailed briefing on Integrated Security Mechanism led by the Special Security Division, a statement from the army's Inter-Services Public Relations said.

"Army is fully aware of hostile agenda against the CPEC and vowed that the security forces are fully prepared to defeat their design," the army chief said.

He appreciated the SSD for their state of preparedness and arrangements for execution of the assigned mission and tasks.

In January the government launched a special division for the security of the CPEC.

The security division, assigned with the duty of protecting projects under the CPEC and the Chinese workers, comprises of nine army battalions and six civil wings having nearly 13,700 personnel.

Pakistan's southern Sindh province also plans to raise a special force for the CPEC. A force comprising of 1,000 retired soldiers of Pakistan Army for security of the CPEC will be part of the force, according to provincial Advisor Maula Bakhsh Chandio.

The Chinese authorities had agreed in December last year to include projects relating to a railway service in Karachi, development of a port in Thatta district near Karachi and setting up of a special economic zone in the CPEC.

The agreement reached during the Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) on the CPEC held in Beijing. Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah led a government delegation at the meeting.
The Mockingbird has sung his morning hymn, and the sun has risen over the barn, making the old shabby thing look holy. It is Saturday morning at the rabbit patch. I enjoy the leisure feeling of the early mornings on the weekend. I wake up early, as I always do and lie very still- for the moment that I stir, Cash, my boxer, needs to go out. It is apparent that he will perish, if I dawdle. He takes to dancing around and pleading in tones only made by dogs. No amount of chatter convinces him to wait. Moon Shine gets up and races around the room as if the devil is after him. I get up and hope Cash will not die and that Moon Shine will not trip me, in my morning stupor. Christopher Robin, wakes up well mannered and considerate of my predicament. Moon Shine waits nervously, for Cash to come in, by the window. When he does, they both settle back down. I drink coffee and ease into the morning, gently.When, I am not in Elizabeth City, I plan "Sunday dinner" on Saturday mornings. I will put away my lovely china with the redbirds and ribbons today. It is March after all. In tribute to my Irish heritage, I will set the table with Kyles' collection of green glass. Most of the pieces are very old. I have collected dishes for each of my children, for many years. Each collection is different, and were selected by my children. Kyle, my landscaper, chose green. Most of the pieces are very old. Many are "depression glass" pieces. What a lovely table it makes-especially in March, and with us being just a little Irish.My great, great, great grandfather was Henderson McDuffy O'Leary, and straight from Ireland. He and his brother Enoch, settled in the Lake Phelps area, where my sister Connie lives today. Henderson and Enoch were farmers. They fought for the north in the civil war. I wondered how unpleasant living in the south, that must have been for them, at that time. Once, I spoke with a historian, Dorothy Redford about this. Ms. Redford wrote "Somerset Homecoming"- which I think should be in every North Carolina school. It is the story of how Redford found the descendants of the slaves of the Somerset plantation, on Lake Phelps, and held a reunion. The " Today Show" covered the story. Ms. Redford told me, that more than likely, these Irish brothers had family up North and wouldn't have fought against them for "love nor money". Thankfully, both brothers survived the war. Henderson is buried at the "Hollyneck Church" that still meets today. I found Uncle Enoch in a family cemetery in a field, not far from Connies' house. The "Union" tombstone of "Captain, Enoch O'Leary" was lying in the edge of a field-me finding it, was surely "Divine intervention", I convinced myself. Kyle and Christian were with on me this outing. They were little boys and traipsing through field after field looking for a grave, lost its' appeal for them, early on. When we found Uncle Enoch, they were shocked and thankful. They were in full agreement that God or some angel, had put an end to the search. I put flowers on the grave, that were growing on a ditch bank, and cried. There is no explanation for my behavior that day, except that I am Irish. You may see now that whether Ms. Redfords' explanation was right or not, it sounded reasonable to me.Today, I will wash the green dishes, for use tomorrow. I love to wash glassware. It is a relaxing task. I can not wash precious dishes hurriedly. Of course, I think and dream while I wash them. I find I can only think of pleasant things, while washing glass. The sunshine through the kitchen window makes the glass appear to be lighted. Being Irish, it is perfectly fine that I often ask the dishes about the hands that washed them before me. "Whose table did you grace by your presence?" I ask- and I wonder.I am making a pie tomorrow- from an old recipe, but one new to me. It is a caramel pie, that requires you boil sweetened condensed milk, in the can for several hours. I have never heard of such a process to make a pie, but apparently it is at least a sixty year old recipe. I will give more details tomorrow and credit to its' origin.The March air is chilly and the wind is light this day. It is a good day to do some housekeeping while an old movie plays. It is a privilege not to rush today. It is a privilege to wash green glass and watch it sparkle near a window, where the spirea is blooming-and to make a pie from an old recipe, someone was generous enough to share with you. I am grateful for every day, but some days are just so pure and simple, that it just makes you want to cry at the beauty . . of course, being a little Irish . . . I always do.
by Marian Draganov

SOFIA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Grand Chocolate Festival kicked off in Sofia on Saturday for the third consecutive year with the participation of more than 70 manufacturers and importers home and abroad.

During the two-day event at the Inter Expo Center, chocolates produced around the world are available for the estimated thousands of visiters.

Besides the common bars, chocolates appeared before visiters in various forms, including candies, cakes, cookies, liquor and even cosmetics.

They are even made into sushi together with strawberry and coconut, jewelry, paintings and a huge chocolate heart weighing 40 kg.

Nikolay, a visitor carrying a toddler on his shoulders, both eating chocolate ice cream, told Xinhua that they came from Pleven, some 170 km northeast of Sofia, especially for this festival.

"I guess we will try many more things but we started from here because my son loves ice cream and chocolate," he said.

Nikolay said chocolate is not something rare in Pleven, the seventh largest city in Bulgaria, but he comes to this festival to enjoy a great variety in one place.

Ani Dimitrova, the event organizer, told Xinhua that Bulgaria has seen an upward trend of chocolate business.

This can be reflected by the increasing scale of the festival, which is bigger this year compared with the previous two in terms of the number of exhibitors and the exhibition area.

"Generally speaking, I think that the culture of high-quality chocolate is gaining ground in Bulgaria, and this business is increasingly developing," Dimitrova said.

Radi Stambolov, exhibitor and co-owner of several companies, added that more and more Bulgarian consumers want to try new tastes.

"There are more thriving businesses that pay better wages, and people want to indulge themselves and eat high-quality chocolate," Stambolov said.
A policewoman stands guard at a blocked section leading to a shopping mall area due to an ownerless object in central Frankfurt, Germany, on Dec. 3, 2016. (Xinhua/Luo Huanhuan)

FRANKFURT, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Police of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, announced via twitter that it raided some places in Oberhausen on Saturday and arrested two male suspects.

The police said they started the operation after they received an attack threat alert on Friday through security authority.

The shopping center "Limbecker Platz" in nearby town of Essen was supposed to be the target of the possible attack.

Following the information, police together with management of the shopping center closed and cordoned off the shopping center on Saturday.

Police also searched an apartment and an Internet cafe in Oberhausen Saturday afternoon, which led to the arrest of the two suspects.

Further investigation is ongoing, said the police.

Last December, German police succeeded in preventing a likely attack against a shopping center in Oberhausen by arresting two male suspects ahead of Christmas.
TEHRAN, March 11 (Xinhua) -- At least seven people were killed in the northwestern Iranian province of Ardabil in a blast of the homemade fireworks and explosives, Press TV reported on Saturday.

The explosion occurred in a residential building in a district in Ardabil a few days before the Chaharshanbe Suri, the Iranian festival of fire, Ardabil's chief prosecutor, Nasser Atabati, was quoted as saying.

The explosion happened due to the carelessness of a teenager while he was producing handmade fireworks and explosives inside the residential building.

Some materials used for the production of explosives were found beneath the rubble, Atabati said.

The teenager killed himself and six other family members, he said, adding that four others were injured, with one in a critical condition.

Chaharshanbe Suri is an Iranian festival celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday before Iranian new year, or Nowruz. During the Chaharshanbe Suri celebrations, Iranians traditionally jump over bonfires and set off firework.

This year's Nowruz falls on March 21.
by Maria Vasileiou

THE HAGUE, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Four days ahead of the March 15 polls to elect a new low house in the Netherlands, the mainstream left Labour Party, De Partij van de Arbeid (the PvdA), risks being the biggest loser as most polls indicate that the currently junior coalition ruling party and the second largest party in the parliament could slip to the seventh place.

"Voters are blaming the labour party for being part of a coalition which implemented an austerity program and cut heavily on social services," said Floris Vermeulen, associate professor and chair of the department of political science at the University of Amsterdam (UvA).

"The measures were not acceptable by the voters of a traditional defender of the welfare state," Vermeulen explained.

The social-democratic PvdA has been in coalition with the liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) in the second cabinet led by Prime Minister Mark Rutte since the 2012 election when it won 38 seats in the 150-seat lower house.

However, most polls show that the PvdA would shrink to 12 seats in the upcoming election.

"Uncertainty and rising costs especially in the health care sector, a major issue in the current contest, have driven traditional supporters away from PvdA," explained Vermeulen.

Health care costs, tax hikes and higher pension age are among the 22-billion-euro austerity package passed by VVD-PvdA coalition government in the wake of the financial crisis. Labour's then-leader Diederik Samsom campaigned on an anti-austerity platform, leading his party to substantial gains in the 2012 elections.

"The current situation marks a sharp difference. In the previous elections, the competition for the lead was mainly between the largest right- and left-wing parties," said Paul Teule, lecturer in Political Economy at UvA.

Now the leading race is between the VVD and Geert Wilders' anti-Islam populist Party for Freedom (PVV). Lodewijk Asscher, current leader of the PvdA, lags behind among the heads of the established mainstream parties.

Asscher was expected to set the party on a new path when he was elected in December to replace Diederik Samsom, but this expectation was shared by the party's core members, not by the voters, argued Vermeulen. "They replaced their leader with a high ranking member of the coalition government which is taking the blame for unpopular measures."

Asscher is now deputy prime minister and minister of Social Affairs and Employment. "He shouldn't have challenged and stand against Samsom," PvdA voter Carla van Walsum, 66, told Xinhua. "This made me feel unhappy with the party that I have been voting for so many years."

However, she still decided to vote for her party. "Compromise is part of our political system," she argued.

Lastest polls show shifts of voters intentions as the populist PVV slip into second place while VVD taking the lead and conservative Christian Democrats Appeal (CDA), liberal and progressive D66 or the green GroenLinks registering gains.

In a debate held Sunday among eight largest parties' leaders apart from Wilders, who declined to participate, Asscher was rated only seventh with 7.4 percent in an research among viewers.

Jesse Klaver, leader of GrownLinks scored first with 17.4 percent. GroenLinks, now with four seats, is predicted to gain 15-17 seats.

"Klaver's party has attracted a number of PvdA voters in particular those with a migrant background," said Vermeulen. He saw in this shift a general trend followed by voters who abandon mainstream and established parties in favour of smaller ones which address specific concerns.

Alexander Penthold's D66, Sybrant Buma's CDA, as well as newcomers such as the pro-immigration DENK founded by two former PvdA members of parliament of Turkish origin, also take voters from PvdA, said Teule.

"Traditional left-wing voters feel frustrated with PvdA's stance towards immigration," Teule suggested. "But Asscher has a reasonable alternative which might help him win back supporters who worry about globalization and immigration."

Asscher has made the so-called "participation contract," which determines that newcomers have to register or risk a fine, a significant part of his integration policy. He also advocated an end to "unfair" competition from Eastern European migrant workers and called for restrictions on the movement of workers within the EU.

"Undecided voters will play a role in the elections outcome," said Vermeulen. But he declined to predict whether the labour will gain supporters among the 40 percent of the still undecided voters. Usually these votes are divided among the biggest parties in latest polls, he said.

Maud Schuil, who has not decided on which party to vote for, excludes voting for PvdA. "I am contemplating between D66 and VVD," she told Xinhua. The 62-year-old Rotterdammer favours liberal policies and appreciates D66's emphasis on the need for reforms in education.

The turnout, which is expected to be high, could also be critical in the final outcome, Vermeulen added, because "this election is more important than others." A total of 28 parties will join the contest, a record high number in the Dutch history.
By Matthew Rusling

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The stakes are high for U.S. Republicans, which now controls both Congress and the White House, whether they can deliver on a seven-year promise to repeal and replace the Obamacare.

The Republicans' failure to do so will mean big trouble for the GOP, experts said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has been at the center of controversy on a number of issues. Experts said that if he doesn't deliver on his promise to replace the landmark but controversial Affordable Care Act, passed by former President Barack Obama, it will harm the Republican Party.

"This is the whole ball of wax for the Trump administration. If they can't get this healthcare through, it's going to be very hard to get the rest of their agenda through, especially when Republicans campaigned for seven years on this very promise," Republican Strategist Ford O'Connell told Xinhua.

"So they are going to do everything necessary...to get it through to show they can go from an opposition party to a governing party," O'Connell said.

And if they get two or three big items through before the 2018 Congressional mid-term elections, chances are Trump will be re-elected in 2020, he said.

Indeed, the healthcare plan Trump recently revealed has been criticized by his own party as "Obamacare light" - a watered down version of Obama's law, which the GOP is against.

Darrell West, vice president and director of governance studies of the Brookings Institution, told Xinhua the healthcare bill will be a major test for Republicans.

"They have majorities in the House and Senate, and it will be a complete embarrassment if they are not able to deliver on their most visible campaign pledge," West said.

If they cannot assemble a winning coalition on this issue, it will be hard for them to deliver on other issues. A loss would be devastating to their base and make it difficult for them to do well in the 2018 elections, he said.

There is disarray in the GOP because the party is divided between those who want to completely throw out Obamacare and those who want to preserve certain of its advantages for their home states. That tension is what produced the current bill, West said.

Ultimately, Republicans will have to figure out if there is a better bill that can pass muster with a majority of the House and Senate. Right now, it is hard to see what the alternative would look like because there are serious divisions within the GOP caucus, West said.

Christopher Galdieri, assistant professor at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire, told Xinhua that since 2009, the GOP has defined itself in no small part as the party that will repeal the former president's healthcare law.

The Republicans voted to repeal it dozens of times while Obama was president, and many of the Republicans currently in Congress owe their election to their opposition to Obamacare. After the 2016 election, Republican leaders made repealing the Obamacare a priority.

"If they're not able to do that with unified control of government, that will be a real blow," Galdieri said.

Dan Mahaffee, senior vice president and director of policy at the Center for the Study of Congress and the Presidency, told Xinhua there is significant opposition to Trump's healthcare plan from the so-called freedom caucus on the Republican right.

"With relatively slim majorities in both houses, there are significant hurdles just within the GOP caucus to make this plan a reality," Mahaffee said.

Given the significant tax breaks for the wealthy, new exemptions for large insurance companies, likely reductions in insurance coverage, and the cuts to Medicaid funding-combined with the fact that it is now labeled "Trumpcare" - there is very little to no chance of Democrats supporting the plan, Mahaffee said.
RABAT, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Morocco's king Mohammed VI called on Saturday on civil society to double efforts to raise awareness among young people and inform them of the dangers of fanaticism and reclusion.

Civil society actors must counter the campaign staged by terrorists and by those using terrorist acts to point fingers at Islam and Muslims, the king said in a message on the occasion of the commemoration in the northern city of M'Diq, of the 5th anniversary of the death of Imad Ibn Ziaten in a terrorist act south-western France.

Terrorist Mohamed Marah killed in March 2012 a teacher and three children at a Jewish school and three French soldiers, including the French citizen of Moroccan descent Imad in the city of Toulouse.

The Moroccan king rejected the distortion of the Islamic faith, calling all people of conscience and lovers of peace, life and tolerance to rise up against the dissemination of fanaticism and obscurantism and counter advocates of terrorism, violence and excommunication.

The best way to counter the unjust and unacceptable confusion between Islam and terrorism affecting Muslims livings in Western countries, including Moroccans, is to remain committed to its lofty values, he added.

The king paid tribute to the policman's mother Latifa Ben Ziaten, who has set up an NGO with the aim to promote the culture of peace, tolerance and living together.

"Instead of giving in to feelings of despair and surrendering to anger and hatred, she has proved that she is a living example of patience and tolerance," he underscored.
THE HAGUE, March 11 (Xinhua) -- While Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte described Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's remarks likening his government to "fascists and Nazis" as "bizarre," some parties leaders in the Netherlands have voiced their support to the government's decision to cancel the landing rights of a Turkish plane with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on board.

Turkish FM Cavusoglu wanted to speak at a Turkish referendum rally in Rotterdam on Saturday. Despite a call by the Dutch government not to come, he wanted his visit to go through.

The Dutch cabinet ultimately decided to cancel the landing rights for the plane, citing "the public order is at stake" as a reason.

The decision has caused a diplomatic row between the Netherlands and Turkey.

The Turkish diplomatic service reacted on Twitter that "racist, anti-Semitic and Islamophobic attacks in the Netherlands jeopardize the European democracy."

Turkish President Erdogan even compared the Dutch to "fascists and Nazis," and threatened to expel Dutch diplomats as well as cancel flights from the Netherlands.

In response, Rutte called Erdogan's remarks "bizarre" during his conservative People's party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) campaign meeting in Breda on Saturday.

"The talks with Turkish authorities were extremely difficult," said Rutte. "This morning he (Cavusoglu) threatened with sanctions if he could not come. The Netherlands can never, of course, allow to that type of threat talk by the Turks, that's impossible."

Leaders of some Dutch political parties have voiced their support to the government's decision to block the landing of the Turkish foreign minister.

"It was unwise for him to land," commented PvdA (Labor) leader Lodewijk Asscher on NPO Radio 2. "I think, also as Deputy Prime Minister, that you have to draw a line ... At such a moment you cannot be blackmailed as a country."

Meanwhile, Christian Democrats CDA leader Sybrand Buma, Socialist Party SP leader Emile Roemer and GroenLinks (GreenLeft) leader Jesse Klaver also show their support to the decision.

"Other countries cannot play like this with the Netherlands, this guy cannot come in," said Buma on NPO Radio 1.

"I support the Prime Minister, public order and security are paramount," said Roemer.

Right wing populist PVV leader Geert Wilders responded that the decision by Rutte would not have been taken without the PVV. "Rutte only shows balls because of the PVV demands and because we are close to the elections," he stated on Twitter.

Last Wednesday Wilders demonstrated against the visit of the Turkish Minister in front of the Turkish Embassy.

But former minister of foreign affairs Ben Bot, who served between 2003 and 2007, was not happy with the decision by the Dutch government.

"Very unwise," he told RTL Nieuws. "This will cause a rise of tension. We always point to our democracy and human rights, but with this we are on the wrong track."

GroenLinks leader Klaver supported Rutte, but also expressed his worries. "This puts the diplomatic relations with Turkey under pressure and at risk," Klaver said on NPO Radio 1.

The Turkish government plans to campaign in the Netherlands, and for instance also in Germany, for a referendum to give President Erdogan more power.

The Turkish government aims to urge Dutch citizens with the Turkish nationality to vote for a stronger position for Erdogan in a constitutional referendum on April 16.
by Alessandra Cardone

ROME, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The White Paper on the future of Europe presented earlier this month by the European Commission met with interest and overall positive reactions in Italy.

A debate over European Union's (EU) future path is alive in the country, especially ahead of the celebrations planned here on March 25 for the 60th Anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, from which the whole integration process stemmed.

The White Paper, unveiled by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on March 1, outlines five possible scenarios for the remaining 27 member states of the bloc (considering Brexit as done) by 2025.

"It is an effective initiative, since it allows the political debate to ignite at European Council level," Carlo Altomonte, professor of Economics of European Integration with Bocconi University in Milan, told Xinhua.

"In terms of ability to stir a discussion, the document is well-balanced: the Commission did not take a specific stand, but put all member states before their responsibilities, outlining the risks and opportunities of each scenario," he explained.

The White Paper covers a range of possible paths, the first of which would be for the EU27 to "Carrying On" as they have done so far, on the base of already agreed agendas.

The second scenario predicts a future EU with "nothing but the single market," for the 27 member states would not be able to agree on common policies on other issues.

The third scenario, "Those Who Want More Do More," envisages a 27-member EU would proceed into further integration but at different speeds, according to their own needs and goals.

The fourth scenario, titled "Doing Less More Efficiently," would see the 27 focused "on delivering more and faster in selected policy areas, while doing less where it is perceived not to have an added value."

The fifth and final scenario, "Doing Much More Together," would see all EU member states share more power, resources, and decision-making across the board, moving all together.

Although all paths are theoretically possible, one only would really be feasible, according to the analyst.

"The Commission's paper is very precise and complete, but I do believe the more realistic and politically relevant among the five options is the third one, envisaging a multi-speed future integration," Altomonte said.

Some key EU member states, such as France and Germany, would in fact need such a development path in order to safeguard the economic growth model and the social system they have been providing to their own citizens in the last decades, according to the scholar.

"This implies not only a single market and a single currency, but moving towards a further integration on other levels such as defence and internal security," he noted.

Overall, Italy's interest would prove the same as that of France or Germany. The Italian government backs the proposal of a multi-speed integration, which is "already a state of things," Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said earlier this week.

On Friday evening, at the end of a two-day EU summit in Brussels, Gentiloni declared he was "fairly optimistic" that the Rome meeting on March 25 will be an opportunity to revive the EU.

Yet, he warned the idea of a multi-speed integration does not means a Europe "a la carte, with each country choosing just what it likes, according to the occasion."

"A (multi-level) strengthened cooperation is already a reality, and it is foreseen by the Treaties," Gentiloni said.

The Italian PM also voiced his preference to the third path. "It is a necessary path, which allows some countries to make steps forward if they want, without obliging others to follow and, on the other hand, does not imply stopping such steps forward just because one country only is against."

The EU executive's White Paper was also recently applauded by Under-Secretary for European Affairs Sandro Gozi.

Italy appreciated President Juncker for unveiling the blueprint ahead of the celebrations for the 60th Anniversary of the Rome Treaty, in order to make it a basis for discussion, the official told local media.

"This is very relevant, because we do not want the Anniversary to be a mere celebrative event," Gozi explained.

Yet, the proposal seemed also to stir some "mixed feelings," according to Italy's leading business daily Il Sole 24 Ore.

"The idea of a multi-speed integration is welcome, as a way to tackle the risk of disintegration of the European Union," analyst Beda Romano wrote.

"Yet, it brings worries as well, because of the risk of loosing (more) sovereignty, and accepting to put our public debt under European influence," Romano said.
US President Donald Trump, alongside US Vice President Mike Pence (L), arrives for a meeting with US House Committee Chairmen, including Representative Diane Black (2nd R), Republican of Tennessee and House Budget Committee Chairwoman, and Representative Virginia Foxx (2nd R), Republican of North Carolina and House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman, as they meet about healthcare reform in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, March 10, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB)

by Matthew Rusling

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The stakes are high for U.S. Republicans, which now controls both Congress and the White House, whether they can deliver on a seven-year promise to repeal and replace the Obamacare.

The Republicans' failure to do so will mean big trouble for the GOP, experts said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has been at the center of controversy on a number of issues. Experts said that if he doesn't deliver on his promise to replace the landmark but controversial Affordable Care Act, passed by former President Barack Obama, it will harm the Republican Party.

"This is the whole ball of wax for the Trump administration. If they can't get this healthcare through, it's going to be very hard to get the rest of their agenda through, especially when Republicans campaigned for seven years on this very promise," Republican Strategist Ford O'Connell told Xinhua.

"So they are going to do everything necessary...to get it through to show they can go from an opposition party to a governing party," O'Connell said.

And if they get two or three big items through before the 2018 Congressional mid-term elections, chances are Trump will be re-elected in 2020, he said.

Indeed, the healthcare plan Trump recently revealed has been criticized by his own party as "Obamacare light" - a watered down version of Obama's law, which the GOP is against.

Darrell West, vice president and director of governance studies of the Brookings Institution, told Xinhua the healthcare bill will be a major test for Republicans.

"They have majorities in the House and Senate, and it will be a complete embarrassment if they are not able to deliver on their most visible campaign pledge," West said.

If they cannot assemble a winning coalition on this issue, it will be hard for them to deliver on other issues. A loss would be devastating to their base and make it difficult for them to do well in the 2018 elections, he said.

There is disarray in the GOP because the party is divided between those who want to completely throw out Obamacare and those who want to preserve certain of its advantages for their home states. That tension is what produced the current bill, West said.

Ultimately, Republicans will have to figure out if there is a better bill that can pass muster with a majority of the House and Senate. Right now, it is hard to see what the alternative would look like because there are serious divisions within the GOP caucus, West said.

Christopher Galdieri, assistant professor at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire, told Xinhua that since 2009, the GOP has defined itself in no small part as the party that will repeal the former president's healthcare law.

The Republicans voted to repeal it dozens of times while Obama was president, and many of the Republicans currently in Congress owe their election to their opposition to Obamacare. After the 2016 election, Republican leaders made repealing the Obamacare a priority.

"If they're not able to do that with unified control of government, that will be a real blow," Galdieri said.

Dan Mahaffee, senior vice president and director of policy at the Center for the Study of Congress and the Presidency, told Xinhua there is significant opposition to Trump's healthcare plan from the so-called freedom caucus on the Republican right.

"With relatively slim majorities in both houses, there are significant hurdles just within the GOP caucus to make this plan a reality," Mahaffee said.

Given the significant tax breaks for the wealthy, new exemptions for large insurance companies, likely reductions in insurance coverage, and the cuts to Medicaid funding-combined with the fact that it is now labeled "Trumpcare" - there is very little to no chance of Democrats supporting the plan, Mahaffee said.
ISTANBUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Saturday blasted the Dutch denial of his entry by air as a "scandal from every angle and unacceptable," while another Turkish minister decided to enter the Netherlands by land amid a worsening diplomatic row.

"The move would not remain unrequited," the top Turkish envoy told reporters in Istanbul. "This is the most extreme point in diplomacy."

Earlier in the day, the Dutch government revoked landing permission for the plane carrying Cavusoglu, just hours before his scheduled flight to the Dutch city of Rotterdam.

The minister went ahead with his plan to address the Turkish there to garner their votes in a referendum on Turkey switching to a presidential system, despite a Dutch call to the contrary.

Cavusoglu also accused the Netherlands of taking an "apparent" side in the April 16 referendum in Turkey.

Speaking to CNN Turk before his departure to the Netherlands, the minister threatened the northern European country with harsh economic and political sanctions in case he was not allowed in.

Meanwhile, Turkey's Minister of Family and Social Policies Betul Sayan Kaya, who is currently in Germany, decided to travel to Rotterdam by land in the face of a flight ban, Turkish media reported.

According to Ulusal TV channel, the Dutch authorities closed the road leading to the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam following Kaya's announcement.

Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party who opposes an executive presidency in Turkey, denounced as "wrong" the Dutch government's move, voicing support for sanctions against the Netherlands.

"Turkey can impose all kind of sanctions," Kilicdaroglu was quoted as saying by state-run Anadolu Agency. "This is Turkey's right."

"The Netherlands should now think about how their planes will land in Turkey," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said soon after the flight ban, adding that "they are the Nazi remnants, fascists."

Turkey is already embroiled in a row with Germany over a similar ban on rallies, which has chilled their bilateral ties to a new low.
MOSUL, Iraq, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces on Saturday pushed further toward the old city center of the western side of Mosul amid fierce clashes with Islamic State (IS) militants, the Iraqi military said.

The federal police and interior ministry special forces, known as Rapid Response, advanced in the neighborhood of Bab al-Toub in Mosul city center, fighting heavy clashes against IS militants in the narrow streets of the old neighborhood, said Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Yarallah from the Joint Operations Command in a statement.

The troops killed many IS militants and destroyed three car bombs and 20 explosive devices during the battles in Bab al-Toub, the statement said.

The commandos of the Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) continued their advance inside the neighborhoods of Aghawat and Risala in the west of the old city center, while more CTS troops initiates new advances in the nearby neighborhoods of New Mosul, Nafet and Nablus, leaving many IS militants killed along with destroying five booby-trapped cars and 14 explosive devices, the statement added.

Also in the day, the army's 16th infantry division made a new progress in northwest of Mosul's western side, and the troops recaptured two villages, a compound of industry installation and the major water facility, which provides the western side of Mosul with water, the statement said.

The troops killed many IS militants and destroyed three car bombs and 15 bombs, along with destroying a vehicle carrying IS militants, it added.

Near Mosul, the army's 9th armored Division and the Shiite paramilitary Hashd Shaabi unit seized part of the town of Badush and surrounded the nearby cement plant in northwest of Mosul, according to the statement.

The troops have been fighting heavy clashes in Badush during the past few days, as the the troops managed on Wednesday to recapture Badush prison, the statement said.

The troops also found two mass graves near Badush prison for people said to be killed by IS militants without giving details about the number of the victims.

However, the Hashd Shaabi units announced earlier in the day they had discovered a mass grave at Badush prison containing the remains of hundreds of people executed by the extremist group.

The presence of armored division and the Hashd Shaabi is aimed at surrounding Mosul from the west to cut off the escape route from Mosul and the neighboring Syria.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, announced the start of an offensive on Feb. 19 to drive extremist militants out of the western side of Mosul.

Late in January, Abadi declared the liberation of the eastern side of Mosul, or the left bank of Tigris, after more than 100 days of fighting against IS militants.

However, the western part of Mosul, with its narrow streets and a population of between 750,000 and 800,000, appears to be a bigger challenge to the Iraqi forces.

Mosul, 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions.
NICOSIA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- A UN official has said he was worried about the prospects of having a structured peace process for a Cyprus solution, Cypriot media reported on Saturday.

Espen Barth Eide, special adviser of the UN Secretary-General on Cyprus who presides over the negotiations, in an interview with Cyprus News Agency sounded pessimistic for the first time after 22 months of talks during which unprecedented progress had been achieved.

Last month, Turkish Cypriots pulled out of the negotiations aimed at ending the four decades-old division of Cyprus, after the all-Greek Cypriot parliament passed an amendment making it mandatory for teachers to speak in class about a 1950 referendum in which the Greek Cypriot community, which makes up 80 percent of the population, expressed its wish to unite with Greece.

Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci claimed that it showed that the Greek Cypriots were still after union with Greece, a goal that was officially abandoned when Cyprus became independent in 1960.

Eide spoke also for the first time about a lack of trust between the two community leaders, who have up to now managed to tackle difficult issues underlying the Cyprus problem.

"Trust is also needed and I am convinced that if it does not exist in the leadership level it is difficult to substitute it somewhere else," Cyprus News Agency quoted Eide as saying.

"I think if people believe in a solution in Cyprus this is the moment to speak up in favor of it, because frankly I am worried that things are not going as well as they used to do a few months ago," he added.

He said time is running out and the issue of the negotiations should not be left only to the two leaders.
TEHRAN, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Iranian Foreign Ministry strongly condemned Saturday the deadly terrorist attacks in the Syrian capital of Damascus as "heinous and shameful," Press TV reported.

"Indiscriminate assassinations, carnage and spilling the blood of innocent people, including women and children, are the last resort of the desperate and miserable terrorists who have lost their control more than ever following their recurrent and disgraceful defeats in various fields," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said.

"Terrorists and their supporters know well that they are on the verge of more failures and full collapse," Qasemi added.

The deadly bombings targeted two busses carrying Iraqi Shiite visitors in the Syrian capital Damascus and Shiite shrines in the Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Damascus.

The bombings left 44 people killed and 100 others wounded.
ANKARA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Family and Social Policies Minister Betul Sayan Kaya's vehicle was stopped by Dutch police from entering the consulate in Rotterdam late Saturday, local broadcaster A-HBR channel reported.

Dutch Foreign Ministry announced earlier in a statement that the Netherlands has canceled Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's flight permission due to "security" and "public safety" reasons, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

Cavusoglu was scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday.

Kaya's office reportedly said that she will meet with Turkish citizens there instead after the Netherlands denied landing permission to the top diplomat.

Dutch authorities blocked the street where the Turkish Consul General's residence in Rotterdam is located after Kaya announced that she will travel to Rotterdam by land.
Dutch authorities blocked the street where the Turkish Consul General's residence in Rotterdam. (AFP photo)

ANKARA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Family and Social Policies Minister Betul Sayan Kaya's vehicle was stopped by Dutch police from entering the consulate in Rotterdam late Saturday, local broadcaster A-HBR channel reported.

Dutch Foreign Ministry announced earlier in a statement that the Netherlands has canceled Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's flight permission due to "security" and "public safety" reasons, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

Cavusoglu was scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday.

Kaya's office reportedly said that she will meet with Turkish citizens there instead after the Netherlands denied landing permission to the top diplomat.

Dutch authorities blocked the street where the Turkish Consul General's residence in Rotterdam is located after Kaya announced that she will travel to Rotterdam by land.
ANKARA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish Foreign Ministry on Saturday asked the Dutch ambassador to Turkey to extend his leave and not to return to his position "for some time," local Daily Sabah reported.

The move came after Turkish Family and Social Policies Minister Betul Sayan Kaya's vehicle was stopped by Dutch police from entering the consulate in Rotterdam late Saturday.

"We do not want the Dutch ambassador, currently on leave, to return to his post for some time," the ministry said in a statement released Saturday.

"It has been explained to our counterparts that this grave decision taken against Turkey and the Dutch Turkish community will cause serious problems diplomatically, politically, economically and in other areas," read the statement.

The ministry also said that the Dutch government's treatment to Turkish officials was "hostile" and "a first in 405 years of relations."

Kaya was told that as a Turkish minister, she was forbidden from entering the consulate building and allowed only 30 meters away from it.

Kaya's office reportedly said she would address Turkish citizens there instead after the Netherlands denied landing permission to Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's flight.

The street where the consulate building is located has been closed right after Kaya announced her travel.
LJUBLJANA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Slovenia's initiative of making May 20 being declared as The World Honeybee Day by the UN is in full swing and approaching completion as the 40th festival of Slovenian beekeepers got under way in Celje, the fairground in central Slovenia on Saturday.

Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar delivered the opening address at the event noting that beekeepers had contributed to the raising of awareness about Slovenian achievements with their World Honeybee Day initiative.

After the Council of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) backed the Slovenian bid in December, FAO is expected to give the initiative the green light at the 40th FAO Conference in July.

This is considered the final step before the UN General Assembly can endorse the bid with a resolution. The UN is expected to discuss the initiative in the second half of the year.

Slovenia's Minister of Agriculture Dejan Zidan, meanwhile launched on Friday the website www.worldbeeday.org, where people can get information about Slovenia's bid and beekeepers' associations from around the world will be able to exchange their visions about beekeeping once World Honeybee Day is declared.

Cerar, moreover, promised full government support for the 2021 Apimondia congress of the International Federation of Beekeepers' Associations to be held in Celje. He added that Slovenia would issue next year a collector's coin with the image of honeybee.
ANKARA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Entrances of Dutch embassy in Ankara and consulate in Istanbul, along with their residences, are closed off late Saturday due to "security reasons," a Turkish Foreign Ministry official told Xinhua.

The move came after the Dutch police closed a road of Turkish consulate residence in Rotterdam on Saturday after Turkish minister insisted to hold a rally in the country.

Earlier in the day, the Dutch government revoked landing permission for the plane carrying Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, just hours before his scheduled flight to the Dutch city of Rotterdam.

The minister went with his plan to address the Turkish there to garner their votes in a referendum on Turkey switching to a presidential system, despite a Dutch call to the contrary.

Meanwhile, Turkey's Minister of Family and Social Policies Betul Sayan Kaya is not allowed to enter into Turkish consulate by Dutch police in Rotterdam, local media reported.
Turkish anti-riot police officers stand guard the street in front of the Netherlands consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. (AFP photo)

ANKARA, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Entrances of Dutch embassy in Ankara and consulate in Istanbul, along with their residences, are closed off late Saturday due to "security reasons," a Turkish Foreign Ministry official told Xinhua.

The move came after the Dutch police closed a road of Turkish consulate residence in Rotterdam on Saturday after Turkish minister insisted to hold a rally in the country.

Earlier in the day, the Dutch government revoked landing permission for the plane carrying Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, just hours before his scheduled flight to the Dutch city of Rotterdam.

The minister went with his plan to address the Turkish there to garner their votes in a referendum on Turkey switching to a presidential system, despite a Dutch call to the contrary.

Meanwhile, Turkey's Minister of Family and Social Policies Betul Sayan Kaya is not allowed to enter into Turkish consulate by Dutch police in Rotterdam, local media reported.
Professional kiters from north China's Shanxi Province give a performance during the Thailand International Kite Festival 2017 at Cha-Am Beach in central Thailand's Phetchaburi Province, on March 10, 2017. The Thailand International Kite Festival 2017, hosted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), began at the Cha-Am Beach in Phetchaburi Province on Friday. The three-day event features various large-scale show kites as well as performances by 20 professional kite teams worldwide. (Xinhua/Li Mangmang)
Finally Relief Is Coming For Our Fellow Citizens Trapped In The Awful Violence & Mayhem Of Chicago But Its Going To Cost A Lot Of Money... Or is it?

My sources tell me that our Federal Government is launching a plan to physically relocate our fellow Americans trapped in Chicago for their own safety. Before the end of the year the "Escape from Hell Relocation Program" will start to come to fruition...



Whole communities will be created where they can escape their awful living conditions in Chicago to new confines where they can begin to live peacefully.



Homes will be constructed at taxpayer expense for them to live in safety after their relocation.

Our government will arrange for their household goods to be packed up transported out of their dangerous living conditions in Chicago.

There was a tremendous expression of gratitude when the Chicagoans came out of hiding after seeing the announcement of the "Escape from Hell Relocation Program" on television.

Some Americans were concerned about where the money to finance this costly project was going to come from but were relieved when they heard that the whole project is being funded by borrowing a lot of money from China.



This means it will cost us almost nothing because money borrowed from China does not have to be repaid. We just have to pay a little bit of interest.



One savvy Talking Head was heard to say on TV, "It's like free money".



The "Escape from Hell Relocation Program" will cost the Chicago Refugees absolutely nothing.



In truth their only responsibility will be that they must choose whether they want to go live in Guatemala, El Salvador or Honduras.



Would I kid u?

Smartfella


Nokia (NYSE: NOK) gave the world a dose of nostalgia at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona by relaunching one of the most popular phones in its history -- the Nokia 3310. HMD Global, which designs and manufactures Nokia's phones under a licensing agreement, has rebooted the 17 year-old device in a move that has turned a lot of heads. But will it be meaningful to Nokia investors, given how much phones have evolved in all those years?

Fan service or smart business sense?

Nokia and HMD are happy with the publicity the 3310 is generating. It has a 2.4-inch color screen, a 2-megapixel camera, and just 16 MB of internal storage. The device is truly a dinosaur among today's smartphones as it lacks Wi-Fi, runs on the age-old Symbian operating system, and does not have 3G or 4G.

But a closer look reveals that the 3310 may not be just a clever marketing ploy. The phone did steal Samsung's thunder at the MWC by attracting larger crowds to the Nokia booth.

More importantly, the 3310 has brought the company back into the spotlight. As it turns out, Google Trends suggests that searches for the keyword "Nokia" have reached the highest levels in the past year. By comparison, the company's mid-range Android device -- which had sold out in China in just a minute earlier this year -- didn't do much for Nokia's popularity.

Will it translate into sales?

A closer inspection of Google Trends reveals some more interesting data. Searches for the Nokia 3310 mobile phone increased 350% after the launch, with most of the queries coming from developing and underdeveloped nations. The list prominently features regions from the Indian subcontinent, along with a substantial number of African nations.

The popularity of feature phones could drive the 3310's sales in these markets and help resurrect the Nokia brand. As it turns out, feature phones are selling like hotcakes in Africa, with shipments increasing almost 32% year over year in the second quarter of 2016, according to the latest available data from IDC.

Similarly, India is also displaying an appreciation for these devices -- they command more than 50% of the Indian market, selling an estimated 135 million units last year. What's more, Counterpoint Research forecasts that they will remain in vogue in India for at least two to three years.

The popularity of feature phones in these markets can be attributed to low purchasing power in smaller towns and rural areas. A feature phone costs just $19.30 on average, compared to the significantly higher average price of $256 for a smartphone globally, putting the latter out of reach for a lot of consumers in developing economies.

Additionally, access to electricity poses another problem for smartphone users in some countries. In Nigeria, for example, less than 56% of the population had electricity access at the end of 2012, according to World Bank data. Even India cannot provide power to 300 million people -- many residents suffer from power outages, and per-capita power consumption in the country is just a third of the global average.

This is another advantage for the Nokia 3310, as it boasts a month-long standby time and 22 hours of talk time, a far cry from power-hungry smartphones that struggle to last for 24 hours. More importantly, feature phones are also powering the digital economy in emerging markets, allowing users to conduct SMS-based transactions.

The Foolish takeaway

The Nokia 3310 could be a solid contender in the feature phone market, given its legendary status, pricing, and long battery life. It could also improve Nokia's brand recall in many parts of the world, allowing it to eventually move up the value chain with its mid-range Android devices.

From a financial standpoint, the Finnish company should get a steady royalty stream from HMD as a part of its licensing agreement, but whether that is enough to move the needle in the Nokia Technologies business remains to be seen.

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Joy Lutheran Church in Billings will install the Rev. Mark Fry, its first ordained minister, on Sunday at 10 a.m.

Pastors Mark and Wenda Fry came from Omaha, Nebraska to Billings in December, in time to lead the Christmas service for Joy Lutheran. The church is an affiliate church of the Lutheran Congregations in Missions for Christ.

The installation service will coincide with the regular morning worship service for Joy Lutheran. The congregation meets in the chapel area of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, at 3200 Broadwater Ave.

The Rev. Warren Baker of Shalom Ministries, an ordained pastor with LCMC, and the Rev. Ingrid Aderhold, representative for the Northwest District of LCMC will take part in the service.

The community is welcome to join in this special event.
Carol M. Swain, a professor of political science and law at Vanderbilt University, doesnt mince words when it comes to the state of colleges in the United States today.

Im disheartened that universities have taken such a turn away from knowledge, she said in a telephone interview from Nashville, Tennessee. As far as I can tell we have abandoned teaching students how to learn. We are now teaching them what to think.

Indeed, her disenchantment has prompted the longtime professor to announce her retirement in January. She remains on the faculty but is no longer teaching classes and will leave in August.

Some of it has to do with the fact that Im conservative and very outspoken, and I find the politically correct environment somewhat oppressive, Swain said. It runs counter to the idea of a university being a marketplace of ideas.

What Swain calls cultural Marxisms impact on higher education will be one of the topics she will address during two talks she will give March 17 and 18 at an event sponsored by Big Sky Worldview Forum. The talks will take place at the Red Lion Inn in Billings.

OK with controversy

Swains latest book is titled Abduction: How Liberalism Steals Our Childrens Hearts and Minds. She doesnt shy away from controversy.

She has spoken out about the dangers of radical Islam. She has characterized Black Lives Matter as a Marxist movement that's a destructive force in America.

In her classroom, Swain has what she calls a free-speech zone where she gives students permission to speak their minds and she does the same. Some students appreciate the approach  but others dont.

In 2015, more than 2,000 Vanderbilt students signed a petition on change.org calling for Swain to be suspended over allegations of unprofessional intimidation on social media (and) discriminatory practices in the classroom, among other things. They also called for her to attend diversity training sessions.

She maintains it comes from her willingness to be politically incorrect.

I try to have balanced readings and discussions and let people talk, so were not tiptoeing around any issues, she said. Sometimes things come up in the political arena.

In the liberal atmosphere that's common today on college campuses, Swain said, a conservative point of view isnt necessarily welcome, for professors or students. She maintains that conservative students dont have nearly the protection on campus that minority, LGBT and feminist students do.

One thing I hope to do in retirement is speak out about whats happening, she said. Its not fair to students or to parents paying all that tuition.

In response to the petition in 2015, Vanderbuilt Chancellor Nicholas S. Zeppos issued a statement that reiterated that Swain's opinions were not those of the university. He said Vanderbilt was committed to "freedom of speech and academic freedom."

"Such freedoms necessarily allow for the expression of unpopular and offensive views," Zeppos said. "However, speech whose sole purpose or effect is to discriminate, stigmatize, retaliate, offend, foment hatred or violence, or cause harm has no place in this university."

A student at Indiana University created another petition in support of Swain. Nothing came of the Vanderbilt petition, but she ultimately decided to retire.

"I'm totally open to God's next thing in my life," Swain said. "I felt it was time to move on."

Changing outlook

Swains outlook has evolved over the course of her life. She grew up in extreme poverty in rural Virginia, one of 12 children.

At one point, there were probably nine of us living in a four-room house, she said. We didnt have indoor water or plumbing and not even an outhouse.

Swain got married at age 16 and had a baby at 17, never completing high school. With encouragement, she earned her high school equivalency and then went to a two-year community collge.

She went on to complete a four-year degree, thinking that would be enough. But the director of the library where she worked encouraged her to continue her education.

Had he not done that, I probably would still be working there, Swain said. He just knew there were better things for me.

Later on, a professor encouraged her to get a Ph.D. He told her there was a shortage of black college professors and that she had the talent to succeed.

Swain calls that kind of mentoring a key to her success.

I never felt I had to have a mentor that looked like me, she said. And I never saw myself as disabled because I was black, a woman or poor. It was almost like I had blinders on.

She decided she was smart and she didnt see any limitations. Swain, who earned a doctorate from the University of North Carolina, carried that into her 10 years as a professor at Princeton University, where she earned early tenure, awards and more money than I thought possible.

But I was miserable, she said. It was like God yanked the rug from under my feet.

She went on a spiritual quest, studying New Age philosophy and Eastern religions before she landed on Christianity. Until then she had been a Democrat, but then she found a more natural fit as a Republican, where she felt she could make a difference.

Between Swains time at Princeton and Vanderbilt, she went to Yale University to earn a masters degree in law.

But more than that happened between her time at Princeton and her move to Vanderbilt. Her faith conversion changed the person she had been.

"I became born-again, a devout believer," she said. "I always said Vanderbilt hired one person and another one showed up."

Swain said shes glad to come to Billings to spread her message.

Being at this Worldview Forum is important because everything begins and ends with the world view, she said. So Im happy to be part of the conversation, and I would love for the conversation about the world view and especially the cultural Marxism thats taken place on college campuses to be openly discussed.
Carnival week off not good

In a statement, the ECA said that in the short term, such a decision may address the issue of poor turnout at schools but it questions the long term implications this will have on the childrens psyche.

Already, the worrying loss of productivity in our workplaces (of which our schools are not exempt), due to the Carnival holidays seems to get going a full week before Carnival, kicking off with various marquee fetes and ending with Fantastic Friday.

The productivity of our student and teacher population is severely compromised with a mixture of tired and sleep-deprived individuals whose concentration can hardly be thought of as optimum, the ECA stated.

The Association added that as students transition into the world of work, this sort of conditioning for a Carnival holiday during the actual week of Carnival is not in the best interest of the productive workforce we hope to cultivate. The ECA said it fears that it will only perpetuate its current concerns surrounding high absenteeism and declining productivity in the country.

Education Minister Anthony Garcia has said he will hold consultations with stakeholders on the issue. The Association applauds the initiative but said it should be done holistically.

Research strongly suggests that children learn what they live.

Let us therefore address the problem of absenteeism from our nations schools at Carnival time in a holistic, collective fashion, rather than seeking to fix the fundamental issues in a piecemeal way.

To do otherwise may result in the development of various levels of undesirable tendencies, which we would have to face and attempt to conquer later down the road...in our communities and workplaces as after all, we are largely driven by habit, the ECA stated.
Family: Its police brutality

Seemungal, a father of two, from. Ramlal Street, underwent surgery. on his left eye Thursday night at. San Fernando General Hospital,. where he remains warded.

The circumstances surrounding. the beating of 36-year-old Seemungal. remain unclear but police have. denied causing the injuries. Seemungals. sister Seeta said her brother. and another female relative had a. misunderstanding on Wednesday. at about 7.30 pm, at which time, the. police were called in.

Shortly after police arrived, Seemungal. was found bleeding after. suffering a savage beating. Saying. the misunderstanding.

Although Seeta said she did not. witness the incident, she claimed. hearing a policeman kicking her. handcuffed brother as she was. nearby in another area of the house.

They handcuffed him and was. carrying him down, but apparently. he fell and police started to kick. him down the hill. A man in handcuffs. cannot fight back, so when. he reached the bottom neighbours. came out and asked police why they. were doing that, Seeta said.

She said Seemungal has a cut on. his left eye and suffered internal. bleeding. Naresh says he cannot. see anything in that eye. It was brutal.

He has not reached the police. station yet. The police were called. in, not to beat him, but to restrain. him. He was already in handcuffs.

This is not the way to restrain. somebody, by damaging them so.

We fear he may lose sight in his left. eye.. Seeta added that when she spoke. to the police, they accused her. brother of using obscene language. and said as a result they deemed. him a prisoner. But police investigators. yesterday told Newsday that. on Wednesday night, a female relative. visited the station and made a. domestic violence report, claiming. Seemungal was intoxicated and. had beaten her with a pitchfork.

As a result, two male and one female. police officers accompanied. the woman to her home where they. met Seemungal. The house is in a. hilly area and the road is under. construction and contains loose. stones, police said. Police reported. that while officers were escorting. Seemungal to their vehicle, he. lurched forward and in doing so,. fell down the incline.

He rolled a short distance before. coming to a halt. Officers said this. is how Seemungal suffered his injuries.

They insisted at no time was he. beaten. Officers added that if anyone. feels they have a case against. the officers, they are free to make a. report to either a police station or. the Police Complaints Authority. (PCA).

.
Cops issue warrant for Lopinot man

On Thursday, Cpl Richard Ramcharan of Arima CID secured a warrant for the arrest of the suspect, but when police went to his Lopinot home, his father said he had not been seen since Wednesday afternoon. Photos of the suspect, as well as information on his alleged crime, have been circulated to all police stations.

According to reports, on Wednesday night the man picked up his female companion, Sterla Yorke of John Lane, DAbadie and told her he was going to Blanchisseuse Road to meet someone.

Yorke told police that on reaching the 1 3/4 mile mark shortly after 9 pm, the man got out of the car and began choking her.

She said she then felt a blow to the back of her neck and awoke at about 10pm to find herself ten feet down a precipice. Yorke said she climbed to safety and alerted a passerby, who contacted the Arima police. She remained at Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex up to yesterday.
Man, 42, held Charged for assaulting girl, 14

According to reports, the man invited the teen to his home and after several telephone conversations, she agreed to meet him.

On January 13, she asked relatives to take her to the Eric Williams Medical Complex to be treated for asthma, but after being warded there, she removed three louvres from the ward, made her way out of the hospital and was picked up by the man.

The girl later contacted relatives and told them she was all right and they should not look for her.

Relatives immediately filed a report with the police and the girls father, who lives in the United States, returned to Trinidad and began searching for her.

Last Sunday, the girl contacted her father and he coaxed her into believing that he had some money for her and she should visit him at Wallerfield to collect the money.

When the girl arrived at her fathers home, he told her to stay indoors and called the Valencia police, who nabbed the 42-yearold suspect who was waiting in his car, parked nearby. On Monday the schoolgirl was medically examined and tests revealed she was sexually active.

The man is expected to appear in the Sangre Grande Magistrates Court on Monday.
Man gunned down

According to reports, Patrick, a woman identified only as Candice, 20, and two other men in their early 20s were sitting in the gallery when two men believed to be from a rival gang, began shooting at them. Patrick was shot several times while the others were grazed by bullets. They were all rushed to the Chaguanas Health Facility where Patrick was pronounced dead on arrival. The others were treated and conveyed to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EW MSC) in Mt Hope.

Assistant Commissioner of Police Surujdeen Persad along with Snr Supt Kenny McIntyre and Sgt Jordan and others visited the scene and two suspects in their early 30s were detained in connected with the incident.
3 policemen summoned

Levon Julien of Las Alturas, Morvant was granted permission by Justice Carol Gobin to bring contempt proceedings against three police officers who allegedly refused to comply with a judges habeas corpus order last Christmas Eve. When the matter was called yesterday, Insp Harvey Jawahir of Port-of- Spain CID, PC Stephen Smith of the Homicide Investigations Bureau and PC Hercules of the Central Police Station, were in court .

Acting Insp Clevon Brown was also summoned, but was mistakenly identified as the officer in charge of the CPS when Julien was arrested. He was expected to bring the station diary to court .

Brown, however, said he has been on pre-retirement leave since November, was not in charge of CPS in December and does not have access to the diary .

It was disclosed that Ag ACP Billy was the officer in charge of CPS at the time .

Attorneys Darrel Allahar, Chase Pegus and Ajay Babal who represent Julien, were granted permission to summon Billy, Supt Ancil Corbette of the Homicide Division and another officer .

They are expected to come to court on March 28, before Justice Gobin. Julien spent ten days in custody before being released after Justice James Aboud ordered police to bring him to court on December 24 .

His attorneys argue that police disobeyed Abouds order that Julien be brought to the court, on two occasions, to give effect to the habeas corpus order granted on December 23. Julien was arrested on December 13, on murder enquiries .

Justice Aboud first ordered Julien be brought to court at 11 am on December 24, but PC Smith told the court the suspect was at the time before an identification parade .

Justice Aboud then ordered Julien be brought to court at 12.45 pm .

Justice Aboud himself contacted the police station, where PC Hercules stated Julien had been been released .

Abouds telephone conversation with the officer was recorded and forms part of the contempt proceedings as well as the court recording of the case .
Wolves don't come cheap.

Since the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reintroduced gray wolves to Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho two decades ago, the legendary carnivores have increased their numbers to more than 2,000 and spread into Washington, Oregon and beyond.

The feds initially estimated in the 1990s that approximately $7 million would be spent ushering wolves to recovery in the Northern Rockies. Wolves were removed from the Endangered Species protections in Idaho and Montana in 2011  eight years after wolf numbers had exceeded the minimum set for recovery in both states. But millions more continue to be spent by federal and state agencies dealing with the wolf's return.

Livestock grazing on both public and private lands are on the front line of impacts.

"Other predators are not even in the same league in terms of damage complaints," said Todd Grimm, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services Program for Idaho.

"Idaho has around 20,000 black bears and 2,500 mountain lions. They're of similar size to wolves, occupying roughly the same space, yet those two species cause very little conflict in terms of livestock compared with wolves.

"Idaho probably spends less than $10,000 dealing with depredation by bears and cougars," Grimm said. "Last year, $576,357 was spent dealing with wolf depredation."

Idaho also addresses wolf management through the governor's Office of Species Conservation with $800,000 split between the Idaho Fish and Game Department and the tribes.

Even though the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has cut back on wolf recovery funding to Idaho and Montana, the agency reported spending $7.4 million on gray wolf programs across the country in 2014.

One thing wolves and wolf managers have had going for them is the good habitat and generally abundant prey when recovery commenced.

Whatever is being spent on wolves pales to the $263 million the federal government spent in 2014 on steelhead trout, which are protected in 11 separate managed populations. Steelhead and salmon are struggling in habitat compromised by dams and tributary damage. Endangered species funding for nine stocks of chinook salmon totaled $240.7 million.

But any added program cost can be a financial challenge for chronically cash-poor state wildlife managers.

Federal funding still defrays some expenses for addressing wolf attacks on livestock, but the states are largely on their own for financing wolf monitoring and other costs.

"We used to get $800,000 a year in federal funding, but that's gone," said Jim Hayden, Idaho Fish and Game's lead wolf biologist.

Even after delisting, Montana and Idaho are still responsible to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for assuring there are at least 150 wolves and 15 breeding pairs in each state to avoid endangered species protections from kicking in again.

Washington, which is still in wolf recovery mode, has an annual budget from all funding sources of nearly $2.9 million. That amount will be decreased by about 50 percent in the next biennium, said Donny Martorello, Department of Fish and Wildlife wolf policy lead.

Where wolves are delisted, sales of wolf hunting and trapping licenses raise $437,000 a year in Idaho and $400,000 a year in Montana.

But wolf hunting is not allowed in Washington, where wolves are still protected by state endangered species rules in the eastern two-thirds of the state and by federal protections in the western portion.

Sales of personalized endangered species license plates provide $900,000 a year to Washington's wolf program, Martorello said.

In addition, wolf management is receiving $220,000 from the state wildlife program, $90,000 from federal Pittman-Robertson taxes on shooting and hunting equipment, $64,000 from federal species recovery funds and $61,500 from the state general fund plus other grants that are competitive and not reliable.

The current bulge in wolf funding stems from a $2.2 million special appropriation from the Washington Legislature for 2015-2017. Of that, $850,010 was spent on a two-year contract with conflict-resolution consultant Francine Madden to guide the Wolf Advisory Group citizen panel ranging from ranchers to wildlife protection groups to consensus on wolf management.

The group in the past year has explored deterrents to wolf attacks on livestock and hammered out a protocol for lethal removal of wolves as a last resort.

A wolf-livestock conflict budget includes $497,000 for staff time. Washington has three people working full time on wolves plus roughly two dozen conflict specialists who work on wolf issues as well as a wide range of other problems such as big-game damage to crops.

"The conflict specialists in northeastern Washington spend a lot more of their time on wolves than the specialists in other regions," Martorello said. "When they work on wolves, they bill to that account  when they deal with deer or elk eating a farmer's crops, their time is billed to another program."

The conflict budget also includes $61,000 for compensation and $38,000 for lethal removal of wolves, if needed. The lethal removal budget was exceeded in 2016 as the bill for removing most members of the cattle-killing Profanity Peak Pack totaled $137,000.

Wolf-livestock research support for Washington State University graduate students accounted for $600,000 of the special appropriation and $400,000 was earmarked for a five-year predator-prey study that's underway.

Wolf population monitoring has been a costly burden to all of the states involved in wolf recovery. Washington currently is spending approximately $425,000 a year for trapping, helicopter captures and surveys, collaring and year-round study.

"As the wolf population grows, it gets harder and more expensive to try to maintain a collared wolf in every pack for keeping tabs on them," Martorello said.

The amount Idaho spends for monitoring wolves has been cut by roughly 90 percent since wolves have been delisted and most federal monitoring requirements have expired.

"But it's still really expensive and not very useful for management," Hayden said.

Idaho is investing roughly $500,000 to develop new "occupancy modeling" techniques. If using DNA samples, hunter reports and remote camera images can replace helicopter captures, GPS collars and surveys, Idaho can reduce its monitoring costs to about $50,000, Hayden said.

"The state isn't working with a million dollar budget anymore," he said.

Washington also is banking on perfecting that sort of monitoring technique, Martorello said.

"Snagging hair samples for DNA and photos from remote cameras would allow us to use volunteers and citizen science to lower costs," he said.

In fiscal year 2015, Idaho budgeted $1.63 million for wolf related expenditures including depredation, enforcement, hunting-trapping oversight, monitoring, research and administration.

"This was the last year under federal oversight," Hayden said. "It was an exceptionally high year  we wanted to make dang sure we had all the bases covered. Now our monitoring will be much different, and costs are much lower."

Wolves occupy roughly 50 percent of Idaho  an area that exceeds what's been identified as quality wolf habitat, Hayden said. The number of wolves is approximately five times more than the federal minimum of 150.

Nevertheless, wolves are coming into some sort of equilibrium on the landscape.

"Since hunting and trapping was authorized, pack size decreased about 25 percent while territory size remains about the same," he said.

"That means reduced density and food requirements per pack, which has resulted in a substantial 57 percent decrease in livestock depredations. That saves the state money.

"All of those things point to a good path. Elk survival has increased  96 percent cow elk survival and high calf survival statewide last year," he said.

The numbers likely will be lower this year because of the tough winter conditions, he said.

The bottom line, Hayden said, is that wolves don't need millions of dollars of management to do well on their own in Idaho even with managed hunting and trapping seasons.

"One thing about wolves, they're prolific," said Bob Inman, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks carnivore and furbearer coordinator. "It's hard to overdo management actions. They're resilient and people have gotten more used to them being around.

"Wolves definitely have arrived as a cost that wasn't out here in the previous 100 years. It's definitely not going away, but it doesn't have to be so high."
JSC meets with CAL

This committee is chaired by Independent Senator David Small. Other members are Social Development and Family Services Minister Cherrie-Ann Crichlow-Cockburn, Laventille East/Morvant MP Adrian Leonce and Opposition Senator Wade Mark.

The Senate sits on Tuesday at Tower D from 1.30 pm, when Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi is expected to lead off debate on the Miscellaneous Provisions (Trial by Judge Alone) Bill 2017.

The House of Representatives sits on Wednesday from 1.30 pm to continue debate on the Indictable Offences (Pre-Trial Procedure) Bill, 2017. Debate is also scheduled to start on the International Financial Organisations (Corporacion Andina de Fomento) Bill, 2017.
Bullied boy to take action against State

The letter was issued on Thursday by attorney Douglas Bayley who is representing the parents of 14-year old Darrio Persad, a student of San Fernando West Second ary School. Persad suffered memory loss after a fellow student repeatedly punched him and slammed his head against a wall one month ago. According to the letter, Persad has not regained his memory.

Bayley, who is being instructed by attorney Anand Ramlogan, wrote that the letter was the third sent by his firm to the Ministry of Education on behalf of students who were victims of bullying.

The first was the Presentation College San Fernando student who, as a result of an attack, had to have one of his testicles removed and the second was Tristan Khan of Mayaro Government Primary whose hand was dislocated and broken by a classmate during recess.

It is the height of injustice and the cruelest of ironies that the bullies who attacked and injured my clients are back in school after a seven-day suspension whilst their victims continue to miss school because of the pain and suffering they have inflicted and the severity of their injuries, wrote Bayley.

The letter detailed a narrative of alleged negligence in Persads case involving the schools principal who kept Persads family in the dark about the details of the incident until the day after it occurred, and further tried to persuade them to not report it to the police. It also alleges that the Ministry of Education and the School Supervisor tried to persuade Persads parents to not publicise a video which captured the entire incident to Facebook.

The letter said the family also felt as if they were not taken seriously by the San Fernando Police Station when a report was first made and were only seriously acknowledged after the video of the attack went viral on social media when it was posted by unknown persons.

Bayley also submitted a Freedom of Information application for copies of all statements collected through investigations into Persads attack and for copies of the various standards and protocols for dealing with incidents of bullying in schools.

The Ministry of Education has 28 days to respond after receiving the letter
Doubles vendor shot in leg

According to reports, Andy Ramjuman was standing behind his stall when he was approached by a gunman, who shot him in the left leg.

Passers-by alerted police from the Chaguanas station, who responded and cordoned off the area. The gunman was nowhere to be found.

Ramjuman was taken to the Chaguanas Health Facility, then transferred to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, where he was treated and remains in serious but stable condition.

Police have ruled out robbery as a motive for the shooting, since none of Ramjumans cash or valuables were taken.

Yesterday, members of the Central Division interviewed him and took a statement.
HELENA  A Montana budget committee on Friday rescinded more than $11 million in spending cuts for higher education that could have meant a steep rise in tuition at university campuses.

The action by the House Appropriations Committee was a relief not only to students and their families, but to legislative Democrats who had been pushing Republicans to restore funding to education and health programs that were at risk from the budget ax.

The $11.6 million restored to the proposed budget of the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education had been part of a 5 percent across-the-board budget roll back ordered across state agencies.

"This is a good first step toward keeping college opportunity affordable and accessible for Montanans," Kevin McRae, a deputy for the commissioner of higher education, said about the restored funds.

He added, however, that "one step in this direction will not prevent large tuition hikes or educational program cuts."

Late Friday, Commissioner of Higher Education Clayton Christian amended McRae's statement with a more optimistic one of his own that said it was a "great day for students in Montana, half of the proposed cuts restored with bipartisan support."

Abbigail Belcher, who represents students at the University of Montana, said uncertainty over tuition hikes remained. Students at her campus had been facing tuition increases of about 20 percent.

"We're still looking at huge holes to be filled," she said.

More than $11 million in other cuts to higher education programs moved forward as part of the overall spending plan the Appropriations Committee approved on Friday.

"It's a tough budget. No one's going to get out of here without some kind of haircut," said Rep. Mike Hopkins, a Republican from Missoula.

In all, about $23 million in cuts had been proposed in higher education.

While Democrats said they were relieved by the committee's action, they said they were blindsided by the last-minute proposal to return the money.

Through the week, Montana House Democrats made impassioned pleas to restore funding to education and health care, including nearly $100 million in health care spending cut from Gov. Steve Bullock's proposed budget.

Republicans weren't budging much, however, holding firm in the House Appropriations Committee against big-ticket proposals brought forward by Democrats.

While opposed to large spending proposals by Democrats, the Republican-controlled Appropriations Committee agreed to modest changes to the health care budget.

Democrats and the governor's office took pains to put a face and human voices behind the cold numbers. That wasn't lost on Republicans, who asserted they knew there would be real-world consequences to the state budget.

Republican Rep. Jon Knokey of Bozeman offered to put back $220,000 in funding for the disabled, he said, after hearing testimony from two disabled people who spoke before the committee on Wednesday and after a recent visit to a nursing home in his hometown.

"At the nursing home, a couple of individuals  a patient and a nurse  actually swore at me because of these proposed cuts," Knokey said.

"We spend a lot of time looking at a budget that is 6 inches thick," Knokey said, referring to the binder of papers and numbers his committee is debating. "But the budget tells a story that politics can't tell."

At times, politics prevailed.

Another GOP-sponsored amendment took a dig at the governor's office for reportedly using $10 million in Medicaid overpayments as a loan to the highway fund. As a condition for restoring a $26 million cut to the $571 million requested by the governor for long-term senior care, the committee agreed to allocate the money if the governor returned the loan.

While that vote was unanimous, Democrats and Republicans were drawn into a testy exchange about whether the loan was improper.

The governor's office said Medicaid overpayments were transferred to the state's unrestricted general fund account, and that the money used for transportation was not necessarily from health care funds.

"It appears some Republicans are grandstanding instead of working to solve the very real harm posed by cutting essential services for Montana seniors in need," said Ronja Abel, the governor's spokeswoman.
Leader Of Opposition Shows Mirror Of Reality To The Budget Proposals Of The Delhi Government

New Delhi, Sat, 11 Mar 2017 NI Wire

Replying today to the Budget Speech of Deputy CM and Finance Minister, Manish Sisodia for the year 2017-18, Leader of Opposition, Vijender Gupta showed the mirror of reality to the Government on different facets of the Budget proposals. The Government did not seem to have convincing reply to his probing and in depth questions . He questioned the wisdom and reality of the much publicized 'outcome' Budget. He said that despite his best efforts he could not locate the quantifiable output and outcome indicators in the budget documents.

The so called outcome Budget, he said has no base and is destined to be failure. He waived the Book entitiled Swaraj written by Arvind Kejriwal in the House and questioned the absence of public participation approach in Budget making. He questioned why the Mohalla Sabhas have not come into existence despite allocation of Rs. 650 crores during the last two years.

Vijender Gupta exposed the hollowness of the Government's claim the Budgetary allocation for Education has been doubled and for Health has been increased by one and a half. He questioned what happened to Wifi promised in the Election Manifesto of the AAP Government. He asked why the scheme of CCTV cameras has been abandoned. He charged the Government not doing justice to the SC and OBC communities. He wanted to know why the Budget allocation for these communities has been pegged at 0.8 % whereas it is more than 4 % in other States.

Leader of Opposition questioned why the demonetization has brought lower revenue only in Delhi and West Bengal. He wanted the Finance Minister to probe it. He wanted to know why the Finance Minister did not take the House in confidence that the minimum wages proposal of the Government have been stayed by the High Court. He wanted the Government to at least ensure that all the daily wagers in private sector are paid minimum wages at the existing approved rates.

Vijender Gupta expressed concerned that the Government is presenting deficit Budget year after year. He said that 80% of the Budget is being spent on salary, wages and other administrative responsibilities. Only 20% Budget is spent on development works.

Leader of Opposition said that the Government took pride in announcing that it has made an allocation of Rs. 7571 crores to the Local Bodies in 2017-18. It is sad that in view of poor financial position of North and East Municipal Corporations, the Government has not recovered outstanding loan liabilities during the last two years from the grants being released to them. He hid the fact that the Government will continue to lay the 13% interest for the period and it propose to recover 797 crores during the coming financial year.
Geared towards deepening the innovation culture in our economy and society: Pranab Mukherjee

New Delhi, Sat, 11 Mar 2017 NI Wire

Speech by the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee at presentation of Key recommendations emanating from the roundtable discussions with the leaders on the consultation and policy dialogue about start-up, incubation and financing innovations to the President.

1.I am happy to be here amongst you at the closing of the one week long Festival of Innovations. The festival has seen spirited exchanges and collaboration between different stakeholders who are part of the innovation value chain. For me personally, the most gratifying feature is that we at Rashtrapati Bhavan have been able to facilitate dialogue and the creation of an ecosystem geared towards deepening the innovation culture in our economy and society.

2. As we are all aware, there is continuous talk about India and the demographic dividend that we are poised to reap. At the same time, the unfortunate reality confronting us is that of growth without commensurate job creation. It is important, therefore, that we go beyond the traditional paradigms and create a system of entrepreneurship and innovation wherein our youth transform from job seekers to job creators.

3. In that context, I am happy to note that there has been an appreciable spurt in policy support for young start-ups in different sectors. A large number of e-commerce or agriculture based platforms have attracted venture capital support in the last few years. Some of them have succeeded while many have failed, which in itself is not surprising. The real concern for policy planners is the fact that much of the finance that is needed comes at too late a stage in the enterprise life cycle because of which a large number of ideas get aborted before becoming products or services. We, therefore, have to ask ourselves the question whether our policy and institutional arrangements for financing of innovation based start-ups need change and, to my mind, the answer would be an unequivocal yes.

4. In a country with at least a million technology students passing out every year, unless we invest in 10  20000 ideas annually, we are unlikely to see a major breakthrough. The current level of financing of innovation based start-ups is only about a couple of thousand technology based start-ups every year. How do we, therefore, increase the appetite for innovations in public and private financing institutions? Simultaneously, how do we encourage technology students to choose the risky path of entrepreneurship ? We urgently need to rethink the design and structure of financial instruments in the country so as to provide a fillip to our grassroots innovation movement.

5. It is, therefore, heartening to note that the National Innovation Foundation (NIF), Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST) have teamed up with NABARD and SIDBI to enrich the inclusive innovation ecosystem. Both these institutions, NABARD and SIDBI, are providing invaluable back up support to small entrepreneurs. I understand that the Grassroots Innovation Augmentation Network (GIAN), set up by the Honey Bee Network, IIMA and SRISTI in 1997 was the first incubator for innovations set up in India. The model of in situ incubation developed by GIAN has been scaled up by the National Innovation Foundation through the Micro Venture Innovation Fund (MVIF) with the help of SIDBI. It may also be necessary for DST to consider converging various sectors under the umbrella of a National Academy of Innovations so that early stage ventures in technology, education, culture and institutions get single window support. It will also support supply chain innovators who will design frugal logistical models for social and economic enterprises. The underlying thought process has to be that at different stages of growth and diversification of start- up ventures, different levels of mentorship and financial instruments have to be made available.

6. I am very happy that the National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) is strengthening the innovation incubation facilities at institutions of higher learning in collaboration with MHRD. I am also happy to note that India Innovation Growth Program in the second phase has brought together DST, Tata Trust and Lockheed Martin together. One of the most eminent industrialists of our country, Shri Ratan Tata, is present here to mark his support for governments initiatives in this regard. It is my earnest desire that the financing of innovations and early stage ventures should become far less complex over time. This must necessarily also be accompanied by attitudinal change  we must learn to celebrate and learn from failures in the same way as we celebrate success.

7. I am extremely happy that the Atal Innovation Mission has created tinkering labs in more than 500 schools. We have to supplement the emerging ecosystem with similar support at the community, district and regional levels. I had earlier suggested that we need to make a transition from micro-finance to micro venture finance as an instrument of promoting micro-ventures based on the model developed by GIAN and NIF. We should now aim for every Navodaya Vidyalaya to have incubation centres which enable and encourage children to take risks at an early age and for each district to have a community innovation lab. Policy initiatives need to be put in place for improving both innovation exposure and initiatives at government schools. While it may take time for all our wish list to fructify, the important thing to remember is that we have made a good beginning - we now need to build on this.

8. With these few words, I conclude the third Festival of Innovations and wish all of you Godspeed in your endeavours.

Thank you. Jai Hind!!

Source: PIB
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A private Russian security firm said it sent agents to Eastern Libya to deliver arms to Khalifa Haftar confirming concerns in the West over a growing Russian influence in Libya, Reuters reported.

Oleg Krinitsyn, owner of private Russian firm RSB-group said in an interview with Reuters that a force of several dozen Russian armed private security agents operated in territory controlled by forces Loyal to Khalifa Haftar until last month.

He said the security contractors travelled to eastern Libya last year and they were pulled out in February having completed their mission.

He said their task was to remove mines from an industrial facility near the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, in an area that Haftars forces had liberated from Islamist rebels.

Although Russia backs diplomatically Haftar against the internationally-recognized government, Russian officials denied providing Haftar with weapons in conformity with the UN arms embargo, which prohibits the import of weapons to Libya unless it is under the control of the UN-backed government.

Russia has previously used private military contractors to strengthen its foothold in conflict areas. In Syria, military contractors have fought alongside Syrian allies.

Russia, which has vehemently opposed NATO intervention that overthrew the decades-long Libyan dictator Gaddafi, sees new opportunities in the power vacuum in Libya where it tacitly endorses the all-powerful Khalifa Haftar.

Several media reports have been speculating about a potential secret deal between Hafter and the Kremlin according to which Russia will arm Haftars forces in his endeavor to gain control of the whole country in return for a Russian military base in Libya.

Haftar paid two visits to Moscow in the past half year in a bid to secure arms supply despite the UN arms embargo in place since 2011 prohibiting the sale of weapons to Libyan factions, to the exception of the government in Tripoli, which can import weapons upon the approval of the UN Security Council.

However, despite the UN arms embargo on Libya, media reports say that Haftar has been steadily receiving arms through the land borders with Egypt and through the sea from allies, including Egypt and the UAE.

Recently, Haftars Libyan National Army (LNA) announced its intention to liberate Tripoli from what they deem as Islamist control. Such an action will signal a return to an outright civil war in Libya and the collapse of the Skhirate agreement and the UN-recognized government.

Libya has been split between two rival governments: the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) and the Tobruk-based Government that supports Hafter.

The Tripoli-based GNA, set up under the Skhirate agreement in December 2015, has however failed to impose its authority over the whole country.

The turmoil in Libya has taken a toll on its oil production, which is currently about 200,000 barrels per day (bpd), a fraction of the 1.6 million bpd the OPEC member was producing before the 2011 uprising that toppled Gaddafi.
The Montana Legislature had a golden opportunity to create new high-wage jobs and clear the way for more Montanans to meet growing energy needs from the sun. Instead, the House Energy Committee voted to do the bidding of Montanas largest regulated energy monopoly and stop the Solar Jobs and Energy Freedom Act in its tracks.

At first glance, it doesnt make sense. Demand to grow Montanas solar energy industry is full-throated, bipartisan, and well documented. The Solar Jobs and Energy Freedom Act, House Bill 504, was co-sponsored by Republicans and Democrats. In an unprecedented show of support, more than 5,000 Montanans from every corner of the state sent messages to the Legislature in support of this crucial legislation. Hundreds of Montanans traveled to the Capitol and shook the dome with chants of solar jobs! and energy freedom!

But public support from thousands of regular farmers, small business owners, low-income housing advocates, and energy customers was not enough. The House Energy Committee chose to ignore us and work for a small army of NorthWestern Energy lobbyists instead.

So why did NorthWestern energy squash the Solar Jobs and Energy Freedom Act? The lobbyists will tell you HB504 is premature. They say net-metered customers somehow impose additional costs on the entire system. This argument falls flat when you look at the facts. After six years of debate, theres no evidence of a cost shift because rooftop solar in Montana accounts for less than one-fifth of 1 percent of average load on the grid. Regardless of the validity of their concern, the Legislature is advancing legislation to yet again study impacts on the grid instead of taking steps to grow the industry.

Posturing aside, the real reason NorthWestern energy killed HB 504 is they dont like to compete with energy sources and technologies they dont control. This is a classic David vs. Goliath story and the Legislature voted to keep Montanans under Goliaths shadow.

Its a dangerous game when our legislators allow the power company to dictate energy policy. In 1997, the Legislature rammed through deregulation legislation at the 11th hour at the request of the Montana Power Company. The loss of jobs, pensions and the retirement savings of Montanans who had invested in Montana Power Company is a dark spot in Montanas history.

Last year, the solar industry accounted for one out of every 50 new jobs in our nation. Solar was the single largest energy source added in the United States in 2016. The opportunities for job creation, lower energy bills and personal freedom abound and HB504 would have allowed Montanans to tap into that opportunity by removing arbitrary regulations limiting our burgeoning solar industry.

Solar energy is ready for prime time under the Big Sky and its clear we cant wait for NorthWestern Energy to understand this. The people of Montana will need to drag NorthWestern Energy into the future. We may not have an army of lobbyists but we do have the strength of thousands of everyday Montanans, and I like those odds. Together we can move mountains.
SHERIDAN, Wyo.  The Wyoming Supreme Court has upheld the sentence of a man who was 15 years old when he killed a Sheridan businessman eight years ago.

Dharminder Vir Sen was sentenced to serve at least 35 years in prison before being eligible for parole in the home-invasion murder of Robert Ernst in 2009.

He was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary and aggravated burglary.

Sen argued that the 35-year sentence amounts to a life sentence and is unconstitutional.

It was one of several appeals Sen has filed challenging his sentence. He originally was sentenced to life in prison without parole. The Wyoming Supreme ordered him resentenced because of federal court rulings affecting life sentences for juvenile offenders.
Et tu, Breitbart? Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

Donald Trump has been very good for the news business  and the news business has been very good for Donald Trump.

But no publication has had a more mutually beneficial relationship with our new president than Breitbart. Trumps campaign brought the sites brand of reactionary populism into the mainstream  and its former mastermind into the West Wing. By the time the ballots were cast, no other news outlet had grown its audience more over the 2016 cycle.

And Breitbart, of course, supplied Trump with a megaphone, a strategist, and relentlessly positive coverage  even when the moguls campaign manager low-key battered one of the sites reporters.

So, Breitbarts latest headline on the Trump-Ryan health-care plan is probably causing some consternation at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Perhaps the most shocking thing about Breitbarts headline is its accuracy. Trumpcare is a much less generous program than Obamacare  and its cuts will be felt, disproportionately, by the people who wanted Trump to Make America Great Again. Among the reasons why this is the case:

(1) The bill raises the cap on how much more insurers can charge old people than young people for the same coverage.

(2) Unlike Obamacare, the size of the bills subsidies dont adjust to the cost of health insurance in a given market  everyone in the same age group gets the same subsidy, no matter where they live. But health insurance costs a lot more in rural areas than it does in urban ones, where theres the more competition between insurers.

Thus, Paul Ryans plan actually works out pretty well for the young, urban elites who voted for Clinton  but it just hammers the older, rural, working-class voters who backed Trump.

By AARP's estimate, a 64-yr-old making $15K would pay $8,400 more for coverage under Ryan bill. Not a typo. Well over half of annual income.  Alec MacGillis (@AlecMacGillis) March 10, 2017

As the New York Times Nate Cohn writes:

Over all, voters who would be eligible for a tax credit that would be at least $1,000 smaller than the subsidy theyre eligible for under Obamacare supported Mr. Trump over Hillary Clinton by a seven-point margin. The voters hit the hardest  eligible for at least $5,000 less in tax credits under the Republican plan  supported Mr. Trump by a margin of 59 percent to 36 percent.

Its one thing for the (failing) New York Times to state this plain fact. Its quite another for one of the (Trump-era) conservative movements most trusted news sources to say the same. For most on the right, the chief complaint with Ryans bill is that its too generous. Instead of the market-based solution conservatives were promised, this bill is Obamacare Lite.

And theres a whiff of this in Breitbarts piece, which refers to Ryans bill as Obamacare 2.0. But the outlets analysis recognizes that virtually no one wants to live in Rand Pauls anarcho-capitalist wonderland  they want better, more affordable health care, like the Republican Party has been promising them, over and over, for eight years. Per Breitbart:

Part of what killed Hillary Clintons campaign was voters getting their massive Obamacare premium increases in the mail in October. Republicans seem eager to inflict that kind of fatal damage on themselves. The explosive reaction to Obamacare launched the Tea Party in 2010 and swept Republicans into Congress during the mid-term elections of 2014. The Left is furious and energetic under Trump. The 2018 midterm elections are right around the corner  The white, working class gave Trump a chance in 2016. They could easily begin voting Democratic again or drop out of the political process altogether after a healthcare betrayal.

The truth is, theres no Republican alternative to Obamacare that wouldnt betray a large swath of Trumps base. You cant make the ACA work better for older, working-class people when your partys first priority in reforming the law is to eliminate the part that transfers billions of dollars from millionaires to older, working-class people.

Breitbarts piece seems to intuit this, even if it never mentions the tax issue (and concentrates its populist fury on the prospect that the law might keep some illegals from dying preventable deaths).

The articles final recommendation is not for Trump to pursue a different health-care law, but rather to concentrate on passing pro-American immigration reform, so as to end the era of cheap labor, low wages, mass immigration, hollowed-out communities, family disintegration, drug addiction, and suicide.

Breitbart is probably wrong to suggest that building a border wall will end the era of low wages and suicide. But, at least it knows that repealing Obamacare wont end that era, either.

And now, so do a good number of the presidents most avid supporters.
Happier times. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call,Inc.

Michigan Republican Justin Amash arrived in the United States House of Representatives on January 3, 2011. For the next 2,257 days, he never missed a vote. Then today happened.

Amash was talking to reporters Friday afternoon about everything thats wrong with Paul Ryans health-care bill, when he lost track of what was happening on the House floor. Politico has what happened next:

Amash immediately sprinted into the chamber and tried to put his card in the voting slot to cast his yea or nay, but the vote had closed.



Amash approached floor staff and leadership to see if they could either re-open the vote or call it again. Staff said there was no precedent for doing so. Amash hung his head low and was overcome with emotion, those on the floor told POLITICO.

After drying his eyes, Amash composed himself enough to tweet an apology to his constituents.

The 36-year-old chairman of the House Liberty Caucus prides himself on his voting streak, or at least he did. Hell now need to revise a line in his official bio.

Arkansas Republican Representative Steve Womack is now the iron man of the House, and he did not let that go unnoticed. Hes already put out a press release celebrating himself.
Possibly on the job market. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Attorney General Jeff Sessions asked the remaining 46 U.S. Attorneys who were appointed during Obamas tenure to tender their resignations. This is a pretty standard practice  new presidents usually purge their predecessors appointees upon taking office, though this wave came somewhat unexpectedly. But now everyone, especially City Hall, Albany, and Wall Street, wants to know: What the heck is going to happen to U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara?

DOJ asks the remaining 46 US attorneys appointed by Obama to tender their resignations pending confirmation of their replacements. pic.twitter.com/pafvEYsm66  Cameron Joseph (@cam_joseph) March 10, 2017

Bharara, who was appointed by Obama in 2009, told reporters in November that then-president-elect Donald Trump had asked him to stay at his post. At the time, Bharara also said that he had filled in his future boss, Sessions, of his decision: He also asked that I stay on, and so I expect that I will be continuing.

But the Justice Departments latest move does appear to include Bharara. Sources told the New York Times that the high-profile prosecutor received a call from Dana Boente, the acting deputy attorney general, asking him to resign. The Justice Department later confirmed. A spokesman for Bharara declined to comment earlier.

I asked @PreetBharara spox if he has been asked to submit a resignation letter, per the DOJ announcement. His spox declined to comment. https://t.co/XFLNLJt4PL  erica orden (@eorden) March 10, 2017

Theres always the chance that the White House and Sessions refuse Bhararas resignation. The top prosecutor in the Southern District of New York made his reputation going after white-collar crime on Wall Street, and public corruption in Albany. His office is currently investigating Mayor de Blasios campaign for possible campaign-finance-related corruption, so that sound you hear might be a sigh coming from City Hall.
Middlebury College students turn their backs to Charles Murray during his lecture on March 2, 2017. Photo: Lisa Rathke/AP

Heres the latest in the assault on liberal democracy. It happened more than a week ago, but I cannot get it out of my consciousness. A group of conservative students at Middlebury College in Vermont invited the highly controversial author Charles Murray to speak on campus about his latest book, Coming Apart. His talk was shut down by organized chanting in its original venue, and disrupted when it was shifted to a nearby room and livestreamed. When Murray and his faculty interlocutor, Allison Stanger, then left to go to their car, they were surrounded by a mob, which tried to stop them leaving the campus. Someone in the melee grabbed Stanger by the hair and twisted her neck so badly she had to go to the emergency room (she is still suffering from a concussion). After they escaped, their dinner at a local restaurant was crashed by the same mob, and they had to go out of town to eat.

None of this is very surprising, given the current atmosphere on most American campuses. And protests against Murray are completely legitimate. The book he co-authored with Harvard professor Richard Herrnstein more than 20 years ago, The Bell Curve, included a chapter on empirical data showing variations in the largely overlapping bell curves of IQ scores between racial groups. Their provocation was to assign these differences to both the environment and genetics. The genetic aspect could be and was exploited by racists and bigots.

I dont think that chapter was necessary for the books arguments, but I do believe in the right of good-faith scholars to publish data  as well as the right of others to object, critique, and debunk. If the protesters at Middlebury had protested and disrupted the event for a period of time, and then let it continue, Id be highly sympathetic, even though race and IQ were not the subject of Murrays talk. If theyd challenged the data or the arguments of the book, Id be delighted. But this, alas, is not what they did. (I should add up-front that I am friends with both Murray and Stanger  having edited a symposium on The Bell Curve in The New Republic over two decades ago, and having known Allison since we were both grad students in government at Harvard.)

But what grabbed me was the deeply disturbing 40-minute video of the event, posted on YouTube. It brings the incident to life in a way words cannot. At around the 19-minute mark, the students explained why they shut down the talk, and it helped clarify for me what exactly the meaning of intersectionality is.

Intersectionality is the latest academic craze sweeping the American academy. On the surface, its a recent neo-Marxist theory that argues that social oppression does not simply apply to single categories of identity  such as race, gender, sexual orientation, class, etc.  but to all of them in an interlocking system of hierarchy and power. At least, thats my best attempt to define it briefly. But watching that video helps show how an otherwise challenging social theory can often operate in practice.

It is operating, in Orwells words, as a smelly little orthodoxy, and it manifests itself, it seems to me, almost as a religion. It posits a classic orthodoxy through which all of human experience is explained  and through which all speech must be filtered. Its version of original sin is the power of some identity groups over others. To overcome this sin, you need first to confess, i.e., check your privilege, and subsequently live your life and order your thoughts in a way that keeps this sin at bay. The sin goes so deep into your psyche, especially if you are white or male or straight, that a profound conversion is required.

Like the Puritanism once familiar in New England, intersectionality controls language and the very terms of discourse. It enforces manners. It has an idea of virtue  and is obsessed with upholding it. The saints are the most oppressed who nonetheless resist. The sinners are categorized in various ascending categories of demographic damnation, like something out of Dante. The only thing this religion lacks, of course, is salvation. Life is simply an interlocking drama of oppression and power and resistance, ending only in death. Its Marx without the final total liberation.

It operates as a religion in one other critical dimension: If you happen to see the world in a different way, if youre a liberal or libertarian or even, gasp, a conservative, if you believe that a university is a place where any idea, however loathsome, can be debated and refuted, you are not just wrong, you are immoral. If you think that arguments and ideas can have a life independent of white supremacy, you are complicit in evil. And you are not just complicit, your heresy is a direct threat to others, and therefore needs to be extinguished. You cant reason with heresy. You have to ban it. It will contaminate others souls, and wound them irreparably.

And what I saw on the video struck me most as a form of religious ritual  a secular exorcism, if you will  that reaches a frenzied, disturbing catharsis. When Murray starts to speak, the students stand and ritually turn their backs on him in silence. The heretic must not be looked at, let alone engaged. Then they recite a common liturgy in unison from sheets of paper. Heres how they begin: This is not respectful discourse, or a debate about free speech. These are not ideas that can be fairly debated, it is not representative of the other side to give a platform to such dangerous ideologies. There is not a potential for an equal exchange of ideas. They never specify which of Murrays ideas they are referring to. Nor do they explain why a lecture on a recent book about social inequality cannot be a respectful discourse. The speaker is open to questions and there is a faculty member onstage to engage him afterward. She came prepared with tough questions forwarded from specialists in the field. And yet: We  cannot engage fully with Charles Murray, while he is known for readily quoting himself. Because of that, we see this talk as hate speech. They know this before a single word of the speech has been spoken.

Then this: Science has always been used to legitimize racism, sexism, classism, transphobia, ableism, and homophobia, all veiled as rational and fact, and supported by the government and state. In this world today, there is little that is true fact. This, it seems to me, gets to the heart of the question  not that the students shut down a speech, but why they did. I do not doubt their good intentions. But, in a strange echo of the Trumpian right, they are insisting on the superiority of their orthodoxy to facts. They are hostile, like all fundamentalists, to science, because it might counter doctrine. And they shut down the event because intersectionality rejects the entire idea of free debate, science, or truth independent of white male power. At the end of this part of the ceremony, an individual therefore shouts: Who is the enemy? And the congregation responds: White supremacy!

They then expel the heretic in a unified chant: Hey hey, ho ho! Charles Murray has got to go. Then: Racist, Sexist, Anti-gay. Charles Murray, Go away! Murrays old work on IQ demonstrates no meaningful difference between men and women, and Murray has long supported marriage equality. He passionately opposes eugenics. Hes a libertarian. But none of that matters. Intersectionality, remember? If youre deemed a sinner on one count, you are a sinner on them all. If you think that race may be both a social construction and related to genetics, your claim to science is just another form of oppression. It is indeed hate speech. At a later moment, the students start clapping in unison, and you can feel the hysteria rising, as the chants grow louder. Your message is hatred. We will not tolerate it! The final climactic chant is Shut it down! Shut it down! It feels like something out of The Crucible. Most of the students have never read a word of Murrays  and many professors who supported the shutdown admitted as much. But the intersectional zeal is so great he must be banished  even to the point of physical violence.

This matters, it seems to me, because reason and empirical debate are essential to the functioning of a liberal democracy. We need a common discourse to deliberate. We need facts independent of anyones ideology or political side, if we are to survive as a free and democratic society. Trump has surely shown us this. And if a university cannot allow these facts and arguments to be freely engaged, then nowhere is safe. Universities are the sanctuary cities of reason. If reason must be subordinate to ideology even there, our experiment in self-government is over.

Liberal democracy is suffering from a concussion as surely as Allison is.

Meanwhile, of course, President Trump continues his assault on the very same independent truth  in this case, significantly more frightening given his position as the most powerful individual on the planet. He too has a contempt for any facts that do not fit his own ideology or self-image. Thats why the lies he repeats are not just moments of self-interested dishonesty. They are designed to erode the very notion of an empirical reality, independent of his own ideology and power. They are an attack on reason itself. A fact-driven media has to be discredited as fake news if it challenges Trumps agenda. Equally, a bureaucracy designed impartially to implement legislation has to be delegitimized, if its fact-based neutrality challenges Trumps worldview. And so the administrative state, in Steve Bannons words, has to be deconstructed.

Likewise, a health-care bill must be passed through committee before an independent CBO can empirically score it. The overwhelming conclusion of climate scientists  that carbon is warming the Earth irreversibly  is simply denied by the new head of the EPA. The judiciary can have no legitimate, independent stance if it too counters the presidents interests. A judge who opposes Trump is a so-called judge. Equally, intelligence-gathering can have no validity if it undermines Trumps interests. It suddenly becomes intelligence. It can be ignored. Worse, the intelligence agencies are maligned as inherently political, rather than empirical. Last week, Trump went even further, claiming, with no evidence, that the Justice Department colluded in a criminal wiretap with the previous president to target Trumps candidacy in the last election. Maybe this was designed merely as a distraction from the accumulating lies of his campaign surrogates about their contacts with Russian officials. Maybe it was another temper tantrum from a man with no ability to constrain his emotions by reason. But I tend to think Peter Beinarts take is closer to the mark. Trump was delegitimizing the Justice Department so that he can reject the conclusion of any investigation of his campaigns ties to Russia as politically rigged:

No one lives on Mount Olympus. Government lawyers, judges and journalists are all fallible. They are all vulnerable to bias and self-interest. But prior presidents have generally given them the benefit of the doubt. Prior presidents have assumed, absent contrary evidence, that they are motivated by professional standards, not rank partisanship. Trump does not. He has questioned the integrity of Judge Gonzalo Curiel and of vast swaths of the press. And now he is preparing to question the integrity of the career officials investigating his Russia ties.



They are all corrupt. They are all agents of the opposition, part of the massive conspiracy to deny Trump his rightful triumph. And thus, the independent standards by which they judge his actions are a sham. There are no independent standards. There is only the truth that comes from Trump himself.

This is the vortex we are being led into by the most reckless, feckless, and malevolent president in this countrys history. It is a vortex where reality itself must subordinate itself to one political side; where facts are always instruments of power and nothing else; where our entire Constitution, designed to balance power against power to give truth and reason a chance, is being deliberately corroded from within. Its been seven weeks. And the damage done to our way of life is already deep, and deepening.
Preet Bharara at a press conference in June. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara has been fired by the Trump administration after refusing an order to resign. Bharara was one of the 46 Obama-appointed federal prosecutors who were told to submit their resignations on Friday by the Justice Department, and he confirmed that he both refused to resign, and was then fired, in a tweet on Saturday:



I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life.  Preet Bharara (@PreetBharara) March 11, 2017

Following his election in November, President Trump had asked Bharara  arguably the most celebrated prosecutor in the country  to stay on at his current post during a meeting between the two men at Trump Tower. Senator Chuck Schumer said in a statement that Trump had also assured him that he wanted Bharara to stick around during a November phone call that Trump had initiated.



Instead, on Friday, Bharara and 45 other U.S. attorneys appointed by President Obama were suddenly told to submit their resignations, and some didnt even find out about the order until reading about it on social media. What made the request all the more surprising was the fact that, according to NBC News, Attorney General Jeff Sessions had apparently spoken with the prosecutors on a Thursday conference call and gave no hint of the impending demand, even ending a call by telling them happy hunting.

Acting deputy Attorney General Dana Boente just called US Attorney Preet Bharara and told him President Trump was firing him.  Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) March 11, 2017

It is not abnormal for a new presidential administration to replace the U.S. attorneys appointed by a previous administration, but typically it is not done in such a sudden, seemingly unprepared manner. The Justice Department order also came less than 24 hours after Sean Hannity, a Fox News commentator whose show President Trump often watches, called for a purge of all President Obamas appointees at the Justice Department and elsewhere in the federal government.

Last month, it was reported that Bharara was investigating Fox News over settlements paid to employees who had charged the organizations former chair and CEO Roger Ailes with sexual harassment. The focus of that investigation was to determine whether or not Fox News failed to inform shareholders of the settlements, violating criminal law. Ailes was forced out at Fox News in July following an internal investigation into the sexual-harassment allegations made against Ailes by multiple women.



Shortlist to replace Bharara includes Ailes's onetime lawyer Marc Mukasey. Wonder what happens to that Fox probe?https://t.co/T0JdvGh5LL  Gabriel Sherman (@gabrielsherman) March 11, 2017

The Fox News investigation was just one of the many that Bharara was overseeing as the U.S. attorney for New Yorks Southern District. The Daily News has compiled a helpful list of those ongoing cases, as well as Bhararas many victories, here.



New Yorks Southern District also encompasses Manhattan, where President Trump lived before moving to the White House. Last week, Trump accused President Obama of ordering illegal wiretaps of him and Trump Tower during the run up to Election Day, though Trump has provided absolutely no evidence to support his accusation, which was likely based on a right-wing conspiracy theory.



Prior to Bhararas termination, some Republican lawmakers in New York had already been expressing their support for the prosecutor, who has made a bipartisan name for himself fighting corruption in the state. The minority leader of the New York State Assembly, Brian Kolb, tweeted Good for Preet, he is doing the job he was appointed to do! after seeing the news that Bharara had refused the resignation order. On Friday, GOP assemblyman Steve McLaughlin said he was opposed to the resignation as well, tweeting that [Its] definitely not a wise move at all if [Bharara] was asked to resign. This should be immediately reconsidered by [Attorney General] Sessions. Big mistake. McLaughlin then tried to start a social-media campaign to save Bhararas job:



.@USAGSessions Sir, please strongly reconsider asking @USAttyBharara to resign. We need him here in NY to #Draintheswamp.  Steve McLaughlin (@SteveMcNY) March 11, 2017

This post has been updated to reflect the news that Bharara was fired after refusing the resignation order.


84 items in this article 24 items on sale! Photo-Illustration: Strategist. Photos: Retailers

So your best friend had a baby and youre completely clueless about the whole enterprise. What do you bring to the shower? Do you go with something cute or useful? (Probably useful.) But whats the most useful? To find out, we asked an array of baby experts  mostly new moms themselves, but also shop owners, medical professionals, and doulas  a simple question: Whats the best baby-shower gift? Below, their 85 very helpful responses, which range from a doula-approved baby carrier to a diaper rash cream applicator to customized book club subscriptions. (And if you want to start a registry on Amazon, where most of our items are available, its a cinch.) To make the list even easier to shop, weve arranged the items by category; if you know the type of gift you want to get, but still need specific ideas, you can click on any of the links below to jump to that group of products.

Clothing | Blankets, swaddles, and mats | Loungers, swings, and bassinets | Strollers and high chairs | Slings and carriers | Nursing and feeding | Books and toys | Pacifiers and teethers | Diapering, bathing, and grooming | Nursery and decor | Gifts for mom (or dad)

Clothing

Zutano Unisex-Baby Newborn Cozie Fleece Booties From $22 Dr. Frances Benedict, who works in pediatrics, told us that parents swear by Zutano booties for newborns because while baby socks are notorious for not staying on, these booties will stay on. They come in a bunch of colors and in various styles kids can graduate to as they grow, according to her. They have ones with grips on the soles for older, more mobile children, so kids dont slip on slippery floors, she says. Moms Amelia Holowaty Krales, a senior staff photographer at our sister site the Verge, and Allie Gillebo, a designer at Vox Media, are two more fans. Says Gillebo: These are the best! Theyre the only bootie that ever stays on my babies. From $22 at Amazon Buy $22 at Zutano Buy

Freshly Picked Newborn Moccasin $35 Heres another pair of baby shoes that are sure to stay on tiny feet, according to Melissa Tortorella, the former communications manager at East Village gift shop Pink Olive. These baby moccasins will not fall off your kids feet and be lost to the sidewalk forever, she says, adding that theyre durable, well-designed, and adorable. Theyre made of leather and are available in a range of colors, from white to powder blue to gold. $35 at Nordstrom Rack Buy $35 at Buy Buy Baby Buy

Night Night Baby Sleeper in Organic Cotton From $40 From $40 This sounds so silly, but onesies that zip as opposed to snap are so helpful, says mom Madeleine Fawcett, a co-founder of public relations firm Project MM. Trying to button up on a squirmy babe is tough, especially after a middle-of-the-night diaper change, so we have a lot of these Hanna Andersson jammies. They are the best. The pajamas range in sizes from infants to 3-year-olds and are available in practically every color and design that you can think of. From $40 at Hanna Andersson Buy

MAKIE Pile First Hadagi  White $44 $44 Mom Kelsey Keith told us her go-to baby-shower gift is this hadagi from Japanese brand Makie, which her own daughter and all of her baby cohorts received. Its a beautiful material and really easy to get a newborn into and out of, she says, thanks to the ties at the waist and snaps on the pant legs. This writer (Lauren Ro) was also gifted several of these for her baby shower and even dressed her son in one for the ride home from the hospital. $44 at Makie Buy

Oliver & Rain Light Blue Terry Kimono Romper $24 $24 Chantel Tattoli believes that terry cloth is a great fabric for newborns. Snug as a bug, my kid spent much of her first three months snapped into jumpsuits fashioned out of beach-towel material, especially at night, she says. She recommends terry cloth because its super absorbent, and theyre always spitting up, and also because the looped cotton is so soft and thick and warm, she says. One of the pieces she found in the material was this romper from Oliver & Rain, which she loves. $24 at Oliver and Rain Buy

Blankets, swaddles, and mats

Coveted Things Organic Swaddle Scarf $32 Hands down, the gift we recommend to most expecting families are swaddles, says mom Alex Ng, the owner of childrens boutique PiccoliNY. But not just any swaddle: These, by Coveted Things, are extra special and truly set themselves apart because theyre so versatile  as a swaddle, of course, as a photo backdrop, as a burp cloth, as a nursing cover, as a blankie, as a carriage cover. Ng adds that they come in beautiful designs with sweet (and cheeky) messages, including her personal favorite that says, Shit just got real. $32 at Coveted Things Buy

Keith also likes to give swaddles, along with play mats and towels, from Kip&Co to new and expecting parents. Seeing as swaddles are generally muted in color, she loves how her favorites stand apart with their really fun patterns that do not shy away from a bold look. Keiths go-to play mat to gift, meanwhile, is filled with cotton to give a bit of extra padding for wee ones.

Infantino Play and Away Cart Cover $18 $18 While this can function as a play mat for a baby, teacher and mom Andrea Roberts explains how it can be a gift that does a lot more. She told us that, at some point, youre going to have to take your baby grocery shopping with you. If theyre old enough, you can plop them in the grocery cart for a more convenient experience, but you might not love the idea of them touching a germy handlebar. Thats where the mat-slash-cover comes in. I took this with me everywhere we went, she says. It was great to prevent germs in the grocery store or on high chairs in restaurants, and even better, my daughter loved playing with it. $18 at Amazon Buy

Love to Dream Swaddle Wrap UP Wrap Organic $30 $30 This swaddle is a favorite of Strategist writer Lauren Ro. Her son is now 2, but as an infant she says it kept Augie so calm and chill the first few weeks of his life that we were actually a little concerned about his inactivity (turns out all newborns sleep most of the day). What sets it apart is that it accommodates what they say is infants preferred position of having their arms up by their heads. And its not only good for kids but parents too. What I loved about it the most was how easy it was to use, Ro says. I could never get the hang of regular swaddles, even the ones that were supposed to be foolproof. You didnt have to wrap or tuck or Velcro anything  just zip it right up. $30 at Buy Buy Baby Buy $33 at Amazon Buy

Aden by Aden + Anais Dream Blanket $40 If youre looking for a heftier blanket, event planner and mom Elizabeth Verrelli says to consider this one made from muslin. Aden + Anais products are pretty ubiquitous, but this blanket in particular is a tactile paradise, she says. Its heavier, it washes well, it holds up. My daughter barfed all over this blanket once, like an adult-size power puke. I thought it was a goner. And it came out of the wash looking like new. $40 at Amazon Buy $40 at Amazon Buy

Little Giraffe Luxe Baby Blanket $94 $94 This writer (Ro) received this faux-fur blanket from Little Giraffe as a gift when her now-toddler was just born and simply adores it. The blanket is incredibly soft and cozy and has a tiny bit of weight to it that (she imagines) makes it so comforting to a newborn. A silky satin trim adds a luxe touch, and its also easy to wash. For these reasons, its become a go-to baby-shower gift. $94 at Nordstrom Buy $96 at Neiman Marcus Buy

Loungers, swings, and bassinets

Overcrest Portable Pop Up Baby Beach Tent $36 now 22% off $28 Help your friend with the Hamptons house take their baby to the beach. Jason Morrison got this with the intention of taking his daughter to Greece to keep her protected while at the beach. Its UV-protected from the sun, and its large enough to accommodate babies and toddlers, and can even fit in a suitcase. It has use beyond the beach too, he says. It really performs as a portable play space now  she sits in it and watches TV or sticks her animals in or whatever, Morrison adds. She can even sleep in it. Its basically a fort. $28 at Amazon Buy $28 at Amazon Buy

DockATot Deluxe+ Dock From $150 From $150 Hands down, the most useful thing we have is the DockATot, says mom Erin Crawford, who works in financial services. It looks like a baby life raft and has magical sleep-inducing powers over our son. As its name suggests, the contraption is a dock with cushy sides that you can park your baby in for lounging, napping, playing, and co-sleeping. I bought it based purely on Amazon reviews and celebrity endorsements, and I reckon Id be a zombie without it, she adds. Mom Allie Lindenmuth, the founder of maternity-fitness brand Anook Athletics, also says one of these would make a great gift, telling us a DockATot is not only fashionable, but functional and that it helps to keep your little one safe while sleeping. From $150 at Nordstrom Buy From $150 at DockATot Buy

Bumbo Floor Seat $40 $40 This chair thing looks so weird, but its truly a godsend, promises Fawcett. It sets babies up to eventually sit on their own and its the perfect thing to throw them in while cooking or sending emails. Something any new parents who are now working from home would particularly appreciate. $40 at Buy Buy Baby Buy

4moms MamaRoo 4 Baby Swing $500 Mom Emily Ross, the associate provost at the School of Visual Arts, says the most useful gift we received was this swing: We used it constantly for about four months. She admits its expensive, but explains that the swing bought her priceless minutes of me time in her early days with her baby girl. My daughter insisted on being held at all times, unless I put her in this swing. Without it, I never would have been able to eat or pee. The plush seat has four bouncing and swaying modes (they simulate movement like a car ride or tree swing) and comes with built-in music and toys and even Bluetooth compatibility. $500 at Amazon Buy $240 at Buy Buy Baby Buy

BabyBjorn Baby Bouncer Balance Soft $200 Another seat that moves, this BabyBjorn bouncer is not powered by electricity, but simply the kicking legs of a newborn. It comes recommended by mom Domino Kirke-Badgley, a certified birth doula and educator at Carriage House Birth. The bouncer leans all the way back, which is essential for newborns, plus older babies can bounce themselves to self-soothe, she says. Maybe most importantly, it fits easily through doorways  so new parents can bring it into the bathroom when they need a shower. $200 at Target Buy $210 at Amazon Buy

Bloom Coco Go 3-in-1 Bouncer $219 $219 If the new parent youre shopping for is also concerned about the aesthetic of their house changing with the addition of a baby, you can get this much more stylish bouncer for a dollar less. Keith, who is also the editorial director of Herman Miller, owns this, and she knows a thing or two about interior design. Most baby stuff isnt so nice looking, and you just have to get over yourself, she says. But I think this bouncer is beautiful; its nice to look at them in something that looks so cozy and something you dont hate. $219 at Monica + Andy Buy

Arms Reach Cambria Wood Quilted Co-Sleeper $260 $260 Product designer and mom Rebecca Schultz told us that, after she had C-section, receiving this co-sleeper as a gift was a very welcome surprise. Using the co-sleeper with the drop-down side means I dont have to lift the baby up so much in the night, she explains. The drop-down panel allows for the bassinet to get right up to the side of your bed, so you can simply reach over to the baby instead of lifting it up and out as with a regular bassinet. It also looks, and Im assuming feels, more like a crib, Schultz adds, so I hope our crib transition is easier. $260 at Wayfair Buy $259 at Bed Bath & Beyond Buy

HALO Bassinest Swivel Sleeper $268 $268 This slightly less expensive bassinet also has a drop-down side and it swivels, making it that much easier to position. Saxton told us about it, calling the Halo an amazing bedside sleeper that swivels over the bed to provide a safe, separate sleep surface for a baby thats still within arms reach. Echoing Schultz, she says it would be a thoughtful gift for anyone who underwent a C-section because it can be really hard to twist or get in and out of bed, so having easy access for middle-of-the-night nursing is clutch while maintaining peace of mind about safe sleep. $268 at Amazon Buy $200 at Target Buy

Happiest Baby SNOO Smart Sleeper Bassinet $1,695 $1,695 Perhaps a gift youd have to chip in with a few others on, the Snoo is another of those pricey pieces that can be priceless for new parents. The smart bassinet was invented by none other than pediatrician Dr. Harvey Karp himself, and responds to a babys crying with motion and white noise to calm it back to sleep so that you dont have to get up and do it yourself. Says Strategist contributor Chrstina Ladd, You have no idea how grateful I was to have those extra, precious minutes of sleep for myself. (If you want to read more about how it works, we recommend her full review.) $1,695 at Amazon Buy $1,595 at Happiest Baby Buy

Lulla-Vibe Vibrating Pad $29 Samantha Shipp Warrick has a SNOO at home but found herself with a screaming 2-month-old when they went out of town. At a very small fraction of the cost of a SNOO, this vibrating paddle can be placed under your travel mattress (or one at home) to help gently rock the baby to sleep. $29 at Amazon Buy

Strollers and high chairs

Stokke Tripp Trapp High Chair $270 $270 Its definitely pricey, but this high chair truly grows with a child, according to dad Dave Jacobs, the owner of Mini Jake, a childrens store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The convertible Stokke Tripp Trapp high chair provides modern seating for an infant but also can turn into a chair that suits a teenager (it can hold up to 300 pounds), he explains of its versatility. For the youngest of users (babies 6 months old and up), it comes with an insert that helps keep little bodies propped up a bit more. $270 at Bed Bath & Beyond Buy $299 at Target Buy

Slings and carriers

Ergobaby Omni 360 Baby Carrier in Pearl Grey $125 $179 now 30% off $125 A baby carrier is a must for city families, says Jacobs, who recommends the Ergobaby Omni 360 carrier. It provides hands-free snuggles for fussy babies, which allows parents to wrangle older siblings and navigate subway excursions. The Omni offers four carry positions and can accommodate newborns as well as toddlers (its max weight is 45 pounds), making the price a bit more reasonable. This writer (Ro) is another fan and can attest that the carrier is super easy to put on and very comfortable to wear, thanks to its padded straps and lumbar support. $125 at Amazon Buy $180 at Target Buy

Wrapsody WrapDuO Carrier $72 $72 Mom and operating-room nurse Maggie Caron says this more flexible (and affordable) wrap-style carrier would also be a thoughtful choice. My baby did not want to be put down  she wouldve crawled back in the womb if she could, Caron says. Both my husband and I used this 24/7 during the fourth trimester. She says its easy to put on, breathable, and the best part: waterproof, which theoretically means you could even take your baby swimming in it. [Editors note: Wrapsody is not currently taking orders, but they will open again on September 1.] $72 at Wrapsody Buy

Beco Gemini Cool Mesh Baby Carrier $80 $140 now 43% off $80 Another structured carrier thats slightly more affordable than the Ergobaby is the Becco Gemini, which comes recommended by Lindsey Bliss, a certified birth doula and educator with Carriage House Birth. She likes how you can put your newborn right in, thanks to the buckles and the structure, and notes that structured carriers can accommodate younger babies earlier than wraps can. (Like the Ergobaby, it has four carry positions and can grow with your child until theyre a toddler.) Bliss adds that men tend to love these because theyre sleek and easier to use than a wrap. It gives you hands-free time and its a little less fuss, Bliss concludes. $80 at Amazon Buy

Nursing and feeding

Comotomo Natural Feel Baby Bottle $28 now 18% off $23 According to two moms  Gretchen Radzik, an art teacher at Lower Manhattan Community Middle School, and Courtney Klein, the CEO of maternity brand Storq  these bottles from Comotomo would make for an inexpensive but useful gift. Theyre a green product, Radzik explains, and older babies can learn to hold these bottles more easily than others, thanks to the bottles grippy silicone body. Klein agrees, adding that both of her kids took to these bottles right away and that the wide mouth makes them easy to clean. $23 at Amazon Buy $24 at Nordstrom Buy

Milkies Freeze Organizer $28 $30 now 7% off $28 Moms who pump (or are planning to pump) will likely appreciate any gifts that help get their freezer in order, like this organizer recommended by naturopathic doctor Alicia Birr. This contraption for the freezer helps keep the freezer organized and makes sure you use your oldest milk first, she explains. $28 at Amazon Buy $28 at Amazon Buy

Milkies Milk Saver $28 Another thoughtful idea for moms who pump, according to Birr, is this totally important cup used for passively collecting breastmilk that may otherwise go to waste. Use is as simple as placing the collector into the bra-cup on your non-nursing side, she explains. Its unreal how much milk I save. $28 at Amazon Buy $28 at Amazon Buy

Negative Silky Nursing Bra $65 $65 The new mom on your list will also benefit from some nursing bras. One of our favorite everyday underwear brands, Negative Underwear, also makes a beloved clip-down nursing bra. True to form for the brand, its not armored with padding or underwire, but it still works for a larger bust. I had such a hard time with bras, between cup-size changes and nursing needs. No one tells you you have to buy and try like a dozen to find the ones that work for you, says Keith. It was a very tasteful friend who first recommended it to me, and the bra  it gets the job done. $65 at Negative Underwear Buy

According to Benedict, Medelas lanolin ointment is a must for breastfeeding moms. Other brands are too thick to apply, she says, but this one lends itself to easy and painless application. If the ointment alone doesnt feel giftable enough, she says to bundle it with these nursing pads from Lansinoh. The Lansinoh brand is the most comfortable and least abrasive, she promises.

Munchkin Fresh Food Feeder $7 While new parents may not be able to use this right away, itll come in handy once the babe is ready to tackle solids, according to Olsen. Its really unbelievable how many hours of my current life are spent planning, purchasing, prepping, feeding, and cleaning up food, so anything that helps in that department is vital to me, she says. These little mesh feeders enabled me to give my daughter fresh fruit and veggies without worrying about her choking. Theyre also great to put ice in for teething, she adds. $7 at Amazon Buy $7 at Amazon Buy

Green Sprouts Silicone Placemat $18 Olsen also swears by this silicone placemat, which she uses at home and takes everywhere, including to restaurants and friends houses. It helps me avoid the kids food being on dirty, germ-filled tables, plus cleanup is easy: You just move the mess from table to sink. Its versatile, too, because it can be used for playing with Play-Doh and other arts and crafts when the kids get older, she adds. $18 at Amazon Buy $18 at Amazon Buy

BabyBjorn Baby Bib, 2-Pack $20 Forget about trying to feed a baby without a bib. If you want to give one thats truly a workhorse, Verrelli says you cant do much better than this plastic one from BabyBjorn. My husband thought they were weird because they are kind of stiff, but thats a good thing, she says. When you see how much food collects in the bottom, you will understand the logic of choosing that particular material. The plastic makes them especially easy to clean with just some soap and a sponge, she adds. Anything that you dont have to launder is great, bibs especially, as they get very soiled and stained. $20 at Amazon Buy $20 at Amazon Buy

Books and toys

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown $9 now 44% off $5 Beyond the very practical clothes and gear new parents will need, the folks we talked to mentioned some more entertaining  but no less functional  baby-shower gifts to consider. A good board book, according to two people we talked to, is one of those gifts. In fact, those two people say you could throw a whole baby shower around the theme of board books as gifts. If all guests participate, you leave with a starter library, explains mom Jen Trolio, a culture editor at Vox, who adds that you can instruct guests to sign those books instead of giving cards. They are really special if they are all signed by the person who gifted them. Halle Tecco, the CEO of fertility startup Natalist, also had a book-themed baby shower. Not only did we seed our sons library collection, but we get to read a note from a loved one every time we open a book, she explains. As for what board book to give, Tecco says you can never go wrong with her (and lots of others) favorite, Goodnight Moon. This sweet book is a classic and so comforting to little ones; if you start reading it at a young age, theyll have it memorized by the time theyre a toddler, she says. (For more board books to give, head here.) $5 at Amazon Buy $9 at Bookshop Buy

For a less expensive gift approved by Snoo creator Dr. Harvey Karp, Ross suggests this DVD that teaches new parents his raved-about method for quieting a crying baby. (If youre not familiar, it involves something called the five Ss.) Her very kind neighbors lent us the DVD, which taught us how to get our newborn to stop screaming bloody murder in the first few weeks, Ross explains. I cant tell you the difference it made. For those who maybe havent held onto their DVD player, the lesson can be streamed via Amazon video and also comes in the form of a (just-as-giftable) book.

Little Feminist Book Club Subscription From $23 Another way to grow new parents baby-book library is to give them a subscription to a book club. Saxton recommends this one to the Little Feminist Book Club, telling us its something her whole family loves. The books they receive feature diverse families, cultures, dis/abilities, hair textures, emotions and more, according to her. Were raising a 21st-century babe, and each month the subscription includes tips, activities, and discussion topics for the age-appropriate selection we received. From $23 at Little Feminist Buy

Toddleroo Play Yard $96 $110 now 13% off $96 A cross between educational toy and decor, author Doree Shafrir wished she had put this playpen, meant for toddlers, on her registry, which she says helped with her babys independence. I did see him, even at a very young age, start to explore his toys and try to roll and do all these things I wasnt necessarily expecting him to do yet, she says. $96 at Amazon Buy $96 at Amazon Buy

Blabla Kids Tweedy Bear Grenadine Doll $72 $72 Tortorella loves these dolls from Blabla, which also appear on our list of the best gifts for 1-year-olds, where they were recommended by a doula who says she gives them to most every little one she knows. An Atlanta-based team has collaborated with Peruvian artisans for the past 15 years to bring these delightful, hand-knitted dolls to children worldwide, Tortorella says. Theyre so soft and cuddly. $72 at Blabla Kids Buy

The First Years Stacking Up Cups $7 now 29% off $5 While these stacking cups dont look like much, Verrelli says she cannot believe how much mileage weve gotten out of them. She basically calls the simple toys a baby-shower gift that will keep on giving. They can be incorporated into almost any level of developmental play. At first, my daughter used to just gum on them. Then we stacked them as intended. Then we brought them into the bath for water play. Now, she will put a spoon in one and bring me a cup of coffee. $5 at Amazon Buy

Skip Hop Explore & More Follow-me Bee $22 $27 now 19% off $22 If youd rather gift a plaything a baby can use when theyre a bit older, consider this roaming toy that Strategist contributing editor Jessica Silvester bought (after seeing it on Eva Chens baby list) to help encourage her 8-month-old to start crawling. Designed to grow with a child, it includes a graspable bee rattle that wobbles (for babies who arent quite ready to crawl), as well as a motorized cloud base that moves in two different patterns: circles (for beginner crawlers) and more random movements (for more advanced crawlers). After a few tries, my son started going right after it, Silvester says. Now hes shimmying his roly-poly little body all over the house. $22 at Amazon Buy $22 at Amazon Buy

Pacifiers and teethers

Nuby Silicone Teethe-eez Teether $6 $6 When a baby is cutting their first teeth and a pacifier wont, well, cut it (at least when it comes to soothing), a teether will do the trick. Stowaway Cosmetics founder Chelsa Crowley says that her daughter loves the Nuby. Its the perfect size for her to hold, soothes her gums when shes teething, plus the nubs clean milk and food residue from gums and teeth, she says. It even comes with a convenient carrying case. $6 at Amazon Buy $6 at Amazon Buy

LexyPexy Teether Toy $29 $29 This charming doughnut-shaped teether is made of wood, giving it a more artisanal look than the various rubber and silicone ones you see everywhere. Tortorella recommends it, telling us the maple-wood plaything is naturally antibacterial, nontoxic, nonallergenic, non-splintering  and handmade with love. (All things that make it quite giftable, we add.) $29 at Maisonette Buy

Wubbanub Pacifier $17 Life-changing is how engineer and mom Katie Krieger describes the WubbaNub pacifier, which has an attached plush toy that helps keep it in a babys mouth. It saved us. When our girl was still on the younger side, shed drop the regular pacifier from her mouth and need us to put it back in  or even hold it in place. But then her sister introduced us to the Wubbanub. In those early days, we could wedge the animal part between things to keep the pacifier accessible for her even if it fell out of her mouth, and when she was a little older, she could grab it more easily herself to put it back in. In addition to the giraffe shown here, you can get it with a whole zoos worth of animals, including a lamb, sloth, and llama. $17 at Amazon Buy $15 at Nordstrom Buy

Madelines Box Leather Braided Pacifier Clip $16 If youre looking for a simpler teething accessory thats no less special, consider this handmade leather pacifier clip that floral designer Cara Sullivan recommends. Pacifiers are hideous and pacifier clips are even worse, she says, but very necessary. These bespoke ones, Sullivan concludes, make the accessory attractive. $16 at Madeline's Box Buy

Diapering, bathing, and grooming

Freshly Picked Classic Diaper Bag $189 $189 A lot of diaper bags look like, well, diaper bags. But not this one from Freshly Picked, says Lindenmuth. While it has all the helpful compartments that every caretaker needs, its designed to look like a rather stylish backpack to the naked eye. They thought of everything within this design, she says, especially the insulated pockets for keeping bottles cool or warm. Its made of vegan leather and has ten pockets in addition to a spacious center compartment, as well as a convenient magnetic front-flap closure. Plus, the bag can be worn as a backpack, a cross-body bag, or a purse, making it even more versatile. $189 at Amazon Buy $189 at Nordstrom Buy

L.L.Bean Boat and Tote (Zip Top) From $45 From $45 For a less expensive diaper bag (that doesnt look like a diaper bag), Jen Zuklie, the founder of secondhand-kids-clothes marketplace the Swoondle Society, loves to give new parents a classic L.L.Bean tote (size large) with the childs name embroidered on it. Inevitably you will go somewhere with your child and need to bring all the gear, she says. These bags are multipurpose and have lots of pockets so you can fit a ton of stuff in them. As kids get older, she adds, the bags make great camp bags or beach bags because they last forever. From $45 at L.L. Bean Buy

Paravel Fold-up Belt Bag $35 Photo: retailer If they dont want to carry around a diaper bag at all, you could consider gifting them a fanny-pack diaper bag. Journalist Yelena Shuster is a fan of Kibou, but this is another option for less than half the price. Writer Sarah Hoover, who describes her parenting style as threadbare, kept her baby shopping to a minimum, which included skipping a diaper bag. Instead, she uses this paravel fanny pack. It has just enough room for the baby things I needed on daily excursions in my sons first year: two diapers, a little Ziploc of wipes, and an extra onesie just in case he took a blowout shit at the Odeon and I had to make a quick judgment call, she says. It even holds her essentials including her cell phone, ChapStick, keys, and credit cards. New parents have enough to keep track of, so a bag that they can wear, and not leave anywhere, feels like a no brainer. $35 at Shopbop Buy $35 at Paravel Buy

Coterie Diapers (6-Pack  4-Week Supply) From $90 for 192 From $90 for 192 Should you want to give diapers themselves (new parents can never have enough), these ones from Coterie, which made our list of the best gifts for new moms, are a little more special than the Huggies and Pampers of the world. The mom who recommended them to us, Bethany Barnes, says, Coterie diapers are simple, secure, soft, very absorbent, and the safest and cleanest diaper Ive found, which is exactly what I want to put my baby in. After receiving some sample Coterie diapers, this writer (Ro) put them to the test with her young son and agrees that they definitely feel (and look) a lot nicer than your average drugstore variety. From $90 for 192 at Coterie Buy

Keekaroo Peanut Changer $130 The modern Keekaroo Peanut Changer offers comfort for baby and easy cleaning for parents, promises Jacobs. It can turn most any surface into a changing table and, importantly, does not require a cover, so theres one less thing you need to handle, he says. $130 at Pishposhbaby Buy

BabyBum Diaper Cream Brush $10 now 30% off $7 Crowley calls this silicone diaper-cream applicator both ridiculous and a lifesaver, telling us, I buy it for all my new mom friends. She explains how it can be very handy for parents once babies start eating solid foods: I found that I was applying more butt cream than was humanly possible to this tiny human. And this made that process not only easier but also less gross  no more butt cream under your nails, ladies! $7 at Amazon Buy $7 at Amazon Buy

Ubbi Steel Diaper Pail $80 now 13% off $70 We love a dupe here at Strategist, which is why our ears perked up when Birr started describing this bin for dirty diapers. Everybody swears by the Diaper Genie, she says. But we found this simple diaper pail was just as good and more attractive. $70 at Amazon Buy From $70 at Nordstrom Buy

Mustela Newborn Arrival Gift Set $36 The best-smelling baby products in the world is how Verrelli describes the stuff in this kit, which she says has everything a new arrival will need. I was given this exact set, and I loved, loved, loved it. It includes shampoo, cleansing gel, body lotion, diaper cream, and a no-rinse cleansing fluid that Verrelli says is amazing for cleaning under a babys neck where they can get very gnarly neck cheese from little dribbles of milk. The cleansing fluid, she adds, is just as useful after a big poop, when wipes alone may not be enough. $36 at Amazon Buy $36 at Nordstrom Buy

Piyo Piyo Baby Nail Scissors $10 $10 Babies nails grow surprisingly fast and can get real sharp real quick. But snipping those tiny talons can be nerve-racking. To make the process less so, Olsen suggests giving these nail scissors, which makes nail cutting much less scary and difficult along the soft keratin of baby nails. $10 at Amazon Buy $10 at Amazon Buy

Punada Electric Baby Nail File $16 $16 If you anticipate them being too freaked out by real clippers, get them this electric file. Food writer Hannah Howard says it saved the day (after her husband accidentally cut off a piece of baby skin.) There are 14 different grinding heads fit for different ages of babies and kids, and it just sands down their nails gently so you wont hurt them, no matter how squirmy they are, she adds.Theres even an LED light if you want to snuggle up and have a nighttime baby mani-pedi. $16 at Amazon Buy $16 at Amazon Buy

Oogiebear Nasal and Ear Cleaner $13 $13 This strange and very specific doodad is another essential baby item, according to attorney and mom Cynthia Domingo-Foraste, who says its essentially a straw for sucking snot from your babys nose. The snotsucker, she adds, is something new parents will likely be grateful for right away. Did you know that when babies are born they swallow a bunch of amniotic fluid and it gets stuck in their sinuses? I didnt either. This thing was essentially for those first few weeks and continues to be a lifesaver (until this kid can blow her own nose.) $13 at Amazon Buy $13 at Amazon Buy

FridaBaby Baby Basics Kit $40 now 45% off $22 If youre willing to spend a bit more, Lindenmuth says you can give this very handy kit from FridaBaby that includes the snotsucker along with a nail snipper, a silicone bath brush for cradle cap and washing skin, and a Windi, a little tool to help your wee one pass gas. Its a must-have for all your baby essentials, she promises. $22 at Amazon Buy $40 at Nordstrom Buy

Nursery and decor

Amazon Basics Portable Kids Blackout Curtain $26 $26 Shafrir called these Crate and Barrel blackout curtains a nonnegotiable for the nursery, which she says kept the blinding sun from coming into her babys room. If you dont know the parents well enough to make a major decor decision like this however, you can opt to get these curtains, which they can use on the go. Now that people are starting to leave their houses again, you will need this if youre planning on putting baby down for a nap somewhere else, she says. They are a lifesaver. They just suction to the window, so you can take this to grandmas house or a hotel. $26 at Amazon Buy $26 at Amazon Buy

Hatch Baby Rest Sound Machine $70 $70 Not surprisingly, we heard from a few folks that night-lights are something no parent will turn down. Should you really want to impress your recipient, Saxton says Hatchs smart night-light not only serves its stated purpose but can also function as a sound machine. This smart white-noise machine lets us program nap and night schedules from our phone or directly on the device, she says, adding that its another gift that can grow with the child. With various colored lights, songs, and white-noise choices, were now using it as an okay to wake clock in an attempt to keep our toddler in her bed longer. $70 at Amazon Buy $70 at Hatch Buy

VTech Baby Lil Critters Soothing Starlight Hippo, Blue $28 now 11% off $25 While its not as smart as the above night-light, this less expensive one looks a heck of a lot cuter and has similar (if less high-tech) features as the Hatch one. Namely, it can cast colorful lights on the walls and ceilings of a babys nursery and also play more than 100 songs, melodies, sounds, and phrases to calm your little one at night. This hippo by VTech is literally a godsend, says mom Yvette Johns, a senior community manager in operations at Vox Media. There were nights where wed be desperately creeping around our baby in the darkness, hurriedly trying to shove new batteries into it after it died just to make sure it would work if she woke up. $25 at Amazon Buy $25 at Amazon Buy

Baby Shusher $35 The Baby Shusher, Crowley explains, creates a rhythmic shush sound thats soothing to babies. While its neither high-tech nor cute, Crowley says it lulled my daughter to sleep every time. The fact that there are only two settings  15 minutes or 30 minutes  makes it relatively simple to use. Plus, she adds, Its so small that its easy to take on trips. This was my little sleep miracle when my babe was a newborn. $35 at Amazon Buy $35 at Nordstrom Buy

Gifts for mom (or dad)

Frida Mom Labor and Delivery + Postpartum Recovery Kit $100 $100 Moms who have just given birth need TLC, too, which is why both Lindenmuth and Zuklie recommend this labor, delivery, and postpartum recovery kit from FridaBabys line for moms. Frida came out with a great line of mom essentials that expedite the postpartum recovery process, explains Lindenmuth. This was a lifesaver after the birth of my daughter. For the price, you get a lot: The kit includes a gown, disposable underwear, a peri bottle, grippy socks for the delivery room, instant ice maxi pads, perineal cooling pad liners, perineal healing foam, and a travel bag to put it all in. The box has all the necessities a new mom didnt know she needed, adds Zuklie. $100 at Amazon Buy $100 at Amazon Buy

SunBeam Neck Heating Pad $50 New moms would argue that the items in the recovery kit are essentials, not self-care, but if you are looking for a more indulgent gift, we recommend this heating pad. Shuster told us this pad designed specifically for the neck and shoulders helped with all the new aches and pains that come with motherhood. My neck got so sore that I developed mommy thumb, she says, but thankfully, a fellow new mom recommended this cozy heating pad, which is fully compatible with Netflix binging and can make you feel pampered when you dont have time for any real self-care.  $50 at Amazon Buy $50 at Amazon Buy

Savor Vault Baby Keepsake Box, Slate $65 now 20% off $52 There are so many milestones to track with a new baby, which is why mom Ellie Rountree, an editor at Vox Creative, says this keepsake box shes given to several new-parent friends has always been a hit. The fabric-lined box includes 50 illustrated and acid-free labels along with drawers and compartments to organize everything from sonograms to lost baby teeth. $52 at Maisonette Buy

Earth Mama Herbal Perineal Spray $12 $13 now 8% off $12 Lindenmuth loves this herbal perineal spray which she gives to almost all of my mama friends. It has cucumber, organic witch hazel, and organic essential oils that are safe for both pregnancy and postpartum and comes with an inverted sprayer to make it easier to reach down there. $12 at Amazon Buy $13 at Buy Buy Baby Buy

Belly Bandit Original Postpartum Belly Wrap From $50 This belly wrap is great for any woman who just had her first child, or her third, says Kirke, who adds that it can also come in handy just after surgery. The wrap, she explains, helps new moms feel that sense of stability in their bodies after they give birth, when some women can complain about that phantom belly or their equilibrium being off. She adds that the wrap is also great for pelvic-floor health, telling us that women who wear them, especially following a C-section, tend to just feel better and have more energy. From $50 at Amazon Buy $50 at Nordstrom Buy

Suku Home Moon Classic Pyjamas $180 $180 One thing I bought myself ahead of birth, and that Id definitely get a friend, are these gorgeous pajamas, says Valerie Lapinski, a video producer at Vox Media. While she admits that the pajamas were a splurge, she says they went a long way toward helping her feel comfortable immediately after giving birth. (And what new mom doesnt deserve to be splurged on?) I wore them a ton postpartum, and I felt kind of indulgent and fancy, even when I was just laying around haggard and nursing. $180 at Suku Buy

Bearaby Velvet Napper Weighted Blanket From $269 From $269 There is so much cuddling going on at home when the baby arrives, so a great cozy blanket is key, says Zuklie. Her favorite is this weighted blanket from Bearaby, which is one of our favorites, too. Made from upcycled eco-velvet thats been spun from marine plastic, its available in 15-, 20-, and 25-pound styles. Its not only stylish but comfortable as well, she promises. Editors note: The blanket is currently sold out, but Bearaby can alert you when it is restocked if you provide your email address. From $269 at Bearaby Buy

Mary Esther Malloy Meditation and Massage for Pregnancy $525 $525 If the expecting parents youre shopping for dont have a strong or present support network, new mom Octavia Peissel, a film producer living in Paris, says that offering to pay for an online parents support group like the one run by Mary Esther Malloy would be an incredibly thoughtful gift in these extremely stressful times. Malloy offers doula services, as well as childbirth classes and online meetups for new moms, and says anyone who wants to book her services should contact her office for more information. If you think your recipient might want to ease into Malloys practice before investing in any service, she also sells guided meditation, breathing, and visualization lessons for various stages of pregnancy, labor, and delivery. $525 at Mindfulbirth Buy

Seamless Gift Card From $25 From $25 Dont let a Seamless gift cards practicality dissuade you from the power it can have as a gift. The one thing that I always ended up appreciating once my baby arrived were gift cards for takeout, says Gillebo. In those first couple weeks, having dinner already taken care of is the best. Krales agrees, adding, I loved getting this and have given it to friends and co-workers. From $25 at Seamless Buy

Ipsa Provisions From $21 Or, if you know the types of things your recipients like to eat, mom Melissa Young, an engineering manager at Vox Media, says you could eliminate the extra step of deciding what to order by giving them some prepared food they just have to warm up. Reheatable meals would be wonderful, she says, and Ipsa Provisions  a meal-delivery service used by Strategist senior editor and dad Peter Martin  makes it easy to order dishes a la carte. (A note that, right now, the service is only available in Brooklyn and Manhattan.) Martin describes Ipsas offerings as high-end, premade frozen food  basically TV dinners for people who try to make casual references to Alison Roman recipes theyve made. From $21 at Ipsa Provisions Buy

The Strategist is designed to surface the most useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Some of our latest conquests include the best womens jeans, rolling luggage, pillows for side sleepers, ultra-flattering pants, and bath towels. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.

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How do you guys feel about making history? It's kind of dumb but it doesn't take itself seriously at all and Leighton is adorable.



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Pretty much yeah. Kinda dumb, but fun enough so far so I'll keep watching.



Mostly I freaking love Adam Pally so I'd watch him in anything.

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i sorta like it but the whole i'm going back in time for a girl by fucking up history is not the best plot.

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She was my least favorite. I couldn't tell if she is just a horribly bad actress or her character is supposed to be an idiot or both.

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James Cordan is sf annoying, he's like the British Jimmy Fallon for me.

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To be fair, all of the male late night hosts are annoying. I mean the only one that's really ~good~ is Colbert who was only saved by this election season, and subsequent destruction of the country/world. People were shitting on him bad before he got political.



I wish Ferguson still had a show, because he was fresh. Conan is uber nerd chic, Fallon is low-brow nice guy porn, Kimmel is...Kimmel, and Seth...has a show.



I've never watched Samantha Bee's show, but I hate that it's a once a week kinda deal.

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Conan is uber nerd chic

you spelled 'pandered to creeps who don't think women are people' wrong

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Seth Meyers is getting political too, and his first half of the show is by far the strongest. That said...his show is erm...awkward though. It's actually a bit of a trainwreck sometimes. Super funny.

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It made me so happy to see him cracking up :)

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I love him but this new show looks so bad. The only premise I've seen is he's going back in time to get a gf??

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Not quite.



He's a janitor in the present, but uses catch praises and quotes and stuff in hte past to be way more interesting/cool to the people of the past, and it's just easier then the present. He's got a girlfriend already in the past when the show starts -and she's super cool.



Also by being with her he changes American Revolution so that it doesn't happen.



It was pretty funny, and I liked the history Professor character, who even kinda called him out on using the time machine to get a girlfriend.



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He has a girlfriend but the stuff he's done has caused the American Revolution not to happen. The show is mostly about him his professor friend and his girlfriend trying to fix his mistake.

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One of my favorite things that ever happened is when Adam Pally guest hosted The Late Late Show during a blizzard with Ben Schwartz as his hype man. No one was in the audience, the guests were Howard Stern's wife and a football player via satellite who wound up talking about Helvetica. Not even the cameraman wanted to be there. It was fucking hilarious.

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yas it was literally the best thing i ever saw

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ty but I already have it bookmarked! glad you shared it so other people can see this amazing ep.

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God, so many of those guest-hosted shows were fantastic, but especially this one!

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I rewatch that episode regularly. it's amazing.

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i was thinking about it when i was watching making history and that was so surreal. when he was talking about how cbs flew him over to nyc in coach, lmao

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Just my luck, I have a 5 hr nap and I miss this post.

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Had no idea Adam Pally was a star. I just thought that was your name lol.

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As much as I love Adam, I'm more watching this for Yassir Lester. I think he's a brilliant comedic writer and actor, and I've loved what he's done with "Girls" and other projects.



Makes me miss "The Snack-Off" on MTV, TBQH.

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Been meaning to watch the new show

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i irrationally hate him

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he's a cutie and it's good to know that when we're married and i meet his father, we'll have female pop culture icons to bond over



prolly won't catch his show tho

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The hair is a good look on him.

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this show sounds like the horrific goodnight sweetheart without the bigamy

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I love him, but the Pilot was.... eeeegh. Leighton was awful. It would be better if it wasn't so cheesy or she wasn't so ditzy. I'll keep watching though because he's hilarious.

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the show looks stupid funny? the name adam pally seems really familiar but idk if i've seen him in anything

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So just don't go doing that eh

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LOL

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am I missing a reference? LMAO

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ONTD, have you even been to the ER?



nope. i think i prolly should've when i poured boiling water on my hand and arm directly from the kettle (on accident ofc), but i was like "naaaah, why bother hospitals with just a burn?"





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i once sliced my finger open p deep when i was throwing away an open can of tomato sauce and i probably should've gone for stitches but like you i was like "hmmm i'll just handle this bleeding at home with a normal bandage, that should be fine"

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sheesh that sounds scary. hope it didn't leave any scars :/

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I did that, but with a broken wine glass. I have a first aid kit so I just went nuts with that

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Same here, I jumped off the porch and cut my foot. My friend was more freaked out than I was, and in the ER they just cleaned it, bandaged it, and told me to be more careful. My mom could've done all that tbqh lol.

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Once my mom was helping my brother out with a school project where he had to build a model log cabin and she sliced her finger open with a pocket knife. She called me into the room calmly and said, "can you help me out with this?" and I looked down at her hand and it was bleeding so hard and you could actually see the fat in her finger it was that deep.



I kept telling her she had to go to the hospital and she was like, "don't be silly!" She had to pinch her finger together and I had to wrap it in medical tape and then in like 3 bandages.



I mentioned that to her a few years ago and she was like, "oh yeah, I definitely should have gone to the hospital for that."

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Holy shit, I did the exact same thing on one of those restaurant industrial sized tomato jars. It ripped my thumb right open and I was like, hm, a bandaid should stitch this over time we're an evolved species yes yes good...

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Twice - The first time I fell off a slide in Mexico and had a concussion; I was 4. The second time, I sliced the tip of my thumb off while using a slicer to slice provolone cheese (I worked at for a butcher).

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I almost cut my finger off while trying to chop carrots. The cut was very deep and I prob should have sought help but instead I just slapped a bandaid on it and hoped for the best. It resulted in a scar but other than that things turned out pretty ok.

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Wow, that's crazy. I can't even even count how many times I've been to the ER. My first visit was at age 4, when I broke my elbow. I can proudly say I've been to the ER in 2 different countries, and like 5 different cities. I am clumsy as hell, and have had many a broken bone.

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Haha I did the same thing. It poured out over my arm and hand and I just Wolverine'd it up rather than risk dropping the teapot I was pouring the water into. I went and gave it to my roommate (who the tea was for) then ran my arm under cold water for a few minutes. No burns at all! Not bad for literally having just come off the stove.



Edited at 2017-03-12 01:00 am (UTC)

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Not for me, but dozens and dozens and dozens of times for my mom.

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omg! like a year ago I was cutting fish and sliced my hand just a little bit. The cut was so small I didn't even noticed it until I was done. Two days later I had to go to the ER because one of my fingers had doubled in size.



I repeat- I had to go to the ER for a small ass cut on my finger that put me on antibiotics for a week.



I sound like a wimp next to everyone else's injuries.

Damn ONTD, you're all crazy! when you see the fat layer, I'm pretty sure it's time to go to the hospital gdi

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I shoulda gone when I burned from bacon grease. It took like 6 months to go away. I shoulda gotten some cream for that. More than some neosporin.



But I've been to the ER at least 4 times in my life. Twice when I was DKAing in the past 13 years. The time I had to get my nose checked out when my friend's little brother bruised it (just needed some steroids). And once when I was 11 months old and having febrile seizures.

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yep, my eyes started bleeding while I was having a conference in some mountainous area in my region.

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Yeah I do that for burns too, but add aloe for cooling.



I've been to the ER many times, mostly because I am clumsy af and I live in Canada so I know the ER isn't gonna cost me that much.



I've cut my finger open to the bone accidentally, another time my palm has bled like it was a re-enactment of Carrie because I held a knife the wrong way, once I puked for three days straight and needed an IV due to dehydration, once I was in a car accident and got whiplash (which I mean it could've been way worse). Once I was playing basketball and fucked up my knee and needed emergency surgery. Once I fell on ice but landed on my hands and knees and ended up needing stitches. Broke my ankle once, sprained it three more times.



The hospital by my parents' house knows our family by name. Mess.



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i've been to the ER repeaaaaaaatedly. once i accidentally spilled boiling water on my chest and had to get special bandages to heal the skin, fractured both ankles (not at the same time), fractured my tibia, i was in a motorcycle accident, i had a weird incident of febrile tremors........basically i'm a mess. but i have dysautonomia so my body is sorta fucked up

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He's still doing this shit???

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i've never had an emergency medical situation myself(knock on wood), but i had to rush to the ER when my mom broke up a fight between our two dogs and one of my dogs accidentally bit the tip of my moms finger off during the scuffle. her finger healed and ended up looking completely normal just a little bit shorter, but she still had the nail and everything.



i guess when my brother first took her in they were making her wait and then my moms finger started gushing blood all over the intake so they moved her to the top of the patient list.

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Holy shit, your poor mother. I'm glad she was ok, that's so scary!

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oh shit

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2010: wow this is hella embarrassing for me but I obsessively followed cat for years and she has always talked about DB and heroin.2010: https://mobile.twitter.com/cat_marnell/status/21285761248?lang=en

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She said similar things in her book, that he constantly had a stream of sketchy people in and out of his apartment at all hours and I think they may have used together IIRC

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I feel uncomfortable when people discuss other peoples' addiction issues tbh, but I feel that way about health issues in general like, it's not your place.

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I wonder if that explains why his voice sounds like his batteries are running out all the time.

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so stupid. I will always picture him as that dumbass performance ~artiste from the episode humbug of the x files.



and i've been to the ER way too often, s/o to anorexia/osteoporosis and epilepsy lol



Edited at 2017-03-11 10:42 pm (UTC)

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good lmao he's an abusive piece of shit

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Gob! The only illusionist that matters lbr.

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OMG observe this mastery

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lmao, he is the best tbh

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nope never been to the er and thank goodness

the bill would be awful

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mte, especially if you have kids. Kids are always being idiots and hurting themselves, I can't imagine like a fractured wrist costing thousands of dollars

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My niece had to go to the ER while she was in England. About 12 hours after she went in, she walked out with lots of hugs from the nurses and no bill. She was speechless for the next 2 weeks.

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Would you even really classify Criss Angel as a magician? I think of him more as a stuntman.

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lol

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Lol

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There was that episode of Supernatural that was titled "Criss Angel Is A Douchebag"

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LMAO

Sis, I worked for this egotistic piece of shit and he is the worst.

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i can't think of any magician without thinking of gob

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I fainted after a shot in high school and my family took me to the ER (because I passed out in the car on the way home and they were scared), and it took forever and I had the SATs the next morning. They asked a lot of questions about pregnancy.



Another time I went because I had an allergic reaction and needed a shot and the benadryl was so strong directly in a muscle that I walked like Billy Butcherson from Hocus Pocus.



My work insurance has a policy that ER visits are $500 extra if you aren't admitted so now I try to avoid it if I can (there's a walk-in clinic now)

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wtf that's a terrible policy. fucking insurance companies.

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where I live a lot of people use the ER instead of the regular doctor for "non emergency" reasons (vaccines/first aid??? idk), so they (it's an insurance co-op) worked to open the walk-in clinic for those non-emergency visits.



but yes, it is a terrible policy that I hate. once I had an allergic reaction (mosquito bite swelled arm) on a holiday once and the clinic was closed so I just used OTC treatments. it wasn't life-threatening, but I had to deal with the rash longer than if I could have gotten a shot.

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no offense but duh

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a few years back, i was in bed and randomly started having the most horrific pain i've ever experienced in my back. went to the er and found out i had a kidney stone. spent the next day puking my guts out and rocking back and forth on my bed because it hurt so bad.



total nightmare.

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ughhh my dad had the same problem until we discovered a place where if you drink water from it, it dissolves those stones fucking instantly. i was like "hahaha yeah magic water" and my dad was the same but for him it was more like "sure, we tried everything else" & it fucking worked.





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huh? what kind of water is it??

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Same here. Went to my local GP who thought it was an appendicitis and then went to ER and was seen straight away because my pain was so bad I couldn't get my top over my head to be examined.



The next day I'd signed the consent forms to have my appendix removed but thankfully they figured out it was kidney stones before they opened me up.



Anyway long story short I was in hospital for a week that first time and all in all it took 7 months and a bunch of different treatments/operations to get rid of all 5 stones.

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Same thing happened to me. Woke up one morning with back pain, thought I pulled a muscle from playing volleyball the night before, but then I got dizzy and sweaty and threw up. The pain was so bad I barely made it to the hospital. Now I'm nervous as fuck about even the slightest tinge of pain in my back.

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Omg same thing happened to me. I woke up at like, 2 am one night with the worst pain I've ever felt. It was in my stomach though. I have Crohn's disease, so I was like "what if this is something serious?!" I went to the ER by myself (because I live alone and everyone was sleeping lol) and they made me wait in the ER until 8 am! Apparently they don't think excruciating abdominal pain is serious 



I was admitted to the hospital for 2 days, and was basically high on pain meds the whole time, and it still barely even touched the kidney stone pain.



Also, I've got like, 6 more in my kidneys lmao

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i feel you:( i was throwing up a lot and rocking back and forth when i had the worst pain someone could imagine all of a sudden in my sides



i didnt know your organs could hurt that bad, turned out i had a uti travel to my kidneys



tg for morphine tho

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this happened to me too when i was 19, i could barely stand up and was crying from the pain. yup - kidney stone. :( my mom used to get them all the time but thankfully i've only had to deal with it that once.

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Omg those are the WORST. i initislly thought i had pulled something in my back because i play sports but when i got my bf at the time to give me a massage, it wasnt helping at all. I was like yeah i dont think its muscular and went to the dr. Its ranked above childbirth on the pain scale for me. Just below pilonidal cyst.

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Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov and his government just cannot seem to get a break lately.

Not that they necessarily deserve it. But all the same, Turkmenistan's last realistic hope to export a significant amount of additional natural gas to a customer has just evaporated.

Line "D" of the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline network was to be more than just the largest of four pipelines connecting western China to gas fields in Turkmenistan -- it also would have been the largest single gas pipeline connecting Turkmenistan to any consumer state.

Line D was supposed to carry some 30 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas annually to China. The line took a different route. Lines A, B, and C all went from Turkmenistan through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan before reaching China. To include all the Central Asian states, Beijing decided to route Line D through Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan, and then into China.

Already at the end of 2014, it was clear that there were problems in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan with forming joint ventures with Chinese companies to construct and later operate the pipeline, and some disagreements over the route.

Neither of those Central Asian countries were going to receive any gas from the line, but they would have taken in millions of dollars in transit fees. Related: Is The Oil Price Plunge A Turning Point?

At the end of 2016, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service, known locally as Azattyk, contacted an official in Kyrgyzstan involved with the project who said there had not been any meetings with Chinese officials about Line D since December 2015.

But it was Uzbekistan and China that appear to have officially put a halt to Line D; RIA Novosti reported on March 2 that China National Petroleum Corporation and Uzbekneftegaz had indefinitely postponed construction of the pipeline on Uzbekistan's territory.

Economic Crisis

This is a real blow to Turkmenistan. The country is experiencing the worst economic crisis in its 25-year history, in large part due to Turkmenistan's dependency on revenues from gas sales.

This is partly due to the drastic fall in gas prices in the last three years, but also due to Russia canceling its contract for Turkmen gas imports at the start of 2016 and the suspension of Turkmen gas supplies to Iran at the start of 2017 over a contract dispute.

That leaves Turkmenistan with only China as a customer. There are already three operating gas pipelines from Turkmenistan to China. Lines A and B can each carry 15 bcm and Line C can carry 25 bcm, for a combined 55 bcm of gas annually to China, though all the lines have not yet reached full capacity.

The three lines pass through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, also gas-producing countries, both of which have contracts to supply 10 bcm to the pipelines, though Kazakhstan has already signaled it wants to export more gas to China.

That leaves 35 bcm of space in the three lines for Turkmenistan.

It is always difficult to find reliable figures on Turkmenistan's gas industry - Turkmenistan is thought to have exported some 30 bcm of gas to China in 2016. If true, that means there is little extra room in the pipelines. With the postponement of Line D, Turkmenistan can expect to increase its gas exports no more than 5 bcm in the coming years.

The price China pays Turkmenistan for gas is said to around $185 per 1,000 cubic meters of gas, meaning if Turkmenistan does pump the extra 5 bcm of gas into the pipeline it would receive less than $1 billion annually for that. That would help, but it won't prop up Turkmenistan's sagging economy.

Price War?

It gets worse. China loaned Turkmenistan billions of dollars to develop Turkmen gas fields and build the pipelines to China, so some of the gas Turkmenistan ships to China goes toward paying off Ashgabat's debt.

Worse still, after Russia canceled its contract for Turkmen gas, Russian gas giant Gazprom renegotiated deals with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. According to a recent article in Russia's Life News, Gazprom reached a deal to pay Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan some $140 per 1,000 cubic meters. The article said Gazprom annulled the contract with Turkmenistan because Ashgabat was demanding $240 per 1,000 cubic meters.

So, Turkmenistan faces the possibility of a price war with its Central Asian neighbors to supply gas to China. Related: Oil Prices Continue Plunging As Speculators Rush For The Exit

Berdymukhammedov talks often about projects that will enrich Turkmenistan even further, such as the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline. That pipeline would carry 33 bcm of Turkmen gas. Turkmenistan says it has started construction of its segment of TAPI, though there has been no proof of this so far, and Pakistan claimed to have started its section in early March.

That leaves some 700 kilometers of Afghan territory between them, and the proposed route would run through areas where there is frequent and fierce fighting.

Berdymukhammedov has boldly predicted construction of TAPI would be completed in 2019, but Pakistan said at the end of January that it would be delayed by at least one year -- and even that estimate is likely very optimistic.

No one even talks about the Trans-Caspian Pipeline anymore. That was supposed to carry some 30 bcm of Turkmen gas west toward Europe.

Iran Reroutes Supplies

Turkmenistan probably just lost Iran as a customer. Winter is coming to an end, and Iranian officials have spent the weeks since the suspension of Turkmen gas supplies rerouting domestic electricity supplies. Construction of internal gas pipelines from southern Iran to areas in the north that were supplied by Turkmen gas have sped up. Iran probably won't need Turkmen gas next winter.

So, that leaves Turkmenistan with 35 bcm of space in the pipelines going to China, part of it going toward debt repayment.

There is no other gas-export project likely to be built within the next decade.

Quite a disappointment for Berdymukhammedov, who was boasting just a few years ago, the country would be exporting 180 bcm by 2030.

By Bruce Pannier of Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty (RFERL)

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 Ken Rogers, former Tribune managing editor, discussing Frederic Smith, 75, who died Monday. Smith was a former Tribune reporter and editorial page editor.

q q q

"I'm very thankful, and I don't take lightly the investment that the community has made in its schools. That's no small thing to us."

 Bismarck Superintendent Tamara Uselman, after voters on Tuesday approved a $57.5 million bond issue to expand and renovate all three middle schools and two high schools.

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 Orlyn Wanstrom, who owns Bismarck Barber Shop, on why he doesnt agree with a legislative proposal to allow parking meters.
India policy of isolating Pakistan is especially troubling: Gen Joseph Votel 11 March, 2017



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Woke Bingo WASHINGTON: A US general informed a congressional panel on Thursday that Pakistan had done things against the Haqqani network that have been helpful to the war against terror. Gen Joseph Votel, commander of the US Central Command, also told the Senate Armed Services Committee that Indias policy of diplomatically isolating Pakistan was especially troubling as it could lead to a nuclear conflict in South Asia.



Gen Votel, who is responsible for implementing the US military strategy in the Pak-Afghan region, described Pakistan as a key and critical partner and emphasised the need to stay engaged with Islamabad in the counterterrorism fight.



His stance reflects the Pentagons desire to maintain its long-standing relationship with Pakistans military establishment and contrasts sharply with recent statements by some US lawmakers who urged the Trump administration to sever ties with Islamabad.



Gen Votel told the Senate panel that he has been encouraged by his meetings with Pakistans new army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and by his commitment to the fight against terror.



They have done some things that have been helpful to us, he said. Most recently, theyve supported Gen Joseph Nicholson in some places on the border, making sure they were well coordinated and doing the activities on their side of the border.



Gen Nicholson is the commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan who, Gen Votel said, was working closely with Pakistans new army chief and his commanders to eliminate various terrorist groups hiding on both sides of the Pak-Afghan border.



Thats a very positive sign and a move in [the] right direction. And they have done things against the principal concerns we have; the Haqqani network and Taliban, Gen Votel said. But we need that to be more persistent and continue to focus in that particular area. And so, we will continue to engage with partner Pakistan throughout this.



In his written testimony, Gen Votel also elaborated the US defence establishments position on India-Pakistan relations, which appeared more even-handed than recent statements by some US lawmakers who clearly urged the Trump administration to abandon Pakistan for improving Washingtons already close relations with New Delhi.



Explaining the genesis of recent tensions between India and Pakistan, the Centcom commander explained how Indians remained concerned about the lack of action against India-focused militants based in Pakistan.



He noted that India even responded militarily to terrorist attacks in India-held territory earlier this year. Pakistan denies the Indian claim, saying that Indian forces never crossed into Pakistani territory but the US general endorsed the Indian claim.



We assess that these types of attacks and the potential reactions, increase the likelihood for miscalculation by both countries, he warned. Furthermore, Indias public policy to diplomatically isolate Pakistan, hinders any prospects for improved relations.



The general warned that the Indian policy of isolating Pakistan was especially troubling as a significant conventional conflict between Pakistan and India could escalate into a nuclear exchange, given that both are nuclear powers.



Gen Votel also told US lawmakers that Pakistans increased focus on its eastern border detracts it from its efforts to secure the western border with Afghanistan from incursion by the Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters.



Security along the western border will nevertheless remain a priority for Islamabad, as the Pakistani military seeks to expand border control and improve paramilitary security, he added.



Responding to a question from Senator Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, Gen Votel explained that eliminating the sanctuary of militant groups in Pakistan was key to improving the security environment in Afghanistan. And thats why the US maintains consistent diplomatic pressure on Pakistan to take appropriate steps to deny safe haven and to improve the security of the tumultuous Af-Pak border region, he added.



I think it is key to ensure that Pakistan and Afghanistan have a very good relationship. There certainly are tensions along the common border between those countries and so I think a key role that we can play is in helping move that relationship forward, he said.



In his written testimony, as well as during the Q&A, Gen Votel regularly emphasised the need to maintain a strong relationship between the US and Pakistani military establishments.



While there are challenges with respect to the US-Pakistani relationship, we have endeavoured to maintain a substantial level of engagement with our Pakistani military counterparts, he said. We continue to execute a robust joint exercise programme.



He noted that most recently, the Pakistan Air Force sent airmen and aircraft to participate in Exercise Red Flag and Green Flag at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada this past summer. The Pakistani military also continues to support US efforts elsewhere in the region. The Pakistani Navy is the most consistent and longstanding participant, second only to the United States, in Combined Task Force (CTF)-150 (counterterrorism operations) and CTF-151 (counterpiracy operations) led by US Naval Forces Central.



Our relationship with Pakistan remains a very important one. We look forward to continuing our engagement with the Pakistani military leadership, to include the new Chief of the Army Staff, Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, in the days ahead as we work together in pursuit of shared interests, he said.



Gen Votel also explained why Pakistan remains a critical partner in the counterterrorism fight.



According to him, 20 US-designated terrorist organisations operate in the Afghanistan-Pakistan sub-region and seven of them are in Pakistan.
From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As...
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A national society of genetics researchers, counselors, nurses and college professors is opposing legislation U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Willsboro, co-sponsored to clarify nondiscrimination rules for employee health insurance programs that provide incentives, rebates, surcharges or penalties based on lifestyle choices such as being over weight or smoking.

The proposed legislation would allow employers to ask invasive questions of employees and penalize employees who choose not to disclose the information, the American Society of Human Genetics said in a press release issued on Wednesday.

While ASHG applauds efforts to improve employee wellness, employee protections against genetic discrimination  must not be sacrificed, said Nancy Cox, president of the society. Americans must be able to continue to volunteer for research and benefit from genetic-based-clinical advances without fear of workplace discrimination based on its findings.

Stefanik on Tuesday co-sponsored the legislation, dubbed the Preserving Employee Wellness Act, which Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., introduced March 2, according to the Library of Congress government information web site.

The legislation  HR 1313  had three co-sponsors, as of Thursday  all Republicans.

Congress has a strong tradition of protecting and preserving employee workplace programs, including programs that utilize a health risk assessment, biometric screening, or other resources to inform and empower employees in making healthier lifestyle choices, the legislation reads. Health promotion and prevention programs are a means to reduce the burden of chronic illness, improve health and limit the growth of health care costs.

The legislation includes language to protect privacy.

Congress has struck an appropriate balance among employees, health care providers, and wellness plan sponsors to protect individual privacy and confidentiality in a wellness program which is designed to improve health outcomes, the legislation reads.
CAMBRIDGE  Barbara Villet was guided by her husbands edits when she scoured his original photo negatives of Richard and Mildred Loving for a book she was writing about her husbands work with the historic couple.

We had a key so I knew his edits, Villet said in a Friday afternoon interview. It keeps his spirit alive for me. He was extraordinary. A great storyteller.

Villet, now in her 80s, was a reporter and editor at Life, starting in 1956 and continued with the magazine until it folded as a weekly in 1972.

I was there when women did not have those jobs, she said. I was doing a big essay and met Grey  the first time I saw him work, I thought, he was so honest. I worked with great photographers; Grey was the purest of the pure.

And on Thursday evening, Villet was at Battenkill Books in Cambridge to talk about her newly released book, The Lovings: An Intimate Portrait, and her late husbands work.

Perhaps fittingly, the book  a combination of narrative by Barbara and 82 of Greys original images of the Lovings  was released on Valentines Day. And while the book chronicles the life of a bi-racial couple who so loved each other they fought arrest and Virginias racial purity laws in the 1960s, the story of the Villets is also one of profound love.

And the book is an extension of their connection.

Oh yes, of course, this was done out of love, Villet said. We were joined at the hip and we cared about the same things, we knew each other. He was my best friend.

Battenkill Books owner Connie Brooks said Thursdays event was packed. It was standing room only, about 45 people, she said. The book is laid out in a chronological way, as he took the photos. The ones near the end are more relaxed as they got used to Grey being in their house. There is a much more innocent quality to those. They are amazing.

Barbara Villet has been a customer of the bookstore for years and a while back Villet mentioned the project and suggested that maybe when it was finished she could do a book event at the bookstore, Brooks said.

There are some (proposed) book events you have to think about and some you go oh my gosh, let me know when its published, Brooks said. This was one of those books.

In 1965, on assignment for Life, Grey Villet spent about two and a half weeks with the Lovings, chronicling their day-to-day life in Tri-X black and white film while their case wound its way through the U.S. Supreme Court.

He loved working with Tri-X, Villet said, explaining that it was because he could push exposure with the film. He called them his fuzzy prints. He never posed anyone, he used all natural light and he always said that he preferred, as real as real can get.

And in the books forward, New York Times photographer Stephen Crowley wrote that in a digital world its easy to forget the type of work Grey Villet and his peers created.

Grey took the matter a step further in a search for veracity. I hate to set up stuff ... Id much rather let people act as they are, and reflect that. If Ive got the patience, thatll give me a better picture than anything I can dream up.

In the middle of the night, the Caroline County sheriff and deputies crashed into Richard and Mildred Lovings Central Point, Virginia home. The young couple, married five weeks were in bed sleeping.

The two were arrested and spent the night in a Virginia jail because Virginia law, along with laws in 24 other states, banned interracial marriage. They had been married in 1958 in Washington, D.C. and the sheriff told the couple that their marriage license was not valid in Virginia.

They each pleaded guilty and in a plea deal agreed to leave the state and not return together for 25 years.

About five years later, with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, they took their case to court because they missed their home and family, and wanted to return to the state.

On June 12, 1967, in a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruled that state bans on interracial marriage were unconstitutional.

A feature film about the Lovings was released in 2016. Actor Ruth Negga, who played Mildred Loving, was nominated for an Oscar for her performance.

Villet has had a busy year with the premiere of the film, curating two retrospectives of her husbands work and the book. There may be another book in the offing, shes just not certain.

She said she needs a bit of time to regroup and shes going to a book signing event and may meet with book publishers at the same time.

Well see what happens, she said. Who knows?
Washington County and the towns may help residents spay or neuter stray cats.

Its the only way to put a dent in the stray cat population, said Stephanie Rizzi, who runs the F.A.C.T. animal rescue group in Washington County.

She needs about $7,200 a year to spay or neuter 100 cats.

Ideally, we would have a much larger number of spay/neuters, but we have to start somewhere, she said. A low-cost, high-volume program is needed. Right now, the burden is falling on small rescue groups and concerned citizens, but its not causing the dent it needs.

She has already started the program, supported by fundraising. She asked Washington County supervisors to chip in as well.

It demonstrates compassion and protects public health, she said.

In terms of public health, theres a possibility that stray cats could spread rabies to humans, pets and farm animals. Local departments of health have routinely issued warnings, asking residents to stay away from stray cats. But many people put out food and water for the cats and try to find homes for kittens.

Rizzi envisions a spay/neuter program that would be free for at least a year. Residents would bring in stray cats and take them back after the surgery.

At some point, she said, residents would be asked to pay for half of the cost of the surgeries.

She asked the county to chip in $10,000 to support the free program.

Budget Officer Brian Campbell expressed some interest, proposing that each town offer funds that the county would match.

Two supervisors immediately promised to take that request to their town boards.

I get calls about cats and I cannot help my constituents, said Hartford Supervisor Dana Haff. If we can help her, it will help the citizens of Washington County.

Greenwich Supervisor Sara Idleman also said shed asked her board to support the project financially.

Last year, Rizzi met with the county Board of Supervisors and pitched the possibility of an animal shelter, but she said this week that it was too soon to open a shelter. Haff had suggested giving her one of the buildings on the countys foreclosure list.

There are too many stray cats right now, Rizzi said. They need to reduce the population through spaying and neutering first.

We want to get ahead of it. Having a shelter is a good idea, but its going to fill up fast, she said.

There is a low-cost option in Washington County already, but it is so popular that appointments must often be made several months in advance. The Granville Small Animal Hospital on Route 22 offers a spay/neuter clinic every Wednesday. Female cats are spayed for $60 on the first, third and fourth Wednesdays of every month. Male cats are neutered for $25 on the second Wednesday of every month. If the cat isnt vaccinated for rabies, the veterinarian charges $12.60 for that as well.
QUEENSBURY  Two Vermont men were jailed early Saturday after State Police seized more than an ounce of crack cocaine during a traffic stop on Route 149, authorities said.

Michael S. Jackson, 35, of Rutland, was charged with third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a felony, after a vehicle he was in was stopped shortly after 2 a.m. He is accused of possessing crack with intent to sell it.

Kenneth D. Stone, 27, of Fair Haven, was charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, according to the State Police.

Police said the two were en route back to Vermont when pulled over for an unspecified traffic violation. They were arraigned in Queensbury Town Court Jackson sent to Warren County Jail for lack of bail while Stone was released on his own recognizance.

Troopers from the Queensbury station were assisted by the Warren County Sheriff's Office and police dog Easy.
Gov. Doug Burgum accepted more than $100,000 in campaign contributions from oil company executives last fall, despite comments he made as a candidate that accepting donations from the oil industry would be a conflict of interest.

Burgum did not accept contributions from oil company political action committees, but he did receive contributions of up to $25,000 from individual oil industry executives.

North Dakotas governor regulates the oil industry as chairman of the state Industrial Commission.

Ahead of the June 2016 primary, Burgum received no apparent contributions from the oil industry while his opponent Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, also a member of the Industrial Commission, received at least $50,000 in donations tied to the oil industry, according to campaign disclosures filed with the Secretary of State.

At the time, Burgum told Forum News Service he believed a conflict of interest exists when candidates accept donations from industries they regulate.

If youre a member of the NDIC and youre asking for someones support and you regulate that industry and they know youre going to continue to regulate them, think about the power dynamic, Burgum said in a May 2016 interview.

After Burgum defeated Stenehjem in the primary, money from oil company executives started flowing into Burgums campaign last fall, including:

A $25,000 gift from John Hess, the CEO of Hess Corp.

Separate donations from the president and CEO of Oasis Petroleum that total $25,000.

Two donations that total $24,900 from the CEO and president of Select Energy Services.

A $21,500 donation from the family trust of James J. Volker, CEO of Whiting Petroleum.

A gift of $5,500 from a Creek Oilfield Services administrator, $5,000 donations from Petro-Hunt, QEP Resources and Slawson Exploration executives and $3,000 from True Companies executives.

Burgum declined an interview request but issued this statement:

As a candidate, I made it clear I would not accept campaign contributions from entities I would directly regulate if elected governor. I honored that pledge. Individuals are free to express their preference and participate in the political process no matter where they work. As chairman of the Industrial Commission, I am committed to fair and unbiased oversight, regardless of campaign contributions.

Democrat Marvin Nelson, who ran against Burgum last November, said his heart kind of sank when he first saw oil executive donations show up in Burgums campaign disclosures last fall.

I was really kind of hoping for a change in administration about those sorts of things, Nelson said. How do we actually expect these people to be truly unbiased when theyre receiving significant money from the people theyre supposed to be regulating?

Don Morton, who worked as chief of staff for Burgum at Microsoft in Fargo, said he doesnt expect the contributions to influence Burgums decision-making.

Dougs a person of the highest integrity. We want good people running for office and unfortunately you have to spend money to get elected, Morton said. He has an established track record of integrity and high values and hes going to do whats best for the state of North Dakota.

One example of the types of decisions the states Industrial Commission makes is a matter involving Oasis Petroleum that came before the three-person board last month.

More than 30 residents of McKenzie County petitioned for the Industrial Commission to deny a saltwater disposal well from Oasis, citing concerns about its proximity to a residential area. Burgum, Stenehjem and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring unanimously approved the disposal well with additional stipulations aimed at enhancing the safety and security of the site.

The Industrial Commission also makes the final decision related to fines for oil companies that break the rules.

Stenehjem did not respond to a request for comment.

Former Gov. Jack Dalrymple at times faced criticism for accepting campaign contributions from oil companies.

In late 2012, residents of Dunn County signed a petition seeking a grand jury investigation of Dalrymple, who received more than $80,000 in oil company campaign contributions around the same time the Industrial Commission was considering a controversial drilling unit. A judge later dismissed the petition.

Dalrymple also owned stock in several energy companies, including ExxonMobil, the parent company of XTO Energy that operates in North Dakota. Dalrymple sold the Exxon stock during his time in office.

Burgum does not list any direct ownership of energy stocks on his statement of interest filed with the Secretary of State, which lists a candidates business interests.

In all, Burgum received more than $1.8 million in campaign contributions last year, including more than $106,000 from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, $100,000 from Robert Kagle, general partner of San Francisco-based Benchmark Capital, and $50,000 from Miles White, chairman and CEO of Illinois health care company Abbott.

Burgums campaign disclosures show that he did not receive any contributions directly tied to North Dakotas most controversial energy project, the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The political action committee for Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners, the builder of the pipeline, contributed $6,300 to North Dakota campaigns in 2016, including $2,000 to Stenehjems campaign for governor, $2,000 to the North Dakota Republican Party and $1,000 to the House Republican Leadership Fund.

The ND Oil PAC, organized by the North Dakota Petroleum Council, contributed more than $37,000 to North Dakota campaigns in 2016, including $5,000 to Stenehjem for governor. The PAC did not contribute to Burgum.

Individuals can support who they want. Thats the beauty of the American system, Petroleum Council President Ron Ness said. Its all within the campaign laws and contribution laws.
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In this article I discuss dam management on the Great Plains using South Dakota as the example. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) reports the average age of our nations dams is 52 years. By 2020, 70 percent of the total dams in the United States will be over 50 years old. Fifty years ago, dams were built with the best engineering and construction standards of the times. But as the scientific and engineering data have improved, many dams are not expected to safely withstand current predictions regarding large floods and earthquakes. In 1972 the extraordinary accumulation of rainfall in the Rapid Creek watershed caused the failure of the Canyon Lake Dam. This water accumulation resulted in the horrible Rapid City flood, was the basis in part for the enactment of the National Dam Inspection Act of 1972. The U. S. must put its political will into rehabilitating the nations infrastructure including dams. I will leave for another discussion matters of civil liability for operating a dam as well as important regulatory issues concerning maintenance and decommissioning of dams.

While the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers oversees federal dams in South Dakota and elsewhere, many of the states dams are caught in a regulatory limbo. County officials have long assumed smaller low-head dams are controlled by the state. State approval is not required on completion of all new dam construction under South Dakota law and rules. State law does not consider dams under 25 feet high or holding 50 acre-feet of water to be dams at all. About 2,300 dams in South Dakota are subject to state regulation with most categorized as low-hazard dams. In the US dam safety programs are responsible for permitting, inspection, and enforcement authority for 80 percent of the nations dams.

South Dakota is one of 26 states that have no requirement of emergency action procedures by owners for all dams. According to a 2009 Report by the ASCE, 34 percent of dams described as high-hazard dams in South Dakota have no emergency action plan (EAP). An EAP (also called an Emergency Preparedness Plan, or EPP) is a predetermined plan of action to be taken including roles, responsibilities and procedures for surveillance, notification and evacuation to reduce the potential for loss of life and property damage in an area affected by a failure or negligent operation of a dam.

Pursuant to a report prepared for the National Dam Safety Review Board and the Association of State Dam Safety Officials, South Dakota was one of the 17 that does not report findings of violations or dam failures to the National Performance of Dams Program. High-hazard and state-owned dams in the state are inspected once every three years or on a case-by-case basis.

When dams are privately owned, owners may not have the ability to pay for inspections not covered by the state or necessary repairs. The Association of Dam Safety Officials has suggested either implementing a low-interest loan grant program to encourage rehabilitation of old dams, or the creation of a more robust federal assistance program to fund these projects. Such a program would take the burden off of private owners of dams to fix structural flaws while enhancing public safety.

A new federal assistance program is another option to mitigating this growing problem. The only current program is the Small Watershed Rehabilitation Program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The problem with this program is it is limited to small, federally built dams for flood control purposes. There is a large spectrum of uses for dams and thousands of dams in the U.S. that are under 25 feet tall, the threshold to qualify as a dam in South Dakota. Many dams are privately owned. Such dams would not be eligible for these federal funds under the current system.

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, there are 47 state-regulated high-hazard dams and 144 significant-hazard dams in South Dakota. Dam regulation and rehabilitation are under-appreciated public safety issues that are here to stay.

David Ganje of Ganje Law Offices practices in the area of natural resources, environmental and commercial law in South and North Dakota.
-month visitor's visa in 2001. Shortly after speaking at an immigration press conference in front of Jackson City Hall in Mississippi last week, Vargas was detained by ICE officials

Following her detention, congressional leaders and civil-rights activists put a spotlight on Vargas' case.

"

"I think their morale has suffered because of the job they were hired to do, and then in their sense, they're ... kind of hobbled or, you know, hands tied behind their back, that kind of thing," Kelly said to the House Homeland Security Committee in an Associated Press report last month. "And now, they feel more positive about things. I bet if you watch the morale issue, you'll ... be surprised going forward."

The New York Times' Monica Davey chronicled the journey of

Audrey Loftus, a bartender at the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post.

Following The Times' report, a wave of support began pouring in and Carlos was released on a

Although the release of undocumented immigrants like Vargas and Carlos may indicate a softening of DHS policy, the fight for their unabated freedom is far from over. Mississippi Today reported that Vargas, for instance, was released under an order of supervision that merely releases her, for the time being, from ICE's custody but not from her outstanding order of removal from the US.

"Because that removal order is still there, (ICE) could enforce it at any point for whatever reason," said
The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) president is concerned his detractors are trying to use the separation against him according to a Punch News report.

However, he has promised to release a press statement in future in a bid to address the public concerning the dissolution of his marriage.

I dont want to talk about the dissolution of my marriage with anyone yet.

"When the time comes, I would put out a well detailed press release about what went wrong and you would be the first to have it.

"I feel some of my detractors want to use this as an opportunity to get to me. Or are they using you? When it is time for me to talk, I would speak but not now. Thank you," he said.

Awos Awosola, the president of the Lagos Island Customary Court ordered that Ike's marriage to Emma be dissolved as there were no signs of resuscitating the union.
READ MORE: Actress Opens Up About Her Relationship With Nigerian Businessman

The event which was held at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island Lagos, was hosted by IK Osakioduwa and Minenhle Minnie Dlamini.

It means people didnt vote thats what it means. When you say this, people get angry. They go and watch the thing (award shows) and go like why are Nigerians only winning, why are South Africans winning but its a viewers choice awards, youre meant to vote so that the one that you want to win, would win. And youll realise that we have that problem," she told Joy FM.

She continued: "We talk a lot about supporting, oh yes! Let her go, were so proud of you but nobody goes out there to vote if you look at Big Brother and all these shows, the person cannot win if you dont vote.

"So youll realize that for my last movie Contract, the ones (awards) I won were all by the jury and not by popular votes so that should tell you that Ghanaians dont know how to vote and when you dont win, they would want to ask you why you didnt or, get angry and say why are Nigerians winning.

"Its because they vote for their people. No matter how terrible the movie is, they go out there and vote because they want their country to win.

Yvonne Okoro charged Ghanaians not to just celebrate when a Ghanaian is nominated for an award but to vote as well.

Whats most important is that next time, lets not just celebrate the person or the fact that shes been nominated," she said.
Elizabeth, a former 100, 200 and 400 meters athlete dug into her sprinting reserve, when she popped out of the windows of the taxi she was travelling in, gave the young man a hot chase for about 10 minutes before overpowering him.

The physically fit lady trapped the man to the ground and screamed for help till some youth assisted her to send the thief to the police station.

The lady told the Daily Graphic she was returning from a church programme with a brother at Santase and on reaching Asafo, she decided to make a quick call while they were stuck in heavy traffic. Amesiba who was said to be lurking around apparently spotted Elizabeth making the call and in a flash, snatched the phone and bolted.

Unfortunately for Elizabeth, she and the other passengers in the taxi had been trapped because the door locks were malfunctioning.

She then decided to go through the window, took off her sandals and gave the criminal a hot chase till she arrested him.

The Asokwa District Police Commander, DSP George Bawa, who confirmed the story to the Daily Graphic said the wanted phone snatcher would be arraigned before court on Monday.

He cautioned passengers especially those who sit by the windows to be wary of their personal safety when receiving or making calls.
Olaogun was brought before Magistrate Sule Aminat for beating his nine-year-old daughter mercilessly, causing her serious grievous harm.

The prosecutor, Cpl Lucky Ihiehie, said the accused, who resides at 7, Shoyemi Maidan, Orile Mile 12, Lagos, committed the offence on March 2, at his residence.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the case was reported to the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT) by neighbours.

The team coordinator, Mrs Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, said that the team informed the family unit of Ketu Police Station, thus leading to the arrest of the accused.

According to the abused child, her father battered her because she left their door opened, thereby suspecting that a charm had been poured in his apartment by an unknown person.

So, he battered me severally that our neighbours had to call the attention of the team, she said.

The accused pleaded not guilty and was granted a N200,000 bail with two sureties in like sum.

Magistrate Aminat adjourned the case till March 30 for further hearing.
The president made the statement in Accra at the annual West African Security Services Association (WASSA) of the Ghana Armed Forces.

"The decision has been taken to ensure that all military personnel who embark on peacekeeping mission will receive their allowances on tour and not when they arrive in Ghana after the completion of their duty tour.

"No matter in what part of the world you find yourself in peacekeeping duty, you will be paid your allowances there. That is the principle and we are not going back on it. Peacekeeping monies are for peacekeepers.

"In furtherance to improving your welfare, my administration has in fulfilment of the manifesto pledge has increased the peacekeeping allowance effective January 2017, from $31 to $35," the president said to thunderous applause from the personnel.

On the review of the retiring age for the low ranks, the president noted: The legislative review of the Armed Forces Amendment Regulation 1986, LI 1332, has begun.

"The review will extend the serving time of other ranks from the current 25 years to 30 years.
A writ of summons cited by Pulse.com.gh has complied the Attorney General to respond to the writ within 14 days.

READ MORE: Nana Addo cuts sword for construction of interdenominational worship centre

He is seeking a relief from the Supreme Court to declare the state involvement in religious activities such as aiding, sponsoring, endorsing or preferential promotion as unconstitutional.

He is also seeking a relief that the setting up of the Hajj Board by the government for the purpose of coordinating, supporting and aiding Ghanaians Muslims to embark on Hajj as unconstitutional.

He is also asking the Supreme Court to declared the government support, aid, endorsement or assistance for the construction of a national cathedral as unconstitutional.

Mr Bomfeh, who served as the campaign coordinator for the Convention Peoples Party in the 2016 general election, filed the case in his capacity as a citizen of Ghana.

President Nana Akufo-Addo last month constituted a new Hajj Board to manage the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca.

The 11-member Board is chaired by Sheikh Ibrahim Cudjoe Quaye.
The MP launched the attack on the 63-day old Akufo-Addo administration in an interview with Accra-based Citi FM.

The NDC will emerge much stronger and I do believe that in four years time, the NPP will choke under its own lies and propaganda and that is the truth, he said.
"One district one factory is a project of the NDC led administration," Mr Quashigah, said to boos from the majority MPs.

Backing his claims, the MP read from a document titled the "The Ministry of Trade and Industry National Bulk of Small Scale Industry Republic of Ghana," which he said was completed in the earlier life of the minority leader, Haruna Iddrisu, when he served as the Trade Minister under Professor Evans Atta Mills.

"The government of Ghana will establish more skilled district industrialisation initiative in all districts of the country to help create jobs for the youth. An average of 47 MMDAs will benefit the implementation scheme every year until all 216 MMDAs have established their flagship SSDIIDC project," Mr Quashigah quoted from the preamble of the document.

"The Ministry of Trade and Industry and its implementing collaborators will apply public-private partnership framework and the cottage village enterprise model in establishing these financially viable companies in all the MMDAs," he added.

But the NPP MP for Old Tafo and Minister for Monitoring and Evaluation, Anthony Akoto Osei, pushed back against the criticism, saying the document Mr Quashigah quoted from was prepared under the Kufuor administration before NPP lost the 2008 election.

"My good friend the Hon. member from Keta is trying to allege that the NPP has stolen the idea [of one-district-one-factory] from the NDC. He mentioned the Minority Leader who was then the Minister of Trade," he said.
The banks' plans to take over the fourth largest telecommunication company was halted yesterday, Friday, March 10, in a meeting held in Lagos between the Central bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian Communications Commission and the parties.

Etisalat in a bid to expand and upgrade its network in 2015, had taken a loan of N541B from a consortium of 13 foreign and Nigerian banks but failed in the refinancing of the loan citing devaluation of Naira and scarcity of dollar as reasons for its inability to service the loan.

This excuse compelled the banks to plan a take-over of the fourth largest telecommunication network in Nigeria

However, the Central Bank of Nigeria and the NCC waded into the issue as the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele and Executive Vice Chairman of NCC Umaru Danbatta called for a meeting on Thursday 9 to find ways around the debacle and proffer a solution that would be beneficial to all parties.

Both regulators, therefore, decided to invite the management of Etisalat and the consortium of banks for a round-table meeting on Friday, March 11.

Interestingly, reprieve came for Etisalat at the meeting held at Lagos office of the CBN as the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele ordered the 13 banks to stop their plans to take over the mobile network operations.

In a statement issued by the Director, Public Affairs at NCC, Mr. Tony Ojobo after the meeting, it was stated that the meeting succeeded in stopping the creditors attempt to bring Etisalat under any form of takeover.

The statement further states: CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele who chaired the meeting was firm in declaring what needed to be done by both parties towards a quick resolution. The NCC equally made it clear everything necessary must be done to protect the 23 million Etisalat subscribers and also protect the telecom industry to prevent potential investors from developing cold feet
But there are a handful of policies the new administration is championing that liberals can get behind, including large-scale infrastructure investment and paid family leave.

Here are five things Trump is doing that "the resistance" may actually be in favor of.

Scrapping the TPP

President Donald Trump fulfilled his campaign promise to withdraw from

A $1 trillion infrastructure plan

In another break from Republican orthodoxy, Trump campaigned on the promise to invest billions of federal dollars in national infrastructure.

Protecting Social Security and Medicare

Guaranteed paid leave

The U.S. is the only industrialized country in the world to not guarantee any kind of paid family leave on the federal level.

Republicans, including Vice President Mike Pence, have long fought all kinds of Democratic paid leave proposals. In a break from his party, Trump proposed six weeks of guaranteed paid maternity leave for biological mothers on the campaign trail. Ivanka Trump, a self-proclaimed champion of women's empowerment, has been credited with helping craft the policy.

During his address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, Trump confirmed his commitment to paid leave, but seemingly tweaked it by using the phrase "new parents," rather than "mothers."

Laws to encourage women in STEM

Early this month, Trump signed two bills aimed at promoting women in science.
For the past few years, those statements have suggested a trend of weak jobs growth, the result of poor tax and economic policy under the Obama administration.

On Friday, however, that seemed to change.

"This is a great report," Brady said in his statement on the report, the first released under President Donald Trump's tenure.

It continued: "The fact that hundreds of thousands more people found new jobs last month is a good sign that our economy is moving in the right direction. While we still have much more work to do, Im optimistic that the actions that President Trump and House Republicans are taking will add to this momentum  creating more jobs, growing families paychecks, and improving the lives of all Americans."

The February jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the US economy added 235,000 jobs last month, higher than the 200,000 expected by economists but roughly in line with the trend from the last few years.

What was striking to some observers was the difference between Brady's statement Friday and his comment from just a year ago, when the economy added 242,000 jobs in the month of February of 2016. The discrepancy was first pointed out by the Huffington Post's Sam Stein.

"While it's good news that more Americans have joined the labor force, it's disappointing to see so little growth in full time work and wages," said the statement.

In that statement, Brady made the distinction that part-time job growth was particularly strong that month, as Ways and Means committee communications director Emily Schillinger noted in response to Stein. The overall tone, however, was negative despite similar headline results to Friday's report.

In August 2016, after the July jobs report crushed expectations and showed the highest wage growth since the recession up to that point, Brady's message also remained downbeat.

"After another quarter of weak economic growth, todays positive jobs report doesnt mask the fact that, month after month, quarter after quarter, year after year, hard-working Americans have been waiting for the economy to improve under the Obama administration," said his statement. "Over seven years later, Americans are still waiting for the economy they deserve."

Looking past month-to-month differences, most economists agree that the labor market has been improving for some time and that the trends over the past few years held up in Friday's report. Even Trump's top economic adviser, Gary Cohn, said the jobs report was in line with the last few years of growth.

The trends still show room for improvement: Wages are still low, and the labor-force participation rate is below its long-term average.
Stone told Business Insider in an email late Thursday night that he had a private conversation on Twitter with the person, nicknamed "Guccifer 2.0," and that the interaction was so "brief and banal, I had forgotten it."

Guccifer 2.0 has said that they targeted Democrats in the heat of the election last summer. One such cyberattack hit the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, leading to the release of email addresses and phone numbers belonging to nearly 200 Democratic congressional members on August 12, The Wall Street Journal reported at the time.

Guccifer 2.0 has denied having any links to Russia. But digital fingerprints were left on the hacks that led the US intelligence community  as well as several private cybersecurity firms  to conclude that the cyberattacks were largely, if not entirely, carried out by two Russian intelligence groups.

Piecing together Guccifer's comments and cyber trails, experts soon began to agree that the self-proclaimed hacker was either a poser or the product of a Russian disinformation campaign. ThreatConnect,

For his part, Stone cast aside any suggestion that he may have collaborated with the DNC hackers, Russian or not, telling Business Insider that he first noticed on August 14  after he'd written an article for Breitbart saying he thought Guccifer was "the real deal"  that a Twitter account that apparently belonged to Guccifer had been reinstated after a brief suspension.

Seventeen US intelligence agencies concluded in January that Russia interfered in the US election  hacking into the DNC and John Podesta's inbox and leaking the stolen documents to WikiLeaks  to undermine Hillary Clinton.
At a UBS conference this week, company executives revealed how they plan to fix the problem.

In the near-term, their solutions include adding more employees to stores to handle the influx of orders, UBS restaurant analyst

Starbucks also plans to make some small tweaks to the store layout to free up more space around the pickup counter.

In the longer term, Starbucks is considering more drastic measures, including a complete reconfiguration of the store that would make room for two separate lines: one for in-store orders, and another for mobile orders, .

To free up space, the company is considering removing most of the merchandise like mugs from the stores, and instead selling those products online.

The longer-term fixes would likely be implemented within one to two years, Geiger said.

Starbucks revealed its issues with slowing service in January, after reporting that quarterly same-store transactions, a measure of customer traffic, dropped 2%.
This is according to NET News in its reference to a report provided by the Ghana Police Service (GPS).

A police spokesperson who responded to a case of domestic violence between the couple during their stay in Ghana disclosed that Dikeh admitted to damaging her husband's property, also adding that she was the aggressor in the matter.

"On the 9th of June 2015, a Nigerian called Churchill Dunnireported to this divisional headquarters that his fiancee then, called Tonto Charity Dikeh has called damage to his property in his house

"We proceeded to the place and we found out that some many things in the house had been damaged by the lady. We inspected it as our procedure demands.

"We took her to the station, she admitted the offence," the policeman stated.

ALSO READ: Actress confirms separation from husband

This report is another twist to the ongoing marriage separation saga going on between Dikeh and Churchill.
Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected!
The defendant, a resident of Gwagwa, Abuja, was accused of conspiracy to commit armed robbery, punishable under Sections 97 and 298 of the Penal Code.

Delivering his judgment, the judge held that the police did not do a thorough investigation to prove the allegation levelled against the defendant.

Yusuf also said that the police did not follow the normal process of the law when it took statement from the defendant as pronounced by Section 17(1) (2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015.

He added that the police also neglected Section 9 (3) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Lagos State 2011, which provided for recording of statement at the police station through video.

From the above, there are two major issues which are germane in the said section 9 (3) of the law in question.

They are to the effect that whenever an arrest of a suspect is made and he volunteers a statement, the police officer in charge of the investigation shall ensure that the whole process of making and taking the confessional statement is recorded in video which may be produced during trial.

In the absence of such video facility at the police station, such a confessional statement shall be made in the presence of a legal practitioner chosen by the accused person himself, he said.

Yusuf said that the Investigation Police Officer (IPO) in an attempt to obtain a quick result did not carry out an in-depth investigation into the matter.

The investigation police officer was bent on following the law but he was eager to achieve quick and positive results to please their superiors in the absence of adequate resources to carry out details and in-depth investigation of cases assigned to them, he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the defendant had earlier denied the allegation and pleaded not guilty in the trial which began on November 2015.

The Prosecution Counsel, Mrs Chioma Oniogbu had informed the court via the charge sheet that Nathan committed the crime alongside others still at large.

Oniogbu said that the defendant conspired with others and robbed one Prof. Godwin Egwu of Plot 216, National Assembly Quarters, Life Camp, Abuja.
The Presiding Judge, Alhaji Ahmed Ado, however, gave her an option to pay a fine of N4,000 and warned him to desist from committing crimes.

Ado said the sentence would serve as deterrent to other would be offenders.

He also ordered her to pay N29,000 as compensation to the nominal complainant.

Anum, an apprentice and resident of Global Estate, Abuja, was convicted on a two-count charge.

The convict begged the court to temper justice with mercy because she did not know that the person did not send the money.

Prosecutor Zannah Dalhatu had told the court that Chika Abia of Karmo, Abuja, reported the matter at the Life Camp Police Station, Abuja, on March 2.

Dalhatu said that the complainant told the police that the convict on Dec. 13, 2016 approached him for his account details to enable her friend send her money.

He later got an alert of N29, 000 and he transferred the money to another bank account she sent to him, he later received a call from his sister outside the country that she sent N29,000.

Also that the money was to be given to their mother to buy drugs.

Dalhatu said that all efforts made to recover the money proved abortive.
The accused, whose address was not disclosed in court, is facing a charge of assault before a Badagry Chief Magistrates Court in Lagos State.

The prosecutor, Insp. Akpan Ikem, told the court that the accused committed the offence on March 3 at the Iledu town, Araromi in Badagry area of Lagos State.

He alleged that the accused punched the complainant, one Funmilayo Aderoju, several times and poured sand on her body.

The accused and the complainant got into an argument over a plate of food which the complainant refused to give to him.

Before anybody could intervene, the accused had beaten-up the complainant.

He was then arrested and taken to the police station.

The offence contravened Section 170 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The magistrate, Mr Jimoh Adefioye, granted the accused bail in the sum of N50, 000 and one surety in like sum.
The charge was contained in court papers filed on March 9 at the Federal High Court Abuja.

According to the charge sheet, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Yakubu was accused of failing to make full disclosure in his Assets Declaration form of the sums of 9,772 800 dollars and 74,000 pounds contrary to Section 27 (3a) of the EFCC act 2004.

He was also accused of receiving a cash payment of the said sums without going through a financial institution thereby committing an offence under the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011.

The former NNPC boss was further charged with receiving the same amount when he fully knew that the said fund formed part of proceed of unlawful activity.

This, according to the charge sheet, run counter to Section 7 (4) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006.

The EFCC had in February found about $9.8m and 74,000 pounds kept in a run down bungalow in Sabon Tasha a suburb of Kaduna, which it said was concealed by Yakubu.

A court in Kano later ordered the forfeiture of the money to the federal government following a motion filed by the anti-graft agency.

However, the former NNPC boss has filed a case in another court in Kano seeking the vacation of the earlier courts order.
Obi said the passenger bus, which was descending the Kwata bridge just before the popular Unizik junction in Awka, on top speed was trying to avoid an unmarked petrol tanker.

He said that the tanker was turning on the Expressway after discharging its content at a nearby filling statbion.

He said though, no live was lost but some passengers sustained various degrees of injuries.

One of the victims, who identified himself as Chukwudi said he was thankful to God for the narrow escape but was not psychologically balanced to speak further.

I just thank God, because this could have been my last day, for me I thank God, he said.

Another passenger, Hajiya Rekia, a nursing mother was just shouting Nagode Allah, Nagode Allah (thank God).

The Vice Chairman of Red Cross Society in Anambra, Prof Peter Katchy, whose team was part of the rescue team confirmed that there was no death but few passengers sustained minor injuries which had been treated.

Katchy called on the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) to restore the electric pole that was knocked down and remove cables lying dangerously on the Expressway.

It was a serious crash and we responded immediately but thank God no death was recorded.

We have called on the EEDC to immediately remove the pole and wire from the highway.

We do not know the immediate cause but it would be known after our investigation, he said.

Meanwhile, combined team of Police, FRSC, NSCDC personnel, and the state Fire Service were at the scene of the accident.
Ortom gave the promise on Friday in Makurdi when the Assistant Comptroller-General of Immigration, Mr Tino Harry, led other senior officers to pay a courtesy visit on him.

The governor said that the state would stand a better chance to benefit from the sustained working relationship.

He pledged not to relent in taking proactive steps with a view to tackling insecurity in the state.

He appealed to the service to upgrade its post at Kwande Local Government Area of the state which is on the border between Nigeria and Cameroon.

Earlier, Harry pointed out that one of the services mandate was to curb the influx of criminal elements into the country.

The comptroller said that the service would ensure that the state was rid of illegal immigrants as well as criminals.
The ministers Special Assistant, Festus Akanbi, said in a statement that Adeosun made this known when the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Stuart Symington, paid her a visit in Abuja.

Akanbi stated that the minister explained that in spite of the oil price shock and drop in production volumes, Federal Government had succeeded in utilising the situation to reposition the Nigerian economy to the advantage of the nation.

She said the lack of adequate investment in infrastructure had been the bane of the Nigerian economy in the past, noting that the present administration had begun to correct this anomaly.

She added that over N1 trillion had been released for various infrastructure projects across the country and emphasised the critical role of power on job and wealth creation.

The minister further explained that investment in public infrastructure would begin to attract private sector funding which would enable diversification and growth in priority areas like agriculture and housing.

The U.S. ambassador said finance was to growth and prosperity, what oxygen was to life.
Kanu's family alleged that the prisons authorities and the officials of the Department of State Service (DSS) are humiliating the Biafra leader and other Biafra agitators detained with him in Kuje prison.

Mr. Emmanuel Kanu, Nnamdi Kanu's brother, on behalf of the family, made this known in a statement issued in Awka, Anambra state.

The family also accused the Federal Government of plotting to kill Kanu.

They also said that the IPOB leader and other IPOB detainees in detention have been stopped from receiving visitors.

The family also petitioned Amnesty International and Human rights Watch.

The petition reads in part: "We observed with great dismay the conspiracy by the DSS and the Prison authorities through their prison wardens to stop Mazi Nnamdi Kanu from receiving visitors in Kuje prison Abuja.

"The leader of the indigenous people of Biafra Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and others detained illegally alongside with him were only allowed to receive visitors for one hour a day from Monday to Friday in a week while other inmates were always allowed to receive visitors five hours in a day from Monday to Sunday, seven days a week.

"It is a huge embarrassment on the side of the British government who have been denied access to visit Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in Kuje prison by the security agents and prison authorities through the prison wardens.

"The security agents and prison wardens stopped the British people who intended to visit Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in the prison to see the leader of the indigenous people of Biafra IPOB."

ALSO READ: Those persecuting Nnamdi Kanu will die  IPOB says

They alleged that Kanu was denied the chance to receive visitors as part of the plan to discreetly kill him.

The petition further reads: "Nevertheless, we observed that the security agents and prison authorities through the prison wardens are planning to eliminate Mazi Nnamdi Kanu without anybody knowing when it will happen, that is why they are making sure nobody visits him again.
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Presidents often order political appointees in several agencies to resign when they take office, but the abrupt nature of the move caught some by surprise -- especially given that so many were asked to leave at once.

High-profile Manhattan prosecutor Preet Bharara was among those asked to leave -- even though he met with Trump before the Republican took office and said he was asked to stay on.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said Attorney General Jeff Session had asked "all remaining 46 presidentially appointed US Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition."

"Until the new US Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US Attorney's Offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders."

Later Friday, another Justice Department spokesman, Peter Carr, said Trump had asked two to stay on -- current acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente and the man he picked to take over that position, Rod Rosenstein.

"The President called Dana Boente and Rod Rosenstein tonight to inform them that he has declined to accept their resignation, and they will remain in their current positions," Carr said.

It was not immediately clear if other resignations would eventually be declined.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said he was "troubled" to learn of the mass request for resignations, especially that of Bharara, and said it had not been done in an "orderly fashion" as seen in the past.
The hearing in Gurgaon, on the outskirts of New Delhi, found 13 workers guilty of murdering Awanish Kumar Dev, whose charred body was found in the remains of a building following the riots in July 2012.

Dev, who was a human resources manager, died after he failed to escape a blaze which was started by workers who went on the rampage in Manesar, which is around two hours' drive southwest of the capital.

The additional sessions court ruled that 18 others were guilty of rioting, arson and damaging property and will announce the sentences on March 17.

A lawyer for those found guilty on Friday immediately announced plans to appeal against the convictions.

"We will challenge the conviction in a higher court," Monu Kuhar, part of the defence team, told AFP.

Protests threat

Hundreds of policemen in riot gear were deployed at the court and outside automakers offices' over threats by workers to mobilise large-scale protests if their colleagues "did not get justice".

On Thursday, thousands of workers staged a brief work stoppage at Maruti and other auto companies' offices to express solidarity with the accused.

Prosecutors told the court that the attack was the result of a conspiracy by workers, who were at loggerheads with the management over wages and plans to set up a union at the workplace.

The plant, which manufactures nearly 700,000 cars annually, was shut for 60 days prior to the deadly violence.

Investigators said more than a thousand workers had charged at the administration block and attacked the officials with iron rods and car parts such as axles at the plant.

They beat up officers, including Dev, breaking his limbs leaving him immobile and leaving him unable to flee the flames.

More than 100 other managers were injured in the day-long violence that shut the plant for over a month.

But union leaders claim it was triggered by an argument between a supervisor and a casual employee, who was abused over his caste.

Maruti Suzuki, a subsidiary of Japanese automobile major Suzuki, has a market share of 51 percent in India.

Workplace violence is not uncommon in India, where workers are often locked in conflict with the management over wages and hostile working conditions, but it is rare for major corporates to be targeted.

Labour unions frequently accuse management of hiring cheap labour through short-term contracts which makes it easier for firms to dismiss workers.

Last year a court in Tamil Nadu sentenced eight workers to life imprisonment over the lynching of a senior manager in violence sparked by the dismissal of 42 workers at an automobile spare parts factory.
You really dont want to take a seat at Table 19, a lame excuse for a comedy that would have been better presented as a brief stage skit or sitcom episode.

Table 19, in this instance, is a kind of leftovers table at a wedding. Even the guests at the table know that they are not as welcome as the other guests  after all, they go to great lengths to figure out how they became the wedding pariahs assigned to low-social-standing seating.

The main character is Eloise (Anna Kendrick), who is a longtime friend of the bride. We watch as she laboriously accepts, refuses and then ultimately accepts her invitation. Eloise fell from grace because she was dumped, via text, by the brides brother Teddy (Wyatt Russell, 22 Jump Street, the son of Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn.)

Craig Robinson and Lisa Kudrow play a squabbling married couple who barely can stand to be around each other. June Squibb (Nebraska) was the childhood nanny of the bride. Stephen Merchant (starring on a neighboring screen in Logan) is an awkward cousin of the bride.

Tony Revolori (The Grand Budapest Hotel) is a teen-ager in search of, uh, a little female companionship, and apparently has been dispatched to the wedding by his mother (ew!) for that very purpose.

The cast is full of capable performers, and I wanted to give it a break, so I tried to ignore its jagged transitions to dull to painfully unfunny to disgusting and back again. But its uneven tone wears thin quickly, as do its excuses for characters.

Oh! Look! Theres a big wedding cake. Guess whats going to happen? You got it. Guess why Eloise is so upset? Yep, you can guess that one, too.

Director Jeffrey Blitz also helmed the wonderful documentary Spellbound and the little-known Rocket Science, which also starred Kendrick in one of her first film roles.

Brothers Jay and Mark Duplass, who have written some wonderful screenplays, including Jeff, Who Lives at Home and Cyrus, wrote this lackluster screenplay, which meanders all over the place as if looking for a real joke or comical moment. The characters are weird, and theyre awkward, but theyre not funny. The Duplass siblings generally have an ear for dialogue and wit, so this script comes as a disappointing surprise.

When its not being predictable, its being lazy, moving the characters around in ridiculous, contrived direction. What a waste of a capable ensemble.
A bit of partisan sparring broke out Saturday among Quad-City area lawmakers over efforts to close Iowas school funding inequity. Democrats claimed a bill that cleared the Senate takes too long to fix the problem. But a key Republican said it wouldnt have passed otherwise.

The differences came into play at the Scott County legislative forum.

The Senate voted 47-0 last week to fix the inequity, which allows some districts to spend up to $175 more per pupil than others. The legislation now goes to the House.

Democrats warned Saturday the bill takes 10 years to fix the problem and future lawmakers, particularly in the face of budget pressures, could back off that commitment. They dont have to keep this in place, Rep. Phyllis Thede, D-Bettendorf, said.

Rep. Cindy Winckler, D-Davenport, also worried that the additional funding to fix the inequity will be taken from future basic state aid to K-12 schools. The Republican-controlled legislature passed a 1.1 percent increase in basic state aid this year, an amount Democrats say is already too small.

Sen. Roby Smith, R-Davenport, who was a key player on the equity legislation in the Senate, said Saturday he does not see a problem coming up with future funding to pay for the fix. He said the annual amounts are just a small part of new revenues. The first-year cost of the bill, which includes money to address transportation funding inequities, is $14.1 million. Over 10 years, the cost is estimated at almost $204 million.

Smith also pushed back against the idea that it was possible to close the gap in a shorter period.

"Up there its about the art of the possible, Smith said. We could go for one or two years, and that bill would just sit there and sit there and sit there.

Rich Clewell, a Davenport school board member, said he shared some of the long-term funding concerns and also would like to see the fix happen faster. But he added the district supports the bill that closes the gap. Were very thankful for Senate File 455, he said.

A short-term bill that wouldnt require districts to put as much money into reserves as they do now, also provides assistance in the short term. That bill is pending.

Lawmakers also disagreed over who was to blame for the delay in getting the legislation passed. Smith said the fix languished before this year in the Democrat-controlled Senate, while Democrats said it did the same in the Republican-controlled House.

Saturdays forum, which was held at a new location, drew a smaller crowd than last month. Still, more than 250 people attended the 90-minute session, which was held at the Mississippi Bend AEA offices in Bettendorf.

A range of topics arose from the audience, including the pending bill requiring voter identification, as well as bills dealing with guns, school vouchers and funding to deal with opioid abuse.

Democrats complained about the voter identification bill, which passed the House last week. Winckler called it a voter suppression bill.

Republicans on the panel didnt address those claims, but they have defended the legislation, saying it improves the integrity of the election system.

The forum is sponsored by a number of local groups. The next forum will be April 22, and it is scheduled to return to St. Ambrose University.
ILLINOIS QUAD-CITIES CIVIC CENTER AUTHORITY (Governing body for iWireless Center): F

WEBSITE (15/32 points): The ilqccca.org website includes an introductory paragraph about when its board meets and indicates agendas are posted at least 48 hours in advance of meetings. In early February, it contained agendas and minutes dating to 2011, but it had no agendas after September 2016, and no minutes since July 2016.

By Feb. 24, the website had been updated to include agendas and minutes through February 2017.

The iWireless Centers address is included, but there is no contact information, including names, phone numbers or emails, for Authority board members or iWireless staff. There is no link to the iWireless website, but there is one to Sedonatek, a consulting firm that provides information technology services.

MEETINGS (16/25 points): The board held approximately 60 regular meetings and 21 closed session meetings in the past five years, according to Rocky Jones, assistant executive director. Jones said the regular sessions are approximated, because meeting dates are adjusted or canceled occasionally, because of a lack of quorum or other routine reasons, with corresponding public notices issued in compliance with the Illinois Open Meetings Act.

This information was supplied free of charge by overnight delivery, four days after it was requested by email.

Minutes of executive sessions are kept, but Jones said minutes from the past five executive sessions could not be provided because they remained in closed status to maintain confidentiality. Executive sessions are held to discuss items such as lease/license pricing and sponsorship recruitment, according to regular session minutes.

BUDGET/FINANCIALS (0/35 points): Jones submitted a copy of the Authoritys budget upon request. It is not available on the website. The one-page budget is a spreadsheet, listing revenue and expense categories and net income. It contains no charts or graphs and no executive summary.

Expense reports for the week of Oct. 10-14, 2016 were requested. Jones said there were no expense reports submitted during that period.

For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017, total revenue was $5,310,828 and total operating expenses were $5,091,664.

Net income was $219,164. The largest revenue line items were advertising ($1,122,204) and reimburseables ($1,328,500), food/beverage/catering ($923,050), suites ($507,139) and event income ($434,350). The largest expense is salaries ($1,094,639), utilities ($577,883), reimburseables ($663,500) and part-time wages ($525,800).

RECORDS (5/10 points): Meeting minutes account for everyone in attendance. Included with each agenda item is information about who offered a presentation, several sentences about its subject and any discussion that followed. It also includes the name of anyone who made a motion, and the outcome of votes, which were generally unanimous.

There is no information on the QCCCA or iWireless website about how to make a public records request, the method by which to do so, fees for such a request or an individual contact name.
ROCK ISLAND COUNTY: A

WEBSITE: (30/32 points): The Rock Island County Board has meeting packets, agendas and minutes going back to 2008 on the Rock Island County Board website, rockislandcounty.org/CountyBoard/Home.

The names and phone numbers for each of the 25 members of the Rock Island County Board can be found under the heading county board members."

The budget for fiscal year 2017 can be found on the homepage of Rock Island County, rockislandcounty.org (note the County Board site is different), which also maintains budgets, beginning with 2013. Along with the current budget is the countys capital improvement plan for fiscal year 2017 through fiscal year 2021. The Auditors Report also is available.

On the county homepage, there is a directory that provides names, phone numbers and email addresses for each department's leadership. The site also contains a Freedom of Information directory, which lists a FOIA officer for each department.

MEETINGS (17/25 points): From 2012 to 2016, the Rock Island County Board held a total of 81 meetings that included regular and special meetings of the board. In that time, the board went into closed session 26 times. The closed sessions had to do with personnel issues, including negotiations and bargaining with the unions that represent the countys workers. Minutes of closed sessions cannot be made public until the matter under discussion is resolved, per Illinois law.

The county board went into executive session more than 20 percent of the time.

BUDGET/FINANCIALS (35/35 points): The budget for fiscal year 2017 can be found on the Rock Island County website home page. The budget contains a complete table of contents on which there are hyperlinks to each section of the budget. For instance, clicking on the hyperlink for section 5b of the budget will take you to the summary for outstanding debt for the county. There also are hyperlinks to all sections of the budget, including, for example, the executive summary, bonds/debt service and property tax information.

The budget also contains an executive summary, a list of financial policies, an explanation of the budget cycle, budget trends, as well as a summary of funds and departments. There also are explanations on the debt service and property taxes.

Graphs aid in understanding the budget schedules, and there are complete budget worksheets and expense reports in the budget.

RECORDS (10/10): There is no fee to inspect records. The first 50 pages of copies are free and 15 cents per page after 50.

A request for the expense reports filed for the week of Oct. 10-14, 2016, was satisfied the same day. Because the request did not specify which department, the county assumed all departments and provided the information for each of the departments. There was no fee for the documents.
While it is rare for tornadoes to strike in the winter in the Midwest  such as those that struck the Quad-City area Feb. 28 and on Monday  they are not unprecedented, according to meteorologists at the National Weather Service, Davenport.

Meteorologist David Sheets said that tornadoes have occurred in each month in the Quad-Cities, but that the Feb. 28 tornado in Clinton and Whiteside counties was the first time a tornado had touched down in February in the Quad-City region.

Maybe seeing a tornado in February is strange, but its not unheard of, Sheets said. You just need for it to be warmer for it to happen, even though its still winter. Weve seen tornadoes in November, December and January, for instance.

According to statistics maintained by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations National Centers for Environmental Information, Scott County had two tornadoes strike on Jan. 24, 1967, and one on that date in Carroll County in Illinois. Three tornadoes struck Scott County on March 13, 1990, and one on Nov. 11, 2015.

A tornado struck in Henry County on Dec. 4, 1973, while on Dec. 14, 1975, a tornado struck in Clinton and Jackson counties.

Meteorologist Tom Philip, of the National Weather Service, Davenport, said that the tornadoes that occur out of the typical season are just a happenstance of nature, and not necessarily due to the concepts of global warming or climate change.

I dont know if there is a correlation or not with individual events, such as what happens in a day or a week or even over several weeks, Philip said. The whole climate change discussion is about longer-term pattern changes.

Its a safe bet that a tornado wont form in 20-degree weather.

We would have to have had some mild temperatures ahead of the system in any of these cases, Philip said.

A look at the records for the March 15, 2016, tornadoes that struck Rock Island, Scott, Clinton and Whiteside counties shows that on that date the high temperature was 72 degrees. The day before, March 14, and the day after, March 16, the high temperature was 59 degrees.

In simple terms, Philip said that to provide the right conditions for a tornado to occur, there has to be mild air ahead of a cold front that is coming across to spawn the storms. Then, there would need to be a high wind shear profile to get the storm system rotating enough to produce a tornado.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Severe Storms Laboratory, the tornado season for the Midwest and upper plains states is in June or July. But, Sheets said, tornadoes can occur anytime of the year. The temperatures just need to be warmer, he said.

However, of the 51 tornadoes that have occurred in Scott County since accurate records began to be kept in 1950, a total of 34 took place in April, May or June, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information website.

April, May and June also were the biggest months for tornadoes in Muscatine County. Of the 27 tornadoes recorded in Rock Island County since 1950, a total of 13 have occurred in April, May or June.
I dont remember the first time I heard the word "silos" used to describe groups operating in isolation from each other rather than farm buildings, but the use is increasing.

In a recent news story about Davenport Mayor Frank Klipschs plan to do away with the Levee Commission and other advisory boards, Klipsch was quoted as saying that a consolidation would promote a pooling of resources, rather than looking at it as one silo over here and another silo over there.

Still, the use startles me. For me, a silo will always be a tall, round building used to store chopped cornstalks called silage that is fed to animals.

How did this change come about?

According to Wikipedia, the new usage was coined in 1988 by Illinois native Phil S. Ensor who worked in organizational development and employee relations for several companies including Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. He observed that "silos" within organizations can hinder progress.

As time passes, maybe the new meaning will become more familiar than the original. I remember a conversation several years ago with one of our sons 20-something friends who, though raised in the Midwest, did not know what farm silos were or how they worked.

Oh, my.

Our family farm has two silos, one made of clay blocks, the other of concrete.

The latter is a Hanson silo, made by a Minnesota company of the same name that began in 1916. A distinguishing feature of Hanson silos was that the company painted a black and white checkerboard band around the top to distinguish its brand. For a long time, when my dad referred to the Hanson silo, I thought he was saying the handsome silo.

Feeding, making silage

When my dad was feeding cattle, his morning chores began with climbing up into the silo  there was a ladder attached to the outside, covered by a chute  to scoop and toss down the chute about a ton of silage, by hand, using a silage fork.

The silage landed in a wagon at the bottom of the chute and, when the wagon was full, Dad would climb back down this ladder and, with a tractor, pull the wagon alongside the wooden feed bunks in our outside cattle yard. Then he would climb into the wagon and toss the silage into the bunks, once again by hand.

In time, Dad bought mechanical unloaders for the silo and for the wagon, eliminating all the by-hand work.

In the dead of winter, the silage steamed, and the cattle relished it, pushing their way into the lines that formed at the bunks.

Of course, before Dad could feed silage, he had to make it, and that was a major harvest chore. Hed drive through the fields on a tractor pulling a chopper, with a big wagon behind that. Once the wagon was full, hed haul it to our building site where hed back up to a horizontal hopper.

With a tined fork, hed pull the green chop out of the wagon and into the hopper where it would advance mechanically to a big blower pipe that would send it hurtling up to the top of the silo. There it would drop to the bottom, filling the silo, load by load. Over a period of months, the stalks would ferment and thats when the silage would be fed.

All the machinery involved in silage-making created an incredible racket, a one-of-a-kind sound that Ill never forget and likely will never hear again.

And just about everything involved with silage was dangerous; a farmer could die in multiple ways. One of the most common hazards was the presence of numerous spinning shafts within close proximity. If a farmer happened to get the cuff of his pants caught, the force and speed of the spinning would literally pull him into the shaft.

A distinguishing feature of silage is its smell. What comes closest is the odor of wet grass clippings that have been sitting in a yard waste bag during a week of hot weather, only sweeter. Phew!

Silo invented in 1873

Although silos were common when I was growing up, they didnt always exist. While people involved in agriculture created pits for holding grain as far back as ancient Greece, it wasnt until 1873 in McHenry County, Illinois, that the silo was invented by Fred Hatch. He was the son of a dairy farmer and a graduate of Illinois Industrial College, now the University of Illinois, according to the website farmshow.com.

Silage was a new kind of feed for livestock at the time, and farmers were trying to come up with ways of storing it. At first it was stored on the ground with a rock base, but water caused spoilage. Building a tower eliminated that problem.

By 1886 there were more than 5,000 silos in the United States, according to the farmshow website. Various materials were used, including wood, clay blocks, concrete blocks, cast concrete and, finally, in the case of the iconic blue Harvestore silos you see dotting Scott County, steel panels.

Today, tower silos arent used much. First, there arent as many cattle feeders. Second, storage has moved back to the ground. Bunkers made of concrete panels keep out water, the original drawback of on-ground storage. They also are cheaper to build, considerably quicker to fill and unload, and they can be moved.

A bunker will never have the charm of a silo, though.

Silo as terrarium

And theres one more thing.

On day a couple of years ago I was walking through our old cattle yard and happened to stick my head in the bottom door of the Hanson silo. What I saw amazed me. Although the silo had not been used for many years, it was not empty.

It had turned into a giant terrarium!

Apparently through time, different plant seeds from who-knows-where came flying through the air and dropped into the open-top silo. At the bottom, those seeds took root in a thin layer of soil that also must have blown in. And then they grew and flourished, all kinds of ferns and assorted greenery.

It was a handsome sight.
There wasnt a moment of hesitation for Don Broghammer when his 16-month-old son needed a kidney transplant and he was a match.

It was a no-brainer, Don said of the 2008 operation.

The transplant, which was initially successful, was almost a decade ago and the family says they now face another no-brainer: racing the clock to find another donor for Gabriel, who is now 10.

They couldnt tell us how long it would last, said Don. Its not something were shocked or surprised by. We just need to get him a new kidney now.

Gabriel, who is a fourth grader at Pinedale Elementary School, began to have complications with the donated kidney in 2010. A kink in the ureter, which is the duct by which urine passes from the kidney to the bladder, was backing up urine in to his kidney.

That started a whole bunch of different things and it has led to a failed kidney, said his mother, Christine. Weve gimped along and were down to the wire now.

Gabriel has undergone a tremendous amount of testing, chemotherapy and frequent trips to the University of Minnesota Medical Center for treatment and checkups. Since 2011, Gabriel has also had to have a catheter changed every four hours. And recently, because his immune system is compromised, he has been very sick.

Its not fun, Christine said. Its a roller coaster. Sometimes there are good days and then sometimes there are bad days and weeks.

Gabriel has been on a waiting list to receive a kidney for seven months, but if it doesnt happen fast enough, he will have to go on dialysis.

We cant do it here because they dont do pediatric dialysis, Christine said. We would have to go to Sioux Falls.

It would mean a trip across the state for three to four days every week. It would change the quality of his life severely, Don said.

The couple, who also have a younger daughter at home, said they want to avoid the dialysis and simply find a new donor.

We have to spread the word, Christine said. We need more people to get tested.

It is free, and easy to get tested, she said. First, people have to have O-positive or O-negative blood type. They have to be in generally good health and between the ages of 18 and 55. They can email kidney4gabriel@gmail.com and Christine can forward an application that will go to the University of Minnesota.

Christine, who expressed her gratitude to the community for their support and Knollwood Elementary School where she was a teacher when Gabriel was just a toddler, said she is still amazed at people's generosity.

Its just knowing that there are people out there willing to help, she said, especially when it comes to getting tested to see if they are a match. Its amazing to know people are willing to do that and theyre strangers.

Despite the support, Gabriel struggles to understand why this has happened to him, Don said.

Nobody but him and us know what hes been through and what he deals with on a daily basis, he said. He doesnt know anybody else who has to do this. He gets down.

As parents, they tried to provide perspective for him as he gets older.

We stay at the Ronald McDonald House a lot and he sees what the other kids have to go through, Don said. We tell him, This is tough, but you still have a good quality of life.

Don remains optimistic about the future and said he is grateful for his family. In a couple of years, things could be even better.

Hes a pretty normal kid, he said. In the future, I want to have what we have now and go places and do things as a family.
PIERRE | State government officials fear protesters might try to disrupt traffic in South Dakota in an attempt to block construction supplies for the Keystone XL pipeline.

The Legislature responded by giving final approval Friday to new restrictions sought by Gov. Dennis Daugaard.

State senators voted 25-10. The measure, SB 176, has an emergency clause to take effect immediately upon the governor signing it into law rather than the standard July 1 date.

The House of Representatives voted 55-12 for it Thursday.

The governor, meanwhile, sent a letter Thursday to presidents and chairmen of the nine tribal governments that have land in South Dakota.

Daugaard said he understands the pipeline is of grave concern to our tribal citizens and many people from across the country very likely would come to South Dakota to help express the concern.

It is my hope that any attempt to stop the construction of the pipeline would be made through the legal system and the lawful exercise of free speech, and not by other means, the governor wrote.

Daugaard invited the tribal leaders to a series of roundtable discussions about how to fulfill our shared desire to manage potential protests in an effective, cooperative way.

The legislation places restrictions on standing next to a stopped vehicle along a highway and sets a 20-person limit on tracts of state-owned school and public lands.

State government has thousands of acres of public lands along TransCanadas proposed 313-mile path for the Keystone XL through Harding, Butte, Perkins, Meade, Pennington, Haakon, Jones, Lyman and Tripp counties.

The line would carry crude oil from tar-sands mines in Canada to the Gulf Coast.

Legislators said the North Dakota protest camps against the Dakota Access pipeline provided a lesson that South Dakota must be prepared.

The governor needed several attempts in each chamber of the Legislature to get the bill to final passage with the emergency clause.

This is just another tool to make sure we have peaceful protests in the community and not allow things to get out of hand," Sen. Bob Ewing, R-Spearfish, said.

Sen. Neal Tapio, R-Watertown, tried to kill the bill Friday. He said his main concern is that North Dakota was left with a $35 million bill.

There needs to be a provision that protest organizers would be responsible for expenses that result from their actions, Tapio said.

"I am a firm believer in having some mechanism to address it, address those issues," Tapio said.

Sen. Al Novstrup, R-Aberdeen, said the legislation helps South Dakota be prepared for opponents of the pipeline.

"I welcome you to come to South Dakota and protest peacefully. But I think the message is, also, you have to play by the rules," Novstrup said.

Allowing the camps to start in North Dakota led to "where things went wrong up there," said Sen. Justin Cronin, R-Gettysburg.

"It was so unorganized on both sides. This is an effort to at least start from somewhere," Cronin said.

State government needs to be cognizant of local control, said Sen. Kevin Killer, D-Pine Ridge, a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe.

Sen. Troy Heinert, a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, likewise sought the bills defeat.

When we start limiting access, I think we are walking a very thin line on what is constitutional and what isn't," Heinert, D-Mission, said.

He urged the governor and tribes to keep working on how to respond.

I don't know if we fully understand the level of commitment that some of these people ... are willing to let their voice be heard," Heinert said.

When the House of Representatives debated the bill Thursday, House Democratic leader Spencer Hawley of Brookings said he changed his position to favor it.

Hawley said the reason was an intelligence briefing Wednesday night about what might happen before July 1 when the law would normally start.

Rep. Dan Kaiser, R-Aberdeen, said it's "a poorly written bill" and urged its defeat, calling it "an eleventh-hour issue."

"We haven't involved the tribes until now," Kaiser said. He said state officials had a lot of time. "We're just sending out letters now."

A police officer, Kaiser said blocking roads already is illegal. He said all of the laws needed were already in place.

"I don't know what kind of statement we're trying to make with this. In my estimation, it's a very poor one," Kaiser said.

But House Republican leader Lee Qualm of Platte said state government didnt know until President Donald Trump took office in January that Trump would invite TransCanada to seek approval to pierce the border and enter the United States.

We had no clue, Qualm said about needing to prepare for the possibility of protests in South Dakota.
WASHINGTON, D.C. | About 200 people from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe were among thousands of mostly Native Americans who marched Friday morning in Washington, D.C., to show solidarity and call on President Donald Trump for dialogue with Native leaders.

The Native Nations Rise march was partly led by Standing Rock in a continuation of its environmental stand against the Dakota Access Pipeline near the reservation and to call attention to tribal and treaty rights.

John Floberg, Episcopalian minister for Standing Rock, speaking from the front of the White House Friday afternoon, said the show of support from tribes all over the country and their non-native allies validates the reservations position.

This is coalescing a movement that started on Standing Rock. Now were standing at the front door of Trumps White House and saying, `Can you hear us now? Floberg said. Theres support from many aspects and a very strong sense of unity.

Fridays march was the pinnacle event of a four-day Native Nations Rise presence in Washington and ends with a closing ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Standing Rock Chairman David Archambault II took the occasion to call on Roman Catholic Pope Francis to revoke ancient church documents that led to the Doctrine of Discovery, used to claim domination on discovered lands and still referenced in the U.S. Supreme Court in cases involving Native Americans.

In order for us to take the steps necessary to assure our own future, we have to understand historically what has happened to us and what is currently happening to us, Archambault said. We can make the change.

The march comes just after pipeline protest camps on and near Standing Rock were evacuated and the land cleared off. A few camp structures remain on private land on the reservation, while people who intend to remain actively opposed to Dakota Access and the KeystoneXL pipelines have been invited to a camp at Eagle Butte, S.D., on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation.

The Veterans Stand affiliation said in a statement Thursday it will set up an office at Eagle Butte for veterans who plan to rotate through the camp to support the protesters.
ROCK SPRINGS, Wyo. | The Bureau of Land Management is proposing to remove about 1,000 wild horses from three herd management areas, including Adobe Town, in southwest Wyoming in order to meet population level objectives.

Kimberlee Foster, field manager for the Rock Springs BLM field office, said there are too many horses on the land, and rules require them to remove horses when they are above management levels.

Foster said the gathered horses will go to the Rock Springs Holding Facility where they will be put up for adoption.

The BLM plans to remove 210 horses from Adobe Town, 584 from Salt Wells Creek and 235 from Great Divide Basin.

There are many reasons the BLM must carefully maintain certain population ranges for wild horses in Wyoming. For one, there are no natural predators for horses in the state and equines can be prodigious breeders.

"Typically a herd management area can double in size every four or five years," Foster told the Rawlins Daily Times.

If wild horse populations become too large, the natural forage on the land won't be able to support them.

Herd management is based around the usage of the land, Foster said, as well as the amount of available forage for the animals. Additionally, the BLM has agreed to act to reduce herd sizes should population levels reach a certain point.

The BLM is accepting public comment until April 4 on its horse roundup plan.
The 7th Circuit Court has reduced from $100,000 to $75,000 the cash-only bond for the man charged in Rapid Citys first homicide of 2017, though the amount fell short of what he requested.

Joseph Rich, 26, charged with first-degree manslaughter in the stabbing death of 21-year-old Juan Legarda Jr. on New Years Day, asked for a $25,000 cash or surety bond Thursday. Richs lawyer, Eric Whitcher, presented several reasons to Judge Jane Wipf Pfeifle, including that Rich was defending himself and his family during the alleged incident.

Deputy States Attorney Wayne Venhuizen objected to the request, and also said recent results of a drug test on Rich showed he had cocaine and THC in his system at that time. Rich is also facing two counts of aggravated assault for allegedly using a bayonet to attack two other men that day.
It's almost time to "spring ahead," and officials are reminding people to check their smoke alarms when they change their clocks.

Daylight Saving Time begins at 2 a.m. Sunday. A release from the American Red Cross also urges people to test the batteries in their smoke alarms as they turn their clocks ahead an hour.

Take a few minutes to replace your smoke alarm batteries and push the test button to make sure the alarms are working, Gino Greco, CEO for the American Red Cross of Colorado & Wyoming, said in the release.

The Red Cross also encourages people to use the weekend to install smoke alarms if there are none, practice an escape plan, create an emergency/disaster kit in an easy-to-carry bag and be informed about what emergencies can occur in your area and how to respond.
WASHINGTON | With options dwindling to stop construction of the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline, Native Americans and their supporters brought their message to President Donald Trump on Friday with rallies outside the White House and his Washington hotel.

Even if the pipeline is completed, the protest movement has been successful because it has called attention to the issue of tribal sovereignty, participants said.

The final, disputed section of the pipeline would pass under a reservoir that provides drinking water to the Standing Rock Sioux and Cheyenne River Sioux reservations. The tribes and their supporters say the pipeline threatens their religious rights and water supply.

About 200 people from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe were on hand Friday as John Floberg, Episcopalian minister for Standing Rock, speaking from the front of the White House, said the show of support from tribes all over the country and their non-Native allies validates the reservations position.

This is coalescing a movement that started on Standing Rock. Now were standing at the front door of Trumps White House and saying, 'Can you hear us now? Floberg said. Theres support from many aspects and a very strong sense of unity.

Fridays march was the pinnacle event of a four-day Native Nations Rise presence in Washington that ends with a closing ceremony at 10 a.m. today.

Tom Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network, said Texas-based developer Energy Transfer Partners would ultimately pay a price for disregarding the tribes' religious beliefs.

"We have not lost this battle," Goldtooth said. "Nothing will ever go right for those corporations. It's only a matter of time before it will fall flat on its face."

A federal judge this week declined to halt construction of the final section of the pipeline, meaning oil could begin flowing through it as early as next week. The disputed section would pass under Lake Oahe, a Missouri River reservoir in southern North Dakota. The pipeline stretches from North Dakota to Illinois.

The Obama administration halted construction of the pipeline, but Trump gave it the green light to start again with an executive order. A court hearing in the ongoing legal fight against the pipeline is not expected until at least April.

Hundreds of people participated in Friday's march, which began at the Army Corps of Engineers headquarters. The agency manages the Missouri River and last month gave Energy Transfer Partners permission to finish the project. Protesters also erected a tipi outside Trump's hotel.

The rally revealed divisions among the pipeline opponents. Dave Archambault, the chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, was booed and heckled by some in the crowd who called him "DAPL Dave" and accused him of being complicit with the bulldozing of a camp where thousands of protesters had lived.

"We are not defeated. We are not victims," Archambault said. "An obstacle is also an opportunity."

Mark Charles, a Navajo writer, speaker and activist who lives in Washington, said the activism around the pipeline has drawn new attention to the "dehumanization" of Native Americans. He and other protesters called on the Catholic Church to revoke 15th-Century documents that they said underpinned the treatment of Indians as inferior.

"America has to decide, does it want to be a nation where 'We the People' means all the people?" Charles said. "We need to stop talking about how great we are."
When Faith Burnett was in kindergarten, she had difficulty in school, and her family couldn't figure out why.

"I had trouble reading, and the teacher noticed I couldn't rhyme or sing my ABCs," said Burnett, now 16. "I knew I wasn't stupid  I could understand the lessons  but something was holding me back."

It wasn't until eighth grade that Burnett was diagnosed with dyslexia, a learning disability characterized by difficulty in identifying speech sounds and how they relate to letters of the alphabet, which affects the ability to read fluently. Burnett found out only after her mother, Shawna, did her own digging into the subject.

"We had never heard much about it," Burnett said. "There's no testing in the area, so we had to go to Sioux Falls for testing after we looked into it."

Burnett now believes in the power of diagnosis, and she's using her current status as Miss Rapid City's Outstanding Teen for 2017 as a way to spread knowledge about dyslexia and make testing possible for families in South Dakota.

Miss America's Outstanding Teen is the sister company to the Miss America organization, allowing teenagers ages 13-17 to compete in talent, evening gown and interview competitions for scholarships. The program highlights "four points of the crown," which include service, scholarship, style and success.

Burnett is fairly new to the program, having competed in only three pageants since 2015, when she won her first as Miss Oahe. She won again in January, this time in Miss Rapid City Outstanding Teen. She will compete at the Miss South Dakota Outstanding Teen pageant in April.

"I was surprised both times I won, especially at Oahe," Burnett said. "I didn't fully know what I was getting into."

But Burnett said she felt she would enjoy the system after speaking to some of the contestants in one of the pageants.

"I talked to the girls and learned it was more about intelligence than beauty," Burnett said. "It looked fun, and I would get a chance to sing."

Burnett is a soprano with a specialty in classical arias and will also compete at the National Association of Teachers of Singing competition in March. She won the high school division last year and will compete in the freshman college division this year, three years ahead of her current status as a sophomore in high school.

Burnett said she hopes to sing professionally for five years before opening her own studio as a music teacher for children.

But the most enticing aspect of the Miss America Outstanding Teen program, beyond a chance to hone her performance skills, was a chance to make a difference.

"What really appealed to me was that everyone had a platform they advocated for," Burnett said.

Burnett saw something valuable in the "service" point of the crown  a chance to speak about the importance of dyslexia awareness and testing.

As a part of the Miss America Outstanding Teen system (where her dyslexia-focused platform is titled "Dream Your Destiny"), and as a student ambassador of the parent-led grass-roots organization Decoding Dyslexia South Dakota, Burnett engages with the community on social media and in public.

"Mainly what I do is work in schools, and I don't just talk about dyslexia," Burnett said. "I sing, I talk about making life goals, and I talk about famous people with dyslexia who have succeeded. I also talk to business groups."

Burnett is home schooled in Spearfish but says that the key to helping public school students with dyslexia is educating teachers on the subject.

"My kindergarten teacher knew that I needed more time, but she wasn't educated as to what dyslexia was," Burnett said. "Teachers want to help as much as they can, but most of them don't know what to look for. It's important to make sure they know."

Burnett has extensive notes pointing out how parents and teachers can assist children if dyslexia is suspected, from preschool (difficulty rhyming or saying ABCs) to elementary school (poor spelling, difficulty telling time with a standard clock, reversing numbers and letters, confusing left and right or up and down), and high school (difference between verbal skills and written expression, poor grades in spite of strong effort).

Burnett added, however, that teachers should be taught during their college training in how to work with dyslexic students, not simply diagnose them.

"It's not just a matter of showing them a quick video," Burnett said. "Really show them the handbook. Education has to happen in colleges."

Furthermore, Burnett advocates for programs that would be helpful for students, such as dictation software, audiobooks and allowing more time for test taking.

Burnett has taken her advocacy to the state, testifying last year for House Bill 1198, which calls for recognition and special instruction of dyslexic students in the state's public schools.

The outcome of the 2016 legislative session was the forming of a Dyslexia Stakeholders Group composed of stakeholders concerned about students with dyslexia, K-12 educators, post-secondary representatives and Department of Education representatives. The group has a proposed five-year state plan to support struggling readers and students with dyslexia.

In order to help students in the meantime, Burnett has started the Dream Your Destiny #Dyslexia Evaluation Scholarship Fund. The fund, set up with the Scottish Rite Foundation of South Dakota, is a nonprofit organization that allows tax deductible donations that will pay half the cost of the $300 fee for testing.

"That's expensive for a lot of parents," Burnett said. "We pay for half the cost and hope to eventually be able to pay for all of it."

The fund has a $10,000 goal and has raised $2,300 thus far. Burnett said that testing would aid children considerably.

"Being diagnosed helped me understand myself," Burnett said. "It gave me direction for how to help myself, and it helped with my self-esteem."

That she can get an extra self-esteem boost in the Outstanding Teen program is a bonus.

"This is a great empowerment program," Burnett said. "It's a sisterhood program: I've made friends across the state, and I see confidence in all of them."

To learn more about the Miss America Outstanding Teen program, visit MSDOTeen.org.

To make a donation to Burnett's scholarship, mail Scottish Rite Foundation of South Dakota at P.O. Box 567, Mitchell, SD 57301, memo: "Faith Burnett's Dream Your Destiny #Dyslexia Evaluation Scholarship Fund."
Still fewer than five days old, the House Republican bill to repeal Obamacare has an uncertain legislative path ahead. And no small part of the blame goes to President Donald Trump.

Competing interests among Republicans threaten to derail the party's urgent mission of gutting the Affordable Care Act. After publicly endorsing the bill developed by House Speaker Paul Ryan and other GOP leaders, Trump and some of his top officials held a flurry of closed-door meetings this week with critics of the legislation to try to move lawmakers toward a consensus.

But in these private gatherings, Trump appears to be sending some conflicting messages.

After sessions with leaders of influential conservative groups and lawmakers, administration officials signaled that the President was open to scrapping Obamacare's Medicaid expansion sooner than 2020 --- the date that is stated in the House GOP bill  a change that could scare away moderate Republicans.

The confusion over the Medicaid portion of the Obamacare bill appears to be another example of Trump's eagerness to strike deals and negotiate -- and how that tendency can sometimes complicate things for members of his own party.

House conservatives openly acknowledge that they are seizing Trump's reputation as a dealmaker to try to reshape the health care overhaul.

"I like that about this president. He understands that no product is the final product," Idaho Republican Rep. Raul Labrador said Friday.

Just the development that the White House is publicly entertaining the change sent House GOP leaders scrambling to answer questions about whether the White House and congressional leaders see eye-to-eye on a major component of the health care bill.

"I think right now that would be very difficult to do," House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters in a news conference Friday morning when asked if he supported moving up the sunset of Medicaid expansion.

Later in the day, White House press secretary Sean Spicer sided with House GOP leaders, saying: "Right now, the date that's in the bill is what the President supports."

Next week could bring more tumult -- the Congressional Budget office is expected to release its score of the House health care bill, which could show that millions will lose their coverage. The anticipated bad news is poised to be one more area where Trump could veer from the party message.

Medicaid politics

The Medicaid section in the House Republicans' Obamacare repeal bill was carefully crafted and congressional leaders warn that disrupting it now could imperil the bill. Scrapping the expansion earlier could help win over a handful of conservative votes, but it could cost GOP votes in the Senate where nearly 20 lawmakers hail from expansion states.

"The needle that leadership is trying to thread right now is exactly that between people who want to take things out of the bill and make it less than it is and those of us who are already struggling with the effectiveness on the most vulnerable," said Rep. Tom MacArthur, a New Jersey Republican who is a co-chair of the House's moderate Tuesday Group.

How to tackle the federal Medicaid expansion has emerged as one of the toughest obstacles for Republican leaders. Some 31 states -- including 16 with Republican governors -- took advantage of the program and found it to be a successful tool to insure low-income adults at little cost to their states.

The politics of Medicaid expansion has scrambled traditional political fault lines. It's not just a simple break between moderates and conservatives -- the differences of opinion are also between expansion and non-expansion state lawmakers.

Those from expansion states have worked closely with leadership to try to protect their federal match dollars for as long as possible while those from non-expansion states have argue the Medicaid expansion should sunset as soon as possible.

Bowling for votes

In recent days, senior administration officials have wooed conservative lawmakers in private meetings and even at a bowling party at the White House -- all as the administration has continued to publicly back the bill crafted by Ryan and committee chairs.

But GOP leadership aides caution that while they could still make some changes in order to get additional support before the final House vote, they don't anticipate the kinds of wholesale changes that House Freedom Caucus members are demanding.

If Trump has veered off-message, Republican leaders have managed to maintain iron-fisted control over their bill, successfully passing it out of both the Energy and Commerce and the Ways and Means committees without a single substantive amendment -- despite sessions of a combined 45 hours.

Rep. Joe Barton, a Republican from Texas, filed an amendment in the Energy and Commerce Committee markup that would have sunset the Medicaid expansion sooner than the 2020 deadline in the bill, but he pulled the proposal before it came up for a vote.

Conservatives opposed to the bill are ignoring warnings from GOP leaders that the bill will not get a significant face-lift, insisting they have leverage because the measure can't pass without buy-in from a major chunk of the Freedom Caucus. They are also eyeing the House Rules Committee, which is the final stop before the measure gets to the floor, as the opportunity to insert significant modifications.

"We're going to negotiate with the White House and with our leadership and they need our votes," Labrador said.

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows told reporters Friday that after the White House's meeting, he feels confident that the administration is willing to play ball.

"I am very confident based on my conversations with the White House that there is a willingness to negotiate in good faith things that drive down health care premiums," the North Carolina Republican said. "That being said, do I expect all of the issues that many of the Freedom Caucus members would like to have will be in a final bill that passes? The answer is no. So, it's about a good faith negotiation."

No matter what, expect the talks and proposals to continue.

"Despite what you hear in the press, healthcare is coming along great. We are talking to many groups and it will end in a beautiful picture!" Trump tweeted Thursday.
BREAKING NEWS: Preet Bharara, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, just tweeted that he has been fired. He wrote on his verified Twitter account, "I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life."

ORIGINAL STORY: The high-profile US attorney for Manhattan, Preet Bharara, indicated he would not submit a letter of resignation as requested by the Trump administration Friday -- placing the President in the position of having to fire him in a public standoff, sources tell CNN.

Bharara, who had been told after a meeting with the President-elect in November that he would stay on, felt blindsided by the move, the sources said.

In a statement Saturday, Sen. Chuck Schumer said he was "troubled" to learn of the Trump administration's request for Bharara's and other US attorneys' resignations, adding that the President initiated a call to him in November "and assured me he wanted Mr. Bharara to continue to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District.

"While it's true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for U.S. attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesn't put ongoing investigations at risk," the New York Democrat said. "They ask for letters of resignation, but the attorneys are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed."

By asking for the immediate resignations of the remaining US attorneys before their replacements have been confirmed, "the President is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice," Schumer said.
MISSOULA  An analysis of the fatal collision last summer between a grizzly bear and a mountain biker near Coram recommends more safety evaluation before new biking trails are built in grizzly habitat.

Current safety messaging at trailheads and in the media is usually aimed at hikers, the interagency board of review report stated. However mountain biking is in many ways more likely to result in injury or death from bear attacks to people who participate in this activity.

"In addition, there are increasing numbers of mountain bikers using bear habitat and pressure to increase mountain bike access to areas where black bear and grizzly bear encounters are very likely.

The report on the June 29, 2016, death of Brad Treat after he collided with a grizzly bear was completed on March 3. Lead author Chris Servheen said the analysis had advice for both trail managers and the people who recreate on them.

Servheen recently retired as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services grizzly bear recovery coordinator for the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee. He led a panel that included members from Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, U.S. Forest Service and Glacier National Park.

While it was an independent review, it arrives just as mountain biking in grizzly habitat has become a hot topic in Washington.

Last week, Sen. Jon Tester, D-Montana, proposed the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act, which would allow mountain-biking recreation areas next to some of the most heavily used grizzly country in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. On Monday, the national Sustainable Trails Coalition hailed the introduction of a House bill that would allow the use of bikes and other wheeled equipment in federal wilderness areas.

With something like mountain biking, the high speed and quiet nature of riding increases the probability of encounters with bears when youre coming around blind curves, Servheen said on Monday.

In the case of Treat's collision, he said, "Heres a bear thats 20 years old, whos lived in a high-density human area his entire life. Hes pretty skilled at staying away from trouble. We think he was just as surprised as Mr. Treat was. The two of them probably had only one or two seconds before they encountered one another.

Treat was a Flathead National Forest law enforcement officer who regularly jogged and biked on the Green Gate Trail network between Coram and West Glacier. According to the report, he was riding ahead of a friend at about 1:30 p.m. when he rounded a corner in thick forest.

Immediately after Mr. Treat disappeared, his companion heard the sound of Mr. Treat and his bike colliding with the bear and the bear vocalizing and making a sound like it was hurt, the report stated. He described what he heard as a thud and an argh. As his companion rode around the curve and stopped his bike, he saw the bear standing over Mr. Treat who was laying in the trail.

FWP Wildlife Human Attack Response Team lead investigator Brian Sommers explained the details of the encounter. Sommers reported that Treats biking shoes were clipped to the pedals and both he and his bike flipped over the bears back. Sommers estimated Treat was traveling between 20 and 25 mph, and left no skid marks before impact. Treat broke both wrists and a shoulder blade on landing, and had a large bruise on his torso from hitting the handle bars. Sommers reported his bike helmet was beside his body and it was in pieces after being bitten by the bear.

While the report concluded the grizzly killed Treat, the bear did not act in any predatory way. It neither consumed any part of Treats body nor acted to cache him as it would a deer or other prey. Trail cameras and helicopter searches over the next two days failed to find any sign of the suspect bear, although several people in the vicinity reported seeing both brown- and black-colored probable grizzlies in the area.

DNA analysis of the suspect bear hair collected at the scene showed it was a male grizzly that had been trapped in Glacier National Park in 2006. The bear had no history of conflicts with people. When it was caught that year near Camas Creek, it weighed 370 pounds and appeared to be 8 to 10 years old. It was not collared, and was never recaptured.

The report includes a five-page set of recommendations and lessons to take from the incident.

The unfortunate death of Mr. Brad Treat from a grizzly bear attack that was precipitated by a high-speed mountain bike collision between Mr. Treat and a bear necessitates increased attention to the dangers associated with mountain biking in black bear and grizzly bear habitat, the recommendations began. There is a long record of human-bear conflicts associated with mountain biking in bear habitat including the serious injuries and deaths suffered by bike riders.

The Board of Review expanded upon established hiker advice to be vigilant, carry bear spray, make noise, dont run from encounters and dont hike alone. For mountain bikers, it produced an eight-suggestion list that focused on the different ways bikes and bears interact. Those included calls to ride slowly because bears encountered at high speed are more likely to react defensively and injure bikers.

The make noise suggestion was amplified by the observation that mountain biking is a quiet and fast activity that may cause you to get much too close to a bear before either you or the bear knows it, resulting in a surprise encounter and a defensive attack by a surprised bear.

The list warned against riding at dusk or dawn because of the reduced ability to be aware of surroundings at times when bears are most active; and to avoid thinking, It wont happen to me.

That kind of attitude is what can get you in serious trouble whether you are mountain-biking or doing any other potentially dangerous activity, the list stated. Be prepared and be safe. That way you can enjoy your activity and you and the bears will be safe.

The list concluded with the reminder that humans only visit the places bears consider home: Taking these precautions will help keep you safer and reduce the stress and disturbance to bears that live in these places where you choose to occasionally recreate.

A second part of the recommendations addressed new trails in bear country.

Before new trails are opened to mountain biking in bear habitat, particularly grizzly habitat, there should be careful evaluation of the safety and reasonableness of enhancing mountain bike access in these areas where bear density is high, the recommendations stated. That included consideration of sight distances in thick vegetation, the risk of routing trails in feeding areas like huckleberry fields or avalanche chutes and consideration of seasonal closures to biking during feeding times.

Its an issue that needs further consideration, particularly as mountain biking becomes more of an activity, Servheen said. People wanting to go into places where they havent been before. Its something thats fairly new.

Testers bill would create a 3,800-acre Spread Mountain Recreation Area north of Ovando at the request of mountain-biking organizations that hope to ride there. The designation grew out of negotiations between the biking groups, snowmobile clubs and horse-riding organizations seeking a compromise that would increase support for the Senate bill.

Mountain Bike Missoula executive director Ben Horan acknowledged the concern bikers need to show when traveling in bear country, including following the reports suggestions.

Access to backcountry recreation is part of what makes Montana such a great place to live, Horan wrote in an email. Mountain bikers, hunters, and trail runners need to appreciate that we are visitors in wildlife habitat and that our activities expose us to increased risk  It's important to remember that these encounters, while tragic, are incredibly rare.

The Sustainable Trails Coalition supports a nationwide change allowing local wilderness managers to set their own rules on bike access. The House bill puts mountain bikers on the same footing as campers, hikers, hunters and equestrians by restoring federal agency authority to set conditions on cyclists use of trails in wilderness, according to the groups press release.
If you are looking for Taman Negara Tour Packages, quite a few companies are selling them from Kuala Lumpur.





As this national park is one of the must-visit places in Malaysia, this 130 million-year-old rain forest is easily accessible from Kuala Lumpur or KL as it is locally called. The journey there takes around three hours from KL city and can also be done on a day trip.





Most travellers or backpackers who are visiting Malaysia would surely want to look for Taman Negara tour packages and I am writing this article to help you understand what is available, the pro's and con's, and the logistics of visiting Taman Negara.





Taman Negara Tour Packages





The largest national park in Malaysia, Taman Negara was established in 1938 and 1939 as the King George V National Park. It was later renamed to Taman Negara National Park after Malaysia received independence from British in 1957.





Taman Negara is also shared between three states of Malaysia which are Terengganu, Pahang and Kelantan.



A Malayan Tapir is seen in the park area. (Photo from http://duuo2014.weebly.com)

There are a few types of tour packages for Taman Negara National Park and they are offered by selected tour companies in Kuala Lumpur, and also from other states in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur is probably the best route to get there too.





Please note that all tours are a minimum of two persons or 2 to go. If you are a single traveller, you can either wait to see if others are going and then you can join in.





If no one else is going, then you have to pay the two-person price. Alternatively, some Taman Negara packages have single-traveller rates, so please ask about this. The Taman Negara tour packages are;





Taman Negara Day Trip Package





This package is suitable for those who do not have the luxury of time and want to visit the oldest national park in Malaysia in a day trip.





You depart by van as early as 6.00 AM from KL city and arrive there by 9.00 AM for breakfast before heading into the park for some jungle trekking, canopy walk, a riverboat ride and a visit to the 'Orang Asli' or native settlement.





After that, you will head back to Kuala Lumpur and be back for dinner around 8.00 PM. Perfect for those wanting to experience one of the oldest rainforests in the world.





Taman Negara Day Trip Price:

RM 490 per person or 104

Included: Breakfast & Lunch only

Guide: English Speaking Nature Tour Guide



Taman Negara National Park in Pahang Taman Negara 2 Days 1 Night Package Transport: Van both ways included





This overnight package is suitable for those who want to spend the night there and not rush. This package include all of the above plus a night jungle walk and a scenic boat journey to the Kuala Tahan main area of Taman Negara.





The standard accommodation is air-conditioned, attached bathroom with a hot and cold shower. Choice of twin room or dorm is available, but for the dorm rooms, it is shared or common bathroom and also air-conditioned.





Taman Negara 2D/1N Tour Package Price:

Twin Room: RM 500 per person or 106

Dorm Room: RM 450 per person or 95

Included: Lunch, Dinner & Breakfast.

Tour Guide: English Speaking Nature Guide

Transport: Van both ways included





Taman Negara 3 Days 2 Nights Package





This is one of the popular Taman Negara packages where you can spend two nights and take your time to experience the national park.





The first day will be travelling and a boat ride with a night jungle walk. The second day, you will explore the rainforest with trekking to the Taman Negara Canopy Walk.





Lunch and dinner are at a unique floating restaurant where local Malaysian food is served. A river rapid boat ride takes you to the 'Orang Asli' settlement and after dinner, it is free and easy.





You can also go for the optional night safari on a 4WD to see the nocturnal wildlife here.





Taman Negara 3D/2N Tour Package Price:

Twin Room: RM 550 per person or 117

Dorm Room: RM 490 per person or 104

Included: 7 Meals

Tour Guide: English Speaking Nature Guide



Mutiara Taman Negara Resort Transport: Van both ways included

Taman Negara 4 Days 3 Nights Package





This package is for those who want to fully experience Taman Negara National Park. This package lets you stay here for three nights and is similar to the 3D/2N.





But on the 3rd day, you have a waterfall visit and also a 3 km rainforest trek, or choose to have a free and easy time to explore on your own.





Taman Negara 3D/2N Tour Package Price:

Twin Room: RM 550 per person or 117

Dorm Room: RM 490 per person or 104

Included: 10 Meals

Tour Guide: English Speaking Nature Guide

Transport: Van both ways included





Taman Negara Real Inner Jungle Package





This package is suitable for those who are Eco and nature lovers. In other words, the Real Inner Jungle package lets you experience living in the rainforest.





The tour brings you to a couple of caves where you can do some cave exploration. Then you spend a night at one of the caves and experience cooking in the jungles. Other days, you do some jungle trekking





Taman Negara 3D/2N Tour Package Price:

Twin Room: RM 550 per person or 117

Dorm Room: RM 490 per person or 104

Included: 10 Meals

Tour Guide: English Speaking Nature Guide



Taman Negara Canopy Walk, one of the longest in the world. Taman Negara Daily Shuttle Service Transport: Van both ways included





There are also daily transport services to Taman Negara from Kuala Lumpur for those who just need a one-way transport there. Departures are 6.00 AM or 8.30 AM from KL with a three-hour journey to the national park.





Price: RM 95.00 per person one way (20)

Journey: By air-condition van, three and a half hours





What to bring to Taman Negara?





This is a crucial question. Well, since you are visiting a rainforest, it is recommended that you prepare yourself for all kinds of conditions.





As this is a rainforest, you can expect rain on occasion. Apart from that, this is a tropical country, humidity is especially higher in the rainforest. This will help you to prepare for what to bring.



Poncho, raincoat or umbrella

Bug or mosquito spray or cream

Water bottle or energy drink

Slippers, waterproof or trekking shoes

Snacks or energy bars

Dry bag or waterproof phone and camera casing

Mutiara Taman Negara Chalets How to book Taman Negara Tour Packages



Several travel agents are selling these packages and one of the recommended ones are Ivy Holidays, who operates from Jalan Petaling or Chinatown in Kuala Lumpur city. Several travel agents are selling these packages and one of the recommended ones are Ivy Holidays, who operates from Jalan Petaling or Chinatown in Kuala Lumpur city.





The tour counter location is inside the Kompleks Selangor (Selangor Complex) where the 5 Elements Hotel is located. Another landmark is also opposite the Swiss-Inn Hotel Kuala Lumpur.



Ivy Holidays offers daily shuttle service to Taman Negara and also different types of packages to suit your time and style of travel.





They have brand new vans, with great interior and comfortable seats while the drivers and guides are professional in all ways when it comes to travelers or tourist.









Ivy Holidays

Contact: +6 010 900 8699

Email: marketing@ivyholidays.com

Inside the 130 million-year-old rainforest of Taman Negara (Photo by www.fuesseimsand.de) Conclusion You can contact them via mobile phone, Whatsapp or email and they speak fluent English.Contact: +6 010 900 8699Email: marketing@ivyholidays.com





For those who are into nature, outdoors and adventure, you can also read my article on Canopy Walks of Malaysia where most of them are located in national parks around Malaysia.





The country is rich with natural attractions as there are more than 20 national parks all over the country. There are hundreds or even thousands of flora and fauna available for any Eco tourism lover.





For anyone who has one or two extra days in Kuala Lumpur and does not know what to do, a visit to Taman Negara would be very interesting.





Apart from KL City being just like any other city, it is always a bonus to see the real Malaysia by visiting one of the oldest national parks in the world.





This article, hopefully, sheds some valuable information about the many types of Taman Negara Tour Packages sold for those interested in visiting this amazing place.
Some volunteer firefighters are worried the construction of a new justice building in Hamilton might be funded using dollars once set aside to replace important firefighting equipment.

In an open letter, seven current and retired firefighters said the city has diverted about $300,000 from Hamilton Volunteer Fire Departments capital improvement program into a fund designated to build a justice center.

Hamilton Mayor Jerry Steele called that a total fabrication on their partthe city has never denied fire department expenses.

At issue is the Hamilton Fire Departments capital improvement program, which is financed with tax money collected in the rural portion of the Hamilton Fire District.

Hamilton Fire Chief Brad Mohn said taxpayers in the rural district typically contribute about $170,000 to that fund.

In the past, all of that money went into the fire departments capital improvement program fund, which paid for a variety of new firefighting equipment.

In 2012, Mohn said the city decided to allocate half of those tax receipts to pay for operational costs of the city fire department.

The city department often responds to fires in the Hamilton rural district, as well as provides mutual aid to other fire departments in Ravalli County.

Steele said the city isnt allowed to allocate any of the taxes collected from the rural fire district for anything other than fire department expenses.

It costs money to change oil in those trucks, pay for liability insurance and maintain the place to house all that equipment, Steele said. If you take three trucks up the Lost Horse, it costs the city more than driving to a fire on Second Street. Nothing is free. It costs money to operate the city fire department. Weve opted to use some of that rural money to pay for those expenses.

Steele said the city is in the process of negotiating a new contract with the rural district.

The city has also been setting aside money in its own capital improvement fund to pay for a new justice center. Steele said there is about $700,000 in that fund.

City voters are currently in the process of deciding whether the city will buy the old National Guard armory building and Claudia Driscoll Park in a mail ballot bond election.

If voters approve the bond, the city plans to renovate the old armory building into a new justice center.

Were still working with an architect on plans for that building, Steele said. If the bond issue fails, we will have to do something different.

In the meantime, Steele said the city has never denied a request from the city fire department to upgrade its equipment.

Mohn said while thats true, he does worry about the pressing need to replace a 1989-vintage city engine that is expected to cost about $500,000.

We wont have that much in a capital improvement fund, he said. My worry is that in 2019, we are going to have to run a public safety levy to pay for that truck.

The department will also need to replace the air-tank equipment they require to enter burning buildings in the near future, which Mohn said will cost somewhere between $150,000 and $200,000.

Mohn said he knows that money is tight from the federal level all the way down to the local governments, but in his mind, there is no room to take shortcuts when it comes to providing the equipment that volunteer firefighters need to stay safe.

The amount of money that these volunteer firefighters save the community every year is tremendous, Mohn said. The departments budget is minimal compared to other budgets. Im not willing to negotiate the safety of these volunteers. Theres no room for negotiation when it comes to providing them with the equipment they need.

Mohn said the department hasnt faced this issue before.

We have always had the money in the capital improvement program. In 2019, we wont have the money that we need.
Corvallis schools are celebrating Music in our Schools Month by engaging music educators, staff, students and the community to promote the benefits of high-quality music education programs.

The Corvallis middle school and high school are celebrating with a variety of activities, including competitions, journal writing, 3-D printing of instruments, composing songs with coding, a poetry contest with music as the theme and performances around the community.

The idea is to advocate for music education, said Emily Athman, Corvallis music educator. The majority of the students in the middle school are involved in a music class, so it just seemed natural to have a time in the school year to celebrate music. The students and teachers are having a blast with all the activities!

The National Association for Music Education designated March as Music In Our Schools Month in New York in 1973. It grew to become a month-long celebration of school music in 1985.

Athman said this is the second year that Corvallis jumped on board the celebration. The month is half over and they have held a middle school Solo Night, where any orchestra or band student could perform, and participated in Montana Youth Sing, where 20 schools joined for a choral festival in Frenchtown. The 7th and 8th grade band participated in the University of Montana band festival.

Classroom activities include music trivia Mondays in the middle school. Orchestra classes are designing instruments of the future. And high school science classes are 3-D printing violins, ukuleles and guitars.

The middle school is hosting guest musicians in the classroom, staff are sharing music that inspires them, computer science classes are using coding to compose songs and the school is having a poetry contest with music as the theme.

Athman said she did a writing activity with middle school students where they were asked to complete the sentence: "We are lucky to have music in our school because...''

Sixth grader Amare Auch said "music is way to express who you are. Seventh grader Jacob Loran sai music "teaches us about different cultures around the world. And seventh grader Tim Hickey said music "helps to calm your feeling and to satisfy your emotions.

Eighth grade students also shared their insight on music.

Zach Pintok said music makes him "free in a way. We are allowed to hear the thoughts of other people through music. Marshall Fehr said music "brings happiness to some people. And Sofia Frongillo said music "is another way (for) kids to express how they feel inside.

The celebration will continue in the second half of March with school activities and community performances.

On Monday, March 13, the 5th and 6th grade choir will perform at 1:30 p.m. at The Remington in Hamilton. The 7th and 8th grade band will join other valley schools for a band festival and be part of a 7 p.m. concert at Frenchtown High School.

Tuesday, March 14, there is a 5th grade orchestra performance at 6:30 p.m. at Corvallis Middle School. Wednesday, March 15, the 7th and 8th grade choir will perform at 1:30 p.m. at Sapphire Lutheran Homes in Hamilton. Also on March 15, the Corvallis High School Mens Chorus will perform at 1 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Hamilton.

For more information, check the CMS Twitter, Corvallis School District Facebook page, and NAfME's social media.

The students and teachers are having a blast with all the activities, Athman said. I hope more valley schools will join the celebration in the future and we can continue to collaborate. That's what it is all about, joining together as one to share in the wonder that is music.
The Iditarod sled dog race is underway in Alaska and the students in Joy Yoakums second-grade class have studied up and are cheering for their choice of musher to win.

The students are charting the course and marking off the progress of the race that started in Fairbanks last Monday.

The winner may reach Nome by Tuesday.

Yoakum, retiring in June, said she has presented an Iditarod unit in her classes for 15 years as a platform for learning about many topics.

We call it a cross-curricular unit, Yoakum said. It is so exciting for the kids and they get so much information out of doing everything. This brings in math, geography and social studies.

She introduces the unit a week before the race and the students look at the entries and select a musher to cheer.

Then the race runs 10 to 15 days and we follow it to the end because they want to see how their musher does, she said. I talk to them about who the main entries are and who has performed well in the past. Nathan selected musher Nathan Schroeder because he has the same name.

The students had a treat Friday when local musher Brandi Williamson brought her equipment, including two sleds and three of her dogs, to school.

Williamson, with her husband and two sons, own the BY DOG kennel in Corvallis. She owns 10 Siberian huskies, competes in races and just enjoys mushing.

They are part of the Bitterroot Mushers, the group that puts on the local sled dog competitions.

Williamson said she first tried mushing about nine years ago.

I had a friend who said she had an extra sled and a lead dog so I tried it and said, Yeah, were doing this, she said. It is addictive if you do it once.

Williamson cautioned that it is a lifestyle.

Youre doing it 24/7 and youve got to really like picking up dog poop, she said. The dogs are self-grooming except for just around their collar.

Williamson shared the good aspects and the hazards of racing. She shared the tools of the trade with the students, including dog booties.

You put these on the dogs feet to protect them, she said. I dont have to put them on my dogs feet because we dont run far and I run Siberians - they have tough feet. I have the booties because sometimes we do need them.

Williamson described a piece of equipment called snow hooks as emergency parking breaks for sleds.

You have to have snow or it doesnt work, she said. This digs into the snow and so you need deep snow. I guess you could hook it around a little tree.

The students have been watching videos of the mushers and knew them by name. They had also read all the books Williamson recommended.

Williamson brought a special two-section cooking pot used by mushers. The students already knew what the large cooking pot was for and how to use it.

In the Iditarod they rely on it being cold, Williamson said. When it has been not cold, above the temperature of a freezer, it causes problems. They send food to all the checkpoints and if it is warm, it thaws it and the food goes bad. But the mushers need this two-section cooking pot so they can warm up the food.

Williamson said she initially bought the cooking pot because she was gearing up to participate in the Race to the Sky, Montanas premier sled dog race held each year in February.

She has not done it yet.

The big problem is I dont have enough dogs right now for those big races, she said. The big races take 12 to 16 dogs.

The students were thrilled to hear that Williamsons 4-year-old son competed in his first sled dog race this year.

They have pee-wee races so little kids can do it, too, she said. Ive brought his sled to show you. We host a pee-wee race in January and well even provide the sled and dogs if you want to race.

Williamson showed magazines featuring the many forms of mushing including bike jore, dry land mushing, Iditarod, skijoring with dogs or horses, and fan harnesses used over flat tundra or crevasses.

Williamson said she was cheering for Aliy Zirkle and a big cheer went up as several students had also selected her. Other top picks included Jessie Royer (in third place as of Friday), Jeff King, Dallas Seavey and Scott Smith.

The thing with the Iditarod is you dont know who won until it is over, Williamson said. Lots of stuff changes during the race. Some mushers have to drop out because their dogs arent feeling well. Some mushers come from way in the back. A lot of stuff happens.

The class went outside where there were a few piles of snow but temperatures were nearly 60 degrees.

It was windy but that did not stop curiosity.

Williamson showed the gear that mushers wear and taught how to load a sled. She brought out three gray-and-white Siberians from their cozy trailer stalls. Children could climb on the sleds and pet the dogs, who were appreciative of neck rubs.

The students had learned the details and names of the positions of the dogs in their stations in front of the sled: wheel dogs, swing dogs and lead dogs.

Yoakum said her Iditarod unit takes about two and a half weeks total.

It is such a fun unit, Yoakum said. I mean, who doesnt love dogs, competition and snow? The Iditarod has it all.
Darby schools have scheduled two public forums on Thursday for an update on the $3 million Lorentzen Endowment.

The endowment is a 2015 gift from Archie and Sue Lorentzen, who died within days of one another in 2014, and who left no stipulations on how the money was to be spent.

At the forums, Darby Public Schools and the Darby School Lorentzen Committee will present a report on funds used, the spending policy and plans for the fund.

We will then host small-group discussions regarding community and school priorities and projects as we look towards the future, said Shelby Rogala, community outreach coordinator.

Rogala said Darby Public Schools are excited to continue the tradition of meeting with the community at the Second Annual Community Forum.

We look forward to exploring the possibilities the Lorentzen Gift can provide for our students and community, she said.

The school hosted a community forum last year and had nearly a hundred participants. That conversation helped the school create a list of priority projects for the school and community.

The community input is really important to us moving forward and determining where we allocate the funds, Rogala said.

The Darby School Lorentzen Committee comprises community members, Darby school faculty, staff, parents, community members and administration members who manage the fund.

Darby Superintendent Loyd Rennaker will present the progress that the committee has made in the past year.

Hell share what weve moved on, what investments weve made. The big one is the high-speed internet and bringing Century Link down to the Darby area, Rogala said. On that, as far as I know, everything is ready to go. We are just waiting for some hardware to be set up. I hope that that will be in place by the 16th.

Rogala said the school is directing all community questions about high-speed internet to Century Link.

Rogala said she hopes community members will share what they would like to see at the school to benefit student experience and education, as well as enrich the community.

Were excited to have any and all community members with a stake in Darby school attend, Rogala said. Maybe they used to attend Darby school, have kids or grandkids that attend, or are just invested in Darby community and want to see it grow and thrive. Were looking forward to having a conversation to look at where the school needs and community needs can intersect and grow. We want to meet the potential that Darby has.

Rogala said her position as community outreach coordinator came about because of the forum last year.

The forums are set for 2-4 p.m. and from 5-7 p.m. on Thursday, March 16, at the Darby Community Clubhouse. Reserve a place by contacting Rogala at srogala@darby.k12.mt.us or by phone at 406-821-1312.

If someone cant attend," Rogala said, "they can email me ideas.
They don't look like much, but its hard to overstate the threat posed by aquatic invasive species like zebra and quagga mussels to Montana's public waterways - and all the waterways downstream in other states.

Its terrifying, explained Heidi Sedivy, the program manager for the Flathead Basin Protection Fund.

During an informational talk at the nonprofit Clark Fork Coalition Wednesday, Sedivy said the Columbia River watershed is the last watershed in the lower 48 states that is currently free from nonnative zebra and quagga mussels, which originated in Eastern Europe.

Western Montana represents the headwaters of the Columbia watershed, and alarm bells all over the state were raised when mussels were detected in the Tiber Reservoir in north-central Montana late last year  meaning the entire Missouri River watershed is essentially doomed.

The incident led Montana Gov. Steve Bullock to declare an environmental disaster emergency and form a special advisory council. Almost overnight, Glacier National Park and the Blackfeet Reservation closed lakes off to boaters. But experts say there is still time to protect the western half of the state, where water flows to the Pacific.

Once Eastern European mussels invade a large waterway in North America, they are impossible to eradicate completely with current technology. In the absence of natural predators, a female zebra or quagga mussel can lay up to a million eggs per year. The mussels are filter feeders and quickly reproduce to occupy every substrate under the water, then strip the entire water body of the microorganisms that form the building blocks of the entire food chain.

When invasive mussels take over, they kill off native mussels, native crayfish, frogs and fish and therefore the birds that feed in the lakes. Its devastation that leads to a loss of property values and kills off the outdoor recreation industry, as seen in lakes in the Midwest where invasive mussels have established themselves for a long time.

Sedivy showed a picture of an unfortunate lake in the Midwest where managers had drawn down the water level expecting to find a small population of mussels, but were shocked to see the entire bed of the lake  every rock, log and patch of mud  covered. The mussels will clog irrigation pipes and intakes. Its estimated that billions of dollars of damage would be done if they were to establish in the Columbia River Basin, of which the Clark Fork River is a major contributor.

They create a huge problem for the whole ecosystem, Sedivy said. Fish cannot spawn and they drastically alter the food chain. They are knocking on the door. Theyre right around the corner.

Just last week, game wardens in Idaho intercepted two people hauling boats towards Montana that were infected with mussels. Because places like Lake Havasu in Arizona and the Great Lakes are filthy with mussels, out-of-state boaters present a considerable risk. But Sedivy is just as concerned with people jumping from one waterbody to another waterbody just within Montana. Mussels attach to almost any surface  including fishing waders  and can survive without water for up to a month.

Sedivys organization, along with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and numerous other nonprofits and government agencies, are planning on attacking the problem head-on this summer.

There will be 34 inspection stations, and boaters can view a map to see the nearest one. Dogs are adept at detecting the presence of mussels, so they'll be deployed at checkpoints.

There will be inspection officials at many lakes in Montana, and boaters will need to have an inspection permit or face a fine. Sedivy said people who think they may have been on mussel-infected waters can call her office or FWP and get a free inspection or decontamination.

Essentially, mussels are killed by being submerged in 140-degree water for at least 10 seconds, so even a hot car wash may not do the trick. People should make sure their boating and fishing gear is always cleaned and bone dry between moving from waterways, and boats that are moored overnight in mussel waters pose the greatest risk. Montana lawmakers are evaluating a series of recommendations for preventing, detecting and containing mussels and other invasive species.

As weve seen in other states, mussels and other invasive aquatic species have the potential to wreak havoc once theyre established  both ecologically and economically, said Karen Knudsen, executive director of the Clark Fork Coalition.

For more information, visit the Montana Mussel Response Facebook page.
Photo

One day after Muhammad Ali Jr. spoke with members of Congress about being detained at a Florida airport last month, he was briefly stopped again before boarding a flight on Friday afternoon, his lawyer said.

When Mr. Ali, whose father died last year , arrived at Reagan National Airport in Washington on Friday for a flight to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., he gave his Illinois identification card to a JetBlue agent to get his boarding pass, said his lawyer, Chris Mancini, who was traveling with him and witnessed the episode. Almost immediately, Mr. Ali was told that there was a problem and that the agent needed to call the Department of Homeland Security, Mr. Mancini said.

Mr. Ali, 44, was asked his date of birth, where he was born and his Social Security number, Mr. Mancini said. After answering the questions, he was told that his Illinois-issued identification card, which expires in 2019 but is not a drivers license, was invalid for flying.

The same state ID from Illinois that he traveled to Washington on was rejected, Mr. Mancini said in an interview on Friday night. Mr. Ali then produced his United States passport, which was accepted, and went through security and boarded the flight with his mother, Khalilah Camacho-Ali, the second wife of Muhammad Ali, and Mr. Mancini.

Mr. Mancini said that the episode lasted between 20 and 25 minutes. This whole thing smacks of some sort of retaliation for his testimony, he said.

Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Democrat of Florida, was on the same flight, and posted about the episode on Twitter , saying that Mr. Ali had been detained again.

In a statement, the Transportation Security Administration disputed that the holdup at the ticket counter lasted long and said that Mr. Alis jewelry caused a seven-minute delay at the security checkpoint. The agency said that it did not have the authority to detain passengers.

Upon arriving at the airline check-in counter, a call was made to confirm Mr. Alis identity with T.S.A. officials, the agency said. When Mr. Ali arrived at the checkpoint, his large jewelry alarmed the checkpoint scanner. He received a targeted pat-down in the area of his jewelry to clear the alarm and was cleared to catch his flight.

An agency spokesman did not immediately respond to a question about what prompted the additional scrutiny of Mr. Alis identification.

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Mr. Mancini said he was baffled by the agencys statement because Mr. Ali did not complain about his treatment at security, only at check-in. Mr. Mancini said he was helping Ms. Camacho-Ali through the checkpoint and did not notice that Mr. Ali had been stopped for additional scrutiny.

They are making up stories, he said. We have never said anything about anything happening after he left the ticket counter.

He said he planned to file a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security and was working toward a lawsuit.

People need to start paying attention to whats happening in our country, he said. Our rights are being eroded.

ADVERTISEMENT Continue reading the main story

The dispute between Mr. Ali and the Homeland Security Department, which oversees the T.S.A., follows an episode on Feb. 7 in which he and his mother were stopped for about an hour and a half at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport after returning from Jamaica.

Mr. Mancini said then that Customs and Border Protection officials had asked Mr. Ali, Where did you get your name from? and, Are you Muslim?

Mr. Ali and his mother recounted their ordeal at a forum with House Democrats on Thursday and both spoke out against President Trumps new travel restrictions. I believe they were religiously and racially profiling me, Mr. Ali said of the officials , according to reports.

When they arrived at the airport on Friday, Mr. Mancini said, he and Mr. Ali joked about whether they would face additional scrutiny because of his comments.
Hundreds of Thousands of Private Medical Records at Stake in Oregon Courts

The privacy risk to 250,000 patients is very real.



Paul Stanford speaking at the Seattle Hempfest, the largest hemp festival in the world, in 2010.

Photo: Hempstalk



(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Over 250,000 private medical records, submitted by patients seeking medical cannabis recommendations in Oregon, Washington, California, Michigan and Hawaii have been forcibly removed by a for-profit Canadian company through a hostile takeover of the Empower Clinics, formerly known as the THCF Clinics.

THCF Clinics were founded by longtime cannabis and industrial hemp activist Paul Stanford in 2001.

With Stanford at the helm, THCF Clinics were the first to set up in many states with legalized medical cannabis, specifically Oregon, where patients must submit their medical histories to qualify for a medical cannabis recommendation.

Through an incomplete deal with Canadian venture capitalists affiliated with the oil and mining industries as well as the worlds most profitable cannabis businesses, Stanfords businesses have been forcibly taken over and the patient database is now in use by Canadian companies seeking to capitalize on the databases research potential.

Paul Stanford is defending himself in Multnomah County Court in Portland, Oregon, and is also raising funds to file suit in British Columbia to bring the medical records back to Oregon and take them out of commercial use.

For more information and backstory:

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Two California state senators think the solution to the states teacher shortages can be found in its tax code.

If it passes, Senate Bill 807 would exempt teachers with more than five years of experience from paying state income taxes for the next ten years. That would essentially give every veteran teacher a 4 percent to 6 percent raise overnight. The bill also hopes to remove some of the barriers for new teachers entering the profession by giving them tax credits to help cover the costs of the trainings required to become a fully certified teacher in the Golden State.

Teacher Beat talked with Bill Lucia, the president and CEO of EdVoice, the nonprofit behind the campaign, about the details of the proposal and whether the bill is politically viable.

Why is this bill necessary?

Its about thinking differently about these shortages, thinking bigger and bolder than just filling the acute shortages. Its about going beyond the rhetoric that we value teachers. We want to make it a better environment for veteran teachers to stay and make it more appealing for new teachers and career switchers to enter the profession. Because of the cuts during the Great Recession, we are seeing some new teachers having the costs of their training deducted from their paychecks.

In the past, some of the shortages were handled because they were partly artificialstemming from choices like class-size reduction policies. So the way to deal with those shortages was granting class-size waivers, but the shortage we have today is a shortage of warm bodies when class sizes are already reaching into the 30s and 40s. You can repeal class-size limits, but you cant repeal demography. Over a third of our teachers are over 50. We have 6,100 people leading classrooms who just have a fingerprint background check and nothing else, no training to be a teacher. These emergency-permit teachers are in charge of educating 155,000 kids a day. So far weve just been tinkering around the edgespolicies like loan forgiveness if teachers commit to teach in hard-to-staff schoolsbut not doing anything to tackle the underlying problems.

Is this really the best use of resources, what about increasing state aid to schools?

We have dug ourselves out of the recession. Were in the black. The voters have approved new taxes. So the question is: If you really believe in what the state constitution says, that education is the states number one priority, lets make sure teachers are really considered important going forward. By going at this through the tax code, we are not taking money out of other areas of the school budget. Looking at the states general fund, this is like half of 1 percent of the $122.8 billion budget. In California, we dont have a statewide salary schedule, each district has one, but what the governor and legislators do have is the tool of the tax code.

Is anything like this happening elsewhere in the country?

This would be novel. While some states dont have any income tax, we would be the only state in the nation to have exemptions for teachers. Some states have explored tax credits to help teachers pay for supplies in their classrooms. In California, the training costs that teachers can incur, depending on the district, can range from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. We dont know of any proposal like this that has gotten as far as people in the governors office weighing whether to suggest a veto.

How do you make sure the teachers youre recruiting and retaining are great educators?

We know that training, is an important ingredient, we dont take issue with all the training requirements. The commission on teacher credentialing has retooled a lot of requirements, because a California classroom today looks a lot different than in the 1970s. There are 3.9 million kids that are English-language learners and receive free and reduced-price lunch. Its not the same demography that teachers were trained for. Its about recognizing that and getting new teachers trained for that environment. High-poverty schools disproportionally have higher teacher turnover. Often as soon as they get trained, teachers are leaving these schools. We need people committed to staying, who say, I love kids and I want to teach where I grew up, We want to create an environment where those teachers say, Im here because I want to be here, and I can afford to do that. There is no silver bullet. The one thing we do know is figuring out the teacher shortage issues, we talk a lot about teachers being important, but we dont treat the profession that way.

What are the odds this makes it into law?

I dont know the odds, but the chances are better than theyve been in a decade. We can afford it, we have the money in the general fund and voters have committed to higher taxes for the next ten years. We also know we have to do something. Were delighted we have two lead authors in the senate and two coauthors in the assembly. One thing politicians get really shy about is doing anything in the tax code, but our bill is only four pages, you can read it in a few minutes.

So what happens next in this campaign?

We are going to do a statewide poll, we are in the field getting information right now. We want to know outside of the Sacramento echo chamber what do Californians think. We are hearing that voters love it and dont blink at the price tag. We are going to get that information in front of policymakers. Voters know this is important, that we need to do it, so its about making sure the policymakers feel comfortable that the state is behind them.
Hancock College launched its Love Your Club campaign last week, hoping the community will show its love and support by donating online to 10
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GUATEMALA CITY  When the trial of Guatemalan General and former de facto head of state Jose Efrain Rios Montt and his then chief of intelligence Jose Mauricio Rodriguez Sanchez began on March 19, 2013, I was in Washington D.C., working with PBS NewsHour correspondent Miles O'Brien on some new science reporting projects in a shared office. The first time I went to Guatemala was around 1989, during the country's 36-year internal armed conflict  I was a teenager, and the experience was one of the most important and formative of my life. My interest in the peace and justice process following the end of the armed conflict and the lives of the Guatemalan people, has only grown since. So I was happy to learn that Guatemalan independent online media groups were in the courtroom with laptops and modems, live-streaming video and audio of tribunal proceedings.

I tuned in as soon as court opened at 8:30 every morning, Guatemala time. And in our shared D.C. office, over a course of weeks, every day Miles and I worked while listening to audio streaming over the internet from that courtroom far away in Guatemala City. The background audio of our workdays included witness testimonies; defense lawyers yelling at the judges; and elderly Ixil Maya women weeping as they re-told the horrors of being raped, and watching their children, brothers, mothers, and grandfathers be killed.

Both of us were trying to do other work at the time, unrelated to this story. But neither of us could turn away, or turn off the audio, even as the stories grew more graphic, more upsetting, more awful with each witness. Imagine the worst possible thing one human being can do to another. Each testimony was like that, but each in a new and seemingly more horrific way than the last.

During one of my trips to Guatemala in the 2000's, I produced a documentary series for National Public Radio about the role science and technology played in some interesting stories related to peace and justice, and related to social and economic development for the country's majority population who are poor and indigenous. Some of the episodes focused on entities such as the Guatemalan Forensic Anthropology Foundation (FAFG) and the Project for the Recuperation of the Historic Archives of Guatemala's National Police (AHPN)  groups that have produced forensic and documentational evidence that became central to the 2013 Rios Montt genocide tribunal.

Miles and I listened to those 2007 NPR reports together during a long car ride after the genocide trial began. And after we'd listened to the last one together, we agreed that revisiting those projects, those people, and the question of what role science plays in this process  that all of this would make a really great NewsHour story. And luckily for us, NewsHour agreed.

Within a few days, we were off to New York and Connecticut to interview anthropologist Victoria Sanford, mapping expert Russell Schimmer, and filmmaker Pamela Yates, who famously interviewed Rios Montt in 1982. That interview was introduced as evidence in the trial, and the General himself watched silently as the video played in the courtroom.

Then, we flew to Guatemala City, to observe the trial, and interview people on both sides of the genocide debate. Miles spoke with Rios Montt's daughter Zury Rios Montt; and with his longtime advisor Harris Whitbeck  who ran the regime's "Frijoles y Fusiles" (Beans and Bullets) aid program in the Guatemalan Highlands, and coordinated support with American Evangelical aid groups, including those led by popular television evangelists Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson.

An Ixil man prays inside the central Catholic church in Nebaj, El Quiche, Guatemala. During Rios Montt's regime, Ixil women say Army soldiers held them captive in this church and gang-raped them repeatedly. President Otto Perez Molina, then a General in the Guatemalan Army, held a commanding role in Nebaj at the time.

Rios Montt was trained at the U.S. Army's School of The Americas; the Guatemalan government and Army received funding, military training, weapons, and essential equipment such as helicopters directly from the U.S. (and through our allies: Israel and Taiwan, among others). President Ronald Reagan was a staunch ally of Rios Montt, even as other lawmakers in Congress and the Senate raised concerns about reports of human rights abuses against indigenous populations. In arguing for more military aid for Guatemala, Reagan once famously said at a 1982 press conference in Honduras that the General had received "a bum rap" on human rights.

The question of who is responsible for atrocities that occurred during the Guatemalan civil war is not just a question for Guatemalans.

In Guatemala, we also interviewed people from organizations that produced criminal evidence for the trial, including AHPN and FAFG, and Patrick Ball from the Human Rights Data Analysis Group. Our interviews took place in an increasingly polarized climate in Guatemala; rumors were spreading that some trial witnesses and people involved in the prosecution were receiving threats. Some, we were told, were forced to leave the country out of concerns for safety. Paid 20-page inserts by a pro-Rios Montt, anti-genocide-tribunal group appeared in each week's Sunday paper: "The so-called 'genocide' trial is a lie perpetrated by neo-Marxist guerrillas enabled by the Catholic Church," the headlines read.

But the most challenging part of our reporting trip came when we traveled to the Ixil area, to interview Mayan survivors, including a woman who appeared in the tribunal as one of the appoximately 100 "querellantes," or criminal witnesses for the prosecution. We spoke with Jose Ceto Cabo, an Ixil civil war survivor who runs a small NGO that works to aid fellow Ixil survivors, and we listened as seven Ixil men and women from Chajul, Cotzal, Nebaj, and other communties at the center of the genocide trial told us the stories of the atrocities they survived. In the courtroom back in Guatemala City, women covered their faces with traditional woven shawls as a gesture of grief and to hide the overwhelming pain and fear they felt as they re-lived their trauma. In the room in Nebaj where our cameras and lights were set up, this group of men and women chose to show their faces, even as some of them wept and trembled, retelling horrors.

Miles O'Brien with Juana Sanchez Toma, at her home in San Juan Cotzal, El Quiche, Guatemala. She is holding a photograph of her mother, with an orphan their family took in during the armed conflict.

We followed one of these war survivors to her home in San Juan Cotzal. Dona Juana Sanchez Toma offered us coffee grown in a nearby field, cooked over a fire in her dirt-floor hut. Her cat curled up nearby, and a war widow named Dona Inez crushed coffee cherries on a stone metate just outside.

Miles asked Dona Juana if she had any photographs of her family that we might be able to film, to help tell the story. She stepped away, and returned with a weathered, faded print: a smiling teenage girl, and an older woman with a sad, empty expression. The girl was a war orphan their family took in; the older woman was Dona Juana's mother, who was captured and raped not long after her daughter suffered the same.

"They tied her arms and legs and carried her like a dog, when they kidnapped her from our home," Dona Juana told us, weeping again. "They held her in the church, and the soldiers, all of them, they raped her for two weeks."

The photograph was taken after. She soon died, Dona Juana told us, after suffering incalculable physical and psychological trauma.

As we write this blog post, the trial is in its 25th day, after being suspended and restarting and re-suspending a number of times. One of Rios Montt's attorneys, Garcia Gudiel, has just screamed at Judge Yassmin Barrios, "I will not rest until you are in prison." I have been in Guatemala reporting on this story now for more than a month, and each day, it takes some new, unexpected, dramatic turn.

One week ago, President Otto Perez Molina (a former General under Rios Montt, who was implicated by one of the witnesses in the genocide trial) declared an "Estado de Sitio" (State of Siege) in four communities surrounding a U.S./Canadian-owned Escobal silver mine in San Rafael, just east of the capital. By various accounts, more than 8,000 Army and police troops have been sent in to the Siege zone.

I visited the area last Friday, and observed joint military/police checkpoints and interrogations, spoke to guards at the mine, observed sites where violence had taken place, and spoke to members of indigenous and community groups who say that the military occupation is a re-play of the repressive policies of the miltary during the 1980s.

Being in the "estado de sitio" area reminded me of passing through Army checkpoint zones during the war. Camionetas, those brightly colored school-buses, were pulled over by soldiers; all passengers ordered off, all identification checked, some questions asked. Back in the '80s, I was one of the bus passengers myself. And I remember observing that some people pulled off by soldiers were not allowed to get back on the bus.

Dozens of indigenous leaders held a dramatic demonstration inside the Guatemalan congress yesterday, as lawmakers met to consider ratifying (or not) the State of Siege. "Justice! Justice!," they shouted in unison, forcing their way into the congressional chamber, "No to militarization! We have suffered enough under the Army! Get out of our pueblos now!"

Miles has been called back to the U.S., and I must leave Guatemala soon, myself. But I don't want to. The story of these people continues to unfold, and I cannot turn away from it. When I return home, I will be tuned in, just like we were in the early days of the trial.

And I hope, we hope, and they  many of the Guatemalan people  hope that you will, too.

This blog post was cross-published on the PBS NewsHour website. Esteban Castano of Skylight Pictures contributed to the related video report.

RELATED COVERAGE ON BOING BOING:

 Guatemala coverage archives

 Rios Montt trial enters final phase, 75 years sought for genocide

 Guatemalan Government declares State of Siege after Mining Protests (video report)

 Guatemala: The science behind historic genocide trial of General Rios Montt (video report)
The great lyricist Irving Berlin once wrote, 'Anything you can do I can do better; I can do anything better than you'. If we were wondering if anyone had an answer for Chad Stahelski's John Wick Chapter 2 for action film of the year David Leitch's Atomic Blonde just rolled into town spitting lyrics to the tune of this red band trailer.

Agent Lorraine Broughton (Charlize Theron) is equal parts spycraft, sensuality and savagery, willing to deploy any of her skills to stay alive on an impossible mission. Sent alone into Berlin to retrieve a priceless dossier from within the destabilized city, she partners with embedded station chief David Percival (James McAvoy) to navigate her way through a deadly game of spies.

The whole thing starts off with an impressive single take fight between Theron and two baddies in a stairwell. In stunt acting terms that is a long time to be going all out. There is a cheekiness at play here too with some whit and humor. Not going to mention the steamy shots of Theron and Sofia Boutella. Nope.

Golly there are so many good actors backing up Theron in this film! Toby Jones, John Goodman, Eddie Marsan, James McAvoy and the aforementioned Sofia Boutella. Folks, what we have here is a legitimate contender!

Atomic Blonde has its World Premiere at SXSW this coming week. Fingers crossed someone from our team at ground zero can let us know how team Atomic Blonde fares.
French writer/director Olivier Assayas, turned 62 this year. He doesn't look it though. He is an ultimate cinema geek - when he talks about filmmaking, you can easily be overpowered by his enthusiasm and fast talking. He hasn't lost the twinkle in his eye. The only giveaway of his age might be his short graying hair.

Assayas' diverse filmography (including Irma Vep, Summer Hours, Demon Lover, Carlos) reflects his tireless exploration of film as a medium. Clouds of Sils Maria, a delicious hall of mirrors meta-film, made an international splash two years ago and made its young American actress, Kristen Stewart a darling of French movie goers. Assayas and Stewart, an unlikely pair, hit it off and now we have Personal Shopper, a marvelous mashup of whatis-it mysteries both natural and supernatural, that is 100 percent Assayas. For me, as of now, Personal Shopper is the hard to beat movie of the year. I met Assayas on a blustery snowy day in March in New York for a brief chat. Honestly, I could listen to him for days.



Screen Anarchy: There is always this fluidity in your films but especially in Personal Shopper, there seems to be surprises at every turn. It was really fun to watch the film! How did this particular script develop?



Olivier Assayas: I think Ive been experimenting more and more in terms of screenwriting. Im just trying things. I've kind of lost interest in the classic dynamics of the narrative, of linear narrative, I would say. For some reason there is something frustrating about it for me, so Im just trying to see by twists and turns and putting on layers, whatever, so I can come up with something thats more exciting for me. I always have this notion that if Im having fun writing it, quite possibly the audience will have fun watching it.



I cant deal any more with traditional steps when you are telling the story. I just want to go straight to moments - I need to write cinematic moments that would make sense once connected together. It feels somehow stronger. I need to feel that because there is so much of corporate industrial filmmaking going on, movies have become totally predictable. Because you have to adopt to standards and if you dont they will think it will have problems with the audiences.



I think its important to move on because filmmaking has so much potential. So I have been describing this movie as a collage which in a way it is - Im using mixed materials to tell my story.



You know when people say cut to the chase and Im constantly cutting to the chase. I am constantly moving to the next exciting moment. But I dont really deal with the connection, I just, (hitting his hands together) hit the two things together. It would be like hitting two stones together to create a spark or something like that.



I think thats the best kind of cinema.



Kristen Stewart is obviously the main character in this and youve made her a big French star now with two back to back films. In our previous conversation when you were presenting Clouds of Sils Maria, you said that Stewarts biggest assets are her youth and her power to go against a legend like Juliette Binoche in that film. How did this continued working collaboration come about?



I think so much of filmmaking is about grabbing opportunities when they come to you. Im not sure why well, I kind of know why. Connecting with Kristen has been an inspiration in a sense that, I would not have imagined that we would click the way we clicked. I mean we met and talked. I liked her work and shed seen a couple of my films that she liked. I thought that it was interesting that this young American actress is interested in my work. I thought if we were gonna work together, something interesting would come out of it. But then I realized that we connected way beyond that. There was something deeper- how we approach filmmaking, how we idealize filmmaking in a certain way, how we live for movies.

There is something very genuine in her in approaching filmmaking. And she is very ambitious in the best sense of the word. She always wants to go beyond whatever she knows how to do or has been doing. She has this feeling that filmmaking is an open space for her.



Ive been trying to break the boundaries of French filmmaking. I always felt trapped, not as much as limited. I am a product of French independent filmmaking in many ways. But simultaneously, its been frustrating to see that there are certain things you can do and cant do in any film culture. At some point there is this framework and Im always excited by whats beyond the framework.



Kristen brings another dimension, which is youth. Its essential. Its vital. Independent filmmaking is kind of losing touch with the young audience.



True.



You know I think its happening all over the world - the indie film crowd is aging. But I think filmmaking has so much to do with youth because the youth is the real audience for cinema. Its a medium for young people so you don't want to lose that audience. You just hope that you connect with it. Beyond anything we do together, Kristen brings me that.

And as a director and an actor, it goes both ways right? And what I can give her is space, time and freedom. Like my movies, indie European films - often we create then while we are doing it. Its not always possible to do that in an American indie framework, unless you are Malick or someone who has been doing that for all his life.



What did she first think about the Personal Shopper script?



She was in Paris for couple of days. And we were like 'lets have a drink together'. We kind of sat down and she asked me what Im up to and I said I was working on a screenplay and she was like, 'oh can I read it?' 'well, yeah sure.' (laughs) And she sent me the document saying that she loved it and would love to do it. And that was pretty much it. I suppose we had couple of short conversations afterwords but nothing much.



What I love about Kristen is that she doesnt ask questions. Most actors, including most interesting, great actors Ive worked with, want me to discuss the psychology of the characters and why this and why that. Kristen doesnt function like that. She connects physically with a character and she considers making sense of it as an actor which is their job. Other actors would take it as that they should somehow contribute. Because Im the director and writer, they want to please me and want to go in my direction. But I dont want that. I want them to bring their own imagination to bring the spark of life to my screenplay. When I finish writing a screenplay, I already went as far as I can go. I need someone to take over the character.



The supernatural element of the film reminded me of Irma Vep. Despite all the glamorous settings, there is something sweet about Maureen being a medium and waiting for her brother to give her a sign. Id call it sweet spirituality. Is it what you were exploring? Some kind of spiritualism against this rather vacuous materialism?



Thats what I was aiming at, I suppose. I wanted to make a movie that dealt with invisible, whatever that invisible is - you can call it spirituality, you can call it ghosts, parallel reality, alternative facts! (laughs). The thing is, there is the material world and there is our inner world however we project ourselves -longing, imagination, into this outside world. All through the ages, every culture in the world, people have had visions, heard voices or projected some of these tendencies to the outside world. So I wanted to deal with that. I was always convinced that cinema was a way of capturing things that are ultimately beyond perception.



Something intangible.



Intangible. And I wanted to explore that. Once you decide to go in that direction, you will be using genre elements because cinema had invented the ways of dealing with that dimension of human experience which is genre filmmaking. Im saying that in terms of films like Vampyr by Dreyer or Nosferatu by Murnau would be considered horror movies today but they are not horror movies. They are films by those directors who tried to cross the dimensions of reality through those specific stories.



So there is Nora Von Wal--



Walstaten.



Who is an Austrian actress, there is Lars Eidinger--



Who is German.



Anders Danielson Lie who is Norwegian in that group as well. Once again, you have this whole international cast working for you. How do you come up with such great actors from all over? Do you cultivate relationships over the years?



You know, I love working with people that I love. Nora has been a friend since we did Carlos together. I've known Lars since Sils Maria and I hope to keep working with those guys. I think its so precious to establish those kind of friendship with your actors. And they happen to be great actors.



When I was talking about opening the boundaries of french filmmaking, it mostly involves working with the actors I love. And making my films in English helps me with that. Its because Ive done a few films in English, all of sudden I can work with German actors and I can work with Anders Danielson Lie whom I think is an amazing actor.



Yes.



You know, I saw him in Oslo, August 31. I thought he was amazing. He has something specifically modern about him that fascinates me. I cant imagine a French actor who wouldve brought the same vibe to that role. So shooting in English opens the possibilities of working with the broad range of actors and in that sense broad range of colors that I can use in my film.



We talked about this before but you were always on the forefront of pushing and discovering film culture from other parts of the world and I still feel you are the only one as a French director who continue to do so.



One thing I found interesting thinking about your filmography - Demon Lover, Boarding Gate and now Personal Shopper. There is this hyper-capitalist element in the background. And I can't help myself thinking that "oh Assayas perhaps is satirizing the highly advanced capitalist society." Is that the case?



Ha ha. Yes. I think its totally over the top ridiculous about fashion world or celebrity worshiping culture but I wouldnt say I am satirizing them. I am presenting them as reality. That there is the side of the world that actually exists.

Personal Shopper is now playing in New York and LA. National roll out will follow next week.

Dustin Chang is a freelance writer. His musings and opinions on everyting cinema and beyond can be found at www.dustinchang.com
A brother, a sister, a goat.

A relaxed charmer, Bad Lucky Goat is some kind of wonderful. It starts with an appetizer that establishes its milieu, a ramshackle island community in the Caribbean. The area is in Colombia, South America, though its residents speak Creole, a distinctive local dialect, rather than Spanish.

Corn is a teenage boy who is trying to earn money for his fledgling band. One day he is sent out in the family pickup truck with his older (though shorter) sister Rita to pick up some market items. Along the way they kill a goat.

That's it, really. The linchpin of the movie is a dead goat!

Of course, there is much more to it than that. By that point, the combative relationship between Corn and Rita has been well established. They are siblings, they are rivals, they fight all the time, they never agree on anything. They are amusing to watch because it's such a familiar, recognizable dynamic. Older audience members can remember their own teen years and shake their heads at how silly it all was.

Yet it didn't seem that way at the time. Samir Oliveros, who wrote and directed, and his talented cast and crew capture a day that is significant to Corn and Rita, though one imagines its significance will only be recognized by them later in life.

After the death of the innocent animal, Corn and Rita must figure out what to do. Later the truck must be used to pick up tourists who will be staying at their family's hotel, and you can't pick up tourists in a truck with a busted fender. Neither has any money, so how to translate empty pockets and the body of a dead goat into the funds needed to repair the truck?

Forced to spend the day together under adverse conditions, Corn and Rita get to know each other as they never have before. The island is beautiful, the weather is gorgeous, and there are Corn and Rita, fighting and fussing with each others. The dialogue sparkles and the young actors give authentic performances. While much of it is presented in a comic manner. the film is thoughtful in allowing more dramatic aspects to sink in as appropriate.

As director, Oliveros has a great eye for composing shots that never feel typical. For as much as Corn and Rita battle throughout the day, the film hangs back, allowing scenes to play out without becoming overly intrusive due to excessive cutting. Some moments glisten and glide, the camera doing all the talking.

An unexpected surprise, Bad Lucky Goat is lively and spry, funny and thoughtful. And, yes, it made me reflect upon my own teen years with regret and appreciation.

The film enjoyed its world premiere at SXSW. It screens again today at 6:45 p.m. and on Wednesday, March 15 at 11:00 a.m.


Gabriel has also called for conventional disarmament while meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov in Moscow. President Putin has invited Chancellor Merkel to visit Moscow.





"We have concerns that we are entering into a new arms race," Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel told his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Thursday during their meeting in Moscow.





Gabriel also warned that Germany would regard any attempt to influence public opinion with the utmost seriousness.





The German politician responded to revelations on Tuesday by WikiLeaks that the CIA had hacked into encrypted messages and used Frankfurt as a base for its digital espionage operations, saying that Germany did not have any information about the cyber attacks. - Read More








The latest salvo in what could be a very long and drawn out battle between Alphabet-owned self-driving car startup Waymo and Uber comes in a court filing formally asking a federal judge to block Uber from using its self-driving car technology until this suit is resolved. The filing comes just after we learned that Uber had finally received permits from the California DMV to operate two of its autonomous Volvos on public streets  something the company did for several days in December without DMV approval.

The lawsuit was filed by Waymo last month, and it alleges that ex-Google engineer Anthony Levandowski, who left the company to launch autonomous trucking outfit Otto with Uber early last year, stole proprietary technology in the process of his departure, and that Uber's entire autonomous car operation is based on that stolen intellectual property.

The emergency injunction filed by Alphabet signals how important the technology is to Waymo's business, as Recode notes, because the company is working to develop its own sensor hardware for vehicles that could then be sold to automakers and others  unlike Uber, which tasked a team at Carnegie Mellon to do this for them.

As The Verge reports, Alphabet forensic security engineer Gary Brown testified in federal court Friday that Levandowski "downloaded 14,000 files from a Google repository that contain[ed] design files, schematics, and other confidential information pertaining to its self-driving car project." Brown further testified that Levandowski used his personal laptop to download the files, and it was relatively easy to track.

At issue was Alphabet's effort to develop the proprietary LiDAR technology (laser radar) that is essential to autonomous navigation, and also testifying today was principal hardware engineer Pierre-Yves Droz, who explained to the court how that technology was developed. According to The Verge, Droz says Levandowski told him in a conversation on January 5, 2016 that "he planned to replicate this Waymo technology at his new company.

Within weeks he would be an employee of Uber, and Uber would have agreed to acquire Otto for $680 million.

One expert tells The Verge that if, after inevitable appeals, Waymo/Alphabet prevails in this case, the fines levied upon Levandowski and Uber could "staggering."

Previously: Uber Will Quit Greyballing And Has Self-Driving Permits And Is Very Good Now, Okay?

Uber Has Waymo Problems: Google Company Sues Over Allegedly Stolen Tech
Speakeasy Ales & Lagers, a 1997-founded craft brewery and taproom in the Bayview-Hunters Point area of San Francisco, is shutting down indefinitely according to an announcement from the business that cited outstanding debt obligations.

On tap across the region and available in cans and bottles, Speakeasy's beers like Big Daddy IPA, Payback Porter, Baby Daddy Session IPA, and the eminently quaffable Metropolis Pale Lager made the brewery one of the most recognized in the region. Speakeasy boasted 30 West Coast distributors and, as of 2011, a tasting room at 1195 Evans Avenue,a tucked-away wood-paneled barroom in an industrial park, that is also closed.

In 2015, Speakeasy, which employed 40 people, undertook a major expansion with a new 60-barrel brewhouse capable of a 90,000 barrels per year. That may have presented a financial risk, reading between the lines of a statement from the company:

Speakeasy Ales & Lagers has been forced to immediately cease brewing, packaging, and tap room operations at their San Francisco brewery for an indefinite period of time. Difficulty securing capital investment and outstanding debt obligations led to this difficult and painful decision. The companys primary creditor will determine the future of the brewery and brand, and no decision or further information is available at this time. According to Speakeasy founder and CEO, Forest Gray, The brewery has worked with multiple investment banking groups and have had numerous meetings. One fact has become central to the process, and that is the company is financially insolvent and requires new capital to move forward. Whether that will happen is unclear, but I do hope the brewery and brand will persist. Speakeasy would like to thank all of the wonderful customers, distributors, vendors, and retail partners who have supported the brewery, as well as current and former staff for their hard work and dedication. The remaining inventory of Speakeasy Ales & Lagers beer has been shipped to distributors and will be available in local and international markets while supplies last. Grab a six-pack of Big Daddy IPA or any other Speakeasy beer to savor the history of this pioneering brewery.

Speakeasy's 1920s, prohibition-era theme and branding, with illustrations of cigar-chomping mobsters and femmes fatales on its labels, adds an unfortunate irony to the shut down. The name for the brewery's most recent beer release, Murky Business American Pale Ale, isn't aging well, for example, although it's possible that it's a dope and brilliant troll regarding creditors.

Notes of pineapple, grapefruit, papaya, and lychee dominate Murky Business APA, our first new release of 2017. https://t.co/sByEe2Ut3R pic.twitter.com/bcybQGBADV  Speakeasy Beer (@SpeakeasyBeer) March 7, 2017

As beer booms across the US and the number of small beer operations in cities like San Francisco returns to pre-prohibition heights, some brewpubs and distribution brewers have found themselves squeezed during expansions. Magnolia Brewing, a pioneering craft beer company in San Francisco, found itself filing for bankruptcy after expanding to the Dogpatch. It's now started to can and distribute its english-style ales, previously only available by the keg or the growler.

Last, the Bayview won't be left completely without craft beer: Laughing Monk Brewing, a small-batch Belgian beer brewer in the neighborhood, opened in 2014.

Related: Magnolia Brewing Files For Bankruptcy, Promises Business As Usual
This week at the SFist food desk we checked out Media Noche, a new cuban counter service spot in the Mission, had word of a $900,000 class action settlement between Tacolicious and workers who alleged they had been denied overtime and legally mandated breaks, and broke bad, not sweet news of Doughnut Dolly's shutdown. We also covered new Brass Tacks owned and adjacent cocktail bar Anina, opened today in Hayes Valley, Fort Point Beer Co.'s Ferry Building expansion effort, and the sudden closure of Speakeasy Ales and Lagers. We also mulled the wise words of billionaire Rainforest Cafe/Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurateur and TV persona Tilman Fertitta, who criticized San Francisco's restaurant regulations like healthcare mandates. Gotta hear both sides. Inevitably there were more dining scene goings on about town:

Eater had more on a forthcoming Hayes Valley seasonal omakase sushi restaurant now calling itself Robin. Chef-owner Adam Tortosa (Akikos, 1760) got served a cease and desist order regarding his original name, The Starling, but had already fallen in love with the logo they'd gotten for themselves. Hence, Robin, which was originally looking to open last December but is now under construction at 620 Gough and hopes to take roost in May.

SF-native siblings Jody Harris and Gingy Harris Gable run the Napa vintner Cultivar Wine and tell Inside Scoop they're bound for Chestnut Street in the Marina. We wanted to bring the Napa Valley experience to people in the city without having them cross the bridge, Jody Harris told Inside Scoop. They hope to have the space open for wine flights this month.

168-year-old Boudin Bakery and its famous sourdough starter were granted Legacy Business status according to the Examiner. As a legacy business, Boudin will receive a $500 grant for each full-time employee per year. Boudin's bakery headquarters are at 10th Avenue in the Richmond.

South, the bar and restaurant at SFJAZZ from Slanted Door restaurateur Charles Phan is closed after four yeas in business according to Hoodline. With Phan out, the space is being renovated for a new concept that could be open as soon as mid-April.

Shorty Goldstein's, a new school Jewish deli in the FiDi, closed yesterday after four years on Sutter Street according to Inside Scoop. The business environment in San Francisco, and especially the Financial District, has changed dramatically," owner Michael Siegel told the Scoop. "It has become unsustainable for us to operate a small independent restaurant in San Francisco... We wish to thank everyone who has supported us throughout the years. Please support your local Jewish deli."

Starting Sunday, March 19, The Presidio Trust and Off The Grid's Presidio Picnic, is bringing lawn games and food vendors to the Presidio Parade Ground. Inside Scoop had the whole lineup for the fifth season of outdoor feasting. Off The Grid is also back for a seventh season of Friday nights at Fort Mason.

Ryan Pollnow will be the new executive chef of the Ne Timeas Restaurant Group (Flour + Water, Aatxe, and Cafe du Nord). Eater reports that founding chef Thomas McNaughton will become the group's CEO and Culinary Director.

Kash Feng, who owns the Omakase Restaurant Group (Omakase and Okane) announced plans to open a new nearby beer and dumpling restaurant, Dumpling Time. Inside Scoop writes that Dumpling Time will have more than 70-seats and observes that Feng, a Xian, China native, thinks its high time for dumpling and beer.  I think the city is ready for what were trying to do, he tells the Scoop.

Namu Noodle, a spinoff of Mission District Korean spot Namu Gaji, has a new pop-up destination in the Outer Sunset. They'll be at Beachside Coffee Bar and Kitchen with braised oxtail shoyu ramen, okonomiyaki, and KFC-style chicken wings  the K for Korean  from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. for "the next few weeks," according to a press release sent by the restaurant.

Eater has a run down on the most anticipated spring openings of the year to look forward to. The list includes casual Meadowood spinoff Charter Oak in St. Helena, a forthcoming rum bar from Thad Vogler (Trou Normand, Bar Agricole), and a casual Divisadero Italian restaurant, from Eleven Madison Park chefs Che Fico.

Saucy Asian, bound for the Castro on 17th Street, has revealed a finalized menu of Korean-California fusion food to Eater. Former Morimoto chef Jericho Hutchison has a "Chipotle-style" setup in mind  choose wrap, bowl, taco, or poke-style at the counter. The team is busy building out the space, and hope it will be open by mid-April.

The SoMa space formerly occupied by Citizen's Band and Pinkie's Bakery is now Anton's Pizza & Deli, reports Hoodline.

Judy Kahn, formerly of Sandbox Bakery in Bernal Heights, has a new bakery, Tablehopper reports. Kahnfections will be confecting biscuits, croissants, scones, and more on 20th Street at Folsom.

Me & Tasty is opening for Thai brunch and dinner later this month, Hoodline writes. "Me & Tasty" are husband-and-wife team Sunsanee Charoenyothin and Chauwalit Srivarawong.

Kagawa-Ya, from chef Sean Lim and wife Katherine Chiao, will be serving the udon noodles you crave next month according to Inside Scoop. The noodle spot will be quick-service in format with hot and cold udon, rice bowls, and more.

Sister owners Saskia and Petra Bergstein are opening a retail outpost and tasting room for The Caviar Company at 1954 Union Street, Eater reports. The Bergsteins also intend to use the space for private tastings.

Finally, Eater's got your cookbook reading list covered with a a roundup of new cookbooks from Bay Area restaurants like Nopalito, Tartine, and Burma Superstar.



This Week In Food Reviews

San Francisco magazine food critic Josh Sens did a double review this month, sampling two new northern Indian restaurants, August 1 Five and Babu Ji. "What they share is a cheeky attitude toward tradition and an endearing openness to adventure," Sens writes. "Although both stay largely faithful to familiar flavors, they are also unabashed about tweaking time-worn dishes or thrusting ingredients into surprising roles." In the end, it was three stars to August 1 Five and two-and-a-half to Babu Ji. "Where August 1 Five leans toward understatement, Babu Ji cheerfully flouts convention."

Chronicle drinks writer Esther Mobley visited what she suspects is the Bayview's only commercial garage winery, Gratta Wines. "Linger at the tasting bar, open Thursday through Sunday, and its easy to forget youre still in San Francisco," writes Mobley. "The whole room smells like sweet, wet bread dough and feels much less like a winery than like a small-town bar, only with much more sophisticated merchandise."

The Weekly's Pete Kane dined at former Tacolicious chef Telmo Faria's Uma Casa, a Portuguese restaurant in the former Incanto space, and it's got him asking how we did without it in the first place. Kane calls the space "romantic... beautifully lit, and as tiled as downtown Santa Barbara." The caldeirada, a stew of sea bass, shrimp, mussels, and potato in a saffron-tomato broth, "was flat-out excellent, partly because saffron is like a wormhole to deliciousness, partly because the flaky sea bass absorbed its essence, and partly because of the reappearance of the wonderful bread from earlier, to scoop up the residual broth."

Kane also popped some bottles at new Hayes Valley champagne barthe Riddler. "In all my boozing, Ive never found a place that mixes highbrow and lowbrow quite like this," Kane bubbles. "It could very well restore your faith in SF."

Oakland's Nido got Chronicle critic Michael Bauer's renewed nod of approval this week: "In four years, with its quirky decor and homey Mexican food that springs from the memories of a first-generation immigrant, Nido has become an integral part of the Oakland community," Bauer writes. The project of Silvia and Cory McCollow, "Silvias food has a quality missing in many Mexican restaurants where the expected offerings of tacos, enchiladas and chile rellenos often feel generic," according to the food critic. "The menu is executed by Jose Ramos, one of the original cooks at Nopalito, but it continues to reflect Silvias origins," Bauer reports, citing carnitas "where the bone is still attached, and the hunks of meat are strewn with streamers of pig ears," and pollo asado "where the chicken is rubbed with guajillo, blackened from the grill, and smothered in a rich barbecue-like sauce." He says, indeed, this is a three-star experience.

And for his Sunday review, Bauer headed to new Polk Street sushi spot Kinjo, which comes to the city via former Sushi Ran chef Takatoshi Toshi, and which opened in early January. Bauer writes, "In the last month, Ive been to seven sushi restaurants, and what sets Kinjo apart is not only the careful sourcing but the way Toshi uses simple ingredients  a sprinkle of salt, three drops of lemon juice or a delicate sansho pepper leaf bring out nuances in fish I never knew were there." He's doubly impressed with a cold-smoked course of three pieces of nigiri, placed under a glass dome with smoking cherrywood chips, of which he says, "While each fish benefits from the smoky sweet infusion, each is distinctive because of the different seasonings and textures of the fish." And, despite it seeming like we're reaching a saturation point when it comes to expensive omakase-style Japanese spots, Bauer says "when one distinguishes itself as Toshi has done at Kinjo, theres always room for one more." All told: three stars.

For his final course of this week's reviews, Bauer also revealed something of a sweet tooth, highlighting a few desserts he's enjoyed recently such as a rhubarb and elderflower custard tart at Frances.
LOS ANGELES  Ana Mulvoy-Ten was given a weekend to figure out how she was going to play a teenage prostitute in the new season of American Crime.

I didnt have any time to talk with anyone, so I watched a channel called John TV. It had all these interviews with prostitutes and it gave a pretty strong idea of who these people were.

Among the biggest revelations: They dont feel sorry for themselves, Mulvoy-Ten says. Theyre very, Thats the way it is.

In the third season of the ABC series, Mulvoy-Tens character meets a social worker (played by Regina King) who wants to help her get out of the business, turn her life around and stand up to her pimp. The decision, however, is difficult.

Mulvoy-Ten, who starred in the Nickelodeon series House of Anubis, says a lot of the women she watched just see prostitution as a career. When they were younger, they had hope. But by the time theyre in their 30s, the hope is gone.

To capture that feeling, the 24-year-old British-born actress says she tried to remove as much emotion as possible. I couldnt relate to her at all  she has this horrible life. Once I realized the compassion I had for her, I was able to figure out what I needed to play.

A scene set in a health clinic, she says, gave her an uncomfortable feeling. She didnt think about her character, but the idea that theres a 17-year-old girl somewhere in the states whos abused by her dad, isnt loved by her mom and is on the streets. Ive seen the footage. I know it exists and that, somehow, was enough for me not to have experience it.

Taking on illegal immigration in this season of American Crime, Executive Producer John Ridley hopes to show the connectivity between people who, seemingly, are unconnected. Felicity Huffman plays the matriarch of a family that owns a farm hiring undocumented workers. Benito Martinez plays a Mexican who travels illegally to the United States to find his missing son  who might be a part of the labor pool forced to live in poverty. Connor Jessup plays a white American male addicted to drugs who tries to get his life back on track when he meets the farms crew chief (played by Richard Cabral). Their lives intersect with Kings and Mulvoy-Tens characters until it becomes clear, as Ridley says, theres a cascade effect. We need to stop thinking about ourselves as isolated individuals. One of the big things about American Crime this year is family. Thats what American Crime is about: people, families, connections, communities.

Mulvoy-Ten says the roles are extremely complex. Whenever I was doing a scene that I thought was really hard, Id just tell myself, Do it justice. Somehow, putting the story out there is, in a very small way, contributing to solving the problems.

The characters Ridley writes, she says, are not easy to watch. Sometimes, Id get home from work and have to go on a run at midnight because I was so overwhelmed with everything I was feeling playing her.

Cabral, who has been in all three of the American Crime seasons, says the series has been life-changing  not only for those who watch but also for those who are in the episodes. A former gang member, he scored an Emmy nomination for his work in the series and has been able to prove to directors he isnt just capable of playing one type of role. The series has given him a future thats really looking endless and allowed him to inspire others.

Thats what Mulvoy-Ten wants to do, too. Its the best role and (the series) has so much to say. I never heard one person complain about the late nights they had to work. They realized how exciting it was to be working with John.

To make sure she wasnt glamorizing the profession, Mulvoy-Ten told Ridley she didnt want Shae, her character, to be a pretty girl. I didnt want to look pretty at all and I got what I wanted.

"American Crime" begins Sunday on ABC.
DAKOTA DUNES | Sara Gotch may not be a household name like Rachael Ray or Ina Garten. Yet.

But the 29-year-old entrepreneur has been test-marketing her healthier alternative to mayonnaise for almost a year.

"I've always liked condiments but didn't like how many calories condiments traditionally contained," she explained at a Dakota Dunes kitchen.

Instead, Gotch came up with a powder formula that can be added to nonfat plain Greek yogurt. Adding a few teaspoons of Gnarly Pepper Like Mayo, you can have the taste of a rich, creamy mayonnaise for less than one-tenth of the calories.

Similarly, she also custom blends an onion dip and veggie dip powder, all under her Gnarly Pepper label.

What makes this amazing is the fact that Gotch isn't a chemist or a"foodie." She's a former full-time graphic designer who simply had a dream of starting her own business.

"They say a true entrepreneur is someone willing to give up a steady 40-hour-a-week job for the opportunity to work 80 hours a week," she admitted with a smile. "Guess that's what makes me a true entrepreneur."

Describing herself as a go-getter, Gotch set out to create her healthy condiment blends for those who are weight-conscious, vegan or allergic to gluten.

While there are an increasing number of vegan and vegetarian options, there was still a considerable gap in nondairy condiments.

"Everyone has weaknesses and, while, portion control is key, a person should feel guilt-free with the dip they devour with their favorite chip or veggie," Gotch said.

"The greatest difference with Gnarly Pepper is that we're creating a new outlook for nonfat Greek yogurt," she said. "We're giving a better take on a healthy base. More than that, we're making that base taste a whole lot better."

Six-ounce pouches of her Gnarly Pepper powders are available for purchase at www.gnarlypepper.com as well as retail stores like Sioux City Gifts, South Sioux City's Hy-Vee and Cork It, among other sites.

Gotch's business acumen has already met with the approval of judges associated with an entrepreneur competition held at Briar Cliff University on Feb. 24. Gnarly Pepper was awarded $1,950 in the contest geared toward young business owners.

"I think millennials seen the world in a way that make us more likely to pursue entrepreneurship," Gotch said. "We want to live our lives and love what we do for a living. Starting your own business means being in control of your destiny."

While Gotch knows she many not become the next big food star, she's OK with that.

However, she'd love to be featured on a show like ABC's "Shark Tank" -- which is the TV equivalent of a business "elevator pitch."

"Testing a business like Gnarly Pepper on a show like 'Shark Tank' would be awesome," Gotch said. "Even if that doesn't happen, I'm still living my dream job."
SIOUX CITY | The Sioux City Police Department is submitting 29 more rape kits to the state for testing in the aftermath of a statewide audit that found more than 4,200 such kits were untested statewide, 275 of them in Sioux City.

Sgt. Ryan Bertrand of the department's Crimes Against Persons unit said the additional submissions are a gesture to go "above and beyond" its current protocol, which is to submit all rape kits that it deems as relevant to evidence in its cases.

He said the presence of untested rape kits does not mean the department is holding back evidence.

The Sioux City Police Department takes every allegation of sexual assault very seriously," Bertrand said. "If there was a kit that we felt was evidence material to a prosecution, that kit -- we want to assure people -- has been sent off already."

Bertrand said the department's untested kits date back to 2006, and those sitting in storage have been deemed as unnecessary to a case.

Examples of when kits are not sent for testing include situations where the department finds out that no intercourse occurred, if the person is being prosecuted without the additional evidence or if the focus of the investigation isn't whether intercourse occurred but whether there was consent, Bertrand said.

"It's tying up state resources if we ask the lab to do an analysis of a kit we don't need the results of," Bertrand said.

A yearlong audit made public by Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller this week showed the state's police and county sheriff's offices have 4,265 untested rape kits in storage.

The state is planning to launch an aggressive effort to analyze the untested rape kits for evidence that could help them find and charge assailants.

Sioux City Police's untested 275 rape kits is the fourth-most in the state. Sioux City is Iowa's fourth-largest city. Rape kits are collected at both Sioux City hospitals.

Since the beginning of 2012, the department has submitted 376 sexual assault kits, Bertrand said. Bertrand said the department plans to continue its current protocols for submitting kits.

Iowa law requires law enforcement agencies to retain sexual assault kits for 10 years for adult victims, and for 10 years following a minor victims 18th birthday.
SIOUX CITY | U.S. Rep. Steve King isn't certain when his next town hall in Iowa's 4th District will be held, but the Republican said he's concerned about paid protesters turning up to disrupt other public meetings hosted by GOP members of Congress.

"People come in and, you know, they are angry and shouting and on the borderline violent," King said in a Journal interview this week. "That just discourages the kind of dialogue that can make our country better. The people on the left, that may be the only card they think they've got to play. But they are actually hurting the system and to a degree they are undermining the election process."

The town hall meetings have gotten raucous in Iowa and nationally. People dismayed with the opening weeks of complete federal government control by Republicans and President Donald Trump have vented about health care and other issues.

King said some people at the events are paid by liberal groups backed by Democratic billionaire George Soros.

The fact-checking organization PolitiFact notes that other Republican officials who have made similar allegations have provided no evidence to support their claims. "Its possible some protesters somewhere may be paid, but theres zero evidence of a wide-ranging conspiracy to bring in paid activists to disrupt meetings," PolitiFact reported last month.

King initially said he held town hall meetings in Emmetsburg and Estherville on March 4. When questioned further, he acknowledged they were Saturday morning forums for state legislators who represent the Iowa Great Lakes region. The Eggs & Issues forum hosted by the Emmetsburg Chamber of Commerce drew about 100 people.

"I shared those venues with a state representative and state senator in each of those cases. We just did a typical town hall," King said.

"..There was some contention that was there. But I also know that some of those people that came were sincere and they were legitimate and their arguments needed to be heard."

U.S. Sens. Charles Grassley and Joni Ernst held late February town hall meetings, where lots of angry people and supporters showed up. Ernst has slated two more on March 17 at colleges in Iowa's two largest cities, Des Moines and Cedar Rapids.

At an Iowa Falls forum, Grassley was frequently interrupted by attendees shouting questions, insults and do your job chants, but the veteran Republican senator said it was a great example of making the process of representative government work."

King said he wasn't sure when in his busy schedule he might next have a next town hall.

"I'm not sure I want to tell you, Bret," King told a Journal reporter, chuckling, "because you might want to advertise and people are gonna come from a long way with grievances that are ginned up by the national movement to try and make town hall meetings miserable. That's what causes my hesitation. I want to do the town hall meetings -- I'm not afraid of any of that -- but neither do I want to encourage the kind of things that have happened around the country."

His office on Friday said King will meet with constituents this weekend but no public meetings are scheduled. A King spokeswoman said he likely would hold a town hall by the end of March.
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SIOUX CITY | While the first seven years of the Interstate 29 widening and reconstruction project focused mainly on expanding the highway to the north and south of Sioux City, it was hard to visualize the changes in store for the downtown area.

Now that construction is taking place exclusively through downtown, the Iowa Department of Transportation's plans for exits, entrances and how they tie in to realigned city streets are beginning to come into focus.

"It's fun to watch. They're doing something different every day. It's pretty interesting seeing everything take shape," said Mark Shook, co-owner of House of Kitchens at 308 S. Floyd Blvd.

For much of last summer, Shook's business was hard to access while the street past the business was torn up and rebuilt. With the Floyd Boulevard realignment finished, Shook and his customers now are adjusting to new traffic patterns.

That realignment is one of the completed pieces helping motorists see how the I-29 reconstruction puzzle fits together.

The 2016 construction work on I-29 was one of addition and subtraction: new bridges and sections of road appearing, old bridges and sections of road disappearing. Most recently, on Jan. 14, the northbound I-29 bridge at Hamilton Boulevard was demolished. Construction of the new bridge is expected to begin yet this winter.

With four bridges through downtown under construction, Sioux Cityans are getting an appreciation for how much higher the new I-29 alignment will be.

"One of the things I hear most is, 'I didn't think things were going up that much,'" said Dakin Schultz, IDOT District 3 traffic planner.

Work began on four downtown bridges last spring, the eighth year of work on the $400 million project to widen I-29 to three lanes in each direction from Sergeant Bluff, through Sioux City, to the South Dakota border.

Construction of the bridges over Floyd and Hamilton boulevards and over Virginia and Pierce streets will continue through the winter, Schultz said.

"Bridge construction, except for deck pours, they can do a lot of that over the winter," he said.

The bridges are part of the current two-year phase in which the northbound lanes and bridges through downtown will be rebuilt. The southbound lanes and bridges will be rebuilt the following two years.

Observers should have noted the many developments during the first year of reconstruction of those northbound lanes: the completion of the bridge over the Floyd River and paving of new lanes south of that bridge, the near-completion of the bridge over Bacon Creek and the reopening of the exit ramp onto Floyd Boulevard.

Also completed in this phase was the permanent closure of the exit ramp from southbound I-29 onto Nebraska Street, an interchange that is being eliminated under the new configuration.

The entrance ramp from Wesley Parkway onto northbound I-29 has been reopened.

Half of the northbound bridge over Hamilton Boulevard is completed and open to traffic and construction of the other half of the new bridge will begin yet this winter.

A wet spring and summer hampered construction at times, Schultz said, but a warm, dry fall helped construction crews catch up and keep the project on schedule.

Schultz said major construction of the I-29 project should be done in 2019, with some finishing work wrapping up in 2020.
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. Sociedad Anonima, Lafrancol Internacional S.A.S, Lafrancol Peru S.R.L, Lake Forest Investments LLC, Lightlab Imaging Inc., Limited Liability Company Abbott Laboratories, Limited Liability Company Abbott Ukraine, Limited Liability Company VEROPHARM, Lung Fung Hong (China) Limited, Mansbridge Pharmaceuticals Limited, MediGuide LLC, MediGuide Ltd., Medscreen Holdings Limited, Metropolitana Farmaceutica S.A., Midwest Properties LLC, Murex Argentina S.A., Murex Biotech Limited, Murex Biotech South Africa, Murex Diagnostics Inc., Murex Diagnostics International Inc., Natural Supplement Association LLC, Negocios Denia Sociedad Anonima, Neosalud S.A.C., Nether Pharma N.P. C.V., NeuroTherm LLC, Normann Pharma-Handels GmbH, North Shore Properties Inc., Novamedi S.A., Novasalud.com S.A., Nutravida S.A., OJSC Voronezhkhimpharm, Omnilab Iberia Sociedad Limitada, OptiMedica, Orgenics France SAS, Orgenics International Holdings B.V., Orgenics Ltd., PBM-Selfcare LLC, PDD II LLC, PDD LLC, PT Alere Health, PT. Abbott Indonesia, PT. Abbott Products Indonesia, Pacesetter Inc., Pantech (RF) (PTY) LTD, Pembrooke Occupational Health Inc., Penagos S.A., Pharma International Sociedad Anonima, Pharmaceutical Technologies (Pharmatech) S.A., Pharmatech Boliviana S.A., Polygon Labs S.A., Quality Assured Services Inc., RF Medical Holdings LLC, RTL Holdings Inc., Ramses Business Corp., Recben Xenerics Farmaceutica Limitada, Redwood Toxicology Laboratory Inc., Rich Horizons International Limited, SC VEROPHARM, SJ Medical Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., SJM International Inc., SJM Thunder Holding Company, SPDH Inc., Saboya Enterprises Corporation, Salviac Limited, Scanax AS, Sealing Solutions Inc., Selfcare Technology Inc., Shandong Abbott Dairy Product Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Medical Devices Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Shanghai Si Fa Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Sinensix & Co., Spinal Modulation LLC, St. Jude Medical, St. Jude Medical AB, St. Jude Medical ATG Inc., St. Jude Medical Argentina S.A., St. Jude Medical Asia Pacific Holdings GK, St. Jude Medical Atrial Fibrillation Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Brasil Ltda., St. Jude Medical Business Services Inc., St. Jude Medical Cardiology Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Colombia Ltda., St. Jude Medical Coordination Center, St. Jude Medical Costa Rica Limitada, St. Jude Medical Europe Inc., St. Jude Medical Export Ges.m.b.H., St. Jude Medical GVA Sarl, St. Jude Medical Holdings B.V., St. Jude Medical India Private Limited, St. Jude Medical International Holding, St. Jude Medical LLC, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings II, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings NT, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings SMI S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings TC S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Mexico Business Services S. de R.L. de C.V., St. Jude Medical Middle East DMCC, St. Jude Medical Operations (Malaysia) Sdn. 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.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Molina Healthcare: Aetna & Humana - Medicare Advantage, Affinity Health Plan, AmericanWork Inc., Better Health Network, Camelot Care Centers Inc, Children's Behavioral Health Inc., Choices Group Inc., College Community Services, Dockside Services Inc, Family Preservation Services Inc., Family Preservation Services of Florida Inc., Family Preservation Services of North Carolina Inc., Family Preservation Services of Washington D.C. Inc., Family Preservation Services of West Virginia Inc., Florida NetPASS LLC, Hclb Inc., Magellan Complete Care, Maple Star Nevada Inc., Maple Star Oregon Inc., Mercy CarePlus, Molina Clinical Services LLC, Molina Healthcare Data Center Inc., Molina Healthcare of Arizona Inc., Molina Healthcare of California, Molina Healthcare of Florida Inc., Molina Healthcare of Georgia Inc., Molina Healthcare of Illinois Inc., Molina Healthcare of Iowa Inc., Molina Healthcare of Louisiana Inc., Molina Healthcare of Maryland Inc., Molina Healthcare of Michigan Inc., Molina Healthcare of Mississippi Inc., Molina Healthcare of Nevada Inc., Molina Healthcare of New Mexico Inc., Molina Healthcare of New York Inc., Molina Healthcare of North Carolina Inc., Molina Healthcare of Ohio Inc., Molina Healthcare of Oklahoma Inc., Molina Healthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., Molina Healthcare of Puerto Rico Inc., Molina Healthcare of South Carolina LLC, Molina Healthcare of Texas Inc., Molina Healthcare of Texas Insurance Company, Molina Healthcare of Utah Inc., Molina Healthcare of Virginia Inc., Molina Healthcare of Washington Inc., Molina Healthcare of Wisconsin Inc., Molina Holdings Corporation, Molina Hospital Management LLC, Molina Information Systems LLC dba Molina Medicaid Solutions, Molina Medical Management Inc., Molina Pathways LLC, Molina Pathways of Texas Inc., Molina Youth Academy, NextLevel Health Illinois, Pathways Community Corrections Inc., Pathways Community Services LLC, Pathways Community Support of Texas Inc., Pathways Health and Community Support LLC, Pathways Human Services LLC., Pathways of Arizona Inc., Pathways of Delaware Inc., Pathways of Idaho LLC, Pathways of Maine Inc., Pathways of Massachusetts LLC, Pathways of Oklahoma Inc., Pathways of Washington Inc., Providence Community Services, Providence Human Services, Raystown Developmental Services Inc., The Game of Work LLC, The RedCo Group Inc., Total Care Medicaid plan, Transitional Family Services Inc., Unisys -Health Information Management, and YourCare Health Plan.

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Noble Legend and driver Shawn Gray showed plenty of patience in the $10,000 Open Trot at Buffalo Raceway on Friday night (March 10) and it paid off with a strong one and a quarter length victory over Southern Palms in 1:58.1 over the fast track.

Noble Legend is the 2016 Trotter of the Year at Buffalo Raceway and also holds the track record for four-year-old geldings with a 1:56.3 mark set last season.

In the feature, last week's winner Southern Palms set the fractions of :28.3, :58.3 and 1:28.2, but things weren't going to come easy this time around.

Winkys Pride was first-over turning for home while Noble Legend sat in the pocket, breathing down the back of the pacesetting Southern Palms.

The waiting game worked out perfectly for Gray and Noble Legend ($4.50) as they cruised to the lead in the passing lane. Southern Palms (Ray Fisher Jr.) and Winkys Pride (Drew Monti) could do nothing but watch and finished in second and third, respectively.

Noble Legend and driver Shawn Gray winning on March 10 at Buffalo Raceway. (Steve Roth)

Co-owned by Jack and trainer Maria Rice, the five-year-old gelded Noble Legend (Kadabra-Lovin It) earned his second victory this year in eight tries. He is now a winner of $18,980 in 2017 and $114,778 lifetime.

Buffalo Raceway's defending driving champion Jim Morrill Jr. broke into the win column for the first time in 2017 and did so in fine fashion by registering a four-bagger. Gray finished the night with three wins in the bike.

Racing continues on Saturday evening at 6 p.m. with an 11-race program.

(With files from Buffalo Raceway)
A helmet is being thanked and praised after a driver survived a pre-race kick to the head on Friday.

Before a standing start event at New Zealand's Westport Trotting Club on Friday, trotter Louisletzfly was impatiently awaiting the start of the race and reared up for driver Brent Weaver. As the horse veered sideways, his leg connected directly with the head of driver Kevin Townley.

Townley, who ducked just before the horse made contact, somehow managed to keep his hands in the handholds and return to the upright position in his racebike while keeping full control of his horse. He told the track officials that he felt alright despite getting "a good whack" to the head from his competition.

"Glad I had a helmet on!" Townley told the stewards as they tended to the fallen horse on the track. He was checked out by paramedics and cleared to compete. Showing no ill effects, Townley guided Reign On Me to a third-place finish.

Ironically, both Louisletzfly and Reign On Me have drawn back in to race on Sunday at Reefton with Louisletzfly again to the inside of Reign On Me.

"That's the funniest bit to come out of this whole thing," Townley told New Zealand's Stuff. "I'll be watching him."




That Barack Obamas a lovely guy, right?

Handsome, intelligent, eloquent, charming, witty; he can sing, dance, shoot hoops, and make speeches that stir the soul.

Oh, and hes a great husband, father, son and friend.

In fact, to many around the world, President Perfect is the complete antithesis of his replacement Donald Trump.

Thats why millions have marched to protest against the current POTUS, who they brand the new Hitler.



+8 That Barack Obamas a lovely guy, right? He's a great husband, father, son and friend



+8

+8

+8 Handsome (did you see that cool leather jacket this week?) charming, witty; he can sing, dance, shoot hoops, and make speeches that stir the soul

Why, they squeal with rage, cant Monster Trump just be more like Saint Obama?

Hmmm.

Forgive me if I dont join the ecstatic global race to canonize Mr Obama quite so enthusiastically.

For beneath his ever-smiley beatific halo lies a rather different, far murkier reality.

My favourite question for the anti-Trump brigade is this: How many people did Barack Obama deport from America during his eight years as President?

Most people guess 5,000, maybe 10,000. Even those with a good knowledge of how the real world of US immigration policy works rarely respond with a number higher than around 500,000.

In fact, Obama deported nearly THREE MILLION people.

That is the most deported by any president, ever.

His appalled critics even dubbed him Deporter-in-Chief.

When challenged, Obama loved to pretend that he was only deporting criminals.

The truth is very different. Over half of all immigrants deported under Obama had no criminal convictions. Many others were slung out for minor offences involving traffic violations or marijuana possession.



+8 The truth about Obama's presidency? He deported three million people. He also was a hawk, served two terms of war and killed thousands of people with drones - ordering 26,171 bombs dropped and they all targeted Muslims

Obama also loved to make out that when it came to killing people, he was a very reluctant dove; a man of peace, not war.

Again, the truth is the complete opposite.

He was at war longer than any president in US history, and is the only president to have served two whole terms with America at war.

By contrast, the much-maligned Jimmy Carter never ordered a US military bullet to be fired in anger during his four-year tenure.

Obama was a hawk, alright, and a lethal one.

Recently released figures revealed that in 2016, US special operations were active in 70% of the worlds nations, or 138 countries. This was a 130% increase over Bushs administration.

In the same year, Obama ordered his military to drop at least 26,171 bombs. Thats 72 a day, or three every hour.

They rained relentlessly down on seven majority-Muslim countries  Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Somalia and Pakistan.

Yes, Bomber Barack deliberately targeted Muslims, folks.

Only he wasnt exposing them to extreme vetting as Trump wants to do, he was killing them.

Obama ordered 10 times more drone strikes than George W. Bush, a mind-blowing statistic.

Yet when he left office, his administration laughably tried to claim only 117 civilians died in all this bombing.

That was an obvious lie.

Independent assessors put the estimated death toll massively higher, in the 1000s.

So Obama killed a lot of innocent people but prefers us not to know about it.

He also allowed a lot of other innocent people to die in Syria by choking when President Assad crossed Obamas chemical weapons red line.

That empowered both Assad and Vladimir Putin, and weakened America.

This wasnt the only time Obama said one thing and did another.

His lofty moral principles were never more startlingly exposed than with his broken election pledge in 2008 to shut Guantanamo Bay.

As president, Barack Obama will close the detention center facility at Guantanamo, it stated.

Not might or will try but will.

Yet, its still open, eight years later, and remains a toweringly disgraceful monument of illegal detention and torture that makes a mockery of Obamas claim to stand for justice and fairness.

Broken promises became a theme of Obamas tenure.

Under him, over 250,000 people in America died from gun violence.

Obama tearfully vowed to the parents of the 20 slain children at Sandy Hook elementary school he would get action on new gun control laws, a message he repeated ad nauseam after each mass shooting.



+8 Remember when Obama tearfully vowed to the parents of the 20 slain children at Sandy Hook elementary school he would get action on new gun control laws? He failed to do anything

But he failed to get anything done at all. Instead, he was battered into submission by the NRA, and the mayhem and slaughter has continued, unabated.

There have been more than 180 shootings at schools and colleges in the US since Sandy Hook alone.

Obama also promised to bring hope and change to Washington but again, failed miserably. Asked about this near the end of his presidency, he admitted to Vice News: Well, that didnt work out. There is no doubt that one of the central goals that I had was to make the politics in Washington work better. I havent accomplished that.

His other failures make equally unedifying reading.

Drug abuse in America, particularly involving opiates, rocketed to obscene levels in the Obama years.

Racial tensions, especially between police and civilians, worsened to levels not seen since the 60s and 70s.

Violent crime, on a downward curve for several decades, spiked by 15% in each of the last two years.

(Obamas hometown Chicago, run by his former chief of staff Rahm Emanuel is one of the cities most responsible for that spike.)

Even Obamacare, his once-vaunted flagship health program, has disintegrated amid bitter acrimony and soaring costs to millions of Americans.

As for Monster President Trumps war with the media, arguably the single worst offender in presidential history when it came to attacking press freedom wasyouve guessed it, Barack Obama.

Under Obama, the Justice Department and FBI spied on reporters by monitoring their phone records, and pursued Fox News reporter James Rosens private emails, then misled Congress about it.

His administration set a record for failing to provide information requested by the press and public under the Freedom of Information Act.



+8 As for Trumps war with the media, arguably the single worst offender when it came to attacking press freedom was Obama. Under him, the Justice Department and FBI spied on reporters by monitoring their phone records, and pursued Fox News reporter James Rosens private emails, then misled Congress about it

It used the Espionage Act to prosecute whistle-blowing leakers more than all of his predecessors combined.

Veteran New York Times reporter James Risen said Obamas administration was the greatest enemy of press freedom that we have encountered in at least a generation. Others say it was even worse than in the Nixon era.

Mr Transparent turned out to be as transparent as the heavily fortified doors on the presidential car, The Beast.

So, no, I dont share the view that Barack Obama was a great or even good president.

History will, I suspect, judge him far more harshly than the current blindly-loyal sycophants who love the way he sings like Al Green.

Even less impressive than his record as president is Obamas behaviour since leaving office.

His predecessor George W. Bush was a divisive and polarizing president, particularly due to his appalling misjudgement in waging the Iraq War.

Yet he vowed when he left office not to publicly criticize his successor, believing the job to be hard enough as it is, and to his great credit, he kept his word.

There must have been many things Obama did or said which Bush disagreed with, but he never stirred the media pot about them or plotted against him.



+8 Now the former president has set up a nerve center for a Trump insurgency from his DC home, pictured here

Obama, by contrast, seems hell-bent on bringing Trump down.

A close Obama family friend told DailyMail.com last week that Obamas goal now was to oust Trump by forcing his resignation or through his impeachment.

Hes turned his new home in Washington, just two miles from the White House, into a nerve center for the mounting insurgency against Trump, even moving his long time consigliere Valerie Jarrett into the mansion.

Obamas former Attorney General Eric Holder told reporters: Its coming. Hes coming. And hes ready to roll.

Im sure he is.

But as Saint Obama rolls against Monster Trump, it may be worth remembering just what a deadly, deporting, press freedom-destroying, and generally weak president he was himself.
News / National

by Staff reporter

THE Government has said relatives of 14 people who died in a horror crash at the 8 kilometre peg along the Bulawayo-Gwanda road on Wednesday night will receive assistance from the State to bury their loved ones.On Thursday, police, in a statement, said 13 people died on the spot, and Bulawayo Chief Fire Officer Mr Richard Peterson said another accident victim died on admission to the United Bulawayo Hospitals, bringing the death toll to 14.Those who died were mourners from two families who were going to a funeral in Masvingo.A commuter omnibus they were travelling in collided with a haulage truck in a horrific accident near the National University of Science and Technology.In a statement yesterday, Local Government Public Works and National Housing Minister Saviour Kasukuwere said Government had joined the nation in mourning the deceased.He described the accident as tragic and said the nation shares the sorrow of the bereaved families and wished full recovery to the injured who are admitted to the UBH.Kasukuwere said the bereaved families would receive $200 for each person who perished in the accident."To all drivers countrywide, may I reiterate the fact that life is sacred and should be protected by all means possible. Due to the bad state of our roads countrywide as a result of unusually high rainfall, all drivers are urged to practically apply defensive driving tactics and also take advantage of daytime travel."I have since invoked Section (32) (c) of the Civil Protection Act Chapter 10.06 of 1989 and therefore assistance of $200.00 per deceased is being rendered to the bereaved," said the Minister.On Thursday, National police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba said: "The accident involved a South Africa registered international haulage truck towing two trailers, and a Toyota Hiace minibus that was carrying 18 passengers onboard and a body.On approaching the said spot, the haulage truck hit a pothole and the driver lost control of the vehicle. He then encroached onto the lane of the oncoming vehicles resulting in a head on collision with the kombi. Thirteen people from the minibus died on the spot, while four others were seriously injured and rushed to United Bulawayo Hospitals."Mourners from two families were travelling in the kombi with the body of a 14-year-old boy in a coffin, when the haulage truck coming from the opposite direction allegedly hit a pothole and jackknifed into the lane of oncoming traffic.It collided with the kombi and dragged it for a distance.The truck's load - tonnes of glass and wooden pallets - crushed the kombi.The driver of the haulage truck, Mr Lameck Marapira (29), escaped with minor injuries while four people in the kombi survived.Meanwhile, police yesterday released the names of the people who perished in the road accident that claimed 14 people from two families along the Bulawayo-Gwanda road on Wednesday night.The accident occurred when a haulage truck hit a pothole and veered off the road resulting in its trailers colliding with a kombi carrying mourners.The victims are: Gift Sibanda (43), Gracious Sibanda (41), Luke Sibanda (65), Sovia Sibanda (37), Agnes Ngwenya (55), Danisani Masukume (40), Esther Moyo Mangena (21), Gladys Nyathi (65), Grace Ndemera (48), Magret Dube (46), Rebecca Dube (65), Sinikiwe Mangena (32) and Yvonne Machingauta (32).National Police spokeperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba said the police would like to express its deepest sorrow to the families who lost their relatives and a speedy recovery to the injured."We continue to urge motorists to exercise caution when travelling at night as it is difficult to observe the condition of the road due to poor visibility," she said.
Dorothy Davenport knows a scam when she sees one. And this week the Cathlamet-area resident pretended to go along with one in hopes of protecting other seniors. She even made the scammer sweat a little.

On Thursday morning, Davenport got a call from a man saying she was the second-place winner of a sweepstakes and would get a check for $750,000 by 4 p.m. the next day. The one condition: She had to wire a 1 percent registration fee, or $7,500, before they sent her the money.

Its a common scam, and although Davenport, 79, had entered a different, legitimate sweepstakes several months back, she quickly realized the scheme for what it was. Rather than forget about it, though, she played along to collect information on the scammers.

It just kind of made me sick. I thought, Im not falling for this. Im going to get as much info as I can. ... I thought if it can help somebody, theres so many scams out there and somebody might be aware if I called everybody I knew to report this, that it might prevent somebody getting into a scam, she said. Im not kidding you, it sounds very good, very good.

Davenport said a group who identified themselves as Consumer Protection from Washington, D.C., reported she was a winner from a sweepstakes they claimed she had entered several months back. They gave her a claim number and told her to call another phone number in Las Vegas.

When she got in touch with the man from Las Vegas  a man with an accent named James Garcia  Davenport said he told her she had to pay the 1 percent fee to the Department of Homeland Security and to have her bank wire transfer the money. They gave her names, addresses, account and routing numbers and told her to get to her bank as soon as possible. She said she told the man it would take her about an hour, when in fact Davenport never planned to go at all.

I knew right off the bat I wouldnt see anything of them today, especially if I sent my money. They would have dropped me flat soon as they got my money, Davenport said Friday. It sounded so good. ...Theyre pros at this. ... (It) would be very convincing for some people.

Davenport said exactly one hour after she told them she would go to the bank, the man from Las Vegas called her back. He then continued to call another 15 to 20 more times Thursday. Davenport said she tided him over by saying her bank was looking into the situation to make sure it wasnt a fraudulent transaction. They assured her it wasnt, she said.

Davenport said she called the real Consumer Protection group and informed them of the situation, and representatives confirmed the scam.

As of Friday by 1:30 p.m., Davenport said the man from Las Vegas had called her at least 15 more times. The man sounded panicky and was angry she hadnt gone to her bank. He transferred Davenport to a different woman who he claimed was his manager - a woman identifying herself as Joan or Joanne Miller. She told Davenport to tell her bank it was an emergency and that she needed to send the money right away to avoid forfeiting the $750,000, Davenport said. After that, Davenport stopped taking their calls.

Im just not answering anymore, because Im tired of it now. It was an all-day thing, she said.

Davenport said reading newspaper articles about scams and being the victim of a pavement scam three years ago helped her realize it was a fraudulent scheme. She said she wanted to gather information on the people trying to scam her in hopes that the authorities could do something about it and prevent others from falling for it.

I feel disgusted. Im disgusted people are doing this. Im an older person, Im 79, and Im not sure if thats who they choose to pick on, but it could happen I think to anybody. I just want them to be aware about a scam of sweepstakes winners, Davenport said. I just thought it would be good for people to be aware of at least one of them. Theres a lot of them out there and they claim its a lot for the older people, but with a situation like this anybody could be drawn into this. .. I think if we can help somebody from getting caught up in one so be it. Thats a good deal.
tech2 News Staff

When you search for a city or town in Google, there is an information box that appears to the right of the search results. This box has an image, a map, a description, the weather, the population and links for planning trips. The image is pulled from a number of sources, and it does not always represent the place searched for.

For the most part, the images for Indian towns are breathtaking... there are skylines of buildings, aerial photographs, waterfalls, mountains and landmarks. At times these beautiful images are interrupted by random people in the foreground. The unremarkable ones have photos of railway stations or local streets. A handful however, are disturbing, scenes of disasters, mob violence, dead animals and accidents.

Man-Animal conflict

Google for Chandarpur in Maharashtra and you get an image of two men rescuing a leopard. The leopard has just caught the men by surprise and has jumped 18 feet straight up in the air, bursting through a roof. An experienced wildlife activist and forest officials managed to rescue the leopard in the crowded area even after getting bitten by the animal.

Googling for Nandgaon shows a mob of men attacking a leopard and wildlife officials. Manawar has an unsettling image of a six year old mauled by a panther. Umred is an example of where wildlife is shown in the right way as the default search image, with a photo of a majestic tiger.

Accidents

The Google search result for Charkhi Dadri shows a screen capture from a simulated animation by National Geographic of what is known as the Charkhi Dadri Air Crash. The mid air collision happened between Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747-100B and a Kazakhstan Airlines Ilyushin Il-76 on 12 November, 1996.

Look for Thoubal in Manipur and you get the above image of a group of people pulling out a vehicle from a flooded river. Googling for Sainthia in West Bengal shows an image of a train collision at the railway station that happened on 19 July, 2010.

Dead Elephants

These are gory and disturbing images of dead elephants that show up as the default image on a Google search. Alipurduar shows a group of people performing the last rites of an elephant that has been hit by a train. The image is from an article on the large number of elephants killed in West Bengal by the railways, either through collisions or after being electrocuted by the power lines.

A Google search for Sathyamangalam in Tamil Nadu shows an image of an Elephant that was foraging in the periphery of the Sathyamangalam wildlife sanctuary, and stumbled upon a live wire hidden in the bushes. We do not want to suddenly see dead Elephants, Google, when searching for towns.

Human conflict

A Google search for Golaghat shows an image from an incident of mob violence. An angry mob of protesters went on a rampage against the police, after accusing the police of an unprovoked attack. Two people were killed and several vehicles burned during the protests.

A search for Rayagada in Odisha shows an image of chit fund investors dragging an agent to the court in the hopes of recovering their money. The police arrived and detained the agents, and pacified the protestors. We are sure there is more to Rayagada than this incident.

Fires

Google searches for Pulgaon and Manwath in Maharashtra show images of fires. The fire in Pulgaon was at the largest ammunition depot of the military in the country. Two army officers, a jawan and 13 civilian fire fighters were killed in the blaze.

The image for Manwath is from a Zee 24 taas News, a local Marathi news channel report of an office fire, where important documents of the local people were permanently destroyed.

Movies

A search for Tittakudi in Tamil Nadu throws up a still from the movie Thittakudi. The review from where the image is pulled does not seem to be too impressed by the movie.

Random industrial things

At times, Google pulls up images from the company web sites of industries located in the city or town being searched for. The search for Rajagangapur shows up something known as a Packing Machine from a company called OCL India.

A Google search for Thangadh, shows an image from Anmol Ceramics, a company that manufactures Kiln Furniture and ceramic insulation bricks. A search for Vapi shows a disgusting image of environmental activists checking industrial waste for toxic chemicals and heavy metals.

Do you know of an search image for an Indian city or town that needs to be changed? We expect there are some more photos out there, from random group portraits, to photos from educational institutions, to bunches of monkeys on rooftops... do post your findings in the comments section below.
IANS

Four branches of the US military are looking into the posting of nude photos of what appear to be female service members on various websites, a Pentagon official said.

The news follows reports about lewd photos being posted by a group of Marines and former Marines, and goes beyond the Corps and some private Facebook groups like Marines United, CNN reported on Friday.

Photos of nude and clothed female service members also have been posted to another image-sharing message board, according to reports.

A CNN review of the site found photos of women in uniforms from different branches of the military  and nude and partially nude images.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is investigating the Marines United scandal. There is no Defence Department-wide investigation as of Thursday evening, the Pentagon official said.

The US Air Force, Army, Marines and Navy made statements on the new report.

"After being made aware of the photo sharing site today by Business Insider, we are looking further into the matter and taking it seriously, but cannot immediately verify any details about the site, the source of its content, or whether there has been any involvement by any airmen," the Air Force said.

"As members of the Army team, individuals' interaction offline and online reflect on the Army and its values. The Army defines online misconduct as the use of electronic communication to inflict harm, which includes, but is not limited to, instances of harassment, bullying, hazing, stalking, discrimination, retaliation, or any other types of misconduct that undermines dignity and respect," Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Jennifer R. Johnson said.

"Soldiers or civilian employees who participate in or condone misconduct, whether offline or online, may be subject to criminal, disciplinary, and/or administrative action," she said.

"We fully expect that the discovery of Marines United will motivate Marines to come forward to notify their chain of command of pages like it. Things may seem to get worse before they get better; Marines will attack this problem head-on and continue to get better," Capt. Ryan E. Alvis said.

"It is a call to arms in the wake of recent reports of unprofessional and inappropriate social media behaviour by some who have lost sight of that most fundamental purpose they themselves are duty-bound to serve," Acting Secretary of the Navy Sean Stackley said.

Earlier this week, the scandal focused on Marines United, a private Facebook group with 30,000 members and hundreds of photos of women in different stages of undress. Thomas Brennan, founder of the military news site, The War Horse, first reported the group page to the Marines and Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS).

After the NCIS announced its investigation members were redirected to new pages where some taunted investigators.
News / National

by Staff reporter

ZANU-PF Secretary for the Commissariat Saviour Kasukuwere yesterday said the party would win the 2018 general elections in an emphatic fashion that will bury the MDC-T hence recent signs of panic by its leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai.The panicky MDC-T leader told journalists in Harare on Thursday that the Government was already planning to rig the 2018 elections by its decision to go it alone in the procurement of Biometric Voter Kits.Addressing party members at an inter district meeting at Davies Hall in Bulawayo, Kasukuwere said those seeking to form a coalition with Mr Tsvangirai were equally doomed as Zanu-PF would run over them during the polls."As each day goes, we are getting closer to 2018 and the party must be strong, organised and mobilised. We are going for victory that's why Morgan (Tsvangirai) is panicking. All these years you have been contesting and now you want to create stories about rigging," he said."He (Tsvangirai) is running scared and knows that we will send him packing. Zanu-PF is strong yet the opposition is dead, Tsvangirai, Didymus Mutasa, Joice Mujuru all of them. Every day they are forming new parties yet we still remain as one Zanu-PF."Kasukuwere said Mr Tsvangirai would never rule Zimbabwe as he represents colonial interests and a reversal of the gains of the country's liberation."I would rather vote for a tree than vote for Tsvangirai. What crime would the country have committed to condemn it to Tsvangirai's rule? That will never happen. Leaving President Mugabe to support Tsvangirai? Never," he said."And those coalitions with Tsvangirai are doomed too. Mujuru has no shame wanting to be Tsvangirai's deputy. When President Mugabe was giving land back to his people, Tsvangirai was drinking tea with Tony Blair promising to reverse the exercise."Kasukuwere said the MDC-T was finished as evidenced by the paltry crowds that Mr Tsvangirai addressed in his countrywide consultations over forming a coalition with other parties ahead of 2018."Those who are making deals with Morgan at night, we are watching you. You will not succeed," he said.Kasukuwere reiterated calls he made the previous day for the province to be united so that they are stronger."The last time we had Members of Parliament in Bulawayo was in 2000 and after that we were in trouble. Let's not destabilise our MPs but let us support them. Now we want to win everything. We also want to get into council and change the direction of City Hall," he said.Kasukuwere said there were already vacancies in two council wards following the sacking of Bulawayo deputy Mayor Mr Gift Banda and Mr Reuben Matengu.He said those who do not want to follow the party's rules were free to go citing Zapu leader Mr Dumiso Dabengwa as one of those who left the party in overestimation of their clout."Zanu-PF is not an experiment station but a people's party. Take the party to the cells because the party belongs to the people," Kasukuwere said.He warned some elements plotting against the President that they would be stopped in their tracks."We will stand with the President till death. We parted ways with Dr Joshua Nkomo at the Heroes' Acre so did we part with Simon Muzenda, Joseph Msika and John Nkomo. We will therefore stand with President till the last minute," Kasukuwere said.
Cheesy Breakfast Recipes PERFECT for Saturday Mornings have all of your favorite things... bacon, eggs, sausage, and your favorite -- ooey gooey cheese!

Surprise your family this weekend by making one of these delicious cheesy breakfast casserole recipes for them!

Cheesy Breakfast Recipes

Breakfast is a big deal around here! Not only on the weekends, but for dinner too! There are so many different ways to make a cheesy and delicious breakfast that we couldn't resist sharing our favorites with you.

From sliders, to pull apart bread, casseroles, and burritos. There is something that you can make special for your family every weekend for the next few months.

WATCH THIS STEP-BY-STEP RECIPE VIDEO:

RECIPE VIDEO: Sausage Breakfast Casserole Recipe from Spaceships and Laser Beams. CLICK HERE for the Printable Recipe!

1. CHEESY BREAKFAST CASSEROLE

From GIMME SOME OVEN :: Click HERE for the RECIPE This easy sausage, egg and hash brown casserole is simple to make, and always a crowd-pleaser!

2. Cheesy Overnight Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole

From THE FOOD CHARLATAN :: Click HERE for the RECIPE This Cheesy Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole is everything you need on Christmas morning! (Or anytime you have guests for breakfast!) Hashbrowns are baked til crispy, then topped with eggs, cheese, and black forest ham.

3. CHEESY BREAKFAST POTATO CASSEROLE

From LIL LUNA :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole - it takes minutes to make and is delicious!! Our family loves this recipe.

4. SLOW COOKER CHEESY POTATOES

From THE TYPICAL MOM :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Slow cooker cheesy potatoes are a great breakfast, brunch or dinner too! Cheesy with diced sausage its a hearty meal your while family will love for sure.

5. CHEESY BACON EGG BREAKFAST BOMBS

From THE SLOW ROASTED ITALIAN :: Click HERE for the Full Recipe Cheesy Bacon and Egg Breakfast Bombs are soft and tender portable poppers, stuffed with smoky bacon, scrambled eggs and ooey-gooey cheese! This scrumptious recipe is the pull-apart breakfast of your dreams!

6. CHEESY MUSHROOM SPINACH OMELET

From THE CHUNKY CHEF :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Start off your day in a tasty way with this cheesy mushroom and spinach omelet. Easy to make, and tastes like you got it from a fancy restaurant!

7. Breakfast Sausage Avocado Burritos

From The Recipe Critic :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Breakfast Sausage Avocado Burritos are loaded with sausage, eggs, tomato, and rice and drizzled in a sriracha mayo dressing. These will become a new favorite breakfast that will blow your tastebuds away!

8. Overnight Breakfast Casserole with Bacon

From Spend with Pennies :: Click HERE for the RECIPE This easy Overnight Breakfast Casserole is quick to prep in the evening and then baked up fresh and delicious in the morning! Cheese, bacon, bell peppers and green onions are layered with bread and soaked in a seasoned egg mixture. This is the perfect meal to serve on a holiday morning or for guests.

9. Mexican Lasagna Breakfast Casserole

From The Slow Roasted Italian :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Mexican Lasagna Breakfast Casserole is a simple recipe that is bursting with flavor. With layer upon layer of delicious Mexican flavors, corn tortillas, bacon and ooey gooey cheese all wrapped up in a scrumptious breakfast casserole.

10. Breakfast Casserole with Eggs Potatoes and Sausage

From Leelilicious :: Click HERE for the RECIPE This easy breakfast casserole is a complete meal with eggs, potatoes and sausage. This gluten free and clean eating recipe with overnight option makes a perfect Christmas morning breakfast. After a late Christmas Eve, its so convenient to feed hungry bellies with a hearty meal with no morning prep.

11. Denver Omelet Breakfast Muffins

From The Recipe Critic :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Denver Omelet Breakfast Muffins are such a great breakfast and perfect for making ahead or on the go! Loaded with Peppers, onions, ham and ooey gooey cheese, these will become a favorite!

12. EASY CROISSANT BREAKFAST SANDWICHES

From TORNADOUGH ALLI :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Flaky croissants are filled with ham, eggs and cheese and baked until golden and melty making these Easy Croissant Breakfast Sandwiches the prefect breakfast.

13. Egg and Sausage Breakfast Taquitos

From Tastes Better From Scratch :: Click HERE for the RECIPE These Egg Sausage Breakfast Taquitos from Tastes Better from Scratch have all of your favorite breakfast staples that get wrapped up in a delicious taquito style breakfast. They are quick and easy to make and kids really love them for breakfast before school too!

14. CRACKED OUT TATER TOT BREAKFAST CASSEROLE

From PLAIN CHICKEN :: Click HERE for the RECIPE C racked Out Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole  great make-ahead recipe! Only 6 ingredients!! Bacon, cheddar cheese, tater tots, eggs, milk, Ranch mix. Can refrigerate or freeze for later. Great for breakfast. lunch or dinner. Everyone loves this easy breakfast casserole!!

15. Make-Ahead Freezer Breakfast Burritos

From The Slow Roasted Italian :: Click HERE for the RECIPE These breakfast burritos are loaded with all of your favorite breakfast fillings. Eggs, bacon, sausage, tater tots, oh my! They make the perfect hot breakfast for your family when they need something in a hurry that they can microwave before school and work.

16. Baked Sausage, Spinach, and Egg Breakfast Taquitos

From The Recipe Critic :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Make the PERFECT breakfast recipe! These taquitos are filled with all of your favorite breakfast ingredients before they get baked to perfection in the oven. Trust us, once you try a taquito baked you'll never go back to frying them again.



17. Breakfast Casserole with Bacon

From Dinner at the Zoo :: Click HERE for the RECIPE This breakfast casserole with bacon is loaded with eggs, bacon, potato tots and cheese, and is topped with tomatoes, avocado and herbs.

18. Sausage and Gravy Breakfast Casserole

From Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom :: Click HERE for the RECIPE Im sure youve heard of biscuits and gravy casserole, right? This version of that popular breakfast casserole is filled with eggs and cheese and is perfect for lazy Sunday mornings with the family and its even better when doubled for large groups. Bonus: this Egg Casserole can be assembled the night before for practically no morning prep!

19. Overnight Cheesy Breakfast Casserole

From The Slow Roasted Italian :: Click HERE for the RECIPE This amazingly simple casserole recipe starts with a scrumptious layer of left over buttery biscuits, it's filled with my favorite breakfast components and ends with a generous amount of ooey gooey cheese. It is a complete breakfast.

MORE RECIPES YOU'LL ENJOY TODAY:
BD Ambassador to Brazil Mijarul Quayes passes away

Bangladesh Ambassador to Brazil and former Foreign Secretary Mohamed Mijarul Quayes passed away in Brasilia, Brazil on Friday night. He was 57.



He breathed his last in Brasilia at 9 pm (Brazil time), a senior diplomat at the Embassy told UNB.



He was earlier hospitalised in Brazil with respiratory problems and other complexities.



Quayes also served as a Foreign Secretary in the Ministry during 2009-12.



Terming him an outstanding human being, his colleagues said Quayes' death is an irreplaceable national loss to the nation.



"We've lost one of the most meritorious, dexterous, literary and scholarly diplomats in Bangladesh foreign service. It's really shocking and hard to accept his final departure and absence like this," said one of his colleagues praying for salvation of his departed soul.



Mijarul Quayes was appointed as the Ambassador of Bangladesh to Brazil by the government in July 2014. A career diplomat, Mohamed Mijarul Quayes was a member of the 1982 batch of BCS (Foreign Affairs) Cadre. In his diplomatic career, Quayes pursued ambassadorship in the Maldives and Russia. He also served in Bangladesh missions in London, Tokyo, Singapore and Geneva in various capacities.



He obtained a Bachelor's degree in Liberal Arts from Dhaka University and a Master in Public Administration degree from Harvard Kennedy School of Government (USA). At the Kennedy School, he was an Edward S. Mason Fellow in Public Policy and Management.



It is not still clear when his body will be brought back home. --Dhaka, Mar 11 (UNB)








Bereaved Palestinians, Israelis march against occupation

Israeli and Palestinian members of the \"Parents Circle Families Forum\" destroy a symbolic wall representing the Israeli security barrier running through the occupied West Bank in Beit Jala on Saturday.

AFP, Beit Jala :

Hundreds of bereaved Palestinian and Israeli women marched through the West Bank on Friday against the Israeli occupation, in an International Women's Day event.

Around 200 women marched to two military bases, with some carrying banners reading "End the occupation" or "Our tears are one colour".

The Parents Circle Families Forum brings together families of those killed in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict and includes more than 600 families.

Robi Damelin, an Israeli woman whose son was killed near Ramallah in 2002, lit a candle in honour of the many victims of the conflict.

"My son was a reserve Israeli army officer, and before he was summoned he was doing a master's degree at Tel Aviv University," she said.

He was killed in the West Bank in 2002 by a Palestinian sniper in a famous incident in which 10 Israelis were killed.

"I wrote several letters to my son's killer saying I wanted to meet him. He sent me one which said he was willing to meet me, but the authorities have prevented it," she told AFP, calling on the Israeli government to make peace.

Some Israeli settlers in the area insulted the women from their cars, telling them to go to Syria.

Palestinian Bushra Awad, 45, lost her 17-year-old son Mahmoud in 2008.

"I joined the forum because I am trying not to lose any another son," she said.

Suha abu Khdeir, whose son Mohammed was burned alive by Jewish settlers in July 2014, also addressed the women.

"I can't sleep at night-every day it's me who's burning because of what happened to my son," she said.

The women also demolished a wall symbolising the barrier that snakes through the occupied West Bank..

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused long-time enemy Iran of using the Syrian conflict to "gain a foothold to fight Israel" as Iranian troops reportedly straddle the 1967 ceasefire line in the Golan Heights.

Iran has long supported Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with deployments of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and the volunteer Basij militia in addition to funding Israel's arch enemies, Hezbollah.

Skirmishes between Syrian forces and the Israel Defence Force (IDF) have occurred regularly in the Golan Heights since the start of the Syrian civil war six years ago. New reports suggest that the IRGC have positioned themselves along the border with the occupied Golan Heights.

Brig Gen Mohammad-Reza Naghdi, a commander in Iran's Basij force, was pictured surveying the border in July last year according to Israeli media.

And the Tehran-backed Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba said they were "ready to take action to liberate Golan" according to Iranian state media earlier this week.

In response to rising tensions in the region Netanyahu met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to express his view that any truce in Syria must not allow Iranian forces to stay in the country.

"We discussed at length the matter of Iran, its objectives and intentions in Syria, and I clarified that there cannot be a peace deal in Syria when Iran is there and declares its intention to destroy Israel," Netanyahu said, according to Reuters.

He added: "We do not want to see Shia Islamic terrorism led by Iran step in to replace Sunni Islamic terrorism," the Independent reported.

"Iran continues attempts to destroy the Jewish state. They speak of this openly and write this in black and white in their newspapers.

"Today, we have our own country and our army and we can defend ourselves. But I want to say that the threat of Shia Islamic terror is directed not only against us but against the region and the entire world."

He claimed Iran was "arming itself and its forces against Israel including from Syria territory and is gaining a foothold to continue the fight against Israel".

Tehran has emerged as a major player in the Syrian conflict and has met Russian and Turkish envoys in Astana, Kazakhstan, in attempts to thrash out a ceasefire.




Assad says yet to see real steps from Trump on IS, US forces `invaders`

Syria\'s President Bashar al-Assad speaks during an interview with Yahoo News.

Reuters, Beirut :

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said he had yet to see "anything concrete" from U.S. President Donald Trump over his vow to defeat Islamic State and called U.S. forces in Syria "invaders" because they were there without government permission.

Assad, in an interview with Chinese TV station Phoenix, said "in theory" he still saw scope for cooperation with Trump though practically nothing had happened in this regard.

Assad said Trump's campaign pledge to prioritize the defeat of Islamic State had been "a promising approach" but added: "We haven't seen anything concrete yet regarding this rhetoric."

Assad dismissed the U.S.-backed military campaign against Islamic State in Syria as "only a few raids" he said had been conducted locally. "We have hopes that this administration ... is going to implement what we have heard," he added.

Asked about a deployment of U.S. forces near the northern city of Manbij, Assad said: "Any foreign troops coming to Syria without our invitation ... are invaders."

"We don't think this is going to help".

The U.S.-led coalition has been attacking Islamic State in Syria for more than two years. It is currently backing a campaign by Syrian militia allies to encircle and ultimately capture Raqqa, Islamic State's base of operations in Syria.

Assad noted that the Russian-backed Syrian army was now "very close" to Raqqa city after advancing to the western banks of the Euphrates River.

He said Raqqa was "a priority for us", but indicated that there could also be a parallel attack by the army towards Deir al-Zor in the east, near the Iraqi border. Deir al-Zor province is almost completely in the control of IS, also known as ISIS.

The Deir al-Zor region had been "used by ISIS as a route for logistics support between ISIS in Iraq and ISIS in Syria, so whether you attack the stronghold or you attack the route that ISIS uses, it (has) the same result", Assad said.

Meanwhile, US-backed Syrian militias said on Friday they were strong enough to seize Raqqa from Islamic State with support from the U.S.-led coalition, underlining their opposition to any Turkish role in the planned attack.

The campaign against the city, Islamic State's Syrian base of operations, is gathering pace as Iraqi forces press ahead with their efforts to recapture Mosul, the jihadists' base in Iraq. The overlapping U.S.-backed campaigns threaten to deal Islamic State (IS) a double blow.

Iraqi state TV said about half of western Mosul had been taken. Iraqi forces dislodged the militants from the eastern part of Mosul in January, after 100 days of fighting to reclaim the city seized by the jihadist group in 2014.

The Raqqa campaign received a boost in recent days with the deployment of a U.S. Marines artillery unit, adding to the several hundred U.S. special forces already in Syria supporting the operation backed by air strikes from the U.S.-led coalition.




RANGPUR: Additional Commissioner (Rev) AKM Maruf Hassan addressing a discussion in observance of the National Disaster Preparedness Day on Friday.
Spanish brand Porcelanosa opens new showroom in BD

Economic Reporter :

Porcelanosa Group, a Spanish manufacturer, distributor and retailer of ceramic tiles, has opened a full-fledged showroom in Dhaka.

Pierre Mayaudon, Head of the EU Delegation in Bangladesh, inaugurated the showroom at Gulshan 2 recently.

Porcelanosa is a leading Spanish brand, founded over 40 years ago in Castellon, Spain. It currently employs over 5,000 employees worldwide.

It produces tiles, kitchen and bathroom equipment, hardwood, natural stone, mosaics, installation materials, solid surface, installation systems & materials, among others. The company has its presence in nearly 15O countries.

"The initiative of opening a new showroom is win-win for Europe and Bangladesh," Ambassador Mayaudon said.

"Win for Europe because we have more export from EU to Bangladesh that we want to encourage through EU business council and EU-Bangladesh Business Climate Dialogue," he explained.

"It is also a win for Bangladesh, first, because it will satisfy the expectation of the Bangladesh customers who have the purchasing power to acquire this kind of high-end products.

"It also wins for Bangladesh, second, because there is no competition. So, this will not create harm to any Bangladesh manufacturing items because they are not yet in this segment of the market.

"And the third win is that this is an encouragement to enter in this market. It's a kind of educative purpose that what we call climbing the value chain. So, it's win and wins".

The ambassador said it showed that EU could also find the possibility of exporting in a particular segment of the Bangladesh market. "This is an example of that".

The 28-countries bloc is the biggest export destination for Bangladesh where all products enjoy duty-free quota-free market access.
Law Minister`s brother dies

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurating second council of Jubo Mahila League by releasing balloons and pigeons in the auditorium of Krishibid Institution Bangladesh in the city\'s Khamarbari on Saturday. BSS photo

Law Minister Anisul Huq's younger brother and chief state counsel of Bangabandhu Murder Trial advocate Md Sirajul Huq's youngest son Ariful Huq Roni breathed his last on Saturday morning at a Dallas Hospital in the US.

He was 53.

Roni was suffering from heart ailments from long and had his heart transplant in November last.

He left behind his wife, two sons, one daughter, host of relatives and well wishers to mourn his death.

Senior Secretary Mohammad Shahidul Haque of Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division and Law and Justice Division Secretary Abu Saleh Sheikh Md Zahirul Haque expressed profound shock at the death of Ariful.

They prayed for eternal peace of the departed soul and conveyed deep sympathy to the bereaved family.
NUS distributes long lasting insecticides nets

Chittagong Bureau :

Nari Unnayan Shakti organized yesterday a long lasting insecticides nets distribution program at Enayetpur High School of Hathazari upazila in Chittagong district under NFM-Malaria Control and Prevention Program. Barrister Anisul Islam Mahmud, Minister for Water Resource attended as the Chief Guest at mosquito nets distribution and awareness raising program. Dr. Afroja Parvin, Executive Director of Nari Unnayan Shakti and Keshob Kumar Barua, President, Press Club, Hathazari, UP Chairman Alamgir Jaman, CIP were attended as the special guests on the occasion. The meeting was presided over by Dr. Sheikh Fazle Rabbi, Upazila Health and Family Planning Officer.

Since 2007 to till date NUS has distributed 5,98,050 Long Lasting Insecticides Nets at free cost in Patia, Hathazari and Fatikchhari upazila of Chittagong district under NFM - Malaria Control and Prevention Program with the support of BRAC, GFATM and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. NUS also dipped 2,96,280 nets in malaria preventive medicine for doing those as Insecticides Treated Nets (ITN) and detected 2027 malaria patients among 1,51,250 people using blood slides and increased malaria diseases awareness among 13,25,000 people of three upazilas.

Dr. Sheikh Fazle Rabbi, Upazila Health and Family Planning Officer, Hathazari, Alamgir Jaman (CIP), Chairman, 2 No. Dholui Union Parishad, Hathazari, Barrister Anisul Islam Mahmud MP, Minister for Water Resources, Dr. Afroja Parvin, Executive Director, Nari Unnayan Shakti, President, Hathazari Press Club are seen in the picture at Mosquito Net distribution program organized by Nari Unnayan Shakti in Chittagong district.


News / National

by Staff reporter

WAR veterans yesterday accused a faction in Zanu-PF of peddling falsehoods against the ex-freedom fighters by linking them to various political outfits in the country.Addressing a Press conference in Harare yesterday, Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans' Association (ZNLWVA) chairman Christopher Mutsvangwa said G40 kingpins had no idea how the economy functioned as they were focusing on "shallow political vindictiveness that is isolating the country from global capital".The former War Veterans minister said it was unheard of for a country like Zimbabwe with numerous resources to be in such miserable state.Responding to allegations that they were organising an alliance of opposition parties to face Zanu-PF in next year's elections, Mutsvangwa said although they believe in unity, it was not the duty of the "failing" G40 faction to align them to any political outfit in the country."Since they expelled us, they (G40) have been acting like hawkers, selling us to every opposition party in the country. They are hawking us to every opposition figure in this country and who are they to hawk us? We haven't declared any allegiance to any of those parties. Who is G40 to speak for us? They are not our spokesman, and we are our spokesman," he said.Mutsvangwa described war veterans as masters of strategy and practitioners of tactics, saying their line of defence were the people of Zimbabwe."We want to state that we are not a political party, we have never been a political party and we will not be a political party," Mutsvangwa said."When we fought we had to teach the whole country to become a united front in order to achieve a common cause. We have pursued united front politics all our life because we want the maximum unity from all Zimbabweans."He said the reason why their foes were alleging all "funny" conspiracies against them was that they were haunted by the fact that they were in positions they do not deserve and the prospect that one day tables would turn against them.Mutsvangwa said it was ironic that they were fired on the basis of supporting Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa. He said up to now the VP was still there and as a "desperate" move, G40 was trying to marry them with many political outfits or individuals like Econet founder Strive Masiyiwa.He described the G40 faction as intellectually bankrupt with its ministers in Cabinet failing to offer anything tangible."The resources of Zimbabwe are as high as Mount Nyangani and the mind of Jonathan Moyo (Higher Education minister) is as shallow as Batoka Gorge, very small. And now you can understand why there are no jobs, you can understand why everyone is applying for a passport to leave the country. There is a very small mind," Mutsvangwa said.He alleged Moyo was "functionally illiterate, worse in business he knows nothing"."He wrote some stupid document called ZimAsset which he sold to the country as the panacea to all the problems. What has it delivered? Grinding poverty which worsens by the day," Mutsvangwa said.He alleged Zanu-PF national commissar Saviour Kasukuwere was following Moyo blindly while Youth and Indigenisation minister Patrick Zhuwao "acts like a puppy".The war veterans' leader said the Zanu-PF Masvingo provincial elections should be an eye opener that things were falling apart in the G40 faction.Mutsvangwa described War Veterans ministry secretary Walter Tapfumaneyi as a "busybody who thrives on intimidating people over his past experience in the dreaded Central Intelligence Organisation". He, however, said President Robert Mugabe was still the war veterans' patron. Mutsvangwa said command agriculture was becoming successful because it was in the hands of the army and not the G40 faction.Kasukuwere, Moyo, Zhuwao and Tapfumaneyi could not be reached for comment last night.
First legal blow to Trump`s new travel ban

Fed judge halts its enforcement

US President Donald Trump\'s new travel directive, temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries. Internet photo

Mail Online :

President Donald Trump's revamped travel ban is facing its first major legal setback, after a federal judge halted enforcement of the directive that would deny US entry to the wife and child of a Syrian refugee already granted asylum.

In a preliminary restraining order issued Friday that applies only to the Syrian man and his family, US District Judge William Conley in Wisconsin said the plaintiff "is at great risk of suffering irreparable harm" if the directive is carried out. The man chose to remain anonymous because his wife and child are still living in war-wracked Aleppo.

The order marked the first ruling against the revised directive, which temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries. It denies US entry to all refugees for 120 days and halts for 90 days the granting of visas to nationals from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan. "The court appreciates that there may be important differences between the original executive order and the revised executive order issued on March 6, 2017," Conley wrote. "As the order applies to the plaintiff here, however, the court finds his claims have at least some chance of prevailing for the reasons articulated by other courts." He set a hearing for March 21. In another legal challenge, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint on behalf of several refugee assistance groups over the controversial executive order. "Putting a new coat of paint on the Muslim ban doesn't solve its fundamental problem, which is that the Constitution and our laws prohibit religious discrimination," said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU's immigrant rights project. "The further President Trump goes down this path, the clearer it is that he is violating that basic rule."

The ACLU, the preeminent US civil liberties group, and the National Immigration Law Center brought the suit on behalf of the International Refugee Assistance Project and the refugee resettlement group HIAS, as well as several individuals. The suit alleges that the new executive order violates the constitutional protection of freedom of religion in that it is "intended and designed to target and discriminate against Muslims, and it does just that in operation." "Rarely in American history has governmental intent to discriminate against a particular faith and its adherents been so plain," the complaint says, alleging the new order will cause "irreparable harm" and asking for an injunction.

A federal judge in Maryland, Theodore Chuang, has scheduled a hearing in the case for March 15 -- the day before the measure is due to take effect. Separately, a federal judge in Seattle who issued a nationwide halt to Trump's original travel restrictions denied a motion to have the same ruling apply to the modified measures, saying at least one of the parties must first file additional court papers. The state of Maryland said it would join Monday the suit filed by the attorney general from Washington state, which also has the support of Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Oregon. "President Trump's second executive order is still a Muslim ban," Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh said in a statement.

"The administration persists in an effort to implement a policy that is inhumane and unconstitutional, but also makes us less safe, not more safe." The state of Hawaii has filed a separate complaint, and a hearing in that case on whether to impose a national restraining order is set for March 15 as well. The White House cites national security in justifying the ban, arguing that it needs time to implement "extreme vetting" procedures to keep Islamic militants from entering the country. Polls show American public opinion is deeply divided on the issue. Most indicate a slight majority of voters opposed, with strong support among Trump's political base.


Asia-based anti-drug policy likely, 32 types of drugs used in BD

Md Joynal Abedin Khan :

At least 32 types of drugs, mainly heroin, Yaba, cocaine and phensidyl are transported to remote areas from cities and towns and it has already created panic among guardians, law enforcers and countrymen, said the sources close to the Department of Narcotics Control.

Even the demand, use, trading and smuggling of the drugs are increasing alarmingly day by day, they said.

These drugs enter the country through 51 points of the 31 bordering districts under political influence and with the help of a section of police personnel, according to them.

As a result, different crimes including killings, assault and trafficking have spread across the country. The DNC, Police, Rapid Action Battalion, Border Guard Bangladesh and Coast Guard have not been able to check massive consumption of drugs from urban to rural areas, they further said. In this context, a three-day international conference participated by the 14 countries' Police chiefs will begin today in Dhaka. In the conference, possible preventive measures against drug trading will be discussed, Police Headquarters sources said. They said that police have already prepared a draft in this regard for approval in the conference. According to them, heroin is produced in North Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and India which is generally trafficked abroad through Kolkata, Madras and Mumbai routes of India and through Thailand and Myanmar. But the International drug barons and the Mafia network also find Bangladesh as a safe and alternate trafficking route when the Indian and Myanmar routes become risky.

Feni Additional Police Superintendent Kazi Moniruzzaman said that law enforcers have become alert after a Ansar member named Nowsher Ali was killed in a clash with the criminals in a border area of Fulgazi Upazila on Wednesday night.

A drug peddler said, "The Yaba traders take the items first to Cox's Bazar, then to Chittagong and from there to other parts of the country after managing all others." Most addicts take five to 10 pills at a time," the peddler said. But hardened addicts can take 25 to 30 pills, he said.

When contacted, Inspector General of Police (IGP) AKM Shahidul Hoque identified the drug as the country's top problem and said that cops have been doing hard to stop using and trading of drugs across the country. The conference will give focus on fight against extremism and drugs through cooperation among the South Asian nations, the IGP said.He urged all to raise voice against drug addiction and to help the law enforcers check the alarming use.

Admitting the increase of trans-border drugs smuggling, Major General Abul Hossain, Director General of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), said, "It is not possible for BGB alone to check drug smuggling through the huge bordering areas. The Civil Administration and others have to cooperate with us in this regard. The BGB, however, will show zero tolerance to drugs smuggling."

Refuting the claim, Director General of DNC Khandakar Rakibur Rahman told The New Nation recently, "Drug trading is still rampant in the country. Police may claim that drug trading is under their control, but we do not think so. We are trying to bring the situation under control despite constraint." "Of course, the demand, consumption, trading and smuggling of the drugs are increasing day by day across the country. It is impossible to prevent drug smuggling by the Department alone, as the main job thereof is to prevent and control drug trafficking," the DG said. He also said, we should remain more alert on the border areas to check the smuggling of drugs. Agency adds: Chiefs of Police and other law enforcement agencies of South Asia and neighbouring countries will meet here on Sunday to discuss a regional strategy to combat militancy, extremism and other types of transnational crimes. Bangladesh Police, in collaboration with INTERPOL, is organizing the three-day Chiefs of Police Conference for the first time in the country with the aim of increasing regional law enforcement cooperation, AKM Shahidur Rahman, Deputy Inspector General (DIG-Media) of Police headquarters, said.

Chiefs of Police and law enforcement agencies or their representatives from 14 countries including Afghanistan, Australia, Bhutan, Brunei, China, India, Indonesia, the Maldives, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, will take part. Besides, high officials of Interpol, Facebook, American IGCI and FBI, and ASEANPOL and International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP) will attend the conference, he said. Officials are expected to address violent extremism, trafficking in human beings, financial crime and offences related to terrorist financing, drug trafficking and illegal small arms trade at the conference, Shahidur Rahman said. About the objective of the conference, the DIG (Media) said the regional conference has been organized to find ways to strengthen existing relationships among the law enforcement agencies in the region alongside making a regional strategy to combat, militancy, extremism and other types of transnational crimes.

Top law enforcement officials will attempt to develop a common platform to cooperate in a prompt and effective manner as needed to combat terrorism and transnational crime in the region, he said.

Since countries of this region share a common socio-cultural and economic pattern of life as well as similarities in the nature and characteristics of offences, there is a need to develop a common mechanism to fight cross-border crime and militancy, he said.
7 more JMB men held

Police arrested seven suspected activists of the banned militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from Rajshahi and Natore districts on Saturday.

In Rajshahi, police arrested five suspected activists of the JMB from different areas of Bagmara upazila early in the morning. The identities of the arrestees could not be known yet. Tipped off, a team of police conducted the separate drives in different areas of the upazila at the dead of night and arrested the five, said Nasim Ahmed, officer-in-charge of Bagmara Police Station. Further details of the drive are still awaited.

In Natore, police in a drive arrested two suspected activists of JMB-Shahabuddin and Rahidul Islam-from Merigachha area in Boraigram upazila early in the morning. They were accused in a case filed with Boalia Police Station of Rajshahi district in connection with militancy activities.


7 BD nat'ls held in New York



Police in New York have arrested seven Bangladeshis in connection with a $3 million credit card fraud case.

The seven are part of a group of 30, who were detained after being accused of committing fraud by stealing information from immigrants. Those detained were in possession of several dozens of fake credit cards, four ID forging machines, approximately $400,000 in cash, gold bars, five cars bought with stolen money and three firearms, said Queens District Attorney Richard A Brown. Members of the organised criminal gang had been conducting operations in Queens and nearby areas since April 2015, said Brown.

"The gang would buy gold ornaments and electronics with fake Citibank, Bank of America, Chase and American Express credit cards and sell them off at a low price." The Bangladeshi leader of the fraud ring, 40-year old Mohammad Rana, lived on 13th Avenue in Jamaica, Queens.

The other Bangladeshis have been identified as Asha Billah, Tanvir Shidhu alias Sunny, 25, Mohsin Khan alias Chacha, 59, 'Selina' alias Pocho, 30, Mohammad Hasan, 52, and Shompa Jaman, 46.

The others detained are Indian and Pakistani nationals, said New York Police Commissioner James P O'Neill. The deputy leaders Indarjit Singh aka Goya and 24-year old Sonu have also been arrested.

If convicted, the suspects face 25 years in jail and a huge amount of fine, said District Attorney Brown.
`Patronise women entrepreneurs`

Staff Reporter :

Discussants at a programme have urged women leaders of all sectors in the country to come forward to patronise women entrepreneurs to help them establish in the society.



Energies Group, in collaboration with EMK Centre organised the discussion programme titled "Her Story: Women Trailblazers" at Midas Centre in Dhaka on Saturday to mark the International Women's Day.



Tarana Halim, State Minister for Post and Telecommunications, attended the programme as the chief guest while Rokia Afzal Rahman, founder of MIDAS and former Adviser to the caretaker government was the special guest.



Dr. Fahmida Khatun, Executive Director, Center for Policy Dialogue, moderated the programme. Besides, Dr. Firdausi Qadri, Acting Director, Infectious Diseases Division and Emeritus Scientist, ICDDRB, Rupali Chowdhury, Managing Director, Berger Paints Bangladesh Limited, Suraiya Zannatth, FCA, Lead Financial Management Specialist, The World Bank and Kanak Chanpa Chakma, Freelance Artist, were the panel discussants on the occasion.



Moreover, Sajeda Farisa Kabir, Programmer Head, Human Rights and Legal Aid Services, BRAC, Maliha Malek Quadir, Founder and Managing Director, Shohoz.com, Nishat Mazumder, Everest Summiter, Joya Shahrin Haque, Assistant Professor, Print Making Department of Dhaka University were the presenters at the programme, while Zareen Mahmud Hosein, Director, Energis Limited attended it as the women entrepreneur and organiser.



Addressing the discussion, the panel discussants said women empowerment is the reflection of gender equality that acts as precursor to move the country forward to several goals -- moving the country forward towards attaining middle income status, and also inclusive and sustainable development of Bangladesh.



They also put emphasis on ensuring a society that provides equal opportunity and fundamental right for everyone, as women have to face many challenges in their day to day life everyday.



Participation of women in different sectors like science, technology and research is transforming visions of Bangladesh and it needs to be cleared, said women leaders from different professions.



Ensuring all sort of supports to the women, State Minister for Post and Telecommunications Tarana Halim declared that 20 per cent of women would be entitled to get privilege in jobs by the postal division as drivers in its next recruitment.



"The postal division will keep 20 per cent job for women in its next driver recruitment process," the junior minister said.



World Bank group's Lead Financial Management Specialist Suraiya Zannatth said women participation is increasing in professions like micro finance, ready-made garments, agriculture and some other sectors in Bangladesh.



"The recent labour force found women have a major percentage in manufacturing sector, almost equal like men. Health and education also have second largest participation of women. In agriculture, it is 50 percent where women are representing," said Zannatth.



Berger Paints of Bangladesh Limited Managing Director Rupali Chowdhury suggested women to take an approach and work for securing positions in leadership roles.



"The number of women as role model is very few in professions like artist, police officer, pilot or other scientific fields. Those, who can manage their time, in every stages of life can be the role model. So, we need to work hard and we can not give up," said eminent artist Kanak Chapa Chakma.



Later, the state minister inaugurated an art exhibition "HER STORY: Women Trailblazers", dedicated to female leadership in Bangladesh over the past century.



The framework of the exhibition is a timeline of outstanding personas who made lasting contributions to the fields of science, politics, economics, arts and letters. The exhibition would remain open from 9:30am to 8.00pm everyday at EMK Center in Dhaka till March 31.



Energis Limited is the sister concern of Shasha Denims Limited, a listed company with the country's Stock Exchange.



Energis as part of its social responsibility has long been working for uplifting capability of industry, culture, education and infrastructure.


Electricity disrupted

Staff Reporter :

Electricity supply was disrupted in the city and many areas across the country in last two days due to the transformer disorder.

Besides, electricity distribution lines were also affected by the strong wind. The customers of Sreepur of Gazipur complained of not getting electricity from Friday's midnight.

Ahmed Ullah, a resident of Rampura Banasri lamented of not getting electricity from Saturday morning. The electricity supply did not resume till 5:00 PM of the day.

He said that, with a big sound, the electricity supply was halted. Old aged people and children became scared at the sound.

Power Development Board sources said, electricity supply was disrupted in Dhaka city and other parts of the country due to transformer chaos.

An official of Power Development Board control room said, after brief drizzling, the transformers went out of order. The mobile service teams were working unabated to restore power supply in those areas, he added. It happens if there is sudden rain after a long time, sometimes local systems go out of order due to rain in the early rainy season, he added.

Power supply was disrupted at Lalbagh, Azimpur, Shyamoli, Paribagh, Jhigatala, Khilkhet, Rampura Banasri and madertake of Dhaka because of sudden rains and wind flows.

Apart from Dhaka, rain drenched parts of Narayanganj, Gazipur, Faridpur, Madaripur, Pabna, Jessore, Chuadanga and Jhenaidah districts. In sudden rains in the dry season, problem hits the electricity distribution lines. But it is temporary and power connection has already been restored in most of the areas, said an engineer of Rural Electrification Board, adding that the remaining areas will get electricity shortly. But experts questioned if the electricity supply is disrupted in rains, what will happen in the summer?

State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid said, it is a temporary problem and local offices of power distribution entities are working to restore electricity.
Mijarul Quayes passes away

UNB, Dhaka :

Bangladesh Ambassador to Brazil and former Foreign Secretary Mohamed Mijarul Quayes passed away in Brasilia, Brazil at 6 am (BST) on Saturday. He was 57.

He breathed his last in Brasilia Hospital at 9 pm

on Friday (Brazil time), a senior diplomat at the Embassy told UNB.He was earlier hospitalised in Brazil with respiratory problems and other complexities. Quayes also served as a Foreign Secretary in the ministry during 2009-12.

He is survived by wife, two daughters and a host of relatives and well-wishers to mourn his premature death. President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday expressed deep shock at the death of Mijarul Quayes. In a condolence message, President Hamid said the nation has lost a career diplomat at his death. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also expressed profound shock at the death of Ambassador Quayes. Both the President and the Prime Minister prayed for the eternal peace of the departed soul and conveyed their deep sympathies to his bereaved family members.

The Brazilian government also condoled his death. "On behalf of the Brazilian Government, and myself, I would like to present my most sincere condolences to Ambassador Quayes' family, his friends and to the Bangladeshi Government," Brazilian Ambassador in Dhaka Wanja Campos da Nobrega said in a message. Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali, State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam and Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque also expressed deep shock at the sad demise of Quayes and conveyed their deep sympathies to his bereaved family members.

Terming him an outstanding human being, his colleagues said Quayes' death is an irreplaceable loss to the nation. "We've lost one of the most meritorious, dexterous, literary and scholarly diplomats in Bangladesh foreign service. It's really shocking and hard to accept his final departure and absence like this," said one of his colleagues praying for salvation of his departed soul.
Rain hits life

Staff Reporter :

Dhaka city dwellers suffered on Saturday as a moderate shower submerged many city roads due to the influence of a deep depression in the Bay of Bengal.

The light rain started falling from Friday night and continued till 12:00 noon yesterday. The rain will continue till Sunday, according to officials at the Met office.

Commuters and private office-goers faced problems in reaching their destinations for lack of transport.

It provided a bonanza for the rickshaw peddlers and auto-rickshaw drivers to charge extra-fares from the people returning home from private offices and businesses.

"When there's monsoon, the city people keep on struggling to commute as most roads are bumpy and potholed. Rain or no rain you must suffer in this dirty city," Nowsher Ali, a banker, told The New Nation on Saturday.

Many roads and lanes of the capital went under water due to the light rain, causing immense sufferings to people and disrupting their normal activities, and slowing vehicular movement.

The rainwater submerged roads in Mirpur-10, Senpara-Parbata and Kazipara, Rokeya Sarani, Bijoysharani, Moghbazar, Mouchak, Malibagh, Shantinagar, Kakrail, Sabujbagh, Khilgaon, Merul Badda, Rampura, Motijheel, Shyampur Demra, Mohammadpur and many roads of the old Dhaka.

"A little bit of rain submerges the Tajmahal Road of Mohammadpur and makes life of the dwellers there miserable. Once the road is submerged, it takes the drainage system at least an hour to clear the water," Kamal Uddin, a resident of the area, said.

Road digging at several places in the Moghbazar-Mouchak flyover construction site tormented the travellers most.

Commuters faced unbearable miseries while travelling through the roads connecting Moghbazar, Mouchak, Malibagh, Shantinagar Eskaton, Dilu Road, Siddheswari, Shaatrasta and Rampura areas as the roads that developed deep potholes due to the construction work of Moghbazar-Mouchak flyover went under water, putting them at risk of accidents.

Saiful Islam, a businessman at Malibagh area said, "During monsoon, the sufferings of the city commuters mount. Even a light to moderate rain causes inundation and huge sufferings for the commuters in the battered city's thoroughfares, particularly those in Moghbazar, Malibagh and Shantinagar areas."

Many people were seen wading through filthy water.

Stinks from drains mixed with the stagnant water added to the woes of the pedestrians.

A weather forecasting officer at Chittagong Met office said they recorded 19 millimeters of rainfall in the city until 6:00am on Saturday.

The Met office said rain or thundershowers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely to occur at many places over Khulna, Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Mymensingh, Rajshahi, Rangpur and Sylhet Divisions.

'Day and night temperature may fall slightly over the country,' the Met office said.

Last year the government had declared lightning strikes as natural disasters after 142 were killed by July.

Besides, the maritime ports of Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Mongla and Payra have been advised to hoist local cautionary signal No 3 as trough of low lies over the North Bay, and adjoining Southern part of Bangladesh, and West Bengal and adjoining area, said a Met office warning message.

All fishing boats and trawlers over the North Bay have been advised to come close to the coast and proceed with caution until further notice.


Fear of hunger in Iraq`s west Mosul

Iraqi troops distribute food aid to residents of west Mosul on March 10 as Iraqi forces advance in the city.

Mail Online :

The luckiest of west Mosul's residents under Islamic State group rule had tomato concentrate. Potatoes were an almost unheard-of luxury.

In parts of Iraq's war-torn second city seized this week by Iraqi forces, hundreds of residents queued up behind a government truck as they waited for their first proper meal in weeks. "We have been under siege for more than six months on this side" of Mosul, said Khaled Meshaal, a resident of Al-Mansur district, which government forces took on Wednesday.

"We bought food four times but we finished it all, there was nothing left." As Iraqi forces closed in on the jihadists' last Iraqi urban stronghold, residents were forced to hide in their homes and get by on whatever they had managed to stockpile. "The markets were empty: we only had a little rice, flour and dates," said Abu Ahad, a 45-year-old from Al-Mansur.

In a street devastated by fighting, hundreds of men with shaggy beards waited to receive cartons containing bottles of oil, boxes of baby formula, rice, tea and sugar. The cardboard packages were emblazoned with the label "Ministry of Migration and the Displaced".

Women queued in a second line. Some had removed the veils the jihadists had forced them to wear.

Their black robes were covered with dust. Each resident presented an ID card before being given a parcel. The crowd stirred and pressed against the truck, as people pushed and shoved.

Soldiers shot in the air to restore order. Fahd Fadel managed to strap his box of aid on to a bike before picking his way through piles of rubble strewn across the street. "I feel like I've been born again," said the 50-year-old, adding that he had a wife and five children to feed. "For three months there was nothing to buy in the markets, but these last days it was hell. We stored basic products-water, cracked wheat and tomato concentrate-and we ate one meal a day."

He stood amid a scene of destruction. Houses were reduced to piles of shredded concrete and twisted scrap metal. On the ground nearby lay the body of a jihadist, his throat cut and his heart ripped out. "The families of IS fighters had plenty of reserves. They had enough to eat and drink, but if they saw a starving child in the street they would not give it anything," said Yasser Nabil. The former civil servant in his thirties, whose yellow and blue tracksuit stood out amid the grey landscape, said he had his parents and four young children to feed.

"They are asking for food, but we have nothing to give them," he said. "We ate one meal a day and we didn't have baby formula." Khaled, 47, said he had no food left at home and this was the first aid to reach the district. He had come to collect food for his five children. "Everything was very expensive and nobody had any money left," he said. "In recent weeks we ate one meal a day, whatever we had in the house-lentils or cracked wheat."

A few streets away, food was distributed by Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation) paramilitaries.
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News / National

by Staff reporter

THE government is still struggling to raise $15 million to complete the upgrading of the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport (JMN) in Bulawayo, more than three years after it was commissioned by President Robert Mugabe.Mugabe commissioned the airport terminal on December 22, 2013 after the project had dragged on for over a decade, raising questions on the government's commitment to honour the late liberation icon, Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo.Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe public relations and communications manager, Annajulia Hungwe told NewsDay that the upgrading of the airport was not yet complete."Outstanding works are the construction of a new air traffic control tower, fire station and the dualisation of the access roads which constitute phase two of the project," Hungwe said."The outstanding works are estimated to cost $15 million. Funding to complete the project is being sought. The upgrading project has improved the handling capacity from 10% to 15% per annum."For the air traffic control tower, government needed $9 million, for the fire station it needed $4 million, whereas for dualisation of access roads it needed $2 million.The airport has the capacity to handle 1,5 million passengers annually when complete.The new terminal has a capacity to handle an average of 6 000 aircraft annually and 10 planes at any given time.Airlines that are using the airport include South Africa Airlink and Air Zimbabwe.SA Airlink, a South African Airways service, plies the Bulawayo-Johannesburg route daily. Air Zimbabwe flies to Harare and the resort town of Victoria Falls.Hungwe revealed that the country's airline industry was growing with 17 international airlines and three domestic airlines already plying the Zimbabwe route.She said the completion and commissioning of the New Victoria Falls International Airport was yielding positive results, with two prominent African airlines now scheduled to commence flights to Victoria Falls.These are Ethiopian Airlines and Kenya Airways.A newly-launched local airline, Rainbow Airlines, plies the Harare-Victoria Falls route and is expected tointroduce the Johannesburg route, Hungwe said.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Former vice president Joice Mujuru has opened up on her wealth, dismissing claims that she is superrich, with interests in the diamond-rich Chiadzwa fields, as a joke.Speaking on BBC's Hardtalk, the ex-top Zanu-PF official - turned President Robert Mugabe's fierce rival - said she only owns a house and a farm."I only have a house, I only run a farm . . . which I am still negotiating with the owner," she claimed.Further asked to comment on reports that her late husband, retired general Solomon Mujuru, owned significant stakes in diamond firms and that she and her daughter were involved in selling of the highly-priced gems, she said:"You think that if I had all that richness I would be suffering this much. You think since Mujuru died five years ago and they have now gone to trace his estate, they wouldn't have said something about how rich he was."Mujuru said at the height of the allegations, a Cabinet team had been set up to investigate her alleged involvement in the Chiadzwa diamond fields.The leader of the newly-formed National People's Party said talk about her alleged involvement in Chiadzwa arose after she started running a horticultural community programme next to the mining field, adding that the produce was also being sold in London, United Kingdom."I am telling you the joke about the anthill, it was a joke because after they (authorities) had heard that they went to investigate as a Cabinet team . . . and they discovered that it was a joke because these people never saw me there," Mujuru said, further stating that "I have never been a miner, I have never owned anything in terms of business, so they said no no no these were jokes that were going through between these two communities because they stay side by side"."I have never been involved in anything to do with diamonds. These are rumours, these are social media talks," Mujuru said.She once again dispelled corruption allegations that were levelled against her by Zanu-PF officials during her expulsion from the ruling party in 2014, adding that if she were corrupt, she could have been arrested by now.Mujuru said those who profited from corruption over the years must be held to account."Corruption has done a lot of damage to the economy and corruption is the worst thing, (it) is the enemy of what is existing in Zimbabwe today," she said.Mujuru said her aim was to transform Zanu-PF from within, blaming the Executive for Gukurahundi atrocities where at least 20 000 civilians were massacred in Matabeleland and Midlands provinces.Even though she accepted collective blame over what transpired during her tenure in government, Mujuru said that she was against most of the things that were happening.She also said that she supported the full compensation of whites who lost their farms during the violent land reform programme, adding that she is in talks with the evicted owner of Ruzambo Farm (Alamein Farm) - which she now runs - Guy Watson-Smith in order to compensate him.She also castigated the government's indigenisation policy, which calls for foreign-owned companies to cede 51 percent of their shares to locals.She said her party will repeal the law if it is voted into power, because it supports investment.
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I have. All as a consequence of the impact of political spoils on immigration and international travel.

The McGoffins (from left): Eric, Stephen, Thelmi, Matthew and Gary

I have. In 1979, with my lovely bride on our honeymoon in Mexico. All as a consequence of the impact of political spoils on immigration and international travel.

Thelmi was a Nicaraguan citizen and obtained her honeymoon visa for Mexico from the Nicaraguan Consulate in New Orleans. Six weeks later, we were deported from Mexico because of a Nicaraguan regime change during the interim  the visa had to have been issued from Mexico City rather than through the Nicaraguan Consulate.

President Anastasio Somoza resigned and fled Nicaragua on July 17, 1979, just three weeks after Thelmi had received her visa and just prior to our Aug. 11 wedding. Even though Thelmi had timely obtained her visa to Mexico, she was never contacted by the consulate to let her know that the rules had changed. As a result, her visa was invalid, we were detained the night of our arrival and were deported back to New Orleans the next day. We forfeited our pre-paid honeymoon trip to Mexico.

Following our abrupt return to New Orleans, we met with the Nicaraguan Consulate, were advised of the rule change and that we were the unfortunate first to be the victims of that change. When asked how they would rectify their mistake, they invoked sovereign immunity. There was no satisfaction other than the fact that we were back in the good old USA.

We later learned that Mexico changed the visa policy because it was pro-Sandinista/anti-Somoza and presumed that any Nicaraguan in Mexico following Somozas departure from Nicaragua was likely to be pro-Somoza. After all, the Sandinistas were peasants who couldnt afford to travel with a passport.

That presumption was especially ironic in Thelmis case. Somozas failed attempt to muscle in on her fathers cattle export business was punished by Somoza changing the cattle export laws. Equally ironic, her fathers college roommate and her brothers godfather, John Gavin, was later named the US ambassador to Mexico.

The deportation officials did not speak English. I did not speak Spanish. Thelmi handled the highly charged discussions. She even showed them our New Orleans wedding invitation to prove we were not Nicaraguan refugees. But, no matter. We were deported without recourse and without fault.

Does this sound strangely familiar?

In January, The Daily Advertiser raised the question Is Lafayette Still a Sanctuary City? Two months later, its front page asked Did Marshals Office Target Hispanics?

Both issues have a common source, Lafayette City Marshal Brian Pope.

Is Lafayette still a 'sanctuary city'?

It is Marshal Pope who first promoted Lafayette as a sanctuary city at his official Oct. 7, 2015, press conference on immigration and the Lafayette Parish sheriffs election. His written press release and his public statement that day claimed 661 warrants for illegal Hispanic aliens in the city of Lafayette. He reaffirmed that number in open court under oath on Dec. 14, 2015 in his public records hearing testimony.

But it was fake news. Under oath again two weeks later in a video trial deposition, he could not identify a single warrant for a single illegal alien, much less 661  regardless of whether they were Hispanic/Spanish, white, black, Asian, Indian or other.

Worse, it was fake news scripted by the campaign advisor to his preferred candidate for Lafayette sheriff. Marshal Pope denied that fact under oath, resulting in a felony perjury indictment, six related felony charges and criminal contempt of court.

Unfortunately, the consequences of Marshal Popes acts have not been limited to him. References to Lafayette as a sanctuary city have since proliferated, including national publication in USA Today. Last summer, the Louisiana Legislature considered a bill banning sanctuary cities, citing Lafayette and New Orleans as examples.

The truth is that Lafayette Parish complied with the federal immigration detainer policy promulgated in 2012. Only the anti-immigration think-tank Center for Immigration Studies and our very own Marshal Pope have claimed to the contrary; both for their own political purposes.

Did marshals office target Hispanics?

With one important qualification, the answer is YES. Marshal Pope does target Hispanics. His sworn testimony and the court transcript in his public records lawsuit with The Independent document it.

However, that is limited to Marshal Pope personally, not to his office. That is the qualification. There is nothing in the court records to indicate that any city marshal employee did anything but follow Marshal Popes orders. Or as he stated under oath, They work at my pleasure. Such was depicted in the photograph with the four on-duty deputies literally standing as an official backdrop to the podium with Marshal Pope at his bogus immigration press conference.

He started with the October 2015 press release denouncing Mark Garber as a candidate for sheriff stating, ...to actually travel to Central America and do a television interview to get the word out that illegal immigrants can come to Louisiana, and file workers compensation claims without fear of being deported is ... irresponsible.

On Dec. 14 of that year, Pope testified under oath in open court that We currently have 611 arrest warrants for illegal aliens in this  in this city... I just know from what city court has. Im not sure what district court has. Im sure its more than that.

Then, in his Dec. 28, 2015, video trial deposition, Pope chose to selectively portray the Hispanic/Spanish problem by ignoring the 4,155 black warrants and 3,874 white warrants, instead focusing exclusively on the non-black, non-white warrants to support his claim that the Spanish have overwhelmingly larger numbers at [611].

Later in that deposition, he finally acknowledged that of the 611 arrest warrants he referenced only 80 were actually documented to be Hispanic, and he could not identify even one that was an illegal immigrant. The other 531 were actually other that he simply lumped together with the 80 Hispanics to reach 611.

In fact, Marshal Pope took absolutely no action to pursue his illegal immigrant criminal investigation after the press conference.

Then at the Jan. 4, 2016, public records hearing, Popes defense called Scott Police Chief Chad Leger to the stand for the following question: From your perspective as the chief of police, have you noticed an increase in Latinos moving into your community?

The Court requested an explanation for the relevance of that question, asking, Why are we getting into this ethnicity of anybody? Popes attorney replied, Although it may be offensive, I think the issue is that Marshal Pope has testified that with respect to Latino, Hispanics, however you want to say it, its created a problem for the community in terms of them getting arrested, getting let out, not properly ID'd, not properly fingerprinted and going out and committing other crimes.

The judge followed up: So is their ethnicity that which is relevant, or their status to be in the country, their lawful capacity to be in the country? Which one of those two things is relevant to this proceeding? To which the reply was, Not the latter. The former would be.

My family of immigrants

I am descended from German and Irish immigrants. Thelmi was born in Nicaragua. One of our sons married a Ukrainian immigrant. Our grandsons mother is from the Dominican Republic. One of my great grandfathers was a German WWI draft dodger who stowed away to America and swam ashore.

I have lived and traveled confidently as an American citizen along with my extended immigrant family. However, the fact that the political spoils game with immigration is festering in my hometown is more threatening than being deported on my honeymoon.

International events may be beyond our influence, but ridding ourselves of the myth of the sanctuary city and the reality of targeting Hispanics is firmly within our control. It starts with knowing the facts. It is achieved by confronting those facts openly and honestly as a community. History, including my own family history, has proven that it will only strengthen us.

Gary McGoffin is a Lafayette attorney and vice president of board development for Boy Scouts of Americas Evangeline Area Council. He also serves as legal counsel for IND Media, parent company of The Independent.
Third Circuit Court of Appeal candidates Vanessa Anseman, left, and Susan Theall participate in the Lafayette Parish Bar Association forum Friday. Candyce Perret, whose candidacy has been under fire in recent media reports, said she had a scheduling conflict, an excuse neither of her opponents was buying.

Photo by Robin May

The Lafayette Bar Associations Third Circuit Court of Appeal candidate forum Friday was dominated by ethical questions based on provisions of Louisianas Code of Judicial Conduct, with one candidate claiming ownership of the elephant in the room.

The ethical and legal questions surrounding the one candidate not in the room, though, were also the focus of the questions, despite that they were never directly addressed during the one-hour forum.

Questions for the candidates were developed by members of the LBAs forum committee. Moderator Scott Brazda began the questioning by focusing on Canon 2 of the Code, which reads: A Judge Shall Avoid Impropriety and the Appearance of Impropriety in All Activities.

Recently, information reported by the media raised questions or concerns [about] your professional and/or personal conduct that may call into question your qualifications and/or fitness to serve as a judge, Brazda said. Can each of you respond to these questions or concerns to assure that you will adhere to the requirements of Canon 2?

Vanessa Anseman Photo by Robin May



Vanessa Anseman, who won a coin toss with Susan Theall, responded first, going directly to questions regarding her eligibility to run for the appellate court.

She said that her campaign has been the target of a series of unspecified complaints by a friend of an opponent about wording of some of her ads. Anseman then moved to the eligibility question, specifically whether she has the required 10 years of practice, that is now headed for a Monday court hearing in the 27th JDC in Opelousas.

With respect to what well call the elephant in the room, the piece that deals with misrepresenting qualifications, lets talk about that, Anseman said, launching into the constitutional history of what is now Article 5, Section 24 of the Louisiana Constitution.

1921 is the last time that our constitution says that years of active practice are part of what qualifies someone to run for court of appeal, Anseman told the group of about 40 people attending the forum. Fast forward to 1974, theres a complete overhaul of our constitution, and it is very clear that they changed the language from years of practice to when that candidate was admitted to the practice.

Anseman was admitted to the bar on Oct. 10, 2003. You get one and only one admission date unless youre disbarred, Anseman told the audience. I have one and only one admission date to the bar.

Anseman said the Legislature and voters amended the constitution again in 2006 at which time the length of time in practice was extended for appeals court judges to 10 years.

There was actually an amendment by Rep. Hunter to go back to that old requirement based on years of practice, and it was shot down by the Legislature, Anseman said.

Challenges to Ansemans eligibility have been filed with district attorneys in the 15th and 27th judicial districts. 15th JDC D.A. Keith Stutes advised Anseman by letter earlier this week that he did not believe she was eligible to run and asked her to withdraw. Stutes took that action based on a call for action from candidate Susan Theall to his office on Monday, Feb. 27.

27th JDC DA Earl Taylor filed a formal petition in district court in Opelousas Thursday asking the court there to decide Ansemans eligibility. A hearing has been set for Monday, March 13, in Judge Alonzo Harris court for arguments on the matter.

Theall declared that Canon 2 of the code is perhaps the most important Canon in the code.

Susan Theall Photo by Robin May



It talks about integrity, Theall said. Canon 2 is intended to ask the judges to foster respect for our system of justice. And so it is why we are held to a higher standard. Its why we look at things like character, and we look at things like impartiality.

I can tell you absolutely that in my 31 years of practice Ive done nothing that Im ashamed of, Theall continued. Ive done nothing that Ive been arrested for. And, Ive done everything that I can to be a good lawyer and, when I was a judge, I did everything that I could to be a good judge.

I take very seriously the trust placed in judges to foster respect for our system of justice, Theall continued. There are too many people in the general public who simply dont understand how this system works. Too many people in the general public continue to believe that a lawyer can influence a judge, or that someone can call a judge to get a favor. And, that really doesnt happen. We need to make sure as judges and as candidates that we exhibit exemplary standards of conduct so that the general public will trust in our system.

The lone candidate not present, Candyce Gagnard Perret, was arrested in June, 2004, in Walton County, Florida, for indecent exposure (she was naked on a beach, according to police reports). The charge was dropped a year later after she completed a pre-trial diversion program. In the arrest report, Perret, who was not married at the time, allegedly told the arresting officers that she was an assistant district attorney, a position she has never held. Her campaign has denied that she ever made that statement, as did her then-fiance, New Orleans attorney John W. Houghtaling II, who was with her and two other couples during the incident and at the time of her arrest.

The IND has also reported that there is an ongoing federal investigation into Louisiana Specialty Institute, a company owned by the candidates husband, Hunter Perret. One lawyer contacted by federal investigators has since told The IND that the investigation has expanded into other Perret-controlled businesses.

Candyce Perret did not participate in the event, her campaign contends, because it could not resolve a long-standing scheduling conflict with the event.

LBA Executive Director Jo Abshire told The IND in a telephone interview Thursday that Perrets campaign had sent a photo and biographical material for inclusion in promotional materials for the event, but pointed out the scheduling conflict at that time.

Perrets campaign manager, Marie Centanni, responded to The IND's email question on Thursday about Perrets decision not to participate in the LBA forum.

We have not withdrawn from any forums, Centanni wrote. Unfortunately due to time constraints and scheduling conflicts, we have been unable to commit to any forums to date. The campaign supports efforts like this to inform the public about the importance of this race. Candyce Perret is focused on personally interacting with as many voters as possible in the eight parishes voting in this quick special election.

When asked about Perrets absence after the forum, neither Anseman nor Theall were buying that explanation.

I took part in this forum because I believe its important to let attorneys hear you directly, Theall said. I looked forward to this event because it gave them the opportunity to do a side-by-side comparison of the candidates.

Theall said she believes forums of this type are an effective way to encounter larger numbers of voters, contradicting the Perret campaigns reason for not participating.

Im not frustrated by [Perrets] absence from this event and other forums, but voters should be, Theall told The IND.

Anseman unloaded on Perret, linking the candidates absence directly to the stories and reports that have been published about her.

Its frustrating that shes speaking through proxies, Anseman said. She will not admit or deny personally any of the allegations, any of the records out there that you have put in print, that other media outlets have put in print. So, to keep dodging it under the guise of oh, its a short campaign is nonsensical.

Anseman said she had been told by audience members that Perret was spotted waving signs on Johnston Street earlier in the day.

If in fact, you got the story wrong and shes not under investigation by the feds with LSI and, if in fact, she didnt lie and say she was an ADA in Orleans; if in fact, she did not intimidate those police officers, then she just missed an opportunity to clarify, Anseman continued. To my knowledge, she has not done that. Shes using other people to tell her story. It is a bit frustrating.

Early voting for the March 25 primary election in the eight-parish district begins tomorrow (Saturday) and continues through March 18.
A new U.S. strategy to break a stalemate in Afghanistan will require additional American troops, the head of the U.S. Central Command said on Thursday.





"I do believe it will involve additional forces to ensure that we can make the advise and assist mission more effective," Army General Joseph Votel said during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.





Votel said a strategy was still being developed and did not give details on the number of troops that would be required or when a final decision would be made.





Last month, Army General John Nicholson, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, said he needed several thousand more international troops in order to break the stalemate in the long war with Taliban insurgents, signaling that the matter may soon be put before President Donald Trump.





So far, Trump has offered little clarity about whether he might approve more forces for Afghanistan, where some 8,400 U.S. troops remain more than 15 years after the Islamist Taliban government was toppled by U.S.-backed Afghan forces. - More, Reuters
News / National

by Staff reporter

The countrywide tour by MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai, pictured, has reignited victimisation of opposition activists in rural areas, a political pressure group has said.Tsvangirai recently wrapped up a 29-day countrywide tour under which he met ordinary citizens.In the aftermath of the engagements, the Zimbabwe Yadzoka/Mayibuye iZimbabwe group says there have been "disturbing reports of threats and victimisation of villagers"."Victimisation of villagers for simply associating with a party of their choice is a blatant violation of the Zimbabwean Constitution," it said.MDC spokesperson Obert Gutu also confirmed that villagers were being terrorised after Tsvangirai's tour."We are not at all surprised to learn that opposition activists in rural areas are now being targeted for persecution soon after Tsvangirai's . . . countrywide meet-the-people tour," he said, adding that "Zanu-PF has always survived on terror, banditry, violence, intimidation and thuggery"."The ailing, bankrupt and fractured Zanu-PF regime is extremely paranoid and insecure because they know they can never win a free and fair election, especially against Tsvangirai and the MDC that he leads."This is the main reason why the collapsing regime has literally ring-fenced most rural areas and made them protected villages of terror, violence and intimidation," he said."However, our game plan is very effective as we have managed to penetrate all rural areas on a continuous programme of consulting our party structures and other opinion leaders such as traditional leaders, church leaders, students, small-scale miners and various other stakeholders."The MDC is surely on a roll and this has made the faction-infested and crumbling Zanu-PF regime feel very insecure and threatened," Gutu said.Efforts to get comment from police spokesperson Charity Charamba were fruitless as her mobile phone went unanswered.Zimbabwe Yadzoka/Mayibuye iZimbabwe also called on chiefs to stop meddling in politics."We implore traditional leaders to respect the country's supreme law and refrain from meddling in politics," it said.The Constitution explicitly states under Section 281 (2) that traditional leaders must not participate in partisan politics."In a nutshell, traditional leaders have become more of an extension of the ruling party and are abusing their authority to fan violence and hatred against perceived and known opponents of the regime."The group said chiefs must support the interests of all Zimbabweans not to back one political party.
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The sextoy market is growing quite rapidly in India right now.

Although it is not a big trend, it is a hot topic on the internet as it is secretly expanding its market.

In this article, we will focus on sextoy and introduce recommended sextoy for Indian beginners of sextoy by gender.

India, the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, is very strict about sex.

Also, premarital sex is basically not allowed. Therefore, there are many people who are sexually restricted.

But what happens when you continue to be sexually restricted?

Frustration may build up and you may end up taking your sexual stress out on your partner.

If you are able to adopt sextoy in a timely manner, you can get rid of those problems.

I want to have more exciting sex than Im having now.

I want more variation in masturbation

I want to get even stronger pleasure than I do on my own.

If you have any of these problems, please stay with me until the end.

What is sex toys for Indian?

Sextoy, as the name implies, is a toy used during sex and masturbation.

It is a generic term for vibrators, Egg-vibrators, Electric massagers, dildo, handcuffs and condoms.

They are used to make regular sex more exciting or to make masturbation more pleasurable.

Because sextoy is very stimulating, it can help you to get rid of the problems and frustrations of being in a rut of sex with your partner for a long time, or if you are unhappy with the lack of pleasure in sex with your partner.

The ability to satisfy your desires with movement, texture, and size, which cannot be done by a normal human being, can help you to be satisfied with sex and, as a result, improve your relationship with your partner.

It is also said to help improve sexual dysfunction (inability to get an erection or ejaculate) and difficulty in feeling during sex (insensitivity), which is attracting more attention than in the past.

In recent years, the demand for sextoy has increased due to the spread of smartphones and the Internet and the increasing number of people using online shopping.

Even those who are concerned about the appearance of sextoy (and find it difficult to purchase) can now easily obtain it by using mail order.

In the case of online shopping, most of the stores have taken steps to ensure that the contents of the products delivered to you are not revealed, so you can purchase them without your family members knowing.

Until a while ago, you had to go to the store where the adult goods were sold to buy them, so it was quite a hurdle to overcome.

Also, many people may have an image that sextoy is somehow embarrassing to own.

But nowadays, some of them are so stylish and cute that you cant believe they are sextoy at a glance.

More and more people are using them for travel and outdoor use because they are not too bulky and are suitable for carrying around.

Sextoy situation in India

Before introducing the recommended sextoy for Indians, lets talk about one of the sextoy situations in India in recent years.

In India, due to the high concentration of population, the following six cities have particularly high sales of sextoy in India.

Mumbai

Kolkata

Bangalore

Delhi

Chennai

Hyderabad

These cities account for roughly 70 percent of sextoy sales in India.

In the future, the percentage of sextoy use will gradually increase in other cities in India as well.

If you never talk about sextoy publicly, that girl in your neighborhood might be a sextoy user too.

If you are interested in sextoy, you dont have to suppress your desire for it.

What are Sextoys for beginner?

Among all sextoys, sextoy for beginners are vibrators, dildo, masturbators, Sex Lubricants, and condoms.

Sex Lubricants and condoms, which are familiar to people who have had sex, are also a great beginners sextoy.

I will explain the details of each toy later, but there are many sextoy products that are painful to use and can only be used after some anal expansion.

I assume that the Indian readers of this article are people who have not had much experience with sextoy.

If such people use professional sextoy suddenly, they are at risk of injury or trauma.

Therefore, to introduce sextoy, you need to start with a beginners version and gradually become familiar with it.

Advantages of using sextoy for Indians

There are three advantages of using sextoy for Indians

You can masturbate in a wide variety of ways.

Can have stimulating sex

Can develop new sexual zones

If you try to masturbate with your own fingers or hands, it tends to be a pattern.

However, with sextoy, you can easily masturbate in a variety of ways.

You will definitely be fascinated by the attraction of new stimulation.

Also, your daily sex life will be more exciting than ever.

There are many things in sextoy that are visually stimulating and give you a strong and intense feeling of pleasure.

This allows you to see your partners promiscuity in a way that you wouldnt normally see it.

When you are in a relationship, sex with your partner may become a pattern, but it can also eliminate these problems.

It can also lead to the development of new sexual zones (which is the training of sexual stimulation to allow you to feel orgasms).

For more information on the development of new sexual zones, see the following articles

[Women's Erogenous Zone]How to find and develop, 7 hidden sexual zones !![In India] In this issue, we will dissect the female erogenous zone! ..." Many of you may be like that. Men, in particular, shou...

Thus, the use of sextoy can only be a good thing for the men and women of India.

Sextoy for beginner men in India

So, lets continue with the recommended goods for Indian sextoy beginners.

For ease of understanding, we will introduce them by gender. Lets start with the men!

The following five goods are recommended for novice Indian sextoy men

Masturbator

Cock rings

Love Doll

Sex Lubricants

Toys for the prostate

Lets check each one in detail.

Masturbator

The masturbator is a sextoy for men that elaborately reproduces a womans vagina, mouth, and anus, and is one of the most popular sextoy products.

It is used by men to masturbate, and it is popular because it provides stronger stimulation and pleasure more easily than using hands.

Most are made of good quality silicone, and their softness is something that cannot be achieved with ones own hands.

They can provide stronger pleasure than a real womans vagina, so be careful not to overuse them. (You wont be able to have an orgasm in a womans vagina anymore.)

Again Male masturbators are a wonderful toy. I do not need any favourite timing, bothersome bargaining. You do not have to worry too much.

Revolutionize your masturbation time! ! !

Made in Japan is a wonderful kinky toy.#sextoysindia #SexToyIndia #Japanhttps://t.co/4k70QGzoTP pic.twitter.com/tRVdxTKPpa   SEXToys India PR  (@SextoysIndia) November 12, 2018

Some of them are disposable, while others can be washed and used over and over again, so its fun to buy a few to use depending on your mood.

If you want to know more about masturbator, please click here

Really pleasant male masturbation and how to do it Are you in a rut with your daily masturbation routine? I'm going to show you five ways men masturbate that you might ...

[For Beginners] How to choose and use a male masturbator without fail Gentlemen.Have you ever used a masturbator? The person who sees this article is probably the one who has not experien...

Cock Ring

A cock ring is literally a ring-shaped sextoy that is worn on a mans penis.

It maintains an erection by binding the penis with a ring of rubber and blocking blood flow.

It is sometimes used as an accessory to be worn on the penis, and may be made of metal or plastic as well as rubber.

In some cases, cock rings have parts or vibrators attached to them that stimulate the vagina, so they kill two birds with one stone, giving a woman pleasure while maintaining an erection.

Cock rings are also sometimes used to treat erectile dysfunction.

It can help with erectile dysfunction, where the penis doesnt get hard when you get an erection or doesnt last long when you try to insert it.

Men who are prone to breakage or who are unsure of the hardness and size of their erections can use a cock ring to increase the size of their penis and maintain an erection for a longer period of time.

Cock rings vary in price from around RS700 to over RS2000 with a vibrator function.

Some of them do not fit your penis, so you should check the size of the cock ring before you buy.

You should know the size of your partners or your own penis when it is erect.

[Penis enlargement] What is a cock ring? Types and usage Cock rings can make your penis bigger and harder. It also makes sex with women more fulfilling and increases your sat...

Love Doll

Love dolls, also known as Dutchwives, are dolls with the appearance of a woman who can experience simulated sex.

There are dolls that look like a woman, but they have no face and only have their breasts and lower torso cut off, and some dolls are so realistic that they can actually be mistaken for real women.

Some expensive dolls can cost more than 1 million yen, and the quality of the doll is easily influenced by the price.

The higher the price, the higher the quality of the doll will be, the closer it will be to the real woman, and the cheaper the doll will be, the less elaborate it will be, making it look like a real doll! Something is wrong! That is also true.

You cant go wrong if you choose a balance between price and taste.

There are stores that allow you to make custom-made love dolls, so you can create a girl of your choice.

You can make a girl of your choice. You can start with inexpensive love dolls at first, and once you get used to it, you can try custom-made love dolls.

If you want to know more about Love doll, please click here

Thorough explanation of the charm of sex dolls! Have you ever heard of sex dolls that are used primarily for pseudo-sex purposes? It is a doll that is quite close to...

Sex lubricants

Sex lubricants are used as a substitute for lubricating fluid during sex or as a lubricant for men to use masturbator rules.

It is not uncommon for women to have difficulty getting wet, depending on their physical condition, or to have difficulty getting wet due to their constitution.

Forcing the penis into the vagina at such times can cause painful intercourse.

There are various types of Sex Lubricants, some with a warming effect, some with a cooling effect, and some with a scent.

Changing the Sex Lubricant used during play is recommended as a good sex accent.

If you want to learn more about Sex Lubricants, click here.

What is sex lubricant?Explain the difference and usage of each ingredient The word "sex toy" may seem like a hurdle to overcome, but lotion is actually one of the most familiar sex toys. Many...

Toys for the Prostate

Another sextoy for men is prostate toys.

The most famous prostate toys include Enemagra, which was originally a prostate massager developed by an American urologist to treat an enlarged prostate line.

Modern prostate toys are imitations of Enemagra that have spread as sextoy for men.

Many people think of prostate toys as being used by gay men, but in fact they are often used by straight men.

What is the prostate?

The prostate is an organ found only in men. It is a walnut-sized organ located deep in the pelvis, just below the bladder, and its primary role is to protect and nourish sperm.

You cannot touch the prostate gland from outside the body, but you can touch it by inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus.

By inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus and touching the prostate and developing it, you can feel intense orgasms.

Orgasms felt in the prostate are mainly dry orgasms, which are orgasms that do not involve ejaculation. (You can also feel orgasms with ejaculation through prostate stimulation.)

The prostate is called the male G-spot, and dry orgasms can be much more intense than ejaculation.

Therefore, men who are able to develop a prostate can become addicted to the pleasure.

sextoy for beinner women in India

The following are the recommended goods for Indian women who are new to sextoy.

The following three are recommended for use by women who are new to sextoy.

Vibrator.

Dildo

Electric Masserger

Lets check out what each one is in detail.

If you want to check out womens toys, click here.

[BEST25]Sex Toys for Women in IndiaThat Can Help You Have an Orgasm There are many women who pretend to feel orgasm during sex. But don't worry, you don't have to pretend to feel orgasm...

Vibrators

A vibrator is a sextoy that vibrates with an Egg-Vibrator to provide stimulation and is often referred to simply as a vibrator.

Some vibrate as well as rotate, and there are many variations of sextoy.

It is quite a popular sextoy, and is well recognized by people who do not know much about sextoy.

Its usage is similar to that of a massager, but it is more compact and easier to carry than a massager, and many of them look as cute as a lipstick or a macaroon, so they are popular among women.

For a while, a famous influencer on twitter said, This is good! You may have heard of the topic of this article by introducing the recommended vibrators.

Vibrators are great for women to use on their own, but they are also recommended for men who have difficulty satisfying women with sex.

Since it is powered by electricity, it is far less tiring than moving your hands by yourself.

This makes it easier to satisfy a woman with sex because you can caress her for longer than usual.

Vibrators are mainly used on the female side, but they can also be used on men.

When used on men, they are used to attack the nipples and glans, and in both cases it is recommended to wear a condom for hygiene reasons.

Introducing how to use the vibrator, its purpose, and how to choose it! Vibrator uses the vibrations caused by the rotation of the motor to provide stimulation. It is one or two of the most...

Dildo

A dildo is a model sextoy made to mimic a male penis.

It can be made of silicone, elastomer (think of it as a material similar to PVC), metal or glass.

A dildo can be used by a man for his female partner during sex, or by a woman for masturbation to get pleasure from it.

They are mainly inserted into women, but some can be used in the male anus as well.

It is sometimes used synonymously with vibrators, but the vibrator is not the same thing as a vibrating device.

A model of a penis that does not vibrate is a dildo.

Some of them have suction cups that can be attached to the floor or wall so that you can enjoy realistic masturbation without using your hands.

For fun, there is a dildo made in the shape of your partners penis.

This one is also popular as a gift, and if youve been together for a long time and are having trouble finding a gift for your partner, you might want to pick one.

To learn more about dildo, please click here.

What is Dildo: Orgasms with Dildos for Men and Women A dildo is a model of a male organ that is used by women for masturbation and by men to stimulate the prostate gland. Th...

Electric Masserger

A Electric Masserger is a hand-held electric massager, also known as a handheld massager, and can usually be purchased at electronics stores.

It was originally designed to relieve stiff shoulders and back pain, so the hurdle of buying one in a physical store is quite low.

Many people may have seen or used it in some form or another, as it is often installed in leisure hotels.

Such a massager is highly recommended for beginners because it is easy for women to get pleasure from it when they use it during masturbation.

It is larger than Egg-Vibrator and vibrations are stronger than those of Egg-Vibrators and vibrators, so even just hitting the clitoris can give you a great deal of pleasure.

For those women who have never had an orgasm during sex with their man, the massager may be a good way to get a feel for what it feels like to have an orgasm.

It looks and feels like an electric massager, so you wont have to feel awkward if your roommate finds out.

If you are in a rut of having sex with your partner, if you want to feel an orgasm through masturbation, or if you are thinking of using a sextoy, why dont you try it from a simple massager?

To learn more about Electric Masserger, click here.

What is a massager? Introducing types, selection methods, and usage Originally, the Magic-wand vibrator and the massage machine were sold as a home massage machine used for the back and th...

How to choose a sextoy for Indian

Now that weve covered the different types of sextoy, heres how to choose one.

Especially if you are trying sextoy for the first time, pay attention to the following three points:  Does the size fit you (the partner)?

Does the size fit you (your partner)?

Is the environment able to produce sound without problems?

Price range

First of all, the choice of size is quite important.

Most sextoy are used against or inserted into the genitals, but the genitals are very delicate organs for both men and women.

For this reason, using an inappropriate size may cause damage.

Secondly, the environment should be able to produce sound without problems.

Some sextoys not only wear, but also rotate and vibrate. Its easier to get pleasure from something that moves than something that doesnt, but the fact that it moves means that the internal rotors make some noise.

If you live in a house with thin walls or if you have roommates, you may not be able to concentrate because of the noise, so it is best to choose one that is silent or has a low noise level.

Especially in India, where many people live with their families, it is very important that you dont have to worry about sound when you use it.

Finally, there is the price range.

The price range of sextoy ranges widely, from around RS500 at the cheapest to RS10,000 or more at the highest.

Its good to consider how much money you can afford and how much you want to buy.

Do you want your family to not find out about sextoy?

I live with my family and want to use sextoy without them finding out! If you are a man, you should buy a camouflage sextoy that does not look like a sextoy at first glance.

For men, there are many masturbators that do not look like a sextoy, and for women, there are vibrators that only look like cosmetics.

If you choose such a type, youll be safe in case your family members find out.

How to buy sextoys in India

The best way to purchase sextoy is through online shopping.

For more information on how to purchase sextoy, please see the article below.

Sextoy is one of them.

Therefore, you can easily get sextoy in India by using online shopping.

SexToysINDIA is a long established and stable sextoy store and you can have sextoy delivered to any place in India.

They also offer cash on delivery, so those who are worried about shopping with a credit card do not have to worry.

Of course, the latest security is in place, so your information will not be taken out when you use your credit card.

To begin with, many people may be concerned about whether they are legally allowed to purchase sextoy.

ikmAs it turns out, its not illegal.

Right now, it is not open to the public because the Indian adult market is still in the development stage, but it will gradually spread from now on.

Take advantage of sextoy and open the door to new pleasures and culture.

Cautions for Indians using sextoy

When using sextoy, keep the following three things in mind

Keep sex toys clean

Watch out for electrical leakage

Beware of the heat generated by the body while using a sex toy

As I mentioned earlier, many sextoy products are used for the delicate zone.

Therefore, it is most important to keep the sextoy itself clean. It is very important to keep the sextoy itself clean, because if a slight scratch is created by friction, bacteria can enter and breed there.

It is safe to wear a condom when using the masturbator, just in case.

In addition, many sextoy devices are powered by a power source, so if they are not waterproof, there is a possibility of electric shock or malfunction due to wetness.

Some may even develop heat during continuous use. If the fever becomes too much, you may get burned, so be careful.

If you get a fever during use, stop driving the sextoy immediately and refrain from using it.

You will enjoy sex more if you keep it safe and use it correctly.

Summary

What did you think?

In this article, we have introduced the recommended sextoy for the beginners of sextoy in India.

The sextoy market is growing rapidly in India and it will continue to grow steadily in the future.

As India is a rather closed-minded country, it can be difficult to be open about ones sexual habits and values.

However, being faithful to ones desires by properly dissolving ones sexual desire is very effective for ones physical and mental health.

If this is your first time to learn about sextoy, or if you are interested in using sextoy, why not give it a try?

Indian Sextoys for ur best! will introduce you to sextoy and other trivia about sextoy, sexuality, and sexuality for men and women.

I want to read more! If you think its a great idea, please bookmark it.
The sessions will take place at the Anna Extension Center, 1150 E. Vienna St., with the first schedule for 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., Thursday, March 30. The second will follow from 5:30 at 6:30 p.m. Sessions will cover what business owners can expect, an overview of the eclipse and a chance to join the official eclipse website. Computers will be available for use.
ELKVILLE  Members of the Southern Illinois Lions' Club were awarded a $10,000 grant that is enabling them to help people affected by the Feb. 28 tornado in the storm's Mulkeytown-Elkville path.

Members of the Lions Club of 1C South  representing 30 Lions Clubs in Southern Illinois, including those in Carbondale, Murphysboro and Mounds  have been taking needed supply items to the First Baptist Church in Elkville, said Derek Eurales, district governor for the club.

"They need it," Eurales said. "Were doing it because the people need, and thats basically what the program is for."

He said the $10,000 Lions Club International Foundation grant allows Lions' Club members to buy clothing, toiletry items and selected other items for people, but not things like cash donations or dishes of even the tote bins that the Mulkeytown Fire Department requested. A board member in Anna is going to buy those requested items, he said.

The funding also goes to buy coffee and other foods that volunteers are preparing to feed the volunteers coming to help.

The international Lions organization supports natural disaster relief efforts and has contributed more than $50 million to efforts. The Lions Club was organized in June 1917 in Chicago as a non-political service organization; it has grown to have more than 1.4 million members in more than 200 countries.

Members of the Lions Club plan to be in Elkville on Saturday, helping distribute needed items from the First Baptist Church.

Individuals needing items are to contact Pastor Scot Slone, of First Baptist Church.
BENTON  A familiar face has been coming around Franklin County more often: Methamphetamine is making an unwelcome comeback, officials say.

Franklin County Sheriff Donald Jones said in the past year, he has seen meth cases come across his desk more often than in recent years. In one 13-month period from, January 2016 to February 2017, he made 40 meth-related arrests. This is up from 26 in 2015. In fact, on Feb. 8, the 100-person occupancy jail in Franklin County held 25 inmates on meth related charges, three of who were charged with Class X felonies.

Jones said he sees this as the third wave of meth in the region, with the first coming in the 1990s.

Jones said this number of arrests is shocking, because his officers have to be generalists when it comes to their jobs.

Thats from an agency thats not just targeting drugs, Jones said. He said that a lot of those arrests came as a result of something else  a traffic stop, a separate outstanding warrant, etc. Jones said the past few months have particularly seen a spike. He said he knows this not just from the arrests that he sees, but he has heard it first-hand.

Ive interviewed some people we have had here that were arrested for methamphetamine-related crimes and they have told me, they themselves have told me, its everywhere, Jones said.

More is still more

To say meth is on the rise may sound a bit more dramatic than it needs to. Master Sgt. Darryl Grammer of the Illinois State Police points this out.

It never really went away, Grammer said. He said the peaks and valleys in meth use are less like the Himalayas and more like the hills of San Francisco. There is an up-and-down, but its not as dramatic as one might think. Still, more is still more.

The Sheriffs Office is the not the only group active in making these arrests, either. The Southern Illinois Drug Task Force, run by the ISP, opened 12 meth investigations in Franklin County in 2015, which lead to 36 arrests. In 2016, it opened 29 investigations leading to 31 arrests.

Grammer  who until February of 2016 ran both the SIDTF and the Meth Response team, a dedicated meth unit run by the ISP  said those are targeted investigations that have typically focused on conspiracies to make and/or sell meth, which can be done almost entirely with goods purchased from a local Walmart. Grammer did not discount what Jones has been seeing these last few months. From his seat, he said he has seen a decline in meth arrests, but he said it's not all good news.

The numbers from the MRT look pretty good. In 2009, there were 123 clandestine meth lab seizures in the 31 Illinois counties served by the MRT. This number peaked in 2012 with 340, and last year there were 150. On paper, it would seem like there would be fewer labs to bust, leading to the decline, but Grammer said there is a lot that factors into that. Part of it, he likes to think, is due to the hard work put in over the years putting so many people in jail for manufacturing and selling the highly-addictive drug, but he said funding has something to do with it.

Master Sgt. Jonathan Edwards agrees. Edwards, who now runs the MRT and SIDTF, said several years ago, ISP Zone 7, which is comprised of 31 counties in Illinois, had two dedicated meth teams, both staffed with a master sergeant, a sergeant and five agents. Now there is one unit and it has three agents and one master sergeant.

What we are trying to do, we are trying to make every resource we have available to us count, Edwards said. Grammer said the states budget impasse has not helped. Without the proper funding at a state level, it really has hampered departments abilities to do the long-term investigations as often as they may need to.

I just know everybody in the state of Illinois is in the situation Im in, Grammer said, adding that five people are often doing the job of 10.

There is one other reason that can be attributed to the decline in arrests in the ISPs data, Grammer said. Meth found locally is, by-and-large, not cooked here at home, he said. It is being shipped in from Mexico as crystal meth, a more refined, and potentially more potent, product. He believes this development has come about as a result of intensive efforts in recent years to crack down on meth production locally. He said with so many offenders getting big sentences for making the drug, it has scared some of the locals into simply purchasing premade product and selling it or, hopefully, getting out.

The real numbers

Some may say 71 arrests really is not that many over a year, particularly in a county with nearly 40,000 residents, according to 2015 U.S. Census estimates. With these numbers, this would come out to just .0017 percent of the population.

Jones said those 40 arrests from his department came from unrelated stops. They, for the most part, were not the result of targeted operations. He said he believes that number would be considerably higher if he were able to dedicate a team just to cracking down on the drug.

Also, and possibly more important, the number of affected lives is not limited to the people who are arrested. It causes serious strain on families, Jones said. When these numbers are factored in, 71 balloons to a much larger figure and the toll of even a small spike in meth activity becomes far more dramatic.

Matthew Davis, drug court officer and probation officer for Franklin County, said the number of people affected by these arrests transcends well beyond just those being charged.

You are looking at over 50 people with each one, Davis said, factoring in all of the family, friends, law enforcement and court officials involved with each case. This would take that 71 figure from 2016 to closer to 3,550, or around 9 percent of the population of the county.

This huge impact gives Jones pause.

I worry about our community, Jones said of the recent uptick in meth cases. He said drug use has its fingers in a lot of pies.

It contributes to a lot of crime, Jones said. He said that if the countys drug problem were properly under control, petty theft, burglaries and domestic violence would all likely see a drop as well.

Franklin County Assistant States Attorney Phillip Butler said the same thing.

There are a lot of other arrests that occur, and subsequent charges filed, in which the offender may not possess meth at the time (of) their arrest. However, their actions to commit the criminal offense which they were charged with are motivated by their addiction, Butler said in an email to The Southern. Property crimes such as theft, burglary, and forgery come to mind.

Butler, Edwards and Jones all said the effects of even just one meth- or drug-related arrest is not isolated to the person in handcuffs.

It tears family apart, Edwards said. Butler gave an example, showing the concentric rings of harm and illustrating Davis point.

They may not be able to post bond right away, so who looks after their child? If there is an appropriate relative then that person would do it, otherwise the Department of Child and Family Services would likely get involved. That child would likely be placed into the temporary custody of DCFS and they would find a placement for the child, Butler said. Butler said this same example can sprawl even further.

"This could also have an affect on school personnel, the child's friends, and the caseworkers who are providing services to the offender and the minor child, he said. Edwards and Jones both said seeing this kind of thing is just part of the job, but it never gets easy.

If I had to put a word to it  its heartbreaking, Edwards said.

Change is needed

Jones has no idea why anyone would head down the road to using meth, but said there need to be more options for dealing with addicted people.

You cant arrest your way out of this problem, Jones said. He said this is a symptom of a bigger issue. Jones said law enforcement is not the only party that has a hand in helping fix it. Jones, Grammer and Edwards all said education takes a serious role in curbing meth and other drug-related problems. But again, manpower comes into play. Jones said he does not have enough officers to focus just on education, so he partners with local schools.

When Jones looks at his jail, just a few hundred yards from his office, he is at a loss of what more he can do for some of the people sitting in those cells. For those who come in with serious substance abuse problems, all he said he can do is dry them out, or help them get clean through force.

Thats really the only service we can provide here, Jones said. After that, he said there is very little he can provide, and helping inmates even stay safe in his jail as they await trial is extremely challenging. Jones said some can pose a serious threat to other inmates, which leads to isolation. But, if the jail is near or at capacity, that is not an easy thing to accommodate.

A lot of these addicted people have underlying mental health issues, Jones said. We dont give them any help. We lock them up. We send them to prisons.

This is where he said he really feels like change is needed. He does not pretend to have all the answers and completely recognizes life change has to be wanted for rehabilitation to work. But Jones said locally he wants to see more care available to more people. That means low-cost treatment for people before they come before a judge.

I dont think our problems with addiction are properly treated. Theres not access to care like there should be, Jones said. He can remember many people coming to him after a loved one has gone to jail, begging for help. And all he could say was to get them out of jail and get them into treatment, but he couldnt give them much more than those words.

Butler said his office does what it can. Through the Franklin County Drug Court Program, Butler said some who come through the court with addiction problems are able to enter the intensive probation program where they are guided to find the help they need and given tools to help themselves stay clean after probation is completed. There are criteria for participants though. Criminal history, honesty during screening, willingness to participate and prior treatment are all taken into consideration.

Davis oversees the program and said those accepted  which hover around 40 to 50 since it started in 2013  are given several treatment options and probation for certain drug-related, nonviolent offenses. They are given the option of inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation, which is billed to each participant. Davis did say the county can offer assistance for travel costs, and some treatment facilities do offer grants for treatment.

Jones said he would still like to see more.

We are always going to have to arrest people, but we need to find some other ways too, some other options to deal with people in the system, he said. It is a question of how people want to spend their money, Jones said. Do they want to spend it on more prisons or on healthcare for those who come through the system?

As Jones and his colleagues in law enforcement look at the numbers coming across their desks, hear the talk coming from Springfield, and answer calls from the community reporting the next emergency  knowing they might not always have the perfect answer  they are left with one option.

We soldier on, Jones said. We do the best we can with what weve got.
SPRINGFIELD  Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner's office has filed paperwork to ensure a new deputy governor isn't paid from an insurance fund that is $4 billion behind on medical payments.

A letter from Rauner's fiscal officer arrived at the state comptroller's office Friday morning. It requests that a portion of Leslie Munger's $138,000 salary come from a professional services fund.

The letter, dated Thursday, was received more than two days after The Associated Press asked Rauner's office to explain why the group health insurance fund was tabbed to finance half of Munger's paycheck. After the AP reported the arrangement, the governor's office indicated it was a "clerical error" and would be corrected.

The account holds state employee premiums and is used to pay medical providers. It accounts for one-third of the state's $12 billion pile of past-due bills.

Rauner, who has made it a practice to pay gubernatorial staff from sources other than the governor's budget, told reporters Friday that Munger will be paid "in an appropriate way."

"There's no fiscal shell game. What I've been told is there's apparently some kind of accounting error," Rauner said. "Let's be clear: Errors in government, as much as we're trying to eliminate them, they happen."

Munger was hand-picked by Rauner in 2015 to fill a vacancy left by the sudden death of GOP Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka. Munger was ousted in a special election last fall by Democrat Susana Mendoza.

The letter from Rauner's office requesting that half of Munger's pay come from the group health insurance fund is dated Feb. 22.

Rauner spokeswoman Eleni Demertzis said Friday that governor's staff members discovered the error Tuesday  the same day the AP first asked about Munger's pay arrangement.

"We were notified of the error in the deputy governor's pay code on Tuesday night and immediately began corrective action Wednesday," Demertzis said.
Southern Illinois University System President Randy Dunn stated in a letter to the campus community that the university cannot go for another 20 months without additional state support short of hollowing out the core.

Campus programs, services, facilities and regional support projects would be significantly affected if the impasse continues without agreement on a full state budget or stopgap appropriations for higher education until sometime after the 2018 election cycle, Dunn said.

Dunn also stated in the letter sent this past Wednesday that the university is shifting its advocacy push in Springfield in light of the fact that it appears talks have broken down in the Senate. What has been touted for weeks as a bipartisan grand bargain has thus far proven to be little more than an over-hyped flop.

While holding on to a sliver of hope for a comprehensive budget deal, Dunn said that worst-case scenario planning for the university means pivoting and going back to making the strongest case possible for continued stopgap appropriations.

At the same time, that also means considering another round of budget reductions to be implemented by July 1, the brunt of which will hit the Carbondale campus, Dunn said. Aside from the failure for lawmakers and the governor to pass full-year budgets for fiscal years 2016 and 2017, the latter of which ends June 30, Dunn also noted that Gov. Bruce Rauners fiscal year 2018 budget blueprint calls for cutting higher education by 15 percent, as compared to the last normal funding year for the state, fiscal year 2015.

In his letter, Dunn noted that a few of the less controversial bills associated with the grand bargain had passed the Senate on Feb. 28, but then necessary support for the tougher votes evaporated in early March. Senate President John Cullerton declined to call key pieces of legislation for a vote at word that nearly all Republican members had backed out on their support as of March 1, a self-imposed deadline from the GOP caucus.

Its yet to be seen whether the deal can be revived as lawmakers reconvene this week with a heavy schedule of Appropriations committee meetings.

But Dunn said that it is the prevailing belief around Springfield that such hopes are growing dim.

For more than a few respected political insiders, the Senates bipartisan plan was seen as the last best hope to get a budget deal done  without the stalemate lasting until we get beyond the next statewide general election in November 2018, he wrote. I would love to have the pundits be proven wrong and see the Senate reconnoiter over the coming few weeks to still put a budget together for this year.

Any idea can be resurrected at any time, but at present, no one can identify a Plan B which is out there."

The so-called grand bargain was to include an income tax hike, sales tax and gambling expansion, pension reform, a partial property tax freeze and workers compensation reform. Republicans and Democrats could not reach accord on these controversial topics.

Short of a deal coming together, Dunn stated that a stopgap budget is the only way to protect SIU. He also noted the reality that a short-term financial lifeline from the state is not a guarantee, though he said it is imperative to protect the university system.

We cannot allow our standing in the hyper-competitive higher education marketplace to end up junk bond status.

In his letter, Dunn referred to a Jan. 3 Chicago Tribune article that quoted Rauner as stating he would be open to another stopgap budget only if there is a property tax freeze and term limits enacted. And those politics will be very tough indeed, so we continue to wait, Dunn wrote.

On Friday, the newspaper emailed an inquiry to the governors press office asking whether Rauner would support a stopgap funding measure for higher education if no budget compromise can be reached, and if so, what requirements, if any, he would attach to support of the aforementioned. A statement was provided via Eleni Demertzis, a spokeswoman for the governor's office, which she said was attributable to Secretary of Education Beth Purvis. The statement provided bypassed the core of the question.

Higher education has been negatively impacted by the General Assemblys failure to pass a balanced budget, and this decision underscores the importance and urgent need for the Senate to reach a bipartisan compromise that is good for students, job creators and taxpayers, Purvis said, in the provided statement.

A follow-up question pushing for more specifics on whether there is a scenario under which the governors office would support a stopgap funding measure for higher education if an overall budget compromise is not reached went unanswered.

In addition to higher education leaders continuing to make their case in Springfield, Dunn stated that another thing which must happen is the consideration of another round of budget cuts to be decided as soon as practicable and to be put in place by the coming fiscal year on July 1.

Dunn stated the cuts will affect Carbondale to the greatest degree because the Springfield and Edwardsville campuses have already undertaken major budget reviews leading to permanent reductions. As well, financial planning for the Carbondale campus continues into the spring, while the campus additionally must address its structural deficit due to enrollment loss, plus pay back borrowed reserves that have kept operations going through this year, Dunn stated.

Dunn stated he would provide more information in his March 29 The System Connection letter to the campus community. Much of the attention at that time will be given over to sharing the actions that will need to be taken to get SIU Carbondale on a more solid financial footing if we are forced to head into FY18 without any state support.

Dave Johnson, an associate professor of classics and the president of the SIU Carbondale Faculty Association, sent a letter to the associations membership on Friday afternoon that addressed Dunns sobering note from earlier in the week.

We are, in short, about to enter a new and more difficult phase in the budget crisis, Johnson wrote. He continued that the Faculty Association will continue to insist that cuts are justified by the fiscal situation, and that cuts are made to academics only as a last resort.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Plans to launch an electronic passport in the country are at an advanced stage, a development that is anticipated to usher in robust standards of travel documents and international security.Home Affairs Minister Dr Ignatius Chombo said the country is now ready to launch the e-passport.The passport production centre situated at KG6 in Harare is capable of printing 16 000 booklets per day and was commissioned last year by President Robert Mugabe.Addressing journalists in Harare yesterday, Dr Chombo said the e-passport or digital passport is compliant with International Civil Aviation Organisation standards which guarantee integrity expected of travel documents.The digitalised and machine readable passport contains small contactless computer chips embedded in the back cover and will also have a digital photograph of the passport holder.The benefits of having an electronic passport include the use of automated border clearance known as e-gates, automated issuance of boarding passes and faster travel arrangements with airlines.The e-passport database is enhanced with an automated fingerprint verification system that prevents multiple passport issuances.
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Despite widespread criticism, U.S. Rep. John Shimkus is digging in on his viral comments questioning why men should have to pay for female contraceptive and pregnancy-related health insurance coverage.

The comments from the Collinsville Republican and a video clip of his exchange with Democratic Rep. Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania during a House panel debate on the Affordable Care Act have gone viral, sparking news stories and editorials in papers across the country and criticism from womens and family rights advocates.

In an interview with The Southern on Friday afternoon, Shimkus said he understands how insurance works, by pooling risks across a broad range of people, some of whom will be higher users than others.

But he said requiring a one-size-fits all approach drives up costs and keeps many young, healthy people out of the insurance market.

He compared forcing men to have a policy that includes female contraceptive and prenatal coverage to paying for a prime piece of real estate that one could never actually visit.

Why would you buy a cabin in Montana that youre never going to use? said Shimkus, whose expansive district covers much of Southern Illinois.

The following exchange that has been the focus of national attention took place on Wednesday before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, of which Shimkus is a ranking member. It followed a statement from Doyle outlining some of the more popular mandates of the Affordable Care Act.

What mandate in the Obamacare bill does he take issue with? Doyle asked, as part of an ongoing exchange. Certainly not with pre-existing conditions, or caps on benefits or letting your child stay on the policy until 26, so Im curious what it is were mandating...?

Replied Shimkus, What about men having to purchase prenatal care? Is that not correct? And should they?

Theres no such thing as a la carte insurance, Doyle said, in response.

Thats the point, thats the point, Shimkus replied, interrupting Doyle. We want the consumer to be able to go to the insurance market and be able to negotiate on a plan that (he stops speaking as hes interrupted by Doyle)."

You tell me one insurance company that will do that, Doyle said. There isnt a single insurance company in the world that does that, John.  Youre talking about something that doesnt exist.

Shimkus said he doesnt understand the widespread attention to his comment, which gained traction after a video clip of the floor debate was shared by NARAL Pro-Choice America, which is a nonprofit organization that advocates for abortion rights.

Its nothing I havent said before, Shimkus said. People should be able to buy the healthcare package that they think they need. People should not be forced to buy parts of a policy that they will never use.

Its also not a new argument that Shimkus has made. As noted in a Chicago Tribune article published Friday about Shimkus comments, Rep. Renee Ellmers, R-N.C., asked essentially the same question in 2013 of then-Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius during an exchange before the same committee.

And for all the attention that has been paid to Shimkus comment, U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, made a similar comment in an interview with The Southern that was published in a news story in January, prior to being sworn in for his second term. At the time, Bost said it was his understanding that the Republican repeal and replace plan for the ACA would allow people to cherry pick the insurance coverage they need in an effort to drive down costs.

For instance, Tracy and I dont need OB-GYN. Were not going to have more babies. Were good, Bost said. There are other things I might want to pay for at my age. Its driving it back into the free market system. That's a muddled statement, as OB-GYN stands for obstetrics and gynecology. While obstetrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the care of pregnant women and childbirth, gynecology is a broader branch of medicine that deals with womens reproductive organs from puberty through menopause and beyond.

Bost's intention was to point out that they would not have a need for prenatal coverage at this point in their lives, and therefore men or women of a certain age should not have to pay for it. Still, his statement illustrates how difficult it is to create segmented risk pools for coverage specific to women and men. How do you determine where to draw the lines to have enough people in segmented risk pools, and in the insurance market overall, to keep costs affordable for everyone? And how do you do so fairly? That's the essence of the debate on Capitol Hill.

There are essentially two schools of thoughts as it relates to how to best structure health care: a broad pooling of health care risks across the entire insured population (generally championed by Democrats), versus more segmented pooling of health care risk (as generally supported by Republicans) among those who are sick or in need of specific types of expensive care, such as for pregnancy. There are winners and losers under both scenarios, and shades of gray between the two philosophies.

In a 2013 piece for Consumer Reports, Nancy Metcalf, an insurance expert and columnist, explained that health insurance, like all insurance, works by pooling risks. The healthy subsidize the sick, who could be somebody else this year and you next year. Those risks include any kind of health care a person might need from birth to death  prenatal care through hospice. No individual is likely to need all of it, but we will all need some of it eventually.

So, as a middle-aged childless man you resent having to pay for maternity care or kids dental care. Shouldnt turnabout be fair play? Shouldnt pregnant women and kids be able to say, 'Fine, but in that case why should we have to pay for your Viagra, or prostate cancer tests, or heart attack and high blood pressure you are many times more likely to suffer than we are?'" her explanation continued.

While explaining his position on Friday that men should be excluded from coverage requirements specific to women, Shimkus added that likewise, a young woman should not be required to buy a health care package that covers prostate or other male-specific health needs.

House GOP health bill would cut women's services WASHINGTON  Women seeking abortions and some basic health services, including prenatal care

He said with more people in the market, even if they are not paying for the more extensive services, that should drive down costs for all. He said that men and women would have to be offered coverage that is the same cost for the same plan. But he couldnt say specifically how that would work, given that he is advocating a system where the insurance coverage is based on physiological differences between men and women.

I dont know what the insurers will offer, Shimkus said. But he maintained that he is sure that it would be cheaper for all, even where some women of a certain age may pay more than men of the same age, where both are otherwise generally healthy. He said the insurance market since the Affordable Care Act is in a death spiral.

Shimkus said that when people talk about the great benefits of Obamacare they forget to tell you about the 4.7 million people who lost the insurance that they had and mostly policies that they like.

That did not include many women who were pregnant or hoping to become pregnant, many of whom were paying out of pocket for expensive prenatal care.

In her column, Metcalf stated that before the new law took effect, insurers can and did exclude maternity coverage from individual plans. In fact, in half of states you cant purchase maternity coverage on the individual market for any price. In most of the rest, you can buy a maternity rider on your policy. In many cases it costs more than the main policy itself, and you cant use it for at least a year after you buy it, and it often has a separate deductible of up to $5,000.

Why so expensive? Because the only people who buy it are, naturally, people planning to have a baby. Insurers know this and price accordingly.

Thats why family rights organizations pushed for the mandate as part of the Affordable Care Act, and did so with the idea that men and women contribute to the process of bringing babies into the world, and all benefit from healthy children who grow into productive adults.

But Shimkus said the a la carte plan he proposes would lead to a more viable market to the benefit of all.

Now, socialists like the one-size-fits all approach, he said. We just dont think thats proven out in the market. If premiums continue to go up, deductibles are higher, premiums go up, what good is it?

This (individualized plans) would create no disadvantage for women, he said. This would actually bring more people into the insurance market and help spread the risk.
Opinion / Columnist

Back in the days when the Soviet Union was still a communist empire, its flagship broadsheet newspaper was called Pravda, or "Truth".But all and sundry knew it was a supplier of lies.The credibility of Pravda was so small that those who bothered to peruse it would believe unerringly the opposite of what it tried to report.Zimbabwe is supposed to have learned many lessons from the collapse of the Soviet Union.But it seems Zimbabwe's Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa has learned nothing about the futility of lying about economic performance.In a presentation to military officers attending Joint Command and Staff Course Number 30 at Zimbabwe Staff College on Thursday, he claimed "the country's economic situation is gradually improving due to pragmatic policies that the government has been implementing".He actually bumped up his economic forecast for 2017 by two full percentage points to 3,7 percent from 1,7 percent and said the economy will grow faster than expected by economists.Judging from the content of his rosy speech, it is clear Chinamasa is not reporting honestly on the state of the economy and actually invented a more optimistic message.At one level, Chinamasa's desire to counter the pessimism about Zimbabwe's dying economy is understandable. In the last two months, the economic news coming out of the crisis-torn country was both depressing and worrying: a spectacular stock market crash, a sudden devaluation of bond notes, and anaemic economic activities, suggesting the economy will miss the official target annual growth for 2017.But does Chinamasa actually hope to restore investor confidence by hyping Zimbabwe's bright economic future?The answer is almost definitely not.The cash-squeezed government - facing a critical funding shortfall to bankroll its commitments, including its bloated civil service wage bill, government workers' pension contributions and medical insurance - is turning to treasury bills (TBs).This also comes as the new bond notes - ushered in to help address the epic cash problems - are losing value dramatically, facing rejection and US dollars have vanished from the open market.With imports massively outstripping exports, businesses are mostly selling their merchandise in bond notes, making it impossible to finance imports using the surrogate currency, with an informal forex market now discounting the bond note and the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) "dollar".A key test will come when Zimbabwe reaches the $200 million bond notes threshold backed by a facility provided by Cairo-based Afreximbank.Yet Chinamasa rejected that the country faced liquidity challenges, telling the Staff College that "the banking sector has remained fairly stable with capital levels ranging between $40 million and $246,6 million against a minimum of $25 million."At a time banks are plagued by long queues and have drastically slashed daily cash withdrawals from $1 000 a day to as little as $50, Chinamasa claimed: "Long queues outside the banks are being experienced particularly during month-ends. Government is promoting the use of electronic payments (plastic money) in order to reduce pressure on the demand for physical cash."This also comes after government buckled under pressure from restive civil servants and accepted on Monday to add an unbudgeted $180 million on its $4bn 2017 budget in order to pay its 300 000 workers' their long overdue 2016 bonuses - heightening fears the financially struggling government could fund the 13th cheque using TBs.The commercial paper is now among the biggest vehicle for State fundraising and clearing its ballooning $10bn debt.This comes as government this week paid the scandal-plagued State-run pension fund, National Social Security Authority (Nssa), $181 million worth of TBs, to clear three-year arrears after failing to remit its contributions to the fund as an employer.What Chinamasa seems not to understand is that current pessimism about the economy has less to do with the recent spate of bad news than with the policy inconsistency, lack of reliable data on the economy and the opacity of Harare's process of economic policy-making and its intentions.Although it is doubtful whether government propagandists know it, the most precious commodity in the marketplace is credibility. Sadly, what government has done in recent months is to engage in acts that systematically undermine its own credibility.Exhibit A is Chinamasa's Pravda-like version of economic growth data. Another example is attempts at portraying the devaluation of the bond note as a lie. Chinamasa's counterpart, RBZ governor John Mangudya defended the fiat currency last weekend, asking me: "Have you seen twin pricing in OK (supermarket) or major outlets? Go to the formal market, there is no weakening of value."This is an example of an ill-advised attempt to prop up a crashing currency. These actions have seriously undermined the credibility of the government and shaken the confidence of investors and business executives.
Opinion / Letters

May you please attend to the following as a matter of urgency.1. Our roads are now a death trap please do something in conjunction with Zinara, local authorities, communities and Transport Ministry. Our roads are in a dire state. Please do something. People are dying.2. The ZRP bosses are abusing junior officers thereby forcing them to engage in corrupt activities to supplement their income. They are forced to buy raffle tickets, also forced to affiliate to a club 'Kuyedza' that is joined voluntarily according to Police books. They are forced to reach certain targets at roadblocks. The CGP has vehemently denied that they have targets thereby lying to the nation. For example Harare CBD Traffic target is $4400 a day. Surely this country is going to a rot.3. Restore sanity in the banking sector. Civil servants are poorly and lately paid. They queue for days at banks to get their hard earned cash. They are workers and not servants. May the RBZ improve the monetary system and allow workers to access their income in time.4. May you please provide material resources to your workers to use on their day to day activities. Also provide decent food to prisoners and patients. We are tired of feeding prisoners using our hard earned cash.5. May you please reduce the number of cabinet ministers in your govt. India with a population of more than One billion has less than 20 ministers. This is a wastage of state resources by a country that is relying on a shoestring budget. Please do something.6. Create employment for our youths by first resigning all that have passed retirement age. Zimbabwe is one of the countries that has the largest chunk of unemployed youths who are highly qualified. Make a plan like may be a five year plan while you build a strong and youthful workforce.7. Repossess land from all undeveloped owners. Set targets in all farming areas. Zimbabwe must return back to basics to produce large quantities of food.8. Fire all corrupt ministers and govt officials. Suspend all that are alleged to have engaged in corruption.9. Please pay back the money. Account for the stolen diamond money. We have not heard anything from your office pertaining to that money.10. We have Faith in you Mr President. May you personally oversee that the above issues are immediately attended to. You have never disappointed us. Thank you so much for standing on our side in relation to the payment of our bonuses.ANONYMOUS....
ROWESVILLE  A suspicious fire destroyed more than a dozen tents at the historic Cattle Creek Campground on Friday night.

Multiple fire departments responded to the fire while many concerned members of the community stood nearby.

Cattle Creek trustee Harry Wimberly said the campground lost 15 of the 36 cabins. The church was unharmed.

Its a tragedy tonight.  Its certainly a loss to the Cattle Creek area, to the Cattle Creek community, Wimberly said.

The blaze was initially called in as a grass fire at 10:46 p.m., according to Cattle Creek Fire Chief Jonathan Berry.

Orangeburg County Chief Fire Operations Officer Teddy Wolfe said the fire is suspicious. It is under investigation.

Cattle Creek Campground consists of 36 cabins, called tents, arranged in a wide semi-circle around an open pavilion structure known as the stand or tabernacle. At the northwest end of the camp meeting ground is Cattle Creek United Methodist Church. Between the church and the tabernacle is a cemetery.

Cattle Creek Campground was named to the National Register of Historic Places on May 19, 1983.

Although local tradition had it that Cattle Creek Campground was established in 1786, the National Register nomination form states its likely that the campground was not functional until the early 1800s.

The campground burned in 1898 and was gradually rebuilt over the next several decades.

Just like after the earlier fire, Wimberly said I think community will come together and it will get rebuilt.

Wimberly has been attending Cattle Creeks camp meetings during the last week in July since he was a child, and says its a time for religious services, fellowship and food.

Cattle Creek is one of only three Methodist camp meeting grounds remaining in South Carolina.

The tents, so named because the first campers and worshippers stayed in cloth tents and lean-tos made from limbs and branches, are built of rough, unpainted lumber, have gable roofs covered with metal or composition shingles, and generally measure about 20 feet by 30 feet.
Longtime friends Ann Marshall and Carlyle Watt were surprised to discover they are both semifinalists for a prestigious culinary award.

When Marshall saw that Watt was also among the James Beard Foundation Award semifinalists, she screamed.

I was at the airport in Atlanta, and I was like, Carlyles on here, too! We go way back. Our families have always been really close, Marshall said.

Watt said, I feel really proud that we get to share the honor.

Marshall is an Orangeburg native and 1997 graduate of Orangeburg Preparatory School who now lives in Charleston. Watt is a Denmark native and 2001 graduate of OPS who now resides in Anchorage, Alaska.

Both are both lovers of food and were listed among Restaurant and Chef Award semifinalists for the 27th annual James Beard Foundation Awards.

Selected from a list of more than 24,000 online entries, the prestigious group of semifinalists in 21 categories represents a wide range of culinary talent.

Watt has excelled as the head baker and executive chef at Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop in Anchorage.

Marshall has proven herself to be among the nations top wine and spirit professionals at High Wire Distilling Company in Charleston, a business she and her husband, Scott Blackwell, co-own.

Watt said he was surprised and honored to be a contest semifinalist.

Its pretty significant. The award is the end-all-be-all of culinary achievements. I feel like Ive accomplished everything I could ever want to accomplish, Watt said.

The people on that list with me in the baking category are people that I have been studying for the past six years, learning their techniques and putting them to use at our bakery, he said. You have to couple their techniques with Alaska ways and ingredients, and weve come up with something pretty unique up here.

Marshall said she and her husband were not even thinking about the award, much less securing a semifinalist spot. She said they are in good company, though.

Its such a big honor. The beverage award is a national award, so it is just an overwhelmingly incredible honor to even be on that list of 20 producers with people  who are peers that we have met and known and have spent time with, Marshall said. Its just an incredible honor to even share print space with them.

She said Charleston is a vibrant community with a rich food and beverage culture, with some of its top chefs having already snagged James Beard honors.

These are people who we spend a lot of time with and love to be around. Were constantly challenging each other on ingredients. Distilling is very different from cooking, but its just interesting to hear their take on ingredients that were all using, Marshall said.

Jimmy Red Corn, for example, is among the heirloom grains which they are using to produce bourbon, but which has also been a favorite ingredient of Lowcountry chefs. That specific corn variety almost went extinct, but is now thriving.

Marshall and her husband owned a bakery before entering the distillery business, where theyve explored their curiosity and fascination with how spirits are made. They have used some of their baking experience in their new field, something which Marshall says sets their distillery apart from others.

We brewed in our kitchen when we lived in Greenville, and were curious about how the different ingredients were using for beer would translate into a spirit. With the bakery we had worked with a lot of alternate grains and with sorghum and various kinds of wheat, she said.

So it was kind of a natural segue for us to use that knowledge and take it into a different format. We were curious as to what would happen if we cook some heirloom corn (rather than a commodity corn) and mashed and distilled those. So weve been working with a lot of specialty crops.

Marshall said, What weve found is these heirloom specialty grains have a wildly different flavor.

She and Scott have been working with a culinary historian, a seller of special grains and a researcher to help identify, find and then repropagate a lot of these grains that have been lost over time.

Watt said the rural neighborhood bakery where he works in Anchorage also offers up unique flavors. It is located in one of the first neighborhoods built in Anchorage.

We are a bread bakery that makes artisanal sourdoughs. We use heirloom grains that farmers in the Pacific Northwest are striving to preserve and keep going, including emmer, einkorn and spelt berries. I guess through global warming, Alaska has recently become a suitable climate for growing wheat, Watt said.

He added, We buy the grain, we mill it and then we make our sourdough bread with it. Thats really exciting for us as bakers.

Watt said he worked as a personal chef in Anchorage for two years after graduating from culinary school. He worked for one family before starting a successful band and later taking a job at the Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop to support his music habit.

I appreciate the ethics and the products that they were putting out. I had a lot to learn from them, so I started working the early morning shift so I could play music at night. Over the years I have become the head baker and executive chef there, he said.

Watt and his wife, Theresa, are the parents of one daughter, Lily. He is the son of Denmark couple Larry and Bruton Watt and says his hometown was a big influence on his culinary career.

He said, Denmark was just one of the richest culinary parts of the world you could come from. Everybody had their specialty. My neighbor across the street was a world champion barbecue guy, the lady down the street made the famous 13-layer chocolate cake, and then you had the man down the street who would just make giant batches of collard greens and black-eyed peas.

Everybody valued food so much, and they valued the simple ingredients that are so relevant to the history of the area. I just really came to value that and have taken that background and applied it to what we can grow up here in Alaska. I think that philosophy has done well up here. People are hungry for something that is real and authentic these days in the culinary world.

He said he appreciated the support of his parents and that to be able to have that ability to make someones day through food is one of the best things I can do.

Larry said he was proud of his son  and Marshall  for having become semifinalists for the James Beard Foundation Award.

His mother and I are very proud of him. He got a set of pots and pans for Christmas when he was in the eighth grade, so hes been cooking for a long time. He always aspired to go into culinary arts, but his mother and I put our foot down and made him get four-year degree first, he said. His son was accepted into the Culinary Institute of America after earning a business degree from the University of Mississippi.

Marshall, the daughter of Orangeburg resident Theresa Marshall, said she had plans to attend law school after graduating from Duke University as an English major before being bitten by the entrepreneurial bug.

She had begun working for her husbands baking company which was later sold to General Mills, and the rest was history.

I decided that I would probably never work for anybody else again, she said.

Marshall said Orangeburg was a perfect small-town environment to live in.

Its such a great community of people and good friends that still live there. My moms great friends all still live there. Its just a really nurturing environment and definitely gave me the freedom to really have the confidence to do almost anything, and that includes opening a distillery in the South, she said.

Her mother, Ann, said her daughter has so many talents - this recognition really does not surprise me. She has always done her best at whatever she was involved in, and I am so very proud of her. I am also proud of Scott. Together, they are a great team, and I am pulling for them to be in the James Beard final five!"
Opinion / Religion

Mr editor please allow me through your paper to ask and seek answers to a very common practice done by or demanded by churches , payment of tithes. It is evident that most people who read the bible including some pastors have no idea at all about what it says at the end of the day as evidenced by this practice that is very rife and equated in some places to salvation.There is two pre Mosaic law scriptures that talk about tithe in the bible. Genesis 14 verse 18 -21. Abraham is from the war and has so much spoils of war, he meets with Melchizedek the priest of the most High God and the bible says , Abraham gave a tenth or a tithe from his spoils of war.I have heard man in the house of God demand tithes using this scripture and find it very unsound, one who demands tithe using this verse is actually saying people must engage in a wars so as to pay with the spoils like did Abraham.His tithe was not from the fruit of his labour, his tithe was not by prescription or by a commandment but by tradition, it was common practice those days to tithe if you met officials from kings and to kings themselves.The second verse is Genesis 28 verse 20 where we meet Jacob. Jacob made a vow to God to say if you God meet the conditions that I have given you then I will pay my tithe.Lets look at them. He says (1) if you will be with me (2) if you will watch over me on the journey I am taking (3) if you will give me food to eat(4) clothes to wear(5) and I return back to my fathers house hold. He says the lord will be my God and this stone I have set up will be the house of GOD. Jacob says God if you meet these five conditions that I have given you , I will pay a tithe. It is religious error for people to be made to tithe because of a vow that Jacob made. With his vow , it is not documented anywhere in scripture where he fulfilled his vow. (2) Jacob was not under a law to tithe (3) no one prescribed to him that he should tithe (4) if he fulfilled his vow then he tithed only once . This I say because there is nowhere again in scripture where he tithed.We then should look at what tithe was when it was instituted, who was to tithe, when were they to tithe and where were they to tithe . Why were they to tithe . We should be able to know the differences between Abrahams tithe and Jacobs tithe as compared to the Israelites tithes. What was the significance of the tithe. What todays church and its leaders forget is that, when God founded the nation of Israel , using Abraham , Isaac and Jacob, he gave the nation moral laws, ceremonial laws, economic laws, and health laws, tithing on its on in Israel was not enough as a law, they were many economic laws in place that we are ignoring today , should it be we are collecting tithe, first and fore most for one to tithe , the requirement was that he be in the land of Israel, then be a farmer, crops and veggies plus certain animals only were tithable. Money was nowhere in the picture except in one case when you were far from the one temple that they had in Israel. You were to convert your tithe to money and with the money buy anything that your heart desired, be it an animal or strong drink.Deuteronomy: 14. 25. Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: 26. And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,We must also be careful to know, that under the law of Moses , three kinds of tithes were collected and in all those none of them was money. The levites did not in their levitical cities collect tithe money from anybody because in their mission as tax collectors for the nation of Israel working for the priests in the temple they were not sent to do that. We will be back.
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I have been to Chennai umpteen number of times  either on work or to meet someone or just as a transit city for a bigger destination elsewhere. Given the nature of my visits, I never really explored Chennai as a tourist. It frankly, never occurred to me as one . It just seemed like any other metropolitan city. Thanks to my journey on the Golden Chariot, I discovered one lovely secret of this city  Santhome Church. This church has remained a little elusive as people here take it for granted. Its history and significance seems to be forgotten and for me, that precisely was the reason I enjoyed the church. In this blog post, I reveal all that I discovered about this lovely secret  Santhome Church.

Santhome Church, Chennai

Significance of Santhome Church

Santhome Church is also, known as St.Thomas Church. This church is significant not just for the history of Christianity in India but also, for the Christians worldwide. It is one of the three churches in the world that is built over the remains of a saint  St. Thomas in this case. The other two include St.Peters Basilica in Vatican City and Santiago de Compostela in Spain. St.Thomas himself, is quite significant as he is one of the 12 disciples of Jesus and was considered to be a miracle saint. He came to India somewhere around 52 AD. While he landed in Kerala, he traveled through the South of India slowly spreading a new faith  Christianity. Eventually, he reached Chennai and they say, used to preach from the Mount of St.Thomas. It is here that he was struck dead and buried. They say, that his body still remains below the church and that definitely, make this monument a landmark one.

History of Santhome church

The Old Santhome Church before it was rebuilt

Around 16th century was when a proper church was built by the Portuguese over the grave of St. Thomas. The initial structure did not look like what is today. Over time, the church fell into disrepair until the British decided to reconstruct. Around the late 1800s, the current, white shining building was constructed and has remained since.

Exterior of the Santhome Church in Chennai

The beautiful spires of the Santhome church, Chennai

The sight of a gorgeous white church against the clear blue skies of Chennai had me completely spellbound. It is hard not to get impressed. The huge spires and the Gothic-style architecture is bound to make you look up again and again. The tall steeples have this lovely carved designs that appealed to the artist in me. I even loved the dome-shaped windows around the church.

The dome shaped windows of the Santhome Church, Chennai

I am sure that the white structure would look equally beautiful in the dark nights but sadly, for this visit I had be content with a day view. I had not had enough of the outside but did not have the patience to wait more. The only thought running through my head  If the outside is so stunning, I wonder what awaits inside!

The stained glass interiors of Santhome Church

And was I rewarded! Those very windows that I was admiring from the outside, were even more gorgeous from the inside. What was white and simple outside was as colorful and vibrant inside. The Altar was just so impressive with its bleeding Jesus statue and the backdrop of the colored glass.

The Inside of the Santhome Church, Chennai

Altar of Santhome Church

I loved the whole arched roof effect in brown wood within the church. As simple as it was, it helped lift the whole colored glass effect. The murals alongside the wall and the elegant colors of the windows just added so much of vibrance to the otherwise dark church. Scroll down to catch a glimpse.

Stained glass windows of the Santhome Church, Chennai

Inside Santhome Church, Chennai

Inside Santhome Church

Check out these seating arrangements. For one moment I thought it was for the dignitaries. However, that was not the case. It was for anyone who visited the church.

Some of the seating arrangements within the Santhome Church

There was something simple and yet elegant about the church interiors. And that is why I fell in love with this place.

The remains of St.Thomas

A glimpse of the remains of Saint Thomas near the Altar within the main church

Close to the altar, you can get a glimpse of the grave of St. Thomas. You can visit the same by exiting the church and heading to the little building behind it. Here you need to descend to the basement and pay your respects to the remains of St. Thomas. No photography is allowed here and I would urge people to respect the same as responsible tourists.

Museum at Santhome Church

Spend a few minutes at the museum that is within same building that leads you to the grave of St. Thomas. I found a few interesting exhibits here  like this relic of St.Thomas.

Relic of St. Thomas at the Santhome Museum

I also, found this picture depicting St.Thomas unblocking a river with his miracle. It is said that the log could not be removed by the strongest of men but he managed to do it by dragging it with his girdle. The King was pleased and granted him leave to build a church.

Bronze art depicting a scene from St.Thomass life at the Santhome church

Santhome Church may not be the grandest of church but it is definitely an important one, especially if you are a huge heritage buff. It is also, a good example of how sometimes the simplest things are elegant and appeal. These two for me were the main draw and I sure was glad to have stumbled upon one of Chennais secret. So, the next time you plan to go to this metro city, you too, might want to unravel this secret by adding Santhome Church as one of the key places to visit in Chennai. Remember to pin for a reminder!

Getting here:

Chennai is one of the key metros in India and is very well-connected by road, rail and airways.

Santhome church is located in Mylapore and one can reach here either by bus, taxi or an auto rickshaw. It is quite central and finding transport should not be an issue from anywhere in Chennai.

Travel Tips:

Here is the official website of this church. The Mass timings are included here for those who are keen to attend one.

Shoes are not allowed inside the main church.

Please maintain silence when you visit the church

You can team your visit here with one to Indias longest beach  Marina Beach. The church is quite close to the same.

P.S: I visited this church as a part of the Golden Chariot tour, organized by Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation .

Popularly referred to as a Restless Ball of Energy. My Mom refuses to entertain my complaints about my equally restless daughter & assures my husband that I was born with a travel bug. I am a Post-Graduate in Marketing by qualification and a travel blogger by passion. Besides travel, I enjoy photography and if you dont find me at my desk, I would be out playing badminton or swimming or just running. I believe in planning for every long weekend through the year. And when I cannot travel physically, I travel virtually through this travel blog. My travel stories have also, got published on various websites and magazines including BBC Travel, Lonely Planet India and Jetwings. I have recently published my first book  When Places Come Alive  a collection of stories that are based on legends, landscapes, art and culture of a place which is available in both ebook and paperback format.
There is no military solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Richard Hoagland, the US co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, said at a press conference in Baku Mar. 11.

He added that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will deliver exactly the same message next week in Yerevan.

We, the three OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, had long and substantive discussions with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev this morning, Hoagland said. We also appreciate the hospitality of Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, with whom we also had long discussions over lunch.

He added that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs underlined the necessity of backing negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts settlement.

We said the April 1, 2016 anniversary should be marked at the negotiations table, Hoagland noted.

On the night of April 2, 2016, all the frontier positions of Azerbaijan were subjected to heavy fire from the Armenian side, which used large-caliber weapons, mortars and grenade launchers. The armed clashes resulted in deaths and injuries among the Azerbaijani population. Azerbaijan responded with a counter-attack, which led to liberation of several strategic heights and settlements.

Military operations were stopped on the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian armies on Apr. 5 at 12:00 (UTC/GMT + 4 hours) with the consent of the sides, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry had said. Ignoring the agreement, the Armenian side again started violating the ceasefire.

Hoagland also said there are no dates for the next presidential meeting on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Twenty-five years of negotiations over the conflicts peaceful settlement have brought no results, he said.

But there is diplomatic activity going on for 25 years, Hoagland said, adding this activity prevented the conflict from entering a war phase.

Diplomacy is trying to create conditions so that people on the top level find the right solutions, he said, adding that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs are intensifying their activity.

Historically there were times when the US took the lead over the process on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts settlement, and there were times when France took the leadership, and now Russia is involved actively, he added.

Hoagland noted that he believes in the strength of diplomacy.

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.
This time last year, Laman Valizada landed a job at one of the worlds top consultancies, a firm renowned for its rigorous recruitment standards: McKinsey & Company.

She is clear about what got her there. I did the Masters in Finance (MiF) at London Business School and it gave me the right skills to advance my career in a whole new direction.

Laman says success on the LBS programme  which can be done either full-time (10 to 16 months) or part-time (22 months)  should not be measured purely in terms of the grades you get. Its just as important to use the MiF to achieve your career objectives.

When Laman began the course, she was seeking to broaden and deepen her overall knowledge of finance, and also to understand her true potential and where can it take her.

Id been working in oil and gas industry in my home country, Azerbaijan, for seven years. I started as a drilling engineer with Schlumberger, later moved to performance management in BP where my career quickly progressed to a finance leadership role, she says. Finance became my real focus and I wanted to take my career to the next level. Thats why I did a finance degree, not a generalist MBA.

But why choose London Business School? I had great experience at a multi-national company, but Id spent all my education and career in one country. To reach my full potential, I felt I needed to study at a truly global institution where I could learn from accomplished and industry leading faculty who are globally recognised in their given field of expertise.

Still, Laman was struck by the quality of the people during the orientation week she spent meeting her new classmates. At first I kept comparing myself to them and asking myself how I was going to fit in.

After a roller-coaster few weeks studying alongside her fellow students who are some of the brightest minds from all over the world, Laman began to thrive at LBS.

The Masters in Finance showed me there was so much more I could achieve in my career. When the lecturers talked about career paths for MiF graduates, I initially didnt even know two-thirds of them, she says.

This soon changed because Lamans LBS classes had a practical career-focused edge to them, she says. Its not a theoretical degree. It lets you know what its like to actually work in finance because the people who teach you have worked on big financial deals themselves.

All MiF students at LBS take three core modules: investments; corporate finance and valuation; and financial accounting and analysis. In these classes you try out a number of areas of finance in a risk-free environment. This lets you determine where your real passion lies within the industry, so you can choose the elective modules in the next part of the degree that best suit your career objectives.

Lamans career passion became obvious almost immediately: corporate finance. I love the way that corporate finance gives you the chance to engage with so many aspects of a companys growth. Thats why I took an advanced course in it as one of my electives.

But while Laman knew she wanted to refocus her career towards corporate finance, she was still unclear of the opportunities existing for her. Thats when LBSs career advisor stepped in and provided her with knowledge and guidance as to what best suited her.

He pointed out that I was changing roles every two years within the same firm and that soon my current company wouldnt be able to fulfil my career appetite. He recommended to consider management consulting which suited my profile and would provide the greater variety I needed in a job, says Laman.

Exploring any opportunity is very easy in LBS  there is a variety of school-led events which lets students connect with literally any industry. After attending few consulting events at LBS, she realized that the advisor was right in the advice he gave. I could move up the ladder at BP but Id essentially be doing the same job, only with management responsibilities. Consulting, working with different companies as clients, sounded far more interesting.

While Laman returned to BP after graduating (and secured a promotion), she already knew that there would be a moment of a career shift in the future. Two years later, Laman began applying to McKinsey. I knew what I wanted and how to get there. When opportunity came up, I was well prepared for the interviews because of the support I got from LBS consulting network.

Laman now puts her corporate finance knowledge to use as an associate at McKinsey, where she helps oil and gas clients on M&A, restructuring and other projects.

My job often involves financial modelling and evaluating companies, two technical skills I didnt have before I went to LBS. Whenever theres something at work Im unsure about, I even look at my old LBS notes for help.

The Masters in Finance at LBS has also given her the soft skills she needs in her new career. LBS emphasises fast learning. You might be given a week in a student group to work on a case study and solve a problem that in a company would take months. At LBS you learn to be super-efficient  and thats also whats required in consulting.

Working in small student teams at LBS has boosted Lamans negotiating and communication abilities, she says. During the MiF you do group work with a wide range of people. Some of them are difficult, but you learn how to deal with them  thats a valuable skill. As a consultant youre always working with new people on short-term projects, so the underlying skills needed are the same.

Laman says studying at LBS helped her to unlock her true potential. It is not only about learning advanced and practical skills that would help you to advance your career. It is also about a chance to compare yourself with the best of the best, learn from them, explore the variety of opportunities, understand and shape your own path  and it might end up way more ambitious than you could ever imagine. Without LBS, I wouldnt be at McKinsey.
The creation of free zones and transparency of the property market will be key to attracting foreign investment into the Abu Dhabi real estate sectors, said an industry expert ahead of an upcoming industry event.



Cityscape Abu Dhabi, the emirate's most prominent real estate showcase, will run from April 18 to 20 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre.



"The concept of free zones is more advanced in Dubai and in order to redress this balance between the two emirates, Abu Dhabi needs to develop its existing free zones more aggressively and consider launching additional free zones for those industries that it seeks to promote under the 2030 vision, remarked Craig Plumb, the head of research at leading real estate consultancy JLL.



Supporting the creation of new investment environments will be one of the key topics debated at the

The Cityscape Abu Dhabi Conference to be held on the opening day of the expo, stated Plumb, who will also be a moderator at the conference.



With more than 25 free zones in Dubai, compared to Abu Dhabis five, Plumb believes the concept of free zones needs to be developed further to enhance the capitals residential, office, commercial and warehouse real estate sectors.



"The concept of free zones is more advanced in Dubai and in order to redress this balance between the two emirates, Abu Dhabi needs to develop its existing free zones more aggressively and consider launching additional free zones for those industries that it seeks to promote under the 2030 vision," he noted.



Cityscape Abu Dhabi Conference speakers will also discuss new investment opportunities as foreign interest continues to rise.



With the growth of FDIs (foreign direct investments) in the emirate increasing by seven per cent last year according to the Statistics Centre  Abu Dhabi (SCAD), the government is making extensive efforts to improve standards, regulations and buying opportunities, motivating foreign companies and individuals to continue investing in the local economy.



"Free zones will attract additional investment and employment as they create hubs of similar activities and generate a simplified regulatory environment, with lower operating costs and greater freedoms," stated Plumb.



Currently, he said, the market is going through a cycle, which is perfectly normal for any real estate industry worldwide.



"For buyers who are looking at the property sector as a long-term investment now is the perfect time to buy. As the UAE market grows and matures the volatility of the sector will decline, making returns more stable and predictable, which in itself will attract more investors," noted Plumb.



The Cityscape Abu Dhabi conference, hosted in collaboration with JLL, will also explore emerging trends that are redefining investment opportunities in Abu Dhabis hospitality sector, with a particular focus on upcoming landmark projects that are creating new avenues for stakeholders and investors.



Omar Al Busaidy, Abu Dhabi Experience Development Unit head at Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, will deliver a keynote speech and provide an exclusive insight into destination Abu Dhabi and how building new investment hotspots and creating long-term management prospects is key to creating an attractive hub for local and international real estate investors.



Partnership with the private sector is one of the guiding principles in our tourism growth strategy, and the development of a set of distinct districts with clear value propositions for tourists across all three regions of the emirate focusing on cultural, leisure and nature offerings has been identified as a core deliverable to achieve this, observed Al Busaidy.



Implementing a zonal tourism development model to develop attractions and experiences in harmony with or emphasising the areas business, geographical or natural assets acts as a catalyst for SME (small and medium enterprises) business development opportunities and our tourism investment promotion service allows us to foster partnerships between international investors and local entrepreneurs, he added.



David Dudley, the regional director of JLL and headline speaker at the Cityscape Abu Dhabi Conference, will reveal the recent performance of each real estate sector for the first quarter of 2017 and discuss the best investment opportunities with key industry players.



Abu Dhabis market experienced a very major upswing from 2013 to 2014, led by the residential sales market, with prime residential prices growing at 25 per cent per annum, the pace of which was unsustainable, Dudley said.



Cityscape Abu Dhabi will provide the perfect platform for investors to find opportunities across all price points in the region, as well as the latest international developments, as more than 130 exhibitors from around the world come together to showcase their latest projects.



Investment opportunities remain, particularly for existing income producing assets  and we continue to see keen interest from investors taking a longer term view on the future growth potential. Key opportunities are to acquire income-producing assets or to enter into build to suit arrangements with corporate tenants  targeting functional real estate in established locations which will sustain high occupancy levels, added Dudley.



Other prominent speakers at the conference include Maan Al Awlaqi, director of Aldar Properties, Mohammed Al Fardan, director of Masdar City Free Zone, Ann Boothello, senior marketing manager at Dubizzle, and Sean Magee, senior legal counsel, TwoFour54.-TradeArabia News Service
Amec Foster Wheeler said it has been awarded a contract by Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC), a subsidiary of the Kuwait Petroleum Company (KPC), for the integration project between its Olefins III, Aromatics II and Zour Refinery in Kuwait.



The contract covers front-end engineering design (Feed) leading to project management consultancy (PMC) for the project.



The six-year contract builds on Amec Foster Wheeler's significant expertise in petrochemicals and refinery integration, alongside the impressive track record of delivering PMC services to KPC companies in Kuwait.



The new petrochemical facility will be integrated with the new Al Zour 615,000-barrels-per-day refinery, which will be one of the largest refineries in the region.



The company also clinched a major contract from Brunei Shell Petroleum (BSP) for the rejuvenation of assets in Brunei, said the statement from Amec Foster Wheeler.



The work includes concept, Feed, detailed design, construction, completions and commissioning, marine management, fabrication management, procurement, and project management.



John Pearson, Amec Foster Wheeler's president for Oil, Gas & Chemicals, said: "These award reflects our expertise, as well as our successful track record in large, complex Feeds, and project management. It is directly aligned to our strategy of extending from Feed into later phase scopes in downstream, and to building on our existing strength in chemicals."



"I am also delighted that this adds to our existing portfolio of work we are delivering for KPC's group of companies, with multiple PMC contracts underway," he added.



On the BSP contract, Pearson said: "We are bringing together Amec Foster Wheeler's unique combination of brownfield expertise, 'More 4 Less' methodology, global capabilities, and long-term customer relationships to maximise the value of Brunei Shell Petroleum's assets in Brunei."



The contract will run for five years from March 2017, with two one-year options to extend, and includes Brunei Shell Petroleum's oil and gas assets in the South China Sea, he added.-TradreArabia News Service
Serious BBC Interview With A Smart Man Discussing Important Things Goes Haywire Thanks To Attention-Seeking Children

Trending News: This BBC Interview Gets Interrupted In The Most Adorable Way Ever

Quick Take

Parenthood can be a wonderful thing, full of the joys and challenges and life-affirming experiences that come with raising children. It can also be a royal pain in the ass and can play all kinds of merry hell on your career.

Robert E. Kelly probably was focusing on the latter, hopefully briefly, following his TV interview with the BBC Friday morning. The professor of political science at Pusan University in South Korea was discussing the current situation in the country (it isnt good) via Skype when the best thing that can happen on live TV happened: he was adorably interrupted by his precocious toddlers.

Kelly and the BBC anchor gamely try to power through the interview, but the odds turn against them rather quickly. If you look closely, you can see the moment (around 0:07 in the YouTube clip) Kelly realizes his daughter has sauntered into his home office wearing a bright yellow sweater, all pigtails and glasses. She moseys right up to her dad's computer to check out what's going on, with Kelly desperately trying to keep a straight face as he gently pushes her away. The anchor gamely tries to power through, despite the distraction.

Its soon obvious that this wont be easy. Seconds after the first interruption, Kellys other kid, a baby in a walker, decides to join in the fun and comes into the office. The older sister then sits on her dads desk, making a mess a mess and a racket.

Kelly finally breaks when a woman rushes in to grab the kids and haul them out of the room. My apologies, he mumbles, clearly mortified. The woman adds to the comedy by getting on her hands and knees, trying to keep as low a profile as possible as she hustles the children out.

The interview continues as one of them is heard wailing in the background.

And that is the magic of live TV, as shared on Facebook by millions of television journalists around the world.

Drop This Fact

Two people have died in demonstrations against the impeachment of South Koreas president Park Geun-Hye. She was forced from office due to a corruption scandal.
Simmons Edeco, a leading supplier of wellhead and valve maintenance, asset integrity solutions and onshore drilling services to the global oil and gas industry, said it has entered into a framework agreement with EDF Energy to maintain its Gas Storage facilities in Cheshire, England.



Simmons Edeco offers a range of wellhead maintenance services, both routine and custom, to maximise facility operations. The programme involves installing and removing wellheads and Christmas trees, workover support, and making certain that valves are properly maintained and refurbished.



In addition, Simmons Edeco will carry out annulus testing, and Echometering and data analysis to assess liquid levels in the well.



To achieve this, Simmons Edeco is using a full complement of its state-of-the-art wellhead and valve maintenance equipment, and specialist treatment products.



For example, the maintenance team cleans production and wellhead valves with custom-designed flush and grease pumps using Fully Synthetic Liquid Valve Flush.



They are then protected for the long-term by applying Fully Synthetic Valve Lubricant. Unlike traditional clay lubricants that tend to harden in critical areas of the valve that cause it to seize up, our synthetic lubricant never hardens or washes away with production flow, said Mark Hunt, the operations manager for Simmons Edeco.



This means that valves function properly for a much longer period, saving time and money otherwise invested in expensive replacement valves, he noted.



Simmons Edeco said although it has worked on behalf of EDF Energy, this agreement represents the first time that the company will have provided an ongoing programme of maintenance support to the French utility company.



By carrying out these specialist services, and customising a work programme for each individual EDF wellhead, we provide a high degree of technical support that will help them achieve top operational performance at this key facility, remarked Hunt.



With our deep experience in wellhead and valve maintenance, and knowledge of the facilities, we are confident that it will operate effectively for many years to come, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
A large wooden exhibit case, clearly decades old, sits in the middle of the Wyoming Veterans Museums Main Veterans Gallery. Many years ago, around the time when our nation entered into the Great War in 1917, this proud heavy wooden case first displayed goods in a store in downtown Casper.

Unfortunately, which store is now unknown. About 15 years ago when local volunteers and veterans established this museum, they received this case as a donation as the store updated its displays downtown. It is appropriate that today this spectacular wooden display case serves as the Wyoming Veterans Museums Spotlight Exhibit  our temporary exhibit space that is updated every quarter.

Through June 2017, this Spotlight Exhibit tells the story of one of Wyomings earliest settlers, John Posey Ryan, who arrived at Fort Laramie before Wyoming was even a territory. The Ryan family emigrated from Ireland to Missouri while John was still a toddler.

As a teenager, a young Ryan enlisted in a regiment of the Missouri Volunteer Infantry, fighting for the Federal cause. Honorably discharged at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1865, Ryan signed on with the U.S. Armys Quartermaster Department as a civilian teamster. Between 1866 and 1929, Ryan transported supplies on the Bozeman Trail between Fort Laramie and Fort Phil Kearney.

Fortunately, he left the Quartermaster Department just before the fateful Fetterman Fight at Fort Phil Kearney on December 21, 1866. Using his Army wages, Ryan bought land north of Fort Laramie and became one of the earliest settlers and ranchers in Wyoming. He earned extra income as a teamster, gaining a reputation for never harming a mule  an enviable record for any muleskinner of the period.

Early in the 20th century, Ryan became an entrepreneur and hotel owner in Guernsey as well as a founding father of the Town of Guernsey. When he returned from a long business trip in 1909, Ryan discovered that his wife had sold the hotel, taken the money and left town with their stepdaughter. He located them in Cheyenne and shot both to death after a heated exchange.

Ryan, now a convicted double murderer, was sentenced to serve his time at the newly built Wyoming State Penitentiary at Rawlins.

When disgruntled inmates lit the broom factory on fire, Ryan played a major role in helping to evacuate convicts, saving numerous lives. Subsequently pardoned by the governor, he lived out his life at the Wyoming Soldiers and Sailors Home in Buffalo, Wyoming.

For more information on Posey Ryan, refer to our curators biography of him, Soldier, Settler, Murderer and Veteran: John Posey Ryan in Wyoming, 1866-1929 at WyoHistory.Org: http://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/soldier-settler-murderer-and-veteran-john-posey-ryan-wyoming-1866-1929.

Returning guests, veterans and supporters of the Wyoming Veterans Museum will always discover something new at the state veterans museum, as the Spotlight Exhibit is rotated approximately every three months. In the past we have featured a display of hideous military gas masks, an exhibit entitled From Heartburn to History on the saga of indigestible military field rations, the story of Cowboy State Guardsmen defending our nations southern border between 1916 and 1917, and an exhibit on the Casper Army Airbase during World War II put together by high school students when they took over the museum for a day last June. Most recently, our museums Spotlight Exhibit has even been visited by Captain America and the Punisher of comic book fame.

The Wyoming Veterans Memorial Museum is the states educational and interpretive institution devoted to saving, commemorating and relating the service and sacrifice of veterans and their families from Wyoming and our nation. All veterans, whether Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, Merchant Marines and auxiliaries (e.g. Salvation Army of WWI, Red Cross and Civil Air Patrol) are honored by our museum.
Glenn J. Fullerton

Memorial services for Glenn J. Fullerton, 73, were held Thursday, March 9, 2017, at Newcomer Funeral Home Chapel. He died Saturday, March 4, 2017, at his home in Casper. Mr. Fullerton served in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War. Newcomer Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to a charity of the donor's choice.

Mary Helen Madison

Mary Helen Madison, 93, died Saturday, March 4, 2017, at her home. Newcomer Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the Casper Humane Society or to the Alzheimer's Association.

Barbara Scifers

Services for Barbara Scifers, 97, are pending. She died Sunday, March 5, 2017, in Casper. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family.

Dinah Dail Tholson

Memorial services for Dinah Dail Tholson, 68, were held Monday, March 13, 2017, at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery Chapel with Tim Adams officiating. She died Friday, March 3, 2017, in Casper. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family.

Roger Melvin Bramson

Memorial services for Roger Melvin Bramson, 78, were held Saturday, March 11, 2017, at Bustards Funeral Home. Inurnment will be at Highland Cemetery at a later date. He died Saturday, March 4, 2017, in Casper. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family.

Theresa B. Dupuis

Funeral mass for Theresa B. Dupuis, 92, was held Friday, March 10, 2017, at the St. Camillus Church, St. Bernards Parish, 333 Mechanic St., in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Burial was at the St. Josephs Cemetery in Fitchburg. She died Friday, Feb. 24, 2017, at the Wyoming Medical Center in Casper. Newcomer Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetic Association or the American Heart Association.

Robert Bob Eckhart

Memorial services for Robert Bob Eckhart, 78, will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 1, 2017, at the Shepherd of the Hills Presbyterian Church, 4600 S. Poplar St., with Pastor Lynn Williamson officiating. He died Saturday, March 4, 2017, in Casper. Mr Eckhart served in the U.S. Army National Guard. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family.

Phillip Phil Allen Juillard

Memorial services for Phillip Phil Allen Juillard, 78, were held Saturday, March 11, 2017, at First Baptist Church, 21 Highway 30, Basin, Wyoming, with Pastor Kent Dempsey officiating. He died Sunday, March 5, 2017, at the Wyoming Medical Center in Casper. Atwood Family Funeral Directors is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the Security State Bank, P.O. Box 531, Basin, WY 82410.

Ruth Marie Schreiber

Memorial services for Ruth Marie Schreiber, 93, will be held Wednesday, March 8, 2017, at Bustards Funeral Home in Casper. Private burial will be in Lovell. She died Sunday, March 5, 2017, in Casper. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family.

William "Bill" Rissler

Funeral services for William "Bill" Rissler, 85, were held Saturday, March 11, 2017, at Highland Park Community Church. Interment will follow at the Highland Cemetery with military honors. He died Saturday, March 4, 2017, at the Meadow Wind Assisted Living. Mr. Rissler served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. Newcomer Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer's Association Wyoming Chapter, 2232 Dell Range Blvd., Ste. 220, Cheyenne, WY 82009.

Edith Mae Gates

No services for Edith Mae Gates, 95, will be held at this time. She died Saturday, March 4, 2017, at the Central Wyoming Hospice. Newcomer Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association, P.O. Box 2341, Casper, WY 82602.

Barbara Gosman

A celebration of life for Barbara Gosman, 86, was held Saturday, March 11, 2017, at 1530 S. Wolcott. She died March 3, 2017, in Casper. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the Central Wyoming Hospice, 319 S. Wilson St., Casper, WY 82601.

Ardelle Kangas Martin

Memorial services for Ardelle Kangas Martin, 90, were held Friday, March 10, 2017, at Grace Lutheran Church, 315 CY Ave. Graveside services were held Friday, March 10, 2017, at Highland Cemetery. She died Saturday, March 4, 2017, at her home. Newcomer Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the Wyoming Dementia Care, P.O. Box 1493, Casper, WY 82602.

Patsy Ann Townsend

Memorial services for Patsy Ann Townsend, 58, will be held at a later date at Morad Park. She died Monday, Feb. 27, 2017, in Casper. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family.

Jeffrey Michael Derrico

A celebration of life for Jeffrey Michael Derrico, 28, was held Saturday, March 11, 2017, at the Circle C, 1010 E. 1st St., Ste. B. He died Thursday, March 2, 2017, in Casper. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to Bustards Funeral Home, P.O. Box 2176, Casper, WY 82602.

Earl Lee Sides

Funeral services for Earl Lee Sides, 90, were held Monday, March 13, 2017, at Mt. Hope Lutheran Church. Interment will follow at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery with military honors accorded by the Natrona County United Veterans Council and the Navy Funeral Honors. He died Wednesday, March 8, 2017, in Casper. Mr. Sides served in the U.S. Navy. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the Mt. Hope Lutheran School, 2300 S. Hickory, Casper, WY 82604.

Lillie Anne Violet Holden

Funeral services for Lillie Anne Violet Holden were held Monday, March 13, 2017, at Bustards Funeral Home with Rev. Dee Lundberg officiating. Interment will follow at Highland Cemetery. She died Wednesday, March 8, 2017, in Sheridan. Bustards Funeral Home is assisting the family. Memorial contributions may be made to the Denver University Hospital NICU, 12605 E. 16th Ave., Aurora, CO. 80045.
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Donations needed

The American Legion Post 2 in Casper is asking for donations of garage sale items for a booth at the Super Garage Sale on March 25. Proceeds from the booth help continue to serve veterans and their families in Natrona County.

Large items like furniture cannot be accepted because their is no storage space, but sporting goods, camping gear, hunting and fishing gear, any tools and small cooking appliances would be greatly appreciated.

All items donated are tax deductible and all funds will stay in Natrona County.

For free pick-up of donations, call or text 267-1800. God bless America and all veterans, past and present.

Scarves for Special Olympics

Special Olympics Wyoming invites those who knit and crochet to make scarves for the Wyoming Special Olympics athletes to wear at State Winter Games in February 2018. Please use black, grey and white colors, approximately 6- by 60-inches in any pattern. The deadline to receive the scarves is January 2018. Please send scarves to Special Olympics Wyoming, attn. Scarf Project 2017, P.O. Box 624, Jackson, WY 83001. There is more information available at www.sowy.org/other-fundraisers.

Food of the month

Wyoming Food for Thought Project has announced its food of the month suggestions for the nearly 1,000 weekend food bags its volunteers prepare for food-insecure school students in Natrona County each week. Often, schools, churches and other groups designate certain collection days for a specific type of food as a donation.

The suggested food items may be taken to program headquarters at 900 St. John, but its best to call ahead to make certain someone is there to receive it.

March, cereal; April, granola bars; May, tuna; June, peanut butter; July, pork n beans; August, mac n cheese; September, Chef Boyardee products; October, cereal; November, soup; December, chili.

For more information, call Cassandra at 337-1703.

Thanks for socks and gloves

Community Action Partnerships Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) Community Sock and Glove Drive, which ran in December and January, was very successful. The community exceeded the initial goal of 500 donations, and received a total of 1,578 donations, including 882 pairs of socks, 584 pairs of gloves, 73 hats, and 39 scarves.

RSVP volunteers sorted and distributed socks and gloves to various locations throughout Casper. Donations helped provide a substantial amount of community members with basic winter essentials to keep warm, including:

35 schools in the Natrona County School District were each provided with a large bag of socks and gloves in the nurses office for students in need

100 home-based senior citizens through Central Wyoming Senior Services

Homeless during the Point in Time Count in January

Homeless during First Christian Churchs Sandwich Ministry

A family who lost their home in a fire and over 100 additional individuals and families in need.

Volunteer for new literacy program

INGLES!, a non-profit group teaching English as a second language to adult learners, is currently looking for enthusiastic, patient volunteers. Volunteers will help adult students improve their English one-on-one and in small classes. Volunteering requires a commitment of two hours twice a week. No Spanish proficiency or prior teaching experience required. Volunteer application forms are available at the Natrona County Library Reference Desk located on the second floor.

Blood centers extend hours

United Blood Services is expanding hours at its Casper and Cheyenne donor centers in an effort to make blood donation more convenient for more donors.

The center at 2801 East 2nd Street in Casper will be open six days a week. Closed only on Tuesday, the Casper center will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, and from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday.

The center at 112 E. 8th Ave. in Cheyenne will be open five days a week, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Blood donations can drop as much as 20 percent during the holidays and winter months, but every two seconds, every day of the year a patient in the U.S. needs a blood transfusion.

Whole blood donors are eligible to give blood every eight weeks and are encouraged to donate at least three times each year to help UBS meet the needs of patients.

Donors can save time and fill out their Fast Track Health History Questionnaire online at unitedbloodservices.org the day of their donation. To donate blood, volunteers must be at least 16 years old (16 and 17-year-old donors need a minor donor permit which is available online) and be in good health.

In addition to its community donor centers in Cheyenne and Casper, UBS operates various blood drives across Wyoming. To make an appointment call 877-827-4376 or go to unitedbloodservices.org.

Monthly fleece blanket making continues

The Fleece Blanket Project meets on the third Saturday of each month from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at First Christian Church, 520 CY Ave. Parking is in the back of the building. The group will meet March 18, 2017. Thus far, 289 blankets have been made and given to individuals in need of comfort and warmth and to agencies that serve a vulnerable population. Bring two yards of a print fleece and two yards of a solid fleece for each blanket, or just come and join others who want to make a difference. For more information, call First Christian Church at 234-8964.

Disabled vets need volunteer drivers

The Disabled American Veterans need volunteer drivers to take veterans to their medical appointment at the VA hospital in Cheyenne. The volunteer driver will transport them in a VA vehicle. If you are interested, please call the DAV transportation office in Cheyenne at 307-778-7577 for further information.

English speakers needed

CHAT, the English Conversation Club at Casper College Adult Learning Center, needs English speakers to meet international community members and help them speak English. Join us for an international potluck in the Werner Technical Center, Rm. 105: March 22, 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.; April 13, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.; and May 4, 11 a.m. to noon. For more information, call 268-2230 or email mdugan@caspercollege.edu.

Save the date, restorative justice

Save the date! Restorative Justice Symposium 2017: Wyomings Introduction to a New Frontier. March 15 and 16, 2017, at the Ramkota Hotel & Conference Center. Hosted by Natrona County Restorative Justice. For additional information and to learn more on what restorative justice is all about, visit and like NCRJsFacebook page.
RED LODGE, Mont.  Blowing up dead animals was just part of the deal in the 16 seasons Nolan Melin worked as a backcountry horse packer and trail crew member for the Forest Service.

Youve got to get rid of them, he said matter-of-factly about a pretty unusual occurrence.

Otherwise, a dead horse or mule might attract bears to a wilderness trail, which is dangerous for humans and the bears.

Horse packing is a skill few people possess in this digital, mechanized age. The profession harkens back to a simpler time when horsepower actually involved a real horse.

In the Forest Services Region 1, which encompasses 25 million acres spread across five states, there are only eight full-time horse packers with another 25 who include that specialty in their other duties. So that made Melin a rare breed.

Traute Parrie, retired Beartooth District ranger, said, When I got to the Beartooth District ranger job, it was some combination of humbling and thrilling to realize Id landed on a district where we still had a permanent packer, a rare thing these days. It spoke to the values that this district holds important.

The reality is that its also a punishing profession  lifting heavy loads as well as dealing with horses and mules that sometime possess a mind of their own. Most horse packers have several tales about a wild blow up, when animals bucked loose and took off for points unknown.

Mules are unforgiving if you dont understand them, Melin said. I love those old mules, but they knew who was boss and who they could walk over.

Worn out at the age of 36, after years of heavy lifting and being thrown from his mount a few times, Melin is stepping down from his job as packer for the Beartooth Ranger District to work in Miles City, Montana. The new job will be closer to his hometown. He grew up on a ranch outside of Ashland.

His departure is leaving a hole in a key position for the forest, and hes taking his wife, Manda, who was a nine-year trail crew veteran  a double whammy for the district.

It will be a blow for me, said Allie Wood, the districts wilderness and trails manager.

A lot of our trails are in the wilderness, she explained. So we need to get to crews in the backcountry. Its less effort to do it with stock than to have the trail crew carry in 80 to 90 pounds of gear.

With restrictions on federal hiring, Wood isnt sure if or when Melin might be replaced.

There are close to 300 miles of trails in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, a 937,000-acre region in south-central Montana that also contains the highest mountain in the state  12,799-foot Granite Peak.

Ive seen every inch of them, except for maybe some stuff on top, Melin said, starting off when he hired on to the trail crew at age 19.

He applied for the job on a lark, simply because his brother was putting in for a position in the Forest Service. In a weird twist of fate, Melin got hired, his brother didnt. After getting broken in as a trail crew member, Melin started packing when the contractor for the Forest Service broke his neck. After increasing his skills, the agency sent Melin to a regional packer school for more specific training.

I grew up on a ranch, so I knew livestock, but not all of the knots and loads for packing, Melin explained.

Eventually he was taking in five mules hauling 800 to 1,000 pounds of gear on his own once or twice a week, averaging 500 to 600 miles a year. The gear might be for trail work, weed abatement or simply hauling out trash that other wilderness visitors have left behind.

All the important field work that the public expects us to do, but sometimes feels like its disappearing, Parrie said.

The loads would contain everything from awkward wooden timbers for making water bars to dense and heavy bags of concrete to build bridges, and on occasion, explosives to blow up dead animals.

Blasting deceased animals can be complicated if the carcass is particularly pungent, Melin noted. That makes the horses and mules nervous, as well as challenges the intestinal fortitude of the workers  Melin included.

The ones that have been out there a couple of weeks, when you come up on them it can really ruin your day, he said.

Theres also the added anxiety that a bear, smelling the same decaying carcass, may be attracted to the site.

The idea is to blow up the dead animals, which can weigh around 1,000 pounds, into smithereens and scatter those bits across a wide area so the carcass is no longer a bear attractant.

The biggest chunk we ever found (after the explosion) was the size of a pop can, Melin said. I never did find a horseshoe, but I was sure I was always pointed the other way and hiding behind a large rock to avoid being struck by a flying metal shoe when the blasting caps were ignited.

On the other end of his job responsibilities, Melin loved to ride to the Lake Plateau, a high-mountain region between the Stillwater and Boulder rivers strewn with a few of the 948 lakes that dot the wilderness.

Although comfortable with livestock, co-worker Jess Howell said she was surprised to find out that Melin liked mountain biking and ultimate Frisbee, pastimes that seemed out of sync with his cowboy attitude. Yet Howell had nothing but praise for Melins work ethic.

Hes tough and does whatever it takes to get the job done, even if that means working into the night or going without breakfast, lunch and dinner, Howell said. He thinks quick on his feet and comes up with solutions when he or the crew gets in a pickle. He doesnt seem to be afraid of anything.

He was a backbone for us, Wood added.
The Wyoming Business Council rejected Thursday a request for a $3 million state grant to build an interchange off Interstate 25 in Bar Nunn  which, in addition to finally providing the community freeway access, could connect the Casper/Natrona County International Airport to the highway.

Members of the Business Council, meeting Thursday at Casper College, questioned why a Wyoming Community Readiness Grant was necessary for the project, when the Wyoming Transportation Commission, which oversees how Wyoming Department of Transportation funds are spent, did not assess the interchange at Westwinds Road as an immediate priority.

The Wyoming State Loan and Investment Board can reverse the Business Council board's decision, and choose to fund the project.

Bar Nunn, a town of 2,300 north of Casper, does not have any direct exits from I-25.

For 10 years people have discussed the need for an interchange. Bar Nunn has been one of Wyomings fastest-growing towns this decade, expanding in population by 27.4 percent between 2010 and 2015.

People reach the town via the Salt Creek Highway from Casper, said Julie Kozlowski, the Business Councils community development director. Drivers can also access the town by the Howard Street interchange, which is south of town.

It takes about 10 minutes for an ambulance from Wyoming Medical Center to travel one way to the bedroom community. The preferred time for emergency responders is under 10 minutes, according to materials presented to the Business Council.

During emergencies such as wildfires, traffic is packed on the Salt Creek Highway. And the lack of direct access to the town creates a dangerous situation for emergency responders. The Salt Creek Highway has no emergency lanes for ambulances to use to bypass passenger traffic.

There already is an underpass at Westwinds Road. The roughly $12 million project would add two on-ramps and two off-ramps, Kozlowski said.

Business

Much emphasis was on business development in the area, since the Business Councils role is to attempt to diversify Wyomings economy and create jobs.

If the interchange were built, local government has planned to extend Westwinds Road to become a northern outer belt that would link the airport and the Casper Logistics Hub to I-25.

That would create a transportation zone where air, rail and truck freight would converge.

The area has been the beneficiary of millions in state grants for economic development, including a BNSF railroad spur and the Bar Nunn Industrial Park, according to Business Council documents.

A convenience store chain had indicated if the interchange were built, it would open a large truck stop that would employ dozens, according to the Business Council documents. Additionally, Casper city officials are analyzing a potential planned community east of the interchange. The city would have to annex the area.

Council reactions

Most members of the Business Council, however, were not impressed with the traffic volumes: 6,350 vehicles on the average weekday. Nor has the Transportation Commission seen traffic levels high enough to necessitate an interchange.

I question whether we should be putting economic development funds in this road if the measures that the state uses dont quantify and quality this as a needed interchange, said Paul Cactus Covello, a board member from Torrington. If its really needed for jobs, I wonder. Im torn. Im torn a lot about this project.

Board member Megan Overmann Goetz of Laramie said if it were a better time fiscally for Wyoming, it would be easier to support the project.

We simply have to prioritize now good projects with better projects, she said.

Like most state agencies, the Wyoming Business Council has been squeezed. Revenue from oil, gas and coal is down. Nearly 50 percent of the Business Councils budget for grants and loans was reduced in the current two-year budget cycle, compared to the last two years.

But board member Mike Sullivan of Cheyenne said he had some spare time when he first arrived in Casper for the Business Council meeting. He took a drive and was able to look at the project area.

After seeing it, including a view above Bar Nunn, his mind was changed in favor of the project, he said.

You begin to see potential, he said. You begin to see jobs out there.

From the standpoint of a developer, Bar Nunn is in line to boom. Its flat, which saves on construction costs. All it needs is better road access, Sullivan said.

If I were investing in anything, this would be my No. 1 project, he said.

Costs

The town of Bar Nunn hoped the Business Council would provide $3 million for construction. The Casper Metropolitan Planning Organization planned to match it with $5.2 million. Natrona County and Bar Nunn would have each chipped in $655,000.

Nearly $2.5 million in costs such as utility relocation, project design and purchase of rights-of-way were to be paid by the county, town and MPO.

Organizers had hoped with the boost in state money, construction would have begun this spring.

Now that the state money is off the table, its unclear how Bar Nunn will proceed.

Mayor Patrick Ford did not return a call from the Star-Tribune on Friday.
The body of Gibson Gib Lee Mathers, 61, of Powell, was found Saturday on the North Fork, according to a press release from the Park County Sheriff's office.

Mathers, a reporter for the Powell Tribune, had been missing since Jan. 31. A local man on horseback discovered Mathers' body Saturday morning south of U.S. Highway 14-16-20 west in the Elk Fork Creek drainage, the release stated.

Park County Sheriffs Office deputies as well as search and rescue members were on scene as of Saturday afternoon.

The investigation into Mathers death is ongoing and no further information is available at this time, the release stated.
A Casper man was killed early Friday in a crash near Laramie, according to the Wyoming Highway Patrol.

Nathan Pieper, 22, was a passenger in a 2002 Ford Mustang that was being driven by Tyler Lane, 21, of Torrington, the highway patrol said in a release.

Before the crash, a Laramie police officer had tried to stop the Mustang for not having its headlights on, the release said. It said Lane eluded the officer, who stopped the short chase because the speeds were too extreme for city limits.

The Mustang briefly left the road and struck a piece of wood while trying to use the on-ramp onto Interstate 80 westbound from Grand Avenue around 3:10 a.m., the release said. The car slid, left the roadway, tripped and rolled.

Pieper, who was not wearing his seat belt, was ejected and taken by ambulance to Ivinson Memorial Hospital in Laramie, where he died, according to the release.

Lane and another passenger, Zachariah Pieper, 21, of Mitchell, Nebraska, were not ejected. They were taken by ambulance to the same hospital, where they were treated and released.

Impaired driving and eluding a police officer are being examined as contributing factors in the crash, which marked the 12th highway death in the state for the year.

Lane was arrested and booked in at the Albany County Detention Center in Laramie. He was charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, driving while impaired, driving without a valid driver's license, failure to maintain a single lane of travel, unsafe tires and no seat belt.
For snowmobilers seeking steep mountain riding with loads of snow, Cooke City, Montana, is a nirvana.

Its stunning. It takes your breath away, said Doug Chabot of the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center.

Just northeast of Yellowstone National Park in Montanas steep Beartooth Mountains are big valleys surrounded by treeless slopes that climb 300 vertical feet or more to the top of 9,000- to 10,000-foot peaks. Combine the terrain with consistent snowfall that can cloak the mountains in nine feet of snow or more and its easy to see why riders from as far away as Minnesota are drawn to the region and why snowmobiling magazines rate the area as one of the best in the West.

It hits this sweet spot. It has the culture and feel of being more remote and out there, Chabot said.

Downside

Theres a dark side to all of that white, though. The same conditions that make Cooke City so attractive can also prove deadly  a high concentration of big, steep mountains; old mining roads that provide easy access into the heart of the mountains; and heavy annual snowfall that causes lots of avalanches.

Based on data compiled by the avalanche center, it is the most deadly piece of real estate in the United States for snowmobilers, Chabot wrote in an article.

I was talking to people last year in Cooke City and they werent even aware of their status, he said.

Neither was Chabot until he and a colleague plotted southwest Montana avalanche deaths on a map and saw the concentration of fatalities near Cooke City. During the past 15 years, a 5-square-mile area has accounted for 14 snowmobiler fatalities, men ranging in age from 18 to 52 trapped and killed by avalanches.

When the information was compared to the national avalanche fatality database in Colorado, they found no other place like Cooke City in the United States.

Schooling

Its not something we advertise, said Shannan Abelseth of Cooke City Motorsports. Its something we try to educate people about.

To that end, the avalanche center has used funds provided through a Montana State Parks grant to hold free classes every Friday night and a short field course on Saturday mornings to educate snowmobilers who visit Cooke City. Since starting Thanksgiving weekend, Chabot said the classes have touched about 400 riders, mostly out-of-staters.

We havent killed any snowmobilers this year, and weve had prime opportunities to do so, Abelseth said. So I do believe the avalanche classes are making a difference.

The 14 fatality reports for the Cooke City area point out some interesting facts. The most dangerous months are January and February, when more than 64 percent of the fatalities have occurred. But the deaths stretch across the winter months, from November to March.

Four of the 14 killed in avalanches were from North Dakota, three from Minnesota and five from Montana. The victims average age, out of 12 accidents for which there were reports, was 35.6. All were men.

Better machines

According to national statistics gathered by the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, snowmobiler deaths in avalanches first spiked in 1994. In that year fatalities jumped to nine after averaging less than two deaths during the previous 12 years based on data collected from 17 states.

Brian Lazar, deputy director of the center, attributed that increase to snowmobile manufacturers introducing more powerful snowmobiles with longer tracks designed specifically for mountain riding.

The equipment has gotten lighter, allowing people with entry-level skill sets to get into avalanche-prone terrain, Lazar said. The barrier has come down due to technology.

When I was a kid we didnt get to some of the places these guys are going now, Abelseth said.

Unfortunately, back in 1994 many of those snowmobilers were unaware of avalanche safety gear, terrain dangers or proper riding techniques. The worst year for snowmobile fatalities in the U.S. was 2002, when 18 deaths in avalanches were recorded. Since 1950, 249 snowmobiler deaths in avalanches have been recorded in the United States, which is roughly the population of the entire Eastern Montana town of Fort Peck.

When compared to other states in the West, Montana leads with 70 snowmobiler deaths since 1951. The next closest state is Alaska with 41, according to the Colorado data.

Fortunately, as rider awareness has slowly increased in the past 10 years, Lazar said fatalities have leveled off.

Some of the outreach, the forecasting and dissemination of information is getting the message out there better, and theres more training, Lazar said.

One out of 50 snowmobilers seven years ago were wearing an avalanche pack, Abelseth said. The rate today is 90 to 95 percent. So these guys are educating themselves. Theyre realizing what kind of danger they can get themselves in, and not just here.

More riders

There are also more riders and more new snowmobilers every year.

What were seeing nationally, quite frankly, is more people doing every activity, snowmobiling included, Lazar said.

According to the International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association, there are more than 1.2 million registered snowmobiles in the United States and more than 600,000 registered snowmobiles in Canada. The association puts Montana snowmobiles at more than 30,400 with Wyoming at 33,700. In comparison, North Dakota has 17,100 snowmobiles while Minnesota claims 213,300. On average, about 30 percent of snowmobile owners have sleds built for the rigors of mountain riding, and about 53,000 new snowmobiles are sold annually in the U.S. based on sales data from the past four years.

Some of these snowmobilers, especially ones from the flatlands, have less experience when it comes to riding in avalanche terrain.

Whats become obvious over the years is their inability to identify avalanche terrain, Chabot said. Theyre not realizing that lower on the slope is avalanche terrain.

In Cooke City the avalanche educators are using past fatalities as stories of caution. Pointing to specific mountains and areas that the riders can see adds weight to the tales that is amplified by photos of the deadly slides.

We have some really relevant stories about where they can go, Chabot said. Its really powerful for them to see photos of where they just were. It gives extra weight to everything. If we showed the same picture to a crowd in Wyoming it wouldnt carry the same weight.

They are lessons that, so far this year, seem to be saving snowmobilers lives.

With these stats, if theres a silver lining, its that it provides opportunities for us to teach others to stay alive, Chabot said.
PHOENIX  The conviction of the operator of a New Mexico medical transportation company marks the latest incident of health care fraud involving false billings by transport companies to Arizona's Medicaid program.

Farmington resident Cory Werito pleaded guilty Thursday in a federal court in Albuquerque in a case involving fraudulent billings to the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System through his medical transportation company.

A statement from the U.S. attorney's office in New Mexico said Werito and his co-defendant, Rosita Toledo, created and ran CW Transport, which provided non-emergency medical transport to Arizona Medicaid recipients. Together they were charged with nine counts of health care fraud, and Werito faced an additional charge of aggravated currency structuring. They were accused of submitting more than 18,000 claims for reimbursement between 2011 and 2013, most of them completely or substantially false, and defrauding the state's Medicaid program of nearly $2 million.

Werito signed a plea agreement Thursday that carries a maximum 10 year sentence and requires him to repay more than $1.2 million.

Toledo has pleaded not guilty and awaits trial. Her federal public defender did not immediately return a call seeking comment on Friday.

The case is the third involving medical transport companies defrauding Arizona's Medicaid program that have cost the program millions of dollars.

In December a federal court jury convicted Arizona Medical Transportation LLC owner and operator Elseddig Elmarioud Musa of 39 counts of health care fraud and aggravated identity theft for false billings to Arizona's Medicaid program. A 2015 indictment said Musa fraudulently billed AHCCCS over $1.2 million for thousands of transports that never occurred.

It followed the November sentencings of a northeastern Arizona couple in a separate case. Both were sentenced to prison terms and ordered to pay millions of dollars of restitution after pleading guilty to health care fraud involving false claims surrounding medical transports.

The U.S. attorney's office for Arizona said Sylvia Jean Begay and Virgil C. Begay each owned a company that made thousands of fraudulent claims to Arizona's Medicaid program.

Heidi Capriotti, a public information officer at the state's Medicaid program, said AHCCCS spent about $200 million on all forms of non-emergency medical transports in 2016. She said the state's Medicaid program identified medical transportation providers as having higher potential risk of fraud several years ago and "subjects them to additional levels of scrutiny above and beyond (its) existing standard patterns."

"We dedicated resources specifically to focus on non-emergency transportation providers and we conduct regular audits and analysis of billing patterns," Capriotti said.

In May, the program's former chief procurement officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to forfeit his state retirement benefits and pay full restitution after earlier pleading guilty in a yearslong fraud scheme involving $5.9 million in fake billings for supplies.
As the demand for locally produced food grows in Tucson, entrepreneurs are stepping up to provide the kitchen tools.

Cook Tucson, a culinary incubator and commissary kitchen, is to open later this year in central Tucson.

It is the second such project announced in the past few months. The YWCA is constructing a community kitchen, at 243 W. 33rd St., that will have space for cooking and offer people business tips on marketing their products.

Cook Tucson, to be located at 1702 N. Stone Ave., will be a place where caterers or food-truck owners can access commercial kitchen space and experiment with new food concepts, said founder and owner Corinne Tso.

I know some caterers who are borrowing time at a friends restaurant to cook, she said.

Cooking has always been a hobby for Tso, but her big dream was to own her own business.

And, this will be it, she said.

The kitchen space will be available for rent hourly or monthly and will feature convection ovens, ranges, fryers, grills, walk-in refrigerator and freezers.

One future tenant is eager for the doors to open.

Sue Ann Hockman owns Snowbird Pasties, an online retailer of the meat and vegetable pastry pockets.

I met Corinne at a farmers market last summer; we were both looking for the same thing, she said. I am excited to support her and I cant wait to get started.

Hockman says she has one cafe signed up to sell her pasties. She also sells them on a corner near Tucson Estates on Saturdays, and she delivers.

Right now I cook out of my kitchen as I wait for Cook Tucson to open up, she said.

Anticipating a growth in business, Hockman said she plans to rent space by the month.

New business owner Anthony Ooka is getting ready to roll his food truck, Hungry Kepuha, next month, featuring Guam cuisine.

He learned about Cook Kitchen through the Small Business Development Center, where he was getting advice on starting his business.

I look forward to being a part of something from the beginning, Ooka said. I think getting in early to help support a new business is exciting.

He plans to rent commissary space monthly to store his food-truck goods.

Thats the sort of small businesses Tso wants to help with her new business in Tucson, which in 2015 received the UNESCO designation as a City of Gastronomy.

Tucson and Ensenada, Mexico, are the only cities in North America that boast the designation.

Tso said Tucson is a little behind in the trend of offering community kitchens for food entrepreneurs.

Its more economical than opening your own business, she said.

Other eatery concepts growing in popularity around town include food-court style restaurants that have several small restaurant concepts under the same roof with common dining areas.

Cook Tucson is undergoing a major remodel, and Tso hasnt yet calculated a rental rate.

Along with the cooking space, the hub will have a studio kitchen for cooking classes, demonstrations and tastings. A small retail space in the front of the shop will feature items from the different restaurants for sale.

Tso hopes to be open this summer.
We've collected a few front pages from newspapers.com to give you a look at some March 11 papers in history. With a subscription to newspapers.com you can search the Arizona Daily Star and many other newspapers using keywords or dates, and download articles or pages.
When you hear Luis Granados story of bizarre treatment by federal polygraph examiners, you cant help but feel something is wrong.

Granado, 31, is an Air Force veteran from Tucson and a University of Arizona graduate who applied to be a Border Patrol agent in 2014. He has the kind of background the agency needs. That year, he went to Customs and Border Protections northwest-side office to take a polygraph.

I was following his directions perfectly, Granado told me Friday. He couldnt get the baseline reading. He was getting pretty upset. He said I was clenching my teeth, moving or counting numbers in my head.

Hes getting super-mad. He was totally aggressive.

When the examiner asked him about drug trafficking, terrorist connections or other crimes in his background, Granado answered truthfully, he said: There was nothing. The examiner told him he had failed.

They make you feel like crap. You kind of feel like a criminal. Its a horrible experience.

Granado, who works full time for the Air Force Reserve now, is just the sort of person who would benefit from a proposal by Arizonas U.S. senators, Jeff Flake and John McCain. It would waive polygraph exam requirements for some members of the military and current law enforcement officers applying for Border Patrol work.

If this passes, people like Granado wouldnt need a polygraph at all. That would make it easier for the agency to meet its goal of adding 5,000 agents in five years.

Sounds sensible  until you recall history. Surges of Border Patrol hiring in the mid-1990s and mid-2000s produced the same result: Surges in misconduct by new agents who either conspired with criminals or mistreated border crossers.

I first became aware of the pattern in 1998, when I was covering the killing of Border Patrol Agent Alexander Kirpnick by drug smugglers west of Nogales. Fellow agent Hector Soto attended the memorial service for Kirpnick in Tucson, and on his return to the Nogales station that day was arrested for murder.

Soto, it turns out, had been a cocaine dealer in New York City and in 1994 killed one of his suppliers. Two and a half years later he showed up in a green uniform in Nogales, ready to patrol.

Until that day in 1998, Soto had a clean record, and he had made it through a hiring process that checked his background but didnt require polygraph exams. These exams arent totally reliable, but they are meant to force people like Soto to either admit prior acts or show evasiveness.

A second surge of hiring took place about 10 years ago with more elaborate background checks that still didnt require polygraphs. It ended up with another wave of misconduct  144 arrests for corrupt activities between 2005 and 2012.

Yamilkar Fierros joined the force as part of that wave in 2009. Just seven months after landing at the Sonoita station, he was arrested, accused of helping traffickers move drug loads and giving them maps with sensitive law-enforcement information.

Finally, in 2010, Congress passed a law requiring the Border Patrol to conduct polygraph exams on all hires by 2013. That may have helped weed out some bad actors, but it has gummed up the works so much that Southern Arizonas largest law enforcement agency is losing agents faster than it can hire them.

The polygraph has weeded out around 65 percent of applicants that get to that late stage in the process, the Associated Press reported  much higher than the 30 percent or so who typically fail exams for police hiring. Rep. Martha McSally has pushed to streamline the process, especially for veterans, as head of the Houses Homeland Security subcommittee on border and maritime security.

We are losing far too many good applicants who just throw up their hands and move on because they have given up on the process, she said at a hearing last April.

Maybe the agency can speed up the process, but lowering hiring standards is exactly how police scandals start, experts told me.

Any time you lower the standard for screening police, you put the public at risk, said Kevin Gilmartin, a Tucsonan who runs an international business as a law enforcement behavioral health consultant. Veterans make the best employees, but they should not be given a lower standard.

He and I first talked in 1998 after Sotos arrest, and even then, 12 years before it was mandated by Congress, he was recommending that the Border Patrol use polygraphs and psychological screenings for all hires.

The man who was in charge of internal security and internal affairs for Customs and Border Protection up until 2014 told me there was nothing wrong with its polygraph exams. James Tomsheck said that was proven when CBP got help from other agencies in carrying out the polygraph exams, and the outside examiners failed applicants at the same high rates as the internal examiners.

The results were always exactly the same, he told me Friday. There was no difference if it was a CBP polygraph examiner or one detailed from U.S. Secret Service, DEA or ATF.

And yet  the stories are unsettling. Granados strange experience with a hostile examiner was just one of many that McSally, CBP officials and union officials have reported. And Granados was repeated  the agency called him back for a second exam that took another six-plus hours and ended with the same result.

The upshot seems to be that there is a problem with the speed of the hiring process and the performance of some examiners. The hours-long exams that Granado took seemed beyond the pale to Pima County Sheriff Mark Napier when I described them to him.

Ive never been aware of a polygraph that lasted hours, he told me.

All Arizona law enforcement officers must go through a polygraph as part of their hiring, but it typically only takes an hour or so, he said.

But theres no reason to assume members of the military moving into the Border Patrol or other law-enforcement officials will do better on the exam than others, Gilmartin and Tomsheck said.

Just because you hold a security clearance doesnt mean at all you have been subjected to the scrutiny you should, Tomsheck said.

The pressures of working in remote areas, sometimes distant from supervisors, and being subject to the temptation of bribes are different from the challenges most members of the military have faced, Gilmartin said.

And yet, for honorably discharged veterans like Granado, the polygraph was a demeaning experience that turned them off from service on the border. When I asked if hed reapply if given a polygraph waiver, he said no.

Id get paid more than I do now, but, man, it really put a bad taste in my mouth the way they handled veterans, Granado said.

That  the experience of individual veterans going through polygraphs  seems like a problem they should be able to fix. But they should do it without waiving the polygraph altogether and risking another wave of corruption.
A 32-year-old man was arrested Monday in connection with a sexual assault early Friday morning near the University of Arizona campus, police said.

Johnny Angel Salazar was booked into the Pima County jail on suspicion of sexual assault and kidnapping, according to a Tucson Police Department Facebook post.

Two officers were driving Monday morning in the area of East Grant Road and North First Avenue when they spotted a man matching the description of the assailant, police said.

The man was detained without incident by the officers, and he was later identified as Salazar and arrested in the case, said police.

On Friday shortly after 2 a.m., a girl in her late teens was walking through a parking lot in the 900 block of East Speedway when she was approached by a stranger, said Sgt. Pete Dugan, a department spokesman. The area is between North Euclid and North Park avenues.

The man grabbed the girl and brandished a large knife, threatening to harm her if she didn't follow his directions, said Dugan. He said the man forced the girl to walk with him west on Speedway and then north on Euclid.

During the walk, in unlit areas, the man sexually assaulted the girl multiple times, Dugan said. He eventually released her and ran away.

Video surveillance from a restaurant was obtained that showed the parking lot where the girl was approached and captured images of the assailant, said Dugan.

Following the release of the surveillance photos, police received multiple tips from the public about the man's possible identity. Detectives and officers followed up on the tips, which helped lead to his arrest.
Residents of a neighborhood just north of the University of Arizona main campus are upset about plans to build a multistory 1,000-bed dorm and classroom complex for students attending the UA Honors College.

Many residents say they are concerned they havent been consulted about the proposal and that the property, owned partially by the UA and the privately owned American Campus Communities, is outside the official campus boundaries.

ACC, based near Austin, Texas, is one of the nations largest developers of student housing communities in the country. It owns Entrada Real student apartments with 98 units and more than 350 beds near the UA, according to its website.

The proposal includes a dorm that would span an entire city block between East Drachman and Mabel streets and North Fremont and Santa Rita avenues, just north of East Speedway, and could be four to six stories tall. Other plans include classrooms, office space, a recreation center and a four-story parking garage to be built on the adjacent block between North Park and Fremont avenues.

The university is also considering demolishing several buildings along Park Avenue between Drachman and Adams streets, and putting in surface lots to offer additional parking.

The neighborhood now consists of homes, apartments catering to students, university parking lots and vacant land.

Many neighbors say they feel powerless, noting that as part of the state, the university does not have to abide by city zoning codes, including when it comes to building height, density and parking requirements.

For example, the height limitation for the surrounding neighborhood is 25 feet, or roughly two stories tall.

University officials have confirmed they are in the planning stages of the project and have begun preliminary discussions with some neighborhood residents as well as with ACC about a potential partnership in developing the property.

Weve been looking for a bigger, better home for honors for at least two years, said Robert Smith, UA vice president for university planning, design and operations.

The goal is to move our Honors College program to the next level by having all of the faculty, classrooms, beds and the students and everything together. Being spread out is not efficient.

Currently, many UA students who are part of the Honors College live in residence halls close to Euclid Avenue and Sixth Street. The UA says there are more than 4,000 students enrolled in the Honors College.

UA officials said theyve already made some changes to be better neighbors, including decreasing the number of floors of the dorm facing the neighborhood from six to four, and placing the entrance to the college on the south side to reduce noise and traffic generated by students.

One of the things that is important is to lower the impact to the neighborhoods, said Tannya Gaxiola, an assistant vice president for community relations at the UA. Being really good neighbors is really important as we were talking through what the project would look like.

Diana Lett, the neighborhood preservation committee chair for the Feldmans Neighborhood Association, said she feels the universitys plans so far demonstrate a lack of transparency and little respect for the desires of the surrounding communities.

Rather than compromise with the public and build a project we could live with, ACC and our public university chose to do an end-run around the city of Tucson  rezoning that would be required if the parcel remained privately owned, Lett said.

The university is supposed to build within planning boundaries, she notes, as part of its adopted Comprehensive Campus Plan and the proposed Honors College is outside the UAs northern planning boundaries.

Several residents who spoke to the Arizona Daily Star about the project echoed similar concerns.

The campus plan is a formal planning document outlining the universitys physical development of its land and construction projects, and mapping out its long-range plans to meet the educational needs of a growing student body.

Smith said he expects the new master plan will be released next year, and wont comment on whether the boundaries  set in 2009  will change.

While the 2009 plan showed the boundary to be just south of this proposed project, it included a reference to this area and stated that a university partnership housing project on UA property located north of the planning boundary is possible.

Smith said ACC has always had plans to develop the properties it owns in the neighborhood into some type of student housing.

Running his hand over a map, Smith motioned to the run-down properties the UA owns along Park Avenue between Mabel and Adams streets, mostly aging apartments.

I personally think this is pretty unattractive here, but I dont presume to know what the neighbors think, Smith said.

City Councilman Steve Kozachik, a UA employee, said his hands are tied in terms of the city stepping in to help ease the residents concerns.

He said the universitys plans for a new dorm may be following proper legal channels, but are hurting its reputation with surrounding neighborhoods.

Sometimes theres whats legal and expeditious, and sometimes theres what you can get away with but it destroys your credibility. In this case, the UA is doing both, Kozachik said. More importantly is the UA losing trust. Once thats gone, youve lost everything going forward.

Kozachik has requested a joint meeting to include UA representatives, ACC officials, the city attorney and surrounding neighborhoods, but no date has been set.
Monica Schmidt, a plant geneticist at the University of Arizona, has engineered a strain of corn that shuts off the ability of a plant fungus to produce aflatoxin, which can stunt childhood growth and cause liver disease.

Schmidt said this particular genetic modification has the potential to improve public health and save lives in places like Africa. It can also prevent the waste of tens of millions of tons of grain that have to be destroyed each year because of the toxins presence.

The assistant professor of plant sciences and researcher at the UA Bio5 Institute published her findings Friday in Science Advances, the online open-access arm of the journal Science.

The procedure Schmidt and colleagues designed embeds a snippet of RNA from an aspergillus fungus into the corn plant. When the host plant and fungus exchange small bits of genetic information during infection, the ability to produce aflatoxin is shut down.

The mechanism was 100 percent effective in trials, according to peer-reviewed results published in the journal.

Because the procedure introduces genetic material from the fungus into the corn, it is classified as transgenic  and that has already caused funding problems for Schmidts research, which was conducted with a $100,000 Grand Challenge grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

A proposal for additional funding was turned down after two reviewers for the foundation called it great work, but questioned whether the foundation wanted to get involved in genetically modified organism research. One reviewer gave no recommendation after saying, This is great. This is fantastic. This is the person whos going to do it, Schmidt said.

A second reviewer recommended against funding, saying, Its going to have public acceptance issues because its GMO, Schmidt said.

Schmidt said she understands public distrust of giant agriculture companies, but wishes that distrust did not extend to GMO research aimed at easing disease and famine.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation responded in a statement that only 10 to 12 percent of phase-one grants are awarded a second phase.

While the University of Arizona work was not selected for phase two, the Foundation is funding other approaches to aflatoxin control, the statement said in part.

Schmidt said this particular genetic modification has the potential to improve public health in places like Africa, and prevent the annual disposal of an estimated 16 million tons of corn infected with aflatoxin.

If economic loss from the waste were the only problem caused by aflatoxin, she wouldnt be tackling it, she said.

We take on projects that we think are going to make a difference and, hopefully, people will say, Yeah, people are dying from this toxin, and maybe set aside their differences, Schmidt said. Its implicated in stunting of childrens growth. Its a biggie in liver cancer incidence. Its nasty and its like, Seriously? This is a fungal toxin and we cant get our brains together and stop this?

Schmidt employed a relatively new technique called Host Induced Gene Silencing, or HIGS, after reading scientific reports of small nucleotides being passed between a host plant and its parasitic fungus.

Shed like to see the corn seed eventually made available to farmers in areas of Africa and other locales where heat and humidity provide ideal conditions for growth of the fungus.

Genomic comparison of the aflatoxin-resistant crop with the hybrid corn from which it was developed shows no change elsewhere in the corns genome, said Jianwei Zhang, bioinformatics group leader at the UAs Plant Genomics Institute.

Institute director Rod Wing said the comparison showed the original and modified versions to be substantially equivalent.

Wing, whose center has mapped the full genomes of a variety of corn and rice species, said anti-GMO sentiment worldwide complicates development of crops that could help solve the looming problem of feeding a ballooning world population.

On the local level, Wing said hes surprised the public seems unconcerned that local governments offer tax breaks to weapons manufacturers while vehemently opposing a tax deal with an agricultural company.

He has been engaged for years in research into rice species that can be modified to increase production in adverse growing conditions. He holds an endowed chair at the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines.

Wing said most of the crops being developed can come from traditional breeding, guided by genomic maps.

Schmidt said she would create a traditionally bred seed to fight aflatoxin in corn and other plants, if that were possible.

Schmidt has taken the long route before. She and her husband, UA plant sciences professor Eliot Herman, spent 10 years breeding a strain of nonallergenic soybean that Herman had already created through genetic modification.

That organic soybean is now being used in trials to feed fish at salmon farms in Norway, she said, and could eventually be available as formula for allergic infants.

Schmidt said her corn work can be applied to other crops, including peanuts, the initial target of her research.

Legumes are her specialty, Schmidt said. She turned to corn when biotechnician Dhiraj Thakare was unable to quickly grow peanuts in the UAs experimental greenhouses.

Corn was easier, though its been a slog for Thakare, who spends seven days a week in the greenhouse hand-pollinating multiple generations of corn plants.

Plant pathologist Peter Cotty, whose lab performed the tests for aflatoxin, is a co-author of the paper with Schmidt, Thackare, Zhang and Wing.

Schmidts next goal is to find a way to fight the fungus as well as the toxin. When the Gates Foundation turned down that research, she was able to get funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Schmidt said she hopes the success of phase one convinces the foundation to take another look at it.

In the meantime, she speaks to civic groups about her work and will be talking about it at the Science City stage at the Tucson Festival of Books this weekend. I think people need to see a face and that Im not out for a profit. Im not making money on this. Id just love to see this move forward to African farmers. Its about making a difference.
Help India!

By Sidhartha Dutta

New Delhi, (IANS): The catchy slogans of the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance in Uttar Pradesh like UP ke ladke, UP ko yeh saath pasand hai and Kaam bolta hai have not been able to connect with the voters as they rejected the alliance to hand the BJP a massive victory in the state.

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The BJP swept to an unprecedented majority in Uttar Pradesh with 312 seats.

The SP got 47 seats while the Congress could manage only 7 seats.

The two young faces of the alliance  outgoing Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi  were not able to cash in on the young voters of the state, who they tried to attract.

They were, however, attracted by Prime Minister Narendra Modis charisma, rather than the Kaam bolta hai slogan of Akhilesh Yadav.

Before its alliance in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress had been critical of the performance of the Samajwadi Party. The Congress had coined the slogan 27 saal, UP behaal. (UP has been in abysmal state for the past 27 years) to remind the people of its own rule in the 1980s and convey that the BJP, Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party had failed to deliver.

The moment they allied with the Samajwadi Party, it struck a blow to the hopes of many Congress workers who had hoped for their partys revival in the northern state.

Many Congress leaders had also expressed their reservations over the alliance with the Samajwadi Party. A party leader said there was a lot of enthusiasm among the party workers when it was ready to go it alone in the assembly polls.

He said the 26-day Kisan Yatra (farmers rally), which culminated in Delhi last October with a roadshow and rally of Rahul Gandhi, was a step in the right direction.

Another Congress leader however said the entire party leadership should take responsibility for the debacle in Uttar Pradesh.

In UP, our strategy was a complete failure. The BJP in 2014 won 328 assembly segments with 43 per cent vote share. Our strategy failed to counter that. The BJP was far more meticulous in planning and execution.

Who is to be blamed is to be collectively answered by the party and its leadership, a senior Congress leader said on the condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile, the family feud in the Samajwadi Party seems to have cost the party a lot as Akhilesh Yadav underestimated the role of his uncle Shivpal Yadav in the elections.

Many party supporters did not take too kindly to the fact that SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav was sidelined by his son Akhilesh to become the party President.

Due to this, many non-Yadav OBC voters, who earlier supported Mulayam Singh Yadav, had this time voted for the BJP. The BJP was successful in bringing these voters into their fold.

A few leaders even thought the alliance with Congress was a big mistake. The alliance failed miserably in transfering their own votes to the other party in most of the constituencies.

One of the objectives of the SP-Congress alliance was to attract the Muslim votes, but this too was dashed when the Muslim votes got divided between the BSP and the SP in the state.

Moreover, both the parties went against each other in over a dozen seats in UP and it was enough to confuse the voters of these constituencies. The alliance with the Congress party even irked a number of voters in the state.

The BJP micro-managed elections really well, changing strategies from stage to stage. The alliance with the Congress was a big mistake, SP leader and spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia told IANS.

He said that dynastic politics is not the kind of politics the people are looking for.

SP Vice-President Kiranmoy Nanda also did not rule out the possibility of a conspiracy that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were managed to favour the BJPs win.

I think it is a very big conspiracy. The EVM conspiracy theory raised Mayawati should also be looked into, said Nanda.

Asked about the alliance, he said: I dont think the alliance was a mistake; but what happened to the Congress core voters? Why did that just vanish?

Following initial differences between two parties, the alliance between SP and Congress was sealed after Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Rahul Gandhis intervention.
Lesotho is experiencing a Political Crisis and this week the BBC reported that "Lesotho's King Letsie has dissolved the mountainous kingdom's parliament, paving way for an election within three months." Coups, counter-coups, and political crisis are nothing new in what was once a British protectorate.

Lesotho - land, power and political legacy

The 'Kingdom of Heaven' is a term used to describe the tiny country which is totally surrounded by South Africa and is situated more than 1400 m above sea level but it was not always so. The lost Kingdom of Lesotho used to include vast tracts of rich agricultural land in the Caledon Valley - now a wealthy farming area in South Africa.

The Lesotho people fought long and hard for their land and war, warriors, and political upheavals have been in the mix since the early 19th century Zulu warriors rampaged across Southern Africa in an orgy of expansionism.

Political intrigue, crisis, and the blanket concern

The people of Lesotho fought the Afrikander trekkers and later, even the British who were the reluctant protectors of the nation before handing the governing of the area to the Cape Colony and they fought them too. They fought each other, and they fought the great battles of the Gun Wars. The intrigue, war, and political maneuvering have become as much a tradition of the people of Lesotho as their conical hats and the rather inadequate traditional clothing that consists of a blanket and little else.

While tourists, NGO's and Prince Harry worry about the blankets, the Basotho people themselves just get on with their political shenanigans that they learned from their forefathers.

Politics and employment

Since 1966, when the country was finally declared Independent, there were numerous coups, attempted coups and assassinations.

Many a politician has fled into exile, come back and fled again. In the fight for democracy against military rule, there have been many aspiring politicians who have fallen by the wayside. Nevertheless, as the economy keeps shrinking and job opportunities lessen, entering the political arena is at least one way to hold down a job that does not involve blankets, sheep and sleeping out in the freezing cold remnants of this once great nation.

There is some formal employment on the diamond mines in the country, but apart from selling nice clean water to South Africa, there is not much else to sustain the nation. Right up near the highest pub in Africa, there is a diamond mine. In 2006, the Letseng Mine unearthed a diamond that was the largest find of our century and was the15th largest diamond ever found. The mine has produced a succession of stunning diamonds - the 'Star of Lesotho,' the 'Leseli La Letseng,' the 'Lesotho Brown' and the 'Letseng Legacy.' The crown on top was the 'Lesotho Promise.'

The 'Broken Promise' of Lesotho

In 2008 I was working at a nearby mine that was still in the sampling phase. A big type II diamond came through the processing plant fractured into three pieces.

The Basotho mine workers named it the 'Broken Promise.' This is perhaps the most aptly -- if informally named diamond in the country. There have been far too many broken political promises in the 'Lost Kingdom of Lesotho.'
arnold schwarzenegger could be about to take his public feud with President Donald Trump to the next level, moving from the 140-word character limit of Twitter, into the political arena. According to Politico, the 'Terminator' star, and former Republican Governator of California is now considering a run for U.S. Senate in 2018. The site reports that Schwarzenegger is generating increasing buzz in state Republican circles, fuelled by the former governors seeming ability to get under the skin of president donald trump on social media.

War of words

Prior to the election, the 69-year-old actor and famously proud Republican urged others not to vote for Trump, and later admitted that it was the first time since he became a US citizen in 1983, that he didnt vote for the GOP. The feud intensified further when Trump took time out of running the country to address the far more important issues over the dip in ratings of his former show, "The Apprentice." The former Governor of California filled the vacant hot seat but saw the ratings drop considerably than in previous years.

Trump took to Twitter to address the ratings and stars departure, stating: Arnold Schwarzenegger isn't voluntarily leaving the "Apprentice," he was fired by his bad (pathetic) ratings, not by me.

Sad end to great show,.

Schwarzenegger retaliated by claiming the Trump Baggage was the root of the show's failure and that he voluntarily left the show on his own terms, before adding to Trump: You should think about hiring a new joke writer and a fact checker.

Get to the Senate

Should Schwarzenegger make a return to politics, it is believed that he would do so as an Independent, after criticising both major political parties in a recent video appearance where he spoke out to end gerrymandering.

In the video, he states: both parties are incredibly skilled at screwing over the voters and keeping them in the dark about their trickery.

The action star, who actually has more political experience than the President, is seen as the big name to counter the flamboyancy of the President and leave a mark by getting under his skin. Though Arnold hasnt publicly addressed the rumours as of yet, the past year proves anything is possible when it comes to politics.
The same renegade Conservative MPs that Prime Minister Theresa May was worried would wreck her plans for Brexit by sandbagging her tweet-sized bill in the Parliament debate are now trying to get Philip Hammond kicked out because they believe he will upset the Brexit process, according to an ex-Tory minister.

Hammond under pressure due to budget choices

Hammond, who is the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has found himself under pressure this week after releasing his controversial budget for Government spending. While there was a lot of good choices made with the spending, a lot of his decisions have been met with criticisms.

For example, his decision to raise the amount that self-employed workers are taxed on their income has been called out for going back on a Conservative Party election promise.

Now, an ex-Conservative minister, who was a supporter of the Remain campaign in the lead-up to the referendum before the nation was divided by Brexit, has opened up about the partys plans to oust Hammond from the government. He says that part of the strategy to make Brexit happen the way the hard Brexiteers want it to is that people like Iain Duncan Smith will rally together to get what they want.

The minister says that the so-called Brexiteers believe that Hammond is going to f*ck Brexit, rather than being severely angered by him.

They want him out for Brexits sake more than a personal thing. The former Tory minister says that the Leave people are hunting as a pack, which sounds very scary, and says that they plan to use the controversy and debate over the budget to weaken Philip or do him over.

30 Tory MPs already against Hammond

Around 30 Conservative Party MPs have already been outed as having said behind closed doors that later this year, when Hammonds budget is debated before going forward as a Government Bill, that they have already decided against it.

One of the rebel Tories is recorded as having said that if it is not dead yet, then it is certainly on life support.

This is perhaps part of the reason why Theresa May has freaked out and put a halt on any votes for or against Hammonds budget. She most likely figures that given a few months to think about it, these Tories will come around and learn to love the budget, which seems unlikely, but at least she has hope.

IDS has been strongly opposed to Hammond for a while

Iain Duncan Smith, who used to be the former secretary of state for work and pensions, already has it out for Hammond, and has done for months. Apparently the Chancellor was trying to keep Britain within the customs union but had to back down because Downing Street was fighting him on it. Smith has called these claims complete rubbish and total nonsense.

Another renegade Remain-supporting MP says that these claims are absolutely nothing to do with Brexit and a completely unrelated matter. On the topic of the deficit reduction target, he said I just dont think (Hammond) is that good, as well as doubts that he is even a subscriber to the Conservative Party: I just dont think he is a Tory. Hes clearly very unpopular, and after this budget thing, he may be on his way out.
To ensure their future, demographers say a country needs a fertility rate of more than two Children per woman to achieve the fertility rate ("The number of births per thousand women of childbearing age in a year," according to Wikipedia) Required.

However, the conjunction of a number of economic, social and cultural forces makes only half of the 224 Countries in the world reach the fertility rate to ensure generational replacement.

Countries struggling to change the sign of their demographics: Several countries are using strategies of the most varied to reverse this trend.

Denmark

The Danish government is using the strategy of appealing to patriotism to encourage couples to have children. Literally, it has undertaken a campaign called "do it for Denmark." On the other hand, the low fertility rate of the Nordic country, 1.73 children per woman, has led the Danish travel agency Spies Rejser to propose an ingenious initiative leading women to become pregnant. He has offered three years of baby supplies in exchange for conceiving children on booked vacations with this travel agency. In addition, he has started a campaign called "Do it for Mum" that instigates in couples a guilty feeling for Let them give their mothers a grandson.

Russia

It is experiencing the perfect demographic storm: men die young (AIDS and alcoholism are making a dent in the country) and women are not having babies.

So serious seems the problem that in 2007 Russia declared December 12 the official day of the Conception. That day is a holiday for people to focus on having children. Those women who have a child nine months after that day earn a refrigerator.

Japan

Japan's fertility rate far from being at the replacement limit since 1975. To reverse that trend, in 2010 a group of students from Tsukuba University introduced a baby robot called Yotaro which gives parents an idea of what is the paternity.

These students assume that both men and women begin to see themselves as potential fathers and mothers as they will be emotionally prepared to get to it.

Singapore

It has the lowest unit rate in the world, 0.81 children per woman. This alarming situation led the Singapore government to celebrate on August 9, 2012, the "National Night", which was intended to encourage couples to "allow their patriotism to explode."

On the other hand, the country has put a limit on the number of floors of a room for rent with the apparent purpose of encouraging people to live together and procreate. Each year the government spends about $ 1.6 billion on programs to get people to have more sex.
US President Donald Trump's eldest daughter, Ivanka, has seen how, in February, despite her boycott campaign on social networks, her brand has boosted sales. However, not 10% or 20% ... it has tripled! A fact that had not seen in the country, for a long time.

Abigail Klein, director of the aforementioned brand, has pointed out that the clothing line has lived one of its best weeks, of all its history. The UK e-commerce portal Lyst reported an increase in sales of 346% in January and February and 557% in comparison with last February 2016. In addition, these data appear in the middle of the smear campaign against the aforementioned brand.

It should not be forgotten that the chain of stores, Nordstrom, among others, decided to withdraw its articles, under the excuse of a drop in sales. Something that provoked much controversy, since, until that moment, the mark was one of the most promoted by the same chain of stores.

The opinion of the President of the United States

Trump, the current president of the United States, criticised this decision through his Twitter account (which seems to be his means of expression): "My daughter Ivanka has received such an unfair treatment from Norstrom. She, always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible! Even Kellyanne Conway, a presidential advisor, went on television advertising the brand, which made her risk sanctions.

Undoubtedly, great news for Ivanka who, by supporting his father, has seen how many people have attacked him for what hurts him most: his work. On the other hand, thanks to the criticisms, many citizens have discovered the signature of Ivanka and have decided to acquire some garment: for its quality, its price or for a clear support to the president's daughter, who has become a key piece in of its executive.

What will be the next, in this war of social networks, comments and rumours?

Other news that you might be interested in reading:
Citizens of Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan and Nigeria are under the threat of starvation, which 20 million people will face. It might lead to the suffering and death of 1.4 million of children. Stephen O'Brien, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, has reported that this humanitarian crisis is the biggest in the history of the United Nations since 1945.

"Now, more than 20 million people across four countries face starvation and famine. Without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death.

Much more will suffer and die from a disease," said O'Brien. This situation in Africa, he adds, is a critical stage in the history of the whole world.

Four countries of Africa need urgent help

Stephen O'Brien also adds that if other nations ignore what is happening, it can cause a new wave of refugees, which "will create even greater instability in whole regions." To implement the United Nations plan to solve the problem, which includes humanitarian operations and the use of qualified personnel for the first aid people may need, about 4 billion dollars will be required. This number is not negotiable in this case.

Unfortunately, armed conflicts near the territories of Yemen, Nigeria, Somalia and Southern Sudan, and the reluctance of warring sides to cooperate with humanitarian organisations create additional difficulties, the British politician reports.

In this regard, he asked the members of the Security Council to force conflicting parties to stop clashes and give access to the population of the affected areas.

Famine in Africa is a global catastrophe

Representatives of other countries also expressed concern about the current situation in Africa. Vladimir Safronkov (Russian Federation) stated that "the task is to unite efforts at the regional and international levels." Francois Delattre (France) mentioned that it is "'the primary responsibility of Governments to protect their populations", and United Nations acts can not replace it. Michele Sison (USA) reminded that humanitarian help must be provided to millions of people and crisis might be prevented only if countries are genuinely willing to help.
BEIJING - China is considering attending the meeting of the Trans-Pacific Partnership scheduled to take place in Chile next week, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang on Friday.

He made the comments in response to a question about whether China would accept Chile's invitation to the meeting, to be held from March 14 to 15.

China supports Asia-Pacific regional economic integration, and is willing to strengthen dialogue with Chile and countries involved, boost the building of an Asia-Pacific FTA, create an open economy and inject vitality into the development of the Asia-Pacific and the global economy, he said.

"We hope the Chile meeting will contribute to realizing the goal," Geng added.
Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas. ORLANDO SALINAS, Appellant v. THE STATE OF TEXAS NO. PD-0170-16 Decided: March 08, 2017

NEWELL, J. filed a dissenting opinion, in which RICHARDSON, J., joined.

Of late, this Court has gotten fairly adept at striking down statutes as facially unconstitutional. Though there are some exceptions, these cases have generally applied a different standard of review than the one at work in this case. Those cases dealt with First Amendment, overbreadth challenges rather than the type of pure facial challenge we consider here that attacks a statute in its every application. See e.g. Ex parte Perry, 483 S.W.3d 884 (Tex. Crim. App. 2016); State v. Johnson, 475 S.W.3d 860 (Tex. Crim. App. 2015); Ex parte Thompson, 442 S.W.3d 325 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014); Ex parte Lo, 424 S.W.3d 10 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013). The legislature even passed a law requiring courts to provide notice to the Attorney General before holding a statute unconstitutional, which this Court promptly held unconstitutional. See Ex parte Lo, 424 S.W.3d 10, 27 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013) (opinion on reh'g.) (holding that section 402.010 of the Texas Government Code unconstitutional because it violates the separation-of-powers provision of the Texas Constitution). Nevertheless, the Court's analysis in this regard has always been appropriately rigorous given the drastic nature of holding a statute unconstitutional.

That is not the case here. As Judge Yeary's dissent explains, a true facial challenge to a statute requires this Court to look for ways to uphold the statute, not ways to strike the statute down. United States v. Salerno, 481 U.S. 739, 745 (1987) (A facial challenge to a legislative Act, is, of course, the most difficult challenge to mount successfully, since the challenger must establish that no set of circumstances exists under which the Act would be valid.). If the statute can result in the collection of funds for a legitimate criminal justice purpose, then it is not unconstitutional in every application. Peraza v. State, 467 S.W.3d 508, 516 (Tex. Crim. App. 2015) (To determine whether a statute always operates unconstitutionally in all possible circumstances, we must look to see if there are potential applications of the statute that are constitutionally valid.). There is no question that funds limited at collection to pay for comprehensive rehabilitation and abused children's counseling could be used for legitimate criminal justice purposes. The Court concedes as much. Maj. op. at 7.

That is why I do not agree with the Court that the failure of a statute to further specifically direct that the funds deposited in general revenue be used for a criminal justice purposeaside from the limitations provided by the description of the fee itself and other interrelated statutesmeans the legislature drafted a facially unconstitutional court-cost statute. Peraza, 467 S.W.3d at 519 (rejecting argument that DNA Record Fee was facially unconstitutional simply because it was deposited into the criminal justice planning account which funded other projects unrelated to managing the statewide criminal DNA database). The statutory provisions at issue are not simply general revenue collection; they direct funds collected go to particular purposes, and there are circumstances under which those funds would serve a legitimate criminal justice purpose. Yet, the Court relies upon the possibility that the funds could be used for some other, illegitimate purpose to suggest that the statute is facially unconstitutional. On the one hand, the Court rejects the possible use of the funds for a legitimate criminal justice purpose as irrelevant to the analysis. But on the other, the Court links the facial constitutional flaw to the possibility that the funds could be used for an illegitimate purpose.

The Court compounds this problem by reading the limitations in the statutory provisions at issue in Peraza to be a necessary condition for constitutionality rather than merely a sufficient one. Unquestionably, the statutes at issue in Peraza provided more express limitations on the use of the court costs collected than are present in this case. See Peraza, 467 S.W.3d at 519. (Because a portion of the DNA record fee collected is deposited into the criminal justice planning account, and the criminal justice planning account is statutorily required to reimburse monies spent collecting DNA specimens from offenders charged with certain offenses (including aggravated sexual assault of a child under 14), we hold that the statute allows for constitutionally permitted applications.). And we rejected Peraza's claims that the statutes providing for deposits in the criminal justice planning account and the state highway fund were facially unconstitutional because specific statutes limited the use of the funds for a criminal justice purpose. Id. at 520-21. We held that Peraza, and the First Court of Appeals, were simply wrong that some of the money collected could be used for a purpose other than managing the statewide criminal DNA database or defraying the cost of administering it.

Yet, we never held that those limitations were required; we simply held that the interconnected statutory provisions allow for such funds to be expended for legitimate criminal justice purposes. Id. at 521. When we focused upon the remoteness of potential unconstitutional applications, we still focused on how the money could have been spent, not on how it had been collected. Id. at 521. (The statutory scheme allocating these resources to the state highway fund are required, via interconnected statutory provisions, to be expended for legitimate criminal justice purposes.). And at all times we maintained that it was the defendant's burden to show that it was not possible for the statute to operate constitutionally under any circumstance. Id.

If we are truly looking at whether the interconnected statutes are facially unconstitutional without regard to how the money is spent, then we should only be looking at whether the terms of the statutes specifically prevent, at the time of collection, the use of the funds for any legitimate criminal justice purpose. Peraza, 467 S.W.3d at 516 ([W]e cannot hold a statute requiring the assessment of court costs facially unconstitutional simply because there might be a potential and/or remote circumstance in which it may be applied unconstitutionally.). If such a statute were passed, it would, by its own terms rather than its possible effects, be unconstitutional in all of its applications. Admittedly, such a statute would seem unlikely to pass because it would be notoriously unconstitutional. But that accurately reflects how difficult it should be for the legislature to draft a statute that is unconstitutional in every application and how easy and obvious it should be to spot such constitutional infirmities.

The court's requirement of an express limitation of the statutes in question to only constitutional applications obviates the need for any presumption of constitutionality. State v. Rosseau, 396 S.W.3d 550, 557 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013) ([A]nalysis of a statute's constitutionality must begin with the presumption that the statute is valid and that the Legislature did not act arbitrarily or unreasonably in enacting it.). Moreover, it turns that well-established presumption on its head and removes any need for as-applied constitutional challenges. This Court's holding could have far-reaching consequences for facial constitutional challenges to other statutes. That is why I whole-heartedly agree with Judge Yeary, and why I join his dissent.

But I write separately to clarify that arguing that the statutes at issue are constitutional is not the same thing as endorsing the legislature's drafting or the legislation's effect. As the Court thoroughly sets out, the statutes governing the collection of fees in criminal cases are written very broadly and with no express limitations on how fees deposited in the general revenue fund are ultimately spent, except that they must go to comprehensive rehabilitation and abused children's counseling. They could be used for legitimate criminal justice purposes, but they could also be used as a tax to fund any number of governmental initiatives unrelated to the proper functioning of the criminal justice system. Without the inclusions of more definite limitations, a user-pay system creates a devilishly tempting incentive for a tax-free governmental revenue stream. Unchecked, these types of fee statutes could threaten to grow the criminal justice system atop the court-cost equivalent of a sub-prime mortgage bubble.

That is why the recent public momentum for addressing the collection and administration of court costs in the legislature is not at all surprising. Many have noted that incarcerating the indigent for the failure to pay fines and court costs threatens to turn our jails into debtors prisons. See e.g. Cain v. City of New Orleans, 184 F. Supp. 3d. 349 (E.D. La. 2016); Joseph Shapiro, As Court Fees Rise, The Poor are Paying the Price, http://www.npr.org/2014/05/19/312158516/increasing-court-fees-punish-the-poor; Shaila Dewan and Andrew W. Lehren, After a Crime, the Price of a Second Chance, N.Y. TIMES, Dec. 12, 2016. The Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, in his recent State of the Judiciary Address, remarked, Jailing criminal defendants who cannot pay their fines and court costs  commonly called debtors' prisonkeeps them from jobs, hurts their families, makes them dependent on society and costs the taxpayers money. Jonathan Silver, Legislature Should Prioritize Judicial Security, Texas Supreme Court Justice Says, Texas Tribune, https://www.texastribune.org/2017/02/01/state-judiciary. The legislature has heard these concerns and is moving to respond. Legislation is currently pending that begins to address the serious problems attendant to funding the criminal justice system through fees paid by indigent criminal defendants. See Tex. H.B. 1465, 85th Leg., R.S. (2017).

But by stepping in to address a political issue as a constitutional one, we risk stealing that momentum away from the branch of government best able to treat the issue as a systemic one after input from all the relevant stakeholders. See Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party, 552 U.S. 442, 451 (2008) (noting that, facial challenges threaten to short circuit the democratic process by preventing laws embodying the will of the people from being implemented in a manner consistent with the Constitution.); see also Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New Eng., 546 U.S. 320, 329 (2006) (noting that courts must keep in mind that  [a] ruling of unconstitutionality frustrates the intent of the elected representatives of the people. ). As a Court, we can only look at the issue through an analytical keyholemade all the more tiny by a harshly deferential standard of reviewas each statute winds its way through the court system. Peraza, 467 S.W.3d at 518 (Whether a criminal justice purpose is legitimate is a question to be answered on a statute-by-statute/case-by-case basis.). It is ironic that we have intruded upon the province of another branch of government in the name of preserving the separation of powers.

The late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia famously quipped that a lot of stuff that's stupid is not unconstitutional. Jennifer Senior, In Conversation: Antonin Scalia, NEW YORK MAGAZINE, Oct. 6, 2013. He was, of course, expressing the view that not everything that is undesirable, annoying, or even harmful rises to the level of a constitutional crisis. Brown v. Chicago Board of Education, 824 F.3d 713, 714 (7th Cir. 2016). He even went so far as to suggest that judges should be given a stamp that says, stupid but constitutional. Id. These statutory provisions illustrate the need for such a stamp. If only the Court would use it.

With these thoughts, I dissent.

FOOTNOTES

. Indeed, the Court fails to mention any duty to employ a reasonable narrowing construction of the statutes at issue to avoid a constitutional violation. See e.g. State v. Johnson, 475 S.W.3d 860, 872 (Tex. Crim. App. 2015) (noting the duty of Texas courts to employ, if possible, a reasonable narrowing construction to avoid a constitutional violation); Ex parte Thompson, 442 S.W.3d 325, 339 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014) (same).

. The Court attempts to ameliorate this concern by adding the issue of retroactivity to our holding in this case and deciding it in favor of the State. I would not address an issue the court of appeals has not had the opportunity to consider. See e.g. Armstrong v. State, 805 S.W.2d 791, 794 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991) (This Court and the Court of Appeals are without authority to render advisory opinions.). Assuming we should address it, there are also significant problems with the Court's analysis, which borrows retroactivity jurisprudence for court-made rules and applies it to a holding striking down a duly-passed statute as facially unconstitutional. See Griffith v. Kentucky, 479 U.S. 314 (1987) (considering retroactivity of court-made rule announced in Batson v. Kentucky); Stovall v. Denno, 388 U.S. 293, 296-97 (1967) (considering retroactivity of court-made rule regarding admissibility of tainted eyewitness identification testimony). The Court fails to account for our jurisprudence holding a statute void ab initio when it has been declared facially unconstitutional. Smith v. State, 463 S.W.3d 890, 895 (Tex. Crim. App. 2015); Reyes v. State, 753 S.W.2d 382, 383 (Tex. Crim. App. 1988); Ex parte Bockhorn, 62 Tex. Crim. App. 651, 138 S.W. 706, 707 (1911). Declaring a statute facially unconstitutional is not finding constitutional court error or announcing a new court-made rule of criminal procedure; it is holding that the legislature passed a statute so blatantly unconstitutional it should have never been passed. Reyes, 753 S.W.2d at 384 (holding that the determination that Article 32A.02 was void due to a violation of the separation of powers rendered the statute void from inception). If we are going to address retroactivity at all, Reyes v. State would seem to control. At the very least, I would not decide the issue without first ordering the parties to brief it, assuming it is even appropriate to address it in this case at all. Cf. Teague v. Lane, 489 U.S. 288, 300 (1989) (deciding the issue of retroactivity of a court-made rule of criminal procedure at time the new rule was announced where retroactivity was raised in an amicus brief and addressed in reference to a related claim by the parties).
Volkswagen Pleaded Guilty to criminal conduct in a U.S court on Friday. The case began in September 2015 after the U.S environmental regulator discovered that Volkswagen international cheated on emission tests for six years. The company was being accused of installing software that manipulated emission tests. This discovery by the U.S environment regulator lead to the company incurring massive bills, lawsuits from car buyers and shareholders, a reduction in the companies share price level and reduction in reputation which resulted in the ouster of the business's chief executive.

The company later decided to halt its plans to sell diesel vehicles in the United States in late 2015 due to the emergence of the scandal.

Volkswagen's emissions scandal

Volkswagens' emission scandal began on 18th September 2015 when the U.S environmental protection agency issued the company with a notice of violation of the Clean Air Act. The regulator accused Volkswagen of intentionally programming turbocharged direct injection engines to manipulate individual emission controls during laboratory emissions tests. More than 500,000 of this vehicles were then sold to U.S consumers.

What the company has agreed to do

To address claims from car owners, the environmental regulator, states, and dealers, Volkswagen has agreed to set aside $25 billion for fines and compensations.

The company has also decided to buy back about 500,000 VW polluting United States vehicles. The company will also spend up to $10 billion to buy back diesel cars that emit up to 40 times pollution emission levels as allowed by law and award at least $5,100 per owner in additional compensation. Under the settlement, the company also agreed to conduct its operations in the United States and other countries under the law.

The guilty plea was entered by Volkswagens' general counsel Manfred on behalf of the company. Charges brought by the countries environmental regulators will be heard on April the 21st. During the hearing, the U.S District judge said that these crimes are severe. Seven former and current executives of the company were also charged for their participation in the scandal. VW is also facing several lawsuits from its customers in the United States and around the world.
The war between Donald Trump and the mainstream media has been no secret, but it appears to have escalated to a new level. After the president accused CNN of reporting more "Fake News," one top reporter took Trump to task.

CNN on Trump

When Donald Trump first announced his candidacy for president, he quickly came under fire from the media for labeling illegal immigrants from Mexico as "rapists" and "murderers." Over the next year and a half, the press would often debunk many of Trump's claims, leading the former host of "The Apprentice" to refer to reporters and journalists as "terrible" and "dishonest" people.

On Thursday morning, Trump once again took to his Twitter account to smear the media, but as seen during a February 9 CNN broadcast, at least one host is firing back.

On Wednesday, the news broke that Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal had spoke to Neil Gorsuch, who was recently nominated to the Supreme Court. According to Blumenthal, Gorsuch expressed outrage over Trump's recent comments about a federal judge and the court system. In response, Trump attacked the senator, and CNN host Chris Cuomo for not being hard enough on Blumenthal during a recent interview.

"Chris Cuomo, in his interview with Sen. Blumenthal, never asked him about his long-term lie about his brave 'service' in Vietnam," the president tweeted, while also calling the network "FAKE NEWS!"

Chris Cuomo, in his interview with Sen. Blumenthal, never asked him about his long-term lie about his brave "service" in Vietnam. FAKE NEWS!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2017

While speaking to CNN contributor Michael Smerconish on his radio show for SiriusXM radio on Thursday, Chris Cuomo elaborated with his thoughts on Donald Trump's comments, and didn't hold back.

"I see being called 'fake news' as the equivalent of the n-word for journalists," Cuomo said, while also comparing it to "calling an Italian any of the ugly words that people have for that ethnicity." Not stopping there, Cuomo went on to clarify "That's what fake news is to a journalist," before saying someone "better be right" if they are gonna make those claims.

Prior to his comments with Smerconish, Cuomo addressed the issue during his own segment on CNN, using video footage to debunk Trump's "fake news" allegation.

Moving forward

While it's only been three weeks since Donald Trump was sworn into office on Inauguration Day, he's already making a major impact. As his relationship continues to deteriorate with the press, it's not likely to improve anytime soon.
Elon Musk has given the state of South Australia an offer it may find difficulty refusing. Ever since South Australia went heavily into wind power it has experienced periodic blackouts and Power Outages, especially during peak energy demand periods during the summer months. The reason seems to be that no one thought about what happens when the winds are calm. Musk, ever vigilant for a chance to make money and drum up some publicity has offered to build a 100 megawatt hours storage battery farm in 100 days from the signing of the contract or he will do it for free.

The cost if he can do it within a 100 days will be $25 million according to CNN.

Why South Australia would go all in on wind without a backup system is something of a headscratcher. Texas has built heavily on wind power, but also has plenty of natural gas, coal, and nuclear plants to take up the slack if the winds become calm around the giant wind farms in West Texas.

Musks solution is to provide a battery storage system that can be recharged when demand is low and the winds are going strong that can be released into the grid when the winds are calm and demand is peaking. His gigafactory in Nevada has started producing batteries, primarily for his electric Tesla automobiles, but enough production capacity exists for markets like South Australia that are now starting to understand one of the big drawbacks of renewable energy.

Sure it doesnt belch carbon into the atmosphere but it is not altogether reliable. Hence the battery backup storage system.

Summer is almost over down under and with it heat related power demands. But the government of South Australia had better think very seriously on taking Musk up on his offer the sooner the better. 100 days would get the battery system up and running just in time for the next Australian summer.

The alternative would be to restart some of those old fossil fuel plants to provide backup power, even though such a move would tend to defeat the purpose of making South Australias power system carbon free.
As the scandal surrounding Russia's potential involvement in the Donald Trump administration continues, the president and his team are doing whatever it takes to deflect from the allegations. After even more news broke on Thursday, one host on Fox News appeared to have had enough.

Fox News on Russia

Just weeks after Donald Trump was sworn into office, it was revealed that his National Security Adviser, retired Gen. Michael Flynn, had been in contact with a high-ranking Russian offical. The news sent shock-waves through Washington, D.C., and the pressure mounted to the point that Flynn was forced to resign from his position.

Earlier this week, it was also revealed that Flynn was acting as a foreign agent and reportedly accepted over $500,000 to do consulting work for the Turkish government. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was asked about this issue during Thursday's press briefing, but brushed it off by saying the administration likely was not aware. As reported by Mediaite on March 9, the topic was highlighted on Fox News.

Fox News host Shepard Smith spoke with Associated Press reporter Julie Bykowicz and didn't hold back his thoughts about what is going on in the White House. "The White House said he (Flynn) was a private citizen at the time, but theres been a lot of lying," Smith said. "There's been a lot of lying, there's been lying about who you talk to and by lots of people," he continued, while adding, "Almost inevitably and invariably, they were lying about talking to the Russians about something."

Shep Smith Goes Off on White House Over Flynn News: Theres Been a Lot of Lying https://t.co/OK91ywi31z (VIDEO) pic.twitter.com/xL5DCMPD2y  Mediaite (@Mediaite) March 9, 2017

Russian trouble

Not stopping there, Shepard Smith hammered at Donald Trump and the White House again for continuing to lie to the American people.

"It's too much lying and too much Russia," Smith concluded. This isn't the first time that Smith has been critical of the current administration, proving to be one of the few hosts and anchors on the conservative friendly Fox News to take the former host of "The Apprentice" to task. As Trump denies any wrongdoing involving Russia, it appears that even some in the right-wing media are starting to get fed up with the president.
First Lady Melania Trump is gaining more confidence in her new role and is solidly preparing to move into the White House this summer. A source said to have ties with Melania spills that she's hitting her stride as the first lady after taking on a few solo engagements, and hosting a luncheon at the White House this week to mark International Women's Day.

Melania Trump will personify 'Renewal' in the White House

The insider reveals that the former model "really cares about entertaining," which showed when she helped to plan the elaborate Governor's Ball just a few weeks ago at the White House, in which 46 governors from around the country and their spouses attended the lavish event.

Melania's theme was "Spring Renewal" and the source says Mrs. Trump will "be in full bloom" when she relocates to Washington, D.C. this summer after 10-year-old son, Barron, finishes his current school year in Manhattan.

Melania is lightening her hair to match her own motto

The insider says that one of the things Melania Trump is doing to represent a sense of renewal is changing her hair. The hairdresser responsible for her color is Alec M from Beverly Hills. The first lady flies him to New York to work on her hair after he meets with her and 10 Secret Service agents at the boutique, LAppartement, after normal business hours. Apparently, the two decided recently that she should go blonder and it's a process known as "balayage."

Although Melania Trump has a great head of hair, the source shares that she adds extensions to give it more volume.

More 'elegant gowns' to come

When it comes to Melania's wardrobe, fashionistas look forward to seeing the first lady dress in more "elegant gowns" for upcoming events. She's working with Herve Pierre, whom she collaborated with on her inaugural ball gowns. The first lady "wants her dresses modern, sleek and form fitting," the source adds.

First Lady Melania Trump will host the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House on Monday, April 17. She's looking forward to being a part of the event and visiting with guests.
Yesterday, Stephen OBrien, the UNs under Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator released a report calling for immediate help to tackle food scarcity in Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia, and Kenya. In his report, he appeals for vital and immediate aid to be sent to these stricken countries, or else we could face a catastrophe

The report follows a humanitarian conference in Oslo, where in partnership with the United Nations, the governments of Germany, Nigeria, and Norway to assist in the Lake Chad region, where 10.7 million people need immediate humanitarian attention.

Though during the conference, fourteen donors pledged $672 million to help in this crisis. In the report, he claimed that $1.5 billion was needed to help the crisis in the Lake Chad Region of Kenya alone.

Yemen

According to the report, Yemen is seeing the largest Humanitarian Crisis in the world, with 18.8 million of its population needing humanitarian aid. 7 million of this number are living without secure access to food, this number is increasing. Some of this has been caused by Yemens severe civil war which has swept the country for two years. According to the report over the last two months alone, 48,000 people have displaced by the fighting.

This isnt to say that the UN has not been able to provide aid, indeed in February nearly 5 million received food aid, and the UN are in negotiations with parties to ensure the safety of civilians directly threatened by the warfare.

South Sudan

Worryingly, he says the situation in South Sudan is worse than it has ever been." Since last year there has been a rise of 1.4 million people in need of aid. Like Yemen, the South Sudan is in the midst of a severe civil war, which has displaced 3.4 million people. This instability has caused a cholera epidemic, and like in Yemen, there are severe food shortages which are threatening a growing number of the population.What's more is that the country is undergoing a severe famine which could further cripple the country.

The UN and humanitarian agencies have been trying to assist, and at times have been very successful, however, the conflict is so severe that aid workers have been killed and relief stations have been raided.

Somalia

In Somalia the situation is incredibly desperate, over half the population, 6.2 million people need protection and humanitarian aid.

Over two million of which are severely threatened by famine and drought. Large parts of the country are under the control of militant groups such as Al-Shabaab which is making the lives of civilians in these areas uncertain as they have blocked supply routes and aid to those who need it.

Action

The report ends with a call for action. While the UN is doing what it can, it seems more aid from the international community is needed. The threat of starvation faced by these many millions of people is real and without help, many may simply starve to death.

A major issue faced is that many of the countries suffering are in the midst of civil war or are otherwise controlled by militia groups. Ending these conflicts is of profound importance but the solution as yet escapes us.
At some stage every government in the world has met the limits of its authority. At times the limit has been set by the Judges who uphold the Constitution of each country and at other times journalists have revealed that politicians have exceeded their authority. Proper authority is not possible without the law and information.

Orders blocked

In the first week of his term President #Donald Trump signed an executive order banning migrants from seven at risk countries in the Middle East from entering the United States. The ostensible reason for this order was the fear terrorists may have been amongst the refugees although there was no historical record of such incidents occurring within the United States,

Virtually immediately this order was the subject of challenge from the Press and also by lawyers.

The journalists pointed out the inconsistencies of the arguments for such an order and the lawyers presented the case to various courts which resulted in the judges blocking the order.

Interestingly, in the course of a number of these court challenges the supporting evidence of the judges was comprised of statements by government officals reported in the press, beginning with the President himself, showing that the intention of the order was not precisely that stated when it was signed.

This case provides an example of the procedures contained in a functional Democracy to ensure that politicians do not exceed their authority.

Checks and balances

In the future the authors of textbooks for civics classes in school could well use the first weeks of the Trump Administration to provide a classic example of how the checks and balances of the American system of government operate.

It is easy for a superficial person to think that being elected allows the President to put into effect each and every promise made in an election campaign. This is not the case as each politician, beginning with the highest Office in the land, is subject to the same laws and restraints that govern the behaviour of the common citizen.

In fact, the President is subject to even more limitations as his oath of office obliges him to defend the Constitution which is the rulebook for American government.

Referees

The judges of the court system and in particular those of the Supreme Court have the obligations of ensuring that the laws enacted by the Senate and Congress and the Presidents executive orders conform to the limits of the countrys Magna Charta.

In this was they are the referees that guarantee the fair play in the running of the country.

This is not solely an American situation but one common with all modern democracies as was shown in Great Britain when the High Court directed Parliament to enact the result of last Junes Brexit vote. Such a situation happens regularly around the world and should not be cause for scandal or protest.

Guardians

The other watchdogs of Democracy are probably the most uncomfortable of all, journalists. They are the ones who ensure that the citizens are provided with the information on which they can judge the politicians.

While some levels of secrecy are required in proper administration of the country journalists are those who ensure that important information is revealed, even and especially if that information is embarrassing for the government.

We must not forget that embarrassing news often means something improper had happened and public officials are not exempt from the consequences of their actions.

So when we see Justices act against the government, or journalists report actions by the government we must recognize that this is part of what makes us free and what makes our country a Democracy. Their actions are the price of our freedom. In every way they are our guardians.

The next time we hear someone complain about them we would do worse than reminding them that there is only one word to describe a country without an independent Judiciary and a free press.That word is Dictatorship.
It took only two years of marriage for actress Scarlett Johansson to decide that, for now, the single life better suits her. The talented movie star just may end up becoming a single mother in the near future as the actress has reportedly filed for a Divorce from her estranged husband, Romain Dauriac of France.

Scarlett Johansson married Romain Dauriac about two years ago

According to People, which scooped the story from Page Six, Johansson's lawyer, Judith Poller, gave notice of the impending divorce paperwork directly to Romain Dauriacs legal counsel, Harold Mayerson, at some point on Tuesday, March 7.

The divorce is complicated by the two year old daughter the couple share, Rose Dorothy Dauriac, and as many people know, divorce is often more difficult for the children than the adults. It's being reported that Dauriac would like to have custody of his daughter and live with her in France. The complication listed by Johansson's attorney with this situation is that her client is a very busy individual and often travels the world. It's unknown what sort of contentious custody arrangement is in the family's future.

The rise and fall of Johansson's marriage

Romain Dauriac has been linked to a relationship with Scarlett Johansson since the couple were spotted together in New York City back in late 2012 during an October lunch date.

By the end of the next year the actress was seen with an engagement ring on her finger and in 2014, during an exclusive and very private wedding ceremony, the couple tied the knot. As we all know, most knots can be untied. The couple has been separated now for a few months and living their lives on their own.

What's next for the actress?

The good news, if any, coming from this report is that is seems the couple may be headed for a rather amicable divorce, which would obviously be in the best interest of their daughter. Not long after the couple separated they were spotted together during an art show in an act of support. Reports seem to indicate that is was Scarlett who initiated the separation, which indicates that the actress felt the relationship just wasn't the right one for her right now.

Previously the actress was temporarily the wife of actor Ryan Reynolds of "Deadpool" fame and their relationship lasted about three years during 2008 to 2011, but never led to any children. A successful actress, especially known lately for her role as Black Widow on the "Avengers," "Captain America" and "Iron Man" movies, Johansson will surely be moving on to new and exciting things in the future.
A 45-day public comment period begins today, for self-driving cars in the State Of California, and will end on April 25. The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) wants to hear comments from the public on new regulations for testing these cars for public use. Driverless cars will not have steering wheels or pedals but must have a remote operator capable of monitoring the vehicle's operation and must be able to communicate with any passengers in the vehicle.

Twenty-seven car companies were given licenses.

It is the hope of car manufacturers that this testing period will one day lead to the sale and deployment of such vehicles in California.

These companies include BMW, Tesla Inc., China-funded electric vehicle start-ups NextEV and Faraday Future. California depends heavily on federal guidelines for self-driving vehicles. The state granted testing permits to Uber Technologies after a legal battle this past December. Regulations will allow manufacturers to certify that their driver-less test vehicles can operate without conventional controls.

Driver-less must meet all federal safety standards or be issued an exemption from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

It has been a long and frustrating road for California's DMV

Many car companies felt state regulators were holding back innovation that could improve public safety.

Back in December 2015, the DMV excluded non-human driven vehicles because of safety concerns. Because of this, some companies, like Uber and Google were conducting test outside the state of California.

Experts agree autonomous cars will be safer than human drivers. They admit that these vehicles will not be flawless, right away, or even better than a human.

California's DMV has now taken steps to issue new vehicle forms to include cars without a steering wheel or pedals. The DMV, under its proposed rules, will allow cars without steering wheel or pedals as long as it has the approval of the National Highway Traffic and Safety Association.

Autonomous cars may be able to operate themselves, but when it comes to which road the technology will take moving forward, the federal government is now in the drivers seat.
Singapore judicial authorities confiscated and returned 12 million yuan ($1.73 million) in illicit assets to China involving one of the country's most-wanted economic fugitives, according to the Supreme People's Procuratorate on Friday.

Li Huabo, 54, a former government official in Poyang county, Jiangxi province, returned in May 2015 after spending four years on the run in Singapore. In January, he was sentenced to life in prison by a court in Jiangxi for corruption.

"It's a typical case between China and Singapore to enhance judicial cooperation on information sharing, confiscating and recovering the ill-gotten assets," said a senior official at the SPP's anti-corruption and bribery bureau who declined to reveal his name.

Statistics released by the SPP show that last year 44 corrupt officials had returned from 19 countries and regions to face trial, including the United States, Canada and Singapore.

Meanwhile, national prosecutors confiscated 550 million yuan ($79.5 million) in illegal assets.

According to the SPP in January, the top prosecuting department and the top court issued a statement that clarified the procedure through which Chinese judicial authorities will start to confiscate the ill-gotten assets of suspects who die or flee overseas and cannot participate in court hearings.

"The introduction of such a statement will provide a legal basis for Chinese law enforcement officers to recover the illicit assets," said Huang Feng, law professor from Beijing Normal University.

"Although the fugitives cannot attend court hearings, prosecutors will immediately start the procedure to confiscate the illegal funds and the judges will make a court ruling. They then will offer relevant evidence to their foreign counterparts to request judicial assistance in freezing, seizing and recovering the dirty money sent abroad," he said.

In the high-profile case, Li Huabo, who was accused of embezzling 94 million yuan, fled China in 2011 and obtained permanent residence in Singapore, but later was captured by local police at a casino. In 2014, a court in Singapore sentenced him to 15 months in prison for money laundering.

A court in China ruled the assets Li transferred overseas should be confiscated, even though he did not participate in the court hearing. China then offered solid evidence to Singapore, including a request for their assistance to freeze and confiscate the assets.

According to the SPP, China has started a new round of Skynet action between March and December to fight economic fugitives and recover their ill-gotten assets.

During the action, national prosecutors will beef up cooperation, especially with Western countries, on confiscating and returning the illicit assets, while taking effective measures to prevent corrupt officials escaping overseas in the first place.

zhangyan1@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/11/2017 page7)
United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. DARIUS ANDRE HOLMES, a.k.a. Arnie, Defendant-Appellant. No. 16-13501 Decided: March 06, 2017

Before MARCUS, JORDAN and ROSENBAUM, Circuit Judges.

Darius Holmes appeals his convictions for distribution of heroin, in violation of 21 U.S.C.  841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C), and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, in violation of 18 U.S.C.  922(g)(1). On appeal, Holmes argues that: (1) there was insufficient evidence to sustain his convictions; and (2) the district court erred by refusing to give an entrapment-defense jury instruction. After careful review, we affirm.

First, we are unpersuaded by Holmes's claim that the evidence supporting his distribution and firearm convictions was insufficient. We review the sufficiency of the evidence de novo, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the government and drawing all reasonable inferences in favor of the jury's verdict. United States v. Martin, 803 F.3d 581, 587 (11th Cir. 2015). It is not enough for a defendant to put forth a reasonable hypothesis of innocence, since the issue is not whether a jury reasonably could have acquitted, but whether it reasonably could have found guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Id. Credibility determinations are the exclusive province of the jury, and will not be disturbed unless the testimony the jury relied on was incredible as a matter of law. See United States v. Thompson, 422 F.3d 1285, 1291-92 (11th Cir. 2005). In order to be incredible as a matter of law, testimony must be unbelievable on its face -- i.e., testimony as to facts that the witness could not have possibly observed or events that could not have occurred under the laws of nature. Id. at 1291.

To sustain a conviction for distribution of heroin under  841(a)(1), the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the knowing or intentional distribution of heroin. 21 U.S.C.  841(a)(1). To sustain a conviction for felon in possession of a firearm under  922(g)(1), the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant knowingly possessed a firearm and had been previously convicted of a felony. 18 U.S.C.  922(g); United States v. Gunn, 369 F.3d 1229, 1235 (11th Cir. 2004).

Here, the evidence was more than sufficient to sustain Holmes's convictions for distribution of heroin. As the record shows, the government's confidential informant, Jacob Daughtrey, testified that he met with Holmes twice on August 18, 2012. He said that in the first instance, he obtained $1,500 for the purchase of heroin from Holmes, met with Holmes in his truck, and purchased the heroin. In the second instance, he met with Holmes in order to facilitate an exchange of heroin from Holmes for guns from an undercover officer. Holmes had placed the heroin on the console of Daughtrey's truck. They met with an undercover officer, who provided the guns in a backpack in exchange for the heroin. Thus, based on this testimony, a jury reasonably could have found guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Martin, 803 F.3d at 587.

Further, any inconsistencies in the witnesses' testimony were not incredible as a matter of law. For starters, none of the witnesses' testimony, independently, was impossible or contrary to the laws of nature. Thompson, 422 F.3d at 1291-92. It is true that there were inconsistencies about whether the heroin was light brown or dark brown, whether the heroin was in rock-form or powdery, and whether 71 bills or 86 bills were in the buy money. But the jury was free to weigh the inconsistencies and choose which testimony to believe. Id. Moreover, none of the inconsistencies were relevant to the elements of the offense, and the evidence was sufficient to demonstrate that Holmes distributed heroin twice, regardless of its color, consistency, weight, or the number of bills used to purchase it. 21 U.S.C.  841(a)(1).

The evidence was also sufficient to sustain Holmes's conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The government presented evidence that Holmes was previously convicted of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, a felony. See O.C.G.A.  16-13-30(c). In addition, Daughtrey and a counter-narcotics agent, Brian Krouse, each testified that they saw Holmes in possession of multiple firearms. On this record, a jury reasonably could have found guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Martin, 803 F.3d at 587. Thus, the district court did not err in denying Holmes's motion for judgment of acquittal.

We also disagree with Holmes's claim that the district court abused its discretion by refusing to give an entrapment-defense jury instruction. We review a refusal to give a requested jury instruction for abuse of discretion. United States v. Rutgerson, 822 F.3d 1223, 1236 (11th Cir. 2016). The district court enjoys broad discretion to formulate jury instructions provided those instructions are correct statements of the law. Id. A refusal to incorporate a requested instruction will be reversed only if (1) the requested instruction was substantively correct, (2) the court's charge to the jury did not cover the gist of the instruction, and (3) the failure to give the instruction substantially impaired the defendant's ability to present an effective defense. Id.

There are two elements to an entrapment claim: (1) governmental inducement of the crime and (2) the defendant's lack of predisposition to commit the crime before the inducement. United States v. Orisnord, 483 F.3d 1169, 1178 (11th Cir. 2007). In order to be allowed to present an entrapment defense, a defendant bears the initial burden of production as to the element of governmental inducement. United States v. Sistrunk, 622 F.3d 1328, 1333 (11th Cir. 2010). The sufficiency of the defendant's evidence of governmental inducement is a legal issue to be decided by the trial court. Id. at 1332-33. Once the defendant has met his burden of production as to governmental inducement, the burden then shifts to the government to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was predisposed to commit the crime. Id.

A defendant can show inducement by the production of evidence sufficient to create a jury issue that the government created a substantial risk that the offense would be committed by a person other than one ready to commit it. United States v. Brown, 43 F.3d 618, 623 (11th Cir. 1995) (quotation omitted). The defendant meets this burden if he produces evidence that the government's conduct included some form of persuasion or mild coercion. Id. Such persuasion may be shown by evidence that the defendant had not favorably received the government plan, and the government had to push it on him, or that several attempts at setting up an illicit deal had failed and on at least one occasion he had directly refused to participate. United States v. Ryan, 289 F.3d 1339, 1344-45 (11th Cir. 2002) (quotation omitted). But the government's mere suggestion of a crime or initiation of contact is insufficient to demonstrate inducement. Brown, 43 F.3d at 623.

Here, Holmes has failed to demonstrate that an entrapment instruction was warranted. Importantly, he has failed to show any inducement -- i.e., he does not points to any evidence that he was coerced, that he was not in favor of the government's plan, that he in anyway refused to participate in the crime, or that he directly refused to participate. Ryan, 289 F.3d at 1344-45. He suggests that the government may have raised the idea, but the government's mere suggestion or initiation of contact is insufficient. Brown, 43 F.3d at 623. Holmes also notes that the government offered to buy him a clip for the firearms, but at that point, Holmes had already obtained heroin to trade for the guns and traveled to the location with the heroin. Further, Daughtrey brought up purchasing the extra clip for Holmes in response to Holmes's noticing that one of the weapons lacked one. Daughtrey testified that he offered to buy the clip for Holmes, not because he was afraid that Holmes would back out of the transaction, but instead to make both sides happy with the transaction as a middle-man. In addition, because Holmes was allowed to argue entrapment to the jury, the court's failure to give the instruction did not substantially impair his ability to present the defense. Rutgerson, 822 F.3d at 1236.

AFFIRMED.

PER CURIAM:
United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. DERRICK DANARD SLADE, Defendant-Appellant. No. 16-13192 Decided: March 08, 2017

Before HULL, MARCUS and WILSON, Circuit Judges.

Derrick Slade appeals his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, in violation of 18 U.S.C.  922(g)(1), and his resulting sentence of 72 months' imprisonment. On appeal, Slade argues that: (1) there was insufficient evidence to support his conviction because the government's use of circumstantial evidence failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he had constructive possession of a firearm; and (2) his 72-month, above-guideline sentence was substantively unreasonable. After careful review, we affirm.

We review de novo challenges to the sufficiency of the evidence to support a conviction, viewing the evidence and drawing all reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to the government. United States v. Baldwin, 774 F.3d 711, 721 (11th Cir. 2014). We review the sentence a district court imposes for reasonableness, which merely asks whether the trial court abused its discretion. United States v. Pugh, 515 F.3d 1179, 1189 (11th Cir. 2008) (quoting Rita v. United States, 551 U.S. 338, 351 (2007)).

First, we are unpersuaded by Slade's claim that there was insufficient evidence to support his felon-in-possession conviction. Evidence will be sufficient if a reasonable trier of fact could find that it established the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. United States v. Beckles, 565 F.3d 832, 840 (11th Cir. 2009). Accordingly, it is not enough for a defendant to put forth a reasonable hypothesis of innocence, as the issue is not whether a jury reasonably could have acquitted, but whether it reasonably could have found the defendant guilty. United States v. Bowers, 811 F.3d 412, 424 (11th Cir.), cert. denied, 136 S. Ct. 2401 (2016). The test for sufficiency of the evidence is identical[,] regardless of whether the evidence is direct or circumstantial, but if the government relied on circumstantial evidence, reasonable inferences, not mere speculation, must support the conviction. United States v. MieresBorges, 919 F.2d 652, 65657 (11th Cir. 1990); United States v. Mendez, 528 F.3d 811, 814 (11th Cir. 2008).

Credibility questions are the province of the jury, and we will assume that the jury resolved all such questions in a manner supporting their verdict. United States v. Lebowitz, 676 F.3d 1000, 1014 (11th Cir. 2012). The evidence need not exclude every reasonable hypothesis of innocence in order for a reasonable jury to find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. United States v. Cruz-Valdez, 773 F.2d 1541, 1545 (11th Cir. 1985) (en banc). The jury is free to choose among alternative, reasonable interpretations of the evidence. Id.

Conviction of a violation of 18 U.S.C.  922(g)(1) requires proof of three elements: that the defendant was a convicted felon, that the defendant knew he was in possession of a firearm, and that the firearm affected or was in interstate commerce. United States v. Wright, 392 F.3d 1269, 1273 (11th Cir. 2004). The government need not prove actual possession in order to fulfill the knowing requirement of  922(g)(1). Rather, it may be shown through constructive possession. Wright, 392 F.3d at 1273. In order to establish constructive possession, the government must produce evidence showing ownership, dominion, or control over the contraband itself  or the vehicle in which contraband is concealed. Id. (quotation omitted). Furthermore, possession can be shown by circumstantial or direct evidence. Id.

On appeal, Slade challenges the sufficiency of the evidence concerning only one element in 18 U.S.C.  922(g)(1) -- that he knowingly possessed a firearm. See id. As the record shows, however, the government presented testimony from two detectives, Colon and Goodnow, in support of this element. Specifically, the detectives both testified that Slade refused to put his hands up when commanded to do so, kept his hands hidden under a black hat, and moved his hands and the hat towards his waistband before placing the hat on the seat of the car. Goodnow also testified that Slade was sweating, breathing heavily, and tensing his arms and that Goodnow was worried that Slade was going to shoot him. After removing Slade from the car, Goodnow found a handgun under the hat that Slade had been holding.

Since credibility questions are the province of the jury, and since the jury found Slade guilty, we can assume that the jury considered Detective Colon and Detective Goodnow to be credible witnesses. And based on the detectives' testimony, it was reasonable for the jury to infer that Slade was holding the gun under the hat and that it was under his dominion or control. While there was testimony that the women in the car did not see a gun and that neither Slade's fingerprints nor his DNA were on the gun, it is not necessary to exclude all reasonable hypotheses of innocence for a jury to reasonably find guilt. Viewing all the evidence and drawing all inferences in the light most favorable to the government, we conclude that the jury chose among alternative, reasonable interpretations of the circumstantial evidence and reasonably could have found Slade guilty of constructively possessing a firearm. We affirm Slade's conviction.

We also are unconvinced by Slade's claim that his 72-month sentence was substantively unreasonable. In reviewing the  substantive reasonableness of [a] sentence imposed under an abuse-of-discretion standard,  we consider the  totality of the circumstances.  Pugh, 515 F.3d at 1190 (quoting Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51 (2007)). The district court must impose a sentence sufficient, but not greater than necessary to comply with the purposes listed in 18 U.S.C.  3553(a). The court must consider all of the  3553(a) factors, but it may give greater weight to some factors over others -- a decision which is within its sound discretion. United States v. Rosales-Bruno, 789 F.3d 1249, 1254 (11th Cir. 2015). However, a sentence may be substantively unreasonable when a court unjustifiably relies on any single  3553(a) factor, fails to consider pertinent  3553(a) factors, bases the sentence on impermissible factors, or selects the sentence arbitrarily. Pugh, 515 F.3d at 1191-92. A sentence that suffers from one of these symptoms is not per se unreasonable; rather, we must examine the totality of the circumstances to determine the sentence's reasonableness. Id. at 1192. [W]e will not second guess the weight (or lack thereof) that the [court] accorded to a given [ 3553(a)] factor  as long as the sentence ultimately imposed is reasonable in light of all the circumstances presented. United States v. Snipes, 611 F.3d 855, 872 (11th Cir. 2010) (quotation, alteration and emphasis omitted).

If the court varied from the guideline range after weighing the  3553(a) factors, we may not presume that [the] sentence  is unreasonable and must give due deference to the district court's decision  United States v. Irey, 612 F.3d 1160, 1187 (11th Cir. 2010) (en banc) (quotation omitted). We will vacate a sentence only if we are left with the definite and firm conviction that the district court committed a clear error of judgment in weighing the  3553(a) factors by arriving at a sentence that lies outside the range of reasonable sentences dictated by the facts of the case. Id. at 1190 (quotations omitted). The party challenging the sentence bears the burden to show it is unreasonable. United States v. Tome, 611 F.3d 1371, 1378 (11th Cir. 2010).

Here, Slade has not shown that the district court's sentence was substantively unreasonable. During the sentencing hearing, the court explained that it had considered the Sentencing Guidelines and the  3553 factors. It also said that in determining Slade's sentence, it had considered the nature and circumstances of Slade's crime, the whole of Slade's criminal history, and the potentially mitigating factors of Slade's difficult childhood. After weighing the relevant considerations, the district court decided that the length and severity of Slade's criminal history, coupled with the fact that he had only been out of jail for six months before he committed another crime, merited an upward variance of nine months. On this record, the district court considered all of the pertinent  3553(a) factors, and did not abuse its discretion by giving more weight to the nature of Slade's crime and his criminal history than to some of the other factors. Moreover, the 6-year sentence imposed by the district court is well below the 10-year statutory maximum for the offense, which is yet another indicator of reasonableness. See United States v. Gonzalez, 550 F.3d 1319, 1324 (11th Cir. 2008) (holding that the sentence was reasonable in part because it was well below the statutory maximum).

Under the totality of circumstances, Slade's 72-month sentence -- including the 9-month upward variance -- was not substantively unreasonable. Accordingly, we also affirm his sentence.

AFFIRMED.

FOOTNOTES

. The  3553(a) factors include: (1) the nature and circumstances of the offense and the history and characteristics of the defendant; (2) the need for the sentence imposed to reflect the seriousness of the offense, to promote respect for the law, and to provide just punishment for the offense; (3) the need for the sentence imposed to afford adequate deterrence; (4) the need to protect the public; (5) the need to provide the defendant with educational or vocational training or medical care; (6) the kinds of sentences available; (7) the Sentencing Guidelines range; (8) the pertinent policy statements of the Sentencing Commission; (9) the need to avoid unwanted sentencing disparities; and (10) the need to provide restitution to victims. 18 U.S.C.  3553(a).

PER CURIAM:
United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Appellee, v. ANTOINE CHAMBERS, AKA Sealed Defendant 1, AKA Twizzie, Defendant-Appellant, STEVEN GLISSON, AKA D, AKA Sealed Defendant 1, TYRONE BROWN, Defendants.* No. 16-163-cr Decided: March 01, 2017

PRESENT: REENA RAGGI, RAYMOND J. LOHIER, JR., CHRISTOPHER F. DRONEY, Circuit Judges. APPEARING FOR APPELLANT: JOSHUA L. DRATEL (Whitney G. Schlimbach, Of Counsel, on the brief), Joshua L. Dratel, P.C., New York, New York. APPEARING FOR APPELLEE: NEGAR TEKEEI, Assistant United States Attorney (Amy Lester, Michael Ferrara, Assistant United States Attorneys, on the brief), for Preet Bharara, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, New York, New York.

Defendant Antoine Chambers stands convicted after a jury trial of conspiratorial and substantive Hobbs Act robbery, see 18 U.S.C.  1951, and kidnapping, see 18 U.S.C.  1201, for which crimes he is serving a 20-year term of incarceration. On appeal, Chambers challenges, both individually and cumulatively: (1) the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his conviction; (2) the admission of identification testimony at trial; (3) the government's failure to make disclosures required by Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963); (4) the admission of cell-site location evidence; and (5) the constitutionality of the federal kidnapping statute. We assume the parties' familiarity with the facts and record of prior proceedings, which we reference only as necessary to explain our decision to affirm.

1. Sufficiency of the Evidence

Although we review a sufficiency challenge de novo, Chambers bears a very heavy burden, United States v. Abu-Jihaad, 630 F.3d 102, 135 (2d Cir. 2010) (internal quotation marks omitted), because we must view the evidence as a whole and in the light most favorable to the jury's verdict, and we must affirm if any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt, Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 (1979) (emphasis in original); accord United States v. Binday, 804 F.3d 558, 572 (2d Cir. 2015). In doing so, we recognize that a jury may base its verdict on inferences drawn from circumstantial evidence, United States v. Persico, 645 F.3d 85, 104 (2d Cir. 2011) (internal quotation marks omitted), and that we must defer to its assessment of witness credibility and its resolution of conflicting testimony, see United States v. Triumph Capital Grp., Inc., 544 F.3d 149, 159 (2d Cir. 2008).

Chambers argues that no rational factfinder could have found him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the charged crimes after, at trial, (a) robbery and kidnapping victim Emma Torruella recanted on redirect examination her identification of Chambers on direct examination; and (b) the district court struck pre-trial and trial identifications by Torruella's daughter, Demi Torres. We conclude otherwise.

When we view the record in the light most favorable to the jury's verdict, we must assume that the jury found Torruella's trial identification of defendant (and her unrecanted pre-trial identification) credible and rejected her subsequent recantation. The jury was uniquely situated to assess Torruella's credibility in light of her highly emotional statewhich is evident even on the cold recordand to credit parts of her testimony while rejecting others. See United States v. Mergen, 764 F.3d 199, 204 (2d Cir. 2014) (deferring to jury assessment of witness credibility); United States v. Sabhnani, 599 F.3d 215, 235 (2d Cir. 2010) (stating that jury can assess credibility based on witness demeanor); United States v. Messina, 806 F.3d 55, 64 (2d Cir. 2015) (stating that factfinder can accept some portions of witness's testimony and reject others); see also Webb v. United States, 789 F.3d 647, 660 (6th Cir. 2015) (stating that, when witness makes contradictory statements, including recantations, factfinder can determine whether one statement is more truthful than the other).

In any event, Torruella's identification was not the only evidence supporting the jury's verdict. Considerable circumstantial evidence also demonstrated Chambers's guilt. For example, shortly before the charged crimes were initiated at the home of coconspirator Tyrone Brown, Brown was in frequent cellphone communication with a number entered in his cellphone as belonging to Twizie. Cell-site records located the Twizie phone in the vicinity of Brown's home at this time. Chambers's identity as Twizzie was established through the testimony of a schoolmate who knew him by that nickname, and by Chambers himself, who admitted to police that he had used another phone number, also listed under Twizie in Brown's cellphone contacts, to place an unrelated earlier call. Cellphone records showed that, shortly after police contacted Brown about the crimes at issue, Brown called the Twizie cellphone, after which that cellphone's sites changed from the Bronx to New Jersey to Pennsylvania.

Other evidence indicated that the partial license plate number that Torruella recalled for the car in which she was kidnapped was registered to Chambers's girlfriend. Moreover, some months later, when that car was impounded following a traffic stop, it was found to contain a hammer, which David Barea, Torruella's drug-dealing boyfriend, testified he believed was used to beat him throughout the robbery and kidnapping. Finally, when Chambers was arrested in New Jersey, driving a rental car not registered to him, he provided false identification.

Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the guilty verdict, a reasonable juror could have found, as the district court observed, that [Chambers] is Twizzie; that he (and not merely his phone) went to Brown's apartment the night of the robbery; that the robbers used the dark-colored, four-door sedan that belonged to [Chambers's] girlfriend, with license plate number ending in 7788, precisely the numbers provided by one of the victims; that [Chambers] beat Barea with the hammer found in his girlfriend's car; that Brown informed [Chambers] of the police investigation the day after the robbery causing him to flee New York for Pennsylvania; and that [Chambers's] arrest in New Jersey near the Pennsylvania border two months later and his false statements post-arrest constituted evidence of flight and consciousness of guilt. J.A. 1024.

In sum, because a reasonable jury could have found from the totality of this evidence that Chambers was guilty of the charged crimes, his sufficiency challenge fails on the merits.

2. Eyewitness Identifications

Chambers argues that the district court erred in admitting Torruella's and Torres's pre-trial and trial identifications without holding a hearing as to their reliability.

Due process precludes the admission of identification evidence prompted by suggestive government procedures giving rise to a very substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification. Perry v. New Hampshire, 565 U.S. 228, 232 (2012) (internal quotation marks omitted). Short of that point, however, identification testimony is for the jury to weigh, even if marked by some element of untrustworthiness. Manson v. Brathwaite, 432 U.S. 98, 116 (1977). Indeed, identification evidence following unduly suggestive procedures may still be admitted if the district court determines that the identification was independently reliable, an assessment informed by five factors: (1) the witness's opportunity to view the perpetrator at the time of the crime, (2) the witness's degree of attention, (3) the accuracy of the witness's prior description of the perpetrator, (4) the level of witness certainty at the time of identification, and (5) the time between the crime and the confrontation producing identification. See id. at 114 (citing Neil v. Biggers, 409 U.S. 188, 199200 (1972)).

Whether a pre-trial hearing is necessary to assess the reliability of witness identification is a matter committed to the sound discretion of the district court, which we will not upset except for abuse. See United States v. Finley, 245 F.3d 199, 203 (2d Cir. 2001). We review the district court's factual findings relating to identification evidence only for clear error. See id. With the benefit of hindsight, it appears that the district court would have been well advised to conduct a pre-trial hearing in this case. Nevertheless, when we consider the facts known to the district court at the time it made its decision, we identify neither abuse of discretion nor clear error here.

a. Identification by Torres

Insofar as Chambers challenges the district court's admission of Torres's identifications, and particularly its doing so without a pre-trial hearing, we need not decide whether there was error because it was rendered harmless in any event by the district court's decision to strike all evidence of Torres's identifications when her trial testimony revealed previously undisclosed potentially suggestive procedures. See Wray v. Johnson, 202 F.3d 515, 525 (2d Cir. 2000) (holding that erroneous admission of unreliable identification testimony does not warrant relief from conviction if error is harmless). In doing so, the district court specifically and repeatedly charged the jury that Torres's identification testimony must be disregarded in its deliberations. Neither party objected to the instruction nor maintained that it was inadequate. We presume that juries follow limiting instructions unless there is an overwhelming probability that the jury will be unable to do so, and the evidence is devastating to the defense. See, e.g., United States v. Becker, 502 F.3d 122, 13031 (2d Cir. 2007). These concerns are not evident here where defense counsel's skillful cross-examination of Torres made clear why her identifications were unreliable in light of suggestive procedures (thereby avoiding jury speculation as to the reason for the district court's decision to strike); the district court carefully redacted Torres's testimony before responding to a jury request and reiterated its instruction to disregard the stricken identification evidence; and other evidence, already discussed, convincingly linked Chambers to the crimes charged.

b. Identification by Torruella

Chambers also faults the district court for admitting Torruella's identifications without a reliability hearing because (1) he was the only person depicted in both photo arrays shown to her, albeit in different pictures; and (2) Detective Deloren instructed Torruella, in looking at the second photo array from which she identified Chambers, to forget about the teardrop tattoo she remembered on the robber's face. Appellant's Br. 56.

As to the first argument, this court has ruled that inclusion of a suspect's picture in a second [photo] array after a witness ha[d] failed to select anyone [including the suspect] from the first does not automatically make the second array unduly suggestive. United States v. Concepcion, 983 F.2d 369, 379 (2d Cir. 1992); accord McKinnon v. Superintendent, 422 F. App'x 69, 7475 (2d Cir. 2011). This case is not to the contrary, particularly as two different pictures of Chambers were used and the arrays were not composed to highlight either.

As to the second argument, Chambers fails to indicate how Detective Deloren's comment rendered the identification procedure suggestive. The record is ambiguous as to whether the challenged comment came before or after Torruella had made a tentative initial identification. If made after Torruella had picked out Chambers's photo, the concern would be bolstering. If made before the picture selection, the comment, at most, may have encouraged an identification from the second photo array, but it would not have focused particular attention on Chambers. In either case, the comment did not create a very substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification by a witness who had had ample opportunity to view Chambers after he removed his mask and whose attention was evident from her ability to recall a partial license plate number. Perry v. New Hampshire, 565 U.S. at 232 (internal quotation marks omitted); see Raheem v. Kelly, 257 F.3d 122, 134 (2d Cir. 2001) (observing that suggestiveness finding depends on whether procedure was so  conducive to irreparable mistaken identification that [defendant] was denied due process of law  (quoting Stovall v. Denno, 388 U.S. 293, 30102 (1967))).

On this record, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in first deciding that it could rule on the admissibility of Torruella's identification evidence without a pre-trial evidentiary hearing. Nor can we identify error in the district court's determination that the record weighed in favor of admitting Torruella's identifications. The fact that Torruella, after making an identification on direct examination, recanted on redirect was a matter for the jury to weigh.

Accordingly, Chambers's challenges to identification testimony present no error warranting relief from judgment.

3. Brady Challenge

A defendant arguing Brady error must show (1) the existence of exculpatory or impeachment evidence favorable to the defense, (2) the government's suppression of such evidence, and (3) ensuing prejudice. See Strickler v. Greene, 527 U.S. 263, 28182 (1999); accord United States v. Madori, 419 F.3d 159, 169 (2d Cir. 2005). A defendant cannot carry his second-step burden where the prosecution discloses the information at issue in sufficient time to afford the defense an opportunity for use. Leka v. Portuondo, 257 F.3d 89, 103 (2d Cir. 2001). To carry the third-step burden, a defendant must show that the evidence was material, i.e., that there is a reasonable probability that, had [it] been disclosed to the defense, the result of the proceeding would have been different, which itself occurs where the failure to disclose undermines confidence in the outcome of the trial. United States v. Spinelli, 551 F.3d 159, 16465 (2d Cir. 2008) (quoting Kyles v. Whitley, 514 U.S. 419, 43334 (1995)). To meet its Brady obligations, the prosecution is obligated to  learn of any favorable evidence known to the others acting on the government's behalf in the case, including the police,  and is thus presumed  to have knowledge of all information gathered in connection with [the] office's investigation of the case. United States v. Avellino, 136 F.3d 249, 255 (2d Cir. 1998) (quoting Kyles v. Whitley, 514 U.S. at 437).

Applying these principles here, we identify no Brady concern as to interview notes revealing that, after Detective Deloren showed Torres a newspaper photograph of Chambers, she conducted a Google search of his name. Those notes were concededly provided to Chambers pursuant to 18 U.S.C.  3500 and cannot be deemed suppressed because Chambers was able to move to exclude Torres's identification testimony prior to trial based on the notes. Indeed, defense counsel even referenced the Google search in his opening statement.

Chambers next points to a thumbnail-sized photograph of himself, also produced in the prosecution's  3500 disclosure. Chambers surmises that this is one of the single photos shown to Torres on multiple occasions by Deloren, the revelation of which procedure at trial prompted the district court to strike Torres's identification testimony. Assuming the truth of this surmise, this evidence was clearly within the detective's knowledge and, therefore, imputed to the prosecution. See United States v. Stewart, 433 F.3d 273, 298 (2d Cir. 2006).

Nevertheless, any failure of pre-trial disclosure regarding use of the photo affords Chambers no relief from judgment because he cannot show prejudice in light of the action taken by the district court. By striking Torres's identification evidence in its entirety and repeatedly instructing the jury to disregard such evidence in its deliberations, the district court satisfactorily ensured that the outcome of the proceeding was not affected by that evidence or by undisclosed procedures used in connection with those identifications. In these circumstances, the alleged Brady violation does not undermine confidence in the outcome of the trial.

In urging otherwise, Chambers argues that the prosecution here violated its fundamental duty to ensure that testimony elicited from government witnesses is true. Appellant's Br. 74. We do not understand Chambers to be charging the prosecution with knowingly proffering false or misleading testimony in this case. Rather, we understand him to be arguing prosecutorial negligence in failing to elicit from its witnesses prior to trial facts casting doubt on the reliability of Torres's identifications. To be sure, the prosecution is obliged diligently to ascertain the circumstances attending pre-trial identifications. But whether or not there was diligence here, the district court's striking of Torres's identifications and its instructions to disregard that evidence adequately safeguarded against prejudice.

Accordingly, we reject Chambers's Brady claim on the merits.

4. Cell-Site Location Information Challenge

Chambers argues that cell-site location information for the Twizie cellphone, obtained pursuant to the Stored Communications Act (SCA), see 18 U.S.C.  2703(c), should have been suppressed because the government's authorization application failed to satisfy the statute's specific and articulable facts standard, id.  2703(d), and because the SCA, to the extent it authorizes disclosure on less than probable cause, violates the Fourth Amendment. Both arguments fail on the merits and, thus, we need not decide whether Chambers demonstrated a reasonable expectation of privacy in the Twizie cellphone, whether a suppression remedy is available under the SCA, or whether the third-party disclosure or good-faith doctrines apply here.

To secure a  2703(c)(1) disclosure order, the government must offer specific and articulable facts showing that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the contents of a wire or electronic communication, or the records or other information sought, are relevant and material to an ongoing criminal investigation. 18 U.S.C.  2703(d); see United States v. Bayless, 201 F.3d 116, 13233 (2d Cir. 2000) (recognizing that specific and articulable showing is lower than probable cause standard required for search warrant). The government convincingly carried its specific-and-articulable-facts burden by stating that (1) it was then investigating Chambers's possible involvement in a Hobbs Act robbery occurring on March 25, 2013, in an apartment at 1338 Croes Avenue in the Bronx; (2) a consent search of another suspect's cellphone (identified at trial as Brown) revealed two phone numbers associated with the name Twizie; (3) the only calls of duration made or received by the suspect (Brown) on the night of the robbery were to one of the Twizie cellphones; (4) the other Twizie phone had been used some time earlier to make a 911 call by a man who provided the name Antoine and who placed the call from 4782 Barnes Avenue in the Bronx; (5) the landlord of that Barnes Avenue address identified Antoine Chambers as the resident; and (6) a vehicle parked outside 4782 Barnes Avenue registered to Chambers's girlfriend bore a license plate, six of the seven digits/letters of which matched those provided by one of the robbery victims as on the license plate of the car driven by the robbers. J.A. 5965. These facts are sufficiently specific and articulable not only to demonstrate that the sought information would be relevant and material to the ongoing investigation, but also to demonstrate probable cause to think that the sought information would be evidence of a crime. See Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 23132, 23839 (1983); accord Zalaski v. City of Hartford, 723 F.3d 382, 389 (2d Cir. 2013) (recognizing that probable cause is flexible standard dealing in probabilities rather than certainties).

5. Kidnapping Statute Challenge

a. Facial Challenge

Chambers asserts that the federal kidnapping statute, 18 U.S.C.  1201, is unconstitutional on its face as exceeding Congress's power to legislate under the Commerce Clause. See U.S. Const. art. I,  8, cl. 3. In reviewing that challenge de novo, see United States v. Pettus, 303 F.3d 480, 483 (2d Cir. 2002), we are mindful that facial challenges to a legislative enactment are the most difficult  to mount successfully because the challenger must establish that no set of circumstances exists under which the Act would be valid. United States v. Salerno, 481 U.S. 739, 745 (1987); accord New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass'n, Inc. v. Cuomo, 804 F.3d 242, 265 (2d Cir. 2015). That is not this case.

The Supreme Court has recognized Congress's authority under the Commerce Clause to regulate: (1) the use of the channels of interstate commerce; (2) the instrumentalities of interstate commerce, or persons or things in interstate commerce, even though the threat may come only from intrastate activities; and (3) those activities having a substantial relation to interstate commerce, i.e., those activities that substantially affect interstate commerce. United States v. Lopez, 514 U.S. 549, 55859 (1995) (citation omitted). In invalidating the statute at issue in Lopez, the Supreme Court observed that it contained no jurisdictional element which would ensure, through case-by-case inquiry, that the [activity] in question affects interstate commerce. Id. at 561. Chambers argues that the federal kidnapping statute suffers from this same defect under the third Lopez category.

The argument fails because the challenged law here is properly evaluated under the second, not third, category, i.e., instrumentalities of interstate commerce. See United States v. Gil, 297 F.3d 93, 100 (2d Cir. 2000) (A showing that a regulated activity substantially affects interstate commerce (as required for the third category) is not needed when Congress regulates activity in the first two categories.). The express language of  1201 makes it a federal crime to use the mail or any means, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce in committing kidnapping. 18 U.S.C.  1201. In short, because the use of an instrumentality of interstate commerce is an element that must be proved in every  1201 case, Congress's enactment of that statute did not exceed its Commerce Clause authority. See United States v. Giordano, 442 F.3d 30, 38, 41 (2d Cir. 2006) (rejecting constitutional challenge to law prohibiting use of the mail or any facility or means of interstate or foreign commerce to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity, 18 U.S.C.  2425, because statute was clearly founded on the second type of Commerce Clause power categorized in Lopez, which allowed Congress to regulate and protect the instrumentalities of interstate commerce even though the threat may only come from intrastate activities (internal quotation marks omitted)).

Accordingly, Chambers's facial challenge to  1201 fails on the merits.

b. As Applied Challenge

Chambers argues that, even if  1201 is not unconstitutional on its face, the law was unconstitutionally applied in his case because the use of instrumentalities of interstate commerce, specifically, cellphones, was too attenuated from the kidnapping to fall within Congress's Commerce Clause authority. We are not persuaded.

Evidence showed the conspirators' frequent use of cellphones throughout the robbery and kidnapping at issue. Brown used a cellphone to communicate with victim Barea shortly before the crimes, which took place when Barea arrived at Brown's home. In the hour before the crimes, Brown communicated a number of times with Chambers, using one of the Twizie phones. Even if we were to conclude that at the time of these cellphone uses, the plan was to commit only robbery, Barea testified that coconspirator Glisson made multiple phone calls during the kidnapping. Thus, the jury could conclude that cellphone use was not casual and incidental to the kidnapping, but an important tool for the conspirators to coordinate their activities during the commission of that crime as well as the related robbery. United States v. Archer, 486 F.2d 670, 682 (2d Cir. 1973) (Friendly, J.) (internal quotation marks omitted). Accordingly, we identify no unconstitutional application here of Congress's authority to regulate instrumentalities of interstate commerce when used in other criminal activity. See generally United States v. Holston, 343 F.3d 83, 9091 (2d Cir. 2003) (stating that nexus to interstate commerce is determined by the class of activities regulated by the statute as a whole, not by the simple act for which an individual defendant is convicted (alterations and internal quotation marks omitted)).

6. Conclusion

The errors argued by Chambers were either harmless or not errors. Thus, considered individually or cumulatively, they afford no relief from judgment. See In re Terrorist Bombings of U.S. Embassies in E. Africa, 552 F.3d 93, 147 (2d Cir. 2008) (observing that cumulative error doctrine comes into play only where the total effect of the errors found casts such a serious doubt on the fairness of the trial that the conviction[ ] must be reversed (alterations and internal quotation marks omitted)). We have considered Chambers's remaining arguments and conclude that they are without merit. Accordingly, we AFFIRM the judgment of the district court.

FOR THE COURT:

Catherine O'Hagan Wolfe, Clerk of Court
United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. JOSEPH P. DONAHUE, Appellant No. 15-3949 Decided: March 08, 2017

Before: SHWARTZ, COWEN and ROTH, Circuit Judges

OPINION*

Joseph P. Donahue appeals his convictions for possession of a firearm by a fugitive from justice and possession of a stolen firearm. Since there is sufficient evidence to sustain these convictions, we will affirm.

I.

Donahue was originally convicted of bank fraud, making false statements, accessing an unauthorized device, and money laundering. Upon conviction, he signed an order setting conditions of release, which advised that [i]f after release, you knowingly fail to appear as required by the conditions of release, or to surrender for the service of sentence, you may be prosecuted for failing to appear or surrender and additional punishment may be imposed. In December 2010, Donahue was sentenced to a term of 121 months' imprisonment and ordered to surrender for this sentence on January 4, 2011. Donahue failed to surrender, and an arrest warrant was issued on January 5. Two weeks later, Donahue was apprehended in New Mexico and charged with, inter alia, possession of a firearm by a fugitive and possession of a stolen firearm. A trial began on August 24, 2015, and the jury returned a verdict of guilty. Donahue now appeals his conviction on these counts, based on insufficiency of the evidence.

II.

The District Court had jurisdiction over this matter pursuant to 18 U.S.C.  3231. We have appellate jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C.  1291. We review sufficiency of the evidence claims by view[ing] the evidence in the light most favorable to the government and sustain[ing] the verdict if any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.

A.

Donahue first appeals the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his conviction of possession of a firearm by a fugitive, arguing that there was insufficient evidence to prove he was a fugitive. A fugitive from justice is any person who has fled from any State to avoid prosecution for a crime or to avoid giving testimony in any criminal proceeding.

Here, there was sufficient evidence to find that Donahue was attempting to avoid further prosecution for failing to surrender for his sentence. The evidence demonstrates that Donahue left the state and failed to surrender for his prison sentence. He was found with materials detailing how to be a fugitive from justice. Donahue also had false identification and utility notices under an alias. A reasonable jury could have concluded that Donahue was trying to avoid further prosecution for failure to surrender by assuming a new identity and covering his tracks.

Donahue claims that he could not be convicted of having the requisite intent upon leaving the state because he left the state before an arrest warrant was issued or criminal charges were pending. We do not find this claim persuasive. Donahue relies on a Ninth Circuit case, United States v. Durcan, for his claim that he must have the requisite intent to flee upon leaving in order to be a fugitive under 18 U.S.C.  921(a)(15). We need not adopt or reject the Ninth Circuit's requirement here. There was sufficient evidence for a reasonable jury to find that Donahue had the requisite intent to flee before leaving the state, even under the Ninth Circuit's standard. Intent to flee can be established when further prosecution is substantially certain but not already initiated. A reasonable jury could have found that Donahue knew that, if he did not surrender on January 4, 2011, an arrest warrant would be issued. At trial, his probation officer said that he met Donahue the day before he was scheduled to surrender and discussed the importance of getting to the facility on time. Donahue additionally signed an order setting conditions of release, advising him that if he knowingly fail[s] to appear as required by the conditions of release, or to surrender for the service of sentence, [he] may be prosecuted for failing to appear or surrender and additional punishment may be imposed. Such knowledge, in conjunction with the decision to leave the state, is sufficient evidence of intent to flee.

Insofar as Donahue argues that he cannot be considered a fugitive if there was no active warrant or charge when he fled, we disagree. 18 U.S.C.  921(a)(15) merely requires that a person fle[e] from any State to avoid prosecution for a crime[,] not that the prosecution for a charge be already initiated. Here, even if no arrest warrant had been issued when Donahue left the state, Donahue had an active criminal conviction and signed a corresponding acknowledgment form detailing the likelihood of further prosecution if he did not serve his sentence.

For these reasons we reject Donahue's argument that no reasonable jury could have found him to be a fugitive.

B.

Donahue next challenges whether there was sufficient evidence to support his conviction of possession of a stolen firearm. Conviction under 18 U.S.C.  922(j) requires that (1) the defendant knowingly possessed the firearm, (2) the firearm was stolen, (3) the defendant knew or had reasonable cause to believe the firearm was stolen, and (4) the firearm was shipped or transported in interstate commerce either before or after it was stolen. Donahue argues that there was insufficient evidence to prove the first three elements.

We disagree. First, there was sufficient evidence to find that Donahue knowingly possessed the gun. The care in concealing the weaponfound wrapped in cloth and stuffed in a bootimplies both awareness of it and a desire to keep it hidden. The location of the gun similarly implies Donahue's knowing possession: the gun was found in a duffle bag containing clothes and a bank envelope filled with cash. The duffle bag itself was stuffed in the trunk of the car Donahue was driving.

The second and third elements rely on the gun being stolen. Donahue contends that picking up and keeping [a] firearm does not constitute theft. While simply keeping a found firearm may not constitute stealing, the pertinent issue is whether a reasonable jury could have found, as the judge instructed, that the gun was taken or kept with the intent to deprive the owner of possession of the property.

Here, there was sufficient evidence to find intent to deprive the original owner of possession. First, the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the gun could have convinced a jury that Donahue found the gun and was aware that the owner was searching for it. The gun, which belonged to an off-duty police officer, had disappeared while the officer was at a ski resort. Donahue and his daughters were at the same resort at that time. When the gun was reported missing, two ski trails were closed and a Pennsylvania State Police trooper put out a public information release report alerting the public that there was a missing firearm on the slope. A jury could find that Donahue was on notice that any firearm found on the slopes belonged to someone who was actively searching for it. Second, the care in concealing the gun could convince a reasonable jury that Donahue intended to keep the gun from its true owner.

Given the circumstances surrounding the gun's disappearance and the manner in which it was discovered in Donahue's car, there was sufficient evidence for a jury to decide that Donahue knowingly possessed the firearm, that the gun was stolen, and that Donahue knew or had reasonable cause to believe that it was stolen.

III.

For the foregoing reasons, we will affirm the District Court's judgment of conviction.

FOOTNOTES

. United States v. Donahue, 764 F.3d 293, 296 (3d Cir. 2014).

. 18 U.S.C.  922(g)(2), 924(a)(2).

. 18 U.S.C.  922(j), 924(a)(2).

. United States v. Dent, 149 F.3d 180, 187 (3d Cir. 1998) (internal quotation and citations omitted).

. 18 U.S.C.  921(a)(15).

. 539 F.2d 29 (9th Cir. 1976).

. We note, however, that circuits have split over whether to adopt the Ninth Circuit's definition; the Fourth Circuit reasoned that such a requirement would exempt from prosecution those who for some collateral reason leave a state in which charges against them are pending, and later decide not to return because they do not wish to face such charges. United States v. Spillane, 913 F.2d 1079, 1081 (4th Cir. 1990).

. See Durcan, 539 F.2d at 32 ([T]he bare fact that Durcan left Florida several weeks prior to the issuance of the warrant would not be conclusive proof of his innocent intent in the face of convincing evidence to the contrary. ).

. United States v. White, 816 F.3d 976, 985 (8th Cir. 2016).

. App. 961a. The Supreme Court has noted that the word stolen should be given the meaning consistent with the context in which it appears. United States v. Turley, 352 U.S. 407, 413 (1957). While we have not expressly adopted an interpretation for the purposes of 18 U.S.C.  922(j), the Eighth Circuit has interpreted stolen as broader than that of common-law larceny, encompassing all wrongful takings. United States v. Tyerman, 701 F.3d 552, 565 (8th Cir. 2012). We do not resolve this issue here, as the parties have not expressly appealed this definition.

ROTH, Circuit Judge
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. ANIKA N. GREENE, a/k/a Neek, a/k/a Anika Carroll, Defendant - Appellant. No. 15-4812 Decided: March 07, 2017

Before GREGORY, Chief Judge, WYNN, Circuit Judge, and DAVIS, Senior Circuit Judge. Fernando Groene, FERNANDO GROENE, P.C., Williamsburg, Virginia, for Appellant. Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney, Kaitlin C. Gratton, Brian J. Samuels, Assistant United States Attorneys, Newport News, Virginia, for Appellee.

Anika N. Greene was convicted by a jury of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, access device fraud, and three counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of 18 U.S.C.  2, 1028A, 1029(a)(2), 1343-44, 1349 (2012). She was sentenced to concurrent terms of 24 months' imprisonment on the aggravated identity theft convictions, and 18 months' imprisonment on the remaining counts, to run concurrently with each other and consecutive to the 24-month terms. On appeal, Greene argues that the district court erred in allowing the Government to introduce evidence about her participation in uncharged fraud, there was insufficient evidence to support her aggravated identity theft convictions, and her conduct did not justify an enhancement under U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Manual 2B1.1(b)(10) (2015). For the reasons that follow, we vacate Greene's conviction on Count Five (aggravated identity theft) and remand for entry of an amended judgment. In all other respects, we affirm.

I.

Greene first claims that the district court erred in admitting evidence regarding a separate act of credit card fraud at a Chanel store. We review a district court's determination of the admissibility of evidence for abuse of discretion. United States v. Queen, 132 F.3d 991, 995 (4th Cir. 1997).

In denying Greene's motion to exclude evidence of the Chanel fraud, the district court concluded that the evidence was intrinsic to the charged offense and, alternatively, that the evidence was admissible under Fed. R. Evid. 404(b)(2) to show intent and absence of mistake or accident. On appeal, Greene challenges the court's conclusion that the evidence was intrinsic, but fails to challenge its independent analysis under Rule 404(b)(2). Because the [f]ailure of a party in its opening brief to challenge an alternate ground for a district court's ruling waives that challenge, Brown v. Nucor Corp., 785 F.3d 895, 918 (4th Cir. 2015) (alterations and internal quotation marks omitted), we conclude that Greene has not preserved this issue on appeal.

II.

Next, Greene asserts that there was insufficient evidence to support her three convictions for aggravated identity theft. We review the sufficiency of the evidence supporting a conviction de novo. United States v. McLean, 715 F.3d 129, 137 (4th Cir. 2013). A defendant bringing a sufficiency challenge must overcome a heavy burden, and reversal for insufficiency must be confined to cases where the prosecution's failure is clear. United States v. Engle, 676 F.3d 405, 419 (4th Cir. 2012). In assessing evidentiary sufficiency, we must determine whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the government, the jury's verdict is supported by substantial evidence, that is, evidence that a reasonable finder of fact could accept as adequate and sufficient to support a conclusion of a defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. McLean, 715 F.3d at 137 (internal quotation marks omitted).

To establish aggravated identity theft, the Government must prove that a defendant

(1) knowingly transferred, possessed, or used, (2) without lawful authority, (3) a means of identification of another person, (4) during and in relation to a predicate felony offense.  Relevant to the first element, the government must prove that the accused knew that the means of identification belonged to another person.

United States v. Adepoju, 756 F.3d 250, 256 (4th Cir. 2014) (internal quotation marks omitted).

A.

Count Five of the superseding indictment charged that, on August 2, 2013, Greene and others established and used a Home Depot credit card account in B.K.'s name and without B.K.'s permission. We conclude there is insufficient evidence in the record to sustain this conviction.

The only evidence connecting Greene to the offense was location data for the cell phone registered in Greene's name. However, no evidence was presented at trial to demonstrate that Greene was necessarily in the same location as her cell phone on August 2, 2013. Further, there was no location data for Greene's phone for a significant amount of time on August 2, including the five hours preceding and following the Home Depot fraud, causing the Government to rely on the location data of a coconspirator's phone in an effort to establish Greene's location. Moreover, the Government offered no evidence that Greene knowingly participated in the scheme or knew that the identifying information of the victim belonged to a real person, both required elements to establish aggravated identity theft.

The Government's failure to present evidence regarding Greene's state of mind is also fatal to its argument that Count Five can be upheld based on Pinkerton v. United States, 328 U.S. 640 (1946). The Pinkerton doctrine makes a person liable for substantive offenses committed by a co-conspirator when their commission is reasonably foreseeable and in furtherance of the conspiracy. United States v. Ashley, 606 F.3d 135, 142-43 (4th Cir. 2010). Here, the evidence fails to establish that Greene knew of and knowingly decided to participate in the conspiracy as of August 2, 2013. Pinkerton is inapplicable if Greene was not a member of the conspiracy at the time of the Home Depot fraud.

B.

Greene also challenges her aggravated identity theft convictions arising out of a trip to Ashland, Virginia, on August 30, 2013 (Counts Six and Seven). Count Six charged the use of J.B.'s identity, while Count Seven was based on the possession of and plan to use the identifying information of M.V., L.M., and R.P. Viewed in the light most favorable to the Government, there is sufficient evidence to conclude that Greene committed these offenses.

At trial, coconspirator Alice Howard testified that she, Greene, and another conspirator traveled from New York City to Ashland, Virginia, on August 30, 2013, and that Greene drove for part of the trip. Howard testified that the conspirators obtained and possessed personally identifying information of J.B., M.V., L.M., and R.P, without authority, and used or conspired to use that information to impersonate the victims and unlawfully access and transfer funds from their bank accounts. Howard also stated that all the conspirators, including Greene, knew and discussed that bank fraud was the purpose of their trip. Although there was no express testimony that Greene knew that the victim's identities belonged to real people, it is reasonable to infer such knowledge when existing bank accounts are the subject of the fraud. United States v. Clark, 668 F.3d 568, 574 (8th Cir. 2012) (A reasonable juror could infer that Clark  knew that banks open accounts for, and give credit to only real people. Thus, Clark knew that the scheme could result in successful deposits and withdrawals only if [the identity belonged to] a real person with a real bank account.). Accordingly, the evidence is sufficient to demonstrate that Greene aided and abetted the commission of the offenses charged in Counts Six and Seven by willingly driving the conspirators to Virginia with knowledge of the purpose of their trip.

III.

Finally, Greene asserts that the district court erred when it enhanced her offense level based on USSG  2B1.1(b)(10). Under this Guideline, a defendant receives a two-level sentencing enhancement [i]f (A) the defendant relocated, or participated in relocating, a fraudulent scheme to another jurisdiction to evade law enforcement or regulatory officials  or (C) the offense otherwise involved sophisticated means  USSG  2B1.1(b)(10). We review the district court's factual findings for clear error and its legal conclusions de novo. United States v. Horton, 693 F.3d 463, 474 (4th Cir. 2012).

On appeal, Greene asserts that her act of driving Howard and Washington to Virginia did not involve sophisticated means. However, Greene's argument only tangentially acknowledges that the district court found the enhancement applicable under both the sophisticated means provision, USSG  2B1.1(b)(10)(C), and the relocation provision, USSG  2B1.1(b)(10)(A). We conclude that the two-level enhancement is plainly appropriate under the relocation provision based on the evidence that Greene drove her coconspirators out of state because they believed they would be caught if they perpetrated the fraud in New York.

Accordingly, we vacate Greene's conviction for aggravated identity theft in Count Five and remand for the entry of an amended judgment. As to all other claims, we affirm the judgment of the district court. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

AFFIRMED IN PART, VACATED IN PART, AND REMANDED

PER CURIAM:
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, PlaintiffAppellee, v. FLORENCIO ROSALES-MIRELES, Also Known as Roberto Lozano-Alcauter, DefendantAppellant. No. 16-50151 Decided: March 06, 2017

Before SMITH, CLEMENT, and SOUTHWICK, Circuit Judges.

Florencio Rosales-Mireles appeals his sentence for illegal reentry. He contends that the district court erred by counting one of his prior convictions twice when calculating the sentencing-guideline range. He also maintains that the sentence is substantively unreasonable. Finding no reversible error, we affirm.

I.

Rosales-Mireles pleaded guilty of illegal reentry in violation of 8 U.S.C.  1326(a) and (b)(2). When calculating the criminal-history score, the probation officer counted a 2009 Texas conviction of misdemeanor assault twice, assessing two criminal-history points each time it was counted. The total criminal-history score was calculated as 13, resulting in a criminal-history category of VI. Combined with Rosales-Mireles's offense level of 21, that criminal-history category yielded a guideline range of 7796 months.

Rosales-Mireles did not object to the double-counting but did request a downward departure to 41 months. The district court denied the departure and sentenced Rosales-Mireles to 78 months of imprisonment and a three-year term of supervised release. Rosales-Mireles did not object to the sentence after it was imposed.

II.

Rosales-Mireles assigns error to the double-counting. He concedes that he did not make that objection in district court, so we apply the plain-error standard. See United States v. Peltier, 505 F.3d 389, 391 (5th Cir. 2007). To establish plain error, Rosales-Mireles must show (1) an error; (2) that was clear or obvious; and (3) that affected his substantial rights. Puckett v. United States, 556 U.S. 129, 135 (2009). [I]f the above three prongs are satisfied, [we have] the discretion to remedy the errordiscretion which ought to be exercised only if the error seriously affects the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings. Id. (quotation marks and alterations omitted).

A.

The government concedes that the double-counting is error, and we agree. The sentencing guidelines provide that two criminal-history points be added for each prior sentence of imprisonment of at least sixty days  U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Manual (U.S.S.G.)  4A1.1 (emphasis added). By adding four points based on the same conviction, the court erred. Moreover, the error is clear from the language of the Guidelines. Thus, Rosales-Mireles satisfies the first two prongs.

B.

To satisfy the third prong, Rosales-Mireles must show a reasonable probability that, but for the district court's misapplication of the Guidelines, he would have received a lesser sentence. When a defendant is sentenced under an incorrect Guidelines range  the error itself can, and most often will, be sufficient to show a reasonable probability of a different outcome absent the error. Molina-Martinez, 136 S. Ct. at 1345. But [t]he Government remains free to point to parts of the recordincluding relevant statements by the judgeto counter any ostensible showing of prejudice the defendant may make. Id. at 1347 (quotation marks omitted and alteration adopted).

Had the district court not erred by double-counting Rosales-Mireles's misdemeanor-assault conviction, the guideline range would have been 7087 months instead of 7796 months as recommended in the presentence report. Nonetheless, the government contends that the court would have sentenced Rosales-Mireles to the same term of imprisonment even if it had not erred by double-counting. The government notes that the district court stated that it would have not sentenced [Rosales-Mireles] to anything less than the 78 months.

But that statement, in context, does not go quite so far as saying that the court would have sentenced Rosales-Mireles to 78 months regardless of the guideline recommendation. The full statement is this: I'll let the record reflect that under the consideration 4A1.3, when I look at the elements, I would have not sentenced Mr. Rosales to anything less than the 78 months after he'shis conduct in these cases and his conduct here today.

The explanation was made in the context of denying a downward departure under U.S.S.G.  4A1.3. Moreover, the denial was based, in part, on Rosales-Mireles's criminal history, and that historybecause of the double-countingerroneously included an extra conviction. Thus, we cannot say that the district court explicitly and unequivocally indicate[d] that [it] would have imposed the same sentence  irrespective of the Guidelines range. Rosales-Mireles has met his burden, under the third prong, to show a reasonable probability that he would have been subject to a different sentence but for the error.

C.

Even though Rosales-Mireles has satisfied the first three prongs, we must decide whether to exercise our discretion to remedy the error. We do so only where the error seriously affect[s] the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings. The fourth prong  is not satisfied simply because the plainly erroneous sentencing guideline range yields a longer sentence than the range that, on appeal, we perceive as correct. United States v. Sarabia-Martinez, 779 F.3d 274, 278 (5th Cir. 2015). Rather, [t]he types of errors that warrant reversal are ones that would shock the conscience of the common man, serve as a powerful indictment against our system of justice, or seriously call into question the competence or integrity of the district judge. United States v. Segura, 747 F.3d 323, 331 (5th Cir. 2014) (quotation marks omitted).

We decline to exercise our discretion in this case. We sometimes exercise discretion to correct a plain error where the imposed sentence is materially or substantially above the properly calculated range. United States v. John, 597 F.3d 263, 289 (5th Cir. 2010). But we also have declined to use that discretion even where the discrepancy was huge. Where the difference between the imposed sentence and the properly calculated range is small, we generally decline to correct the error.

Here, there is no discrepancy between the sentence and the correctly calculated range. The court sentenced Rosales-Mireles to 78 months, which is in the middle of the proper range of 7087 months. We cannot say that the error or resulting sentence would shock the conscience. Thus, we elect not to exercise our discretion.

III.

Rosales-Mireles contends that his sentence is substantively unreasonable because it is greater than necessary to effect the goals of 18 U.S.C.  3553(a). Rosales-Mireles did not object to reasonableness in the district court, so we review only for plain error.

A within-guidelines sentence is entitled to a presumption of reasonableness, and [t]he presumption is rebutted only upon a showing that the sentence does not account for a factor that should receive significant weight, it gives significant weight to an irrelevant or improper factor, or it represents a clear error of judgment in balancing sentencing factors. United States v. Cooks, 589 F.3d 173, 186 (5th Cir. 2009). Rosales-Mireles's 78-month sentence is within-guidelines, as it is within the overlap of the correct (7087 months) and incorrect (7796 months) ranges. It is therefore presumed reasonable. Id.

Rosales-Mireles has not rebutted the presumption. He maintains that the district court placed too much weight on his old, prior convictions. But the court considered that argument during sentencing and rejected it. The court explicitly considered a number of the  3553(a) factors, including the nature of the offense; Rosales-Mireles's history and characteristics; and the need to protect the public, deter future criminal conduct, and promote respect for the law. In addition, the court noted that this was Rosales-Mireles's second conviction for being in the United States illegally, that he had used multiple aliases to remain in the United States, and that he had a history of assault stretching from 2001 to 2015.

The district court was in the best position to evaluate Rosales-Mireles's history and characteristics and the need for the sentence to further the objectives in  3553(a). See Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 5152 (2007). Accordingly, the decision is entitled to deference. Id. Rosales-Mireles has not rebutted the presumption of reasonableness.

The judgment of sentence is AFFIRMED.

FOOTNOTES

. United States v. Espinoza, 677 F.3d 730, 736 (5th Cir. 2012). See also United States v. Blocker, 612 F.3d 413, 416 (5th Cir. 2010), abrogated on other grounds by Molina-Martinez v. United States, 136 S. Ct. 1338 (2016) (As our conclusion is reached by a straightforward application of the guidelines, the error was also plain.).

. United States v. Martinez-Rodriguez, 821 F.3d 659, 66364 (5th Cir. 2016) (quoting United States v. Pratt, 728 F.3d 463, 481 (5th Cir. 2013) (citation omitted)).

. United States v. Miller, 657 F. App'x 265, 270 (5th Cir. 2016) (per curiam). See also United States v. Mudekunye, 646 F.3d 281, 290 (5th Cir. 2011) (per curiam).

. United States v. Escalante-Reyes, 689 F.3d 415, 419 (5th Cir. 2012) (en banc) (quoting Puckett, 556 U.S. at 135 (alteration in original)).

. See also United States v. Wooley, 740 F.3d 359, 369 (5th Cir. 2014) (This circuit has repeatedly emphasized that even when we find that the first three factors have been established, this fourth factor is not automatically satisfied.) (quotation marks omitted); United States v. Ellis, 564 F.3d, 370, 378 (5th Cir. 2009) (Not every error that increases a sentence need be corrected by a call upon plain error doctrine.).

. Accord United States v. Mendoza-Velasquez, 847 F.3d 209, 213 (5th Cir. 2017) (per curiam) (citing United States v. Scott, 821 F.3d 562, 571 (5th Cir. 2016)).

. See, e.g., John, 597 F.3d at 28586 (exercising discretion to correct a sentence 21 months outside the correct range); United States v. Hernandez, 690 F.3d 613, 62122 (5th Cir. 2012) (exercising discretion to correct a sentence 12 months outside the correct range); Mudekunye, 646 F.3d at 29091 (exercising discretion to correct a sentence 19 months outside the correct range).

. In United States v. Wikkerink, 841 F.3d 327, 337 (5th Cir. 2016), we declined relief under the fourth prong despite that the correct sentence according to the Guidelines would have been 180 months [but] the district court ultimately imposed a sentence of 360 months.

. See, e.g., United States v. Avalos-Martinez, 700 F.3d 148, 154 (5th Cir. 2012) (per curiam) (declining to exercise discretion where the imposed sentence exceeded the correct range by only one month); United States v. Emanuel-Fuentes, 639 F. App'x 974, 977 (5th Cir. 2015) (per curiam) (same).

. Rosales-Mireles notes that [t]here is a circuit split as to whether a failure to object to the reasonableness of the sentence upon its imposition requires plain error review. He acknowledges that his argument is foreclosed, see Peltier, 505 F.3d at 39192, and he raises it only to preserve it for further review.

JERRY E. SMITH, Circuit Judge:
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. LORING DESHOTEL, As Administratrix of the Estate of Amanda Riggio, Substituted in Place and Stead of Amanda Riggio, Deceased, PlaintiffAppellant, v. WAL-MART LOUISIANA, L.L.C., DefendantAppellee. No. 16-30643 Decided: March 08, 2017

Before SMITH, CLEMENT, and SOUTHWICK, Circuit Judges.

Amanda Riggio slipped and fell in a Wal-Mart store in September 2012. She sued, alleging that she had slipped on water that had leaked onto the floor from a negligently maintained roof. The district court entered a summary judgment in Wal-Mart's favor. Finding multiple disputes of material fact, we reverse and remand.

I.

A.

This incident is relatively quotidian. While shopping, Riggio slipped and fell. Her sister witnessed the fall. Lorraine Johnson, a Wal-Mart employee who may or may not have been present at the fall but was certainly there immediately thereafter, retrieved a wheelchair in which Riggio left the store. Her sister took her to an emergency room.

Also responding was Anthony Chester, the manager, who filed an incident report that recorded the area in which Riggio slipped as clean, though with small drops of water on it, and indicated that the weather was rainy. The source of the water was listed as unknown.

Both parties acknowledge that the store had roof leaks but differ as to their scope and frequency; Riggio suggests they were occurring all over the store, but Wal-Mart claims they were confined to a few discrete areas where new skylights had been installed. Wal-Mart also maintains that there is no evidence that the water came from the roof; Riggio, unsurprisingly, disagrees.

B.

Riggio asserts that she slipped on water from the leaking roof, which Wal-Mart had negligently maintained, and thus is entitled to damages. The relevant law in this diversity case is Louisiana Revised Statutes  9:2800.6 (B), which requires, in pertinent part, that

[i]n a negligence claim brought against a merchant by a person lawfully on the merchant's premises for damages as a result of an injury, death, or loss sustained because of a fall due to a condition existing in or on a merchant's premises, the claimant shall have the burden of proving, in addition to all other elements of his cause of action, all of the following:

(1) The condition presented an unreasonable risk of harm to the claimant and that risk of harm was reasonably foreseeable.

(2) The merchant either created or had actual or constructive notice of the condition which caused the damage, prior to the occurrence.

(3) The merchant failed to exercise reasonable care. In determining reasonable care, the absence of a written or verbal uniform cleanup or safety procedure is insufficient, alone, to prove failure to exercise reasonable care.

In its motion for summary judgment, Wal-Mart averred only that Riggio could not satisfy the second prongthat is, that she could show neither that Wal-Mart created the condition that caused her fall nor that it had actual or constructive notice of the offending water. Riggio opposed summary judgment by contending that Wal-Mart created the hazard and had constructive notice of it.

II.

This court reviews a summary judgment de novo. Rogers v. Bromac Title Servs., L.L.C., 755 F.3d 347, 350 (5th Cir. 2014). Summary judgment is called for only if the movant shows there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. FED. R. CIV. P. 56(a). Genuine disputes of material fact are present where a reasonable jury could find for the nonmoving party. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986). When reviewing a summary judgment, we construe all facts and inferences in favor of the nonmoving party. McFaul v. Valenzuela, 684 F.3d 564, 571 (5th Cir. 2012).

III.

The two pertinent questions are, first, whether Riggio has provided enough evidence that a reasonable jury could find that she slipped on water that leaked through the roof, and second, whether Wal-Mart's purportedly negligent maintenance of the roof could suffice to show that it created  the condition which caused the damage under Section 9:2800.6. Because we answer both questions in the affirmative, we reverse and remand.

A.

The parties tell different stories regarding the cause of Riggio's fall. In Wal-Mart's account, she cannot establish where she fell. The store did have roof leaks, but they were in discrete locationsonly under faultily installed skylightsand had been mended before the accident. In other words, according to Wal-Mart, Riggio cannot establish where she fell, but in any event it was not under a skylight.

Riggio claims, to the contrary, that the store was plagued by a chronically leaky roof. It had been leaking since at least the beginning of 2012, had sprung new leaks with some regularity, and had continued to leak up to the day of Riggio's injury. Indeed, it was a previously unidentified leak that caused the accidenthow else to explain the water on the floor? And only after her fall did Wal-Mart fully fix the leaks.

At the summary-judgment stage, we decide only whether Riggio's account is plausible enough that a reasonable jury could believe it. Cf. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248. Because there are disputes of material fact, a jury could so believe.

The first dispute is over the weather. Riggio testified that it was damp outside, suggesting that it had recently rained. Her sister said that it had not rained that day but had been raining on preceding days. The incident report, filled out the day of the accident, listed the weather as rainy. If it had been raining the day of Riggio's fall, that would suggest that leaks from the roof would have been more likely to occur.

The facts are also uncertain as to how long the leaks had persisted. Wal-Mart claims they began in May 2012, when the new skylights were installed. But Chester's testimony suggests that the leaks predated the installation of the new skylights; he stated unequivocally that the leaks were a problem when he started his job in February 2012, even though the new skylights were not fitted until May. His testimony additionally suggests the roof was leaking on the day of Riggio's injury. And there are photographs in the record, purportedly from that day, showing buckets and caution signs in various parts of the store. It would be odd for Wal-Mart to have continued to put out these implements if there was not concern that the roof continued to leak.

The final, and key, dispute concerns the extent of the leaks. Wal-Mart maintains they were confined to specific areas of the storethat they stemmed from the installation of new skylights and were only in specific locations. But the record also provides support for a generally leaky roof. Chester testified that there were leaks throughout the building, as distinguished from the isolated areas that Wal-Mart suggests were the only trouble spots.

More importantly, Chester suggested that the building was springing new leaks during that time, stating the new leaks were a known issue and that anybody in the building  would be on the lookout for new leaks that had not been identified or marked when it rained. Moreover, there is a document, dated August 2012, that shows that Wal-Mart billed a roofing contractor for something called roof recover. At oral argument, Wal-Mart was unable to explain what roof recover meant, but a reasonable jury could conclude that such a bill suggests repairs to the entirety of the roof, as opposed to the comparatively minor skylight installations and repairs Wal-Mart has said were made.

Additionally, Riggio offered the expert affidavit of Steven Arabie, who testified that the roof was losing its ability to prevent rain water from leaking into the building. He based that opinion on his many years' professional experience as a roofing contractor, his review of Chester's testimony, and the records indicating that the roof was about twenty years old, near the end of its effective lifespan. The district court dismissed Arabie's affidavit solely on the ground that Arabie had never inspected the roof of this particular store.

But there is no requirement that an expert derive his opinion from firsthand knowledge or observation. See Wellogix, Inc. v. Accenture, L.L.P., 716 F.3d 867, 876 (5th Cir. 2013) (quoting Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharms., Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 592 (1993)). Indeed, the expert testimony in Wellogix was startlingly similar to the evidence here: The expert based his testimony purely on his industry experience and his review of a deposition, and we held that a jury could reasonably credit his testimony. Id.

A useful contrast can be drawn between the evidence here and the evidence in Bearb v. Wal-Mart La., L.L.C., 534 F. App'x 264 (5th Cir. 2013) (per curiam). There, the only evidence that a leaky skylight created a puddle on the floor was speculation and [the plaintiffs'] own unsubstantiated statements. We affirmed summary judgment. Id. at 265.

Here, by contrast, a jury could choose to credit both Arabie's opinion and Chester's testimony with regard to the fact that the roof was springing new leaks, even outside the area of the new skylights. And a reasonable jury could also conclude that it was raining, or at least had rained recently, on the day of Riggio's fall. The only inference left for the jury would be to conclude that the small drops of water stemmed from the generally leaky roof. There is no direct evidence on this point, but the summary-judgment standard requires that we construe inferences in favor of the nonmoving party, McFaul, 684 F.3d at 571, and it is no great logical leap to conclude that a generally leaky roof on a rainy day may have been the cause of otherwise unexplained water on the floor.

In other words, a reasonable jury could find that the leaking roof caused Riggio's fall. That is enough for her to survive summary judgment on this point.

B.

The next question is whether potentially negligent maintenance of a roof can qualify as creation of a hazard under Louisiana law. Both this court and Louisiana state courts have repeatedly considered what precisely constitutes creation of a hazardous condition.

[T]he wording of [ 9:2800.6(B)(2) ]  means there must be proof that the merchant is directly responsible for the spill or other hazardous condition. Ross v. Schwegmann Giant Super Markets, Inc., 734 So. 2d 910, 913 (La. 1st Cir.), writ denied, 748 So. 2d 444 (1999). When a defendant maintains its own floors, the [plaintiffs] are not required to prove that it had notice or constructive notice of the possible [hazard]. If there [is] a [hazard], [defendant] created it, thus, the notice requirement of La. R.S. 9:2800.6 does not apply  Savoie v. Sw. La. Hosp. Ass'n, 866 So. 2d 1078, 1081 (La. 3d Cir. 2004). We have held similarly to Savoie, suggesting that courts have required proof that an employee's action caused the plaintiffs' injury to impose liability under  9:2800.6, and that because [a]ppellants pointed neither the district court nor this court to any evidence showing that [the defendant's] employees were responsible for the holes in [the defendant's] roof, nor any evidence showing that [the defendant] was responsible for maintaining its own roof, the plaintiff failed to show that the defendant created the hazard at issue. Gray v. Wal-Mart La., L.L.C., 484 F. App'x 963, 966 (5th Cir. 2012) (per curiam).

Synthesizing these cases, it is evident that for the defendant to have created the hazardous condition, it must be directly responsible for the plaintiff's injuries. Ross, 734 So. 2d at 913. That direct responsibility can be shown in one of two wayseither via evidence that the defendant's employees actually created the hazard (by, for example, spilling crab salad on the floor, as was alleged in Ross) or evidence that the defendant was responsible for maintaining the area where the hazardous condition was manifest, as in Savoie and Gray.

Wal-Mart tries to elide this distinction in two ways. First, it posits that the law requires that it must have had notice of the condition no matter what. But that is not so, as Gray and the plain meaning of the statute make clear; plaintiffs must prove either creation of the hazard or actual or constructive notice thereof. There is no requirement of notice when it comes to creation of the hazard.

Second, Wal-Mart theorizes that because the particular hazard that caused Riggio's injury emerged not through direct action by its employees but rather through a failure to remedy a dangerous condition, Wal-Mart was not directly responsible within the meaning of Ross, id. Wal-Mart seems to think that so long as its employees did not personally create the leaksby, say, making holes in the roof to affix some objectWal-Mart escapes liability under the statute. To hold otherwise, it urges, would be to convert the statute into strict liability.

We do not read the statute so harshly. The ordinary meaning of creation admits of creation both through direct actionpounding holes into the roof with hammersand failure to acte.g., a failure to fix a known leaky roof, leading to the creation of hazardous puddles on the floor. And the claim that we would be reading strict liability into the statute significantly overstates the hardship to Wal-Mart, for several reasons.

First, of course, there is the procedural posture of this case, which Wal-Mart avoids. By reversing the summary judgment, we only permit a jury to find that Wal-Mart created the hazard; we make no such finding ourselves. Second, there are other provisions in the statute, which are not at issue on this appeal, that a plaintiff must satisfy before a defendant can be held liablenamely, that the condition created an unreasonable risk of harm and that the defendant failed to exercise reasonable care. See LA. REV. STAT. ANN.  9:2800.6(B).

Finally, Louisiana precedent is explicit that Wal-Mart's notion is incorrect. See Savoie, 866 So. 2d at 1081 (holding that because the defendant maintained the floors on which the hazard occurred, it created the hazard). Maintenance, under Louisiana courts' interpretation of Louisiana law, is enough for creation. And Wal-Mart has not provided reasons for us to disregard that legal reality.

This case is close to Gray. But there, the plaintiff's case was deficient because the record provided evidence neither that the store was responsible for the maintenance of its own roof nor that employees had caused the roof leak. Gray, 484 F. App'x at 966. Evidence satisfying either of those conditions would have sufficed to deny summary judgment. Here, by contrast, there are billing records showing that Wal-Mart paid for repairs on the roof near the date of Riggio's fall, as well as evidence that Wal-Mart paid for a full roof repair after Riggio's injury. We agree with Gray that evidence of maint [enance of] its own roof is enough to conclude that Wal-Mart created the hazardous condition through its failure of maintenance. A reasonable jury could find that evidence here.

The summary judgment is REVERSED and REMANDED. We place no limitation on the matters the district court may address and decide on remand, nor do we suggest what are the ultimate merits of Riggio's claim.

FOOTNOTES

. Riggio was the original plaintiff but died, so her administratrix, Loring Deshotel, was substituted. For the sake of clarity and brevity, we refer to the plaintiff as Riggio.

. Riggio has abandoned this second argument and challenges the district court's decision only in regard to the creation of the hazard.

. Riggio claims the buckets and caution signs were near the site of her incident, but Wal-Mart disagreesanother dispute.

JERRY E. SMITH, Circuit Judge:
United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. JOSHUA HAYWORTH, Defendant-Appellant. No. 16-5358 Decided: March 08, 2017

BEFORE: BOGGS, SILER, and MOORE, Circuit Judges.

After robbing a Burger King, Joshua Hayworth went on the run from the police. He wrecked his initial vehicle and abandoned a second car once law enforcement agents recognized him while he drove some days later. When a manhunt began and police closed in, Hayworth frantically sought another method of escape. He rushed at two women standing in a driveway (one nine months pregnant), shouting at them to give him keys, and jumped on top of the fallen pregnant victim to struggle with her and seize her keys. After he was caught, he was charged with and found guilty of Hobbs Act robbery and carjacking. He now appeals his carjacking conviction and sentence. We affirm both.

I

Just after 11 p.m. on January 30, 2014, Joshua Hayworth approached a Burger King in Lenoir City, Tennessee, with his face covered and carrying an airsoft pistol. In accordance with a prearranged plan, Timothy Chudleyan acquaintance of Hayworth'sopened the back door, ostensibly to take out the trash and salt patches of ice by the back entrance, but in truth to let Hayworth into the restaurant. Hayworth rushed into the Burger King, brandishing the pistol and shouting at the staff to get on the ground, open the safe, and give him the money. Once he had stolen approximately $3,300 from the restaurant, he engaged in a brief struggle with Chudleypart of the plan to make Chudley appear to be an innocent employee. Hayworth fled with the money in his sister's Nissan Maxima, but wrecked it moments after he passed an officer responding to the robbery. After being ejected from the car, he ran from the crash and eluded pursuing officers and dogs. Officers recovered, among other items, a large amount of cash, the airsoft pistol, Hayworth's phone, and his parole identification card from the wrecked car.

Hayworth managed to get his hands on a Jeep Wrangler and met with a friend, Nikisha Popejoy, to discuss his predicament. A few days later, on February 3, the two drove together to a pawn shop to sell one of the Jeep's speakers. While he was driving back to Popejoy's home, an FBI agent in an unmarked car saw the Jeep and pulled up beside it at a red light, where he recognized Hayworth. After another agent also began following the Jeep, Hayworth realized he was being shadowed and sped off, weaving across lanes at a high rate of speed and at times travelling on the wrong side of the road to lose the agents. Once he had shaken his tails, Hayworth dropped Popejoy off near her home. He then abandoned the Jeep a short distance away. By this point, a full manhunt had begun, and the Knox County Sheriff's Department sent out a police helicopter to aid the search while police officers swarmed the scene.

Some time later, neighbors Melissa McGuire and Sarah Gulley were discussing the recent commotion in the neighborhood as well as Gulley's excitement for the imminent arrival of her first child, as she was nine months pregnant and due to be induced in four days. Suddenly, Hayworth emerged from between two houses, running at the women with his hand in his pocket as if he were armed and shouting at them to give him their keys. Alarmed, McGuire told Gulley to flee, but as Gulley attempted to do so, she tripped and fell on her stomach onto the pavement. Hayworth demanded keys from McGuire but she was unable to produce them, and so he turned his attention to the fallen Gulley, who had her keys in her hand. Screaming for the keys, Hayworth wrestled with Gulley to take them from her, jabbing her in an attempt to gain control. McGuire pleaded with Hayworth to leave Gulley alone as she was pregnant. After a struggle, Hayworth managed to wrest away the keys from Gulley and found her car by using the alarm button. As he began to leave in Gulley's car, Gulley pleaded for Hayworth to release her dog, which was inside the car. Hayworth opened the door and let the dog out of the vehicle before driving away.

As he fled the scene of this new crime, he passed the FBI agent who had spotted him earlier in the day. Just as he had following his Burger King robbery, Hayworth then immediately lost control of the vehicle and wrecked it. By the time officers reached the crash scene, Hayworth was gone. But following the hue and cry of bystanders, police tracked Hayworth to an abandoned house and found him hiding under a couch.

Hayworth was charged with Hobbs Act robbery, aiding and abetting the same, and carjacking under 18 U.S.C.  2, 1951, and 2119. He pleaded not guilty and went to trial, where he was convicted on both counts by a jury. At sentencing, he received a 200-month term of imprisonment. Hayworth appeals on three bases: first, that the evidence presented was insufficient to convict him of carjacking; second, that the district court's denial of a motion for a judgment of acquittal was erroneous because the passions, prejudices, or sympathies of the jury were overwhelming, given the emotional testimony of the victims; and third, that the district court erred in the length of the sentence it imposed.

II

A. Sufficiency of the Evidence

We review de novo whether the evidence is sufficient to support a conviction in a criminal case. United States v. Garcia, 758 F.3d 714, 718 (6th Cir. 2014). A defendant who challenges the sufficiency of the evidence bears a very heavy burden, as we consider all evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution and decide whether a rational trier of fact could have found that the essential elements of the crime were proven beyond a reasonable doubt. United States v. Spearman, 186 F.3d 743, 746 (6th Cir. 1999). We should reverse a conviction if we determine that the government's case against the defendant was so lacking that the trial court should have entered a judgment of acquittal, rather than submitting the case to the jury. Lockhart v. Nelson, 488 U.S. 33, 39 (1988).

The federal statute criminalizing carjacking includes several elements. It states that [w]hoever, with the intent to cause death or serious bodily harm takes a motor vehicle that has been transported, shipped, or received in interstate or foreign commerce from the person or presence of another by force and violence or by intimidation, or attempts to do so, shall face a set of penalties, depending on whether death or serious bodily harm actually result. 18 U.S.C.  2119. Hayworth challenges only one of these elements: whether he had intent to cause death or serious bodily harm. Because  2119 is a specific-intent crime, the United States must show more than that the defendant committed the criminal acts; it must also show evidence of the specific mental culpability at issue, here that Hayworth actually intended to cause death or serious bodily injury. United States v. Adams, 265 F.3d 420, 424 (6th Cir. 2001).

The Supreme Court has held that the intent required for this crime also encompasses conditional intent. See Holloway v. United States, 526 U.S. 1, 8 (1999). That is to say, a carjacker's intent need not be to kill or seriously injure; rather, it can also be simply the intent to kill or seriously injure if the victim resists. Id. at 1112 ([T]he Government [must] prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant would have at least attempted to seriously harm or kill the driver if that action had been necessary to complete the taking of the car. Id. at 12.). In order to find conditional intent, we must examine the totality of the circumstances to evaluate whether the defendant's words and actions sufficiently demonstrated such an intent. United States v. Fekete, 535 F.3d 471, 481 (6th Cir. 2008).

Hayworth argues that he had no weapon and even let the dog out of the car once he stole it, demonstrating that he merely wanted the keys and not to cause any harm. But a weapon is not a prerequisite to a carjacking conviction; rather [t]he requisite mens rea can be shown by evidence of an intent to use  brute force, or any other means that indicates an ability and willingness to cause serious bodily harm or death if not obeyed. Id. at 480. In United States v. Edmond, 815 F.3d 1032 (6th Cir. 2016), we observed that there was sufficient evidence of intent to cause death or serious bodily harm where there was a physical fight with a valet over keys. Id. at 1040. Hayworth argues that this observation is mere dicta, as we concluded that the defendant in that case would have been convicted on an alternate ground (i.e., reaching for a firearm was sufficient to demonstrate specific intent). But in that case, we stated that the conviction would stand even if he had not reached for a gun, a point that was in contention given that the jury had acquitted the defendant of firearm possession during commission of the crime. Ibid. Because the Edmond panel determined that the physical struggle without the gun was also sufficient to demonstrate the requisite intent, it did not resolve the factual dispute. Thus, that determination was material to the decision, rather than obiter dicta. Regardless, our case appears to have even greater evidence of such conditional intent than did Edmond. Testimony at trial showed that Hayworth struck and struggled with a nine-months pregnant woman, who had already fallen to the ground, until she relinquished her keys. Considering the totality of the circumstances, including testimony that demonstrated that Hayworth was aware that Gulley was pregnant when he jabbed and fought her, the evidence was sufficient to find that Hayworth intended to cause at least serious bodily harm if Gulley did not relinquish the keys.

B. Impartial-Jury Allegation

Hayworth's next argument is that the case should not have gone to the jury because the prosecution had Gulley testify last to ensure maximum emotional impact upon the jurya skillful move  done to ensure that the passions, prejudices, and sympathies of the jury were inflamed. Appellant's Br. 21. As a result of the government's prey[ing] upon the[se] passions, Hayworth alleges that the trial court should have known that the jury would likely base its verdict on [them]  , [and] not the actual facts of the case. Id. at 24.

A defendant must be fairly tried in a public tribunal free of prejudice, passion, excitement, and tyrannical power. Chambers v. Florida, 309 U.S. 227, 23637 (1940). But Hayworth's objection was not at voir dire to the partiality of individual jurors. Rather, the objection was that the jury as a whole would rule on emotion. In this case, before permitting the jurors to deliberate, the district court provided instructions not [to] let any bias, sympathy or prejudice you may feel toward one side or the other influence your decision in any way. Though the testimony was certainly gripping and emotional, there was no demonstration that it was presented in a way that overcame the jury's presumed impartiality. See Skilling v. United States, 561 U.S. 358, 399 n.34 (2010) ([I]t is a premise of [our justice] system that jurors will set aside their preconceptions when they enter the courtroom and decide cases based on the evidence presented.). Absent demonstrable statements by the prosecutor attempting to call on a jury's emotions or fears, see, e.g., Johnson v. Bell, 525 F.3d 466, 484 (6th Cir. 2008), or encouraging jury identification with crime victims, see, e.g., Hodge v. Hurley, 426 F.3d 368, 384 (6th Cir. 2005), Hayworth cannot show that the testimony clearly prejudiced his case or rendered it fundamentally unfair. See United States v. Poandl, 612 F. App'x 356, 365 (6th Cir. 2015). And this result makes sense: where a defendant commits a heinous act, he cannot but expect that the horrible details will be presented where they are central to the prosecution and elements of the crime. As long as proper precautions are taken to ensure that the jury is aware of its obligation to remain impartial and no improper attempts are made to tempt it away from that responsibility, the jury is presumed to have done its duty.

C. Hayworth's Sentence

Finally, Hayworth challenges only the substantive reasonableness of his sentence. Here, both parties agree that the district court correctly calculated the Sentencing Guidelines range at 110 to 137 months, given Hayworth's offense level of 28 and criminal history category of IV. The dispute lies in the district court's grant of the prosecution's motion for an upward variance in sentencing Hayworth to 200 months in prison. The essence of a substantive-reasonableness claim is whether the length of the sentence is greater than necessary to achieve the sentencing goals set forth in 18 U.S.C.  3553(a). United States v. Tristan-Madrigal, 601 F.3d 629, 63233 (6th Cir. 2010). A sentence is substantively unreasonable if the district court selects the sentence arbitrarily, bases the sentence on impermissible factors, fails to consider pertinent  3553(a) factors or gives an unreasonable amount of weight to any pertinent factor. Id. at 633 (quoting United States v. Walls, 546 F.3d 728, 736 (6th Cir. 2008)). Our standard of review in such cases is for abuse of discretion. Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 46 (2007).

The district court carefully went through the 18 U.S.C.  3553(a) factors as applied to Hayworth's case. After discussing the various factors, the court granted the government's motion for an upward variance, emphasizing the nature and scope of Hayworth's criminal history and the violent nature of his conduct in the case at hand. In particular, the district court emphasized the strong need to protect the public from further crimes of the defendant and found that a variance was appropriate to promote respect for the law, provide just punishment and to afford adequate deterrence.

It is true that the sentence in this case was a nearly fifty-percent increase from the high end of the Sentencing Guidelines range. Nevertheless, [a]lthough we may consider the extent of the deviation in reviewing a district court's sentence, we must give due deference to the district court's decision that the  3553(a) factors, on a whole, justify the extent of the variance.  United States v. Lanning, 633 F.3d 469, 476 (6th Cir. 2011) (quoting Gall, 552 U.S. at 51). The demonstration of violence in this case by Hayworth was striking: his robbery of the Burger King caused one employee to require mental-health treatment and his carjacking involved a fight with a nine-months pregnant woman. Furthermore, Hayworth had a history of significant criminal conduct and was on parole for a prior aggravated robbery at the time of the Burger King robbery. The district court made special note of the nature, scope and in certain aspects the violent nature of [Hayworth's] previous criminal history and that the defendant has been involved in the criminal justice system beginning as a juvenile continuing through his entire life. Accordingly, [g]iven [Hayworth]'s prior convictions and his parole status, it was reasonable for the district court to place substantial weight on [Hayworth]'s criminal history in reaching its sentencing determination. United States v. Webb, 403 F.3d 373, 384 (6th Cir. 2005). The district court did not abuse its discretion in varying upward because it selected a punishment that it believed fit [Hayworth]'s crimes, and provided sufficient reasons to justify it. United States v. Vowell, 516 F.3d 503, 512 (6th Cir. 2008). The district court provided thorough justification, citing in detail the violent history and unrepentant nature of Hayworth as well as his callous disregard for persons in particular as well as property. Accordingly, his sentence was substantively reasonable and within the district court's discretion.

III

For the foregoing reasons, we AFFIRM Hayworth's conviction and sentence.

FOOTNOTES

. Fortunately, Gulley's son was born healthy and unharmed.

. In discussing the variance, the court referred to Hayworth's violent nature on four separate occasions. ([T]he Court is cognizant of  in certain aspects the violent nature of [Hayworth's] previous criminal history; [Hayworth's criminal history] demonstrat[es] the violent nature of this defendant; [a]gain, the Court notes the violent nature of his conduct in this case; the nature of the instant offense was extremely violent.)

BOGGS, Circuit Judge.
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The Balboa Peninsula is a neighborhood in Newport Beach named after the famous Spanish explorer, Vasco Nunez de Balboa. Sometimes referred to as the Peninsula or as Balboa, it is a residential neighborhood with many attractions and events. The three mile stretch of land is bordered on one side by the harbor and on the other side by sandy beaches and the Pacific Ocean.

The Balboa Pavilion dates from 1906: its the peninsulas most well-known landmark, the oldest standing building, and a marine recreational facility. Other attractions include the Balboa Fun Zone, the Balboa Pier and Newport Pier, and the Dory Fishing Fleet. The Balboa Peninsula is of the top Newport Beach CA attractions. There are many bars and restaurants with great nightlife.





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United States Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit. United States of America Plaintiff - Appellee v. Velnita Jolette Hairy Chin Defendant - Appellant No. 16-1091 Decided: March 06, 2017

Before LOKEN, SMITH, and COLLOTON, Circuit Judges.

Velnita Hairy Chin, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and resident of the Tribe's reservation, pleaded guilty to one count of child abuse, in violation of 18 U.S.C.  1153(a) and S.D. Codified Laws  26-10-1. The United States Probation Office recommended in Hairy Chin's presentence investigation report (PSR) that she receive a total offense level of six and a criminal history category II, providing her with a sentencing range of one to seven months' imprisonment. Hairy Chin thereafter objected to the PSR's recommended two-level increase for the victim's bodily injury pursuant to U.S.S.G.  2A2.3(b)(1)(A).

At the sentencing hearing, the government requested an upward departure from the suggested sentencing range recommended in the PSR in light of (1) the extreme conduct precipitating the charge, (2) the dismissed and uncharged conduct, and (3) Hairy Chin's understated criminal history. The district court, after reviewing the circumstances of Hairy Chin's case, granted the government's request. The court assigned Hairy Chin a total offense level of 12 and a category VI criminal history, resulting in a Guidelines range of 30 to 37 months' imprisonment. Notably, the district court sentenced her to 37 months' imprisonment, which was the high end of the applicable Guidelines range. In doing so, the court did not explicitly rule on Hairy Chin's objection to the PSR's recommended two-level increase for the victim's bodily injury. Hairy Chin appeals her sentence, asserting that the district court erred by failing to rule on her objection. She also argues that the district court abused its discretion by imposing an unreasonable sentence. We disagree and affirm the judgment of the district court.

I. Background

On the evening of June 23, 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) received a complaint about unsupervised children playing outside Hairy Chin's home. When the BIA officer arrived at the residence, he discovered seven unattended children under the age of 12, including a crying infant strapped into a car seat. In the basement, the officer found Hairy Chin unconscious and apparently inebriated. After identifying Hairy Chin as the responsible adult, the officer arrested her for child neglect. Emergency medical technicians arrived and transported the infant to the hospital because of his inconsolable crying. When asked about the child, Hairy Chin admitted to dropping the baby the previous day but asserted that the child was fine. At the hospital, the infant was diagnosed with abrasions on his legs from the extensive time in the car seat, bruising on his right leg and right buttock, diaper rash, air in his lungs from continual crying, and an ear infection. Child Protection Services (CPS) removed all seven children from the residence and placed them in alternative homes.

Hairy Chin has a lengthy criminal history. Her state and federal convictions include theft, damage to property, and child endangerment. In addition, Hairy Chin has accumulated more than 40 convictions in the Standing Rock Tribal Court. These convictions, although not counted in her PSR criminal history, include multiple counts of disorderly conduct, eight counts of child neglect, driving while under the influence, possession of drugs, criminal contempt, and aggravated assault. In 2012, Hairy Chin pleaded guilty to federal child-abuse charges. The facts of the 2012 incident mirror the current case remarkably. Hairy Chin brought her four-month-old daughter to the hospital because of a seizure. Medical professionals determined that the infant suffered from several head injuries and a severe infection. The multiple head injuries were at different stages of healing, indicating a pattern of being dropped or mishandled. Hairy Chin served one year of imprisonment as a result. The present offense occurred just six months after she completed supervised release. Despite her criminal record, CPS placed four of Hairy Chin's grandchildren in her careall under the age of five. She was also the primary caregiver for three of her own minor children.

At sentencing, the government introduced testimony from the BIA officer sent to Hairy Chin's home and photographic evidence of the injuries sustained by the infant confined in the car seat. The CPS worker in charge of the four grandchildren also took the stand. The CPS worker admitted that she failed to perform a background check on Hairy Chin and failed to perform a home inspection before placing the four grandchildren in her care. In response to this testimony, the district court interjected, If this is the way that the child protection agency is being run, children are at great risk [at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation]. After hearing arguments from defense counsel, the district court discussed Hairy Chin's criminal history at length:

And so this is an outrageous history of one crime after another and, more importantly, one crime after another of abusing children, including a conviction in this Court.

***

Clearly, an upward departure is proper here.

***

We have all of these multiple counts of conviction for which the defendant did not receive a criminal history point, and I've gone through all of those convictions. This is an outrageous case, very frankly.

The district court determined that the number and seriousness of Hairy Chin's past criminal convictions placed her into a criminal history category VI pursuant to U.S.S.G.  4A1.3. The court adopted the PSR's offense-level calculation of six, which included the two-level increase under U.S.S.G.  2A2.3(b)(1)(A) for the bodily injury sustained by the infant, and increased that level to 12 pursuant to U.S.S.G. 5K2.21 for the six dismissed counts of child abuse regarding the other six children in Hairy Chin's custody on the night of her arrest. The court determined Hairy Chin's Guidelines range to be 30 to 37 months' imprisonment and sentenced her to 37 months.

II. Discussion

We review a sentence in two parts: first, we review for significant procedural error, such as an improper calculation of the advisory sentencing guidelines range; and second, absent significant procedural error, we review for substantive reasonableness. United States v. Fischer, 551 F.3d 751, 754 (8th Cir. 2008). Hairy Chin argues that the district court procedurally erred and that her sentence is substantively unreasonable. We will examine both of these contentions in turn.

A. Procedural Error

A significant procedural error can occur if the district court fails to consider the sentencing factors in 18 U.S.C.  3553(a), selects a sentence based on clearly erroneous facts, or fails to adequately explain its chosen sentence. Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51 (2007). In reviewing a sentence for procedural error, we review the district court's factual findings for clear error and its application of the guidelines de novo. United States v. Barker, 556 F.3d 682, 689 (8th Cir. 2009). We will find clear error only if the review produces the definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been committed. United States v. Adetiloye, 716 F.3d 1030, 1036 (8th Cir. 2013) (quoting United States v. Lalley, 257 F.3d 751, 758 (8th Cir. 2001)). Compliance with rules of criminal procedure is reviewed de novo. United States v. Theimer, 557 F.3d 576, 577 (8th Cir. 2009).

Hairy Chin argues that the district court committed reversible error by failing to rule on her objection to the PSR's recommended two-level increase for the victim's bodily injury pursuant to U.S.S.G.  2A2.3(b)(1)(A). The district court ruled against the PSR objections generally. The court did not make a specific finding on whether the injury sustained by the infant in Hairy Chin's care met the definition of bodily injury under U.S.S.G.  1B1.1. Hairy Chin asserts that this oversight fell below the standard set out by Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32(i)(3)(B), which requires a sentencing court to rule on any disputed PSR objection. She points to United States v. Fetlow, 21 F.3d 243 (8th Cir. 1994), for the proposition that a blanket overruling of all objections to the PSR violates Rule 32. Where the findings of the sentencing court render the appellate court unable to determine the legal basis upon which they were made, a remand for further findings is warranted. Id. at 248. In Fetlow, the government presented no evidence at the sentencing hearing in response to the defendant's three objections to his PSR calculation, and it was unclear if the district court relied exclusively on the allegations reported in the PSR. See id. at 24849. We remanded the case to the sentencing court because upon review, we could not determine if the sentencing court based its ruling upon evidence with sufficient indicia of reliability. Id. at 249.

Hairy Chin presents a different case entirely. She disputes the legal conclusion of what constitutes bodily injury under  1B1.1, not whether the district court relied on reliable evidence in making its finding. To establish the facts relating to the two-level increase, the sentencing court heard testimony from the BIA officer who saw the infant, and the court viewed photographic evidence of the infant's injuries. If the sentencing court elects to make a finding, the government must produce evidence sufficient to convince the court by a preponderance of the evidence that the fact in question exists. Id. at 24950. Unlike Fetlow, none of the factual allegations in this case are disputed. Although the district court did not make a specific ruling on the PSR objection, the record reflects sufficient reliable evidence for the district court to make a well-informed decision about whether Hairy Chin's conduct warranted a two-level increase pursuant to U.S.S.G.  2A2.3(b)(1)(A). The district court was able to and did make this determination on the record before it. The absence of a specific ruling on Hairy Chin's objection is not by itself a significant procedural error because the record reflects sufficient evidence for the district court's findings to receive meaningful appellate review.

B. Substantive Reasonableness

When reviewing a sentence for its substantive reasonableness, we apply an abuse-of-discretion standard. Gall, 552 U.S. at 51. A district court abuses its discretion when it (1) fails to consider a relevant factor that should have received significant weight; (2) gives significant weight to an improper or irrelevant factor; or (3) considers only the appropriate factors but in weighing those factors commits a clear error of judgment. United States v. Feemster, 572 F.3d 455, 461 (8th Cir. 2009) (en banc) (quotation omitted). This review is narrow and deferential. Id. at 464 (quoting United States v. Gardellini, 545 F.3d 1089, 1090 (D.C. Cir. 2008)).

Hairy Chin argues that the district court improperly weighed the significance of her 40 tribal convictions in elevating her criminal history category. She asserts that because the district court did not enhance her criminal history category for the tribal convictions when it sentenced her in 2012, the court should be consistent and ignore them once again. When sentencing Hairy Chin in the 2012 case, however, the district court sentenced her to only 12 months because of uncertainty about her personal responsibility for the victim-child's multiple head injuriesnot because the previous tribal convictions lacked relevance. The district court did not abuse its discretion by deciding to count Hairy Chin's tribal convictions in reaching its sentence.

She also argues that the court should have weighed her good behavior since the 2012 conviction in her favor with a lighter sentence. The facts, however, belie this argument. Once released from custody in 2013, Hairy Chin spent nine months of supervised released pregnant with the child that she later injured. When this child reached six months old, Hairy Chin was arrested once again for abusing an infant in her care. The court had ample basis for discounting her alleged mitigating good behavior, especially considering Hairy Chin's virtual repeat offense to the 2012 conviction.

Additionally, Hairy Chin argues that the district court gave improper weight to the bad acts of CPS and the Standing Rock Tribal Court. She argues that the district court, angered by these third parties' inaction, unfairly assessed the seriousness of her actions. She points to numerous expressions of frustration by the district court when discussing the failings of CPS and the seemingly ineffective sentencing efforts of the tribal court. To be sure, the record does reflect numerous negative remarks by the district court toward various officials, but the record also reflects the court's relevant disappointment with the behavior of Hairy Chin. Nothing in the sentencing transcript indicates that the district court gave significant weight to the actions of CPS or third parties in determining Hairy Chin's final sentence. Rather, the transcript demonstrates an individualized assessment of Hairy Chin's history and the circumstances surrounding the conviction.

The district court properly weighed the circumstances of the case and the past history of Hairy Chin's criminal child neglect to make precisely the kind of defendant-specific determinations that are within the special competence of sentencing courts. Feemster, 572 F.3d at 464 (quoting Gardellini, 545 F.3d at 1095). The district court did not abuse its discretion; Hairy Chin's final sentence is not substantively unreasonable.

III. Conclusion

Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the district court.

FOOTNOTES

. The Honorable Charles B. Kornmann, United States District Judge for the District of South Dakota.

. The district court stated: The presentence report speaks for itself in that regard. So thatthe objections are overruled, in any event.

PER CURIAM.
1980s Saint Laurent vamps in tight rippling leather outfit. [Photo/AFP]

As the Paris Fashion Week autumn-winter shows ended in their climax, we look at the biggest womenswear trends so far on the catwalk:

Alien burqa hats from sweatshirt sleeves by Rick Owens. [Photo/AFP]

Paris has fallen head over heels for hats. Last week has seen an unprecedented sprouting of headwear on the runways, from turbans to Dior's Black Panther leather berets. Wanda Nylon, too, also featured that most French of caps.

The American iconoclast Rick Owens created a whole gallery of miters, crowns and veils for the "contemporary ceremonial" of his show, making alien burqa hats from sweatshirt sleeves.

Pascal Millet went for glittery beanies, Faith Connection gaucho hats and borsalinos while Neith Nyers featured woolly elf and flowerpot numbers.

And one could only doff one's cap to Jacquemus for their stylish riff on vaguely Spanish black felt headgear, from jaunty bicorne Picasso monteras to stovepipe 1950s numbers.

Japanese label Undercover appeared to have topped everyone with a procession of wild plumed fascinators until the Andreas Kronthaler blew them away with a punk Statue of Liberty crowned helmet that almost felt as big as the real one.

The turbocharged Austrian designer, who like his partner Vivienne Westwood is an environmental activist, also concocted a series of headdresses made from rubbish and finished with his take on a sultan-sized Ottoman turban.
United States Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit. United States of America Plaintiff - Appellee v. Francisco Ortega-Montalvo, also known as Jerry Ortega Defendant - Appellant No. 16-1899 Decided: March 08, 2017

Before RILEY, Chief Judge, SMITH and BENTON, Circuit Judges.

Francisco G. Ortega-Montalvo was convicted of illegally re-entering the United States in violation of 8 U.S.C. 1326(a) and (b)(2). The district court sentenced him to 51 months' imprisonment. He appeals the denial of his motion to suppress. Having jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C.  1291, this court affirms.

In 2011, Ortega-Montalvo, a Mexican citizen illegally in the United States, was convicted of aggravated assault after shooting at a police officer. In 2013, he was deported and prohibited from re-entering.

In 2014, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) received a tip that Ortega-Montalvo illegally re-entered the United States and was working at Maria's Mexican Restaurant in Platte City, under the alias Jerry Ortega. According to the tip, he drove a white pickup truck with the Arkansas license plate 087MID. Special Agent Scott Lindsey corroborated the tip, confirming that the Arkansas plate was registered to Francisco Ortega and that he had been deported after conviction for aggravated assault. Agents visited Maria's Mexican Restaurant and observed a white truck with the Arkansas license plate in the parking lot.

Based on the corroborated tip, information about Ortega-Montalvo's illegal status and criminal history, and an online database search revealing an apartment address in Platte City, Agent Lindsey and his supervisor decided to locate and arrest him. Officer Lindsey briefed a team of five HSI special agents and two Platte City police officers on Ortega-Montalvo's illegal status, physical description (including pictures), and criminal history of aggravated assault against a police officer.

The morning of the arrest, an HSI agent surveilled the apartment's parking lot, finding the white truck. An agent rang the apartment's doorbell from outside the apartment complex. HSI special agents Timothy Ditter and Tim Kixmiller, uniformed in protective armor with guns holstered, waited outside the door. An Hispanic male (not Ortega-Montalvo) opened the door partially dressed, looking like he had literally just gotten out of bed. The agents introduced themselves and displayed their badges. Determining that the man (later identified as Juan Maldonado), did not speak English, Agent Ditter, fluent in Spanish, asked his country of citizenship and whether he had documents to be in the United States. Maldonado replied he was a citizen of Mexico and did not have documents. Agent Ditter asked permission to enter the apartment to talk. Maldonado consented.

Inside, Agent Ditter asked if anyone else was present. Maldonado said his friend was there, pointing to the back of the apartment. Agent Ditter told Maldonado we're going to do a protective search for everyone's safety. Maldonado said nothing. Special agent Jose Covarrubias, a native Spanish speaker who entered during the conversation, sat with Maldonado and questioned him.

With guns drawn, Agents Ditter and Kixmiller conducted a protective sweep, finding one bedroom door locked. They knocked on it. An Hispanic man identifying himself as Jerry Ortega opened the door. Immediately recognizing him as Ortega-Montalvo, they handcuffed him and placed him under arrest. The agents continued the protective sweep, finding no one else in the apartment.

After the protective sweep, the agents holstered their guns and asked Maldonado and Ortega-Montalvoboth handcuffed and under arrestfor consent to search the apartment. According to agents, both consented. In Ortega-Montalvo's bedroom, officers seized three identification documents. Officers took Ortega-Montalvo to the Enforcement Removal Operations Office, advised him of his Miranda rights, and took a written statement. In the statement, he admitted he was a citizen of Mexico who had been deported from the United States and re-entered illegally.

A grand jury indicted Ortega-Montalvo on one count of illegal re-entry. He moved to suppress all evidence and testimony from the search, arrest, booking, and questioning. At the suppression hearing, a magistrate judge heard testimony from Maldonado and HSI agents Lindsey, Ditter, and Covarrubias. Maldonado testified he opened the door to police pointing guns at him; an officer grabbed him by the neck, pushed him against the wall, and entered the apartment without his permission. He denied that officers asked whether he had documentation to be in the country. Rejecting Maldonado's testimony as not credible, the magistrate judge concluded his consent was given voluntarily and without coercion. Finding the protective sweep lawful, he recommended denying the motion. The district court adopted the recommendation. At a bench trial, it found Ortega-Montalvo guilty.

On review of a motion to suppress, this court reviews factual findings for clear error and legal conclusions de novo. United States v. Sigillito, 759 F.3d 913, 923 (8th Cir. 2014), quoting United States v. Brooks, 715 F.3d 1069, 1075 (8th Cir. 2013). This court affirms the denial unless it is unsupported by substantial evidence, based on an erroneous interpretation of applicable law, or, based on the entire record, it is clear a mistake was made. United States v. Vanover, 630 F.3d 1108, 1114 (8th Cir. 2011).

I.

Ortega-Montalvo argues that Maldonado did not voluntarily consent to the agents' entry into the apartment. At the suppression hearing, the magistrate judge rejected Maldonado's testimony on this issue, instead crediting the testimony of an HSI agent that Maldonado voluntarily consented to entry. The district court adopted the finding.

[W]hether a consent to a search was in fact voluntary or was the product of duress or coercion, express or implied, is a question of fact to be determined from the totality of all the circumstances. Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218, 227 (1973). See United States v. Sanders, 424 F.3d 768, 773 (8th Cir. 2005) (Whether consent is voluntarily given is a question of fact.). Evaluating consent, courts consider: (1) age; (2) general intelligence and education; (3) whether the person was intoxicated at the time of consent; (4) whether the person consented after receiving Miranda rights; and (5) whether the person was aware of his or her rights and protections due to previous arrests. United States v. Comstock, 531 F.3d 667, 676 (8th Cir. 2008). Other relevant factors include: (6) the length of detention time; (7) whether the officers acted in a threatening manner; (8) whether officers made any promises or misrepresentations; (9) whether the person was in custody or under arrest when giving consent; (10) whether the person consented in public; and (11) whether the person was silent as the search was conducted. Id. at 676-77. Determination of consent necessarily involves judging the credibility of witnesses, a task generally left to the district court. United States v. Meza-Gonzalez, 394 F.3d 587, 592 (8th Cir. 2005). A district court's credibility findings are well-nigh unreviewable, so long as the findings are not internally inconsistent or based on testimony that is incoherent, implausible, or contradicted by objective evidence. Sigillito, 759 F.3d at 923.

Here, there is no evidence that Maldonado's age, intelligence, or education inhibited his ability to voluntarily consent, or that he was intoxicated. He was not in custody, threatened, or made any promises or misrepresentations to obtain his consent. The agents introduced themselves, showed their badges, and requested, in Spanish, to enter the apartment. Their guns were holstered; they did not raise their voices. Ortega-Montalvo's assertion that Maldonado was deliberately deceived because the agents requested to talk rather than informing him they were searching for Ortega-Montalvo is without merit. There is no requirement that officers gratuitously advertis[e] [their] every move to anyone [they] might encounter. United States v. Crisolis-Gonzalez, 742 F.3d 830, 835 (8th Cir. 2014) (alterations in original), quoting United States v. Briley, 726 F.2d 1301, 1305 (8th Cir. 1984). Importantly, [Maldonado] agreed to let the agents inside without further inquiry as to the nature of the visit. Id. There was nothing misleading about [the agents'] request to speak with [Maldonado] because it was consistent with the overall goal of locating [Ortega-Montalvo]. Id.

Maldonado's partial dress, lack of sleep, or admission that he was illegally in the United States also did not make the situation inherently coercive as Oretega-Montalvo asserts. See United States v. Quintero, 648 F.3d 660, 670 (8th Cir. 2011) (holding that a person's subjective state of mind at the time he allegedly gave his consent is not determinative and that [t]he internal psychological pressure associated with a suspect's knowledge of his or her own guilt, or fears that evidence of such guilt has been discovered by police does not bear on whether consent was voluntary); United States v. Johnson, 619 F.3d 910, 918 (8th Cir. 2010) (finding voluntary consent despite defendant's state of undress, noting that defendant chose to open the door when he was not fully clothed); United States v. Mancias, 350 F.3d 800, 805-06 (8th Cir. 2003) (Although [defendant] was extremely tired at the time of his encounter with [law enforcement], we do not find [defendant's] physical state rendered his consent involuntary.).

The district court properly found Maldonado voluntarily consented to entry.

II.

Ortega-Montalvo contends that even if Maldonado consented to entry, the protective sweep exceeded the scope of consent and was unlawful.

A protective sweep is permitted under the Fourth Amendment when an officer has articulable facts which, taken together with the rational inferences from those facts, would warrant a reasonably prudent officer in believing that the area to be swept harbors an individual posing a danger to those on the arrest scene.  Crisolis-Gonzalez, 742 F.3d at 836, quoting Maryland v. Buie, 494 U.S. 325, 334 (1990). Protective sweeps need not always occur in conjunction with an arrest where a reasonable officer could conclude that it was necessary for his safety to secure the premises before obtaining a warrant. Id., quoting United States v. Cisneros-Gutierrez, 598 F.3d 997, 1006 (8th Cir. 2010).

Articulable facts warranted the agents' protective sweep. Agents went to Ortega-Montalvo's apartment after learning he was in the country illegally. From their briefing, they knew he had a prior conviction for aggravated assault on a police officer, and from Maldonado, they knew he may be present in the apartment. These facts were sufficient to alert the agents as to the possibility that the apartment harbored dangerous individuals. Id.

Citing United States v. Hassock, Ortega-Montalvo argues the protective sweep was unreasonable because the agents used consent to gain entry and thereby created the exigent circumstances. United States v. Hassock, 631 F.3d 79, 88 (2d Cir. 2011) ([A] protective sweep is reasonable only to safeguard officers in the pursuit of an otherwise legitimate purpose. Where no other purpose is being pursued, a sweep is no different from any other search and, therefore, requires a warrant, exigency, or authorized consent, none of which were present here.). This argument is precluded by this court's decision in United States v. Crisolis-Gonzalez, 742 F.3d 830 (2014). There, agents received a tip that the defendant had entered the country illegally and was involved in meth trafficking. Id. at 833. Surveilling his apartment complex, they saw his car. Id. Two agents knocked on the apartment's door. Id. A man, not the defendant, answered and consented to the agents entering to speak with him. Id. Once inside, the man indicated others were in the house, and the agents conducted a protective sweep for their safety. Id. at 833-34. This court held the protective sweep lawful. Id. at 836.

The district court did not err in finding the protective sweep lawful.

III.

Ortega-Montalvo maintains he did not voluntarily consent to the search of his bedroom.

The totality of the circumstances shows that Ortega-Montalvo did voluntarily consent. Like Maldonado, there is no evidence that Ortega-Montalvo's age, intelligence, or education inhibited his ability to voluntarily consent, nor is there any evidence he was intoxicated. Although he was under arrest, there is no evidence he was threatened or coerced by the agents or they made any promises or misrepresentations to him. See United States v. Sanchez, 156 F.3d 875, 878 (8th Cir. 1998) (holding the district court did not err in finding consent where there was no evidence of duress, intimidation, or over-reaching by the officers). Similarly, the fact that he was not informed of his right to refuse consent does not, in itself, make consent involuntary. United States v. Watson, 423 U.S. 411, 425 (1976) (holding that the failure to inform the arrestee that he could withhold consent does not automatically make consent involuntary); United States v. Zamoran-Coronel, 231 F.3d 466, 469 (8th Cir. 2000) (considering the voluntariness of consent, the relevant inquiry  is whether the officers did anything to affirmatively communicate to the defendant that [he] was not free to  refuse the consent request). Finally, his criminal history suggests he would have been aware of his rights and protections. See United States v. Dunning, 666 F.3d 1158, 1165 (8th Cir. 2012) (finding consent voluntary [a]lthough [defendant] was not read his Miranda rights prior to the search partly because he was experienced in the legal system and likely aware of his rights).

The district court properly found Ortega-Montalvo's consent voluntary.

IV.

Ortega-Montalvo requests suppression of all evidence obtained as a result of the agents' unlawful entry into the apartment and the unlawful protective sweep. Because the agents had Maldonado's voluntary consent to enter the apartment, lawfully conducted the protective sweep, and had Ortega-Montalvo's voluntary consent to search his bedroom, this argument is without merit.

* * * * * * *

The judgment is affirmed.

FOOTNOTES

. The Honorable Beth Phillips, United States District Judge for the Western District of Missouri.

BENTON, Circuit Judge.
HCM CITY  The Ministry of Science and Technology has urged farmers in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta to embrace technology to develop smart agriculture.

Speaking at a seminar in Can Tho city on Thursday on using science and technology to improve agricultural productivity and quality, Deputy Minister Tran Van Tung said the Mekong Delta plays an important role in the countrys agricultural production, contributing 55 per cent of the countrys rice output, 69 per cent of seafood and 70 per cent of fruits.

It also accounts for more than 90 per cent of rice exports and 60 per cent of seafood exports.

But much of it is sold as raw products at low value.

Inconsistent quality is a problem that plagues the region.

Climate change and global integration have also adversely impacted the deltas agricultural production, Tung said.

Droughts, floods and saltwater intrusion, often an impact of climate change, have greatly affected productivity and quality.

In this context, besides finding measures to mitigate the impacts of climate change and mapping out programmes and policies to speed up restructure of the sector, quickly ramping up the use of technology is imperative to develop smart agriculture in the region, he said.

Using advanced technologies for growing crops, harvesting, processing and post-harvest preservation would improve productivity and quality, reduce costs, improve competitiveness, and contribute to making agriculture sustainable, he said.

Talking about solutions for boosting agricultural development in the delta, Prof Nguyen Bao Ve, a former head of Can Tho Universitys agriculture faculty, said communication is the main requirement in changing the mindsets of farmers.

The concept of choosing farming as a job when not knowing what to do is no longer viable since farmers these days need to master the use of agricultural machinery and know how to use technology, he said.

Farmers need to actively improve their understanding by constantly learning about technology and science, he said.

Buhler Group executive Manuel Murenhoff said farmers do not pay due attention to post-harvest preservation, instead using rudimentary vehicles to transport their produce, resulting in large volumes of spoilage.

Besides, preserving fruits and vegetables at unsuitable temperatures makes them vulnerable to bacterial infections, he said.

That is why the quality of Vietnamese farm produce usually deteriorates when they are transported long distances and for long periods, he said.

The current 8 per cent rate of post-harvest losses is too high and should be reduced to less than 6 per cent by using technology, including harvesting with machinery, transporting farm produce by specialised means and storage in standardised warehouses, he said.

Investing in modern machinery is difficult for individual households, but not so when farmers join hands through co-operatives or clubs, he said.

He pointed out that there is another possible solution, businesses investing in facilities and leasing them out to farmers.

He also introduced a Smart Farm Data" model in which farmers use electronic equipment to monitor their crops instead of going to the field.

Building brands

The seminar also discussed brand building.

Nguyen Phu Cuong, general director of Dona Biotechnology Development JSC (Dona-Techno), said consumers are willing to pay high prices for branded products.

To build brands, people in the agricultural sector must always be aware of clean agricultural production by applying technology, strictly following good agricultural practices and enabling traceability of their products, he said.

They also need to invest in improving their packaging, he said.

Delegates called for co-operation with research institutes and schools to get high-quality and -yielding seeds.

Farmers should join hands to create large-scale farms to make it easier to use machines all the way from the sowing to harvesting stages and avoid being exploited by traders or price drops following a bumper harvest and vice versa, they said.

Agricultural festival

The seminar was part of the International Agriculture Festival and Fair of the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta being held in Can Tho from March 9 to 13.

It features over 300 booths set up by nearly 150 local and international exhibitors operating in the agricultural and related sectors.

Held by the Ministries of Science and Technology and Agriculture and Rural Development and other organisation, the event aims to support agricultural development in the delta through research and use of technology and building brands.

It also features an exhibition of farm produce and technologies, a programme to connect suppliers and buyers of agricultural technologies and equipment, a cooking contest, and other events.  VNS
HA NOI  Hoa Phat Group (HPG) plans to issue an additional 250 million shares to raise capital for its strategic Hoa Phat Dung Quat iron and steel production complex project this year.

The minimum price of each share is VN10,000, the groups chairman Tran inh Long announced at its 2017 annual shareholders meeting on Friday in Ha Noi.

The shares would be offered at the ratio of 5:1 (shareholders owning every five shares are able to buy a new one). The company expects to earn at least VN4 trillion through the issue.

The group received an investment licence for the construction of this project on February 6. It will be valid for 50 years and be part of a master plan on steel manufacturing and distribution until 2020, as approved by the Minister of Industry and Trade.

The project is devided into two stages with fixed capital requirement of VN40 trillion. In the first phase, it will produce one million tonnes of construction steel and one million tonnes of high-quality rolled steel, which will mobilise enough capital. The second phase is designed to produce two million tonnes of hot-rolled steel flat bar for machinery manufacturing. The companys equity by the end of 2016 was nearly VN20 trillion, deducting VN 10 trillion for counterpart fund and VN10 trillion lending from Vietinbank.

Long also explained that the reason for issuing shares is because of business opportunities. He proposed to start the second stage of the project six months later after finishing two million tonnes of steel, instead of 18 months as mentioned in the licence. Then, by 2020, HPG can put into place a plan to increase revenue by 2.5 times.

To clarify about not sharing dividends in cash, director general of the company Tran Tuan Duong said that enterprises want to reinvest in major projects instead of splitting cash as per the shareholders desire.

"If you are looking at short-term goals, pay cash dividends, but if you want long-term, you have to reinvest in order to move forward. On the other hand, the group needs to increase its charter capital up to VN15 trillion," Duong said. It is certain that HPG will pay cash dividends in 2017 and 2018.

The chairman also reported results of operations in 2016 with the groups revenue at VN33.9 trillion, and VN6.6 trillion after-tax profit. The plan for 2017 is to raise revenues from VN5 trillion to VN6 trillion based on the careful calculations and the potential result of the years beginning. Of this, the after-tax profit in the first two months of 2017 is VN1.2 trillion and it is confirmed to be no less than VN1.8 trillion by the end of the first quarter.  VNS
HCM CITY  Companies that want to enter the global supply chain should show initiative and make concerted steps to enhance their capacity and growth, Dr Shantanaru Bhattacharya of Singapore Management University said at a forum held yesterday in HCM City.

They should not passively wait for the government to help their growth, he said.

Bhattacharya spoke at a seminar on the global supply chain held by the Business Association of High-Quality Viet Nam Product Companies.

Viet Nam is perfectly positioned to be the next manufacturing hub in Asia, he said, adding that the country has a huge advantage in location and cost as well as human capital.

However, the training level of the workforce remains at a basic level, and employees lack the skills to quickly adapt to work, he added.

Both Vietnamese and foreign employers have had to spend more capital to retrain their employees, he said.

Small- and medium-size enterprises, which account for large proportion of businesses in Viet Nam, have also faced difficulties accessing domestic and foreign finance.

He said the Vietnamese government should create stable policies to develop the manufacturing economy.

Zulkifli Bin Baharudin, executive chairman at Indo Trans Logistics Corp in HCM City, said that many Vietnamese were not good at teamwork.

However, team skills help companies improve, which, in turn, makes it easier to enter the global supply chain.

Many Vietnamese enterprises represent only a small part of the global supply chain, according to a representative of Viet Nam Supply Chain.

For example, in the garment sector, local companies contracts are primarily for sewing and cutting designs for their partners, she said.

If employees have higher skills, companies can more easily move up the global supply chain, she added.

At the forum, the Business Association of High Quality Viet Nam Products Companies signed a memorandum of understanding with the Singapore Management University to provide a general non-binding framework of collaboration between the parties.

Co-operation will include management practice in Viet Nam and the Mekong Delta region, and assistance in research and exchange of academic publications and information.

The partners will also engage in joint research projects and academic activities. VNS
HA NOI  A concerted effort by all stakeholders, from policymakers to entrepreneurs, is needed to make Viet Nam more competitive, Deputy Prime Minister Vu uc am said yesterday.

At a conference held in the capital city to discuss ways to improve the nations competitiveness and its business environment, he said all ministries, departments and local authorities must strive to implement Resolution 19 together with private businesses.

I hope to be side by side with every single businessperson in Viet Nam to take on this task. Each individual business should think of not only its own favourable condition, but also of the growth of the nation as a whole; they should have patience and faith in the development of national business environment, am said.

Meanwhile, ministries should work hard on improving poor regulations and solve problems with circulars that lessen troubles for businesses, he added.

The Deputy PM stressed again that the guiding principle of the Partys Resolution 19, which focuses on improving Viet Nams business performance and environment, requires the combined efforts from policymakers and the entrepreneur community.

However, the speed at which Resolution 19 is being applied today is still limited, and the country is yet to catch up with other nations in the region in terms of removing obstacles and creating a nourishing atmosphere for businesses, said Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment ang Huy ong.

The traditional way of implementing regulations, step by step without active participation of the entrepreneur community and creative ideas from administrative agencies in accordance with the spirit of a constructive government will make it hard to achieve our proposed objectives, he said.

Resolution 19 envisages Viet Nam achieving the same ease of doing business as the ASEAN 4 (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines) by the end of 2017.

ong said this involves meeting several criteria including improving regulations; controlling export and import of goods and services according to global standards; shortening procedures and waiting time for filing and paying taxes, insurance, and building a support system for a stable liberated environment for business.

Nguyen inh Cung, Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), pointed out several shortcomings in administrative management, which he said lacked creativity and flexibility.

He also pointed out that many documents listed in Regulation 19 have not been amended as required.

Nonetheless, Cung said, there have been many changes of great importance to help improve the overall business environment in Viet Nam.

For example, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has amended their circular on textile products to help businesses save costs, and has freed them from filling in thousands of forms for excessive quality control. In the end, for Resolution 19 to fully integrate into daily life, there must be simultaneous action and close collaboration between business and policymakers, under the guidance of the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister, he said.

The CIEM has also recorded continuous improvement in Viet Nams global business environment ranking, such as jump of 9 places from 91 to 87 in 2016, the most significant advance since 2008.

Legal and customs procedures are still lengthy and complex, which cost us much time and money. We businessmen ask the government to issue supporting frameworks and mechanisms to help businesses meet the required standards for our products, said Le Tien Truong, General Director Vietnam Textile and Garment Group.

Conference participants noted that the current Resolution 19-2017/NQ-CP was an improvement of previous versions, with more detailed criteria to measure the level of development of Viet Nams business environment and national competitiveness, especially in comparison with other nations.  VNS
HA NOI  German pianist Boris Schonleber will perform pieces written by two German composers Richard Wagner (1813-1883), Robert Schumann (1810-1856), and Austrian composer Hugo Wolf (1860-1903) at Goethe Institute on Sunday.

Following his previous performance at Goethe Institute in 2014, Schonleber sees this return as an opportunity to play again for a Vietnamese audience.

Schonlebers performances will include Fantasie op 17 and Kreisleriana op 16, two of the most popular pieces by Schumann.

Fantasie op 17 is a passionate and exciting piece which revolves around the mental torments that Schumann suffered in his mid-twenties, when he had just confessed his love to his future wife Clara while her father  who was also Schumanns piano teacher  tried to bring the budding romance to an end. His fear of losing his beloved one led the composer into depression. Schumann wrote to Clara, The first movement (of Fantasie) may well be the most passionate I have ever composed  a deep lament for you.

During his tour of Viet Nam, Boris Schonleber will play several concerts in Ha Noi and HCM City on March 19, respectively. Together with Katharina Padrok (mezzo soprano) and Sebastian Myrus (tenor) he will perform parts of the Italian songbook by Hugo Wolf. In Ha Noi, the trio will be accompanied on stage by two dancers from the Ha Noi Dance Academy.

Free tickets for the show can be taken from Nguyen Thi Phuong Lan, tel: 097 539 8935, email: phuonglanlinh11@gmail.com and Goethe Institute, 56-56 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Ba inh District.  VNS
Tran Thi Thanh Ha, deputy director of the Centre for Industrial Relations Development under the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour, tells Thoi bao Kinh te Viet Nam (Viet Nam Economic Times) that her department will help grassroots Trade Unions sue employers that dont pay workers social insurance, health insurance and unemployment benefits on time.

Under the 2014 Law on Social Insurance, the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) has to take to court violations of laws on all kinds of workers insurance and benefits. How is the confederation preparing to do this?

The VGCL has prepared many guiding documents to help Trade Unions at different levels initiate lawsuits. It has organised training courses for trade union members on how to prepare dossiers for lawsuits as well as courses on how to institute court proceedings.

It has asked 20 consultation centres and 42 legal consultation offices to join the Trade Unions to initiate the lawsuits.

In addition, the VGCL and the Viet Nam Social Insurance Agency (VSIA) have signed an agreement to work together to initiate a law suit. Another agreement has been signed with the Peoples Supreme Court on sharing information during a trial and giving lessons to trade unions on how to initiate court proceedings.

As of late last year, 59 of 66 provincial Trade Unions had signed co-operation agreements with the VSIA, and 14 out of 62 provincial Trade Unions had signed agreements with the local courts.

In about 40 days ending on December 10 last year, the Social Insurance Fund offices in all 63 provinces and cities nationwide had already sent 819 documents to 40 provincial Trade Unions for the latter to file lawsuits.

Thanks to the good work performed by the trade unions, many enterprises have volunteered to pay their insurance dues to the Social Insurance Fund before cases are taken to court.

For example, Lai Chau Province collected VN172 million (US$7,500) due from the previous year, Nghe An VN55 million ($2,400), Gia Lai VN400 million ($17,500), Nam inh VN1.2 billion ($53,000) and ong Nai VN1.5 billion ($65,800) and others.

What challenges do Trade Unions face in initiating lawsuits?

The biggest hurdle they face is putting each case in the context of different laws like the Labour Code, the Civil Procedures Code and Social Insurance Code. Sometimes what is written in one law is not convergent with another.

For example, under the Labour Code, all cases relating to the delay in paying the social insurance fund must go through reconciliation process via the District Peoples Committee first. Under the Labour Code, only trade unions at the grassroots level have the right to initiate a lawsuit. But, in several cases, grassroots trade unions dont want to get involved in lawsuits. On the other hand, under the Civil Procedures Code, any trade union can initiate a lawsuit.

According to the 2014 Law on Social Insurance, it is the first time the trade union is being allowed to sue employers for infringing on the employees social benefits. It will take time for trade union members to learn how to deal with lawsuits against employers in an effective manner.

Will the VGCL act on its own to protect workers rights?

The VGCL has vowed to do all it can to help provincial Trade Union initiate lawsuits against employers that deliberately delay paying workers social insurance, health insurance and unemployment benefits. However, to do this effectively, it calls on all concerned agencies to join hands.  VNS
ieu Kre

ieu Kre, a member of the Party Central Committee and deputy head of the Standing Committee under the Tay Nguyen Steering Committee, speaks to Vietnam News Agency about the regions potentials, shortcomings and future growth plans

Can you give us an overview of the Central Highlands advantages and socio-economic potential?

Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) has an area of 5.46 million ha, which is 16.8 percent of the nations total. It has a population of over 5.6 million people and they belong to 54 ethnic communities.

The Central Highlands holds a very important position in the countrys socio-economic development, and in national defence and security. It also has the biggest potential for developing agriculture, forestry, processing industry, renewable energy, tourism and bauxite extraction and processing.

Of the 5.46 million ha of natural land, two million ha are used for agricultural production and 3.2 million ha are deemed forest land.

Worth of note is that Tay Nguyen has 74.25 per cent of the countrys red basalt soil at almost 2.1 million ha. This makes the region an ideal place to grow cash crops like coffee, rubber, cashew nuts and others.

Coffee is grown on 582,000ha, accounting for 90% of coffee plantations nation-wide, with an annual yield of about 1.37 million tonnes of beans, which is also over 90 percent of the countrys total.

National productivity of robusta coffee is three times that of the world (2.5 tonnes against 0.8 tonnes a hectare).

We grow more than 82 per cent of the nations pepper on 70,000ha.

Coffee, rubber and pepper are the agricultural mainstays of the region.

Meanwhile, tea, particularly oolong tea, holds a very important position in Lam ong Province.

To sustainably develop the agriculture sector and make it more competitive, authorities in the Central Highlands have paid much attention to processing agricultural produce, improve product quality and increase farmers income.

Furthermore, taking advantage of the regions temperate climate and good natural conditions, many luxury resorts have been set up, particularly in a Lat, Lam ong Province; and Kon Plong in Kon Tum Province.

What are some of the more noteworthy economic achievements recorded recently by provinces in the region?

In the last six years (2011-2016), the regional economy notched up several notable successes including high growth rates.

The GRDP (Gross Regional Domestic Product) in the 2011-2015 five-year period was about 10.45 percent per annum. In 2015 alone, per capita GRDP was US$ 1,658, 80.8 percent of the national average. In the year 2014, monthly per capita income increased 93 percent against over 2010, with that of urban and rural areas increasing by 85.93 percent and 89.73 percent respectively. In 2016, the GRDP per capita was VN 39.56 million ($ 1,700)  an increase of 8.57 percent over the previous year.

In 2011-2015, the region attracted investments of VN 265.7 trillion ($11.7 billion)  double that of the previous five years. As a result, average annual growth rate in the period was 11.33 per cent.

Despite many notable achievements, the region still faces many challenges and limitations. Agricultural development has basically happened on increasing cultivation and forestry area, and this uncontrolled exploitation of natural resources has had negative environmental and socio-economic impacts.

What can the Central Highlands do to be on par with other regions?

Under Resolution 10 of the Party Poliburo, Tay Nguyen should become one of Viet Nams key economic regions by the year 2020.

And more recently, at a meeting with key leaders from the Tay Nguyen Provinces, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc instructed the Tay Nguyen Steering Committee and concerned ministries and sectors to review the regions socio-economic development plans for the 2016-2020 period and come up with suggestions and measures to achieve the five-year plans targets.

To implement the PMs instructions, the Tay Nguyen Steering Committee, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the ak Lak Provincial Peoples Committee are actively preparing for the 4th Investment Promotion Conference in the Central Highlands which is scheduled to take place on Saturday (today). We hope this event will bring more potential investors to the region. -- VNS
United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. GORDON LEROY HALL, Defendant-Appellant. No. 15-10322 Decided: March 08, 2017

Before: W. FLETCHER, FUENTES,** and RAWLINSON, Circuit Judges.

MEMORANDUM*

Gordon Hall appeals his conviction for making or passing false or fictitious instruments under 18 U.S.C.  514. Hall raises three issues on appeal, one challenging the sufficiency of evidence, another alleging error in failing to order a competency hearing, and a third challenging several conditions of supervised release. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C.  1291 and 18 U.S.C.  3742. We vacate Hall's sentence and remand for clarification of two conditions of supervised release. We otherwise affirm.

1. Sufficiency of Evidence

Hall argues that the government lacked sufficient evidence to convict because the money orders at issue in this case were not false or fictitious instruments, did not purport to be issued under United States authority, and were not made or passed with an intent to defraud.

Hall's money orders were false or fictitious instruments within the meaning of  514(a). In United States v. Howick, we defined a  fictitious' obligation [as] a bogus document contrived to appear to be a financial instrument, where there is in fact no such genuine instrument. 263 F.3d 1056, 1067 (9th Cir. 2001). Because there is no such thing as a money order that promises payment from a United States Treasury account, Hall's money orders are bogus instruments of which there is, and cannot be, any genuine version. See id.

Hall argues that his money orders did not purport to have been issued under United States authority. But by listing the Treasury Department as the drawee, Hall's note purportedly directed the Treasury Department to pay the presenter of the instrument from one of its accounts. Thus construing the evidence, a rational jury could find beyond a reasonable doubt that the notes were issued under the authority of the United States. United States v. Murphy, 824 F.3d 1197, 1204 (9th Cir. 2016).

Hall further argues that he could not have evinced the requisite intent to defraud. The facts support a finding otherwise. Hall mailed his money orders only after asking his IRS agent for the specific amounts owed. He then sent two money orders in those precise amounts, along with 1040-V forms, which are payment vouchers identifying the taxpayer and tax period to which the payments were to be applied. According to expert witness William Kerr, Hall's money orders contained high-quality security features made to resemble actual money orders. Under these circumstances, a rational jury could have inferred an intent to defraud.

2. Competency Hearing

Hall's in-court statements and written submissions were at times inconsistent with obvious facts. But because his comments and conduct were indicative of a [sovereign citizen belief system], not a lack of competence[,] [he] cannot now use those beliefs as an expression of incompetency. United States v. Neal, 776 F.3d 645, 657 (9th Cir. 2015). In the absence of any mental illness or uncontrollable behavior, [defendant] had the right to present [his] unorthodox defenses and argue [his] theories to the bitter end. Id. (alterations in original) (quoting United States v. Johnson, 610 F.3d 1138, 1147 (9th Cir. 2010)).

3. Supervised Release Conditions

We ordinarily review supervised release conditions for abuse of discretion. United States v. Stoterau, 524 F.3d 988, 1002 (9th Cir. 2008). Where, as here, the defendant did not object to sentencing error in the district court, we review for plain error. United States v. Tapia, 665 F.3d 1059, 1061 (9th Cir. 2011). Under this standard, Hall must show that there was error that is clear or obvious, affects substantial rights, and seriously affects the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. Puckett v. United States, 556 U.S. 129, 135 (2009).

Hall challenges four conditions on appeal. We find no plain error in the district court's imposition of Standard Condition 5 (meet family obligations) or Standard Condition 6 (regular employment). We do find plain error with respect to Standard Condition 11 and Special Condition 3. Condition 11 prohibits Hall from associat[ing] with  any person convicted of a felony unless granted permission to do so by the probation officer. Because Hall's children are felons, Condition 11's broad language implicated a particularly significant liberty interestthe fundamental right to familial association. United States v. Wolf Child, 699 F.3d 1082, 1087 (9th Cir. 2012). Accordingly, the district court was required to follow an enhanced procedural requirement to make special findings on the record supported by evidence in the record, that the condition is necessary for deterrence, protection of the public, or rehabilitation, and that it involves no greater deprivation of liberty than reasonably necessary. Id. Almost certainly because the court's attention was not drawn to this condition and to the fact that Hall's children were felons, the district court did not make such findings. We remand for the district court to reenter judgment without this condition or to hold a resentencing at which the court may reimpose this condition, in full or in part, with appropriate findings.

Special Condition 3 prohibits Hall from making major purchases, incurring new financial obligations, or entering into any financial contracts without the prior approval of the probation officer. Again, the district court's attention was not drawn to this condition. Because the condition is not clear as to which transactions would be subject to its prohibition, the condition is impermissibly vague. See United States v. Guagliardo, 278 F.3d 868, 872 (9th Cir. 2002). We therefore vacate and remand for the district court to reenter judgment without this condition or to hold a resentencing at which the court may reimpose the condition with a more specific description of covered purchases.

AFFIRMED in part; VACATED in part; and REMANDED.
KIEN GIANG  The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Kien Giang has set itself a target of producing 63,000 tonnes of prawn and shrimp on brackish-water farms this year.

It includes 16,240 tonnes from industrial and semi-industrial farming, 40,838 tonnes from shrimp-rice farming and 5,922 tonnes from improved-extensive farming.

Three main varieties are farmed: black-tiger shrimp, white-legged shrimp and blue-clawed prawn.

Nguyen Van Tam, director of the province Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the department has directed local authorities to monitor shrimp farming to ensure shrimp diseases remain under control.

Relevant agencies and local authorities should closely follow the environmental situation to take proactive measures in case of saline intrusion during the ongoing dry season, he said.

The province should speed up agricultural expansion, promote the use of technology and advanced farming models and closely control production and provide shrimp for breeding, he said.

It plans to restructure the sector based on the large shrimp farming model to add value and link seafood processing and export companies with shrimp farmers.

It also plans to upgrade irrigation systems to provide water to meet the needs of shrimp farmers.

The province fisheries sector will regularly monitor the environment and disease outbreaks in prawn farming areas to quickly warn farmers.

Individuals and companies are regularly trained in various shrimp farming models and provided advanced support.

The fisheries sector has warned shrimp farmers they should inform authorities if there are symptoms of diseases to prevent large outbreaks.

In the first two months the province produced more than 4,500 tonnes of shrimp, nearly 36 per cent higher then in the same period last year.

According to the department, the province could exceed this years target thanks to conducive weather and environmental conditions for farming shrimp.

Potential

Kien Giang has a 200km coast that is ideal for developing the fisheries sector, particularly brackish-water prawn farming.

Of the deltas 77,000ha of rice fields where shrimp-rice farming is done, the province accounts for 20 per cent.

Last year the provinces brackish-water shrimp output topped 56,800 tonnes, nearly 9 per cent up year-on-year, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Shrimp-rice farming not only fetches farmers extra incomes but also helps them adapt to climate change, which has been causing increased saltwater intrusion in recent years.  VNS
HCM City plans to become a smart city, and the task requires concerted efforts by the administration and information technology community, a top city leader has said. Photo hanoimoi.com.vn

HCM City  HCM City plans to become a smart city, and the task requires concerted efforts by the administration and information technology community, a top city leader has said.

Speaking at a meeting yesterday with information technology executives, Tran Vinh Tuyen, deputy chairman of the city Peoples Committee, said: Information technology is the most important factor in successfully building a smart city, and the city would like to seek solutions and contributions from information technology companies.

Nguyen Quoc Cuong, deputy director of the Department of Information and Communications, said the city is drafting a master plan to build a smart city in 2017-20 that seeks to ensure a high quality of living and working and sustainability.

The project should appraise the current digital capability, identify priority fields and then come up with a detailed roadmap to create the smart city.

The smart citys central mission will be the convenience of local residents, create an open playing field for all companies and take advantage of all international and domestic resources, and this will need close co-operation between research institutes, scientists, technology companies, and financial organisations.

City authorities should pledge to support the task and the achievements should be measured based on international standards and the citys peculiar conditions.

The city has already begun to work on the smart city programme, creating a common city-wide database with an open eco-system and conceiving links between the smart city and its long-cherished administrative autonomy plans.

The smart city will comprise three technical aspects -- a data collection system with cameras, censors, and devices for the Internet of Things and information technology system, a database system, and an analysis system.

To operate a smart city will require professional managers and staff, Cuong said.

Authorities would guide universities and research institutes in training requirements, he said.

The smart city will not depend on any [particular] suppliers and have a unified architecture and easy connectivity between all levels of authorities, from city to commune.

At the meeting, the IT business executives displayed many solutions for a smart city.  VNS
KON TUM  Around 15,000 ethnic students in the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum will receive 900 tonnes of rice in the first phase of a support programme for the second academic semester this year.

The provinces Peoples Committee asked the Department of Education and Training to organise the rice donation for ethnic students.

The department is working with the provinces Department of Finance and local authorities to ensure that the amount is sufficient and that it is of good quality.

The donations are expected to be completed before April 25.

The province asked the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Education and Training to grant another 250 tonnes of rice this year during the second phase in the second semester this year.

Kon Tum has six ethnic minorities  the Gia Rai, Ba Na, Xo ang, Gie-Trieng, Brau and Ro Mam. Around 59,000 people, or 55 per cent of the population, are ethnic minorities.  VNS
HA NOI  Life had become difficult for Ho Nguyen Hoang of Nghe An Province ever since he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer and began treatment at the National Cancer Hospital in Ha Noi.

And as if fighting cancer wasnt enough, he and his wife struggled to find somewhere to rest while he was not in the treatment room (for chemotherapy, radiation, etc.)

We tramped around the hospitals corridors or sat on the stairs whenever we came here for treatment, like many other patients, Hoang said.

The recent opening of a low-cost hostel by the hospital has come as a big relief for Hoang and his wife, as also other patients and their relatives.

The hostel is located at the hospitals branch in Tan Trieu Commune, Thanh Tri District.

His wife applauded the move. The hostel, now free of charge for patients and their caretakers, has clean rooms and warm multiple-deck beds.

If only the hospital had opened this hostel earlier, she said, adding, better late than never, of course.

Another patient, Bui Van Tuan, from Vinh Phuc Province, said that he was undergoing Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer (CEST), but the ward was overcrowded. He had to share a bed with other patients, so he went to the hostel to sleep with his brother Bui Van Sau.

Sau told the Kinh te & o thi ( Economic and Urban Affairs) newspaper that he heard about the free hostel at Tan Trieu branch of National Cancer Hospital early this month, but did not expect to get free accommodation there because the hospital was usually overcrowded.

When I completed hospital readmission papers for my brother, a staff instructed me to apply for accommodation at the hostel, Sau said.

The free accommodation reduces difficulties that we face during the fight against cancer, he said.

Nguyen Van Nam of Ha Nam Province was diagnosed with nasopharyngeal cancer three years ago. The pale man was increasingly exhausted after days of chemotherapy, but said that he was luckier than many other people as he was still alive. However, his life had become a big burden on the family, he said.

Health insurance covers 80 per cent of medical costs and my family has to borrow money to pay the rest.

Previously, I used to undergo CEST during the day and sleep under stairs or in the hospital yard at night because I didnt have money to rent a place to sleep.

Sometimes it rained when I was sleeping. I quickly carry my blanket and ran to the stairs. Sleeping in the open, I also had to fight against mosquitoes, especially on days with high humidity, Nam said, smiling.

He spoke with happiness about the free hostel, where he could sleep on a warm bed, and chit-chat with others. These were moments when he seemed to forget his illness.

Tran Van Thuan, Director of the National Cancer Hospital, said that the 240-bed low-cost hostel, opened late last month, expects to provide comfortable accommodation for patients and their families. It would also help reduce congestion and improve hygiene at the hospital.

In the very days of its opening, more than 500 people have registered to stay there, he said.

The hospital arranges accommodation for about 300 people as some rest during the day and others need a place to sleep at night.

For now, the hospital provides free accommodation for patients and their caretakers at the hostel, but in the coming months a payment of VN 15,000 per bed per day would be charged. This is much cheaper than what people usually pay outside, VN 80,000-100,000 per day, according to patients.

Thuan said that Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien had urged the hospital many times to arrange a hostel for patients and their family members.

As a doctor, I feel the pain, the sadness, stress and difficulties that patients and their families have to suffer, Thuan said.

Nothing is more hopeless than the situation in which the doctors know about the patients illness but fail to save them, he said, adding that this made him very eager to provide some relief to the patients, to somehow ease their burden.

This is why the National Cancer Hospital opened the low-cost hostel, although we ourselves face many difficulties including overcrowding and shortage of facilties, he said.

The hospital has also taken 15 measures and successfully introduced advanced techniques to improve examination and treatment, he added.

The low-cost hostel was built with an investment of nearly VN3 billion (US$133,000), funded by Thai CP Group.

According to the National Institute for Cancer Control, more than 160,000 new cancer patients are detected in the country every year. There are 115,000 cancer deaths every year.  VNS
HA NOI  The health ministry has asked Ha Noi and HCM City to expand specialised inspection on food safety to 100 per cent of its districts and communes after successful trial implementation of this model.

Inspections will also be made in other localities such as Hai Phong, Can Tho, a Nang, Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh, Gia Lai and ong Nai.

The order was made at a conference held in Ha Noi yesterday to review the results of the specialised food safety inspection model in Ha Noi and HCM City. The inspection involved the participation of the Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Industry and Trade.

The specialised inspection on food safety was carried out in 10 districts and 20 communes and wards of the two cities on a trial basis between November 2015 and November 2016 following the Prime Ministers decision.

During the period, Ha Noi inspectors examined more than 3,500 food establishments and found 786 establishments violating regulations. More than 370 establishments were fined over VN1 billion (US$44,000) in total.

Meanwhile, HCM City inspectors discovered more than 2,100 violated establishments after inspecting nearly 4,000 ones. As many as 923 units were fined a total of over VN4 billion ($177,000) for violations.

Deputy Minister of Health Truong Quoc Cuong said the inspections helped to improve the effectiveness of State management on food safety and hygiene and raise awareness of both food businesses and consumers of abiding by related regulations.

However, he noted that localities still face difficulties in human resources. The shortage of specialised staff on food safety, particularly at communes and wards, affected the implementation of the project. - VNS
HA NOI  Many pavements in Ha Noi were cleared of encroachments yesterday, the first day of a campaign that targets removing illegally parked cars, shops, extended canopies and other obstructions.

In Hoang Mai, Nam Tu Liem and Bac Tu Liem districts, forces have focused on stopping cars illegally parking on pavements and dismantling illegal construction works of local businesses such as plastic roofs on Ho Tung Mau Street.

A representative of Phu Dien Communes Peoples Committee in Bac Tu Liem District said that most local people co-operated with the committee to clear the pavements. Earlier, the committee sent 1,800 documents telling locals not to encroach on pavements.

Meanwhile, in Hoang Mai and Thanh Xuan districts, no cars have been seen parking on the pavements. All vehicles have parked in parking lots on Giai Phong, Tan Mai, Nguyen Xien and Nguyen Trai streets.

Pavement order has been re-established in ong Anh and Thanh Tri districts.

Head of ong Anh Districts Urban Management Unit Pham Huu Tien said that the district is located in a suburban area, so illegal parking and pavement encroachment was less common than in the city centre.

The district had also conducted regular inspections on pavement encroachment previously, so locals co-operated with authorities to dismantle encroaching things.

Nguyen Cao Hai Danh, a food seller in front of ong Anh Districts Peoples Committee said he was informed about the issue days ago, and he agreed that pedestrians should take back the pavements.

a Nang joins HCM City, Ha Noi to clear pavements

On Thursday, a Nang launched its campaign to give the pavement back to pedestrians.

In Bach ang, Tran Phu and Hung Vuong streets, more than 200 staff were mobilised to tidy up pavements, dismantling encroaching construction works of restaurants, food vendors, cafes and moving cars from sidewalks.

Le Anh, chairman of Hai Chau Districts Peoples Committee said that authorities were determined to take the pavements back for pedestrians. For business households without stable premises, the committee would arrange a place for them to continue working.

The district committee will hand over the management of pavements to local authorities, who will deal with repeat offending.

Huynh Van Ran, head of Hai Chau Districts urban rules inspection unit said that the force had asked violating households to sign a commitment to dismantle illegal construction works.

To prevent repeat offending, the unit plans to co-ordinate with relevant forces to regularly patrol key areas, he said.

Earlier last month, the city conducted a crackdown on illegal food, cafe and parking business and handed out 98 fines with an average of VN750,000 (US$32) each.

Hai Chau District is a central district of a Nang City. Street vendors have been banned on 11 out of 252 routes. However, many routes have been encroached on for years.  VNS
WATERLOO  A Wisconsin mother has been sentenced to probation for allegedly leaving her children alone in an idling car in freezing weather.

Kristy Kay Waedekin, 29, of North Fond du Lac, Wis., entered pleas to two counts of misdemeanor child endangerment, and on Feb. 23 she was sentenced to up to two years in prison, suspended to two years of probation.

Her probation was transferred to Wisconsin, and she was ordered to comply with Wisconsin authorities regarding having contact with her children.

Police said Waedekin and her children had been reported missing around Dec. 17 after she told relatives she ran out of gas while returning from Colorado.

On Dec. 19, she parked at Covenant Medical Center and walked away, leaving the engine running and her sons, ages 3 and 6 years, inside the vehicle, according to court records. At the time, was 20 degrees with a wind chill of 7 degrees.

The 6-year-old left the vehicle after about an hour and was discovered by hospital staff. Relatives from Wisconsin traveled to pick up the children, but Waedekin remained at large until she appeared at the Waterloo Police Station on Dec. 24.
The accident occurred at about 11:15 p.m. on West Cedar-Wapsi Road between Wagner and Streeter roads. Black Hawk County sheriff's deputies said a westbound car driven by Reese Van Daele, 19, of Hudson, crossed the center line and struck an eastbound car driven by Makenzie Shover, 19, of Sumner. Both vehicles left the roadway and came to rest in the south ditch.
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency is welcoming comments for its 2018 fishing regulations. This is an opportunity for the public to share ideas and concerns about fishing regulations with TWRA staff.

The comment period concerning fishing regulations will be open from March 15 until April 23.

Public comments will be considered by fisheries managers and may be presented as proposals for regulation changes. Comments may be submitted by mail to: Attn: Fisheries Division-Comments, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, P.O. 40747, Nashville, TN 37204 or emailed to FishingReg.Comments@tn.gov. Please include Fish Comments on the subject line of emailed submissions.

This year, the TWRA Fisheries Division will present the proposed regulations at the August meeting of the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission. The commission will set the regulations at its September meeting. There will be a public comment period on the proposed regulations between those meetings.
Service members of Air Combat Command welcomed their new commander during a change of command ceremony, March 10.

Gen. James M. Holmes took command from Gen. Herbert Hawk Carlisle before a crowd of Airmen, civilian and military dignitaries and community leaders, in the 94th Fighter Squadron hangar. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein presided over the ceremony, while Acting Secretary of the Air Force Lisa Disbrow, numbered Air Force and wing commanders and former Secretary of the Air Force Whit Peters attended as honored guests.

Goldfein congratulated the command on its contributions to global airpower and ACCs role as the primary force provider of combat air power to Americas warfighting command.

There has never been a more important time to serve in uniform, he said. You truly represent the greatest treasure in our nation's arsenal, and I'm honored to serve with you as your 21st chief of staff."

In his final address to the Airmen of ACC, Carlisle expressed his confidence about the future.

I feel intense pride at what our ACC Airmen accomplish every single day across the globe, said Carlisle. I have absolute and complete confidence in Mike Holmes and Sara, that they are exactly the right team to lead this command in the future and into greater heights.

Carlisle also expressed the pride he has in the Airmen of ACC and the support they provide in garrison combat operations and continued united deployments. He thanked the Airmen for their service to their country and continued excellence.

Before taking the reins of ACC, Holmes served as the deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and requirements, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. As part of his responsibilities, he led the development and integration of the Air Force strategy, long-range plans and operational capabilities-based requirements to ensure the Air Force built and employed effective air, space and cyber forces to achieve national defense objectives.

Holmes commissioned through Officer Training School in 1981 after receiving a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Tennessee. He is also a command pilot with more than 4,000 hours, including more than 500 combat hours in the F-15A/B/C/D/E, and has also flown the T-38, T-37 and T-1A.

This will be Holmes fifth assignment within ACC. His was last assigned as the commander of the 27th Fighter Squadron from May 1999 to July 2000.

We now face new and revised challenges from both great and regional powers who threaten the survival of our American experiment, seek to isolate us from our friends and allies and hope to redefine the world on their terms, Holmes said. Our success and survival as a nation in the face of these threats are not guaranteed - it depends on all Americans to uphold ideals and make our union more perfect, but certainly depends on the capabilities you bring as part of a joint team. Yes, its a dangerous world and it grows more dangerous every day, but we will not be afraid, we will instead be ready. We will be ready to deter our enemies by demonstrating with certainty that we can defeat them.
Dilip M. Menon in Africa is a Country:

In April 2015, the statue of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in Gandhi Square, Johannesburg was almost covered with white paint by a young protestor before he was arrested. The previous months had seen a sustained agitation at the University of Cape Town for the taking down of the statue of Sir Cecil Rhodes  the imperialist and racist benefactor of the University. The statue came to stand in for a colonialism yet to end. In this attack on pigeon perches all over South Africa, a statue of the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa in Durban was covered in red paint; perhaps only because he was white, and not as an indictment of his poetry. There was some irony to the fact that the statue of Gandhi was almost whitewashed, considering the better part of his life was spent in fighting white imperialism. This month, professors at the University of Ghana called for the removal of the statue of Gandhi that had been unveiled by the President of India in June. All of these instances are reflective of a rethinking happening in Africa of the role of colonialism, anticolonialism and the idea of African identity.

The politics of statuary represents a deeper crisis located in questions of belonging, entitlement and exclusion in postcolonial Africa. In 1986, the Kenyan writer and intellectual Ngugi wa Thiongo (formerly James Ngugi) wrote his manifesto Decolonising the Mind, arguing for linguistic decolonization and combating the continuing influence of English as a language and European thought in politically decolonized, but intellectually still-colonized Africa. Thirty years down the line, the same issues have resurfaced; Ngugi, Frantz Fanon, and the South African thinker of black consciousness, Steve Biko are back on the agenda as South Africans and Africans, more generally, ask themselves, what has not changed. African universities have been ravaged by the attack of neo-liberal thinking and privatization that have made universities into factories and leeched them off politics. In South Africa, a battle has just been joined. The Feesmustfall movement that commenced in late 2015 challenged both high fees and the exclusion of youth from universities. The movement also protests against a syllabus that is nothing more than a version of courses taught in Euro-American campuses. The universities in Africa are haughtily monolingual in a multilingual landscape and the issue of African knowledge systems is not even considered. We gave up this battle, if it was ever fought, in Indian universities fairly early on, producing generations of academics to service the Euro-American knowledge economy, much as we produced clerks for the British colonial service.

Now, what does all of this have to do with Gandhi and statues of him?

More here.
Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander on Friday made the following statement on the selection of Dr. Scott Gottlieb to head the Food and Drug Administration (FDA):

Its critical to have the right person in charge of the FDA, an agency that affects virtually every American and regulates about a quarter of all consumer spending in the United States. Dr. Gottlieb has impressive qualifications helping American patients as both a physician and in his previous roles at the FDA. st Century Cures and work with Congress to bring safe and effective drugs and medical devices to patients more quickly and to protect the nations food supply.

Dr. Gottlieb has held several positions at the FDA, serving as FDA deputy commissioner, as senior advisor to the FDA commissioner, and as the agencys director of Medical Policy Development.
What county auditors want voters to know ahead of the midterm election

elections
The Eidelman and Associates team provides Allentown Pennsylvania attorneys, child support attorneys, and divorce lawyers for residents of Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, and all surrounding areas.

The Eidelman and Associates team provides Allentown Pennsylvania attorneys, child support attorneys, and divorce lawyers for residents of Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, and all surrounding areas. Attorneys at Eidelman and Associates provide such services as child support litigators, wrongful death attorneys, family law, high net worth divorce, mediation services, serious personal injury, complex business litigation, and business start up assistance.

Attorneys composing the Eidelman and Associates team include partner and founder Mary J. B. Eidelman, associate Jennifer Grossi and Ed Eidelman. Combined, Eidelman and Associates has more than five decades of accomplished experience in divorce and family law.

As a former Divorce Master in Lehigh County, I evaluated both sides in divorce cases on a daily basis, learning the nuances of Pennsylvanias divorce laws and seeing firsthand how people emerge whole during a stressful, often contentious process, said Mary J. B. Eidelman. Now, I offer the benefit of this experience to you; whether you and your spouse are on amicable terms or a more aggressive litigation strategy is required, my commitment is to always do what is in your best interests.

In the Allentown area, Mary J. B. Eidelman has earned a reputation as an excellent divorce litigation and mediation agent for over 30 years of her legal career. She has also established Eidelman and Associates as one of the most experienced in the region.

We approach each case with a combination of compassion and aggressive dedication to results, states the Law Firm on its website.

The work Eidelman and Associates does regarding high net worth divorce cases, is handled with several core values in mind. These values include providing unmatched experience in the relevant law, unwavering commitment to confidentiality and discretion, and pursuing legal strategies based on a clients goals and not a predetermined course of action.

Within family law, Eidelman and Associates states that every case matters no matter how big or small. The Law Firms full range of service within family law covers such issues as divorce, alimony, child custody, division of assets and division of marital debt, marital agreements, adoption, protection from abuse, grandparents rights, same-sex family law issues, modification of divorce decrees, and foreclosure defense and home loan modifications.

Families trying to resolve a legal issue quick while being cost effective have often chosen Eidelman and Associates mediation services to meet their needs. Mediation is seen as great option for couples who are in agreement over getting a divorce, Eidelman and Associates partner and founder has more than 28 years of experience working with families to resolve such issues as child custody and division of assets.

The Law Firm also provides services for clients who have suffered serious personal injury. According to Eidelman and Associates, the best way to guarantee the best-case scenario in the event of a serious personal injury is to settle the issue outside of a courtroom.

Media Contact

Company Name: Eidelman & Associates

Contact Person: Eidelman

Email: eidelgrospa@gmail.com

Phone: 610-437-7850

Address:1248 Hamilton Street

City: Allentown

State: PA

Country: United States

Website: http://www.eidelmanassoc.com/
BALI, Indonesia  March 11, 2017  Karma Group have announced the acquisition of a new property just outside the gorgeous historical town of Agios Nikolaos, on the Greek island of Crete.

Located only 5kms from the town, Karmas captivating new address is nestled between rugged mountains and the sea. Karma Minoan will be comprised of a selection of hotel apartments and one and two bedroom suites along with pool, bar, restaurant, library, spa and kids club. Each of the propertys 26 holiday apartments offer panoramic views of Mirabello Bay, Agios Nikolaos and the surrounding mountains. Guests will be able to spend their days lounging by the large swimming pool, or strolling down to Amoudara Beach to dive into the waters of the Aegean Sea.

I am delighted to announce the acquisition of our newest resort, KARMA MINOAN, on the beautiful Greek island of Crete, said John Spence, Founder and Chairman of Karma Group. We will be renovating and refurbishing the property to bring it up to our high standards and expect to have it open for next high season. I personally love the island and think it offers one of the best tourist experiences in the Mediterranean with its incredible and well priced food and wine, friendly, hospitable people, long sunny season and a wealth of historical, cultural, sporting and family attractions.

The resort is named after the Minoan civilisation, rulers of the island three and a half thousand years ago. The Minoans left many magnificent palaces and ruins and walking the streets of Agios Nikolaos is like stepping back in time. Settled since the Bronze Age, the town has long offered safe harbour for sailors, and now the 255 berth marina is one of Cretes most impressive and well provisioned. Visitors can relax in the cool shade of one of the many local tavernas serving authentic Cretan cuisine  the flavours of which embody a lineage as old as Arabia and the Ottoman Empire  in between exploring more contemporary cuisine at one of the many upmarket fine dining restaurants in the town.

About Karma Group:

Karma Group is an award-winning international travel and lifestyle brand offering extraordinary experiences in the worlds most beautiful locations and is headed by Chairman and Founder, John Spence, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2010. In June 2013, John was invited to join leading entrepreneurs from around the world in Monaco to join the judging panel for the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year. In July 2013, John was honoured by the Yale University School of Architecture by being appointed the Edward P. Bass Distinguished Visiting Architecture Fellow for the fall semester 2013/2014 and has also been awarded a Distinguished Visiting Fellowship at UCLA in 2015. The Karma Group is comprised of Karma Resorts, Karma Retreats, Karma Royal, Karma Estates, Karma Beach, Karma Spa and Karma Boutique. In August 2016, Karma group and Sanctum Hotel Group announced a joint venture to develop a series of authentic rock n roll styled and orientated hotels in strategic locations around the world, accompanied by an exclusive private membership club.

For more information, visit: www.karmagroup.com

Media Contact

Company Name: INTUITION Brand Marketing

Contact Person: Danielle Barnes

Email: daniellebarnes@intuitionbrandmarketing.com

Phone: 407-730-3565

Address:4700 Millenia Blvd, Suite 370

City: Orlando

State: Florida

Country: United States

Website: http://intuitionbrandmarketing.com/services
Former U. S. Congressman Bob Clement will be signing copies of Presidents, Kings, and Convicts on Thursday, March 23, from 4-6 p.m. at Star Line Books.

"Presidents, Kings, and Convicts journeys from a colorful youth growing up in the governor's mansion, to a distinguished military career, and seeing first-hand the politics of world events during the second half of the twentieth century.

It tells the story of Congressman Bob Clement's multi-faceted life, and it reveals many previously untold stories about famous people.This memoir narrates the shaping of his life as a moderate Democrat growing up in the South in the 1950s; it shares how Clement had a front-row seat to some of America's most significant events since World War II.

The book provides insights on the current crisis situations taking place in the Middle East and around the world, and it addresses the dysfunction and lack of bipartisanship among the nation's political leaders, as well as offers solutions for getting the country back on track.

Presidents, Kings, and Convicts provides entertaining and captivating behind-the-scenes accounts of some of Clement's most memorable events and the people who shaped them.

Bob Clement, U.S. Congressman, D-TN, earned a B.S. degree from the University of Tennessee and an MBA from the University of Memphis. He served two years in the U.S. Army and 29 years in the Tennessee Army National Guard. He is president of Clement & Associates and was a distinguished leader in government, business and education, including eight terms in the U.S. Congress.

Star Line Books is located near the corner of Market and Main streets.
Photos: Chicago River & Columbus Drive Go Green For Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade

By Staff in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 11, 2017 7:02PM



The Chicago River is green again for St. Patrick's Day, thanks to the work of a fleet of motorboats that are dispatched every year to toss orange powder into the River that turns it that familiar shade of neon green.

The Chicago River-dyeing is a decades-old tradition that precedes the annual St. Patrick's Day parade in the Loop. The 62nd annual parade kicked off this year around noon at the intersections of Columbus and Balbo drives. The theme of this year's parade was "Irish Immigration: A New World of Opportunity" and attorney Martin Healy Jr. served as the Grand Marshal. Check back here for more photos of the parade this afternoon.
Aiken, SC (29801)

Today

Areas of patchy fog early. Sunshine and clouds mixed. High near 80F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A few clouds. Slight chance of a shower throughout the evening. Low 62F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph.
The PLA Air Force's next-generation stealth jet fighter J-20 conducts an unscheduled flight on Nov. 1, the opening day of the six-day Airshow China 2016 held in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province. [Photo by Chen Boyuan / China.org.cn]

The Chengdu J-20, China's independently developed fourth-generation stealth fighter has entered service with the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), as revealed by the military channel of China Central Television (CCTV) on March 9.

Early in 2011, the J-20 stealth fighter made its maiden flight in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. In November last year, the J-20 fighter made its public debut at the Zhuhai International Air Show.

As a masterpiece of China's modern air force, China's first stealth fighter J-20 symbolizes the high speed of development in China's national defense capacity.

Characteristics of J-20

The Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter features a single seat, double engines, twin outward canted all-moving fins and diverterless supersonic inlet. Its canard (small forewing) design helps provide good supersonic performance, excellent supersonic and transonic turn performance, as well as improving short-field landing performance.

The J-20 fighter has an internal weapons bay, making targeting beyond-visual-range air-to-air and short-range missiles possible. With camouflage paint, the fighter also has a low-observability.

China J-20 vs. Russia Sukhoi PAK FA(T-50)

As Russia's fifth-generation stealth fighter, the Sukhoi PAK FA, also known as the T-50 first flew on January 2010, a year earlier than China's J-20. As yet, the T-50 fighter has not been put into service, reportedly due to a shortage of money, reports sina.com.cn.

China J-20 vs. U.S. Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor

As the closest lookalike to China's J-20, the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor air-to-air US combat jet, single-seater, twin-engine, can carry a total of 8,165 kg fuel, while the fuel tanks of the Chinese J-20 are able to hold as much as 11,340 kg, far beyond the F-22's, according to sohu.com.

The F-22 Raptor made its maiden flight early in 1997. And the last F-22 was delivered to the United States Air Force in 2012. It is highly maneuverable at both supersonic and subsonic speeds.

Future development of air force equipment

The Y-20, a Chinese developed large transport aircraft is displayed at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition (Airshow China 2016) in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, and conducts an exhibition flight on Nov. 1, the opening day of the airshow. [Photo by Chen Boyuan / China.org.cn]

On Feb. 24, 2017, the United States Air Force announced a plan to deploy the first F-35A fighter squadron in Europe as early as this Spring.

Meanwhile, European countries have also set about equipping the Lockheed Martin F-35 all-weather stealth multi-role fighters.

The development of China's air force equipment is at full speed. In July last year, the Y-20, a large military transport aircraft developed by the Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation, entered service with the PLAAF.

Moreover, China is developing its new generation of long-range strategic bombers, as reveled by Ma Xiaotian, a general and Commander of the PLAAF, in September of 2016.

"To build a strategic air force, we must have strong armaments, including advanced fighters, long-range bombers and a large transport aircraft," said Zhang Wenchang, a military expert from the PLAAF.
March 10, 2017

CAIRO  In an attempt to break social and psychological barriers that prevent young Egyptian women from traveling the world by themselves, Shaima Ali, an employee of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, launched the initiative Travel with Shee in August 2015. The platform encourages women of all social classes and ages to inspire other women by sharing their travel stories of trips on their own or with their families.

Ali has been holding monthly workshops in Cairo and Alexandria, attended generally by 30-40 women at a time, where female travelers talk about their experiences visiting foreign places. The talks do not address tourist attractions or local lifestyles, but rather focus on personal experiences and the way the community has dealt with the women upon their return to Egypt.

The majority of Egyptian women who travel alone often face social or religious rejection, under the pretext that it may not be safe, they may be scared abroad and fail to act or protect themselves in a community they are not familiar with, or that Islam requires women to be accompanied by a male guardian while traveling.

In February, Al-Monitor attended the workshop in Cairo and spoke to Ali and other members of the initiative.

Ali told Al-Monitor, It was unacceptable, even for my own family, that girls travel  even within Egypt. It was a far-fetched dream for me to travel by myself, but I decided to make my dream come true.

She said, Julia Roberts 'Eat Pray Love' was an incentive as she chose to travel to face her psychological problems and engage in new experiences. My first experience was a 16-day trip to Europe, where I explored a new world that allowed me to return to Egypt a new person.

Commenting on her first experience, Ali said, When I saw the world outside the Egyptian border, I came to realize that I was trapped in a box. The experience was worth the risk and challenges.

Once back, Ali decided that she did not want her experience to remain a mere personal story that ended with her return to Cairo airport. This is how the idea of Travel with Shee came about, to encourage other girls to travel and share experiences in the workshops.

"The girls who share their experiences in the workshops shed light on their own social circumstances, so that other girls become aware that traveling is not just for more emancipated or higher social classes, Ali said.

She added, The workshop is designed to break social and psychological barriers. Most of the questions asked by women who have never been outside Egypt focus on how to face the parents negative attitude, deal with Western societies or handle the high cost of travel.

She stressed, After hearing stories of other women with similar social and financial backgrounds, they learn about the options that may make it easier for them to decide to travel.

Ali focuses in the workshops on encouraging the women to travel as a way to fulfill and free themselves in Egyptian society.

She said, Our daily life is full of people who dictate what we do, by advising or coercing us. This often causes women to lose the ability to make key life decisions. Once they break this tradition and start making their own decisions  even trivial ones such as choosing what meal to have  their self-confidence will be boosted. This will not happen if they remain trapped in their small circle.

Women who manage to break social barriers often face a backlash that points to religion. In December 2012, Dar al-Ifta, Egypt's official religious institution tasked with drafting edicts, had settled the debate on women traveling without a male guardian or a male relative, and authorized women to travel with other women. The ruling focused on women's personal safety, which is the key factor that religious scholars took into consideration when discussing whether or not women should be allowed to travel alone.

Ali said, To ensure safe companionship, 20,000 girls became a member of the 'Travel with Shee' Facebook page, which has become a platform that brings together girls who share the same desire to travel and be encouraged [to do so]. [We] do not organize trips for female travelers, but we open channels of communication for women looking for a chance to travel.

Amani Hussein, 28, hails from a middle-class family in Upper Egypt. She pursued a masters degree in Germany. Hussein told Al-Monitor, Traveling has helped me achieve my goals. My decision to pursue my university studies in Cairo was the first step in confronting my parents. They felt that I was derailing from the family tradition requiring that girls get married and have their own family right after finishing school.

She continued, The dispute with the family mostly ends with the parents seeing that their daughters life has changed. Parents are more likely to accept the idea of their daughter traveling for their studies, rather than traveling to discover the world or to be free.

Speaking to Al-Monitor about her travel experiences to seven countries by herself, Hind Saeid, 32, said, Girls may benefit from the small margin of freedom given by their parents to obtain full freedom. My work in the public domain gave me more freedom away from my family. Most girls aspire to live new experiences where they discover themselves away from their family.

Saeid added, I experience tough situations every time I travel, but being responsible was the first step in becoming independent and responsible for my own decisions.

Indeed, there are many examples of Egyptian girls who manage to overcome social and religious obstacles and embark on journeys outside Egypt's borders. For many girls in Egypt, traveling does not seem a time to just relax, but more so an opportunity to discover their true capacities and personalities.
March 10, 2017

Michael Flynn, President Donald Trumps short-lived former national security adviser whose contacts with Russia cost him his job, is embroiled in a fresh controversy after telling the Justice Department that his consulting firm, Flynn Intel Group, was hired by a Turkish businessman to do work that could be construed to have principally benefitted the Republic of Turkey.

The retired generals decision to provide details of the relationship to the department under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) stressing that his firm had not received any payment from the government of Turkey was apparently calculated to pre-empt any suggestion of wrongdoing. But it has had the opposite effect. Vice President Mike Pence told Fox News that it was the first he had heard of the former National Security Agency chiefs Turkey ties. I think it's an affirmation of the presidents decision to ask Gen. Flynn to resign, he said.

Media coverage of the affair hints at collusion between Turkish businessman Ekim Alptekin, his Netherlands-based company Inovo BV and the Turkish government. Some of Turkeys Justice and Development Party critics charge that the Turkish government, not Alptekin, financed Flynn.

Alptekins initial comments via Twitter didnt help. He said he had not hired Flynn to do any lobbying. But his denials appeared to contradict Flynn Intel Groups disclosures to the Justice Department. These include a Sept. 19 meeting in New York City arranged by Alptekin between Flynn, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Energy Minister Berat Albayrak, who is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans son-in-law.

In its filing, Flynn Intel Group said it conducted open-source research for Inovo and at Inovos direction. The research, which was conducted by independent contractors retained for this purpose, focused on Mr. Fethullah Gulen and charter schools in the United States that are associated with, or allegedly associated with, Mr. Gulen.

Gulen is the Pennsylvania-based Sunni cleric Turkey formally accuses of masterminding the failed July 15 coup. Turkey is demanding Gulens extradition and has mounted an all-out campaign to prove his guilt.

Over the past few months, former Turkish generals, journalists and others have helped press the governments case at assorted Washington panels against what it calls the Fethullah Gulen Terror Organization. It would hardly be surprising, therefore, that Turkey would engage DC lobbyists to help out, and it did: Amsterdam & Partners LLP, which announced the deal amid much fanfare at the National Press Club last year.

But if Turkey wanted to retain Flynns services as well, why would it go through Alptekins company instead of doing so directly itself? A lawyer in Washington with intimate knowledge of the lobbying business said it would have every reason to do so. Speaking to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, the lawyer said, Lobbying funded by a private individual is far more subtle and effective, because when governments do the funding, the contractor is required by law to do a FARA filing with the Justice Department and anything positive you have to say about the foreign government then sounds like what it really is: propaganda.

But Alptekin emphatically denies using Turkish government funds to pay Flynn. In a telephone interview with Al-Monitor, he said his arrangements with Flynn were being distorted. I did not hire Flynn to do lobbying, he insisted. So what had he hired him for?

Alptekin said he hired Flynns company principally to produce geopolitical analysis on Turkey and the region. This was because Inovo had been hired by a regional energy company that is considering an investment in Turkey to do the analysis. But the company had not been happy with their product, so he turned to Flynn. Alptekin said he was bound by a nondisclosure clause in his contract with the regional energy company to not identify it by name  nor could he divulge the nature of its investment, which would potentially be huge.

Alptekin said, Raising money for a multibillion project of this scope necessitates improving relations between Turkey and the United States, and Gulen is obviously a big thorn. He needs to be extracted.

Alptekin, who is the president of the Turkish American Business Council, said he was a Turkish patriot who had commercial interests in the United States. Alptekin therefore had a personal stake in seeing the relationship heal, and this was part of his motivation in hiring Flynn.

Thus, in the course of his negotiations with Flynn Intel Group, the need for a lobbying and PR component was agreed upon but never executed, which is why I reclaimed and they reimbursed some $95,000, he said.

Alptekin revealed that he had signed a three-month contract with Flynn in late August 2016 and had paid his firm a total of $450,000. I was very satisfied with the analysis reporting part of the project; I got my moneys worth, he noted. The money to pay Flynn had come from Inovo and "partly" from his own accounts.

Alptekin admitted to seeing the draft of a controversial article in which Flynn called for Gulen to be extradited. He had earlier denied being consulted about it prior to its publication, but he said he had not had any influence over its final version and that he had not commissioned it. Published on Nov. 8, Flynns essay drew ill-informed parallels between Gulen and the Muslim Brotherhood. Anyone who knows anything about Turkey would know that the government would hate its worst enemy [Gulen] being likened to a group [the Muslim Brotherhood] that it views with sympathy, he said.

Alptekin repeated earlier assertions he made to various media outlets that the New York meeting between Flynn and the Turkish ministers was a last-minute thing and that he had arranged it not in his capacity as Flynns business associate, but rather wearing my Turkish American Business Council presidents hat. Gulen and the US alliance with the Syrian Kurdish Peoples Protection Units in its fight against Islamic State militants in Syria, which Turkey is deeply unhappy about, had come up during the conversation. The Turkish side did most of the talking, Alptekin recalled. He insisted, however, that Flynns encounter with the Turkish officials was a one-off thing, and that he had played no role in a breakfast meeting between Cavusoglu and Flynn in Washington, which took place immediately after Trumps inauguration while Flynn was still in office.

A Washington-based consultant familiar with Turkish lobbying efforts said that Alptekin is known as a risk taker. Hes smart, hes ambitious and he plays big. Sometimes he wins; other times, not. But if there is any impropriety in this affair, the principle responsibility lies with Flynn. The consultant, who declined to be identified by name because of the delicate nature of the issue, added, Flynn must have known what he was getting himself into.

As for Alptekin, things seem to have gone very wrong this time. The 40-year-old, who made his first million in his early 30s, said he had bragged to the regional energy company about his relationship with Flynn. But they let go of me three weeks ago  probably because of all of this.
March 10, 2017

Jordans execution of 15 men as dawn broke on March 4 in Swaqa prison, south of Amman, has raised questions and concerns among death penalty supporters and opponents alike.

The executions  the first in more than two years  were unprecedented in Jordans history both in scale and in speed: Five of the hanged men had only lost their appeals one month earlier. Dubbed the Irbid terror cell by local media, the suspected Islamic State (IS) militants had been arrested during a shootout with police in Irbid in March 2016 and were sentenced to death in the final days of December.

The executions appeared to target the new generation of jihadis: Of the 10 men hanged for terror offenses, eight had been convicted during the last year for crimes ranging from the killing of intelligence officers to the shooting of journalist Nahed Hattar.

They were convicted in closed trials in Jordans State Security Court, whose procedures fall short of international fair trial standards, according to human rights group Amnesty International.

Member of parliament Saleh al-Armouti, the former head of the Jordan Bar Association, expressed concern over the judicial process. I support the death penalty, but only when there is a fair trial.  Even Interpol does not recognize this court, he said, referring to the State Security Court.

Speaking to Al-Monitor, Armouti said the speed of the trials and the hangings were also troubling. The executions were carried out very quickly, and there is no justification for this.  These sentences were the swiftest judgements ever made, and they were the most recent cases, he said, noting that other death row inmates have been waiting more than 20 years to be executed. There is no justification for how they chose.

Attorney General Ziad Dmour said the executions were a signal to anyone trying to tamper with Jordans security, while government spokesman Mohammad al-Momani warned, Anyone who dares to engage in terrorist activities against Jordan will face the same destiny.

Analyst and journalist Yousef al-Bustanji told Al-Monitor that while the executions sent a very clear message that any attempt to undermine Jordanian security would face a swift response, the hangings also renewed public confidence in Jordans ability to tackle terrorism.

Jordan has been largely insulated from the uprisings and civil wars that have swept through its neighbors in recent years, but the kingdom has suffered a spike in Islamist attacks over the last year.

Everybody knows that Jordan is in the middle of a war zone and in an extraordinary situation, said Bustanji. The executions aimed to calm peoples fears.

But Armouti suggested that a more cynical message was addressed outside the kingdom, specifically to Washington.

The government decided to do the executions so it can be said that the government is fighting terrorism. Whoever is fighting terrorism will receive aid, Armouti said, noting that US President Donald Trump had pledged to work with Jordan to fight terrorism.

Jordan received $1.6 billion in US funds during the final year of President Barack Obamas administration and is hoping to continue the flow of assistance from the new White House, despite Trumps pledges to cut spending on foreign aid.

Internally, the Jordanian government sought to rally public support for the hangings by carefully selecting the other five men who were hanged along with the 10 terrorists. They were convicted for rape and murder, according to lawyer and death penalty expert Iyad al-Qaisi.

Each had been convicted of particularly grisly crimes that had captured the publics attention; they, too, were relatively recent arrivals to death row.

The high profiles of their cases, which are still fresh in the publics mind, decided the men's fate on March 4: They were populist choices, said Qaisi, a consultant for the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide.

Among those executed was a carpenter convicted of raping and impregnating his teenage daughter; she died when he performed an improvised abortion on her using a blade, a needle and thread. Also executed was Mohammad Khazaleh, convicted of stabbing to death Nour al-Awadat in a bus station in Zarqa. Photos of Awadat, a university student of Sharia, accompanied local media reports of the executions.

Sensationalist media reporting of the crimes was a factor in the prisoners swift executions, and it had also influenced their trials, said Qaisi. Meanwhile, Amnesty International warned that the use of torture in Jordan made the executions especially problematic.

According to court papers seen by Al-Monitor, Khazalehs conviction for the murder of Awadat was largely based on a confession that was inconsistent with the crime scene report; there were no witnesses. In court, Khazaleh retracted his confession, testifying that it was extracted by torture.

Jordans reinstatement of the death penalty in December 2014 after an eight-year de facto moratorium was presented as a response to public demand, but for Qaisi, the scale of the publics appetite for executions has been overstated.

After the moratorium was broken, the families of the remaining death row inmates rushed to reconcile with the victims relatives; as settlements were reached, dozens of prisoners were granted reprieves, in line with Jordanian law, Qaisi said.

Meanwhile, moves toward reconciliations have already begun in response to the March 4 executions, he said, citing the willingness of victims families to negotiate such settlements as evidence that the Jordanian public is ready to accept alternatives to the death penalty.

But even for staunch supporters of capital punishment like Armouti, the circumstances of the March 4 executions were disturbing. Hanging can be a bloody procedure, Armouti said, and the March 4 schedule did not even leave time to clean the death chamber between executions. Human beings have dignity. To execute them in the same place, on the same day, it was a violation of human dignity.  They shouldnt have done that.
March 10, 2017

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  Palestinian media outlets have recently been preoccupied with covering the report issued Feb. 28 by the Israeli state comptroller on the internal investigations of the Israeli armys failures in the 2014 war on Gaza. While many took this as a victory for the Palestinian resistance, Palestinians took to social media to ask, Where is our state comptrollers report?

Judge Joseph Shapira drafted the 180-page report of the State Comptroller of Israel. It consists of Shapiras investigations of how political and military leaders failed to handle the threat posed by the resistances tunnels in Gaza, which led to the death of 68 Israeli soldiers during the war. This report also included charges of negligence against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and members of his Cabinet.

On July 7, 2014, Israel waged a war on Gaza that lasted for 51 days, during which 2,147 Palestinians were killed, 530 of whom were children and 340 Palestinian resistance members, while 8,710 of Gazas residents were wounded, according to a report issued in November 2014 by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor.

Perhaps Palestinians feel it is important to draft a report about the Palestinian parties performance during the war, since the Palestinian delegation failed to achieve the required conditions when it negotiated an Egypt-sponsored cease-fire with its Israeli counterpart. One of the most important conditions that was not met was the establishment of a seaport and an airport in the Gaza Strip to ease the harsh living conditions.

Al-Monitor monitored a number of activists who posted on Facebook about the importance of Palestinian parties having their own comptroller in order to assess and review their performance during any new confrontation with Israel.

Activist Aiman Aloul wrote on her page on Feb. 28, The occupations comptroller's report is proof that they operate properly and we dont. Simple.

Palestinian youth Abu Yahya Sinwar posted on the same day, I wonder when will our state comptroller reveal anything, anything?! in reference to the lack of reports assessing the work of Palestinian institutions and parties.

Sami Akkeila, an academic lecturer at the University College of Applied Sciences in Gaza, wrote on his Facebook page March 1, Do we even have a Palestinian state comptroller? If so, where are his reports?

Political analyst Abdul-Sattar Qassem told Al-Monitor, Perhaps Palestinians do not need any oversight reports, so long as they have a president and leaders who consider themselves infallible.

For his part, Hamas leader Yahya Moussa stressed that his movement has an operating monitoring apparatus whose mission is to assess and review the political and military performance at the end of every war with Israel.

Moussa, who also chairs the Human Rights and Oversight Committee at the Palestinian Legislative Council, told Al-Monitor, Hamas closely monitors its political and military departments through a monitoring system that evaluates the performance of politicians and military men without any favoritism in order to explore and fix the areas of weakness. Proof is the growing improvement of the resistances performance against the Israeli army in every war.

He added, The aim of these reports is to draw lessons and be better prepared for any upcoming Israeli aggression. These reports are not made public and cannot be published because they contain details of the resistances secrets, resources, plans, means and methods.

Qassem believes that the Palestinian parties monitoring apparatuses are not of great value. He said, The monitoring apparatuses should be independent and not affiliated with any Palestinian party in order to guarantee transparency and impartiality, which we lack.

The Palestinian monitoring work in the Palestinian territories began when the Palestinian Authority established the Public Monitoring Body in 1995, after which the State Audit and Administrative Control Bureau (SAACB) was founded in 2004 to monitor the work of the executive, legislative and judiciary authorities. However, these control apparatuses neither monitor the work of Palestinian parties, nor do they keep track of their sources of funding and how they spend their money: They only monitor the work of state institutions.

Independent political analyst Hassan Abdo told Al-Monitor, The governments monitoring apparatuses do not do any serious work and they have no influence, because the Palestinian political regime is deeply imbalanced due to the Palestinian division between Fatah and Hamas since 2006, which resulted in two separate regimes in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

He added, The issue of monitoring and controlling the work of the state and Palestinian parties is significantly important in our endeavor to establish a strong, independent state of our own. We cannot establish such a state without a powerful monitoring apparatus.

In this context, a high-ranking official at the SAACB told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity that the Palestinian division has negatively affected the work of official bodies, as government institutions are torn between referring to Hamas in Gaza and Fatah in the West Bank. The monitoring apparatuses cannot control the work of Palestinian parties [factions] that refuse to deal with official bodies. These parties believe every party is an independent entity with independent sources of financing, according to the source.

He added, There is no Palestinian law that forces these parties to undergo official Palestinian control, so there is obvious chaos when it comes to oversight in Palestine.

Palestinians hope to have an active control bureau to investigate the political and even military failures of Palestinian parties and leaders in the framework of their struggle with Israel. However, this dream seems out of reach under the ever-growing Palestinian internal division.
March 10, 2017

A preferential trade agreement between Turkey and Iran has proved to be a huge disappointment in its first two years, with bilateral trade lagging far behind the $35 billion target the deal was supposed to achieve. The agreement, which took effect Jan. 1, 2015, introduced tariff cuts on about 300 products with a view of tripling the trade volume. The results, however, turned far off the mark, failing to achieve even one-third of the target.

Starting from its first year, the deal led to an awkward outcome: Instead of growing, the trade volume between the two neighbors declined. At the end of 2015, Turkish-Iranian trade stood at $9.76 billion  not only $25 billion short of the target, but also $4 billion below the 2014 figure of $13.7 billion.

Thus, hopes had to be extended to 2016, which came with added optimism as international sanctions against Iran were lifted in the wake of its nuclear deal with world powers. While the Iranian market whetted the appetite of global trade giants, Turkey saw itself in a highly favorable position, being an immediate neighbor with tariff cuts already in place. Yet a bigger disappointment was in store. Despite the lifting of sanctions, Turkish-Iranian trade in 2016 turned about $100 million less than the previous year, signaling the collapse of the preferential trade deal in just two years' time.

It is almost impossible not to conclude that serious political issues are snagging economic ties. Chief among them is the two neighbors' diverging policies in the Middle East, especially on Syria and Iraq. As Al-Monitor's Fehim Tastekin noted in February, political tensions between Turkey and Iran, stemming from their regional rivalry, have come to threaten economic ties.

Political discord has undermined the two countries' commerce so much that they seem headed to a point where they will trade only in natural gas and a few other urgent and compulsory items. The trade figures from the past five years offer a clear illustration of that trend.

Remarkably, Turkey and Iran traded more in the years before the preferential trade agreement. The bilateral trade volume had peaked in 2012, reaching $21.9 billion. But as the civil strife in Syria and Iraq flared, the figure began to steadily decline  first to $14.6 billion in 2013 and then to 13.7 billion in 2014. To reverse the trend, Ankara and Tehran enacted the preferential trade agreement, which they had negotiated for a whole decade. Yet bilateral tensions over regional policies proved so overwhelming that even the combined trade volumes of 2015 and 2016  $9.76 billion and $9.67 billion, respectively  fell short of the $35 billion target set under the agreement, which today seems reduced to a symbolic importance.

The data from the past two years offers small solace for Turkey, indicating that the balance in the shrinking trade has been changing in its favor.

In 2016, Turkish exports to Iran stood at $4.97 billion, up from $3.66 billion the previous year, while imports from Iran, including natural gas, were worth $4.7 billion, down from $6.1 billion in 2015. It was the first time in 16 years that Turkey had a trade surplus vis-a-vis Iran. Though it is a tiny surplus of only about $270 million, the fact that the balance is changing in favor of Turkey is a noteworthy development, the outcome of a steady trend over the past four years.

In 2013, Turkish exports to Iran amounted to $4.2 billion, while imports were worth $10.4 billion, meaning a trade deficit of $6.2 billion. The deficit declined to $5.9 billion in 2014 and $2.4 billion in 2015 before turning to a surplus in 2016.

Yet because of the shrinking trade volume, this rise in exports is no reason to celebrate. Turkey was able to export some $10 billion worth of goods to Iran in 2012, but now this figure has fallen to $4.9 billion despite the lifting of sanctions and booming demand in Iran. The overall picture is pessimistic, with no tangible sign that tripling the trade volume is a target within reach. In February, bilateral tensions forced Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci to cancel a visit to Tehran, where he had been expected to attend a business forum, together with a large number of Turkish entrepreneurs. This development alone undercuts any hope that things could take a turn for the better in 2017, as economic ties remain mired in the shadow of political discord.
March 10, 2017

After a monthslong standoff, Morocco has agreed to pull out of a neutral zone in Western Sahara, but fighters representing the latter decry the action as mere showmanship designed to minimize negative publicity and curry favor with the United Nations.

The Polisario Front, the independence movement of the Sahrawi people of Western Sahara, wants to keep the dispute front and center in the publics eye and hasnt withdrawn from the Guerguerat village buffer zone. Guerguerat lies in the far southwest of Western Sahara near the border with Mauritania.

Morocco annexed Western Sahara in 1975 after Spain withdrew from the region. The Polisario embarked on a guerrilla war and has been seeking a self-determination referendum since 1991. However, Morocco has refused any resolution that includes independence.

Each side has sought support from the UN Security Council. Many negotiating sessions were held at UN headquarters without resolving the stalemate. But the standoff at Guerguerat brought the Western Sahara question to the international scene, as it became a threat to regional security.

In August, Guerguerat became a main concern for the UN Security Council, which called on both sides to return to the negotiation table to work on a lasting solution regarding the disputed Western Sahara territory. The tension began when Moroccan forces crossed a military wall into Guerguerat, 3 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. Polisario sent its troops to stand face to face with the Moroccan army, separated only by about 200 yards.

But soon after Antonio Guterres started his first term as UN chief Jan. 1, Morocco saw an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. It reconciled with the UN and announced Feb. 26 that it was withdrawing its military personnel from Guerguerat. The move was hailed by Guterres spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, who said in a press briefing that the UN welcomes the  positive movement.

France also welcomed Moroccos decision and called on all parties to show responsibility and to unconditionally and immediately withdraw all armed elements from the region. French Foreign Ministry spokesman Romain Nadal urged a return to the status quo in the conflict.

The Polisario is not keen on the status quo, something it has been battling for decades. Keeping Western Sahara stable, with half of its population in refugee camps in Algeria, will not solve the protracted dilemma. The Polisario Front saw Moroccos withdrawal as a maneuver to contain the Western Sahara question.

Polisarios representative in Washington, Mouloud Said, downplayed the importance of the Moroccan stance and said in an interview with Alhurra that Polisario troops will stay in Guerguerat forever. He added that events in Guerguerat are only a small problem within the dispute with Morocco over Western Sahara.

It is apparent that ending the Guerguerat confrontation would push the Western Sahara question back to where it started, and Morocco would have full control over the rich part of the territory, with a lighter burden from the security situation. The Polisario wouldnt have as much to bargain with, and the UN Security Council wont consider the area a priority without a tangible threat.

Plus, the UN secretary-generals special envoy to Western Sahara, Christopher Ross, has decided he no longer wants the position, which is another sign that the situation will remain indefinitely in a state of stagnation. A new UN representative will have to start over to revive the all-but-dead talks between the Polisario and Morocco.

Moroccan forces departure from the buffer zone also seems timed toward easing tensions with Mauritania, as Morocco seeks approval to join the Economic Community of West African States, just after it rejoined the African Union in January.

The Polisario seems to have already taken advantage of that recent strain in relations between Morocco and Mauritania to boost its presence in the West Saharan village of La Guera, which is controlled by Mauritania. The town is a crossroads and lifeline for Mauritania. Its railway extends to Nouadhibou, which is a free zone where Mauritanian minerals are exported to Europe.

In fact, La Gueras strategic location makes Mauritania reluctant to support Moroccos claim on the Western Sahara.

Mauritanias geographical status makes it the bridge Morocco needs to access its considerable investment in West African countries, especially Senegal.

All these developments shape Moroccan foreign policy, which centers on tightening its grip on the Western Sahara.

The Polisario wants the UN Security Council to organize a self-determination referendum for Western Sahara. Using what leverage it has left, the Sahrawi liberation movement has been hinting that its youth are eager to return to the armed struggle  well beyond Guerguerat. Though that has not taken place yet, the young generations restlessness will be a Polisario pressure card, particularly because of the diversified background of its young Sahrawis, who have studied in Algeria, Cuba and Libya.

The Polisario will spare no effort to keep the case in the spotlight. Morocco, however, will take all necessary steps to neutralize the issue on the international level, hoping it will drop off the UN agenda as something that must be resolved to establish peace and security in the region and the world, as the territory sits on the coastal boundary with Europe.
Vatican Pope

Pope Francis waves to faithful during the Angelus prayer delivered by Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 5, 2017. The pontiff has called on the faithful to consult the Bible with the same frequency as they might consult their smart phones for messages.

(Gregorio Borgia/AP Photo)

Pope Francis has suggested he would be open to studying whether the Catholic Church should ordain men who are married as priests to help deal with the shortage of clergy in remote areas of the world.

In an interview with the German newspaper Die Zeit published on Thursday, Francis said the church will maintain its standard of celibacy for most priests throughout the world, but it could study the idea of allowing "viri probati" - married men of proven faith - to be ordained.

If the idea were studied and approved by the Catholic Church, it would be an extension of a provision the church already has to accommodate married priests in exceptional cases. Priests in the eastern rite Catholic Church are allowed to be married, and during his short tenure Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI began allowing married Anglican priests who have converted to Catholicism to serve.

Francis has said in the past that priests should be celibate, but the rule was not dogma, and "the door is always open" to change. His latest interview suggested a particular case in which the church could consider ordaining married priests, such as clergy in remote locations.

It's unclear whether the idea - if approved - would extend to the United States, and it's likely a question bishops would propose to the pope if they saw the need, said Massimo Faggioli, a church historian at Villanova University. This is part of Francis's vision of a decentralized church, he said, and the idea of celibate priests is more institutional, financial and cultural than it is theological.

The Catholic Church had married priests in its earlier years, though celibacy became a standard in the church and a flash point in the larger debates in the Protestant Reformation. In the United States, the celibacy requirement is partly what sets priests apart from clergy in Protestant denominations.

"Some people feel the need to make the Catholic Church have more visible boundaries," Faggioli said. "If you dismantle [the celibate priesthood], people will say, what's the difference between us and Episcopalian, us and Lutherans?"

The number of priests in the U.S. church has been steadily on the decline since the 1960s. In 2016, there were about 37,000 priests, compared to 58,000 in 1965, according to Georgetown's Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate.

Brazilian Cardinal Claudio Hummes, a longtime friend of Francis, has been urging the church to allow married priests in the Amazon, where the church has about one priest for every 10,000 Catholics, according to the Associated Press.

The pope's comment gives the impression that he's not talking about Western Europe, where there is less of a clergy shortage, said Monsignor Stephen Rossetti, a Catholic University of America professor who has written books on psychological care for priests.

"He's not saying we're doing it, but he's saying let's run it up the flagpole and see what people think," Rossetti said. "He's saying he's willing to make exceptions as a merciful gesture."

In November, the pope made a surprise visit to the outskirts of Rome to meet several men who left the priesthood to get married.

Mathew Schmalz, a professor of religion at College of the Holy Cross, said that if a married Catholic man like him could become a priest, he'd be interested.

"I would certainly give it serious consideration," he said. He thinks the option would be appealing to many of the Catholic Church's married deacons and to other faithful Catholics, especially older men who have the time to devote to entering the priesthood. "I think initially there would be a great rush to become a priest."

But Schmalz thinks that the idea might be less appealing to some in the pews. Celibacy, he said, suggests to many Catholics that priests have nearly superhuman spiritual gifts, to resist the normal human drive toward sexual and romantic relationships.

"For some Catholics, this is like yet another example of things they have taken for granted about Catholicism that are now being re-examined," Schmalz said. "People have always liked pointing to their priests as somehow special people."

The comments come as the pope has said the church will continue to disallow gay priests and female priests. In December, the church's Congregation for the Clergy, in a document approved by Francis, reaffirmed the church's position that priests should be celibate. The Catholic Church teaches that celibacy allows a priest to dedicate himself to God and to service of the church, a tradition of the church rather than a doctrine of the church.

"This is not a slippery slope of ordaining other kinds of clergy," said Patrick Hornbeck, chair of the theology department at Fordham University. "He's talking about broadening an existing practice. I would caution against reading too much into it."

Since he was made pontiff, Francis has made comments to journalists that have caused confusion in the press and in the church. After he created a committee to study women serving as deacons, he said women probably will never be priests. He also wrote a major document on family issues suggesting people who have divorced and remarried outside the church might be able to receive communion, but it has caused confusion over whether the church's position on who can take communion has changed.

Authors information: Sarah Pulliam Bailey is a religion reporter, covering how faith intersects with politics, culture and...everything. Julie Zauzmer is a religion reporter.
The Alabama Department of Corrections has quietly hired dozens of employees with only a sixth of the training of correctional officers to man posts inside the state's prisons.

The employees, referred to as correctional cubicle operators, are filling roles that were previously occupied by full-fledged correctional officers. But unlike correctional officers, each is trained for just 80 hours, versus the 12 weeks of full-time training correctional officers undergo in the academy.

Because of their lower level of training, cubicle operators are not allowed to interact with prisoners, a fact that many current and former Alabama correctional officers say could pose safety risks to inmates and other employees alike.

The creation last year of the correctional cubicle operator position - which is also known as level 1 security guard - was aimed at helping the DOC bridge its growing staffing gap while limiting spending.

The DOC is currently in the midst of a staffing crisis, with a "critical shortage of corrections officers department-wide with an overall staffing level of 53 percent," prison system spokesman Bob Horton told AL.com via email Friday.

New cubicle operators are paid more than $5,000 less annually than corrections officer trainees, which is a key reason for the creation of the position, according to state Sen. Cam Ward, R-Alabaster.

"They're cheaper," Ward, who chairs the Joint Legislative Prison Committee, said. "To cut to the chase, that's why you're doing that."

The entry-level salary of a cubicle operator is $23,000 per year, while the salary for officer trainees begins at over $28,500.

Because correctional cubicle operators (CCOs) receive only 80 hours of training - versus the 12 weeks of training correctional officers undergo in the DOC's corrections academy - they are not allowed to perform many tasks inside prisons. Instead, they are limited to the cubicle control center, or "cube," a room that inmates cannot access, where they can perform a limited range of tasks.

"The CCO provides indirect supervision of a housing unit. The CCO's responsibilities include locking and unlocking entrance and exit points, individual cell doors, and monitoring inmate activity," Horton said via email Wednesday.

"CCOs do not interact with inmates, nor are they given responsibilities outside their job description."

In October, the DOC hired Stanley Funk to be a correctional cubicle operator at Holman Correctional Facility, according to his profile on the LinkedIn social networking site, where he listed his job responsibilities.

"Observe, report and protect Correctional Officers, control inmate movement from dormitories and corridors along with making written reports, logs, strong communication skills and radio usage," he wrote.

There are currently 70 cubicle operators working in "most of the 16 maximum and medium custody level facilities," Horton added.

That fact disturbs some current and retired correctional officers who say that though they may save money, cubicle operators' lack of experience poses a safety concern for inmates and other prison employees.

"They're not qualified to deal with inmates. I haven't had any experience with any of those guys, but it's just a patchwork measure and one day it's going to bite them in the butt like most all these things do," retired correctional officer Karl Griffin said.

"They can't interact with the inmates, they can't assist with quelling a disturbance or anything like that."

Horton said that though correctional cubicle correctional officers cannot perform many of the tasks that the correctional officers that once worked in the cubicles were qualified to do, they still benefit the prison system.

"The CCOs give DOC facilities added staffing and the capability to operate more efficiently by providing additional 'boots on the ground' by freeing up correctional officers to manage the inmate population resulting in safer and more secure facilities," he said.

And Horton said they are given the opportunity to attend the corrections academy and potentially advance to the rank of correctional officer.

Staffing levels at Alabama's state prisons have fallen precipitously in recent years. In October 2010, the system-wide staffing level was 74.9 percent. By October 2015, that number had fallen to 64.2 percent, and as of October 2016 (the most recent month for which the DOC has released staffing statistics) overall staffing was at 52.6 percent.

Meanwhile, in a system with more than 3,200 staffers assigned to posts as of October 2016, only 144 correctional officers graduated from the DOC's training academy last year.

So the DOC has had to get creative, Ward said, hence its decision to create the CCO position.

"Because you're understaffed, that's why you have this position," Ward said. "What it does is it allows officers who are trained to be out there among the population instead of doing administrative roles."
An Anniston man was killed Saturday morning in a two-vehicle collision near Talladega.

Samuel Lee Williamson, 68, was killed when the 2001 Buick LeSabre he was driving collided with a 2013 Nissan Altima, according to Alabama state troopers. Williamson wasn't wearing a seat belt and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the Altima was injured and transported to an unspecified hospital.

The crash occurred at around 9 a.m. on Alabama 21 at the 242 mile marker, one mile north of Talladega.

Troopers continue to investigate.
An 11-year-old boy killed in his Birmingham home just one week ago will be laid to rest today, and new information has been released about what led to his death.

Nassir Battle was found unresponsive in his bed in his 80th Street South home on Friday, March 3. Jefferson County court records made public Friday afternoon said Nassir died from blunt force trauma to the head.

Birmingham police spokesman Lt. Sean Edwards said police responded about 5 p.m. March 3 to a home in the 800 block of 80th Street South. When they arrived on the scene, they found the 11-year-old unresponsive with only a shallow pulse. He was taken to Children's of Alabama where he was pronounced dead at 7:36 p.m.

Nassir was home with an adult male - identified Wednesday as 35-year-old Tracy Dickerson - his mother's boyfriend. Nassir's 8-year-old sister was also at the home, but uninjured. She was taken into protective custody by the Department of Human Resources.

Dickerson was taken into custody for questioning and arrested on a previous misdemeanor warrant. He was later released on bond pending the outcome of Nassir's autopsy.

The day after Nassir died, Edwards said, the coroner's office ruled his death a homicide. Dickerson was booked into the Jefferson County Jail on the capital murder charge at 2:09 p.m. Wednesday. The charge is capital because of Nassir's age. Dickerson remains in jail.

Court records show Dickerson pleaded guilty in 2015 to misdemeanor charges of marijuana possession, possession of drug paraphernalia and carrying a pistol without a license.

Family members have said they are stunned by Nassir's death. "We're handling it very rough,'' said cousin Zena Battle.

Nassir's mother, Lavora Battle, was at work that Friday night when she received a call that Nassir was unresponsive. She went home and was told he had fallen in the bathtub and drowned, relatives said. It wasn't until Monday they learned the death had been deemed a homicide.

"I'm shocked,'' said family friend Candace Humphries. "I wouldn't expect this to happen to him."

Nassir was well-loved and will be missed. "He was a sweet little boy,'' Humphries said. "He always smiled, was always joyful."

A GoFundMe account to help with Nassir's funeral expenses had raised more than $5,900 by Friday. Visitation for Nassir was held from 2 p.m. until 8 p.m. Friday at Aubrey Bushelon. His funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. today at Lighthouse Church Ministries, with burial following in Forest Hill Cemetery.
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Candy Cheatham with photo of her father Cole Cannon

(Michael Mercier)

The case of Evan Miller, an Alabama inmate, gave a new possibility of release for a few thousand inmates who were juveniles when they killed someone. Now Miller is scheduled to be re-sentenced for murder next week.

Lawrence County Circuit Judge Mark B. Craig will have two choices: resentence Miller again to serve life without the possibility of parole, or grant a new life sentence in which he could be eligible for parole after serving 30 years.

The hearing begins Monday and could last a week or more. Miller is expected to testify.

Miller was 14 years old in 2003 when he was arrested in the slaying of Cole Cannon, a 52-year-old neighbor who was beaten and robbed before Miller and another teen set Cannon's mobile home on fire.

Miller was tried as an adult and was sentenced in 2006 to life without the possibility of parole. He is serving his sentence at the St. Clair County Correctional Facility.

Among those pushing for Miller to be re-sentenced to life without the possibility of parole is Cannon's daughter, Candy Cheatham.

"If you look at the seriousness of what he did, the details of what he did, the heinousness of what he did ...," said Cheatham, who will testify at the hearing along with her brother and sister.

She has had to live with the memory of the horrible way her father died every day.

Miller has shown no remorse or any effort at rehabilitation, Cheatham said. "I think he's a danger to society and would commit the same crime again," she said.

"I plan to discuss who my dad was and the impact that this crime has had on me, my family," Cheatham said. "I have two daughters (7 and nine) and nieces and nephews who never got to meet their grandfather," she said.

Her dad was there for her wedding, but not for her sister and brother's weddings.

Miller's re-sentencing will likely draw nationwide attention because his case set the precedent for the sentencing of juveniles across the country.

In 2005 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that juveniles - those who were under the age of 18 when the crime occurred - can't be executed for a capital murder conviction.

Under capital punishment laws in many states that left judges with only one sentence available for punishing juveniles like Miller who were convicted of capital murder: life without the possibility of parole.

Miller's lawyers with the Equal Justice Initiative based in Montgomery appealed his sentence all the way to the nation's highest court. And in Miller v. Alabama the U.S. Supreme Court in 2012 ruled unconstitutional laws in Alabama and other states that only leave life without the possibility of parole as the only sentence judges can consider. Judges can still sentence juveniles to life without parole, but must have more sentencing options and must consider mitigating factors.

Then in January 2016, in the case Montgomery v. Louisiana, the U.S. Supreme Court held that their earlier decision in the Miller case is to be applied retroactively to those who were convicted prior to 2012. Alabama and some courts in other states had held that it wasn't retroactive.

The Miller and Montgomery decisions opened up the possibility of parole for more than 2,000 juvenile killers nationwide, including about 80 in Alabama.

To avoid the possibility that some of those inmates might get out after serving only a small portion of a life sentence, the Alabama Legislature last year enacted a new law. That law requires those inmates to first serve 30 years in prison before getting their first crack at a parole hearing.

Evan Miller (Photo/PrisonReform.com)

Under state parole board rules inmates serving a life sentence are first given a chance at parole in 15 years.

Cheatham said she also wants Miller to get life without parole because she doesn't want to have to deal with having to go to parole hearings and re-live her father's death over and over again. She also doesn't want the possibility that her children would have that burden in the future.

Her children don't know the details of their grandfather's death. Cheatham said she will share those details with them when they are older.

The Alabama Attorney General's Office, which is acting as the prosecutor at the re-sentencing hearing, declined comment for this story.

Miller's defense

Miller's attorneys with the Equal Justice Initiative are expected to present mental health experts and evidence regarding Alabama Department of Human Resources records on Miller and his family.

Bryan Stevenson, the founder of EJI, had not responded to a request for comment prior to publication of this story.

The Alabama Supreme Court in 2013 set out a list of 14 factors judges could use in determining whether to sentence a juvenile convicted of a capital crime to life with or without the possibility of parole. - The juvenile's chronological age at the time of the offense and the hallmark features of youth, such as immaturity, impetuosity, and failure to appreciate risks and consequences.

Among those factors are the circumstances of the offense, the extent of the juvenile's participation in the crime, the juvenile's family, home, and neighborhood environment; the juvenile's emotional maturity and development, the juvenile's past exposure to violence, drug and alcohol and mental health history.

In a request last year to get records from the Morgan County DHR the EJI stated that "appellate courts who have reviewed Mr. Miller's case have also recognized the importance of Mr. Miller's childhood and background in finding his mandatory life without parole sentence unconstitutional."

And "finding Mr. Miller's sentence unconstitutional in part because of his 'pathological background,' including his history of physical abuse, neglect, time in foster care, and history of self-harm."

Lawrence County records indicate there were 19 reports regarding the family between 1987 and 1998 in Cullman and Morgan Counties.

In its 2012 decision in Miller's case the U.S. Supreme Court recognized Miller had issues.

"And if ever a pathological background might have contributed to a 14-year-old's commission of a crime, it is here. Miller's stepfather physically abused him; his alcoholic and drug-addicted mother neglected him; he had been in and out of foster care as a result; and he had tried to kill himself four times, the first when he should have been in kindergarten. Nonetheless, Miller's past criminal history was limited-- two instances of truancy and one of "second-degree criminal mischief."

"That Miller deserved severe punishment for killing Cole Cannon is beyond question," the court wrote. "But once again, a sentencer needed to examine all these circumstances before concluding that life without any possibility of parole was the appropriate penalty."

A victims' rights activist, who plans to be at next week's hearing, said she personally would like to see Miller re-sentenced to life without parole. "We respect the courts and the law and don't necessarily agree with that the courts decided in the (Alabama and Louisiana) cases," said Darlene Hutchinson Biehl, a volunteer crime victims' advocate who also is the president of the Montgomery chapter of Victims of Crime and Leniency (VOCAL)."

"Capital murder is the worst of the worst ... When victims' families have to be pulled back into court it is unfortunate," she said.
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The areas in blue in Alabama will be under a frost advisory starting at 3 a.m. Saturday. (National Weather Service)

Those plants that got an early start on spring might have to pay for it tonight.

North and parts of central Alabama could get hit with widespread frost overnight, and the National Weather Service has issued frost advisories for early Saturday morning.

The weather service in Huntsville issued a frost advisory that covers all of north Alabama, including the cities of Huntsville, Muscle Shoals, Decatur, Cullman and Fort Payne, among others.

The north Alabama frost advisory will be in effect from 3 a.m. until 7 a.m. Saturday.

Forecasters said temperatures could fall into the lower to middle 30s overnight.

The weather service in Birmingham's advisory includes much of north-central Alabama, including Birmingham, Gadsden, Anniston, Hoover, Talladega and Sylacauga, among others.

It will also be in effect from 3 a.m. until 7 a.m. Saturday.

The weather service said temperatures overnight were expected to fall into the low to mid-30s across the advisory area.

Frost advisories are typically issued when widespread frost is anticipated that could kill sensitive plants.

More cold temperatures are expected this weekend, and north Alabama also runs the risk of snow starting late Saturday into Sunday morning.
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North Alabama could see some light snow overnight. Rain could change over to snow tonight for some areas of north Alabama, with accumulations up to an inch expected. (National Weather Service)

There is some snow on the ground early this morning in parts of north Alabama.

But it's not much snow, and it won't stick around.

The National Weather Service in Huntsville early Sunday was watching a band of light wintry precipitation move across north Alabama.

Snow has been spotted in some areas:

About 3/4" (rounded to 0.8") of snow measured here in Toney, AL on flat surface. #alwx @NWSHuntsville pic.twitter.com/62SYHNPITF  Chris Palmgren (@w4ors) March 12, 2017

12:51AM- Big snowflakes have started here at the office! We have a light dusting on the cars. #HUNwx  NWS Huntsville (@NWSHuntsville) March 12, 2017

Meanwhile, to the south, a cold rain was falling on parts of central Alabama.

Temperatures as of just after 3 a.m. Sunday had fallen to 32-34 degrees across much of north Alabama, the weather service said.

A winter weather advisory was in effect for DeKalb County in northeast Alabama until 7 a.m. Sunday. The advisory for Jackson County was cancelled as of 3 a.m. Sunday.

The weather service was still waiting on more snow reports to come in from observers as of early Sunday morning.

Forecasters had expected the higher elevations of Jackson and DeKalb counties to get up to an inch of snow.

Around a half inch of snow was possible north of the Tennessee River, and a light dusting was possible south of the river.

A few snowflakes could make it into north-central Alabama as well, according to the weather service in Birmingham.

The US278 corridor (esp. higher elevations) could see a few flakes/ice pellets early tomorrow AM w/ no accums. Otherwise, cool and rainy. pic.twitter.com/H86pXXtw1l  NWS Birmingham (@NWSBirmingham) March 11, 2017

The northernmost part of central Alabama has the best chance of seeing any winter weather, and the main window for the changeover will be just before or around sunrise on Sunday.

No accumulations are expected in central Alabama, forecasters said.

As of 3 a.m. Sunday a thinning band of wintry precipitation was moving through northern Alabama. It appeared the window for snow was over in much of north Alabama.

It appeared the snow was over for most of north Alabama as of 3 a.m. Sunday. (NWS)

The weather service said the band moved in faster than anticipated and became more narrow as it progressed eastward. Drier air was filling in behind it.

Temperatures will fall near to below freezing overnight in north Alabama, but they won't stay there for long. Highs on Sunday will reach the 50s in much of Alabama.

More rain enters the forecast again by Monday, and a few snow flurries may be possible in northeast Alabama on Tuesday.

Much colder air will arrive after that disturbance departs, with low temperatures in the middle 20s possible across north Alabama and freezing temperatures possible southward into central Alabama.

The cold snap won't last: Highs will gradually warm up and by next weekend could be in the 60s again.
President Trump fired a federal prosecutor Saturday who said he wouldn't honor Attorney General Jeff Sessions' request to resign.

Preet Bharara, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, tweeted he had been fired from his job.

"I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life," Bharara said.

According to CNN, Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente informed Bharara of his firing.

The Justice Department announced Friday Sessions had asked for the resignation of all 46 remaining Obama administration U.S. attorneys.

"As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the Department of Justice," Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said in a statement. "The Attorney General has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed U.S. attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition."

Sessions' office said some U.S. attorneys would be asked to stay in place and Bharara indicated in November he'd been asked to stay on by Trump and Sessions. On Friday, however, Bharara received the same call as the other federal attorneys but indicated he would not be resigning.
A bill to require insurance coverage for therapy for children with autism faces an uncertain future after the House Insurance committee chair, Rep. Kerry Rich, R-Albertville, this week called for compromise.

But the problem is the two sides couldn't be farther apart. And Rich made no promises that he will bring the bill up for a vote.

HB284, sponsored by Rep. Jim Patterson, R-Meridianville, calls for health insurance coverage for applied behavioral analysis, a type of behavioral therapy that is a primary treatment for children with autism.

Nick Saban and his wife Terry sent a letter Monday to the Alabama Legislature, urging its members to support HB 284, the Autism Insurance Reform Bill.

"Forty-five US states have laws requiring health insurance coverage for autism therapies," they wrote in the letter. "We are asking you to assist these families to get the help they need for their children and loved ones."

But business interests oppose the bill, saying the cost of providing coverage would drive insurance premiums up to the point that some businesses could not afford coverage.

Opponents of HB284 during a public hearing on Wednesday argued the mandated coverage amounts to a tax, similar to the federal Affordable Care Act.

A competing version of the bill, SB57, calls for coverage of the therapy only for children from birth through nine years old and places the administration of the program under the Department of Mental Health. That version would also pulls $3 million from the state's education budget to provide no more than $40,000 of services per child in a given year.

Opponents of SB57 argued the financial burden doesn't belong in the education trust fund, nor should it be administered under a government agency.

Board-certified behavior analyst Ashlie Walker testifies at a public hearing on HB284, Mar. 8, 2017

According to Autism Speaks, 45 states cover behavioral therapy for people with autism. It is the primary therapy for children with autism and is as essential to treating autism as insulin is to treating people with diabetes.

Ashlie Walker, a board-certified behavior analyst, employs 24 certified behavioral analysts who work in Alabama, and calls the battle against HB284 "a war on kids with special needs."

Walker told lawmakers, "Fifty years of research have demonstrated the effectiveness of applied behavioral analysis." Denying people with autism coverage for behavioral therapy is the same as denying people with cancer access to care, Walker said.

At a public hearing in the House Insurance committee on Wednesday, parents of children with autism lined up to share their stories of financial ruin in trying to afford therapies for their children.

Parents and experts spoke of the life-changing benefit behavioral therapy has for children with autism and the fears they have if they can't afford to pay for that therapy.

Many parents were held outside, as the committee room quickly reached capacity.

The hearing on AL HB284 received plenty of attention by parents & advocates on Wed. yet few were let inside. #exclusion #alpolitics #standup pic.twitter.com/7qjhW0ePBx  Autism Society of AL (@AutismSocietyAL) March 9, 2017

Michael Wasmer with Autism Speaks said the cost to provide coverage was around 50 cents per member of the involved insurance pool. But Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama lobbyist Robin Stone spoke in total costs of millions of dollars.

Wasmer said Stone's projections were faulty because they were based on the assumption of maximum usage of behavioral therapy, because not all children with autism need behavioral therapy, and those that do would not require maximum usage.

Even children with autism who need maximum therapy only need that level of usage for three to five years, Wasmer said.

Once a child with autism starts school, if a determination is made that behavioral therapy is necessary, schools shoulder the cost. Ultimately, that means taxpayers are paying for needed therapy that supporters of HB284 believe should be covered by insurance.

Business Council of Alabama President Bill Canary testifies at public hearing on HB284, Mar. 8, 2017.

Business Council of Alabama President Billy Canary, testified against the bill, and said he had worked on the Governor's Working Group on Children with Autism last year that crafted SB57 in hopes of avoiding "pitting one group against the other."

Canary said it is not fiscally responsible for behavioral therapy to be covered without limits.

Canary acknowledged the emotions involved, saying "these children do need help," and said the governor's working group kept Psalm 127:3 at the forefront of their discussions: Children are a gift from God.

Patterson said the families of children need help now.

"We don't need to let another year to go by without doing something to help these children," Patterson said.

After the meeting, Patterson and Canary had a heated exchange.

Canary asked why Patterson filed the bill without approaching him, and Patterson pointed out that it's usually the lobbyists who approach lawmakers, not the other way around.

Canary accused Patterson of having his own agenda to force a healthcare tax on people, to which Patterson replied, "Don't call it a tax. I resent that."

Canary said, "It is a tax. That's the truth."

Patterson said, "I'm willing to work with you, but don't insult me by calling it a tax. That's just a way to play politics. Billy, you're better than that."

The men agreed to meet. "We've got to do something," Patterson said, adding he is hearing from parents in his district "crying and begging for help, and I'm going to represent the people in my district because that's what I'm down here for."

Walker agrees that help is needed now, saying behavioral therapy when provided early makes a difference in whether a child with autism becomes independent or spends their life dependent on loved ones and government assistance.

Referring to the struggle to get insurance coverage for children with autism, Walker said, "We're in the most desperate place I can imagine."

Dr. Bama Hager of the Autism Society of Alabama, attended the hearing and said afterwards, ""Alabama families living with autism would like the opportunity to see our lawmakers that represent us have a vote on HB284. We'd like to see it come out of the committee favorably for a vote on the floor so that we can see which of our legislators are representing us in the way that we have asked them to represent us for eight years."
A Dothan man is accused of stealing an ambulance from a Eufaula hospital on Saturday morning and leading police on a chase.

Eufaula police were notified of a Clay County, Ga. ambulance being stolen from Medical Center Barbour at around 5:40 a.m., police said. Officers located the ambulance driving south on Eufaula Avenue.

Police say the driver refused to stop and continued traveling into Henry County. Officers were able to stop the vehicle after disabling several of the ambulance's tires. The ambulance stopped just inside the Abbeville City Limits on Highway 431.

No injuries were reported, Eufaula police say.

The suspect, identified as Chris Crumpton, 31, of Dothan was arrested. Multiple charges from several jurisdictions are pending.

The motive behind the theft hasn't been released.
 Flash

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan hailed improved bilateral ties between the two countries on Friday, as they pledged to keep on working together to end the turmoil in Syria.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) shakes hands with his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan after the talks at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, March 10, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

The two leaders held talks at the Kremlin to discuss strategic aspects of the development of Russian-Turkish bilateral relations, as well as cooperation to address pressing global and regional issues, especially conflicts in Syria and Iraq.

"The ceasefire in Syria is generally holding thanks to the well-coordinated efforts of Russia, Turkey and Iran." Putin said, "We agreed with our Turkish colleagues to continue our cooperation in fighting terrorist groups, above all ISIS, working together through our military and special services."

Cooperation on the Syria issue between Russia and Turkey marked a sharp turnaround for the two nations, which have supported opposing sides in Syria for years. Both countries are now pushing forward the Astana talks aimed at addressing the fighting in Syria, with the third round of such talks scheduled in the middle of the month.

"As far as security matters in our region are concerned, I believe that it takes joint efforts to end bloodshed in Syria," Erdogan said after the meeting.

During the meeting, the two leaders also discussed bilateral affairs including cooperation in trade, energy, investment and infrastructure.

"I would like to emphasize that we regard Turkey as a very important partner...Key bilateral mechanisms were recently re-established." Putin said.

Erdogan noted that cooperation plans for the natural gas pipeline called Turkish Stream and the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey have also started getting back on track. Both projects were suspended amid the escalated tensions at the end of 2015.

The talks concluded with the signing of multiple agreements, including the wide-ranging cooperation program for 2017-2020 aimed at stabilizing the mutual flow of goods, services and capital, and the establishing of a new joint investment fund with a capital of up to 1 billion U.S. dollars.
A Moundville man was killed Friday afternoon when the vehicle he was driving collided with two others in Autauga County.

Keith Oneil Jones, 51, was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Alabama state troopers.

The 2010 BMW Jones was driving hit a 2015 Jeep and 2012 Hyundai Elantra, troopers say. The driver of the Jeep was transported to a hospital with injuries.

The crash occurred at 4:05 p.m. at the intersection of U.S. 82 and Autauga County 19, between the 124-125 mile markers.

Troopers continue to investigate.
Justine Gun.jpg

My wife at the gun range.

Imagine if an Alabama politician introduced legislation that required citizens to pay a fee in order to attend church. He or she wouldn't be a politician for very long. Why? We wouldn't take kindly to government turning a profit off our exercise of constitutional rights embodied in the First Amendment.

Our reaction shouldn't be any different when it comes to the Second Amendment. Gerald Allen's SB24 embodies that sentiment. Among other changes, the legislation would repeal certain restrictions on carrying a firearm without a permit.

That has many sheriffs across Alabama concerned about the consequences of the bill on law enforcement. "The pistol permit is a tool used by law enforcement to quickly screen an occupant of a vehicle or a person stopped in investigative detention to determine if they are lawfully allowed to possess a concealed handgun," wrote Madison County Sheriff Blake Dorning.

The other consequence of repealing the permit requirement is lost revenue to sheriff's offices. According to Al.com's Brendan Kirby, the permit fees range from $7.50 to $30 per year across Alabama's counties.

There's an easy compromise here: Keep the permit and remove or reduce the fee. The government shouldn't profit off citizens exercising a constitutional right, but it doesn't mean that it's not helpful for law enforcement to anticipate how to engage a firearm during a stop.

It's not a particularly heavy burden to apply and secure a permit. Sheriff Mike Hale of Jefferson County, for example, has made the process about as easy as it could be. I dropped off my application, the sheriff's office ran a background check, and they issued me a pistol license good for five years.

While we're at it, the process could be even easier by allowing gun dealers to issue pistol licenses when handguns are purchased. Dealers are required to run background checks on customers anyway. Why not ask if he or she would like a carry license at the same time?

Alabamians are passionate about their Second Amendment rights, but most of us don't want to make law enforcement's job any more difficult or dangerous than it already is. If sheriffs have safety concerns about removing the permit requirement, we should take them seriously. That said, Senator Allen's insistence that government shouldn't profit off our Second Amendment exercise is right on the money.

Cameron Smith is a regular columnist for AL.com and state programs director for the R Street Institute, a think tank in Washington, D.C.
Diyarbakir was the second Turkish city I knew of as a child. The first one was Istanbul, or Tsarigrad as Bulgarians used to call it  the city of kings.

Tsarigrad was the grand city of cities  a place of high culture and power, the conquest of which was a painfully unattainable dream for our medieval kings, we were told as children. To this day the main boulevard in Sofia is called Tsarigrad Road  the one many Bulgarian merchants, priests and learned men would take when they had business to do in the imperial capital in Ottoman times.

And then there was Diyarbakir  a city of hopelessness and desolation, strange and remote, or as we say in Bulgarian, 10 mountains away. It was where Bulgarian revolutionaries who fought for independence from the Ottoman Empire were exiled in the 19th century. It became the epitome of suffering for the Bulgarian cause in popular Bulgarian culture.

And here I am today, 10 mountains away from home looking at a city that had occupied my childhood imagination with tales of exile and misery, only to discover that now it has other stories of displacement and hardship to tell.

Exactly one year ago, the anti-terrorism operation against the Kurdistan Workers Party ( PKK ) fighters in the historical Sur district of Diyarbakir ended, leaving four of its neighbourhoods heavily damaged and tens of thousands of people displaced.

Revolutionary exiles

If you were to conduct a survey among Bulgarians of all social classes and educational levels and ask what they associated with Diyarbakir, they would say exile. If you ask what they associate with exile, they would say Diyarbakir. The two words have become synonymous, writes Bulgaria-born Turkish writer and academic Huseyin Mevsim in his new book Diyarbakir Exiles.

In the 1860s and early 1870s, more than 100 Bulgarian revolutionaries who plotted and incited Bulgarian revolts were exiled to Diyarbakir.

The plight of these people  as few as they were  was a major theme in Bulgarian 19th-century literature, which, with its nation-building pathos, shaped the Bulgarian national psyche.

Long and wide is Diyar Bakir, strong and tall are his walls of its citadel, heavy are the Turkish chains. This city has been cursed by God. Theres no rain, no dew, no mountain breeze; theres nothing good as there is in our lands in our blessed Bulgaria, Lyuben Karavelov, a 19th-century Bulgarian poet who never visited Diyarbakir, wrote in his short story Martyr .

Today, the Kurdish-majority city of Diyarbakir looks like any other large Turkish city: full of modern buildings, wide streets, and shopping centres. Life is bustling in the new part of town, and except for a few police checkpoints with armoured vehicles, one would not know that an anti-terror operation had just concluded in the area.

The citadel where the Bulgarian exiles were initially kept is still standing strong and tall at one end of the Sur district  the old part of the city. While it does get hot in Diyarbakir, it is hardly a desert. Just below the walls of the citadel flows the Tigris River, which waters the vast agricultural lands of Diyarbakir before flowing east through Mosul and Baghdad and into the Gulf.

The Bulgarian exiles initially had a rather miserable life. Those who survived the long journey to Diyarbakir were then forced to face horrible living conditions in prison, where some succumbed to disease and died. But their circumstances eventually improved.

It was the local Christian community, especially the Assyrians, who vouched for them and lobbied the local authorities to ease their imprisonment and allow them to live and work in the city.

Bulgarian connection

I asked Father Yusuf about Diyarbakirs Bulgarians, but he only shrugged his shoulders.

We built this place a few thousand years ago, he said proudly. We were the first to convert to Christianity and spread it.

Father Yusuf is the lone priest of the 1,750-year-old Assyrian church St Mary in Diyarbakirs Sur district. Of the thousands of Christians (Armenians, Assyrians and Greeks) that used to live in the city only about 100 are left.

I asked Father Yusuf why he stayed with his family in Diyarbakir when so many Assyrians left the country.

He answered my question with a question: Should I also leave?

He then pulled on the white-and-red thread on my wrist. I explained it was a martenitsa  part of a Bulgarian pagan custom celebrating spring.

Its Christian. We also have it. The red and white symbolise the humanity and divinity of Christ, he told me.

During the security operation against the PKK, Father Yusuf had to leave the church. When he came back, three of its doors were damaged but everything else was intact, he said. On the other side of Sur district, the Armenian Catholic Church was not so lucky. It suffered partial damage during the operation and it remains within the security area still under curfew in the northeastern part of Sur.

Nearby, there is a small Bulgarian cemetery where some of the revolutionaries who died in Diyarbakir were buried. It is also within the borders of the security area, so I couldnt visit.

I did, however, manage to get to Cifte Han, a small merchants building that the Bulgarians rented to do business after they were permitted to live and work in the city. Some of the revolutionaries came from prominent families and were well-educated. They were welcomed in Diyarbakir by the local population and were well-respected, said Seyhmus Diken, a Diyarbakir-based Kurdish writer who did research on the Bulgarian community. It was one of the Bulgarian exiles, the artist Georgi Danchov, who opened the first photography shop in Diyarbakir, Diken told me.

Today, theres no trace left of Cifte Hans former Bulgarian glory. The walls of the han are still standing but its ceiling has caved in. The massive wooden door is locked and no one in the area seemed to know it was once a flourishing Bulgarian operation.

As I tried to peek through a crack in Cifte Hans door, white dust filled the narrow alleyway. People came out covering their mouths. Just 20 metres down the road, behind the police barriers in the security area, another house was being demolished by the local authorities, who say they are clearing buildings damaged by the fighting.

Minority issues

Today, the only strong Bulgarian connection I managed to find in Diyarbakir were smuggled Bulgarian cigarettes. MM and Prestige are all over the place in southern Turkey . Smuggled through a bizarrely long and complex route  from Bulgaria to Turkey to Iraqi Kurdistan then to northern Syria and then finally to Turkey again  these cigarettes are known for being extra cheap  about 4 lira ($1) a pack.

A Kurdish journalist told me the MMs are so popular that locals call them Mela Mustafa  named after Mustafa Barzani, the late Kurdish nationalist leader and father of Iraqi Kurdistans President Messoud Barzani.

Most of the Bulgarian exiles left Diyarbakir after a Bulgarian state was established with Russian help in the late 19th century.

Like elsewhere in the Ottoman Empire, the Balkans were ethnically mixed all over. Almost all wars fought after 1878 in the Balkans have been about ethnic borders and the perverse idea of a nation-state. Forced displacement was perpetrated by all sides in the process.

After all that, Bulgaria was left with ethnic Turks making up about 10 percent of its population. Through the following decades, they suffered various levels of oppression. During communist rule, the party initially gave Turks education and newspapers in Turkish, only to turn around a few decades later and decide it was a good idea to forcefully assimilate them by changing their names to Bulgarian ones.

Today, under democracy, the Turkish minority has had 10 percent political representation in every parliament elected since 1989, but a solid dose of ethnic nationalism still runs in the veins of most members of the Bulgarian ethnic majority. Talk about Turkish culture and language in Bulgaria usually gets you hostile stares and aggressive declarations such as, This is Bulgaria. We speak in Bulgarian.

We learn in schools that a Bulgarian means being ethnic Bulgarian and Christian (whether believing or not).

Just like in Turkish schools, children learn that being Turkish means being an ethnic Turk and Sunni Muslim.

A lot of the complaints I heard about discrimination against Kurds in Turkey remind me of the problems that Turks face in Bulgaria. But many Turks, like many Bulgarians, would say theres no problem.

Of course, the parallel between the Kurdish issue and the Turkish issue can be drawn up to a point. The military conflict in southeast Turkey has dragged down the Kurdish issue into the realm of national security.

The UN just released a report saying the security operation in the southeast has resulted in the deaths of 2,000 people and the displacement of between 350,000 to 500,000.

There is no parallel to that in Bulgaria today and I hope there never is.

But Turkeys and Bulgarias cases both illustrate the same thing: The ethnic nation-state model is doomed to fail in ethnically diverse societies. And unfortunately, as we painfully know in the Balkans, its forceful imposition leads to death, misery and displacement.
With a parallel track of talks and an amended agenda, the diplomatic process to end Syrias war is transforming.

The fourth round of UN-led Syria talks, dubbed Geneva 4, wrapped up last week with a tentative agreement between warring sides on an agenda for future negotiations  but a problematic work plan coupled with shifting international priorities could draw out the already lengthy diplomatic process.

For nine days, United Nations special envoy Staffan de Mistura met separately with delegations from the Syrian government and three different opposition groups in an effort to end six years of bloody war.

But the negotiations, the first in 10 months, turned out be little more than closed-door consultations  evidence of a diplomatic process kept on life-support by the international community for lack of any other option.

Any real movement on the key opposition demand for a political transition remained stalled amid disagreements over the make-up of the opposition delegation and the governments demand to add counterterrorism as a core subject of negotiation.

READ MORE: Idlibs rebel split  A crossroads for Syrian opposition

De Mistura originally convened the talks to tackle the tenets of UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which deals with the subjects of governance, UN-supervised elections and the formation of a new constitution.

But discussions on political transition were sidelined by a deadly suicide attack on military installations in the government-held city of Homs at the outset of the talks, as representatives of Syrian President Bashar al-Assads government and its Russian backers increasingly shifted the focus towards the necessity of combating terrorism.

Lead government negotiator Bashar al-Jaafari accused the oppositions High Negotiations Council (HNC)  an umbrella group of political and military figures  of holding progress hostage by refusing to unify with two smaller opposition groups.

Regardless, de Mistura said the parties ultimately agreed to the framework of an overall political package for a negotiated transitional political process in Syria made up of four core subjects of debate, or baskets. The first three were given clear implementation timelines and expectations, but analysts say the fourth may prove problematic.

During the next six months, parties are expected to address all issues related to the establishment of credible, inclusive and non-sectarian governance and to set a schedule and process for drafting a new constitution. UN-supervised elections should be held within 18 months.

The fourth basket, added due to government insistence and Russian pressure, deals vaguely with issues related to counterterrorism and security governance, and also confidence-building measures.

In all previously held diplomatic rounds  from Geneva I to Vienna to Astana  Damascus has framed the war in Syria as a fight against terror, but analysts say the inclusion of anti-terrorism as a central and equally weighted topic of discussion could sideline momentum towards a political solution.

Further complicating matters are the commonalities between the UN-led process and a separate Russian-led track in the Kazakh capital of Astana. While the Geneva track addressed internal and external conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism, de Mistura said, all immediate operational counterterrorism issues would be dealt with in Astana on March 14.

He urged parties in Astana to do everything possible to address confidence-building measures, such as the release of arbitrarily detained persons and the assurance of humanitarian access to besieged and hard-to-reach areas of Syria. Both were key opposition demands in Geneva.

Whats happening in Astana was basically a way to steer and reshape Geneva  not necessarily replace it, but to make it a Russian-led process, Hassan Hassan, a senior fellow at the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, told Al Jazeera. And I think, to a large degree, theyve succeeded.

Since the last round of UN-led talks, Russian military intervention has helped to shift the tide of the war in Assads favour, culminating in the government capture of Aleppo in late December. Since then, Moscow has helped to forge a fragile nationwide ceasefire.

While de Mistura reiterated several times that the Geneva and Astana tracks were two hands working together, Russian influence at the Geneva talks was clear.

Terrorism is a priority. The fight against terrorism is a priority and it should be on the agenda, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said shortly after arriving in Geneva.

Days later, at the final ceremony, both de Mistura and the HNC had changed their stance by accepting the additional basket.

De Mistura created an opportunity for the regime to change the conversation, to play with time and to negotiate about negotiations and not about political transition. by Omar Kouch, political analyst

The addition of a terrorism basket in Geneva is dangerous, writer and political analyst Omar Kouch told Al Jazeera, noting that it could derail the push for political transition. De Mistura created an opportunity for the regime to change the conversation, to play with time and to negotiate about negotiations and not about political transition.

Ayham Kamel, Middle East and North African director at the Eurasia Group, said the negotiating framework, which entails that all four baskets are discussed concurrently, is conducive to bringing the government to the table.

The structure prevents the government from claiming there is no point in having political discussions before counterterrorism talks. They dont have that excuse any more, he told Al Jazeera.

READ MORE: Syrian women demand justice for detainees

The muddled, overlapping diplomatic agenda will likely be further complicated by the narrowing priorities of key international players and the shifting trajectory of the war.

Russias approach is problematic, as is the approach of the US, Turkey and Jordan, Hassan said. None of them is seizing the opportunity to steer the conflict in a less bloody direction. Instead, they are all focused on their own narrow goals.

Jordan, a key backer of rebels in Syrias south, has shifted its strategy over the past year after a series of deadly attacks linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group (ISIL, also known as ISIS). Rumours of increased contact between Amman and the Syrian government, in addition to the presence of Jordanian representatives at the Russian-led talks in Astana last month, suggest that Amman is tapering its agenda across the border to protect against domestic threats.

The United States and Turkey, on the other hand, are focused on making quick, tactical gains on the ground, instead of investing in long-term stability, Hassan said.

Once a leading backer of the war to oust Assad, Ankaras priorities have narrowed since last summers attempted coup to a primary focus on pushing armed Kurdish groups and ISIL back from its border. This shift has been accompanied by a growing rapprochement with Moscow; the two powers cobbled together a shaky truce and have worked to consolidate the ceasefire through meetings in Astana. On Friday, Putin hosted Erdogan in Moscow, where the two leaders congratulated each other on their exceptional cooperation in Syria and reaffirmed their commitment to reaching a settlement.





Turkish troops, with the help of allied Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters, now control a large swath of territory inside Syria, and Damascus is not at all happy about it. In a letter to the UN on Friday, Syrias foreign ministry reiterated its calls on Ankara to withdraw its troops, accusing it of supporting terrorism.

Further complicating matters, Turkish troops and FSA fighters have increasingly clashed with the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a key ally in the US-led coalition fighting ISIL.

The US has remained largely absent on the political level in Syria since Donald Trump assumed the presidency, but on the ground, the Pentagon announced this week that it was deploying hundreds of additional troops to Syria as part of a push to retake ISILs self-declared capital of Raqqa.

A sizeable portion of those troops are now serving as a buffer force between the FSA and the SDF in the northeastern city of Manbij, as the race for Raqqa threatens to pull the two NATO allies into open conflict.

The narrative on the ground has fundamentally shifted more permanently towards a focus on confronting terrorism, Kamel said. The challenge now is whether these new dynamics can be integrated into the political process. If not, then bit by bit the negotiators in Geneva will become irrelevant and things will head further towards the Astana project, which means less politics, less concessions and more military.
New campaign aims to highlight the problem of asylum-seekers fleeing into Yemen from Africa.

A new campaign is aiming to shed light on a lesser-known side of Yemens humanitarian crisis: the trend of refugees fleeing into the country.

The campaign  launched last month by the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR  aims to raise awareness, including through the song Dangerous Crossings, in which prominent Somali, Ethiopian and Egyptian artists warn of the dangers of sea crossings to Yemen.

To leave like this is tragic / To stay away heart-breaking / But despite the risks, the desperate tide rises / Like an unlucky child fallen from the nest / Far from home and everything familiar / How many tears will you cry? states the song, released last month via social media.

[Those fleeing into Yemen] are aware there is a conflict, but I just dont think they know how bad it is, Shabia Mantoo, a spokesperson at UNHCRs Sanaa office, told Al Jazeera. Yemen is a very generous country and people have traditionally sought protection here.

READ MORE: Starving Yemenis resort to eating rubbish

Yemen is currently home to more than 270,000 refugees and asylum seekers, predominantly from Africa, according to UNHCR. In 2016, at least 117,000 more arrived, the agency said.

The influx has alarmed humanitarian workers in Yemen, where the war-ravaged infrastructure is already under heavy strain. The ongoing war has killed thousands of people, displaced millions and brought the country to the brink of famine.

Amid the sharp decline in safety in Yemen, the massive refugee influx  which comes amid deteriorating conditions in the refugees countries of origin  is alarming, Mantoo said.

They dont have enough information. They are misled by smugglers and traffickers about what lies ahead, she said. They are making incredibly dangerous journeys across the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and then arriving in the middle of a warzone.





Women and children are at particular risk of sexual violence and exploitation by human smugglers along the way, aid workers say. Refugees have reported experiencing various kinds of trauma during their journeys, including being robbed, shot at by militias, forced into labour or deprived of food and water.

Omar Arte, a refugee from Somalia, recalled being crammed into a small fishing boat with a capacity of perhaps 25 people, which instead was filled with more than 100 people packed like small cartons. [In 24 hours of travel, there was] no room for stretching your legs.

To avoid having the boat capsize, the smugglers barked at all of the passengers to remain still, he said.

The men gave orders that no one should stand or move for the next 18 to 24 hours, or else you will be thrown into the deep seas. The men operate the boats with impunity, Arte told Al Jazeera. I personally saw the men sexually harassing the girls.

IN PICTURES: Yemens war  No one knows when he is going to die

Once in Yemen, some refugees travel elsewhere, including other Gulf countries, in search of work. For those who remain in Yemen and wish to claim asylum, the process can take up to five years. In the meantime, work opportunities are limited in the war-torn country.

Conditions are not particularly conducive for asylum at present, Mantoo said. For new arrivals seeking international protection, access to asylum systems in Yemen is extremely challenging, and individuals may be unable to register their asylum applications or have their presence documented by the authorities, particularly in the north of the country.

Music producer George Acogny, who produced the multilingual song Dangerous Crossings, noted that the goal of the new campaign was to awaken potential refugees to the hazards of the perilous sea journey.

Every time I play the song to someone, they start weeping, Acogny told Al Jazeera. Its difficult not to get touched emotionally, because it taps into a part of the crisis thats not so obvious.
Interventionism is addictive, it starts with a simple task and one thing can lead to another.

Photos of US Humvees and Stryker combat vehicles patrolling the streets of Manbij are surreal, a reminder that we no longer are under Barack Obamas restrained doctrine. US generals are now in full control of US policy in Syria.

President Donald Trump is making good on his campaign promise not to tell the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) about his plans to defeat them, yet both allies and foes are puzzled by that new approach.

What is unmistakably true though is that recent changes in the structure, process and tactics of US policy are setting a new tone in northern Syria.

The new mindset

Unlike the centralised approach of his predecessor, the current US president has a hands-off approach  or rather, a preferential treatment  when it comes to the military.

While the CIA halted its coordinated aid to the Free Syrian Army (FSA) last month and the state department is nowhere to be found in either Astana or Geneva peace talks, military commanders have enough margin to decide on launching air strikes and making operational decisions. Having the Pentagon unilaterally shape the Syria policy is the paramount change in Washington.

Next came the change in the US mindset. The new plan to combat ISIL did not inherit the Obama administrations bewildered approach to Syria.

The long hours at the White Houses Situation Room thinking about the conflicts nuances and scenarios are over. The only priority now is to defeat ISIL and the betting odds are on the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

These structural changes in the US decision-making process led to tactical changes that are altering the dynamics of the Syrian conflict.

OPINION: Operation Euphrates Shield  Progress and scope

First, a consensus among influential players in Syria has emerged, outsourcing the parameters of the Raqqa battle to Washington.

The March 7 meeting in Antalya, Turkey, between the US, Russian and Turkish Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was meant to confirm the new rules of engagement and to de-conflict operations in a crowded hostile environment.

Second, the US-Russian military efforts in northern Syria are increasingly synchronised at the expense of second-tier powers like Iran and Turkey.

Eradicating ISIL without a political horizon or expanding intervention without a clear endgame merely postpone the looming confrontations across Syria. by

The first meeting on February 16 in Baku, Azerbaijan between the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff US General Joseph Dunford and his Russian counterpart Valery Gerasimov inaugurated this convergence of military interests.

While Iran is sidelined in the short-term, it remains stronger than ever in areas controlled by the Syrian regime. However, the biggest loser in recent weeks has been Turkey.

In a matter of days, Turkish officials switched from threatening to enter Manbij by force to conceding that no Turkish intervention can occur without full coordination with US and Russia.

Indeed, the messages were heard loud and clear in Ankara. The US reacted to Turkish threats by deploying special forces while Russia brokered an agreement in which the Manbij Military Council delivered eight villages west of Manbij to the Syrian regime as a buffer zone to prevent clashes between Turkey and the SFD.

Both moves by Washington and Moscow are somehow complementary to protect the back of SDF, so it can focus on the Raqqa battle.

After the military victory in Al Bab last month, Turkish troops have no place to go. All the routes to Raqqa from Manbij, Tel Abyad and Ain al-Arab must go through Kurdish-controlled areas.

The only accomplishment of the August 2016 Turkish incursion into northern Syria remains splitting the Kurdish cantons in half and preventing a unified Kurdish federation along the border.

What Manbij means for US policy

Last year, when the SDF crossed the M4 highway to the west bank of the Euphrates River to capture Manbij, it had a clear US mandate to cut off the last supply route of ISIL from Turkey.

The recent show of force in Manbij meant, above all, to preserve the US priority of launching the Raqqa battle and not get distracted in shenanigans of identity politics.

The new sheriff of Manbij has three rules: no hostile action against the city (that is to say Turkey, Russia or ISIL); no persistent YPG presence on the streets; and lastly enhance local governance, which is an ambiguous task with long-term implications.

While Russias approach is more tactical, seeking a long-term involvement in Syria, the US is looking for quick fixes.

Eradicating ISIL without a political horizon, or expanding intervention without a clear endgame, merely postpone the looming confrontations across Syria. The most daunting challenge is to plan ahead for post-Raqqa liberation.

OPINION: Time to tackle ISILs millions of sympathisers?

Deploying a disengagement force in Manbij will go down as the most consequential moment in US policy since the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Yet, this move is not without ramifications and it does not mean that US troops are immune from an attack, now they are visible and no longer in support posture only.

Interventionism is addictive, it starts with a simple task and one thing can lead to another. By next year, we might look back and say US direct involvement in the Syrian war began in Manbij .

Joe Macaron is a policy analyst at the Arab Center Washington DC.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
 Flash

Malaysian police for the first time confirmed on Friday that a Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) man killed in Kuala Lumpur airport to be Kim Jong Nam, half-brother of DPRK leader Kim Jong Un.

Malaysian national police chief Khalid Abu Bakar speaks during a press conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, March 10, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

"We have now established that Kim Chol is Kim Jong Nam," national police chief Khalid Abu Bakar told a press conference here, but declined to say if a DNA test had been carried out to identify the body.

"I will not tell you how we did it due to the safety and security of witnesses," he said, adding the police have fulfilled the requirements of laws on Kim Jong Nam's identification.

Malaysian police had previously identified the man as Kim Chol by citing his passport, and insisted that they needed family members to provide DNA samples to further identify the body.

He said the body would be handed over to the health ministry as police had completed the investigation on the identity.

The police have informed the relatives, but "it seems no one is taking (the body)," he added.

During the press conference, Khalid declined to elaborate further on the motive behind the killing.

Malaysia has declined the request by the DPRK government to hand over the body, triggering a diplomatic row between the two countries. In tit-for-tat moves, Malaysia and DPRK have both expelled the ambassador of the other's side and banned each other's citizens from leaving Malaysia or DPRK.

Khalid did not reveal the details of the negotiations, which are key to help Malaysia bring back nine of its nationals back from DPRK.

Malaysia has indicted two females suspects, one Vietnamese and one Indonesian, with murder as the police believed the two smeared a lethal chemical weapon called VX nerve agent on the face of Kim Jong Nam, which killed him within 15 to 20 minutes.

The police said four other DPRK suspects have fled the country. They also want to question three people in connection with the case, including a second secretary of the DPRK embassy in Kuala Lumpur and an employee of the DPRK national carrier Air Koryo.

Khalid said the police will continue to wait for the three to come forward, or arrests warrants will be issued.
The key to protecting American women is defeating American sexism and racism, not scapegoating migrants or Muslims.

Alex Shams is an Iranian-American writer and a PhD student of anthropology at the University of Chicago.

Earlier this week, Donald Trump announced a new executive order to ban refugees and immigrants from six Muslim-majority countries. Hidden in the new order is a clause that says the United States government will begin tracking and publicising, honour killings committed by foreign nationals in the US.

The idea draws upon a programme Trump unveiled last week that will track crimes committed by undocumented immigrants, part of an effort to show the unique threat they pose to American lives.

Both proposals draw directly upon fear of immigrants to whip up a frenzy of xenophobia. The first is shockingly similar to the lists and articles published under Adolf Hitlers regime in Nazi Germany, where newspapers were encouraged to focus on crimes committed by Jews in order to convince the public of the need for anti-Semitic legislation.

It is not as if Jews did not commit crimes in Germany; of course, they did, just like Germans of all backgrounds and religions committed crimes in Germany as well. The point, however, was to convince Germans that Jews were uniquely criminal and needed to be punished.

Trump  s proposals, similarly aim to convince the public of the unique threat posed by certain kinds of criminals, highlighting one form of crime and one form of victim that fit a narrative of a helpless America beset by violent, criminal foreigners.

Why should an undocumented person who commits a crime be treated differently from an American? Given that the vast majority of crimes in the US are committed by Americans, how does deporting the tiny fraction of undocumented criminals keep Americans safe?

Discriminatory intent

Disturbingly, the programme is part of a broader trend across the European and American far-right. In modern-day Germany, a law was passed last year that would allow speedy deportation of refugees and migrants who committed crimes.

But what of the Germans who have viciously attacked refugees? In 2016, more than 3,500 attacks on migrants happened across Germany alone, a figure that works out to a rate of 10 per day.

Among these are attacks was the 2015 rape and murder of 4-year old Bosnian refugee child named Mohamed Januzi i n Berlin by a German national. How would deporting more refugees protect the lives of children like Mohamed?

The answer, of course, is that they wont. Nor will they protect the Houston woman and recent immigrant from Iran who was raped in front of her children by an American neighbour earlier in March.

These laws are not intended to protect these lives. They rest on the idea that human life has a different value based on nationality, and that the life of an American killed by a foreigner has greater worth than a foreigner killed by an American. There is no other way to justify a law that intends only to highlight victims based on the national origin.

The proposed honour killings record plays upon the same racist fearmongering as the undocumented criminals list, but with a new twist.

By focusing on the phenomenon of honour killings by foreigners  which is basically unknown in the US  instead of tackling gender-based violence committed by anyone, including American citizens, Trumps proposal reveals its clearly discriminatory intent.

Racist Orientalism

US government surveys report that around 45 percent of American women experience some form of sexual victimisation during their lives, with around 20 percent reporting rape (PDF). Its safe to assume, given that sexual assault is mostly committed by an assailant known to the victim, that the vast majority of perpetrators are American citizens.

Husbands in the US kill far more women every year than terrorists, and it is white men who commit t he vast majority of rapes (and violent crime more broadly).

Are the American women killed, raped, and abused by American men not worthy of the same support and protection as those honour crimes by foreigners? Given that the first affects millions of women while the latter affects almost none, which should be a priority?

The ludicrousness of Trumps proposal is even more clear when we consider that Trump himself has famously bragged about sexually assaulting women  with no consequences  and has been accused by at least a dozen women of doing so.

Misogyny and sexism are problems the world over, and attempts to blame foreigners for violence against women in America are an attempt to protect the American men who commit the vast majority of violence against women in this country. by

For years, the Republicans have sheltered wife beaters and domestic abusers in their midst; all of them were American citizens.

But this is all, unfortunately, beside the point. Trumps proposal to track honour crimes is rooted in good, old-fashioned bigotry.

Isnt a man who beats his wife on suspicion of cheating on him doing so for reasons of honour? Could it be that the many different horrible and violent ways that American men have been abusing their wives, girlfriends, daughters, and sisters for decades are actually honour crimes as well?

Indeed, focusing on the term honour crimes underscores just how much Trumps proposal is rooted in a long history of racist Orientalism.

It is based on the idea that Muslim or Middle Eastern domestic abuse is somehow more terrible or more evil than Western domestic abuse or Christian domestic abuse, and by focusing on the idea that crimes based in culture are more terrible than others it erases the fact that cultural justifications exist in all times and places.

Honour killing by any other name

In the US, for example, it is possible for men accused of murdering their wives to receive reduced sentences if they can prove that they committed a  crime of passion , meaning a crime committed while overcome by anger or rage.

Crimes of passion defences are often invoked in cases involving spousal infidelity  revealing that they are essentially honour crimes, albeit with a less exotic-sounding name.

Honour killing, however, conjures up images of the Middle East  and the way the right-wing media has used the term to describe domestic violence among Muslim immigrants in the US and Europe points to the racist way it will most likely be deployed in the US.

OPINION: Trumps Muslim ban is a dangerous distraction

Misogyny and sexism are problems the world over, and attempts to blame foreigners for violence against women in the US are an attempt to protect the American men who commit the vast majority of violence against women in this country.

If Trump is really serious about protecting women, he should be bolstering penalties against domestic abusers, investing in shelters for victims of abuse, and strengthening laws protecting victims of sexual assault across the country.

The honour crimes proposal, just like the list of crimes committed by illegal immigrants, is a racist distraction, and needs to be seen as such. The key to protecting American women is defeating American sexism and racism, not scapegoating migrants or Muslims.

Alex Shams is an Iranian-American writer and a PhD student of anthropology at the University of Chicago whose work focuses on gender and urbanism in the Middle East.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
More than 100 people also wounded after two blasts hit near Shia Muslim sites of worship in the Bab Musalla area.

A double bomb attack in the Old City of Damascus on Saturday killed dozens of people  mostly Iraqi Shia pilgrims  and wounded more than 100, in one of the bloodiest bombings to hit the Syrian capital.

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a car park, apparently where the explosions went off near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery.

The cemetery is one of the capitals oldest and is where several prominent religious figures are buried.

Following a visit to local hospitals, Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar put the death toll at 40 people. He also said a further 120 people were wounded in the attack, which targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were frequenting the areas shrines.

Shaar did not elaborate, but Iraqi Shia often visit shrines in Syria. Iranians and other Shia from Asia are often also among the pilgrims to the area.

Iraqi state TV said at least 40 Iraqi citizens had been killed in the twin blasts.

Preliminary statistics indicate the fall of around 40 Iraqi martyrs and 120 wounded, Iraqi foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said in a statement, terming it a criminal terrorist operation.

OPINION: The Sheriff of Manbij  US makes debut in the Syrian War

There were conflicting reports on what had caused the explosions.

Jamal said roadside bombs targeted buses carrying the pilgrims.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitor tracking developments in Syrias war, said a roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area.

Syrias SANA state news agency reported that both blasts were caused by explosive devices near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery.

Al Jazeeras Natasha Ghoneim, reporting from Gaziantep on the Turkey-Syria border, said the attack was one of the deadliest in recent memory in the Syrian capital. She noted, however, there had been an attack in January that targeted soldiers and killed 10 people.

We are talking about a very significant death toll  What is unique is that Damascus  which is President Bashar al-Assads stronghold, he has firm support there  has been relatively safe. Attacks like this are not common, said Ghoneim.

A similar attack in Damascus last year, which was claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, targeted one of the most revered Shia shrines and killed at least 12 people.

READ MORE: Putin and Erdogan vow cooperation to help end Syria war

No claim of responsibility was immediately made for Saturdays attack.

Assad has been supported in the countrys war by Shia militias from countries including Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon.

The Damascus attack could provide the impetus for increased Iraqi strikes against ISIL in Syria, which Baghdad has already carried out near the border.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has vowed he would not hesitate to strike attackers in neighbouring countries if they posed a threat.
Winter storm causes widespread disruption across the foothills of the Himalayas.

Late season snow has cut off parts of northern India around the foothills of the Himalayas.

The winter storms have lingered across the states of Himachal Pradesh along with Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir for much of this week.

Jammu And Kashmir State was badly hit on Friday after heavy snow blocked the arterial Mughal Road, disrupting traffic movement and leaving commuters stranded.

Mughal Road is the shortest route from Rajouri and Poonch districts to the Kashmir valley. It is also an important route for the trade and commerce activities in the state.

The roads closure meant that the journey between Srinagar and Poonch went from 126km to 588km. Thats an additional distance of 462km.

The region has been receiving unseasonably late snow since early this week. The snowfall has also led to a drastic fall in temperatures in the northernmost state.

Meanwhile, the snowfall in Shimla city of northern Himachal Pradesh state was rather more welcome. It came as a late boost to the tourism industry for those visiting from the warmer plains of India.

The state meteorological department has forecast more rain and snow in the coming days. However, amounts should not be as heavy or widespread.

Additional reporting by Everton Fox
Hundreds of child soldiers have been released by the Philippines main separatist rebel group, continuing its commitment to end the recruitment and use of children within its ranks.

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), one of the most powerful armed groups in the country, released the children on Friday as part of an action plan with the UN.

Reporting from the disengagement ceremony in Lanao del Sur, Al Jazeeras Jamela Alindogan said Fridays release did not happen overnight.

This is something that started eight years ago, she said. It required a lot of ground work, a lot of investigations, a lot of re-education, not just of leaders of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, but also of parents who have had their children exposed to combat.

In 2009, the group signed an action plan with the UN to end the recruitment of child soldiers, a practice that extends over generations.

The first in a series of disengagement ceremonies took place in February and the group will eventually disengage more than 1,800 children, according to UNICEF.

Some of the children fought on the front line with the group, but the majority performed tasks as couriers and support staff.

Richard Heydarian, a professor of political science in Manila, told Al Jazeera it is important to remember that many of these child soldiers were born into the conflict.

We have to keep in mind that this is not like South Sudan or Sierra Leone  where you have these children ripped apart from their family and forcibly coerced to become child soldiers, he said.

Many of these children are actually very much part of the fabric of the community that has been supporting the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

The Islamic group, based on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao, has fought for succession for decades, routinely recruiting and using children within its ranks, according to UNICEF.

Al Jazeeras Alindogan said Fridays ceremony shows the sincerity of the MILF in making sure the third and fourth generation of children are not going to end up with the same fate as their parents and grandparents.

The children who are released will be offered scholarships to finish school, as well as support from the government and NGOs for full integration back into society.

The release of children from the MILF is only the beginning of the next phase of their youth. The next step is to ensure that these children receive support, UNICEFs country representative Lotta Sylwander said last month.

Example for other armed groups

The number of child soldiers in the Philippines remains unknown. Mindanao is home to a number of armed groups who use and recruit combatants under the age of 18, according to the UN.

As a signatory of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Philippines has vowed to end the practice, but progress has remained slow.

Al Jazeeras Alindogan said the commitment by the MILF serves an an example to the other groups.

This process of disengagement of children is seen also as a very good example of other armed groups in the Philippines who are also recruiting and training children or including children in their combat activities, she said.

Symbolic step for peace

The MILF signed a peace accord with the government in 2014. That deal, however, stalled following the death of several government special forces during a botched operation in 2015.

OPINION: Rodrigo Dutertes peace plans are in tatters

Heydarian told Al Jazeera that the disengagement of the child soldiers is a symbolic move by the MILF, but the government remains too involved in other crises.

It shows the MILF wants to be part of mainstream Philippines, Heydarian said.

The problem right now is that ironically you have a Philippines under Rodrigo Duterte having its first president from Mindanao, but the president right now is really bogged down by the controversial drug war, by ongoing peace negotiations  with the Communists, and also the threat of ISIS, Heydarian said using an alternative abbreviation for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL.
Foreign Minister Cavusoglu says he will go to Rotterdam in support of referendum, despite Dutch ban on public speeches.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has said he will go to Rotterdam on Saturday, despite an official ban on campaigning there for the upcoming Turkish referendum.

Cavusoglu on Saturday said that Turkish citizens living in the Netherlands were being taken hostage by the Dutch injunction on political rallies and speeches.

It is the latest in a series of bans across Europe, most of them in Germany, that prohibit Turkish leaders from campaigning to drum up support among Turkish expats on behalf of the countrys ruling party for an April referendum aimed at strengthening presidential powers in Turkey.

Speaking in an interview on CNN Turk television, Cavusoglu said that if the Netherlands refused to give him permission to fly to Rotterdam, Turkey would respond with harsh economic and political sanctions.

READ MORE: Erdogan compares Germany rally ban to Nazi practices

On Friday, Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb told reporters that Cavusoglu was welcome, but that all public rallies and speeches had been cancelled.

He has diplomatic immunity and everything, so we will treat him with respect, but we have other instruments to prohibit things happening in public spaces, Aboutaleb said.

Cavusoglus delegation announced on Facebook that the gathering would instead be held at the private residence of the Turkish consul in Rotterdam. The invitation to the gathering asked visitors not to use their car horns or wave Turkish flags.

With the ban on campaign rallies, Rotterdam joined a growing list of European cities that block such gatherings for fear of unrest.

This week, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Germany of Nazi practices after Turkish leaders had been prevented from rallying expats in several Germany cities in support of the referendum.

Many in Europe worry that Erdogan is capitalising on post-coup fears to push through a more authoritarian system with few checks on his power.
Turkish president says Dutch fascists behind blocking of foreign ministers visit as campaigning dispute escalates.

Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused the Dutch government of being Nazi remnants after the Netherlands barred the Turkish foreign minister from flying to the country, as a diplomatic dispute between the two countries escalated.

The row first erupted after Dutch officials on Friday said they would not welcome a visit by Turkeys Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu if he was to address a political rally in Rotterdam on Saturday.

There are some 300,000 people of Turkish origin in the Netherlands, and the rally was aimed at generating support among expats for an April 16 referendum over whether to give Turkeys president greater powers.

READ MORE: Turkeys constitutional reform  All you need to know

Cavusoglu said he planned to fly to Rotterdam anyway, and warned that if the Netherlands blocked his arrival, Turkey would respond with harsh economic and political sanctions.





But in a statement on Saturday the Dutch government said it had withdrawn landing permission for Cavusoglus plane because of risks to public order and security.

In response, Turkey summoned the Dutch envoy to Ankara to protest against the ban, while Erdogan promised retaliation against Dutch diplomatic flights.

You can stop our foreign ministers plane all you want, lets see how your planes will come to Turkey from now on, Erdogan said at a rally in Istanbul on Saturday.

They are Nazi remnants, they are fascists, Erdogan said, days after he angrily compared moves to block rallies in Germany to Nazi practices.

Cavusoglu said the German and Dutch bans on campaigns for a yes vote in the upcoming referendum on constitutional changes mean that Europe is taking a side for a no vote.

Before the talks were completed, Turkish authorities publicly threatened sanctions. That makes the search for a reasonable solution impossible. by Mark Rutte, Dutch prime minister

In the Netherlands it is illegal to hold a public rally about another countrys politics.

The Dutch authorities appear not to want to allow any Turkish government minister to address any rally in this country, Al Jazeeras Dominic Kane, reporting from Rotterdam, said.

Thats in their law, and all the parties appear to be supporting the position of the government.

The Dutch government said it had been searching with Turkish authorities for an acceptable solution to Cavusoglus plan to campaign in the Netherlands.

Before these talks were completed, Turkish authorities publicly threatened sanctions. That makes the search for a reasonable solution impossible, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a statement.

Rutte called Erdogans remark comparing the Dutch to the Nazis crazy.

I understand theyre angry, but this of course was way out of line, he said.

READ MORE: Erdogan compares Germany rally ban to Nazi practices

The diplomatic dispute between the two NATO allies comes just days before the Netherlands goes to the polls in a March 15 election for the lower house of parliament.

The campaign has been dominated by issues of identity, with anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders set to make strong gains.

Wilders, speaking to Al Jazeera at a rally at the Dutch city of Heerlen on Saturday, said the moves by Erdogan and his ministers to campaign in foreign countries were totally unacceptable.

It is uncommon and unwanted that his minister would go and campaign in Holland for a referendum to change the constitution there to make him [Erdogan] more of a dictator. He should not be allowed here at all, said Wilders.





And after him calling Dutch people Nazis and things like that, the Turkish ambassador should be extradited from the Netherlands immediately and retract our ambassador from Ankara today.

The Dutch government said it does not object to meetings in the Netherlands to give information about the Turkish referendum, but these meetings should not add to tensions in our society and everybody who wants to organise a meeting must adhere to instructions from authorities so that public order and security can be guaranteed.

It said the Turkish government does not want to respect the rules in this matter.

With the ban on campaign rallies, Rotterdam joined a growing list of European cities that block such gatherings for fear of unrest.

Erdogan also denounced Germany after Turkish leaders were prevented from rallying expats in several German cities in support of the referendum.

Many in Europe worry that Erdogan is capitalising on fears following a failed coup attempt in July to push through a more authoritarian system with few checks on his power.

Journalist and author Andrew Finkel, who has covered Turkey extensively, told Al Jazeera the spats with Europe play well to the electorate back home.

As far is the Turkish government is concerned, they couldnt be happier than they are today. Its clearly an attempt to escalate the conflict, said Finkel.

The verbal sparring could have longer-term repercussions, however.

Its a case of clear short-termism. Theyre trying to play this national card  much in the way that Geert Wilders is playing the nationalist card. But of course what happens the day after that  Nobody is really thinking about that, because Europe is very important to Turkey.
Victory for Modis Bharatiya Janata Party in Uttar Pradesh would boost his chances of winning the 2019 general election.

Early counting on Saturday in Indias most populous state showed Prime Minister Narendra Modis party leading in the countrys most important electoral test since the 2014 general election.

Victory for Modis Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh, which is home to 220 million people, would boost his chances of winning the 2019 general election and underscore his popularity after he made himself the face of the partys campaign.

The prime minister would also see success as vindication of his sudden decision in November to abolish high-denomination banknotes to rein in corruption.

The move was seen as politically risky, because most transactions in India are carried out in cash and millions of Indians were forced to join long queues outside banks to deposit their old bills or get hold of new ones.

READ MORE: India  Modis radio show

Though it was premature to call the outcome, the election commission put the BJP leading in 262 of the 403 seats in the state, putting it on course for a large majority.

The BJPs vote share based on early counting is more than 40 percent, the election commission said.

Having campaigned in the state for two months, Modi, and his election strategist Amit Shah, can take credit if the BJP wins  but may face a backlash from sidelined party elders if they come up short.

The results will redefine the prime ministers political destiny and his future course of action, an aide to Modi in the capital, New Delhi, told Reuters news agency.

Post-election surveys had suggested Modis BJP had done enough to come first in Uttar Pradesh, home to one in six Indians, but that it might fall short of an outright majority.

The exit polls, which are often wrong in India, also put the BJP ahead in three of four other states that will declare election outcomes on Saturday.

READ MORE: Indias demonetisation quagmire and its victims

According to early voting trends, opposition Congress party was leading in the state of Punjab, while the BJP was ahead in the northern state of Uttarakhand and in the coastal state of Goa.

Results of a ballot in a fifth state, Manipur, were also due on Saturday.

The BJPs opponents include an alliance between Congress and the ruling Samajwadi Party, a tie-up that caught Modis party off guard. A better than expected showing by a third party could complicate the picture as results filter out.

A strong BJP showing would be welcomed by investors counting on further economic reforms  including the launch of a national sales tax  in the absence of any credible opponent who might halt Modis march to a second term in 2019.

Short of a majority, the BJP could see opponents block its path to power in the state by forming a coalition, although Modis party will also look to convince its smaller rivals to join forces.

If the BJP fails to secure a majority, then Modis economic decisions will be questioned and his failure to create jobs will impact his political future, said Mohan Guruswamy, who heads the Centre for Policy Alternatives, an independent think-tank.
Opponents demand arrest of ex-president Park Geun-hye, who has yet to react after impeachment following bribery scandal.

All eyes were on Seouls presidential Blue House on Saturday as South Koreans awaited ex-president Park Geun-hyes reaction to her impeachment and preparations to move into her private residence.

Election authorities expressed concern over growing tensions in the lead-up to polls to elect a new president, while newspaper editorials called for an end to ongoing street protests.

A third person died on Saturday in hospital after clashes between pro-Park supporters and riot police, near the Constitutional Court which confirmed Parks impeachment.

A spokesperson for the protesters supporting the court ruling, Choi In-sook, told Reuters news agency they were demanding the arrest of their former leader.

We demand the arrest of Park Geun-hye and the resignation of acting president Hwang Kyo-ahn, said Choi.

News reports said Park was watching television alone in her private presidential room on Friday when the countrys highest court announced her dismissal live on air.

REPORTERS NOTEBOOK: The day Park Geun-hye was ousted

An incredulous Park immediately phoned her aides to confirm the verdict, the Chosun Ilbo daily said.

Her aides told the newspaper she had no immediate plans to issue a statement on the court decision or her future course of action.

The president was apparently stunned at the ruling. She looked dejected, an unidentified aide was quoted as saying. She wants to keep to herself for a while, he added.

Park will leave the Blue House only after her private house in prosperous southern Seoul is repaired and cleaned to accommodate her and her security detail.

TV footage showed materials being unloaded from a small truck parked outside the two-storey house.

Police said more than 200 officers were deployed around the area.

Park is obliged to move out of the presidential palace, where she has been holed up for more than 90 days after the National Assembly voted for her impeachment in October.

READ MORE: The fall of President Park Geun-hye  A day-by-day look

The courts verdict upholding her impeachment immediately stripped her of all powers and privileges, except for her security.

Park was found to have broken the law by allowing her friend Choi Soon-sil to meddle in state affairs, and breached rules on public servants activities.

The ruling also stripped her of presidential immunity to criminal indictment.

The presidents acts of violating the constitution and law are a betrayal of the public trust, Acting Chief Justice Lee Jung-mi said.

The benefits of protecting the constitution that can be earned by dismissing the defendant are overwhelmingly big. Hereupon, in a unanimous decision by the court panel, we issue a verdict: We dismiss the defendant, President Park Geun-hye.

Lee accused Park of colluding with Choi to extort tens of millions of dollars from businesses and letting Choi, a private citizen, meddle in state affairs and receive and look at documents with state secrets.

Those allegations were previously made by prosecutors, but Park has refused to undergo any questioning, citing a law that gives a sitting leader immunity from prosecution.

It is not clear when prosecutors will try to interview her.

Journalists attacked

Park has already been named a criminal suspect, accused of bribery for offering policy favours to firms that benefited Choi.

For months, she has refused to make herself available for questioning by prosecutors probing the scandal.

But that may no longer be an option once she leaves the Blue House, when she could face formal arrest if she refuses a summons.

South Koreas top election official Kim Yong-deok said in a statement there was growing concern over the highly charged atmosphere before an election which must take place before May 9.

The vote must serve as a chance to overcome divisions and conflicts and achieve national unity and harmony, he said in a speech aired live on TV across the country.

Police issued a statement vowing to track down and punish unruly protesters as pro-Park supporters planned to hold fresh demonstrations near the Constitutional Court and in the city centre on Saturday afternoon.
But Syrian president says there could be room for cooperation with US President Donald Trump in the fight against ISIL.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has called US forces deployed in Syria invaders but said he saw promise in US President Donald Trumps vow to prioritise the fight against ISIL.

About 500 US troops are in Syria in support of the campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS).

The US-led coalition is currently backing a campaign by its Syrian militia allies to encircle and ultimately capture Raqqa, ISILs base of operations in Syria.

WATCH: Hundreds of US marines deployed to Syria (1:51)

Assad, in an interview with Chinese TV station Phoenix that was published by Syrias state television SANA on Saturday, said Trumps rhetoric has not resulted in anything concrete yet.

We have hopes that this administration in the United States is going to implement what we have heard, he said.





Asked about a deployment of US forces near the northern city of Manbij that is held by US-backed rebels, Assad said: Any foreign troops coming to Syria without our invitation  are invaders. We dont think this is going to help.

Assad dismissed the US-backed military campaign against ISIL in Syria as only a few raids, and said a more comprehensive approach was needed.

The president noted the Russian-backed Syrian army was now very close to Raqqa city after advancing to the western banks of the Euphrates River this week  a rapid gain that has brought it to the frontier of areas held by US-backed forces.

WATCH: What is the endgame for the US offensive against ISIL? (24:59)

He said Raqqa was a priority for us, but indicated there could also be a parallel army attack towards Deir Az Zor province  almost completely controlled by ISIL  in the east, near the Iraqi border.

The Deir Az Zor region had been used by ISIS as a route for logistics support between ISIS in Iraq and ISIS in Syria, so whether you attack the stronghold or you attack the route that ISIS uses, it [has] the same result, Assad said.

Geneva talks

He also spoke about UN-led peace talks in Geneva that ended earlier this month with no breakthrough.

Assad said he had not expected anything from Geneva, adding deals brokered locally with rebels were the real political solutions since the war began.

Local reconciliation agreements are the governments preferred method for pacifying rebellious areas and have often been concluded after years of government siege and bombardment.

In some cases, opposition fighters have been given safe passage to the rebel-dominated province of Idlib. The opposition says the agreements amount to forced displacement.

We didnt expect Geneva to produce anything, but its a step and its going to be a long way, Assad said.

He also said it would be up to Syrians to decide their future political system, and there would be a referendum on it.

READ MORE: Ahrar al-Sham  ISIL is not fighting Assad

Staffan de Mistura, the United Nations special envoy to Syria, estimated in April 2016 that more than 400,000 Syrians had been killed since the war started.

Calculating a precise death toll is difficult, partially owing to the forced disappearances of tens of thousands of Syrians whose fate remains unknown.

Almost 11 million Syrians  half the countrys prewar population  have been displaced from their homes.
Separately, three fighters attack an airbase close to the border with Pakistan in the eastern province of Khost.

Eight policemen were killed by their colleagues after they were poisoned in their base in southern Afghanistan in the latest insider attack.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the incident, which happened in Nawshar district of southern Zabul province late on Friday, as the group escalates a deadly winter campaign of violence.

The infiltrators first poisoned their colleagues and then shot them dead, provincial spokesman Gul Islam Seyal told AFP news agency on Saturday, adding the attackers fled the area taking all the weapons and munitions from the base.

The governor of Zabul, Bismillah Afghanmal, said they had launched an investigation into the incident.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a message to the media that the groups infiltrators carried out the attack.





The Reuters news agency, quoting local officials, said the attackers defected to Taliban.

So-called insider attacks  when Afghan soldiers and police turn their guns on their colleagues or on international troops  have been a major problem during the more than 15-year-long war.

Such attacks have sapped morale and caused deep mistrust within security ranks.

In a similar incident last month, an Afghan policeman linked to the Taliban shot dead 11 of his colleagues at a checkpoint in the neighbouring Helmand province.

And last September, two Afghan soldiers with suspected Taliban links killed at least 12 of their comrades as they slept in the volatile northern province of Kunduz.

OPINION: Drones kill any chance of peace in Afghanistan

Separately on Saturday, gunmen attacked a military airbase in the eastern province of Khost.

Faizullah Ghairat, security chief of Khost province, said three assailants attacked the base, close to the border with Pakistan. One was killed while two others escaped, he said.

The attackers tried to enter the base but were prevented by guards.

Our forces have shot one armed attacker dead, and at least two [would be] suicide attackers are at large, we are looking for them, he said.

Nine people, including seven CIA agents, were killed in a suicide attack carried by a Jordanian associated with al-Qaeda on the same military base in December 2009. Camp Chapman in Khost is said to be instrumental in providing intelligence to the CIA for drone attacks across the border in Pakistan.

There was no immediate comment from the headquarters of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission in Kabul.

OPINION: Stop targeting humanitarian workers

The incident comes just before the normal start of the spring fighting season, when the warmer weather brings increased operations by both rebel and government forces.

Afghan and US officials have warned that Afghanistan will see increased fighting this year as the Taliban steps up a campaign that has cut the area controlled by the government to below 60 percent.

Earlier this week, the head of US Central Command, General Joseph Votel, asked for more American troops to join the roughly 8,400 already stationed there.

The Afghan interior ministry said over the past 25 hours, security forces had killed 51 fighters in counterterrorism operations across Afghanistan.
BEIJING - China on Friday again urged the Republic of Korea (ROK) to stop the deployment of a US missile shield.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks at a daily press briefing.

When asked about the impeachment of ROK President Park Geun-hye, Geng said that "we will not comment on the impeachment case as it belongs to the ROK's domestic affairs."

"As a neighboring country, we hope the ROK can maintain political stability," Geng added.

Park was ousted as the country's head of state after the constitutional court upheld a motion to impeach the scandal-ridden leader Friday. She became the first ROK leader to be permanently removed from office through impeachment.

Geng said China had spoken positively about efforts Park had made to improve China-ROK relations when she was in office.

"However, as for her decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, China has expressed definite opposition," Geng said.

"As China and the ROK are each other's neighbors that cannot be moved away, the development of bilateral ties in the past 25 years has brought substantial benefits to both peoples," Geng said. ' "China has always been open and positive to cooperation and exchanges with the ROK, a position that has never changed," he said. "But the crux of the current difficulties facing bilateral ties is the THAAD deployment."

"We hope the ROK government can face China's concerns squarely, heed the voices of the public, look at the whole picture of bilateral cooperation and regional peace and stability, and stop the deployment to remove obstacles in bilateral ties and bring them back on a normal track," Geng said.

China has repeatedly said that the ROK and US deployment of THAAD gravely undermined regional strategic balance and the security interests of countries in the region, including China, and runs counter to peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula.

THAAD is designed to intercept incoming missiles at an altitude of 40-150 km. Its X-band radar can peer deep into Chinese and Russian territories.
For the third year in a row, an increased number of University of Wisconsin-Stout graduates were working within six months of leaving campus, Chancellor Bob Meyer announced Tuesday, March 7, at a celebration of two historic developments in the universitys recent past.

Meyer announced that 97.4 percent of the 2015-16 graduates were working or continuing their education within six months of receiving their diplomas, compared with the 2014-15 employment rate of 97.3 percent. The 2013-14 rate was 97.1 percent and the 2012-13 rate 97 percent.

Economic impact

When event attendees in the Great Hall of the Memorial Student Center applauded the announcement, Meyer in turn applauded for the crowd, made up largely of faculty and staff. Its because of a lot of effort by people in the room. It speaks to the polytechnic designation we have and making sure our graduates are well-prepared, Meyer said.

Meyer also announced the results of an economic impact study that found UW-Stout contributes $271.8 million annually to a seven-county area in western Wisconsin and supports 4,624 jobs.

The study showed that for every $1 that students invest in their education at UW-Stout, they receive $3.50 in additional earnings over their lifetime. The average annual rate of return for student spending at UW-Stout is 15 percent.

For taxpayers, the annual rate of return was 14.6 percent on every dollar they invest in supporting UW-Stout. Taxpayers also received $3.50 in benefits for every dollar invested in UW-Stout.

For the first time, the study analyzed the impact UW-Stout graduates have on the economy in the seven-county area, revealing that the accumulated contribution from 30 years of alumni employed in the regional workforce amounted to $147.7 million in added income during the analysis year.

Proclamation

Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch attended the event, which marked the 15-year anniversary of UW-Stout receiving the Malcom Baldrige National Quality Award and the 10-year anniversary of UW-Stout being designated by the UW System Board of Regents as Wisconsins Polytechnic University.

Its pretty incredible the economic impact and the number of graduates you put directly into the workforce  97.4 percent is pretty amazing, Kleefisch said. You take the polytechnic idea and the Wisconsin Idea and spread it across the great state of Wisconsin.

Kleefisch read a proclamation signed by Gov. Scott Walker that makes March 9, 2017, Wisconsins Polytechnic University Day in Wisconsin. March 9 is the 10-year anniversary of the Board of Regents vote on the polytechnic designation.

The proclamation notes that since receiving the designation, UW-Stout has doubled the number of undergraduate majors it offers, has record enrollment and continues to be a vital partner with business and industry in the Chippewa Valley and across the state of Wisconsin.

Special university

Meyer read a letter sent by Chancellor Emeritus Charles W. Sorensen, who championed both the Baldrige award and the polytechnic designation. The Baldrige award, Sorensen said, provided national and international recognition for the school and demonstrated that indeed UW-Stout is a special university.

The polytechnic designation, Sorensen said, meant that UW-Stout joined the ranks of well over 100 other polytechnics across the country and reinforced our commitment to regional and statewide companies.

Meyer said the polytechnic designation helped and continues to help UW-Stout focus as an institution. A lot of people knew we were special. They just didnt know what was special about us, he said.

Other speakers included:

UW-Stout deans Maria Alm, Chuck Bomar and Bob Salt

Barbara Bales, director for strategic initiatives and educational innovation for the UW System

Meridith Drzakowski, assistant chancellor for Planning, Assessment, Research and Quality

Professors Julie Bates-Maves, Nels Paulson and Forrest Schultz, emcee

Laura Donovan, of Platteville, an applied social science major and Stout Student Association president

Kristine Christofferson Olson, of Eau Claire, a 2010 graduate who in 2007 as a student spoke at the Board of Regents to encourage the UW System to approve the polytechnic designation

Bales said UW-Stouts polytechnic mission is the intersection of theory and practice and that the mission and Baldrige focus support the Wisconsin Idea of leveraging university expertise for the good of all state residents.

Donovan also noted UW-Stouts promotion of the Wisconsin Idea, especially through the LAKES REU  research experience for undergraduates. She was part of the federally funded program, which conducts research on area water quality. The Baldrige and polytechnic designation are embedded in the type of education UW-Stout provides, she said. Its about taking what we learn and applying it to real-world situations both locally and globally. Its about using those values (we learn) for a better future.

Olson, who became a science teacher for six years and currently is a stay-at-home mom, said my passion for science was fostered here at UW-Stout through integrated hands-on experiences such as doing research on grasshoppers and zebra fish. I am forever grateful for these experiences. They truly changed who I am as an individual, she said.

Drzakowski is on the national Baldrige Board of Examiners. She said that 15 years after receiving the award UW-Stout remains a national role model for quality because award criteria such as using factually based research to drive managerial decisions and valuing people keep us focused on continuous improvement.
Tit-for-tat moves as Turkey blocks Dutch embassy and Netherlands bars minister from entering consulate in Rotterdam.

Turkey said on Saturday it does nott want the Netherlands ambassador to return for some time as relations quickly deteriorated between the NATO allies after the Dutch government barred Turkeys foreign minister from flying to the country.

In response to the Netherlands withdrawing landing permission, Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused the Dutch government of acting like fascists and Nazi remnants.

Turkish authorities blocked the Dutch embassy and consulate as the dispute between the two countries over Turkeys political campaigning in Europe intensified. Turkey also closed off the residences of the Dutch ambassador, charge daffaires, and consul general.

A senior Turkish foreign ministry official told Al Jazeera the moves were made for security reasons.

We do not want the Dutch ambassador, currently on leave, to return to his post for some time. It has been explained to our counterparts that this grave decision taken against Turkey and the Dutch-Turkish community will cause serious problems diplomatically, politically, economically and in other areas, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Erdogan calls Dutch Nazi remnants as rally row rages

Meanwhile, Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya, Turkeys family affairs minister, was blocked by Dutch police from entering the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam after she drove into the country, NOS News reported.

NOS broadcast footage of Kaya stepping out of a car in front of the consulate and being stopped by police when she tried to enter. She was not arrested.

We ask European countries, especially the Netherlands, to immediately return to democratic values they say they defend  the freedom of expression, action and assembly. They suspended all of these, Kaya told Turkish state media by telephone.

The dispute first erupted after Dutch officials on Friday said they would not welcome a visit by Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu if he were to address a political rally in Rotterdam on Saturday.

There are some 300,000 people of Turkish origin in the Netherlands, and the rally was aimed at generating support among expats for an April 16 referendum over whether to give Turkeys president greater powers.

It is illegal in the Netherlands to hold rallies involving another countrys politics, however.

On Saturday, the Dutch government said it had withdrawn landing permission for Cavusoglus plane because of risks to public order and security.

Netherlands is violating all international laws, conventions and human rights by not letting me enter Turkish Consulate in Rotterdam  Dr.Betul Sayan Kaya  (@drbetulsayan) March 11, 2017

In response, Turkey summoned the Dutch envoy to Ankara in protest over the ban, while Erdogan promised retaliation against Dutch diplomatic flights.

You can stop our foreign ministers plane all you want, lets see how your planes will come to Turkey from now on, Erdogan said at a rally in Istanbul on Saturday.

They are Nazi remnants, they are fascists, Erdogan said, days after he angrily compared moves to block rallies in Germany to Nazi practices.

Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte called Erdogans remark comparing the Dutch to the Nazis crazy.

I understand theyre angry, but this, of course, was way out of line, he said.

Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu insists on Netherlands visit

The diplomatic dispute between the two NATO allies comes just days before the Netherlands goes to the polls in a March 15 election for the lower house of parliament.

The campaign has been dominated by issues of identity, with anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders set to make strong gains.

Wilders, speaking to Al Jazeera at a rally in the Dutch city of Heerlen on Saturday, said the moves by Erdogan and his ministers to campaign in foreign countries were totally unacceptable.

It is uncommon and unwanted that his minister would go and campaign in Holland for a referendum to change the constitution there to make him [Erdogan] more of a dictator. He should not be allowed here at all, said Wilders.





And after him calling Dutch people Nazis and things like that, the Turkish ambassador should be extradited from the Netherlands immediately and retract our ambassador from Ankara today.

Erdogan also denounced Germany after Turkish leaders were prevented from rallying expats in several German cities in support of the referendum.

Many in Europe worry that Erdogan is capitalising on fears following a failed coup attempt in July to push through a more authoritarian system with few checks on his power.

Journalist and author Andrew Finkel, who has covered Turkey extensively, told Al Jazeera the spats with Europe play well to the electorate back home.

As far as the Turkish government is concerned, they couldnt be happier than they are today. Its clearly an attempt to escalate the conflict, said Finkel.

The verbal sparring could have longer-term repercussions, however.

Its a case of clear short-termism. Theyre trying to play this national card  much in the way that Geert Wilders is playing the nationalist card. But of course, what happens the day after that  Nobody is really thinking about that, because Europe is very important to Turkey.
Government troops accuse Russia-backed rebels of using heavy weapons as separatists report one fighters death.

Russia-backed rebels have killed two soldiers and wounded more than a dozen others, according to Ukraines army, in a new uptick in violence across eastern Ukraine despite the latest ceasefire.

Andriy Lysenko, a Ukrainian military spokesman, said on Saturday that two servicemen were killed and 16 more injured in the past 24 hours, accusing separatists of using heavy weapons against government troops.

A rebel spokesman in the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic said one of its fighters had been killed, according to the rebels news agency.

INTERACTIVE: Ukraine divided  stories from warring sides

The latest casualties along eastern Ukraines volatile frontline came despite the warring sides announcing a truce deal in February that has failed to stop the violence.





International monitors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) say they recorded double the number of ceasefire violations compared to the previous week.

OSCE said on Saturday two mortar rounds exploded near its monitors cars in a rebel-controlled village northwest of the government-held city of Mariupol on Friday.

No monitors were injured in the incident, the OSCE said.

Alexander Hug, the deputy head of the OSCEs monitoring mission, said on Friday that 16 civilians had been killed in the region since the start of the year.

Almost 10,000 people have been killed since the start of Russia-backed unrest against the Ukrainian government in 2014.

That conflict and Russias annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 have pushed ties between Moscow and the West to their lowest point since the Cold War.
Face of Buddhist terror ordered into silence by top religious body as deepening anti-Muslim tensions rise.

A Myanmar monk infamous for his bilious anti-Muslim tirades has been banned from giving sermons for a year by the countrys top Buddhist body, an unprecedented slapdown on a man whose hate speech has galvanised religious tensions.

Wirathu, a monk once dubbed the face of Buddhist terror, has led calls for restrictions on Myanmars Muslim population, penning hyperbolic speeches warning of an Islamic takeover of the overwhelmingly Buddhist country.

Myanmar is gripped by deepening religious tensions that have repeatedly spilled into violence.

The unrest has been partially attributed to anti-Muslim rhetoric spread by Wirathus wing of Buddhist monks.

READ MORE: Myanmar government cracks down on Buddhist nationalists

Aung San Suu Kyis government is under strong international pressure to explain a bloody crackdown on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine state over recent months.

The February assassination of Ko Ni, a respected and high-profile Muslim lawyer and long-time Suu Kyi ally, also heightened tensions.

Wirathu, who draws large crowds to his stock-in-trade Islamophobic speeches or social media posts, had already been barred from speaking at an event shortly after Ko Nis murder.

But a special meeting of the countrys most senior monks  the State Sangha Maha Nayaka  on Friday decided to ban all of his sermons.

As he has repeatedly delivered hate speech against religions to cause communal strife and hinder efforts to uphold the rule of law, the monk was banned from delivering sermons across Myanmar for one year from March 10, 2017 to March 9, 2018, the council said in a statement that emerged on Saturday.

He will face action under the rule of law for any breach of the order, the Sangha added, without specifying the punishment.

READ MORE: Myanmars punk rockers challenge anti-Muslim rhetoric

Aung San Win, the director of the Ministry of Religion, confirmed the order to AFP news agency, but did not elaborate on the actions that may be taken against him, or say whether the order covered his vigorous social media profile.

Muslims make up about 5 percent of Myanmars population.

Religious riots have roiled the country in recent years, killing scores of people  the majority of them Muslims.

The worst violence has been in Rakhine, where tens of thousands of Rohingya fled a military crackdown after deadly raids on police border posts.
General Honore Traore in charge of West African nation after violent protests force President Blaise Compaore to resign.

Blaise Compaore, the president of Burkina Faso, has been forced to leave power after days of protests by tens of thousands of people calling for his ousting.

It appeared that the chief of the countrys armed forces took power after the presidents resignation.

Compaore announced his resignation in a statement on Friday and called for a 90-day transition to free and transparent elections in the West African country.

I declare a vacancy of power with a view to allowing a transition that should finish with free and transparent elections in a maximum period of 90 days, said the statement, read on local radio and television by presenters.

Crowds danced and cheered in the capital, Ougadougou, blowing on whistles after Compaores statement was broadcast. The mood cooled, however, as it became plain that military chief General Honore Traore had taken over the reins of power.

In line with constitutional measures, and given the power vacuum  I will assume as of today my responsibilities as head of state, Traore said in a statement.

Protesters dissatisfied

Arsene Evariste Kabore, the former editor-in-chief of Burkina Fasaos state TV, told Al Jazeera that protesters remained in gathered in a square outside the military barracks after Traores announcement.

KEY FACTS Population: 16.9 million. Nearly half the population lives on less than $1 a day. Landlocked state bordering Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo and Ghana. Became independent from France in 1960. Economy based on agriculture. Main exports are gold and cotton.

People are not satisfied, he said. They are waiing for another president.

The general is linked to Compaore, and they dont want anyone linked to Compaore to lead the country. They say they will not leave the streets.

Kabore and foreign diplomats said the deposed president had left the capital on Friday, travelling towards the southern town of Po, near the border with Ghana.

Compaore had been in power since a 1987 coup against then-President Thomas Sankara, Compaores longtime friend and political ally, who was shot dead.

He has donned civilian clothes ever since but really has precided over a soft military regime, Mark Schroeder, an Africa analyst of the geopolitical intelligence firm Stratfor, told Al Jazeera.

He added that Compaores departure was expected to bring little change, calling his replacement by Traore a transition of personalities, not of the regime.

Compaore was elected four times after seizing power, though the opposition has disputed the results.

In recent years, he has fashioned himself as an elder statesman who brokered electoral disputes and hostage releases throughout West Africa.

Domestically he kept a tight leash on any opposition.

Ougadougou riots

Protesters stormed the parliament building in Ougadougou on Thursday and set part of it ablaze in a day of violence around the country aimed at stopping a parliamentary vote that would have allowed the president to seek a fifth term in office.

In a concession to the protesters, the government withdrew the bill from consideration.





But the move did not calm protesters, and General Honore Traore, the armys joint chief of staff, later announced that the government and parliament had been dissolved and a new, inclusive government would be named.

At least one person was killed and several others wounded during the unrest, authorities said. Opposition figures said up to 30 people were killed.

Imad Mesdoua, a political analyst speaking to Al Jazeera from London on Friday, said the opposition was demanding civilian rule, but the army was expected to take on a central role in the countrys near future.

There are reports of looting and unrest in other parts of the country, outside of Ouagadougou. The army will continue to play a strong role, he said.

The EU called on Friday for the people of Burkina Faso to have the final say in who rules their country.

The European Union believes that it is up to the people of Burkina Faso to decide their own future. Any solution must be the result of a broad consensus and respect the constitution, a spokesman for the blocs diplomatic service said.
London, England  At Notting Hill Methodist Church, six months after a deadly fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in West London, a young woman addresses the floor. I lived on the 23rd floor of Grenfell Tower for 23 years, the woman says. No one from that floor survived aside from my mother and the []
They were not speaking to each other less than 18 months ago, but now the presidents of Russia and Turkey are praising their friendship.

Vladimir Putin welcomed Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Moscow on Friday, with the war in Syria dominating their talks.

The two leaders seem to have reconciled their differences with talk of renewed optimism about a possible peace deal in Syria.

Putin hailed their joint efforts in Syria while Erdogan said they have closed the gap to normalising relations.

Is this just a partnership of convenience? And how is that being viewed by Turkeys NATO allies and others?

Presenter: Hazem Sika

Guests:

Metin Gurcan  Al-Monitors Turkey Pulse.

Sergey Strokan  Kommersant newspaper.

Lilit Gevorgyan  Political analyst.
The case against Assange is as political as it is legal; where does it go from here? Plus, Kenyas election influencers.
At two million troops strong, the Peoples Liberation Army is the most powerful symbol of Chinese might. Globally, it is recognised as the largest military force in the world. The armys role and history in society is unquestioned, therefore anyone who dares to challenge it  or any of its legacy  is in for a lot of trouble.

The Five Heroes of Langya Mountain is a tale that has been told to generations of children in schools across China. It has even been turned into a film.

When the Chinese fought the Japanese invaders during World War II, a crucial encounter took place on a mountaintop, according to the tale. After a fierce battle killing numerous Japanese, the Chinese were running out of ammunition. The last remaining soldiers, a total of five, made their final decision: rather than being captured by the Imperial Japanese Army they jumped off the cliff. Three of them died. Two miraculously survived. It all happened in 1941.

But did it really happen?

This is a warning to all the historians, if you dare to challenge the official propaganda and the Communist rule, the law is on the Party's side to protect its authority. You'll lose all the lawsuits and take all the responsibilities. There is no academic freedom, if you can't even raise your doubts. This is absolutely ridiculous. by Hong Zhenkuai, historian

History is based on facts and historian Hong Zhenkuai decided to find out. He proceeded to dig into archives and testimonies made at the time and study all available records, including Japanese military records. What he found were, he says, discrepancies. Serious discrepancies leading him to question the official version of what happened that day.

For this  with a lost lawsuit on his record and a demand for a public apology from Chinese court  he is now paying the price.

As the Communist Partys National Peoples Congress sets the tone in Beijing, Al Jazeera talks to the man who is taking on the official narrative of the Chinese Army. By doing so, Hong is not only testing the limits of free thinking and public debate, but also the patience of Chinas political leadership.

Asked why he wont simply apologise after losing his job and his magazine, Hong says: An apology should be made after one person makes a mistake, as a way to make up for it. The problem is, I wrote the article to find out the historical truth. I have evidence and I have no intention to libel or insult anyone within the legal scope. This case is a political one, not a legal one.

When Talk to Al Jazeera spoke with visitors on Langya Mountain, the information founded by Hong didnt seem to phase most. The legend was still unscathed in their eyes. Therefore, why is the historian adamant on revealing what he determines to be the truth?

According to the law, spreading false information is spreading rumours. So, in that sense, the government is also spreading rumours. I understand it was for the purpose of propaganda during the war times. But it has been over 70 years now and the public have the right to know the truth.










English News China, ASEAN are working on a common set of regional rules: FM

Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 11 Mars 2017



The minister vowed that China will work with ASEAN to pursue greater mutual benefit, intensify cooperation on connectivity and production capacity, make sure both peoples benefit from the upgrade of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area CAFTA) as soon as possible, and wrap up the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations at an early date.

By Ji Peijuan from Peoples Daily Tides have risen and fallen over the past year, and the South China Sea has returned to calm, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi made the remarks at a press conference on the sidelines of the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress in Beijing on Wednesday.



I would go further than saying the temperature has lowered "somewhat" and say that it has lowered significantly, the minister said, adding that this is the result of the joint efforts of China and ASEAN countries, and it's welcome news for the region and the world.



At present, the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) is being implemented in a full and effective manner, and the directly concerned countries have returned to the right track of settling their disputes through dialogue and consultation, the diplomat said.



China and the ten ASEAN countries are advancing the Code of Conduct (COC) consultation to work out a common set of regional rules, he added.



The China-ASEAN joint working group has made visible progress and produced the first draft of COC framework at the end of February. China and the ASEAN countries are all happy about it. Wang elaborated.



Last year marks the 25th anniversary of the China-ASEAN dialogue relations, and this year marks the 50th anniversary of ASEAN's founding. Commenting on it, Wang said that the silver anniversary and the golden anniversary are especially auspicious for regional cooperation.



China will support the Philippines in fulfilling its responsibilities as the ASEAN Chair, and we will help build the ASEAN Community, he pledged, furthering that both sides have agreed to establish a bilateral consultation on the South China Sea issue and set up a cooperation mechanism between the coast guards.



China and the ASEAN, with an aim to strengthen bonds of friendship, will make a success of the China-ASEAN Tourism Cooperation Year in 2017, and strive to meet a target of 30 million mutual visits by 2020.



The minister vowed that China will work with ASEAN to pursue greater mutual benefit, intensify cooperation on connectivity and production capacity, make sure both peoples benefit from the upgrade of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area CAFTA) as soon as possible, and wrap up the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations at an early date.



Talking about the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) between China and the ASEAN members, Wang said that both sides will speed up work on the 45 "early harvest" programs, and invite applications for the LMC special fund.



We hope LMC will become a flagship initiative in China's efforts to build a community of shared future with our neighbors and contribute more to the narrowing of disparity and the promotion of integration in our region, he noted, adding that the China Secretariat for LMC will be set up in a few days' time.



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English News China glad to see ties with Philippines back on right track: FM

Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 11 Mars 2017



The rosy relationship has boosted Chinese tourist arrivals to the Philippines. Last year, over 675,700 Chinese tourists visited the Philippines, up 37.7 percent, data from the Philippine Department of Tourism said. In 2016, China replaced Japan to be the third largest source of the Philippines foreign tourists, only after South Korea and the US.

By Ji Peijuan from Peoples Daily The turnaround of China-Philippines relations reflects what the relationship is supposed to be like, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Wednesday when commenting on the improved bilateral relations after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte came into office.



"The Philippines has extended a hand of friendship, so of course, China has embraced it with open arms," Wang said at a press conference on the sidelines of the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress in Beijing.



The economic and trade exchanges between China and the Philippines have improved in the less than six months since Duterte's visit to China last October, analysts say.



A six-year development program for economic and trade cooperation will be officially signed during Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang's visit to the the Philippines in the coming few days, according to reports.



This May, Duterte will attend the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing, indicating the Philippines will formally be an important part of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiative.



"At present, the two countries are tapping the full potential of our bilateral cooperation to make up for lost time," the minister said. A China-Philippines Trade and Investment Forum, for instance, was held in Beijing last October.



In the less than six months since Duterte's visit to China, nearly 1,000 Chinese tourist groups have visited the Philippines and China has imported over 200,000 tons of tropical fruits from the Philippines, Wang noted.



The two sides are having intensive discussions on a range of infrastructural projects, including railways, bridges and dams, and some of them may begin construction within this year, he added.



On January 23 this year, China and the Philippines confirmed over 30 cooperation programs worth $3.7 billion, during Philippine Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez's visit to China.



The 28th Philippine-Chinese Joint Commission on Economic and Trade Cooperation (JCETC) was held in Philippine capital Manila on Tuesday. The JCETC was convened after a five-year hiatus.



The meeting was co-chaired by China's newly-appointed Commerce Minister Zhong Shan and Philippine Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.



During the meeting, three projects have been identified by the Chinese government for priority funding, including Chico River Pump Irrigation project, New Centennial Water Source-Kaliwa Dam project, and the North-South railwaySouth Line project, according to Lopez.



The two ministers also discussed to support a list of projects, including cross-border e-commerce, big data analysis, creative industry, electromobile and iron and steel. They also discussed possible locations of the proposed China-Philippines Industrial Park.



Statistics showed that China was the second biggest trade partner, biggest import source and fourth largest export destination of the Philippines in 2016.



Last year, the total bilateral trade reached 311.21 billion yuan ($ 45 billion), ranking the sixth in the ten ASEAN members, and up 9.8 percent from a year earlier, data from the General Administration of Customs of China showed.



The speed of growth was much higher than that between the ASEAN and China, which was 1.9 percent. It also came after that between China and Cambodia, which was first in the ten ASEAN members.



The rosy relationship has boosted Chinese tourist arrivals to the Philippines. Last year, over 675,700 Chinese tourists visited the Philippines, up 37.7 percent, data from the Philippine Department of Tourism said. In 2016, China replaced Japan to be the third largest source of the Philippines foreign tourists, only after South Korea and the US.



The Philippine Department of Tourism aims to attract 1 million tourists from China this year, said the department secretary Secretary Wanda Corazon Teo, adding that to achieve that goal, it plans to issue visa-on-arrival service for Chinese nationals and launch the chartered flights.



She also said that the department is ready to roll out more promotion campaigns to encourage more tourists from China.



Pics:

Photo shows the Dole bananas imported from the Philippines. (File photo)



Dans la meme rubrique : < > China's Beidou reaches world-leading level: white paper Silk Road e-commerce promotes trade among Belt and Road countries Irrigation project in Jiangsu gets world heritage designation Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena)
EAU CLAIRE  Alex Halpin made his way around the Spring Career Fair at Chippewa Valley Technical College on Wednesday getting a feel for some of the opportunities available. But his was not a desperate job search.

Halpin, a 2013 Cornell High School graduate, is in the information technology-network specialist program, and demand in that field is high.

Ill be graduating in May, and Im looking for a full-time information technology position, he told Erin Trowbridge and Michael Brahmer at the Bernicke Wealth Management table. I like working with other cultures and likely will stick with IT networking for a career.

Brahmer indicated information systems people were among the ones they were looking for, along with sales and advising.

Students attending the career fair, held at the CVTC Business, Health, Manufacturing and Energy education centers, found for the most part a job-seekers market once again, as an improving economy has resulted in talent shortages in some areas.

The career fair drew about 140 employers, similar to the previous two spring events, but up significantly from the 86 employers attending in 2014.

Im finding a lot of demand out there, Halpin said. I see 80 positions every week online for IT positions. I dont see that slowing down soon.

Indeed, at the Seek Careers/Staffing table, Tara Nadolny and Aaron Libner were looking for a broad range of people to fill a broad range of needs of their business clients.

Right now, manufacturing is a very hot commodity  machinists, welders and fabrication types of positions, Libner said.

And theres always administrative assistant positions available in the area, Nadolny added.

Much of the recruitment by employers and searching by students focused on long-term career issues rather than the filling of immediate openings.

Im looking for career opportunities and internships, said Trevor Hurt, a business management student from Mondovi. Im graduating soon, and internships are required in my program. A lot of the employers say they are hiring for May right now, but a lot of them say they are looking for interns, too.

Courtney Hawkins of Chippewa Falls, an accounting student, hopes to graduate in the summer after completing an internship she was looking for at the career fair.

Im seeing whats out there in the Eau Claire area, and Im open to whatever right now, Hawkins said. Im hoping for something Monday through Friday during the day.

Jeff Webb, customer service manager at US Bank, said they were primarily looking to staff a call center right now, but were thinking long-term in their search for talent.

Were looking for people who are willing to start at the beginning in the company and work their way up, and we have lots of opportunities, Webb said. And people who have been with us six months are eligible for a tuition reimbursement program.

Lisa Hedrington, a human resources manager working at American Income Life table, was also interested in meeting students who were looking for a long-term career.

She recalled a CVTC student who visited the table just before his May 2014 graduation in the business management program. He started in sales, worked his way into management and is now in charge of the companys Oklahoma market.










English News China promises tougher assessment in war on poverty

Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 11 Mars 2017



China lifted 12.4 million citizens out of poverty in 2016, surpassing its annual target. According to this year's government work report, at least another 10 million people will be relieved from poverty in 2017. Fan Xiaojian, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and director of the advisory committee of the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development, said that there are still 43 million poor people in China.

By Ji Peijuan, Zhang Cong from Peoples Daily Food and clothing shortages must be solved to alleviate poverty, a Chinese official pledged recently, in Chinas latest vow to get tough in war on poverty.

To make sure its poverty alleviation policies are effective, China has promised the strictest assessments as well as a strict cap on the number of impoverished people.

Besides food and clothing, basic education, medical care and housing security must be guaranteed, Liu Yongfu, director of the State Council Leading Group Office on Poverty Alleviation and Development, said at a media briefing on the sidelines of the NPC session in Beijing.

Chinas 2017 government work report requires local authorities to effectively implement an accountability system and apply the strictest assessment for poverty alleviation. In the report, the Chinese government also promises stern punishments against deception, falsification, and manipulation of statistics, so as to ensure the policies can really benefit the public and withstand the test of history.

Liu cited an example to introduce the stricter assessments and higher threshold. An average annual income of 5,000 yuan ($723) is not enough for a family who has college students, given that the yearly cost of university education rises to 20,000 to 30,000 yuan," Liu explained.

He added that a family with patients who have to pay an unaffordable amount of money for medical treatment cannot be assessed as a non-impoverished household, though their incomes may have reached the required threshold.

Poverty eradication is not an easy task for China. According to the standard set by the central government, a region can only beat poverty after the local impoverished population drop to less than 2 percent of its total rural population, while those failing to meet the requirements have to keep the title.

Jinggangshan, southeast Jiangxi Province, according to Liu, finally bear poverty after a series of stern assessments.

After the city applied to delist itself from the impoverished regions at the end of February, a third-party assessment was organized by the State Council poverty relief office. The working team, after surveying 80 percent of local residents lifted out of poverty in 2016 and two-thirds in previous years, concluded that the local poverty incidence was at 1.6 percent.

In addition, over 90 percent of surveyed local residents recognized local governments efforts to wipe out poverty, Liu said, adding that such cases can be verified.

However, some citizens are reluctant to be lifted out of poverty, worrying that favorable policies would be canceled.

Liu reassured them that those policies will remain after the poverty-stricken areas are delisted, adding that such a decision aims to consolidate the results and prevent re-impoverishment.

China lifted 12.4 million citizens out of poverty in 2016, surpassing its annual target. According to this year's government work report, at least another 10 million people will be relieved from poverty in 2017.

Fan Xiaojian, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and director of the advisory committee of the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development, said that there are still 43 million poor people in China.

In order to meet the target of poverty reduction for the rural population before 2020, at least 10 million people must be lifted out of poverty each year, Fan noted.

Pic:



Residents of Huaibao in Liuzhou, southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, carry harvested ganoderma. The government has provided more than 40,000 ganoderma as well as technical and sales services to local residents to help lift them out of poverty. (Photo by Peoples Daily Online)



Dans la meme rubrique : < > China's Beidou reaches world-leading level: white paper Silk Road e-commerce promotes trade among Belt and Road countries Irrigation project in Jiangsu gets world heritage designation Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena)










English News Chinas judicial step propels human rights progress

Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 11 Mars 2017



The correction of each wrongful conviction adds a new footnote for social justice. The white paper, Judicial Reform of Chinese Courts (2013-2016) released by the Supreme Peoples Court not long ago, stated that from 2013 to 2016, Chinese courts at various levels have acquitted 3,718 defendants in accordance with the law and handled 16,889 state compensations cases, which involved 6.99 trillion yuan ($1.01 trillion).

By Wei Zhezhe from Peoples Daily As the last line of safeguarding social fairness and justice, judiciary is an important aspect of human rights protection. In recent years, China has made significant progress in improving human rights protection in the judicial area.



China Judgments Online, an official website for court documents established by the Supreme Peoples court of China, is an important measure for ensuring the transparency of the countrys judicial work.



It is the largest platform for verdict documents in the world as well. On March 9 alone, 23,856 pieces of documents were uploaded, totaling the document number to over 26.98 million, the pageview exceeded 6.3 billion.



On December 2, 2016, China exonerated Nie Shubin, who was wrongfully executed for murder and rape in 1995. The Supreme Peoples Court ordered Shandong Provincial Higher People's court to re-examine the case on December 12, 2014. Nies case is a landmark for Chinas judicial system whether in terms of its complexity, duration or public attention.



Both positive and negative lessons can be drawn from the case. The good part is that the Supremes Peoples Court has adopted cross-region examination, direct arraignment and other approaches to clear Nies name, tackling a tough issue in Chinas judicial system. What is regrettable is that the damage brought by Nies death to his family can never be fully recovered.



The correction of each wrongful conviction adds a new footnote for social justice. The white paper, Judicial Reform of Chinese Courts (2013-2016) released by the Supreme Peoples Court not long ago, stated that from 2013 to 2016, Chinese courts at various levels have acquitted 3,718 defendants in accordance with the law and handled 16,889 state compensations cases, which involved 6.99 trillion yuan ($1.01 trillion).



Chinese courts, in 2016, corrected the wrongful conviction of 17 people in 11 cases, setting a record high after it had cleared the name of 37 people in 23 major wrongful cases in the previous four years, said Li Shaoping, vice president of the Supreme Peoples Court.



From 2013 to 2016, courts at various levels have rectified 34 major wrongful cases, including Nie Shubing case, Huugjilt case and the case of Zhang Hui and Zhang Gaoping (nephew and uncle).



Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Chinas judicial and administrative work has implemented the strategic decision of abolishing the system of re-education through labor. Previous personnel and facilities of the system have been relocated and used for other causes.



With a focus on legal aid for migrant workers, disabled persons and minors, China has conducted legal assistance and stepped up the construction of legal service windows at aid halls and street level. The construction of 94.9 percent and 73.9 percent of the street level windows in central and western China respectively has been completed.



Since 2013, over 5 million legal aid cases have been processed and more than 28 million people have received legal consultation across the country. Ninety-five percent of the local governments have included legal aid service into their budget and over 20 provinces have set up special fund for legal assistance.





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English News Chinese deputies focus on details for a better government work report

Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 11 Mars 2017



The government work report is a leading actor of each years meeting. According to a regular procedure, a draft government work report will be written at first by State Council after their rounds of symposium, and wide opinion collection from experts, scholars, entrepreneur, grassroots levels as well as representatives of different circles.

By Wan Yu from People's Daily Thousands of deputies are gathering in Beijing to contribute their wisdom to Chinas economic and political agenda, and one of their important tasks is to review the government work report. In a bid to better fulfill their duties, these dedicated deputies have studied and discussed each detail of the report.



As a highly stressed topic in the government work report, how to advance supply-side structural reform in agriculture was discussed by the deputies to the annual sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).



These political advisers also offered bills and suggestions on the directions and ways to develop agriculture. Their dedication for each detail can be evident by the heated up debates on effective supply of corn.



CPPCC adviser Ke Bingsheng, president of the China Agricultural University, said that the increase of corn production and the high price result in poor sales and huge inventories.



"The effective supply of agricultural products lags behind the upgrade of demand," he said.



But NPC deputy Wang Yong, a village secretary from east China's Shandong province, disagreed with him, suggesting to adjust corn structure. Corn can be used as raw material to produce glucose, fructose and corn sugar, he advised.



While Wang Zuoying, also a deputy to the NPC and researcher with the Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Dandong, northeast China's Liaoning province, suggested to enrich corn species by planting green, organic and new species such as fructose corn.



He also proposed to increase effective supply and reduce low-end supply, in order to adjust agricultural structure.



Such heated debate and discussion are not a fresh thing as all the deputies busy with reviewing work hope to contribute their own wisdom to the report.



When deputies have reached consensus on certain topics, their proposals might be adopted and included in the final version of the government work report this year.



Chinese leaders, including President Xi Jinping, also joined the panel discussion of deputies coming from across the country and all walks of life.



The government work report is a leading actor of each years meeting. According to a regular procedure, a draft government work report will be written at first by State Council after their rounds of symposium, and wide opinion collection from experts, scholars, entrepreneur, grassroots levels as well as representatives of different circles.



There are a few procedures before the government work report is finalized. First, the draft report will be discussed by members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, and then its report version will be submitted to the NPC for review, by the Premier of the State Council.



After deputies' advice and suggestions are put together and submitted for more consideration by the NPC, the government work report will be finalized to become the guiding document for the work of the government in this year.



For instance, after reviewed by the NPC, the government work report in 2016, which originally contained 19,564 words, was added to 20,072 words as 61 revises and over 80 suggestions were accepted.



Pic:

Deputies from east China Shandong province study the 2017 government work report. (Photo by People's Daily Online)



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English News Feature: Female sailors on escort mission in Gulf of Aden

Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 11 Mars 2017



They are members of the 25th convoy fleet sent by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy for the missions since 2008. These young women, working as special combat soldiers, sailors or officers, stick to their posts on deck day and night.

By Xing Xue, Li Youtao, Zhang Dongjie from Peoples Daily When women around the world celebrated the International Women's Day on Wednesday, 16 female soldiers of a Chinese navy fleet on an escort mission in the Gulf of Aden spent a special yet regular day by guarding the safety of Chinese and foreign merchant ships.



They are members of the 25th convoy fleet sent by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy for the missions since 2008. These young women, working as special combat soldiers, sailors or officers, stick to their posts on deck day and night.



Bai Shuo, helmswoman of the fleet, joined the navy after graduating from university in June, 2015.



Easy may her task seems, helming indeed calls for abundant knowledge such as gust calculation, tide calculation, and operation of multiple devices including compass, autopilot and azimuth instrument.



She remains stationed at her post in the wheel house throughout the day during the escort mission. Though it was tiring, she believes it is worthwhile as it guarantees security for the passing vessels.



Song Xi, one of female sailors, is a soldier from the PLA Marine Corps, and a senior student at Peking University. She is also the only female special force soldier on the fleet.



Whenever the combat alert rings in the waters of Gulf of Aden, Song would respond quickly and stop the suspicious vessels by barrage together with other male soldiers.



"Though I'm currently far away from the campus, I have found my value in the barrack," Song said. Many of the female sailors suffered from seasickness at the beginning of the mission, so did Song. However, she has overcome it and is now able to "resonate" to the sea.



On the Gulf of Aden, the 16 female sailors are showing China's confidence to the world through their service for the country.



Pics:

Female sailors pose for photo during a break. (Photo by Li Youtao from Peoples Daily)

Female soldier Song Xi is on a training course. (Photo by Li Youtao from Peoples Daily)



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With each day the ghost of Juvenal looms larger. This famed Roman satirist sought to capture the Emperor Domitians vice-infested culture, in the gloomy years ending the first century. The more people tried to censor him the more merciless his tongue became.

Trumps America should study his incisive texts, including this famous passage often translated as who is watching the watcher? See:

Hey there, you Who do you think youre fooling [with] this masquerade

I know the advice my old friends would giveLock her up And bar the doors. But who is to keep guard Over the guards themselves? They get paid in common coin To forget their mistresss randy little adventures; Both sides have something to hide. Any sensible wife, Planning ahead, will first turn the heat on them. --Juvenals Sixth Satire

(Trans. Peter Green. In Juvenal, Sixteen Satires (New York: Viking Penguin, 1985), 140.)

Through laughter he taught readers about fake news and kangaroo courts. The simple message in Satire VI, known as his diatribe on women, is this: See whos paying the investigator, and youll know what general falsehoods the investigator is likely to come up with. Caveat Priebus.

Culture in the third phase

Three periods of the Roman Empires culture stand out. Just before and after the birth of Christ, Virgils Aeneid and Horaces gentle satires trumpeted an Augustan Romanitas (or Roman virtue) for jittery citizens who survived decades of civil war to become the most powerful people in the whole world. Call this the winsome phase.

Mid-century, just after the end of Pauls ministry, a generation of writers including Petronius (Satyricon) and Lucan (Pharsalia) reacted to the excesses of Neros reign by penning epic-length narratives full of viscera and gore. Call this the gross phase.

Over a century after Virgils Aeneid, in a third phase, Juvenal emerged as a new voice of satire. He felt neither inspired to offer virtuous stories nor compelled to use grotesquerie to mourn virtues lost. Call this the crass phase.

For Juvenals generation, all that remained was sarcastic exposes on the utter crudeness of a self-righteous but decadent society. He was perhaps like Bill Maher, only a social conservative. (His second satire, on sodomy, has already gotten him banned from Classics syllabi on politically correct campuses!)

Trumps America is Juvenals Rome

Perhaps the Oscars-night loss of La La Land to the politically contrived Moonlight points to where America now stands. Postwar musicals delivered wholesomeness to an aspiring empire led by a World War II general. Our winsome phased ended with Shirley Joness winks and nods to Harold Hill in the cinematic version of 1962s Music Man. Then for Phase II we had Linda Lovelace and Texas Chainsaw Massacre shocking the 1970s. Now we are living in Juvenals Rome and the crass phase. Neither Eisenhowerian innocence nor Nixonian outrage can compete with the allure of simple apathy and sass.

Why bother caring when we know the system is rigged and everyone claiming to be outraged is really just running another scam on us?

But we are not Rome! We cannot let go of our principles yet, because whereas Rome simply had to worry about Visigoths and Parthians, we face the far more dangerous Democrats. Maybe a barbarian might raid a far-flung outpost, but Democrats will invade our private lives, projecting homosexual fairy tales into our homes through Netflix, and force our daughters to look at naked men when they need to use the toilet. If they steal our democracy, they wont simply overthrow the president they dont like. They will impose their decadent and inhumane way of life on us. (This is why I have refocused my energies on local fights like Texass battle over sexually excessive grade school curriculum.)

What to make of treason charges?

In 2017 Juvenalian farce writes itself, making actual satirists unnecessary. (Roland Barthes envisioned the Death of the Author in 1968, but probably had no clue how prescient he was.)

On March 2, 2017, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said he would recuse himself from investigations into Russian cyberespionage in the U.S. This could confirm or reverse Juvenals ancient warning -- Whos watching the watcher? -- depending on how you look at it. Mr. Sessions is literally saying he will not keep watch over the people keeping watch over him. Perhaps that is good, since in principle the watcher should not be the one being investigated. But on the other hand, if he isnt watching the watchers, then who is? Anybody else overseeing the oversight is likely to be even worse.

Let us review this: Jeff Sessions met with a Russian ambassador. Hysteria reigns left of center over claims that Russians hacked the election, which means, within this strain of thought, that people whose names we dont know in American intelligence reported in secret meetings to American journalists that they engaged in secret analysis and concluded that people we dont know somewhere in Russia wanted Trump to win the election, so they hacked into email accounts to embarrass the Democrats by not allowing them to keep their vicious emails secret? Transparency is a rather elusive good in all this, making the watching a strange game indeed.

The basis for such an investigation is, to put it charitably, quite strained to begin with. Why we need watchers for this issue, when we already have, ostensibly, commissions in every state to keep watch over the balloting in every district in America, remains rather unpersuasive.

This apoplexy over Russian hackers escalates each day while nobody has yet made serious gestures to investigate what happened in California. Two very suspicious electoral results there keep pestering me.

First, why did the margin of Hillary Clintons win expand by such an enormous factor in the weeks after the polls closed, mushrooming from barely 500,000 to now, as Trump-haters repeat, close to three million? Almost all of this strangely blooming margin comes from California, a state run by the party opposed to Donald J. Trump, and where somehow their own election workers missed millions of ballots by November 8, which, when rediscovered after a highly incendiary election result, swung overwhelmingly to Hillary Clinton. Who was watching the election watchers out there?

Strangely too, in a state with an enormous Latino population and a much smaller African American population, two Democrats ran against each other for a Senate seat. Somehow the well-known and popular Latina, Ms. Sanchez, coming from the far more populous southern California, lost by millions of votes to Kamala Harris. Ms. Harris hails from the less populous northern California, did not have decades of being elected to popular office, and had as her sole advantage the fact that the old guard of white liberals like Jerry Brown really liked her. Between two Democrats, Ms. Harris, who wreaks of snooty Bay Area snobbery, trounced the Latina home girl by over twenty percentage points?

Whos watching the watchers out there, and why are we worried about Russians exposing Democrats secrets and whether Jeff Sessions had a meeting with an ambassador who has met with half of Congress?

Yet those who call for more investigations and costly intelligence assessments persist. During his Senate confirmation hearing, Mr. Sessions responded to a vague (could it be anything other than vague?) question from Sen. Al Franken (a comedian who wrote the weighty tome Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot) by saying that though he was a surrogate for Trump he did not communicate with the Russians. The press called this a lie and pressure mounted to force Mr. Sessions to recuse himself. Suddenly Mr. Sessions left-of-center critics are moral purists. They believe that if someone responds to a vague question about a vain issue based on suggestive speculation without recalling, on the spot, every possible detail that his detractors might use to shoe-horn an ethics charge on him, then the person is not honest enough to oversee a wild goose chase after the elected president who appointed him.

All signs indicate that a network of people with unclear motivations opposes Mr. Trump. The network has gathered complicated plans to thwart, sabotage, and ruin his presidency. Their tactics appear to consist of slander, innuendo, and manipulation of both judicial bureaucracy and popular opinion. Their ranks unite anti-Trump moles throughout the civil service, lowly trolls in the gutters of cyberspace, street thugs, and reputable public figures. The pedigreed intellectuals and statesmen involved in this seem willing to stake their reputation on the hopes that they can emerge from a mud-storm without their good names entirely sullied.

This represents a severe threat to our democracy far worse than the famous conspiracy of Catiline. Whether the plotters can succeed in overthrowing a president and reimposing undemocratic policies that voters rejected depends on the publics stamina. If we deplorables get tired too quickly, the devils minions will hack away at Trumps administration until it collapses. If we can stay alert and counter every fraud, fake charge, slander, smear, and whisper campaign, we may roll back the subterfuge and help Trump make America great again.

Theres nothing left but satire

This historical moment demands we give up niceties and cuteness. If we feel outraged, the only way to convey it is by ruthlessly deflating the seriousness of the ridiculous political maneuvers that have outraged us. That is why, in looking for a title of my most recent book, I chose not to call it something high-minded and diplomatic. I called it Wackos Thugs & Perverts. This is Juvenals age. Stay vigilant and keep watch -- and sharpen your tongue.

Robert Oscar Lopez can be followed at English Manif, Twitter, and CogWatch.
When a man knows he is to be hanged, said Dr. Samuel Johnson, it concentrates his mind wonderfully. When North Korea on March 6, 2017 simultaneously and successfully fired four missiles, the mind of the president of the U.S. as well as the eyes of the world, began concentrating on the ensuing danger to humanity. That demonstration of power, together with the murder on February 13, 2017 at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia of Kim Jong Nam by two women on behalf of the victims half-brother, the dictator Kim Jong-Un, constituted for many a wakeup call and a "game-changer."

Yet it should not have been. The "international community" was given ample notice of the nature of the North Korean regime. In a damning 372-page report on February 17, 2014 by a United Nation committee headed by Michael Kirby, former Australian High Court Justice, the violations of human rights and abuses of the regime were considered to constitute crimes against humanity. North Korea is a totalitarian state, with a single party, a dictator who is the Supreme Leader, and a guiding ideology, seeking to dominate every aspect of the lives of its citizens who are terrorized.

After World War II, the frequent feeble excuse of those who were passive in the face of Nazi atrocities was "If only we had known." There is no excuse possible about the North Korean system. Indeed, the Kirby report indicated that atrocities committed by North Korea (NK) were strikingly similar to those perpetrated by the Nazis during World War II. There is no parallel in the contemporary world.

Those atrocities included torture, public executions, a large political prison system, thousands of political prisoners killed in the past 50 years, abduction, enforced disappearance of people, arbitrary detention, entrenched patterns of discrimination especially against women, the seizure of food for ideological reasons, a bad food situation in which more than a quarter of children were born stunted, all making up a regime responsible for multiple crimes against humanity.

In the system, one based on the cult of personality, there has been almost complete denial of the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. One consequence has been the flight of at least 30,000 refugees into South Korea. Although the Kirby Report suggested the UN take judicial proceedings against the regime, nothing was done.

The time has come for the world to ensure, as Ambassador Nikki Haley said, that NK does not continue on its destructive path. Even more urgent, the U.S. must ensure that its ability to defend against NK ballistic missiles is enhanced.

The urgency results from the events on March 6, 2017, when NK launched its four missiles simultaneously from its long-range rocket launch site. They flew 620 miles and fell into the sea, between Japan's northwest coast and the Korean Peninsula. This was ominous for three reasons: first, the regime indicated they could have struck at U.S. bases in Japan; secondly, because of the saturation element, Japan could not shoot down all four launched at the same time; thirdly, each of the five successful nuclear tests showed an increase in yield. NK is ready to annihilate its enemies. The intercontinental ballistic missile, on which it is working, may be capable of reaching the U.S.

The tests could also have been a distraction for the murder of Kim Jong Nam, as a result of which the Malaysian government expelled the NK ambassador from the country. The embassy had been opened in February 2004, and Malaysia was the first country whose citizens could enter NK without a visa, which was reciprocated by NK.

Three weeks earlier, NK deliberately tested a medium-range missile during the visit of Japan's prime minister Shinzo Abe to the White House. The U.S., aware of the NK provocations, is holding the joint military exercise between the U.S. and South Korea, known as Foal Eagle. This involves 320,000 troops, highly advanced firepower, and aircraft including the F-35 Lightning II fighter. But though NK considers this as preparation for a pre-emptive strike for a future invasion, for the U.S. it is a defensive operation.

The defense is being enhanced by the beginning of deployment of THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) an anti-missile defense system, being emplaced in South Korea. The system is supposed to be completely deployed by the end of 2017. China is opposed to this system, arguing that it is destroying the regional security balance, and that it might be THAAD's main target, a contention denied by the U.S.

Unfortunately, at this moment South Korea is engulfed in a political crisis due to the decision of the Constitutional Court to uphold the impeachment of its President Park Geun-hye and ordered her removal from office as a result of charges of corruption and cronyism on behalf of a friend who pressured companies, including Samsung, to give millions to foundations she controlled. Park is the first South Korean president to be forced from office, though not the first to be impeached.

China may be the key, since it has influence over Pyongyang. The country is unhappy with the NK missile and nuclear tests. It has advocated denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and has called for United Nations sanctions against NK. It has already in February 2017 suspended coal imports from NK. China's foreign minister, Wany Yi, sensing the danger to his country, calls for NK to suspend its nuclear program while the U.S. and South Korea should end their military exercises.

Irrespective of the troubling trade issue between the U.S. and China the present impasse is an opportunity to consider some kind of political rapprochement together with Japan in order to remove the NK threat.

President Trump has an opportunity for decisive action and his first international triumph. This is not military action, though defensive preparation must be continued, but for political and diplomatic activity including sanctions to press the reluctant international community to hold North Korea accountable and to punish its government not only for its crimes against humanity and its coercion of its citizens, but because it is the danger to the peace of the world.
Critics of the border wall proposed by President Trump have said the cost is prohibitive under current budget and economic conditions, that no way is Mexico going to pay for it, and shifting funds away from the TSA, Coast Guard, and FEMA are counterproductive in terms of national security.

These criticisms ignore the costs to the U.S. in terms other than money -- increased crime, overtaxed law enforcement, the drain on public resources such as education, medical care, etc., and the driving down of real wages through an endless supply of cheap labor.

In fact, thanks in large part to the mere threat of the wall, the sudden enforcement of existing law, and the stripping of funding from sanctuary cities by President Trump, illegal immigration has plummeted by 40 percent in February, a trend that if continued will reduce the costs and burdens of illegal immigration to the point that the benefits of enhanced border security, including the wall, will be more than paid for. As the New York Post noted:

The number of illegal immigrants crossing into the United States from Mexico declined by 40 percent from January to February, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said on Wednesday. The downturn came after President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20 vowing to deport many of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States He said the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency, which compiled the data, historically sees a 10 percent to 20 percent increase in apprehensions of illegal immigrants from January to February Since the administrations implementation of Executive Orders to enforce immigration laws, apprehensions and inadmissible activity is trending toward the lowest monthly total in at least the last five years, Kelly said.

President Trump has shown that border security is not that hard. It merely requires willpower and resolve that puts the impact of illegal immigration on America and its citizens above the impact on the political fortunes of pandering politicians. Now comes a study from the Center for Immigration Studies showing that this ongoing reduction in illegal immigration will reduce related costs to the point the wall is paid for:

President Donald Trumps border wall only needs to stop about 10 percent of illegal crossing in order to pay for itself, according to an analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies.The estimated $12 to $15 billion cost of the wall would quickly be offset by the savings to the government if fewer illegal immigrants arrive in the country over the next decade, CIS found. Only a small portion of the population of people who are expected to attempt an illegal crossing in the next decade -- between 9 and 12 percent -- would have to be stopped for the wall to totally pay for itself. The analysis from CIS, a group that advocates for moderating immigration levels, relies on fiscal estimates from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NAS) for the average cost to taxpayers of illegal immigrants. NAS estimates one illegal immigrant costs state and local governments approximately $75,000 in a lifetime, taking into account taxes paid and the cost of providing benefits such as education and health care.

C ritics say the costs of illegal immigration fall largely on state and local governments and it is a federal government burdened with debt that has to write the checks. But the costs in either case are born by the American taxpayer and the American worker. Ask Kate Steinles father what the true costs of illegal immigration are and who pays for them.

Trump was able to begin immediate construction of the border wall and opening up bidding for contracts thanks to a 2006 measure signed into law by President George W. Bush and supported by Democrats including then-senators Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and Hillary Clinton.

Democrats are already grumbling about Donald Trumps proposed border wall, though Barack Obama and other leaders in their party voted not so long ago for George W. Bushs proposal to build a major wall on the border with Mexico. Bush signed the proposal into law in 2006, after it was passed by huge bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate. The law ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to construct about 700 miles of fencing along the southern border, and authorized the addition of lights and cameras and sensors to enhance security. The law explicitly required the wall to be constructed of at least two layers of reinforced fencing. Two-thirds of the Republican-led House approved the bill, including 64 Democrats, and 80 of 100 senators approved the bill in the Senate. Then Sens. Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton were among the 26 Democrats who approved the bill. Supporters also included Sen. Chuck Schumer, who is set to take over leadership of the Senate for Democrats in 2016.

The Secure Fence Act of 2006 required the construction of 700 miles of new border fence along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide for at least two layers of reinforced fencing, the installation of additional physical barriers, roads, lighting, cameras and sensors the act said.

It was to be modeled on the success of the border barriers in the San Diego sector of the U.S. border. The operative word was secure. Instead of this two-layer secure fence what has been built consists of flimsy pedestrian fencing or vehicle fencing consisting of posts people can slither through.

The two-tier fence in San Diego runs 14 miles along the border with Tijuana, Mexico. The first layer is a high steel fence, with an inner high anti-climb fence with a no-mans land in between. It has been amazingly effective. According to a 2005 report by the Congressional Research Service, illegal alien apprehensions in the San Diego sector dropped from 202,000 in 1992 to 9,000 in 2004.

Cameras and sensors played a part but the emphasis was on physical barriers and roads that were patrolled by real live border guards, not by robots. Then in 2006 the Democrats took back Congress and, in 2008, the White House.

They saw in unrestricted immigration a means to fundamentally transform the demographics of America and its political landscape. A wave of what some called undocumented Democrats would be allowed to flood across the border as ICE was told not to enforce the law. Former border state governor Janet Napolitano, who became DHS secretary, reportedly once said: You show me a 50-foot fence and Ill show you a 51-foot ladder at the border, The rest, as they say, is history.

But the consequences of unrestricted illegal immigration soon became too big to ignore and with a candidate willing to touch the new third rail of American politics, border security, a political movement chanting build the wall swept Trump into power.

The San Diego fence worked. So will Trumps wall. Build the Wall.

Daniel John Sobieski is a freelance writer whose pieces have appeared in Investors Business Daily, Human Events, Reason Magazine and the Chicago Sun-Times among other publications.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked the 46 remaining Obama-era U.S. attorneys for their resignations.

It is customary for all U.S. attorneys appointed by the previous administration to submit their resignations at the start of the new president's term. Sessions is not doing anything that any other new administration hasn't done in the past with federal prosecutors who are reluctant to leave.

But you'd never know that listening to some Democrats.

The Hill:

Sessions asked for the federal prosecutors to resign "in order to ensure a uniform transition," DOJ spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said in a statement. "As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States Attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the Department of Justice," the spokeswoman said. The DOJ said career prosecutors in Sessions' office would continue investigations and prosecutions until the new U.S. attorneys are confirmed. The call for resignations applies to all Senate-confirmed U.S. Attorneys, including Preet Bharara, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. That comes as a surprise, as Bharara reportedly met with Trump after the election and agreed to remain in his position during the Trump administration. Sessions also asked him to stay, the prosecutor told The New York Times. Once the resignations are submitted, it would be Trump's decision on whether to accept all of them. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement that he was "troubled to learn of reports of requests for resignations from the remaining U.S. Attorneys, particularly that of Preet Bharara." The Senate Democratic leader said Trump "initiated a call to me in November and assured me he wanted Mr. Bharara to continue to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District." "While it's true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for U.S. Attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesn't put ongoing investigations at risk. They ask for letters of resignation but the attorneys are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed," he said. "By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining U.S. Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the President is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice." Democracy 21, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and the Campaign Legal Center sent a letter this week asking Bharara to investigate whether Trump has received payments or other benefits from foreign governments through his business interests, according to The Washington Post.

Given the ideological bent of Obama appointees, it would be crazy for the president to expect a "uniform transition" as Sessions pointed out in his letter. The Department of Justice expects federal prosecutors to all be on the same page when it comes to prosecuting federal crimes. That many of these prosecutors would not implement federal policy on issues like immigration disqualifies them from further service.

As for the N.Y. prosecutor, Bharara, Trump may yet allow him to stay in office. And others who are knee-deep in important cases may also receive a reprieve from the president. But the principle that the new president has this option is what Sessions is enforcing.

Democrats who make a stink about an "orderly transition" are just blowing political smoke.
New York Times Trump-phobic columnist Nicholas Kristof gave us a novel way of analyzing Trump developments in his March 9 column: the "Best Guess" Test  and its "I Wouldn't Be Surprised" Corollary.

Kristof's "Best Guess" Test led him to conclude that Trump-Putin ties are "more ambiguous and less transactional  partly because Putin intended to wound Clinton and didn't imagine that Trump could actually win." (Let's hold that "Best Guess" a second. Mr. Kristof is here putting the lie to claims, made without evidence from leftists, that Putin sought the election of Donald Trump.)

Kristof then asserted the corollary: "Yet I wouldn't be surprised if the Trump team engaged in secret contacts and surreptitious messages, and had advance knowledge of Russia's efforts to attack the American political process."

With the "Best Guess" Test and its "I Wouldn't Be Surprised" Corollary, who needs evidence?

Now, what is Kristof's purpose? My "best guess" is that he is part of the campaign of the anti-Trump resistance to undermine the Trump presidency. "I wouldn't be surprised" that the anti-Trump resistance will increase pressure for disclosure of the Trump tax returns, on the "best guess" of the resistance that these returns will incriminate Mr. Trump. And "I wouldn't be surprised" if the investigations of President Trump, on leftist demand, subpoenaed the Trump tax returns.

Unfortunately, Trump resisters like Kristof cannot avoid hyperbolic language that rises, alas, to the level of hysteria. His March 9 column ended with this acknowledgment: "One reason I'm increasingly suspicious is Trump's furious denunciations of the press and of Barack Obama, to the point that he sometimes seems unhinged. Journalists have learned that when a leader goes berserk and unleashes tirades and threats at investigators, that's when you're getting close." (Clearly, the late Richard Hofstadter's The Paranoid Style in American Politics badly needs updating.)

Reading this example of Trump-phobic vituperation, I am reminded of the line from an old French comic song, "La Menagerie": "This animal is dangerous; it defends itself when attacked." What enrages the left to paroxysms of demonization? The sheer audacity of Trump  in their eyes, the terrible, the horrible  to dare defend himself when attacked. Would that the Republican congressional leadership had a smidgen of such audacity.
After reading stories like this, I almost wish I were back in college  not so much because I would have learned anything, but because there were a few of us back in the day who gloried in wreaking havoc on the numerous well-meaning but idiotic "strikes for peace," "bake sales for peace," "die-ins," and anything else that smacked of self-important activism.

A student at Southern Illinois University came up with a scathingly brilliant idea: why not promote "nap-ins" in order to inspire students to have "dreams of diversity"?

Why? An art student, Marissa Amposta, who came up with the idea, says sagely, "All dreams start while sleeping."

PJ Media:

Amposta is facilitating four, two-hour sleep sessions in March for Women's History Month, setting up a safe space in the rotunda of Morris Library. She said the sessions are meant to "internally generate student dreams of diversity." The nap-ins are part of the Dreaming Diversity Art Installation established Monday, the Daily Egyptian reported. The installation is a 15-foot-long fabric scroll hanging in the middle of the library rotunda, where students will write their dreams on pieces of fabric and paper. Amposta also said that a "labyrinth" will be set up in the rotunda, surrounding the scroll, "to help guide students to their dreams." "The maze is sort of a metaphor for the general path to diversity," the student coordinator explained. "It takes a while to reach, and its complicated." If the entire project relies on individual dreams scribbled by 18- to 22-year-old students just awoken from a social justice slumber in the name of vague "diversity," the path will be winding indeed. But students should watch their step lest they tread on sleeping comrades. These dreams will be discussed at a women's panel on March 31, hosted by two of the school's departments: art and women, gender, and sexuality studies. "People forget we are still working for equality," Nicole Tabor, graduate assistant coordinator at the Women's Resource Center, told the Daily Egyptian. "It might never happen if we stop fighting." By fighting, does she mean sleeping?

That no one has come up with innovative and humorous ways to poke fun at this idiocy speaks volumes about the oppressive atmosphere on college campuses today. I'm sure my friends and I would have found several creative avenues to enrage the activists, like taking part in the nap-ins and snoring loudly during the two hours of "sleep." Or reporting a graphically sexual "dream of diversity."

These harmless counter-protests would make their point. You have to believe that a majority of kids cast a baleful eye on this kind of nonsense. They can't all be snowflakes. Showing up the activists would encourage the majority to make their feelings known.

Not all dreams start while we're asleep. Most worthwhile dreams come to us while we're wide awake and inspired by people and events around us. But perhaps something as ephemeral as "diversity" can be glimpsed only while asleep.

It's not real enough to see it while we're awake.
Judge Steven Cray on Thursday threw out what remained in a lawsuit filed by a Boyd couple against the Stanley-Boyd School District.

Timothy and Michelle Schwartzmiller filed the lawsuit over the treatment of their son, who has an autism spectrum disability.

The Schwartzmillers moved their son to the Eau Claire School District and later filed the lawsuit.

The parents have opted  to change districts, Cray said, adding, I do not blame or criticize the parents (for doing that).

But shifting the boy out of the Stanley-Boyd School District meant he was no longer a resident of the district. That meant the couple could not seek compensatory damages under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Had (Timothy Schwartzmiller) began the action before moving to Eau Claire, the answer would be yes, Cray said.

The Schwartzmillers filed a complaint in Chippewa County Court on Dec. 16, 2015. On April 5, 2016, Judge James Isaacson said the couple had to exhaust administrative remedies before going to court. A due process hearing by the Wisconsin Division of Hearing and Appeals was scheduled for April.

Before the hearing, Administrative Law Judge Sally Pederson dismissed the couples claims. She said they were not made in a timely manner. The couple then filed the lawsuit in June 2016.

Crays ruling on Thursday essentially upholds Pedersons decision. He said the law is forward looking, and doesnt look back. Thats why the timing of when the student was shifted to the Eau Claire district was important.

This lawsuit is concluded, Cray said.

Another portion of the lawsuit had been dismissed by Cray in November. That part alleged intentional infliction of emotional distress by the school district, along with negligent hiring, training and supervision. The district argued it has immunity under state law.

Stanley-Boyd Superintendent Jim Jones declined comment on the lawsuits dismissal.
But the problems are far from over.

The breakoff of relations between Malaysia and North Korea was a welcome development, given the expanding spiral of lunacy of North Korea's dictator, Kim Jong Un, who sent his agents to slaughter his brother in a broad-daylight assassination in Kuala Lumpur.

Are many Americans aware that Malaysia, up until that killing, was training an elite thousand-man force of North Korean cyberwarriors? Today's South China Morning Post out of Hong Kong has the shocking details:

The regimes tentacles are long  far longer than is often assumed. There are close to 1,000 North Koreans in Malaysia, almost all of whom are based in Cyberjaya, the multimedia super corridor adjacent to the administrative district of the Malaysian government (Putrajaya). These workers, who masquerade under various covers, are thought to have been sent abroad by Elite Bureau 121, Pyongyangs cyberwarfare agency  indeed, they represent about 10 per cent of the bureaus overseas manpower.

Had there been no assassination, this insanity would still be going on.

SCMP warns that even with the halt in relations, the problem is far from over:

These workers had been able to exploit the visa-free access granted to North Koreans by Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur withdrew the privilege in response to the assassination, but much of the damage has already been done.

Cyberhackers aren't the only problem derived from Malaysia's effort to be neighborly, by the way. SCMP also reports:

There are rumours that anywhere between a few dozen to 2,000 North Koreans work as indentured labourers in the mines of Sarawak.:

Sarawak, on the northern edge of Borneo, is home to rare-earth mineral-mining operations and other strategic commodities necessary for the construction of high technology items and possibly for nuclear technology. Useful for a terrorist regime to know about.

It gets worse, because Malaysia is not the only one:

Indonesia has a similar visa arrangement with Pyongyang, as did Singapore until last year. In these places local entrepreneurs have taken to working with North Korean companies in the hope one day the country will be driven by free trade.

So hopes for free trade enticed these countries to throw caution to the wind and now the Norks have a nice new knowledge base with which to threaten them? This is scary stuff indeed.

What we have here are a Western (ok, Eastern, but what we mean is advanced society)-trained cadre of Cyberwarriors, led by a maniac who by all observer accounts is growing crazier and more aggressive by the minute, and this battalion is sufficiently trained already to turn their training against us.

Combine it with the enabling the Chinese have done for these maniacs as they literally prepare for nuclear war and a very bad picture is emerging.

It shows the problem of jumping the gun on trade - North Korea will have to be completely defeated before any help can or should be given - and the shortsightedness of the region in underestimating the lunatic regime to the far north. These people will hurt us.
Driven by blind rage over the failure of voters to elect Hillary Clinton, the left's establishment has targeted anyone related to Donald Trump (even his 10-year-old son, Barron) for abuse. It is one thing to fabricate videos to show his father Fred as a racist  after all, he's a dead white male and can't defend himself.

But in taking on Melania Trump for abuse, the left has committed a grave error. This will not end well for them. Carl Bernstein's son, who writes for the New York Times, has already suffered for accusing her of being a "hooker" at a public event and has apologized. Dan Savage, the hopeless hateful homosexual who claims to be an "anti-bullying" activist, has been particularly hateful in bullying her.

But the public is already catching on that she is nothing like the caricature the left has constructed. Kaitlan Collins reports in The Daily Caller:

According to the results of a new CNN/ORC poll, 52 percent of Americans have a favorable opinion of the first lady, which is 16 percent higher than it was on the day that Donald Trump was sworn in, while 32 percent of voters view her unfavorably. Her approval rating dipped down to 24 percent in February, but now that Melania has made several appearances with her husband and at the White House, it seems to be on the rise.

While Melania's approval is still far below that of most first ladies, the trend is what is important. The Trump-hating minority seems to be roughly 30% of the public. Melania may never win their approval, as long as they remain in thrall to the MSM. But the remaining 70% are hers for the persuading, and she is already on a trajectory that will take her most or all of the way there. There are several reasons  all of which guarantee that the haters will face more and more blowback.

1. To state the obvious, she is gorgeous. Better looking than Jackie Kennedy, in fact. Unless they are snooty, gorgeous females get a big break from the public.

2. Melania is an immigrant. She speaks English intelligently, but the Eastern European inflections remain in her speech pattern, and she speaks slowly, the way people do when they have learned a foreign language post-childhood. Not only does this insulate her from seeming to be arrogant, but it also belies the calumny that President Trump is "anti-immigrant"  a dastardly charge that deliberately conflates legal immigrants with illegals.

3. She shows every sign of being a devoted mother. While Jimmy Kimmel and other late-night comedians make jokes about the Trumps living apart until the school year is over, the plain fact is that her son's welfare is far more important to her than the glamor of White House life  or even, possibly, the wishes of her husband.

4. She is cosmopolitan and speaks five languages, and if she were married to a liberal politician, she would be the toast of D.C. society. She is all the things leftists consider themselves as exemplars of  the stuff that separates them from the basket of deplorables. And yet they make fun of these qualities in her. This can't last long.

5. Her native land of Slovenia is the best kept secret of Europe, a gem of a county. A friend married to a Slovenian lady characterizes it as "Switzerland without the attitude." It has mountains, charming architecture, and a rich history. The people are literate and productive and were by far the most highly economically developed part of the former Yugoslavia. When  inevitably  she and her husband make a state visit to Slovenia, she will introduce it to the American public, and they will like what they see. (Full disclosure: As a consultant, I have done some work for one of the largest companies in Slovenia, and I greatly enjoyed my interactions with their executives.) If you are old enough to remember Jackie Kennedy taking television viewers on a tour of the White House, you have a sense of the opportunities Melania has ahead of her.

The fashion community has been particularly nasty, with designers still announcing that they will not be providing clothing for the first lady. The latest came yesterday. Let them. They only deny themselves a platform for their output to be seen.

They should ask Nordstrom how boycotting a beautiful Trump lady works out.
The breakoff of relations between Malaysia and North Korea was a welcome development, given the expanding spiral of lunacy of North Korea's dictator, Kim Jong-un, who sent his agents to slaughter his brother in a broad-daylight assassination in Kuala Lumpur.

But the problems are far from over.

Are many Americans aware that Malaysia, up until that killing, was training an elite thousand-man force of North Korean cyber-warriors? Today's South China Morning Post out of Hong Kong has the shocking details:

The regime's tentacles are long  far longer than is often assumed. There are close to 1,000 North Koreans in Malaysia, almost all of whom are based in Cyberjaya, the multimedia super corridor adjacent to the administrative district of the Malaysian government (Putrajaya). These workers, who masquerade under various covers, are thought to have been sent abroad by Elite Bureau 121, Pyongyang's cyberwarfare agency  indeed, they represent about 10 per cent of the bureau's overseas manpower.

Had there been no assassination, this insanity would still be going on.

SCMP warns that even with the halt in relations, the problem is far from over:

These workers had been able to exploit the visa-free access granted to North Koreans by Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur withdrew the privilege in response to the assassination, but much of the damage has already been done.

Cyber-hackers aren't the only problem derived from Malaysia's effort to be neighborly, by the way. SCMP also reports:

There are rumours that anywhere between a few dozen to 2,000 North Koreans work as indentured labourers in the mines of Sarawak.

Sarawak, on the northern edge of Borneo, is home to rare earth mineral-mining operations and other strategic commodities necessary for the construction of high technology items and possibly for nuclear technology. Useful for a terrorist regime to know about.

It gets worse, because Malaysia is not the only one:

Indonesia has a similar visa arrangement with Pyongyang, as did Singapore until last year. In these places local entrepreneurs have taken to working with North Korean companies in the hope one day the country will be driven by free trade.

So hopes for free trade enticed these countries to throw caution to the wind, and now the Norks have a nice new knowledge base with which to threaten them? This is scary stuff, indeed.

What we have here are a Western (okay, Eastern, but what we mean is advanced society)-trained cadre of cyber-warriors, led by a maniac who by all observer accounts is growing crazier and more aggressive by the minute, and this battalion is sufficiently trained already to turn its training against us.

Combine it with the enabling the Chinese have done for these maniacs as they literally prepare for nuclear war, and a very bad picture is emerging.

It shows the problem of jumping the gun on trade  North Korea will have to be completely defeated before any help can or should be given  and the shortsightedness of the region in underestimating the lunatic regime to the far north. These people will hurt us.
The deputy commandant for programs and resources of the Marine Corps, Lt. Gen. Gary Thomas, says that readiness in the aviation community is falling far short of the standards set for readiness.

The deputy commandant said less than half the Marine Corps's aircraft are ready to fly  far short of the 75% goal the Corps sets for itself.

Washington Examiner:

The service's goal is to have 75 percent of its aircraft on the flight line ready to go, a number he called "reasonable" since routine maintenance will always take some aircraft out of commission. But the actual number now is just 45 percent, mostly due to aircraft exceeding their planned service life, Thomas said. The statistic seemed to shock Rep. Michael Turner, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Armed Services Tactical Air and Land Subcommittee. "I'm sorry, can we go back for a second," Turner said. "That's pretty abysmal. To have that be closing the gap, we must have been in dire straits." Thomas also said the service has identified a capability gap when it comes to keeping forces safe in vehicles. "If you look at some of our current vehicles, they no longer are adequate for the types of threats that they face in terms of protecting our Marines," Thomas said. Oshkosh Defense is building a new Joint Light Tactical Vehicle for the Marines that Thomas said will help better protect troops from current threats. Other capability gaps include counting an emerging threat from drones, and coping with a fleet of amphibious vehicles that is 40 years old, Thomas said.

The situation must be dire, indeed, for the deputy commandant to say anything about it. That's because the Marines are not a branch of the service to complain about the amount of money they get from the Defense Department. They take what the brass gives them and make do. They are not in the habit of pointing fingers or whining about budget cuts.

The blame for this unacceptable state of affairs rests with Republicans, who signed on to a budget deal in 2011 that included the notion of "sequestration"  a budget gimmick that cut the same amount from the Pentagon as was cut from domestic discretionary spending. The result  as predicted at the time by defense spending hawks  has been little short of disastrous. Readiness in all the services has been drastically affected, and some vital programs have been either canceled or cut to the bone.

President Trump wants to remedy that situation, but it will take several years of additional spending to fix it:

President Trump has proposed a $603 billion defense budget in fiscal 2018 to help fill some of these gaps and improve readiness across the military, but many lawmakers on Capitol Hill have said that number is not high enough. Instead they are pushing for the $640 billion topline championed by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas. "While we cannot repair all of the damage done as a result of sequestration in a single year, we can and should do more than this level of funding will provide," Turner said. "For national security reasons, we cannot afford to wait until 2019 to begin to rebuild our military."

Some budget-cutting hawks in Congress want a dollar-for-dollar cut in discretionary spending for every dollar of additional funds for the military. They are probably not going to get it, given the president's expansive agenda for tax cuts and infrastructure spending. But compared to the increases in military spending in the early 1980s, the amounts being asked for by President Trump are fairly modest. Almost all Republicans and even many Democrats support restoring the readiness of our troops if they must go into combat.

And that includes the Marines, who are the sharp end of the stick of American foreign policy and the first to be deployed where trouble rears its head.
How many times were we told in the last five years that every single document relating to the targeting of conservative groups by the IRS had been given to congressional investigators or Judicial Watch  the group who has filed dozens of FOIA requests in order to get to the bottom of the scandal?

Surprise! They lied.

The IRS turned over 7,000 documents to Judicial Watch in response to another FOIA filing by J.W.

Washington Times:

The IRS told of the documents' existence this week in a court filing responding to a Freedom of Information Act request by Judicial Watch. However, the IRS has not agreed to a schedule for those documents' public release. "Our attorneys knew that there were more records to be searched but the Obama IRS ignored this issue for years," Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said in a statement. Although the IRS maintains high-level officials did not know it was going on, the agency has acknowledged and apologized for giving heightened scrutiny starting in 2010 to tax-exemption requests made by groups with "tea party" and other conservative-identifying terms in their names. Tea Party Patriots co-founder Jenny Beth Martin said in a statement Thursday evening that the IRS, having "magically [found]" the documents, must now "immediately release all these new documents, so the American people can finally begin to see what the IRS has been hiding regarding their scandalous abuse of power."

We should not expect any "smoking gun" memos in this new release. Those documents are long gone, lost down the rabbit hole of destroyed and "missing" hard drives. Or, more likely, they never existed. The key figure in the scandal. Lois Lerner could have received her marching orders verbally, never committing anything damaging to paper.

It still seems unlikely that the IRS could have dreamed up the targeting program without getting clearance from someone in authority. It was so obviously a violation of federal law that the small-time clerks in the Cincinnati IRS office who were blamed for the scandal couldn't have come up with the policy on their own.

This we've always known. The new documents might shed light on IRS deliberations about how they wanted to handle the fallout from the program being exposed. We know that months after the targeting was discovered, it was not discontinued despite its illegality. Any information that would contradict the official narrative could put some former IRS managers in the prosecutor's crosshairs.

It's incredible that after all the assurances from the Obama administration that every single document relating to the targeting scandal had been released, not a single major media outlet has bothered to report that the former president lied about such an important matter.

Like all Obama-era scandals, details have been scrubbed and removed as much as possible from the public record. By the time Obama apologists are through, their president will appear to have been incorruptible  as far from the truth as is possible to get.
That's certainly the way it looks from this reported edict handed down by as some yet unnamed social justice warrior at high command level in the Air Force. According to this report from Fox News, the high flyers apparently think they're still doing fruit loops for that clueless fool who sat in the command pilot's seat for the past eight years.

Fox News says this:

The Air Force fears that words like boy, girl, colonial and blacklist might offend people, according to an email sent to Airmen at Joint Base San Antonio.

And the reality of that is that it might cost them a stripe, a demotion in rank and pay, for nothing more than an inept violation of political correctness.

The Trump administration has to get up to speed on liberal crap like this obvious holdover politically correct directive from whatever blue-suited twinkle-toes still survives and thrives in the upper atmospherics of Air Force command. Let's toss his kind off the big plane and sans parachute is fine with this old Airborne soldier. It has to be tempting to the Trump administration to first go after all that loony lesbian, gay baloney that Ray (may his soul sink into and forever tremble in the muck of the darkest, coldest sediment of Earth's deepest oceanic trench) Mabus inflicted upon our honorable Navy with his shameful naming of ships after queers who served without distinction, other than to survive as homosexuals in the hostile environment of a very virile and masculine United States Navy. But, as this directive should remind Trump's folks, Obama's social justice warriors still permeate the command ranks of all the services, a hard reality that calls for a purge of their unpractical kind.

General Mattis, we who populate the pages of military internet venues beg you to return our noble military to what it once was: a reasonable representation of a real America, a cross-section of small towns and big cities, rural and urban youth, young people whose political beliefs cover the entire American spectrum, and not a social experimentation program for the Democratic Party.

General Mattis, you must let your NCOs say boy, girl, and all those other politically correct banned words on their way to making responsible adults out of all those confused children liberalism has created. Please, please, rid us of these embedded social justice warriors who would weaken us as a nation with their social experimentation. Perhaps then we will once again become the warrior force, the fighting warrior force, which we have mustered for our nation's every call to combat since forming into the clumsy ranks that defeated King George's oh so politically correct forces and made this great nation possible.

Semper Fi!
The Metro began operating in Moscow in 1935 with a single 11 km line connecting just thirteen stations, but it has since grown into the worlds fourth busiest transit system, spanning more than 300 kilometers and offering 188 stops along the way.

The Moscow Metro was one of the USSRs most extravagant architectural projects, with stations constructed as luxurious palaces for the people. Built under the command of Stalin, the iron-fisted leader ordered the metros artists and architects to design a structure that embodied svet (radiance or brilliance) and svetloe budushchee (a radiant future). He directed his architects to design structures which would encourage citizens to look up, admiring the stations art, as if they were looking up to admire the sun andby extensionhim as a god. With their reflective marble walls, high ceilings and grandiose chandeliers, many Moscow Metro stations have been likened to an artificial underground sun.

The art includes bas-reliefs, friezes, marble and bronze statues, stained-glass windows and countless mosaics made with glass, marble and granite in good Byzantine fashion. You can find the images of the former revolutionary and historical characters, their victories, sports, industry, agriculture, and warfare, as well as of common Soviet people such as workers, soldiers, farmers, and students.

Russias glorious architectural movement came to an end in 1955 after the Communist Party issued a decree eliminating extravagance in design and construction. After Stalins death in 1953 and the subsequent process of destalinization, his images were gradually withdrawn from the Moscow Metro. Sculptures were taken to storage facilities, and mosaics and reliefs were simply removed. New stations that were built during this time were devoid of any stucco work, mosaics, original columns or other unjustified elements. The party had a new theme - Kilometers at the expense of architecture.

Fortunately, the original architecture of the early stations were left intact, which, after all these years still look amazing.

Also see: Artistic Stockholm Subway System

Komsomolskaya Metro Station

Komsomolskaya opened in 1935. The station has tall pillars faced with pinkish limestone and blue-grey marble and the floor is tiled with grey granite. The imposing Baroque celling, painting in yellow is decorated with eight mosaic panels of smalt and precious stones. The theme of the panels represent the Russian fight for freedom and independence throughout history.

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Novoslobodskaya Metro Station

Built in 1952, Novoslobodskaya is best known for its 32 stained glass panels, which are the work of Latvian artists E. Veylandan, E. Krests, and M. Ryskin. Each panel, surrounded by an elaborate brass border, is set into one of the station's pylons and illuminated from within. Both the pylons and the pointed arches between them are faced with pinkish Ural marble and edged with brass molding. At the end of the platform is a mosaic by Pavel Korin entitled "Peace Throughout the World."

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Mayakovskaya Metro station

Mayakovskaya is considered to be one of the most beautiful station in the system. Based on a Soviet future as envisioned by the poet Mayakovsky, the station features graceful columns faced with stainless steel and pink rhodonite, white Ufaley and grey Diorite marble walls, a brilliant flooring pattern of white and pink marble, and 35 niches, one for each vault. Surrounded by filament lights there are a total of 34 ceiling mosaics by Alexander Deyneka with the theme "24-Hour Soviet Sky." A passenger can look up and see the bright Soviet future right above him.

Located 33 meters beneath the surface, the station became an air raid shelter during World War 2. On the anniversary of the October Revolution, on 7 November 1941 Joseph Stalin addressed a mass assembly of party leaders and ordinary Muscovites in the central hall of the station.

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Elektrozavodskaya Metro Station

Named after the electric light bulb factory nearby, the ceiling of Elektrozavodskaya is covered with six rows of circular incandescent inset lamps of which there were 318 in total. There are 12 marble bas-reliefs on the pylons highlighting the nations struggle in the World War. Other pylons carry decorative gilded grilles depicting hammer and sickle.

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Shosse Entuziastov Station

The design theme of the station is the struggle for freedom during Russia's history. Shosse Entuziastov station is decorated in various colours and shades of marble, with colours ranging from dark grey to yellow. Sculptures and pictures relating to revolutionary subjects adorn the walls. On the western end of the central hall there is a large sculpture  "Flame of Freedom"  designed by A. Kuznetsov.

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Ploshchad Revolyutsii Metro Station

Ploshchad is decorated with 76 sculptures one cut into each corner of each column, arranged thematically moving from parents with their children to athletes, students to farmers, industrial workers to hunters to soldiers. There is also a frontier guard with a dog whose nose people rub for good luck.

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Nakhimovsky Prospekt Metro Station

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Park Pobedy Metro Station

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Park Pobedy metro station. Photo credit

Victory Park Station

Victory Park Metro Station. Photo credit

This is part of the artwork in the Victory Park metro. A mural of Kutuzov, considered to be one of the best Russian generals during the reign of Catherine the Great. Under Kutuzov's command, the Russian army stopped Napoleon's Grande Armee at the Battle of Borodino and then counter-attacked, pushing the French out of Russians. Photo credit

Prospekt Mira Metro Station

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Kievskaya Station

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What does an island with not a speck of land to spare do to get rid of hundreds of tons of garbage generated each day by its one million yearly tourists and nearly four hundred thousand permanent residents? They dump it into another island, of course.

The stunning tropical islands of Maldives, southwest of India, is known for its sandy beaches and turquoise waters. But very few are aware of its dirty side. Just a few miles west of Male, the capital city of Maldives, and one of the most densely populated islands on earth, lies the island of Thilafushi, the location of Maldivess municipal landfill. But Thilafushi was not always a garbage island. In fact, Thilafushi was not even an island.

Photo credit: Jamie Cowan

Twenty five years ago, Thilafushi was a pristine lagoon. Then in December 1991, a decision was taken to reclaim the lagoon as a landfill to address the growing problem of waste disposal produced by the tourism industry. Within a month the garbage began to arrive. Huge pits were dug into the sand and waste received from Male and other inhabited islands of Maldives were deposited into the pits, which were then topped off with a layer of construction debris and then uniformly leveled with white sand.

As Thilafushis landmass began to grow, the government started leasing out land to industries such as boat manufacturing, cement packing, methane gas bottling and various large scale warehousing. Today, there are more than three dozen factories at Thilafushi, a mosque and homes for some 150 Bangladeshi migrants who sift through the 330 hundred tons of waste that arrive on the island each day. So much is being deposited that the island is growing by a square meter each day.

Some of the waste is now drifting into the ocean and getting washed at Males beaches and polluting many dive sites around the region. Environmentalists also accuse impatient boatmen of dumping waste directly into the lagoon because proper unloading could take up to seven hours.

Waste became such a problem that the government once banned dumping garbage on the island in 2011. A fraction of the waste is now getting exported to India to be recycled.

Photo credit: Fizan/Wikimedia

Photo credit: Hani Amir/Flickr

Photo credit: Hani Amir/Flickr

Photo credit: Dying Regime/Flickr

Photo credit: Dying Regime/Flickr

Sources: Wikipedia / BBC / The Guardian
As a fifth-generation farmer living in Marquette County, I know firsthand the importance of having strong, vibrant rural communities when it comes to Wisconsins future. When speaking with farmers, business owners and consumers across rural Wisconsin, I consistently hear the need to address the same issues: broadband, education, transportation and water quality. Gov. Scott Walkers budget makes it clear that he heard that message as well. Walkers recently introduced budget is good for Wisconsins farm families, our rural communities and our future.

Unfortunately, farmers do not all have internet access, or even if they have internet, it may not be fast enough or dependable enough to complete farm business. Our rural communities need broadband. Farms and businesses need to be able to advertise and sell products online. Students need internet to complete homework and seek information. Walkers budget will expand broadband funding, an increase of $34.5 million over the biennium. This is good for all of us.

In Wisconsin, our students success today is fundamental to our states future growth. Walkers budget increases Sparsity Aid by $20 million and provides 100 percent reimbursement for rural school districts in the High-Cost Transportation Aid program, increasing this support by $10.4 million. His budget allows school districts to enter into agreements to share or jointly provide services or specialists in areas such as attendance officers or lifesaving skill instruction, reducing the burdens on rural schools.

Farms and businesses depend on a solid transportation system to market its products across the region, state and country. Walkers budget also makes key investments when it comes to transportation in rural areas. His budget contains the most funding ever provided to local governments for local road aids. Local governments will receive a total increase of $76,966,700 in state aid and assistance over the 2015-17 biennium from the combined increases in general transportation aids, local road improvement program payments and state funded local bridge improvement assistance program payments.

Water quality is essential for the long-term success of agriculture and Wisconsins rural communities. Farmers care deeply about the land they work and rely upon to make a living.

Walkers budget emphasizes his commitment to Wisconsin farmers. It includes a number of initiatives to address land and water resource management, including $7 million in cost sharing grants for farmers implementing conservation practices with the assistance of county land conservation departments. We continue to support county land and conservation staffing as we always have.

Walkers budget also includes a 24 percent increase, an additional $825,000 each fiscal year (or $1.65 million over the biennium) in funding for nutrient management planning, which helps farmers determine when to apply manure and other nutrients at the proper rate and location. Continuation of the Producer-Led Watershed Protection Grants program in the budget will help farmers work together to develop solutions to prevent runoff. These producer-led efforts maintain or improve water quality through improved or new approaches to farming practices.

After a thorough review of the fees and surcharges on farmers and businesses that are used to manage the agriculture chemical program and the Agriculture Chemical Cleanup Program, Walker included in his budget proposal a reduction of fees to farmers and businesses of $2 million per year. His proposal will still fully fund the cleanup efforts managed by the DATCP as well as oversight of product uses and regulations.

I am optimistic for the future of Wisconsins rural communities. I believe Walkers budget makes a strong investment in our rural communities and Wisconsins future. It is clear the governor is investing in our states priorities and moving Wisconsin forward.Ben Brancel is the secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.
(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana ) Foreign Ministers from the Caribbean Community and their counterpart from the Republic of Cuba are meeting on Saturday 11 March 2017 for their fifth Ministerial Meeting in Havana.

The meeting has an agenda replete with issues of regional and global importance, including regional integration within the context of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS). Critical focus is expected to be paid to issues relating to graduation of small developing states like those in CARICOM to middle income status, correspondent banking, and the 2030 sustainable development agenda.

Ambassador Colin Granderson, Assistant Secretary-General of the Directorate of Foreign and Community Relations is leading the CARICOM Secretariats representation at the meeting which is also expect to discuss issues concerning crime and security in the Region.

The Foreign Ministers are also expected to discuss the further strengthening of economic trade ties and cooperation between the two parties. The Tenth Meeting of the Joint Commission established under the Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement (TECA) between CARICOM and Cuba, recently agreed to the expansion of preferential access to each others market. Beer, fish and other agricultural products, and manufactured goods, have been approved for entry into the Cuban market free of duty once both sides formalise the agreement.

This weekends Ministerial Meeting is also expected to examine mechanisms to further strengthen the decades-long friendship and technical cooperation in areas including transportation and tourism, agriculture, health, education, culture and disaster.

CARICOM and Cuba share 44 years of formal relations. Cuba, a significant development partner, has supported the Community in building its human resource capacity due to scholarship programs offered in several areas of study, training in health and medicine, sports, agriculture and trade.
WASHINGTON  Lets hope theres generous funding in Republicans new health care bill to prevent and cure tone-deafness.

Wednesday was International Womens Day, and to observe this annual commemoration House Republicans formally took up their legislation defunding Planned Parenthood, the nations largest provider of health services for women.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, at a news conference Wednesday morning, boasted about ending the funding of Planned Parenthood, listing it as one of the things weve been dreaming about doing. And what better time to make this dream come true than on International Womens Day, on the eighth day of Womens History Month?This could be the beginning of a new legislative style in Congress:

Bills to build the wall could be marked up on Cinco de Mayo.

The Iranian nuclear deal could be scrapped later this month on Nowruz.

Plans to cut military assistance to Europe could be rolled out on D-Day.

Its enough to give new meaning to National Awkward Moments Day  observed on March 18.

President Trump, in a morning tweet, marked International Womens Day by hailing women as vital to the fabric of our society. But thats not quite the message his administration and its allies in Congress have been sending. Womens rights activists held a strike and protests Wednesday, declaring it A Day Without a Woman. In the Trump White House, it must often feel like that kind of day  and not only because Melania is in New York.

A USA Today analysis last month found that men outnumbered women by more than 2 to 1 among top White House aides. Trump named only four women to his Cabinet, the fewest in a generation, and none to the top jobs at the State, Treasury, Defense and Justice Departments. His nominee for labor secretary withdrew as opponents made an issue of the way he and his company treated women, and Trump fired acting attorney general Sally Yates, an Obama administration holdover, after she refused to back his first travel ban.

Meeting with the nations governors recently, Trump welcomed the governors and their wives and daughters, as if no women were governors. Trumps vulgar statements about women, caught on tape, were prominent in the campaign, and, according to the media outlet Axios, he requires women working for him to dress like women. He has hired as his executive assistant in the White House a 26-year-old barre fitness instructor who served as the elevator greeter at Trump Tower.

And it isnt just about appearances, as Emilys List, a Democratic group that supports abortion rights, notes. On Jan. 23, two days after the huge Womens March in the nations capital and other cities, Trump signed an executive order reinstating the global gag rule denying international funding to any organization that discusses abortion, even if the group doesnt perform abortions. A photo of the signing showed Trump surrounded by men.

Trump on his first day in office signed an order to ease the burden of Obamacare and has blessed the congressional legislation that could end Obamacares Medicaid expansion and its rule requiring insurance plans to cover maternity care. The bill is silent on the provision in Obamacare requiring contraception to be provided at low cost.

Trump, who promised to appoint justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, nominated to the court Neil Gorsuch, who wrote the appellate decision in the Hobby Lobby case exempting employers from providing birth control as part of employer health plans if it conflicts with managements religious beliefs.

As of the end of last week, only eight bills had been passed by the new Congress and signed into law by Trump, half of them noncontroversial suspension bills. But it isnt for lack of trying.

Republicans in Congress have introduced a variety of abortion bans. The House passed the No Taxpayer Funding of Abortion Act, which opponents charge could block even private insurance from covering abortion.

The House passed a bill overturning a rule President Barack Obama signed in December forbidding discrimination against Planned Parenthood and other family planning providers under Title X  clearing the way, Democrats say, to reducing access to contraception. The Senate, likewise, used the Congressional Review Act in its vote to overturn Obamas Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule, designed to protect against, among other things, sexual harassment in the workplace.

Thats quite a bit, and its still early. If this is how Trump and his allies in Congress celebrate International Womens Day, one shudders to think how they will observe April 5: National Go for Broke Day.Follow Dana Milbank on Twitter, @Milbank.
AUL Applauds Wyoming Office Holders Who Pass First Pro-Life Protections in a Generation "Americans United for Life was proud to partner with pro-life leaders in Wyoming and thanks Gov. Matt Meade for empowering women with information about their unborn children and requiring humane treatment for unborn infants who die before birth," said AUL's Denise Burke.



Contact: Kristi Hamrick, 202-289-1478, press@aul.org



WASHINGTON, March 10, 2017 /Christian Newswire/ -- Americans United for Life's Vice President of Legal Affairs Denise Burke thanked Gov. Matt Meade and the legislators in Wyoming who adopted that state's first pro-life laws in 28 years. AUL consulted on the two laws, one of which requires doctors who perform abortions to let women know that they may see the ultrasound if they wish. "Women should always have the choice to look through the window in the womb through ultrasound, if they wish," said Burke. "Ultrasounds are the gold standard of medical care in pregnancy, and is used in abortion to determine the location of the infant and how old the infant is, as those factors impact the abortionist's actions. Withholding those images denies women a choice they deserve and an experience they can never recapture."



The state also passed a law that would not allow the bodies of unborn infants to be dissected and sold after death.



"Human beings should be treated with dignity before and after death," noted Burke, who said that a number of states have been interested in AUL's unique Unborn Infants' Dignity Act. "It's been well documented that the bodies of unborn infants have been sold for parts, thrown into landfills or even burned for fuel. A humane society does not dispose of unborn infants as trash or spare parts."



When news of the sale of infant body parts came to light through the Center for Medical Progress undercover videos, AUL's legal team analyzed the information and submitted a letter to the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, noting numerous legal concerns observed through video of Planned Parenthood personnel discussing the "harvesting" and sale of infant body parts.



"Wyoming office holders have ensured that the bodies of infants who did not survive to birth are treated with dignity and not turned into additional profits for the abortion industry," said Burke.



To understand the myths and facts of unborn infants' dignity laws, click here.



To learn more about AUL's unique model legislation, found in "the Pro-Life Playbook," Defending Life, click here.



For more on health risks of abortion for women, click here.



Americans United for Life (AUL) is the legal architect of the pro-life movement. We are accumulating victories, building momentum, and advancing a culture of life in America. Our vision is a nation in which everyone is welcomed in life and protected in law. The first national pro-life organization in America, AUL has been committed to defending human life since 1971.

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In secret, behind locked gates, our Nation's Oldest City dumped a landfill in a lake (Old City Reservoir), while emitting sewage in our rivers and salt marsh. Organized citizens exposed and defeated pollution, racism and cronyism. We elected a new Mayor. We're transforming our City -- advanced citizenship. Ask questions. Make disclosures. Demand answers. Be involved. Expect democracy. Report and expose corruption. Smile! Help enact a St. Augustine National Park and Seashore. We shall overcome!


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YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. The negotiations process over the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement has moved from the deadlock, OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair from France Stephane Visconti told reporters in Baku, according to APA.

He said Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev will meet his French counterpart on March 14.

The Co-Chair stressed that the US, Russia and France will continue joint efforts.

Of course this is a difficult issue. As you know, there is tension in the line of contact of the troops. However the sides want to achieve progress. I think this is very important, he said.
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YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. At least 40 people were killed and dozens more wounded in an attack by two suicide bombers in Damascus on Saturday, Hezbollah's al-Manar TV reported, in an attack the Syrian Observatory said targeted Shi'ite pilgrims, Reuters reported.

The attack took place near the Old City of Damascus. Al-Mayadeen, a Lebanon-based TV station, said the bombings targeted buses transporting pilgrims to the Bab al-Saghir cemetery near one of the seven gates of the Old City of Damascus.

Syrian state news agency SANA said the attack had caused fatalities but gave no toll. It said the explosions were caused by "two terrorist bombs".
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U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., sent a letter Wednesday to President Donald Trump raising concerns about potential cuts to airport security and Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers, particularly the FLETC in Artesia.

The Trump Administration is considering cuts to Transportation Security Administration (TSA) programs such as the armed pilot program based at FLETC-Artesia in order to fund its proposed border wall.

According to recent reports, a draft proposal, drawn up by the Office of Management and Budget would eliminate the FLETC Federal Flight Deck Officer training program and Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) teams, as well as cut grant funding for area law enforcement.

In the face of international terrorism, it is critical that we make every effort to secure passenger aircraft, airports, train stations, and bus depots, said Heinrich. I am stunned President Trump would consider eliminating critical security programs in order to fund his southern border wall.

While Trumps proposal would cut funding to the Coast Guard, FEMA and other TSA projects, the Federal Flight Deck Officer program based in Artesia would be eliminated entirely.

That program was established in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks to prepare pilots and flight crews for similar circumstances on aircraft. Under this program, hundreds of commercial pilots volunteer their time to be part of the nations first line of defense against terrorist acts.

The FLETC estimates approximately 800 pilots and flight crewmembers participate in this training program each year. In addition to the impacts on national security, eliminating the program would mean an estimated $20 million cut to funding for FLETC-Artesia, a significant hit to both the local and state economy.

The proposed plan would also eliminate the TSAs Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) teams. TSA works with intelligence and law enforcement agencies to deploy VIPR teams based on threat levels and other security priorities. These teams consist of law enforcement officials, regulatory inspectors, explosives specialists, and, in some cases, screening personnel.

Heinrich led an effort last year to expand the number of VIPR teams across the nation from 31 to as many as 60. In August at the Albuquerque International Sunport, he stressed the importance of VIPR teams that enhance the security presence in pre-screening airport areas and other transportation facilities, especially in non-secure, soft target areas at airports like check-in and baggage claim.

A copy of Heinrichs letter to the president is included below.



Dear President Trump,

I write to express my serious concerns regarding any consideration to eliminate critical Transportation Security Administration (TSA) programs that safeguard Americans while traveling. According to recent reports, a draft proposal, drawn up by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), would eliminate the Federal Flight Deck Officer (FFDO) training program, the Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) teams, and cut essential grant funding for local law enforcement. In the face of international terrorism, it is critical that we make every effort to secure passenger aircraft, airports, train stations, and bus depots.

The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Artesia, New Mexico serves as the leading training site for the brave men and women who are our nations front line of defense against dangerous threats and terrorism. Over 500 dedicated FLETC staff in Artesia work hard every day to make sure that law enforcement agents from across the United States get the best quality training.

Since 2003, Artesia has been home to the Federal Flight Deck Officer program. This program was established in the wake of the September 11th attacks to prepare pilots and flight crews for similar attacks on aircraft. Under this program, hundreds of commercial pilots volunteer their time to become part of the nations first line of defense against terrorist acts. Our dedicated FLETC staff in Artesia work hard to make sure that pilots from across the United States get the best quality training and are well-equipped to respond to threats.

Furthermore, TSA works with our intelligence and law enforcement agencies to deploy VIPR teams, based on threat levels and other security priorities, which consist of law enforcement officials, regulatory inspectors, explosives specialists, and in some cases, screening personnel. TSAs VIPR teams provide a full range of law enforcement and transportation security capabilities. Last year I led a group of senators in securing final passage of a provision to expand the number of VIPR teams from the current 31 to as many as 60, and to enhance the security presence in pre-screening airport areas and other transportation facilities, especially in non-secure soft target areas at airports like check-in and baggage claim areas.

I strongly urge you to reconsider any cuts to the Federal Flight Deck Officer Program, VIPR program, and local law enforcement grants. While we relentlessly target terrorists overseas, its critical that we maintain these additional safeguards. By retaining these safety programs, we will intelligently respond to threats.
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One of the most insightful and eclectic thinkers on music I know is UCLA musicologist Robert Fink, who has written a book on minimalism  Repeating Ourselves  and both teaches music history and run the schools music-business program.

On the occasion of John Adams 70th birthday, and a series of related events in Los Angeles, I corresponded with Fink about the composers life and work. Bob put together an event on campus last weekend which included a panel about the composers work and performances of some of the chamber music.

Ill mostly let Bob roll here and stay out of his way.

On the contradiction of the composer laureate of California  a mostly warn and sunny state heavily populated by people of Latino Catholic origins  being a WASP from cloudy New England:

He is indeed a typical northern New Englander, whose background has some of the hard-scrabble rural poverty and frustrated dreams that provides background for, say, Stephen Kings best gothic stories.

The move to California puts him in the backwash of the Sixties, right at the moment that Hunter S. Thompson describes in Fear and Loathing, when the energy started rolling back.

So (and I resonate with this personally) he struggled for a while with the end of Cage-style experimentalism in the Bay Area (the musical version of the Sixties).

What part of the California experience inspired the young Adams and his work?

1. Eco-consciousness. (Lots of imagery of water, light, trees, ocean, etc. Strong connection to the Sierras and the coast.) 2. Alternative spirituality and self-actualization (Jung, Buddhism, etc.). There is a scholar working on Adams and things like Esalen. Many of his pieces in the 1970s and 1980s are overt stories of inner struggle and then transcendence. 3. Berkeley-style political liberalism. (The operas, working with Sellars, etc.)

Adams relationship with the Los Angeles Philharmonic comes after decades in which a lot of us thought of him as a Bay Area artist. Does he seem like a California figure, or a Northern Cal one?

Youd have to ask whether his connection with the LA Phil in recent years, and his increasing interest in Latin and South Asian culture (El Nino, A Flowering Tree) mean he is moving beyond the very admirable but pretty white confines of Berkeley-style liberalism. I think so, and its one of the more interesting things about his recent work. That becomes 4. Multiculturalism.

Tell us a little about the UCLA/ Schoenberg event, Bob.

First we heard about Adamss working methods from Alice Miller Cotter. She showed some of his sketches for major works like Nixon and Klinghoffer. He comes across as a deeply intuitive composer whose work ethic is fierce. He seems to go at even the biggest pieces, like an opera, one bar at a time, feeling his way forward. Its a very high-risk kind of composing.

The lesson of the overview is that minimalism was a stepping stone for Adams. It was a way to escape from the double bind of either being a tight-ass serialist or a loopy experimentalist, but in either case not feeling allowed to write the kind of music (Beethoven, Sibelius, Hendrix, Coltrane) he liked to listen to.

But its clear that Adams, a real musical prodigy, effortlessly mastered minimalism in one or two tries, and then got bored. (Unlike Reich and Glass, who remain endlessly fascinated by the implications of their own 60s breakthroughs.) We heard Phrygian Gates from 1977-78, and I thought that if I had written that, I would have spent the next 20 years doing over and over again. But Adams only got about five years from the minimalist breakthrough, and then had a complete midlife crisis.

He then wrote Harmonielehre, with its overt pastiching of late Romanticism; at that point he began to find a more complex harmonic language that worked for him (Cotter again) and that lasted him for about ten years.

By the 1990s hes bored againand so it goes.

What was the panel  which included you, Nonesuch jefe Robert Hurwitz, and music critic Kyle Gann  like?

We stayed on the topic of the composer and his work (all aspects). I asked him about working process, and we got into some interesting discussion of *how* he works  he begins with pencil in hand at the piano, even though he does not play. He sketches linearly. He uses MIDI and computers to work out arrangements and orchestration (using film scoring software), and then copies out the final ms again by hand. (Very old fashioned.)

His background as a performer/conductor came up, since we were doing a program largely based in chamber music, which he is not known primarily for. He was a clarinet virtuoso as a child up to college, and conducted a lot at Harvard, so he feels he really understands how instrumentalists feel when they look at a part, whether it respects them and their time/abilities or not. (The tension between this and his need, in the minimal days, to work with masses of sound, was palpable in the concert: you could see performers like Gloria Cheng and the string sextet that played Shaker Loops *working* to produce the masses of sound that Adams wanted. (I talked about this in my preconcert talk.)

We talked about commissions and how a composer gets lucky. Adams is a hard worker, but he also is aware that he was, sometimes, just in the right place at the right time, and that there have been some key advocates for his music (Edo de Waart, Bob Hurwitz, etc.) without whom all his work might not have mattered. Connection there to his work with LA Phil Green Umbrella  he tries to do this for next gen.
Companies forced to slash charges in hopes of retaining customers.

Most of the benefits are being targeted at 4G subscribers where competition is fierce as being targeted by Reliance Jio. (Representational Image)

New Delhi: Telecom operators are going for fresh wave of cuts in data and voice call rates as battle for consumer is set to enter a new phase from April 1 which will define the future of the telecom players in India.

However, most of the benefits are being targeted at 4G subscribers where competition is fierce as being targeted by Reliance Jio.

Reliance Jio which launched its services in September 2016 has said that it will start charging its customers from 1 April but at sharply discounted rates.

Till now old telecom operators were refusing to match Reliance Jio saying that they cant give their service for free. But with Jio planning to charge customers from April 1, old telecom operators are feeling pressurised to further cut their rates to try to match Jio to retain their customers, said analysts. Indias largest telecom operator Bharti Airtel has quietly cut data and voice charges.

For example for a post paid subscriber for around Rs 500 earlier a customer used to get 1 GB 4G/3G data and free voice calling facility, now the company is offering 3 GB data and free voice call for the same price.

Bharti Airtel CEO Gopal Vittal has reached out to post-paid subscribers promising more data to them starting March 13, which they can access through their mobile applications.

For pre-paid consumers the company is offering 4GB data at Rs 265 and 10 GB for Rs 494 for those who have 4G handsets.

Vodafone too launched the Rs 346 recharge pack valid till March 15 which offers 28GB of mobile data and unlimited free calls.

Vodafone customers are diverse as are their wants. To satisfy these diverse needs and wants, Vodafone offers various segmented propositions. This is one such segmented offering and the offer is valid only till 15 March, said a company spokesperson.

Reliance Communications on Friday too came out with a new offering that provides 1GB data to new 4G customers for Rs 49 whereas 3GB data will be priced at Rs 149 plus free, unlimited local and STD calls within its network. RCom has also announced variants of the plan for its 3G and 2G customers, including unlimited 3G data access for Rs 99 and unlimited 2G data access for Rs 49.
Digital wallet provider recently levied 2 per cent charge on money loaded in wallet with credit cards.

New Delhi: China's Alibaba-backed Paytm today cited the outcry on social media as a reason for rolling back 2 per cent charge that it levied on money loaded in the wallet using credit cards.

"I will react faster. I won't say I will do anything different but I will react faster. Yesterday, we rolled 2 per cent charges for adding money to credit card on a Paytm wallet. Last night it was rolled back. In less than 24 hours," Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma said at a 'Knowledge Factory' event.

He was talking about a possible action plan of Paytm in case it faces a social media backlash like Maggi crisis in 2016 that led Nestle India destroy around 38,500 tonnes of the noodles.

"I want to give you the reason for roll back. Obviously, a lot of people were gaming. You know what the bankers were gaming was my problem. I want to tell bankers you have a problem for common consumers. I am giving you money any which way you can use," Sharma said.

He said people in India are gullible which is a big problem for any company to build business.

"People get into the quick concerns and outrage on them but at the same point of time you have to react for certain people in a larger sense so your system have to be changed. I just felt bad that we were really not charging people because we were giving money back, except we wanted to reduce that

money method. It was net net found out that we should let these (credit card gamers) guys block...hack with you," Sharma said.

He said those people may feel bad about when told that they "were doing fraud".

"In my mathematics it is called fraud," Sharma said. He said that Paytm's millions of cards were found to be very savvy and premium cards.

"They are intelligent people. Only intelligent people can take money from credit card to the bank and rotate for a 0.1 per cent interest. You know interest that they will save...Then Twitter is an amazing media. It sort of gives you myopia of that you have a public opinion while you have an opinion of thing which is in front of you and which may not be public opinion," Sharma said.

On this issue, the way company handles its image of being associated with Chinese firm, Sharma said, adding sometimes business is like a cultural bond between two countries and drives things which are on a positive side.

"I go out there (in China) and tell them that let me tell you one thing that somewhere if you could talk to Xi Jinping (Chinese President), please talk to him and get to us security council seat," he said.
The I-T department had raised a total tax demand of Rs 29,047 crore on Cairn Energy, including Rs 18,800 crore in backdated interest.

Cairn Energy has challenged the I-T demand in an international arbitration and its decision will have to be awaited before the tax demand could be enforced. (Representational image)

New Delhi: In a setback to UK based Cairn Energy Plc, tax tribunal ITAT has held the company liable to pay retrospective tax of Rs 10,247 crore for capital gains.

Cairn Energy has challenged the I-T demand in an international arbitration and its decision will have to be awaited before the tax demand could be enforced. India has challenged the authority of the international tribunal and the maintainability of the arbitral proceedings as far as dispute with Cairn is concerned.

However, ITAT held that Cairn Energy cant be charged around Rs 18,800 crore interest as the demand was raised by I-T using retrospective tax legislation.

In the present case the interest has been charged on the tax payable by the assessee which has arisen because of retrospective amendment made by The Finance Act, 2012. Therefore, it is correct on the part of the assessee to submit that it could not have visualise its liability for payment of advance in the year of transaction therefore, there cannot be any interest payable by the assessee ....," said ITAT.

The I-T department had raised a total tax demand of Rs 29,047 crore on Cairn Energy, including Rs 18,800 crore in backdated interest.

A similar tax demand was also raised on Cairn India which was sold to Anil Agarwals Vedanta Group in 2011.

The tribunal in its order said that Cairn Energy was liable to pay the tax on share transfer it did through an internal reorganisation of its India business in 2006, prior to getting Cairn India listed.
Large firms have shifted their focus towards lower end of consumption basket where they are seeing potential for further growth.

Most of the large companies have invested in handheld devices for sales teams in the past to monitor real time sales data that would help in demand planning.

Mumbai: While the impact of demonetisation on consumer demand seems largely over in urban areas, firms are still cautious in launching new products, which are high risk and involve high cost.

Large firms have shifted their focus towards lower end of consumption basket where they are seeing potential for further growth.

According to Nitin Mathur, equity analysts at Jefferies, the consumer goods companies are little apprehensive about discretionary consumption taking a hit if the unorganised sector isnt able to recover quickly and unemployment situation worsens.

Acceleration in low end of consumption is witnessed across categories (Dosa chains are growing faster than burger chains and they have a bigger addressable market) and companies are trying to capture that through lower priced stock keeping units (SKUs) to increase penetration and drive volume growth, especially in rural markets, he said.

Mr Mathur added that the innovation rates have come down from 16,000 launches per annum to 8,000 launches per annum.

In its earlier assessment in January, Jefferies had highlighted that staples like soaps and detergents would see limited impact due to their need-based demand while the discretionary items like liquor and jewellery among others would take a structural hit due to the ripple effects of cash crunch.

Another interesting trend seen among large companies with regards to their operational strategy post demonetisation is the increased focus on investment in technology to monitor inventories both in primary and secondary channels.

Most of the large companies have invested in handheld devices for sales teams in the past to monitor real time sales data that would help in demand planning.

The companies are now embracing Big Data to get consumer insights from the point of sale (PoS), he noted.
The court had on Thursday reserved orders on two pleas of banks seeking contempt action against Mallya.

New Delhi: Embattled tycoon Vijay Mallya on Friday accused the government of holding him guilty without a fair trial as he faces heat in the Supreme Court over loan default.

A day after the Supreme Court asked Mallya about his assets and transfer of $40 million to his children, he took to the twitter to clarify his position.

He also offered to negotiate with banks to pay one time settlement charge on his Rs 9,000 crore loan default. I have humbly obeyed every single Court Order without exception. Seems as if Government is bent upon holding me guilty without fair trial, he said in one of the tweets.

The court had on Thursday reserved orders on two pleas of lending banks seeking contempt action and a direction to him to deposit $40 million he had received from

offshore firm Diageo respectively.

The allegations against me by the Attorney General before the Honourable Supreme Court only prove the attitude of the Government against me, Mallya said in another tweet.

Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi and senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the banks, had yesterday contended that unless Mallya deposits $40 million before this court, he does not deserve to be heard and, moreover, he needed to appear personally as the contempt notice has already been issued.

Public Sector Banks have policies for One Time Settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled. Why should this be denied to us?, he said in a tweet as he sought negotiations with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on Rs 9,000-crore loan default.

He said his offer for settlement have been rejected by the lenders without consideration.

Our substantial offer before the Hon'ble Supreme Court was rejected by Banks without consideration. Am ready to talk settlement on fair basis, he said. Wish the Hon'ble Supreme Court would intervene and put an end to all this by directing Banks and us to negotiate and settle.
The superstar had made the revealation in an interview where he was asked about assaulting Aishwarya Rai.

Mumbai: There is no doubt that Salman Khan and controversies go hand in hand.

Bollywoods quintessential enfant terrible, has often been levied serious allegations of assault and debauched misdemeanours.

However, one would never expect the hunk to have been at the receiving end of it.

Salman Khan is said to have had a volatile equation with ace director Subhaash Ghai. Though they are said to have had a serious fallout, the twosome later collaborated on Subhashs directorial, Yuvvraaj.

In an interview from 2002, when prodded on his alleged manhandling of his then girlfriend Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Salman Khan had put light into his sensational feud with Ghai.

No. I have never beaten her. Anyone can beat me up. Any fighter here on the sets can thrash me. That is why people are not scared of me. I do get emotional. Then I hurt myself. I have banged my head against the wall; I have hurt myself all over. I cannot hurt anyone else. I have only hit Subhash Ghai. Yet, I apologized to him the next day, he had said.

There are times when you do get out of control. That person hit me with a spoon, almost broke a plate on my face, pissed on my shoes and grabbed me by the neck. I could not control myself. And see what happened. Next day, I had to go and apologize, Salman concluded.

Well, this comes as a total shocker!
Mayawati challenged Modi and Amit Shah to once again conduct the election on a paper ballot if they were so sure of their victory.

Lucknow: With the Bahujan Samaj Party (BJP) leading in just 18 seats out of 403 in the Uttar Pradesh elections on Saturday, party chief Mayawati lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP, claiming that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in the state had been tampered with.

Either the EVMs did not accept votes other than for BJP, or the votes of other parties have gone to BJP in the EVMs, Mayawati said in a press conference immediately following the results.

The BJP did not field a single Muslim candidate. Yet, most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to BJP. This makes it evident that voting machines were manipulated, she claimed.

I have written to Election Commission in this regard. People no longer have faith in EVM machines, Mayawati alleged.

Mayawati challenged Modi and BJP President Amit Shah to once again conduct the election on a paper ballot if they were so sure of their victory.

The BJP soared to victory in the Hindi heartland on Saturday, leading in over 300 seats in what may turn out to be a three-fourths majority when counting is over. The SP-Congress alliance of CM Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi put up a poor show, with leads in only 67 seats.
They could not pay Rs 500 charged by the school authorities unlawfully from students.

As they were denied the opportunity to sit in the career-shaping exam, they left for Mumbai to work there as migrant workers. (Representational image)

Bhubaneswar: A 15-year-old poor boy, who lost his father at an early age, along with his two classmates, has left for Mumbai to work as migrant labourers after their school authorities denied them admit cards to appear for Class 10 exam. They could not pay Rs 500 charged by the school authorities unlawfully from students.

Reports from Odishas tribal dominated and poverty-stricken Kalahandi said on Friday that at least 28 students of Pokharibandha Government High School had filled their forms to appear for the Class 10 exam this year. Their admit cards had reached the school before time, said sources. However, the school authorities unlawfully charged each student Rs 500 for issue of admit card. While 25 students paid the charged amount, three students  Dipak Behera, Ramachandra Majhi and Sambhu Majhi, all belonging to poor families  could not pay the money. As they were denied the opportunity to sit in the career-shaping exam, they left for Mumbai to work there as migrant workers on Monday. After my husband died, I tried to raise my son with all care. Whatever money I got by selling firewood and other forest produces, I spent on his education. However, I could not pay Rs 500 for his admit card, said Dipaks widowed mother Puspa Behera, sobbing intermittently.

Rinja Majhi, father of Ramachandra Majhi, was in tears as he narrated his sons agony for not being able to sit in the exam. My son had loads of dreams. He kept me promising to become an officer and lift the familys economic conditions. But all that stands shattered, he said.

After the matter came to light on Friday, state school and mass education minister Debi Prasad Mishra ordered a probe into the case. I have ordered for a thorough probe. If the school authorities are found to have denied admit cards to them for non-payment of money, well take a strong action, he said.
The Naxals also looted ten weapons and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.

Raipur: Twelve CRPF personnel were on Saturday killed and their arms looted when Naxals ambushed their patrol party in the Maoist hotbed of Sukma in Chhattisgarh.

Four personnel were also injured in the Naxal attack and two of them were stated to be critical.

The incident occurred in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 kms away from the state capital, at 9:15 AM when 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task.

The Bhejji area in south Bastar region of the state is notorious for Naxal attacks and many security personnel have been killed here in the past.

The Naxals also looted ten weapons like INSAS and AK series assault rifles and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.

"The troops were part of the road clearing party that has been securing an under-construction road between Bhejji and Kottacheru. They were ambushed by Naxals who set off multiple hidden IEDs on the ground and opened fire. The squad effectively retaliated before twelve made the supreme sacrifice," acting CRPF DG Sudeep Lakhtakia told PTI.

He added that Maoists are trying to disrupt normal life and activities in this area as the Central Reserve Police Force has increased its presence here and got re-opened a local 'haat' (market) last year here after it was forcibly shut by the red ultras.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh who will be travelling to Sukma.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh has strongly condemned the Maoist attack and described it as a "cowardly act".

Security personnel have laid down their lives to free Bastar from violence and Maoist terror. Their sacrifice will not go in vain. "I salute their sacrifice," the CM said, adding ultras were frustrated with development of road network in the region.

He also extended condolences to the bereaved families.

The CRPF chief and senior officials are also rushing to Raipur.

A senior Chhattisgarh official told PTI that the road opening party was passing through the forests between Bhejji and Kottacheru villages when Naxals opened indiscriminate fire on them.

According to a CRPF official, summer season is regarded as an offensive period by rebels as they observe annual 'tactical counter offensive campaign' (TCOC).

The dry weather is a favourable period for carrying out ambushes in the vast jungle terrain and this attack would have been planned by Maoists led by hardcore naxal cadre Hidma who is active in southern part of Bastar, the paramilitary official added.

However, further investigation would reveal the details, he added.

The injured have been air lifted and brought to the CRPF field hospital in Bheji and few others have been transferred to Raipur.

A special counter-Naxal team of CoBRA has been rushed to the ambush spot as reinforcement to sanitise the area and launch a search.

Another senior CRPF officer said the ambush site has very weak mobile phone connectivity and communication is being done through satellite phones.

"It is estimated that a hundred plus Maoist squad was present in the area when the ambush was launched. These are preliminary inputs. More details are awaited," the officer said.

The deceased CRPF personnel have been identified as Inspector Jagjit Singh, Assistant Sub-inspectors H B Bhatt and Narender Kumar Singh, Head Constables Jagdish Prasad Vishnoi and P R Minde and Constables Mangesh Pal Pandey, Rampal Singh Yadav, Goraknath, Nand Kumar Patra, Satish Kumar Verma, K Shankar and Suresh Kumar.

Constables Jaidev Parmanik and Salim are critically injured.

The CRPF is working without a regular chief for over a week now as the government has not appointed a new Director General after K Durga Prasad retired on February 28.
Satellite spotted by Nasa cant be revived due to glitch-hit power system.

Plagued by problems in power supply units controlling both onboard computers, it forced Indian space scientists to move it away from the lunar surface in order to avoid excess heat and radiation.

Bengaluru: With the discovery of water on Moon in mid 2009, Chandrayaan-I made headlines the world over! But less than a month later, Indian space scientists had lost all contact with the countrys first lunar probe. Until Friday, when eight years later, radar scientists of Nasa (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), US, brought cheer to everyone at Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) when Chandrayaan-1 was spotted, orbiting the earths nearest astral neighbor, exactly where scientists had lost track of it.

The spacecraft, which was located by scientists at Nasas Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) with the help of a powerful ground-based radar, cannot be revived however, given its glitch-hit power system.

Plagued by problems in power supply units controlling both onboard computers, it forced Indian space scientists to move it away from the lunar surface in order to avoid excess heat and radiation, in 2009.

We found that DC-DC converters manufactured by MDI Power, USA, did not meet the specifications resulting in the snag in power supply system. Theres nothing much we can do now without any power onboard as Chandrayaan-I can neither receive signals nor send data, Prof U.R. Rao, former chairman of Isro, who headed a committee which probed the failed mission, told this newspaper.

Though Prof. Rao and his colleagues anticipated the spacecraft to drift and ultimately crash into lunar surface a couple of years after losing contact, the latest discovery points to the fact that Chandrayaan-I has remained at an orbit 200 km from lunar surface from the time the glitch wrought a premature end to the mission. Theres not much atmosphere over the Moon, almost as good as vacuum, so the spacecraft has not lost energy due to friction, and so continues in the same orbit. Our first satellite, Aryabhata, lasted about 15 years in space, explained Prof Rao.

Nasas Moon Mineralogy Mapper, one of the 11 instruments onboard Chandrayaan-I, and ISROs Moon Impact Probe (MIP), discovered water on the lunar surface.

Scientists at Nasas Jet Propulsion Laboratory said it required more detective work to find Chandrayaan-I after they spotted Nasas Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). Finding Indias Chandrayaan-1 required a bit more detective work because the last contact with the spacecraft was in August 2009, said Marina Brozovic, a radar scientist at JPL.
Strike called by a group of separatists brings life to standstill.

Kashmiri people shout pro-freedom slogans as they carry the coffin of slain militant Mushtaq Ahmed during his funeral procession in Malangam, 75 km north of Srinagar. (Photo: AP)

Srinagar: Kashmir was tense on Friday. A strike called by an alliance of separatist organisations threw life out of gear in summer capital Srinagar and most other parts of the Valley.

Shops and other businesses remained shut and only skeleton transport services were available on select routes. The trains services remained suspended too on the second consecutive day. At places including in Srinagar and north-western town of Sopore, irate crowds of youth clashed with security forces which fired teargas canisters and shotgun pellets to quell the stone-hurling mobs.

The tensions heightened following the death of three militants and two civilians, including a 15-year-old schoolboy Aamir Nazir Wani, in or during security forces actions at two different places in southern Pulwama and northern Bandipore districts. J&Ks director general of police Shesh Paul Vaid said the killing of militants was a major breakthrough against outlawed Lashkar-e-Tayyaba and Hizb-ul-Mujahideen outfits and claimed that the slain men were involved in killing of security officials and mainstream political activists besides bank robberies.

Chief minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed deep anguish and grief over the schoolboys killing. While extending her sympathies to the bereaved, she said, It is highly unfortunate that youth are caught in the vicious cycle of violence in the State which has consumed so many precious lives and left behind a trail of death and destruction.

The police said he was hit by a stray bullet during a fire fight with militants in Pulwamas Pandgampora village. The locals alleged that the security forces fired live ammunition indiscriminately during the protests near the encounter site.

On Friday, hundreds of mourners braving chill and snowfall attended the funeral of slain militant Mushtaq Ahmed Seer in Bandipores Malangam area.

The young in the crowd were furious and pledged to take what they insisted is freedom struggle of the people of Kashmir to its logic conclusion. Similar scenes were witnessed earlier in Pulwama on Thursday evening.

Almost all key separatist leaders were placed under house arrest ahead of the shutdown and Srinagars Grand Mosque was sealed to prevent Friday congregation at which Chief Muslim cleric and separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq delivers sermon and customary pre-Namaz speech on political and social issues. Earlier these leaders in their statements accused New Delhi of indulging in worst state terrorism in Kashmir and using military might to suppress the voice of its people. Police chief Mr. Paul said that the operations against militants will not only continue but intensified in coming weeks.
Manipur would be the third state after Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in North East, where BJP would form the govt.

BJP supporters celebrate the party's victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa elections in Guwahati on Saturday. (Photo: PTI)

Imphal: The close fight between Congress and BJP for power in Manipur finished with neither party being able to achieve a majority, resulting in a hung Assembly in the state.

Congress, who had ruled the state for three terms won just 28 seats out of 60, whereas BJP, which failed to bag even a single seat in 2012 elections turned out to be the second largest party after Congress with 21 seats.

Read: Assembly results 2017: Modi takes Uttar Pradesh, U'khand; Congress gets Punjab

The Naga Peoples Front (NPF) and National Peoples Party (NPP) bagged four seats respectively, while Lokjanshakti Party of Ram Vilas Paswan and an Independent captured one seat each.

BJPs national president, Amit Shah who is confident about forming a government in Manipur said, BJP would form government in four states i.e. Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa.

Read: Uttar Pradesh Assembly election results 2017: A sweet Holi for BJP and Modi

BJP is now 9 seats away from forming a government in Manipur. The LJP (1) which already has an alliance at Centre with the BJP, and NPF (4) in Nagaland may join the saffron party in government formation.

This is would be the third state after Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in North East, where BJP would form the government.

Read: Punjab Assembly election results 2017: Captain Singh is King

Meanwhile, clinching the Thoubal constituency, incumbent chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh defeated Basanta Singh of the BJP and new entrant Irom Sharmila with more than 8000 votes.

Irom Sharmila, who was on fast for 16 years to repeal AFSPA from the state, was fighting from 5 seats with newly launched party Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA). Irom merely received 90 votes in her debut Assembly polls. Subsequently, she declared her intention to quit politics.

Read: LIVE Goa Assembly election results 2017: CM loses seat; Cong ahead

The star campaigner for the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi during election rallies had promised to break the economic blockade which the state faces under the Congress regime, if voted to power.

The exit polls for Manipur had thrown up an uncertain mandate. C-Voter- India TV said the BJP would emerge as single largest bagging at least 28 seats, whereas Axis  India Today predicted Congress will retain power with full majority.

Read: Uttarakhand election results 2017: BJP gets massive mandate, obliterates Cong

Congress emerged as the lone giant in Manipur Assembly Polls in 2012 and achieved a hat trick win by securing 42 of the 60 seats in the state. It was sweet victory for Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh as the party got 42.42 per cent vote share.

All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) came second with 7 seats and 17% vote share. BJP could not make a mark in the state and did not win a single seat.
Captain Amarinder Singh won from Patiala urban seat by a huge margin of over 51000 votes.

PPCC President Captain Amarinder Singh's daughter Jai Inder Kaur and granddaughter along with Congress supporters flash victory sign as they celebrate Congress' victory. (Photo: PTI)

Chandigarh: Captain Amarinder Singh steered Congress to power in Punjab, as the state failed to buck the trend and continued with the tradition of altering governments between Congress and SAD. The Congress tasted clear victory by securing 77 out of 117 seats.

Captain Amarinder Singh, who turned 75 on Saturday, couldn't have asked for a better birthday gift. He won the Patiala urban seat by a huge margin of over 52,407 votes. Amarinder also recorded the highest winning margin in the state and bettered his margin of 42,318 secured in 2012 Assembly polls.

"We hope Union Government will recognise demands of Punjab and assist us," he said after his win.

"Drugs menace in the state will be my first priority as far as governance is concerned. As far as development is concerned, health and education will be my priority. Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party is like summer storm which has come and gone without making any difference," he added.

Singh however lost in the Lambi Assembly constituency, where Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal defeated him by 22,770 votes. Badal polled 66,375 votes while Congress candidate Amarinder Singh secured 43,605 votes. AAP candidate Jarnail Singh was at the third spot, securing 21,254 votes.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Singh to congratulate him on electoral victory in Punjab.

The anti-incumbency wave proved to be fatal for the SAD-BJP combine, which finished third in the race with 19 seats to their credit. The drug menace was one of the biggest poll issues in the state and repeated seizures of illegal drugs in the state caused a dent in the Akali Dals image.

AAP, which was tipped to be the dark horse, could not come anywhere close to the victory it dreamed of, but its foray into the political arena in Punjab further scuttled the chances of the Akalis. It secured victory in 22 seats.

Disappointed by its performance, AAP leaders said that they would review what went wrong. "We are disappointed with the results. We will introspect on the reasons behind the (poor) performance," senior AAP leader Ashutosh said.

Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, who kept everybody in suspense about which side he would bat for, emerged as one of the biggest beneficiary, as his decision to join the Congress paid off.

Kejriwal lost the polls because his intentions were not right. This is not just the victory of Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, but the victory of every Congress worker. Its my promise, that we will make Punjab an example of good governance, Sidhu told the media.

Let us take a look at the exit poll predictions:

India Today-Axis predicted a Congress victory with 62-71 seats. It projected 42-51 for AAP and 4-7 for SAD-BJP.

Todays Chanakya predicted a tie between Congress and AAP by projecting 54 seats for both the parties.

Similarly News X-MRC predicted a tie between Congress and AAP by indicating that theyll get 55 seats each.

India TV C-Voter put its money on AAP by giving the party 59-67 seats, while projecting 41-49 seats for the Congress.

How Punjab voted in 2012

The Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine came to power in Punjab in 2012 for the second term, winning 68 of the 117 seats. The total vote share of the combine was around 42 per cent.

The Congress won 46 seats with a vote share of nearly 40 per cent, while Independents got 3.

In 2014 General Elections, The Aam Aadmi Party won 4, the SAD-BJP alliance 4 and Congress UPA 3  down from 8 in 2009.
BJP is on course to register a massive win, upsetting most pollsters. The party looks likely to finish with over 300 seats.

Lucknow: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday secured a massive win in Uttar Pradesh, with leads for all the 403 seats available. The saffron party led on 321 seats in the politically crucial state, thus getting a three-fourths majority. The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance on the other hand, was relegated to just 60 seats.

BJP thus gained its largest ever majority in UP, comfortably overtaking the 221 seats Kalyan Singh won in 1991.

Meanwhile, the much-touted Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance led by Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi, which had claimed it would win 300 seats, was completely decimated in most parts of the state.

Read: Assembly results 2017: Modi takes Uttar Pradesh, U'khand, Manipur; Congress gets Punjab

In a press conference following the BJP's stunning win, its national president Amit Shah said that the saffron party would form the government in 4 states - Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa.

The BJP president called the victory in UP the biggest victory by any party after Independence.

Amit Shah also hailed Modi as the most popular leader the country had seen after Independence. "The public has restored the same faith it put in the BJP and Narendra Modi during the 2014 polls," Shah claimed.

The BJP president said the people had embraced the 'politics of performance', casting aside dynasty politics in the state of UP and in the country.

Shah announced that the BJP would felicitate Modi on Sunday evening to mark the astounding performance under his leadership.

However, he refused to divulge as to who would become the new Chief Minister of the state, saying the party would take a decision in the matter.

Conceding defeat, outgoing UP CM Akhilesh Yadav congratulated the BJP on its resounding victory.

Perhaps in a sarcastic vein, he said the BJP government would now build better roads and infrastructure than he had as the CM.

Stating that the people's mandate had to be respected, Akhilesh however backed Mayawati's assertion that the EVMs had been tampered with, adding that a probe should be conducted.

The UP CM claimed that perhaps, the people of UP had voted for BJP due to the bullet trains it had promised, prefering them over the expressway the SP government had been constructing. Countering a questioner on the poor state of law and order in the state, Akhilesh said the police in UP were usually the quickest to respond to incidents of crime. He asserted that BJP had won the election by communal polarisation.

"Hamari cycle ke tube main hawan hi nahi thi (The SP cycle was deflated, its tyres had no air)," quipped Akhilesh.

After the press conference, Akhilesh Yadav proceeded to Governor Ram Naik's residence and submitted his resignation.

Read: LIVE Punjab Assembly election results 2017: Captain Singh is King

Fate of Important candidates

After falling out with his nephew Akhilesh, SP leader and minister Shivpal Yadav was in a tough see-saw battle with Manish Yadav Batre of the BJP in Jaswant Nagar of Etawah. Eventually though, Shivpal defeated the BJP candidate by 52,616 votes.

BSP candidate and gangster-turned politician Mukhtar Ansari, who joined the BSP in January after falling out with Akhilesh Yadav, however won from Mau by a massive 97,199 votes.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj Singh won from Noida, and his victory was part of a landslide in eastern UP which saw BJP win all 8 seats in Noida and Ghaziabad.

Swati Singh, the wife of expelled BJP leader Dayashankar Singh, won from the Sarojini Nagar seat.

Tainted minister Gayatri Prajapati, who is absconding after the UP Police booked him in an alleged gangrape case and attempt to rape a minor, lost in Amethi.

He was pitted against Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Singh, and Ameeta Singh (Congress)  his present wife. Singh went on to win the constituency.

Read: LIVE Goa Assembly election results 2017: CM loses seat; Cong ahead

The Samajwadi Party received amajor jolt from Lucknow Cantt seat, where its patron Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav lost to BJP's Rita Bahuguna Joshi. Joshi won by a margin of 33,796 votes in the seat.

While Reeta Joshi secured 95,402 votes, Aparna got only 61,606 votes and stood in the second place while the BSP's Yogesh Dixit got 26,036 votes.

Besides Mulayam, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, his wife Dimple Yadav had also campaigned on this seat for Aparna but all their efforts went in vain with people selecting the BJP candidate.

Communally sensitive Ayodhya, long a BJP bastion, saw a see-saw battle between BJP's Ved Prakash Gupta and SP's Tej Narayan Pandey. However, in the end, Gupta won by a margin of over 49,000 votes.

UP Minister Rahguraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya won in Kunda.

Azam Khan won from Rampur while his son Abdullah won from the Swar Tanda seat.

Read: LIVE Manipur Assembly Election Results 2017: BJP, Cong in close fight

BJP workers across the state began celebrating even as the early trends showed the saffron party taking a comfortable lead.

UP BJP chief Keshav Prasad Maurya had claimed today that BJP would win 2/3rds majority in the state, wiping out SP and BSP.

"We respect the mandate, but development has lost and votebank politics has won," Congress leader Rajiv Shukla said reacting to the result.

Read: LIVE Uttarakhand Assembly election results 2017: Rawat to resign by 3 pm

But it was Mayawati who was most anguished over the results. The BSP was leading in just 18 seats with leads for all 403 seats available. Subsequently, the BSP chief alleged tampering with EVM machines.

Either the EVMs did not accept votes other than for BJP, or the votes of other parties have gone to BJP in the EVMs, Mayawati said in a press conference immediately following the results.

The BJP did not field a single Muslim candidate. Yet, most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to BJP. This makes it evident that voting machines were manipulated, she claimed.

I have written to Election Commission in this regard. People no longer have faith in EVM machines, Mayawati alleged.

Mayawati challenged PM Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah to once again conduct the election on a paper ballot if they were so sure of their victory.

The incoming results were a complete shift from the results of the 2012 polls, where the BJP had come a cropper with just 47 seats, and the SP had stormed to power with 224.

Uttar Pradesh had witnessed seven-phase polling that started on February 11 and ended on March 8.

Two out of four exit polls this time had showed a near-majority for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Assembly elections, and Today's Chanakya predicted an over two-thirds majority on Thursday.

Only two polls showed a neck-to-neck fight between BJP and the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance.

In 2012, the Samajwadi Party swept to power defeating incumbent chief minister Mayawatis Bahujan Samaj Party which had got an absolute majority in the previous elections.

SP had won 224 seats of the 401 it contested in 2012, garnering a vote share of 29.15 per cent with an upswing of 3.72 per cent over the last elections.

The BSP had got 80 seats with a 25.91 per cent vote share. The BJP managed 47 seats with 15 per cent vote share, while the Congress got 28 seats with 11.63 per cent vote share.

In the 2014 general elections, however, the BJP captured Uttar Pradesh, winning 71 of the 80 parliamentary seats. It got a vote share of 42.30 per cent. The SP managed only 5 seats with a vote share of 22.2 per cent, the Congress and Apna Dal got 2 seats each while Mayawati was left high and dry.
The party received a clear mandate and caused some serious damage to the outgoing Congresss seat toll.

BJP supporters and workers offer sweets to a cut out of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as they celebrate partys victory in the assembly elections, at the party head quarters in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

Dehradun: It was an easy run for the Bharatiya Janata Party to the victory stand, as it dislodged the conflict-ridden Congress government by securing 57 out of 70 seats in the state.

The Congress garnered 11 seats, finishing a distant second. Two independent candidates also won.

Riding steadily on an anti-incumbency wave, the BJP managed a clean sweep and even surpassed the exit poll figures, despite facing several internal conflicts before polls.

In an extension of the support it received during the 2014 Lok Sabha election, the party received a clear mandate and caused some serious damage to the outgoing Congresss seat toll.

Commenting on the massive win, Prime Minster Narendra Modi said Victory in Uttarakhand is special; I assure people of the state that BJP will serve them with dedication, in a tweet.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had remarked, "This is a big victory. BJP has reached new heights in Uttarkhand and Uttar Pradesh and has changed the political picture of the country."

BJP spokesman Munna Singh Chauhan attributed Rawat's defeat to thriving corruption and a strong anti-incumbency factor. People were totally disillusioned with the Rawat government under whom corruption flourished like never before and they were desperately looking for change," Chauhan pointed out.

He further added, "Narendra Modi's style of leadership, his head-on approach towards corruption inspired confidence among the masses who voted overwhelmingly in favour of the BJP for a clean and accountable government."

In a major blow to the Congress, outgoing Chief Minster had Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost to Bharatiya Janata Party candidates in both seats he contested from -- Haridwar Rural and Kichha.

Rawat also tendered his resignation hours after his defeat.

The outgoing chief minister garnered 32,645 votes in Haridwar Rural, losing the seat to BJP's Yatishwaranand by a margin of 12,227 votes. In Kichha, the Congress leader lost to BJP's Rajesh Shukla by 2,154 votes.

I accept Congress defeat. There must have been some shortcomings in my leadership that led to the partys defeat, he said.

On the other hand, Uttarakhand BJP president Ajay Bhatt lost to Karan Mahara of Congress by 4981 votes from Ranikhet.

The grand old party which faced several defections in the recent past, ran a lacklustre campaign in the state that had reflected in the numbers. With only Rawat and a few other leaders to garner public attention, the party failed to create any excitement amidst voters leading to the humungous upset.

On the other hand, the BJP which also saw internal seat-sharing conflicts managed to capitalise the charisma of Narendra Modi to get its act together. With no chief ministerial candidate, the prime minister had to pull the party through with his rallies and speeches.

A majority of exit polls had predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party will wrest power from Congress. The party had been pegged to bag around 40-50 seats by India Today and Chanakya exit polls. However, C-Voter had predicted a tie between the two parties.

Voting was held in all 70 constituencies of the state. The state saw a voter turnout of 65.64% with 637 candidates in the fray.

In 2012, the BJP tried to cash in on former chief minister BC Khanduris clean image but bagged 31 of the 70 seats putting Congress in the drivers seat. The Grand Old Party had emerged as the single largest party with 32 seats and 33.79% vote share, the BJP lost with a very small margin and got 33.13% vote share.

The BSP could only win in three seats of the 70 it contested, with 12.19 vote share.

In the 2014 general elections, BJP cast its spell on Uttarakhand and won all five seats form the state with 55.30% vote share.
While the Congress soared to a landslide win in Punjab, it was ahead of the ruling BJP in Goa with leads for most seats available.

Amritsar/Panaji: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) may have won in a landslide in Uttar Pradesh in the 2017 state elections, but its fortunes in two other states it previously held  Punjab and Goa  have not been so good.

In Punjab, the BJP, in an alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), had won 68 of the 117 Assembly seats in 2012. This time however, the SAD-BJP alliance was relegated to third place, winning just 18 out of the 117 seats and finishing behind Congress and AAP.

In Goa, the BJP had swept to victory in 2012, winning 21 of the 40 seats in the state Assembly. However, this time, it finished second behind the Congress, winning just 13 seats while the grand old party grabbed 17.

The BJP may still succeed in coming to power in the coastal state on the basis of alliance with Independents and the MGP, but its path to power is no longer clear.

The Congress swept to victory in Punjab, seemingly on Captain Amarinder Singhs strong persona and a promise to wipe out the drug menace from the state. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), tipped to win by many pollsters, had to eat humble pie, but still managed to perform better than the ruling SAD-BJP.

The flourishing drug trade, unemployment, farmer suicides and the problem of land mafia seem to be factors which led to a nosedive in the fortunes of the ruling alliance in Punjab.

The ruling Badals in Punjab had been accused of complicity in the rampant drug trade in the state, and the Congress and AAP made the most of this opportunity to undermine SADs fortunes in the elections. Both the Congress and AAP promised to end drug trafficking in Punjab within months if elected to power.

Secondly, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh is believed to have a strong following among farmers in the state, and has held the state unit together even as the party has unravelled on the national stage.

Punjab also has the highest percentage of Scheduled Castes in the country, at around 31 per cent according to the 2011 census. The Dalit vote is likely to have been divided between AAP and Congress, especially given the atrocities on Dalits committed in other parts of the country by Gau Rakshaks on the matter of consuming beef. Moreover, the SADs core vote bank has historically never included Dalits.

The desecration of the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib in November 2015 in Punjab led Opposition parties to claim that the culprits would be brought to book after the 2017 polls. Copies of the Bhagavad Gita and the Quran were also found desecrated on another occasion, all of which led to mass protests in the state which the ruling alliance could not handle effectively.

The SAD-BJP, having been in power for two terms, likely also faced the anti-incumbency factor which led to the governments demise in Punjab.

However, the ruling alliance has still done better than most pollsters imagined. While most exit polls predicted under 10 seats for the SAD-BJP alliance, it is leading on 18 seats out of 117.

In Goa, the BJP suffered a major setback on Saturday with incumbent Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar losing his seat. Parsekar had to face a tough challenge in his constituency of Mandrem from Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte.

Unlike in other parts of the country, the BJP organisation in Goa did not seem to be cohesive, with Parsekar being generally unpopular. There had been demands to bring back Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar as the CM, or at least as the CM face, in Goa prior to the election, but this never materialised. Parrikar himself seemed open to the idea of returning as the Goa CM. I have lost 4kg in Delhi because of the food. I like Goan food. You can interpret this the way you want, he said recently during the Goa election campaign, when asked if he will be returning to the state if BJP wins.

However, the BJP, in perhaps a telling move, did not name Parsekar as its CM face for Goa either.

The Maharashtra Gomantak Party (MGP) which was in an alliance with BJP earlier, broke away from it in 2016, further weakening the governments mandate in Goa. The MGP in fact, put up candidates against the BJP in the state this time. The influence of Dayanand Bandodkar, the states first CM, still holds in Mandrem constituency and Parsekar was unable to overcome it.

Moreover, the revolt by sacked RSS Goa chief Subhas Velingkar last year, breaking away from the parent organisation and campaigning against the BJP in the state by forming his own party, may also have dented BJPs fortunes in the state.

However, contrary to expectations, the problems within the BJP in Goa did not translate into seats for the AAP. Instead, the Congress has become the big gainer in Goa and has a real shot at forming a government at present.
SPs dismal performance in the 2017 Assembly elections has challenged Akhileshs carefully nurtured image of an enforcer of credibility.

Lucknow: Our cycle was tubeless. It was impossible to pump air into its wheels, joked Samajwadi Partys outgoing chief minister Akhilesh Yadav after his brutal defeat at the hands of the BJP in the 2017 Assembly elections.

That light-hearted retort before the media Saturday evening was a telling comment on how miserably Akhilesh had gone wrong these elections  a process that started with a very public fight with his father and party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, then meandering into a kiss-of-death alliance with the Congress.

To top it, Akhilesh had hinted after the exit polls that he was willing to take the support of arch rival Mayawati to keep the BJP out. A complete reversal of stand!

The partys dismal performance in the 2017 Assembly elections has challenged Akhileshs carefully nurtured image of an enforcer of credibility and a driver of change.

He will now be remembered as the chief minister BJP demolished in its biggest ever win in the countrys most prestigious electoral fight. The BJP and its allies  albeit led by the presently impregnable charisma of Narendra Modi  notched up a 300+ tally in the 403-seat Assembly.

What went wrong for Akhilesh?

Was it the alliance with the Congress?

Akhilesh sent out a few barbs at the BJP at the post-result media meet  I created world-class expressways, but I guess the people want bullet trains  but defended his decision to go with the Congress. It was a good thing, he said, that too young leaders went out to the people asking for votes.

But to the voter that sent out one message  Akhilesh tied up with the Congress to consolidate the Muslim vote that accounts for nearly 20 per cent of the population. This consolidated the Hindu mandate.

Akhilesh ended up conceding to the Congress demand for 105 seats, a figure that vastly overrated a party that had performed poorly in the state in 2012 and had subsequently shrunk in national politics. The Congress proved a dead weight at the end.

But then Rahul Gandhi is hardly ever blamed for anything by his party and senior leaders have already insulated him from this defeat.

But Akhilesh will feel the heat and so will his goodwill among party delegates who he successfully pulled to his camp during the prolonged and public spat with his dad who was dead opposed to any alliance with any party, let alone the Congress.

Shoving his dad into the sidelines may now look like the 44-year-old was precocious -- too intent to make a mark on his own, too independent to choose his own friends.

Though he still enjoys goodwill among leaders and the people as a clean, young, pro-development leader, Akhilesh will have to put back the training wheels on his cycle and introspect where he went wrong.
The museum aims to show "the beauty of polar landscapes" and illustrate the consequences of climate change

It is built in the shape of a jutting iceberg and with 60 percent of its volume buried underground. (Photo: AFP)

Premanon: As global warming reshapes the Arctic and Antarctic, a new museum built by the son of a renowned French explorer aims to show "the beauty of polar landscapes" and illustrate the consequences of climate change.

The centre in eastern France is "the only permanent museum devoted to the Arctic and Antarctic in the world," said communications director Anthony Renou.Built in the shape of a jutting iceberg and with 60 percent of its volume buried underground, the museum was conceived by anthropologist Jean-Christophe Victor -- son of the French polar explorer Paul-Emile Victor -- and Stephane Niveau, a naturalist.

Once inside, visitors are plunged into a world of intense white. Huge video screens show the ice caps amid the noise of an icy blizzard. Photographs, items from polar expeditions and video presentations -- on ecosystems, rising sea levels, indigenous peoples and other themes -- bring the polar environment to life and expose its vulnerability to global warming.

The Arctic's surface temperature has risen by more than two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) since the late 19th century -- double the pace of the world as a whole.At the other end of the planet, scientists are most concerned about Antarctica's western peninsula, sitting underneath a kilometre-thick ice sheet with enough frozen water to lift global sea levels by six or seven metres (more than 20 feet).

70,000 visitors per year

Warming air and ocean water are eroding dam-like seaside formations called ice shelfs that prevent massive inland glaciers from sliding more quickly into the ocean.The museum, Espace des Mondes Polaires Paul-Emile Victor, provides a visually compelling tutorial on these changes.

"The idea was to open a place that could serve as a support to teaching about the polar world, while approaching it in a playful way," said the museum's director Stephane Niveau.Jean-Christophe Victor, who died in December at the age of 69, had said he wanted to make visitors "feel the beauty of these polar landscapes and lights, of the disproportion of man in relation to the nature which surrounds him".

The museum highlights objects and documents from the expeditions involving his father, a pioneer of modern ecology who documented the polar wilderness. Paul-Emile Victor died in 1995 at age 87.The adventurer, who spent much of his childhood in the region where the museum is located, carried out his first missions to Greenland in 1934.

The museum includes a documentation centre which is accessible to researchers, a skating rink and a conference hall.The local authorities which manage the establishment hope to attract 50,000 to 70,000 visitors per year.
The so-called progressive society of Kerala seems to be in a state of confusion.

Morality is probably one of the frequently discussed subjects these days when it comes to expressing affection towards a person one likes. What does morality  the ability only human race claims to posses, of knowing the distinction between right and wrong  allow society to do? Charge a person sitting with another person of different gender with cane and let go scot free a criminal who has raped a three-year-old or an 80-year-old woman!

The so-called progressive society of Kerala seems to be in a state of confusion. The act that Shiva Sena activists dared to do at the Marine Drive is a wakeup call for everyone. Can a set of goons just impose on people their own rules that they feel are a must to uphold the moral thoughts of society?

The irony was not lost on anyone that women were beaten up for sitting with their male friends on a day when the entire world was celebrating womanhood. Once something that triggers the public conscience happens, protests and outrage follow.

And what is better than a Kiss of Love to protest against moral policing! The protest had created a wave of reactions back in 2014 when it was kickstarted.

The question however, is not whether the protests serve the purpose, but what the protests are really for. As writer Sharadakutty puts it, It is a fact that Kerala, the first state to attain full literacy, is far more developed than many other states. But is the development actually taking us forward or backward is a concern.

The very incident of Shiva Sena activists beating up people at Marine Drive is a clear example of backwardness of our society. All those people who are undoubtedly goondas had a body language that explained their ugly thoughts of being superior to women.

And their explaining the act as something to bring in discipline and stop atrocities against women is not justifiable. Therefore, women who declare their independence and men who respect that are to be created. Fighting for rights is not always possible because it will at some point lead to violence.

She added that boys need to be taught that they do not have any right on women with whom they associate with and that they are individual beings who have the right to choose the way they live and look upon things.

A public outrage has been witnessed across the state against the recent moral policing like the one at hiruvananthapuram where a couple went live on Facebook when police questioned them and another unfortunate incident that drove a 24-year-old to suicide after being assaulted by a set of people who unleashed immoral charges on him and his friend. However, not everyone is sure about the extent of impact protests like Kiss of Love will bring about.

Commenting on this, Lakshmy, a student of St. Teresas College, says, Kiss of Love is like an act a child does when he/she is being chastised by elders for doing it. It will not change the attitude of moral police.

The government needs to take responsibility and deploy police to ensure that the freedom of an individual is not intruded upon. Police, in association with educational institutions and other organisations, should take care that nothing unfortunate happens. The Constitution gives every adult freedom to choose his/her way of life. I was literally annoyed by the Shiva Sena incident; it is unfortunate that goondas have taken over the political parties in our state.

Even more unfortunate is that people who come to public places to spend quality time with family are also being offended by the questions police ask them. Young actor Shane Nigam is of the opinion that society keeps on judging people which is the root cause of all these problems. Stop judging people and you wont be judged either, he says.

Kiss of Love has succeeded in creating a stir in the public, according to Sudeesh Sudhakaran, one of the organisers. He applauds when the frustrated Malayali comes out and protests against injustice in the name of culture and tradition. Many people from the transgender community actively participated in the protest, which clearly is an indication that they want to break the chains and prove to society they too have feelings and that expressing it does not hurt morality. Our fight is against the patriarchal set up of society and I believe that it is definitely making a difference.

However, the actual turnout of youngsters at the protest venue was far from impressive and Sudeesh says that kids even though willing to take part, were being held back by the fear of facing their parents.
The factory workers allegedly had set fire to the plant after getting into an argument with the management.

The Maruti Suzuki plant suffers damage and the police later books 147 workers in connection with the case. They are later charged with conspiracy to commit murder, arson and rioting.

New Delhi: After a legal battle of five years, the Haryana court on Friday convicted 31 workers and acquitted 117 in a case of violence and rioting which took place on July 18, 2012 at Maruti Suzuki plant at Manesar, 20 kms from Gurgaon.

Thirteen accused have been held guilty of murder whereas 18 have been convicted for rioting and other crimes under various sections of the IPC. The quantum of punishment will be pronounced on March 17. The police took 22 accused into custody after the verdict was announced in the court of additional district and sessions judge R.P. Goyal on Friday amid heavy police presence. Administration had imposed Section 144 in the district court premises and within 500 metres of the Maruti Suzuki plant in Manesar.

The incident of violence, which took place on July 18, 2012, began with an argument between workers and management. The matter soon got out of hand and the workers allegedly set fire to one of the floors. HR general manager Awanish Kumar Dev was killed in the incident and several other executives were injured.

The Maruti Suzuki plant suffered damage and the police later booked 147 workers in connection with the case. The factory workers allegedly had set fire to the plant after getting into an argument with the management. They were later charged with conspiracy to commit murder, arson and rioting.

The police had arrested 148 workers in connection with the case, which is under trial at a district court. Rajender Pathak, counsel of the accused workers, said that they would challenge the conviction in the Punjab and Haryana high court. Iqbal, one of the accused, was not present in the court whereas 147 others were present when the verdict was announced. Mr Pathak pointed out that the contention of the prosecution that the murder was planned has been set aside. We took the plea that this was an accident and acquittal of 117 persons has vindicated our stand, said Mr Pathak.

Several workers unions had warned of protests if the court verdict was anti-workers. The unions have decided to hold a meeting in the evening at Kamla Nehru Park to further discuss their strategy.

We will discuss the verdict with all workers and decide future course of action, said Khushi Ram, general secretary of Mazdoor Sahyog Kendra, Gurgaon. Ram is one of the 546 permanent employees, who were terminated after the incident.
Among the institutional gaps pointed out in the report was lack of an effective surveillance mechanism.

The audit was conducted to assess whether the steps taken by government agencies and municipal corporations to control dengue were adequate and effective.

New Delhi: The Comptroller and Auditor General has rapped the BJP-ruled civic bodies in the national capital for failing to mount an effective response to dengue despite having adequate funds, several crore of which were wasted. Among the institutional gaps pointed out in the report was lack of an effective surveillance mechanism.

The CAGs performance audit report tabled in the Delhi Assembly on Friday said the municipal bodies spent Rs 109.43 crore, between 2013-15, on domestic breeding-checkers without any supervision of the work done or any assessment.

The audit was conducted to assess whether the steps taken by government agencies and municipal corporations to control dengue were adequate and effective. The report pointed that despite the recurrence of dengue over the years in the NCT of Delhi and the spike in dengue cases as well as mortalities during 2015, the steps taken by the departments, as well as the municipal corporations, were not commensurate with the magnitude of the problem though funds were not a constraint.

According to data shared by the Centre in Parliament, the viral disease, which is transmitted through the bite of the female Aedes mosquito, had claimed 60 lives in Delhi in 2015, recording a sharp rise over the previous years.

Only 289 out of 967 reporting units (30 per cent) reported dengue data to the State Surveillance Unit, thereby undermining its objective, added the report.

According to the report, expenditure of Rs 88.26 crore was incurred on procurement of insecticides, diluents and equipments during April 2013 to March 2016 for control of adult mosquito. In addition, there was no record of usage of insecticides valued at Rs 79.76 lakh.

The auditors also pulled up the Delhi government for spending Rs 10.04 crore during 2013-15 on awareness campaigns for prevention of dengue after its outbreak, thereby defeating its purpose.

The civic bodies and NDMC undertook thermal outdoor fogging during the dengue season in the years 2013 to 2015 at a cost of Rs 95.10 lakh as a routine exercise without exploring the possibility of adoption of Ultra Low Volume Spray (ULV) spray which is more cost-effective. ULV is recommended as being more cost-effective than thermal fogging since no diluent is used in this technique, said the report.

The erstwhile MCD was trifurcated in 2012 into North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC), South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) and East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC). BJP has been ruling the civic bodies, elections to which are due in April, for the last 10 years.
Asks people to pay property tax on time, get featured on its website.

The move is aimed at collecting more property tax for fiscal 2017, which ends March 31.

Kolkata: The Nabadiganta Industrial Township Authority said it will felicitate the person who pays the highest tax and post his or her name on NDITAs website.

The move is aimed at collecting more property tax for fiscal 2017, which ends March 31.

We are optimistic that this method will motivate taxpayers to quickly clear their dues, NDITA chairman Debashis Sen said.

A senior NDITA official said action can be taken against those who do not pay property taxes on time. But the legal process is lengthy. So we have introduced this technique, he said.

Mr Sen held a special meeting with the top 40 tax defaulters from New Town Thursday, and asked them to clear dues by March 31. Sources in NDITA said that Rs 20 crore worth property tax is due.

Some top IT/ITeS companies, hotels and food chains are yet to pay taxes. They were told that the matter of partial exemptions for IT/IteS, if applicable, would be pursued with the income-tax department, the official said.

But till such time the exemption is granted, they are liable to pay the amount demanded, the official added. Some company officials who said at the meeting that they did not get demand notice were immediately given fresh copies.

I appealed to them to pay up not only to avoid penalty and interest but also fund the ambitious programmes taken up by NDITA in New Town, Mr Sen said.

NDITA is constructing a town hall, a multi-storey car parking, food courts, scientific road signs for motorists and taking overhead cables underground.
The police also seized four imaging machines used for sex determination from the two arrested doctors.

Pune: The Sangli police on Wednesday arrested five more people  including two doctors for allegedly conducting sex-determination tests, in connection with illegal abortions performed by Dr Babasaheb Khidrapure. The police also seized four imaging machines used for sex determination from the two arrested doctors. Last week, 19 aborted foetuses were found dumped near Khidrapures hospital in a suspected cross-border female foeticide racket.

The racket came to light after a 26-year-old patient died on March 1 due to a botched medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) on February 27.

While the police arrested Dr Khidrapure on Tuesday, the deceased womans husband was held on Monday. Dr Khidrapure, a homoeopathic doctor, who allegedly performed sex-selective abortions, was arrested by the police from Belgaum, Karnataka.

Along with the doctors, the police also arrested a medicine supplier for providing abortions pills. Sunil Kashikar Khedkar (35) from Sangli was also arrested for providing Misoprost abortion tablets.

Dr Ramesh Devagikar (64), an accused was arrested from Vijapur district of Karnataka. The doctor runs a hospital where sex determination tests were conducted regularly. The police also arrested Dr Srihari Ghodake (68) from Kagwad village of Belgaum district of Karnataka.

Umesh Salunkhe (28), assistant and Kanchan Joge, a nurse at Dr Khidrapures hospital, were also arrested under Indian Penal Code section 34 for assisting in the doctors in the crime.

State health minister Deepak Sawant visited the hospital and the farm where 19 foetuses were found. He promised a detailed enquiry and said that stern action would be taken against the accused. Meanwhile, over 100 women from Mhaisal village held a peace march against Dr Khidrapure.
The meeting between the BJP President and RSS top brass lasted for two hours at RSS office in Lower Parel.

Mumbai: A day before results of five state elections, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national President Amit Shah met Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sanghs (RSS) senior functionaries Bhaiyyaji Joshi and Krishna Gopal in Mumbai. The meeting between the BJP President and RSS top brass lasted for two hours at RSS office in Lower Parel. Though the BJP and the RSS refused to brief the media about the issues discussed at the meeting; the sources said that post elections result scenario was discussed.

BJP President Amit Shah reached Mumbai on Friday morning. Mumbai BJP Chief Ashish Shelar welcomed him at the airport. After landing in Mumbai, Mr Shah went straight to RSS office in Lower Parel. The sources confirmed that Mr Shah held talks with senior RSS leaders for two hours.

On Saturday, the results of five state assembly elections including Uttar Pradesh will be announced. The exit polls have predicted BJPs victory in four out of five states. The election results could come as a big boost for the BJPs ahead of 2019 general elections.

The sources familiar with the developments in BJP said, Mr Shah could have discussed the issue of leadership in the states, where BJP is expected to win. The RSS will definitely have a say over chief ministerial nominees. Not just that but Mr Shah would have also discussed other post-poll issues such as coordination between the party and Sangh parivar.

Meanwhile, leaders from BJP and RSS have maintained silence over Amit Shahs unscheduled meet.
Shiv Sena MLAs are also upset with their own ministers for not getting done the works mentioned by the party chief.

Mumbai: Alleging discrimination in distributing funds, Shiv Sena MLAs met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis late on Thursday night. The CM has said he will look into the matter. The Sena MLAs are also upset with their own ministers for not getting the works named by Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray done and also tried to build pressure on the ministers.

The MLAs complained to the chief minister that BJP MLAs were given more funds for development works. The list of works that has been given by Mr Thackeray as to be completed by the government have not been completed, they said. Mr Fadnavis said special officers would be appointed to get the works done.

Minister of state for water resources department and Shiv Sena leader Vijay Shivtare said the meeting with Mr Fadnavis was on certain issues. There were complaints by the MLAs about discrimination in distributing funds. Uddhavji Thackeray had given a list of works that are not completed yet. Our MLAs will be disappointed if they do not get funds allocated in the upcoming budget of the state, Mr Shivtare said. The minister also said a coordination committee would be appointed between the two parties Sena and BJP to carry out the works mentioned by Mr Thackeray.

Though Sena has agreed with Mr Fadnavis on the coordination committee, the MLAs were unhappy about their own ministers too. An internal meeting of Sena MLAs was held, in which they expressed their reservations about the party ministers. The Sena MLAs alleged that the ministers were not doing works in the partys favour, sources said. The MLAs were also concerned that their party chief Uddhav Thackeray had restricted himself to Mumbai and Thane municipal corporations polls and has not concentrated in rural areas.

The MLAs feel demoralised if their own ministers are not helping them. We just expressed this with our leaders in the meeting. We fought the local body polls without much support. We expect that at least our works should be done, a Sena MLA said on condition of anonymity. The sources in the party said that the flip flop over the alliance between Shiv Sena and BJP has also affected the Sena at the grassroots level. Before the polls, the political atmosphere was so charged that it was speculated that Sena might withdraw support for the government. However, after the results, nothing has happened, the sources added.
Mr Khan is an Opposition leader and he came up with a view that was opposite to the one provided by the establishment.

Only last Monday, I was reminded of Gen. Zia-ul Haq with a somewhat strange reference to one of the top political leaders in this country of ours. Imran Khan was under attack by some of our friends on the left who are often mixed up with the liberals. So intense was the emotion directed at the PTI chief over his opposition to the lone Pakistan Super League game in Lahore that it brought back memories of the times when Gen. Zia used to be at the receiving end of the most forceful ire even if often this sentiment was expressed in whispers back then.

The tone stirred up a train of thought that had been shrugged off many times before, each new occasion taking more effort to resist the tendency of stereotyping. This latest spell made it impossible. The question wouldnt go away: have they finally found another Zia-ul Haq in Imran Khan to target to their hearts content? They had surely been missing that definite, incorrigible and irredeemable enemy to aim at all these years.

Before you grade the idea as absurd, you would do well to take a look at some of the statements the PTI founder has been inspiring in the recent past. The statements, by people I would be ideologically placed with, would far surpass the combined impact of all the remarks and jokes and anecdotes someone like Asif Ali Zardari has generated.

To my mind and in my group no one else can come closer to contesting the place except Mr Khan, after Mian Nawaz Sharif disqualified himself from the race due to, among other gestures and adjustments, his positive overtures  to an extent  towards the progressive camp since 2013.

And as was the case with Gen. Zia, this is ideological cannon fire that has been so generously piled upon Imran, layer upon layer of it from everyone who is close to the PML-N to whosoever could have been in proximity to the PPP, had it found a way of divorcing itself from one or two of Benazir Bhuttos heirs.

Back to the grand finale at the Gaddafi which, to our collective relief, we were able to stage without incident and with flying colours.

Mr Khan is an Opposition leader and he came up with a view that was opposite to the one provided by the establishment. He said it was dangerous to have the match in Lahore, an opinion that could easily be backed by logic, and which should under no circumstances and according to no notions of patriotism and nationalism have led to the condemnation of its holder as a traitor.

There could always have been a better choice of words and tone. There could have been a more balanced reaction where Mr Khan could have rounded it off with but-I-wish-you-well note at the end. But to hurl whatever you could lay your hands on at this anti-Pakistan politician and call him the choicest, the most despicable names betrayed his loud detractors own lack of evolution. He could be let off with a stern No sir we dont agree with you for making an honest evaluation of the situation as he saw it  and maybe noted for finally disagreeing with the powers who are credited with inventing him, the military top brass.

So much else could have been said in his defence till last Monday, which seems a long time ago. A few more lines have been spoken between then and now and some drastic changes in the draft have been made absolutely necessary. Not only does Mr Khan appear to relish his position as the recipient of the most intense and craziest anti- and pro- feelings, he is without doubt doing all he can to help add more fuel to the steaming hot chorus against him.

You might have a different perception but then you probably dont hang around with the Imran-bashers this writer is surrounded by, which, give or take a few new names, is the same bunch which was once bound by a common hatred for the dictator in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s.

This was a self-explosion only God can save Mr Khan from. Maybe the gentleman was hurt that nobody was paying due attention to his protest and thats why he took an even wilder swipe at it than his previous attempt  the wildest and one impossible to defend by even those who shared his utter dislike for Najam Sethi and the PML-N leadership. It was as if he had just emerged from a protective childhood and discovered the common man and his parlance for the first time.

The brilliant-thinking Mr Sethi and his backers could not have hoped for a more valuable bonus to accompany the successful and most welcome holding of the PSL final in Lahore. Imran Khans slip about phateechar and railu kattas having marred the PSL match between Quetta and Peshawar by no means signifies a conclusive Sharif victory in the long-drawn battle between PML-N and PTI.

The PTI chief has recovered from the self-inflicted injury to retain his appeal as the alternative to the Sharif rule. He might  he will  survive this huge embarrassment. Only for some of us looking for as definite a villain as we had the luxury of having in the Zia days, he will find it extremely tough to redeem himself.

By arrangement with Dawn
Mr Trumps border security policies, based on hatred and fear, are a direct confrontation to that movement.

For those who watched appalled as Donald Trump bellowed to victory in the US presidential election on a platform of fear, xenophobia and hate, there was always the consolation that his poisonous campaign rhetoric might be a mere vote-winning strategy. Style over substance. Just words. And the hope that his demonisation of entire groups of people would not have any real consequences.

Yet, in India, people have watched with concern the reports of hate crimes against Indians and people of Indian origin in the past few weeks. President Trumps anti-immigrant rhetoric has clearly contributed to an atmosphere of xenophobia in the country, spurring violence against people from minority communities.

The new President has also swiftly backed up his hateful discourse with a series of concrete policy decisions that pose a grave and immediate threat to human rights in the US and beyond.

A series of repressive executive orders passed by Mr Trump in his first two months in office will have far-reaching, catastrophic consequences. And this is not just a US problem  far from it. The policies of Mr Trumps White House will have a ripple effect in all corners of the globe, with the most vulnerable hit the hardest.

It should come as little surprise that Mr Trumps two main targets in the Oval Office are the same ones he singled out on the campaign trail: Muslims and refugees. If youre a refugee, who also happens to be a Muslim, so much the worse.

With the January 27 executive order, protecting the nation from terrorist attacks by foreign nationals, Mr Trump declared war on Muslim refugees around the world. Its haphazard implementation swiftly sowed fear and chaos. There was a brief reprieve on February 3, when a US district court issued a nationwide order blocking the blatantly discriminatory measure, but it was shortlived.

On March 6, following weeks of suspense, the White House issued a revised executive order. Despite the tinkering at the edges, it is a thinly veiled affront to the judiciary and remains a Muslim ban by any other name.

With the stroke of a pen, the President again shut the door to anyone  including refugees  from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Not only are these all predominantly Muslim countries; they are places where most people seeking asylum are fleeing conflict and human rights violations.

By slightly narrowing the scope of the new executive order, the Trump administration may have remedied some of its predecessors constitutional flaws. But it remains blatantly discriminatory and reinstates many of the most repellent elements of the original.

Mr Trump claims to be blocking the entry of terrorists who would harm the US. But in reality, there is no data to support the view that refugees  Muslim or otherwise  pose more risk of committing acts of terrorism than citizens.

Mr Trump also imposed an annual refugee cap of 50,000. With Barack Obamas administration having already pledged to admit 110,000 refugees in the current fiscal year, this order will affect 60,000 vulnerable people in 2017 alone.

The fact that this comes amid a global emergency in which 65 million people are displaced due to war and persecution underlines its callousness.

But in the era of fake news and trumped-up alternative facts, the truth is clearly of no interest to the President.

For the refugees and migrants facing real life-and-death decisions, pretence and fakery are not luxuries they can indulge in. Since the travel ban first took effect, Amnesty International and others have encountered tales of terrible suffering in its wake in various countries around the world. Families rent asunder, lives put on hold, hopes of new beginnings crushed overnight.

Like the man who went to Iran for his fathers funeral and was suddenly faced with the prospect of not being allowed to return home to the US. Or the Yemeni family in New York whose one-year-old baby is now stuck thousands of miles away in Malaysia because the travel ban forced them to leave her behind. Or the persecuted Sudanese journalist living underground in Egypt, fearing for his life, who is now questioning how safe Mr Trumps US would be to seek asylum in.

Then there are large numbers of refugees in other countries  overwhelmingly in the global South  who may now feel abandoned by the international community. Will Mr Trumps travel ban prompt a knock-on effect of those host countries increasing forcible expulsions of refugees?

Amnesty Internationals I Welcome campaign has been a powerful platform for millions of global citizens who choose to stand in solidarity with refugees.

Mr Trumps border security policies, based on hatred and fear, are a direct confrontation to that movement.

In the six weeks since taking office, Mr Trump has waged all-out war on human rights. Responding with outrage is not enough. It is the time, and the responsibility of all who hold those rights dear, to fight back.
Mr Modis closest aides, but also other senior babus, specially those dealing in defence matters.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Israel later this year. It will be the first visit by an Indian PM since the countries normalised relations in 1992. In the context of Indias growing ties with Israel, particularly under the Modi sarkar, this is being billed as an important moment that will expand bilateral engagement to new levels. Though the dates are still being finalised, observers say that it will take place sometime in June-July.

To lay the groundwork for this historic visit, foreign secretary S. Jaishankar is going to Israel soon, one of many high-level visits that usually precede Mr Modis trip. Apparently, Mr Jaishankar himself follows national security adviser Ajit Doval, who visited Jerusalem for two days recently. Likely more such visits will ensue, not just by two of

Mr Modis closest aides, but also other senior babus, specially those dealing in defence matters. Curiously, the proposed itinerary of the PM does not include visiting Palestine, though MEA mandarins maintain that Indias Palestine policy remains unchanged.

Bihar babus up the ante

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has reportedly taken a tough stand on the stir by Bihar bureaucrats over the arrest of former Bihar Staff Selection Commission chairman Sudhir Kumar in connection with a job scam. But conflicting reports are emerging from the state. While the virtual revolt of IAS officers continues to gather steam, sources say that the state government is contemplating handing over investigation of the case to the CBI, in a bid to appease the furious babus.

But theres another school of thought, which believes its only a matter of time before chief minister Kumar steps into the fray. For many days since the stir began after Sudhir Kumars arrest, the chief minister who is otherwise vocal and always takes a stand on every other issue, maintained a studied silence on the arrest of the IAS officer. Many consider this as another episode in the IAS-IPS turf battle.

The CM however has spoken about the issue in the state Assembly. He assured an unbiased investigation by the state special investigation team. Curiously, he also mentioned a landmark decision on the IAS agitation to be announced soon, but did not explain what he meant by that. Stay tuned for updates.

Tamil Nadu reshuffle

In his first move to reshuffle babus, Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi Palaniswami has brought back senior IAS officer Niranjan Mardi as home secretary, replacing Apurva Varma, who has been appointed principal secretary to the tourism, culture and religious endowments department.

Sources say that Mr Mardi, a 1986-batch IAS officer, enjoys the confidence of the current chief minister, since the time when he was secretary in the highways department for several years when Mr Palaniswami held that portfolio. This is the first major change Mr Palaniswami has ordered since he became chief minister following a bitter fight between two factions within the ruling AIADMK, headed by general secretary V.K. Sasikala and Mr Palaniswamis predecessor O. Panneerselvam.

Prior to Mr Mardis appointment, the last major reshuffle was carried out in December 2016 when P. Rama Mohana Rao was replaced as state chief secretary by Girija Vaidyanathan, following raids on his offices and his family properties by income-tax officials.

Observers expect more changes to occur in the bureaucracy in the days ahead as Mr Palaniswami settles into his tenure and builds his own team of trusted babus.
Indias Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin warned against differentiating between good and bad terrorists.

United Nations: India has said that outfits like the Haqqani network, LeT and JeM should be treated like terrorist groups and warned that terrorism's "resurgent forces" are not given sanctuaries and safe havens in any form.

"The unimpeded and increasingly brutal terrorist attacks, the territorial gains by terrorist groups with support from outside Afghanistan and the emerging grave humanitarian crises are all portents of dreadful times," Indias Permanent

Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin said on Friday during a Security Council session on the situation in Afghanistan.

"It is our first and foremost duty to ensure that the resurgent forces of terrorism and extremism do not find sanctuaries and safe havens in any name, form or manifestation," he said, adding that experience has shown when "foreign assistance" is available to insurgents, situations tend to fester and take a greater toll.

He strongly warned against differentiating between good and bad terrorists as well as playing one group against the other. "The Taliban, Haqqani Network, Al-Qaeda, Daesh, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and others of their ilk are all terror organisations, many of them proscribed by the UN.

They should be treated like terrorist organisations and their activities universally opposed," he said. In a criticism of the world body, Akbaruddin said it is obvious that the political process the UN had started and the sanction regimes it had split have not quite worked.

"The fact that the Council has not acted on the Taliban leaders as it had vowed in resolution 1988 is now well documented," he said. The Indian envoy also strongly criticised the Security Council's subsidiary body for taking four months to confirm the death of the leader of the Taliban.

"It is now 7 months and we are still counting as we await the decision of the Council's same subsidiary on freezing the accounts of that slain terrorist," he said.

Akbaruddin cautioned that the international community cannot stand and watch from the sidelines as gains achieved by them and the Afghan people towards the war-torn countrys development in the last decades are reversed.

India called for decisive action to combat terror groups, saying nations have had to pay a costly price for their inactions in the past. "While territories are captured by terrorists, people are killed and threatened to go back to a situation perhaps same as or worse than what they fled, can we remain just looking on? Standing, where we are today, it is imperative that we take action and take it decisively. We must not forget the implications the world faced in 2001 for its lack of action. History never forgives those who forget it," he added.
Supporters of the BJP held result watch parties in the US states, including the Silicon Valley, New York, New Jersey, Chicago and Florida.

Washington: Describing the BJP's landslide victory in assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as a vote of support for Narendra Modi, a well-known American expert has said that the results show that people consider the Prime Minister "a man of action".

BJP's historic win in India's most populous state Uttar Pradesh is its biggest electoral prize, Milan Vaishnav, South Asia Programme, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said in his quick reaction as it became clear that the BJP was headed for an overwhelming majority of seats in the state.

"This, along with the clear victory in Uttarakhand is unambiguously a vote of support for Modi. The victory demonstrates that, whatever people may think of demonetisation, they see the PM as a man of action," Vaishnav, who is specialising on domestic Indian politics, told PTI. Vaishnav's latest book 'When Crime Pays: Money and Muscle in Indian Politics' hit the book stores in both India and the US in January.

"For the Congress, it can take solace in the fact that the party looks to have notched a victory in Punjab. The Congress badly needed this win as it only controls one major state (Karnataka), which could easily change hands next year," Vaishnav said.

Arguably, the Aam Admi Party has suffered the biggest disappointment--underperforming in both Punjab and Goa, he said.

"The UP verdict is a massive setback for Mayawati and the BSP, which now faces an existential crisis. It has now suffered three consecutive defeats -- in 2012, 2014's national polls, and 2017," Vaishnav said.

Supporters of the BJP held election result watch parties in major cities of the US including the Silicon Valley, New York, New Jersey, Chicago and Florida.

"Modi magic has worked again. It is the pro-poor and pro-farmer policies of the Prime Minister which has resulted in BJPs historic victory in Uttar Pradesh," said Jagdish Sewhani, president of American India Public Affairs Committee.

"This is also an endorsement of the demonetisation policy of the Prime Minister. This shows people have full faith in him," he added.

"Victory in these assembly elections has cleared BJPs door in Rajya Sabha. Thus with potential majority in both the houses of the Parliament will unblock the progress of India," said Khanderao Kand, the founder of Silicon Valley-based Global Indian Technology Professionals Organisation.
Malaysian police confirmed that Kim Chol and Kim Jong Nam was the same person, but refused to say how they identified Kim.

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia's foreign minister said on Saturday that the government hopes to begin formal talks with North Korea in the "next few days" on solving a diplomatic dispute that has seen the two countries bar each other's citizens from leaving.

The dispute stems from the mysterious poisoning death of the estranged half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on February 13 at Kuala Lumpur's airport.

Malaysia says Kim Jong Nam died after two women smeared his face with the banned VX nerve agent, but North Korea - which is widely suspected to be behind the attack - rejects the findings.

Relations have steadily deteriorated, with each country expelling the other's ambassador. On Tuesday, North Korea blocked all Malaysians from leaving the country until a "fair settlement" of the case was reached. Malaysia then barred North Koreans from exiting its soil.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said on Saturday that communication was ongoing with the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur and that both sides were ready for formal talks. He said many countries offered to help, but "we don't need a third party's help for the time being and hopefully will never need them."

"We are ready ... they (also) want to start talking. We hope (to begin) in the next few days," Anifah told reporters after meeting with the families of the nine Malaysians still stranded in North Korea. "The safety of our people is our paramount concern and we are doing everything possible."

He said the nine Malaysians - three embassy workers and their family members - were safe and allowed to move freely. About 1,000 North Koreans are believed to be in Malaysia.

Anifah said the return of Kim's body would be part of the talks' agenda. "We don't want to keep the body more than what is necessary," he said. "Eventually we have to surrender the body to someone, whether to the government or next-of-kin."

North Korea has demanded the body back from Day One and objected to Malaysia's autopsy. Pyongyang also has refused to acknowledge that Kim Jong Nam was the victim and has referred to him as Kim Chol, the name on the passport Kim was carrying when he was attacked in a crowded airport terminal.

On Friday, Malaysian police confirmed that Kim Chol and Kim Jong Nam was the same person, but refused to say how they identified Kim. Malaysian authorities have asked for Kim's immediate family to provide DNA samples to identify the body, but nobody has come forward. Malaysia's prime minister has said they may be too scared.

Although Malaysia has never directly accused North Korea of being behind the attack, many speculate that Pyongyang must have orchestrated it. Experts say the VX nerve agent used to kill Kim was almost certainly produced in a sophisticated state weapons laboratory, and North Korea is widely believed to possess large quantities of chemical weapons.

Four of the seven North Korean suspects being sought by Malaysia are believed to have left the country the day Kim was killed. Police say the other three suspects, including a North Korean diplomat, are believed to be in hiding at the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

The attack was caught on surveillance video that shows two women going up to Kim and apparently smearing something on his face. He was dead within 20 minutes, authorities say. Two women - one Indonesian, one Vietnamese - have been charged with murder but say they were duped into thinking they were playing a harmless prank.
Thousands of riot police were deployed as some 50,000 anti-Park protesters took to the streets to celebrate the verdict.

Protestors with an effigy of former President Park Geun-hye. (Photo: AFP)

Seoul: South Korea's ousted leader Park Geun-Hye was holed up in the presidential Blue House Saturday as protesters took to Seoul's streets demanding her arrest, a day after a court upheld her impeachment.

The ex-president has made no comment since she was forced from office on Friday when the country's Constitutional Court unanimously upheld parliament's decision to impeach her over a corruption scandal.

Thousands of riot police were deployed as some 50,000 anti-Park protesters took to the streets to celebrate the verdict, chanting: "The people have won! Arrest Park!"

Some 20,000 angry pro-Park flag-waving protesters rallied near the City Hall, demanding a review of the one-off decision. Police set up barricades to keep the rival protests apart.

A third person died on Saturday in hospital after he lost consciousness the day before in a clash between pro-Park supporters and riot police, near the Constitutional Court which confirmed her impeachment.

News reports said Park was watching television alone in her private presidential room Friday when the country's highest court announced her dismissal live on air.

An incredulous Park immediately phoned her aides to confirm the verdict, the Chosun Ilbo daily said.

Her aides told the newspaper she had no immediate plans to issue a statement on the court decision or her future course of action.

"The president was apparently stunned at the ruling. She looked dejected," an unidentified aide was quoted as saying.

"She wants to keep to herself for a while," he added. Park is obliged to move out of the presidential palace, where she has been cloistered for more than 90 days after the National Assembly voted for her impeachment in October.

She will leave only after her private house in prosperous southern Seoul is repaired and cleaned to accommodate her and her security detail, Park's aide told Yonhap news agency.

TV footage showed materials being unloaded from a small truck parked outside the two-storey house. The court's verdict immediately stripped her of all powers and privileges, except for her security.

Police have arrested several protesters for violent behaviour. Some Pro-Park demonstrators were caught assaulting photographers and TV crew members, leaving them with cuts and bruises.

Yonhap said the third victim was a 74-year-old man who collapsed during a demonstration near the Constitutional Court.

A demonstrator died the day before after being hit on the head by a speaker that fell from the top of a police bus when a protester commandeered the vehicle and drove it into police barricades.

South Korea's top election official Kim Yong-Deok said in a statement there was "growing concern" over the highly charged atmosphere ahead of an election which must take place no later than on May 9.

"The vote must serve as a chance to overcome divisions and conflicts and achieve national unity and harmony," he said in a speech aired live on TV.

The main opposition Democratic Party urged Park to accept the court ruling, saying she was behaving as if she rejected the decision, which was reached unanimously by the court's eight judges.

Park was found to have broken the law by allowing her friend Choi Soon-Sil to meddle in state affairs, and breached rules on public servants' activities.

The ruling removed her presidential immunity to criminal indictment. She has already been named a criminal suspect, accused of bribery for offering policy favours to firms that benefited Choi.

For months she has refused to make herself available for questioning by prosecutors probing the scandal.

But that may no longer be an option once she leaves the Blue House, when she could face formal arrest if she refuses a summons.
The ruling sparked protests from hundreds of Park's supporters, two of whom were killed in clashes with police outside the court.

Seoul: South Korea's Constitutional Court removed President Park Geun-hye from office on Friday over a graft scandal involving the country's conglomerates at a time of rising tensions with North Korea and China.

The ruling sparked protests from hundreds of Park's supporters, two of whom were killed in clashes with police outside the court, and a festive rally by those who had demanded her ouster who celebrated justice being served.

"We did it. We the citizens, the sovereign of this country, opened a new chapter in history," Lee Tae-ho, the leader of a movement to oust Park that has held mostly peaceful rallies in downtown involving millions, told a large gathering in Seoul.

Park becomes South Korea's first democratically elected leader to be forced from office, capping months of paralysis and turmoil over the corruption scandal that also landed the head of the Samsung conglomerate in detention and on trial.

A snap presidential election will be held within 60 days.

Park did not appear in court, and a spokesman said she would not be making any comment. She also would not leave the presidential Blue House residence on Friday.

"Park is not leaving the Blue House today," Blue House spokesman Kim Dong Jo told Reuters.

Park was stripped of her powers after parliament voted to impeach her but has remained in the president's official compound.

The court's acting chief judge, Lee Jung-mi, said Park had violated the constitution and law "throughout her term," and despite the objections of parliament and the media, she had concealed the truth and cracked down on critics.

Park has steadfastly denied any wrongdoing.

The ruling to uphold parliament's December 9 vote to impeach her marks a dramatic fall from grace of South Korea's first woman president and daughter of Cold War military dictator Park Chung-hee. Both her parents were assassinated.

Park, 65, no longer has immunity and could now face criminal charges over bribery, extortion and abuse of power in connection with allegations of conspiring with her friend, Choi Soon-sil.

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn was appointed acting president and will remain in that post until the election. He called on Park's supporters and opponents to put their differences aside to prevent deeper division.

"It is time to accept, and close the conflict and confrontation we have suffered," Hwang said in a televised speech.

A liberal presidential candidate, Moon Jae-in, is leading in opinion polls to succeed Park, with 32 percent support in one poll released on Friday. Hwang, who has not said whether he will seek the presidency, leads among conservatives, none of whom has more than single-digit poll ratings.

"Given Park's spectacular demise and disarray among conservatives, the presidential contest in May is the liberals' to lose," said Yonsei University professor John Delury.

Relations with China and the United States could dominate the coming presidential campaign, after the US military this month started deploying the US THAAD missile defense system in South Korea in response to North Korea's stepped-up missile and nuclear tests.

Beijing has vigorously protested against the deployment, which was agreed last year between Washington and Seoul, fearing its radar could see into its missile deployments. China has curbed travel to South Korea and targeted Korean companies operating in the mainland, prompting retaliatory measures from Seoul.

The US military said on Friday it would keep delivering THAAD components, separating the issue from South Korea's internal political crisis. The new US administration has been keen to install the system as quickly as possible due to concerns that a new government in Seoul could block the deployment.

"We have a strong relationship and will continue to work with South Korea," White House spokesman Sean Spicer said. "It's a domestic issue in which the United States takes no position in the outcome of that election."

The Seoul market's benchmark KOSPI index .KS11 and the won currency KRW= rose after the ruling.

The prospect of a new president in the first half of this year instead of prolonged uncertainty would buoy domestic demand as well as the markets, said Trinh Nguyen, senior economist at Natixis in Hong Kong.

"The hope is that this will allow the country to have a new leader that can address long-standing challenges such as labor market reforms and escalated geopolitical tensions," he said.

Park was accused of colluding with her friend Choi and a former presidential aide, both of whom have been on trial, to pressure big businesses to donate to two foundations set up to back her policy initiatives.

The court said Park had "completely hidden the fact of (Choi's) interference with state affairs."

Park was also accused of soliciting bribes from the head of the Samsung Group for government favors, including backing a merger of two Samsung affiliates in 2015 that was seen as supporting family succession and control over the country's largest "chaebol," or conglomerate.

Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee has been accused of bribery and embezzlement in connection with the scandal and is in detention. His trial began on Thursday.

He and Samsung have denied wrongdoing.

The scandal and verdict have exposed fault lines in a country long divided by Cold War politics.

While Park's conservative supporters clashed with police outside the court, elsewhere most people welcomed her ouster. A recent poll showed more than 70 percent supported her impeachment.

Hundreds of thousands of people have for months been gathering at peaceful rallies in Seoul every weekend to call for Park to step down.

On Friday, hundreds of Park's supporters, many of them elderly, tried to break through police barricades at the courthouse. Police said one 72-year-old man was taken to hospital with a head injury and died. The circumstances of the second death were being investigated.

Six people were injured, protest organizers said.

Police blocked the main thoroughfare running through downtown Seoul in anticipation of bigger protests.

Park will be making a tragic and untimely departure from the Blue House for the second time in her life.

In 1979, having served as acting first lady after her mother was killed by a bullet meant for her father, she and her two siblings left the presidential compound after their father was killed.

This time, she could end up in jail.

Prosecutors have named Park as an accomplice in two court cases linked to the scandal, suggesting she is likely to be investigated.

North Korean state media wasted little time labeling Park a criminal.

"She had one more year left as 'president' but, now she's been ousted, she will be investigated as a common criminal," the North's state KCNA news agency said shortly after the court decision.
The mall and the parking lot stayed closed on Saturday morning as over a hundred police officers searched the compound.

Berlin: Police have ordered a shopping mall in the western German city of Essen not to open after receiving credible tips of an imminent attack.

The shopping centre and the adjacent parking lot stayed closed on Saturday morning as over a hundred police officers searched the compound.

The German news agency dpa reported that the downtown mall, one of the biggest in the region, would be closed for the entire day.

Police in Essen could not immediately be reached for more details.
Turkish politicians are keen to harness votes of the Turkish community in Europe before the April 16 vote on boosting Erdogan's powers.

Istanbul: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday threatened to retaliate after the Netherlands banned the foreign minister from flying in for a campaign rally, as he said The Hague's behaviour was reminiscent of Nazism.

"They are the vestiges of the Nazis, they are fascists," Erdogan told an Istanbul rally. "Ban our foreign minister from flying however much you like, but from now on let's see how your flights will land in Turkey."

Erdogan's strongly-worded comments come after the Dutch government on Saturday refused permission for Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's plane to travel to the Netherlands ahead of a planned rally in the city of Rotterdam to drum up support for a referendum.

Turkish politicians are keen to harness votes of the Turkish community in Europe ahead of the April 16 referendum on whether to boost Erdogan's powers.

Erdogan accused the Netherlands of working against the "Yes" campaign and said: "Pressure however much you like. Abet terrorists in your country however much you like.

"It will backlash, and there's no doubt that we'll start retaliating after April 16... We are patient. Whoever is patient will reach victory."

Erdogan hinted that Turkey would retaliate by barring Dutch politicians from flying into the country, "not visits by (Dutch) citizens."
A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area.

Two bombs planted by terrorists exploded near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Bab Musalla. (Photo: Representational/AFP)

Beirut: Twin bombs killed 46 people and wounded more than 40 in the Old City of Damascus on Saturday in a rare attack in the Syrian capital, a monitoring group said.

A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shiite mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The SANA state news agency reported that "two bombs planted by terrorists exploded near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Bab Musalla, causing dead and wounded."
The White House said Trump emphasised his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal.

Ramallah: Donald Trump has invited Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas to visit the White House sometime soon, both sides said after the first phone call between the pair since the US president took office in January.

Trump invited Abbas "to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the (Palestinian-Israeli) political process," the official Palestinian news agency Wafa quoted Abbas's spokesman as saying.

The spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeina, said that Trump stressed his "commitment to a peace process that would lead to a real peace between Palestinians and Israelis", Wafa reported.

Abbas told Trump that peace was a "strategic choice" for the Palestinian people that should lead to the "establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel".

In Washington, the White House said Trump "emphasised his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal."

"The president noted that the United States cannot impose a solution on the Israelis and Palestinians, nor can one side impose an agreement on the other," said a statement from Trump's spokesman Sean Spicer.

"The President invited President Abbas to a meeting at the White House in the near future." Trump received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in mid-February.

At that meeting, Trump broke with decades of US policy by saying he was not bound to the two-state solution for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The peace process has been deadlocked since April 2014 following the collapse of indirect negotiations led by then US secretary of state John Kerry.

Since Trump came to power, having pledged to lead the most pro-Israel US administration in history, Palestinian officials have been quietly alarmed by their lack of access to senior figures in the White House.

On Tuesday, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, met for the first time with the Palestinian envoy to the world body, Riyad Mansour.

After the talks, Haley tweeted that the Palestinians should "meet with Israel in direct negotiations rather than looking to the UN to deliver results that can only be achieved through the two parties".

Israel has long favoured direct bilateral talks, while the Palestinians argue they need the international community to ensure Israel follows through on its pledges.

Trump has previously suggested he would move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Israeli right-wingers have encouraged Netanyahu to use Trump's election as an opportunity to formally annex parts of the West Bank into Israel.
China has faced complaints that the govt wrongly shields its amateur robotics and software developers from competition.

Miao Wei tried to reassure foreign companies that the "Made in China 2025" plan treats all companies equally. (Photo: AP)

Beijing: China's industry minister on Saturday defended a manufacturing development plan and rejected complaints foreign makers of electric cars and other goods might be pressured to hand over technology or forced out of promising markets.

Miao Wei, minister of industry and information technology, tried to reassure foreign companies that the "Made in China 2025" industry plan treats all companies equally.

"The strategy and its related policies are applicable to all businesses in China, be them domestic or foreign," Miao told a briefing.

Miao was responding to a report by the European Union Chamber of Commerce earlier this week that said China is violating its free-trade pledges by inducing foreign firms to give up encryption and other technology to potential Chinese competitors.

Technology is a growing flashpoint in trade tensions with Washington and Europe, which worry their competitive edge is eroding as Beijing buys or develops skills in semiconductors, renewable energy and other fields.

China has faced mounting complaints that the government improperly shields its fledgling developers of robotics, software and other technology from competition.

The plan calls for China to be able to supply its own high-tech components by 2020 and materials by 2025 in 10 industries from information technology and aerospace to pharmaceuticals. A broad outline was issued in 2015 and officials have been gradually releasing details.

Miao said targets for domestic brands' share of the market in some sectors should be seen as forecasts rather than mandatory. "When we were drawing up the plan, we did not deliberately pursue these targets," Miao said.

The European chamber noted that China's strategy says two of the top 10 global brands in electric cars should be Chinese by 2025. It said that rules out joint ventures created by foreign companies with Chinese partners.

The chamber called the strategy "a large-scale import substitution plan aimed at nationalizing key industries, or at least severely curtailing the position of foreign business in them."

In an apparent response to such criticism, Premier Li Keqiang promised in a speech at the opening of China's annual legislative sessions a week ago that foreign companies would receive "equal treatment" under the manufacturing plan.
A group of archaeologists made an exceptional discovery after they visit site of shrine destroyed by the Islamic state: an ancient Assyrian palace from 600 BC. The discovery was made using tunnels dug by jihadists, bent on stealing buried artefacts to sell. Archaeologists have to work fast because tunnels might collapse.

Baghdad (AsiaNews)  Archaeologists found an ancient Assyrian palace under the tomb of the Prophet Jonah, which is located on top of a hill overlooking eastern Mosul in the Nineveh Plain.

The team of experts was working on the shrine that contains the remains of the prophet dear to Jews, Christians and Muslims.

The Islamic State (IS) group destroyed the tomb in July 2014, shortly after taking control of Iraqs second largest city.

Last month, government troops retook eastern Mosul, allowing the team of archaeologists to document the damage caused by IS.

In doing their work, they stumbled on a stunning find: underneath the shrine lay a previously undiscovered palace built before 600 BC for the Assyrian ruler, King Sennacherib.

In the summer of 2014, as IS rose, the world watched helplessly the men of the self-styled Caliphate wreck devastation on temples, statues and other antiquities. In addition to the temple of Jonah in Iraq, IS devastated the temple of Mar Elian and the historic city of Palmyra in neighbouring Syria.

According to UNESCO, this was the "most brutal" destruction of the Second World War.

In late February, Iraqi government forces and Kurdish militias managed to wrest control of the area of Nebi Yunus (Prophet Jonas) from IS. Since they launched their offensive on 17 October 2016, thousands of people have fled their homes to escape the fighting.

When local archaeologists began documenting damage at the shrine, they reported that IS had dug tunnels deep under the holy site, presumably to search for artefacts that could be worth something on the black market for the Sunni extremist group.

When the archaeologists probed these tunnels, they discovered an undiscovered and untouched palace, built more than 2,600 years ago.

"I can only imagine how much Daesh discovered down there before we got here," archaeologist Layla Salih, who is supervising the five-person team doing the dig, told the Telegraph. Daesh is the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State.

"We believe they took many of the artefacts, such as pottery and smaller pieces, away to sell. But what they left will be studied and will add a lot to our knowledge of the period."

Neither the Ottomans in the mid-19th century nor the Iraqi government a century later had uncovered the palace.

Salih and her colleagues believe the palace was built for King Sennacherib, who ruled from 705-681 BC; however, the building was linked to three generations of Assyrian kings.

The structure was damaged in 612 BC, when a coalition of Medes, Babylonians and others sacked Nineveh and put an end to the Assyrian capital's dominance.

Despite the destruction the shrine suffered at the hands of IS militants, the archaeologists say many priceless artefacts appear to remain intact, including a marble cuneiform inscription. One of the earliest types of writing, cuneiform was widely used in ancient Mesopotamian civilisations.

The archaeologists have to work quickly, as Salih said the tunnels are at risk of collapsing "within weeks." If that happens, the new finds would be buried again or even destroyed.

During its reign in Mosul and the Nineveh Plain, IS closed museums and other cultural centres, and many archaeologists and historians were forced to flee to avoid execution as was the case for the head of antiquities in Palmyra.

Caliphate militants believe that worshiping tombs and relics goes against the fundamental teachings of Islam, and have made a dedicated effort to destroy the shrines and other holy sites other than what they could sell in the black market.
The US Embassy in Uzbekistan welcomes the release of journalists and human rights activists jailed for political reasons by the previous president. They include Jamshid Karimov, known for his investigative reporting on illegal activities by the authorities. He has always been very active against media censorship and all forms of authoritarianism.

Bishkek (AsiaNews)  The US Embassy in Uzbekistan has welcomed the release of activists jailed for political reasons under the government of the late President Islam Karimov.

In a statement, the embassy said "These positive steps seem to foreshadow future releases and a more tolerant approach to civil society in general; however, "we were disappointed to learn of setbacks with other activists, such as the recent detention of Elena Urlaeva and the decision to uphold Azam Farmonovs sentence extension."

Urlaeva, a campaigner against forced labour in Uzbekistan's cotton fields, was arrested ahead of an international meeting where she was scheduled to give evidence on human rights violations.

In a video recording published online, Urlaeva said had been arrested, beaten by police and taken to a psychiatric clinic in Tashkent.

Farmonov has been in prison since 2006 on extortion charges and was sentenced in 2015 to five more years for violating prison rules.

Since he took office in early December, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirzyaev has overseen the release of several dissidents convicted under President Islam Karimov.

Among them were journalists Muhammad Bekjanov, who spent 18 years behind bars, and Jamshid Karimov (pictured), Islam Karimov's nephew who had been one of his fiercest critics.

Jamshid is the son of Arslan Karimov, Islam Karimovs older brother. He was released from a psychiatric institution in Samarkand where he had been forcibly and secretly held since January 2012.

Starting in early 2000s, the late presidents nephew worked for various mass media outlets, including the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR), the Fergana.Ru news agency as well as Arena, an independent Uzbekistan-based website.

As a journalist, Jamshid is known for his journalistic investigations into illegal actions by local authorities. He was very active in opposing censorship and authoritarianism at all levels.

Starting in 2004, he was subjected to numerous assaults and beatings by unidentified people as well as persecutions by local authorities. Placed under forced psychiatric treatment in mid-September 2006, he was released in November 2011 from a psychiatric institution in Samarkand.

I have not committed any violations of laws, I am not [doing so now] and I will not [do so in future]. Committing violence, stealing or killing is not my job. I just work for mass media outlets. I am not a politician or rights advocate. I am simply Mr News. Thats all . . ., Jamshid Karimov said in one of his most quoted statements.

In early 2012, the authorities forcibly committed him again to the Samarkand psychiatric hospital. "He was hospitalised two months after being released, said his 19-year-old daughter, Eugenia.

He was kept in a room with barred windows, like a prison cell. Different people are sent there, even murderers sometimes. There was no trial at all. He was summoned to the National Security Service to have a talk, but on his way there he was severely beaten by four men on the street. They knocked his tooth out, he was forced into a car and driven to the hospital.

Dunya Mijatovic, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, welcome Karimovs release. It is especially positive that this decision comes soon after the release of Muhammad Bekjanov and I encourage the authorities to release all imprisoned members of the media, including Yusuf Ruzimuradov, Salidzhon Abdurakhmanov and Dilmurod Said.
Vote counting began this morning. The latest update indicates he won 305 seats out of 403. The election is a referendum on the prime minister's policies, following demonetisation. Christian leader expresses concern about the aggressive policies of the Hindu nationalists.

New Delhi (AsiaNews)  The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Prime Minister Narendra Modis Hindu nationalist party, is on its way to a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh.

Vote counting began this morning at 8 am (local time). The latest update points to a huge BJP majority with 305 seats out of 403.

If this is confirmed, it would be the most important political achievement for the Indian prime minister, who continues to be popular despite the recent demonetisation of certain rupee denominations, which devastated rural areas and the poor.

Reacting to the result, Sajan K George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), told AsiaNews that "The day of the saffron has dawned on India.

Secularism, he noted, has a new meaning or understanding in our democratic and secular India. With the BJPs victory, our tiny and vulnerable Christian minority will be subjected to the unjustified bitter wrath [of Hindu radicals]."

Elections were held in five states: Goa, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Uttar Pradesh. Most attention focused on the latter, Indias most populous. Prime Minister Narendra Modi personalised the vote, taking the lead in the election campaign and using all of his influence in support of his partys candidates.

Early on, experts stressed that the vote would be a referendum on Modi, especially after his decision to demonetise some denominations to fight counterfeiting and corruption.

Yet, despite criticism from all sides because of the harsh impact on the most vulnerable classes of Indian society, he has not changed his economic policy. In fact, he said that demonetisation would help the poor of Uttar Pradesh that voted for him.

However, the GCIC president is concerned about the implications of the victory of Hindu nationalists. "Dalits and tribal Christians will continue to be caught in a double discrimination. Hindu extremists will continue to convert them to Hinduism, i.e. bring them home. Still, the GCIC continues to hope in constitutional guarantees. "

For Lenin Raghuvanshi, director of the People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights, "Individualism or individual heroism are not a political response. The politics of divide-and-rule has become institutionalised in our country.

Sectarian decisions divide the poor majority and are promoted by business leaders to hide fiscal policies based on impunity designed to make India an attractive country for foreign investment. This only enriches business and political leaders."

(Nirmala Carvalho contributed to this article)




"We are doing this not for marketing but just to give back..."

The words was stuck in my brain for the whole week after attending the Benefit Bold is Beautiful Project event. Finally, a company who transforms brows (my brows to be exact) is not only making every woman feel beautiful on the outside, they are empowering women and girls on the inside through their global philanthropy program called: "Bold Is Beautiful Project".

Since the program was launched 2015 year 2015, they have already raised $6.3 million USD. This year, adding up more countries to the list, including ours! 17 countries will be joining this project namely USA, UK, France, Australia, Spain, Singapore, Canada, Ireland, UAE, New Zealand, Mexico, Brazil, Turkey, Portugal, Italy, Korea and Philippines.





Benefit Philippines partnered with Mano Amiga, a private, non-profit organization that provides affordable, innovative and quality international education to children from low-income families. Hearing about the history of how Mano Amiga came about 7 years ago brought me to tears. I actually MISSED my Brow Waxing service just to listen to the Ms. Lynn's story. A sob yet happy story that proves EVERY SINGLE PERSON CAN HELP irregardless of how deep our pockets are.





WILL YOU?

Keep smilin'

Stay happy!

Annie Ford Danielson, daughter and niece to the company's co-founders, Jean and Jane Ford, who is also the brand's Global Beauty Authority was here last Tuesday to explain the said project.explained Annie.How to give back? So easy.... all you have to do is to have beautiful brows!Each brow wax service starting May 2017, which costs Php700.00, can provide one of the following:2-hour leadership training session for girls.3 months' worth of school supplies or4-month livelihood and empowerment program for a student's mom.Availing 2 brow wax services can provide school books and project materials for ONE month or 2 weeks' worth of schooling for one girl.That is indeed a HUGE difference we can make just to stay beautiful!Congratulations Benefit Global Team and Benefit Philippines Team.I am so proud to be called a Benebabe myself because I love supporting brands/companies who support each other!Of course, me and my amigas won't stop sharing to our friends about this! So girls, PLEASE, have your brows done at least once this coming MAY!Benefit BrowBars are available in Greenbelt 5, TriNoma, Mall of Asia, SM Megamall, Alabang Town Center, SM Seaside City Cebu, BGC Central Square, Rustan's Makati and Rustan's Shangri-la. The Bold and Beautiful Project will run from May 1-31, 2017.
Hello, I am Marc, a Filipino Nurse working in the Middle East for 7 years now along with my wife. Both of us decided to migrate to Australia this year and we don't seem to know where to start. I have read the online immigration site in Australia but I need inputs from the people who have personal experience about them. We do have friends who are already there but they started with student visa (bridging course) through commercial agencies, and they spent more money than having it processed by themselves.



I know this may be a quiet long discussion but please enlighten me with this process.



Thank you so much!
Hello to all,



In order to claim 5 points for spouse regarding a permanent resident visa, I understand that the spouse skills need to be assessed by relevant assessing body and he/she needs the required IELTS score.



The question is if both the above conditions are fulfilled by spouse of a main applicant, what documents/evidences are required by the department to grant these 5 points to the main applicant?



To make it more clear, does a letter from the relevant authority with a positive assessment and IELTS report is enough to be uploaded in the system?



OR



Other documents such as "Educational documents", "experience letter", "salary slips" "tax returns" need to be provided to the department (For instance, say experience was also assessed by the assessing body)



Regards,

Henry
Hi,

My husband is currently on student visa in australia. he is supposed to apply for temporary graduate visa in december 2017 and he wants to include me in the application that is he is opting the "combined application". I need to know that:

Do i have to be in australia before he applies for Visa 485?

also, if he skips my TR application then



how long do i have to be in australia on spouse visa before he lodges the permanent residency?
PSA Group's Free2Move Lease is now the fourth largest lessor in France with 200,000 cars, offering multiple-make, full service leasing to business customers of all types, from small business to large corporations, through the Peugeot, Citroen and DS brands dealer networks.

Business owners can use Free2Move Lease to enhance their employees' mobility experience through a wide portfolio of services related to leasing, fleet management, as well as new services to be launched gradually:

A connected fleet management service called Free2Move Connect Fleet. It uses live, accurate vehicle data from an onboard telematics unit to help reduce the fleets Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).

A carsharing system for corporations named Free2Move Fleet Sharing. It allows simple and easy sharing of pool cars, therefore reducing employees travel expenses such as taxi rides.

Free2Move Lease operates in France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, with plans to expand to other European countries.
Nissan will expand its pickup brand offerings in South Africa with the forthcoming introduction of the all-new Nissan Navara.

With the introduction of the all-new Navara, Nissan will offer a range of pickups that starts with the sub-one ton NP200, includes a wide range of NP300 Hardbody models and the overland Nissan Patrol Pickup.

The new Navara will initially be available in three double cab models, with a 44 drive train and the choice of a six-speed manual or new seven-speed automatic gearbox. Over time, the range will expand to include mid- and entry-level models in 44 and 42 guise, with several additional models in the pipeline.

Taking care of the commercial customer and the small businesses owner are the Nissan NP200 and NP300 Hardbody single-cab models. These models offer the choice of an 800kg payload for the NP200 and up to a 1 359kg payload for the single-cab NP300. Both models now also feature a comprehensive 6 year/150 000km comprehensive mechanical warranty as part of the Nissan Assured program.

The NP300 Hardbody is exported from South Africa to other African countries including Nigeria, where the South African produced semi-knocked-down kits are assembled in a new facility near Lagos.
Photo of 2018 Crosstrek courtesy of Subaru.

Subaru's 2018 Crosstrek crossover will enter a new generation on the Subaru Global Platform with the first redesign since its launch in 2012, Subaru has announced.

Subaru showed the 2018 Crosstrek at the Geneva auto show on March 7. The vehicle, which is sold as the Subaru XV outside of the U.S., is based on the Impreza platform. The 2017 Impreza is the first Subaru to arrive with the new platform.

Like the Impreza, the 2018 Crosstrek will have a standard all-wheel-drive system and compact SUV-like body. It will include additional collision safety and hazard avoidance technology, as well as more responsive handling.

Subaru will provide additional details about the vehicle at the New York International Auto Show in April.
Photo courtesy of Mex Rent A Car

Mex Rent A Car has opened a new location in Tuxtla, located in Mexicos state of Chiapas.

The city is home to a bus terminal and Angel Albino Corzo International Airport. As of January, there are direct flights to Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Cancun, Toluca, Villahermosa, Oaxaca, and Merida.

Many customers enjoy doing road trips through all southeast of Mexico, and this new facility allow us to fulfill that particular demand, so now customers can drive from Tuxtla to Merida or even to Cancun and vice versa, said Jordi Rivero, Mexs chief product officer.

With this new location, the Maya route its now complete, said Javier Garcia, Mexs chief business development officer. Our customers will be able to travel from Cancun to Tuxtla, visiting different places such as Merida, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, and Tulum on the way.
With four months to go until AirVenture 2017, EAA announced this week that Buzz Aldrin of Apollo 11 and Harrison Jack Schmitt of Apollo 17 joined a list of five other previously confirmed Apollo astronauts who will attend AirVenture to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the program. This will be a rare, unforgettable gathering of the people who met the challenge of flying to the moon and safely returning, representing hundreds of thousands of individuals who contributed to its success, said Rick Larsen, EAAs vice president of communities and member benefits. Conventions vary on the exact start date of the Apollo Program, but 1967 saw publication of the official Apollo mission numbering scheme as well as the first fatalities during the Apollo 1 fire that killed Gus Grissom, Edward White and Roger Chaffee.

EAA also announced this week that the Air Force has committed to providing an F-35 Lighting II and an A-10 Thunderbolt II for a heritage flight demonstration celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the U.S. Air Force. The U.S. Navy Blue Angels demonstration team is also scheduled to perform. EAA AirVenture will be held July 24-30 at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Red is a power color. Its what they use for signs they dont want you to ignore, because it grabs your attention. Red is also the color of AIDS ribbons. Shoes? Well, they can be fierce, and its hard for me to ignore them when they are.

When I was in college, I met someone who became a friend of mine (Hey Josie!). She told me that 20 of her cousins were living with her grandmother in Malawi because their parents had died of AIDS-related complications. For me, it was the moment that this cause stole my heart because it made it personal. I didnt know that HIV was still a thing, because I hadnt heard about it in a long time.

Fast-forward to 2009, I was talking with my girl Karyn Brianne, who had just recently found out someone she loved was diagnosed with HIV. We wanted to do something about this, and spur people to talk more about the epidemic. That is how we came up with the idea of The Red Pump Project.

We started with the #RocktheRedPump campaign, to grab womens attention using red shoes. We called for bloggers to use their platforms on March 10 (National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day) and spend the day in their fave pair of red shoes, dedicating their sites to raising awareness about the issue. That first campaign, 135 bloggers joined us and amplified the message. It blew our expectations out the water.

8 years later, Red Pump is a national nonprofit organization that does workshops and programs to decrease stigma and give people the info they need to make better choices with their bodies. We are committed to educating women and girls of color about the epidemic. Im the Executive Director and we have an incredible team of women in 4 states around the country, who are championing this work.

Today, we commemorate our 9th NWGHAAD, and 9th #RocktheRedPump campaign! We are calling for women and girls everywhere to put on a pair of red shoes (they dont have to be heels) and get tested. Share your shoe pics on social media, use the campaign hashtag (#RocktheRedPump) and stand with other women who are infected and affected.

To learn more about the campaign, visit RocktheRedPump.org.
11 March 2017 10:00 (UTC+04:00)

The ways of settling the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict are obvious to everyone, said Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.

Mammadyarov made the remarks at a meeting with a delegation led by Andre Reichardt, head of the Azerbaijan-France Friendship Group in the French Senate, March 10.

For a progress to happen in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts settlement, Armenia should show a political will, said Mammadyarov.

He also briefed the delegation members about the negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement, and Bakus position, based on the conflicts settlement in accordance with the norms and principles of international law.

For resolving the conflict, Armenia must first withdraw its armed forces from the occupied Azerbaijani territories, the minister said, adding refugees and IDPs must return to their native lands.

Reichardt for his part said the purpose of his visit to Azerbaijan is to get detailed information about the Azerbaijan-France relations, as well as the process of settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Reichardt added that the parliamentary diplomacy can positively influence the conflict settlement.

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
11 March 2017 11:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

It is necessary to organize comprehensive negotiations in the near future for settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

He made the remarks in Moscow at a Turkey-Russia High Level Cooperation Council meeting, Anadolu Agency reported Mar. 10.

Erdogan said what is happening on the contact line between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops shows how critical the situation is.

He expressed confidence that Russia, as one of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries, can play an important role in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

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
11 March 2017 11:30 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

A special operations group of Azerbaijans State Security Service on March 10 liquidated two people, who using firearms confronted the operation to arrest them.

The State Security Service has told Trend that it earlier received information about people who were smuggling, keeping and transferring firearms, ammunition and explosives in Azerbaijan to commit particularly serious crimes. An investigation into the case confirmed the information, and a decision was made to take urgent measures.

On March 10, the State Security Service held a special operation to detain Azer Huseynov and Ali Islamov, who were suspected of committing the abovementioned crimes. However, during the operation, these persons, using firearms in a residential zone, confronted the State Security Services special operations group with armed resistance, and were eliminated in a countermeasure taken by the special operations group in line with the law.

The State Security Service said it confiscated an AKSU-74 assault rifle, two Makarov pistols and a homemade pistol, as well as explosives weighing 400 and 75 grams and a considerable number of cartridges of various calibers, illegally kept by Azer Huseynov and Ali Islamov.

The State Security Service also said operational and investigative measures currently continue.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
11 March 2017 14:00 (UTC+04:00)

Azerbaijan`s Minister of Defense Zakir Hasanov has met with Saudi Minister of State for Gulf Affairs Thamer Al-Sabhan to discuss military cooperation between the two countries.

Minister Hasanov stressed the role of the two countries` leaders in expanding relations between Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia in various fields, Azertac reported.

Al-Sabhan pointed out big potential for developing the bilateral military cooperation.

They also exchanged views on the military-political situation in the region and Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
11 March 2017 14:30 (UTC+04:00)

Philippine Manila Standard newspaper has quoted Azerbaijan`s Consulate in Makati City as saying that the Azerbaijani people are still seeking justice for the massacre of 613 Azerbaijanis in the town of Khojaly by Armenian troops during the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1992.

The newspaper says that considered as the largest massacre of the conflict, 613 civiliansincluding 106 women, 63 children and 70 elderly peoples were brutally killed on the night of Feb. 26, Azertac reoprted.

During the attack, 487 inhabitants of Khojaly were wounded, including 76 children, eight families were completely wiped out, 130 children lost one parent and 25 children lost both.

Of those who died, 56 were killed through violent means, with some burned alive, scalped, beheaded or had eyes gouged out. Pregnant women were stabbed by bayonet in the abdomen. The Khojaly massacre was described by Human Rights Watch as the largest massacre to date in the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh.

The United Nations Security Council issued four resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884), demanding the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of Armenian forces from the territories of Azerbaijan. However, these resolutions have not been implemented, 23 years after their issuance.

In 2010, the European Court of Human Rights ruled the Khojaly massacre as acts of particular gravity which may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity. To date, the perpetrators still go unpunished, the newspaper quoted Azerbaijan`s Consulate as saying.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
11 March 2017 12:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

The China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) is ready to develop a long-term strategic plan of cooperation with such Azerbaijani partners as SOCAR, said Chinas Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Azerbaijan Wei Jinghua.

The ambassador made the remarks during his meeting with a delegation led by President of the Caspian Energy International Media Group Natalya Aliyeva.

Azerbaijan is an investment-attractive country for Chinese companies and of course noteworthy is the big role of the historic visit made by President Ilham Aliyev to China in December 2015, in the course of which a memorandum of cooperation on Great Silk Way was signed, said Wei Jinghua.

This is a very firm foundation for further cooperation between the two countries, added the ambassador.

He, however, noted that mutual understanding between Chinese and Azerbaijani businesses is insufficient and the volume of information that Chinese and Azerbaijani businessmen get about each other is small.

In this regard, the ambassador expressed hope that the Caspian-European Integration Business Club (CEIBC) could play a more active role in mutual familiarization of the Chinese businesses with those of the Caspian countries, letting to expand cooperation and implement a much higher amount of joint projects.

Chinese company CNPC has established a close cooperation as it has been operating in Azerbaijan for a long time. But at present the company enjoys much better conditions and is ready to develop a long-term strategic plan of cooperation with such Azerbaijani partners as SOCAR, noted Wei Jinghua.

The Chinese embassy would like to promote mutual visits of officials of Azerbaijan and China in order to deepen and expand business cooperation between the two countries in different areas, he added.

The ambassador also expressed his gratitude to CEIBC for the efforts made to strengthen relations of China with the Caspian countries.

We, as the embassy, are ready to continue and strengthen cooperation with you, said Wei Jinghua.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
South Dakota has become the first state in 2017 to sign an anti-LGBT piece of legislation into law.

Senate Bill (SB) 149 has added taxpayer-funded discrimination into state law by allowing state-funded adoption and foster care agencies to reject qualified, prospective LGBTQ adoptive or foster parents based on the agencys purported religious beliefs.

Washington Blade:

South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard has signed into law a measure allowing taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny services and child placement to LGBT families out of religious objections, making him the first governor in 2017 to sign an anti-LGBT law. Daaugard signed the measure, Senate Bill 149, with little fanfare Friday after the Republican-controlled legislature approved it by significant margins. The new law prohibits the state from taking adverse action against child placement agencies that discriminate against LGBT families, including the elimination of tax-exemptions, the imposition of fines, the cancellation of contracts or discrimination against the agency in a state benefit program.

The ACLU has issues a statement:

The American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota has led the opposition to SB 149 through both lobbying efforts and by organizing affected communities. In a state facing a labor and talent shortage, this bill has sparked national interest and local questions as to whether South Dakota welcomes diversity and values the rights of individual citizens. This bill was opposed by local and national child welfare experts that sent letters in opposition including The Adoption Exchange, Child Welfare League of America, National Association of Social Workers, and Voice for Adoption, as well as family law experts, South Dakota pediatricians, and local and national LGBT rights organizations including the Movement Advancement Project, the Human Rights Campaign, and more. Were deeply disappointed by Governor Daugaards decision to green light Senate Bill 149. This discriminatory legislation takes South Dakota in the wrong direction, and sends the message that our leaders are more concerned with the desires of religious agencies than the rights of individuals and children in our state, said Libby Skarin, Policy Director of the ACLU of South Dakota.

The small minded people in the state have no problem seeing their tax dollars spent to defend statutes that simply do not pass constitutional muster.

Id say #BoycottSouthDakota. But there is nothing to boycott.

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He will probably most stand out to Ward 5 voters as the one listed as Stay-At-Home Father on their special election ballot for June 6.
Morgan Tsvangirai is expected to take a mileage in the political upfront in Zimbabwe when the current president Robert Mugabe retires.

The Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe will not vie for president and retire in politics in the coming general elections. According to our sources, the president has disclosed that his healthy and family matters will not let him vie for another term. The 93 years old president has ruled Zimbabwe since independence.According to the state spokesperson George Charamba, the president has made a request of the state leadership and party ZANU PF to look for a preferable candidate who will take the lead in the next general elections.According to George Charamba, the president is expected to official state what will happen in the next general elections. The President Robert Mugabe has been in a deteriorating health condition since the begging of last which made people across the country worried about his office worthiness.The opposition in Zimbabwe has made it clear that if the president Robert Mugabe will retire from politics then ZANU PF will be the knocking the lack of popularisation. The opposition leader
On Tuesday, Mar. 14, St. Pete Beach residents will choose who will lead their community as they head to the polls to elect a new mayor.

Residents choosing between three candidates

Funding to repair aging infrastructure major concern for voters

Mayor of St. Pete Beach serves a three-year term

Three candidates want the job -- Interim Mayor Deborah Schechner, businessman and co-owner of Bay Waters Inn John Michael Fleig and retired engineer Alan Johnson.



All three candidates have pledged to find a funding to overhaul the citys sewer system and aging infrastructure. Theres a bill in the state legislature that could help do just that.



We have a plan in our city, Schechner said. Im trying to get the money to put our plan into action.



However, Schechner has been criticized because she previously said she would not run for the Mayor's job. She said she wants to remain Mayor to help make sure the bill is passed.



St. Pete Beach is in my heart, and I want it to go in the right direction, Schechner said.



One of her opponents said the legislation can move forward without her. Alan Johnson said if hes elected mayor, he can bring even more funding to the table.



I think theres grant money available, Johnson said. I think we need to do a better job at finding it.



John Michael Fleig wants to be mayor of St. Pete Beach too, but his past could haunt his chances. Twenty years ago, Fleig served time after accepting a plea deal for being an accessory after the fact to a murder in Maryland.

He said he feared for his life and eventually helped authorities solve the case.



If you cant overcome your past, if you cant overcome and fix your mistakes, then you are never ever going to go in the future, Fleig said.



As mayor, Fleig said he would focus on getting rid of the cronyism that he said exists in St. Pete Beach government. He also would focus on an overhaul of the city codes.



I want to be Mayor and blow out the cobwebs in St. Pete Beachs town hall," said Fleig.



The future Mayor of St. Pete Beach will serve three years and earn a salary of $8,100 a year.


The fallout from a Bartow Police officer's incendiary Facebook post back in November continued Friday, as State Attorney Brian Haas commented on his decision to issue what's known as a "death letter" to the officer the previous day.

Click HERE to read the "death letter"

Officer Christina Arribas placed on administrative leave

Some in Bartow still calling for Arribas to be fired

State Attorney Brian Haas first heard about Officer Christina Arribas's post to Facebook under the name "Chrissy Gillrakers" on Mar. 9. He told us he was concerned he wasnt made aware of it sooner.



Haas called Arribas comment racially offensive and within hours of learning about it wrote Arribas the death letter, stating her credibility was damaged and his office could no longer use her as a witness.



It wasnt a tough decision, Haas said Friday. Theres no place for those kind of comments from a law enforcement officer who is going to be coming into court and testifying about evidence.



Further, Haas went on to explain how Arribass words could endanger cases shes worked on.



The first question for a defense attorney at the trial where shes the witness is likely going to be, Do you feel that my client fits in the same category?" said Haas. "Then the trial becomes a focus on her and her comments and her prejudices, and the focus on the defendant and what were trying to do and the evidence is going to be secondary. We just cant have that side show in a trial."





Haas staff now has the task of reviewing all of the cases Arribas is involved in. Some of the cases are felonies.



If they can go forward without her, well go forward if additional investigation can be done. Were going to do that to try to preserve the cases, Haas explained. If shes a critical witness, then potentially that case would have to be dismissed.



Haas said hes not aware of any issues from prior cases.



Meanwhile, Pastor Clayton Cowart, who organized the protesters and brought the post to light, said hes now working with attorneys to dig through those old cases to make sure that's the case. He said hes grateful the new state attorney acted.



Were certainly appreciative to the fact that when it was discovered and brought to his attention that he made an immediate response, and I think he made the right response, said Cowart.



However, Cowart said he will not stop being vocal about the issue until Officer Arribas and Chief Joe Hall leave the police department for good.



Hall originally suspended Arribas for two days (23 hours) unpaid for violating the department's social media policy following the Facebook post in November.
"Kong: Skull Island" is a spectacularly fun ride, powered by jaw-dropping visuals and a film story with surprising depth of character and nuance. The film honors the classic cinema iteration of Kong in all his primal glory while delivering a wholly new adventure that allows the gargantuan ape to truly be king.

What does that mean for the human characters in the movie? Among other things, it means running. Lots and lots of running.

Whats it about?

"Kong: Skull Island" is set in 1973, at the end of the Vietnam War. Scientists Bill Randa (John Goodman) and Houston Brooks (Corey Hawkins, Straight Outta Compton, TVs 24: Legacy") convince the U.S. government to fund a mapping expedition to an island in the South Pacific discovered by NASAs recently launched Landsat satellite.

The island remained hidden for centuries because of constant storms and geothermal disturbances surrounding it. Whatevers hidden there, the scientists posit, the U.S. has an interest in finding it before anyone else does.

When Randa insists the survey mission be assigned a military escort, decorated veteran Lt. Col. Preston Packard (Samuel L. Jackson) and his helicopter team get the detail. Just days away from heading home after years in Vietnam, the mission represents one last ride, one that on paper looks benign.

Rounding out the group are acclaimed photographer Mason Weaver (Brie Larson) and former British SAS tracker James Conrad (Tom Hiddleston). Why exactly theyre called upon for the mission is a mystery  until they get to the island, that is.

Of course, thats when the whole operation goes sideways. Within minutes of their arrival, the group finds its numbers decimated, its means of leaving the island severely compromised, and oh, yes, theres the islands 100-foot-tall resident who didnt seem keen on unannounced visitors.

However, as they work to figure out how to get back home, they learn that Kong is just one of many things that can kill them there, and he may not actually be the one they should be worried about the most.

'Was that a monkey?!'

The film reintroduces audiences to the Kong of old  larger and more physically powerful than ever before, but still capable of relatable emotion and empathy.

In todays age of digitally created monsters and mayhem, where the Planet of the Apes saga has been successfully relaunching using digital technology and motion-capture performances from talented performers, its no small task to create a literally larger-than-life simian that both evokes memories of the 1933 King Kong while still measuring up to modern standards of movie realism and special-effects driven action.

Rest assured, the team behind Kong: Skull Island gets it right. Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts (The Kings of Summer) credibly delivers a cinematic world teeming with exotic life, lush landscapes and lots of monsters with whom Kong fits right in.

Vogt-Roberts also shows a great deal of reverence for Kongs movie roots. Watch the way the film depicts the giant apes battles with airborne enemies, as well as the films quieter moments when the creature interacts with the tiny humans intruding on his domain. The effort to evoke moments from the 1933 film for the sake of homage is clear as day and cleverly executed.

'We dont belong here.'

As for the human characters inhabiting Kong: Skull Island, well, they get short-shrift, as the humans often do in giant monster movies, at least on paper. Theyre a collection of movie archetypes: disillusioned soldier of fortune, idealist photographer, grizzled war veteran, obsessive scientist, the list goes on.

Thankfully, the film has talented performers filling those roles, and the script fleshes them out a bit more than one might expect. The 1970s setting allows for a unique context for the characters to experience what they do; in particular, it greatly informs how the military characters react to the threats around them.

As for individual performances, Jackson and Goodman are fun to watch as they chew scenery playing stock roles. Larson is appropriately plucky and charming, while John C. Reilly gets the most laughs as a World War II castaway whos been stranded on the island just a little too long.

Strangely, its Hiddlestons performance that comes off a little flat. The role just doesnt allow him to have much fun  he brings presence and enough physicality to credibly deliver the character, but theres not enough in the script for that character to be memorable.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;nbsp;

Worth seeing?

Naturally, fans of classic monster movies should see Kong: Skull Island, if for no other reason than it will lift their spirits following the most recent attempt to bring Kong to life on screen, director Peter Jacksons maligned 2005 remake of King Kong. This film is certainly better paced and arguably more imaginative than that disappointing effort.

But Skull Island shouldnt just be a destination this weekend for Kong fans. Action film fans should get more than their moneys worth here, and theres enough humor to keep viewers who arent in it for the explosions entertained.

Oh, and be sure to stay through the credits. Yes, theres a scene at the very end, and its worth staying a few extra minutes.

Kong: Skull Island
A Port Richey man has pleaded guilty to burning a cross in a neighbor's yard in 2012.

Man pleads guilty to burning cross in interracial couple's yard

Thomas Sigler charged with crime

Sigler threaten, intimidated couple

Other neighbors were involved in burning of cross

Officials said Thomas Herris Sigler, III, 45, is charged with conspiring with others to threaten, intimidate, and interfere with an interracial couple's enjoyment of their housing rights.

No one should be threatened or intimidated in his home because of his race, color, or creed, said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III for the Middle District of Florida. It is sad that crosses are being burned in front yards in the 21st century. Acts of hatred such as this simply cannot be tolerated under law.

Officials said an interracial couple moved in next door to Sigler between September and October of 2012.

Sigler was living in a predominantly white community in Port Richey, officials said.

They said Sigler harassed the African-American neighbor with racial slurs and derogatory statements, and on one occasion, physically assaulted him.

On Halloween night, Sigler, along with other neighbors who he was attending a party with, decided to burn a cross in the couple's front yard to intimidate them and force them to move.

Officials said they used wood and tools from the host of the Halloween party to construct a wooden cross. They placed the cross against the couple's mailbox, poured gasoline on it, and set it on fire.

Two other neighbor's pled guilty to the crime in 2015. Pascual Pietri and William Dennis were charged for their roles in the conspiracy.

Pietri was sentenced to 37 months in prison on March 23, 2016.

Unfortunately, people hold bias and prejudice against others for no apparent reason, said Special Agent in Charge Paul Wysopal of the FBI Tampa Division. This case demonstrates people who act out such prejudices will be held accountable. Such behavior is unacceptable.
Violent crime rates were a major talking point for President Trump during the 2016 election and continue to be a focus of the new administration. In a speech before a gathering of major city police chiefs, the president noted that violent crimes were rising in many cities, further stating that it is "a national tragedy and it requires national action."

It's true that the violent crime rate in the U.S. increased in 2015. According to the most recent FBI Uniform Crime Report, the 2015 violent crime rate was 372.6 per 100,000 inhabitants -- a 3.1 percent increase over the 2014 rate. However, looking at two years' worth of data overlooks the larger trends. In the last 20 years, the rate of violent crime has fallen steadily from 636.6 per 100,000 in 1996 and is near an all-time low.

Nevertheless, some places have seen particularly large upticks in violent crime recently. According to the Brennan Center for Justice, violent crime rates in 2016 were projected to have increased by 17.7 percent and 13.4 percent in Chicago and Charlotte, respectively. With that in mind, FindTheHome, a real estate intelligence site by Graphiq, ranked the most dangerous place in every state. The data experts looked at the 2015 FBI Uniform Crime Report (the most recent year available) and identified the city in each state with the highest violent crime rate per 100,000 people in 2015. The violent crime rate is the total number of crimes reported to law enforcement agencies within a city per 100,000 people. Violent crime is defined as offenses that involve force or threat of force.
A Canadian federal judge who asked an alleged rape victim in court why she couldn't "just keep your knees together" resigned Thursday, after a judicial panel released a scathing report calling for him to be removed from office.

Justice Robin Camp of the Alberta Federal Court came under fire in 2014 for badgering the woman during trial about whether she could have done more to defend herself against the man she claimed had attacked her. The Canadian Judicial Council conducted a 15-month review of the exchange after receiving dozens of complaints from the public.

In its report Thursday, the council found that Camp's conduct was "manifestly and profoundly destructive of the concept of impartiality, integrity and independence."

"Public confidence is sufficiently undermined to render the judge incapable of executing the judicial office," the council wrote. "The judge's removal is warranted."

Within hours, Camp, 64, said he would step down and apologized in a statement to "everyone who was hurt" by the comment. Federal Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould accepted his resignation, saying she was confident he had received due process, according to the BBC.

"Sexual assault and gender-based violence is in no form acceptable and we will continue to stand up for victims," she said.

Camp presided over the sexual assault trial of Alexander Wagar, a 29-year-old Calgary man. The accuser was identified as a 19-year-old indigenous woman who said Wagar had raped her over a bathroom sink during a house party, as The Washington Post has reported.

Throughout the trial, Camp falsely referred to the woman as "the accused" and suggested she could have staved off the alleged attack.

"Why couldn't you just keep your knees together?" Camp asked at one point.

ALSO Judge Persky critic rips state panel report in Brock Turner case

He later said that young women "want to have sex, particularly if they're drunk," and told the accuser that "some sex and pain sometimes go together" and "that's not necessarily a bad thing."

Camp also questioned why the woman didn't "just sink your bottom down into the basin so he couldn't penetrate you," saying that she could have avoided the attack if she had turned her pelvis "slightly" away.

Camp acquitted Wagar in September 2014, but an appeals court overturned the ruling. In January, Wagar was acquitted again in his retrial, with a new judge finding that there was reasonable doubt that he had sexually assaulted the woman.

The Canadian Judicial Council opened an investigation in November 2015, after a group of law professors filed complaints against Camp. Dozens of complaints from other members of the public followed, and Camp went on to recuse himself from cases involving sex crimes.

Wagar's accuser said she felt so browbeaten by Camp that she considered suicide.

"What did he get from asking that," she said. "He made me hate myself and he made me feel like I should have done something, like I was some kind of a slut."

During the council's investigation, Camp said he didn't realize his comments were problematic until his verdict was appealed, according to Canadian Broadcasting Corp. He said his words came from a "deep-rooted" bias "that all women behave in the same way and should resist."

Camp grew up in South Africa and received commerce and law degrees from the University of Stellenbosch, according to judicial records. After practicing as a barrister there, he moved his wife and three children to Calgary in 1998, focusing mostly on contract,, trust and bankruptcy litigation. The council noted that he had almost no experience in Canadian criminal law.

At a hearing, Camp's daughter testified that she herself is a rape victim. She called her father's comments "disgraceful," but said she stood by him, describing how he supported her when she told him she had been raped in her home, the CBC reported at the time.

"I have seen him advance in understanding and empathy for victims, vulnerable litigants and those who have experienced trauma," Camp's daughter wrote.

Camp later admitted to misconduct but argued that he should be able to keep his job. His words, he told the panel in written submissions, were the product of "unconscious bias or ignorance," not hostility toward the accuser. He said he had spent months educating himself on Canada's sexual assault laws, speaking with feminist scholars and seeking sensitivity training.

The panel was unconvinced.

"Having regard to the totality of the Judge's conduct and all of its consequences," the panel wrote, "his apologies and efforts at remediation do not adequately repair the damage caused to public confidence."
Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic will spend $217 million on renovations to its Rochester-based Saint Marys campus to address growing patient numbers and enhance productivity, according to a Star Tribune report.

The projects include construction of more private patient rooms and additional space for cardiovascular disease patients, as well as expanded space for rehabilitation services and a renovated newborn intensive care unit, the report states.

Robert Cima, MD, medical director for Saint Marys, told the publication the campus "anticipate[s] continued growth in patient visits." He added the construction is "a commitment to providing access to as many patients as possible."

Saint Marys houses roughly 1,000 inpatient beds and 80 operating suites, according to the report.



The Saint Marys renovation is one of several projects the clinic is pursuing. Last month, Mayo Clinic unveiled a $70 million hospital surgical suite expansion at its Mankato, Minn., location. Mayo Clinic is also planning a $70.5 million expansion of its Florida hospital.
Plano, Texas-based Vivify Health offers a unique solution: a remote care platform that uses consumer mobile devices integrated with EMRs.

The company was founded in 2009. In 2016, Pittsburgh-based UPMC became a Vivify Health customer and investor. Earlier this year, Livonia, Mich.-based Trinity Health's national home healthcare agency, Trinity Health At Home, revealed plans to utilize Vivify Health's technology for its home health patients.

But Vivify Health's technology isn't limited to any one patient population. "It's not condition specific," says Eric Rock, founder and CEO of the company. "It's any and every condition. We cover everything from pediatrics to stroke care to liver care. Every day the patient has an experience that changes."

Mr. Rock spoke with Becker's Hospital Review about the changing healthcare startup landscape and what's next for Vivify Health.

Editor's note: This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Question: What prompted you to found Vivify Health?

Eric Rock: I've been in healthcare IT for over 20 years, and this is my third company. A solution with my last company focused on the [emergency department] specifically.

Then a couple things happened. One of those was the iPhone. We have an opportunity now with technology to engage patients in a different way and keep them at home. Another is ubiquitous wireless networks and off-the-shelf consumer electronics.

We began research in 2007 as my last company, Medhost, was clipping along very well. We evaluated what was originally the patient monitoring market and thought it was time to transform that market. After two years of research, we launched in 2009. We've been in startup mode that entire time as this is a complex market. Now over 700 hospitals are represented by nearly 100 contracts we have across the United States.

We have a solution that offers our original goal of helping patients of any age. The average age of our consumer base is 97.

There are so many solutions that come from Silicon Valley that are apps. The reality is that regardless of the numbers we see, a patient may have a phone or tablet but may not use it effectively. We provide a kit that's prepackaged with the appropriate devices. More importantly, it's incredibly simple and walks them through every step.

Q: Why did you choose to headquarter Vivify Health in Plano, Texas?

ER: I've had the fortune of traveling the world and enormous amounts in the United States. All three of my companies started in Texas, where I'm from. Texas is unique in that it's relatively low cost and somewhat conservative.

We're seeing many companies burning through very large A rounds and sometimes even B rounds and then going out of existence. We believe it's in part the nature of being in Silicon Valley and the mindset of "just spend the money and the business will follow." Being in Texas, the cost of living and resources is a little lower. We also have a hotspot of engineering talent and we're centrally located.

We've stood the test of time by being conservative and having fun. We have an office that looks like it belongs in Silicon Valley. We've got the feel but with a conservative approach.

Q: What challenges do healthcare startups face that are different from young companies in other sectors?

ER: In the past four to five years, healthcare has had a significant funding run, which has been great for the industry as a whole. That's been changing in the past 12 months. We're not seeking any additional funding, but those that are will have some struggles. We're starting to see the bubble in healthcare startup space. The funding is drying up, but there are opportunities to roll up with other companies. If you've got a great technology, you have the opportunity to sell your solution early while you have some traction.

If you're attempting to engage an elderly population, an app isn't going to cut it. You have to deliver a complete service.

I'm fortunate to have 20 years in health IT and have lessons learned of the intricate workings behind the inner walls of the hospital. You have to have not only an engaged patient, but also engaged providers. The market is emerging where providers are managing patients outside the four walls, but that's not ubiquitous yet across the sector.

Q: What's in the works this year for Vivify Health?

ER: We've had great successes focusing on the high-risk complex patient post-discharge. We're now seeing a rapid incline of those patients of those patients that are improving in their health. We intend to be the first to have success in large-scale devices that are deployed to patients on their own phone. What we'll be delivering is a continuation of care services, not just post-discharge.

Now that we've tackled the high-risk population, how can we reduce the overall cost of healthcare? How can we allow nurses to manage thousands of patients rather than hundreds?

In brief, we're looking ahead to connected devices, family and peer engagement and the deeper analytics behind it.
From a physician imposter convicted in a Medicare fraud scheme to 20 more states joining a lawsuit against generic drugmakers, here are the latest healthcare industry lawsuits making headlines.

1. 79-year-old physician convicted in bribes-for-test-referrals scheme

A 79-year-old family physician in New Jersey was convicted March 6 of accepting bribes in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running scheme operated by Parsippany, N.J.-based Biodiagnostic Laboratory Service.

2. New Hampshire hospitals win lawsuit against state over Medicaid DSH payments

A U.S. District Court ruled in favor of the New Hampshire Hospital Association in a dispute over how much the state owes hospitals that serve a large number of Medicaid and uninsured patients.

3. 20 more states join lawsuit against generic drugmakers

The number of states involved in a price-fixing lawsuit against six generic drugmakers has doubled.

4. Physician imposter convicted in Medicare fraud scheme

A man who posed as a licensed physician to convince Medicare beneficiaries to sign up for home health services was convicted March 2 for his participation in a $1.3 million fraud scheme.

5. St. Vincent Healthcare sued by former employee: 9 things to know

A woman who was fired after working at Billings, Mont.-based St. Vincent Healthcare for nearly four decades is suing the health system.

More articles on legal and regulatory issues:

10 latest lawsuits involving hospitals

Owners, operators of Texas home health company charged in $60M fraud scheme

Lawsuit alleges NYC hospital charges double legal amount for medical records
The Cabell County (W.V.) Commission on Thursday filed suit against drug wholesalers and pharmaceutical retailers to recoup finances spent addressing the high rates of opioid abuse in the community, according to a report from The Herald-Dispatch.

The suit involves four drug wholesalers  AmerisourceBergen Drug Co., Cardinal Health, McKesson Corp. and H.D. Smith Wholesale Drug Co.  and three pharmacy retailers: CVS, Kroger, Rite-Aid, Wal-Mart and Walgreens. The suit alleges these companies sold more than 40 million doses of opioid painkillers to the county between 2007 and 2012. During that time, the county's population was 96,319, according to the report.

The suit differs from similar lawsuits filed by other local municipalities in the state because it's filed directly in federal court. Previous suits have implicated a specific West Virginia resident (often times a physician) and filed the suit in state court.

"What we are attempting to do is go to the source and heart of the problem, which is the number and volume of pills," said Paul Farrell Jr., the attorney who filed the complaint, according to the Herald-Dispatch.

More articles on opioids:

Dartmouth-Hitchcock achieves 53% reduction in opioid prescriptions for outpatient procedures

West Virginia overdoses overwhelm state burial assistance program

Healthcare consumers' concerns over narcotic risk is growing, survey finds
Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare inked a multi-year contract with Richardson-based Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas ahead of the agreement's April 15 termination date.

The contract allows BCBSTX policyholders to access Tenet's hospitals, physicians and outpatient facilities at in-network rates. It also adds Tenet's El Paso, Texas-based The Hospitals of Providence Transmountain Campus to the payer's network.

"We are pleased to reach an early renewal on this important contract and avoid any disruption to the high-quality care that patients with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas health insurance expect from our providers," Clint Hailey, chief managed care officer for Tenet, said in a statement.

More articles on payer issues:

What the AHCA means for insurers: 7 things to know

Children's Minnesota dumps contract with BCBS

Iowa Medicaid payers report more than $100M in losses in 2016
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Up to 30 insurance companies could set up in the Republic because of Brexit

Thirty insurance companies have expressed interest in setting up in the Republic in recent months because of Brexit, Ireland's Central Bank said yesterday.

A day after AIG announced it was setting up an operation in Luxembourg, in a blow to Dublin's post-Brexit ambitions, the Republic's regulator said five companies had sought authorisation as insurance or reinsurance undertakings since November, and another five had signalled a firm intention to do so.

A further 20 insurance entities have contacted the Central Bank to discuss authorisation, Sylvia Cronin, director of insurance supervision, claimed.

"Unlike other financial sectors, insurance firms are not generally waiting for Article 50 to be triggered before implementing their strategies on location," Ms Cronin added at a an event organised by financial services firm KPMG.

AIG, which already has an office in Ireland but does not write business, said yesterday that from 2019 it was proposing to have two AIG subsidiary insurance companies in Europe.

One would be in the United Kingdom to write UK business and one in Luxembourg for European Economic Area and Swiss business.
For the last seven days, my social media feeds have been full of anxious unionists and loyalists, distraught by the election. Sinn Fein's success has genuinely frightened them - a disturbing sight nearly 20 years into the peace process. Privately, one asked me: "Why did nationalists vote for terrorists?"

My reply to that is: why do unionists do it? The DUP has no problem with fraternising with loyalists and their respective groups, as the Charter NI scandal showed. Their opposition to terrorists seems to wane when there's something in it for them.

The answer to the original question posed, however, for both communities, is fear. When people feel threatened, they will vote for whoever they think will keep them safe. That need for self-preservation will override all other concerns. Among their respective voting bases, the DUP and Sinn Fein are perceived as strong competitors who can stand up to the other.

As one loyalist commented during Facebook exchange: "The other side will vote for Sinn Fein because they can't trust us not to vote DUP and we'll vote for the DUP because we can't trust them not to vote Sinn Fein."

There's nothing wrong with being a unionist or a republican and voting accordingly - yet if that's what you want, there are other options on offer.

The electorate chose the same two parties under whose watch 490m in public funds was set to burn - literally.

The term project fear seems to have only crept into mainland politics recently, bandied about as it was during the Scottish and EU referendums, and yet it's the only kind of politics my generation has ever known.

It's the whip politicians use to beat us out of our apathy and to the polling station.

Yet, so much of the fighting we see on TV between the two main parties is political theatre, designed to rile us up and keep them in power - and it works.

Behind the scenes, I've personally witnessed Sinn Fein and DUP politicians work together quite amicably because that's how politics operates - "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours".

Arlene Foster appears to have some kind of bizarre drinking game with Gerry Adams - "Every time I work your name into a debate, Gerry, you have to take a shot."

It was intended to shore up her own party's vote.

However, it managed to shore up his instead.

Adams must be astounded; all those years in an organisation he was never a member of and the best recruitment sergeant he's ever had is working for the unionists.

In this country, tribalism is an election tactic and it works. The working-classes will be blamed for that, as they are after every election, as if they alone are responsible for the outcome.

They're criticised for not being "educated" enough, smart enough, or progressive enough, even though they're just following the lead of those who are supposed to know better.

Such is the history of Northern Ireland.

It's worth remembering that the working-classes were disproportionately affected by the Troubles, not just in terms of casualties, but by how their communities were turned upside down. Consequently, their fears are the largest and they vote accordingly. It doesn't matter that a fresh conflict is unlikely; the possibility is enough to frighten them.

Are things changing? The answer is: not as fast as we'd like them to or as fast as they could.

The generation known as the 'ceasefire babies' - those of us who were children around the time of the Good Friday Agreement or were born after it - were seen as the great hope of the peace process.

We were free of the terrors our parents had witnessed and would therefore grow up not hating each other - or so it was assumed. The reality was that, for many of us, our childhoods were defined not by what we'd seen but the fear of what we might see. That's how trauma works - it's handed down, from parent to child to grandchild.

Research by academics at the University of Ulster has shown that the impact of the Troubles is still being felt by this generation, indirectly fuelling suicides among young people who never witnessed them.

It will be felt by generations to come, made worse by a pitiful lack of mental health facilities and resources. The conflict is still claiming victims, but you'll never read their names in Lost Lives.

Compounding all this is a lack of employment opportunities, segregated housing and segregated education.

If we split up children from birth, they're eventually going to ask why and then we have to explain the conflict to them, planting seeds of fear in yet another generation that was meant to be free of them.

There are greenshoots of hope, however. In Ardoyne and the Shankill, there are angels in disguise called youth workers. They are the ultimate unsung heroes. Operating through the likes of the Hammer and Ardoyne Youth Clubs, they've been bringing teens from both areas together for years, fostering friendships that would have been unthinkable just a decade ago.

According to SDLP councillor Paul McCusker, youths from the Shankill now visit their friends in Ardoyne of their own accord - and their Ardoyne pals return the favour.

I consider myself lucky to have heard people's stories and to have formed friendships with them, whatever side of the divide they came from. It has not only given me a more nuanced understanding of my country's history, it's made my life better.

Last year, after getting some bad news, it was a loyalist ex-prisoner friend who rang me every single day to make sure I was coping well. When I received some homophobic abuse online, it was a republican ex-prisoner friend - someone whose politics I had criticised numerous times - who came out swinging on my behalf. She still rushes to my defence whenever I need it, without being asked.

My first days at the technical college where I'd signed up to do A-levels were made easier after saying hello to another teenager, the skinny ginger boy sitting next to me in class. He was using his pens as drumsticks with such precision, I made some remark about it.

It turned out he was in the Orange Order and had probably been taught to bang a drum before he learned to read.

He became one of my closest friends and to this day, we still talk and meet during lunch-breaks, updating each other on the latest happenings in our lives.

Some of the best friendships and experiences I've had have been with people who, on paper, I wouldn't have liked - and who wouldn't have liked me. The best way to challenge prejudice is to test it; it's hard to hate someone after you've had a cup of tea with them and realised they're not snarling dragons.

I was lucky; my job brought me into contact with people I would never have met otherwise. Yet I worry that most of my generation and the generations to come - working-class people who have few opportunities as it is - won't get that same chance thanks to the system of segregation.

We've achieved equal rights for Catholics, power-sharing governments, even witnessed friendships bloom between former enemies (namely McGuinness and Paisley) - yet we still can't devise a system where our children sit side-by-side and learn together.

Then we lament at how divided our society is, complaining about the illness while ignoring the cure.

...how a border poll would work

The idea of a border poll has frequently been mentioned in recent weeks.

The Good Friday Agreement says that the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland can call a referendum on Irish unity, if it appears likely that a majority of those voting would express a wish that Northern Ireland should cease to be part of the United Kingdom and form part of a united Ireland.

The idea has been floated more regularly recently as a result of the Brexit vote and the loss in Assembly elections of a unionist majority.

A majority of Northern Irelands population would have to vote to secede from the United Kingdom and join a united Ireland for Ireland to move towards unification.

Voters in the Republic would also have to vote in favour of unification, in a separate poll. If both parts of Ireland voted for unity, negotiations would begin between governments and the main parties over the formation of a 32-county state.

The Secretary of State, James Brokenshire, said last year, after the UKs vote to leave the EU, that he did not believe that the conditions required to call a border poll had been met. Government sources indicated this week that this view has not changed.
Sinn Fein has repeatedly insisted that it will not support DUP leader Arlene Foster as Northern Ireland's first minister until the inquiry reports

Arlene Foster has said she has not considered stepping down as DUP leader because there is a "job of work to be done" and that the recent election has served as a "wake-up call" for unionism.

In her first broadcast interview since the catastrophic election for unionism, the DUP leader has again refused to state if she will retake the First Minister's position.

Mrs Foster denied that the election result was "disastrous" but said that it served as a "wake-up call for unionism in Northern Ireland".

Speaking to Sky News Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme, Mrs Foster said she would not be standing down as party leader as the mark of a politician is "not what they do during good times but how they tackle the challenges".

"I have a big job of work to do, the party has a big job of work to do and indeed Unionism in general has to step up to the plate now and thats where Im focused on," she said.

When pressed on whether she would step aside if the stumbling block to returning devolution was her being First Minister, Mrs Foster again refused to be drawn on it.

Sinn Fein has vowed not to enter power-sharing with the DUP leader as First Minister until the failed Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme, has been investigated.

A public inquiry into the matter has begun work and the judge chairing it has said it will take more than six months to report.

Mrs Foster said: "Well, look were in negotiations and thats what its all about at the moment and we certainly cant, to borrow a phrase from the Prime Minister, engage in a running commentary.

"Gerry Adams in particular and Sinn Fein in general have talked about who they want to see, or rather who they dont want to see, as First Minister in terms of the DUP because of course it is up to our party to decide who our nominee would be and I have said all throughout the week that if we get into the territory where were each telling each other who to select, well we want to of course say to Sinn Fein we think you should select X,Y and Z instead of A, B and C.

"So you know they cant tell us who to select as our nominees and likewise, we cant tell them.

Mrs Foster said that she wouldn't characterise the election result as "disastrous" but that it had caused a "shock" within unionism.

She said: "Indeed, we increased our vote by some 23,000. It just so happened that we were in a situation where we were moving to five seats instead of six seats per constituency so we were always going to see a reduction in the number of seats that we held and as well as that the nationalist turnout increased so I think that has caused a shock if you like, certainly within Unionism.

"A lot of people have been talking to me since last Friday when the results were becoming known and a great sense of shock and how could this happen? And I think it has been a bit of a wake-up call in terms of Unionism in Northern Ireland."

When asked what she would term it as instead of disastrous Mrs Foster said she always knew it was gong to be "very close".

"I said it was going to be close and people really needed to come out and they needed to realise that it was a choice between Sinn Feins radical Republicanism or the vision that we had for Northern Ireland which was a positive vision within the United Kingdom, outside of the European Union. But unfortunately they were able to mobilise Nationalism in a more effective way than Unionism and what we have then was in fact a very, very close election in so far as I think on first preference votes, there was a little over 1,000 between us."

The full interview will be aired on Sky News - Sophy Ridge on Sunday (12/03/2017)
Belfast Lord Mayor Brian Kingston will represent Northern Ireland in Washington next week when he attends the traditional St Patrick's Day celebration at the White House.

The news broke when the Belfast Lord Mayor posted a photo of his invitation from President Trump on his Facebook page last night.

Traditionally, the First and Deputy First Minister are invited to represent the province, but since those posts are currently vacant, the honour falls to the First Citizen of Northern Ireland's capital city.

DUP Alderman Brian Kingston said last night that he is delighted to be representing Belfast at a number of events planned in the US capital over the next three days.

"We greatly value our connection with the USA and I see that on a weekly basis with the many American visitors who come to meet me here at City Hall," the Lord Mayor said. "Whether they be business contacts, conference delegates, students or tourists, the relationship between our city and the United States is key.

"This opportunity to engage with influencers is one I fully intend to make the best of for the benefit of Belfast and Northern Ireland," he said.

It is understood Alderman Kingston is to be joined by council leaders from around Northern Ireland on the high-profile trip next week.

Several senior political figures - including Irish Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan and Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams - are also expected to travel to the US for the annual celebrations next week.

But most Northern Ireland party leaders and their negotiating teams intend to stay focussed on the Stormont negotiations, which finished their first week last night.

In October last year, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said his party would boycott White House functions if Donald Trump were to be elected US President. Mr Eastwood branded Mr Trump's controversial comments on women, immigrants and minority communities as "absolutely grotesque".

He added: "As leader of the SDLP and the progressive nationalist tradition on this island, I will not give any support to such an administration, founded on bigotry, by attending the White House under a Trump presidency."
Willie Henderson was among the pallbearers

The funeral cortege of former Celtic footballer Tommy Gemmell

Tommy Gemmell made a final journey past Parkhead yesterday as hundreds of fans paid their last respects to the Celtic giant, one of the Lisbon Lions.

The former Scotland left-back died aged 73 after a long illness.

His funeral was held at Daldowie Crematorium in Uddingston, South Lanarkshire. Fans lined the entrance to Celtic Park as the funeral cortege made its way past. Among those at the funeral was Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers.

Applause rang out as the procession left the Parkhead stadium.

A wreath bore the emblem of the Lisbon Lions - the Celtic team whose win over Inter Milan in the Portuguese capital in 1967 saw them become the first British club to win the European Cup.
Wood pallets and tyres lie across the Flora Street section of the Comber Greenway in east Belfast, sparking calls to have them removed

Wood pallets and tyres lie across the Flora Street section of the Comber Greenway in east Belfast, sparking calls to have them removed

Dozens of wood pallets and tyres left stockpiled on the new 40 million Connswater Community Greenway have sparked outrage.

Residents and politicians have demanded urgent action to remove the material destined for a loyalist bonfire in July.

Andy Beavis (47), from the Rosetta area of Belfast, regularly cycles along the Comber Greenway, and has been using the new 9km linear park in the east of the city.

He was left horrified on Thursday afternoon when he discovered the large collection of bonfire material abandoned near the Greenway's Flora Street section.

"It annoyed me that we spend vast amounts of public money on projects like the Connswater Greenway only to have it ruined by this sort of nonsense," he said.

"I appreciate bonfires are part of some people's culture but the council needs to nip this in the bud.

"If action isn't taken, the problem will spread. An alternative site is the answer."

In response to a tweet containing a picture of the eyesore sent by Mr Beavis on Thursday, Belfast City Council said the issue was "complex", and that the burning of tyres was a matter for the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA).

Alliance leader and East Belfast MLA Naomi Long branded the dumped material "an utter disgrace".

But there appears to be confusion over who is responsible for the situation. The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs told the Belfast Telegraph that the NIEA had only been notified about the build-up of tyres yesterday afternoon. It added that while the NIEA was currently investigating the matter - and will take enforcement action where possible - the "lead responsibility for bonfire management rests with local councils and within district council-led multi-agency initiatives"

The Department for Communities said issues relating to management and maintenance of the Greenway were the responsibility of Belfast City Council.

The council described issues pertaining to bonfires as "complex and multifaceted" and said it was not just its responsibility, adding: "We will continue to work with partners and communities to address the issues."

Alliance's David Armitage called for Belfast City Council to remove the "illegal bonfire materials" immediately.

"The Greenway is a positive celebration of all that is best about east Belfast. We have worked hard over the past few months with others to provide a new scheme in the area to prevent situations such as this occurring," he said.

EastSide Partnership, which manages the Greenway, said it was not aware of any plans to remove the material.
A former military barracks in Forkhill is to be transformed into a peace forest for use by the community after 1,000 native trees were planted there to remember victims of the Troubles

A former military barracks in Forkhill is to be transformed into a peace forest for use by the community after 1,000 native trees were planted there to remember victims of the Troubles.

Local schoolchildren joined with Forest Friends Ireland, the Ring of Gullion Landscape Partnership, Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, the Peace Forest Ireland Project and the Woodland Trust NI to plant the trees earlier this week.

The former south Armagh security base will also feature a wildflower meadow and a path for people to use.

A further 2,000 trees were planted near Rebel Hill at Bailieborough, south of the border.

The arboreal memorial is the brainchild of Forest Friends Ireland chairman John Haughton, who aims to commemorate all the victims of the Troubles.

"Thousands of people lost their lives in the Troubles, and Forkhill is a former military base while Rebel Hill has links to the 1798 rebellion," he explained.

"The sites hadn't been planned that way but it all came together.

"This is a direct project to get the communities involved in planting trees and by doing this we hope we will strengthen the peace process.

"It was like a dream come true to see the schoolkids from St Oliver Plunkett's Primary School in Forkhill come along and get involved with the planting."

Ring of Gullion Landscape Partnership manager Darren Rice said that the Forkhill site had been covered in "debris and old concrete blocks" before the initiative.

"Forkhill is set to open to the public in the next couple of weeks as a public park," he said.

"We have planted a mix of native trees such as oak, willow, birch, hazel and blackthorn and in five years they will have grown enough to be a big, young forest.

"The symbolism is that we are getting young people and schoolchildren to plant trees so they are able to give a positive message to the future. We are giving the space back to nature."

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council chair Gillian Fitzpatrick said: "The idea of the peace forest is to bring communities closer together in the planting of trees."
Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Heavily Armed Police raid a house in Portrush in search for missing prisoner Michael Smith. (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph )

Officers raid a home in Portrush in the search for fugitive Michael Smith

This is the dramatic moment police swooped on a house in a seaside town as the manhunt for a dangerous fugitive continued.

Heavily armed officers forced their way into the property in Portrush in the search for missing prisoner Michael Smith.

The 38-year-old - a suspect in a high-profile murder case - went missing earlier this week after being mistakenly released from Maghaberry Prison.

A senior detective said that Smith had "an extensive history of violence", and urged the public not to approach him.

Since then the PSNI has mounted a major search to find him.

On Thursday night the operation moved to Portrush after a tip-off that Smith might be in the town.

The drama unfolded around midnight.

Police moved in after a member of the public believed they had spotted the fugitive earlier that evening.

Officers were quickly at the scene with an unmarked unit deployed to carry out surveillance.

Soon afterwards a squad of armed officers raided the property.

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However, there was no sign of Smith. It is believed to have been a false alarm.

The dramatic scenes were captured by Belfast Telegraph photographer Kevin Scott.

Mr Scott said: "The sound of heavy engine roars echoed through the side streets as three unmarked Audi A6 estate cars carrying the heavily armed officers arrived.

"Within moments the officers had guns drawn and had surrounded the house.

"They were saying: 'Armed police - Michael Smith, come to the door now and you won't be hurt'."

Mr Scott said two occupants of the house - who it later emerged were not linked to Smith in any way - were brought on to the street.

"I heard screaming in the property as the officers at the front door ordered another male and female occupant to the street," he added.

"They were saying to them: 'You won't be hurt, you won't be hurt. Walk this way and show me your hands'. With the occupants on the street the armed response officers advanced on the front room and, room by room, searched for Michael.

"Officers reached the bottom of the stairs before once again challenging Michael, who they believed was present.

"They were saying: 'Armed police - Michael, this is your last chance, we know you are here, come to the top of the stairs'."

Mr Scott said the officers worked their way through the house, before satisfying themselves that the fugitive was not at the address.

"After a full search the officers noted that he was not present at the property," he added.

"Officers began to exit the property before searching a shed and a gas bottle storage unit at the back of the property.

"The operation lasted 15 minutes and officers cleared the scene immediately afterwards."

Smith has been charged with the murder of Stephen Carson, who was shot dead in his Belfast home in front of his partner and nine-year-old son in February 2016.

On Thursday a senior official at the Northern Ireland Prison Service apologised to Mr Carson's family for the blunder.

Ronnie Armour said a "very serious mistake" was made when Smith was allowed to leave Maghaberry to attend a family event on Tuesday.

In a public appeal police described the missing prisoner as "dangerous".

They also urged the public not to approach Smith, who was last seen in the Finaghy area of Belfast at 12.30pm on Tuesday, because of his "extensive history of violence".

An investigation has been launched into how the mistake was made. East Belfast MP Gavin Robinson described Smith's release as a "catastrophic blunder" that "shatters confidence in the justice system".
Mediators who helped resolve Northern Ireland's bitterest parading dispute have met the Northern Ireland Secretary as part of a bid to restore power-sharing.

The "constructive" talks involved hugely experienced community figures who helped defuse the Ardoyne flashpoint march, which saw dozens of police officers injured and relations between local residents ruined by sectarian violence.

Jim Roddy was at the forefront of successful negotiations with the Apprentice Boys over its demonstrations in Londonderry, and last year helped the opposing parties in the violent north Belfast impasse reach agreement.

Ardoyne Catholic priest Father Gary Donegan was another key player in ensuring 2016's march passed off peacefully.

A statement from their Making It Work Group said: "We held a candid and constructive meeting with the Secretary of State today to discuss community issues relevant to the ongoing talks process. We have agreed to meet with him again over the course of the next three weeks and wished him, Minister Flanagan and all the parties every success during their deliberations."

Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire and Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan are attempting to piece together the devolved administration and face a three-week deadline before another Stormont election is called.

Mr Brokenshire met the Making It Work Group for "candid" talks at Stormont yesterday.

The organisation comprises Mr Roddy, Fr Donegan, Ryan Feeney from Queen's University, who has a background in community relations with the GAA, and colleague Professor Peter McBride.
Unionists have brushed aside claims by Gerry Adams that the Assembly elections have advanced the cause of a united Ireland.

Calling for discussions to begin on how an end to partition can be achieved, the Sinn Fein president said Brexit also provided an opportunity for a discourse on how the "transition period" is managed.

Mr Adams warned political unionism would try to regroup, so the gains of republicans in last week's election - now just one seat behind the DUP in the Assembly, 28 to 27 - must be consolidated and increased.

He said the DUP "no longer rule the roost. We must respect their mandate. But they also have to respect all the other mandates. All the other opinions".

His comments came as his party's ruling executive prepared to meet in Dublin today to discuss the election and the negotiations to restore devolution, which resume on Monday.

But Ulster Unionist MP Tom Elliott referred to previous claims by Mr Adams that Ireland would be united by 2016, saying his latest comments were more of the same fantasies.

Writing on his blog, Mr Adams said: "I believe absolutely that Irish unity is the best outcome for all the people of this island. Sinn Fein will work to achieve that. But in the meantime there is a need to co-operate with other progressives to create real changes in people's lives.

"Brexit is the backcloth against which some of these changes are occurring. In the farming sector, unionist farmers know that their best interests will not be served by Brexit despite the DUP support for this.

"Business people and the community and voluntary sector share these concerns.

"There is the potential for a progressive consensus among parties like Sinn Fein, the SDLP, Alliance, the Greens, People Before Profit and individual MLAs who have advocated equality measures."

In a separate interview on what he called a "watershed" election, Mr Adams said unionists were still in the majority but the "big onus" on his party was to persuade them their best interests lay in a united Ireland.

"We need an entirely new Ireland, we need an Ireland which unionism is comfortable with, that they have an ownership of and that they agree to," he said.

"It's not exactly tangible, it's a sense of expectation, a sense of hope, a sense of 'do-abilty'."

Asked if he now envisaged a united Ireland in his lifetime, the 68-year-old Louth TD said: "It depends how long I live, but my hope is - yes."

But Mr Elliott said: "Gerry Adams's comments come as no surprise, and should be filed under 'he would say that, wouldn't he?'"

The Fermanagh-South Tyrone MP went on to say the Union was secure.

"This is the same Gerry Adams who said in January 2000 'if we want to make progress then there is no reason whatsoever why we cannot celebrate the 1916 Rising in the year 2016, in a free and united Ireland'.

"That date has now obviously passed and Northern Ireland is still in the United Kingdom.

"I am in no doubt that the Union is secure and that the majority of people in Northern Ireland remain firmly of the opinion that the United Kingdom remains far and away the best option for Northern Ireland and its people in social, political and economic terms."

Ulster Unionist MEP Jim Nicholson added: "Some - including Sinn Fein - are trying to say the Belfast Agreement would be undermined by Brexit.

"This is simply not the case.

"The Belfast Agreement cannot be cherry-picked.

"It enshrined the principle of consent, which means that Northern Ireland is an integral part of the United Kingdom for as long as its people want it to remain so."
The search is on for experts to inspect more than 2,000 installations operating under the controversial 'cash for ash' scheme.

The job, to be carried out on behalf of the Department for the Economy, went out to tender this week and the successful business will be guaranteed an eight-month contract to inspect 2,090 sites - with a possible extension of five years for potential 'enforcement' activity.

The programme of inspections, to include auditing as well as examination of boilers, is expected to take eight months, leading to a final report by the end of November, a spokesperson said. An advertisement placed in the EU Journal said the purpose of the programme was to assess "compliance" with regulations.

Where non-compliance is identified, the successful applicant will be expected to recommend action "including enforcement." In some cases, this may involve permanent exclusion from the scheme.

The optional extension periods provide flexibility for the contractor to support the Department for the Economy during the enforcement process.

Inspectors will also be expected to provide analysis and trend information, findings, conclusions and recommendations for future action to the Department for the Economy.

Energy watchdog Ofgem said in January it had inspected just 63 installations.

Of those, payments had been suspended on 33 for a number of reasons including technical issues.

The Renewable Heat Initiative scheme was set up in 2012 while former First Minister Arlene Foster was Minister for Enterprise.

The Northern Ireland programme failed to cap payments as the UK scheme had done, making it possible for businesses to make money by burning fuel

In the first 34 months of the scheme, 923 applications were made. A spike of 881 came after flaws were identified before the scheme was brought under control in November 2015.

The total RHI spend in Northern Ireland is estimated at over 1billion over the next 20 years, landing Stormont with a 490m bill.

Former Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness resigned after DUP leader Arlene Foster refused to step aside while the RHI scheme was investigated, triggering the collapse of Stormont.

A spokesperson said: "The Department wants to ensure openness and transparency around the RHI scheme and will consider publishing the findings following receipt of the final report."
The pub and restaurant industry in Northern Ireland could be damaged by this week's Budget, an entrepreneur from Northern Ireland has said

The pub and restaurant industry in Northern Ireland could be damaged by this week's Budget, an entrepreneur from Northern Ireland has said.

Tim Martin - chairman of pub chain JD Wetherspoon - ripped into Chancellor Philip Hammond, accusing him of delivering a "Budget for dinner parties" rather than pub-goers.

Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Mr Martin also highlighted the crippling cost of drinks licences in the region.

He said it could put off entrepreneurs from starting up new businesses in Northern Ireland.

Mr Martin said the cost of licenses continued to hold back some of the region's biggest towns and cities.

He said: "You have to pay an astronomical amount for a drinks licence here, whereas in Dublin and London they have removed most of the restrictions and you get a quicker response to changing trends in the industry. In London and Dublin at the moment there's a lot of craft beer bars set up by small entrepreneurs, but here a licence could set you back anywhere from 100,000 to 1million.

"This absolute restriction on the number of licences is unhelpful to the industry.

"You're essentially always waiting for an old licence to come up and I think it holds cities back - not just Belfast, but Derry and Omagh, too.

"I think pubs and restaurants are an important part of the economy both north and south of the border and it's very important they're regenerated."

Speaking about the Budget, Mr Martin calculated the firm would face nearly 30m of extra charges over the next five years, including a business rates bill of 7m, a 2m apprenticeship levy charge and a 4m hit from the sugar tax.

While he could not break the figures down to how they could affect his four branches in Northern Ireland, he said the Budget was "not helpful" to the industry and warned that it put supermarkets at an advantage to the hospitality trade.

Wetherspoon is planning to open another two pubs in Belfast on Royal Avenue and University Road. Last year it sold five bars to the Northern Ireland-based Granny Annie's Group.
A 98-year-old woman was taken to hospital after a teenager allegedly entered her house in Antrim town before swiping three envelopes containing 6,000 from her handbag, a court heard on Saturday.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named because of his age, is from Antrim and Ballymena Magistrates Court was told he is denying charges following the alleged distraction-type burglary.

A police officer objected to bail and said the 98-year-old who lives alone was taken to hospital after an incident in the Illustrious Court area of Antrim town which was reported to police at 1am on Friday.

The policeman said the woman was still in hospital for observations on Saturday morning.

The youth faces seven charges including burglary with intent to steal at Illustrious Court; theft of a wallet from a man; two charges of interfering with vehicles; assaulting police; criminal damage to a police car and attempted criminal damage to the window of a police vehicle.

In court, when asked if he understood the charges, he replied: "I didn't touch no cars".

The police officer said he believed he could connect the accused to the charges.

Objecting to bail he said at 12.10am on Friday police received a call that a male was "trying car doors" in the Ajax Court area of Antrim and two cars were entered and a wallet taken from one.

A youth whose clothing matched the description was arrested at Ballymena Road, Antrim and became aggressive, assaulting police and head butted a vehicle and also spat in the vehicle.

The officer said whilst the youth was in custody at Antrim PSNI Station a report came in that a 98-year-old woman who lives alone said a male pushed past her and had stolen three envelopes containing 6,000 in cash from her handbag.

During a search of the youth in custody police found envelopes containing cash.

The officer said a person known to the youth told police the accused had told him he had gone to an old woman's house and "grabbed her by the throat" but then said he was only "pulling his leg".

The officer said the other person said the youth then claimed he had asked the woman for a glass of water before he stole money.

The officer said during a police interview the accused said he was given the money by a man. The officer said that man denied giving him money.

The officer objected to bail saying there was a risk of re-offending and that the youth has 17 previous convictions from April 2015 until now including six for burglary and three for theft.

He said the youth is due to appear at Antrim Youth Court on Monday charged in connection with another alleged burglary.

Given the age of the alleged victim in the Illustrious Court incident, along with her frailty and her health issues the officer believed there could be a risk of interfering with witnesses.

The officer said the youth was on police bail at the time of the alleged offence and said he had breached a curfew five times and also breached an Anti-Social Behaviour Order five times.

The officer said the youth is currently being dealt with by the police's Reducing Offending Unit.

Defence barrister Mark Gribbin said his client was fully aware of the serious offences again him and said if released on bail he would be willing to report to police daily and wear a monitoring tag and he could live with his brother in Antrim town.

The defence lawyer said his client denied the charges again him.

Refusing bail, District Judge Amanda Brady said she was satisfied the police objections to bail were well founded and given his record there was a risk the accused could re-offend.

She said he did not have a suitable bail address and had shown in the past he had not adhered to court orders.

The 17-year-old was remanded in custody to appear at Antrim Youth Court on Monday via video link.
LINCOLN - College graduates and Nebraska businesses would both benefit under a bill introduced by Sen. Kate Bolz of Lincoln.

LB443, the Student Loan Repayment Tax Credit Act, would be a way for a business to help pay the student loan debt of its employees.

Businesses could pay for an employee's student loan principal and interest and gain a non-refundable tax credit of up to 50 percent of the amount paid. They would, however, be limited to $1,800 of credit per employee for up to 20 employees.

"We need more robust policy in order to build and maintain the workforce we need for the future," Bolz said.

The proposal would include credits for Nebraska businesses of up to $1.5 million per year. Also, at least 25 percent of the total money credited must go to businesses with 30 or fewer employees or businesses located in cities with fewer than 100,000 people.

There was no opposition to the bill and four people came to the hearing to show their support.

Frederik Ohles, president of Nebraska Wesleyan University, supported the bill saying it would help both students and businesses in Nebraska.

"I believe we need to offer Nebraska graduates a readily understood incentive to stay in this wonderful state," Ohles said.

Ohles also said the bill offers relief to a wide variety of occupations, not just the higher paying jobs in Nebraska. It would also help Nebraska employees and employers work together.

"Nebraska has a trend of exporting more educated people than we import," Ohles said. "Passing LB443 will help alleviate this problem and keep more graduates of Nebraska's higher education institutions working productively in our state."

Two students, Hunter Traynor and Nick Devine, also voiced their support for LB443.

Traynor, a sophomore at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, said the legislation would help students in two ways. It would incentivize students to attend more prestigious higher education schools and encourage them to stay in Nebraska when they graduate.

Devine is a recent graduate of UNL but said he is thinking about returning for graduate school. He said that the proposed model of adding student loan payments to benefit packages for businesses is starting to become popular in the country.

Devine said, however, that other businesses are not offered tax incentives like in this bill. He said only about 4 percent of businesses can offer such a benefit now without tax credits.

Even though the state is facing budget concerns, Bolz said she is confident the bill would be an overall benefit to Nebraska's economy.
A total of 320.8 million (279 million) in cash, assets and property has been offered by the 18 religious orders identified in the Ryan report

A total of 320.8 million (279 million) in cash, assets and property has been offered by the 18 religious orders identified in the Ryan report.

So far, just 209 million (182 million) has been received to cover the cost of investigating the abuse of children and compensating the survivors.

The Irish Comptroller and Auditor General's (C&AG) report revealed the names of the orders who have yet to meet the commitments they gave in talks with successive governments.

The Christian Brothers offered 34 million (29.6 million) after the Ryan report was published but the order had only paid 10 million (8.7 million) by the end of 2015. The Sisters of Mercy agreed to payments totalling 127.5 million (111 million) but have only met 24.9 million (21.6 million) of that.

The Oblates is 700,000 (609,000) short of its 20.7 million (18 million) offer while the Daughters of Charity transferred 4 million (3.5 million) of the 10 million (8.7 million) it pledged.

The Sisters of Charity has handed over just 2 million (1.7 million) of the 5 million (4.3 million) offered.
A prison roof has been set alight by an inmate who stripped off and torched his clothes.

Dozens of prisoners were evacuated while firefighters tackled the blaze at HMP Guys Marsh, near Shaftesbury, in Dorset, in the early hours of Saturday.

It is believed the inmate scaled the roof wearing multiple sets of clothes before setting light to them and triggering the "large fire" at around 8pm on Friday.

The inmate was drunken and protesting against changes to the prison regime, according to the BBC.

Some 64 inmates were taken to a secure area in the prison while the fire was brought under control and the scale of the damage ascertained.

A Dorset Police spokesman said: "Officers attended and discovered a large fire on the roof of a building within the prison, which is believed to have been started deliberately."

The prisoner was being treated by paramedics as a precautionary measure and was not immediately arrested.

During the prison's last inspection, investigators found it was in "crisis" and managers and staff had "all but lost control".

The unannounced inspection, triggered by "concerning intelligence", found gangs "operated openly" in the facility, which was overcrowded with 543 male inmates in November 2014.

Violence, largely driven by the drug Spice and illicitly brewed alcohol, was "very high" and inmates lived in fear, the HM Inspectorate of Prisons wrote in the 2015 report.

In November, images of inmates eating steaks and takeaways captured on smuggled mobile phones at the prison were condemned as "totally unacceptable" by Downing Street.

The Category C facility holds prisoners serving life sentences as well as those undergoing drug addiction treatment, according to the Ministry of Justice website.

Superintendent Caroline Naughton said: "This was an isolated incident. An investigation is now under way to establish the exact cause of the fire. These enquiries remain ongoing.

"We would like to reassure members of the community that there is no immediate risk to those living in the surrounding area and that the incident is under control."

A Prison Service spokesman added: "There is no danger to the public and staff are working to bring the incident to a safe conclusion as quickly as possible."
Thousands of council-maintained road bridges are substandard, a study has found.

Some 3,203 bridges in Britain are not fit to support the heaviest lorries which can weigh up to 44 tonnes, according to motoring research charity the RAC Foundation.

Many of these structures have weight restrictions and others are under programmes of increased monitoring or managed decline.

The number of substandard bridges has increased by 35% over the past two years, the analysis revealed.

They represent around 4.4% of the 72,000 bridges on the local road network.

Some of these bridges are substandard because they were built to earlier design standards, while others have deteriorated through age and use.

RAC Foundation director Steve Gooding said: "It's the pothole backlog that normally hits the headlines but it is easy to forget all the other aspects of road maintenance that councils are involved in; from clearing ditches to cutting verges to maintaining bridges.

"In the face of growing traffic volumes and ageing infrastructure the danger is that without an adequate long-term funding settlement we will see more rather than fewer bridges with weight restrictions, with the backlog bill getting bigger all the time."

There has been a spate of lorries causing problems on bridges where they exceed the weight limit.

A historic bridge in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, was closed for months after it was driven over by a lorry more than 10 times heavier than the structure's weight limit in September last year.

A lorry driver was fined in July 2016 after he ignored eight warning signs before driving a lorry more than six times the weight limit over Swarkestone Bridge, Derbyshire, which is an ancient monument.

Devon has the highest number of substandard bridges at 249, followed by Somerset (210), Essex (160) and Northumberland (148).

Almost half (47%) of bridges managed by Slough council are inadequate, more than anywhere else in Britain.

If funds were available then councils would want to bring 2,110 of the bridges back up to standard, but budget restrictions mean only 416 are expected to be restored within the next five years, according to the report.

The cost of clearing the backlog of work on all bridges is estimated to be 3.9 billion, but councils are currently spending just an eighth of that per year maintaining their bridge stock.

Many of the 199 councils who provided data for the study said funding and skill shortages were the biggest challenges they expected to face in maintaining the structures over the next decade.

The survey was carried out in partnership with the n ational bridges group of voluntary organisation the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning and Transport.

Martin Tett, transport spokesman at t he Local Government Association, representing more than 370 councils in England and Wales, said the report "underlines the chronic need for more investment in local roads".

He noted that councils receive just 27,000 per mile for local roads investment, compared with more than 1.1 million being spent on motorways and major roads.

"This gulf in funding puts the country's businesses at a competitive disadvantage and provides poor value for money," he said.

"Virtually every national journey starts and ends locally."

A Department for Transport spokeswoman said: "Local highway authorities are entirely responsible for maintaining their bridges. We have provided a record 6.1 billion up until 2021 for roads maintenance outside London, which councils can prioritise to help repair and strengthen bridges."
Iraqi civilians walk towards security forces after fleeing their homes due to fighting between government forces and Islamic State militants on the western side of Mosul (Khalid Mohammed/AP)

Iraq's United Nations ambassador has said there is no evidence that the Islamic State extremist group used chemical weapons in an attack in Mosul, the country's second-largest city.

Mohamed Alhakim told reporters ahead of a closed Security Council meeting on a reported chemical attack that he had spoken to officials in Baghdad and informed UN disarmament chief Kim Won-soo of the lack of evidence in advance.

The alleged attack occurred last week in eastern Mosul, an area declared fully liberated by Iraqi forces in January.

The attack hit a neighborhood along the Tigris River, which roughly divides the city in two.

Doctors in an urgent care hospital in the nearby city of Irbil say they began receiving patients showing symptoms of chemical weapons exposure on Thursday.

But Mr Alhakim said "there is really no evidence that Daesh has used this chemical weapon," using the Arab name for the IS group.

If chemical weapons are used, he said, there is evidence of people injured and material left on the ground but "we don't have anything from the operation in Mosul that tells us we have that".

But after the closed consultations, Britain's UN Ambassador Matthew Rycroft, the current council president, said Iraq's investigation is not over.

"We expressed concern over reports of possible use of chemical weapons by Daesh, and we look forward to the results of Iraq's investigation into those allegations," he said.

Mr Rycroft said Mr Kim briefed the council on his meeting with Mr Alhakim who told him "there is no evidence of the use of chemical weapons as discovered so far... but I don't think that this was the definitive end of this investigation".

The UN humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, Lisa Grande, had warned that the alleged use of chemical weapons in Mosul, if confirmed, would be a war crime and a serious violation of international humanitarian law.

Mr Alhakim said the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the international watchdog, had sent a letter to Iraq saying it was ready to come and help if there were any indications of chemical weapons use.

IS has used chemical weapons in Iraq and Syria at least 52 times, according to a report published late last year by IHS conflict monitor, a London-based research and intelligence gathering group. The report said that at least 19 of the 52 attacks took place in and around Mosul.

Iraqi and US-led coalition officials have repeatedly expressed concern regarding IS chemical weapon attacks.

However, IS-claimed insurgent attacks in Iraq and attacks targeting civilians attempting to flee Mosul cause far greater numbers of injuries and deaths to civilians.

AP
Unionists are still in the majority following the Assembly election, writes former Taoiseach John Bruton, and Sinn Fein must be careful not to entrench division further in pursuit of an unaffordable objective.

In the recent Assembly election, the Democratic Unionists got 28.1% of the vote, Sinn Fein 27.9%, the Ulster Unionists 12.9%, the SDLP 11.9% and the Alliance Party 9.1%. The fact that Sinn Fein increased its share of the vote by a substantial 3.9 percentage points has led some commentators to interpret this as a mandate to start negotiating towards a united Ireland.

There is some wishful thinking going on here. Of the 90 seats in the new Assembly, 49 were won by parties that broadly support the continuation of the Union with Britain, while only 39 were won by parties who want to replace that with a union with the rest of Ireland.

(Incidentally, the Alliance Party and Ulster Unionist Party increased their vote-shares, too, by 2.1 and 0.3 percentage points respectively.)

Putting a choice between the two unions at the heart of the current political debate in the north is likely to deepen sectarian divisions and make day-to-day compromise even more difficult to achieve.

To use a phrase Gerry Adams often used in another context, it is "not helpful to the peace process": if by "peace process" we mean, in the first place, a reconciliation between the two communities in the north.

Centring debate around whether one is for or against a united Ireland would make any attempt at creating an alternative to the Sinn Fein/DUP duopoly of power next to impossible.

Indeed, that may be one of the reasons the drum is being beaten for a united Ireland. It is a good way of freezing politico-sectarian divisions. And that suits both Sinn Fein and the DUP.

Of course, as a tactic, it may also help Sinn Fein electorally in the Republic, because distant, unattainable, objectives, such as a united Ireland, or the restoration of the Irish language, have been useful, and reusable, rallying cries for other parties in the Republic in the past (notably by Fianna Fail when De Valera led them).

The economic case made for immediate agitation towards a united Ireland - that the two parts of this island would become more prosperous together than apart - seems to ignore the huge subsidy the north receives from Britain (20% of its GDP).

The Republic, with a much smaller population and tax-base, could not replace this - especially if it itself is suffering the dire after-effects of Brexit.

A united Ireland would, in the context of Brexit, simply move the border from Newry to Larne. The costs on east/west trade between Ireland and Britain caused by Brexit would all remain, but the British subsidy to the north would be gone.

Now, I know money is not everything. If the people of the north are united in wanting to make new constitutional arrangements (whatever they are) work, they will work.

But Irish unity imposed by a simple majority of the population, overruling a large minority, who still want to remain with Britain, would not leave behind a united people, willing to make big sacrifices for the common good of a united Ireland.

In my view, a united north must come first and only when we have such unity can wider constitutional options be considered in a pragmatic way.

The recent election did not help in that regard and a Sinn Fein campaign for a united Ireland will deepen divisions further. We should recall the futile anti-partition campaign of the late-1940s, which did just that.

Pro-unity commentators have attempted to address the financial problem of replacing the British subsidy in the event that the north left Britain and joined a united Ireland.

It has been posited that Britain would still have a financial responsibility to offer, a severance payment of sorts, to the north for at least a decade, or possibly two.

Given current attitudes in Britain, this seems to me to be wholly naive.

If Britain is reluctant to pay its share of the EU bills, which were contracted while it was a full voting member of the EU, it will hardly be willing to pay the costs of an entity that has seceded from its control.

It is hard to see Britain contributing for years to a place that had left it, at the very time when it was also trying to prevent Scotland doing the same. A post-Brexit Britain will, I believe, be a poorer country than it is today. Could there be savings in a united Ireland through economies of scale and merged services, one parliament, one health service, one education service, and so on?

This is contrary to the scenario envisaged in the Good Friday Agreement, which provides for the retention of separate northern institutions and for guarantees, if ultimate sovereignty is transferred from London to Dublin.

One also needs to consider the potential security risks and consequent increases in police and military spending in the Republic, if a significant minority in the north decided to resist the arrangements.

Resistance would be geographically concentrated and hard to contain. For example, in the election last week, parties supporting a united Ireland received only 3% of the vote in East Belfast, only 10% in Strangford and only 14% in Lagan Valley and in East Antrim. These security costs would fall on the Irish taxpayer.

Could moderate unionists be convinced about the benefits of reunification? They, at least, would recognise that the British have little interest in the north. This is true. I do not sense a deep emotional commitment in Britain to any part of Ireland, or to its interests, as the Brexit vote has shown.

But loud talk and flag-waving about a united Ireland by Sinn Fein would undermine these very "moderate" unionists.

One would not just be asking moderate unionists to be reasonable about some pragmatic arrangement. One would be asking them to cease to be unionist. That would be asking them to change their identity, as they see it.

Identity is no small matter. That is why I would worry about the security implications of the course advocated by Sinn Fein and others.

There is more urgent work to be done.

Let us hope, now that the elections are over, that a pragmatic and united case about how to deal with Brexit can first be agreed between unionists and nationalists in the north and then put by them to Brussels, London and Dublin.

That is the job of a new Assembly, including Sinn Fein.

They should get on with it.

John Bruton was Taoiseach from 1994 to 1997
My friend, journalist Chris Buckland, has died at the age of 73 and newspapers everywhere will never be the same again. That's a statement I make advisedly because Chris loaned his silky skills to so many journals whose editors were eager for him to enrich their columns.

In his time, he added to pages in dailies like the Mirror, the Mail, the Express, the Times and the Sun, but it would be simpler to list the ones he didn't work for.

Chris and I met in the Belfast office of the Daily Mirror when the Troubles were at their height and he, Syd Young and I were the nucleus of a dedicated staff. Buckland and McIlwaine shared important bylines, adventures and misadventures. There was one occasion in Derry he saved my life during a riot, when he pulled me down behind a wall as a stray bullet ricocheted inches above my head.

And there was the hilarious afternoon when, a bit the worse for a pint or two, I had to lock him in the car while I was interviewing evangelist Billy Graham, who might have tried to save his soul.

Once in Derry, during a lull in a riot, we were relaxing in the bar when he turned to me and said: "I'm just stepping outside for a breath of fresh gas."

Cigar-puffing Chris had an unfailing sense of humour.

One afternoon, he phoned me from Cyprus where he was covering an uprising for the Sun and declared as he complained about his hotel: "The first casualty of war isn't the truth - it's room service."

And another story involving him to bring a smile: a Belfast church was struck by lightning and suffered quite a bit of damage. Chris asked the rector if the church was insured: "No, we aren't covered for acts of God," came the reply.

Politicians of the day like Minister of Home Affairs Bill Craig, Enoch Powell and Bernadette Devlin had a liking for and a trust in Buckland whose passion for the political scene was born at an early age.

Chris, born in Burnley, told me how his mother died when he was only five. As the eight-year-old son of an RAF sergeant he queued up at Westminster to get a ticket for the public gallery.

He told me once how his passion for journalism began as a young lad one day in 1953 when, as a paperboy, he stopped to read every front page's coverage of the conquest of Mount Everest by Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing.

Chris battled cancer bravely for eight years, but never lost his sense of humour or skill with a pen.
Michelle ONeill has claimed the British Government is the biggest stumbling block in the move to get the Stormont Executive back up and running.

Sinn Feins Northern leader warned that the clock is ticking on the talks to secure full implementation of agreements.

And party president Gerry Adams mocked Secretary of State James Brokenshires threat to call another election if the Stormont talks fail.

It is a sign of change that a British Government is threating us with an election. Back in the day, the threat was martial law, internment, censorship, and lead and plastic bullets. So, Mr Brokenshires threat is progress.

Speaking in Dublin today, Mrs ONeill said she welcomed recent comments by Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan calling on the British to honour the agreement to release funding to allow around 50 conflict related inquests to proceed.

The clock is ticking on talks to secure the full implementation of the agreements and to rebuild public confidence in the institutions, she said.

Behind each of these inquests are families that have not been afforded the basic right to an inquest for their loved ones. Some having been waiting for 45 years. The funding for these legacy inquests is agreed. Mr Brokenshire should release this money as the Lord Chief Justice has requested.

This British Government continue to refuse to honour their obligations and refuse to implement other outstanding issues from the agreements. This approach by the British Government is the biggest impediment in the talks. The Irish Government must live up to their role as co-equal guarantor of the agreements to ensure that the British Government act, added Mrs ONeill.
Are there leftover, unused, or expired medications in your medicine cabinet?

Did you know that over-the-counter and prescription medications can contaminate waterways  rivers, lakes, and groundwater  when flushed, put down the drain, or thrown in the trash? Most water treatment facilities do not have the technology to remove these compounds.

Unused medication left in your medicine cabinet can be just as harmful. These medications can fall into the wrong hands  either resulting in drug abuse or accidental poisoning. Prescription drug abuse is the fastest growing drug problem in the United States. A grandparents medication is involved in 38 percent of child poisoning cases.

Medication disposal is an easy and safe method of keeping medications out of the environment and from falling into the wrong hands. The Nebraska MEDS initiative offers a convenient way to do the right thing  with over 300 pharmacies across the state accepting leftover medications for proper disposal.

Safely dispose of your unused, expired, or leftover medications the right way by Butler County Pharmacy, 372 South 9th Street, in David City. Butler County Pharmacy will collect your medications for free  no questions asked.

Clean out your medicine cabinet April 29

Instead of flushing or trashing those old medications, take them back to a collection site on Saturday, April 29 as part of the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.

The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day provides a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs, reducing the potential for abuse, accidental overdose, and environmental impact. After April 1, find a collection site at www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/.

In addition, pharmacies across Nebraska will take back unused medications at any time as part of the Nebraska MEDS initiative. Over 300 pharmacies across the state accept medications for proper disposal, giving consumers an easy and safe method of keeping medications out of the environment and from falling into the wrong hands.

Since August 2012, over 33,000 pounds of medication have been collected by Nebraska pharmacies for safe disposal. Be part of the solution and take back your leftovers today. Find other participating pharmacies at www.nebraskameds.org or call the Nebraska Regional Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222.

The Nebraska MEDS initiative is being offered to the state of Nebraska with funding from the Nebraska Environmental Trust and the Nebraska Legislature. The Nebraska Medication Education on Disposal Strategies (MEDS) Coalition educates Nebraskans about drug disposal and provide safe ways to dispose of them in order to better safeguard the environment and protect public health. The Coalition includes the Nebraska Pharmacists Association, Lincoln/Lancaster County Health Department, Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, Nebraska Regional Poison Center, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, WasteCap Nebraska, and The Groundwater Foundation.
Under a scorching sun on Friday, two ethnic Chinese men became the first Buddhists in Indonesias Aceh province to be whipped for violating its strict Islamic code.

The two men, identified only by their initials, A.S. and A.A., received nine and seven lashes, respectively, as punishment for gambling through cockfighting.

But their punishment was considerably lighter than canings meted out in Aceh to three other people on Friday, including an 18-year-old woman. The three received between 94 and 112 lashes of the executioners rattan cane for sexual misconduct. A sixth person was also caned on gambling charges.

A.S., a 57-year-old Buddhist man, was whipped nine times on a public stage outside the al-Munawarrah mosque in Jantho, a town in Aceh Besar district.

He glanced a few times at his punisher, a man cloaked in a hood. As soon as the flogging ended, A.S. was taken off the stage to a nearby ambulance to receive medical attention. Later, his fellow Buddhist and co-defendant, A.A., received seven lashes.

As non-Muslims, the two ethnic Chinese said they chose to receive their sentences under Sharia law, and not under Indonesias criminal code that could have resulted in incarceration. Aceh is the only province in Indonesia that enforces the Islamic code.

The two were caned following their convictions for betting on cockfighting, or gambling, which is an offense under Sharia law. Previously, the law did not stipulate that non-Muslims convicts could be subjected to public caning.

That changed in 2015 when Aceh amended its criminal code to include corporal punishment for non-Muslims under certain circumstances. Any non-Muslims who commit acts considered as crimes under Sharia law in the presence of Muslims could be prosecuted and punished by an Islamic court, particularly if Indonesias criminal code did not cover the crime in question, according to the amendments.

A 35-year-old Muslim man identified as M.A. received seven lashes for his conviction on similar gambling charges. He braced himself to be whipped as the executioner aimed the rattan cane to his back.

Sharia Council judges in Jantho had sentenced the three men to 10 lashes, but their sentences were mitigated because they had spent time in police detention since their arrest on Jan. 1. For each month in jail, they received one less lashing.

Just watching

Following their punishments, the men joked with the paramedics who were treating them.

We just happened to be watching (the cockfight). Those who were really gambling managed to flee when the police arrived, A.S. told BenarNews.

There were only the three of us who didnt run away and remained there, so the police arrested us.

A Jantho prosecutor challenged their statement, saying investigators found evidence that the men took part in the betting.

When they were arrested, the police seized 400,000 rupiah (U.S. $30) of betting money, prosecutor Rivandi Aziz told journalists.

Asked why non-Muslims were subjected to caning, Aziz said they were given the option to be subjected to Sharia law or the criminal code, and they had opted for Sharia law.

We live in Aceh, so we have to obey the law that prevails in our region, A.S. said, adding that he made the decision without bowing to any pressure.

Public caning of non-Muslims is rare in Aceh. Most often, Muslims who violate Sharia law are subject to the punishment. Previously, a Christian woman was lashed 28 times in Takengon, Aceh Tengah, on April 12, 2016, after she was convicted of selling alcoholic beverages.

An executioner canes a woman in Jantho, Aceh Besar, March 10, 2017. [Nurdin Hasan/BenarNews]

Adultery and sexual harassment

Two men and a woman were punished as well before dozens of spectators, including women and children, despite the law forbidding those younger than 18 from witnessing a public caning.

A 41-year-old man identified as D.B.A. received 112 lashes. He was to receive 120 lashes the number was reduced to reflect the eight months he spent in jail.

The executioner took a break after 80 lashes. A team of doctors examined D.B.A.s condition before the final 32 lashes were administered.

For each 10 lashes, a prosecutor asked D.B.A. if he could endure the punishment. D.B.A. nodded to confirm that he could.

Prosecutor Aziz said police arrested D.B.A. in Sukamakmur sub-district on July 27, 2016, after they received reports about sexual harassment involving three boys, aged 15 and 16.

The harassment happened at three different times and in different places, so he was tried with three different charges, he said, adding that the panel of judges called for 40 lashes for each case.

Sharia stipulates that a sexual offender could face up to 40 lashes while sexual harassment to children is punishable by a maximum of 90 lashes.

Also punished before the spectators were a man and woman charged with fornication. They were sentenced to 100 lashes each.

The 25-year-old man identified as R.A. was lashed 94 times while his partner, an 18-year-old woman identified as C.N. was lashed 99 times.
A police officer in Palu, Central Sulawesi, shows a weapon found in a river earlier this month and that was linked to MIT member Basri (also known as Bagong), who was arrested last year, March 6, 2017.

Authorities in Indonesias Central Sulawesi province killed a suspected militant and arrested eight others in separate raids Friday, including six men who were allegedly planning to bomb a local police station, police said.

During one of the raids elite police counter-terrorist squad Densus 88 fatally shot a suspect identified by authorities only by his initials, L.S, as he was resisting arrest in Parigi Moutong regency, sources said. Officers seized evidence including a motorcycle.

Two alleged associates, identified as L.N. and I.R., were captured nearby at around 11 a.m. on the Trans-Sulawesi Highway connecting North and South Sulawesi provinces, a police source told BenarNews on condition of anonymity.

The arrest came shortly after Densus 88 arrested six other suspected militants, in a house in Tolitoli, a regency about 428 km (266 miles) north of Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi province, at 8:30 a.m.

They are allegedly part of the Eastern Indonesia Mujahideen (MIT), a local police officer said, referring to an armed militant group based in Poso, Central Sulawesi that had pledged allegiance to the extremist group Islamic State (IS).

The six allegedly planned to join the others in bombing the Parigi Moutong police office.

In addition, they also planned to attack police officers who were guarding banks in the district, another police source said.

Police seized bomb-making materials including fertilizer, sulfur, charcoal, nails and denatured alcohol.

Central Sulawesi Police spokesman Hari Suprapto confirmed the arrests to BenarNews.

True, there were arrests; six in Tolitoli and three in Parigi Moutong, Hari said. He did not verify reports about potential links to MIT or that one of the suspects had been killed.

We will not be able to comment right now on the linkage to MIT, including about the seized evidence in the arrest, he said, When we have all the data, we will inform you.

Operation Tinombala Task Force, a joint police and military operation involving about 2,000 personnel, has been hunting for remaining MIT members in Poso, the hotbed of the militant group, since the killing of MIT leader Santoso (alias Abu Wardah) on July 18, 2016.

In Poso there are still nine members (of MIT) on the police wanted list, including Ali Kalora. They still continue to be pursued, Hari said, referring to the alleged current MIT leader.

M-16 rifle

Central Sulawesi Police Chief Brig. Gen. Rudy Sufahriadi, confirmed that Operation Tinombala had resulted in the discovery in a river in Poso of an M-16 rifle thought to be owned by Basri (alias Bagong), one of the top MIT members who was arrested in September.

The weapon was found on Saturday, March 4, at about 5:10 p.m. at the bottom of Puna river, Gantinadi hamlet, Tangkura village, in Poso Pesisir, he said, adding the weapon was in a good condition and police also found 20 bullets.

He said locals had spotted the weapon but left it in the river because they were afraid to touch it.
Members of a Malaysian youth group prepare to hand over flowers as a gesture of peace to North Korean embassy officials in Kuala Lumpur, March 10, 2017.

Witnesses have helped Malaysian authorities legally confirm that Kim Jong Nam was the man killed in a poison-attack in the Kuala Lumpur area last month, Malaysias police chief said Friday but without giving more details.

Police Inspector-General Khalid Abu Bakar cited a need to protect witnesses as he announced the official verification of the dead mans identity, whose North Korean diplomatic passport bore the name Kim Chol.

He said investigators verified the identity upon receiving witness confirmation that the body belonged to the 45-year-old half-brother of Pyongyang leader Kim Jong Un.

We have now established that Kim Chol is Kim Jong Nam. We have fulfilled the requirements of the law in identifying the body, Khalid told a news conference.

For the safety of the witnesses, we will not be divulging any explanation. I am not going to say more than that, Khalid added.

Weeks ago, Malaysian officials had identified the dead man as Kim Jong Nam, citing a comparison between the passport with Kim Chols name and documents provided by the North Korean embassy, according to Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The North Korean ambassador, who has since been expelled from Malaysia, disputed Zahids assertion and officials representing the regime in Pyongyang never referred to the man killed at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 on Feb. 13 as Kim Jong Nam.

Since the killing, which, according to Malaysian authorities, was caused by a banned nerve agent being smeared on his face, officials have arrested and charged two Southeast Asian for his assassination and identified at least seven North Koreans as suspects. This week, amid a diplomatic feud with Pyongyang, Malaysias prime minister accused North Korea of being behind the assassination.

Bilateral tensions have escalated over Malaysias refusal to release Kims body without next-of-kin coming forward to claim the remains and provide DNA needed for a positive identification.

At Fridays news conference, Khalid did not say whether any of Kims relatives were among the witness or witnesses who helped verify the dead mans identity, or whether any DNA sample was handed over to police.

I will not reveal anymore about the identification process, Khalid said.

We have no use for the body anymore and we will give the body to the Ministry of Health as no one has claimed the body, the police chief added. Under Malaysian law, only next-of-kin can claim a persons remains, he noted.

Malaysians rally

Tensions between the two countries ratcheted up this week as they expelled their respective ambassadors and imposed exit bans from their territories on each others citizens.

On Thursday, two Malaysian employees working for the U.N. in North Korea left that country. Three staffers at the Malaysian embassy in Pyongyang as well as their families were said to be stuck in the communist state Friday because of the travel ban.

Prime Minister Najib Razak on Friday called on his countrymen, including the political opposition, to come together and support his governments efforts in resolving the diplomatic crisis with North Korea.

If we are united when facing any problems or threats, the enemy from outside would not be able to destroy everything we have built over time, Najib wrote in a blog post on his official website.

Malaysia has maintained cordial diplomatic relations with other countries but they should not take this for granted, he said, alluding to bilateral ties with North Korea dating back 44 years.

This does not mean any of them could abuse the hospitality Malaysia has provided over time and violate the law of our country or do as they please without respecting our sovereignty, he said.

Meanwhile, Malaysians on Friday prayed and rallied in Kuala Lumpur for the safe return of their nine countrymen who have been prevented from leaving North Korea.

Demonstrators converged outside the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

One of the groups, Malaysian Youth Solidarity brought bouquets of flowers as a goodwill gesture in calling for a peaceful resolution to the dispute.
Paisit Wongmaung (center), director-general of Thai Justice Ministry's Special Investigations Department, announces the end of a 23-day siege by authorities at Wat Dhammakaya during a press conference in Pathum Thani province, March 10, 2017.

Updated at 9:35 a.m. ET on 2017-03-13

Authorities Friday ended a 23-day siege at Thailands biggest Buddhist temple after they could not catch a founding monk wanted for money-laundering and other charges, although they had deployed hundreds of police officers and soldiers to hunt him down.

Investigators will keep looking for the wanted monk, Dhammajayo, beyond the confines of Wat Dhammakaya, a sprawling temple complex in Pathum Thani province, a top official told a news conference at the temple on Friday.

Also on Friday, Thailands top religious body began a process that could lead to Dhammajayo losing his status as a monk. The former abbot is wanted on charges of money laundering and receiving stolen property, among others.

The decision to end the siege occurred more than three weeks after more than 4,000 police officers and soldiers sealed off the 1,000-acre temple on the northern outskirts of Bangkok to search for Dhammajayo. Monks and followers made themselves into human shields, leading to scuffles with members of the search party.

The other monks eventually allowed the ministrys Department of Special Investigations (DSI) to search a building and its vicinity, where officials thought the former abbot had been hiding, but this was futile.

We checked out Zone A, B and the Boon Raksa building where they erected barriers. We cannot find Dhammajayo, DSI Director-General Paisit Wongmaung told the news conference.

We conclude that the person we are looking for is now a fugitive, but the statute of limitations in the case is 15 years, so we will set up a pursuit team and deal with immigration police to prevent him from leaving the country, Paisit said.

Authorities invoked Article 44 of an interim constitution adopted following May 2014 coup which brought a military government to power in Thailand, to allow troops to enter and search the temple, according to the Reuters news agency.

We are glad there is a sign of peaceful resolution but cannot rest assured until Article 44 is revoked, senior monk Phra Pasura Dantamano told Reuters.

Dhammakaya has 5 million disciples nationwide through 690 domestic branches, Methapan Bodhoteeraroj, the dean of the anthropology faculty at Maha Chulalongkorn Rajavidalaya University, told BenarNews. It has another 200 branches internationally.

Buddhist council meets

Meanwhile, Thailands leading body of senior Buddhist monks, the Supreme Sangha Council, convened Friday to begin the procedure of stripping Dhammajayo of his status as a monk, according to police Lt. Col. Pongporn Pramsaneh, the director of the National Office of Buddhism.

The National Office of Buddhism has proposed to the monk council to disrobe the monk who regularly broke Buddhist precepts, Pongporn said, referring to Dhammajayo.

This undated photo shows Dhammajayo preaching at Wat Dhammakaya . [Courtesy of Wat Dharmakaya]

Money laundering

Dhammajayo and his associates are charged with receiving 21 checks valued at more than 1.2 billion baht (U.S. $34.4 billion) from Klongchan Credit Union between 2009 and 2011. Investigators allege Dharmajayo was involved in a money-laundering scheme involving the checks.

In early March 2016, Supachai Srisupa-aksorn, the former president of Klongchan Credit Union, who had transferred the money to Dharmajayo and his associates, was sentenced for embezzling money.

DSI investigators suspected that Dhammajayo and his temple aided Supachai by receiving stolen property and laundering the money he embezzled. In June 2016, DSI investigators submitted a complaint of theft and money laundering against Dhammajayo and a prosecutor filed an indictment on Nov. 23, 2016.

Dhammajayo has links to the political party of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra who has been in self-exile since a 2006 coup. His sister, Yingluck, was forced from office in a similar coup led by now Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha in 2014.
The Nebraska Legislature needs to concentrate on the Nebraska Department of Corrections and solutions to its myriad of problems for the rest of the 2017 session. Period.

While the governor and the attorney general and the corrections director all say that the most recent incident at the Tecumseh State Prison wasnt a riot and didnt jeopardize public safety, Id like to see the three of them convince the family and friends of the late Damon Fitzgerald and Michael Galindo of that. The two lost their lives in the March 2 incident.

Officials have no idea who killed the two men when a group of 40 or more inmates were burning state property in a yard outside their housing unit. The same housing unit where a May riot in 2015 left two inmates dead. That murder has never been solved. Odds are pretty high that this one wont be either. Snitching in prison is an automatic death sentence.

The 39-year-old Fitzgerald was serving 310 to 470 years for Douglas County charges of sexual assault, robbery, burglary, use of a weapon to commit a felony, assault by a confined person and assault on a police officer. The 31-year-old Galindo was serving 12 to 21 years on Buffalo and Scotts Bluff County charges for robbery, forgery, misdemeanor attempted possession of a controlled substance, driving under suspension and sale of alcohol to a minor. What were these two doing in the same prison? Even more alarming, why were they in the same housing unit?

Corrections Director Scott Frakes said it has to do with length of sentence and timing of arrival in the system. He said officials do pay attention to vulnerability of certain inmates. Isnt it strange then that the two victims of the 2015 riot were both convicted child molesters, clearly among the most despised in a prison population.

In remarks on the floor of the Legislature, Senator Dan Watermeier (who represents the district where the prison is located) noted that the response to this latest incident was much quicker than the Mothers Day incident in 2015 and the recent one was much shorter duration and no prison staff were injured.

Lincoln Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks, who last year chaired the prison investigative committee, and others took issue with the characterization. She said she and her committee colleagues were sorry and terrified by the incident, but not surprised. Then she said, " if we continue to sugarcoat something like this, refusing to call it a riot, it's a crisis."

Many problems facing the Corrections Department are directly related to lack of funding and resources. Theres also staff shortages, inadequate pay for officers, staff assaults, inadequate programming and lack of social activities for inmates. Those are being addressed in the two-year budget under consideration. But lawmakers still need to address alternative sentencing and reforms that affect prison population.

Several senators said it is unacceptable that the state cannot at least provide minimum protection for people working and residing in the prison system. Frakes said the publics safety was never compromised. I suggest we need to redefine public to include people both outside AND inside prison walls.

ACLU of Nebraska Executive Director Danielle Conrad, a former state senator, said the latest riot is yet another painful reminder that Nebraskas prison system is failing our state. Prison population has been over emergency levels of 140 percent for nearly a decade. She said the time is now for Governor Pete Ricketts to declare an emergency and bring smart reform.

Lawmakers must pass meaningful reforms pending this session to slowly remedy the crisis. Conrad said its no longer a question of if litigation will be filed, but a question of when.

Omaha Senator Bob Krist said that although Frakes and Ricketts did not create the problems, they and the Legislature own this situation.

Its time to fix it now.

J.L. Schmidt is the statehouse correspondent for the Nebraska Press Association. He has been covering Nebraska government and politics since 1979. He has been a registered independent for 18 years.
For Immediate Release, March 11, 2017 Contact: Nathan Donley, (971) 717-6406, ndonley@biologicaldiversity.org Court Clears California to Require Cancer Warning on Roundup FRESNO, Calif. A court has ruled that the state of California can move forward with plans to designate glyphosate  the main ingredient in Monsanto's widely used herbicide Roundup  as a known carcinogen. The Friday decision, which finalizes a preliminary ruling, sets the stage for the California Environmental Protection Agency to be the first regulatory body in the United States to recognize glyphosate as a carcinogen. In late 2015 the California agency announced its intent to list glyphosate as a human carcinogen based on the finding by the World Health Organization that it is a probable human carcinogen. The WHO's cancer research agency is widely considered to be the gold standard for research on cancer. This ruling makes clear that California absolutely made the right decision to move forward in designating Roundup as a carcinogen, said Nathan Donley, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity and a former cancer researcher. This court acknowledged that it's proper for the state to require common-sense labeling that accurately reflects the findings of the world's most reliable, transparent and science-based assessment of glyphosate. Why would you want a lesser standard? Monsanto filed a lawsuit challenging the proposed designation soon after the state announced its intent to list glyphosate as a carcinogen under California's Proposition 65 law. In the suit Monsanto alleged that it was unlawful to have an unelected, foreign body inform the state's policies. Clearly scientific integrity has nothing to do with political boundaries, said Donley. To suggest that the people responsible for protecting California's health and environment should ignore the work of the world's leading researchers is a stark reminder of the dangers of allowing corporate insiders to influence regulation of their own products. Whenever that happens, we all lose. Glyphosate is the most widely used pesticide in the United States and the world. It is also the most widely used pesticide in California, as measured by area of treated land. An analysis by the Center found that more than half of the glyphosate sprayed in California is applied in the state's eight most impoverished counties. The analysis also found that the populations in these counties are predominantly Hispanic or Latino, indicating that glyphosate use in California is distributed unequally along both socioeconomic and racial lines. The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.2 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.
Several Senator Priority Bills were debated this week on the floor of the legislature. LB447 introduced by Senator Chambers as his priority bill received lengthy debate by the body. LB447 would eliminate certain mandatory minimum penalties for class ID and IC Felony offenses. Senator Linehan brought a floor amendment to the bill, AM546. The amendment was adopted and replaced the bill. AM546 amends LB447 to focus on elimination of the mandatory minimums for drug offenses. LB447 as amended by AM546 was advanced to Select File.

Senator Craigheads priority bill was also debated this week. LB195 would require notification by health care facilities that perform mammography to include in their report to a patient information that identifies the patients breast tissue density classification. Such information would be provided to raise awareness of the impact of breast density on cancer detection. LB195 was advanced to Select File.

Another priority bill which was debated this week was LB407 introduced by Senator Pansing Brooks. LB407 would create and provide duties for the Whiteclay Public Health Emergency Taskforce. The Whiteclay Plublic Taskforce would examine public health implications of alcohol sales in Whiteclay, Nebraska and the surrounding areas, including the Pine Ridge Reservation. The Task Force would then make recommendations to the legislature on how the state should solve issues related to the Whiteclay Public Helath Emergency including the economic and social issues related to such emergency. LB407 was advanced to select file.

Committee Hearings this week included the public hearing for LB67 introduced by Senator Brasch. LB67 was heard before the Judiciary Committee on Thursday, March 9 and included a great deal of testimony. LB67 would adopt the Fair Repair Act. This bill would require that each original equipment manufacturer of equipment sold or used in this state shall make available for purchase by owners and independent repair providers all diagnostic repair tools incorporating the same diagnostic, repair, and remote communications capabilities that such Original Equipment Manufacturer makes available to its own repair staff or any authorized repair provider. There was a great deal of testimony both in support and against LB67 at the hearing. LB67 would affect items such as tractors, phones, appliances and more.

My own bill LB637 had its public hearing on Wednesday, March 8. LB637 would prohibit applicant or permit holder information regarding firearm registration, possession, sale or use. Such information would still be available to law enforcement officials but would not be considered a public record. LB637 focuses on addressing a privacy concern.

As the legislature begins to move into all day debate and committee hearings wind down I look forward to discussing the big issues that face Nebraskans and the constituents of District 23.

State Senator Bruce Bostelman represents District 23 in the Nebraska Legislature.
SCHUYLER  Denise Kracls office is filled with inspirational phrases.

Its okay to dream.

The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.

Dont look back, youre not going that way.

These messages, mixed among the office decor, represent her outlook on life.

Kracl often sees the worst side of people through her job as the Colfax County attorney, but she refuses to let that impact her faith.

You have two choices in a job like this, she said. Either you continue to believe that its possible for humanity to do good things and that changes are possible in people, or you give up and you crawl under a rock someplace.

I dont want to be cynical.

The 43-year-old is focused on being a positive role model for the next generation, including her 11-year-old daughter Kodie.

And theres no shortage of examples to prove shes accomplishing this goal.

Saul Soltero, a former Colfax County diversion officer, saw her willingness to give back when he started the Schuyler Food and Toy Drive about seven years ago.

Kracl immediately joined the effort, and the two have been working together ever since to bring food, toys and other items to needy families during Christmastime.

The drive served 110 children and 34 families last year, with an emphasis on providing sanitary items such as toothbrushes, toilet paper, shampoo, toothpaste and laundry detergent that arent available through government assistance programs.

Weve really made a push toward providing those items, said Kracl.

The county attorney credits local donors and volunteers, including the Project S group at Schuyler Central High School, which raises money for the project, collects items and helps prepare the care packages, for making the effort a success.

There are a lot of very giving people in this area, because I couldnt do all the things I do if we didnt have them, she said.

But Soltero knows Kracl also deserves recognition for her involvement with that program and many others.

I cant think of a better person to be in charge of the county attorneys office, he said. She genuinely cares about that community and she wears it on her sleeve.

Kracl, who was a probation officer and deputy county attorney before being appointed Colfax County attorney in late 2010, has a simple reason for wanting to be involved.

It makes me feel good to know that Im helping other people, she said.

And shes not satisfied just opening her checkbook.

Sometimes you can do so much more good for people by taking five minutes and showing them humanity than you can by donating $20, said Kracl.

This is especially true at Center for Survivors in Columbus, where Kracl is in her third six-year term on the board and currently serves as president.

She has seen firsthand the effects domestic violence and sexual assault have on victims and their families, and knows how difficult it can be to escape those situations.

Ive seen enough broken bones over my time to know theres a definite need, she said of the services provided by Center for Survivors.

The center serves such a vital need in our community, Kracl said.

Abbie Tessendorf, services director at Center for Survivors, called Kracl someone who is always willing to stand up when something needs to get done.

I think shes just one of the hardest-working people. And she does it all because she loves this community, said Tessendorf.

She is not afraid to work, I can tell you that, added Tessendorf, who referred to her fellow Columbus High School graduate as warm, caring and tough when she needs to be.

The tough side often shows in the courtroom, with the caring side coming out in the community.

Kracl is planning her third mission trip to Alaska through First United Methodist Church in Columbus. The group, which is heading to Willow later this year, has previously assisted at a church and food pantry in that community, helped with Habitat for Humanity projects in Fairbanks and taken on other service work.

I love going to Alaska, and getting to volunteer there is even better, said Kracl, who will teach vacation Bible school, cut firewood and lend a hand wherever its needed during the upcoming trip.

She also volunteers at local high school track meets and any other community event she can squeeze into an already jam-packed schedule.

I love opportunities to interact with kids when theyre doing things right, said Kracl, who is the first female board member for Schuyler Community Development and part of a group that created a Schuyler Is Home Facebook page to connect local residents with volunteer opportunities.

If you want to volunteer and make your community a better place, some people just dont know how to start, she said while describing the goal of the social media page.

That hasnt been a problem for Kracl, who was recognized last month as the volunteer of the year by Schuyler Area Chamber of Commerce.

In addition to her volunteer work, theres a lengthy list of professional accomplishments.

The Columbus native started an intervention and truancy program at Schuyler Community Schools focused on improving student attendance.

This program, backed by grant and county funding, added a full-time truancy officer at Schuyler Central High School who works with roughly 50 students a year to remove the barriers that keep them out of class.

Were doing everything we can to try to keep kids in school, said Kracl, who also addresses the state Legislature on juvenile justice issues.

Last year she partnered with Nebraska Workforce Development in Columbus to create a new program that replaces community service with employment training for some first-time, nonviolent offenders in the juvenile diversion program.

The B.E.S.T. Program  an acronym for boosting employment and soft skills training  teaches youths how to find jobs, write resumes, interview and dress for the workplace with a goal of keeping them employed and out of the courts system.

Shes also working with the District 5 Probation Office in Columbus on a plan to bring youths and law enforcement officers together through sports. The leagues, which would be grant-funded, are aimed at changing youths perception of law enforcement, she said.

Kracl is a member of a local behavioral health coalition thats working to add healthy relationship classes at Schuyler Community Schools and recently organized training for those responding to situations involving mental health issues. That coalition also partnered with SCS and East Central District Health Department to bring a licensed mental health professional to the Schuyler high school and middle school each week.

That county should not take her position lightly, Soltero said. Shes there for the right reasons.

Kracl, who made sure to thank her daughter and mother, Twila Wallace, during last months chamber banquet, doesnt think twice about any of her roles in the community.

Its second nature by now.

One of my big beliefs in life is you need to leave every place a little bit better than the way you found it, Kracl said.

Thats a message she can hang on her office wall.
It is the beginning of March and there are still many families who have not licensed their pets with the city. Columbus Animal Control is trying to make changes and it needs your help in accomplishing them.

Licensing all dogs and cats within the city limits is the law. Animal control has adopted five reasons for licensing your pet and having your pet wear that license.

1. It could possibly be a free ride home. When licensed and found at large the pet can be returned to its owner or at least the owner could be contacted to come pick the animal up. This would forgo being placed in the shelter.

2. Your pet is more likely to get back to its owner. In many cases, if a citizen contacts animal control with a tag number the owner will be notified where the pet is with only minimal officer involvement.

3. Prompt veterinary attention. If your pet is found injured, it is more likely to get taken to your veterinary clinic, which could possible save you undue expenses.

4. It ensures your pet is vaccinated against rabies if involved in a biting incident.

5. It is the law. Columbus requires all dogs and cats over 6 months of age to be licensed.

Licensing is quick and easy. Your pet needs to be current with its rabies vaccinations. Licensing can be taken care of at the four local clinics: Columbus Small Animal Hospital, Pet Care Specialists, Redstone Veterinary Clinic and Twin River Veterinary Clinic. You can also license at the animal control office at 2310 14th St. Licenses are $13 if the animal is spayed or neutered and $25 if they are intact.

The City of Columbus also offers the new lifetime license, which can only be bought at animal control. Regulations for this are:

 Needs to be spayed/neutered

 Current rabies vaccination

 Microchipped

 Not on the potentially dangerous or dangerous animal list

 And have a date of birth for the pet

The fees for this service are $100 for pets 6 months to 5 years old and $50 for pets over 5 years old. The only thing an owner will need to do is provide animal control with updated rabies vaccinations when they get them.
Due to the urging of the Mrauk U Township Southern Regional Development Group, the construction of the bridge connecting Ka La Ka and Kinn Seik villages in Mrauk U Township started on 3 March. Betel trees are used in building the bridge. It costs over three million kyats even though the bridge is being built with betel trees. We have received nothing from the government, U Maung Thar Sein, secretary of Mrauk U Township Southern Regional Development Group, said to Narinjara News on 4 March.

The bridge is over 200 feet long and two-wheel and three-wheel vehicles can pass through the bridge without passengers. Residents of between 20 and 30 villages will be able to use the bridge to travel to Mrauk U after the bridge is completed.

We are building bridges over creeks on a self-help basic in Mrauk U Township. We asked the [Arakan] State government for help. At first, they acted like they were going to help us but they disappeared without a trace in the end, he said.

In a joint effort with local villagers, Mrauk U Township Southern Regional Development Group has built three suspension bridges and four betel-tree bridges. It costs between 30 million kyats and 50 million kyats to build a suspension bridge while it costs over three million kyats to build a betel-tree bridge.

Retired engineer U Ba Saw from Kywel Tal Village in Mrauk Township has provided capital for the construction of suspension bridges, which have been built using his technology.

When we heard that 50 million kyats have been allocated for Letpantaw Suspension Bridge in Mrauk U Township, we tried to inquire at the government departments but we couldnt find out anything. The only assistance the [Arakan] State government has provided is the wooden planks for Bauk Creek Suspension Bridge, our first bridge, U Maung Thar Sein explained.

Bridges built with betel trees can be used for three years without receiving any damages.
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You probably have heard the new high school is opening very soon. You probably have also heard about how big it is, about the new STEM Academy, how large the gyms are and how fantastic the acoustics will be in the auditorium.

It is a beautiful building and I cannot wait for the community to see it. You might want to plan to attend either the ribbon-cutting ceremony on March 20 at 8 a.m. or the open house that same day from 6:30-8:30 p.m.

But it does not end with the high school. I am excited to have the opportunity to quote Paul Harvey to tell you the rest of the story."

Approximately 5 1/2 years ago the prospect of building a new middle school was put to a vote and the people of Columbus voted a resounding no. Even though the bond referendum did not pass to build a new middle school, the district continued to battle the problem of overcrowding that was not going away. It just meant we had to find a way to deal with it and look for another answer.

So we started listening, we listened to the voters, the business and industry owners, the teachers, the parents and the students. We did research on the different options people wanted us to consider; the pros and cons and the cost of each. What you see today approved by the voters is the first phase of the solution we presented to the community.

The new high school is just part of that solution. Phase 2 includes a big move in the fall. Fifth- through eighth-grade students will move into the current high school that will be modified to fit their needs and learning styles. They wont be expected to focus on their learning in a converted locker room or closet. The fifth- and sixth-graders will spend their days in smaller teams to make their transition from elementary go more smoothly, while the seventh- and eighth-graders will have more opportunities than ever to explore different paths they may want to pursue when they transition to high school.

Having the fifth grade vacate the elementary buildings will help ease overcrowding in those buildings. All students will once again be in full-size classrooms instead of specialists rooms and converted labs; music teachers will get their classrooms back and P.E. will go back to being taught to one class at a time instead of two or more due to a lack of space and time.

Our facility strategic plan will go even further, eventually with enough preschool classrooms to accommodate the waiting lists of young minds anxious to learn. Thank you to all the patrons of Columbus Public Schools for providing your insight, time, effort and financial support to this preschool through graduation solution for the youth of Columbus.




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.


A file photo.

BALASORE, ODISHA: As part of capability enhancement endeavour, a major milestone was achieved on 11th March 2017 when an enhanced version of the BRAHMOS supersonic cruise missile with an Extended Range (ER) was successfully test-fired from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) Chandipur at sea in Balasore, off the coast of Odisha.



In a historical first, the formidable missile system once again proved its mettle to precisely hit enemy targets at much higher range than the current range of 290 km, with supersonic speed of 2.8 Mach.



During the launch at 1130 hrs, the land-attack version of the supersonic cruise missile system met its mission parameters in a copybook manner. It was a text book launch achieving 100% results, executed with high precision from the Mobile Autonomous Launcher (MAL) deployed in full configuration.



The new benchmark which was set by Chairman DRDO Dr. S Christopher during Aero India 2017 in Bengaluru has been remarkably achieved by BrahMos Aerospace.



The unique BRAHMOS weapon system has empowered all three wings of the Indian armed forces with impeccable anti-ship & land attack capability.



The technology upgrade comes after Indias full membership to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), which removed caps on range of BRAHMOS cruise missile.



With the successful test firing of BRAHMOS Extended Range missile, BRAHMOS-ER, the Indian Armed Forces will be empowered to knock down enemy targets far beyond the 400 kms. BRAHMOS has thus proved its prowess once again as the best supersonic cruise missile system in the world, Dr. Sudhir Mishra, CEO & MD of BrahMos Aerospace, said from the launch site.



Dr S Christopher congratulated the BrahMos team, DRDO & NPOM scientists involved in today's successful mission.



The launch was witnessed by Deputy Chief of Army Staff, Director General Artillery, Corps Commander and many other senior officers from Indian Army. BrahMos Project Director Mr. VSN Murthy, and Programme Director Mr. Dasharath Ram along with other senior officers from DRDO & BrahMos were also present during the launch.



BrahMos is a joint venture between DRDO of India and NPOM of Russia.


Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/03/2017 (2067 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

They thought they had saved their community, but now the permanent residents of Meadowlark Campground & RV Park are again questioning their housing security.

This time around, theyre fighting the federal government, with Brandon-Souris Conservative MP Larry Maguires help, to prevent a tax re-interpretation by the Canada Revenue Agency from pushing them out of their homes.

If they fail, the 75-unit campground portion of their operation might see their tax burden increase by about 300 per cent.

Colin Corneau/The Brandon Sun Malinda McDonald helped Meadowlark Campground & RV Park residents form a housing co-operative in 2015 in response to the previous owner retiring with the intent of selling the property, which could have resulted in evictions.

In a unique setup, the adjoining 52-unit mobile housing park, Meadowlark Community Recreational Co-operative Inc., uses the campgrounds revenue to keep their operation affordable for its approximately 100 residents.

Treasurer Karen Benham is at a loss as to how they might make up the financial shortfall if they lose this battle.

This isnt the first time that Meadowlark residents housing has been in a precarious situation.

The housing co-operative formed in 2015 in response to the previous owner retiring with the intent of selling the property in a process that might have resulted in all 52 mobile home owners eviction.

It was at this time that founding member Melinda McDonald joined the effort, whose son had purchased a unit with his girlfriend only a year previous.

Around this time, the residents of another mobile housing park in Brandon, Kingsway Kort, faced eviction; a process that has since decimated the park.

Concerned that Meadowlark residents might face a similar fate, McDonald set out to help them form a housing co-operative.

She has since moved into the community and is proud of what theyve been able to accomplish.

Theres a real sense of community, she said. People know each other, they say hello and talk at the mailboxes  Weve got a common goal to make this business work, and its brought the best out in everybody.

Located on the northern edge of Brandon just off the Trans-Canada Highway, Meadowlark abuts farmland and doesnt quite feel like its in the city, even though its located within city limits.

Revenue from the adjoining campground has kept things affordable, which housing co-operative chair Bob Isleifson said has been central to their success.

Isleifson moved to Meadowlark with his wife Doreen on retiring in 1998, and he estimates that about half of the mobile housing parks residents are seniors on a fixed income.

It has been affordable, he said, adding that while the housing co-operatives formation offered residents a sigh of relief, recent uncertainty regarding taxation has forced another jarring wake-up call they were not expecting.

We, as residents, are trying to protect our homes, Isleifson said. For most people, this is affordable housing.

Had the co-operatives leadership known this tax shift were a potential, they would have approached the co-operatives formation totally differently, McDonald said, later musing, Maybe we wouldnt have done this.

While pessimism takes over from time to time, the overall vibe among the co-operatives leadership remains one of optimism; that they might save their community for a second time.

This week found representatives from the housing co-operative meet with staff at Maguires office to discuss their situation.

On Friday, Maguire confirmed that hes on board with helping Meadowlarks residents fight this battle from his post in Ottawa.

I will continue to call on the Liberal government to stop unfairly targeting campground owners, he wrote in emailed correspondence between flights back home from Ottawa on Friday.

As the campground profits will be eaten up by Liberal taxes, the homes of the residents are now threatened. I am calling on the Liberals to reverse this tax hike so the Meadowlark Campground wont have to sell their property and the residents have to lose their homes.

Maguire encourages Westman residents opposed to the shift to join him in standing up for the people at Meadowlark Campground and other campground owners across our region by emailing Finance Minister Bill Morneau at Bill.Morneau@parl.gc.ca to tell him to reverse the decision.

Mini-storage facility owners and small commercial properties are also being affected by this shift in tax interpretation.

Meadowlark residents also point to an online petition, e-770, at petitions.parl.gc.ca. Its being hosted by Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock (Ontario) Conservative MP Jamie Schmale.

 tclarke@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB
With Brexit looming, a survey has found that only about a third of Irish exporting companies have explored what impact it will have on them.

The Irish Exporters' Association is urging companies to check out issues that might affect their business, like tariffs and currency fluctuations.
Over seven thousand professionals are attending a 'Career Zoo' at the Convention Centre in Dublin today.

Irish and multinational employers are looking for new talent and Director Jackie Slattery, says it's a chance to meet with recruiters from some of the country's most exciting companies.
Enda Kenny leaves for the US today, taking with him Ireland's absolute commitment to remain at the heart of Europe in spite of Brexit.

The Taoiseach is flying to Philadelphia for the start of a seven-day visit to five cities, during which he will watch the St. Patrick's Day parade in New York, and meet with US President Donald Trump.
More than 7,000 professionals are heading to the Convention Centre in Dublin this weekend for a high-tech and bio-tech 'Career Zoo'.

Irish and multinational employers are looking for new talent and there will also be a series of workshops and talks.
Vera Twomeys walk to the Dail was a landmark moment for patients all over Ireland, and the latest moment in a wide history of people having to fight for access to medicinal cannabis, writes David Linnane.

The real drive for legal medicinal cannabis started in the 1980s in San Francisco, coming out of the counter-culture and gay rights movements. When the HIV/AIDS epidemic struck, a group led by Dennis Peron who has previously focused on getting legalisation for recreational cannabis, pushed for access and flouted the laws to provide it.

While cannabis was illegal and little medical research had been carried out on it, that community in San Francisco saw the anecdotal evidence of what it could do for people suffering from HIV or AIDS. While it was not a cure, it did assist with pain, sleep patterns, nausea, and appetite. It was also being used by people with cancer as a compliment to treatments like chemotherapy.

Rather than accepting that the drug was illegal, Peron and others fought for a change in the law and access to what they saw as an essential drug. The San Francisco Cannabis Buyers Club was eventually founded and flouted the state and national laws and began directly providing the drug to people who needed it, while campaigning for legalisation.

The group involved doctors in the process and gave employment directly to people suffering from illnesses like HIV and AIDS as it expanded to care for thousands of people. Within a few years, against significant political resistance, medicinal cannabis was legalised in California by referendum.

Their case showed that when society has a real debate about the impact of the war on drugs on medicine, people are compassionate and take the side of the patients, not the state.

Ireland proved this week that it has reached the same conclusion, as shown by the outpouring of support for the Twomey family.

Whether it was online or in person, people have been overwhelmingly supportive of Vera Twomey as she walked from Cork to Dublin. Hundreds walked with her when she made the final leg of her trip to Leinster House. The queue of TDs waiting for a photo opportunity with her proved that people of all parties realise that the public cares about this issue and wants a change.

There isnt any significant evidence that wider drug legalisation, as seen in The Netherlands or Colorado, is a priority for the public, but medicinal cannabis is treated differently because it fits the same criteria as many other treatments, like Orkambi for cystic fibrosis.

Its a medicine that could have major benefits for people with debilitating conditions, and one that they are denied access to at present. The public is able to separate an attitude to an illegal drug and an essential medicine in the same way that heroin is banned but morphine is used in hospitals.

While people are using it illegally anyway, legalisation would allow them access to the right medical advice and the specific type and quantity of medicine that they need.

The public demand is clear, but the solution is tougher and more complicated.

Minister for Health Simon Harris and his colleagues in Fine Gael have been resolute about their belief that doctors prescribe medicine, not politicians.

However, politicians set the rules under which doctors operate, and the current rules for prescribing cannabis are incredibly restrictive compared to any other medicine.

Citing a lack of scientific evidence for the benefits, the government set out rules that allow access on a compassionate basis, but which favour other treatments. The number of applicable conditions for which it can be prescribed is also tightly limited.

Where this all failed is in supporting doctors to prescribe the medicine. As the government says, doctors are the experts, not them, but experts still need training.

While cannabis use is widespread, cannabis prescription is absolutely new to the Irish medical system, and doctors who have never dealt with it before cannot be expected to be experts on it. Ava Twomeys neurologists are refusing to sign off on the prescriptions until they have the training to do it properly.

Thats where Mr Harris comes back into it. He cant be expected to prescribe the drug, or even force a doctor to prescribe it, but he is the one in control of the chequebook and he is the one who sets the rules.

It now up to him to bring Irish doctors up to the standards that they themselves are demanding so that children like Ava can get the medicine that they need.

Just like San Francisco has its hero in Dennis Peron, people all over Ireland have a hero in Vera Twomey. If the government does act on this, and it is likely to given the public pressure, Ms Twomeys walk from Cork to Dublin may go down as one of the most significant individual acts of protest in Irish history.

She might have walked as a mother who wanted the best for her child, but people with conditions like Avas will thank her for walking for all of them in the years to come.

This story first appeared on the Evening Echo.
Via Malay Mail Online: Kelantan culls birds after H5N1 outbreak in Tunjong.

Almost 80 per cent of birds in areas suspected of H5N1 avian flu around Kampung Pulau Tebu in Tunjong here have been culled today.

Kelantan Agriculture, Agro-based Industry and Bio-technology Committee chairman Datuk Che Abdullah Mat Nawi said the culling exercise was being conducted with cooperation from various government departments via a special committee which was formed since the bird flu cases was detected on Monday.

We believe the culling of birds will be completed tomorrow at all areas within one kilometre radius from the location (Kampung Pulau Tebu) where the outbreak was detected, he said when contacted here today.

Che Abdullah hoped the residents in the areas would continue to cooperate with the authorities to ensure the culling exercise would be carried out smoothly and that Kelantan would be freed from the outbreak immediately.

He also said members of the public should not panic or worry about buying poultry at local markets as this was an isolated case and no chicken farms were tested positive for H5N1.

Only several free-range chickens in three locations were tested positive for H5N1... There have been no new cases so far, he said.

However, Che Abdullah said the authorities were now imposing stringent security control in the areas to prevent the birds and chickens from being transferred out to other locations to ensure that the efforts in eradicating H5N1 would succeed.

He said control measures had been implemented around a 10km radius from the outbreak location and approximately 200 birds had been culled so far.

Kelantan would be declared free from H5N1 if no new locations were detected within 21 days from the first day of the outbreak, said Che Abdullah.
India's governing Hindu nationalist party was heading for landslide victories on Saturday in key state legislature elections that are seen as a referendum on the performance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nearly three-year-old government.

Leaders from Mr Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party said the party's victory in Uttar Pradesh, India's largest state, would boost his chances of winning another term as prime minister in 2019 elections.

The Election Commission said the BJP won 216 out of 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh's legislature and was leading in another 93 voting districts in the state. The party's president, Amit Shah, described it as "a historic verdict".

The party had also won 42 of 70 seats and was leading in another 15 constituencies in another northern state, Uttarakhand, wresting power from the Congress party, the main opposition at the national level.

Final results from the elections - held in February and early March - were expected later on Saturday.

Mr Modi tweeted: "Am overjoyed that BJP has received unprecedented support from all sections of society. Huge support from the youth is gladdening."

The Congress party had a face-saving win in Punjab state, where it captured 70 of 117 seats and was leading in another eight voting districts. It was fighting a close battle with the BJP in western Goa state and north-eastern Manipur state, according to the Election Commission.

Rahul Gandhi, the Congress party vice president, seems to have failed to make any impact for his party in Uttar Pradesh, located in the Hindi heartland, with his party winning five seats and leading in another two constituencies. The party's ally, the Samajwadi Party, had won 33 seats and was leading in 16 other voting districts.

Sandeep Dikshit, a Congress party leader, said "it will be unfair to blame the party's debacle entirely on Rahul Gandhi".

The victory will come as a big morale-booster for Mr Modi, who had extensively campaigned in the region for his party nominees.

"The BJP has reached new heights in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh states and changed the political picture of the country," India's home minister, Rajnath Singh, said in New Delhi. The party will be returning to power in Uttar Pradesh after 14 years.

Kapil Sibal, a senior Congress party leader, conceded that "no doubt, it's an astounding victory for the BJP".

Mr Modi's party appears to have successfully forged a coalition of upper, middle-ranking and lower castes in Uttar Pradesh.

"The elections prove that the BJP was able to break caste and class barriers," social scientist P Kumar, of the Giri Institute of Development Studies, said in Lucknow, the state capital.

Mr Modi maintained his party's winning run in the state, with the BJP winning 71 of Uttar Pradesh's 80 seats in India's Parliament in 2014 national elections.

The opposition Congress and other rivals of the BJP vainly hoped that the voters would punish Mr Modi's government for its decision to demonetise the country's highest-value currency bills in November, which brought immense economic hardship, especially to the poor.

Mr Modi called India's massive demonetisation drive, which withdrew 86% of the country's currency bills from the system, to cleanse the system of tax evasion and corruption.

Banks and ATMs witnessed massive queues of people for months. ATMs were not refilled for days and banks ran out of cash within a few hours of opening.

The government was able to tide over the problem as voting got under way last month.

"People have strongly supported Modi on the demonetisation issue," said party president Mr Shah, adding that they believed it was a step taken to recover unaccounted money hoarded by the rich.

A majority of Indians earn and spend in cash, either due to habit or because they are too poor to have access to banks.

Since taking office in May 2014, Mr Modi's government has been pumping funds into boosting education, while increasing spending on roads, irrigation and other infrastructure. It has also been reforming India's complicated tax regime.

AP
Families have buried some of the 37 girls killed in a fire at an overcrowded government-run youth shelter in Guatemala as authorities worked to determine exactly what happened.

The death toll mounted as girls succumbed to burns from Wednesday's disaster, which officials said began when mattresses were set on fire during a protest by the shelter's residents.

Questions remained over why someone among the girls set the blaze and whether doors remained locked as the girls pleaded for their lives.

Parents and relatives said many of the young people at the shelter, which had both female and male residents, had been sent there because of abuse, poverty or family problems. Others were ordered there by judges after run-ins with police, officials said.

A casket holding 16-year-old Siona Hernandez Garcia was slipped into a niche at a Guatemala City cemetery on Friday and street musicians played hymns as workers bricked up the space.

Maria Garcia, Siona's mother, demanded justice.

"Guatemala is full of violence," she said. "They are raping and killing the poor's girls."

At the entrance to Roosevelt Hospital, Claudia Tecun broke down in tears talking about her daughter Noemi Tecun Munoz, 17, who was being treated inside for burns over 70% of her body.

"The doctors say there isn't much hope she will live," she said.

"I heard on the news that my daughter was one of the girls who set the fire at the shelter; that's not true. My daughter wouldn't try to take her own life."

That was a reference to widespread reports, including from other victims' relatives, that some of the girls set mattresses on fire to protest their apprehension and return to the facility after fleeing the previous night because of mistreatment, bad food and fears of rape.

San Juan de Dios Hospital officials said another girl had succumbed to her wounds, bringing the death toll to 37, with 19 dying at the scene and 18 others later while being treated at hospitals.

Hospital director Carlos Soto said that visiting doctors evaluating the burn victims had offered to take eight of them to Galveston, Texas, for specialised burn treatment. Mr Soto said the government had obtained humanitarian visas for the children from US officials, but authorities were awaiting permission from the parents.

Geovany Castillo said his 15-year-old daughter Kimberly suffered burns on her face, arms and hands but survived. She was in a locked area where girls who took part in the escape attempt had been placed, he said.

"My daughter said the area was locked and that several girls broke down a door, and she survived because she put a wet sheet over herself," Mr Castillo said.

"She said the girls told her that they had been raped and in protest they escaped, and that later, to protest, to get attention, they set fire to the mattresses," he said.

As grieving families began receiving the bodies of girls whose remains had been identified, others were still searching for their children.

Vianney Clareth Hernandez was waiting outside a morgue with a photo of her daughter, Ashley. The 14-year-old was at the shelter but her mother said she had not found the girl at any of the local hospitals.

"It was a crime they didn't open the doors, they didn't do anything to get the girls out, even though they were screaming," she said.

While many people believed reports that the doors at the overcrowded shelter were kept locked even as the fires spread, authorities said the circumstances were still under investigation.

But the exact sequence of events may never be known. Mr Castillo said his daughter Kimberly had testified to police that the girls who started the fire were among those who died in the blaze.

The few surviving girls at the hospital were put under police guard on Friday for their own protection as witnesses.

AP
A federal judge has blocked US President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape fighting in their native land by fleeing to Wisconsin.

A Syrian Muslim who fled to Wisconsin has been working since last year to win asylum for his wife and three-year-old daughter so they can leave Aleppo and join him in the US.

He filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Mr Trump's first travel ban had stopped the visa process for them.

US District Judge William Conley ruled that challenge moot after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the travel order.

The process restarted for the family and they are now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the US embassy, the last step before US customs officials decide whether to issue them visas.

But the family does not have dates for the interviews yet and Mr Trump's new travel ban goes into effect on March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian man's attorneys.

The man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon alleging the new ban is just as problematic as the first, calling it anti-Muslim and alleging it violates his right to due process, equal protection and freedom of religion.

He asked Judge Conley to declare the ban unconstitutional on its face and block enforcement against his family.

It is unclear whether the new ban applies to asylum seekers such as the Syrian family. Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Judge Conley on Friday that it does not, while the man's attorneys maintain it does.

Judge Conley issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case. The judge set a hearing for March 21.

The restraining order does not block the entire travel ban, it simply prevents Mr Trump's administration from enforcing it against this specific family.

The US Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment.

Mr Trump issued an executive order in January banning travellers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. The order sparked numerous lawsuits, including the Syrian refugee's initial federal complaint in Wisconsin. US District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the ban on February 3.

Mr Trump issued a new order on Monday that removed Iraq from the list of countries and temporarily shuts down the refugee programme.

Unlike the first order, the new ban will not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban on Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian man's lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assad's regime and one fighting in support of Assad.

The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and travelled to pro-Assad areas to manage his family's business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife.

He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.

He has filed all his court actions anonymously to protect his family.

AP
Iraq's United Nations ambassador has said there is no evidence that the Islamic State extremist group used chemical weapons in an attack in Mosul, the country's second-largest city.

Mohamed Alhakim told reporters ahead of a closed Security Council meeting on a reported chemical attack that he had spoken to officials in Baghdad and informed UN disarmament chief Kim Won-soo of the lack of evidence in advance.

The alleged attack occurred last week in eastern Mosul, an area declared fully liberated by Iraqi forces in January.

The attack hit a neighborhood along the Tigris River, which roughly divides the city in two.

Doctors in an urgent care hospital in the nearby city of Irbil say they began receiving patients showing symptoms of chemical weapons exposure on Thursday.

But Mr Alhakim said "there is really no evidence that Daesh has used this chemical weapon," using the Arab name for the IS group.

If chemical weapons are used, he said, there is evidence of people injured and material left on the ground but "we don't have anything from the operation in Mosul that tells us we have that".

But after the closed consultations, Britain's UN Ambassador Matthew Rycroft, the current council president, said Iraq's investigation is not over.

"We expressed concern over reports of possible use of chemical weapons by Daesh, and we look forward to the results of Iraq's investigation into those allegations," he said.

Mr Rycroft said Mr Kim briefed the council on his meeting with Mr Alhakim who told him "there is no evidence of the use of chemical weapons as discovered so far... but I don't think that this was the definitive end of this investigation".

The UN humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, Lisa Grande, had warned that the alleged use of chemical weapons in Mosul, if confirmed, would be a war crime and a serious violation of international humanitarian law.

Mr Alhakim said the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the international watchdog, had sent a letter to Iraq saying it was ready to come and help if there were any indications of chemical weapons use.

IS has used chemical weapons in Iraq and Syria at least 52 times, according to a report published late last year by IHS conflict monitor, a London-based research and intelligence gathering group. The report said that at least 19 of the 52 attacks took place in and around Mosul.

Iraqi and US-led coalition officials have repeatedly expressed concern regarding IS chemical weapon attacks.

However, IS-claimed insurgent attacks in Iraq and attacks targeting civilians attempting to flee Mosul cause far greater numbers of injuries and deaths to civilians.

AP
Turkey and the Netherlands sharply escalated a dispute between the two Nato allies today as the Dutch withdrew landing permission for a Turkish minister's plane, leading Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call them "fascists".

The Netherlands withdrew the landing permission for Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu because of objections to his intention to campaign for a Turkish referendum on constitutional reform, which the Dutch see as a step backwards from democracy.

Mr Erdogan told a rally in Istanbul: "You can stop our foreign minister's plane all you want; let's see how your (diplomatic) planes will come to Turkey from now on."

"They do not know politics or international diplomacy. These Nazi remnants, they are fascists," he said, as the crowd booed.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said: "It is a crazy remark, of course. But I understand they are angry but this is of course way out of line."

Turkey also summoned the Dutch charges d'affaires in protest.

Earlier on Saturday, in an interview with private broadcaster CNN Turk, Mr Cavusoglu said: "If the Netherlands cancels my flight permit, our sanctions to the Netherlands would be heavy."

He also repeated the government's charges that bans on rallies are "fascist practices".

He said the German and Dutch bans on campaigns for a "yes" vote in the April 16 referendum on constitutional changes means that Europe is "taking a side for a 'no' vote". The constitutional changes would give the president more powers.

The Dutch government said it had been searching with Turkish authorities for an "acceptable solution" to Mr Cavusoglu's plan to campaign in the Netherlands, but "before these talks were completed, Turkish authorities publicly threatened sanctions. That makes the search for a reasonable solution impossible".

The diplomatic row comes just days before the Netherlands goes to the polls in a March 15 election for the lower house of Parliament. The campaign has been dominated by issues of identity, with anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders set to make strong gains.

After Mr Wilders accused the government of a weak response to Turkish plans to send ministers to the Netherlands to campaign, he insisted it was his pressure which made the difference.

"Great! Thanks to heavy PVV- pressure a few days before the Dutch elections our government did NOT allow the Turkish minister to land here!!," he said in a Twitter message, referring to his Party for Freedom.

He later added "I am tell all Turks in the Netherlands that agree with Erdogan: GO to Turkey and NEVER come back!!."

Earlier on Saturday, Mr Cavusoglu said: "Wilders is racist, fascist, Nazi, like a Nazi."

Citing comments that Mr Wilders wanted action against Muslims, Mr Cavusoglu said: "What are you going to do? Are you going to kill them, burn them or what?"

The Dutch government said it does not object to meetings in the Netherlands to give information about the Turkish referendum, "but these meetings should not add to tensions in our society and everybody who wants to organise a meeting must adhere to instructions from authorities so that public order and security can be guaranteed".

It said the Turkish government "does not want to respect the rules in this matter".

Turkey's EU minister Omer Celik tweeted that the decision to block the foreign minister's visit "will go down in history as a dark spot on the Netherlands' democracy and diplomacy".

He said: "The Netherlands' decision to cancel the flight permit of our foreign minister is not befitting of friendship. This decision does not suit our alliance and our friendship that has spanned centuries. If racist Geert Wilders were in power in the Netherlands, he'd make such a decision."

Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of Turkey's main opposition party, also criticised the Dutch decision, saying: "This is not correct."

He added: "Those who defend democracy would not do such things. You'll call yourself a democrat and then not permit the flight of a minister of the Turkish Republic?"

AP
A web expert has warned law enforcement is losing the arms race against hackers as reported cybercrime is on the rise in the ACT.

The Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network saw a 14 per cent jump in cybercrime reports in the ACT in 2016, up from 549 to 621.

Cybercrime reporting is on the rise in the ACT, ACORN reports.

Online scams and other fraud reported rose 23 per cent from 209 to 264 to make up nearly half of all cybercrime recorded.

Trading issues with online purchases and sales were the next biggest threats, accounting for a quarter of reports. These were followed by attacks on computer systems and cyber bullying or stalking.
The relief Erin Osborne felt when she passed the riskiest trimester for miscarriage was fleeting.

She had just shared her exciting pregnancy news on Facebook when a sudden swollen armpit led to a devastating breast cancer diagnosis.

Erin Osborne with her children Laila, 3, and Harlyn,10 months, is getting back into fitness to run the 10km in this year's Australian Running Festival after beating breast cancer. Credit:Jay Cronan

"Our whole world turned upside down as we didn't know if we would be able to keep our baby," Ms Osborne said.

"It was just one of those moments where I just burst into tears, but then I shook it off and got into planning mode about what I needed to do."
When one seven-year-old sought comfort from her father after a bad dream, reality became far worse than the nightmare.

Hayley Blease suffered sexual abuse at the hands of her parent for most of her Canberra childhood.

Now 35 and living in Sydney, she and other cyclists will ride 500 kilometres from Sydney to Parliament House to support the one in five Australian children who will be sexually abused before they turn 18.

"The sad thing is these perpetrators are monsters, but they don't look like monsters, they look like human beings," Ms Blease said.

"Mine just looked like my father."
Nissan, BMW of North America and Ford have accused their airbag supplier Takata of fraud in a lawsuit seeking to force the manufacturer to cover losses they incur because of its faulty inflators that have been linked to at least 17 deaths worldwide.

The automakers claim the embattled Tokyo-based company withheld information about the inflators, which have caused airbags to rupture and injure people. The carmakers are fighting consumer suits alleging they knew about the flawed devices.

"Ford (and other vehicle manufacturers) would not have purchased these airbag systems from Takata as they were had the true and accurate test data and information been communicated to Ford," the Michigan-based carmaker said in its court filing.

"If Ford had known of the true and accurate information and data, it would have insisted that the problems be resolved prior to installation of the airbags in Ford vehicles or would have refused to purchase them for installation into those vehicles."
David Wroe's article ("The RAAF revolution: Drones", March 5, Focus, p.15) is interesting for what it doesn't say rather than for what it does.

Wroe gave significant space to the views from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) but did not disclose a significant conflict of interest, in that ASPI is part-funded by the very industry whose products it was spruiking.

The organisation's corporate sponsors for 2015-16 included BAE Systems Australia, Northrop Grumman, Boeing Defence Australia, Lockheed Martin Australia, Raytheon and others. Between them, they (or their parent company) are either responsible for, or have a strong financial interest in, several of the boys' own weapons that the article was reviewing.

What Wroe euphemistically calls a "technology race" with other nations, others would call simply an arms race.
WHO has published Lassa Fever  Benin, Togo and Burkina Faso. Excerpt:

Benin and Togo, exported from Benin

On 20 February 2017, the Ministry of Health of Benin notified WHO of a Lassa fever case in Tchaourou district, Borgou Department, Benin, close to the border with Nigeria. The case was a pregnant woman who was living in Nigeria (close to the border with Benin).

On 11 February 2017, she was admitted to a hospital where she delivered the baby (a premature neonate) by caesarean section and passed away on 12 February 2017. Samples were tested positive for Lassa fever in the laboratory in Cotonou, Benin and later in the Lagos University Teaching Hospital Lassa laboratory in Nigeria. The newborn and father left the hospital without notice on 14 February 2017 and went to Mango in northern Togo where they were admitted to a hospital.

The newborn tested positive for Lassa fever and the father tested negative in the Institut National dHygiene in Lome, Togo. The baby was treated with ribavirin and is currently in stable condition; he is still hospitalised in northern Togo for issues of prematurity and overall monitoring.

A total of 68 contacts are being followed-up in Benin and 29 contacts are being followed-up in Togo linked to the pregnant woman and newborn.

Togo, exported from Burkina Faso

On 26 February 2017, after receiving information from Togo, the Ministry of Health of Burkina Faso has notified WHO of a confirmed Lassa fever case in a hospital in the northern part of Togo. The case has originated from Ouargaye district which is in the central eastern part of Burkina Faso.

The case was a pregnant woman who was previously hospitalized in Burkina Faso. She was discharged and had a miscarriage at home. After the second hospitalization in Burkina Faso she was transmitted to a hospital in Mango, northern Togo, and passed away on 3 March 2017.

Samples from the pregnant woman tested positive for Lassa fever at the Institut National dHygiene in Lome, Togo.

A total of 7 contacts have been identified in Togo linked to the pregnant woman and contact tracing is ongoing; 135 contacts in Burkina Faso have been identified linked to the pregnant woman and contact tracing is ongoing.

Togo

On 2 March 2017, a man was admitted to a health centre in the Kpendial health district for fever and melena and was referred to a regional hospital on 3 March 2017.

Samples from the male case were sent to the Institut National dHygiene in Lome, Togo, and tested positive for Lassa fever. The case left the hospital on 6 March. Investigations are ongoing. The male case and his close relatives are under follow up at their home.

A total of 18 contacts were identified in Togo linked to the male case.
Ireland's buried secrets What a tragedy that 800 vulnerable newborns, who deserved proper burial, were treated so atrociously by those who are called to know better all to cover the sins of powerful men ("Bones of babies at convent", March 5) and deny the truth that Ireland was not as devout in its living out of faith. How else in the 1930s, '40s and '50s, when illegitimacy was a dark burden for life, can a mortality rate five times that of newborns to married parents be explained? Gordana Martinovich Dulwich Hill Last wills should be honoured Had I been left out of my parents' wills, I would have been extremely hurt, but I hope I would have respected their last wishes. ("Judge grants estranged daughter $425,000 from estate", March 5). It has never made sense to me that a will can be challenged. Lawyers encourage everyone to make a will, but can't guarantee it will be honoured. Of course, it is to their advantage that a will be challenged. In life I am free to do as I wish with my possessions; yet when I fall off the perch, a total stranger has the authority to rewrite my will. It is comforting to know that in death, I won't care.

Graham Lum North Rocks Voices of sanity on housing It's heartening to read there are a few good people such as the member for Bennelong John Alexander and former housing minister Rob Stokes, who is a planning expert ("MP's lone voice for housing sanity", March 5). These two good people and maybe another couple are just a few who are prepared to highlight and call for action on the taxation benefits from negative gains and moderate capital gains tax for the so-called investors putting their cash into the virtually risk-free home-buying market. This ongoing nonsense continues along with a huge foreign buying spree for Australian homes. We now have a generation of young Australians more handicapped in their efforts to own their own home since the great depression of the 1920s and '30s. Keating could have done something; Howard should have done something. Since then the succeeding bunch have progressively become more callous, weak and ideologically neutered as our young people and older battlers struggle. Russell Schatz Narrabri
Early results showed West Australian Labor picking up double-digit swings in many key seats in Saturday's state election, and seats such as Forrestfield in suburban Perth changing from the Liberal Party to Labor.

ABC election analyst Antony Green said the swings were big enough for Labor to win government.

The Liberal Party was bracing itself for a crushing loss, with an exit poll showing Labor on track to record a massive swing and One Nation's support collapsing.

A Galaxy-Nine Network exit poll of 1765 voters suggested the controversial preference deal between the Liberal Party and One Nation had backfired, with Pauline Hanson's party receiving just six per cent of the vote.
Carl Synnerdahl was a professional criminal. He was a very active criminal. He was a "heavy''. His lengthy criminal record chronicled many occasions when his planning of crimes had failed. A stretch in prison, therefore, was just looked upon as being an occupational hazard.

Over the years miscarriages of justice have inspired movies, books and media attention. But Synnerdahl was not an innocent person betrayed by the criminal justice system. And little did I think my client would inspire a book and movie about how he hoodwinked the police, the courts, the prison authorities and me. When I was briefed to appear for him, he faced a long sentence for armed robbery. With his record, even allowing the discount for a guilty plea, he was facing a sentence of the order of 10 to 14 years. He was looking at serving more than half of this term before he would even be eligible for parole. In any case, with his record, he was far from a strong candidate for parole being granted.

Mug shot of fake blind man and career criminal Carl Synnerdahl.

Unknown to me, however, Synnerdahl had hit upon an audacious scheme to have his sentence drastically reduced: he feigned blindness.

Police and prison authorities were highly sceptical of this claim and set out to debunk it. Officers would sneak up behind Synnerdahl in the court cells and ignite a cigarette lighter millimetres from his eyes. He never flinched. Others would create an obstacle course for him to manoeuvre. Failure to do so would result in falling face first. What happened? Synnerdahl fell face first. Exhaustive tests were carried out by a battery of ophthalmologists. Intense pinpricks of light were shone in his eyes and, under magnification, the doctors looked for any reaction in the pupil or iris. There was none, whatever the intensity of the light.
A single strand of hair that destroyed the life of a long-serving Sydney police officer has the potential to influence the future of not just the entire NSW Police Force but all workplaces across NSW.

Sergeant George Zisopoulos insists he has been wrongly dismissed due to one of his hair follicles which returned a positive drug test reading.

Hair follicle drug tests can be compromised by external contamination. Credit:Timothy Evans

But while the state's top cop, Commissioner Andrew Scipione, has determined that, on the "balance of probabilities", the officer knowingly consumed drugs, scientific opinion suggests otherwise.

Leading forensic experts have cast doubts over the decision to sack Sergeant Zisopoulos, concluding there is "no evidence" the substances found on his hair were ingested and that the minute readings may have been caused by "external contamination".
Brisbane asylum seeker Mojgan Shamsalipoor still gets goosebumps when she thinks about the day she was set free from a detention centre on a bridging visa.

But despite the relief that came with being granted a temporary bridging visa and being reunited with her husband Milad Jafari, the 23-year-old is still living on borrowed time.

Brisbane asylum seeker Mojgan Shamsalipoor with her husband Milad Jafari.

Ms Shamsalipoor was taken from Yeronga State High School by armed immigration officials and transferred without warning to Darwin's Wickham Point Detention Centre in August 2015.

She was released on September 21, 2016 on a bridging visa after two years in detention. Her brother Hossein was also released.
Scores of people have protested in Brisbane's CBD about a delay to abortion reforms being put before Parliament.

Last month, Independent MP Rob Pyne agreed to withdraw his two private member's bills that, if successful, would have decriminalised abortion in the state.

Independent MP for Cairns Rob Pyne agreed to withdraw his two private member's bills. Credit:Chris Hyde

There were concerns the bills, as they stood, would introduce legal complications for women and their doctors, especially if one was passed while the other failed.

Labor had pledged to allow its MPs a conscience vote but given its minority government status, the bills were unlikely to succeed.
Brisbane held its inaugural Ice Cream Festival on Saturday, an event so popular the 5600 tickets sold out within three hours.

Red Hook co-owner Tom Sanceau said he was amazed there has not been an ice-cream festival already.

Ice-cream vendor Sam Coco at the Brisbane Ice Cream Festival. Credit:Robert Shakespeare

"Everyone loves ice-cream, I'm staggered that no one's done an ice-cream festival in Brisbane before this," he said.

"We've got this amazing climate here, and it just makes you feel so good eating ice-cream  there's never a bad time to eat ice-cream."
A group of community leaders in fluoro yellow vests from Melbourne's South Sudanese community will be easily identifiable among the crowd at this weekend's Moomba festivities.

The group has stepped up its efforts to avoid a repeat of last year's violent brawls that erupted at the three-day festival involving many of their younger brothers, sons and daughters by wearing high visibility vests emblazoned with "South Sudanese Community Leaders" across the back.

South Sudanese community leaders in fluoro vests will be at Moomba.

Their plan is to approach African youths engaging in antisocial behaviour before it escalates, says Kot Monoah.

The lawyer and chair of the South Sudanese Community in Victoria said 11 "elders", both men and women, would be at Moomba, actively seeking out young African men and women and urging them to talk about their troubles.
A Galaxy Poll for 9 News Perth is predicting a landslide win for Labor and its leader Mark McGowan in WA's state election.

The exit poll taken in key seats across Perth shows Labor snaring 41 per cent of the vote and the Liberals capturing only 33 per cent.

The poll shows a swing of 12 per cent to Labor and the party securing 17 new seats.

The Greens get 8 per cent while other parties take 7 per cent, with Pauline Hanson's One Nation polling 6 per cent, down from the 9 per cent it averaged earlier in the campaign.
Southern River Liberal MP Peter Abetz told Radio 6PR just after 7.20 pm he had lost his seat. He also extraordinary claimed the Liberals would lose government. Colin Barnett and his wife Lyn cast their votes on March 11. Credit:Tony McDonoough Notre Dame University lecturer Martin Drum called the election for Labor just before 7.30 and less than an hour and a half later Barnett was conceeding. By 9.30pm, new WA premier, Mark McGowan had taken the stage at Labor's election party at the Gary Holland Community Centre in Rockingham where he swamped by the party faithful. He joked that he was yet to have a celebratory drink but was planning to afterwards.

"That's a core promise," he laughed. Mr McGowan said outside he had already received a call from a "very gracious" Mr Barnett but it took him ten minutes to get to the stage as he was continually mobbed by well wishers. "I came here 27 years ago in a Toyota Corolla across the Nullabourtoday Western Australians voted for hope and opportunity and not desperation and ignorance," he said. "Today we showed we are a state of decency and intelligence. "Today Western Australians showed the way for the rest of the country.

"It's time for a fresh approach." There was massive swings toward Labor in crucial seats of Kalamunda, Belmont, and Mt Lawley. In the seat of Wanneroo there was an incredible 20 per cent swing towards Labor. In the Darling Range Labor was sitting on a 19.7 per cent swing. Just before 8pm Labor's primary vote was 41.7 per cent while the Liberals was a lowly 30.8.

Remarkably, One Nation's primary vote was just 4.6 per cent, more than half of what was predicted. Former Premier Colin Barnett conceded defeat just before 9pm, saying "politics was a brutal and harsh business". He said the Liberals were a government of integrity. The writing was already on the wall before counting even started after a Galaxy Poll for 9 News Perth released just prior to the polls closed showed a landslide win for Labor and its leader Mark McGowan in WA's state election. The exit poll, taken in key seats across Perth, showed Labor snaring 41 per cent of the vote and the Liberals capturing only 33 per cent.

There was a number of bad omens for the Liberals early in the day. Premier Colin Barnett manned a BBQ at North Cottesloe Primary school and when he tried to hand a woman a sausage for her roll, she told him she was a vegetarian. The government were in strife, reflected at a number of polling booths around the metropolitan area, with voters overwhelmingly saying they were voting for Labor. But Premier Colin Barnett had remained upbeat about the Liberal's chances prior to voting at the Cottlesloe Civic Centre. "I think one of the great things about Australia, despite the tension of the campaign and a few incidents that happened on voting day...everyone comes out and exercises their democratic right and there is a lot of goodwill after," he said.

"There are plenty of hot dogs for sale and the schools are making a fortune." Mr Barnett was clinging to the fact one in five voters were still yet to make up their minds before they headed to the polls on Saturday. "I think the message is the same - I think this is a very good government," he said. "It's been a very strong economic development government... it's been caring and compassionate for people in need and we have been strong on the environment. "The protection of the Kimberley is one of the greatest environment achievements in history and it is probably underestimated."
The Cumberland York Area Local Defense Group (CYALDG) Friday released results of its Strategic Positioning Plan for Midstate military facilities.

CYALDG contracted with Michael Baker International, in partnership with Dering Consulting Group, in 2015 to conduct a Strategic Positioning Plan for the areas military installations, including the U.S. Army Garrison Carlisle Barracks (Carlisle Barracks), Naval Support Activity Mechanicsburg (NSA Mechanicsburg), and Defense Logistics Agency Distribution Susquehanna (DLA Susquehanna).

Michael Baker and Dering representatives conducted interviews, stakeholder meetings and surveys over the past year to develop the final plan. CYALDG officials said the purpose of the planning effort is to strengthen ties between the community and the installations to better support their functions and missions.

According to the study, the areas installations contribute $1 billion in annual local economic impact and employ nearly 11,000 people who live on the installations or in area communities. The U.S. Army War College hosts 400 students every year and the U.S. Army Heritage & Education Center drew about 185,000 visitors last year, bringing in about $24 million for local hotels and restaurants.

This areas location and accessibility is the most significant benefit to the Department of Defense for keeping these installations where they are located, CYALDG officials said in a news release.

The Cumberland York area is along the I-81 corridor between Hagerstown, Maryland, and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania  largely within the Cumberland Valley. The area is within close proximity to major cities on the eastern seaboard. I-81 intersects regionally with routes 70, 76 and 78, making the area an attractive location for warehousing and distribution facilities. The area is also known for small-town charm, access to big-city amenities and Pennsylvanias rural landscapes.

Over 100 Department of Defense facilities, 14 Naval installations/facilities and four major ports can be accessed by overnight truck or train from the DLA Susquehanna and NSA Mechanicsburg locations. Carlisle Barracks is a 3-hour drive from senior leadership in Washington, D.C.

According to CYALDG officials, the Strategic Positioning Plan identified the need to build and sustain partnerships to ensure the longevity of our installations. The opportunity areas are broken up into the following sections:

Community Cooperation  strategies focused around: coordinating and promoting services that support military families and the civilian workforce; ensuring a coordinated voice supporting our installations; developing relationships between local elected officials and military leadership; and planning for the long-term with local officials, school districts, land-use studies and other key partners

Workforce Development & Education  strategies focused around: continuing to develop a civilian workforce that supports military needs; and supporting high-quality education in the region

Infrastructure, Utilities & Services  strategies focused around: working toward reducing roadway congestion and developing traffic solutions; supporting multimodal travel and shipping needs; working with NSA Mechanicsburg to determine whether local communities or others can support their efforts to focus on energy-related projects like renewable energy, solar panels, etc.; and continuing to coordinate security and disaster management between Carlisle Barracks and the surrounding community

CYALDG said it will establish subcommittees to focus on each of the opportunity areas to lead specific action items.

The Pennsylvania Military Community Enhancement Commission approached Cumberland Area Economic Development Corp. in 2014 to establish a CYALDG to coordinate, advocate, develop and implement recommendations to enhance the military value of the installations in the area.
And with this cracking photo of a victorious Mark McGowan we bid you adieu!

Thanks for following our blog throughout the day (a very long day). But fear not, we will be back, live, from 9am tomorrow morning as we bring you all the fall out from a huge night in WA.
Voters and the Labor Party have blasted the Liberals over text messages warning against voting for Mark McGowan in Saturday's West Australian election.

Reports of anti-Labor text messages being received emerged on social media on Saturday as West Australians go to the polls.

Voters received a message from a sender called 'LaborRisk' that calls to mind last year's 'Mediscare' controversy.

Saturday's message says "FACT: Household bills will go up under a Labor government. Mark McGowan is not worth the risk."
Washington: Muhammad Ali Jr has been detained and questioned at a Washington airport before being allowed to board a flight to Fort Lauderdale after meeting members of congress to discuss a similar incident last month.

Ali and his mother, Khalilah Camacho Ali, were stopped at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport after returning from Jamaica on February 7.

Muhammad Ali Jr and his mother, Khalilah Camacho-Ali, attend a forum on Capitol Hill in Washington. Credit:AP

They flew to Washington on Wednesday without incident to speak to members of a congressional subcommittee on border security about that experience.

But attorney Chris Mancini says when Ali attempted to board a JetBlue Airways flight home to Florida on Friday he was detained for 20 minutes.
Beijing: A volley of rogue missiles, the surprise despatch of a military radar, and by week's end, the downfall of a president.

A confluence of events has stoked tensions on the Korean Peninsula, and analysts are worried about what happens next.

The exit of disgraced South Korean president Park Geun-hye, after Friday's court ruling to uphold a decision by parliament to impeach her, leaves a vacuum at the centre of one of the globe's most dangerous flashpoints.

An increasingly reckless rogue nuclear state, North Korea, sits next door. As does an angry trading partner, China.
Bangkok: Authorities have ended a 23-day siege of Thailand's largest temple, where worshippers and monks defied repeated attempts to arrest a prominent monk wanted on charges of money laundering and accepting stolen assets.

Worshippers wept on Saturday as they re-entered the 400-hectare Dhammakaya temple complex on the outskirts of Bangkok, which thousands of police and soldiers had blockaded in an operation to arrest 72-year-old Phra Dhammajayo, the temple's honorary abbot.

"Welcome home. It's great to see everyone again," the temple tweeted.

Paisit Wongmuang, head of the Thailand's Department of Special Investigation, announced the end of operation but said authorities would continue to search for Phra Dhammajayo outside of the temple.
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Mother's Day is just around the corner, and you know that if your children are still small and squirmy, a relaxing spa day or elegant meal out are out of the question!

But there are loads of great ways to celebrate Mother's Day in Bristol with your little sprogletts, and plenty of special deals about for the big day too.

Whether you all pay a visit to some of Bristol's animal mums, enjoy a family-friendly afternoon tea, or get crafty and create a special Mother's Day keepsake, you're sure to have fun.

Here are some of our favourite events and attractions to enjoy over Mother's Day weekend.

Mum's go free at The Wild Place

The Wild Place is treating animal-loving mums this Mother's Day by offering them free entry on Sunday, March 26.

Grab a tasty treat from the Courtyard Cafe and then wander through the Congo and Madagascar exhibits to visit some of the park's animal mothers; Lodja, the okapi who gave birth to baby Kimosi last November, and the big family of ring-tailed lemurs, who welcomed two sets of twins in 2016.

The offer is only applicable with a full paying adult or child and you can download the voucher from the website.

Details:

Wild Place, Blackhorse Hill, Bristol BS10 7TP

Admission cost adult from 7.20, child from 5.85, under 5s free. Mum's go for free on Sunday, March 26.

Visit: www.wildplace.org.uk

Afternoon tea on board Brunel's ss Great Britain

Treat your mum this Mother's Day to a Victorian afternoon tea onboard Bristol's iconic ss Great Britain.

Set within the elegance and sophistication of the First Class Dining Saloon on Brunel's pioneering steamship, you can tuck into tiers of classic sandwiches filled with smoked salmon and cucumber, fruit scones with Somerset butter smothered in clotted cream and preserve, and cakes including Victoria sponge and lemon drizzle which are all baked on board by the ship's resident baker.

Top off the afternoon with a classic Bellini (Belle Bellini for children!).

Taking place on Sunday, March 26, you can choose from a 2.30pm or 4pm sitting. Tickets include day access to the ship so they advise you arrive a couple of hours before the start to explore the ship and to take full advantage of your ticket.

Details:

Great Western Dockyard, Gas Ferry Rd, Bristol BS1 6TY

Tickets cost adult 25, child (17 and under) 15, small child (5 and under) 5, family (2 adults & 2 children) 70.

Visit: www.ssgreatbritain.org

Create a Mother's Day gift at Flying Saucers Pottery

A lovely, creative activity out for all the family, Bristol's largest and only dedicated Painting Pottery Cafe (also sometimes known as a ceramic cafe or ceramic studio) is located off the Clifton Triangle.

This Mother's Day, simply let your little one choose a plate, bowl, mug, or even piggy bank, unicorn, fairy or dinosaur, and they can decorate it using brushes or sponge stamps to make a special gift for mum.

You can even have a drink and a snack while you create.

Their masterpiece will be glazed, fired and ready for collection (or posted) within a week. Booking is recommended.

Details:

Painting Pottery Cafe, 9 Byron Place, Bristol, BS8 1JT

Website: www.flyingsaucers.co.uk

Mother's Day Harbour Trip on The Matthew

What could be nicer - and more impressive - than a leisurely sail around our picturesque harbourside aboard one of Bristol's star attractions?

Experience the city from the water This Mother's Day, by climbing aboard The Matthew for an hour-long trip around Bristol's harbour.

Moored outside MShed, The Matthew is a fabulous and faithful reconstruction of the boat used by John Cabot when he discovered Newfoundland in 1497.

You'll cruise gently past the ss Great Britain, the old dock cranes and see all the water activity that makes Bristol one of Europe's most interesting maritime cities.

There are two Mother's Day trips on Sunday, March 26, at 11am and 2pm.

Details:

Princes Wharf, Wapping Road, Bristol BS1 4RN

Tickets cost adult 12, concs 9, children 6-16 9, family ticket (2 adults & 2 children / 1 adult & 3 children) 25, under 5s free.

Visit: matthew.co.uk

Explore Bristol Museum and Art Gallery

Always a favourite with all the family, Bristol Museum ignites young imaginations with a wonderful mixture of historical artefacts, sensational art and good old fashioned play.

Find out about the last billion years of Earth's history, explore the region's natural wonders and discover more about peoples' lives, past and present.

Highlights include the best-preserved dinosaurs ever found in Britain, Egyptian mummies, Alfred the Gorilla and under sevens' discovery area.

Details:

Bristol Museum & Art Gallery, Queens Rd, Bristol, BS8 1RL More info:

Visit: bristolmuseums.org.uk

Meet The Mums Breakfast at Noah's Ark Zoo Farm

A lovely one for all the family, on Saturday, March 25, mums are invited to an exclusive breakfast tea party at Noah Ark Zoo Farm's food barn.

After enjoying breakfast with her little monkeys, mum can then get up close and personal with the Wraxall Zoo's playful primate mums. Keepers will talk about the animals, their mothering skills and the way they interact at each of the exhibits.

Details:

Clevedon Rd, Wraxall BS48 1PG

Admission costs adult 18, concs 17, child 2-16 12, child under 2 free.

Visit: www.noahsarkzoofarm.co.uk

Family-friendly afternoon tea at Margot May Tea Room

All the family can tuck into a tasty afternoon tea at this gorgeous and popular independent tearoom on North Street.

There's a special Mother's Day afternoon tea menu, offering a mouth-watering selection of sandwiches including brie and caramelised red onion and tuna with capers, black olives and red onion as well as Victoria sponge with strawberry jam, dark chocolate truffles and white chocolate and apricot scones with clotted cream and a choice of jams - all washed down with a pot of loose leaf tea or a drink of your choice.

There's even a lovely afternoon tea for you little ones, including cheese, ham and peanutbutter finger sandwiches, Victoria sponge and shortbread.

Lovely.

Details:

36 North Street, Southville, BS3 1HW

Adult's afternoon tea is 13 per person and the children's tea is 6.50

Visit: www.facebook.com/margotmaytearoom/

Jump Around at Old Market Assembly

There's a morning shindig for babies, toddlers and their grown ups on Saturday, March 25 at 10am to 1pm.

Take your little wild ones down to the Old Market Assembly for a good old stomp around the dance floor as well as an animal singalong with Poco Drum, art workshop with the magical Let's Make Art, face painting with The Fashback (2 charge), Mother's Day picture-making, family portraits and fancy dress.

Plus lots more to keep the little ones entertained so mum can enjoy a Bloody Mary, piece of cake and a shimmy on the dance floor.

Jump Around is aimed at families with children under five but older siblings are very welcome.

Details:

25 West Street, Old Market, Bristol BS2 0DF

Tickets cost 4.50 (under ones free).

Visit: www.oldmarketassembly.co.uk

Discover the story of Bristol at Mshed

From prehistoric times to the present day, M Shed tells the unique story of Bristol and its place in the world.

See amazing film and photographs, listen to moving personal stories, encounter rare and quirky objects and add your own memories of Bristol.

Kids will love boarding the famous green Lodekka bus, finding their home on the satellite floor map, getting hands-on with the interactive displays and meeting Bristol's very own dinosaur!

Details:

M Shed, Princes Wharf, Wapping Rd, Bristol, BS1 4RN

Visit: www.bristolmuseums.org.uk

Free entry for mum at Clevedon Pier this Mother's Day

Take your mum to Clevedon Pier for free this Mother's Day, and enjoy a leisurely stroll along the pier, a visit to the interactive museum, and finish the day off with some delicious food at Tiffin's Cafe.

Clevedon Pier is the only Grade 1 listed pier you can visit in England. It was opened in 1869 to receive paddle steamer passengers from Devon and Wales and today it is a focal point for events in Clevedon.

Kids will love walking out to sea, peering down through the gaps in the planks to see the waves below their feet, while parents can look out and take in the views.

Following a recent refurb, there are hands-on exhibits, Tiffin's Cafe and a lovely little shop.

Details:

The Beach, Clevedon, North Somerset, BS21 7QU

Admission costs adults 3, child (aged 4 to 15) 2, concs 2.50. Mum's go for free on Sunday, March 26.

Mother's Day workshop at Eastfield Inn

A one off workshop invites families to create a special Mother's Day card and a handmade present out of clay as a lovely keepsake.

Taking place at Eastfield Inn, Henleaze, this is a wonderful activity to do with your children and you'll have a beautiful handmade card and present to treasure forever.

Suitable for children aged 5 years and over, there are two two-hour sessions to choose from at 10am and 3pm.

Why not make a day of it and enjoy a 10 per cent discount off your food bill when you book the workshop - the Eastville Inn is offering an awesome Mother's Day roast and other delicious options from 12pm until 4pm.

Details:

Eastfield Inn, 219 Henleaze Rd, Bristol BS9 4NQ

Workshop costs 15

There is a maximum of 12 children per session, so make sure you book at www.greenfoxworkshops.com/current-courses/
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You may be considering giving yourself a treat after a long week and going for a takeaway pizza to make your evening so much easier.

If this is you - then you are in for an even bigger treat.

But before you pick up your phone or iPad to order from Dominos you might want to check this website out.

Savvy bargain hunter Tom Church has leaked the Domino's discount codes for every single store in Britain - and has now become our most favourite person in Bristol.

The 26-year-old from London has spent three months tracking down voucher codes for over 800 Domino's stores.

Now he's generously letting us all get our hands on the codes.

Simply enter your postcode into his handy tool and it will present you with a list of deals and discount codes you can use online at www.Dominos.com

Don't worry about them ever going out of date, as they're automatically updated daily.

It all began with Tom sharing the codes on Facebook, where people would give him their post codes and he would manually find vouchers for them.

But he has decided to share his cheap pizza hack with the world, in order to help those affected by the newly-announced budget .

As reported in the Manchester Evening News, there isn't even a catch - he will be donating any profits to Comic Relief.

Grateful pizza lovers have been sending him photos of all the bargains they've managed to bag thanks to his tool.

Talking about his selfless deed, Tom said: "The Chancellor's budget means some people, especially the self-employed, will be worse off.

"With this tool, I hope to help save people money so they can keep enjoying the best thing in life: pizza."

"I've helped thousands of people get a code. Usually, it's people who love Domino's so much, but can't quite afford it, or groups of friends."

The world needs more people like Tom: kind, generous and knowing the secret to cheap and delicious food.

Tom has hit headlines in the past for tricking Google into believing he was Britain's Sexiest Man.

Tom explains how he got to the top of the search engine results in the hope of 'raising awareness of false beauty standards'.

We're pretty sure plenty of people will think he's Britain's sexiest man today after giving the gift of pizza to the masses.

Louise Butler, spokesperson for Domino's, said: "We work hard to get our voucher codes out to our valued customers, and frequently use promotions to raise money for our charity partner, Teenage Cancer Trust.

"We're pleased Tom is also helping people enjoy the great taste of our freshly handmade pizza, whilst donating to charity - it would be great to hear how much he raises!"
It is a place everyone goes for a spot of shopping, something to eat, to catch a movie or even get their eyebrows threaded, but few know just how many rules there are that you must obey every time you walk into the Cabot Circus shopping centre.

The signs are there, and are the nearest thing we experience as adults to those now iconic 'no heavy petting, no bombing' swimming pool signs that we were vaguely baffled by as children.

So let's just remind ourselves of what we can and can't do when we stroll through the centre and the Quakers' Friars 'street' outside.

1. Photography

Technically, no one is allowed to take photographs or film videos in the confines of Cabot Circus or Quakers' Friars. When the shopping centre opened in 2008, this caused something of a stink, and the then centre manager ended up on local radio being grilled over exactly why security guards were approaching and trying to stop people taking pictures.

Initially reasons given included a photo-ban as an anti-terrorism measure  as if someone intent on blowing up Yo Sushi needed to take a picture of the escalator you need to take to get there.

There was swiftly a partial climbdown and the over-zealous enforcement died off  not least because in 2008 only some of us had smartphones with cameras on  now everyone does.

But the ban still exists in theory. Few people now are stopped from firing off the odd selfie with their mates as they sit outside Wagamamas or on the escalator, but anyone rocking up with a proper-looking camera or who is obviously there to take photos of the striking curved glass roof and scenes within should probably expect a tap on the shoulder from the security. Anyone can go and ask to take pictures though, and they are usually allowed if they register their name and ask the centre office.

2. No skateboarding

Which is a shame, given Cabot Circus' different levels, platforms, rails and stairs. It would be a skateboarders' dream. But your mum and your aunt don't want to be the soft-landing for some teenage flying through the air as they stroll towards House of Fraser.

3. No boozing

Unless, of course, you're sipping a nice glass of chilled lager or a bottle of house red outside one of the many restaurants there. This rule is designed to stop the strange stone benches becoming a meeting place for people drinking lager from a brown paper bag, rather than from the menu. Feel free to test the rule by walking through in a sober manner while swigging from a bottle of Thatcher's Haze yourself. You may well find this is a rule about being drunk rather than drinking per se.

4. No smoking or vaping

When the centre opened, the smoking ban was fairly fresh, and this did cause consternation. Now people are increasingly used to not lighting up indoors anywhere. And Cabot Circus is indoors, even if it is designed to feel like a street. Back in 2008, the Bristol Post featured people smoking in Quakers Friars, the extra outdoor street of Cabot Circus where the Apple Store is, where smoking is still banned, even though it is plainly outdoors. This is one rule security guards do enforce.

5. No cycling

You don't see many bikes in Cabot Circus for this very reason, as well as the fact that there are steps to get anywhere and a bicycle isn't practical. You can get off and walk but not cycle and they do enforce this one too.

6. No dogs

Some High Streets welcome dogs, and have little hooks to tie up leads outside shops and even water bowls. But Cabot Circus doesn't like dogs at all. No one is allowed to walk a dog through the centre, and that includes Quakers Friars. No one is even allowed to carry one of those little dogs in their handbag either.

7. No busking

So the first six are on the signs, albeit with just a symbol and not an explanation. Now we're into the grey area of rules they don't particularly tell you about. Buskers are common in nearby Broadmead, which is a public open space, a public pedestrianized street owned by all of us.

In fact, it's rare to walk through Broadmead without seeing some kind of performance by a musician. But in Cabot, you have to ask permission to do that, and they always say no. Unless, of course, you're a bona fide choir, brass band at Christmas time who've been booked to perform, or Gary Barlow.

8. No chugging

If you're a business, you can by prior arrangement and no doubt a nice fee, position sales reps to flog everything from Dysons to cars to Sky TV to holidays in the 'street' area at the bottom of the escalators in Cabot Circus, but if you're a charity employing fresh, young, vaguely desperate students asking people to sign up to a charity to build hospitals in Africa or something, then nope. Go to Broadmead.

9. No begging

See number 8, only this time it's for a bed in a hostel for the night that's free anyway.

10. No petitions or questionnaires

For a similar reason to number 8, nothing must stop, distract or harass visitors to Cabot's from their original intention  which is to go to the shops, restaurants or other businesses there.

It's a rule people regularly fall foul of, notably students at sixth form who will stand in Quakers Friars without realising they're on private property and start asking passers-by about their mode of transport for some Geography project, before being moved on by security. You can always ask in the office for permission, of course.

THE THINGS CABOT CIRCUS IS ALLOWED TO DO:

1. Film you on CCTV

A given in 2017, and no one bats an eyelid like they used to years ago, when the first CCTV cameras made everyone mutter darkly about George Orwell.

2. Make up new rules whenever they like

It's their private property, so their rules apply. A note on every entrance reminds everyone of this: "These streets are private land owned by The Bristol Alliance," the notice says. "The public are permitted to pass through when they are open.

"The owners do not intend that any permanent rights are to be created by prescription or otherwise.

"The owners reserve the right to introduce rules and regulations."

This flexibility is important, given the speed of change of technology. Let's not forget you can ban smoking, but then everyone starts vaping. You can ban skateboarding, but then everyone gets those hoverboards.
HARRISBURG  Former state Treasurer Rob McCord will be the star witness in the trial of a suburban Philadelphia investment adviser whom he secretly recorded in conversations that federal prosecutors say lay out a bribery scheme to land lucrative state investment contracts, jurors heard Friday.

Richard Ireland is charged with 79 money-laundering, wire fraud, mail fraud and conspiracy charges that stem from federal pay-to-play investigations that also ensnared McCord and a second former state treasurer, Barbara Hafer.

The case against Ireland revolves around lucrative contracts that state officials award to invest billions of taxpayer dollars. Ireland has shared in millions of dollars in Treasury Department fees since 2000, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Consiglio told jurors in his opening statement Friday that Ireland maintained a yearslong relationship with McCord based on bribery.

Jurors will hear hours of taped conversations between McCord and Ireland, some of them from an FBI wiretap and some from a recording device worn by McCord after he began cooperating with federal authorities in November 2014, Consiglio said. It was perhaps the first time federal authorities had acknowledged that McCord had worn a wire.

The conversations amounted to "I'll give you this, you give me that," Consiglio said.

Prosecutors say the 79-year-old Ireland tried to hide his involvement with McCord by funneling more than $500,000 in campaign contributions through friends, family members, businesses and employees of his Valley Forge-based investment marketing business.

McCord, a Democrat, ran successfully for state treasurer in 2008 and 2012. He resigned from the office two years ago before pleading guilty to two counts of attempted extortion, admitting he tried to use his position as treasurer to strong-arm state contractors into donating money to his failed gubernatorial campaign in 2014.

McCord is awaiting sentencing, and Ireland's lawyer Reid Weingarten attacked him as a relentless, ambitious and insincere manipulator who used Ireland for campaign contributions, not the other way around. On the stand, McCord will be charming and contrite, Weingarten told jurors, because he wants federal prosecutors to help him avoid jail.

"His entire motivation is to stay out of jail ... to get someone else  today, my client  to do his jail time," Weingarten said. The trial will be "the Rob McCord show," he said.

At least twice, Weingarten called McCord "their boy," referring to prosecutors, drawing an objection from Assistant U.S. Attorney William Houser that McCord wasn't their "boy."

"We're prosecuting McCord," Houser told U.S. District Judge John Jones III.

Weingarten countered that a loyal Ireland was trying to help McCord as a longtime friend, in particular by giving McCord $200,000 in late 2014 after McCord had plowed more than $2 million of his own money into his campaign.

In recorded conversations around the same time, Ireland presses McCord to get the chairman of the State Employees Retirement System  the $26 billion pension fund on whose board McCord sat  to invest money in an index fund created and licensed by Ireland, prosecutors say.

"This is very important to us," Ireland told McCord, according to prosecutors. "We don't want a damn bone."

Weingarten said Ireland never sought an exchange of official action for campaign contributions and only pursued advocacy within legal limits. Ireland tried to hide campaign contributions because he did not want fellow Republicans, such as former Gov. Tom Corbett, to know he was helping a Democrat, Weingarten said.

The retirement system has said it believes it has no direct holdings or investments with any companies owned or operated by Ireland.

Hafer's name didn't come up Friday. She was charged on the same day in July as Ireland with making false statements to federal agents, allegedly to conceal payments after she left office in 2005 of more than $500,000 from an unnamed businessman's firm, apparently Ireland's. Hafer was treasurer from 1997 to 2005 after running as a Republican.
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Someone texted in a bomb threat to a Midwood Jewish center on March 10, prompting an evacuation of the Coney Island Avenue building around 8 am, just one day after the Jewish Childrens Museum in Crown Heights received its own emailed bomb threat. Both threats were unfounded, but rattled nerves nonetheless.

Police responded to the Jewish Association Serving the Aging at 8:05 am after someone working for the agency got a text that a bomb would go off, officials said. Police would not go into more detail about who received the text or what else it said.

Officers searched and cleared the building between Foster Avenue and Avenue H, and deemed it safe for everyone to go back inside by 10:22 am, a police department spokesman said.

Police are investigating the incident and its ties to the handful of other threats made against Jewish centers around the city, a department spokesman said.

But locals are not so much cringing in fear as they are in fuming frustration  and are hoping the stream of unfounded threats is not a disturbed plot to cry wolf enough to bring everyones guard down, said photographer Simon Gifter, who was on the scene.

Theres no fear. The sense I got from interviewing people, they are sick and tired, not even scared anymore. They are just fed up with the whole situation. Thats the mindset of a lot of people, another stupid bomb threat, said Gifter. But what if people start letting their guard down? They are in a bind, have to take it seriously because if they dont and something happens.

Officials believe the scares are all coming from one sick copycat with sophisticated technology to disguise himself  after Missourian Juan Thompson was arrested last week for numerous threats across the county.

One local pol took to social media to lament the relentless stream threats coming day after day.

It seems that hardly a day goes by without a threat to an innocent Jewish institution. Elderly people threatened today, children yesterday, Assemblyman Dov Hikind (DMidwood) wrote on Facebook. With all of the resources that are allegedly being dedicated to identifying the culprits and bringing them to justice, why has there only been one arrest? The current theory is that its one individual making these threats. So why cant he be stopped?

And now Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is leading the charge with a letter to the Department of Homeland Security demanding it increase federal funding to ensure the security and protection of religious institutions across the country on the heels of the growing number of bomb threats this year. The letter, signed by 18 senators from both sides of the aisle, cites the recent scares at many Jewish centers.

The need for protection is imperative and the federal government must recognize the severity of whats going on, said Gillibrand.

New Yorkers shouldnt have to live or worship in fear, she said. Hate crimes and threats are on the rise and we cant stand idly by and do nothing, or pretend its not happening. Now more than ever, we need to make sure our places of worship and community centers have the right resources to protect themselves. Im asking the Trump administration to take these threats seriously and dedicate more federal dollars to protecting religious and community centers.
Was there a murder 100 years ago at Yardley's Continental Tavern?

Frank Lyons began excavating the basement of the Continental Tavern in Yardley. He found a gun, bloody corset and part of a woman's purse.
Higher taxes, trash pickup? Many special questions await voters Nov. 8

They're sometimes easy to miss, but many South Jersey communities have special questions before voters on their Nov. 8 ballots.
After a fire destroyed the Centenary Building in downtown Carlisle in 1999, then-borough manager Fred Bean called Kenneth Tuckey and asked him to tag along on a walk-through of the building.

Tuckey, the owner of Tuckey Restoration Services, had been there a few days earlier in December 1999 when flames engulfed the building, helping to direct stabilization efforts. He would eventually become involved in the initial restoration work on the historic structure.

As Bean and Tuckey walked through the remains of the building, they noticed Christmas presents in one of the apartments that survived the fire relatively unscathed. There was only one thing Tuckey could do.

It was pretty nice when we were able to retrieve the Christmas gifts and give them to the family, Tuckey said.

Its one memory from a lifetime of service and decades of business in the Carlisle area.

Its also a memory that brings into focus the philosophy of a businessman with a bent for community service that has earned him this years Molly Pitcher Award as the Carlisle Area Citizen of the Year for 2016 from the Exchange Club of Carlisle. Tuckey was honored during a dinner Friday night at the Dickinson College Holland Union Building.

Presented every year since 1969, the Molly Pitcher Award honors people who have provided outstanding service to the community. The silver pitcher that symbolizes the award is named after Mary Ludwig Hays McCaully, who became famous as Molly Pitcher and who was a heroine in the Revolutionary War after bringing water to artillerymen under fire.

Building a business

Today Tuckey Cos. includes Tuckey Metal Fabricators, Tuckey Mechanical Services and Tuckey Restoration. Other companies, 3T Investors and 3T Management, work in conjunction with Tuckey Cos. Together, Tuckey Cos. employ more than 100 people, according to its website.

Its a long way from the companys beginning in Newville.

I literally started in the garage in a very small business, said Tuckey, a 1970 graduate of Big Spring High School.

In 1978, Tuckey bought a metal fabricating business and merged it with his own business to create Tuckey Metal Fabricators. A few years later, Tuckey bought Tuckey Mechanical Services from his father, Denver, who purchased Frank Black Mechanical Services in 1981. The two companies remained independent, and added Tuckey Restoration to the fold in 1995.

I took a very conservative approach in business, but also combined that with more calculated risks to allow us to grow, Tuckey said, reflecting on the growth of his company.

The Centenary Building project could well be counted among one of those risks.

The arson fire at the corner of West High and South Pitt streets in 1999 destroyed one building and damaged a second. Tuckeys company, 3T Investors, formed to carry out the project to reconstruct the Centenary building and also to build the Addison building on an adjacent vacant lot. The project was the first in town to incorporate upscale apartments.

It was a challenge because a lot of people wondered whether it would work in Carlisle, Tuckey said.

People were curious about what Tuckey was doing in the building and, when the work was completed, he held an open house to invite the community to check it out.

We had a line around the building of people who wanted to come and see, Tuckey said.

It was a risk for Tuckey Cos., but it set the stage for future downtown development. In the years that followed, upscale apartments became part of renovations at the Livery, 20 N. Pitt St., the Stuart building, 1-3 N. Hanover St., and, most recently, the Wheelhouse on College Street.

For Tuckey, the greatest success in his career has not been counted in awards  and there have been several  or in profit. Success is found in the development of employees and relationships with customers.

Tuckey talks enthusiastically about Sharon Gless, who retired in March 2016  50 years to the day after she first walked through the doors. She started as a secretary for Frank Black Mechanical Services and stuck around after Denver Tuckey purchased the company. She later ran the service department.

What was interesting about Sharons story is she kept reinventing herself, Tuckey said.

Or, he said, look at Hope Coutts. She came in as a clerk in the metal shop and now serves alongside Tuckeys two sons, Matthew and Nathan, as a company director.

I definitely want them to go away with better skills than when they came here, Tuckey said. Its their success, not mine.

Tuckey has been a visionary with workforce development, said Michelle Crowley, president and CEO of the Greater Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce.

Being engaged with the state workforce investment board has given him the opportunity to be one of the leaders in the state of Pennsylvania when it comes to understanding what our future employment needs will be, Crowley said.

Amy Routson, director of First Night Carlisle, has seen Tuckeys knack for people development extend into his service to the community through his work as a long-standing sponsor of the event.

He is an incredibly kind man and has been supportive of my personal growth, as well, encouraging me to lead and not to be afraid, Routson said.

Serving the community

Giving to the community is part of Tuckeys core philosophy.

I really think Gods given us an opportunity. Its always been that I want to put more into the community than I get out, Tuckey said.

His service has taken him to the board room for the Greater Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce, Carlisle Regional Medical Center, Cumberland Area Economic Development Corp. and the Salvation Army, among others. Hes also sponsored events in town, and rolled up his sleeves to pitch in on projects like Carlisles Summerfair.

We helped with logistics and running cords, whatever it is they needed help with. To this day, were still sponsoring Summerfair, Tuckey said.

Gayle Bollinger, principal at Brown Schultz Sheridan & Fritz who served with Tuckey on the CAEDC board, said Tuckey was the first chairman of the CAEDC board and served in that position for several years.

His visionary leadership helped put the organization on a path that laid the groundwork for CAEDC to grow into the organization it is today, Bollinger said.

Tuckeys faith is foundational to his work in business and in the community, and it found an outlet as a member of the board of directors for Carlisle Christian Academy.

I can tell you that he was the backbone of the board for many years, and his faith in our school as a source of good Christian education has always been evident, said Christine Tiday, director of academics at Carlisle Christian Academy.

Customer service and community service is intertwined for Tuckey and his company. A page on the company website lists the number of organizations to which employees donate their time, talent and funds. Sometimes, Tuckey said, the employees serve the community by responding to service calls on snowmobiles in the middle of a snowstorm to help elderly people who are isolated and alone.

Every aspect of what we do is service, he said.

The greatest reward from volunteering, Tuckey said, is to see small things from the smiles on childrens faces when he hands out ice cream cones to helping a family recover after a fire.

Tuckey said it was never a goal of his to be honored for his service to the community, and that hes surprised and humbled by having been added to what he described as a very distinguished list of recipients of the Molly Pitcher Award that includes his own father. The Exchange Club honored Denver Tuckey with the 2007 Molly Pitcher Award.

It shows you how I was taught, Tuckey said.

That he is being honored is no surprise to those who have served with Tuckey in the community.

Carlisle Borough Councilman Perry Heath has worked with Tuckey on projects in the community through Mowery, where he works. Heath said Tuckey respects the companies with whom he co-contracts, and all of these business relationships are treated fairly.

Kenn professionally epitomizes everything the Molly Pitcher Award stands for  service, professionalism and integrity in all of his business dealings, he said.

Theres no one more deserving of the Molly Pitcher award than Kenn Tuckey. He is a true pillar of the community, and a champion of both the arts and of our local social services agencies, said Christin Kapp, who worked with Tuckey as a former director of First Night Carlisle and as the Corps Community Relations and Development director for the Salvation Army.

Standing with him each New Years Eve at the base of the drop button is one of the highlights of the year for me. Kenn truly embodies what it means to live in community; he expresses his love for this town through his sponsorship and service, and Carlisle is all the richer because he has made his home here, she said.

Looking to the future

Tuckeys vision for the future of the company and his work in the community continues to build on what he has done in the past.

Its to do the same thing weve always done year after year and see what God has for the future, he said.

At the center of it, as always, is Tuckeys wife, Marsha, who Tuckey said keeps him grounded in faith and life while serving in her own right by taking care of the family and raising their two sons, Matthew and Nathan.

Shes very much allowed me to go and grow, Tuckey said.

Tuckeys sons have found their places in the organization as directors alongside Coutts, the operations director. Nathan Tuckey takes a more internal role as corporate systems director, working with the back office teams in accounting, information technology and marketing. Matt Tuckey is more outward focused with responsibilities for business development, culture changes and growing the workforce.

Just like his dad, Denver, did with him and his brothers, Kenn has challenged his sons, Matt and Nathan, on what to do next to meet the needs of our region with their companies, and we know that they will continue to be innovative, Crowley said.

Tuckey knows his sons will continue the family tradition of community service, and he sees the same spirit in town with many people getting involved with volunteering and community service.

We have a wonderful community and people ought to be proud of that, he said.

Tuckey encourages those who may not be active in the community to look around, see what they are interested in, and get involved. He reminds them that all contributions count.

Dont feel like every taste of volunteering and getting involved has to be a big thing. Every little thing matters, he said.
Banks to whom embattled tycoon on Friday offered a negotiated one-time settlement of their dues want him to spell out how much he is ready to pay up.

"It is crucial to know how much the offer is improved over his (Mallya's) previous offer of over Rs 6,000 crore," a banker told BTVi on the condition of anonymity on Friday.

Banks had previously shot down Mallya's offer of Rs 6,868 crore in April 2016 to settle the dues that are in excess of Rs 9,000 crore, including interest. The loans were advanced to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines between 2006-2012.

In a series of tweets earlier in the day, Mallya offered to negotiate with banks for one-time settlement of dues and sought the Supreme Court's intervention.

"Public sector banks have policies for one-time settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled. Why should this be denied to us? Our substantial offer before the Supreme Court was rejected by banks without consideration," tweeted Mallya.

Mallya's renewed offer came a day after the consortium of 17 banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI) told the apex court that "he had taken it for a ride" and urged the apex court to initiate contempt proceedings against the tycoon for "wilfully" flouting its orders.

Though Mallya appears to be offering an olive branch to tghe banks, the initial reaction from bankers is decidedly guarded.

Banking sources who spoke to BTVi said it was impossible to respond to Mallya's tweets without knowing the quantum of his offer.

Terming Mallya's offer "hypothetical" until it was received in writing, consortium's counsel S.S. Naganand told BTVi that banks were not in the business of social media.

"As a banking institution, we need a credible, written offer signed by him and delivered to the bank. If he gives a fair offer, the bank will consider it fairly," Naganand said exclusively to BTVi.

Some bankers, however, are hopeful that Mallya's latest tweets will lead to an improved offer on the table.

"Mallya may be ready to attach his personal resources and improve on the offer from last time," said another banker.

Fear of a backlash from investigation agencies haunt Mallya's lenders following the arrest of former IDBI Bank Chairman Yogesh Aggarwal and eight others, including the airline's former Chief Financial Office A. Raghunathan by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on January 24 in the Rs 750-crore loan fraud case.

"Any new offer should go through an oversight committee so that banks feel comfortable to settle without fear of backlash from the CBI," said one banker.

Moreover, the SBI-led consortium of banks failed to attract bidders in its efforts to auction Mallya's plush Kingfisher House in Mumbai and Kingfisher Villa in Goa on March 6, despite lowering the reserve price for the fourth and third time respectively.

In a related development, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in New Delhi that relevant agencies were trying to get Mallya back in India.

"Relevant agencies are trying to get him (Mallya) back through extradition or deportation. Diplomatic channel is also being used," Jaitley told the Lok Sabha during Question Hour.

Jaitley was responding to a query by Trinamool Congress lawmaker Saugata Roy, who wanted to know the steps being taken by the government against high-profile economic offenders like Mallya and former Indian Premier League (IPL)-T20 Chairman Lalit Modi.

"In the last two and a half years, the government has taken a series of steps. Under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, attachment orders against Mallya have been issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Assets worth Rs 8,040 crore were attached," Jaitley told Roy.

The Minister also told the members that he had an opportunity to discuss the issue with his British counterpart during his visit to London from Februry 24 to March 1.

"I also had the opportunity during my visit to discuss the issue with UK authorities concerned , including my counterpart," added Jaitley.

In Bengaluru, the Karnataka High Court on Friday ordered a bailable warrant against Mallya through the diplomatic process, with the bail amount set at Rs 50 lakh for him to appear before the court.

Mallya has been residing in Britain since he left India on March 2, 2016.
Mercedes-Benz Financial, the vehicle financing arm of German luxury carmaker Daimler, is expanding its business on the growing popularity of its parents luxury car business in India. Mercedes emerged as the countrys biggest luxury car player in 2015 and retained the position in the 2016 calendar year.
An income-tax (I-T) tribunal has upheld the much-discussed capital gains tax demand of Rs 10,247 crore on British oil major Cairn, under the controversial retrospective amendment to the law.
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The following people were sentenced on February 28 in Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas. All sentences include costs and run concurrently with other sentences unless otherwise specified. Probation is unsupervised unless indicated otherwise. Driving under the influence (DUI) offenses generate different mandatory-minimum sentences based on an offenders prior convictions in the past 10 years.

Sentenced to State Correctional Institute

Carlisle

William Chandler Byers Augusta: One hundred-eighty days to 360 months and 120 months probation for rape of a child; 66 to 132 months for aggravated indecent assault of a child; 24 to 48 months for incest. (Placey)

William Chandler Byers Augusta: One hundred-eighty days to 360 months and 120 months probation for rape of a child; 78 to 156 months for criminal conspiracy to rape of a child. (Placey)

William Chandler Byers Augusta: One hundred-eighty days to 360 months and 120 months probation for rape of a child; 54 to 108 months for aggravated assault of a child, victim of less than 13 and defendant 18 or older; 42 to 84 months for sexual abuse of children; 24 to 48 months for incest of a minor. (Placey)

Newville

Nygel L. Jenkins: Nine months to 30 months and restitution of $500 for forgery-utters forged writing. (Guido)

Nygel Leeland Jenkins: Fifteen months to 30 months for statutory sexual assault (4-8 years or older). (Guido)

Other

Stanley Lee Mosley: Four consecutive sentences of 3 to 6 years plus restitutions of $1,545.17, $1,282, $1,039.31 and $443.75 for counts 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D, burglary-not adapted for overnight accommodation-no person present and criminal trespass (four counts), theft by unlawful taking (four counts) and criminal mischief (four counts). (Masland)

Sentenced to Cumberland County Prison

Biglerville

Bradley Donald Tauscher: Five days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense; a $25 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Masland)

Camp Hill

Brian James Henderson: Five days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense; a $25 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Brewbaker)

Seth T. Huryn: Twenty-four months probation and restitution of $855 for simple assault; 24 months for recklessly endangering another person; 24 months probation for obstructing administration of law or other governmental functions. (Guido)

Carlisle

Stacy Marie Carson: Six to 23 months and restitutions of $4,238.70 and $8,660.24 for criminal conspiracy to theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Guido)

Terry Eugene Darr: Three to 12 months and a $100 fine for sale or illegal use of certain solvents. (Peck)

Colin Andrew Filaroski: Three to 23 months and a $100 fine for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-Heroin. (Peck)

Leah Rose Freeland: Eleven and one-half months to 23 months for statutory sexual assault (8-11 years or older); 3 years probation and 36 hours of community service for corruption of minors. (Placey)

Kenneth Alan Kiner: Forty-eight hours to 6 months and a $500 fine for DUI, high rate of alcohol. (Brewbaker)

John Scott Mattern Jr.: One year, less 1 day to 2 years, less 1 day and 36 months probation for three counts of sexual abuse of children. (Masland)

Christopher Michael McFalls: One to 12 months for disorderly conduct, credit of 70 days; costs for disorderly conduct. (Guido)

Samantha Naomi Reeder: Fourteen days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense, consecutive. (Brewbaker)

Samantha Naomi Reeder: Fourteen days to 6 months and a $1,000 fine for DUI, controlled substance, consecutive. (Brewbaker)

Ryan Thomas Sundy: Nine to 23 months for terroristic threats; costs for harassment; costs for disorderly conduct. (Guido)

Samier Armhan Walker: Two to 12 months for theft from a motor vehicle. (Guido)

Samier Armhan Walker: Eleven and one-half months to 23 months for criminal trespass; costs for receiving stolen property. (Guido)

Steven Jamal Williford: Three to 10 years for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-Heroin. (Ebert)

Dillsburg

Tyler David Thomas: Twelve months probation for unlawful possession of small amount of marijuana, consecutive; 30 days to 6 months for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. (Ebert)

Duncannon

Dana Mathew Wagner: Thirty days to 6 months, a $750 fine and restitution of $166.16 for DUI, high rate of alcohol, second offense. (Brewbaker)

Enola

Christopher M. Beaver: Ten to 90 days and a $50 fine for harassment. (Ebert)

Joshua David Ivey: Thirty days to 6 months and a $750 fine for DUI, second offense. (Brewbaker)

Harrisburg

Alberto Gerry Gesualdo: Thirty days to 6 months and a $750 fine for DUI, second offense. (Masland)

Elizabeth Mary Gutekunst: Thirty days to 6 months and a $750 fine for DUI, second offense; a $50 fine for prohibiting text-based communications. (Ebert)

Victor L. Roebuck: Time served to 48 months for retail theft. (Ebert)

Trisha Lee Schneider: Forty-eight hours to 6 months and a $500 fine for DUI. (Guido)

Mechanicsburg

Mary Michelle Case: Forty-eight hours to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense. (Brewbaker)

Matthew Evan Wickens: Three days to 6 months and a $500 fine for DUI. (Ebert)

Mount Holly Springs

Devon Tyree Bailey: Time served to 18 months and a $50 fine for criminal trespass. (Ebert)

Truman Randall Horner: Three days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI. (Peck)

Newburg

Nicholas James Tucker: Twelve months probation and a $100 fine for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-Marijuana; 90 days to 23 months and a $1,500 fine for DUI, second offense. (Ebert)

Nicholas James Tucker: Time served (one day) to 23 months for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-Marijuana; 6 months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Masland)

Newville

Devon Michael Gibson: Five days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense; 60 days and a $1,000 fine for driving while under suspension-DUI-related, consecutive. (Masland)

Shippensburg

Bobbie Jean Nicole Pratt: Time served to 23 months for criminal trespass. (Masland)

Wormleysburg

Sezan Prudence Hessou: Six to 12 months, 12 months probation and 96 hours of community service for simple assault. (Placey)

Tiffany Marie Miller: Forty-eight hours to 6 months and a $500 fine for DUI. (Brewbaker)

York

Brian K. Coen: Three to 12 months and a $100 fine for defiant trespass; twelve months probation for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, credit of 6 days. (Peck)

Brian Keith Coen: Forty-eight hours to 6 six months for DUI; 12 months probation for unlawful unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia; a $25 fine for duty to give information and render aid; a $25 fine for careless driving. (Brewbaker)

Other

Paul Anthony Abel: Five to 23 months and restitutions of $328.99 and $1,589.94 for retail theft. (Ebert)

Tia Shanae Brooks: Time served to 23 months, 24 months probation and restitution of $2,314.26 for criminal conspiracy to retail theft. (Ebert)

Arthur Pendleton Cullom: Five days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense. (Masland)

Kenneth J. Robie Jr.: One to 4 months for unauthorized use of automobile and other vehicles. (Ebert)

Diane Frances Witman: Five days to 6 months and a $300 fine for DUI, second offense; 48 hours of community service and a $400 fine for driving while under suspension; a $300 fine for required financial responsibility. (Placey)

Sentenced to Probation

Camp Hill

Dylan Jade Flynn: Forty-eight months probation and 192 hours of community service for terroristic threats. (Placey)

Jose Alfredo Pinela: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Peck)

Ashley Elizebeth Talbott: Six months probation and a $200 fine for accident involving damage to attended vehicle or property; 6 months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Masland)

Carlisle

Joelle Nickole Johnson: Six months probation, a $300 fine and restitution of $319.44 for DUI; a $200 fine for reckless driving. (Placey)

Jesse R. Linn: Thirty-six months probation and restitution of $17,075.90 for obtaining public welfare funds by misrepresentation. (Masland)

Samantha Naomi Reeder: Twelve months probation for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, consecutive. (Placey)

Enola

Zachary Wayne Barninger: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Ebert)

Richard Michael Manley: Twelve months probation, a $100 fine and restitution of $775.64 for bad checks. (Peck)

Harrisburg

Edward Montalvo-Colon: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Peck)

Kevin D. Payne: Twenty-four months probation and restitution of $14,759.43 for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Guido)

Mechanicsburg

Mary Michelle Case: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Brewbaker)

Mount Holly Springs

Michael Shane Smetana: Eighteen months probation, a $100 fine and restitution of $1,984.30 for bad checks. (Peck)

Newville

Alan Eugene Mccalister: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Ebert)

Carisa Shawnta Stoltenburg: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI. (Masland)

Shippensburg

Matthew Alan Evans: Twenty-four months probation for terroristic threats; 24 months probation for intimidation of witnesses or victims. (Masland)

Matthew Alan Evans: Twenty-four months probation and a $100 fine for theft by unlawful taking or disposition. (Masland)

Jesse Lee Kirkland: Six months probation and a $300 fine for DUI; a $25 fine for obedience to traffic control devices; a $25 fine for careless driving. (Masland)

Bobbie Jean Pratt: Two years probation for receiving stolen property. (Masland)

Jason David Schmieding: Twelve months probation and restitution of $2,380.76 for cruelty to animals; a $200 fine for hunting in safety zone. (Masland)

Shiremanstown

Jimmy Daniel Permenter III: Thirty-six months for unlawful delivery, manufacture, possession with intent to deliver a Schedule I controlled substance-Marijuana; 36 months probation for criminal use of communication facility, concurrent. (Masland)

York

Christopher Carver Magee: Twelve years probation and restitution of $2,939.97 for criminal mischief. (Peck)

Other

Ryan Daniel Stroup: Twelve months probation for unlawful possession of a Schedule I controlled substance-Heroin. (Masland)

Sentenced to Electronic Monitoring

Carlisle

Valdez Dexter Cutler Fisher: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Bryan David Rodgers: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

Richard Allan Stoughton: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Chambersburg

Gene A. Morales: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Harrisburg

Carlos Albino: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

Christopher D. Andrews: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Andrew A. Rohrer: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

Mechanicsburg

Janet Maxwell: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

Erik C. Smith: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

York

Ebony A. Evans: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension. (Brewbaker)

Other

David J. Weyant: Sentenced to electronic monitoring for driving while under suspension-DUI-related. (Brewbaker)

Sentenced to Fine

York

Christopher Carver Magee: A $50 fine for harassment; costs for criminal mischief. (Peck)

Carlisle

Colin Andrew Filaroski: Sentenced to a $100 fine for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia; costs for public drunkenness. (Peck)
Top officials of SpiceJet and Jet Airways today flagged their "concerns" with the Civil Aviation Ministry over the move to allow foreign players to set up airlines in the country.

The meeting, which lasted for more than an hour, comes two days after Gulf carrier announced its plans to set up an airline in India along with the Gulf nation's sovereign wealth fund.

SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh and Jet Airways acting CEO Amit Agarwal met Civil Aviation Secretary R N Choubey where discussions mainly revolved around allowing overseas entities into domestic airline business, a source close to the development said.

They "expressed concerns" over the government allowing 100 per cent ownership of local airlines by foreign investors, the source said.

Both, SpiceJet and Jet Airways are part of Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), a grouping of domestic carriers, and other members are IndiGo and GoAir.

While FIA has not formally made any comment on the announcement made by Qatar Airways, the grouping has been vociferous in their opposition to foreign entities owning majority stake in Indian airlines.

As part of liberalising norms for overseas investments, foreign non-airline players can own up to 100 per cent stake in local carriers.

On Wednesday, Chief Executive Officer Baker Al-Baker announced in Berlin plans to establish an airline in India.

"We are joining hands with the investment arm of State of Qatar to start a domestic airline in India with a 100 per cent investment," Al Baker had said.

In a strongly-worded letter to the ministry on January 3, the FIA had raised concerns about foreign players acquiring ownership in Indian airlines.

Once foreign controlled airlines are established as Indian carriers, they would gain automatic access to defence airfields, the grouping had said.

Further, the FIA had also said that since an unfriendly foreign country can easily route its investment through other countries or through shell companies, allowing effective control to lie outside the country has "huge implications".
Captain Trisha Mohan is amused every time air traffic control addresses her. The only woman flying a Boeing 747 in India, she is called Sir by ground staff. I find it amusing but it doesn't stay on the mind. At that moment, it's only the flight operation that matters, says Mohan, who piloted Air India (AI) planes for 20 years.
An Ahmedabad-London-Newark flight lost communication with the local Air Traffic Control and was escorted by fighter jets over Hungary, officials said here on Friday.

The flight AI-171 had departed from Ahmedabad at 7 a.m. on Friday with 231 passengers and 18 crew members.

En route over Hungarian airspace, it lost contact for some time with the ATC, due to frequency fluctuations, AI officials said.

The flight landed at 11.06 hrs, local time, in London safely, and AI has launched a probe into the incident.

The incident comes barely three weeks after a Jet Airways Mumbai-London flight with 345 persons on board had lost contact with the ground over German airspace and was escorted by fighter jets on February 19.
Prashant Kishors electioneering machine that worked behind the scenes for the Congress in Punjab has established itself in the domain of political consultancy as someone who knows how to win elections. Kishor, who enjoys cabinet minister status in Bihar, started it with ensuring a BJP victory in 2014 after which the juggernaut moved to Bihar where he helped Nitish Kumar retain power.
In unprecedented happenings in the country's judicial corridors, the Supreme Court on Friday issued a bailable warrant against Calcutta High Court Justice C S Karnan for refusing to heed summons to appear, and the judge hit back by ordering the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe all the seven apex court judges in the constitution bench.

In perhaps another unheard step, Justice Karnan held a press conference  conveyed at a short notice  railing against the Supreme Court order, calling it an "attempt to ruin" his life as a Dalit judge, and directed that a case be filed under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act (SC and ST Act).

The day started with a seven-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar asking the West Bengal Director General of Police to serve the bailable warrant personally to Justice Karnan and sought his presence before it on March 31.

The bench also asked Justice Karnan to furnish a personal bond of Rs 10,000.

The order came as Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi told the court that Justice Karnan had refused to appear before the court in a contempt case initiated by it suomotu.

The court also said that the Registry of the Supreme Court had received a text message from Justice Karnan on March 8, "seeking a meeting with CJI (chief justice of India) and other judges so as to discuss certain administrative issues which primarily seem to reflect allegations against certain judges".

"The letter can't be considered as response to contempt petition. In view of the above, there is no alternative but to ensure his presence in the court by issuing bailable warrant," the court said.

Besides Chief Justice Khehar, other judges on the bench are Justice Dipak Misra, Justice J Chelameswar, Justices Ranjan Gogoi, Justice Madan B Lokur, Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Justice Kurian Joseph.

Earlier, the Supreme Court bench had issued contempt notice to Justice Karnan for writing letters casting aspersions on several judges. It had also said Justice Karnan would not discharge any judicial and administrative functions during the pendency of the proceedings.

It is for the first time in the Supreme Court's history that it has invoked powers to initiate contempt proceedings against a sitting judge of a High Court.

Justice Karnan had in January named 20 "corrupt judges", seeking a probe against them to curb "high corruption" in the Indian judiciary.

At the outset of Friday's hearing, Rohatgi told the court that the contempt notice had been served to Justice Karnan and "we got to know that he wrote two letters to the CJI" with allegations against some Madras High Court judges.

Karnan says warrant 'unconstitutional'

Within a couple of hours after the Supreme Court order, Justice Karnan spoke to the media at his residence in Newtown of North East Kolkata and asked President Pranab Mukherjee to recall the "unconstitutional" and "illegally issued" warrant, arguing contempt proceedings cannot be initiated against a sitting High Court judge.

"It is unconstitutional... Only a motion of impeachment can be initiated against a sitting judge of the higher judiciary before the Parliament after due enquiry under the Judges Enquiry Act. Consequently I ask the President of India to recall the bailable warrant illegally issued by the Supreme Court today against me and lift non-work allotment ban of portfolio allocation," he said.

Signing a suo motu order before the mediapersons, and issued to President Mukherjee and the CBI director among others, Karnan directed that a case be registered under appropriate sections of the SC and ST Act and other penal provisions against the seven judges, including Chief Justice Khehar and Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi.

"I direct the CBI director to register, investigate and file a report," said Karnan, mentioning that he was invoking his inherent power under the High Court to "prevent abuse of process of any court and secure ends of justice".

"I further direct the secretary-generals of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha to place the entire facts of the case before the Speaker for appropriate enquiry under the Judges Enquiry Act," he said.

He alleged that he was being targeted after he made representation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about some judges who had committed "illegal activities".

"This warrant is arbitrary, deliberately issued to ruin my life, my career. A Dalit judge (is being) prevented from doing work in a public office. That is (an) atrocity," he said.

The bench on February 8 had directed Justice Karnan to appear in person to explain why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him.
Early leads based on the counting of votes in the five state Assembly elections till forenoon on Saturday have indicated a clean sweep for the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh. This will certainly count as one of Mr Modis biggest electoral victories and a big boost to his and his partys prospects for Gujarat next year and more importantly for the 2019 general elections. This is also significant as it comes in the backdrop of the electoral setbacks he suffered in the Assembly elections in Bihar and Delhi.
After more than one and half months of high-pitched campaigning by all parties, the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls finally came to a close on Wednesday. After seven gruelling phases, journalists, analysts and politicians alike are continuously shifting their positions, as fortunes of different parties were perceived to be swinging.
Let us acknowledge one fact straight up that elected leaders never take an economic decision without considering its political ramifications first. Now we must acknowledge that politically, demonetisation was a roaring success for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party, even as it was bad economics.
With agriculture contributing over 27 per cent to Uttar Pradeshs net state domestic product, the incoming Bharatiya Janata Party governments promise to waive loans taken by small and marginal farmers, an assurance Prime Minister Narendra Modi repeated several times during his campaign, looks impressive on paper and could go a long way in reducing farm indebtedness. But experts feel a waiver of crop loans can have a negative impact on credit quality in farming.
Wall Street enforcer may be forced out as the US attorney in Manhattan despite assurances he said he had received from the incoming Trump administration that he would remain in the job.
Waymo, the self-driving car business spun out of Googles parent company last year, has asked a federal court to block Ubers work on a competing self-driving vehicle that Waymo claimed could be using stolen technology.
A federal judge has blocked President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape fighting in their native land by fleeing to Wisconsin.

A Syrian Muslim who fled to Wisconsin has been working since last year to win asylum for his wife and three-year-old daughter so they can leave Aleppo and join him here.

He filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trump's first travel ban had stopped the visa process for them.

US District Judge Michael Conley on Friday ruled that challenge moot after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the travel order.

The process restarted for the family and they're now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the US embassy, the last step before US customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesn't have dates for the interviews yet and Trump's new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian man's attorneys.

The man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon alleging that the new ban is just as problematic as the first, calling it anti-Muslim and alleging it violates his right to due process, equal protection and freedom of religion. He asked Conley to declare the ban unconstitutional on its face and block enforcement against his family.

It's unclear whether the new ban applies to asylum seekers like the Syrian family. Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that it doesn't; the man's attorneys maintain it does.

Conley acknowledged it's murky but still issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case. The judge set a hearing for March 21.

The restraining order doesn't block the entire travel ban; it simply prevents Trump's administration from enforcing it against this specific family.

The US Justice Department is defending the ban.

Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment on it and Conley's order.

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travellers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States.

The order sparked numerous lawsuits, including the Syrian refugee's initial federal complaint in Wisconsin.

US District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the ban on February 3.

Trump issued a new order Monday that removed Iraq from the list of countries and temporarily shuts down the refugee programme.
Attorney General is seeking the resignations of 46 United States attorneys who were appointed during prior presidential administrations, the Justice Department has said.

Many of the federal prosecutors who were nominated by former President Barack Obama have already left their positions, but the nearly four dozen who stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration have been asked to leave "in order to ensure a uniform transition", Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said on Friday.

"Until the new US attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US attorney's offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting and deterring the most violent offenders," she said in a statement.

It is customary for the country's 93 US attorneys to leave their positions once a new President is in office, but the departures are not automatic. One US attorney appointed by President George W Bush, Rod Rosenstein of Maryland, remained on the job for the entire Obama administration and is the current nominee for deputy attorney general. During the Clinton administration, former Attorney General Janet Reno sought the resignations of the US attorneys appointed by former President George HW Bush in 1993, when Sessions was the US attorney for the Southern District of Alabama.

Tim Purdon, a former US attorney for North Dakota in the Obama administration, recalled that Obama permitted Bush appointees to remain on until their successors had been appointed and confirmed.

"The way the Obama administration handled it was appropriate and respectful and classy," he said, adding, "This saddens me because many of these people are great public servants and now they are being asked to leave."

US attorneys are federal prosecutors who are nominated by the President, generally upon the recommendation of a home-state senator, and are responsible for prosecuting federal crimes in the territories they oversee.

They report to Justice Department leadership in Washington, and their priorities are expected to be in line with those of the attorney general.

Sessions took perhaps a veiled swipe at their work in a memo earlier this week, saying that prosecutions for violent crime have been on the decline even as the number of murders has gone up.

The demand for resignations seems a way to ensure that he will have a team of new federal prosecutors more likely to share his agenda.
At least 40 people were killed and 120 others wounded in Damascus after a twin blast hit the city.

According to SANA, Syrian Interior Minister Mag. Gen. Mohammad al-Shaar said the two terrorist bombings that hit Bab al-Saghir in Damascus city earlier in the afternoon left 40 people dead.

"The two terrorist attacks targetted visitors of different Arab nationalities in Bab al-Saghir area, leaving 40 martyred and 120 injured, including visitors and passers-by," said the minister upon visiting the site of the attacks.

Earlier on the day, it was reported that terrorists detonated two explosive devices near Bab al-Saghir cemetery, causing loss of lives and material damage to the cemetery and public and private properties.

Meanwhile, the terrorist organisations targetted, with rocket and mortar shells, a number of the residential neighborhoods in Damascus City, injuring a number of civilians.

According to a source at Damascus Police Command, the terrorist organisations on Saturday morning fired rocket and mortar shells on the area of Damascus Old City and the neighbourhoods of al-Shaghour, Ibn Asaker and Bab Touma, injuring a number of civilians and causing material damage to the public and private properties.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Justice Department announced on Friday that Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked for the resignation of 46 US attorneys.

"As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the Department of Justice. The attorney general has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed US attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition," Justice Department spokesperson Sarah Isgur Flores said.

"Until the new U.S. attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. attorney's offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders," Flores said.

According to CNN, administrations have the right to replace and nominate US attorneys, as President Bill Clinton had dismissed dozens of US attorneys in his first year of office.

Meanwhile, the list of the US attorneys asked to resign was not immediately available.

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Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao joined the political fraternity in congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the 'phenomenal success' of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Assembly Elections.

"Respected Modi ji, I congratulate you on the phenomenal success of your party in UP and Uttarakhand assembly elections. I am sure this will inspire you to work with renewed energy towards the progress and prosperity of the nation," KCR said in a letter addressed to the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister was earlier was inundated in a deluge of congratulatory messages from celebrities, politicians and admirers alike, all hailing him for the historic mandate given to the saffron party.

Breaking all previous records, the BJP bagged two-third majority in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

The BJP won with a clear majority in Uttarakhand with 57 seats in a 70-member assembly, ousting the Congress led by chief minister Harish Rawat and in Uttar Pradesh, the saffron party saw an unprecedented victory with 321 seats, while the Congress-Samajwadi party alliance bagged 54, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) got 19 and others 18.

While accepting the defeat in the politically-crucial state, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav congratulated the BJP for its victory and said the SP-Congress alliance will continue in future.

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Congress spokesperson R.S. Surjewala commended the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on their astounding victory in the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Assembly Elections, stating the party must now ensure that their commitments to the people of the two states are fulfilled.

Addressing the media at a press conference here today, Surjewala assured that the party will constructively support the new BJP government in the aforementioned states.

"The BJP must ensure that farmer loans are waived off, as promised. We also hope that the party rises above its politics of 'shamshaan and kabristaan'. Additionally, the farmers must get an additional 50 percent after profit, as promised and there should be an increase in job opportunities," he said.

Dismissing Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's claims of the November 8-demonetisation move being the driving force of the BJP's victory in UP and Uttarakhand, Surjewala responded the party's loss in the other three states, namely Punjab, Goa and Manipur is a symbol of the fact that the results are not a referendum on the demonetisation drive.

"The Congress' victory in the other three states is a befitting reply to those who have relentlessly campaigned for a Congress-free India. Congress is not just about politics; it is a nurtured thought. We are indebted to the people of Punjab, Goa and Manipur who have helped us emerge victorious. We also thank our party workers, who have constantly supported us in UP and Uttarakhand," he added.

Taking a dig at Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati's remarks on the authenticity of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), Surjewala urged the Election Commission to publically provide a clear clarification on this issue, since it is raising doubts on the transparency of an 'intrinsic democratic procedure'.

The BJP has established a clear majority in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, while the Congress took center stage in Punjab.

Surjewala claimed that the Congress is inching towards victory in Goa and Manipur Assembly Elections as well.

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Manjeev Singh Puri has been appointed the new Indian envoy to Nepal.

Puri, presently the Ambassador of India to Belgium, is expected to take up his assignment shortly.

Puri will succeed Ranjit Rae, whose term came to an end last month.

Ambassador Puri is a member of the Indian Foreign Service since 1982.

Prior to Brussels, he was the Ambassador and the Deputy Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations in New York, having served there from 2009 to 2013.

He was a senior member of India's Security Council team during 2011-2012, when India served on the Security Council.

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Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan Syed Haider Shah on Saturday was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs to register protest against the continued ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB).

"Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan Syed Haider Shah was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs today. He was conveyed the Government's grave concern and strong protest at the continuing incidents of ceasefire violations by the Pakistan side at the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB)," the ministry said in a statement.

The Indian Government registered its strong protest at the fatal casualty of an Indian soldier in an unprovoked firing by Pakistan forces on March 9, the statement added.

The Pakistani official was also conveyed New Delhi's expectation that Pakistan should not take any step detrimental to peace along the LoC and IB and to the security of India.

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Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Saturday put the onus on the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) for her loss in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, saying the machine accepted votes only in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

"The shocking result of the assembly elections indicates that the EVMs accepted votes only in favour of the BJP," Mayawati told a press briefing here.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said that the incident of manipulation of the EVM machines had been raised earlier also but no one paid attention to it.

"After the results in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, all opposition parties should think about it more seriously," Mayawati said.

"Most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to the BJP, which makes it evident that the voting machines were manipulated. How can it be possible that even after not nominating a single Muslim candidate from Muslim dominant region, the BJP won that seat?" she asked.

Challenging Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah, Mayawati dared them to conduct the elections through ballot paper to know their real position in Uttar Pradesh.

"I have written to the Election Commission in this regard and have also requested it to stop implementing the results of the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Assembly elections. Experts from outside India should be called to investigate the EVM machines," she said.

The BJP has crossed the half-way mark in Uttar Pradesh and is presently leading in 313 seats of the 403-member assembly. The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance is ahead in 65 seats while the Bahujan Samaj Party has so far managed to bag just 17 seats in its kitty.

Uttar Pradesh went to polls in seven phases in the months of February and March.

A total of 4,854 candidates are in fray for 403 assembly constituencies.

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A firebrand monk known for his anti-Muslim hate speeches has been banned from giving sermons across Myanmar for one year, according to officials.

The State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, which oversees and regulates the Buddhist clergy in Myanmar, said in a statement that Wirathu was repeatedly delivering hate speech against religions to cause communal strife and hinder efforts in the rule of law as well as taking sides with political parties to inflame tensions.

Aung San Win, a senior official at the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture, told Anadolu Agency that the ban was decided on Thursday at a meeting of the Committee.

"The one-year ban starts on Friday," he said.

According to the statement, Wirathu may face legal action for any breach of the order.

The move came after Wirathu gave a sermon on Wednesday in a small town of Maubin in the Ayeyawaddy division despite a ban by the regional government.

Wirathu is one of the most vociferous members of the Association for the Protection of Race and Religion (known as Ma Ba Tha in its Myanmar acronym) that has been seen as deliberately stoking the flames of religious hatred against the country's Muslim minority.

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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Rita Bahuguna Joshi today expressed her delight over the early trends that indicate the saffron party's lead in Uttar Pradesh and said the politics of corruption and ill-governance will soon come to an end.

"The trends will hardly reverse. We expected this but it is better that we are winning with three-fourth majority," Joshi told ANI.

Joshi further said the saffron party has received an overwhelming support from the people of Uttar Pradesh and thus the party would fulfil all its responsibilities.

Resonating similar views, BJP leader Poonam Mahajan said it is the victory of the people and their trust.

"The people have decided to support the BJP and it is the victory of the people and their trust. We will live up to the expectations and trust of the people," Mahajan told ANI in New Delhi.

The counting of votes has begun to elect a new assembly in Uttar Pradesh, one of the world's largest poll exercises that is being billed as a virtual semi-final to general elections in two years.

The stakes are high for almost 5,000 candidates across 403 seats in India's most-populous state.

The early trends show the BJP ahead of the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

Below are the latest updates:

 BJP-274, SP+ 79, BSP-25, Others-12

 BJP leading on five seats of Lucknow

 Uttar Pradesh minister Azam Khan's son Abdullah trailing from Swar, Rampur

 Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav trailing from Lucknow Cantonment seat

 Uttar Pradesh ministers Azam Khan from Rampur and Gayatri Prajapati from Amethi are leading.

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Pope Francis has hinted at being okay to married men becoming priests, in order to tackle the shortage of the Roman Catholic Church's clergy.

The Roman Catholic Church firmly believes that priests should not marry based on certain passages in the Bible, and because it also believes that the priest acts 'in the person of Christ' and should therefore be celibate like Christ.

In an interview with German newspaper Die Zeit, Pope Francis said the lack of Catholic priests was an "enormous problem" for the Church, and signaled that he would be open to a change in the rules governing eligibility for the priesthood, reports CNN.

"We need to consider if 'viri probati' could be a possibility. If so, we would need to determine what duties they could undertake, for example, in remote communities," he said.

Viri probati is the Latin term for "tested men" or married men of outstanding faith and virtue.

The Pope, however, clarified that the option would only allow men who are already married to be ordained as priests, but single men who are already priests would not be allowed to marry.

"Voluntary celibacy is not a solution," he said.

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A strike was observed in Quetta against the arrest and torture of Pakhtuns in various cities of Punjab and in Karachi.

The strike was called by the Awami National Party (ANP) on Friday.

Normal life in the region was paralyzed as shops, markets, shopping plazas and business centres remained closed in main areas.

A heavy contingent of police and Frontier Corps personnel was deployed by the local authorities to prevent any untoward incident during the strike.

ANP's Balochistan president Muhammad Asghar Achakzai and deputy opposition leader in the provincial assembly Zamarak Khan Piralizai condemned the "racial profiling" of Pakhtuns and their arrest in Punjab.

"There is no doubt that Pakhtuns as a nation have faced much more loss in the country due to terrorism than other communities. Despite this, they are suspected of being involved in terrorist attacks," the Dawn quoted Achakzai as saying.

Asserting that Pakistan cannot change its neighbours, Achakzai said, "we have to live with our neighbours; we should negotiate and resolve our issues with them.

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Vampire Diaries may have come to an end after eight seasons, but according to creator Julie Plec, the franchise might not have completely died out.

'The Vampire Diaries' spinoff 'The Originals' is all set to debut its fourth season and the 44-year-old producer told The Hollywood Reporter that she "see(s)... a future for either 'The Originals' or another piece of the franchise to launch off of the end of 'The Originals'."

Plec added, "I look forward to being able to play around in that sandbox and see if I can make something of it."

While she has some ideas, looks like she's not going to jump on them immediately.

"There are a lot of different things floating around in my head," she revealed, adding "and the first thing I'm going to do is not write and take a vacation. And then when I come back on the other side of that I'm going to go back to work.

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President Donald Trump will hold his first meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday since becoming President.

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer on Friday said President Trump is looking forward to welcoming Chancellor Merkel to the White House on Tuesday.

Asserting that the level of interaction between the Trump administration and the German government has so far been frequent and robust, Spicer recalling some of those interactions said, Vice President Pence had met the Chancellor last month in Munich, and the German foreign and defense ministers were here last month as well.

He added that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was in Bonn for the G20 Foreign Ministerial last month, and Secretary of Defense Mattis and Homeland SecretaryKelly attended the Munich Security Conference.

Expressing Trump administration's happiness over the level of interaction between the two countries so far, Spicer said, "When he meets the Chancellor, the President will express his and the American people's appreciation for the deep friendship that exists between the United States and Germany. We share so much history, and the bonds between our people are strong. Germany is one of our most important allies and partners in the world, and we cooperate with the Germans on everything from counterterrorism to European security to generating strong economic growth."

Spicer said Germany is one of NATO's strongest member states, and the President looks forward to talking with the Chancellor about how to strengthen the NATO alliance, including by ensuring that all allies shoulder the proper share of the burden for maintaining our collective defense.

"President is impressed by Chancellor Merkel's leadership at a time when the states of the North Atlantic face a number of significant challenges, and he looks forward to consulting with her on our shared challenges," he said.

Spicer further said that Germany plays a central role in the global effort to counterterrorism and violent extremism, particularly through its contributions to the counter-ISIS coalition.

"The United States is committed to strengthening our political defense, security and economic relationship with Germany and with Europe more broadly. We will continue to stand together with the German people, and we are looking forward to Chancellor Merkel's visit on Tuesday," Spicer said.

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White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has said that President Donald Trump's transition team was aware that former National Security Advisor retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn's consulting firm lobbying for Turkey.

Spicer, however, clarified that President Trump himself was unaware of this fact.

Spicer on Friday informed that a Trump transition attorney was contacted by Flynn's attorney to notify the transition of the potential filing but Trump was not made aware of it.

Vice President Mike Pence, who headed up the transition, was notified separately by a top Democrat that Flynn's firm had lobbied on behalf of a foreign power, reports CNN.

Dismissing questions about whether the disclosures should have raised red flags about Flynn, Spicer said, and "it's not a question of raising a red flag".

This comes after it was revealed by Flynn's Justice Department filing that his firm worked on behalf of a Turkish-owned company to improve U.S. confidence in Turkey's business climate, raised further questions about Flynn.

Following allegations of illicitly discussing sanctions with a Russian envoy, Flynn had resigned as National security Advisor last month, citing it was 'unfortunate' he 'inadvertently' briefed Vice President Mike Pence with incomplete information regarding his phone calls with Sergey Kislyak.

"In the course of my duties as the incoming National Security Advisor, I held numerous phone calls with foreign counterparts, ministers, and ambassadors. These calls were to facilitate a smooth transition and begin to build the necessary relationships between the President, his advisors and foreign leaders. Such calls are standard practice in any transition of this magnitude. Unfortunately, because of the fast pace of events, I inadvertently briefed the Vice President Elect and others with incomplete information regarding my phone calls with the Russian Ambassador," read the text of his resignation letter.

It added, "I have sincerely apologised to the President and the Vice-President, and they have accepted my apology."

"I am tendering my resignation, honoured to have served our nation and the American people in such a distinguished way," said the letter by Michael T. Flynn, LTG (Ret) Assistant to the President / National Security Advisor.

Flynn, a former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, had initially denied discussing sanctions with the Russian ambassador during the transition. Vice-President Pence also defended him in front of the media. But last week, when reports suggested that sanctions may indeed have been discussed, he conceded that he could not remember with 100 percent certainty.

Pence was said to be also troubled by the possibility that he was misled post the reports.

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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has warned the Netherlands of imposing 'severe sanctions' if it attempts to cancel his planned meeting on Saturday.

In remarks made during a live television interview on CNN Turk, Cavusoglu said: "If the Netherlands cancels my flight, we will impose severe sanctions on them that will affect it economically and politically."

The Foreign Minister is scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday despite recent steps banning Turkey's ministers and politicians from holding public rallies, reports Anadolu news agency.

The Netherlands is not the first country to impose such a ban. The ties between Ankara and Berlin strained in recent months after a ban on rallies by Turkish ministers in Germany. Germany had revoked its permission for Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag's meeting, citing concerns about overcrowding.

The minister also confirmed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan "is thinking of a visit to Germany" but the date and place has not been decided yet.

The planned rallies by Turkish ministers in countries with native population come ahead of the April 16 referendum in Turkey that would expand the powers of the President.

Among Germany's three million Turkish community, nearly 1.5 million of them are eligible to vote. They will cast their votes at Turkish consulates in Germany between March 27 and April 9.

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With trends indicating a resounding victory for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday thanked the people for their confidence in the saffron party and said this victory will bring development in the state that has witnessed corruption in the last five years.

"This victory is a victory to change Uttar Pradesh, to strengthen the society and to join all the sections of the society. It's a victory to change the law and order state in Uttar Pradesh, which has been deteriorated in the last five years; against corruption and all the elements which are against the development of the state," Prasad told the media.

"Today, I am very proud of Prime Minister Modi. I thank all the people, who have put in their trust in him and the BJP. I want to thank and congratulate Amit Shah and all the party workers, who have worked day and night for this day," he added.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore said the BJP's win in Uttar Pradesh is a testament to the fact that the saffron party enjoys the same popularity even after three years of the general elections.

"A big change has to be brought in Uttar Pradesh," Rathore said.

Taking a dig at the Congress, the Minister said that the grand old party has indulged in corruption to such an extent that the people will completely reject them in future as well.

Echoing similar sentiments, Union Minister Piyush Goyal also heaped praise on Prime Minister Modi's leadership and BJP president Amit Shah for playing the role of a sculptor in scripting victory for the saffron party.

"Today, the nation is standing with Prime Minister Modi. This is the victory of people of Uttar Pradesh. The victory shows the amount of work that has been done by the BJP under Prime Minister Modi," he added.

The early trends in the assembly election show the BJP leading in 292 seats in Uttar Pradesh, the Samajwadi Party -Congress alliance leading in 53 seats while Mayawati-led Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) ahead in 42 seats.

Uttar Pradesh went to polls in seven phases in the months of February and March.

A total of 4,854 candidates are in fray for 403 assembly constituencies.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In the last few days I have encountered learned and frum Litvaks who claimed it was essential to be happy and smiling all the time An...

Important!! email - yadmoshe@gmail.com
Former Bigg Boss contestant and Pakistani actress Veena Malik has called it quits with husband of three years Asad Khattack.

According to a report in Geo News, the counsel of the actress, Ali Ahmed, has confirmed the separation, saying that the family court issued the decree on January 31, after she filed for 'khula.'

The counsel further stated that the rule was in Veena's favour as Asad failed to proceed with the case. However, he refused to give any further details.

Veena and Asad tied the knots on December 25, 2013 and have two children together.

Reportedly, sources said that Veena filed for khula after a rift with Asad and his family over her return to showbiz.

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Eleven CRPF personnel were killed and five others injured in a Maoist attack in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh on Saturday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the deaths, while Home Minister Rajnath Singh is to visit Sukma.

In Raipur, Special Director General (Naxal Operation and Special Intelligence Bureau) D.M. Avasthi told reporters that 110 jawans from Battalion 219 of the Central Reserve Police Force were on a road opening duty when they were ambushed near Kotacheru village in Bhejji of Sukma district, in tribal Bastar region.

"The ambush was followed by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack in which 11 jawans died," Avasthi said.

Five CRPF personnel were injured in the attack. The Maoists also looted weapons from the dead personnel.

The five injured jawans were being brought to Raipur by a helicopter.

"Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi said in a tweet.

"Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said.

The Home Minister said: "Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased."

Praising the personnel who died, Chief Minister Raman Singh said: "The CRPF jawans have displayed immense courage and indomitable spirit."

--IANS

hindi-vgu/rn

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In one of the biggest Maoist attacks in the past two years, 12 CRPF personnel were killed and four injured in an ambush by the rebels in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh on Saturday, a senior police officer said.

The injured were brought to state capital Raipur by helicopter for better treatment.

The ambush took place in a forested patch near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 500 km from the state capital, at 9.15 a.m. when 112 personnel of the CRPF's 219th battalion were on a road opening duty.

"The martyred troops were part of a contingent of 112 personnel that has been securing an under-construction road between Bhejji and Kottacheru. Maoists set off multiple hidden IEDs and opened indiscriminate fire. The squad strongly retaliated before the 12 troops made the supreme sacrifice," said officiating CRPF DG Sudeep Lakhtakia.

The Maoists also looted 11 rifles from the jawans killed in the two-hour long gunfight.

Lakhtakia added that Maoists were trying to disrupt normal life in Sukma area as the CRPF has strengthened its presence there.

The CRPF has launched a massive offensive in Sukma after the attack. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Sukma later in the day to assess the situation.

Condoling the deaths, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: "Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly."

"Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said.

The Home Minister earlier tweeted: "Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased."

Praising the personnel who died, Chief Minister Raman Singh said: "The CRPF jawans have displayed immense courage and indomitable spirit."

Congress President Sonia Gandhi strongly condemned the killing of the CRPF men and described it as a dastardly and cowardly act. She saluted the sacrifice of the CRPF men "for their supreme and unforgettable sacrifices" and said her thoughts and prayers were with the families of the victims.

"India stands united in fight against the terrorism and the government should give a befitting reply to the forces spreading terror in India", she added in a message, according to tweets by the Congress party.

Sukma is one of the seven districts of Maoist-infested mineral-rich Bastar region.

--IANS

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Congress Punjab head and its Chief Ministerial candidate Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday credited the party's stellar electoral performance to party President Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul.

"I thank you people of Punjab, my leadership Rahulji and Soniaji," Amarinder Singh told reporters in his first remarks to the media after the Congress appeared set to return to power in Punjab.

He said the Congress MLAs would be meeting at 2 p.m. on Sunday to decide about the swearing in ceremony and the cabinet formation in the border state.

The Congress was leading in 75 out of 117 assembly seats after over three and half hours of vote count that began at 8 a.m.

--IANS

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With the BJP set for a landslide in Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, speculations are rife within and outside party circles about the new Chief Minister.

For some, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is also a probable candidate for the top post in the state. The names of state BJP chief Keshav Prasad Maurya, Union Minister Manoj Sinha and even Yogi Adityanath are doing the rounds.

Rajnath Singh has been the Chief Minister for a little over one year between 2001 and 2002. The Thakur leader, however, may not be a favourite since he is not seen as "too cosily" by Narendra Modi-Amit Shah team.

Maurya is from a Most Backward Caste and Bharatiya Janata Party's Lok Sabha MP from Phoolpur in Allahabad.

Maurya led from the front in the 2017 assembly polls in the most populous and politically significant state in the country. He criss-crossed the state in the last one year and is credited to have brought the most backward castes to the BJP camp.

BJP President Amit Shah, sources say, "designed the poll strategy in such a way that Maurya's naming as the state unit chief pepped up the MBC voters".

Maurya came up to the expectations and is indeed a front runner, a senior party leader told IANS.

The Phoolpur MP, however, refused to bite the bait and said the BJP is a "democratic party where things such as these are discussed by the Parliamentary Board".

"Till now, I was given charge of the state unit and marshalling the forces for an electoral win. I have discharged that job to the best of my abilities," he added.

Another name doing the rounds is of Manoj Sinha, the Union Minister of State for Railways. He is from Poorvanchal, where the BJP is focussing big time.

Known as "amicable" and a quiet worker, he has endeared himself to the party leadership. But many insiders feel he may not make it to the finishing line, since the BJP high command's tilt is towards an MBC or Other Backward Class.

Having decimated the Bahujan Samaj Party and hugely dented the Samajwadi Party (SP) in the OBC vote bank, the BJP is now trying to strike a balance between the Dalits, OBCs and MBCs as well as the Brahmin-Thakur voters who have long supported the party.

Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani's name has often cropped up in drawing room discussions. Being a good orator and a woman, she stands some chance, many in the BJP feel. But a section says this seems unlikely as "Modi and his team will not like to suffer for her failures in future"

Firebrand leader Yogi Adityanath, a vocal section of the party feels, should be the next Chief Minister. But his style of -- speaking of 'ghar wapasi', 'love jihad' and its kind -- don't make him a favourite beyond the Gorakhpur belt.

Dinesh Sharma, the Lucknow mayor and party's national Vice-President, many feel also is in the reckoning. A Brahmin face is something the party needs, a state office- bearer said.

The name of BJP National Spokesman Srikant Sharma, who contested from Mathura, is also being thrown up by some. However, there is also a feeling that "after the Akhilesh disaster for a big state like Uttar Pradesh", the BJP will not toy with a young person, who has not even held any office so far apart from having experience in party organisation.

The BJP Parliamentary Board is slated to meet in New Delhi later on Saturday to discuss the issue of Chief Minister. A final decision is, however, likely to be taken after Holi on March 13 when the state BJP legislature party meets. Till then, rumour mills will keep working overtime in the land of Awadh.

(Mohit Dubey can be contacted at mohit.d@ians.in)

--IANS

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The much awaited theatrical trailer of S.S. Rajamouli's "Baahubali 2" will be released on March 16, the makers announced on Saturday.

In a Facebook chat, Rajamouli and producer Shobu Yarlagadda confirmed the trailer will be released between 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on March 16 in theatres across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

The trailer will be released online at 5 p.m. on the same day.

"This is the same fashion we followed for the trailer of the first part. We had released it across theatres in Andhra and Telangana. We are following the same approach for the second part as well," Rajamouli said.

The makers also confirmed that the film will hit the screens worldwide on April 28.

Starring Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Tamannaah Bhatia, Anushka Shetty, Ramya Krishnan and Sathyaraj, the second part will have a simultaneous release in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam.

--IANS

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The BJP leaders and workers across Bihar on Saturday celebrated Holi -- two days beforehand -- following the party's landslide victory in assembly polls in the neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.

Hundreds of Bharatiya Janata Party leaders and workers took to the streets all over Bihar to play with colours, expressing their happiness.

Senior BJP leaders in the state Prem Kumar, Sushil Kumar Modi, Manngal Pandey termed the party's victory "historic".

The upbeat leaders and workers smeared colours on one another, danced under coloured sprinklers and sang folk songs, BJP leader Nitin Navin said.

The celebrations were seen throughout the state in Patna, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, Darbhanga, Jehanabadd, Aurangabad, Madhubani, Sasaram, Purnea, Madhepura and other districts.

At some places they also burst firecrackers and danced outside party offices distributing sweets among people.

--IANS

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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) continued to consolidate its position in the northeastern part of India by winning as many as 21 seats in the Manipur assembly elections from none in the last 15 years.

With sizable increase in its vote percentage -- 36.3 per cent, the BJP remained in the second position after the Congress, which won 28 seats, though with lower 35.1 per cent votes.

Although the BJP had not won a single seat during the last three assembly elections, two BJP candidates had won in the two by-polls in 2015. However, one of them later resigned and joined the Congress ahead of the polls.

The record increase in the party's vote share comes after the BJP formed its governments in three other states -- with absolute majority in Arunachal Pradesh and through alliances in Assam and Nagaland -- even though the party has been traditionally dubbed as "anti-tribal".

In 2016, the BJP formed its first government in Assam in alliance with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the Bodo People's Front. It had won 60 seats in the 126-member Assam assembly, and the AGP with 14 seats helped the party form the government.

In Arunachal, the BJP has an absolute-majority government with 47 MLAs in the 60-member House. In Nagaland, it is in coalition with the Naga People's Front.

According to BJP leaders, people from the North-East have realised that only the BJP-run governments can get them the development at par with the rest of India.

"The North-East India wants to be part of the mainstream India... The BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) are trying to connect with them even beyond politics," Tapir Gao, President of BJP's Arunachal Unit, who played an important role in BJP's performance in Manipur, told IANS.

Gao -- also credited with the formation of the BJP government in Arunachal, said that people of the region had seen mis-governance under the successive Congress governments.

"People want change and that's why the people of Manipur now have faith in BJP. The reason the party fought every seat is due to the people's liking for the party, which was evident even before the elections," said Gao.

To boost the prospects of the party in the region, a new alliance -- North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) -- was formed in May last year. Since the formation of the NEDA, the BJP has been trying to reach out to the tribal communities in the region, promising them the much-aspired for development.

The NEDA constituents -- Naga People's Front, Sikkim Democratic Front, People's Party of Arunachal, Asom Gana Parishad and Bodoland People's Front -- have together brought about a change in the outlook of the North-East voters for the BJP.

Speaking on the party's increasing vote share in the North-East, Rakesh Sinha, an RSS idealogue, said that the voting pattern in the region was changing.

"In states like Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, the BJP has been doing good and that is why, for the first time, the appeal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to vote for the party has worked like a magic for the northeasterners," said Sinha.

(Rupesh Dutta can be reached at rupesh.d@ians.in)

--IANS

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The BJP on Saturday stormed back to power in Uttarakhand with a three-fourth majority by winning 57 seats in the 70-member assembly.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "tsunami" swept away Chief Minister Harish Rawat who lost from both the seats he contested: Haridwar Rural and Kichcha.

Rawat lost to Yatiswaranand of the BJP by 12,278 votes in Haridwar Rural and to Rajesh Shukla in Kichha by a slender 2,154 votes.

The ruling Congress managed to win only 11 seats, after which Rawat resigned.

Rawat, after Congress's rout, hinted at possible tampering of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to tweak the poll outcome.

"I want to thank 'Modi Kranti' (revolution) and EVM 'chamatkar' (miracle)," he said.

When reporters asked if he was hinting at tampering of EVMs, he said he did not say anything like this. "You know everything. I am not confusing you. I leave it to you to understand."

He added that the Election Commission must explain why the poll process was stretched over such a long duration.

As the election results began to pour in after the vote count began at 8 a.m., BJP activists and supporters celebrated at the party headquarters at Dehradun and all across the state.

Despondent Congress leaders admitted that they had not anticipated such a huge defeat although they were not confident of a victory either.

Prominent BJP winners included Ritu Khanduri, Kedar Singh, Satpal Maharaj, Bharat Singh, Madan Kaushik, Dhan Singh Rawat and Saurabh Bahuguna, son of former Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna.

After the poll results, BJP President Amit Shah announced that a Chief Minister will be decided after a meeting of the Parliamentary Board on Sunday which is likely to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Meanwhile, three major leaders including former state BJP chief Trivendra Singh Rawat and party National Executive member Satpal Maharaj emerged as strong contenders for the Chief Minister's post.

Late evening, party's Pithoragarh MLA Prakash Pant, the first Speaker of Uttarakhand assembly, emerged as another contender for the post.

Pant's name emerged after party's another Brahmin face and State BJP Chief Ajay Bhatt, who was a contender, lost election from Ranikhet assembly seat.

The BJP won 57 seats, highest ever won by any party in the state so far. The party garnered a considerable 46.5 per cent of votes.

In contrast, the Congress' tally of 11 seats is the lowest-ever returned by the grand old party in Uttarakhand.

The Congress, though in terms of percentage, got a respectable 33.5 per cent of votes against its last time percentage of 33.79 per cent. But the percentage of votes did not translate into seats for the Congress.

Till this election, Uttarakhand has hardly ever given a comfortable majority to any party and both the BJP and the Congress have had to depend on regional parties and independent MLAs for forming the governments, which were not very stable.

In the 2012 assembly elections, the BJP and the Congress had seen a close contest and won 31 and 32 seats, respectively -- both short of the simple majority mark of 36.

In terms of percentage, the Congress had got 33.79 per cent of votes while the BJP got 33.13 per cent.

After tight haggling, the Congress ultimately formed the government with the help of the BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party), which had got three seats, Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (one seat) and three Independents.

While the Congress' infighting can be blamed to some extent for the party's poor showing, the Modi wave seemed to have swept the hilly state like never before.

--IANS

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The BJP will form governments in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur and the new Chief Ministers will be decided on Sunday, party President Amit Shah announced on Saturday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also address Bharatiya Janata Party leaders at the party headquarters here on Sunday evening, Shah told the media.

"We will welcome Modiji tomorrow at 6 p.m. After that the BJP Parliamentary Board will meet. At that meeting, we will decide who will lead the government in the four states," Shah said.

"Even the opposition will have to accept Narendra Modi, who has emerged as the most popular leader post independence," he added.

"The historic mandate given to the BJP will give a new direction to Indian ."

--IANS

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Police Chief Kyle Colyott submitted his resignation to the Bismarck Board of Aldermen after it went into closed session following its regular monthly meeting Thursday night.

Colyott, who began his stint with the city as police chief three years ago, will return in April to the Fredericktown Police Department, where he was working prior to being hired by Bismarck in February 2014. According to Colyott, he will be going back to his previous job as a patrol officer.

"It was a tough decision," Colyott said. "I have enjoyed working for the city of Bismarck and serving the people of this community. There will be a lot that I will miss about working here, mostly the people. I was offered a job back at the Fredericktown Police Department with competitive pay and better opportunities that I felt suited me better in the long run and would benefit my family.

"The hardest part about this decision is having to say goodbye to so many good people. This was strictly my decision. I'm sure the city council and mayor  if they could get away with it  would lock me in my office so I couldn't leave. I've had a great working relationship with both the mayor and the council during my time there."

Mayor Seth Radford admitted the news of Colyott's resignation was not well received by the board of aldermen who have not been shy in praising his work since taking on the mantle of police chief.

"Chief Colyott has done an outstanding job for the city of Bismarck," Radford said. "We weren't happy to hear that he was leaving, but we do understand that he is trying to do what is best for himself and his family. We wish him the very best, but really hate to see him go."

While meeting in regular session, the board also received news that the city's chamber of commerce is almost completely out of funds and will be unable to continue on in its present form.

Bismarck Chamber of Commerce member Michael Randazzo approached the board to tell them of the civic organization's declining membership, but also offered an idea that could provide the chamber another path forward.

"We had a meeting yesterday where we discussed basically the future of the chamber  and, frankly, how bleak the future looks for the chamber because of the membership," he said. "Excluding myself, there were three people who showed up and I was told that's pretty much the norm. Three people on the chamber of commerce is not going to get anywhere."

Randazzo also explained the chamber's bank balance is nearly zero, making the sponsoring of the city's Fourth of July "Freedom Fest" an impossibility as things stand now.

"We also discussed the goals that the organization has and what we could do to further those goals either as a chamber of commerce or maybe taking another form or fashion," he said. "That's why I'm really here to address the board. I don't think the way we're currently operating that the chamber is going to be able to operate much further. They don't even have enough people to put on a good fundraiser, much less anything else."

He told the board that there was discussion about going "a non-profit route" to be able to be eligible for certain grants.

"One of the problems in doing that is that just getting it set up and approved as a non-profit would cost more money than they have right now," Randazzo said. "What they wanted me to discuss with you is some alternative options with the goals that they have  beautifying the city, maintaining the parks and coordinating events."

He suggested the city and the chamber enter into a partnership to use the current chamber members in either the creation of a developmental committee or a parks and recreation department, since the city already holds a non-profit status. Randazzo said he felt creation of a parks and recreation department would be the best option for everyone, because the city could put on the ballot a parks sales tax that would help fund the upkeep of the parks, beautification projects and special city-wide events.

Randazzo explained that the sales tax, which would include a sunset clause, wouldn't put an undue burden on city residents since the majority of it would be paid by those buying gas, eating out or making other purchases while passing through the city.

Mayor Radford made it clear the board was already looking into the idea.

"We've already started getting all the information on that," he said. "We're already starting to lean towards that. We want to make sure that people know the condition our parks are in. The parks are in a peril.

"So, actually it would be kind of nice to have an organization or somebody, in my opinion, to help us because we've got to get bids on new equipment, how much it would cost and all that. It would be nice to have someone help with the legwork.

"I think the whole city of Bismarck is optimistic right now because they see we've been very diligent  Kyle has been very diligent with the police force making it safer here. The chamber has done a standup job, but I understand what you're saying."

Radford said there were new developments he hoped that would be coming in and that people need parks. He said the board would take the chamber's suggestion under advisement.

In other action by the board, John Colwell was appointed the city's new fire chief, Bismarck's mosquito problem was discussed, a business license for Whisper of Hope Fireworks was approved, and the city Easter Egg Hunt was set for April 15 in Sundale Park.
The BJP may have faced a lot of flak for roping in tainted Congress MLAs and other leaders from the party weeks before the February 4 elections, but decision to induct them may have just helped the BJP save some face on Saturday, when it is facing a tough contest from the Congress.

The BJP inducted two sitting MLAs, namely Mauvin Godinho and Pandurang Madkaikar, from the Congress in December. While Godinho won the Dabolim assembly seat by defeating his nearest rival from the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party by a margin of 2,494 votes, Madkaikar won the Cumbharjua seat by 8,434 votes, beating Congress candidate Xavier Fialho.

Speaking to reporters after he was announced the winner, Madkaikar justified his move to join the BJP. "I was confident of winning these elections. Joining BJP helped me all the more. The margin shows that," he said.

Madkaikar and Godinho had been repeatedly accused of corruption by the BJP, whose leaders had also filed corruption cases against the duo in the past.

At the time of their induction into the BJP, the state party leadership including Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had to face a lot of flak from the Opposition, which accused them of doing a u-turn on graft charges.

The BJP, which won 21 seats in the 40-member Goa legislative assembly in 2012, is currently tied with the Congress, with both parties winning 12 seats each out of the 33 constituencies where results have been announced. Both the Congress and the BJP have also secured leads in two constituencies each.

Among others who were inducted in the BJP from the Congress party on the eve of the February 4 polls, is newly elected MLA from Bicholim Pravin Zantye, who defeated Congress candidate Santosh Sawant by 4,974 votes.

Speaking to IANS after being declared winner, Zantye said that he had to overcome disgruntled elements in the BJP to emerge victorious. "I had to fight the Congress as well as some people within my party to earn this victory," Zantye said.

Zantye's entry into the BJP had irked sitting MLA and Speaker Anant Shet, who was denied a ticket by the saffron party.

Vijay Pai Khot, who is contesting the Canacona assembly seat, is yet another candidate who had been roped into the BJP from the Congress. Counting for the Canacona assembly seat is still on.

--IANS

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In a surprise move, leading auction house Christies is all set to discontinue its annual sales in India as a part of its broader strategy to consolidate operations around the world.

"Christie's continues to adapt to meet the needs of our clients and plan for the future as every business must," Guillaume Cerutti, Chief Executive Officer, Christie's, informed IANS in an email.

"Following our success in leading the development of online-only art sales and growing our global client base through our investments in Asia and other regions, we are considering shifting more sales into our key regional hubs and online. Christie's will remain ahead and we will stay the leading business for our clients if we are adaptable, relevant and focused on our clients.

"We continue to welcome new talent to our firm and execute successful sales as evidenced by Christie's achieving the strongest selling rates in the market last week during our major London auctions. I am committed to investing in our expansion, our culture and our team," Cerutti added.

It is expected that auctions of Indian modern and contemporary art will now take place internationally, in London and New York.

While Christie's is looking at cutting its costs in India, major investments are likely to flow in the online segment as the auction house's online-only sales in 2016 increased 106 per cent.

The firm also witnessed a 39 per cent increase in its buyers from America and is thus likely to focus more on such markets.

The international specialist team based in Mumbai will continue to work together on these auctions and will serve the clients "in new and more appropriate ways".

Christie's has also confirmed that it is undertaking a "global review" to adapt its activities "to better serve" the evolving art market, growing "international client base" and "enabling ongoing investment" in the company's digital art sales platform.

The Mumbai office of Christie's was set up in 1994 and will remain in its present location. This office will now serve as the window for the firm's regional clients to the world market of Christie's.

One of the leading players in the art business, Christie's first annual sale in India took place in December 2013 and raised the bar for art auctions in India. It doubled its pre-sale expectations with a total of Rs 96,59,37,500.

With this sale Christie's pioneered in the Indian art space, becoming the only international auction house to hold annual sales in India. Every year since then, new records were made and fresh segments were added to their catalogue.

A review will also be conducted to the sales calendar in Amsterdam to focus on 20th Century Art sales as well as to consolidate South Asian Art auctions in New York and London.

"Yearly we will be holding three stand-alone sales for South Asian Art -- two in New York and one in London, as we did for the past 25 years," the auction house said.

The announcement has been made as part of a broader strategy to consolidate operations around the world.

--IANS

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With the BJP sweeping Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and making major inroads into the north east with a strong showing in Manipur, the prospects of Prime Minister Narendra Modi returning to power at the Centre have become more evident, say experts.

While the majority of experts say the 2019 election should be smooth sailing for Modi, there are a few who maintain that a lot could happen over the next two years.

Praveen Rai, political analyst at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, called the assembly elections in the five states "a mid-term appraisal for the Central government".

"After this mandate, it is now going to be a cakewalk for the BJP, not only to retain what they won in 2014, but to even improve on that," Rai said.

On the other hand, political analyst Ashok Malik sounded a note of caution. He said the return to power in 2019 will not be as easy as it seems.

"There will be serious challenges before the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh to fulfil the major promises it made to people, including loan waiver to the farmers. In addition, it has to look after the promises it made earlier (during Lok Sabha election in 2014). So coming back to power in 2019 will not be easy," Malik said.

Political commentator and columnist Neerja Chowdhury asserted that the latest poll results have improved Modi's chances as "his credibility and image are as strong - may be even stronger - as they were in 2014".

At the same time, she maintained, there were still two years to go during which a lot could happen.

Chowdhury pointed out that the opposition was not able to withstand the momentum of the Modi juggernaut in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

"If you go by the Bihar story, two major parties buried their differences and came together to fight the BJP... Opposition will have to close ranks in state after state and find a common leader if they want to take on Modi," she said.

Chowdhury added that if BSP chief Mayawati and Samajwadi Party leader and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had come together in Uttar Pradesh, they may have been able to give the BJP a tough fight.

Maintaining that the demonetisation issue clicked big time with the voters of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Rai said it would be difficult for the opposition to regroup against the BJP to open a front against it in the next two years, before the Lok Sabha election.

"With this (assembly election) result, the opposition has no issue left. Now all parties opposed to the BJP will have to form a 'mahagathbandan' (grand alliance). However, till that happens, BJP will gain more momentum," Rai said.

Echoing Rai, Chowdhury said the BJP had managed to reach areas where it did not exist.

"It is making inroads in north east India.. Manipur is a big success story for the BJP. I do not know whether they will form a government there but they have a great showing," Chowdhury said.

The BJP swept Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand while it was in a neck-and-neck fight with the Congress in Manipur and Goa. However, the BJP has staked its claim to form governments in all four states. In Punjab, the party, which is in alliance with Shiromani Akali Dal, suffered a humiliating defeat.

--IANS

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Actress Vidya Balan is eager to show the "Begum Jaan" trailer to her family, but says will she will do so only on the day of its formal launch.

"I want everyone to watch the trailer. I am dying to show it to my family but I have told them that I will only show it to them on the day of the trailer launch," Vidya said here days ahead of the trailer's unveiling on March 14.

Produced by Mahesh and Mukesh Bhatt, the film is helmed by National Award winner Srijit Mukherji.

Set against the backdrop of Partition, the high-voltage drama, a Hindi adaptation of Mukherji's stellar Bengali offering "Rajkahini", is a story of survivors who defy nations to save their homes.

Vidya plays the title role of the madam of a brothel in the film.

The "Dirty Picture" actress feels the film clip mirrors the essence of the drama.

"I loved it. It was so powerful. When you are working, you are racing against time, braving the weather, you don't realise what you have made," the National Award winner said when asked about the clip.

"Begum Jaan" releases on April 14.

--IANS

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South Korea's former President Park Geun-hye maintained her silence on Saturday, a day after the Constitutional Court ruled to dismiss her over a massive corruption scandal.

Her aides and observers said Park might need some time to cope with the "sudden deprivation of the presidential prerogatives".

"The (former) President has been in a state of shock, and it appears that she needs time to come to terms with what has happened to her," an aide told Yonhap News Agency.

In Friday's verdict to oust Park, the court said her legal violations were "too serious to be tolerated", and that the benefits to defending the Constitution by removing her from office are "overwhelmingly large".

Park is suspected of allowing her long-time friend Choi Soon-sil -- who had no government post or security clearance -- to meddle in important state affairs, as well as colluding with Choi to extort money and favours from local conglomerates such as Samsung Group.

Both have flatly denied the accusations.

Following the verdict, Park was expected to return to her private residence in Samseong-dong, Seoul. But she is still in the presidential compound as the private home needs some repairs and security protection added, according to her aides.

Meanwhile, speculation has continued that senior presidential secretaries might tender their resignations to Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn.

--IANS

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The Bodos -- who are on an indefinite hunger strike demanding a new state -- on Friday said the government would have paid attention to their issues had their movement been violent.

"Government is deliberately not showing any interest in resolving the Bodo issues. It is not interested in anything related to any non-violent movement," the Bodo organisations leading the protest said in a statement.

The group said the government only "understands the language of violence causing law and order situation".

The hunger strike is led by the All Bodo Students Union (ABSU), National Democratic Front of Bodoland-(Progressive) and the People Joint Action Committee for Bodoland Movement (PJACBM).

The community has warned that if their issue was not resolved, they would be compelled to declare hours of road and rail blockades and economic blockades starting next month.

The Bodo bodies have said though the government had initiated talks with them on the issue, "the negotiation has been halted, which means the regime is not willing to resolve the problem."

They also threatened economic blockades on the lines of the Manipur economic blockade.

Over 2,000 agitated people participated in the hunger strike in Kokrajhar and other parts of the Bodo Territorial Area Districts (BTAD), which also includes Chirang, Baksha and Udalguri.

"During the UPA tenure several rounds of talks were held with the government for negotiation of peaceful solution. But during the last three years of Modi government in Delhi we have not seen any measures to resume the talk with the movement organisation," Pramod Bodo, president of ABSU, told IANS.

On the second day of the hunger strike, the health of some of the members started deteriorating and they had to be given medical attention.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said he was humbled as well as overwhelmed by the continued support of the people to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the assembly elections.

"Gratitude to the people of India for their continued faith, support and affection for the BJP. It is very humbling and overwhelming. Every moment of our time, everything we do is for the welfare and well-being of the people of India. We believe in the power of 125 crore Indians," Modi said in a series of tweets.

"The huge support from the youth is gladdening."

He thanked the voters of Uttar Pradesh for bringing BJP back to power in the state, saying that "this historic win of BJP is a victory of development and good governance".

Modi said as a member of Parliament from Varanasi, "I am overwhelmed by the unwavering trust and immense love of the people of Kashi. I bow to the people of Kashi".

He also thanked the voters of Uttarakhand and assured that the BJP will serve them with full dedication for the next five years.

"The victory in Uttarakhand is very special. Thanks to people of the 'Devbhumi'. I assure the BJP will serve the people with full readiness and dedication," he tweeted.

Modi also thanked the people of Punjab for giving the Shiromani Akali Dal and alliance partner BJP the opportunity to serve them for 10 years and "for the support we got in these polls".

The Congress is headed for a two thirds majority in the 117-seat Punjab assembly, with party veteran Amarinder Singh set to return as Chief Minister of the border state.

The Prime Minister also praised BJP workers for their hard work. "They have tirelessly worked hard at the grass-roots level and won the confidence of the people."

Modi congratulated BJP President Amit Shah, party office-bearers and state units for their "exemplary work in taking the party to new heights".

--IANS

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The 45th tenant of the White House was livid. His newly minted Attorney General's failure to disclose a couple of meetings with Moscow's envoy had raised new questions about his Russian connection.

Coming as it did weeks after the disastrous rollout of his original ban on travel from seven terror prone Muslim majority countries and the forced resignation of his top security advisor, Donald Trump decided to take matter into his own hands.

Ever proud of his "The Art of the Deal", 45 did what he does best: foil with an early morning tweet from his plush weekend retreat at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, dubbed the White House South.

"Terrible!" Trump fired a salvo taking aim at 44, his predecessor. "Just found out that (Barack) Obama had my 'wires tapped' in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!"

"How low has President Obama gone to tapp (sic) my phones during the very sacred election process," he alleged in another offering no harder evidence than a media report.

"This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!" the former reality TV star thundered comparing it to the infamous affair that had brought about the downfall of Richard Nixon in the 1970s.

Even as an Obama spokesman and his top spy denied the wiretapping claim, a reportedly "incredulous" FBI Director James Comey asked the Justice Department to publicly knock down the allegations. But the Department's silence so far only fuelled more speculation.

That set the chatteratti aflutter. The pundits were aghast. Time magazine ran a cover with a crumbling Washington monument branding it "Trump's war on Washington".

Opposition Democratic House minority leader Nancy Pelosi called him the "deflector-in-chief," accusing him of manipulating news coverage.

Call it what you will. Lost in the din were Democrats' strident demands for the resignation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions even as he recused himself from any investigation of Trump campaign's Russia connection.

Ever falling for the juicy, the media also had little inclination for discussing the impact of Trump's dismantling or loosening of 90 odd regulations dealing with from Wall Street to environment or plans to spend a trillion dollars to fix America's ageing infrastructure.

Itching for a fight, the brash billionaire doubled down calling for a Congressional probe into his claim as Comey met with the Congress 'Gang of Eight' given access to top intelligence matters to brief them on the Russia probe.

With his regime leaking like a sieve, Trump's Attorney General fired 46 of the nation's top prosecutors, including Manhattan's desi "Sheriff of Wall Street", Preet Bharara.

Press Secretary Sean Spicer suggested some people 'burrowed' into the government during eight years of the Obama rule were still working to advance his agenda. But he denied that the CIA was working to root them out.

Marking his 50 days in office, Trump issued a new improved travel ban custom tailored to court rulings as Republicans unveiled their plan to "repeal and replace" the "disastrous" Obamacare, his predecessor's signature health care law.

As Democrats dubbed it "anti-poor" and Republican critics scoffed at it as "Obamacare Lite," Trump in full salesman mode warned Republicans that not passing a bill could result in a "bloodbath" for the party in 2018 Congressional elections.

A good jobs report indicating the economy added a robust 235,000 jobs in his first full month in office and the unemployment rate in February inched down to 4.7 percent also came in as a gift to crow about.

Meanwhile, that "nasty woman" Hillary Clinton celebrated International Women's Day by telling followers to "stand up, resist, run for office" as she sported a new fancy hairdo with bangs on Snapchat in a snazzy red jacket.

Trump's 2016 Democratic presidential rival also came to haunt him in the White House as he came out to greet a group of cheering, screaming fifth graders oblivious of a giant portrait of the former first lady staring down from the wall behind him.

But the Manhattan mogul has little to worry about with the Clinton clan not having learnt any lessons from her stunning loss to Trump as evident from daughter Chelsea's take on National Pancake Day.

While a few greeted her tweet of some very green spinach pancakes as a healthy choice, many mocked her hilariously reminding the Clintons: "This is why Hillary lost."

(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - that heads the ruling NDA at the Centre - swept Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand in the state elections results on Saturday, the corporate fraternity said it expects better coordination between the Centre and the states in the coming days.

Congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah on its victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Assocham President Sandeep Jajodia on Saturday said one of the important takeaways of the poll outcome is that a far better coordination is expected between the country's largest state and the ruling BJP-led Democratic Alliance at the Centre.

The BJP is running neck-and-neck with the Congress in Goa and Manipur, while in Punjab the Congress was headed for a two-third majority.

"Besides, Modi's agenda on economic development and to take on the challenges, upfront, has gone down very well with the people of the key states who are looking with a new hope for an economic development of the states. Most of the states are now being ruled by the BJP and its allies and far better level of development coordination is expected," Jajodia said.

Naushad Forbes, President, CII, said: "CII warmly congratulates the winning political parties in the states of Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh for their performance. By and large the results ensure that the process of reforms would gain further credence, support and momentum at the central level."
Recalling the tragedies of 2001, India has warned against appeasing terrorist organisations operating in Afghanistan.

"The Taliban, Haqqani Network, Al Qaeda, Islamic State (IS), Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and others of their ilk are all terror organisations, many of them proscribed by the UN," India's Permanent Representative Syed Akbaruddin told the Security Council on Friday.

"They should be treated like terrorist organisations and their activities universally opposed."

"There is also a need to neither differentiate between good and bad terrorists, nor to play one group against the other," he said during a debate on Afghanistan.

He did not directly comment on attempts to hold negotiations with the Taliban, beyond pointing out that the political process started by the UN has "not quite worked".

Sima Samar, the chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, brought the issue to the fore asking the Council, "If Daesh (IS) and other terrorist groups are not to be negotiated with, then why are some countries talking to the Taliban?"

Negotiations with the Taliban, however, had the support of several countries, including the US, even as they condemned its attacks on the Afghan people and troops.

Some nations see a deal with the Taliban as a way of stopping the IS that has been making inroads into the country.

Akbaruddin decried the failure of the Council to effectively impose sanctions on the Taliban leaders.

"The fact that the Council has not acted on the Taliban leaders as it had vowed in resolution 1988 is now well documented," he said.

"It took the subsidiary body of this Council four months to confirm the death of the Taliban leader. It is now seven months and we are still counting as we await the decision of the Council's same subsidiary on freezing the accounts of that slain terrorist."

He reminded the Council of the steep price the world paid in 2001 for allowing terrorists to control Afghanistan.

"Can all of us who have invested so much in support of the Afghan people remain watching on the sidelines?" he asked.

"We must not forget the implications the world faced in 2001 for its lack of action. History never forgives those who forget it," he aded.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Much of the discussion at the Farmington City Council meeting was regarding a boundary adjustment and rezoning request by a local businessman.

Rafi Kthiri is the owner of Rafis Lawn Service in Farmington. In July of last year Kthiri purchased a home with an outbuilding at property located at 713 Janey Dr.

After acquiring the property, Kthiri began to use it for his lawn service, which violates the zoning regulations of that location.

The only solution for him is to pursue a zoning change, City Administrator Greg Beavers said after this week's meeting. Given the location it causes some concern for the neighbors.

Recently, Kthiri submitted a request for a boundary adjustment and rezoning request for the property.

Shortly after the start of the meeting Thursday evening, Ward III Councilman Dennis Smith made a motion to postpone a scheduled first reading on two bills related to the boundary adjustment and rezoning request.

The item was one of four public hearings on the councils agenda for the evening. It was explained a planning technically in regards to the citys comprehensive plan required the matter to go before the Planning and Zoning commission for consideration before any council action could be taken on the matter.

The issue  is because the comprehensive plan does not show the future land use of this property as commercial, Beavers explained to the council during the meeting.

The commission is scheduled to meet on Monday.

Mayor Mit Landrum explained to the neighboring residents of the property under consideration that with the motion no action would be taken at the meeting. They would, however, still be given the opportunity to voice their concerns.

Nine residents of Janey Drive and Potosi Street addressed the council expressing their concerns over the property being rezoned to commercial and the safety issues that might arise with trucks entering and leaving the property.

Janey Drive is my neighborhood. I live there, said former council member Vonne Karraker. Once you go commercial, there is no turning back.

While each stated the rezoning to a commercial district would, in their opinion, harm the character of the neighborhood, they all stated appreciation to Kthiri for purchasing and cleaning up the property in question and another home that had fallen into disrepair.

I thought tonight was the kind of public debate you want to have, Beavers said. Everybody was cordial, everybody was respectful. Tempers didnt flare.

In the meantime, pending that, we will let (Kthiri) continue to operate his business from that location because to assert the regulations and have him displaced from that property only to go back Ive explained that to the neighbors and theyve all been respectful of that.

It was a busy night for the city council. In other business, the group approved a Planned Unit Development (PUD) for property at 731 Weber Rd.

The request was submitted by Chris Zoellner with Balke Brown Transwestern. The St. Louis-based developer submitted a development plan to the Planning and Zoning commission on behalf of Kay Jewelers that includes the property where Country Junction and Liberty Tax Services is located.

The present building will be torn down and a 3,000-square foot building will be constructed at the site.

A public hearing was also scheduled for an alteration of the new building near Tractor Supply and Walgreens in the Jones Farmington Properties, LLC development.

Imos Pizza will be occupying a portion of the building and the developer is requesting a change to allow for a pick-up window at the location. The request will be forwarded to the Public Safety Committee for consideration at a future council meeting.

The council also heard the Fiscal Year 2016 audit report from Greg Shinn with Shinn, Thurman & Company.

Shinn reported the city received a clean, unqualified opinion in the report  the best opinion a municipality can receive.

The only finding in the audit was with the monthly reconciliation of city court fines  a finding that Shinn said shows up each year. He said city Finance Director Michelle Daniel reported finding a fix to that issue for the next year.

Shinn stated the citys assets to liability ratio was 7.1 to 1  an outstanding ratio, he explained.

The council also approved an ordinance authorizing the filing of applications with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by the Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility commission on behalf of the city.

Under new business, the group approved resolutions for a contract with Leadbelt Materials for 2017 asphalt street improvements, CE Contracting, Inc. for Louise Street storm sewer improvements, and Kingsland Concrete for curb, gutter and sidewalk work.

The council meets next in regular session on March 27.

Read more about the council meeting in the March 16 edition of the Farmington Press.
Preet Bharara, a high-profile Indian-American federal prosecutor who had an Indian diplomat arrested, has been asked to quit by US President Donald Trump's administration in a sweeping ouster of hold-overs from the previous administration.

Bharara and 45 other federal prosecutors, who were appointed by former President Barack Obama, were told on Friday by Attorney General Jeff Sessions to submit their resignations.

Nicknamed the "Sheriff of Wall Street", his jurisdiction covered New York's financial district putting him in the limelight as he prosecuted more than 100 finance executives for criminal activities like stock trading irregularities using insider information.

They included several Indians like Rajat Gupta, the former head of the consulting company McKinsey and a Goldman Sachs director, who served two years in jail for colluding with the Sri Lankan-American hedge fund operator Raj Rajaratnam in a stock market scam using insider information.

Even though Bharara could be reappointed, his inclusion in the list of all the other Obama appointees came as a surprise because after a meeting with Trump in November he told reporters that he had been asked to stay on as federal prosecutor or US district attorney.

It was not clear if his resignation would be accepted immediately or if he would be asked to stay on to complete some pending prosecutions.

Chuck Schumer, a senior Democratic Party Senator who had reportedly recommended to Trump to keep on Bharara, said in a statement that his ouster could jeopardise on-going cases.

The Senate has to approve the appointment of the federal prosecutors, who are political appointees. Their deputies, who are usually career government lawyers, will temporarily hold the fort, according to Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores

Bharara has also prosecuted several New York politicians for corruption. The senior-most among them is State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, who was given a 12-year sentence for corruption.

Investigations involving New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio and close aides of Governor Andrew Cuomo by Bharara's office were in progress.

Bharara, whose full name is Preetinder Singh Bharara, was born in Firozpur, Punjab, in 1968 and immigrated to the US as a child.

He sparked a diplomatic stand-off between India and the US in 2013 when he had Devyani Khobragade, a Dalit Indian diplomat, arrested over allegations that she had made a false statement in the visa application for her maid.

Other diplomats accused of similar offences were not similarly treated by Bharara and the humiliating action against Khobragade, the Deputy Consul General in New York, evoked protests in India and retaliatory action by the government against US diplomats.

India's strong action in support of a Dalit foreign service officer surprised the US government and media establishments and the then-Secretary of State John Kerry expressed regret for the incident.

The matter was taken out of Bharara's hands and diplomatically resolved and she was allowed to leave the US without prosecution.

Among his high-profile cases against banks, Citibank paid a $158 million fine to settle a case Bharara brought against it for misleading the government about loans. In another case, Citbank made a $7 billion payment to the government after Bharara began investigating its Mexican unit.

JP Morgan Chase was made to forfeit $7 billion for failing to inform authorities about a massive investment fraud by a client.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Jubilant over the massive wins for the party in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, BJP chief Amit Shah on Saturday termed it a victory of corruption-free governance as well the BJP's ideology.

"It is the victory of corruption-free governance and pro-poor policies under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," Shah said in a tweet.

"It is a victory of BJP's ideology and Prime Minister Modi's welfare policies for the poor and his pro-development government," he added.

The BJP president also thanked the voters of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for reposing their faith in the saffron party and giving a "historic verdict".

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Italian parliament on Thursday passed the first ever anti-poverty provision aimed at ensuring a stable economic support to poor families in the country, local media reported on Friday.

So far, the government has allocated 1.6 billion euros ($1.7 billion) to the measure in 2017. Yet, the annual budget would rise to two billion euros in both 2017 and 2018, once an expected contribution from the European Union (EU) was added to the domestic resources, Xinhua quoted Italian Labor Minister Giuliano Poletti as saying.

An income worth between 400 euros and 480 euros per month will be provided to deprived families, according to their own earnings and starting with couples with young children and unemployed people over 55 first.

"The measure represents an essential pillar of the national plan against poverty, and it fills a long-standing gap in the Italian welfare system in terms of protection of low-income individuals," Poletti added.

Italy was the only EU country, together with Greece, to lack a structural provision against poverty, the minister stressed.

The supportive income would be provided only under certain conditions, such as the regular attendance of the children at school, and the commitment of the unemployed to seek a job.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Actress Kajol, who plays a pivotal role in her comeback Tamil film "VIP 2", has successfully completed shooting her portion, a source said.

Last seen in 1997 Tamil film "Minsara Kanavu", Kajol has returned to Tamil filmdom nearly after two decades.

"She has finished shooting her part. She approximately shot for two weeks and had a ball working on this project," a source from the film's unit told IANS.

In the film, a sequel to 2014 Tamil blockbuster "Vela Illa Pattathari", Kajol plays a suave businesswoman.

She will be seen locking horns with Dhanush in the movie, which is being directed by Soundarya Rajinikanth.

The source also added that the project is on the brink of completion.

"It's gearing up for a summer release. The makers are planning to release it in June or July," he said.

The project has been produced by Dhanush's Wunderbar Films.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Rome, March 11 (IANS/AKI) A six-year-old girl was due to arrive in Italy on Friday to be reunited with her Italian mother five years after her Syrian father spirited her away to his war-wracked homeland.

Houda Emma Kharat, was due to arrive at Rome's Ciampino airport late on Friday aboard a flight from Istanbul.

The girl, who is now nearly seven, has not seen her mother Alice Rossini since she was taken by her father to live with him in Syria's northern city of Aleppo at the age of one.

"Heartfelt thanks to the Turkish authorities and to the Italian state bodies that have made this reunion possible," said Italy's foreign minister Angelino Alfano.

"This evening Houda Emma will be hugged by her mother once again."

Rossini's ex-husband Mohammed Kharat, was held in Turkey last year on an arrest warrant. He kidnapped his daughter in on 18 December 2011 revenge for the breakdown of his marriage to Rossini.

--IANS/AKI

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Left Parties on Saturday warned against the rise of "Hindutva" politics and communalism following the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) historic victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand assembly polls.

Both the Communist Party of India - Marxist and the Communist Party of India attributed "rank communal appeal" behind the BJP's twin victories.

"While acknowledging the massive mandate that the BJP has received, it also has implications that are dangerous for the country as it will encourage the brand of Hindutva politics which is divisive and harmful for the country," the CPI-M said in a statement

Calling the BJP's sweeping win in the crucial and most populous state of Uttar Pradesh a "big setback to secular and democratic forces", the CPI said: "It is a victory to communalism that was unleashed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the election campaign".

"The results may cause further problems with more anti-people policies by the government, and intolerance and communal offensive by the Hindutva forces," it said.

The party warned that the results should be a wake up call to Left democratic, secular forces to "forge broader unity to fight back the attacks on people".
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday congratulated winners in the assembly polls and advised the losers to not lose heart.

"Congratulations to winners in different states. Congratulations to the voters for making their choice. To the losers, don't lose heart. In a democracy, we must respect each other because some will win, some will lose. Trust the people," Banerjee said in a tweet.

The Congress was set to return to power in Punjab, after being out of power for a decade, while the Aam Aadmi Party was set to be the main opposition. It was also leading in Manipur.

The BJP was set to sweep back to power in Uttar Pradesh after 15 years, as well as the neighbouring hill state of Uttarakhand. The situation was not clear yet in Goa where the Congress and the BJP were neck and neck.
Thousands of citizens took to the streets in Taiwanese capital Taipei on Saturday demanding the closure of atomic power plants and more citizen involvement in decisions on radioactive waste storage.

More than 60 anti-nuclear civil society groups rallied to demand greater openness and civic participation in managing nuclear waste, and advocated a move towards more sustainable forms of energy, Green Citizens' Action Alliance secretary-general Tsuei Su-hsin told the media.

Indigenous groups from Orchid Island also took part in the demonstration outside the Presidential Palace with placards calling for the removal of nuclear waste from the island nation, Efe news reported.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs responded by promising to comply with a plan to decommission its four nuclear plants and make Taiwan "nuclear-free" by 2025, in addition to using renewable sources for 20 per cent of its power needs.

In a press release on Saturday, the ministry said the movement towards non-nuclear sustainable energy and lower carbon dioxide emissions has been stepped up, and announced a two-year and a four-year plan to boost photovoltaic and wind energy, respectively.

In 2016, renewable energy in Taiwan accounted for just 4.8 per cent of its power needs, but the ministry hopes that by 2025 that figure will rise to 20 per cent, while natural gas will account for 50 per cent and coal 30 per cent.

Currently, approximately 78 per cent of Taiwan's power comes from coal, a little over 8 per cent from nuclear, and some 5 percent from renewable sources, according to various industry and official agencies.

The island nation's three active nuclear plants - with six reactors - can supply 5,200 megawatts, accounting for 8.1 per cent of total consumption, and 19 per cent of total electricity generation.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had to face a "humiliating defeat" in Uttar Pradesh assembly elections chiefly because she did not let the party develop and kept it limited to herself, experts believe.

"It was bound to happen. The BSP had started losing ground long ago," Kancha Ilaiah, political scientist, writer and activist for Dalit rights, told IANS.

He said like other parties, the BSP had only one person and that was Mayawati. She should have developed the party with other persons taking the lead in other roles," he said, adding that "no party can work with one person".

Ilaiah said that BSP, like other parties, should have other wings as well.

He said the BSP has no spokesperson and that went against its overall interest.

Ilaiah said he believes that Mayawati failed to "show her mettle as a leader" and did not do much for the Dalits.

The BSP ended up with only 19 seats in a house of 403 members while the BJP along with allies swept the state with 325 seats.

"She took the Dalits for granted and it went against her party interest," he said.

"Mayawati has lost direction and grip over the party," he added.

The Dalit activist said that allegations regarding BSP ticket distribution also went against her.

"Allegations that she charges for party tickets created a wrong impression among her followers," he said, adding that the ticket distribution process should have been corrected.

Sheoraj Singh Bechain, another well-known and respected Dalit writer in Hindi, expressed similar views on why Mayawati performed so badly in the Uttar Pradesh elections.

"She should have worked for the education of the Dalits. They shifted to cities knowing that she was not doing enough for them in the state," he told IANS.

He said the Dalit and the Other Backward Class votes got divided as she failed to satisfy their needs.

"Mayawati did not realise the ground realities and lost the elections badly," he said, adding that the Dalits, who formed a major part of the BSP vote base, drifted away from her as they realised that even being in power for a long time she did not do anything for them.

Earlier in the day, after the election results started coming in, the BSP chief said they were "very surprising", and alleged that electronic voting machines had been "managed" to favour the Bharatiya Janata Party.

"These election results are very surprising. It is very difficult to accept them," said Mayawati.

Mayawati has been out of power in Uttar Pradesh since March 2012.

(Sushil Kumar can be contacted at sushil.k@ians.in)

--IANS

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Meghalaya Congress legislator Sengnam N. Marak has been accused of holding a doctor at gun point, a police official said on Saturday.

Police said that Sandipani Malla Bujarbaruah has lodged a complaint accusing Marak and his aide of holding him captive at gunpoint on March 5 at a PWD Inspection Bungalow in Rongjeng village in East Garo Hills district.

Marak, who is Parliamentary Secretary in charge of Health and Family Welfare, was allegedly under the influence of alcohol.

"Under the influence of liquor, Marak and his aide called Bujarbaruah to their room and held him captive at gunpoint till 3.30 a.m.," police said.

However, according to district police official Vivekanand Singh, the legislator has filed a counter-FIR against Bujarbaruah.

"We have received a complaint from both parties and the matter is being investigated," Singh told IANS. He refused to divulge the details of the FIR.

Neither Marak nor Bujarbaruah could be reached for comments.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Recent temperatures have many thinking about spring  and, for others, the thoughts of mushroom hunting arent far behind.

The Farmington Public Library is hosting an informational seminar on Monday for beginning mushroom hunters. The free seminar starts at 6 p.m. at the library, located at 101 North A St. and there is no registration needed.

Library staff member Jennifer Harding will be leading the class, which she said is an introductory session to those interested in mushroom hunting this spring.

Harding said hunting is a learning process  with the hunter learning a little more each time they go on the lookout for edible treats.

This is the third time for her to offer the course, thanks in part to requests made by library patrons.

Harding said the class covers the most common edible mushrooms hunters can find specific to Missouri.

With mushroom hunting, you learn more every time you go out, she said. We teach them how they can identify (mushrooms), what tools to use for identification, where to go and the best time to go.

A tool Harding said is most valuable is the Missouri mushroom guide. She will show an example of the guide at the meeting and give information on how to obtain the guides. In the meantime, there is one available for check-out at the library.

One lucky attendee will receive a guide as a door prize at the seminar.

Harding said attendees at past events have brought their finds in for her to help  but part of knowing what variety of mushroom it is depends a lot on where it is found.

Did you find them under an oak tree? Did you find them in the moss? Did you find them in the mulch? she said are common questions to ask when identifying the different types.

And, the time of year is also vital.

According to the Missouri Department of Conservation, the hunting season typically runs from early spring (for morels) to late fall (oysters and lions mane).

Harding said the milder than normal temperatures this winter is already having a positive impact on the hunting season.

I believe we have the earliest morel mushroom in reported history, she said, adding she saw a photo of a morel next to a newspaper dated Feb. 21  marking an earlier than normal start.

Harding said she and her husband have been mushroom hunting for years  crediting her mother-in-law with teaching the ins and outs of mushroom hunting.

Youll learn as you go (hunting) about the mushrooms and get more confidence about wanting to go out there, she said.

In addition, Harding said, its important for hunters to know the rules to mushroom hunting.

We talk about where you can go hunt, she said. You can go mushroom hunting on public ground. There are just rules about how much you can pick. If you pick mushrooms off public land, you cant sell it. If you are hunting on private land in your woods or somewhere you have permission, you can sell them.

The class last about one hour, depending on the questions and discussion by those participating.

For more information or questions on the class, contact Harding at jharding@farmington-mo.gov.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday scored a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh in a major boost to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, halfway through his first term, and decimated rivals, the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance and the BSP.

Riding on the Modi wave, the BJP swept to an unprecedented two-thirds majority winning a whopping 312 seats -- a never-before showing by any party in the country's most populated state entrenched deeply in caste, family and religious affiliations.

The BJP victory left the ruling Samajwadi Party with 47 seats, its ally the Congress with just seven seats, and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) scored a pathetic 19.

"I give my heartfelt thanks to the people of Uttar Pradesh. This is a historic victory for the BJP; a victory for development and good governance," Modi wrote on Twitter.

Even in Amethi and Rae Bareli parliamentary constituencies -- long considered Congress strongholds -- the BJP won six out of 10 assembly seats, the Samajwadi Party two, leaving the grand old party gasping with just two.

A beaming Amit Shah, the BJP President, in his first media comments after the party's grand electoral success, drew specific attention to its performance in the twin Lok Sabha constituencies, held by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and her deputy and son Rahul Gandhi.

"This is making us very happy. We didn't do well here (Amethi and Rae Bareli) in 2014. But from now, will take a new direction in Uttar Pradesh.

"The historic mandate given to the BJP... will end the of caste, dynasty (parivarvaad) and appeasement," Shah said.

Modi was central to the BJP's election strategy in Uttar Pradesh where the party had not announced its Chief Ministerial candidate. Modi promised growth, modernisation and rooting out corruption in the state.

Shah said the chief ministerial candidate would be selected on Sunday by the BJP Parliamentary Board and the legislature party in the state.

In his high decibel electioneering, Modi strongly defended his move to ban high-value notes last year, a move that was criticized by the opposition.

The previous best BJP performance in Uttar Pradesh was in 1991, at the height of the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid movement. It got a majority on its own, winning 221 of 425 seats in an undivided state.

In the outgoing assembly, the BJP had just 47 seats.

The BJP garnered nearly 40 per cent of the votes in this election, the SP got 21.8 per cent, the Congress just over six per cent, while the BSP garnered 22.2 per cent.

The results in Uttar Pradesh, which sends 80, the largest, members to the Lok Sabha would help the BJP in presidential elections due in July. The BJP would now also be able to strengthen its position in the Rajya Sabha, where its reform efforts have been hampered by the lack of a majority.

The incumbent Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who is also the Samajwadi Party chief, met Governor Ram Naik and handed in his resignation. Yadav told a press conference here that he accepted the verdict and would do an analysis at booth level.

"I hope the next government will work better than the Samajwadi Party government."

Congress leaders expressed shock.

"It is a monumental setback. We are disappointed with Uttar Pradesh," party spokesman Sanjay Jha said.

But BSP leader Mayawati attributed the rout to the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) which she said were manipulated. She urged the poll panel to cancel the polls and hold fresh elections.

The BJP victory also saw many members of the Uttar Pradesh's first family swept away, while the 43-year-old Chief Minister lost his chair.

The Yadavs, who were till not-so-long ago considered invincible, were routed in most seats that they contested. The younger daughter-in-law of the Yadav chieftain, Aparna Yadav, lost from Lucknow Cantt to Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who had switched to BJP from the Congress.

Anurag Yadav, elder son of Mulayam's brother Abhayram Yadav, contested from the Sarojini Nagar seat in the state capital but failed to make it to the 17th Vidhan Sabha.

Ram Prakash Yadav aka Nehru, a close relative of the SP founder, also lost from Shikohabad assembly constituency in Firozabad.

However, the only saving grace for the Yadavs was former state unit chief Shivpal Singh Yadav, who cruised comfortably to victory from the Jaswantnagar seat in Etawah. He won with a margin of over 50,000 votes.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Nagaland Chief Minister Shurhozelie Liezietsu on Saturday said that his Naga People's Front (NPF) would support the BJP to form the new government in Manipur.

"The NPF central office reiterates its stand to rid the region of the Congress party and pledges our support to any non-Congress coalition government in Manipur," Shurhozelie said.

The NPF, which is the ruling party in Nagaland and a constituent of the BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance, has won four seats in Manipur and a constituent of the National Democratic Alliance government.

The ruling Congress ended up as the single-largest party with 28 seats - three short of a majority - in the hung 60-member Manipur assembly on Saturday, with the BJP ended second with 21.

Shurhozelie also congratulated the party rank and file in Nagaland and especially voters in Manipur, for ensuring the victory of four party candidates.

--IANS

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Hinduja Group Co-Chairman Gopichand P. Hinduja on Saturday said that the overseas Indian diaspora stands in support of all initiatives of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to give a thrust to the country's economy.

In a message congratulating the Prime Minister for the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) stupendous win in assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the London-based industrialist termed it as "a win that carries the stamp of people from all socio-economic backgrounds".

"This to my mind, should put the debate on demonetisation to rest," Hinduja, 77, asserted.

He added that this was a mandate for Modi's governance and spur the Prime Minister for not only sustaining, rather aggressively pursuing, reforms for 'Making in India'.

"The path of reforms should ensure increased ease of doing business in India. I can foresee more FDI coming into the country and private investment to get a fillip, which, together with business reforms would create more jobs for the Indian youth," Hinduja concluded.

--IANS

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed grief over the death of 11 CRPF personnel in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh in a Maoist attack and said that Home Minister Rajnath Singh would be going there.

"Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi said in a tweet.

"Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said.

Eleven CRPF personnel were killed and five others injured in a Maoist attack near Bhejji of Sukma district in tribal Bastar region. The Maoists also looted weapons from the dead personnel.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh also condoled the deaths and said the perpetrators of the attack will be brought to justice.

"Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased," the Home Minister said.

He said he had spoken to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, and the state government is providing all medical assistance to the injured.

"The Centre is in direct communication with the state government. Those who perpetrated this incident in Sukma will be brought to justice," he said.

--IANS

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The risky decision of demonetisation -- which many thought would go wrong -- actually seems to have paid off for the BJP. The note ban did cause chaos in the initial weeks, but later things smoothened and generally the electorate didn't mind it as is evident from the results, say experts.

After the demonetisation move, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was attacked vehemently by the major political parties like the Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) over the issue but the decision clicked big time with the voters of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, they said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s phenomenal success in the two states came close on the heels of its victory in the civic polls in Odisha, Maharashtra and Chandigarh, where the elections were held soon after the note ban.

"There were sections unhappy with demonetisation, but there were a large number of poorer people who felt that Modi was dealing with corruption, hitting at the rich," said Neerja Chowdhury, political commentator and columnist.

Chowdhury said that the people bought the argument that the move, in the long run, would do good for them, and that Modi would prove to be a messiah for the poor.

"The verdict shows that people are willing to give him time," she told IANS.

During the campaign in these five states, the Congress, SP, BSP and other opposition parties had alleged that the government's ban on high-denomination bank notes led to hardships for the poor, and hoped that the people would give their verdict in the polls.

"This election has been fought with demonetisation issue. There was a lot of debate going on how it will impact the elections. But demonetisation has clicked big time with the voters of UP and Uttarakhand," Praveen Rai, political analyst at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies told IANS.

Rai added: "The kind of victory we see for the BJP is unparalleled. Modi magic, which people thought had declined after Delhi and Bihar, has resurfaced and is almost like a resurrection for the party."

On November 8 last year, the Prime Minister had announced demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, saying that the move would curtail the shadow economy and crackdown on the illicit and counterfeit cash used to fund illegal activities and terrorism.

The decision led to long queues outside banks and ATMs to withdraw cash.

Alok Rai, Professor at Institute of Management Studies at Banaras Hindu University, felt that demonetisation had a huge political impact.

"Lower classes of the society perceived the decision to be in their favour and against the rich. The BJP, especially the Prime Minister, succeeded to convince the voters about the decision," Rai said.

"Negative campaigning by the opposition parties paid rich dividends to Modi and the BJP," he added.

During the election campaign, the BJP leaders also raked up the issue, saying the opposition parties should take the results as a referendum on demonetisation.

Modi and BJP President Amit Shah targeted the opposition parties many a time during their election campaign, saying demonetisation had given sleepless nights to opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Babua (Akhilesh Yadav) and Bua (Mayawati).

--IANS

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Vatican City, March 11 (IANS/AKI) Pope Francis will make an official visit to Colombia from September 6 to 11, the Vatican announced on Friday.

"Accepting the invitation of the President of the Republic and the Colombian bishops, His Holiness the Pope Francis will make an Apostolic Trip to Colombia from September 6 to 11, 2017, visiting the cities of Bogota, Villavicencio, Medellin and Cartagena," a statement said.

"The programme for the trip will be published shortly," the statement added.

The visit by Francis comes after the Colombian government and leftist Farc rebels signed an historic peace deal in November to end more than 50 years of onflict, in which the Vatican had sought to avoid taking sides.

The logo for the trip contains the motto 'Let's take the first step' and an accompanying message says the words refer to "the more than 50 years of violence" which divided Colombia, Vatican Radio reported.

Francis will be the third pontiff to visit Colombia after Pope Paul VI in 1968 and Pope John Paul II, who visited 11 Colombian cities on a seven-day trip to the country in 1986.

--IANS/AKI

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Milan, March 11 (IANS/AKI) Milan's centre-left mayor Giuseppe Sala was due to attend prayers on Friday at a church in the northern Italian city for a severely disabled disc-jockey, DJ Fabo, who died in an assisted suicide procedure last month at a clinic in Switzerland.

The prayers for Fabo, whose real name was Fabiano Antoniani were announced on social media.

"Friday 10 March at 7pm in the parish of Sant'Ildefonso in Piazzale Damiano Chiesa, Milano #DjFabo #Fabo'sFree" read a tweet from @makeeuthanasialegal.

The prayers at Sant'Ildefonso church in northwest Milan are being held at the request of Antoniani's mother, the parish said. There will be no funeral mass, it added.

Right-to-death activist Marco Cappato announced the death of Antoniani on 27 February at the age of 39.

"Fabo died at 11.40 am. He chose to leave this world respecting the rules of a country that is not his," Cappato announced on Twitter.

Antoniani was left blind and tetraplegic after a car crash in Milan on 13 June 2014 when he bent down to pick up his mobile phone while driving.

Cappato, who went with Antoniani to the Swiss euthanasia clinic, is under investigation by Italian prosecutors for "assisting suicide" and could face up to 12 years in prison if convicted of the crime.

Euthanasia, which is strongly opposed by the Catholic Church, remains illegal in Italy.

More than 50 Italians committed assisted suicide abroad last year, according to Exit Italia, which says it receives around 90 requests for information on euthanasia each month.

--IANS/AKI

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for the BJP's "historic victory" in the two states.

Rajnath Singh attributed the victory to "Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment to the public, his efficient leadership and our commitment to good governance.

"We thank all the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for this historic victory and express gratitude towards them."

This, he said, was not a victory but a "mega victory".

"The BJP has changed the political picture of the country by touching the new era of success in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand," he tweeted.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh arrived here to assess the situation and met the four jawans injured in the Maoist attack on Saturday.

Singh along with Chief Minister Raman Singh, will proceed to the battalion's post in Mana camp to pay tribute to the 12 troopers killed in the attack.

The injured jawans are being treated at a private hospital in the state capital.

According to sources, the Home Minister will also address a press conference at the police training academy in Mana camp.

On Saturday morning, 12 CRPF personnel were killed and four injured in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district, when they were ambushed by the rebels during a road opening operation between Bhejji and Kottacheru villages.

The Maoists also looted 11 rifles from the jawans killed in the two-hour long gunfight.

--IANS

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The Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin died of a heart attack, with no signs of foul play, a senior official said here.

"As outlined in formal requests from the US Department of State, Ambassador Churkin's diplomatic immunity survives his death. Further questions concerning this matter should be directed to the Department of State," Julie Bolcer, a spokeswoman for the city's Office of Chief Medical Examiner told CNN on Friday night.

However, earlier on Friday, the office said that it would not publicly disclose the cause and manner of Churkin's death because of diplomatic immunity laws.

Churkin died in New York City on February 20, a day before his 65th birthday.

He spent over 40 years in the diplomatic service and headed the Russian Mission to the UN for more than a decade.

--IANS

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** Missouri 115th District State Representative Elaine Gannon, R-De Soto, files a report every other week while the state legislature is in session.

We have been busy in Jefferson City the past two months; lots of committee meetings and long days on the House Floor! Spring Break will be here before we know it! Below is some of what we have been working on in the Capitol.

House Approves Legislation to Put an End to Venue Shopping in Missouri (HB 460, HB 461, and HB 462)

House members continued their tort reform efforts this week by passing legislation supporters say will help put an end to litigation tourism and the many lawsuits that are filed in St. Louis by out-of-state parties.

The bills approved Thursday are meant to stop the large number of lawsuits filed in the state by people who live outside Missouri, who are alleging injuries that didnt occur within the states borders against companies that are not from Missouri.

A 2016 study released by the American Tort Reform Foundation named St. Louis as the number one judicial hellhole in the country; calling it a magnet for product liability lawsuits and consumer class actions.

The study noted that plaintiffs travel from out-of-state to file lawsuits in Missouri to take advantage of the state's weak venue law and low standards for what is considered expert testimony. A Bloomberg Businessweek article noted that Missouri has developed a reputation for fast trials, favorable rulings, and big awards.

In order to help end Missouris reputation as the Show Me Your Lawsuits State, in February the Missouri House took up and passed a piece of legislation designed to strengthen the states expert witness standards.

This week members continued their tort reform efforts by approving a series of bills that would prevent what is commonly referred to as venue or forum shopping in Missouri. Specifically, the legislation would change state laws governing where lawsuits may be filed and whether suits can be joined together.

Supporters say the bills will clarify the venue laws in Missouri and ensure lawsuits are brought in the proper court. They note that in 2016 there were 140 aggregated mass tort cases pending in St. Louis, with 8,400 plaintiffs in the cases having nothing to do with Missouri.

They say the fix approved by the House will prevent lawsuits brought by out-of-state interests from moving to St. Louis simply by including a plaintiff from the city.

Those who oppose the bill say it will change the venue laws so that more cases are filed in the rural areas of the state and prevent plaintiffs from pooling resources in lawsuits against large companies.

They say the bill will further increase costs for rural counties because of the need for additional courtroom resources, and increase the burden on residents needed to serve as jurors in those counties. Opponents also note that restricting plaintiffs ability to join their lawsuits together in a single venue, thereby forcing them to pursue their suits individually, would prove cost-prohibitive.

House Approves Minimum Wage Fix (HBs 1194 & 1193)

In response to a Missouri Supreme Court decision that invalidated part of Missouris minimum wage law, lawmakers are moving quickly to implement a fix that would provide a consistent wage in municipalities throughout the state.

The House approved legislation this week that would reaffirm that the states minimum wage is applied throughout Missouri, and keep the decision to raise wages in the hands of the employer and employee.

While the state currently has a minimum wage that increases based on the Consumer Price Index, and is currently higher than the federal minimum wage, some municipalities have considered their own increases. St. Louis passed an ordinance to raise its minimum wage to $10 an hour this year and $11 an hour by 2018.

The legislation approved by the House would preempt and nullify the minimum wage enacted by St. Louis, and provide that other municipalities cannot enact a minimum wage that exceeds the one established by state law.

Supporters say the bill will ensure it is not illegal for an employer to hire someone in accordance with the state minimum wage. They say the legislation approved by the House will protect job creators from being turned into criminals.

They also note that a mandated increase in payroll would force businesses to either raise prices or cut costs by reducing the size of their workforce. In addition, they say its important to have a consistent minimum wage across the state rather than an inconsistent patchwork of wages that vary from municipality to municipality.

Opponents of the bill say its important to preserve local control and allow municipalities the right to determine their own minimum wage standards. They say raising the minimum wage can help Missourians obtain a livable wage and move closer to self-sufficiency.

They also note that the legislature passed similar legislation in 2015 that included a deadline to allow cities to enact a higher minimum wage, and that St. Louis met that deadline with its ordinance.

House Moves to Reduce Regulatory Burden on Missourians (HBs 480, 272, 413 & 609)

The House has advanced part of the policy platform laid out by House Speaker Todd Richardson, who called for the legislature to remove the unnecessary government regulations that stifle innovation and job creation in the state.

House members approved legislation to ensure government engages in the licensing and regulation of occupations and professions only when it is necessary to protect the welfare of the public.

The bill approved by the House would establish guidelines for the regulation of occupations and professions not currently regulated by the Division of Professional Registration, as well as guidelines for substantially increasing the scope of practice of currently regulated occupations and professions.

The bill would also specify that the state may not impose a substantial burden on an individual's pursuit of his or her occupation or profession unless there is an important governmental interest for the state to protect the general welfare. If an interest exists, the regulation adopted by the state would have to be substantially related to the public interest to be protected.

The bill also would establish a heightened level of review with specific criteria for all legislation that would seek to license an occupation or profession for the first time or to substantially expand the scope of a current professional license.

Criteria would include determining whether unregulated practice could cause harm and endanger the general welfare, and whether the public could reasonably be expected to benefit from an assurance of personal qualifications.

Supporters believe the bill will reduce the burdens placed on individuals trying to practice their professions. It will ensure new regulations are put in place only when they are necessary to protect the public.

Missouri Unemployment Numbers Continue to Drop

The state of Missouri received good news this week as the states jobless rate continues to decline. The Missouri Department of Economic Development released its latest data showing that unemployment dropped to 4.2 percent in January. The number is a decrease from the December rate of 4.4 percent, and is also lower than the 4.5 percent unemployment rate the state saw in January of 2016.

The departments data also shows an increase in the number of jobs in the state. Missouri gained 7,300 jobs from December to January. The state also has an additional 10,000 jobs when compared to January of last year. The state now has seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment of more than 2.97 million.

Raising Awareness of Multiple Sclerosis

House members joined Missourians across the state this week in wearing orange to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis. In 2015 the legislature approved HB 861 to designate the first full week of March each year as Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week in Missouri.

The week is designed to call attention to the need for additional research, care, and support for those living with multiple sclerosis. According to the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation, the disease affects more than 400,000 people in the United States, and about 2.5 million people worldwide. Approximately 200 new cases are diagnosed each week in the United States.

Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis.

The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are leading to better understanding and moving us closer to a world free of MS. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease.

As always, it is a pleasure to serve you, and please contact my office if you need anything!
Chants of "Har-har Modi" rent the air at the BJP headquarters here as the party was on Saturday set to form governments in two states, while exploring possibilities in two other states where it polled second.

In sharp contrast, a pall of gloom descended over the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) offices following their worse-than-expected showing in the assembly elections.

As election results and trends started pouring in since early morning, the entire Ashoka Road-located BJP headquarters was soaked in elation with loud slogan shouting.

Slogans got louder every time the two giant-sized television screens placed inside and outside the office premises showed the BJP swiftly rising to power in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and running neck-and-neck with the Congress party in Manipur and Goa.

The jubilant BJP supporters with faces smeared with "Abeer" (coloured powder) shook hands, hugged and greeted each other and danced to the beats of traditional drums and bands.

Some supporters also blew conches, burst crackers and distributed sweets.

A group of eight BJP supporters skilled in playing different rhythms on drums on festive occasions had reached the BJP headquarters in the morning from Banchari village in Haryana -- almost 100 kilometre from the national capital -- to be part of the celebrations.

"I was confident that the BJP will win. I am happy," one of the band members, Satvir Chaudhary, told IANS.

Cheerful BJP leaders visiting the party office were seen giving credit for the party's astounding victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's excellent work done for the common people as well as the demonetisation move.

BJP General Secretary Bhupendra Yadav said: "The credit goes to our Prime Minister's work and the government's demonetisation move."

Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, who visited the party head office, said it was not just one or two months' work that led us to the victory, the party had been working on every aspect since 2015.

The 24 Akbar Road Congress headquarters wore a deserted look even as the trends showed the party's clear majority in Punjab.

Unlike past years' experience on vote counting days, there was no arrangement of large television screens for visitors and the party leaders as well as supporters could be hardly found there.

A group of Youth Congress supporters, however, tried to create a cheerful atmosphere in the afternoon by bursting crackers and raising slogans like "Rahul Gandhi Zindabad" and "Sonia Gandhi Zindabad", but the indication was that the top party leaders were not happy with the overall results.

A few Congress leaders met media persons at the party headquarters. They slammed the BJP for befooling the public by luring them with false promises, and tried to parry questions on the party's performance in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

"The BJP won elections in UP because of selling dreams and the reality will come soon when they fail in delivering these dreams," Congress leader Tom Vadakkan told IANS.

On the party's humiliating defeat in Uttarakhand, Vadakkan said the core section of the Congress had joined the BJP, which "really affected us".

Just after it became clear that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had lost badly in Punjab and Goa, gloom enveloped Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence and the party's headquarters at 206 Rouse Avenue here.

Ever since the February 4 voting in both states, the AAP was supremely confident of taking office in Punjab, although its claims were muted vis-a-vis Goa.

Shock and disappointment was writ large on everyone's face. Many refused to speak to journalists.

As the day progressed, arrangements made for the announcement of election results were removed. In Goa, the AAP fared much worse, with not a single seat falling in its kitty.

A large television screen placed outside Kejriwal's residence displaying the live trends and results was also switched off later in the day.

(Rajnish Singh can be contacted at rajnish.s@ians.in)

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sri Lanka sent the largest ever contingent of food and beverage exporting companies to 'Gulfood 2017', the world's largest annual food and drink exhibition in Dubai, a statement said on Saturday.

At the event held at the Dubai World Trade Centre, the country used the opportunity to promote its world famous Ceylon Tea and other food-related exports to the UAE and Gulf region as well as other global markets, Xinhua news agency cited the Foreign Ministry as saying.

Twenty-three Sri Lankan companies participated in the exhibition displaying their products consisting of various food items under the national pavilion of "Export Development Board of Sri Lanka".

Nineteen tea exporting companies also participated under the national pavilion banner of "Sri Lanka Tea Board".

A total 45 tea companies from Sri Lanka participated as exhibitors which was considered as an all-time record for any location in the world, the statement said.

More than 120 countries participated in the Gulfood 2017 and representing these countries, over 5,000 exhibitors displayed a range of diverse products at their dedicated national pavilion.

During the five-day event, more than 95,000 business customers representing various food sectors visited the exhibition.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chief of Royal Court of Jordan Fayez Tarawneh called Prime Minister Narendra Modi and exchanged views on the situation in West Asia and the scourge of terrorism, an official said on Saturday.

"Tarawneh exchanged views with Prime Minister on the situation in West Asia and the scourge of terrorism that calls for a comprehensive international response," a statement said.

According to the statement, Tarawneh called Modi on Friday.

"They discussed the shared commitment to strengthen bilateral engagement and the many opportunities in this regard," the statement said.

Tarawneh also conveyed the greetings of King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein to the Prime Minister.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Telangana will pass two legislations during the ongoing Budget session to enhance reservation for the Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Muslims, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao said on Saturday.

He told the state assembly that the two bills would be tabled and passed during the ongoing session.

He said he would then lead an all-party delegation to New Delhi to urge the Centre to include the legislations in the Constitution's 9th Schedule as was done in the case of Tamil Nadu.

The Budget session, which began on Friday, will continue till March 27.

Rao assured the house that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi government will fulfil its commitment to enhance quota to Muslims and STs to 12 per cent each.

Muslims, who constitute 12.68 per cent of Telangana's 3.52 crore population, currently enjoy four per cent quota in education and jobs.

The STs, who are 9.34 per cent of the population, are availing six per cent reservation.

Enhancing the quota for Muslims and STs will take total reservation in the state to over 50 per cent, the upper limit prescribed by the Supreme Court, thus requiring a constitutional amendment.

Laws under the 9th Schedule cannot be challenged in a court of law.

The Chief Minister had earlier said that if the central government refuses to include the laws in the 9th Schedule, the state would fight a legal battle.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Dutch government on Saturday stopped a Turkish rally on its land by denying landing permit for the Turkish Foreign Minister's plane over security concerns, a government statement said.

It said that after failing to find an alternative solution with the Turkish authorities, the Dutch in the end were left with no other option but to stop Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's plane from landing.

A Dutch Foreign Ministry official confirmed to Efe news the decision which stopped Cavusoglu from attending a rally that had been planned in Rotterdam on Saturday.

The rally was part of a "yes" campaign for an upcoming referendum in Turkey on constitutional reforms.

The move opens a new chapter in diplomatic tensions between the two NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) members over the referendum being pushed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The referendum would pave the way to reforming the constitution and transform Turkey into a presidential republic, Efe news reported.

Cavusoglu had earlier said in an interview with CNN Turk television that if the Dutch authorities refused him permission for the rally, Turkey would bring harsh economic and political sanctions against it.

He also said that it was unreasonable to refuse him permission.

On Wednesday, the owners of a private hall in Rotterdam had cancelled the space allocated for the Turkish Minister's rally.

Cavusoglu was planning to seek support of nearly 300,000 Turks living in the Netherlands where they had the right to vote in the April 16 referendum on Turkey's constitutional amendments.

Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb supported the cancellation.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami on Saturday greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the BJP's electoral success in Uttar Pradesh and other states.

"I would like to convey my congratulations to you on the resounding victory of your party in the recently concluded assembly elections," the Chief Minister wrote to Modi.

"This victory is the testimony of your able leadership and hard work," he added.

Palaniswami also wished Modi over the phone.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At least 44 people were killed on Saturday and scores injured in a double bombing attack on buses of Shia pilgrims parked outside a cemetery here, a war monitor based in Britain said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human rights said the two explosions happened in the historic centre of Bab-al-Saghir cemetery area here, Efe news reported.

The Observatory did not rule out that the number of casualties could rise, as several of the injured were said to be in serious condition.

In the hours before the bombings government forces attacked rebel positions with artillery in the rebel-controlled Qabun area outside the Syrian capital, though no casualties were reported, the Observatory said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US President Donald Trump has invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to visit the White House soon, spokesperson Sean Spicer said.

In his first phone call with Abbas since he took office, Trump on Friday told the Palestinian leader that he believes the time has come to make a deal on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, The Washington Times reported.

The US President emphasised his "personal belief that peace is possible", Spicer said.

"The President noted that such a deal would not only give Israelis and Palestinians the peace and security they deserve, but that it would reverberate positively throughout the region and the world," he said.

According to official Palestinian News Agency WAFA, Abbas reiterated his commitment to peace as a strategic choice to establish the Palestinian state living side by side with Israel.

Palestinians are concerned at the more favourable approach shown by Washington toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since Trump came to power.

Netanyahu and Trump have spoken on the phone at least twice since the inauguration, and the Israeli Prime Minister visited Washington last month.

At his meeting with Netanyahu, Trump broke with decades of US policy by saying he was not bound to the two-state solution for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Spicer emphasised the long-lasting US stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that a peace agreement must be negotiated directly between Israel and Palestine.

That took an indirect jab at a UN resolution passed last December that demanded Israel stop building settlements on occupied Palestinian territory to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution.

Former President Barack Obama let pass that resolution in a major departure from the US tradition of shielding Israel from UN reproaches despite Trump's adamant opposition.

According to Palestinian officials, Abbas would emphasise his concern about Israeli settlement-building on occupied land and the need for a two-state solution to the conflict.

"Abbas stressed the commitment to peace as a strategic choice to establish a Palestinian State alongside the state of Israel," the Palestinian leader's spokesperson Nabil Abu Rdainah said.

The peace process has been deadlocked since April 2014 following the collapse of indirect negotiations led by then US secretary of state John Kerry.

US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley on Tuesday met for the first time the Palestinian envoy to the world body, Riyad Mansour.

After the talks, Haley tweeted the Palestinians should "meet with Israel in direct negotiations rather than looking to the UN to deliver results that can only be achieved through the two parties".

Israel has long favoured direct bilateral talks, while the Palestinians argue they need the international community to ensure Israel follows through on its pledges.

Trump has previously suggested he would move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Israeli right-wingers have encouraged Netanyahu to use Trump's election as an opportunity to formally annex parts of the West Bank into Israel.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Meghalaya government has suspended two policemen for firing at three civilians in North Garo Hills district on March 6, a police official said.

The government issued the suspension order against Unarmed Branch Sub Inspector W.D. Sangma and Constable Umakhanta Rabha on Friday for firing at three civilians, the police official told IANS.

"Sangma and Rabha have been placed under suspension based on the departmental inquiry headed by V.D.S. Rymbai, the assistant commandant of 2nd Meghalaya Police Battalion," the official said.

Three civilians - Milseng Sangma, Tubal Sangma and Janrak Sangma - were injured in the police firing on Resu-Khaldang road. The police fired at them suspecting them to be militants, when they sped through three different police checkpoints despite being signalled to stop.

Chief Minister Mukul Sangma had assured the assembly that the government will institute a judicial inquiry into the police firing.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two legislators of the opposition TDP were on Saturday suspended from Telangana assembly for disrupting the governor's address.

Revanth Reddy and S. Venkat Veraiah of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) would remain suspended from the house for the rest of the budget session, Speaker Madhusudhana Chary announced.

During Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan's address to the joint session of both the Houses of the state legislature on Friday, the opposition legislators had raised slogans.

The TDP members alleged that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government made the Governor speak lies about the state's development.

The Speaker said disciplinary action was taken against the two members for disrupting the Governor's address.

Protesting the Speaker's action, main opposition the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a walkout.

The opposition parties later held a meeting with the Leader of Opposition K. Jana Reddy to chalk out their action plan.

Meanwhile, TRS defended the decision taken by the Speaker. TRS leaders demanded that TDP legislators should apologise to the house for their behaviour. They said opposition should change their attitude.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
** Missouri 117th District House Representative Mike Henderson, R-Desloge, files his Capital Report at the end of each week during the state legislative session.

Currently I serve on the Workforce development committee. Over the course of this legislative session we have been working with various groups to provide training paths to well-paying jobs that do not necessarily require a four-year degree.

This program will allow people with 2-year associates degrees or certified training certifications to move into well-paying jobs in the ever-expanding field of technology. Through our work with partners such as the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education as well as several partners from other businesses, we hope to start this program next year.

A bill on charter schools is on its way to hitting The House floor. The vast majority of Charter Schools are stationed in Saint Louis and Kansas City because this is where many unaccredited districts are located. I dont oppose options for students where the public schools fail. However, I do not want to have them expanded across the state thus taking money from successful public schools.

The state of Missouri received good news this week as the states jobless rate continues to decline. The Missouri Department of Economic Development released its latest data showing that unemployment dropped to 4.2 percent in January. The number is a decrease from the December rate of 4.4 percent, and is also lower than the 4.5 percent unemployment rate the state saw in January of 2016.

The departments data also shows an increase in the number of jobs in the state. Missouri gained 7,300 jobs from December to January. The state also has an additional 10,000 jobs when compared to January of last year. The state now has seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment of more than 2.97 million.

Five bills caught my attention this week:

HB 248 would establish a statewide program designed to promote careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The legislation is modeled after successful programs in Tennessee and Arkansas that have helped promote the importance of the STEM fields to young people.

The bill would require the state Department of Economic Development to establish the STEM Career Awareness Program to increase awareness of careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics for students in grades six through eight. The program would involve online-based curriculum that would raise awareness of more than eighty different careers and technologies, and would be organized around the concept of solving societal or human-centered problems. The bill would require the department to have the program in place by the 2018-19 school year.

HB459 changes the law in tort cases so if a defendant gets dismissed in a case, the case must be moved to a new venue where a remaining defendant(s) is located. For example: there is a car accident in Cole County and the blame is placed on a faulty part on the car.

Currently, the law allows the plaintiff to sue any party that is remotely involved. In this instance they may sue the part manufacturer (located in Greene County) and the mechanic (located in Saint Louis), knowing the manufacturer is at fault. However, because the mechanic is located in St. Louis City, they sue them so the trial will be in the more favorable venue of St. Louis.

Even if the mechanic gets dismissed as a defendant, the trial is still allowed to be in St. Louis City. HB 459 changes the law so if the mechanic is dismissed as a defendant, the trial must be moved to a venue where a defendant is located, in this example, Greene County.

HB460 also changes the law in tort cases. HB460 says that if there are multiple defendants, a trial must take place in each venue that a defendant is located. For example, if a retail store sells a defective product and gets sued, there must be a trial in each circuit court that the store is located.

Currently, the law allows a plaintiff to sue all the stores in a single venue, usually one that is friendlier towards the plaintiff. What this law does is keeps a plaintiff from suing all defendants in the venue most friendly to the plaintiff.

HB1194 fixes the issues with the 1998 and 2015 bills that prohibited municipalities from raising the minimum wage above the state minimum. The court ruled against the two previous bills because they were a Hammerschmidt violation, due to having more than one topic in the bill. HB 1194 will be in compliance with Hammerschmidt

The Circuit Breaker Tax Credit eliminates the circuit breaker tax credit for renters and puts the money in the Missouri Senior Services Protection Fund, which will be used to pay for senior services such as in home health and other vital services. The initial reason for the tax credit was to assist low-income seniors on fixed income that had trouble affording property taxes.

This week I was able to meet with many guests. Thank you Doe Run Company, Nurses from nurses advocacy day, Dr. Steven Kurtz from Mineral Area College, Constituent Paul Mallmann representing Ameren UE, and Brian Okenfuss from MODOT for visiting. I also was able to meet with Kevin Jenkins and Matt King from the Daily Journal. Both men were given awards for their work.
The catchy slogans of the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance in Uttar Pradesh like "UP ke ladke", "UP ko yeh saath pasand hai" and "Kaam bolta hai" have not been able to connect with the voters as they rejected the alliance to hand the BJP a massive victory in the state.

The BJP swept to an unprecedented majority in Uttar Pradesh with 312 seats.

The SP got 47 seats while the Congress could manage only 7 seats.

The two young faces of the alliance -- outgoing Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi -- were not able to cash in on the young voters of the state, who they tried to attract.

They were, however, attracted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's charisma, rather than the "Kaam bolta hai" slogan of Akhilesh Yadav.

Before its alliance in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress had been critical of the performance of the Samajwadi Party. The Congress had coined the slogan "27 saal, UP behaal. (UP has been in abysmal state for the past 27 years) to remind the people of its own rule in the 1980s and convey that the BJP, Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party had failed to deliver.

The moment they allied with the Samajwadi Party, it struck a blow to the hopes of many Congress workers who had hoped for their party's revival in the northern state.

Many Congress leaders had also expressed their reservations over the alliance with the Samajwadi Party. A party leader said there was a lot of enthusiasm among the party workers when it was ready to go it alone in the assembly polls.

He said the 26-day 'Kisan Yatra' (farmers' rally), which culminated in Delhi last October with a roadshow and rally of Rahul Gandhi, was a step in the right direction.

Another Congress leader however said the entire party leadership should take responsibility for the debacle in Uttar Pradesh.

"In UP, our strategy was a complete failure. The BJP in 2014 won 328 assembly segments with 43 per cent vote share. Our strategy failed to counter that. The BJP was far more meticulous in planning and execution.

"Who is to be blamed is to be collectively answered by the party and its leadership," a senior Congress leader said on the condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile, the family feud in the Samajwadi Party seems to have cost the party a lot as Akhilesh Yadav underestimated the role of his uncle Shivpal Yadav in the elections.

Many party supporters did not take too kindly to the fact that SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav was sidelined by his son Akhilesh to become the party President.

Due to this, many non-Yadav OBC voters, who earlier supported Mulayam Singh Yadav, had this time voted for the BJP. The BJP was successful in bringing these voters into their fold.

A few leaders even thought the "alliance with Congress" was a big mistake. The alliance failed miserably in transfering their own votes to the other party in most of the constituencies.

One of the objectives of the SP-Congress alliance was to attract the Muslim votes, but this too was dashed when the Muslim votes got divided between the BSP and the SP in the state.

Moreover, both the parties went against each other in over a dozen seats in UP and it was enough to confuse the voters of these constituencies. The alliance with the Congress party even irked a number of voters in the state.

"The BJP micro-managed elections really well, changing strategies from stage to stage. The alliance with the Congress was a big mistake," SP leader and spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia told IANS.

He said that "dynastic is not the kind of the people are looking for".

SP Vice-President Kiranmoy Nanda also did not rule out the possibility of a conspiracy that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were "managed" to favour the BJP's win.

"I think it is a very big conspiracy. The EVM conspiracy theory raised Mayawati should also be looked into," said Nanda.

Asked about the alliance, he said: "I don't think the alliance was a mistake; but what happened to the Congress' core voters? Why did that just vanish?

Following initial differences between two parties, the alliance between SP and Congress was sealed after Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Rahul Gandhi's intervention.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Happy over the sweeping BJP win, party President Amit Shah on Saturday said the results will end the politics of "caste, dynasty politics and appeasement".

"This victory will change the course of Indian politics in the coming days. It will end the politics of casteism, parivaarvaad and appeasement," the Bharatiya Janata Party leader told the media here.

"Voters of Uttar Pradesh have rejected the politcs of casteism, of family one-upmanship and appeasement. They have voted for performance-based politics and governance," Shah added.

He said he was glad that people gave such a massive mandate to the BJP to the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after independence.
Terming the bailable warrant issued against him by a seven-judge Supreme Court Constitution bench 'wrong', Calcutta High Court Justice C.S. Karnan on Saturday said the order should not be executed against him.

Asked by reporters at his residence in New Town here whether he will appear before the apex court as directed, he retorted: "Why?"

He alleged the "honourable judges having poor knowledge in the legal field committed the error".

This was Justice Karnan's second interaction with the media in as many days.

On Friday, he told the media that the Supreme Court's bailable warrant against him was "unconstitutional and a deliberate attempt to ruin my life" as a Dalit judge.

The apex court on Friday issued a bailable warrant against Justice Karnan for refusing to heed summons to appear before it in a contempt case initiated suo motu by the court.

The Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar also asked the West Bengal Director General of Police to serve the bailable warrant personally on Justice Karnan and sought his presence before the apex court on March 31.

"The order passed by the learned judges is an error... The seven judges passed the order which is out of law. Therefore, the order should not be implemented, carried out, executed against me," Justice Karnan said on Saturday.

He said: "Suo motu contempt was issued by the seven judges on the basis of my written complaint to the Prime Minister of India. I mentioned 20 judges are corrupted. They (20 judges) did not come forward to initiate legal action against me. Why (then) the suo motu contempt was issued against me?"

Responding to a query, Justice Karnan said so far the warrant has not been served on him.

He said the public should not comply with wrong orders. "If any judge passes wrong orders, the public need not cooperate with wrong order that is not suitable for execution."

The High Court Justice had in January named 20 "corrupt judges", seeking probe against them to curb "high corruption" in the Indian judiciary.

Mentioning corruption cases allegedly involving two judges, Justice Karnan on Saturday said an inquiry was a must but no action was taken and instead "corrupt judges are being protected".

He said: "I admit the Indian Judiciary is corrupted."

-- IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The AAP said on Saturday it was disappointed it did not win the Punjab assembly election but added that even becoming the main opposition was an achievement.

"We were hoping to form a government in Punjab," Aam Aadmi Party leader Ashutosh told IANS. "We are disappointed with the result," he said, as vote count showed the Congress sweeping to victory in assembly election.

"But for a new party (in the state) even coming at the second place is also a big thing," Ashutosh added. "Don't underestimate this."

He said all the AAP leaders needed to introspect where the party's assessment of taking power in the border state with more than 100 of the 117 seats went wrong.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Asaduddin Owaisi, whose AIMIM failed to get a single seat in Uttar Pradesh, said on Saturday that it was a good start for the party and he would continue to work there to strengthen it.

Reacting to the results in Uttar Pradesh, where BJP stormed to power with a massive majority, he said there was a huge scope for his All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) in that state.

Stating that he respects the verdict, Owaisi thanked people who voted for his party, which contested 35 seats.

The Muslim leader said it was a bigger challenge for him to continue working to strengthen the party.

"The parties which call themselves secular had always said that Muslims have the responsibility of stopping the BJP. Now it is clear that this is the responsibility of all and not just Muslims," he told reporters at Darussalam, the party headquarters here.

Owaisi said the results clearly showed that the Muslim vote bank is a myth and it never existed. "There was an allegation that I will cut the secular votes. I contested only 35 seats. There were 368 more seats. What happened there? How come the BJP won those seats?" he asked.

He claimed that in majority of the 35 seats it contested, AIMIM stopped BJP from winning them. He cited the example of Sambhal, where AIMIM candidate secured over 61,000 votes while SP's winning candidate got 70,000 votes.

Admitting there were some shortfalls, he pointed out that his party contested the UP elections for the first time and it never set any target of winning seats. "The aim was to contest and strengthen the party. That work is done. We will continue our efforts as life is a struggle. We will work hard so that coming generations don't have to suffer," he said.

Stating that it was a good start for the party, he hoped that in the near future it will convert votes into seats.

Owaisi said it took 28 years for AIMIM to win the Hyderabad Parliamentary seat and once it won the seat, it continued the winning streak.

The AIMIM chief said he was sure that nearly 80-90 per cent Muslims in UP had not voted for BJP. "Despite that the BJP has won. The question is who is communal and who is secular over here. This question will really disturb secular parties now," he said.

On BSP leader Mayawati's demand for re-polling with ballot papers, Owaisi said the Election Commission should look into the issue raised by her and respond.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The world is facing its greatest humanitarian crisis since 1945, the (UN) has announced, issuing a plea for help to avoid "a catastrophe", the media reported on Saturday.

UN humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien said that more than 20 million people faced the threat of starvation and famine in Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan and Nigeria, the BBC reported.

"We stand at a critical point in history," O'Brien told the Security Council on Friday.

"Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the UN," he added.

Unicef has already warned that 1.4 million children could starve to death this year.

O'Brien said $4.4 billion was needed by July to avert a disaster.

"Now, more than 20 million people across four countries face starvation and famine. Without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death. Many more will suffer and die from disease," he added.

According to the UN, a child dies every 10 minutes in Yemen from a preventable disease, while half-a-million children under five are suffering from severe acute malnutrition.

Some 19 million people  or two thirds of Yemen's population  are in need of some sort of humanitarian help.

In South Sudan, 4.9 million people  or 40 per cent of the country's population  are "in need of urgent food, agriculture and nutrition assistance", BBC quoted the UN as saying.

The UN has described the unfolding disaster in north-eastern Nigeria as the "greatest crisis on the continent". Estimates in December showed that there were 75,000 children at risk of starving to death.

Another 7.1 million people in Nigeria and the neighbouring Lake Chad area are considered "severely food insecure".

The last time a famine was declared in Somalia  just six years ago  nearly 260,000 people died.

At the beginning of March, there were reports of 110 people dying in just one region in a 48-hour period, the UN added.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged the construction of a "Great Wall of Steel" to safeguard national unity, ethnic solidarity and social stability in the violence-hit Xinjiang region.

Xi made the remarks on Friday during a panel discussion with lawmakers from Xinjiang at the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC), Xinhua news agency reported.

Xi called for safeguarding ethnic unity, and reinforcing solidarity between the military and government, soldiers and civilians, police and the publics.

"Xinjiang is an important security barrier in northwest China which holds a special strategic position and faces special issues," Xi said, adding that governing the region well is of great significance.

He stressed that maintaining stability in the landlocked border region, which has a history of ethnic violence and terror attacks, is a political responsibility.

"Stability-related issues must be handled in a thorough, timely and proper manner," the President added.

Xi's comments follow a series of massive "anti-terror" rallies in Xinjiang, which is home to the Turkic-speaking and largely Muslim Uighur minority as well as a growing number of Han Chinese immigrants, the Guardian reported.

Tens of thousands of heavily armed troops have poured into the region, vowing to wage a "people's war on terror" against militants.

Earlier this month, the Islamic State released a gory online propaganda video in which a Uighur-speaking recruits vowed to spill the blood of "evil Chinese communist infidel lackeys".

In December, security forces killed four militants who allegedly attempted to blow up a Communist party building in southern Xinjiang.

Three more alleged terrorists were killed in February after reportedly attacking civilians with machetes, the daily added.
The keenly awaited results of the five Assembly elections are largely out. Given the trends as of 2 pm, and they are unlikely to change too dramatically from now, heres a party-wise analysis of the verdict.
To begin with, let me congratulate the winners of Visitors Awards, 2017  Jawaharlal Nehru University, which has been adjudged the best university; and the scientists from the Central University of Himachal Pradesh, Banaras Hindu University and Tezpur University, who have been awarded in the categories of innovation and research. The honours conferred today lend due credence to their single-minded devotion and painstaking work in the pursuit of excellence. The recognition should, on the one hand, inspire them to higher levels of performance, and on the other, spur researchers and scientists in the central university system to explore wider domains of human understanding.
With a favourable electoral outcome in the countrys most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, the Narendra Modi government is expected to give a push to its promised economic reforms. Primary among them are in the labour market, where the government had promised many things but failed to implement much due to resistance from trade unions, including the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh.
Two students from West Elementary School in Park Hills recently won top awards for their artwork and poetry at this years Childrens Art Festival in Cape Girardeau, held each year in February at the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri.

The festival showcases the work local art teachers and their students are doing in their classrooms and features visual art pieces and poetry by children in third to eighth grades from 27 regional schools.

Third grade student Madison Dolan won first place awards for her poem, Why I Love Winter, and a related piece of mixed media artwork.

She made a clay snowman and then she painted it, said West Elementary art teacher Jami Heflin. And then she did oil pastel for his body and the environment.

Just nine-years-old, Dolan identifies herself as an artist and not only enjoys creating art for classroom projects but also plies her craft at home as well.

The front porch is typically just my art room, she said. Ive got my canvases and (other supplies there) and its like my station.

Dolan, who prefers painting and drawing, said this was the first time she ever entered one of her pieces into a contest and wasnt expecting to win, much less a first place award.

I just thought it would be nice to try it out, she said.

Fourth grade student Suzannah Huddleston won one of the festivals top awards for her artwork, which will hang in the capitol building in Jefferson City for one year. Huddlestons piece was inspired by graphic artist M. C. Escher and involved creating artistic tessellations, which are repeating patterns of polygons that cover a plane with no gaps or overlaps.

Its kind of a math unit, said Heflin, explaining how geometric shapes can be turned into art. They have to make the tessellation and then decide what they want to turn it into.  (Huddleston) turned hers into a dog.

Huddleston, an accomplished artist at the tender age of 10, also won an award at last years festival.

I got Best in Show last year, she said.

Both students are currently working on something new, although Dolan couldnt share what shes creating because she said its going to be a surprise for Heflin. Huddleston said shes currently working on still life drawings of food.

Introduced in 2000, the Childrens Arts Festival is a juried contest, with the top four entries in each age group, from third to eighth grade, featured in a booklet distributed at the event. Several years ago, the arts council added to the festival a special poetry component where students are prompted to write a poem about a piece of their personal artwork.

A certain number of the children's artwork, such as Huddlestons winning piece, are selected from the festival for presentation to Missouri state legislators. The artists whose pieces are selected for this honor, along with their family members, are invited to meet their legislators, present their artwork and attend a reception at the capitol building in Jefferson City.

Their artwork will hang in the office of their representative for a full year and will be returned after Fine Arts Education Day the following year. Its considered a great honor to be selected and the artwork serves as a reminder to state legislators about the importance of arts education in Missouri schools.
In one of the deadliest attacks on security forces, 12 CRPF personnel were today killed and their arms looted whenNaxalsambushed their patrol party in the Maoist hotbed of Sukma inChhattisgarh.

Four personnel were also injured in the attack, two of whom are stated to be critical.

The incident occurred at 9:15 AM in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 kms away from the state capital, when 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task.

"This is the biggest attack by Naxals on security forces this year. It is estimated that a hundred-plus Maoist squad was present in the area when the ambush was launched. These are preliminary inputs," a senior Chhattisgarh official told PTI.

The Bhejji area in south Bastar region of the state is notorious for Naxal attacks and many security personnel have been killed here in the past. It is considered as the last bastion of the red ultras as the area sits right on the tri-junction of Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.

The Naxals looted ten weapons, including six INSAS rifles, four AK-47s, a light machine gun, 1,587 bullet rounds, an under-barrel grenade launcher, a 51mm mortar, two para bombs and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.

Acting CRPF Director General Sudeep Lakhtakia said the troops were "ambushed by simultaneous blowing of IEDs and heavy gunfire when they were out for patrol."



"The troops were part of the road clearing party that has been securing an under-construction road between Bhejji and Kottacheru. They were ambushed by Naxals who had rigged up the area with hidden Improvised Explosive Devices.

"Subsequently multiple blasts ensued and firing was opened by Maoists. The squad effectively retaliated before eleven men made the supreme sacrifice. One of our jawans later succumbed to his injuries," he told PTI in Delhi.

Lakhtakia said Maoists were trying to disrupt normal life in the area as the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has increased its presence here and re-opened a local 'haat' (market) last year after it was forcibly shut by the red ultras.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation and spoke to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who will be travelling to the state shortly.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister RamanSinghhas strongly condemnedthe attackand termed it as a "cowardly act".

"Security personnel have laid down their lives to free Bastar from violence and Maoist terror. Their sacrifice will not go in vain. I salute their sacrifice," the CM said, adding ultras were frustrated with development of road network in the region.

He also extended condolences to the bereaved families.

The CRPF chief and senior officials have rushed to Raipur.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two persons died in two separate cases of road accidents in north Delhi's Burari and Kashmere Gate areas, police said today.

In the first incident, a tractor-trolley allegedly hit a Santro car in north Delhi's Burari area last night, police said.

The car driver, Virendra Bajpai, was found injured on the car seat, they added.

He was rushed to the hospital where he was declared dead. The driver of the other vehicle is on the run.

In the second incident, a man who worked as a chowkidar was mowed down by a speeding car in Kashmere Gate area on March 9, police said.

The deceased, Daan Bahadur, belonged to Nepal and was on his way to work when a car hit him around 10.30 PM.

Bahadur, a resident of Nepali Colony in Kashmere Gate, died on the spot.

His nephew was also walking behind him and managed to note down the car number, police said.

The offending vehicle had a Haryana number and police is searching for the accused driver.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ukraine's army reported today two soldiers killed in clashes with Russian-backed rebels, in a new uptick in violence across eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told reporters that two servicemen were killed and another 16 wounded in the past 24 hours, accusing insurgents of using heavy weapons against government troops.

A rebel spokesman in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic meanwhile said that one of its fighters had been killed, the rebels' agency reported.

The latest casualties along eastern Ukraine's volatile frontline come despite the warring sides announcing a truce deal in February that has failed to stop the violence entirely.

International monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said yesterday that they had "recorded double the number of ceasefire violations" compared to the previous week.

The deputy head of the OSCE's monitoring mission, Alexander Hug, said yesterday that 16 civilians had been killed in the region since the start of the year.

The OSCE said today that two mortar rounds had exploded near its monitors' cars in a rebel-controlled village northwest of the government-held city of Mariupol yesterday.

No monitors were injured in the incident, the OSCE said.

Nearly 10,000 people have been killed since the start of a pro-Russian insurgency in 2014 which Kiev and the West accuse Moscow of masterminding.

That conflict, and Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, have pushed ties between Moscow and the West to their lowest point since the Cold War.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four Australian bikers, who have embarked on a 7,000-km long journey across India under the project 'Ride for Rights', would reach Mumbai on Monday and celebrate Holi with children in Sion-Koliwada here.

The bikers-- Cameron Perry, Scott Grills, Ben Butcher and Taylor Hogan-- have partnered with the Indian NGO Child Rights and You (CRY), to embark on their dream project 'Ride for Rights - An Indian Odyssey' from Delhi.

"Through their journey, the bikers aim to film a documentary on the challenges faced by children in India, create mass awareness about their issues, and capture stories of hope and change, and in the process raise funds for their cause," CRY, which works for children's rights in India, said in a statement.

In Mumbai, the bikers, who are supporting the welfare project launched by NGO Sparsh, in which CRY is a partner, will interact with communities and underprivileged children, the statement said.

"While playing Holi with the children, they would capture stories of kids and highlight challenges, which deprive them of their rights," it said.

Providing details of their 45-day tour, the CRY said the bikers started the journey from Delhi and would reach Maharashtra on March 13 after visiting Rajasthan and Gujarat.

After Maharashtra, they would head to Goa and Karnataka. Later, they would go to Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Odisha, before visiting Uttarakhand and ending their ride in Delhi, the statement said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
AIADMK deputy general secretary T T V Dinakaran today congratulated the BJP for its victories in UP and Uttarakhand assembly polls while party rebel leader O Panneerselvam credited PM Narendra Modi for the win.

"The outcome to the elections held in the five states is on expected the lines," said Dinakaran adding the results showed that "the people voted keeping in mind the governance of the respective regimes."



In a statement, he congratulated the BJP for winning Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and the Congress for wresting Punjab from SAD-BJP and emerging as the single largest party in Goa and Manipur.

Panneerselvam, on the other hand, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "I congratulate you for the resounding victory of the BJP in the recent assembly elections. Your remarkable victory is indeed an achievement to be celebrated."



He said, "I convey my best wishes to you to lead the country to an era of growth and prosperity under your able leadership."



In a separate identical letter to BJP chief Amit Shah, he said, "Your remarkable victory is indeed an achievement to be celebrated."



"I convey my warm greetings to you and wish you and your team greater laurels as you propel the BJP to work for the nation on the path of development.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today accused BNP of having double standards on India after Bangladesh's main opposition party claimed that under India's pressure the government was set to ink a defence deal during the Premier's upcoming visit there.

"It was (BNP chief) Khaleda Zia who gave an undertaking of selling gas to India and came to power in 2001 (sacrificing Bangladesh's interest)...So anti-India words don't" suit them, Hasina said at a function of her ruling Awami League here.

The Premier claimed that despite BNP's anti-India attitude, representatives of an Indian intelligence agency used to sit at Hawa Bhaban, the alternate power house of the then BNP government, before the 2001 polls which eventually brought it to power.

Hasina's remarks came hours after a Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) spokesman claimed India was mounting pressure on Bangladesh to ink a defence deal during the Premier's upcoming visit in April.

"The way India wants to create pressure is contrary to our national security and beyond norms," BNP's senior joint secretary-general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi told a press conference, as he obliquely accused the Awami League of being India's sycophant.

BNP secretary-general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir asked the government to make public details of the reported military deal to be signed between Bangladesh and India, saying "it cannot happen that Bangladesh would sign an agreement with India and the people would not know anything about it".

Indo-Bangladesh ties have witnessed many fluctuations since Bangladesh's 1971 independence that was secured with India's crucial help.

The relations are said to have reached their lowest point during the 2001-2006 tenure of the BNP-led four-party government with fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami being its major partner.

Hasina said her government had signed the landmark Ganges water deal ensuring Bangladesh's "just share" stand.

She stated that Zia "forgot" to raise the issue when she visited Delhi as the prime minister after the 1991 elections.

Hasina said her government resolved a protracted land boundary problem, redrawing the border, and settled the maritime boundary dispute with India and Myanmar, protecting the national stakes.

"When reporters asked her (about the Ganges water issue) on her return from India, the then Prime Minister Khaleda Zia had said -- oh! I forgot the matter...It has proved which party is doing 'dalali'," Hasina said.

"Those who could not bring anything from India now become very much anti-Indian...They have played such games many times. BNP is known for its anti-India stance and efforts to brand Awami League as a 'pro-India' party to take mileage in domestic politics," Hasina asserted.

The BNP had welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's coming to power and retracted from its stubborn stance on transit to India during his Dhaka tour two years ago.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The police today busted a baby lifting racket in state run SCB Medical College and Hospital here, after rescuing two stolen babies and arresting four persons.

The police action came after a photograph from a CCTV footage from the hospital was published in the media.

The police arrested four persons - a couple and two women - and rescued two stolen babies from their possession.

While one baby was stolen from the SCB Hospital on Wednesday, the other one was lifted in January, police said.

Both the babies are now under treatment of the hospital and efforts were on to hand them over to their respective parents.

Commissioner of Police Y B Khurania said Minati Samal, one of the arrested women, was the mastermind.

Minati, who works in a private hospital in Bhubaneswar as a house keeper, used to frequent the SCB Hospital masquerading as an Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA).

Winning the trust of the mothers, she used to take the newborns for immunisation and flee, police said.

"More arrests would be made as the investigation progresses," he said.

The arrested couple had purchased one of the two rescued babies.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Surpassing expectations, the BJP along with ally Apna Dal (Soney Lal) bagged nine out of the 12 assembly seats in this large and volatile district, decimating the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance, which won on one seat, while the BSP's tally fell from three to two.

The BJP, which had kept nine seats for itself, ended up winning eight of them, while its ally Apna Dal bagged one out of the three it had contested.

Allahabad has the largest number of assembly seats for any single district across Uttar Pradesh. All the three seats covering the city -- Allahabad (West), Allahabad (South) and Allahabad (North) -- were won by comprehensive margins.

Harshvardhan Bajpai, who quit the BSP less than a year ago to join the BJP, defeated sitting two-time Congress MLA Anugrah Narain Singh by 35,000 votes.

In Allahabad (West), which the BJP had never won in its nearly four-decade-long history, party national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh defeated Samajwadi Party's Richa Singh by over 25,000 votes.

Two-time MLA Pooja Pal finished third.

Allahabad (South) was wrested back for the BJP by Nand Gopal Gupta "Nandi" who thrashed sitting SP MLA Parvez Ahmed by 29,000 votes.

Ironically, the seat had been won for record five times between 1989 and 2002 by veteran BJP leader Keshri Nath Tripathi whose winning streak ended in 2007 when Nandi grabbed the seat contesting as a BSP candidate.

In trans-Ganga region, the BJP pulled off a sensational victory in Koraon (SC), where Rajmani defeated nearest rival Ram Kripal, a CPM leader-turned-Congressman, by close to 55,000 votes.

Sitting BSP MLA Rajbali Jaisal finished third.

In neighboring Bara, another reserved seat, Ajay Kumar defeated the SP candidate by 34,000 votes and registered his second consecutive win.

In 2012, he had won the seat as an SP nominee but resigned and joined the BJP in October last year upon Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's reluctance to give him a party ticket.

In Meja, a rural Brahmin-dominated seat, jailed ex-MLA



Uday Bhan Karwaria's wife Neelam defeated her nearest SP rival by about 20,000 votes.

Karachhana was the sole seat in trans-Yamuna, which the BJP-led alliance lost as SP candidate and former MLA Ujjwal Raman Singh wrested it back after having tasted defeat in two consecutive assembly polls.

The BSP, which had won it on the trot in 2002 and2007, finished third, well behind the BJP.

In trans-Ganga, Apna Dal's Jamuna Prasad won Soraon by a comfortable margin of 18,000 votes amid anxieties caused by BJP's Surendra Kumar throwing his hat in the ring and failing to withdraw his nomination in time.

Kumar polled only 6,522 votes.

The BJP ally, however, lost Handia and Pratappur to the BSP.

BJP won Phaphamau defeating sitting SP MLA Ansar Ahmed by 26,000 votes.

The SP had won eight seats in the district in the 2012 polls, but was unable to retain any of these this time.

The BSP, too, has failed to retain any of the three seats held by it.

It has suffered a major slump since 2007 when it had won eight out of the 11 assembly seats falling in the district at that time.
The BJP today headed for a huge win in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand while the Congress forged ahead in Punjab marked by an anti-incumbency wave in the three states while they were locked in a close contest in Goa and Manipur.

According to trends available after three hours of counting of votes in the Assembly elections in the five states, the BJP was leading in 291 out of 396 constituencies in the 403-member Assembly in a stunning showing leaving their rivals far behind.

The BJP, which had just 47 seats in the outgoing Assembly, garnered 40 per cent vote share, in the most riveting contest seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity and demonetisation.

The nascent SP-Congress coalition was ahead in 69 seats while Mayawati's party BSP put up a poor show leading only in 17 places. The SP, whose campaign was spearheaded by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on development agenda, led in 58 seats.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj Singh was leading in Noida.

Tainted minister Gayatri Prajapati, who is absconding after UP police booked him in an alleged gangrape case and attempt to rape a minor, was leading in Amethi.

He is pitted against Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Sinh, and Ameeta Singh (Cong) -- his present wife.

With a 45 per cent vote share in Uttarakhand, the BJP was leading in 52 constituencies while the Congress was ahead only in 16 segments, according to trends available for all the 70 seats.

In Punjab, the Congress was leading in 65 of the 117 constituencies while the AAP, making a debut in Punjab Assembly polls, and the SAD were locked in a close contest for the second position ahead in 25 and 20 seats respectively. SAD's coalition partner BJP was leading in four seats.

In Goa, the Congress was leading in eight followed by the



ruling BJP in five segments as trends poured for all the 40 constituencies.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar was trailing in Mandrem constituency where Congress's Dayanand Sopte was ahead.

The first result went in favour of the Maharashtravadi Gomantak Party (MGP), whose contestant Dipak Pawaskar defeated Ganesh Gaonkar of BJP in Sanvordem.

Leader of Opposition Pratapsinh Rane (Congress) is leading BJP's Vishwajit Krishnarao Rane in Poriem seat.

In Manipur, the ruling Congress won 3 seats and was leading in 8 while the BJP bagged two seats and was ahead in 10.

Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh won from Thoubal assembly constituency in Manipur by over 8,000 votes.

Rights activist Irom Sharmila (PRJA), who was making her poll debut, was one of the contestants.
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The winning streak of the BJP, which started in 2014 Lok Sabha elections, will continue in Himachal Pradesh Assembly polls, the party's MP Anurag Thakur said today.

Assembly election in Himachal Pradesh is scheduled to be held later this year.

"Victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Assembly polls are special as the BJP has got 3/4th majority. Similar trend will continue in Himachal Pradesh where BJP will win 60 seats. Bhoranj bypoll will be the beginning of a Congress-free Himachal Pradesh," he said in a statement here.

Thakur claimed the Assembly poll results in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh are testimony to the fact that BJP's development politics and various scheme started by the Modi government have benefited the common man.

Riding on the Modi wave, the BJP got 312 seats in Uttar Pradesh, while its allies the Apna Dal(S) bagged nine seats and the SBSP four, taking the total tally of the combine to 325.

In Uttarakhand, BJP stormed to power by winning 56 of the 70 seats in the state, reducing Congress to a minuscule minority in the state Assembly with a poor tally of 11 seats.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The BJP today stormed back to power in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand securing landslide wins while the Congress achieved a similar feat in Punjab and emerged as the single largest party in Goa and Manipur which threw up a hung Assembly.

Anchored by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah, the BJP juggernaut rolled on in UP and in the neighbouring state of Uttarakhand, bagging three-fourth majority. The popular Congress Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost both seats that he contested in the hill state.

The BJP is returning to power in the politically crucial state of UP after a gap of 15 years during which regional parties such as the SP and the BSP held sway.

As the Assembly elections in the five states turned into a virtual referendum on Modi's popularity and demonetisation, the BJP decimated the ruling SP, its alliance partner Congress and Mayawati's BSP in UP.

After a hiatus of 10 years, Congress led by former chief minister Capt. Amarinder Singh stormed to power in Punjab getting 77 seats, falling just one seat short of two-third majority.

It was a birthday present for Amarinder who turned 75 today as the Congress routed the SAD-BJP combine and dashed hopes of Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which was confident of sweeping the Assembly polls on its debut.

BJP leaders hailed the spectacular victories of BJP as a vindication of Modi's popularity and his pro-poor policies with some calling it a "tsunami".

Shah, who crafted and conducted the election strategy in UP, said the results have catapulted Modi to the stature of the "tallest leader" since independence.

"The only factor for the win is the performance of the Modi government," Shah told a press conference in Delhi. "The outcome has shown the faith the poor have reposed in Modi... Even his political rivals will have to admit that he has emerged as the tallest leader in the country since independence," he said.

"This is the victory of the corruption-free rule and pro-poor policies under the leadership" of Modi, he tweeted earlier.

At the end of vote counting, the BJP bagged 312 seats on its own with a nearly 40 per cent vote share and with allies Apna Dal (Soneylal Patel) and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) their strength goes up to 324 in a House of 403. The BJP had just 47 seats in the outgoing House.

The previous best showing by BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of Ram Janam Bhoomi movement, when it got majority on its own winning 221 seats out of 425 in an undivided state.

The highest number of seats bagged by a single party in the UP assembly polls was in 1977 when Janata Party got 352 seats when Uttarakhand was part of the state.

BJP had not put forward any chief ministerial candidate in UP where it also did not put up any muslim candidate.

The UP chief minister will be selected tomorrow by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party in the state.

The ruling SP whose campaign was steered by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on development agenda received a severe drubbing getting only 47 seats as against its previous tally of 224 while alliance partner Congress was reduced to single digits(7), down by 21 seats.

SP received a major jolt in Lucknow Cantt seat where its patron Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav lost to BJP's Rita Bahujuna Joshi, who left Congress ahead of the elections.

BSP could garner only 19 seats in a huge slump from the previous tally of 80.

The results in UP and Uttarakhand set off celebrations in



BJP offices and party strongholds. Party members danced and distributed sweets on streets and BJP offices.

Women gathered in groups to watch results on TV and danced as the results came in. One party leader said Holi, which will be celebrated on Sunday and Monday, has come a day early.

Winning 77 of the 117 assembly seats, Congress stormed back to power in Punjab riding a strong anti-incumbency wave against the ruling SAD-BJP combine and warding off a spirited challenge by newcomer AAP.

The party put up its second best performance in the state. In the 1992 state elections, it had won 87 seats. With 77 MLAs it just one seat short of a two-third majority. The Congress had 46 seats in the outgoing House.

In addition, Congress also won the bypoll to the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat.

The SAD-BJP alliance finished at number three spot in the state polls, behind AAP, which emerged as the largest opposition party with 20 seats.

However, the number fell way short of Arvind Kejriwal's claim that AAP will win 100 seats.

The Prakash Singh Badal-led SAD won 15 seats, down from its earlier tally of 56 seats while ally BJP bagged three seats against the 12 it had won in 2012.

At a packed press conference in Chandigarh, a beaming Amarinder Singh, who was the Congress' chief ministerial face, hit out at the SAD claiming it had brought the state "down to its knees" and mocked Kejriwal, saying he was like a "summer storm that had come and gone".

In Uttarakhand, BJP bagged 56 out of 70 seats at stake in the state to storm to power reducing Congress to just 11 seats.

It is for the first time in the 16-year history of Uttarakhand that a party has emerged with an impressive tally like that recorded by the BJP.

BJP suffered reverses in Goa where its tally was reduced to 13 from 21 in the 40-member house as the poll results threw up a hung assembly where opposition Congress emerged the single largest party with 17 seats.

Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Goa Forward and Independents won three each and NCP bagged one seat. The majority mark is 21 seats.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar bit the dust in Mandrem.

Four former Congress chief ministers - Digambar Kamat, Pratapsinh Rane, Ravi Naik and Luiznho Falerio - emerged victorious.

Apart from humiliating defeat of Parsekar, who lost by over 7,000 votes, six ministers of BJP also fell by the wayside.

The verdict would give smaller parties like newly formed Goa Forward and MGP with a role in ministry formation.

The poor showing of the BJP, which had won 21 seats last time, is also seen as a setback for Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who had led the campaign from the front, fuelling speculation he may return to his home state as chief minister.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which hit the state with a big fanfare, drew a blank.

Congress sources said that as the single largest party, it would stake claim to form the next government and was confident of getting support from independents and others.

Shortly after the results were out, Parrikar said that the BJP remains in the race for forming the government.

"It is a fractured mandate. We are awaiting the response of smaller parties," he told reporters in Panaji.

Like in Goa, it was a hung House in Manipur with ruling Congress bagging 28 out of the total 60 seats and BJP getting 21.

Congress, which had won 42 seats in the 2012 assembly poll, suffered a jolt as it managed to capture only 28 seats this time but is in the race for government formation as it emerged as a single largest party.

BJP, on the other hand, took a giant leap forward capturing 21 seats as the party had none in the outgoing House.

BJP's vote share of 36 per cent is higher than 34.7 per cent secured by Congress.

Three-time Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh romped home from Thoubal constituency defeating his nearest BJP rival L Basanta Singh by 10,400 votes.

Human rights activist Irom Sharmila who had contested against Ibobi Singh, secured only 90 votes and was relegated to the fourth position.

Manipur PCC President T N Haokip said that his party would form the next government with the help of "like-minded secular and regional parties.
Driven by the Modi wave, the BJP today stormed to power in Uttar Pradesh after 14 years, securing three-fourths majority and demolishing rivals SP- Congress and BSP in a keenly-contested Assembly polls.

Showing astonishing performance, the BJP got 312 seats in the 403-member Assembly. Its allies Apna Dal(S) and SBSP bagged nine seats and four seats, respectively, taking the total tally of the combine to 325.

On the other hand, the SP won 47 seats while its ally the Congress got 7 seats. The BSP won just 19 seats, finishing a dismal third.

Significantly, the Congress lost all the four assembly seats in Amethi district, the pocket borough of Nehru-Gandhi family, with BJP bagging three of them.

The BJP-led alliance swept all the eight assembly segments falling under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi.

Today's results showed many prominent faces failing. The prominent among them were Aparna Yadav, younger daughter-in- law of SP patron Mulayam Singh Yadav, from Lucknow Cantt, ministers Arvind Singh Gope from Ramnagar and Pawan Pandey from Ayodhya.

Accepting defeat, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said, "I hope the next government will work better than SP government."



Akhilesh, who is also the president of the Samajwadi Party, added at a press conference, "I accept the verdict of the people, I will do analysis at booth level."



He, however, said SP's alliance with Congress will continue, claiming that "We have been benefited" by it.

Asked to comment on BSP chief Mayawati's allegation about tampering of EVMs, Akhilesh said, "If questions have been raised on EVMs, the government should probe it."



Just before submitting his resignation, he suggested that the BJP had won by "misleading" the voters.

"I think in a democracy you get vote not by 'samjhana' (making people understand) but by 'behkana' (misguiding)," he said.

"In the entire elections, there were massive crowds in my rallies. Did people come only to watch? ... I did not expect such a thing will happen," Akhilesh said.

"The people might not have liked my expressway and they voted for the bullet train," the outgoing Chief Minister said.

On who will take the responsibility for the humiliating defeat of the SP, Akhilesh said since he himself is the party chief he will carry out an assessment to see who should be blamed.

A fuming Mayawati alleged that EVMs had been tampered with in such a way that whichever button was pressed, the vote went to BJP.

Terming the results as "shocking", she said the Election Commission should withhold the results and hold fresh polls using traditional paper ballots.

The EC, however, was quick to reject her claim of rigging and said her demand for a repoll using ballot papers was legally untenable.

Notable among the winners are Pankaj Singh (Noida), who



is son of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Suresh Rana (Thana Bhawan) and Sangeet Singh Som (Sardhana) - both accused in Muzaffarnagar riots, Rita Bahuguna Joshi (Lucknow Cantt), Swati Singh (Sarojini Nagar), Swami Prasad Maurya (Padrauna), Srikant Sharma (Mathura) -- all BJP.

Besides, other important faces who won are Akhilesh Yadav's feuding uncle Shivpal Yadav (Jaswantnagar-SP), senior UP minister Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam from Rampur and Suar seats respectively as also gangster-turned-MLA Mukhtar Ansari (BSP) from Mau.

Mriganka Singh (BJP-Shamli), daughter of Kairana MP Hukum Singh, lost as did Speaker of UP Assembly Mata Prasad Pandey from his home turf of Itwa.

Sitting MLA Rakesh Pratap Singh from SP retained his Gauriganj seat, defeating Congress nominee Mohammad Naeem by more than 26,000 votes.

BJP nominee Garima Singh polled 63,912 in Amethi defeating her nearest rival and tainted minister Gayatri Prasad Prajapati of Samajwadi Party who received 58,941 votes.

Samajwadi Party and Congress had joined hands for the assembly election but their candidates had contested against each other in some of the seats.
It's a BJP "tsunami" in Uttar Pradesh and not a ripple in a small pond, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Saturday said and advised the opposition to forget 2019 and start planning for the 2024 general elections.

He said there is no leader with a pan-India acceptability who can take on Modi and no party which can challenge the BJP in 2019.

The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said the opposition needs to shift its strategy "from mere criticism to a positive alternative" and the results in other states give some hope that the BJP is not unbeatable.

"In a nutshell there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi and the BJP in 2019. At this rate we might as well forget 2019 and start planning/ hoping for 2024," he posted on Twitter.

In a short twitter-spree, he said, "How the hell did almost all the experts/analysts miss this wave in UP? It's a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond."



"Punjab, Goa and Manipur would certainly suggest that the BJP isn't unbeatable but strategy needs to shift from criticism to positive alternate.

"I have said this before and I will say it again the voter needs to be given an alternative agenda that is based on what we will do better," he said.

Abdullah said criticising the Prime Minister "will only take us so far" and that the voter needs to know there is an option available to them that has a clear positive road map.
Admitting that the loss in Uttar Pradesh was hurting, the Congress today said some fundamental restructuring and tough decisions on strategy were required besides introspection.

The Opposition party congratulated the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the victory in UP and Uttarakhand, highlighted its own gains in Punjab and Goa and said it will introspect on its performance.

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi said the party stands resolute and committed to its values of a united India and will continue its fight to win people's hearts.

He thanked the people of Punjab for giving the Congress a mandate for ensuring a "bright future" for the state and its youth.

"The UP is a bad loss, it hurts...I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring thinking for the Congress as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.

Party chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said it will introspect on the reasons for the loss in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and will re-dedicate itself to strengthening the party and being the watchdog of people.

"We congratulate the BJP and PM, Narendra Modi, on the victory in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. We bow before the verdict of people of the two states. Congress never arrogates in victory and is not discouraged in defeat," he said.

Gandhi, in a message to all party workers, said, "We stand resolute and committed to our values and our belief in an India united in strength and purpose."



"Our fight continues and will not end till we win the hearts and minds of people," he also said.

Taking a dig at the BJP, Surjewala said these election results are also a lesson to those who are never tired of speaking about 'Congress-mukt Bharat' (Congress-free India).

"We hope that BJP will shift the narrative from 'Shamshan-Kabristan' to the politics of development and brotherhood that is intrinsic to the 'Ganga-Jamuni' culture of UP and will provide the much-needed relief by waiving farmer's loans, market driven MSP for crops, jobs for youth and ushering in a new era of industrialisation," he said.

To a question on Shah hailing Modi as the "tallest leader" in the country since independence, Surjewala said it could be the BJP's prerogative to say so but no one is above democracy.

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad sought to defend Rahul for the poll debacle in UP, saying the results are not a referendum on him.

"If you hold him responsible for defeat, you should credit him for winning Punjab also," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress today supported BSP leader Mayawati's demand for a probe into EVMs used in the UP Assembly polls and asked the Election Commission to seriously look into her charges.

"A senior leader of an opposition party, Mayawatiji has raised serious and pertinent questions about the integrity of the entire democratic process as also the EVMs used in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

"Whether her doubts are founded or unfounded, it is a matter to be addressed by EC in order to erase all doubts about the integrity, honesty and impartiality of the electoral process which is intrinsic to uphold the democratic traditions of our country," Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

He added that, "We are certain that the EC will look at any objections and clarify any doubt in public domain as raised by Mayawatiji."



Surjewala said the Congress has with an open heart congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP chief Amit Shah and the BJP for their resounding victory in UP and Uttarakhand.

BSP chief Mayawati, whose party received a major drubbing in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, alleged that Electronic Voting Machines were tampered with in such a way that whichever button was pressed, the vote went to the BJP.

Terming the results as "shocking", she said the EC should stop the counting and withhold results and hold fresh polls using traditional paper ballots.

She dared Modi and Shah to ask the poll panel to hold fresh elections in the state "if they have an iota of morality and honesty left in them".

Mayawati said this trend will have a "very bad bearing" on democracy in the country and will amount to crushing it.

"The results in UP and Uttarakhand are surprising and not palatable to anyone...It seems EVMs did not accept votes polled for any party other than BJP," she said.

"It is a matter of common discussion here that even if button is pressed for any other party, vote will be polled in favour of BJP," Mayawati said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
European Union member states have rejected Turkey's demand that its citizens be granted the freedom to relocate and transfer money, services and goods to EU member Cyprus under any deal reunifying the ethnically divided island, the Cypriot president said today.

Nicos Anastasiades said all EU leaders consider it a "bad precedent" for Cyprus or any other country to breach bloc rules and grant such key freedoms to third-country citizens.

"This matter concerns the whole of the European Union, not just Cyprus," Anastasiades said.

Turkey said in January that any Cyprus peace deal should incorporate such a condition. But Greek Cypriot officials fear such a development would enable Turkey to overwhelm the small island of 1.1 million people economically, demographically or otherwise.

Cyprus was split along ethnic lines in 1974 when Turkey invaded following a coup by supporters of uniting Cyprus with Greece. Although the island joined the EU in 2004, only the internationally recognized south enjoys full membership benefits.

A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is recognized only by Turkey, which maintains 35,000 troops in the breakaway north.

Turkey's demand further complicated difficult negotiations that stalled last month amid Turkish Cypriot anger over legislation to commemorate in Greek Cypriot schools a 1950 referendum calling for Cyprus' union with Greece.

Turkish Cypriots see a drive by the majority Greek Cypriots for union with Greece that began before Cyprus gained independence from British colonial rule in 1960 as the root of all the island's problems.

Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci and top Turkish officials have said that Greek Cypriots needed to fix this "mistake" if talks are to move forward.

Anastasiades said the "aimless" legislation in no way suggested any policy shift away from reunifying Cyprus as a federation.

He criticized Akinci for using the matter as an "excuse" to walk out of the 22 months-long peace talks because Turkish demands to keep troops and military intervention rights in place even after reunification weren't gaining any traction.

Anastasiades attributed Akinci's actions to the Turkish government's hardening stance to appease right-wing voters before the country's April 16 referendum on expanding presidential powers.

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US teenager Kayla Day shocked Australian Open semi-finalist Mirjana Lucic-Baroni at Indian Wells on Friday to earn a clash with French Open champion Garbine Muguruza.

Day, 17, out-lasted the 35-year-old Lucic-Baroni 6-4, 5-7, 7-5, rallying from a break down in the third to reach the third round.

Lucic-Baroni served for the match in the final set, but the young American, who won the US Open junior title last year, kept her nerve.

"It was a really close match throughout the entire match. I think I started to really believe I could win at 6-5 in the third. It was still a really tough game, because I was a little bit tight to close it out. But my serve had been giving her a lot of problems, so I knew if I stuck to my game it might work out."



Day was looking forward to the challenge offered by seventh-seeded Muguruza, a 6-2, 6-3 winner over Belgian veteran Kirsten Flipkens.

Muguruza was firmly in control having raced to a 5-0 lead in the second set before Flipkens began to make inroads on the Spaniard.

"It's always difficult to close out your first match," Spain's Muguruza said. "She's a very talented player, unbelievable, with a very different game. I got nervous!"



In other action, Australian Open quarter-finalist Johanna Konta held off Heather Watson 6-4, 6-4 in an all-British battle to reach the third round.

After pocketing a see-saw first set that saw five breaks of serve, Konta appeared to be on her way with two service breaks for a 4-1 lead in the second.

She hadn't faced a break point in the second set and was serving for the match at 5-3 when she suddenly dropped her serve with a game bookended by two of her three double-faults of the match.

After Watson held at love, Konta got another chance and didn't falter, moving on in her first tournament since a foot injury forced her out of the WTA Tour's Middle East Swing after the Australian Open.

"I think there is definitely an adjustment period," said Konta, who like all 32 seeded players enjoyed a first-round bye. "I hadn't played a tour match since the Australian Open and Fed Cup was about three weeks ago. It's not that long of a time, but in terms of the tour, it's a bit of time.

"I think there were definitely some moments there I will definitely try to get better and better at as the tournament goes on, and hopefully I will get more opportunities to get more and more match fit."



Third seeded Czech Karolina Pliskova faced a potentially tricky tournament opener against Puerto Rico's Olympic gold medallist Monica Puig.

Pliskova is aiming to improve on her semi-final run at Indian Wells last year. She has already won two titles in four events this year, at Brisbane and Doha, and coming into the week led the WTA in aces served with 140.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
DMK today appealed to the Election Commission to transfer Chennai Police Commissioner S George to ensure "free and fair" poll to the R K Nagar Assembly Constituency on April 12 here.

"If he is allowed to continue as Police Commissioner, the Constitutional mandate of conducting free and fair election would be defeated," DMK Organisation Secretary R S Bharathi claimed.

In a memorandum to Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi, he alleged that the commissioner is "publicly known," for his "biased and partisan attitude," in favour of the ruling AIADMK.

He alleged "unholy nexus," between George and the ruling party.

In January, DMK working president M K Stalin had demanded transfer of George for alleged failure in handling the pro-jallikattu protests.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Briton Kyle Edmund cruised into an Indian Wells ATP Masters meeting with three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic on Friday with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Portugal's Gastao Elias.

Edmund, ranked 46th in the world, needed just 65 minutes to get past the 95th-ranked Elias and line up a third career meeting with Djokovic, a five-time winner at Indian Wells who is seeded second this year behind world number one Andy Murray of Britain.

"The things (Djokovic) does well are making a lot of balls and being quick around the court. It's tough to get the ball by him and break him down," said Edmund, who lost to the Serb star at the Miami Masters and US Open last year. "These are things that I've experienced the last two times I've played him. I'll try and use that on Sunday."



Djokovic is hoping a return to the hard courts of California -- where has enjoyed such success -- will signal a revival.

After a lackluster end to 2016 that saw him surrender the world number one ranking to Murray, things appeared to be looking up with his victory in Qatar in January.

But a shock second-round exit at the Australian Open followed by a quarter-final loss in Acapulco have him back in rebuilding mode.

With 32 seeded players enjoying first-round byes, it was unseeded players jockeying for position on Friday.

US 19-year-old Taylor Fritz dispatched France's Benoit Paire 6-3, 6-2 to line up a meeting with third-seeded Croatian Marin Cilic.

- 'Strange match' -



===================



Fritz, a Southern California native, kept his focus as injury contributed to some erratic play from Paire.

"My focus was just to serve, serve well, kind of just manage my service games, because I felt like I would get chances on his serve and I would just have to take them," said Fritz, who saved the only break point he faced in the 65-minute match.

"It was just a weird match, because the ankle or foot injury or issue he had in the beginning -- sometimes he'd move really well, sometimes he wouldn't. Sometimes he would just double fault, sometimes he'd hit an ace."



A whirlwind 2016 saw Fritz climb as high as 53rd in the world last August, but he was slowed by a late season knee injury and arrived at Indian Wells ranked 136th in the world.

In addition to adjusting to full-time life on the tour, Fritz has been through momentous personal changes. He's a married father of an infant son, still trying to map his burgeoning career.

While he finds time spent with his son "amazing," Fritz is the first to admit that his wife, Raquel, is doing the heavy lifting when it comes to childcare.

"I'm not very hands-on at all, to be honest," he said.

Fritz, who broke a 13-match losing streak against top-50 opponents with his win over 40th-ranked Paire, was already turning his attention to former US Open champion Cilic.

"We're both pretty serve dependent," he said. "So I will be focusing on the key parts of my game, which is the serve and just staying aggressive, attacking, but not giving him too many free points."



In other matches, France's Stephane Robert defeated Israeli Dudi Sela 6-4, 6-4 to book a meeting with ninth-seeded Roger Federer, a four-time Indian Wells winner who is riding high after capturing his 18th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.

Britain's Daniel Evans cruised past German Dustin Brown 6-1, 6-1 to secure a meeting with fourth-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Eight Iraqis, including four children, were found crammed inside a refrigerated truck in a service area in eastern Spain, police said today, adding that they had been trying to reach Britain.

The four adults and four children, aged two, five, eight, and 10, were all in good health, Spanish police told AFP today.

"After we received an anonymous call yesterday, agents from the Spanish police opened the back of a refrigerated truck in a lay-by on the A23 motorway and found eight Iraqis inside, all in perfect health," police said.

None of the migrants carried identification, but police said they were able to determine that all were Iraqi nationals.

The occupants included one family of two adults and three children, another family of a woman with a two-year-old daughter, and a man travelling alone.

It wasn't immediately clear how long they had spent inside the truck, but police said they were on their way to Britain when their truck was intercepted in the eastern province of Teruel.

"We do not know yet how these Iraqi families came to be in Spain," police said.

The driver, a 37-year-old Romanian national, was arrested on charges of human trafficking.

According to Spanish media reports, a family coming from Iraq was found in a refrigerated truck on the same motorway and in the same province last month.

On August 27, the decomposing bodies of 71 people were found inside a truck at the side of an Austrian motorway in a discovery which sparked a horrified response across Europe as it struggles with its worst migration crisis since World War II.

Investigations revealed that the migrants -- mostly from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan -- had been picked up at Hungary's border with Serbia and transported to Austria via Budapest.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Zealand captured the key South African wicket of Dean Elgar late on day four to keep the faint prospect of a result alive in the first Test in Dunedin on Saturday.

At stumps, New Zealand had South Africa at 224 for six, a lead of 191 but with the prospect of a result threatened by forecast rain on the final day.

Elgar had been a shining light in the gloom of Dunedin, batting comfortably to keep New Zealand at bay as he backed up from a first innings 140.

But on 89 when he tried to lift the pace in the final session, Elgar skied a Jeetan Patel delivery which was taken by Kane Williamson running to his right from mid off.

On a chilly day in which play was disrupted twice by rain and gloom, Faf du Plessis on 56 and Vernon Philander on one when bad light ended play 20 minutes early on a tough day which produced only 186 runs and five wickets -- three in the final session -- at University Oval.

While Elgar slowly moved South Africa ahead on the board, New Zealand did not help their cause by committing a series of blunders, with their problems compounded by the light and an injury to Trent Boult.

When the new ball was taken in the final session, the umpires initially considered it too dark for the quick bowlers and New Zealand were reduced to spinners Patel and Mitchell Santner.

When it brightened again, Neil Wagner was the only fast bowler available with Trent Boult receiving treatment for an upper left leg strain.

Boult, who took the wicket of Stephen Cook in the first over of the South African second innings, delivered 11 overs without success on Saturday before leaving the field to join batsman Ross Taylor on the injured list.

Wagner had success with the wickets of Hashim Amla, caught at midwicket for 24, and JP Duminy who went lbw for 39.

Duminy had a charmed stay. He was dropped by Tom Latham on six, and on 20 he was given not out to a Patel appeal for lbw.

New Zealand did not review the umpire's decision, although the ball-tracker technology showed it was heading straight at leg stump.

Elgar also had a life when he brought up his half century with a cracking drive that went through the hands of substitute fielder Colin de Grandhomme at short cover.

Temba Bavuma was bowled by Mitchell Santner for six when he blocked the left-armer only for the ball to hit the pitch and spin back on to the stumps.

Patel then bowled Quinton de Kock (four), claiming the South African keeper for the fourth consecutive innings on this tour.

Patel had figures of two for 72 and Wagner two for 57.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today met representatives of the Dhangar community.

"A delegation of various organisations of Dhangar community met Fadnavis with Rajya Sabha MP Dr Vikas Mahatme," Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said here.

Officials of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) briefed about the progress made so far for socio-anthropological study of the Dhangar community, the statement added.

Providing reservation to the Dhangar community was BJP's poll promise in Maharashtra.

Meanwhile, Fadnavis chaired a meeting to resolve various issues of workers of Cambata Aviation and asked authorities to seek assistance from the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Fadnavis also directed officials concerned for recovery to pay dues of the workers.

Around 1,200 Cambata employees had moved the city labour court against the management over non payment of pending dues.

Later in the evening, Fadnavis inaugurated the first floating hotel project A B Celestial in association with Maharashtra Maritime Board, Maharahstra Tourism Development Corporation and Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation in Mumbai, this evening.

Speaking on the occasion, Fadnavis said his government



Was open to different ideas to promote tourism.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A case has been registered against an MLA of the ruling Congress in Meghalaya after he allegedly held captive a government doctor at gun point in East Garo Hills district, a senior police official said today.

A case has been registered against Sengnam N Marak, Rongjeng Mla and also Parliamentary Secretary, after an FIR was registered against him by the doctor at Williamnagar police station yesterday, the official said.

The matter is under investigation and no arrest has been made so far, he said.

The government doctor, Dr S M Bujabaruah, stated in the FIR that the Parliamentary Secretary in charge of Health and Family Welfare and his friend came to Rongjeng PWD Inspection Bungalow in East Garo Hills around midnight on March 5 where the doctor was held at gun point till 3.30 am.

According to the doctor, the two were in an inebriated condition.

The police official could not give any immediate reason behind the incident.

The Parliamentary Secretary was booked under sections 342 (wrongful confinement), 353 (criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 307 (attempt to murder), 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC, the official said.

Attempts to contact the MLA failed as he could not be reached on his personal phone.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four ultras of the



People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI) were arrested by the police in Khunti and West Singhbhum district today.

Three PLFI activists including a woman were arrested when they came to collect levy at Bhagat Singh Chowk in Khunti district by a police team headed by Additional Superintendent of Police Anurag Raj and Sub-Divisional Police Officer Ranveer Singh, said Superintendent of Police, Ashwini Kumar Sinha.

The arrested PLFI ultras were identified as woman activist Nirmala Kandulana, Jagai Pahan, who was the brother of PLFI 'sub-zonal commander' Naka Pahan, and Karamsingh Munda, he said adding that Rs 21,500 cash collected as levy was also seized from their possession.

Based on the inputs gathered during interrogation, a Khunti police team jointly with its West Singhbhum district counterpart launched a campaign in Tebo police station limits when the ultras opened fire at them.

The police retaliated in self-defence forcing the ultras to make a hasty retreat, he said adding that a PLFI activist Rugu Gudia was nabbed from the spot.

Sinha claimed some PLFI activists have suffered injuries but managed to escape.

Two double barrel gun and 46 live cartridges have also been seized from the spot, Sinha added.

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Manipur today threw up a hung Assembly with the ruling Congress bagging 28 of the 60 seats and the BJP making giant strides to muster 21.

The Congress had won 42 seats in the 2012 Assembly. The BJP, on the other hand, had no members in the outgoing House.

Human rights activist Irom Sharmila, who contested against Chief Minister Ibobi Singh, could secure only 90 votes and was relegated to the fourth position.

After her dismal showing, Sharmila announced that she would quit politics but continue her fight against the controversial AFSPA in the state.

The Naga Peoples Front (NPF) and the National People's Party (NPP) bagged four seats each. The Lokjanshakti Party and an Independent candidate won one seat each. In the 2012 assembly poll too LJP had won a seat. The Trinamool Congress bagged one seat. The party had won seven seats in the previous assembly polls.

The Nationalist Congress Party which had bagged a seat in the previous assembly election, drew a blank this time.

Ibobi Singh romped home from Thoubal constituency defeating his nearest BJP rival L Basanta Singh by 10,400 votes.

The Congress and the BJP each claimed that they would form the government with the support of like-minded parties.

Manipur Congress chief T N Haokip told PTI, We are confident that we will form the next government in Manipur. We are already in talks with like-minded secular and regional parties.

State BJP president K Bhabananda Singh also exuded confidence of forming the government in the state.

We are confident of forming the next government in Manipur, he said.

The BJPs voteshare of 36 per cent is higher than the 34.7 per cent secured by the Congress.Prominent Congress candidates who won included Md Abdul Naser and K Jaikishen Singh.
Decimated in the UP polls, the BSP today alleged tampering of EVMs, prompting the Samajwadi Party and the Congress to demand a probe, but the Election Commission said there was "no merit" in the charge.

BSP chief Mayawati alleged that the EVMs were tampered with in such a way that whichever button was pressed, the vote went to BJP.

"The results in UP and Uttarakhand are surprising and not palatable to anyone...It seems EVMs did not accept votes polled for any party other than BJP," she said.

"It is a matter of common discussion here that even if a button is pressed for any other party, vote will be polled in favour of BJP," Mayawati said at a press conference in Lucknow as the poll results showed that her party had performed badly.

She wanted the Election Commission to withhold the results and hold fresh polls using traditional paper ballots.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, while commenting on Mayawati's allegation, said, "If questions have been raised by a political party on EVMs, the government should probe it."



Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the Election Commission should seriously look into the charges.

"A senior leader of an opposition party, Mayawati ji has raised serious and pertinent questions about the integrity of the entire democratic process as also the EVMs used in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

"Whether her doubts are founded or unfounded, it is a matter to be addressed by EC in order to erase all doubts about the integrity, honesty and impartiality of the electoral process which is intrinsic to uphold the democratic traditions of our country," he said in Delhi.

He added that, "We are certain that the EC will look at any objections and clarify any doubt in public domain as raised by Mayawati ji."



The EC, however, said, "The prescribed administrative process has been fully complied with in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand elections in the presence of representatives of political parties and candidates.

"The Commission has, therefore, not found any merit in your allegations and the prayers made in your letter under reply are not legally tenable.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Actor Josh Henderson has dismissed reports his new TV drama is inspired by Tom Cruise's courtship and failed marriage to Katie Holmes.

Critics have drawn comparisons between "The Arrangement" and the movie stars' romance, because on the new US show Henderson plays a big celebrity who offers a TV actress USD 10 million to be his wife.

Henderson's character is also a high-flying member of a religious society some have linked to Cruise's Church of Scientology, reported Access Hollywood Live.

"I understand the comparisons of people because our show's about this big film star and this... Institute of the Higher Mind, which is awesomely weird and creepy.

"But when people tune in and check it out, I think they're gonna forget the Tom and Katie thing or the Scientology thing, because we really are a unique story," he says.

The new drama also features Michael Vartan and Lexa Doig.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu today hailed BJP's win in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand elections as "historic" and said it proved victory always followed development.

Chandrababu called BJP national president Amit Shah over phone and congratulated him over the party's victory in UP and Uttarakhand, an official communication said.

"This is a historic win. It proved that victory surely follows development," the Telugu Desam Party chief told the BJP president.

(REOPENS BES19)



Meanwhile, Chandrababu also spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and congratulated him over BJP's victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
India today summoned the Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan and conveyed its strong protest and "grave concern" over continued ceasefire violations by the Pakistan side at the LoC and international border in Jammu and Kashmir.

Syed Haider Shah was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs and also conveyed India's strong protest at the fatal casualty of an Indian soldier in unprovoked firing by Pakistan forces on March 9.

The Ministry said the Pakistani Deputy High Commissioner was also conveyed India's expectation that Pakistan will not take any step detrimental to peace along the LoC and IB and to the security of India.

"He was conveyed the Government's grave concern and strong protest at the continuing incidents of ceasefire violations by the Pakistan side at the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB).

"The Government registered its strong protest at the fatal casualty of an Indian soldier in unprovoked firing by Pakistan forces on March 9," the Ministry said.

The army jawan was killed on Thursday when Pakistani troops violated ceasefire in Poonch sector in Jammu region.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Vatican is examining the possibility of Pope Francis visiting Egypt but no dates or schedule have been set, his spokesman said today after Italian reports suggested the trip would happen in May.

"A trip by the Holy Father to Egypt is under study but neither dates nor a programme have been finalised," the spokesman, Greg Burke, said in a statement.

Italy's national broadcaster RAI had claimed that Francis would be in Cairo on May 20-21 and that his programme would include a stop at the Al-Azhar university and mosque complex.

The pope hosted the grand imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed al-Tayeb, at the Vatican last May, in a landmark meeting with one of Islam's top clerics.

The encounter was the culmination of a steady improvement in ties following a series of spats under Francis's predecessor Benedict XVI.

The current pope has made interfaith dialogue and reconciliation a leading theme of his pontificate and he has also overseen an improvement in relations with the Orthodox and Protestant wing of Christianity.

The Argentine pope has a long-standing invitation to visit Egypt, issued by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi when he met Francis at the Vatican in 2014.

Any trip would be fraught with security concerns but those did not prevent Francis, who is now 80, from visiting Bangui, the conflict-scarred capital of the Central African Republic in November 2015.

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India-born US attorney Preet Bharara was today "fired" by the Trump administration after he refused to quit following orders to the 46 Obama administration-appointed attorneys to resign immediately.

"I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honour of my professional life," Bharara tweeted from his personal verified Twitter account, making a reference to his jurisdiction the Southern District of New York.

Bharara, 48, one of the most high-profile federal prosecutors in the US known for crusading against public corruption, had been asked by the acting deputy attorney general yesterday to immediately submit resignations.

Earlier, sources close to Bharara had said that the Manhattan federal prosecutor had refused to submit his resignation, in effect preparing for a show down with President Donald Trump.

The order by acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente asking the 46 remaining federal attorneys to resign was met with shock by Bharara's office since Trump had last year in November asked him to stay on in his administration.

Bharara had met Trump in the Trump Towers in Manhattan shortly after the Republican nominee had won the presidential elections. Talking to reporters following his meeting with Trump, Bharara had said he was asked by Trump to remain in his current post at the meeting and had agreed to do so.

CNN quoted a statement Saturday from Senator Chuck Schumer saying he was "troubled" to learn of the Trump administration's request for Bharara's and other US attorneys' resignations, adding that the President initiated a call to him in November "and assured me he wanted Mr Bharara to continue to serve as US Attorney for the Southern District.

"While it's true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for US attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesn't put ongoing investigations at risk," the New York Democrat said. "They ask for letters of resignation, but the attorneys are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed."



Bharara has made a national and international mark for himself with many high-profile cases and investigations including foreign countries, insider trading and those involving US politicians. It was under his prosecution that India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta was convicted for insider trading in 2012.

Bharara has served 7 years as the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, a jurisdiction that includes Trump Tower.

"They ask for letters of resignation, but the attorneys



are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed," Schumer said.

Senator Patrick Leahy, Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, cast aspersions over the independence of the Justice Department.

"The abrupt, Friday night firing of all remaining US Attorneys -- including Preet Bharara, a well respected, tough prosecutor who the President promised could stay -- is another reminder that the independence of the Justice Department is at risk under this administration," he said.

Leahy noted that the President and Attorney General demanded resignations immediately, not even allowing them to remain until successors are nominated and confirmed.

"The Senate will now have to carefully evaluate the President's selected replacements," Leahy said.

"They will have a high bar to prove they have the necessary courage and fidelity to the law, like Sally Yates, to say 'no' to a President who will need to hear it regularly," he said.

Bharara's firing from office also attracted a furious reaction from the South Asian Bar Association (SABA).

"Following previous reports that Mr Bharara was asked to remain in his role as US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, the SABA of North America is disappointed in the President's decision to terminate him this morning," said SABA president Vichal Kumar.

"A member, supporter and friend of SABA, Mr Bharara's legacy is one that South Asian legal professionals and the greater legal community can only hope to emulate," he said.

"His dedication to public service throughout his career is exemplified by his devotion to protecting the rights of all communities and not shying away from the toughest challenges. We are proud of his accomplishments and wish him the best of luck," Kumar said.

Bharara has made a national and international mark for himself with many high-profile cases and investigations including foreign countries, insider trading and those involving US politicians. It was under his prosecution that India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta was convicted for insider trading in 2012.

Bharara has served 7 years as the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, a jurisdiction that includes the Trump Tower.

(Reopens FGN 2)



New York-based Indian American attorney Ravi Batra described the firing as disturbing.

"Given President Trump's most recent charge of being wiretapped during the Obama presidency, and November 30, 2016 was during the Obama presidency, this termination of Preet Bharara is most disturbing, and most unsettling," he said.

"It could be cloaking an unconstitutional breach between the executive and judicial branches of government by quashing pending investigations into Russian activities, and substantial questions about potential collusion by American citizens on American soil," Batra alleged.

"Or as the recent press reports confirmed that both the English and the Dutch intelligence agencies informed United States government that there are meetings in Europe between Russian operatives and people claiming to speak for the Trump campaign," he said.
: R D Shrikanth, Director (Manufacturing) of Lenovo Private Limited, Puducherry,has been elected chairman of the Puducherry State council of the Confederation of Indian Industry for the year 2017-2018.

A CII release here said the Joint Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Lebracs Rubber Linings (P) Limited M Nandakumar has been elected as the new vice chairman of the Council of CII here.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Election Commission tonight ordered repolling in one of the booths of Lohaghat Assembly seat in Uttarakhand where EVMs went out of order, forcing counting at the station to be stopped midway through.

Repolling in booth number 128, Government Inter College at Karankarayat, was ordered after the EVMs stopped displaying results due to some technical problem prompting authorities to stop counting, the state election office said here.

Polling will be held afresh on March 15. Counting will undertaken and the results will be declared the same evening, it said.

The poll panel has asked its state representatives to keep the documents pertaining to today's counting for the Assembly seat sealed till the announcement of the booth's results.

When the EVMs conked out, BJP's Puran Singh Fartyal was ahead of his nearest rival, Congress' Khushal Singh by 450 votes.

Of the result for 69 seats declared, the BJP has won in 56 to sweep to power in the state. Congress has won in 11 seats and Independents secured two seats.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today expressed sadness over the killing of CRPF personnel in naxal attack in Chhattisgarh.

He said Home Minister Rajnath Singh will be travelling to Sukma to take stock of the situation.

"Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs & condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi tweeted.

"Spoke to Home Minister @rajnathsingh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he added.

Naxals this morning ambushed a road opening party of the security forces in Maoist-infested district Sukma, killing at least 12 CRPF personnel.

Five jawans were also injured in the attack that took place in the dense forests of Bhejji police station limits at 9:15 AM when a patrol party of CRPF's 219 battalion was out for a road opening task near Kotacheru village.

112 security personnel were part of the patrol party.

The Naxals also looted ten weapons and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three persons have been arrested in Pitampura for allegedly stealing two-wheelers and renting or selling those to snatchers, police said today.

A team of special staff of the northwest district was formed to apprehend the accused, DCP(Northwest) Milind Mahadeo Dumbere said.

Acting on a tip-off, three men were nabbed yesterday during a vehicle checking drive in front of Maharaja Agrasen Model School in Pitampura and two motorcycles were seized from them, the officer said.

One of the accused, Rajinder Kumar, is a motorcycle mechanic and runs a repair shop in Kirari Suleman village. He had contacts with several chain snatchers in Mangolpuri and Sultanpuri who were allegedly used to purchase or rent stolen two-wheelers from him, Dumbere said.

He used to change his associates frequently and was in contact with the other two accused, Aakash and Monu of Karala village, the DCP said, adding the police team has in total seized 12 stolen two-wheelers from them.

Another police officer said Rajinder has two wives and needed money to sustain them. He is involved in 19 cases of vehicle theft in various police stations of Delhi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sri Lanka's main ethnic Tamil party TNA today asked the government to fulfil its commitments to the UN Human Rights Council through an appropriate mechanism to probe into the alleged war crimes committed during the civil war with the LTTE.

The Tamil National Alliance legislators and other elected representatives met in the northern town of Vavuniya today and insisted on international intervention.

The call came despite the Sri Lankan government's continued policy of opposing an international hybrid court to probe the war crimes allegations.

"All Sri Lanka's obligations in terms of UN Human Rights Council Resolution...Co- sponsored by the Sri Lankan Government, must be fully implemented. These obligations must be fulfilled under strict conditions, under the monitoring of an office of the UN High Commissioner for Human rights, which must be established in Sri Lanka," a statement said.

It said if the Sri Lankan Government fails to fulfil the obligations by way of an appropriate mechanism, the UN Human Rights Council must ensure that victims will receive the intended benefits of the fulfilment of such obligations, through international mechanisms.

Sri Lankan government has rejected the call for a hybrid court of local and international judges to probe alleged war crimes.

Sri Lanka faced three consecutive adverse UNHRC resolutions since 2012. In 2014, the resolution prescribed an international investigations into human rights abuses blamed on both the LTTE and the government troops.

Since the change of the government in January 2015, the rights body has shown leniency in allowing the new government more time to get its reconciliation house in order.

According to the UN figures, up to 40,000 civilians were killed by the security forces during Mahinda Rajapaksa's regime that brought an end to nearly three-decades long civil war in Sri Lanka with the defeat of LTTE in 2009.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he would go to the Netherlands on Saturday to drum up support for a high-stakes referendum, despite the Dutch government's refusal to facilitate his trip.

"I am going to Rotterdam today (Saturday)," Cavusoglu told CNN-Turk television in an interview. "We will impose heavy sanctions on the Netherlands" if the visit is blocked, he added.

Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders on Thursday said his country would "in no way" facilitate Cavusoglu's planned visit.

"We will not participate in a visit by a Turkish government official who wants to conduct a political campaign for a referendum," Koenders said.

"Therefore we will not cooperate," he said, adding he had informed Cavusoglu.

Cavusoglu was pencilled in to address a planned rally in the port city of Rotterdam on Saturday to gather support for a referendum in Turkey next month, aimed at boosting the powers of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

But Rotterdam's mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb announced Wednesday the gathering was cancelled after an owner said the rally's venue was no longer available.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Twin bombs targeting Shiite pilgrims killed 59 people in Damascus today, most of them Iraqis, a monitoring group said of one of the bloodiest attacks in the Syrian capital.

There have been periodic bombings in Damascus, but the stronghold of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad has been largely spared the destruction faced by other major cities in six years of civil war.

A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed by and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shiite mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The explosions killed 47 pilgrims, most of them Iraqi Shiites, and 12 Syrian pro-government fighters, Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.

"There are also dozens of people wounded, some of them in a serious condition," he told AFP.

Syrian state television said 40 people were killed and 120 wounded after "terrorists detonated two bombs".

It broadcast footage of several white buses with their windows shattered, some charred and peppered with shrapnel.

Shoes, glasses and wheelchairs lay scattered on ground covered in blood.

Syrian Interior Minister Mohammad Shaar said the attack targeted "pilgrims of various Arab nationalities".

"The sole aim was to kill," he said.

The Iraqi foreign ministry said around 40 of its nationals were among the dead and 120 among the wounded.

A witness told AFP that the second bomb exploded as passers-by gathered at the scene of the first attack, and state television said a booby-trapped motorcycle was defused nearby.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Shiite shrines are a frequent target of attack for Sunni extremists of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) group, not only in Syria but also in neighbouring Iraq.

The foreign ministry in Damascus condemned "the cowardly terrorist attack which comes in response to victories of the Syrian Arab Army" against jihadists.

The Sayyida Zeinab mausoleum to the south of Damascus, Syria's most visited Shiite pilgrimage site, has been hit by several deadly bombings during the war.

Twin suicide bombings in the high-security Kafr Sousa district of the capital in January killed 10 people, eight of them soldiers.

That attack was claimed by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front, which said that it had targeted Russian military advisers working with the Syrian army.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The BJP and its allies consolidated their position in Uttar Pradesh by surging ahead in 290 of the 403 seats, going by trends available from 386 constituencies in the first three hours of counting.

The saffron party and its allies Apna Dal (Soneylal Patel) and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) in the process pushed rivals SP-Congress combine and the BSP far behind.

The fledgling SP-Congress coalition was ahead in 69 seats (SP in 58 and Congress in 11), while BSP trailed far behind with leads in only 19 places.

BJP on its own was leading in 276 seats, while Apna Dal (S) was ahead in nine and SBSP in five.

Gayatri Prajapati, who is absconding after the UP Police booked him in an alleged gangrape case and attempt to rape a minor, was trailing in Amethi, where Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Sinh, was leading.

Ameeta Singh (Cong), the present wife of Sanjay Sinh was also trailing.

In Noida, Home Minister Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj Singh was leading.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Describing the BJP's landslide victory in assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as a vote of support for Narendra Modi, a well-known American expert has said that the results show that people consider the Prime Minister "a man of action".

BJP's historic win in India's most populous state Uttar Pradesh is its biggest electoral prize, Milan Vaishnav, South Asia Programme, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said in his quick reaction as it became clear that the BJP was headed for an overwhelming majority of seats in the state.

"This, along with the clear victory in Uttarakhand,is unambiguously a vote of support for Modi. The victory demonstrates that,whatever people may thinkof demonetisation, they see the PM as a man of action," Vaishnav, who is specialising on domestic Indian politics, told PTI.

Vaishnav's latest book 'When Crime Pays: Money and Muscle in Indian Politics' hit the book stores in both India and the US in January.

"For the Congress, it can take solace in the fact that the partylooks to have notched a victory in Punjab. The Congress badly needed this win as it only controls one major state (Karnataka), which could easilychange hands next year," Vaishnav said.

Arguably, the Aam Admi Party has suffered the biggest disappointment  underperforming in bothPunjab and Goa, he said.

"The UP verdict is a massive setback for Mayawati and the BSP, which now faces an existential crisis. It has now suffered three consecutive defeats  in 2012, 2014's national polls, and 2017," Vaishnav said.

Supporters of the BJP held election result watch parties in major cities of the US including the Silicon Valley, New York, New Jersey, Chicago and Florida.

"Modi magic has worked again. It is the pro-poor and pro-farmer policies of the Prime Minister which has resulted in BJP's historic victory in Uttar Pradesh," said Jagdish Sewhani, president of American India Public Affairs Committee.

"This is also an endorsement of the demonetisation policy of the Prime Minister. This shows people have full faith in him," he added.

"Victory in these assembly elections has cleared BJP's door in Rajya Sabha. Thus with potential majority in both the houses of the Parliament will unblock the progress of India," said Khanderao Kand, the founder of Silicon Valley-based Global Indian Technology Professionals Organisation.
Elated over the spectacular electoral performance of BJP in four states, the Tamil Nadu party unit today said it would approach the upcoming civic polls in the southern state and the by-election to RK Nagar constituency with vigour.

"We will go to the civic polls and RK Nagar bypoll with more enthusiasm, which the poll outcome in Uttar Pradesh and other states has given us," Tamil Nadu BJP President Tamilisai Soundararajan told reporters here.

The local body elections in the state will be held before May 14.

The Madras High Court had recently directed the State Election Commission to hold civic polls before May 14.

Tamilisai said since 1967, the people of Tamil Nadu have been witnessing "corrupt governance" alternately by Dravidian parties like the AIADMK and DMK.

"People of Tamil Nadu are ready to give us the opportunity," she said, adding that the electorate would not favour Dravidian parties.

Answering a question on the recent killing of a Rameswaram fisherman, the BJP leader said it was "very unfortunate" and that her party was committed to the welfare of fishermen.

"Seventy-five fishermen have been released by Sri Lanka. Do not try to judge our party by a single incident. In the past two-and-a-half years, this is the first (killing) such incident to happen. Also, this will be the last such thing," she said.

Crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah for the poll wins, Tamilisai said though political opponents had claimed that BJP would be shunted out in the polls after demonetisation, the people had proved them wrong.

She said after the demonetisation drive, BJP's showing in civic elections in several states, including Maharashtra and Odisha, showed that "people are with Prime Minister Modi."



"The huge increase in tally in the number of legislators will translate into more MPs for the party in Rajya Sabha and it will in turn help pass legislations swiftly for people's welfare," the BJP leader added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
On August 3, 2015, when the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government and the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak Muivah (NSCN-IM) reached a peace accord, there was jubilation all round. Modi met Thuingaleng Muivah, the reclusive and legendary leader of what is now the longest-running insurgency in South Asia, and holding him solicitously by the arm, led him to the table to sign the documents: The symbolism of this was lost on no one. Few paid attention to the fine print in the agreement  which was never made public.
Manipur Chief Minister, the Congress party's Okram Ibobi Singh, registered a thumping victory from the Thoubal Assembly seat, decimating debutante Irom Sharmila Chanu.



The biggest contribution of Okram Ibobi Singh, who has been heading a Congress government in Manipur for the past 15 years, could perhaps be maintaining peace in the troubled state while taking development to its remote corners.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) looks close to forming the government in Manipur. This comes after the party couldn't win a single seat in the state in the 2012 Assembly polls.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal will submit his resignation to the Governor on Sunday following his party's defeat in the assembly election.

The Shiromani Akali Dal, which ruled Punjab for 10 years in alliance with the BJP, trailed at the number three slot in the results as officials counted the votes polled in the 117 seats on Saturday.

The Congress had won on 18 seats and was leading on 61 others by Saturday afternoon.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won seven seats and was leading on 13 others while the Akali Dal won only one seat and was leading in 12 others.

"I will go to Chandigarh on Sunday and submit my resignation to the Governor," Badal, 89, the oldest Chief Minister in the country, told the media in his village Badal in Muktsar district.

"I am grateful to the people of Punjab for giving me an opportunity to serve them. I am fully satisfied with all the things I was able to do. I will seek forgiveness from people for any mistakes," Badal said.

He said the reasons behind the Akali Dal's defeat would be assessed.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh turned 75 on Saturday. And, he could not have expected to get a better birthday gift from the electorate: Latest trends at 11:40 am show his party leading in 71 of the states 117 Assembly seats.
Among the first things that the Congress chief ministerial candidate in Punjab, Amarinder Singh, has promised to do after he assumes power is to tackle the drug menace by choking the supply of such intoxicants in four weeks.
There is always a tendency to read too much, or too little, into poll verdicts. But even with this caveat, it is difficult to not be swayed by the scale and sweep of the BJPs victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, its spectacular rise in Manipur, and its ability to stay in the fight in Goa despite splitting from its erstwhile partners and an internal revolt.



In Punjab, where the defeat of the Akali-BJP coalition was foretold, the development worth noting is not the Congress thumping victory, but the underwhelming performance of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). In terms of popular vote, the Akali-BJP combo was streets ahead of the AAP, despite coming a cropper in terms of seats.


BJP chief Amit Shah on Saturday refused to comment on the allegation made by BSP chief Mayawati that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were "managed" to favour his party's win.

"I can understand the mental condition of Mayawati. But I will not comment on her remarks," Shah said when asked about the allegations.

Terming the Uttar Pradesh election results as "very surprising", the Bahujan Samaj Party chief on Saturday had alleged that EVMs were "managed" to favour the Bharatiya Janata Party.

She also said that her party has asked the Election Commission to cancel the results in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi didnt just demonetize the opposition with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)s massive victory in Uttar Pradesh. With his campaign in Indias most populous state and the subsequent result, Modi has proved that he now didnt need the mediation of even BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh workers to reach out to the people.
A meme circulated on WhatsApp during campaigning for the recent Assembly elections showed Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi trying to duck electricity cables on stage. In the same picture, Uttar Pradesh (UP) Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav seemed unperturbed. The caption said Akhilesh knew there was no electricity running in the cables.
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India is about to witness one of the biggest electoral outcomes after the 2014 parliamentary polls: the results for five states involving 7,150 candidates vying for 690 seatsof which 1,100 (15%) are criminals, 850 (12%) are serious criminals and 2,300 (or 32%) are crorepatis (assets over Rs 1 crore)will be announced tomorrow.

A quarter of candidates in Uttar Pradesh (UP) are serious criminalscharged with cases related to rape, murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, culpable homicide, communal disharmony, electoral violations and crimes against women.

Punjab has the richest candidates but the worst education indicators and Goa, despite having the highest crime ratecrimes per 100,000 populationunder the Indian Penal Code (IPC) has one of the least criminal candidates, according to an IndiaSpend analysis of data compiled by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an advocacy.

North-eastern Manipur, simmering with ethnic conflict, has the highest number of graduates, post graduates and doctorates as candidates, lowest average assets per candidate and the highest proportion of candidates not having filed income tax returns. TO READ THE FULL STORY, SUBSCRIBE NOW NOW AT JUST RS 249 A MONTH.

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Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Yadav on Saturday said the party would accept people's mandate after the counting of votes in Uttar Pradesh concludes.

"All are waiting for the results. We know that we are going to win the results though the people's mandate will be acceptable," Yadav told ANI.

The counting across the five states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur began at 8 am this morning.

The Election Commission has issued guidelines on security arrangements for counting of votes, and has also set up facilities for disseminating trends and results of elections of five assemblies.

In Uttar Pradesh, the counting will take place in 78 centers across 75 districts.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Saturday said the secret to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)s victory in Uttar Pradesh was because the Electronic Voting Machines, or EVMs, have been tampered with. Mayawatis BSP has performed abysmally in the assembly elections. At the time of filing of this report at 2pm, the BSP was leading in a mere 16 of the 403 seats. This was despite getting a respectable vote share of 22 per cent.
The description tectonic shift was first used for election results this morning by Union Cabinet minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. It has since gathered currency among pundits and partisans. Narendra Modi has swept Uttar Pradesh as no one had since the post-Emergency Janata wave. The Congress looks at single figures, maybe even less than five in a state where its vice-president campaigned as UP ka ladka. BJP has, similarly, swept Uttarakhand and become a real force in Manipur, where it was non-existent. Surely, this is a tectonic shift.

I would contest it, but simply on the basis that "tectonic" change is too mild for a power shift that resets not just the political geography of India, but also its sociology, psychology and ideological pathologies.

The big pointers first. Narendra Modi has now risen as India's most popular mass leader since Indira Gandhi in her heyday and he has earned it all from his own effort rather than build on a legacy. Second, he has acquired control of the ruling party as no Indian leader did, not even Rajiv Gandhi, since Indira Gandhi. It follows that it redefines BJP for the first time as a party with a supremo, a prime vote-catcher and a personality cult of its own. With him, his brilliant, all-conquering electoral field marshal Amit Shah has also risen as the most powerful chief of a national party since K. Kamaraj in the 1960s.

Modi is the first leader from outside the heartland to acquire such national stature, the first, let's qualify, after independence. At the risk of being misconstrued, let me add that the last non-heartland leader to acquire such pan-Indian stature was only the Mahatma. No comparisons here, except that he too came from Gujarat. Modi has now acquired an aura that dazzles beyond partisan politics. Even those who disagree with him, and vote against him, say they do not suspect his personal integrity and good intention -- the reason they've been forgiving on demonetisation after suffering severely from it.

Modi's most loyal supporters also acknowledge that on the economy, reform, social messaging, his record halfway past his first term as prime minister has been patchy. "Wait for his second term," they say, "learn from his history in Gujarat." His first term as chief minister was contentious, overly political and divisive. In the second, he focused on the economy and infrastructure and built the springboard for national power later. It was also in his second term that he totally defanged the RSS, filed sedition cases against the troublesome VHP leaders and demolished scores of illegally-built temples in his encroachment clearing drive.

It would be reasonable to believe that this sweeping victory has brought that second term forward as 2019 seems more a certainty now. The defeat of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab and destruction in Goa should also detox his mind of any insecurities in Gujarat later this year. His party and the RSS are totally beholden to him. He has that greatest weapon, a brahmastra if you so prefer, that a mass leader has: the ability to bring votes. Or, to put it more simply, the ability to get lamp-posts elected.

The question now is, how will he use this power. Will he get off the electoral juggernaut now and focus on economic change as he did in Gujarat 2007 onwards? Will he invest his phenomenal persuasive skills along with his credibility to sell more challenging ideas of change: economic and governance reform, reducing the size of the government, make durable peace with the neighbours and make future secure for our future generations. He now has that kind of opportunity.

Other lessons from this result are simpler. To Congress, it is that times when its first family could get it votes, ended a long time back although the fluke success in 2004 deluded it into believing these were back. Second, that Rahul isn't a mass leader. He can keep the party together, but unless he learns to run it like a holding company with truly empowered CEOs, there is no future.

He must acknowledge then that Amarinder (who he doesn't particularly like) swept Punjab while he got swept out of Uttar Pradesh. In Manipur, a strong local leadership has pretty much held its own. In Uttarakhand, Harish Rawat lost badly, but remember he is a truly popular local leader who was sidelined until 2016 while power was given to serial defectors, the Bahuguna offspring. Rahul Gandhi has to seriously reflect on his former Assam loyalist Himanta Biswa Sarma's words, that he only relates to those with "blue blood", or entitled political legatees. This election, like several before this, tells you that there is nothing the young Indian detests more than a sense of entitlement. This is, as I have said before, a non-ideological, I-don't-owe-you-nothing young India. Don't try impressing them with your ancestors' track record. Talk about yours.

For the caste-based Uttar Pradesh parties, it's time to reboot, or go into sanyas. For three decades in the heartland, BJP has worked on a strategy to re-stitch with faith (Hindutva) what caste divided. If only Hindus could vote together than be divided as upper/lower/middle castes, BJP would be unbeatable. L K Advani succeeded once with the Mandir movement. But that was short-lived. Modi and Amit Shah have now done this by deftly weaving it in a new, majoritarian Indian nationalism. This has more oomph and longer legs than a mere temple. Akhilesh Yadav's future lies in reinventing himself as a pan-caste young leader (he's younger than Kejriwal and Rahul). Mayawati is looking down the barrel.

In fact, it is the Muslim voter now who'd contemplate the future. The Modi-Shah strategy has isolated the Muslim vote and proved its irrelevance. The "secular" parties have to rewrite their politics entirely if we are not to see the rise of Muslim radical parties, many mini Leagues and further ghettoisation.

And finally: Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party have made a strong statement in Punjab. If it feels like failure, it is because it believed its own hype of sweeping Punjab and Goa. But to finish second in an unfamiliar state ahead of the strongest traditional coalition is an achievement. What's been pricked, is its "me-all-conquering" hubris. It has to focus on the task at hand, not run ahead of the ball, consolidate its still formidable hold over Delhi. It's a cruel but accurate way to put it, so I shall go ahead: AAP's national ambitions deflated, it has to humbly return to municipal concerns, particularly with Delhi corporation elections coming up.
When Narendra Modi decided to contest the Lok Sabha election from Varanasi in 2014, residents of the pilgrimage site in Uttar Pradesh welcomed him as one of their own. There was all-round excitement that a prime ministerial candidate had chosen this ancient city on the banks of the Ganga as his constituency.
A drubbing in the Uttar Pradesh (UP) Assembly polls is unlikely to cast cloud over former chief minister Akhilesh Yadavs leadership in the Samajwadi Party (SP).
His closest aides say Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah transformed the work culture at the partys national headquarters at 11, Ashoka Road. If earlier party office- bearers were selected for their ability to perform parikrama, literally circumambulation but denoting sycophancy, of the then party presidents, now people are rewarded for their parakram, or performance.
Speculations have intensified on who will be Uttar Pradesh's chief minister. A top Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) source told the Business Standard that caste might not be the primary determinant in zeroing in on a name. "There's a lot of talk on the backward castes' consolidation in our favour. But our social engineering has ceased from today after the results have started coming," the leader said.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers celebrate the victory of their party in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, in New Delhi on Saturday. Though BJP failed to win Punjab or get a majority in Goa and Manipur, its return to power in pivotal UP is a major boost to the policies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Photo: Reuters
The Bharatiya Janata Party has swept clean India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, by gaining a three-fourth majority in the 2017 state Assembly elections. The massive win will help the National Democratic Alliance in the presidential polls in June this year.
Sunil Bansal has good reason to cheer the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) performance in Uttar Pradesh, where it was leading in 293 seats as at 11.40 am on Saturday.
The BJP "sold dreams" to win Uttar Pradesh and voters would soon realise when the party fails to deliver on its election promises, Congress leader Tom Vadakkan said on Saturday.

"The BJP won elections in UP because of selling dreams and the reality will come soon when they fail in delivering these dreams," Vadakkan told IANS.

His comments came as the Bharatiya Janata Party was all set to win power in the country's most populated state, leading in over 300 seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly.

He said the example of BJP's failure to de liver lay in Goa where the party was running neck and neck with the Congress.

"The BJP lost the election in (Goa) because it failed to deliver what it had committed to people there," he said.

On the Congress party's humiliating defeat in Uttarakhand, Vadakkan said the core section of the Congress had joined the BJP, which "really affected us".

The BJP made a complete sweep in Uttarakhand and appeared winning 57 out of the 70 assembly seats. The Congress could manage leads in only 11.

The Congress leader also attacked the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), saying it could not manage to win in Punjab because of its "bad performance" in Delhi.

"Punjab people would have surely observed the AAP's work in Delhi and decided accordingly," Vadakkan said.
The Left parties on Saturday said that the BJP win in Uttar Pradesh has "dangerous" portend for the country as it would encourage "divisive and harmful" Hindutva politics.

The parties accredited the BJP's success to "communal" appeal and called for unity of the Left and other secular forces to meet the challenge posed by the BJP.

It alleged that the saffron party's victory in Uttar Pradesh was accomplished "by a mix of rank communal appeal and by putting together a wide ranging caste coalition."

"While acknowledging the massive mandate BJP has received, it also has implications that are dangerous for the country as it will encourage the brand of Hindutva politics, which is divisive and harmful," CPI(M) Politburo said.

"It was this combination that propelled Narendra Modi and the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections in the state and that momentum has been maintained," it said.

Agreeing with the CPI(M), the CPI said the BJP's win indicated "serious threat" to secular and democratic forces in the country.

"The result should be an awakening to Left democratic, secular forces in the country to forge broader unity to fight back the attacks on people, and offensive of communal forces," it said in a statement.

CPI national secretary D Raja credited the BJP's victory in the state to anti-incumbency factor, which he noted was a common case in Uttarakhand, Punjab and Manipur which voted against their respective ruling parties.

"The quality of electoral discourse was lowered to polarise people in UP. This is going to be challenged. There is a need to forge opposition unity (to take on BJP)," he said.
After the dramatic events today in UP where Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the BJP to a stunning win, Business Today's Saurabh Sharma analyses the reason behind Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav's crushing defeat in his article How Rahul Gandhi's hands punctured Akhilesh Yadav's cycles.

As the counting of Assembly elections are underway, it seems that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has swept the election in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The BJP under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah is set to take power in the Hindi-heartland.

If early trends are anything to go by then it's clear that the faith of people of UP has deepened in Prime Minister Modi over the years. Was it just a Modi's charisma or did Akhilesh Yadav fail to gauge a deep sense of anxiety against the government? Whatever may be the reason, but Akhilesh Yadav is set to be dethroned by yet another saffron surge.



Here are the reasons Akhilesh Yadav lost the battle in Uttar Pradesh:



{This article was first published on DailyO. To read the full article please click here }




If you would talk to anyone in Uttar Pradesh during the elections, more often than not you would find them nod their head and agree to the statement that Akhilesh Yadav 'ne kaam toh kiya hai' (has done work). But that effort has not transpired into an election victory for the Samajwadi Party scion, with Narendra Modi scripting a stunning win for the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP).

ALSO READ: Election Results 2017 LIVE: BJP looks set for a landslide win in Uttar Pradesh

This election was the toughest test for Akhilesh Yadav who had to overcome an internal strife within the party and a division with his father Mulayam Singh Yadav.



The emergence of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh can be attributed to the saffron party's development plank with which it had also swept the 2014 general elections. Akhilesh Yadav had tried to a tread a similar path with focus on development and emphasis on the youth during his tenure, but the Samajwadi Party's reputation for encouraging what rival parties describe as 'gunda raaj' has come back to bite the young leader.

Akhilesh Yadav may have lost this election, but most analysts would agree that he has a long road ahead of him in Indian politics as a leader who can possibly bring a lot of different political parties on the same table to fight against what at this point feels like a growingly invincible BJP with the country's tallest leader Narendra Modi and master strategician Amit Shah at the top.

ALSO READ: Saffron surge in UP: 5 lessons BSP, SP can learn from Narendra Modi and Amit Shah



So, what has Akhilesh done to develop a general sentiment that he may have lost, but it is not the end for him. Here are some of his strengths and achievements as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh:

Shrewd politician: Akhilesh Yadav is shrewd politician, less in the mould of the rebel his father Mulayam Singh Yadav, but more in the mould of a moderate like Atal Bihari Vajpayee who can take diverse interests along with him. This trait would be valuable when he stakes his claim to the nation's top job at some point in time.



Youth appeal: While this election result may suggest otherwise, Akhilesh Yadav does have an appeal among the youth. A lot of his schemes as the chief minister of Uttar Ptradesh were youth centric. The unemployment allowance (Rs 1000 per month) scheme and the senior citizen farmers' pension schemes (Rs 500 per month) touched millions of lives across the state. His regime also provided free books up to class 8; each girl child got two sets of school uniforms free every year; children from families who earn under Rs 5 lakh per annum are provided private higher education for free; a tablet for every student passing Class X.



ALSO READ: Economic policies that have made Modi the new Nawab of Lucknow



Aspirational India: The completion of Agra-Lucknow expressway in record time was one of the main highlights of Akhilesh Yadav's tenure as the chief minister. This demonstrated his ability to take on large infrastructure projects and execute them. The image of someone who can get the job done is critical to capture the mood of an aspirational India. In fact, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal as a leader lies in his promises to transform India to a developed country with smart cities and bullet trains.



Economic achievements: Going forward, Akhilesh Yadav, despite the loss, can boast of delivering on the economic front for Uttar Pradesh. The economic output of the state grew at a fast clip under his rule. Its gross domestic product rose almost 3 percentage points between 2012/13 and 2015/16, from 4.3 per cent to 7.1 per cent. The rapid growth also helped its debt-to-GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) ratio decline. The per capita net state domestic product also risen significantly.
Political prisoner, activist, journalist, hymn-writer, emerging think tanker, aspiring novelist, "tribal elder", parliamentary candidate for North West Durham, Shadow Leader of the Opposition, Speedboat, proudly banned from Twitter so officially more dangerous than the Taliban, eagerly awaiting the second (or possibly third) attempt to murder me.
"If students are to move schools, and they have a background of violence, there has to be appropriate controls in place, as per work health and safety legislation, to ensure the safety of all staff and students," Mr Fowler said.
Another speaker on Monday was the witty Father Rod Bower, a clergyman and so an authority on angels. He diagnoses that each of us possesses "a better angel of our nature" but also "a dark demon of fear and prejudice". He alleges our politicians would rather appeal to our demons than to our angels and so they, the politicians, try to stoke in us a fear and loathing of refugees.
The next step shows that you can't fault the gas industry for lacking in ambition (or was it greed?). Having realised that they could triple the price they charged for the gas we give them (there are no royalties payable on much of the gas produced in Australia), the gas industry set out to build not one, but three enormous gas liquefication plants right next to each other in Gladstone at a combined cost of about $60 billion dollars. After some big cost blowouts by 2014 the East Coast producers finally succeeded in linking to the world market and, in turn, their 10-year plan to lift our gas prices.
LEBANON  Eric Frazier's students are putting the finishing touches on the pig barn they built at the Lebanon Land Lab. But by this fall, they'll be building a full-scale house.

The construction program at Lebanon High School received unanimous approval Thursday from the Lebanon School Board to move forward with its first district-sponsored home construction project in 17 years.

In November, the Lebanon Community School District sold a 4-acre parcel of land that used to house Crowfoot School to the city of Lebanon. The $80,000 payment was to be earmarked for career and technical education classes.

Frazier asked the board for permission to sink all the money into the housing project. By his figuring, it will be only about half of what is needed to buy land, pay for permits and complete the house, but he estimates money from the sale will be enough to repay the loan and start socking away money for the next house.

After the third sale, he said, the program should begin turning a profit. That profit then can be shared among other CTE programs such as welding, drafting and culinary arts.

"It's a feeding frenzy now for houses," he said.

Board members asked district administrators to bring back financial information for their April meeting, such as whether the district would be able to get a loan for the additional $70,000 Frazier estimates he would need.

In the meantime, all five voted to have Frazier pursue the project, to applause from the audience gathered at Seven Oak Middle School.

Frazier said the next step is to evaluate lots within four miles of the school for possible purchase. He has three in mind, although none is formally listed for sale.

Drafting classes will be asked to develop possible floor plans for the first home, which will be between 1,300 and 1,500 square feet, Frazier said.

The construction class will build the home from the ground up, with subcontractors coming in for anything that requires a special license to complete, such as plumbing, insulation, electrical work and heating-ventilation. Even then, Frazier said, most companies can find a way to let students help and learn the particulars of the job.

Frazier, who has his own construction company and more than 25 years of experience in the building industry, joined the Lebanon faculty in the late 1990s. At that time, the construction class build-sell-repay program was going strong.

Lebanon High students last built a home for the district to sell during the 1999-2000 school year, Frazier said. After that, the district began shifting its educational philosophy away from direct experience toward more academic, pre-engineering work, which he blames for the program's end.

Students didn't stop working on houses, however. When the district build-sell program stopped, Frazier enlisted his construction classes as part of the building teams for Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit organization that brings volunteers together to build homes for selected families in need.

But the work didn't provide the same experience as designing, planning and building a house from start to finish, Frazier said. Nor did it result in any profits that could be put back into high school programs.

Frazier said he estimates the construction class can build a home for $98.44 per square foot, then sell it for about $145 per square foot.

He figures a 1,500-square-foot home would go for about $218,000, allowing payback of the $70,000 loan and leaving the program with about $148,000 toward the second build.

"There will be some fees and ancillary expenses, so we will have about $125 grand to start the next house," he told the Democrat-Herald.

In response to board questions, Frazier and Superintendent Rob Hess both said they didn't anticipate any additional insurance costs to the district for the project, nor any more risks than the construction class or Land Lab programs or even P.E. classes already run.

In his presentation to the district, Frazier estimated the project will involve 110 students in the construction program alone. Drafting, marketing, agriculture and horticulture students also will have roles to play, he said.

He anticipates classes being able to complete the home during the course of one academic year.

"Worst-case scenario: You have a shell," he said. "You can sell that."
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 ...
High schools in Linn and Benton counties can compete to earn points  through purchases made at Heritage Mall stores  to earn donations toward their proms.

Points for Prom runs through March, and shoppers can bring their Heritage Mall receipts to the mall management office during business hours or email a photo of the receipt to lburt@vintagerealestate.com.

Each dollar spent equals one point. The customer chooses to which high school they would like the points awarded.

At the end of March, the top three high schools will receive donations of $500, $250 and $100 for their prom funds.

A display will be set up in the center of the mall with thermometers measuring each schools points. Results also will be posted at heritagemall.com/events.

Donations of gently used prom dresses also will be accepted at West End Boutique during the month of March and donated dresses will be cleaned and available for purchase at the Prom Pop-Up store for only $10 each.

The Prom Pop-Up store will be open for one day only, on Saturday, April 8.

Heritage Mall also will hold a Prom Dress Preview fashion show at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 18. The show will feature dresses available in the Prom Pop-Up store.
One person has died from a gunshot wound and a second person remains hospitalized from a self-inflicted gunshot wound Friday afternoon in the Orleans Natural Area, police said.

Corvallis police are continuing the investigation.

At 2:32 p.m. Friday, a passing motorist reported that a man had been shot in the 28200 block of Highway 34 between the Willamette River and the Highway 20/34 bypass. The man was transported to Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center.

Upon investigating, police found a second gunshot victim nearby in a wooded area. The person was deceased at the scene. Authorities are withholding the identities of both people involved pending notification of next of kin.

Lt. Dan Duncan said there was no danger to the public, but detectives were treating the scene as a criminal investigation.

It appears that it was just the two people involved, Duncan said. Anytime you have an investigation like this, until you have all the information, you investigate it as a criminal matter until otherwise proven.

Police blocked off the Van Buren Bridge and Highway 34 from the bypass to Northwest First Street following the shooting. Traffic was being diverted to Second Street but there was a roadblock to the bridge itself.

Police said Friday evening that it would likely be several hours before the highway would reopen. Detoured traffic on Highway 20 between Corvallis and Albany was backed up for miles at about 5 p.m.

The Corvallis Police Department is leading the investigation because even though the Orleans Natural Area is in Linn County it is also within city boundaries.

The Oregon State Police Crime Lab was called Friday evening to assist at the scene.

Our entire detective team is working on it right now, Duncan said. The investigation is ongoing. It takes a lot of people to get to the bottom of this.

Several Corvallis police vehicles, an incident command truck, a Corvallis Fire Department engine, Oregon State Police and the Oregon Department of Transportation all responded to the scene Friday.
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.
Cadillac has announced that its new crossover will be dubbed the XT4, rather than the XT3 name it was initially thought to adopt.



The automaker confirmed the news at the ongoing 2017 Geneva Motor Show while announcing that the XT4 will launch in the United States in 2018 before subsequently arriving in Europe.

In a statement, Cadillac president Johan de Nysschen said A new compact crossover called XT4 will debut in 2018 in the US and subsequently in Europe, with an entirely new series of efficient and powerful engines. Starting with the launch of XT4, a new Cadillac will be brought to market every six months, a total of five car-lines in the space of two years.

As the name suggests, the XT4 will slot below the XT5 and Escalada in Cadillacs SUV/crossover range and early next decade, be accompanied by a smaller crossover that could adopt the XT3 name.

In its efforts to rival the Audi Q3, BMW X1 and Mercedes-Benz GLA, the Cadillac XT4 should be powered by a four-cylinder turbocharged engine and could come standard with a nine-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive.

PHOTO GALLERY
Theres a pretty good reason why Dodge doesnt make a Charger coupe  and its called the Challenger.

The two models share a common (albeit modified) platform, after all, and mostly the same powertrain options. But what if you like the Chargers aggressive styling better than the Challengers retro design?



Thats evidently how Nick Kizi felt. Nick started his own bodyshop over in Warren, Michigan  home of GMs main tech center  back in 2013 called Fantasy Collision & Customs. With the doors just having rolled up and a crew of just two other guys, Nick and company undertook this project to show what they could do.

Now as you might have gleaned from just the lead image above, the guys at Fantasy didnt just remove a set of doors, fill in the gaps, and call it a day. To read Rides magazine describe it, they chopped the sedan in half, shortened the wheelbase by ten inches, and put it back together.

Removing the rear doors, they lengthened the front ones. And while they were at it, they cut the roof down by two inches. Coupe, indeed.

The 5,000-man-hour process also saw them widen the rear fenders by seven inches  on each side  and fit giant wheels: 24 inches in diameter at all four corners, steamrolling 9 inches across at the front and an unfathomable 15 inches at the rear. Inside they fitted 16-inch Wilwood brakes, and fitted it all to a custom air suspension.

The 5.7-liter Hemi V8 was left mostly stock (except for the custom exhaust), the roof was replaced with a custom glass panel, and the whole thing was painted white with red pinstripes. The interior was done up to match in pearl white with red stitching.

The finished product looks like a real show-stopper  and not without historical precedent. After all, the original Charger made in the 1960s and 70s was a coupe, before the name was used on a front-drive hatchback and then on the four-door sedan we know today.
Photo: UBCO

If you've passed by a homeless person and felt unsure of how you can help, an upcoming event will provide an opportunity.

5 Days for the Homeless is a nationwide initiative to increase awareness and raise donations for local charitable organizations supporting homeless.

The Management Student Association at UBC Okanagan Campus hosts this event every year and has students sleeping outside to help raise money throughout the week.

This year, it will run from March 19 to March 23 and is open to anyone who is a UBC student in any faculty and any year.

On Sunday, March 19, students will host a drive-through breakfast downtown in Kerry Park. The breakfast is open to the general public and will feature pancakes, bacon and coffee.

From March 20-23, UBCO will host events on campus including a variety of barbecues and a bottle drive.

Universities across the country will be participating in the initiative.

For more information you can visit ok.ubc.ca
Photo: Insights West

Employment and housing are the two biggest concerns of post-secondary students in B.C.

That was the findings of a new Insights West poll conducted on behalf of the UBC Alma Mater Society.

In the online survey of post-secondary students from 14 institutions, the most important electoral issue is rising housing costs in B.C.  30 per cent rank it as their main concern  followed by job opportunities at 28 per cent.

Pipelines and the environment were third overall at 12 per cent.

As for the party of choice heading in the provincial election, the New Democrats have a slight lead with 45 per cent of post-secondary students saying the NDP definitely or probably represents their views and interests.

The BC Liberals are a close second with 43 per cent while the BC Green Party is lagging behind at 35 per cent.

Post-secondary students have identified housing and job opportunities as their key electoral issues, said Mario Canseco, vice-president, public affairs at Insights West. It will be crucial for contending parties in this years provincial election to offer concrete policies that will sway this group, which voted in droves during the last federal ballot.

More than two thirds  68 per cent  of domestic students cast a ballot in the 2015 Canadian federal election, and more than a third of them  38 per cent  voted in the 2013 British Columbia provincial election.

Some 88 per cent of post-secondary students who are eligible to vote say they are very likely or somewhat likely to vote in the provincial election.

I am encouraged by these results that demonstrate that students turned up to vote in numbers on par with the national average for the federal election, said Kathleen Simpson, vice-president external affairs, UBC AMS. Not only are students attentive to the issues of the provincial election, but they also intend to cast their ballot.
Provinces across Canada are dumping Jean Chretien era pro-growth policies, and instead turning toward debt and higher taxes, says a Canadian think-tank.

The Fraser Institute argues in a new book that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley are "rejecting" previous Liberal policies of "balanced budgets, controlled government spending, and competitive taxes."

The institute says the Chretien government inherited a nearly $530-billion federal debt in the early 1990s. By '97, the government had balanced the budget and reduced the debt.

During the 1990s and early 2000s, there was consensus among governments of all parties across Canada that balancing budgets, paying down debt, lowering taxes and smaller, smarter government was the best way to grow the economy, and it worked, said Jason Clemens, executive vice-president of the Fraser Institute and co-author of End of the Chretien Consensus?

The Chretien government then instituted tax reductions for workers, entrepreneurs and businesses.

By almost any measure, Canada was an incredibly prosperous country from the mid-1990s through to the 2009 recession, said Clemens.

Despite that success, the institute says, governments are now turning their backs on such policies.

Canada needs to return to the sound policies of the Chretien Consensus and the foundation for prosperity they delivered, Clemens said.
Photo: City of Kelowna

A shrinking loonie, and the complexity of the project has forced the City of Kelowna to cancel an art project with a Seattle artist.

The project was for seven art panels for the newly remodeled Library parkade on Ellis.

It was split into two phases and, the resulting delay coincided with a fall in the Canadian dollar, which pushed the project over its allotted budget.

The artist was paid for time and materials, and the city moved on to the runner-up in the project competition.

Vancouver artists Ron Hart and Michael Fugeta have been hired, and fabrication of the artwork is underway.

Installation is expected in May.

The city has also run into a delay in an art piece for the new RCMP detachment building on Clement Avenue. A piece of art, celebrating the tradition of the RCMP as a Canadian institution and to commemorate its role in providing order and security to Canadian communities, is to be installed in the entry plaza to the new building.

However, none of the proposals submitted sufficiently met the evaluation criteria. A new request for qualifications will be issued.

Budget for the project is $150,000, with $30,000 of that coming from the city's public art program. The remainder will come from the building's construction budget.
Photo: Castanet File Photo Remember when fiunding for the John Hindle Drive extension was made in 2014?

It's a link from Glenmore to UBC Okanagan people have been waiting for, and waiting for.

"Working with the City of Kelowna, who have managed the engineering and are providing the land for the project, the province is now in a position to move forward with tendering the project, which is expected in the coming weeks," the Ministry of Transportation said in a statement this week.

The 1.6-kilometre extension of John Hindle Drive, from Glenmore landfill to the university was initially expected to be complete a year ago.

At an open house last September, it was suggested the extension would be complete this year. Now, the target for substantial completion is spring, 2018.

According to an email from the ministry, additional time was needed to finalize utility designs with utility companies, as well as discussions with UBCO regarding roadway connections.

Funding for the $11.6-million project has been in place since November 2014. At that time, both the province and feds announced contributions of $3.5 million each. The city is putting up the remaining $4.6 million.

"This project will include the construction of a multi-use paved pathway for pedestrians and cyclists from Glenmore Road to the Hollywood Road roundabout at Highway 97 near the UBCO and is expected to be completed by June of 2018," the ministry further stated.

The John Hindle road extension is a Council priority and has been in our long-term road network planning for many years," then Mayor Walter Gray stated during the 2014 funding announcement.
Photo: Google Street View

The provincial government is continuing its pledge to make improvements to Westside Road.

The province announced Friday the latest stretch of road scheduled for widening.

Construction crews will work on a two kilometre stretch of narrow, windy road from La Casa to Muir Road

The section of road will be widened, a proper shoulder will be constructed to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians.

Curves will be improved and space provided for installation of a concrete barrier above the slope of Okanagan Lake.

This is a very narrow and winding section of road, with steep slopes on one side and a high embankment on the other, said Premier Christy Clark, MLA for Westside-Kelowna.

A wider shoulder and a concrete barrier will mean an easier drive, with safer conditions and more space for the pedestrians and cyclists who use Westside Road to get to the many recreational sites along Okanagan Lake.

In 2014, the government made a commitment to spend $45 million over a five year period to improve the road which was named the worst in B.C. in a BCAA survey three years in a row.

Construction is expected to begin in the fall, with completion in the fall of 2018.
Photo: Twitter

The federal Liberals began setting the stage Friday for their second budget, sending out a senior cabinet minister to show why the country's middle class needs an economic and morale boost.

Social Development Minister Jean-Yves Duclos didn't say what will be in the March 22 budget, but hinted the document will look at ways to train and re-train workers and spur private-sector investment in infrastructure and labour.

Duclos will make the same pitch in three cities next week to argue that the Liberals understand the economic fears Canadians have and seek to build trust with voters that the measures in the coming budget will work for those who believe they are part of the middle class.

If people feel comfortable financially, they are more likely to trust the government and the Liberals' growth agenda, Duclos said.

"Perceptions matter because they are a signal of middle-class Canadians' feelings towards the future, and anxiety, stress, uncertainty are key components in how Canadians assess their quality of life," Duclos said.

Duclos said Canadians use a variety of indicators to define themselves as part of the middle class, including income levels  with data suggesting an income range of $50,000 to $150,000  the cost of living that varies by city and their confidence about whether their children will be better off than they are.

That confidence, the Liberals argue, is dropping. Duclos pointed to polling data that suggest fewer Canadians identify as middle class. He also noted economic data that said median wages have stagnated over 40 years, despite rising since the 1990s, while income growth has been 1.7 times higher for the top one per cent of earners compared with the bottom 90 per cent.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Ernest Castel had a dilemma: venture out into waist-high snowdrifts to seek help or stay hunkered down in his SUV?

The northern Manitoba man and five others had just spent two nights northwest of Thompson, Man., stuck on a road made impassable by a heavy winter storm. They were out of gas and had only candy and pop to sustain them.

Castel started out from Winnipeg on Monday and dropped his wife off in Thompson later that night. He, his mother and brother continued towards the Marcel Colomb First Nation, more than 300 kilometres northwest.

A blizzard hit and Castel wondered whether he should turn back, but decided to keep driving. It was a good thing, he said, because he came across a truck stuck in the snow. It was carrying three friends.

He helped dig them out, but it wasn't long before both vehicles were encased in snow again. Castel has photos showing drifts up to the headlights.

As the temperature dropped to below -20 C, all six huddled together in his car which still had gas at that point. There was no cellphone service.

By Wednesday morning, the wind had stopped blowing long enough for the group to spot a telephone tower in the distance. After walking more than three hours, they reached the tower and broke into a building to use the phone.

They couldn't get through to anyone by dialling 911, but someone did answer when they called 611  a number used to request a repair from Manitoba Telecom Services. The person on the other end was dumbfounded.

"We managed to convince him we need help. It's life or death out here," said Castel. "We have no gas. We have no food. We have no water."

The pair left a note at the tower to MTS: "Thank you and sorry we broke in. Your phone saved six lives," it said. It listed everyone's names and said they'd taken six bottles of water, two soups and five candles.

The next morning, help arrived.

"We heard the rumbling of the front-end loader," he said. "It was such a wonderful sound to hear."

A grader and two RCMP vehicles also showed up.

"I'm still very tired but I'm warm," Castel said. "I'm alive."
Photo: The Canadian Press

The unexplained deaths of two belugas at the Vancouver Aquarium last fall were a "tipping point" in the city's debate over cetacean captivity and helped lead to a historic vote to ban the practice, says a park board commissioner.

Sarah Kirby-Yung, a commissioner who previously worked as the aquarium's spokeswoman, said after two nights of emotional hearings and thousands of public submissions it became clear that banning cetaceans at the aquarium was "the will of Vancouverites."

"Our job is to listen to the public," she said Friday. "This is an issue where public sentiment has been changing and, progressively, people have been feeling more and more uncomfortable."

The board voted unanimously Thursday night to ask staff to bring forward a bylaw amendment to prohibit the importation and display of live cetaceans in Vancouver parks. Staff will now consult with legal counsel and report back with an amendment by May 15.

Cetacean captivity has been hotly debated in Vancouver for years, but the deaths of beluga Aurora and daughter Qila last November thrust the issue back into the spotlight. While the cause of the whales' deaths just weeks apart is still not known, the aquarium said it hasn't ruled out a toxin in the water or a "malicious action."

The park board's decision comes as the aquarium is undergoing an $100-million expansion. Last month, it announced plans to bring in up to five belugas in 2019, when larger enclosures were set to be completed, and to ultimately phase out its cetacean program 10 years later.

On Friday, the aquarium said the plan was now in jeopardy and it is "deeply disappointed" with the board's vote. The plan would have allowed it to continue to provide a home for rescued and non-releasable animals, and included an expanded cetacean research program, it said.

"A ban on displaying all cetaceans at the Vancouver Aquarium will have a deep impact on the research we do and devastate our marine mammal rescue centre," president and CEO John Nightingale said in a statement.

The aquarium said the rescue centre is the only marine mammal hospital of its kind in Canada and under an amended bylaw, it may no longer be able to rescue stranded whales, dolphins and porpoises that are injured or sick.

Peter Fricker of the Vancouver Humane Society said the aquarium's research was not substantive and did not outweigh the negative impacts of captivity on animal welfare. The facility has only published 13 peer-reviewed scientific papers on its cetaceans in 30 years, he said.

"We don't believe the aquarium when it says all of a sudden that now this beluga research is vital. It just wasn't credible to us that having a relatively poor record on producing research on belugas, that it would suddenly be so important."

The aquarium has three cetaceans in captivity: Helen, a Pacific white-sided dolphin; Daisy, a harbour porpoise; and Chester, a false killer whale. Bromley said the bylaw amendment could either allow them to stay until their deaths or require their removal from the park.
Photo: Google Images

Some of the best and brightest entrepreneurs will be getting together this weekend in Kelowna.

The 5th annual Startup Weekend will feature attendees from across the country in both the tech community and those with business brains.

The volunteer-led weekend in the Okanagan is supported by a number of local organizations and global sponsors.

"People that come to the event have made an interesting choice," says Startup Weekend facilitator and organizer, Daryl Chymko.

"For various reasons, they decided that they want to spend an entire weekend building a new idea, meeting people, and learning new things. The weekend is fun, intense and a bit crazy, but everyone loves it."

The event is closed to participants, but the general public is invited to the Demo Night Event on Sunday night from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Photo: Contributed

Royal Dutch Shell said Friday it is ending development of the proposed Prince Rupert liquefied natural gas project in British Columbia but is still considering the potential of its other west coast LNG option.

Shell acquired the Prince Rupert LNG as part of a portfolio of projects in its takeover of natural gas giant BG Group last year, but said it decided to discontinue the project after reviewing how it stacked up against its existing options.

The company said it continues to actively move forward on the proposed Kitimat, B.C.-based LNG Canada project with its partners, though last year it indefinitely deferred a final investment decision on it because of market conditions.

Once lofty LNG west coast LNG expectations have taken a hit in recent years as the global markets have been flooded by supply.

Shell, however, said it still sees the LNG Canada project as an opportunity to bring Canadian gas resources to a global LNG market, where it expects to see a growth rate of between four and five per cent between 2015 and 2030.

The news comes a day after Shell said it was selling off much of its oilsands holdings for $8.5 billion to Canadian Natural Resources as it continues to re-shape its global portfolio more towards natural gas in the wake of the BG Group deal.
Photo: YouTube

The Province is providing money to help those at risk of chronic kidney disease.

The government has come up with $200,000 in funding for the Kidney Foundation of Canada, BC & Yukon Branch to have 1,000 high-risk British Columbians screened.

Early detection is essential to reducing the potentially life-threatening effects of kidney disease, said Shuswap MLA Greg Kyllo. Targeted screening in communities throughout B.C. will help identify those who may have compromised kidney function, and provide them with information and tools to make healthy lifestyle changes.

The BC & Yukon Branch of the Kidney Foundation will hold 25 screening events over 18 months in communities throughout B.C., working with community organizations who serve high-risk populations for kidney disease.

At-risk populations include people who:

Are of Asian, Pacific Islanders, African, South Asian or Aboriginal descent,

Have diabetes, high blood pressure, or cardio vascular disease; and/or

Have a family history of chronic kidney disease.

It is estimated one in 10 British Columbians has some form of kidney disease, but because early stages of the disease are rarely accompanied by symptoms, many people dont realize they have it, said Pia Schindler, executive director, BC & Yukon Branch of The Kidney Foundation of Canada. Although there is no cure for chronic kidney disease, a healthy lifestyle and early interventions can go a long way towards preventing the need for dialysis or transplant.
Photo: The Canadian Press

The father of a nine-year-old girl drugged and killed by her mother says no prison sentence will do his daughter justice.

"I will never get to watch my daughter grow up, but I know she would have done great in life," Duane Lucius said Friday as he clutched a photo of his daughter Amber.

"I have had to bury my child and nothing will bring her back. I can only hope that other children are not being used as bargaining chips in a divorce or used to hurt the other parent."

His former wife, Laura Coward, was sentenced Friday to life in prison with no chance of parole for 18 years after pleading guilty in a Calgary courtroom last month to second-degree murder.

The life sentence was automatic, but it was up to Court of Queen's Bench Justice Scott Brooker to decide how long she'd have to wait before being able to seek parole.

The judge said it was "the ultimate betrayal for Miss Coward to kill her own daughter."

"In murdering your own daughter you have committed a vile and evil crime," he said. "This court must express society's disgust and outrage to denounce your evil act."

Brooker said Coward deserved credit for pleading guilty and for showing remorse, but he noted she never explained why she killed Amber.

"The only logical inference to draw from the facts is Miss Coward murdered her daughter as a means of getting back at, and punishing, Amber's father."

Court documents described a bitter divorce between Coward and Lucius. A custody tug-of-war over their daughter had continued up until the girl was found dead.

Amber was reported missing in August 2014 and her mother was arrested two days later near Sundre in west-central Alberta. She was standing outside a burned truck in which her daughter's body was discovered.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Police in Toronto are accusing Cannabis Culture marijuana dispensaries of being part of a "large franchise operation of alleged high-level drug traffickers."

Prominent marijuana activists Marc and Jodie Emery  who own the Cannabis Culture brand  were granted bail Friday after their arrest on Wednesday.

Marc Emery faces 15 charges, including conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, trafficking and possession of proceeds of crime, while Jodie Emery faces five similar counts.

Officers seized $250,000 in cash in several currencies, 65 kilograms of marijuana and 2.4 kilograms of cannabis extract and other drug paraphernalia after searching seven Cannabis Culture stores and several homes on Thursday, police said.

Given the amount of marijuana the stores "can only be supplied by illegitimate sources often tied to organized crime," acting Insp. Steve Watts alleged.

"The public should know that this isn't an altruistic venture, this is purely a profit-motivated venture," Watts said. "Anyone with a prescription for marijuana can go through Health Canada, who have an abundant supply."

Toronto police spokesman Mark Pugash said seven Cannabis Culture locations  five in Toronto, one in Hamilton and another in Vancouver  were searched on Thursday along with two homes in Toronto, one in Stoney Creek, Ont., and one in Vancouver.

The Emerys appeared in a Toronto courtroom on Friday afternoon where they were granted bail with several conditions, including a ban on possessing or consuming marijuana and other drugs except with a prescription.

They were also barred from going to any Cannabis Culture location or other dispensary, as well as facilitating or participating in running any Cannabis Culture shop. The Cannabis Culture brand is used by a chain of 19 marijuana dispensaries in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec.
Photo: Contributed

A transit driver who performed CPR on a passenger who collapsed in front of his bus this week is being hailed as a hero.

"We all think he's a hero," said Scott Lovell, local president of the transit union. "I'm really, really proud of the guy."

The bus driver stopped on Bernard Avenue near downtown Kelowna at about 8 a.m. Thursday to pick up a passenger.

Lovell said a man was trying to load his bike when he collapsed. The driver secured the bus so it couldn't roll forward and called 911.

Dispatchers guided him as he performed CPR.

"The driver was actually doing CPR on the individual until he was relieved by emergency crews," said Lovell.

The man was rushed to hospital with a heartbeat. His current condition is unknown.

The driver then continued on his shift, said Lovell.
Photo: CTV

Crew from the Canadian Coast Guard was dispatched after an oil spill off the north coast of Vancouver Island.

The spill happened near the Port Harvey Marina, south of Port McNeill.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans confirmed an oil slick has developed and predicts that 178-litres of fuel is in the water.

Tlowitsis First Nation councillor Thomas Smith says a diesel tank allegedly didnt have a dam around it and there is a big concern for the shellfish.

The Ministry of Environment says a bystander said there was fuel on the beach and in the water near the marina.

The source of the spill is unknown.

The DFO, says the spill is not recoverable.

The Coast Guard will stay on scene to make sure everything remains under control.

Less than a week ago 600 litres of fuel spilled at a fish farm in Echo Bay.

-with files from CTV Vancouver Island
Photo: The Canadian Press

A veteran Canadian warship that served in the first Gulf War was decommissioned on Friday in Halifax.

HMCS Athabaskan sailed around Halifax harbour for the last time as part of a ceremony marking its final retirement from service.

The destroyer was the last serving member of a class of four destroyers that have served the Canadian navy since the early 1970s.

The navy's most senior officer says for more than four decades the vessel and her crews have proudly served and protected Canada.

Vice-Admiral Ron Lloyd says the navy's future is partly anchored on the legacy of ships such as Athabaskan.

The destroyer brought in aid after hurricane Katrina in 2006 and Haiti's 2010 earthquake, on top of its NATO obligations and fisheries and sovereignty patrols.

Athabaskan's sister ships have already been decommissioned.
Photo: The Canadian Press

A California man pleaded guilty Friday to stabbing a U.S. airman who weeks earlier was hailed as a hero for helping thwart a terror attack aboard a French train.

James Tran, 29, faces a nine-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to attempted murder under a plea agreement, said Shelly Orio, a spokeswoman for the Sacramento County district attorney's office.

He admitted knifing former Air Force Staff Sgt. Spencer Stone in October 2015 during a fight near a Sacramento bar.

Stone is one of three Sacramento men who tackled a gunman with ties to radical Islam on a Paris-bound passenger train in August 2015. Stone left the military last November as a staff sergeant assigned to Travis Air Force Base, said Staff Sgt. Scott Taylor, a spokesman at the base near Sacramento.

Tran pleaded guilty less than a week before he was to go on trial. He also pleaded guilty to enhancements including causing great bodily injury and using a deadly weapon, Orio said.

"I thought he got off kind of easy, but at the end of the day I've kind of moved on with my life," Stone said by telephone. "We all make dumb decisions and we've got to pay for those decisions. I forgive the guy and hope he can grow from it...and kind of make it a positive thing in his life when he gets out."

Tran's attorney, Donald Masuda, did not return telephone and emailed messages from The Associated Press.

Tran is set for sentencing May 12.

Sacramento police have said Tran was the instigator in a confrontation that led to the stabbing.

Stone was with three women and another man when an argument with Tran's group escalated into a fight that spread down a Sacramento street. Police said Tran and his group did not know who Stone was until they saw news reports later.

Stone's mother, Joyce Eskel, has said that her son was stabbed four times. Doctors had to repair lacerations to his heart and liver and a collapsed lung.

She also said her son was "very, very fortunate to be alive."

It was the second time that Stone was knifed within a matter of weeks. He was cut on the neck and thumb when he and two childhood friends from Sacramento stopped the attempted terror attack.

Stone, Anthony Sadler and Oregon National Guardsman Alex Skarlatos were later awarded France's Legion of Honor.
The Cincinnati Zoo is using an Australian shepherd as a nanny for three Malayan tiger cubs.

The cubs biological mother's maternal instincts didn't kick in after giving birth on Feb. 3.

The six-year-old dog provides the cubs with warmth, cuddles and nurturing love.

The zoo says the cubs will have a new home in Cat Canyon this summer.

Blakely has already a lot of experience raising other species. The canine has helped raise wallabies, baby cheetahs and others.
Photo: Contributed

Teachers across British Columbia have voted to accept a deal with the provincial government and end a 15-year battle over bargaining rights.

The union representing teachers issued a release Friday night saying more than 21,000 educators voted on an agreement about class size and composition, with more than 98 per cent casting ballots in favour of the deal.

Union president Glen Hansman says in a statement that B.C. schools are now on the verge of having better working and learning conditions in place.

Details have not yet been released about what the agreement includes.

The announcement comes months after the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that a provincial law that blocked teachers' ability to bargain on class size was unconstitutional.

At the time of the court ruling, Hansman had estimated it would cost between $250 and $300 million per year to bring in the additional resources.

The ruling restored language to a previous 2002 agreement, however a statement from the provincial government said details needed to be negotiated because the education system has evolved and changed since then.

Hansman said the agreement will see all the substantive working conditions that were stripped away brought back.

"With our restored language in effect, BC schools, students, and teachers will see significant improvements in class sizes, support levels for children with special needs, and access to specialist teachers this September," he said.

He warned, however, that teachers cannot forget what has happened, and must now shift to holding the government accountable for funding the new agreement.

"All eyes will be on the BC Liberal government this March and April to ensure the necessary funds materialize," Hansman said.
Photo: Google Images

An Edmonton couple have each been fined $3,000 for riding their bicycles through a herd of big horn sheep on a highway in Banff National Park.

Ivan Dacko tells CTV Edmonton he will fight the fine because he doesn't think they did anything wrong.

It happened last June and Dacko says they didn't realize they were too close to the animals and says he didn't hear a park worker tell him to move away.

He says some sheep were sleeping on the highway and he woke them by riding nearby, then took photos of his wife passing through the herd.

However, he believes he caused less of a disturbance to the animals than any large vehicle nearby.

Prosecutor Anita Szabo says the pair were warned by a park worker on the scene but continued riding near the animals.

(The worker) subsequently went and told them not to, they basically told her they were doing it for Facebook, and even after she asked them to stop doing it, they biked back and forth through the sheep, Szabo says.

She notes that Dacko was the one who asked for the photos he took of the incident to be entered as evidence, calling that "unusual."
Photo: Google images

Someone in B.C. could be the next millionaire.

Friday night's Lotto Max draw was claimed by a single ticket sold in British Columbia.

The jackpot is worth $25.9 million.

The grand prize for the next Lotto Max draw on Mar. 17 and is for approximately $10 million.
Photo: Douma Revolution News Network File photo

Twin blasts Saturday near holy shrines frequented by Shiites in the Syrian capital Damascus killed at least 40 people, most of them Iraqis, according to Syrian and Iraqi officials.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. Islamic State militants have carried out similar attacks before against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere. Extremist Sunni groups, such as IS, view Shiites as apostates and consider shrines a form of idolatry.

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot, apparently where the explosions went off near Bab al-Saghir cemetery. The cemetery is one of Damascus' most ancient and is where several prominent religious figures are buried.

Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar visited the wounded in local hospitals. He said 40 were killed and 120 were wounded. He said the attacks targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were touring area's shrines.

Iraq's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 Iraqis were killed and 120 wounded. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims to the shrines were targeted. He said a crisis response team has been formed to expedite the identification and transport of the killed and wounded.

"The ministry calls on the international community to condemn this heinous terrorist crime that targeted civilian Iraqi visitors to the holy shrines. It also urges a firm and decisive stand against the takfiri groups responsible for them," Jamal said in a statement. Takfiri is an Arabic derogatory term referring to extremist Sunni Muslims  such as members of the Islamic State group  who accuse other Muslims of being infidels.

Iraqi, Iranian and other Asian Shiites often visit shrines in Syria.

There were conflicting reports about what caused the explosions. State news agency SANA said the blasts were caused by bombs placed near the cemetery and that at least 33 were killed and more than a hundred wounded.

Lebanon's Al-Manar TV quoted Syrian officials saying twin suicide attacks killed 40. The military media arm of Hezbollah, Lebanon's militant group close to Damascus, said two suicide bombers blew themselves up 15 minutes apart near the shrines, leading to the large number of casualties. Arab TV Al-Mayadeen, airing the conflicting reports, also said at least 40 were killed. The area was sealed after the explosions.
Photo: The Canadian Press Justice Minister and Attorney General of Canada Jody Wilson-Raybould.

The Trudeau government is in the bizarre position of preparing to go to the Supreme Court to argue against a federal law passed with the support of its own MPs.

That's the result of Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould's announcement that the government intends to seek the top court's advice on the constitutionality of a bill aimed at preventing genetic discrimination.

More than 100 Liberal backbenchers joined Conservatives and New Democrats to give final approval to the bill Wednesday, despite warnings from Wilson-Raybould and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that it is unconstitutional.

"This is certainly an odd situation," says University of Waterloo political scientist Emmett MacFarlane, who specializes in constitutional law and the top court.

"I cannot think of a past reference case that meets this set of circumstances: Parliament passing a bill against the wishes of a government that holds a parliamentary majority and a government that will be arguing against the constitutionality of a federal exercise of power.

"It is almost certainly unprecedented."

The bill is aimed at ensuring that Canadians can get genetic tests to help identify health risks and take preventive measures, without fear that they'll be penalized when it comes to getting a job or life and health insurance.

It would make it illegal to require a person to undergo genetic testing, or disclose the results of previous tests, as a condition of signing or continuing an insurance policy or any other contract or agreement.

It would also prohibit anyone from sharing genetic test results without written consent, although there are exceptions for physicians and researchers.

Wilson-Raybould maintains the bill amounts to an unconstitutional use of the federal criminal law power to intrude into provincial jurisdiction to regulate the insurance industry, which is fiercely opposed to the legislation.

Liberal MPs who supported the bill don't seem overly upset that their own government, which gave them the freedom to vote as they pleased on it, is now intent on challenging their decision.

"Either way, we already knew with statements having been made by the insurance industry that somebody was going to challenge the constitutionality of the law," said Anthony Housefather, Liberal chair of the justice committee that refused to amend the bill to suit the government after hearing expert testimony that it was constitutional.
Photo: Google Maps

UPDATE: 10:05 a.m.

The crash on the Okanagan Connector near Loon Lake Road has been fully cleared.

UPDATE: 9:05 a.m.

A single lane of eastbound traffic on the Okanagan Connector has been reopened after a crash near Loon Lake Road closed the highway earlier Saturday morning.

Additionally, a crash 10 kilometres east of Brenda Mine Road has closed a single lane of Highway 97C in the eastbound direction.

ORIGINAL: 7:35 a.m.

The Okanagan Connector is closed in the eastbound direction Saturday morning after a vehicle crash.

The crash occurred three kilometres east of Loon Lake Road on Highway 97C, about 15 kilometres east of Merritt, at about 7 a.m.

The nature of the crash and condition of those involved are unknown at this time.
Photo: The Canadian Press Guy Caron

As NDP leadership hopefuls prepare for their first debate on Sunday, Quebec MP Guy Caron is fleshing out his pitch for a basic income to reduce income inequality in Canada.

Caron, an economist, is proposing a taxable supplement that would help those Canadians whose income levels fall below a standard minimum threshold, determined in part by the size of their family and the city they live in.

He says the proposal would be designed to complement existing provincial and federal social programs, not replace them.

Caron says some 70 per cent of those people who are living in poverty are considered working poor: they have jobs, but simply don't earn enough to get by.

Other candidates in the race to replace Tom Mulcair as leader include Manitoba MP Niki Ashton, who entered the race this week, B.C. MP Peter Julian and Ontario MP Charlie Angus.

Would-be candidates have until July 3 to declare formally whether they are in the running; a new leader will be named in October.

"Despite what we've been led to believe, poverty and inequality are not inevitable," Caron says in a statement out Saturday.

"A basic income will actually save us money. Less poverty means less stress on health care, social programs and public safety resources. Its also good public policy, since investing in Canadians gives them the tools to participate fully in society, access better opportunities, and achieve financial independence."

The concept of a basic guaranteed income has been around for decades, and crosses partisan lines: an Ontario Liberal government pilot project is getting underway to test the viability of a basic income program.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Police ordered a shopping mall in the western German city of Essen not to open Saturday after receiving credible tips of an imminent attack.

The shopping centre and the adjacent parking lot stayed closed as about a hundred police officers  many armed with machine pistols and bullet-proof vests  positioned themselves around the compound to prevent anyone from entering the mall. Several officers scoured the interior to bring out early morning cleaning staff.

"As police, we are the security authority here and have decided to close the mall," police spokesman Christoph Wickhorst said, adding that they had been tipped off late Friday by other security agencies. He declined to provide further details, but Essen police said later that they were questioning a man and had searched his apartment in nearby Oberhausen.

The downtown mall at Limbecker Platz square will be closed for the entire day. The mall is one of the biggest in Germany with more than 200 stores and attracts up to 60,000 people on a regular Saturday, according to the shopping centre's website.

In 2016, three people were injured in an attack on a Sikh temple in Essen by radicalized German-born Muslim teenagers.

Germany has been on the edge following a series of attacks in public places over the past year.
Photo: The Canadian Press

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Secret Service says a person is under arrest after climbing a fence and getting onto the south grounds of the White House.

The breach happened at about 11:38 p.m. Friday. President Donald Trump was at the White House.

The agency says the individual  whom it did not identify  was arrested without further incident. No hazardous materials were found during a search of a backpack the individual carried.

The Secret Service also says a search of the south and north grounds of the White House complex found "nothing of concern to security operations."

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly was briefed on the incident.

The agency didn't provide an update on the individual's status. Standard practice is to hand intruders over to the local police department.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Nissan is recalling more than 54,000 cars because of curtain and seat-mounted air bags that may unexpectedly deploy when the door is slammed.

Nissan North America says the recall affects the 2012 Nissan Versa vehicles. It says the problem may be caused by the degradation of the side impact sensor connector pins. The unexpected deployment of the air bags can increase the risk of injury.

Nissan says dealers will install a new jumper harness and replace the side impact sensors free of charge. Car owners can contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 or visit www.safecar.gov.

In 2015, Nissan recalled 300,000 Versas to adjust a console panel that could catch the driver's shoe and slow braking efforts.
Photo: Contributed

The brazen killing of a rhinoceros at a wildlife park near Paris by assailants who removed a horn valued at nearly triple the price of gold has put zookeepers on notice that poaching could be spreading beyond the killing fields of Africa and Asia.

Demand for the horns is skyrocketing in Asia, where they are ground into a powder and used for medicinal purposes by some who believe it cures everything from cancer to hangovers.

More than 90 zoos in the United States housing rhinoceros adhere to rigorous security requirements and comply with regular inspections for accreditation, said Dan Ashe, president and chief executive of the Maryland-based Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

But he conceded Friday: "Nobody is insulated from this potential; we have made sure our members are aware of what occurred in Paris and they are quite vigilant. Everybody is sobered."

Jacques-Olivier Barthes, a spokesman for the World Wildlife Fund in France, said zoos in Europe may have to change their security procedures in light of the attack. He said there are 300 rhinoceros in Europe, including 111 in Great Britain.

"If there is a change of criminal strategy and a swing from robbery in museums to crude crime of animals, it will also imply a change of means of protection for the zoos and African reserves which are in Europe," he said.

Officials in France said Tuesday that a 5-year-old white rhinoceros named Vince was shot three times in the head by poachers who broke into the Thoiry Zoo. They used a chain saw to remove the rhino's horn.

"Imagine an animal running around with a big gold horn," said Ashe, who said some estimate the horns could sell for as much as $3,000 an ounce, or between $500,000 and $1 million. "The value is extraordinary, and unfortunately there are criminals out there that will take a risk."

"This is a new potential threat," said Michael Hutchins, former director of conservation and science for AZA and a former executive director of the Wildlife Society. "In order to stop this kind of thing, you have to lower the value of these animal parts and increase the punishment so people think twice about taking the chance. But it's quite complicated."

Tom Stalf, president and CEO of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium and The Wilds in Ohio, said safety of the animals is his top priority, but he declined to share details. "Doing so would make them less effective," he said in a statement.

The head of Britain's National Wildlife Crime Unit said officials would look to assess and improve security at every location in the United Kingdom that housed rhinos in the wake of the rhino killing in Paris, The Telegraph reported.

Industry standards include 24-hour security guards, and Hutchins says most zoos lock up their animals inside secure buildings overnight.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, the international trade in rhino horn has been banned since 1977. It says the primary market is in Vietnam, where some believe it cures cancer. It is also used in Asian medicine to treat fevers, various blood disorders and, in some cultures, hangovers




On Thursday Bernie Sanders was on CNN with Wolf Blitzer for a wide-ranging interview and you can watch it in it's entirety above. I just want to focus on one question-- which you'll notice Bernie bringing up on his own-- the Ryan-Pence-Price repeal of Obamacare to replace it with some shitty non-starter called Trumpcare. He had to explain to the dumbfounded Beltway misinformation hack that Ryan, McCarthy and the rest of the Republicans behind the health care bill and the rest of the Republican agenda are conservatives and the Republicans opposing them shouldn't be called "conservatives," but "right wing extremists." (We have the same thing on the Democratic side of the aisle when conservative Blue Dogs and New demo are routinely labelled by the Beltway media "moderates," even though they aren't "moderate" at all, just proto-Republican or "conservative." OK, that out of the way, Bernie launched into an explanation for poor Blitzer of what Ryan's Trumpcare bill really is:

"When we look at what the Republicans are doing, it should not be seen as a healthcare legislation. Essentially it should be seen for what it is: a massive tax break of $275 billion for the top 2 percent. You have the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association saying that this will be a disaster for the American people. You have the AARP saying, 'If you are 64 years of age and you're making $25,000 a year, your premiums are going to go up by $7,000.' This is a Robin Hood proposal in reverse. [Trump and Ryan are] throwing 5 to 10 million people off of health insurance, raising premiums for low-income and working-class people, defunding Planned Parenthood, denying over 2 million women the right to get health care where they want. But the good news is, for all of you who are watching-- if you're in the top 2%, Republicans are there for you [with] a very significant tax break...



"The American public understand that we have a Republican House, a Republican Senate and a Republican president, and if they can't get their act together, they're going to be held accountable, not anybody else.Here is the point: hey have told us for eight years how terrible the Affordable Care Act is, and yet we have added 20 million people to the ranks of the insured. Is the Affordable Care Act perfect? Far from it! We should remind everybody that the United States today is the only major country on Earth that doesn't guarantee healthcare to all people and yet we spend far far more per capita for the very dysfunctional system we have, and Republicans want to make that worse. They want to throw so many people off of health insurance... or to raise premiums. I think what they're looking at is a disaster... And they want to pass it in the House and bring it to the Senate [with ZERO hearings in the Senate]... They don't want any discussion; they want to push this thing through because they don't want the American people to know what's in it."

Today Senator Jeff Merkley told Oregonians that our "access to health care is in serious jeopardy. After spending the better part of a decade vowing to 'repeal and replace' the Affordable Care Act, the Republicans scrambled and came up with a health care plan that is a combination of the terrible and the dangerously bad. Their plan slashes Medicaid, which would put health care out of reach for millions and jeopardize nursing home care for many. It would dramatically raise the cost of health care for older Americans. Rural hospitals and health clinics would be deeply damaged. It even eliminates the $1 billion fund that helps the CDC and state public health agencies fight disease outbreaks, like Zika and Ebola. There's a reason it's opposed by nurses, doctors, hospitals, the AARP, and scores of patient groups. Why? Why then, you might ask, would anyone support this TrumpCare plan? Here's what we should know: it gives big tax breaks to high-income Americans while raising taxes for low-income Americans. This bill includes a tax cut that will average $25,000 per year for the top 1 percent. And the cherry on top? There's a hidden tax break in the bill that rewards health insurance companies who want to pay their executives more than $500,000 a year. Access to health care is a life-or-death issue. It's not an excuse to hand out tax cuts to Republicans millionaire pals or favored industries."





NY Times, Times readers by offering a theory that "this hodgepodge legislation that pleases nobody and takes the big crises afflicting our country and makes them all worse [and], but even if it passes it will probably lead to immense pain and disruption. That will discredit market-based social reform, cost the Republicans their congressional majorities and end whats left of the Reagan-era party." On the same page Krugman called it Strong stuff from both senators and it brings us right to David Brooks' much-discussed Friday column in the The Republican Health Care Crackup . Brooks stunned a lot ofreaders by offering a theory that "this hodgepodge legislation that pleases nobody and takes the big crises afflicting our country and makes them all worse [and], but even if it passes it will probably lead to immense pain and disruption. That will discredit market-based social reform, cost the Republicans their congressional majorities and end whats left of the Reagan-era party." On the same page Krugman called it a bill so bad it's awesome . "It has long been obvious," wrote the Nobel Prize winner, "to anyone following health policy that Republicans would never devise a workable replacement for Obamacare. But the bill unveiled this week is worse than even the cynics expected; its awfulness is almost surreal... How could House Republicans under the leadership of Paul Ryan, who the media keeps assuring us is a smart, serious policy wonk, have produced such a monstrosity? Two reasons.

First, the G.O.P.s policy-making and policy analysis capacity has been downgraded to the point of worthlessness. There are real conservative policy experts, but the party doesnt want them, perhaps because their very competence makes them ideologically unreliable-- a proposition illustrated by the rush to enact this bill before the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office can estimate either its costs or its effects. Basically, facts and serious analysis are the modern rights enemies; policy is left to hacks who cant get even the simplest things right.



Second, Republicans seem to have been undone by their reverse-Robin-Hood urges. You cant make something like Obamacare work without giving lower-income families enough support that insurance becomes affordable. But the modern G.O.P. always wants to comfort the comfortable and afflict the afflicted; so the bill ends up throwing away the taxes on the rich that help pay for subsidies, and redirects the subsidies themselves away from those who need them to those who dont.



Given the sick joke of a health plan, you might ask what happened to all those proclamations that Obamacare was a terrible, no good system that Republicans would immediately replace with something far better-- not to mention Donald Trumps promises of insurance for everybody and great health care.



But the answer, of course, is that they were all lying, all along-- and they still are. On this, at least, Republican unity remains impressively intact.

Ezra Klein picked up on a line in Brooks' piece to take the argument in an entirely different direction . Do the Republicans actually want to see this abomination quickly fail so they can move on with the rest of their agenda-- tax cuts for the rich-- the prt they really care about? "There is," wrote Klein yesterday, "a line worth noting in David Brookss column today: 'The Republican plan will fuel cynicism. Its being pushed through in an elitist, anti-democratic, middle of the night rush. It seems purposely designed to fail.'"

Quietly, the idea that the House bill is designed to fail is percolating around Washington. Ive heard it from a half-dozen people now. The laws construction is shoddy. The outreach has been nonexistent. The hypocritical, hyper-accelerated process is baffling. Nothing about it makes sense.



But if you flip the intention-- if you assume Republican leaders want to see a repeal-and-replace bill die in the Senate so they can say they tried and move on to tax reform-- all of a sudden, it makes much more sense. It explains why more time wasnt spent getting the bill right. It explains why theyre going so fast. It explains why they dont care what the Congressional Budget Office says. It explains why they arent doing the outreach that would normally buffer them from this backlash.



Why would they want their own bill to fail? Well, consider the predicament theyre in. Republicans have spent seven years promising to repeal and replace Obamacare. They won election after election atop that vow. But now that they have the power to make good, theyve run into three problems.



First, Obamacare has become popular. Second, they dont have an alternative plan that would make good on their promise to provide more people with more generous health care at lower cost. Third, implementing a repeal-and-replace plan-- with all the complexity and disruption that entails-- will drown the rest of the GOPs agenda, and perhaps its congressional majority.



Arguably, the best outcome for Republicans is to try to replace Obamacare and fail. And if you believe thats what theyre doing, much else falls into place.



Take the GOP effort to discredit the Congressional Budget Offices analysis rather than working with the agency to build a better bill. For that play to work, they need credible, independent validators of their ideas. In 2009, when Democrats wanted to argue that the CBO was underestimating the savings from delivery-system reforms, they pointed to work by Harvards David Cutler, among others. The key to their argument was that top health experts disagreed with the CBO, and they made lengthy, plausible arguments explaining why. Thats what this looks like when youre really trying.



The House GOP isnt really trying. The conservative intellectual apparatus is overwhelmingly against Ryancare-- when youve lost Cato and Heritage and AEI and Yuval Levin and Avik Roy and Philip Klein, then discrediting CBO doesnt come off as CBO is wrong, and heres a persuasive argument for why; it comes off as were wrong, and were trying to make sure as few people as possible know it. Its a flashing signal of weakness.



...Imagine youre a backbench Republican House member. Youre a conservative. You didnt see this bill until Monday. All the think tanks you normally rely on-- all the think tanks you normally agree with!-- hate it. The hospitals hate it. The doctors hate it. The major conservative activist groups hate it. Your leadership appears afraid of CBOs analysis-- even though they appointed the director of the CBO! Wouldnt this look a bit weird to you? You want to be a good soldier, of course. Paul Ryan says this is your only chance to repeal and replace Obamacare, and Obamacare is terrible. But youve got to be a bit antsy. How much would it take to shake you?









That depends, of course. Imagine Trump (and Ryan) really turn into a gargantuan electoral disaster for the Republicans to the point the Democrats win back the House. Very feasible. ( Help make it happen here .) But what about the Senate? Next to impossible. A "best case" scenario for Democrats would be that they lose none of their vulnerable seats-- hard to imagine-- and manage to win 3: Cruz's seat in Texas, Flake's seat in Arizona and, the only realistic one-- Dean Heller's seat in Nevada. Heller is a hapless backbencher, a conservative in a blue-trending purple state, who was appointed in 2011 when GOP pervert and phony religious fanatic John Ensign was forced to resign after he got caught dorking his best friend's wife and then spread around a bunch of money illegally to fix the problem. He only won the seat in 2012 because he ran against a worthless pile of garbage candidate, New Dem Shelley Berkley. If the Democrats put up someone even worse and more worthless-- say Jacky Rosen-- Heller will be safe. Otherwise... this poll tells the story

Republican Senator Dean Heller will likely face an uphill battle for reelection next year. Indeed, today Nevada voters give Heller worse overall job ratings than they give President Donald Trump... [J]ust one third of likely voters rate the job Heller is doing as excellent or good, while a majority say he is doing a fair to poor job. While the intensity of disapproval for the President, that is those offering the worst rating of poor, is an astounding 44 percent, it is notable that fewer than one-in-ten voters give Heller excellent reviews, while nearly one-in- four say poor.



In more bad news for Heller, 30 percent of respondents who approve of President Trumps job performance say Heller is doing a fair to poor job. Further, a broad majority of voters in the Reno Media Market- a market critical to Hellers 2012 victory- offer negative reviews, 6-in-10 in Washoe County specifically, while in the Las Vegas Media Market, Hellers professional reviews are only slightly better. Among critical self- identified independent voters, a solid majority disapprove of Hellers job performance as do self-described moderates. Even one third of his own base, registered Republicans, give Heller negative job ratings today while a bare majority give him excellent or good reviews.



Overall, the intensity of the disapproval of President Trumps job is also a serious caution sign for Heller and all Republicans, for that matter, as it is demonstrative of a significant energy gap brewing in advance of the 2018 midterm election and a trend that often leads to greater electoral turnout among those who are most passionat- with Democrats and voters of color most notably being the most passionate in their disapproval today. All in all, although there is still a long time between now and November 2018, this survey is a clear danger sign for Heller and the GOP.

There are 8 Senate Republicans who have indicated they are considering a vote against Ryan's Trumpcare bill if it reaches the Senate. Heller has kept quiet about his own intentions. My guess though, is that he'd be #9-- or maybe just #4 if push came to shove over this.








L.A. Times readers on Wednesday, "Hill grew up in Santa Clarita and Antelope Valley and currently lives in the 25th Congressional District on a farm in Agua Dulce with her husband and several rescue animals." She's the executive director and deputy CEO of People Assisting the Homeless, or PATH, a statewide organization that provides homeless services and develops housing. This is her announcement video: After losing all that weight during chemo, I'm gaining it back-- and then some-- again. I blame it on the 2018 congressional midterms. I keep going out for dinners with candidates! A couple of nights ago a mutual friend introduced me to Katie Hill, a young woman from Agua Dulce, halfway between Santa Clarita and Palmdale, the two main towns in CA-25. Right now Katie is the only candidate running against conservative backbencher Steve Knight in a district with a Democratic Party voter registration advantage which Hillary won 50.3% to 43.6%. That was a nice margin. Unfortunately, the DCCC interfered with the district and imported their own version of a rich "moderate" from Orange County who had nothing to do with the district at all-- some guy named Brian Caforio-- who lost to Knight by an even bigger margin than Hillary won by! Thanks to the DCCC, Knight was reelected 112,768 (54.2%) to 95,296 (45.8%). Conservatives inside the DCCC are, of course, encouraging him run again. It's what they do . It's all they do. But as Javier Panzar explained toreaders on Wednesday, "Hill grew up in Santa Clarita and Antelope Valley and currently lives in the 25th Congressional District on a farm in Agua Dulce with her husband and several rescue animals." She's the executive director and deputy CEO of People Assisting the Homeless, or PATH, a statewide organization that provides homeless services and develops housing. This is her announcement video:













DWT readers. Below is her guest post. If you like her approach, please She was very impressive at dinner and on subsequent phone conversations and I asked her if she'd be willing to introduce herself toreaders. Below is her guest post. If you like her approach, please consider contributing to her campaign through ActBlue here









The Path to the American Dream

-by Katie Hill, congressional candidate

CA-25





The American Dream has become harder and harder to reach. Income inequality is worse than its ever been, and we need to bring back opportunities for people not born into privilege to work their way into a comfortable middle class life. I firmly believe that this starts by making a good education accessible to every American. Education can lift our families out of poverty. It can put folks to work in industries facing critical shortages, and it can prepare the American workforce for the 21st century economy. For proof of this, I look no further than my family.





Both sides of my family came from dirt poor beginnings.





My paternal great-grandfather barely made ends meet as a farmer in Idaho. Growing up, my grandfather knew his only way out of poverty was through a good education. He went to the University of Washington on a U.S. Navy ROTC scholarship. He couldn't commission upon graduation for medical reasons, so he secured a job with Boeing and began a long career in aerospace. He helped our country explore space by working on the Apollo and Space Shuttle Programs. Even in retirement, he continues to serve our country by teaching aerospace mechanical engineering at a public university.





Watching his own father do low-wage, backbreaking work for the railroad, my maternal grandfather was determined to get an education and the Army was his best option to pay for it. After serving in the Army, he went for his undergraduate degree on the GI Bill at Oklahoma University, and got a full ride to Princeton for his doctorate. The family moved to Southern California when my grandfather got hired as a Political Science professor at UCLA.





Aerospace and higher education are both great, middle class careers, but both families wanted more for their kids. My grandmothers (both just as brilliant as my grandfathers) ended up going to nursing school, while raising young children, to supplement the family income. At the time, nursing school cost practically nothing at the local community college, and it allowed them both to pursue excellent careers of their own. My grandmothers met working in the operating room together and, ultimately, that is how my parents met.





My family would never have made it to the middle class if not for education, and the opportunity to get a good education simply would not have been possible without the ROTC scholarship or GI Bill. My grandmothers couldn't have become registered nurses if local community colleges didn't provide affordable, accessible training. Those opportunities set the stage for the successes of my parents and, in turn, for me.





The opportunity for a good education should be accessible to anyone ready to serve their country in some capacity, whether that be through the military or here at home filling a role in many of the industries facing critical shortages. Not only will that service in and of itself make our country stronger, but the education that is earned through it will qualify more workers for better jobs and offer upward mobility to more families.





Our country is facing critical shortages of health care professionals and skilled tradespeople . Here in California, we have a massive shortage of teachers that is only going to get worse as more baby boomers retire. In my work with PATH serving our States homeless individuals and families, I know how desperately we are trying to find skilled social workers, a profession that is going to become more and more in demand if we enact criminal justice reform, or tackle major issues such as substance abuse, mental health, homelessness, and more. If we invest properly in renewable energy, we will need people who are ready for those jobs as well.





Without affordable, accessible education, however, we will not have people to fill these jobs now or in the future if our students do not have the opportunity to train for them today.





We don't need to bring back old manufacturing jobs that don't offer families upward mobility and are rapidly becoming obsolete due to advancements in technology. We have tons of jobs here in America that cannot be exported or automated-- we just need well-trained candidates to fill them.





If we pay for student's education, contingent on them working in a high demand field for a certain amount of time, we can provide the same upward mobility that was afforded to my family. We can address some of the major economic challenges facing our country as we adapt to the 21st century and our workforce will be ready for whatever comes after. Education is the key-- we just need to put it within reach.




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In early March, the U. S. Department of State released its Country Reports On Human Rights Practices for the year 2016.

As in recent years, the 2016 reports document continued narrowing space for civil society, said a high-level State Department official at the Reports introduction.Both state and non-state actors have taken steps to restrict civil society activity; to limit media and internet freedom; to suppress opposition voices; and in the worst cases, kill people or drive them from their homes. In many countries, weve seen governments crack down on the fundamental freedoms of expression and association by the use of direct and overt means, such as controlling political activity or banning or limiting political opposition, or by using laws or burdensome bureaucratic requirements to restrict civil society functioning.

The Reports are not meant to point fingers or judge the actions of sovereign nations. Nor are these U.S. policy documents. The 199 nations and territories covered in these Reports are in no way ranked or compared to each other. The Reports do not draw legal conclusions.

Indeed, the Reports were first mandated by the U.S. Congress when it became clear that some regimes that received U.S. aid had perpetrated gross abuses of human rights. That was 41 years ago. Since then, U.S. State Department Human Rights officials have tapped credible sources all over the world, from local and international human rights organizations to resources in the media, government, diplomatic, and intelligence agencies. All year, they collect, analyze and synthesize the information.

The reports are meant to respond to specific questions, such as whether there were credible reports of torture during 2016, whether security forces are held accountable for human rights violations, and whether there were reports of politically motivated disappearances, said the official.

Thats because, in the words of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, U.S. leadership demands action specifically focused on improving the conditions of people the world over.The annual Human Rights Reports are a part of that endeavor.
Governor Bill Haslam has issued a proclamation recognizing the contributions of farmers and forestland owners as part of national and state Ag Day activities. State leaders and citizens will celebrate Agriculture Day in Tennessee on Tuesday with Ag Day on the Hill.

Farm animals and a variety of agricultural equipment will be on display at the entrance to the Legislative Plaza on 6th Avenue in Nashville. Representatives from agricultural organizations and agencies will be available to discuss programs and opportunities for those interested in farming and forestry in Tennessee.

At 9:30 a.m., lawmakers will race to see who can bag potatoes and bottle feed a calf the fastest. The Farm and Forest Families of Tennessee organization will present a check to Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee in honor of contest participants.

The days activities will also include a silent auction to benefit the Society of St. Andrew and the Ag in the Classroom program.

Activities will include:

Silent Auction  8 a.m. to noon

Bottle calf feeding, potato bagging contest between Senate and House Members  9:30 a.m.

Live Animals  horses, cattle, chicks, sheep, lamb, goats, piglets

Farm Equipment

Sweet Potato Drop benefitting the Society of St. Andrew
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly traveled to Guatemala City for a series of meetings with senior officials there. He met with President Jimmy Morales, Minister of Government Francisco Rivas, Minister of Foreign Affairs Carlos Raul Morales, as well as the commissioner of National Civil Police, the First vice minister for security and the director of migration.

Secretary Kelly met with U.S. Ambassador Todd Robinson and the deputy chief of mission, and he observed the Government of Guatemala reception process for DHS repatriation flights. He also had a working lunch with Department of Homeland Security in-country and regional employees.

This first visit to Central America as Secretary of Homeland Security provided an opportunity to discuss key initiatives on stemming illegal migration, combating human smuggling and trafficking, anti-corruption efforts and law enforcement cooperation.

At a press conference, Secretary Kelly emphasized his productive meetings with the president and his ministers and discussed the strong bilateral relationship between the United States and Guatemala. He also addressed President Trumps Executive Orders on border security and immigration, explaining our efforts to secure our border and enforce our laws.

Secretary Kelly described the dangers and exploitation faced by Guatemalan citizens who risk the journey north, noting that the coyotes are liars with no regard for human life, who are only concerned with taking money from the people they attempt to smuggle into the United States.

Secretary Kellys advice to the people of Guatemala was not to risk their lives, and those of their precious children, on the dangerous journey, only to be stopped and returned immediately to their country. He also noted that the United States remains open to legal migration and will continue to facilitate travel for legal residents of the United States and those who wish to visit.

Secretary Kelly then lauded President Morales for his anti-corruption efforts, noting that the citizens of Guatemala deserve elected officials and policy makers they can trust.

The United States is committed to work with its partner Guatemala to promote the security and safety of both countries and the Central American region.
Planning a vacation in the Land of the Rising Sun? Japan has a lot more to offer than its vast selection of video games and affordable cars  theres a rich and awe-inspiring cultural heritage that dates back millennia. And theres few better places to experience this history and culture than in Japans capital, Tokyo.

Tokyo competes on a global scale with cities like London, New York City, and Paris. When it comes to its commerce, art, and tourism, this fast-paced city doesnt just stand out in Japan but in the entire world. No bucket list is complete without a trip to this one-of-a-kind metropolis. Here are nine areas worth checking out while youre there.

1. Imperial Palace

Clearly, the first place you should start your trip is at the Imperial Palace. Why is that, you ask? For starters, the palace complex features a breathtaking park, museums, archives, and the palace itself. The entire compound is so luxurious, its fit for a king (or an emperor, as the case may be). The current emperor of Japan, Akihito, still resides in the palace, with the rest of the imperial family living in the surrounding residences.

Additionally, architecture from Japans medieval period still survives on the grounds, including the famous Edo Castle (Chiyoda Castle), a leftover fortress built in 1457 by Ota Dokan. Another famous landmark on the grounds is the Nijubashi Bridge, which earned its nickname double bridge from a second structure that stands directly behind it.

2. Meiji Shrine

Even today, the Meiji Shrine (Meiji Jingu) is one of the most important religious sites in all of Japan. The original was built between 1915 and 1926 (including the grounds) to commemorate Emperor Meiji and his wife Empress Shoken. While this version was, unfortunately, destroyed during the Tokyo air raids of World War II, its replica was rebuilt in 1958.

Surrounding the shrine is a forest of trees found all across Japan  a total of 120,000 trees from 365 different species. The inner sanctum of the shrine is a museum of royal treasures, while outside is a gallery of murals related to the emperors of the past.

3. Tokyo Skytree

Every major city has one  a building or structure that towers over the city and provides an incredible view of its skyline. Tokyo is no exception, with its aptly named Tokyo Skytree. At 634 meters (2,080 feet), its the tallest structure in Japan.

While its primary purpose is as a broadcasting tower for the Kanto region, the Tokyo Skytree is also open to tourists. Tourists can take advantage of its restaurants and observation decks that are available near the top. For the fearless thrill-seeker, there is also a special observation deck with a see-through floor at the 450 meter mark.

4. Ginza

Comparable to New Yorks Times Square, Ginza is the biggest and flashiest shopping area of Tokyo with its boutiques and department stores (and yes, it has plenty of neon lights, too!). Want the trendiest items in fashion or technology? Ginza has what youre looking for when it comes to Japanese goods you cant find at home. In fact, Tokyo is known for being a powerhouse when it comes to mens commercial goods  especially mens fashion  so Ginza is worth exploring even if shopping is not one of your favorite activities. Plus, peppered throughout are world-class bistros, restaurants, and coffee shops for when you need to take a break from an entire days worth of shopping.

5. Kabukiza Theater

The historic Kabuki style of theater (a revered style of Japanese drama), originating as far back as medieval Japan, is alive and well today in Tokyo at the Kabukiza Theater. This impressive theater can house up to 2,500 guests at a time. Viewers are free to come and go as they please, and no one seems to object to cheering or booing during the performance. Nor do they mind if you bring your own food  a concept that Westerners might find to be foreign.

The Kabuki style of theater is characterized by its lavish visuals and exaggerated motions, so following the plot in another language may not be as difficult as you think. The performances originated as theatrical song and dance numbers, sometimes leaning close toward burlesque.

6. Tokyo National Museum

With over 100,000 works of art from Japan, China, and India, the Tokyo National Museum is easily one of the most important points of interest in Tokyo. The oldest and most expensive museum in Japan was established in 1872, and continues to be one of the largest art museums in the world.

Inside its corridors, youll find one of the biggest collections of Asian artifacts: classic Buddhist sculptures from the sixth century, historical weaponry, historic Japanese clothing, ceramics, pottery, and medieval-era Japanese paintings.

7. Sensoji Temple

If youre in the mood for some traditional sightseeing, you wont be disappointed with the Sensoji Temple. Dedicated to the Buddhist goddess of mercy and compassion, Kannon-sama, this landmark temple has impressively retained its design since 645 AD, despite it being rebuilt several times in the last thousand or so years due to fires.

The Asakusa district in which the temple resides is a point of interest in and of itself. The street of the temple still holds shops with traditional goods like masks, carvings, ornamental combs, kimonos, classic toys, and other items from Japans past.

8. Ueno Park and Zoo

Given its spacious acreage, Ueno Park is naturally one of Tokyos major points of interest. The park was established in 1873, as part of the Japanese policy of adopting Western customs that characterized the early Meiji Period. While splendid all year round, it truly becomes a natural wonder during the Cherry Blossom festival (hanami) in early spring, attracting over two million visitors.

Within the park is the Ueno Zoo, Japans oldest existing zoo with more than 3,000 resident animals from over 400 species. Aside from the zoo, the park holds museums, amusement parks, and attractions, making it a worthwhile destination any time of the year.

9. Tsuta

If youre looking for a fine dining experience with traditional Japanese charm, Tsuta in the Toshima district is the perfect place for you. This ramen restaurant is one-of-a-kind, and despite its humble appearance, its able to compete on an international scale. To date, its both the first and only ramen shop to win a coveted Michelin star.

But its strength in upholding Japanese traditions is also its weakness: this shop remains true to its grass roots by only serving nine customers at a time. Thats why people line up as early as 6 a.m. in hopes of tasting a bite of Japanese cuisine at its finest.

Other points of interest in Tokyo

For a city so full of life, culture, and history, its not easy to list all of Tokyos points of interest that are worth seeing. Here are a few extra attractions for your consideration:
AUSTIN, TEXAS  Fledgling companies  including a handful from Chicago  made the trek to the South by Southwest Interactive conference in Austin, Texas, this week to woo investors, network and get people talking about their products.

On the conference's first official day, those festivities were already in full swing. Entrepreneurs in startup T-shirts practiced pitches and demo'd products Friday afternoon at the crowded "Startup Village" at the Hilton Austin.

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Chicago companies SoundByte, an app to share audio posts, and Chore Check, an app that lets parents pay their kids for chores and teach them about financial responsibility, were in town for the conference's "Release It" pitch contest Friday. SoundByte was one of the 10 companies chosen to pitch at the event; Chore Check was an alternate.

Release It judges choose the company they deem the most likely to succeed in the marketplace  this year's winner was Abartys Health, a Puerto Rico-based health tech startup.

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SoundByte co-founder and CEO Dan Kearns said he hopes pitching at SXSW will yield investments. He and his co-founder still work full-time and work on the startup on the side.

"Once we generate a significant amount of funding, which we hope will happen at SXSW this weekend, we'll both commit to SoundByte full-time," he said.

Though the company didn't win the competition, he says the exposure was well worth it. The app, which lets users share 14-second audio clips, launched its rebranded, rebuilt app this month.

"We feel like we're already getting some traction here at SXSW," he said.

Chore Check CEO Ada Vaughan didn't get to pitch, but she's working to get the word out about a new product, "Chore Check Pay"  a paid membership service that lets parents make instant money transfers to a MasterCard debit card for their kids.

"My goal here was really just awareness," she said. "That's why I'm here: To get people talking about it, and hopefully find partners who care about the same thing that we care about  other apps for families, other things where they're trying to help parents do a better job."

Chicagoans will also make an appearance at Sunday's Accelerator Pitch Event. HAAS Alert, which provides real-time preemptive safety information to motorists, will be one of 50 finalists pitching.

mgraham@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @megancgraham
AUSTIN, TEXAS  Wondering what the future of the internet could look like? Look no further than a new facility in Chicago's River West neighborhood.

That's according to General Electric Vice Chair Beth Comstock, who spoke at a panel with AOL co-founder Steve Case Saturday morning at the SXSW Interactive conference in Austin, Texas.

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Comstock mentioned Chicago's brand-new mHub, a new facility for physical product innovation, as an example of how startups and massive companies like GE will work together to disrupt traditional industries in the future.

The two discussed the "third wave" of the internet, which Case explains as a period where entrepreneurs will use technology to revolutionize sectors like health care, energy and manufacturing. Case's book, "The Third Wave: An Entrepreneur's Vision of the Future," was released in April 2016. The first wave, he explained, was building the infrastructure for the internet; the second wave was building apps and software on top of it.

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The third wave could bring productivity and efficiency to longstanding industries, Comstock said.

"It's been the great promise of the internet, but it hasn't been delivered at the scale and at more traditional industries like it will be in the next decade," she said.

AOL co-founder Steve Case speaksin Chicago in 2016. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune)

A major part of the third wave, Case said, will be different-sized companies working together.

"The trick in this third wave increasingly is going to be partnerships between some of these startups that have really good ideas and move really quickly, and large organizations that have tremendous scale, credibility and understanding of the environment and distribution channels," he said. "How do you bring those forces together so the small companies can get a lot more traction than they might on their own, and big companies can stay relevant and be more agile?"

Comstock highlighted mHub as one place that's facilitating those relationships. GE Fuse, an initiative to create and build industrial products, is a tenant of the facility. Working at mHub gives GE the ability to pull from entrepreneurs in the Chicago ecosystem, she said.

"There are a lot of suppliers and people solving really tough problems. So they come in and everybody contributes ideas, and then you go next door and you test it out, you 3-D print the parts, see if it's going to work," she said. "That's really, I think, the future that's now. You're seeing more and more of these spaces."

mgraham@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @megancgraham
Nine Illinois RadioShack stores could close as soon as next week.

The electronics retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in just over two years Wednesday and is seeking court approval to close anywhere from roughly a third to "substantially all" of its stores, according to bankruptcy court filings.

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RadioShack said it has been winding down business at 187 stores with the slowest sales and highest rent.

The company expects to complete liquidation sales at those stores, which include locations in La Grange, Willowbrook, Frankfort, Des Plaines, Round Lake Beach, Schaumburg, Crystal Lake, Moline and DeKalb, between Monday and March 28, according to a Thursday court filing.

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About 365 other locations could close or be transferred to Sprint, which operates stores inside some RadioShack stores, the company said in court filings. Among that second group are stores in Aurora and Chicago's McKinley Park and Gladstone Park neighborhoods.

RadioShack said it is still considering its options for the remaining roughly 1,000 stores.

lzumbach@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @laurenzumbach
Seaway Bank and Trust, the former black-owned Chicago bank that was closed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and sold in January, is being sold again.

The State Bank of Texas struck a deal last week to sell nine of 10 Seaway branches and about $240 million in deposits to North Carolina-based Self-Help Credit Union. The assets  Seaway's $200 million portfolio of loans  will stay with State Bank of Texas, along with the O'Hare International Airport branch, according to executives.

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The deal is expected to close May 1, pending regulatory approval from the Texas Department of Banking and the FDIC.

Chan Patel, chairman and CEO of Dallas-based State Bank of Texas, said the deal will allow Self-Help to begin making loans from day one without the burden of some bad loans that remain in the Seaway portfolio.

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"It will benefit the community," Patel said Friday. "We would not have been able to start lending until we cleaned up the portfolio, which would have been two or three years."

About 40 percent of Seaway's loans are mortgages, 40 percent are to churches, and 20 percent are consumer and other loans, he said.

The State Bank of Texas will keep the Seaway Bank and Trust name, while Self-Help will be able to use Seaway for its new Chicago credit union branches, Patel said.

A minority-owned community bank founded in 1965 to counter discriminatory lending practices, Seaway ran into trouble during the housing crisis, which left many of its customers struggling to pay their home mortgages. The FDIC closed the bank in January, and the State Bank of Texas emerged from an auction as its new owner.

Patel said a deal to sell the deposits and branches to Self-Help was in the works before State Bank of Texas secured Seaway.

"We already knew before we bought it that there's an organization ready to buy the banks, buy the deposits," Patel said.

A Self-Help spokesman said plans are still under development, but the credit union "is committed to preserving Seaway's legacy and continuing its mission."

"Seaway built a long history of financial service to families and businesses of modest means," Self-Help CEO Martin Eakes said in a prepared statement. "We seek to carry Seaway's torch forward."

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Founded in 1980, Self-Help is a nonprofit lender focused on those "underserved by conventional lenders, including people of color, women, rural residents and low-wealth families and communities," according to its website. It has provided more than $7 billion in financing to more than 120,000 families, individuals and businesses.

The credit union has more than 40 branches, mostly in North Carolina. In 2012, Self-Help acquired the former Second Federal Savings and Loan in Chicago's Archer Heights neighborhood, near Midway Airport, where it services 14,000 predominantly Latino depositors and borrowers.

rchannick@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @RobertChannick
A photo provided by the National Transportation Safety Board via the Florida Highway Patrol shows a Tesla Model S that crashed May 7, 2016, while in autopilot mode, a setting short of full self-driving. The driver, Joshua Brown, was killed in the crash. U.S. safety regulators found Tesla was not at fault. (NTSB via Florida Highway Patrol)

Q: With the imminent arrival of self-driving motor vehicles, who will be liable for crashes when they occur? More to the point, why should I, despite being the owner of the vehicle, still be required to provide insurance, when I am a passenger, not the driver? Even if my role is "emergency backup" or "co-pilot" will I be liable for the car's actions or failures? I certainly would like the option of purchasing insurance for myself/family/friends, as passenger(s), but am opposed to the idea of being required to purchase liability insurance. Even now, as more of the responsibilities for safety are being assumed by the vehicle's onboard systems, why haven't insurance premiums seen a more significant drop? What sort of consideration is being given to this situation by the automotive and insurance industries, and our elected leaders?

 M.S., Baldwinsville, N.Y.

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A: The Insurance Information Institute states: "Except that the number of crashes will be greatly reduced, the insurance aspects of this gradual transformation are at present unclear. However, as crash avoidance technology gradually becomes standard equipment, insurers will be able to better determine the extent to which these various components reduce the frequency and cost of accidents. They will also be able to determine whether the accidents that do occur lead to a higher percentage of product liability claims, as claimants blame the manufacturer or suppliers for what went wrong rather than their own behavior. Liability laws might evolve to ensure autonomous vehicle technology advances are not brought to a halt. ...

"A study of the benefits of self-driving vehicles by the RAND Corporation, released in 2016, includes a discussion of liability insurance options. The study, 'Autonomous Vehicle Technology: A Guide for Policymakers,' explores the benefits, drawbacks and risks of autonomous vehicle use. According to the study, manufacturer liability is likely to increase, while personal liability is likely to decrease. ...

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"As cars are become increasingly automated the onus might be on the manufacturer to prove it was not responsible for what happened in the event of a crash. The liability issue may evolve so that lawsuit concerns do not drive manufacturers and their suppliers out of business.

"RAND has suggested some kind of no-fault auto insurance system."

We do not have a clue what our elected leaders are up to. Insurance is a state-level, not national, issue so it is difficult to grasp this conundrum.

Q: My Honda dealer has told me that the cover on my catalytic converter is rusting on my 2009 Honda CRV and I need to replace it at the cost of $200. Could this be a factor in my vehicle passing emission testing? Should I get it replaced?

 C.G., Joliet

A: The cover you mention is a heat shield. It helps keep combustible materials from contacting the hot catalytic converter. The car will run fine with a damaged or missing shield, and it has no effect on the emissions test. As long as your check engine light is not illuminated, your vehicle will most likely pass. Yes, you should get it replaced before it starts rattling and driving you nuts.

Send questions along with name and town to Motormouth, Rides, Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Fourth Floor, Chicago, IL 60611 or motormouth.trib@verizon.net.
The restaurant Hot Doug's, and the very idea of it, was a cosmic event. We will never again in our lifetime see a restaurant where devotees stand in line for 12 hours to sample a hot dog (which was what happened this past Saturday).

Surely, other Chicago restaurants serve food just as delicious and innovative. Somehow, Doug Sohn's eponymous Avondale restaurant elevated a mere hot dog stand into a religion, one in which people were compelled to tattoo their skin in permanent ink to dine for free. In that context, out-of-towners who ventured to Chicago to dine at Hot Doug's have been correct in describing their trip as a pilgrimage.

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Be it hype, exclusivity, the clever sandwiches, long lines perpetuating longer lines  Hot Doug's wait times have snowballed into ridiculous lengths since Sohn announced in May he was closing shop. But the time has now arrived. Sometime on Friday evening, the last ever Hot Doug's customer will be admitted. A documentary crew will be filming the event for posterity. One could argue this is the most significant Chicago restaurant closing since Charlie Trotter's.

Of course Sohn, the genial face of sausage bonhomie, thinks this has all been bananas.

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This is an edited transcript of our conversation.

Q: Where's your head at?

A: It's a good question. One of the benefits of being insanely busy is I haven't had a chance to sit down and think about it. Intellectually, I know we're closing, but we still have a business to run. It's four times busier than it's ever been. What we did this past weekend, numbers wise, was like a third of what we did in all of January.

Q: How many customers are we talking about?

A: I always figure 75 customers an hour. We did close to 800 people (a few Saturdays ago), in a restaurant that holds 45. My job now is to make sure we have food to serve every day.

Q: Is running out of food a legitimate risk?

A: We ran out of corn dogs today. Last Saturday, we had to make two runs for hot dog buns. If anyone in Roscoe Village planned to have hot dogs on Sunday, they had to drive much further.

Q: What's happening to the space after Oct. 3?

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A: We're not out of there until the end of October, so there's no immediate rush. We need to take stuff off the walls, for example, and we'll do a charity auction of anything Hot Doug's related. There's a restaurant going in there  it's the guys who own Fatso's Last Stand and The Lockdown.

Q: The most frequent comment I've seen on social media regarding your closure is, "People are waiting six hours-plus for a hot dog? They're crazy." Are people crazy?

A: No. People spend $60,000 for a car. I think that's insane, when I have a 1995 Toyota Corolla that gets me where I want to go. I mean, it's not like they're waiting in your living room. If you don't want to wait for hot dogs, I'm not sending you a summons. Are people crazy to spend $500 on a meal? Someone binge watching "The Good Wife" for six hours is a good thing, but waiting for food isn't? I don't judge.

Q: Surely you must feel a bit embarrassed by all this attention.

A: A little bit. The Tuesday we announced our closure, there were four TV stations here. I turned to them at one point and said, "Is there nothing going on in Chicago?" It's embarrassing only in the sense that, being in the restaurant business, I know how hard everybody works. There are some very good restaurants that don't get any publicity. On the same token, I have a retail business to run, and that helps run my business and supports other families and generates income for 10 employees.

Q: You get this feeling of attending your own funeral when customers say, "We're going to miss you."

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A: There's a weird aspect of it. I mean, I'm not dead, I'll be around.

Q: But your persona is a man selling hot dogs. It's like having Abbott without Costello.

A: I totally understand that. And a lot of heartfelt people have said, "This is my favorite restaurant, it's been a big part of my life the last 10 years." People who had first dates here are now bringing their kids in. I sort of wish everyone got the chance to feel what I'm feeling.

Q: You're 52. Are you retiring?

A: No, no. From the restaurant business? Yes.

Q: When will you get back to work?

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A: I can't imagine anything happening until spring. I want to travel a bit. In October I'll be renting an RV for two weeks with my girlfriend  we're heading down the bourbon trail in Kentucky, the Carolinas, Nashville and Dollywood, because you're obligated to visit Dollywood if you rent an RV.

Q: What's your next job going to be?

A: I've got a bunch of ideas. I get the feeling it'll be multiple things. The two things I do know: It won't be a restaurant and it won't be a food truck. I'd like to gear toward giving back in some capacity, maybe a charity or non-profit.

Q: You wouldn't close up shop if you're not financially set, right?

A: I don't live above my means. I've always put money away.

Q: I did some calculations. If you get 800 customers, averaging $15 a person, that's $12,000 gross in one day. Have you always been profitable?

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A: It took a few years. But (since) we re-opened after the fire (in 2004), it's always been profitable.

Q: When did the lines go nuts?

A: Three events. "Check, Please!," then Travel Channel with Anthony Bourdain and "Food Paradise," and then the day we announced we were closing.

Q: I've always wanted to know how one gets selected to be named a celebrity sausage.

A: That has been the bane of my existence. It became crazy to come up with names every day. We auctioned it off a few times and people have paid way too much money. At this point, if you asked, I'd put you up there. One less name for me to come up with.

Q: There have been a few celebrity highlights throughout the years.

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A: When New Kids On The Block reunited a few years ago, we had hysteria. We named a sausage after Joey McIntyre or Jordan Knight, and people called me up asking me to send them the sausage. One woman said, "I don't like sausages but I had to order one." Crazed New Kids fans.

Q: Anna Kendrick came in once.

A: That was fun. I knew she was in town for a movie. I got a call from her people, "Hey we're filming, can Anna Kendrick come in?" There's a line out the door and I said, sure, just come in.

Q: Wait, you let her cut in line?

A: If you're on the menu board, you can. I was obligated because I used her name. So she comes in. The first thing I said was, "Are you mad at me?" I thought maybe she was offended I named a sausage after her. She said, "No!" So they sit down and eat, and I see a guy grab his phone taking pictures and starts jumping up and down. Anna goes, "We gotta go." She signed the menu board and left. So technically she dined and ditch. I wasn't going to charge her, but I never had the opportunity to say, "It's on me." Then that sausage eventually became known as the Malin Akerman. She Instagrammed a picture of the sign and said she was excited because it was her favorite food group. Then Anna Kendrick said in an interview she was boycotting Chicago because we took her off the board for Malin Akerman. Now that was funny.

Q: Have there been celebrities demanding special treatment?

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A: We've gotten calls from hotels. Carl Reiner's people said, "Carl wants to come but can't wait in line. I told them, "bummer." This one journalist from Austin dropped the writer card and asked, "Hey, is there a way I can get in?" No. The people who should bypass lines are the ones who come every week, and their money is the same as everyone's. And they wait in line. Aziz Ansari waited in line. Mario Batali and Anthony Bourdain waited in line.

Q: I heard a documentary is being made about the last days of Hot Doug's.

A: They've already been filming. These are real filmmakers who say they'll put it together and take it out to festivals.

Q: If this was your enduring legacy  that of a successful hot dog restaurateur  would you be satisfied? Do you need an act two?

A: I didn't set out to have this legacy. To me, it's all gravy. Assuming I could still make a living out of the public eye, then it's fine. My brother and I were talking about music recently and how incredibly hard it is to write a hit song. People say about certain bands, "Well they were one-hit wonders." That's really hard to do. So if this was my one hit, then, OK.

Q: Visiting Hot Doug's before it closes is on the bucket list of a lot of people.

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A: It's flattering. But the idea of a bucket list makes no sense to me. Because you're trying to accomplish something purely for the sake of accomplishing it. The goal is to the journey. Some of my greatest memories are things that happened that I didn't set out to do. "Oh, this restaurant is close, so we detoured here instead and that was extraordinary."

Q: Did that mindset come from your parents?

A: Definitely that. But also having success when I was older. That Hot Doug's didn't happen when I was 24.

Q: How would it have been different if you had this success at 24?

A: I would've been much more caught up in the glory of it. Probably would have pursued multiple Hot Doug's. Not being as cognizant of the separation of restaurant and home. And probably at that age, doing drugs. (Laughs)

Q: Someone once offered you seven figures to franchise the restaurant. That would be hard for most people to turn down.

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A: Any decision I've made that was purely for the money, I've always regretted.

Q: What's the best piece of advice you've received?

A: My grandfather said if you make $100 and you spend $101, you're in trouble. You know, I remember reading this interview once with the president of Sony from 30 years ago. They were asking about the Walkman and how much market research was done. He said, "We didn't do market research. We created this product, made it at the right price and told people they need it." People would say, "You sell sausages?" "Yeah, but we sell good sausages."

Q: And you don't want to sell sausages anymore.

A: Intellectually I need to exercise another part of my brain. There's a real appeal of closing because I can, not because I have to. It was the end of last year, and I was thinking, "You know, we might be done." I didn't know if I could ask another person if they wanted this steamed or grilled. We've done so above and beyond anything we could've imagined. Once I came to the decision to close, the acceptance of it came easy. It just felt right.

Q: What would you have told your 22-year-old self?

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A: I don't know. And this is where studying philosophy in college helped: I wouldn't be here if it weren't for all the decisions, good or bad, some that worked out and some didn't, all of which that lead to this point. I'm very content now. There were no wrong decisions. There were decisions. I get the "what will you do next" question a lot, and honestly I don't know. That's exciting. I have the luxury of not having kids who have to go to college or need braces.

Q: No regrets about not having children?

A: Zero. Hot Doug's is the greatest form of birth control ever. There was this kid the other day who was wailing. And it wasn't the kid's fault; any parent who makes him wait for three hours, at least have a juice box or something to feed him. A friend said the older you get, the more you regret not having kids. And it's actually been the opposite.

Q: You're in a happy relationship.

A: My girlfriend Barbara and I have been together for almost 18 years. We met at cooking school.

Q: Are you a great home cook?

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A: No. There's this old joke: "What do you call a guy who graduated last in medical school? Doctor." I'd say I was somewhere in the middle. Some of my limitations were more physical, such as knife skills. I'm OK, just not very speedy. I was always better at matching flavors, looking at seven ingredients and figuring out what to do with it.

Q: I'm interested what you would cook at home.

A: Just a bowl of spaghetti with good olive oil, good cheese, prosciutto or salami, and I'm the happiest guy in the world. That's something I'm looking forward to, which is cooking a bit more. When I got home Saturday after work at 10 p.m., I was starving, and I just wanted to be in the kitchen. I made an omelet with some salami, cheese and good butter. It was fun just to cook, be quiet and pour a little Scotch.

Q: You take sausages back home?

A: Oh yeah. I'll always experiment.

Q: Will you pull a Johnny Carson and become a recluse? Would you ever, say, do a pop-up restaurant?

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A: I haven't ruled that out. Like a one-night charity thing. Not saying I would, but I'd consider that.

Q: What's the high point of the restaurant's 13-plus years?

A: The fact that we got here. Doing a book (Hot Doug's: The Book) was good. Being part of the foie gras silliness is cool. Being the answer to a trivia question: I'm 99 percent certain we're the only restaurant fined for serving foie gras. (The sale of foie gras was banned in Chicago from 2006-2008.) Others only got a warning. You know, my only goal was to open for six months. To open up the store and do the best we can and hopefully someone would like it.

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Q: You opened Hot Doug's at the right time.

A: Age wise, the right time, Chicago wise, the right time. And there was a lot of luck. The thought of opening a restaurant now is just an insane proposition. We were able to work out the kinks. You can't do that anymore  restaurants get reviewed before they're even opened.

Q: Why close on a Friday instead of Saturday?

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A: Friday would just be as busy as Saturday, and I couldn't do that two days in a row.

Q: Will you cry Friday?

A: I don't know. I thought about that. I'm not a big crying guy, but maybe.

kpang@tribune.com

Twitter @pang
North Korea is an authoritarian state led by the Kim family for more than 60 years. According to the newly released annual State Department Human Rights Report, human rights conditions in North Korea remain abysmal.

The government subjects citizens to rigid controls over many aspects of their lives, including denial of the freedoms of speech, press, assembly, association, religion, movement, and worker rights.

The government operates a network of political prison camps in which conditions are often harsh, life threatening, and include forced and compulsory labor. According to the 2015 Korea Institute for National Unification white paper, the Ministry of State Security administered prison camps, or kwanliso camps. There were reportedly between 5,000 and 50,000 prisoners in each of the five kwanliso.

Reports indicated that conditions in the prison camp and detention system were harsh and life threatening and that systematic and severe human rights abuse occurred. Detainees and prisoners consistently reported violence and torture, and defectors described witnessing public executions in political prison camps.

Numerous defector accounts and non-governmental organization reports describe the use of torture by authorities in several detention facilities.Methods of torture and other abuse reportedly included severe beatings; electric shock; prolonged periods of exposure to the elements; humiliations such as public nakedness; confinement for up to several weeks in small punishment cells in which prisoners were unable to stand upright or lie down, among others.

Mothers were, in some cases, reportedly forced to watch the infanticide of their newborn children. Defectors continued to report many prisoners died from torture, disease, starvation, exposure to the elements, or a combination of these causes.

The 2016 White Paper on Human Rights in North Korea, published by the Korea Institute for National Unification and the 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry report stated that officials had in some cases prohibited live births in prison and ordered forced abortions as recently as 2013.

"Promoting human rights and democratic governance is a core element of U.S. foreign policy, said U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. These human rights reports, he said, "demonstrate the United States unwavering commitment to advancing liberty, human dignity, and global prosperity"  including in North Korea.
Santo Lozoya, 19, and Jose Martinez, 23, are charged in a Dec. 16, 2016 fatal shooting on the Northwest Side. (Chicago Police Department) (Chicago Police Department / HANDOUT)

Two men were ordered held on $2 million each in a December fatal shooting in the city's Belmont Heights neighborhood.

Prosecutors said shortly after 10 p.m. on Dec. 16, Santo Lozoya, 19, and Jose Martinez, 23, after attending a Chicago Bulls game, drove in separate cars to a convenience store at the corner of Grace Street and Harlem Avenue.

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When Crispin Coliz, 28, and two friends entered the store, Lozoya and Martinez approached them and Martinez made a motion toward his waist implying he had a gun, prosecutors said.

Lozoya then pulled out a gun and racked the slide back. Soon after, Coliz left the store because he forgot his wallet. When he came back, Martinez asked him and his two friends "what's up?" The three ignored Martinez and continued making their purchases, and Lozoya and Martinez left, prosecutors said.

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Coliz and his friends got into a vehicle and pulled out on Harlem Avenue where a second car of friends followed behind. The group eventually turned on to Grace Street, but after traveling a half block, they noticed a white Jeep behind them, prosecutors said.

Coliz told his friends the people in the Jeep were the same men from the liquor store. The Jeep then pulled up to the driver side door of Coliz's vehicle, and an arm reached out the passenger side window and opened fire, prosecutors said.

Coliz's vehicle pulled away from the scene but crashed nearby. Several neighbors came out their homes and called police.

Coliz, of the 4800 block of Rotary Road in Cherry Valley, suffered a wound to the head, and was taken to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge where he was pronounced dead, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

After the slaying, both Martinez and Lozoya told witnesses about their involvement in the shooting. Another witness identified Lozoya as the person she lent her car to on the day of the slaying, prosecutors said.

Lozoya was arrested March 8 at his home, where Martinez was discovered inside. Police found a blue-steel semi-automatic 9 mm handgun with 15 rounds that had been reported stolen out of a Barrington home, prosecutors said.
When it comes to short-term rental sites like Airbnb, Des Plaines leaders find themselves in an increasingly familiar position for local authorities: trying to strike a balance between addressing local concerns and not getting sued.

Aldermen discussed a possible home-sharing ordinance at a recent City Council meeting, but officials acknowledged that any law they pass could risk a court challenge.

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"We've been told that every municipality that has proposed stringent regulations against their model has been sued," community development director Mike McMahon told council members.

"We would definitely work with our legal department to make sure that we prepare an ordinance that would withstand a challenge, but that would take a little bit more time if we wanted to prohibit short-term rentals or the Airbnb model," he said.

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Des Plaines is the latest in a long list of area communities  including Wilmette, Schaumburg, Park Ridge and Lincolnshire  that have grappled with how to regulate home-sharing, when people use an online platform to rent out rooms or residences for as little as one night. But staying within legal boundaries has proven tricky, with city of Chicago and others being sued over their attempts to regulate short-term rentals.

Proponents say the "sharing economy" should be allowed to govern itself. Detractors counter that properties available on such sites are increasingly not owner-occupied but ones bought up expressly for short-term rentals, effectively functioning as hotels while skirting regulations that govern the hospitality industry.

At the council meeting, several residents spoke of another concern: security. They said people who stay in short-term vacation rentals could pose a threat to the community because even those who own the properties likely know little about who rents them.

"That's not healthy for the community I'm bringing my children up in," resident Katrina Williams said.

Another resident, Cathy Cruz, told the council there is an Airbnb rental on her street and that she wants such properties regulated or prohibited.

"It's really unnerving not knowing who people are and who cars belong to," she said.

McMahon said city ordinances currently don't distinguish between long- and short-term rentals and that a special license is required to rent out any property. Enforcement is "complaint-driven," he said.

"As you know, we've had issues with the Airbnb-type model that has popped up over the last couple of years," he said. "Right now we don't go after the short-termers."

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Ald. Malcolm Chester said local laws need to catch up.

"When circumstances change, we have to change our regulations to fit that situation," he said.

The ordinance under consideration would address short-term rentals specifically in licensing and zoning codes. A short-term rental would be defined as less than 30 days and would be allowed in residential districts, but the owner would have to get a short-term property rental license, costing $100, for each rental period.

Such properties would also be subject to inspection and could be rented out a maximum of 10 days per year.

"We're at the point where we need direction from the council on how you want to regulate these," McMahon said.

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Des Plaines officials examined how 10 surrounding communities are dealing with the issue and reported variations in licensing and rental limits.

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Some aldermen also said they want to guard against over-regulation.

"The 10 days is pretty restrictive and could prove prohibitive," said Ald. Don Smith. "I'm less inclined to be so restrictive."

Resident Mike Schnell told the council he rents out rooms in his house on Airbnb because he likes meeting people from other countries. He also said he has never had a problem with renters and that the host sites screen customers and take other steps to ensure everything is legitimate.

"I'll close it if you want," he said of his Airbnb. "I'm just doing it for the fun."

McMahon said city staff expect to return to the council with a draft ordinance in a few months.

Brian L. Cox is a freelance reporter.
Dean Angelo Sr., president of the Fraternal Order of Police, takes questions from the media after speaking June 28, 2016, to the City Club of Chicago at Maggiano's Banquets. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)

The president of the union representing thousands of rank-and-file Chicago police officers faces a runoff in his bid for re-election after failing to garner more than 50 percent of the vote in a race with five challengers.

Dean Angelo Sr., president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7, finished first with 34.8 percent but must now go head-to-head with runner-up Kevin Graham, a former FOP trustee who received 24.8 percent. The runoff will be in early April. Both active and retired officers are eligible to vote.

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Michael Shields, a controversial former president of Lodge 7, finished third with 19 percent of the vote, according to Anne Kavanagh, a spokeswoman for the union.

Angelo has been FOP president during a three-year term rocked by the fallout over the court-ordered release of video showing a white Chicago police officer shooting black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times. That brought increased attention to the conduct of officers, resulting in a sharp drop in arrests and street stops and contributing, some officers think, to the rise in homicides last year to levels unseen in two decades.

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A former college professor, Angelo had been on disability leave from the Police Department for about a decade until recently because of on-duty injuries to his left knee. He will officially retire from the department in June when he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 63, but he would still stay on as union president if he prevails in the runoff.

Graham is a patrol officer assigned to the Town Hall police district on the North Side who has held posts with the state FOP as well as the Chicago lodge.

Whoever wins the runoff will head the union's negotiations for a new contract with the existing one set to expire June 30. The current contract has come under fire in the fallout over McDonald's fatal shooting.

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A task force on police accountability formed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel in the aftermath of the McDonald scandal criticized the union contract for contributing to a "code of silence" that protects bad officers. Negotiations over the next contract, the task force wrote, should focus on removing current provisions that prevent people from filing anonymous complaints and force them to sign affidavits describing police misconduct before investigators look into complaints.

According to a 2015 Tribune investigation, nearly 60 percent of about 17,770 complaints filed against officers during a four-year period were thrown out without being fully investigated because the alleged victims did not sign required affidavits.

The task force also was critical that the contract gives officers 24 hours after a shooting before submitting to interviews, time that could allow them to confer with colleagues. Police also should no longer be allowed to amend their statements after reviewing video or audio recordings, the task force wrote.

Angelo has argued that the affidavit requirement is necessary to protect good cops from false accusations filed anonymously. As for the 24-hour rule, Angelo has said that pales in comparison with a 72-hour requirement at the FBI.

But critics have said the provisions give the police an opportunity to collude and even formulate a favorable version of events after shootings and that the provisions discourage alleged victims from coming forward against officers for fear of retaliation.

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jgorner@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @JeremyGorner
People line the Riverwalk to watch the dyeing of the Chicago River onMarch 11, 2017, to kick off St. Patrick's Day weekend in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)

Excitement swept the crowds that gathered along the Chicago River on Saturday morning as the moment some waited all year for neared. Some held their cameras at the ready; others adjusted their wide-rimmed emerald hats to get a closer view.

And then the motorboats were off. They sped down the river, and the crowds roared at the boats' fluorescent green wakes. People danced and blew into lime green vuvuzelas. They tiptoed to wave to the boats' crews, who sifted orange powder into the murky water to dye it shamrock green.

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Members of the Montesinos family, who've traveled many times to Chicago from Minneapolis to watch the dyeing of the river, thought they knew what to expect  until a boat cruising by splashed them with the dye, which trickled onto their hats and coats like bright green raindrops.

The Chicago River is dyed emerald green March 11, 2017, to kick off St. Patrick's Day weekend in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune) (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune)

"Look!" Tonya Montesinos, 42, cried out, laughing at the glowing drops that speckled her jacket. "Now we all get to take a bit of St. Patrick's Day in Chicago home with us."

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Further east along the Riverwalk, near the Michigan Avenue Bridge, friends in a group found themselves posing for picture after picture for strangers  the result of their lively and intricate costumes.

"I had packed with me a little green school-girl cardigan, and thought that was enough," said Janice Anderson, 43, who traveled from Colorado to attend the St. Patrick's Day festivities for the first time in honor of her birthday. She met up with friends Dora Jacobs, 53, and Paulette Holley, 51, both of Minocqua, Wis., who quickly amped up Anderson's look.

The women Saturday were decked out in green-and-gold tutus, chartreuse wigs, emerald-colored lipstick and matching plush hats that read, "My drinking buddy."

They were there in honor of a mutual friend in Wisconsin with cancer, who had wanted the group to go with her last year, and is too ill this year to celebrate, the women said.

The 62nd annual St. Patrick's Day parade was to commence at noon at the intersection of Columbus and Balbo drives and head north on Columbus to Monroe Street. The grand marshal for the parade  with the theme "Irish Immigration: A New World of Opportunity"  is attorney Martin Healy Jr.
Chicago's next significant historic preservation battle likely will be fought over a century-old, eight-bedroom East Lakeview mansion that a Serbian cultural organization uses as a museum and conservationists consider a rare surviving example of the neighborhood's elegant past.

The museum requested a demolition permit for the American Four Square-style mansion at 448 W. Barry Ave. on Jan. 23, members of its board of directors confirmed Friday.

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But Ald. Tom Tunney, in whose 44th ward the mansion is located, is expected to urge the Commission on Chicago Landmarks to grant the building preliminary protected status at the body's April 6 meeting.

"That's our plan," said the alderman's chief of staff, Bennett Lawson.

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Built in the first decade of the 20th century and designed by high-society architect Frederick W. Perkins, the 11,403-square-foot mansion has been owned and operated by what is now known as the Serbian American Museum St. Sava since 1952. Its exhibits include a tribute to Serbian inventor Nikola Tesla, for whom the American car company Tesla is named.

However, the financially struggling, nonprofit museum has found it difficult in recent years to maintain the mansion, and city officials have cited the museum for deficiencies.

The mansion was put up for sale last year for $3.85 million. Vesna Noble, a member of the museum's board, said the museum has a potential buyer for the property. But if the city confers landmark status, the buyer would pay $1 million less because of restrictions placed on the property, she said.

"This is a small ethnic museum that is experiencing extreme hardship  (Ald.) Tunney is not helping," Noble said.

A spokesman for the Department of Planning and Development, which includes the landmarks commission, replied that applicants for demolition permits are given a chance to show that denying them a permit will prevent "a reasonable and beneficial use or return from the property."

The controversy is playing out against a backdrop of new high-rise development in East Lakeview, long considered a desirable neighborhood because of its proximity to downtown and Lake Michigan. Wirtz Residential, for example, is close to completing construction on a curving apartment tower at 2950 N. Sheridan Road, a couple of blocks from the museum.

Tunney held a community meeting Feb. 28 to discuss a possible landmark district for an area that would include the Barry Avenue mansion and other properties. The district would be bounded by Sheridan and Broadway, and Belmont and Oakdale avenues, Lawson said.

But while Tunney backs landmark status for the mansion, he has not committed to the district. "He would like to have a buy-in from the owners," Lawson said.

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According to a 46-page city report prepared last year, the 2 1/2-story mansion is a "highly-exemplary" example of the American Four Square style, an early 20th century look that was clean-lined and rectangular in appearance and functionally up-to-date compared with picturesque 19th-century Victorian houses. Elaborate Beaux-Arts decoration dresses up its orange-toned facade of narrow, strongly horizontal Roman brick.

The house "exemplifies the large, well-crafted single-family houses that dominated this lakefront neighborhood's streetscapes during the years immediately after its annexation to Chicago in 1889," the report says. It calls the mansion, which was built for silk merchant Daniel O. Hill, "one of the few single-family houses surviving from East Lake View's early days of residential development."

The mansion's block contains everything from greystone single-family homes to Tudor Gothic apartment buildings to four-plus-one apartments, which take their name from having four floors of apartments stacked above one level of parking.

Historic preservationists cite the four-plus-ones, which are widely considered eyesores, as evidence of the need to protect buildings in the area from uncontrolled development.

"When you pass this building and others near it, you really get a sense of Lakeview in another age," said Ward Miller, executive director of the advocacy group Preservation Chicago.

The color-coded Chicago Historic Resources Survey, which categorizes possible landmark buildings throughout the city's neighborhoods, classifies the mansion as "orange."

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That means the mansion possesses potentially significant architectural features or historical associations. When the city gets demolition applications for such buildings, it places them on a 90-day hold to give officials time to consider whether the buildings merit landmark protection.

The hold provision came into play last October when the city received a demolition permit application for the mansion. But the owners withdrew the application Nov. 28, according to a letter from Tunney to the landmarks commission.

The commission was prepared to confer preliminary protected status on the property at its Dec. 1 meeting, records show.

During Friday's interview, the president of the museum's board, Zivojin Pavlovic, stressed that the board has a fiduciary responsibility to obtain the maximum sale price. The museum hopes to use proceeds from the sale to move to a location that is closer to an expressway and has abundant parking. Finding on-street parking is often difficult in East Lakeview.

To be sure, the situation could still change between now and the landmarks commission meeting April 6. "I actually heard from an interested preservation buyer today  so we'll see what shakes out," Lawson emailed Friday.

From the downtown riverwalk to new high-rise office buildings, development along the Chicago River has been a bright spot for Mayor Rahm Emanuel  a welcome diversion from the gun violence that has scarred the city's reputation.

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On Monday, the mayor plans to announce a kind of think tank for future riverfront development. It's called the "Chicago Urban River Edges Ideas Lab."

In an email, a city spokeswoman said the lab "will engage select leading architectural firms with experience in designing award-winning riverfronts, parks and public spaces to help develop design concepts that will lead to a unified design aesthetic for Chicago's riverfront."

The firms will include Studio Gang, Ross Barney Architects, Perkins+Will, Site Design Group, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, London's Adjaye Associates and New York's James Corner Field Operations, the city spokeswoman said. The firms will get a to-be-determined stipend, and their designs will be exhibited at next fall's Chicago Architectural Biennial. The city also plans to use the effort to develop new riverfront design guidelines next year.

The nonprofit Metropolitan Planning Council, which developed the program with the Emanuel administration, will run the lab, said Josh Ellis, a vice president at the council. The Driehaus Foundation and Comcast have donated about $110,000 to the effort, he said.

bkamin@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @BlairKamin
A forensics team examines a damaged bus at the scene of a bombing in Damascus' Old City on March 11, 2017. (Louai Beshara / AFP/Getty Images)

Reporting from AMMAN, Jordan  Twin bombs exploded near an ancient Damascus cemetery on Saturday, killing at least 40 people, many of them Iraqis, in a rare attack on the Syrian capital's iconic Old City, according to officials.

The Syrian state news agency, SANA, said two explosive devices were detonated near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery, an important pilgrimage site for Muslims that is home to several mausoleums frequented by Shiites.

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There also were reports, however, that the attacks may have been conducted by a pair of suicide bombers wearing explosive vests.

The blasts happened near buses that were carrying Iraqi pilgrims, according to Lebanese broadcaster Al Mayadeen.

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Ahmad Jamal, a spokesman for Iraq's Foreign Ministry, said at least 40 Iraqis visiting the site had been killed and 120 wounded in what he called a "criminal terrorist attack."

But the Syrian interior minister, Maj. Gen. Mohammad al-Shaar, said the victims included both visitors and passers-by of various nationalities.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Islamic State as well as Al Qaeda's former affiliate in Syria often have targeted sites revered by Shiites, who are considered by Sunni extremists to be apostates.

Video taken in the wake of the blast and shared on social media showed a number of buses, their sides perforated or shredded by shrapnel from the blasts. Blood-stained shoes were strewn on the detritus-filled street along with a discarded wheelchair.

The bombings represent a rare security lapse in Damascus' Old City, which is guarded by a large number of checkpoints. Although mortar rounds lobbed by rebel forces near the capital remain a threat, the area has been largely spared the destruction seen in other parts of the capital and the country.

The conflict began as a largely peaceful uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad's rule but since has devolved into an internecine proxy war that has killed hundreds of thousands, displaced millions more and ravaged the country.

Shiite-dominated paramilitary groups from Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and Afghanistan have bolstered forces loyal to Assad in their nearly six-year fight against Sunni-dominated armed opposition groups.

Bulos is a special correspondent.
A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape their war-torn homeland by fleeing to Wisconsin.



The ruling likely is the first by a judge since Trump issued a revised travel ban on Monday, according to a spokesman for the Washington state attorney general, who has led states challenging the ban.



A Syrian Muslim man who was granted asylum and settled in Wisconsin has been working since last year to win U.S. government approval for his wife and 3-year-old daughter to leave the devastated city of Aleppo and join him here. The man, who is not identified because of fears for his family's safety, filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trump's first travel ban had wrongly stopped the visa process for his family. U.S. District Judge William Conley set that challenge aside after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the entire Trump travel order.



Trump signed a new executive order on Monday. The Syrian man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon, alleging the new order is still an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion and right to due process. He asked Conley to block its enforcement against his family.



Judge Conley granted that request, saying there were daily threats to the Syrian man's wife and child that could cause "irreparable harm." He issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family. The order doesn't block the entire travel ban. It simply prevents Trump's administration from enforcing it against this family pending a March 21 hearing.



After the Trump ban was blocked the first time, the approval process restarted for the Syrian family and they're now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the U.S. embassy, the last step before U.S. customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesn't have dates for the interviews yet and Trump's new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian man's attorneys.



Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that the new ban may not apply to this family anyway, although they did not go into details. There are various exemptions and waivers in the new ban including some that give consular officers flexibility to decide cases. Conley acknowledged that the family's situation is murky but still issued the order, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case.



The U.S. Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment on it and Conley's order.



Trump issued an executive order in January banning travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. U.S. District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the entire order on Feb. 3.



The revised order issued Monday removed Iraq from the list of countries and would temporarily shuts down the refugee program. Unlike the first order, the new ban would not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.



According to the Syrian man's lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assad's regime and another group fighting in support of Assad. The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and traveled to pro-Assad areas to manage his family's business.



Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife. He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.
INDIANAPOLIS  State police and local authorities are warning residents who recently lost loved ones that burglars in several counties in Northwest Indiana and southern Indiana have been scouring obituaries and social media to target families for break-ins while they're attending funerals.

Lawrence County Sheriff's Office chief deputy Aaron Shoults told the Indianapolis Star that burglaries seen in his southern Indiana county weren't random, but part of "a deliberate effort."

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Shoults said at least six homes of the recently deceased or their mourning relatives were burglarized in Lawrence County in the days after an obituary was published.

"The last thing on their mind is someone is going to break into their loved one's home and that's exactly what's happening," Shoults said.

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Indiana State Police Sgt. Ann Wojas said in a statement that burglars have targeted mourning families in Jasper, Newton, Pulaski and Starke counties in Northwest Indiana.

"Most of the burglaries have been done by forced entry, but there have been some occurrences where people have just left their doors unlocked," Wojas said.

Wojas said families can protect themselves by having someone stay at the home during the funeral and memorial services, locking all entryways and installing a security system. She says families can also ask local police for extra patrols on the home while residents are away.
Almost halfway through their spring session, lawmakers are off to a choppy, unproductive start. Hope for a broad compromise moving through the Senate seems dimmer than ever with Democrats doubling down on their frustration with Gov. Bruce Rauner. They have been lambasting Rauner's hand-picked state agency heads for offering no cost-cutting ideas during budget hearings.

If Rauner expects the legislature to do the cutting for him, he'll be waiting a long time. Not going to happen, especially after Rauner helped stall the compromise resolution that had been moving through the Senate. Rauner and conservative groups said the package didn't go far enough to protect taxpayers.

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So how dead is the so-called grand bargain? The chalk outline appears almost inevitable. But before rigor mortis sets in, someone grab a defibrillator. It's not too late.

Senate President John Cullerton and Republican Leader Christine Radogno spent months working on the package of interconnected bills that include a current-year budget, gambling expansion, a property tax freeze, tax hikes and some pieces of Rauner's pro-business, pro-growth agenda. It is a mass of Democratic and Republican ideas designed to break a budget impasse that is damaging the state's economy, its reputation, its future.

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All along, we have encouraged senators to keep talking, keep negotiating. Quit looking toward 2018. Move the state forward.

But then Republicans yanked their support on March 1, hours before Democrats were scheduled to resume voting on the package. Since then, nothing. Whatever trust existed between the negotiators seems to have evaporated. Democrats are still fuming.

One way to revive the patient: Rauner suggested passing Cullerton's pension changes that have been part of the grand compromise along with a $215 million payment for Chicago teachers' pensions. Cullerton's bill would need to include state workers  it doesn't currently  to maximize savings. The bill would give them, along with university employees, Chicago and downstate teachers and lawmakers, the choice of keeping annual compounded cost-of-living adjustments in their pensions or giving up the compounded raises in exchange for a higher pensionable salary when they retire.

It also would offer workers an optional 401(k)-style plan and end the pension system for future members of the General Assembly, finally. They don't need a lucrative pension for a part-time job.

The CPS funding bill, which already passed both chambers but which Rauner vetoed, would allow CPS to avoid some spending cuts and a proposed shorter school year to address its ongoing budget crisis. As it stands, CPS parents and teachers have no idea if their school year will end early, if teachers will participate in a one-day strike, if high school seniors will walk in a graduation ceremony. It's a mess.

Rauner vetoed the money for CPS last fall because it was supposed to be tied to broader pension reform.

Well, lawmakers, here's your chance. Swallow hard, work together and get it done.

The pension proposal is likely to be challenged in court. Illinois Supreme Court decisions haven't left lawmakers much room to change public workers' retirement benefits. But Cullerton has said for years he believes his proposal fits a model the court would accept as constitutional. It gives employees a choice and could save roughly $700 million in pension costs annually for taxpayers. We've previously argued in favor of running pension reform proposals up the Supreme Court's flagpole.

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Is it possible to combine pension reform with CPS funding and get a bill on Rauner's desk? Voting on this duo separate from, or instead of, the overall compromise is a risk. Take out the pension bill from the package of 12 bills and that broader effort could stumble even more.

But if the grand compromise is faltering, can something good come of it?

Don't give up, senators. Keep talking. The condition of the state continues to worsen at an alarming rate. There is no time for grudges.

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Aurora Public Library is looking to get more students to use its facilities.

That is one of the goals of the Aurora Public Library's three-year strategic plan.

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Daisy Porter-Reynolds, the library's executive director, told members of the City Council recently that library employees are poised to begin putting the plan, which was approved by the Library Board late last fall, into action.

"Right now, we're ramping up, we have employee teams in place," she said.

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The strategic plan was developed by a consultant who leaned heavily on community focus groups and community feedback, Porter-Reynolds said. It revolves around five basic areas.

They are: school success; creativity; feed your imagination; welcome to America; and good governance. The first four are connected directly to users of the library, and Porter-Reynolds said the final one, good governance, is dedicated to things the library can do to be more efficient in its own operations.

School success, she said, is "a traditional library role." Not only does it mean getting students to use the library more  the plan sets a 20 percent more usage goal  but getting teachers more familiar with what the library has to offer. That includes making sure teachers have library cards.

Creativity is based in many of the new technological things the library has to offer, such as the maker space with its 3-D printer and other things. The creativity not only extends to students in schools, but to businesses. The library pledges to have more workshops for business, and to have at least 10 businesses do a mentoring program in the maker space.

Feed your imagination is another of the areas that is a library staple  access to books and materials that also includes DVDs and CDs. The library will make an active attempt to buy new books, DVDs and CDs on the same day they are released, Porter-Reynolds said. That should help increase circulation, she added.

The library also pledges to evaluate locations for more possible branches. That is a longer-range consideration, since the library just went through at period of cutting back hours, locations and personnel for budgetary reasons. But she said despite that, the library continues to look at how to better serve the community  including remote locations, whether it means a branch, a limited service location of another place to bring the bookmobile.

Welcome to America is a chance for the library to help the new citizens who relocate to Aurora acclimate to their new country. This could include in-house citizenship classes, she said

John Savage, Library Board president, said library staff has committed to giving the Library Board regular updates on how plan implementation is going, and the Library Board will, in turn, give the City Council similar updates.

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"They're going to come back to the board every six months to report how we're doing," he said.

Slord@tribpub.com
The U.S. government, through the Agency for International Development, or USAID, announced its continuing support to the education sector in Bauchi, Nigeria.

This five-year memorandum of understanding, or MOU, sets out the shared and individual commitments for collaboration in the education sector made by both USAID and the government of Bauchi and provides a framework for mutual accountability for education activities in Bauchi State. The MOU supports the Bauchi state governments education goals and establishes a preliminary plan for joint monitoring and evaluation of progress.

USAID supports Nigerias efforts to improve the quality of and access to basic education. Currently, USAID implements three activities that support Bauchi State efforts to improve the education sector: Northern Education Initiative Plus, Education Crisis Response, and the Leadership, Empowerment, Advocacy and Development. These activities build state and local government capacity and systems that will teach approximately 2 million primary school children how to read and allow nearly 551,000 children the opportunity to attend classes in community-based learning centers by the year 2020.

The United States commends Bauchi State for its extraordinary efforts to provide greater learning opportunities for its children, said USAID Mission Director Michael Harvey. This MOU will expand the partnership between USAID and Bauchi State to improve primary education in Bauchi.

The United States is proud to work with its partner Nigeria to provide a better future for the children of Nigeria.
Ali Hill, like many of her classmates at Jewel Middle School in West Aurora School District 129, balances schoolwork with participation in the school band, music lessons and other activities.

But Ali, 13, also has to find time to write song lyrics and for frequent trips between her North Aurora home and Nashville, where she signed a deal in October with the country music label Silverado Records. Her first single, "Crazy," came out Friday. One day she hopes to have fans who know her lyrics, can relate to them and can sing them back to her, she said.

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To help her get there, part of her family is planning to move with Ali, who performs under the name Ali Morgan, to Nashville in the coming months. Though her mom, Michelle Hill, said the upcoming move is "bittersweet," she said she feels it's what the family is supposed to be doing.

"I don't want to ever look at either of my children and say I could have done something more for your dream, to help make those happen," she said.

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Ali's house is typically full of music, and often several family members are listening to different songs at the same time, her parents said. When Ali was young, she talked of wanting her own tour bus, Hill said. She is a huge fan of Taylor Swift.

At first, Ali performed in elementary school plays, but she soon realized that wasn't the direction she wanted to go. She began playing guitar when she was around 9, has taken drum lessons and still plays percussion in her school band, she said. She has sought out gigs in Aurora and around the area and busked, Hill said.

She enjoys song lyrics and the stories told through music, Ali said.

"I like how you can relate to it," she said. "You kind of have your own...place to get away to."

Ali's dad, Steve, saw Silverado Records mention they were looking for new artists, and sent in a demo without telling anyone else in the family. He didn't think anything would come of the submission, he said.

When Silverado contacted Ali, she thought they were looking just to have a conversation or provide some tips, she said. She was "kind of blown away" when representatives from the label mentioned they wanted to offer her a deal, she said.

Though Ali's trips to Nashville have gotten more frequent, she and her family try to plan them around her days off school.

"Education always comes first for me, but I make time for my music," she said. "If that means staying up until 10 and trying to write a song, that's what I'll do."

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She draws on her experiences, often with a boy or her family, for her lyrics, she said. She can't always sit down and write on command, but often lyrics will come to her when she's not working, sometimes at school.

Her work has been a family effort. Family members help manage her social media. Her older sister used to hand-make CDs of Ali's work, and does her hair and makeup. Her dad manages the sound equipment for her local gigs.

Leaving the area will be a change for Ali's family. Her parents grew up in the Chicago suburbs, and Hill said she has been involved in North Aurora activities. But Hill said Nashville will open doors for Ali. Already, Ali has learned from experiences and people in Nashville, Hill said.

Ali, for her part, is "above and beyond excited" to move.

She is working on her first album, and so far has written or co-written the songs set to appear on it, Hill said. She has performances scheduled in Nashville, including a big music festival this summer, and also plans to be back in the Aurora area over the summer for performances locally, she said.

Steve Hill said the whole experience has been, like the name of Ali's single, "crazy."

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sfreishtat@tribpub.com

Twitter @srfreish
A man carrying a gun robbed two people Wednesday night in Oak Lawn, police said.

The robbery happened about 9:30 p.m. in the 9100 block of South 52nd Court, police said. No one was injured.

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Oak Lawn police are investigating the possibility that the alleged gunman also was involved in similar incidents in a neighboring community.

According to police, a man carrying a black handgun approached the two people from behind and demanded money.

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The assailant is described as a "young-looking" man in his early 20s, about 5-foot, 8 inches tall with a thin build, Oak Lawn police said. He was last seen running southbound on 52nd Court and wearing a black hooded sweatshirt with dark pants.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Oak Lawn police at 708-422-8292

Nick Swedberg is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
If Illinois lawmakers' inaction, bickering and stubbornness wasn't so sad and pathetic, we'd be laughing.

While he was referencing the verbal feud between Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel and Gov. Bruce Rauner, Chance the Rapper may have provided an eloquent summation of the entire Illinois budget debacle with his recent tweet: "This whole (expletive) thing is embarrassing to be honest."

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Hear! Hear!

Illinois lawmakers' refusal to do their jobs and pass a state budget has real victims. As lawmakers play politics and dawdle, real people are bearing the brunt of the gridlock.

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Their inaction is causing Illinois students of all ages and grade levels to be among those caught in the political crossfire.

Across the state, public universities have navigated the budget impasse by cutting jobs, imposing furlough days and slashing programs, among other things. School officials say they've about cut to the quick.

Governors State University has announced a tuition increase of 15 percent, along with plans to cut 22 degrees. Northeastern Illinois University, meanwhile, just announced 1,100 employees will be taking unpaid furlough days, and about 300 student aides will find themselves unemployed during that time.

That's on top of GSU losing 70 percent of its state funding in the first year of the budget stalemate. Last year, the school's state funding amounted to half of what it normally receives.

A full year of undergraduate classes will be increasing by more than $1,200 to about $9,390, officials said.

And it's not just GSU and Northeastern who are grappling with financial woes. So are public schools across the state.

The Chicago Public Schools system is more than $200 million in the hole.

How's this good for Illinois, exactly?

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Earlier this week, Rauner accused Democrats, led by House Speaker Michael Madigan, of taking part in a "coordinated activity" aimed at causing a crisis that will halt state government. We wish we could accuse Rauner and state lawmakers of coordinating their activities, but in an effort aimed at ending Illinois' political embarrassment.

Madigan's longtime spokesman fired back, saying the governor's claims were "delusional babble" made out of desperation. Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for the attorney general weighed in saying that Rauner needs to "stop the baseless finger-pointing and do his job."

Agreed. But he's not the only one.

Enough's enough. One-line zingers may seem cool to the parties who are lobbing them, but they don't get us anywhere. Nor do they seem so cool to the rest of us who've had to endure this drivel.

Ridiculous demands and stubborn obstructionism haven't gotten us anywhere.

Senate President John Cullerton and Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno valiantly tried and failed to reach a so-called "grand bargain," but Republicans derailed the plan.

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Each day without a budget is costing the state about $11 million. That's not a drop in the bucket. That's real money, and it adds up. Fast.

Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

Without a budget deal soon, GSU President Elaine Maimon says, more cuts could be on the horizon.

GSU is still planning to pay for the Monetary Award Program (MAP) grants, which help out low-income students, Maimon said.

"We put students first at Governors State," she told the Daily Southtown.

We wish Illinois legislators felt the same way.

The Southtown recently spoke with a 26-year-old single mother who's attending classes in health administration about the financial strain the GSU tuition hike will cause her.

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"I'm a single mother, so it's a burden," she said. "It's going to push me back a little bit, but I'm going to have to work around it, I guess."

If she can work around it, lawmakers can work through their differences and do what's right for the state. Now.
Students, teachers and staff at Cambridge Lakes Charter School in Pingree Grove cheered three members of the CLCS Coyotes wrestling team on Friday morning, before they left to compete at the state wrestling meet at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.

The Pingree Grove Fire Department fire truck and Pingree Grove Police Department vehicles participated in the parade around the school that honored the students.

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The three CLCS wrestlers are: eighth grade students Victor Perez and Darius Nguepi, both of Pingree Grove, and sixth grade student Logan Witt of Gilberts.

"The Coyotes wrestling team started three years ago," said Michelle Witt, Logan's mother. "In the first year, one student was sent to the state competition. Last year, two students competed. This year, we sent three students to the state meet. They have worked hard all season, and they did well. The Coyotes beat some schools that are twice our size. We sent 11 students to regionals, and we placed fifth overall."

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According to CLCS officials, Perez qualified for State with a 3rd place win in his weight class. Nguepi won 1st place in his weight class and is the first Coyote athlete to qualify for State in three different sports. Witt is a two-time regional and sectional champion.

Denise Moran is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin listens to the story of a young woman brought to the U.S. at age 4 by her mother. With Durbin is Elgin Community College President Dr. David Sam (right) and Jaime D. Garcia Executive Director of Centro de Informacion. (Gloria Casas / The Courier-News)

The first Dreamer U.S. Senator Dick Durbin ever met was a woman named Anna who was brought from Lithuania at the age of 2.

Anna's family arrived in Baltimore, Maryland and she became a Dreamer  a modern term used for undocumented immigrants brought to this country as a child. The family later moved to East St. Louis, Ill.

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It was where Anna grew up. It is where her son  who became a U.S. Senator  was born and raised.

"That is my story, it is a family story. It's an American's story," said Durbin, sharing his mother's experience at a roundtable discussion on immigration Friday at Elgin Community College. "Every American has a story. We are all here as immigrants to this country."

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Durbin was one of the guest speakers at the discussion. Illinois State Sen. Cristina Castro, Illinois District 43 Rep. Anna Moeller, Executive Director of Centro de Informacion Jaime D. Garcia, Elgin Police Chief Jeff Swoboda and Elgin Mayor Dave Kaptain were also on hand to talk about issues facing immigrants.

Durbin touched on President Donald Trump's new travel ban, released this week. It targets people from six Muslim countries entering the U.S.

Trump's Executive Order on the travel ban is the "most controversial first act of any president in history," Durbin said. The first ban introduced in January was stricken by three federal courts and the new version is being contested by seven states across the country as of Friday, he said.

"I personally think it is a mistake to name six or seven countries when we have not had one example of anyone from those countries commit acts of terrorism" in the U.S., Durbin said. "We want to keep America safe. I don't think this does it." He added it sends a message to the Muslim world, which is substantial, that they are not welcome in this country.

Muslims and Muslim Americans are "wonderful people and an important part of who we are as a nation," Durbin said.

He also does not feel building a wall along the U.S. and Mexican border "speaks well of the country," he said. The debate in Washington over illegal immigration is very emotional and has created anxiety in the state, he said.

"I have a sense as I travel around the state and talk to people that the level of stress, anxiety and fear in the immigration population have never been higher," Durbin said.

Listening to Trump and some of the actions he has taken, the fear is understandable, he said. Durbin said he came to Elgin Community College to hear Elgin's view of immigration first hand.

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He heard from Ana, whose mother brought her at age 4 from Mexico to the U.S. The family settled in Elgin.

"For me it was a little adventure," the 19-year-old Elgin Community College student said.

Elgin has been her home since.

"My entire life, from what I remember to now has been here in Elgin," said Ana. She did not realize she wasn't American until she got older and her parents began telling her not to reveal to anyone that she wasn't from this country, she said.

Ana is now enrolled in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program initiated by President Barack Obama through a 2012 Executive Order. The program allows immigrants living in the U.S. illegally who were brought to the U.S. as children to register and be able to live and work in this country for two years. Every applicant must pass a criminal background check and pay a fee.

She must register again this summer. While she is nervous, she plans to reregister, she said.

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"I am honestly grateful that when I was 4 years old my mom said we are going to a different place," Ana said. "It's been a wonderful adventure."

Ana has become involved with the Organization of Latin American Students at the college and helped organize a forum teaching immigrants their rights.

"It's been a blessing to be able to help my community. It is my community, I grew up here," Ana said. "Even if I wasn't born here, it is my community."

There are almost 800,000 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigrants and the program is a Godsend for many young people, said Durbin, who first introduced the DREAM Act, which stands for Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors, 16 years ago. He said the Trump administration has not taken any action against the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which is the good news. Durbin has advocated for the program with the new president, he said.

"We are trying to keep DACA alive now," Durbin said. "This last election makes that our newly realistic goal."

Durbin reintroduced the BRIDGE Act, which is a bipartisan legislation to make sure Dreamers are protected from deportation and allow immigrants living in the U.S. illegally to work in the U.S., he said.

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What people can do to help is share their own stories, Durbin said. Personalizing stories help elected officials understand and relate to immigration issues, he said.

Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
A forum, hosted by League of Women Voters of the Elgin Area featured District 303 school board candidates Caroline Waibel (from left), Denton Morris, Eric Missil, Ed McNally, Lara Kristofer, Jim Gaffney and Heidi Fairgreve. (Megann Horstead / The Courier-News)

Dozens were on hand at Pottawatomie Community Center for a Thursday, forum hosted by League of Women Voters of the Elgin Area to hear District 303 school board candidates express their views ahead of next month's election.

The audience heard from incumbent candidates Jim Gaffney and Ed McNally challengers Heidi Fairgreve, Lara Kristofer, Eric Missil, Caroline Waibel and Denton Morris.

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Though agreeing the school district should look to have a stable future, candidates expressed differing views as to why they're best fit to serve the board.

With the declining student population in District 303, the candidates agreed that a careful review would be necessary if one of the two high schools were in talks to be closed.

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"As a school board member, we cannot dictate the demographics as we go forward," Gaffney said. "In closing one of the middle schools (recently), we are trying to address the issue of downgrading in a student population."

"But then again, as far as having two high schools, I don't think that I would be totally in favor of trying to combine 3,000 to 4,000 students into one building," he said. "I think basically, the bottom line is that we have a good system set up on both sides of the river, we have an excellent staff and  teachers on both sides of the river, and I think as far as quality education is concerned, to have the two independent schools the way they work now is probably the best scenario."

Kristofer agreed.

"Right now, it seems to be working out, and I wouldn't be looking to change that unless we had some evidence really showing that it was necessary," she said.

Missil suggested the district look into outlining its master plan before considering the prospect of returning to a single high school.

"In terms of going back to the one high school, I think we've got to look at some of the bigger pictures and try to use that to go back and answer that question," he said.

The candidates were asked what the district should do with now-closed Haines Middle School.

"The building that Haines is in was built in the 1950s," McNally said. "I happen to work at a school that was built in about the same era, and we're having a lot of construction problems. They weren't built in an energy-efficient fashion. The classroom area of that building mostly could be demolished, but there is some interest potentially by the park board for use of some of the gym space, things like that. Even some of the classroom could potentially be used."

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McNally said he would not be in favor of selling the land. The district would need to find a way to keep the building occupied, he said.

"When you sell land, it's a valuable asset," McNally said. "You get a one-time bump, and you lose that asset forever."

Waibel suggested that the board look to community partners and area taxing districts for input to see if there is a use for the building.

"It is a building that has stood for a while in the community," she said. "It is possible that we would have to repurpose parts of the building or obviously, do some rehab to it. We have so many community partners in this area that would help with the funding on it, where we wouldn't have to take the burden of that on, in order to continue with our fiscal responsibility."

Fairgreve shared similar sentiments saying the board should look into its three-to-five-year educational strategy for the district in conjunction with the facility maintenance plan.

"I've already received feedback periodically that there are other areas within the district that have a need for additional facilities," she said. "I think we need to do an audit to understand if the Haines Middle School property could meet any those (facility needs)... Ultimately, if we've exhausted all our opportunities, then I think we need to look at is, 'it feasible and does it make sense to market the property for sale?'"

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Megann Horstead is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
A rental property owner in Zion is making another attempt to sue the city under the federal Fair Housing Act, alleging a local ordinance requiring that landlords pay a per-unit inspection fee discriminates against black and Hispanic tenants.

"Defendant has previously tried to curtail rental development using Section 8 as a proxy for race," reads an amended complaint filed Feb. 21 in federal court by TBS Group, a limited liability company that owns rental property in majority-minority neighborhoods and rents "almost exclusively to African-American tenants." Section 8 is the federal program administering housing vouchers for low-income residents.

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A federal judge in January granted the city's motion to dismiss the original complaint, which was filed in June and alleged the ordinance targets renters "based on race and national origin" and "has a disparate impact on African-American and Latino renters."

The rental certification inspection program, originally approved in 2015, imposed a biennial $75-per-unit fee (up to a maximum of $10,000) upon landlords wishing to rent property in the city. The inspection makes sure rental units are up to city code.

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Landlords complained when the inspection fees were under consideration in October 2015, arguing other municipalities in the area don't charge or require anywhere near what Zion was proposing for rental inspections. Zion Mayor Al Hill replied at the time that 60 percent of Zion's living units are rentals and that "a healthy community has 23 percent rental units."

"Zion has 3.5 percent the population of Lake County," Hill said as the council deliberated the inspection fees. "We have 38 percent of the Section 8 vouchers that Lake County gives out. And it's an issue that we have to address.  We have to get our arms around all the rest of the issues that are associated with too many rental units and too much Section 8 rental units."

The complaint alleges that former Zion Mayor Lane Harrison told TBS' principal "in or about 2005 that he did not want more African-Americans to move into her property in Zion."

The complaint also outlines history going back to the 1980s that alleges Zion has undertaken efforts to concentrate minorities and renters in specific areas of the city, particularly a stretch of Hebron Avenue where TBS owns property, and to use urban-renewal policies to prohibit landlords from renting to Section 8 tenants.

"There had been a history of trying to demolish the housing on the block because they were predominantly African-American," Kelli Dudley, a Chicago attorney representing TBS Group, said in a phone interview Friday.

The suit also highlights another recent policy implemented in Zion that allows the city to declare properties "nuisances" and effectively evict residents temporarily by prohibiting occupancy for 30 to 80 days. The city has acknowledged problems with its enforcement of the ordinance in 2016, when property owners received warning letters when tenants were potentially victims of crimes such as sexual assault and domestic violence.

Zion officials have said since then that the city has changed its approach and no longer enforces the ordinance against crime victims.

The complaint makes reference to a News-Sun story from last month about the nuisance property ordinance and cites it as "another attempt" by the city "to eliminate African-American and Latino rental units." Fair housing advocates have raised concerns about such "crime-free" ordinances, which have been implemented across Illinois and the nation, saying they can produce a chilling effect on someone's willingness to call the police for assistance and tend to be enforced more vigorously in predominantly minority areas.

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The complaint says TBS Group "does not have the financial means to comply" with the rental-inspection ordinance and alleges the code is "enforced selectively against landlords who have African-American and Latino tenants."

Reached by phone Friday, Hill said he wasn't aware of the new complaint and declined to comment on it, but he reiterated the position he took in the previous News-Sun story, in which he defended the city's nuisance property ordinance and called allegations of discrimination "laughable."

"The reason we're doing it is to protect the lower-income (residents) and the people who don't have the means to fight for themselves and who are being taken advantage of by the landlords," Hill said last month.

Absentee landlords "often don't care what the living conditions are of their tenants, so we've put these in place to protect life-safety issues for those who can't fight for themselves," he said in February.

A group of rental property owners is also posing an ongoing challenge to Zion's rental inspection program in Lake County Circuit Court, alleging the city doesn't have the authority to impose the program, one of the plaintiffs said last month.

lhammill@tribpub.com

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Twitter @lucashammill
Crowds gather outside and wait for the doors to open for the town hall meeting with U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider at a Northbrook library on Feb. 18. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)

Since President Donald Trump's ascendancy to the Oval Office, there has been an inordinate amount of fear in the nation. There is also a lot of hope.

Many Americans fear the new president's policies on immigration, health care and environmental regulations and have taken to large-scale protests. His supporters, while not as visible with political demonstrations, remain engaged.

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There is hope in the resulting surge in political awareness, discourse and energetic citizen participation, especially at the grass-roots level.

That's a good thing for democracy. Whatever side of the political spectrum, more involvement by our fellow citizens is good for us and good for America.

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Take, for instance, a band of Gurnee area residents who, spurred by Trump's election, have started Northern Lake County Indivisible Against Hate, an offshoot of the national movement Indivisible, which has been organizing progressives and activists against Trump's agenda.

That's one local example of how Trump's election has kicked off a nationwide political awakening that has led to packed congressional town hall meetings, protesters taking to the streets by the thousands and hundreds of irate phone calls to U.S. congressmen and senators.

Discourse and engagement is good. Hand wringing and inaction is not.

Then there are those U.S. lawmakers who are hunkered down in their bunkers, unwilling to meet in person with citizens from their districts. Shame on them  we're looking at you, Congressmen Peter Roskam and Randy Hultgren, in particular  for not meeting with Lake County residents they were elected to represent.

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Roskam, whose 6th Congressional District includes Lake Zurich, Hawthorn Woods and Tower Lakes, has come under fire for his preference for "telephone" town halls rather than in-person forums.

Meanwhile, in January, about 65 people upset with Trump tried to storm the office of Republican U.S. Rep. Randy Hultgren, whose 14th Congressional District includes Gurnee, Antioch, Mundelein and Wauconda. Hultgren says he prefers smaller meetings with constituents to freewheeling town hall sessions.

Both men, who are up for re-election next year, should engage their citizenry.

For those who can't wait for 2018  actually, candidate filing begins this December  there are elections next month where local voices can be heard.

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Get educated. Get to the polls. Speak up. Vote.

Film of rallies and protests in Washington, D.C., may look good on the evening news. But it is using grass-roots organizing to elect candidates, adopt referendum measures and work for representation at the city, village, township, school, library and park levels of government that can foster a movement.

Innovation and change works best from the ground up.
The Niki Moon Salon & Spa and the Vasectomy Clinics of Chicago/thinfast MD medical office were burglarized Friday morning on Naperville's northeast side. (Bill Bird / Naperville Sun)

Naperville hair salon owner Niki Moon says she has some seriously bad news for the man who burglarized her business and that of a neighbor Friday morning.

"Our cameras caught everything, our cameras and our security system," Moon said Friday evening. "We have some pretty clear footage of (the burglar.)"

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Moon is the owner of Niki Moon Salon & Spa, which has been in business for 4 1/2 years in Naperville's Sherman Oaks strip mall at 1100 N. Sherman Ave. north of Ogden Avenue on the city's northeast side.

Naperville police Sgt. Anthony Mannino would not disclose what, if anything, was stolen from the salon and the adjacent Vasectomy Clinics of Chicago/thinfast MD medical office.

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Mannino said the break-ins occurred shortly before 7 a.m. Friday. Several police squad cars converged on the mall following a 911 call, he said.

"A witness observed the suspect inside one of the businesses prior to it being open, and notified police," Mannino said. The burglar was described only as being a man with a thin build who was last seen fleeing from the area on foot.

Mannino would say only that the burglar got inside the businesses using "forced entry." He would not comment further, citing the ongoing investigation.

An employee of the vasectomy clinic said the burglar or burglars got into that office by prying open a rear door.

"I was here first thing (Friday) morning and saw all those (police) cars" in the mall's parking lot, said the worker, who declined to be identified. The rear of the office was found in disarray, and pry marks were discovered near a flat screen television set, which is bolted to a wall in the waiting room, the employee said.

Office keys were found strewn on the floor of the reception area, the worker said. The burglar apparently found the one that opened a drawer, and stole the small amount of money it contained, the employee said.

The mall has several vacant storefronts, and is home to other offices and medical professionals. Two of those offices were closed Friday afternoon, but an employee of First Quality Mortgage Co., which is several doors away from Moon's salon, said her business was not burglarized.

Moon said she would "rather not say how (the burglar) got in, actually, but it was not through the back door. He only got a little bit of petty cash and then some small electronics, (but) nothing major," she said.

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"Some bad things happened today," although the salon was open for business all day Friday and bustled with clients, Moon said.

"I'm really glad that nothing else happened. We go on, and we're great."

Witnesses to the break-ins, or those who believe they have information about the case, were asked to call Naperville police, at 630-420-6726.

wbird@tribpub.com
Erin Villiger admits that her plans to attend this year's St. Patrick's Day parade in Naperville were made weeks ago, when the more unseasonal weather seemed the norm this winter.

But, she said, good Irish fan soldiers on.

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"It's the parade, and we had a great time last year. And the weather is not going to bother me," the Bolingbrook woman said. "This is something that's fun to do, and there are always a lot of attractions."

Organizers from the West Suburban Irish offered their 24th annual version of St. Patrick's Day fun with a 100 float parade that kicked off at 10 a.m. at Naperville North High School. Participants ranged from businesses and politicians to Scouts, Irish dancers, bagpipe players and Shriners.

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Parade co-chairman Terry O' Dowd of the West Suburban Irish group said the parade normally draws at least 12,000 people but that the cold weather probably kept a couple thousand people away.

"We probably have less people along some of the parade route than normal, but people are out here having a good time," O'Dowd said as the parade passed into the 90-minute mark. "I've seen a lot of kids eating candy and smiling a lot, and of course people are looking forward to going to the pubs and bars afterwards  that's the best part, right?"

Despite temperatures that hovered in the mid-20s at the start of the parade, those participating as well as just viewing said there was no need for course adjustment.

"This is my second parade I've been at, and last year, I got to walk around and eat candy, and there were people passing out these Star Wars cards," said Villiger's son Tobias, 8. "I'm ready and super excited."

Nicki McIntyre of Naperville and her two children Seth, 9, and Emma, 7 were all decked out in the color of the day  green  and agreed that Saturday's weather "would make no difference."

"There is going to be a party today regardless of the weather and we're going to stay warm with all the cheering," McIntyre promised.

The Aurora Area Shriners Club was out in full force with members racing around in little scooter cars in the Naperville North parking lot. Club member Gary Schaeffer of Aurora said regarding the parade, "nothing slows us down."

"Whether there is wind or rain or cold  we don't care," Schaeffer said. "Frankly, we're honored to be a part of this, and the only thing I think that would have been bad would be if it had snowed. This is something people look forward to after a long winter, although ours this year hasn't been bad. It's fun for the people in the community to come out, and they will be a lot of beverages to enjoy afterwards."

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A number of participants as well as spectators talked about the connection they have to the parade and their own Irish heritage.

Scott Rochowicz, of Darien, was dressed in his piper costume and said he enjoys celebrating a large portion of his childhood.

"My mother was from Scotland and came here after World War II, and I'm a first generation American," he said. "I've been playing with my group here at this parade for 10 years, and I do it because bagpipes were a big part of my childhood. My mom used to play eight-track tapes, and even though I know a lot of the people who watch this today aren't Irish  the Irish people bring all the excitement with them, and it becomes contagious and people just feed off of it."

Dan Johnston said he came all the way from Rapid City, S.D, to visit his brother and also noted that Saturday's parade was about celebrating being Irish  but in an American way.

"My brother was St. Patrick a year ago in the parade here, and that was a really big deal," Johnston explained. "I'm Scottish, Irish, English, and German  I'm a mutt. Back in Ireland  a day like this isn't as big a deal  a lot of them just go to church. This parade and so forth in an American thing, and we just celebrate the hell of out it."

David Sharos is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.
One day, 11-year-old Thomas Martin walked by the lunch table of several special needs students at his school.

One of those students asked Thomas to join them for lunch. The fifth-grader did the unthinkable. He joined them.

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Since that day, Thomas' high-ability classroom has partnered with another classroom of students who boast, well, other abilities. They call each other their special buddies. They call Thomas "Bombus" because some of the kids couldn't pronounce his name. He doesn't mind a bit.

"They're fun to be with, and I like to help out," Thomas told me Friday when I visited Joan Martin Elementary School in Hobart to watch the class partnership in action.

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"Thomas is very passionate about this partnership," said his mother, Alison Martin.

For the past two school years, both classrooms have met at least twice a week. Not despite their differences but because of those differences. They learn about each other, play with each other, protect each other, and ask to be with each other even out of school.

It's called the '"Buddy Class."

"True friendships have been born, with birthday parties celebrated together. Looking out for each other is common," Alison Martin said.

As the familiar aroma of fresh popcorn wafted through the school's hallways, the students in classroom 106E were learning lessons that will hopefully last a lifetime.

Unlike in my school days, they are learning to embrace special needs students, rather than to think it's OK to tease, bully or ostracize them.

"My students have learned so much more from this partnership," said Lauren Baltrushaitis, who teaches the high-ability fifth-grade class of 30 students.

The other class calls her "Miss Buddy."

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"The benefits for my kids goes beyond our classrooms here at school," Baltrushaitis said. "They truly want to spend time with their new buddies outside of school, too."

Jackie Underdahl, a parent aide, helps a student at Joan Martin Elementary School in Hobart. (Jerry Davich / Post-Tribune)

Since the two classrooms have been merging their abilities, the school's social culture has been transformed with more openness and acceptance, school administrators told me.

In fact, many of these fifth-grade kids feel protective of their new buddies, standing up for them against any teasing or bullying.

"They've really become attached to each other this school year," said Jackie Keefe, who teaches the class of eight students, kindergarten through sixth grade, with mild to severe cognitive abilities. "My kids are learning how to make new friends outside of their usual circle of friends."

When I asked one of Keefe's female students who her buddy is, she didn't hesitate to answer.

"Abby," the girl replied, giving her buddy a smile and a hug.

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At first glance, I couldn't tell which students in this noisy classroom were high ability versus special ability. This is one of the testaments to the partnership project. Kids are kids.

At first, all the students were a bit awkward when they met. Not any longer. They get along like old chums. A few of the fifth-grade students even gave up their cherished recess time after lunch to instead spend time with their buddies.

"They really enjoy their time together," said Jackie Underdahl, a parent aide in the classroom.

Each of the students in Baltrushaitis' class has typed letters in their Chromebook to their new buddy in Keefe's classroom.

"Dear Logan, you always put a smile on my face," wrote one fifth-grade boy to a kindergartner.

"I also love how you can make art out of anything," he wrote. "You have influenced me to try my best even when things are tough. It's been really awesome getting to know you. Thank you for being you."

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Thomas once wanted to become a graphic artist when he grows up. Now he wants to become a special needs teacher.

"He has found his true calling in life," his mother told me.

"He could stay in my classroom forever," Keefe said.

"It is not one classroom taking care of another one," said Thomas' mother. "It is two classrooms coming together, not to focus on the differences the children have, but to celebrate them."

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I wish such a partnership project had taken place when I was in school.

With March being Disabilities Awareness Month, it's the perfect opportunity for both classrooms to make a special presentation to the school district board about their program and its ripple-effect success. They will do so March 16.

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It's also the perfect opportunity for the rest of us, regardless of age, to use this school's classroom partnership as a teachable moment. The best life lessons come during such moments, not from textbook teachings.

"In the political climate we are witnessing today, it is so reassuring that we have children who believe in the power of their differences, and who have the love to accept one another as they are," Martin said.

jdavich@post-trib.com

Twitter@jdavich

View more photos and a video of the students interacting with each other at www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/chi-jerry-davich-staff.html.
A town in southern Indiana, only four miles north of Louisville, Ky., now welcomes citizens and their guns to its council meetings. Clarksville officials enacted a provision last month allowing citizens to carry their weapons to public meetings at the town hall.

It's a bad idea that lacks common sense. Worse, it could lead to unnecessary worry and tragedy.

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By nature, most folks don't attend city or town council meetings to pat their elected officials on the back. Many times, they arrive primed for an argument as they bellow openly at elected officials. Their discontent could be over a rezoning plan near their home, or a new building project they oppose.

Public meetings in local cities and towns represent the grass-roots version of our democratic system at its best  and worst. When an agenda is tepid, only reporters and local gadflies sit in the audience. When there's a whiff of controversy though, rows fill up fast and people can't wait to speak their minds.

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Welcoming weapons into that mix is a recipe for disaster. There are reasons that Second Amendment rights don't apply in courtrooms, schools or in the U.S. Congress. Chief among them is safety. Weapons have no place at local civic meetings, either.

Simply put: Guns and politics don't mix.

Indiana state law dictates that municipalities can't pass ordinances restricting gun rights. The law lists 13 exceptions that include courtrooms, hospitals and public buildings with metal detectors staffed by police.

No community is immune from volatile, tense discourse at public meetings. Everyone remembers the heated outcry surrounding proposals in Gary and Hobart for construction of an immigration detention center. Others in Porter County disagreed passionately over plans for the renovation and expansion of the Dunes State Park Pavilion.

The citizens had their say, and those in charge made decisions. Thankfully, nothing escalated to violence. That's the way this democratic society works.

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Allowing citizens to pack guns into a combustible atmosphere, however, is dangerous and irresponsible. Elected officials should vote on issues they feel are best for their communities, without feeling bullied or intimidated by audience members gripping Glock handguns or Remington rifles.

Unarmed citizens shouldn't feel reluctant to speak out because the gun-toting person next to them might disagree, leading to a confrontation.

In Clarksville, Councilman A.D. Stonecipher, who sponsored the ordinance allowing weapons, said it fulfilled a campaign promise by stopping bodily searches that suggested citizens might cause potential harm. He said it also serves to protect citizens as they walk to their vehicles after council meetings.

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David Fisher, the council's lone Democrat, cast the dissenting vote saying, "There's probably more upset people that come in here than anyplace else. I hope and pray nothing goes wrong."

In Northwest Indiana, only two municipalities  Hammond and Merrillville  ban weapons in public buildings. Most officials surveyed don't think allowing weapons at public meetings is a good idea.

The most persuasive influence at a public airing of issues should be words and ideas, not weapons.

Let's keep it that way.
2022 election guide: Here are Pueblo County's top races, ballot issues

Here's what you need to know about the local candidates and ballot questions in the 2022 election, as well as how to vote in Pueblo, Colorado.
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China on Friday again urged the Republic of Korea (ROK) to stop the deployment of a U.S. missile shield.

Photo taken on March 6, 2017 shows a part of equipments for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) arriving in the Osan Air Base, about 70 km south of the capital Seoul, South Korea. [Photo/Xinhua]

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks at a daily press briefing.

When asked about the impeachment of ROK President Park Geun-hye, Geng said that "we will not comment on the impeachment case as it belongs to the ROK's domestic affairs."

"As a neighboring country, we hope the ROK can maintain political stability," Geng added.

Park was ousted as the country's head of state after the constitutional court upheld a motion to impeach the scandal-ridden leader Friday. She became the first ROK leader to be permanently removed from office through impeachment.

Geng said China had spoken positively about efforts Park had made to improve China-ROK relations when she was in office.

"However, as for her decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, China has expressed definite opposition," Geng said.

"As China and the ROK are each other's neighbors that cannot be moved away, the development of bilateral ties in the past 25 years has brought substantial benefits to both peoples," Geng said. "China has always been open and positive to cooperation and exchanges with the ROK, a position that has never changed," he said. "But the crux of the current difficulties facing bilateral ties is the THAAD deployment."

"We hope the ROK government can face China's concerns squarely, heed the voices of the public, look at the whole picture of bilateral cooperation and regional peace and stability, and stop the deployment to remove obstacles in bilateral ties and bring them back on a normal track," Geng said.

China has repeatedly said that the ROK and U.S. deployment of THAAD gravely undermined regional strategic balance and the security interests of countries in the region, including China, and runs counter to peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula.

THAAD is designed to intercept incoming missiles at an altitude of 40-150 km. Its X-band radar can peer deep into Chinese and Russian territories.
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Russian warplanes launched 452 strikes against Islamic State (IS) terrorists in Syria in the past week, as the government troops continued their advance in the north and east of the war-torn country, the Russian military said Friday.

"Over 600 militants, 16 infantry fighting vehicles, 41 pickup trucks with large caliber machine-guns and more than 30 other vehicles have been eliminated," Col. Gen. Sergei Rudskoy, chief of the Russian General Staff Main Operational Directorate, said at a news briefing.

He said the Syrian troops liberated 92 terrorists settlements on an area of 479 square km in the eastern part of Aleppo province in the last seven days, reaching the bank of the Euphrates River for the first time in the last four years.

After taking control of the ancient city of Palmyra, the Syrian government troops continued their offensive to the east of the city, capturing dominant heights, and extend the security zone to the north and south, Rudskoy said.

Russian and Syrian sappers had started a mine clearing operation at historical monuments of Aleppo, he added.
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A two-day summit of European Union (EU) leaders and heads of state concluded on Friday, but the fierce debate on the direction of Europe is likely to continue for a longer time.

TUSK'S JOB ROW

Polish fury over the re-election of European Council President Donald Tusk overshadowed the two-day EU summit.

Tusk was given the green light to continue in the post until 2019 despite fierce opposition by the Polish government, which had put forward its own candidate.

Afterwards, French President Francois Hollande said: "I don't see how one country could oppose this solution when all the others are in favor."

But Poland's government argued that Tusk supported the domestic opposition in Poland and has failed to protect the country's interests in the EU.

Speaking on Friday, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo refused to accept the summit's conclusion to reappoint Tusk, saying "Poland doesn't agree with this. And I definitely won't accept any document from this summit."

Instead of the traditional conclusions by the European Council, there were merely conclusions "by the President of the European Council." As such, the summit ended without the customary accord on a final document.

DEBATE ON EU FUTURE

After Thursday's decision to reappoint Tusk, prime ministers and presidents of 27 EU members states reassembled for a second day after British Prime Minister Theresa May had left.

EU leaders were meeting for the first time in the Europa building, a new 321-million-euro (341 U.S. dollars) summit venue in Brussels decorated so as to symbolize the "united patchwork" of Europe.

However, when the bloc approached the subject of the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, which paved the way of European integration, the debate on which path the post-Brexit EU should follow became increasingly fierce.

Some EU member states, such as France, Germany, Spain and Italy are calling for a multi-speed Europe, wherein some members could deepen their integration faster than others. However, the bloc's eastern members, who fear they will be excluded from deeper integration in the future, are against the idea.

The divergence was also seen between the EU institutions. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said a multi-speed EU scenario was not going to create an "iron curtain" in Europe.

"(For) some of our colleagues, this (multi-speed Europe) is seen as introducing a new dividing line, a new kind of iron curtain between the east and west. That's not the intention," Juncker said at a press conference with Tusk on Friday.

However, Tusk, who chaired the debate on Friday, urged EU member states to strive towards maintaining political unity after Brexit.

"When discussing the various scenarios for Europe, our main objective should be to strengthen mutual trust and unity among 27," Tusk said at the press conference.

Talking about the "multi-speed" version of future, Tusk said he understood the reasons for the debate.

"However, considering the interests of the community of 27 countries in the context of the upcoming Brexit negotiations as well as the long-term strategic interests of the EU, I will be urging everyone to strive towards maintaining political unity among the 27."

"It is clear from the debate that the unity of the 27 will be our most precious asset," he stressed.

As no document on the future of Europe emerged from the meeting of 27 EU leaders on Friday, the debate on the issue is likely to continue. The picture may only become a little clearer later this month when EU's leaders minus Britain are due to make a declaration on Europe's future at the Rome summit, in which they are expected to set out a post-Brexit road map.

BREXIT CHALLENGE AHEAD

The summit was the last attended by Theresa May before she triggers Article 50 at the end of this month, the start of a two-year process that will see the UK leave the EU, and Brexit cast a long shadow over proceedings.

Since the Brexit referendum in June 2016, the British government has so far refused to offer any formal reassurance to the 3.1 million EU citizens living in the UK, insisting it could harm its effort to secure the rights of the 1.2 million British nationals estimated to be living in other EU countries.

On the margins of the summit, the chief Brexit negotiator at the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, said British citizens should be allowed to keep the benefits of EU membership.

Speaking on Friday, Verhofstadt said allowing individuals to keep rights, such as freedom to travel and vote in European elections should be a priority.

The former Belgian prime minister said Brexit had been a "tragedy" and a "disaster" for people in the UK and EU.

Meanwhile, Juncker hinted at the possibility of readmitting Britain as EU member, saying he hoped Britain would one day rejoin the union.

"I do not like Brexit, because I would like to be in the same boat as the British. The day will come when the British will re-enter the boat, I hope," he said.

ECONOMY AND OTHER ISSUES

During the summit, the leaders noted that for the first time in almost a decade, all 28 EU economies were expected to grow over the next two years. They agreed that this "good outlook" needed to be sustained by continued structural reform efforts and "determined action."

"Trade remains one of the most powerful engines for growth, supporting millions of jobs and contributing to prosperity," a conclusion document released by Tusk read, adding that the bloc would remain strongly committed to a robust trade policy and an open and rules-based multilateral trading system with a central role for the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The leaders welcomed the positive vote in the European Parliament on the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), saying it was "a clear signal at a time when protectionist tendencies are re-appearing."

The leaders agreed that the bloc should continue to engage actively with its international trade partners. The single-market bloc said it would resolutely advance on all ongoing negotiations for free trade agreements, including with sub-regional trade bloc Mercosur, Mexico and Japan.

"Trade relations with China should be strengthened on the basis of a shared understanding of reciprocal and mutual benefits," the document stressed.

At the same time, the leaders stressed in the conclusion that the EU had to equip itself with modernized, WTO-compatible tools to tackle unfair trade practices and market distortions.

"We will not hesitate to defend ourselves against unfair trading practices, wherever necessary. We want to set the global standard for free and fair trade," Tusk said.

In addition, EU priority measures for growth, migration, and the situation in Western Balkans were among the topics debated by EU leaders at the two-day summit.
An investor checks stock information on his mobile phone in front of an electronic board showing stock information at a brokerage house in Beijing, Feb 16, 2016.[Photo/Agencies]

Perfecting the system of delisting stocks and strengthening of efforts to crack down on illegal activities in the capital markets will be highlights in the second review of the revision of the Securities Law, said a member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature.

Wu Xiaoling, deputy director of the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee of the NPC, told media in Beijing on Thursday the review highlighted four points.

"First, we need to perfect the basic trading systems, including securities trading, settlement and delisting.

"Second, we need to create space for developing a multilevel capital market so as to facilitate enterprises' financing.

"Third, we should pay more attention to investor protection by strengthening efforts to crack down on illegal activities and increasing channels for investors to compensate for loss, legal advocacy and administrative remedy.

"Last but not least, market rules should be further tightened," said Wu.

"Information authenticity and complete information disclosure are central to the capital market, so we need to intensify inspections and severely crack down on illegal information disclosure and market manipulation."

Li Shuguang, a law professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, said the second review pays attention to key areas, which makes it different from the first review of the proposed amendments to the law.

"The latest review shows that China will adopt a 'tolerant entry and strict exit' regulation idea," said Li, explaining that the IPO approval pace is faster, and the implementation of delisting is more determined.

"For 'zombie companies' (consistently loss-making, staff-heavy State-owned enterprises that continue to operate without much rationale) and fraudulent companies, the delisting process will be quicker."

Li also said creating space for a multilevel capital market is a wise move because China has developed the New Third Board. It has also developed, or is developing, stock connects for mainland bourses with those in Hong Kong and London, besides reforming the ChiNext board.

According to Li, the Supreme People's Court has confirmed civil compensation to victims of fraudulent statements made by players in the securities market.
London - CVC Capital Partners and Chinese drugmaker Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding Co are in talks to team up on a bid for Stada Arzneimittel AG, according to sources, as a bidding war for the German company heats up.

The companies will make a decision about a joint bid as soon as next week, the source, asking not to be identified as the deliberations are private.

There is no final decision yet on whether the firms will team up or make an offer, and CVC has also spoken to other Asian drugmakers, they said. Binding offers may be due this month, the source said.

Stada let a deadline for an offer from Advent for 3.61 billion euros ($3.81 billion) pass last month to keep the process open for other bidders. Private equity firms, sitting on record amounts of undeployed capital, are flocking to assets like Stada amid a shortage of deals.

CVC and Shanghai Pharma would be competing against other investor groups including Advent International Corp, which may team up with Permira, and Bain Capital, which is in talks to join with Cinven Ltd, the people said. Singapore's GIC Pte is also interested in making an offer as a co-investor with Advent, sources said previously.

Shares of Stada have risen by roughly 80 percent in the past year, giving it a market value of 3.5 billion euros. Representatives for Stada, CVC, Advent, Permira, Cinven and Bain declined to comment. A spokeswoman for Shanghai Pharma had no immediate comment.

A tie-up with a drug company could help CVC extract greater cost savings from the purchase. CVC invested in another generic and biosimilar pharmaceutical firm called Alvogen in 2015.

Advent's other portfolio assets would give the private equity firm the greatest synergies out of the bidders, analysts at Bankhaus Lampe said in a note.

BLOOMBERG
By Tian Xuefei and Zhang Xiaomin in Daqing, Heilongjiang | China Daily | Updated: 2017-03-11 07:25

An employee assembles a car at the Volvo Cars Daqing plant in Daqing, Heilongjiang province. [Photo/China Daily]

Premium sedans manufactured at the Volvo Cars Daqing plant, in northeastern China's Heilongjiang province, are expected to start selling abroad in May, a senior executive of the company said.

"We're arranging for dealers from the US, Europe and Asia-Pacific countries to visit our plant," said Yan Shiying, corporate communications manager of Volvo's Daqing plant.

She said the plant's product - Volvo's new S90 saloon - is selling well in the Chinese market.

The model is billed as an advanced premium vehicle with a semiautonomous driving program called Pilot Assist, which gives steering input to keep the car properly aligned within lane markings up to motorway speeds of around 80 mph (130 km/h).

"Since the massproduction started for our S90 T5 and T4 models last November, a new vehicle drives off the production line every three minutes," Yan said.

She said that staffing levels had grown from 600 to 2,000, with more than 30 foreign nationals - and in order to meet the strong market demand, the plant was working increased shifts from this month.

Volvo said it sold 534,332 vehicles globally in 2016, with 99,030 units going to the Chinese market, the brand's biggest single market in the world.

Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co bought the Swedish carmaker for $1.8 billion in 2010, making Volvo the first luxury car brand to be owned by a Chinese company.

Currently, Volvo has two mainland assembly plants in Daqing and in southwestern China's Chengdu. A third is under construction in eastern China's Zhejiang province.

The plants in China follow the brand's global standards on procurement, manufacturing, technology and quality.

As a result, Yan said, the Volvos manufactured in China shared the same quality as the Swedish-made ones.

The Daqing plant has an initial annual capacity of 80,000 vehicles.

"This year, we will export our cars to the US and Europe. The 3-seated luxury S90 T8 will also start mass production," Yan said.

Volvo said its Daqing plant was a key part of its global manufacturing and managing system and had become a model for intelligent manufacturing in Daqing.

The first phase of the Daqing Auto Spare Parts Industrial Park was put into operation last year, including a 200 million yuan ($29 million) factory producing 200,000 car seats annually.
Zhang Mao, head of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, greets journalists at a press conference on deepening reforms to commerce affairs administration for the fifth session of the 12th National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, March 10, 2017. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Experts say steps will ease businesses' market entry and exit costs

In potentially far-reaching business reforms, China will digitalize the registration and licensing of new firms so they could start their businesses quickly; also, the deregistration process will be made quicker, simpler and cost-effective, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce said on Friday.

Zhang Mao, director of the SAIC, told a media conference at the annual meeting of the national legislature that a series of measures will mark the "business system reform".

Zhang said: "We will achieve the goal of digitalizing industrial and commercial registration process, and start issuing electronic business licenses by the end of this year."

As an alternative, conventional business licenses printed on paper will still be issued whenever necessary, he said.

Zhang further said the SAIC will combine multiple licenses into one for companies with several businesses, to facilitate their market entry. This practice will be accomplished before Oct 1 this year, he said.

The SAIC will also expedite the process of deregistration this year.

"Companies that have not started their businesses (even after receiving the necessary licenses) and those without creditor's rights or with heavy debt will be deregistered the fastest. We are also studying the issue of enabling companies with loans to exit (the market) in an appropriate, efficient way," said Zhang.

Experts said the slew of measures will help companies enter and exit the market more conveniently.

This, they said, will further strengthen China's current emphasis on market-oriented economic development.

Liu Zhibiao, a political advisor and an economics professor at Nanjing University, said: "It's commendable that the SAIC has done a lot of work to simplify administration and procedures, and to promote the reform of the business registration system.

"This would help lower the costs associated with entering and exiting markets, thereby making businesses more vibrant.

"Its profound significance is that the government can develop capabilities in important areas and the market can pay a determined role."

Friday's announcements are a big positive for the Chinese economy, he said.

Huang Peng, a partner at Beijing-based Guantao Law Firm, said the measures mark big-ticket reforms in the field of business. "Companies will likely find the new system convenient, which should help them improve their efficiency."

Huang said that companies used to find the existing deregistration procedure laborious and costly. He said he is looking forward to the implementation of the new measures.
HOUSTON - The mindset for China's energy development is changing from "quantity first" to "quality first," with top priority given to clean, low-carbon, safe and highly efficient new energy, instead of just ensuring energy supply, a Chinese energy expert said on Thursday.

With the economy in the midst of a new normal of growth, China's energy development is witnessing a slowing consumption growth speed and a general easing of supply and demand, among others, said Xu Xiaodong, deputy president of China's Electric Power Planning & Engineering Institute.

"The growth rate of energy consumption is low ...the major driver for energy consumption is shifting from energy-intensive heavy industries to emerging industries, commercial and residential uses," he said at the sidelines of the ongoing CERAWeek, an annual international gathering of energy industry leaders, experts, and government officials in Houston.

In 2016, China's total primary energy demand was 4.4 billion tons of standard coal, up 1.4 percent from 2015, remaining at a relatively low level in recent years, he said.

During China's energy transformation process, the share of non-fossil fuel grew to 13.5 percent in 2016, up 1.4 percentage points from 2015, while the share of coal dropped by 1.7 percentage points.

Impacted by the reductions in coal and oil production, China's total energy production decreased in 2016 for the first time since 2000, with national total primary energy production at 3.5 billion tons of standard coal, 4.2 percent lower than that in 2015.

Xu stressed that China's energy supply structure is improving, with non-fossil fuel accounting for 16.7 percent of the total energy mix in 2016, 2.2 percentage points higher than 2015, and the share of coal on the supply side dropping by 2.5 percentage points.

China has become the top country in the world for hydro, wind and solar installations, he added.

Xu noted that China's overall energy efficiency was 73.7 percent in 2016, 0.02 percentage points higher than 2015. Efficiency for coal-fired power was 44.7 percent, coking was 92.2 percent and oil refining was 97.6 percent.

Over the past three years, China has made great progress regarding energy efficiency, capacity utilization, cost, clean development and energy security.

He also said that the "China Energy Development Report 2016," the first of its kind, will be released later this month and provides an overall analysis of China's energy development during a crucial year for the country.

The 36th annual energy IHS CERAWeek conference, organized by London-based consultancy IHS Markit, opened here on Monday under the theme "Pace of change: building a new energy future."

The event has brought together at least 3,000 delegates, including energy ministers, from more than 60 countries to discuss the most pressing industry issues, state strategies and policies.
BRUSSELS - The European Union (EU) will strengthen its trade ties with China in a bid to maintain its economic recovery against a backdrop of rising protectionism, a conclusion document released by the President of the European Council showed on Friday.

"Trade relations with China should be strengthened on the basis of a shared understanding of reciprocal and mutual benefits," the document read.

The leaders of EU member states are gathered here for a two-day summit on Thursday and Friday to look at a number of the most pressing issues, with growth, jobs and competitiveness at the top of the agenda.

"Trade remains one of the most powerful engines for growth, supporting millions of jobs and contributing to prosperity," the document stressed, adding that the bloc would remain strongly committed to a robust trade policy and an open and rules-based multilateral trading system with a central role for the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The leaders welcomed the positive vote in the European Parliament on the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), saying it was "a clear signal at a time when protectionist tendencies are re-appearing."

The leaders agreed that the bloc should continue to engage actively with its international trade partners. The single-market bloc said it would resolutely advance on all ongoing negotiations for free trade agreements, including with the regional trade bloc Mercosur, Mexico and Japan.

At the same time, the leaders stressed in the conclusion that the EU had to equip itself with modernized, WTO-compatible tools to tackle unfair trade practices and market distortions.

"We will not hesitate to defend ourselves against unfair trading practices, wherever necessary. We want to set the global standard for free and fair trade," European Council President Donald Tusk said at press conference after the first-day of discussions.

Besides, EU priority measures for growth, the single market strategy, including digital markets and the banking union are among the topics being debated by EU leaders at the two-day summit.

"Economic growth has now returned to all 28 member states and the outlook is encouraging, both for the euro area and the EU overall," the document said, stressing that the benefits of economic growth needed to be "spread more widely and fairly."

Uncertainties persist, however, and the leaders underlined the importance of ensuring the sustainability of the recovery.

"To this end, structural reforms aimed at modernising our economies must be pursued, public finances strengthened and investment promoted, including through the swift extension of the European Fund for Strategic Investments, also with a view to making special efforts to fight unemployment in member states with particularly high levels," the document read.
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NPC set to act against rising school violence

National People's Congress officials, led by Liu Binjie (left), chairman of the NPC's Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Committee, come to meet journalists in a news conference in Beijing on Friday. [Photo by Zhu Xingxin/China Daily]

Deputies will study how to best deter the growing phenomenon in the nation

China's top legislature will conduct a special inspection of school ground safety this year and study how to reduce violence at schools, a senior legislator said on Friday.

School violence, a growing problem at primary and middle schools in the past years, has aroused widespread concern, so the national legislature will set up special studies and research focusing on the issue, said Wang Shengming, vice-chairman of the Internal and Judicial Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress.

"The studies and research will be developed based on the inspection of enforcement of the Juvenile Protection Law," said Wang.

It's also necessary to update the laws and take necessary measures to deter school violence, such as education or more severe punishment, depending on the seriousness of a case, Wang said.

Liu Xiya, an NPC deputy from Chongqing, applauded the proposed inspection and studies.

She suggested the top legislature write school violence into the law, as the number of such cases has been rising in recent years.

The Supreme People's Procuratorate, China's top prosecuting authority, received about 1,900 cases related to school bullying or violence in the first 11 months of last year, resulting in 1,100 arrests and 2,300 prosecutions, according to the procuratorate data released at the end of 2016.

"Students in some cases suffered serious injuries and that not only harmed their health, but also brought them psychological problems," Liu said.

"For example, some children might feel lonely or have difficulty with social activities after being subjected to violence."

The frequency of violence could be attributed to schools' negligence, "as some schools regard such fights between students as minor incidents and see no need for punishment", she said.

Liu suggested setting up campus police in schools, as is done in some foreign countries, and entrust the officers with helping to enforce school rules and investigating or handling cases of violence.

On Friday, the NPC Standing Committee also said it would continue to tighten supervision of matters related to people's well-being this year, such as food and the environment.

Liu Binjie, chairman of the NPC's Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Committee, said that the top legislature conducted a law enforcement inspection on food safety last year, and it would focus this year on rectifying the problems found in the inspection.

For example, inspectors found that food testing and quarantine laboratories are scattered over various agencies such as health authorities and colleges.

Legislators will look this year at how to better integrate them, he said.
What they say

Li Shouzhen, CPPCC National Committee member and senior official of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions

During the seven-day Spring Festival holiday this year, up to 6.15 million Chinese outbound tourists spent around 100 billion yuan ($14.5 billion) abroad. The average consumption per capita was 3.5 times than by tourists from other countries. Even though China is the world's second-largest economy and its annual output of 220 kinds of industrial products ranks first globally, the fact that this huge amount of consumption landed in other countries during such a short period shows the awkward position of China's manufacturing industry, which is "big but not strong enough". It's urgent for the country to cultivate high-quality workers and industries.

Yang Yuanqing,

CPPCC National Committee member and chairman of Lenovo Group

We have to keep Chinese customers from buying products like electronic toilet seats and rice cookers abroad by strengthening domestic quality management and technological innovation. Supply-side reform is not in order to protect outdated production capacities, but to upgrade industries, shifting from low-cost manufacturing to smart manufacturing, which is in accordance with the Made in China 2025 strategy.

Si Qifu,

NPC deputy and former vice-minister of Jiangsu Provincial Military Command's equipment development department

It's urgent to draw up regulations to supervise the use of drones and establish thresholds for the drone industry. Various kinds of drones flown at low altitudes have already threatened the take-offs and landings of civil and military aircraft, which affect the operation of airports. Setting related policies and regulations for the drone industry will help to reduce the risks and potential safety problems, which will be beneficial for the development of the industry.

Yu Hai,

CPPCC National Committee member and former head of the military band of the Chinese People's Liberation Army

Many youngsters don't have a clear knowledge of the significance of the national anthem. In a test at a college, in which students were asked to write down the lyrics of the Chinese national anthem. One of the students didn't know them word for word. Some people even make fun of the national anthem, which makes legislation in this area urgent and necessary.

Pan Lusheng,

CPPCC National Committee member and vice-chairman of the China Federation of Literature and Art Circles

China has established a common concept in protecting traditional villages. A series of valuable cultural relics have been saved during the protection of those villages. Local people's lives are also improved when the government completes infrastructure construction in those villages, which has delayed their disappearance. The key to the protection of traditional villages is to ensure people continue to live in them and to safeguard their living conditions.
Question of the day

Editor's note: During the two sessions, China Daily has collected questions from foreign netizens on what they care most about and solicited answers from experts, CPPCC National Committee members and NPC deputies.

Should China increase the salaries of teachers in rural areas and provide them with further professional support so rural kids can receive a better education?

I worked as a rural teacher in Shuangfeng county, Hunan province, after leaving high school in 1975, so I have good understanding of rural education. A major problem is the imbalance in village teachers' abilities and professionalism - and that is largely due to their low incomes.

Although the law stipulates that teachers' salaries should be the same as, or higher than, civil servants' salaries, this just isn't the case in many village schools. Just look at the reality: Hundreds or even thousands of people regularly compete for just one civil servant job, but few want to be village teachers.

If we gave rural teachers the same treatment as civil servants, things would be totally different. The job would become truly respected and would attract more applicants, thereby raising the standard of rural teachers.
Shifting focus gives opportunities to others

China's structural shift toward an economy based on innovation and knowledge and driven by domestic consumption and services should be key to discussions at this year's two sessions, said Danae Kyriakopoulou, who heads research at the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum, an independent think tank for central banking, economic policy and public investment.

"A successful rebalancing should allow China's economy to avoid the middle-income trap as it matures and develops," Kyriakopoulou said. The middle-income trap contends that countries can become stuck at a certain development level after losing their competitive advantage.

"The difficulty, however, will be striking a delicate balance between reducing the economy's reliance on credit, and allowing funds to flow from less-productive sectors of the economy to more promising ones, while at the same time avoiding sharp corrections that could damage growth."

China's economic growth in the decades following its economic reform and opening-up has relied mainly on exports, leveraging the country's manufacturing competitiveness, but in more recent years, it has moved toward innovation-driven growth and expanding the service sector.

Kyriakopoulou said ensuring a successful transformation from an economy that has industrial and manufacturing sectors as its key drivers toward one with more competitive new industries should be supported by policies, such as supply-side reforms aimed at boosting promising new industries.

"This process should be gradual, to avoid sharp corrections as resources move away from the less-promising sectors into more productive ones," she said.

While implementing domestic reforms, China is also taking an international lead in supporting globalization and free trade, and the effective implementation of supporting policies should be key to discussions at the two sessions, Kyriakopoulou said.

"The Belt and Road Initiative will allow China to diversify its resources into regions and seek growth elsewhere," she said. "It is not just a way to generate returns, but also to connect regions and build regional networks, which will be key for China as it emerges as a new leader in this vacuum as the US and UK retreat from globalization."

Meanwhile, she also sees China's reduced focus on manufacturing as helpful for many emerging economies, such as Vietnam, Malaysia and countries in Africa, because it leaves room for them to generate growth by becoming the world's factory.
Flexible end times for classes

Parents pick up their children near the entrance of the Shijia Experimental Primary School in Beijing. Zou Hong / China Daily

Education chief: Parents should be freed from struggle to pick up kids

Education Minister Chen Baosheng has pledged that the nation's primary and middle schools will be allowed flexibility in setting the time they end their classes, in a bid to free parents from the burden of picking up their children during working hours.

"Many parents have told me it has become a major concern for them and even grandparents to pick up children after school on time," Chen said at a meeting with members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the top political advisory body.

The school day generally ends between 3:30 pm and 4 pm, so parents usually think about leaving the office to pick up their children, and subsequently cannot focus on their work, he said.

The ministry will release a policy plan to allow schools to carry out flexible scheduling. The plan will clarify that after-school classes are not considered part of compulsory education, and allow schools to charge extra fees in agreement with parents. The government can provide some subsidies to such after-school programs, according to the minister.

"It will be prohibited for them to turn after-school classes into 'formal school education'," he said.

The Ministry of Education released a regulation in 2013 banning schools from adding extra classes, to reduce students' workloads in elementary and middle schools.

Some local education commissions further reduced school hours and cut students' workload to ensure they have enough time to play and sleep.

Given this, students leave school between 3:30 pm and 4 pm. No after-school classes or programs are provided at school. However, private training programs are not banned.

Ending classes at these times caused parents to spend money sending their children to private classes after school, said Liu Jizhen, a CPPCC National Committee member and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. "The outcome is that the workload at school has been cut, parents' workload has increased and children's workload remains the same," he said.

"The policy to reduce students' workload aims to reduce unreasonable work," said Zhong Binglin, a CPPCC National Committee member and president of the Chinese Society of Education.

The government has done its duty by releasing these policies. But parents still fear that their children will fall behind in their studies, and continue sending their children to after-school classes at private training institutes, he said.

"Education is related with other public issues. Successfully reducing students' workload involves changing public opinion, as well as joint action from schools and parents," Zhong said.
Yunnan firm eyes Cambodian park

A cultural investment company in Southwest China's Yunnan province plans to invest 150 million yuan ($21.8 million) to build a cultural park near the Angkor Wat world heritage site in Cambodia.

The plan, a response to China's Belt and Road Initiative, will help deepen mutual understanding between China and Cambodia through cultural exchanges and will foster their economic cooperation in the future, Yang Jinsong, a deputy to the National People's Congress, said during the two sessions.

Yang, assistant general manager of Yunnan Cultural Industry Investment Holdings Co, said her company drew up the plan after a show in Cambodia it invested in proved a success.

Since late November 2010, the company has staged The Smile of Angkor Grand Epic Show more than 2,300 times for audiences of about 1 million from various countries.

The show is performed in Siem Reap, capital of the Cambodian province of the same name and the location of Angkor Wat. The show employs about 170 Cambodians, Yang said.

Yang, from the Naxi ethnic group, also said the cultural park will cover 2 hectares, with a floor area of about 15,000 square meters.

She said there will be a 1,200-capacity theater in the park, where The Smile of Angkor Grand Epic Show will be upgraded with the help of the latest technology.

A museum featuring the Khmer Empire (802-1431) and the long history of Sino-Cambodian friendship will also be built in the park.

The museum will take as a theme a book written by Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) Chinese diplomat Zhou Daguan during his stay at Angkor in 1296 and 1297.

Zhou recorded details of his visit to Angkor, capital of the Khmer Empire, in his book The Customs of Cambodia, which played a key role in helping the French find abandoned Angkor.

There will also be an exhibition center housing Khmer cultural artifacts, a Sino-Cambodian training and cultural exchange center and a Sino-Cambodian culinary culture exchange center at the park. The exhibition center will employ local craftsmen and people with disabilities, or help them to start their own businesses, said Yang.

houliqiang@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/11/2017 page5)
Tibet standing firm on conservation

NPC deputies Pema Choidron (center), Phuntsog (at right) and Yontan (at left) prepare their speeches before the start of a panel discussion with the Tibet delegation on Thursday. Kuang Linhua / China Daily

Tibet will not sacrifice ecological conservation for development despite the region setting its economic growth target at 11 percent this year, one of the highest among all provincial regions in China, a senior local official said on Friday.

"We know how important Tibet's ecological conservation is to China and the world," said Lobsang Jamcan, director of the Tibet Regional People's Congress Standing Committee, the local legislature.

"Tibet has established ecological red lines to guard against overdevelopment and no one can cross them," he said at a panel discussion during the ongoing session of the national legislature in Beijing.

With an average altitude of about 4,000 meters, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in Southwest China is a unique geographical region. It is the source of many major rivers of China, South Asia and Southeast Asia, home to important species and biological diversity, an adjuster of climate change and a great provider of ecological security.

Lobsang Jamcan said the regional government has not approved a single mining project since 2012. "It doesn't matter how profitable the project is, we will turn it down as long as it threatens Tibet's environment."

The region plans to build more railways and highways to improve connectivity to boost its trade with South Asian countries as a part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, according to the regional government.

Lobsang Jamcan said balancing the relationship between development and ecological conservation is quite a challenge for the regional government because more than one third of Tibet's territory comprises State-level natural reserves. The region is also home to the Tibetan Antelope and Yak National Park, China's first large-animal conservancy.

Yonten, director of the regional government's forestry department, said, "Although constructing detours will incur extra cost and create more difficulties, no transportation infrastructure is permitted to be built within the current core areas in the natural reserves."

Tibetan antelopes, wild yaks, Tibetan wild donkeys, black-necked cranes and other endangered species have experienced notable growth in numbers in recent years, Yonten said.

The population of Tibetan antelopes has risen to more than 200,000 from 50,000 in 1995. The number of black-necked cranes, which were once nearly extinct, has also risen to about 7,000, according to the regional forestry department.

The wildlife population increased despite a tourism boom in Tibet, dispelling concerns that rapid tourism growth could threaten the region's fragile environment, Yonten added. Last year, tourism in Tibet grew steadily, with annual arrivals rising by 15 percent to more than 23 million.

Xinhua contributed to this story.
Innovative ideas and new diplomatic thinking take center stage

Success of China's recent home-field diplomacy means there are high expectations for this year's events, Zhang Yunbi reports.

China will host two major international gatherings this year, and there are expectations new initiatives and measures will be unveiled to spur global growth and development amid the rise of protectionism.

The importance of the two events in this year's diplomatic calendar was highlighted to China Daily by Chinese diplomats and experts attending the fifth session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee as members.

The first of the two events is the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation that will be held in Beijing in May.

On Wednesday, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking with the media during the fifth session of the 12th National People's Congress, said that the heads of state and government from over 20 economies and the leaders of over 50 international organizations will attend the forum.

He said the forum aims to examine key areas for cooperation and identify a number of major projects for connectivity in infrastructure, trade, investment and finance, as well as people-to-people exchanges.

Also it is hoped medium- to long-term initiatives will be announced at the forum, and it can explore ways to establish an effective cooperation mechanism and build a closer and result-oriented network of partnerships, Wang added.

Jia Qingguo, professor and dean at Peking University's School of International Studies, said the upcoming forum can benefit both China and the countries along the routes by facilitating the transfer of capital, technology, talent and management experience from the developed eastern coastal region of China to those countries along the routes that need them.

"This would help sustain the development of the Chinese economy and support the development and prosperity of neighboring countries," Jia said.

The other domestic diplomatic event this year, the ninth BRICS Meeting, will be held in the coastal city Xiamen in East China's Fujian province in September.

The annual meeting brings together the leaders of the five BRICS countries - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The five nations, with over 40 percent of the world's population, have a combined GDP of about one-fifth of the world's total.

The five countries are busy preparing for the meeting, and a range of ministerial level meetings are being held beforehand to prepare for the summit, said Li Jinzhang, China's ambassador to Brazil.

Brazil, which is suffering from great economic difficulties, has great expectations of strengthened cooperation among the BRICS countries, Li said.

"New ideas will be proposed and important consensus will be reached on key issues," Li said.

"The voices of developing countries will be heard by the world" at the meeting in September in Xiamen, Li added.

Major high-end international gatherings held by China in recent years include the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders Week in Beijing in 2014 and the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, in 2016.

On these occasions, President Xi Jinping introduced new proposals and concepts aimed at improving global governance, and realizing sustainable growth and common development.

Open and inclusive

The two events are being held while the global economy remains sluggish and there is rising trade protectionism, diplomats and experts said, and many countries are looking to China for leadership as well as practical cooperation.

"While some countries are shifting their focus to domestic development, it is China that is ushering in new dynamics for international cooperation," said Zhang Yunling, a senior researcher on Asia-Pacific studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Zhang said that while other countries are looking to protectionism, the multilateral mechanisms promoted by China, such as the Belt and Road Initiative, "all embrace openness".

"China is an advocate of openness when the trends of anti-globalization and protectionism are prevailing," Zhang said.

Shi Mingde, China's ambassador to Germany, said, "The world is in desperate need of trans-regional cooperation that has a bigger spread, a greater standard and is of a higher level. That's why China proposed the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013."

The initiative is a key public good for boosting international cooperation and global governance offered by China to the global community, said Shi, who pointed out that many countries are facing demanding situations regarding their structural reform and development amid the sluggish global economy.

"The initiative will forge a close and strong link between the dynamic economies in Asia and the developed economies in Europe," Shi added.

Win-win cooperation

China contributed to sustaining economic globalization by successfully hosting the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, and the two events it is hosting this year will not only be good for China, but also for the rest of the world as well, said Zhai Jun, China's ambassador to France.

Zhai said that by promoting further integration between China and the world, the Belt and Road forum and the BRICS summit forum can provide strong impetus for China's future development, which will in turn benefit the world.

"In the coming five years, China will import commodities worth $8 trillion in total and attract foreign investment of $600 billion," Zhai said.

"Also, Chinese investment overseas is expected to be $750 billion over the next five years and there will be 700 million trips abroad by Chinese citizens," Zhai said.

Zhang Yunling, the CASS researcher, also noted that the Chinese economy itself is undergoing a critical phase in which the country is restructuring its economy, and pursuing further reform and opening-up that "benefits both itself and other nations".

"China could gear up transformation of its economy through improved cooperation with other countries," Zhang said.

Aside from the two events to be held in China, other gatherings - including the APEC meetings in Vietnam and G20 Summit in Germany - will also provide opportunities for countries to cooperate on global governance.

Germany this year takes over the rotating chairmanship from China and will host this year's G20 Summit and related lower-level meetings.

"We expect to maintain close contact and cooperation with the German side to offer new ideas for boosting global governance, introduce new opportunities, and send signals of cooperation, openness, peace and win-win results," said Shi Mingde, the Chinese ambassador to Germany.

New role

Cui Liru, a senior researcher and former president of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, noted that China has been proactive in hosting international meetings in recent years, and its home-field diplomacy "is a significant platform for presenting China's new role and its new capabilities".

"The two major events this year will yield greater outcomes than the past meetings, because the country has been consistently learning, accumulating experiences and improving, and its foresight is being reinforced," Cui said.

The concepts proposed by China in recent years have shown it to be a quick learner in aligning with accepted international norms and codes, and highlighted its growing maturity, Cui added.

Wu Enyuan, a senior researcher on Russian studies at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, noted that treating other countries on an equal footing is one of the reasons China has been successful in winning support for its proposals and initiatives from an increasing number of countries.

"The concepts first proposed by President Xi, including the Belt and Road Initiative and a Community of Shared Destiny for All Mankind, are popular in many developing countries partly because they welcome China treating them in a way which would have been unthinkable during the colonial era," Wu said.

While political alignment and security alliances prevail on the world stage, the Chinese proposals "do not categorize or judge countries by political systems or ideologies", Wu noted.

Wu cited the wide range of organizations and institutions proposed by China in recent years, such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Silk Road Fund.

"Such Chinese proposals are based on reality, they are not coming from nowhere, and they meet the actual needs of countries. That's why few countries have said 'No' to the concepts and most have signed up for them," Wu added.

But Cui, the scholar with China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, cautioned that China should strike a balance between being a developing country, although the largest, and the greater responsibilities in global affairs it shoulders.

"China is taking a new role. It has entered the new role in a short period of time, it will take time for it to adapt to the new situation."

Contact the writer at zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn

Voices from the two sessions

Li Jinzhang, China's ambassador to Brazil and CPPCC National Committee member

The BRICS mechanism plays a unique, key role at a time when the global landscape is undergoing profound changes.

Shi Mingde,

China's ambassador to Germany and CPPCC National Committee member

Global governance is not winner-take-all but seeking shared interests and achieving win-win goals.

Zhang Yunling,

senior researcher on Asia-Pacific studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and CPPCC National Committee member

Globalization is suffering frustration and protectionism is on the rise and China is willing to act as a backbone of support for globalization.

Wu Enyuan,

senior researcher on Russian studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and CPPCC National Committee member

China's growing attraction stems from not only its rising strength but also the ideas it has proposed.

(China Daily 03/11/2017 page4)
Envoy to Japan says trust is lacking

There is "a serious lack of mutual trust in military and defense matters" between Beijing and Tokyo, Chinese Ambassador to Japan Cheng Yonghua said.

In an interview with China Daily, Cheng, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, mentioned Beijing's concerns over Tokyo's developing security agenda.

Since the summer of 2015, Japan has worked to ease restrictions on its exercising a right of collective self-defense, and it has passed radical new security bills, Cheng said.

"Since the summer of 2015, this development has sabotaged the mutual trust in military and defense matters," Cheng said.

Beijing is also watching the issue of Japan playing a military role overseas, he added.

Japan's Pacifist Constitution renounces the use of force, barring the country's self-defense forces from waging war in the name of a sovereign state.

China has relayed to Japan its concerns about whether it will further subscribe to peaceful development, Cheng said.

Beijing "resolutely objects to Tokyo creating trouble with China and deliberately fabricating or hyping a so-called China threat to justify its forming security bills", Cheng said.

On Monday, according to Japan's Kyodo news agency, the Japanese Ministry of Defense said that deploying the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile system was an option and it would discuss the potential cost and effect of the deployment.

Washington and Seoul's joint plan to deploy THAAD in the Republic of Korea has angered Beijing. The system's X-band radar, which has a maximum range of 2,000 kilometers, would cover a large part of China.

"We are deeply concerned about the discussion in Japan (on whether to deploy THAAD). We oppose it taking such an action," Cheng said.

"The practice of going after its own security interests at the cost of others will end up as a loss to the others and bring no benefit to itself," Cheng added.

China-Japan ties were dealt a serious blow in 2012 when Tokyo decided to "nationalize" China's Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.

Cheng observed that the relationship "has not seen a great improvement in the past year".

As this year marks the 45th anniversary of the two countries normalizing their diplomatic relations, Cheng said both "should champion the process of improving their relations and secure stable and positive momentum".
Xinjiang deputies thrilled to meet president

Hours after meeting with President Xi Jinping, deputies from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region still could not contain their excitement on Friday afternoon.

Abudulrekep Tumniaz, a religious leader from Xinjiang, said he would deliver Xi's regards to the family of an imam who was murdered for standing against religious extremism.

"When he (Xi) shook hands with me, he asked me to send his regards to the family of Jume Tahir, and to take good care of myself," said Abudulrekep. Xi joined a panel discussion of Xinjiang deputies to the National People's Congress during its annual session on Friday morning.

Jume, imam of the biggest mosque in Xinjiang, was stabbed to death in 2014 outside the mosque in southern Xinjiang's city of Kashgar.

"I was really touched that Xi still thinks of Jume and his family," said Abudulrekep, who is president of the Xinjiang Islamic Institute. He told Xi about the institute's expansion project that will recruit more students at the end of this year.

"It was a happy moment that I will never forget," said Memetyibreyim Memetimin, a village official from southern Xinjiang's Hotan prefecture.

He handed Xi a photo of the descendants of Kurban Tulumu, a well-known Uygur who planned to ride his donkey to Beijing from Hotan to meet Chairman Mao Zedong to show his appreciation for the significant improvement in his life after the founding of the New China in 1949. His wish finally came true in 1958.

"I told the president that Kurban's descendants are living in happiness," Memetyibreyim said. "I'm so proud to be the new Kurban."

Rehangul Yimir, 28, the youngest deputy of the Xinjiang delegation, handed Xi a traditional Uygur flat hat as a gift from the delegation.

"I had prepared a speech, but I decided instead to say something from the bottom of my heart," the township official said. "I told him about the changes in the villages in southern Xinjiang and my transformation from a factory girl to a township official."

Muhtabai Shadik, a bank branch manager in Urumqi, said: "There's a Uygur saying about the importance of ethnic unity - Harmony can bring success and unity can boost strength. It is so true."
China not facing labor shortage, says family planning commission

The deputy minister of the National Health and Family Planning Commission says China is not facing a labor shortage.

Wang Pei'an told a news conference on Saturday that the population aged between 15 and 64 years old was 1 billion by the end of 2015, accounting for 73 percent of China's total population.

By 2050, the number in that age group is still be more than 800 million.

Wang pointed out that that's in contrast to the combined number of 15-64 year olds in all developed countries in the United States and Europe which is 730 million at present.
Patients to save on medication costs

Chinese patients are expected to save between 60 and 70 billion yuan ($8.7 billion - $10.1 billion) in drug expenditure this year, after the government banned all public hospitals from drug price mark-ups.

Wang Hesheng, deputy minister in charge of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, told a news conference on Saturday that public hospitals selling drugs at inflated prices caused problems such as "big prescriptions" and excessive use of antibiotics.

Health authorities banned all public medical institutions at grass roots from marking up the price of drugs in 2011, and all county-level public hospitals were ordered to stop the practice in 2015, Wang said.

The ban will cover all public hospitals by the end of the year.

The government will take steps to help hospitals make up for the loss in revenue after they abolish the practice, such as increasing prices for services provided by medical staff, and increasing government investment, he said.

Wang also said people's medical bills won't increase as a result of adjustments to the health insurance program.
Chinese commerce minister keen to meet American counterpart

Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan speaks at a news conference in Beijing on March 11, 2017. [Photo/Feng Yongbin]

The Chinese Minister of Commerce said on Saturday he was looking forward to meeting with the US Commerce Secretary.

"Wilbur L. Ross is an outstanding entrepreneur and negotiator. I am willing to work with great people, because they are always far-sighted with strategic thinking," Zhong Shan said at a press conference during the annual session of the National Peoples Congress.
180,000 jobs generated by Belt and Road Initiative

The achievements made by the Belt and Road Initiative are beyond expectations, Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said on Saturday.

Last year Chinese companies invested $14.5 billion in markets along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road. Over 50 cooperation agreements were signed between governments.

The initiative, seen as China's solution to boost global development, conforms to what a responsible, great nation would do, Zhong said at a news conference on the sidelines of the two sessions.

"Chinese firms have contributed 180,000 job opportunities and nearly $1.1 billion in tax revenue along the routes," the minister said.

He said he was happy to see that Chinese manufacturers, developers and service providers are well received along the routes, with more capital and technology exchanges.
'Spring' time for China, Philippines' bilateral trade

China and the Philippines, entering a "spring" time, have seen remarkable growth in bilateral trade over the past several months, Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said on Saturday.

The two countries are complementary in their trade relationship, the minister said, citing "fruit export to China" as an example.

The two have also agreed to build an industrial park in the Philippines, Zhong said.

The two trade ministers met earlier this month during the 28th Philippine-Chinese Joint Commission on Economic and Trade Cooperation, the official bilateral mechanism for discussion of trade, investments and economic cooperation.
Continued bilateral trade benefits China and US: Minister

The Chinese government will continue to build mutually beneficial and complementary economic and trade relations with the United States, with a goal to generate more benefits for both peoples, the minister of commerce said on Saturday.

Minister Zhong Shan said he was looking forward to meeting with the US commerce secretary.

"Wilbur L. Ross is an outstanding entrepreneur and negotiator. I am willing to work with great people, because they are always far-sighted with strategic thinking," Zhong said at a press conference during the annual session of the National Peoples Congress.

Sino-US economic and trade cooperation is very much in the interest of both countries, Zhong said. "A trade war does not meet the fundamental interests of the two countries, neither the two peoples. It will be a disaster for the global economy, he added.

Zhong noted that China and the United States are mutually reliant and very important to each other.

He took the case of export statistics in the last decade, when US exports to China grew much faster than those from China to the US - the average annual growth of US exports to China stood at 11 percent, while China's annual growth rate of US exports was 6.6 percent.

For example, the US exported 26 percent of its Boeing aircraft and 56 percent of soybeans to China, as well as 16 percent of vehicles and 15 percent of integrated circuits.

Cooperation is the only right choice between the worlds two largest economies, Zhong said, citing what Chinas President Xi Jinping underscored in a previous call with US President Donald Trump.

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two sides, Sino-US economic and trade relations have been developing in the right direction, Zhong added.

Data shows both trade and investment volume have notably surged.

In 2016, the volume of commodity trade between China and the US reached $519.6 billion - 207 times higher than in 1979 when bilateral diplomatic relations were established. In the same period, bilateral service trade exceeded $110 billion and two-way investment amounted to $170 billion.
China reiterated on Tuesday its resolute opposition to the deployment of a US anti-missile defense system in the Republic of Korea after the system's first components arrived in the peninsula.

The ROK's National Defense Ministry said Seoul had begun assembling the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system after part of its battery section was delivered, Xinhua News Agency reported.

"We've noticed the development. China will resolutely take necessary measures to defend its security interests, and all the consequences of that will be borne by the United States and the ROK," Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily media briefing in Beijing.
ZHAI HAIJUN/CHINA DAILY

Bicycle-sharing companies have put more than 200,000 yellow and orange bicycles into service in Beijing in the past month. To use a bike for 1 yuan ($0.15) per hour, you have to download the app of any of the companies, pay a few hundred yuan as refundable deposit, and scan the code on a bike to unlock or lock it.

The bikes are popular among commuters, many of whom use them to cover the distance between subway stations or bus stops and office or home. But the lack of bicycle parking lotsmost of which have made way for car parking lotsposes a challenge to cyclists.

The disorderly parking of such bikes at street corners has created a problem for chengguan, urban administrative officers, who are not enough in numbers to manage the cyclists and tell them to park the bikes at the right place. Chengguan in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan province, confiscated hundreds of such bikes in November because they were "illegally encroaching upon public place". But bike-sharing remains popular in Chengdu three months later.

Local governments in Beijing, Shenzhen and Nanjing are seeking public opinions to draft rules to regulate the bike-sharing business while other cities wait to learn from the first-tier cities' experiences. Thankfully, the authorities in the first-tier cities have not taken steps as extreme as the Chengdu chengguan.

The bike-sharing business is environment friendly and supplements the urban public transport system. The new business model, which has its roots in mobile internet apps, is not only an innovative but also a symbolic representation of the rise in public awareness about a greener lifestyle.

It is also in line with the government's philosophy of green, sharing and innovative development. Unlike the car-hailing service, which faces resistance because it affects the taxi industry's interests and increases traffic problems, the bike-sharing business deserves greater government support.

Hangzhou in East China's Zhejiang province and Zhangjiagang in neighboring Jiangsu province are successfully operating government-funded bike-renting systems for nearly a decade even while the sale of cars greatly increased during that period. This shows bicycles and cars can coexist peacefully so long as local authorities devise a set of rules that encourage the growth of the bike-sharing business.

To begin with, local governments should set a ceiling for shared bikes. The ceiling will not only help maintain public order but also prevent cut-throat competition among bike-sharing operators.

Second, the competition among the operators should be on the technological and service fronts, not in the number of bicycles. For instance, the government could instruct the companies to ensure they use technology to regulate the cyclists' behaviors and compel them to park the bikes in parking lots.

And third, apart from building more parking lots and bicycle lanes, the government should also, for instance, ask the bike-sharing operators to record users' irresponsible behaviors and accordingly deduct points from their personal credit records.

Once known as the "Kingdom of Bicycles", China has the experience of bicycle management. And it can use that experience to create a bike-friendly environment in the country once again to promote an eco-friendly transport system in cities.

The author is a writer with China Daily. liyang@chinadaily.com.cn
Gun control impossible

United States citizens own the largest number of private guns in the world. Last year, 31 percent of the US population owned more than 357 million guns, according to US media reports. Every year, more than 30,000 people are shot, accidentally killed or commit suicides with guns, and over 200,000 people are wounded in shootings.

Frequent gun-related violence threatens public security and seriously infringes on people's right to life in the US. Despite this, the US Supreme Court still refuses to tighten gun-ownership laws.

Besides, the administration of US President Donald Trump opposes strict gun-control laws, and annulled a gun-control order issued by the Barack Obama administration in January last year. And given the Republicans' and Trump's anti-gun control stance, the US government could further loosen gun-control laws.

In other words, the chances of the US' gun-related problems being solved are slim.

Gun-related violence infringing on people's right to life characterizes human rights problems in the US, which cannot be addressed until the country's Constitution is amended. And since gun production and sales are a huge industry, more than 100,000 retailers are registered nationwide to sell weapons and the National Rifle Association of America wields great influence on politicians, efforts to control the use of guns in the US will hardly be fruitful.

Li Yunlong, a professor of international strategy studies at the Party School of the Communist Party of China Central Committee

Muslims face discrimination

US President Donald Trump signed an order on Jan 27 banning citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States. Although he revised the order recently, excluding Iraq from the list, the ban on Muslims entering the US remains unchanged in nature.

Trump's order, according to many, is against the US Constitution, threatens the core American values and crosses the boundary of political propriety. But the order is not accidental, as anti-Muslim sentiments are prevalent not only within the Trump administration but also in the US society.

Trump knows he has social support for the order targeting Muslims, as American citizens' opinions remain divided on Muslims. For example, according to a joint survey by Reuters and Ipsos, 49 percent of the respondents support the order while 41 percent oppose it.

Muslims are stigmatized, marginalized and discriminated against in the US. According to the Public Religion Research Center, in 2015, 56 percent of Americans (and 76 percent of Republicans) believe Islam propagates violence. And Pew Research Center's survey data for 2016 show 82 percent of Americans believe Muslims are looked down on and 57 percent think the discrimination against Muslims is serious, which is 7 percentage points higher than three years ago.

As a country of immigrants, the US paints itself as an equal, inclusive, ethnically plural and culturally diverse society. But the interests of white people remain the fundamental interest of the country, which is at the root of the religious, ethnic and cultural crises facing the US.

Thanks to the previous US governments' politically correct measures, racial, religious and cultural discriminations were contained to some extent, but Trump has put the minorities to a harsher test. And the ban against Muslims entering the US is only a beginning.

Hao Yaming, an assistant professor of government administration at Nankai University, Tianjin

Love for own values, rules

The US State Department issued its annual reports on the condition of human rights in other countries on March 3. Although global governance has entered a new phase and the paradigm of human rights both in research and practice has changed, the US sticks to its narrow understanding of human rights.

The US' overemphasis on civil and political rights, which ignores people's rights to economic, social and cultural well-being, must be corrected. And people's rights to development, which are valued and supported by developing countries, need to be emphasized.

The US has always tried to forcibly spread its political models, values, human rights concepts around the world while ignoring the developing countries' human rights values and concepts. It is not bothered about people's rights to subsistence and development proposed by the developing countries, as it does not recognize those as part of human rights.

The US has one rule for itself and another for the rest of the world on human rights issues, which means it has a hangover from the Cold War days. The US has always put unilateralism before multilateralism and fair global governance, and that is the greatest obstacle to the progress of the human rights cause.

Liu Huawen, a researcher in international laws at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
"O boy, you are growing taller", a middle-aged woman tells a boy, adding: "Now pull down your pants, and lemme see if your member is growing too?"

This picture with the speech bubbles from a sex education textbook for Grade 2 pupils, was posted by a child's mother on a social media website on Feb 28 to show how "inappropriate" the book was for children. And not surprisingly, it sparked fierce online discussions with many saying the book contains material not suitable for young children.

This prompted the book's editors to post online the full picture from the book which advises children facing such a situation to immediately leave the place, avoid such people in the future and inform their parents of the incident. Still, some micro-bloggers, including Li Tiegen, a commentator, continued their tirade against the book and the boy's school in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province.

The school argues the textbook is part of a "book-crossing" collection put together by some people for free exchange. The boy acquired the book from that collection. Yet under tremendous pressure from social media, the school eventually had to withdraw the book from the collection.

The critics said the book contained pictures of and texts on sexual organs, meaning any book that contains such pictures are "unsuitable" for young children.

The problem is, books cannot provide even the basic sex education for children without pictures of and texts on sexual organs.

Children do not live in a vacuum today; they get some type of sex-related information from the internet, TV programs and/or movies. Enter the word "painless" in the input box of domestic online search giant baidu.com, and automatically the word "abortion" is added to it and a full screen of commercial advertisements with pictures covers the screen.

In the real world, the walls of many public toilets are full of ads with obscene pictures offering cure for venereal diseases.

It is better to educate our children about sex than to pretend ignorance about it, because the more we try to hide reality from our children the more interested they will be to know about it, which could even land them in danger.

Li and several other influential micro-bloggers have joked about the picture in the textbook, saying it is a pornographic tale about a middle-aged woman and a boy. Some have even implied that the boy should "enjoy" the sex.

Are they pretending to not know that even underage boys fall victim to sexual abuse, and sexual abuse is a serious crime?

The sex education book that many have ridiculed is part of a series of books published by Beijing Normal University after strict review by experts. It not only provides pupils with the basic information about sex and sexual organs, but also teaches children how to protect themselves against sexual abuse.

In 2013, some pictures from a German sex education textbook, Where Do Children Come From?, were posted on some Chinese websites. They drew applauses from internet users because they contained direct information about sex and genitals. Shouldn't we welcome Chinese books on sex education with a similar approach?

The author is a writer with China Daily. zhangzhouxiang@chinadaily.com.cn
Students at ETU School are having fun with their programming class. [Photo by Wu Kaixiang/China Daily]

When mother-of-three Li Yinuo returned to Beijing after living in the United States, she was flummoxedlike many Chinese parentsabout how to choose the right school for her oldest son.

"There is no satisfactory option," sighs Li, formerly a partner for management consultancy McKinsey in the US and China. "Public schools stymie creativity and individuality while international schools end up nurturing Chinese as foreigners."

Chinese families often plan their children's future from infancy. Parents used to save every penny to buy a property in a good school district, however shabby the home was.

Now many are looking for alternatives, but they have few options.

"Many still value academic excellence so they believe public schools will best prepare children for the gaokao (the national university entrance exam)," says Li.

She was a straight-A student in that system herself, but she knows its drawbacks: "Rote learning and homogenization are the last thing we want."

In March 2016, she decided to start her own school, inspired by a visit to California's Khan Lab School, which operates under the motto "Everyone's a teacher. Everyone's a student."

"It resonated with me. Young people are capable of far more than society currently recognizes," says Li.
A back view of the models in qipao in Luoyang, Henan province, Aug 28, 2016. [Photo/IC]

A fashion show on qipao, a stylish traditional Chinese dress for ladies, exhibited a beautiful facet of the rich Chinese culture to diplomats of different countries here at the African Union. Hosted by spouses at the Chinese Mission to the Africa Union on the premises of the Mission Head's residence in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, the qipao fashion show event on last Saturday featured performances on different themes, including young girls' beauty; wedding; hosting friend; Chinese Romeo and Juliet dance; violin solo: a fishing boat song at dusk; and learning embroidery among others.

During the event that also displayed sample qipao, an 8-year-old Chinese girl, in particular, captured the attention and the heart of the audience with her performance on violin solo: a fishing boat song at dusk.

According to Kuang Weilin, head of the Chinese Mission to the Africa Union, the event was hosted by the spouses at the Mission in connection with the International Women's Day, aiming to promote the rich Chinese cultural elements to the rest of the world.

Kuang told Xinhua after the show that it was a successful event.

Stating that many Africans and other nationals do not know about China's qipao, also known as Mandarin gown, Kuang said the event was a very good platform to promote the traditional clothing and related cultural elements to diplomats of different countries.

"The event was a great success; it showed the Chinese culture to our friends, to ambassadors. I think, this event is also a very good event for the promotion of better understanding between China and other countries," he said.

"Qipao is really one of the most important elements of the Chinese culture. Qipao really is the symbol of the Chinese culture. And interestingly, not many people in Africa really know about qipao; it is our responsibility to introduce qipao to Africans so that African friends, ambassadors will really have better understanding of the Chinese culture," noted the Ambassador.

He said the Mission would continue to host such events in future with a view of promoting the rich culture of China to the rest of the world.

Participating in some of the performances and making presentation on qipao and its evolution, Wu Hua, wife of the Chinese Ambassador to AU, noted that qipao is symbolic of Chinese culture.

It demonstrates the elegance, grace, and tenderness of the Chinese women, she said.

"Its design and style show special features of the woman's figure. However, at the same time, it does not expose too much. It shows Chinese woman's beauty subtlety," she added.

Attending the event, African and other diplomats have hailed the event, which featured qipao fashion show, presentation on evolution of the traditional robe (qipao), and performances on the different Chinese customs on different occasions.

Susan Sikaneta, Zambian Ambassador to Ethiopia and AU, told Xinhua it was a magnificent event.

"I must say that this fashion show has been magnificent, wonderful, and beautiful. I can describe it in all these beautiful words because it has really been magnificent," she said.

The fashion show was not only entertaining, but also informative and educative, said the Ambassador.

Speaking to Xinhua, Monica Sabatucci, wife of the head of EU Delegation to AU, said she admired the event.

"It is really, really, nice; it was a new experience for us; we can see how in-depth the perfection is of the Chinese people; it is a different culture you get to understand more; how important perfection is color. It was a different presentation. And it was really, new experience for all of us," said Sabatucci.

"It was not the first time; but every new presentation is new experience. Definitely, it was really, really, positive, and I was really, really honored to see all this kind of different presentation; it was not only the fashion show but also the presentation of the different customs that China offers," she said.

The event concluded with a banquet, which offers Chinese dishes, and was thrown by the Chinese Mission to the African Union.
[Photo provided to China Daily]

Several decades ago, the returning Chinese students from overseas studies were mostly out of patriotism to revive the homeland, now they are back for opportunities to fully develop their potential.

The reasons behind the backflow vary. But they all derive from one simple fact: an ever-stronger China, both economically and culturally, is becoming increasingly charming.

'Let's go back to China!'

"I took only 3 minutes to make my final decision," said Zhang Ji, a Chinese returnee from Canada, while recalling the life-changing moment when he made up his mind to return to China to start up his own business.

Zhang returned to China in 2009, bringing back a world-leading heart valve implantation system.

After a 30-minute presentation, Zhang received an investment of 10 million yuan from domestic entrepreneurs, strong policy support of the local government as well as the green light from the authorities.

But opportunities always coexist with challenges. The road to success back in the homeland is not all rosy.

Dedicating himself to medical device innovation, research and development in China, Zhang found it hard to update his medical license in Canada in a timely manner, which means he has to give up his well-paid job there.

In Canada, he could earn in five days what he gets paid in China in a month. Some of Zhang's friends didn't understand why he chose to return to China, saying he made a "silly" choice. But Zhang thought otherwise.

"Yes, I quit an 'iron rice bowl' job, but I get an opportunity to fulfill my dreams, to start up my own business," Zhang said.

Confident about the potential clinical and market value to be generated by his advanced technology, Zhang believes his business has a "boundless prospect."

In contrast with Zhang's highly efficient "3-minute" decision-making, Li Peixiang took quite some time to make up his mind to go back to China.

After all, Li had already made his mark in Canada's biological material industry after over 20 years of endeavor. His ABM company has been identified by the Canadian government as one of the five most promising companies in Vancouver.

With a mindset of having a try, Li participated in the Nanjing "321 Talents Program" in late 2012. After being successfully recruited, Li soon received the investment and subsidies from the local government, and the expertise and insights in biological materials of many local officials and investors also impressed him much.

After making the first step, Li started to build a bigger ambition for the years to come. He set up another new company in Zhenjiang, a city in the eastern Jiangsu province.

"I hope the company's sales achievement could reach 100 million yuan and be listed on the stock market in five years," Li said.

'I have to be grateful!'

"I can go home next month," said Cao Zuonan, an ecology graduate student at Germany's University of Tuebingen, while walking out of the supervisor's office joyfully.

His graduation design programresearch on the experimental methodology of the nutrient in the Chinese Qinghai-Tibet Plateau soilhas just been approved by his supervisor and he is about to return to China to collect soil samples.

Cao, born in the 1990s, spent the first 18 years of his life in Xining city of Qinghai province. He had always longed for the magnificent plateau in his hometown during his study in Germany.

He made up his mind go to Germany for further studies when he was at college and then to return to China, because it is his unshakable faith to dedicate himself to environmental protection.

"I have to be grateful! I have been thinking about how I can pay back to my parents, my fellow countrymen and the land that has brought me up since the start of my college time," said Cao passionately.

'Let's make core strategies!'

Ding Xianfeng still relishes his decision of leaving the Silicon Valley to join Huawei.

"If I did not quit the job of sensor system platform architect at Intel and returned to serve as director and chief scientist at Huawei's sensor lab, I would not become a leader in the world's sensor industry," said Ding proudly.

Huawei, one of the top three research companies for mobile application sensors, enjoys an enormous competitive edge.

"Compared to working in the United States, my influence on the development of the sensor industry in the world has grown hundreds of times ... I represent purchaser who needs sensors that worth 2 billion U.S. dollars," Ding told Xinhua.

Many returnees said they went back to China because of the "glass ceilings," meaning foreigners can never climb to the top of the ladder no matter how talented and hardworking they are.

"Only when you are back in China can you make core strategies," said Ding repeatedly.

Things are similar for Huang Xiaobo. "At that time, most of my classmates were studying abroad. But many of them are just doing trivial jobs, their talent wasted," sighed Huang.

After years of efforts, Huang has become the director of the Institute of Lithotripsy Application at Peking University and an academic leader of the Department of Urology at Peking University People's Hospital.

Huang did not regret his decision.

"Urology is one of the popular professions in the United States. It is barely possible that a Chinese can become the head of the urology department at any mainstream U.S. hospital," Huang said.

According to the Chinese Education Ministry, around 80 percent of overseas students have returned home in recent years, compared with about a third in 2006.

The Chinese governments at all levels are striving to entice students back. For instance, China is now home to over 300 industrial parks aimed at incubating startups led by returnees. Witnessing the ever-growing motherland and government incentives and business opportunities, the returnees, without much hesitation, are packing their bags for their flights home.
Feng Weixiang spent two days traveling to Beijing from his home in a remote corner of southwest China's Yunnan province. The journey was one of the longest for the more than 2,000 members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, who have gathered in Beijing for the political advisory body's annual session.

Feng said the trip could have taken ten times longer.

The 45-year-old is a Nu ethnic, whose small community lives in the far-flung Gongshan Drung-Nu Autonomous County in Yunnan. There, between lofty mountains and deep valleys, dwell some of China's smallest ethnic groups.

The only road out of Gongshan, snaking between cliffs and valleys, was built in 1973.

Before that, Gongshan residents had to climb snow-capped mountains and crossing raging rivers to catch a train from Kunming to Beijing. A single trip took about 20 days.

"Transportation is the biggest obstacle to my hometown's development," Feng said.

Even today, the road out of Gongshan is often hit by landslides during rainy days.

At his fifth CPPCC annual session, Feng said he planned to submit two proposals for more roads linking Yunnan with neighboring regions and beyond the borders to Myanmar and India.

Feng said his personal experience taught him that the journey out of poverty started from road construction. Barred from the outside world by tough terrain, the Nus had lived in extreme poverty.

In his childhood memory, Feng never knew what pork or beef tasted like. His family lived on subsistence farming by growing corn and wheat. Craving animal protein, they would hunt birds in the woods.

Only after a road was built, the Nus were able to have a taste of market economy as they began selling crops to outside communities and bought new stuff. The young and ambitious also got the chance to see the world beyond the mountains.

In 1988, 16-year-old Feng decided to get some vocational training. He got enrolled in a school in Kunming.

Feng then started his career as a vocational schoolteacher in 1992 teaching farming and aquaculture techniques. He remembered he had to trek a whole day in mountains to reach the school, just 40 kilometers away.

Five years later, he quit teaching and became a government worker.

In 2013, he became a member of the CPPCC National Committee.

With such a background, Feng made poverty reduction the focal point of his work. Many of his proposals were centered around infrastructure construction in poor regions.

In 2014, he submitted a proposal urging the construction of a tunnel on a road connecting Gongshan to Shangri-La city.

In 2015, he urged the building of a road connecting Gongshan to Liuku township. The work is to begin by the end of this year.

"Last year, 3,000 people in our county got rid of poverty," he said, adding that about one third of the county's 350,000 residents are still struggling below the poverty line.

"In the country's poverty reduction campaign, Gongshan is by all means a hard nut to crack," Feng said.

The county has set a goal to remove poverty by 2018.

China is aiming to eradicate rural poverty by 2020 and the state is spending heavily to achieve that goal. A remaining 43 million rural poor people mainly dwell in areas without roads, clean drinking water or power.

The government promised that over half of the vehicle purchase taxes, around 840 billion yuan ($125 billion), will be earmarked for rural road construction during the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020), a substantial increase on the 550 billion yuan spent during the previous five years.
A diverse art and culture celebration in Ireland will mark this year's St. Patrick's Festival. It will bring together 3,000 artists, musicians, dancers, poets and performers for over 30 events in Dublin over March 16-19.

"To celebrate Ireland's national holiday, Dublin is set for four really great days and nights," says Brendan Carr, the mayor of Dublin.

"There truly is something for everyone to experience and enjoy."

This year's event looks to celebrate Ireland as a culturally diverse, complex and brave society.

Mesmerizing music, powerful performances, intriguing walks and inspiring talks will be on as part of the celebrations.

The festival has commissioned Stephen James Smith, a Dublin poet and playwright, to write a poem, entitled "My Ireland" for the festival. The poem will be accompanied by a short film.

The four-day festival is funded by the Ireland tourism development authority, the Dublin City Council and Department Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. It is expected to attract more than 100,000 overseas visitors.

One of the highlights of the festival will be the festival parade at noon on March 17. The parade will manifest the vision and talents of artists, designers and performers of all ages.

Community groups and pageant companies from across Ireland will present the rich textures of Irish heritage through a variety of performances, based on Ireland's magical fairy stories, ancient mythical tribes, pirates and living landscape.

Describing the event, Susan Kirby, CEO of St Patrick's Festival program, says: "St Patrick's Festival prepares to create a snapshot of contemporary Ireland through our program of creative cultural events.

"We want the 2017 program to showcase an authentic picture of contemporary Ireland with an inspiring myriad of events that capture this moment in time."

The festival this year will also expand outside of the Dublin city center, with events in Swords, Blanchardstown, Howth and even a mystery train to the Wild Atlantic Way.

The flagship tourism event attracted over 105,000 out-of-state visitors in 2016, who spent an average of 8.8 days in Ireland, and 6.5 days in Dublin.

Meanwhile, visitors are urged to explore this year's Treasure Hunt (March 18), traverse the Liffey and visit places of historical and contemporary interest during the festival.

The finest of local island cuisine up the road in Howth village, at the Dublin Bay Prawn Festival is also something they should sample, say the organizers.

Merrion Square will come alive with a vibrant day-long street carnival on March 19. The Festival Big Day Out is set to burst with street theater, music, aerial performances.
Beijing urged parties involved in the Korean Peninsula issue to think outside the box, be pragmatic and seriously consider China's "dual suspension" proposal.

At a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged Pyongyang to suspend nuclear and missile programs, and Washington and Seoul to suspend large-scale joint military exercises.

The dual suspension proposal is "objective, fair, reasonable and feasible", Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Friday.

The suggestions, however, were rejected by the US and the ROK.

Mark Toner, acting spokesman of the US State Department, said the US doesn't see the dual suspensions as "a viable deal".

Nikki Haley, US ambassador to the United Nations, said the US is "considering every option that's on the table", The Associated Press reported. Cho Tae-yul, the ROK ambassador to the UN, also rejected the idea of dual suspensions.

In return, Geng urged the US and the ROK to break their stereotypical thinking and assume a pragmatic and reasonable attitude.

Geng said the Korean Peninsula issue, which is "highly complicated" at a time when mutual trust is "greatly lacking" among parties involved, can only be solved in a lasting, thorough and effective manner through tackling the concerns of all.

He said China's proposal reflects the Korean Peninsula's reality, takes into account the most urgent concerns of all parties, and is in line with the efforts of related UN Security Council resolutions.

"We hope all parties ... will study carefully and respond constructively to China's proposal and approach," Geng said.

"China also welcomes better suggestions by parties involved on how to solve the peninsula's current predicament," he added.

US State Secretary Rex Tillerson will visit Japan, the ROK and China from Wednesday, and will discuss issues including the Korean Peninsula issue.
Uncertainties brought by the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) have cast a shadow on Chinese people's increasing enthusiasm to tour and shop in South Korea.

By Friday, at least five major cruise companies operating in China have changed course and pulled South Korea out of their port destinations due to public pressure.

For instance, Costa Cruises said on Friday that it will "remove calls to South Korean ports from our recent cruises based out of China, replacing them with cruising at sea or calls to destinations in Japan".

The MSC Cruises made a similar announcement on its WeChat account on Friday that it will take South Korea out of its route from March 26 to May 15, considering "recent developments in South Korean affairs".

Ningbo airport canceled all flights to South Korea starting this month, involving at least four airlines that operate flights between the city and destinations in South Korea, Chinese media reported.

Major tour agencies have also taken South Korea out of their product line. A spokesperson for China Youth Travel Service confirmed that all of their South Korea tour packages were taken off the shelves last week. Before that, the company had received repeated calls from customers asking why they had not taken South Korea out of their service.

The Chinese government has not made any official announcement or comment on this matter.

"What indeed surprised us was that very few customers canceled their orders (after cruises companies canceled stops at ROK ports). They showed understanding, and even support in some cases, of our decision to cancel South Korean tours. We received hardly any complaints regarding our trip adjustment," tour agency LY.com was quoted by The Paper as saying.

SkySea Holding International, China's first local cruise company, also confirmed they received similar feedback from customers.

Feng Kui, director of the academic committee of the China Center for Urban Development, said: "It is THAAD that pushed China-ROK tourism relations to an all-time low."

Chinese and South Korean leaders decided to launch complementary tourism years during their summit in 2014 to build on their cultural ties, promote tourism and reinforce the foundation of goodwill between the two peoples.

The 2015 Chinese Tourism Year in South Korea began on Jan 23, 2015, followed in 2016 by the South Korean Tourism Year in China.

In 2016, some 17 million foreign tourists visited South Korea.

Half of them - more than 8 million - were from China. A little more than 4 million Chinese toured South Korea in 2013.

Su Zhou contributed to this story.

chenmengwei@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/11/2017 page7)
(Photo : Getty Images) Dick Clark Productions, owner behind the Golden Globes Award, has officially called off its takeover deal with China' Dalian Wanda.

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Dalian Wanda's $1 billion deal with Dick Clark Productions, the company behind the Golden Globe Awards, has officially been "terminated," Eldridge Industries confirmed on Friday.



Eldridge, the owner of Dick Clark Productions, said the agreement was scuttled because "Wanda failed to honor its contractual obligations." And because of this, it filed a motion in Delaware's Chancery Court to "compel release of the balance of escrowed funds to which it is contractually entitled given Wanda's failure to consummate the sale."



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Eldridge seeks to force Wanda to hand over $25 million of a $50 million termination fee that was promised in case the agreement fails to push through. The suit alleged that Wanda initially agreed to close the sale by mid-January; however, it only paid half the breakup fee to extend its deadline to the end of February, according to The Hollywood Reporter. But Dalian Wanda still failed to carry out its obligation and pay the remainder of the breakup fee on the extended deadline.



Dalian Wanda, owned by China's richest man, reached a takeover agreement with Dick Clark in November. During that time, Chinese regulators are also limiting capital flight and instituting rigorous oversight of major foreign transactions. US lawmakers, on the other hand, also expressed concerns of China's increasing influence in Hollywood.



Deadline also noted that the real estate giant is also grappling with a slowdown on its main business. It only recorded a 6.7 percent growth in 2016, the lowest in over 25 years. Its revenues also slid down to 14 percent in January 2016, higher than its forecasted 12 percent drop.



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TagsDick Clark Productions, Dalian Wanda, golden globes, merger and acquisition
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged $650 million on March 8 for international abortion, sex education, and contraceptives.



The move, announced on International Womens Day, follows on the heels of the countrys pledge of $20 million to support international abortion as part of the European She Decides fundraiser. Mostly Nordic nations raised $180 million in pledges last week to make up for the loss of U.S. funding for international abortion-providing organizations after President Donald Trump reinstated the Mexico City Policy.



Wednesdays pledge doubles Canadas current funding for international abortion and contraceptives, according to Canadian news outlet National Post.



Like men, women should be able to choose; to choose when they want to start a family, how big their family should be and who they want to start that family with, Trudeau said.



Pro-life leaders in Canada have decried the new funding as a misallocation of the nations resources.



We are horrified by our governments decision to spend more than half a billion dollars on spreading abortion across the world, said Johanne Brownrigg, a spokeswoman for Campaign Life Coalition. Our nation, under Trudeau, has now become one of the worlds top exporters of abortion and sterilization. I guess Trudeaus admiration for Chinas dictatorship and horrific family planning programs are now shaping Canadas foreign policy.



Many of the women in developing countries dont appreciate the focus on abortion rather than maternal healthcare, said Gwen Landolt, vice president of REAL Women of Canada, a pro-family organization. She called the grant a colossal waste of taxpayers money that will do little to change the lives of women in developing countries. Those women, she said, regard their children as their wealth, not a deficit, and unlike many women in the Western world, welcome motherhood, citing research that found only 8 percent of women in Africa, when asked why they do not use contraceptives, attributed it to lack of access.



The Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada found that 80 percent of maternal deaths in low-resource countries are caused by complications during labor and birth. Instead of abortion and contraception, Landolt said, Canadian aid money should go toward maternal and child health initiatives.



Human Life Internationals Joseph Meaney said Canada has been a leader in promoting population control, and the energy behind this push for international funding is likely a reaction to potential U.S. withdrawal from a liberal international club of population control and abortion proponents.



I think there is frustration caused by the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president, and some governments are looking for highly symbolic ways to show their displeasure, said Meaney, noting European countries facing budget cuts and international donor fatigue will likely take a toll on funding. Even where there is strong ideological support for abortion-promoting groups, it will be next to impossible to sustain higher funding levels for them over the next few years.

Courtesy: WORLD News Service

Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com

Publication date: March 10, 2017
home World Canada pledges $650 million to fund abortions overseas

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced that the government will be spending $650 million in the next three years to provide reproductive health services, including abortions, in developing countries.

The announcement was made by Trudeau and International Development Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau on International Women's Day on Facebook.

According to CTV, the money will only be used to fund abortions in countries where it is legal. The funds will also be used to prevent and respond to sexual and gender-based violence, including female genital mutilation, early forced marriages and post-abortion care.

An official has noted that the funds will not come out of the $3.5 billion dedicated to maternal, newborn and child health programming set up by the previous government.

Under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Muskoka Initiative, money contributed by Canada could not be used to facilitate abortions in third-world countries, according to Life News.

Campaign Life Coalition, the leading pro-life group in Canada, decried the decision.

"We are horrified by our government's decision to spend more than half a billion dollars on spreading abortion across the world," said Johanne Brownrigg, public affairs director for Campaign Life Coalition, as reported by Life Site News.

"Our nation, under Trudeau, has now become one of the world's top exporters of abortion and sterilization. I guess Trudeau's admiration for China's dictatorship and horrific family planning programs are now shaping Canada's foreign policy," she continued.

The announcement came after the U.S. government reinstated the Mexico City Policy, which halted funding for organizations that facilitate abortion overseas.

Mike Schouten, the spokesperson for WeNeedaLaw.ca, said that Canada's response to the re-enactment of the policy was "appalling."

"Why are we committing millions of taxpayer dollars that we don't even have, so that organizations such as International Planned Parenthood can continue to masquerade abortion as 'women's health care' in third-world countries?" Schouten asked.

The Trudeau administration also announced plans to remove parts of the Criminal Code that are no longer in use, including the provision banning abortions. The Supreme Court overturned the ban on abortions in 1988, stating that it was unconstitutional as it violated a woman's right to life, liberty and security of the person.
home US Court rejects ACLU's request to recover $230K in legal fees from Kim Davis

A federal court has ruled against the motion filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to recover more than $230,000 in legal fees from Kim Davis, a clerk in Rowan County, Kentucky, who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

The motion, filed in September, requested that Davis, or Rowan County, pay $233,058.08 in attorneys fees and costs incurred by the ACLU when it represented four couples in the legal battle against Davis.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Edward Atkins rejected the motion on Monday, but the ACLU has expressed plans to file an objection, Huffington Post reported.

ACLU of Kentucky legal director William Sharp said back in September that the motion was meant to "send a message to government officials that willful violations of individuals' rights will be costly."

Davis gained national attention in 2015 when she refused to issue same-sex marriage licenses citing her Christian beliefs, despite the Supreme Court ruling that legalized gay marriage nationwide.

U.S. District Judge David Bunning ordered her to issue the licenses despite her religious identity, but she continued to refuse. She was jailed for five days after the judge found her to be in contempt of court.

The case was ultimately resolved when Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin signed a bill into law that would remove the names of the county clerks from state-issued marriage licenses.

The ACLU argued in its motion that it should have the right to recover the legal costs for "having to go through the expense of that litigation to secure a basic right that should not have been denied eligible couples in the first place a the ability to secure a marriage license and marry the person of their choosing."

However, Atkins stated in his preliminary order that the organization is "not entitled to an award of attorneys' fees" because it was not the prevailing party in the case. Davis' attorneys, who are with the legal group Liberty Counsel, celebrated Atkins' decision as "another victory" for the county clerk.

"The ACLU and others still want to punish Kim Davis for daring to take a stand for religious liberty, but today the court recognized that the ACLU does not deserve to get paid for its bullying," Horatio Mihet, Liberty Counsel's vice president of legal affairs, said in a statement.
home US Former Islamic extremist says jihadist groups are sending students to infiltrate U.S. colleges

Isik Abla, a former radical Muslim, has revealed that Islamic groups are paying for the tuition of students to the U.S. in order to infiltrate top universities as part of the efforts to wage Jihad on the West.

Abla, who is now a Christian evangelist, told The Christian Post at the Proclaim 17, NRB International Christian Media Convention in Orlando last week that there are different kinds of Jihad in Islam.

"There's educational Jihad, there's population Jihad, there's media Jihad, economical Jihad," she noted.

Abla said that she believed in physical jihad when she was a fanatical Muslim, but she became involved in educational Jihad.

"Educational Jihad pays the tuition of the students to send them to high prestigious colleges and universities in the Western world. They pay their Harvard education, they pay Princeton, they pay Yale," she explained.

"So we were shoveling money to this kind of educational Jihad so those people could be in high places in power to dictate what needs to happen in the Western world [and] to Islamize the Western world. This is an ideology type of Islam and I was part of that," she continued.

When she was 12 years old, Abla had already completed courses on the Quran and aspired to die in the name of Allah and become a "hero."

Abla fled from Turkey to the U.S. after she endured physical abuse from her two marriages. She eventually found work under a Christian boss who constantly shared his faith with her.

She recounted that when she was about to commit suicide, Christ revealed Himself to her and completely changed her life.

The former radical Muslim said that she does not understand why people refer to Islam as a religion of "peace." She warned that ISIS is currently recruiting Westerners through social media, and she believes that young people are attracted to the group because the presentation of Islam is giving them a purpose in becoming a "freedom fighter" to die in the name of Allah.

Abla is now an ordained minister, and she runs TV and radio broadcasts in Turkish, Arabic, Urdu, Farsi and English to share her testimony with the Muslim community. She has been awarded by NRB with the International Impact Award in front of other Christian leaders, broadcasters and people from all different forms of media.
home US Former member of Westboro Baptist Church explains why she left the controversial group

Megan Phelps-Roper, the granddaughter of Westboro Baptist Church founder Fred Phelps, has shared some details about her life in the controversial church and gave an explanation on why she eventually left.

Westboro Baptist is known for picketing funerals of fallen U.S. soldiers and its offensive speech against LGBT, Muslim, Catholic, Orthodox Christian, and Jewish communities.

Phelps-Roper revealed in her TedTalks speech that she was only five years old when she first joined the family at a picket line. She explained that she had to hold a sign that contained messages such as "gays are worthy of death," when she could not even read yet.

She admitted that she wholeheartedly believed in what the church taught her, and she became part of pickets across the country as the church grew in notoriety.

When she joined Twitter in 2009, she encountered people who directed their "usual rage and scorn" at her, and she would respond to them with a mix of Bible references and smiley faces. But she eventually began to participate in genuine conversations with a man named David, who ran a blog called "Jewlicious."

She had a face to face encounter with David during a protest in New Orleans, in which she was carrying a "God hates Jews" sign. "He brought me a Middle Eastern dessert from Jerusalem, where he lives, and I brought him kosher chocolate," she recalled.

Phelps-Roper said that their conversations had planted the seeds of doubt in her, and she began to question some of the church's teachings.

"How could they claim to love their neighbour, while at the same time praying for God to destroy them?" she said, as she recounted the questions that bothered her at the time.

"The truth is that the care shown to me by these strangers on the internet was itself a contradiction. It was evidence that people on the other side were not the demons I was led to believe," she added.

Phelps-Roper eventually left Westboro in 2012, knowing that her family would never speak to her again. She said she was astonished that David was willing to let her stay with his family.

She said that she is speaking out now because she saw how society is becoming more divided and polarized. "The path we have chosen looks so like the one I walked away from four years ago," she remarked.

Phelps-Roper, who is now a writer and an activist, expressed hope that people would see her story as proof that anyone can be reached and people can exchange in constructive discourse.
home World Marie Stopes approves abortions after 22-second consultations, new investigation claims

Marie Stopes International, the second-largest abortion provider in Britain, has been accused of approving abortions based on phone conversations that last as little as 22 seconds.

Last year, the health watchdog Care Quality Commission (CQC) raised concerns that doctors at Marie Stopes were approving abortions based solely on a one-line summary of what a woman tells a call-centre worker with no medical training.

A recent investigation by the Daily Mail has indicated that the phone conversations can be as short as 22 seconds.

The Daily Mail also found out that if the woman who seeks an abortion fails to provide a reason which reflects with those set out in the abortion act, she is encouraged to come up with a different reason.

Following a telephone consultation, an undercover reporter found out that the official note of her reason for obtaining an abortion was completely different from what she said on the phone.

Doctors are not required to meet a woman before approving the termination of pregnancy, but the Department of Health guidance stated that it is "good practice."

When a reporter contacted Marie Stopes for an abortion, she was told that she does not need to meet the doctor who would approve the procedure.

"We've already done the legal side of things. It's done before [you get to the clinic]," the call center worker told the reporter. When asked for a reason for the abortion, the reporter said, "I just don't want the baby."

Under the Abortion Act, the reason given by the reporter was not considered sufficient grounds for the procedure. When the reporter arrived at the clinic her justification had been recorded in her medical notes as "client is unable emotionally to continue with pregnancy," which aligns with the legal conditions.

Jade Stevens, a woman who had an abortion at a Marie Stopes clinic, said that the facility was "like a conveyor belt."

"Some [women] were really upset, they were crying but there was no support for them," she said. "It was one in, and literally five minutes later, another one in. They were doing it so quickly," she went on to say.

Dr. John Parsons, a former abortionist at one of the organization's clinics, said that he felt uncomfortable because "the aim was always to save money."

"To my great discomfort, I felt it was an organisation that didn't have its patients at the centre of the service they were offering," he wrote.

Two pro-life groups, Life and the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), have launched a joint petition calling for the permanent suspension of Marie Stopes International.

SPUC chief executive John Smeaton said that it is "beyond comprehension" that the organization's clinics are allowed to remain open despite the 2,600 failures discovered by health inspectors.
home US Pastor protesting against Texas bathroom bill declares 'God is transgender'

A transgender pastor in Texas has lashed out against the controversial bathroom bill that would require individuals to use public bathrooms that correspond with their biological sex. The pastor reportedly declared that "God is transgender" during a protest on Tuesday.

The Rev. S. David Wynn, a senior pastor at Agape Metropolitan Community Church in Fort Worth, Texas, protested against Senate Bill 6 with hundreds of LGBTQ advocates outside the state capitol in Austin.

The bill, proposed in January, would require individuals to use restrooms and changing facilities in public schools and government buildings that correspond with the sex listed on their birth certificates.

Wynn was among the 200 people who testified against the proposal during a public hearing with the Senate State Affairs Committee that began on Tuesday and continued until Wednesday morning.

"In the beginning, God created humankind in God's image. ... So God is transgender," Wynn said during the protest, as reported by The Huffington Post. "We're all created in the image of what is holy and divine and sacred, and we should all be treated that way," he continued.

During Tuesday's hearing, Democratic state Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr. cited "God's creation" to justify his support for the bill. "God created everything as far as I'm concerned, but especially man and woman," he said.

However, Wynn denounced the senator's message during his address outside the Capitol.

"We're going to stop using God as an excuse to hate people," he said. "If God hates all the same people you do, then you've created God in your image," he added, paraphrasing author Anne Lamott.

The bill was approved by the committee on Wednesday by a vote of 7a1. It is now headed to the full Senate, where its passage is all but assured. A majority of Republicans have already voiced their support for the legislation.

Critics of the proposal argued that it engenders unconstitutional discrimination against transgender people while its supporters said that it will increase privacy and safety by keeping men out of women's bathrooms.

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick pushed for the bill's passage after former President Barack Obama's administration issued a directive for public schools to allow students to use bathrooms according to their gender identity. The administration of President Donald Trump rescinded the rule last month, stating that the issue should be left to the states.
home World Philippine police chief invites priests to join Duterte's drug raids

The Philippine police chief has invited priests to join the anti-drug operations in an attempt to make the campaign against drugs "less bloody."

Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Ronald dela Rosa said that the police is now ready to resume the war on drugs, and priests, as well as pastors and Muslim clerics, are invited to join the drug raids to reduce the risk of violence and bloodshed.

"The parish priest can join if not his representative, so as to make our campaign credible. I'm appealing to the clergy for support," said Dela Rosa, as reported by The Philippine Star.

"Imagine you're a drug personality and the people who come knocking on your door turn out to be the chief of police, the barangay [village] captain and the local priest. I think it will soften your heart, and make you immediately follow their advice to change your ways, or undergo rehab if you're not yet ready," he continued.

President Rodrigo Duterte suspended the PNP from the war on drugs after rogue police officers allegedly killed a South Korean businessman right inside the PNP headquarters. Dela Rosa vowed that the campaign will only resume after a cleansing of police ranks.

Dela Rosa said the police will be equipped with body cameras to record the drug raids in communities, adding that the operations will be led by municipal chiefs of police and village chairs.

The priests will also be provided copies of the government's list of drug suspects to allow them to convince the drug users or pushers to reform. "The Church would be a big help to make this campaign less bloody or bloodless," he said, according to Inquirer.

Meanwhile, an official of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has stated that there is no need for priests to join the anti-drug operations as Dela Rosa had already guaranteed enough safeguards to prevent abuses.

Fr. Jerome Secillano, secretary general of the CBCP-Public Affairs Committee, said that the church will support the operations as long as there are no killings and unjust practices.

Secillano had expressed doubts that bishops would order the priests to join the drug raids, and he stressed that priests have their own programs to rehabilitate drug users. Apart from the rehabilitation programs, the church also conducts dialogues with people using or selling drugs through its Basic Ecclesial Communities.
home US Planned Parenthood turns down Trump's funding offer in exchange for dropping abortions

Planned Parenthood has turned down President Donald Trump's offer to keep its federal funding in exchange for discontinuing its abortion services.

According to The New York Times, White House officials have proposed that Planned Parenthood could keep its federal funding if it stops providing services related to abortion.

In a statement issued on Monday, Trump reiterated his pro-life stance and said that he was willing to increase federal funding for women's health care services that are not related to abortion.

"Polling shows the majority of Americans oppose public funding for abortion, even those who identify as pro-choice. There is an opportunity for organizations to continue the important work they do in support of women's health, while not providing abortion services," the president stated.

However, Planned Parenthood officials rejected the proposal, saying it was an "impossibility." The organization, which receives about $500 million in federal funding each year, insisted that the funds do not pay for abortions.

"Offering money to Planned Parenthood to abandon our patients and our values is not a deal that we will ever accept. Providing critical health care services for millions of American women is nonnegotiable," said Dawn Laguens, the executive vice president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

Planned Parenthood performs over 300,000 abortions annually, but it has claimed that abortion is "only three percent" of its business," according to Life Site News.

During the campaign period, Trump had spoken favorably about Planned Parenthood's work, saying millions of women have benefited from its services such as cancer screenings. But he vowed to defund the organization because it performs abortions.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of the Susan B. Anthony List, said that Trump is fulfilling his campaign promise. She said that she had no problem with the proposal because her opposition to Planned Parenthood lies with its abortion work.

Earlier this week, House Republicans released a draft of an Obamacare replacement bill, which would strip Planned Parenthood of most of its federal funding.

In early January, the Senate approved a budget resolution bill that would pave the way to redirect Planned Parenthood's taxpayer funding to other health care organizations.

Planned Parenthood has been referred by a Congressional Panel and a U.S. Senate committee for prosecution last year due to its alleged involvement in the sales of fetal body parts.
home World Pope Francis considers ordaining married men to the priesthood

Pope Francis has stated on Thursday that he is open to the idea of ordaining married men to the priesthood to address the shortage of priests in remote areas.

In an interview with German weekly Die Zeit, the pope said that removing the celibacy rule could not solve the problem of priest shortage, but he admitted that he was open to studying the ordination of "viri probati" or married men of proven faith.

"We must consider if viri probati is a possibility. Then we must determine what tasks they can perform, for example, in remote communities," said Francis.

The pope acknowledged that the priest shortage had become an "enormous problem," and he said that the first response must be prayer along with an intense focus on "working with young people who are seeking orientation."

In 2014, Francis noted that there are already married priests in the church, citing Anglican ministers who converted as well as Coptic Catholics and priests of some eastern churches.

The Catholic Church had previously said that celibacy was not a matter of inflexible church dogma unlike the resurrection of Christ. But the pope maintained that allowing priests in training to choose whether or not to be celibate was "not the solution."

According to a report from ABC, the proposal to ordain married men has been around for decades, but it was brought up again due in part to the pope's appreciation of the challenges faced by the church in places like Brazil, a huge Catholic country with an acute shortage of priests.

Francis warned that the lack of priests weakens the Church "because a Church without the Eucharist doesn't have strength - the Church makes the Eucharist, but the Eucharist also makes the Church."

Last year, the pope spent some time visiting men who had left the priesthood in order to start families. There had been rumors that Francis might devote the next Synod of Bishops in 2018 to the issue of married priests, but he had decided that the focus of the gathering will be on youth, faith and vocational discernment.

In another part of the interview, Pope Francis warned against the rise of populism in the West. "Populism is evil and ends badly, as the past century has shown," he said, adding that it means "using the people" by offering them a messiah.
home US Woman ditches thriving porn career to become a preacher

A woman went through a dramatic change when she gave up her thriving career in the porn industry to become a pastor in in the small town of Fulton, New York.

Crystal Bassette, 33, grew up in North Carolina but moved to Hollywood after she got pregnant at the young age of 16. In her first few weeks, she participated in pole dancing competitions and worked as a model and a dancer, The Sun revealed.

In a desperate bid to support her son, she met with an adult film agent who told her that she could earn as much as $30,000 a month in the industry.

Soon after the meeting, she attended her first scene at a house in Malibu, but the job was not what she expected.

"I remember after the scene, I sat in the shower for about two hours crying. Then I stopped after that shoot and didn't go back for about one month," Bassette recounted.

She eventually went back to the porn industry, but she started taking pain medicine and drinking alcohol to get through the scenes.

Bassette said that shooting scenes became a daily routine for her. She narrated that she would drop off her son to school in the morning and shoot a scene before coming home. "It was like a regular 9-to-5 job," she said.

Bassette, who starred in more than 100 films, was eventually able to afford a home in Malibu as well as seven cars, including a Ferrari. However, she also drank heavily in an attempt to hide her secret shame.

"I just lived for myself and my son and didn't really think about the consequences of making films and dancing and everything," she said.

The turning point for Bassette came in May 2014 when she got involved in a serious car crash and was charged with DWI.

Realizing that her lifestyle was unsustainable, Bassette turned to the Bible and started attending her sister's church. In December 2014, she married the church's pastor, David, who already knew about her past.

"The day I was saved, I felt like the preacher was just speaking to me directly. It was like he was preaching to only me and you know that day I felt God was talking to me through his preaching and everything he said felt right," she recounted.

After leaving the porn industry, Bassette went to college to become a paralegal and trained as a pastor. She and David eventually found their own church called New Beginnings Christan Life, where they hope to serve as an inspiration to others.

Bassette said that she is no longer worried about her appearance or money. "Now I'm worried about helping people," she remarked.
Boston St. Patrick's Parade Organizers Deny Banning Gay Marchers

Organizers of Boston's St. Patrick's Day Parade denied on Thursday that they told a gay veterans' group its members could not march openly in one of the largest U.S. celebrations of the holiday and accused the group of breaking parade rules.

The veterans' group, OUTVETS, said late on Tuesday it had been informed by parade organizers it would be excluded from this year's parade, rekindling a decades-long fight over inclusion that had looked settled in 2015 when the group was first allowed to march.

"OUTVETS has not been officially notified that they will not be allowed to march in the Parade," the Allied War Veterans Council, which organizes the 116-year-old event honoring Ireland's patron saint, said in a statement posted to its website on Thursday.

"OUTVETS was informed that our Code of Conduct prohibits 'the advertisement or display of one's sexual orientation,' and that the 'rainbow' flag on its banners and logo was in violation of this rule," the council added.

It said the group had not filed its application to march on time and added that since OUTVETS' Tuesday statement, parade organizers had "received numerous vitriolic and hate-filled emails."

Parade officials did not respond to requests for further comment.

Brian Bishop, director of the gay veterans' group, laughed when a reporter described the statement to him.

"If that's what they're saying, hey, great. All I know is the phone call that I got on Tuesday night said that we were being excluded," said Bishop. "We thought that we had gotten through this already."

The move by parade organizers to exclude the group drew criticism from political leaders in Massachusetts, which was the first U.S. state to legalize gay marriage more than a decade ago. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, a Democrat, and Governor Charlie Baker, a Republican, are among the politicians who have said they will skip the March 19 event if the gay veterans' group is excluded.

Parade organizers long cited their Roman Catholic faith as a reason for excluding openly gay participants, as the Catholic Church teaches that homosexual conduct is sinful. They said on Thursday that allowing openly gay marchers had prompted other Catholic groups that had long participated in the march to bow out.

New York's parade also long excluded openly gay marchers, but both organizations in 2015 allowed gay groups to participate after major sponsors dropped their funding of the events.
Going To Church Dangerous In Mexico As Christians Face Persecution From Criminal Drug Cartels

In Mexico, people go to church at their own risk.

The danger is posed by the powerful drug cartels that have been acting with impunity, ruthlessly harassing Christian communities and imposing taxes on churches and businesses for their right to exist, Open Doors reported.

Dennis Petri, the Open Doors manager in Mexico, said the extortion on churches by the drug cartels "is a massive phenomenon affecting virtually all churches, while many others appear too afraid to speak about it."

Aside from extortion, the drug cartels are also engaged in kidnapping for a ransom, another income-generating activity that affects churches and businesses alike, Petri said.

In areas controlled by these drug cartels, church worshippers face the risks not only of extortions and kidnappings but also of violent and often deadly attacks if they happen to go to churches where the drug cartels have placed severe restrictions on services and the right to congregate, the Open Doors report says.

"Church services are not allowed in certain areas. There are reports of churches that have been closed by order of drug cartels," Petri said. "Moreover, there are reports of individuals who are prohibited from attending church services or have the obligation to report to the drug cartels whenever they visit a particular church."

Worse, the danger for Christians is double-sided: They also face threats and violence from self-defence groups or vigilantes that are fighting the drug cartels.

One Evangelical Christian told Open Doors that he was once threatened by these vigilantes who were former drug dealers. "On one occasion, they threw us out of our community using sticks and machetes. They threatened to kill me if I dared go back to my community," he said.

One pastor said the drug cartels are highly organised. "They can follow your every move. One cannot go anywhere alone; protection is needed all the time," he said.

Petri said pastors can't speak out against these drug cartels from the pulpit because they risk being killed if they do so.

In a previous report, a Mexican priest missing for days was found dead in January this year. The death of Father Joaquin Hernandez Sifuentes, who ministered in the drug cartel-controlled state of Coahuila, was the latest of more than 30 priests who have been killed in Mexico since 2006.

Mexico is ranked 41st on the 2017 Open Doors USA's World Watch List of top Christian-persecuting countries.
Grandma Says God Prompted Her To Jump On Back Of Hulking Man Attacking Police Officer, Saving Cop's Life

A 56-year old grandmother is being hailed as a heroic Good Samaritan who saved the life of a police officer.

"I did what God needed me to do," said Vickie Williams-Tillman, a petite woman standing just 5'2", who jumped on the back of a hulking crime suspect who was pummelling a police officer and was grappling for the latter's firearm, reports said.

Williams-Tillman was driving early Sunday morning, Feb. 21, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana when she saw an officer on the side of the road confronting a suspect, People reported.

She then saw the suspect attack the officer. She quickly dialed 911 to call for help, but then felt that she could do more than that to help.

"I thought, 'They're not going to make it in time.' There was just a small amount of time before something could have happened," said the mother of three who works at a Catholic school during the day and cleans offices at night.

Cpl. Billy Aime, the 44-year-old police officer rescued by Williams-Tillman, had earlier found drugs in the suspect's vehicle during a traffic stop and was handcuffing the suspect, identified as 28-year-old Thomas Bennett, when the latter grabbed the officer's baton and used it to him in the head, according to Baton Rouge Police.

That's when Williams-Tillman sprang into action. Risking her own safety, she "jumped out of her vehicle and onto back of the assailant," according to police.

"It was just instinct," she said, adding, "God led the way."

"They both had their hands on the gun to see who would get it first, so I twisted the suspect's arm," she said. "Then we were all falling. I didn't let go of his arm until we all fell."

The backup police unit then arrived and subdued Bennett with a stun gun.

Williams-Tillman hurt her hand and wrist and was taken to the hospital where she was treated.

A day after the incident, the Baton Rouge Police Department thanked Williams-Tillman on its Facebook page while Mayor-President Sharon Weston-Broome held a special press conference honouring her.

"Vickie Williams-Tillman epitomises the true Good Samaritan," Weston-Broome said in a statement, The Advocate reported.

"She reached out and offered a courageous and unconditional response to the officer. Ms. Williams-Tillman is a hero and demonstrates the true meaning of loving God and loving your neighbour," she added.

Aime, the officer Williams-Tillman saved, embraced his rescuer, saying, "This is a true hero right here that saved my life."
Pastor And Programmer In Court Over Bitcoin Exchange

Jurors in Manhattan federal court on Friday prepared to weigh charges against a Florida software engineer and a New Jersey pastor accused of scheming to help an illegal bitcoin exchange escape scrutiny.

The unlicensed bitcoin exchange, Coin.mx, was linked to an investigation of a data breach at JPMorgan Chase & Co that exposed more than 83 million accounts. The company disclosed the breach in 2014.

Prosecutors claim that Yuri Lebedev helped arrange bribes to pastor Trevon Gross, including $150,000 in donations to his church. In exchange, they say, Gross helped the operator of Coin.mx, Anthony Murgio, take over a small credit union Gross ran from his church.

Murgio used the credit union to evade scrutiny of banks wary of processing payments involving the virtual currency, prosecutors say. Lebedev is accused of working for Coin.mx through a front called "Collectables Club."

But lawyers for Lebedev, 39, and Gross, 47, have painted a different picture, saying their clients did not know that Murgio was running an illegal operation.

In a closing statement on Thursday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Eun Young Choi reviewed numerous text messages, emails and voice recordings presented to jurors during the four-week trial, which she said proved that Lebedev and Gross acted with "corrupt intent."

Lebedev's lawyer, Eric Creizman, in his closing statement called the evidence a "hodgepodge" designed to "maximize the smoke" around Lebedev.

"But if you look behind the smoke, there's no fire there," he said.

Henry Klingeman, Gross' lawyer, likewise said his client "never thought, at the time these things were happening, that he was doing anything illegal."

In a rebuttal delivered on Friday morning, Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Noble again urged the jury to consider what he called a "mountain of documentary evidence."

The trial followed a probe rooted in the JPMorgan data breach, which lead to charges against nine people.

Gross, Lebedev and Murgio were not accused of hacking. But prosecutors said Coin.mx was owned by an Israeli who was behind the breach, Gery Shalon.

Prosecutors say Shalon, together with Maryland-born Joshua Samuel Aaron, orchestrated cyber attacks that resulted in the theft of information from more than 100 million people.

Prosecutors said they carried out the hacks to further other schemes with another Israeli, Ziv Orenstein, including pumping up stock prices with promotional emails. Shalon, Aaron and Orenstein have pleaded not guilty.

Murgio pleaded guilty to charges related to Coin.mx in January. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 16.
Pope To Make Four-Day Visit To Colombia in September

Pope Francis will visit Colombia in September, President Juan Manuel Santos said on Friday, stopping in Bogota, Medellin, Villavicencio and Cartagena during a four-day trip.

The pope has been a key supporter of Colombia's peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, rebels, even brokering discussions between Santos and his top opposition rival, former president Alvaro Uribe.

"His holiness gave us courage, he gave us momentum, he encouraged all Colombians to persevere in the search for peace and now he will come to Colombia during a unique moment for our country," Santos said after meeting with Colombia's episcopal council of bishops.

Francis will visit between Sept. 6 and Sept. 10.

Santos won last year's Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to reach an accord with the FARC, 6,000 of whom are now in the process of handing in their weapons at demobilization camps.

Francis, an Argentine who also helped broker diplomatic efforts in Cuba and Venezuela, repeatedly expressed support for the deal over four years of often tense negotiations.

The visit will be the third by a pope to the Andean nation. Francis has yet to visit his home country as pontiff. He visited the US three years ago and often receives rock-star welcomes - especially in Roman Catholic countries.
Tomb Of Jonah In Mosul Shows ISIS Preserving Artefacts To Sell For Loot

Extensive excavations by Islamic State militants under Mosul's ancient Mosque of Jonah show they took care to preserve artifacts for loot, a local archaeologist said, in sharp contrast to their public desecration of antiquities.

The ultra-hardline Islamists seized the mosque when they stormed through northern Iraq three years ago, bulldozing and dynamiting ancient sites and smashing statues and sculptures, declaring them all idolatrous.

Jonah's mosque was blown up in July 2014, but experts surveying the damage after it was recaptured in January by a U.S.-backed Iraqi campaign found a network of tunnels dug by the militants, leading down to a 7th century BC Assyrian palace.

The careful way the tunnels were dug show the militants wanted to keep the treasures intact, said archaeologist Musab Mohammed Jassim, from the Nineveh Antiquities and Heritage Department

"They used simple tools and chisels to dig the tunnels, in order not to damage the artifacts," he said, standing near the tunnel network which leads from the mosque ruins above ground to the much older subterranean palace.

The digging "was carried out according to a plan and a knowledge of the palace," he added.

The efforts to avoid damaging the antiquities contrast with the destruction of ancient sites across Islamic State's self-declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq, from the desert city of Palmyra to the Assyrian capital of Nimrud, south of Mosul.

The desecration was recorded on video and widely published by Islamic State supporters, who protrayed it as part of their campaign to erase any cultural history which contravenes their extreme interpretation of Sunni Islam.

However the United States has said looting and smuggling of artifacts has been a significant source of income for the militants. In July 2015 the U.S. handed Iraq a hoard of antiquities it said it had seized from Islamic State in Syria.

While Islamic State's 30-month occupation of the Mosque of Jonah left a legacy of damage and theft, it has also opened up fresh opportunities for archaeologists.

Excavations which were launched in 2004, the year after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, revealed an entrance to the palace of Assyrian king Esarhaddon, guarded by large lamassus - human-headed winged bulls carved from stone.

But work halted shortly after because it threatened the foundations of the mosque, built over the reputed burial site of the biblical prophet revered by Jews, Christians and Muslims - who know him as Nabi Yunis.

"The whole palace remained untouched by the experts and foreign excavation," Jassim said as he toured the tunnels, still lined with broken bits of pottery as well as sections of stone panel with carved figures and cuneiform text.

"So this site, the Esarhaddon Palace, maintained all its features...It contains large collections of sculptures of different sizes and shapes and valuable artifacts".

Esarhaddon, who ruled ancient Assyria for 12 years in the early 7th century BC, was the son of Sennacherib whose military campaigns against Babylon and the kingdom of Judah are recorded in the bible.

A U.S.-backed Iraqi campaign dislodged Islamic State from most Iraqi cities captured in 2014 and 2015. The militant group is now fighting in its last major urban stronghold, in the western part of Mosul.

Iraqi forces earlier this week captured the ransacked main museum of Mosul, where the militants filmed themselves destroying priceless statues.
WWE Wrestlemania 33 matches, predictions: Triple H vs. Seth Rollins unlikely; Undertaker's last time in Wrestlemania ring?

There are some nailbiting matches in store for the upcoming Wrestlemania 33 on April 2 as the likes of The Undertaker, Brock Lesnar and Bill Goldberg take to the ring. But one duel that hasn't yet been confirmed is Triple H versus Seth Rollins.

Triple H was in fine form as he stepped back into the ring in Buffalo, New York, on Friday for WWE's Live Event, although his tag team lost out to Sami Zayn, Finn Balor and Chris Jericho.

Most of the line-up for Wrestlemania 33 is completed and while there are some amazing matches confirmed for the Florida event next month, fans are still waiting to hear whether Triple H will be part of the action.

If he does have an official match, his likely opponent will be Seth Rollins, who has been struggling with a knee injury of late. Triple H has certainly been putting the work in at the gym, if his crazy workout clips shared to his Twitter are anything to go by.

End of the #MidnightWorkout

95s x 22 Superset

Finished with incline shoulder touch push-ups...#DoTheWork #OneDayCloser pic.twitter.com/ZhxdxK1UiV  Triple H (@TripleH) March 2, 2017

IBTimes however, says it's looking increasingly unlikely that Triple H will be part of the action.

But even without them, the pay-per-view will be well worth tuning in for, with The Undertaker, Lesnar and Goldberg all heading into the ring.

It could possibly be the final Wrestlemania fight for The Undertaker, who's been a part of the event for the last 17 years. He's only lost one duel at Wrestlemania in that time - against Brock Lesnar. This time he's up against Roman Reigns and he certainly wouldn't want to lose to him but a defeat could persuade him it's time to move on.

Speaking of Lesnar, he could face another defeat at the hands of Goldberg, who previously destroyed him at the Survivor Series. Goldberg has been wiping out opponents pretty swiftly in singles matches and it will be interesting to see if he can pull off the same with Lesnar at Wrestlemania. It would be some feat and a pretty big shock if he did as Lesnar has had a good run at Wrestlemania since 2013. Will Goldberg be the man to break his winning streak?
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An off-duty Houston police officer shot a man Friday night whom he believed had robbed a woman earlier that evening, authorities said.

The officer-involved shooting happened about 9 pm Friday along the access road to the North Loop East near N. Wayside Drive.

The officer, an 8-year HPD veteran, was not injured. The person he shot, who had not been identified, was taken to an area hospital in stable condition.

The off-duty officer was flagged down about 8:30 pm in Jacinto City by a woman he apparently knew who said the man had just robbed her along Interstate 10 near Mercury, police said.

The man was in a pickup truck and police said the officer was able to find him and begin a pursuit that ended with both vehicles on the grassy embankment along the 610 Loop.

The officer fired at least once during an altercation that followed. It wasn't immediately known whether the other man also had a weapon, police said.

The wounded man then ran up onto the North Loop where he was picked up by someone in a car who dropped him off at the hospital.

Police said they want to talk to the person who picked up the wounded man.

Houston police homicide and internal affairs detectives are investigating along with the Harris County District Attorney's Office.
While thousands of people were in Houston this week to talk about the future of the energy industry, renown climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe was in town talking about the future of our planet.

People tend to listen to Hayhoe, because she's got some serious scientific chops. In addition to running the Climate Science Center at Texas Tech, she has served as a lead author on the second and third U.S. National Climate Assessments. These are much-vetted, influential reports that pull from the best climate science available and help shape U.S. policy. Her work has appeared in more than 120 peer-reviewed publications, and she has worked with cities across the nation on climate-change plans.

The wife of a pastor, a proud evangelical Christian, Hayhoe has become a go-to figure on climate change, appearing with celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio and Don Cheadle in a Showtime series about climate change. Today, she stars in a popular PBS digital series "Global Weirding."

She's so in demand that it was quite a coup that the Houston Advanced Research Center landed her for its People and Nature Lecture Series on Wednesday.

Prior to her lecture at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, Hayhoe sat down with the Houston Chronicle to talk about a number of things, from Houston's recent flooding to proposed budget cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And she explains why she's still optimistic about finding solutions to our climate challenge during the Trump administration.

Q: Over the past couple of years, Houston has been slammed by these epic flooding events. Thankfully, no hurricanes. A lot of people, while they acknowledge that Houston historically floods, have started to link these events to climate change. Is that an appropriate thing to do?

A: The number one question people ask when there's an extreme event is "Is this climate change or is this natural?" But that's a very binary question. Is it black or white? Yes or No? The answer is that human-induced climate change has irrevocably altered the background conditions of our atmosphere. And so everything that happens now has some component of climate change. The question is now, how much? If we turn the clock back 100 years, would the chances of having these heavy rainfalls be significantly less?

We know that - at the national scale - heavy precipitation events are increasing as a result of human-induced climate change. We know that because of simple physics. In a warmer world, water evaporates faster. So when a storm comes along, there's a lot more water vapor sitting up there in the atmosphere that can be picked up and dumped on us than there would have been 50 to 100 years ago. Exactly what percentage of the rain during those storms is due to climate change? That's a much more difficult question to answer. But we know that it is somewhere between 0 and 100 percent. In other words, if we would have had this exact same storm 100 years ago, there would have been less precipitation associated with it.

And furthermore, the analogy I would use is this: Someone has a heart attack. They go to their doctor, and say, "Was the cause genetics or lifestyle?" And the doctor says, well, it was probably a little bit of both. Right? Because unless you come from a family where every single person has had a heart attack, or unless you lived a lifestyle that was obviously, completely unhealthy, for most of us, our heart risk is a combination of genetics and lifestyle. So just because our genetics might predispose us to a heart attack, it doesn't mean that our lifestyle doesn't make a difference. It does. Houston has always been at risk from "genetic" heavy rainfall and hurricanes, but climate change is increasing the risk because of our lifestyle choices we make, such as how we get our energy or how much impervious surfaces and pavement we put down.

Q: What does the best available climate science tell us about the near-term future, say a 10-to-50-year time frame, for Houston and other coastal communities if we do nothing to limit greenhouse gas emissions?

A: What's going to happen over the next 10 to 20 years is already locked in by a large extent. It's kind of like if you smoked for 50 years and quit today, you will still experience the accumulated years of impact from those 50 years of smoking. Now, should continue smoking? No, stopping has a benefit. But even if we had a magic switch to turn off all our carbon emissions today, we would still experience almost the exact same impact over the next 10 to 20 years. So there's a certain amount of change we have to prepare for because we cannot erase our past lifestyle choices. Once we go further out than about 20 or 30 years, then the impact of the choices that we make today become incredibly obvious.

We know that sea level is rising. Is it going to rise 2 feet, 4 feet, or 6 feet? Part of that uncertainty range depends on the choices that we make today. We know that hurricanes are getting stronger because they get their energy from warm ocean water. How much stronger are hurricanes going to be in the future? It depends on how much the ocean heats up, which depends on how much carbon we release. So, the future is really in our hands long-term, but short-term  the next 10 to 20 years  we will continue to see change regardless of the lifestyle choices we make in terms of carbon emissions.

Q: Over the weekend, it was reported that the Trump administration is proposing pretty significant cuts to NOAA. I believe the agency is facing a 22 percent cut and its Office of Ocean and Atmospheric Research is facing a 26 percent cut. There are significant cuts also being discussed for NOAA's satellite programs, coastal management and resilience programs. Can you discuss how climate scientists use this kind of data that NOAA produces?

A: Well, the number one use of the satellite data is for weather forecasting, which has an incredible economic and financial value. I, not as a scientist but as a human, think it is absolutely foolish to cut our weather prediction ability. What do satellite observations tell us? They tell us where the hurricanes are, which is kind of important for Houston, right? They give us the input to our models to tell us where they're going to go.

It just doesn't make economic sense. There is great economic benefits to knowing where hurricanes are, understanding our weather patterns, monitoring things like heat, drought, things that affect our agriculture, our water, our safety...Why on earth would you want to understand less not more? And that's just the weather. From a climate perspective, we need long, continuous records to understand how the climate system is changing. We can't just take snapshots, one this year, one last year, one 10 years ago and track that through time.

Q: In most of your speeches, you express optimism that we can fix the climate challenges coming our way. But some of the recent appointments that President Trump has made, or his appointees have made, are people who are climate skeptics or climate deniers. Do you still feel optimistic?

A: First of all, I would say that skeptic is someone who can be persuaded by actual facts or evidence, and there aren't that many of them around. There are many more of what I call dismissives. A dismissive is a fair word, because it isn't loaded and it's extremely accurate. A dismissive person will dismiss any piece of evidence which they're presented. And that characterizes many of the people we have in power today. Here's the thing, though. Let's look at the last eight years. What progress was made, and what did we actually accomplish? To put a number on it, I would say about 90 percent of the forward progress that's been made in the United States over the last eight years was made below the federal level. Yes, the Clean Power Plan was crafted, but not really put into action. It only takes us one baby step down the road to our Paris commitments.

Over the past eight years, Texas has gone to 12 percent wind, and on peak days, we're up to 43 percent. Solar energy prices are dropping exponentially. China and India are actually taking over as global leaders in the clean energy economy as well as meeting their climate targets. Then there's industry. I'm thinking of Elon Musk's Tesla powerwall and solar shingles. Cities are taking action, and cities are where most of us live. There is incredible innovation happening. So even over the past eight years, with a president who was trying to do everything he could, it wasn't that much. But I am very concerned about the continuity of records, number one, and I'm also very concerned about some of the very short-term impacts of ceasing to adequately monitor weather, which has serious health and safety impacts, of ceasing to adequately monitor air and water pollution, which has immediate health impacts, especially to children, and the elderly, people who are most vulnerable. I am extremely concerned about those issues, because I think that's where we will see the suffering almost instantaneously when regulations are rolled back or monitoring ceases.

Q: What is the best advice you could give someone who is talking to a climate change skeptic.

A: Good question. If we look at people's opinion on climate, the most accurate way to look at is the Six Americas of Global Warming. It's a program out of Yale that puts people in six different groups depending on their perspectives about climate change. At one end, you have people who are dismissive. They're often the loudest ones we hear who are saying it's not real, it's a hoax, scientists don't know anything. It's not true. Now, they're only 10 percent of the population. After them, we have a bigger group of people. They're doubtful. Doubtful people are willing to listen and talk about it. Then we have people who are disengaged. They think there's nothing we can do so why even talk about it? And then, one of the biggest groups is people who are cautious. They might think I'm all about preventing risk, but I'm not sure what to do about it.

So when speaking to people who are doubtful, disengaged or cautious, the most important thing that I have learned is don't start with the science. Don't end with the science, either. Because when we begin by just going through facts and data and information, we automatically just check out. The biggest thing I've learned is, first of all, spend some time with the person, whether it's a family member, or a neighbor, or a colleague. Spend some time getting to know them and what makes them tick. Where are their concerns? Where are their values? Where does their heart lie? What are the things they already care about? Because I have found, it is incredibly rare to find someone that doesn't already have some core value that we can't directly connect to climate change. It's just a question of figuring out what that value is. Do they care about the economy? Let's tell them how many jobs the clean energy economy creates here in Texas. Do they care about national defense? Let's talk about what the military thinks about climate change. Do they care about birding? Do they care about hunting? Do they care about fishing? Do they care about some outdoor activity? Do they care about stewardship? Do they care about the poor and disadvantaged? Do they care about their child who has asthma. You can see where I'm going. Start with something you can genuinely identify with and share. Then, connect the dots why climate change is exacerbating the concern you already have. But don't stop there. Always talk about a solution you have. Because social science has shown that when we talk about a problem, whether that's saving for retirement, weight loss, any problem we talk about without having a solution, our human reaction is to deny the reality of the problem if we don't feel like we can be part of the solution.

In Texas, we have some many good examples. We have Fort Hood that's going renewable, saving $168 million dollars in taxpayer money. We have Georgetown going all green. We have our wind energy economy growing by leaps and bounds. We have solar at about the same price as natural gas and dropping every day. We have enough wind and solar potential in Texas to supply the whole country with electricity. So there's so many things you can talk about.
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Alicia Keys pulled a crowd of 73,660 Friday night at RodeoHouston. But, amid all obstacles, she managed to make things feel personal inside NRG Stadium.

"I feel like we're having a really intimate, basement party tonight," she said.

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She worked hard to engage the crowd, stepping out from behind the piano to dance and command the crowd to clap along. She strung together snippets of songs with full performances, creating a continuous flow of music.

The tunes themselves worked most of the magic.

Keys, who is currently shepherding young talent on "The Voice," kicked off with the driving beat of "Karma." She was dressed in black leather and fringe, her hair pulled back into a tight braid that almost hit her waist.

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She warmed up with "28 Thousand Days" and "You Don't Know My Name." The crowd noticeably riled up during "Unbreakable." And the Prince-esque "Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart" was a lovely highlight.

The hourlong set included several songs from her arresting sixth album "Here," released late last year. It's a thoughtful rumination on humanity, race and womanhood.

"Pawn it All" was a booming standout that pushed her voice to new places. "Work On It" sparkled with old-school soul. Recent single "Blended Family" again coaxed her from behind the piano. "In Common" rode a pulsing tropical groove.

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The one-two punch of "Like You'll Never See Me Again" and "If I Ain't Got You" was accompanied by lights from thousands of cellphones. Keys pulled out the gospel strains from both songs.

"Fallin'," the song that introduced her to the world in 2001, elicited thunderous cheers after just the first few notes. Keys teased it out with showy, flexible vocals.

It was the perfect setup for a set-closing medley that included "Girl on Fire," "No One" and "Empire State of Mind" (with a welcome lyrical switch up to namecheck Houston). That Keys managed to make it feel intimate and larger than life all at once was no small feat.
Motorcyclists and the community are invited to attend the Blessing of the Bikes event to be held in the front of St. Martha Catholic Church in Porter on Saturday, March 25, at 10 a.m.

"This is a motorcycle event open to anyone who wants to share in the opportunity to look to Jesus Christ and accept God's blessing," said event coordinator Gary J. Rabalais.

Motorcycles of all makes and models are welcome.

Father Richard McNeillie, of St. Martha Catholic Church, will preside over the blessing of the bikes as a way to launch into the 2017 riding season.

"It's the people that are really being impacted," Rabalais said. "Some people may think it's about superstition or luck, but it's not. The message is that God is love. We have to pause and come together as a group to think about His blessings."

The event is not limited to riders.

Rain or shine, the community is welcome to join representatives of the Christian Motorcycle Association and others for the free event.

"This is open to the community," Rabalais said. "This is an opportunity for people to enjoy each other's presence and for motorcyclists to show off their chrome.

"Families, children, anyone who is interested in coming together in fellowship is welcome."

St. Martha Catholic Church is at 4301 Woodridge Parkway in Porter, just outside of Kingwood.

For more information, contact Gary Rabalais at 832-656-3485 or rabalaisgaryj@gmail.com.
Humble Rabbi Dan Gordon believes the Jewish community can relate to the plight of Muslim refugees.

"In our history, both ancient and 20th-century history, we have been pushed out; we have been put in ghettos," said Gordon, who heads the Temple Beth Torah in Humble. "During World War II, we had boats that tried to come to the United States that were turned away. So, the idea of fleeing an oppressive land is something that we as Jewish people relate to. Looking for comfort in a land that's free makes perfect sense to us," Gordon said.

President Donald Trump's executive orders concerning immigration and refugees have prompted responses from several religious leaders across different faiths over the past two months.

Released Jan. 27, certain aspects of Trump's original order sparked conversation among leaders in religious communities about the balance between national security and religious-based moral imperatives.

Houston-area rabbis published a letter Feb. 9 condemning the executive order, stating: "Our convictions are rooted in the fact that the Torah repeatedly forbids us from oppressing the stranger."

Gordon was one of the 27 Houston-area rabbis to sign the letter, and said his opinions on the topic do not necessarily reflect his congregation or the entire Jewish community, but his decision to sign the letter was based on the concept of what the Torah teaches about how to treat a stranger.

"The Hebrew scriptures repeat over and over again, 'Ye shall not oppress the stranger nor wrong him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt,'" Gordon said.

While Gordon sees a call for compassion, Judaism also teaches the importance of knowing when not to put oneself at risk.

"But, it's equally problematic to just pick a country and say everyone from this country is more likely to be a criminal than others," Gordon said.

As a religious leader and someone who has a passion for interfaith events, Gordon feels it is important to learn about and build relationships with people of other cultures and beliefs.

"If the norm is to present curiosity, understanding and acceptance of others, then those whose first thought is prejudice and fear are going to feel out of place," Gordon said. "My goal is to get more people making friends with each other and learning that people are people so that becomes the new norm."

On Feb. 3, the United Methodist Bishops of the State of Texas posted a letter calling upon President Trump, Gov. Greg Abbott and other leaders to "seek a more compassionate response to immigrants and refugees."

Senior Pastor Deborah Proctor, with the Atascocita United Methodist Church, said Feb. 13 she thought the letter was a very balanced response to a complex issue.

"I think they did a good job at saying they understand that national security is important and security of our communities is important, and yet we're a country that's a country of immigrants and we need to be sensitive to that," Proctor said. "I think the letter itself is just a reminder that, at least for us in the church, we're all about hospitality."

Pastor Jim Flagg, of First United Methodist Church Humble, believes most people understand that borders are artificially created by governments in an e-mail dated Feb. 7.

"Sadly, the world is not as it was, and there are people bound and determined to undermine the stability and freedom we readily enjoy," Flagg said.

According to Flagg, the difference between the goals of the church and state become apparent in this situation.

"The government of the United States is tasked with keeping the citizens of this nation safe from outside forces and protect the liberties and freedoms of those same citizens," Flagg wrote. "The church is not a national entity but a global one concerned with living and sharing the Good News of Christ Jesus with all people fitting them for eternal salvation. This calls for a different set of eyes and, at times, different responses than those of a government bureaucracy."

In response to the original executive order, Russell Moore, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, sent a letter to President Trump calling for the administration to clarify certain ambiguities, to resume the Refugee Admission Program including Syrian refugees, to ensure the safety of Americans in majority-Muslim countries, and to uphold the "administration's commitment to religious freedom and the inalienable human dignity" regardless of religious belief.

Pastor Marcus Allen of Faith Family Baptist Church stated via email Tuesday, Feb. 14, that while the commission does speak for the SBC, Southern Baptists are not required to share the opinions expressed in the letter. Allen said he does feel, in general, the letter reflects the values and beliefs of Southern Baptists.

He described the position of the original executive order as "right heart; wrong head."

"What I mean is the intent of the executive order was to protect America and reset our policy on immigration from hostile countries," Allen said. "However, they in the process of doing so, inadvertently and unintentionally caused grief to some. And this, as Dr. Moore pointed out, could directly affect SBC mission efforts as well as endanger refugees fleeing persecution."

The letter discusses the importance of finding the balance between the call for compassion toward refugees and protection of Americans. Allen described a similar effort to find balance on the topic of immigration and refugees among members of his congregation.

"My sense is, like so many others, they are struggling with the balance between loving the refugee who is in danger and having sound policies that protect America from those who would want to harm us," Allen said.

On Jan. 25, the Presiding Bishop Michael Curry of the Episcopal Church released a statement emphasizing that refugee settlement is a ministry, and the Rev. William Richter of Good Shepherd Episcopal Church in Kingwood said Feb. 14 that, for him, this is not a political issue.

"It's been politicized, but I think whatever's going on with this issue, the church needs to have a voice in it, and it needs to have a strong voice that's pro-refugee," Richter said. "That's not to say that we have all the problems worked out or that we have a viable solution, but we do have a powerful voice about what we believe God calls us to do, and that's clearly laid out in the old testament."

Richter said rather than arguing from a political standpoint, he believes from a faith and religious standing that people are called to love, care for and help others.

"The commandments are pretty clear: You take care of the widow, orphan, stranger in your midst and Jesus continues that (into) the early church - that you welcome everyone. That in Christ, there is not east or west, no slave or free, no Greek or Barbarian - it's all made one in Christ. So, we all care for one another."

On March 6, the new executive order was released with changes that included the removal of Iraq from the list of countries, exemptions for visa holders, and the order does not include an indefinite suspension of Syrian refugees.

MJ Khan, president of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston, said March 8 while there are some aspects of the executive order the society does not take issue with, there are some the group definitely considers inappropriate.

First, he said, whatever precautionary vetting done for people attempting to enter the United States should be done for every immigrant and refugee regardless of their country, religion or race.

The second issue with the executive order, Khan said, is the 120-day moratorium on refugees.

Khan said Islam also teaches a moral imperative to help people who are in distress.

"Refugees are people who are persecuted, and in many cases lose their family members and have no choice except to leave their home to find safety," Khan said. "They are trying to protect themselves, their children, their families, their loved ones. It takes a tremendous toll on the person physically, psychologically and otherwise to become a refugee. They are not becoming a refugee by choice. It says 120 days of moratorium on refuges. How many children will lose their lives in 120 days? How many people will lose their lives because of that? The good people around the world should not turn their back on them."

He said another aspect to consider is the danger of encouraging a divisive mentality.

"The people who are using this for propaganda are the very people we are fighting against, and these are extremists and terrorists," Khan said. "They have this false narrative, and they do false propaganda on this false narrative that there's a war between America and Islam, and there's a war between the west and Islam. These kind of situations give fuel to their false propaganda."

Khan said the Islamic Society of Greater Houston encourages people to learn about civic responsibilities and become active in writing to political leaders about important issues. Additionally, he said it is important to build not only interfaith relationships, but intercommunity relationships as well.

Khan found that the recent issues surrounding immigration and refugees has actually served to, in some ways, strengthen these relationships.

"Muslims, by faith, are optimistic people and whatever happens, we always thank the Lord Almighty," Khan said, later adding, "There is so much support and camaraderie built up for the Muslim community. Who could have imagined six months ago that there's so many people who would stand in solidarity with the Muslim community?"
The Houston ISD's board voted unanimously Thursday night to begin providing its own alternative program for middle and high school students who commit infractions that require discipline, ending its longtime contract with a for-profit chain.

Camelot Schools of Texas, LLC, has operated the Beechnut Academy near Sharpstown since 2012. The school serves students in grades 6 through 12 who misbehave in ways that include fighting, being disrespectful toward school staff, possessing alcohol and indecent exposure, according to Houston ISD's student code of conduct.
Two suspects are in custody after deliberately crashing into a southeast Houston pawn store early Saturday morning and then robbing it, according to police.

Houston police said the suspects backed their pick-up truck into the front of Cash America Pawn store on Bellfort Street and Mykawa Road, and then stole some type of tractor device.
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For a few years, a wide-spread effort by the Mexican military to arrest or kill cartel leaders, most notably Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, seemed to be making progress.

But as Cartels began to fight for the territory of military-weakened rivals, the homicide rate once again exploded.

Now, a disturbing video shows the extreme length that participants in the emerging all-out gang war will go to retain or take power.

TRIAL: The US government is worried 'El Chapo' Guzman's legal team may have cartel infiltrators

The graphic video shows two Los Zetas gunmen insulting rival gangs behind a shirtless, kneeling man.

The gunmen claim that their victim is part of a rival gang who was sent to commit crimes in Ciudad Victoria, according to a translation by Breitbart.

After delivering more threats to rival gangs, one of the gunmen pulls out a meat cleaver and cuts the victim's throat. The victim is then decapitated, and the gunmen place the severed head on the victim's back.

In 2014, Mexico's homicide rate dropped to 14,353, the lowest point in several years according to data seen on the Los Angeles Times. But that number began to steadily rise in 2015 until reaching 20,792 in 2016, a 44.8 percent increase in two years.

REPORT: 'El Chapo' alliance preparing for war with rival cartel

Jorge Chabat, a security expert at the Center for Research and Teaching Economics, told the Los Angeles Times that the numbers are due to an over-reliance on guns and soldiers, and a lack of reform in the justice system.

"This is not a software problem, this is a hardware problem," said Chabat. "The government launched security operations but they didn't do the other part of the job  reforming institutions in a proper way and combating corruption. If you don't fix the state institutions, there is no security strategy that is going to work."

LONE STAR STATE: Leader connected to Zetas drug cartel operations in East Texas on the run
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The 35-year-old man accused of shooting a pregnant teenager, killing her and the unborn child he had fathered, was released from custody by immigration agents about one month prior to impregnating the victim for the second time.

Armando Garcia-Ramires, 35, faces two charges of capital murder in connection with Monday's shooting and remains in the Bexar County Jail on a $2 million bond.

RELATED: SAPD: Man charged in pregnant teen's shooting death fathered unborn child who died and toddler

ICE agents first arrested Garcia-Ramires, who is originally from Mexico, on Jan. 19, 2011, through the criminal alien program of San Antonio, according to Nina Pruneda, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Garcia-Ramires was brought before a judge and taken into ICE custody, Pruneda said in a written statement. He later posted bond and was released on Feb. 7, 2011.

ICE agents arrested him again on April 3, 2016, and an immigration judge granted him bond on May 11. He was again released from custody.

RELATED: 35-year-old man faces capital murder charges in death of pregnant girl, 15, and unborn child

Police have said Jennifer Delgado, the 15-year-old victim, was nine months pregnant when she was shot multiple times in the head Monday at an apartment in the 1100 block of Babcock Road.

Police confirmed earlier this week that Garcia-Ramires was the father of Delgado's unborn child and her 1-year-old boy, who was unharmed in the incident.

Based on the timeline provided by police, Garcia-Ramires apparently impregnated Delgado sometime around June 2016, the month after he was released from custody for the second time.

RELATED: 11-month-old boy dies after apparently drowning in Seguin

On Tuesday, ICE placed an immigration detainer on Garcia-Ramires following his release from University Hospital, where he received treatment for injuries sustained during a failed suicide attempt near the apartment complex where Delgado was killed.

It is unclear when or how Garcia-Ramires first came to the San Antonio area, but he has never been removed from the U.S. since his arrival, according to Pruneda.

A GoFundMe page was recently created to help raise money for Delgado's family following her killing.

Text "Breaking" to 48421 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com

cdowns@mysa.com

Twitter: @calebjdowns
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U.S. Attorney Ken Magidson in Houston - appointed by both Republicans and Democrats during his 30 years as a prosecutor - has resigned from office, joining 45 other Obama appointees asked to resign Friday by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

His second-in-command, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez, is expected to assume control of the Southern District of Texas, which stretches from the Houston area to Laredo.

"It has been a privilege and a honor to serve as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Texas," Magidson said in a written statement released late Friday. "It has been a hallmark of my administration to ensure that our office lived up to the ideals of justice."

Sessions asked the appointees to resign immediately and to name their second-in-command - who are career prosecutors and not political appointees - to take charge until the top jobs can be filled.

CHALLENGED: ACLU files complaint against Sessions over Senate testimony

Sarah Isgur Flores, a spokesperson for Sessions, offered the following statement when asked about Magidson.

FOREIGN TIES: Russia is the slow burn of the Trump administration and it's not going away

"As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States Attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the Department of Justice," she said. "The Attorney General has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed U.S. Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition. Until the new U.S. Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. Attorney's Offices will continue the great work of the Department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders."

Magidson was appointed in 2011 by President Obama, becoming the 22nd U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, according to the U.S. Attorney's website.

Before that, he was an assistant U.S. Attorney dating back to 1983, primarily on the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, which included 11 federal judicial districts in Texas, California, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona and the central and southern districts of California.

LEGAL BATTLE: Hawaii files the first legal challenge to Trump's new travel ban

He also served under U.S. Attorney Janet Reno in Washington as executive director of the organized crime task force, from 1996-1997. He served as a federal prosecutor for years, and was also chief of the narcotics division.

Before joining the U.S. Attorney's office, he also worked as a assistant district attorney in Harris County.

Magidson served as interim Harris County District Attorney in 2008 after being appointed by Gov. Rick Perry following the resignation of District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal amid a series of scandals.
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The University of Houston has settled the score in a protracted trademark dispute with rival South Texas College of Law Houston, but the fight over naming rights may not be over.

On deck are two new potential opponents: the Houston Astros and Houston Community College.

A mediated settlement announced Friday resolved the dispute over the law school names, but includes a provision that allows UH to pursue a federal trademark for the use of "Houston" for educational purposes.

That's where the Astros and HCC step up to the plate.

MORE MONEY: The cost of college today versus 18 years ago

The two organizations have put the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on notice that they are considering opposing UH's attempt to own the rights to "Houston," a move that could set off another round of legal challenges among major Houston institutions.

HCC did not respond to a request for comments and the Houston Astros had no comment. Both organizations provide educational services in various forms that could run afoul of a UH trademark.

In the meantime, South Texas College of Law Houston officials are at peace with their school's new name after going by three different monikers in a six-month stretch. The law school dean conceded in an otherwise upbeat email to law school alumni it has been "an unusual, sometimes frustrating, process for our community."

UH officials indicated they, too, are satisfied with the agreement.

"We're pleased it's behind us," said UH spokesperson Mike Rosen. "We're pleased our brand is protected and we look forward to moving on with the business we do best, which is educating our students."

UH filed a federal lawsuit challenging the decision by South Texas College of Law to change its name to Houston College of Law, part of a rebranding effort to increase its national profile. U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison ruled in October that the change likely would lead to confusion for prospective law school students.

CRACKDOWN: Senate OKs bill targeting improper student-teacher relationships

But settlement discussions stretched on for months as the parties tried to sort out pending trademarks and the cost of the lawsuit, ending with a two-day mediation before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Hanovice Palermo.

The two schools issued a joint statement Friday saying they'd resolved the lawsuit with an agreement in which the 93-year-old private institution promises not to use "Houston" as the first word in identifying the college and to cease using a red-and-white color scheme in marketing materials that is similar to UH's colors.

In turn, the University of Houston will proceed with its trademark application but it will not receive financial compensation for the expense of lawyering up for the lawsuit against South Texas.

South Texas Dean Donald J. Guter said he likes the newest name of his school even more than the one that triggered the lawsuit.

"It allows us to have the legacy of South Texas College of Law which many of our alums are very happy with and still have the 'Houston' in there," he said.

The suit has been fodder among students, said Greg Vetter, who teaches trademark law at UH Law Center. He wasn't able to discuss the case in class because of the pending lawsuit, but he did talk privately with students.

"They're interested because scandal and controversy is fun," he said. "It's the natural human reaction to things."

The classroom discussions may yet continue. Both the Astros and HCC have sought an extension with the federal trademark office until May 31 to decide whether to challenge UH's application. The latest dispute would then move through the Treasury Department, rather than the judiciary.
On Nov. 17, Geotemps, Inc. was recognized on the floor of the United States Senate for its strong and enduring support of Nevadas minerals industry.

I am proud to honor Geotemps significant contributions to the mining industry in the State of Nevada, throughout our Nation, and across the globe, said U.S. Sen. Dean Heller

Without the determination and persistence of [Geotemps] founders and entire staff, Nevada would not have experienced the excellent growth we see today. I ask my colleagues and all Nevadans to join me in congratulating Geotemps on its 30th anniversary. This institution has advanced Nevadas mining industry, and I am honored to recognize this important milestone.

Hellers statement was entered into the U.S. congressional record during the second session of the 114th congress.

Geotemps, Inc. President and C.E.O. Lance I. Taylor was presented with a signed transcript of Senator Hellers statement on Dec. 7, during the American Exploration and Mining Association annual convention.

Our corporate family is deeply honored by this recognition. We are proud to support economic growth and corporate sustainability, and we look forward to promoting necessary industryand necessary industrial careersfor generations to come, Taylor said.

Geotemps presently operates in tandem with Geopros, Inc. to provide a wide and varied range of skilled, professional mining, geotechnical, and industrial personnel through temporary, temp-to-hire, and direct placement staffing services within the U.S. and abroad.

Geotemps is based in Reno with offices and personnel traditionally located in multiple states and locations including Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Alaska, and abroad. Geotemps and Geopros recently supported Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and the Nevada Office of Economic Development as a corporate participant in the 2016 Trade Mission to Australia.
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Dad held the babies upright on his chest, patting them and swaying, while Mom crammed the last bag between a cooler of donated breast milk and a new portable crib.

"Well," Chelsea Torres said, closing the trunk and turning to her husband, Nick, "it all fits."

That was the easy part.

What lay ahead was far more daunting.

How to help Chelsea and Nick left their jobs in Idaho to come to Houston, hoping to save their conjoined twins. Now that they're leaving, they worry about how they'll pay the medical bills. A fund has been set up to help them. Click here to give. See More Collapse

Leaving the hospital with a newborn is a moment no parent is ready for. What if the baby screams in the car? What if she won't take a bottle once you get home? Chelsea, 24, and Nick, 23, have an even darker worry: What if the girls don't survive the drive?

The doctors assured them everything should be fine, but it's hard to shake that fear. They've carried it for months, ever since the doctor back in Idaho told them Chelsea was pregnant with conjoined twins. Ever since they decided to ignore his recommendation to have an abortion. Ever since they loaded their 3-year-old son, Jaysin, into their Kia Optima six months ago and drove 25 hours to Houston.

"I've been dreading the return," said Nick, dark circles under his eyes after days with little sleep. "I'm just glad we're making it with two healthy babies."

That was never a given. The couple set their sights on Texas Children's Hospital after several experts told them the surgical team here offered the best shot at saving the girls. They arrived in town with no plan and little money. They scraped together enough to rent a tiny mobile home near the Texas Medical Center.

Thankfully, Chelsea was young enough to stay on her mother's health insurance.

They thought they might be here for years. But after Carter and Callie were delivered via cesarean section last month  conjoined at the belly, and sharing every organ and limb from the waist down  the doctors shocked them: The girls were so healthy, they weren't candidates for risky separation surgery.

It's a future they've only begun to contemplate: How will the girls learn to walk? Will they be able to go to public school? Will strangers ever stop staring at them?

"For now, I'm just worried about getting home," Nick said. "One thing at a time."

They'll return to Blackfoot, Idaho  the town of 11,000 where they met and started dating in middle school  but little will be the same. They'll move in with Nick's mom, just until he can find a job. He'd been making $9 an hour managing a dollar store  "good money" in Idaho, he said  and is hoping he can match it.

They plan to take their time getting back, stretch the 1,700-mile drive over five or six days. Take lots of pictures. Pray nothing goes wrong.

Chelsea put a fresh diaper on the girls and fed them one more time on Friday afternoon. Now it was time to go.

She placed the babies into their custom-built car seat, while Nick set Jaysin up with toys and books.

Callie started crying first. Then Carter. Chelsea closed the car door, muffling their screams.

She took a deep breath.

"They'll settle down eventually," she said.

And then a moment later, "We can do this."

Nick punched an address into his GPS, while Chelsea backed out of the parking spot.

She stopped briefly, looking back at the babies. Then she put the car in drive and headed toward the highway.
A shooting in Baytown that sent a man to the hospital may be linked to narcotics trafficking, authorities said Friday.

About 7 p.m Friday, Baytown police were sent to investigate a shooting at a home in the 3100 block of Illinois. They found a 19 year old man, believed to be a resident, with a gunshot wound to the head.
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This yellow Labrador retriever looks ready to play, but when duty calls, she's all about work.

Jurgens is an explosives-detection dog for the federal Transportation Security Administration, assigned to Houston's William P. Hobby Airport.

Her name is a bit unusual because she's named for Paul Jurgens, a New York Port Authority police officer who disappeared Sept. 11, 2001, while trying to rescue people from the World Trade Center.

TWENTY-ONE-GUN HAUL: TSA seizes a record 21 guns in one day at U.S. airports

Born in October 2011, she was given the name at the TSA Canine Breeding and Development Center, also known as the TSA puppy program, at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. Initially, her name had an extra "j" in it (Jjurgens), indicating she was bred at Lackland.

During her 10 months in the puppy training program, Jurgens was sponsored by Trinity University, where she lived with Dean of Students David Tuttle and spent time during the day with various students.

One of them was Katie Garoni, who happened to notice Jurgens at work one day in June 2015, when she was passing through Hobby Airport, the TSA said in a news release.

(Story continues below.)





FLYING LESS: Houston airports had fewer passengers in 2016

"I never thought I would see her again but this TSA dog is all grown up," Garoni said in an Instagram post. "Her handler got to watch me burst into tears when he confirmed it was her. Just incredible!"

When TSA representatives asked Garoni if Jurgens remembered her, the former student said the dog was working when she first noticed her, and her handler asked Garoni to wait 15 minutes until the end of her shift.

"When he gave her the cue she was off duty, she jumped on me and licked my face over and over," Garoni told TSA. "It warmed my heart to see that she remembered me three years later."
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.
In these contentious times you will hear politicians reaching to science to inform their rhetoric. Look at how the simple chemical pH test of a liquid is now commonplace. When Hillary Clinton was asked at a town hall forum in New Hampshire last year whether she would have a litmus test for potential Supreme Court justices, Clinton replied: I have a bunch of litmus tests (to use) .. In fact, the word now means, in political parlance: a test in which a single factor (such as an attitude, event, or fact) is decisive  and as you can see a function that has nothing to do with chemistry.

But litmus tests didnt have very much to do with politics until the 20th century because as we know it began as a chemistry term and referred to the process by which a substance was determined to be alkaline or acidic. The color of litmus changes in response to the hydrogen ion concentration with the pH value given by the following equation:

pH =log (10) [H+]

When acids donate hydrogen ions to an aqueous solution the pH value will be a low number. By dipping a strip of blue or red litmus paper into a solution being tested the resultant color change of the paper would inform the experimenter if they had an acid or base. It is a time-honored test centered around a pH value of pure water which is normally set at 7.0. But what really is this litmus material?

Believe it or not, litmus is a dye extracted from rock lichens. First discovered in 1300 AD by Valencian alchemist Arnaldus de Villa Nova which he used as a blue dye, litmus can be found in many different varieties of lichens from Norway to California. Today, Litmus is extracted, chiefly in the Netherlands, from certain lichens such as the Roccella tinctoria, which are mashed, treated with potassium carbonate and ammonia, and allowed to ferment.

The resulting product is mixed with various colorless substances, such as chalk or gypsum, and is sold in dark blue masses. The chemical test paper we use is simply coated with litmus. The active component of litmus  the part sensitive to acids or bases  is called erythrolitmin. The use of litmus paper goes as far back as the 18th century, especially used in the process for making beer.

Blue litmus paper turns red under acidic conditions and red litmus paper turns blue under basic or alkaline conditions, with the color change occurring over the pH range 4.58.3 at room temperature, roughly centered around the neutral water point. Red litmus contains a weak diprotic acid that reacts in alkaline liquids forming a conjugated base whose structure absorbs red light wavelengths. This leaves the solution having a blue color as white light passes through.

Students who take the online version of CHEM100 at Great Basin College are asked to extract a chemical pH indicator from an ordinary supermarket vegetable. Red cabbage juice contains a natural indicator that changes colors according to the acidity of the solution. The red cabbage indicator is easy to make and exhibits a wide range of colors and students can easily make their own pH paper strips. The cabbage leaves contain a pigment molecule called anthocyanin. Highly acidic solutions turn anthocyanin into a red color while alkaline liquids appear greenish-yellow.

Students are asked to test vinegar, lemon juice, ammonia, and laundry detergents for their relative pH values by observing the color change. Neutral red cabbage juice is ordinarily purple as you would expect. The following online site, from Thoughtco.com, lists a detailed procedure for young chemists to try their hand at making such an acid/base indicator:

The range of red cabbage colors as a function of pH is far more than litmus. Have fun!
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In my opinion, no one has done a better job summarizing the potential of Rugers American Rimfire Rifle line then Tom Gresham, genial host of Gun Talk Media. Tom put it this way, Take the very best features of Rugers centerfire American Rifle, chamber it for rimfire cartridges and you have the recipe for pure fun. After spending several months test firing and playing around with my very own American Rimfire Rifle (A.R.R.), I whole heartedly second his opinion.

Four basic models make up the current product line: the Standard, Compact, Wood (stocked), and Target iterations. All models are available in .22 LR, .17 HMR, and .22 WMR (Winchester Magnum Rimfire) chamberings.

The Standard and Compact models are fitted with nicely textured black synthetic stocks that appear to be slightly scaled down versions of the excellent furniture found on Rugers centerfire American Rifles. The Standard version carries a full-length 22-inch barrel bolted into an adult-sized stock, while the Compact ships with an abbreviated 18-inch tube nestled into a child/small adult-sized handle.

What really set these plastic stocks apart from the competition are their patented interchangeable comb/buttstock modules. Every Standard/Compact rifle ships from the factory with both a low comb and a high comb modular insert. The low comb module is designed to better align your cheek with the rifles high visibility iron sights, while the high comb insert sets your shooting eye in perfect alignment with a mount scope or red dot optic. The Standard comb/buttstock insert gives the rifle a full-sized 13 -inch length of pull. The Compacts 12 -inch LOP is better suited to children, smaller framed adults and hunters wearing heavy bulky coats. Swapping modules is as easy as loosening and removing the rear sling swivel stud, sliding out the current module, sliding in and screwing down its replacement. The replacement procedure takes only a few minutes and can be easily accomplished at home or in the field with a nail or hex head wrench.

Replacement modules are available online at www.shopruger.com and retail individually for a very reasonable $19.95. These inexpensive inserts give you the flexibility of customizing your American Rimfire to better fit your own physical dimensions and individual needs. I just ordered a full-sized high comb module for my Compact .22 Magnum. Paired with a bipod and my Weaver 2.5-7X scope, I should be suitably armed to take on the ground squirrel and prairie dog hordes at my brothers Great Falls, Montana ranch this spring.

The pricier Wood and Target models feature quality fixed- length wooden furniture. The Wood version is crafted from a nice stick of machine-checkered walnut stained hardwood. The Target features a hefty black laminate target style handle with an attractive Alex Henry fore end. Both are fitted with non-slip black rubber butt pads.

Taking a closer look at the barreled actions, we find that with the exception of the heavier straight-tapered (0.860-inch) barrel on the Target model, the Standard, Compact, and Wood carry substantial, nicely contoured, hammer-forged tubes. As a bonus, all models are available with either a non-threaded or threaded (1/2 inch-28) muzzle. This is a great option should you desire to attach a suppressor or muzzle brake. Sight-wise, the Target ships naked from the factory. The latter three models arrive with a Williams fiber optic front sight and V notch rear sight on board.

Interestingly, the Americans receivers are machined to accommodate 3/8-inch grooved receiver rings (common to .22 rimfires and air guns) and are drilled and tapped topside for Weaver No. 12 bases; giving you two optic mounting options. I like the robust steel receiver-mounted bolt stop/release lever. This mechanism allows you to remove/replace the bolt without having to pull the trigger; a nice safety feature, particularly for novice shooters. I also appreciate the easily manipulated tang-mounted safety, which like its centerfire big brother, is placed right under your thumb. The man-sized 60 bolt handle protrudes noticeably and provides excellent leverage for manipulating the action with an optic in place and from awkward field positions. Accuracy is no doubt enhanced by its bank vault-like lock up, its Marksman adjustable trigger, and free-floating barrel. Groups fired from my .22 Magnum have ranged from very decent to breathtaking, depending on the ammo its fed.

All A.R.R.s feed from Rugers excellent 10/22 style rotary magazines; the .22 LR models from the BX-I (10 shot), BX-15, or BX-25 rounders. The magnums use the 9 round JX-1 bullet boxes. A synthetic extended mag release makes magazine drops a breeze.

Depending on the particular model and options you select, your new American Rimfire Rifle will set back anywhere from $250-350 dollars. And if youre experience is anything like mine, then this purchase should deliver the maximum amount of pure fun attainable for less than four Franklins.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Call it Eden, Arcadia or the Golden Age. However you imagine such a realm, the multiplatform German-born photographer and installation artist Esther Teichmann wants to take you there in her captivating exhibition, "Heavy the Sea," at the Transformer Station gallery in Ohio City.

Individual pieces in the show, on view through April 30, have been exhibited previously, but Transformer Station co-founder Fred Bidwell described it Thursday as a global debut for a body of work never shown elsewhere before in its entirety.

The images originate from several discrete groups of images that Teichmann considers a single, unified project, Bidwell said.

Collectively, they portray a vision of paradise characterized by flowing water, dense foliage, clumps of seaweed, and jungle landscapes populated by nude men, women and children of various ages.

Images of a watery Eden

In one black-and-white image, a young, nude white woman reclines with her body draped in glistening strips of seaweed that accentuate the curves of her back, thighs and buttocks.

Another portrays a Swiss Family Robinson group of three nude women of various ages and a young boy strolling up a stream bank in a jungle as if it were their natural home.

A hypnotic video depicts Ecuadorian canoeist-guide Carlos Tapuy as he gracefully paddles through a stream in the Amazon rain forest.

The upshot of this mix is a semi-surreal and romantic fantasy of languor and physical liberation.

Teichmann envisions sensuous encounters with wet, humid landscapes in which people wade, walk or float without fear of piranhas, mosquitoes or alligators. It's nature without stings, bites or poison ivy.

Deep, rich color

An Impressionist, Claude Monet palette of blue, mauve, purple and green dominates the photographs and photomurals in the show, which are set off against walls painted in burnished shades of red, blue and yellow - the primaries on the color wheel.

The idea of liquidity and flow is enhanced by Teichmann's use of inks and acrylic paint to create transparent glazes and drippy rivulets of color on her black-and-white prints in ways that blur the line between painting and photography.

Review

What's up:

"Heavy the Sea," an installation by Esther Teichmann.

Venue:

Transformer Station gallery.

Where:

1460 W. 29th St., Cleveland.

When:

Through Sunday, April 30.

Admission:

Free. Call 216-938-5429 or go to transformerstation.org.

Artist talk:

Teichmann will discuss the exhibition on Saturday April 1 at 2 p.m. First-come, first-served.

Free film and music event:

At intervals between 2 and 4 p.m. on Saturday, April 29, Transformer Station will screen Teichmann's film, "Fulmine,'' accompanied by performances by Opus 216 of an original 10-minute composition by Deidre Gribbin that also accompanies the show in recorded form. No RSVP required.

It could also be that Teichmann's use of liquid color is meant to emphasize the nature of the photographic print as something that magically emerges from baths of developer and fixer.

Fresh perspective

The show presents a softer and more poetic side of gallery co-founders Fred and Laura Bidwell, who invited the artist to create her installation at Transformer Station.

The exhibition is unlike other Bidwell projects with a lurid film noir flavor, such as Todd Hido's bleak, wintry portrayal of rural Northeast Ohio, or "Redheaded Peckerwood," in which Christian Patterson retraced the Starkweather killing spree in 1957-58 in Nebraska and Wyoming.

Teichmann, 36, who is based in London, roamed the world to collect the images for her exhibition. However, a gallery guide and a zine that accompany the show (with poetry by American-born, UK-based writer Carol Mavor) draw no attention to specific locales.

Globetrotter with lenses

Instead, you're supposed to imagine that everything comes from a mystical place beyond longitude and latitude.

The idea of cruising off to a distant realm of pleasure is underscored by a skeletal kayak-cum-sailboat resting on the gallery floor as it tilts rightward on a port tack to who knows where.

When queried, Bidwell and Teichmann, who responded via email Thursday, said that many of the people who posed for Teichmann are friends or family members.

As for locations, a color shot of a couple lazily paddling a rubber dinghy through a marsh depicts a spot on the lower Danube in Europe.

Teichmann captured a stunning black-and-white photo of a nude woman with Rapunzel-length hair posing in a bizarre architectural grotto in southern England made of seashells and rounded river stones.

And she photographed a Swedish-Japanese former champion Thai boxer in the nude and draped in seaweed after meeting her on a beach in Australia.

Such information, however, is irrelevant to the mood Teichmann is trying to create, which involves being liberated from place and time.

Yet even though the show is chronologically vague, it is packed with art-historical references.

In touch with art history

A wall of pinned-up cyanotype images of clumps of seaweed on a wall at the show's entry echoes not only 19th-century botanical cyanotypes, but also Henri Matisse's 1950s cutout images of coral reefs.

A color photograph of a seated male nude looks like a direct quotation of "Nude Youth Sitting by the Sea," a famous 1835-36 painting by French artist Hippolyte Flandrin, owned by the Louvre.

An image of an elderly nude woman wading in a jungle stream evokes 19th-century paintings by French artist Gustave Courbet of nude women cavorting in forest streams.

And a video in the show that depicts Bay Area dancer Sophia Wang in the nude as she moves slowly through intricate poses on a draped four-poster bed recalls Renaissance and Baroque-era bed scenes of the myth of Danae, a childless woman impregnated by Zeus, who appears as a shower of gold coins. (One such painting, by Orazio Gentileschi, is owned by the Cleveland Museum of Art.)

The beauty of Teichmann's show is that such layers of meaning - and their rich historical associations - are available but not necessary to full enjoyment of her show.

Overall, the exhibition offers a deeply gratifying dive into visual pleasures of all kinds. It's a leap art lovers across the region definitely ought to take.
cupcake.jpg

Walmart Supercenters nationwide are giving away 3 million free cupcakes on Sunday afternoon, including 27,000 at Supercenters in Greater Cleveland. Limit one per customer, while supplies last.

(Walmart )

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Walmart Supercenters nationwide will be giving away three million free birthday cupcakes Sunday afternoon, including 27,000 at its supercenters in Greater Cleveland, "in honor of everyone's birthday everywhere."

The cupcakes, baked in store, will be chocolate or vanilla with buttercream or vanilla frosting. No coupons or special codes are required and no purchase necessary.

Quantities are limited to one per customer from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, while supplies last, only at Walmart Supercenters.

That means Ohio's 139 Supercenters will collectively hand out 120,000 cupcakes. In Greater Cleveland, that includes stores in Cleveland's Steelyard Commons, South Euclid, Eastlake, and Mayfield Heights.

The cupcakes contain milk, wheat, eggs, and possibly peanuts, a spokeswoman. No allergy-free alternatives will be available.

Walmart did not give a reason for the promotion, but is likely hoping that it brings three million extra customers to its stores on Sunday.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Outgoing top federal prosecutor Carole Rendon told employees at the U.S. Attorney's Office in northern Ohio Friday that a request from President Donald Trump's administration to resign came as a surprise, even though she already knew her time at the office was limited.

Rendon, in announcing her departure to staff Friday evening, wrote in her email that she was "unexpectedly asked to resign effective immediately," according to people with knowledge of the email.

Her statement, sent shortly after she arrived back in Cleveland after traveling to Toledo for a news conference on violent crime, came after Attorney General Jeff Sessions requested 46 U.S. attorneys who remained from President Barack Obama's administration to resign immediately.

A person familiar with the calls made to federal prosecutors on Friday said there was no advance warning, according to The New York Times.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said in an emailed statement that Sessions asked the remaining U.S. attorneys to resign "in order to ensure a uniform transition."

U.S. Sens. Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown have recommended Jones Day attorney Justin Herdman to replace Rendon. Trump has not formally nominated Herdman or any other lawyer to be the new U.S. attorney here.

Rendon, of Solon, has been the U.S. attorney since last year after her predecessor Steven Dettelbach stepped down. The Senate confirmed her in July.

David Sierleja, her first assistant, will head the office effective as of midnight.

Rendon, who has worked in the office since 2009, said in a statement texted to cleveland.com that "the past seven and a half years have truly been the greatest honor and privilege of my professional career.

"I am so proud of what we have accomplished as an office, all of which was done and will continue to be done by the incredible public servants who devote themselves every day to the pursuit of justice for everyone in our District," Rendon's statement says. "That drum beat goes on and on -- no matter who sits in my chair."

It is customary for U.S. attorneys to depart once a new president is in office, but the departures are not automatic. Many of the federal prosecutors nominated by Obama have already departed, according to The Associated Press.

By Friday evening, U.S. attorneys around the country -- including New Jersey, Rhode Island, Minnesota and Montana -- had publicly announced their resignations, the AP reported.

During the Clinton administration, former Attorney General Janet Reno sought the resignations of the U.S. attorneys appointed by former President George H. W. Bush in 1993, when Sessions was the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Alabama, the AP reported.

Tim Purdon, a former U.S. attorney for North Dakota in the Obama administration, recalled that Obama permitted appointees of President George W. Bush to remain on until their successors had been appointed and confirmed, the AP reported.

"The way the Obama administration handled it was appropriate and respectful and classy," he said. "This saddens me because many of these people are great public servants and now they are being asked to leave."

Montana's U.S. Attorney Mike Cotter said he received a phone call from acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente telling him "the president has directed this," according to the AP.

"I think it's very unprofessional and I'm very disappointed," he said. "What happened today on Friday, March 10, that was so important that all Obama appointees who are US attorneys need to be gone?"

"I gotta write that (resignation) letter. It's going to be a one-liner," he added.
Cleveland police car

A Cleveland man is accused of raping a teen at a Tremont home.

(File photo)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A Cleveland man is accused of raping a teen on Christmas Eve while she slept at a home in the city's Tremont neighborhood.

Chris Jones, 18, was named in a warrant Tuesday charging him with first-degree rape. He remains at large.

The incident happened at an Auburn Avenue home near West 11th Street and Interstate 490, according to court documents.

Jones inappropriately touched a 15-year-old girl as she slept on the home's floor and then raped her, court records say.

Court documents do not say how Jones came into contact with the teen. He does not live at the home where the incident happened, records say.

Jones remained at large as of about 5 p.m. Friday.

He has no adult criminal history in the city of Cleveland, nor an adult felony record in Cuyahoga County, records say.

To comment on this story, please visit cleveland.com's crime and courts comments section.
Cleveland police car.png

A 22-year-old man crashed into another car while driving the wrong way on Ohio 2.

(File photo)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A 22-year-old man suspected to be under the influence crashed his car into another car early Saturday morning while driving the wrong way on Ohio 2.

The crash happened shortly after 2:30 a.m. when the man was traveling in a 2002 Oldsmobile Aurora westbound in the eastbound lanes of Ohio 2 from West 6th Street. He crashed into a 2012 Honda Civic driven by a 25-year-old man west of West 6th Street in an offset head-on collision, Cleveland police spokeswoman Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said.

The driver of the Honda Civic had pain in his left side and the passenger of the car had pain in his knees, Ciaccia said. The driver traveling the wrong way suffered a broken left leg and facial injuries and was confined at MetroHealth Medical Center.

Blood samples were obtained and taken to the Cuyahoga County Regional Forensic Science Laboratory for toxicology testing.

The victims of the crash were expected to be treated and released from MetroHealth, Ciaccia said.
Paul Ryan

On Thursday, House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin used charts and graphs to make his case for the GOP's long-awaited plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Thomas Suddes writes that its phase-out of Medicaid expansion will be a disaster for Ohio -- which should concern the 12 Republican congressmen representing many of the impacted 700,000 Ohioans.

(J. Scott Applewhite, Associated Press)

If it passes, U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan's bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act would be a disaster for Ohioans.

According to Republican Gov. John Kasich, once chair of the U.S. House Budget Committee, what Ryan wants to do to Medicaid and Medicaid expansion "unnecessarily puts at risk [Ohio's] ability to treat the drug-addicted, mentally ill and working poor who now have access to a stable source of care."

Time was when such a statement would tell Ohio's U.S. House delegation (12-4 Republican) everything it needed to know: A legislator supposedly looks out for the needs of his or her district, and Ohio's governor says Ryan's plan would hurt Ohioans.

Medicaid expansion is a key part of the Affordable Care Act. And Ryan's bill, Kasich wrote in a Friday New York Times op-ed, "phases out the expanded Medicaid coverage that is in place in Ohio and 30 other states."

The expansion of Medicaid benefits more than 700,000 Ohioans -- and, as noted last week, many live in GOP-held central and southern Ohio congressional districts. These include U.S. Reps. Bill Johnson's 6th District; Steve Stivers' 15th and Brad Westrup's 2nd (districts that include most of Ohio's Appalachian counties); and Mike Turner's Dayton-area 10th District.

Medicaid expansion also benefits Ohioans in the state's eight other GOP-held districts. Take Urbana Republican Jim Jordan's 4th District. It stretches 150 miles, southwest to northeast, from Ohio's Corn Belt to part of Lorain County. Among Jordan constituents who gained health-care coverage thanks to Medicaid expansion are about 6,000 residents of Allen County (Lima) and about 2,700 residents each in Crawford (Bucyrus) and Sandusky counties.

In Bowling Green Republican Bob Latta's 5th District, Medicaid expansion covers about 3,800 residents of Wood County and 3,200 residents of Hancock County. As for Bob Gibbs's 7th District, Medicaid expansion provides coverage to about 3,000 Knox County residents, about 2,300 residents of Ashland County, and about 7,600 Richland County residents who are represented either by Gibbs or the 12th District's Pat Tiberi. Elsewhere in Tiberi's district, Medicaid expansion covers 8,400 residents of Licking County, 3,300 residents of Delaware County and 2,000 residents of Morrow County.

In the 8th District, represented by Troy Republican Warren Davidson, Medicaid expansion provides health-care coverage to 20,000 residents of Butler County, 10,000 residents of Clark County and 4,000 residents of Miami County.

In Republican David Joyce's Greater Cleveland 14th District, 8,700 residents of Lake County gained coverage thanks to Medicaid expansion, as did 6,700 residents of Ashtabula County, and residents of Geauga County and the parts of Cuyahoga, Summit, Portage and Trumbull counties also in Joyce's district. Meanwhile, in Wadsworth Republican Jim Renacci's 16th District, Medicaid expansion covers 5,200 Wayne County residents and many other Renacci constituents in parts of Cuyahoga, Medina, Stark, Summit and Portage counties.

The U.S. House's four Ohio Democrats - Joyce Beatty (suburban Columbus); Marcia Fudge (Warrensville Heights); Marcy Kaptur (Toledo): and Tim Ryan (Trumbull County's Howland Township) - oppose repeal of the Affordable Care Act. But House Republicans will be the deciders.

They should consider what Kasich, who sometimes seems to be the only Republican adult taking part in the ACA debate, wrote Friday: "It is unrealistic to think that cutting coverage saves any money, since we will only see uninsured people returning to the emergency room for their care - and walking away from unpaid bills."

If the Ohio Republicans in Paul Ryan's House caucus vote "yes" on his ACA repeal bill, their message to the 700,000 Ohioans who might eventually lose Medicaid coverage might as well be, "Don't get sick" - and to the Ohio hospitals that could go broke, "Suck it up."

Thomas Suddes, a member of the editorial board, writes from Athens.

To reach Thomas Suddes: tsuddes@gmail.com, 216-999-4689

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125 YEARS AGO

March 5, 1892: The show at Freeman Hall last Tuesday night was about the poorest that has struck Elko for many days.



Ben Craighead is making preparations to open a store in the Brain building, adjoining Neuschwanders jewelry store. He intends to keep fancy groceries, fruit, candy, cigars, tobacco and notions. Good for Ben.



Johnny McIntosh and Ed Keyser are entitled to the thanks of the Free Press for laying a nice cinder walk from this office to the freight depot.



Try Petersons soda water. He is keeping up the reputation of the Elko Soda Works and making a fine article of soda.

100 YEARS AGO

March 6, 1917: At their regular meeting yesterday afternoon, just before they adjourned for the evening, the board of county commissioners decided on the site for the new high school building, and will place it on the ground where the old hospital building now stands. There is no doubt but this is the logical location for the new building, and the work will be started as early in the spring as the weather will allow in order to have the building completed at the beginning of the year. After the building is finished the county will then have the old building and site, which is now used for the high school, but what use will be made of this has not yet been determined. The commissioners have not yet decided on a new site for the county hospital, but it will be in the near vicinity of Elko.



Engineer Kelsey, who has the contract to make a survey of this vicinity to determine the best source for obtaining a water supply for a municipal water system, was an arrival from Twin Falls this morning. He finds that there is too much snow to begin his work and will go on to his home in Portland, Ore., and will return overland in his car about the first of the coming month.

March 7, 1917: The report of Fire Marshal Piercy to the town board states that there are many fire hydrants in town that are so situated that it is impossible to make connections with the new fire engine, due to the fact that the openings of the hydrants are faced in towards telephone or electric light poles so that the heavy connecting pipe of the engine cannot be gotten to the openings. This should be remedied at once, as the hydrants are absolutely of no use to the city as they are at present.

75 YEARS AGO

March 5, 1942: Faced with the problem of the complete discontinuance of deliveries in the city of Elko in the not too distant future the Elko Retail Merchants Association, meeting at the City Office last night, passed a motion instructing the executive committee of the group to inform the buying public that it has become imperative to curtail the deliveries of merchandise in order to conserve rubber and gasoline used by the delivery trucks. In the motion which was passed it was also stated: It is proposed that on and after April 1, merchants will make only 2 deliveries daily.

March 6, 1942: Ernest G. Wardwell, deputy game warden under Dan Olin, was named Elko county game warden by a majority of the board of county commissioners today. He received the favorable votes of Chairman Sim Scott and W.W. Kane, but was not favored by George Kennedy, other board member. Kennedy based his objection upon the ground that he was not an Elko county man. Wardwell has resided in Elko county for about a year and a half.

March 10, 1942: Plans were discussed at a meeting of the county defense council last night for a practice blackout to be called in the near future in this city. The purpose of the practice would be to have every agency of defense go into action as would be the case in the event of a real emergency. Council members agreed that such a practice would no doubt reveal many weaknesses, but once revealed they could be corrected.

50 YEARS AGO

March 6, 1967: Elko High Schools Jim Moren was selected as the Most Valuable Player in the voting conducted following completion of the Southern Nevada AA Zone tournament, Saturday night in Las Vegas. Named to the AA all-tournament team in addition to Moren was Harold Bucky Burner.

March 9, 1967: Elko has been selected to be among communities visited by the 1967 Mobil Economy Run, United States Auto Club officials revealed today. The Run serves as the nations annual mileage potential test for the newest American-made passenger car models. It will pass through Elko on the morning of Wednesday, April 5.

March 10, 1967: Elkos booth at the World Travel Show in the Cow Palace in San Francisco spread the word to many new potential visitors, Oren Probert, told the Chamber of Commerce today. An estimated 100,000 people passed through the display, which included regular showings of the Elko movie put out by the chamber.

25 YEARS AGO

March 7, 1992: The exterior of the Red Lion In and Casino is completed as part of a $1 million project that added 3,000 square feet to the gaming area and included remodeling of the nightclub and dining room. General Manager Carlos Guzman said another phase of expansion began this week with construction of a video room near the swimming pool. When weather improves, work will begin on a bakery and butcher shop to serve all of Red Lion owner Tod McClaskeys Elko and Winnemucca properties.

March 9, 1962: Starr Valley rancher and political newcomer Demar Dahl today launched his bid for the U.S. Senate in what is likely to be an uphill campaign against the heavily financed Democratic incumbent, Sen. Harry Reid.

March 11, 1992: Elko Firemen held training exercises yesterday to become more familiar with the departments one-year-old Pierce aerial tower pump truck. The exercise was held outside the Elko Convention Center. The vehicle, with a 75 foot boom, pumps up to 1,750 gallons a minute. It allows the fire department to reach the top story of Elkos tallest building, the four-story Henderson Bank Building.
Oh, to be a fly on that wall.

Rarely spotted together, CEO and CEO were seen dishing over Vietnamese food in Palo Alto this week. Apple and Google parent Alphabet are the two most valuable companies in the U.S., with a combined market capitalization of over $1.5 trillion.

Source: Steve Sims

Steve Sims, founder of luxury concierge service Bluefish, was hosting a corporate client at Tamarine in Palo Alto on Tuesday when he snapped the shot on a smoke break around 9 p.m.

Sims didn't have much to share on the conversation between two of tech's most powerful men. But one can be sure, as Cook would say, that it was the "mother of all" conversations.

The two companies have a long-standing rivalry  stoked not only by their competing mobile phone platforms, but the lawsuits that followed.

Still, the companies also have a great deal in common  Google's Eric Schmidt, then CEO, even sat on Apple's board until 2009. Google backed Apple on its encryption battle with regulators last year, and recently the companies have faced similar challenges, including immigration reform and a dump of Wikileaks files.

CNBC is reaching out for any potential comment on what was discussed  but you can vote below on what you think.
Jim Cramer was shocked when the news that iconic industrial company Caterpillar 's Peoria, Illinois headquarters was raided by Federal agents last week  but it didn't scare him off from recommending the stock.

"Accounting issues almost always equal sell, but in this rare case, I think Caterpillar's declines already bake in the potential problems and its business is getting so much stronger that I think the story is too good to ignore with the stock down at $92," the "Mad Money" host said.

The timing couldn't have been any worse, either, as Caterpillar's stock was on the verge of hitting $100 for the first time in two years. But when everyone from the IRS, to the FDIC and the Department of Commerce got involved, it traded down to $94.

On Tuesday, The New York Times followed up a story with details of accusations on tax and accounting fraud that were made against Caterpillar in a report commissioned by the government. That article sent the stock down to around $91, just below where it closed at $92 on Friday.

"What really kills me here, though, is that this federal raid on CAT's headquarters comes at a time when the company's actually doing quite well, with some favorable sales trends for the first time in ages," Cramer said.

Watch the full segment here:
Jim Cramer had a loud and clear message for the Federal Reserve on Friday: Bring on the rate hike!

With the U.S. economy humming along, it no longer needs the help of the Fed. And right now there are many companies that need higher rates to make more money, and not many that will get hurt by it. In particular, the financials need higher rates.

"When you have the banks as leaders you can have a real rally, the kind that can take us much further than people believe," the "Mad Money" host said.

With this in mind, here are the stocks and events on Cramer's radar next week:

Retail has become so bad that, unfortunately, the only way to increase profitability is for businesses to close stores. For winners like Foot Locker to announce it would close 90 mall stores this year and for Childrens Place to say it would close as many as 200 stores, Cramer worried how bad things could be for the losers in the group.

"If you own retail stocks, you can't wait around to find out if your company will be one of the last men standing," Cramer said. "They are just too risky and too subject to a secular shift in shopping habits where the enemy isn't just Amazon, it's themselves."

If the Fed does indeed decide to raise rates, that means banks will be able to make more money, as they collect more interest on customer deposits. It could also mean good things for lending, as they can lend money at higher rates or invest in higher yielding Treasurys.

LendingTree is the online marketplace that helps to connect consumers with lenders to get mortgages, home equity loans, personal loans and even credit cards.

While LendingTree itself doesn't lend money, it helps people find loans, which means it is a play on the volume of transactions. With the stock up 17 percent so far this year, Cramer spoke with LendingTree's CEO Doug Lebda, who shared a valuable lesson he has learned steering the company.

"One of the things I have learned in capital allocation in being a CEO is you get a lot more return sometimes when you just make smart decisions at the smart time, and when you know that there is a dislocation in the market," Lebda said.
watch now

On a bright, breezy day in New Jersey, a sharp buzz  something like a cross between a mosquito and a dentist drill  pierced the air, made by a drone performing a hairpin turn. Andy Shen, sporting chunky white goggles, tinkered with a handheld device nearby. He was indulging a passion that he's managed to turn into a successful business. Shen flew an in-house drone design called the "Krieger," a zippy quad copter unit. Racing lets the 51-year-old entrepreneur meet his customers, get immediate feedback, and test designs and refinements. Shen is a drone frame designer and a participant in an emerging sport that combines aviation, technology, tinkering and gaming. In a booming market for privately owned drones, he caters to a specific segment with a company called Shendrones, which produces custom frames for professional drone racers. In a field defined by camera drones like the DJI Phantomand at a time when unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are delivering packages, taking pictures and undertaking clandestine government operationsdrone racing remains a niche. However, the FAA expects the commercial drone market to explode from 1.9 million in unit sales last year to 4.3 million by 2020. In a 2016 report, NPD Group said commercial drone sales skyrocketed by more than 200 percent from 2015. Such bullish forecasts encourage converts like Shen, who believes the future of the sector is intertwined with the growing emphasis on science, technology, engineering and mathematics in education. "A lot of STEM programs are looking to incorporate drones," Shen told CNBC. "Physics, aerodynamics, electronics, programming, there's just so much to learn from it."

The difference between the great pilots and the OK pilots is that the great pilots will recover more often than not. Michael Tseng drone racer

'Fatsharks' and flying contraptions At first glance, drone racing doesn't look high-octane, or even high tech. Racing drones, even when competition ready, often look anything but: Their shells are a hodgepodge of exposed wiring, antennae and 3-D-printed plastic enclosures that appear barely durable. The frame serves as a mount for the rotors, engines and controllers, and sometimes sells with enclosures that boost aerodynamics and protection. Last year, ESPN signed a deal with the International Drone Racing Association to broadcast drone races, seen as a big bet on a sport still in its infancy. It also presents an opportunity for upstarts like FloRotoRs and Shendrones, who sponsor pilots and provide frames, kits and support. Sponsored racers also help stress-test frames in a real world setting. "I can't fly like those guys can," Shen said. "They're pushing it and giving me feedback that I couldn't get myself with the product."

At a recent event attended by CNBC, rows of participants sit in camp chairs, peering into futuristic "Fatsharks"  goggles that enhance video photography and drone racing. Only through the lens of these "first person view" devices does the sport's addictive quality become apparent. FPVs allow the viewer to see the world through the "eye" of the drone itself, a modified security camera transmitting instantaneous video through a radio frequency. The speed and agility of quadcopters, a common four-propeller design, makes FPV racing less like being inside a cockpit and more like an out-of-body experience. The aircraft are surprisingly aerobatic: Some races are even designed with vertical gates that pilots must dive (or fall) through. A plane  or a car for that matter  "would never make it through any of these courses," Shen said. Budding interest has created an entire cottage industry around drone racing, including sponsors, specialists and experts. However, the environment remains collaborative, said Florent Arnoux, founder of rival frame maker FloRotoRs, who frequently works alongside Shen. Arnoux, a Stamford, Connecticut-based mechanical engineer, lends Shen information about plastics and taps into Shen's experience sourcing carbon fiber. "We fuel each other with ideas," Arnoux told CNBC.

Drone frame designer Andy Shen. Mike Juang | CNBC
How can you tell if your doctor is an over-prescriber? Avitzur offers some tips on how to recognize and address the problem.

"Most doctors don't want to see anyone suffer, so it is our instinct to really try to help people," Avitzur said. "At the same time, we're very busy nowadays in practices, and patients don't get the same face-to-face time that perhaps they did 10, 20 years ago. And so in a way it's easier to write a prescription than to have to go into a lengthy discussion about why I'm not going to write you a prescription."

But even legitimate, well-intentioned doctors can fall into the overprescription trap. A study last year by the National Safety Council found 99 percent of the doctors surveyed were prescribing highly addictive opioids for longer than the three-day period recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Los Angeles physician Lisa Tseng took that to a deadly extreme. In 2015, she became the first doctor in the United States convicted of murder for recklessly overprescribing drugs. As told on the latest episode of CNBC's "American Greed," her clinic handed out some 27,000 prescriptions in just three years. At least 13 patients died in her care.

"I think it has become a problem in this country," said Orly Avitzur, M.D., medical director at Consumer Reports. "It's come to a point where sometimes we're doing more harm than good."

Little wonder that pain  and specifically the drugs to manage it  is a big business , totaling $24 billion in the U.S. alone, according to an analysis by Mizuho Securities. With that kind of money at stake, and with demand for the drugs so high, the temptation for doctors to overprescribe them can be great.

The numbers are nothing short of staggering. Nearly one-third of all Americans  100 million people  suffer from chronic pain, according to the American Academy of Pain Medicine. That is more than those suffering from diabetes, heart disease and cancer combined.

A pill for every ill

Prescribing medication is a serious matter, and your doctor should treat it that way. That means explaining the drug, why it is being prescribed and the potential side effects.

"If you leave a doctor's office and you have a lot of prescriptions and you don't know why, that's one of the tipoffs that you may be getting more medication than you need," Avitzur said.

Do not be afraid to ask your doctor why he or she is prescribing a drug. Also, do not hesitate to ask if there are alternative treatments that do not involve medication. For example, there are many ways to address cold or flu symptoms, and not all involve medicine.

"We're sneezing, or we're coughing, or we have a sore throat, and they can also be managed with just a lot of rest and fluids and ways to just really treat the individual symptoms, as opposed to prescribing something like an antibiotic," Avitzur said.

Writing on the wall

Despite various reforms in recent years, pharmaceutical companies still market their products directly to doctors. There is nothing wrong with that as long as your doctor maintains some perspective.

"Pharmaceutical representatives who come to a doctor's office often bring little notepads or pens or clipboards with their logos on it, and they're telltale signs for a patient that they've been there," Avitzur said.

Too many trinkets on the desks or logos on the wall could be a sign that your doctor is focused too much on the marketing messages and not enough on your well-being. Again, do not hesitate to ask questions, particularly if the prescription is a little too closely matched to the marketing materials around the office.

Questions and answers

Questioning your doctor may feel awkward, but it can actually be one of the most effective ways to determine whether there might be a problem. Your doctor should welcome your questions.

"Doctors are very happy to receive that kind of conversation because they want you to be safe, they want to know that you're taking things correctly and they welcome a discussion of alternatives," Avitzur said. "If in turn, your worst fear is realized and your doctor dismisses you or doesn't address your concerns, then it's probably time to find another doctor."

Do your part

Finally, remember that you also have a role in preventing overprescription. Pharmaceutical ads are flooding the airwaves these days, almost always urging you to "ask your doctor" about the latest treatment. Of course it is fine to ask, but insisting that your doctor prescribe the medication you saw on TV puts him or her in a difficult position, and opens the door to drugs being overprescribed.

Similarly, insisting on antibiotics to treat cold symptoms is a bad idea.

"You have to understand that your cold is very, very likely caused by a virus, and antibiotics have zero effect on viruses," Avitzur said. "Not only that, but in doing so, you risk contributing to a growing problem today, which is that of antibiotic-resistant bacteria."

Pill mill doctor Tseng, who is serving a 30-year-to-life sentence in a California prison, depended on addicted patients to enable her crimes. Your doctor is almost certainly not a criminal. But if he or she is an over-prescriber, it can only happen if you let down your guard.

Go inside Lisa Tseng's multimillion-dollar pill mill, and see how authorities finally brought it down, on the next all-new "American Greed"  Monday, March 13 at 10P ET/PT only on CNBC.
President Donald Trump may have been a great campaigner, but that doesn't necessarily translate into success in the Oval Office, economist Jared Bernstein told CNBC on Friday.

"My fear is that Donald Trump is a great showman  but he doesn't know how to govern," the former economic policy advisor to Vice President Joe Biden said in an interview with "Power Lunch."



"It actually takes a fair amount of work to get stuff done and really they haven't done anything yet," said Bernstein, a senior fellow at the Center on Budge and Policy Priorities and a CNBC contributor.

Tony Fratto, deputy press secretary under President George W. Bush, disagrees.

"We're not in the legislative process yet," Fratto, partner at consulting firm Hamilton Place Strategies and a CNBC contributor, told "Power Lunch."

"That's where things tend to get not so efficient."

He thinks the more important issue is the record for Republican-led accomplishments and said Trump's partnership with the party will be crucial to their success.

"They'll be judged way more on competency. Are they getting the things done that they intended to get," Fratto said.
United Technologies CEO Greg Hayes says that, since the election, an increase in consumer sentiment has reflected positively in the company's bottom line.

"The current administration has reached out to business in a way the last administration has never done," Hayes told "Mad Money" host Jim Cramer on Friday.

"I think getting a chance to go to the White House to have your voice heard is very, very important and I think the Trump administration is trying to do the right thing to bring jobs back to America, to grow the American economy and we're certainly supportive of all of those things."

Hayes confirmed that its Otis Elevator business has the largest backlog seen since 2007. In fact, the only problem Otis is facing is finding enough people to install the elevators.

In the beginning of the year, Hayes anticipated the U.S. economy would grow about 2 percent. Those numbers are thrown out the window now, and he could even see it going to 3 percent now because of the impact that positive consumer sentiment has had on business.

Watch the full interview here:


During the Comstock mining days, many of the miners who came here to work the mines were Irish, Welsh, Scotch and Cornish. There were countless lively squabbles and skirmishes among the different groups after hours in the local saloons. Nearly all of the successful Comstock mining figures were of Irish descent, including the Big Four, John Mackay, James Fair, James C. Flood and William OBrien.

If I had lived here in those days and made the assertion that Saint Patrick was Italian, I am sure I would have had a fight on my hands. The fact is, the statement that Saint Patrick was Italian has more truth than most people realize. I still dont encourage anyone to enter an Irish pub on St. Patricks Day and proclaim that the Patron Saint of Ireland was Italian. You likely would get your mouth washed out with green beer and acquire some knuckle bumps on your head.

Contrary to popular belief, Patrick was not born in Ireland. According to the Catholic Church, he was born in Scotland about the year 387 A.D. His mother and father, named Calpurnius and Conchessa, were Roman citizens living in Britain, assigned to watch over Roman Colonies in the British Isles. At age 14, Patrick was captured during a raid and brought to Ireland. Six years later, he escaped and returned to Britain and reunited with his family.

Patricks travels took him to Gaul (Roman France) and eventually he spent three years in Rome (441-443). After having a prophetic dream, he was ordained a priest in the Roman Catholic Church and later became a bishop. He then set out to take the Gospel to Ireland, which at that time was a land of Druids and pagans.

Patrick succeeded in converting chieftains and entire kingdoms to the Catholic Faith, acquiring a large following of disciples. For 40 years he roamed Ireland converting people wherever he went and building churches along the way. He died in Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland on March 17th, the year 461, after he had gone there to retire.

Since Patricks parents were members of the ruling class of Roman citizens in Britain, there is some speculation that Patrick took his name from the Roman word Patrician, which was what members of the Roman hierarchy, or ruling class, called themselves.

Many details of Patricks life and travels are ambiguous and shrouded in mystery. It is well-known, however, that he was of Roman descent. Though not born in Rome, he was born in a Roman territory to Roman parents. If a child is born to American parents in an American territory, the child is an American citizen. Similarly, Patrick was a Roman by birth, since his mother and father were both Roman citizens.

The last time I checked, Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire, was located in Italy. Therefore, anyone born a Roman citizen is also an Italian. For years, I have told people that Saint Patrick was Italian. Most of them think I am just joking to get them riled up on St. Patricks Day. Some think this is the most absurd thing they ever heard of. All I can say is that what I have told you here can be found in many history books about dear old Saint Paddy.

I have heard it said that everyone is Irish on St. Patricks Day. I am of Italian descent, but I enjoy corned beef and cabbage with a tall glass of green beer as much as any Irishman. If you think we Italians dont enjoy celebrating St. Patricks Day, just ask Joe Pastrami, the ex District Attorney in Virginia City. He was well known for his Saint Patricks Day antics.
European leaders are preparing for Britain to begin Brexit imminently, amid signs that Theresa May could activate Article 50 divorce proceedings as early as Tuesday.

During a summit of the remaining 27 EU members in Brussels on Friday, leaders were told to expect London to trigger exit talks next week and to prepare for a Brussels gathering on April 6 to respond to Britain's formal letter of notification.

One UK government official involved in the process said he "hoped" that Article 50 could begin on Tuesday when Mrs May is due to address the House of Commons, but would certainly start by the end of the week.

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Donald Tusk, the EU Council president, said that other European capitals would be ready to issue draft "guidelines" for negotiations within 48 hours. The EU is "well prepared for all procedures", he said, at the conclusion of a meeting at which Europe's political elite continued fleshing out plans for life without the UK in the bloc.

Aware that the long wait for Article 50 may soon be coming to an end, EU leaders also threw down some markers on how complex they expect the exit talks to be.

Charles Michel, Belgium's prime minister, said that "there will be difficult discussions on all subjects but also on the financial aspects" of Britain's departure. "The British did not make a good choice."

Mrs May faces votes in both houses of parliament on Monday which are likely to give her the authority to begin Brexit.

The prime minister will make a statement to parliament on this week's Brussels summit on Tuesday, a day later than usual, prompting speculation that she may use the moment to start the two-year negotiation period.

On Friday, Downing Street said only that she planned to do so "by the end of the month". Two senior EU figures involved in preparations said they doubted that Mrs May would wait for long to notify once she had secured parliamentary approval.

German chancellor Angela Merkel said that if the UK triggered next week, then the other EU-27 leaders could meet on April 6 to agree the guidelines for the exit talks.

The date was confirmed by Enda Kenny, Ireland's prime minister. Speaking to reporters, he said it would be possible to meet then if "the prime minister moves Article 50, I think, by the March 15", adding that Mrs May had not told him the exact date Brexit would be triggered.

Should Britain take until the end of March to notify, the EU plans to hold its own summit either in late April or early May.Jean-Claude Juncker, the EU commission president, struck a philosophical note after the Brussels meeting, saying that he hoped that Britain's decision could one day be reversed."

I don't like Brexit, because I would like to be in the same boat as the British," he said. "The day will come when the British will re-enter the boat, I hope."

In Monday's debate, Mrs May will try to kill two additions to the legislation that were approved by the House of Lords. The first seeks to unilaterally guarantee the rights of EU citizens currently living in the UK and the other seeks a meaningful vote on the final deal in parliament.

As many as 20 Conservative MPs will spend this weekend contemplating whether to rebel against Mrs May. Many are hoping that the prime minister will compromise. They are seeking a verbal assurance on parliament's future role from a senior minister  David Davis is the most popular choice among potential rebels  in exchange for their support in removing the Lords' amendments from the Bill.

But Downing Street said that Mrs May did not plan to speak to wavering MPs over the weekend and played down suggestions that she would offer them the reassurances they are looking for.

"Our position has not changed. What is important to us is that we have an unamended Bill," a Downing Street spokesman said. "The House passed the Bill unamended and we are clear that we want it to pass unamended again."

Although the House of Lords could theoretically reinstate amendments when the bill returns to the upper house, there was little sign that the lords would be able to muster enough opposition.

Additional reporting by Kate Allen, Paul McClean and Rochelle Toplensky
ONEIDA, N.Y.  Liberty Resources on Wednesday formally opened Pathways Wellness Center in Oneida.

The center, located at 148 Main St. in Oneida, will be available based on community need for adults 18 years or older who are struggling with a mental-health condition, Liberty Resources said in a news release.

Liberty Resources is a human-services agency headquartered at 1045 James St. in Syracuse.

Liberty Resources Pathways program is a recovery center that the New York State Office of Mental Health has designated, the nonprofit said.

A group of peers and volunteers who have experienced their own life challenges operate the center. Peers help individuals with services, acquiring benefits, developing natural supports and social relationships, and achieving their life goals.

Self-referrals and walk-ins are welcome, Liberty Resources said. The center will also accept referrals from community providers, family members, or friends.

We are excited to launch this new program to support residents of Madison County along their pathways to wellness and recovery, Janelle Powell, director of the Liberty Resources Pathways Wellness Center, said in the release. Peer connections are vital for maintaining our own wellness. By sharing our personal experiences, we are able to inspire hope and empower individuals to improve their quality of life.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com
Innisfail RCMP Constable Simon Watson is shown in a photograph from an Alberta newspaper, holding a brochure containing details about detecting counterfeit U.S. and Canadian paper money.

A few reports out of Canada leave the impression that counterfeiting of Federal Reserve notes is a bigger problem there than of Canadian paper currency itself. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is following up on reports of fake notes being passed in at least two Alberta towns, Red Deer and Innisfail, according to stories in the communities local papers.

The subject notes in one case appeared to be color photocopies on good quality paper, but often with duplicate serial numbers.

Is coin jewelry a form of self-expression or mutilation?: Inside Coin World: Jewelry made from coins can be found for sale all over the Internet, and even at major coin shows. Is it numismatic art or numismatic crime?

The RCMP said that places like gas stations and fast-food restaurants are the most susceptible, and so it is embarking on an educational campaign using three Bank of Canada educational pamphlets with detailed breakdowns of security features on both Canadian and American bills. (Close examination of the American leaflet identifies it as the Treasury Departments Know Your Money brochure.)

An RCMP representative said, When they are dealing with American money, just be more attentive with the serial numbers, [and] raised ink. Pay really good attention to it and make sure it is real.

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In Burlington, Vt., about 50 miles from the Canadian border, retailers are frequently criticized by visitors for not accepting Canadian money, while U.S. paper money is accepted everywhere north of the border. Local merchants freely admit that, except for the fact that Canadian money feels different (because of the polymer), they know nothing else about it. Perhaps the merchants on this side of the border have the right idea.

Regarding counterfeit Canadian paper currency, the RCMP says that in 2015 it seized a total of 3,967 bank notes, while 16,445 pieces totaling $659,245 were passed. This is down from $2,438,170 and 13,960 notes passed in 2014.
The holidays are creeping up on us
ELKO  Anyone who wants to comment on the plan to withdraw about 10 million acres of public land from mining claims over the next 20 years has until the end of the month.

Elko was one of eight open houses hosted in February by the Bureau of Land Management to gather input on its plan.

The proposal follows an initial two-year moratorium on new mining claims.

This is the next step in a process that started in September 2015 with the successful efforts of the BLM and its state and federal partners to prevent the Greater Sage-Grouse from being listed under the Endangered Species Act, stated the federal agency.

The draft Environmental Impact Statement analyzes five alternatives, ranging from no action to the withdrawal of approximately 10 million acres of federal locatable minerals in certain areas that the agency says are crucial to the greater sage grouse in six states: Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming.

Neither the segregation, nor any subsequent withdrawal, would prohibit ongoing or future mining exploration or extraction operations on valid pre-existing claims, stated the BLM.

To develop the proposal and its alternatives, the BLM held public meetings in 2015 in the six states to gather information and comments. The BLM also incorporated a mineral resource assessment prepared by the U.S. Geological Survey to help develop a reasonably foreseeable development scenario for the draft EIS.

The proposal was published in the Federal Register on Dec. 30, 2016, and carries a 90-day public comment period that will end March 30, 2017.
Everybody's freaking out over the Wikileaks revelations that the Central Intelligence Agency can hack Apple and Android smartphones, major PC operating systems -- and even TV sets.

The news is causing ripples in international relations and got companies like Google and Apple to patch holes and issue fixes.

It's also creating unnecessary panic. Wikileaks' characterization of the documents was alarmist and misleading. The press picked up on the alarmism and spread further misinformation.

Many in the public believe that the CIA has some new and hitherto unimaginable ability to hack anything. In reality, the Wikileaks documents reveal what we should have already assumed: The CIA collects knowledge about and tools for hacking things.

The Wikileaks/CIA stories simply remind us that anything with a camera, microphone or IP address could theoretically be hacked.

The question is, will the CIA hack you?

[ To comment on this story, visit Computerworld's Facebook page. ]

I believe the chances that the CIA (or any other hacker) will watch or listen to you, personally, through your smartphone, PC, TV or IP camera are extremely low. It's probably never going to happen. And if it does, it's unlikely that you'll be affected in any way.

Yes, take precautions. Use encrypted communication. Don't click on links emailed from strangers. Cover your laptop camera with tape like Mark Zuckerberg does.

But anxiety and action shouldn't be based only on what could happen in theory as much as what's likely to happen in practice -- and how much it will affect you.

Some people are afraid of sharks. While the prospect of being eaten by a giant fish is vivid and terrifying, it's also unlikely, old chum. In fact, the drive to the beach is far more dangerous than the swim once you get there.

Likewise, avoid getting hacked. But more important, start taking action on the bigger risk: The stuff publicly posted on social sites.

Anything you post can and will be used against you

Politico reported in December that the U.S. government started asking some foreign visitors to provide Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube accounts, so they can be checked for signs of terrorist connections. It was a pretty gentle request, providing such information is only for those on the visa waiver program, and optional.

In recent months, however, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials have begun checking the social media accounts of some U.S. citizens who are also Muslim at the point of entry, rather than as part of the paperwork.

These checks on social media could reveal what travelers have posted publicly. But the government wants the private stuff, too.

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said in an interview this week that the Trump administration wants travelers from certain countries to provide lists of websites they've visited and their online passwords. He wants U.S. Customs "to get on those websites to see what they're looking at."

U.S. Customs is proposing to add all Chinese visitors to the list of people asked to disclose their social media profiles.

Current policy is based on the religion or nationality of travelers and is mostly superficial and voluntary. But the trend is clear: The U.S. government is rapidly expanding the invasiveness of social media checks in order to figure out who is trustworthy -- and who is not.

Other nations are likely to follow the U.S.'s lead, but would search social media based on their own national criteria. Your business trip to Turkey may involve searches that look for support of Kurdish independence. Your vacation to China may involve searching your social accounts for trade secrets to steal. Your weekend in Cuba may end before it begins if Cuban customs agents find a three-year-old tweet shaming hipsters for wearing Che Guevara T-shirts.

Social media scrutiny increasingly affects spheres of life beyond travel.

Between 35% and 50% of college admissions officers now check the social media accounts of applicants as part of their selection process.

Some insurance companies are reportedly checking social media to find out if customers live risky lifestyles, raising the cost of premiums for those who do. Some are even denying claims based on social posts.

A CareerBuilder survey last year found that 60% of employers look at the social media posts of prospective employees before choosing which candidate to hire. That number jumped to more than 75% for IT companies, according to the survey.

More than 40% of HR managers routinely check the social media accounts of current employees, and a quarter of them have found something that led to action ranging from reprimands to terminations.

In the past year, CEOs have become the target of intense scrutiny of social posts, according to Ken Springer, a former FBI agent and current president of Corporate Resolutions, a company that performs such checks on behalf of clients.

The bar for acceptable posts by CEOs is high: The CEO of a company called Taylor Gourmet posted a picture of himself with President Trump, which caused a "social media backlash" against the company, according to a report in Bloomberg BNA.

All this checking of social media comes with risks. But today's risks are nothing compared with what's coming.

Social media posts reveal more than you think

Your social media posts are a theoretical open book into your state of mind, opinions, religion, personality and social connections.

One example in the news: Facebook is testing the use of artificial intelligence (A.I.) tools to analyze posts and determine whether people are feeling suicidal. Flagged users are reported to the community operations team for possible intervention.

That's an extreme case where a company is rightly public about its analysis of user mindset based on social media posts. But the ability for social posts to detect mood is demonstrated by a site called We Feel, which aggregates the mood of everybody on Twitter to track the global collective mood.

The analysis of social posts to find out what kind of person you are, how you think, what you believe and how big a "risk" you are to various organizations is about to become big business.

Here's what's going to happen.

'Social media profile' will take on a dark new meaning

In the near future, social media and A.I. will enable any organization to rank people based on trustworthiness.

A Chinese government program called the Social Credit System, which is currently in "beta," seeks to rank everyone in the country.

The Chinese government is compiling data on all citizens based on their legal or criminal records, their financial activity and their activity on social networks. All this data is to be collected, compiled and crunched, resulting in a "social credit score" for each citizen. The score will determine rights, privileges and acceptability in various realms.

Though the program is still in its infancy, the government has already banned some 6.7 million people from flying or even taking high-speed trains because they haven't paid their debts on time, according to a report in The Financial Times.

The social media aspect of this is especially alarming. For example, posting pro-government posts and comments on social media is expected to raise one's score. Posting anything about Tibet or the Dalai Lama is supposed to lower it.

A planning document quoted by The Wall Street Journal summarizes the purpose of the Social Credit System: to "allow the trustworthy to roam everywhere under heaven while making it hard for the discredited to take a single step."

Data-driven government control of the population is the Chinese way.

The American way is based on freedom, which in this case means corporations may be free to use social media to decide who they trust.

Software applications are being developed that can identify any person's social media accounts, download every post they've ever made public, and "profile" those people categorically based on comparative analysis.

The ability to use data to categorize people is magnified enormously by the rise in artificial intelligence.

To oversimplify the inevitable process: Everything known about you (say, your name, location, age, gender, your family and friends and other information) will be fed into A.I. systems that will scan the social web to find all your profiles. The systems will then copy every post, photo or comment you've ever posted. The A.I. will recognize patterns, interpret the photos and parse the comments.

The output of these systems will be a profile or dossier on you, and it will advise users about whether to deny your request for a visa, turn down your loan application, avoid hiring you, reject your insurance claims, rebuff your business partnership proposals and more.

In other words, A.I. will use data on social networks to rank people based on how much they can be trusted.

The worst part is that this trust-judging process happens invisibly behind the scenes. When you don't get that job or loan, you'll never know why.

Yes, the CIA can hack your TV. But it probably won't.

The bigger risk is social media. Because anything you post can and will be used against you.
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When the Cousin Jacks and Cousin Jennys waved farewell to Cornwall's rugged landscape and started fresh lives on the other side of the world, they took more than their mining skills with them.

As they toiled tens of thousands of miles from home they established thriving communities which played a vital role in the establishment of the New World.

The links between the ancestors of those of miners who toiled in South Australia and the Americas remains as strong as ever.

But what is less well known is that the reach of the Cornish went far beyond remote mining communities.

As Cornish farmers and preachers journeyed thousands of miles and settled, they decided to bring a little piece of the old country with them and often christened new homes in memory of the place they left behind.

In fact, centuries of globe-trotting have left a little bit of Kernow in some unexpected places.

Taking into account places which register as some of entity in terms of government - as either a parish, ward, constituency, town or city, there are 13 other Falmouths in the world apart from the one on our doorstep.

There are also 12 Budes, four Lizards and one other Looe - in the Philippines.

The list is probably not 100% comprehensive and, although Cornwall place names are spread all over the world, there are some which have never been exported; for example there is only one London Apprentice, one Zennor and one Praze an Beeble.

Dr Garry Tregidga is assistant director of the Institute of Cornish Studies at the University of Exeter, based at the Tremough campus near Penryn.

He said Kernow was global.

"People think of the Cornish going to South Australia and the USA but it's much wider than that," he said.

"There's used to be a Cuba Cornish Association and I was even contacted by a lady from Puerto Rico who had traced an ancestor who left Cornwall ion the early 1800.

"The spread of the Cornish is far wider than people commonly think."

Dr Tregidga said migration patterns often represented a snapshot of different periods on Cornish history.

In the 1800s, many farmers decided to up sticks and move their families and their skills abroad, some going as far as Africa to start new lives.

Other Cornish people travelled to escape paying onerous tithes to the Anglican Church.

Meanwhile others travelled the world to spread the gospel, said Dr Tregidga.

One man called Samuel Pollard from Camelford was a Christian preacher interested in missionary work in China.

He was posted to Yunnan province in 1888 and remained in China, where his name was Bo Geli, as a missionary, until his death from typhoid.

"He had a major impact there and in the 1990s, the Chinese president described him as a 'friend of the Cornish people'.

"There is now the Samuel Pollard Centre at Nanking University."

The son of one of Cornwall's most famous engineer, Richard Trevithick, travelled to Japan where he married a local woman.

The fact that many Cornish place names appear all over the world may sometimes be sheer coincidence and Dr Tregidga points out that we may never know for certain.

But, he said, there is no getting away from the legacy of those early settlers.

"It genuinely is a case of global Kernow," he said.

Other places in the world named after Cornish towns and cities:

TRURO

First and foremost, Truro is the capital of Cornwall, but there are five more in the USA as well: Ohio, North Dakota, Massachusetts, Iowa and Illinois.

Of these Truro, Massachusetts, is the most famous and in what could be the first ever Devonwall constituency is actually in the county of Barnstaple.

Settled in 1700 and with a population of just over 2,000, it is one of the more moneyed spots on affluent Cape Cod, famed for its white clapper board houses and genteel coastal atmosphere

However, though the rolling sands dunes and clear blue waters make it a popular holiday spot, the sea is not as safe as it seems and Great White Sharks are known to lurk in the water.

There is also a Truro in Jamaica and Australia.

At Truro in Nova Scotia, Canada, instead of seeing the daffodils of spring emerge, residents are battening down the hatches for a further blast of winter. Top temperatures this weekend are -3C in the daytime and a perishingly cold -16C at night.

FALMOUTH

There can't be many more Cornish sounding places than Trelawny, a parish in Cornwall County in northwest Jamaica whose capital is Falmouth.

The community, was founded by plantation owners and the parish is named after the then governor, Richard Trelawny.

Though sugar cane and tourism are what underpin Trelawny's economy, these days it is more commonly known for being the birth place of the fastest man in the world, Usain Bolt.

There are also Falmouths in the American states of Indiana, Massachusetts, Maine, Kentucky, Michigan and Virginia, as well as Tasmania and Nova Scotia.

BUDE

The North Cornwall seaside resort, gives its name to 11 other places in some of the most far flung parts of the world.

While the sea gently rolls ashore at Summerleaze beach in Bude, Cornwall, the village of Bude in Nepal is a heady 1,800 metres above sea level.

There are two Budes in Uganda, two in Nigeria, two in China, a lone Bude in America, one in Romania, one in Moldova, one in Guinea-Bissau and one Bude in Ethiopia.

CAMBORNE

Cornish Camborne is part of the biggest unbroken urban corridor in the county, but further afield Camborne is a name synonymous with coastal beauty and a yachting lifestyle.

The suburb of Camborne in Wellington, New Zealand, whose chief executive coincidentally is former Cornwall Council boss Kevin Lavery, is a pretty seaside resort where the temperatures this weekend, in what is the Southern hemisphere's winter, is a pleasant 20C.

Other Cambornes can be found In British Columbia, Canada and Ontario, Canada.

PENZANCE

Lovely Penzance, or Pennsans the holy headland, is famous for its modern day Pirates rugby team, the only promenade in Cornwall and the annual Golowan festival.

Penzance in Cornwall may be the end of the line in railway terms, but at least it isn't as truly in the middle of nowhere as Penzance, in Saskatchewan, Canada.

A village namesake of around 40 people some 50 miles from the nearest city of Moose Jaw and a 1,600 mile drive, via the USA, to the big city of Toronto on the east coast.

ST IVES

A year-round tourism hotspot thanks to its sandy beaches and warren of quirky granite cottages, St Ives in Cornwall. is also home to a famous artists community.

There is a St Ives in Cambridgeshire, but also two south of the equator - one a suburb of Sydney in New South Wales, the other in Western Australia. There's also a St Ives in British Columbia, Canada.

LAUNCESTON

On one side of the world, Launceston is a an ancient Cornish town mentioned in the Domesday Book while Down Under it is a pretty tourist town in Tasmania.

FLUSHING

The pretty village of Flushing, sits opposite Falmouth (the one in Cornwall) and is famous for its picturesque homes and the maritime lifestyle enjoyed by residents.

There are four Flushings in the USA, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio and, most famously in New York. Flushing is part of Queens, one of the five New York boroughs. Dutch colonists established Flushing, possibly naming it after the Flushing in the Netherlands. It was, after all, Dutch engineers who gave the name of Flushing to the Cornish settlement.

Flushing in Cornwall counts just under 700 residents to its name, while Flushing in New York has a population of over 72,000, over 40% are of Asian origin.
ELKO  An airport lessee plans to again appeal his property tax bill. If he wins his case, he will save about $12,000 a year, but local governments will lose 10 times as much in taxes  almost $122,000 a year.

The Elko Regional Airport has been leasing property to private businesses for decades, but whether or not these businesses should be exempt from property taxes has been in dispute for the last six years.

County Assessor Katrinka Russell says businesses on city owned land that are outside the airport owe property taxes, but Aspen Plaza Partners Manager John Fericks says she isnt interpreting the law correctly.

The law in dispute is Nevada Revised Statute 361.157. It states property taxes do not apply to Property located upon a public airport, park, market or fairground, or any property owned by a public airport, unless the property owned by the public airport is not located upon the public airport and the property is leased, loaned or otherwise made available for purposes other than for the purposes of a public airport, including, without limitation, residential, commercial or industrial purposes.

Fericks said he has been involved in real estate investments for a long time and he knew the airport property tax exemption existed.

One of the attractive features of the property was that it was tax exempt, of course that was discussed with the lease negotiations with the city, Fericks told the Free Press.

Elko City Manager Curtis Calder said the city wasnt aware of the exemption until Fericks brought it to staffs attention.

We agree with his position from his perspective, Calder said.

Fericks said his appeal will go to the State Board of Equalization because he doesnt receive his bill in time for the county board to review his appeal.

Were just asking for the appropriate NRS to be enforced, he said. The NRS very specifically and explicitly exempts property located upon a public airport from taxation.

Russell said the reason she took her stance that Fericks owed property tax is because she didnt feel like it was part of the airport operations, like the restaurant and (the rental car businesses), you know all those.

Properties that are inside the airport that contribute to the operations of the airport are exempt from real property tax. They have to pay personal property (tax), she said. They are inside the building thats owned by, well in this case, its the city.

She said other businesses, such as the airport Shell, have been paying property taxes even though they are on city property.

So why should this property not have to pay when the one next door does or even across the street? So that was kind of my stand on it, she said.

Russell said all the privately leased hangars on the airport also pay property taxes.

Russell said Renos airport is different since it is owned by an airport authority.

There was a special legislative session just to make that exempt, she said. There are properties around the airport that are not on the airport, theyre owned by the airport that are exempt. So (Fericks) felt the same should be here. Theres a difference.

Anything that is owned by the airport authority is exempt, unless they specify that it is not exempt, Russell said. Battle Mountain and Carson City have airport authorities. Clark County doesnt have an airport authority. Russell said she checked with Clark County to see how they handle a similar situation.

They are assessing for improvements that are owned by the individual, which means buildings, she said. I find it interesting that they dont bill for the land.

Here in Elko we used to not bill for the land. That was under my predecessor, Joe Aguirre, she said. We got written up by the Department of Taxation for not billing for the land, so thats when we went back and we billed for the land.

Russell said she thinks people leasing on city-owned land should just be billed for the improvements, but the Department of Taxation views the lease as possessory interest.

I dont consider it airport property, the way I interpret the statute, Russell said.

Fericks said Russells argument is convenient and not defensible.

Were clearly located upon the airport plan, he said. The landlord in my lease is the Elko Municipal Airport. The reason Im leasing the land, rather than buying it, which was my preference, was the city could not sell it to me because it is part of the airport. Its very clearly part of the airport.

Other parcels that could be considered part of the airport include the Newmont Mining Corp. office building, the airport Shell, and the Costa Vida and Subway buildings, which are owned by Desert Rock Properties. Including Aspen Plaza, these properties taxes total $121,943 last year. The city is not allowed to sell any of this land because it is all subject to the FAA-approved airport layout plan. It is all included within the FAAs definition of an airport.

Were appealing it because we want the NRS to be enforced properly, he said.

Fericks already appealed his case to the state board in 2016 and it ruled against him. However, he is allowed to appeal every year and this time around he will have more documentation.

He and the City of Elko asked for a judicial review on the matter. Due to technicalities the petition was dismissed and the judge did not review the merits of the case.

Its just about as cut and dry as you can get, Fericks said about the law.

When the judicial review was requested, City Attorney David Stanton prepared the citys argument.

He stated the Boards error of law comes down to an incorrect interpretation of the Airport Exemption.

The almost $122,000 in taxes currently collected from airport properties is divided between the county, city, Elko County School District and Elko Convention and Visitors Authority.

The City portion in 2015 was more than $23,000. The County portion was a little less and the school portion was more than $56,000. The school district receives 75 cents for every $100 of assessed valuation into its general fund for operations and another 75 cents for every $100 goes into the pay-as-you-go fund for capital projects, according to Free Press files.

Fericks will be able to file his appeal in May and is hoping to receive a favorable ruling from the Board of Equalization this summer.
Close

"Keeping Up With The Kardashians" Season 13 will certainly focus on Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, as both of them individually went through a crisis. However, the episodes will also reveal what took place between Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick during the Costa Rica holidays and why it will never work out between the ex-couple.

Kim Kardashian In Tears in 'Keeping Up With The Kardashians' Season 13

When Kanye West just walked off the stage during the Sacramento concert in Nov., it hit his wife Kim badly. She definitely went through a hard time after finding out the news and broke into tears, reported Daily Mail. The 36-year-old wife of the rapper kept on asking as to what went wrong and could not understand why West just left the stage in the middle of the concert.

The "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" Season 13 teaser also revealed the reality star's account oof the Paris robbery with sisters Khloe and Kourtney. The mother-of-two lost millions worth of jewelry in the "City of Lights" and faced a tough time at the hands of the robbers.

Immediately after a month of this crisis, Kanye West simply walked out of the show organized at the Golden 1 Center. Kim was shown in tears as she was talking to Kanye and Kris Jenner came to the aid of her daughter.

Scott Disick Accepts His Addiction To Sex

"Keeping Up With The Kardashians" Season 13 teaser also throws light on what exactly happened between Scott Disick and Kourtney Kardashian during their trip to Costa Rica at the start of the year. According to People, despite the fact that Kourtney disinvited the father of her three children, Disick made a surprise appearance at the venue where the family was staying.

Incidentally, he also had a girl tagging along with him, which forced Kim to confront him in the "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" Season 13 clip. To defend his side, Disick said that he is a sex addict. Even though the 33-year-old ex-beau of Kourtney said that she is the love of his life, the reality star could not see any future with him.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
ELKO  Deputies arrested a Spring Creek woman Thursday after she left her infant in a car for an hour to gamble.

Jamie L. Benson, 28, was arrested for child abuse or neglect. Her bail was set at $100,000.

When deputies arrived at Dotties Casino in Spring Creek they found a child that had been left unattended in a running vehicle for an extended period of time. The vehicle was running in the parking lot and was unlocked. A 14-month-old child was in the back seat.

The heater of the vehicle was turned all the way up and the interior of the vehicle was extremely hot, stated the sheriffs office.

Benson was found inside the casino at a gaming machine. She told deputies that she had entered the casino to purchase cigarettes and had been inside the casino for approximately 25 minutes. Further investigation revealed that she had been inside the casino approximately one hour, stated the report.

The child was transported to Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital and was subsequently taken into the custody of the Nevada Division of Child and Family Services.

The Sheriffs Office reminds parents to never leave a child in a vehicle.

In addition to accidents, abductions or other events that endanger a child in a vehicle, vehicles may be extremely hot or cold depending on weather conditions, stated the sheriffs office. In this particular event, a temperature reading of 86 degrees was measured in the interior of the vehicle after the door had been opened for approximately fifteen minutes. Temperatures inside a vehicle in the summer months can exceed 100 degrees very quickly. Please, never leave a child unattended in a vehicle.
Cloud News

Pivotal, Google Cloud Take Aim At Azure With Launch Of Kubo For Deployment, Management Of Kubernetes Clusters

Matt Brown

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Pivotal and Google Cloud have launched a new open source project called Kubo that is designed to deploy and manage Kubernetes container clusters on any cloud.

The deal gives Google more firepower to take on Microsoft Azure in the enterprise cloud market, said Jamie Shepard, senior vice president for health care and strategy at Lumenate, which does business with Dell EMC, as well as Google and other large cloud providers.

"This will catapult them over [Microsoft] Azure for sure," he said. "The Pivotal ecosystem is difficult to sell into, to have Google support opens up more possibility for the channel, a lot more."

Related: Partners Pleased To Finally See Kubernetes Available Natively On Microsoft Azure

The move is a clear push for Dell EMC into DevOps, and a signal that Google intends to deepen its focus on analytics and the DevOps movement, said Shepard.

"This is a real opportunity for partners to now use Pivotal Cloud Foundry integrated with Google to compete in the whole native cloud app space," Shepard said. "Michael [Dell] paid a lot for EMC, a hardware company, but it's the analytics and what's going on in IoT that he's going for here. He's smart like a fox."

Kubo can be run in on-prem data centers or the cloud. It automates lifecycle management for container orchestrator Kubernetes, allowing operators to use familiar open source management tool BOSH to manage the infrastructure that underpins containers running Kubernetes, said Pivotal.

Shepard said both Dell EMC and Google are banking on the proliferation of micro data centers designed to support IoT devices that get data in real time. Kubo allows customers to use Pivotal as a platform for DevOps and analytics while Google provides the platform to support Pivotal, Shepard said.

"The micro data centers, the analytics, IoT, Dell's going to power it, and Google will be the back end for all of it," Shepard said.

Richard Seroter, senior director of product for Pivotal, said in a blog post that when customers "told us about their challenges getting Kubernetes stood up and operated consistently (example), we sensed an opportunity to help. That's where Kubo comes in. "

"While Pivotal Cloud Foundry is the preferred platform for cloud-native apps, our customers wanted the freedom to take on more responsibility for the software stack, when needed," said Seroter in the blog post. "Pivotal Cloud Foundry now delivers unified lifecycle management (thanks to BOSH!) for whichever cloud runtime abstraction our customers choose."
Cloud News

Partners Cheer Google's New Solutions-Oriented Channel Approach

Joseph Tsidulko

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The day before Google's Cloud Next 2017 Conference, new channel chief Bertrand Yansouni and other Google execs hosted partners at an off-site summit in San Francisco. During those sessions earlier this week, they outlined a new approach to how Google will work with its channel, one encompassing investments in product, sales and enablement programs and encouraging a mindset geared to comprehensive solutions, not individual products.

The new "unified approach" breaks down channel silos by rewarding partners for selling the whole Google Cloud stack, a change that was overdue, Yansouni told CRN. Previously "partners and sales agents were aligned by products, not accounts and solutions," he said.

Partners are elated with the new philosophy, telling CRN it aligns with how enterprise customers actually look to purchase technology. Google's program changes illustrate that, after some stumbles, the consumer-tech powerhouse is starting to understand the critical enterprise market.

[Related: Google Leverages Its Consumer Tech To Bulk Up Enterprise Cloud Services]

"There's a really positive change that's afoot," Aric Bandy, president of Agosto, a Minneapolis, Minn.-based Premier partner, told CRN.

Google has tweaked a compensation model that could, in some scenarios, fail to provide financial parity to sales reps when delivering deals to the channel. Field agents no longer can be better compensated for taking customers direct, Yansouni told CRN, which eliminates any potential for channel conflict.

To further encourage the solutions-focused approach, Google introduced four new specialization credentials that partners can earn to validate specific skills. It also launched a revamped partner directory that makes it easier for partners to promote their expertise, as well as a new engineering team that advises partners on large engagements.

The "unified approach" assigns Google's sales reps to accounts instead of products. And the cloud operator will tabulate all revenue across the portfolio when assessing whether a partner rises to Premier status, Yansouni said.

Rajesh Abhyankar, CEO of Princeton, N.J.-based Google Premier partner MediaAgility, told CRN that change in tier qualification should be warmly welcomed by partners.

"When we heard they'd be deciding Premier tier on combined partner revenue on all products, our initial reaction was it's fantastic," he said. "For us Google saying there's only one Premier tier, sell any of these products and meet the quota, means an easier path to achieve that status."

MediaAgility has always approached engagements with a broad solutions mindset, looking to drive profitability by solving business process challenges. Now Google's channel structure is aligned with that approach, he said.

The new compensation-neutrality model for sales agents demonstrates the new channel leadership's commitment to avoiding any potential conflict with partners, Abhyankar added.

Simon Margolis, director of cloud platform at SADA Systems, a Premier partner based in Los Angeles, said the changes are significant, even for partners that won't be directly affected.

"Its the messaging that we are listening to," Margolis told CRN.

As one of Google's largest partners, SADA doesn't worry about achieving Premier status and securing better margins through that designation. But "it shows us where their head's at," Margolis said. "Unifying the program, thats music to SADA's ears. This is how you approach enterprises."

"These guys actually understand what it takes to build a healthy ecosystem," Bandy, of Agosto, said of Diane Greene, the former VMware CEO who now leads Google Cloud, and the many former VMware execs she has recruited to Google, including Yansouni.

The changes they just introduced represent the third or fourth evolution of Google's approach to partners, Bandy said.

"It's what Microsoft has been doing forever, it's what Microsoft partners have been doing forever, it's about truly understanding the business and bringing to bear all that Google can offer to solve those business problems," Bandy said.

Partners that will still be around in 18 months are those that will make that pivot, Bandy said.

The partner engineering teams are another sign that Google recognized it's "connected at the hip" with partners, Bandy said. In the exploding market, "there's more demand than supply when it comes to deep competence and industry expertise" so Google has to work with partners in fulfilling customer needs.

And the partner directory upgrades make it easier to identify partners with deep skill sets, further demonstrating Google is focused on domain expertise.

Back when Google's channel was primarily focused on Apps, later rebranded G Suite, there was no need for a lot of partner differentiation, Bandy told CRN.

"In GCP thats different, we all have different competencies," he said.

For that reason, in addition to revamped certifications, Google has introduced four partner specializations: infrastructure, application development, data analytics and machine learning.

For a company like Agosto that has deep expertise in advanced technologies like Internet of Things and machine learning, earning specializations will help win those types of engagements, Bandy said.

"Customers recognize technical proficiency," said Vanessa Simmons, director of business development at Pythian.

That's why the Ottawa-based Premier partner has already qualified for the Data Analytics specialization, Simmons said, which "differentiates our expertise and sets us at the front of the pack among the growing Google partner ecosystem."

Google Cloud is doing more than ever to build their partner ecosystem, she told CRN.

More changes are coming, Yansouni told CRN, across requirements in the programs, revenue targets to achieve Premier status, and certification requirements.
ELKO  Dr. Sergio Guzman is celebrating his 20th year in his optometric practice.

Guzman was born and raised in Elko. He began school at Southside Elementary and graduated from Elko High School in 1989. He graduated from Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon with a Doctor of Optometry degree.

Guzman opened practice at the Terrace Business Center on March 10, 1997. In 2001 he bought Dr. John Martins office and is still at this location.

Guzman is fluent in both Spanish and English. He offers comprehensive eye exams, as well as treatment and management of ocular disease.

Over the last several years he has invested in specialized equipment to detect and manage ocular disease at its earliest stages. He works closely with ocular specialists who come to Elko and offer cataract surgery and retinal care. He also works closely with primary care physicians in regard to diabetic care.

According to Guzman, Elko is a great place to practice the optometry he is passionate about. He also feels fortunate to be able to practice in his hometown. He believes optometric care has changed very much in the last 20 years and that it will be exciting to see what the next 20 years will offer.

Guzman lives in Elko with his wife Georgia, son Aiden and daughter Olivia.
Into A New Galaxy

Samsung has plenty of reasons for wanting to make its next Galaxy smartphone a stunner. There's the usual one  the desire to one-up Apple's latest iPhone. Then there's the more remarkable one: Samsung is looking to put a disastrous smartphone launch, the Galaxy Note 7, in the rear view by bringing some new phones to market. Judging by the stream of rumors on the forthcoming Galaxy smartphones -- which are being called the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus -- Samsung may be about to make some big strides toward both goals.

But how would the rumored new Galaxy phone compare to the latest iPhone? In the following slides, the CRN Test Center compares the rumored Samsung Galaxy S8 vs. the Apple iPhone 7 on specs, features and price.

(Galaxy 8 photo courtesy of Evan Blass)
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Connecticut could sue President Donald Trumps Environmental Protection Agency over its plans to relax clean-air standards for power plants and cars  the latest confrontation between the Democrat-run state and the pro-business president.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy sent a letter Thursday to Trumps controversial EPA chief, Scott Pruitt, blasting the agencys preliminary decision to exempt nine states, most of which are in the Rust Belt, from tougher scrutiny of coal-fired power plants. Those states, the governor wrote, should be held accountable for their adverse impact on the air quality in the Northeast.

Connecticut leaders further fear that Trumps administration, under pressure from U.S. automakers, will unwind Obama-era fuel efficiency standards and caps on tailpipe emissions of carbon dioxide.

Obviously, this is a guy who was a sellout to fossil fuels to begin with and doesnt mind polluting Connecticuts air with (emissions) from Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky and Pennsylvania, Malloy told Hearst Connecticut Media, referring to Pruitt.

An EPA spokesperson declined to comment. Hearst also reached out to the White House for a response.

The specter of a court challenge over clean air standards adds to the growing hostilities between Trumps administration and the states leadership.

They have already butted heads over deportation rules, punishment of sanctuary cities and a travel ban for visitors from first seven, then six Muslim-majority nations. Connecticut filed a friend of the court brief in support of Washington states lawsuit over the first version of the ban, which was suspended by a federal court.

Detrimental changes

State Attorney General George Jepsen, a Democrat, is gearing up for the next legal battle.

President Trump, in his words and actions, has made quite clear that he intends to roll back regulations and enact policies that undermine efforts to address climate change and improve air and water quality, Jepsen said. It is well-established that states, like Connecticut, have authority to challenge federal environmental rules and regulations, and we have for some months now been in communication with our counterparts in other states in preparation for what we believe will be significant and detrimental changes to environmental policies.

In late 2013, Connecticut, along with eight other New England and mid-Atlantic states, petitioned the EPA to expand a multistate coalition created under the Clean Air Act for compliance. Known as the Ozone Transport Commission, the group pushed for the addition of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia to its ranks. Pennsylvania is already part of the coalition, but Connecticut officials filed a complaint as recently as last year over pollution from three coal-fired power plants in the Keystone State.

Malloy said he confronted Pruitt over the matter during a work session between National Governors Association members and the Trump administration at the White House.

He gave me some gobbledygook answer, Malloy said. Listen, this guy has admitted his goal is to put the EPA out of business, and hes off to a strong start.

The tailpipe of America

Pruitt has come under heavy fire for saying he does not believe carbon dioxide emissions are a primary contributor to global warming. In his letter to Pruitt, Malloy wrote the health of Connecticuts residents and those of the other states in the region was at risk. The EPAs decision to exempt the nine states from tougher scrutiny is preliminary and wont take effect until after a public comment period, which is underway.

Connecticut is tired of serving as the tailpipe of America, Malloy wrote.

The state is expected to fight Trumps administration over the reported rollback of fuel efficiency standards for cars and caps on tailpipe emissions. Connecticut, like California, relies on a waiver from the Clean Air Act that allows some states to impose tougher emissions standards for vehicles.

U.S. automakers have called on Trump to abandon the standards, which they say have saddled their industry with $200 billion in compliance costs through 2025.

My office stands ready to act to protect the states authority and the progress that Connecticut has made to safeguard its clean air and water, Jepsen said.

The Connecticut Automotive Retailers Association, which represents 300 dealerships in the state, declined to comment.

nvigdor@hearstmediact.com; 203-625-4436; http://twitter.com/gettinviggy
MILFORD  Police are investigating a shooting late Friday night at the Connecticut Post Mall, located at 1201 Boston Post Road.

The incident happened around 11 p.m. in the parking garage and one person is believed to be injured, according to dispatch reports and published reports.
In this month of International Womens Day, and even in the year 2017, it is remarkable that women  in the United States and in countries around the world  are still straining against deeply ingrained customs designed to keep them subservient.

On Womens Day, last Wednesday, I listened to a woman named Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a 48-year-old native of Mogadishu, Somalia, relate her experiences, including genital mutilation, called cutting, at the age of 5 as a Muslim girl.

Cutting is a barbaric custom designed to tamp down a womans sexuality. Call me naive. I never was quite sure what was involved. I did some research. Ill report here only that it is cringe- and shiver-inducing reading.

Hirsi Ali is most prominent as a woman who abandoned her Muslim faith, now describes herself as an atheist and campaigns for the reform of Islam to eliminate those aspects that result in the subservience of women and, of course, the aspects of it cited by radicals to justify violence.

Never use you your religion to harm another individual, she said.

Obviously, with some 1.6 billion Muslims populating the world, the numbers committed to its radical form are minuscule.

The title of the program was Refusing to be Silenced: My Nomadic Journey from Islam to the West.

She is not the most favorite person in the Muslim world and security last Wednesday night as the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts at Fairfield University was tighter than usual for an entry in the universitys important Open Visions Forum series in front of a capacity crowd of about 700.

In 2004, she collaborated with a Dutch film-maker in production of a film called Submission, which criticized the treatment of women in Islamic society. The film-maker, Theo van Gogh, was assassinated in November of that year and the killer, who was caught, pinned a death threat against Hirsi Ali to van Goghs chest.

But she has not stopped her work on behalf of womens equality and, in particular, the practice of genital manipulation. Nor on examining aspects of Islam.rightsIf you question the Quran, youre Islamaphobic.

International Womens Day is an event that dates back to at least 1909, when some 15,000 women marched in New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting rights, according to the International Womens Day website.

The fact that we need a womans day tells it all, Hirsi Ali said at one point.

Though her arguments were compelling, she was challenged from the audience by Prof. Ahmed Ebrahim, an associate professor of accounting at the university and president of the Bridgeport Islamic Community Center, who challenged her on genital mutilation, pointing out it is more of an African practice than a Muslim one. And, he said, the notion of jihad is really about striving, despite the clear 21st century connotation the word has taken.

Conjuring the image of burka-encased women, Hirsi Ali said there was another answer: We have to teach young boys to control their sexuality, not cover up and hide the women.

Another set of interesting comments came from a question about immigration.

People are coming from civil war, from terrible situations, it is their responsibility to adapt to their new country and cause no harm, she said.

And as the receiving country, if you say Welcome,` you must tell them what the laws and customs are, she went on. The receiving society has to apply the rule of law.

It drew some of the biggest applause of the evening.

Michael J. Daly is editor of the editorial page of the Connecticut Post. Email: mdaly@ctpost.com.
Chatbots are new and hot but how do you get them to make money for your company? Is it really possible to leverage chatbots to generate sales? More importantly, have you created a chatbot but are struggling to monetize it?

Regardless of whether you are an entrepreneur or a company, monetization is something that has to be kept in the forefront of your endeavor.

Successful development does not guarantee monetization

The success of chatbots has increased the competition in the chatbot marketing. Interestingly, the process of developing chatbots is becoming increasingly easy thanks to chatbot tools. With bigwigs like Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Facebook announcing their intent to join the chatbot bandwagon, they remain one of the hottest and most discussed topics. Now, all that is fine. The million-dollar (no pun intended) question, however, remains the same-how can you monetize chatbots? Yes, some products are making money, but those are few and far between. These platforms require stable AND repeat clients to be able to grow in a sustained manner. Your goal must be to leverage chatbot as something that is akin to a traditional business model which imparts value and is monetized in an incremental manner.

Here are seven practical chatbot monetization strategies:

1. Understanding user psychology.

At its core, monetizing chat bots is all about understanding and utilizing user psychology to your advantage, and that is not in a negative connotation. To do that, you need to be able to deliver on your promise about the item that was promised before a potential customer clicked on the chat. A user will generate income for you only if you offer something that is of tangible value. Lets say you are offering a chatbot for medical counseling. In this case, no potential client will want to book an appointment unless you provide them with insightful and actionable information. The user will not want anything short of a great answer that will make him want to go further.

Related: Top 10 Best Chatbot Platform Tools to Build Chatbots for Your Business

2. BooS (Bots as a service)

The future belongs to B2B bots that will empower entrepreneurs and companies to increase their productivity and handle difficult tasks, thereby replicating the business models of most B2B software. As per Forrester, the revenues from cloud and SaaS-based business application services touched almost USD33 billion in 2016. It is a given that this trend is likely to spill over into the ream of B2B bots. Thankfully, most B2B customers are already familiar with the SaaS model and will need little education on its nuances becoming experts in no time.

Related: How to Best Market Your Messenger Bot

3. Treating chatbots as a landing page.

In the event you are wondering what this is all about, think again. A chatbot is not too dissimilar to a landing page. If the CTA (call-to-action) is not apparent to the visitor, monetization just wont happen. Many chatbots these days are failing simply because they lack clarity and their developers are either too reticent or recalcitrant to understand why. To that end, make your offering absolutely clear to the visitor and also tell them how they can get it. More importantly, do that within the first 10 seconds. Then, do the following:

Keep your Bots name short and relevant

An easily recognizable icon

A straightforward opening text without any fluff

Ensure that the chatbot opens swiftly

4. Facebook Commerce.

At Chattypeople we integrated Shopify into the messenger chat so you can purchase without leaving Facebook. In the messaging bot becomes a bridge between consumers and businesses, chatbots seem to be the best answer for e-commerce business owners to manage thousands of one-to-one conversations with customers.

Related:

5. Native or sponsored content.

The trend of native content that has been growing dramatically over the past few years, with the advent of VICE and BuzzFeed. Native content is basically a model wherein brands pay money to get media firms to distribute their content directly into their own channels. Lets imagine you are using a travel bot. While it will elaborate more on some key travel tips while visiting tropical countries, it might also direct you to an article titled 5 unforgettable honeymoon destinations in Southeast Asia. Native advertising has been performing far better than conventional banner ads because it works well for both parties-the publisher and the brand.

6. Lead generation.

Lead generation businesses are thriving like never before. Extending the conventional web business model to the domain of chatbots, it is eminently possible to monetize chatbots by positioning them as lead generation platforms. They can offer insights to users who are seeking inputs on insurance, loans, home ownership, weddings, etc. before passing on the users information (typically name, phone, and email) to numerous businesses that sell products which in turn are in sync with the content being delivered. The process is as follows: You create the lead generation to chatbot e; the chatbot validates lead generation, leads are passed on to the firm; the company pays commission to the chatbot.

Related:

7. Partnership.

If you have created a product that you are unable to monetize right away, consider joining hands with companies or entities that could leverage your chatbot marketing strategy and make money. You may want to seek companies or entrepreneurs that will find your chatbot relevant as long as you are confident that they will be able to monetize the chatbot using their resources. On your part, gaining potential access to wide-ranging exposure coupled with diminished business risks can be a huge plus. We can, therefore, conclude that monetizing chatbots is not only possible but also necessary in todays competitive times. What you need is some brainstorming and creativity in your approach. What you dont need is to reinvent the wheel; stick to what works best and replicate that model.

Related:

Top 7 Chatbot Monetization Strategies You Need to Know

7 Ways Chatbots Can Benefit Your Marketing Strategy

AI Bots Are Encouraging Brand Marketers to Use AI



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Put aside, for a moment, the raging controversies over this or that aspect of Donald Trump, the Russians, and the election. And then ask: What do we know about the allegation at the heart of the matter: Did Trump, his campaign aides, or his associates collude with Russians to influence the 2016 campaign?

The answer is, we know nothing. After all the investigating, after all the talk, after all the yelling  the public knows nothing. There may be people at the highest levels of U.S. government secrecy who know the answer, but even that is not clear at the moment.

The most definitive statement of the current situation came Sunday on NBCs Meet the Press. James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence, admitted that he does not know of any evidence that proves collusion, or even points toward collusion.

Does intelligence exist that can definitively answer the following question, whether there were improper contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials? NBCs Chuck Todd asked Clapper.

We did not include any evidence in our report ... that had anything, that had any reflection of collusion between members of the Trump campaign and the Russians, Clapper answered. There was no evidence of that included in our report.

I understand that, but does it exist? asked Todd.

Not to my knowledge, said Clapper.

If it existed, it would have been in the report? asked Todd.

This could have unfolded or become available in the time since I left the government, Clapper responded. But at the time, we had no evidence of such collusion.

Remember that Clapper was head of national intelligence until Jan. 20. There have been reports the Trump Russia hacking investigation was going on last summer, that it accelerated in the fall, and that it has been moving along ever since. So Clapper was there for most of the investigation. And he says he knows of no evidence of collusion.

Other government officials who know less than Clapper  but who should still know something  are in the dark. On Feb. 27, Republican Rep. Devin Nunes, who is the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said, We still have not seen any evidence of anyone thats  from the Trump campaign or any other campaign, for that matter, thats communicated with the Russian government.

Pressed about alleged contacts, Nunes said, That doesnt mean they dont exist, but I dont have that. And what Ive been told is, by many  by many folks, is that theres nothing there.

A few days later, Rep. Adam Schiff, Nunes colleague and the top Democrat on the Intel Committee, expressed frustration with the FBI for not sharing information on the investigation. I would say at this point we know less than a fraction of what the FBI knows.

Nunes and Schiff  who both have security clearances and, as the prime House overseers of the intelligence community should know what they are talking about  both agree: they know nothing about evidence of collusion. Nunes appears to believe that is because there isnt any such evidence. Schiff appears to believe that is because the FBI has been hiding the evidence. But both say they dont know much.

The situation seems no better in the Senate, where the biggest recent controversy has been over Intelligence Committee chairman Richard Burr acting at the behest of the White House to tell reporters theres no there there on the collusion angle.

What all that suggests is that there is an information vacuum at the core of the Russia election controversy. Everybody is talking about things they dont know even know happened.

The vacuum has not stopped President Trumps accusers, who are suggesting there is incriminating evidence of collusion the public has not seen. There are transcripts that provide very helpful, very critical insights into whether or not Russian intelligence or senior Russian political leaders  including Vladimir Putin  were cooperating, were colluding, with the Trump campaign at the highest levels to influence the outcome of our election, Democratic Sen. Chris Coons told MSNBC Friday. I believe they exist.

The problem, for Coons, and other Democrats, is that his belief might not be based in fact. On Saturday, Coons office released a statement saying he did not mean to suggest that he is aware of transcripts indicating collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians. And on Sunday, facing questions from Fox News Chris Wallace, Coons went into full retreat.

Wallace asked this: Do you have any evidence, at this point, and this investigation has been going on for a long period of time ... do you know of any hard evidence of collusion between what I call TrumpWorld and the Russians to interfere in this presidential campaign? Not suspicions, not contacts  but evidence of collusion?

Chris, I have no hard evidence of collusion, Coons answered. I think what hard evidence there may be will be discovered either through a full release of President Trumps financial interests and concerns and taxes, or the intercepts that I believe our intelligence community and FBI have of conversations between and among Russian officials.

The Coons Fox News Sunday interview could prove a revealing moment in the Trump Russia election affair. When Coons admitted that he had seen no evidence of collusion, where did he suggest it might be? In the presidents tax returns. Just how that might be possible is not clear. But there is no doubt Democrats work every day to pressure Trump to release his taxes (something candidate Trump broke with tradition by refusing to do). If Democrats come up with a dry hole on the Russia election matter, they might, like Coons, just seamlessly segue to Trumps taxes.

In the meantime, there are mounting demands for a special prosecutor, or a 9/11-style commission to investigate an alleged event  TrumpWorld-Russia collusion  that even the nations top investigators, after months of investigation, dont know actually happened.

To be clear, its possible that incontrovertible evidence of collusion exists somewhere in the governments classified investigation machine. It might be that the FBI director, or some other official, will soon release information to settle the question once and for all. But right now, even as there are calls to escalate the investigation, some very knowledgeable people are beginning to admit they know of nothing there.

Recently an anonymous Washington politico told Axios Mike Allen of the Russia election case, This is the rare case where the smoke IS the fire. Thats clever, but no, the smoke is not the fire. The fire is the fire. And right now, no one seems to know if there is any fire at all.
Call for not involving parents of April war heroes into campaign

Seyran Ohanyan made a statement Dear compatriots, I call on all the political powers, all the candidates not to involve parents of Artsakh war heroes into their campaigns. Stand above it, no vote or mandate is worth acting like that. We should thank those parents and not they address words of gratitude to this or that party or candidate. I simply demand from all the parties and candidates, especially from the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) not to allow the repetition of that. I say it as a person, who dedicated all his conscious life to the defense of homeland. I say it as a person, who was always ready to sacrifice his life at front line together with his fellow servicemen. I say it as a person, who was Minister of Defense for a long time. And finally, I say it as a father, whose sons are officers of the current army and in April were standing in front of the adversary and now like other heroes are ready to defend our homeland. Seyran Ohanyan
We must rethink the U.S. response to infectious disease. Here's why.
We are ready to end the atmosphere of despair with real actions"

Ohanyan-Raffi-Oskanian alliance today has been holding its campaign in Avan administrative district. Member of the alliance Armen Martirosyan in his speech touched upon migration and public debt, 60 percent of the GDP surpasses the public debt. Serzh Sargsyan and his team have done the opposite of their slogans. Now they say Safe Armenia, but it means that we will be in dangerous situation. We must change this order of things. There is no other way, or else the indicators of migration and poverty will increase. Then Armen Martirosyan presented the biography of Seyran Ohanyan and Vartan Oskanian. Vartan Oskanian noted in his speech that Avan really has an alternative to these authorities in these elections. Seyran Ohanyan made a statement, I call on the parents and relatives of April War heroes to refrain from participating in the campaign of any political power; I call on all the parties, especially the ruling party. He added, We are ready to end the atmosphere of despair with real actions. I have served to my country for 25 years; my activities were anthropocentric and I think I served not bad, though, I made some mistakes. We will continue to serve to our country.
When she became Prime Minister eight months ago, Theresa May promised to lead a government that fights injustice, stands up to privilege and is driven by the interests of families who are just about managing.

Also, she signalled a welcome end to the spin and manipulation of the Blair/ Cameron years.

However, these noble aims and values have been badly damaged this week by Chancellor Philip Hammond and his predecessor, George Osborne.

First, there was Hammonds blundering attack on the self-employed. And then a shameless Osborne was revealed to be lining his pockets by earning 650,000 from a one-day-a-week job with an investment firm

First, there was Hammonds blundering attack on the self-employed. And then a shameless Osborne was revealed to be lining his pockets by earning 650,000 from a one-day-a-week job with an investment firm he had frequent dealings with while in office and where he is now working alongside his former No 11 chief of staff, Rupert Harrison.

While Hammonds tax grab on the self-employed showed a crass misunderstanding of the Tories core, aspirational supporters, Osbornes greed exposed an offensive arrogance and sense of entitlement.

If only for the sake of her own reputation, Mrs May must come down on both men like a ton of bricks.

Before discussing Hammond, I want to deal at some length with Osborne.

His behaviour risks inflicting huge damage not just on what remains of his own tarnished image, but, more importantly, on the reputation of the Conservative Party.

On a broader level, Osbornes determination to use public service as a means of self-enrichment erodes trust in the political process and, ultimately, democracy.

Like the stealth taxes he introduced as Chancellor, news of Osbornes fat-cat City job was slipped out on Wednesday when the headlines were expected to concentrate on the Budget.

His EMPLOYER, the 4.2 trillion New York-based investment firm BlackRock, will pay him a grotesque 13,000 a day.

But that is not all. When speeches and other income are taken into account, the backbench MP is on the equivalent of about 1.6 million a year over and above his 74,000 parliamentary salary.

This is not just wrong. It is morally repulsive.

Lets not forget that Osborne represents the Cheshire constituency of Tatton and 67,000 voters.

Incidentally, he first won the seat in 2001. The previous Tory MP was Neil Hamilton, who was forced to resign after being exposed for taking money in brown envelopes from then Harrods boss Mohamed Fayed in the notorious cash-for-questions scandal.

Voters deemed Hamiltons conduct so objectionable it was one reason why the Tories were frozen out of power for 13 years.

To my mind, it is no exaggeration to say Osbornes behaviour is every bit as repugnant as Hamiltons. Indeed, I believe it is more damaging because Osborne held a much more senior post.

I have always accepted that MPs should be allowed to take jobs outside Westminster. The experience gives them a better insight into the wider world and can make them better politicians.

But Osborne is sending out the appalling message that former ministers are for hire.

Bear in mind that as Chancellor he was responsible for the financial sector. Its a case of gamekeeper turning poacher.

When she became Prime Minister eight months ago, Theresa May promised to lead a government that fights injustice

Significantly, when he ran the Treasury, he allowed to continue a spiv culture that had been encouraged by his Labour predecessors where City regulation was insufficiently tough.

This had led to the great crash of 2008. Yet Osborne failed to learn the lesson. Under his watch, shockingly, there were very few prosecutions of bankers responsible for causing the greatest financial crisis since the Thirties.

Other Osborne policies included cutting the tax rate for top-earners at a time when the rest of the nation were enduring austerity.

How apt, then, that the unrepentant financial sector is looking after Osborne and is filling his pockets with 1.6 million. How horribly cosy.

With an effrontery that takes the breath away, the tainted ex-Chancellor refuses to apologise.

Its time for Theresa May to stop this sordid merry-go-round. She must tell Osborne his conduct is starting to remind the public of the contempt it held for the Tories 20 years ago.

She should recommend he hands over his 1.6 million to charity. Then he should be told to devote more time to his constituents (who, in any case, only rarely saw him during his six years as Chancellor and deserve better now hes on the backbenches).

If he refuses, he should be suspended from the party.

And now to Philip Hammond. I cant recall a Chancellor who has proved such a disappointment so soon after taking office.

His decision to clobber the self-employed is not just political madness. It also damages Mrs Mays carefully honed reputation for straight-dealing, since the Tories have repeatedly, since 2010, promised not to increase National Insurance contributions.

Hammonds tax grab on the self-employed showed a crass misunderstanding of the Tories core, aspirational supporters

Mrs Mays only sensible course is to order Hammond, a former Osborne protege, to reassure the self-employed, whose life is tough as it is, that his sly, disingenuous plan will not go ahead.

Otherwise she will allow the public to think that a Conservative government breaks promises and cant be trusted. Also that it is no longer in touch with its natural support base.

The great danger is that by condoning a money-grubbing ex-Chancellor and letting his millionaire successor penalise workers who constitute the backbone of Britain plc, Mrs May risks allowing people to think the Tories are turning into the nasty party.

Thats the tag she used when she fought to rescue the reputation of the Conservatives during the Blair era.

There is another problem facing the PM that is a legacy of Osborne. His appointment as governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, is guilty of lax management of this great institution.

Specifically, his deputy, Charlotte Hogg, is under huge pressure after it came to light that she failed to disclose that her brother has a senior job in strategy at Barclays, which is regulated by the Bank of England.

Theresa Mays integrity is beyond reproach. But the great fear is that she will be dragged into the mire if a culture of greed and arrogance starts to takes hold under her premiership.

Millions of voters would cheer from the rooftops if she disciplined George Osborne, forced Philip Hammond to eat humble pie and made clear that trust  something that has been tarnished for too long in politics  is valued above everything else in her Government.

Poppy Trowbridge, newly appointed special adviser to Chancellor Philip Hammond, was consumer affairs reporter for Sky TV.

She may have a good understanding of the media, but I suggest her boss is in need of the sage advice of seasoned political figures.

Bankers' noses in the trough

Bosses of the Royal Bank of Scotland took advantage of the Budget to smuggle out news that senior executives are to benefit from a 22 million shares package. One undeserving recipient is chief executive Ross McEwan (pictured)

Bosses of the Royal Bank of Scotland took advantage of the Budget to smuggle out news that senior executives are to benefit from a 22 million shares package  worth up to 2 million each.

One undeserving recipient is chief executive Ross McEwan, who earned 3.8 million in 2015. The news comes just two weeks after the bank recorded losses of 7 billion  which means it has lost 50 billion since being bailed out by taxpayers in 2008.

Being that RBS remains majority owned by the state, its obscene for its top staff to be rewarded so richly.

They should be paid the same as senior civil servants.

Speak up for Lindsay

The star of Budget Day was Deputy Speaker Lindsay Hoyle (pictured), who presided over proceedings in the Commons

The star of Budget Day was Deputy Speaker Lindsay Hoyle, who presided over proceedings in the Commons.

His laconic, dignified and impartial performance contrasted with Speaker John Bercows vanity and self-importance. There has been much talk of who should replace Bercow when he steps down (as promised) next year.

Labours Hoyle is the obvious choice.
During the budget Chancellor Philip Hammond cheerfully tore up one Tory election pledge after another

This has been a truly dismal week for public trust in politics and politicians. It began badly, with another attempt by the unelected Lords  spearheaded by that preening popinjay Michael Heseltine  to thwart the peoples will over Brexit.

Then came the Budget, in which Chancellor Philip Hammond cheerfully tore up one Tory election pledge after another, laughing and joking as he heaped punishment on the strivers, savers and self-reliant risk-takers who make up the backbone of Britain  the very people his party had vowed to champion.

It was less than two years ago that the Conservatives went to the polls on a promise, spelled out four times in their manifesto: We will not raise VAT, National Insurance contributions or Income Tax.

In that now discredited, apparently worthless document, there was no suggestion the pledge referred only to Class 1 NICs (how many voters even knew there were four classes?)

Yet this was the devious excuse offered after the Chancellor increased the rate for Class 4, costing 2.4million self-employed workers some 240 a year each  almost eight times the 60p-a-week average he so disingenuously cited.

Not content with this betrayal of his partys core supporters, he slashed the tax-free allowance on dividends from 5,000 to 2,000. Thus, he hammered family-owned businesses, freelance workers and every saver with stock market investments of more than 50,000.

Meanwhile, tax rises and changes to compensation payments are likely to add 75 a year to car insurance premiums.

But still Mr Hammond hadnt finished. Having joked he would not exhume Labours death tax, he is now pushing through a huge increase in death tax!

Disguised as a rise in probate fees (straightforwardness seems not to be the Chancellors style), the change means families will be forced to hand over 1.5billion on top of inheritance tax.

Indeed, fees for the legal authority to distribute a loved ones property will soar in May from the current 215 to between 300 and 20,000, depending on the value of the estate  with officials bullying grieving families into handing over cash before they receive a penny from a will.

Mr Hammonds taxes are not just unConservative. By discouraging saving, investing, taking out insurance and looking after families, they actively undermine the very behaviour governments should encourage.

It was revealed George Osborne gets paid 650,000 by a US investment company to work one-day-a-week

And now it emerges the Chancellor has another 700million trick up his sleeve. Complex changes in already baffling tax rules mean some shops and newsagents will see their VAT more than quadruple, while self-employed service-providers will also be hard hit.

So bang goes another pledge that helped sweep the Tories to power in 2015. Indeed, all parties seem to see manifestos merely as vote-winning exercises, to be forgotten once an election is won.

David Cameron is right about one thing. It is indeed stupidity to break manifesto pledges. But then look whos talking! He was the PM who shredded almost every core promise he made in 2010, from cutting migration to below 100,000 to scrapping the Human Rights Act.

Meanwhile, his shameless sidekick George Osborne is becoming a veritable Tony Blair, stuffing his boots with banknotes on the strength of contacts and experience gained in public office.

He even tried to bury news of his one-day-a-week, 650,000 job for a US investment company by sneaking it out on Budget day. No wonder politicians are held in growing contempt.

One of Theresa Mays great strengths is that she is seen as trustworthy and straight. To preserve that reputation, she must bring her party into line  and remind her MPs who elected them.
You may not give much thought to what goes into your favourite beauty products, but in remote corners of the world, entrepreneurial women are peddling argan oil and shea butter to carve out better futures.

In countries like Morocco and Nepal, trendy cosmetic products have become a means for local women to drastically improve their lives, from accessing clean water to sending their children to school.

In Brazil, producing Babassu oil enables locals to rally against deforestation, while making shea butter has provided Ghanaian women with the freedom to launch their own businesses.

The Body Shop has revealed the women around the world behind some of our best-loved beauty products who are carving out better futures thanks to its Community Trade programme (pictured: A Moroccan woman holding a basked of argan nuts used to make oil)

Meanwhile, in parts of Morocco, Berber women are enjoying an elevated social status after becoming the primary earners in their family for the first time.

The women, who source products for The Body Shop's Community Trade Programme, are using trade to achieve financial independence and empowerment.

These images, released for International Women's Day on March 8, show how cosmetics can lead to life-changing opportunities for locals to support themselves and their communities.

Argan oil from Morocco

Berber women in Morocco are now out-earning their husbands for the first time thanks to a project which enables them to produce organic argan oil (pictured: hand-cracking the nuts)

In south-west Morocco's Berber communities, the men of the family have traditionally enjoyed higher social status as they earned the most money. Now, thanks to Targanine, a network of women's cooperatives, these women are often the primary earners in the family, which has vastly increased their social status.

The project provides them with a job, a good income, the ability to support their family, and the kinship of working with other women. Some of the co-operatives even provide literacy classes for members and creche facilities for their children.

The organic argan oil is carefully pressed from the best argan nuts, hand-cracked by Berber women. Wild argan oil has been treasured by generations of Berber women in their beauty rituals and the kernels are pressed and filtered slowly over 48 hours to extract the purest oil possible.

By supporting agricultural communities rather than large factories in the cities, trading with Targanine co-operatives allows women in rural villages to earn an income without having to leave their local communities and families.

The success of the women's work will help keep future generations from migrating to the cities, supporting the economic development of rural regions.

Shea butter, Ghana

Ghanaian women (L-R Mariama, Marrie, Sakina) produce shea butter, now a beauty staple across the western world, in a complicated 18-stage process

Women from the Tungteiya Women's Shea Butter Association in northern Ghana are provided with a fair wage, plus a premium to invest in community projects like providing safe water

In northern Ghana, shea butter has been used for centuries to protect skin from harsh Saharan winds. As the sun begins to rise over northern Ghana, the Tungteiya ladies perform an age-old ritual; gathering fallen shea fruits to make butter.

A Tungteiya woman produces shea butter in a process passed down through generations

The product, created in partnership with the The Tungteiya Women's Shea Butter Association, is created over two days in a complicated 18-stage process using traditional methods handed down to women generation after generation.

Anita Roddick placed The Body Shop's first order in 1994 after an earlier visit to Ghana where she discovered the natural moisturising properties of shea butter and the inspiring women who produce it.

The 528 women of the Association are provided with a fair wage, along with a premium to invest in community projects like providing safe water, schools and medical centres.

Salamafu Yakubu, an assistant organiser within the Association, says that the trade has helped her pay school fees, provide good meals for her family and even set up her own business.

Babassu oil, Brazil

Orisa is one of the female babassu workers from Maranhao, Brazil, who are now able to provide a brighter future for their children thanks to the income from her trade

The babassu tree has become an important subsistence resource in Maranhao, northeastern Brazil, where over 300,000 families harvest babassu and are often dependent upon it for their economic survival.

The organic babassu oil is extracted from the nuts of the wild babassu palm tree, found on the fringes of the Amazon rainforest.

Orisa, who makes babussa oil, has been able to send her children to school with her wage

Nuts are piled on porches and patios where the women sit and spend the rest of the week breaking them open, usually with their friends and neighbours. The kernels are then sent to be processed, and the organic babassu oil is extracted and filtered.

Babassu harvesting is traditionally a women's activity and, come harvest time, they walk to the nearby forests in groups, singing the 'babassu breaker' songs that have been passed down the generations. They gather the nuts from the forest floor and carry them back to their homes in handmade baskets.

The Cooperative of Agricultural Producers of Lago de Junco (COPPALJ) provides a fair wage, and gives female members access to a rural credit programme to help empower them to achieve financial independence.

Orisa is one of the female babassu workers who are able to provide a brighter future for their children thanks to the income from her trade.

'Before, no kids went beyond primary school,' she said. 'Now there are kids at University even. This is all down to babassu.'

Local women use their wage to campaign for the Free Babassu law - protecting the babassu trees from illegal deforestation and helping them to reclaim land taken from them back in the 1960s, giving them the right to go back onto the land and gather the nuts.

Marula oil, Namibia

Entrepreneurial members of the Eudofano Women's Co-operative in Ondangwa, northern Namibia, have used marula oil for generations and are now using it as a source of income

In rural Namibian villages, the marula tree is regarded as an ancient and sacred source of wisdom. A beauty secret for generations, the Ovambo women in northern Namibia use marula oil to keep their skin smooth and hydrated in the heat of the African sun.

The Body Shop work with the Eudofano Women's Co-operative in Ondangwa, northern Namibia, to source their marula oil. Namibian women have traditionally used marula oil for generations to smooth and moisturise their skin, and now the 1,750 Namibian women of the Eudofano Co-operative are building a business and a future on it.

The booming industry has helped these entrepreneurial women raise the funds to build their own factory as well as invest in livestock and pay school fees. Women like Ester Nashima also tell us that the Co-operative's work has brought 'a real friendship and sense of community'.

Paper and boxes, Nepal

Bina Sunuwar working for the Get Paper Industry (GPI) in Kathmandu, Nepal, who have have been producing hand-crafted gift bags and boxes since 1989

Brighter future: The organisation has helped to improve the status of Nepalese women, who traditionally received less money than the men for the same work

Local women have used their wages to campaign for better education for their daughters, with some who never envisioned going to school now attending university

In Kathmandu, the artisans of Get Paper Industry (GPI) have been producing hand-crafted gift bags and boxes since 1989.

The organisation has helped to improve the status of women in the community, who traditionally received less money than the men for the same work.

GPI employs more women than men, pays them a fair, equal wage and makes sure they receive equal benefits while empowering girls with education through their Send Our Daughters To School campaign in seven local schools.

This scholarship program has helped women like Bina Sunwar, from the Bansbari community, who managed to give her daughters Maya and Mamata the education she never had, and who is now the proud mother of two degree-level educated women.
Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector

STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

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Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

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PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

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There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

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The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

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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

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While Crufts is a parade of pampered pooches bred to the highest standard, Scruffts is the annual event which champions the underdog.

All the action at Birmingham's NEC last night centred around selecting a mongrel to crown top dog.

Despite tough competition, 14-year-old Joshua King and his German Shepherd/Border Collie cross Biscuit emerged victorious and was awarded the ultimate Scruffts title, Family Crossbreed of the Year.

Six mixed-breed canines and their very proud owners had gathered from around the country to compete in the competition, which is part of the Crufts event.

The popular - although unconventional - competition this year attracted nearly 1,500 hopeful hounds and their owners all vying for a place in the finals.

The six finalists described below were already winners in their own categories.

1. Good Citizen Dog Scheme finalist (OVERALL WINNER)

Joshua was crowned the youngest ever Scruffts winner last night as he and Biscuit emerged victorious against the five other finalists

Top dog: (L-R) Judge David Guy, Scruffts winner Joshua King and Biscuit, Judge Alex Gregory and Alison Sudbury from James Wellbeloved at the Scruffts final

Biscuit (3)

Breed: German Shepherd/Border Collie

Fourteen year-old Young Kennel Club member Joshua King, from Prestatyn, Denbighshire, wanted his own dog from a young age, and campaigned to his mum for the family to get one for years. In 2014 she finally gave in.

Since taking Biscuit home, the young crossbreed has managed to achieve his bronze, silver and gold Kennel Club Good Citizen Dog Scheme awards and has competed with Joshua in many YKC competitions.

After their semi-final win, young Joshua said: 'Biscuit has changed my life by being my best and closest friend and he has also brought many great opportunities and memories that I wouldn't have had if he wasn't with me.'

Joshua was crowned the youngest ever Scruffts winner last night as he and Biscuit emerged victorious against the five other finalists.

Joshua is currently training to become a dog trainer at his local club, the Good Companion Dog Training Club, in Prestatyn. He helps run classes once a week with other trainers, assisting with the training of local dogs. His win comes on the same weekend that the Good Citizen Dog Scheme celebrates its 25th anniversary.

Delighted Joshua said: 'I was not expecting to win and I'm extremely delighted about it. I think Biscuit's potential sets him out from other dogs. He is brilliant with people and loves other dogs as well; he wants everybody to be his best mate.

'Competitions like Scruffts give dogs like Biscuit a chance as there's no other competitions available for crossbreeds. This shines a light on crossbreeds which is great because they're brilliant.

'The atmosphere in the arena was busy and quite nerve-wracking for me, but it was brilliant and Biscuit seemed to take it all in his stride. Crufts is so special because everyone here loves dogs and everyone speaks to each other and are really friendly.'

2. Most Handsome Dog finalist

King Tommy and his owner Monique have travelled the world together, and he's now trained as a therapy dog

King Tommy (8)

Breed: Indian Pariah Cross

Visual artist Monique Newman first met King Tommy when he was nine months old as he lived outside the house she was staying at whilst living in Goa.

After nursing him back to health when he had boiling water thrown over him, they became close friends. When Monique returned to India the following year after some time away she found him chained to a pole and starving to death.

She decided she had to rescue him and he has since lived with her all over the world, including in the US, Italy, France, Spain and Sweden. They have lived in Devon since 2015, where King Tommy is registered as a Pets at Therapy (PAT) dog.

After their semi-final win, proud owner Monique said: 'It feels fabulous to have won! It really is Tommy's time to shine. He has done so much for the community and to encourage people to do activities with their rescue dogs.'

3. Golden Oldie finalist

Sarah, pictured with 13-year-old Vinny, says he has a lot of personality for a small dog

Vinny (13)

Breed: Terrier Cross

Vinny was born into the Atkins household in Bedworth, Warwickshire, after the Jack Russell that mother Susan brought for her teenage son got pregnant by a dog on the local estate.

Vinny follows Susan round everywhere, and is always by her side, even reminding her to get up every morning. A friend suggested that she enter Vinny in the Golden Oldie Scruffts class whilst they were at the Finnish Lapphund Companion Dog Club show in June.

Instead, Susan's daughter Sarah took Vinny into the ring where he proceeded to come first in the category.

After their semi-final win, Sarah said: 'It was a shock to win but we're very happy and so pleased he won.'

She also insists he has a very big personality for such a small dog!

4. Prettiest Bitch finalist

Judy insists that 'unusual looking' puppy Ginny gets plenty of attention wherever they go, and that she's also great with children

Ginny (1)

Breed: Cavalier/Poodle/Bichon

After adjusting to the first few months of their new life together, Judy Rigby from Stockport cannot imagine her life without ten month-old Ginny.

Judy runs a nursery and insists her glamour girl, Ginny, has really become part of the family and is great with the little children.

However, Judy insists that without the encouragement from her eleven year-old goddaughter Charlotte Currie she never would have entered.

After their semi-final win, proud owner Judy said: 'We're so delighted! She has such a personality, albeit a naughty one!

'I really don't think there is a dog like her, she's so unusual looking and gets stopped wherever we go.'

5. Child's Best Friend finalist

Three-year-old Bonnie keeps owner Grace company at the family home in Flintshire

Bonnie (3)

Breed: Puggle (pug and beagle)

Twelve-year-old Young Kennel Club member Grace Mead first met her dog Bonnie when they travelled up to Yorkshire from the family home in Connah's Quay in Flintshire.

Young Grace used to get very lonely when her dad used to work over in America for long periods of time - but since Bonnie has come into her life, she always has her best friend at her side.

After their semi-final win, Grace said: 'I am speechless and overwhelmed beyond my wildest dreams about winning.

'The way Bonnie has helped me makes me know she deserves to be a finalist. I'm so proud of her to get this far.'

6. Best Rescue finalist

Owner Wendy says the competition has made her so thankful to everyone who was 'involved in giving Fleur a chance at life'

Fleur (6)

Breed: Collie cross

Two years ago Fleur was on the streets of Romania in a kill shelter - but she was rescued and brought to Britain. Wendy Morris first saw her on a rescue website and one photo was all that it took to change both their lives.

Fleur became very ill just three weeks after arriving in England and she collapsed while at home with Wendy. Local vets gave her just a one per cent chance of survival  saving her would take a miracle.

After a tip off from a stranger on social media about a specialist vet at the Royal Veterinary College in Potters Bar, Valgrays Border Collie Rescue set up a fundraising Facebook page for Fleur, where over 10,000 was raised in under 24 hours.

Only three dogs have ever had this surgery and Fleur is the only one to survive it.

After their win for Best Rescue dog, proud owner Wendy said: 'I feel shocked and amazed! I am very emotional that Fleur has come so far  it is a very proud moment for her.

'It makes me so thankful of everyone who was involved in giving Fleur a chance in life.'

The documentary Scruffts: Britain's Favourite Dog will air on Friday 17th March at 8pm on Channel 4
Sashaying down the catwalk in their billowing patterned dresses and asymmetric coats, the models on the Balenciaga runway were the talk of Paris Fashion Week last weekend.

But it wasn't the eye-catching outfits that were on everybody's lips.

Instead, the audience found themselves staring at the girls themselves: stick-thin, with emaciated limbs, protruding collarbones and a haunted look in their eyes. And sadly, still typical in the world of fashion.

There was something in particular that had shifted the world's focus onto this particular catwalk.

Days before, the luxury fashion house found itself embroiled in allegations of exploitation and cruelty towards the young women who attended a casting call for the show.

Catwalk casting agent and industry veteran James Scully, who has worked with designers Stella McCartney and Tom Ford, fiercely criticised Balenciaga in a shocking post on the photo-sharing social network Instagram in which he accused the label's casting directors of treating girls like cattle at a meat market.

An investigation by the Daily Mail has found that, accidental or not, abuse is rife in the fashion industry. Pictured above, three models walk in Fashion Week events around the world

'I was very disturbed to hear from a number of girls this morning that... they made more than 150 girls wait in a stairwell, told them they would have to stay over three hours to be seen and not to leave,' he wrote.

'In their usual fashion, they shut the door, went to lunch and turned off the lights to the stairs, leaving every girl with only the lights of their phones to see.

'Not only was this sadistic and cruel, it was dangerous, and left more than a few of the girls I spoke with traumatised . . . They refuse to be treated like animals.'

Scully accused another fashion house, which he didn't name, of trying to 'sneak in' 15-year-old models (the minimum legal age is 16) to its show, adding: 'Too many of these models are under the age of 18 and clearly not equipped to be here.'

His claims sent shockwaves through the modelling world.

Leading figures including the supermodel Helena Christensen and Joan Smalls, one of the world's highest-paid models, lent their support to his campaign to name and shame brands and individuals who mistreat models, many of them vulnerable teenage girls.

British model and Vogue cover girl Edie Campbell, 26, said the purported behaviour at the casting was, sadly, nothing out of the ordinary.

'It's also probably not the most shocking example I've heard,' she said. 'I have witnessed a lot of upsetting things. I've seen girls be told to run laps around the studio.'

'The problem with fashion is that it is a very informal industry. Boundaries are crossed and it allows people to behave in ways that would not ever be accepted in any other 'work' environment. Because the girls are desperate for work then they are easily exploited.

London-based model Rosalie Nelson, 25, has been modelling for six years and says she's lost count of the times she's faced abuse

'It is also a closed system. If you speak out, you are faced with the threat of never working again. And that is why what James is doing is so brave and should be applauded.'

Balenciaga was quick to distance itself from the allegations. In a statement the French fashion house said it had made 'radical changes' to the casting process and had stopped using the accused agency.

It had sent out written apologies to the models and added: 'Balenciaga condemns this incident and will continue to be committed to ensuring the most respectful working conditions for the models.'

For its part, the casting agency branded Scully's remarks 'inaccurate and libellous', insisting the girls were not locked in and that the darkness was due to a power cut.

But an investigation by the Mail has found that, accidental or not, abuse is rife in the fashion industry.

Leading British models have revealed they regularly suffer degrading and humiliating treatment at the hands of casting directors, agencies and photographers.

While some recount emotional manipulation and bullying, others claim to have endured physical and even sexual abuse at work.

Among the horror stories are the model who was drawn on with a permanent marker to show which parts of her body were 'fat'; the model who was made to run around a studio in stiletto heels until she collapsed; the hopefuls kept in a room for ten hours with no food or water; the models who had their hair hacked off without their consent.

Then there's the appalling story of the model who has permanently lost feeling in her toes after being made to stand all day in shoes that were too small.

And at a time when the fashion industry claims to be turning its back on super-skinny models, several of the women we spoke to confessed they had been ordered to lose weight  including a size 6 model weighing just 7st who was dropped by her agency for being 'too curvaceous'.

Casting director James Scully (pictured) accused two casting agents from Balenciaga of 'abusing' models in Paris

The revelations will certainly be eye-opening for the tens of thousands of youngsters (32 per cent of teenage girls in the UK, according to a recent survey) who are desperate to break into modelling.

Forget glitzy parties, jet-set lifestyles and glamorous photoshoots  the reality of this apparently alluring world is, it seems, very different from its glossy exterior.

London-based model Rosalie Nelson, 25, has been modelling for six years and says she's lost count of the times she's faced abuse.

'I've had chunks of my hair cut off without being asked if it would be OK,' she explains. 'I've been stabbed with needles and pins; my skin has been cut and pulled by clips.

'I've been to castings in London where there are hundreds of models and only a handful of chairs provided. Sometimes there will be a water dispenser or vending machine, but often there is nothing.

'I've been on shoots for up to ten hours where no food is provided. The underlying message is always that you shouldn't eat.'

One of her worst experiences came in 2014 at a major UK modelling agency  which she won't name  where Rosalie, a size 8, was told to lose weight if she wanted work.

'I did exactly that and lost over ten kilograms and two inches off my hips,' she says. 'When I returned to see this agency, they said I was making progress but they wanted me to "get down to the bone".

'I couldn't imagine becoming any thinner. I felt physically and emotionally drained.

'If I had been younger and more naive, I might have pushed myself too far and caused more harm.'

Thankfully, Rosalie had the strength to walk away  and left not only the agency but high-fashion modelling for good.

Charli Howard, also 25 and from London, who has modelled for Harper's Bazaar and renowned photographer Rankin, has had similarly horrendous experiences.

Rosalie said that one of her worst experiences came in 2014 at a major UK modelling agency  which she won't name  where she, then a size 8, was told to lose weight if she wanted work

Rosalie had the strength to walk away after being told to lose weight  and left not only the agency but high-fashion modelling for good. Rosalie said that many models fear speaking out because of the industry they're in

Rosalie warned that models need to ' have thick skin and a strong heart and mind' to work in today's industry

'Nothing fazes me any more,' she explains. 'I've heard it all: inappropriate behaviour from men, horrible comments towards them on set, girls being told to lose weight when they are clearly anorexic.

'You become almost blase  as though that behaviour is just 'part of the job'. But humiliation, bullying and degradation are not part of the job. Some people know they can get away with cruelty, because girls' hopes and dreams rest on their shoulders.'

In 2015, Charli  then between a 6 and 8 dress size  hit the headlines when she wrote an open letter to her former agency, accusing them of dumping her for being 'too big'.

'I refuse to feel ashamed and upset on a daily basis for not meeting your ridiculous, unobtainable beauty standards,' she declared.

'I am a human. I cannot miraculously shave my hip bones down just to fit into a sample piece of clothing or to meet "agency standards".

'I have fought nature for a long time  existing on nothing but energy bars and hot drinks  because you've deemed my body shape too "curvaceous".'

Charli, now signed to Muse Models in New York and a healthy size 10, says she has found an agency which supports and respects her. Others have not been so lucky.

In 2015, Ingrid Marsh, a 45-year-old mother from Crawley, West Sussex, spoke out about the horrific treatment to which she claims her daughter, 19-year-old Scarlett Gray, now a catwalk model for designers including Gucci, Prada and Valentino, was subjected to by her agency.

'I was shocked to receive a phone call from my daughter in a very distressed state,' Ingrid explains. 'Apparently her hips had grown by a couple of centimetres. This happens to 17-year-old girls  it's called puberty.

'She was prodded and pinched in an effort to point out areas where she should lose weight. There is very little fat anywhere on my daughter's body. The area that was being pinched was, in fact, hip bone.'

Size 8 Scarlett, who was already underweight for her 5ft 10in frame, quit Elite, her agency at the time, in despair.

He said the casting agents, Maida Gregori Boina and Rami Fernandes, were working for Balenciaga (pictured) and traumatized models, who told him about it afterward

Others report equally appalling behaviour. Mature model Amy Harber, 43, says she has had agents 'write on me with permanent marker to indicate where I am "fat" and need to lose weight', as well as having her portfolio thrown in the bin during a casting.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, other UK models claim they have been: Locked in rooms at auditions and castings, on one occasion for three hours; forced to work until they were so exhausted they fainted; and 'fat-shamed' by agents who refused to call them by name.

When one group of models, weak after several hours without food or water, ordered a pizza to the studio where they were auditioning, the casting director called them 'pigs' and sent them home.

Tellingly  and tragically  what unites these girls is their fear of speaking out, above all naming those responsible for such heinous behaviour.

'Models are afraid of speaking out because they worry they will lose work,' says Rosalie Nelson. 'Speaking out against the industry you work in is dangerous.'

Even when models have been cast for that all-important job, however, there's no guarantee the abuse will stop.

Charli Howard says agencies and designers often manipulate models with money.

When she lived in Paris at the start of her career, her agency took 70 per cent of her earnings, leaving her almost destitute and dependent on them for work.

'I was charged hundreds of euros to stay in a models' apartment, in a cramped room with a 15-year-old girl, with no indication of how much that would cost,' she explains. 'Things would be charged to my account with no receipt or explanation.

'When clients were months late paying me for a job, I was charged for the solicitor's letter that had to be sent.

'You'd be surprised how many people use underhand tactics when they can.'

Roswell Ivory, 28, a model based in Milton Keynes, had an even worse experience  this one at the hands of a predatory photographer.

She attended a photoshoot at his London studio in 2011, during which the photographer asked her a series of lewd and increasingly personal questions.

'He walked towards me with the camera repeatedly saying, 'you are vulnerable, you are very vulnerable', until he was right up to me,' Roswell recalls.

'I continued with the shoot as he had not touched me. We moved on to lingerie, where he repeatedly pushed [me] before standing above me with his crotch in my face.

'I got to my feet and dressed . . . As I walked out of the shoot, feeling numb and shaken, he forced me into a hug.'

cully (right with model Hanne Gaby Odiele) said he feels the need to stick up for models

When she asked fellow models if they'd come across the photographer, more than 20 contacted her with chilling stories of his indecent behaviour.

The models reported their experiences to the police and, in 2014, the photographer was jailed for two counts of sexual abuse.

An astonishing 30 per cent of models report being touched inappropriately at work, while 28 per cent say they have been pressured to have sex with someone at work.

In no other industry would behaviour like this  and the behind-the-scenes horror stories  be so commonplace.

So, what do those in charge have to say? Karsten Edwards, managing director of IMM models  the London agency that represents Rosalie Nelson and supports her campaign for better treatment  insists he rarely comes across abuse.

'Unfortunately the nature of this business is that sometimes 500 people turn up where they need one girl, so lots of them are kept waiting. Nobody is forcing them to be there, so they could leave whenever they want.

'We can't check out every job or casting in advance. If we have negative feedback, we discuss it with the individuals involved or we try to avoid working with them again.'

But, he adds: 'Girls do exaggerate. They'll say they've been waiting for three hours when they only turned up an hour ago.

'You get girls moaning when they're earning 6,000 for a job and flying around the world. Lots of people would give their left arm for that.'

'Exaggeration' and 'moaning' don't quite seem to cover the cruelty and exploitation models claim they face daily, yet Edwards's views are shared by many in the industry.

'It's tough out there,' he says. 'But you've got to put it in context. A lot of girls are living their dream.'

As for those who still long to break into this world, Rosalie's advice is blunt.

'Being a model, you come across more rejection than I could ever have imagined,' she warns.

'To be prepared for castings, you need to have thick skin and a strong heart and mind.

'You might be asked to change your hair, change the way you speak, asked not to speak, asked to dress differently. You need to be ready to be criticised just for being yourself.'

A cautionary tale indeed for young girls whose dream of being a model is, in reality, something of a nightmare.
Unions have called for an end of 'blink and you'll miss them' Health Secretaries as the Sunak shuffle gives England its fifth Health Secretary since 2021 and the NHS faces multiple crises. Record waiting lists, a broken emergency service system, looming staff strikes and the prospect of the worst winter facing the NHS in living memory are just a selection of the issues No10 must get a grip on. To handle the numerous problems newly anointed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak appointed Steve Barclay (bottom left and right) as his Health Secretary yesterday, the fourth MP to hold the position in 12 months. It's Mr Barclay's second go at the job, having briefly filled the post between July and September after Sajid Javid (top right) quit the position in a wave of resignations to hit then PM, Boris Johnson. His most memorable event in the role was being accosted by a member of the public outside a hospital who accused him of doing 'bugger all' about the NHS crisis. Mr Barclay replaces Therese Coffey (bottom centre), who kept the seat warm for a grand total of 49 days as part of the ill-fated Liz Truss Government. Ms Coffey last night thanked her ministerial team on Twitter, saying 'we achieved a lot together in seven weeks'. Some of her most memorable achievements include implying NHS nurses unhappy with their pay can leave the UK, telling her staff to stop using the Oxford comma, and admitting to illegally supplying antibiotics to her friends. Today unions called for an end to chaos in Westminster and for Mr Barclay to get a grip on the staffing crisis they claim is fuelling the issues facing the health service. The revolving door of ministers has left Matt Hancock (top left) the longest serving Health Secretary in recent times, having an almost three year stint before resigning after footage of him emerged breaching social distancing guidelines by kissing a colleague.
A few weeks ago I met a friend for a birthday tea in a swanky London hotel. I arrived early, but sat happily looking at the plush decor and listening to the pianist playing as I waited. It was all so peaceful and beautiful.

Then I spotted a family of six  four children and two adults  sitting in silence. Their heads down, every one of them was glued to their mobile phone, completely oblivious to their surroundings and each other. They didnt exchange a single word.

When the tiers of sandwiches, scones and cakes arrived, I expected them at least to look up and say something to each other.

We are constantly told how social media is a force for good  disseminating knowledge and empowering and connecting people. But there are negative aspects

Instead, three of them started taking pictures and then went back to their phones, presumably to post the images on social media, while the others absentmindedly reached out and took something to eat, barely acknowledging one another.

It left me feeling incredibly sad. Surely the point of shared experiences is sharing them with the people closest to us, not a group of random people on Twitter?

We are constantly told how social media is a force for good  disseminating knowledge and empowering and connecting people. But there are negative aspects, not least the way it can become so all engrossing it interferes with our most important relationships.

This was a problem identified by a school in Middlesbrough that has banned mobiles from its school gates: its become all too common a sight for children to run up to their parents at the end of the day only to be ignored because the adult is preoccupied with their phone.

So a sign has gone up telling parents to Greet your child with a smile, not a mobile. It beggars belief this needs to be said.

We should also be concerned about the potential risk to mental health. A study this week showed social media can increase loneliness. It can also make people envious  we see a stream of carefully manipulated and selected aspects of someones life and assume it to be true. But its not. Its an edited version of reality.

Social networking sites such as Facebook risk impoverishing us because the interactions they offer us are not real, yet can easily be mistaken for being so.

They are appealing because they are quick and require little effort, but these are the very things that strip them of lasting value.

Real interaction with real people can be messy, complicated and time consuming: far easier to post a stream of witty one-liners where you can weigh up your success in life in how many likes you get.

People then post incessantly because it allows them to feel in control of a story about themselves and fosters a sense of self-validation. From a neurological aspect, the rush of dopamine that this releases in the brain makes us want to do it more and more.

Its not simply children being sucked in  many parents are just as bad. Where I work we have a family therapy unit and part of the treatment involves improving family communication. This includes eating a meal together.

A study this week showed social media can increase loneliness. It can also make people envious  we see a stream of carefully manipulated and selected aspects of someones life and assume it to be true

Mobiles are banned. Children initially complain, but tend to comply. Its the parents who break this rule. I need to check my emails for work, they protest, failing to see the poor role models they are providing for their children, who dont differentiate between checking work emails and checking Facebook.

All this reminds me of a story by E. M. Forster called The Machine Stops. Reading it 100 years after it was published, your are struck by his eerie prescience.

The story is set in a future world dominated by technology. Humans live in tiny, individual pods below ground, communicating through an instant messaging and video-conferencing service.

Personal interaction has become redundant and the only activity is discussing ideas over this apparatus. Their physical needs are met by the system and over time they forget it is they who created the machine to serve them, become subservient to it and begin worshipping it.

It becomes apparent the machine is stopping. Humanity, though, has lost connection with the natural world and each other, and with the machines crash comes the end of civilisation.

Forsters underlying message is of chilling relevance to society today: it is direct experience and engagement in the world and real interaction that is of value.

Its not technology that endangers humanity, but our reliance on it and inability to modulate its control over their lives.

Surely we are missing out on a fundamental aspect of what it is to be human if we cant even be bothered to talk to our family sitting next to us.

Even prisoners eat better than patients

Hospital food is shockingly poor, as anyone who has watched patients being fed will know

Hospital food is shockingly poor, as anyone who has watched patients being fed will know. Its a cop out to blame the fact its institutional food.

A few years ago I worked in a prison, and let me tell you the food the prisoners were served was far better than the awful gloop we dish out to patients in the NHS.

Now author and chef Prue Leith has spoken out about inedible food being served to patients  shes hardly the first and you would think after so many years of criticism that hospital cooks would have been embarrassed into improving their dishes.

Well no, for the simple reason cooks are a rare commodity in hospitals and this is the root of the problem.

The responsibility for providing hospital food has been increasingly outsourced to catering companies. This means meals are mass-produced off-site and transported into hospital where these cook-chill dishes are reheated or, more ominously, regenerated, Doctor Who-style, using self-contained high-pressure steamers.

In a number of new hospitals built under private finance initiatives, such is the reliance on this type of food that there are no kitchens. This is in contract to many prisons, which prepare fresh food in proper kitchens.

This is all being done in the name of efficiency, but its a false economy: patients who are undernourished because they arent eating or the food is poor quality take longer to get better. It enrages me because it disproportionately affects the most vulnerable people in society  the elderly, those with mental health problems or learning disabilities who are more likely to be in hospital longer and who often dont have lots of visitors bringing in extra food.

There is a simple solution: reinstate hospital kitchens and staff them with trained cooks. It can be done  Great Ormond Street employs chefs who cut up vegetables and make meals. Theyre nutritious and tasty.

In Cornwall, NHS trusts buy from local, sustainable sources. I hope Prue keeps up her campaign.

A new leaf for tobacco giant?

Its not often that a company announces it wants its products taxed more. Yet this is precisely what tobacco giant Philip Morris, which makes Marlboro, did this week

Its not often that a company announces it wants its products taxed more. Yet this is precisely what tobacco giant Philip Morris did this week ahead of the Budget.

In a submission to the Chancellor Philip Hammond, it lobbied for an increase in the tax on cigarettes in a bid to out-price people so they quit.

So should we be applauding Philip Morris or viewing it with suspicion?

For some time, the company has been speaking about wanting a smoke-free future and after years of development, it launched a product  Iqos  that heats the tobacco rather than burns it and is thought to be less harmful than normal cigarettes.

It knows its only a matter of time before countries start banning cigarettes, so a cynic might say this is a smart business move. Perhaps. But Im prepared to give it the benefit of the doubt.

I like to think people working in tobacco companies are like us  with friends and families  and they dont want to be part of something that kills and disables millions every year.

And even if it is a canny shift in business model, motivated by revenue as much as ethics, does it really matter if it means that the blight of cigarettes is removed and replaced with something safer?

But Ill be interested to see how the company behaves in poor countries where cigarettes are still hugely profitable and show no sign of abating. This is a real litmus test to how dedicated it is to seeing a smoke-free world.

In 2002, a large study linked it with breast cancer and strokes, and the scare stories that followed have cast a long shadow over the management of the menopause

When it comes to hormone replacement therapy (HRT), I think women have been badly let down by medicine.

In 2002, a large study linked it with breast cancer and strokes, and the scare stories that followed have cast a long shadow over the management of the menopause.

Yet this study has since been heavily criticised  not least because it was based on women who had already gone through the menopause  and considered to have caused unnecessary alarm. And this means many women have missed out on the real, tangible benefits of HRT that have been repeatedly proved. This week we saw another such study that showed it can reduce the risk of early death by as much as 30 per cent.

But HRT is still viewed with incredible caution and suspicion by GPs, many of whom are nervous about prescribing it.

Of course, its not right for everyone. Its not recommended for women who have had a recent heart attack, have liver problems or who have breast cancer. But for millions of others, it is suitable and can bring real benefits. Providing I was suitable for it, if I were a woman of a certain age, theres no doubt that Id take it.
What is your earliest memory?

Riding in my fathers T-model Ford in the late Thirties  I was born in 1933  at night through the African bush. In the headlights we could see lions crossing the road and jackdaws taking flight.

What sort of child were you?

I got up to harmless mischief  and regularly got six of the best at my African boarding school as a result. Saturday nights were beating nights and youd hear your name being called out by a prefect if, for instance, youd been caught talking after lights out the previous night. Some of the prefects were sadists and liked to chalk the cane, so that when they hit you it left a mark on your trousers  and they would know where to aim the next few blows.

'I dream about being a man of action like Indiana Jones'

What is your best character trait?

I like to think Im a man of integrity.

... and your worst?

I cannot abide fools.

Whats the best cure for a broken heart?

Walking away. Ive been married four times  two of my previous wives are dead, the first one hates me, and the last one loves me. Every day Im married to Niso makes me young again...

What law would you change if you could?

Id raise the voting age from 18 to 21. I dont think people of 18 or 19  and I was just the same  think carefully enough about things before doing them. They need to grow up a bit before they can know more about the consequences of some laws.

When was the last time you cried?

On my mothers deathbed several years ago. She looked up, saw me and said: Oh, its my little boy! Then she saw my wife Niso and said: Oh, its my little girl as well! That had me in tears.

Who would be your dream dinner date?

Either John Steinbeck or Margaret Thatcher. I had dinner once with Mrs T at the British ambassadors house in Cape Town and it was a fantastic night. She was a good conversationalist  so long as you were a good listener. Im also a great fan of Steinbecks compassion  his characters are so gentle and kind and sweet. I think he must have been a very nice man, even if he was a bit far left for me, like Jeremy Corbyn  believing that everyone in the world should be happy, when its impossible.

What is the worst job youve done?

In my early 20s, I was working in the police reserve in what was then Rhodesia, and was sent to a farm that had been raided by insurgents. Theyd chopped two little girls to bits and thrown them into a pit, and I had to retrieve the corpses; it was the most heartbreaking job imaginable.

What or who do you dream about?

I dream about being a man of action like Indiana Jones.

FILMS, BOOKS, PLAYS

Last film you watched? The modern Man From U.N.C.L.E., which I saw on DVD and thought terrific fun. Last book you read? A biography of Montgomery by Alan Moorehead  one of the best books Ive read about the man who led the Eighth Army to victory at Alamein. Last play you saw? I loved The Book Of Mormon, which is not at all what it sounds like! Advertisement

Whats the best piece of advice youve ever had?

To mind my own business, and dont get involved in other peoples business.

What is the worst thing anyone has ever said to you?

Who are you? People usually recognise me.

... and you to someone else?

As a boy I said to my sister: Shut up  no one wants to hear what you have to say!

If you could go back in time, where would you go?

To Ancient Rome, but only if I could be a Caesar  I wouldnt want to be a slave.

Whats the one thing every man should know about women?

Impossible to answer. They are such gorgeous but obscure creatures, even for me at my age.

What one skill should everyone have?

Keeping their mouths shut at the right time.

Have you ever had a nickname?

Spook gat  Afrikaans for goats a*** because I was young and naive  by a bunch of sailors when I worked on a fishing boat.

Is there anyone youd like to say sorry to?

No, they all deserved it!

War Cry by Wilbur Smith is published by HarperFiction on March 23, 20
She painted her parents in their coffins, outraged high society by running off with a peers wife and divided a seaside town with a shell. Maggi Hambling tells Event why shes still seething in her 70s

You may have thought Britains most controversial artist was Damien Hirst, with his dead sharks in vitrines, or Tracey Emin, with her unmade bed. But neither comes close to matching the furore caused by Maggi Hambling.

The 70-something painter has, for instance, stunned gallery-goers with portraits of her parents in their coffins and sparked a race row by suggesting she supported the reintroduction of slavery. She also caused a ruckus in society circles in the mid-Eighties, when the showjumper Tory Lawrence left her husband, Lord Oaksey, for her.

Hambling in her studio. Hambling is angry but insists thats not the worst emotion for an artist to have, as anger can mean inspiration

Oh, and she once refused to paint the portrait of Margaret Thatcher when the then Prime Minister asked. Hambling is certainly controversial.

We meet in the offices of Marlborough Fine Art gallery in Londons Mayfair, which is hosting an exhibition of her latest work. I almost choke on the cigarette fumes as I enter: Hambling is a chain smoker and within seconds is railing against the smoking ban. Its draconian. What are they going to do next, tell us when we can blow our noses?

Shes angry, she says  but insists thats not the worst emotion for an artist to have, as anger can mean inspiration. Her compelling new paintings are proof of that. Hambling has depicted, among other things, melting ice caps, the siege of Aleppo and a people-traffickers boat crossing the Mediterranean.

Her fury is patent in the thick, flurried way she has applied the paint, her semi-abstract style suggesting horrors too awful to capture realistically.

Hambling with Grayson Perry in 2016

Mankind is f****** up the world, says Hambling, with a stare like a hawks that pierces right through you. We just sit in front of the news, watching atrocity after atrocity with bland acceptance. Painting is the way I personally feel I can respond.

The exhibition is called Edge, reflecting her view that humanity is heading fast towards the edge of a cliff. Does Hambling feel other artists are engaged enough with the world around them?

Im not going to bitch about others, she says. If someone feels inspired to make a piece of video art of themselves putting up a shelf, or to make an installation out of milk bottles, thats fine. But I prefer art that hits you in the heart.

Theres a lot of work out there that you see once and have zero interest in seeing again. Unlike a Rembrandt self-portrait, say, which you go back to again and again. Or a Van Gogh apple tree. Ive stood and wept before one of those.

If these last comments make Hambling sound actually rather establishment, thats because in many ways  despite the controversies  she is. She was the first artist-in-residence at the National Gallery; in 1995 she won the prestigious Jerwood Painting Prize; in 2010 she was awarded a CBE; and last year she had a solo show at the British Museum.

Never part of any movement, school or trend, Hambling has gained respect for her insistence  over a career of five decades  on doing things her way. The art market is so powerful these days that whatever style or subject is selling well, a gallerist will encourage his artists to follow it. I was never very good, though, at doing what I was told.

Hamlet, 2015. The exhibition is called Edge, reflecting her view that humanity is heading fast towards the edge of a cliff

What does Hambling make of the 260 million spent on Switch House, the extension to Tate Modern that opened last year?

Its a great building. I just wish theyd use more of it to show art. Only three of the ten storeys do. The rest are for bars, cafes and offices, which is remarkable, really.

Hamblings two most-viewed works arent in a gallery at all but outdoors: her quirky sculpture of Oscar Wilde in a sarcophagus, in Londons Charing Cross; and Scallop, her huge, shell-shaped memorial to composer Benjamin Britten on the beach at Aldeburgh. The latter divided opinion sharply when it appeared in 2003: so many locals deemed it an eyesore that, for a few years, it was the most vandalised sculpture in the country. Hambling takes heart that nowadays opinion has changed. It has actually become an object of pilgrimage: people now take selfies there, get married there, even have sex there.

THREE UNMISSIBLE SHOWS HOWARD HODGKIN: ABSENT FRIENDS National Portrait Gallery, London, March 23-June 18 The first exhibition of portraits by Hodgkin and, later in the year, works inspired by his trips to India will be on show at The Hepworth, Wakefield. LUCIAN FREUD: EARLY WORKS Pallant House Gallery, Chichester April 4-October 1 A selection of works featuring Man With A Black Scarf, from 1939, recently authenticated on the series Fake Or Fortune? TRUE TO LIFE: BRITISH REALIST PAINTING IN THE 1920s And 1930s Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh, Jul 1-Oct 29 As the art world became obsessed by modernism, those working figuratively were overshadowed. This exhibition tries to redress the balance. Advertisement

Born and bred in well-to-do Suffolk, Hambling lives a few miles inland from Aldeburgh, in the town of Saxmundham. She recalls every property having a Vote Leave sign up before the Brexit referendum. Did that influence her vote at all?

Not really, but I did vote Leave. More as a protest vote than anything, a protest against Brussels telling us what to do. I didnt, for a million years, think the Leavers would actually win. When the results came in the following morning, my reaction was one of fear, horror and disbelief.

Im sure many people did the same as me. And if you had the referendum again now, the result would be very different.

Talking of politics, why did she turn Mrs Thatcher down all those years ago? Because portraiture is an act of love between artist and subject. Its an intimate experience. And I felt anything but love and intimacy for Mrs Thatcher. She was a divisive figure who wrought doom and gloom on Britain in the Eighties.

The Queen Mother was another subject she never painted  but for different reasons. After being sounded out by Buckingham Palace, Hambling was ultimately told her services wouldnt be required. No one ever explained to her why, though rumour has it its because of a fear that painter and sitter, both known to like a drop of gin, might have spent more time drinking than creating a portrait.

Stephen Fry and George Melly are among the famous faces she has painted. As for the pictures of her newly deceased parents, Hambling says they were simply an artists form of grieving.

Hambling's controversial Scallop sculpture, a tribute to Benjamin Britten, on Aldeburgh beach, Norfolk

As we prepare to wrap up, she adds out of the blue: Theresa Mays a fan of mine, you know. Apparently she said so at a recent Conservative Party dinner.

Which begs the question: if the call came, would this be a female Prime Minister whose portrait Hambling would paint?

Never say never, she replies. Though Mrs Mays diary is probably a bit full for the time being.

Maggi Hambling: Edge is at Marlborough Fine Art until April 13, marlboroughlondon.com
Kong: Skull Island Cert: 12A 1hr 58mins

Rating:

At the London premiere of Kong: Skull Island, its star, Tom Hiddleston, described it as an old-fashioned monster munch, a description that any Americans in the audience probably thought was a cute example of British self-deprecation.

But to at least one Brit in the audience  me  it smacked of him thinking the film has a lack of ambition and that his part in it is probably not his finest day at the office.

Unfortunately, so it quickly proves. Kong: Skull Island  which arrives in cinemas a mere 12 years after Peter Jacksons epic version  is a film that underwhelms in nearly every department.

Kong: Skull Island  which arrives in cinemas a mere 12 years after Peter Jacksons epic version  is a film that underwhelms in nearly every department

It spends large chunks of time looking awful (3D has done it no favours at all), the casting is uninspired, and that most vital component, the screenplay, is woefully short of polish and finesse, conspicuously managing, for large parts, to neither move nor amuse.

I sat there stony-faced, if not quite for the duration then at least until John C Reilly  playing a World War II pilot whos been marooned on Skull Island for 28 years  hoved into view.

So an out-and-out-disaster, right? Yes, as far as most adult audiences are concerned, but it will keep bloodthirsty boys and girls modestly amused and it might, just possibly, lead to better things in the future.

For this is a companion picture to Godzilla from 2014, and in three years or so is supposed to result in some super-sized showdown in Kong V Godzilla, an encounter that Japanese film-makers anticipated in 1962. But if its anything like this, I can wait a bit longer.

I sat there stony-faced, if not quite for the duration then at least until John C Reilly (above)  playing a World War II pilot whos been marooned on Skull Island for 28 years  hoved into view

At best, this feels like an ill-advised homage to rickety B-movies, with old favourites such as One Million Years BC, The Lost World and Journey To The Centre Of The Earth all coming to mind as we discover, quite rapidly, that while the worlds favourite gigantic ape may be the star, here hes having to share his island stage with a whole raft of supporting monsters: a giant octopus, a spider the height of a building, a stick-insect as big as a tree and flesh-eating, dinosaur-like lizards that seem to come in assorted dimensions.

You dont want to wake up the big one, someone inevitably says at one moment. Oops! But at least now we know thats the third act taken care of.

Both in Merian C Coopers 1933 original (the Fay Wray, Empire State version) and Jacksons 2005 remake (Naomi Watts, ditto) film-making was used as the excuse for a team to travel to the mysterious Skull Island.

Here, its complex pseudo-science that provides the way in, with new-species-hunter John Goodman and his Monarch team (Monarch also featured in Godzilla) travelling to the island in 1971 with an ex-SAS tracker (Hiddleston), a Vietnam War photographer (Brie Larson) and an entire US helicopter squadron led by Samuel L Jackson.

At best, this feels like an ill-advised homage to rickety B-movies and with dodgy visual effects and some downright poor supporting turns, this King Kong is the poorest of them all

One of the films mysteries is why the magnificently bearded Jordan Vogt-Roberts was brought in to direct, given that his track record is in modestly budgeted, indie-style films, not effects-heavy, would-be blockbusters.

If it was to look after the actors while the visual-effects team looked after everything else, its an approach that doesnt come off.

Hiddleston just about escapes with dignity intact but Larson  an Oscar winner, no less  is not so fortunate, playing a character predictably, and rightly, feistier and more feminist than her imperilled predecessors but singularly failing to light up the screen in the process.

Until, that is, her big close-up scene with Kong himself, of course, which we all know is coming and, compared to so much else, isnt bad when it finally arrives. Along with the scene-stealing Reilly, its one of the reasons why this is a film thats all about the final third.

Tom Hiddleston just about escapes with dignity intact but Brie Larson  an Oscar winner, no less  is not so fortunate, singularly failing to light up the screen

It was Jacksons screenwriters who originally picked up the echoes of Joseph Conrads Heart Of Darkness in the Kong story.

Here Vogt-Roberts and his four-man writing team take that a step further, deliberately channelling Francis Ford Coppolas Vietnam-era classic Apocalypse Now (based on Heart Of Darkness, of course) into the already clunky proceedings.

This may seem clever but it doesnt really work, and is certainly going to go straight over the heads of the films young target audience.

Here the helicopter squadron attack is not to the sound of Wagners Ride Of The Valkyries but Black Sabbaths Paranoid. Kong, it turns out, is not a fan.

With visual effects that Ray Harryhausen wouldnt feel intimidated by, and some downright poor supporting turns, this cheap-looking King Kong, alas, is the poorest of them all.

SECOND SCREEN

Elle (18)

Rating:

The Time Of Their Lives (12A)

Rating:

Catfight (15)

Rating:

Isabelle Huppert won the Golden Globe for Best Actress for her performance in Elle and picked up the equivalent Oscar nomination to boot, which is quite an achievement for a French-language film but also smacks of a fine but often overlooked actress finally being rewarded for her vast body of work over the past 40 years.

Nothing wrong with that, except that the accolades heaped upon Huppert do slightly disguise what a strange, challenging and downright contentious film this is.

But then it is directed by Paul Verhoeven, the Dutch film-maker who back in the Nineties showed how brilliant he could be with Total Recall but then went on to court considerable controversy with both Basic Instinct and Showgirls.

Isabelle Huppert (above with Laurent Lafitte) won the Golden Globe for Best Actress for her performance in Elle, and she is excellent, but this is a challenging and deeply disturbing film

Huppert plays Michele Leblanc, a high-flier who we will later learn has swapped book-publishing for creating video games with great success.

But, as the film shockingly begins, she is slowly recovering from being violently raped in her home by a masked intruder.

She does everything were told a rape victim should not do  she tidies up the mess, washes her clothes, and has a long bath. Her bruises, she tells her hopeless twentysomething son when he comes to dinner that evening, are a result of a fall from her bike. She doesnt call the police.

We understand, we think; shes in shock. But we do not understand at all.

As Michele resumes her everyday working life, an extraordinary picture emerges of this divorced, middle-aged but sexually empowered woman.

Shes having a very strange affair with her best friend and business partners husband, plays graphic footsie with her good-looking and married neighbour, and isnt above snuggling up in bed with Anna (Anne Consigny), the aforementioned best friend and business partner, herself.

And then, to top it all, we discover that her elderly father is in prison for well, lets just say he wont be coming out soon.

If this were in English, particularly Hollywood English, it would be miles over the top, despite the presence of Huppert and a classy supporting cast, and despite Verhoevens obvious efforts to channel Alfred Hitchcock, as both she and we try to work out who her attacker might be.

But we havent even got close to the most controversial part, which sees the plot returning to the subject of rape in a way that, these days, few male film-makers would dare to do.

But Huppert is excellent, and somehow the film does manage to be funny as well as deeply disturbing. And it will, I guarantee, prompt a heated post-screening debate.

Joan Collins (above) overdoes the acerbity while Pauline Collins fails to strike up the convincing romantic chemistry with Franco Nero in the slow-moving The Time Of Their Lives

There are one or two nice moments in The Time Of Their Lives, which sees Pauline Collins playing an ageing, unhappily married woman who unwittingly finds herself responsible for taking Helen, a bad-tempered and entirely self-centred fading film star (Joan Collins, channelling nope, cant think who) to the funeral of an old director friend on the Ile de Re.

What ensues is a slow-moving and not nearly funny enough road trip, with Collins J overdoing the acerbity, while Collins P fails to strike up the convincing romantic chemistry with a game Franco Nero (he strips off for some skinny-dipping) that the plot requires. What charm there is arrives too little, too late.

Catfight is one of the oddest films youll see all year, with Sandra Oh and Anne Heche as uptight Veronica and artistic Ashley, who used to be friends at college but who, when they meet up again as adults approaching middle age, cant stop fighting. Literally.

They slug it out for minute after bloody minute, leaving the loser so injured she spends the next two years in a truly life-changing coma. And when she wakes up, they do it all over again.

There may be some fiendishly clever satire at work here (the film is firmly set in a fictionalised version of a Trump-era world), but the violence is so protracted and unpleasant, and the end result so lacking in laughs, that I soon gave up trying to find it.
Farmer, Butcher, Chef

Goodwood Hotel, Chichester

goodwood.com

Rating:

Field to fork. It is, apparently, a movement. Of the socio-political, rather than gastro-intestinal, variety. Something involving fresh, locally sourced food being sold to local consumers and restaurants. All very admirable, although its too often lunch in a hair shirt, dinner with a sternly stentorian tone. Its big in Brooklyn. Of course it is, where even the virtue-signalling is hand-foraged, and chicken (bearded, brace-wearing and brownstone roof raised) comes with a side order of smug.

Back in the olden days, all food was field to fork. Save the usual salted fish, meat and pickled everything else. Not so much choice as necessity. But as a culinary term, it sticks in the craw. Talk about stating the bleeding obvious.

Farmer, Butcher, Chef, the awkwardly named new restaurant not far from Chichester in West Sussex

So to Farmer, Butcher, Chef, the awkwardly named new restaurant not far from Chichester in West Sussex. Its part of the successful and beautifully managed Goodwood Estate. In addition to Glorious racing and a thrilling Festival of Speed comes this place, which prides itself on the quality, traceability and sustainability of its produce.

All the meat served here is organically reared on the estate (by farmer Tim Hassell), slaughtered down the road, then butchered by their own master butcher, John Hearn.

Before moving into the kitchen, watched over by the deeply experienced Darron Bunn, a serious chef who trained under both Nico Ladenis and Marco Pierre White. Dishes are designed, says the website, according to which cuts are available. In principle, an entirely pragmatic and sensible approach to eating. Albeit one that the aristocracy took for granted a couple of centuries back. Feasting on the fruits of ones estate and all that. But these days, it makes perfect sense. Lofty ideals are one thing, though. A decent lunch, quite another.

All this bovine brilliance for a mere 20 a head. Stunning value for a masterclass in how to breed, butcher and cook a beast

The room is long and elegantly spacious, with the feel of an old stables or tack room, given the most refined of face-lifts. The walls are expensively white and covered with old ox yokes and smartly framed random ephemera  pastry blackbirds, old iron keys and seashells. A central table is topped with old red fire buckets, brimming with flowers, while filament lights hang from the ceiling like galvanised ivy. To our right, a huge fire crackles merrily away. Service is charming and whip-smart, the menu a whole lot more interesting than youd expect.

Crusted beef shin comes with crayfish, pig jowl with pickled potatoes and apple. This suddenly feels very interesting indeed.

Three oysters, clad in the lightest of panko coats, are expertly fried and topped with tissue-paper-thin slices of cured ox heart. Wow. The meat has a bellowing, bosky depth that pairs beautifully with the bivalves subtle brine.

Shards of beetroot add vegetable crunch, while a whiff of tarragon brings it all merrily together. Its one hell of a dish.

Just like the venison tartare, the meat cut into small, succulent chunks with more fat than youd usually expect. Hooray. Theres a lick of vinegar, a sigh of rosemary and a honk of horseradish, plus tiny beads of pickled mustard seed. Its rich, luscious and deeply alluring, made better still by bright yellow blobs of smoked egg yolk. Its one of the finest tartares Ive ever eaten  cracking produce meets prodigious kitchen talent.

Beer-braised lamb belly is sticky and crunchy, sitting on a bed of soft barley spiked with prunes and baby turnips

Three oysters, clad in the lightest of panko coats, are expertly fried and topped with tissue-paper-thin slices of cured ox heart. Wow

Beer-braised lamb belly is sticky and crunchy, sitting on a bed of soft barley spiked with prunes and baby turnips. The base made brilliant. Again, there is true skill in taking these cheap cuts and turning them into something worthy of the high table.

FROM THE MENU

Crusted beef shin 8.50 Crispy oysters 7.50 Venison tartare 8.50 Lamb belly 7 Beef butchers board 20 Advertisement

We know our beef butchers board is imminent when they remove two chairs and pull up an extra table. Its immense: four huge white dishes, filled with every part of prime Sussex Red.

Theres sweetly lush oxtail faggots, studded with fat and swishing delight; panko-coated heart, surprisingly subtle; half a dozen slivers of skirt, cooked gloriously rare, with chew and heft, and the very essence of well-brought-up cow; a soft, filthily tender pile of slow-cooked shin, topped with a pile of buttery, herby breadcrumbs; a pert gem lettuce salad dressed with shards of crisp salt beef and doused in a sprightly vinaigrette; proper dripping chips, and a great jug of magnificent gravy.

All this bovine brilliance for a mere 20 a head. Stunning value for a masterclass in how to breed, butcher and cook a beast.

A Bramley apple souffle for pudding, billowing and airy, with a pile of crumble and cider brandy ice cream, some excellent local cheddar and a goats cheese that is, apparently, excellent too. What a lunch  so many cuts above your average gastropub. Theres even a three-course set lunch for 20.

I came expecting style over substance, another half-baked philosophy in search of a credulous dupe. Instead, Farmer, Butcher, Chef delivers on its promise. Beautiful meat, butchered and cooked with the reverence it so rightly deserves.

Lunch for two: 60

SUNDAY

A rather spectacular dinner at 19 in Crans Montana in Switzerland, cooked by the great Michel Roux Sr and his son Alain, whos executive chef at The Waterside Inn. In fact, the entire kitchen and front of house team seem to be here too. Sea bass ceviche, poached fillet of sole with crab, roast fillet of beef and apple tarte tatin. Plus some very serious wines. A mighty and magnificent dinner from two masters.

Eggs Benedict

MONDAY

Back to London, and a cheese omelette with a simple green salad.

TUESDAY

The launch of London Food Month at Fortnum and Mason. Eggs Benedict, croissants, bacon sandwiches, Bloody Marys (a little too early, even for me) and most of the London restaurant world too. A cracking start to the day. Then a very merry dinner with Angela Hartnett at Sichuan Folk. Fragrant and hot prawns, twice-cooked pork, Sichuan fish, fiery fried chicken and a few Tsing Tao beers. Fierce but fantastic.
The American Dream: Pop To The Present

British Museum, London Until June 18

Rating:

This show is about American printmaking, and the British Museum has been at pains to expand its collection of contemporary American prints since its last major show, nearly ten years ago. Because of this, it contains very many fine things.

It disappoints, however, because its approach to the subject neglects its own expertise and focuses instead on politics.

I suspect we would be interested to hear what British Museum curators have to say about the practice of lithography and the techniques of screenprinting. Instead, they have decided to tell us about revolutionary politics, radical feminism and race tensions. Its not really their subject.

Andy Warhol (19281987), Vote McGovern. Colour screenprint, 1972.  2016 The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc./Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York and DACS, London

The museum has decided to tell us about revolutionary politics, radical feminism and race tensions. Its not really their subject. Above: Flags 1, 1973, by Jasper Johns

The second half of the 20th century was a rich period in American printmaking. The possibilities of commercial print techniques such as screenprint struck the first generation of pop artists powerfully.

There is sometimes an absurd paradox here  in their paintings, artists like Roy Lichtenstein reproduced with exquisite care the dots with which cheap commercial printing suggested shadow.

When reproduced in limited-edition prints, what exactly is the distinction between art and comic book?

Other movements in American art seemed a challenge to the printmaker. Abstract expressionists such as Willem de Kooning depended on the power of the brushstroke.

Minimalists like Brice Marden often derived their power from a single, exquisite gesture of purity, like a black square on canvas. Could that be turned into a print edition?

Andy Warhol was, perhaps, the artist who seemed most at home in the potential, both expressive and conceptual, of the print, and multiple repetitions of the same subject were meat and drink to him.

It is a pity that the British Museum, displaying a wall of his Marilyn prints, hasnt taken more care  some of them arent flat against the wall but bulge and sag, creating shadows and colour variations where there should be total evenness.

Printing is a medium that tends to draw artists fascinated by technique, and there is often a sense of a medium being joyously rediscovered. Standard Station, 1966, by Edward Ruscha

Robert Rauschenberg (19252008), Sky Garden from Stoned Moon. Colour lithograph and screenprint, 1969.  Robert Rauschenberg Foundation/DACS, London/VAGA, New York

The different techniques are, as ever with prints, fascinating, and as we go through the exhibition we see the difference between exquisite etchers like Kiki Smith, those who enjoy the limitations of technique implicit in woodcut or linocut (Eric Avery, Richard Bosman and Ida Applebroog), and the artists who are drawn to the mechanical perfection of screenprint and lithography.

Printing is a medium that tends to draw artists fascinated by technique, and there is often a sense of a medium being joyously rediscovered, from Jim Dines wonderful etchings onwards. Most overwhelming is a truly great mezzotint by Craig McPherson, of a night-time view of New York, a print of exceptional technical virtuosity.

It would be good to have some explanation of mezzotints at this point, rather than plonking this masterpiece in a room labelled Photorealism.

There are plenty of things to enjoy here, but you have to be prepared to ignore the exhibitions intentions.
Attack Of The 50ft Women: How Gender Equality Can Save The World!

Catherine Mayer

HQ 20

Rating:

In the schlocky 1958 B-movie Attack Of The 50ft Woman, an alien turns the wife of a controlling husband into a giant. Doctors, police and her husband all try to shackle her down, but breaking free, she goes on a rampage.

Now, in her book which borrows its title from the film, journalist Catherine Mayer, who in 2015 helped to found the Womens Equality Party (WEP), is issuing a rallying cry to women everywhere to rise up against the skewed status quo and fight for a world in which women are truly, rather than theoretically, equal to men.

In the schlocky 1958 B-movie Attack Of The 50ft Woman, an alien turns the wife of a controlling husband into a giant. Doctors, police and her husband all try to shackle her down

Many argue the battle of the sexes is long over. Growing up in Seventies Manchester, attending an all-girls school, whose alumnae included the daughters of suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, Mayer also believed the heavy lifting had been done by the women who came before us.

Men were still in the majority in the workplace and women did most housework and childcare, but Mayer was sure full gender equality was shimmering on the horizon, claiming she even coined an adolescent name for this utopia: equalia.

Yet four decades on, equality remains a mirage. In not a single country in the world are women equal to men in terms of pay packets (British men earn on average 18 per cent more than women); in many, such as Saudi Arabia, theyre blatantly discriminated against. Women make up 40 per cent of the global workforce, but own only one per cent of its capital.

Women drivers are more likely to be seriously injured in car accidents because, until recently, crash-test dummies were built to male dimensions only

Such statistics are startling, but I found Mayers smaller-scale nuggets even more telling.

Women drivers are more likely to be seriously injured in car accidents because, until recently, crash-test dummies were built to male dimensions only; some medicines dont work for women because theyre tested on male animals only, to avoid accounting for hormone cycles; Apples virtual assistant Siri recognises and responds to Ive had a heart attack but not Ive been raped.

Politically, Mayer sits in the centre (the WEP is non-partisan) but shes unsurprisingly appalled that 53 per cent of white US women voted for self-confessed groper Donald Trump and is only cautiously welcoming of Britains second female Prime Minister, Theresa May, citing glass-cliff syndrome, when women leaders are called in to clean up political messes made by rash male colleagues, and  job done  summarily ejected.

Mayers great at illuminating problems women face, less impressive delivering on her hyperbolic promise to demonstrate how gender equality can save the world. She cites various studies, such as one showing that companies with large numbers of women making key decisions are more profitable than those without, another that men in Scandi countries, where housework is most equally divided, also boast the highest happiness scores. But they dont translate into a clear battle plan.

I was more enthused about Icelands 1975 Womens Day Off, when 90 per cent of Icelandic women abandoned jobs and caring duties, leading to universal appreciation of their contribution to society. Today, Iceland is the most gender-equal country in the world. The WEP is planning a British Day Off for next year. Freshly inspired by Mayers book, Ill be downing tools.
Last year was an unusual year: Never before had so many Indian security bases come under attack by Pakistan-based terrorists in a single year.

For example, the terrorist strike on the Pathankot airbase was New Year's gift to India, while the strike on the Army's Uri base represented a birthday gift for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Furthermore, the number of Indian security personnel killed in gun battles with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir in 2016 was the highest in years.

Narendra Modi with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif

Business

In this light, it is remarkable that Modi is seeking to return to business as usual with Pakistan, now that the state elections are over and Pakistan-related issues have been sufficiently milked by him for political ends.

Modi's u-turn on the Permanent Indus Commission (PIC) issue could mark the beginning of India's backsliding.

After the Uri attack in September, his government, with fanfare, suspended the PIC.

Now, quietly, that suspension has been lifted, and a PIC meeting will soon be held in Lahore. In reality, the suspension was just a sham because the PIC missed no meeting as a result.

Activists from Hindu hardline origination Shiv Sena burn a Pakistani flag during a protest after the attack at Uri

Its annual meeting in the current financial year is being held before the March 31 deadline.

The PIC was created by the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, the world's most generous (and lopsided) water-sharing pact.

The PIC decision indicates that Modi, despite vowing that 'blood and water cannot flow together,' is not willing to abandon the treaty or even suspend its operation until Pakistan has terminated its proxy war by terror.

The World Bank, in fact, is pressing the Modi government to use the PIC to reach a compromise with Pakistan over the latter's demand for fundamental design changes in India's Kishenganga and Ratle hydropower plants that could make these projects commercially unviable. Construction of the Ratle project has yet to begin.

The observable backsliding is also evident from other developments, including the appointment of a retired Pakistani diplomat, Amjad Hussain Sial, as the new secretary general of SAARC after India withdrew its objection.

Modi is even keeping open the option of holding talks with his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, in June on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Reluctance

The Modi government's reluctance to back up its words with action became conspicuous when it persuaded Rajeev Chandrasekhar to withdraw his private member's bill in the Rajya Sabha to declare Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism.

If India - the principal victim of Pakistani terrorism - is reluctant to designate Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism, can it realistically expect the US to take the lead on that issue?

Other powers might sympathise with India's plight but India will not earn their respect through all talk and no action.

To be clear, the confused Pakistan policy predates the Modi government.

Despite Pakistan's unending aggression against India ever since it was created as the world's first Islamic republic in the postcolonial era, successive Indian governments have failed to evolve a consistent, long-term policy toward that renegade country.

The confused Pakistan policy predates the Modi government

Consequently, waging an unconventional war against India remains an effective, low-cost option for Pakistan.

A major plank on which Modi won the 2014 general election was a clear policy to defeat Pakistan's proxy war.

His blow-hot, blow-cold policy toward Pakistan, however, suggests that he has yet to evolve a coherent strategy to reform Pakistan's roguish conduct.

The key inflection point in Modi's Pakistan policy came on Christmas Day in 2015 when he paid a surprise visit to Lahore mainly to grab international spotlight. If it yielded anything, it was the twin terrorist attacks just days later on the Pathankot base and the Indian consulate in Mazar-i-Sharif, setting in motion the ominous developments of 2016.

Waging an unconventional war against India remains an effective, low-cost option for Pakistan

Salvage

To be sure, Modi sought to salvage his credibility when in late September the Indian Army carried out surgical strikes on terrorists across the Line of Control in J&K.

But it was always clear that a one-off operation like that would not tame Pakistan.

India needs to keep Pakistan off balance through sustained pressure so that it has little leeway to pursue its goal to inflict death by a thousand cuts.

It is not too late for Modi to develop a set of policies that aim to impose punitive costs on Pakistan in a calibrated and gradually escalating manner, including through diplomatic, political and economic tools.

If Pakistan can wage an unconventional war with a nuclear shield, a nuclear-armed India too can respond by taking the unconventional war to the enemy's own land, including by exploiting Pakistan's ethnic and sectarian fault lines, particularly in Balochistan, Sind, Gilgit- Baltistan and the Pushtun regions.

India must also up the ante by unambiguously linking the future of the iniquitous Indus treaty to Pakistan's cessation of its aggression so that Islamabad no longer has its cake and eat it too.

Like Lady Macbeth in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, no amount of Indus water can 'wash this blood clean' from the hands of the Pakistani military generals.

The writer is a geostrategist
BJP leader Subramanian Swamy launched a scathing attack at former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru (file pic)

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy launched a scathing attack at former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru when he spoke at Delhi University yesterday.

The MP told a packed house at the Faculty of Law on the university's north campus that Nehru's sole contribution to the Indian Constitution was the controversial Article 30, which gave autonomous status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Swamy also added that Nehru was in London when the Constitution was being framed.

Speaking in the context of the simmering freedom of expression debate that is gripping Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Jamia Millia Islamia, Swamy came down heavily on certain JNU students for 'inciting' trouble.

The BJP MP took potshots at both Nehru and the left-dominated JNU campus, saying 'Jawaharlal Nehru has left students of JNU as his political successors'.

'Incitement is an offence. Gathering people and asking them to incite riots is spiteful.

'They (JNU students) encourage people who throw stones at our soldiers in Kashmir.

'They incited people against the state because Afzal Guru was hanged.'

Dynasty: Indian Prime Minister Nehru (left) by a lily pond in the garden of his New Delhi home. With him are his daughter Indira Gandhi (right) and her son Rajiv who both succeeded him as Prime Minister of India.

During the speech Swamy also said India is a land of Hindus.

The BJP leader added: 'People who live in Hindustan are either Hindus or had Hindus as ancestors, a fact attested to DNA and genetic studies.'

He then pointed out that while a mosque at Ayodhya could be shifted 'respectfully', Lord Ram's place of birth could not be.
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has upheld has capital gains tax levied on UK's Cairn Energy Plc but said that interest cannot be charged on it.

ITAT, in its order dated March 9, 2017, held that Cairn Energy was liable to pay the Rs 10,247 crore tax on a share transfer it did through the internal reorganisation of its India business in 2006, prior to getting Cairn India listed on the stock exchanges.

The tribunal also said Cairn India should have withheld tax on capital gains made by its parent company and it was also sent a demand notice by the Income Tax department for not doing so.

Cairn Energy is a UK-based company that has expanded into India

Cairn Energy had approached ITAT after it was slapped with a tax assessment order of Rs 10,247 crore in January 2014.

Later, it also initiated international arbitration against the tax demand, which is still pending.

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The I-T department had raised a total tax demand of Rs 29,047 crore on Cairn Energy, including Rs 18,800 crore in backdated interest.

A similar tax demand was also raised on Cairn India, the Indian subsidiary of Cairn Energy which the British firm sold to London-based NRI Anil Agarwal's Vedanta Group in 2011.

ITAT is a quasi-judicial institution that specialises in dealing with appeals under the Direct Taxes Acts.

UK firm gets waiver on Rs 18,000cr penalty Tax demand has arisen over the capital gains arising from share transfer involved in UK company Cairn Energy's restructuring of its Indian assets, which include the lucrative Rajasthan oil and gas fields.

The I-T department had raised a total tax demand of Rs 29,047 crore on Cairn Energy which included Rs 18,00 crore in backdated interest.

Penalty has been waived as the tax was imposed retrospectively.

Cairn Energy had taken up the issue with the new BJP government but was told that since the UPA government had amended the I-T Act, it would have to go through the due process. Advertisement

The orders passed by the ITAT are final, though an option for appeal lies to the High Court only if a substantial question of law arises for determination.

In its plea before the ITAT Cairn Energy had said that the assessing officer was mistaken in raising tax demand by invoking the retrospective amendment to Section 9 introduced in the Finance Act, 2012, which was not in the statute when the India-United Kingdom Tax Treaty came into force.

The tribunal stated: 'In view of this, we do not find any force in the argument of the assessee and dismiss ... the appeal.'

It also held that Cairn India could not be forced to pay interest on the outstanding tax as the demand was raised using retrospective tax legislation.

ITAT also rejected Cairn's contention that they have not earned any real income and there has been no increase in the wealth of the assessee.

It observed that there was an increase in the wealth of Cairn owing to the IPO and value derived by book building process.
Uttar Pradesh has emerged as one of India's biggest breeding grounds for young Islamic State supporters.

About 15-20 youths are being deradicalised by the UP anti-terror squad (ATS), while over 100 sympathisers are under surveillance from various security agencies.

The reports come days after state police gunned down a suspected ISIS-inspired homegrown terrorist in Lucknow during an operation that lasted about 13 hours.

The three accused in the Ujjain train blast injured 10 passengers on a train in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday

According to central security agencies Uttar Pradesh is turning into the biggest hub for youths with links to the West Asian group, after southern states like Kerala, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

The surge is believed to be caused by its high Muslim population, unemployment and a spate of communal violence in what is India's most populous state - all used to indoctrinate youngsters from afar.

ISIS headhunters conceal themselves behind an ocean of 2.3 billion live social media accounts, and flood the internet with romanticised videos of life inside the caliphate, as well as brutal execution clips, using them as clickbait to lure potential recruits.

According to senior ATS officers the effort to identify and deradicalise youth in the state began a long time ago.

'So far, 16 men are undergoing deradicalisation, who were identified at a very nascent stage,' inspector general of ATS Aseem Arun said.

'Four of the deradicalised youths have also been admitted to a skill development course. After completing the course in three months, they will be encouraged to work.'

Arms recovered from a terrorist ATS operation in Lucknow

Cops say most of the indoctrinated youths were unemployed and were influenced by the terrorist organisation's ideology through social media.

'Of all those under the radar, four youths were arrested and are in jail - but their deradicalisation process has started so that they mix well with society once they are out,' Arun said.

Central security agencies say over 20 youth in Uttar Pradesh have come in contact with the terrorist organisation through the internet, but could not leave the country to join the fight.

The Intelligence Bureau has received inputs that the Islamic State is making efforts to recruit youths from India

UP police's uncovering of the terror module in Lucknow and the killing of Saifullah is a testimony to the fact that ISIS recruiters have managed to radicalise numerous individuals from the country.

A photo of suspected ISIS terrorist Saifullah, killed in a stand off with the police

Officials say it has been established that the seven people  including the slain terrorist  were identified as active members of an ISIS-inspired terror unit carried out a blast on the Ujjain- Bhopal express train this week, injuring about 10 people.

Cops said that the four wanted to identify themselves with the ISIS module and they learned to make bombs using online resources.

Top sources say youths in UP are instigated by showing doctored videos of violence and riots in the state.

'Videos of Babri Masjid demolition, Muzaffarnagar riots and other sensitive religious issues are being used to propagate terrorism in the name of religion,' said an officer.

Smoke erupts after a blast in the Bhopal-Ujjain passenger train near Jabdi station in Shajapur district in Madhya Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh has witnessed sporadic incidents of communal violence in recent years, which were also used by political parties for polarisation ahead of the state elections.

Worryingly some educated youths  doctors, engineers and software professionals  are attracted to the ideology of terror.

'Besides anger, in some cases, personal anguish in the neighbourhood or workplace has influenced the youth and not necessarily the ideology of the Islamic State,' the officer added. 'This needs to be addressed very sensitively.'

The police and intelligence agencies are keeping a close watch on cyberspace and also communication through WhatsApp, Viber and other chat rooms to keep abreast with the activities of those trying to radicalise the youth.

Various programmes are being undertaken by the central and state governments to deal with the issues of counter-radicalisation and deradicalisation.

Muslim clerics, intelligentsia and leading members of the community are at the forefront of the interventionist programs.

Different ministries and government departments both at the Centre and states, including IT, social welfare, home and minority affairs, are also being roped in.

The surge in ISIS support in UP is believed to be caused by its high Muslim population, unemployment and a spate of communal violence

The Centre has pinpointed five states where ISIS activists could surface, including Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

Intelligence operations have already commenced in these states for monitoring any kind of terrorist activity.

Apart from these, ISIS-links have also been established in conflict-ridden Jammu and Kashmir, but latest information suggests that terror groups are now mobilising and setting up camps in various pockets of the country.
Poachers are killing 45 snow leopards in India every year - meaning the beautiful animal could soon face extinction.

The revelation was made in a report compiled by TRAFFIC, an arm of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

The large cat which is native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia has been listed as endangered on the IUCN red list of threatened species since 2003, when the size of its global wild population was estimated at 4,0806,590 adults.

The snow leopard's remote habitat becomes a challenge in detecting its killers and in law enforcement

In India its estimated population varies from 200 to 600 animals, which are scattered over 90,000 sq km in Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.

Snow leopards sometimes attack livestock animals like cows and goats, leading farmers in Uttarakhand and Himachal to resort to retaliatory killing.

'But 60 per cent of non-targeted poaching incidents result in an attempt to sell their body parts in the black market,' the reports states.

Snow leopards prey on cows and goats, resulting in retaliatory killing by farmers. But 60 per cent of the killings are carried out with an intent to sell body part on the black market

The most popular snow leopard products are its skin and claws.

They are sold in fur markets of Kabul, Darwaz and Chitral.

In addition they can be found as wall hangings, seats and other home decorations.

Snow leopards' bones are also used for traditional medicine, although its skull is generally treated as an object for display in ceremonies.

Sometimes the animals are killed with poisons which are prevalent in South Asia, and the most common method in India and Nepal to kill the cats.

They are also killed by snares, steel traps, shooting and clubbing.

Many animals have been observed by camera traps to be limping painfully with a wire snare or steel trap around their necks or legs.

Living animals are also sold illegally. Almost 80 per cent of live snow leopards were found in China, central Asian republics and Russia.

Live wild animals might be found in zoos, circuses, homes of the wealthy and as 'illegal trophy hunts'.

Claws were found to be the most common item advertised in a 2016 TRAFFIC online market survey in China.

They were described as having superstitious value 'for the exorcism of evil spirits' according to one website advertiser.

A woman and her dog at the Cartier World Cup on Snow in St Moritz, Swizerland, in 2008

Another website advertised a tooth as 'for medicine, to cure angiocardiopathy' (heart disease).

Globally, claw prices range from Rs 2,400 (30) to 4,000 (50) each, whereas each tooth is priced at Rs 5,000.

Prices paid vary from Rs 33,000-10,00,000 - for the skin and Rs 33,000-6,50,000 for the carcass.

Snow leopards live in alpine and sub-alpine zones at elevations of 9,800 to 14,800 ft.

A snow leopard fur coat, recovered for the World Society for the Protection of Animals

They prefer rocky, broken terrain, and can travel without difficulty in snow up to 85 cm deep, although they prefer to use existing trails made by other animals.'

'Its remote habitat also becomes a challenge in detecting its killing and law enforcement,' the report highlights.

'One respondent in a 2016 survey identified some parts as traded from India through the Shipkila Pass into the Tibet Autonomous Region," according to the report.

A woman wearing a snow leopard fur coat and ensemble in 1938

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'India and Pakistan are suspected to be source countries for snow leopard products across the world,' it adds.

In the Northeast, the TRAFFIC report identifies Arunachal and Guwahati in Assam as transit routes or smuggling hubs for snow leopard products.

Cross-border trade into Myanmar and Nepal are conducted from these places. In the northwest, Bhaba and Pin valleys, Shipkila, Sumdo, Demchok and Darchula are hubs of snow leopard products.

Cross-border trade into Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and even Tajikistan are conducted.
The BJP and its allies won 324 of Uttar Pradesh's 403 assembly seats

Prime Minister Narendra Modi led his party to a historic electoral victory in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, bolstering his ability to push through key reforms at the Centre and putting him in a strong position to win a re-election in 2019.

While the BJP and its allies won 324 of the state's 403 assembly seats, the Congress got just seven and its ally Samajwadi Party led by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav bagged just 47.

The margin of victory was the largest seen by any party in more than three decades. The BJP ended up with 312 seats on its own.

Modi said he was 'overjoyed' with what he described as unprecedented support from all sections of the society.

'Thank you. Long live democracy!' he wrote in response to a congratulatory tweet from Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

Celebrations erupted outside the BJP offices in state capital Lucknow and its headquarters in Delhi with party workers dancing and splashing each other with paint as Holi came early.

Modi spearheaded his party's campaign in Uttar Pradesh where the BJP had a sweeping win during the 2014 parliamentary elections with 71 of the state's 80 Lok Sabha seats.

He addressed two dozen rallies as the BJP chose to canvass without picking a chief ministerial candidate and banked solely on his popularity and development agenda in the state.

Modi said he was 'overjoyed' with what he described as unprecedented support from all sections of the society

The poll victory in India's most populous state is also being viewed as vindication of the PM's sudden decision in November to outlaw high-denomination banknotes in a bid to curb corruption.

A visibly unmoved and smiling Akhilesh Yadav reached the Raj Bhavan in the evening and handed over his resignation to governor Ram Naik.

The governor asked him to continue as chief minister until the next government is formed. 'In the entire elections, there were massive crowds in my rallies,' he told the media.

'I did not expect such a thing will happen. I hope the next government will work better than the SP government.

'The people might not have liked my expressway and they voted for the bullet train.'

BSP chief Mayawati, whose party was decimated in the polls and got 19 seats, accused the BJP of tampering with electronic voting machines.

'It is a matter of common discussion here that even if a button is pressed for any other party, vote will be polled in favour of BJP,' she said at a press conference in Lucknow.

The BJP was quick to hit back. 'The Bua and Bhatija (Mayawati and Akhilesh) should accept the verdict of the people and should not humiliate it by raising questions,' party state president Keshav Prasad Maurya told reporters.
Now that Uttar Pradesh's electorate has resoundingly answered the question of who will govern the state, the next crucial matter to be settled is who will be the chief minister.

The question assumes paramount significance for two reasons: the BJP high command, in particular the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah duo, is now famous for appointing surprisingly new faces to the post as has become evident since the party taking power in Maharashtra and Haryana in 2014.

The second reason is that the party has come to power after an absence of 14 years, being equated to Lord Ram's 'vanvaas' (forest exile), and the stakes and expectations are soaring to unprecedented levels.

After an absence of 14 years, being equated to Lord Ram's 'vanvaas' (forest exile), and the expectations of the BJP are soaring to unprecedented levels

The BJP won in Maharashtra and Haryana in the name of Modi and two extremely low-profile leaders - Devendra Fadnavis and Manohar Lal Khattar, were installed as chief ministers.

The situation is just the same in UP, party functionaries from both the state and Centre told Mail Today.

'The logic is straight. The party had so far been imagining two scenarios: if the 300 mark was not breached, probables could stake their claims and the party would have had to think it over.

'But now that we have gone past the 300 mark, the high command can even appoint me or you,' said a BJP functionary, underscoring the fact that the Modi-Shah duo was dominant enough to appoint any leader, discounting any opposition from within.

Given the scenario, there are a number of possible choices in front of the party.

According to sources, the most obvious names are of MoS railways Manoj Sinha, union home minister Rajnath Singh, Thakur leader and hardliner Yogi Adityanath, Lucknow mayor and Modi-Shah confidante Dinesh Sharma, OBC leader Santosh Gangwar and, last but not the least, UP BJP chief and another OBC leader Keshav Prasad Maurya.

Sources say that union minister Mahesh Sharma is out of the race.

Sinha fits in Modi's development agenda, has been in politics since his days as a student leader from the right-wing ABVP in UP's Banaras Hindu University, and is seen as someone who is without any baggage and is also highly educated since he's an IIT alumnus.

He is viewed as a no-no-nonsense person, credited for being efficient and a good administrator.

Yogi Adityanath, on the other hand, is the face of Hindutva in the state and is rumoured to be getting the support of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

Some quarters claimed that the RSS wanted Yogi as the basis of BJP's support and earlier rule under Kalyan Singh was largely its Hindutva appeal. On the OBC issue, party leaders said Maurya was a more complete package as he could be the replacement to the long-lost dynamics of Kalyan Singh days.

The fact that BJP's victory is being ascribed to stitching back the coalition of non- Yadav OBCs and EBCs gives Maurya strong footing.

Also, the credit for the victory largely goes to him almost by default as he is the reigning party chief in the state.

Another name being bandied about is of Sidharth Nath Singh, who carries the legacy of former PM Lal Bahadur Shastri, whom PM Modi celebrated in Varanasi during campaigning.
The firm supplying three reactors for a plant in Cumbria looks set to file for bankruptcy in the US  throwing Britain's energy policy into doubt.

US nuclear firm Westinghouse Electric is considering the move as its owner Toshiba struggles with huge financial problems.

Westinghouse is designing three reactors for a planned nuclear power plant in Moorside, Cumbria, 60 per cent owned by Toshiba.

The 10billion NuGen plant will eventually power up to six million homes as a key part of the Government's energy strategy.

Meltdown: US nuclear firm Westinghouse Electric, which is supplying three reactors for a planned nuclear power plant in Moorside, Cumbria, is set to file for bankruptcy in the US

The project had already been thrown into turmoil when Toshiba announced a 5billion writedown connected to its nuclear business in December.

That crisis appears to be deepening with the potential bankruptcy of Westinghouse.

Sources said Westinghouse Electric Co had brought in the legal firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges as an exploratory step, and had not yet taken a decision on a bankruptcy filing.

Unions have called for the Government to get a grip on the country's nuclear strategy and invest in the plant.

Justin Bowden, nuclear energy secretary for the GMB union, said: 'It looks like the crisis that everybody feared was taking place is now taking place.

'The only positive that can be taken from it is that they are now dealing with it rather than pretending to the outside world it isn't happening.

We are still in the position of wondering how it is that the country's energy supply is left to the vagaries of foreign countries thousands of miles away. The average person must be scratching their head.'

The AP1000 nuclear reactors Westinghouse is designing for the project are being tested by the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency.

Speaking out: Toshiba said yesterday it remained committed to the NuGen project until the final investment decision, but would then seek to sell its shares

The process is expected to finish this month. But it is feared that if different reactors are needed because of problems at Westinghouse it could set the project back significantly.

Toshiba said yesterday it remained committed to the NuGen project until the final investment decision, but would then seek to sell its shares.

It says it will 'consider participating in the project without taking on any risk from carrying out actual construction work'.

A spokesman added it was not aware of any intention for Westinghouse to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Last month it confirmed that selling Westinghouse was an option.

The Japanese conglomerate faces huge pressure to publish its audited earnings by Tuesday after it postponed them a month ago to probe potential problems at Westinghouse further.

If it fails to meet that deadline it has until March 27 to file or face a delisting. NuGen declined to comment on Westinghouse.

Kepco, the South Korean power utility part-owned by the nation's government, has been in talks with Toshiba to buy a stake in NuGen, a joint venture between Toshiba and Engie of France. Some hope Kepco might keep the plan on track.

The Government has resisted putting public money into nuclear reactors. But in December the Japanese and British governments signed a memorandum of co-operation to increase collaboration in nuclear power.

Japanese group Hitachi is planning a power station in Wylfa, north Wales.

A spokesman for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said: 'The Government is committed to new nuclear as an important part of our energy mix, having commissioned Hinkley Point C, the first new nuclear power station in a generation.

'We engage regularly with the developers of proposed projects in the UK.'

Westinghouse declined to comment, but said normal operations were continuing at UK facilities.
Thaddeus Jimenez. Jimenez won a $25 million award in 2012 for a wrongful murder conviction only to spend it on rebuilding his Simon City Royals street gang and committing new crimes

A Chicago gang member who received $25million in a wrongful conviction judgement and was freed from prison after serving 16 years for a crime he didn't commit is headed back behind bars after he spent all of his money and randomly shot a friend in both legs.

Gang member Thaddeus Jimenez, 37, who ran the Simon City Royals gang in Chicago, was sentenced to nine years in prison on Thursday for shooting an acquaintance in the knees.

Jimenez, who had been introduced to the gang life early thanks to his uncles, had been wrongfully convicted in a gang murder in 1997 when he was 13, tried as an adult, and sentenced to 45 years in prison, reported the Chicago Tribune.

Jimenez sued the city and the police department and in 2012, a federal jury awarded him $25million, one of largest police misconduct awards in city history.

Scroll down for video

After being released from prison, Jimenez went back to his old gang ways, and financed the reboot of his old gang, Simon City Royals - he would give cash bonuses to those who would get the gang's insignia tattooed on their faces, like he had

In 2015, he and a fellow gang member filmed themselves shooting an acquaintance, Earl Casteel, 33, whom they happened to meet on the street.

On Thursday, the judge sentenced him to nine years after viewing the video.

Jimenez was serving his time for a crime he didn't commit when his luck turned. After years of begging legal advocates to look at his case, attorneys and students from the Northwestern University Bluhm Center on Wrongful Convictions agreed to do so.

Jimenez, above, at 13 (left) and 12 (right), the age he was when he was convicted as an adult for killing a gang member he didn't kill, he served 16 years

His advocates found proof that another man had confessed to the murder that Jimenez was convicted of, two key witnesses recanted their earlier statements, and a judge acquitted Jimenez in 2007.

He had served 16 years behind bars, often in solitary confinement, one time having little contact with other people for four years. Because of his small stature, he was often beaten in prison.

When he was released, his old gang, Simon City Royals, was basically defunct. Instead of living a life of leisure, or giving back to the community, Jimenez decided to recruit get his old gang back together, and terrorize the community around their 'turf' on Irving Park.

Attorney Jon Loevy, left, with his client Thaddeus Jimenez, who was arrested at 13 only to be exonerated after serving 16 years in prison

Jimenez and Roman were in this black convertible Mercedes when they shot Casteel - they then took off and crashed it

Jimenez, according to the Chicago Tribune, spent virtually all of his fortune (after lawyers took their half) on cars, guns, recruiting new gang members with cash, and giving cash bonuses to those who would tattoo the crew's insignia on their faces. He would also bail members out of prison.

New gang members could make $50,000. He once bailed out a member for $100,000.

Jimenez (in red hat) and fellow gang member Roman drove around Irving Park area until they saw a man they knew, Earl Casteel (above in the black t-shirt)

'What's up, folks?' asks an oblivious Casteel who approached the car

'Why shouldn't I blast you right now' Jimenez demands of an astonished Casteel, who thinks they're friends

Jimenez is seen shooting Casteel in the legs and, as the man screams in pain, driving away

'His new family became the gang, reconstructed from his childhood memory of his uncles [who introduced him to gang life], the kids he had run with before his first arrest,' his lawyer, Steven Greenberg, wrote. 'They became his crew - for a price - and gave him the self-esteem he had always craved and had never had.

He also bought cars, including a $90,000 black Mercedes convertible, an approximately $60,000 2011 Range Rover, and an $80,000 Porsche Panamera. According to the Tribune, he spent 'millions' of dollars on luxury vehicles.

After the lawyers took half the settlement, Jimenez had little left of his award after what he spent.

Meanwhile, the face-tatted gang was flexing its muscle in the neighborhood, driving around, flashing guns and cash, making threats to random people on the street, getting into the drug business, and posting videos threatening rivals and police.

His girlfriend and mother of his two children, Jessica Taylor, says Jimenez has 'trust issues' relating to his time in prison

Jimenez also had two children with his girlfriend, Jessica Taylor.

Prosecutors said the gang 'promotes an atmosphere of terror that devastates neighborhoods and leads only to increasingly longer prison terms, or death,' and that they had a 'feudal means of self-governance.'

It all came to a head on the morning of August 2015, when Jimenez and member Jose Roman drove around in the black convertible Mercedes, looking for a victim.

The two had guns, including Jimenez's custom-plated pistol and Roman's .22-caliber Mossberg semiautomatic rifle, Gucci bags full of ammunition, and an iPhone to record it all. Their soundtrack of choice was opera music.

As the video showed, when the pair ran across Earl Casteel, 33, a former member of the gang and a friend, he greeted them warmly.

'What's up, folks?' Casteel asks when the car pulls up.

'Why shouldn't I blast you right now?' Jimenez says, according to transcript of the video.

"Blast me, n----?" Casteel asks, astonished. 'You my brother, man! I ain't got nothing against you.'

But Jimenez aimed his pistol at Casteel's legs and shot him once in each thigh.

'Why would you do that?' Casteel cried out as he fell.

'Shut up, bitch,' Jimenez said. He then yelled 'Get the f--- out of here!' to Roman and they screeched away.

Cops later caught up to the pair when Jimenez lost control of his car, crashing it. Jimenez ran from the car but was apprehended.

Casteel would need steel reinforcements in his legs and months of physical therapy. He sued the Jimenez estate and won a $6.3 million judgment in December. His lawyer is trying to track down whatever assets Jimenez has left.

Although Jimenez's lawyer argued that he should receive the minimum in prison for his crime since he'd already spent 16 years behind bars for a crime he didn't commit, the judge sentenced him to nine years, slightly less than the maximum of ten.

In a federal filing, prosecutors summed up the strange story this way: '[Jimenez] could have used this money in any number of ways - to assist friends and family, contribute to the community, sponsor others wrongfully convicted or simply live in comfort for the rest of his natural life - instead he chose to build a gang.'

'He has trust issues,' his girlfriend, Jessica Taylor, said outside court Thursday. 'He doesn't trust anyone.'

'Ironically, the restitution he received for his terrible injuries did not bring healing, it just drew other vultures to pick at his wounds,' said his lawyer, Greenberg.
The mother of a Scottish toddler shot dead in a Turkish cafe will no longer face the torment of seeing her son's murderer on the streets after he was gunned down on release from prison this week.

Ozlem Essizhan told MailOnline her how life had been destroyed the moment two-year-old Alistair was killed as he slept beside her in his pram at a seaside cafe in Turkey 2003.

Just 14 years on - and a quarter of the way through his 58-year prison sentence - his murderer Daimi Akyuz was freed, only to be killed six days later at his own wedding.

Furious that he had been released early, Ms Essizhan - who divorced from Alistair's father David and moved back to Turkey - said she could not have coped with seeing her son's killer face to face.

'I can say this is a somehow a relief,' she said in an exclusive interview.

'I've recently moved to Izmir [west Turkey] and if I knew he was out and living in the same city with me and my family and the chance that we could have bumped into each other, it would have been a daily torture for us.

Relief: Ozlem Essizhan, mother of Scottish toddler Alistair Grimason, killed in Turkey 14 years ago, says she feels relief that her son's killer is no longer on the streets so that she never has to bump into him

Murdered: Her son Alistair, above, was two-and-a-half when he was killed by a stray bullet as he slept in his buggy at a cafe in the Aegean resort of Foca

Gunned down: Alistair's killer Daimi Akyuz, above, serving 14 years of a 58 year prison sentence. Six days after being freed, he was shot dead but Miss Essizhan says she takes no satisfaction from his death

Justice: ' I'd much prefer he was in prison getting punished for what he has done,' she told MailOnline from her home town of Izmir in Turkey

'Our life is already very hard since we lost Alistair, at least I'll never have to think about that man.

'I'm not happy nor sad. I'd much prefer he was in prison getting punished for what he has done.'

In an exclusive interview with the Mail Online, Ms Essizhan described the impact of her son's death from a stray bullet in the Aegean resort of Foca.

'My life changed in a worse way it can ever be. Always being sad deep inside me and to live with that is not easy.

'I try not to think of [Akyuz] anyway. I'm mostly thinking of the good times we had with Alistair and still feel he is with us. Even seeing Alistair's picture on the same page as that man is so upsetting.'

Ms Essizhan, who has moved back to Turkey from Scotland to look after her elderly parents, said she was angry that Akyuz was released early from a life sentence.

'For whichever reason he was let out, it was not right. Someone who deliberately killed a man and an innocent child should stay in prison.

'They should stay in prison the full length that he was given.

'Myself, my family and David, we are all very disappointed with the justice system. He should have been in prison right now.

Anger: Ms Essizhan, above, was furious that car dealer Akyuz was released early from prison, having been given a life sentence. She told MailOnline: 'Someone who deliberately killed a man and an innocent child should stay in prison the full length that he was given'

'Torture': Ms Essizhan ran the risk of running into her son's killer after moving back to the Turkish city of Izmir to look after her elderly parents

Gunned down: Alistair was sleeping in a buggy next to his Turkish-born mother and grandmother in 2003 when an argument about a mobile phone broke out at a nearby table. Akyuz pulled a gun on three people and opened fire

Horror: Ms Essizhan, pictured with her husband David and father in 2004, fled the scene of the shooting with her son, not realising that he had already been shot

According to reports in the Turkish media, Akyuz was shot at his own wedding after stepping outside to smoke.

It is understood police are questioning five people in relation to the murder and are attempting to trace a suspect who was in prison with the killer.

Several Turkish newspapers have reported that a man wearing a hood approached the groom and opened fire. At the time, Akyuz was with a friend who is understood to have been injured in the attack.

Alistair's father David said he didn't 'take any joy' in learning that the man who killed his child is now dead after serving less than half of his sentence.

Mr Grimason, from East Kilbride, Lanarkshire, said: 'I was told that he was at his wedding and stepped outside for a cigarette and someone came along and shot him.

'I don't want to see anyone lose their life, especially in those sort of circumstances. It is ironic  he was not scared to use guns and that is how he was killed himself, but I don't want to see that. We campaigned for a long time about gun crime in Turkey.

'Some people might feel I should be pleased that he has been killed but I don't take any comfort from that at all.

'I almost feel sorry for him in a way, or certainly for his family. He had two children and they have lost their father. I don't take any joy in what has happened.'

Sadness: Alistair's father David, pictured in 2004, also said he took 'no joy' in learning the man who killed his child is now dead, after serving less than half of his sentence

Loss: Ozlem, who moved back to Turkey after splitting recently with her husband, both pictured in 2004, said she had struggled to move on with her life. 'Always being sad deep inside me and to live with that is not easy,' she said

The tragedy occurred in July 2003 when Alistair was sleeping in his pram at a cafe with his Turkish born mother and grandmother during a holiday.

As the pair, along with Alistair's grandmother, were at a quiet pavement cafe for dinner, an argument about a mobile phone broke out at a nearby table.

Akyuz pulled a gun on three people and opened fire.

Terrified at the sound of gunshots Ms Essizhan fled with her son still in his pushchair.

At first she did not know Alistair had been killed, but looked down and saw blood. He was hit by one of six shots fired.

At the time her husband was back at home in Scotland, having left his wife with her relatives a few days earlier.

He learned of the heart breaking news that his son had been killed after returning home from a night shift, when his wife called him in tears.

After the shooting, Akyuz fled the scene. A massive operation in the Karsiyaka district of Izmir led to his arrest at the house of a relative where he had been hiding.

He later made a tearful confession on camera to police and admitted causing Alistair's death, although he denied murder.

A judge found him guilty of deliberately killing the toddler and guilty of murdering Ali Bektas, a mobile salesman. Two other men were seriously injured in the shooting.

Addressing the court, Akyuz said: 'I didn't kill on purpose. My one fault is showing the gun and people attacked me and grabbed my hand and I regret very much what happened.'

He was sentenced to a total of 58 years in prison, although he was only ever expected to spend 36 years behind bars  the maximum allowed in Turkey.

After the verdict, Alistair's mother said: 'I hate him and I've never hated anyone in my life.

Ms Essizhan, who has struggled to come to terms with her son's death, moved back to Turkey after splitting recently with her husband.

She also wants to be closer to her parents and her sister who has recently had a baby.

It was only a telephone from the local press alerted her to Akyuz's release.

Killed: Akyuz, pictured attending court in Izmir in 2004, is believed to have been shot at his wedding while he stepped outside to smoke. Police are questioning five people in relation to the murder

Ms Essizhan said: 'We didn't know about his release. We had a phone call at 3am on Friday night from the press.

've just moved back to Izmir two weeks ago and of course this was a shock to me and family. We thought he was still in prison and would be there for a long time.

'No one talked us nor explained us why he was released early. But we are investigating why he was set free early.

'I would like to find out if he was set free as part of a prison amnesty or a punishment exemption.

'Unfortunately both seem to happen often in Turkey and criminals are let out early. He was given a life sentence which should have been applied.'

Akyuz was released two weeks ago, having served less than half of his sentence.

A source in Turkey said prisons are 'overflowing' since the attempted coup last year and a number of inmates, who had served more than ten years, were offered early release.
A New Jersey police officer helped a dying woman fulfill her final wish by taking her to the beach one last time.

Pat Kelly, 78, of Burlington City, has a terminal diagnosis of acute leukemia. When her family asked her what she would like to do before dying, the grandmother said she would like to go the the shore.

But Kelly, who is in hospice care, couldn't get there by herself, so her relatives asked the Ship Bottom Police Department for help, WPVI-TV reported.

On a weekend trip to Long Beach Island earlier this month, Officer Ron Holloway drove Kelly to the water's edge.

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New Jersey police officer Ron Holloway helped 78-year-old Pat Kelly (pictured), of Burlington City, fulfill her last wish of going to the beach one last time earlier this month

Kelly (pictured) has a terminal diagnosis of acute leukemia and is in hospice care. She was unable to go to the shore by herself, prompting her family to ask the police for help

'Oh they could have taken me right then, and I would have been the happiest person. That I could be there one last time in the ocean and the sand, and that was my hurrah,' Kelly said.

She spent time with her granddaughters looking at the ocean, and there was a group hug and prayer with family, friends and Holloway.

'Being able to take her out for this ride on the beach, it was definitely a life-moving experience. It was a check mark in my career,' Holloway said.

Kelly said after she dies, she'd like for her ashes to be scattered on the beach.

'That's my place,' Kelly said. 'I'll be there forever. Just watch out. Some people might step on me.'

The 78-year-old spent time with her granddaughters looking at the ocean (pictured) after Holloway drove her to the water's edge on a weekend trip to Long Beach Island
Shocking official statistics from Sweden have revealed only 13 percent of foreigners found guilty of raping children are being deported to their home countries.

The foreign nationals tried and convicted of some of the most horrific crimes imaginable are being allowed to stay in the country.

Government figures from 2010 to 2014 reveal even rapists who aren't registered as Swedish residents are not being kicked out of the country.

It comes just months after five Afghan teenagers were convicted of gang-raping a boy in Sweden - but none of them will be deported because their homeland is 'too dangerous'.

Five Afghan teenagers have been convicted of gang-raping a boy at knife-point in a forest in Uppsala (pictured) in Sweden - but none of them will be deported, it has emerged

The data produced by the Swedish national government looks at foreign nationals registered as living in the country as residents, as well as illegal immigrants.

Figures look at convictions of foreign nationals and show the shocking number of those being deported for horrific crimes.

The stand-out statistics from between 2010 and 2014 are:

19 percent of foreign nationals registered as Swedish residents convicted of rape were deported

19 percent of foreign nationals registered as Swedish residents convicted of aggravated rape were deported

13 percent of foreign nationals registered as Swedish residents convicted of child rape were deported

17 percent of foreign nationals registered as Swedish residents convicted of aggravated rape of a child were deported

The number of deportees increased when it came to foreign nationals who had not been registered as Swedish residents.

In rape cases, 63 percent of those found guilty were extradited and 73 percent in aggravated rape cases.

When it came to child rape, a shocking 48 percent of those found guilty and not registered as Swedish residents were allowed to stay in Sweden.

The deportation rate in aggravated rape cases involving a child was 67 percent.

The idyllic island of Tjorn in Bohuslan, on west coast of Sweden,as a family paddle in the water

In December, five attackers were found guilty of raping a boy.

All were from the same migrant centre.

The victim, who is under 15, was filmed during the attack, which happened in woodland in Uppsala, south east Sweden.

He was beaten and dragged out to the forest at knife-point before being subjected to an ordeal lasting more than an hour, prosecutors say.

After a trial, the teenagers were found guilty of aggravated rape - but despite requests by prosecutors, they were not expelled from Sweden because of their age and the dangers they would face in their homeland.

The court said that the boys would have been 'hit very hard' by deportation because of the security situation in Afghanistan.

Four of the defendants received jail terms of 15 months while the fifth was given 13 months, Expressen reports.

Prosecutors had claimed that one of the attackers filmed parts of the assault, overnight on October 24 and 25, and posted the footage on social media.

The victim, also from Afghanistan, went to police before five suspects were detained on child rape charges, it was reported in Sweden.

The boy was beaten and dragged out to the forest at knifepoint before being subjected to an ordeal lasting more than an hour, prosecutors say

All five denied the accusations with one saying he was not present.

Two others said they did not remember what they were doing while the final pair made 'some concessions'.

Court papers said the teenagers, aged 16 and 17, 'inflicted beatings' to the child's head and body before 'grabbing the defendant, covering his mouth and dragging or carrying him into a woodland area'.
A California man pleaded guilty Friday to stabbing a U.S. airman who weeks earlier was hailed as a hero for helping thwart a terror attack aboard a French train.

James Tran, 29, faces a nine-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to attempted murder under a plea agreement.

He admitted knifing former Air Force Staff Sargent Spencer Stone in October 2015 during a fight near a Sacramento bar.

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James Tran, 29, faces a nine-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to attempted murder under a plea agreement. He admitted knifing former Air Force Staff Sargent Spencer Stone in October 2015 during a fight near a Sacramento bar

Stone, 23, is one of three Sacramento men who took down a Moroccan gunman with ties to radical Islam, Ayoub el-Khazzani, on a Paris-bound passenger train in August 2015.

French authorities said that their quick-thinking led to the aversion of a mass shooting. Stone told the Washington Post that he needed 20 staples and 8 stitches to close a wound in his neck after tackling Khazzani.

Stone said he forgives Tran and hopes his punishment serves as a positive influence on his life when he is released

Stone left the military last November as a staff Sargent assigned to Travis Air Force Base, said Staff Sargeant Scott Taylor, a spokesman at the base near Sacramento.

Tran pleaded guilty less than a week before he was to go on trial. He also pleaded guilty to enhancements including causing great bodily injury and using a deadly weapon, according to Shelly Orio, a spokeswoman for the Sacramento County district attorney's office.

'I thought he got off kind of easy, but at the end of the day I've kind of moved on with my life,' Stone said.

'We all make dumb decisions and we've got to pay for those decisions. I forgive the guy and hope he can grow from it...and kind of make it a positive thing in his life when he gets out.'

Tran's attorney, Donald Masuda, did not return telephone and emailed messages.

Tran is set for sentencing May 12.

Sacramento police have said Tran was the instigator in a confrontation that led to the stabbing.

Stone, pictured center with President Obama, is one of three Sacramento men, also pictured, who took down a Moroccan gunman with ties to radical Islam, Ayoub el-Khazzani, on a Paris-bound passenger train in August 2015

Stone was with three women and another man when an argument with Tran's group escalated into a fight that spread down a Sacramento street. Police said that the argument incited when someone in Tran's party tried to video tape a woman among Stone's group at Badlands, a club in Sacramento.

Stone's mother, Joyce Eskel, has said that her son was stabbed four times. Doctors had to repair lacerations to his heart and liver and a collapsed lung.

She also said her son was 'very, very fortunate to be alive.'

It was the second time that Stone was knifed within a matter of weeks. He was cut on the neck and thumb when he and two childhood friends from Sacramento stopped the attempted terror attack.

Stone, Anthony Sadler and Oregon National Guardsman Alex Skarlatos were later awarded France's Legion of Honor.
A flight attendant with chronic kidney disease will get a life-saving kidney transplant donation from her pilot.

Jenny Stansel, 38, has battled chronic kidney disease for nearly 15 years but after the Alaska Airlines stewardess had to stop working on one of her flights last March, she learned she desperately needed a transplant.

After Stansel publicly asked friends and co-workers to consider donating, Captain Jodi Harskamp stepped up and agreed to give her friend the life-saving organ.

Stansel and Harskamp, both based in Anchorage, Alaska, have traveled to Seattle for the five-hour surgery scheduled for March 13.

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Flight attendant Jenny Stansel (left) will get a life-saving kidney donation from her pilot Captain Jodi Harskamp (right) in Seattle on March 13

Stansel, 38, (left) learned she needed a transplant last March when she was working as a flight attendant for Alaska Airlines and she needed to stop working because she felt ill. Harskamp (left) decided to donate her kidney after Stansel was told by doctors she needed one to live

The mother's disease was brought on by lupus and in March of 2015, she learned that her illness progressed and her kidneys were only functioning at six percent of their capacity, according to WhoTV.com.

Stansel was put on dialysis and was told the only way she could go off the treatment was to find a donor, sparking her to start asking people to consider donating to her.

For Harskamp, it was a way to repay her co-worker who showed up on her door step with lasagna and wine after her house burned down in a fire a few years ago.

The pilot took tests to see if her kidney would be a match for her friend and it turned out it was.

Stansel's disease was brought on by lupus and in March of 2015, she learned that her illness progressed and her kidneys were only functioning at six percent of their capacity

The two women became friends when Harskamp's (right) house burned down in a fire a few years ago. Stansel showed up on her door step with lasagna and wine

Stansel said to ABC News: 'I was elated! It was like a huge weight lifted off of me. I suddenly started feeling better when I heard that she was a match.'

The flight attendant added to Fox 19: 'She actually had said, "I am going to serve you my kidney in an ice bucket on the drink cart."

'That was the joke. From the beginning, she had no doubt that she was going to be my donor, and I kind of felt the same way.'

Harskamp said: 'I always say Im going to lose a kidney, but shes going to still live. Its a pretty fair trade-off and pain is temporary.'
Rebecca Woodhouse (pictured) has been working as a care co-ordinator for Caremark for four years

Care home workers have been stripping off and performing 2-a-minute online sex shows when they should be looking after disabled and elderly patients.

Footage showed some staff members at Caremark in Walsall, West Midlands, remove their clothes while sat in front of a webcam.

Rebecca Woodhouse, 24, is one of the carers who uses the site adultwork.com to advertise her services to online punters.

According to The Sun, she uses the name 'EnglishEmma_XXX' and can be seen touching her breasts while vaping on an e-cigarette during one video.

Health chiefs who were shown the footage have ordered an investigation and the Care Quality Commission chief said their behaviour was 'completely unacceptable'.

Speaking to Stephen Moyes and Andrew Parker at the newspaper, CQC chief Andrea Sutcliffe said: 'In light of this new information I have asked my inspectors to look into the matter further to ensure that people are being properly looked after.'

Caremark operates a network of franchises in the UK and has an annual turnover of 60million.

But it has been slammed by the CQC after performing at a low standard.

On Ms Woodhouse's profile on adultwork.com, she wrote: 'Come keep me entertained at work guys x.'

The mother wrote on the Caremark site that she was 'always enjoyed what the job entails' and has been 'working in care for the past six years'.

Her post read: 'I have been working in care for the past 6 years and have always enjoyed what the job entails.

'I started working as a Co-ordinator for Caremark 4 years ago which I thoroughly enjoy doing.

Some staff members at Caremark in Walsall, West Midlands, (pictured) have been performing online sex shows

'I enjoy speaking to all staff, service users and service users family on the phone and sometimes when they come into the office.

'While working in the care industry I have gained an NVQ level 2 in care, an NVQ level 3 in business admin and i am currently working on an NVQ level 3 in management.

'My time at work is spent ensuring all service users and staff are happy and have their correct call times and consistent carers.'

In one video, her boss, Michelle Robinson, 26, was sitting in the same room and poses as 'Bonnie_Blonde', according to the newspaper.

Meanwhile, one customer paid 1.99 for a private show after Ms Woodhouse held the webcam up to show viewers her body. She declined to comment to the newspaper.

After being shown the video, Kevin Lewis, the boss of Caremark, told the paper: 'We're not making any comment'.

MailOnline has contacted Caremark for comment.
A suspected serial killer is set to be charged with murdering two women who disappeared on an outback road on Queensland's Sunshine Coast nearly 20 years ago.

After a renewed investigation police expect to finalise a brief of evidence against Derek Sam, who is suspected of killing British backpacker Celena Bridge and teacher's aide Sabrina Glassop.

Sam is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of schoolgirl Jessica Gaudie.

Suspected serial killer Derek Sam is set to be charged with killing two women

British backpacker Celena Bridge, 28, disappeared on July 16, 1998. She was last seen at Booloumba Creek Road at Kenilworth

Kenilworth teacher's aide Sabrina Glassop vanished at Booloumba Creek Road at Kenilworth in 1999

He has denied any involvement in the death of the three women.

Police are also looking at the option of not prosecuting Sam is he leads them to the women's bodies.

'There remains an opportunity for Derek to help himself. All police are trying to get is an outcome for those families,' Detective Senior Sergeant Daren Edwards told the Courier Mail.

British backpacker Celena Bridge, 28, disappeared on July 16, 1998. She was last seen at Booloumba Creek Road at Kenilworth.

Kenilworth teacher's aide Sabrina Glassop vanished on the same road a year later.

Jessica Gauidie was babysitting Sam's children in Nambour, in south-east Queensland when she went missing on August 28, 1999. Sam was convicted of her murder in 2001.

In a recent attempt to find the women police in 2016 took Sam out of the Lotus Glen Correctional Centre, in far north Queensland.

Hoping for a confession they brought him down to Maroochydore police station and then Booloumba Creek Road.

Sam did not assist police, but detectives have been putting together a case against him using witness statements.

Police expect to go to prosecutors by the middle of the year, Senior Sergeant Edwards said.
David Cameron blasted the stupidity of breaking the Tory manifesto pledge not to raise National Insurance, despite his history of going back on election promises.

The former prime minister was caught on camera ranting to Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon about the plan in this weeks Budget to raise NI contributions for the self-employed.

The ITV footage included no sound, but an expert lip-reader reported that Mr Cameron had said: Breaking a manifesto promise is stupidity.

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Making his point: David Cameron was filmed saying: 'Breaking a manifesto promise is stupidity', a forensic lipreader has told MailOnline

The comments open the ex-Tory leader up to the charge of hypocrisy, given that he broke a string of manifesto pledges after becoming prime minister in 2010.

Mr Cameron never met the promise to cut immigration to the tens of thousands, and just weeks after the last election he scrapped a high-profile pledge to bring in a cap on sky-high social care costs by 2016.

Despite this his former director of communications Sir Craig Oliver criticised Chancellor Philip Hammond for going back on his word, insisting Mr Cameron had always strived not to break a pledge.

The Conservatives stated four times in their 2015 election manifesto that they would not increase NI contributions.

Mr Cameron unveiled the policy as part of a tax lock that aides have since admitted was cooked up on the hoof in the final weeks of the campaign. In Wednesdays Budget, Mr Hammond said self-employed people would see their rates go up.

Not happy: The former PM, who quit over Brexit last year, was very animated in his discussions with Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon

Last night Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: David Camerons 2015 election manifesto had more traps in it than an Indiana Jones movie  The Tories are just ignoring all the pledges they put to the public and taking the voters for a ride.

The former prime minister made his comments about the stupid NI move on Thursday at the unveiling of a war memorial.

Armed Forces minister Mike Penning was also party to the conversation at the VIP stand on Horse Guards Parade.

Mr Camerons office said it would not comment on a private conversation.

Responding to the NI rise, Sir Craig said: The reality is most people believe this to be a breaking of a pledge  people will start asking  can we trust you, are you being legalistic, are you dancing on the head of a pin? He added: David Cameron was always very clear on this  once youve made a pledge you shouldnt go back on it.

Theresa Mays spokesman declined to comment on the matter, saying: Lip-reading isnt in my job description.
Jewish families are preparing to celebrate the annual holiday of Purim - including Ivanka Trump and her children, who baked traditional cookies together Friday evening.

The mother of three, 35, shared a cute snap of the cooking session in the evening. She can be seen in the family photo next to her daughter Arabella, 5, and Joseph, 3, making hamentashen.

The triangular cookies, which are typically filled with either poppy seed, raspberry or apricot preserves, are a staple during Purim, which falls on March 11 and 12 this year.

Purim, which is celebrated during huge parties in Jewish communities around the world, commemorates the salvation of the Jewish people in Persia in the 4th century BC as told in the Hebrew Bible, after a royal adviser named Haman planned to order their extermination.

Ivanka Trump shared this photo of herself making traditional cookies for upcoming Jewish holiday Purim with daughter Arabella, 5, and son Joseph, 3, on Friday night

Ivanka posted the photo of herself with her children Friday evening, writing in the caption: 'After-school fun making hamentashen for Purim with Arabella and Joseph.'

The picture is geolocated in Washington, DC, where she and husband Jared Kushner moved as Jared became a senior adviser to his father-in-law at the White House.

After the mogul's inauguration, the pair moved from Manhattan to the capital, where they occupy a $5.5million house in the Kalorama neighborhood, not far from the Obamas' new home.

Ivanka, who was raised Presbyterian and converted to Judaism prior to her wedding in 2009, has shared photos of her family celebrating Purim and observing other Jewish traditions in recent years.

Her youngest child, soon-to-be one-year-old Theodore, didn't seem to take part in Friday evening's baking session as he didn't appear on the snap.

The mother of three (pictured on Wednesday, left with husband Jared Kushner and right next to brother Eric), 35, has shared photos of her family observing Jewish traditions in the past

Ivanka on International Women's Day attended a luncheon hosted by her stepmother, First Lady Melania Trump, inside the State Dining Room at the White House (pictured)

The family was baking Hamentashen (file picture), cookies typically filled with poppy seed, raspberry or apricot preserves, which are a traditional offering during Purim

Hamentashen, which are believed to get their name from Purim villain Haman, are one of the foods traditionally served during the holiday feast, which typically also includes challah bread, meat and wine.

Adults and children are encouraged to dress up in costumes during Purim, one of the liveliest celebrations in the Jewish calendar. Giving money to the needy and sending out food gifts are also part of the observances.

The day before Ivanka shared her family snap, her brother Eric posted a photo of the two of them in Washington, DC, saying he missed his sister since she moved out of New York City.

Eric and Ivanka posed for the picture on International Women's Day, during which Ivanka attended the luncheon hosted by her stepmother Melania in the State Dining Room.
With smoke billowing into the night sky, this video shows the moment a protesting inmate set his clothes on fire on a prison roof.

The lag climbed on to the roof of HMP Guys Marsh in Shaftesbury, Dorset last night, stripped down to a second pair of clothes and started the blaze.

Twenty firemen rushed to put out the flames as around 60 prisoners were evacuated from their cells and and taken to a 'secure zone' overnight.

Fire crews rushed to the scene at HMP Guys Marsh (pictured) after one of the inmates managed to get on top of the roof

The drunken inmate was protesting against changes to the prison regime, according to the BBC.

It is not clear how the inmate illegally got drunk or how he got on to the top of the roof.

Prison Officers Association spokesman Glyn Travis said: 'I am not sure why this man has taken this action and certainly we don't condone it and what we do try to do is encourage them to register their complaints through the proper channels.

'When prisoners complain of a change in regime they are usually talking about the cut to staff - regimes are being changed every day - which can mean more and more time locked up in the cell rather than attending behaviour courses, so we have some sympathy.

'Unfortunately it's only when some prisoners take such actions, which are costly incidents for the taxpayer, that the public tend to wake up and realise these issues.'

A Dorset Police spokesman said: 'Officers attended and discovered a large fire on the roof of a building within the prison, which is believed to have been started deliberately.'

The prisoner was being treated by paramedics as a precautionary measure and was not immediately arrested.

During the prison's last inspection, investigators found it was in 'crisis' and managers and staff had 'all but lost control'.

The unannounced inspection, triggered by 'concerning intelligence', found gangs 'operated openly' in the facility, which was overcrowded with 543 male inmates in November 2014.

The prisoner staged a protest at the category C prison (pictured) in Shaftesbury, Dorset

Violence, largely driven by the drug Spice and illicitly brewed alcohol, was 'very high' and inmates lived in fear, the HM Inspectorate of Prisons wrote in the 2015 report.

In November, images of inmates eating steaks and takeaways captured on smuggled mobile phones at the prison were condemned as 'totally unacceptable' by Downing Street.

The Category C facility holds prisoners serving life sentences as well as those undergoing drug addiction treatment, according to the Ministry of Justice website.

Superintendent Caroline Naughton said: 'This was an isolated incident. An investigation is now under way to establish the exact cause of the fire. These enquiries remain ongoing.

'We would like to reassure members of the community that there is no immediate risk to those living in the surrounding area and that the incident is under control.'

A Prison Service spokesperson said: 'Prison staff worked with the emergency services to successfully resolve an incident involving one prisoner at HMP Guys Marsh on Friday evening.

'We will take the strongest possible action against anyone involved, which could mean extra time behind bars. 'The police are now investigating this incident, therefore it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.'
Schools may close early two days a week and cut A-levels in music and French due to a funding squeeze, head teachers warn.

The Association of School and College Leaders, which represents most secondary school heads, said drastic cuts were necessary to avoid financial ruin.

They said pupils could see two school days reduced by an hour each as schools cannot afford teachers to cover all lessons.

And they said 'vulnerable' A-level subjects taken by fewer than ten pupils per school would be terminated.

It comes amid an escalating row over education funding, which erupted again this week when Chancellor Philip Hammond failed to give more cash to existing schools in his budget.

The comments come amid an escalating row over education funding, which erupted again this week when Chancellor Philip Hammond failed to give more cash to existing schools in his budget

The Government says it has protected per-pupil funding in real terms, but heads say this does not take into account rising costs of staff, pensions, and providing for a growing number of pupils.

Malcolm Trobe, interim general secretary of ASCL, said it would mean head teachers having to cut closer to the bone. He said: 'What I have heard they have been thinking about is that they would reduce the number of lessons in a week.

'For example, if you would normally run 25 one-hour lessons a week, you may go down to 23, with a shorter Wednesday and a shorter Friday.'

Mr Trobe said that while it was illegal to axe a whole day from the school week, it was permissible to cut two hours.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies recently predicted an 8 per cent real terms reduction in per-pupil funding between 201415 and 201920.

Mr Trobe said much of this reduction would have to come from the staffing budget. He added: 'Essentially they haven't got enough teaching time to keep the whole whack going.'

Geoff Barton, new general secretary, said that many people at his school say 'we're going to cut this A-level and this A-level'. Meanwhile, headteachers heckled Justine Greening as she set out her vision for a new wave of grammar schools

APPRENTICE TAX COULD HIT SCHOOLS WITH 125M BILL Schools stand to lose up to 125million a year and may have to axe teachers after being forced to pay a new apprenticeship levy, headmasters say. Big businesses and organisations with an annual pay bill of more than 3million must pay 0.5 per cent of this as a levy. They can then claim back the money if they use it to recruit and train apprentices aged 16 and over. But the Government says schools must also pay the levy, despite being mired in financial problems and having no obvious roles for apprentices to fill. Teaching is a graduate role, so schools have been told they must instead find jobs in catering, administration, maintenance or IT. Yesterday the Association of School and College Leaders called on the Government to rethink the levy, which it said would cripple school budgets. Critics also say overworked staff will have no time to train apprentices as well as look after pupils. Advertisement

However, ASCL said that while some heads may cut hours as a 'last resort', more were likely to drop A-level courses and extra-curricular activities.

Geoff Barton, new general secretary, said: 'Many people will do what is happening at my school, which is saying we're going to cut this A-level and this A-level.'

Sian Carr, president of ASCL, added: 'It will often be those subjects which have always been a little vulnerable, music A-level and modern foreign language A-level and so forth.'

It comes as an ASCL survey found pupils in many secondary schools are now being taught in classes of 35 or more because of funding issues.

A Department for Education spokesman said: 'As this week's Budget demonstrates, the Government is determined to ensure every child has access to a good school place and is given the opportunity to fulfil their potential.

'It means around a billion pounds more will be invested in creating more school places, rebuilding or refurbishing existing schools and investing in technical education for 16- to 19-year-olds.'
A cancer sufferer weighing 42 stone has been stuck in hospital for 30 weeks because he is too big to go home.

Paul Humphrey, 37, has been told he cannot return to be with his family because their house is too small to accommodate the extra large hospital bed he would need.

His mother, Linda, asked her landlord in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, if she could remove a window so the specialist bed could be put in, but was told it was not practical.

Cancer sufferer Paul Humphrey in hospital with his mum Linda Humphrey at his bedside

Linda is now appealing to housing associations for an adapted bungalow so that she can care for her youngest son, who is battling penile cancer and has already lost his genitals to the devastating illness.

She told how Mr Humphrey had worked for many years as a carer and was employed by HICA.

She added: 'He has always been a big lad. But we all enjoyed our family holidays and he loves his family.'

Mr Humphrey was admitted to hospital last August, weighing more than 45st 9lb (290kg)  he now weighs about 42st (266kg).

He had suffered an infection in his leg and following a biopsy doctors also diagnosed penile cancer.

He has now lost his genitals to the illness and in October his family was told there was nothing more that could be done for him.

His mother said: 'It is an instinctive thing for a mum to want to be by her son. I want him to be home.

'I am heartbroken. It is hard enough knowing you will lose your son but knowing you can't have him home is awful.

'I need precious time with him. I go up to the hospital for a couple of hours. He loves his mum's hugs and cuddles.

'I just want my boy home before he dies. I do not know how long he has got but what time there is, is precious. I don't want him to die in hospital.'

Mr Humphrey, who has an older brother David, has been losing weight and becoming increasingly depressed at not being able to go home.

Above is the family home in Grimsby. The family's landlord Home Choice Lincs is looking for alternative accommodation

Mr Humphrey said his greatest wish is for a home where he can be with his family.

He said: 'The bed is quite wide, so it needs to be a place with a wide door or a patio door with a large room.'

He said the care he has received from his family and hospital staff had been 'absolutely brilliant.'

Paul added: 'The nursing and medical staff are smashing with me. They are brilliant. They have always got time for me and have a chat.'

The family's landlord Home Choice Lincs is looking for alternative accommodation.

A spokesman said: 'It's obviously an extremely difficult and distressing time for Paul and his family.

'We have been liaising with them and the various support agencies to see where we may be able to help.

'While the family are classed as in urgent medical need, they do have very specific needs and it's dependent on what properties become available.'
Philip Hammond is facing Cabinet pressure to substantially soften the impact of his controversial tax rise for the self-employed.

Theresa May has instructed the Chancellor to delay legislation on the 2billion National Insurance rise for solo workers until the autumn, as she pledged to listen to critics.

But one Government source said that this climbdown was not enough and the outcry had been so great that the policy will have to be significantly changed.

Philip Hammond, pictured, is facing Cabinet pressure to soften the impact of his tax rise for the self-employed

Some Cabinet ministers have privately been highly critical of the tax raid, suggesting that raising NI on entrepreneurs is not a true Conservative measure.

They have even called for the tax to be equalised by cutting it for employees rather than raising it for the self-employed.

Conservatives no longer seen as a low-tax party Results of a poll showed the Conservatives are no longer seen as a low-tax party. Only one in four voters now sees the Tories as in favour of low taxation after Philip Hammonds raid on the self-employed, according to The Telegraph. Former chancellor, Lord Norman Lamont of Lerwick, has advised Mr Hammond to adopt Thatcher radicalism by giving workers incentives to fund their own welfare if he is to avoid future tax rises. It follows Mr Hammonds reference in his Budget speech to Lord Lamont also announcing the last spring budget  just 10 weeks before he resigned. Writing in The Telegraph today, Lord Lamont urged the current chancellor to scrap the NI increase saying it went against the entire grain of Conservative policy since 1979. He added that offering the self-employed a sop like welfare benefits would not be fair but mere bureaucratic tidiness. More than four in 10 respondents (46 per cent) said they were less likely to vote for the Tories  including 15 per cent of those who voted Tory in the last election. In a further blow, the poll revealed that nearly half (49.5 per cent) of people trust the Conservatives less after Wednesdays Budget. A majority of 55 per cent also said the Prime Minister should have honoured her partys manifesto pledge not to raise National Insurance Contributions. Advertisement

The source said: The Treasury will say the policy is the policy. Thats fine until the policy changes. The backlash against the policy will lead to it being changed or softened.

Backbench MPs also kept up the pressure, with one calling for the way the increase is being implemented to be softened, so that fewer people are hit with such large rises.

Another warned he would still be prepared to vote against the plan unless the rise is scrapped.

Downing Street and the Treasury both insisted last night that the Government remains committed to the National Insurance increase, which was announced in the Budget, even though it breaks a clear pledge in the 2015 Tory election manifesto.

They argued the increase is fair, saying the focus was on providing the self-employed with further benefits such as maternity rights to make up for the tax rise.

But one Government source suggested last night that this may not be enough to please some members of the Cabinet.

The source said Mrs Mays delay was a good holding line, but added: This is going to have to change substantially. There is an issue about the disparity between NI rates for employees and the self-employed  but the best Tory response would have been to reduce the rate for employees.

Conservative MPs are getting letters about this right, left and centre, so something substantial will have to be done.

The source added: That could mean softening the blow by offering entitlements on annual leave or sick pay, or it could mean something else. What is certain is that this wont exist in the same form that it exists now.

A true Conservative way of addressing inequality is to lower another rate and make up the money elsewhere.

Tory MP Bob Blackman said he would consider rebelling if the tax hike is not cancelled

On Thursday at least 18 Tory MPs expressed concerns about the tax raid, but yesterday some of the potential rebels said they welcomed Mrs Mays intervention.

MP Tom Tugendhat said: Im very pleased that the Prime Minister has said that shes going to look at this over the coming months.

However, fellow Tory Neil Carmichael called for much more to be done, suggesting that the National Insurance rises should be introduced more gradually.

Conservative MP Bob Blackman said he would consider rebelling if the tax hike is not cancelled, adding that simply giving the self-employed more benefits in exchange for higher tax was like making them employees of the state.

Last night the Treasury denied reports of a rift with No 10 over the National Insurance U-turn.

Downing Street insisted the Prime Minister remains fully committed to reforming National Insurance.

Asked if Mrs May would use the summer to listen to MPs concerns, her official spokesman said: The Prime Minister has said that the Chancellor and his ministers will be talking to MPs and businesses over the summer. The Prime Minister talks to MPs all the time.
Hani al-Sibai is being investigated by police on suspicion of benefit fraud after being exposed by the Daily Mail

An Islamic preacher linked to the Tunisia beach massacre is being investigated by police on suspicion of benefit fraud after being exposed by the Daily Mail.

Fanatic Hani al-Sibai has also had his benefits cut after photographs taken by the Mail cast doubt on his claim to be severely disabled.

Al-Sibai, who lives in a 1 million house in West London, is described as a key influencer of Ansar al-Sharia, the group believed to have recruited the gunman who killed 30 UK tourists in June 2015.

The hate preacher told British officials he was too unwell to work while fighting efforts to deport him, claiming almost 50,000 per year in benefits.

He said he could not walk without severe discomfort and needed help with washing and getting dressed.

But in the days after the Tunisia attack, a Daily Mail photographer caught him strolling in the sunshine, while carrying a heavy scanner under one arm.

Al-Sibai was also spotted pushing a wheelchair to his car before throwing it into the boot with ease.

Al-Sibai, who lives in a 1 million house, is described as a key influencer of Ansar al-Sharia, the group believed to have recruited the gunman who killed 30 UK tourists in June 2015

Last night a source revealed he has now had his disability benefits cut. The preacher has been interviewed under caution and is now facing a police investigation, which could lead to him being prosecuted for benefit fraud.

Al-Sibai, 56, who is from Egypt, arrived in the UK in 1994.

He had his asylum claim thrown out four years later due to his involvement with the terror group Egyptian Islamic Jihad. But he has managed to stay in the country on human rights grounds. He has been given 123,000 in legal aid.

The preacher was called a key influencer of Ansar al-Sharia in a 2013 report by the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism, based in The Hague.

He is also accused in court documents of praising Osama bin Laden as a lion among the lions of Islam and he said the July 7 terror attacks in London in 2005 were a great victory.

Al-Sibai has also been accused of radicalising Islamic State executioner Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, through his website. Just days after the Tunisia massacre, the married father-of-five was seen walking unaided even though court documents describe him and his wife as severely disabled.

Al-Sibai has also been accused of radicalising Islamic State executioner Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John

The preacher parked his Toyota Corolla Verso  which cost 16,995  in a disabled spot outside his housing association home. Al-Sibai and his wife were believed to be receiving benefits of more than 48,000 a year.

As well as disability living allowance, they were thought to be claiming employment and support allowance, income support, child benefit, housing benefit and council tax benefit.

Last night, a spokesman for the Department for Work and Pensions said: We take all allegations of benefit fraud seriously and investigate every case... however we cannot comment on individual cases.

Al-Sibai denies being a key influencer of Ansar al-Sharia.

He denies rejoicing in the 2005 London terror attacks, saying he meant it was a great victory for Al Qaeda.

He said he does not support Al Qaeda or IS and claims that to the best of his knowledge he never met Emwazi.

His lawyer added: He asks we repeat his condemnation of the killing of innocent people wherever this occurs in the world, including those in Tunisia.

The probe comes days after the conclusion of the six-week inquest into the deaths of the British tourists in Tunisia. In total, 38 people were murdered by Seifeddine Rezgui at the Riu Imperial Marhaba Hotel.
Police are to take language classes to help break down communication barriers with the Polish community.

Sussex Police has also launched a Polish Facebook page to improve relations with local migrants.

The force said a total of 12 officers and staff will take the ten-week Introduction to Polish course.

Police are to take language classes to help break down communication barriers with the Polish community

It hopes it will help officers obtain basic personal information during crime reports or day to day policing.

The social media page  organised by Sussex Police  will be run predominantly by a Polish police volunteer and Polish community support officer.

Chief Inspector Justin Burtenshaw said: The aim of Operacja Akcent is to encourage members of the community to report crime to Sussex Police, share advice about policing in the UK, communicate media updates and also circulate important crime prevention advice.

At the core of local policing is gaining the trust and confidence of our community and working in partnership to problem solve.

Sussex Police has also launched a Polish Facebook page to improve relations with local migrants

'A big part of achieving this is to recognise the need to improve communications and interaction with the local community.

'We are keen to overcome language barriers as we certainly don't want language barriers to prevent anyone from reporting a crime or contacting the police for assistance.'

Volunteer worker for Sussex Police Agnieszka Kornacka said: 'It is important to have this communication bridge within the local area to make sure that we, the Polish community and members of other Eastern European communities, are able to feel confident enough to report crime and talk to the Police.

'I am proud to be a part of Operacja Akcent and look forward to helping Sussex Police and the local community.'
Switch: Matthew Taylor is leading the inquiry for Mrs May

The intellectual reviewing self-employed workers rights for the Tories was once a key lieutenant of Tony Blair.

Matthew Taylor, 56, is the privately educated child of a socialist. He is the son of sociologist Laurie Taylor, whose antics as a 1960s and 70s university lecturer inspired novelist Malcolm Bradbury to write The History Man.

The novel, published in 1975, tells the story of a promiscuous self-proclaimed revolutionary academic who believes his genius gives him the right to do whatever he wants.

Matthew Taylor was the sole child of Laurie and his then wife Winifred. He attended private Emanuel School, Battersea, south London. Known for being a rare Labour supporter at the school, he once boasted after winning the English prize that he would refuse to receive it from the special guest  then Conservative Party leader Margaret Thatcher. But when it came to the crunch he accepted the book token from her.

After school, Mr Taylor first worked for an Australian bank before reading sociology at Southampton University, where he got a first. There, Mr Taylor was such a supporter of socialist MP Tony Benn that he fell out with the student union president, future BBC journalist Jon Sopel.

He started a long-term relationship with lawyer Claire Holland, with whom he had two sons, before they split in 2007. Three years later he set up home with Tony Blairs ex-director of government relations, Ruth Turner. The couple have a child.

In 1992, Mr Taylor stood unsuccessfully to be Labour MP for Warwick and Leamington. Two years later, after the election of Mr Blair as Labour leader, he was put in charge of the partys rapid rebuttal operation.

During the 1997 election he was campaign co-ordinator and director of policy, helping to write the manifesto. After the election victory, Mr Taylor briefly became the Labour Partys general secretary. He supported higher income tax and limits on party donations then considered too Left-wing for the Premier.

Mr Taylor was campaign co-ordinator and director of policy for Tony Blair's, pictured, New Labour during the 1997 election

Between 1998 and 2003 he headed the Institute for Public Policy Research. But he was brought back by Mr Blair to head the Number 10 policy unit.

But a year after the 2005 general election, he left politics again to become chief executive of the Royal Society of Arts.

Last October, he was brought back to the frontline by Mrs May, who asked him to lead an independent review into the rights of the self-employed and new gig economy workers.
Windy weather has taken over the nation this week with speeds huge gusts of up to 60 mph sweeping across Midwestern and Northeastern states, leaving some unsuspecting residents worse for the wear.

At the Mount Washington Observatory in Conway, New Hampshire, one man had to find out the hard way when to let the wind take its course.

He can be seen wrestling with heavy weather as he tries to haul a red flag across an outdoor deck. It finally knocks him to the ground and sends him flying.

One woman who was engulfed in her hot tub cover while trying to protect her outdoor tub from the inclement weather.

The moment she thinks she has a hold on the situation - the cover blows up and traps her the heavy canvas.

A young girl in Lyndhurst, Ohio is seen in the second video trotting up to a front door - before being whipped to the side of her house by a powerful burst of wind.

One woman was captured struggling to cover her hot tub in anticipation for the inclimate weather

A young girl in Lyndhurst, Ohio is seen in the second video trotting up to a front door
No criminal charges were ever brought against Lutfur Rahman despite an election court finding him guilty of rigging the ballot to become mayor of Tower Hamlets in London

Scotland Yard was yesterday under pressure to explain why it has let 'off the hook' A mayor who was booted out of office for stealing an election.

No criminal charges were ever brought against Lutfur Rahman despite an election court finding him guilty of rigging the ballot to become mayor of Tower Hamlets in London.

Yesterday the Metropolitan Police was accused of 'major failings' by the chairman of the London Assembly's police and crime committee.

Steve O'Connell said that there was widespread concern that despite the findings against Rahman, the Met had not brought charges.

He said: 'During our investigation, we, as a committee, have been shocked to uncover major failings by the Metropolitan Police in its ability to investigate allegations of electoral fraud and malpractice.

'Missed files of evidence; missed opportunities to gather witness statements; witnesses who were prepared to give evidence in the Election Court but were unwilling to do so in criminal proceedings - this is not what we expect from a supposedly world-leading police force.'

Mr O'Connell called for an inquiry by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary.

Last year former local government minister Sir Eric Pickles suggested, in an official report, that political correctness may have been partially to blame for what he described as a lack of action by the Met.

Yesterday the Metropolitan Police was accused of 'major failings' in Rahman's (pictured) case by the chairman of the London Assembly's police and crime committee, Steve O'Connell

He recently added the police had 'rather dragged their feet and haven't really understood the seriousness of what is going on'.

Rahman, 51, who was Britain's first elected Muslim mayor, was kicked out of office in 2015 after four ordinary voters defied threats and police apathy to expose him as an election cheat.

He had 'played the race card on every occasion' to try silencing them as Islamaphobes but they were vindicated by a judge who hailed their 'exemplary courage' and declared Rahman guilty of systematic ballot rigging.

The 2015 election court heard how Scotland Yard was accused of turning a blind eye to 'industrial scale' voting fraud that would shame Africa.

Rahman and his cronies stole the May 2014 election for mayor in Tower Hamlets by creating an army of 'ghost voters', forging postal votes and threatening Muslims they would go to hell unless they backed him.

Electoral judge Richard Mawrey QC likened police officers who claimed there was 'hushed calm' at fraud-riven polling stations to the legendary 'three wise monkeys', who saw, heard and spoke no evil. And he said the whole of society would be 'lost' if those in authority were afraid to stand up to wrongdoing.

Last night Andy Erlam, who led the case that barred Rahman from public office, said: 'It is nothing short of scandalous that the police have still not done anything. Rahman was proved to be a crook by the election court, and all the evidence was there on a plate for the police to bring criminal charges.

Steve O'Connell, the chairman of the London Assembly's police and crime committee, said that there was concern that despite the findings, the Met had not brought charges

'Yet they inexplicably let him off the hook. The question is, why? Now at last they are under pressure to do what they should have done months ago, and actually bring Rahman to justice.'

Mr O'Connell said there were still chances to mount a criminal prosecution 'and bring a sense of closure to what has been a systematic affront to the democratic process'.

He said a bundle of 27 files sent to the Director of Public Prosecution was not reviewed by the force, and that there were missed opportunities to gather witness statements.

He said: 'It is time therefore for a fresh pair of eyes to review the activities of the Met in regard of the allegations of electoral fraud and malpractice as they relate to the 2014 Tower Hamlets Mayoral election.'

The Met issued a statement saying the 27 files of evidence had been considered by the Crown Prosecution Service which had decided not to refer any matters to the police.

However, it added: 'The CPS and the Met have agreed to undertake a further joint assessment of the files to see whether they contain anything that changes the advice previously provided by the CPS, changes the decisions previously made by the Met, or requires further investigation by the Met.'
Labor's Mark McGowan is on track to be the state's new premier, according to results from Newspoll and ReachTEL.

Labor needs a swing of 10 per cent to win the extra 10 seats required to end Colin Barnett's eight-year reign as WA Premier.

A ReachTEL poll of 2500 voters has Labor's primary vote at 40.3 per cent, compared to the Liberal-National primary vote at 32.7 per cent.

Labor's Mark McGowan (right) is on track to be the state's new premier, according to results from Newspoll and ReachTEL

Labor needs a swing of 10 per cent to win the extra 10 seats required to end Colin Barnett's eight-year reign as WA Premier

It gives Labor a commanding 54 per cent to 46 per cent lead on a two party preferred basis, winning an additional 14 seats after an 11 per cent swing.

Newspoll also has Labor ahead of the Liberal-Nationals by the same margin on a two-party basis.

Mr Barnett, 66, on Friday launched a last-gasp pitch for votes, saying his government has much more to give.

'There's a lot more to be done; exciting times to be had - don't lose your nerve now,' he said.

'With Mark McGowan as premier Perth will become dull.'

Mr McGowan told reporters on election eve winning the extra 10 seats would be akin to 'climbing Mt Everest'.

He remains the state's preferred premier over Mr Barnett by a margin of 45 per cent to 37 per cent, according to Newspoll.

Support for Pauline Hanson's One Nation looks to have plummeted in the wake of five senators either being dumped or quitting, and a controversial preference-swap deal with the Liberals

Support for Pauline Hanson's One Nation looks to have plummeted in the wake of five senators either being dumped or quitting, and a controversial preference-swap deal with the Liberals.

One Nation's primary vote has dropped from 13 per cent to 8 per cent in just six weeks.

Across the state, almost 1.6 million people have enrolled to vote for more than 700 candidates from 16 parties.

More than 180,000 early votes and 167,500 postal vote applications had been received by Friday morning.
Muhammad Ali's son was detained for the second time in a month by TSA officials, and believes that they are doing so because he is Muslim.

Attorney Chris Mancini says Muhammad Ali Jr. was detained for 20 minutes on Friday as officials asked yet again to check his ID and passport before he could board a JetBlue Airways flight home to Florida.

Ali, 44, and his mother traveled to Washington to speak to members of congress about a separate airport detention incident on February 7, in which Ali claims that he was detained for more than two hours in a Florida airport.

Muhammad Ali's son was detained for the second time in a month by TSA officials, and believes that they are doing so because he is Muslim

Muhammad Ali Jr, ( with his father Muhammad Ali) claims that the reason that he has been fouled is because he is Muslim

'None of this was happening Wednesday,' Mancini said in a telephone interview Friday afternoon as he was traveling with the Alis. 'Going to Washington obviously opened up a can of worms at DHS.'

Ali asked Congress: 'If it isn't a Muslim ban, why did they ask about my religion?'

TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein says a call was made to confirm Ali's identity when he arrived an at an airport check-in counter on Friday.

She also said he was patted down because his jewelry set off a checkpoint scanner alarm.

Farbstein says the TSA doesn't have the authority to detain passengers.

Ali, 44, was returning from a trip to Washington with his mother where they went to speak in Congress about racial profiling.

He told members of Congress Thursday he believes his recent detention for extended questioning at a Florida airport is an example of why the government needs to put an end to it.

He asked: 'If it isn't a Muslim ban, why did they ask about my religion?'

Democratic lawmakers asked Muhammad Ali Jr. and his mother to speak and answer questions at a forum highly critical of President Donald Trump's immigration policies. No Republicans attended.

Ali and his mother traveled to Washington to speak to members of congress about a separate airport detention incident on February 7, in which Ali claims that he was detained for more than two hours in a Florida airport

He'd taken a trip with his mother, Khalilah Ali, Muhammad Ali's first wife, and was reportedly stopped by immigration officers. Ali Jr is pictured with his father and three sisters, sitting in his mother's lap

In February, Ali was stopped for the first time on his way back from a trip with his mother Khalilah Camacho Ali, Muhammad Ali's first wife.

That time, Ali's mother got through, but he was held in a small room and questioned for two hours, according to TMZ.

Ali Jr's spokesman Chris Mancini told TMZ that the he was asked twice if he's Muslim, and also where he got his name.

His mother had no idea where he was the whole time.

Muhammad Ali was an american professional boxer and political activist. He was black and a Muslim, and is celebrated as one of the most important sports figures of the 20th century. Ali is pictured versus center with his son (far left), and four others

The incident occurred just four days after a federal judge halted President Trump's immigration ban.

The ban barred immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering the U.S.

US Customs and Border Protections did not comment to TMZ about individual travelers, but said that 'all international travelers arriving in the US are subject to CBP inspection'.
Police are trying to figure out if a dead woman is a suspect in her husband's shooting death, or a witness to his homicide or suicide.

Authorities in Arundel, Maine had been searching for Sue Kim Coito, 65, who had severe Alzheimer's disease, since Wednesday, when the body of her husband, Matthew Coito, 63, was found in the kitchen of their home at 45 Campground Road, reported the Portland Press Herald.

Matthew had been shot to death and Sue Kim was nowhere to be found.

Police are not yet sure if Matthew was murdered or committed suicide.

Matthew and Sue Kim Coito were both found dead in a tragic scenario this week at their Arundel, Maine home

Matthew was found shot dead in the kitchen Wednesday, and Sue Kim was missing. On Friday, she was located deep in the woods behind the home (above), police think she died of natural causes

Sue Kim suffered from advanced Alzheimer's

Police searched for Sue Kim and found her body Friday deep into the woods behind their rural home.

Her cause of death is not yet known, state police Sgt. Chris Harriman said, according to WGME, but appears to have been natural causes.

The ground was still covered in snow in the area where she was discovered by a game warden and her dog.

The situation was discovered when a friend, who hadn't heard from the couple since last Friday, decided to go over to their home to check on them.

'Its suspicious, but weve narrowed it down to a couple of scenarios,' said Harriman during a news conference. '[Sue Kim] could be a suspect. She could just be a witness.'

According to cops, there was no evidence of a break-in at the home, no vehicles were missing, and there were guns in the house.
An Egyptian man who launched into an abusive rant in Arabic about Pauline Hanson as he posed with her for a picture has divided social media users.

Video shows the man holding a poster for One Nation candidate Doug Shaw, in Mandurah in Western Australia, and he appears to be in good spirits as he stands next to Pauline Hanson to pose for a photo on the eve of the state election.

However, the Egyptian man begins speaking to the camera and hurls insults at the One Nation leader as she smiles politely, unaware of what he is saying, Pedestrian TV reported.

The man appears in the video with Pauline Hanson during her WA campaign trail

A translation of the man's rant suggests he says: 'This is the b**** Pauline Hanson from One Nation.

'Nobody vote for her... ever.

'She is the b**** who is trying to prevent us from entering the country.'

Some commenters suggested he did not say 'b****', but used another insulting Arabic term.

Without knowing what he is saying Senator Hanson nods along and even puts her thumbs up at the end of the video.

The pair end the video sharing a smile as the unknown man said 'thank you'.

It is reported the man is speaking in Arabic and is telling people not to elect Pauline Hanson

The man's prank on the One Nation leader has divided social media users - with many slamming him for being 'disrespectful'.

'Well I'm absolutely offended that this disgusting person I couldn't understand insulted Senator Hanson,' one Facebook user wrote.

'The joke's actually on him. Standing there with a 'vote Hanson' sign, being friendly... And speaking in a different language the complete opposite? Get some courage and say what you think. Epic fail,' commented another.

Another woman said: 'I don't agree with her politics either but referring to her a b**** is really disrespectful. Not necessary. Show some respect for women.'

The One Nation party is polled to receive 8 per cent of the WA primary vote

Others thought the man's stunt was funny, posting: 'He's a legend! Job well done!'

Another wrote: 'What a stitch up! That's phenomenal'.

The campaign trail for the state election has come to an end with WA voters heading to the polls on Saturday.

Current Premier Colin Barnett is heading for defeat according to recent polls with One Nation's primary vote looking to end up on 8 per cent, down from 13 per cent in just six weeks.
A man who fled the scene of a fatal car crash south of Brisbane has handed himself into police.

A 28-year-old woman travelling in a Mitsubishi Lancer died when the car collided with a Holden Commodore in the early hours of Saturday at Brown Plains, Logan.

Three others were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

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A man who fled the scene of a fatal car crash south of Brisbane has handed himself into police

Police had appealed for the driver of the Holden Commodore to contact them.

He had fled the scene on foot.

A Queensland Police Service spokesperson confirmed a 38-year-old man Browns Plains handed himself into police later on Saturday morning.

'It appears in the lead up to the collision (the Commodore) was travelling eastbound, at speed, when it disobeyed a red traffic control light, colliding with the Mitsubishi,' Police Inspector Karen Shaw told 9 News.
In Staten Island, New York, where President Trump won 57 per cent of the vote, some residents are preparing to welcome immigrant families into their home to keep them from being separated or deported.

The effort, which mimics the underground railroad, is a network that offers refuge to families at risk of deportation in areas where Trump has a high level of support.

It was begun by Cesar Vargas, New York's first undocumented lawyer, who works under former President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival, or DACA, program, which shields immigrants from deportation and allows them to work in the United States.

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A group of residents in Staten Island, where President Trump won 57 per cent of the vote, are preparing to welcome immigrant families into their home to keep them from being separated or deported

The effort, which mimics the underground railroad', is a network that offers refuge to families at risk of deportation in areas where Trump has a high level of support

'This has been growing organically throughout the whole country, especially places where Trump won big' Vargas said to NBC News.

Ruth, a local educator who withheld her full name so as not to be identified by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is a part of the network in Staten Island.

The effort was begun by Cesar Vargas, New York's first undocumented lawyer, who works under former President Obama's DACA program

She said to NBC: 'It's immoral to take children away from their parents. People came here illegally because there was no decent pathway to come here any other way'.

Vargas said the effort is not political, but started at local community meetings where he noticed a need for safe havens for some immigrant families in Trump-supporting communities.

In overwhelmingly conservative areas like Staten Island, Vargas said that many residents had heightened motivation after the election to protect and work on behalf of the immigrants in their community.

He said that the community wants to show that Trump does not represent their values, and that he did not win because of his rhetoric on immigration.

Vargas also said that there are 35 families on the Island that are willing to open their homes when the time comes.

One undocumented immigrant, Saul Dominguez (pictured), said that this information gives him some hope. He fled Arizona to come to Staten Island in 2010

One undocumented immigrant, Saul Dominguez, said that this information gives him some hope. He fled Arizona to come to Staten Island in 2010 after the passing of the SC 1070 immigration enforcement bill, reported NBC.

Dominguez works as a laborer for a local construction company, and has lived in the United States for 22 years with no criminal history. He said he has been turned back at the border many times when he has tried to return to the US after visiting family in Mexico.

Although the Department of Homeland Security has exempted DACA recipients from the increased enforcement policies, Vargas said he worries about being deported.

Vargas explained to NBC that he is worried his DACA and law license could both be taken away. He also said he's worried about his undocumented family members, such as his 73-year-old mother.

Although the Department of Homeland Security has exempted DACA recipients from the increased enforcement policies, Vargas said he worries about being deported

Vargas explained that he is worried his DACA and law license could both be taken away

A similar effort is undergoing in deep red Birmingham, Alabama, where Vargas worked with Yazmin Contreras to organize about 12 homes for immigrants to take refuge.

The group is committed to helping immigrant workers and their families, as well as taking children if things don't go as planned.

The Alabama effort started after the controversial HB 56 was implemented in 2011, which bans landlords from renting homes to undocumented immigrants, forces schools to check a student's legal status and allows local police to arrest anyone under the suspicion that they are in the country illegally, reported NBC.

Vargas' effort has also expanded to community groups in Georgia and Illinois who are willing to open their home to immigrants.
A teenage girl has been sexually assaulted on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland just before midnight on Friday.

Sunshine Coast detectives are investigating the sexual assault of an 18-year-old girl in Maroochydore.

Preliminary investigations indicate just before midnight the woman left a licensed venue on Duporth Avenue with a man before being assaulted in a nearby alley.

A teenage girl has been sexually assaulted in Maroochydore, Queensland after leaving a nightclub just before midnight on Friday (stock image)

The Sunshine Coast Daily is reporting the incident took place in a laneway behind the Duporth Tavern.

The woman was transported to Nambour Hospital for treatment and medical assessment.

Investigations are continuing into the incident.

Police are appealing for anyone who may have been in the area and seen anything suspicious to contact police.

Members of the public are asked to contact Contact Crime Stoppers by calling 1800 333 000.

Queensland Police said the 18-year-old had just left a licensed premises on Duporth Avenue with a man, before she was allegedly assaulted in a nearby alleyway
Police are searching for a man seen getting out the water before a woman was found dead inside a car submerged in a West Australian harbour.

WA Police said they were called to a crash in the vicinity of Point Casuarina in Bunbury, south-west of Perth, about 4.50am on Saturday morning.

They said it appeared a dark coloured 2005 Ford Falcon sedan drove over one of the harbour's rock walls and became submerged in the water.

A woman has been found dead inside a car submerged in the harbour in Bunbury

Divers from Water Police attended and conducted a search of the vehicle and located a deceased person inside the car.

A second person was seen in the water, but it is believed the man left the area on foot and the police search for him is continuing.

He described as being in his 30s, about 180 to 185cm tall, of medium build with shoulder length brown hair ,and wearing jeans and a checked shirt.

There are concerns he may also have injuries and he is urged to come forward and make contact with police.

WA Police said they were called to a crash in the vicinity of Point Casuarina in Bunbury

A WA Police spokesperson said the incident appeared to be a tragic accident, but a formal conclusion would not be made until police had spoken with the man seen near the car.

'A witness has then seen a male person alight from the water and run off on foot,' South West Superintendent Mick Sutherland told The West Australian.

'We're making enquiries to try and locate that person and ask them to get in contact.

'The circumstance surrounding the crash are unknown until we talk to all who are involved. To me it looks like a tragic accident.'

Supt Sutherland added it took six hours to remove the vehicle and the womans body was found by specialist divers.

Police are seeking witnesses to the incident and investigations are continuing.

Anyone with information regarding this crash, or who saw the car in the time leading up to the crash, is asked to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or report the information online at www.crimestopperswa.com.au.
Two people are critically ill in the hospital in San Francisco after drinking tea from the same Chinatown herbalist.

Tea leaves bought at Sun Wing Wo Trading Company at 1105 Grant Ave contained the plant-based toxin Aconite which can be a deadly poison when not processed correctly, said the city's Department of Public Health on Friday.

Health officials say a man in his 50s in February and a woman in her 30s this month became critically ill within an hour of drinking the tea, and both remain hospitalized.

These tea leaves (above) made two people critically ill in San Francisco after they bought them at an herbal company

Each person grew weak then had life-threatening abnormal heart rhythms that required resuscitation and intensive care.

Aconite, also known as monkshood, helmet flower and wolfsbane, is used in Asian herbal medicines. But it must be processed properly to be safe.

Health officials are working to find the original source of the tea leaves, and they are warning others to stop consuming it.

Sun Wing Wo Trading Co., above, on Grant Street, sold tea that had the toxin Aconite in it, say public health officials

'Anyone who has purchased tea from this location should not consume it and should throw it away immediately,' Dr. Tomas Aragon, health officer for the city told SF Gate. 'Aconite poisoning attacks the heart and can be lethal.'

The products have been removed from the shelves, according to the outlet.

Residents who drink tea are being warned that if they are suffering numbness in the mouth, face or limbs, or have chest pain or palpitations, or irregular heartbeats, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea to immediately seek medical attention.

Those who drank the tea but didn't suffer symptoms are safe but should not drink anymore, said health officials.
A boy was sent to hospital after he was bitten in the face by a dog.

The primary school-aged boy was attacked in Willung, Victoria on Saturday.

Paramedics were called to Johnsons Lane in Willung South around 12.20pm, an Ambulance Victoria spokesperson said.

A boy was hospitalised in serious condition after being bit in the face by a dog. Stock image

The boy was sent to hospital after he was bitten in the face by a dog. The primary school-aged boy was attacked in Willung, Victoria on Saturday

The boy was bitten on his head and face, the spokesperson said.

He was transported to Latrobe Regional Hospital in serious but stable condition.

The boy's exact age was not known, the spokesperson said.

Police said they did not attend the scene.

Willung is located about two hour's drive east of Melbourne.
Child rapist Roman Polanski will return to the US to end his four-decade legal case, but only if a judge says beforehand that he has already paid for the sex crime, legal documents have shown.

The director's attorney wants an LA judge to unseal details of a 1977 plea deal, which he says only required Polanski to serve 48 days for raping Samantha Geimer when she was 13 years old.

Putting an end to the case would require Polanski to travel back to the US after years of self-imposed exile, which his lawyer says he is prepared to do - under the condition that the judge preemptively agrees that Polanski has served enough time, TMZ reported Friday citing legal filings.

Attorney Harland Braun says a judge reneged on the original plea deal and insisted Polanski might instead be sentenced to 50 years behind bars, prompting Polanski to leave the country for Europe.

Roman Polanski (left) will return to the US to end his four-decade legal case, but only if a judge says he has already served time for assaulting Samantha Geimer (right) when she was 13

Polanski, 83, has spent the past 40 years on the run following allegations he raped Geimer. He pleaded guilty to having sex with the 13-year-old but fled before the sentencing.

Braun requested last month that a judge at the LA County Superior Court unseal the transcript of the testimony of the prosecutor, which he says contains details of the 48-day deal with Judge Laurence Rittenband.

If granted, the request to unseal the testimony could allow Polanski to return to the US without serving additional time behind bars.

But a new filing has since come, in which Braun adds as a condition for the director's return that the judge state that Polanski has served enough time for the sex crime.

Prosecutors earlier this month urged a judge to reject Polanski's efforts to unseal the testimony, saying that previous rulings by California judges that Polanski must return to Los Angeles for sentencing remain valid.

'The defendant has many options before him if he returns [to Los Angeles],' Deputy District Attorney Michele Hanisee wrote. 'What he cannot do is dictate outcomes from afar while insulating himself from any potential adverse consequence.'

She said Polanski could instead argue for time served, appeal previous rulings or withdraw his guilty plea and go to trial. A hearing in the case is scheduled for March 20.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office has insisted Polanski (pictured) remains a fugitive and subject to arrest in the US because he fled the country before sentencing

It is understood Polanski wants to be able to visit his wife Sharon Tate's grave. The actress (pictured with him at their wedding 1968) was murdered by Charles Manson's gang in 1969

Following his arrest in 1977, the French-Polish director spent 42 days in Chino State Prison before he was released.

Braun claimed Polanski's time in state jail along with almost a year he spent on remand in Switzerland while fighting extradition more than covers the original 48-day term stipulated in the deal.

It is understood Polanski wants to be able to visit his wife Sharon Tate's grave in the US. The actress was murdered by Charles Manson's gang in 1969.

His case remains an international cause celebre, where some argue it is time to drop US demands for his extradition but others say he must be punished.

In January, Polanski turned down an invitation to head the jury at the French Cesar film awards - the country's equivalent of the Oscars - following a public outcry.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office has long insisted Polanski remains a fugitive and subject to immediate arrest in the US because he fled the country before sentencing.

It says his case cannot be resolved until Polanski returns to California to face justice.

France does not extradite its nationals. A Polish court last year ruled against his extradition to the US and an earlier attempt to have him extradited from Switzerland when he went there also failed.
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An explosion of color awaits those who step inside this extravagant home in the paradise of Palm Springs, California.

Its owners have dubbed the property as the 'Penguin Cottage,' and were inspired to create a home that embodies the beauty of their worldly travels.

The marigold and teal entrance to the home readies the senses for what lies inside - which includes multi-colored wooden floors, themed rooms and a breathtaking view of Mount San Jacinto from the private stoned patio.

An explosion of color awaits those who step inside this extravagant home in the paradise of Palm Springs, California

The marigold and teal entrance to the home readies the senses for what lies inside

Its owners have dubbed the property as the 'Penguin Cottage,' and were inspired to create a home that embodies the beauty of their worldly travels

The home includes multi-colored wooden floors, themed rooms and a breathtaking view of Mount San Jacinto from the private stoned patio

Carl Tookey and Gregg Featherston are a pilot and flight attendant couple who have owned the dream home since the mid 1990s

Their listing estate agent Klint Watkins said that the two were particularly inspired by the Charleston landmark in East Sussex, England

Carl Tookey and Gregg Featherston are a pilot and flight attendant couple who have owned the dream home since the mid 1990s, the New York Post reported.

Their listing estate agent Klint Watkins said that the two were particularly inspired by the Charleston landmark in East Sussex, England, which was home to Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant who literally took the decorating into their own hands by painting on the walls and furnishings.

'Their goal was to create whimsy and fantasy,' he said.

They also drew inspiration from the Green Drawing Room within London's Buckingham Palace. It was the former home of Queen Elizabeth, and the drawing room was her own saloon.

The Charleston was home to Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant who literally took the decorating into their own hands by painting on the walls and furnishings

They also drew inspiration from the Green Drawing Room within London's Buckingham Palace. It was the former home of Queen Elizabeth, and the drawing room was her own saloon

Their listing estate agent Klint Watkins said that 'their goal was to create whimsy and fantasy'

The Spanish-style home is 1,664-square-feet nestled on 556 South Vista Oro is on the market for $499,000

The Spanish-style home is 1,664-square-feet nestled on 556 South Vista Oro is on the market for $499,000

The art-loving couple designed two rooms with specific paintings in mind

The Spanish-style home is 1,664-square-feet nestled on 556 South Vista Oro is on the market for $499,000.

The price runs just slightly higher than the average property cost in the Palm Springs area, which hovers at $315,400, according to Zillow.

The art-loving couple designed two rooms with specific paintings in mind.

Their dining room is an interpretation of a paiting done by Memphis artist Valerie Berlin Edwards. In her portrait, an open door reveals a sheep standing outside

The Penguin Cottage depicts the portrait using red walls, multicolored wooden paneled floors, a green table, and a sheep-shaped stained glass window

Their dining room is an interpretation of a paiting done by Memphis artist Valerie Berlin Edwards. In her portrait, an open door reveals a sheep standing outside.

The Penguin Cottage depicts the portrait using red walls, multicolored wooden paneled floors, a green table, and a sheep-shaped stained glass window.

One of the bathrooms is even painted pink and boasts a large bathtub in order to replicate a print hung in the room, titled 'Bathing the Emperor,' which depicts a seagull and a penguin soaking in a tub.

One of the bathrooms is even painted pink and boasts a large bathtub in order to replicate a print hung in the room, titled 'Bathing the Emperor,' which depicts a seagull and a penguin soaking in a tub

All the more shocking, is that the home was formerly completely white

It boasts high ceilings, a fireplace, and welcoming french doors that open to the gorgeous blue-tiled pool

All the more shocking, is that the home was formerly completely white.

The property has certainly come a long way from its monochromatic beginnings.

It boasts high ceilings, a fireplace, and welcoming french doors that open to the gorgeous blue-tiled pool.

French doors open up to the stone private stone patio that stretches around the front and left hand side of the home

Continuing with the colorful theme, the marigold and teal trim adorns the outside of the home

The home is privy to gorgeous unrestricted views of Mount San Jacinto, which is the second largest mountain range in Southern California

Keeping with the yellow theme, lounging pods are pictured next to the pool to soak up some sun
A land and water search is underway for a missing Queensland man after his car was found abandoned.

Samuel Thompson, 22, has not been seen since Tuesday morning and his friends and family have been unable to reach him through social media or on his mobile phone.

Investigators have 'grave concerns' for the childcare worker's welfare, police said.

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Samuel Thompson, 22, has not been seen since Tuesday morning and his friends and family have been unable to reach him through social media or on his mobile phone

His dog was found unattended in home in Albion, a Brisbane suburb on Thursday. It had been abandoned in the apartment for two days - something that added to investigators' 'suspicion'

Mr Thompson's orange Ford Mustang car (pictured) was discovered unlocked near Byron Bay, NSW on Thursday and his dog was left unattended in his apartment

A land and water search is underway for the missing Queensland man as police fear he may have been murdered

His dog was found unattended in home in Albion, a Brisbane suburb on Thursday.

It had been abandoned in the apartment for two days - something that added to investigators' 'suspicion,' the police spokesperson said.

Mr Thompson's orange Ford Mustang car was discovered unlocked near Byron Bay, NSW on Thursday.

That location, as well as other spots around Brisbane, were considered possible search areas, police said.

'People do go missing all the time, but normally those people aren't of good physical and mental health, they aren't surrounded by friends and loved ones, and there is usually some explanation and there is a note left and something else,' Detective Inspector Tim Tresize told ABC.

'In this case, it is a complete mystery.'

Search crews were spotted near Deep Water Bend, in the northern Brisbane suburb of Bald Hills, on Saturday afternoon.

Mr Thompson had been spotted there before his car was found in Byron Bay, police said.

Search crews were spotted near Deep Water Bend, in the northern Brisbane suburb of Bald Hills, on Saturday afternoon

It was believed that search was related to Mr Thompson's disappearance

A land and water search is underway for Samuel Thompson, 22, who disappeared on Tuesday

Mr Thompson left his apartment at 9.30am on Tuesday, by himself and seemingly in good health

Last September Mr Thompson was robbed by masked men who stole his car, police said.

Investigators said there was nothing that suggested that incident and the disappearance were related, but they are not ruling it out.

Mr Thompson wrote about the robbery on his Facebook page, listing eight wrist watches, a Louis Vuitton bag, a pair of Gucci loafers, and his Ford Mustang among the items stolen.

The car was located shortly after the theft.

Mr Thompson left his apartment at 9.30am on Tuesday, by himself and seemingly in good health.

He is described as Caucasian, 180cm tall, with brown hair and brown eyes.
The attorney for a young woman who was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement after speaking at a news conference about immigration says she's been released from custody on Friday, according to ABC News.

Daniela Vargas, 22, was arrested by ICE last week and informed that she would be deported back to her native Argentina without a hearing.

Abigail Peterson, her lawyer, said that authorities informed her that Vargas' case will be handled as a 'visa waiver overstay,' which means she won't be given a hearing and will be flown back to Argentina.

ICE agents detained Vargas on Wednesday after she spoke at a news conference in Jackson, Mississippi.

At the news conference, she called on President Donald Trump to protect immigrants like her.

Daniela Vargas (pictured) was one of several so-called Dreamers who spoke out at a press conference in Jackson, Mississippi, on March 1. A few hours later she was under detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Vargas' status in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program had expired in November 2016, and she applied to renew it mid-February after coming up with the $495 application fee.

Vargas was released under an order of supervision, though it is unclear what the terms of that order are.

'We expect Daniela to return to her friends and community in Mississippi shortly to resume her daily life and pursue her dreams,' her attorneys said.

Vargas' lawyers said they will pursue 'court filings regarding the reason and manner' of Vargas' arrest and detention.

Vargas was seven years old when her parents brought her from the city of Cordoba, Argentina.

She graduated from high school in 2013, attended community college and started at the University of Southern Mississippi, aspiring to be a math professor.

Miss Vargas said at the press conference: 'A path for citizenship is necessary for DACA recipients but also for the other 11 million undocumented people with dreams.'

She recalled watching ICE agents taking away her father and brother and said: 'I was scared for my life.'

Several Dreamers were invited to the joint session of Congress this week by Democrats as President Trump (pictured) made his first address. He has said he will retain DACA

Senator Kamala Harris, a Democrat from California, tweeted: 'Talking publicly about fears of deportation is not a crime and should not get someone detained.'

Another senator, Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, said he was seeking more information on her case from the Department of Homeland Security.

Sen Durbin tweeted: 'Disturbing that ICE may have followed her from an immigration press conference.'

Her attorney said she had been granted the two-year protection twice before, in December 2012 and in November 2014.

Ms Peterson said detaining someone with a pending DACA application was 'very unusual'.

'Why they would move forward the way they have is, honestly, mind-boggling,' she said.

An executive order President Trump issued in January compels federal immigration agents to step up enforcement, but Trump has said they would focus initially on criminal offenders.
Dashcam footage from a shocking officer-involved shooting in Alabama has emerged almost three years after the incident.

Airman Michael Davidson was shot by Opelika police officer Phillip Hancock after he responded to a report of erratic driving on Highway 85 the evening of March 6, 2014.

The video shows that as Davidson struggled to get out of his vehicle the officer yelled for him to show his hands - and when he did, the officer mistook his wallet for a weapon.

Davidson's attorney Brian Mosholder argued that the reason he was struggling to get out of the car was because his vehicle was parked on a downward slope, making it difficult to emerge from the driver's side

Footage shows the harrowing moment Officer Hancock shot Davidson as he emerged from the car with his wallet

Officer Hancock was cleared of all wrongdoing in the incident, as a court found that he had not infringed on Davidson's constitutional rights and that the officer used 'reasonable' force.

They did, however, reportedly call the shooting a 'disastrous mistake,' according to WRBL.

The officers repeatedly asked Davidson if he was armed, to which he responded 'no,' and told them he was only holding his wallet.

As the video goes on, Hancock shoots and Davidson falls to the ground, where a pool of blood develops around him.

Opelika police officer Phillip Hancock (pictured left and right) responded to a report of erratic driving on March 6, 2014.

Airman Michael Davidson (pictured) was shot by officer Phillip Hancock but survived

He lays screaming on the ground for several minutes before paramedics arrive. He survived the incident.

Officer Hancock is shaken when reinforcing officers arrive - cursing as he retells the sequence of events.

Another officer lays his hands on the hood of a police car, taking several deep breaths and shaking his head at the bloody scene.

Davidson's attorney Brian Mosholder argued that the reason he was struggling to get out of the car was because his vehicle was parked on a downward slope, making it difficult to emerge from the driver's side.

'It's very obvious from that part of the video that Officer Hancock is creating a situation that he wished had happened that would have justified this shooting,' he said.

The officers repeatedly asked Davidson if he was armed, to which he responded 'no,' and told them he was only holding his wallet

Officer Hancock was cleared of all wrongdoing in the incident, and a court found that he had not infringed on Davidson's constitutional rights and that the officer used 'reasonable' force

'When you look at the video, none of that happened. When you look at the video, in less than six seconds, from the time Michael Davidson opens his door, Officer Hancock shoots him, and he shoots him for absolutely no reason.'

He was quoted by WTVM as saying: 'Michael is doing physically well. He still has some issues emotionally from being shot. I do not think that is a shock to anyone. We are in the process of determining if we will file an appeal with the United States Supreme Court.'
Imaeda also set up a secret network of cameras to watch his

Masaaki Imaeda, 66, has been fined $215,000 for an illegal housing complex which burned down in Sydney's Alexandria

A millionaire slumlord who watched his tenants having sex through a covert camera network before his shanty town burned down has been fined $215,000.

Masaaki Imaeda, 66, leased out bedrooms in his illegal Sydney properties to young Japanese tenants and spied on their most intimate moments through secret cameras.

But the lid was lifted on his ruse when a fire tore through an Alexandria shipping container complex he leased out in 2014, forcing tenants to flee.

On Friday in the Land and Environment Court he was fined $210,000 and costs in the order of $71,000, 9News reported.

'The conduct for which the defendant is to be sentenced was planned and prosecuted over a long period of time, and involved some complexity, and he has shown no contrition,' Justice Terence Sheahan found.

Imaeda was not held responsible for the fire itself but for the illegal housing put the lives of his tenants in grave danger.

The tenants, mostly international students from Asia, all shared one port-a-loo and lived in shipping containers, an old bus and caravans.

The City of Sydney told released a statement condemning the 'unsafe' housing complex and welcoming his sentence.

'Thanks to the hard work and effort of our officers, the city has successfully disrupted share-accommodation providers operating networks of rental properties that have been illegally subdivided, are unsafe or overcrowded,' the statement said.

But the lid was lifted on his ruse when a fire tore through an Alexandria shipping container complex he leased out in 2014

Imaeda was not held responsible for the fire itself, but for the illegal housing the put the lives of his tenants in grave danger

Pictured is a kitchen in the Alexandria shanty town that burnt down in 2014

Imaeda was not in court fr the sentence because he is currently serving an 18-month sentence for secretly filming tenants in other properties having sex.

Daily Mail Australia this month obtained police photographs of the covert cameras Imaeda hid in the light fixtures, which had a full view of the beds his tenants slept in.

Photographs from inside the shed show a foot massager sitting on a milk crate and the black leather recliner chair on which he sat watching a large television.

The 66-year-old pleaded guilty to multiple charges in November, and was sentenced in December in Campbelltown Court.

Imaeda also set up a secret network of cameras and watched his tenants having sex from a recliner chair with a foot massager in a shed

NSW Police photographs show a camera hidden in a light fixture, which was on the ceiling of his tenant's bedroom

Imaeda is serving a maximum of 18 months behind bars, with a non-parole period of 10 months.

His lawyer had argued he suffered 'from a number of medical issues'.

The elaborate network of cameras was uncovered in April last year when a young couple discovered a covert ceiling camera with a view of their bed, police documents obtained by Daily Telegraph reported last year.

The married couple had been living in the home for just five days when the wife stumbled on an online post, warning Imaeda was known among Japanese students for hiding cameras in the bedrooms of his homes.

A young Japanese couple found a camera hidden in their ceiling. The camera faced the floor-length mirror and had a view of the entire room (pictured)

There was a camera hidden in a television and a camera disguised as a smoke alarm in another bedroom
A conservative doctor-turned-pundit with deep ties to Wall Street and the pharmaceutical industry is President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Food and Drug Administration.

Dr Scott Gottlieb, 44, would be tasked with Trump's goal of cutting red tape at the FDA, which regulates everything from pharmaceuticals to seafood to electronic cigarettes.

Trump has called the FDA's drug approval process 'slow and burdensome' despite changes to speed reviews, particularly of cutting-edge products.

Dr Scott Gottlieb, 44, is Donald Trump's pick to head the Food and Drug Administration. Gottlieb previously served as an FDA deputy commissioner under Bush and, since 2007 when he left that post, has served on the boards of nine pharmaceutical or medical tech companies

Gottlieb, pictured left, has spent more than a decade shifting between roles in government and the private sector. His ties to pharmaceutical companies and other private enterprises will likely be questioned during his Senate confirmation hearing

Gottlieb is no stranger to the FDA - he served as a deputy commissioner under President George W. Bush.

While he has frequently criticized the FDA for unnecessary regulations and urged changes to get safe and effective drugs onto the market faster, he generally has supported its overall mission.

A Senate vote is required before Gottlieb can take over as head of the agency.

Gottlieb is a resident fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute and a partner in the venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates.

He has spent more than a decade in Washington rotating between the worlds of government, health policy consulting and political think tanks.

Since leaving the FDA in 2007, Gottlieb has served as a board member or adviser to at least nine pharmaceutical or medical technology companies, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Gottlieb is a consultant to GlaxoSmithKline's product investment board; a managing director at T.R. Winston & Company merchant bank, which specializes in health care; and a clinical assistant professor at New York University School of Medicine. He also is a policy adviser to the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship.

There are likely to be questions at his Senate confirmation hearing about how those ties might affect his decisions at the FDA.

Federal ethics rules do not require government officials to sell off their investments, but they must recuse themselves from matters that would affect those investments.

As part of the federal vetting process, FDA nominees typically disclose and sell stocks, funds and other investments that could pose a financial conflict of interest.

Donald Trump hopes to cut regulation at the FDA, which Gottlieb also seems to support. However, Gottlieb does not support libertarian-leaning proposals such as having the private sector assess drug effectiveness as opposed to the FDA

Gottlieb generally supports reduced FDA regulation, particularly for emerging products like health apps and wearable devices like the Apple Watch.

But he has never embraced libertarian-leaning proposals that would have the FDA abandon its effectiveness reviews of drugs and medical products.

Under those plans, the FDA would simply approve products that appear safe, allowing the private sector to determine how well they actually treat diseases or medical conditions.

Connecticut Representative Rosa DeLauro, a Democrat who serves on the House Appropriations subcommittee that oversees FDA funding, said the nomination sends the message that Trump is committed to 'rolling back regulations and opening the floodgates to potentially dangerous drugs and medical devices.'

The evaluation of medical effectiveness has been a cornerstone of the FDA's mission since the early 1960s and is universally embraced by its staff and the businesses it regulates.

'If FDA were not in business of evaluating effectiveness then these companies wouldn't be able to say much.

'Where companies distinguish themselves is by being able to claim that their product actually does something,' said Michael Gaba, an industry attorney who specializes in FDA law.
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Police in the German city of Essen have ordered a shopping centre to remain closed on Saturday after a tip from security services of 'concrete indications about a possible attack'.

It was reported by German newspaper Bild that multiple suicide bombers were plotting to attack the Limbecker Platz centre with explosives.

This afternoon police said they had searched an apartment in the nearby town of Oberhausen and the owner was being questioned. Police later said they had detained another man in an internet cafe in the same town.

However, in a later statement police said the pair 'are not suspects' in the case.

Police in the German city of Essen have ordered the Limbecker Platz shopping centre to remain closed on Saturday due to 'concrete indications about a possible attack'

It was reported by German newspaper Bild that multiple suicide bombers were plotting to attack the centre with explosives

Large groups of armed police were spotted outside the entrance to the retail centre stopping shoppers from entering

'The current state of our investigations points to the threat being exclusively at the shopping centre,' said the police in a statement

'Police have concrete indications of a possible attack,' a spokesperson for North Rhine Westphalia Police said

An image posted to social media showed police vans and armed officers posted around the closed shopping centre

The shopping center and the adjacent car park stayed closed as about a hundred police officers positioned themselves around the compound to make sure no-one could enter

Several officers scoured the inside of the building this morning to bring out early morning cleaning staff

'The current state of our investigations points to the threat being exclusively at the shopping centre,' said the police in a statement.

The shopping center and the adjacent car park stayed closed as about a hundred police officers positioned themselves around the compound to make sure no-one could enter.

Several officers scoured the inside of the building to bring out early morning cleaning staff.

Police added that parking garages and the nearest underground rail station had also been closed.

'Police have concrete indications of a possible attack,' a spokesperson for North Rhine Westphalia Police said.

'In order to avoid possible danger to visitors, they will not be able to enter the shopping halls or the car park.'

The mall is one of the biggest in Germany with more than 200 stores, according to the shopping center's website.

Interior ministry spokesman Tobias Plate said the operation was being handled by the local police force but added that his ministry was in 'constant touch' with the GTAZ, a joint counter-terrorism centre used by 40 internal security agencies.

A police spokesman said outside the centre: 'Right now we have completely closed the shopping centre in Limbecker Square.

Heavily armed German police waited outside the shopping centre after the terror threat was announced

Police added: 'In order to avoid possible danger to visitors, they will not be able to enter the shopping halls or the car park'

Police added that parking garages and the nearest underground rail station had also been closed because the threat

Last July, a German-Iranian who police say was obsessed with mass murderers including a Norwegian right-wing fanatic shot dead nine people at a Munich shopping mall before turning the gun on himself. Pictured the Limbecker Platz centre

Domestic security officials estimate there are some 10,000 radical Islamists in German, with roughly 1,600 among them suspected of being capable of violence

'Yesterday we received lots of hints, which had to be taken seriously, that there might have been the possibility of an attack on the centre today.

'We have decided to remain here and have mobilised lots of our security and police forces who are making sure that nobody gets into the shopping centre at all today.

'I suspect that the shopping centre will be remain closed for the duration of the day.'

In 2016, three people were injured in an attack on a Sikh temple in Essen by radicalized German-born Muslim teenagers.

The mall is one of the biggest in Germany with more than 200 stores, according to the shopping center's website

Germany is on high alert following major radical Islamist attacks in France and Belgium in recent years

An image posted to social media shows police officers and vehicles posted outside the closed shopping centre

The incident comes just a day after seven people including two police officers were injured when a man wielding an axe went on the rampage at a train station in Dusseldorf. Pictured, the Limbecker Platz shopping centre

Pictured, the city of Essen in in North Rhine-Westphalia, the western portion of Germany, near the city of Dortmund

The incident comes just a day after seven people including two police officers were injured when a man wielding an axe went on the rampage at a train station in Dusseldorf.

The suspected culprit, identified as Fatmir H, from Kosovo, has been arrested and German anti-terror police confirmed they are not hunting anyone else.

The 36-year-old ran towards a nearby underground station and jumped from a bridge as he attempted to flee.

On social media the shopping centre wrote: 'The Limbecker Platz is this Saturday closed for safety reasons.

'The police [have] concrete indications for a possible attack.

'To eliminate the potential threat to visitors, the closure has been established.

'We apologize for any inconvenience.'

Essen, in the industrial Ruhr region, has nearly 600,000 inhabitants.

Last July, a German-Iranian who police say was obsessed with mass murderers including a Norwegian right-wing fanatic shot dead nine people at a Munich shopping mall before turning the gun on himself.

Domestic security officials estimate there are some 10,000 radical Islamists in German, with roughly 1,600 among them suspected of being capable of violence.

The shopping centre Limbecker Platz Essen posted on social media to warn shoppers that the centre was closed

The suspected culprit, identified as Fatmir H, from Kosovo, has been arrested and German anti-terror police confirmed they are not hunting anyone else (Stock image of Limbecker Platz)
More than 40 per cent of parking fines are scrapped on appeal by councils across Britain, new figures show

Over-zealous parking wardens could be incorrectly issuing millions of tickets each year, with more four out of 10 appeals being upheld.

Data uncovered by The Sun reveals that drivers who challenged local authorities won in 44 per cent of cases.

The newspaper revealed the figure following Freedom of Information requests to more than 100 councils.

These showed that 385,341 of 875,776 appeals were won.

But with four million tickets issued in 2015-16, and some councils refusing to reveal the number of appeals upheld, it reports that the real number could be far higher.

In a scathing response to the figures, the AA said: 'Councils have long seen parking enforcement as a cash cow, instead of a way to deter selfish drivers from parking where they shouldnt.'

The highest number of wrongly-issued tickets were by Huntingdonshire District Council, where 81.54 per cent of appeals were won.

Other councils where people successfully appealed tickets included Waverley Borough Council, 79.06 per cent, City of Lincoln, 78.43 per cent, West Oxfordshire, 75.43 per cent, and Wirral, where 69.57 per cent were won.

Today Hugh Bladon from the Alliance of British Drivers told MailOnline: 'It's all pretty shocking, councils do view motorists as easy targets.

'Our advice to people is always to appeal if they have legitimate concerns. Unfortunately not enough people do appeal, but we would urge them to do so.

'A lot of people are intimidated by the threat of fines doubling if they don't pay up within a certain amount of time.'
Several politicians women's rights groups have called for a boycott on Tesco after its chairman controversially claimed white men are becoming an 'endangered species' in boardrooms.

John Allan also said males now have to work twice as hard during a Retail Week Live conference on how to become a non-executive director, less than 24 hours after International Women's Day.

Mr Allan said that the pattern of male dominance which has been the norm for 'thousands of years' has been broken with companies' endeavours to meet equal opportunities requirements.

Tesco chairman John Allan has claimed that white men are an 'endangered species' in the boardroom

He cited his own company as an example of how the times are changing, stating Tesco has eight non-executive directors, of whom three are now female - although only two are currently listed on the supermarket's website.

He said: 'If you are a white male  tough  you are an endangered species and you are going to have to work twice as hard.'

'There is loads of female talent out there, you have got to be prepared to look for it.

'You need to tell the headhunters that you really want them to serve up the most talented people they can find but to ensure there is a good mix.'

But he has been slammed by several politicians, including Labour MP Yvette Cooper and Women's Equality Party, Sophie Walker, who said she would be taking her business to its rivals.

She simply tweeted: 'Shopping at Sainsbury's this weekend' before adding '#BoycottTesco'.

Meanwhile, Ms Cooper also jumped on social media to express her disgust, posting: 'Says the man who chairs a board of eleven, eight of whom are white men.....!!! No words.'

The food giant is currently 33rd in the 'Female FTSE', a league table that ranks corporations on their recruitment of women, seven places behind rivals Sainsbury's.

But the statistics do not appear to justify Mr Allan's remarks, with only slightly more than a quarter - 29 per cent - of non-executive directors in the UK being female.

According to recruitment agency Egon Zehnder, this figure represents a five-year low.

Chief executive of women's rights group, Sam Smethers, told MailOnline: 'For an endagered species white men are still doing rather well. Over seven in 10 board members and nine in 10 executive director roles are held by men.

'But it's interesting that they feel threatened by even a modest step to redress the balance. Just imagine what actual equality would feel like.'

A professor at the University of Exeter Business School, Ruth Sealy, told The Times: 'Yes, men have to work very hard to get these positions, but my goodness so do women,'

'When as many mediocre women are appointed as mediocre men, we'll know we have parity.'

Tesco has eight non-executive directors, of whom three are now female - although only two are currently listed on the supermarket's website, Mr Allan claims (file image)

Mr Allan sought to clarify his remarks in a statement on Tesco website.

'I would like to clarify the remarks I made earlier this week at a Retail Week Live panel event where I was speaking to aspiring Non-Executive Directors, many of them women.

'The point I was seeking to make was that successful Boards must be active in bringing together a diverse and representative set of people.

'There is still much more to be done but now is a good time for women to put themselves forward for NED roles.

'In all the organisations I have been involved in I have been a committed advocate of greater diversity and very much regret if my remarks have given the opposite impression.'
Australian casino mogul James Packer is reportedly wanted for questioning by Israeli police amid a corruption investigation into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Mr Netanyahu has been questioned four times by police over allegedly receiving expensive and undeclared gifts from high-flying businessmen, including Mr Packer.

Israeli police have been in contact with the Australian Federal Police in connection to the corruption investigation against Mr Netanyahu, according to Times of Israel.

James Packer (left) is wanted for questioning by Israeli police in regards to a corruption investigation into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

AFP refused to comment to ABC on their reported contact with the Israeli police, but said the agency 'works closely with its international counterparts to investigate and prosecute allegations of corruption'.

Mr Netanyahu has described Mr Packer as a 'good friend', but reports have suggested the billionaire has showered lavish gifts on the Prime Minister's family.

A television report by journalist Raviv Drucker claimed the executive chairman of Crown Resorts gifted Mr Netanyahu's 25-year-old son Yair free luxurious holidays at properties he owns around the world.

The gifts reportedly accepted by Mr Netanyahu were valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars - including expensive cigars, champagne, meals and hotel rooms.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the AFP and Crown Resorts for comment.

Australian Billionaire businessman James Packer (L) listens to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel address a joint meeting of the United States Congress
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The Earl of Onslow has slammed the National Trust's plan to rebuild his ancestral home, which burnt down in a fire two years ago.

The National Trust has said it will rebuild Clandon Park house, the 18th-century Palladian-style mansion in Surrey, with plans to create cafes and a giftshop on the site.

Rupert Onslow, the 8th Earl of Onslow, said the trust should be honouring its remit to 'preserve and protect' and questioned whether the organisation should be spending 30 million to rebuild the house from scratch.

Clandon Park house was left as just a charred shell after the blaze tore through the building damaging 95 per cent of the stately home

The house, pictured before the fire, was built in the early 1730s by Thomas Onslow, 2nd Baron Onslow, to the design of the Venetian architect Giacomo Leoni

Yesterday the National Trust launched a competition to find a designer or design team who will take on the challenge of restoring the stately home, which is located near Guildford.

Rupert Onslow, the 8th Earl of Onslow, said the trust should be honouring its remit to 'preserve and protect'

Clandon Park house was left as not much more than a charred shell after the blaze, possibly caused by an electrical fault in the basement, tore through the building damaging 95 per cent of the stately home.

Lord Onslow's ancestors, struggling with the cost of maintaining the building, bequeathed the house to the National Trust in the 1956.

It was built in the early 1730s by Thomas Onslow, 2nd Baron Onslow, to the design of the Venetian architect Giacomo Leoni.

The historic house was also used as a military hospital during the First World War, and as a depository for the Public Records Office during World War Two.

Before the fire gutted the Georgian mansion it had become a popular local wedding venue, and was also rented out occasionally for use in film and television, including 2008's The Duchess starring Keira Knightley.

The trust believes the principal state rooms on the ground floor can be restored after the fire, with new galleries and visitor spaces.

Several hundred artefacts were recovered from the house in the wake of the blaze, and many of those found in the debris await conservation.

However, Lord Onslow said any attempt to rebuild Clandon Park house would only result in a 'suburban mock-Georgian monolith'.

He told the Telegraph: 'I stood on the lawn and watched the house where I had my 21st and my stag night go up in flames. It was horrid. But I believe it should be left to lie in ruins.

The estate has been used for filming, with Keira Knightley (above) among stars visiting to shoot 2008 film The Duchess

The National Trust has launched a competition to find a designer or design team who will take on the challenge of restoring the stately home, pictured here as flames engulfed the building

Several hundred artefacts were recovered from the house in the wake of the blaze, which was possibly caused by an electrical fault in the basement

'The building is dead and I think it's wrong to try and rebuild it. The result can only ever be a copy, a pastiche. I've no doubt it would be a beautiful copy, but it would be a copy nonetheless.'

Clandon Park house was left as not much more than a charred shell after the blaze

He questioned the National Trust's claim that insurers would only pay to rebuild the house, and said the money could be better spent on purchasing vulnerable properties or making minor repairs to other buildings.

He told The Times: 'Is that what they are there for  to run cafes and gift shops?

'I thought their remit was to preserve and protect things of extraordinary national beauty and interest. Not building stuff.'

The trust said: 'We know Lord Onslow has a different view to us on what should happen to Clandon. We may disagree, but we respect him and value our relationship.'

Paul Cook, the project director, added: 'Clandon was a masterwork of its time and it now needs a sensitive, thoughtful restoration of the state rooms on the ground floor along with the introduction of new spaces, fit for the 21st century, on the upper levels.

'The competition will help us find the right team to sensitively restore and create contemporary spaces that will give the building renewed purpose, allowing it to engage new audiences through an imaginative and changing program of activities, ensuring a sustainable future.

Mr Cook added: 'The Onslow family is a key stakeholder of ours and have been invited to see the progress that we have made. We will keep talking to the Onslow family about the future plans for Clandon.'
While his party faced near-certain defeat in the WA election, Malcolm Turnbull was in a Sydney pub chatting to a satirical newspaper.

The Prime Minister endured a bizarre, 20-minute boozy interview with the comedy writers behind the Betoota Advocate, Archer Hamilton and Charles Single.

Sandwiched between the cowboy hat-wearing pair on an old couch at the Old Fitzroy in Woolloomooloo, he was quizzed on topics from Tony Abbott to Russian hacking and rowing verses kayaking.

While his party faced near-certain defeat in the WA election, Malcolm Turnbull was in a Sydney pub chatting to a satirical newspaper

Sandwiched between the cowboy hat-wearing pair on an old couch at the Old Fitzroy in Woolloomooloo, the Prime Minister was quizzed on a wide range of topics

Mr Turnbull was hopelessly outmatched in drinking by his interviewers, only getting through two schooners while they powered through more than twice as many.

After confessing being 'a bit dusty' before the interview began, Mr Hamilton suggested a comparison between Mr Abbott and NRL player Robbie Farah.

'He's a great clubman, has been there for years - hasn't done much else - but he can't get on with whoever's in charge?' he said.

But Mr Turnbull was not going to be drawn into another spat with his predecessor, chuckling, 'No, you can't tempt me into that area'.

He was more comfortable recalling his 'very mediocre' playing career with the Drummoyne 'Dirty Reds' and Sydney University.

'I was the definition of the enthusiastic amateur,' Mr Turnbull said.

The bizarre, 20-minute interview was with the comedy writers behind the Betoota Advocate, Archer Hamilton (R) and Charles Single (L)

Mr Hamilton suggested a comparison between former PM Abbott and NRL player Robbie Farah (R) because they 'can't get on with whoever's in charge'

Mr Turnbull did the interview on the same day as the WA election, which sees Liberal Premier Colin Barnett (pictured) almost certain to be heavily defeated

The trio did briefly discuss the election Mr Turnbull had not campaigned in, as he was asked about concerns the Russians might meddle in the poll.

'I am not concerned by it because we've got very good protection against cyber-hacking and it is very much a paper-based system,' he said.

Staying with the Russian theme, Mr Single whipped out a copy of The Communist Manifesto from under a seat in the couch and handed it to Mr Turnbull.

'Is that in the couch here? Are you trying to say something about inner-city lefties?' the Prime Minister quipped.

The pair, who run PR firm Three Rivers, bragged about their controversial election ad for colourful north Queensland MP Bob Katter in the 2016 election (pictured)

The ad implied the independent bush MP had shot dead his Labor and Liberal rivals, featuring him with a smoking revolver and their bodies lying in scrubland

His interviewers said the book was for him and inscribed: 'To Malcolm, great work on Spy Catcher, really really great work. Your friend, Mikhail Gorbachev.'

It was a reference to when Mr Turnbull was a lawyer and successfully sued the British Government after they banned the publication of the book Spy Catcher, a tell-all memoir by a former MI-6 officer.

'It took 31 years to get here, obviously a result of the slow Soviet postal service,' Mr Turnbull joked.

Later the pair, who run PR firm Three Rivers, bragged about their controversial election ad for colourful north Queensland MP Bob Katter in the 2016 election.

The ad implied the independent bush MP had shot dead his Labor and Liberal rivals, featuring him with a smoking revolver and their bodies lying in scrubland.

They asked if his conflict with MP Cory Bernardi, who last month split from the Liberals to form his own conservative party, was because he was a kayaker and Mr Bernardi was a rower

Noting Mr Katter won with a 10 per cent swing, Mr Hamilton asked if the PM would consider employing them for his next campaign.

'You're always welcome on the bus but I think we'll have a little bit more control over the creative. Keep the guns locked up in the safe in accordance with the law,' Mr Turnbull replied.

The Beetoota Advocate returned to talking about Mr Turnbull's colleagues, asking out of nowhere if Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce knew how to use a computer.

'Barnaby is very, very good at computing... farmers are some of the most tech-savvy people in the country,' Mr Turnbull shot back, noting that farmers were increasingly using the internet to improve their businesses.

They then asked if his conflict with MP Cory Bernardi, who last month split from the Liberals to form his own conservative party, was because he was a kayaker and Mr Bernardi was a rower.

Archer Hamilton is half of the Sydney PR duo who run the popular Betoota Advocate satirical newspaper

The publication purports to be the local paper of the now-abandoned town of Betoota in southwest Queensland, while they take on the personas of rural journalists

Mr Turnbull deftly dodged the question to tell an anecdote about rowing being former PM Gough Whitlam's favourite sport, but he disagreed.

'Kayaking you're going in exactly the direction you're looking, so when I'm paddling I know where I'm going, I'm going straight ahead, I can see my objective,' he said.

'So maybe kayaking is a good sport for a prime minister.'

On the back of Mr Turnbull's hobby, the Betoota Advocate pair suggested putting Kirribilli House on Airbnb since he has his own $50 million Sydney mansion.

'It's a nice idea to generate a bit of extra cashflow for the Commonwealth, I don't think it would work though,' he replied, shooting down the plan.

Mr Turnbull managed to impress the pair, whose publication purports to be the local paper of the now-abandoned town of Betoota in south-west Queensland, while they take on the personas of rural journalists.

His ability to seamlessly quote Banjo Patterson's A Bush Christening, about the area Betoota is in, went down well, as did a jab at the former Rudd-Gillard government's ban on live export hurting cattle prices.
A florist boss who once fled the country to avoid going to prison for knife attacks was shot as he dropped his child off at nursery, a witness has revealed.

Ross Craig chased his attacker down the road after being shot in the leg in a residential Glasgow street on Thursday morning.

And it has now emerged that he was gunned down after heading to one of his children's nurseries - where it is believed his assailant thought he would be particularly open to an attack - and had just put the other in the car.

Manhunt: Police in Glasgow are searching for the gunman who fired on florist owner Ross Craig as he got in his car, pictured left, and right with his fiancee Anna Handzel

Probe: Police in Glasgow are treating the attack as attempted murder - and despite getting shot Mr Craig still chased his attacker down the road despite the gunshot wound

Someone who saw the shocking incident told The Daily Record: 'The victim had just dropped off his kid at nursery and strapped his other kid into the back of his vehicle.

'He looked up and saw someone up ahead. When he went over to confront the person, it all kicked off and he was shot.'

The businessman, who owns the Regal Roses florists in the city, was jailed in 2010 after he carried out two late-night knife attacks in Glasgow four years earlier.

After his arrest he jumped bail and fled to Cyprus where he hid before returning to Britain to face justice.

The targeted attack, which is being treated as attempted murder, happened on Thursday morning in the Shawlands area at about 8.10am.

Mr Craig, 34, was shot once in the leg and ran after his attackers down three separate roads before the suspect jumped into a dark-coloured getaway vehicle.

The attacker is described as 5ft 7in and was wearing dark clothing and a dark beanie hat.

Mr Craig was taken to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in the city for gunshot injuries, but has since been released, police said.

Detective Inspector Colin Hailstones said: 'We now understand that the incident occurred around 8.30am this morning in a highly-residential street in the Shawlands area.

'The 34-year-old man was shot at once and he received injuries to his leg and has been treated in hospital. He has since been released.

'I know that local residents will be concerned by this incident. We understand that this was a targeted and isolated attack. It is being treated as attempted murder.'

Extensive inquiries are ongoing in the area to establish the exact circumstances surrounding the shooting.

Mr Craig, pictured left with his fiancee and one of his children and alone, right, was taken to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in the city for gunshot injuries, but has since been released

Forensics officers on the scene following the shooting, which it is claimed happened as Mr Craig dropped his child off at nursery

Victim: The 'targeted' attack, which is being treated as attempted murder, happened in Shawlands, Glasgow, at about 8.10am - it is not clear if it was linked to his criminal past

Chief Inspector Hilary Sloan said: 'I completely understand that people will be concerned by this incident and we will have an increased uniformed presence in the area.

'I would ask local residents to approach those officers with any information or concerns that they have.

'You may have heard a disturbance, witnessed the chase or heard a car speeding off.'

Mr Craig has enjoyed a jetset life with his glamorous fiancee Anna Handzel and runs a successful flower business since his release from prison.

In 2006 he fled the country after attacking a soldier and his friend in the centre of Glasgow.

Ross Craig stabbed and slashed them as they tried to get a cab home after a night out.

He first started a fight with Mr McLean and stabbed him twice on the back and thigh and slashed his face.

Fresh start: Mr Craig has enjoyed a jetset life with his glamorous fiancee Anna Handzel and runs a successful flower business since his release from prison

Police called to the scene chased Craig, who was carrying a seven inch lock knife.

Craig, then 28, was arrested but then bailed and fled to Cyprus to avoid court.

After returning to Britain in 2010 he admitted attacking Robert Picken and Craig McLean at

Craig then began to fight with Mr McLean and stabbed him twice on the back and thigh and slashed his face. Mr Picken moved to help his friend and was also slashed and wounded in the chest.

His defence QC Paul McBride said: 'He left to go to Cyprus but I don't think he falls into the Asil Nadir category. He was working in a bar.'

But he was jailed for six and a half years, and sentencing judge Lord Bannatyne told him: 'Both of these are in my view unprovoked attacks on two individuals who happened to be in the city centre at this particular time. Both of the assaults involved the use if a deadly weapon, namely a knife.'

'The assaults have significantly impacted in the lives of both victims.

'At the time of these offences you were subject to no less than four recent bail orders.'

Anyone with information is asked to contact Police Scotland on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously 0800 555 111.
A dominatrix who runs a luxury sex service is the latest self-employed business owner to slam the Chancellor for his painful tax hike.

Margaret Corvid charges between 200 to 300 an hour and runs her business from her home in an upmarket area in Plymouth.

But the professional sex worker, who has been selling whipping sessions for four years, said she fears she  and her self-employed customers - will be badly hit.

Dominatrix: Miss Corvid charges between 200 to 300 an hour and runs her business from her home in an upmarket area in Plymouth

Professional: She has been working in the industry for four years and fears she  and her self-employed customers - will be badly hit by the tax changes

She said: 'I am self-employed which means I don't have paid annual leave or sick days and I need to look after my money and my health.

'I am my own boss and my own human resources manager. But many of my clients are self-employed too.'

National insurance contributions for the self employed will increase from 9 per cent to 10 per cent in April 2018 and to 11 per cent the following year.

This will cost the average self employed worker an extra 60p a week.

Miss Corvid declined to reveal what she earns but said she and her therapist partner Bob were 'comfortable' and fears the changes could cost her hundreds of pounds per year.

She said the chancellor Philip Hammond's policy could cause her to lose business.

'There is definitely a chance this is going to affect me or anyone in the sex business.

Miss Corvid declined to reveal what she earns but said she and her therapist partner Bob were 'comfortable'

She said: 'I am self-employed which means I don't have paid annual leave or sick days and I need to look after my money and my health'

'A lot of people travelling in and out of town are self-employed with their own businesses and will be the first to be anxious about spending their money,' she said.

She said of Mr Hammond: 'I am very disappointed in him and his party.

'George Osborne promised not to raise the national insurance and the Tories have very much been catering to the 'just about managing' groups of society but then they do this.

'I am disappointed with these broken promises, I would say to him why can't he just let us self-employed people do what we are good at in building businesses and contributing to the economy.'

Originally from the Midwestern America, Labour activist Miss Corvid moved to Cornwall 11 years ago.

Originally from the Midwestern America, Labour activist Miss Corvid moved to Cornwall 11 years ago

She became a sex worker while she was living in the Westcountry, setting up her own business due to a lack of local opportunities.

She said: 'The area I was living in Cornwall was economically deprived and it would take two buses to get me to any jobs.

'This was a position I felt qualified for, I had good experience and I wanted to start a business.'

And now Miss Corvid, who goes by the name Mistress Magpie on Twitter said she hasn't looked back  with a flourishing career in Plymouth city centre.

As a dominatrix, she said she doesn't offer full sexual services but is paid to whip, humiliate and tease her male clients.

Miss Corvid, who goes by the name Mistress Magpie on Twitter, said she hasn't looked back  with a flourishing career in Plymouth city centre

Reflecting back over her career to date, she said she has had some 'great' clients and is sometimes even tipped or given gifts.

She said: 'I understand a lot of them have saved up to see me so to me the best way to be a good client is to respectfully tell me what you want and communicate how I can please you.

'And also paying the fee at the beginning of the session.'

She added most of her clients were regulars.

'One of my favourite quotes is, "it's my business doing pleasure with you",' she said.
Teachers at an east London school said that a 'climate of intimidation and fear' pushed them to mark pupils' work falsely.

Headteacher Mark Keary was suspended from Green Springs Academy in Shoreditch in February after claims the school had fixed exam results.

Other staff were suspended alongside Mr Keary, who is believed to be paid 220,000 a year.

Teachers at Green Springs Academy in Shoreditch said a 'climate of intimidation and fear' pushed them to mark coursework falsely so pupils could get better marks. Head Mark Keary (pictured) was suspended in February

Green Spring Education Trust said it had acted robustly in dealing with the allegations.

The school was attended by the three schoolgirls who fled to Syria to join ISIS in 2015.

Green Springs has undergone a miraculous transformation, going from one of the worst performing to one of the best schools in the country.

Mr Keary joined in 2006, when the school was called Bethnal Green Technology College.

It became an academy in 2012.

83 per cent of pupils gained an A-C grade in GCSE English and maths, according to recent results.

The school (pictured) underwent a miraculous transformation and recent results say that 83 per cent of pupils gained an A-C grade in GCSE English and maths

According to retired teacher John McKelvey, at least ten educators were summarily asked to leave.

He told the BBC: 'People were watching their backs.

'I would say it would be extremely difficult to get those kind of [GCSE grade] percentages from the student intake as I remember it, very difficult indeed.'

Another teacher, Jahangir Alam, said: 'It really didn't matter how you got the result.'

The Department for Education said malpractice was found in the school and disciplinary action has been taken.

In a statement, Green Springs Academy said: 'The independent investigation commissioned by the trust board has now concluded and appropriate action is being taken which cannot be discussed for reasons of confidentiality.'

Kadiza Sultana, Shamima Begum and Amira Abase attended the school before they fled London to fight for ISIS in Syria. They were 15 and 16 at the time

The school last hit headlines two years ago when teenagers Shamima Begum, Amira Abase and Kadiza Sultana fled to Syria to join ISIS.

The trio left their home during the February half-term break and flew from Gatwick to Turkey.

The girls, aged 15 and 16 at the time, got the bus from Turkey to the Syrian border.

The trio left their home during the February half-term break and flew from Gatwick to Turkey. Pictured, CCTV footage of the girls at the London airport

They are thought to have been radicalised online.

All three married in Syria but Kadiza Sultana became disillusioned with the extreme regime when her husband died.

In phone calls to her family, she told them that she wanted to go home but couldn't as the borders were closed.

She is believed to have died in a Russian air strike in May 2016.
Donald Trump has been branded a pathological liar in a scathing attack by Bernie Sanders, who has accused the President of undermining democracy.

The senator, who challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination last year, said Trump lies 'all the time'.

During the extraordinary attack, Sanders called on Americans to resist the President's assault on the media, judiciary and election process.

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The senator, who challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination last year, said Trump lies 'all the time'

It comes days after he accused the Republican of having a 'complete disregard for reality'

Speaking to The Guardian, the Vermont senator said: 'Trump lies all of the time and I think that is not an accident, there is a reason for that. He lies in order to undermine the foundations of American democracy.'

It comes days after he accused the Republican of having a 'complete disregard for reality'.

On Tuesday Sanders posted on Twitter: 'We have a president who either lies intentionally or, even more frighteningly, does not know the difference between lies and truth.'

And he continued: 'I strongly believe in civil political discourse. But how does one respond to a president who has complete disregard for reality?'

It comes days after Sanders accused the Republican of having a 'complete disregard for reality'

On Tuesday Sanders posted on Twitter that Trump 'does not know the difference between lies and truth'

He also said the White House incumbant has a 'complete disregard for reality'

In his Guardian interview, he accused Trump of trying to present himself as 'the only person in America who gets it right' and compared former president George W. Bush favourably with the current White House incumbent.

Sanders said: 'George Bush was a very conservative president, I opposed him every single day. But George Bush did not operate outside of mainstream American political values.'

In his first 50 days as President, Trump has attacked a 'so-called' judge for opposing his travel ban, branded sections of the media 'enemies of the people' and accused his predecessor, Barack Obama, of ordering a wiretap on Trump Tower.

The President is yet to produce any evidence to substantiate the latter claim.

Trump accused Barack Obama with wiretapping Trump Tower, but is yet to produce any evidence to substantiate the claim

Sanders said anti-Trump protests, such as this one in San Francisco, show Americans will resist the President's authoritarianism

Sanders reached out to Republicans to help resist the President's authoritarianism, stating: 'It is incumbent upon them, in this moment in history, to stand up and say that what Trump is doing is not what the United States is about, its not what our constitution is about. They have got to join us in resistance.'

Widespread protests across America during the first days of Trump's presidency are indicative of a strong resistance movement, Sanders said.

He told The Guardian that a 'grassroots resistance' is the only way to defeat what he described as Trump's moves toward authoritarianism.

Sanders also called for clarity over Russia's influence on the Trump administration, stating: 'We need to know what kind of influence the Russian oligarchy has over Trump. Many people are astounded.'

The former Democratic presidential hopeful has been a vocal critic of Trump since he took office.

Last month, when the President addressed a joint session of Congress having invited the families of people killed by immigrants, Sanders accused Trump of 'stirring up fear and hatred against immigrants' and 'trying to divide our nation'.

Sanders wrote on Facebook: 'The murder of anyone is a tragedy, and our hearts go out to all families who lose a loved one to violence.

'But let's be clear about what Donald Trump is doing tonight in inviting family members who saw a loved one murdered by an undocumented immigrant.

'He is stirring up fear and hatred against immigrants and trying to divide our nation. That is his political strategy and we must not allow him to get away with it.'
British Airways' decision to slash legroom and in-flight perks to rival the prices of its budget rivals means it risks its elite status.

The airline has been told its new business model, which has brought it much closer to traditionally cheaper brands such as Ryanair and easyJet, is damaging the company's reputation.

Skyscanner, the flight comparison site, compiled a table that showed the average price of a BA flight was actually cheaper than some of the low-cost flight operators.

British Airways' decision to slash legroom and in-flight perks to rival the prices of its budget rivals means it risks its elite status (file image)

BA is planning to reduce the gap between seats from 30 inches to 29 on some of its planes, less than Ryanair.

The move, which would make BA's legroom the same as easyJet's, will make space for an extra two rows of seats to carry 12 more fliers. Ryanair's gap is 30 inches.

Flyebe, Norwegian and Wizz Air will now all have more legroom than BA.

The country's flag carrier also struck a deal with the supermarket giant Marks & Spencer to charge passengers for food for the first time.

This angered loyal customers who are used to complimentary food and drink on all of its flights.

But BA has been warned that squeezing bigger profits risked removing one of the last differences between the airline and its no-frills rivals.

Skyscanner, the flight comparison site, compiled a table that showed the average price of a BA flight was actually cheaper than some of the low-cost flight operators

British Airways now offers less legroom than Ryanair on short-haul flights, with 29 inches compared to the latter's 30

The global creative officer at the branding consultancy Landor, Peter Knapp, told The Times: 'Along with the removal of free meals on short-haul flights there is little for the economy traveller to choose between when comparing BA to its value-focused competitors.

'BA need to be careful of how their brand image will fare following these announcements.

'The worst-case scenario is for their brand to devolve, losing their elite status as Britain's flag carrier as it cuts the services that help it stand out in a highly competitive marketplace.'

Tory MP Will Quince, of the Transport Select Committee, added: 'Of course it's a business decision for BA to make.

'But if they don't now include complimentary food and drink, and have the same legroom, what is it that makes them stand out?'

The Airbus A320 and A321 planes being adapted are to be used on routes from Heathrow and Gatwick to Europe.

The industry standard for such flights is legroom of 31 or 32 inches. This will still be the gap on BA's long-haul planes.

The squeeze, due to begin next year, follows plans to add a tenth seat to each row on BA's long-haul Boeing 777 planes.

Max Kingsley-Jones, of aviation magazine Flight Global, said the latest decision was in response to growing competition on short-haul routes from budget operators.

He said: 'BA is seeing declining fares and it has had to adapt.

Our cartoonist Pugh's take on the BA legroom situation

'We've already seen it with the decision to offer hand luggage-only fares.'

He added that BA has a 'hard core' of customers because of its connections at Heathrow and its loyalty programme.

Last week BA's parent company International Airlines Group announced a 31 per cent rise in year-on-year profits to 390million in 2016.

A BA spokesman said: 'From next year we're making a small increase to the number of seats on our A320 and A321 fleet so we can keep fares low.

Customers fly with us because we offer quality and value in all areas.'

BA passengers flying from Gatwick to Barbados were delayed for several hours yesterday because of a lack of toilet paper on board.

One passenger said there was just one roll for nearly 300 travellers. Staff said the wait was also caused by a shortage of paper towels and hand wash. BA has apologised.
A women's festival has dropped a controversial talk by a rape victim and the man who attacked her after a campaign by feminists to remove them.

Thordis Elva, from Iceland, was just 16 years old when she was sexually assaulted by her boyfriend, an Australian foreign exchange student, Tom Stranger, 18, in 1996.

The pair were due to speak at the Women of the World festival at London's Southbank Centre today but this has now been pushed back to a later date.

Thordis Elva (left) was just 16 years old when she was sexually assaulted by her boyfriend, an Australian foreign exchange student, Tom Stranger (right) in 1996

Southbank Centre's Artistic Director, Jude Kelly, said: 'Our WOW  Women of the World festival was created to be an open, balanced platform for discussion and debate on gender equality and the related critical issues that women and men struggle with every day.

'Rape is one of these critical issues and we need to shift the discourse around it, which too often focuses on rape survivors rather than rape perpetrators.'

She added: 'Following their Ted talk (and their book South of Forgiveness) we programmed survivor Thordis Elva to share her journey of coming to terms with the devastating impact of her rape and her decision to invite her perpetrator Tom Stranger on to the stage, to take full responsibility for his actions.

Southbank Centre's Artistic Director, Jude Kelly, released a statement after the pair were dropped from the festival

'Having considered the importance of this debate for the widest possible public, and after having further conversations with survivors, support organisations and audiences, we have decided to stage this event on the Tuesday 14 March rather than on the Saturday 11 March as originally scheduled, to enable as many people as possible to contribute outside a festival context.'

A successful petition, started by feminist Amira Elwakil, to stop the pair speaking at the festival gained more than 2,300 signatures.

The petition warned their appearance may be 'triggering for many survivors'.

After co-authoring a book on the rape together, Elva and Stranger teamed up for a talk at a TED conference - which has since been viewed more than two million times.

In a 19-minute-long talk filmed late last year, Mr Stranger and Ms Elva discussed the impact the rape had on both of their lives.

The pair had been dating for a 'month or so' when the assault took place in Ms Elva's home after the school's Christmas ball.

A successful petition, started by feminist Amira Elwakil, to stop the pair speaking at the festival gained more than 2,300 signatures

After co-authoring a book on the rape together, Elva and Stranger teamed up for a talk at the TED conference - which has since been viewed more than two million times

Ms Elva had tried rum for the first time, and she describes thinking that Mr Stranger was her hero after he took her home to put her to bed.

However, soon her gratitude turned to horror 'as he proceeded to take off my clothes and get on top of me.

'My head had cleared up, but my body was still too weak to fight back, and the pain was blinding. I thought I'd been severed in two.

'In order to stay sane, I silently counted the seconds on my alarm clock. And ever since that night, I've known that there are 7,200 seconds in two hours,' she said.

In a 19-minute-long talk filmed late last year, Mr Stranger and Ms Elva discussed the impact the rape had on both of their lives. Pictured, the Southbank Centre in London

The couple broke up a couple of days later and Mr Stranger returned home to Australia.

Ms Elva and Mr Stranger have co-authored a book, called South of Forgiveness.

To watch the TED talk in full, click here.
Thousands of demonstrators gathered outside the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam demanding action after the Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was denied entry into the country.

Turkey's families minister, Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya, was also blocked by Dutch police from entering the consulate and escorted to the town of Nijmegen, near German border.

The tit-for-tat row has led to growing demonstrations in both countries as horse-mounted police in Holland broke up demonstrations in Rotterdam.

Earlier in the day, the Turkish president labelled the Dutch 'Nazi remnants and fascists' after they refused to let a plane carrying the country's foreign minister to land.

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A man prepares to launch a metal railing at as demonstrators and riot police clash in Rotterdam

A Dutch riot policeman tries to get his dog to let go of a man after riots broke out during a pro Erdogan demonstration at the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands

A well-dressed man in a suit cowers as a man in dark clothing kicks a riot police officer on the ground

A line of riot police advance towards demonstrators as violent clashes erupted in the Netherlands

A man in a suit and a riot police officer come together as another officer falls to the ground

Recep Tayyip Erdogan's remarks about the Dutch being 'Nazi remnants' were made at a rally in Istanbul, as he currently hopes to secure a 'Yes' vote in a referendum over whether he be granted increased powers

Mr Erdogan addresses his supporters in Istanbul after the Dutch government withdrew landing permission for the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's aircraft

Dutch riot police battle pro Erdogan demonstrators after riots broke out at the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam

A demonstrator aims a boot at a Dutch riot police officer who has fallen to the ground

A demonstrator with his arms behind his back screams as he is surrounded by three policemen

demonstrator throws a stone during clashes with riot police in the streets near the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam

Turkish residents of the Netherlands gather for a protest in Rotterdam on March 11, 2017

Angry demonstrators protested in the streets of Rotterdam outside the Turkish consulate in the city.

Violent clashes between protesters and Dutch riot police officers turned ugly quickly as 1,000 people turned up to voice their disapproval of the ministers' access to the country being blocked.

Some men were seen throwing stones, others were seen kicking police officers who had fallen to the ground and metal railings were also hurled in the riots.

Many of those protesting were Turkish nationals living in the Netherlands.

Turkey's family affairs minister, Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya, also blocked by Dutch police from entering the consulate Turkish family affairs minister, Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya (pictured), was also denied entry into Holland, according to reports Turkey's family affairs minister says Dutch authorities escorted her to the border with Germany in a manner that 'tramples on all democratic and human values.' Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya said through her twitter account that she was being taken to the town of Nijmegen, near the border with Germany, adding that she condemned the Dutch authorities' action in 'the name of all of our citizens.' Kaya wrote: 'The whole world must take action against this fascist practice! Such a treatment against a woman minister cannot be accepted.' As demonstrations in Rotterdam grew, police moved in to disperse protestors using water cannon and horses to break up protests. After several hours of a calm, but tense demonstration involving more than 1,000 people outside the Turkish consulate, police were seen - some carrying out mounted charges on horseback - beginning to forcefully disperse the protestors. The port city's mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb told reporters police had moved in to try to break up 'a few groups', but that the situation in the city centre was stabilising as police 'try to get everyone to return home.' But after initially dispersing, the crowd began to gather in smaller groups again, with the police once again moving in, a source said. Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya had crossed into Holland several hours earlier aiming to attend a rally in support of the Turkish government's planned April referendum, despite angry Dutch pleas to Ankara to keep its ministers away. Earlier Dutch authorities had also refused Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu permission to land in the city for a rally to gather support for a referendum on boosting the presidential powers. Advertisement

The vote on whether Mr Erdogan should be given more power (his supporters are pictured here) is a potentially divisive issue in Turkey, and Rotterdam authorities said on Friday they was banning the rally

Recep Tayyip Erdogan's remarks were made at a rally in Istanbul, as he currently hopes to secure a 'Yes' vote in a referendum over whether he be granted greater powers.

He is targeting expat voters in European countries with high Turkish populations, such as the Netherlands and Germany.

But foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu - who had been flying to Rotterdam on behalf of Mr Erdogan ahead of the April 16 vote - was not permitted to land because Dutch authorities had deemed the rally unsafe.

The ministers were later escorted out of the country.

The nation will go to the polls on April 16 to decide whether the president's powers should be increased

Supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the opening ceremony of the Bagcilar district subway station in Istanbul

Following the growing dispute between the two countries, hundreds of protestors waving Turkish flags have begun demonstrating, demanding a response.

Mr Erdogan told the crowd back in Turkey earlier in the day: 'You can stop our foreign minister's plane all you want, let's see how your planes will come to Turkey from now on,' Mr Erdogan told booing crowds.

'They do not know politics or international diplomacythese Nazi remnants, they are fascists.'

Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte said that while the Netherlands and Turkey could search for 'an acceptable solution', Turkey was not respecting the rules relating to public gatherings.

A spokesman for the Dutch government added: 'Many Dutch people with a Turkish background are authorised to vote in the referendum over the Turkish constitution,' it said.

'The Dutch government does not have any opposition to gatherings in our country to inform them about it.

Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (left) believes he should be able to fly 'wherever I want'. Dutch prime minister. Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte (right) said Turkey was not respecting the rules relating to public gatherings

A spokesman for the Dutch government said: 'Many Dutch people with a Turkish background are authorised to vote in the referendum over the Turkish constitution,'

'These gatherings are not allowed to contribute to tensions in our society and everyone who wants to hold a gathering is obliged to follow instructions of those in authority, so that public order and safety can be guaranteed.' the spokesman added

Demonstrators took to the consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands to wave flags and protest

Members of the police stand in line during a gathering of several hundred demonstrators waving Turkish flags outside the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam

The protesters were demanding to see the Turkish Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya who was barred by police and escorted to the German border

'But these gatherings are not allowed to contribute to tensions in our society and everyone who wants to hold a gathering is obliged to follow instructions of those in authority, so that public order and safety can be guaranteed.'

But it said Cavusoglu's threat hours earlier of political and economic sanctions if travel permission were withdrawn made the search for a reasonable solution impossible.

Mr Cavusoglu had previously said that the Netherlands was treating Turkish citizens like hostages in hindering their contact with Ankara.

Earlier in the day, Dutch government denied landing rights to Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu who planned a speech at the consul's residence in Rotterdam

State-run television said some protesters hurled eggs toward the Dutch embassy but were warned to keep the protest peaceful

Dutch police, some mounted on horse back, began to disperse protesters who had broken up into smaller groups of demonstrators, according to reports

Police sealed off the entrance to Holland Street, where the embassy is located. Around 500 people were seen waving Turkish and Ottoman flags near the embassy building

More demonstrators battle with Dutch police after riots broke out - water canons and horse mounted charges were used to try and contain the escalating protests

The vote a potentially divisive issue in Turkey, and Rotterdam authorities said on Friday they was banning the rally.

Cavusoglu said on Saturday he would fly anyway, and had been expected to appear at the Turkish consulate, as he had done when city authorities in Hamburg banned him from speaking last week.

'If my going will increase tensions, let it be,' he told CNN Turk. 'What damage will my going have on them? I am a foreign minister and I can go wherever I want.'
Pauline Hanson has declared victory despite One Nation winning less than half the support they predicted in the West Australian election so far.

Despite a sharp slump that saw the party projected to take just 4.7 per cent of the vote, Ms Hanson remains defiant - saying the party has done 'extremely well'.

Critics have slammed Ms Hanson for being in denial about the result, after she campaigned tirelessly in the week before the poll.

Labor has storms to power in Western Australia, claiming victory over the Coalition and long-reigning Premier Colin Barnett.

At 10.40pm Perth time, Labor had taken 42 per cent and 39 seats, the Liberals had 31 per cent and 11, and One Nation drew just 4.7 per cent with dire hope of any seats.

Pauline Hanson (puictured at a One Nation election function in Perth) remains defiant about her WA election result, saying the party has done 'extremely well'

One Nation has suffered a nose dive for votes, claiming just 5.6 per cent  less than half the support predicted

Speaking after news broke of Labor's sweeping lead, Senator Hanson told 9 News she had done 'extremely well'.

'When you consider some of the seats were polling higher than the nats and the greens that have been here and held seats in the state, you can't deny we've done extremely well here,' she said.

One Nation picked up just 4.5 per cent of the primary vote - less than half of what it had projected to claim in pre-election polling weeks ago, reports ABC.

She said feedback from voters suggested 'the preference deal with the Liberal party had done us damage.'

'People were saying 'why did you do the deal with the Libs? We don't want Barnett back in.'

But Senator Hanson justified their decision to push ahead with the deal in the hope it 'would translate to seats in the upper house.'

Critics have slammed Ms Hanson, who campaigned tirelessly in the week before the poll, for blatantly lying about the result

Mark McGowan is poised to become Premier as Labor is headed for a landslide victory in the WA election with exit polls showing an almost 12 per cent swing in its favour

She blasted the Labor party as hypocritical, accusing them of showing double standards with their preferences in a withering tirade.

'The Labor party are a bunch of hypocrites. They criticised me for giving preferences to the Libs before LaborLabor put us last in every seat. They cannot be trusted, they are liars, they are cheats and they are hypocrites.'

But Sky News presenter Graham Richardson said it was Ms Hanson who most needed to work on her honesty.

'She always prides herself in saying 'I'm the one politician who doesn't spin, I'm the one politician who tells it like it is. It's absolute rubbish. She knows this is a terrible result for her.'

Richardson accused her supporters of putting on a performance to mask the outcome, declaring: 'noise is no substitute for results.'

He urged the party to delegate responsibilities beyond just Ms Hanson, who largely takes the helm the lion's share of the parties' decisions.

Premier elect Mark McGowan declared it was a victory of 'decency and intelligence' over 'stupidity and ignorance', reports News.com

The opposition needed only a 10 per cent swing to claim the nine extra seats to form government and oust Premier Colin Barnett (pictured) after 8.5 years

Mr Barnett congratulated Labor on an 'emphatic and decisive victory', saying time was the deciding factor in the result.

'The overwhelming factor was time...Maybe it wasn't good enough but I gave it my best shot in every sense.

Election Day was marred by dirty tricks, with voters spammed with text messages warning them not to vote for Labor and fake flyers for a mosque development handed out.

The texts read 'FACT: Household bills will go up under a Labor Government. Mark McGowan is not worth the risk.'

Meanwhile, letterboxes in Perth's northern suburbs were stuffed with fake flyers proposing the construction of a fictitious mosque in the area.

The flyers were knocked up to look like real City of Stirling development proposal notices about an application by the Islamic Council of WA.

Results don't look as promising for One Nation, despite a big push by leader Pauline Hanson (C) who campaigned hard in the state for a week before the poll

Senator Hanson denied involvement, saying it was not her style or that of One Nation.

'I'm upfront with people, I always have been, so we don't go out putting these sort of leaflets out to people,' she told the ABC.

'I don't believe in fearmongering, that's something you'd expect of the Labor party or the other political parties, that's not One Nation.'

Federal Finance Minister Mathias Cormann, who hails from Western Australia, defended the Liberal Party's preference deal with One Nation.

Mr McGowan (L) had the support of Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten (R) on polling day, while Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull stayed in Sydney

If we wanted to minimise losses, maximise our chances of holding on to seats we needed to be able to source preferences and clearly these werent going to come from Labor and the Greens so the state executive of the West Australian Liberal Party unanimously decided to make the arrangement that has been much talked about, he told the ABCs Insiders program on Sunday.

As far as a preference deal is concerned, the Liberal Partys consideration was looking at our primary vote long before the campaign got underway, long before any preference arrangements were entered into.

Our primary vote, according to our internal polling, was as low as 29 per cent and all through the campaign it hovered at 29 to 31 per cent at a state level.'

One Nation's primary vote slumped to six per cent, down from the nine it averaged during the campaign, making it unlikely to claim a single seat

Excited Labor supporters pose for a selfie upon news of their likely huge victory

One Nation supporters wait for Ms Hanson to arrive for their election night party, though it appeared there wouldn't be much to celebrate

Liberal supporters look glum as the results roll in showing a landslide loss for the government

The Channel Nine/Galaxay poll taken of voters as they left the ballot polls has the swing at 11.8 per cent, which could net Labor 17 new seats for a total of 38

To form a majority government, Labor will need at least 30 of the parliament's 59 seats. It had 21 after the 2013 election to the Coalition's 38

Labor will pick up 54.5 per cent of the vote on a two-party preferred basis, while the Liberals will have just 45.5 per cent
Pauline Hanson has defended the decision to ban the ABC from entering the official election event for One Nation.

Several dozen orange-clad party supporters and candidates gathered at a bowling club in Perth's south ahead of Senator Hanson's arrival on Saturday night.

But ABC reporters were forced to wait for her outside.

Journalist Nicolas Perpitch, who works for the national broadcaster, said he was told only media with prior approval could enter.

'I tried to contact Senator Hanson's media advisor who confirmed we didn't have authorisation, we weren't allowed in,' he said.

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An ABC journalist was forced to report from outside the official election event for One Nation

Pauline Hanson defended the decision to ban the ABC from the event, saying it was so she could focus on her supporters

But Perpitch added that other media outlets arrived without prior authorisation and were allowed in.

In an interview with Sky News, Senator Hanson insisted the decision to deny some media outlets access to the event was because she wanted to spend time with her supporters.

'We've only had the one camera in here,' she said.

'We denied the cameras to everyone else. All the other stations, whoever wants to, can take the feed.

'And respect to the people who are here tonight, my time needs to be spent with them.'

Senator Hanson added: 'In the past, I have, you know, had such a time with the media all around me and it's just, it's not allowing me to spend time with the people here and I don't want that.

The ABC reporter said that he was told by Hanson's media advisor that only media with prior approval could enter

'I've spent time with with the media throughout this whole campaign. It's time now for me to spend with the supporters here, the people here and I'm here for them.'

But the party is likely to more subdued than expected after polls showed the party's earlier popularity slumping and predicted to win no seats.

Polls last month pointed to a vote of 13 per cent for the party but surveys this week suggested that had slipped to eight per cent.

One Nation picked up just 4.5 per cent of the primary vote - less than half of what it had projected to claim in pre-election polling weeks ago, ABC reports.

It showed One Nation's primary vote has slumped to six per cent, down from the nine it averaged during the campaign.

One Nation supporters at a bowling club in Perth's south ahead of Pauline Hanson's arrival

The party is likely to more subdued than expected after polls showed the party's earlier popularity slumping and predicted to win no seats

Senator Hanson told reporters on Saturday the preference swap deal with the Liberals had hurt One Nation.

Supporter Luke McGuinness, 39, told the AAP the deal was 'purely for bums in seats'.

'That's all it's for - she hasn't made any shady plea bargain deals,' he said.

'She hasn't sold out at all. She's using her brains.

'She's said she's still going to block Roe 8 if Labor gets in, she's still going to block safe schools if Labor get in, if Liberals get in she's still going to stand against Barnett for the sale of Western Power.'

Mr McGuiness said he was usually a Labor voter.

'I voted the first time she came in and she got incorrectly jailed 20 years ago.

'I voted for her last year and I voted for her this year but this is the first time I've put a guernsey on because I've had a gutful.

'We need more control in this country on a lot of different aspects, from the most controversial part, which she constantly talks about, which is a certain demographic of people, right through to getting Australian jobs back - stop the selling of Australian assets.'
Shane Marsden, 28, has not been in contact with his family since Tuesday

Police are searching for a British backpacker who vanished in Thailand - after texting his mum: 'I'm sorry.'

Shane Marsden, 28, has not been in contact with his family since Tuesday.

His mum Wendy yesterday said: 'In the early hours of Tuesday I got a message from him saying he was sorry.

'I didn't even know he was in Thailand.

He had been travelling in New Zealand with his girlfriend but they broke up out there.

'She is devastated, no one knows what to do.'

It's thought Shane, of Gloucester, is in Thailand and that he travelled there from New Zealand.

Gloucestershire Police said they're working with Interpol to try and find him.

Anyone with information should contact police.

Wendy wrote on Facebook: 'Wish I never had to post this but can my friends who know my son Shane Evans please share this appeal to contact someone we are very concerned for his welfare.

Mother Wendy appealed on Facebook for anyone with information to call her. He last got in touch with her on Monday

She hadn't been told that Shane was in Thailand. The backpacker had been travelling through New Zealand

'Police are talking of making a fb appeal. He last messaged me a very distressing message Monday.

'Last heard in Thailand.....'

On the day Shane went missing she wrote: 'Never ever been so scared and feeling so useless.'
Akhtar Hussain has been jailed for having sex with a 13-year-old and proposing to marry her and run away with her to Pakistan

A 53-year-old chef has been jailed for having sex with a 13-year-old and proposing to marry her and run away with her to Pakistan.

Akhtar Hussain was infatuated with the girl, proposing to her on one knee and saying he would leave his wife and three children to be with her.

Hussain had sex with the girl, who came to the UK from Poland, in a room he rented last July.

He was arrested after the child was reported missing from home.

She was questioned by the police and revealed that she had been with Hussain and that she had sex with him a few days earlier.

Hussain, of Bradford, admitted sexual activity with a child and was jailed for four-and-a-half years at Bradford Crown Court on Friday.

The court heard that although Hussain came to the UK from Pakistan in around 1980, he still needed an interpreter.

Judge Roger Thomas QC said the girl came from Poland and there was a significant language barrier between them.

He told him: 'You saw her and took a fancy to her and had "a relationship" with her for about two weeks.

'It is said that you were lonely and isolated and developed a crush on her.

'But communication between you must have been difficult and it must have been hard to form a genuine relationship.

'You, of course, were 40 years her senior, that is a massive difference of age.

'Your interests were driven entirely by sexual gratification.'

The court heard Hussain called the child his girlfriend, told her he loved her and threatened to kill himself if she did not return his affections.

He knelt down and asked her to marry him, saying he would leave his wife and three children and take her to Pakistan.

Hussain, of Bradford, admitted sexual activity with a child and was jailed for four-and-a-half years at Bradford Crown Court (pictured) on Friday

The girl told the police they were kissing in his room and 'it happened' on Hussain's bed.

Prosecutor Jayne Beckett said: 'She said "no" and he kept asking, and was talking about love and marriage, and giving her money,' the court heard.

'She said 'no' but was worn down by him.'

The girl later told Hussain: 'We have to end this' but he said he couldn't because he loved her.

The court heard the girl was medically examined and had an injury consistent with sexual activity and traces of Hussain's semen were found in her knickers.

Hussain initially denied the charges, telling police officers: 'No more questions; dirty questions. She is like my granddaughter.'

Rodney Ferm, defending, said: 'This wasn't just cynical behaviour. He was lonely and isolated and he did develop strong feelings for this young girl.

'He did feel misguided but genuine affection for her. It never was non-consensual.'

After the case an NSPCC spokesman said: 'Hussain carried out appalling abuse on a vulnerable 13-year-old child and is now rightly behind bars.

'Akhtar knew his behaviour was wrong and that his victim could not consent to sexual activity.'
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Spaniels, Retrievers, Setters and Pointers are out in force today, as dog extravaganza Crufts moves into its third day.

Gundogs are showing off their agility and obedience in front of judges at the NEC Centre in Birmingham, and many arrived this morning sporting a variety of colourful coats to keep them warm.

Thankfully for them it will be noticeably warmer today than yesterday, when flat-nosed bulldogs, pugs and terriers competed for the coveted rosettes on the day for utility and toy dogs.

There is controversy over some of the breeds which featured in yesterday's show, with campaigners claiming the way they are bred makes them unable to breathe properly or control their temperature.

Super cute: This pet has a look of mischief in its eyes as it arrives to take part in day three of Crufts this morning

Nap time: A dog sleeps in a chair on the third day of the Crufts Dog Show at the NEC Arena in Birmingham today

Affection: A huge pet waits its turn on day three of Crufts (left), while a dog is led into the arena this morning (right)

Countdown presenter Rachel Riley pictured with hearing assistance dog Marty at Crufts this morning, where gundogs are being put through their paces in front of judges

Cozy: Two dogs wearing comfortable-looking outfits arrive for day three of Crufts this morning, in which gun dogs are put through their paces

Looking fetching: Three pets arrive at the NEC Centre in Birmingham, where they will take part in a day of competition

Measuring up: Two pointers are judged during the third day of Crufts, on gundog day

Such was the fear of animals overheating that heating was turned off and many dogs were seen sitting underneath cooling fans, The Times reports.

Critics claim the snub-nosed dogs carry extra weight in order to get the look needed to win prizes, but this puts them at risk.

Animal health campaigner Emma Milne told The Times: 'These dogs are in constant pain. They can't breathe, they can't cool themselves down internally.'

But breeders have denied this is the case, and the Kennel Club said it did not turn the heating down.

Multi-coloured superstar: After cold temperatures at the arena yesterday, pets will find it warmer today

Playful: A pet enjoys its big day out at the NEC Centre this morning (left), while a group of dogs is led to the day of competitions in Birmingham

Long face: There was some waiting around to do as dogs prepared to be called into action at Crufts this morning

Former EastEnders star Pam St Clement is pictured at day three of Crufts this morning, on gundog day

Sky (left) and Tina Westwood cuddle their Nova Scotia Duck Tolling, Elsa, during the third day of the Crufts Dog Show in Birmingham

Best friend: Katie McCloughlin lies with Topsy, her English Setter, during the third day of the Crufts Dog Show in Birmingham

While there are numerous competitions within the four-day show, the prize that every dog owner has their eye on is the title Best In Show.

Last year it was bestowed on a fluffy Westie named Geordie Girl, who saw off more than 22,000 competitors to claim the historic title.

The last gundog to win the Best in Show award at Crufts was a flat-coated retriever named Vbos The Kentuckian back in 2011.

Just three gundogs have won the overall award, which will be announced tomorrow on the final day of Crufts, in the last 20 years.

Celebrities in attendance today included Countdown co-host Rachel Riley and former EastEnders actress Pam St Clement.

Judgement day: A labrador looks out from its bench as it gets ready to compete on the third day of Crufts today

Proud: An owner leads her beloved pet to day three of Crufts, where gundogs are competing for prizes

Tails wagging and ready to go: Three pooches ahead of the action at day three of Crufts this morning

It's a dog's life: Two gundogs relax at the NEC Centre as they wait to be called into action at Crufts today

Puparazzi: A long queue of dogs was photographed this morning as they and their owners got ready to compete at Crufts

Katie McLoughlin sits amongst Topsy, Fever and Freya, three English Setters, at the NEC Centre today
A human rights lawyer has called for a probe over what appears to be text messages sent between Paul Manafort's daughters alleging the former Trump advisor was linked to mass killings by Ukrainian police in Kiev in 2014.

Manafort resigned as Donald Trump's campaign chairman back in August following allegations he received more than $12 million in illegal cash from ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to influence U.S. policy.

Text messages allegedly hacked from his daughter's phone and leaked last month reportedly point to the possible influence Manafort had over the Ukrainian president at the time of the Kiev killings.

Texts allegedly hacked from Paul Manafort's (above) daughter's phone reportedly point to the possible influence he had with Ukrainian president at the time of the Kiev shootings in 2014

In one text exchange from March 2015, Andrea Manafort seems to suggest to her sister Jessica that their father may have had a hand in the killings that killed dozens of protesters.

The text messages were among 300,000 published by a hacker website last month claiming to have been taken from Andrea's phone, according to Politico.

In one text exchange from March 2015, Andrea Manafort (above) seems to suggest to her sister Jessica that their father may have had a hand in the killings that killed dozens of protesters

'Don't fool yourself... That money we have is blood money,' she wrote.

'You know he has killed people in Ukraine? Knowingly.

'Remember when there were all those deaths taking place. A while back. About a year ago. Revolts and what not.

'Do you know whose strategy that was to cause that, to send those people out and get them slaughtered.'

Ukrainian lawyer Eugenia Zakrevska, who is representing some of the Kiev victims, called on prosecutors on Thursday to investigate whether the text message were authentic, CNN reports.

'I call on Mr Manafort to clarify the allegations contained in the text messages and to contact us with any information he may have on those events,' Zakrevska told CNN.

Manafort has not been linked to the shootings, but Zakrevska said it didn't 'rule out Manafort's influence on Yanukovych's actions and decisions during that period'.

Ukraine's prosecutor for special investigations Serhiy Gorbatyuk said they would 'check thoroughly' to verify the text messages.

Manafort told CNN there was nothing to comment on when they contacted him.

Manafort is one of Trump's former advisors who is being investigated by the FBI for alleged contacts with Russian government officials during the U.S. presidential campaign

Dozens of people were killed and hundreds injured when protesters clashed with Ukrainian special forces in Kiev in 2014

He did acknowledge to Politico last month that his daughter Andrea's phone had been hacked. He confirmed that some of the texts between him and her were authentic but refused to comment on the majority of them.

Manafort started working for the embattled Ukrainian president as an advisor back in 2004 despite the U.S. government opposing Yanukovych because of his pro-Russian stance.

Yanukovych, who is wanted in Ukraine on charges of treason, has been hiding in Russia since he was ousted in 2014.

Manafort continued to advise in Ukraine before joined Trump's team in March 2016.

He quit in August and is one of several former Trump advisors - including Michael Flynn and Carter Page - being investigated by the FBI for their alleged contacts with Russian government officials during the U.S. presidential campaign.
The body of a missing Texas man has been found near where his boat crashed.

Matthew Meinert, 38, vanished on Monday after going on a fishing trip at Denton Creek, Texas, with his two-year-old son Oliver.

Meinert's body was found around 6pm Friday by Texas Parks and Wildlife, Trophy Police Department said.

The body of Matthew Meinert, 38, (left) was found Friday, four days after he vanished on a fishing trip at Denton Creek, Texas, with his two-year-old son, Oliver (right)

Game wardens recovered his body in six feet of water near where his boat was found, CBS DFW reports.

Texas Game Wardens released this statement on behalf of the Meinert family on Saturday

Meinert's family released this statement:

'The family of Matthew Meinert are very saddened at the loss of a wonderful husband, father, son and great friend. His love for his wife and son Oliver, was beyond belief. Matt's final hours were spent doing what he loved, playing and fishing with Oliver. Our faith has told us that Matthew was looking over his son during the night Oliver spent alone in the woods.

'We would like to thank all the people of the Trophy Club Community who offered prayers and support during this time. We are extremely grateful for the efforts of the First Responders during the search, rescue and recovery.

'We want to express much appreciation to the Trophy Club Police Department, specifically officer Lieutenant Tracey Shields. Thanks also to the Game Warden team, and Captain Cliff Swofford for their compassion and respect for the family during this difficult time.

'We want to thank everyone for their thoughts and generosity. We ask for your continued prayers.

'The family of Matthew Meinert.'

The search for the missing father and son began Monday night when the pair didn't return home.

Then, early Tuesday morning, a police officer found Oliver walking through heavy brush.

Oliver, who was wearing a T-shirt and shorts, had minor cuts from his night alone in the woods, but otherwise he's in good condition, police said.

Meinert's flat-bottom aluminum fishing boat was found abandoned and beached

'He told them he was cold and and thirsty. He wanted juice. That was the extent of their conversation,' said Lieutenant Tracey Shields with the Trophy Police Department.

Foul play isn't suspected and the cause of Meinert's death is unknown.

Matthew's flat-bottom aluminum fishing boat was found on Monday evening, abandoned and beached further up the creek from the boat launch.

Boaters discovered the vessel, which was was empty except for fishing gear, shoes and a cellphone.

The search for Meinert (left) and his son began Monday night when the pair didn't return home

Early Tuesday morning, a police officer found Oliver (center) walking through heavy brush. Here Meinert is pictured with his wife, Autumn (right), and his son in 2015

Oliver had minor cuts from his night alone in the woods but was otherwise in good condition

There were also life jackets on board, but neither the father or son appeared to be wearing one during the trip, police said.

Officers believe Matthew may have fallen into the water, with the boat continuing on its own steam until it hit a tree.

Authorities had searched for the father and son using boats and sonar equipment since Monday evening.

The Department of Public Safety launched a helicopter, and police from Trophy Club, Roanoke, Flower Mound and Lewisville assisted with the hunt.
President Donald Trump's revamped travel ban is facing its first major legal setback, after a federal judge halted enforcement of the directive that would deny US entry to the wife and child of a Syrian refugee already granted asylum.

In a preliminary restraining order issued Friday that applies only to the Syrian man and his family, US District Judge William Conley in Wisconsin said the plaintiff 'is at great risk of suffering irreparable harm' if the directive is carried out.

The man chose to remain anonymous because his wife and child are still living in war-wracked Aleppo.

The order marked the first ruling against the revised directive, which temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries.

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President Donald Trump's revamped travel ban is facing its first major legal setback, after US District Judge William Conley (right) halted enforcement of the directive that would deny US entry to the wife and child of a Syrian refugee already granted asylum

Conley said the plaintiff 'is at great risk of suffering irreparable harm' if the directive is carried out. The man's wife and child are still living in war-wracked Aleppo (pictured)

It denies US entry to all refugees for 120 days and halts for 90 days the granting of visas to nationals from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan.

The new order, unveiled Monday, is due to go into effect March 16.

Lifting an indefinite Syrian refugee travel ban and reducing the number of blacklisted countries by removing Iraq, it replaces a previous iteration issued in January that was blocked in federal court.

'The court appreciates that there may be important differences between the original executive order and the revised executive order issued on March 6, 2017,' Conley wrote.

'As the order applies to the plaintiff here, however, the court finds his claims have at least some chance of prevailing for the reasons articulated by other courts.' He set a hearing for March 21.

In another legal challenge, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint on behalf of several refugee assistance groups over the controversial executive order.

'Putting a new coat of paint on the Muslim ban doesn't solve its fundamental problem, which is that the Constitution and our laws prohibit religious discrimination,' said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU's immigrant rights project.

'The further President Trump goes down this path, the clearer it is that he is violating that basic rule.'

The ACLU, the preeminent US civil liberties group, and the National Immigration Law Center brought the suit on behalf of the International Refugee Assistance Project and the refugee resettlement group HIAS, as well as several individuals.

The suit alleges that the new executive order violates the constitutional protection of freedom of religion in that it is 'intended and designed to target and discriminate against Muslims, and it does just that in operation'.

'Rarely in American history has governmental intent to discriminate against a particular faith and its adherents been so plain,' the complaint says, alleging the new order will cause 'irreparable harm' and asking for an injunction.

A federal judge in Maryland, Theodore Chuang, has scheduled a hearing in the case for March 15 -- the day before the measure is due to take effect.

Separately, a federal judge in Seattle who issued a nationwide halt to Trump's original travel restrictions denied a motion to have the same ruling apply to the modified measures, saying at least one of the parties must first file additional court papers.

The order marked the first ruling against the revised directive, which temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries

The new travel ban denies US entry to all refugees for 120 days and halts for 90 days the granting of visas to nationals from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan (pictured), Iraq was removed from the list. The order was unveiled Monday and will go into effect March 16

The state of Maryland said it would join Monday the suit filed by the attorney general from Washington state, which also has the support of Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Oregon.

'President Trump's second executive order is still a Muslim ban,' Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh said in a statement.

'The administration persists in an effort to implement a policy that is inhumane and unconstitutional, but also makes us less safe, not more safe.'

The state of Hawaii has filed a separate complaint, and a hearing in that case on whether to impose a national restraining order is set for March 15 as well.

The White House cites national security in justifying the ban, arguing that it needs time to implement 'extreme vetting' procedures to keep Islamic militants from entering the country.

Polls show American public opinion is deeply divided on the issue. Most indicate a slight majority of voters opposed, with strong support among Trump's political base.
Police are searching for Siwaphiwe Mbambo who was stolen in an apparent car-jacking in the South African city of Durban on Friday

Police are searching for a baby that was stolen in an apparent gun-point car-jacking in the South African city of Durban on Friday.

The baby, Siwaphiwe Mbambo, is just one-month-old and was being breastfed by her mother when she was targeted by two suspects.

The baby's mother and brother were left behind while the child was driven away in the attack.

The white Toyota Yaris, which was fitted with a satellite tracking device monitored, was found nearby but the car seat was missing.

More than 100 officers have been involved in the search.

Police spokesman Thulani Zwane told Sky News: 'Up to now the infant has not been found and police will continue their search.

'It's alleged that the mother was breastfeeding her child in the car and the two suspects came and hijacked the vehicle and took the baby.

'Later the vehicle was recovered where it was found abandoned.

'Up to now the baby is still missing. She was last seen wearing a vest and nappies.'

More than 15,000 has been put up as a reward for information leading to the baby's recovery.

The child is a female of black ethnic origin. She is light in complexion and was last dressed in a long sleeve white top and a nappy.

On Friday, Childline in KwaZulu-Natal said it will continue to monitor the situation of the kidnapping of an infant.

The organisation also expressed its solidarity with law enforcement authorities in searching for the baby.

The car, a white Toyota Yaris, was found nearby but the car seat was missing after the attack

Childline's operations manager Adeshini Naicker told EWN: 'As Childline KZN weve emphasised at all times that our priority is the protection of children and were deeply saddened by this incident.

'We believe its important that we start looking at measures to prevent the abduction of children, especially infants.'

Concerned citizens took to social media to spread awareness of the missing child.

The hashtag #HelpFindDurbanBaby was trending yesterday afternoon.

One user said: 'Let's #HelpFindDurbanBaby Siwaphiwe who was abducted during a hijacking in Durban today.'
Refugees may be forced to learn English if they want to keep their welfare payments in a drastic move suggested by a migrant support group.

The Southern Migrant and Refugee Centre (SMRC) has proposed removing 'futile activity testing' and instead linking welfare payments to refugee's presence at English classes, The Daily Telegraph reported.

After arriving in Australia, refugees receive welfare for 13 weeks before they must find work or study - SMRC claims this means refugees often gave up English lessons in case they lose their payments.

Refugees may be forced to learn English if they want to keep their welfare payments, in a drastic move suggested by a migrant support group (Pictured an English class a ta South Korean school)

Poor English skills can often prevent new arrivals, especially young people, from settling into the Australian community Liberal MP Jason Wood said.

'It is very apparent that the lack of English on arrivals for new migrants makes it extremely difficult,' Mr Wood said.

'Even though 510 hours of English is provided by government, evidence suggests most new arrivals only access about 340 hours.'

Mr Wood is currently a month into a joint parliamentary committee hearing looking in to services for refugees arriving on Australian shores.

For acting chief executive of SMRC Despina Haralambopoulos removing the activity test was an important step.

'The activity test takes away from their capacity to attend English language classes,' Ms Haralambopoulos told the Daily Telegraph.

Liberal MP Jason Wood (pictured) says poor English skills can often prevent new arrivals, especially young people, from settling into the Australian community

Refugees receive welfare for 13 weeks before they must find work or study  SMRC claims that this means refugees often gave up English lessons in case they lose their payments


Customers who forked out hundreds of dollars to attend celebrity chef Luke Mangan's food event were left furious after waiting in line for hours for food and drinks - which ran out early.

Tickets to A Moveable Feast on Bondi Beach, in Sydney's east, on Saturday evening cost $165 per person, but were only for sale in pairs.

Billed as part pop-up dinner and part synchronised picnic, it promised the anticipated thousands of visitors the 'ultimate summer celebration'.

Food lovers were promised chilled wine and a gourmet eight-course shared feast inspired by the Australian gourmet chef's restaurants around the globe.

But although it was scheduled to run up until 11pm, dozens of angry punters took to the event's Facebook hours before it ended to blast the event's organisers.

Customers who forked out hundreds of dollars to attend celebrity chef's dining event were left furious after having to wait in line for hours for food and drinks  which ran out early.

They complained about long queues, a two-hour wait for alcohol they had pre-purchased and a lack of food leading some to be rescued by Domino's.

One customer demanded a refund on the $500 he had spent on tickets.

'Worst $500 spent on 2 hour wait for preordered booze then no food left due to amazingly poor event organisation,' mikeys71 wrote on Instagram.

He added Domino's 'came to rescue at end of night as no staff had any idea what was happening'.

'Hoping for refund or $500 voucher at your restaurant not happy Jan!'

Zeina Chalich added on Twitter: 'Love Bondi but @Luke Mangan what a joke!

'I'm glad you ran our & we missed your food. Waiting 2hrs for a drink was bad too.'

Georgia Cable shared a picture of the event's food and described it as 'horrendous'

Georgia Cable shared a picture of the 'horrendous' food served on the event's Facebook page.

She wrote: '$320 for an airline meal and I didn't even get a holiday to go with it! Ridiculous queues for pre-ordered drinks and a plastic chair at a trestle table on the beach.'

Ms Cable also blasted the event's organisers for having a course that was simply a bread roll with olive oil and said charging $60 a bottle for a $15 wine was 'offensive.'

Liv Aaron added: 'The Jetstar food on my flight home yesterday was better than this! An absolute joke!'

Thousands of people flocked to Bondi Beach. paying $165 per person for tickets to the event

Many complained about the long lies, poor quality food and shambolic organisation

Angry customers flooded social media complaining about the lack of food and long queues

Debbie Lucey remarked: 'Ironic that it's called A Moveable Feast when the patrons spent the majority of the time in a stationary queue.'

Tanya Maria Mah described the event as a 'sorry shamble' and said security manhandled customers, adding there was also a lack of water stations.

'What a sorry shamble of an event,' she wrote on Facebook.

'The event was desperately unorganised and poorly planned - the staff literally had NO IDEA what in hell they were meant to do other that look completely dumbfounded and overwhelmed at the smallest requests.'

One man wrote he paid $500 for tickets to the event on Bondi Beach and received no food

The man added that he and his friends ended up eating Domino's pizza despite being promised an eight-course 'gourmet' feast at the event

She said she paid $165 for a pre-packaged hamper of food that she never received and had to wait more than an hour in line for a drink.

Ms Mah added that customers were not able to leave the beach to get a takeaway and 'security staff man-handled hungry punters and were completely over the top with their security measures.'

Christopher Archer wrote that he waited three hours for 'obscenely priced' alcohol at the event and even when food ran out, customers weren't allowed a pass to leave to eat elsewhere and return later.

'Terribly organised event. $135 for aeroplane food that we never received as it ran out, 3 hour wait for obscenely priced wine/champagne, no water and no option for a pass out, to leave and come back so we could grab a drink at a bar and enjoy the DJ later on,' he wrote.

'Disappointing is an understatement.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted A Moveable Feast for comment.Top of Form
A Canadian woman who poisoned and burned her daughter to death has been sentenced to life in prison with no chance at parole for 18 years.

Laura Coward, 50, pleaded guilty in a Calgary, Canada, courtroom last month to the second-degree murder of her nine-year-old daughter Amber Lucius.

Court of Queen's Bench Scott Brooker said Coward's sentence must reflect 'society's disgust and outrage'.

Laura Coward, 50, who murdered her daughter, nine-year-old Amber Lucius (pictured), has been sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 18 years

'Amber was completely vulnerable to and trusting of her mother,' said Brooker. 'It was the ultimate betrayal for Ms Coward to kill her own daughter.'

Although Coward's life sentence was automatic, it was up to Brooker to decide how long she'd have to wait before being able to seek parole, CTV News reports.

Brooker said Coward deserved credit for pleading guilty and for her apparent remorse, but he noted that she never explained her motive for murdering Amber.

He added that the murder was vile, random and senseless and appeared to have been revenge against Coward's former husband, Duane Lucius.

Court documents described a bitter divorce between Coward and Lucius.

A custody tug-of-war over their daughter had continued up until the girl was found dead.

Amber Lucius was reported missing in September 2014. Two days later her mother was arrested.

Coward poisoned and burned her daughter alive inside this truck during Labor Day weekend

Police found a handwritten note by Coward on the truck's front window that reads: 'Help me. It was an accident. Locked keys in'

Amber laid unconscious here as her mother set the truck on fire with a propane torch

Police found Laura Coward near Sundre in west-central Alberta, standing beside a burned truck in which her daughter's body was discovered.

Coward had been with Amber for the Labor Day weekend and, on a trip to a remote area, gave her daughter a non-lethal dose of a prescription sleeping aid.

She mistakenly thought Amber was dead and filled the inside of the truck - where her daughter lay unconscious - with paper and plastic totes before closing the door and setting it on fire with a propane torch, according to court testimony.

An officer who found the burned truck saw a handwritten note by Coward on its front window that reads: 'Help me. It was an accident. Locked keys in.'

Amber died of a combination of hypothermia, smoke inhalation and carbon monoxide toxicity, an autopsy report suggests.

The murder may have been revenge against Coward's former husband, Duane Lucius (left)

At Coward's sentencing last week, she begged her friends and family for their forgiveness.

'I want to say to the father, my family, friends that I'm responsible for my choices and I beg for their forgiveness and I plead for your mercy,' she told Brooker.

Amber's father Lucius told Coward that he would never forgive her for the pain she caused.

'I feel upset (about) how someone could do something like this to a little, innocent girl with a whole life ahead of her,' he said.

Lucius held back tears as he spoke outside the courtroom after Coward was sentenced.

'No sentence will do justice for what has happened to Amber,' he said. 'As a father, I have had to bury my child and nothing will bring her back. I can only hope that other children are not being used as bargaining chips in a divorce or used to hurt the other parent.'

Amber (above) was supposed to be returned to her father two days before her body was found

Coward was originally charged with the first-degree murder of Amber (pictured), but she pleaded guilty to the act in the second degree last month

Originally, Coward was charged with first-degree murder, but she pleaded guilty to the act in the second degree last month.

Prosecutors proposed a 20-year parole ineligibility, while the defense asked the judge to consider allowing Coward to apply for release after 10 to 12 years.

'There's no way you could ever put into numbers how significant the offense is,' defense lawyer Jim Lutz told CBC News. 'Everybody's pretty broken up about this.'

Three days before Amber was murdered, her parent's divorce was finalized, confirming that her father would have full custody.

Police found Coward here, standing beside the truck in which Amber's body was discovered

Amber was supposed to be returned to her father two days before her body was found.

Coward told friends and her other daughter that she was taking Amber stargazing.

Instead, Coward drove them to a rural property, where she gave her daughter the sleeping pills.

In his 30 years as a prosecutor, Mac Vomberg said this is the most disturbing case he's seen.

'Virtually everybody who's come close to this case has suffered,' said Vomberg. 'The damage done to virtually everybody involved is widespread and very traumatic.'
Press Secretary Sean Spicer didn't reject the idea of 'deep state' at his Friday briefing, implying there may be an organized group of people leftover from the Obama administration working from within to undermine President Trump.

When asked whether or not there is a deep state, Spicer answered: 'I think that there's no question when you have eight years of one party in office, there are people who stay in government  and continue to espouse the agenda of the previous administration.'

'So I don't think it should come as any surprise there are people that burrowed into government during eight years of the last administration and may have believed in that agenda and may continue to seek it.'

'I don't think that should come as a surprise.'

Spicer said the CIA is not actively working to remove the people working against the administration.

Deep state is the latest phrase and hashtag in the era of conspiracy theorizing that says there is a state working within a state working against the elected party.

It's not a new expression but the way it is being used today is unique in the context of an administration that already labels news 'fake', facts 'alternative' and protesters 'paid'.

It's used by conservatives to condemn the alleged network of traitors and by liberals as a glimmer of hope in a Republican dominated administration.

Friday, Sean Spicer said: 'I don't think it should come as any surprise there are people that burrowed into government during eight years of the last administration'

Sean Spicer didn't deny that people from the Obama administration were working from within to undermine the President Trump

The phrase 'deep state' originated in Turkey in response to deep state sponsored killings and engineered riots, which President Trump has tweeted about without proof

The Economist reported the phrase originated in Turkey in the 1950s in reference to deep state sponsored murders and 'engineered riots', something President Trump has said several times about protests to his presidency.

Last month, the president tweeted: 'Professional anarchists, thugs and paid protesters are proving the point of the millions of people who voted to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!'

However, the sheer amount of leaks during Donald Trump's few months in office suggests to some that there may be people actively working against the president.

Sean Hannity said on Fox Thursday: 'It's time for the Trump administration to begin to purge these saboteurs before it's too late.'

But California Representative Ted Leiu, a Democrat, suggested the deep state network is not a bad thing.

He linked an article refuting Trump's claims that former President Obama wiretapped Trump Tower, writing: 'We are whistleblowers, press, judges, legislators, cooks, teachers. We are #DeepState. We are the American people.'

Some democrats are using the phrase 'deep state' in a positive manner such as Rep Ted Lieu

Pennsylvania Representative Mike Kelly, a Republican, said former President Obama was only staying in Washington, D.C. to run a shadow government.

Obama has stated he is staying near the capital because his daughter was finishing school.

According to CNN, Kelly said at an event: 'He's only there for one purpose and one purpose only and that is to run a shadow government that is totally going to upset the new agenda.'

Conservative outlets such as Breitbart have suggested the idea of deep state also, with multiple articles mapping out theories about how there is a state working against a state.

Most recently, it pointing to EPA employees working to call senators to vote against Trump's pick to head the department, Scott Pruitt.

The director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University told the Boston Globe this is not typical: 'It is rare,' he said. 'I cant think of any other time when people in the bureaucracy have done this.'
A woman who was kidnapped and raped as a child has spoken of the horrific night she was snatched from her bedroom and how she tried to help police find her attacker by scribbling notes from her hospital bed.

Jennifer Schuett was only eight years old when she was abducted by a stranger from her home in Dickinson, Texas in August 1990 before being strangled and violently raped.

The little girl's attacker, Dennis Earl Bradford, slit her throat and left her for dead in a field where she laid naked, bleeding and unable to move until children found her some 14 hours later.

Now 27 years later, Schuett has relived the traumatic abduction for an episode of CBS 48 Hours set to air on Saturday night.

Jennifer Schuett was only eight years old when she was abducted by a stranger from her home in Dickinson, Texas in August 1990 before being strangled and violently raped

Schuett miraculously managed to fall pregnant via IVF in 2012 despite doctors telling her she unlikely to ever conceive given her severe rape injures. She now has two children - Jenna, 4, and 11-month-old Jonah - with husband Jonathan Martinez

'He held a knife to my throat and said: 'Am I scaring you, little girl? Am I scaring you?' Then he choked me as hard as he could. I blacked out for a while,' Schuett told the program.

'I woke up to him dragging me by my ankles. He dropped my legs. I realized I couldn't scream and I couldn't figure out why. I had just enough strength to throw my right hand on top of my neck. That's when I felt this gaping wound.'

When Schuett woke up in the field her attacker was gone, but she couldn't move or even scream for help. She was rescued hours later after children playing in the field found her.

Despite being unable to speak as she recovered in hospital from her horrific injuries, Schuett desperately tried to answer police questions about the man who attacked her.

48 Hours obtained copies of the notes she scribbled to investigators as she recalled the night of the attack.

Schuett scribbled notes to police while she recovered in hospital as she tried to help investigators find her attacker

Schuett detailed how her attacker dragged her into a field and that he had told her he was an undercover cop with a 'big gun'

The little girl told police her attacker's name was Dennis and helped police create a sketch of the suspect with her detailed description

Despite being unable to speak as she recovered in hospital from her horrific injuries, Schuett desperately tried to answer police questions about the man who attacked her

She wrote that she had been wearing a 'pink t-shirt' and white underwear covered in blue roses on the night she was abducted.

The little girl told police her attacker's name was Dennis and helped police create a sketch of the suspect with her detailed description.

Detectives had no leads until Dennis Earl Bradford was finally found in 2009 after improved DNA testing linked him to the attack

She wrote the man was white, wore glasses, had a black mustache and had one or two green tattoos.

'I remember writing down that there were beer cans, the brand of cigarettes that he had, everything that I thought would help in finding him,' Schuett said.

In one of the notes, she told police Bradford said he was 'an undercover cop. Big gun. He said I don't have my gun or badge right now.'

Despite the details she provided detectives, two decades passed before improved DNA testing linked Bradford to the attack.

Bradford, who was a convicted kidnapper living in Arkansas, was found in September 2009 and his driver's license photo was practically identical to the attacker Schuett had described to police.

The little girl wrote the man was white, wore glasses, had a black mustache and had one or two green tattoos

Bradford, who was a convicted kidnapper living in Arkansas, was found in September 2009 and his driver's license photo was identical to the attacker Schuett had described to police

She told police her attacker had strangled her before he slashed her throat

Bradford, then 40, killed himself in prison in May 2010 before he could stand trial on rape and attempted murder charges.

The struggles had continued for Schuett. When she was 25 she was diagnosed with hydrosalpinx, a condition where the fallopian tubes are blocked and filled with fluid.

She was told it was due to complications caused by the rape and that she may never be able to conceive her own children. Schuett was told that even after corrective surgeries chances of becoming pregnant naturally were slim to none.

Schuett and her boyfriend, Jonathan Martinez, decided to try IVF as their only hope of becoming parents and the frozen embryo miraculously took.

The couple now have two children - four-year-old Jenna and 11-month-old Jonah.

Her story, Live to Tell: Afraid of the Dark, will air Saturday, March 11 at 9pm Central on CBS.

Schuett, pictured with her husband Jonathan Martinez, finally saw the arrest of the suspect in 2010. Bradford killed himself in prison in 2010 before he could stand trial on charges

Schuett and decided to try IVF as their only hope of becoming parents and the frozen embryo miraculously took in 2012. They now had two children together




Traces of platinum discovered at archaeological sites across the US may help scientists determine why the Clovis people disappeared thousands of years ago.

Platinum is found in asteroids and comets, which has led researchers to speculate that an extraterrestrial object could explain the disappearance.

The Clovis people, who inhabited the modern-day contiguous United States more than 13,000 years ago along with beasts such as the mastodon and mammoth, disappeared 12,800 years ago. More than 35 ice-age animals also went extinct.

An extraterrestrial object such as an asteroid (pictured) or comet could have struck North America around 12,800 years ago, when the Clovis peoples disappeared and 35 ice age animals went extinct

The contiguous United States had been inhabited by the Clovis people, pictured in a drawing battling a woolly mammoth, more than 13,000 years ago

Researchers from the University of South Carolina, whose work was published in Scientific Reports, found 11 Clovis sites from California to the Carolinas and Virginia had platinum, which was previously found in Greenland in 2013.

Archaeologist Albert C. Goodyear told WLTX: 'We found in our study from California to the Savannah River, higher than ordinary concentrations of platinum.'

While no impact site has been found, platinum's dating coincided with the 'Younger-Dryas' period, a sort of mini ice-age lasting 1,400 years that began 12,800 years ago, Science Daily reported.

The study's lead author, Christopher Moore, said: 'Platinum is very rare in Earth's crust, but it is common in asteroids and comets.'

Moore added: 'The presence of elevated platinum in archaeological sites is a confirmation of data previously reported for the Younger-Dryas onset several years ago in a Greenland ice-core.'

Clovis sites from California (pictured as 1) to the Carolinas and Virginia (pictured 5-11) yielded traces of platinum

The Clovis peoples were known for the fine-fluted stone points they made for weapons, pictured. For a time, they were believed to be the first peoples in the Americas

He said that unlike the dinosaur extinction 65million years ago which was caused by a large extraterrestrial object impact, the Younger-Dryas impact would have been caused by a smaller one.

Questions such as how exactly peoples and animals would have been affected by such an environmental change remain, and the study concludes that more research into the theoretical impact is necessary.

The Clovis people were a prehistoric Native American group of hunter-gatherers who, for 40 years, were assumed to have been the first people to arrive in the Americas.

An archaeologist at the El Fin del Mundo Clovis site in northwestern Mexico excavates the culture which mysteriously disappeared 12,800 years ago

The Clovis people shared the land with ice-age animals such as the woolly mammoth, pictured, and the mastodon. Such animals are now extinct

These early humans were distinguished by the fine-fluted stone points they made for weapons.

But in early 2016, anthropologists in Southern Chile discovered a completely different type of a much older stone tool technology believed to be up to 19,000 years old.

David Meltzer, a Southern Methodist University archaeologist, said: 'There is compelling evidence that Clovis was preceded by an earlier and possibly separate population.'
Pamela Anderson, 49, looked sensational as she visited cloistered WikiLeaks founder on Thursday

Pamela Anderson has all but made her relationship with Wikileaks founder Julian Assange official with her sensual note titled 'My Julian.'

The former Baywatch star wrote on Pamela Anderson Foundation website: 'Julian Assange is the most intelligent, interesting, and informed man in existence. Yes- I think he's quite sexy. He has tremendous strength and stamina- though vulnerable.'

She also wrote that his intentions were good and that the 2010 rape allegations are untrue. The 45-year-old Australian national has been living in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London to avoid extradition since June 2012.

Anderson said she is now advocating for men who were falsely accused of rape.

She ended the note on her blog praising the work of whistle blowers, saying they make the world a safer place.

Anderson signed the note with 'love' writing: 'Thank you to my heroes at Wikileaks,and of course - I will always stand by My Julian ... Love, Pamela.'

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Pamela Anderson called Julian Assange 'quite sexy' is a heartfelt blog post on her website

Baewatch: Pamela Anderson has visited Julian Assange at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London six times in the past five months

In February, the 49-year-old actress also did not refute rumors when asked on Loose Women if she was dating the hacker.

She said: 'Since then I feel a genuine closeness to Julian. I have had more stimulating conversation with this man than all my ex-husbands and lovers combined.'

'Our intentions were not to become romantic, but to join forces.'

'The rumors are flattering. I think I might have what it takes to be an effective First Lady.'

Pamela Anderson has visited Julian Assange at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London six times in the past five months, igniting rumors that they are in item.

The former Playboy pin-up, who appeared on Strictly Come Dancing over Christmas, was first spotted at his official residence in September 2014.

Their initial meeting was set up for Anderson to try to persuade Assange to back her new foundation, which supports women who are victims of sexual abuse.
Shocking footage has emerged of a violent brawl between a group of people outside an Essex nightclub.

The film shows one woman, who appears to be the main aggressor, land a flying kick into a man's stomach, sending him - and the girl behind him - flying backwards over a concrete bench.

The woman, who is wearing a white minidress, then contines her assault, aiming punches at another man's head before kicking him to the curb.

The film shows a woman land a flying kick into a man's stomach, sending him - and the girl behind him - flying backwards over a concrete bench

As another man tries to pull her away, the girl breaks free and grabs hold of the blonde woman's hair, dragging her along the pavement.

Bystanders eventually separate the women, who had allegedly been arguing over a man.

The fight happened outside Faces nightclub in Gants Hill, Ilford, after clubbers had been out partying on the night of Saturday, February 25.

The altercation took place around an hour after closing time, when security staff had left the vicinity.

The fight happened outside Faces nightclub in Gants Hill, Ilford, and the two women involved had allegedly been arguing over a man

The club's owner said the girls involved in the altercation had been visiting for the weekend from Liverpool, and had not caused any trouble inside the club.

The film was posted on Twitter with the comment 'Essex girls man. Flying kick and that.'

It has since been shared more than a thousand times.

Responding to the footage, Twitter user Violet said: 'Look at that kick though.'

And Brigitte Everswan commented: 'So ladylike!'

The woman's kick was powerful enough to knock two people over at once

After sending two people flying, the women then knocks another man over the bench

Faces bills itself as 'the most talked about club outside of the West End', and says it boasts 'a VIP guest list from the world of TV, fashion and sport.'

The club's website claims 'membership is essential to guarantee entry'.

A spokesman for Scotland Yard said he did not believe the fight had been reported to police, and no arrests had been made in relation to the incident.

Tony Bee, owner of Faces nightclub, told MailOnline: 'This incident occurred on Sunday, February 26 at 3.15am in the morning.

The girl then grabs hold of the blonde woman's hair, dragging her along the pavement

'The club had been closed for 45 minutes, all staff had gone home and the manager was in the process of locking up and going home himself, and the girl involved was part of a larger group of Girls visiting Essex from Liverpool for the weekend.

'We hadn't had any problems within the club with the girls and it is difficult to fully understand what had happened in the 45 minutes since we had closed.

'Gants Hill is on a major Main Road with a number of late night venues, eateries etc so we don't even know where the people who the girl was having a disagreement with had come from - from our club or another bar, a restaurant, or just walking home from the train station, which is only 200 yards from our venue, we simply don't know.

'Clearly the girl was most agitated but my understanding is there were no injuries sustained by anyone.'
Prince Harry cut a proud figure as he watched England trounce Scotland 61-21 in the Six Nations at Twickenham today.

The Prince handed out the Calcutta Cup to England skipper Dylan Hartley - but had to do without girlfriend Meghan Markle, who was spotted walking to yoga back in Toronto.

A crowd of 82,000 fans filled the stadium to watch England win their second successive Six Nations title.

Beaming Harry looks on with pride as England rugby skipper Dylan Hartley lifts the Calcutta Cup after thrashing Scotland 61-21

Prince Harry, who is the patron of the Rugby Football Union, was thrilled as he watched Eddie Jones' men continue their unbeaten run of form today

Avid rugby fan Harry was thrilled as he watched Eddie Jones' men continue with their remarkable run of form.

Scotland arrived on something of a high with two wins under their belt and talking up their chances of a first triumph at Twickenham for 34 years.

But they fell to their equal-worst beating by England having conceded by far the most points against their oldest rivals - massively eclipsing the 40-3 reverse of 2001.

England quickly raced into the lead against Scotland, wining the game 61-21

England's Danny Care cuts an ecstatic figure as he scores the side's seventh try

From the earliest exchanges they looked second-best and, though they were badly disrupted by injuries to key players and a second-minute yellow card for hooker Fraser Brown, there was precious little consolation despite their three tries.

Afterwards Scotland captain John Barclay succinctly pre-empted the analysis by declaring: 'We were useless.'

Scotland were thoroughly outclassed throughout the entirety of the game

The Calcutta Cup was first contested in 1879. Since then England have won it 70 times and Scotland 39 times.

Prince Harry, Patron of the Rugby Football Union, appeared at Twickenham station to watch the match between England and Scotland.

The prince looked smart in a navy blue suit with a light spotted tie and talked animatedly to Defence Minister Michael Fallon before the match.

He proudly belted out the national anthem with the rest of the England supporters before the first whistle blew and appeared to enjoy the game.

Former Prime Minister David Cameron was also seen at the game.

Patron of the Rugby Football Union, Prince Harry was pictured alongside defence secretary Michael Fallon as he sung the national anthem

The prince sported a navy blue suit with a light spotted tie as he enjoyed an afternoon of rugby. He has been dating Miss Markle since last summer, even though they live on different continents

Prince Harry had to do without Meghan Markle, who had jetted back to Toronto braving freezing temperatures.

The chilly weather was a far cry from last week, when Miss Markle partied with Prince Harry in Jamaica as they celebrated the wedding of the royal's friend, Tom Inskip.

At the weekend getaway, Miss Markle sported a flowery maxi dress as she enjoyed the Caribbean paradise celebration.

She was pictured holding hands with the prince for the first time in public at the ceremony.

At the Jamaican wedding last week, Prince Harry and Miss Markle were pictured enjoying the hot weather. The actress sported a flowing floral dress, while the prince looked dapper in a dark suit with a yellow flower

Prince Harry was seen chatting to Minister Michael Fallon before the match started

At the wedding, Prince Harry looked dapper in a suit decorated with a bright yellow flower.

Later in the evening, the prince took his jacket and tie off and relaxed as he sat next to Miss Markle.

The famous actress put her arm around the fifth in line to the throne as they were seen laughing and holding hands at the table.

He stood in the stands and proudly sung the national anthem alongside thousands of rugby fans

The royal couple stayed in a 1,600-a-night villa run by the super exclusive Round Hill Hotel and Villas, a private 110-acre plantation style resort.

Ironically divorcee Miss Markle married her former husband, producer Trevor Engleson, in Jamaica in 2011.

Miss Markle and Prince Harry have been dating since last summer even though they live on different continents.

David Cameron was also seen at the Six Nations match between England and Scotland. He raised his glasses in surprise when someone came to talk to him

Mr Cameron's position in the stands made it look like he was wearing a flat cap, though it was actually the person behind who was wearing the hat

She spent the first two months of this year staying with Harry at Kensington Palace, where he lives in 'modest' Nottingham Cottage.

The actress has now returned to Toronto where she is currently based for work commitments and to be united with her two beloved rescue dogs.

Miss Markle is due to start filming again next month.

But sources say there is talk that she will ask to be written out of show after completing her commitments in order to concentrate on her relationship with the Queen's grandson.
China is developing its own arsenal of lasers, electromagnetic railguns and high-power microwave weapons for use in future space-based 'light war' satellite attacks, says Chinese military expert Richard Fisher.

China's push to produce these weapons aims to neutralize America's web of intelligence, communication and navigation satellites capable of unmatched precision strikes.

While giving congressional testimony last month, Fisher, from the International Assessment and Strategy Center, confirmed that China has a laser weapons program and warned that the country could be rapidly militarizing space.

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Chinese military expert Richard Fisher (above) confirmed that China has a laser weapons program that includes electromagnetic railguns in an effort to militarize space

'The Chinese government would not hesitate to use the lives of its astronauts as a shield to deceive the world about the real purpose of its space station,' said Fisher.

'Having gained the advantage of surprise, the combat space station could begin attacks against key US satellites, thus blinding the US to the launch of new combat satellites that would attack many more US satellites,' he added.

Fisher believes the US should respond to the threat of Chinese space weapons by developing its own versions.

'As long as China demonstrates its willingness to exploit much of its space program for potential military missions, the US must possess options for at least neutralizing potential threats, preferably short of threatening lives,' Fisher said.

The Pentagon has developed an airborne laser for use in missile defenses. Railguns - electromagnetic projectile launchers - are expected to be deployed in the early 2020s, with high-powered, compact laser guns slated for a decade later, the Asia Times reports.

The US Navy prepared to deploy a new type of experimental electromagnetic railgun, which doesn't require gunpowder, aboard its ships in November (pictured)

Instead of using gunpowder, a railgun uses electromagnetic force to propel projectiles to hypersonic speeds, as demonstrated in this US Navy military test

Railguns, shown here in this US Navy military test, are one of the potential game-changing weapons of future wars

Military secrecy makes it difficult to know the full extent of China's laser weapons programs, but published research and testimony provide insight into the large-scale investment and government support of the development of these arms.

Researchers, Gao Ming-hui, Zeng Yu-quang and Wang Zhi-hong proposed the idea in the journal Chinese Optics in December 2013.

All work for the country's leading laser-weapons technology organization, Changchun Institute for Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics.

Anti-satellite weapons will be 'very important' in future wars, with the space-based laser weapon system being one of the major developments, they wrote in the article.

If China's military, which oversees the country's space program, funds the researchers' proposed five-ton chemical laser it could be operational by 2023, according to the Asia Times.

The weapon would be capable of destroying enemy satellites in orbit from its position in low-Earth orbit.

Ground-based radar would be used to identify target satellites, with precision targeting ensured by a special camera.

Once identified, a deployable membrane telescope would focus the laser's beam on the target.

In 2005, China successfully conducted a 'satellite-blinding' experiment using a 50-100 kilowatt capacity mounted laser gun in Xinjiang province, according to the researchers.

The target was a low-orbit satellite.

This graphic illustrates the basic principles behind railgun technology

That same year the Peoples Liberation Army published the book Light War, which discusses fighting future wars with lasers.

This isn't the first time China has shown interest in laser weapons. The country's been working on its arsenal since the 1960s.

Michael J Listner, of Space Law & Policy Solutions, believes China is making substantial progress based partly on espionage and foreign research the country has acquired.

'Once China develops the underlying technology, the potential military applications are limitless as are the non-military uses,' Listner said.
Lindsey Kushner QC has warned women that if they get drunk they could be targeted by sex offenders

A top female judge who hung up her wig with an astonishing final speech warning women risk being raped if they get drunk has today been savaged for 'victim-blaming'.

Lindsey Kushner QC said there was 'absolutely no excuse' for sex attacks but warned that men gravitate towards vulnerable women as she jailed a rapist in Manchester yesterday.

She insisted that while women were entitled to 'drink themselves into the ground', their 'disinhibited behaviour' could put them in danger and they were 'less likely to be believed' than a sober victim.

Today Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner Dame Vera Baird lambasted the judge for 'victim-blaming', saying her remarks would stop victims coming forward.

The former solicitor-general told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: 'When somebody is raped they feel guilt and shame and they find it very hard to report it.

'If a judge has just said to them "Well, if you drank you are more likely to get raped, we are not likely to believe you and you have been disinhibited so you've rather brought it on yourself" then that guilt is just going to get worse.'

The ex-Labour MP said the judge should have given advice to help women stay safe instead of implying 'it's your fault for having attracted him in the first place'.

'She does say "Yes, you can drink yourself daft and you can use your body how you want but if you do you are more likely to get raped". Now, I'm sorry, but that is putting responsibility on it.'

In her final case before resigning, Ms Kushner spoke out yesterday as she jailed a man for six years after he raped a drunken girl he met in a Burger King in Manchester city centre in July last year.

Today Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner Dame Vera Baird lambasted the judge for 'victim-blaming', saying her remarks would stop victims coming forward

In an impassioned speech, the 64-year-old mother of a son and daughter said: 'We judges who see one sexual offence trial after another, have often been criticised for suggesting and putting more emphasis on what girls should and shouldn't do than on the act and the blame to be apportioned to rapists.

'There is absolutely no excuse and a woman can do with her body what she wants and a man will have to adjust his behaviour accordingly. But as a woman judge I think it would be remiss of me if I didn't mention one or two things.

'I don't think it's wrong for a judge to beg women to take actions to protect themselves. That must not put responsibility on them rather than the perpetrator.

'How I see it is burglars are out there and nobody says burglars are OK but we do say "please don't leave your back door open at night, take steps to protect yourselves".'

She spoke as she jailed Ricardo Rodrigues-Gomes for raping a drunken women in Manchester

She added: 'Girls are perfectly entitled to drink themselves into the ground but should be aware people who are potential defendants to rape, gravitate towards girls who have been drinking.

'It should not be like that but it does happen and we see it time and time again.'

Ms Kushner, who has sat as a senior circuit judge since 2002, said drunken women were a target because sex offenders thought they would be less likely to put up a fight, and less likely to report an offence.

She finished her speech saying: '[Women] are entitled to do what they like but please be aware there are men out there who gravitate towards a woman who might be more vulnerable than others. That's my final line, in my final criminal trial, and my final sentence.'

But her comments have come under fire from victims' charities, who fear they may deter victims from coming forward.

Dame Vera Baird

Rachel Krys, co-director of End Violence Against Women Coalition said: 'When judges basically blame victims for rape - by suggesting such how much alcohol a woman drinks or what she wears is part of what causes rape - we remove the responsibility from the man who did it. That is really alarming.

'What this judge is saying is exactly the kind of thing that deters women from reporting assaults. Women understandably think that they will not be believed, or will be blamed for their own attack if they've had a drink.

'This judge should set a tone much higher than the victim-blaming attitudes which support and perpetuate violence against women.'

The judge's comments came at the end of a case which heard how factory worker Ricardo Rodrigues-Gomes, 19, and a work colleague took in turns to have sex with the 18-year old victim on a canal bank.

The girl, who had been drinking lager and vodka as well as inhaling the party drug amyl nitrite, could be heard saying: 'No, stop. I don't want to do it. It's not fair,' in footage taken by a passerby.

The woman had been out in Manchester's Gay Village with two friends and all three had been 'drinking significant quantities of alcohol.' She was removed from a nightclub by a bouncer at 5.10am after falling asleep.

She spent some time slumped on the pavement outside the venue before she went with to Burger King, where she met Gomes and his friend.

A member of the public called police, who arrested Gomes nearby.

Portuguese Gomes, from Gorton, Manchester, was convicted of rape whilst his friend was cleared after a trial. Gomes was jailed for six years in prison for two counts of rape.

The judge spoke after the case of a woman raped in Manchester's Canal Street district after she was removed from the nightclub after drinking lager and vodka and inhaling amyl nitrite

Judge Kushner gave her comments on her last day in the job at Manchester Crown Court

In a statement read to the court, the victim, who was due to enrol as a student at Salford University, said she felt like she had 'lost an entire year of my life and as a result of what happened'.

Judge Kushner, who has a son and a daughter, was educated at Manchester High School for Girls and Liverpool University before qualifying as a barrister in 1974. She became a Recorder in 1993 before being appointed a senior circuit judge in 2002.

She came under fire last year after handing a suspended sentence to a woman who stabbed a man in the eye with the stiletto heel of her Christian Louboutin shoes.

The judge also attracted attention when she said she couldn't bear to watch the twisted child abuse videos of a paedophile. He also controversially avoided jail on a community order.
At least 40 people have been killed after twin blasts near holy shrines in the Syrian capital Damascus.

Most of the victims are Iraqi Shia pilgrims, according to Syrian and Iraqi officials.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. Islamic State militants have carried out similar attacks before against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere.

Extremist Sunni groups, such as IS, view Shiites as apostates and consider shrines a form of idolatry.

At least 40 people have been killed in twin blasts in the Sryian capital, Damascus. A bus is pictured here, completely blown out

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot, apparently where the explosions went off near Bab al-Saghir cemetery.

The cemetery is one of Damascus' most ancient and is where several prominent religious figures are buried.

Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar visited the wounded in local hospitals. He said 40 were killed and 120 were wounded.

He said the attacks targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were touring area's shrines.

Iraq's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 Iraqis were killed and 120 wounded. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims to the shrines were targeted.

He said a crisis response team has been formed to expedite the identification and transport of the killed and wounded.

He said: 'The ministry calls on the international community to condemn this heinous terrorist crime that targeted civilian Iraqi visitors to the holy shrines.'

Heavily damage to the front of the bus. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot

Iraqi, Iranian and other Asian Shiites often visit shrines in Syria.

There were conflicting reports about what caused the explosions. State news agency SANA said the blasts were caused by bombs placed near the cemetery and that at least 33 were killed and more than a hundred wounded.

Lebanon's Al-Manar TV quoted Syrian officials saying twin suicide attacks killed 40.

The military media arm of Hezbollah, Lebanon's militant group close to Damascus, said two suicide bombers blew themselves up 15 minutes apart near the shrines, leading to the large number of casualties.

Arab TV Al-Mayadeen, airing the conflicting reports, also said at least 40 were killed. The area was sealed after the explosions.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group with activists on the ground, said at least 46 were killed in the twin explosions.

Wrecked lorries at the same scene. Islamic State militants have carried out similar attacks before against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere

A car on the streets also pictured heavily damaged in the blasts. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group with activists on the ground, said at least 46 were killed in the twin explosions

The group said the first blast came after a suicide bomber blew himself up among the pilgrims near the shrines.

It was not clear what caused the second explosion, the group said, adding that the death toll is likely higher because dozens were wounded.

Mohammed Haytham al-Hosseini, head of the National Hospital in Damascus, told pro-government Sama TV that 41 killed arrived to his facility.

He said at least three wounded were in critical condition.

A similar attack in Damascus last year targeted one of the most revered Shiite shrines and was claimed by Islamic State militants.

Bab al-Saghir is one of the seven gates of the old city of Damascus and houses a cemetery where a number of early Islam religious figures, including family members of Prophet Muhammad and figures revered by Shiites, are buried.

Also Saturday, Syria's President Bashar Assad said in an interview that his military's priority is to reach the Islamic State group's de-facto capital of Raqqa - toward which U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces are also advancing.

The interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV was aired Saturday and shared by the Syrian Presidency website. Assad said another IS stronghold, Deir el-Zour, may be targeted in parallel.

The twin blasts Saturday hit outside Bab al-Saghir cemetery, one of the most ancient in the Syrian capital and which houses revered Shiite religious figures

Syrian security officials stand next to a damaged bus at the site of bombing, in Damascus

Syria's battlefields have become increasingly crowded. U.S-led coalition forces in collaboration with Syrian Kurdish fighters as well as Turkish troops and Syrian allies and Syrian government troops, backed by Russia and Iran, are all converging to clear northern Syria of the remnants of Islamic State militants.

In some incidents, the teeming battlefield has caused friction between rival groups, as well as several civilian casualties.

Assad said that 'in theory' he shares the same priority with U.S. President Donald Trump of fighting terrorism but that they have had no formal contact yet.

He said Russia, a major ally, hopes it can urge the U.S. and Turkey to cooperate with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. Assad's government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups.

Assad said all foreign troops on Syrian soil without invitation or consultation with the Syrian government are considered 'invaders.'
Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Kushner braved the chilly weather to go jogging around their neighborhood on Saturday morning before heading out on a family outing.

The couple were spotted leaving their Washington D.C. home early and were followed closely by secret service agents as they took off through the streets.

Ivanka, 35, rugged up with a maroon beanie, navy sweatpants and a black high-neck sweatshirt.

Her husband was spotted in all-black running attire with just a cap to keep his head warm.

Ivanka Trump was spotted outside her Washington D.C. home early Saturday morning when she went jogging with her husband

Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner braved the chilly weather to go running around their neighborhood

A female secret service agent ran beside them with what appeared to be a radio in her hand, before following them through a gate into their home.

The couple left their home later in the morning with their daughter five-year-old Arabella. They were spotted getting ready to head out as their daughter wore a bike helmet.

It comes after Ivanka spent the night baking cookies with the couple's children as they prepared to celebrate the annual Jewish holiday of Purim.

The mother of three shared a cute snap on Instagram of her with daughter Arabella, 5, and Joseph, 3, making hamentashen.

The triangular cookies, which are typically filled with either poppy seed, raspberry or apricot preserves, are a staple during Purim, which falls on March 11 and 12 this year.

Purim is celebrated during huge parties in Jewish communities around the world.

Ivanka and Jared were later spotted heading out with their five-year-old daughter Arabella

Dressed in a maroon beanie and navy sweatpants, Ivanka was spotted dashing through a gate at her home following her run. She was followed by a female secret service agent

At one point during their run, a female secret service agent ran beside Kusnher with what appeared to be a radio in her hand

Ivanka accompanied the photo with the caption: 'After-school fun making hamentashen for Purim with Arabella and Joseph.'

Her youngest child, soon-to-be one-year-old Theodore, didn't seem to be part of the baking session.

The couple moved their family from New York to Washington when Jared became a senior advisor to his father-in-law at the White House.

They moved into their $5.5million house in the Kalorama neighborhood, not far from the Obamas' new home.

They were spotted getting ready to head out later on Saturday as their young daughter wore a bike helmet

Ivanka Trump shared this photo of herself making traditional cookies for upcoming Jewish holiday Purim with daughter Arabella, 5, and son Joseph, 3, on Friday night

Ivanka and Jared were pictured leaving their home on Wednesday as he headed to work at the White House and the first daughter attended a luncheon hosted by her stepmother Melania

Ivanka, who was raised Presbyterian and converted to Judaism prior to her wedding in 2009, has shared photos of her family celebrating Purim and observing other Jewish traditions in recent years.

The day before Ivanka shared her family snap, her brother Eric posted a photo of the two of them in Washington, DC, saying he missed his sister since she moved out of New York City.

Eric and Ivanka posed for the picture on International Women's Day, during which Ivanka attended the luncheon hosted by her stepmother Melania in the State Dining Room.

Ivanka on International Women's Day attended a luncheon hosted by her stepmother, First Lady Melania Trump, inside the State Dining Room at the White House (pictured)
A brazen Donald Trump doppelganger was caught on CCTV appearing to key a 28,000 Mercedes-Benz.

The plush motor belonging to chauffeur Kay Hussain was scratched

Owner Mr Hussain decided to install security cameras around his property after a spate of attacks on his fleet.

CCTV footage captures the moment a Donald Trump lookalike appears to key a 28,000 Mercedes-Benz, in east London. Chauffeur Kay Hussain, 31, has had three attacks on his cars so far

Owner Mr Hussain decided to install security cameras around his property after a spate of attacks on his fleet - believing someone was deliberately targetting him

Much to his horror, Mr Hussain spotted what looked like the President of the United States vandalising his vehicle.

Mr Hussain also believes the Trump lookalike is responsible for attacks on his wife's Audi A3 while suggesting he deliberately scraped his Mercedes C250 outside their east London home.

There have been three attacks on Mr Hussain's cars and he believes the attacks could be racially motivated.

CCTV Footage captures the man - with Trump's famous blonde bouffant hairstyle - appear to run his keys along the car's side panels.

'I was absolutely fuming. I spotted it just after I woke up on Sunday and I was in a rage.

'We only had the CCTV put in on Thursday because we needed some evidence to catch this guy.

Mr Hussain said: 'I can't believe he's struck again, this goofy Donald Trump lookalike. I swear he wears a wig. He's a scumbag.'

'I can't believe he's struck again, this goofy Donald Trump lookalike. I swear he wears a wig. He's a scumbag.' Mr Hussain told the Mirror.

'I've never actually seen him in person but I don't think that's his real hair. Maybe he'll be almost as famous as the real Mr Trump now.' he added.

A police spokesman confirmed that officers attended the scene on March 5 after reports of a vandalised car.
A Long Island threesome who split after they raised their son with two mothers and a father have been granted 'tri-custody' of the 10-year-old boy in a historic New York ruling.

Michael, 50, and Dawn Marano, 47, from Bay Shore had been raising their son along with their downstairs neighbor Audria Garcia, 48, the boy's biological mom, The New York Post reported.

Suffolk County Supreme Court Judge H. Patrick Leis III granted custody to all three parents in an unprecedented ruling.

Threesome: Audria Garcia (left), 48, conceived the threesome's son (pictured) with Michael Marano, 50, because his wife Dawn Marano (right) was infertile

Tri-custody: Michael Marano, 50, is the biological father of the boy, but split with his wife in 2008

The Maranos married in 1994 and had been living in a conventional marriage up until they began to have 'intimate relations' with Garcia when she moved in with the couple in 2001.

In 2007, Mr Marano and Garcia conceived their son because Mrs Marano was infertile, court documents state. The threesome agreed raise the child together.

Three parents: Audria and Dawn began their own love affair in 2008 and moved into their own home

Dawn Marano fought for custody of the boy because although she was his parent, she did not have any biological or legal rights

The wife's insurance covered Garcia's pregnancy and the two women nursed the baby and attended doctor appointments together.

After 18 months in the polyamorous relationship, the threesome split in 2008 when Mrs Marano and Garcia moved into a new home after they decided to have their own partnership.

In a historic ruling Suffolk County Supreme Court Judge H Patrick Leiss III granted all three parents custody

The breakup took a messy turn when Mr Marano sued Garcia for custody of their biological son and Mrs Marano filed for divorce, the paper said.

The case went to trial after the biological parents agreed to joint custody, but Mr Marano opposed his ex-wife's custody bid.

Dawn Marano had filed a suit asking for rights for the boy because she is not a legal or biological parent to her son.

The woman said she did not want to have consent from the real parents to see the child.

After the boy testified in court and identified the two women as his 'mommies', Leis granted Dawn Marano Wednesday nights with the 10-year-old.

She was also given one week of vacation during the school year and two weeks in the summer, while Garcia has residential custody.

'No one told these three people to create this unique relationship,' the judge said during the ruling.

Leis also told Michael Marano that no one told the father 'to conceive a child with his wife's best friend', the New York Post said.

The father was granted rights to see the boy on weekends.

While the two women were happy with the decision, Michael told the paper he was going to file an appeal.


High profile U.S. attorney for Manhattan, Preet Bharara, said on Saturday that he had been fired by the Trump administration after refusing to hand in his resignation.

His termination followed Attorney General Jeff Sessions' move on Friday asking for 46 US attorneys nominated by President Obama to resign their posts.

A source told CNN that Trump previously tried to get in touch with Bharara through his assistant, who left the US attorney a voicemail - of which the content is unknown.

Bharara returned the call and informed Trump's assistant that rules prohibit him from speaking directly with the president. Bharara also informed Sessions' chief of staff about the voicemail and said that he would not speak with Trump.

Later, Bharara received another call from Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente asking if it was true that he was refusing to resign.

When he told Boente that it was, Boente called him again later on and informed him that Trump was firing him.

High profile U.S. attorney for Manhattan Preet Bharara refused to hand in his resignation after the Trump administration requested a clean out of the Justice Department

Bharara, who was among those asked to leave despite meeting with Trump in November and being told he would stay on, had refused to step down.

'I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life,' Bharara tweeted on Saturday afternoon.

Bharara tweeted on Saturday afternoon that he had been fired by the Trump administration

Presidents often order political appointees to resign when they take office, but the abrupt nature of the move caught some by surprise - especially given that so many were asked to leave at once.

The New York attorney was said to be blindsided by the move, CNN reports.

A federal law enforcement official told the Daily Beast earlier on Saturday that Bharara had not yet submitted his resignation and was deciding whether to challenge the Trump administration to fire him.

Trump personally asked two attorneys to stay on - current acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente and the man he picked to take over that position, Rod Rosenstein.

'The President called Dana Boente and Rod Rosenstein tonight to inform them that he has declined to accept their resignation, and they will remain in their current positions,' Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr said.

It follows an NBC report that some attorneys were not aware they were expected to resign until their staff members saw posts on social media.

A source told the outlet that Sessions ended a conference call on Thursday by saying 'happy hunting' - giving them no indication of the announcement that was to follow.

Bharara met with Trump at his home in Trump Tower in November and told reporters afterward he had decided to 'stay on.'

'The President-elect asked, presumably because he's a New Yorker and is aware of the great work that our office has done over the past seven years ... whether or not I'd be prepared to stay on' Bhrara said.

'I agreed.'

Bharara was among those asked to leave by Jeff Sessions, despite meeting with President Trump in November and being told he would stay on

He is among a group of Obama-appointed holdovers who did not vacate their offices following the transition to the Trump administration.

The US attorney's office in New York had no comment about the Justice Department's announcement.

As the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, Bharara has helped bring down top political leaders in both parties. His jurisdiction also could interface with the Trump Organization, which is located in Manhattan.

He helped bring down New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, on corruption charges, and then prosecuted Senate minority leader Dean Skelos, a Republican.

His jurisdiction could have put him in a position to pursue the Trump administration.

Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), who used to have Bharara on his staff and helped secure his appointment, expressed concern on Friday night.

'I'm troubled to learn of reports of requests for resignations from the remaining U.S. Attorneys, particularly that of Preet Bharara, after the President initiated a call to me in November and assured me he wanted Mr Bharara to continue to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District,' Schumer said.

'While it's true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for U.S. Attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesn't put ongoing investigations at risk. They ask for letters of resignation but the attorneys are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed.

'By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining U.S. Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the President is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice.'

Preet Bharara, pictured with his wife Dalya Bharara, attended the 2017 Vanity Fair Oscar Party

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked 46 US attorneys to resign their posts

Bharara was among those asked to leave, despite meeting with Trump at Trump Tower (above) in November and being told he would stay on

On Wednesday, watchdog groups wrote to Bharara ugring him to pursue potential violations by the Constitution's Emoluments clause, which prohibits federal officials from accepting gifts or payments from foreign governments, the Washington Post reported.

The statement released by the Justice Department made no mention of Bharara or any exceptions to those being asked to resign.

'As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States Attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the Department of Justice,' said Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur-Flores in a statement.

'The Attorney General has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed U.S. Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition. Until the new U.S. Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. Attorney's Offices will continue the great work of the Department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders,' she said.

A new POTUS can do what he wants with US attorneys, but coming when it does, this smacks of Trump paranoia about "deep state" conspiracies.  Matthew Miller (@matthewamiller) March 10, 2017

Bharara was among 46 federal prosecutors asked to resign by the administration of US President Donald Trump

Many of the federal prosecutors who were nominated by Obama have already left their positions.

The Obama administration allowed political appointees of President George W Bush to serve until their replacement had been nominated and confirmed.

The federal prosecutors are nominated by the president, generally upon the recommendation of a home-state senator.

One US attorney appointed by Bush, Rod Rosenstein of Maryland, remained on the job for the entire Obama administration and is the current nominee for deputy attorney general.

US attorneys are responsible for prosecuting federal crimes in the territories they oversee. They report to Justice Department leadership in Washington, and their priorities are expected to be in line with those of the attorney general.

Sessions submitted additional information to the Senate Judiciary Committee this week after it was revealed he did not disclose during his confirmation hearing that he had met with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. on two occasions.
Tim Peake (pictured) has revealed that was one part of his mission he was not briefed about - what he would do if he met an alien

British astronaut Tim Peake has revealed there was a major hole in his briefing before he went into space - saying he was not told what to do if he met an alien.

The 44-year-old was speaking about his time on the International Space Station but said dealing with Martians was 'not a contingency he had been briefed about'.

He also revealed his excitement about returning to space and said that he can walk around Houston, Texas, without being recognised.

Speaking to Andy Lines at the Daily Mirror, he was asked whether he received training on how to deal with an alien if he met one.

He smiled and said: 'No I hadn't. That wasn't a contingency we had been briefed about.'

Major Peake, from Chichester, West Sussex, has been back on Earth for nine months, and is living in Houston with his wife Rebecca and two sons Thomas and Oliver.

He said that both he and his wife will not push their children to become astronauts and they will 'support' them to find their 'own path'.

Major Peake, who spent 186 days on the ISS, said he has been given a new perspective on life after going into space.

It was revealed earlier this year that he would be returning to space on a second mission to the ISS.

Mr Peake (pictured), from Chichester, West Sussex, has been back on Earth for nine months

In January, he said that he is 'hugely excited' about the latest plans for his new mission - but the exact date is not known.

Major Peake became Britain's first official astronaut in December 2015 when he spent six months on board the ISS.

During his time in space he worked up to 14 hours a day, participating in experiments devised by scientists from around the world.

Peake finished his 186-day Principia mission working on the ISS for Expedition 46/47 when he landed back on Earth on 18 June 2016.
A civil war over trade has broken out within the White House after a contentious meeting in the Oval Office between economic nationalists and pro-trade leaders from Wall Street, reports said.

The dispute resulted from differences between a group including senior adviser Steve Bannon and trade adviser Peter Navarro, and a 'faction' led by Trump's National Economic Council leader and former president of Goldman Sachs Gary Cohn, the Financial Times reported.

The rift reportedly intensified after President Trump sided with the economic nationalists, including Bannon and Navarro, during a recent meeting after officials said Navarro had been losing influence.

Civil war?: A dispute over trade has broken out within the White House after a contentious meeting in the Oval Office between economic nationalists and pro-trade leaders from Wall Street. Pictured: the president and his staff in January

Pro-trade vs nationalists: The split within the administration was caused by differences between pro-trade and former Wall Street executive Gary Cohn (pictured left last month) and Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro (right)

Bannon and Navarro's stance on trade supports the idea of domestic control of the economy including protectionist barriers and tariffs on imports to the US.

However, Cohn's pro-trade agenda is in favor of globalization.

According to the report, unnamed sources claim the trade adviser has become increasingly sidelined within Trump's team.

The battle between the two groups comes ahead of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's visit to the White House next week.

Navarro has openly criticized and angered Germany and European allies for accusing leaders of exploiting the 'undervalued' euro.

The White House decline to answer questions about the meeting to the Financial Times.

'Gary Cohn and Peter Navarro are both valued members of the presidents economic team. They are working together to enact the president's economic agenda, protect American workers and grow American businesses,' a White House spokesperson told the paper in a statement.

Navarro was also said to be losing traction after Republican leaders in Congress were reportedly angered by his lack of preparation during a closed-door trade meeting with Senators last month.

Andew Quinn's recent appointment as the National Economic Council's 'special assistant' has eased international leaders' concerns about Trumps raising tariffs, according the FT. Critics of the economic nationalist policy believe imposed tariffs would cause a international trade war.

Foreign leaders have reportedly been dealing with Cohn about matters as opposed to working Navarro. Officials even speak to directly to the NEC leader about the renegotiation of NAFTA, the report said.

AFL-CIO (American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations) trade official Thea Lea told the Financial Times it seems like the 'Wall Street wing of the Trump administration is winning this battle.'
Malala Yousafzai, 19, was nearly killed when she was shot by the Taliban in 2012

The teenager who narrowly avoided death after being shot by the Taliban has received an offer to study at a UK university after applying to Oxford.

Malala Yousafzai, 19, who is the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize winner, made the announcement at an education conference in Birmingham.

The activist was shot in 2012 for her outspoken campaigning over girls' rights to an education.

She was taken to a hospital in Punjab, Pakistan, but was eventually transferred to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, where she now lives.

Miss Yousafzai told the auditorium she received an offer, conditional of achieving three As in her A-Levels, to study Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE).

It is not known where the teenager will study. However, she has said that she applied to Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford - where her hero, ex-Pakistani president Benazir Bhutto, studied.

Giving the final speech at the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) conference, she said: 'I'm studying right now.

'I'm in year 13, I have my A-Level exams coming and I have received a conditional offer which is three As, so I need to get the three As, that's what my focus is right now, and I hope to continue my work and also continue my studies.

'And I'm really thankful to you all for you support for encouraging me for my mission.

'That's what makes me and keeps me so strong so thank you so much for that, and thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak.'

When the education campaigner finished her speech, the hundreds of delegates rose and gave her a standing ovation in the conference centre.

She said, alongside her degree, she would continue to work for the Malala Fund, adding: 'My goal is to make sure every child, a girl and a boy, they get the opportunity to go to school.

Nobel Peace Price winner Malala Yousafzai made the announcement at an education conference in Birmingham

'It is their basic human right, so I will be working on that and I will never stop until I see the last child going to school.'

The teenager also provoked laughter from the audience when she revealed she thought she was in trouble when she was called out of a chemistry class to be told she was the next Nobel Prize recipient.

She told the auditorium: 'Suddenly, our deputy head teacher appears in the classroom and I'm just quite shocked, because why would she call me? I thought I was in trouble or something.

'She called me outside and I went and she said "you have won the Nobel Peace Prize", so it was a big surprise, and I said "thank you".'
At the height of addiction: Andi Peterson from Weber County spent a year in jail on drug related charges

The first time Andi Peterson tried prescription opiates, she was 16-years-old.

Two years later, the Weber County native was prescribed Percocet by a doctor which led to a drug spiral, costing her the custody of her son.

A Buisness Insider report chronicles Peterson's journey from taking prescription opiates for the first time to her addition to heroin.

The story is all too familiar for many Americans who suffer from opiate addiction.

At 16, Peterson tried Lortab which was given to her by her friend before she even drank alcohol.

She found the pill helped with her social anxiety and caused her to relax.

She tried opiates again two years later because she trusted her doctor. She was prescribed Percocet after her emergency C-section for her son when she was 18.

Once again, she discovered it made her feel good, but it was expensive.

At the suggestion of her boyfriend, the Wal-Mart employee tried what she saw as the cheaper alternative: heroin.

She told Business Insider: 'It didn't seem like a big deal to me then. I was naive. I didn't know all the consequences that it would lead to. It just made me feel good. Normal.'

Three years of sobriety: Andi Peterson appearance and health transformed after being sober for three years

Suburbs like Weber County were lousy with painkillers so it made sense for drug dealers to get in on this market and offer clients cheaper alternatives.

The dealers would also help clients not feel like addicts by offering delivery and prioritizing customer service.

In the book 'Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic,' author Sam Quinones wrote: 'Guys from Xalisco had figured out that what white people  especially middle-class white kids  want most is service, convenience.'

After six months, Peterson confessed to her parents her addiction to the drug after her father noticed her twitchy behavior.

Naloxone is a nasal spray that helps save people who are overdosing on heroin

She wanted to get clean but it would take her years. Opiates rewire addicts' brains to constantly crave the substance.

Peterson would also spend a year in prison and lose custody of her son. She would finally get clean after failing out of a treatment center once. She also had a wake up call when she watched someone overdose.

The heroin epidemic was a major talking point in the 2016 election. Journalist Chris Arnade has documented the opioid crisis and noted that President Trump won wherever there was heavy drug addiction, especially to opiates.

President Trump famously won the New Hampshire Republican primary which has a severe opiate problem which included swing states. In September, 24 people suffered heroin overdoses in a single night in Akron, Ohio as the state battles a drug epidemic.

The UN reported heroin usage had reached a 20 year high in June.

Heroin deaths nationwide rose 23 per cent in 2016, to 12,989, slightly higher than the number of gun homicides, according to government data released yesterday.

The total number of gun deaths - which included suicides and accidents - rose seven per cent to 36,252 according to Statista.com.
Google gives its staff unlimited free ice cream, while drugs giant Johnson & Johnson pays for its workers dry cleaning.

Now, a UK firm is offering employees another novel benefit: peternity leave  a day off when they buy a new dog, cat or horse to help the animal settle into their new home.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the firm behind the scheme is Pets At Home, which is introducing the policy for its 8,200 staff  95 per cent of whom are pet-owners  from next month.

Pets At Home already give their staff a day off when their children leave home and when they move house

Chief executive Ian Kellett said: We want to help and support key events in a colleagues life.

We already give a flying the nest day when a child leaves home, a new roost day when you move home, and you get your birthday off as a holiday too. Peternity leave fits right into those.

He insisted that the extra days paid leave was not a gimmick, adding: We know that if you have a new dog, cat or horse it can be quite stressful.

We want to give them an extra day to settle in. It fits into our ethos  we recognise the importance of pets.

Such moves have also helped stem high staff turnover. In 2004, 78 per cent of all workers at Pets At Home left in a given year; that fell to 20 per cent last year.

The companys staff benefits  which also include a day off a year to do charitable work  help compensate for the low starting wages of 7.32 an hour, just above the adult minimum wage of 7.20.
A fire that killed one girl and critically injured two others appears to have been sparked by a recharging hoverboard, authorities said.

The unidentified girls were rushed to a local hospital and later transferred to Lehigh Valley burn center in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where one of them died, PennLive reports.

One victim jumped from a second-floor porch roof to escape the blaze, while firefighters pulled the other girls out of their burning row home at 7.45pm Friday at 2534 Lexington Street in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

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A four-year-old girl died Saturday morning in this house fire in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Her home at 2534 Lexington Street (above) caught fire after a hoverboard exploded

Firefighters spent more than an hour battling the flames that were fueled by high winds

Also rescued from the house fire were a father and his teenage son who were unharmed, said Harrisburg fire officials.

Fire Chief Brian Enterline said the family heard 'sizzling and cracking' coming from the outlet where the hoverboard was plugged in and charging before it caught fire.

Firefighters spent more than an hour battling the flames that were fueled by high winds.

By 9.45pm the fire was under control, but smoke continued to pour out of the house.

Two other girls who lived here remain in critical condition at Lehigh Valley burn center

'When the officers arrived it was fully engulfed we have people trying to get back in the house to try and get people out from the building and the fire department arrived and made entry to the building they did remove several people from the building', said Harrisburg Police Captain Gabe Olivera Olivera on Friday.

The fire was part of a 'devastating' evening for the department, Enterline told PennLive.

Lieutenant Dennis DeVoe was heading to the scene when his vehicle was hit in an intersection by 19-year-old Khanyae Kendall, who was allegedly driving under the influence of an unknown substance and fled the scene, ABC 27 reports.

'What we saw was a horrific scene,' Olivera said of the crash scene.

DeVoe is in critical condition at Penn State Milton S Hershey Medical Center.
We got to enjoy Ella-Jayne for eight months and, however deep our grief, we have to remember that those months are more than some parents get before they lose a child

Every year, on my daughter Ella-Jayne's birthday, I write her a special card, just like any other parent. Unlike other parents, I then place it in a drawer along with the other ones from past years that she'll never get to read. It's a ritual I have been through since we lost our darling girl  a way for me to mark the day she came into our lives. Eight months later, my husband and I mark another annual ritual: the day she was taken from us in January 2009. When that day comes round, we just stay indoors with our memories.

Unlike the cards tucked up in their drawer, there are plenty of those out on display  there are photographs of her around the house that bear tribute to the short but precious time we had with her. We got to enjoy Ella-Jayne for eight months and, however deep our grief, we have to remember that those months are more than some parents get before they lose a child.

When you lose a child, you are in such a desperate place you cling on to hope, and you cling on to optimism. When my husband, the actor James Murray, and I lost Ella-Jayne, we tried to do both. But such an incredible loss inevitably puts an enormous strain on a relationship because people grieve in different ways.

It would take the most emotionally mature people to be able to cope in that situation, and to comfort one another in the correct way.

I can only say now, eight years later, that I'm not sure we were able to do that at the time.

We have made mistakes and done things that don't work for each other  and you either end up together, or you don't. I think if we hadn't created a charity, the Murray Parish Trust, in memory of our daughter, then things wouldn't have worked out so well for us.

When you lose a child, you are in such a desperate place you cling on to hope, and you cling on to optimism. When my husband, the actor James Murray, and I lost Ella-Jayne, we tried to do both

It has given us something to focus on and it has most definitely been good for our relationship.

I hope that by speaking out now, I may help other couples who find themselves in that same sad position, and that something positive might come out of something so tragic.

I'd got pregnant at the age of 38 and we were looking forward to being parents. Ella-Jayne was born by emergency caesarean section, five weeks premature, and diagnosed with a rare condition called Rubinstein-Taybi, which increases the risk of heart defects. The condition, which only affects one in 125,000-300,000 births, caused a large hole in her tiny heart and a defective heart valve.

The day she died she took a bottle for the first time; she held our gaze and smiled into our eyes

Immediately after her birth, I was in so much pain all I can remember is her making a brief noise before there was silence, and then the sound of the doctors fighting to save her. When I finally saw her the next day, she looked almost too perfect  with masses of thick black hair and a tiny, doll-like face.

She could have died at any time, but she battled on for months, surviving two bouts of serious, life-saving heart surgery, and spending her last four months at our Hampshire home. The doctors gave us that time  a Christmas with her. I will always be grateful for that.

Though she was very, very poorly, we never gave up hope, that longing for a miracle. The day she died she took a bottle for the first time; she held our gaze and smiled into our eyes. For Jim and I, it was very, very difficult. It left a huge hole in our lives. I now know that losing a child is the hardest thing to happen to anyone; that we had never experienced tragedy before she died. We had never truly understood grief or loss.

But such an incredible loss inevitably puts an enormous strain on a relationship because people grieve in different ways. Statistics show that 75 per cent of couples who lose a child end up separating. I can see why. Because when you lose a child, it's a 50:50 loss

Sarah Parish and her husband, James Murray, have been married for ten years, having wed in 2007

Statistics show that 75 per cent of couples who lose a child end up separating. I can see why. Because when you lose a child, it's a 50:50 loss. Perhaps that's the wrong way of putting it  what I mean is that you both suffer that loss equally, but separately at the same time. It is very difficult to comfort each other because you are enveloped in your own sadness.

I had support from my friends. But at home, Jim and I did things that didn't work for each other. The pressure of grief is such that either you end up separating or, miraculously, you don't. Jim and I have remained together despite some terrible, terrible times. We have our problems like any other couple. But we made some decisions which ultimately helped bring us through to the other side intact.

After Ella's death, we went to Cambodia and Vietnam to do voluntary work in orphanages. It was either that or drink ourselves to death in the pub. And  harsh though it might sound  we needed to escape the sympathy that enveloped us in Britain. It's very easy to think you're the only people in the world to lose a child, but the two months we spent in orphanages gave us perspective.

After Ella's death, we went to Cambodia and Vietnam to do voluntary work in orphanages. It was either that or drink ourselves to death in the pub. And  harsh though it might sound  we needed to escape the sympathy that enveloped us in Britain

Creating a charity in Ella-Jayne's memory also helped us both. Initially, we raised money for Southampton's Paediatric Intensive Care Unit where doctors performed miracles in the battle to keep our little girl alive. Then, in 2014, we set up the Murray-Parish Trust to formalise our fundraising  the aim now is to establish a children's specialist emergency and trauma department at University Hospital Southampton, which will serve children across nine counties in the south of England and offer facilities comparable to Great Ormond Street.

Astonishingly, we've now found ourselves in the position of trying to raise 2 million, which will be matched by the Government after a pledge by former Chancellor George Osborne. The project was one of three chosen by him to receive matched funding in his Spring Budget last year.

That success came quite by chance. We were hosting a street party for children in November 2014 and came up with the idea of lobbying the Chancellor. It was discussed as a bit of a joke, but we talked to our local MP Steve Brine who got the wheels rolling. We're a small charity but we're nearly a quarter of the way there now.

Creating a charity in Ella-Jayne's memory also helped us both. Initially, we raised money for Southampton's Paediatric Intensive Care Unit where doctors performed miracles in the battle to keep our little girl alive. Then, in 2014, we set up the Murray-Parish Trust. The next step for the charity is the Ginormous Teddy Bears Picnic for kids across the country on June 5.

The aim of the trust now is to establish a children's specialist emergency and trauma department at University Hospital Southampton (pictured), which will serve children across nine counties in the south of England and offer facilities comparable to Great Ormond Street

Doing these things has helped bring Jim and I closer together. Certainly it has brought a positive out of a negative.

We've also come into contact with people we wouldn't normally have met, couples who've also lost children. We've heard about the horrors they've gone through too. I hope that Jim and I have helped people to see that something positive can come out of something tragic. Everybody has their own story and their own journey.

For us, in some ways, it was brief. Ella-Jayne was very, very ill when she was born and she only lived for eight months. But some people lose a child at 16. It must be incredibly difficult to see them growing up, knowing that at some point they will die prematurely.

Such deaths are still more common than people think. Go back 100 years and children died all the time. Nowadays we have modern medicine which makes it less likely. But you just can't save everyone.

Last weekend, we opened the expansion of the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit in Southampton (pictured)  a project we helped the Friends of PICU fund-raise for, and which gives the unit an extra two beds and lifesaving equipment

Go back 100 years and children died all the time. Nowadays we have modern medicine which makes it less likely. But you just can't save everyone

For all that we have been through, Jim and I still consider ourselves blessed. We are both immensely proud of our other daughter, Nell, now aged seven.

She was born just ten months after we lost Ella-Jayne, so her birth could have been bittersweet but she's the light of our lives and we are loving watching her grow up.

We told her about her sister and she understands she had a poorly heart and died. She doesn't cry but she is not emotionally mature enough to feel it properly yet.

Last weekend, we opened the expansion of the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit in Southampton  a project we helped the Friends of PICU fund-raise for, and which gives the unit an extra two beds and lifesaving equipment.

For all that we have been through, Jim and I still consider ourselves blessed. We are both immensely proud of our other daughter, Nell, now aged seven

We took Nell to see the bed Ella-Jayne had been in  she was more interested in the bright colours. I've been back to the ward a number of times now. It's always tough, but because we've now been able to help the unit so positively it doesn't really feel in any way sad now.

And of course, I have my work to distract me. You've got to keep working, there are still bills to pay. I'm filming the new series of BBC's satirical drama W1A at the moment and then moving up to Manchester for ten weeks to film a new show. Last year I filmed series three of Broadchurch with David Tennant, which was a real pleasure.

The next step for the charity is the Ginormous Teddy Bears Picnic for kids across the country on June 5. It'll be lovely day and there will be a special all-star version of the teddy bears picnic song to sing along to, with some very special guests. After that we're planning a pop festival in Hampshire and then, at Christmas, there will be a carol concert at Winchester Cathedral, which we're sharing with breast cancer charity The Haven.

Helping other people like this has given us a feeling of lightness and optimism; the sense that it is not all horrific.

Obviously we will never recover from Ella-Jayne's death but I feel that knowing her was such a privilege. She'll have a great legacy.

l For more information on the Ginormous Teddy Bears' picnic, visit teddybearspicnic.org.uk.
The murder trial of Lynford Brewster (pictured), 29, may have to be reheard after a female officer involved in the trial failed to declare she knew on of the a jurors

A murder trial that cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of pounds may have to be reheard after a police officer connected to the case was accused of failing to declare that she knew one of the jurors.

Three men convicted of the joint enterprise murder of Lynford Brewster received combined sentences of 90 years in one of the most high-profile murder cases of recent years.

Mr Brewster, 29, was stabbed three times near his home and died on the spot. His three killers  Dwayne Edgar, 29; Jake Whelan, 24, both from Cardiff; and Robert Lainsbury, from Kidderminster  were sentenced last year.

But now, in a deeply embarrassing disclosure for police, it has emerged that a police support officer who helped Mr Brewsters family during the trial  and sat in court with them  knew one of the jurors.

The female officer is now under investigation for failing to declare to the court that one of the jurors was the girlfriend of her son.

It has emerged that a police support officer who sat in court knew a juror who was the girlfriend of her son. Now the trial may have to be reheard

The juror also failed to declare during her swearing-in that she knew the police liaison officer involved in the case, it is claimed.

South Wales Police, which investigated the murder, has launched an inquiry after receiving a complaint from a solicitor of one of the defendants, the police force confirmed last night.

Mr Brewster, who was involved in a drug-running operation, was killed in Cardiff last June. Police found 31 heroin wraps and 14 of cocaine on his body.

Judicial expert Harry Fletcher, who runs the Voice4Victims group, said: This is likely to be a contempt of court breach by both the police officer and the juror.
The Lyft driver who was shockingly assaulted by a gang of men on dirtbikes and all-terrain vehicles after they surrounded his car in the middle of a San Francisco highway has spoken out about the attack.

Alex Quintana, 32, was on his way to pick up a passenger as he was driving on Highway 101 in San Francisco on Wednesday evening when he inched into the lane one of the bikers was using.

Up to 15 men worked to surround the vehicle and then attacked the 32-year-old Lyft driver, who has a three-month-old son, when he got out of his car to confront them.

The man who filmed the attack, Quintana's girlfriend, and the grandfather of his child have also spoken out about the violent and bizarre incident of road rage.

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Video shows bikers stopping Alex Quintana's white Toyota Camry and vandalizing it. The vandals broke his side mirror and window and proceeded to attack Quintana, 32, when he got out of his car to confront them about the damage to his vehicle

Quintana, a Lyft driver, was on his way to pick up a passenger at San Francisco International Airport when he inched into the lane of a biker, who as part of a gang that was harassing drivers. The bikers proceeded to stop his car and assault him

Quintana, who has a three-month-old son, was taken to San Francisco General Hospital after the attack. His leg was run over by one of the bikers during the assault

Relaying the violent story, Quintana told the Modesto Bee: 'I didnt want to cause any problems. I was just trying to get around them and get to work again.'

The unidentified man who filmed the attack told Inside Edition: 'I felt helpless. I wanted to help.'

He added: 'I didn't know how far they were going to go with beating this man.'

Quintana was taken to San Francisco General Hospital, where he underwent surgery but as of Friday was in fair condition.

He will need follow-up care for up to three months and the potentially lost time he could be working may pose a financial strain for his family.

His girlfriend, Cecelia Dunn, told the Modesto Bee: 'They picked an innocent person.'

She added: 'I am a Christian, and I am trying not to let my heart feel a lot of hate.'

The grandfather of his child told the Bee: 'Here he is trying to make a living and he's barely scraping by. I know he did not ask for it.'

Quintana, pictured with his girlfriend, Cecelia Dunn, lives in Modesto but frequently makes teh 90-mile trip into San Francisco for work. Dunn said: 'They picked an innocent person'

Quintana was en route to San Francisco International Airport to pick up a passenger when he encountered the group of men on dirt bikes and ATVs, who had been harassing highway users by slowing down traffic with obscene stunts.

The Lyft driver who also drives for Uber veered into a lane in which one of bikers was driving, at which point many of the bikers surrounded him and punched in a side mirror and window of his Toyota Camry, the Bee reported.



Quintana, who has spinal stenosis and osteoarthritis, wanted them to pull over so he could get their names and insurance information for the damage they had done.

But when he exited his vehicle he was attacked. One of the bikers ran over his left leg, which broke it in three places and marked the end of the minutes-long assault.

Several other drivers and witnesses partially videoed the bizarre attack, including one Uber driver.

'I saw the male bikers surround the vehicle and start to yell, break side mirrors and also physically hitting the vehicle. It seemed like they were provoking the driver to come out,' the Uber driver told the San Francisco Chronicle.

The footage shows Quintana falling to the ground as one of the bikers, who was wearing acid-wash jeans and a dark top, stood over him and punched him repeatedly.

Other witnesses told police that before the attack took place, other bikers were driving slowly and recklessly, causing traffic to slow across all lanes.

Officer Vu Williams, of the California Highway Patrol, said that the motorcyclists fled before officers were able to arrive at the scene.

Witnesses rushed to Quintana's aid following the attack and he was later taken to the hospital.

The assailants have not yet been identified but police know which gang was responsible, Quintana told the Bee.

Quintana lives in Modesto but makes the 90-mile trip into San Francisco at least three times a week to work as a driver.
Twin bombshells threaten Theresa May's formal Brexit plan after MPs attacked Brexit Secretary David Davis (pictured) for being ill-prepared for a 'no deal' exit while Chancellor Philip Hammond also came under attack

Theresa May plan to trigger Britain's formal exit from the EU within 48 hours was thrown into chaos by two bombshell developments last night.

First, Brexit Secretary David Davis was castigated by an influential group of MPs from all parties for being ill-prepared for a 'no deal' exit if talks with Brussels end in deadlock.

In a scathing verdict, MPs warned that it would be a 'dereliction of duty' if the Government allowed the UK to crash out of the EU unprepared.

And the Tory Party was further rocked by fresh infighting over Brexit, with Chancellor Philip Hammond caught in the crossfire. Pro-EU former Minister Anna Soubry claimed Brexiteers in the party were trying to 'pick off' the Chancellor  who has warned against a 'hard Brexit'  by stoking controversy over his Budget.

The report by MPs on the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee said leaving the EU without planning for a deal would be 'destructive' and lead to 'mutually assured damage for the EU and the UK'.

The choice of words appears to be a deliberate attempt to conjure up the famous Cold War term, 'mutually assured destruction'  or MAD which described the risk of Armageddon should Russia and America launch simultaneous nuclear attacks on each other.

Mr Davis has refused to discuss planning for a no-deal Brexit with MPs, saying it would be a pointless 'exercise in guesswork'.

But as the critical report was published, a handful of rebel Tory MPs made a last-ditch bid to force the Prime Minister to give Parliament a vote if Britain leaves the EU with no formal agreement.

Up to ten Tory MPs could vote against the Government or abstain in tomorrow's key debate sanctioning Mrs May to trigger Article 50.

The MPs, including former Education Secretary Nicky Morgan, former Chancellor Ken Clarke and former Attorney General Dominic Grieve, hope to put pressure on No 10 to give MPs more of a say over the UK's exit terms.

Anti-Brexit Tory MP Alistair Burt today tells The Mail on Sunday that Mrs May should stop 'dancing around' and give Parliament a vote.

The report by MPs on the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee said leaving the EU without planning for a deal would be 'destructive' and lead to 'mutually assured damage for the EU and the UK' - referring to the catchy Cold War euphemism for certain destruction for both parties

This newspaper has also learned that Ms Morgan held a secret meeting with Mr Davis on Thursday evening in an attempt to strike a last-ditch deal.

But the Brexit rebels are divided: while some say they could be won round by an assurance from Mr Davis that Parliament would be given 'a say' if the talks break down, others said this was meaningless without the promise of a veto  and vowed to vote against the Government in the hope of encouraging the Lords to block the legislation again.

However, the Upper House is unlikely to hold up the process any further.

Mrs May enters this critical Brexit week as she tries to recover from the first major political setback of her premiership, after the Chancellor sparked a storm of protest for raising National Insurance contributions for the self employed in his first Budget.

Mrs Soubry, one of the ten rebels, highlighted Tory divisions when she claimed the controversy had been fuelled by 'the Brexit brigade', whom she accused of trying to 'pick off Mr Hammond because he is opposed to walking away from the EU with no deal'. She added: 'It is petty in the extreme.'

DAVIS WARNING FOR TORY REBELS David Davis has warned Tory rebels against sabotaging the Article 50 bill in a bid to avoid Brexit ending up in the courts. The Brexit secretary believes making promises over leaving the European Union will lead to a 'greater risk of legal action'. He wrote in The Telegraph today to that Theresa May would be negotiating with 'one hand tied behind her back' if MPs approve changed to the law proposed by the Lords. He said: 'There will be many opportunities for Parliament to debate the ins and outs of our negotiation of a new partnership with the EU, and influence the outcome. 'But attaching conditions to a Bill that simply allows the Prime Minister to start the process of implementing the referendum result is emphatically not the way to do it.' Advertisement

Last night, No 10 said that Mrs May was in no mood to back down from triggering Britain's withdrawal from the EU  and dismissed claims that several Cabinet Ministers have expressed 'grave doubts' in private about the economic risk of a 'hard Brexit'.

If, as expected, the Government wins tomorrow's vote and the Lords does not delay the process, Mrs May hopes to sign Article 50, starting the two-year Brexit negotiations, on Tuesday.

Most experts regard that as 'the point of no return' for Britain's links with the EU  although some dispute that.

The all-party Foreign Affairs Committee said there was a 'real possibility' of Britain leaving the EU without a deal  and there was 'no evidence' the Government was seriously preparing for that.

Criticising Mr Davis's stance, the MPs said: 'The consequences of such a failure [to reach a deal] are far from 'an exercise in guesswork'. They are largely predictable and... have been predicted. A complete breakdown in negotiations represents a very destructive outcome leading to mutually assured damage for the EU and the UK.'

The possibility of 'no deal' is real enough to justify planning for it, said the MPs.

The Commons Brexit Bombshell Report: A dereliction of duty The process of UK withdrawal from the EU will be complex and challenging, and the exit agreement will have to be concluded under significant time pressure. Even if all sides enter into the process with goodwill and the desire to ensure a successful outcome, there are many reasons why the negotiations might fail. The consequences of such a failure are far from 'an exercise in guess-work'. They are, in scope if not in detail, largely predictable  and, in the evidence we commissioned, have been predicted. It is possible to envisage scenarios in which 'no deal' might be better than a bad deal, as the Government has suggested; such as, for example, if the eventual proposed agreement only involves payment of a large sum to the EU in settlement of UK liabilities, with no provisions for any preferential trade arrangements or transitional arrangements towards a mutually beneficial future relationship. It is clear from our evidence, however, that a complete breakdown in negotiations represents a very destructive outcome leading to mutually assured damage for the EU and the UK. Both sides would suffer economic losses and harm to their international reputations. Individuals and businesses in both the UK and EU could be subject to considerable personal uncertainty and legal confusion. It is a key national and EU interest that such a situation is avoided. The immediate consequences of failing to secure an agreement might focus minds in both the UK and EU on resurrecting a deal of some kind, however basic, as quickly as possible, albeit in difficult circumstances. As the Bar Council told us, ending the Article 50 period without a deal 'could lead to a short, sharp shock, rather than a lengthy period of economic dislocation and political acrimony. But a favourable outcome would be far from certain.' The possibility of 'no deal' is real enough to justify planning for it. The Government has produced no evidence to indicate that it is giving the possibility of 'no deal' the level of consideration that it deserves, or is contemplating any serious contingency planning. This is all the more urgent if the Government is serious in its assertion that it will walk away from a 'bad' deal. Last year, we concluded that the previous Government's decision not to instruct key departments to plan for a 'leave' vote in the EU referendum amounted to gross negligence. Making an equivalent mistake would constitute a serious dereliction of duty by the present administration. The Government should require each department to produce a 'no deal' plan, outlining the likely consequences in their areas of remit and setting out proposals to mitigate potential risks. Such preparation would strengthen the Government's negotiating hand by providing credibility to its position that it would be prepared to walk away from a bad deal. Advertisement

The committee, which previously reprimanded David Cameron for 'gross negligence' for not planning for the possibility of a 'Leave' victory in the EU referendum, issued the same stern warning to Mrs May.

'Making an equivalent mistake would constitute a serious dereliction of duty by the present administration,' the MPs said, adding she should order every Whitehall department to draw up 'no deal' contingency plans.

Far from weakening her Brexit negotiating hand, the MPs said, it would strengthen it by making it clear to the EU that her threat to quit without a deal was not a bluff.

Last night, No 10 said that Mrs May was in no mood to back down from triggering Britain's withdrawal from the EU  and dismissed claims that several Cabinet Ministers have expressed 'grave doubts' in private about the economic risk of a 'hard Brexit'

Committee chairman Crispin Blunt, a former Tory Minister, said: 'The Government has repeatedly said that it will walk away from a 'bad' final deal. That makes preparing for 'no deal' all the more essential.

'The responsibility on the negotiators is substantial.'

The catchy Cold War euphemism for certain nuclear Armageddon John von Neumann THE principle of 'mutually assured destruction' was devised in the 1950s by the Hungarian-American mathematician and cold war strategist John von Neumann, to describe how the full-scale use of nuclear weapons by opposing sides would cause the complete annihilation of both countries. It was parodied in Stanley Kubrick's 1964 film Dr Strangelove  starring Peter Sellers, left, as the deranged wheelchair-bound nuclear expert  through the 'doomsday machine' which destroys all life on Earth. Advertisement

The MPs' report also raised questions over a number of issues including: the rights of EU citizens in the UK and UK citizens in the EU; confusion over visas Britons may need to visit EU countries; the future of the European Health Insurance Cards, which give Britons access to healthcare abroad; and the possible reintroduction of roaming mobile phone charges.

Mr Davis hit back last night, saying he was 'confident' of achieving a 'comprehensive agreement on free trade'. He said he had already told Ministers to make plans for 'all potential Brexit outcomes'.

Urging Tory rebels to call off their attempt to change the Brexit Bill, Mr Davis told The Mail on Sunday: 'However they voted in the referendum, the majority of people now want the Prime Minister to be able to get on with the job.

'By a majority of four to one, MPs passed straightforward legislation allowing the Government to move ahead with no strings attached. Tomorrow I will ask MPs to send the legislation back to the Lords in its original form so we can start building a global Britain and a strong new partnership with the EU.'

He received strong backing from Mrs May. A source close to No 10 said: 'The Prime Minister fully supports Mr Davis. Our position could not be more clear.'

The Gang of Ten: The Tory MPs set to call for a Commons vote if Mrs May's negotiations for leaving the EU end in 'no deal'

Nicky Morgan (left), former education secretary cast out by No 10 in the 'Trousergate' row. Ken Clarke (right), former Chancellor and lifelong supporter of Brussels links. He may be too ill to vote

Anna Soubry (left), ex Business Minister called a 'bitch' by a Tory-supporting cleric for her pro-EU views. Dominic Grieve (right), former Attorney General who defended High Court judges over Article 50

Ben Howlett (left), MP for Bath, a marginal seat which voted strongly in favour of remaining in the EU. Antoinette Sandbach (right), barrister who has stuck to her anti-Brexit guns

Andrew Tyrie (left), chair of the Treasury Select Committee wants clarity on the single market. Bob Neill (right), Bromley MP, says it would be a 'scandal' if the UK got a poor trade deal without an MPs vote

Neil Carmichael (left), MP for Stroud, was allegedly threatened with the sack for seeking a vote. Alistair Burt (right), ex Foreign Office Minister, was told not to bring 'that woman' Morgan to No. 10

No vote on 'no deal'? No way, say ALISTAIR BURT and JEREMY LEFROY as they insist there is no covert plot by Tory MPs to keep Britain in the EU

Let us reassure any Brexiteers reading this. There is no covert plot by Tory MPs to keep us in the EU. There is no ruthless operation to hijack the Commons timetable and use the Article 50 Bill to reverse the will of the referendum.

There is only a determination  reflecting the 'taking back control' argument that was such a feature of the referendum campaign  that Parliament has a role at the end of Brexit negotiations.

Not just on any agreement reached, but also if there is no deal  an eventuality with significant and deeply worrying consequences.

There is an absolute logic that Parliament should be given a say in both circumstances but the Government has been reluctant to agree to a vote in the case of no deal, arguing it would hamper negotiations.

But if the UK's stance is not weakened by having to seek a vote on a final deal, why should the Government fear a vote on 'no deal'? Just because the consequences of a vote at the end of the process are immense, there is no reason to deny Parliament that vote.

It is the need for a vote that reassures the public that the Government is living up to its commitments.

The negotiations are unlikely to be secret. We will know what's on offer. We owe it to the British people to be involved on their behalf, whatever the outcome.

If the Government genuinely believes that a 'no deal' is in the UK's best interests, an endorsement would surely be needed. It is unlikely a simple statement would satisfy the Commons, and an Opposition party could arrange a vote without much difficulty.

So let's stop dancing around. There is going to be a vote on 'no deal' one way or another.

The assurance of this by the Government  without an amendment to the Bill  would be an acceptance of the obvious. Then we can move on.

We trust absolutely that the Government wants, and is seeking, the best negotiated deal on behalf of the UK.

It must trust a Parliament that has accepted Brexit to play its part in securing that.
Labour is prepared to fight to keep Scotland in the UK for a second time, with leader Jeremy Corbyn saying it is 'absolutely fine' for another vote to be held

Jeremy Corbyn was last night accused of destroying his own party after declaring he would not oppose a second Scottish independence referendum.

The Labour leader sparked fury among his own MPs after saying a second independence poll would be absolutely fine  even though Labour in Scotland is fiercely opposed to such a move.

Mr Corbyns surprise intervention was last night branded by critics as a massive propaganda coup for the Scottish Nationalists ambitions of forcing a second vote in the wake of the Brexit decision.

Ian Murray, the partys only MP in Scotland after the SNP landslide at the 2015 General Election, angrily accused Mr Corbyn of destroying the party that so many need.

During a visit to Glasgow, Mr Corbyn said: If a referendum is held then it is absolutely fine, it should be held. I dont think its the job of Westminster or the Labour Party to prevent people holding referenda.

Mr Corbyn said he did not think that Westminster should seek to block another independence referendum if Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon insists on holding one

However, Mr Murray, who quit the Shadow Cabinet last year in protest at Mr Corbyns leadership, tweeted: Independence would be disaster for Scotland and my constituents.

A source close to Mr Corbyn hit back: Westminster blocking a second referendum would give the SNP exactly what they want  more grievance.

The row broke out amid reports that Theresa May is determined not to accede to SNP demands for a second referendum until after the UK has actually left the EU.

However, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has hinted she wants the vote as soon as September 2018.
A homeless man was burned to death after a man threw petrol over him and set him alight as he slept rough on the street.

The victim, Marcello Cimino, 45, was incinerated by the flames in the horrendous attack in the city of Palermo, southern Italy.

CCTV footage shows a man, carrying a bucket filled with liquid, approach Mr Cimino as he sleeps on a mattress outside the Mission San Francesco - a soup kitchen for the homeless.

The attacker was caught on CCTV carrying a huge bucket before the attack

The man throws the contents of the bucket over Mr Cimino, who is sleeping rough

The attacker, wearing all black and a hood over his head, then throws the contents of the bucket over the homeless man.

As Mr Cimino stirs, the man backs off before pulling a lighter out of his pocket and throwing himself on the covers.

The mattress is then set alight in a huge explosion before the attacker, also on fire, runs away, leaving his victim to burn to death.

Emergency services were called to the scene but by the time they arrived Mr Cimino had died.

The victim has been named as homeless man Marcello Cimino

Giuseppe Pecoraro, centre, has been arrested in connection with the murder. He is believed to have confessed to the crime

According to Italian news website Corriere, police have arrested petrol station worker Giuseppe Pecoraro, 45, in connection with the killing.

The man is believed to have confessed to the crime.

It is claimed Pecoraro acted out of jealousy as he believed Mr Cimino was having an affair with his recently estranged wife.

Floral tributes have been left at the scene of the murder, where black burn marks can still be seen on the walls.

The man sets the covers ablaze after pouncing on the man with a lighter
A prolific criminal who has lived illegally in Britain for 17 years has won 40,000 damages because the Home Office locked him up for too long.

Hassan Massoum Ravandy, 46, was awarded the sum after a judge ruled he had been unlawfully detained for 17 months.

The Iranian, convicted of burglary, theft and drugs offences, was given the payout despite Government lawyers protesting that the amount was as much as innocent victims of accidents might receive in compensation.

Tory backbencher Philip Hollobone (left) said the judicial ruling was 'crazy' and Hassan Massoum Ravandy didn't 'deserve it', but Judge Heather Baucher (right) decided that 40,000 was an appropriate award

Last night Tory backbencher Philip Hollobone, who has tabled bills that would make it easier to deport foreign criminals, said: This is yet another crazy judicial ruling and further reason to reform human rights laws so that taxpayers money isnt spent on compensation for people who dont deserve it.

The case has emerged after The Mail on Sunday revealed in February that foreign criminals and illegal immigrants were given a staggering 4 million last year for being detained too long. In Ravandys case, London Central County Court heard how he entered Britain illegally on the back of a lorry in 2000.

He claimed he feared persecution in Iran, but his asylum claim was rejected. A tribunal found that Ravandy had made up a claim about his brothers death at the hands of Hezbollah, and it was said that he most probably fled Iran because he was involved in illegal currency trading.

A deportation order was issued in 2002, but Ravandy remained in the UK for the next 15 years, committing a string of crimes, including burglary, handling stolen goods, criminal damage, shoplifting, possession of cocaine, disorderly behaviour, possession of cannabis, theft and affray.

He was taken into detention, with the Home Office arguing it was reasonably necessary to effect deportation and because his presence in the UK was not conducive to the public good.

But lawyers later conceded that he had been unlawfully held between March 2014 and August 2015, a total of 512 days.

He could not be deported as he refused to return to Iran and there were difficulties with the authorities in Tehran providing the necessary travel documents.

Ravandys lawyer argued for a payout of 55,000, saying that being deprived of his liberty was a very grave matter.

Fiona Scolding QC, for the Home Office, said the compensation demanded was more than you would get for very serious personal injury damages. She added that Ravandy had no good reason not to return to Iran.

Judge Heather Baucher decided that 40,000 was an appropriate award.
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St Patrick's Day celebrations were kicked off a week early this year in Chicago as thousands of people gathered to watch the river turn green.

Chicago's annual parade and river dyeing always take place on a Saturday, so if the holiday doesn't fall on that day, it is the Saturday before.

The day itself does not fall until Friday, and Chicago was one of a few cities to kick things off early.

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St Patrick's Day celebrations were kicked off a week early this year in Chicago as thousands of people gathered to watch the river turn green

A leprechaun lead the boat of plumbers around the River as it was turned green for the celebrations

David Westemby, from Kinosha, Wisconsin, traveled from his home to Chicago for the annual celebration, decked out head to toe in St Patrick's Day attire

The Cullerton Marchers joined the Chicago Parade, which took place immediately after the river dyeing celebration at noon on Saturday

Parades were held in a number of cities, including Chicago, Illinois, Dallas, Texas, Raleigh, North Carolina and Washington D.C., but the majority of celebrations will wait until the holiday itself and following weekend.

Chicago's annual celebration is one of the most well-known around the world due to their tradition of dyeing the Chicago River a bright emerald green. It is a tradition that's been held up for more than 50 years.

The tradition has its origins in the city's efforts to detect illegal sewage dumping back in 1962.

Chicago's annual parade and river dyeing always take place on a Saturday, so if the holiday doesn't fall on that day, it is the Saturday before

Chicago's annual celebration is one of the most well-known due to their tradition of dyeing the Chicago River a bright emerald green

The dyeing of the river is still sponsored by the local plumbers union, but now they use a harmless vegetable dye to get the desired hue

The exact formula is a closely guarded secret, but it has been tested and is safe for the environment

Plumbers would use fluorescein dye along the river, which would turn bright green if toxic sludge was detected.

The dyeing of the river is still sponsored by the local plumbers union, but now they use a harmless vegetable dye to get the desired hue.

The exact formula is a closely guarded secret, but it has been tested and is safe for the environment.

When the dye is sprayed into the water, it starts out the color orange, giving it the impression that the river must turn orange first in order to convert to the true Irish green.

When the dye is sprayed into the water it appears orange, giving it the impression that the river must turn orange first in order to convert to the true Irish green

Terry Abel and Marueen Curan, of Barrington, were with the Moriarty Clan in the Chicago St Patrick's Day parade

The annual tradition began at 9.00 a.m. and immediately precedes the parade, which starts at 12 that same day

The tradition has its origins in the city's efforts to detect illegal sewage dumping back in 1961, which is part of the reason city plumbers are still so involved

On Saturday, thousands of cheering onlookers clustered along downtown bridges as members of Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Union Local 130 began dumping containers of dye into the river from motorboats Saturday morning.

The annual tradition began at 9.00 a.m. and immediately precedes the parade, which starts at 12 that same day.

The hue typically lasts in the river for about six to 12 hours, and is most visible from the East side of the Michigan Avenue Bridge or the upper and lower Wacker Drive, between Columbus and Lake Shore Drive.

Chicago's celebration continues all weekend long, though, with their second 'South Side Irish Parade' on Sunday, March 12, at noon. The parade expects thousands of people and will have hundreds of performers.

People started partying early on Saturday in true Irish fashion to celebrate St Patrick's day, and brought their drinks with them to the celebrations downtown

The hue typically lasts in the river for about six to 12 hours, and is most visible from the East side of the Michigan Avenue Bridge or the upper and lower Wacker Drive, between Columbus and Lake Shore Drive
Take an English Victorian seaside resort with its grand hotels, prom and arcades, and plonk it several hundred miles away on a rugged coast overlooking the Bay of Biscay in South-west France.

Then give it a facelift, replace the pebbled beach with golden sand, the fast-food with tapas bars and fish restaurants, and you have Biarritz.

Theres a comforting familiarity about the place  the faded gentility, crashing Atlantic waves and well-to-do elderly couples remind one of Brighton.

Decadent dame: Andrew stayed at the Hotel du Palais, overlooking the Grande Plage of Biarritz

At the same time, it has an injection of vitality from the surfers who descend in campervans for the thundering rollers on the biggest of Biarritzs six beaches.

British Airways started flying to the citys tiny airport last summer. And, less than two hours flight away, it makes the ideal short break. We enjoy a charcuterie supper in a restaurant near the beach on the night we arrive, even though we were in Heathrow at 5pm.

There are many decent hotels, but the place to stay if youre happy to splash out is the Hotel du Palais, a stately matron on a small cliff by the Grande Plage.

Built as a summer home by Napoleon III  he chose Biarritz in the 1850s as it was close to his Spanish wife Eugenies home country  the imperial residence gave the town chic appeal.

Once the palace became a hotel at the turn of the century, the beau monde began to visit.

King Edward VII took a suite for a month every summer and was joined by his mistress, Alice Keppel, along with his doctor, two equerries, two valets, two footmen and dog Caesar.

Take a walk: The hotel is a 12-mile stroll from the charming fishing town of St-Jean-de-Luz

Noel Coward, the Duchess of Windsor and Churchill also stayed. Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra opened the outside pool, where today wealthy Russians and Spaniards plough away.

The Hotel du Palais wears its age and pedigree with charm. Its modern spa and pool are as stylish as any.

Its semi-circular, Michelin-starred restaurant looking out over the Atlantic swell must be one of the most beautiful places to eat in Europe. Yet it retains an old-school approach to customers that, far from being starchy, feels reassuring.

Built as a summer home by Napoleon III, the imperial residence gave the town chic appeal

We walk off our breakfasts on a cliff path that goes past a lighthouse on a high headland.

From the lighthouse, we potter along the promenade and break off for a tumble-dryer of a swim among the waves.

We eat fat Atlantic prawns and squid with rose by the old fishermens port  also built by Napoleon.

You can continue walking to the sheltered old fishing town of St-Jean-de-Luz a dozen miles away. Instead, we drive there one evening to eat local seafood and farm produce at the Ilura restaurant in Hotel la Reserve.

We also head into the Pyrenean foothills, an hour away, to towns such as Espelette, which uses strings of plump chillies to decorate its buildings, and Sare, popular with hill-walkers and reminiscent of the Lake District.

Finally, we leave Biarritz by car for Bilbao, two hours across the Spanish border, to visit the remarkable Guggenheim museum before flying home.

But well be back, Biarritz.
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Were Indiana Jones finally to retire and decide to go into the hotel business, this is surely the kind of joint hed open.

Its a brand new adventure hotel with four types of themed rooms that will have your children squealing with delight.

It helps that were only a couple of miles from glorious Lake Garda in northern Italy, about two hours drive from Milan.

Fun for all: Jeremy took his family to the Gardaland Adventure Hotel near Lake Garda, a two-hour drive from Milan

The Gardaland Adventure Hotel, admittedly, has a view of the car park at the front, but a lovely vista over vineyards behind. Its an annexe to the Gardaland Hotel, whose swimming pools it shares. But the extraordinary decor makes it feel completely different.

First, theres the Wild West-themed rooms, just like jail cells straight out of Blazing Saddles.

The Arctic rooms make you shiver as you walk through an igloo-style entrance; the Arabian-themed rooms have carved Arabic windows and a jolly mural of Aladdins genie.

The fourth type are the Jungle rooms and this is where our son Mike, 12, and nine-year-old Alice want to stay. In fact, they insist on it.

The room looks like an overgrown Mayan temple, with a 6ft head of a tribal god perched above the main bed.

There is a huge Captain Nemo steam punk submarine out at the front of the building, through which you walk to get to reception, where Indiana Jones-style music blares so loud you have to raise your voice.

Chic and sophisticated: There are four types of bedroom to pick from, including Arabian-themed spaces with genie artwork

The noise is grating; not that the children mind one bit.

They just cant wait for breakfast and dinner, served in a long dining room that replicates an ancient Egyptian temple.

Just when we think it cant get any more kitsch, we discover the nightly shows where Cleopatra appears among diners with her dancing girls and struts her stuff to more blaring music.

Alice loves it, and is bouncing up and down with excitement.

But rest assured, this is a holiday you can split into Parent Days and Kid Days. The hotel is a short hop from Lake Garda and its dazzling lakeside towns.

Verona is half an hour to the east, and we enjoy one night there having dinner outside the Roman amphitheatre.

Whenever the children groan about too much culture and not enough gelato, we cajole them with the ace up our sleeve: the Gardaland theme park, which is the biggest in Italy.

Theres a short, free bus service from the Adventure Hotel, and then you find yourself plunged into a vast park packed with sights, noise and action.

Loop the loop: There is a free bus from the Adventure Hotel to the Gardaland theme park, which is the biggest in Italy

The sheer size and terrifying drops of the biggest rollercoasters have me quivering. But theres something for everyone  and Mike and Alice make a beeline for the new Kung Fu Panda ride, which whooshes us up and around in spinning cars.

One delightful surprise is a kind of huge flying saucer which raises slowly on a metal arm about 150ft in the air, giving you glorious views across the lake.

We find that a happy medium is to spend long afternoons at the hotel pool, which is a lagoon-style affair with lots of sunbeds on a wide lawn.

Lazy days there are punctuated by lunch at the poolside bar (about 40 for a family of four), and a doze in the sunshine  as you gird your loins for the curse of another Cleo show right in the middle of dinner.
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Who hasn't watched a fictional world unfolding before them on the big screen and wished the could visit?

But, while hobbits can't be spotted in New Zealand and Jurassic dinosaurs won't be rearing their heads among the treetops of Hawaii anytime soon, the gorgeous settings for many famous works of fiction can actually be explored in real life.

Numerous places seen in TV, movies, books and video games were based on or filmed at real life scene-stealing locations.

For instance, Arendelle in Frozen was inspired by the Norwegian fjords. Avatar fans should head to Zhangjiajie National Forest Park in China to enter a version of surreal Pandora and Winnie the Pooh's home of 100 Acre Wood can be found in an English Forest.

An infographic by UK-based travel agency Globehunters reveals 29 fictional destinations you can visit across the globe to relive the magic or see where top actors filmed blockbusters.

So while going to The Overlook Hotel from The Shining or Amity Island from Jaws might give you the shivers there's always Downton Abbey and Hogwarts to raise your spirits and sense of adventure.
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The liberal city of Vancouver and the corporate brand of Trump were always going to be strange bedfellows.

An inclusive place thats powered by yoga, kale and other medicinal green leaves, the City of Glass is one of the most left-leaning places in North America.

When the Trump International Hotel & Tower opened its doors last month, there were protests calling for the developers to dump Trumps name.

Twisting up at 45 degrees to pierce the sky, the innovative design of Vancouver's new Trump International Hotel & Tower (left) gives the place the feel of a movie villains lair. Donald Trump opened it to the public last month (right)

The Vancouver-based Holborn Group brought the Trump Organisation on board in 2013 to manage the day to day operations of the hotel and to use the brand name, after an earlier deal with Ritz-Carlton fell through.

The $360 million twisting tower stands at 63 storeys  or 69 if you want the hotels alternative facts (theyve including six underground parking floors). The higher storeys are home to the multi-million-dollar residences of tech billionaires and foreign buyers, leaving the lower 21 floors for the 147 hotel rooms.

Twisting up at 45 degrees to pierce the sky, the innovative design gives the place the feel of a movie villains lair, and lettering above the West Georgia Street entrance spells out the word Trump. For some, this five-letter word is more offensive than any of the four-letter variety.

Confusingly this entrance takes you into the champagne bar, not the lobby, which is one floor down and accessed via a back street. The small lobby is dwarfed by a wall of golden blocks and a large red painting that resembles a scorched earth  this abstract work is by Vancouverite Miriam Aroeste, who has created 180 original artworks for the hotel.

The $360 million tower (pictured) stands at 63 storeys - the higher floors being home to the multi-million-dollar residences of tech billionaires and foreign buyers, leaving the lower 21 floors for the 147 hotel rooms

At the front desk, attentive staff offer a lavender-scented towel and ask to help with luggage. Im shown to my room by a white-gloved attache and she patiently shows me how to control the temperature, lights and curtains from a touch-screen.

Architect Arthur Ericksons design means that every room layout is different. This creates an awkward angular effect but gives multi-faceted views of downtown Vancouver, the North Shore Mountains or Stanley Park.

Guests can enjoy the musky scent of Trump in branded shampoo, conditioner and body wash

Interiors are surprisingly understated with a couple of accents from Aroestes swirling artwork to jazz up the 50 shades of beige that come from the bedrooms light oak floors and sandy coloured Italian marble in the bathroom  dont worry, the hue of the monsoon shower is more straw-coloured toupee than golden.

Theres a business-like air to the rooms, with leathery touches and a giant padded headboard. Despite the high-tech controls, lighting is on the harsh side rather than romantic, so it feels like the only business youll be getting down to in here is of the corporate kind.

There are no newspapers in the room but a full digital library is available. Alongside Trump-branded gold bullion chocolate bars in the minibar, there is also an impressive array of local products such as Canadian wine, chocolate from nearby Whistler, buckwheat granola bars, and a brand of coconut clusters called Hippie Snacks.

Guests can enjoy the musky scent of Trump in branded shampoo, conditioner and body wash, all of which are made in Canada.

These unexpected touches play into Vancouvers hyper-local vibe  even the slice of bark that indicates you dont want your bed changed is recycled wood from the Yukon.

Mott 32, the Cantonese restaurant attached to the hotel

Despite Trumps musings on China, Chinese tourists are Vancouvers fastest growing overseas market and attracting guests with cash to splash is going to be a big win for the hotel. A very big win. Vancouver is a gateway city for Asian travellers and the Trump Hotel sits on Vancouvers Golden Mile, which is also home to luxury brands such as Tiffany.

Mott 32, the Cantonese restaurant attached to the hotel, is helping draw these guests. Vancouver is a foodie city but some locals are boycotting the site over its ties to Trump. Not that youd know by looking at the packed restaurant, which is the only sister to the original Mott 32 in Hong Kong.

Next door is The Trump Champagne Lounge, which sounds like an 1980s nightmare of excess but has quirky cocktails that play on the West Coast surroundings. Junipers Knot arrives on a platter of pine cones and spruce, with a white truffle umami rim around the rum-based drink and a mist of dry ice poured into the forest.

Nightlife options are designed to be flashy. At the Vegas-influenced Drais, servers strut out with strobe batons every time someone splashes out on bottle service. The presentation is as subtle as an aeroplane being directed in to land.

In Drais ultra lounge, the pool is covered with a dancefloor, and the combination of a giant lighting rig and pink banquettes give the club a kitschy Eurovision vibe. Extensive meeting rooms, named after local neighbourhoods, should ensure a healthy conference clientele, and

The Spa by Ivanka Trump will cater to harried business people. Smiling staff provide a warm welcome thats at odds with the cold feel of the decor: the small lobby feels like a dentists waiting room and the spa has the charm of an office corridor  even chainmail curtains cant lighten the mood.

At turndown, a pair of Trump slippers and a small Trump truffle box are placed by my bed. Its impossible to shake the feeling that by staying here you are essentially getting into bed with The Donald  depending on your view of him thats going to affect how, and where, you sleep.
I was looking forward to seeing Trieste, where the exiled James Joyce wrote Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man and Ulysses.

My son wanted to discover old Dubrovnik. My wifes priority was merely to enjoy a well-earned rest, while my daughter was happy to add Albania to her list of countries visited.

Ever since my first cruise with Silversea ten years ago, Id wanted to share the experience with my family  and now I was. With my wife Mo, son Nathan and daughter Lianne, we set sail on an Adriatic adventure from Venice on the Silver Spirit.

Perfectly framed: Castello Vecchio Di Duino, a brooding 11th Century ruin on the coast north of Trieste, Italy

We had a Silver Suite on deck ten and our very own butler who ensured clothes were cleaned, restaurants were booked and afternoon tea was delivered. The beds were blissfully comfortable, the wardrobe spacious and the veranda the ideal place from which to watch the scenery change.

Each morning we woke up in a different port, ate breakfast on deck in the sunshine, and used the cooler early hours to explore on foot. We first scoped out the territory as a family, then went our separate ways and finally rendezvoused by Silver Spirits pool for a buffet lunch.

My highlights were the dazzling Byzantine mosaics on the walls and vaulted ceilings of the 6th Century Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna, the Sunday afternoon quietness of Trieste as I ticked off the cafes frequented by Joyce, and a tour of Venice I shared with Lianne.

Nathan loved his walk atop the city walls of Dubrovnik, parts of which appeared as Kings Landing in Game Of Thrones.

Icon: Steve with a statue of the exiled James Joyce, who wrote Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man and Ulysses in Trieste

A photo of Castello Vecchio Di Duino, spotted by Lianne, resulted in us taking a cab to the brooding 11th Century ruin on the coast north of Trieste.

After the cruise, we stayed for a few days at the Belmond Cipriani in Venice. Located on Giudecca Island, this great hotel is a destination in itself - a haven of tranquility, comfort and style. In fact, the rest of my family chose to stroll in its gardens, luxuriate in our grand suite and relax at the Olympic size pool rather than head for the heart of the city.

The hotels private water taxi sails to the heart of Venice every 15 minutes, 24-hours a day, and docks at its own dedicated pier. I crossed over the Bacino di San Marco on our final day.

The sky was a glorious blue, and within minutes I was back in the narrow streets that Lianne and I had explored ten days earlier.
She has gripped the audience of TOWIE since the start of the latest series.

And the drama surrounding blonde newbie Amber Turner is showing no sign of stopping.

Veteran TOWIE star Georgia Kousoulou has an awkward encounter with Amber in emotional scenes in the upcoming episode - which also sees Jamie Reed confront Dan Edgar about the truth behind the love triangle rumours.

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Sceptical: Georgia Kousoulou stars in a scene with TOWIE newbie Amber Turner stars in the upcoming episode of the reality series as the love triangle with Dan Edgar and Jamie Reed unravels

Megan McKenna's 23-year-old best friend exploded onto the TOWIE scene on the cast's Tenerife getaway - which has since been dubbed Tene-grief.

And further details of the alleged betrayal emerged on Wednesday night's episode of the ITVBe show, with the story set to move forward on Sunday.

Amber has already revealed she partied with Dan behind Jamie's back amid allegations they enjoyed a holiday romance, and the cast are not all happy.

Moments from Sunday's upcoming episode reveal Amber's awkward encounter with an outspoken Georgia, who directly confronts her on her recent behaviour.

Tension: The blonde beauty has already revealed she partied with Dan behind her beau's back amid allegations they enjoyed a holiday romance, and the cast are not all happy

Dramatic scenes: The young series newcomer was unable to hold back tears in several dramatic scenes with both forthright Georgia and a wounded Jamie

Painful: The 23-year-old, wearing a gorgeous black leather jacket, can be seen fresh-faced with tears rolling down her cheeks

The young series newcomer was unable to hold back tears in several dramatic scenes with both forthright Georgia and a wounded Jamie.

Amber, wearing a gorgeous black leather jacket, can be seen fresh-faced and makeup free with tears rolling down her cheeks as she talks things through with her long-term beau.

And the fallout from events in Tenerife will continue to unfurl, as Jamie confronts Dan about whether he had a tryst with his girlfriend of more than three years.

Beaming: When Amber returned from Tenerife, jokingly christened 'Tene-grief' by the irked stars, she rushed home to now ex Jamie, who is making a comeback to the show after a drama-filled appearance in 2012

Listening ear: Megan can be seen hearing out her best friend on her side of the love story

Challenging: Megan, who shares several concerned conversations with friends, is terrified Pete is unhappy

As viewers discover exactly how far Amber and Dan actually went on the sun-filled holiday, Megan and Pete both reflect separately on their relationship.

And Pete even raises the possibility of relationship counselling with Lockie.

Megan, who shares several concerned conversations with friends, is terrified Pete is unhappy.

Returning to drama: Lydia makes a welcome return from her travels but is confronted with some unwelcome news

Shocked: The star can barely conceal her confusion, shock and horror at the news about Arg

Doggy style: In a welcome break from relationship intrigue, Pete will be host to Essex Doggy Style, an event celebrating Essex's four legged friends

And Lydia will make a welcome return from her travels, looking stunning as she walks back into the Essex fray.

But the beauty is stunned to discover James 'Arg' Argent slept with in-the-news Gemma Collins just hours before her own frisson with the lad.

In a welcome break from relationship intrigue, Pete will be host to Essex Doggy Style - an event celebrating Essex's four legged friends.

Series 20 Episode 3 airs at 10pm on Sunday on ITVBe.
She's the breakout star of the current season of Married At First Sight who has quickly amassed thousands of social media followers after sharing busty selfies.

But Cheryl Maitland has now turned her Instagram account to private and has not been available for interviews, according to The Daily Telegraph.

The 25-year-old's decision to withdraw from the public eye comes after she was inundated with messages of support following verbal attacks made by her TV 'husband' Andrew Jones.

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Taking a step back? Cheryl Maitland has amassed a legion of followers on social media, where she frequently shares busty selfies, but the star has turned her Instagram account to private

On Tuesday night, after an explosive episode of the show in which she confronted Andrew over disparaging remarks he made about both her hobbies and her breasts, Cheryl took to Instagram to thank fans for their support.

Sharing a stunning selfie, the hairdresser captioned, 'I appreciate everyone's positive messages' accompanied by the hashtags 'bighugs' and 'goodnight.'

Following her posting, more than 1200 of Cheryl's 96,000 Instagram followers sent through messages praising the star.

Stunning selfies: On Instagram, Cheryl has been praised for her 'maturity' on the show but she has turned her account to private

'You've handled yourself very well in the experiment', wrote one. 'Despite your young age you showed 100x maturity, class, and kindness. Values that some of the other participants lack. You are a beautiful woman and a person inside out. You deserve only the best.'

Another wrote, 'So impressed with how you've held yourself on MAFS. Be proud of the person you are and the incredible level of maturity you've shown.'

But while Cheryl has been flooded with support, her decision to take a step back from the public eye echoes that of Andrew, who has gone into hiding after he made the explosive comments about his TV 'wife' during a boys' night.

Saucy: Cheryl is known for sharing a number of racy photos much to the delight of many of her 96,000 followers

The 38-year-old firefighter told NW magazine that 'I haven't left the house' since the episode aired on Sunday night.

Andrew also has a private Instagram account, and is not accepting requests from followers at present.

The star also told The Fix that he had already deactivated his Facebook account last month, after he was harassed by fans.

Feeling the heat: Andrew has gone into hiding after an explosive week of the show

And while Cheryl may now be getting supportive messages on her social media platforms, she too has been the target of trolls.

The buxom brunette infamously called out one troll last month who called her a 'f**ing s**t' who only appeared on the show for fame.

Support: Fans flooded Cheryl's social media account to praise the star for her 'class'
She's the Australian actress who often travels abroad for work.

And when Emma Lung, 35, saw an opportunity to rent out her Sydney home on Airbnb while she was away, she never imagine that it would end so badly.

Friends of the star confirmed to Sydney Morning Herald on Friday that she was allegedly 'cleaned out' by thieves after renting out her Redfern designer warehouse.

'It was all stolen': Friends of Emma Lung confirmed to Sydney Morning Herald on Friday that the actress was allegedly 'cleaned out' by thieves after renting out her Redfern designer warehouse

Emma and her director husband Henry Zalapa originally advertised the accommodation on Airbnb while they relocated with their two-year-old son Marlowe to Hollywood.

The 'devastated' Los Angeles-based star was reportedly ransacked by guests who applied to stay in the multi-million dollar property.



'They took everything. Family heirlooms, even her identity, it was all stolen,' a source told the publication.

'She had had a really difficult time trying to resolve it with Airbnb': The Wonderland actress was reportedly in a six month dispute with the online company following the theft incident

Opportunity to make an extra buck: Emma and her director husband Henry Zalapa originally advertised the accommodation on Airbnb to make extra money while they relocated their young family to Hollywood, including two-year-old son Marlowe

Frustrating experience: The beauty is understandably devastated after the incident (Pictured: Emma in her Redfern property's bath tub)

'It has been a complete nightmare for her but the frustrating thing was she has had a really difficult time trying to resolve it with Airbnb.'

The Wonderland actress was reportedly in a six month dispute with the online company following the incident.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Emma Lung for comment.

A rep for Airbnb confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that the incident 'has been settled and agreed' and insisted that 'while incidents do happen, they are extremely rare.'

It was alleged family heirlooms and Rolex watches worth tens of thousands of dollars were among items stolen, but police found it hard to prosecute due to a lack of physical evidence.

'She suspects they were organised criminals and they have probably done this sort of thing before, fake IDs and all that. She will never put her place on Airbnb again,' the close friend said.

'She suspects they were organised criminals': It was alleged family heirlooms and Rolex watches worth tens of thousands of dollars were among items stolen by the criminals, but police found it hard to prosecute due to a lack of physical evidence

Designer digs: In photos, the property appears to have a minimalist vibe with numerous framed artworks positioned on a white brick wall

In photos, the property appears to have a minimalist vibe with numerous framed artworks positioned on a white brick wall.

Believed to be configured in an open loft-style design, the lounge room has large windows that flood the room with light.

On Airbnb hosts are advised to 'secure or remove such valuables'when renting their place, and may want to 'consider independent insurance to cover such items.'

The dispute with Airbnb has since been resolved according to the publication.
A grieving Teresa Giudice was spotted spending quality time with her father Giacinto Gorga, just days after her mother Antonia passed away at age 66.

The Real Housewives Of New Jersey star, 44, was spotted helping her father across a parking lot in New Jersey on Friday.

Teresa walked arm-in-arm with her father as she wore a black jacket with gold zipper, button-up blouse, and ripped jeans for her family outing.

Family first: A grieving Teresa Giudice was spotted spending quality time with her father Giacinto Gorga in New Jersey on Friday, just days after her mother Antonia passed away

Her father, meanwhile, wore a black windbreaker jacket, white shirt, and jeans.

Teresa gave her phone a quick glance as she helped her father cross the pavement.

The reality star has been mourning the death of her mother, who passed away last Friday.

Teresa has been paying tribute to her mother by sharing various heartfelt family photos over social media.

Support system: Teresa walked arm-in-arm with her father as she wore a black jacket with gold zipper, button-up blouse, and ripped jeans for her family outing

Heartbroken: These last few days the reality star has been mourning the death of her mother, who passed away at the age of 66

One of the photos was of Teresa celebrating her Sweet 16 alongside her mother and her godmother Domenica.

'My Surprise Sweet 16 that is my godmother Domenica and my beautiful Mother (heart emoticon). Thank you Godmother for sending me this photo love you,' she wrote in the snap.

On Tuesday, she shared a video from her mother's funeral, which showed mourners letting go of dozens of white balloons.

Her big day: One of the photos was of Teresa celebrating her Sweet 16 alongside her mother and her godmother Domenica

Paying tribute: Teresa shared with fans a video from her mother's funeral, which she captioned, 'Clear skies all the way to HEAVEN for my Mommy...I Love You'

Teresa was at her beloved mother's side when she passed away in hospital on Friday.

On Saturday evening Teresa Giudice took to Instagram for the first time to pay a heartfelt tribute to her mother and thank her fans for all their messages of support.

Sharing a collage of six shots of herself with her mom, the star captioned it: 'Thank you for the love and support during this extremely difficult time.

In loving memory: Giudice shared a sweet poem in honor of her mother on Friday

Sweet memories: Giudice shared a photo of her parents, declaring her mother a lover of the beach and summer

'My mother was a very cherished part of our family and she'll be deeply missed. Each and every one of your messages of love & support are so appreciated.

'Give her eternal rest O Lord and may your light shine on her forever.'

And the inconsolable reality star was back on Instagram early on Sunday morning to add a family portrait with her parents sitting in the middle.

'I miss my mommy so much,' Teresa wrote, simply.

In her prayers: Teresa shared a photo of her mother's image alongside Padre Pio, which she captioned, 'Padre Pio look after my MOM'

Sharing her grief: On Saturday evening Teresa Giudice took to Instagram to pay tribute to mom Antonia Gorga, who died age 66 on Friday, and thank her fans for their messages of support

A source told Us Weekly on Saturday: 'This is a very hard time for Teresa. She was very close with her mother.'

Antonia passed away of natural causes, according to E! News.

Antonia - who made several appearances on the hit Bravo show - was an Italian immigrant who raised Teresa and her brother Joey in New Jersey.
She led a glitzy, privileged life on MTV reality show The Hills.

So it might be a surprise to some that Lo Bosworth has suffered incapacitating depression, as she revealed in her latest blog post.

The 30-year-old television personality and pro chef shared details of the blog on her Instagram alongside a micro clip of herself, makeup-free, with a heartbreaking confession.

'I've been depressed. Sharing my story today about the crazy reason why and how I've come out the other side...' she wrote.

Upsetting: Lo Bosworth has revealed she's been struggling with depression, which she discusses in her latest blog post

On her blog, Lo proceeded to delve deeply into her health issues, as did an embedded YouTube clip that rehashed some of the blog's revelations.

In her post, she began positively.

'2016 wasnt only just the worst year ever, it was also the year I turned 30, founded my own feminine wellness company [Love Wellness], and brought an amazing puppy home. So not all bad,' stated the now New York resident, before getting serious.

Flying high: She led a glitzy, privileged life on the the reality show The Hills (pictured here with co-star Lauren Conrad, right, in 2015)

'Light does find way of shining through the darkness. And what is the darkness Im referring to? Crippling anxiety and depression at the hands of a severe vitamin deficiency that went undiscovered for 16 months.'

Apparently her troubles, which included a racing mind and insomnia, began at the end of 2015.

She soon started an anti-depressant, but still was unaware her issues were actually caused by a vitamin deficiency due to a genetic abnormality.

Losing hope: After months of little to no progress, doctors resorted to a blood test which yielded surprising results

After months of little to no progress, doctors resorted to a blood test which yielded surprising results.

'A week later, a life-changing phone call lights up my phone and ultimately, my life. Im told I have severe deficiencies of Vitamins B12 and Vitamin D. Want to know what happens if youre deficient? You can develop, amongst other things, depression, anxiety, fatigue, headaches, dizziness, and a lot of other vague and uncomfortable symptoms.'

After learning more about her deficiency, she underwent genetic testing which revealed that 'her body doesnt process B12 and D in the way that other people can.'

Important nutrients: She needs to take 'the highest quality, most bio-available methylated form of both every single day for the rest of my life'

Lo then faced a sobering realization; she needs to take 'the highest quality, most bio-available methylated form of both every single day for the rest of my life.'

Her parting statement was one of both empathy and optimism.

'Depression and anxiety can be both emotional and physical, and having lived through it, all I can say is that the struggle is worth it... Life happens, and if it happens to you  how will you handle it? Im living proof that you should fight, you should explore, you should take your health into your own hands and be your own advocate, and that you CAN come out the other side with some serious scars, but feeling like a brand new human being.'
Her name has become synonymous with a certain kind of haphazard British style and she once donned mismatching shoes on the Golden Globes red carpet.

Helena Bonham Carter showed even a long haul flight couldn't deter her from her trademark quirky dress sense as she strolled through Heathrow airport with her mother Elena Propper de Callejon on Friday.

The Sweeney Todd actress was returning to her home in London after enjoying a holiday in Los Angeles with her beloved mother.

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Distinctive style: Helena Bonham Carter showed off her signature kooky style in a black floral dress with brown leather brogues and thick socks as she was spotted at Heathrow on Friday

The 50-year-old actress donned a black floaty frock which featured a delicate pattern of pink roses.

The dress was a little too large for the star and swamped her petite frame.

She somewhat bizarrely paired the dress with brown leather chunky-heeled brogues and very thick black socks.

The Oscar nominee toted a battered doctor's bag around her shoulder and a pair of spectacles perched on her head.

Mummy's girl: The Sweeney Todd actress was spotted with her mother Elena Propper de Callejon as the pair returned from a girly holiday together in Los Angeles

The English Rose actress's blonde bouffant looked a little bedraggled and she went fresh-faced as she indulged in a little duty-free shopping.

Elena wore a smart outfit, sporting a matching jacket and skirt in a soft blue cotton.

She added a splash of colour with a jaunty fuchsia scarf around her neck and opted for sturdy black patent pumps as she accompanied her famous daughter.

Helena has always enjoyed a close relationship with Elena, who is a French-Spanish psychotherapist.

Always close: Helena and Elena enjoy a close relationship and the Hollywood star lived at home with her parents until she was 30

Supportive: Elena is always on hand to support her famous daughter at high profile events. Helena even dedicated her BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress to her mother

The movie star lived at home with her parents in their house in Golders Green, North London, until she was 30 years old.

She has made a point to pay tribute to her mother throughout her illustrious movie career and dedicated her BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress, which she received for her performance in The King's Speech, to Elena.

'This is for all the best supporting wives - the Queen Mother herself, and my mum,' the Harry Potter actress said.

'There is no doubt that if my father were alive, he would have given it to her. She was the best supporting wife you could ever have wished for.'
She's the busty New Zealander who isn't shy about flaunting her very ample assets.

And Playboy Playmate Amy Lee Summers left very little to the imagination while posing for a 138 Water photo shoot in California on Thursday.

The lad's mag model went topless and cooled off by pouring water on herself during the steamy shoot.

Fun in the sun! VERY busty Playboy Playmate Amy Lee Summers poses TOPLESS during beach photo shoot

The blonde beauty wore a skimpy black g-string bikini bottoms which showcased her curves.

Amy Lee paired it with a sheer midriff black top, later stripping out of it to reveal a matching black bikini top.

The Zoo magazine covergirl wore her long golden locks loosely and straight over her shoulders.

Showing off! The blonde beauty wore a skimpy black g-string bikini bottoms which showcased her curves

All black! Amy Lee paired it with a sheer midriff black top, later stripping out of it into a matching black bikini top

Thirsty work? The Zoo Magazine covergirl wore her long golden locks out straight over her shoulders

She kept her look simple for the photo shoot, accessorising with only a bellybutton stud and earrings in her ears.

Amy Lee posted in her black bikini lying on the sand, closing her eyes for some more photos.

Things get more revealing when the model takes off her bikini top, posing topless while covering her breasts strategically with her arms.

Feeling tired? Amy Lee posted in her black bikini lying on the sand, closing her eyes for some photos

Back to basics: She kept her look simple for the photoshoot, accessorising with only a bellybutton stud and earrings in her ears

Amy Lee then pours the water on her chest and behind while still posing sultrily for the camera.

A hairdresser originally from New Zealand, Amy Lee found international success after being featured in Playboy.

She previously told the publication that she grew up obsessed with barbies and got into glamour modelling after highschool.

Was it a nude beach? Things get more revealing when the model takes off her bikini top, posing topless while covering her breasts strategically with her arms

'Honestly, Im comfortable posing nude': The model also said she counts Holly Madison as one of her idols and is no stranger to posing naked

'I love everything about fashion and beauty, and I think thats why I wanted to become a model,' Amy Lee said.

The model also said she counts Holly Madison as one of her idols and is no stranger to posing naked.

'Honestly, Im comfortable posing nude. It makes me feel so feminine  not to mention sexy,' she said.
She made the decision to adopt her youngest daughter Edith in 2016.

And Cate Blanchett, 47, has honored her friend and adoption advocate Deborra-Lee Furness for her philanthropic work in the field by at the 2017 UN Women for Peace Association March Luncheon at ONE UN, in New York.

Deborra-Lee, 61, has long been an advocate for adoption since she adopted her two children - Ava, 11, and Oscar, 16 - with her husband actor Hugh Jackman.

Honoring a fellow Australian: Actress Cate Blanchett has honored her friend Deborra-Lee Furness for her work in advocating adoption with her organisation Hopeland

Cate graced the event in a vibrant red overcoat with gold buttons, a pair of black stockings and matched it with a pair of black kitten heels as she praised her friend Deborra-Lee for her work.

Her makeup was kept to a natural look, while her trademark golden locks rested at her shoulders.

Deborra-Lee kept her look low-key in a simple black ensemble, with a pair of platform shoes.

And just like Cate her make up was kept natural and contrasted her strawberry blonde locks.

Keeping natural: Both Australian actresses kept their look natural as they posed for the cameras at the event

UN Women: The actress graced the event in a bright red over coat with gold buttons as she proudly spoke of Deborra-Lee's work

Honoree: 'Hopeland is a platform to raise awareness around orphaned, abandoned and vulnerable children,' Deborra-Lee told Fox5

Speaking to Fox5, alongside chairperson of UN Women for Peace Muna Rihani Al-Nassar, Deborra-Lee talked about the her organisation Hopeland and how they address the global issue of orphans, as well as abandoned and vulnerable children.

Deborra-Lee clarified that Hopeland was not an adoption agency but rather 'a platform to raise awareness around orphaned, abandoned and vulnerable children.'

'UNICEF says a hundred 157 million orphans in the world of those orphans about 80 per cent of them have living parents, but because of war, and drugs and disease and domestic violence that they're separated from families,' she said.

Acceptance speech: 'Hopeland wants to address the root problem... our mission, our north star is for every child to belong to a living family,' Deborra-Lee said

All smiles: Both women have adopted children, Deborra-Lee has an adopted her two kids - Ava, 11, and Oscar, 16 - with her husband actor Hugh Jackman. While Cate adopted her youngest daughter Edith in 2016 with husband Andrew Upton

Adoption advocate: Cate was all smiles at the event honoring Deborra-Lee

'Hopeland wants to address the root problem... our mission, our north star is for every child to belong to a living family.'

Meanwhile Deborra-Lee's husband Wolverine star Hugh Jackman paid tribute to his wife's achievement through his Instagram.

Hugh Jackman shared a picture of his wife and Cate at the event, captioning the post: '2 extraordinary women! Thank you Cate for being there to honor Deb at the UN today.'

The actor is currently busy on a worldwide press tour for his latest film Logan.
MasterChef judge William Sitwell confirms he and his aristocratic wife Laura McCorquodale are divorcing after he ran off with a tasty side dish 20 years his junior  and the bon viveur has no intention of marrying his new love.

When William married society girl Laura in 1999 it was a union of two literary dynasties.

William, 47, is great-nephew of avant garde poet Dame Edith Sitwell while Laura, 44, is a kinswoman of famous romantic author Dame Barbara Cartland.

MasterChef judge William Sitwell and his aristocratic wife Laura McCorquodale (left) are divorcing after he ran off with Emily Lopes (right)

But saving his 17-year marriage is not possible, says William, after he started an affair with perky young blonde Emily Lopes, daughter of the late Devonshire race-horse breeder the 3rd Lord Roborough.

Sadly these things are painful but there is no going back and divorce proceedings are now very well underway, he told me at the launch of his latest tome The Really Quite Good British Cookbook. We are sorting out the financial side.

Emily, 27, was once tipped as an ideal partner for Prince Harry and her cousin, Harry Lopes, is married to Laura Parker Bowles, daughter of the Duchess of Cornwall.

Already under fire for leading a Lords revolt against Brexit, Lord Heseltine is also attacked for his low attendance record in the upper chamber.

The peer, 83, is named and shamed by fellow Tory, Lord Blencathra, 63, for a three per cent attendance in the whole of the last Parliament. You know, maybe he came in and made a devastatingly important speech then, he says. I dont recall it.

But I dont think we can go on with people with three, four or five per cent, or zero per cent attendance when there is no good reason not to.

Going it alone: Melissa and Jasmine Hemsley, the sisters behind the clean eating brand Hemsley + Hemsley, are working on their own cook books

Health food gurus Melissa and Jasmine Hemsley seem to be going it alone, just months after they faced a backlash against the clean-eating fad they champion.

The glamorous sisters have written two best-selling books under their Hemsley + Hemsley label, as well as launching their own cafe in Selfridges in London.

But Melissa, 31, reveals shes now embarking on her own book without her sister Jasmine, 37, called Eat Happy.

It will be released next year and will focus on frugality, simplicity and indulgence rather than clean eating. Hemsley + Hemsley is still going strong, Melissa assures me. And we are pursuing our own passion projects to run alongside  Jasmine is currently working on her own book as well.

Silly sausage: Expecting Rosie poses with her pup

Marks & Sparks lingerie model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley poses with her dachshund pup

Marks & Sparks lingerie model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is an expert when it comes to looking her best, so its no surprise that shes relying on the oldest trick in the book to flatter her expanding waistline.

The Devonshire-born 29-year-old, who is expecting her first child by her fiance, actor Jason Statham, 50, shared this picture on social media in which she masks her blossoming baby bump in a loose black T-shirt and trousers  a look well known for its slimming effect  while cradling one of her dachshunds.

No word on how the dog feels about the new baby.

Red-faced Fergie kills off fake 'Margaret York'

Sarah Ferguson was said to be using pseudonym 'Margaret York' to conduct her business dealings

There was fresh embarrassment for the Duchess of York when it emerged she had been conducting her business dealings in a hotel bar under the pseudonym Margaret York.

Sarah Ferguson, 57, held court at the Lanesborough Hotel, drumming up support for her myriad business ventures over bottles of champagne. Sadly, those heady days are over after her alter-ego was exposed last month.

This week, the Duchess corrected company records for La Luna Investments and Strawbugs Ltd so that Sarah, Duchess of York, not the fictional Margaret, is listed as a director.

At the same time, the Duchess cleared up confusion over her directorships of two other companies, Fergies Farm and tea business, Ginger & Moss.

Both listed Prince Andrews ex-wife as HRH Sarah Ferguson  even though she was stripped of her title in 1996, almost 20 years before both businesses were set up.

Mentioning no names...

Which acclaimed female politician is said to be spicing up her personal life by embarking on a Sapphic affair with a French lover?
She's always been outspoken - especially when it's for a good cause - so it's hardly surprising Naya Rivera took her 17-month-old son, Josey to the Women's Day Rally in LA on Wednesday.

The former Glee actress shared a photo of the toddler standing next to his pram, under a sign which read: 'My mom chose me'.

She captioned the meaningful photo with a simple love heart emoji and the hashtag, '#internationalwomensday'.

Standing up for womens rights: Naya Rivera attended the Women's Day Rally with her 17-month-old son, Josey

Well heeled! The following day she attended a Joolz stroller event

The following day, the gorgeous brunette attended the launch for a new Dutch stroller brand called Joolz.

Dressed in a skintight dusty pink turtleneck, tucked into cropped skinny blue jeans, and matching dusty pink stilettos, the 30-year-old happily posed with the eco-friendly brand's products.

'Thanks for having me yesterday @myjoolz,' she wrote on Instagram. 'Can't wait to rock Josey in this sleek stroller, & love that you guys plant a tree for every stroller sold in the #Joolz birth forest in Colombia!'

Pretty in pink: The newly single mom-of-one looked beautiful in a dusty pink turtleneck top and matching stilettos

Strolling along: A day after attending the Women's Day Rally, Naya was seen at the Joolz pram launch in LA

The proud mom-of-one has previously opened up about an abortion she had while working on Glee.

In her book, Sorry Not Sorry, which was released last September, Naya revealed she discovered she was pregnant shortly after taking a break from her now ex-husband, Ryan Dorsey.

The actress says she had an abortion on her one day off from filming, before returning to work the very next day.

Trailblazer: 'It was very scary to open up about everything,' she said of her book. 'Its not something a lot of people talk about, but I think they should'

Making a difference: 'I hope Josey will read it one day. I hope it gives him a better perspective on the issues women face,' she said of her book

Naya said she didn't even disclose her pregnancy to Ryan, 33, at the time, opting to quietly have the abortion so she could carry on working.

'It was very scary to open up about everything,' she told People of choosing to discuss her shock pregnancy in her book. 'Its not something a lot of people talk about, but I think they should.'

'I hope Josey will read it one day,' she added. 'I hope it gives him a better perspective on the issues women face.'
Rapper Vanilla Ice snapped a selfie with Hollywood legend Burt Reynolds backstage at the Palm Beach International Film Festival in Boca Raton on Friday.

The Floridian celebrities - both rocking black suits - managed to achieve great success during their respective nineties and seventies heydays.

'Shout out to my friend, #legand Burt Reynolds!' the 49-year-old Grammy nominee captioned the picture.

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'Shout out to my friend!' Rapper Vanilla Ice snapped a selfie with Hollywood legend Burt Reynolds backstage at the Palm Beach International Film Festival in Boca Raton on Friday

'#legend': The Floridian celebrities - both rocking black suits - managed to achieve great success during their respective nineties and seventies heydays

Here comes trouble: Vanilla Ice (born Robert Van Winkle) was in town shooting the seventh season of his DIY home-improvement competition Vanilla Ice Project

'What a great show at the Palm Beach Film Festival. Believe it and you can achieve it! #SSOF2017 #filmfestival #rt.'

Vanilla Ice (born Robert Van Winkle) was in town shooting the seventh season of his DIY home-improvement competition Vanilla Ice Project.

Burt easily defied his 81 years with his silver fox beard and matching hairpiece for the 22nd Annual Student Showcase of Films, which took place at Lynn University.

The Oscar-nominated actor got a kiss from his 'close friend' and fellow presenter Suzanne Niedland, who playfully perched on his lap.

Famous: Burt easily defied his 81 years with his silver fox beard and matching hairpiece for the 22nd Annual Student Showcase of Films, which took place at Lynn University

Ladies man: The Oscar-nominated actor got a kiss from his 'close friend' and fellow presenter Suzanne Niedland, who playfully perched on his lap

Fancy cane! Reynolds was last believed to be romancing Rhonda Stearns, 65, a former acting student from his Burt Reynolds Institute for Film & Theatre

Congrats! The twice-divorced father-of-one hit the stage to award his $2,500 scholarship to Matthew Nadel (in glasses), a 17-year-old filmmaker from the Dreyfoos School of the Arts

Comedian: Also at the PBIFF was SNL veteran Cheri Oteri in a breezy exotically-patterned tunic dress

Reynolds was last believed to be romancing Rhonda Stearns, 65, a former acting student from his Burt Reynolds Institute for Film & Theatre.

The twice-divorced father-of-one hit the stage to award his $2,500 scholarship to Matthew Nadel, a 17-year-old filmmaker from the Dreyfoos School of the Arts.

Burt's sighting came after he said Florida Governor Rick Scott was 'dumber than a peach orchard sow' for letting the filmmaker tax incentive program expire in 2016.

'More films should be shot here,' the Apple of My Eye actor told Local10.com on March 3.

Pictured Tuesday: Burt's sighting came after he said Florida Governor Rick Scott was 'dumber than a peach orchard sow' for letting the filmmaker tax incentive program expire in 2016

The Apple of My Eye actor told Local10.com on March 3: 'I remember I went in to see him and I said, "You know, we ought to be shooting more movies down here." And he said, "Why?" I said, "How did you get to be governor?"'

'It's not Florida's fault, because Florida's got everything, you know? It's the governor. I remember I went in to see him and I said, "You know, we ought to be shooting more movies down here." And he said, "Why?" I said, "How did you get to be governor?"'

The two-time Golden Globe winner will likely next attend the world premiere of his film Dog Years at New York's Tribeca Film Festival (happening April 19-30).

Reynolds plays over-the-hill movie star Vic Edwards, who enlists Modern Family's Ariel Winter to drive him to Nashville in the road trip drama.

Adam Rifkin (Director's Cut) wrote and directed Dog Years which also stars Chevy Chase, Ellar Coltrane, and Nikki Blonsky.

Next month! The two-time Golden Globe winner will likely next attend the world premiere of his film Dog Years at New York's Tribeca Film Festival (happening April 19-30)

'Such an honor to know you': Reynolds plays over-the-hill movie star Vic Edwards, who enlists Modern Family's Ariel Winter (R) to drive him to Nashville in the road trip drama
Dog the Bounty Hunter might be on the hunt for another criminal, so to say.

The 64-year-old reality star and his wife Beth were robbed of more than $5,000 in Los Angeles Thursday night as result of a break-in to the Luxe Hotel suite they were staying in during their visit to Southern California, TMZ reports.

The one-time bail bondsman and his spouse were not present at the time of the robbery, the outlet reported, adding that they discovered the money was missing from a safe in the room.

Bad start to the weekend: Dog the Bounty Hunter and wife Beth were robbed of more than $5,000 cash Thursday from the safe in their LA hotel room, TMZ reported

Scene of the crime: The incident took place at the Luxe hotel in Downtown LA. Investigators were working with hotel officials to suss out the events that led to the robbery

Silver lining: Thieves only took cash from the couple, leaving their jewelry and belongings behind, according to the outlet

Police told the outlet that there were no signs of any forced entry in the room, and that they were in touch with officials from the establishment to ascertain if any duplicate keys were made for the room that the celebrity couple was staying in.

Authorities are also reviewing surveillance footage from the establishment. According to the report, all of the jewelry and belongings left in the room weren't touched.

The former A&E star, whose real name is Duane Chapman, has had an eventful 2017 so far, as one of the few celebrities drawn to the Inaugural festivities in honor of President Donald Trump.

Flashy: The celebrity couple matched in black outfits at the 2014 CMT Awards in Nashville

Star power: While many celebs refused to go near the presidential inauguration in January, Dog and wife Beth were not shy to show their support for the new commander-in-chief

Hail to the chief: The duo were snapped at the with Vettys Presidential Inaugural Ball with chairwoman Assal Ravandi (L)

Attending the Freedom Ball, Chapman - whose show was yanked off the air amid a 2007 scandal in which he was heard on tape engaging in vile racist banter - praised the new commander-in-chief as a firebrand in the spectrum of crime and punishment.

'When I lock someone up, I dont want them holding the door for me when I leave,' Dog said, according to Women's Wear Daily. 'They let them go too fast - way too fast.'

Chapman said that Trump 'is going to change that, and hes going to rehabilitate [criminals]. And were going to make them righteous people.'
He's soon to walk down the aisle with Snezana Markoski, becoming not only a husband but also a step-father to Snez's 11-year-old daughter, Eve.

And on Friday, The Bachelor star Sam Wood was seen accompanying his soon-to-be step-daughter and a friend to Justin Bieber's Melbourne concert.

But it seems the outing was more perk than punishment for 36-year-old Sam, who took to Instagram to share a snap, labeling himself as a 'Belieber.'

He's a fan! On Friday, Sam Wood joined fiancee Snezana Markoski, her 11-year-old daughter Eve and a friend at Justin Bieber's stadium show in Melbourne

Sam, Eve and her friend were joined by Snezana, who also shared a number of snaps and short videos from the night out to her Instagram Story.

On the way to the stadium, Snez shared a hilarious video of the group jamming to Justin's hit 'What Do You Mean?' with Sam joining in on the fun.

Embarrassed to be caught signing along with the girl-gang, a smiling Sam quickly covers his face.

Caught out! Snez filmed Sam driving the tweens to the concert and he was caught red-handed singing along to Beiber's big hit 'What Do You Mean?'

Snez seemed to be enjoying the fact her fiance is a 'Belieber', with another photo showing Sam turning up the volume.

'Yes turn it up Sam!' Snez wrote, accompanied by two love-heart eyed emojis.

A subsequent snap showed the group taking their seats, ready to enjoy the show.

Daddy duties! Sam was clearly getting in the mood for the concert, seen turning up the volume as the group listened to Justin's Purpose album

And while Justin's performance garnered mixed reviews, it appears Snez enjoyed the show, posting a picture with a love heart drawn around the stage.

Meanwhile, Sam recently revealed to Kyle and Jackie O that he and Snez are set to marry 'in the middle of the year'.

Ready to rock! Sam and Snez took their seats with Eve and her friend who looked overjoyed to be seeing the heartthrob Justin

Impressed: Snez seemed to enjoy every minute of Justin's performance despite the concert garnering mixed reviews

He didn't reveal the date of the nuptials, but added that they were 'just around the corner'.

Sam also stated that the pair- who fell in love on the 2015 season of The Bachelor- will be marrying overseas.

Whilst it's hotly tipped the couple will tie the knot in Europe, Sam only gave a vague hint, telling the radio duo, 'It will be further than Fiji, we'll say that.'
He's the Aussie actor currently reprising his role as Wolverine for the last time on film.

But Hugh Jackman looks set to be bringing another iconic character to the big screen, with reports the actor is looking to play an iconic race car driver.

This week Deadline reported the 48-year-old actor is 'in talks' to play Enzo Ferrari, driver and founder of the Ferrari Grand Prix motor racing team.

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Racing onto our screens? Hugh Jackman is reportedly in talks to play racing car driver Enzo Ferrari in biopic alongside Noomi Rapace

The movie, tentatively titled Ferrari, is being directed by Ali and The Kingdom director Michael Mann.

The website reports that the film is the passion project of Michael, started 17 years ago alongside late director Sydney Pollack.

It would cover Enzo's life from 1957, when the race car mogul's battle with rival Maserati was at its highest intensity.

Pivotal: It would cover Enzo's life from 1957, when the race car mogul's battle with rival Maserati was at its highest intensity (Enzo pictured in 1967)

On-screen love interest? Noomi Rapace is reportedly being considered to play Enzo's estranged wife Linda opposite Hugh

The role had originally had Christian Bale attached to play two years, however, the actor pulled out after being unable to bulk up in time.

Hugh is considered a good fit because of his current buff frame, the publication claimed.

Also in talks for a role in the film is Girl With The Dragon Tattoo's Swedish actress Noomi Rapace.

The 37-year-old movie star is reportedly being considered to play Enzo's estranged wife Linda opposite Hugh.

The potential new project came as Logan raked in more than $330 million internationally in its first week.

The movie is Hugh's last outing as Wolverine, with the star recently revealing the hard work that goes into his voice overs for the character.

In a video shared to Instagram this week, the actor can be seen running on the spot, breathing heavily and fully embodying his beloved character.
The South By Southwest Film Festival in Austin played host Friday night to a screening of Alien: Covenant, the sixth entry in the Alien franchise.

Its leading lady, Katherine Waterston, cut a chic figure in a formal white top with puffed-out shoulders and cuffs rolled up nearly to the elbow.

The blouse had been haphazardly tucked into a pair of black trousers with a waistline that emphasized her enviably svelte torso.

Chatting merrily: Katherine Waterston looked radiant when the South By Southwest Film Festival in Austin played host Friday night to a screening of Alien: Covenant, the sixth entry in the Alien franchise

She'd parted her short black hair on the right and opted for a deep scarlet lipstick, completing her ensemble with a pair of black stilettos.

The 37-year-old stars as a terraformer called Daniels who rides the titular ship to a hitherto undiscovered planet that turns out to be rife with merciless predators.

Michael Fassbender will be reprising his Prometheus role as an android called David, who'd survived the disastrous mission from that 2012 film.

Elegant touches: The film's leading lady cut a chic figure in a formal white top with puffed-out shoulders and cuffs rolled up nearly to the elbow

Garnishing the look: She'd parted her short black hair on the right and opted for a deep scarlet lipstick, completing her ensemble with a pair of black stilettos

He's also playing Walter, an android at a higher level of developmental sophistication, who's a passenger aboard the Covenant during the new film.

The 39-year-old had swung by Friday night's screening in a midnight blue suit he'd teamed with a black sweater and a dull brown pair of shoes.

Danny McBride, who stars as the Covenant's chief pilot Tennessee, wore a black dress shirt with its top couple of buttons undone.

Who's who: The 37-year-old stars as a terraformer called Daniels who rides the titular ship to a hitherto undiscovered planet that turns out to be rife with merciless predators

Back at it: Michael Fassbender will be reprising his Prometheus role as an android called David, who'd survived the disastrous mission from that 2012 film

Doubling up: He's also playing Walter, an android at a higher level of developmental sophistication, who's a passenger aboard the Covenant during the new film

The 40-year-old had rolled up the sleeves halfway up his forearms and turned the cuffs inside out, revealing stylish beige lining.

He'd shoved his hands into the pockets of his brownish black trousers, which artfully contrasted with his black and silver sneakers.

Meanwhile, the film's director, Ridley Scott, had donned a black sweater a turned-up collar and a pair of sunglasses slung at the neckline.

The man in command: Danny McBride, who stars as the Covenant's chief pilot Tennessee, wore a black dress shirt with its top couple of buttons undone

Still stylish: Meanwhile, the film's director, Ridley Scott, had donned a black sweater a turned-up collar and a pair of sunglasses slung at the neckline

The 79-year-old, who'd directed the franchise's 1979 inaugural installment, had paired his gleaming wine-colored dress shoes with khaki dress trousers.

After the first Alien film, which starred Sigourney Weaver, James Cameron stepped in as helmsman of its first sequel, Aliens, which came out in 1986.

Next came the 1992 film Alien 3, which served as David Fincher's directorial debut and was followed a half-decade later by yet another sequel.

Strike a pose: The cast and director struck a pose as they arrived at the event

Dapper chap: Fassbender was on top form in a navy suit as he posed at the premiere

Getting the giggles: Fassbender was on top form, laughing and cracking jokes on stage

Though written by Joss Whedon and directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who went on to spearhead the beloved Amelie, Alien: Resurrection was critically divisive.

Bar the 2004 spin-off Alien V Predator, the franchise lapsed into dormancy on the big screen until Prometheus came along in 2012, to be followed by this new film.

Alien: Covenant will enjoy a release in British cinemas on May 12, but American audiences will have to wait a full week before catching it in theaters.

Q&A session: Ridley was leading the way during the panel discussion

Hugging it out: Danny and Michael shared a laugh following the main event

Full line-up: The cast and crew took centre stage as they promoted the long-awaited sequel
On Friday night, fans in Melbourne claimed the global superstar looked 'miserable' and 'bored' while performing to a sold-out crowd at Etihad stadium.

And stepping out for the first time since the backlash, Justin Bieber appeared to snub his devoted Beliebers.

One fan told Sydney Morning Herald she was rebuffed by the Canadian-born heartthrob as she requested a photo outside Crown Casino on Saturday.

'I told him that I was going to take the photo anyway!' Justin Bieber snubs fans in Melbourne on Saturday after the singer was slammed for looking 'BORED' on stage at Friday's show at Melbourne's Etihad stadium

The 20-year-old star appeared to go incognito in a dressed-down look to avoid unwanted attention, but eagle-eyed fan Sabah Helal spotted him.

Cutting a casual figure, Justin wore blue tracksuit pants with white stripes up the side and a Supreme blue hooded sweatshirt with a white T-shirt underneath.

Sabah told the publication she had been circling the city in search of the pop star and when she spotted him she pulled up at a red light and rushed over to greet him.

'When I got out of my car, I ran over to ask for a photo, and that is when he said "why are you invading my privacy?"' she said.

'He wasnt in a good mood and was adamant that he wouldnt take a photo with me,' the 20-year-old added.

Clearly not interested in the Sorry hit-maker's privacy, she continued: 'He was not interested in a photo at all, I told him that I was going to take the photo anyway.'

'He wasnt in a good mood and was adamant that he wouldnt take a photo with me': The fan claimed he angrily refused her request for a photo and asked her 'why are you invading my privacy?'

While it appeared his intention was to avoid being noticed by his fans, his clearly identifiable neck tattoos and peroxide blonde hair may have been a giveaway.

Sabeh also said that his choice of luxury cars helped with spotting the global singing sensation.

Keen for round two, she said she'd try her luck at meeting him again at Melbourne airport when he is due to depart on his private jet.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Justin's management for comment.

Spotted: While it appeared his intention was to avoid being noticed by his fans, his clearly identifiable neck tattoos and peroxide blonde hair may have been a giveaway, with super fan Sabeh saying his luxury car escort helped her find him

Justin began his Australian leg of his Purpose World Tour in Perth this week, getting up close and personal with many fans during before and after his Perth gig.

However, patrons at Melbourne's concert were left less than impressed, with some of the 50,000 fans who packed into the arena to see the pop superstar complaining about his demeanor on stage.

They said he 'looked miserable' and 'seemed bored' throughout the one hour and forty-five minute performance.

'You all make me sick': Justin Bieber supposedly snubbed fans, according to one fan that snapped Justin emerging from his car in Melbourne

'Bored or trying to be edgy': Justin performed to 50,000 fans at Melbourne's Etihad Stadium on Friday night, but some concertgoers complained that the pop star put in less-than-enthusiastic performance

Taking to Twitter, one concertgoer wrote, 'So excited, yet a little disappointed. You seemed bored.'

The user added a frowning emoji and the hashtag 'it's too late now to say sorry.'

Responding to a review in The Age, which claimed that Bieber had a 'stone face' and only had 'hollow interactions' with the audience, several other concertgoers shared their thoughts.

'Looked like he would rather be chilling on the couch': Some fans thought Justin seemed like he would rather be elsewhere

Mixed reviews: Whilst some were disappointed, one other fan said that it was 'the best night of my life'

'So disappointed with Justin Bieber,' wrote one Facebook user who added that he 'looked uninterested' and he put 'zero effort into it.'

'Couldn't decide if he was bored or just trying to be edgy,' another user wrote.

'Anyone who saw him on Ellen a few weeks ago knows he is just over it at the moment. I took my daughter and she loved it so I can't complain because the overall show is amazing.'

Disappointed: One fan took to Twitter to share her thoughts on the Friday's show

Let down: Responding to a review published by The Age, another concertgoer said she was also disappointed

Another had a similar view, stating, 'It was a great concert. Lots of energy from the crowd and DJ but JB [Justin Bieber] looked like he would rather be chilling on the couch. Already had his trackie dax and hoodie on ready to go. He looked miserable.'

The Age review noted that the Canadian superstar, who is known for showing off his shirtless body, kept his clothes on which would surely have disappointed some fans.

However, whilst some were disappointed, there were many more who praised the pop star's performance.

Kept his clothes on: Some fans may have been disappointed that Justin didn't show off his physique (pictured during a 2016 concert)

'Can't complain': One parent accompanied her daughter to the show and agreed that Beiber looked bored but that the 'show overall is amazing'

Sharing her thoughts: Another Facebook fan said that while Beiber looked 'miserable' it was 'a great concert'

'It was fricken awesome!!!! Best night of my life,' gushed one happy fan.

'u were soooo amazing tonight in Melbourne, thank you for blessing us with ur beautiful vocals! you give me purpose, i love u.'

The Melbourne concert comes after the pop star arrived on stage over thirty minutes late at his Perth show on Sunday night.

Differing reactions: Justin (pictured on Tuesday) was thirty minutes late to the stage at his Perth show

And the mixed reaction echoed that of a reviewer who wrote about the Perth performance in The West Australian.

The critic wrote Justin appeared 'dead behind the eyes, unimpressed by the fans who were so excited to see him'. The reviewer went on the claim that he believed the pop star was 'saved somewhat by a terrific light and laser show.'

Justin next takes the stage in Brisbane on Monday night, before shows in Sydney and Auckland.

A friendlier demeanor off-stage? Justin seems happy in Australia, greeting and hugging many feverish fans

Beilieber: Many more were blown away by Justin's performance
Vampire Diaries has finally come to end after eight seasons.

But it seems there might still be some life in the franchise, at least according to creator Julie Plec.

On Friday, the 44-year-old producer told The Hollywood Reporter that she 'see[s]... a future for either The Originals or another piece of the franchise to launch off of the end of The Originals.'

What a tease! It seems there might still be some life in the franchise, if creator Julie Plec is to be believed (pictured with star Nina Dobrev)

The Originals is a Vampire Diaries spinoff that is about to debut it's fourth season.

Plec added, 'I look forward to being able to play around in that sandbox and see if I can make something of it.'

Though while she has some ideas, she's not necessarily going to jump on them immediately.

'Theres a lot of different things floating around in my head,' she revealed, 'and the first thing Im going to do is not write and take a vacation. And then when I come back on the other side of that Im going to go back to work.'

Ski buddies: Perhaps some of the most touching featured Nina and Zach Roerig, who shot the pilot together in Vancouver and took many a ski trip to Whistler during the shoot

A long time ago: After sharing a small anecdote about filming, she ended her missive with a heartfelt declaration

Meanwhile, the cast of Vampire Diaries has taken to social media to express their gratitude and share memories of their experiences on the show.

Nina Dobrev, 28, seemed especially moved by the finale on Friday night, and posted a collection of behind-the-scenes shots with her co-stars.

Perhaps some of the most touching featured Nina and Zach Roerig, who shot the pilot together in Vancouver and took many a ski trip to Whistler during the shoot.

Tasty: Of course there were bloodier images on tap as well, with the caption 'we had a bloody good time'

Film family: Sara Canning, Kayla Ewell, Candice King, and Nina (L-R) smile for the camera

After sharing a small anecdote about filming, she ended her missive with a heartfelt declaration.

'We have a show that we're proud of and a friendship that will last a life time,' she proudly proclaimed.

Of course there were bloodier images on tap as well, with the caption 'we had a bloody good time.'

Even ex Ian Somerhalder, 38, whom she dated for three years, made an appearance in several of the pictures.

He also took to social media to deliver a message to fans: 'Wow saying good bye to 8 years... wow. Thank you all! Watching the Finale right now! Thank you #tvd fans around the world.'
She's busy promoting the sexy Victoria's Secret brand in China.

But on Saturday, Alessandra Ambrosio ensured to make time to soak in the local sights of Chengdu, Sichuan - and get familiar with some of the local delicacies.

The 35-year-old supermodel shared a picture of herself on Instagram looking utterly thrilled as she began to snack on a scorpion.

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'Snack time!': On Saturday, Alessandra Ambrosio, 35, got familiar with some of the local delicacies in China as she chowed down on a scorpion

'Snack time (scorpion emojis) #WheninChina,' the Brazilian bombshell captioned the snap which saw her sport two large gold hoop earrings.

Alessandra had her mouth wide open as she held the scorpion, which was impaled onto a stick, up to her mouth.

The model, who walked in her first VS runway show eleven years ago has been having a great time since arriving in China.

On Thursday, she shared a sexy snap of herself clad in a sizzling jumpsuit, which she captioned: 'Mood #ChinaNights #AngelSuite.

'Mood, China Nights': On Thursday, she shared a sexy snap of herself clad in a sizzling jumpsuit

Spreading her wings! Alessandra put on a showstopping appearance as attended the grand opening of Victoria's Secret Chengdu Store in China on Friday

She also ensured to put on a showstopping appearance as she attended the grand opening of the lingerie giant's Chengdu Store in China on Friday.

The supermodel worked her angles in a figure-hugging white dress, which drew emphasis to her enviably svelte frame.

The sleeveless sophisticated number lined the contours of her physique, before falling a stylish midi-level.

Alessandra's garment also boasted a high neckline, which was bedazzled in silver.

The beauty boosted her already statuesque 5 ft 8 in height with a pair of open-toe strappy heels.

Sexy lady: The supermodel worked her angles in a figure-hugging white dress, which drew emphasis to her enviably svelte frame

Fashionista: The sleeveless sophisticated number lined the contours of her physique, before falling a stylish midi-level

The mother-of-two's striking features where enhanced with expertly applied bronzer, mascara and glossy mauve lipstick.

She accessorised simply with a silver bracelet and two large hoop earrings as she proved to be the perfect brand ambassador by showing off the products.

Alessandra looked sensational as she posed up a storm with her fellow model Sui He as they joyfully cut a large bright pink ribbon.

They then proceeded to work their angles against a plethora of lingerie clad mannequins and large angel wings.

Earlier this week, Alessandra was thrilled as she posed alongside her wax counterpart at Madame Tussauds in Shanghai.

Angelic: Alessandra's garment also boasted a high neckline, which was bedazzled in silver

Glam pals: She posed up a storm with Chinese model Sui He, who oozed elegance in a chic black dress

Bra-vo! Alessandra and Sui He cheekily held up some racy lingerie

After their successful London and Paris shows, the company announced this week that the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show will be held in China this fall, according to WWD.

While the models are living it up, the brand has yet to announce any more details about the upcoming show, though it is likely to be held in November and televised in the US in December.

In 2016, Lady Gaga and The Weeknd both performed on the Paris runway, while the Angels, the Hadid sisters, and Kendall Jenner strutted their stuff.

The year before the girls were in London and walked to performances by Rihanna and The Weeknd.

Ambrosio, who is engaged to Jamie Mazur, has always had a killer physique and the brunette beauty recently opened up about exercise and her body.

Calm and collected: The striking stars were in high spirits as they flashed peace signs

Standing tall: The Brazilian beauty boosted her already statuesque 5 ft 8 in height with a pair of open-toe strappy heels

Opening night: Alessandra and Sui looked sensational as they joyfully cut a large bright pink ribbon

'In my family, no one ever worked out,' she told Net-a-Porter.

'It wasn't until I did my first Victoria's Secret show that I started exercising... now it's a healthy, normal part of my daily routine.'

She also spoke honestly about the female body and how it changes after childbirth.

'Your body will never go back to exactly what it was before pregnancy, whatever people tell you. It can't,' she continued.

However, she did admit that that was no bad thing.

'But I think I have a better body now than before I had kids. It's partly because I work out, whereas before I didn't, but also to do with the shapeit just looks more formed now and I feel better about it than I did.'

Double take: Earlier this week, Alessandra was thrilled as she posed alongside her wax counterpart at Madame Tussauds in Shanghai




Having risen to fame on ITV2 reality show Love Island, she has never been afraid to show off her figure in a skimpy bikini.

And Olivia Buckland confidently flaunted her killer body once again last week, as she stripped to her swimwear for a beach day in Barbados with her fiance Alex Bowen.

The blonde beauty, 23, showed off her enviable physique and womanly curves in a chic crochet two-piece as she topped up her tan in the blazing Caribbean sunshine.

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Bikini babe: Olivia Buckland confidently flaunted her figure once again last week, as she hit the beach in Barbados with her boyfriend Alex Bowen

Gorgeous: The blonde beauty, 23, showed off her enviable physique and womanly curves in a chic crochet two-piece as she topped up her tan in the blazing Caribbean sunshine

The reality star displayed her slender figure and flat stomach in the bikini, which was lined with a stylish multi-coloured crochet trim.

Making the look both saucy and chic, the top plunged into a sweeping V neckline, to give a glimpse of her delicate cleavage and plenty of sun-kissed skin to all.

Her matching briefs then rose far above her hip to lengthen her already long and lean legs - before cutting into a saucy thong at the back to draw attention to her peachy derriere.

Stylish: The reality star displayed her slender figure and flat stomach in the bikini, which was lined with a chic multi-coloured crochet trim

Cooling off: Making the look both saucy and chic, the top plunged into a sweeping V neckline, to give a glimpse of her delicate cleavage and plenty of sun-kissed skin to all

Adding nothing but a sporty cap to her beach-side look, Olivia left her petite waist and her numerous tattoos on show, as she strutted her stuff on the sand.

Clearly fully relaxed on the idyllic getaway, the Essex native left her face completely make-up free as she topped up her tan, to display her clear and glowing skin.

With her blonde hair falling into loose waves across her shoulders, the reality star appeared comfortable and content as she enjoyed a quick cooling dip in the sea.

Leggy lady: Her matching briefs then rose far above her hip to lengthen her already long and lean legs

Baring all: Adding nothing but a sporty cap to her beach-side look, Olivia left her petite waist and her numerous tattoos on show, as she strutted her stuff on the sand

Bottoms up! Olivia later returned to her sunbed to top up her tan - showing off her derriere with it poised in the air

Romantic getaway: Later joining her man, 24, on his sunbed, the pair proved they were as loved-up as ever as they indulged in a steamy embrace, with Olivia straddling the hunk

Later joining her man, 24, on his sunbed, the pair proved they were as loved-up as ever as they indulged in a steamy embrace, with Olivia straddling the hunk with her behind poised high in the air.

Alex and Olivia have been inseparable in recent weeks - especially after OIivia was involved in three car collision in London earlier this month.

The beauty sustained an injury to her head in the terrifying crash, when a van ploughed into the back of her taxi as she was travelling home from a showbiz bash.

Chilling out: The duo have been enjoying a romantic getaway in Barbados over the last few weeks

Besotted: Alex and Olivia have been inseparable in recent weeks - especially after OIivia was involved in three car collision in London earlier this month

My babe: The pair cuddled up on their sunbeds as they soaked up the sun

Helping hand: Olivia then made the most of a cloudy moment as she put more suncream on her beau's back

Their own Love Island! Alex and Olivia met ten months ago on the 2016 series of Love Island

However she took to her Twitter to confirm she was not more seriously hurt, and to explain that Alex had picked her up from the scene - proving their relationship to be as solid as ever.

Alex and Olivia met ten months ago on the 2016 series of Love Island, and swiftly became engaged in December during a romantic trip to New York City.

Recently speaking to new! magazine about whether she'd invite the Love Island girls to her hen do, Olivia said: 'Yeah, I've spoken to a few of them.

Stronger than ever: The pair swiftly became engaged in December during a romantic trip to New York City

Reality show romance: She recently admitted that she would invite her Love Island co-stars to her hen-do

Firm friends: Talking about the friends the pair made on the show, the blonde admitted that the group were still 'really close'

Forward planning: She also admitted that Cara De La Hoyde, who won the show with her boyfriend Nathan Massey, might be a bridesmaid at the pair's wedding

Hunk: Meanwhile Alex set pulses racing with his toned physique in a tiny set of black swim shorts

'I still speak to Cara quite a lot, so she's definitely going to be there. Yes. [She might be a bridesmaid]. We're still really close.'

Olivia then admitted that she and Alex do have plans for children - but are keen to spend time alone as a couple before adding to their brood.

She said to MailOnline: 'We have said we want kids eventually. We just want to enjoy our time together, we have a lot to do, experiences to have, holidays to take.

'It will be nice but maybe not in the next seven years. I'm still a baby anyway. I would never let my kids watch Love Island! There's not as much controversy in sex on TV as there used to be. But I won't be showing my kids Love Island. Maybe keep it secret from them for quite a while.'

Chilling out: Alex happily sipped on a beer as he watched his girl enjoy a dip in the sea

Forever: Olivia also recently admitted that she and Alex do have plans for children - but are keen to spend time alone as a couple before adding to their brood

Jet-setters: She said to MailOnline: 'We have said we want kids eventually. We just want to enjoy our time together, we have a lot to do, experiences to have, holidays to take'
She made headlines across the globe thanks to her infamous 'jacketgate' row with reporter Julie Snook in January.

And now, Amber Sherlock has finally broken her silence, revealing exactly what led her to demand her co-host to 'go and grab a jacket,' during the leaked off-air incident.

In a massive tell-all interview with The Daily Telegraph this week, the Nine News reporter admitted she 'possibly overreacted,' after getting upset at Julie for wearing the same colour outfit, before citing stress, tiredness and the hot weather in defense of her actions.

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Jacketgate: Nine News' Amber Sherlock has broken her silence on the infamous 'jacketgate' incident, citing stress, tiredness and the hot weather in defense of her actions

In the interview, Amber also revealed she thought the media attention was overblown.

It wasn't until the nation shared their opinions on talk-back radio, and even Oscar's and late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel weighed in, that she began to realise the seriousness of the situation.

She also said that at the time of the incident, hot weather was getting the best of herself and her co-host.

'I am the first to put up my hand and say that for whatever reason  I was stressed, I was tired, I possibly overreacted, there are better ways to deal with it,' she admitted.

What happened? The 41-year-old described exactly what led her to demand co-host Julie Snook (L) 'go and grab a jacket,' after the pair wore the same outfit and Julie 'didn't have time' to change

The journalist also claimed the high-pressure news environment meant the presenters didn't get a chance to talk anything through.

'Julie was fine with it, I was fine with it. Everyone has their opinions, but if you look at the tape, I feel everyone massively overreacted,' she explained.

Amber stopped short of apologising directly to Julie for the incident in the interview, but offered a large amount of heartfelt examples to explain her mindset.

Overblown: In the interview, the personality also said she thought the media attention was overblown

Now it's serious: It wasn't until the nation shared their opinions on talk-back radio, and late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel weighed in, that she began to realise the seriousness of the situation

The admission: 'I am the first to put up my hand and say that for whatever reason  I was stressed, I was tired, I possibly overreacted, there are better ways to deal with it,' she confesed

Everyone's fault: 'Julie was fine with it, I was fine with it. Everyone has their opinions, but if you look at the tape, I feel everyone massively overreacted,' she explained

'I think Im a kind, generous person. I am a mum, I have a family. And I was devastated.

'I am only human at the end of the day, and I think people forget that,' she continued.

She also told the publication that she particularly struggled to avoid photographers taking photos of her daughter Piper, 6, and son Zac, 2, as they attended a weekend birthday party.

No apology needed: Amber stopped short of apologising directly to Julie in the interview, but offered a large amount of heartfelt examples to explain her mindset

The biggest test: The hardest test came when she had to avoid photographers to take her daughter Piper, 6, and son Zac, 2, to a weekend birthday party, she said

Amber's interview is the first since the incident broke earlier in the year.

The leaked footage showed her demanding Julie put on a jacket so the two women were not both wearing white on screen.

Speaking to her producer, Amber said: 'I need Julie to put a jacket on because we're all in white. I asked her before we came on Julie you need to put a jacket on.'

Celeb for a day: The newsreader explained that the situation gave her an idea of what celebrities have to go through on a daily basis

Ms Snook defended herself, insisting she had not had time to change out of her outfit.

But Ms Sherlock refused to back down, replying: 'Come on I told you two hours ago.'

Her fellow 9 News reporter apologised and said she had been 'flat out' and had not had time to switch into a different colour.

Leaked: The leaked footage showed her demanding Julie put on a jacket so the two women were not both wearing white on screen

Awkward: Psychologist Ms Rea (far right) who by this point looked very uncomfortable, offered to find a jacket herself, as she was wearing white too

But a furious Ms Sherlock had no time for her apology and continued to demand she get changed before going live.

Psychologist Ms Rea, who by this point looked very uncomfortable, offered to find a jacket herself, as she was wearing white too.

The incident sparked a massive wave of social media backlash, with several comments far too vulgar to print.

Defense: Ms Snook defended herself, insisting she had not had time to change out of her outfit, but Amber refused to back down, replying: 'Come on I told you two hours ago'

'Put a jacket on. You deserve all the hate coming to you,' one user wrote.

Another said: 'Shame on you Amber poor bullying behaviour [sic].

'I thought women were getting past that mean girl mentality especially at your age.

Backlash: The incident sparked a massive wave of social media backlash, with one user writing: 'Shame on you Amber poor bullying behaviour [sic]

Mean girls! 'I thought women were getting past that mean girl mentality especially at your age,' the continued

Even media offered strongly-worded criticisms of the veteran reporter, with news.com.au writing 'Amber Sherlock has become an international laughing stock,' in the event's aftermath.

Despite calls from the public to have Amber fired, Channel Nine showed confidence in the embattled presenter.

The duo have not worn the same outfit on-air since.

Confidence: Despite calls from the public to have Amber fired, Channel Nine showed confidence in the embattled presenter

They're all-white: The duo have not worn the same outfit on-air since




He recently celebrated his 35th birthday in Miami.

And Jay Rutland continued the holiday festivities in the scorching Floridian city as he stripped off to enjoy a poolside session on Friday.

The husband of socialite Tamara Ecclestone looked like he was having a blast as he perched himself on the edge of the pool, before slipping in to frolic in the water.

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Things are hotting up! Jay Rutland, 35, continued his birthday week festivities in Miami as he stripped off to enjoy a poolside session on Friday

The businessman sported flicked back locks, which complemented his shades and scruff, as he larked around in the beachy town.

Jay opted for a pair of black shorts and sported a simple gold chain, which inevitably drew attention to his sensational gym-honed frame.

The hunk looked at ease as he splashed around in the pool and relaxed with a few drinks with his pals.

Prior to arriving in Miami, Jay celebrated his birthday early as he accompanied his wife Tamara and adorable daughter Sophia, two, to dinner at French restaurant La Petite Maison in London.

Hunk: Jay opted for a pair of black shorts and sported a simple gold chain, which inevitably drew attention to his sensational gym-honed frame as he basked in the heat

Jay was embracing a smart casual look in a grey cardigan and jeans, set off with blue suede shoes.

Tamara was dressed to impress in a casual yet chic ensemble, layering a camel coat over a cream top and slim-fit jeans.

She completed her lunch attire with tan boots and wore her brunette locks in a mini top knot.

Chilling: The hunk looked at ease as he splashed around in the pool and relaxed with a few drinks with his pals

Despite it being Jay's birthday, Sophia was naturally the centre of attention, looking cute as a button in a fluffy pink gilet and floral frock.

She wore her hair pinned back from her face with a coordinating bow, looking adorable as ever.

Jay was clearly feeling the love, sharing a quote on Instagram which read, 'Only wife her if you can see yourself having a daughter just like her', captioning the message, 'Too true and I'm very lucky'.

Never-ending festivites: Prior to arriving in Miami, Jay celebrated his birthday early as he accompanied his wife Tamara and adorable daughter Sophia, two, to dinner at French restaurant La Petite Maison in London

'Happy Birthday dada': Tamara shared a cute image of Jay blowing out his birthday candles with Fifi sitting on his lap

Woof: Jay's mammoth 'pre-birthday' cake really got his social media followers talking

Tamara shared a cute image of Jay blowing out his birthday candles with Fifi sitting on his lap, writing, 'Happy Birthday dada @jayrutland'.

But it was Jay's mammoth 'pre-birthday' cake which really got his social media followers talking - two giant dogs in a basket.

'I'm so lucky I even get a pre birthday cake', he enthused.

Cute present: Tamara got Jay a personalised wallet with their names engraved on it
He's become synonymous with the character Thor, in the superhero franchise of the same name.

And Chris Hemsworth showed off his muscular strength in a short video shared to Instagram on Saturday.

The 33-year-old husband of actress Elsa Pataky, drew attention to his bulging biceps and six-pack abs during an intense workout with his close friend and personal trainer, Luke Zocchi.

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Elsa's a lucky lady! Chris Hemsworth, 33, shows off his bulging biceps and six-pack abs during intense workout with personal trainer Luke Zocchi (left), shared to Instagram on Saturday

The video shared with Chris' 9 million followers, saw the Melbourne-born star stripping down to just a pair of black shorts for the workout.

Beginning with cardio on a stationery bike, Chris was clearly pumped for the fitness session, with a boundless amount of energy.

Trainer Luke Zocchi, who accompanies the actor abroad, was close by, encouraging the hunk to train harder.

Up and at it: Chris performed a series of pull ups, an upper-body compound pulling exercise

Buff: The father-of-three's defined muscles were on display as he worked up a sweat

Putting in the hard yards! The Melbourne-born actor's bulging biceps were on full display as he took to lifting heavy weights

Chris later performed a series of pull ups, an upper-body compound pulling exercise.

Heavy weights and battle rope exercises completed the workout.

Chris regularly takes to Instagram to share evidence of his workouts with his personal trainer.

Connected: Chris regularly takes to Instagram to share evidence of his workouts with his personal trainer

No excuses: Luke Zocchi accompanies Chris abroad, no doubt keeping the star at his optimum best

Last August on the set of Thor: Ragnarok in Brisbane, Seven News reporter Michelle Tapper quizzed Luke Zocchi on what it takes to Chris in superhero shape, for breakfast program Sunrise.

'We just lift a lot of weights, eat a lot of food and train really hard.

'We probably train five to six times a week and just work hard pretty much. He's looking good - he's pretty buff,' Luke said at the time.

Chris's famous physique is sure to be on full display during his upcoming appearance in the Marvel's Thor: Ragnarok film, which is expected to hit cinemas in November 2017.

Familiar role: The personality will reprise his role as Thor in the upcoming Thor: Ragnarok, slated for release i November 2017

Surf's up: Chris is known for his buff physique, often on display during surfing sessions at his home base in Byron Bay
Jodhi Meares, 45, has reportedly split from her second husband Nicholas Tsindos, 29, after 14 months of marriage, according to sources close to the pair.

An insider reportedly told The Daily Telegraph this Saturday that The Upside fashion designer couldn't make her long distance relationship work with the man, who is nearly two decades her junior.

'The designer and her Australian-born photographer husband agreed to separate earlier this month,' the source was quoted as saying.

Shock split:Australian fashion designer Jodhi Meares has reportedly split from her second husband Nicholas Tsodi after just 14 months of marriage

The insider also cited Jodhi's time-split between Los Angeles and Nicholas' Australian home base as a factor in the split.

Jodhi and Nicholas were pictured together enjoying a stroll with their pet dog Kova as recently as three weeks ago.

Around that time, Jodhi told Kate Waterhouse followers their nuptials were 'unexpected' but added she couldn't be happier, describing the tattooed hunk, who works as a photographer, as having 'so many wonderful qualities'.

Second time unlucky: The 45-year-old former wife of James Packer split with Nicholas in part because of troubles adjusting to a long-distance relationship close sources are claimed to have revealed

Very recent: The former flames were pictured together enjoying a stroll with their pet dog Kova as recently as three weeks ago, with the activewear designer saying 'she couldn't be happier' with her relationship around that time

'We get along so well. We're really great mates, so it's really nice if you go home and talk to somebody credibly, because I really love my work,' she added.

During the interview, she also admitted that her passion for her business, The Upside, is sometimes irritating for Nicholas - but doesn't stop them working together in photo-shoots.

'I'm a chatterbox. It fully drives Nicholas mad sometimes, but it's really easy because he has got such a great eye. He is already so close to the creative ... so by the time we get to shoot he knows what we're trying to do.'

'Sometimes irritating': During the interview, she also admitted that her passion for her business, The Upside, is sometimes irritating for Nicholas - but doesn't stop them working together in photo-shoots

Storied career: Jodhi first entered the spotlight as a Moove milk model in 1992, stints on Getaway and Australia's Next Top Model were followed by her high-profile wedding to James in 1999

'News of the split comes six months after Mearess ex-husband and close friend James Packer tipped $800,000 into Mearess fashion label,' they said.

Nicholas and Jodhi married in secret during a Hawaiian getaway in December 2015.

The brunette beauty spoke about her romance shortly after, telling Sunday Style in April that she did not expect to find love at her age.

Getaway for good: Nicholas and Jodhi married in secret during a Hawaiian getaway in December 2015

'It was the last thing either of us was expecting at that time, but it was just one of those very magical things, and now we're married,' she said.

Jodhi famously wed billionaire James Packer Back in 1999, before splitting three years later.

The pair remain friendly, with James's private Consolidated Press Holdings having recently taken a 20% stake in The Upside, which Jodhi established in 2014.

Former flame: Jodhi famously wed billionaire James Packer Back in 1999, before splitting three years later
It's the romantic Disney classic that dubs itself 'the tale as old as time.'

Now, Beauty and The Beast's Dan Stevens has revealed the lengths he went to in order ensure that love shone through.

'I was carrying an 18kg muscle suit,' the Beast actor revealed to The Herald Sun this week, before praising co-star Emma Watson, 26, for not laughing at the hilarious motion capture suit he was forced to wear.

Beastly performance: Beauty and The Beast star Dan Stevens, 34, has revealed he had to wear an 18kg Lycra suit and silver stilts to play the iconic castle-dwelling monster

The 34-year-old had to go to even further lengths to recreate the iconic castle-dwelling monster, revealing to the publication he completed his outfit with Lycra and massive steel stilts.

His suit was quite the technical marvel, containing its own Formula 1 racing-style cooling vest that apparently had to be plugged in from the back like a vacuum cleaner.

Further detracting from the sense of wonder on-set was the fact that Dan was so warm that he had to stop regularly just to get his heart rate back to a normal level.

'The most romantic thing was that Emma Watson didnt once laugh... There arent many actresses in the world whove worked with this kind of digital wizardry before, but she didnt bat an eyelid,' he said of his co-star's professionalism.

Professional: He also praised co-star Emma Watson, 26, for not laughing at the hilarious motion capture suit he was forced to wear

Heating up! Further detracting from the sense of wonder on-set was the fact that Dan was so warm that he had to stop regularly just to get his heart rate back to a normal level

The Harry Potter actress - who plays Belle in the film - wasn't alone in her adept acting work with Dan clearly chuffed he didn't injure the brunette beauty.

'I didnt once tread on any of her toes...We got to know each other on that dancefloor,' he beamed.

The upcoming live-action recreation of the 1991 classic follows Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella and The Jungle Book in using impressive technological feats to bring an animated classic to life.

She's a wizard! 'The most romantic thing was that Emma Watson didnt once laugh...There arent many actresses in the world whove worked with this kind of digital wizardry before,' he said

Skill: Despite his massive Beast suit: 'I didnt once tread on any of her toes...We got to know each other on that dancefloor,' he proudly revealed

One thing that couldn't be faked was Dan's singing abilities, a surprise addition to the film given the fact Beast never sang in the original.

Clearly, the X-Men star can do it all.

Fans will get to find out when the film hits Australian cinemas on March 23.

Jack of all trades: One thing that couldn't be faked was Dan's singing abilities, a surprise addition to the film given the fact Beast never sang in the original
She's previously sizzled on the Victoria's Secret catwalk.

And Karolina Kurkova channelled her inner Angel vibes as she arrived in style at the Miami Symphony Orchestra in Palm Court, Miami on Friday.

The Czech model, 33, dressed to accentuate her svelte frame in a chic thigh-skimming white lace ALEXIS dress, which bared her enviably long, lean legs.

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Sophisticated: Karolina Kurkova, 33, channelled her inner Angel vibes as she arrived in style at the Miami Symphony Orchestra in Palm Court, Miami on Friday

The stunning sophisticated garment proved to be a showstopper as she worked her angles for photographers.

Karolina tied her blonde tresses into a slick updo, which in return emphasised the baby-doll inspired black bow-tie down her front.

She ensured to arrive in style with a satin black blazer and effortlessly draped a fluffy nude-coloured handbag over one shoulder.

At peace with her leggy frame, the gorgeous catwalk queen forewent heels for a pair of strappy black flats.

Chic: The Czech model dressed to accentuate her svelte frame in a thigh-skimming white lace dress, which bared her enviably long, lean legs

Model ensemble: She ensured to arrive in style with a satin black blazer and effortlessly draped a fluffy nude-coloured handbag over one shoulder

She was joined at the event by the likes of Emilio Estefan, Gloria Estefan, Emily Estefan and Harmony Korine.

Despite stealing the spotlight, Karolina - one of the world's top-earning models - didn't always have it easy.

Despite looking every inch the supermodel, she recently revealed that she used to get bullied at school because of her looks.

Karolina revealed in an interview with Refinery29 that she was teased relentlessly when she was younger, before adding that, actually, all that bullying made her stronger - especially because those very things that made her a target eventually helped her become a mega-successful model.

Stunning: Karolina tied her blonde tresses in to a slick updo, which in return emphasised the baby-doll inspired black bow-tie down her front

'When I was young, I stood out!' Karolina (Pictured on the Victoria's Secret runway in 2007) recently revealed that she used to get bullied at school because of her looks

'A lot of my insecurities were my big teeth and my legs,' she said. 'Everybody used to always look at me and point at me and laugh at me, so I never really showed my legs or my arms.

'But then it kind of turned out to be a great thing, you know, that I have big teeth and a big smile, so I kind of embrace it.'

'When I was young, I stood out,' she said. 'I was different. I was the tallest girl. I was a stick, super-skinny, and looked different.

Guests: Also in attendance was Emilio, Gloria and Emily Estefan

Beauty: Karolina highlighted her pretty features with a subtle slick of make-up

In a 2015 Refinery29 interview, she explained how her awkward moments led her to think more constructively about herself.

'It's not an easy thing, but I think we all go through some sort of disappointment and insecurities through our lives eventually,' the mum-of-two said.

Adding: 'It's really about your attitude and how you deal with, and how you let it affect you or not.'

Karolina has been married to actor Archie Drury since 2009 and they have two children: Tobin, seven, and Noah, one.
She gives twentysomething models a run for their money.

And on Friday Heidi Klum hinted at how she stays so youthful looking when she was spotted heading to Nava's Skin Care salon in West Hollywood for some beauty upkeep.

The 43-year-old supermodel cut a casual figure as she snacked on crackers.

Me time: Heidi Klum was spotted heading to Nava's Skin Care salon in West Hollywood for some beauty upkeep and well-deserved downtime on Friday

The mother-of-four chose a low-maintenance striped t-shirt paired with ankle-cut denim, later throwing on a loose-fitting burgundy sweater.

Klum gave the off-duty look a stylish spin with a pair of Givenchy studded suede ankle boots in a camel color ($1,395).

Her signature golden blonde locks were blown out straight and were ruffled into a bed-head look.

The German beauty chose to forego makeup in preparation for the skin care appointment, covering half her face with aviator reflective sunglasses as she snacked on some organic wheat crackers.

Snacking on the go: The German beauty chose to forego makeup, covering half her face with aviator reflective sunglasses as she snacked on some organic wheat crackers

Since the '90s, many have coveted the Project Runway host's age-defying good looks.

In 2013, Heidi revealed to Hollywood Life: 'I tend to not wear make-up on my off days. I am not complicated, I don't have tons of creams or anything like that. I stay simple.'

As a working mother of four children, the oldest being 12-year-old Helene and the youngest seven-year-old Lou, Heidi must not get much time to herself.

Busy bee: As a working mother of four children, the oldest being 12-year-old Helene and the youngest seven-year-old Lou, Heidi must not get much time to herself

However, she makes sure to keep up with her skincare by visiting the West Hollywood salon, which specializes in anti-aging treatments.

The salon hosts a list of A-list celebrities who come in for top-notch skin care administered by Nava Hadad. Facials start at $275 and clients get to lie on a magnet-filled mattress that 'increases circulation' and 'oxygenation.'

Heidi, who is dating art collector Vito Schnabel, is also currently lead judge and executive producer of the 12th season of Germany's Next Topmodel, which airs Thursdays on ProSieben.

The Halloween enthusiast will also return as judge for the 12th season of America's Got Talent, which most likely premieres next May on NBC.
She recently returned to the UK after a relaxing holiday in Los Angeles with her mother.

But Helena Bonham Carter showed no signs of jet lag on Saturday, as she headed out on her bicycle in London.

The actress, 50, looked typically quirky in loose-fitting pink trousers and fluffy slippers, as she ran a few errands in north London following her holiday.

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A wheelie nice day off! Helena Bonham Carter showed no signs of jet lag from her recent trip to LA on Saturday, as she headed out on her bicycle in London

The Sweeney Todd star displayed her signature unique style on the outing in a pair of cropped striped pink trousers, not dissimilar from pyjama bottoms.

Keeping warm in the chilly London temperatures, the mother-of-two then added a black hoody on top, which she layered beneath a stylish bomber jacket of matching hue.

Clearly having enjoyed a chilled morning at home however, the star kept her fluffy bed slippers on as she headed to her local high street to complete a few chores.

Look at her go! The Sweeney Todd star maintained her signature unique style for the outing in a pair of cropped striped pink trousers, not dissimilar from pyjama bottoms, and slippers

With her handbag and shopping totes stowed in the bike's vintage basket, the Corpse Bride star added a helmet for safety - which maintained her quirky style with its vibrant floral print.

Helena looked comfortable as she headed out in her stomping ground of North London, having landed back at Heathrow Airport on Friday afternoon.

The actress had been enjoying a girly getaway with her mother Elena Propper de Callejon in Los Angeles.

Quality time: Helena returned to the UK on Friday following a girly getaway with her mother Elena Propper de Callejon (L) in Los Angeles

Helena has always enjoyed a close relationship with Elena, who is a French-Spanish psychotherapist.

She has made a point to pay tribute to her mother throughout her illustrious movie career and dedicated her BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress, which she received for her performance in The King's Speech, to Elena.

Helena had also spent plenty of time with her mother in New York back in February, while she filmed for the new Ocean's Eight movie.

The actress is set to star alongside Cate Blanchett, Sandra Bullock and Anne Hathaway in the big screen all-female reboot of Ocean's Eleven.

It has been claimed that Sandra will play the ex-con sister of George Clooney's character from the Ocean's trilogy, which kicked off in 2001, and was, in itself, a remake of the 1960 film of the same name.
Criss Angel was rushed to the hospital on Friday night.

The illusionist was performing a magic trick at his Mindfreak Live! show in Las Vegas when one of his famous stunts went terribly wrong.

According to a Saturday report from TMZ, the 49-year-old New York native was in the middle of performing an illusion where he was attempting to get out of a straightjacket while hanging upside down when he suddenly passed out in front of a horrified audience.

A rep for the magician confirmed to the site on Saturday that Angel was hospitalized, and subsequently released, after passing out during the stunt. The famed illusionist's status for his show on Saturday evening was pending results from a test he took earlier in the day, the outlet reported.

Bad turn: Criss Angel was rushed to the hospital on Friday night. The illusionist was performing a magic trick at his Mindfreak Live! show in Las Vegas. Pictured September

His act: Here Criss is seen in a straightjacket doing the routine several years ago

Up in the sky: The star takes the straightjacket off while hanging upside down

Criss was taken to Spring Valley Hospital Medical Center's emergency room which is located approximately four miles away from where he was performing.

The star, whose birth name is Christopher Nicholas Sarantakos, was let go hours later.

A source said he 'walked out of here' before 10 pm.

The star, who has dated Britney Spears, Pamela Anderson and Holly Madison, was in the process of trying to escape the jacket when he seemed to go limp.

The show took place inside the Luxor Hotel to a packed audience.

Concerned: Tweeters wrote about the scary incident with Will iv of ap saying that he thought Criss almost died

Another fan: Lona Rorer said she was 'praying for Criss' and that he 'went limp'

The incident happened only 10 minutes into the opening act. For two minutes he was spinning around. That is when he was 'lowered down and the curtain closed onstage.'

An eyewitness also said he 'appeared unconscious.'

Tweeters were quick to write about what happened with one saying that he thought Criss had 'died.'

His gig: Criss was taken to Spring Valley Hospital Medical Center's emergency room which is located approximately four miles away from where he was performing

At work: Here the ex of Holly Madison is seen on star at his Luxor show

Scary: The incident happened only 10 minutes into the opening act. For two minutes he was spinning around. That is when he was 'lowered down and the curtain closed onstage

Sources tells the site that the show was then quickly canceled and guests were shown the way out of the theater.

Angel had just returned from a ski holiday with a friend.

In October 2013 Angel was performing a similar straitjacket routine above Times Square in New York when he suffered a shoulder injury.

On the slopes: Angel had just returned from a ski holiday with a friend

Three months later Criss had surgery to repair torn muscles in that shoulder.

That caused him to take a hiatus for 10 weeks from his show.

The longtime Sin City performer has a son Johnny with model Shaunyl Benson. The two have been taking care of their little boy after he was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in October 2015.

The illusionist told UsWeekly: 'Johnny is technically in remission, thank God. I believe he will be healed.'

Last year the child was 'still undergoing intense chemotherapy treatments, blood transfusions and spinal taps in Australia.'

Angel added: 'What doctors found is you have to continue treatment to kill all the cells, as there is no guarantee.'
She's been busy of late balancing her duties as a judge on Britain's Got Talent and starring in stage show Stepping Out.

Proving there's no rest for the wicked, Amanda Holden was back to work as she popped by BBC Radio 2 on Saturday with her co-stars Tracy-Ann Oberman and Nicola Stephenson.

The 46-year-old actress highlighted her petite frame as she worked an all black look for her press commitments.

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Stepping out: Amanda Holden was back to work as she popped by BBC Radio 2 on Saturday with her co-stars Tracy-Ann Oberman (centre) and Nicola Stephenson (L)

Looking chic, she slipped on a pair of figure-flaunting denims that hugged her slender legs and pert posterior as she stopped to sign auotgraphs for waiting fans.

The mother-of-two - who married record producer Chris Hughes in 2008 - added a touch of sex appeal to her ensemble as she slipped on a pair of slinky over-the-knee suede boots.

Bringing her look together, she stylishly tucked in a chiffon blouse into her form-fitting jeans as she left the broadcaster.

Amanda completed her look with a pair of face-framing aviator sunglasses while her golden blonde locks casacded down her shoulders in a straight style.

Those boots were made for walking: The 46-year-old actress highlighted her petite frame as she worked an all black look for her press commitments

Earlier this week, she appeared on stage in a saucy ensemble while performing in Stepping Out at the Vaudeville Theatre.

The BGT judge plays Vera alongside fellow stars Angela Griffin, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Tamzin Outhwaite - who was forced to withdraw due to an injury.

Amanda looked sensational as she slipped into a sexy cabaret costume while hitting the stage in the Maria Friedman-directed play, which kicked off in Bath in October before descending on London for a four-month run kicking off at the start of March.

Stepping Out is a 1984 play written by Richard Harris, which follows a group of women and a man who attend a dance class in a North London church hall. The hilarious comedy sees the group grapple with their steps while working towards taking part in a charity gala.

Can can! She appeared on stage in a saucy ensemble while performing in Stepping Out at the Vaudeville Theatre

The play, which has seen an array of productions, while also turned into a 1991 movie starring Liza Minelli, has featured a bevy of top UK TV stars during its thus far six-month run.

Amanda seized the role of snooty Vera, while Coronation Street star Angela plays fun-loving Sylvia, EastEnders legend Tracy-Ann playing loud-mouthed Maxine and fellow EastEnders star Tamzin has been playing tolerant Mavis.

It marks Amandas first return to the West End after five years away, having last appeared on stage as Princess Fiona in a production of Shrek The Musical in 2011.

Having starred in the play since October, it is plain to see that Amanda is well-versed in the show as she was seen slipping into her scanty costume once again for the dazzling play.
Eva Mendes did not attend the Oscars this year with long-time love Ryan Gosling (he was nominated for Best Actor for his role in La La Land) because she is too much of a homebody, she told Shape magazine earlier this week.

But the actress traveled to Austin, Texas to join her man at the premiere of is latest film Song To Song at South By South West on Friday.

The mother-of-two took to Instagram to share a shot of the Paramount Theater where the film premiered.

She made it! Eva Mendes made her way to SWSX for the premiere of partner Ryan Gosling's new film Song To Song in Austin, Texas on Friday

Under the radar: The star was happy to support her partner of six years and father of her child Ryan Gosling, but remained low-key and out of sight at the event. Pictured 2012

Eva and Ryan have two children together; Esmeralda Amada, aged two, and Amada Lee, who will be one in April.

Eva didn't walk the red carpet, but did show that she was in attendance with her social media, which she captioned with a simple heart.

Ryan's latest film Song To Song is an experimental tale of love and music set in Austin and co-starring Rooney Mara, Michael Fassbender, and Natalie Portman.

The film is directed by Terrence Malik and gets a wide release March 17 2017.

Premiere: Ryan looked dapper at the premiere of the experimental romance directed by Terrance Malik

The Hitch star recently opened up about why she feels better out of the camera's eye in an interview with Shape Magazine.

'What people dont know about me is that I love being home,' said the mother to Esmeralda, aged two, and Amanda, 11 months.

'Instead of hitting the red carpet, Id rather be with our girls.'

Homebody: The star recently opened up about why she'd rather skip the red carpet, saying that she'd prefer to spend the night in with her daughters than go out

Inside the magazine, the star looked remarkably slimmed down just one year after welcoming her second child.

The dedicated pair met and fell in love while costarring in The Place Beyond The Pines together in 2011.

Night out: Eva skipped Oscar night with Ryan, who can be seen here with his La La Land co-star Emma Stone
Jax Taylor is not a fan of Bachelor Nick Viall.

And this week the Vanderpump Rules star opened up about his distaste for the 36-year-old software salesman on the Bravo's The Daily Dish podcast.

The 37-year-old server called the four time Bachelor contestant a 'f***ing d****bag' after meeting him through a mutual friend and having a more than awkward encounter.

Strong words: Vanderpump Rules star Jax Taylor called Bachelor Nick Viall a 'd****bag' on Bravo's The Daily Dish podcast

He's not a fan: The SUR employee opened up about how the Milwaukee born Bachelor got under his skin after refusing to take a picture together to help out a mutual friend

Apparently both reality personalities were invited to a mutual pal's hotel opening, hoping that their star power could generate a bit of buzz around the event.

The stars was happy to help their buddy, but things got tense when Jax asked the Milwaukee native to snap a picture with him for social media.

Nick replied that he doesn't 'do social media', which caused Jax to go off on the serial reality show dater.

Beep! The Bravo star then went on an expletive heavy rant against the Bachelor's leading man. Here, you can see the Vanderpump Rules star with his girlfriend Brittany Cartwright

Jax gave Nick an expletive laden earful, saying 'First of all buddy, don't toot your own horn, I have no f***ing idea who you are...you don't do that?

'Bro, you're on the f***ing Bachelor. You're gonna be gone in two weeks and nobody will know who the f*** you are.'

The Bravo star's digs didn't stop there, as he continued to tell the ABC hunk, 'Well you're a f***ing piece of sh**.'

'Your friend brought you here as a favor to help him out, you're gonna act like that? You're a f***ing d-bag.'

He loves the spotlight: Although Jax may think Nick's time in the spotlight is done, the four-time Bachelor franchise contestant will return to the silver screen for this season of Dancing With The Stars

The argument escalated rapidly, which Jax admits that alcohol could have been a factor. The restaurant reality star offered the final word to the podcast, saying, 'I just think he's a douchebag.'

Although Nick's stint on The Bachelor wraps up with next week's season finale, he'll continue to enjoy his time in the spotlight for a bit longer.

The Chicago boy will be shaking his stuff in Dancing With The Stars besides the talented Peta Murgatroyd.

Fans can see if Nick chooses Raven or Vanessa in Monday night's live Bachelor finale, which starts at 8pm.
A plane Melissa George planned to use to exit France following a domestic violence incident with lover Jean-David Blanc, was reportedly owned by a Russian billionaire.

The 40-year-old Australian-born actress had kept a low-profile following the alleged incident last September, until her lawyer this week revealed her now former partner had refused to allow the couple's two sons to leave with their mother.

And it has now emerged that a private jet George hoped to use to escape with her sons Raphael, three, and Solal, one, belongs to Russian oligarch Alexei Kuzmichev, News Corp reports.

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Controversy: Melissa George (pictured) reportedly borrowed a private jet from a Russian billionaire in an effort to flee France with her children following a domestic violence incident with her now ex-partner Jean-David Blanc

Mr Kuzmichev - the husband of George's friend Svetlana Kuzmicheva-Uspenskaya - is the founder of Russia's largest bank, Alfa Group, and has a net worth of AUD$9.3b.

The businessman reportedly allowed the actress to borrow his plane on September 13-14, which she then boarded with her two children and pet dog.

But as Melissa attempted to fly out of France for the safety of the United States, she was stopped by border police who enforced a non-fly legal order obtained by Blanc.

Her attempts to leave Paris came just days after a physical altercation with her lover on September 7, with Blanc held in custody by police until September 9.

Helping hand: Alexei Kuzmichev (pictured) - the billionaire husband of George's pal Svetlana Kuzmicheva-Uspenskaya - lent a private jet to the actress which she attempted to flee Paris in

It is not suggested that Mr Kuzmichev or his wife were aware of the no-fly order.

Melissa's lawyer, Christophe Ayela, has previously claimed the Hollywood actress did not know a travel ban had been put in place by her husband.

'Melissa George did not know there was a travel ban concerning the children,' he told the Daily Telegraph in a statement.

'She had the plane booked well before the September flight and we can prove it.'

Stopped: As George attempted to flee France for the safety of the United States, she and her children were stopped by border police who enforced a non-fly legal order obtained by Blanc

Representative: George's lawyer, told News Corp, that the 40-year-old actress can't get work, as ex Jean-David Blanc has refused to allow their two sons to leave France

It came as Mr Ayela also claimed that not being able to leave France has prevented Melissa, who first rose to fame on Home and Away, from securing work.

'It's terrible for her career, disastrous,' he said in relation to the Family Court order keeping her children in France.

'The two children are forbidden to leave the country without the written consent of the father. And of course he refuses to allow this.'

'It is scandalous that Australian kids (the children have three nationalities - French, Australian and American) can't even go to visit their relatives in Australia.'

Alleged altercation: In September, Melissa was admitted to Cochin Hospital after turning up to a local police station with bruises to her face and complaints of pain

In happier times: The couple first met in 2011 at a BAFTA after-party and welcomed their first son Raphael in February 2014 and their second son Solal in November, 2015

Melissa and her former partner were seen separately outside a Parisian court back in October, where Blanc denied charges of domestic assault.

The couple first met in 2011 at a BAFTA after-party and welcomed their first son Raphael in February 2014 and their second son Solal in November, 2015.

Jean-David is a businessman, writer and film producer, famed for founding cinema service organisation AlloCine.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Jean-David Blanc for comment.
She's one of the 'surviving' stars of Jurassic World - the fourth movie in the blockbusting Jurassic Park franchise.

And following the success of the latest movie - which was released in the summer of 2015, twelve years after the third instalment - star Bryce Dallas Howard was soon to sign on for a fifth film.

Known at the moment as Jurassic World 2, the sequel is shooting partly on location in the UK, in the countryside close to London.

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'It's gonna be good!' Bryce Dallas Howard teases her excitement about forthcoming dinosaur sequel Jurassic World 2 as speculation about the plot continues

Tease: On Saturday evening, the 36-year-old star launched an impromptu Twitter Q&A for fans, tweeting: 'I've got a few minutes, would love to hear from you guys--got any Q's? I've got some A's! #AskBDH'

And while Dallas Howard has been on set for the past week, she's been posting a daily tweet or photo, cryptically hinting at what to expect for the thus-far un-divulged plot.

On Saturday evening, the 36-year-old launched an impromptu Twitter Q&A for fans, tweeting: 'I've got a few minutes, would love to hear from you guys--got any Q's? I've got some A's! #AskBDH.'

The Hollywood redhead was inundated with questions from 'who is your favourite character to play?' to 'when is the best time to eat grilled cheese?'

When asked by MailOnline 'can you give us ANYTHING however tiny about how #JW2 is going...?' the actress was quick to tweet back a short but sweet: 'It's gonna be good.'

Shrouded in mystery: While Dallas Howard has been on set for the past week, she's been posting a daily tweet or photo, cryptically hinting at what to expect for the thus-far un-divulged plot

Adding a wink for good measure, the Black Mirror actress kept her cards close to her chest, yet seemed to have high hopes for the movie, which is set for release next summer.

This comes after Wednesday's unveiling of the first promotional image from the film, posted on writer and producer Colin Trevorrow's Twitter page.

The photograph showed the back of a young girl as she looked towards the skull of a Triceratops and fossils from other eons-old reptiles, seemingly enchanted by the opulent natural history display.

Big reveal: The first image from Jurassic World 2 was revealed to Twitter Wednesday. The still shows a young girl gazing at a dinosaur-filled hall of wonders

Big feet to follow: Along with the image, screenwriter of Jurassic World 2 Colin Trevorrow (pictured with Chris Pratt) wrote 'Walking in giant footsteps'

Trevorrow captioned the image: 'Walking in giant footsteps' while adding the hashtag '#JW2'.

Dallas Howard retweeted the picture which she captioned 'Hmmm' as did the film's director JA Bayona who wrote 'so excited to show you this!'

Trevorrow helmed Jurassic World but handed over his directing duties for the sequel to Spanish director Bayona, whose previous projects include The Orphanage and A Monster Calls.

Stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard will reprise the roles of raptor trainer Owen Grady and Jurassic World operations manager Claire Dearing - however, it's thought that the next instalment will once again veer away from a theme park setting, much like sequels The Lost World and Jurassic Park 3 did.

Returning stars: Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard will reprise the roles of dino trainer Owen Grady and Jurassic World operations manager Claire Dearing - however, it's thought that the next instalment will once again veer away from a theme park setting, much like sequels The Lost World and Jurassic Park 3 did

Another adventure! Fans were thrilled to get a glimpse of the film, which is set for a 2018 release

Fans have started speculating about the secret storyline after the new image was shared this week.

'Could this be Hammond's great grand daughter?! #JW2,' one person typed, referring to fictional Jurassic Park creator John Hammond who was played by the late Richard Attenborough.

At the end of Jurassic World, the park's head genetic scientist Dr Wu was seen fleeing Isla Nublar as the park fell into chaos, with certain items from the labs.

This led to most fan speculation centering around the idea that the geneticist will be hatching his own plans for a dinosaur venture.

Back to the park? Promotional material for Jurassic World two years ago showed children standing before real dinosaurs at the park; this juxtaposes this somewhat, suggesting that the idea of the park has now been totally abandoned

Back to the island? At the end of Jurassic World, the park's head genetic scientist Dr Wu was seen fleeing Isla Nublar as the park fell into chaos, with certain items from the labs

The new photo, with its museum-esque setting, seems to suggest extinction is once again on the cards.

Promotional material for Jurassic World two years ago showed children standing before real dinosaurs at the park; this juxtaposes that somewhat, suggesting that the idea of the park has now been totally abandoned and is a thing of the past.

Should this be the case, there is sure to be a twist in the tale, given that no Jurassic Park film is likely to not feature living, breathing dinos.

Perhaps the official park has been destroyed, but that a secret unofficial project is in the works with Dr Wu at the helm.
The refugee's wife and child are still living in war-wracked Aleppo

President Donald Trump's revamped travel ban is facing its first major legal setback, after a federal judge halted enforcement of the directive that would deny US entry to the wife and child of a Syrian refugee already granted asylum.

In a preliminary restraining order issued Friday that applies only to the Syrian man and his family, US District Judge William Conley in Wisconsin said the plaintiff "is at great risk of suffering irreparable harm" if the directive is carried out.

The man chose to remain anonymous because his wife and child are still living in war-wracked Aleppo.

The order marked the first ruling against the revised directive, which temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries.

It denies US entry to all refugees for 120 days and halts for 90 days the granting of visas to nationals from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan.

The new order, unveiled Monday, is due to go into effect March 16. Lifting an indefinite Syrian refugee travel ban and reducing the number of blacklisted countries by removing Iraq, it replaces a previous iteration issued in January that was blocked in federal court.

US President Donald Trump's new travel directive, temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries

"The court appreciates that there may be important differences between the original executive order and the revised executive order issued on March 6, 2017," Conley wrote.

"As the order applies to the plaintiff here, however, the court finds his claims have at least some chance of prevailing for the reasons articulated by other courts."

He set a hearing for March 21.

- 'New coat of paint' -

In another legal challenge, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint on behalf of several refugee assistance groups over the controversial executive order.

"Putting a new coat of paint on the Muslim ban doesn't solve its fundamental problem, which is that the Constitution and our laws prohibit religious discrimination," said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU's immigrant rights project.

"The further President Trump goes down this path, the clearer it is that he is violating that basic rule."

Migrants and refugees arrive in Serbia, near the village of Miratovac, in January

The ACLU, the preeminent US civil liberties group, and the National Immigration Law Center brought the suit on behalf of the International Refugee Assistance Project and the refugee resettlement group HIAS, as well as several individuals.

The suit alleges that the new executive order violates the constitutional protection of freedom of religion in that it is "intended and designed to target and discriminate against Muslims, and it does just that in operation."

"Rarely in American history has governmental intent to discriminate against a particular faith and its adherents been so plain," the complaint says, alleging the new order will cause "irreparable harm" and asking for an injunction.

A federal judge in Maryland, Theodore Chuang, has scheduled a hearing in the case for March 15 -- the day before the measure is due to take effect.

- 'Still a Muslim ban' -

Separately, a federal judge in Seattle who issued a nationwide halt to Trump's original travel restrictions denied a motion to have the same ruling apply to the modified measures, saying at least one of the parties must first file additional court papers.

Trump's revised ban on certain travellers

The state of Maryland said it would join Monday the suit filed by the attorney general from Washington state, which also has the support of Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Oregon.

"President Trump's second executive order is still a Muslim ban," Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh said in a statement.

"The administration persists in an effort to implement a policy that is inhumane and unconstitutional, but also makes us less safe, not more safe."

The state of Hawaii has filed a separate complaint, and a hearing in that case on whether to impose a national restraining order is set for March 15 as well.

The White House cites national security in justifying the ban, arguing that it needs time to implement "extreme vetting" procedures to keep Islamic militants from entering the country.

Polls show American public opinion is deeply divided on the issue. Most indicate a slight majority of voters opposed, with strong support among Trump's political base.
High-profile Manhattan prosecutor Preet Bharara was among 46 federal prosecutors asked to resign by the administration of US President Donald Trump

The administration of US President Donald Trump moved to clean house at the Justice Department, demanding the resignations of 46 federal prosecutors appointed during the two terms of his predecessor Barack Obama.

Presidents often order political appointees in several agencies to resign when they take office, but the abrupt nature of the move caught some by surprise -- especially given that so many were asked to leave at once.

High-profile Manhattan prosecutor Preet Bharara was among those asked to leave -- even though he met with Trump before the Republican took office and said he was asked to stay on.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said Attorney General Jeff Session had asked "all remaining 46 presidentially appointed US Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition."

"Until the new US Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US Attorney's Offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders."

Later Friday, another Justice Department spokesman, Peter Carr, said Trump had asked two to stay on -- current acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente and the man he picked to take over that position, Rod Rosenstein.

"The President called Dana Boente and Rod Rosenstein tonight to inform them that he has declined to accept their resignation, and they will remain in their current positions," Carr said.

It was not immediately clear if other resignations would eventually be declined.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said he was "troubled" to learn of the mass request for resignations, especially that of Bharara, and said it had not been done in an "orderly fashion" as seen in the past.

"By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining US Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the president is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice," Schumer said in a statement on Facebook.
South Africa's Dean Elgar (front) runs into New Zealand's keeper BJ Watling during day four of the first international cricket test in Dunedin

South African batting coach Neil McKenzie believes his side need another 70 runs to feel safe after New Zealand captured the key wicket of Dean Elgar to keep alive the prospect of a result in the first Test in Dunedin on Saturday.

At stumps on day four, New Zealand were already sensing a moral victory with South Africa at 224 for six, a lead of 191 and with rain forecast on the final day.

Champion run maker Elgar went late in the day for 89, and if it stays dry, McKenzie said the remainder of the line up needed to build a bigger buffer.

"It's about dictating terms in terms of batting time," he said.

"It's not going to come in 10 overs, that's the nature of the wicket, so we have to graft up front, try and take that lead beyond 260-270 and then you can dictate when you're going to declare."

McKenzie argued that if rain forced a draw neither side could take any extra momentum into the second Test starting in Wellington on Thursday, but New Zealand bowler Jeetan Patel claimed a psychological edge for the home side.

South Africa's Quinton de Kock is bowled as New Zealand's keeper BJ Watling celebrates during day four of the first Test in Dunedin

"To be able to stand up against the number three team in the world and beat them on the first innings that's a little win in itself," he said, but adding New Zealand's second innings fielding performance needed improvement.

"We put down a couple of chances which against good side are costly. But, the way the guys kept fighting was pretty impressive."

Elgar was a shining light for South Africa in the gloom of Dunedin as he backed up from a first innings 140.

But on 89 when he tried to lift the pace in the final session, he skied a Patel delivery which was taken by Kane Williamson running to his right from mid off.

On a chilly day in which play was disrupted twice by rain and gloom, Faf du Plessis was on 56 and Vernon Philander on one when bad light ended play 20 minutes early on a tough day which produced only 186 runs and five wickets -- three in the final session -- at University Oval.

While Elgar slowly moved South Africa ahead on the board, New Zealand did not help their cause with a series of blunders, with their problems compounded by the light and a leg injury to Trent Boult.

Boult, who took the wicket of Stephen Cook in the first over of the South African second innings, delivered 11 overs without success on Saturday before leaving the field to join batsman Ross Taylor on the injured list.

When the new ball was taken in the final session Neil Wagner was the only fast bowler available to work with spinners Patel and Mitchell Santner.

Wagner had success early in the day with the wickets of Hashim Amla for 24 and JP for 39.

Duminy had a charmed stay. He was dropped by Tom Latham on six, and on 20 he was given not out to a Patel appeal for lbw.

New Zealand did not review the umpire's decision, although the ball-tracker technology showed it was heading straight at leg stump.

Elgar also had a life when he brought up his half century with a cracking drive that went through the hands of substitute fielder Colin de Grandhomme at short cover.

Temba Bavuma was bowled by Santner for six when he blocked the left-armer only for the ball to hit the pitch and spin back on to the stumps.

Patel then bowled Quinton de Kock (four), claiming the South African keeper for the fourth consecutive innings on this tour.

Patel had figures of two for 72 and Wagner two for 57.
Pro-government forces advance in Mokha last month as they try to drive Shiite Huthi rebels away from the Red Sea coast

Seven Yemeni soldiers and eight rebels were killed in heavy fighting over the past 24 hours near the Red Sea coastal town of Mokha, medical and security sources said Saturday.

The historic port was captured by government forces on February 10 as part of a major offensive launched in January to try to recapture Yemen's 450 kilometre (280 mile) Red Sea coastline, which had previously been almost entirely in rebel hands.

But there have been repeated clashes over the past month both inland and north of the town as the rebels seek to take it back.

The latest fighting focused on the village of Yakhtul, 14 kilometres (nine miles) north of Mokha, which is currently in government hands.

It came as an air strike on a rebel-held port further north by a Saudi-led coalition supporting the government killed 20 civilians and six rebels.

Friday's strike on the town of Khokha targeted rebel fighters who had taken refuge at the entrance to a market selling the mild narcotic qat, which is a central part of Yemeni social life.

The fighting around Mokha had driven more than 48,000 people from their homes, the Yemen spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency, Shabia Mantoo, told AFP earlier this month.
An Iraqi soldier watches enemy positions from Badush on March 9, 2017

Iraqi paramilitary forces announced Saturday that they had discovered a mass grave at Badush prison near Mosul containing the remains of hundreds of people executed by the Islamic State group.

Iraqi forces have found dozens of mass graves containing hundreds of bodies as they pushed IS back in more than two years of heavy fighting, including during the operation to retake Mosul.

IS reportedly killed up to 600 people after seizing Badush in 2014, and was also said to have held hundreds of kidnapped women from Iraq's Yazidi minority at the facility.

The Iraqi military said that forces from the Hashed al-Shaabi -- an umbrella group of pro-government forces that are dominated by Iran-backed Shiite militias -- were among the units that recaptured the prison from the jihadists.

Hashed forces found "a large mass grave containing the remains of around 500 civilian prisoners in (Badush) prison who were executed by (IS) gangs after they controlled the prison during their occupation of Mosul," the military said.

Iraqi fighters from the Abbas Brigade fire toward enemy positions from Badush

The Hashed did not say how they reached that figure, which could not be independently confirmed, but it is in keeping with accounts of IS killing hundreds of inmates from Badush.

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), IS gunmen executed up to 600 inmates from the prison on June 10, 2014, forcing them to kneel along a nearby ravine and then shooting them with assault rifles, an account also contained in a United Nations report.

Most of those executed were said to have been members of Iraq's Shiite Muslim majority, whom IS considers heretics.

IS abuses at the jail did not end with executing its inmates. Iraqi lawmaker Vian Dakhil said in 2014 that the jihadists were holding more than 500 Yazidi women at Badush.

- Series of mass graves -

IS targeted the Yazidi religious minority in a brutal campaign of executions, kidnapping and rape, killing men and holding women and girls as sex slaves.

The Badush site is not the first mass grave to be found during the Mosul campaign, in which Iraqi forces recaptured areas around the country's second city before battling IS inside it.

Abbas Brigade fighters fire towards enemy positions from Badush

Iraqi forces found one in the Hamam al-Alil area south of Mosul in November that an official said appeared to hold the remains of at least 25 bodies.

And earlier this year, Iraqi forces retook an area containing a sinkhole known as the Khasfah, which could be the largest mass grave of the war with IS.

Local residents said that IS used it as an execution site and a mass grave where they would dispose of victims.

HRW examined satellite imagery that suggested the sinkhole was filling up, and local residents told AFP that IS had piled rusted car parts and shipping containers into it, before bulldozing earth on top.

IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained most of the territory they lost.

Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake Mosul -- which was the last IS-held city in Iraq -- in October, recapturing its eastern side before setting their sights on its smaller but more densely populated west.
Afghan police on duty in Kabul

Eight local policemen were killed by their colleagues after they were poisoned in their base in southern Afghanistan, officials said Saturday, in a latest so-called "insider attack".

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the incident, which happened in the Nawshar district of southern Zabul province late on Friday, as the militants escalate a deadly winter campaign of violence.

"The infiltrators first poisoned their colleagues and then shot them dead," provincial spokesman Gul Islam Seyal told AFP, adding that the attackers fled the area taking all the weapons and munitions from the base.

The governor of Zabul Bismillah Afghanmal said they had launched an investigation into the incident.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a message to the media that the group's "infiltrators" carried out the attack.

So-called insider attacks -- when Afghan soldiers and police turn their guns on their colleagues or on international troops -- have been a major problem during the more than 15-year-long war.

Such attacks have sapped morale and caused deep mistrust within security ranks.

In a similar incident last month, an Afghan policeman linked to the Taliban shot dead 11 of his colleagues at a checkpoint in the neighboring Helmand province.

And last September, two Afghan soldiers with suspected Taliban links killed at least 12 of their comrades as they slept in the volatile northern province of Kunduz.
International aid agencies said South Sudan's decision to raise foreign worker visa fees would worsen a humanitarian crisis in which more than 7.5 million people are in need of assistance

International aid agencies on Saturday slammed South Sudan's decision to raise foreign worker visa fees to as much as $10,000 (9,300 euros), warning it would worsen a humanitarian crisis in the famine-hit country.

"The government and the army have largely contributed to the humanitarian situation," said Elizabeth Deng of Amnesty International.

"And now, they want to create profit from the crisis they have created."

The government measure, announced on March 2, would increase work permit fees for foreign workers from the $100-$300 range to between $1,000 and $10,000 per year, depending on the qualifications of the worker.

The measure could generate a revenue stream for the crisis-wracked nation, where oil revenues account for the near-totality of government earnings, but aid agencies said it could backfire.

"If this measure is put into practice, it will be impossible for humanitarian workers to pay this kind of sum," said Julien Schopp, director of humanitarian practice at InterAction, which groups 180 NGOs working worldwide.

Deng said there were hundreds of aid workers operating in the country, and that the new visa costs "could further hinder their critical work on the ground."

South Sudan, formed in 2011 following a split from the north, declared famine in some regions in late February. The United Nations said Saturday more than 7.5 million people were in need of assistance there.

The UN and humanitarian organisations have described the crisis as having "man-made" origins, as a civil war begun in 2013 has forced people to flee, disrupted agriculture, sent prices soaring and cut off aid agencies from the worst-hit areas.

Aid agencies also say their workers have been subject to harassment and attacks, while the UN described the looting of "humanitarian assets".

Information Minister Michael Makuei said on Thursday the new fees for foreign workers were already in effect and confirmed they applied to aid workers.

Schopp said NGOs were still pressing the government to provide details, notably on whether workers with current work permits would have to re-apply for new ones under the new fee structure.

On Saturday the UN's humanitarian chief, Stephen O'Brien, warned the world was facing its worst humanitarian crisis since the end of World War II in four countries -- South Sudan, Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen.

"The famine in South Sudan is man-made," he said. "Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine -- as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."

War broke out in South Sudan in 2013, just two years following its independence, after President Salva Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar of plotting a coup.
Sunwolves' Yusuke Niwai (C) vies with Cheetahs' Torsten van Jaarsveldduring during their match on March 11, 2017 in Bloemfontein, South Africa

The yellow-carding of Takuma Asahara proved costly for the Japanese Sunwolves as they lost 38-31 to the Central Cheetahs of South Africa in Super Rugby Saturday.

The replacement prop was sin-binned after 65 minutes for a second offence in quick succession with the visitors clinging to a 31-30 lead at Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein.

Cheetahs opted for a scrum from the resultant penalty and scrum-half Tian Meyer threw a long pass to send centre Rayno Benjamin over in the corner.

Fly-half Fred Zeilinga failed to convert but added a penalty while the Sunwolves were still a man short to close the scoring.

Sunwolves, who lost 92-17 at the same ground last year, finished the match in the Cheetahs half and were let down by a couple of unforced errors.

They allowed the South Africans to steal a line-out and a knock-on by lock Liaka Moli halted a promising multi-phase attack.

Running the Cheetahs so close must encourage a team humiliated 83-17 in Tokyo two weeks ago by title-holders Wellington Hurricanes of New Zealand.

Sunwolves also lost to another South African side, Southern Kings, in Singapore last weekend.

It was the third consecutive home fixure for the Cheetahs, who began with a loss to the Golden Lions, then beat Northern Bulls in a second South African derby.

Sunwolves were ahead within 30 seconds of the kick-off thanks to a try by full-back Shota Emi and trailed only 20-17 at half-time.

A try by centre Clinton Swart put the hosts 13 points ahead early in the second half before a brace from winger Kenki Fukuoka gave the Sunwolves a one-point advantage.

Asahara was then yellow-carded and the match swung decisively in favour of the home side.

Skipper and hooker Torsten van Jaarsveld, flanker Oupa Mohoje, Swart and Benjamin scored tries for the Cheetahs.

Zeilinga missed only one shot at goal as he kicked three conversions and four penalties.

Fukuoka (2), Emi and New Zealand-born fly-half Hayden Cripps crossed for Sunwolves tries.

Cripps kicked two conversions and a penalty and his replacement and fellow New Zealander, Jamie-Jerry Taulagi, slotted two conversions.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) - A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape their war-torn homeland by fleeing to Wisconsin.

The ruling likely is the first by a judge since Trump issued a revised travel ban on Monday, according to a spokesman for the Washington state attorney general, who has led states challenging the ban.

A Syrian Muslim man who was granted asylum and settled in Wisconsin has been working since last year to win U.S. government approval for his wife and 3-year-old daughter to leave the devastated city of Aleppo and join him here. The man, who is not identified because of fears for his family's safety, filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trump's first travel ban had wrongly stopped the visa process for his family. U.S. District Judge Michael Conley set that challenge aside after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the entire Trump travel order.

Trump signed a new executive order on Monday. The Syrian man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon, alleging the new order is still an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion and right to due process. He asked Conley to block its enforcement against his family.

Judge Conley granted that request, saying there were daily threats to the Syrian man's wife and child that could cause "irreparable harm." He issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family. The order doesn't block the entire travel ban. It simply prevents Trump's administration from enforcing it against this family pending a March 21 hearing.

After the Trump ban was blocked the first time, the approval process restarted for the Syrian family and they're now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the U.S. embassy, the last step before U.S. customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesn't have dates for the interviews yet and Trump's new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian man's attorneys.

Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that the new ban may not apply to this family anyway, although they did not go into details. There are various exemptions and waivers in the new ban including some that give consular officers flexibility to decide cases. Conley acknowledged that the family's situation is murky but still issued the order, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case.

The U.S. Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment on it and Conley's order.

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. U.S. District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the entire order on Feb. 3.

The revised order issued Monday removed Iraq from the list of countries and would temporarily shuts down the refugee program. Unlike the first order, the new ban would not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian man's lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assad's regime and another group fighting in support of Assad. The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and traveled to pro-Assad areas to manage his family's business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife. He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.

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Follow Todd Richmond on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trichmond1
CORONA, Calif. (AP) - A video on a popular YouTube channel of a boy riding in the bed of a pickup truck filled with beads in Southern California led to the arrest of his mother on suspicion of child endangerment.

The video titled "Driving a truck full of Orbeez" was posted on the YouTube channel RoccoPiazzaVlogs, which has 1.4 million subscribers.

It shows the boy, Rocco Piazza, and his nanny buried up to their necks in water and Orbeez, soluble beads that swell in water, sloshing back-and-forth as the truck drives around.

Corona police saw the video and arrested and cited the boy's mother and fiance, 45-year-old Holly Piazza and 37-year-old Brian Chase, for misdemeanor child endangerment. They were also cited for illegally dumping the beads in the road.

Holly Piazza tells KABC-TV (http://bit.ly/2n8ZGTy ) that she told police "it was just five minutes of a stupid parent choice."
NEW YORK (AP) - Authorities say a drug smuggler flew into New York's Kennedy Airport with 10 pounds of cocaine taped to his legs.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Friday that officers arrested Juan Carlos Galan Luperon on March 4 after they noticed he was "busting out of his pants."

Luperon, a U.S. citizen, had arrived in New York from the Dominican Republic.

Customs officials say officers noticed Luperon's pants were snug. The officers searched Luperon in a private room.

According to the agency, the officers found packages of white powder taped to Luperon's legs. The agency says the powder tested positive for cocaine.

Luperon was arrested on federal narcotics smuggling charges. It's not clear if he has an attorney who can speak for him.

Authorities say the cocaine was worth about $164,000.
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) - The escalating dispute between NATO allies Turkey and the Netherlands hit a new low Sunday, with a Turkish minister escorted out of the country less than a day after Turkey's foreign minister was denied entry, prompting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call the Dutch "Nazi remnants."

The diplomatic clash was over plans by Turkish government officials to campaign in the Netherlands for a referendum back home. Family and Social Policies Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya had arrived in the country from Germany but was prevented from entering Turkey's diplomatic compound in Rotterdam, setting up a standoff with armed police. She was later sent under escort back to Germany.

As she was approaching the German border, Kaya wrote that "the whole world must take action against this fascist practice! Such a treatment against a woman minister cannot be accepted."

Protesters wave flags outside the Dutch consulate in central Istanbul's Istiklal Avenue, the main shopping road of Istanbul, early Sunday, March 12, 2017. The escalating dispute between Turkey and the Netherlands spilled over into Sunday, with a Turkish minister unable to enter her consulate after the authorities there had already blocked a visit by the foreign minister, prompting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call the Dutch fascists. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

The Dutch were equally angry and Prime Minister Mark Rutte called Erdogan's Nazi comment "a crazy remark," while Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb said the Turkish consul general was guilty of a "scandalous deception" after he allegedly denied that the minister was coming despite government warnings to stay away.

"He lied to us and didn't tell the truth," the mayor said. "The deception worsened when they drove in different columns to Rotterdam" to try to fool Dutch authorities.

Hundreds of pro-Turkey protesters scuffled with police into the night in Rotterdam.

The diplomatic clash with Kaya came after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was barred from landing in the Netherlands on Saturday and Turkish officials closed off the Dutch Embassy and called its ambassador no longer welcome.

The Dutch barred Cavusoglu from entering because of objections to his intention to attend a rally in Rotterdam for a referendum on constitutional reforms to expand Erdogan's powers, which the Dutch see as a step backward from democracy. Turkish officials have been campaigning in various European cities with Turkish populations before the April 16 vote.

The Dutch government said it withdrew landing permission because of "risks to public order and security," leading Cavusoglu to say: "So is the foreign minister of the Turkish republic a terrorist?"

Erdogan told a rally in Istanbul that the Dutch "do not know politics or international diplomacy." He compared them to "Nazi remnants, they are fascists."

Erdogan had earlier this month already compared German policies to "Nazi practices," after German municipalities canceled several campaign events by Turkish officials last weekend.

He told a rally in Istanbul Saturday: "You can stop our foreign minister's plane all you want, let's see how your (diplomatic) planes will come to Turkey from now on."

In the evening, a Turkish foreign ministry official who spoke on customary anonymity said the Dutch Embassy in Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul were closed off because of security reasons.

The official said entries and exits were closed to the two locations. Similar precautions were taken at the Dutch charge d'affaires' house and the ambassador's residence.

The Turkish foreign ministry also said that it doesn't want to see the Dutch ambassador, who is out of the country, return to his post for some time because of the increasingly divisive dispute with the Netherlands.

In a written statement early Sunday, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said his country will strongly respond to the Dutch actions.

"There will be a stronger reprisal against the unacceptable treatment toward Turkey and ministers who have diplomatic immunity," Yildirim said.

Cavusoglu said he arrived in Metz, France, late Saturday, where he was expected to address crowds on Sunday.

The diplomatic row comes at a time when relations between Turkey and the European Union, of which the Netherlands is a member, have been steadily worsening, especially in the wake of Erdogan's actions since last year's failed coup. More than 41,000 people have been arrested and 100,000 civil servants fired from their jobs.

Cavusoglu said that "unfortunately Europe and several countries in Europe, the Netherlands being in the first place, they are reminiscent of the Europe of World War II. The same racism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, we see all the crimes against humanity in today's politics."

The dispute also comes just days before the Netherlands goes to the polls next Wednesday for the lower house of Parliament. The campaign has been dominated by issues of identity, with anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders set to make strong gains.

Earlier Saturday, Cavusoglu said "Wilders is racist, fascist, Nazi, like a Nazi." Citing comments that Wilders wanted action against Muslims, Cavusoglu said: "What are you going to do? Are you going to kill them, burn them or what?"

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Zeynep Bilginsoy reported from Istanbul.

A Dutch riot policeman tries to get his dog to let go of a man after riots broke out during a pro Erdogan demonstration at the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, March 12, 2017. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was due to visit Rotterdam on Saturday to campaign for a referendum next month on constitutional reforms in Turkey. The Dutch government says that it withdrew the permission for Cavusoglu's plane to land because of "risks to public order and security." (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Demonstrators wave turkish flags outside the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was due to visit Rotterdam on Saturday to campaign for a referendum next month on constitutional reforms in Turkey. The Dutch government says that it withdrew the permission for Cavusoglu's plane to land because of "risks to public order and security." (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan salutes his supporters in Istanbul, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkey and the Netherlands sharply escalated a dispute between the two NATO allies on Saturday as the Dutch withdrew landing permission for the Turkish foreign minister's aircraft, drawing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call them "fascists". (Kayhan Ozer/Presidential Press Service, Pool Photo via AP)

Demonstrators wave turkish flags outside the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was due to visit Rotterdam on Saturday to campaign for a referendum next month on constitutional reforms in Turkey. The Dutch government says that it withdrew the permission for Cavusoglu's plane to land because of "risks to public order and security." (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

A huge poster of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the upcoming April 16 referendum near the Dutch consulate in Istanbul, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkey and the Netherlands sharply escalated a dispute between the two NATO allies on Saturday as the Dutch withdrew landing permission for the Turkish foreign minister's aircraft, drawing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call them "fascists." (AP Photo/ Emrah Gurel)

Dutch police block the road leading to the Turkish consul's residence in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was due to visit Rotterdam on Saturday to campaign for a referendum next month on constitutional reforms in Turkey. The Dutch government says that it withdrew the permission for Cavusoglu's plane to land because of "risks to public order and security." (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Supporters of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan walk to the Dutch consulate in Istanbul, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkey and the Netherlands sharply escalated a dispute between the two NATO allies on Saturday as the Dutch withdrew landing permission for the Turkish foreign minister's aircraft, drawing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call them "fascists." (AP Photo/ Emrah Gurel)

Riot police stand outside the Netherlands consulate as the supporters of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stage a protest in Istanbul, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkey and the Netherlands sharply escalated a dispute between the two NATO allies on Saturday as the Dutch withdrew landing permission for the Turkish foreign minister's aircraft, drawing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call them "fascists." (AP Photo/ Emrah Gurel)

Campaign staff hold a banner reading "Stay Away, This Is Our Country" as firebrand anti Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders, left, protests outside the Turkish embassy in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, March 8, 2017, against the planned campaign visit of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to lobby for a referendum giving President Erdogan increased powers. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

The Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu laughs during a visit of the booth of Turkey at the tourism fair ITB in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, March 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

The Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu speaks during a visit of the booth of Turkey at the tourism fair ITB in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, March 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

Demonstrators wave turkish flags outside the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was due to visit Rotterdam on Saturday to campaign for a referendum next month on constitutional reforms in Turkey. The Dutch government says that it withdrew the permission for Cavusoglu's plane to land because of "risks to public order and security." (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Demonstrators wave turkish flags outside the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was due to visit Rotterdam on Saturday to campaign for a referendum next month on constitutional reforms in Turkey. The Dutch government says that it withdrew the permission for Cavusoglu's plane to land because of "risks to public order and security." (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Demonstrators arrive at the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Saturday, March 11, 2017. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was due to visit Rotterdam on Saturday to campaign for a referendum next month on constitutional reforms in Turkey. The Dutch government says that it withdrew the permission for Cavusoglu's plane to land because of "risks to public order and security." (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

A protester kisses a banner with the picture of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, outside the Dutch consulate in central Istanbul's Istiklal Avenue, the main shopping road of Istanbul, early Sunday, March 12, 2017. The escalating dispute between Turkey and the Netherlands spilled over into Sunday, with a Turkish minister unable to enter her consulate after the authorities there had already blocked a visit by the foreign minister, prompting Erdogan to call the Dutch fascists. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) - European Union member states have rejected Turkey's demand that its citizens be granted the freedom to relocate and transfer money, services and goods to EU member Cyprus under any deal reunifying the ethnically divided island, the Cypriot president said Saturday.

Nicos Anastasiades said all EU leaders consider it a "bad precedent" for Cyprus or any other country to breach bloc rules and grant such key freedoms to third-country citizens.

"This matter concerns the whole of the European Union, not just Cyprus," Anastasiades said.

Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, left, and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci leave their meeting for the press conference in the Turkish Cypriot breakaway northern part of the divided capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Thursday, March 9, 2017. Yildirim is in the breakaway north part of the island for a one-day visit for talks. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

Turkey said in January that any Cyprus peace deal should incorporate such a condition. But Greek Cypriot officials fear such a development would enable Turkey to overwhelm the small island of 1.1 million people economically, demographically or otherwise.

Cyprus was split along ethnic lines in 1974 when Turkey invaded following a coup by supporters of uniting Cyprus with Greece. Although the island joined the EU in 2004, only the internationally recognized south enjoys full membership benefits. A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is recognized only by Turkey, which maintains 35,000 troops in the breakaway north.

Turkey's demand further complicated difficult negotiations that stalled last month amid Turkish Cypriot anger over legislation to commemorate in Greek Cypriot schools a 1950 referendum calling for Cyprus' union with Greece.

Turkish Cypriots see a drive by the majority Greek Cypriots for union with Greece that began before Cyprus gained independence from British colonial rule in 1960 as the root of all the island's problems. Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci and top Turkish officials have said that Greek Cypriots needed to fix this "mistake" if talks are to move forward.

Anastasiades said the "aimless" legislation in no way suggested any policy shift away from reunifying Cyprus as a federation. He criticized Akinci for using the matter as an "excuse" to walk out of the 22 months-long peace talks because Turkish demands to keep troops and military intervention rights in place even after reunification weren't gaining any traction.

Anastasiades attributed Akinci's actions to the Turkish government's hardening stance to appease right-wing voters before the country's April 16 referendum on expanding presidential powers.

Cyprus government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said that EU leaders have conveyed the belief that any movement in Cyprus peace talks won't happen before the Turkish referendum is completed.

A girl hold a Turkish flag as she sit on top of her father as behind seen the posters of the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, left, and Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim during a rally to shore up support for a 'yes' vote in next month's referendum in Turkey on expanding presidential powers, at a stadium In the Turkish Cypriot breakaway northern part of the divided capital Nicosia in the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus, Thursday, March 9, 2017. Turkish officials have said there are as many as 100,000 voters eligible to cast a vote in the April 16 poll in the breakaway Turkish Cypriot north of ethnically divided Cyprus. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - Thousands of people from around Haiti gathered at a city park Saturday for former President Rene Preval's state funeral capping six days of mourning for the man who led the country during a devastating January 2010 earthquake and its chaotic aftermath.

Mourners marched beneath the hot sun and chanted "long live Preval" as roving traditional rara bands performed festival music at the Champ de Mars plaza in downtown Port-au-Prince, where Preval's flag-draped casket was displayed.

Three former Hatian presidents - Michel Martelly, Jocelerme Privert and Boniface Alexandre - attended the funeral along with foreign diplomats and representatives of international organizations.

People line up to pay their respects to the late former President Rene Preval during a memorial service in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Friday March 10, 2017. Several thousand Haitians filed past the remains of the former president, ahead of a state funeral that a senator sought to delay until further tests are conducted to definitively establish the cause of death of the two-term leader. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Preval was the only democratically elected president to win and complete two terms in Haiti, a country that has been characterized by political upheaval throughout its history.

An agronomist by training, Preval kept a low profile in office even in the aftermath of the earthquake, which led some to accuse him of not showing leadership at a time of crisis.

But mourners had only kind words for him Saturday. Haitian President Jovenel Moise hailed Preval as a "leader for all Haitians who showed respect to everyone. Let's continue to work to make Haiti a better place."

Mario Prasmars, 42, said he traveled 18 hours to attend the funeral, calling Preval "a father for Haiti."

In the afternoon, Preval's casket was to travel four hours to the rural northern town of Marmelade, where he was born.

Family members have said that Preval, who died March 3, had a heart attack on the way to the hospital. The 74-year-old former leader had health problems including prostate cancer in the past.

Attorney General Donton Leger said this week that an autopsy did not clearly establish a cause of death and more tests would be required. He acknowledged rumors that the former president had been poisoned, without citing evidence.

Preval was elected by a landslide in 1995 as the chosen successor of Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who has not commented publicly on his death and did not attend the funeral.

His second term was characterized at the start by a sharp rise in kidnappings and widespread hunger due to higher food prices followed by the earthquake. The government said the disaster killed about 310,000 people but the precise death toll is unknown.

A girl scout carries flowers during the memorial service of the late former President of Haiti Rene Preval in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Friday March 10, 2017. Several thousand Haitians filed past the remains of the former president, ahead of a state funeral that a senator sought to delay until further tests are conducted to definitively establish the cause of death of the two-term leader. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

An honor guard of police officers carry the coffin with the body of Haiti's late former President Rene Preval during a memorial service in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Friday March 10, 2017. Several thousand Haitians filed past the remains of the former president, ahead of a state funeral that a senator sought to delay until further tests are conducted to definitively establish the cause of death of the two-term leader. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

FILE - In this March 10, 2010 file photo, Haitian President Rene Preval pauses while speaking on Capitol Hill, in Washington. Several thousand Haitians filed past the remains of the former president on Friday, March 10, 2017, ahead of a state funeral that a senator sought to delay until further tests are conducted to definitively establish the cause of death of the two-term leader. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, File)

An honor guard of police officers carry the coffin with the body of Haiti's late former President Rene Preval during a memorial service in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Friday March 10, 2017. Several thousand Haitians filed past the remains of the former president, ahead of a state funeral that a senator sought to delay until further tests are conducted to definitively establish the cause of death of the two-term leader. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)
POTOMAC FALLS, Va. (AP) - President Donald Trump on Saturday praised the U.S. Secret Service for doing a "fantastic job" apprehending a "troubled person" who climbed a fence and was approaching a south entrance to the White House while Trump was inside the executive mansion.

It was the first known security breach at the White House since Trump took office nearly two months ago.

Washington, D.C., police identified the intruder as Jonathan Tran, 26, of Milpitas, California.

President Donald Trump, center, meets White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, from left clockwise, Shulkin's wife , Merle Bari, Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin, Trump, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, together with other members of his cabinet and the White House staff, Saturday, March 11, 2017, at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

When approached by a Secret Service officer on the south grounds about 11:38 p.m. Friday and asked whether he had a pass authorizing him to be in the restricted area, Tran replied, "No, I am a friend of the president. I have an appointment," the police report said.

Asked how he got there, he said he "jumped the fence."

The Secret Service said in a statement that the intruder, whom it did not identify, had climbed an outer perimeter fence near the Treasury Department and East Executive Avenue. He was arrested without further incident, the agency said.

Authorities found two cans of Mace on Tran, including one inside his jacket pocket, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court. Tran was also carrying a U.S. passport, an Apple laptop computer, a book written by Trump and a letter he had written to the president, the complaint said.

"Secret Service did a fantastic job last night," Trump said Saturday from his golf club in Northern Virginia. He described the intruder as a "troubled person" and the situation as "very sad." Trump was briefed on the matter Friday night, said his spokesman, Sean Spicer.

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly was also briefed on the incident, the Secret Service said. Kelly was among several Cabinet secretaries and senior White House staff members who attended a working lunch with the president at the Trump National Golf Club.

In the letter found on Tran, he mentioned "Russian hackers" and said he had information of relevance, according to the criminal complaint. He alleged that he had been followed, that his phone and email communications had been read by third parties, and that he has been called schizophrenic.

The Secret Service said a search of the north and south White House grounds found "nothing of concern to security operations." Standard practice is to turn intruders over to the local police department.

Video surveillance footage shows Tran jumping a fence near the Treasury Department adjacent to the White House security fence, the complaint said. At one point, Tran is seen hiding behind a White House pillar before proceeding to the South Portico entrance.

Friday's security breach follows a series of similar lapses that took place during the eight years that Barack Obama was president. An especially embarrassing breach came in September 2014 when an Army veteran with mental health issues scaled a fence on the Pennsylvania Avenue side of the White House and made it deep inside the building, to the East Room, before the Secret Service could detain him.

The Obamas were not at home at the time. The incident was one of several breakdowns by the Secret Service that ultimately led to the resignation of the agency's director, Julia Pierson, the following month. Trump has to find someone new to lead the agency: Joseph Clancy, a former agent who came out of retirement to succeed Pierson and stabilize the law enforcement agency, announced his second retirement last month.

Trump said he brought the Cabinet secretaries, White House staff and some of their spouses to the club for a working lunch to discuss the military, the economy, health care and other issues.

Besides Kelly, joining Trump were Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, White House chief of staff Reince Priebus, chief strategist Steve Bannon and Spicer. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis was absent.

"We're having some great discussions," Trump said. "The economy is doing very, very well. Generally speaking we're doing very well." He talked about inheriting "a mess" when he took office, but said everything would be "straightened out fast."

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Associated Press writer Matt Barakat in McLean, Virginia, contributed to this report.

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Follow Darlene Superville on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dsupervilleap

President Donald Trump, center, meets Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, right, and Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin, left, along with other members of his cabinet and the White House staff, Saturday, March 11, 2017, at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

President Donald Trump, back right, meets, from left clockwise, Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, Chief White House Strategist Steve Bannon, Shulkin's wife , Merle Bari, Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin, Trump, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and his wife Hilary Geary, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and his fiancee Scottish actress Louise Linton, together with other members of his cabinet and the White House staff, Saturday, March 11, 2017, at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

President Donald Trump, back center, meets, Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin, second from left, with his wife Merle Bari, left clockwise, Trump, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and his wife Hilary Geary, right, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and his fiancee Scottish actress Louise Linton, together with other members of his cabinet and the White House staff, Saturday, March 11, 2017, at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

White House press secretary Sean Spicer, speaks to reporters as President Donald Trump meets with some members of his cabinet and the White House staff, Saturday, March 11, 2017, at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - As Kansas legislators debate raising income taxes to fix the state's big budget problems, they're not tying any of their plans to whether Republican Gov. Sam Brownback departs for President Donald Trump's administration.

Sure, they're buzzing over recent news reports about whether Brownback will land an ambassador's post in Italy and speculating about how strongly a newly promoted GOP Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer would defend past income tax cuts championed by Brownback. But that isn't affecting bipartisan groups' efforts to come up with an income tax increase that has enough support in the Republican-controlled Legislature to override any governor's veto.

Lawmakers are looking at increasing income taxes because Kansas is facing budget shortfalls totaling more than $1 billion through June 2019. Brownback vetoed one such plan last month. The Legislature failed to override his veto because the proposal didn't have the needed two-thirds support in the Senate, though it did have enough support in the House.

FILE - In this March 9, 2017 file photo, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback speaks to media during a humanitarian award ceremony at the statehouse in Topeka, Kans. As Kansas legislators debate raising taxes to fix the state's big budget problems, they're not tying any of their plans to whether Brownback departs for another job or not. They're speculating about whether Brownback will land a job with President Donald Trump's administration and what Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer would be like as his replacement. (Thad Allton/Topeka Capital-Journal via AP)

"It really doesn't matter who's on the second floor," said Senate Vice President Jeff Longbine, a moderate Emporia Republican, referring to the location of the governor's office in the Statehouse.

Reports this week about Brownback suggested he is in line to become the U.S. representative in Rome to three United Nations food and agricultural agencies. Neither Brownback nor Colyer are commenting.

Colyer is a fellow conservative Republican who ran on Brownback's ticket in 2010 and in 2014.

The lieutenant governor says he's focused on supporting Brownback. He added, "Let's make sure that we solve the budget issue, that we grow the economy, we look after Kansas families."

Kansas' persistent financial woes arose after GOP legislators slashed personal income taxes in 2012 and 2013 at Brownback's urging. After some voters soured last year on the tax-cutting experiment, Democrats and GOP moderates have solid majorities in both chambers if they work together. Nearly a third of the state's lawmakers - 49 of 165 - have not served in the Legislature previously.

"We are listening to our constituents and basing our decisions more on that, rather than, will the governor support or oppose what we're doing?" said freshman Sen. Dinah Sykes, a moderate Lenexa Republican.

While lawmakers are focused on increasing income taxes, Brownback is pushing to boost cigarette and liquor taxes and annual business filing fees while using internal government borrowing, the diversion of highway funds and other accounting moves to get the state through.

Legislators are debating whether Colyer would be more willing than Brownback to compromise on some income tax issues, such as ending an exemption enacted in 2012 for more than 330,000 farmers and business owners. But many lawmakers in both parties see Colyer as a political partner of Brownback.

"I don't expect him to be less rigid," said Democratic state Rep. Valdenia Winn, of Kansas City. He's part of the administration."

___

Associated Press writer Allison Kite contributed to this report.

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Follow John Hanna on Twitter at https://twitter.com/apjdhanna
ST. LOUIS (AP) - A generation after St. Louis elected its first African-American mayor, many in the black community are convinced that unchecked egos cost them the chance to regain leadership of the racially divided city.

Lyda Krewson, 64, a white alderwoman, defeated black city Treasurer Tishaura Jones by fewer than 900 votes in Tuesday's all-important Democratic primary. St. Louis is heavily Democratic, and Krewson will be the overwhelming favorite in the April 4 general election.

Krewson dominated in mostly white south St. Louis, while Jones and two other black candidates split the vote on the predominantly black north side, an outcome that holds an all-too-familiar lesson for black political hopefuls in major U.S. cities: Pitting African-Americans against each other can jeopardize the chances of any one of them winning against a strong white contender.

"Overall I felt like ego, patriarchy and sexism were the things that were leading the other candidates not to want to get out of the race," Jones said in an interview. "At some point we have to stop fighting each other and try to come together because now we are looking at four more years of policies that we all claim that we didn't want."

Krewson was the favorite all along and was endorsed by four-term Mayor Francis Slay, who is white and chose not to seek a fifth term. Jones, 45, surged over the campaign's final days, thanks in part to celebrity endorsements from the likes of actresses Jada Pinkett Smith and Issa Rae, and a scathing letter rejecting an interview request from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and decrying racism in the city.

In the end, Krewson carried 32 percent of the vote in the seven-person race to Jones' 30 percent. Aldermanic President Lewis Reed was third with 18 percent, followed by Alderman Antonio French with 16 percent. Reed and French are black. Blacks make up 49 percent of St. Louis' 316,000 residents, whites 44 percent.

St. Louis University political scientist Ken Warren said that if just one of the competitive black candidates had dropped out, Jones would have won, perhaps easily.

"The fact that the black community did not rally around one candidate makes it clear they spoiled their chances of being represented by a black mayor," Warren said.

To thin the field of candidates, a city needs an influential black political elite capable of discouraging weaker contenders from running, said Emory University political scientist Michael Leo Owens.

"Evidently, in a place like St. Louis, that's clearly absent," Owens said.

Some African-American leaders saw early on that unity was their best hope. In December, Donald Suggs, publisher of the St. Louis American, a black weekly newspaper, called a meeting of the black candidates and urged them to unite behind a single candidate. The appeal had little effect.

St. Louis has had two black mayors, the first one elected in 1993, the second in 1997.

Around the U.S., it is difficult for black politicians to win statewide elections, and often the highest job they can aspire to with any hope of success is mayor or congressman. As a result, such contests are often crowded with black candidates.

But large black populations don't always translate into black leadership - a situation attributed in part to voters' habit of casting their ballots along racial lines.

Chicago, the city that gave rise to President Barack Obama and has a black population of about 900,000, has had only one black mayor, Harold Washington Jr., in the 1980s. In 2015, Memphis elected its first white mayor in 24 years. Detroit and New Orleans, which are 82 percent and 67 percent black respectively, have white mayors.

Conversely, Baltimore, which is 64 percent black, has elected three black women as mayor in the past decade. Washington, D.C., which is 60 percent black, has chosen a black mayor in every election since 1974. Similarly, Atlanta, which is 55 percent black, has had an unbroken line of black mayors stretching back four decades.

"There is a framework here and there are a group of individuals who have been involved on a consistent basis in the politics of Atlanta," said Mayor Kasim Reed, who was first elected in 2007, when he defeated a white woman by just 715 votes.

Reed pointed to longtime political lions Andrew Young - who also served as mayor - and Rep. John Lewis as among those who enjoy popularity and influence and are courted by black candidates for their crucial endorsements.

"That does lend a stability and an order," Reed said.

Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League and former mayor of New Orleans, said the lesson from St. Louis is that blacks must act more strategically if the election of an African-American mayor is important to them.

"There's got to be some political give-and-take and compromises made," Morial said. "A candidate who's serious has to have the political skills to clear the field - or at least diminish it."

Jones agreed.

"This is insane," she said. "We cannot continue to tear each other down and expect a different result."

___

Errin Haines Whack, who covers urban affairs for The Associated Press, reported from Philadelphia. Follow her work at http://www.twitter.com/emarvelous . Jim Salter is the AP correspondent in St. Louis.
ROME (AP) - Pope Francis is asking Rome priests and lay Catholics to recommend candidates and qualities for the city's next vicar, a novel initiative that underscores his desire to decentralize church decision-making and involve laity more in consultations.

During a closed-door meeting Friday with Rome priests, Francis asked that suggestions be sent to the diocese by April 12, the newspaper of Italy's bishops' conference reported.

Usually such consultations are restricted to a small cadre of high-ranking churchmen, with the pope making the final decision. But Francis has made a practice of polling ordinary Catholics, most significantly in the run-up to his 2014-2015 meetings on family issues.

The current vicar, Cardinal Agostino Vallini, is two years beyond retirement age. The vicar acts as the de-facto bishop of Rome given the pope's other duties.
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Second-placed Panionios beat visiting Larissa 1-0 in the Greek league to close within three points of front-runner Olympiakos on Saturday.

Striker El Fardou Ben Nabouhane scored in the first half with a close-range shot after an exchange with Masoud Shojaei that split Larissa's defense.

Olympiakos, which has lost its last three games, can widen its lead if it beats, or draws against, visiting Atromitos on Sunday.

Larissa is in 12th place.

Also, Iraklis snatched a 1-1 draw from visiting Panathinaikos, while Giannena and Panetolikos were held to a scoreless draw.
GENOA, Italy (AP) - Sampdoria secured a historic 1-0 win over Genoa on Saturday to complete the double over its city rival for the first time in 57 years.

Luis Muriel scored in the Derby della Lanterna in the 71st minute.

He stole the ball off Ezequiel Munoz, burst into the box, and placed his effort into the bottom right corner.

Genoa's Isaac Cofie, left, and Sampdoria's Luis Muriel vie for the ball during a Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Sampdoria at Luigi Ferraris stadium in Genoa, Italy, Saturday, March 11 2017. (Luca Zennaro/ANSA via AP)

Sampdoria moved into ninth place while Genoa remained 15th ahead of the rest of the weekend's fixtures.

Despite its inferior position in the table, Genoa had the better of a cagey first half and drew the first save of the match as Mauricio Pinilla tested Emiliano Viviani.

However, Samp came out after the break more determined and Muriel also hit the bar in the 50th.

Genoa's Armando Izzy, right, and Sampdoria's Luis Muriel vie for the ball during a Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Sampdoria at Luigi Ferraris stadium in Genoa, Italy, Saturday, March 11 2017. (Luca Zennaro/ANSA via AP)

Genoa's Ezequiel Munoz, right, and Sampdoria's Luis Muriel vie for the ball during a Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Sampdoria at Luigi Ferraris stadium in Genoa, Italy, Saturday, March 11 2017. (Luca Zennaro/ANSA via AP)

Genoa's Ezequiel Munoz, left, and Sampdoria's Bruno Fernandes vie for the ball during a Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Sampdoria at Luigi Ferraris stadium in Genoa, Italy, Saturday, March 11 2017. (Luca Zennaro/ANSA via AP)

Genoa's goalkeeper Eugenio Lamanna, left, blocks a ball as Sampdoria's Fabio Quagliarella, right, jumps up during a Serie A soccer match between Genoa and Sampdoria at Luigi Ferraris stadium in Genoa, Italy, Saturday, March 11 2017. (Luca Zennaro/ANSA via AP)
The world faces the largest humanitarian crisis since the United Nations was founded in 1945 with more than 20 million people in four countries facing starvation and famine, the UN humanitarian chief has said.

Stephen OBrien told the UN Security Council that without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death and many more will suffer and die from disease.

He urged an immediate injection of funds for Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and north-east Nigeria plus safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian aid to avert a catastrophe.

To be precise, Mr OBrien said, we need 4.4 billion dollars (3.6 billion) by July.

UN humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien in Somalia

Without a major infusion of money, he said, children will be stunted by severe malnutrition and will not be able to go to school, gains in economic development will be reversed and livelihoods, futures and hope will be lost.

UN and food organisations define famine as when more than 30% of children under the age of five suffer from acute malnutrition and mortality rates are two or more deaths per 10,000 people every day, among other criteria.

Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the United Nations, Mr OBrien said. Now, more than 20 million people across four countries face starvation and famine.

Mr OBrien said the largest humanitarian crisis is in Yemen where two-thirds of the population  18.8 million people  need aid and more than seven million people are hungry and dont know where their next meal will come from. That is three million people more than in January, he said.

The Arab worlds poorest nation is engulfed in conflict and Mr OBrien said more than 48,000 people fled fighting just in the past two months.

We are now facing the largest humanitarian crisis since creation of UN. 20M+ face starvation, famine  @UNOCHA https://t.co/LZxZ5HR9OQ pic.twitter.com/1w6rFMKSyj  United Nations (@UN) March 10, 2017

During his recent visit to Yemen, Mr OBrien said he met senior leaders of the government and the Shiite Houthi rebels who control the capital Sanaa, and all promised access for aid.

Yet all parties to the conflict are arbitrarily denying sustained humanitarian access and politicise aid, he said, warning if that behaviour doesnt change now they must be held accountable for the inevitable famine, unnecessary deaths and associated amplification in suffering that will follow.

For 2017, OBrien said 2.1 billion dollars (1.7 billion) is needed to reach 12 million Yemenis with life-saving assistance and protection but only 6% has been received so far. He announced that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will chair a pledging conference for Yemen on April 25 in Geneva.

The UN humanitarian chief also visited South Sudan, the worlds newest nation which has been ravaged by a three-year civil war, and said the situation is worse than it has ever been.

Urgent call to action  #biz can help avert a major humanitarian catastrophe by contributing to the crisis response: https://t.co/ZAIrm2Z7zT pic.twitter.com/QYyCsSOHrt  UN Global Compact (@globalcompact) March 10, 2017

The famine in South Sudan is man-made, he said. Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine  as are those not intervening to make the violence stop.

Mr OBrien said more than 7.5 million people need aid, up by 1.4 million from last year, and about 3.4 million South Sudanese are displaced by fighting including almost 200,000 who have fled the country since January.

In Somalia, which Mr OBrien also visited, more than half the population  6.2 million people  need humanitarian assistance and protection, including 2.9 million who are at risk of famine and require immediate help to save or sustain their lives.

What I saw and heard during my visit to Somalia was distressing  women and children walk for weeks in search of food and water. They have lost their livestock, water sources have dried up and they have nothing left to survive on, Mr OBrien said. With everything lost, women, boys, girls and men now move to urban centres.

In north-east Nigeria, a seven-year uprising by the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 people and driven 2.6 million from their homes. A UN humanitarian coordinator said last month that malnutrition in the north-east is so pronounced that some adults are too weak to walk and some communities have lost all their toddlers.
Thousands of women brought central London to a standstill to protest over violence against women and girls, days after International Womens Day.

Gathering for the 10th annual Million Women Rise march, women and young girls marched through Oxford Circus chanting Whatever I wear, wherever I go, yes means yes and no means no.

Making their way to Trafalgar Square, the protesters, including anti-female genital mutilation (FGM) campaigners, called for safe streets and no excuse for violent men.

Ann Samuel, a student from London who attended the march said: Its about awareness and women raising their voices and making themselves heard.

I think more needs to be done against domestic abuse, domestic violence for women. They say when one woman stands up, they stand up for all women. Services are being cut and we cant let that happen. It affects everyone one way or another so being here makes a difference.

Celebrating its 10th year, the march was formed to campaign against the global pandemic of male violence against women.

The protest follows International Womens Day and comes weeks after the Womens March, which drew millions to the streets worldwide.

(John Stillwell/PA)

Founder of the march Sabrina Qureshi praised the electric event. She said the march was necessary to change society, particularly as the movement was really underfunded.

The 44-year-old counsellor said: A lot of us have worked in domestic violence and sexual violence. It got to a point where I was getting paid to give a woman space, but that space afterwards  her healing  wasnt being supported by society or the government, because male violence is so normalised.

So we had to do something more, not just the therapy. We have to change society, hearts and minds.

(John Stillwell/PA)

Timed to coincide with International Womens Day, Ms Qureshi believes the march has come a long way on its 10th anniversary.

She said: It started off because on International Womens Day 10 years ago, there want much happening. It want really known and we felt that we had to make a critical mass.

We believe that we dont need (celebrities). Weve got women here that represent all walks of life, from all over England, from Bolivia, from Eritrea. Weve got variety. I believe that in our creativity and our self-organising, we will end domestic violence.
TAIPEI, March 10 (Reuters) - Taiwan authorities detained a Chinese student on Friday on suspicion of breaching national security laws, a court official said, in an unusual espionage case involving a Chinese student on the self-ruled island.

No details about the case could be released as it was classified, the official said.

China has never renounced the use of force to take back Taiwan, an island it regards as a wayward province. Chinese spy cases in Taiwan usually involve retired Taiwanese military officers.

Taiwan media identified the man as 29-year-old Zhou Hongxu from China's Liaoning province, citing his Facebook account.

Reuters could not verify the authenticity of the Facebook account, which included a growing number of comments being left by visitors accusing Zhou of being a Chinese spy.

"A man named Zhou Hongxu has been detained," Liao Chien-yu, a judge and spokesman for the Taipei District Court, told Reuters. Liao said the named suspect was the same individual being cited in local media reports.

Prosecutors asked that Zhou be taken into custody on suspicion of violating national security laws and the request was approved by the court, Liao said, adding that Zhou could be held for at least two months.

China cut off official communication channels with Taiwan since President Tsai Ing-wen took office last year to pressure her to concede that the island is a part of China. Her Democratic Progressive Party traditionally favours independence.

Taiwan's Education Ministry said it was looking into the case. The Mainland Affairs Council, which decides policy toward China, said the island would continue to welcome exchange students from China.

"Our policy is unchanged on mainland Chinese students coming to Taiwan for studies. Mainland Chinese students pursuing studies in Taiwan should respect our laws and their purpose should be to learn," it said. (Reporting by J.R. Wu and Carol Lee; Editing by Nick Macfie)
By Victoria Bryan

BERLIN, March 10 (Reuters) - As Berlin hosts the world's largest annual travel fair, the ITB, much talk at the show this year has been over the city's long-delayed new airport and a strike that paralysed air travel on Friday.

The German capital is currently served by two cold war airports - Tegel in the northwest and Schoenefeld to the southeast.

Berlin Brandenburg airport was due to open in 2011, but several opening dates have been postponed as the project faced red tape and technical problems with smoke ventilation systems, cabling and doors.

This week chief executive Karsten Muehlenfeld, who in January scrapped plans to open the airport at the end of 2017, was replaced by Engelbert Luetke Daldrup after a row over the firing of the project's construction head.

No new opening date has been set.

"It's such an embarrassment, they produce wonderful cars, their engineering is world class, the economy is strong, but they've got an airport they can't seem to build," said Tim Clark, the president of Emirates airline.

The city of Berlin hopes the new airport will bring more visitors from overseas, both for business and tourism.

"It would mean that the people who would like to visit us could come, for instance from China. People want to go to the nation's capital," Burkhard Kieker, head of tourism promotion group visitBerlin said.

But Ryanair chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs said it would be too small when it opens.

Berlin's two airports served 33 million passengers last year while the new international hub, due to replace both Tegel and Schoenefeld, is set for initial capacity of 27 million.

"London has six airports and capacity for 130 million, Paris has four airports and 110 million capacity and Berlin is saying we'll be ok with capacity of 27 million and one airport?" asked Jacobs.

Travel to Germany has also been hit by a 25-hour strike by ground staff at Berlin's two airports, which led to the cancellation of nearly 700 flights on Friday, affecting tens of thousands of passengers.

That left delegates at ITB, which sees more than 10,000 companies from 184 countries touting for business, scrambling to rebook their plane tickets, change their travel dates or switch to buses and trains to return home. (Additional reporting by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Julia Glover)
By Michael Hirtzer and Renita D. Young

March 10 (Reuters) - Wildfires devastated a Smithfield Foods Inc hog farm in Laverne, Oklahoma, killing at least several thousand pigs, company and local officials said on Friday.

The exact number of swine killed in the Oklahoma fire, which began on Monday, was not immediately known. Smithfield did not say how many died in the blaze, but said no workers were harmed.

The Smithfield farm housed about 45,000 sows, according to the company's website.

Luke Kanclerz, spokesman for the Oklahoma Forestry Services, said on Friday that several thousand hogs "were lost."

"Such a large area was impacted by these fires, it's taking time to collect information," he said. "There are no accurate numbers yet."

Kanclerz said state officials were at the Smithfield farm on Friday, collecting information on how many animals had died and other data.

"While we are deeply thankful that no employees were harmed in the fire, we lament the unnecessary loss of animals and the devastation to the surrounding community," Smithfield spokeswoman Kathleen Kirkham said.

Smithfield is the world's largest pork producer, raising about 16 million hogs per year. It is owned by Chinese-based WH Group Ltd.

Wildfires also killed about 1,900 hogs at two of Seaboard Foods' farms south of Perryton, Texas, company spokesman David Eaheart said.

About 1.2 million acres burned within 24 hours on Monday in the Texas Panhandle, northwestern Oklahoma and adjacent parts of southwestern Kansas, said National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration meteorologist Patrick Marsh. Smaller fires also burned in Colorado, Nebraska, and part of the Florida Everglades, he said.

Firefighters on Friday were still working to contain the blazes that killed at least six people.

Officials with Clark County, Kansas, estimated as many as 9,000 head of cattle are dead, according to a statement from U.S. Senator Pat Roberts, a Kansas Republican.

As crews dispose of animal carcasses, Oklahoma State Veterinarian Rod Hall said the economic impact to farmers could be compounded by a psychological blow. In Gray County, Texas, a woman and two men died on Monday, after they tried to move their cattle out of the fire's path.

"This is the way these people were making a living and they take their livestock seriously," Hall said. (Reporting by Michael Hirtzer and Renita D. Young in Chicago; Writing by P.J. Huffstutter; Editing by Tom Brown and Matthew Lewis)
By Ben Blanchard

BEIJING, March 11 (Reuters) - China's Industry Minister, Miao Wei, said on Saturday that investment across the Taiwan Strait can help achieve China's aim of achieving unification with the self-ruled island, and called for Taiwan to be more open to Chinese businesses.

China deems Taiwan a wayward province to be taken back by force if necessary, though proudly democratic Taiwan has shown no interest in being ruled by autocratic China.

Defeated Nationalist forces fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing a civil war with the Communists, but since a thaw began in the 1980s Taiwanese businesses have poured money into China, drawn by a common culture and language.

Chinese companies have also begun investing in Taiwan, but have run into problems since last year's election of Tsai Ing-wen as president from the Democratic Progressive Party, which espouses China's formal independence, a red line for Beijing.

China is deeply suspicious of Tsai, though she says she wants to maintain peace with China.

Speaking on the sidelines of the annual meeting of China's parliament, Miao said economic cooperation between both sides of the Taiwan Strait had made huge progress in the last three decades since the two began their detente.

China welcomes Taiwan chip companies to invest in China, he added.

"Of course, we hope that openness is two-sided, not one-sided," Miao said.

"We encourage and support Taiwanese companies to develop in the mainland, and at the same time Taiwan should have an even more open attitude towards mainland companies entering Taiwan," he added.

"This way industry on both sides of the Taiwan Strait can join hands to develop, which is good for both economies, and is also extremely helpful for promoting the unification of our two sides and achieving the aim of one China," Miao said.

While his comments were broadcast live on state television, the section about promoting unification was not included in the official online transcript of his news conference, an ommission that was likely a sign of China's sensitivity about being seen to use its companies to political ends.

Long-standing political tension between the neighbours has seen Taiwan put restrictions on Chinese investments in its prized semiconductor sector, with an eye to protecting intellectual property and trade secrets.

At least three major deals have fallen through since Tsai won last year's election in Taiwan. All of them involved Chinese state-backed giant Tsinghua Unigroup, which planed to invest three chip test and packaging firms based in Taiwan: ChipMOS Technologies Inc, Siliconware Precision Industries Co Ltd (SPIL) and Powertech Technology Inc.

In December 2015, while on the campaign trail, Tsai called Tsinghua Unigroup's investment plans a "huge threat" to the island's semiconductor industry. (Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
JAKARTA, March 11 (Reuters) - Indonesian police arrested nine suspected militants on the island of Sulawesi, a police spokesman said on Saturday, in an operation that media reported had targeted a group with affiliations to Islamic State.

With investigations continuing, police spokesman Martinus Sitompul declined to give further details, but media reported police had also seized bomb-making materials meant for use in attacks on police and official buildings.

The suspects were all members of Mujahidin Indonesia Timur, a group that had been controlled until last year by one of the first Indonesian militants to pledge loyalty to Islamic State.

Santoso had been the country's most-wanted men before he was killed in a gunbattle with police and military forces last July, and security officials have been expecting reprisal attacks.

Some members of his group were believed to be still hiding in Sulawesi's dense jungles.

Security experts say that Indonesia, an officially secular state with the world's largest Muslim population, faces a growing threat from supporters of Islamic State.

Last month, police killed a militant after he detonated a small bomb in the city of Bandung. Authorities said they were investigating whether he had links to a radical network sympathetic to Islamic State. (Reporting by Agustinus Beo Da Costa; Writing by Gayatri Suroyo; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
BEIJING, March 11 (Reuters) - China's two-child policy is showing "notable results" with the fertility rate expected to rise through to 2020, a senior health official said on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of China's annual meeting of parliament, Wang Peian, vice-minister of the National Health and Family Planning Commission said there were "notable results" in 2016, with the largest annual number of newborn babies since 2000.

Wang said 18.46 million live births were recorded last year, two million more than the average of the previous five years.

The total fertility rate also rose to 1.7 children per woman, compared to 1.5-1.6 between 2000 and 2015, he added.

China introduced its controversial "one-child policy" in the 1970s to limit population growth, but authorities are now concerned the country's dwindling workforce will not be able to support an increasingly ageing population.

In 2015, China said it would allow all married couples to have two children, to address those concerns.

Wang said the rising trend will continue through to 2020, during which the annual number of newborns is expected to range between 17 million and 19 million.

"We are very optimistic," he added.

China's birth rate, one of the world's lowest, was considered an achievement by the government, which was concerned about over-population, but has since become a source of anxiety for authorities worried about an ageing workforce. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Sam Holmes)
By Rozanna Latiff

KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 (Reuters) - Malaysia will in the coming days begin formal talks with North Korea on the return of nine Malaysians stranded in Pyongyang, the Southeast Asian nation's foreign minister said on Saturday, after they were barred from leaving the country amid a diplomatic spat.

The two countries have sparred over the Feb. 13 killing in Kuala Lumpur of Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, and this week the incident sparked a diplomatic standoff as both countries slapped travel bans on each other's citizens.

But Malaysian officials have since diffused tensions, saying ties with the reclusive state will not be severed.

Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said North Korea had indicated they were ready to start negotiations.

"They want to start talking. We do not know what their demands are - we need to figure out what we can do to get the best result," he told reporters on Saturday.

He said many countries had offered to mediate between the two but that "no countries will act as a third party" or mediator.

He added no time or location had been set yet for the official negotiations.

Two Malaysians - staffers at the United Nations - were able to fly out of Pyongyang earlier this week using UN passports, leaving nine behind, including three children.

Malaysia has accused the nuclear-armed state of masterminding Kim Jong Nam's murder and identified eight North Koreans, including three still in Kuala Lumpur, in connection with the killing.

North Korea has in turn criticised Malaysia's handling of the investigation.

Kim Jong Nam, who had been living under Beijing's protection in Macau and had been known to criticise his family's regime, was killed using the highly toxic VX nerve agent. The chemical is classified by the UN as a weapon of mass destruction.

Anifah said the government is in "constant communication" with the stranded Malaysians. He added that they had been offered support from other foreign missions in Pyongyang, including the provision of supplies from outside North Korea.

Malaysia's police chief on Friday officially confirmed the victim was Kim Jong Nam, something Pyongyang has denied.

Malaysia has so far refused to comply with North Korean demands to hand over the victim's body to the embassy. Foreign minister Anifah said on Saturday authorities were yet to discuss with their North Korean counterparts whether they would give the body over to the North Korean government or the family.

(Writing by Kanupriya Kapoor; Editing by Sam Holmes)
By Tom Perry and Kinda Makieh

BEIRUT/DAMASCUS, March 11 (Reuters) - A double bomb attack targeting Shi'ite pilgrims in Damascus killed at least 40 Iraqis and wounded 120 more who were going to pray at a nearby shrine, the Iraqi foreign ministry said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Saturday's attack, which the Hezbollah-run al-Manar TV station said had been carried out by two suicide bombers.

Footage broadcast by Syrian state TV showed two badly damaged buses with their windows blown out. The area was splattered with blood and shoes were scattered on the ground.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been supported in the country's war by Shi'ite militias from countries including Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon.

The attack took place at a bus station where the pilgrims had been brought to visit the nearby Bab al-Saghir cemetery, named after one of the seven gates of the Old City of Damascus.

The second blast went off some 10 minutes after the first at around 10 a.m. (0800 GMT), inflicting casualties on civil defence workers who had gathered to tend to the casualties, the Damascus correspondent for al-Manar told the station by phone.

The pilgrims were due to pray at the cemetery after visiting the Sayeda Zeinab shrine just outside Damascus, he said.

Sayeda Zeinab - the granddaughter of the Prophet Mohammad - is venerated by Shi'ites and her shrine is a site of mass pilgrimage for Shi'ites from across the world. It has also been a magnet for Shi'ite militiamen in Syria.

Iran has backed Assad in the conflict that erupted in 2011. The Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah is also fighting in support of Assad.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based organisation that reports on the war, said the number of dead was at least 44. The death toll was expected to rise due to the many serious injuries, it added.

Last June, Islamic State claimed responsibility for bomb attacks near the Sayeda Zeinab shrine. The last bomb attack in Damascus was in January, when a suicide bomber hit the heavily police Kafr Sousa neighbourhood, killing at least seven people. (Additional reporting by Maher Chmaytelli in Baghdad; Editing by Alexander Smith and Dominic Evans)
By Gram Slattery

SANTIAGO, March 11 (Reuters) - Chile's center-left Christian Democratic Party, one of the nation's largest, nominated Senator Carolina Goic on Saturday as its flag bearer for the November presidential election, adding one more candidate to an increasingly crowded field.

Goic, like the Christian Democratic Party writ large, is generally center-left on economic issues and center-right to conservative on social issues. While the 44-year-old senator tends to vote with center-left President Michelle Bachelet, parts of her party have dissented at times on issues such as strengthening labor laws and liberalizing Chile's strict abortion ban.

"It must be us, those who are in politics, who find a way to reconnect with the people, so that the people return to trusting," Goic told cheering supporters at the party's annual meeting in downtown Santiago.

Months ago, the presidential election in one of South America's wealthiest nations looked set to be a sleepy affair between two market friendly former presidents, conservative Sebastian Pinera and Ricardo Lagos of the center-left Party for Democracy.

High-profile members of various center-left parties, including the Christian Democrats, had said they might be willing to support Lagos in the left-leaning Nueva Mayoria bloc's primaries, forgoing the opportunity to put forth candidates of their own.

But since then, the 79-year-old Lagos has lagged severely in the polls, while Alejandro Guillier, a leftist ex-journalist, has surged in popularity.

As a result, parties in the Nueva Mayoria are nominating their own candidates, and centrist parties in the bloc, including the Christian Democrats, are considering skipping the coalition's primaries altogether.

According to the most recent polls, Pinera is leading the presidential race with Guillier a close second. A number of candidates including Goic, Lagos, and right-wing populist Manuel Jose Ossandon, are vying for a distant third.

In a speech at the party meeting on Saturday, Goic called for changes to Chile's public pension system, which many on the left say is insufficiently generous.

A lawmaker of Croatian heritage who represents the country's southernmost region, Goic also called for delegating more political decision-making from the capital Santiago to the regions.

In response to the speech, Chile's right shot back by tying Goic to Bachelet, who is deeply unpopular due to a slow economy, a raft of graft scandals, and congressional gridlock.

"There isn't any difference between the parliamentarian and President Bachelet," said Senator Juan Antonio Coloma of the right-wing UDI party.

(Reporting by Gram Slattery; Editing by Mary Milliken)
AFP - The incoming head of the US Environmental Protection Agency said this week that carbon dioxide is not the main driver of global warming, a position starkly at odds with the scientific consensus on climate change.

A known fossil-fuel ally, Scott Pruitts appointment to head the EPA -- a department he repeatedly sued as a state attorney general -- was deeply contentious.

I think that measuring with precision human activity on the climate is something very challenging to do and theres tremendous disagreement about the degree of impact, so no, I would not agree that its a primary contributor to the global warming that we see, Pruitt told CNBC.

We need to continue the debate and continue the review and the analysis, he added.

Pruitts stance runs counter to the scientific consensus that underpins last years landmark Paris Agreement, which saw more than 190 world leaders agree to lower emissions that lead to global warming.

It also jars with the position of agencies like NASA and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which have concluded that global warming is driven largely by increased carbon dioxide and other man-made emissions. Some 97 percent of scientists worldwide agree that human activity -- primarily the burning of fossils fuels like oil, gas and coal -- largely contributes to the sharp rise in the planets temperature in recent decades.

The past three years in a row have broken modern records for global heat.

Scientists quickly lashed out at Pruitt for his comments, describing his stance as dangerous and flat-out wrong, and calling on him to resign.

Pruitt has demonstrated that he is unqualified to run the EPA or any agency, said Kevin Trenberth, Distinguished Senior Scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. There is no doubt whatsoever that the planet is warming and it is primarily due to increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere from burning of fossil fuels.

The UNs Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is the most authoritative compilation of scientific research, has found that increased carbon dioxide has been the dominant source of global warming, said Kerry Emanuel, professor of atmospheric science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

This is followed by methane, halogenated gases, and nitrous oxide, all of whose concentrations have increased primarily from human activity, Kerry said.

Actually, scientists have known since the mid 1800s that carbon dioxide was a major greenhouse gas, said John Abraham, a professor in the school of engineering at the University of St. Thomas.
In Ayodhyas famous Shaheed Gali, where several pro-temple activists were killed in a police firing in 1990 (under Mulayam Singh as CM), shopkeepers are celebrating Holi and the BJP's victory with slogans of "Jai Shri Ram" and "Har Har Modi".

The scene is colourful and the mood upbeat  sweets and cups of tea are being offered and animated discussions are focussed on the massive victory. In another neighbourhood, a jubilant Anuj Das smeared in Holi colours is breathless while talking about BJPs landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh.

He is a first-time voter and is studying to become a priest in a temple in Ayodhyas Lakshman Ghat area.

Asked what he expects from the new government, he said: First of all they should ensure that youth get jobs. Those who deserve should get the reward and those who err should be punished."

'This is the best chance that the BJP will ever get to build a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya.'

When asked about what he wants for his birthplace, Ayodhya, Arun Das was forthright, Look, this is the best chance that the BJP will ever get to build a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya. They are at the Centre and now in the state. Therefore, I want them to act on it soon."

Dipendra Das is a 45-year-old "ascetic" in Ayodhyas iconic Hanumangarhi. He too is an avowed Modi-supporter.

Das feels people are being unfair in criticising Prime Minister Modi for not visiting Ayodhya even once since assuming office. When asked the same question regarding Ayodhyas development, he answered in a more balanced way.

What matters is that the Ayodhya dispute is resolved soon. It makes no difference if he comes here or not.

And what does he expect from the new government?

They should waive farmers' loans and take all communities together in developing Uttar Pradesh.

The Ayodhya dispute that Das refers to is the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute that has been the cause of the bloody riots after the demolition of the Babri Masjid by a militant mob led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in 1992.

At the time of the demolition, Uttar Pradesh was ruled by a BJP government under chief minister Kalyan Singh. The dispute essentially stems from the belief of VHP that claims that the Babri Masjid stood over the exact spot where Lord Ram was born.

The demolition of the medieval-era mosque was followed by bloody riots across the country in which according to official figures at least 2,000 people from both communities were killed.

The sordid episode permanently polarised the country. As of now, the matter is in the Supreme Court, which has to decide who owns the land on which Babri Masjid stood  the Hindus or the Sunni Waqf Board, a Muslim body in charge of religious properties.

Without the Supreme Courts assent, the dispute is unlikely to be settled even by the BJP, which rules the Centre and will soon form the government in Uttar Pradesh.

The Ayodhya seat itself has gone to BJPs Ved Gupta, who defeated the sitting MLA from Samajwadi Party by more than 30,000 votes.

Ayodhya, therefore, has spoken its heart by electing a recent "import" to the BJP. They want the dispute resolved so that the town can also see some much-awaited development. Ved Gupta joined the BJP only recently, he was earlier with the BSP.

However, not all are so hopeful of the BJPs ability to resolve the dispute. Some like Prakash Singh, a local businessman, are even suspicious of its intent to build a Ram temple.

We have the experience of 25 years, the BJP only uses the temple issue for its political gain. It is not sincere about Ram, Ayodhya or its people. Lets see if they will do something this time.

The opinion is shared by many others, but largely Ayodhyans are hopeful that this time its a different BJP under Modi, and it means what it says.

The Mahants or Abbots of various temples of Ayodhya too wish that the temple-mosque issue is resolved amicably. But most of them are aligned with different parties and therefore even after repeated attempts refused to come on record.

You have to wait, its too early to say anything as the matter is in court, said a prominent Mahant who didnt wish to be named.

Satyendra Das, the court-appointed mahant of the Ram-Janambhoomi temple, shared his views on the massive mandate for the BJP.

All parties keep raising the issue of Ram temple. This time, we are most hopeful that Ayodhya will see some development. It needs to be developed as a tourist centre and for that the Ram temple needs to be built. But its not simple as the matter is in the Supreme Court.

I ask him pointedly if he thinks that the BJP government will be able to resolve the dispute and build the temple.

If they dont do it this time, they will have no excuse left to give the people.

The priests and traders may be optimistic most about the Ram temple, but the wide sections of daily-wage earners, petty vendors and others from the marginalised sections are more worried about the fallout of a BJP government with such a brute majority.

Rajesh Kumar, who sells combs and other knick-knacks in the villages around Ayodhya and Faizabad, is already wary of the upper-caste domination that is associated with the BJP.

I voted for the BSP, but now we are nowhere. I hope Modiji will be able to protect us and his government will benefit us too.

His fear is shared by Amir, a Muslim youth in nearby Haibatpur village, too. BJP supporters are already taunting us. I hope that Modiji delivers his promise of peace and development. Thats all I can wish for.

In neighbouring Faizabad, Ramesh Chaurasiya, a long-time BJP supporter describes the victory as a mandate by the people for Ayodhyas development and Ram temples construction.

You must realise that we have given such a massive win because BJP leaders used to claim that they can deliver the Ram temple and development only when they are both in the state and at the Centre."

He added that he and others have made the BJP's dream come true and now they will not accept any more delays on both these issues.
 Aldersgate Methodist Church holds its annual St. Patricks Day Corned Beef & Cabbage Supper from 5 to 7 p.m. March 18. $10 adults, $8 seniors, $5 children younger than 12. 1500 E. Rio Road. (434) 973-5806.

 Antioch Baptist Church (Scottsville) is hosting a 23-week Bible study on the Book of Revelation from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesdays. 4422 Antioch Road. (434) 286-6315.

 Chestnut Grove Baptist Church (Barboursville) celebrates the anniversary of its choir, the Chestnut Grove Voices, with performances by The Gospel New Lights of Buckingham and Barry Douglas and The Word of Nelson, 3 p.m. March 19. 3510 Spotswood Trail. (540) 832-2796.

 Community Christian Academy hosts a fundraising sale of childrens toys and clothes, benefiting the academys scholarship fund, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Crosslife Community Church, 1410 Old Brook Road. (434) 973-9162.

 Crozet Baptist Church hosts a performance by the Crozet Community Orchestra, 4 to 5:15 p.m. March 19. 5804 St. George Ave. (434) 987-5517.

 Ebenezer Baptist Church celebrates its 125th anniversary with guest preacher the Rev. Harlie Wilson of Israel Baptist Church in Baltimore, 11 a.m. Sunday March 19. A catered banquet will follow at the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center, 233 Fourth St. NW. Reservations are requested. 113 Sixth St. NW. (434) 296-7158.

 First Presbyterian Church hosts the Oratorio Society of Virginia leading the Together in Song community sing of Morten Lauridsens Lux Aeterna, 4 p.m. March 18. A choral master class for those wishing to learn the music in advance will be held at 10 a.m. March 18. 500 Park St. Details and tickets are available at oratoriosociety.org. (434) 295-4385.

 Mechanicsville Baptist Church (Gordonsville) holds How Can I Be Blessed?, a Precepts Bible Study of the Sermon on the Mount, 12:30 p.m. and again at 6:30 p.m. each Tuesday. 10200 Louisa Road. (540) 832-3269.

 Mount Calvary Baptist Church (Ivy) celebrates Deacons Day with guest preacher the Rev. Tracie Daniel and the Combined Choir of Union Baptist Church in Scottsville, 3 p.m. Sunday. Lunch will be served following the morning worship service. 3045 Morgantown Road. (434) 825-3109.

 Operation Esther Circle hosts a dessert reception and presentation of the Inside China report on the Christian community in Mainland China at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. The circle also meets to fast and pray for stranded international students and missions at 5:30 p.m. Thursdays. Overseas Students Mission, 3045 Ivy Road. (434) 227-0811.

 Scottsville Presbyterian Church hosts a series of Lenten services at 6 p.m. each Tuesday through Lent. 148 Bird St. (434) 286-4062.

 Shiloh Baptist Church (Palmyra) hosts a missionary program with guest speaker the Rev. Bertha Thomas, 3 p.m. Saturday. 1620 Shiloh Church Road. (434) 589-4261.

 St. Pauls Memorial Church hosts an organ recital at 3:30 p.m. Sunday and a performance of Choral Evensong by Zephyrus at 4 p.m. Sunday. 1700 University Ave. (434) 295-2156.

 Zion Hill Baptist Church (Roseland) celebrates the fourth pastoral anniversary of Bishop Wayne D. Jackson and first lady Roynetta Jackson, 3 p.m. Sunday. 1178 Tanyard Road. (434) 277-9418.
Ebenezer Baptist Church will celebrate its 125th anniversary during the 11 a.m. worship service on Sunday, March 19.

Founded by the Rev. Alexander Truatt in 1892, the Charlottesville churchs first worship service took place at the Daughters of Zion Hall at the intersection of Fourth and Commerce streets.

On Thanksgiving Day of 1907, the church was destroyed by a fire. Eleven months later, the rebuilding of Ebenezer was completed at its present location at 113 Sixth St. SW.

A successive line of pastors over the years grew the church, keeping it financially sound and ordaining numerous pastors who went on to serve across Central Virginia. The current pastor, the Rev. Lehman D. Bates II, assumed leadership of the church in 2006 and undertook a massive renovation and restoration effort, made possible by a sizeable bequeathment from the estate of longtime member Sister Dorothea Robinson Lewis Lee.

Renovations included structural and security improvements and a fully equipped media center. The church was recognized in 2008 by the city of Charlottesville with the Herman Key Access to the Disabled Award for the installation of an elevator lift.

Outreach ministries have donated more than $3 million in medical supplies and equipment to the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, earning recognition from the dual-island nations minister of health in 2007 and from its premier in 2009.

The University of Virginia recognized the success of the ministry with the creation of an academic course on disaster preparedness in the West Indies, an annual overseas research study practicum for 30 undergraduates.

The churchs local outreach includes the Emergency Needs Bank, a broadcast of its Sunday morning worship services and participation in several community activism and support groups.

Sundays anniversary celebration will feature guest preacher the Rev. Harlie Wilson of Israel Baptist Church in Baltimore. Following the service, a catered banquet will be held at the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center at 233 Fourth St. NW. Details are available by calling (434) 296-7158.
The Rev. Susan Minasian has been named pastor of Sojourners United Church of Christ in Charlottesville.

Minasian, a Virginia native who previously served as chaplain at Franklin & Marshall College in Pennsylvania, begins her new position Sunday.

In her previous position at Franklin & Marshall, Minasian created the Interfaith Student Council, which brought together students of all religious backgrounds. In a statement issued by the church, she said she plans to increase the churchs involvement in local and national social movements.

In particular, the congregation is committed to racial justice, the environment, prison reform and LGBTQIA affirmation and rights, according to the statement.

Sojourners United Church of Christ is at 1017 Elliott Ave. More information is available at sojourners-ucc.org.
Really, we wouldnt wish this misfortune on anyone. But it does seem to be a form of poetic justice that a group of prison inmates recently became at risk for identity theft.

Blame in this case  and its pretty severe blame  lies with the Ohio correctional system.

The story goes like this:

Lonny Bristow is an ex-offender who routinely obtains lists of inmates at Ohio prisons through routine public-records requests.

This time, the state correctional system gave him not just the names of 2,000 inmates but also, mistakenly, their Social Security numbers.

By the way, did we mention that Mr. Bristow has been convicted of identity theft?

Hes through with crime, though, he told the Mansfield (Ohio) News Journal. Lifes too short for such misdeeds.

When he saw the SSNs, he said, he thought authorities were trying to set him up on suspicion of another crime. He took the list to the newspaper instead, likely on the assumption that getting the story out into the open would protect him.

But even he admits that its ironic for the information to be released to a former identity thief.

What about protection for the inmates? Ohio says its looking into identity theft monitoring services for them.
Last month was the 75th anniversary of Executive Order 9066, which led to the roundup, relocation and incarceration of virtually every Japanese American on the West Coast during World War II.

Three of these American citizens, Fred Korematsu, Gordon Hirabayashi and Minoru Yasui, are best known for their principled resistance to the internment, because in 1943 and 1944 the Supreme Court ruled against them and sent them to jail, ruling that the government had the authority to do so while completely avoiding the issue of the incarceration of U.S. citizens without due process.

Forty years later, the cases were reopened after the discovery of Justice Department documents that showed the government purposely withheld materials that would have helped the defenses cases.

The papers included intelligence reports that said Japanese Americans posed no threat to the United States. As a result, the federal courts in California overturned these convictions. All three men were awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Dont just take it from meyou can start your own fact-checking right here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment_of_Japanese_Americans.

President Gerald Ford issued a proclamation in 1976 which called upon the American people to affirm with me this American Promisethat we have learned from the tragedy of that long-ago experience forever to treasure liberty and justice The Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians that was established by Congress in 1980, blamed the incarceration on race prejudice, war hysteria and a failure of political leadershipits report, Personal Justice Denied was published in 1983.

In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill apologizing for the internment policy and awarding more than $3.2 billion (in 2016 dollars) in reparations to the survivors of the concentration camps. In a 2014 speech in Hawaii, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia unequivocally stated that the rulings were wrong.

The philosopher George Santayana famously wrote: Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

Last month, the Department of Homeland Security began implementing the Presidents Executive Orders 13767, entitled Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements, and 13768, entitled Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States. The rationale for these orders was that undocumented immigrants were rapists, gang members, murderers and a primary threat to public safety.

President Donald Trump has said thousands of Americans have been killed by immigrants living in the country illegally. PolitiFact has rated this claim as only Half True, because it is so vague and unsubstantiated that it leaves the reader to fill in the blanks. It is like saying, thousands of Americans have been killed by men.

The president underscored his oft-repeated campaign rhetoric by inviting family members of three individuals reportedly killed by these illegal immigrants to his first address to the Congress two weeks ago. The facts are that the crime rate among first-generation immigrantsthose who came here from another countryis significantly lower than the overall crime rate as well as with the second-generation.

Here in Virginia, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers started their efforts by waiting outside a church warming shelter in Fairfax County and arresting six men. None of these men have been identified as rapists, murders or gangsters. ICE does not seem to be targeting people who are a danger to public safety.

An El Paso, TX woman who was in a courthouse to get a restraining order against her domestic abuser was detained and deported. A DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipient who had recently moved to Seattle to provide for his 3-year-old child was detained.

A Phoenix, AZ woman without a criminal record was suddenly detained; her deportation came so quickly that her 14-year-old daughteran American citizenhad to pack her suitcase the next day. A Hispanic man in North Carolina who drove a friend to court as a favor so he could complete community service was asked if he had papers, and when he said no, he was detained.

Stories around the country have yet to identify any persons that fell into the categories that were used to justify these new, robust efforts.

ICE conduct does not enhance public safety. Anyone from these communities will now avoid contact with the police at all costs because alerting the police could get you deported. Splitting up families and demoralizing communities for these dubious reasons recalls for me images of jack-booted storm troopers.

The statue at the entrance to the National Archives is inscribed with What is Past is Prologue. Are more concentration camps in our future?

Like the executive orders of 75 years ago, Trumps executive orders were born of fear, ignorance and hostility. The governments actions are once again stripping people of their homes, their property, their jobs and their dignity. This is a stain on Americas proclamation of itself as a proud immigrant nation. America does itself no favors by repeating these historic mistakes.

Former Supreme Court Justice Tom C. Clark, who represented the U.S. Department of Justice in the wartime relocation, writes in the epilogue to the 1992 book Executive Order 9066: The Internment of 110,000 Japanese Americans:

The truth isas this deplorable experience provesthat constitutions and laws are not sufficient of themselves...Despite the unequivocal language of the Constitution of the United States that the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, and despite the Fifth Amendments command that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, both of these constitutional safeguards were denied by military action under Executive Order 9066.

The American way of life may be more fragile than we think. I have one thing to say to this president, his henchmen in the administration and the goons from ICE: Dont Tread on Me.
New Delhi: The CAG today said Air India "actually incurred" an operating loss of Rs 321.4 crore in 2015-16, even the airline maintained it had an operating

profit of Rs 105 crore based on generally accepted accounting standards.

While making it clear that there was no fudging of numbers, officials at the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) said figures reported by the airline are "actually under-reporting of loss".

Air India said the "operating profit of Rs 105 crore is as per the generally accepted accounting standards" and was calculated on the basis of reducing total expenditure excluding only the financing costs from total revenue.

"It is therefore the equivalent of earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) and includes provision of Rs 1,867.78 crore of depreciation. "Had depreciation been excluded from the expenditure the operating profit would have significantly increased," the airline's spokesperson said in a late evening statement.

Air India, which is staying afloat on taxpayers' money, reported an operational profit of Rs 105 crore in 2015-16  its first in more than a decade.

"For 2015-16 where Air India has reported an operating profit of approximately Rs 105 crore, the audit of Air India's standalone accounts for 2015-16 has been completed," Deputy CAG Pradeep Rao said.

About the operating profit which Air India has stated it has made in 2015-16, Rao said that in the view of CAG, "it is actually an operating loss of Rs 321.4 crore".

Based on the observations made by statutory auditor of the company and the subsequent check by the CAG, "We have found that they have not made provisions which they should have made in terms of standard accounting procedures," he noted.

Rao spoke about Air India's financial performance during the 2015-16 fiscal while briefing reporters about the CAG's performance audit on 'Turnaround Plan (TAP) and Financial Restructuring Plan (FRP) of Air India Ltd'.

The performance audit report, which covered the period from 2010-11 to 2015-16, was tabled in Parliament today.

CAG's observations also come at a time when concerns persist in certain quarters about the financial viability of Air India even as the government has been talking about last fiscal's operational profit to counter the concerns.
New Delhi: The government and the industry should share responsibility for creating an environment that fosters innovators and helps them take ideas to the market, eminent industrialist Ratan Tata said today.

"I believe responsibility of private sector is as much to encourage these innovations because it is outside sphere of a normal banking arrangement to see innovation being funded and so I believe under the auspices of the President and the Department of Science and Technology (DST) are looking at very important moment in our history," Tata said.

Tata was speaking at a round-table on start-ups, incubation and financing innovations at the Rashtrapati Bhavan today. The government and the industry should share responsibility for creating an environment in the country that

fosters and recognises innovators and helps them take ideas to the market, Tata said.

"It is great privilege and great honour to be here today as someone who is been in the start-up and the ... innovation sector and to be aware that today at the highest level in the country, we are receiving the kind of attention that we should

have received many many years ago," Tata said at the concluding day of the 'Festival of Innovations'.

Tata said start-ups and innovation are recent terms which connote enormous profits, billionaires but people often forget both innovation and start-ups have resulted in products and assistance for common good of man.

"India has been country which has created many innovators many of who have to go abroad to fulfil their dreams," Tata said. President Pranab Mukherjee also expressed concern over funding methodology for innovative start-ups and called for urgent need to rethink on design and structure of financial instruments to provide a fillip to grass root innovation movement.

Tata Trusts has joined the India Innovation Growth Programme along with the DST and aerospace company Lockheed Martin to focus on innovations addressing socio-economic challenges.

The IIGP is a public private partnership project that will invest in social and industrial innovations, train innovators in world class commercialisation strategies, offer support for incubation and assist in business development.

"I am very proud of initiative being done with Lockheed Martin," Tata, who is the chairman of Tata Trusts, said.
New Delhi: Karnataka Industries Minister R V Deshpande today called on Union Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh and demanded sufficient supply of raw material from the country's top iron ore producer NMDC Ltd to sponge iron units in the state.

Presently, small and medium scale sponge iron units in the state are struggling to survive in the absence of enough supply of raw material. They have also been hit by high power rate and lower prices of finished goods, he said.

"More then 75 per cent of the sponge iron units are shut down due to non-availability of raw material. The issue was discussed in detail with the Steel Minister," Deshpande told reporters after the meeting.

The NMDC has the capacity to produce low grade iron ore required for sponge iron makers. The local units need to be protected, he said. "I have asked the Steel Minister to take steps to ensure NMDC Ltd supplies sufficient quantity of iron ore to sponge iron units," he added.

At present, the NMDC has annual iron ore production capacity of about 30 million tonnes from 3 fully mechanised mines in Chhattisgarh and Karnataka. It's main focus is to produce top grade iron ore.

During the day, the Karnataka Minister met other central ministers Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Environment Minister Anil Dave.
New Delhi: China's Alibaba-backed Paytm today cited the outcry on social media as a reason for rolling back 2 per cent charge that it levied on money loaded in the wallet using credit cards.

"I will react faster. I won't say I will do anything different but I will react faster. Yesterday, we rolled 2 per cent charges for adding money to credit card on a Paytm wallet. Last night it was rolled back. In less than 24 hours," Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma said at a 'Knowledge Factory' event.

He was talking about a possible action plan of Paytm in case it faces a social media backlash like Maggi crisis in 2016 that led Nestle India destroy around 38,500 tonnes of the noodles.

"I want to give you the reason for roll back. Obviously, a lot of people were gaming. You know what the bankers were gaming was my problem. I want to tell bankers you have a problem for common consumers. I am giving you money any which way you can use," Sharma said.

He said people in India are gullible which is a big problem for any company to build business.

"People get into the quick concerns and outrage on them but at the same point of time you have to react for certain people in a larger sense so your system have to be changed. I just felt bad that we were really not charging people because we were giving money back, except we wanted to reduce that

money method. It was net net found out that we should let these (credit card gamers) guys block...hack with you," Sharma said.

He said those people may feel bad about when told that they "were doing fraud".

"In my mathematics it is called fraud," Sharma said. He said that Paytm's millions of cards were found to be very savvy and premium cards.

"They are intelligent people. Only intelligent people can take money from credit card to the bank and rotate for a 0.1 per cent interest. You know interest that they will save...Then Twitter is an amazing media. It sort of gives you myopia of that you have a public opinion while you have an opinion of thing which is in front of you and which may not be public opinion," Sharma said.

On this issue, the way company handles its image of being associated with Chinese firm, Sharma said, adding sometimes business is like a cultural bond between two countries and drives things which are on a positive side.

"I go out there (in China) and tell them that let me tell you one thing that somewhere if you could talk to Xi Jinping (Chinese President), please talk to him and get to us security council seat," he said.
New Delhi: The Delhi-Jaipur express highway would be built at a cost of Rs 18,000 crore, Union Road Minister Nitin Gadkari said today.

The advanced cement-concrete 225-km express highway will be the second in the country after Mumbai-Pune express highway and will pave the way for reaching Delhi from Jaipur in just one-and-a-half hour at 125 km/hour speed, the minister said after laying the foundation of road construction works in Dausa district today.

"Agra-Delhi is also considered express highway but it is not as per the standard. After Mumbai-Pune express highway, Delhi-Jaipur will be the second express highway in the country," he said.

He further said that the Haryana government has given alignment permission and if Rajasthan help in land acquisition and road alignment permission, the work can commence this year itself.

The Union minister said that Mumbai-Baroda express highway is also in the plan.

On the long-pending Ring-Road construction work in Jaipur, Gadkari said that a high-level meeting with all the stakeholders was held today and it has been decided that NHAI would complete the work in 15 months.

Gadkari said that in last three years, road construction work of Rs 50,000 crore has been done in the state and another Rs 50,000 crore would be spent in the next two years.

We need industries to create employment for youths.

Industrialists demand water, power and road. Without roads we cannot expect development. Rajasthan is progressing fast. We want industrialists to come, give employment to youths and make Rajasthan and its people prosper, Gadkari said.

The Union minister announced various road construction works in the state.

Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje said, "We will take 36 castes of the state together for the development of state.

With small efforts, we will make the state a better place to live. We hope that promises that Union minister has made will realise fast," Raje said.
Mumbai: India's forex reserves increased by USD 1.218 billion to USD 364.01 billion in the week ended March 3, helped by a rise in foreign currency assets, the Reserve Bank said today.

In the previous week, the reserves had shot up by USD 63.7 million to USD 362.79 billion. Foreign currency assets (FCAs), a major component of the overall reserves, rose by USD 576.9 million to USD 340.360 billion in the reporting week, RBI said.

Expressed in US dollar terms, they include the effects of appreciation/depreciation of non-US currencies, such as the

euro, pound and the yen held in the reserves.

After remaining unchanged for many weeks, gold reserves increased by USD 665.6 million to USD 19.914 billion, the apex bank said.

The special drawing rights with the International Monetary Fund declined by USD 9.8 million to USD 1.433 billion. India's reserve position with the Fund dipped by USD 14.6 million to USD 2.302 billion, RBI said.
Mumbai: On International Womens Day, filmmaker Aishwaryaa Dhanush performed Bharatnatyam dance recital at the UN headquarters, which received a lot of backlash on Twitter. As soon as a clip of her dance performance found its way on the internet, the filmmaker was met with a lot of negative remarks.

Seems like the trolling started after well-known Indian classical and contemporary dancer, Anita Ratnam took to her official social media account and called Aishwaryaas postures and performance disgraceful.

The pathetic state of Bharatanatyam at the UN, she captioned the snippet video of Aishwaryaas dance performance.

The pathetic state of Bharatanatyam at the UN. https://t.co/240ptkrejd  Anita Ratnam (@aratnam) March 9, 2017

Soon the video went viral and gave way to a lot of trolls. Later, Anita rubbished news of allegedly claiming that she choreographed Aishwaryaas stage show performance at the UN.

This news has come from a colleague in the US. I am neither a friend or an acquaintance of the person and have NOTHING TO DO WITH HER APPPEARANCE AT THE UN on WOMEN'S DAY on March 8th. I posted and commented on her abysmal performance and the video has since gone viral with numerous comments and shares on FACEBOOK and TWITTER, Anita wrote on her Facebook account.

Anita also thanked others for their support and views. She said, We have to find solutions and ways to combat such pathetic representations of Indias culture overseas..

People have been trolling Aishwaryaa on Twitter ever since the video went viral on the internet.

You can watch the video below and decide for yourself if Aishwaryaa's performance deserved the flak it received from people.
Mumbai: Salman Khan, Bollywoods quintessential enfant terrible, has often been levied serious allegations of assault and debauched misdemeanours.

However, one would never expect the hunk to have been at the receiving end of it.

Salman Khan is said to have had a volatile equation with ace director Subhaash Ghai. Though they are said to have had a serious fallout, the twosome later collaborated on Subhashs directorial, Yuvvraaj.

In an interview from 2002, when prodded on his alleged manhandling of his then girlfriend Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Salman Khan had put light into his sensational feud with Ghai.

No. I have never beaten her. Anyone can beat me up. Any fighter here on the sets can thrash me. That is why people are not scared of me. I do get emotional. Then I hurt myself. I have banged my head against the wall; I have hurt myself all over. I cannot hurt anyone else. I have only hit Subhash Ghai. Yet, I apologized to him the next day, he had said.

There are times when you do get out of control. That person hit me with a spoon, almost broke a plate on my face, pissed on my shoes and grabbed me by the neck. I could not control myself. And see what happened. Next day, I had to go and apologize, Salman concluded.

Well, this comes as a total shocker!
Well wishers from the film industry had come out to express solidarity with Suniel Shetty's family at the funeral and Chautha.

Mumbai: Actor Suniel Shetty on Friday shared an emotional post remembering his father, who passed away after prolonged illness.

Veerappa Shetty, 93, died on March 1.

The actor took to Twitter to thank his friends and followers for being by his side.

"Though I saw it coming, it still hurts. RIP Papa. Thank you all... Family friends and well wishers for your prayers," Suniel wrote along side a picture of footsteps on sea shore.

"Those we love don't go away. They walk beside us everyday," the photo read.

Shetty's funeral was held at Worli Crematorium here. Many from the industry including Amitabh Bachchan, son Abhishek, filmmaker Ramesh Sippy, actor Shreyas Talpade were present during the last rites.
Director Rahul, who earlier did films like Jithan 2, is all set with his next, another horror thriller, titled 1 AM. It has newcomers Mohan and Sashwatha in the lead and is about how the younger brother takes revenge on the culprits, who rape and kill his elder sister, with the help of a ghost.

Talking to DC, Rahul says, Most of the movie's cast including the hero, Mohan  who is studying VisCom  and crew (like cinematographer Arun and composer Karthik) are college students and it was a challenging task to work with the young talents. Yet another interesting thing is that the film is devoid of songs, romantic scenes and action sequences. I wanted to narrate it without any cinematic frills so that the seriousness of the subject is felt, Rahul says. Though he was not forthcoming about the actress who plays the ghost, we found out it was his heroine who has been portrayed as the one with supernatural powers.

He also shares a spooky experience of the films team while shooting in a bungalow near the beach on ECR  We did not know at that time that a family of five  a older couple, their son and daughter-in-law and their kid committed suicide in the opposite house to our bungalow. There's a scene where the heroine jumps from the terrace and dies. While I was waiting downstairs with the cameraman, Sashwatha was on the terrace. It was shot at night. As she looked down from the terrace, she saw a woman like figure standing between two pillars and just could not continue. Realising that something went wrong, I rushed to her and saw the same figure and it was spine chilling! After a few minutes, it vanished and we somehow finished the scene and left the venue.

Though he got a clean U certificate from censors, it may not get the tax exemption from the government, owing to its English title, but Rahul is unperturbed. My title is very apt for the script. And I am confident that it will be a hit, he says.
The working session between the Lao delegation and HCM City's officials (Photo: VNA)

At the session, Secretary of the Party Committee of Ho Chi Minh City Dinh La Thang highlighted growing relations between the city and Lao localities in recent years, affirming that the top Lao legislators working trip to HCM City contributes to strengthening these cooperative ties.

HCM City is now an economic, cultural and technical hub, and have friendship relations with many localities worldwide, he said, adding that the city is twinned with Vientiane capital and Champasak province.

HCM City is also cooperating with other Lao provinces, including Savanakhet, Xiangkhouang and Attapeu, in different fields such as politics, economy, trade, investment, culture and arts.

For her part, NA Chairwoman Pany Yathotou said her visit to Vietnam aims to promote relations between the two Parties, legislatures and people and tighten cooperative ties between HCM City and Lao localities.

She suggested HCM City enhance efficiency of cooperation with Lao localities, saying that this will help boost mutual understanding, solidarity and friendship between Laos and Vietnam.

During the meeting, Chairwoman of the municipal Peoples Council Nguyen Thi Quyet Tam briefed the Lao guests on the councils tasks and functions as well as its experience in developing the People's Council apparatus and improving the qualifications of its members.

Meanwhile, Permanent Vice Chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee Le Thanh Liem introduced the citys socio-economic development, policies on attracting foreign investment and supporting small and-medium-sized enterprises, and the outcomes of cooperation between HCM City and Lao localities.

Later on the same day, Chairwoman Pany Yathotou paid a call on former President Truong Tan Sang.

HCM City is the final stopover in the Lao top legislators six-day official visit to Vietnam. The Lao leader is scheduled to leave HCM City on March 10th evening./.
Actor Dulquer Salmaan, who was last seen in Mani Ratnams OK Kanmani, is definitely the heartthrob of the Malayalam and Tamil film industries. The talented actor currently has two Tamil projects in hand. These projects are in the pre-production stage and its still unknown when they will be commencing.

Meanwhile, we hear that Dulquer Salmaan has been roped in by director Ramana to do a cameo in his bilingual film, which has Dhansika in the lead role. A source close to the team confirmed the news and added, Dulquer will make a pivotal guest appearance in the movie, which he is yet to shoot. The makers are planning to announce further details about the flick with a first-look poster in the coming weeks. Director Ramanas yet-to-be-titled film will be made in both Tamil and Telugu. In the past, Dulquer has made guest appearances in Malayalam films, Ann Maria Kalipilanu and Parava. This will be his first ever cameo role in the Tamil film industry.
Rating:

Director: Michael Arun

Cast: Ajay, Abhinaya, Baby Sathanya, Kishore

At a time when child sex abuse is on the rise in various parts of the country, here is a debutant director Michael Arun who has come out with a film on the sensitive issue and the trauma the victims as well the parents suffer afterwards. Based on a true-life incident that took place in Bengaluru, Arun has also touched upon the issue of loopholes in our legal system pertaining to punishing the abusers, which are paltry.

Set in Bengaluru, the movie revolves around Aadhi (Ajay) who works in a garage and his wife Aadhira (Abhinaya) who runs a grocery shop and their eight-year-old daughter Bhoomi (Sathanya). Theirs is a happy family. On an ill-fated rainy day, while Bhoomi is on her way to school, a drunkard stranger sexually assaults her. As a result, she suffers multiple injuries and has to undergo a major surgery besides fronting the trauma. Even as her parents are shattered and go through the pain and rage, they are forced to get Bhoomi out of the media glare and at the same time seek justice for her.

Though Ajay and Abhinaya have put up a decent performance, one wishes both could have emoted intensively and conveyed the pain in a better manner  especially after they face the hard-hitting incident. Kishore as the police officer investigating the case is adequate. It was Baby Sathanya who gives a startling feat. In a well-written character, which is bold and sensible, the small girl pulls off her transformation from a traumatized victim to getting back to normalcy with effortless ease. Theres a scene which leaves a lump in our throats when the child asks her father innocently, Helping others is good thing, I was taught. I only went to help a man. Then why do people say I made a mistake?.

Kudos to the director for handling the disturbing subject with lots of sensitivity and not resorting to cinematic liberties. He has also imparted a message on how parents should react and treat the abuse victim in a compassionate manner. Though the film moves at a slow pace, it was never preachy at any point of time. Music and cinematography aid the narration. In the climax, after few trials, the court sentences the criminal only to 14 years in prison, which the parents disapproves and they want him to be hanged. But they are helpless because of the ambiguities in our Indian laws.

There may be a few glitches, but nevertheless, it is an honest attempt from Arun. It sticks to you for a while even after leaving the cinema hall.
Bengaluru: Its a festival of colour that has people happily roaming the streets with painted faces and clothes. But the Holi celebrations have a downside to them as the artificial colours sprayed on people in fun are loaded with toxic chemicals, making them vulnerable to skin disease. Sadly, its not just humans who are affected , but stray dogs too.

Going by a National Council of Pet Population Study and Policy, 15 to 20 per cent of dogs nationwide fall prey to some disease or the other during Holi and one out of every 10 dogs dies every year as a result of the colours used.

Health experts are not surprised as the manufacturers use lead oxide to produce the black colour spray, copper sulfate for the green and aluminum bromide for the silver, to name a few. Some powder colours also have tiny glass particles mixed in with them to add shine. The dogs are extremely vulnerable during this time. People need to understand that playing Holi can really harm animals, says Ms Rachel of the Haven Welfare Animal Trust in the city.

The NGO claims to have come across stray dogs with severe eye infection as a result of their contact with the colours. The infection makes their eyes water constantly, blurring their vision. And some dogs end up panting and drooling due to ingestion of these toxic chemicals, she adds. Besides dogs, stray cows and bulls also fall ill during Holi , according to her. "The cows and bulls drink from the drainage and puddle water that are mixed with these colours," reveals Ms Ritika Goel, founder of the Bengaluru chapter of People For Cattle India (PFCI).

Animal activists warn that if synthetic colours are left on animal skin for days they can cause blindness, skin and gastrointestinal infections and even the rare death. Most of these synthetic colours have industrial chemicals that are extremely harmful to both humans and animals. Worse, dogs lick their skin and in the process consume these chemicals, says Dr. Suranjana Ganguly, a veterinary doctor from Mysuru,who has treated diseased dogs with patches of missing fur.
Students display some of their cursive writing work and exercises at P.S. 166 in the Queens borough of New York. (Photo: AP)

New York: Cursive writing is looping back into style in schools across the country after a generation of students who know only keyboarding, texting and printing out their words longhand.

Alabama and Louisiana passed laws in 2016 mandating cursive proficiency in public schools, the latest of 14 states that require cursive. And last fall, the 1.1 million-student New York City schools, the nation's largest public school system, encouraged the teaching of cursive to students, generally in the third grade.

"It's definitely not necessary but I think it's, like, cool to have it," said Emily Ma, a 17-year-old senior at New York City's academically rigorous Stuyvesant High School who was never taught cursive in school and had to learn it on her own.

Penmanship proponents say writing words in an unbroken line of swooshing l's and three-humped m's is just a faster, easier way of taking notes. Others say students should be able to understand documents written in cursive, such as, say, a letter from Grandma. And still more say it's just a good life skill to have, especially when it comes to signing your name.

That was where New York state Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis drew the line on the cursive generation gap, when she encountered an 18-year-old at a voter registration event who printed out his name in block letters.

"I said to him, 'No, you have to sign here,'" Malliotakis said. "And he said, 'That is my signature. I never learned script.'" Malliotakis, a Republican from the New York City borough of Staten Island, took her concerns to city education officials and found a receptive audience.

Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina distributed a handbook on teaching cursive writing in September and is encouraging principals to use it. It cites research suggesting that fluent cursive helps students master writing tasks such as spelling and sentence construction because they don't have to think as much about forming letters.

Malliotakis also noted that students who can't read cursive will never be able to read historical documents. "If an American student cannot read the Declaration of Independence, that is sad."

It's hard to pinpoint exactly when cursive writing began to fall out of favor. But cursive instruction was in decline long before 2010, when most states adopted the Common Core curriculum standards, which say nothing about handwriting.

Some script skeptics question the advantage of cursive writing over printing and wonder whether teaching it takes away from other valuable instruction. Anne Trubek, author of "The History and Uncertain Future of Handwriting," said schools should not require cursive mastery any more than they should require all children to play a musical instrument.

"I think students would all benefit from learning the piano," she said, "but I don't think schools should require all students take piano lessons."

At P.S. 166 in Queens, Principal Jessica Geller said there was never a formal decision over the years to banish the teaching of cursive. "We just got busy with the addition of technology, and we started focusing on computers," she said.

Third-graders at the school beamed as they prepared for a cursive lesson this past week. The 8-year-olds got their markers out, straightened their posture and flexed their wrists. Then it was "swoosh, curl, swoosh, curl," as teacher Christine Weltner guided the students in writing linked-together c's and a's.

Norzim Lama said he prefers cursive writing to printing "'cause it looks fancy." Camille Santos said cursive is "actually like doodling a little bit." Added Araceli Lazaro: "It's a really fascinating way to write, and I really think that everybody should learn about writing in script."
Hyderabad: Kamatipura police arrested a 48-year-old head constable for kidnapping and raping a minor girl. The suspect, Mohammed Mahboob, who was posted at Kamatipura police station, claimed that he intended to marry the girl with the permission of her guardians.

Mahboob is already married and has five children. He claimed that since his wife was seriously ill he wanted to marry the girl. Police rescued the 15-year-old girl from his house in Shastripuram. As the girl was a minor police booked Mahboob on rape and kidnap charges.

Mahboob met the girl, who lives near the police station, in December 2016. He took the girl to Mumbai and other places and lived with her.

As her parents had passed away long back her brothers and a sister were looking after her. They were also ready to marry off the girl to the cop. They forged a birth certificate to prove that the girl was 18 years old. But a medical test and school certificate showed the girl was just 15, said south zone DCP V. Sathyanarayana.

On March 2, he took the girl to his house where he lived alone. The girls family supported the head constable as he had told them that he would marry her. They allowed him to take her to shrines in Gulbarga and other cities in Karnataka and Mumbai, inspector S. Sudarshan said.

Mahboobs daughters marriage is scheduled to take place soon. He was planning to marry the minor girl after the wedding of his daughter.
The authorities of the Dumdum Central Jail, where the 30-year-old Rather is lodged in solitary confinement, however, shifted him to the Presidency jail. (Representational Image)

Kolkata: A Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist Muzaffar Ahmed Rather, who is on death row, has been on a hunger strike for the last two days demanding a TV set and 'good food' in his solitary cell.

The authorities of the Dumdum Central Jail, where the 30-year-old Rather is lodged in solitary confinement, however, shifted him to the Presidency jail.

The jail authorities also claimed that the LeT terrorist withdrew his fast following his shifting to the Presidency Jail.

"For the last few days, he has been demanding a television set and good food. Under the rules, a prisoner, who is on a death row, cannot be provided with a TV set. With regard to food, we provide quality food to all prisoners. We tried to convince him, but he was adamant," State Correctional Department Minister Abani Mohan Jordan told PTI.

So, he went on a hunger strike, the minister said adding, he had been since shifted to the Presidency Jail.

A jail official claimed that these were standard tricks adopted by Maoists and other dreaded criminals in a bid to pressure jail authorities to give into their demands.

Muzaffar Ahmed Rather, a resident of Anantnag in Jammu and Kashmir, and two other terrorists, both Pakistani citizens, were arrested by the BSF in 2007 from the India-Bangladesh border at Petrapole.

All three were sentenced to death this January by a court in Bongaon in West Bengal's North 24-Parganas district for waging war against the country.

According to police sources, the trio had plans to launch terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, but before they could carry it out they were caught and handed over to the police.
As Rakesh had been staying in the area for around six months he was familiar to the girl and her parents. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: An eight-year-old girl was lured with chocolates and sexually assaulted by a 19-year-old bike mechanic at LB Nagar on Thursday night. Police detained the suspect Rakesh Reddy.

Police said Rakesh Reddy was working in Adityanagar and the girl belongs to the neighbourhood. As Rakesh had been staying in the area for around six months he was familiar to the girl and her parents.

On Thursday evening, when her parents who are daily wage labourers were late in returning from work, she started playing in front of her house. Rakesh called the girl and offered to buy chocolates for her. He then took her to an isolated place on his bike and assaulted her sexually. Later, he dropped her home. When her parents came back she told her mother about the incident. The parents filed a complaint with the police. LB Nagar police registered a case of rape and under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. We sent the girl for medical examination and detained the suspect, inspector P. Kasi Reddy said. The Balala Hakkula Sangham blamed exposure of youth to porn for the incident.
Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat gestures during the Army's annual press conference in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

Chennai: Army Chief General Bipin Rawat appreciated the force for the "good work" done by it during the December 2016 Cyclone 'Vardah'. He lauded the army personnel during his visit to the Headquarters Dakshin Bharat Area in Chennai.

Army Chief General Rawat was briefed on the assistance provided by the Army during the Vardha Cyclone and the rescue and relief operations undertaken by it, a Defence release said.

"General Bipin Rawat appreciated the good work done by the Army during Vardah cyclone and expressed satisfaction on the welfare initiatives being undertaken by the Formation," it said.

Cyclone Vardah had made landfall in Tamil Nadu on December 12, 2106, severely affecting the northern districts of Chennai, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram.

The Army chief was on a two-day visit to Chennai on March 9 and 10, the release said.

He was received by Lieutenant General RK Anand, General Officer Commanding, Dakshin Bharat Area who briefed him about the training activities being carried out at various Regimental Centres.

Army Chief General Rawat was also briefed on various welfare measures being undertaken for serving and retired army personnel of the five southern states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala, it said.
Kishor, one of the key poll strategists for the Congress in Punjab, congratulated Amarinder Singh for the party's victory in the state.

New Delhi: It was not just social engineering on the basis of caste, sub-caste and religion that played a key role in just-concluded assembly polls, but social media engineering and data analysis done by various poll strategists also played their part in a big way.

While the famous political strategist Prashant Kishor had to eat the humble pie in Uttar Pradesh, where he worked for the SP-Congress alliance, he tasted success in Punjab where he advised the winning side.

A number of other poll strategists were also involved with various parties behind the scenes, while thousands of IT geeks worked day and night including for individual candidates and political outfits -- creating and driving 'trends' on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms.

They also advised the parties and their candidates on how to reach out to the voters in the offline world, including for the leaders' outreach programmes through 'Khat Sabhas' and over coffee and lassi meet-ups.

Parties like AAP are largely dependent on their own cadres, while BJP is said to have gone for own cadre people as well as other 'volunteers'.

These strategists are already said to be preparing for the Lok Sabha elections in 2019 as well as upcoming state polls.

Kishor, one of the key poll strategists for the Congress in Punjab, congratulated Amarinder Singh for the party's victory in the state.

He also mentioned that AAP was one the toughest competitors his team has faced.

"Congratulations to @capt_amarinder and the entire Punjab Congress for a stupendous win!"

"To all AAP volunteers and grassroots workers, you were one of the toughest competitors we faced! @ArvindKejriwal @AAPPunjab2017," said tweets on Kishor's organisation @IndianPAC, which, however, is not a Twitter-verified handle.

Congress has emerged victorious in the assembly elections after ten years of rule by the SAD-BJP combine.

Avinash Singh, Senior Consultant and Head of Punjab Cell of Oakland Brigs, said their assessment showed multiple gaps left by the political parties in the narrative of Punjab.

"We gave a cumulative strategy, under the central message that Punjab needs a Captain -- 'Punjab Da Captain'," he said.

Oaklnad Brigs is a political and corporate image strategy firm.

The message 'Punjab Da Captain' has put the strengths of Captain Amrinder upfront in the minds of people against the rather fractured messaging of opponents while rest was local maneuverings, Avinash Singh said.
New Delhi: The government today disfavoured in the Rajya Sabha passing of any law to declare countries as 'Sponsor of Terrorism' after which a private member's bill brought with Pakistan in mind was withdrawn.

The 'Declaration of Countries as Sponsor of Terrorism Bill', moved by Independent member Rajeev Chandrashekhar, got support from several members cutting across party lines but the government said there was no need for such a legislation.

The bill provided for declaring any country as State sponsor of terrorism and withdrawing of economic and trade relations with such a country. It also provided for creating legal, economic and travel sanctions for citizens of such a country and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

After a debate, Minister of State for Home Gangaram Ahir said the government has taken many steps to deal with terror.

"The existing laws already have sufficient provisions for dealing with citizens of a terrorist country," he said.

Mr Ahir asked Chandrasekhar to withdraw the bill which the Independent member did.

Earlier, participating in the debate on the bill, Congress member Ananda Bhaskar Rapolu raised the issue of recent killing of an IT engineer Srinivas Kuchibhotla in the USA and said "The bereaved wife asked 'whether I belong to this land?' It has awaken the whole world."

Mr Rapolu also mentioned a Kashmiri girl Insha Mushtaq who was blinded by pellets fired by security forces and still attended the school.

Nominated member KTS Tulsi said, "I am not opposed to the bill but I have my doubts. We need to examine the practical utility of declaring Pakistan as terror state."

Samajwadi Party member Javed Ali Khan said, "Though I support the Bill, it should also include Israel in the list as it is sponsoring terrorsim in the Middle East."

Supporting the Bill, YSRCP member Vijay Sai Reddy said Pakistan has dual policy on terrorism - bad terrorist and good terrorist. Those who attack Pakistani establishments are bad terrorists and those who attack Indians are good terrorists.

Congress member Abhishek Singhvi suggested some changes in the bill, saying some actionable points should be included in it.

BJP member Subramanian Swamy suggested that India should again intervene in Pakistan like it had done earlier in East Pakistan which led to creation of Bangladesh. "Time has come for taking a decision," he said.

Another BJP member Mahesh Poddar said, "We should call a spade a spade."

His party colleague Swapan Dasgupta said everybody knows what Pakistan is. "The bill is wonderful but it offers nothing," he added.
Chairwoman of the Lao National Assembly Pany Yathotou (L) and other Lao officials visit a submerged forest in Dat Mui commune, Ngoc Hien district of Ca Mau province (Photo: VNA)

During the trip from March 5, the parliamentary delegations of Vietnam and Laos had talks. The countries top legislators witnessed the signing of a cooperation agreement between the two NAs and another between the two NA Offices for 2017-2021.

The Lao delegation paid cordial visits to Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Tran Dai Quang, and met with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

They also received representatives of the Vietnam-Laos Friendship Association and the National Liaison Committee of Vietnamese voluntary soldiers and military experts in Laos.

Pany Yathotou also co-chaired a workshop on management decentralisation from central and grassroots levels in Laos and Vietnam.

At the meetings, the two sides considered Yathotous visit as a contribution to the special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two Parties, States and NAs.

They agreed to enhance coordination to effectively carry out cooperation documents, programmes and plans.

They concurred in maintaining mutual visits by their senior leaders, increasing delegation exchanges, and stepping up information sharing and cooperation to deal with emerging issues in a timely manner.

On this occasion, the Lao delegation paid tribute to late President Ho Chi Minh and visited Ho Chi Minh City, Ca Mau province and Bac Lieu province./.
Karunya Nagar police have sent the body of the deceased to the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) for post-mortem and further investigations are on. (Representational image)

Coimbatore: An Engineering student was drowned to death in a water tank at the Isha Yoga Centre on the outskirts of Coimbatore in the wake of some medical complications on Friday.

Police said the deceased, Ramesh, 20, of Kannigapuram Kottaimedu in Thiruvannamalai district and studying in a private Engineering college in Vellore, had set out along with 40 others of the same college on a trip to Ooty and on way visited the Isha Yoga Centre.

While the students were taking a bath in the Suriya Kundam holy tank inside the Isha centre premises, Ramesh, unfortunately, got drowned in the tank. His friends pulled him out and rushed him to a nearby hospital, but doctors there declared Ramesh brought dead.

Karunya Nagar police have sent the body of the deceased to the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) for post-mortem and further investigations are on.

An administrative official of Isha Yoga Centre told Deccan Chronicle, Ramesh suffered an epileptic attack as soon as he got into the tank; the medical complication is the reason for his death.

We have placed a caution board near the tank that devotees with medical complications like epileptic and cardiac problems should not enter the tank, but Ramesh has ignored it.
Lucknow: With the Bahujan Samaj Party (BJP) leading in just 18 seats out of 403 in the Uttar Pradesh elections on Saturday, party chief Mayawati lashed out at the Centre, claiming that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) had been tampered with.

Either the EVMs did not accept votes other than for BJP, or the votes of other parties have gone to BJP in the EVMs, Mayawati said in a press conference immediately following the results.

The BJP did not field a single Muslim candidate. Yet, most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to BJP. This makes it evident that voting machines were manipulated, she claimed.

I have written to Election Commission in this regard. People no longer have faith in EVM machines, Mayawati alleged.

The BSP chief claimed that a similar complaint was made by her partymen in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls but she had preferred to stay silent thinking it was Modi wave and anti-Congress sentiment.

Mayawati said this trend will have a "very bad bearing" on democracy in the country and will amount to crushing it.

The BSP chief challenged PM Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah to once again conduct the election on a paper ballot if they were so sure of their victory.

The BJP soared to victory in the Hindi heartland on Saturday, leading in over 300 seats in what may turn out to be a three-fourths majority when counting is over. The SP-Congress alliance of CM Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi put up a poor show, with leads in only 67 seats.
Imphal: Anti-AFSPA activist Irom Sharmila, who in August last year ended her 16-year long fast to take on political stalwarts in Manipur, on Saturday failed to take her political fight forward following defeat in the state Assembly elections.

The 44-year-old rights activist had contested the Assembly polls from Thoubal Assembly against three-time Congress veteran and Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh. She could, however, manage to secure only 90 votes.

After her defeat on Saturday, Sharmila declared that she would quit politics and said, people did not support me.

When Sharmila, in 2000, took a vow not to eat, drink, comb her air or look in the mirror till her objective was met, she drew worldwide attention to the Armed Forces alleged excesses while dealing with insurgencies. She was hailed not only in Manipur but across the country.

However, the public and civil society groups abandoned her when she put an end to the hunger strike 16 years later, on August 9 last year, and declared her decision to join politics to continue her war against the unpopular law that the Centre endorses as a means of fighting those who take up arms against the state.

From her family to close friends and even neighbours, Sharmila faced protests by locals and also reported threats by some militant groups. She had, however, remained unaffected by the peoples response and was firm on her decision to enter politics. She went on to launch her party  Peoples' Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) on October 18.

Manipur's 'Iron Lady' had been campaigning doggedly for scrapping AFSPA that was clamped in the northeastern state after 10 civilians were killed by security forces in 2000.

However, her firm stance was not enough for her to find a successful path to politics. After facing rejection from the public, she was faced with another hurdle  monetary support to contest the elections.

While filing her nomination ahead of the Assembly elections, the rights crusader declared that she has only Rs 2.6 lakh in her possession. In her affidavit, Sharmila stated that she has only Rs 10,000 in cash at hand and Rs 2.5 lakh in a bank account. Her affidavit claimed that she does not possess any gold, land, home or a vehicle.

Ahead of the elections, Sharmila had also revealed that the BJP had offered her Rs 36 crore to contest the elections on the saffron party's ticket after she ended her fast, a claim denied by the party.

In order to meet the partys monetary requirements, PRJA took to crowdfunding online to raise funds. As of February second week, her party had raised Rs 4.5 lakh through crowdfunding. The party also opted for door-to-door campaigning to save money. Sharmila and her party candidates cycled through the streets of the three constituencies they were contesting elections from and met people.

Despite ensuring transparency in the election campaigning and sacrificing a major part of her life for a social cause, people of her state did not come out in her support.

This has proved that self-sacrifice is not enough to win elections. Mass movements and an organisation with massive power plays a pivotal role in capturing power.
Chandu Chauhan being received by BSF personnel at the Attari border. (Photo: PTI)

Mumbai: Soldier Chandu Babulal Chavan, who had inadvertently crossed the Line of Control (LoC) after the Army's surgical strike in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) last year, on Saturday returned home in north Maharashtra.

Chandu, who hails from Borvihir village in Dhule district, reached his village to a rousing reception by his family and the locals.

His brother Bhushan Chavan said it will be a happy Holi for the family as Chandu has returned after six months.

The 22-year-old jawan from 37 Rashtriya Rifles had gone missing on September 29 last year after he inadvertently crossed the LoC and stepped into the Pakistan soil. The Pakistan Army had immediately took him into captivity.

Unable to bear the agonising news, Chandu's shocked grandmother, Leelabai, died of cardiac failure on October 1.

Leelabai had brought up and looked after Chandu after he lost his parents when he was just a toddler.

"I will perform the ritual of 'Asthi Visarjan' of my grandmother after Holi," Chandu said.

Pakistan authorities had on January 21 handed him over to India. After his release, Chavan had told his family that he was brutally tortured and regularly injected with drugs during his four-month captivity.

His brother Bhushan, who is also an army jawan posted at Jamnagar in Gujarat, had claimed his brother had multiple injuries on his body, especially on the fingers of his right hand.

Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre accompanied Chandu till his village Borvihir today.

"I am happy that Chandu Chavan has been reunited with his family," Bhamre said.
Rao was speaking on the Motion on Address by the Governor.

Hyderabad: A bill aimed at providing reservation to backward sections among Muslims would be passed in the ongoing Budget session of Telangana Legislative Assembly, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said in Hyderabad on Saturday.

"The bill would be passed in the Budget session, which would conclude this month end, after which the government would urge the Centre to take steps for its implementation as happened in the case of Tamil Nadu," Rao said in the Legislative Assembly.

Rao, who did not announce the details of the proposed bill, said the state government would urge the Centre to include it in the 9th Schedule of the Constitution (as in the case of Tamil Nadu).

This inclusion is required in view of the 50 per cent cap on the percentage of reservations. The bill would be made in the light of reports of commissions, appointed by the state government on Muslims, backward classes and others, Rao said.

The TRS government's proposal had evoked a sharp response from the BJP, which took exception to provision of reservation on communal basis.

The state government, however, had clarified that the reservation is proposed not on the basis of religion, but for the upliftment of backward sections among Muslims.

Rao was speaking on the Motion on Address by the Governor.

He hit out at Congress, BJP and other Opposition parties, who staged a walkout in the House earlier in the day in protest against the suspension of two TDP members for allegedly interrupting the Governor's address to the joint sitting of the legislature yesterday.

The CM said he would quit "in five minutes" if any exaggerations or untruths were found in the Governor's address.

Charging that the Opposition parties were making 'baseless allegations' against the TRS government and also stalling development, he said the government would take steps, including legal, to take tough action against those who will fail to prove their allegations.

In his comprehensive reply, he spoke on a number of schemes and initiatives of the government, including the resolve to provide one lakh government jobs by 2019.
Lucknow: Our cycle was tubeless. It was impossible to pump air into its wheels, joked Samajwadi Partys outgoing chief minister Akhilesh Yadav after his brutal defeat at the hands of the BJP in the 2017 Assembly elections.

That light-hearted retort before the media Saturday evening was a telling comment on how miserably Akhilesh had gone wrong these elections  a process that started with a very public fight with his father and party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, then meandering into a kiss-of-death alliance with the Congress.

To top it, Akhilesh had hinted after the exit polls that he was willing to take the support of arch rival Mayawati to keep the BJP out. A complete reversal of stand!

The partys dismal performance in the 2017 Assembly elections has challenged Akhileshs carefully nurtured image of an enforcer of credibility and a driver of change.

He will now be remembered as the chief minister BJP demolished in its biggest ever win in the countrys most prestigious electoral fight. The BJP and its allies  albeit led by the presently impregnable charisma of Narendra Modi  notched up a 300+ tally in the 403-seat Assembly.

What went wrong for Akhilesh?

Was it the alliance with the Congress?

Akhilesh sent out a few barbs at the BJP at the post-result media meet  I created world-class expressways, but I guess the people want bullet trains  but defended his decision to go with the Congress. It was a good thing, he said, that too young leaders went out to the people asking for votes.

But to the voter that sent out one message  Akhilesh tied up with the Congress to consolidate the Muslim vote that accounts for nearly 20 per cent of the population. This consolidated the Hindu mandate.

Akhilesh ended up conceding the Congress demand for 105 seats, a figure that vastly overrated a party that had performed poorly in the state in 2012 and had subsequently shrunk in national politics. The Congress proved a dead weight at the end.

But then Rahul Gandhi is hardly ever blamed for anything by his party and senior leaders have already insulated him from this defeat.

Akhilesh however will feel the heat and so will his goodwill among party delegates who he successfully pulled to his camp during the prolonged and public spat with his dad who was dead opposed to any alliance with any party, let alone the Congress.

Shoving his dad into the sidelines may now look like the 43-year-old was precocious -- too intent to make a mark on his own, too independent to choose his own friends.

Though he still enjoys goodwill among leaders and the people as a clean, young, pro-development leader, Akhilesh will have to put back the training wheels on his cycle and introspect where he went wrong.
Governor E S L Narasimhan addressed a joint sitting of the Legislature yesterday on the first day of the Budget session. (Photo: PTI)

Hyderabad: Two members of Opposition TDP were on Saturday suspended from the Telangana Legislative Assembly for the remainder of the Budget session for allegedly interrupting the Governor's address to the State Legislature.

The main Opposition Congress, BJP and CPI(M) walked out in protest after their appeals for reconsidering the suspension of TDP members-- A Revanth Reddy and S Venkata Veeraiah--was not accepted.

Governor E S L Narasimhan addressed a joint sitting of the Legislature yesterday on the first day of the Budget session. His speech was allegedly disrupted due to sloganeering by these two legislators.

As the House met for the day, Speaker S Madhusudanachary said he had appealed to the members to follow high standards of dignity and decorum and that there are rules to this effect as well.

It is not good on the part of the TDP members to conduct themselves otherwise, he said.

Noting that it was decided in the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) to run the House as per good traditions of Parliamentary practices and that the Speaker had also made an appeal, Legislative Affairs minister T Harish Rao said it is painful that the two TDP members raised slogans during the Governor's address.

He then moved the motion for suspension of the two TDP members which was announced by the Speaker.

Calling the suspension "undemocratic", Leader of Opposition (Congress) K Jana Reddy appealed for reconsidering the suspension of the TDP members.

Observing that the TDP members expressed themselves by sitting in their chairs and also that it (protest) was peaceful as compared to previous instances, BJP floor leader G Kishan Reddy also appealed for reconsidering the decision to suspend the TDP members.

The Legislative Affairs minister said the suspended members should apologise for their action.
New Delhi: Expressing happiness over the early trends that indicate the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leading in the fray in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, the saffron party on Saturday said the people of the state have voted for the good work not for the politics of caste and corruption.

"This is very good and everything will be clear within an hour. People are showing confidence and trusting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. The people are voting for the development. They are voting for the good work, not on the basis of caste and religion. We have received tremendous support from youth and women voters," Union Human Resources and Development (HRD) Minister Prakash Javdekar said.

Echoing Javdekar, BJP leader Nalin Kohli said the people of the state do not want politics of corruption anymore and they want to see 'Acche Din' in the state.

"This clearly indicates that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's credibility, popularity, his work for poor, youth, women, backward class, farmers have reached among the people. People have faith on him. People are losing interest in politics of corruption and power," Kohli said.

Resonating the same, Union Minister and BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that he has transformed people's dream into reality and added that the politics of corruption, crime and misrule will be wiped out from the state.

"One thing is very clear that Prime Minister has always worked for the empowerment of the poor. People have put a stamp on the efforts made by our Prime Minister. There is an atmosphere of development and faith in the nation and soon we will form government in the state," Naqvi said.

The counting of votes has begun to elect a new assembly in Uttar Pradesh, one of the world's largest poll exercises that is being billed as a virtual semi-final to general elections in two years.

The stakes are high for almost 5,000 candidates across 403 seats in India's most-populous state.

The early trends show BJP ahead of Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

Here are the latest updates:

 BJP-274, SP+ 79, BSP-25, Others-12

 BJP leading in five seats of Lucknow

 Uttar Pradesh minister Azam Khan's son Abdullah trailing from Swar, Rampur

 Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav trailing from Lucknow Cantonment seat

 Uttar Pradesh ministers Azam Khan from Rampur and Gayatri Prajapati from Amethi are leading.

The counting of votes across five states-Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur which began at 8 a.m. is underway.
New Delhi/Chandigarh: The Congress Party on Saturday attempted to downplay its dismal show in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, saying the people had kept vote bank politics above development.

Justifying his party's alliance with the Samajwadi Party, Congress leader Rajiv Shukla said the formula of association did not fail.

"Akhilesh Yadav brought about development in the state. In order to strengthen that development, the Congress allied with the Samajwadi Party. The people of Uttar Pradesh today have kept votebank politics above development," Shukla told ANI.

Ending speculations that the victory in Uttar Pradesh would boost the BJP's prospects in the next general elections, Shukla asserted that the electoral scene would be different in 2019.

"Just like they did nothing at the Centre for three years, they are going to do nothing in UP as well. The people will realise their mistakes then," he said.

While trying to cover the defeat in Uttar Pradesh by pointing to success in Punjab, another Congress leader Pawan Kumar Bansal said they were sure that they would win owing to the SAD-BJP government's failure in the state.

"We were aware in UP that we have less numbers. If you say defeat, it is in Uttarakhand. We are neck-and-neck in Goa and are leading in Manipur," Bansal told ANI.

Bansal opined that the people have given another chance to Prime Minister Modi, expecting him to work towards their welfare.

"The people have again given him an opportunity, but his growing arrogance would not help. He should now be determined to work towards the welfare of the people," he said.

Expressing happiness over the Punjab mandate, Bansal said they were always sure about the Congress winning in the state.

"We have always maintained that the SAB-BJP on the one hand and AAP on the other would fight for the second and third position. The Congress will surely lead far ahead of others," he said.

With leads for all 403 seats in UP available, the BJP has gained a near four-fifths majority with 321 seats. The SP-Congress alliance has been relegated to 60 seats and Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) stands decimated with just 18 seats.

Uttar Pradesh went to polls in seven phases in the months of February and March.

A total of 4,854 candidates were in fray for 403 Assembly constituencies.
"We will go to the civic polls and RK Nagar bypoll with more enthusiasm, which the poll outcome in Uttar Pradesh and other states has given us," Tamil Nadu BJP President Tamilisai Soundararajan said.

Chennai: Elated over the spectacular electoral performance of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in four states, the Tamil Nadu party unit on Saturday said it would approach the upcoming civic polls in the southern state and the by-election to RK Nagar constituency with vigour.

"We will go to the civic polls and RK Nagar bypoll with more enthusiasm, which the poll outcome in Uttar Pradesh and other states has given us," Tamil Nadu BJP President Tamilisai Soundararajan told reporters in Chennai.

The local body elections in the state will be held before May 14.

The Madras High Court had recently directed the State Election Commission to hold civic polls before May 14.

Tamilisai said since 1967, the people of Tamil Nadu have been witnessing "corrupt governance" alternately by Dravidian parties like the AIADMK and DMK.

"People of Tamil Nadu are ready to give us the opportunity," she said, adding that the electorate would not favour Dravidian parties.

Answering a question on the recent killing of a Rameswaram fisherman, the BJP leader said it was "very unfortunate" and that her party was committed to the welfare of fishermen.

"Seventy-five fishermen have been released by Sri Lanka. Do not try to judge our party by a single incident. In the past two-and-a-half years, this is the first (killing) such incident to happen. Also, this will be the last such thing," she said.

Crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah for the poll wins, Tamilisai said though political opponents had claimed that BJP would be shunted out in the polls after demonetisation, the people had proved them wrong.

She said after the demonetisation drive, BJP's showing in civic elections in several states, including Maharashtra and Odisha, showed that "people are with Prime Minister Modi."

"The huge increase in tally in the number of legislators will translate into more MPs for the party in Rajya Sabha and it will in turn help pass legislations swiftly for people's welfare," the BJP leader added.
A ballistic missile was launched during an exercise of DPRK army (Source: Yonhap/VNA)

Speaking in reply to reporters question about Vietnams reaction to the incident, the spokesperson said the missile launch of the DPRK violated related resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.

Vietnam pursues a consistent viewpoint of supporting all efforts to promote dialogue and maintain peace, stability and denuclearization in the Korean Peninsula, Binh said.

He stressed that the maintenance of peace, stability and prosperous development in the region is the common interest and responsibility of all countries.

Vietnam calls on countries to act in a constructive manner, thus making practical contribution to preserving peace, security and stability in the region and the world as a whole, and to strictly adhere to relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council, the spokesperson said./.
Hyderabad: The BJPs mammoth wins in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand has enthused the party in TS and AP, but has also provided TS Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao an opportunity to re-assess his plan to hold elections early, either at the end of 2017 or in early 2018. TRS senior leader and MP B. Vinod Kumar denied any plan to advancing the polls. He said Mr Chandrasekhar Rao had promised to provide safe drinking water to all houses before the 2019 elections or else he would not seek the people's mandate. Until that promise was fulfilled, there cannot be an election, he said.

BJP spokesperson Krishna Saagar Rao had said earlier that it was very likely that the Chief Minister would go for the polls as early as in 2018. He is now certain. Whatever the drawbacks or advantages for the BJP, it is certain that KCR may go for early polls due to the disunited opposition and the wea-kness of the Congress, he said.

There are three main reasons why the Chief Minister could call for Assembly elections in 2018. First, it will take two years for the BJP to strengthen its base in the state and, second, the Congress is very weak. Third, the local body elections are due in 2018 and any discontent arising from this exercise could reflect on the Assembly elections.

Mr Chandrasekhar Rao in his interactions with party cadres has expressed his reservations over clubbing Lok Sabha and Assembly polls, citing domination of national issues. TRS leaders believe that his approach of attracting Hindu voters with yagams and temple programmes, and Muslim voters with selected schemes and preference in political posts, is the right one. BJP national president Amit Shahs clear cut instructions to form polling booth-wise committees with 15 workers so that the campaign can be taken to each and every household has not taken off in TS or AP, with party units having reached just 30 per cent of the target.
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has been trying to attract Muslim voters so that he can flaunt the TDs secular credentials. It was evident in 2014 that Muslims voted in large numbers for the YSRC, mainly because of the TDs alliance with the BJP. Mr Naidu will have to rethink his support for actor Pawan Kalyans Jana Sena. With the win in Uttar Pradesh, BJP leaders in AP, who are mainly defectors from the Congress, will be more aggressive with their alliance partner TD, seeking more posts and a greater say in the administration.

Mr Naidu has been soft-pedalling several controversial issues like denial of Special Category Status to AP and not bringing in legislation to provide backing to the Special Package announced in August 2016. TD leaders have been for some time been advocating dumping the BJP after the UP polls, thinking that the party would not win, and supporting Pawan Kalyan ins-tead. Events have overtaken these leaders.

With the gains made by the BJP, Mr Naidu will have to continue his soft peddling of Mr Modi before striking a deal with Pawan Kalyan. We are quite happy with our alliance partner. The BJP had big gains in the north and it will be good for our alliance. The BJP may tend to grow organisationally in AP, that is okay with us, said TD politburo member Somireddy Chandra-mohan Reddy.
In a Facebook post, Ashley Tellis, who is also a gay rights activist, wrote that he was asked to leave St Joseph's College of Arts and Sciences because "students are disturbed by my personal opinions." (Photo: Facebook)

Bengaluru: An Assistant Professor of a reputed college in Bengaluru has claimed that he has been sacked over his sexual orientation.

In a Facebook post, Ashley Tellis, who is also a gay rights activist, wrote that he was asked to leave St Joseph's College of Arts and Sciences because "students are disturbed by my personal opinions."

"Students are very much disturbed by your opinions (sic). You were hired to teach English Literature. Not to give your personal opinions. Please sign these letters. Leave the college with immediate effect," the English Assistant Professor said quoting the principal.

This is not the first instance wherein Tellis had been removed. In 2010, he was removed by the management of the Indian Institute of Technology (Hyderabad) allegedly over his sexual orientation.

Meanwhile, the college management said in a statement that the decision was taken after many parents and students complained about Tellis' "sexual orientation."

They said the professor did not pay any heed to the "sensitivities" of undergraduate students from heterogeneous backgrounds.

Defending himself on the social media platform, Tellis said he talked about sexuality because it was a part of English textbooks.

"In the classroom, I used to discuss everything with students. Sometimes, it also included issues related to different sexual orientations.

"This is the sort of homophobia and unbelievable violence that we LGBT people have to face every day of our lives in institutions," he said.

However, a few people have come out in support of the professor.

"I am extremely proud of you and I feel privileged that I have been taught by you. This is the story of most educational institutions in India and it is so unfortunate that academic liberty is juxtaposed with extremely problematic personal ideologies," said one in reply to Tellis' post.
The legacy of Tipu Sultan makes for little more than political fodder - the third Anglo-Mysore war was fought in Bengaluru, but no trace of this remains. Syed Mansoor, a direct descendant of Tipu Sultan, and architect Mansoor Ali talk to Darshana Ramdev about a glorious history that is fading fast...

The moon was uncommonly bright on March 21, 1791. The soldiers guarding Tipu Sultan's southern fort had retired early for the night, their weapons deposited safely at the armoury nearby. The British army, they reckoned, wasn't stupid enough to attack on a moonlit night. Little did they know that most of them wouldn't live to see the next morning. Or that a traitor was in their midst.

Lord Cornwallis knew that the Tipu Sultan empire could only be toppled if the Southern Fort came under British possession. And Kishan Rao was just the man for the job. "Rao told Lord Cornwallis that creating a breach beside the main Delhi Gate, just where the ramparts began to curve, would provide their only entry into the fort," said architect Mansoor Ali, who conducts heritage walks through the Tipu Sultan pete.

The cannonballs

At around 11 pm, British troops entered the fort in stealth, killing everyone in their path. The attack was so swift that the fort was lost before the alarm was raised. The forts commander, Bahadur Khan, a regal septuagenarian with a long, flowing beard, declared that he would fight to the death. The other soldiers put up a brave fight too, attempting to unlock the Mysore gate, where they were slaughtered en masse. Meanwhile, Tipu Sultan himself stood with his army somewhere near Kengeri. They rushed to help the soldiers trapped in the fort but were thwarted by the British army and made a hasty retreat.

Lord Cornwallis was so taken by Bahadur Khans valour that he wrote to Tipu Sultan, asking if he wanted the body returned. Tipu told Cornwallis that the highest honour for a Sufi saint is to be buried where he fell. It is said that Bahadur Khans body lies at the entrance of Avenue Road, said Ali. A graveyard was constructed for the other martyrs.

The graveyard near Avenue Road where the Sufi soldiers are buried.

Soon, colourful narratives might be all we have left. Ali tells his story outside Badami House on Hudson Road. One expects to be taken to the kote itself, where the war was likely to have been fought. Far from it, said Ali, gesturing around him. This is where it happened. The present architecture bears little trace of its glorious past - Badami House curves into the Halsur police station and the fort rampart once ran alongside it. It was demolished for road widening, he said. The Kempegowda statue opposite was constructed in 1963, replacing a monument of Lord Morehouse, who, according to Ali,

Charged foolishly at the fort and was shot point blank. Ali weaves his way expertly through the traffic, leading us into a mosque. There, in a corner, lie five innocuous-looking blocks of stone, which, as it happens were the cannonballs used in the war.

The 228-year-old Srirangapatnam armoury of Tipu Sultan was translocated on Friday, 10 days before the anniversary of the third Anglo-Mysore war. (Photo: Shashidhar B.)

The battle trail leads into a maze of bylanes that surround Avenue Road. We squeeze through scaffolding at a construction site and arrive at a mosque - a plaque reads: In memory of the Martyres of the Third War of Mysore, opening out onto a vacant lot. People pay their respects at the shrine dedicated to Hazrath Syed Hameed Shah Khadri but the graveyard itself is in total disarray. "Sufis believe that graveyards should remain untouched, but this land has been earmarked for a public toilet," said Ali. The factory where Tipu built rockets is nearby too, although a school now stands in its place.

The Sufi connection

The death-anniversary of Tipu Sultan, which the family has been celebrating for the last 12 years, is a Sufi ritual. Tipu, who is now revered as a great Sufi himself, was named after the famous 18th-century saint Tipu Mastan Aulia, who, according to legend, appeared to Haider Ali's wife in a dream, Mansoor explained. "The couple wanted a son and in her dream, the saint told her that he would bless her with a boy provided he lay down his life for his country and as a man of God," said Mansoor. "From his father, he learned the art of war. His mother taught him the religious texts."

Architect Mansoor Ali (left) and Syed Mansoor, a descendant of Tipu Sultan.

The Descendants

Syed Mansoor is the seventh great-grandson of Tipu Sultan family. Working out of his small office near Hudson Circle, Mansoor is hard at work trying to preserve whats left of his familys heritage. We have just written a letter to the Chief Minister, asking for rehabilitation of the family, he said. We have also asked for a library and research centre to be set up. Mansoor descends from Tipu Sultans fifth son. We are the most documented royal family in the country, he remarked. The land where the graveyard is located, he said, was granted by Tipu Sultan during the Sultanate-e-Kudhadad. "Other rulers named their kingdoms after themselves. Sultanate-e-Kudhadad, however, means God's gifted kingdom," Mansoor explained. Over 18000 soldiers lost their lives during the second Anglo-Mysore War. "The 2800-odd Muslims were allocated different spots around Bengaluru. There are around nine."
Capturing power in UP has been a dream project for BJP after it was reduced to the margins of the state politics. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi led his party to a stupendous victory in UP on Saturday, ending the BJPs 14-year exile in Indias most populous state, considered the jewel in the crown of Indian politics.

The BJP with its allies Apna Dal (Soneylal Patel) and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) won a near four-fifths majority in the 403-seat Assembly, trampling the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance and decimating the states other regional boss Mayawati. The BJP combine won 325 seats, while the Congress won only 7 seats and Samajwadi Party just 47. BJP alone won 312 seats.

The BJP won an absolute majority in Uttarakhand too, defeating the Congress that was racked by infighting in the last term in governance. While the BJP won 57 seats, the Congress could manage just 11.

Congress won Punjab with a resounding majority of 77 seats. This result was as predicted, in a state where popular sentiment was against the SAD-BJP coalition that has ruled the state for the last two terms. Surprisingly, Arvind Kejriwals Aam Aadmi Party did not fare as well as expected, but ended up second with 20 seats.

BJP seriously dented the Congress' chances of winning Manipur for the fourth consecutive term, winning 21 in the 60-seat Assembly to the Congress' 28. The Manipur Assembly may be hung but popular Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh defeated political debutant and activist Irom Sharmila, who could win only 90 votes.

Goa too has returned a hing Assembly with the Congress emerging as the single largest party again, winning 17 of the 40 seats. BJP has won 13. The BJP suffered a big reverse when Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar lost to his Congress rival from Mandrem. Former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat (Congress) won from Margao constituency.

Though both Manipur and Goa have not delivered a decisive mandate, BJP party president Amit Shah said Saturday evening that his party was confident of forming the government in both these states.

"I give my heartfelt thanks to the people of Uttar Pradesh. This is a historic victory for the BJP; a victory for development and good governance," Prime Minister Narendra Modi told his 28 million followers on Twitter after the results.

On the next chief minister in Uttar Pradesh, BJP leaders said the decision would be taken by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party soon.

The UP mandate, that reaffirmed Narendra Modi's standing among the masses, is seen as an endorsement of his popular agendas, especially demonetisation.

The previous best showing by BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of the Ram Janam Bhoomi movement, when it got majority on its own winning 221 seats out of the 425 in an undivided state.

In Punjab, Congress President Amarinder Singh, who is the party's chief ministerial face, thanked people for their overwhelming support. The Congress legislature party will meet tomorrow to elect its leader, he said.

Overjoyed BJP workers in Uttar Pradesh broke into celebrations and raised victory slogans across party offices in the state. Workers raised slogans like Chappa Chappa Bhajpa, Kahan pade ho chakkar mein, koi nahin hai takkar mein and Modi Modi. The ruling Samajwadi Partys office wore a deserted look.

BJP party chief Amit Shah told the media that Uttar Pradeshs phenomenal win was a vote for the politics of performance which had effectively silenced the 'politics of casteism, appeasement and dynasty'.

He announced that the BJP had done extremely well in the traditional Nehru-Gandhi bastions of Amethi and Rae Bareilly parliamentary constituencies by picking up 6 of the 10 Assembly seats here. We had not done well in 2014, Shah said.

Hailing Narendra Modi as the most popular leader since Independence, Shah said the people voted for Modi because he had come good on his 2014 poll promises and established himself as a pro-poor leader.

Shah also said the five-state mandate today was a tight slap on the face of the Opposition that ran a smear campaign against Modi.

In UP, the Samajwadi Party dug its own grave last year in the middle of an intense power struggle with party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav and brother Shivpal on one side and son and chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and cousin Ramgopal on the other.

The two factions sacked each other from party posts in a free-for-all earlier this year, even fighting for the party symbol. This was before Akhilesh decided to tie up with the Congress to thwart a resurgent BJP. That obviously did not go down too well with the grassroots as the results now show.

There have been loud grumblings from SP leaders that Congress candidates had contested against the Samajwadi Party in certain constituencies paving the way for the BJP to take advantage of the vote divide.

Outgoing Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav did not mince words when he said the people of Uttar Pradesh had been misled by the BJP. I built expressways, perhaps the people wanted bullet trains, Akhilesh said. I waived Rs 1600 crore of farmers loans. I expect the next government to waive loans of all farmers in India, he added. Akhilesh maintained that he did not regret the coalition with the Congress. Two young leaders went out to the people and it was a good thing, he said.

Party leaders said the alliance may have helped the Congress but it certainly did not do anything for the SP.

This victory in Uttar Pradesh will be a boost to BJP president Amit Shah's authority as capturing power here has been the dream project for the party after it was reduced to the margins in a state it ruled for much of the 1990s.

Shah has been seen as the architect of the party's outreach to various social groups, mostly OBCs and Dalits.

Amit Shah credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pro-poor policies for his party's big win in Uttar Pradesh. "This is the victory of the corruption-free rule and pro-poor policies under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he tweeted as he congratulated party leaders and workers for the victory in UP and Uttarakhand. He also greeted the people for keeping faith in the BJP.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh described the BJP's performance as "a mega victory", saying the party had changed the political narrative in the country with this win. "This is not a victory but a mega victory. The BJP has changed the political narrative of the country by touching new heights of success in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand," he said amid scenes of jubilation at party offices in UP with one party leader saying Holi had come a day early.

Singh said the BJP's win in the elections was a win for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's credibility in the public, his able leadership and the party's commitment to good governance. "The credit goes to the organisational ability of our national President (Amit Shah) and the hard work of party workers. We thank the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for handing us a historic victory," he said.

This BJP win will also boost its strength in the Rajya Sabha where the Congress-led opposition has been able to block the government's legislative agenda due to its numerical superiority.

The Congress, on the other hand, has sought to insulate party vice president Rahul Gandhi from any negative fallout saying poll results are never a referendum on any single individual.

Uttar Pradesh:

The most riveting contest was in Uttar Pradesh, which is seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity and his reforms agenda.

In 2012, the Samajwadi Party swept to power defeating incumbent chief minister Mayawatis Bahujan Samaj Party which had got an absolute majority in the previous elections.

SP had won 224 seats of the 401 it contested, garnering a vote share of 29.15 per cent with an upswing of 3.72 per cent over the last elections.

The BSP had got 80 seats with a 25.91 per cent vote share. The BJP managed 47 seats with 15 per cent vote share, while the Congress got 28 seats with 11.63 per cent vote share.

In the 2014 general elections, however, the BJP captured Uttar Pradesh, winning 71 of the 80 parliamentary seats. It got a vote share of 42.30 per cent. The SP managed only 5 seats with a vote share of 22.2 per cent, the Congress and Apna Dal got 2 seats each while Mayawati was left high and dry.

Punjab:

Congress wrested power in 117-member Punjab Assembly. All exit polls had predicted a wipeout for the ruling Akali Dal-BJP alliance and contest is seen between the Congress and the Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party.

The Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine came to power in Punjab in 2012 for the second term, winning 68 of the 117 seats. The total vote share of the combine was around 42 per cent.

The Congress won 46 seats with a vote share of nearly 40 per cent, while Independents got 3.

In the 2014 general elections, the Aam Aadmi Party won 4, the SAD-BJP alliance 4 and Congress UPA 3  down from 8 in 2009.

But incumbency hangs heavy on the SAD-BJP alliance this time in the face of a resurgent Congress and dark horse AAP.

Goa:

In 2012, the BJP-Maharashtrawadi Gomantak had defeated incumbent Congress-led by Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, getting 24 of Goas 40 seats. The BJP won 21 seats. Between the two, they lapped up a vote share of 41 per cent.

In 2014, the BJP picked up both Lok Sabha seats in Goa  taking one away from the Congress.

Uttarakhand:

In 2012, the BJP tried to cash in on former chief minister BC Khanduris clean image but bagged only 31 of the 70 seats putting Congress in the drivers seat. The Grand Old Party had emerged as the single largest party with 32 seats and 33.79% vote share, but the BJP lost with a very small margin and got 33.13% vote share.

The BSP could only win in three seats of the 70 it contested, with 12.19 vote share.

In the 2014 general elections, BJP cast its spell on Uttarakhand and won all five seats form the state with 55.30% vote share.

Manipur:

Congress Okram Ibobi Singh has ruled in Manipur for 15 years.

Congress emerged as the lone giant in 2012 Manipur Assembly polls and achieved a hat-trick win by securing 42 of the 60 seats in the state. It was sweet victory for Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh as the party got 42.42 vote share.

The All India Trinamool Congress came second with 7 seats and 17% vote share. BJP could not make a mark in the state and did not win a single seat.

In the 2014 general elections too, Congress reigned supreme and won both the seats in Manipur.
Congress workers celebrate with a poster of PPCC President Capt. Amarinder Singh the party's thumping victory in the State Assembly polls. (Photo: PTI)

Chandigarh : It was a hard-fought battle for Congress in Punjab , which for the first time saw a triangular contest, as the Aam Aadmi Party made its maiden outing in the state. The grand old party proved most pollsters wrong and achieved a comfortable win by securing 77 seats out of 117. The halfway mark is 59.

Captain Amarinder Singh, who turned 75 on Saturday, couldn't have asked for a better birthday gift. He won the Patiala urban seat by a huge margin of over 52,407 votes. Amarinder also recorded the highest winning margin in the state and bettered his margin of 42,318 secured in 2012 Assembly polls.

Read: Assembly election results 2017: BJP sweeps UP, Ukhand; Cong returns in Punjab

"We hope Union Government will recognise demands of Punjab and assist us," he said after his win.

"Drugs menace in the state will be my first priority as far as governance is concerned. As far as development is concerned, health and education will be my priority. Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party is like summer storm which has come and gone without making any difference," he added.

Read: Uttar Pradesh Assembly election results 2017: A historic landslide for BJP

Singh however lost in the Lambi Assembly constituency, where Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal defeated him by 22,770 votes. Badal polled 66,375 votes while Congress candidate Amarinder Singh secured 43,605 votes. AAP candidate Jarnail Singh was at the third spot, securing 21,254 votes.

This is partys best performance since 1992, when it secured 87 seats and the also its second best show of strength since the reorganisation of the state in 1966. Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Amarinder Singh to congratulate him on the party's electoral victory in Punjab.

Read: Uttarakhand election results 2017: BJP rides Modi wave, annihilates Cong

The anti-incumbency wave proved to be fatal for the SAD-BJP combine, which finished third in the race with 19 seats to their credit. The drug menace was one of the biggest poll issues in the state and repeated seizures of illegal drugs in the state caused a dent in the Akali Dals image.

AAP, which was tipped to be the dark horse, could not come anywhere close to the victory it dreamed of, but its foray into the political arena in Punjab further scuttled the chances of the Akalis. It secured victory in 22 seats.

Disappointed by its performance, AAP leaders said that they would review what went wrong. "We are disappointed with the results. We will introspect on the reasons behind the (poor) performance," senior AAP leader Ashutosh said.

Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, who kept everybody in suspense about which side he would bat for, emerged as one of the biggest beneficiary, as his decision to join the Congress paid off.

Kejriwal lost the polls because his intentions were not right. This is not just the victory of Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, but the victory of every Congress worker. Its my promise, that we will make Punjab an example of good governance, Sidhu told the media.

Let us take a look at the exit poll predictions:

India Today-Axis predicted a Congress victory with 62-71 seats. It projected 42-51 for AAP and 4-7 for SAD-BJP.

Todays Chanakya predicted a tie between Congress and AAP by projecting 54 seats for both the parties.

Similarly News X-MRC predicted a tie between Congress and AAP by indicating that theyll get 55 seats each.

India TV C-Voter put its money on AAP by giving the party 59-67 seats, while projecting 41-49 seats for the Congress.

How Punjab voted in 2012

The Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine came to power in Punjab in 2012 for the second term, winning 68 of the 117 seats. The total vote share of the combine was around 42 per cent.

The Congress won 46 seats with a vote share of nearly 40 per cent, while Independents got 3.

In 2014 General Elections, The Aam Aadmi Party won 4, the SAD-BJP alliance 4 and Congress UPA 3  down from 8 in 2009.
BJP supporters and workers celebrate partys victory in the assembly elections, at the party head quarters in New Delhi on Saturday. (Photo: PTI)

Lucknow: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday won by a landslide in Uttar Pradesh, leading on 321 of the 403 seats in the state, with trends for all seats in.

A two-thirds majority for BJP in the state, where Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had claimed that the SP-Congress alliance would win 300 seats, is seen as a pointer towards the outcome of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. However, the BJP looks set to finish with as many as four-fifths of the seats in the state.

Read: LIVE Assembly election results 2017: BJP sweeps UP, Ukhand; Cong returns in Punjab

BJP thus gained its largest ever majority in UP, comfortably overtaking the 221 seats Kalyan Singh won in 1991 during the height of the Ram Mandir agitation.

Meanwhile, the much-touted Samajwadi Party- Congress alliance led by Rahul Gandhi and UP CM Akhilesh Yadav was nowhere in the race, leading on less than 60 seats.

In a press conference following the BJP's stunning win in UP, its national president Amit Shah said that the saffron party would form the government in 4 states - Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa.

The BJP president called the victory in UP the biggest victory by any party after Independence.

Amit Shah also hailed Modi as the most popular leader the country had seen after Independence. "The public has restored the same faith it put in the BJP and Narendra Modi during the 2014 polls," Shah claimed.

The BJP president said the people had embraced the 'politics of performance', casting aside dynasty politics in the state of UP and in the country.

Shah announced that the BJP would felicitate Modi on Sunday evening to mark the astounding performance under his leadership.

However, he refused to divulge as to who would become the new Chief Minister of the state, saying the party would take a decision in the matter.

Conceding defeat, outgoing UP CM Akhilesh Yadav congratulated the BJP on its resounding victory.

Perhaps in a sarcastic vein, he said the BJP government would now build better roads and infrastructure than he had as the CM.

Stating that the people's mandate had to be respected, Akhilesh however backed Mayawati's assertion that the EVMs had been tampered with, adding that a probe should be conducted.

The UP CM claimed that perhaps, the people of UP had voted for BJP due to the bullet trains it had promised. Countering a questioner on the poor state of law and order in the state, Akhilesh said the police in UP were usually the quickest to respond to incidents of crime. He asserted that BJP had won the election by communal polarisation.

"Hamari cycle ke tube main hawan hi nahi thi (The SP cycle was deflated, its tubes had no air)," quipped Akhilesh.

After the press conference, Akhilesh Yadav proceeded to Governor Ram Naik's residence and submitted his resignation.

Fate of Important candidates

After falling out with his nephew Akhilesh, SP leader and minister Shivpal Yadav was in a tough see-saw battle with Manish Yadav Batre of the BJP in Jaswant Nagar of Etawah. Eventually though, Shivpal defeated the BJP candidate by 52,616 votes.

Read: LIVE Manipur Assembly election results 2017: BJP, Congress in tight race

Home Minister Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj Singh won from Noida, and his victory was part of a landslide in eastern UP which saw BJP win all 8 seats in Noida and Ghaziabad.

Tainted minister Gayatri Prajapati, who is absconding after the UP Police booked him in an alleged gangrape case and attempt to rape a minor, lost in Amethi.

He was pitted against Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Singh, and Ameeta Singh (Congress)  his present wife. Singh went on to win the constituency.

Read: LIVE Uttarakhand Assembly election results 2017: Congress wiped out

But Samajwadi Party received a major jolt from Lucknow Cantt seat, where its patron Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav lost to BJP's Rita Bahuguna Joshi. Joshi won by a margin of 33,796 votes in the seat.

While Reeta Joshi secured 95,402 votes, Aparna got only 61,606 votes and stood in the second place while the BSP's Yogesh Dixit got 26,036 votes.

Besides Mulayam, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, his wife Dimple Yadav had also campaigned on this seat for Aparna but all their efforts went in vain with people selecting the BJP candidate.

BSP candidate and gangster-turned politician Mukhtar Ansari, who joined the BSP in January after falling out with Akhilesh Yadav, however won from Mau by a massive 97,199 votes.

Swati Singh, the wife of expelled BJP leader Dayashankar Singh, won from the Sarojini Nagar seat.

Communally sensitive Ayodhya, long a BJP bastion, saw a see-saw battle between BJP's Ved Prakash Gupta and SP's Tej Narayan Pandey. However, in the end, Gupta won by a margin of over 49,000 votes.

UP Minister Rahguraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya won in Kunda.

Read: LIVE Punjab Assembly election results 2017: Captain leads Congress victory

Azam Khan won in Rampur, while his son Abdullah won from Swar Tanda seat.

BJP workers across the state began celebrating even as the early trends showed the saffron party taking a comfortable lead.

"We respect the mandate, but development has lost and votebank politics has won," Congress leader Rajiv Shukla said reacting to the result.

But it was Mayawati who was most anguished over the results. The BSP was leading in just 18 seats with leads for all 403 seats available. Subsequently, the BSP chief alleged tampering with EVM machines.

Either the EVMs did not accept votes other than for BJP, or the votes of other parties have gone to BJP in the EVMs, Mayawati said in a press conference immediately following the results.

The BJP did not field a single Muslim candidate. Yet, most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to BJP. This makes it evident that voting machines were manipulated, she claimed.

I have written to Election Commission in this regard. People no longer have faith in EVM machines, Mayawati alleged.

Mayawati challenged PM Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah to once again conduct the election on a paper ballot if they were so sure of their victory.

The results were a complete shift from the results of the 2012 polls, where the BJP had come a cropper with just 47 seats, and the SP had stormed to power with 224. The BSP had won 80 seats in 2012.

Uttar Pradesh had witnessed seven-phase polling that started on February 11 and ended on March 8.

Two out of four exit polls this time had showed a near-majority for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Assembly elections, and Today's Chanakya predicted an over two-thirds majority on Thursday.

Only two polls showed a neck-and-neck fight between BJP and the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance.

In 2012, the Samajwadi Party swept to power defeating incumbent chief minister Mayawatis Bahujan Samaj Party which had got an absolute majority in the previous elections.

SP had won 224 seats of the 401 it contested in 2012, garnering a vote share of 29.15 per cent with an upswing of 3.72 per cent over the last elections.

The BSP had got 80 seats with a 25.91 per cent vote share. The BJP managed 47 seats with 15 per cent vote share, while the Congress got 28 seats with 11.63 per cent vote share.

In the 2014 general elections, however, the BJP captured Uttar Pradesh, winning 71 of the 80 parliamentary seats. It got a vote share of 42.30 per cent. The SP managed only 5 seats with a vote share of 22.2 per cent, the Congress and Apna Dal got 2 seats each while Mayawati was left high and dry.
BJP is now 9 seats away from forming a government in Manipur. (Photo: PTI)

Imphal: The close fight between Congress and BJP for power in Manipur finished with neither party being able to achieve a majority, resulting in a hung Assembly in the state.

Congress, who had ruled the state for three terms won just 28 seats out of 60, whereas BJP, which failed to bag even a single seat in 2012 elections turned out to be the second largest party after Congress with 21 seats.

Read: LIVE Assembly election results 2017: BJP sweeps UP, Ukhand; Cong returns in Punjab

The Naga Peoples Front (NPF) and National Peoples Party (NPP) bagged four seats respectively, while Lokjanshakti Party of Ram Vilas Paswan and an Independent captured one seat each.

BJPs national president, Amit Shah who is confident about forming a government in Manipur said, BJP would form government in four states i.e. Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa.

Read: Uttar Pradesh Assembly election results 2017: A historic landslide for BJP

BJP is now 10 seats away from forming a government in Manipur. The LJP (1) which already has an alliance at Centre with the BJP, and NPF (4) in Nagaland may join the saffron party in government formation.

This is would be the third state after Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in North East, where BJP would form the government.

Read: Punjab Assembly election results 2017: Congress victory, Captains birthday gift

Meanwhile, clinching the Thoubal constituency, incumbent chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh defeated Basanta Singh of the BJP and new entrant Irom Sharmila with more than 8000 votes.

Irom Sharmila, who was on fast for 16 years to repeal AFSPA from the state, was fighting from 5 seats with newly launched party Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA). Irom merely received 90 votes in her debut Assembly polls. Subsequently, she declared her intention to quit politics.

Read: Goa election results 2017: Cong ahead in race; hung Assembly imminent

The star campaigner for the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi during election rallies had promised to break the economic blockade which the state faces under the Congress regime, if voted to power.

The exit polls for Manipur had thrown up an uncertain mandate. C-Voter- India TV said the BJP would emerge as single largest bagging at least 28 seats, whereas Axis  India Today predicted Congress will retain power with full majority.

Read: Uttarakhand election results 2017: BJP rides Modi wave, annihilates Cong

Congress emerged as the lone giant in Manipur Assembly Polls in 2012 and achieved a hat trick win by securing 42 of the 60 seats in the state. It was sweet victory for Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh as the party got 42.42 per cent vote share.

All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) came second with 7 seats and 17% vote share. BJP could not make a mark in the state and did not win a single seat.
BJP supporters celebrating the party's victory in UP and Uttarakhand Assembly polls in Surat. (Photo: PTI)

Dehradun: It was an easy run for the Bharatiya Janata Party to the victory stand, as it dislodged the conflict-ridden Congress government by securing 57 out of 70 seats in the state.

The Congress garnered 11 seats, finishing a distant second. Two independent candidates also won.

Riding steadily on an anti-incumbency wave, the BJP managed a clean sweep and even surpassed the exit poll figures, despite facing several internal conflicts before polls.

In an extension of the support it received during the 2014 Lok Sabha election, the party received a clear mandate and caused some serious damage to the outgoing Congresss seat toll.

Commenting on the massive win, Prime Minster Narendra Modi said Victory in Uttarakhand is special; I assure people of the state that BJP will serve them with dedication, in a tweet.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had remarked, "This is a big victory. BJP has reached new heights in Uttarkhand and Uttar Pradesh and has changed the political picture of the country."

BJP spokesman Munna Singh Chauhan attributed Rawat's defeat to thriving corruption and a strong anti-incumbency factor. People were totally disillusioned with the Rawat government under whom corruption flourished like never before and they were desperately looking for change," Chauhan pointed out.

He further added, "Narendra Modi's style of leadership, his head-on approach towards corruption inspired confidence among the masses who voted overwhelmingly in favour of the BJP for a clean and accountable government."

In a major blow to the Congress, outgoing Chief Minster had Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost to Bharatiya Janata Party candidates in both seats he contested from -- Haridwar Rural and Kichha.

Rawat also tendered his resignation hours after his defeat.

The outgoing chief minister garnered 32,645 votes in Haridwar Rural, losing the seat to BJP's Yatishwaranand by a margin of 12,227 votes. In Kichha, the Congress leader lost to BJP's Rajesh Shukla by 2,154 votes.

I accept Congress defeat. There must have been some shortcomings in my leadership that led to the partys defeat, he said.

On the other hand, Uttarakhand BJP president Ajay Bhatt lost to Karan Mahara of Congress by 4981 votes from Ranikhet.

The grand old party which faced several defections in the recent past, ran a lacklustre campaign in the state that had reflected in the numbers. With only Rawat and a few other leaders to garner public attention, the party failed to create any excitement amidst voters leading to the humungous upset.

On the other hand, the BJP which also saw internal seat-sharing conflicts managed to capitalise the charisma of Narendra Modi to get its act together. With no chief ministerial candidate, the prime minister had to pull the party through with his rallies and speeches.

A majority of exit polls had predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party will wrest power from Congress. The party had been pegged to bag around 40-50 seats by India Today and Chanakya exit polls. However, C-Voter had predicted a tie between the two parties.

Voting was held in all 70 constituencies of the state. The state saw a voter turnout of 65.64% with 637 candidates in the fray.

In 2012, the BJP tried to cash in on former chief minister BC Khanduris clean image but bagged 31 of the 70 seats putting Congress in the drivers seat. The Grand Old Party had emerged as the single largest party with 32 seats and 33.79% vote share, the BJP lost with a very small margin and got 33.13% vote share.

The BSP could only win in three seats of the 70 it contested, with 12.19 vote share.

In the 2014 general elections, BJP cast its spell on Uttarakhand and won all five seats form the state with 55.30% vote share.
Imphal: After her dismal performance in the Manipur assembly elections, human rights activist Irom Sharmila today announced that she would quit politics but

continue her fight against the AFSPA in the state.

"I am fed up with this political system. I have decided to quit active politics. I will move to south India as I need to calm my mind," Sharmila told PTI.

"But I will continue my fight against AFSPA until and unless it is repealed. But I will fight as a social activist," she said.

Sharmila, who contested from Thoubal constituency against Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh was relegated to the fourth position. She secured just 90 votes.

The two other candidates of her newly floated party Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) lost their deposits.
The Nhat Tan bridge, a symbol of Vietnam-Japan cooperation (Photo: VNA)

Chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee Nguyen Duc Chung said Hanoi welcomes Japanese investment in high-tech agriculture, urban railway projects, human resources training, tourism and health care.

He pledged to create favourable conditions for Japanese investors.

Nagai Katsuro, who oversees economics affairs at the Japanese Embassy in Vietnam, said Japan has strongly invested in Vietnam for years and intends to increase capital in the northern region, including Hanoi, to make use of the competent workforce and potential market.

The Japanese Government is considering raising official development assistance for Vietnam with a particular interest in major infrastructure projects in Hanoi, he noted.

He also highlighted the appeal Vietnam has for Japanese tourists.

Participating Vietnamese and Japanese firms discussed cooperation in tourism, health, culture, and transport.

As part of the forum, Hanoi authorities and Japanese investors signed memorandums of understanding on various joint projects in the city, including the building of a shopping mall, the transfer of automatic flower cultivation technology, and the provision of flower seeds.

Other projects mentioned were on developing an international-standard medicine distribution system and training operators for the Hanoi Metropolitan Metro Railway project.

Japan is now the top investor in Hanoi, with more than 800 projects worth about USD5.2 billion./.
Human rights activist Irom Sharmila, who last year ended her 16-year long fast arrives to cast her vote at a polling booth in Khurai, Imphal, Manipur. (Photo: PTI)

Imphal: Human rights activist Irom Sharmila, who broke her 16-year long fast demanding repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act on August 9 and later launched her party to contest the Assembly elections in Manipur, suffered an embarrassing defeat with just 90 votes.

Around 143 people chose NOTA, more than the votes secured by Sharmila.

The 44-year-old rights activist, who had launched Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA), had contested the Assembly polls from Thoubal Assembly against three-time Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh.

The 'Iron Lady' had earlier on Saturday said that in case of her defeat she will try again in the 2019 general elections.

"I do not feel much affected by the result. It depends upon the people's mindset. I don't feel much affected by it, because people can still change their minds and everybody knows muscle and money power is being openly used by parties," Sharmila had told ANI.

PRJA, with whistle as the party symbol, had contested the Manipur Assembly elections from a total of five seats. A former aide of political strategist Prashant Kishor and a Harvard graduate were the core members of her party.

Breaking her fast in August last year, Sharmila had declared that she wants to become the chief minister so that she could press for repeal of the contentious AFSPA.

While launching her party PRJA in October last year, she had said she would contest from two seats  Thoubal and Khurai, which is her home constituency. However, she contested only from Thoubal.
BJP workers play holi with a giant cut-out of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as they celebrate the partys victory in the UP and Uttarakhand Assembly elections, at the party headquarters in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saw an unprecedented victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday thanked public for the support. An overjoyed Prime Minister took to Twitter to express his emotions.

"Am overjoyed that BJP has received unprecedented support from all sections of society. Huge support from the youth is gladdening," he tweeted.

Modi also congratulated BJP chief Amit Shah and other party bearers for the their exemplary work in taking the party to new heights.

"I salute the hard work of BJP Karyakartas. They have tirelessly worked hard at the grassroots level & won the confidence of the people," he tweeted.

"Every moment of our time, everything we do is for welfare & wellbeing of the people of India. We believe in the power of 125 crore Indians," he added.

The Prime Minister thanked the people of Punjab for giving the BJP-Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) alliance the opportunity to serve them for ten years. The rule of the alliance now comes to an end with the trends in Punjab show the Congress leading with 76 seats, the AAP leading in 20 seats and the BJP-SAD leading in 18 seats.

"I thank people of Punjab for giving @Akali_Dal_ & @BJP4Punjab the opportunity to serve for 10 years & for the support we got in these polls," the Prime Minister tweeted.

So far, the trends show the BJP gaining 310 out of 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh, with the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance getting 54 seats and Mayawati-led Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) 19 seats.

In Uttarakhand, the BJP is leading with 56 seats. In Goa, a close contest between the BJP and the Congress is brewing as the former has won 13 seats, while the latter is leading with 17.

In Manipur, the Congress is leading with 26 seats, with the BJP with 20.

Meanwhile, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi congratulated Modi for the BJP's victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and thanked the people of Punjab for giving the Congress a mandate for the state's "bright future".

The Congress vice president said the party stands resolute and committed to its values of a united India and will continue its fight to win people's hearts.

"I congratulate Shri Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand," he said in a tweet.

The Prime Minister responded to him and thanked him for his wishes. "Thank you. Long live democracy!" Modi tweeted back.

Rahul also thanked the people of Punjab for electing a Congress government for a bright future of the state. He congratulated Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh and all the workers for ensuring the party's victory there.

"I thank everyone in Punjab for their immense faith and support. This is a mandate for a brighter future for Punjab and it's youth.

"My heartiest congratulations to Capt Amarinder Singhji and all our party workers who worked tirelessly," he said in a tweet.

In a message to all party workers, he said, "To all Congress workers across India: We stand resolute and committed to our values and our belief in an India united in strength and purpose."

"Our fight continues and will not end till we win the hearts and minds of people," he said.
Chennai: The bypoll in RK Nagar is certain to witness multi-cornered contest, a rare occurrence for more than a decade since many of the parties including the main Opposition has opted for boycott of bypolls in the past.

Even in the same seat, the main opposition DMK boycotted the bypoll in the June 2015 election battle in which former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa was in the fray. All parties barring the CPI boycotted the by-elections, alleging that the ruling party would win easily using the official machinery, money and muscle power. But, this time the scenario is totally contrasting with every party looking to confront the same ruling party, which has lost its charismatic leader Jayalalithaa and facing rebellion from its own ranks.

Three candidates from the AIADMK headed by V.K. Sasikala, the rebel leaders led by former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam and Jayalalithaa's niece J. Deepa will be fighting for Jayalalithaa's legacy, while the DMK has already began the process of selecting party candidate.

The PMK, which finished behind Naam Thamizhar party and failed to show its presence in the previous bypolls in Aravakurichi and Thanjavur, has not given any indications about its bypoll plans, but the party is likely to contest in the bypoll,to improve its position in the state's capital. The MDMK has not initiated preparations for the bypoll, but it needs to prove its strength after a disastrous show in the 2016 Assembly polls.

BJP state president Tamilisai Soundarrajan had declared that her party had not boycotted any bypoll and it would field a candidates in RK Nagar.

The Left parties are keen to fight the polls and a decision on which party among them would enter the fray would be taken after consultations. Director P. Seeman's Naam Thamizhar party too wants to join the poll battle and improve its vote base.

The DMDK is in total disarray after the rout in the 2016 Assembly elections and the poor show in the three bypolls-Aravakurichi, Thanjavur and Thirupparankundram. But, the party wants to put up a candidate in RK Nagar to revive its political fortunes. The constituency carved out from Washermenpet in 1977 saw a four-cornered fight in its first elections, among the AIADMK, DMK, Janata and Indira Congress.

There was a six-cornered contest in the 2016 Assembly elections and this time eight to 10 parties could enter the arena, turning the bypoll into a keen tussle that could give an indication of the transformation in state politics after Jayalalithaa's death.
New Delhi: K. Pandiarajan, former minister and one of the 11 MLAs in the O. Panneerselvam group, on Friday moved the Supreme Court seeking a direction to quash the February 18 confidence motion moved by Edappadi K. Palanisami as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.

In a writ petition, Pandiarajan also sought a direction to quash the Speaker's decision not to conduct a secret ballot for the voting of the MLAs and to direct the Speaker to conduct a fresh vote of confidence through secret ballot.

He submitted that the entire proceeding dated February 18, 2017, was conducted in a highly arbitrary and partisan manner, in utter violation of democratic norms and principles of natural justice. The request for secret ballot to decide the confidence motion was rejected by the Speaker without any justifiable basis especially when there were specific averments and complaints that the MLAs belonging to the AIADMK (including some of the MLAs from the group of 11 MLAs headed by the O .Panneerselvam, former Chief Minster - "OPS faction") were placed under virtual house arrest and extreme duress. Also, he said their affirmative vote during the proceedings on February 18, 2017, were obtained under the threat of force, fraud and coercion.

The Speaker also did not accede to the reasonable request for postponing the proposed confidence vote to a more conducive date, so as to enable the captive MLAs to visit their constituencies and interact with the general public at large before participating in the voting process, in order to enable the MLAs to gauge the public mood, preserve and uphold the principles of democratic governance in the state.

The undue haste in which the proceedings took place, and the complete lack of transparency and propriety shown by the Speaker in continuing the voting process, and that too not through Secret Ballot, is arbitrary, mala fide, and ought to be quashed.

He said that despite pro-tests by O. Panneerselvam, who beseeched upon the Speaker to consider secret ballot to preserve the principles of democratic governance in the State.

Furthermore, two members of the AIADMK, K. Pandiarajan and S. Semmalai, also made their submissions as to the threats that were being issued to members who had expressed dissent with the confidence motion. He said the said proceedings are also vitiated by the fact that the MLAs of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam were forcibly evicted from the House by the Speaker at 2 pm on February 18, through the marshalls of the House, and the Speaker declared the motion passed in favour of Palanisami.

The confidence vote, being an opinion making process, mandates the presence of the Opposition who can then proceed to persuade the members to vote pro or against the resolution.

However, this critical democratic element was completely destroyed in the impugned proceedings herein, where the confidence vote was conducted and concluded, in the absence of the DMK members. He quoted several parliamentary and legislative precedents where voting has taken place by secret ballot.

In any case, keeping in view the peculiar facts and circumstances in the present case, the Speaker ought to have resorted to secret ballot in order to protect the purity of democratic process. In failing to do, the Speaker has committed grave miscarriage of justice besides exposing himself to justifiable allegations of partisanship and colorable exercise of power. Hence the present writ petition.
BJP workers play holi with a giant cut-out of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as they celebrate the partys victory in the UP and Uttarakhand Assembly elections, at the party headquarters in New Delhi on Saturday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi : Despite the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sweeping the Uttarakhand Assembly elections, state party President Ajay Bhatt, who was contesting from Ranikhet Assembly constituency, was defeated by his Congress counterpart Karan Mahara.

Mahara defeated Bhatt by around 4,981 votes in the polls.

On the contrary, the BJP has gained a significant majority in the state with 56 seats, as Congress trailed with 11 seats.

In a major blow to the Congress, outgoing Chief Minster had Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost to Bharatiya Janata Party candidates in both seats he contested from -- Haridwar Rural and Kichha.

Rawat also tendered his resignation hours after his defeat.
New Delhi: The man of the hour in the BJP besides Prime Minister Narendra Modi is party president Amit Shah. Architect of BJP's historic win in UP during the Lok Sabha elections, Mr Shah has emerged as the most successful president of the BJP so far. After poll results, he credited Mr Modi's pro-poor policies for the party's stupendous performance in the Assembly elections, including in Uttar Pradesh where it got over two-thirds majority.

After winning states like Assam, Haryana and Maharashtra, Mr Shah had been meticulously strategising for his party to end its political "vanvaas" in UP, which sends the highest number of members to Parliament. From caste calculation to fine-tuning caste arithmetic, Mr Shah also made sure that neither factionalism nor dissension hurt party's poll prospects. It was one of the reasons that the BJP did not project a chief ministerial candidate in both UP and Uttarakhand.

Reaching out to non-Jatav Dalits and non-Yadav OBCs, Mr Shah's strategy also included tapping the youth and women voters. BJP workers and cadres were asked to visit regularly to each and every house, with the Modi government's achievements, its impact, and also to make sure that every legal voter comes out an vote. RSS leadership was also actively involved in this entire exercise.

Mr Shah, sources said, himself, held meetings with party rebels to pacify them and had asked state leadership to engage as many leaders in election related activities so that they do not feel left out. It was after Mr Shah took over the party's rein that the BJP managed to become the "largest political organisation" in the world when more than 10 crore members enrolled with it during its membership drive. "The only factor for the win is the performance of the Modi government. The outcome has shown the faith the poor have reposed in Modi...even his political rivals will have to admit that he has emerged as the tallest leader in the country since independence," Mr Shah said, after results showed party's gaining massively in UP, Uttarakhand and giving tough fight to opponents in Manipur and Goa. He expressed confidence that BJP will form government in Goa and Manipur, where no party has got a clear majority and described the victory in UP and Uttarakhand as the biggest since independence and claimed that it will herald the "politics of performance".

Mr Shah said despite defeat in Punjab, the SAD-BJP alliance got over 30 per cent votes and clarified that there would be "no rethink" on its alliance in Punjab. To a question whether BJP allies in UP would get ministerial posts, he said "absolutely." He also made light of BSP supremo Mayawati's allegations that EVMs were tampered with in UP, saying he can understand her state of mind.

When asked what would be BJP government's agenda in its first cabinet meeting would be, he said Mr Modi had promised loan waiver to small and medium farmers and said the BJP government will live "cent per cent" to the faith people have reposed in it and delivered on the promises it has made in its manifesto.

To a question on Ram mandir, Mr Shah said "You should refer to our 'sankalp patra' (manifesto)." The BJP has maintained that it wants a temple under the constitutional provisions with either a court verdict or dialogue. Asked whether the party will keep UP's complex caste equation in mind when it decides its chief ministerial candidate, he said merit will be the sole criteria.
Lucknow: The best fish swim near the bottom but the Congress has made it a habit of swimming at the top.

If the party has hit rock bottom in the UP assembly elections with seven seats, it should make sure that some heads roll at the top-especially those who had unrelentingly insisted on the alliance between Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav  often described as UP ke ladke.

The discomfort of a section of party leaders has been evident since talks of alliance began. The Congress has made a remarkable beginning six months before the elections when Mr Rahul Gandhi embarked on his Kisan Yatra and UPCC president Raj Babbar and other leaders took out the 27 saal, UP behaal yatras.

After prepping the party cadres, the Congress went into a three month long silence and then emerged to strike an alliance with the Samajwadi Party. The forging of the alliance proved to be the undoing of the Congress whose leaders had a tough time explaining what happened to its 27 saal, UP behaal slogan.

The Congress wasted precious time, waiting endlessly for the Samajwadi dispute to get resolved and when it did formally announce the alliance, the election process had begun.

Its party workers had fallen back in the realms of despair. The Congress carried the burden of the anti-incumbency factor against the Akhilesh government and the alliance did not work at the grassroots level. Overlapping of candidates put a question mark on the alliance and the results prove it.

The defeat of senior Congress MLAs including Pradeep Mathur from Mathura, Anugrah Narain Singh from Allahabad, Vivek Singh from Banda and Ajay Kapoor from Kanpur are examples of this because they did not get SP votes.
Hyderabad: Its going to be a different ball game in the Rajya Sabha as the BJP gains strength in the aftermath of the state elections announced on Saturday. Currently, the Congress party is the largest single party in the Rajya Sabha with 59 seats, with the BJP second with 56 seats, but by 2018, the BJP will in all probability be the largest single party in the Upper House.

If the Congress loses one seat and that seat is gained either by the BJP or any of its allies, or for that matter, by a neutral party like the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), in terms of counting the strength it will be accounted as double

In 2017 there will be only 10 vacancies in the Rajya Sabha, of which six are from West Bengal.

It can be presumed that only the ruling Trinamul Congress and the CPM will share these seats as per their strengths in the West Bengal Assembly, which means there is going to be no accretion of strength for the BJP or for any opposition party.

There will be three vacancies in Gujarat and one in Goa. Based on the strength BJP may retain its strength of two and Congress 1. In 2018, though, there will be many more vacancies  68 in all. Ten of these vacancies will be from Uttar Pradesh.

With its 300-plus Assembly seats in the UP house, the BJP will be the bigger gainer. The BSP, Congress and Samajwadi Party are going to lose more, including the retiring BSP chief Mayawati, who cannot win a Rajya Sabha seat from UP due to the drastic decline of the BSP in these current UP assembly elections.

She needs the support of other opposition parties such as the SP and Congress if she is to be sent to the Upper House, but this may be difficult as seven members of the latter parties are also retiring. A minimum of 36 members are required to elect one RS member from UP.

Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu, said: This year there will be no changes in the strengths of the respective parties, but in 2018, we (the NDA), will be the largest party in the House. We appeal to the Opposition to respect the mandate of the people and be more constructive in the Upper House rather than stalling it.

The TRS has been neutral as far as the NDA government is concerned and has been supporting it for all legislative business. In 2018, two RS members from the Congress and one from the TDP are retiring from Telangana and the ruling TRS is likely to bag all the three vacancies.

With the Congress having no chance of getting a single RS seat, the losses of the Congress will be an advantage for the BJP, through the TRS.
New Delhi: The BJPs spectacular performance in UP Indias most populous state accounting for a whopping 80 seats in the Lok Sabha  spearheaded by none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi may well give him the over-reaching political authority for bolder foreign policy initiatives including re-starting the frozen peace process with Pakistan.

Some foreign policy watchers feel that with Mr Modis charisma now at its peak once again following the massive mandate in UP after his extensive campaign in the state, it will be much easier for the Indian Government to hold talks from a position of strength without having to worry about internal opposition.

Foreign embassies and high commissions in New Delhi including diplomats from countries such as the US, China and Pakistan, have been watching the electoral contest closely.

Also, a continued strong performance in UP is being seen as having a greater chance to return to power at the Centre in 2019. Experts point out that with the BJP and Mr Modis massive win in UP, he will be seen globally as an Indian leader who is here to stay.

To that extent, Mr Modis global stature as a popular leader representing the collective will of 1.2 billion people is certain to receive a big boost. There had earlier been criticism from some quarters that Mr Modi was too preoccupied with foreign policy and visits abroad compared to domestic issues but the victory in UP has now dispelled much of this perception.

Already, ties with Pakistan seem to have improved following the release of an Indian soldier by Pakistan and release of two Pakistani civilians by India who had strayed across the Line of Control.
New Delhi: The Congress debacle in Uttar Pradesh has once again raised questions over the leadership of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who has been at the helm of affairs since 2013.

One view is that since the May 2013 Assembly election in Karnataka, Mr Gandhi has not been able to win any election for his party. Many party leaders differ, saying even in the current round of polls, the Congress has swept Punjab while sowing a good performance in Manipur and Goa.

But its the staggering loss for the party in Uttarakhand where it lost the government. The party has been decimated in UP, which has again set the cat among the pigeons, considering that UP is considered the home of the Nehru-Gandhi family.

Though the party won in Punjab after 10 years, the credit is being given the charisma of its chief ministerial candidate Amarinder Singh. Almost a year back, Mr Singh was unhappy with the party functioning.

He had publicly said that Congress president Sonia Gandhi should lead and Mr Gandhi has a lot to learn. The knives are out again but it seems unlikely that they will draw blood.

Congress Uttar Pradesh general secretary Umesh Pandit has already said the blame of this defeat squarely lies on Rahul Gandhi and that he should make way for his sister, Priyanka Gandhi, to lead the party.

However, party spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi tried to downplay the seriousness of the defeat by saying The Uttar Pradesh is a bad loss, it hurts...I agree that in UP, we need fundamental restructuring of the party as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy.

Some behind-the-scenes utterances against Mr Gandhi have been made by senior leaders but most suggest replacement should be a member of the Nehru-Gandhi family. As the grand old party has been plagued by the crab culture, the only rallying point of the Congressmen has been the Nehru-Gandhi family.

In the last Congress Working Committee meeting, senior leaders urged Mr Gandhi to take over as the party chief. Some leaders constantly complain that Rahul is not accessible. Observers say despite the repeated defeats in crucial states, Mr Gandhi seems tied down with the party.

In Uttar Pradesh, the entire campaign was initially planned around him. He embarked on a month-long Kisan Yatra but then the campaign went silent for two months. The Congress own chief ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit withdrew following the alliance with the SP.
Opposition parties pooling their resources and coming together for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls by ensuring theres no division of votes is then the only way forward.

New Delhi: Astounding results in favour of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections have once again triggered a debate in political circles on the necessity of a Grand Alliance. All-against-one seems to be the only sound strategy for survival given the unprecedented and unrelenting Modi wave.

The arithmetic of electoral results in UP, Bihar and Delhi Assembly elections clearly demonstrate two things: One, that a split in votes helps the BJP romp home with a majority; and two, the situation changes considerably in a direct contest between the saffron party and a combined Opposition.

Opposition parties pooling their resources and coming together for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls by ensuring theres no division of votes is then the only way forward.

Hit hard by results of UP Assembly elections, the Congress-led Opposition will be forced to rework its strategy and think in terms of putting together a broader alliance for the next parliamentary elections to stop the surge of the BJP which has gained in key elections due to division of votes.

Results of UP Assembly elections, for instance, clearly prove that a division of votes among Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party helped the BJP in getting a thumping majority.

It was not just the Muslim votes but OBCs and Dalits, the core votebase of the SP and the BSP, that got divided three ways, with a sizeable share going to the BJP as well.

Thus, a three-cornered contest, where division of few votes can change the outcome of elections, worked to the BJPs advantage. In western UP the situation was worse as Ajit Singhs Rashtriya Lok Dal was also in the fray, splitting the Jat votes four ways.

Now, consider the situation in the neighbouring state of Bihar where a Grand Alliance between the Congress, the RJD and JD(U) ensured that the BJP was defeated in Assembly elections in 2015 as in most seats there was a direct, two-way fight which averted a split in votes.

But in 2014, Lok Sabha elections, the BJP and its allies managed to win more than 30 of the 40 seats in Bihar as the Grand Alliance allies had contested separately.

Bihar is a classic example as to how the Grand Alliance learnt from its mistake in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and, by coming together in Assembly elections, managed to defeat the BJP. Had there been a tie-up in UP between the BSP, SP and the Congress on the lines of Bihar, the situation would have been very different, a senior Congress leader admitted.

Similarly, in Delhi Assembly elections in 2015, the BJP could manage to win only three of the 70 Assembly seats as it was in a direct fight with the AAP. The Congress was not a force to reckon with and there were rumours that on some seats the Congress transferred its votes to the AAP.

Delhi, like Bihar, proved that when the BJP is pitted in a direct contest with a political opponent, the going gets tough for the saffron party.

Thus, hit hard by the results of UP Assembly elections, there is bound to be a rethink among Opposition parties on whether they need to come together for a broader alliance to stop the Modi juggernaut.
A landslide. A rout. A wave. The biggest mandate the party has ever received on the back of DeMo, misread by all as it worked for, rather than against NaMo. For anyone who doubted the depth of support that powered Narendra Damodardas Modi to the prime minister's seat in 2014, the 325 seats that the BJP won in Uttar Pradesh alone which has brought it back to power in India's most populous state after 14 years with a thumping, concomitant surge in the vote share by 25%, tells its own story.

The Congress vote share - with an abysmal seven seat haul - has dropped from 63 per cent to six in U.P. over the same period! The Samajwadis and the Bahujan Samaj with their limited casteist backing, stand vastly diminished. It may not be the complete Congress-Mukt Bharat that Modi and his comrade in arms Amit Shah envisaged after this five state poll, although the 324 seat haul in UP alone, which gives it control of over roughly half the 80 seats when parliamentary polls come round in 2019, will be a huge boost to the kitty. But it comes close. Very, very close, fulfilling the truism that whoever wins U.P., wins all of Bharat!

In the here and now, Goa is yet to be called with Manohar Parrikar, this close to cobbling together enough support in a post-poll arrangement. (As could the Congress). Uttarakhand and Manipur, likely, are in saffron mode, with the grounding of Udta Akali Punjab a given. BJP strategists are banking on the fact that the flamboyance and elitist excesses that derailed Amarinder Singh ten years ago will once again work in the BJP's favour in 2019.

Modi also wants assembly polls in well adminstered BJP states Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and even Gujarat to be held alongside the general elections so that he can deliver the north. As he now plans to deliver the south. That's Modi 2.0.

In the BJP's first outpost in Karnataka, which slipped out of its grasp after its stalwart B.S. Yeddyurappa mishandled his first stint in power, the former chief minister is working overtime to identify the Congress' - and the BJP's - weakest points - and moving as swiftly to plug it. Today, the saffron tent is crowded with Congressmen who persist in seeing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah as an outsider, a non-Congressmen foisted on them, and blindly, playing into the BJP's hands as it executes its plans of eating into the Congress' Vokkaliga vote in the Old Mysore region while keeping its own Lingayat vote share intact. A fractured Vokkaliga vote together with the minorities and BC-OBC-BT vote, even with Siddaramaiah's Kuruba community'sbacking, will clearly not be enough to sustain the Congress.

In Andhra, the BJP has a resource hungry ally in Chandrababu Naidu, who, in his rush to build a new state could be turning a blind eye to the political space he may have to cede for developmental funds that insiders say, the centre is being extremely niggardly with. A pact with the devil?

Similarly in Tamil Nadu, the AIADMK government of Edapalli Palanisami must contend with staying in power without the glue of Jayalalitha's fanatical female following which saw the party buck anti-incumbency and return to power in October 2016. One false step and they will fall foul of the BJP-appointed Governor, tasked to ensure that in a Rajya Sabha, reinforced with the numbers that accrued from this victory in UP, the AIADMK MPs toe the line.

That leaves Kerala - ripe for picking, and the possible imposition of Presidents Rule and early elections if the killing fields of Kannur turn red with the blood of RSS workers whom the BJP insist are being brutally scythed to death by the Marxists.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has been the target of a calculated tarring, accused of encouraging the tit-for-tat killings that have been a staple of Kerala politics whenever the Communist Party comes to power. It may have begun in 1968 with the brutal killing of the RSS leader Vadikkal Ramakrishnan in Thalassery, and continues to shock today, with the violent end of another RSS activist as recently as January this year - one of the 186 killed in and around Kannur in the last 40 years and more.

The BJP's Kummanan Rajasekharan is keeping score. One more killing in Pinarayi, where Vijayan hails from, and the little known village could provide the spark for a righteous upsurge by a newly defiant BJP that will stop at nothing to plant the saffron flag in the south.
Prime Minister Narendra Modis fans in his Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi are at pains to tell visitors how Mr Modi won over the people of this ancient city by pressing the right buttons. The Prime Minister, they explain, landed at the Banaras Hindu University when he came to file his papers in 2014, paid obeisance to its founder Madan Mohan Malaviya, prayed at the famous Vishwanath temple and attended the evening aarti on the banks of Ganga. This appealed to the people of Varanasi. Moreover, it is pointed out, Mr Modi made a conscious effort to reach out to all sections of society. For instance, when he spoke about how he planned to improve infrastructure in Varanasi, Mr Modi had declared that he would make this city another Kyoto. According to a BHU professor, Mr Modi chose to mention the Japanese city because there is a strong link between the people of Japan and Varanasi, especially the Mallah (boatmen) community. He explained that a large number of Japanese tourists visit Varanasi and, over the years, many have married men from the Mallah community who are now settled in Japan. The Prime Minister, he said, could have referred to any other international city but he deliberately picked Kyoto precisely because of this connection.

Speaking at a book release function a month ago, Bihar CM and Janata Dal (United) president Nitish Kumar made a strong case for greater Opposition unity at the national level. And yet this show of strength was missing in the Uttar Pradesh polls. Despite his talk of keeping communal forces at bay, Mr Kumar did not even turn up to campaign for the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance or the Ajit-Singh-led Rashtriya Lok Dal even though his party had a tie-up with the party. According to the grapevine, Mr Kumar kept his distance from UP as he did not want to put himself out only to enhance SP leader Akhilesh Yadavs image. Moreover, he is also learnt to have complained that Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi did not invite him for the campaign. However, Mr Kumars ally in Bihar, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, helped out by addressing a number of rallies in the last two phases of the polls in areas bordering Bihar. In fact, Mr Kumar had forayed into UP shortly after his victory in the 2015 Bihar Assembly polls in the hope that he would be able to get a toehold in this important state by appealing to his Kurmis. The move was seen as a sign that the Bihar leader was preparing to play a larger role in politics. But Mr Kumar backed off shortly after he ventured out and has confined himself to Bihar since then.

Well before the month-long seven-phase UP Assembly poll came to a close, it became evident to the Samajwadi Party and the Congress that the results will not measure up to their expectations. It was at that stage then that poll strategist Prashant Kishor, drafted by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, floated the idea that the two parties could tie up with the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party to keep the BJP out. It was also being whispered that since the BSP and the SP would not agree on a chief minister candidate from each others party, the top post could go to the Congress even though it is a marginal player in the state. No sooner did this story start doing the rounds that UP Congress chief Raj Babbar was seen consulting palmists and astrologers in Lucknow about his prospects for the chief ministers kursi. As it happens, Mr Kishors grand plan was destined to be a non-starter.

Is veteran BJP leader L.K. Advani nursing ambitions of being picked for the Presidents post later this year? Several BJP leaders have hinted at this possibility. A senior party insider recently remarked about how Mr Advani had succeeded in capturing traits like anger, greed and jealousy, it was not the case with ambition. It was pointed out that though Mr Advani did put aside his personal ambitions when Atal Behari Vajpayee was Prime Minister, these resurfaced subsequently, specially after he was projected as BJPs prime ministerial candidate in 2009. Although Mr Advani and other older party leaders have been banished to the partys non-functioning margdarshak mandal, his detractors maintain the BJP veteran has not accepted that he has been effectively marginalised by the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah duo that controls the party now. Mr Advani had hoped to get the Lok Sabha Speakers post when the BJP rode to power in 2014 and is now said to be keen on occupying the Rashtrapati Bhavan. But like last time, Mr Advanis ambitions are expected to be thwarted once again.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Israel later this year. It will be the first visit by an Indian PM since the countries normalised relations in 1992. In the context of Indias growing ties with Israel, particularly under the Modi sarkar, this is being billed as an important moment that will expand bilateral engagement to new levels. Though the dates are still being finalised, observers say that it will take place sometime in June-July. To lay the groundwork for this historic visit, foreign secretary S. Jaishankar is going to Israel soon, one of many high-level visits that usually precede Mr Modis trip.

Apparently, Mr Jaishankar himself follows national security adviser Ajit Doval, who visited Jerusalem for two days recently. Likely more such visits will ensue, not just by two of Mr Modis closest aides, but also other senior babus, specially those dealing in defence matters. Curiously, the proposed itinerary of the PM does not include visiting Palestine, though MEA mandarins maintain that Indias Palestine policy remains unchanged.

Bihar babus up the ante

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has reportedly taken a tough stand on the stir by Bihar bureaucrats over the arrest of former Bihar Staff Selection Commission chairman Sudhir Kumar in connection with a job scam. But conflicting reports are emerging from the state. While the virtual revolt of IAS officers continues to gather steam, sources say that the state government is contemplating handing over investigation of the case to the CBI, in a bid to appease the furious babus.

But theres another school of thought, which believes its only a matter of time before chief minister Kumar steps into the fray. For many days since the stir began after Sudhir Kumars arrest, the chief minister who is otherwise vocal and always takes a stand on every other issue, maintained a studied silence on the arrest of the IAS officer. Many consider this as another episode in the IAS-IPS turf battle. The CM however has spoken about the issue in the state Assembly. He assured an unbiased investigation by the state special investigation team. Curiously, he also mentioned a landmark decision on the IAS agitation to be announced soon, but did not explain what he meant by that. Stay tuned for updates.
For those who watched appalled as Donald Trump bellowed to victory in the US presidential election on a platform of fear, xenophobia and hate, there was always the consolation that his poisonous campaign rhetoric might be a mere vote-winning strategy. Style over substance. Just words. And the hope that his demonisation of entire groups of people would not have any real consequences. Yet, in India, people have watched with concern the reports of hate crimes against Indians and people of Indian origin in the past few weeks. President Trumps anti-immigrant rhetoric has clearly contributed to an atmosphere of xenophobia in the country, spurring violence against people from minority communities. The new President has also swiftly backed up his hateful discourse with a series of concrete policy decisions that pose a grave and immediate threat to human rights in the US and beyond.

A series of repressive executive orders passed by Mr Trump in his first two months in office will have far-reaching, catastrophic consequences. And this is not just a US problem  far from it. The policies of Mr Trumps White House will have a ripple effect in all corners of the globe, with the most vulnerable hit the hardest. It should come as little surprise that Mr Trumps two main targets in the Oval Office are the same ones he singled out on the campaign trail: Muslims and refugees. If youre a refugee, who also happens to be a Muslim, so much the worse. With the January 27 executive order, protecting the nation from terrorist attacks by foreign nationals, Mr Trump declared war on Muslim refugees around the world. Its haphazard implementation swiftly sowed fear and chaos. There was a brief reprieve on February 3, when a US district court issued a nationwide order blocking the blatantly discriminatory measure, but it was shortlived.

On March 6, following weeks of suspense, the White House issued a revised executive order. Despite the tinkering at the edges, it is a thinly veiled affront to the judiciary and remains a Muslim ban by any other name. With the stroke of a pen, the President again shut the door to anyone  including refugees  from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Not only are these all predominantly Muslim countries; they are places where most people seeking asylum are fleeing conflict and human rights violations. Mr Trump claims to be blocking the entry of terrorists who would harm the US. But in reality, there is no data to support the view that refugees  Muslim or otherwise  pose more risk of committing acts of terrorism than citizens. Mr Trump also imposed an annual refugee cap of 50,000. With Barack Obamas administration having already pledged to admit 110,000 refugees in the current fiscal year, this order will affect 60,000 vulnerable people in 2017 alone.

The fact that this comes amid a global emergency in which 65 million people are displaced due to war and persecution underlines its callousness. But in the era of fake news and trumped-up alternative facts, the truth is clearly of no interest to the President. For the refugees and migrants facing real life-and-death decisions, pretence and fakery are not luxuries they can indulge in. Since the travel ban first took effect, Amnesty International and others have encountered tales of terrible suffering in its wake in various countries around the world. Families rent asunder, lives put on hold, hopes of new beginnings crushed overnight. Like the man who went to Iran for his fathers funeral and was suddenly faced with the prospect of not being allowed to return home to the US.

Or the Yemeni family in New York whose one-year-old baby is now stuck thousands of miles away in Malaysia because the travel ban forced them to leave her behind. Or the persecuted Sudanese journalist living underground in Egypt, fearing for his life, who is now questioning how safe Mr Trumps US would be to seek asylum in. Then there are large numbers of refugees in other countries  overwhelmingly in the global South  who may now feel abandoned by the international community. Will Mr Trumps travel ban prompt a knock-on effect of those host countries increasing forcible expulsions of refugees? Amnesty Internationals I Welcome campaign has been a powerful platform for millions of global citizens who choose to stand in solidarity with refugees. Mr Trumps border security policies, based on hatred and fear, are a direct confrontation to that movement. In the six weeks since taking office, Mr Trump has waged all-out war on human rights. Responding with outrage is not enough. It is the time, and the responsibility of all who hold those rights dear, to fight back.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and the BJP itself have reason to be ecstatic about the outcome in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election. And they can be forgiven in the moment of success if they  Mr Modi, Mr Shah and the BJP  believe, wrongly, that the UP result is an endorsement of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre in general and of demonetisation in particular. This would be an insult to the intelligence of the UP voter. He or she opted for Mr Modi and the BJP at the Centre in the 2014 Lok Sabha election, and the voter will revisit the issue in 2019. The voter in UP was focused on the Assembly election in February-March and on who should form the government in Lucknow for the next five years. And it is evident that the voter opted for the BJP in 2017 after having tried out the Bahujan Samaj Party in 2007 and the Samajwadi Party in 2012. On all three occasions, the UP voter has given a clear and decisive verdict. One can understand the indignation, despair and dismay of the Congress and the liberal intelligentsia, saying the BJP has won UP on Saturday because Hindus voted for it and that the minority Muslims had lost out in the process, and that it was a regrettable triumph of Hindu communalism over the vaunted secularism of the rest  meaning the Congress, SP and BSP. But again, the critics would be missing the woods for the trees, as it were, in the same way as Mr Modis admirers. It would of course be necessary to explain why the BJP is getting the sweeping mandate that it has secured. Did the anti-Muslim bias of the partys leaders and cadre have a role to play in it?

It would be naive to ignore the anti-Muslim bias, which is not a plain communalism versus secularism battle that is a strong undercurrent in the politics of Hindu right-wingers represented by the BJP. It looks that there is a conflict between Jats and Muslims in western UP, which is more social and economic than religious. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) workers have certainly spread the ideological poison, fishing in the proverbial troubled waters. And the reactionary Muslim clergy as well as opinion-makers in the community have decided to put their weight behind the secularists in order to defend their own version of communalist ideology. But the rivalry between Jats and Muslims, and to an extent between dalits and Muslims as seen in the Muzaffarnagar riots, is centred around the economy. The Samajwadi Party government of Akhilesh Yadav failed to provide protection to the Muslims in the region at the time of the Muzaffarnagar riots, which was only a symptom of a larger clash of interests between Jats and Muslims. Many Muslim opinion-makers had argued that there was never any communal discord between Jats and Muslims, and this was nothing but the machinations of the RSS and BJP. It seems evident now that Jats have not voted for the ostensibly Jat party, the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), and its leader Ajit Singh.

The ordinary Muslim across UP feels uncomfortable with the in-your-face communal aggression of the BJP-RSS workers on the streets but it will be a momentary phenomenon. As the election day passes and things get back to the daily routine as they must, Hindus and Muslims, Yadavs and dalits and the other castes will continue to deal with each other as they have done for years. The BJP has no option but to deal with Muslims as it does with any group of citizens. The needs and rights of Muslims in UP cant be pushed under the carpet, nor can they be trampled upon. This is not to argue that the BJP doesnt have a majoritarian bias, but it knows as much as anyone else that it is not good for its government to face social strife between communities. So, to interpret the 2017 UP Assembly election verdict as the triumph of Hindutva and Moditva would be a case of barking up the wrong tree. It is indeed plausible that some BJP leaders and cadres would now want to spread Hindutva across the board, but the people have no interest in it. They may not oppose the spread of Hindutva tooth and nail as in the case of believing secularists. But people of all castes and communities in the state would expect the BJP government to create opportunities in education and employment, provide infrastructural facilities like houses, water, roads and electricity. People want change, and a change for the better. This is the only reason that the BJP has been voted into power now, as were the BSP and SP earlier. The BJPs victory in UP then is not the peoples seal of approval for Hindutva, either benign or vicious.

The BSP and SP have tended to rely more on the rhetoric of social equality in order to win votes without realising that people want the rhetoric to become reality. The BJP would face the same challenge. People would not settle for the rhetoric of development. They demand development, and if it does not happen between now and the next Assembly election in 2022, the BJP will get the same treatment that the SP and BSP have got on Saturday. There were moments in the campaign that Mr Modi, Mr Shah and other Hindutva hotheads in the party harped on the Hindu-Muslim divide. But Mr Modi and Mr Shah are realistic enough to recognise that this is not sufficient to run governments. The two will have a tough time reining in the Hindutva elements while providing a government that would pull UP out of social and economic backwardness. The record of the BJP in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan shows that they have not succeeded. It is quite likely that the forces of inertia in UP too will turn the BJP like the next-door political party, boastful but not successful. Ultimately, it is for the people of UP to get out of the political delusion that they control the reins of power in New Delhi, and make a place for themselves in the successful Indian economy which has not much to do with the whims of political masters.
Known as La Gioconda in Italian, the Mona Lisa is often held up as a symbol of emotional enigma. (Photo: AFP)

The subject of centuries of scrutiny and debate, Mona Lisa's famous smile is routinely described as ambiguous. But is it really that hard to read?

Apparently not.

In an unusual trial, close to 100 per cent of people described her expression as unequivocally "happy", researchers revealed on Friday.

"We really were astonished," neuroscientist Juergen Kornmeier of the University of Freiburg in Germany, who co-authored the study, told AFP.

Kornmeier and a team used what is arguably the most famous artwork in the world in a study of factors that influence how humans judge visual cues such as facial expressions.

Known as La Gioconda in Italian, the Mona Lisa is often held up as a symbol of emotional enigma.

The portrait appears to many to be smiling sweetly at first, only to adopt a mocking sneer or sad stare the longer you look.

Using a black and white copy of the early 16th century masterpiece by Leonardo da Vinci, a team manipulated the model's mouth corners slightly up and down to create eight altered images -- four marginally but progressively "happier", and four "sadder" Mona Lisas.

A block of nine images were shown to 12 trial participants 30 times.

In every showing, for which the pictures were randomly reshuffled, participants had to describe each of the nine images as happy or sad.

"Given the descriptions from art and art history, we thought that the original would be the most ambiguous," Kornmeier said.

Instead, "to our great astonishment, we found that Da Vinci's original was... perceived as happy" in 97 per cent of cases.

All in the context

A second phase of the experiment involved the original Mona Lisa with eight "sadder" versions, with even more nuanced differences in the lip tilt.

In this test, the original was still described as happy, but participants' reading of the other images changed.

"They were perceived a little sadder" than in the first experiment, said Kornmeier.

The findings confirm that "we don't have an absolute fixed scale of happiness and sadness in our brain" -- and that a lot depends on context, the researcher explained.

"Our brain manages to very, very quickly scan the field. We notice the total range, and then we adapt our estimates" using our memory of previous sensory experiences, he said.

Understanding this process may be useful in the study of psychiatric disorders, said Kornmeier.

Affected people can have hallucinations, seeing things that others do not, which may be the result of a misalignment between the brain's processing of sensory input, and perceptual memory.

A next step will be to do the same experiment with psychiatric patients.

Another interesting discovery was that people were quicker to identify happier Mona Lisas than sad ones.

This suggested "there may be a slight preference... in human beings for happiness, said Kornmeier.

As for the masterpiece itself, the team believe their work has finally settled a centuries-old question.

"There may be some ambiguity in another aspect," said Kornmeier, but "not ambiguity in the sense of happy versus sad."

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It's the latest salvo in a battle that started last month when Waymo accused former manager Anthony Levandowski of heisting its trade secrets before he left the company last year.

A self-driving car company founded by Google is presenting new evidence to support its allegations that a former manager stole technology that Uber bought to help build robot-powered vehicles for its ride-hailing service.

Waymo, a project hatched by Google, wove its tale of deceit in sworn statements filed Friday in a San Francisco federal court. It's the latest salvo in a battle that started last month when Waymo accused former manager Anthony Levandowski of heisting its trade secrets before he left the company last year.

Levandowski then started a self-driving truck company called Otto that Uber bought for $680 million. In a sworn statement, one of Levandowski's former colleagues said Levandowski confided that he planned to "replicate" Waymo's technology just before he left to start Otto. Uber denies Waymo's allegations.

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The completion follows the satisfaction of all conditions to the closing of the transaction, including approval of the transaction by HARMAN stockholders and receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals in the United States and certain foreign jurisdictions.

Samsung Electronics has announced it has completed the previously announced acquisition of Harman International Industries, Incorporated (HARMAN). Under the terms of the merger agreement, HARMAN stockholders will receive $112.00 per share in cash.

The completion follows the satisfaction of all conditions to the closing of the transaction, including approval of the transaction by HARMAN stockholders and receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals in the United States and certain foreign jurisdictions.

In connection with the completion of the transaction, HARMANs common stock will cease trading prior to market open on March 13, 2017 and will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange. HARMAN will operate as a standalone Samsung subsidiary, overseen by a Board of Directors led by Mr. Sohn. Mr. Paliwal will remain CEO of HARMAN, leading the Company with his management team, and will continue to serve as a member of its Board. Samsung is retaining HARMANs work force, headquarters and facilities, as well as all of its consumer and professional audio brands.

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Bitcoin had scaled to a record of nearly $1,300 this month, higher than the price of an ounce of gold, as investors speculated that an ETF holding the digital currency could woo more people into buying the asset.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday denied a request to list what would have been the first US exchange-traded fund built to track bitcoin, the digital currency.

Investors Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have been trying for more than three years to convince the SEC to let it bring the Bitcoin ETF to market. CBOE Holdings Inc's Bats exchange had applied to list the ETF. The digital currency's price plunged, falling as much as 18 per cent in trading immediately after the decision before rebounding slightly. It last traded down 7.8 percent to $1,098.

Bitcoin had scaled to a record of nearly $1,300 this month, higher than the price of an ounce of gold, as investors speculated that an ETF holding the digital currency could woo more people into buying the asset.

Bitcoin is a virtual currency that can be used to move money around the world quickly and with relative anonymity, without the need for a central authority, such as a bank or government. Yet bitcoin presents a new set of risks to investors given its limited adoption, a number of massive cybersecurity breaches affecting bitcoin owners and the lack of consistent treatment of the assets by governments.

"Based on the record before it, the Commission believes that the significant markets for bitcoin are unregulated," the SEC said in a statement. "The commission notes that bitcoin is still in the relatively early stages of its development and that, over time, regulated bitcoin-related markets of significant size may develop."

The regulators have questions and concerns about how the funds would work and whether they could be priced and trade effectively, according to a financial industry source familiar with the SEC's thinking.

"We began this journey almost four years ago, and are determined to see it through," said Tyler Winklevoss, CFO of Digital Asset Services LLC. "We agree with the SEC that regulation and oversight are important to the health of any marketplace and the safety of all investors."

The Winklevoss twins are best known for their feud with Facebook Inc founder Mark Zuckerberg over whether he stole the idea for what became the world's most popular social networking website from them. The former Olympic rowers ultimately settled their legal dispute, which was dramatized in the 2010 film "The Social Network."

Since then they have become major investors in the digital currency, which relies on "mining" computers that validate blocks of transactions by competing to solve mathematical puzzles. The first to solve the puzzle and clear the transaction is rewarded with new bitcoins. Solutions to the puzzle come roughly every 10 minutes.

Advocates of the currency and the technology it relies on to document transactions, blockchain, were dismayed by the ruling.

"How do we develop well-capitalized and regulated markets in the US and Europe if financial innovators aren't allowed to bring products to market that grow domestic demand for digital currencies like bitcoin?" asked Jerry Brito, executive director of Coin Center, an advocacy group.

Spencer Bogart, head of research at Blockchain Capital, said bitcoin's price could fall as much as 20 percent but that its long-term adoption will continue.

A Bats spokeswoman said the exchange is reviewing the SEC's statement and would have no further comment.

There are two other bitcoin ETF applications awaiting a verdict from the SEC. Grayscale Investments LLC's Bitcoin Investment Trust, backed by early bitcoin advocate Barry Silbert and his Digital Currency Group, filed an application last year.

SolidX Partners Inc, a US technology company that provides blockchain services, also filed its ETF application last year.

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Washington: The suspension of H-1B visa will slow the work done by American research institutions that depend on foreign students and researchers, a top scientific group in the US has said.

"The extended visa review process will force promising young foreign students to delay the start of research careers while they wait for their visas. It will also slow the work done by research institutions that depend on foreign born students and researchers," the American Society for Cell Biology said.

The statement comes days after the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a six-month-long suspension of premium processing of H-1B visa petitions filed on or after April 3, 2017.

This suspension will eliminate the option for expedited review of H-1B visa applications. The American Society for Cell Biology said the recent travel-related actions by the Trump Administration have created a sense of uncertainty and unease.

"The potential of not being able to return home after visiting countries outside the US may force many in the scientific community to refrain from travelling in the first place," it said.

Noting that the scientific process does not take place in a vacuum, the society said it is collaborative and depends heavily on the interaction and exchange of ideas and information that can only take place face-to-face at scientific meetings.

"It is critical for researchers, regardless of place of birth, to share the results of their research with colleagues. It is also critical for them to learn what other research is being done in their area of expertise," it said.

"The ASCB and its leadership recognise the need to protect the nation. However, we also recognize the importance of preserving principles critical to the scientific process that will keep the US a scientific leader," the American Society for Cell Biology said.
Washington: A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trumps administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape their war-torn homeland by fleeing to Wisconsin.

The ruling likely is the first by a judge since Trump issued a revised travel ban on Monday, according to a spokesman for the Washington state attorney general, who has led states challenging the ban.

A Syrian Muslim man who was granted asylum and settled in Wisconsin has been working since last year to win US government approval for his wife and 3-year-old daughter to leave the devastated city of Aleppo and join him here.

The man, who is not identified because of fears for his familys safety, filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trumps first travel ban had wrongly stopped the visa process for his family. US District Judge William Conley set that challenge aside after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the entire Trump travel order.

Trump signed a new executive order on Monday. The Syrian man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon, alleging the new order is still an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion and right to due process. He asked Conley to block its enforcement against his family.

Judge Conley granted that request, saying there were daily threats to the Syrian mans wife and child that could cause irreparable harm. He issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family. The order doesnt block the entire travel ban. It simply prevents Trumps administration from enforcing it against this family pending a March 21 hearing.

After the Trump ban was blocked the first time, the approval process restarted for the Syrian family and theyre now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the US embassy, the last step before US customs officials decide whether to issue them visas.

But the family doesnt have dates for the interviews yet and Trumps new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian mans attorneys.

Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that the new ban may not apply to this family anyway, although they did not go into details. There are various exemptions and waivers in the new ban including some that give consular officers flexibility to decide cases.

Conley acknowledged that the familys situation is murky but still issued the order, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case.

The US Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian mans complaint and declined further comment on it and Conleys order.

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travellers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. US District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the entire order on February 3.

The revised order issued on Monday removed Iraq from the list of countries and would temporarily shuts down the refugee program. Unlike the first order, the new ban would not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian mans lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assads regime and another group fighting in support of Assad. The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and travelled to pro-Assad areas to manage his familys business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife. He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.
Washington: The administration of US President Donald Trump on Friday moved to clean house at the Justice Department, demanding the resignations of 46 federal prosecutors appointed during the two terms of his predecessor Barack Obama.

Presidents often order political appointees in several agencies to resign when they take office, but the abrupt nature of the move caught some by surprise -- especially given that so many were asked to leave at once.

High-profile Manhattan prosecutor Preet Bharara was among those asked to leave -- even though he met with Trump before the Republican took office and said he was asked to stay on.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said Attorney General Jeff Session had asked "all remaining 46 presidentially appointed US Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition."

"Until the new US Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US Attorney's Offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders."

Later Friday, another Justice Department spokesman, Peter Carr, said Trump had asked two to stay on -- current acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente and the man he picked to take over that position, Rod Rosenstein.

"The President called Dana Boente and Rod Rosenstein tonight to inform them that he has declined to accept their resignation, and they will remain in their current positions," Carr said.

It was not immediately clear if other resignations would eventually be declined. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said he was "troubled" to learn of the mass request for resignations, especially that of Bharara, and said it had not been done in an "orderly fashion" as seen in the past.

"By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining US Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the president is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice," Schumer said in a statement on Facebook.
Ramallah: Donald Trump has invited Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas to visit the White House sometime soon, both sides said after the first phone call between the pair since the US president took office in January.

Trump invited Abbas "to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the (Palestinian-Israeli) political process," the official Palestinian news agency Wafa quoted Abbas's spokesman as saying.

The spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeina, said that Trump stressed his "commitment to a peace process that would lead to a real peace between Palestinians and Israelis", Wafa reported.

Abbas told Trump that peace was a "strategic choice" for the Palestinian people that should lead to the "establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel".

In Washington, the White House said Trump "emphasised his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal."

"The president noted that the United States cannot impose a solution on the Israelis and Palestinians, nor can one side impose an agreement on the other," said a statement from Trump's spokesman Sean Spicer.

"The President invited President Abbas to a meeting at the White House in the near future." Trump received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in mid-February.

At that meeting, Trump broke with decades of US policy by saying he was not bound to the two-state solution for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The peace process has been deadlocked since April 2014 following the collapse of indirect negotiations led by then US secretary of state John Kerry.

Since Trump came to power, having pledged to lead the most pro-Israel US administration in history, Palestinian officials have been quietly alarmed by their lack of access to senior figures in the White House.

On Tuesday, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, met for the first time with the Palestinian envoy to the world body, Riyad Mansour.

After the talks, Haley tweeted that the Palestinians should "meet with Israel in direct negotiations rather than looking to the UN to deliver results that can only be achieved through the two parties".

Israel has long favoured direct bilateral talks, while the Palestinians argue they need the international community to ensure Israel follows through on its pledges.

Trump has previously suggested he would move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Israeli right-wingers have encouraged Netanyahu to use Trump's election as an opportunity to formally annex parts of the West Bank into Israel.
Washington: Describing the BJP's landslide victory in assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as a vote of support for Narendra Modi, a well-known American expert has said that the results show that people consider the Prime Minister "a man of action".

BJP's historic win in India's most populous state Uttar Pradesh is its biggest electoral prize, Milan Vaishnav, South Asia Programme, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said in his quick reaction as it became clear that the BJP was headed for an overwhelming majority of seats in the state.

"This, along with the clear victory in Uttarakhand is unambiguously a vote of support for Modi. The victory demonstrates that, whatever people may think of demonetisation, they see the PM as a man of action," Vaishnav, who is specialising on domestic Indian politics, told PTI. Vaishnav's latest book 'When Crime Pays: Money and Muscle in Indian Politics' hit the book stores in both India and the US in January.

"For the Congress, it can take solace in the fact that the party looks to have notched a victory in Punjab. The Congress badly needed this win as it only controls one major state (Karnataka), which could easily change hands next year," Vaishnav said.

Arguably, the Aam Admi Party has suffered the biggest disappointment--underperforming in both Punjab and Goa, he said.

"The UP verdict is a massive setback for Mayawati and the BSP, which now faces an existential crisis. It has now suffered three consecutive defeats -- in 2012, 2014's national polls, and 2017," Vaishnav said.

Supporters of the BJP held election result watch parties in major cities of the US including the Silicon Valley, New York, New Jersey, Chicago and Florida.

"Modi magic has worked again. It is the pro-poor and pro-farmer policies of the Prime Minister which has resulted in BJPs historic victory in Uttar Pradesh," said Jagdish Sewhani, president of American India Public Affairs Committee.

"This is also an endorsement of the demonetisation policy of the Prime Minister. This shows people have full faith in him," he added.

"Victory in these assembly elections has cleared BJPs door in Rajya Sabha. Thus with potential majority in both the houses of the Parliament will unblock the progress of India," said Khanderao Kand, the founder of Silicon Valley-based Global Indian Technology Professionals Organisation.
Oberhansley is charged with murder, rape and abuse of a corpse in the September 2014 slaying of 46-year-old Tammy Jo Blanton. If convicted, he could be sentenced to death(Photo: AP)

Indiana: A southern Indiana man accused of killing his former girlfriend and eating parts of her body in 2014 will undergo psychiatric evaluations, despite his insistence that hes competent for trial.

Defence lawyers say Joseph Oberhansley cant consult with them or understand court proceedings. Clark County Circuit Court Judge Vicki Carmichael this week granted their request for evaluations.

The News and Tribune reports that Oberhansley, of Jeffersonville, told the judge that he is completely innocent of all of these false charges and is completely competent.

Oberhansley is charged with murder, rape and abuse of a corpse in the September 2014 slaying of 46-year-old Tammy Jo Blanton. If convicted, he could be sentenced to death.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad called American troops deployed to his country invaders" because he hadnt given permission for them to enter the country and said theres been no concrete action from the Trump administration toward ISIS. Any foreign troops coming to Syria without our invitation or consultation or permission, they are invaders, whether they are American, Turkish, or any other one, Mr Assad said in an interview with a Chinese media outlet.

And we dont think this is going to help. What are they going to do? To fight ISIS? The Americans lost nearly every war. They lost in Iraq, they had to withdraw at the end ...They didnt succeed anywhere they sent troops, they only create a mess.
Seoul: South Korea's ousted leader Park Geun-hye was holed up in the presidential Blue House Saturday as protesters took to Seoul's streets demanding her arrest, a day after a court upheld her impeachment.

The ex-president has made no comment since she was forced from office on Friday when the country's Constitutional Court unanimously upheld parliament's decision to impeach her over a corruption scandal.

Thousands of riot police were deployed as some 50,000 anti-Park protesters took to the streets to celebrate the verdict, chanting: "The people have won! Arrest Park!"

Some 20,000 angry pro-Park flag-waving protesters rallied near the City Hall, demanding a review of the one-off decision. Police set up barricades to keep the rival protests apart.

A third person died on Saturday in hospital after he lost consciousness the day before in a clash between pro-Park supporters and riot police, near the Constitutional Court which confirmed her impeachment.

News reports said Park was watching television alone in her private presidential room Friday when the country's highest court announced her dismissal live on air.

An incredulous Park immediately phoned her aides to confirm the verdict, the Chosun Ilbo daily said.

Her aides told the newspaper she had no immediate plans to issue a statement on the court decision or her future course of action.

"The president was apparently stunned at the ruling. She looked dejected," an unidentified aide was quoted as saying.

"She wants to keep to herself for a while," he added. Park is obliged to move out of the presidential palace, where she has been cloistered for more than 90 days after the National Assembly voted for her impeachment in October.

She will leave only after her private house in prosperous southern Seoul is repaired and cleaned to accommodate her and her security detail, Park's aide told Yonhap news agency.

TV footage showed materials being unloaded from a small truck parked outside the two-storey house. The court's verdict immediately stripped her of all powers and privileges, except for her security.

Police have arrested several protesters for violent behaviour. Some Pro-Park demonstrators were caught assaulting photographers and TV crew members, leaving them with cuts and bruises.

Yonhap said the third victim was a 74-year-old man who collapsed during a demonstration near the Constitutional Court.

A demonstrator died the day before after being hit on the head by a speaker that fell from the top of a police bus when a protester commandeered the vehicle and drove it into police barricades.

South Korea's top election official Kim Yong-Deok said in a statement there was "growing concern" over the highly charged atmosphere ahead of an election which must take place no later than on May 9.

"The vote must serve as a chance to overcome divisions and conflicts and achieve national unity and harmony," he said in a speech aired live on TV.

The main opposition Democratic Party urged Park to accept the court ruling, saying she was behaving as if she rejected the decision, which was reached unanimously by the court's eight judges.

Park was found to have broken the law by allowing her friend Choi Soon-Sil to meddle in state affairs, and breached rules on public servants' activities.

The ruling removed her presidential immunity to criminal indictment. She has already been named a criminal suspect, accused of bribery for offering policy favours to firms that benefited Choi.

For months she has refused to make herself available for questioning by prosecutors probing the scandal.

But that may no longer be an option once she leaves the Blue House, when she could face formal arrest if she refuses a summons.
Seoul: South Korea's Constitutional Court removed President Park Geun-hye from office on Friday over a graft scandal involving the country's conglomerates at a time of rising tensions with North Korea and China.

The ruling sparked protests from hundreds of Park's supporters, two of whom were killed in clashes with police outside the court, and a festive rally by those who had demanded her ouster who celebrated justice being served.

"We did it. We the citizens, the sovereign of this country, opened a new chapter in history," Lee Tae-ho, the leader of a movement to oust Park that has held mostly peaceful rallies in downtown involving millions, told a large gathering in Seoul.

Park becomes South Korea's first democratically elected leader to be forced from office, capping months of paralysis and turmoil over the corruption scandal that also landed the head of the Samsung conglomerate in detention and on trial.

A snap presidential election will be held within 60 days.

Park did not appear in court, and a spokesman said she would not be making any comment. She also would not leave the presidential Blue House residence on Friday.

"Park is not leaving the Blue House today," Blue House spokesman Kim Dong Jo told Reuters.

Park was stripped of her powers after parliament voted to impeach her but has remained in the president's official compound.

The court's acting chief judge, Lee Jung-mi, said Park had violated the constitution and law "throughout her term," and despite the objections of parliament and the media, she had concealed the truth and cracked down on critics.

Park has steadfastly denied any wrongdoing.

The ruling to uphold parliament's December 9 vote to impeach her marks a dramatic fall from grace of South Korea's first woman president and daughter of Cold War military dictator Park Chung-hee. Both her parents were assassinated.

Park, 65, no longer has immunity and could now face criminal charges over bribery, extortion and abuse of power in connection with allegations of conspiring with her friend, Choi Soon-sil.

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn was appointed acting president and will remain in that post until the election. He called on Park's supporters and opponents to put their differences aside to prevent deeper division.

"It is time to accept, and close the conflict and confrontation we have suffered," Hwang said in a televised speech.

A liberal presidential candidate, Moon Jae-in, is leading in opinion polls to succeed Park, with 32 percent support in one poll released on Friday. Hwang, who has not said whether he will seek the presidency, leads among conservatives, none of whom has more than single-digit poll ratings.

"Given Park's spectacular demise and disarray among conservatives, the presidential contest in May is the liberals' to lose," said Yonsei University professor John Delury.

Relations with China and the United States could dominate the coming presidential campaign, after the US military this month started deploying the US THAAD missile defense system in South Korea in response to North Korea's stepped-up missile and nuclear tests.

Beijing has vigorously protested against the deployment, which was agreed last year between Washington and Seoul, fearing its radar could see into its missile deployments. China has curbed travel to South Korea and targeted Korean companies operating in the mainland, prompting retaliatory measures from Seoul.

The US military said on Friday it would keep delivering THAAD components, separating the issue from South Korea's internal political crisis. The new US administration has been keen to install the system as quickly as possible due to concerns that a new government in Seoul could block the deployment.

"We have a strong relationship and will continue to work with South Korea," White House spokesman Sean Spicer said. "It's a domestic issue in which the United States takes no position in the outcome of that election."

The Seoul market's benchmark KOSPI index .KS11 and the won currency KRW= rose after the ruling.

The prospect of a new president in the first half of this year instead of prolonged uncertainty would buoy domestic demand as well as the markets, said Trinh Nguyen, senior economist at Natixis in Hong Kong.

"The hope is that this will allow the country to have a new leader that can address long-standing challenges such as labor market reforms and escalated geopolitical tensions," he said.

Park was accused of colluding with her friend Choi and a former presidential aide, both of whom have been on trial, to pressure big businesses to donate to two foundations set up to back her policy initiatives.

The court said Park had "completely hidden the fact of (Choi's) interference with state affairs."

Park was also accused of soliciting bribes from the head of the Samsung Group for government favors, including backing a merger of two Samsung affiliates in 2015 that was seen as supporting family succession and control over the country's largest "chaebol," or conglomerate.

Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee has been accused of bribery and embezzlement in connection with the scandal and is in detention. His trial began on Thursday.

He and Samsung have denied wrongdoing.

The scandal and verdict have exposed fault lines in a country long divided by Cold War politics.

While Park's conservative supporters clashed with police outside the court, elsewhere most people welcomed her ouster. A recent poll showed more than 70 percent supported her impeachment.

Hundreds of thousands of people have for months been gathering at peaceful rallies in Seoul every weekend to call for Park to step down.

On Friday, hundreds of Park's supporters, many of them elderly, tried to break through police barricades at the courthouse. Police said one 72-year-old man was taken to hospital with a head injury and died. The circumstances of the second death were being investigated.

Six people were injured, protest organizers said.

Police blocked the main thoroughfare running through downtown Seoul in anticipation of bigger protests.

Park will be making a tragic and untimely departure from the Blue House for the second time in her life.

In 1979, having served as acting first lady after her mother was killed by a bullet meant for her father, she and her two siblings left the presidential compound after their father was killed.

This time, she could end up in jail.

Prosecutors have named Park as an accomplice in two court cases linked to the scandal, suggesting she is likely to be investigated.

North Korean state media wasted little time labeling Park a criminal.

"She had one more year left as 'president' but, now she's been ousted, she will be investigated as a common criminal," the North's state KCNA news agency said shortly after the court decision.
Abu Dhabi: A South African man and his pregnant Ukrainian fiancee will not face charges in the United Arab Emirates following their arrest for having sex outside of marriage, a South African newspaper reported on Friday.

Charges against Emlyn Culverwell and fiancee Iryna Nohai were dropped in Abu Dhabi, The Herald reported. It quoted the South African's mother, Linda Culverwell, as saying her son telephoned to say he and Nohai, who were released on Wednesday on bail, would not be prosecuted.

"Emlyn was excited and relieved to see Iryna" after their release, Linda Culverwell said, according to the newspaper.

The couple was arrested on January 29 after Nohai sought treatment for stomach cramps and a doctor informed authorities that she was pregnant, South African media reported.

Officials have not spoken publicly about the case, however a court official told Khaleej Times on Thursday that the couple were still on trial.

The couple works at a waterpark in Abu Dhabi and has been living in the UAE for years. Their employer, Yas Waterworld, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hinted that Turkey would retaliate by barring Dutch politicians from flying into the country, 'not visits by (Dutch) citizens'. (Photo: AFP)

Istanbul: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday threatened to retaliate after the Netherlands banned the foreign minister from flying in for a campaign rally, as he said The Hague's behaviour was reminiscent of Nazism.

"They are the vestiges of the Nazis, they are fascists," Erdogan told an Istanbul rally. "Ban our foreign minister from flying however much you like, but from now on let's see how your flights will land in Turkey."

Erdogan's strongly-worded comments come after the Dutch government on Saturday refused permission for Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's plane to travel to the Netherlands ahead of a planned rally in the city of Rotterdam to drum up support for a referendum.

Turkish politicians are keen to harness votes of the Turkish community in Europe ahead of the April 16 referendum on whether to boost Erdogan's powers.

Erdogan accused the Netherlands of working against the "Yes" campaign and said: "Pressure however much you like. Abet terrorists in your country however much you like.

"It will backlash, and there's no doubt that we'll start retaliating after April 16... We are patient. Whoever is patient will reach victory."

Erdogan hinted that Turkey would retaliate by barring Dutch politicians from flying into the country, "not visits by (Dutch) citizens."
Turkey has also detained or expelled foreign correspondents for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Die Welt, and the French website Les Jours. (Photo: Representational/Pixabay)

Istanbul: Turkish journalists and opposition lawmakers protested in Istanbul Saturday against the detention of reporters, as a crackdown on the media has accelerated after the failed coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"Journalism is not a crime" and "We will not remain silent," chanted the crowd of some 50 people, who railed against the conditions the journalists are held in.

"Many jailed journalists are not allowed to receive letters under the state of emergency conditions," said Baris Yarkadas, an opposition lawmaker with the Republican People's Party.

Yarkadas added he hoped the government would lift the ban. In a gesture of protest, the demonstrators mailed cards to their detained colleagues.

The Turkish government imposed a state of emergency in the wake of the failed July 15 coup attempt aiming to oust Erdogan, which critics say has been used for a massive clampdown on Erdogan's opponents and not merely suspected coup plotters.

According to journalists' associations, about 170 media outlets have been closed and nearly 800 press cards cancelled.

Turkey has also detained or expelled foreign correspondents for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Die Welt, and the French website Les Jours.

More than 100 journalists and media contributors are in jail, said Reporters Without Borders in a December report, which said the country led a rise in journalist detentions in 2016.

"The number of detained professional journalists in Turkey has risen 22 percent after quadrupling in the wake of the failed coup d'etat in July," it said.

Last month's detention of Deniz Yucel, 43, a German journalist for the Die Welt daily on terrorism-related charges has strained relations between Ankara and Berlin.

"Deniz Yucel is a professional, he is known to be a very good journalist," Fatih Polat, editor-in-chief of the Turkish daily Evrensel said. "We will give any kind of support for his and other jailed journalists' release," he said.
Two bombs planted by terrorists exploded near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Bab Musalla. (Photo: Representational/AFP)

Beirut: Twin bombs killed 46 people and wounded more than 40 in the Old City of Damascus on Saturday in a rare attack in the Syrian capital, a monitoring group said.

A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shiite mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The SANA state news agency reported that "two bombs planted by terrorists exploded near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Bab Musalla, causing dead and wounded."
Miao Wei tried to reassure foreign companies that the "Made in China 2025" plan treats all companies equally. (Photo: AP)

Beijing: China's industry minister on Saturday defended a manufacturing development plan and rejected complaints foreign makers of electric cars and other goods might be pressured to hand over technology or forced out of promising markets.

Miao Wei, minister of industry and information technology, tried to reassure foreign companies that the "Made in China 2025" industry plan treats all companies equally.

"The strategy and its related policies are applicable to all businesses in China, be them domestic or foreign," Miao told a briefing.

Miao was responding to a report by the European Union Chamber of Commerce earlier this week that said China is violating its free-trade pledges by inducing foreign firms to give up encryption and other technology to potential Chinese competitors.

Technology is a growing flashpoint in trade tensions with Washington and Europe, which worry their competitive edge is eroding as Beijing buys or develops skills in semiconductors, renewable energy and other fields.

China has faced mounting complaints that the government improperly shields its fledgling developers of robotics, software and other technology from competition.

The plan calls for China to be able to supply its own high-tech components by 2020 and materials by 2025 in 10 industries from information technology and aerospace to pharmaceuticals. A broad outline was issued in 2015 and officials have been gradually releasing details.

Miao said targets for domestic brands' share of the market in some sectors should be seen as forecasts rather than mandatory. "When we were drawing up the plan, we did not deliberately pursue these targets," Miao said.

The European chamber noted that China's strategy says two of the top 10 global brands in electric cars should be Chinese by 2025. It said that rules out joint ventures created by foreign companies with Chinese partners.

The chamber called the strategy "a large-scale import substitution plan aimed at nationalizing key industries, or at least severely curtailing the position of foreign business in them."

In an apparent response to such criticism, Premier Li Keqiang promised in a speech at the opening of China's annual legislative sessions a week ago that foreign companies would receive "equal treatment" under the manufacturing plan.
Ningxia: A 30-year-old mother chopped off her two-and-a-half year old sons right leg with a cleaver in a fit of rage, at their home in Ningxia, China, on Friday. The boy lost a lot of blood and underwent a two-hour-operation to have his leg reattached.

According to a report by Daily Mail, the boys mother had an argument with her mother-in-law, which upset her and led her to vent the anger on her son.

The boys screams attracted the attention of the neighbours, and police was called to the scene. They had to break in through the window. The boy was immediately hospitalised and the woman and her mother-in-law were taken away by the police.

The mother of the boy, who reportedly has mental health issues, has never behaved in such a manner before, said the neighbours.

The child is now recovering in intensive care where he will stay for the three days.
A federal judge has blocked President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape fighting in their native land by fleeing to Wisconsin.



A Syrian Muslim who fled to Wisconsin has been working since last year to win asylum for his wife and 3-year-old daughter so they can leave Aleppo and join him here.



He filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trump's first travel ban had stopped the visa process for them.



US District Judge Michael Conley yesterday ruled that challenge moot after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the travel order.



The process restarted for the family and they're now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the US embassy, the last step before US customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesn't have dates for the interviews yet and Trump's new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian man's attorneys.



The man filed a new complaint on yesterday afternoon alleging the new ban is just as problematic as the first, calling it anti-Muslim and alleging it violates his right to due process, equal protection and freedom of religion. He asked Conley to declare the ban unconstitutional on its face and block enforcement against his family.



It's unclear whether the new ban applies to asylum seekers like the Syrian family. Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley yesterday that it doesn't; the man's attorneys maintain it does.



Conley acknowledged it's murky but still issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case. The judge set a hearing for March 21.



The restraining order doesn't block the entire travel ban; it simply prevents Trump's administration from enforcing it against this specific family.



The US Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment on it and Conley's order.



Trump issued an executive order in January banning travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States.



The order sparked numerous lawsuits, including the Syrian refugee's initial federal complaint in Wisconsin. US District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the ban on February 3.



Trump issued a new order Monday that removed Iraq from the list of countries and temporarily shuts down the refugee program.
The counting of votes for the keenly fought Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa will begin at 8 am.



Uttar Pradesh

The counting of votes began at 8 AM for the 403 Assembly seats in politically crucial Uttar Pradesh that went to polls in seven phases.



"Counting of votes for 403 Assembly seats started at 8 in the morning. Counting of ballots will take place in all the 75 districts," state election office said here today.



Postal ballots were being counted first and initial trends are expected to be in by 9 AM. In addition to general observers, a micro-observer has been deputed at each and every counting table to keep an eye on counting.



Three-tier security arrangements have been made to ensure full proof security in and around the counting centres.



A total of 78 counting centres have been set up in the state. In three districts of Amethi, Azamgarh and Kushinagar two counting centres each have been set up and in the remaining 72 district, counting will be held at one place.



Additional CCTV cameras have been installed at vantage points from where the carrying of EVMs from strong rooms to the counting hall can be recorded for effective monitoring.



Uttar Pradesh had seven-phase polling that started on February 11 and ended on March 8.



Manipur

Counting of votes for 60 seats in the Manipur Assembly began at 8 AM in 11 venues spread across the state.



The entire state has been put under tight security blanket and prohibitory orders under Section 144 CrPC have been imposed near all counting halls, officials said.

Elections in the state were held in two phases on March 4 and 8. Both phases witnessed record voting of 84 and 89 per cent respectively.



Chief Electoral Officer V K Dewangan said despite logistical difficulties due to the ongoing economic blockade elections were completed smoothly.



Goa

The counting of votes for all 40 constituencies of the Goa Assembly began at 8 AM today at two centres in Panaji and Margao.



The focus is on whether the BJP will be able to retain power and if it gets a fresh mandate, will Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar return to his home state as chief minister.



The fate of Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, whose Mandrem constituency will be taken up for counting during the first round, will be decided within the first hour of the counting.



The postal ballots and votes polled by service voters will be taken up first before calculating the numbers on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).



Tight security arrangements have been made with over 1,000 policemen deployed.

Election officials said the counting will be completed by 2.30 PM.



The votes for 19 constituencies will be counted at Panaji in North Goa, while the tally for the remaining 21 will be carried out in Margao in South Goa.



The elections held on February 4 witnessed an enthusiastic response of voters, with polling clocking in at 83 per cent.



The election has five former chief ministers besides the incumbent CM in the fray.

The Congress, the prime opponent of the BJP, has fielded four former chief ministers - Digambar Kamat, Pratapsinh Rane, Ravi Naik and Luizinho Faleiro in their respective constituencies, while the NCP has given a ticket to Churchill Alemao.



The main fight expected to be between the Congress and the BJP, while the AAP has also put up a spirited fight on 39 seats.



The BJP has fielded 36 candidates, supporting Independents in Benaulim, Navelim, Priol and Velim. The Congress has candidates on 37 seats and has extended support to United Goans' Atanasio Monserratte in Panaji, Goa Forward's Vinod Palyekar in Siolim and Independent candidate Rohan Khaunte in Porvorim constituencies.



The BJP's major worry is an alliance between the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, the Shiv Sena and Rebel RSS leader Subhash Velingkar-led Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM).



In the 2012 assembly election, the BJP had won a majority with 21 seats followed by the Congress which had got nine seats, MGP three, Goa Vikas Party (2) while five Independent legislators were elected.



Punjab

Chandigarh, Mar 11 (PTI) The counting process was underway today for the 117 Assembly seats in Punjab which witnessed a triangular contest with the ruling SAD-BJP combine, the Congress and the AAP putting up a spirited fight.



54 counting centers have been established at 27 locations for the 117 Assembly constituencies in the state, an official spokesman said here. He said that more than 14000 officials have been deputed in the counting centers across the state.



Punjab could be in for a neck-and-neck fight between the Congress and the AAP while the ruling SAD-BJP may face a drubbing, according to pollsters.

However, the SAD-BJP alliance is confident of defying the pollsters "like in 2012", when it proved the surveys wrong.



89-year-old Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal claimed the combine would win 72 seats. As for Congress, Amarinder Singh claimed it would win 65 seats and the AAP exuded confidence of bagging close to 100.



The state went to polls in a single phase on February 4 and recorded 78.60 per cent polling against 78.57 per cent in the 2012 polls. 1,145 candidates are in the fray, 81 of whom are women and one transgender.



SAD contested 94 seats and its ally the BJP is 23. The Congress has contested all the seats. The AAP and its ally Lok Insaf Party, led by the Bains brothers of Ludhiana, are fighting 112 and 5 seats respectively.



The SAD-BJP alliance had won 68 of the 117 seats it contested in 2012 to retain power for the second successive term.SAD had won 56 of the 94 seats contested and its ally BJP had won 12 of the 23 seats it contested.



The Congress under the leadership of Amarinder Singh managed to win 46 of 117 seats it contested in its bid to wrest power from the SAD-BJP alliance. Three seats had gone to Independents.



As far the vote share was concerned SAD got 34.75 per cent while the BJP got 7.13 per cent and Congress had got 40.11 per cent votes.



It was a record for the state when the SAD (with BJP) came back to power in 2012 as no party had ever been given two consecutive terms.



Since the reorganisation of Punjab in 1966, the Congress and the SAD have been ruling the state alternately. The SAD-BJP alliance formed the government for the first time in 2007 and retained majority in 2012.



Key constituencies whose results would be keenly watched include the Lambi seat, where the CM is locked in a triangular contest with Amarinder Singh and journalist-turned-politician Jarnail Singh (AAP).



Patiala is another key seat where Amarinder Singh is up against SAD candidate and retired army Chief General JJ Singh.



Jalalabad, considered a pocket borough of the ruling Badal family, has two sitting MPs-- Ravneet Singh Bittu (Congress) and comedian-turned-politician Bhagwant Mann (AAP)-up against SAD president and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.



Veteran Congress leader and former chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal is fighting it out against Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa (SAD) from her traditional bastion of Lehragagga.



AAP's Himmat Singh Shergill is fighting against Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia from Majitha while Gurpreet Singh Ghuggi (AAP) is giving a challenge to Congress stalwart Ashwini Sekhri from Batala.



Navjot Singh Sidhu, who after several flip-flops had joined the Congress party, contested the Amritsar East seat against Rajesh Kumar Honey of BJP.



The CM's estranged nephew Manpreet Singh Badal is trying his fortunes from Bathinda Urban seat on a Congress ticket while Indian Youth Congress chief Raja Amarinder Singh Warring is contesting from the Gidderbaha seat.



The results are crucial for Congress, which is seeking to wrest power after failing in the previous two Assembly elections fought under the leadership of Amarinder Singh.

Meanwhile, after witnessing a high-profile battle between political stalwarts-- BJP's Arun Jaitley and Congress' Amarinder Singh in 2014-- the Amritsar Lok Sabha by poll was overshadowed by the Assembly polls this year.



BJP has fielded 66-year-old leader Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina, who is up against Congress' Gurjit Singh Aujla (44) and Aam Aadmi Party's Upkar Singh Sandhu (63).

The by-poll to Amritsar seat was necessitated after Amarinder Singh resigned in protest against the Apex court's verdict on the SYL canal issue.




BJP leaders today credited 'Modi wave' for the party's stong showing in the high stakes Uttar Pradesh elections. On the next chief minister in the state, they said the decision will be taken by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party in the state soon.



The results of the elections, which were fought under party chief Amit Shah, show that the BJP has been able to dispel the perception of being a party of upper castes only as now it commands the support of all sections of the society, including Dalits, they said.



"It is a Modi wave. The wave which started with 2014 Lok Sabha elections is continuing in 2017 and the momentum will go beyond the 2019 general elections," BJP Uttar Pradesh chief Keshav Prasad Maurya said.



"The credit goes to Prime Minister Modi, his government's pro-poor policies and party chief Amit Shah's strategy. People have fought the elections on our behalf in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and results have vindicated their faith in us," party general secretary Kailash Vijaywargia said.



Another BJP general secretary O P Mathur, who is in- charge of party affairs in Uttar Pradesh, said the state has become "Modi-fied" and so has the country.





Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said good governance and good delivery of promises has led to a BJP win. "The poor have given a decisive verdict that Modi is our leader and is working for our welfare...women, youth and even minorities have voted for us," he said.



Union Minister Jitendra Singh hailed Modi, attributing the results in Uttar Pradesh particularly to "credibility" the Prime Minister enjoys across India. The Minister in the Prime Minister's Office said the party's showing underscored the country is heading towards "true democracy".



"The most important contribution of Modi phenomenon is that it has enabled voters to cast votes for development, going beyond castes, creeds, religions. It has helped them get rid of feudal mindset," Singh said.



Another Union minister Sanjiv Balyan said there was division on communal lines in UP. "The election was fought on issues such as law and order, development. The new generation understood the importance of bringing in the BJP," he said.



BJP MP from Gorakhpur Adityanath said the SP-Congress alliance and the BSP have been totally rejected by the people in UP. People want development without bias. They want security which the BJP can only provide," he said.




Eleven people were today killed after a bus carrying pilgrims rammed into a truck on the Pune-Solapur highway, police said. The incident took place near Koregaon village on the highway when the victims were on their way to a temple in Solapur district of Maharashtra, they said.



Ten pilgrims and the bus driver were killed in the mishap. According to police, majority of the victims were from suburban Mulund in Mumbai and were proceeding to Akkalkot temple in Solapur when the mishap took place.



"The driver of the bus, in a bid to save a pig, which was crossing the road, lost control over the vehicle. As a result, the bus jumped into the opposite lane and rammed into a truck, which was coming from Solapur," said a police officer from Pune District police.



The deceased were identified as Vijay Kale, Jyoti Kale, Yogesh Lokhande, Jayawant Chavan, Yogita Chavan, Revati Chavan, Jagdish Pandit, Shailaja Pandit, all are residents of Mulund and Pradip Awchat and Sulabha Awachat, both residents of Junnar in Pune district besides bus driver Ketan Pawar.


India has said that outfits like the Haqqani network, LeT and JeM should be treated like terrorist groups and warned that terrorism's "resurgent forces" are not given sanctuaries and safe havens in any form.



"The unimpeded and increasingly brutal terrorist attacks, the territorial gains by terrorist groups with support from outside Afghanistan and the emerging grave humanitarian crises are all portents of dreadful times," Indias Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin said yesterday during a Security Council session on the situation in Afghanistan.



"It is our first and foremost duty to ensure that the resurgent forces of terrorism and extremism do not find sanctuaries and safe havens in any name, form or manifestation," he said, adding that experience has shown when "foreign assistance" is available to insurgents, situations tend to fester and take a greater toll. He strongly warned against differentiating between good and bad terrorists as well as playing one group against the other.



"The Taliban, Haqqani Network, Al-Qaeda, Daesh, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and others of their ilk are all terror organisations, many of them proscribed by the UN. They should be treated like terrorist organisations and their activities universally opposed," he said. In a criticism of the world body, Akbaruddin said it is obvious that the political process the UN had started and the sanction regimes it had split have not quite worked.



"The fact that the Council has not acted on the Taliban leaders as it had vowed in resolution 1988 is now well documented," he said. The Indian envoy also strongly criticised the Security Council's subsidiary body for taking four months to confirm the death of the leader of the Taliban.



"It is now 7 months and we are still counting as we await the decision of the Council's same subsidiary on freezing the accounts of that slain terrorist," he said. Akbaruddin cautioned that the international community cannot stand and watch from the sidelines as gains achieved by them and the Afghan people towards the war-torn countrys development in the last decades are reversed.



India called for decisive action to combat terror groups, saying nations have had to pay a costly price for their inactions in the past. "While territories are captured by terrorists, people are killed and threatened to go back to a situation perhaps same as or worse than what they fled, can we remain just looking on? Standing, where we are today, it is imperative that we take action and take it decisively. We must not forget the implications the world faced in 2001 for its lack of action. History never forgives those who forget it," he added.



The ambassador voiced concern that in the last few months, terrorism in Afghanistan has grown enormously in its intensity, brutality and scope. UN envoy for Afghanistan Tadamichi Yamamoto expressed concern over the deteriorating security situation in the war-torn nation, urging the Taliban to enter peace talks without preconditions and warning against attacks by foreign fighters, including ISIS.



The deteriorating security also led to the highest-ever level of internal displacement in 2016. More than 650,000 Afghans were displaced. Returns from Pakistan exceeded 620,000 people. Displacements and returns for 2017 are likely to remain at these levels.



Developing a nation while fighting an insurgency is an uphill struggle, he emphasised, noting that due in part to the worsening security situation over the past two years, service delivery has become increasingly difficult.



"We have witnessed some downward trends in key indicators, such as access to health clinics and education facilities," Yamamoto said.


City-based Karnataka Bank has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company for General Insurance business.



With the agreement, the bank would be able to provide vast choice of non-life insurance products to its customers across all its 747 branches, supported by the customer centric products of Bajaj Allianz, bank Managing Director and CEO P Jayarma Bhat said.



The corporate agency agreement was inked yesterday at the Head Office of Karnataka Bank, the bank said in a statement.



Tapan Singhel, Managing Director and CEO of Bajaj Allianz, said the partnership was an important part of the companys growth strategy which required a robust distribution network.
Having been submerged in relentless haranguing about the medieval Islam and its fanatic followers trying to destroy the modern world through their sporadic but deadly acts of terror, the importance of a counter-narrative that not only exposes the hollowness of such Islamophobia, but offers a deeper understanding of the turbulence, cannot be over-emphasised.



Pankaj Mishra, the Indian author who has already made his mark with brilliant works such as From the Ruins of Empire and Temptations of the West, offers a scathing analysis of the so-called War on Terror and Clash of Civilisation through his riveting new book, Age of Anger:A History of the Present. Rummaging through the blood-soaked history of much of Europe over the last three centuries, he makes a convincing, perhaps even path-breaking, argument that the seeds of todays jihadi movement were sown by the West, in the West, a long time ago.



If the French Revolution inspired much of the cataclysmic social and political reforms across Europe, and the Industrial Revolution resulted in unprecedented riches to a minority of people, they also unleashed baser instincts of rivalry, jealousy and mutual hatred. It was also a period when individual rights heightened the awareness of social discrimination and exclusion. The author clinically examines the competitive spirit among the French, the Germans, the English and the Italians, which resonated in holy wars more than a century before the word jihad entered common parlance.



Mishra argues that more than the rise of Islam and religious expansion for a variety of reasons  which remains undisputed  the popular resentment among the deprived sections has its genesis in the early imperialism and looting of much of Asia and Africa, the industrial capitalist economy of Europe that led to world wars, totalitarian regimes and genocides.



He points out that industrialisation in the late 19th and 20th centuries concentrated wealth in the hands of a minority, imposing heavy taxation on the poor and the middle classes, accentuating the anger and resentment against the rich. He notes that, Starting 1878, small cells of terrorists surfaced all over Europe and America. Over the next quarter of a century, heads of state including presidents of France (Carnot) and the United States (William McKinley), the king of Italy (Umberto I), the empress of Austria (Elisabeth) and the prime minister of Spain (Canovas) were murdered, apart from the killing of scores of people in crowded market places.



A period of hope followed the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 with the collapse of the Soviet communism, the universal triumph of liberal capitalism and the acceptance of concepts like democracy, globalisation, free markets, and human rights. But it didnt take too long for people to realise that the political system worked mainly for the benefit of a handful of those in control of levers of power and the corporate interests, while they were being continuously squeezed.



Mishra argues that in many Western countries, the radical Islam had grown in tandem with the native radical right-wing politics against the backdrop of economic decline, social fragmentation and disenchantment with the electoral system, which manifested themselves in their blogs, YouTubes and social media incarnations that mirror each other.



He is clear in his hypothesis that the post-9/11 policies of pre-emptive war, massive retaliation, regime change and reforming Islam had catastrophically failed, while the dirty war against the Wests own Enlightenment, inadvertently pursued through extrajudicial murder, torture, indefinite detention and massive surveillance had been a success in the negative sense.



Analysing the new phenomenon of increase in the number of American and European devotees of ISIS, Mishra quotes extensively from Timothy McVeigh, one of the native terrorists. McVeigh, who murdered 168 Americans in Oklahoma City, during his trial, mocked about the US military killing millions of innocent people, while he was being accused of murdering innocent civilians.



Mishras research and scholarship is exemplary, as throughout the book he extensively quotes such intellectual luminaries as Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Nietzsche, Tocqueville, Dostoyevsky, Spencer, Bakunin and Mazzini to buttress his arguments about the shape of events and the influential roles they played during the relevant periods.



There are interesting references to the influence of Spencer and Mazzani on the Indian thought process, particularly those of Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi. Recounting in some detail as to how Vir Savarkar failed to beat Gandhis egalitarian project to take the Hindus and the Muslims together during freedom struggle, the author notes sarcastically that Narendra Modi may be well poised to see Savarkars dream come through.



Mishra argues that, at the global level now, the conventional wars between states are dwarfed by those between terrorists and counter-terrorists, insurgents and counter-insurgents, financial and cyber wars, besides other fierce battles for control of migration, human trafficking, drugs trade and urban militias. He sees this as the beginning of the longest and the strangest of all world wars: one that approximates, in its ubiquity, to a global civil war.



Mishra has no doubt that with the victory of Donald Trump in the United States, it has become impossible to deny or obscure the great chasm between the elite that seizes modernitys choicest fruits and those who are denied. He firmly believes that it may incite a broader and more apocalyptic mood than before, unless there emerges a transformational leader who rebalances the destinies of the haves and the have-nots in a decisive manner.



Age Of Anger

Pankaj Mishra

Juggernaut

2017, pp 405, Rs 699


Ras-Al-Khaimahs spotlight on the stage of the United Arab Emirates remains a little dim. Travellers usually flock to its more popular neighbour of Dubai (94 km away).



RAK (as Ras-Al-Khaimah is popularly called in these parts), however, has much to recommend itself. Those who know it well frequently have the image of people from Dubai driving in fancy cars to RAK for the weekend, to stay at opulent resorts  with their private beaches and list of restaurants. While this is not entirely untrue, and the resorts are cordoned-off-kingdoms-waiting-to-satisfy-every-whim, the landscape in which theyre set is both varied and rewarding.



Engulfed by the Al Hajar mountain range, RAK is a study in contrasts. Sandy beaches are just a short drive away from golden desert dunes. The 6,266-feet-high Jebel Jais Mountain, in the parent range of Al Hajar, is a not-so-distant rendezvous from a patchwork of green oases and hot springs. To explore this diversity of landscape, all permutations and combinations of forays into the landscape thrive  from trekking to mountain biking, quad biking to camel-riding. Active adventure has begun to develop with all the zeal that only those who love the wild outdoors can generate.



Arduous climb



A 470-metre-long, three-course Via Ferrata is being built to span the rocky facades of Jebel Jais, the countrys highest peak. For those who came in late, the purpose of a Via Ferrata is to enable even the faint of heart to explore the mountain, with the help of steel cables, carved steps, bridges and ladders, (this one will also have three zip lines, and be arranged in levels, to allow possibilities for varying ages and fitness levels.)



My adventure begins on a 4WD vehicle in the limitless desert at a camp. Tires released of some air, the wheels offer less resistance, which means, a lower possibility of getting stuck. We emerge from the vehicle exhilarated. But more than the adrenaline generated by plummeting down the side of a dune is the extraordinary feeling of standing on one, watching the sunset. I wish that I could linger, gazing at the patterns carved by the wind on the ocean of sand for a long time, but the driver urges us on, lest the sun sets on the rest of our desert experiences.



At the camp, created specifically for the traveller who wants more time in this beguiling setting, is the possibility to sandboard, taking a quad bike, clambering on one of the camels out-walking their owners, and getting a henna-tattoo. As darkness descends, tanoura and belly-dancing are served up, along with a barbeque dinner. Bellies adequately satiated, we sit around the campsite, dragging demurely on the sheesha, occasionally breaking off from the puffing to exchange a fleeting philosophical thought, or to gaze with rapt attention at the desert sky studded with stars.



Day at the museum



To contextualise the desert, and the people who live by and around it, we visit the National Museum the next day. Everything in the museum  from the fishing nets to the soapstone dishes  has a story to tell. This includes the building itself, which until the 1960s served as the residence of the Qawasim rulers.



For more history, the fishing village just outside RAK that was abandoned in the 1960s is a reminder of the simplicity of life before the oil boom. The residents who earned their living from pearl diving and fishing have at first glance left behind an ordinary village. But look carefully and youll see that the dry desert climate has helped preserve not just the structures, but the remarkable coral embedded in the house walls.



For a grand perspective on RAK, climb the 16th-century Dhayah Fort  initially built to defend against invaders. Date plantations meet sunset. But for experiences wholly entwined with the local, you have to head to the Old City, with its coffee shops, the souk with its wares  ranging from attar to dates to exotic herbs  or the harbour and fish market, which remarkably come to life at dawn.



Its the end of our five days here, and its clear that the wealth of RAK lies beyond the quality ceramics it manufactures, the fancy resorts its home to, and the bevy of Ferraris it attracts. The real riches lie in its living heritage. In the find of a traditional brass coffee-pot, Im reminded of the hospitality entwined with what it means to hail from these parts.



In the souks, which brim with life and energy, is the spirit of enterprise. In the treasures of the museum are bits and pieces of a history and culture waiting to be explored with more depth. And in the desert, punctuated with gazelle and camels, is the discovery of one more Eden in the world.



Fact file



Getting there

There are direct flights to Dubai. From there,

Ras-Al-Khaimah is an hours drive away.

Best time to visit

October to March are the cooler months.


The Department of Health and Family Welfare now proposes to upgrade 30 district hospitals across the state to function as organ retrieval centres.



This is one of the primary measures in the pipeline to boost cadaveric organ donation in the state. Besides additional infrastructure, the staff of these hospitals would be trained in organ retrieval.



In the previous budget, Rs 2.07 crore was allocated for the establishment of the Jeevasarthakathe scheme and formation of a society.



Principal secretary, department of health and family welfare, Shalini Rajaneesh, said, Surgeons in these district hospitals would be trained for organ retrieval. Infrastructure is available in some hospitals and would be upgraded where it is required for organ storage.



The government would soon add 19 ventilators at district hospitals across the state.

Trauma centres see a good number of brain death cases. Someone has to motivate donors families for cadaveric donation. We will appoint transplant co-ordinators in these district hospitals to do the counselling. The co-ordinator would work with the society which co-ordinates the cadaveric donation programme, she added.



Co-ordinators would keep tabs on the brain stem death notification. Following the first notification of brain death, details of potential donors would be given to the society.



At present, 53 hospitals across the state have the licence to perform organ transplantation. All these have also been linked to the air ambulance service through an MoU to ease the organ transplant procedure, according to Rajaneesh. In a phased manner, the upgrading would be extended to taluk hospitals located on highways so that possible donors can be identified.



The Jeevasarthakathe Society would now replace the Zonal Co-ordination Committee for Organ Transplantation. The chief minister will be the chairman of the society that was established on February 21.



According to a senior health department official, those names figuring in the ZCCK list would be given first preference. Organ donation would happen in four zones  Bengaluru, Mangaluru, Kalaburagi and Belagavi. The department will also take a re-look at the allotment policy for organs on the lines of the practice adopted in Tamil Nadu.


The BJPs sweep in the Uttar Pradesh polls has put the Karnataka unit of the party in an upbeat mood, while the Congress went on the defensive on Saturday.



As soon as trends of the results in the five states were out, BJP workers went into celebratory mood. Scenes of the functionaries dancing, bursting crackers and congratulating each other were witnessed outside the BJP state office in Malleswaram.



Elections to the state Assembly is just a little over an year away and the BJP performance up north has come as a boost for functionaries to work with more vigour for the partys victory. The party is planning to keep its charges of corruption and maladministration against the government going, with a hope to unnerve the ruling Congress with a good show in the Nanjangud and Gundlupet bypolls.



The BJPs performance in the five states, especially in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, has come as a booster for the state unit. We are confident of winning more than 150 seats next year. We have already identified 175 winning candidates for the polls, Yeddyurappa told reporters in Bengaluru.



He said party national president Amit Shah will have the final say in the distribution of party tickets next year. The national president will conduct a survey before finalising the candidates, he said.



Yeddyurappa rubbished Congress charges that the BJP had wooed the minorities by offering them various sops. It is a vote in favour of development programmes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he added.



In his reaction, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the BJP had won in Uttar Pradesh by playing the Hindu card. There was no Modi wave. The BJP played with the sentiments of the people by raising issues like burial grounds. If there was a Modi wave, why did it not have any effect in Punjab and Goa? Siddaramaiah asked.



Siddaramaiah said Modi had attended several election rallies in Punjab and had repeatedly raised the I-T raids on Ramesh Jarkiholis residence (minister in Siddaramaiahs Cabinet), but it had not influenced the voters.



He said the people of Karnataka will not be swayed by the UP election results. The people of the state have not forgotten the misrule of the BJP regime, he said. It will also have no bearing on the bypolls in the state next month, he added.



JD(S) leader and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda said the victory in UP will prompt BJP central leaders to set their eyes on Karnataka and work out a poll strategy. He said it will be interesting to see whether Siddaramaiah will make any announcement in the state budget to woo voters.


Several city colleges like Mount Carmel College, Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat and St Joseph's Commerce College have decided not to allow students to celebrate Holi inside the campuses.



According to students, Chitrakala Parishat has decided to ban Holi celebrations within the campus citing water shortage. College authorities also said that the move was to protect any damage to precious art work housed in the campus.



Other colleges such as Mount Carmel have clarified that students are not allowed to celebrate inside the campus, however they are free to celebrate outside.



No ban at CKP

However, Tejendra Singh Banoi, principal, Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath said no such ban had been imposed.



We have not imposed any such restrictions. We are concerned about the paintings and sculptures on the premises. Even students are aware of how important these art works are and know well how to preserve it. They are responsible students and need not be told. They can play Holi as long as the property and art work are kept in mind," he added.



Students of several other private colleges also voiced similar complaints. When DH checked with private colleges, they mostly said that they would have no objection to students playing Holi outside the campus. "We just don't want the property damaged," said a PU private college representative.


Bengalurus tryst with clean water bodies seems to have long ended. The frothing Bellandur and Varthur lakes are a deadly concoction of phosphates, nitrates and myriad industrial pollutants combining to create a foamy lather. One cannot turn a blind eye to this ugly truth.



Bellandur lake once provided sustenance for people in the settlements adjoining it and the water here was used to irrigate fields of rice and vegetables. Today, however, the scenario is different as just the thought of having to bring home a bunch of vegetables grown on the periphery of the lake bed can send shivers down our spine.



Vegetables grown here are finding their way into the local markets and are being bought by unsuspecting customers. DH spoke to a few residents who expressed their concerns about greens.



Phosphate is not renewable and when the waste water that contains detergent enters the lake, it causes pollution. Neighbouring villages surrounding Bellandur lake use the same water for irrigation and agriculture. Therefore the vegetables grown there are metal-laden and poisonous.



Most retailers, however, feign ignorance about the irrigation methods and also the whereabouts of the actual farm lands from where they procure their vegetables for fear of losing their clients.



Pradeep, a retailer in Cambridge Layout, says that none of his vegetables is procured from Varthur or Bellandur as he prefers to buy from growers in Doddaballapur or has suppliers in the City market area. He says, Most growers around Varthur and Bellandur lakes sell their produce in Whitefield and Madiwala but do not supply to either HAL market or City Market as these are saturated with growers who are old-timers.



He says: I have a moral duty towards my customers. Most retailers today refrain from buying produce from stray growers as they are unsure of the quality of the produce and do not wish to lose out on a regular clientele.



Only a vigilant customer who asks questions and makes the right choices can survive in such a volatile situation. Kavita Jagadeesh, who lives in Defence Colony in Indiranagar, is one such customer who has always made enquiries before picking up her veggies as she puts her familys health first.



She says: Most of my vegetables are bought at Hopcoms which sources it from Lalbagh and I also prefer organic stores as they get their produce from stipulated farms either in Mysuru or Ooty. Kavita has to sometimes wait for the organic vegetables that are sourced only twice a week but says that, They are worth the wait.



She is wary about buying greens sold by vendors as these reek of a strong stench often found near sewage gutters. I dont mind paying double the price for healthy vegetables, she says.



Hema Narang, a resident of 100 ft Road Indiranagar, would once procure her weekly stocks from HAL market but ever since she observed vegetables being grown around lakes and suspected that they may be sold in the market area, she refrains from picking them up from unknown vendors.



She noticed the burgeoning pollution levels around the lake and now prefers to buy her stocks from a regular supplier who stops by near her apartment building or chooses organic vegetables.



If froth was a dangerous indication, there is more horror waiting. The frothy lake recently caught fire and is believed to have been triggered by chemicals and effluents released by industries in the vicinity. When people inhale this affected air that is infused with high amounts of phosphate, it affects their lungs, causing irritation and skin allergies that are common symptoms.



The valleys of Bengaluru are now conduits for sewage rather than irrigated water. Much of the estimated 500 million litres of sewage that reaches Bellandur lake daily is not treated. Until this anomaly is corrected, residents in the vicinity of the lakes feel they will be courting death.










The Standing Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has not granted a demand of the Russian delegation to change the PACE rules to allow the Russian Federation to return to work in the Assembly, Head of the Ukrainian delegation to PACE, MP of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc faction Volodymyr Ariev has said.

"The debate with the Russians ended, they demanded a change in the rules of the PACE for their return, they were told  come and talk, participate in discussions. They were talking beautifully that they want a dialogue, but they made a show of not remaining at the discussion of the escalation in Donbas. The PACE Standing Committee made no decision concerning the Russian delegation," Ariev wrote on his Facebook page on Friday.

He stressed that changing the rules to please the Russian delegation would destroy respect for the Assembly and its influence.
The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) registered a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Uttarakhand, capturing significant space in Manipur where it had no presence while Goa remains close. But, as expected, the Akali Dal-BJP alliance lost Punjab where it had already served two terms and faced anti-incumbency owing to drug menace, arms traffic and arbitrary police and general administration.



In UP, the BJPs resounding win of 325 seats with 41% votes with allies, Apna Dal (AD) and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), came as a surprise to all. It far surpassed the partys Mission-265 target and was really Herculean as compared to 2012 Assembly polls when it secured 47 seats and 15% votes. Thus, it won 278 more seats and 26% more votes as compared to 2012. How could the BJP do this?



Constituency transformation: The BJP fundamentally transformed its constituency. The party had been touted as upper caste-urban-middle class-traders party, a constituency that comprises of just 19-20% of electorate. It tried to go for sabka saath, sabka vikas, a catchphrase for inclusive politics. The party included more backward, most backward and Ati-Dalit sections hitherto excluded from party constituency.



According to the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) data, a massive 32% more backwards, 37% most-backwards and 21% Ati-Dalits have shifted to the BJP since 2012. There appeared to be a democratic upsurge in UP that gave a massive win to the BJP.



Rural connect: Prime Minister Narendra Modi established a rapport with the rural people. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi used to mock him as heading a suit-boot ki sarkaar and playing to the rich. But Modi bounced back with a massive rural push as he went for neem-coating of urea making it unfit for industrial use, introduced soil health card, provided farmers security by implementing the Fasal Bima Yojna (crop insurance), launched village toilets scheme and provided free LPG to village women under the Ujjwala scheme.



Further, during campaign speeches, he assured villagers that he would personally guarantee that the new BJP government in UP waived agricultural loans of small and marginal farmers in its first meeting and purchase their agricultural produce at minimum support price. What else could the farmers desire? That is the reason why 32% rural people voted BJP as against 14% in 2012.



Robust social engineering: To capture the largest social segment in UP  the OBCs  the BJP roped them into the leadership structure and offered them a large number of tickets in this Assembly polls. The non-Yadav OBCs in UP, called more-backwards and most-backwards, were not aligned to any particular party.



The BJP appointed Keshav Prasad Maurya from the most-backward as its state president and Anupriya Patel of Apna Dal, representing more-backwards, in the Modi cabinet. It also gave them 50% share in party tickets. This marginalised community was excited at getting a political space greater than their share in population. That positively impacted the BJPs victory in all constituencies.



Many failed to pay attention to the two marginal parties with which the BJP had alliance in UP  AD and SBSP  and calculate their electoral impact. Because of AD alliance, more-backwards, especially the Kurmis, massively shifted to the BJP. The SBSP is a party of Rajbhars, the people of tribal origin and wrongly placed in the most-backward category. They had polled five lakh votes in the contested constituencies in 2012 Assembly polls and their average comes to about 9,000 votes per contested constituency. That also made substantial difference to the BJP as add-on votes.



Policy initiatives: The BJP has also taken several policy initiatives in the domain of social security, economy and foreign policy. Modis growing international stature, tough and fearless stand against Pakistan, and several bilateral and multilateral international collaborations beneficial for the country have not gone unnoticed by the people. His several schemes like Atal Pension Yojna, Jan Dhan Yojna, direct transfer of subsidy to the bank accounts of poor, Pradhaan Mantri Grameen Awas Yojna etc have greatly excited the people.



He also initiated schemes to tackle unemployment among youth through youth entrepreneurship in the form of Make in India, startup schemes, skill development etc. The youth of UP was unhappy because of the casteism in appointments and greatly expected the BJP government to undo that aberration.



Mayawatis Muslim outreach: There was much hype about BSP supremo Mayawatis Dalit-Muslim social engineering replacing her earlier Dalit-Brahmin social engineering of the 2007 fame. But, the BSPs poor performance demonstrates its complete failure. Mayawati did not understand that such social coalitions are not mechanical processes that you terminate at will and go for another. These experiments take time and should be not only a matter of political convenience but must also reflect in the coming together of the two communities at grassroots.



Secondly, Mayawati lost her upper caste votes after the infamous Dayashankar Singh (BJP) episode (he called Mayawati a prostitute), following which Naseemuddin (BSP) made vulgar remarks about the wife and daughter of Dayashankar. It not only pushed Thakurs but the entire upper caste, including Brahmins, away from Mayawati and that is clearly reflected in the CSDS data. Thirdly, Mayawati also lost Dalit votes, especially non-Jatavs Pasi, Valmiki, Kori, Khatik etc as she had been unfair to them.



SP-Cong alliance: The SP-Congress alliance was a disaster for both parties. It was formed on the premise of transferability of votes to each other on the Bihar model but did not materialise on ground. It may have been just a political experiment for a Congress revival as the party had no stakes in UP. For Akhilesh, however, it turned out to be a very unwise decision because he might have managed near majority on his own owing to his clean and development-centric image.



The alliance was suicidal for the Congress because it took a big risk not worthy of a national party. One, by ceding 298 seats to the SP, it literally offered its Muslim vote share on a platter in those constituencies, a mistake the party committed in 1996 when it went for an alliance with the BSP and offered its Dalit votes to the party. Secondly, the Congress did not think big for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. This Assembly poll was a chance to galvanise its party apparatus and cadre for the coming LS poll. By not contesting in 298 constituencies, the Congress organisational apparatus might disintegrate beyond repair.



(The writer is Director, Centre for the Study of Society and Politics, Kanpur)
The Ministry of External Affairs on Saturday summoned Pakistans Deputy High Commissioner to India Syed Haider Shah to register its protest over the ceasefire violations along LoC and International Border.





The Government registered its strong protest at the fatal casualty of an Indian soldier in unprovoked firing by Pakistan forces on Thursday, Gopal Baglay, official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, said in statement.



Senior MEA officials conveyed to the Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan the Governments grave concern and strong protest at the continuing incidents of ceasefire violations by the neighbouring country's border guards along the Line of Control and International Border.



The Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan was conveyed the Governments expectation that Pakistan will not take any step detrimental to peace along the LoC and IB and to the security of India, said Baglay.



Syed Haider Shah was summoned to the MEA just a day after India's Deputy High Commissioner to Pakistan, J P Singh, was called in to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the neighbouring country's government.


Ashley Tellis, who was fired by St Josephs College of Arts and Commerce, made a fresh set of allegations against the college on social media late on Friday and early Saturday.



Tellis, a professor, claimed through a Facebook post, that he was fired for being gay and also due to certain differences of opinion with the management.



He spoke about the colleges attempt at moral policing of students and not appreciating the various cultures they hail from. From dress codes to not letting students hug each other, he expressed disagreement over what he termed draconian principles of the college.



On Friday, he claimed that a priest against whom there were complaints of harassment, was heading the anti-sexual harassment committee of the college.



His post on Saturday read, A certain priest was harassing girl students in college, sending them lewd messages at night. It came to the knowledge of a certain lecturer who stood by the students and brought it to the notice of the administration. At the end of that year (last year, actually), that lecturer was fired.



That certain priest is now in charge of the Anti-Sexual Harassment Committee in college. Is no student disturbed by this? Is no parent disturbed by this? Do the students and parents know? Has there been a signature campaign? May we start one now?



On social media, he also spoke about an ex-attendant in the college from a small village who was badly treated by the college. College authorities said that they were aware of the posts and would look into it.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah hit out at the media for its coverage on the diary controversy, exchange of tweets between two cine actors and the flyover project.



In his speech read out at the presentation of Karnataka Media Academy awards, Siddaramaiah referred to the diary purportedly having details of payoffs by state Congress members to their national leaders. It is unfortunate that media was used as a platform to defame people. No effort was made to verify the authenticity of the diary. Does the I-T department work under the person who released the diary? Siddaramaiah asked.



Siddaramaiah said people with no concern for development used the media to gain cheap publicity by raising controversies over the steel flyover project between Chalukya Circle and Hebbal flyover.



He said the project was mooted in 2010. There has been cost escalation. Some leader misused the media to gain publicity by making baseless charges, he said.

He said tweets by two actors  Sudeep and Darshan  making comments against each other had become fodder for the electronic media.



Taking a dig at plant of news stories, Siddaramaiah said, In our country, there are more news plantations, than coffee or tea plantations.



Siddaramaiah, who arrived late, presented the awards to 15 journalists, including Ronald Anil Fernandes of DH.


The Yadav family feud that dragged on for nearly six months may have made a gripping television viewing, but it certainly cost Akhilesh Yadav a crucial state election in his budding career.



The long-drawn-out and public spat between Akhilesh and his uncle Shivpal, who was backed by father Mulayam, seemed to be the main reason for heavy losses the SP suffered in its bastions.



In one of its worst performances, the SP could only get 12 of the 69 seats in its strongholds of Mainpuri, Etawah, Kannauj, Etah and some others, where its tally in 2012 was 55.



Shivpal and Mulayam, once the partys prominent campaigners, turned their backs this time.



Mulayam showed up at the campaigns of brother Shivpal and daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav, while Shivpal confined his canvassing to his personal battleground of Jaswant Nagar.



Shivpal withdrew from campaigning after Akhilesh dropped his loyalists from the candidate list and replaced them with his own. Shivpals followers also actively worked against the SP candidates in Etawah and other places.



Having an inkling of the sabotage by party insiders, Akhilesh aired his apprehensions at his rallies in the family bastions.



I know my own people are conspiring against me, Akhilesh had said at Mainpuri during his campaign.



Analysts point to a severe fragmentation of the Yadav votes that damaged the SP in its traditional strongholds. SP family feud was a big factor in this belt. Shivpal loyalists openly opposed SP nominees, said media analyst Prabhat Chaturvedi. Remarks by Mulayam, Shivpal and other family members further damaged Akhilesh. A few days before the first phase of polling, Mulayam said Akhilesh was anti-Muslim, while Shivpal launched a tirade against his nephew.



The last nail in the coffin was driven by Akhileshs stepmother Sadhna Yadav, who, a day before the last phase of elections, accused the UP Chief Minister of humiliating Mulayam and Shivpal.



SP leaders admit that the feud could flare up once again after the partys humiliation at the hustings.




Fire in the citys Bellandur lake had sparked a frenzied call to save Bengalurus biggest water body. To keep that attention riveted to the lakes survival, the local community has a plan: Crowd-source the evidence of every fire, locate every garbage dumping and burning site on a GPS-enabled map through smartphone photography.



The projects objective is also to identify the polluting industries around the lake. The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board had blamed inflow of untreated domestic sewage for the froth that erupts periodically in the lake. The attribution to industries was general, limited to numbers without elaboration.



The mapping process is expected to pinpoint the location of these industries and identify their role in large-scale pollution of the lake. As environmentalist Nagesh Aras informs, the highly toxic effluents from these units are directly let into the drains leading to the lake. Every litre of electrolyte solution with high lead and zinc content can pollute 10 lakh litres of water.



So how does this crowd-sourcing work? Using mobile apps such as Mapillarys Openstreetmap or Mapunity, photographs are taken from the sites and uploaded to a map, accessible to all. The photos taken with GPS tracking are overlaid onto Mapillary, showing the black spots in the lake as animated pictures. The apps timeline feature allows multiple images of the same site.



But extensive local mapping will be required to get the complete picture. According to Aras, this process begins on Saturday. The data so collated and overlaid on maps will be part of reports to be submitted to the National Green Tribunal. Rationale: Evidence-backed reports have better chance of enforcing remedial action.



To improve the reliability of the maps, data gathering will be on the lines of Mapillarys Humanitarian OpenStreet Map Team (HOT). This is an initiative designed to provide accurate maps for use in humanitarian work. Often when a natural disaster strikes, changes to the human and natural landscape reduce the accuracy of maps. The HOT team then works both physically and remotely to boost reliability.



Mapillary allows people on the ground with a smartphone to capture images in the area which can then be used by people with GIS experience to update the OpenStreetMap. This tool was extensively used for relief measures during the 2015 earthquake in Nepal.
Although the Congress and BJP have been the main contenders for power in Manipur, the way the smaller parties have gained influence suggests that they will play a kingmakers role. Okram Ibobi Singh will lose the chief ministers post as the BJP is likely to form an alliance with (or get support from) smaller parties for the formation of the next government.



The eleventh General Elections to the 60-member Assembly were held in two phases, on 4 and 8 March, respectively, registered over 85% voter turnout. The poll exercise was largely peaceful, except for few violent incidents.



Altogether, 266 candidates belonging to 17 political parties and independents contested for the 60 seats, of which 19 were reserved for the scheduled tribes. As the results indicate, the Congress has emerged as the single largest party with 27 seats, followed by the BJP (21), NPF (4), NPP (4), LJP (1), AITC (1), and independents (2). Elections were held against the backdrop of the prolonged ban (popularly called the economic blockade) on the movement of goods-laden vehicles along the national highways imposed by the United Naga Council (UNC) against the creation of seven new districts.



Several BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi campaigned for their candidates. Rahul Gandhi wanted the contents of the framework agreement signed between the central government and the NSCN-IM to be made public and even accused the prime minister of spreading hate and lies. He further held that only the Congress could safeguard the territorial integrity of Manipur. On the other hand, the prime minister assured that Manipurs territorial integrity would be safeguarded. Launching a scathing attack on the Congress government, he maintained that the framework agreement would not compromise the states territory. He also slammed the state government for failing to lift the economic blockade and accused Ibobi Singh of instigating the economic blockade to gain political mileage by dividing the communities.



By creating seven new districts, Okram Ibobi Singh tried to send a message that he alone can safeguard the territorial integrity of Manipur. According to him, the new districts were created for administrative convenience which would help bring equal development and growth in the interior areas. The UNC claims that the new districts would bifurcate the ancestral land of the Nagas in Manipur. But Ibobi argued that the creation of new districts does not mean compromising land belonging to anyone, as all the land belongs to the government. The move alienated a major section of the Naga population, although a section of the Nagas did not oppose the creation of new districts. The decision was also not opposed by the majority of the people in the state.



A few days before the polls, the Congress brought back the framework agreement as an important poll issue. The party countered that if there was nothing in it, then why the prime minister was shying away from disclosing the details. On its part, the BJP accused the Congress of politicising the economic blockade.



The election results clearly indicate that Okram Ibobi Singh is unlikely to remain as the most powerful politician in the state. At the same time, there is a leadership vacuum in the BJP. If the next government is headed by the BJP, the state is expected to get some relief from the ongoing economic blockade as the NPF is likely to be a junior partner of the former. These elections also assume significance as it will decide the future relevance of the NPF. The party has not been able to control politics in Naga-inhabited areas of the state. It will be interesting to see its future relationships with the BJP.



Noted human rights activist Irom Sharmila Chanu has failed miserably. In fact, she seems to be more popular outside the state than within the state.



Nonetheless, the smaller parties are likely to play an important role in the government formation in which the BJP has an edge over the Congress. But, the problem of Manipur is far from over. The people want economic development to take place rather than ethnic politics.



(The writer is Associate Professor, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi)
Manipur on Saturday threw up a hung Assembly with the ruling Congress bagging 28 of the 60 seats and the BJP making giant strides to muster 21.



The Congress had won 42 seats in the 2012 Assembly. The BJP, on the other hand, had no members in the outgoing House.



Human rights activist Irom Sharmila, who contested against Chief Minister Ibobi Singh, could secure only 90 votes and was relegated to the fourth position.



The Naga Peoples Front (NPF) and the National Peoples Party (NPP) bagged four seats each. The Lokjanshakti Party and an independent candidate won one seat each. In the 2012 Assembly poll too, the LJP had won a seat.



The Trinamool Congress bagged one seat. The party had won seven seats in the previous Assembly polls.



The Nationalist Congress Party which had bagged a seat in the previous Assembly election, drew a blank this time.



Ibobi Singh romped home from Thoubal constituency defeating his nearest BJP rival L Basanta Singh by 10,400 votes. Both the Congress and the BJP claimed that they would form the government with the support of like-minded parties.



Manipur Congress chief T N Haokip said, We are confident that we will form the next government in Manipur. We are already in talks with like-minded secular and regional parties.



State BJP president K Bhabananda Singh also exuded confidence of forming the government in the state.



We are confident of forming the next government in Manipur, he said.

The BJPs voteshare of 36% is higher than the 34.7% secured by the Congress.



Prominent Congress candidates who won included Md Abdul Naser and K Jaikishen Singh.

BJP leader N Biren Singh emerged victorious from Heingang seat, while other prominent winners of the party included Sapam R Singh and Heikham Dingo Singh.



Former state BJP chief Th Chaoba, however, lost.
Riding the Modi wave, the BJP on Saturday swept to power in Uttarakhand by winning a three-fourth majority in the 70-member Assembly, trouncing Chief Minister Harish Rawat.



Rawat lost from both the seats he had contested.The BJP won 56 seats, in what is considered to be a historic, one-sided victory in a state where the party had not projected a chief ministerial face and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had carried out a whirlwind campaign, hard-selling decisions of demonetisation and one-rank, one-pension. Counting was still going on in one Assembly seat.



According to the Election Commission data, the BJP garnered 46.5% of the votes, while the Congress managed to get 33.5% votes. The BSP, which had emerged kingmaker in the previous three Assembly elections, got 7% votes, but failed to open its account.



The Congress suffered a rout in the state where Chief Minister Rawat and party chief Kishor Upadhyay lost the elections to the BJP. Rawat lost the Haridwar Rural seat to BJPs Yatishwaranand by a margin of 12,278 votes. He also lost the Kichha seat to the BJP's Rajesh Shukla.



Upadhyay lost to Sahadev Singh Pundir of the BJP by a margin of 18,863 votes. Infighting within the Congress also contributed to his defeat as party rebel Aryendra Sharma had polled 21,888 votes.



I own up my failure to rise up to the expectations of my party workers who had worked very hard despite lack of resources, Chief Minister Harish Rawat said in Dehradun after submitting his resignation to Governor K K Paul.



Celebrations broke out at the BJP office in Dehradun as the results indicated a massive victory with senior leaders getting into the process of selecting the chief minister.



The BJP Parliamentary Party is expected to meet here on Sunday. Names of Satpal Maharaj, Trivendra Singh Rawat and Prakash Pant are doing the rounds as the probable chief ministerial candidates.



Ten out of the 12 Congress leaders, who had joined the BJP ahead of the elections, emerged victorious. Among the next generation leaders, Ritu Khanduri, the daughter of former chief minister B C Khanduri, won from Yamkeshwar, while Saurabh Bahuguna, the son of former chief minister Vijay Bahuguna, won from Sitarganj.



The Congress had launched a spirited campaign against the BJP which highlighted the failed attempts to topple the Harish Rawat government last year by triggering mass defections.



However, voters appeared mesmerised by Modis strong leadership reflected in the decision to demonetise high-value currency and the one-rank, one-pension initiative, a long standing demand of the ex-servicemen community.






A working meeting of the representatives of the Naval Forces of Ukraine and the United States on the matters of recruiting and personnel management was held in Odesa.

The meeting participants exchanged experience in personnel management, retention of the most experienced military personnel in the military service, and the operation of automated career management systems, the press center of the command of the Naval Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported on Saturday.

The parties also discussed the development directions for the personnel management of the Ukrainian Navy.

"This is the third such meeting with our American counterparts. The result of previous joint developments was the creation and opening of recruitment centers that enable us to effectively interact with the target audience and find qualified specialists for the fleet," head of the personnel department - deputy chief of staff of the Navy Command of the Ukrainian Navy Oleksandr Shevchenko has said.

According to him, the meeting participants paid special attention to the maintenance of personnel in the military service, recommendations concerning the qualitative selection of candidates, the operation of automated systems of managing personnel and the career of military personnel.

Head of the U.S. Navy delegation Karen Ray noted the progress of the Ukrainian Navy in working with personnel and the acquisition of progressive views in this area by the officers of the Navy personnel departments.
The BJP said on Saturday that its landslide mandate in Uttar Pradesh demonstrated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pro-poor political narrative has clicked with the voters.



The party had worked on the consolidation of non-Yadav and non-Jatav most backward castes (MBCs) to club pro-poor politics with Modi government's development agenda to formulate a comprehensive electoral strategy in UP.



At a post-results press conference, however, Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah interpreted the sweeping mandate to mean that the caste lines got blurred in the election in favour of politics of performance.



He said the poor have realised that Modi is empowering them.

More than a year before the polls, the BJP won over leaders of the smaller backward communities and tied up with the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP)  a party of backward caste Rajbhars who are influential in eastern UP. This sent out a strong signal to the MBCs which did not have any major ties with either of the two regional parties, Samajwadi Party or Bahujan Samaj Party.



Just as Jatavs are loyal to the BSP chief Mayawati, who is from their caste, Yadavs, by and large, remained with the SP in these polls. The BSP faced its second successive electoral drubbing in Uttar Pradesh this time.



During the campaign, Modi and Shah attacked the SP for the 'Yadav hegemony' in UP which, they said, was amplified when that caste got preference while filling government vacancies, and in postings.



Central government schemes like Ujjwala Yojna (LPG connections for the poor) and Jan Dhan accounts also contributed to the Modi government pitch that it is empowering the have-nots, as did the appropriation of the Dalit icon B R Ambedkar. Modi's also paid a visit to Ambedkars ancestral town of Mhow.



BSP chief Mayawati, who did not make any effort to win back lost ground, was shocked at the verdict as the trends during the day indicated that she would get no more than 19 seats  which is 61 less than her 2012 tally and her worst-ever performance after the 2014 Lok Sabha election in which her party failed to get a single seat.



She relied on reactionary politics such as getting mileage out of Dalit-related incidents to get other backward castes and the minorities back into the BSP-fold. And to overcome that deficit she harped much on Muslims.



The results in UP and Uttarakhand are surprising and not palatable to anyone. It seems EVMs (electronic voting machines) did not accept votes polled for any party other than the BJP, the BSP supremo said.



Muslims constitute 20% votes of the state and the BJP did not give a single ticket to Muslims... but in Muslim-dominated seats also the results went in the BJP's favour and this is unpalatable to the party, she said at press conference in Lucknow.



Towards the end of the campaigning in UP, Mayawati had tried to check the movement of the MBCs towards the BJP but that was too late. At a rally in Varanasi on March 4, she charged that Modi was upper caste and had included his own Ghanchi caste in the Other Backward Caste (OBC) list in Gujarat after becoming chief minister.




With a massive victory in Uttarakhand, the BJP has a broad pool of talent to choose its chief ministerial candidate from.



Trivendra Singh Rawat, Prakash Pant, and former Congressman Satpal Maharaj are being seen as contenders for the top post.



The BJP has had a tumultuous previous stint in power forcing it to change the chief ministers twice between 2007 and 2012. A clear two-thirds majority will give the BJP the comfort of having a smooth run in the state.



A spiritual guru-turned-politician Satpal Maharajs campaign in Chaubattakhal spoke about he being a chief ministerial probable in case the BJP came to power. The 66-year-old former Union minister has tough competition from relatively young Rawat and Pant.



Rawat has won from Doiwala Assembly constituency in Haridwar, while Pant bagged the Pithoragarh seat from the Congress.



Almost a dozen prominent leaders of the Congress had switched sides to the BJP ahead of the elections and at least some of them do harbour chief ministerial ambitions. Maharaj considers himself as the first among the turncoats to have joined the BJP during the Lok Sabha elections of 2014.



Bhagat Singh Koshiyari, Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri and Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank have adorned the chief ministers chair in the past. While age may not be on the side of 74-year-old Koshiyari and 82-year-old Khanduri, Pokhriyal s tenure was riddled with allegations of irregularities and mis-governance.



The three former chief ministers are now BJP representatives in Parliament and the party may prefer to project a fresh face in Uttarakhand to lead the party in the future.



It remains to be seen whether the BJP would opt for Maharaj or true-blue BJP leaders among Rawat and Pant.



Another chief ministerial probable, Ajay Bhatt, the Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing Assembly, has been ruled out after his loss from Ranikhet Assembly seat to Karan Mahara of the Congress by a margin of 4,981 votes.



Maharaj has been the Union minister for railways and finance in the H D Deve Gowda government.
The Congress romped home with a comfortable majority in Punjab winning 77 assembly seats of total 117, ending a decade of rule by the Akali Dal-BJP combine.



Punjab election results rendered a setback to Arvind Kejriwals national ambitions with the Congress knocking off the AAP, limiting it to way below its expectations with 20 seats. The outgoing SAD-BJP combine finished a dismal third with 18 winners, 15 of the Akali Dal. AAPs ally Lok Insaf Party won from two seats.



Capt Amarinder Singh, who turned 75 on Saturday, will be the next chief minister of Punjab and is likely to be sworn in next week.



Congress gained 31 seats since last elections. The Akali Dal is not only down 41 seats, the grand old party lost close to 10% of vote share essentially to the AAP.



The results mark the credible entry of a third front - the AAP - which managed to make inroads in Punjabs Malwa region, although way below its projections. This is Congress best performance in last two decades. The BJP, an ally of the SAD, managed just three seats of the 23 it contested.



Capt Amarinder Singh would perhaps regret having lost to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in Lambi by a sizable margin in what he called his last election. But his victory on home turf Patiala Urban with the highest ever margin was rewarding. Capts opponent of Akali Dal, ex-Army chief Gen J J Singh, lost his security deposit.



The Congress gamble on former BJP MP Navjot Sidhu helped the party greatly in Majha, a region where the Congress had less impact. In Amritsar Lok Sabha segment alone, out of 11 seats, the Congress won 10, courtesy Sidhu.



While 10 ministers in Badals cabinet lost elections, Badal and family won their seats. CM Badal reclaimed Lambi, his son Sukhbir Badal won from Jalalabad. Sukhbirs brother-in-law Bikramjit Singh Majithia, who is blemished with drug taint, won from Majitha.



The Congress scored 38.5% votes, down about 1.5% since last elections. The BJP vote share at 5.3% was down nearly 2%. The AAP maiden vote share stood at 23.7%, a little less than the SAD.



The Congress performed very well in all three regions - Malwa, Majha and Doaba. While the AAP hoped to sweep Malwa, which accounts for 69 seats, the party could manage 18 seats. The AAP drew a complete blank on 25 seats in Majha and managed two seats in Doaba region. In Majha, the Congress won 22 seats. Doaba gave the Congress 15 out of 23 seats.


With the massive victory in the Assembly elections, the race for the post of chief minister of Indias biggest state has begun in the saffron party.



Though the BJP had not projected any face in the state, there seems to be as many as seven contenders for the top post.



In fact, the supporters of some of the main contenders have even started lobbying for the post.



State BJP president Keshav Prasad Maurya, who along with national president Amit Shah led the party to victory, is one of the frontrunners for the post. Mauryas supporters hailed him as the future chief minister, when he arrived at the state BJP headquarters here around noon.



Slogans like Pradesh ka CM kaisa ho... Keshav Maurya jaisa ho (who should be the CM of UP... he should be like Keshav Maurya) reverberated in the air as he walked into the party office amid a shower of flower petals and gulal (dry red-coloured Holi powder).



The party will decide about the chief minister, Maurya, who hailed from the OBC, which, barring the Yadavs, stood solidly behind the BJP in the polls, said when asked if he was in the race for the top post.



Union Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha, a Bhumihar, is also among the contenders. Sinha came in for praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the election rallies. An MP from Ghazipur, Sinha was deputed to look after eastern UP by Shah.



Gorakhpur MP Yogi Adityanath has also thrown his hat in the ring. His supporters even organised a havan (a religious ritual) for his anointment as the chief minister.



BJP national vice president and Lucknow Mayor Dinesh Sharma too figures in the list of possible contenders. Sharma is considered to be close to Shah.



Party spokesman Shrikant Sharma, who has won from Mathura, is also being considered as one of the claimants for the post. Shrikant was even hailed as the possible chief minister by Shah during a campaign rally.



Union Home Minister Rajnath Singhs supporters exuded confidence that he is likely to be made the chief minister. Rajnath Singh has the experience... he was earlier chief minister of the state as well as the state party president, and knows the state very well,'' said a BJP leader, considered to be close to Rajnath.








Branded as an anti-Muslim party by its rivals, the BJP, which had not fielded any Muslim candidate in the Assembly polls, shocked its opponents by sweeping the Muslim-dominated areas, especially in the west and central regions in the state.



The BJP, which registered a massive electoral victory in the state, won as many as 100 seats in the west, Rohilkhand and Avadh regions, giving jitters to its political opponents. In fact, it was the performance of the BJP in the Muslim-dominated areas that prompted BSP supremo Mayawati to charge that the electronic voting machines were tampered with. It can not be believed that Muslims voted for the BJP. Something must be wrong, Mayawati said.



The results of the polls revealed that the BJP wiped out its opponents in the Muslim-dominated districts of Bijnore, Sambhal, Amroha, Moradabad, Bareilly, Budaon, Shahjahanpur, Saharanpur, Baghpat, Pilibhit and Lakhimpur-Kheri, among others, much to the shock of the rival parties.



It seems that a section of the Muslims, especially women, voted for the BJP. It may not be much, but without some support of the Muslims a win of this scale is not possible, media analyst J P Shukla told DH. Shukla felt that progressive Muslim women might have tilted towards the BJP following the saffron partys stand on issues like triple talaq. Such issues affect the women more than they impact the men, he added.



A senior Muslim cleric also expressed similar sentiment, though he added that it would require a detailed analysis of the results to come to any conclusion. It may be a possibility, the cleric conceded.
Anti-AFSPA icon Irom Sharmila on Saturday retired hurt from politics after she bit the dust in her first electoral battle, getting only 90 votes.



That is less than what NOTA or None of the Above polled.



Sharmila (44), who contested as Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRAJA) candidate, lost to Manipur Chief Minister Ibobi Singh in Thoubal, ending a distant fourth.

Her election performance showed that people had not taken kindly to her decision in August to end her 16-year-old fast against the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act. She was 28-year-old when she started her fast against the massacre of 10 people in Imphal, demanding repeal of AFSPA. I am fed up with the political system. I have decided to quit active politics. I will move to South India as I need to calm my mind. I will continue my fight against AFSPA until and unless it is repealed. But I will fight as a social activist, she was quoted as saying.



Last August she had said she wanted to become the chief minister of the state where there was no democracy, and cleanse the system.



If Sharmila could not garner even 143 votes, which were polled under the NOTA category, other PRAJA candidates also did not fare well.



Najima Bibi, the first Muslim women candidate in Manipur, ended up with just 33 votes.

Sharmila had a formidable opponent in the chief minister, who was facing trouble towards the end of his nearly 15-year-old rule in the state.



Singh won garnering 18,649 votes while his main opponent BJPs L Basanta Singh got only 8,179. Trinamool Congress candidate L S Singh got 144 and an independent A Manglemjao Singh polled 66.


The much-hyped electoral alliance stitched by UP ke ladke (Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi) might have appeared formidable on paper, but it miserably failed to click on the ground.



While Rahul and Akhilesh displayed bonhomie and worked in cohesion, they failed to persuade their party workers to help each other and as a result, the alliance failed to pose any serious threat to the BJP in the polls.



Many leaders of the SP and Congress, who could not secure nominations following seat-sharing arrangements, either chose to fight the polls in defiance of their respective parties or desert their parent organisations and join the rival camps.



There were murmurs of dissent even at the time of stitching together the alliance, with many from both parties terming it impractical. Even state Congress chief Raj Babbar was said to be opposed to the alliance.



We had organised successful programmess like cot meetings and rath yatras against the SP regime. Had we gone alone in the polls, we could have done well... it was a huge mistake to join hands with the SP, a senior Congress leader said.



UP minister Ravidas Mehrotra went on record to express his opposition to the alliance. SP workers worked for the Congress nominees, but Congress workers did not reciprocate, he said.



Besides, on many seats, the two parties faced each other. They included Zaidpur, Lucknow Central, Maharajpur, Kole, Bhognipur, Chandpur, Hargaon, Arya Nagar, Kanpur Cantonment, Purkaji, Amethi, Gaurganj, Tiloi and Baldev.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in almost all his election meetings, referred to the Congress pre-alliance slogan of 27 saal, UP behal (no development in UP in 27 years), which was coined by the party when it had launched cot meetings across the state.



Modi was successful in sending the message to the voters that this alliance was opportunistic... he hammered this point home throughout the campaigning, an SP leader said.



Akhilesh meets guv, resigns



Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday handed over his resignation to Governor Ram Naik following the SPs defeat in the Assembly polls, DHNS reports from Lucknow.



Akhilesh drove to the Raj Bhavan in the evening and tendered his resignation.

A Raj Bhavan communique said that Naik has accepted the resignation, and asked the SP chief to continue as caretaker chief minister till the new government is sworn in.
The chanting of Jai Shriram at the counting centres across most parts of the state and BJP offices after the saffron partys huge win signaled that the Ram Temple issue may be back on the partys agenda.



At the BJP headquarters as well as in Ayodhya, from where BJP nominee Ved Prakash Gupta romped home by defeating UP Minister Tej Narain Pandey, slogans rented the air as reports of the partys march to power trickled in.



A senior BJP leader said that the Ram Temple issue was already on the partys agenda. We are committed to building a grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya... we will now have the numbers in the Rajya Sabha also... we will fulfill all our promises, including building the Ram Temple, he said.



The saint community in Ayodhya also said that the centre should now enact a legislation to pave the way for a Ram Temple.



The BJP now has the mandate of the people of the country and also of the state... there should now be no problem in the construction of the Ram Temple, said a VHP leader in Ayodhya. Firebrand saffron leader and MP Yogi Adityanath and other BJP leaders have also been clamouring for the Ram Temple.



State BJP president Keshav Prasad Maurya, however, said that his party would abide by the order of the Supreme Court on the issue.
The BJP swept the Assembly segments in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi and made deep inroads into strongholds of Gandhi and Yadav families, giving the saffron party leverage to tout that UP has rejected dynasty politics.



Showing faith in Modi as they emphatically did elsewhere in the state, voters overlooked the sluggish pace of development and local resentment over choice of two candidates to hand over all five Assembly seats of the pilgrimage city to the BJP and its NDA ally Apna Dal (Soney Lal).



"As an MP from Kashi, I am overwhelmed by the strong faith and love showered by the people there on me. I bow to the people of Kashi," Modi said after the results. Party president Amit Shah said the landslide victory by the BJP showed that people have rejected "politics of caste, dynasty and appeasement" and voted for "politics of performance".



In this election, the voters in Uttar Pradesh went a step beyond the 2014 Lok Sabha poll.

While the electorate was harsh on the Samajwadi Party in 2014, it had then spared former chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav's family giving them five parliamentary seats.

But in the Yadav land that spreads over 10 constituencies of Mainpuri, Etawah and Kannauj, the BJP has managed a 50% strike rate in this round of elections.



Of these five wins, the BJP came up with its best performance in Kannauj, represented by SP leader Akhilesh Yadav's wife Dimple Yadav in the Lok Sabha.



The BJP pocketed three of the four Assembly segments. In Etawah, Akhilesh's estranged uncle Shivpal Yadav retained his Jaswant Nagar seat but the remaining two went to the BJP.



The BJP's show was even better in Gandhis' pocket borough in central Uttar Pradesh. The party won six of the 10 Assembly seats that come under Congress president Sonia Gandhi's constituency of Raebareli and Rahul Gandhi's Amethi.





Only the mother and son had managed to hold on to their forts in 2014, when the BJP and its ally Apna Dal won 73 of the 80 UP parliamentary seats.



BJP candidates have now won Varanasi Cantonment, Varanasi South, Varanasi North and Sevapuri. And the partys ally Apna Dal snatched back Rohania, which it had lost in a by-election after its leader Annupriya Patel won the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and moved on to became a junior minister in the Modi government. Modi had to put in extra effort in the holy city to tide over a negative perception built due to the dusty, dug-up roads and the party's choice of candidates for two seats, which led to resentment among the local leaders and cadre.



Despite heavy deployment of ministers and top leaders including Amit Shah, Modi altered his electioneering schedule fixed by the party and took upon himself to maximise gains.He camped for three days ahead of the last phase of polling in Varanasi and adjoining districts, conducted two roadshows and rallies despite criticism from the opposition that this showed that the party was under pressure.



Despite resentment within the party, BJP leader Neelkanth Tiwari, who had replaced seven-time MLA Shyamdev Roy Chaudhary Dada, won Varanasi South. Similarly, Saurabh Shrivastava romped home defeating Congress candidate Anil Shrivastava in Varanasi Cantt.






A total of two Ukrainian servicemen were killed, 16 more wounded and injured in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone in Donbas in the past 24 hours, Andriy Lysenko, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesperson, said.

"A total of two Ukrainian servicemen were killed, 16 soldiers were wounded and injured in hostilities in the past 24 hours," Lysenko said at a briefing in Kyiv on Saturday.

The populated locality of Krymske was the most serious hot spot in the Luhansk sector, the enemy used mortars, Grad multiple rocket launch systems and howitzers, he said. A total of 16 instances of shelling were recorded in the Luhansk sector in the past 24 hours, a quarter of them from heavy weapons.

The enemy fired from infantry fighting vehicles and small arms and used mortars occasionally on the Svitlodarsk bulge in the Donetsk sector, Lysenko said. Tanks and mortars were also used in Avdiivka. A total of 35 instances of shelling were recorded in the Donetsk sector in the past 24 hours, 13 of them using heavy weapons.
Nick Wallace, the 17-year old founder of Nicks Picks, spoke to over 150 employees at Intercept Pharmaceuticals Feb. 28 Nick was born with biliary atresia, a pediatric liver disease, and at the age of 13, received a life-saving liver transplant. Intercept is evaluating a therapy that could one day be delivered to patients such as Nick to treat the liver disease.

I was honored to speak to the team at Intercept and tell my story, said Nick. I feel lucky to have received my liver transplant, but it is very exciting to think that there could soon be a therapy that could treat biliary artesia. I wanted to convey to the team at Intercept how appreciative I am of their efforts.

Nick was invited to speak by Janet Owens-Grillo, Ph.D., principal scientist at Intercept. The presentation was held at Intercepts La Jolla office. Intercept is focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapeutics to treat progressive non-viral liver diseases, including biliary atresia.

Our biliary atresia team is working extremely hard to find a treatment for this rare disease and it always makes the job easier when we can make a direct connection with the patients we are trying to help, said Owens-Grillo. Nick is truly inspirational in his outlook on life and the fact that he has already become a leader in the community. To be only 17 and have experienced all that he has and yet be a mentor and a founder of a charitable organization providing hope and inspiration to chronically ill children, their families, and those who have simply had the good fortune to meet Nick, is simply amazing.

Nick, a Del Mar resident and Torrey Pines High School student, founded Nicks Picks, a 501c3 charity in 2012  the same month he received a successful liver transplant at the UCLA Medical Center. Nicks Picks delivers backpacks filled with a dozen games, toys and comfort items that Nick felt most useful when living in hospitalization isolation. Every day the charity is out working to help children cope with a life-threatening illness. Nicks Picks is funded by sponsors and donors. For more information on Nicks Picks and how to donate to the charity or sponsor a backpack for delivery to a hospitalized youth, please visit www.nickspicks.org.
Russia must bear responsibility for protecting Ukrainian investors in Crimea after its annexation under the Russian-Ukrainian bilateral investment treaty.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague issued a relevant ruling, Luke Eric Peterson wrote in the Investment Arbitration Reporter.

Earlier, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague issued an Interim Award concerning certain issues of jurisdiction and admissibility in the lawsuit by PrivatBank and its former owner Ihor Kolomoisky against Russia in connection with the annexation of Crimea.

"On 24 February 2017, having deliberated, the Tribunal issued its unanimous Interim Award addressing certain issues of jurisdiction and admissibility," the court said in a statement.

There is no additional information on this ruling.

The court recalled that the claimants say that the Russian Federation breached its obligations under the Ukraine-Russia bilateral investment treaty by taking, as of February 2014, measures that prevented them from operating their banking business in Crimea.

The tribunal recalled that the arbitration proceedings into the lawsuit by Kolomoisky and Belbek Airport LLC against the Russian Federation were launched on January 13, 2015 on the basis of the UNCITRAL (United Nations Commission on International Trade Law) and the agreements between the governments of the Russian Federation and Ukraine on protection of investments dated November 27, 1998. The claimants said that the Russian Federation had violated its obligations arising from the said treaty by adopting since February 2014 measures that deprived the claimant of property rights, contractual and other rights to operate the passenger terminal for commercial flights at the Belbek airport in Crimea.

Kolomoisky said he had a contract until 2020 to manage the passenger terminal of Belbek airport (Sevastopol) nationalized by Russia after the annexation of Crimea. He demanded compensation from the Russian Federation for losses in the form of a possible income from the terminal, amounting $15 million.

Then, on April 13, 2015, similar arbitration proceedings against the Russian Federation were initiated by PrivatBank and Finance Company Finilon LLC, as the annexation of Crimea by Russia did not allow the claimants to continue their banking business in Crimea.
Ukrainian diplomats are actively working to ensure that the meeting of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko with U.S. President Donald Trump should take place before a possible meeting of the head of the White House with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which Kremlin slates before the G20 summit in Hamburg on July 7-8, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine Konstiantyn Yeliseyev has said.

"At the moment, our diplomats are actively working to ensure that this meeting is held as soon as possible, but it is fundamentally important that it should really take place before the upcoming meeting between President Trump and the Russian president," he said in an interview with hromadske.ua.

Yeliseyev noted that the preparation for the meeting of the presidents of Ukraine and the United States was one of the goals of the recent visit of Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin to Washington, where he held meetings, in particular with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and adviser to the head of the White House on national security issues Raymond McMaster.
9 Bollywood Star Kids Who Wouldn't Have Survived In The Industry Without Favouritism
An influential US Congressman on Friday introduced a strongly worded bill in Congress to declare "untrustworthy ally" Pakistan a state sponsor of terrorism. "Not only is Pakistan an untrustworthy ally, Islamabad has also aided and abetted enemies of the United States for years," said Congressman Ted Poe, who is chair of the House Subcommittee on Terrorism. "From harbouring Osama bin Laden to its cosy relationship with the Haqqani network, there is more than enough evidence to determine whose side Pakistan is on in the War on Terror - and it's not America's. It is time we stop paying Pakistan for its betrayal and designate it for what it is: a State Sponsor of Terrorism," Poe said while introducing the bill, the Pakistan State Sponsor of Terrorism Act of 2015, in Congress. The bill requires the US President to issue a report within 90 days, answering whether Pakistan has provided support for international terrorism. Thirty days after that, the Secretary of State is required to submit a follow-up report, which says that Pakistan is a state sponsor of terrorism, or a detailed justification as to why it does not meet the legal criteria for such a designation. It's time for a "radical reset" with Pakistan, said Congressman Poe and James Clad, a former US deputy assistant secretary of defense for Asia, in an article in Nationalinterest.org dated 8 March. They say the US is in "a toxic relationship" with Pakistan and needs to "to finally set limits on its indulgence" towards Islamabad. The authors of the article are scathing about the US-Pakistan relationship. They describe it as a "weird psychology" at play. "Pakistan has become a quasi-adversary, receiving hundreds of billions through the years in direct and indirect US support, a strange hostage-like arrangement in which we pay Islamabad to do what it should be doing anyway to protect its own domestic security and buttress Afghan stability," Poe and Clad wrote. The authors can't get their heads around another bit of what they call "weird psychology". That is, the US looking the other way as Pakistan acquired nuclear-weapons capability even as it went "through the kabuki dance of annual nonproliferation certification". How can this "weird psychology" be reversed, Poe and Clad ask in the article, and then suggest some ways to "put the toxic psychology behind us". The authors emphatically believe the US shouldn't rush to bolster Pakistan's balance of payments via the IMF or other intermediaries, as they've done before. "Let China pay that, if the Pakistanis wish to mortgage their future in that way," they suggest mock-helpfully. Essentially, the US has to change its accommodative stance on Pakistan, regardless of and independent of Indo-US relations. Whatever method the US chooses, "something must change in our dealings with a terrorist-supporting, irresponsible nuclear-weapons state", Poe and Clad conclude.








RadioShack files for second bankruptcy in two years

Electronics retailer RadioShack has filed for its second bankruptcy in two years. The company will

shut 187 more stores this month, about 9 per cent of its 1,943 locations.

Following its 2015 bankruptcy filing, the Fort Worth, Texas-based company, the company closed around 2,400 stores. It was later acquired by General Wireless, a joint venture of hedge fund Standard General and Sprint, which operated 1,518 stores.

In a Chapter 11 reorganisation petition filed Wednesday in the US Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, General Wireless stated it planned to close 187 stores this month, for which the process had already started. The chain added that it was also closing the RadioShack portion of the 360 stores that it shared with Sprint, and was evaluating whether to do the same in 971 other shared stores.

The moves would affect about 1,850 of RadioShack's 5,900 employees.

''Over the course of the past two years, our talented, dedicated team has worked relentlessly in an effort to revitalize the Company and the RadioShack brand, while providing outstanding service to our customers. We greatly appreciate their hard work and dedication," said RadioShack CEO and president Dene Rogers in a statement.

Meanwhile, Sprint would convert several hundred locations into Sprint corporate-owned stores, the wireless provider said in a separate statement.

RadioShack's bankruptcy filing and subsequent store closings were not material to Sprint's overall sales results, Sprint added.

RadioShack first filed for bankruptcy in 2015, after it was caught off-guard as customers moved to big box competitors including Best Buy Co Inc and Amazon.com Inc.

The company's partnership with Sprint was aimed at keeping its 1,740 stores open as it invited the mobile carrier to co-brand with it and set up smaller stores within its own, according to commentators.

They added, Sprint, at the time, viewed RadioShack's retail footprint as a way to rapidly grown its own business while RadioShack hoped to benefit from increased liquidity in the form of rent and commission payments from Sprint.
Law enforcement officers have detained a suspect in one of the criminal proceedings into the events of May 2, 2014 in Odesa, who was hiding from the investigation for three years.

The detention took place on March 9, and on March 10 the Prymorsky District Court of Odesa ruled to put the suspect in custody without the possibility of bail as a pre-trial preventive measure, the press service of the Odesa regional prosecutor's office reported.

The prosecutor's office noted that the criminal case, under which the suspect is being held, is probed by the Investigation Department of the Main Directorate of the National Police in Odesa region under part 2 of Article 294 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

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.
Lea is a temporary structure for books and games surrounded by tables, chairs and mobile benches that create a background for cultural events. LEA was inspired by the community, explains Guillermo Bernal, urbanist and founder of Lugares Publicos. During the past year we made more than 100 different interventions to see which one would be more successful, and thats where the design comes from: a place for people to feel welcomed, offering various activities during the day.
The Donegal Democrat has been informed of the following deaths:

- David Mehaffy, Lifford

- Jim Curran, Ballyshannon

- Josephine Gillespie, Killybegs

- Maisie Matthewson, Lifford

- James Campbell, Glassagh Beg, Cloghan

- Gordon Dugan, Glebe House, Glebe Culdaff.

- Kitty McGonigle, Lochandubh, Kincasslagh

- Gerald (Gerry) Ward, Woodlands, Naas, Co. Kildare and late of Letterkenny



David Mehaffy, Lifford

The death has taken place of David Mehaffy, Blackrock, Clonleigh, Lifford.

Reposing at his residence. Funeral from there today, Saturday 11th March at 2pm for service at Ballindrait Presbyterian Church at 2.30pm.

Burial afterwards in family plot in adjoining churchyard. Family time from 10.30pm to 11am. Family flowers only. Donations, if desired, to ICU, Letterkenny University Hospital care of Gibson Funeral Directors, Convoy.



Jim Curran, Ballyshannon

The death has taken of Jim Curran, Bishop Street, Ballyshannon.

Removal this Saturday morning to St Patricks Church, Ballyshannon, for 11am Funeral Mass followed by burial afterwards in the Abbey Cemetery. House private this morning please. Family flowers only. Donations in lieu, if desired, to the North West Hospice c/o any family member please.



Josephine Gillespie, Killybegs

The death has taken place in England of Josephine Gillespie, Five Points, Killybegs.

Funeral Mass today, Saturday at 11am, with burial afterwards in the local cemetery.

Maisie Matthewson, Lifford

The death has taken place of Maisie Matthewson (nee Cassidy) Lurganshannagh, Ballindrait, Lifford.

Funeral leaving her home on Sunday (March 12th) at 10.15a.m. for Mass in St Patrick`s Church, Murlog at 11a.m.

Interment afterwards in the adjoining cemetery, Deeply regretted by her sorrowing daughter, sisters and family circle Sacred Heart of Jesus have mercy on her soul. Donations in lieu of flowers please to the Donegal Hospice c/o 1A Newtown Place, Strabane. Family time please from 11p.m. to 11a.m.



James Campbell, Glassagh Beg, Cloghan

The tragic death has taken place of James Campbell, Glassagh Beg, Cloghan

Funeral Mass at 12 noon today, Saturday, with burial afterwards in Fintown Cemetery.

Kitty McGonigle, Lochandubh, Kincasslagh

The death has taken place at her late residence of Kitty McGonigle, Lochandubh, Kincasslagh.

Remains will reposing at her home today, Saturday 11th March from 12 noon. Rosary both nights at 9pm.

Funeral Mass in St Marys Church, Kincasslagh on Monday 13th March at 11am. Burial afterwards in Belcruit Cemetery.

House private please from 11pm to 10am and on the morning of the funeral.



Gordon Dugan, Glebe House, Glebe Culdaff



The death has taken place at Carndonagh Community Hospital of Gordon Dugan, late of the Glebe House, Glebe Culdaff.

Remains will repose at his residence this afternoon Saturday 11th March from 2pm.

Funeral from there on Monday 13th March at 10.30am for 11 oclock service in St Buadans Church of Ireland, Culdaff, followed by burial in the adjoining burial ground.

Family time please from 11pm until 11am.

Family flowers only or if desired donations in lieu to Patients Comfort Fund Carndonagh Community Hospital c/o Liam Collins, Funeral Director or any family member.

Gerald (Gerry) Ward, Woodlands, Naas, Co. Kildare and late of Letterkenny

The death has occurred of Gerald (Gerry) Ward, Woodlands, Naas, Co. Kildare and late of Letterkenny, Co. Donegal & former manager of Kildare County Council.

Removal from his residence this Saturday to arrive at the Church of Our Lady & St. David, Naas for 12 noon Funeral Mass followed by burial in St. Corban's Cemetery, Naas. Family flowers only please. Donations, if desired, to St. Vincent De Paul. House private this morning please.



* If you wish to have a death notice included, please e-mail: editorial@donegaldemocrat.com and include a contact telephone number for verification.
Donegal TD and Fianna Fail Agriculture Spokesperson Charlie McConalogue says new research on agricultural crime reveals the extent to which this Government has abandoned farmers and people living in rural Ireland. The Agricultural Crime in Ireland report found that two-thirds of farmers have been the victims of crime.

Deputy McConalogue said, These statistics will come as no shock to anyone in the farming community or in rural Ireland. Despite Government spin to the contrary, we are all well aware of incidents in our communities whereby machinery, stock or property has been damaged or stolen. Time and again I have raised the issue of rising rural crime, but the Government simply isnt listening.

The closure of Garda stations over the past number of years has made life easier for criminals targeting rural areas. A strong Garda presence cannot be overestimated, and unfortunately many towns and villages have lost this essential resource. The much talked about smart policing simply isnt working. There have been a number of high profile attacks in rural communities over the past number of months and there is a genuine fear among rural dwellers, especially older people.

This Government has turned a blind for this problem for too long. The figures in this report are stark and reveal the extent of the problem out there. Minister Frances Fitzgerald needs to start engaging with farming and rural organisations so that she can fully understand the fear that it out there. Rural Ireland is simply not a priority for this Government, and that needs to change.
While a handful of shovel-ready projects are expected to significantly reduce the number of Dothans sewage overflows, several conservation advocacy groups want the state to adopt stronger requirements for notifying the public when an event does occur.

Several water conservation groups, including the local Choctawhatchee Riverkeeper, said Alabamas requirements for notifying the public in the event of a sewage overflow or spill are vague at best and put the public in danger when sewage trickles into public waters. The groups have called on the states Environmental Management Commission  a rulemaking body that oversees the Alabama Department of Environmental Management  to set rules that require widespread notification.

What is needed is signage at the spill location and far enough downstream to warn the public, persons who might be using the waterway and might be exposed to the contaminated water, or alternative means of notification  ideally electronic media or print media if they do (online) or perhaps a buy-in system where folks who recreate in streams, rivers and lakes can sign up to get text messages or e-mails when there is a spill  multiple measures, Choctawhatchee Riverkeeper Michael Mullen said.

The City of Dothan is operating under an Administrative Order on Consent with the Environmental Protection Agency. As part of the order, the city agreed to develop a sewer overflow response plan. The order required the plan to establish timely and effective methods and means of (a) responding to, cleaning up and/or minimizing the impact of all sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs); (b) timely reporting the location, volume, cause, impact and other pertinent information from all SSOs to the pertinent regulatory agency; and (c) notifying the potentially impacted public.

The citys 40-page plan, which was submitted to the EPA for approval in early 2013 but not approved by the EPA until last month, consists of placing public notification signs where citizens could come into contact with the sewage and possibly notifying local media if Dothan Utilities personnel determine it is necessary. The citys plan also calls for a Dothan Utilities representative to follow up with residents who report SSOs.

Alabamas administrative code requires operators to report any unpermitted discharges to ADEM within 24 hours of becoming aware of the spill and to submit a written report of the spill within five days. The City of Dothan has documented many overflows to ADEM. The most recent overflow occurred March 7.

A written release announcing the petition cited a recent major overflow in which an estimated 4 million gallons of sewage spilled in to the Black Warrior River near Tuscaloosa prior to the July 4 weekend. The release indicated the only public notification came on the sparsely-followed Facebook page of the City of Northport.

If the Commission grants the petition, it does not mean the petition will become law. It means public comment on the proposed rule will be sought, then a decision on adoption of the proposed rule would be made at a later date.
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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.
(Xinhua) 19:55, March 10, 2017

When South Korean Constitutional Court acting chief justice Lee Jung-mi read the ruling on impeachment of President Park Geun-hye, in Gwanghwamun Square, just one kilometer from the constitutional court, anti-Park protesters cheered.

They gathered in front of a temporarily set screen to watch TV media reports. A legislator was talking about the coming election of new president.

Most of them held red placards with white slogan "Impeachment is victory," "Bring Park to justice."

The southern end of the square was occupied by tents and sleep bags of anti-Park protesters. A small hall was set up for citizens to mourn the dead and the missing in a deadly sinking of a ferry off the southwestern coast of the country. Park is blamed for not properly handling this tragedy.

"There are still nine people missing, yet to return to their families," read a slogan sticking on the top of the small hall, where hundreds of victims' portrait photos hung on the wall. Several people bowed before the photos and put flowers under them.

Outside the hall, a middle-aged man carried a large board on his back, reading "South-North relation gets worse, economy and foreign relations get worse. It's time to change."

At the same time, some South Koreans cheered outside the court in downtown Seoul after hearing the impeachment ruling.

A tearful mother and her daughter were among the anti-Park protesters who held placards that read "Impeachment is Victory of Candlelight Vigil" and "No THAAD."

Park's supporters, who rallied just hundreds of meters away on the street, remained silent and burst into tears following the verdict.

Before the noon, hundreds of pro-Park demonstrators rallied in front of a crossroad just a few hundred meters away from the constitutional court. Most of them are senior citizens holding Park's pictures or waving national flags. A huge LED screen mounted on a truck displayed a live video of Park's supporter gathering somewhere else.

"Stop the impeachment, she is still our president," a women cried with tears in her face. Others kept waving national flags and raising their fists, shouting "stop the impeachment."

The LED screen was playing a man's speech saying that Park was betrayed by people around her. Suddenly, his speech was interrupted by another man, who looked very upset and said the court just upheld the motion to impeach Park.

The crowd stopped shouting slogan and waving flags for a while, as if they couldn't believe the result.

Park's supporters still believed the scandal embroiling president would have a chance.

An old woman burst into tears afther hearing the verdict, holding a picture of Park Chung-hee, the ousted president's father who was killed in 1979. A man shouted "no, you (constitutional court) shouldn't do that, it's not the end!"

Then cries were heard one and another. Some demonstrator dropped the national flags to wipe their eyes.

More began to speak about not giving up. "We will take to the street, it's not over."

About one hour later, the pro-Park demonstrators marched towards the constitutional court and clashed with anti-riot police. Two of them died during the clash, according to local media reports.

Local survey said eight out of 10 South Koreans supported the impeachment ahead of the final ruling.

The outcome of Park impeachment ruling is uncertain, but one thing is for sure: it's time to change.
(Xinhua) 21:01, March 10, 2017

Chongqing in southwest China does not produce any potassium fertilizer itself, but it will become a sales hub for it thanks to rail routes linking the city to Europe.

"In late March, the first train loaded with 500 tonnes of potassium fertilizer produced in Kazakhstan will reach Chongqing on its return from Germany," said the city's economy and information technology commission.

The city plans to import 3 million tonnes of fertilizer from Kazakhstan each year through the Chongqing-Xinjiang-Europe Railway by 2020, for domestic distribution and delivery to Japanand Southeast Asia.

"The Belt and Road Initiative creates enormous opportunities for bilateral economic and trade cooperation," said Zhang Jun, board chairman of a potassium company in Kazakhstan.

Chongqing had 420 freight trains to and from Europe last year.

The city has been one of the most active provincial-level regions to implement the China-proposed initiative aimed at building a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along ancient Silk Road trade routes.

Since 2013, the increasingly influential initiative has boosted trade and investment between China and countries along the routes and offered a solution to global economic difficulties.

China's combined imports and exports with countries along the Belt and Road topped 6.3 trillion yuan (about 912 billion U.S. dollars) in 2016, up 0.6 percent from 2015, according to China's Ministry of Commerce.

Chinese businesses helped build 56 economic and trade cooperation zones in 20 countries along the routes with a combined investment surpassing 18.5 billion dollars, generating nearly 1.1 billion dollars in tax revenue and 180,000 jobs in those countries.

For example, Chinese-operated Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone in Cambodia has attracted 102 companies from China, Japan, the United Statesand Europe.

"The economic zone served as a platform for Chinese enterprises to participate in the Belt and Road," said Zhou Haijiang, president of HoDo Group based in China's eastern Jiangsu Province, the developer of the 5-square-kilometer zone.

"Chinese enterprises went global and boosted local development in countries along the Belt and Road on a win-win basis," said Liu Zhibiao, a national political advisor and professor in economics at Nanjing University.

"The Belt and Road Initiative has become the most popular public goods and the platform for international cooperation with the brightest prospects in the world," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Wednesday on the sidelines of the annual legislative session.

More than 20 heads of state and government, over 50 leaders of international organizations, over 100 ministerial-level officials, as well as over 1,200 delegates from various countries and regions will participate in the Belt and Road Forum for international cooperation in May in Beijing.

"The Belt and Road Initiative is against narrow-minded protectionism and isolationism," said Sergei Luzyanin, director of the Far Eastern Studies Institute under the Russian Academy of Sciences. "We only had the Western European-American option of integration and economic development in the 1990s, now there is a new option from China."
Its been forever since I made an #OOTD post / #WIWTD . I think I outgrown those early times of my blogging where I have a regular outfit post even if my photos were not that good. But since I got a nice photo taken by my baby bro Sef Tiburcio during the #ForeverChuck event I might as well post this.

#ForeverChuck is the eight installment of Converse Philippine #OOTDFaceOff challenge for Philippine designers to showcase the unconventional yet fashionable way they can style an All Star Chuck Taylor Converse pair with their designer outfit.

Heres some of my favorite pieces photos taken by John Bueno of Kumagcow.com:













Ms. Philippines Universe 2017 Maxene Medina walked the runway as well not in her chucks but the famous Rhet Eala Ms.Universe gown in a different color. Love the dress.



The show showcased the All Star Chuck Taylor Spring/Summer 2017 collection.

So that is how they would pair a Chucks, here is my take.

What I wore:

Dress: A classic LBD off-the-shoulder dress SM Woman

Shoes: Converse All Star x Minisso

Neck accessories: Borrowed from my sister

Bag: Celine

Phone: Vivo V5 Plus

Shot by: Sef Tiburcio

Taken at : Shangri-la Plaza Mall

Selfie shot taken by Vivo V5 Plus the #perfectselfie fone.

Just like they said shoes are boring, wear sneakers #ForeverChuck!

How about you, how do you wear your chucks?

Stay gorgeous everyone!
Inspired by the unfailing spirit of women around the globe, the new and upgraded Downy Parfum Collection was formally launched simultaneously across Southeast Asia recently .

Now with more concentrated perfume for fabric that lasts longer than expensive fine fragrances. This innovation from consumer products company Procter & Gamble (P&G) offers long-lasting perfume for fabric that lasts longer than expensive fine fragrances, created for women who #NeverFade. The bold launch mounted an ambitious multi-country gala event across Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines, encouraging empowered women to inspire more women across the region on International Womens Day.

The regional campaign was led by the Philippines own, Ms. Universe 2015 Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach, along with other leading ladies across Southeast Asia: Malaysian actress, model, and TV host Scha Alyahya, actress and model Araya Chompoo Hargate of Thailand, and Ms. Vietnam 2012 Dang Thu Thao. Together with Downy, these ladies seek to inspire more women in Southeast Asia to #NeverFade.

Known for being confidently beautiful with a heart, Pia Wurtzbach believes that women #NeverFade if they fight and work hard in pursuit of their dreams and goals.

Never settle when you can dream bigger is a saying Ive always lived by. I tried three times for Binibining Pilipinas, and faced so many rejections, but I refused to let anyone bring me down. Looking back at those times, Im glad I persisted and refused to give up. The path has not always been easy but Ive always believed that we should work hard for our dreams and just keep on moving forward. Im proud to join Downy in their endeavor to empower more women across Southeast Asia to #NeverFade, Wurtzbach said.

Designed to match the varying personalities and characteristics of the Southeast Asian woman, the new Downy Parfum Collection features an upgraded formula of its flagship sophisticated scents: Mystique, Passion, Romance, and Fusion, as well as the new, opulently aromatic Daring scent.

All scents in the new collection have been upgraded to feature the highest-ever intensity of premium perfume oils and the best dual perfume capsules technology in Downys history in Asia, said Cedric Legoff, country marketing leader for Downy Philippines.

This new formula enhances the scent character and longevity of the fragrances to ensure long-lasting freshness which is released by simply rubbing the fabric. Together, the concentrated premium perfume oils and perfume capsules provide your clothes a long-lasting refreshing scent that lasts even longer than expensive fine fragrances, added Legoff.

The Philippine leg of the Downys #NeverFade campaign launch was graced by female personalities who joined in celebrating the story of women who have made a great impact in their own fields and remained relevant by refusing to fade away from the limelight.

Advocate for Climate Change, known TV host, and now a young mom, Bianca Gonazalez-Intal is proof that it is a choice to do your best in achieving your dreams as well as your many roles in life so you never fade .

Artist and World Food Program ambassador, KC Concepcion meanwhile embodies the never fade spirit by her grace and strength to remain true to herself despite whatever controversies she went through in the public eye. Despite being born to famous parents, KC is proud to have made her own name and stood for who she is in a business that can so easily change and control you.

The Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) meanwhile epitomizes what it means to fight for Filipinas rights since its formation in the 80s.

Louie Morante, regional brand communications for P&G Asia Fabric Care said, The Downy woman is confidently beautiful inside and out. We celebrate her never fading spirit and timeless beauty on the occasion of International Womens Day.

The new Downy Parfum Collection is now available at all leading department stores and supermarkets nationwide. Follow the conversations at www.facebook.com/DownyPhilippines or at #Downy #NeverFade.

Stay gorgeous everyone!
Mike Bishop, Fred Upton and Tim Walberg all voted to gut Medicaid. How many more Michigan Republicans will join them?

Three Michigan Republicans voted to kill Medicaid expansion this week, which covers 640,000 Michiganders and adds an estimated 30,000 jobs to the states economy.

The American Health Care Act AKA LoserCare passed out of the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee this week by party-line votes that included ayes from Michigan Republican Members of Congress Mike Bishop, Fred Upton and Tim Walberg.

Upton, Bishop and Walberg all voted for this plan that will disproportionately harm Republican voters and weaken Medicare for future and current retirees, reminding voters that their real constituency is the richest .01 percent who will get a tax break of $165,000 a year.

Democrat Debbie Dingell forced the Commerce and Energy Committee to clarify that the bill ends Medicaid expansion at around 4:30 Friday morning:

Republican governors claimed to have won a concession from Trump and Republicans in Congress by keeping those who are currently covered through the extraordinarily popular Expansion through 2020. But what they actually got was a cynical provision that allows the expansion to die quietly, as Harvard professor Benjamin Sommers explains in Washington Post.

[U]nder the GOP bill, the majority of the Medicaid expansion population under the ACA would likely become ineligible for the current level of federal funding in less than two years, he writes.

The bill accomplishes this by mandating that anyone experiencing more than a one-month gap in coverage after 2019 would no longer be eligible for the generous 90 percent federal funding the ACA provided to help states expand Medicaid to the working poor.

Sounds innocuous, but its a poison pill:

One study of Medicaid data found that the average enrollee receives Medicaid coverage for only 78 percent of the year, and this figure drops to 68 percent when focusing just on non-elderly, non-disabled adults, the main beneficiaries of the ACA expansion. Another study of national survey data found that 43 percent of adults in Medicaid had experienced a gap in coverage within the first 12 months of enrolling, and 55 percent had a gap within 23 months.

The bill not only aims to make to eliminate all the steps the ACA took to make enrolling in the program easier, it adds a new step designed to kick people off the program running eligibility checks twice a year, instead of once.

And thats not all! Theres a provision designed to drive Americas working poor into medical bankruptcy:

It also reduces the ability of states to use presumptive eligibility, which allows hospitals and other entities to temporarily enroll applicants in Medicaid before their eligibility can be verified. Finally, the bill limits retroactive Medicaid coverage to no more than a month, compared with the current practice of 90 days. This grace period is often critical for people who enroll in Medicaid during health emergencies.

Conservatives are reportedly upset that the GOPs plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act is just too generous  through, according to a Brooking estimate, it will uninsure 15 million and, according to almost everyone, drive up premiums for almost everyone, especially those older poorer Americans in rural/red areas.

They want the American Health Care Act AKA LoserCares elimination of the extraordinarily popular Medicaid Expansion to accelerate.

Well, they should be relieved that the bill as is will kill Medicaid expansion quietly and make Medicaid far less effective at keeping poor Americans from being driven into even deeper poverty.

No wonder Walberg is hiding from his constituents.

[Image by Gage Skidmore | Flickr]
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Scientists have determined that methane from a fracked well contaminated a Texas familys water supply and triggered an explosion that nearly killed four members of the family.

The familys ranch in Palo Pinto County is located only a few thousand feet away from a natural gas well.

Scientists have found that methane escaped from a poorly constructed natural gas well and leached into a Texas familys water well, causing it to explode. WFAA

In August 2014, former oil field worker Cody Murray, his father, wife and young daughter were severely burned and hospitalized from a fireball that erupted from the familys pump house.

A year later, the family filed a lawsuit against oil and gas operators EOG Resources and Fairway Resources, claiming the defendants drilling and extraction activities caused the high-level methane contamination of the Murrays water well.

At the flip of the switch, Cody heard a whooshing sound, which he instantly recognized from his work in the oil and gas industry, and instinctively picked his father up and physically threw him back and away from the entryway to the pump house, the complaint states. In that instant, a giant fireball erupted from the pump house, burning Cody and [his father], who were at the entrance to the pump house, as well as Ashley and A.M., who were approximately twenty feet away.

While the states oil and gas regulatorthe Texas Railroad Commissionhas yet to definitely prove what caused the blast, new scientific studies commissioned by the Murrays attorneys has directly linked the explosion to fracking operations.

As the Texas Tribune detailed, the studies found that methane and drilling mud chemicals had escaped from a poorly sealed Fairway gas well and traveled through underground fractures and eventually into the Murrays water supply.

The hired experts include Thomas Darrah, a geochemist at Ohio State University; Franklin Schwartz, an Ohio State University hydrologist; Zacariah Hildenbrand, chief scientific officer at Inform Environmental; and Anthony Ingraffea, a civil engineering professor at a Cornell University with expertise in fracking.

The timing is undeniable, the location is undeniable, the chemistry of the gas is undeniable, Chris Hamilton, the Murrays attorney, told news station WFAA. This is not naturally occurring gas. This is gas that came from 4 to 6-thousand feet below the ground.

Hamilton shared a video with WFAA that shows the bubbling, methane-saturated water that caused the 2014 explosion.

What you can see in the video here is just super carbonated water that is saturated with methane gas thats bubbling out of the Murrays water, he explained.

This is an explosive gas, Hamilton added. Large bubbles and pockets of this methane escaping from a water well, any sort of spark will start a fire.

Groundwater contamination is one of the biggest concerns about unconventional oil and natural gas development. While the industry maintains the safety of the process, in December the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released its highly anticipated final report identifying cases of impacts on drinking water at each stage in the hydraulic fracturing water cycle.

https://twitter.com/SierraClub/status/810499958122151936

Incidentally, the Texas Sunset Advisory Commissiona state legislative body that reviews agencieshas been highly critical of the Texas Railroad Commissions effectiveness at regulating the oil and gas industry.

As WFAA reported:

Its the 3rd such report since 2010, and is critical of Railroad Commissions effectiveness and operations. The commissions lack of a strategic approach to enforcement and inability to provide information persists. The report cites: no accurate counts of major violation, no accurate measure of violations referred for legal enforcement action and (Oil and gas) operators have a reasonable expectation they will not be penalized.'

Fairway Resources declined to provide a comment to WFAA due to the ongoing lawsuit. The Texas Railroad Commission also declined to comment citing their ongoing investigation.
(Reuters/Jayanta Shaw)Young Christian Indians rally against persecutions in 2016.

Compassion International, a major international Christian aid group that assists the impoverished, will next week cease its aid operations in India, citing the refusal of the country's government to let it accept foreign donations.

The Indian Government claims that two of its affiliates had sought to convert children, and have refused pleas to reconsider from U.S. diplomats and the organization itself, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

The chief executive of its Australian arm Compassion Australia, Tim Hanna, said the decision is saddening, and ends nearly 50 years of aid in the country.

"It's hard to comprehend that you can just say, well there's 147,000 children who are getting help and support and we're going to not allow that help and support to continue," he said. "That's hard for me in my mind to comprehend."

Colorado-based Compassion International said its partner Bethesda Charitable Endeavors had no choice but to formally end its Indian operations on March 15, ending support for 147,000 impoverished children there.

The shutdown of Compassion International comes as India, as a rising economic power with a surging spirit of nationalism, curbs the flow of foreign money to activities it deems "detrimental to the national interest," The New York Times reported.

More than 11,000 nongovernmental organizations have lost their licenses to accept foreign funds since Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party which has links to Hindu nationalist groups, took office in 2014.

Among the Western funders barred from transferring funds without permission from Indian security officials are George Soros's Open Society Foundations and the National Endowment for Democracy.

The move also comes as Christians in India face growing hostility and violence from Hindu extremists, CBN News reports noting that Open Doors has moved India to number 15 on its list of countries where it's hardest to be a Christian, up from 31 in 2013.

Compassion says that about 40 percent of the local Indian churches that it has partnered with are still working with children, just without Compassion's financial support.

Compassion partners with more than 7,000 churches in 25 countries to provide child development aid for nearly two million children.

Compassion's executives vehemently deny India's allegation that it is funding religious conversions, and say India has given them no chance to rebut the accusation.

RIGHT WING HINDU IDEOLOGICAL GROUP

Instead, they say they found themselves in shadowy back-channel negotiations with a representative of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, or R.S.S., a right-wing Hindu ideological group that is closely connected with the Bharatiya Janata Party, or B.J.P., but that has no official role in governing, said the Times.

The United States and India were at loggerheads over Compassion International the Times reported March 9.

Mark Toner, a spokesman for the State Department, said that Washington would raise the issue with India, and he urged the government there to "work transparently and cooperatively" in enforcing laws regulating foreign aid.

"Unfortunately, we've seen over the past couple of years a number of foreign-funded NGOs in India that have encountered significant challenges in continuing their operations," he said.

"These NGOs do valuable work," he added. "Certainly, these countries and governments have their own reasons for the laws they pass, but we believe it should be transparent and clear why they're shutting down these organizations."
Chinese President Xi Jinping said Friday that the "great wall of iron" to safeguard national unity, ethnic solidarity and social stability should be fortified in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks during a panel discussion with national lawmakers from Xinjiang at the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC).

Xi called for safeguarding ethnic unity, and reinforcing solidarity between the military and government, soldiers and civilians, police and the public, as well as between the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and local communities.

Xinjiang is an important "security barrier" in northwest China which holds a special strategic position and faces special issues, Xi said, adding that governing the region well is of great significance.

He stressed that maintaining stability in Xinjiang is a political responsibility, and that stability-related issues must be handled in a thorough, timely and proper manner.

He called for efforts to make long-term strategies, strengthen the foundation, and achieve lasting peace and stability in Xinjiang.

Xi urged greater efforts to protect the environment and build a beautiful Xinjiang. "Let people of all ethnic groups feel the Party's care and the warmth of the motherland," he said.

Xi called for comprehensively implementing targeted poverty alleviation policies and taking the poor areas in southern Xinjiang as the main battlefield in poverty relief.

He also stressed guiding people of different ethnic groups to enhance their sense of identity with the motherland, the Chinese nation, Chinese culture, the CPC and socialism with Chinese characteristics."

Calling Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps an important force in the region's socio-economic development, Xi said the corps' special advantages and vitality should be brought into full play.

Other Chinese leaders including Li Keqiang, Zhang Dejiang, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli, all members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, also attended separate panel discussions with NPC deputies Friday.

In a panel discussion with lawmakers from Anhui Province, Premier Li Keqiang stressed the major task of advancing supply-side structural reform, while urging government departments to shift their focus to improving oversight and serving businesses.

Related work should be accelerated to foster new growth engines to replace traditional drivers, Li said, promising equal treatment for market entities of various ownerships.

While joining lawmakers from Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, said that lawmakers should accomplish the historic mission of formulating the general provisions of the civil law to lay a solid foundation for compiling a civil code with Chinese characteristics and spirit of the time.

He called for sticking to the path of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics and stepping up building a comprehensive system of laws.

Joining a panel discussion with NPC deputies from Jilin Province, Liu Yunshan, member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, stressed preparations and publicity for the 19th CPC National Congress, which is slated for the second half of this year.

Liu urged strict implementation of all sorts of tasks to advance comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

Joining lawmakers from Gansu Province, Wang Qishan, secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, called on senior officials to play exemplary roles in spearheading the country's current drive to comprehensively build a moderately prosperous society.

He also urged the Party's disciplinary inspectors to step up self-supervision and subject themselves to supervision from within the Party, the public and the media.

In a panel discussion with NPC deputies from Fujian Province, Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli urged the province to actively take part in China's major development strategies such as the Belt and Road Initiative and push forward the supply-side structural reform.

Zhang called for efforts in revitalizing the real economy, developing advanced manufacturing and stepping up industrial optimization and upgrading.




J Street, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group, has an unusual way of showing it "is the political home for pro-Israel, pro-peace Americans."



It has called for direct negotiations with Hamas, a designated terrorist group committed to the Jewish state's destruction. It partners with aggressively anti-Israel groups which advocate an economic, political and academic boycott of Israel. And it partners with rabidly anti-Israel speakers and groups in the name of "open debate."




On February 14, in the context of the investigation regarding the Castellana Papers, police arrested a man in a Spanish town near Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The arrest is a new step in the investigation carried out by the police, following a complaint filed on June 6 by Gabinete Tributario de Orientacion Fiscal, a consultant office with address at Paseo de la Castellana, 156 (Madrid, Spain), to the Spanish National Police Corps based on the suspicion that their files had been hacked.

Asi se detuvo al presunto filtrador de Los Papeles de la Castellana

Saber mas

According to the defense, the detainee has not yet been formally accused, nor has he appeared before a judge. The National Police published a statement announcing the arrest on March 10. The statement claims that the detainee, who supposedly leaked fiscal information belonging to important Spanish businesses and wealthy people, faces up to five years in jail. The statement does not provide further details regarding the charges.

According to the edict, seen by this newspaper, a Madrid court started the judicial proceedings on October 10 in order to determine the criminal facts of a disclosure of secrets crime. A computer analysis of the complainant business office located three IP addresses that downloaded data, which led the police to a residence in a small coastal town in the Spanish province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

At 7:00 AM on February 14, the court issued the search warrant for the residence and authorized the seizure of any evidence of crime, such as laptop computers, hard drives and cell phones. The warrant also authorized changing passwords of all services and platforms used by the supposed criminals and which could be related to the facts under investigation.

At the searched residence, police found a man and his mother. The man was taken to a police station to be interrogated at 12:20 noon and he testified assisted by a public defender. According to the defense attorney he hired later, he was pressured to testify. The statement records that the public defender advised him not to testify.

In his statement, the man who says he is unemployed says that he downloaded files with Windows explorer and MozillaFTP. He used his personal laptop computer and he claims that he acquired his computer skills in a self-taught way, with internet tutorials, that he doesnt know how to program and that he can understand 20% of the source code of a HTML website.

In his statement, the man explains how he sent the files to Filtrala.org and made it clear that he was never offered any compensation for the files, that he never requested compensation because he understood that he was helping the common good.

Associated Whistleblowing Press, the platform that manages Filtrala, explains the arrest is not related to the safety of Filtralas transfer procedure, but to the way in which this person could have obtained the data that he later submitted to Filtrala, according to the police.

The polices press statement published on Friday says the hacker could download the data thanks to a configuration error in the fiscal offices server [...]. Agents analyzed the evidence from the victims computer system and then tracked the origin of the intrusion.

In June 2016, eldiario.es was the first, together with La Marea and Diagonal, to publish the investigation known as the Castellana Papers. The investigation began when a massive leak reached Filtrala. 38.598 documents revealed the ways in which very wealthy people, businesses, public officials and prestigious families hide their assets or avoid paying taxes. The documents came from a consultant office on tax matters in Paseo de la Castellana, the heart of Madrids business area.

The Castellana Papers were the first document leak regarding tax amnesties in Spain. The long list of names, which took three weeks to be broken down, included information on fiscal amnesties of at least 21 relevant people, members of the Bourbon family, businesses and even officials of the Franco's dictatorship.

After verifying the authenticity of the documents, eldiario.es, La Marea and Diagonal published the scoop that included relevant cases based on checked information, such as the decade-long existence of an offshore fortune belonging to the Borbon-Dos Sicilias family or the tax amnesty for the 113 million euros that private health businesses kept in Switzerland.

Translated by Lucia Balducci
(Global Times) 09:09, March 11, 2017

Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region has suspended approval of mining projects amid a push to prioritize ecological preservation over economic development.

At a Friday press conference expounding on the development of Tibet on the sidelines of the two sessions, Losang Gyaltsan, chairman of the standing committee of the Tibet People's Congress, said environmental protection overrides development in Tibet.

"No mining projects have been approved throughout the period under two leaderships in Tibet  No matter how profitable a project is, if it causes pollution, the government would turn it down," Losang Gyaltsan told the press on Friday, adding that no polluting enterprise has been introduced into Tibet in the past four years.

Yun Dan, head of Tibet's department of forestry, told the press conference that the protection of endangered species in Tibet has been greatly strengthened.

He noted that the number of Tibetan antelope has risen from between 50,000 to 70,000 in 1995 to over 200,000 today.

The demand for the fur of Tibetan antelope, which is used to make the luxury shahtoosh shawls, has almost driven the animal to the brink of extinction.

Fifteen National People's Congress (NPC) deputies from Tibet attended Friday's press conference. Qi Zhala, chairman of Tibet, and Guo Guo, the mayor of Lhasa, the region's capital, also attended the meeting.

Wu Yingjie, the Party chief of Tibet, said at the meeting that Tibet is open to all media outlets when a US reporter asked him whether Tibet would lift its travel restrictions on foreign press and if so, when.

Tibet is open to foreign journalists so long as they report on the autonomous region in an objective and fair manner, Wu said, adding that the region welcomes journalists to report on the good life of the local people, ethnic solidarity and religious harmony.

Meanwhile, a report released by the Tibetan government on Friday hailed social stability and religious harmony in the region, citing over 1,700 ethnic and religious activities held there in a peaceful and orderly manner, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Friday.
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(Xinhua) 09:39, March 11, 2017

China has busted the first cross-border market manipulation case under the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said Friday.

Authorities gave maximum administrative penalties to those responsible, confiscating over 1.2 billion yuan (about 173 million U.S. dollars),according to an online statement by the securities regulator.

The CSRC accused the perpetrators of repeatedly manipulating share prices including that of Zhejiang China Commodities City Group Co..

The CSRC worked closely with the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong on the case, the statement read.

The stock link scheme was launched in November 2014 to help internationalize the yuan and boost mutual stock market access between Hong Kong and Shanghai.

In a memorandum of understanding signed by the two watchdogs after the launch, they pledged to combat cross-boundary fraud through sharing of information and joint enforcement operations.
Airport Operators Working on Replacement Airlines after City Wing Demise



DOI Ports Director Ann Reynolds

Work to replace City Wing on key air routes has already got underway after the airline went in to liquidation.

Ann Reynolds the Head of Ronaldsway Airport has said that talks are underway to secure the Belfast and Glasgow routes and she hopes to have news within the next couple of weeks.

Meanwhile Chiefs at Gloucester Airport have also express their dissapointment at the news are also working to find alternative operators. Darren Lewington said that although scheduled services only account for 1% of their traffic, they'd like to restore the links between Gloucester and both Jersey and the Isle of Man.
"Avengers: Infinity War" may have a few surprises up its sleeves than what most people think. After the revelation that the Infinity Stones are already at hand, there may still be other factors that will shock the casual Marvel fan.

As some may be aware in how "Captain America: Civil War" ended, the next step is simply identifying who else will take the mantle of Steve Rogers. If the cinematic universe is to follow the graphic novel's approach, then a logical, fitting and accurate depiction would be that of Sebastian Stan's James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes, also known as the Winter Soldier. As per the official Marvel site, the winter Soldier could take the Captain America title in "Avengers: Infinity War," post the speculation that Steve Rogers will die in the upcoming movie. Not only is it expected to make sense, being Rogers' best friend and a high-caliber fighter as well as it would be loyal to the source material of the Marvel universe.

As this is yet to be confirmed, one piece of fact to hold on to is casting Terry Notary as a sub-villain in "Avengers: Infinity War." It may be hard for some to absorb who the actor is, but he has given his talents on more than one occasion in the past, one being a motion capture artist for "Kong: Skull Island," as per The Hollywood Reporter. Another is doing the same work for the "Planet of the Apes" franchise, as well as "Avatar," "Warcraft" and "The Hobbit." It is still unsure as to who this villain will be, as Notary said, "Marvel could sever my head off."

"Avengers: Infinity War" marks itself as the third movie in the franchise. It will pit together the past factions of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the titular Avengers and as recently announced, the Guardians of the Galaxy. Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is also expected to partake in the epic battle, which is set to hit theaters on May 4, 2018. Keep posted for more news and updates.
Samsung Electronics is slated to unveil flagship handsets and middle range device. As a matter of fact, the Samsung Galaxy S8, S8 Plus and J7 already received FCC (Federal Communications Commission) which somewhat indicate that the devices' launch is forthcoming.

According to ValueWalk, the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus have received certification from FCC. Aside from that, it was anticipated that the South Korean tech giant will announce these flagship handsets during an Unpacked event in New York City on March 29.

Based on the FCC documents, the Samsung Galaxy S8 is registered in three different variations carrying model numbers such as SM-G950U, SM-G950U1 and SM-G950W. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus also has three versions with model numbers namely; SM-G955U, SM-G955U1 and SM-G955W.

When it comes with the specs, the FCC filing also revealed that the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Samsung galaxy S8 Plus will be having wireless charging technology. These handsets are also believed to be equipped with 4 GB of RAM and it might be engineered with either Exynos 8895 or Snapdragon 835 chipset depending on the market it will be sold. Furthermore, it was hinted that the consumers in the US are estimated to obtain the Snapdragon variant.

On the middle range side, MobiPicker has learned that the Samsung Galaxy J7 2017 also obtained FCC certification. A reliable tipster named Evan Blass also revealed that the smartphone is expected to be unveiled by Verizon Wireless as Samsung Galaxy J7 V in the United States on April 10. Meanwhile, it is expected to be released as Galaxy J7 Sky Pro by Tracfone.

As for the specs, GFXBench revealed that the Samsung Galaxy J7 2017 might sport a 5.5-inch HD display with 1,280720 pixel resolution. This handset is predicted to be armed by Exynos 7870 processor clocked at 1.5 GHz that will be coupled with ARM Mali-T830 GPU. The Galaxy J7 2017 will arrive pre-installed with Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box.

The Samsung Galaxy J7 2017 is expected to house an 8 MP rear-facing camera and 5 MP front-facing snapper. This device from Samsung is will reportedly feature a 16 GB of internal storage which can be further expanded through micro-SD card.

With the Samsung Galaxy S8, S8 Plus and J7 2017 already obtained FCC certification it really appears that these devices' release is just around the corner. Nevertheless, the above-mentioned specs of these smartphones are just based on speculations, thus it is advised to be taken with skepticism.
A portion of Android smartphone users didn't shift to Android 7.0 Nougat, but still; Google is expected to deliver the Android 8. As a matter of fact, it was anticipated that the Google Pixel 2 will be the first handset to arrive pre-installed with the upcoming software from the biggest search engine company.

According to BGR, the Android 8 will bring three exciting features to Android device owners. The first in line is called the Copy Less which will reportedly give the Android phone users the capability to spontaneously distinguish the important information the users would want to copy from a source when sending a message or even an email. With this feature, the users won't ever be copying and pasting unrelated information.

Another speculated feature that the Android 8 will deliver is somewhat straight from Apple's playbook. This was the capability to tap on an address in a note and then Google Maps will automatically open and give the users direction to that location. This functionality is already present on iOS devices for years and it appears that Google will have this feature too. Unluckily, it was not yet affirmed if the Google Maps links would work on third-party messaging applications.

Last but not the least; it was rumored that the finger gestures might be incorporated in Android 8. One of the gesture commands would let the owner of Android devices draw the letter "C" on their screen to open the contacts. Nonetheless, it was also stated that the gestures could be postponed or scrapped altogether so it was advised to be taken with a grain of salt.

In a separate report, iTWire has learned that the Google Pixel 2 will be a perfect contender to arrive pre-installed with Android 8. It can be remembered that the first Pixel smartphone was announced sporting Android 7.0 Nougat pre-installed although LG G6 managed to be launched first with the said firmware version.

As of this moment, Google hasn't uttered any word about the Android 8 but based on these features it seems that Android smartphone owners could expect a revamped OS from the biggest search engine company. Moreover, it is advised to keep an eye for further announcements so stay tuned.
Microsoft Surface Phone is reported to be taking a backseat in favor of a new smartphone. Another Windows 10 mobile device is expected to be launched before 2017 ends.

Although the Microsoft Surface Phone does not officially exist yet, smartphone users are already hyped with its awesome specs and features. However, Windows Report recently revealed that the most coveted phone in the portfolio of the tech giant will not be released this year.

At the Mobile World congress 2017 held in Barcelona, Microsoft did not make any announcement regarding the Surface Phone. The new smartphone is expected to cost from $699 up to $1,100. It will three variants powered by Snapdragon 835 CPU with a 5.7-inch screen display according to a report by Trusted Reviews.

Some believe that the postponement of the release date of Microsoft Surface Phone is purely a company strategy. Looking at the business outcomes of CEO Satya Nadella in the past, they have always produced good results. Also, there is still good news for those who are disappointed with the recent development of Microsoft Surface Phone. Another Windows 10 mobile device is expected to be launched this year with a PC-like feature.

Nadella also said that the company is working on an ultimate mobile device. Some would like to believe that it is a confirmation of the Microsoft Surface Phone.

Though Microsoft is struggling to take a meaningful market share from Apple and Google, Nadella said that they will continue to be in the phone industry. They want their smartphones not to be defined by the market leaders, "but by what it is that we can uniquely do in what is the most ultimate mobile device." This could be a clue of what fans can expect from the Surface Phone when it hits the market.
The "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 premiere has been pushed back and many suggest that other anime series are to be blamed. Nevertheless, a positive news has arrived since the much-anticipated anime is reportedly already in the works and will be launched after "One Punch Man" Season 2 returns.

According to Comic Book, the patrons who are looking forward to "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 may no longer have to wait since it is positively on its way. As a matter of fact, Viz Media's senior director of sales and marketing Kevin Hamric has stated that "One Punch Man" Season 2 will be released and the "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 will arrive shortly after.

This confirmation from Hamric is somewhat good news for the avid viewers who are waiting for the "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 since they have agonized for months without any detail when the next season will arrive. The "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 has been teased in numerous times and it already came to the point that it was rumored that it will not debut.

It can be remembered that way back in 2015, Funimation has hinted that the "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 was scheduled to premiere last year. Nevertheless, the fans only received a new mobile game afterward but their favorite anime was a no show.

In contrary, Oppstrend reported that Hamric's statements have most probably been misunderstood. This was because the executive did not even reveal an exact release date for the "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3. It was also mentioned that the fans may have come up to a wrong conclusion that "Tokyo Ghoul's" upcoming chapter would be counted in the company's summer releases.

It was also noted that Viz Media itself has disproved these rumors. In fact, the company said that Hamric's announcements may have been miscalculated and that the "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 is, in fact, not yet planned to be premiered.

With this, it seems that the said interview with Hamric created some sort of confusion to the avid audiences waiting for the "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 to debut. But then, it is hoped that concrete details will soon arise.
The Star Wars franchise has been known to give difficult time to its actors in terms of dialogues. The outlandish dialogues of the sci-fi movie were not easy for many and now John Boyega, who plays Finn in the eighth installment i.e. "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," has vented out his frustration about the same on social media.

John Boyega, who is playing Finn in the upcoming "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," recently shared the trouble he experienced while delivering his tricky dialogues in the movie, Express has learned. The actor shared a picture on Instagram that shows him looking at a framed illustration. The illustration shows a mighty frustrated Finn, below which is written "BIO-HEXACRYPT."

Boyega has captioned the post saying that it is a gift from Rian C Johnson (who is the writer and director of "Star Wars: The Last Jedi"). He also wrote that he was expressing his frustration with the most complex Star Wars lingo. Interestingly, the post has sparked off speculation among fans and they are trying to decrypt the quirky word Boyega shared on Instagram.

Meanwhile, this is not the first time that a Star Wars actor has vent out their frustration with the difficult dialogues. According to Yahoo, Harrison Ford, who plays Han Sloo, once told director George Lucas that he could type the words but he could not say it for sure. The late Carrie Fisher aka Princess Leia, also revealed that one of her dialogues was her least favorite and she hated it so much that it motivated her to become a writer.

Mark Hamill too had his share of woes and one Luke Skywalker speech gave him a damn tough time. He found it preposterous to the core and pretty absurd. He even asked George as to who talked like that. Well, it would be interesting to watch how "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" characters mouth their outlandish dialogues.

"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" arrives in theaters on Dec. 15.
Ever wondered what an ESRF scientists or engineers life looks like? Are they all day working on their next Eureka moment or do they spend long hours in front of the computer? Do they have a sense of fulfilment? And does being a woman make any difference? The International Womens Day is celebrated this week, so we have followed four women on their day-to-day routine to give a flavour of their lives.

Morning

Her desk is still looking bare. After all, she only started her post-doctoral contract two months ago. She is hired by the Institut national de la sante et de la recherche medicale (INSERM), but based at the ESRF. A couple of group pictures of former colleagues from her PhD hang on the wall. This morning, she is glued to her computer, ordering nanoparticles from a US provider. They manufacture them much quicker than we would do because they are specialised in it, so we also consider to buy dedicated forms of nanoparticles, she says.

Nanoparticles are at the core of Caroline Bissardons research. Her brand new post-doctoral position will give her the opportunity to explore the role of selenium nanoparticles to dampen the metastatic potential of aggressive cancers. Several research studies have exposed that selenium, especially in its nanoparticle form, can be very interesting for cancer therapy. However, very little is known about the mechanism by which selenium nanoparticles exert their anti-metastatic activity. Among others, synchrotron X-ray spectroscopic methods such as X-ray fluorescence nanoimaging and X-ray absorption spectroscopy, will help us to obtain detailed quantitative information on the intracellular distribution of Se-NPs and on their chemical form to unveil targeted intracellular compartmentalization and biotransformation of selenium nanoparticles in cancer cells. We'll try to do this in depth studies during the next two years, explains Caroline.

Caroline Bissardon (right) with Sylvain Bohic, her supervisor.

Next on the cards for today is sending off the experiment proposal for the next round. Writing proposals is not a trivial task and it has taken a couple of days to finalise it with her boss, Sylvain Bohic, also based at the ESRF, and Inserm scientist at laboratory EA 7442 Recherche Medicale et Rayonnement Synchrotron from the University Grenoble Alpes. Fingers crossed that well get beamtime, she says.

Midmorning

She heads to the lab on ID17, where a colleague, PhD student Solveig Reymond, is showing her the cell culture procedures. Caroline doesnt mind having to learn new things, on the contrary, she graciously embraces any opportunity to do so. She says she is lucky to have been able to change direction several times (she studied astrophysics, then went on to do a masters in theoretical medical physics and then a PhD on medical geochemistry). She stresses, however, that you need to seize the opportunities that allow you to find your way, where you want to be. I adapt very easily, I am really motivated to learn and I work hard, she says.

In the lab, with Solveig Reymond (left).

Hard work is what led her to be one of the recipients of the LOreal UNESCO Women in Science awards, which recognise the work of 17 PhD students and 13 Post-docs in France as Generation of young researchers, out of 1032 of applicants. Carolines PhD, on the role of selenium in cartilage, was a brave one: hardly any papers, a marriage of two disciplines (geochemistry and medicine) very rarely combined and the risk of not finding enough results for a PhD. Despite the challenges, she pulled it off, and the award is the proof in the pudding. My thesis will always be THE PROJECT, in capitals, that will keep me enthusiastic for many more years because there are still questions that remain unanswered, she says.

The LOreal UNESCO Women in Science award has given Caroline and her work more visibility. She thinks that this kind of acknowledgment to women scientists is a necessity. There is still the idea that women and science is a weird combination, and there is still a supremacy of men in science and we need to change that. Part of the work she will do with LOreal UNESCO is to visit different secondary schools and demistify science careers. The message is that students can do whatever they want, and that science is as valid an option as any other. I was not really enthusiastic over maths in secondary school: I was stressed and my teacher wasnt very inspiring. Yet I was great at quantum mechanics later in uni, because I felt more liberated and chilled than in school. Also, during my masters one of my professors told me I wouldnt succeed but I decide to pursue. You dont need to excel in a subject in school to be outstanding later, you dont need others telling you what you can or cannot do, just choose what you like and go for it. She quotes Albert Schweitzer: Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.

Lunch

She eats with her colleagues from the INSERM in a coffee room near her office. She thinks it is important to have a break for lunch, to chill out and strengthen relations within the team. She claims the fact she likes to exchange with colleagues also made her move from a more desk-bound job like a job in theoretical physics, to becoming an experimental researcher.

Afternoon

She has a Skype teleconference with Laurent Charlet, her former thesis director, who works at the Institut de la Terre (ISTerre) in the Universite Grenoble Alpes. Carolines PhD has also been the starting point for the creation of the French Chapter of the International Medical Geology Association (IMGA, http://www.medicalgeology.org/), which is keeping Caroline and Laurent Charlet very busy. We realised there is only an international association but not at a national level. We think it is important to try to create a French community to exchange views, expertise and techniques on subjects that are susceptible to be important in medicine and geology, she says.

Caroline Bissardon and Sylvain Bohic start a skype session with Laurent Charlet.

Evening

When Caroline leaves the ESRF, she religiously goes to the gym every other day, then heads home: an appartment shared with two other flatmates. She likes to spend time in the kitchen concocting her own recipes before reading. On her bedside table, a combination of books: from the classics like Balzac, to the new journalism of Capote or science-related works. Eclectic, just like her.

Text and photos by Montserrat Capellas Espuny
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Get the latest on all the biggest court and crime news in Essex direct from our expert court reporter

A man who downloaded pornographic photos and videos of children onto his wife's laptop has been escaped jail but may be made to sit lie detector tests to prevent re-offending.

John Holman, of Harlow, was sentenced after pleading guilty to possession of indecent images of children involving penetrative sexual activity, non-penetrative sexual activity, and possession of extreme pornography, at Chelmsford Crown Court on Friday (March 10).

In April 2016, Essex Police conducted a search at 63-year-old Holman's home, after receiving information that indecent images had been downloaded or viewed at his address.

A purple laptop, belonging to the defendant's wife, was seized by officers and was found to contain seven movies from Category A, the highest level of child pornography, as well 15 extreme pornographic images and a still image from Category B.

Several graphic search terms relating to children were also found on the computer.

Outlining the case, prosecutor Allan Compton described how Holman made a full confession to downloading and storing the images when confronted with the evidence.

Mr Compton said: "He said he had been viewing images of children for about 10 years, but not very often.

"He said that he'd seen all categories of images but wasn't sexually attracted to children, or that he used the images to masturbate to.

"It would appear that the number of images recovered didn't represent the level of child pornography viewed by the defendant over the years."

Holman revealed to officers during his interview that he had been using a specialised computer program to access the indecent images.

Speaking in mitigation, defence counsel Joseph Bird told the court that Holman described himself as "a bloody idiot" and "a silly fool".

Mr Bird said: "His being caught and having to deal with this publicly means this is not going to happen again.

"He wasn't doing this on a habitual basis, it was an irregular occurrence. His wife stands by him and is fully aware of what has happened.

"He deleted images as soon as he had viewed them. He understands these are real children in these images, he has well understood that."

The court was also informed that Holman was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer.

In relation to the Category A images, Judge Emma Peters said: "I have no desire to sully the atmosphere of the court by describing in detail what these movies showed.

"It is vile material that will affect them for the rest of their lives. You should hang your head in shame in ruining children's lives."

Despite representations from defence counsel to save the laptop, which Mrs Holman had been given by the British Legion in recognition for 23 years of service, Judge Peters ordered its destruction.

Judge Peters said: "You've been married for 43 years. You are a very lucky man to have such a loyal woman standing by you.

"The extreme pornography and the other images are also serious matters. You yourself admitted you have used these images for many years. People must be deterred from this kind of offending."

Holman was sentenced to a year imprisonment, suspended for two years, and 40 hours of rehabilitation activity for possession of the Category A images, and to six months imprisonment suspended two years for the extreme pornography and the Category B images, to run concurrently.

In addition, Holman will be on the Sex Offender's Register, as well as being subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), for 10 years, and was ordered to pay 365 in costs.

However, a further hearing will be made in the coming weeks to determine whether Holman's SHPO will have the additional requirement of a polygraph test, which could be the first requirement of its kind in the region.

Essex Police, following the lead from forces in the North of England, have requested that Holman be subject to lie detector tests as part of the order, to see whether he has complied with its terms.

Commenting on the matter, Judge Peters said: "Those who watch Jeremy Kyle know that they're not always as conclusive as some say."
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (L, front) and Cambodian ambassador to China Khek Caimealy Sysoda (R, front) attend the launch ceremony of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) China Secretariat in Beijing, capital of China, March 10, 2017.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday lauded the efficiency of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) mechanism, calling on the six LMC countries to build a community of shared future.

Wang made the remarks at the launch ceremony of the LMC China Secretariat in Beijing.

The LMC members are China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. The six countries along the Mekong River (the Chinese stretch of which is called the Lancang River) launched the LMC mechanism in 2015 and convened the first Leaders' Meeting in March 2016.

The LMC is a sub-regional cooperation mechanism serving the common needs of the six countries, and it is an important part of China's overall cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said Wang.

The project-based LMC has emphasized efficiency and practical results, said Wang.

In less than a year, the LMC has made encouraging progress, he said.

As of November 2016, a leaders' meeting, foreign ministers' meeting and three senior officials' meetings had been held.

The meeting confirmed the "3+5" mechanism of cooperation, referring to the three cooperation pillars -- political and security issues, economic and sustainable development, and cultural and people-to-people exchanges -- and the five key priority areas of connectivity, production capacity, cross-border economic cooperation, water resources, and agriculture and poverty reduction, according to Wang.

Remarkable results have been achieved in implementing all 45 early harvest projects and establishing joint working groups on key priority areas, he added.

He said the establishment of the LMC China Secretariat again demonstrated China's determination to advance cooperation with the other five LMC nations.

China will speed up the establishment of joint working groups on key priority areas, try to conclude all 45 early harvest projects within the year and create an LMC five-year action plan to prepare for the third LMC foreign ministers' meeting and the second LMC Leaders' Meeting, said Wang.

He said the goal of the LMC is to create an LMC cooperation corridor and forge a community of shared future.
Written by ACM











*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- The Decisions taken Today by CoE's Committee of Ministers on the Supervision of ECHR Judgements' execution, clearly Reveal that the Turkish Government still persists to show Contempt of Court, Threatening to provoke a Scandalous Crisis of the PanEuropean Human Rights' Protection Mechanism, by Refusing to Comply, even when a Tragicaly Growing List of Victims of Violations who Die, vainly Waiting for Justice to be done, was just Revealed in Strasbourg, After Decades since Ankara has been repeatedly Condemned for "continuing" Violations of Greek Cypriot Refuges/Internarly Displaced Persons' Human Rights to access their Family Homes and/or Private Properties, Return Back to their Ancestral Land in elementary conditions of Dignity and Safety, according to a well-established Case-Law of the PanEuropean Court, as well as UNO's relevant Principles, (earlier Codified on the basis of a Report drafted by Professor PIneiro, at nearby Geneva : Comp. Pineiro's replies to "Eurofora" co-Founder's Questions, published earlier at "TCWeekly"+).



Recent Hopes to at least advance decisively towards an overall Political Compromise for a Comprehensive and Sustainable Solution of the Long-Standing "Cyprus Issue" under UNO's auspices, which might have Helped to Alleviate a bit those Persisting Massive Violations of Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDP's Human Rights, by Agreeing how to ReUnify the Only CoE and EU Member Country which still remains de facto Divided since a 1974 Turkish Military Invasion and Occupation of the Northern Part of that GeoPoliticaly Strategic Island, appeared Dashed and/or Uncertain since Early January 2017, when Turkey itself, joined, in a Multilateral Political Conference at nearby Geneva, beyond Cyprus, also the UK and Greece, (i.e. the Former "Guarantors" of a Post-Colonialist 1960 Deal which gave Birth to an initial Cyprus' Constitution, as an Independent, but Bi-Communal State, shared between 72% of Greek Cypriots and 18% or Turkish Cypiots then, soon fallen into a spiralling series of Blockades, Tension and Conflicts, notoriously Fueled and Exploited by those who secretly wanted to provoke and Impose a Partition of the Island, strongly Rejected by UNO's Security Council Resolutions) :

Ankara's Government, indeed, notoriously and explicitly Refused from the outset to Withdraw its Military from Cyprus, and to let a ReUnified Island find its own ways to Defend the Security of all its Citizens, (after the 2004 EU Accession of the Country, now under an EU umbrella, as well as through UN SC supervision, etc), withOut any Unilateral Foreign Military Interference in the Future, even if this had been Clearly Declared, already a quite Long Time before, as a Key Aim of that Conference.



Since then, a rather Good Ambiance, which had been Previously Created between Cyprus' President Nicos Anastasiades, and the Leader of the Turkish Cypriot Community, Mustafa Akinci, (thanks also to UN SG's Envoy, Espen Barth Eide, UNFICYP's Head Elizabeth Spehar, as well as of Negotiators teams' Chiefs, Experienced Ambassador and former EU Minister Andreas Mavroyannis with former "MP" and Foreign Representative Ozdil Nami, etc), suddenly Started to Fade Away, until it Risked to Vanish, under a Growing Series of Real Issues (such as, f.ex. in Addition to Ankara's Stuborn Insistence for its Foreign Occupation Troops to remain at the Island and its Military Intervention Claims to be Eternalized, also its sudden Claim for 80 Millions of Turks to get the Same Rights as EU Citizens inside Cyprus, in case of Solution : A Demand considered as UnAcceptable by mainstream EU Officials, Comp. f.ex., among many others, also : ...), and various Pretexts, (the Latter being merely ... a Calender of Public Holidays, adopted, after an Amendment by a Small Party, at Cyprus' Parliament, which is independent from the Presidency, as in the USA), etc.



So that, suddenly, the Turkish Cypriot Community Leader, Akinci, recently Refused even to Participate in the Bi-Communal Peace Talks organized these Yeas under UNO's auspices, and prospects for a Decisive Breakthrough towards a Political Solution, started, more recently, to Disappear, obviously Threatening a Stalemate.



CoE's Senior Officials, both from its Inter-Governemental sector and from the ECHR itself, speaking Earlier to "Eurofora", already since December 2015 in Strasbourg, had Warned, in Various but Converging ways, that the PanEuropean Organisation for Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law, would rather Wait to See how those Top Political Talks might evolve, but if they are Threatened to be Blocked and/or to go down a slipery slope seriously Opposed to Human Rights, then, Decisive Action would be taken, by Strasbourg's Organization, at least for an elementary Respect of ECHR's Judgements, (to which all 47 CoE's Member States have officially Committee to abide).



Nowadays, Turkey has, indeed, done Both : Block UNO sponsored Talks for an overall Political Solution of Cyprus' issue, (Comp. Supra), and Persist into Refusing to Comply with ECHR's Judgements which have Condemned Ankara for continuing Mass Violations of Human Rights in Cyprus :



This last Fact was clearly established anew this Week in Strasbourg, when CoE's Committee of Ministers examined, during its Spring 2017 Human Rights' Session, 3 Kinds of Cases, concerning Individual Applications by Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs, and Families of "Missing" Persons who have faced Enforced Disappearances since the Turkish Military Invasion and Occupation after 1974 until now, as well as the "Inter-State" affair "Cyprus v. Turkey", which extends over almost All various Human Rights' aspects of the Cyprus issue.



In all these Cases, Turkey not only didn't Comply yet with ECHR's ruling, Continuing to Massively Violate core Human Rights in Cyprus, but it Even Persisted to Refuse Paying the "Just Satisfaction" that EuroJudges have fixed for the Damages already provoked to the detriment of the Victims.



- So that CoE's Committee of Ministers, responsible for "Supervising" ECHR Judgements' Execution by Member States, had, once again, to clearly "Call on Turkey" to, at least, "Abide by its ... Obligation to Pay the Just Satisfaction awarded by the European Court" to the Victims.

Something which should now be done "WthOut Further Delay", while also being an "UnConditional" obligation. This goes Both on several Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs' and "Missing" Persons' Individual Cases, as well as in the "Cyprus v. Turkey" InterState case, which extends on All Massive Violations still Continuing in Cyprus.



+ Moreover, since Turkey had already Failed, several Times in the Past, to Fullfil its Obligations in this regard, COE's Committee of Ministers notes that such a Call is launched anew Nowadays by "Reiterating" its Previous Appeals, after Several such Failures by Turkey, Found and Denounced during its Previous sessions. In Addition, on the Inter-State case, which concerns Manifold Violations and ECHR's Judgement is Older (2001), CoE's Decision, Today, also "Insists Again" on that key point.



However, among 37 Groups of Cases examined this Week by CoE's Committee of Ministers, where ECHR Judgements are still Pending for Execution, throughout various among the PanEuropean Organisation's 47 Member States, it's ...Only on Human Rights Violations by Turkey committed in Cyprus, that Victims' Applications, already lodged as Early as Since 1999 or Even 1990 etc., (i.e. 18 or Even 27 Years Before !), have Not Yet Resulted at least in a Payment of a "Just Satisfaction" awarded by the European Court, as CoE's Official Documents Reveal Now :



Only in a Few Other, ordinary Cases concerning f.ex. conditions of Detention in Bulgaria and/or Russia, against which Applications had been Lodged on 1998-1999, remain some affairs still pending for execution, (and there, both steps for implementation have been taken, and just satisfaction apparently paid, whenever relevant, Contrary to what Turkey did on those Cyprus' affairs).



But Not even One Other case where Victims' Applications had been lodged already as Early as since 1990, i.e. 27 Years Before, without Any Concrete Result for the Implementation of ECHR Judgements by the State found Responsible for Human Rights Violations, as it's Unfortunately happening Only concerning Violations of Greek Cypriots' Rights by Turkey, particularly in the very Serious cases of the "Inter-State" Affair of "Cyprus v. Turkey", (which Includes also vases of Refugees/IDPs, etc), and for the Tragic Issue of "Missing" People, (where even Unlawful Detention, Torture and Murder seem to have occured at several occasions, amog those ECHR Judgements still Pending for Execution at CoE's Committee of Ministers Nowadays !



During all this Record - High, obviously Too Long Period of Time, that Victims are still Waiting for Jutice to be done, CoE's Committee of Ministers has Vainly Multipled various kinds of Toothless "Calls", or "Resolutions", "Letters", etc., "Urging" Turkey to Comply with ECHR's Judgements, at least partly, (i.e., f.ex., by Paying a "Just Satisfaction" awarded to the Victims or their Families by EuroJudges, even if Ankara's Agents might, eventualy, still Persist to Commit a lot of other Similar Violations in Many Other Cases of the Same Kind against Tens, Hundrends, Thousands, or even Hundreds of Thousands of Greek Cypriots seriously Affected by manifold Consequences of the Continuing Turkish Military Invasion/Occupation all these Years-long), as also other CoE's Official Data Revealed recently : Comp., f.ex.: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/coemazochismfacingturkishcontemptofechrjudgmentsoncyprusrefugeesmissingpersons.html ). With No Results...

>>> And Now, this Spring 2017 CoE Committee of Ministers' Human Rights Session (7-10 March 2017) Revealed that Even a Tragicaly Growing Number of Victims of Turkey's massive Violations of Human Rights, are ...Dying by Old Age, while Vainly Waiting, all this Time, for ECHR Judgements to be, at last, Implemented : A Dramatic Phenomenon, which has Recently Started to Reach Worrying Proportions, as a Letter from the Experienced Lawyer of a Group of Greek Cypriot Refugees/Displaced persons, Achileas Demetriades :



- Indeed, another Greek Cypriot Refugee (among those whose Human Rights were found Violated by Turkey, according to ECHR's Judgements) has just "Passed Away", and his "Funeral" recently took place, Added to the previous Deaths of 4 More such Victims of Turkey's Continuing Violations of many Thousands of Refugees/IDPs since the 1974 Military Invasion and Occupation of the Northern Part of the Island, despite ECHR's Rulings, Demetriades denounced.



Already, several Years Ago, former ECHR President Luzius Wildhaber, from Switzerland, speaking to "Eurofora" during a Press Conference at the CoE, had offered his "Sincere Excuses" for the Fact that a 1st Greek Cypriot Refugee/IDP, (an Old Lady who had Lodged an Application to Strasbourg's Court against Turkey seeking Access to her Family Home, from which she had to Flee after the 1974 Turkish Invasion and Occupation, being Still Hindered by that Occupation Regime to Return Back to her Ancestral Land, and/or to Access her Private Property), had been the 1st, then, to Die, while Vainly Waiting, then, for EuroJudges to issue a Final Judgement in her case : - "This is Not Normal, and it Won't Happen again !", President Wildhaber had Promised.



The Latest concrete Example is that of Appliquant Iordanis Iordanou, who had lodged a Legal Complaint to ECHR as early as since 1998, and Won his case with a Judgemet published in Strasbourg on 2010, but Turkey hasn't yet, neither Restituted the Refugee/IDP's Usurpated Belongings, Nor at least Payed the "Just Satisfaction" awarded by the European Court to the Victim for that Continuing Deprivation of his family property, not even 20 Years After that Application : - The Victim "Passed Away on ...February 1 February 2017, ... and his (was) on Saturday, 4 February 2O17", anounced his Lawyer, Achileas Demetriades, in his Letter to CoE's Officials competent on ECHR Judgements' Execution issues. The Deceased leaves a Wife, 3 Children and a Sibling, from that Family of Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs.





(Funeral Notice for a Greek Cypriot Refugee/IDP who Died on 2017, after vainly Waiting for ECHR Judgements in his case to be executed by Turkey)



- "He joins" 3 Other recently Deceased Appliquants to ECHR, Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs, "the late Demades, Saveriades and Christofides, whose ... Judgements, Despite, their Filing more than 26 Years Ago, are still Ignored by" the Turkish Government, their Lawyer observed.



- In this regard, he Reminded a "Prophetic" Letter, that one of those, Now Deceased Victims of Human Rights' Violations, had send, already as Early as since 1995, to the then Director of CoE's Commission on Human Rights, (and Future CoE's Deputy Secretary General), Christian Kruger, (currently a Lawyer still practising in Strasbourg) :



- "... If Human Rights are meant for Living People, there is a good chance that Many of us will Not make it to Experience the practical Restoration of the Human Rights we were Deprived of since 1974" (Turkish Military Invasion and Occupation). Indeed, already at that Time (1995), "Many of my Friends Passed Away in any event. .. ", Demades had Warned, (Long Before he Dies, also himself, vainly Waiting for a famous ECHR Judgement issued in his case, which has clearly Condemned Turkey, to at least Start to be Applied by Ankara's Authorities, which, on the Contrary, still Refuse to Abide with ECHR Judgements in such cases, as Today's Decisions taken by CoE's Committee of Ministers again prove).



=> Therefore, Nowadays, after so Many Recent Deaths of Refugees/IDPs vainly Waiting, during so Long Periods of Time, for Turkey to Implement ECHR's Judgements, (Comp. SUpra), that Key Lawyer (who had obtained the 1st in History ECHR Judgement in favor of a Refugee/IDP in Cyprus, Mrs Tina Loizidou, back on 1994, Opening a much-Hoped Horizon for most Refugees throughout Europe and around the World, which has been Used also by UNO's Human Rights' Council at Nearby Geneva, the Inter-American Court, etc), urged CoE's Committee of Ministers to Trigger a procedure based on Article 3 of CoE's Statute, about the PanEuropean Organisation Member States' Obligation to abide by ECHR's Judgements, against Turkey's persisting Refusal to respect them, in these cases too.

- - In particular, the Victims' Lawyer invited the competent CoE's body to officialy "Declare that "Turkey has Seriously Violated Article 3 of the Statute of the Council of Europe", (Comp. Supra).



- The Head of CoE's Directorate for ECHR Judgements' Execution, Mrs Genevieve Mayer, reportedly Replied recently to the Victims' Lawyers that "the Issue is Attentively Followed by (CoE's) Secretary General (Thornbjorn Jagland) himself, and that the Strasbourg Organisation's Committee of Minsters "has Firmly and Consistently Insisted" on Turkey's "UnConditional Obligation to Pay the Just Satisfaction" Awarded by ECHR's Judgements.



- Meanwhile, apparently in Despair, Some among those Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs who had clearly Won their cases at the ECHR, but saw its Judgements remain UnImplemented by Turkey for so Long, have Offered to "Withdraw their Applications" (i.e., practicaly : Stop Asking for Restitution of their Family Homes/Private Properties, without Prejudice and Reserving their Rights), "If" Turkey, at least, "paid the Just Satisfaction awarded" by the ECHR.



But, the Final Decisions of CoE's Committee of Ministers published Today, as already Cited Above, clearly indicate that, in fact, Turkey now Refused even that Compromise.



=> Expressing, Afterwards, "Deep Concerns" for "the Future of Human Rights in Europe, due of such Failures ... to Execute Final Judgements of the ECHR", another Lawyer of Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs, Professor Andreas Orphanides, also urged CoE's Committee of Ministers "to Take more Drastic and Effective Measures on Turkey".



>>> Obviously, No Mechanism for Human Rights Protection might be considererd as Reliable, nor Efficient at all, if it is practicaly Blocked by a Recalcitrant State during More than 27 Years of Legal Procedures, (Comp. Facts cited Supra), until the Victims of Serious Violations start to Tragicaly Die, passing away one after the other, after all this Time Wasted without Result, withOut having Started to get not even a part of due Justice !....



-------------------------------------------------------



- An Experienced CoE Senior Official on Human Rights, speaking to "Eurofora" under condition of Anonymity, pointed, However, to the Fact that CoE's Committee of Ministers has Just Decided this week in Strasbourg to Postpone all these 3 Groups of Cases mentioned above, for the Immediately Following, Next Human Rights Session of June 2017, (instead of Postponing consideration for a Much Longer Period of Time, as it's often done routinely). He also Observed that the Forthcoming, Next CoE Presidency by the Czech Republic, and particularly, the Chairmanship of the Human Rights' Sessions "by Denmark", (the Following CoE President, soon vice-President), practicaly Starting, precisely, from June 2017, could, eventualy, Bring in some much Needed Fresh Energy on ECHR Judgements' Implementation, in cases such as those concerning Turkey, etc., which may Change the Situation soon.



- Meanwhile, Replying to "Eurofora"s and Other Participants' Questions, during a High-Level Conference at the CoE on Security and Human Rights, Earlier this week, the Experienced President of the International Institute for Human Rights "Rene Cassin", and former ECHR President, professor Jean-Paul Costa, Timely stressed, as a matter of General Principle, that, as far as ECHR Judgements' Implementation is concerned, "We should Not look only to the Committee of Ministers, but Also to several Other CoE's bodies, including, f.ex., also its Parliamentary Assembly" (PACE), etc.



+ This might become a really Important Direction, actually, at a Moment when PACE's Monitoring Committee has just Anounced, this week in Strasboug, its Decision to officialy Demand for Turkey to get Back into a fully-Fledged "Monitoring process", (instead of the Mere "Post-Monitoring Dialogue", into which Ankara is involved since 2014-2015, i.e. a much more Lenient, Softer procedure of comparatively Lesser Importance), Because of a "Serious Deterioration" and "Unacceptable" practices by the Turkish Authorities, accused to commit "Repeated Violations" of Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law, as the Latest Version of a Report drafted by 2 mainstream MEPs, Marianne Mikko, a Socialist from Estonia, and Ingebjrg Godskesen, a Conservative from Norway.



++ In an almost Parallel Move, also CoE's "Venice Committee" prestigious Constitutional Law Watchdog, (composed mainly of Presidents of National Constitutional or Highest Courts, and Other Top Legal Expertsj, just Published Today its Conclusions on Turkey's Draft New Constitution, (notoriously Wished particularly by its President, Tayip Erdogan, who seeks to Strengthen his Powers further), Slaming that Plan as a "Dangerous step Backwards".



=> Both these 2 very Critical Findings, Added now also to a 3rd, about Ankara's persisting Refusal to Comply with ECHR's Judgements, (as we saw above), could be Debated, Later this Evening and mainly Tomorrow, by CoE's Parliamentary Assembly's "Standing" Committee, (which has SImilar Powers to PACE's Plenary), meeting Now in Spain.



- It's True that, at least the President of PACE's "EuroLeft" Group of MEPs, Senator Tiny Cox from the Netherlands, Speaking previously to "Eurofora", had initialy Confirmed an Official Anouncement of his Group, that they Intended to Ask for an Urgent Debate and Vote on Turkey's recent Human Rights' Violations "on March, at (PACE's) Standing Committee, in Spain", (i.e. practicaly Tomorrow).



The move was Motivated also by an Exceptional Incident, last January 2017 in Strasbourg, when, a Crystal-Clear Majority of MEPs in CoE Assembly's Winter 2017 Plenary Session were Hindered to Discuss and Vote on a Draft Resolution about Turkey at an "Urgent" Debate, (See : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/coedebateandmonitorturkey.html + ...), after an Unexpected 1 Vote Difference inside PACE's Bureau opposed such a Last-Minute Change in the Agenda of the Plenary, making it Necessary to get a Special, 2/3 Majority of Votes in the Plenary for that purpose, which wasn't reached then.



This had made Various MEPs' Upset, while some other sources even alleged that this UnDemocratic U-Turn might have been provoked by a "Corrupted" MEP who would have been "Paid" by Turkey to swift his Vote at the Last Minute inside PACE's Bureau so that Ankara would Escape from Scrutiny and even a possible 1st Sanction for its recently Aggravated, but, in fact, Long-Standing Wrong-doings on Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law.



At any case, it's also a Fact that, at the Conclusion of that PACE's Plenary, last January in Strasbourg, it's President, ChristianDemocrat/EPP Pedro Agramunt, from Spain, anounced to Journalists, including "Eurofora", that a separate Decision had been taken to Launch an unprecedented, independent "Enquiry against Corruption", in order to Investigate both this and other, unrelated, "Rumours" inside CoE, while also Priomising that at the Next PACE's Plenary, on April 2017, the Issue of Turkey would be certainly Debated.



All this, apparently seems to Advance towards a Healthy Direction, Towards a Probable, and well Deserved, Critical CoE Move versus Turkey's, recently Aggravated, Violations of Human Rights, etc., - which might have some Important Consequences also vis a vis the EU, since an eventual Decision to Re-Open a fully-fledged PACE's "Monitoring" procedure for Ankara (Comp. Supra) could, normaly, be Incompatible with a Continuation of the Controversial and UnPopular Turkish status as a "Candidate" to EU Accession, because such a PACE Move would practicaly mean that Ankara does Not Fulfill EU's "Copenhagen Citeria", on Democracy, Human Rights and Rule of Law, which are a PreRequisitive for Any Foreign Country to be considered as a "Candidate" for the EU.



But, some Other Facts, Warn also about possible Risks for such a Move to eventualy Back-pedal at the Last Minute :



Indeed, that Controversial Postponement from January to April 2017, as far as PACE's critical Debate and Vote on Turkey is concerned, (Comp. Supra), has placed the Issue at a Moment which Fits Turkish President Erdogan's notorious Aim to Impose some Controversial Constitutional Changes, destinated to Beef up his own Power, by a Referendum scheduled for Mid-April, i.e. Before PACE's Next Plenary at the End of April. Moreover, by also another Coincidence, that Date Fits also the Turkish Government's declared Aim to enentualy Phase Out its current "State of Emergency" in a 3 Months Period since its Last Extension, which Ends also Before the End of April 2017.



=> Thus, obviously Turkey might again Claim, with a Last Minute, Tactical Modification, just Before the forthcoming, next PACE's Plenary, at the End of April, that it would have made a so-called "Progress" on Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law, (after Erdogan would have practicaly Obtained his Political Aims, also by Abusing of Controversial, notoriously Oppressive Measures during all this Period of Time), so that PACE should, once again, "Welcome" such a possible "Step in the Right Direction", etc., (as it's usualy said in such kind of circumstances, whenever someone seeks to Cover-up something Nasty, by Pretending to have "Changed" at the Last Minute), and be Pushed anew to ...Drop any Real Sanction on Turkish Authorities aggravated Human Rights' Violations...



Will Strasbourg's unique and precious PanEuropean Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights succeed to Prevent and/or Bypass such Risks to practicaly "Collapse", both in the Minds of the People, who are more and more Surprized to Witness so many recent Setbacks (Comp. Supra), and in Real Practice ? Shall we all see a kind of much-Needed nowadays "ReNaissance" of that (Valuable, but seriously Threatened) PanEuropean Human Rights' Mechanism on Spring 2017, or the Contrary ?



As always, in such kind of often Tricky Developments, Facts and Deeds, not just Words, will Finaly Say, whether the Trust of the People and all other Players, will be well Deserved, or Not, by CoE's Human Rights' protection Mechanism in the foreseable Future, particularly at this Crucial Historic Juncture that all Europe stands Today...







(../..)

***

("DraftNews", as already send to "Eurofora" Subscribers/Donors, earlier. A more accurate, full Final Version, might be published asap).
Fasnacht is the German/Swiss equivalent of Mardi Gras. Its supposed to be a big party before Lent begins. However, Basel has their Fasnacht the week after Ash Wednesday. And what a party it is. 3 full days and by full days I mean full days. It begins with Morgenstreich at 4:00 am on Monday and ends at 4:00 am on Thursday. If you live in the city, on the parade route, and dont like constant noise and confetti (Swiss German word: Rapelli), then youre advised to get out of town. The (questionable) earliest event was in 1356, with the official beginnings in 1529. I cant wait until the 500th celebration in 12 years.

Many towns have a Fasnacht celebration, but Basels is the biggest and the latest. And it brings up a question: Why celebrate Fasnacht after Ash Wednesday? Well, Ill tell you. Please note, I am not a historian and Ive put this together after living here for 8 years and so there may be some errors. Forgive me.

Each Swiss Canton is either officially Protestant or Catholic (except for Geneva and Neuchatel). Basel is Protestant, but it used to be Catholic. The Catholics had this great Fasnacht tradition and when the Protestants took over they wanted to keep the party, but they certainly didnt want the Catholics to participate. So, what to do, what to do

The easy solution was to move the party to after Ash Wednesday when the Catholics would be in Lent and really shouldnt be at a big, 3 day party, that involves a lot of alcohol. So, thats why Basel celebrates so late. Its all to keep the Catholics away.

How true that is, I dont know, but it makes sense! Of course, todays Catholics dont tend to be quite so strict about Lent and Im sure they are all participating.

Anyway, heres how the party goes down.

At 4:00 am on Monday, the entire city goes dark. If you leave on a light, expect to have your window smashed. When everything is dark the flutes begin to play and Cliques (local clubs) begin marching with huge lanterns.

Photo credit: Zak Greant

These are amazing lanterns: large and heavy. There is usually a team of men4 or morewho carry these through the city.

Later on Monday, the Cortege (Parade) begins. The Lanterns are brought along with Guggimusik, which is pretty awful music. But, its supposed to be awfulthey play off key on purpose. (Or so they say.) Most Guggimusik groups are only piccolos and drums, but some have full bands.

Everyone is in full costume with masks. Its quite spectacular, if painful on the ears.

In addition to the music, there are the Waggis. Waggis ride around in wagons and throw candy, confetti, oranges, onions and flowers into the crowd. Little kids and cute girls are the recipients of the most goodies.

Photo credit: Noel Reynolds

If youre unlucky, you might get a ton of confetti dumped directly over your head. If youre super lucky and you might get a beer can (unopened!) tossed your direction. Everyone, children and adults alike, beg the Waggis for their treats. If youre not wearing a Fasnacht Blaggede, though, you probably wont get anything but onions and confetti dumped over your head.

Each year has its own Blaggedde. You buy one and wear it on your coat to show you support Fasnacht and that you are helping to cover the costs. Some of the money goes to the town for clean up and such, and the rest goes to the Cliques. You can buy them on the street anytime from January, up to the end of Fasnacht.

And why is the clean up such a big deal? Well, confetti.

Photo credit: Thomas

There are literally tons of confetti thrown every day of Fasnacht. If you go to a parade youll come home with confetti in your hair, your coat pockets, and your underpants. You will pull out your coat next winterthe coat you had dry cleaned and put away for summerand you will stick your hand in your pocket and find some leftover confetti. It is everywhere. You cant avoid it. But, being Switzerland, every night, bulldozers go through town to clean up the confetti. Then it begins again the next day.

It is also only sold in single color bags. Its illegal to sell or throw mixed confetti. This keeps people from picking up gross confetti off the ground and throwing it, although kids are known to do so.

So, thats what my neighboring town has been up to. The little suburb I live in doesnt really do Fasnacht. They do have a childrens parade (prior to Ash Wednesday), but nothing major. Were just a 10 minute tram ride into Basel, though, so no need to have our own party when we can borrow someone elses.
After the ECB came out less dovish than usual, the Euro to pound exchange rate enjoyed an approximately 1% rise on Friday, rising to 0.8780 at its peak and remaining firm.

The Pound to Euro exchange rate today (13/03/17): +0.29pct at 1.14185, Best 24hr rate 1.14233.

The Euro to Pound exchange rate today: -0.29% at 0.87577, Best 24hr rate 0.87874.

In the face of a decidedly less than stellar data release, the only thing that was really in favour of the GBP was a narrower than expected UK trade deficit.

Manufacturing looked weak missing forecasts and PM May confirmed that Britain will begin exit negotiations with the EU at the end of this month as planned.

The EUR has been extremely overbought on the stochastic oscillator with some clear divergence on Friday and struck 70 on the RSI, but for now continues to defy gravity. Whether the Pound can stage a comeback or not will likely depend on how the Brexit negotiations go over these coming months and for now it will probably continue to face pressure as the enacting of article 50 looms.

Anything good that happens within the economy is likely to be underestimated moving forward and anything bad is likely to be exaggerated until the market sees some clear and quantifiable evidence as to how Brexit may take shape and from that, how it might affect the economy.

This is not to say that the Pound could not appreciate sharply, as many banks and funds share a consensus that it is undervalued, however, many of these same traders also believe it is potentially overvalued in the short term and hence the downward pressure we see on the GBP.

Deutsche Bank say LePen election would cause Market Stress/Capital Flight

Behind all the positive news in the Eurozone lurks the threat of nationalism to the status quo. In France, a pillar of the European Union in many ways such a threat exists in the form of Candidate LePen. An anti-euro, euro sceptic she lies at the far right of the political spectrum in France, at odds with her competitors on the basis of the extremity of her views. Deutsche Bank today released a highly detailed report outlining the potential risks and outcomes for the French election, and they do not pull any punches regarding LePen,

At the second round, Fillon is still seen as defeating Le Pen, but with a decreasing margin. If the recent trend continues, Fillons lead versus Le Pen could fall closer to the average forecast error for the Brexit referendum polls

So we see the bank believe that LePen could potentially get close enough in the polls to centre-right candidate Fillon that her chances of making it to the final round become a real possibility (Brexit real). Deutsche Bank highlight the fears among investors regarding a victory for the nationalist, but nonetheless, see her influence limited by constitutional boundaries within France,

According to polls, Le Pen seems set to pass the first round. The great majority of client questions are about the consequences of a Le Pen presidential victory in the second round. In our opinion, a President Le Pen would still face material institutional and constitutional hurdles to applying most of her proposals.

DB are clearly trying to bring some common sense to the market unrest, however they cannot deny the shockwaves that a LePen election win would have on the global market place,

if Le Pen manages to call a euro referendum via Article 11, the conditional probability of France exiting the euro area would likely become a 50-50 call. Nevertheless, even Le Pens election would create capital flight and market stress.

They even outline a scenario for an EU faced by a disintegrating Eurozone, and see the non-populists clinging desperately to a common currency,If the tail-risk event of France exiting the monetary union were to materialize, Europes non-populist leaders are likely to attempt one last stand to save the euro At best, a hard core of Northern euro area member states could retain a common currency

This being said they after applying all the probabilities of each scenario, Deutsche Bank still on see the possibility of France leaving the Euro as a very, very small percentage chance,

Overall, this results today in a probability of France exiting the euro by year-end slightly below 5%.

Despite all this theorizing, investors will be forgiven for taking it all with a pinch of salt as to some extent it must be based off polls, and recently, you would not have made much money backing the pollsters.
Hi guys,

I returned from a fabulous time in Vancouver last year and I fell in love!

I've been considering moving there ever since I came back.



Just a bit scary really as it's a big step..



I have 5 years experience in dental nursing and care coordinating, I also have a degree in the arts.

I've checked my eligibility and it seems I may be viable for express entry.



Does anyone have any advice on getting started, job searching etc?



thank you!



G
Ozzieowl said: Hi,



I have been offered a teaching (ESL) position in UAE and want to check out the validity of it.

It is for Al Mawahib British Private School in Sharjah.

To me the job offer happened in two days and I am suspicious for some reason.

Please help if you can.



Also if anyone knows of any ESL positions available please get in touch. Click to expand...

Hi,I have also been offered an ESL Instructor in the same school ( AL MAWAHIB BRITISH SCHOOL). I received an email from the school principal who is inviting candidates for various English Teaching Positions for the school. I replied to the email showing interest in the position offered as it had the very attractive salary and other benefits. Within a few hours of my email, I got an email stating that my resume is shortlisted and I have a skype interview after 2 days. I was little suspicious of the quick reply. Anyway, that date arrived and I was interviewed on skype without a video call as the caller said that due to a poor signal he won't be making a video call but an audio call. The interview was pretty short and quick my surprise the interview and very short and I was asked very simple questions which I did not expect. The very same evening I got an email that I have been selected and I need to furnish some documents for the offer letter. I did that and I got an offer letter the next morning. This aroused suspicion in me and I started browsing the web for more information about the school.As soon as I clicked on the principal message on the school's website I was surprised to see this message below: "We would like to inform you that the principal Mr X is no longer working with the School and resigned last year.The school takes no responsibility for any arrangement made by him."
The VPN is a virtual private network. There are ways to set up your own, but most people use a service provider. The VPN allows you to trick the net into seeing your computer in another country (it basically gives you a different address). My service lets me pick what country or state I want to be "in".



Some content providers (YouTube etc) restrict access by country. One of my videos I uploaded says it is not available in Germany...because of a background song in it. Odd, but ok. I find it useful in banking. Some US banks get weird if you access them from overseas. Using a VPN you can pick a server and your bank thinks you are still there. (my bank does not care but Western Union did). Some online stores also try to make you use their site in whatever country you are in. Target tries to make me use their international site (but now allows you to still use the US site).



Netflix has a complete different offering of shows in the PIs and the US. Using a VPN I can tell Netflix I am in the US and get many more shows. Sometimes I switch it to Canada or England and get a different offering of shows.
Oil capped the biggest weekly loss since November after surging U.S. supplies erased three months of gains that followed OPECs deal to cut output.

Futures tumbled 9.1 percent this week in New York. For a second day, they closed below the settlement on Nov. 29, the day before OPEC agreed to the curbs. U.S. crude stockpiles have expanded to a record for four straight weeks and output has climbed to the highest level in more than a year, government data showed Wednesday. Declines accelerated on Friday after a report showed U.S. oil drilling rose for an eighth straight week.

Oil had fluctuated above $50 a barrel after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and 11 other countries started trimming supply for six months starting Jan. 1. Saudi Arabias Oil Minister Khalid al-Falih said this week global supplies are falling more slowly than expected, opening the door to extending the output-cut deal. Al-Khalil was among the ministers and executives who gathered this week at the CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference in Houston.

The market is still digesting this weeks high inventory number, said Mark Watkins, the Park City, Utah-based regional investment manager for the Private Client Group at U.S. Bank, which oversees $136 billion in assets. The shock number had the market test the $50 band and then break through. The next two weeks should be volatile, with prices potentially falling to the $45 level.

West Texas Intermediate for April delivery fell 79 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $48.49 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Total volume traded was 29 percent above the 100-day average.

Brent for May settlement declined 82 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $51.37 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. It was also the lowest close since late November. The global benchmark crude declined 8.1 percent this week. Brent ended the session at a $2.34 premium to May WTI.

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.

Energy companies were among the worst performers on the Standard & Poors 500 index. The S&P Oil & Gas Exploration and Production Select Industry index fell as much as 1.2 percent.

U.S. crude stockpiles inventories rose by 8.2 million barrels last week to 528.4 million, the highest level in weekly data compiled by the Energy Information Administration since 1982. Output advanced for a third week to 9.09 million barrels a day, the most since February 2016, the EIA reported Wednesday. U.S. oil rig count rose by eight to 617 this week, the highest since September 2015, according to Baker Hughes Inc. data.

The break of the band yesterday is a sign that the market was overbought, said Gene McGillian, manager of market research for Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. Im not sure whether it was the lack of U.S. inventory drop because of the cuts or the lack of a clear sign out of Houston that they will extend the cuts, which triggered the drop.
Details added (first version posted on 14:50)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

Trend:

There is no military solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Richard Hoagland, the US co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, said at a press conference in Baku Mar. 11.

He added that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will deliver exactly the same message next week in Yerevan.

We, the three OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, had long and substantive discussions with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev this morning, Hoagland said. We also appreciate the hospitality of Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, with whom we also had long discussions over lunch.

He added that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs underlined the necessity of backing negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts settlement.

We said the April 1, 2016 anniversary should be marked at the negotiations table, Hoagland noted.
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DEVINE - Down a dirt road from cattle lolling on a feedlot, trucks pull into the Southern Wild Game plant carrying feral pigs that have been trapped from across the Lone Star State.

They are unloaded into holding pens and hosed down before being sent into the plant to be processed into steaks and chops, all under the watch of U.S. Department of Agriculture and European Union-licensed inspectors. Their meat leaves the plant boxed and ready for distribution to discerning diners overseas.

Wild hogs may be a nuisance to to Texas' farms, ranches and, increasingly, cities. But in bistros and corporate lunchrooms across the Atlantic, the meat is considered a healthy delicacy. After all, who could blame continentals for savoring the taste of the Texas Hill Country in their wild boar goulash? With venison prices high, boar meat  or sanglier as its known in France  is a pretty hot commodity.

It has a unique flavor, said Mark Mitchell of Vernon, California-based Broadleaf Game, which owns the Southern Wild Game plant and markets wild boar meat from hilly ranch country outside San Antonio alongside exotic specialties like elk, ostrich, and buffalo. Its an old saying that we are what we eat. And if its eating acorn or mesquite, you know, it has a distinct flavor.

Mitchell is pretty sure Europeans, among the most stringent when it comes to food imports, wont take the slightest chance that Kaput Feral Hog Bait will end up in their sausages and stews. Texas Department of Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller signed an emergency rule Feb. 21 allowing the rat poison to be used to cull the feral hog population. Game processors like Mitchell, hunters and trappers across Texas are watching to see how a lawsuit challenging the rule plays out.

The key ingredient in Kaput  and in Millers self-declared hog apocalypse  is warfarin. In low doses, its used as an anticoagulant to help prevent strokes and heart attacks in humans. But in high doses, warfarin is used for rat control.

Social media sites erupted with posts questioning the effects Kaput would have on hunts and the extra money trappers got from selling their kills to processors like Southern. Processors that resell meat for human consumption only accept animals that are trapped live. Since it could take days for a hog to die from Kaput  which causes them to internally bleed to death  many wondered whether a tainted hog could get into the food chain.

Some wondered about the wildlife that would feed on hogs that die from Kaput.Others wondered about household pets accidentally ingesting bait or game like white-tailed deer consuming it and tainting the venison supply. A petition against Kaput had more 2,500 signatures within 36 hours of the news breaking.

Were not getting a lot of answers from people who should be able to answer questions, said C.W. Wharton, plant manager at Texas Natural Meats in Lott, north of Austin. Sid Miller  it appears he decided on his own. I called my extension agent at Texas A&M  They certainly didnt approve it. We hear it wont kill nothing but the pigs, but even the extension officers are saying if a dog or livestock eats it, it could kill them.

A spokeswoman at Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, which runs a statewide program on feral hog control, said the service was researching the product.

As Kaput only recently received approval from the EPA and TDA, AgriLife Extension has not yet incorporated the use of this product into our educational programming, AgriLife spokeswoman Lara Burhenn said. We are exploring the benefits and risks associated with warfarin-based products such as Kaput and expect to eventually add this control method to the assortment of management options we educate landowners about.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, which regulates hunting and trapping, posted a message on its website saying the department has not yet evaluated the risks and impacts this toxicant may have on non-target species when used as a means to control feral hog populations.

TPWD is in the process of requesting the research information utilized by the EPA in recently approving the use of Kaput as a feral hog toxicant. Once an assessment of the research on Kaput is completed, TPWD hopes to express its position on the risks the use of this toxicant may have on Texas wildlife, the posting says.

Scimetrics, the Colorado-based company that developed Kaput, says pigs are so sensitive to warfarin that the hog bait uses a concentration thats only a fifth of whats found in rodent bait. Warfarin residues in hog liver are below 5 milligrams per kilogram, the company said, compared with the daily dose of warfarin as a blood thinner of between two and 10 milligrams. Whats more, the bait turns fat deposits of the hog blue, making it easy to detect if the animal has eaten it, Scimetrics said.

The scare with the hunters  they jumped the gun because they didnt read the facts about warfarin, Scimetrics President Richard Poche said. Its been around for human use since 1954. It revolutionized rodent control.

While Louisiana also has registered with the EPA to use Kaput, Texas was to be the roll-out state, Poche said. He said the product was set to be released in late April or early May, but that those plans were now on hold until the dust settles in Texas.

Were strongly supporting Texas take on it  that it be handled by people that are trained and really know how to use a product such as this, he said.

The EPA approved Kaput in January, and Miller made his announcement Feb. 21. Under his emergency rule, the TDA approved Kaput as a state limited-use pesticide, which means it can only be bought and administered under the direction of licensed applicators.

Will Herring, owner of the Wild Boar Meats processing plant in Hubbard, buys live and dead hogs to process for pet food and was readying to build a bigger plant when news about Kaput went viral.

On March 1, he filed a lawsuit against Miller and the Texas Department of Agriculture.

Texas currently has a vibrant, growing economic segment focused on hunting feral hogs and the consumption and use of feral-hog meat and byproducts, according to the complaint filed with in a state district court in Austin. A warfarin-poisoning program will substantially reduce or destroy those businesses, including Wild Boar Meats.

The complaint notes that Australia, which Miller said had used warfarin, ended up outlawing the chemical as a hog bait on grounds it took four to 17 days for the pig to internally bleed to death.

Australia concluded that the method of death was so cruel, that use of warfarin should be outlawed  even though Australia is not a culturally squeamish country and even though Australia has more feral hogs than people, the complaint says.

State District Judge Jan Soifer in Austin on March 2 issued a temporary restraining order suspending Millers rule until a court hearing scheduled for March 30.

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.

We sued Sid Miller and got a temporary restraining injunction invalidating Sid Millers emergency rule and thereby invalidating the registration of the product, Herring said. So the conclusion is it cant be sold in Texas as of right now.

TDA spokesman Mark Loeffler said the restraining order actually made it worse by allowing the product to be sold in Texas without restrictions outlined in Millers rule.

Miller stressed that Kaput was just another tool for a problem that had landowners across Texas in a state of desperation.

This is for people who are having their crops destroyed, he said in an interview. Pecan farmers and peanut farmers and corn farmers that are losing their livelihood. And it will actually end up helping the wildlife people, because the hogs destroy quail nests, turkey nests. They eat the baby deer. They just almost eliminated the horny toad in Texas.

But LeRoy Moczygemba, who has been trapping hogs since the 1980s and is often called to consult on trapping methods, said the unknowns about Kaput threaten to shut down export markets and scare off domestic pet food makers. That, he said, could put a damper on the trapping that accounts for about 60 percent of the hog control methods in Texas.

If it messes up the European market, Southern Wild Game loses its market, Moczygemba said. Its just going to crater. Nobodys going to trap.

Without an incentive to trap, the hog population will grow, he said. There are an estimated 2.5 million wild hogs causing at least $55 million in damages in Texas alone.

Moczygemba has seen the population explosion first-hand, once witnessing a sow give birth to 12 piglets.

According to Texas A&M University, wild hogs are the most prolific large mammals on earth, with each sow having an average of five to six piglets 1.5 times a year. Moczygemba believes the already rapid population growth has been accelerated by to two things: screwworm eradication cutting out a scourge that also affected hogs and domestic hog market busts that prompted some farmers to let domestic pigs loose. That domestic hogs have procreated with their wild cousins is evident in the multicolored hides seen on what are typically all black feral pigs, he said.

Roy Leslie, a rancher in Kendall County who annually processes seven to 10 feral hogs for personal consumption, said Miller should put more weight behind the use of other toxicants, such as the sodium nitrate that has been studied by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Kerr Wildlife Management Area.

This is a common preservative used in many processed meats and is consumed by us all. It happens to be deadly to hogs. Delivery systems, residual amounts, and sodium nitrite's benign effects on the environment have been carefully studied since 2011, he said in an email. If Sid Miller wants to blow his horn, let it be to the tune of sodium nitrite.

Bring it on, Loeffler said.

We support all efforts to solve the problem, he said. Warfarin, helicopter hunting, all tools in the toolbox.

lbrezosky@express-news.net
With speed and efficiency, Las Delicias moves people through its cafeteria line like the lunchroom at a work camp. Except for weekend menudo, tacos are the only thing on the menu here, and in this steam-pan parade, what you see is what you get.

Tacos: It looks like the ironite catfish bait of my youth, so why do I like morcilla so much? Appearances aside, this mash of pork blood sausage tastes like a fall buffet, spiced with cinnamon and pepper and chiles to burn away whatever doubts you had ($1.79).
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Mexicos Consulate General in San Antonio on Friday issued its first birth certificate under a new law that allows officials to issue identity documents to Mexican citizens in the U.S. whose births were never registered in their home country.

Yesenia Torres, 20, whose 3-year-old daughter Dafne was born in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato but never received a birth certificate, said she couldnt take basic child-rearing steps without some document proving the childs identity.

Thanks to this document, my daughter can now get medical insurance, because we couldnt prove who she is, Torres said. And without (the birth certificate) she couldnt go to school either.

A February change to Mexicos foreign service law allows ambassadors and consuls to issue birth certificates to Mexican citizens whose births were not recorded.

Having no birth certificate creates myriad problems for Mexican citizens living abroad, preventing them from obtaining photo IDs like consular cards and passports, which can be a barrier to getting bank accounts, cause problems if theyre stopped by the police and prevent them from pursuing options to stay in the U.S., like the deferred action program for young immigrants, said Carlos Sada Solana, the undersecretary for North America at Mexicos Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

It can also encourage the use of false documents, which is a crime.

In some cases, Mexican citizens abroad are obliged to obtain false documents, and at this point, thats enough to cause you to be deported or to put you in prison, Sada said.

Mexicos government doesnt have an estimate of how many of its citizens living abroad were never issued birth certificates, but Sada said in regions with large rural populations where access to civil services is limited, many people never register their childrens births. Rural states like Michoacan, Guerrero, Puebla and his own home state of Oaxaca also contribute heavily to immigration to the U.S., Sada said.

These are states in which the economic conditions are more precarious, where there have been very complicated situations, including certain violence, he said. Theyre in the south-southeast of Mexico, where socioeconomic conditions arent as developed as other parts of our country.

jbuch@express-news.net

Twitter: @jlbuch
William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas has reached a multi-year agreement with Tenet Healthcare, ensuring Tenets facilities, including those in the Baptist Health System, will remain in network for policyholders.

Fridays announcement came more than one month after Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas notified insurance agents and brokers that the two companies were headed for a split following 10 months of negotiations. They would have severed ties on April 15 had they not reached an agreement.
Race, not partisan advantage, was the key to changes made in the maps of three Texas congressional districts, including two in San Antonio.

That was the conclusion of a federal judicial panel that invalidated the three Republican-drawn districts. In a 2-1 ruling, it said the 2011 changes diluted minority votes in violation of the U.S. Voting Rights Act.

However, the order doesnt explain how the invalidated maps should be corrected, though the plaintiffs have said in past hearings that the districts might have to be redrawn to how they were before 2011.

Included were District 23, which is held by U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-San Antonio; District 35, which stretches from Austin to San Antonio and is held by Democrat U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin; and District 27, which includes Nueces County.

The nearly 200-page ruling invalidates those districts, and could have a filter-down effect on nearby districts if the ruling stands in the 6-year-old case that was filed by minority voters and civil-rights groups, among others.

The Legislature adopted the court-drawn 2012 maps in 2013. The court was under a direct order from the Supreme Court to draw lawful districts. The adoption of those maps in 2013 mooted any issue with the 2011 maps. There are no lines to redraw, Marc Rylander, Attorney General Ken Paxtons director of communications, said in response to the ruling.

For one of the plaintiffs in the suit, the ruling didnt come as a surprise.

Tonight, the courts ruled what we knew all along  Texas intentionally discriminated against communities of color to dilute the voting power of Latinos and African Americans. All Texans deserve the right to elect their candidate of choice, said Rafael Anchia, chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, one of the plaintiffs. We demand swift action by the Texas Legislature to allow all communities to cast a ballot that counts.

In examining Hurds district, which stretches from western San Antonio to El Paso, the panel found the state Legislature drew the district lines to manipulate Latino voter turnout, and in the process denied Latino voters equal opportunity and had the intent and effect of diluting Latino voter opportunity.

There was both discriminatory motive and improper use of race to achieve the desired goal, the ruling says in the portion looking at Hurds district.

Hurd responded defiantly, noting the success he, an African-American, has experienced in a minority district.

I represent a 70 percent Hispanic district that produced record turnout in 2016, voted for Hillary Clinton and against my Democratic opponent. I passed nine pieces of legislation signed into law last Congress, more than any other member in the country, he said in a statement.

The voters graded my paper and saw fit to vote me back in office. No matter the district lines, I will continue that hard work on behalf of all of my constituents, he said.

The ruling comes more than two years after a lengthy trial in August 2014. Writing for the majority were U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia, a Democrat appointed to the bench by President Bill Clinton, and U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez, a Republican appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush.

Rodriguez also served on the Texas Supreme Court, where former Gov. Rick Perry appointed him to replace Greg Abbott.

Judge Jerry Smith, a Republican appointed to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by President Ronald Reagan, filed a dissent that not only dissects the case, but also takes shots at the Justice Department, which intervened under the Obama administration and backed some of the plaintiffs'arguments.

Also, Smiths dissent notes this may not be the end of the case because Texas could appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which the state might try to convince to overturn the ruling, or to block it pending another court review.

In looking at Doggetts District 35, the majority found that district was improperly drawn with race as the predominant factor to minimize the number of Democrat districts and to try to unseat Doggett by boosting the Latino population, making it more likely that voters would choose a Hispanic candidate.

The district reaches into downtown San Antonio, including a portion of South Bexar County, traveling north along a thin strip of Comal and Hays counties, a portion of Caldwell county and into Austin in Travis County.

The political motive does not excuse or negate that use of race; rather, the use of race is ultimately problematic for precisely that reason  because of their political motive, they intentionally drew a district based on race in a location where such use of race was not justified by a compelling state interest, the ruling states.

By drawing District 35 with a majority Latino population extending into San Antonio, the Legislature was able to create the facade of complying with the Voting Rights Act while eliminating an existing Democratic district, the panel found.

Doggett, who won his 12th House term in November, congratulated the League of United Latin American Citizens for pursuing the case and said he intends to file for re-election no matter what the courts ultimately rule.

The court has repudiated the Republican refusal to treat Hispanics fairly in accordance with the Voting Rights Act. It requires the creation of genuine Hispanic-influence districts, not crooked lines that are only designed to increase Republican domination. Everyone loses when Republican gerrymandering makes elected officials less accessible and less accountable, he said in a statement.

I will continue living on (Interstate) 35, determined to serve effectively all of my constituents from South San Antonio to North Austin, he added.

LULAC was among groups that sued in 2011, the year the district boundaries were drawn.

LULAC national executive director Brent Wilkes said the Texas Legislature should move swiftly to redraw the map to have it in place before the 2018 congressional elections.

I would think they would want to jump on it, he said.

Obviously it matters how they go about it. The judges found that they had rushed and allowed racial discrimination. Its legal to have partisan gerrymandering but not legal to keep minority voting strength down, and thats unfortunately what they ended up doing here.

The panel also ruled the plaintiffs made their case that race was front and center in how the Legislature drew up District 27, which is held by U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi.

Defendants decision to place Nueces County Hispanic voters in an Anglo district had the effect and was intended to dilute their opportunity to elect their candidate of choice, the ruling states.

The panel also found some problems in District 26, in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, but it wasnt invalidated.

The opinion said the plaintiffs had proven the Legislature intentionally diluted votes through packing and cracking in District 26.

That district was redrawn in 2013, but the court panel was assessing the legality of the 2011 map, according to the voluminous court file.

The judges also ruled the plaintiffs didnt prove intentional vote dilution or a racially discriminatory purpose for districts in the Houston area represented by African-American members of Congress.

Tom Perez, chair of the Democratic National Committee, responded to the ruling by saying the DNC needs a robust program to combat efforts to limit access to the ballot box.

Republicans have made it clear that they will continue their dirty business of silencing the most vulnerable, and with Jeff Sessions as the (U.S.) attorney general, Democrats will have to fight even harder to protect the American people, Perez said in a statement.

In his dissent, Smith recognized the more than two years the panel worked on the case, but said his two colleagues missed the forest for the trees.

And, Smith took aim at Justice Department lawyers who argued the case in the Obama era. He said the department should not have been allowed to join the case.

I have no criticism of their knowledge of the law, and their zeal is, to say the least, more than adequate, Smith wrote. But they entered these proceedings with arrogance and condescension.

One of the departments lawyers even exhibited her contempt for Texas and its representatives and her disdain for these proceedings by regularly rolling her eyes at state witnesses answers that she did not like, and she amused herself by chewing gum while court was in session.

It was obvious, from the start, that the (Justice Department) attorneys viewed state officials and the legislative majority and their staffs as a bunch of backwoods hayseed bigots who bemoan the abolition of the poll tax and pine for the days of literacy tests and lynchings. And the (Justice Department) lawyers saw themselves as an expeditionary landing party arriving here, just in time, to rescue the state from oppression, obviously presuming that plaintiffs counsel were not up to the task.
A second set of San Antonio defense attorneys are seeking a new trial for their client, a defendant in a murder case, due to an alleged constitutional violation by prosecutors in District Attorney Nico LaHoods office.

In a motion filed late Thursday, attorneys Patrick Hancock and Mark Stevens claim that prosecutors Josh Somers and Lauren Scott did not disclose until moments before the attorneys opening statements in a February murder trial that a key prosecution witness had lied in a video statement to police 13 months earlier.

In legal parlance, this is known as a Brady violation.

In that seminal 1963 Supreme Court decision, Brady v. Maryland, the justices established a rule that prosecutors must turn over to the defense all favorable or exculpatory evidence in a timely manner. Texas has an even more comprehensive law, named for Michael Morton, a Georgetown man who served nearly 25 years in prison for a murder he did not commit, after a prosecutor withheld evidence from the defense.

Earlier this week, a similar motion was filed in another case, alleging that Bexar County prosecutor Jason Goss had withheld Brady evidence in a murder trial and that LaHood, in a heated conversation in the judges chambers, had threatened to ruin the legal practice of the defense lawyers if they pursued their efforts to get a new trial.

LaHood has denied that claim as a completely false allegation and said he is looking forward to a public hearing on the motion. Defense attorneys claimed that Goss failed to disclose that a star witness for the state had a sexual relationship with an unnamed prosecutor in the district attorneys office who was briefly assigned to the court hearing the murder trial.

In Thursdays motion  an unrelated cases before a different judge  attorneys Hancock and Stevens say their client, Dustin Lee Osborne, was denied a fair trial because they didnt know an important prosecution witness had changed her story to police several times.

Osborne was convicted earlier this year of murdering Ralph Michael Lopez on August 11, 2014, after an argument at Lopezs home.

Osborne told police he believed Lopez was armed and he shot Lopez in self-defense. The retrial motion states that a witness to the shooting, Sabrina Alcantar, repeatedly told homicide investigators Osborne was not at fault and that Lopez brandished a gun.

Hancock said in the motion that he saw Alcantars video statement to police and based his legal strategy and jury selection on the premise that she would be a helpful witness for Osborne.

Before the trial began, as required in Texas under the Michael Morton Act, the prosecutors delivered to the defense a digital mountain of evidence on a USB stick that contained hundreds of crime scene and autopsy photos, surveillance videos, cell phone records, witness statements and hundreds of related files. But no disclosure of Brady material that might have helped Osborne, his attorneys claim.

On Jan. 31, when both sides were selecting jurors, Hancock and Stevens allege that assistant district attorney Lauren Scott told Hancock that Alcantar had lied in her police video statement.

Nonplussed, Hancock watched Alcantar testify she had lied about Lopez having a gun and that she told prosecutor Josh Somers this key detail more than a year earlier, in January 2016, and repeated the admission of lying just days before the trial started. However, she changed her story once again, the motion states, when she told the jury she was under the influence of drugs and could not remember giving a police statement.

Hancock moved for a mistrial and was denied by State District Judge Jefferson Moore. Hancock said in the motion that prosecutors admitted Alcantars flip-flops were exculpatory Brady material and should have been disclosed to the defense. He said the prosecutors said they simply forgot to turn over the documents because of the complexities of the case.

LaHood said Friday that the defense was given additional time (by Judge Moore) and to which the state agreed, to investigate any information disclosed by the state. After which the court denied the defenses objections and the trial continued with the defendant being found guilty of murder by a jury.

Motions for mistrials based on alleged Brady or Morton violations are not uncommon in large urban Texas courthouses, but the granting of new trials because of them is relatively rare.

bselcraig@express-news.net
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One person was killed Friday because of flooding in Guadalupe County caused by a remarkable storm that deposited as much as 6 inches of rain in two hours in isolated areas and forced the temporary closing of the Comal River to recreational users.

It was pretty extreme, National Weather Service meteorologist Brett Williams said of the inundation along the borders of Guadalupe and Wilson counties. His forecast called for scattered showers for the San Antonio area through today, yielding to cooler, drier conditions on Sunday.

The heavy rains resulted in several high-water rescues in Comal and Guadalupe counties but no injuries or loss of life had been reported until Friday, when a woman who was a passenger in a car was swept away by a swollen Santa Clara Creek near Interstate 10 and County Road 465 in the pre-dawn hours.

Rescue workers searched the area on foot, by helicopter and even drone, hoping to find her alive, but her body was recovered inside the vehicle Friday afternoon.

The outcome wasnt what we had hoped for, Cibolo Police Department Chief Gary Cox told media at the scene.

Cox identified the woman as Sherial Boulanger, 58.

Her husband, Ricky Boulanger, 68, found yelling for help as rescuers were checking water levels, was rescued at about 5 a.m. Friday, police said. He told police he tried to save his wife but was swept away from the vehicle by the current.

Comal River

The storm dropped lighter rain around New Braunfels, but it was still enough to prompt officials there to close the Comal River to recreation as its flow spiked Thursday night from around 300 cubic feet per second to more than 5,000 cfs at midnight.

As soon as its safe for people, well open it back it up, said Amy Niles, New Braunfels river operations manager. We dont want to scare people off for Spring Break.

Tubing outfitters there expressed optimism that the waterway, whose flow had dipped to 654 cfs by noon Friday, would be in good shape today for the anticipated arrival of thousands of Spring Breakers.

Usually when it goes up, its down within hours, said Molly Stillwell of Comal Tubes. They usually open it up the next day.

Max Finn of Rockin R River Rides concurred, saying, We should definitely be back to recreational flows by Saturday.

No such concerns were heard along the Guadalupe River, which did not experience similar flooding from the storm.

Its flowing at about 400 cfs, which is optimal for water recreation, said Mike Dussier of the Water Oriented Recreation District in Comal County, which oversees the river there.

Although Guadalupe County Sheriff Arnold Zwicke described the front as just a regular thunderstorm, he said its flooding effects were magnified by saturated grounds and waterways full from other recent rains.

We certainly appreciate our volunteer firefighters risking their lives to go out and help others, he said.

Guadalupe County Judge Kyle Kutscher urged caution.

Roads were closed and creeks came up, but we havent had any substantial flooding or damage to any structures that we know of, he said. Were just concerned with Saturday. With more rains coming, we may have more road closures and potential flooding issues.

A Wilson County sheriffs dispatcher reported no rescues or major flooding from the cluster of storms that stalled over the Lavernia and New Berlin areas Thursday evening. We had water over the roads, but no serious flooding, she said.

Williams, the meteorologist, said a cold front due late Saturday will push the daytime high down to 63 on Sunday but that skies were expected to clear by that afternoon.

Staff Writers Jacob Beltran and Tyler White contributed to this report.

zeke@express-news.net
VICTORIA  A day after a man believed to be connected to the fire that destroyed the Victoria Islamic Center appeared in federal court, activity at the mosque Friday continued at a brisk, but modified pace.

Instead of piling into the main building for Friday prayer, the congregation walked past the empty field where the mosque once stood and filled two temporary buildings. A hired armed guard confirmed with each attendee their purpose for being there.

Weve been very much on edge, looking over our shoulders, Dr. Irfan Qureshi, a board member of the mosque, said between appointments Friday morning at his clinic. Since the January blaze, hes noticed a few families have stopped attending events and prayers at the mosque because of safety concerns.

On Friday, court documents and a former high school friend revealed details about 25-year-old Marq Vincent Perez, described as an extremist who was having trouble adjusting to his post-military life.

Authorities arrested Perez less than a mile away from the mosque grounds March 3. While hes been charged with possession of fire-starting devices, he hasnt been charged in connection with the mosque blaze.

Perez burglarized the mosque Jan. 22 and again Jan. 28, when he started the fire, prosecutors say, with the intent of destroying the mosque. According to testimony presented Thursday, Perez didnt hide his disdain for Muslims and took several steps to carry out his planned actions, according to the testimony.

We have some degree of comfort knowing (Perez) is in custody, said Qureshi. But the flip side is this is a 25-year-old. He has a family. If hes convicted, thats a young life thats affected.

Qureshi added that Muslims havent been the only religious group targeted in recent months, referencing the Jewish Community Centers and cemeteries vandalized in recent weeks. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Texas has had 105 hate crimes since the November election. Nationwide, 127 incidents have been tracked as anti-Muslim.

At a detention hearing Thursday, investigators described Perez as a volatile man who harassed his best friend of 10 years, Victoria resident Stephen Ruiz. They also read clips from Facebook messages sent by Perez that hinted at a hostile attitude toward Muslims. Ruiz described Perez as a right-wing extremist, noting that Perez didnt like foreigners.

Investigators said Ruizs vehicle was vandalized with a shotgun and an explosive device made up of fireworks tied together. Police reported finding an undetonated explosive at the scene  similar to the one found at the mosque fire.

Ruiz declined to speak about the ongoing investigation Friday afternoon but shared details of his relationship with Perez. They met in their freshman year of high school at a weekly teenage hangout at a local church, where he described Perez as quiet and reserved. He liked video games and always seemed fascinated by the military, he said.

After high school, Perez apparently joined the U.S. Air Force for just a few weeks, according to testimony, and came back unable to adjust, Ruiz said. Ever since then, his friend changed, becoming more violent, more aggressive.

Earlier Friday, a young woman holding a baby refused to answer questions outside Perezs parents home in Victoria.

No one answered the door at the home where Perez was arrested March 3 either. The home is believed to be where Perez lived with Victoria resident Matilda Cano. The couple welcomed a son in January.

Next-door neighbor Thomas Alvarado said Perez hadnt lived at that residence for more than six months. He only saw him go to work, come back, and park his car. Occasionally he saw Perez standing outside with a couple of other men but that when they saw Alvarado they went inside.

On the morning of March 3, Alvarado saw red lights through his front window and Perez getting pulled out of the home and put into a car. He saw officials carry out three paper grocery bags worth of what he assumed was evidence. Court records show evidence seized included a laptop, fireworks and a missing electric meter.

Perezs lawyer, Mark Di Carlo, said the testimony related to the mosque fire wasnt relevant to his clients charge, and he described much of the evidence presented as hearsay upon hearsay.

The evidence is based on two confidential informants, one of whom may have been involved in the mosque burglary, Di Carlo said, and that neither testified or was subject to cross-examination. Di Carlo described Perez as a substantial citizen and a father and that his next step would be to defend the charge hes accused of  possession of an incendiary device  and try to get him released from custody.

If Perez is charged in relation to the mosque fire, Di Carlo said theyll meet that issue when we come to it. He had not been informed of his clients next court date.

Back at the Friday prayer, members of the mosque took off their shoes and lined up in rows. One woman came into the womens section and hugged another sitting in a red embellished hijab. She handed over her grandson, a smiling 6-month-old in khaki-colored pants and a striped shirt.

A few minutes later, Imam Osama Hassan took to the mic and delivered his sermon.

Allah commands you to forgive who oppressed you or hurt you, he said to the group of almost 40. He wove in passages and verses of the Quran, giving examples of the Prophet Yusuf to repeatedly stress one common theme: forgiveness.

When you forgive somebody, you free your past, he said.

After prayer, another board member told attendees when security cameras would be installed and reminded them about a Friday night potluck. With the lack of kitchen in the temporary buildings, they opted for pizza with homemade rice, hummus and lentils.

A little before sunset Friday, a few teens went into the last of three temporary buildings for a class and to chat with the imam before the evening events. They arrived before he did.

Youre late, one student said as Hassan entered.

No, class is at 5:30, he replied, checking his watch.

Its 5:32, another student said, smiling.

Soon all three temporary buildings were packed with shouting toddlers running in circles and some teens sitting shoulder-to-shoulder on the carpet staring at individual cellphones, while adults stood talking in any available space. While the setting looked and felt drastically different from their mosque, attendees adjusted to the surroundings.

Its different because its different, said Kenny Olurode, a regular mosque attendee. You get used to a particular place, and we never used this space were in right now. But just seeing the kids play feels familiar again.

Houston Chronicle Staff Writers Margaret Kadifa and John Harden and Express-News researcher Misty Harris contributed to this report.
Details added (first version posted on 14:50)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Anakhanum Hidayatova  Trend:

There is no military solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Richard Hoagland, the US co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, said at a press conference in Baku Mar. 11.

He added that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will deliver exactly the same message next week in Yerevan.

We, the three OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, had long and substantive discussions with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev this morning, Hoagland said. We also appreciate the hospitality of Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, with whom we also had long discussions over lunch.

He added that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs underlined the necessity of backing negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts settlement.

We said the April 1, 2016 anniversary should be marked at the negotiations table, Hoagland noted.

On the night of April 2, 2016, all the frontier positions of Azerbaijan were subjected to heavy fire from the Armenian side, which used large-caliber weapons, mortars and grenade launchers. The armed clashes resulted in deaths and injuries among the Azerbaijani population. Azerbaijan responded with a counter-attack, which led to liberation of several strategic heights and settlements.

Military operations were stopped on the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian armies on Apr. 5 at 12:00 (UTC/GMT + 4 hours) with the consent of the sides, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry had said. Ignoring the agreement, the Armenian side again started violating the ceasefire.

Hoagland also said there are no dates for the next presidential meeting on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Twenty-five years of negotiations over the conflicts peaceful settlement have brought no results, he said.

But there is diplomatic activity going on for 25 years, Hoagland said, adding this activity prevented the conflict from entering a war phase.

Diplomacy is trying to create conditions so that people on the top level find the right solutions, he said, adding that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs are intensifying their activity.

Historically there were times when the US took the lead over the process on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts settlement, and there were times when France took the leadership, and now Russia is involved actively, he added.

Hoagland noted that he believes in the strength of diplomacy.

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 the author on Twitter: @Anahanum
Outrage has always been a potent political tool. These days, its proving particularly effective  for better or worse.

For better, see the South by Southwest festival flap.

This week, the music, tech and culture festival in Austin was pressured into removing a clause in its performance contract that warns of immediate deportation should international artists perform unofficial events.

A Brooklyn-based band had tweeted a photo of the offending language and promised to pull out of the festival. Within days, artists had lined up to sign an open letter demanding the removal of the so-called deportation clause.

time to remove that clause, folks, tweeted rapper El-P of Run the Jewels. many of us can not and will not be ok with participating again if you dont. this is not a drill.

The menacing language, though, had existed in the contract for years with no controversy.

The only explanation for the sudden furor is that the world has become more menacing since the inauguration of President Donald Trump, imbuing the festivals threat with a patina of possibility.

South by Southwests CEO, Roland Swenson, acknowledged this to the New York Times: In light of the current political climate, this type of language seemed a lot scarier than when it was originally drafted a number of years ago. We plan to look at it through the eyes of a person who is living in the world of Donald Trump, which was not the case when we sent this out back in September.

Trump, Americas Agitator in Chief, thrives on outrage, delivering a fresh one almost daily. This spreads fear, but it also inspires protests. In this case, at least, the protests made the world a slightly less menacing place.

Conservatives, of course, can be outraged, too. Steven Hotze understands this.

The Republican donor from Houston leads Conservative Republicans of Texas  an anti-LGBT hate group, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. This week, a TV ad paid for by Hotze began running in the San Antonio district of Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, according to the Quorum Report.

Straus has voiced his displeasure with the legislation, which would require transgender people in Texas to use bathrooms and locker rooms in schools and other public buildings that match their biological sex.

The ad warns: Unless SB 6 is passed, any man at any time could enter a womens bathroom by claiming to be a woman. No one would be exempt. Even registered sex offenders could follow women or girls into the bathroom.

The black-and-white ad shows a man entering a womens bathroom  cue the horror-movie tropes of blinking lights and dripping faucets  followed by a shot of a little girl walking into a stall.

The man enters the girls stall and looms over her. Before he shuts the door, we see the childs shocked face as a narrator intones, Tell Speaker Joe Straus to pass SB 6. Joe, the safety of our wives and daughters is priceless.

This ad is outrageous, but not for the reasons that Hotze might have hoped.

For one thing, its fiction. Police in San Antonio, for instance, have received no complaints involving sexual assaults in public restrooms. Also, its sickening and exploitative.

This sort of strategy, though, has worked before. In Houston, an ordinance designed to protect the rights of LGBTQ citizens, the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, failed by a large margin in 2015, largely due to a sustained campaign linking the law to sex crimes.

At this point, the best reaction to that argument is outrage  not the manufactured variety, but rather the righteous kind.

On Thursday night, at a town hall on Senate Bill 6 moderated by WOAIs Randy Beamer at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, more than half the crowd walked out in righteous indignation. The panel included Mike Knuffke of the San Antonio Family Association, who suggested about 15 minutes into the event that transgender students could simply use the faculty restrooms.

Its not that big of an issue, he said.

At that, Lauryn Farris, a transgender woman, stood up and walked out of the room.

Were done. Were leaving, she said.

More than half the crowd followed, chanting, Trans rights are human rights.

As El-P tweeted: This is not a drill.

bchasnoff@express-news.net
Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

Trend:

Azerbaijani Armed Forces soldier Chingiz Abbasov was killed Mar. 11 morning as a result of armed attack on Azerbaijani positions from the Armenian Armed Forces, the press service of the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a message.

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.
Wild fires have burned thousands of acres and claimed the lives of cattle

By Diego Flammini

Assistant Editor, North American Content

Farms.com

Wildfires in parts of the United States have caused significant damage to farms and land in different states, including Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Reports suggest more than one million acres of land have burned and cattle have been lost. Some farmers lost their lives trying to save their cattle from the blazes.

In Texas, Cody Crockett and Sydney Wallace, a young ranching couple, and their friend Sloan Everett lost their lives trying to save cattle from the fire.

(Codys) mama told me today that the last two years that hes been at that ranch has been the happiest part of his life, so he was doing exactly what he wanted to do, Pastor Thacker Haynes told ABC 7Amarillo during a memorial for the trio.

A fundraising page has been set up for Cody and Sydneys families to cover funeral costs.



Gray County, Texas rancher Ron Ferguson loads cattle.

Photo: The Amarillo Globe News via AP Michael Schumacher

Plum Thicket farm, a 45,000-sow operation in Oklahoma owned by Smithfield Foods, suffered damages and animal losses because of the fire.

"While we are deeply thankful that no employees were harmed in the fire, we lament the unnecessary loss of animals and the devastation to the surrounding community, company spokesperson Kathleen Kirkham said in a statement, according to Meatingplace. We are continuing to assess the damage and are grateful for the efforts of local first responders throughout this situation."

Farmers in Kansas are also dealing with significant losses due to the fires.

Its pretty much a catastrophe, Greg Gardiner, a rancher near Ashland, told the Associated Press, adding he's lost at least 500 cattle and more could perish. Its as bad as a mind can make it.



Cattle grazes near a wildfire in Protection, Kansas.

The Wichita Eagle via AP Bo Rader

Farmers assisting first responders

Wildfires are also causing havoc in Colorado, where barns, cattle and machinery have been lost.

But farmers are also using their machinery to help first responders.

Many farmers used their tractors to cut fire lines to keep the flames from spreading, according to the Denver Post.

There (were) dozens of people out there with disks and tractors trying to get in front of (the fire), Steven Meakins told the Post. But its pretty scary when youre in a tractor and youre out in front of it and you cant see the fire because of the smoke and dust. Your heart is racing.

This is what we do, us farmers, Roland Barkey told the Post. If you see smoke, you just get your rig and head to it.

Ag community coming together to help their own

Tallian Thompson, a farmer from Midland County, Texas, is donating $30,000 of hay and auctioning a deer hunt in Stonewall County. All the proceeds from the auction will go towards helping families.

Id give them everything I got if I could but you just do what you can, he told News West 9.

Many farm organizations in the impacted states have also set up ways to contribute financial, hay and other donations.
4-H Canada and Farm Credit Canada (FCC) are proud to announce the extension of FCC funding to 4-H Canada until 2020. FCCs annual 4-H Canada funding commitment of $250,000 supports national, provincial and club level programs and initiatives, including the popular FCC 4-H Club Fund. The announcement was made at a luncheon celebrating Canadas first ever Agriculture Day on February 16 in Ottawa, Ontario. (Photo attached)



4-H Canada and FCC have many shared values, particularly in their efforts to foster a thriving agricultural community in Canada. The partnership between the two organizations, which spans more than 25 years, is one of pride for both organizations. 2017 represents a great opportunity to celebrate this partnership as Canada celebrates the 150 years since Confederation150 years of Canadian heritage that includes strong agricultural roots. 4-H Canadas goal of helping young Canadians Learn To Do By Doing in a safe, inclusive and fun environment has been a strong thread in the story of Canadian agriculture, and has been supported greatly by FCC throughout the life of the FCC 4-H Club Fund and other funding initiatives.



For Canadas leading agriculture lender, nurturing responsible, caring and contributing young people who are committed to positively impacting their communities across Canada is a win-win outcome.



FCC believes in building partnerships that help grow and sustain a bright future for Canadian agriculture, said Michael Hoffort, FCC president and CEO. We are proud to partner with 4-H Canada in creating programs and opportunities that really encourage young people aspiring to have careers in agriculture and who are the industrys future leaders, contributors and innovators.



We are extremely grateful to FCC for this generous support and the significant contributions they have made to the 4-H movement in Canada as one of our longest standing partners, said 4-H Canada CEO, Shannon Benner. FCCs commitment to supporting positive outcomes and tangible benefits for young leader has made a long-lasting impact at every level of 4-H in Canada over the past quarter century and will continue to do so in 2017 and beyond.



This valuable partnership between 4-H Canada and FCC helps to create meaningful opportunities for agricultural and rural youth in communities across Canada. FCCs commitment to working with organizations furthering positive dialogue around agriculture, such as Agriculture More Than Ever (agriculturemorethanever.ca), and on initiatives such as Canadas Agriculture Day, provides youth in programs such as 4-H with the resources and opportunities to take pride in being part Canadas vibrant agriculture community for the next 150 years.

Source: FCC 4-H Club Fund
Sheep handling equipment represented the whole gamut from paddock to plate and, with sheep such a major part of the Russell's farming operation, it demonstrated a range of easy handling equipment right from the Prattley portable sheep yards for $7000 and vet marking cradle at $2100, through to the wooden butcher's block and stainless steel electric meat saw for $500.
At another election, the first Bob Hawke victory I think, the local who was handing out the ALP how-to-vote cards was listening to a Sydney radio station and when we still had an hour of voting time left, he announced "we have won", so he put away his cards and went home.
The efficient and reliable CVT transmission is carried over from the LWB Puma range, reinforced to handle the extra power of the Optum CVT, with a strengthened casting, new rear axle and double planetary final drives. The CVT transmission has a useable speed range from 20 metres an hour to a top speed of 50km/h, without needing to change any gears.
Charlize Theron is the crown jewel of Her Majestys Secret Intelligence Service, Agent Lorraine Broughton in exciting new spy thriller, Atomic Blonde. From the director of John Wick and upcoming Marvel release, Deadpool 2 (David Leitch), the film also stars John Goodman, Til Schweiger, Eddie Marsan, Sofia Boutella and Toby Jones, and is based on Antony Johnstons graphic novel, The Coldest City.

Atomic Blonde, in cinemas August 11, 2017

Agent Broughton is described as equal parts spycraft, sensuality and savagery, willing to deploy any of her skills to stay alive on her impossible mission. In the new flick, well see her travel alone to Berlin to deliver a dossier out of the city, but he becomes tangled in the deadliest game of spies shes ever been a part of.

Now a brand new trailer for the movie has been released, showcasing just some of the chaos and action we should expect when the film hits the big screen. You can check the trailer out below:

Atomic Blonde comes to UK cinemas on Friday, August 11, 2017.

by Daniel Falconer for www.femalefirst.co.uk

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Princess Charlotte is the boss in the Cambridge household.

The Cambridge family

The two-year-old daughter of Prince William and Duchess Catherine reportedly has a strong personality and is "ruling the roost" even over her older brother, three-year-old Prince George.

Samantha Burge, who is married to a warrant officer, spoke with Catherine at the unveiling of a new war memorial in London on Thursday (09.03.17) and got to speak to the 35-year-old beauty about her children.

She shared: "[Catherine] said that Charlotte is growing up really fast. She is the one in charge ... We have both got two-year-olds and they are ruling the roost. It was a bit of a mummy chat."

Catherine and William attended the service with Prince Harry and Queen Elizabeth, who officially opened the new shrine in remembrance of those who lost their lives in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

A religious ceremony was held earlier in the day, and Harry, 31, read out a biblical passage.

He relayed: "There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under Heaven . . . A time to love and a time to hate, A time for war and a time for peace.

"From learning the hard way to stay onside with my Colour Sergeant at [military academy] Sandhurst, to the incredible people I served with during two tours in Afghanistan - the experiences I have had over the last 10 years will stay with me for the rest of my life. Inevitably most good things come to an end and I am at a crossroads in my military career."
More than 300 exhibitors will display their products at the 33rd edition of India Carpet Expo, that will take place in New Delhi from March 27-30 under the aegis of Government of India. The show mainly aims to promote cultural heritage and weaving skills of Indian handmade carpets and other floor coverings among the visiting overseas carpet buyers.

More than 300 exhibitors will display their products at the 33rd edition of India Carpet Expo, that will take place in New Delhi from March 27-30 under the aegis of Government of India. The show mainly aims to promote cultural heritage and weaving skills of Indian handmade carpets and other floor coverings among the visiting overseas carpet buyers....#

India Carpet Expo is one of the largest handmade carpet fairs in Asia with a unique platform for the buyers from all over the globe to source the best handmade carpets, rugs and other floor coverings under one roof. It has become a famous destination for handmade carpets across the globe. India's ability in adapting to any type of design, colour, quality and size as per the carpet buyer's specification has made it a household name in international market.

More than 300 exhibitors will display their products at the 33rd edition of India Carpet Expo, that will take place in New Delhi from March 27-30 under the aegis of Government of India. The show mainly aims to promote cultural heritage and weaving skills of Indian handmade carpets and other floor coverings among the visiting overseas carpet buyers....#

Around 400 carpet importers from 60 countries, mainly from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Chile, Germany, Mexico, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Turkey, UK and the US are expected to visit the expo. For the first time, the expo will also see buyers from countries like Bulgaria, Israel, Malaysia, Mauritius, Taiwan, Zimbabwe, Vietnam, Serbia and Hungary.

More than 300 exhibitors will display their products at the 33rd edition of India Carpet Expo, that will take place in New Delhi from March 27-30 under the aegis of Government of India. The show mainly aims to promote cultural heritage and weaving skills of Indian handmade carpets and other floor coverings among the visiting overseas carpet buyers....#

The show is being organised by Carpet Export Promotion Council (CEPC).(PA)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
CHILLIWACK, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 03/20/17 -- GARMATEX HOLDINGS LTD. (OTC PINK: GRMX) (the "Company") advises that the Company's management is unaware of any undisclosed material change in the Company's operations that would account for the increase in market activity. The Company advises that, other than the entry into a master sublicense agreement with Garmatex Technologies, Inc., as announced on March 15, 2017, there have been no material changes with respect to the Company.

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
NEW ORLEANS, LA--(Marketwired - March 10, 2017) - Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC ("KSF") and KSF partner, the former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., reminds investors that they have until May 1, 2017 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. (NYSE: CBI), if they purchased the Company's shares between October 29, 2013 and December 10, 2014, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The action is pending in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

What You May Do

If you purchased shares of Chicago Bridge and would like to discuss your legal rights and how this case might affect you and your right to recover for your economic loss, you may, without obligation or cost to you, call toll-free at 1-877-515-1850 or email KSF Managing Partner Lewis Kahn (lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com). If you wish to serve as a lead plaintiff in this class action, you must petition the Court by May 1, 2017.

About the Lawsuit

Chicago Bridge and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.

The alleged false and misleading statements and omissions include that Chicago Bridge: (i) was responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars in liability and had improperly accounted for its goodwill during 2013 to cover losses associated with construction delays and cost overruns on contracts to complete construction on two new nuclear power plants; (ii) failed to establish and disclose an appropriate reserve for this liability in its financial statements; and (iii) lacked effective internal controls over financial reporting.

About Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

KSF, whose partners include the Former Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., is a law firm focused on securities, antitrust and consumer class actions, along with merger & acquisition and breach of fiduciary litigation against publicly traded companies on behalf of shareholders. The firm has offices in New York, California and Louisiana.

To learn more about KSF, you may visit www.ksfcounsel.com.

Contact:

Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

Lewis Kahn, Managing Partner

lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com

1-877-515-1850

206 Covington St.

Madisonville, LA 70447
Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

Standard & Poors Global Ratings affirmed its 'BBB-/A-3' long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings of Kazakhstan, according to the message of the ratings agency.

S&P also affirmed national scale ratings of Kazakhstan at 'kzAA'. The outlook on the long-term ratings is negative.

Our ratings on Kazakhstan remain primarily supported by the governments strong balance sheet, built on past budgetary surpluses accumulated during the era of high commodity prices, said the message.

The ratings of Kazakhstan remain constrained by the agencys view that future policy responses may be difficult to predict due to the highly centralized political environment, the country's moderate level of economic wealth and limited monetary policy flexibility.

The agencys analysts project that the Kazakh economy will return to moderate growth rates starting from 2017, with GDP growth averaging 2.5 percent over 2017-2020.

This will be supported by stronger investments, recovering private consumption, and stronger export performance as the oil price outlook marginally improves, alongside our expectation of accelerated production at the large Kashagan oil field, reads the message.

S&P estimates that trend growth in real per capita GDP of Kazakhstan will amount to about one percent during 2011-2020, at the lower end of the range for countries that display similar levels of development.

The negative outlook on the sovereign ratings of Kazakhstan reflects the agencys view of risks to the countrys fiscal profile over the next 12 months.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn
NEW ORLEANS, LA--(Marketwired - March 10, 2017) - Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC ("KSF") and KSF partner, the former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., reminds investors that they have until May 2, 2017 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: BW), if they purchased the Company's shares between July 1, 2015 and February 28, 2017, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The action is pending in United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.

What You May Do

If you purchased shares of Babcock and would like to discuss your legal rights and how this case might affect you and your right to recover for your economic loss, you may, without obligation or cost to you, call toll-free at 1-877-515-1850 or email KSF Managing Partner Lewis Kahn (lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com). If you wish to serve as a lead plaintiff in this class action, you must petition the Court by May 2, 2017.

About the Lawsuit

Babcock and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.

The alleged false and misleading statements and omissions include that: (i) Babcock's Renewable business had productivity and scheduling issues; (ii) these undisclosed problems decreased profit margins and worsened financial performance; (iii) Babcock's Renewable business suffered from problematic on-site project management and a lack of resources in engineering and project management groups, which resulted in overly aggressive project bidding, project delays, and engineering errors; and (iv) Babcock lacked adequate project management processes in its Renewable business, which negatively impacted performance on key projects from bidding through execution.

About Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

KSF, whose partners include the Former Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., is a law firm focused on securities, antitrust and consumer class actions, along with merger & acquisition and breach of fiduciary litigation against publicly traded companies on behalf of shareholders. The firm has offices in New York, California and Louisiana.

To learn more about KSF, you may visit www.ksfcounsel.com.

Contact:

Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

Lewis Kahn

Managing Partner

lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com

1-877-515-1850

206 Covington St.

Madisonville, LA 70447
(Editor's note: This story has been updated with Air India's clarification)

New Delhi: Air India has been under reporting losses for at least four years, says the countrys top auditor. This under-reporting is not any insignificant amount but a sum of over Rs 6,800 crore between 2012-13 and 2015-16. The airline has, as expected, said it did not do any under provisioning while asserting that its Rs 105 crore operating profit in FY16 was indeed a profit, never mind the observations of the Comptroller & Auditor General (C&AG) that the airline actually posted an operating loss of Rs 321 crore last fiscal.

Since the two erstwhile airlines (Air India and Indian Airlines) merged to form the present entity, the measly Rs 105 crore operating profit was the first time in a decade that the word profit was used for Air India in any form. Now even this figure has been called into question, raising doubts about the accounting standards followed by the state-owned carrier. As the airline and the C&AG continue to differ over what provisioning actually means in standard accounting practice, it is interesting to examine the detailed explanations and instances C&AG has given in its report, of Air Indias operational blunders during the four years under review.

Remember, the airline was in deep financial trouble when the UPA government, in its infinite wisdom, decided to offer it equity support of a whopping Rs 42,182 crore for a 20-year period till 2031-32. Since the government is this ailing airlines sole owner and taxpayers money is being spent in such a large amount to keep this white elephant afloat, the C&AG audited the airlines workings for the four years under review. What the auditor found is startling, to say the least. It has now recommended that the equity support to the airline should be reduced  something the government seems to have agreed to - but there is no clarity on the quantum by which the promised funds infusion will be lessened.

Bleeding international ops: India might take pride in saying that Air India is its international airline of repute, but financially the airlines international operations have bled it dry. As per C&AG, the deficit in recovery of total costs on international operations was Rs 3,755 crore in 2015-16 versus a much lesser Rs 1,759 crore in domestic operations. The airline operated 68 international service, 154 domestic services. Contribution of services to the USA was the highest in international segment; they also brought in a fair share of the losses.

Highest loss was by the Ahmedabad-Mumbai-Newark flight at Rs 2,411.46 crore  this is the deficit the flight incurred in not meeting its total costs. Three other services also brought in losses but it is interesting to see that the San Francisco service, launched with much fanfare in December 2015, was also bringing in a deficit of Rs 43.74 crore vis-a-vis total cost within just three months of operations. USA operations alone brought in cumulative loss of Rs 6,685 crore in FY16.

On-time flights: Between January 2012 and March 2016, 9,808 Air India flights were delayed; 10,037 flights were re-scheduled and 554 cancelled due to non-availability of pilots and cabin crew. This, when the personnel department of the airline noted there were excess pilots besides excess personnel in the in-flight services and operations department. This was contradicted by the H R Department. Anyway, Air India went in a hiring spree for pilots, cabin crew etc. all of last year so it is clear that deployment of manpower is a huge issue for this airline, which has the staff but is unable to utilise it properly.

C&AG found that up to 78 percent of A320 pilots flew less than 72 hours a month; remaining pilots flew more than 72 hours during the same period. So some were being made to fly much more than others  this of course points to mismanagement of the pilot strength available with the airline, leading to huge delays and re-scheduling of flights.

Jet beats Air India: Two major Indian airlines, Air India and Jet Airways, operated international flights on a network mode. In 2009-10, Jet carried less international passengers than AI but as the Maharaja lagged, Jet zoomed ahead. Within two years, it had left behind AI in international passengers and saw an increase of a whopping 32.3 lakh international passengers between 2009-10 and 2014-15. During the same period, Air Indias international passenger number increased by a mere 63,4881. So while Jet carried 86 percent incremental passengers, Air India only saw an increase of 13 percent. In its defence, Air India has said it was unable to add capacity as fast as competitors and therefore capacity share reduced.

Loans take away bailout benefit: The bailout package for Air India in 2012 comprised Rs 42,182 crore equity infusion till 2031-32. But the airlines short-term loans kept rising to more than four times the limits laid down in the turnaround plan, due to failure in generating projected revenue, mainly on account of non-achievement of asset-monetisation target, increase in staff costs," the C&AG said in its report. It said Air India failed to meet its cash-credit limits, leading to short-term loans rising to Rs 14,551 crore as on March 31, 2016 against the target of Rs 3,645.9 crore. C&AG has now recommended that the company and the ministry (Of civil aviation) may need to reassess the requirement of funds envisaged in the turnaround plan. Remember, till March last year, the government has already released Rs 22,280 crore equity to Air India.

H Pradeep Rao, Deputy C&AG said in a news conference that while Air India has said that it has reported an operating profit in fiscal 2016, based on observation of statutory auditors and subsequently by the CAG the airline has not made provisions it should have as per the standard accounting procedures resulting in under reporting of the loss. He further said the airline had made inadequate provisions for payment of various liabilities including out standings to the Airports Authority of India, payment of liability to employees en-cashing leave and also made excess valuation of one of the two properties that it has in Delhi.

While the airline and its auditors slug out over what has been provisioned for and what has been omitted, perhaps the government will examine the dismal operational efficiency of Air India and figure out a way to enhance its revenues, turn it around. Since the NDA government has been categoric about not privatising the airline, this is the only other option.

Air India clarifies: Air India has prepared its accounts for the year 2015-16 in line with the generally accepted accounting principles and accounting standards in force issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

Government Audit during their supplementary audit had made a few observations. The first and the main observation was on non provision of depreciation amounting to Rs 306.43 crores on nine B 787 aircraft which were transferred by Air India to Current Assets under the head of Assets held under disposal.

In this connection Air India had already clarified to the Govt Audit that depreciation is to be provided for fixed assets and not on current assets. This is in accordance with. AS 10 which clearly states that if Assets are held for disposal no depreciation need to be provided.

The Board of Air India had already approved the sale of the nine B 787 aircraft before 31st March 2016 and the mandate for sale was also given before 31st March.

The sale actually took place in the first quarter of this year after the balance sheet date but before the accounts were signed and more importantly the sale was at a value higher than the acquisition cost of the aircraft.

There is no disagreement in classifying the Aircraft as current assets under the head "Assets held for disposal" as the carrying amount of the asset was to be recovered principally through a sale transaction rather than through continuing use.

It is also pertinent to note that had the depreciation been accounted in the previous year the profit on sale of Asset would have increased by the same amount as ultimately the aircraft was sold at a value higher than the acquisition cost and would have increased the income in the current year by Rs 306.43 crores.

The other observation was on non provision of service tax amounting to Rs 15.24 crores on the Revenue sharing arrangement with AIATSL. It is to be noted that a major portion of the same would be taken as input credit and would not affect the loss position.

The operating profit earned in the year 2015-16 of Rs 105 crores is calculated on the basis of reducing the total expenditure excluding only the financing costs from the total revenue. It is therefore the equivalent of Earnings before Interest and Tax (EBIT ) and includes provision of Rs 1867.78 crores of depreciation. Had depreciation been excluded from the Expenditure the operating profit would have significantly increased.

Air India maintains that the observations of Govt. Audit have been adequately replied to and the operating profit of Rs 105 crores is as per the generally accepted accounting Standards.
For a film that set out to be a strong voice against dowry, and encouraging parents to allow their daughters to pick career before marriage, Badrinath Ki Dulhania only ends up reinforcing patriarchy.

With films like Pink, Kahaani 2, Neerja and Dangal, 2016 was a year when Bollywood was unapologetically feminist. These films sensitized the viewer to gender equality while telling stories that were woven around sexual violence, bravery and realizing a long cherished dream. The much-maligned f-word seemed to have become Bollywoods buzzword for the year. So much so, that an old-school producer grumbled to me that Bollywoods new favourite genre was feminist films. Unfortunately, Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya takes Bollywood two steps back.

In the film, Alia Bhatt plays Vaidehi, an ambitious and driven girl from Kota. Varun Dhawans Badrinath Bansal is a 10th pass recovery agent in his fathers loan business. They meet-cute at a wedding. They do a jig. His best friend follows the girl around sneakily taking pictures of her. He proposes marriage. Only she isnt interested. Vaidehi refuses to succumb to the notion that a girls only aim is to get married. She has dreams of flying (quite literally  she wants to become an air hostess). No matter how much Vaidehi refuses to marry him, Badri is unwilling to let her go.

This is a Bollywood romance, so obviously Badri will browbeat Vaidehi until her no eventually turns into yes. Strike one for feminism. Its 2017 and our heroine is still being chased, stalked and teased into succumbing to the heros many charms. It was a slippery slope thereafter.

Sample this: Vaidehi leaves Badri at the altar and runs away. His formidable fathers ego is so hurt he wants his son to hunt down Vaidehi. He wants her body to be hung at the entrance of their home so people know what happens to girls who run away. Badri tracks Vaidehi down to Singapore. Instead of maybe having a conversation with her, he kidnaps Vaidehi, stuffs her in the trunk of his car and drives around while she begs to be let out. Its only when she mentions the cops that he lets her out. If you thought this should be enough to make feisty, independent Vaidehi haul Badri to the closest cop station and get him arrested, you couldnt be more wrong. Instead she saves Badri by demurely telling the cop that its all a misunderstanding! After all, an adarsh bharatiya naari is supposed to downplay and cover up the mistakes of her man. So, what if that man abducted her.

Badri doesnt stop here. He accosts guards at her workplace, gets drunk and creates a ruckus where she lives, slaps his best friend, beats up a man he sees Vaidehi laughing with and nearly strangles her. His excuse? Her love has made him this obnoxious person who gets violent at the drop of a hat. Its all her fault.

By this point in the film, Vaidehi spends nights making rounds of the cop station because of Badris various antics and during the day she is training to be an air hostess. She is inches away from realizing the dream that she fought with her family for. Her manager warns her that their company doesnt want its employees getting entangled with cops but Vaidehi doesnt care. Kyunki galti hamari hai (because the fault is mine) is how she justifies not condemning Badris outrageous behavior.

If there are still any doubts about director Shashank Khaitans very skewed understanding of gender equality, there is a bizarre sequence where Badri is attacked by a group of masked men who grope and molest him. By the time Vaidehi comes to his rescue, the men have torn Badris t-shirt. In what is meant to be an empowering role reversal, she gives him her dupatta to cover himself. Only, this amuses both the actors and the audience. Sexual violence affects both sexes equally. There is nothing funny about sexual violence.

With lines about Jhansi being famous for its Queen or a man being a womans groom rather than her being his bride, theres no doubt that Vaidehi and Badri set out to topple patriarchy. Only theyve ended up resetting old and toxic moral standards for women.
Priyadarshan's crime thriller from last year, Oppam, starring the Malayalam cinema veteran Mohanlal, received unanimous praise from all quarters. It was considered a top contender for Best Film and Best Actor in the Kerala State Film Awards but as a pleasant surprise, parallel cinema got the better of commercial cinema there.

Vidhu Vincent's social drama Manhole and Vinayakan's act in the crime drama Kammatipaadam snatched the top honours away from Oppam and Mohanlal. Now, matters have turned verse for the veteran as his film will not be in the running for the National Film Awards in any of the categories.

The rationale behind the same is not because of its credibility as a good contender for a National Award, but a technical reason. The director of the film, Priyadarshan has been appointed as the head of the jury for the 64th National Film Awards. In order to avoid any conflict of interest, his directorial has not been included in the shortlisted names running for the Best Film or any other category.

The Times of India reports that close to 380 films have been shortlisted for the National Awards this year. The same report quotes Priyadarshan saying, "I have only been sent the list of the movies that are being assessed. I will have a clear idea of the composition of the panel and other details only after I reach Delhi." He adds that the screening will begin on 16 March and will go on for a month.

His films, like Kaalpani in 1996 and Kanchivaram in 2007 brought multiple National Awards to Malayalam cinema. The report by the Times of India states that his film Sia Samayangalil had made it to the final round of nomination for the Golden Globe Awards this year. While this is his first stint as the jury chairperson for the National Film Awards, he has previously chaired the jury for the 2011 International Film Festival of Kerala.
S Shankar's long-awaited science fiction entertainer 2.0 is in the final leg of its shooting that lasted over a year. The shooting kicked off in December 2015 and has completed majority of the shoot now.

Shankar took to Twitter to post a picture of his crew with the caption stating that they just shot a major scene from 2.0. He also added that they are just one song and some patch works away from the completion of the film. The Indian Express reports that Shankar confirmed that majorly, only a song remains to be shot that will be shot next month, featuring Rajinikanth and Amy Jackson.

Jackson finished shooting for the film earlier this week and and will return to the sets next month to shoot for the song with Rajinikanth. International Business Times reports that the trailer of the film might be launched on 14 April on the occasion of the Tamil New Year. However, there is no official word of confirmation from the makers yet.

2.0 is the sequel to Shankar's blockbuster film Enthiraan or Robot, as it was named in Hindi. Rajnikanth will reprise his double role as scientist, Dr Vaseegaran, and robot Chitti. While that film starred Aishwarya Rai Bachchan opposite the megastar, the sequel will see him romance with Jackson.

With my team after finishing a major scene of #2.0 . One song and some patch works are only the balance pic.twitter.com/SG6o1nLUW4  Shankar Shanmugham (@shankarshanmugh) March 9, 2017

Also, Hindi actor Akshay Kumar will play the negative role in the film. Hindustan Times reports that Kumar will play a dark character who plans to destroy the entire world with the help of birds. This is the first time that he has collaborated with Rajinikanth. The Tamil superstar has collaborated with Shankar for the third time after the 2007 film Shivaji: The Boss and Enthiraan.

2.0 also stars Adil Hussain, Sudhanshu Pandey and Riyaz Khan. It is produced by Lycra Productions and will be released simultaneously in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. It is slated to release on Diwali.
For those of us who have seen Rangoon, it is not difficult to draw parallels between Jaanbaaz Julia, played by Kangana Ranaut, and yesteryear icon Fearless Nadia, on whom the fierce yet vulnerable character is loosely modeled. There are multiple common aspects such as a romantic relationship with a rich Parsi film producer, the swashbuckling action sequences and the unmistakable signature prop of the 'Hunterwali'  the formidable whip.

Despite these parallels, there are certain factors which do not allow the graphs of these two characters to converge. The first such dissimilarity is their place of origin. One of the initial scenes in Rangoon has Julia disclosing her real name which sounds like anything but the real name of Nadia (Mary Ann Evans). Unlike Julia, Nadia's place of origin was Australia.

In another similar dissimilarity, Julia mentions that she is an illegitimate child as she is unaware of the identity of her father. On the other hand, Nadia was well-versed with the whereabouts of her father who was a British army soldier, commissioned in India, killed by the Germans during the Second World War. This is probably the reason why Nadia would not sway from her loyalty towards the British, like Julia did in Rangoon.

Though Julia was initially biased towards the British, the bias probably came from her mentor Rusi Bilimoria's business relationship with the British. In another parallel, the Wadia family, which launched Nadia's career and which she married into, had a deep regard for the British. In fact, the Wadia family's loyalty towards the British goes back to 1736 when Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia began the Wadia shipbuilding dynasty by obtaining a contract from the East India Company.

Had Nadia been more 'Fearless', she would have dared to go against the British or against her family for the larger good of the nation that turned her into a star overnight. However, she chose to stay true to her father's colonial mindset and confined her fearlessness to the screen.

Rangoon, in many ways, is a silent tribute to her sister-in-law, the much less celebrated Dina Wadia. Dina was married to Neville Wadia, the cousin of Homi Wadia. Homi is the Parsi producer on whose life Saif Ali Khan's character is loosely based and who went on to marry Nadia. No, he did not tightrope walk his way eventually to the British's enemy front to avenge his wife's death.

On the other hand, Dina Wadia did do so metaphorically when she chose to marry an Indian Parsi man against the steely will of her father, the founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah. She was born on 15 August 1919 as Dina Jinnah, the only child of Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Though she was raised as a Muslim, she was subjected to a bitter relationship between her father and her Parsi mother in her formative years. Also, she felt constantly neglected because of her father's undivided, and rather uni-dimensional, attention towards the birth of the other sibling, Pakistan.

That is why when her father was struggling for a separate voice, and in fact a separate country for Muslims, she chose to align with an Indian Parsi household. When her father strongly opposed her decision to convert into a Parsi, she retorted in the most poetic way possible, "Father, there were millions of Muslim girls in India. Why did you not marry one of them?"

Her relationship with her father, after her marriage, reduced to a formal exchange of pleasantries. She addressed him as the Grey Wolf, a reference to his idol, the Turkish dictator Kemal Ataturk while he returned the favour by greeting her as Mrs Wadia, a title that gnawed him within yet kept him aware of his daughter's betrayal that fueled the fire inside him to root for his other offspring, Pakistan.

Unfortunately, Dina's marriage did not last as long as even her father's. She separated from Neville merely five years after her wedding. With two children to look after, she chose to raise them in India rather than making a convenient homecoming to Pakistan. As Jinnah struggled to give birth to Pakistan, Dina invested her time in nurturing her flesh and blood.

The birth of Pakistan on 14 August 1947, led to Jinnah becoming the Father of the Nation and the first Governor-General of the country. However, his other daughter did not join the celebration. She instead tuned into the radio that night in a broadcast from Hawa Mahal, New Delhi and reflected on her own Tryst with Destiny. And as destiny would have it, she visited Pakistan only to attend the funeral of her father in 1948.

From being the lesser known child of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Dina became a bold Parsi woman who questioned identities: her identity as a prospective Pakistani, her mother's identity of a submissive Muslim wife and even her father's identity of an Islamic leader. She argued that her father was by origin, a Khoja Shia, and embraced Islam only because his grandfather's father, a Hindu of Lohana caste, converted to Islam.

Taking a cue from her mother's hereditary business in the textile industry, she also took keen interest in the management of Bombay Dyeing, the textile firm managed by her son Nusli Wadia. But as she gradually saw the mills giving way to malls and Bombay dying its natural death to pave the way for Mumbai, she made up her mind to move to the New York with her daughter.

Her frequent visits to India and a much talked about visit to Pakistan in 2004 are well-documented. Those who meet her address their concerns about her frail health but also make sure to laud her indomitable spirit. "She has so much of history within herself. Yet she never fails to look forward. She keeps asking me about my IPL team," said actor Preity Zinta, who co-owns the Indian Premier League of Kings XI Punjab with her then-boyfriend Ness Wadia, the grandson of Diana.

As she aptly points out, Dina harbours 97 years of history within herself. While she did not die a martyr's death during the Freedom struggle, she is an unsung hero as she dared to defy one of the most feudal and intimidating minds of modern history. For that alone, she needs to be dubbed as 'Fearless', several notches higher than her sister-in-law Nadia.

She may not wield a whip to crack the earth in order to get noticed. But the fact that Rangoon pays an unspoken tribute to her choices speaks volumes of her character. And so does the fact that she was born on 15 August, rather than on its ill-fated eve.
How do sex, gender and technology come together in the modern world? Richa Kaul Padte is the managing editor of Deep Dives, an award-winning digital imprint, and is interested in examining that question. Deep Dives' first collection was called Sexing the Interwebs, and ran in 2015. Richa and the team is now running Sexing the Interwebs: Season Two. Excerpts from an interview:

Richa, please tell us about how Deep Dives started. What was the genesis of Sexing the Interwebs Season 1 and what prompted you to put together a season 2?

Deep Dives began in 2015 as a freewheeling conversation between Bishakha Datta and myself. Bishakha runs Point of View, a womens non-profit in Mumbai (which, by the way, is where I had my first proper job), and they had some funding available. I was at a place in my life where I was dealing with severe health issues and feeling pretty uninspired, and so I think both of us felt excited about the prospect of making this thing together. Were also both writers, and we love good writing, so I think in a way the impetus behind Deep Dives and Sexing the Interwebs was that we wanted to create the type of writing we like to read  about issues that matter to us.

Gender, sexuality and technology  Sexing the Interwebs looks at an intersection of these in its featured writing, artwork. Why are you specifically interested in these three ideas? A lot of your personal writing on your website also looks at these subjects.

There are so many ways to look at this, but heres a simple one: technology is increasingly central to our lives. Im not only talking about rich people with iPhone 7s, but I mean basic Nokia phones, or Facebook, or CCTV surveillance. Digital technologies are becoming embedded in the ways in we navigate the world, and the ways we communicate with each other.

At the same time, there are massive gender inequalities, not just in India but everywhere, which results in women being left out of conversations about technology (and like with all inequalities, the more marginalised women are, the further away theyll be from the tiny room where these conversations are happening). Aside from being sexist and perpetuating all sorts of further inequalities, this creates a situation where decisions about technology are made on behalf of women, which tend to translate as: for the protection of women. And often, what women are being protected from is the threat of sexuality, which is apparently taking all sorts of new violent forms with digital technology.

To me the super interesting (or terrible) thing about all this is that no one is actually asking women how they feel. I mean, we know for a fact that Indian women are using technology to navigate sexuality: porn, dating, sexting, selfies. We also know for a fact that access to technology is unequal, and so are experiences of tech  such as the gender-specific abuse women regularly face on Twitter. So it follows that what would really make a lot of sense now, in this new digital India, is to make some serious room for womens experiences of gender, sex and tech.

Oh, maybe thats the answer to your question about why were working on these three ideas. Because its the sensible thing to do.

How has technology impacted gender and sexuality (and the other way round as well)?

I think it works both ways. So on the one hand, you have technology shaping new negotiations of sexuality, and also allowing sexually marginalised groups including women to explore and express desires and solidarities.

And on the other hand, the pursuit of gender equality has the potential to actually shape the future of technology. I think given the way technology is seeping into every aspect of our lives, digital rights are totally bound up with other human rights. And if we have enough diverse voices discussing these intersections, well hopefully end up asking more questions like: are CCTV cameras making women feel safe or uncomfortable? Or, say, is the way social media currently functions gender equal?

Oh and as for sex influencing tech, I really recommend a book called The Erotic Engine by Patchen Barss. Its a history of how the pursuit of porn has powered all sorts of communication technologies through the ages.

Why do you think a platform like Deep Dives is needed  or rather, what does it make possible?

So this brings me back to what I was saying before, about how women are excluded from conversations about technology. A really good example of this is the proposed porn ban, which is something I have been obsessed with for years now. Theres this idea that we need to ban porn to protect Indias vulnerable women (seriously, thats verbatim from the Supreme Court petition), but what about the tons of women who watch porn? There are so many of us, but weve all been left out of the conversation.

I think in a nutshell, Deep Dives (and currently, Sexing the Interwebs) is a way of putting women and trans* people at the forefront of the conversations weve been excluded from. But instead of continuing the debates in the same manner, we want to shift the terms. Deep Dives is about well-told narratives and compelling art, but its also about using language thats actually relevant to real people and not legal petitions. We want to create a space for storytelling that reads like experience: messy, sweaty, sexy.

What for you, as an editor (and also writer), have been particularly interesting, fulfilling stories to have on the site? Could you talk about some of these in a little more detail  why you felt they were important, what conversations they triggered. Also, was there something quirky you came across that you mightnt have known of before? For instance, when publishing the story on A twist in a straight line?

Ive genuinely loved working on every single one of these stories, because theyve all taught me things I didnt know. I guess thats the thing about deep storytelling: as soon as you scratch below the surface, and start to see interviewees as full people rather than quotes, you are automatically revealing something new  because everyones experience is different.

But since you asked, there are two things that immediately stand out for me. Last month we published an essay by Neha Dixit that followed one womans experience of revenge porn. This is a story Ive wanted to tell for ages, because there is so much victim-blaming around this particular type of consent violation (why did you let him take that kind of picture? and so on) that women just dont feel safe coming forward. Whats more, all the Indian reportage around these cases is about scandal and shame, rather than what it actually feels like to be a victim of this crime. I think Neha did such a great job of staying true to the survivors story.

The other piece is a poem by Priya-Alika Elias that we published as a part of season one. I dont want to give too much away, but its called Text and it is exquisite. Honestly, I didnt edit a single word, it was just so beautiful.

What are some of the other stories youre looking at exploring on Deep Dives or in your personal writing? Are there any questions you have that youd love to explore?

Future projects are still in the planning stages, but I can tell you for certain that were definitely going to take deeper dives into sexuality. Bishakhas done loads of work with sex workers over the years, so thats a thread were keen to follow. And were also very interested in younger women, and what negotiations of sexuality might look like for, say, a teenage girl.

As for me, I will probably continue to chase my love for porn until it either results in a book or in my laptop overheating. I think its too soon to tell which way the chips will fall.
Among the various events commemorating World War I (1914-18) on the occasion of its centenary are screenings of a remarkable documentary film. Farewell My Indian Soldier, made by Vijay Singh and doing the rounds, investigates a little known fact of history the presence of 140,000 Indians defending France against Germany, about 10,000 of who lost their lives at Ypres and Neuve Chapelle. Documentaries about large events of the past normally use a format beginning broadly  like the socio-political causes of war  but Vijay Singh goes about it differently, to focus more on a personal journey. I caught the film at the Alliance Francaise at Bengaluru, where it made a big emotional impact on a packed audience. If the film  running to a little more than an hour  is predictably humanistic in its approach, it is hardly possible to raise more complex issues in a work of this length. Still, it leads to our asking more questions about the military, nationhood and historical memory which merit deeper answers, especially given the surplus of war patriotism in the public space.

Farewell My Indian Soldier tells the story of Monique, a girl in France who discovers accidentally that her great-great grandfather was an Indian soldier stationed in France during World War I and about whom nothing could be known. On Moniques questioning her grandmother reveals that when she became pregnant it was found that her blood group was not French, but apparently associated with a foreign race. This led Moniques grandmother to the knowledge that her father had been born to her grandmother out of wedlock after a relationship with an Indian soldier billeted in their barn, when he was on furlough. The birth of Moniques half-Indian great-grandfather caused a scandal locally and the boy grew up never fully accepted by the villagers as a Frenchman and one of their own.

Vijay Singh uses Moniques personal journey to unearth her ancestry to investigate the involvement of Indian soldiers in WWI. Among his discoveries are the following facts: the Indian Army was the largest standing army available to the British and when war casualties became increasingly difficult to bear, several battalions of Indian soldiers heading for Egypt were diverted abruptly to France as reinforcements. They had never fought in such conditions before and were ill-equipped for war in the colder climates. Yet, they accredited themselves heroically in battle and twelve of them were awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest British recognition for valour. From this, the film moves on to personal stories: about the racial discrimination faced by the Indians, British-Indian friendships, the letters sent home by the soldiers and the legends in India around those like Gabar Singh Negi (from Chamba, Himachal) who are icons in their respective hometowns, and whose acts of valour are still revered.

The first question that Farewell My Indian Soldier leads one to ask is why Indian involvement in WWI is not being widely commemorated across India today  when the Australians and New Zealanders are celebrating the ANZAC. The answer we get is the most obvious one but not one that we may wish to confront  that the Indian nation cannot commemorate a military engagement by the army before India as a nation came into being. The Indian army, in other words, is a much older institution than the independent nation and served causes the future nation could have no interest in. Aakar Patel recently launched a diatribe against the Indian army calling its soldiers mercenaries who were accorded nationalist status after 1947 and one sees where such a view comes from. It presumes (rather carelessly) that a soldiers primary function is as an agent of nationalism. My point here is that soldiers are, ideally, professionals meant to win battles and not vehicles for patriotic sentiment; a comparison of the achievements of the INA (who were patriotic volunteers) under the Japanese with those of the British Indian army (an army of professional soldiers) hardly favours the former. The courageous doings of the Indian army in WWI therefore merits pride from us  as ethnic Indians if not as Indian nationals.

The recognition of soldiers as professionals rather than patriots leads us into another enquiry: what are the classes and categories constituting the Indian army as fighting men? One recognises primarily that every Indian cannot be deemed fit for military duty and a soldier must preferably come from martial stock of some kind. In the Emperor Akbars army, a classic history of the Moghul period tells us, each fighting man had at least two or three personal servants. What this implies is that most citizens are not fit to be soldiers and this is regardless of the patriotic fervour which might reside in him/her. In Vijay Singhs film soldiers are both Hindus and Muslims but one notices a preponderance of martial types like Sikhs, Gurkhas and Rajputs; Negi was himself a Rajput. Farewell My Indian Soldier later invokes Jallianwala Bagh (1919) and laments that many former soldiers who had fought for Britain on the battlefields of France could have been among the victims there. But the soldiers under General Dyer were largely Indian and we cannot lose sight of the possibility of WWI veterans being on the British side, either. Not questioning the cause one is fighting for is a moral requisite for a professional soldier.

Another aspect that Farewell My Indian Soldier gives attention to is the correspondence left behind by soldiers writing home from France. Much of this is touching  their sense of wonder at the levels of social equality they see, the education given to women and so on; France is after all the seat of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. But one thing that struck me personally  partly because of my interest in narration in Indian cinema  is the paucity of what may be termed cold observation.

To elaborate, let us consider the experience of a soldier receiving kindness and care from a French family, which was perhaps how the story of Moniques great-grandfather began. Rather than describe the people in the family and how they respond to him individually, it would seem that what the Indian soldier records is the extraordinary kindness of the villagers. The accounts seem to abound in generalities and truisms: how nice people are, how much equality between the sexes is in evidence, etc. A key participant mentioned by Vijay Singh is a Rajput aristocrat named Amar Singh who was a cavalry officer at the time. Amar Singh regretted that accounts of Indian participation in the war and India valour were not left behind  as were multitudes of British and French accounts. Amar Singh himself bequeathed several volumes of his diaries but the film does not give us a sense of his personal viewpoint; it is as though Amar Singhs account could only be a generic one about the war. As a parallel, Indian popular films generally contain a plethora of sentiments but little of observational value.

As already suggested, the Indian soldiers, in their correspondence, often display deep appreciation of a more equitable society in France, than the one they belonged to. The French, to them, seemed much less weighed down by the hierarchical considerations that they were subjected to in their homeland. But there is an ironic twist to the film here which the director Vijay Singh seems oblivious of. Monique, as already indicated, is looking desperately for her Indian ancestor and she comes to India to seek him out. The chances of her finding him are less than slim but the person she fervently considers as a candidate is the aristocrat Amar Singh: he was in the locality at around the time her great-grandfather was conceived. Monique scrutinises Amar Singhs voluminous diaries for a record of a liaison with a French woman but is disappointed at finding none. What I find deeply ironic here is that a French girl from a more equitable society than Indias should seemingly wish for an aristocratic ancestor  when there were tens of thousands of less highly born Indians fighting in France at around the same time, who could equally have been the ancestor she was so ardently seeking out.

MK Raghavendra is a Swarna Kamal winning film scholar and author of The Oxford India Short Introduction to Bollywood (2016)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

National Company KazMunayGass (NC KMG) planned disposal of a 51 percent stake in KMG International NV (KMGI) to CEFC China Energy Company Limited will probably have a neutral effect on NC KMGs credit profile, Fitch Ratings international ratings agency said in a message.

The finalization of the transaction announced in December 2015 is pending the satisfaction of multiple conditions including an approval by the Romanian government, reads the message. The parties expect the deal to close in mid-2017. Fitch estimates that although the transaction would further strengthen NC KMGs liquidity, the companys gross leverage will be broadly unaffected.

In December 2016 NC KMG and CEFC renewed the sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with respect to the stake in KMGI, the ratings agency said. This confirms CEFCs commitment to the deal despite the ongoing investigation by Romanias Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT).

The announced $680 million in disposal proceeds is positive factor for NC KMG, while deconsolidation of EBITDA (measure of operating performance, equals to earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) generated by KMGIs refining, marketing and trading businesses would be negative, Fitchs analysts said.

Fitch continues to consolidate KMGI in NC KMGs financials as the deal has not been finalized.

Fitch puts more emphasis on NC KMGs gross financial metrics.

Fitch maintains KMGI on Rating Watch Negative (RWN). Fitch will resolve the RWN following the completion of the disposal and clarification of the outcome of the investigation by the DIICOT.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn
New Delhi: The BJP on Saturday headed for a huge win in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand while the Congress forged ahead in Punjab marked by an anti-incumbency wave in the three states while they were locked in a close contest in Goa and Manipur.

According to trends available after three hours of counting of votes in the Assembly elections in the five states, the BJP was leading in 291 out of 396 constituencies in the 403-member Assembly in a stunning showing leaving their rivals far behind.

The BJP, which had just 47 seats in the outgoing Assembly, garnered 40 per cent vote share, in the most riveting contest seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity and demonetisation. The nascent SP-Congress coalition was ahead in 69 seats while Mayawati's party BSP put up a poor show leading only in 17 places. The SP, whose campaign was spearheaded by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on development agenda, led in 58 seats.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj Singh was leading in Noida. Tainted minister Gayatri Prajapati, who is absconding after UP police booked him in an alleged gangrape case and

attempt to rape a minor, was leading in Amethi. He is pitted against Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Sinh, and Ameeta Singh (Cong)  his present wife. With a 45 percent vote share in Uttarakhand, the BJP was leading in 52 constituencies while the Congress was ahead only in 16 segments, according to trends available for all the 70 seats.

In Punjab, the Congress was leading in 65 of the 117 constituencies while the AAP, making a debut in Punjab Assembly polls, and the SAD were locked in a close contest for the second position ahead in 25 and 20 seats respectively. SAD's coalition partner BJP was leading in four seats.

In Goa, the Congress was leading in eight followed by the ruling BJP in five segments as trends poured for all the 40 constituencies. Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar was trailing in Mandrem

constituency where Congress's Dayanand Sopte was ahead. The first result went in favour of the Maharashtravadi Gomantak Party (MGP), whose contestant Dipak Pawaskar defeated Ganesh Gaonkar of BJP in Sanvordem.

Leader of Opposition Pratapsinh Rane (Congress) is leading BJP's Vishwajit Krishnarao Rane in Poriem seat. In Manipur, the ruling Congress won 3 seats and was leading in 8 while the BJP bagged two seats and was ahead in 10. Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh won from Thoubal Assembly constituency in Manipur by over 8,000 votes. Rights activist Irom Sharmila (PRJA), who was making her poll debut, was one of the contestants.
The five state Assembly elections are more evidence of the great Indian divide. India is today split into two sharp camps: Pro-Narendra Modi and anti-Narendra Modi.

And Modi is the man.

As much as his magic did not work in his deal with the Shiromani Akali Dal in Punjab (and as we can see Goa and Punjab are a bit iffy), as far as the cherry was concerned in Uttar Pradesh, Modi is the star. He swamped the state with his juggernaut. The fact is he has emphasised his singular position as a national leader and if one adds the showing in Uttarakhand  which was also a romp for the BJP  it has to be accepted that the Modi factor is well, alive and pretty national in texture.

The nation still loves him, finds him credible and worthy of following. It also strengthens his hand for the Delhi civic elections and puts the AAP on the backfoot. The Arvind Kejriwal bandwagon has lost its wheels and is probably the most depressed entity after these results.

Personality politics are now central to Indian state elections which really should not come as a surprise since this element is not new. The party cadres are secondary to Modi, Captain Amarinder Singh, the Yadavs, Navjot Singh Sidhu and even Rahul Gandhi, who is being trolled for the loss of face in Uttar Pradesh, but any call for his removal as the Congress leader will be muted now that Punjab has become the engine for the Congress revival. It has enough octane being a pivotal state and Indias bread basket to create a national resurgence if it delivers the wings for an 'Udta Punjab'.

The one interesting fallout of these results is the endless controversy that will be created about whether Rahul should stay on as Congress leader in the fight from this moment onwards. If he can be damned so out of hand for the Uttar Pradesh failure, it seems a bit unfair that he is denied credit in the states where the Congress showed its mettle. While Modi might feel he has vanquished Mayawati, the Yadavs, Kejriwal and Rahul in one fell swoop, the little fly in the ointment is Punjab because the Congress hasnt been decimated and booted off the chessboard.

If it had lost Punjab, the party literally would have been over.

Despite the white noise about Rahul and his abilities or the lack thereof, the question the deserters from the Congress ranks who will now reconsider crawling back is whether the dynasty is their best adhesive and with the addition of Priyanka to the mix, is the Gandhi label still their best bet? Even as the Congress tries to build on its Punjab triumph, the BJP is now tasked with the responsibility of making a success of Uttar Pradesh by way of governance and results.

The state is a fractious and volatile one. With no opposition of any sort to the Modi Colossus, the absolute power it has won could be a detriment. If it fails to improve things by attacking crime, ending gang wars, reducing casteism and balancing the Hindu-Muslim stress factor the Modi magic will have to be more than sleight of hand. Uttar Pradesh will be impatient and expect miracles. Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for and landslide victories tagged to one person comes with its own tensions.

It also makes it no different from the Congress dynasty and the 'brand' is what will be on the top of the totem pole for every state election in the future. Indira became the party; Modi hopefully will be a lot more savvy and avoid the same abyss of being bigger than the base.

Follow the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Election Live
BJP got a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, but faced a setback in Goa on Saturday. After a neck and neck fight, Congress emerged as the single largest party with 17 seats and the ruling BJP was contained to 13 seats. However, both the parties failed to cross the majority mark of 21 seats. While AAP did not open its account in the tiniest state, it is the smaller parties and the Independent candidates that will now play a major role in deciding the political fate of Goa.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which made its debut in Goa, faced a humiliating defeat in the state. Reports suggest that the Congress may stake claim to form the next government with the help of NCP, MGP and Goa Forward Party.

National general secretary of the Congress party Digvijaya Singh has said that the Congress party will make every effort to form the next government by joining hands with other parties (MGP, NCP and GF) in case of a hung Assembly in Goa. He further said that the party will conduct a meeting and take the final call. He added that in case of an alliance, the chief minister will still be from the Congress party.

Potential Goa kingmaker Vijay Sardesai of Goa Forward Party, which won three seats, told CNN-News 18, "Congress can't take us for granted, we'll support them. Need to see how our party can grow. Will take stock of final numbers this evening."

Ajay Jha writes for Firstpost: "BJP was aware that ineffective and inefficient Parsekar would not be able to steer the party to victory. Even its alliance partner Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) knew it when it snapped ties with BJP after its demand to replace Parsekar as chief minister was overruled. Probably it was too late and replacing a chief minister just before election would have sent the wrong signal. And for this very reason, BJP decided against seeking votes in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who limited his association with Goa polls to a mere rally that he addressed in Panaji and spoke barely for 30 minutes, which must have been the shortest rally that he has ever addressed..."

The incumbent chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar lost from Mandrem by over 3,000 votes, while his deputy Francis D'Souza won from Mapusa. He submitted his resignation to the governor on Saturday. Another BJP leader and prospective chief ministerial candidate Michael Lobo won from Calangute constituency.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said that the party will stake claim if they get enough support. "We are all responsible for the fractured mandate," he said during a press conference on Saturday.

From the Congress camp, the Leader of Opposition Pratapsingh Rane has won from Poreim. Former chief minister Digambar Kamat won from the Margao constituency, while Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte defeated the incumbent chief minister in Mandrem.

Three exit polls Axis My India, C-Voter and MRC had given the BJP an edge over its competitors. It had projected 15 to 22 seats for the party, followed by Congress. MRC predicted 15 seats for BJP, 10 for Congress and AAP seven. Meanwhile, C-voter had predicted that 18 for the BJP and six for Congress.

The voting for the Goa Assembly Election 2017 concluded on 4 February. According to the Election Commission's estimates, 83 percent of Goas registered 11.09 lakh voters exercised their right.

Apart from the ruling BJP and main Opposition party Congress, Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) were in the fray. The RSS breakaway faction Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) made their debut in this election.

In 2012 Goa Assembly Election, the BJP in alliance with MGP had won comfortably by defeating the Congress in 24 out of 40 seats. BJP won 21 seats while the MGP won three seats. The Congress won nine seats with NCP. BJP MLA Frances D Souza won with maximum margin of votes. Goa Vikas Party and Independents managed two and five seats respectively. Right after the election, the Cortalim seat had to go for bypolls following MLA Mantanhy Saldanhas death. It was the first time that BJP had won in a significant number of constituencies that had dominant minority population.
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The exit polls projected BJP winning an average of 15 to 20 seats. Though the BJP is likely to emerge as the single largest party, there is a possibility that the party may not reach the majority mark of 21 seats. A day before the counting day, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said that the BJP is confident of winning a majority and will not require any post-poll alliance.

Being Indias tiniest state, the average votes cast on 4 February comes to 24,627 votes cast in each of Goas 40 constituencies. If the past is any indicator, victory margins in many constituencies could yet again be very narrow in which roughly 440 postal ballots on an average in each constituency may make or mar the chances of political parties and chief minister aspirants.

Smaller states like Goa witness different brand of political permutations and combinations. After 81 percent out of the states eligible and registered 11.09 lakh voters opted to exercise their right to franchise on 4 February, Goa continues to witness a slugfest over postal ballots.

Three exit polls Axis My India, C-Voter and MRC have given the BJP an edge over its competitors. The party is likely to win 15 to 22 seats, followed by Congress. MRC predicts 15 seats for BJP, 10 for Congress and AAP seven. Meanwhile, C-voter predicts that BJP may retain Goa with 18 seats and Congress may gain six seats. AAP which is making its debut in Goa might just end up only two seats. C-Voter exit poll predicts that BJP would be the single largest party in Goa.

The exit polls released on Thursday projected a win for BJP in the 40-seat Goa Assembly. The exit polls put Congress in the second lead and predicted that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) might not repeat its Delhi success in Goa.

Circumstances will dictate if Parrikar would be back where Goans want him to. He may be asked to form the next government if BJP falls short of the majority since his magnetic personality will attract Independents and some smaller parties to support BJP. However, if BJP gets majority on its own, Parrikar may stay put as the defence minister and asked to nominate the new chief minister, as he was asked to in 2014 when he handpicked Laxmikant Parsekar as his successor.

Union defence minister is unarguably the most popular BJP leader in Goa and the majority of Goans would want to see Parrikar back as the next chief minister. So would Parrikar, who had moved to the Centre, rather reluctantly in November 2014.

It is D-Day for candidates belonging to the ruling BJP, opposition Congress and the debutant AAP. While BJP will look to retain the state, Congress would look to make a comeback. The Aam Aadmi Party will look to recreate its Delhi magic.

Uncertainty hovers over incumbent Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekars future even in the event of BJP forming the new Goa government.Parrikar had nominated Parsekar as his successor since he allegedly did not want a strong leader to emerge from the BJP ranks as his replacement.

DSouza entered Goa Assembly in 1999 and remains undefeated since then. He was appointed deputy chief minister when Parrikar formed the government in 2012. He was seen as a strong contender to replace Parrikar as chief minister in 2014 and made his displeasure public when his claim was overlooked, while asking him to continue as deputy chief minister.

Victory margins in many constituencies could yet again be very narrow in which roughly 440 postal ballots on an average in each constituency may make or mar the chances of political parties and chief minister aspirants.

In an earlier interview to Firstpost , Gomes said that Kejriwal has been the guiding force, whether it is policy formulation or implementation. Our door-to-door campaign has helped AAP a lot. We paid heed to the peoples voices and it finds representation in our manifesto, he said.

Postal counting starts at 8 AM. EVMs to be opened at 8.30 AM. Results for all the 40 seats are expected by 12 PM.

Talking to Firstpost, BJP may end up being the single largest party. AAP may not create much of a flutter in the state. However, it will probably not join hands with the Congress. The fact that Parrikar and Laxmikant Parsekar did not face any taint of corruption worked in their favour.

Counting of postal ballots have started in Goa. In all 17,590 postal ballots were issued to government servants who were deployed on election duty when Goa voted on 4 February.

Two counting centres are buzzing with activities -- counting for 19 seats of North Goa is taking place in the state capital Panaji while counting for the remaining 21 seats of South Goa is being done in Madgaon, considered as Goa's commercial capital.

The Congress, the prime opponent of the BJP, has fielded four former chief ministers - Digambar Kamat, Pratapsinh Rane, Ravi Naik and Luizinho Faleiro in their respective constituencies, while the NCP has given a ticket to Churchill Alemao.

In all 1,649 EVMs were used for Goa polls. They would be opened at 8.30 am after counting of postal ballots get over.

Goa has over a dozen chief ministerial aspirants, including some independents who are ready with their dreams and sustained dreams if Goa throws up yet another hung Assembly.

According to Times Now, Goa has its first two leads, with Congress leading in two seats while one seat has an 'Others" candidate leading.

Full country started counting at 8 am, but in Goa  where 1,649 EVMs were used, counting started at 8.30. Feni likes to be fashionably late. Builds up suspense and all, no?

According to initial trends, the Congress is leading in 3 seats in Goa while the Others is leading in one seat.

Parsekar was locked in a 7 cornered contest in his home constituency. It was widely speculated that BJP's decision not to announce him as its chief ministerial candidate had weakened his hold over the North Goa constituency.Opposition parties had targeted Mandrem and Panaji, which happened to be constituency of Manohar Parrikar, to defeat BJP and take wind out of its sails in Goa.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar lags behind his Congress rival Dayanand Sopte after the first round of counting in the Mandrem Assembly constituency in North Goa.

Kunal, Goa CEO said that the biggest challenge it faced during the election in Goa: "Money power plays an important role in Goa and we had our flying squads in place monitoring the situation, accompanied by the IT officials and local police. We seized cash in abundance from various places during the election and it was let off only after verification of the sources of the funds."

In the GPCC office. The vice president Sheikh along with other party members are closely monitoring the numbers. They're ecstatic that the CM is trailing in his constituency.

Goa Deputy Chief Minister Francis D'Souza leading in Mapusa constituency. He has remained undefeated here since he won this North Goa seat first in 1999.

D'Souza's victory may strengthen his claim to become first Christian chief minister from BJP's ranks. His claim was overlooked in favour of Laxmikant Parsekar when Manohar Parrikar stepped down as Goa chief minister in 2014.

Now say 'hung Assembly', b*gger. Now say it. Since when Feni was asking, "What hung Assembly?", but no one listens only.

Former Goa chief minister Pratapsingh Rane is leading in Poriem constituency. Rane has served as Goa chief minister for six terms and is among the strong contenders to become chief minister for the seventh time if his Congress party finds itself in a position to form the new government.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is headed for a disastrous debut in Goa. The party that claimed it will sweep Goa polls, is trailing in all seats it contested, including its chief ministerial candidate Elvis Gomes in Cuncolim seat.

Laxmikand Parsekar was defeated by Congress party's Dayanand Sopte, once a close confidant of Parsekar. Sopte had defected from the BJP and was rewarded with nomination by the Congress. Sopte has now won by a margin of 3,500 votes.

The Congress was leading in eight seats in Goa and the ruling BJP in five of the 40 constituencies in the state after the first three hours of counting of votes. While Goa Forward Party has gained lead in two seats, NCP leads in one. The MGP is ahead in Bicholim seat as well, with its candidate Naresh Sawal mantaining lead over BJP's Rajesh Patnekar.

Congress's Francis Silveira bagged the St Andre constituency. He got the better of BJP's Ramrao Wagh by a margin of 5,070 votes.

BJP candidates  Pravin Zantye and Michael Lobo  emerged victorious in Mayem and Calangute seats respectively. While Zantye defeated Congress rival Santosh Sawant by 4,974 votes, Lobo won by 4,460 votes against Congress candidate Joseph Sequeira.

National general secretary Digvijaya Singh is likely to hold a party meeting at 6 pm today. Congress in Goa is likely to form the new government and get into an alliance with the NCP, MGP and Goa Forward.

The ruling BJP suffered a major blow when Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar was defeated by Dayanand Sopte of the Congress at Mandrem by nearly 5,000 votes.

MGP leader and former minister Sudin Dhavlikar has won from the Marcaim seat by a margin of over 13,000 votes, defeating BJP's Pradeep Sheth.

Ironically, the thrust of Modis 28 January Goa rally was stability. He urged Goa voters to give BJP big majority to avoid fractured mandate and plunge Goa into political uncertainties of the past. Goa voters had none of it as they appear to have given a fractured majority.

The best scenario for BJP was to send back Parrikar to Goa and officially name him as the chief ministerial candidate. The party refused to read the writing on the wall, just hoping that by using Parrikars name and Modis image, the party to emerge victorious.

The 63-year-old leader was at helm of affairs in Goa from 2007-12. He was booked by Goa Crime Branch in the multi-crore Louis bribery case in 2015 along with his former cabinet colleague Churchill Alemao.

Kamat further added, "The BJP-led government tried to harass me. They filed fake cases against me. They tried to jail me. Only God protected me."

"I attribute my victory to all my party workers who stood by me and reposed their faith in me," Kamat told reporters outside the counting centre here in South Goa.

MGP won in three constituencies, but lost two sitting seats Ponda  represented by Lavoo Mamlatdar  and Priol from where party President Dipak Dhavalikar was elected last time. The party retained Madkai, where its leader Sudin Dhavalikar won with a margin of more than 10,000 votes. It also won Pernem where its candidate Manohar Asgaonkar defeated BJP Minister Rajendra Arlekar and Sanvordem where its nominee Dipak Pawaskar trounced BJP's sitting MLA Ganesh Gaonkar.

Laxmikant Parsekar, who addressed a press conference, along with Manohar Parrikar said that though the number of seats are a little less than Congress, the voting percentage of BJP is 33% and Congress is 28%. "We have provided a stable government in Goa. The coming term would again witness instability, the track record of development will receive a severe and serious setback and Goa will be pushed back at least by 10 years. But it is people's mandate and we have accepted it," he said.

While the Congress has won 17 seats and is just four short of a majority in the Goa Assembly, the BJP too has is set to stake claim to retain the state. BJP which has won 13 seats is reportedly wooing parties like Goa Forward, MGP and two independents to form the next government.

Media reports suggest that defence minster Manohar Parrikar may be elected as Goa chief minister in order to woo the smaller parties to join the alliance. With BJP stuck at 13 seats, it needs 8 more MLAs to form the government. It is to be noted that Parrikar had formed the government in 2000 with just 10 MLAs.

The biggest gainers from that general sense of ennui with the established parties were Independents and small parties  particularly candidates who have performed well.

The lesson from the Goa Assembly election results is that sound and fury are not enough to counter deep political roots. People would rather trust power to those with a record of governance, even when such parties have disappointed in the recent past. The Aam Aadmi Party was the most visible during the campaign, but the relatively new party fared quite miserably. The traditional parties of governance in Goa  the Congress and the BJP, fared relatively well even though people in general had been disappointed with their performances.

"The people want Parrikar to come back to Goa. Now it will depend on the Goa Forward Party and MGP. If they support us, we will form the government in the state," said BJP legislator Michael Lobo, who got elected from Calangute constituency. He said if the GFP and MGP pledge support, the BJP can submit a letter to Goa Governor Mridula Sinha staking claim to form the state government.

Three of the BJP's newly elected MLAs today rooted for Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar to take the lead to form government in Goa, if the smaller parties back it.

Sudin Dhavalikar and his brother Deepak were ministers in the BJP-led coalition government for a good part of the last five years but were sacked by Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar two months before the 4 February polls were announced after both brothers criticised his leadership.

"We will have to strategise. How can we jump into anything? Coalition talks will happen in their own time," Dhavalikar said, even as political sources told IANS that the MGP leadership, including Dhavalikar, was in touch with both Congress and BJP leaders.

With Goa throwing up a fractured mandate, leaders of smaller parties, who have turned kingmakers, have turned cautious even as both the Congress and the BJP desperately woo them.

BJPs strategy to field eight Catholic candidates in Goa seems to have worked well for it. Although it won only 13 seats in the new 40-member Assembly, most of its Catholic candidates won their seats and one, Arthur DSilva, came second in the Curtolim constituency. The party has earned a lot of flak for fielding no Muslims in Uttar Pradesh and in several other states in the recent past. However, it adopted a different strategy in Goa with regard to minorities.

According to CNN-News 18, Manohar Parrikar resigned as defence minister and he is on his way to meet the governor of Goa and form the next government.

"MGP unanimously passed a resolution that it will extend support to BJP if they recall Parrikar from the Centre to the state and appoint him chief minister," MGP leader Sudin Dhavalikar told PTI. "The resolution is very clear. MGP will support BJP only if Parrikar is made chief minister. Our support is not to BJP but to Parrikar," he added.

Nitin Gadkari, during a press conference said that the BJP Parliamentary Board, party president Amit Shah are ready to make Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister of Goa. He clarified that he has not resigned as the defence minister yet. Depending on the governor's decision, Parrikar will resign as the defence minister before taking oath as CM.

Capping the day of fast-paced developments, Goa Governor Mridula Sinha on Sunday night appointed defence minister Manohar Parrikar, the BJP Legislature, Party leader, as the chief minister and asked him to prove majority on floor of House within 15 days of taking oath.

Parrikar may contest the bypoll from Mapusa seat, which has to be vacated by former deputy chief minister Francis D'Souza. Parrikar is not yet a member of the legislative assembly and has to contest a poll in the next six months. According to India Today, D'Souza may be accommodated in the Rajya Sabha.

MGP leader Sudin Dhavlikar is all set to be the new deputy chief minister succeeding Francis D'souza. MGP, which bagged three seats, had extended its support on the condition that Parrikar be the chief minister.

While five members of the cainet will be be from the BJP, two each will be from MGP and Goa Forward party. Two Independents will also take oath along with them, reports India Today.

India Today reports that Valpoi MLA Vishwajit Rane along with many other MLAs are all set to quit the Congress over its inability to form the government despite emerging as the single largest party in the state. The son of former chief minister Pratapsingh Rane, Vishwajit has blamed the Delhi-based leaders for teh unexpected debacle.

The Congress, which won 17 seats in the 40-member Goa assembly, on Monday night moved the Supreme Court challenging Governor Sinha's decision to invite the 13-MLA BJP, led by Parrikar, to form government, claiming that it violated the "established constitutional practice" of inviting the single-largest party in a hung Assembly. Chief Justice J S Khehar agreed to set up a special bench on Tuesday for an urgent hearing as the court is closed for a week for Holi, The Times of India reported.

A day after the Congress alleged that the BJP 'stole' the elections in Goa and Manipur, Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear the party's plea challenging Goa Governor Mridula Sinha's invitation to Manohar Parrikar to form the government in Goa.

The petition, filed by advocate Devdutt Kamath, is likely to be argued by senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi and has made the Centre and Goa as the parties.

A special bench would be constituted as the apex court is on Holi break for a week. The petition filed by Goa CLP leader Chandrakant Kavlekar has sought stay on the swearing-in of Parrikar as the chief minister. The petition has also sought quashing of the decision of the governor to appoint Parrikar as the chief minister.

The Congress moved the Supreme Court on Monday challenging Goa Governor Mridula Sinha's decision to appoint BJP leader Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister of the state. The hurriedly filed petition late on Monday evening was mentioned at the residence of Chief Justice J S Kehar, who agreed to give an urgent hearing today.

In a counter-move, Congress, late on Monday moved the Supreme Court challenging Goa Governor Mridula Sinha's decision to appoint BJP leader Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister of the state. The hurriedly filed petition on Monday evening was mentioned at the residence of Chief Justice J S Kehar, who agreed to give an urgent hearing today.

On Monday, Parrikar quit as the defence minister and reports said that the swearing-in ceremony will be held at 5.30 pm in Panaji. Congress leaders lambasted the BJP leadership for a move which was "unconstitutional". Former finance minister and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram accused the BJP of "stealing" the elections in Goa and Manipur.

Enlisting the support of two independents, three members each of the Goa Forward Party (GFP) and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and that of the lone NCP member, the BJP members led by the defence minister called upon Governor Mridula Sinha on Sunday evening and formally staked the government formation claim.

BJP pulled off a midnight coup in Goa and staked claim to form the next government under Manohar Parrikar despite emerging as the second largest party behind Congress in a fractured mandate.

"Despite losing the mandate of the people, our political opponents (BJP) have tried to misrepresent to your good-self that they enjoy the majority support of legislators. This is not only opportunism at its lowest but is also not constitutionally permissible," Goa CLP Leader Chandrakant Kavlekar stated in the memorandum.

The Congress urged Governor Mridula Sinha to invite the party to form the next government by virtue of being the single largest party, a day ahead of swearing-in of BJP leader Manohar Parrikar as Chief Minister. In a memorandum submitted to the Governor tonight, the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) claimed to have the requisite support and that they can prove the same on the floor of the House.

"We have adequate numbers. We are the single largest party and we should be invited to form the government," CLP leader Chandrakant Kavlekar told PTI.

The Congress Legislative Party will meet Governor Mridula Sinha on Tuesday to stake claim to form the next government in Goa, stating that they have adequate numbers on their side. "We are holding a Congress Legislative Party meeting in the morning and then will be meeting the Governor at 10.00 AM to stake claim to form the next government.

Depending upon which way the apex court views the Goa development, there is a strong possibility that Goa may be headed for a brief spell of Presidents Rule since the new Assembly must be constituted before 18 March.

The Congress party is seeking cancellation of the gubernatorial invite to Parrikar. Parrikar along with an assorted Cabinet is scheduled to be sworn-in Tuesday evening.

Eyes are fixed on how the apex court views this development and whether inviting Manohar Parrikar to form the new government can be held legitimate by it when it takes up for hearing a petition filed by the newly elected Congress legislative party leader Chandrakant Kavlekar. Chief Justice JS Khehar agreed to set up a special bench which will hear the petition at 10.30 am.

Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, who has been vocal about Congress' poor performance in the elections, on Tuesday said that Goa Governor Mridula Sinha must work according to the Constitution.

The petition, filed by advocate Devdutt Kamath, is likely to be argued by senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi and has made the Centre and Goa as the parties.

The hurriedly filed petition late on Monday was mentioned at the residence of Chief Justice J S Kehar, who agreed to give an urgent hearing. A special bench would be constituted as the apex court is on Holi break for a week. The petition filed by Goa CLP leader Chandrakant Kavlekar has sought stay on the swearing-in of Parrikar as the chief minister. The petition has also sought quashing of the decision of the governor to appoint Parrikar as the chief minister.

Hearing on Congress' petition challenging appointment of Manohar Parrikar as Goa chief minister begins in the Supreme Court. The Congress earlier moved the apex court challenging Goa Governor Mridula Sinha's decision to appoint BJP leader Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister of the state.

Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, at a press conference, said that Governor Mridula Sinha will meet "us at 1.30pm, though we wished that she should've met us earlier."

TV channels report that Supreme Court had more than a few tough words for Congress who moved the apex court challenging Manohar Parrikar's appointment as the chief minister for Goa. Asking the Congress why did it not first approach the governor with the adequate numbers, the Supreme Court asked the party about the numbers required to form the government.

-"The entire object of this hasty late night political maneuvering by the powers that be is to defeat the mandate of the people and to somehow grab power by misusing the office of the Governor."

- Governor's move, a complete "departure from the Sarkaria Commission as well as MM Punchhi commission recommendations, requiring her to invite the single largest party (in this case the Indian National Congress) to form the government, has acted with utmost haste."

- The Governor has blatantly violated the Constitution by inviting the BJP to form the Government and has scheduled to administer the oath of office to the unelected Chief Minister

Congress leader Chandrakant Kavlekar's petition challenging Governor Mridula Sinha's decision to appoint Manohar Parrikar as Goa Chief Minister, has plunged the state in a new political crisis. The Supreme Court hearing is underway, but here are the major points raised in the petition.

The Supreme Court bench also observed that numbers should determine the single largest party in Goa and the bench asked the Congress why they didn't approach the governor to stake claim to form the government. The SC also asked the Congress to show the numbers.

The tussle for government formation in Goa reached the Supreme Court, with the state Congress legislative party leader challenging the invitation extended by Governor Mridula Sinha on Sunday to BJP leader Manohar Parrikar to form government. During the hearing on Tuesday, the Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India JS Khehar, ordered an immediate floor test in Goa.

The apex court on Tuesday ordered a floor test in Goa Assembly on 16 March at 11 am. The Supreme Court allowed the swearing-in ceremony for Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister on Tuesday at 5 pm.

Smarting under the Supreme Court snub, the Congress party tried to put up a brave face by terming the court advancing the floor test as its victory and that Parrikar will be Goa chief minister for just two days. The big question, however, remain whether and where the Congress party will get the requisite numbers to topple the Parrikar government.

"We wanted to stake claim since 12 March. We had even given her a letter by the night of 12 March. She still did not give us time, and went against 'established conventions' and invited the BJP to form government," Singh told a press conference in Panaji. - IANS

Congress' Digvijay Singh, who is under fire from the party's central leadership said that the Goa Governor Mridula Sinha unilaterally invited the BJP to form the next government in the state, despite a letter by the Congress party to her seeking an invitation to form the government.

"How we lost in Goa was stupid," Chowdhury said, adding that he should be removed as the party's general secretary. She also sought to defend Rahul Gandhi, stating that the Congress VP trusted state leaders and gave them a free hand, according to CNN-News18.

"We have the numbers to form the government. We have more than 21 MLAs with us with the support of alliance partners," Goa BJP unit General Secretary Sadanand Tanawade told reporters in Panaji. - PTI

The BJP welcomed the Supreme Court's decision to not stay the swearing-in of Manohar Parrikar as Goa Chief Minister, and claimed it will be able to prove majority on the floor of the House.

"I will comment after the swearing-in," Parrikar told reporters in Panaji, when asked to comment on the apex court's decision to organize a floor test of his government on Thursday.

Even as the Congress termed the Supreme Court verdict ordering a floor test in Goa a victory for the party, Manohar Parrikar has chosen to keep mum.

Members of Congress, NCP and RJD raised the issue during Question Hour. Congress leader in the House Mallikarjun Kharge claimed that democracy is being murdered.

Congress and its UPA allies on Tuesday staged a walkout of the Lok Sabha to protest the alleged efforts to install BJP government in Goa and Manipur despite it having the numbers.

Slamming the Congress party for being a sour loser, Arun Jaitley of te BJP said that the grand old party has got too many complaints. On the ruckus in Lok Sabha today, Jaitley said that since Mallikarjun Kharge has used "strong words" in the House, they should either be expunged or the government be allowed to respond. The Speaker said nothing beyond the questions and answers will be allowed to go on record.

"They are saying that it is okay for them to misuse the office of the Governor...In the two states where we won, democracy has been undermined by them (BJP) using financial power, money. That is what is happening. The mandate of the people of Goa and Manipur has been stolen by the BJP," he told reporters outside Parliament.

In his Facebook post, finance minister Arun Jaitley slammed Congress for crying foul over government formation in Goa. Jaitley said, "Goa produced an inconclusive verdict. There was a hung assembly,obviously post-poll alliances will be formed".

The newly-elected Goa Assembly is likely to have its first meeting on Thursday. Floor test will be done after new legislators are administered oath by a pro-tem Speaker.

Speaking to CNN News18, former chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar said that the Congress will fail to prove its majority on the floor of the House on Thursday. He also added that his party used no money power to lure smaller parties. Parsekar, who lost his Mandrem seat, also showed confidence that Independents will back the Parrikar government on Thursday's floor test.

It can't be helped if the Congress vice-president chooses to remain in 'La La Land' but the party's charge against BJP and petition in Supreme Court that Governor Mridula Sinha 'acted in haste' should be explored from all angles. Did Sinha err in inviting BJP's chief ministerial candidate to form a government? And how accurate is the claim that a party which finishes second "has no right to form a government"? What are the political, legal and moral aspects of this charge?

Reports suggest that Manohar Parrikar has also arrived at the Raj Bhavan. Eight other MLAs will also be sworn-in along with him.

MGP leader Sudin Dhavlikar follows Manohar Parrikar in the order of precedence. He is expected to be the PWD minister.

He is followed by Sudin Dhavalikar of the MGP and Vijai Sardesai of the Goa Forward party.

Former Congressman, who joined the BJP in December 2016, Madkaikar is now a minister in the Parrikar cabinet.

The Congress has been crying foul as despite being the single-largest party in the Assembly it failed to cobble up the support of non-BJP MLAs, following which Governor Mridula Sinha gave the BJP the first go at government formation.

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has to prove majority in the Goa Assembly today. He stepped down as the Defence Minister to return as the chief minister on Tuesday. Parrikar enjoys the support of 22 MLAs, two more than the halfway mark of 20 in the 40-member Assembly.

Manohar Parrikar, whose party has 13 MLAs, had staked claim to form the government on Sunday mustering the support of the Goa Forward Party (GFP) and Maharashtravadi Gomantak Party (MGP) besides two Independents, which together took the tally of the combine to 21.

After being sworn-in as the Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar exuded confidence that his government would be stable and run the full five year term. "Let everyone be very clear that this government will last for its full tenure. I agree the mandate is fractured. But if every fraction of the fractured mandate comes together, we will become 22. This is bringing together post-election coalition and the lead has been taken by regional parties, not me," he said.

Meanwhile, speaking to the media Congress MLA Vishwajeet Rane said, "It seems those leaders sent from Delhi never wanted Congress to form government in Goa. Congress should know the kind of mismanagement done by the in-charge of the party who came here from Delhi, which will finish the party."

Goa Governor Mridula Sinha has summoned the first session of the new Assembly to meet at 11:30am. The MLAs will take oath first, following which the floor test would be conducted.

Ahead of the floor test, the Congress refused to comment on their strategy asking people to "wait and watch." "You wait and watch. I will not comment anything right now," Congress Legislature Party Leader Chandrakant Kavlekar told PTI. Led by Kavlekar, all the 17 party MLAs had called upon the Governor on Tuesday seeking an invitation to the Congress to form the government, but failed to get any assurance from her.

The anguish of the Congress party MLAs' seems to be directed at AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh who has been handling the party affairs in Goa ahead and after elections.

Acting swiftly, the BJP which ended up as the second largest party staked the claim to form government.

The Congress leaders are still smarting from the failure of the party managers to cobble up any post-poll alliance to attain power, despite emerging as the single largest party in Assembly elections.

The BJP had won 13 seats, four less than the Congress which bagged 17 seats in the 40-member House. The BJP will have to prove majority in the Legislative Assembly, as per the directions of the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

"In Goa and Manipur Congress could not stake the claim, the Honourable Governor found BJP have numbers to lead the state we were called to form the government. They went to court, even court asked them to prove the numbers, now they are writing blogs. If you have numbers prove it on floors. They are making absurd allegations of horse trading," says Venkaiah Naidu.

Trashing Parrikar's swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday, Congress leader Om Prakash Mishra told ANI that the event was a big scam. "This swearing-in ceremony of Manohar Parrikar as the Chief Minister of Goa is a big scam and BJP has resorted to unfair means. Throughout Goa people are protesting as to why the saffron party did such a low act to come to power, and why is the media not showing all this."

Under fire from his own party members for mismanagement, Singh told NDTV, "If you are seeing me smiling, that shows confidence. We will defeat the motion."

In an interview with NDTV, Congress leader and in-charge for Goa elections, Digvijaya Singh said that he was confident Parrikar would lose the trust vote. "There is no crisis as far as Goa and Manipur are concerned. The High Command had fully authorised the General Secretaries in charge to take decision and there was no interference."

"Ideally, the CLP leader should have been elected immediately (after the poll results). Party's Goa Incharge has done this mismanagement. I will meet Rahul Gandhi before taking any further step. I am hopeful that Rahul ji will give us justice. If he does not respond, then we will feel that we are not in right party and we will take decision after consulting our workers. We will have to quit the Congress if such kind of behaviour continues."

So while, there may be many legal disputes as to how best a governor should act, sometimes effective and quick rulings are better for a democracy than cold hard letters of the law. The law states that the chief minister is a member of the house, who is appointed by the governor and holds the confidence of the House. READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

So this does not become a point of who is legally authorised to hold office or not, when adjudicating these matters there are many factors at play, the cold hard letter of the law, the changing tides of democracy and the practicality of having to form of a government. So when courts get involved, the results that come out often times don't always stick to precedent like clockwork.

The governor of a state has a unique constitutional role in our system of Westminster style democracy. The role is similar to the president at the Centre. The role of the governor at the end of the day is to ensure that there is a stable government that can pass a budget and ensure supply as without passing a budget the government will stop and only the legislature can raise money.

All eyes are on Panjim right now where the Goa Legislative Assembly is scheduled to have a floor test on Thursday to see if Manohar Parrikar, recently appointed as the state's chief minister, can survive a vote of confidence in the House.

Making absurd allegations against BJP and stalling Rajya Sabha for performing its duties, this is what Congress does. People rejected Congress in 2014. Congress should have understood its role as constructive opposition. Now after landslide victory in Assembly elections, Congress should understand its role, Venkaiah Naidu tells CNN-News18.

"Two days were taken to choose a Congress Legislature Party leader. Those in charge indulged in mismanagement. The Supreme Court also said so. They are experienced people, but they did not know what to do, what step to take to form the government. Parrikar came from Delhi and swiftly spoke to everyone concerned, got the numbers and formed the government," the Congress legislator from Valpoi was quoted as saying by IANS.

After failing to act quickly to form a government in Goa, the Congress now stares at a revolt as a senior legislator said he and other "like-minded lawmakers will be forced to re-think our remaining with the Congress in future". Senior Congress leader and legislator Vishwajit Rane sought party vice-president Rahul Gandhi's intervention and action against those he claimed "mishandled" the government-formation fiasco.

The Congress claimed that Rs 1,000 crore had been spent on horse-trading and luring non-Congress legislators by the BJP to form a coalition government in Goa earlier this week. "Nothing less than Rs 1,000 crore have been spent by the BJP to lure and buy MLAs over to their side," All India Congress Committee (AICC) Secretary Girish Chodankar told CNN-News18.

Leader of the Goa Forward Party, Vijay Sardesai, who is backing the Parrikar government in Goa told News18, "The BJP was quicker. They deemed Goa important enough to send their minister (Parrikar) back from Delhi to Goa. Now there will be more development here too. This is why we supported the BJP. The Congress has many grand old men all vying for power. They could not have decided a leader and provided stability, so there was no point in going with them. They have backstabbed me twice, tried to scuttle my political plans. Digvijaya Singh is not really responsible for this mess in Congress."

After Kejriwal and Mulayam allege elections were won by tampering EVMs, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi alleged that the BJP had "stolen" the election and the allies by buying them out. "BJP ne Manipur aur Goa mein paise ka prayog kiya, sarkaar chori ki hai (BJP has used money to steal the governments of Manipur and Goa).

"We have the people with us," he said. Earlier, Goa Congress chief Luizinho Faleiro had expressed his confidence saying, "Congress is united and strong and we will prove our majority in Assembly."

The actual floor test would start after all the newly-elected members of the 40-member assembly are sworn in as legislators.

The much awaited floor test of the newly installed Manohar Parrikar-led Goa government is underway. While the BJP which heads the coalition government is confident of surviving the crucial test, considering it continues to enjoy support of its new-found allies, the rival Congress party entered the House still claiming it has the majority by its side.

The Congress has 17 seats in the Goa Assembly, four short of majority mark. The party has been unable to enlist the support of non-BJP MLAs.

Here's how Manohar Parrikar may get to touch the magical figure of 22 in the 40-seat Goa Assembly:

The first MLA to be sworn-in in the Goa Assembly today was Dayanand Sopte, the Congress leader who registered a record win against former CM Laxmikant Parsekar in Mandrem constituency

The Congress needs only four more MLAs to reach the crucial mark. Sinha on Sunday had granted Parrikar 15 days to prove his majority in the assembly, but the Supreme Court, which was hearing a petition filed by Congress legislative party leader Chandrakant Kavlekar, directed on Tuesday that the floor test should be held without delay on Thursday.

Sources in the Congress party told IANS on condition of anonymity, that the Congress leadership, which is being accused of acting sluggishly and thereby losing the opportunity to form the government, is now in contact with leaders from the MGP and GF, requesting them to switch over.

BJP claims, it enjoys support of 22 legislators, including its own 13 MLA. It had submitted letters supporting its claim of 21 legislators to Goa Governor Mridula Sinha on Sunday. Since then another Independent legislator Prasad Gaonkar, MLA from Sanguem constituency, has joined the ruling coalition. There are indications that former chief minister and the lone Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) legislator Churchill Alemao, who won South Goas Benaulim seat, may also vote in favour of Parrikar government, helping it sail through the floor test ordered by the Supreme Court on Tuesday easily.

It is highly unlikely that BJPs new-found partners will vote themselves out of power. All three legislators of the Goa Front are already ministers, two-each among three Maharashtra Gomantak Party (MGP) and thee Independents gave been accommodated in the Manohar Parrikar government as cabinet ministers.

Kuncalienkar is expected to vacate the Panaji seat for Parrikar, enabling him contest the by-election and become member of the legislative assembly within six months of his appointment. Indian constitution allows a non-member to run the government for maximum six months.

Kuncalienkar, who worked as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Parrikar while he was Goa chief minister from 2012 to 2014 before he moved to the centre as Indian defence minister, was elected to the assembly from Parrikars Panaji seat in 2015 in by-election. He retained the seat defeating thus far unconquered Atanasio Monserrate of the UGP by little over 1000 votes.

Kuncalienkar was sworn in as the pro-tem speaker by Governor Mridula Sinha on Wednesday. He will continue in the post until the assembly elects its new Speaker, likely to take place couple of days before the Manohar Parrikar government presents its budget sometime next week.

While BJP has numbers by its side to sail through todays floor test without any hiccups, the rival Congress party is raising questions over selection of pro-tem speaker Sidharth Kuncalienkar, BJP legislator from Panaji seat.

BJP got the support of 22 MLAs, 16 were opposed and one was absent during the Goa floor test. Parrikar has the challenge of assigning the portfolios.

In a major embarrassment, newly-elected Congress party legislator Vishwajit Rane did not vote, giving signals that all is not well with the Congress party. He walked out of the House after taking oath as legislator.

Parrikar government got support of 22 legislators, excluding the pro-tem speaker who was not required to cast his vote, while the Congress could manage only 17 votes.

"We have won the floor test, debunking Digvijaya's claim that they have the numbers. This is what happens when you come to Goa to have fun."

BJP claims, it enjoys support of 22 legislators, including its own 13 MLA. It had submitted letters supporting its claim of 21 legislators to Goa Governor Mridula Sinha on Sunday. Since then another Independent legislator Prasad Gaonkar, MLA from Sanguem constituency, has joined the ruling coalition. There are indications that former chief minister and the lone Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) legislator Churchill Alemao, who won South Goas Benaulim seat, may also vote in favour of Parrikar government, helping it sail through the floor test ordered by the Supreme Court on Tuesday easily.

It is highly unlikely that BJPs new-found partners will vote themselves out of power. All three legislators of the Goa Front are already ministers, two-each among three Maharashtra Gomantak Party (MGP) and thee Independents gave been accommodated in the Manohar Parrikar government as cabinet ministers.

#WATCH : BJP has used money to win power in Manipur and Goa, they stole Governments, says Congress VP Rahul Gandhi in Chandigarh pic.twitter.com/XIffdr0lEH

Kuncalienkar is expected to vacate the Panaji seat for Parrikar, enabling him contest the by-election and become member of the legislative assembly within six months of his appointment. Indian constitution allows a non-member to run the government for maximum six months.

Kuncalienkar, who worked as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Parrikar while he was Goa chief minister from 2012 to 2014 before he moved to the centre as Indian defence minister, was elected to the assembly from Parrikars Panaji seat in 2015 in by-election. He retained the seat defeating thus far unconquered Atanasio Monserrate of the UGP by little over 1000 votes.

Kuncalienkar was sworn in as the pro-tem speaker by Governor Mridula Sinha on Wednesday. He will continue in the post until the assembly elects its new Speaker, likely to take place couple of days before the Manohar Parrikar government presents its budget sometime next week.

While BJP has numbers by its side to sail through todays floor test without any hiccups, the rival Congress party is raising questions over selection of pro-tem speaker Sidharth Kuncalienkar, BJP legislator from Panaji seat.

BJP got the support of 22 MLAs, 16 were opposed and one was absent during the Goa floor test. Parrikar has the challenge of assigning the portfolios.

In a major embarrassment, newly-elected Congress party legislator Vishwajit Rane did not vote, giving signals that all is not well with the Congress party. He walked out of the House after taking oath as legislator.

Parrikar government got support of 22 legislators, excluding the pro-tem speaker who was not required to cast his vote, while the Congress could manage only 17 votes.

"We have won the floor test, debunking Digvijaya's claim that they have the numbers. This is what happens when you come to Goa to have fun."

We have proved before the people of India, we had support of 23 and we proved it on the floor of house: Manohar Parrikar,Goa CM pic.twitter.com/Qkr1JiaADd

It is a government of coalition & decision in this regard will be taken by the coalition: Goa CM Parrikar on question of need of deputy CM pic.twitter.com/HZ8v3bgHzX

Everyone voluntarily came and voted, none of them were kept in a hotel room or secluded common place as was the case of opposition: Parrikar

Votes for the general Assembly elections of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur will be counted on Saturday.

The exit polls released on Thursday projected a win for BJP in the 40-seat Goa Assembly. The exit polls put Congress in the second lead and predicted that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) might not repeat its Delhi success in Goa.

Three exit polls Axis My India, C-Voter and MRC have given the BJP an edge over its competitors. The party is likely to win 15 to 22 seats, followed by Congress. MRC predicts 15 seats for BJP, 10 for Congress and AAP seven. Meanwhile, C-voter predicts that BJP may retain Goa with 18 seats and Congress may gain six seats. AAP which is making its debut in Goa might just end up only two seats. C-Voter exit poll predicts that BJP would be the single largest party in Goa.

Based on the exit polls, BJP may form the new government but may not hit the majority mark of 21 seats. "Goa could be headed for a hung Assembly in which smaller parties could come into the picture. Congress winning the maximum 18 seats may open intense efforts and bargaining. As of now it is clear that AAPs attempts to extend its 2014 Delhi experiment may have failed in Goa," political commentator Ajay Jha says. The smaller parties and the Independents are likely to be the kingmakers.

In last-minute instructions on preparations for the counting day on Saturday, the Election Commission on Thursday instructed the electoral officers to set up additional close-circuit TV cameras to monitor carrying of EVMs from strongrooms to the counting hall.

"On the day of counting, additional CCTV camera may be installed at such locations from where the carrying of EVMs from strong rooms to the counting hall can be recorded for effective monitoring," the EC said in the letter.

The EC further said: "For counting day, CCTV cameras must be strategically placed so that all movements of personnel carrying control units is covered and displayed on TV, placed at the Returning Officer's table and at some place where candidates, counting agents can also view the movement of CUs from strong room to the counting hall."

It further said that in case the counting hall is located at a distance or in a separate building away from the strong room, barricading from the strong room door up to the counting hall door should be done in such a way that "EVMs of each constituency should not be criss-crossing each other".

According to Goa Chief Electoral Officer Kunal, the overall polling percentage on 4 February was 81. Out of the 11.10 lakh registered voters, 8,98,507 exercised their franchise. The constituencies in the mining and tourism belts saw more than the average polling, as per the EC estimates.

Though as many as 250 candidates, including many Independents, are in the fray for the 40 seats, the fight is mainly between ruling BJP, Congress, AAP and MGP-led alliance.

With inputs from agencies
Democracy could either spoil you for choice or leave you with no choice, just like neutrality isn't as much a result of confusion but a rejection of two sides that one perceives as equally imperfect. The Congress and BJP are neck-to-neck in Manipur, both have won more than 20 seats each till now (at the time of publishing this article). From 1992 till 2015, 2,248 civilians, 2,763 non-state armed rebels and 984 security personnel were reportedly killed in Manipur. Last July, the Supreme Court held that the allegations of excessive force resulting in the death of any person by Manipur Police or the armed forces in Manipur must be thoroughly enquired into. It was also held that even while dealing with the 'enemy', the rule of law would apply.

The bench was considering a writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India by Extra Judicial Execution Victim Families Association and the Human Rights Alert. In this case, the petitioners claimed to have compiled a list of 1,528 extra judicial executions carried out by the police and security forces in the region; despite several complaints, not a single first information report (FIR) has been registered against the Manipur Police or the security forces.

The bench also held that the particular situation of internal disturbance has prevailed for decades and the ordinary citizens of Manipur have had little access and recourse to law. "It is in the interest of the government to keep the region deprived of electricity, education, employment, so there is instability and violence that justifies the need for Afspa," says Binalakshmi Nepram, who started the Manipur Gun Survivors' Network in 2007.

Ever since the BJP has come to power in the Centre, she says, over 90 visits by central ministers have taken place. Some days ago, Amit Shah made the statement that if the BJP comes to power, its first task would be to end the indefinite economic blockade and all efforts will be carried out to make the state free from bandhs and blockades. Since 1 November, trucks carrying supplies to Imphal were stopped at National Highway 2 and 37, which are the valley's lifelines. "Aren't all national highways under the charge of the union government? If they had to do something, they would have already," says Nepram.

She goes on to say that the people of Manipur want development too, but not at the cost of excessive corporatism that depletes its resources and isn't equitable for its people. There are 39 ethnic groups in Manipur and imposing Sanskrit on them or homogenising their breed of Hindu faith is another fear in the Manipuri's mind.

The Congress is no saint either. According to statistics compiled by Human Rights Alert, a spike in extrajudicial killings was noticed soon after Okram Ibobi Singh took over as chief minister in 2002. What started with 90 killings in 2003, reached its peak in 2008 with 355 dead in hesitant encounters.

Irom Sharmila, once an symbol of people's pride, has secured zero seats. "While her sacrifice and intent has earned the love and support of the people of Manipur, her decision to join politics has made her lose that charm of being an icon and an inspiration. Also, mere months aren't enough to prepare her to take on the chief minister; lakhs are pumped into the campaigns of big political parties."

Last year, HRD minister Smriti Irani wrote a reply to a Rajya Sabha question saying that overall, the annual average dropout rate at primary level has reduced from 5.6 percent during 2012-13 to 4.3 per cent during 2014-15. But, in Manipur, the drop-out rate is 18 percent.

A general disenchantment with the system could be the reason for a tie between two national parties.
On 11 March, Saturday, as the results for Manipur Elections started coming in, Thoubal constituency was among the first few seats from which announced the winner  Okram Ibobi Singh. This valley seat from where Manipur's chief minister was contesting the elections, had another key player who for 16 years was on a fast for Manipur's rights. Irom Sharmila Chanu aka 'Iron Lady' is the icon of Manipur who with her decade-and-a-half long fast against the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Acts (Afspa) garnered a lot of national attention.

But Sharmila's story in this 60-Assembly seat state took a sharp turn this election season. Sharmila's party Peoples' Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) failed to secure a single seat in the state and its leader lost the fight against Manipur's three-time chief minister.

This was not a neck-and-neck defeat too. Sharmila lost so badly in her maiden election contest, that she vowed to quit politics altogether. In a constituency where Ibobi won with 18,649 votes, Sharmila didn't get more than 90 votes.

Many in the national media hailed this it as a tragedy, that an internationally renowned human rights activist couldn't manage to secure even a 100 votes. However, the local populace has a different picture to share.

When the 44-year-old decided to quit her 16-year-old fast in 2016 and join politics, it was welcomed by both national media and political parties. She soon formed the PRJA which garnered support and attention from national parties like Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Left and Democratic Front (LDF), etc. The party with its clear intention to revoke Afspa (through legislative means) and redraft Inner Line Permit system set about campaigning through the state and gathering political funds.

However, Sharmila was mostly treated as a laughing stock by the Manipuri people, and even by its chief minister.

Ibobi Singh laughs when News18's @SubhajitSG asks the three time CM about Irom Sharmila contesting in the Manipur Elections #ManipurVotes pic.twitter.com/rycsgZlHkO  News18 (@CNNnews18) March 8, 2017

In a state that has some 1,500 cases of extra-judicial killings, she was the face of the revolt against Afspa. When she ended her fast, people perceived it as the end of the movement. This angered a lot of people. Her popularity also tanked after she revealed her plans to get married to Goa-born British national Desmond Coutinho, whom her supporters have always accused of diverting her attention from the fight against Afspa. She had plans to tie the nuptial knot after the 2017 polls but Desmond recently said the marriage would not take place before 2019 (Lok Sabha) elections.

When we asked local experts (before polling began) what were the chances of Sharmila winning, they mostly laughed and said, "Sharmila is not a serious politician. She has no experience, this is not her field."

So is this the only reason that this woman icon lost this battle?

Probably not.

As this Huffington Post report points out, when she was asked about her electoral plank, she said, "I think mainly in the human right issues and corruption. Discriminations, exploitations of people around there. His, mine. Beneficial issues (sic)."

In a state which is rife with violence, corruption, administrative struggles, and development deficits, her fight seemed watered down.

While the BJP gathered votes by making promises about removing the economic blockade, creation jobs, removing corruption, ensuring rights to the Nagas, etc. Sharmila kept mum on all these issues.

Sharmila, who has won several international human rights awards, said in her interview with HuffPost India that both the leading national parties  the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress  were practically "the same".

However, this did not stop either of the two national parties  Congress or BJP  from using the funds in their deep pockets, to campaign extensively in the state.

The state which rarely received any national attention (as pointed out by senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai in this tweet) was getting visited by senior leaders of the BJP like Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Narendra Modi, Prakash Javadekar, etc. Their rallies gathered thousands of Manipuris, whereas Sharmila's PRJA went house to house to campaign for their party.

BJP didn't just have a national appeal, it also went door-to-door to campaign about the party. They had swayamsevaks (volunteers) who regularly held meetings to discuss local issues, way before the elections were announced. The people in the hills (Naga districts like Senapati, Ukhrul, Tamenglong) saw an alternative to Congress, which with the creation of the seven new districts in December 2016, had lost the vote of the Naga tribes.

Sharmila decided to compete from a Meitei populated seat against a Meitei favourite Okram Ibobi and expected victory. In the interviews before the polling began, she reiterated that she hopes to win against the three-time chief minister. However, she forgot that the highly seasoned Congress politician had managed to snag the Thoubal constituency in two consecutive Assembly elections and that too with high margins. This time too he secured the seat with a margin of 11,470 votes against BJP leader Leitanthem Basanta Singh. Even the BJP didn't put up a strong candidate for that seat. Sharmila's misguided political judgment cost her a seat.

While we are being harsh on the celebrated human rights activists, it is a matter of concern that the state which has a million female voters failed to support their female icon. An abysmal 90 votes are what the 'iron lady' got for her 16-year penance.
At the time of publishing of this article, the news channel CNN-News 18 called the election, where the Indian National Congress secured 28 seats, Bharatiya Janta Party secured 21 seats and other parties secured 11 votes. Irom Sharmila's maiden election contest remained fruitless. She fought and lost miserably against Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh, securing only 90 votes from the Thoubal constituency where she contested.

While Manipur's political battle remained close between the two political giants  Congress and BJP  here are the key takeaways from this fight.

The Congress may be the largest single party in Manipur (as of now), but not large enough to form the government. The BJP is almost neck and neck, and that is a major achievement, considering it is the partys first formal foray into the state. In fact the BJP may be in a better position to cobble up the required numbers with help from smaller parties like the Naga Peoples Party.

It was quite apparent after the BJP swept into power in Assam that the north-east was opening up to prime minister Narendra Modis party. From having just two BJP MLAs in the last assembly, and that too through two by-elections, on Saturday, the BJP now is in the position to form the government, with the help of the smaller tribal parties.

The winds of change which threw out Tarun Gogoi and the Congress party from Assam, has now gathered steam. Arunachal Pradesh is already with the BJP, in Meghalaya too, where the Congress is in power, the BJPs popularity is growing day by day. In Nagaland the party is part of the coalition. Mizoram remains with the Congress and Tripura has a Left government.

Congress's success in the state has nothing to do with central leadership or Rahul Gandhi. It is mainly thanks to chief minister Ibobi Singh who runs Manipur with some degree of autonomy. If he is able to form the government he will be chief minister for a fourth consecutive term, which is no small achievement.

The Meites of the valley, who are staunch Hindus are natural constituents of the BJP. However the fear of fragmentation, by giving away the hill areas of Manipur to the Nagas led them to be somewhat wary of the BJP. Ibobi Singh is a clever politician and the addition of seven new revenue districts to the existing nine, has helped. The Nagas in the hills are angry that their areas have been divided, while the Kukis are happy that there demand for a separate revenue district has been met. This was done late last year with an eye on elections.

The fact that a framework agreement signed between the Centre and the NSCN (IM) in 2015, was kept a secret, helped chief minister Ibobi Singh to play on the fears of the Meities. The prime ministers assurance during the campaign that the accord with Naga leaders would not affect the territorial integrity of the state, worked up to a point. But not entirely. However the BJP has been able to garner seats both in the valley which has 40 seats, and the hills which has 20 seats. There is bitter division between the hills and the valley (Nagas and the Meiteis), as well as among the Kukis and Nagas who live in the hills.

It is surprising that the tribal Christian states of the North East, which in the past was afraid that a Hindu nationalist party like the BJP will harm their interests, is enthusiastic about Narendra Modi. They were not quite so enthusiastic about either Atal Bihairi Vajpayee or LK Advani. But somehow the Modi magic which seems to work on the average Indian also affects the remote north eastern states. They believe he is dynamic and will deliver on his promise of development. Though there is little sign of "aache din" the prime ministers messaging has been perfect. They have faith and are ready to wait.

Most of these small states, completely dependent on Delhi for funds, also believe that it is in their interest to be with the ruling party at the Centre.

The 'Look East' policy, first initiated by former prime minister Narasimha Rao, and now reframed as 'Act East' policy, by Modi, was also meant to help develop the isolated region. The North East is connected to the mainland by what is commonly referred to as the 'chicken neck', a small strip of territory between north Bengal and Bangladesh, through which the Indian railway line connects the region to the mainland. The idea was to build infrastructure and roads to connect this region to the throbbing markets of ASEAN. Moreh is a bustling town in the Kuki dominated Tengnoupal district of Manipur. It borders Myanmar . The India-Myanmar friendship bridge in Moreh connects India to the town of Kalewa in the Sagaing district of Myanmar. The highway in the Myanmar side runs up to Mandalay. There are plans to overhaul and modernise the Integrated Check Post in Moreh. A check post is already there for trade with the border villages of the two countries. But this has to be further modernised.

Plans of connecting Manipur to the Asian Highway have been afoot since 2012, but progress has been slow. By 2016 there should have been a motorable road from the North East to Bangkok via Myanmar. This would be from Moreh in Manipur to Mae Scot in Myanmar-Thai border. All this has been in the making but at a snails speed.

People here are hoping under Narendra Modi, these projects would be given top priority and the promised road and rail infrastructure will be in place to help trade with the rest of East Asia.
Happy Birthday Captain. You are our new CM  this is what the voters of Punjab have wished Amarinder Singh through ballots on Saturday, his birthday. Amarinder has won from the Patiala seat and his becoming CM is almost final, as Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had officially announced Captain as the chief ministerial candidate in January.

In the massive ship-wreck that the political fortunes of the Congress party have faced in the past few years, the only name to bob up and stay afloat on the political waters is that of Capt Amarinder Singh. He was the lone star that the Congress could flaunt among its slim victory numbers in the 2014 general elections when he had defeated BJP bigwig Arun Jaitley in a one-sided battle in Amritsar constituency. And today, he is the lone star in leading the party to victory in a state at a time when Congress has almost vanished from the entire country.

It's befitting that on the day he turns 75, he is getting the gift of a state that he has nurtured politically during the stormiest times in the history of the Congress party.

Born on 11 March, 1942, Amarinder is the son of Maharaja Yadavindra Singh and Maharani Mohinder Kaur of Patiala of the Phulkian dynasty. He is the head of the royal family of the erstwhile state of Patiala and has earlier served as the chief minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007.

When campaigning for Assembly polls in Punjab intensified, a single catchphrase emerged, which eventually turned into a brand, connecting both the Congress party and the voters. It was Captain is Congress and Congress is Captain. The message was clear. If Congress wins in Punjab, Capt will be the CM, as this former CM of the state emerged as the only dependable face in Punjab Congress. He was handpicked by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to contest the Lok Sabha polls in 1980 - both had a Doon School connection. And he won, setting in motion a political career which touches another apogee today with the historic win in the state.

Now the party is eagerly looking forward to Captain to win Punjab for them. Will he or will he not? If Congress wins in Punjab, Amarinder is sure to be the chief minister and his status within the party is likely to witness an exponential jump, but what if the party loses? But now as the party has won in Punjab  only face saver  let us see what made Amarinder, the most dependable face for the Congress in Punjab?

The 1965 Indo-Pakistan war veteran, who graduated from National Defence Academy and Indian Military Academy, had switched over his loyalty from the Congress to Shiromani Akali Dal as a protest against Army action during Operation Blue Star in 1984. He got back to Congress in 2008. The top Congress leadership, which is often accused of the ivory-tower syndrome, finally bought the wisdom of connecting with grassroots workers, at least in Punjab, before campaigning in the state.

Captain Amarinder Singh, the maharaja of the erstwhile State of Patiala and one of the lone survivors of Congress' debacle in Punjab in the last general elections, was brought in to connect with the grassroots in a new strategy to woo the voters. In a bid to make the Captain brand stronger, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi in the last week of January officially announced Amarinder as the chief ministerial candidate.

Amarinder Singh has given his blood and sweat for Punjab. He has worked day and night for the development of Punjab. He has always worked for the Punjabi and Sardar community. He is going to be our chief minister, Gandhi had said. Maybe it was an attempt to keep Amarinder in good humour.

Though Amarinder had won from Amritsar against BJPs Arun Jaitley during General Election 2014, there had been a negative perception against him about his inaccessibility. Thus stepped in poll strategist Prashant Kishor in 2016. Rahul Gandhi wanted to give a professional spin to the poll campaigning in Punjab. Kishor, by then had already made a name by helping Bihar CM Nitish Kumar to win the Assembly election in 2015. He and his IPAC team, in collaboration with Congress, crafted an image makeover strategy for Amarinder, projecting the latter as the face of Punjab Assembly Election 2017.

Captain, who was 74 last December, swung into action with his new campaigning initiatives like Coffee with Captain, Halke Vich Captain, Punjab Da Captain and making effective use of social media etc desperately trying to connect with both the urban and rural youth, and the masses, so as to shed his image of an 'inaccessible maharaja'. Amarinder, who has already said this is going to be his last election, will he now give it a second thought? Congress desperately needs him, provided the party realises his importance at a higher strategic level.

Till then, Happy Birthday Captain.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Mar. 11

By Huseyn Hasanov Trend:

President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedovs state visit to Qatar is scheduled for March 15-16, the Turkmen government said in a message.

A report on the Turkmen Foreign Ministrys work on preparation of the visit was presented at a meeting of the countrys Cabinet of Ministers.

Also, information was given about preparation for holding Days of Culture of Turkmenistan in Qatar March 10-14.
In his entire political life, Rahul Gandhi must have made just one wise decision  that of letting Captain Amarinder Singh lead the Congress campaign in Punjab.

If the Congress is seeing hope in a sky overcast with saffron clouds on 11 March, it is only because of Singh, who has defied the odds to win Punjab for the Congress, giving it something to rejoice on a day it seems on its deathbed.

Credit for the Congress victory in Punjab should go to Captain, who single-handedly turned on its head an election his party seemed destined to lose just a year ago. He has won it by sheer dint of his personality, image and in spite of Rahul Gandhi and the Congress.

Left to him, Rahul Gandhi would have actually ensured the Congress doesn't win Punjab. With his half-baked ideas about leaders, organisation and cadre, he had sidelined Captain Amarinder Singh and given the party's reins to politicians whose only claim to fame was their access to the Congress vice-president's drawing room.

Just a year before the elections, the Congress seemed to be in complete disarray. Factionalism was rampant as several leaders were unhappy with its state chief Pratap Singh Bajwa. Hurt by the treatment meted out to him, Captain was sulking, giving indications that he may either form a new party or become silent in elections. Taking advantage of the confusion with the Congress, the AAP appeared to be on the surge.

Though Rahul Gandhi and his acolytes seemed set to act like political fidayeen, circumstances forced them to step back from the brink of disaster. Forced by rebellion within its ranks, fears of an AAP surge and rumours of Captain's exit, Rahul Gandhi agreed to boot out his loyalists and reorganise the party's state unit. With the advantage of hindsight, he will look at his decision to appoint Captain head of the Punjab Congress as the wisest thing he did in life.

In many ways, Punjab was ready not just for change but also punishing the SAD-BJP alliance for ten years of its rule. Anger against alleged corruption and tyranny of the Badals was simmering. Voters were eager to end the hegemony of the Badal dynasty in local politics. Sikhs were incensed by repeated incidents of disrespect to Guru Granth Sahab. And abuse of drugs had become a major issue among youth.

But, voters seemed reluctant to trust the Congress. On the ground, the perception was that only Captain could be trusted to oust the Badals and lead the state. Somebody must have worked really hard to make Rahul see the writing on the wall and give a free hand to Captain.

Also read: Punjab Election Result 2017 LIVE

There are many reasons for Singh's acceptability in the electorate. Apart from outgoing CM Parkash Singh Badal, he is seen as the most respectable face of the Sikhs in the state, leading to his automatic acceptance among Sikh voters. Also, voters have a favourable impression of Captain's decade-long government in Punjab before it was voted out in 2007. Amidst voters, he is seen as personally incorruptible, an image that gets strengthened because of his royal past.

Throughout the campaign, Captain talked and behaved like the CM-in-waiting. At election rallies, unlike the AAP that targeted the Badals, Captain spoke in detail about the challenges Punjab and how he planned to address them. His theme at rallies was that there is a lot to be done and the ways in which he will do it.

He played the panthic card well too. Soon after taking over as the party's state chief, Captain held a rally where he publicly swore by the holy book not just to put Punjab back on track but also punish those guilty of hurting religious sentiments of the Sikhs.

His crafty political mix of development and religious identity helped the Congress in two ways. One, it juxtaposed Captain's development politics with the perceived lack of development under the Badals. Two, Captain's emphasis on his religious identity put the AAP at a huge disadvantage because of the absence of a prominent Sikh face in its top brass.

Though it would be very difficult for the Congress to rise from the humiliation it has suffered in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand  it will most likely break it or lead to an internal rebellion  there is a lesson to be learnt from the results in Punjab.

The party's comfortable victory shows that the BJP and its allies can indeed by stopped. It proves that Congress can again reclaim the slot of the main opposition to the BJP and edge the AAP out. But for all this to happen, the Congress needs to invest in and nurture its regional heavyweights and give them a free hand.

It also needs to ensure Rahul Gandhi steps into the background and does not meddle with the organisation or its senior leaders.
With the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) losing both Goa and Punjab Assembly elections, party supremo and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's ambition to become a national leader has gone for a toss. At least for now.

A lot was at stake for AAP and Kejriwal, especially in Punjab, which is the only state outside Delhi where the party has any sizeable presence; the state gave the party its total strength of four MPs in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. A win in either or both the states would have catapulted AAP to a true national status as no party other than the BJP or Congress has the privilege of ruling in multiple states of the country.

Other stalwarts such as the Trinamool Congress, the AIADMK, DMK, Shiv Sena, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, the Akali Dal, Telugu Desam Party to name a few, have at best been regional satraps. The Left never ruled except in West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura.

The defeat is a lesson for Kejriwal to get the fundamental principles of Indian politics right before aiming for the post of Prime Minister. In 2014, the newbie politician had contested from Varanasi with the aim to stop the Narendra Modi juggernaut.

The results, as we all know, made history.

Building a pan-India base, given the diversity of the country, is not a child's play. Kejriwal could take a leaf out of other political parties' growth trajectory.

There is nothing wrong in contesting outside its own state or stretching oneself beyond ones own boundaries, but when the ambition reaches the stage of megalomania, it invariably results in failure.

Much before the counting of votes began, Kejriwal had virtually declared his party a winner in the Punjab and Goa. And, topped it up by announcing that his next destination was Gujarat  to take Modi head on in his own state.

AAP and Arvind Kejriwal kept morality at bay and rushed from one state to another announcing that only they would win. One can contest from anywhere one wants to, but the way it has been done [by AAP] is not in good taste. Kejriwal screamed his loudest that only his party would win. That was not the right thing to do. By losing elections in Punjab and Goa, the ambition of Kejriwal has gone for a toss, former AAP member and Swaraj India president, Yogendra Yadav said.

The over-confidence of AAP can be judged from the fact that AAP senior leader Manish Sisodia said in Punjab in January, We will not leave Punjab and sit in Delhi You should vote assuming you are voting to make Arvind Kejriwal the chief minister. Vote in the name of Arvind Kejriwal.

In Goa, AAP failed to win a single seat; its CM candidate Elvis Gomes too lost his seat.

In his ambition to scale the peak of national politics, Kejriwal has left his primary constituency indignant. The frustration among the people of Delhi is palpable, which is most visible among the capital's autowallahs who are now getting vocal about their complaint that the promises Kejriwal made enroute his election victory are yet to be fulfilled.

For more updates, follow here.
Just a couple of days more to the festival of colour, it has now been proved that this years Holi dominating hue is kesaria, or saffron. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was right on that count as the election results are being pronounced with the party grabbing a massive victory in the country's most populous state of Uttar Pradesh.

Mostly seen as the mid-term referendum on the prime minister, the results are an indicator that Modi retains his popularity and also enjoys the trust of the people at large. Although demonetisation was a disruption to their daily lives for some time, people still voted for Modi as they thought it was a brave and bold fight against corruption, black money, and terrorism.

The results of the Assembly elections, Uttar Pradesh in particular, say it all. At the time of writing this piece, BJP was leading in 284 and leading in 28 in the House of 403 seats, while in Uttarakhand, BJP was leading in 57 seats in a House of 70. In Goa and Manipur, the party was inching closer towards forming a government but both the states are witnessing a neck and neck competition.

These numbers are even more significant because there was no obvious overriding statewide or national narrative, as also there was no obvious emotive issue. Uttar Pradesh has crossed the 300-mark only thrice and on all the three occasions issues involved were emotive  the first election after Independence, secondly in 1977 when in the aftermath of the Emergency an anti-Indira wave was blowing in north India and thirdly, in 1980, the return of Indira Gandhi to power. In all the three cases, the size of the state Assembly was bigger as Uttarakhand was also a part of the state.

This election was different in the last 37 years, as the Samajwadi Party (SP) numbers in the outgoing Assembly was 224, the highest ever until Modi waved turned everything upside down. Today SP has been reduced to below 50 seats and Mayawatis BSP reduced to a paltry 18. The current numbers for BJP, 312 were made possible only due to a latent Modi wave which blew in the partys favour.

In terms of building a solid foundation for the party, Modi could probably match Indira Gandhi or his own partys icon Atal Bihari Vajpayee. While Indira Gandhi had her fathers legacy by her side, Modi rose from very humble backgrounds selling tea for a living.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee, no doubt along with LK Advani built BJP brick by brick but his victory could reach nowhere close to where Modi has led it to. He has made inroads in the south, east and North East besides consolidating his party in the north and central India. The numbers he has delivered for his party has been beyond the imagination of the Sangh Parivar, the parent organisation of the BJP. But the party is yet to make any significant footprint in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and West Bengal.

There is little doubt that Modis personal appeal and Shahs ability to execute organisational work on the ground have gelled well to help BJP take giant strides in the last few years. Before the announcement of these results, BJP along with its allies ruled in 15 states. While BJP with its senior partner in Punjab went out of power but with the inclusion of Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand, BJP would now be ruling in 16 states.

The impact of this most thumping victory would be seen in the presidential election which is scheduled in July. Modi can have his own nominee, without caring much for building a larger consensus as Uttar Pradesh MLAs have higher weightage in the electoral college. The composition of Rajya Sabha would change in due course and the tyranny of unelected as was described by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in a different context would go.

Modi and BJP have a huge advantage as the 2019 parliamentary election arrives in two years.

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The big takeaway from the assembly poll outcome in Uttar Pradesh (as the results so far suggest), is that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cleared his big political test on demonetisationone of the key factors in this round of pollsin grand style. Not only did the massively disruptive economic policy and oppositions primary weapon against BJP fail to impact Modis charisma among voters in the state, but it even seemed to aid partys fortunes.

If demonetisation is no problem for Modi in UP, a state where informal sector plays a dominant role, demonetisation is not likely to cause troubles for the party elsewhere in future. This is a personal victory for Modi who has thrown himself hard in to the UPs poll battle scene, especially in the last leg of the campaign and tells an observer that people have ignored the demonetisation pain.

It is now crystal clear Narendra Modi has only gained on his political capital after the 8 November televised announcement to scrap Rs 500, Rs 1,000 notes. As the trends seen in various surveys and certain civic poll results suggested, the PM continued to enjoy ground support of people in the immediate months post the note ban despite heavy criticism from many economists and political rivals on the move.

Though the outcomes of local body polls and surveys suggested continuation of Modi wave post demonetisation, the UP polls, arguably, was the first major test for him. And the outcome would have surprised even the most optimistic supporter of the BJP. More importantly, these numbers will silent his rivals, who have been projecting the disastrous effects of demonetisation on all walks of life and larger economy. This will give a psychological upper hand for the government in Parliament to face the opposition on crucial reform process.

UP poll outcome is even more surprising given that this one state that is heavily dependent on informal sector and has had adverse impacts of demonetisation in the form of job losses especially in regions like Varanasi. But, all these negatives failed to stand between Modi and his big victory in the state.

If one looks at the economy as a whole, the impact of demonetisation has played out much more in the informal sector, not in Indias organised formal sector. This is because informal economy is where cash is the king. About 40-45 per cent of Indian economy is estimated to be in the informal sector, which also contributes almost 80 percent of the total employment.

According to certain estimates, 78 percent of transactions in the economy are conducted in cash. But since segment is poorly captured in official data, the impact here never showed up in the GDP numbers. This is the reason why the 7 per cent October-December quarter GDP figure was seen with suspicion. The flaws in the way noteban was implemented, prompted even former Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, to use phrases such as mammoth tragedy and organised loot, legalized plunder to describe Modis drastic move. Almost all of his political rivals used demonetisation as a tool to attack Modi since the day the drive was launched.

But all the confusion and lack of correlation in numbers and statistics have obviously did not have any impact on people's sentiment on the ground, so is the absence of tangible results on the stated goals of the exercise so far. The evidence of big victory over black money and fake currencies is yet to emerge and the shift to digital paymentsanother objective of demonetisationstill hasnt taken a firm hold. But, none of these factors have worked against Modi. The voters have judged demonetisation as a big political step on those in the society having possession of ill-gotten wealth, a long pending political step. The economics of the move never really mattered. For them, Modi is the leader who finally made the change happen, precisely how he sold the idea of note ban to 125 crore Indians. In this fight of economics Vs Politics, politics have clearly won.

The UP poll outcome practically ends the debate on the impact of demonetisation on Modis political fortunes. Lets remember that demonetisation, besides being a bold, unprecedented economic policy, also carried significant weight as a big strategic move for Modi, for whom fight against black money has always been at the top of his poll agenda since 2014. Thus, to sum up, PM Modi has passed his first big demonetisation test in style, silencing his political rivals and proving decisively that Modi wave has negated the demonetisation card flashed by his political rivals all along.

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Women have played a tremendous role in ensuring the Bharatiya Janata Party victory in both states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. One of the key reasons for this is the slew of schemes that the Centre has launched for women in the last two years many of which have helped transform lives of women especially those belonging to the lower socio-economic groups.

When Dalit woman Bhagwati Devi was asked in Bundelkhand which party she would vote for, she replied , "I will vote for BJP." Conventional wisdom would have expected her to vote for Mayawati and Bahujan Samaj Party. But Bhagwati Devi was willing to balk the trend and opt for the BJP because the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana had promised to provide five crore LGP cylinder to BPL families over the next three years at a cost of Rs 8,000 crore. She had not received any cylinder so far but she was confident she would receive one in the coming months.

Bhagwati Devi added, "The price of firewood is exorbitant. The government is giving free gas connections and we can get gas stoves and other fittings by making monthly payments." The monthly payments Bhagwati Devi was referring to was the government waiving aside the deposit for the gas cylinder and permitting purchasing of the gas regulator, etc on a monthly EMI basis."

The Stand UP India scheme to provide substantive loans of Rs 10 lakh to Rs one crore to tribal SC/ST women to start commercial enterprises has also found resonance at the ground level. Although the scheme was announced in April 2016, there is no doubt that tribal women who are often the main bread earners in their family believe they stand to benefit in a major way. This scheme has a refinance window through the Small Industries Development Bank of India with a Rs 10000 crore in its kitty.

Unlike the gas subsidy scheme, this scheme has still to take hold at the grass level but officials in the Ministry of Finance pointed out that it is expected reach out to 2,50,000 women entrepreneurs. Mariam from Jharkhand said, "Younger tribal women are more educated and are aware of new schemes. The government is teaching us to take loans and how to market them whether it be in the field of handicrafts, agriculture or growing of fruits.Now that a large number of us have our own bank accounts, we will be given debit cards to withdraw money.

Whether it is the Women Helpline Scheme, the Ujjwala scheme for the prevention, rescue and rehabilitation of trafficked women and children, the Swadhar Greh aimed to lift women in dire socially economic circumstances or the maternity benefit scheme under the nomenclature of the Indira Gandhi Matritya Sahyog Yojana, the chain of Mahila Haats are all having their impact on the ground.

It is not surprising therefore that female voters have hugely outnumbered their male counterparts in the populous state of Uttar Pradesh. Election Commission results show that while 63.26 percent of women voted in UP during this seven-phase Assembly election in UP, only 59.43 percent men cast their votes. This is in contrast to a decade ago when in 2007, men had outnumbered women votes with a percentage of 49.35 percent as compared to 41.92 percent.

This is not to say that the outgoing chief minister Akhilesh Yadav had not implemented women-centric programmes such as giving school girls bicycles and laptops and increasing financial assistance in the marriages of poorer women. But the Centres initiatives have impacted the psyche of women voters even more.

Uttarakhand also witnessed a large turn out with 69.34 percent women voters against 62.28 percent men voters as per Election Commission figures. This despite the fact that the state had 38.87 lakh men and 35.23 lakh registered women voters. Women have been in the forefront of agitations in Uttarakhand with the state being formed largely through the initiative of women power and even a decade ago, women voting margins remained one percent higher than their male counterparts.

The voting patterns have been the same in Punjab, Goa and Manipur. Election Commission figures show that in Punjab, 78.12 percent women cast their vote as against 76.69 percent men. Manipur witnessed a large voter turnout with the difference between women voters and men voters being a huge seven percent. Goas high literacy rates amongst women also played a role in ensuring a higher women voter turnout.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is only too conscious of this voter imbalance which is why he has gone out of his way to woo women voters. His high-octane campaign across UP, Uttarakhand and Manipur saw him making repeated references to his pro-women ticket schemes. His efforts have obviously paid off because after his three days spent campaigning in Varanasi saw a surge of women voters in these Assembly segments where the voting percentage of women in some segments crossed 70 percent.

Women have emerged as a strong new political constituency. EC data attributes this to higher gender parity in education especially in the states of Manipur and Goa. Nevertheless, this is not reflected in the number of women who were given tickets across political parties.

The National Alliance for the Women's Reservation Bill, a coalition of over 20 women's rights organisations, have stressed repeatedly that the present assembly polls across five states have shown that women made up less than 6 percent of candidates.

For example, in Uttar Pradesh - India's most populous state with around 20 crore people - the BJP has given 11 percent of seats to women candidates. Other parties such as the Congress, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party had given 5, 12 and 5 per cent respectively to women.

In Punjab, the four main parties ( Congress, BJP, Akali Dal and AAP) with 350 candidates contesting had given just 27 seats to women candidates many of whom were either wives or daughters of powerful state politicians. In Goa, women candidates were similarly short changed with less than seven percent of the candidates being women.

Ranjana Kumari, director of the Centre for Social Research, believes the time has come for Modi to show his commitment to women by introducing the Women Reservation Bill in Parliament. Kumari said, "This will ensure that one-third of the seats at the national and state legislative assemblies will be reserved for women. It is only then that this imbalance of power will be corrected."

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New Delhi: Often credited with turning Narendra Modi into a political brand and bringing arch-foes Lalu Prasad Yadav and Nitish Kumar together for the Grand Alliance in Bihar, the magic of master poll strategist Prashant Kishor appears to have faded for the Congress, which suffered a drubbing in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

While him being roped in by the Congress created much buzz in political circles, it hasn't been smooth sailing for Kishor in Uttar Pradesh where many of the party leaders, particularly from the state, had expressed their reservation over his strategies.

Be it the choice to name Sheila Dikshit, 78, as the chief ministerial candidate for the state, or tying up with the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party, his ideas met with resistance within the Congress.

In fact, Kishor  the brain behind the Congress-Samajwadi tie up  was dubbed a "sound recordist" by actor-turned-politician Raj Babbar.

"He is there to take the party's ideology to the people in an effective manner using modern technology in the polls," a miffed Babbar had said after Kishor met Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav last year.

Besides salvaging the tie-up with the SP when it looked like both the parties would part ways, Kishor planned joint roadshows of Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and coined the slogan "UP Ko Yeh Saath Pasand Hai".

But the campaign blitz failed to take off as the BJP, riding on the Modi wave, swept Uttar Pradesh and wrested Uttarakhand from the Congress.

Both political analysts and Congress leaders admitted Kishor's strategies were a failure but refused to squarely blame him. Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior Congress leader refused to put the entire blame on Kishor's shoulders.

"In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, BJP won in 328 assembly segments in UP. It is obvious that our strategies failed to counter that. The BJP was far more meticulous in its planning and execution. But can a single person be blamed? Who is to be blamed for the failed strategies is a question that requires a collective answer from the party leadership," the veteran leader told IANS.

"The UP polls have proved that even somebody like Prashant Kishor can go wrong. It is obvious his strategies failed," Praveen Rai, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), told IANS. "But can he be solely blamed for the debacle? The responsibility lies with the leadership," added Rai.

The win in Punjab has been a saving grace for the Congress, but experts credit the victory to Amarinder Singh rather than Kishor who designed the campaign for the Congress chief ministerial candidate, including the "Coffee With Captain" campaign on the lines of Modi's 'Chai Pe Charcha'.

As the BJP's landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh became evident, Kishor found himself at the receiving end on Twitter with people mocking his strategies.

If actor-turned BJP MP Paresh Rawal tweeted:

Can anyone find out where is Prashant Kishore ?  Paresh Rawal (@SirPareshRawal) March 11, 2017

Other users wondered sarcastically - "Has Prashant Kishor uploaded his resume on LinkedIn?"

But for psephologist Yashwant Deshmukh, Kishor was fighting an already lost battle. "You can sell only when you have a product. You cannot sell vacuum. Congress' condition was already pathetic in UP. So it will be wrong to blame Kishor for the debacle," Cvoter chief editor Yashwant Deshmukh told IANS.

With inputs from IANS
Long before the election campaign picked up steam, the BJP leadership was caught completely off-guard by the infighting within the Mulayam Singh Yadav household. In the run-up to the elections, high drama in Lucknow initially upset the BJPs political calculations. In the battle of perceptions, Akhilesh Yadav seemed to have gained a lot with the help of the media. Through vigorous ad campaigns, new idioms and catch phrases, a halo of 'victimhood' was conferred upon Akhilesh. What appeared to have rattled BJP strategists is the Samajwadi Partys alliance with the Congress.

What appeared to have got the goat of BJP strategists was the realisation through internal surveys that the alliance may have been able to swing over 90 percent of Muslim voters in its favour  given the fact that a slight deviation in percentage points of voters would make a substantial change in terms of seats. Of course, the Samajwadi Party was seen sitting pretty with 30 percent of the Muslim-Yadav (MY) combination. And there was a fear that if a section of traditional Congress voters could transfer their votes to the Samajwadi Party, its kitty would go high.

Thus began the BJPs counter moves that proved to be quite effectively in checkmating Samajwadi Party-Congress politics. BJP president Amit Shah strategised a multi-pronged move to shore up the BJP's prospects. Now look at the facts that would appear to be more than mere coincidence.

Take for instance, the campaign in the media picked up that Mayawati had given largest share of tickets (97) to Muslims. Similarly, it was not a coincidence that at the height of Akhileshs publicity blitz, an influential group of Muslim clerics came forward to support the BSP and Mayawati. They urged Muslims to vote for the BSP. For the first time, Muslims as collective social group found itself on tenterhooks regarding the selection of either the Samajwadi Party-Congress or the BSP.

As the campaign picked up momentum, this confusion was compounded when the Akhilesh-Rahul alliance proved to be a non-starter on the ground. For instance, the traditional upper caste voters of the Congress deserted in favour of the BJP while the BJP launched a sustained campaign to co-opt most backward classes (MBCs) which form nearly 36 percent of the states electorate. In western Uttar Pradesh, the party used Jat anger to its advantage by roping in non-Jat backward castes to its fold.

Of course, the spectacular BJP victory in Uttar Pradesh can only be ascribed to micromanagement of the polling booths by the party apparatus headed by Shah. Immediately after the Lok Sabha victory in 2014, Shah practically restructured the BJP organisation which was quite at variance with the old RSS-inspired sangathanist model. Leaders belonging to different castes were roped in to give adequate weight in proportion to their population.

The manner in which Shah restructured the organisation  obviously with the approval of Prime Minister Narendra Modi  is believed to have caused rancour among traditionalists within the BJP. But the objection was ignored with the belief that the BJPs social expansion was sine qua nun for its organic growth. In the selection of candidates, this consideration weighed heavily despite resistance by well-entrenched upper caste cadre.

At the same time, micro-management at the booth level was just extraordinary. All traditional and impregnable bastions of the Congress and Samajwadi Party were identified and violated with superb planning that went down to the minutest details. Rampur Khas, a traditional seat of Congress strongman Pramod Tiwari in Pratapgarh, was identified by the BJP to check mate its rivals. Tiwari was not allowed to move in the constituency and his influence was effectively neutralised. Similarly Ajay Rais seat at Pindra in Varanasi was targeted to neutralise the influence of the Congress.

In effect, a team of nearly 600 volunteers was created and deployed after every phase of election to counter any attempt to rig the polls or influence the voters. "We have planned all these things well in advance and played our cards close to our chest, said a top strategist of the BJP. Of course, amid all this planning, secrecy was the key word. At times there were moments of unease when the party got inputs that it didn't fare well in the first phase of the polls.

However, the party recovered fast and deployed its best foot forward for the next phases by inculcating a high dose of Hindutva undertones in the campaign and introducing the 'KASAB'-Kabristan debate. What appears to have clinched the election in favour of the BJP was the indefatigable campaign by Modi who slogged to see it through. Of course the election result in Uttar Pradesh is poised to change the contours of the countrys political landscape as the BJP will emerge for the first time in history as an indomitable political force across the country.
Trends are coming in and it is crystal clear that Uttar Pradesh has been 'MODI'FIED. The party may end up just short of its Lok Sabha 2014 tally of 337 assembly leads. It has been established that UP ko yeh saath pasand hai didnt take off with the crowd. In fact, SP is tied up with BSP at 22 percent vote share.

Though we cant take away credit from Modi's charisma and Amit Shahs hard work, the opposition too helped by scoring self-goals. We have always maintained that though history may not repeat itself in electoral politics, it does rhyme. Akhilesh and Mayawati seem to have forgotten the lessons learnt from their 2007 and 2012 spectacular victories.

From 1993 to 2002 the state witnessed hung assembly, no party could breach the half way mark solely on the back of their traditional vote bank. However in 2007 and 2012 people gave a clear mandate to BSP and SP. This was made possible as both these parties ushered a new era of inclusionary politics trying to forge a rainbow coalition of caste groups beyond their traditional vote banks. BSPs vote share from Dalits, SPs vote share from Yadavs and Muslims and BJPs vote share from upper castes had peaked. Hence the urgency to look outside.

Resultantly, upper caste backed BSP attracted by their sarvjan rather than bahujan philosophy in 2007. It also attracted Muslims and Jats into its fold. It led to a 7 percent increase in vote share and helped reach the 30 percent mark required for victory.

The party beautifully combined its coalition experiment with an ideological component; it sold its philosophical transition from bahujan to sarvajan, and the ideological shift from exclusionary to inclusionary," AK Verma wrote in his book Mayawatis Sandwich Coalition.

In 2012, SP led by young Akhilesh successfully replicated this model. The party won despite lower support from core vote bank of Yadavs and Muslims. SP was able to attract a section of Jatavs disillusioned by BSP and upper caste from BJP.

In 2017, BSP shunned its sarvjan strategy and openly gave a call to Dalits and Muslims to unite and vote for the party. She bragged about giving tickets to 100 Muslim candidates. They together account for 40 percent of the population and a 3/4th support could have pushed Mayawati through, their think tank felt. However, this pushed away other caste groups from BSP. Upper caste, OBCs left the party and jumped onto BJP bandwagon. Only towards the fag end of the campaign, she did reach out to Brahmins, but it was too late.

Akhilesh through the family feud was able to correctly position himself as the hope of youth of the state and enjoyed popularity across caste groups. He was seen as establishing his authority by weeding out corrupt and criminal elements from the party. However, his alliance with Congress gave a clear hint that party was hoping for a complete Yadav-Muslim consolidation. This too seems to have upset his non-core vote bank of upper caste and section of Dalits.

BJP, on the other hand, played its cards beautifully. It didnt offer a single seat to minority community as there was a heated competition between SP and BSP for the same, thus focusing on its hardcore Hindutva voters. It desisted from announcing a chief ministerial candidate, which was criticised enormously. BJP had won an election in Assam where it had announced a chief ministerial candidate while lost in Bihar where it didnt.

It resisted these pressures. This allowed the BJP to attract voters from all caste groups  core (upper, non-yadav OBCs) and non-core (Yadavs, Dalits). It replicated the sarvjan philosophy of BSP with sabka saath sabka vikaas and this clicked with voters.

As I write, BJP has recorded 39.7 percent vote share in state polls versus 42.6 percent vote share in Lok Sabha meaning it has largely held onto its support base. The loss in vote share vis-a-vis central election in only 7 percent compared to 20 percent of the average of ten states which went to polls after Lok Sabha (2014-2016).

We do not have caste wise support yet, only Todays Chanakya exit poll released that data. Since its vote share prediction of 42 percent is nearest to the actual vote share of NDA as of now 41.3 percent (BJP+Apna Dal+SBSP), we can safely assume its numbers are correct. It shows BJP/NDA is holding onto its Yadav, Dalit support and OBC support.

Caste 2014 Lok Sabha (CSDS) 2017 Vidhan Sabha (Chanakya) Yadav 27% 25% OBC 60% 61% Dalits 29% 32%

On the other hand, BSP is expected to get only 9 percent forward caste vote in this election vs 15 percent+ in 2007 and only 13 percent OBC votes vs 30 percent in 2007.

On the other hand, SP is expected to get only 11 percent Dalit vote in this election vs 15 percent+ in 2012, lesser upper caste support and only 18 percent OBC votes vs 26 percent in 2012.

To sum up, BJP which couldnt breach the half way mark in 1993 and 1996 despite 33 percent vote share, took inspiration from BSP model of 2007, broadening its forward caste base to include OBCs and Dalits, replicating the same successfully in 2014 as well as 2017. Mayawati and Akhilesh need to learn from this mistake as they cant win the state solely on the back of support of anchor vote segments.

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The writer is an independent political commentator, co-author of Battle of Bihar and can be reached on twitter at @politicalbaaba.
Modi proves to be the strongest connection between the party and voters in the Uttar Pradesh 2017 election. Everything was bought by the voters, be it, Modis promises, his attire, his policies, which were loud and clear. Both the programmatic linkage and the clientelistic linkage, were explored by BJP in the form of Modi. The distributive expectations of the people were catered to by Modis oratory skills in comparison to the ground work.

The regional parties till now were seen as clientelistic, mediating between voters and services, but those voters who felt that their respective parties failed to deliver the promised goods and services were on the lookout for an alternate linkage system for their expectations and Modi (BJP) fitted in the framework with panache and perfection. Modi was appealing on three fronts  as a communal figure, as a delivery man and in terms of pro-people policies.

Most of the Hindu voters saw the convergence of their expectations in one man. Have people gone beyond the caste, class and religious concerns? That is not the case as a number of factors, which are in fact indicative of deeper caste and communal concerns were working in Modis (BJP) favour.

For the non-jatav dalits the concern was that BSP had fielded Muslim candidates in large number. They had decided to drift away both from BSP and Congress and this is the reason both the parties lost their common voters to BJP. In some places, even the core BSP voters also moved to BJP as they were unhappy with the sitting Muslim candidate of Samajwadi Party where this time BSP gave them a Muslim candidate.

These are the places like some constituencies of Moradabadnagar and Allahabad South, where Dalits categorically rejected BSPs choice of Muslim candidates. In many places where OBCs wanted to vote for SP but were unhappy with the incumbent candidate voted against SP, in favour of BJP. Among the many such constituencies, Badaun was one glaring example where Abid Raza of SP was being seen as a controversial figure and unwanted candidate despite this being the stronghold of Dharmendra Yadav.

Most marginal among the Dalits were overwhelmed with the connect and supposed accessibility to the main authority in the name of Narendra Modi. They felt that voting for Modi will eliminate the middleman in terms of their access to benefits. In their own words, a person from Dhanuk community and another from Kadera community said, Raja humse khud milne aya to kuch to sojega. They were part of Modis rally in Aligarh. Most of these people had come from the neighbouring villages of Aligarh and Badaun in large numbers.

The 2017 UP election proves that the caste-wise dissatisfaction has deepened, which the regional parties seem to have neglected. In fact, among Muslims also the caste factor deepened and worked in favour of BJP. Among Muslims, the caste and class factors and the overall despair, which translated into a confused mandate helped BJP in UP. BJP was clear in sending the anti-Muslim message by not fielding even a single Muslim candidate.

Some of the traditional elite Muslims even went ahead in saying that it is a Hindu nation and there is no harm in having a Hindu flavour. Some Muslims said that they are trying to send out a message that they dont vote merely with a myopic vision of voting against BJP or Modi. In sending this message across they helped BJPs claims gain currency and legitimacy.

From the very beginning, the upper caste Hindus across the state were saying that this time Muslim vote consolidation is not going to help and the results will depend on Hindu vote consolidation. They had this vision that Muslims will stand divided due to their confusion on many lines  class, caste and accessibility to the candidate. They were clear that Muslim voters are facing a huge crisis of choice and leadership, which will go in BJPs favour. In the end, one can say that the idea of development was deeply fuelled by the politics of social energies mobilised through emotional appeals. BJP bombarded the other parties in UP with a lethal bomb of a mixture of, idea, politics, social energies and emotions, in perfect proportions.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a rally of party workers at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) headquarters on Sunday, party president Amit Shah said on Saturday, hours after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claimed a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh. BJP has scripted history by returning to power in Uttar Pradesh after 14 years. The imminent victory triggered widespread celebrations all across the country's most populous state as well as at the BJP headquarters in Delhi.

According to results available (till 4 pm) on Saturday, the BJP had won 161 seats and was leading in 148 out of 396 constituencies in the 403-member Assembly in a stunning showing leaving their rivals far behind. The BJP, which had just 47 seats in the outgoing Assembly, garnered nearly 40 percent vote share, in the most riveting contest seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity and demonetisation.

Earlier Narendra Modi had said,"The Samajwadi Party and the BSP are two sides of the same coin, the former being A (Akhilesh) SP and B (Bahujan) SP," Modi said.

He also said that Akhilesh and Rahul were "delicate" people incapable of taking hard decisions while pitching himself as a grassroots leader who can develop the state. Taking potshots at the Congress over its run of losses in

the recent polls, he said one day, research would be done to find out if it once existed, as it is "disappearing from everywhere."

Home Minister Rajnath Singh said, "We thank all the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for this historic victory and express gratitude towards them." This, he said, was not a victory but a "mega victory". "The BJP has changed the political picture of the country by touching the new era of success in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand," he tweeted.

BJP candidates were ahead of their rivals in all five assembly constituencies of Ghaziabad district. As counting progressed, BJP's Nand Kishore Gurjar was leading by over 6,000 votes over his rival Zakir Ali of Bahujan Samaj Party.

As the Samajwadi Party, the Congress and the BSP licked their wounds, BJP leader and central Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad called the win in Uttar Pradesh bigger than the 2014 victory.

With inputs from Agencies
Tehran, Iran, Mar. 10

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Iran is going to receive its second Airbus airliner of the post-JCPOA era on March 11.

The Airbus 330-200 passenger airplane will leave Toulouse, France for Tehran, IRNA news agency reported March 10.

Irans first brand-new A321 Airbus aircraft landed in Tehran on January 12 after 38 years of international embargo. Prior to this, Iran had not received any new aircraft since the 1979 revolution.

The contract for the airplanes was signed last year when President Hassan Rouhani visited France, only a few days after the nuclear deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was put into force, ending decades-long economic sanctions on Iran.

Under the contract, Iran has put orders for 100 aircraft with Airbus. Iran made a similar deal with the American Boeing, but the prospect of it is overshadowed by the election of Donald Trump as the US president, as he has strongly opposed the nuclear deal and Irans economic freedom.

Under sanctions, Irans aviation industry has become aged and remains underdeveloped. The country plans to buy about 500 new aircraft in the near future.
New Delhi: The Uttar Pradesh election results not only underline Rahul Gandhi's failure, but also that of Priyanka Gandhi who was part of the poll strategy, Union Minister Smriti Irani said on Saturday.

Taking a dig at Rahul over Congress' poor performance in the crucial state polls, Irani said only blaming the AICC vice president "will be an injustice to him".

"One has to do justice. This is not only Mr Rahul Gandhi's failure. Ghulam Nabi Azad had very magnanimously claimed that Priyanka is very much part of the strategy."

"I think the sibling (Priyanka) waiting in the wings has equally failed. So to say only Rahul has failed will be an injustice to him," she told reporters.

The Union textile minister said that she would like to ask the Congress vice president in "Akhilesh style" that "khao ganga maa ki kasam aur batao UP ko kiska saath pasand hai" (Swear in the name of mother Ganga and say who does Uttar Pradesh like).

Irani had contested against Rahul Gandhi from Amethi in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and lost.

On being asked whether she was a contender for the chief minister's post, the BJP leader said there was no need to speculate and that the party's Parliamentary Board will take a decision in this regard.

The party's massive win in the state is a victory for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government at the Centre, she said.

"In our party merit wins over dynasty. This is one political organisation which has made a humble citizen as the prime minister of the country. This victory is the victory of the Modi government and its policies," Irani added.

The BJP and its allies marched ahead in 305 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh as per trends from all the 403 seats, which showed the SP-Congress coalition leading in 68 places and BSP in only 20.
New Delhi: Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP for the party's victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Assembly polls and said the Congress will continue its fight till it wins the hearts and minds of people.

In a series of tweets, Gandhi also congratulated Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh for the party's victory and said it was a mandate for brighter future of the state.

"I congratulate Shri Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand. I thank everyone in Punjab for their immense faith and support. This is a mandate for a brighter future for Punjab and its youth," Gandhi said.

"My heartiest congratulations to Capt Amarinder Singhji & all our party workers who worked tirelessly @capt_amarinder," Gandhi posted.

In his tweet addressed to party workers, Gandhi said the party stands committed to its values.

"To all Congress workers across India: We stand resolute and committed to our values & our belief in an India united in strength & purpose. Our fight continues and will not end till we win the hearts and minds of people," he said.
The results are yet to come but based on trends at noon, BJP is all set to script the third-biggest victory in the history of Indian politics, and certainly BJPs biggest in Uttar Pradesh  Indias most populous state that plays a pivotal role in national politics.

If demonetisation has emerged as the boldest narrative, there have been other factors at play which made such a result (based on leads) possible. The chief among this is the M factor. Every discussion around the UP Assembly polls  in keeping with tradition  was centred around Muslim votes and how effectively and tactically will they vote to keep the BJP at bay. This discussion took for granted as axiomatic that a significant section of the Uttar Pradesh population (19.1 percent) not only will never vote for the BJP, they would do everything within their power to stop the saffron unit from coming to power.

The 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly poll will be also remembered as the day Muslim vote politics was given a loud burial. BJPs performance makes three things clear, each equally important. One, Muslims refuse to be seen as mere votebanks to be called upon whenever so-called secular parties need them to 'stop' BJP from coming to power. This is the reason why BSPs social experiment of a Dalit-Muslim combination remained a myth and the party is on course for a miserable failure. Two, Congress has not only failed, it has successfully pulled down the fortunes of alliance partner Samajwadi Party as it did during its alliance with DMK in Tamil Nadu Assembly polls. Three, BJP has been able to translate the positive mood generated by demonetisation into votes thanks to Amit Shahs booth-level mobilisation.

To elaborate upon the third point first, according to an article by Pranav Gupta and Rahul Verma of pollsters Lokniti-CSDS in Indian Express, Shah pressed into service BJP and RSS grassroots machinery in a way so as to ensure that the Bihar debacle isnt repeated where the party lost despite garnering 34 percent of popular votes. According to the newspaper, a team of 1,600 volunteers traversed the state and personally delivered a letter from Modi explaining the benefits of demonetisation to more than 2.5 lakh households every day. These volunteers (along with RSS machinery) were also responsible for identifying influencers in each village who were roped in as vote mobilisers. Their task was to get BJP aligned voters to the polling booths.

This amount of attention to detail ensured that structural lacunas do not interfere with the workings of a winning narrative. It is easy to ignore the contributions of party president Amit Shah, but he has proven that winning in an election is as much about groundwork as it is about influencing the voters through work or message or a combination of both.

Now, to return to the first point. It is evident that not only did Muslims break away from the politics of fear and scare-mongering done by the so-called secular parties like Congress, SP or the BSP, they have actually done something revolutionary. Leads show that BJP is ahead in 308 seats, including in areas where there is a predominantly Muslim population. What does this signify? It indicates that the saffron unit, forever labelled as anti-Muslim by its rivals and section of the media, has received a sizeable portion of Muslim votes  possible from youths and Muslim women.

This shouldnt surprise. Muslims are equal Indian citizens and they have risen above their community trappings and expressed interest in being an equal partner in the India growth story. This is the precise message that Narendra Modi had sent and the youths have responded to it. Interestingly, Muslim women too seem have been influenced by the progressive stance taken by the NDA government on triple talaq. Though entitled patriarchs from the community felt threatened by it and declared war against BJP, a significant number of Muslim women have clearly defied their diktat.

Bear in mind that BJPs performance is despite the fact that the party did not have a single Muslim candidate whereas BSP had 97, a fact discussed endlessly on news TV. Results show that the electorate in Uttar Pradesh  including Muslims  are tired to the bone of this hackneyed tokenism. It is a travesty to think that a legislator elected by the people would work for his constituency based on caste or religious combinations. Why would the religion of a legislator matter when it comes to selecting or electing him? This perverted logic is the bane of Indian politics that has dragged us back by a few decades and the electorate  including Muslims  seems to have seen through the sham.

The second point, about Rahul Gandhis ineffectiveness rubbing on to Akhilesh Yadav, is all too apparent. Congress has done well in Punjab, reclaiming power where former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh-led the campaign  a man who is high on the dislike list of the Gandhi family. This should tell the party at large, and its current and future allies where the problem lies with Congress. Given the scale of the defeat, it is debatable whether Akhilesh would have managed to win even if he was alone. But giving away 100 seats to a party which has no hold over the electorate would have certainly gone against the UP chief minister. No transfer of votes between allies have has also taken place.

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After a high-octane campaigning for over two months, the wait is about to end as the results for Uttar Pradesh Election will be announced on 11 March. But before the counting of votes begins, Firstpost will track the outcome of all major exit poll surveys, which will begin trickling in after 5:30.

While most pollsters predicted that BJP will lead, not many media houses predicted that BJP will sweep the election the way it did. Only Chanakya's predictions at 67 were close enough to the 71 seats that BJP won in the state.

Exit polls predicted BJP in lead in 2014 but got the numbers all wrong

Samajwadi Party leader Ravidas Mehrotra is apparently miffed at his party's decision to ally with the Congress. He said that the alliance with Congress has reaped no benefits for SP, while adding that the Congress even tried to defeat SP at many places, according to ANI.

After a high-octane campaigning for over two months, results for Up elections will be out on 11 March, whereas the exit poll results will start coming in shortly. Meanwile, Firstpost gathered the key pre-poll surveys in one place to get a mood of the election season. The data we are interpreting was collected till January 2017.

Interestingly, it was considered that the saffron party will have to bear losses as the Jat community was apparently, miffed at BJP for going back on its promise of Jat reservations.

ABP News-CSDS polls have predicted that BJP will lead the poll results in first phase, with 33-39 seast.

ABP News-CSDS polls have predicted that Samajwadi Party trail at the second position will 20-26 seats, whereas BJP will lead with 33-39 seats. The BSP will be at the third position.

SP-Congress alliance to trail at second position in UP first phase

Earlier, Akhilesh Yadav has also said that the poor people can easily be lead astray. However, Mulayam Singh Yadav had expressed confidence that Akhilesh Yadav will be the CM of UP once again.

"If Akhilesh loses, it'll be a big loss for the public of UP. And, it won't be the sole responsibility of Akhilesh Yadav," Azam Khan said.

Times Now exit poll sees BJP getting 190-210 seats out of the 403 in Uttar Pradesh

Just before the exit poll results were to come, Prashant Kishor used the media to put up a bold face. He and his propaganda machinery put out stories that the SP-Congress alliance would get at least 180-odd seats. However in sharp contrast sources close to Mulayam Singh Yadav maintained that the SP-Congress coalition would fare badly and come poor third in the elections. Of course, in the next two days and nights, knives would be out in the Yadav household . And the exit polls conform to the real results, Akhilesh would face the first real and existential crisis of his political career.

As exit polls predict a BJP win, knives would be out in the Yadav household

If the BJP mops up votes beyond 34 percent in UP, there is little doubt that the party will sweep the polls with a clear majority. This share of vote would not have attained the same kind of result had there been a bipolar contest. Since the state assembly became a triangular contest among the BJP, SP and the BSP, it is going to be spectacular victory for the BJP in UP if the exit-poll surveys are any indication.

Close triangular contest, not Modi wave, could have turned the game for BJP in UP

Much before the real results are out, Akhilesh-loyalists are busy defending their leader. Of course Akhilesh needs to be protected from within his own family. Mulayam Singh Yadav and his brother Shivpal would not let Akhilesh go off the hook in the event of debacle. First, Akhilesh made the cardinal mistake of ceding a huge political ground to Congress which was decimated by Mulayam. Second, he alienated all those leaders who were cultivated by Mulayam for forging an effective social coalition. If the exit-polls come true, the tamasha (drama) within the Yadav household would the biggest political soap opera involving a political family only after fracas between Indira Gandhi and Maneka Gandhi.

It is instructive to note here that the alliance was stitched together against the wishes of party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, while many party leaders have also voiced their concerns about ceding too many seats to the Congress.

If ABP-CSDS predictions are to be believed, it looks like the friendly alliance of UP ke ladke, have in fact failed to fetch any votes for the Samajwadi Party, which enjoyed a sweeping majority in the previous Assembly election.

It's quite clear from the trends available so far that demonetisation, instead of being Narendra Modi's monumental hubris that Opposition parties were hoping for and campaigned vigorously against, has actually turned out to be vote catcher for BJP. In fact, demonetisation seems to have turned around the erosion of votes that BJP had been facing in the Hindi heartland of Bihar and given Modi the kind of unbeatable political narrative that most politicians would die for.

If most exit poll trends hold on Saturday, and that's a big 'if', then we can safely write the obit of Mayawati's political career. It is quite clear that the Dalit-Muslim combination didn't take place and she may have even failed to consolidate some of the Jatav Dalit votes who may have, if exit polls are correct, stayed with BJP. She has clearly weaned away some of the Dalit votes since 2014 but that probably hasn't been enough.

What major polling agencies have to say about UP results: The big tally at a glance

Interestingly, Akhilesh used the relation of Bua-Bhatija (nephew-aunt), the same address he has used to take a dig on the BSP supremo, to say that he respects Mayawati as a leader after she considers him his nephew.

In an interview to BBC Hindi, Akhilesh Yadav has said that although he believes that the Samajwadi Party and Congress combine has got the support of majority in UP, but in case need be (read to keep BJP out of power) we are open to ally with the BSP.

The Network-18 exit poll survey has predicted that the BJp will emerge as the largest party with close to 164 seast, while the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance will be trailing at the second position with 147 votes. The pollster predicts bad news for BSP, with the party tariling third with 81 seats.

According to Congress sources, Gandhi has gone abroad for routine a check up as advised by her doctors.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi has gone abroad for a routine check up and will not be in the country when results of the crucial assembly elections to five states come in on 11 March.

Earlier, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh had dropped a large hint while talking to BBC Hindi that his alliance is ready for a mahagathbandhan to keep BJP out.

In a fast-paced turn of events, BSP has turned down Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's offer of joining hands to form government in case there's a hung Assembly. BSP supremo Mayawati was quoted as saying in News 18 that her party was confident of forming government on her own.

Mayawati turns down Akhilesh's offer, chooses to keep her cards close to her chest

In an interview to BBC Hindi Radio, Akhilesh has hinted at an alliance with the Maywatis BSP to avoid Presidents Rule in the state.

With Mamata eyeing the 2019 Lok Sabha and projecting herself as a national leader, she is willing to make an alliance out of two very unlikely partners.

If this report tells us anything, it's that Akhilesh Yadav's statement, that was mostly been written-off as a sign of nervousness, has a much deeper meaning. This suggests that a larger counterplan to pull brakes of the BJP bandwagon elsewhere in the country is already underway.

According to CNN-News18, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee had reportedly spoken to Akhilesh and Mayawati, saying secular forces must stay united.

Could there be more than what meets the eye in Akhilesh's alliance offer to Mayawati?

The arrogance of the alliance is responsible for the debacle... I dont know if you saw a thela-walas byte on TV who said I have always voted for SP but not this time as Netaji has been insulted. The message has gone far and wide. What could I have done?, Mulayam was quoted by The Economic Time as saying.

The Samajwadi Party's ousted patriarch has said that the alliance was the sole reason the party performed so poorly in the polls.

Apparently UP voters didn't like Akhilesh and Rahul ka sath and now Mulayam too finds it unsavoury.

The BJP parliamentary board will come in a huddle today evening to decide the strategy for forming a government in Goa and Manipur, while the party's CM pick for UP and Uttarakhand will also be decided today. The meeting is scheduled to take place after Modi' s grand welcome at the party headquarters in New Delhi.

Of those who lost,15 were cabinet ministers, a dozen were state ministers with independent-charge, and the remaining ministers of state.

A whopping 31 of the 45 ministers bit the dust at the hustings, and where they did win, the victories were hardly convincing as most made it across the finishing line by slender margins.

Power does not necessarily ensure electoral victory - and so it proved for ministers of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's government, with people overwhelmingly rejecting them in the just-concluded assembly elections.

BJP had expelled the minister after the controversial remark had stormed Parliament. BJP sources had then said that Singh would likely be expelled from the party for six years.

BJP president of UP Keshav Prasad Maurya revoked expulsion of Dayashankar Singh. In 2016, Singh had compared BSP chief Mayawati to a prostitute. "Ek vaishya se bhi badtar charitra ki aaj Mayawatiji ho gayi hain. Isi liye Kanshi Ram ke banaye karyakarta unka saath chhod kar ja rahe hain aur BSP samapt ho rai hai Mayawatiji kisi ko 1 crore mein ticket deti hain. Koi 2 crore dene wala milta hai toh usey ticket de deti hain, aur shaam ko koi 3 crore dene ko taiyyar hota hai toh usey de deti hain (Mayawati gives a ticket for 1 crore which she changes if she is offered 2 crore. And she changes even that ticket if she is offered 3 crore by evening),"Singh had said.

Meanwhile, deliberations are on in the media circles and names liek Rajnath Singh, Manoj Sinha, KP Maurya are being talked about. The suspense will end by tonight, probably.

According to a report in The Times of India , a party source said that Amit Shah wants the new chief minister should be someone "who can hit the ground running."

The Bharatiya Janata Party's parliamentary board is all set to meet today and probably the party will pick the chief minister to be for the states of UP and Uttarakhand. However, just like the way, the BJP's election campaign was a one-man show, the chances are really high that the chief ministerial pick is an Amit Shah loyalist.

No matter who BJP picks to head UP, Amit Shah will be the super CM

Nobody is responsible for the defeat, there are no reasons behind it; this is the peoples mandate. The BJP has made tall promises lets see how much of it they fulfil, Mulayam said.

Mulayam Singh Yadav, who earlier grabbed headlines for reportedly accusing the "arrogance of alliance" for SP's debacle in the just-concluded UP polls, has now said that no one was responsible for the defeat.

The BJP almost repeated its performance from the 2014 parliamentary elections, when it won 42.7 percent votes and 73 (more than 90 percent) of 80 Lok Sabha seats.

In an outcome unmatched over the last 40 years, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 312 out of 403 (77.4 percent) seats in Indias largest state assembly in its most-populous state, increasing its vote share by 25 percentage points from the 2012 assembly elections to 39.7 percent in 2017.

Sidelined SP leader Shivpal Yadav, who won from his seat in Uttar Pradesh where his party suffered a rout, has vowed to fight back in the state. The win was a consolation for Shivpal who was fighting to redeem his lost pride in his native constituency.

After SP's debacle in UP election, Shivpal Yadav vows to fight back in the state

According to some reports, Modi could travel in his convoy till the Le Meridien hotel from where he could take the 100 m walk down to his party headquarters, where party workers, lined up on both sides of the Ashoka Road, are expected to greet him." - News 18

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi, having ended what the BJP often described in its campaign as '14 saal ka vanvaas', will appear in public for the first time since his party's landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Post a Super Show on Saturday, Modi Out to Take in The Applause

People had been waiting at the party headquarters for over two hours but the programme has been delayed.

According to CNN-News18 ground reporters, BJP supporters from far and wide places have come to see Modi's address in the national capital. A BJP supporter, interacting with the News-18 reporter said he carries Modi's picture everywhere and worships him like a god. Another supporter, decked up in saffron, said he had travelled from Rajasthan to see the Prime Minister.

He also promised that the party will justify the faith that the people have shown in the BJP, by working for their development.

Amit Shah, addressing party workers at the headquarters, said that Narendra Modi was not only a popular leader but he also succeeded in rekindled hope amid the poor that there lives can get better.

Addressing the party workers for the first time after the massive win in Uttar Pradesh, Modi said that elections are the festival of democracy and the fact that people participated in it wholeheartedly is a good sign for the nation.

Paralleling the BJP sweep in recent polls with a fruit laden tree, Modi said that now it is the party's responsibility to accept it with humbleness. He said just like a fruit laden tree remains bowed in humbleness, the party too should work relentlessly for the people who have put their trust in the party.

Tapping the massive support Modi enjoys amid the middle class, the Prime Minister said that the middle class bears the burden of rules and law the most and it contributes for the growth of the nation. He said that he seeks to empower the poor, which will not only strengthen the marginal section of the society but ease the pressure from the middle class.

Middle class bears the most burden, contributes the most for the nation: PM Modi

Addressing party workers, Modi said that the recent election victories mark the golden era for the Bharatiya Janata Party. He, however, added that this golden moment wasn't handed down to the party by anyone, and he doesn't regret the fact. He said that the victory was the fruit of party workers hard work.

In his victory speech, prime minister Narendra Modi said that he will work harder to ensure that the government delivers to the aspirations of the people . He said that the government is for all people, and he would like all the BJP workers and governments to work with this belief in mind.

Addressing the party workers for the first time after the massive win in Uttar Pradesh, Modi said that elections are the festival of democracy and the fact that people participated in it wholeheartedly is a good sign for the nation.

Paralleling the BJP sweep in recent polls with a fruit laden tree, Modi said that now it is the party's responsibility to accept it with humbleness. He said just like a fruit laden tree remains bowed in humbleness, the party too should work relentlessly for the people who have put their trust in the party.

These elections are an emotional issue for us. They come when we mark the centenary celebrations of Pandit Deen Dayal Ji: PM Modi pic.twitter.com/GWDlVFJNOt

Tapping the massive support Modi enjoys amid the middle class, the Prime Minister said that the middle class bears the burden of rules and law the most and it contributes for the growth of the nation. He said that he seeks to empower the poor, which will not only strengthen the marginal section of the society but ease the pressure from the middle class.

Middle class bears the most burden, contributes the most for the nation: PM Modi

Addressing party workers, Modi said that the recent election victories mark the golden era for the Bharatiya Janata Party. He, however, added that this golden moment wasn't handed down to the party by anyone, and he doesn't regret the fact. He said that the victory was the fruit of party workers hard work.

In his victory speech, prime minister Narendra Modi said that he will work harder to ensure that the government delivers to the aspirations of the people . He said that the government is for all people, and he would like all the BJP workers and governments to work with this belief in mind.

All the three major parties in Uttar Pradesh expressed confidence of emerging victorious from the recent assembly polls, the BJP even ordering 'laddoos' and bands ahead of Saturday's vote count. But many contestants had anxiety writ large on their faces and prayer on their lips, and sought divine benevolence after a hectic, two-month campaign.

Preparations for ballot counting have been completed at the 75 centres across the state, said poll officials.

At first, postal ballots will be counted as counting begins at 8 am. After that the seals of the electronic voting machines (EVM) will be broken in front of agents of various parties and contestants and the Election Commission officials.

Ahead of the D-Day, even the most optimistic of candidates are keeping their fingers crossed and many have taken to praying to their favourite gods or undertaking pilgrimages with their families.

Anurag Bhadouria, the Congress candidate from Lucknow East, said he had gone to the Sai Baba temple in Maharashtra's Shirdi and is hopeful that "my Guru would see me through".

Archana Dixit, wife of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate Yogesh Dixit, says she is all set for the vote counting day and the family plans to visit the famous Hanuman Setu temple here after victory.

"We have done a lot of hard work and am sure that victory will be ours," she said, adding the family flew to Nepal after the polling in Lucknow and visited the famous Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu to seek blessings of Lord Shiva.

Former Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who switched loyalties to the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the polls and re-contested from Lucknow Cantt, says she has full faith in the people of her constituency and is relaxed about her win.

"I have been meeting people, visiting my favourite temple and am confident that with the track record as a legislator and the charisma of Prime Minister Modi, I will emerge victorious," she said.

BJP's state women's wing chief Swati Singh, who contested the election from Sarojiningar constituency in the state capital, said she had undertaken a pilgrimage of Banke Bihari temple in Mathura.

"I have been travelling a lot, campaigned for the party and have also visited the Bhrigu temple in Ballia, praying for my victory," she said.

BSP candidate Shankari Singh is busy with 'hawans' and is hopeful of a "good victory, God willing", while Aparna Yadav, the younger daughter-in-law of Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav who is contesting her first elections from Lucknow Cantt, has just returned from Patna Saheb and is optimistic about her win. "I have worked hard in my constituency and am sure people will reward me with a victory," she said.

Owing to the high-voltage campaign spearhead by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP workers and leaders are confident of getting a "majority" in the state assembly. Laddos have been ordered and music bands requisitioned for the vote counting day.

BJP state General Secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak said the leadership has already said it would be a "vijay ki Holi" so they are all geared up for March 11, while Samajwadi Party legislator Udayveer Singh, a close associate of chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, expressed similar sentiments. But he said the celebration part is for the candidates to take care of.

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati, known for her low profile style of celebrating victories, will stay at her sprawling Mall Avenue residence and has asked cadres and leaders to first focus on counting and to ensure that there is no problem there.

"We will celebrate in style once we romp home safe and with good lead," said a senior party leader.

The Uttar Pradesh assembly has 403 seats and the ruling Samajwadi Party had 224 in the outgoing house. The BSP had 80, the BJP 48, and the Congress 28 members.

With inputs from agencies
The message is loud and clear: The BJP juggernaut has moved into fifth gear. And what's more, there are no speed-breakers in sight, at least not till 2019, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks a second term.

Another thing that the outcome of the latest round of Assembly elections has established is that a good majority of Indians refuse to see Modi as a mere Hindutva leader who whips up raw communal passions to get votes. Instead, they perceive him as a man they can trust, as a man who can bring about development, as a man who can transform their lives for the better, and as a man who can bring in change. In short, they see him as a leader who can deliver.

As of now, the number of Indians who believe Modi can shape India's destiny is large enough to ensure him victory after victory in elections. That should explain the party's good show in four of five states  Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur  that saw polling. Though it lost Punjab, its victory in UP, India's fourth largest state, was nothing but a historic landslide.

The claims of Modi-baiters, essentially comprising those who suffer from a fossilised Left ideology and those who adore the dynasty that runs the Congress, that the Modi magic has been on the wane and that the 8 November demonetisation would be a first nail in his political coffin have been decisively proved wrong.

Whether demonetisation was a success or failure is debatable and many of Modi's fanciful schemes to turn India into a heaven on earth are yet to produce visible results, but they have at least convinced people that Modi is a trier and doer.

Time has come at last for the pro-Left and pro-Congress intellectuals, who pejoratively dismiss Modi's supporters as bhakts, to shed their ideological arrogance and respect democratic choices that people make. Their tireless efforts to spit venom on Modi via television screens, newspaper columns and social media have been swept away by what can only be called a Modi wave.

The makeover in Modi's image from a Hindu rabble-rouser to an economic do-gooder and reformer has by no means been an overnight phenomenon. He changed the way people think of him over time, in ways ranging from plainly rustic to sinisterly subliminal.

Modi is no spectacular orator  his nasal baritone, his third-person references to himself as Modi and his bizarre pronunciation of some English and Hindi words can irritate sophisticates  but he uses his own unique brand of communication to deliver the message effectively. He does it well enough to turn the sceptic into a supporter and persuade listeners to give him a chance to metamorphose India into a welfare state.

Modi has turned himself into a brand bigger than his own party, whether it's good or bad for democracy. Projecting himself as the epitome of morality and fighter of evils that have dogged India since Independence, he turned politics into a debate on morality  and himself. By doing all this, he built an aura of credibility around himself that no other leader in either the BJP or any other party can match. He placed himself on a pedestal so high no rival can reach in the foreseeable future.

What helped Modi sell his brand of politics to large sections of people was his personal integrity and lack of scams involving him. The splendid reputation that he enjoys as a man of moral turpitude makes it politically risky for his enemies to question his integrity.

Those like Congress scion Rahul Gandhi and AAP's Arvind Kejriwal who challenged Modis scam-free record by making wild, unsubstantiated allegations in the past have not only cut no ice with people, but have also suffered heavily in the latest assembly elections.

But for the victory in Punjab and running neck and neck with BJP in Goa and Manipur, the results, especially the BJP's never-before-seen kind of landslide in UP, were a huge disaster for the Congress. Hours after counting of votes began on Saturday morning, Rahul's capacity to lead the Congress was being questioned by some party leaders. And there is consensus among analysts that the credit for the party's Punjab victory must go to the chief ministerial candidate Amarinder Singh and not Rahul. Some said, only half in jest, that the Congress won Punjab only because Rahul campaigned less in that state, busy as he was in UP.

As for Kejriwal, his dreams of winning Punjab and Goa collapsed like a pack of cards almost as soon as counting began, forcing his partymen to abandon all plans to celebrate. What Modi's rivals must learn from the latest election results is that they must be cautious about the way they attack his commitment and integrity. They can question his schemes but not his motives.

And a lesson that outgoing UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav of Samajwadi Party (SP), who cobbled up an alliance with Congress, and Mayawati of Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) is that elections mean a lot more than caste equations and that one plus one is not always two. Akhilesh's good governance record was negated by SP's infamous caste politics, while the Modi wave took care of the rest.

Rahul, Kejriwal, Akhilesh, Mayawati and the like may find it easy to blame BJP's Hindutva rhetoric for their poor show. But Hindutva has only been a tiny part of Modi's political strategy. Hindu revivalism of the mid-1980s, the Babri Masjid demolition and the resultant communal polarisation may have helped BJP gain ground in the past, but Modi has taken the party beyond the confines of communal politics to reformist economics. The people of India have taken good note of it. Modi-baiters must stop considering every supporter of his a Hindu zealot out to destroy minorities.

The extent of BJP's sweep in UP would not have been possible if the party was not backed by all sections of the society, including Muslims. Mayawati's claim that BJP won many Muslim-dominated constituencies in UP only by rigging the EVMs is unlikely to be taken seriously, even by her own supporters.

Modi's enemies, no doubt, will be in no great hurry to attribute his latest success to his pan-India charismatic appeal and credibility. But that is unlikely to bother the man whose eyes are firmly set on winning the 2019 elections and getting himself a second term as prime minister. And unless he goofs up deliberately and badly, he will be a winner.

Follow the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Election Live
Just hours into counting, it is clear that the Narendra Modi wave continues strong in Uttar Pradesh. A landslide victory for the party is almost certain, with CNN-News18 and India Today already calling the state in BJP's favour by a massive majority.

It seems that UP ke ladke  Akhilesh and Rahul  appear to be thoroughly beaten. Gujarati gadhas would be having a big laugh at their expense right about now. Akhilesh would be wondering what madness drove him to tie-up with Congress. Rahul, on the other hand, must be wondering whether there would ever be a 'Rahul wave' in the country.

What worked for the BJP in UP?

It seems that demonetisation, the overarching poll narrative of this election, has brought untold poll dividends for the Narendra Modi-led BJP. As the saffron party looks at a possible majority in Uttar Pradesh, it is quite clear that Modi has once again captured the popular imagination with his 'notebandi' move, the same way he had in 2014, with his call for 'acche din'.

Amit Shah's backroom manoeuvres, putting up a candidates' list sans a single Muslim candidate, Jat discontent and the party's internal rebellion have all been discussed ad nauseum. BJP may well be heading for its biggest victory ever in Uttar Pradesh, eclipsing even its tally during the Kalyan Singh days. This is a staggering result for Modi and could be largely put down to demonetisation.

Based on Narendra Modi's performance over the past few years, one thing is clear. While there are many people in the country who might not buy into the ideology of Hindutva, there are many who actually will vote for Modi on the strength of his work.

Economics versus politics

The impact of demonetisation on the informal sector has been much more visible as cash is king in this sector. About 40-45 percent of Indian economy is estimated to fall under the informal sector, which constitutes almost 80 percent of the total employment.

According to certain estimates, 78 percent of transactions in the Indian economy are cash based. Unfortunately, this is also the segment that is largely excluded from the official data collection infrastructures reach. This could be why economists are looking at 7 percent  higher than expected  GDP growth numbers for the October-December quarter.

A number of indicators that should correlate with the GDP figures, such as bank credit growth, employment figures, manufacturing sector growth and earnings of consumer-focused numbers companies, have shown contrary trends till now. But the confusion and lack of correlation in numbers and statistics do not seem to have impacted peoples sentiments on the ground.

Evidence to suggest that the black money and fake currency problems have been addressed is yet to emerge and the shift to digital payments  another objective of demonetisation  still hasnt taken a firm hold.

But, none of these may impact the poll results, as early trends show big leads for BJP in Uttar Pradesh. It seems that for a lot of people, the economics doesnt really matter. For them, demonetisation is and always will be an attack on the rich and powerful in the society.

Who could be the chief minister?

Now that the results almost certainly point towards a landslide BJP victory, here's a brief list of possible chief ministerial candidates for the state:

Rajnath Singh: A large number of people in Uttar Pradesh would like to bet on Union home minister and Lucknow MP Rajnath Singh as the possible Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. The tallest BJP leader from the state, Singh relinquished the chief minister's post in March 2002.

Keshav Prasad Maurya: Another leader, comparatively younger in the race for the chief ministerial role is first-time Phulpur MP and state party chief Keshav Prasad Maurya.

Santosh Gangwar: Another Union minister (MoS Finance) is Santosh Gangwar whose candidature for the post of chief minister is less talked about. He was elected as MP in the 16th Lok Sabha by registering victory by a margin of over 2.4 lakh votes over his rival candidate in the 2014 General Election.

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Uttarakhand voters have again voted in favour of anti-incumbency, suggest a series of exit polls released on Thursday. The exit polls  conducted by Chanakya, C-Voter, MRC and Axis My India  were released on Thursday evening at 5.30 pm. Of these, only C-Voter predicted anything close to a tight contest; their exit poll said Congress and BJP would be tied at 32 seats apiece. The Today's Chanakya exit poll claimed the most one-sided win for the BJP with 53 out of 70 seats. As per the News X-MRC exit poll, Congress is likelyt to win 30 seats again but will fall comfortably short of the BJP's tally of 38. Finally, the Axis My India poll gave Congress between 12-21 seats while said BJP will win between 46 to 53 seats.

Counting will begin at 8 am on Saturday morning, initially when postal ballots will be opened. There are 13 centres in district headquarters, and one centre each in Haridwar and Champawat. The counting work will be done on 864 tables in these 15 centres. Each table will be secured by a counting supervisor, a counting assistant, a micro observer and group D staff. Representatives of party and candidates will also be present.

The political fate of Uttarakhand's political parties is sealed in EVM machines, which will be opened on Saturday morning. All preparations for D-Day have been done, and 15 counting centres spread over 70 Assembly constituencies are in readyness. A total of 11,000 poll personnel, with 10,000 police officers have been deployed for counting.

Harish Rawat is the only man for the job for Congress, and he will get a five-year extension if the party wins the election. He has been appealing to voters throughout the campaign, that he needs a full five-year tenure to prove himself. If the Congress does indeed manage to claim a majority, it would become clear to everybody that Harish Rawat is a strong regional leader, who managed to single-handedly defeat the combined might of the BJP, the central government, the prime minister and the national BJP president.

'Baahubali' vs 'baaghi' in hill state as old rivals lock horns again

To attain majority, victory in these seats will play a pivotal role. Party heavyweights on both sides are trying their luck on these seats, including chief minister Harish Rawat, who is contesting from Kichcha and Haridwar.

In 2012, Congress had won five seats and BJP 12 seats in Haridwar and Udham Singh nagar, with both sharing the spoils (four seats each) in Dehradun.

In the hill state of Uttarakhand, winning the 28 plain area seats is enough to secure majority. In this state, 20 seats fall in the plain areas of Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar, including eight of the 10 seats in Dehradun district.

Chief Minister Harish Rawat had the advantage of playing the victim card  as someone whose legitimate government was toppled by unfair means  and gained sympathy of the masses. He also had the scope to induct fresh blood in terms of candidates and approach the elections with new energy. After all, the troublemakers were out and he had a free hand to choose the best people from the party or outside. However, what the party witnessed were new troubles opening up. Ticket distribution left many hopefuls unhappy and Rawat's alleged high-handed ways alienated party workers. As many as 50 out of 70 seats in the state, according to media reports, had too many angry Congress workers.

Harish Rawat will have himself to blame if Congress suffers defeat

Uttarakhand was carved out of Uttar Pradesh precisely so that exclusive attention could be given to the development of its remote hill districts. These had been left neglected by successive governments based in UPs capital Lucknow, around 600 km away. Sixteen years since, the mountain districts of Uttarakhand are still short of basic facilities, especially healthcare. There are no jobs to be had in these districts and this is leading to large-scale migration to the plains, leaving entire mountain villages uninhabited. And farming, which used to be the principal occupation in the hills, is crippled by small land holdings and a lack of government agri initiatives that neighbouring Himachal Pradesh sees in plenty.

It will not be easy for BJP to ignore the Harak Singh Rawat, Shailendra Mohan SINghal, Subodh UNiyal, and Yashpal Arya like big face of this hill state politics.

If BJP gets a majority in the state, the rebels can again hold the key because the names of some Congress rebels are floating around for post of chief minister. Apart from this, big faces of rebels can claim big position in the government keeping old BJP leaders at bay.

What will happen if BJP gets a majority?

All the poll personnel have reached at counting centres at 6 am. All security arrangements have been made. CCTV cameras have been installed at all centres.

Each table will be secured by a counting supervisor, counting assistant, micro observer and group D staff. Representatives of party and candidates will also be present.

Counting will begin at 8 am when postal ballots will be opened. There are 13 centres in district headquarters and one centre each in Haridwar and Champawat.

Counting work will be done on 864 tables in the centres.

Total 11000 poll personnel and 10,000 police personnel have been deployed for counting.

As state is desperately waiting for its political fate that is closed in the EVM, all set to be opened tomorrow, all the preparations have been done for the counting day. A total of fifteen centres have been made for counting of votes in 70 Assembly seats.

If BJP comes to the power, CM will have to keep balance among party leaders and congress rebels.

BJP former chief minister Ramesh Pokhariyals name can be included in this list as party insiders says.

A news doing the rounds that the performance of its leaders in the assembly elections will bring a clear picture. Name of BJPs State president Ajay Bhatt, Trivendra Singh Rawat and Congress rebel Satpal Maharaj are in the air.

After exit polls results, BJP which fought the elections in the name of PM Modi and did not project any local BJP face, is yet to decide its CM face in the state.

Probable CM candidates if BJP comes to power in Uttarakhand

Look for Chunavi Chin2's posts in the live for some profound insights!

And frankly, who were we to deny him that request?

As it turns out, he is presently focused on Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Much like C Vidyasagar Rao, the governor who handles two states  Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, Chin2 demanded that he be tasked with the fascinating (sensing a theme here?) job of handling both Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

With college just around the corner, Chin2 is spending his time trying to make sense of India and its fascinating politics.

In fact, to him, the issues and candidates involved matter less than the fascinating experience of voting and waiting for the results. What might seem obvious to you or us, or even the person reading these words over your shoulder, is a fascinating discovery for young Chin2.

Straight outta Compton? Far from it. Try straight outta Chitrakoot. Chunaavi Chin2 (yes, that's the way he spells it and we'll thank you to strictly follow the convention) isn't your quintessential millennial.

Our very own election guide for Uttarakhand: Meet Chunavi Chin2

In each constituency, a few thousand votes decide fate of candidate. Snow fall in higher hills and rain in plain areas increased chill in the state. Coming results are going to increase chill also.

A low percent of voting in higher hills is a reason to worry. Difference of few votes is capable of changing political equations.

Elated at exit poll results, BJP leaders are eyeing on their performance in assembly poll.

Low percentage of voting in hilly region is a reason to worry

He said that results will prove that people wants BJP in the state. Sources suggest that he is the main contender for the post of CM.

Trivendra singh Rawat, BJP leader, Jharkhand in-charge, said he is all sure to form the government with full majority.

Rawat knows he is in a corner, and in during campaigns he projected himself as such. In fact, a video showing Rawat as movie character Baahubali went viral pre-election, where he takes on the BJP's party establishment by himself.

If the Congress does indeed manage to claim a majority, it would become clear to everybody that Harish Rawat is a strong regional leader, who managed to single-handedly defeat the combined might of the BJP, the central government, the prime minister and the national BJP president.

He has been appealing to voters throughout the campaign, that he needs a full five-year tenure to prove himself.

As far as the Congress' chief ministerial candidate is concerned, there is no scope for a contest. Incumbent Harish Rawat is the only man for the job, and he will get a five-year extension if Congress wins the election.

As will the BSP, and the Uttarakhand Krandi Dal (UKD), a regional party that could possibly spring a surprise and win one or two seats.

Given how the last two elections panned out in Uttarakhand, neither party is expected to win with an absolute majority this time either. Analysts believe independent candidates will again hold the key.

Neither party is expected to win with a majority

The ABP-Lokiniti poll and the NewsX-MRC poll also give BJP a comfortable majority in Uttarakhand. However, the India TV-CVoter predicts a hung Assembly. According to this poll, both BJP and Congress may end up winning around 29 to 35 seats in the 70-member Assembly.

The hill state of Uttarkhand may witness BJP's comeback. According to India Today-Axis poll, the saffron party is expected to win a whopping 53 seats, Times Now-VMR poll keeps the tally at 44 seats.

Before the trends start, here's a look at the exit poll numbers

It will also be interesting to see what happens in Sahaspur from where PCC president Kishore Upadhaya is contesting. Ranikhet is important as state BJP president and Leader of Opposition Ajay Bhatt is contesting from there whereas Dhanolti holds much interest as Congress is supporting independent nominee Pritam Singh Panwar from the seat despite fielding Manmohan Mall from there.

Chaubattakhal from where BJP's Satpal Maharaj is in the fray and Kichcha and Haridwar (rural) the two seats from where chief minister Harish Rawat is seeking a second term, will also evoke much curiosity.

Barring Amrita Rawat and Vijay Bahuguna, all the Congress turncoats who are also sitting MLAs, have been fielded by the BJP. However Amrita's husband Satpal Maharaj and Bahuguna's second son Saurav Bahuguna are in the fray as BJP nominees.

With a number of Congress turncoats trying their luck as BJP candidates this time it will be interesting to watch what happens in constituencies like Narendranagar, Bajpur, Roorkee, Khanpur, Kedarnath, Kotdwar, Sitarganj and Nainital from where erstwhile Congress rebels or their wards have been fielded by the saffron party.

What will happen in constituencies with turncoat candidates?

Almost 60 rooms are booked in capital's guesthouses, officer's transit hostel and annexy for newly elected MLAs in the state. Vehicles are arranged to provide facilities.

Congress state president Kishore Upadhyay has demanded complete ban on exit polls. He said that all the exit poll agencies are working under pressure of PM Modi.

The state's only regional party UKD seems nowhere in fray. Even exit polls have discarded it's prospective.

SP is nonexistent while BSP's seats have been continuously decreasing.

Congress ahead with two, while BJP leads with 7. BSP still has not gained anything in Uttarakhand yet.

BJP - 22 Congress - 9 Others - 1 Congress ahead on nine seats, while BJP leads on 22 seats. Source: News18

BJP - 35 Congress - 10 BSP - 1 Congress ahead on ten seats, while BJP leads on 35 seats. BSP gained on one seat. Source: News18

BJP - 38 Congress - 10 BSP - 1 Congress ahead on 10 seats, while BJP leads on 38 seats. BSP gained on one seat.

Other - 1 News18 calls it a win for BJP in Uttarakhand. Congress clinched 15 seats, while BSP gained 1.

BJP - 54 Congress - 13 BSP - 1 Other - 1 News18 calls it a win for BJP in Uttarakhand. Congress clinched 13 seats, while BSP gained 1.

BJP - 53 Congress - 15 BSP - 1 Other - 1 News18 calls it a win for BJP in Uttarakhand. Congress clinched 15 seats, while BSP gained 1.

It created infighting in the BJP ranks, and these rebel candidates were considered serious threats to the party's established nomiees.

Congress' Chief Minister Harish Rawat tried to play the victim card since a failed attempt at toppling his government was made last year. He projected himself as being cheated and downplayed by rebels from his own party, while accommodating Congress rebels has also caused rifts within the BJP.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) looked set to storm to a massive win in Uttarakhand on Saturday, as they are likely to clinch the 70-seat Assembly with a comfortable majority, relegating Harish Rawat's incumbent Congress party to a heavy defeat. Here's a list of the key constituencies in Uttarakhand, and which way they voted.

Key constituencies and which way they voted

It is a proof that congress couldn't gaze the mood of voters and kept on living in utopia. While rebels who were considered to be biggest threat to party inmates performance are leading. Big blow to congress.

It was assumed that Rawat camp can escalate the position of Congress in state but Vijay Bahuguna who was proved unable to take care of Uttarakhand after the disaster and was dethroned later, has come out as a winner.

Replacing Vijay Bahuguna and bringing Harish Rawat has proved fatal for Rahul Gandhi. Rawat has lost both the seats and Bahuguna's son Saurabh has registered a remarkable win in Sitarganj.

This election will be known for redefining all the measures and setting new trends. All the points that was considered favorable seemed diminishing the future of the party in the state.

Later, Rawat emerged as a grassroots politician who always stayed in close contact with pahad and pahadi.

Harish Rawat s defeat at both the seats and the victory of Vijay Bahugunas son Saurabh Bahuguna at the Sitarganj seat sets a new equation. After a disaster in 2013, Bahuguna was replaced with Rawat to elevate Congress' position. Rawat focused on reconstruction work in Kedarnath.

Chief Minister Harish Rawat will meet state Governor KK Paul to tender his resignation, after having accepted his defeat in the Assembly election. Rawat contested from two constituencies, but lost both. Moreover, his Congress party is staring at the prospect of an all-time lowest tally.

Congress focussed on Harish Rawat to such an extent that the party alienated other local leaders who rebelled and moved to the BJP. It was these leaders who have won big in Uttarakhand, and have contributed to BJP's victory.

Congress' ploy of focussing on Harish Rawat alone has backfired

Ambitious and influential local leaders have often engaged in one-upmanship in Uttarakhand, which has been to the detriment of the BJP. And since not one person was influential enough to tower above the others, this has always remained the condition. To compensate for this, the party chose to focus heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence in the state, choosing to play down the lack of local leadership. It was actually the Narendra Modi factor that helped BJP win the election.

How the towering figure of PM Modi helped BJP in fragmented Uttarakhand

Results are fast becoming clear in Uttarakhand, and the Congress party looks set for a decimation. Almost all the star names the party had come up with for the Assembly election have suffered heavy defeats. Even its state president and chief minister couldn't escape losses. The party has been swept away by the tsunami-like wave in favour of the BJP. It's time for introspection for Rawat. He has lost face and lost his constituency.

Chief Minister Harish Rawat will meet state Governor KK Paul to tender his resignation, after having accepted his defeat in the Assembly election. Rawat contested from two constituencies, but lost both. Moreover, his Congress party is staring at the prospect of an all-time lowest tally.

They tell me Chief Minister Harish Rawat will tender his resignation now. Which is ironic, because the elections have been brutal on him. Tender and brutal are opposites.

How parties' leads through over the day

Uttarakhand BJP president Ajay Bhatt loses to Karan Mahara of Congress by 4981 votes from Ranikhet assembly constituency #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/m1ILpELy05

Congress focussed on Harish Rawat to such an extent that the party alienated other local leaders who rebelled and moved to the BJP. It was these leaders who have won big in Uttarakhand, and have contributed to BJP's victory.

Congress' ploy of focussing on Harish Rawat alone has backfired

I congratulate Shri. Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand

Ambitious and influential local leaders have often engaged in one-upmanship in Uttarakhand, which has been to the detriment of the BJP. And since not one person was influential enough to tower above the others, this has always remained the condition. To compensate for this, the party chose to focus heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence in the state, choosing to play down the lack of local leadership. It was actually the Narendra Modi factor that helped BJP win the election.

How the towering figure of PM Modi helped BJP in fragmented Uttarakhand

New Delhi: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat on Saturday lost from both the Haridwar (Rural) and Kichcha seats, as the ruling Congress was handed a humiliating drubbing by the BJP in the hill state.

Rawat lost the Haridwar (Rural) by 12,000 votes and the Kichcha seats.

His defeat comes as the Congress state unit president Kishore Upadhyay conceded defeat.

The BJP is leading in over 55 seats in the state.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for the BJP's "historic victory" in the two states.

Rajnath Singh attributed the victory to "Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment to the public, his efficient leadership and our commitment to good governance.

"We thank all the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for this historic victory and express gratitude towards them."

This, he said, was not a victory but a "mega victory".

"The BJP has changed the political picture of the country by touching the new era of success in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand," he tweeted.

The BJP was projected to win Uttarakhand Assembly Election by various exit polls on Thursday, with projections ranging from 35 to 53 seats for the party in the 70-member house.

The News 24-Today Chanakya poll gave the BJP 53 seats and the ruling Congress 15, and others two in the hill state. India Today-Axis predicted that BJP would get 46-53 seats, the Congress 12-21, and others 2-6 seats. India News-MRC exit poll projected 38 seats for the BJP, 30 for the Congress, two for others.

India TV-Cvoter predicted that BJP and Congress had an even chance at forming a government in the state, and projected 29-35 seats for both parties each. It projected two to nine seats for others.

The poll of polls done by CNN-News18 projected BJP to get 38 seats, Congress 26 and others six, and a similar exercise by NDTV projected the BJP getting 43 seats and the Congress 23 in the hill state.

Exit polls were telecast on Thursday evening at 5.30 pm, after balloting ended on a seat each in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, which polls were earlier countermanded following deaths of candidates.

Five states  Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa and Manipur  witnessed assembly polls over eight phases in February-March. The counting of votes will take place on Saturday.
The Uttarakhand Assembly election was contested primarily between India's two most prominent parties  Congress and BJP. The state of the two parties in Uttarakhand this time, however, couldn't have been any different.

The Congress party is driven primarily by the personality cult of Chief Minister Harish Rawat. From ticket distribution to campaigning, Rawat was the face of Congress' Uttarakhand campaign.

On the other hand, the BJP has relied primarily on poaching rebel Congress MLAs. With Rawat rising as a towering figure in Congress and the party throwing its weight firmly behind him, other leaders felt slighted and defected to the BJP. It nearly triggered a constitutional crisis last year, but Rawat survived.

Here's a list of the key aspirants to the chief minister's throne in Uttarakhand:

Vijay Bahuguna: The former Congress leader was the previous chief minister of the hill state, and the person most likely to become CM again if the BJP does secure a victory. The cloudburst of 2013 impacted the state in a big way, and many blamed Bahuguna's lackadaisical approach for this.

Rescue operations were launched about four to five days after the disaster hit the state in June 2013, and Bahuguna faced bitter criticism. In April last year, he along with nine other rebel Congress MLAs, had defected to the BJP.

BC Khanduri: Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri, known popularly as BC Khanduri, is a two-time chief minister of Uttarakhand, ascending to the post for a two-year period immediately following BJP's win in the 2007 Assembly election.

He became CM again for another two-year period in 2011. However, his administration was blamed for the party's narrow defeat in the 2012 Assembly election. That, and the presence of Bahuguna in the party ranks could make things difficult for Khanduri to become chief minister again.

Ramesh Pokhriyal: Pokhriyal is another former chief minister of the BJP, who is contesting the polls this year and has hopes of ascending to the CM's throne. Pokhriyal was chief minister for a two-year period between 2009 and 2011, but a series of scams involving the state government meant he was asked by the party high command to step down.

There were fears back in 2011 that having Pokhriyal at the helm of the party may hurt its image, and this may mean that he may again be overlooked for the CM's post, especially since Khanduri and Bahuguna are in the BJP's fold.

Ajay Bhatt: Bhatt has been state BJP president since the summer of last year, when nine Congress rebels joined the party. He has also served as the leader of opposition in the state Assembly since 2012, when the Congress formed a government in the hill state.

As state president, Bhatt's main role has been to keep his flock together, especially since the party now boasts of a series of prominent leaders, and could have resulted in a crisis had the balancing act not worked out. If the party does win the election, as the exit polls have predicted, Bhatt's stock would rise significantly.

Ajay Tamta

Ajay Tamta took charge as Minister of State, Ministry of Textiles today. Shri Tamta is a Lok Sabha MP from Almora constituency, Uttarakhand, and a member of the BJP. Prior to his election to the 16th Lok Sabha, Shri Tamta has served as a member of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, from 2007 to 2012 and again from 2012 to 2014. He has also served as a Minister in the Government of Uttarakhand, as Cabinet Minister during 2008  2009 and as MoS during 2007  2008.

Anil Baluni

Anil Baluni is one of the young faces of BJP in Uttarakhand. Anil Baluni hasn't had a spectacular political career. He studied journalism and was active in student politics. Baluni has the right credentials. He is considered politically suave. He is seen within the oribit of the duo of Amit Shah and Narendra Modi.

Trivendra Singh Rawat

He is member of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly in India. He was elected from Doiwala (Vidhan Sabha constituency) in the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly election, 2002. He is the BJP state in-charge Jharkhand. He was also Uttarakhand State BJP President.

Bhagat Singh Koshiyari

Koshyari began his career with the RSS. In 1997, he became the member of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council. In 2000, Koshyari was appointed the minister of irrigation, law, energy and legislative affairs of the newly developed state of Uttarakhand. In 2001, Bhagat replaced Nityanand Swami and became the chief minister of the state.

Follow the Uttarakhand Assembly Election Live coverage.
The BJP romped to a landslide win in Uttarakhand, which surprised many though all exit polls had predicted precisely this result. The three previous Assembly elections in Uttarakhand have all been close contests between Congress and BJP and most analysts believed things would be the same once again. However, the BJP swept the polls in an unprecedented manner, winning nearly 60 out of 70 seats.

However, the key question for many was never if BJP would win the election; it was always going to be  who would be the state's new chief minister after the BJP wins. There are already half a dozen aspirants for the throne, and they have each begun campaigning for the top spot.

The early frontrunner is Vijay Bahuguna. The former chief minister rebelled from the Congress with nine MLAs and joined BJP in the summer of 2016. All nine have won their respective constituencies. This is the best chance for Bahuguna to stake his claim to the CM's throne once again. It's believed that he, along with his 10 supporters, will bargain strong with the party leadership.

Ironically, Bahuguna didn't contest elections himself though his son Saurabh did, and even won the Sitarganj seat by a heavy margin.

Bahuguna's strongest competition will come from Satpal Maharaj, another former Congressman who had defected to the BJP three years ago. He is said to be in close contact with RSS leaders in Nagpur and the party's top brass in New Delhi. He too has his team of supporters, especially in the Chamoli and Pauli districts of the Garhwal hills.

When tickets were being distributed and Maharaj was given a ticket, there was a buzz in political circles within BJP and around the state that he may even be projected as the official chief ministerial candidate. But the party's central leadership decided to keep its cards close to its chest. This buzz did help Maharaj become the frontrunner, however.

Then, there are three more former chief ministers in the party  BC Khanduri, Bhagat Singh Koshiyari and Ramesh Pokriyal Nishank. All three are Lok Sabha MPs from Garhwal, Nainital and Haridwar seats respectively. They were denied tickets for the Assembly elections, as it was felt BJP didn't want to officially announce a CM candidate before the election.

But now that victory is secure, any of these claimants would stand an equal chance of becoming the state's next chief minister. Khanduri may be overlooked on account of his advancing age; he is over 70. But Koshiyari and Pokhriyal, given the party's good performance from the seats part of their Lok Sabha constituency, would certainly be licking their lips in anticipation.

Pokhriyal, MP from Haridwar, would have an especially good chance given the fact that his constituency contains 11 Assembly seats, the largest of all seats in Uttarakhand. Koshiyari enjoys good support in the Kumaon region. It's considered to be his stronghold, and given that he is a prominent Rajput leader, the caste equation may also play in his favour.

BJP state president, the man in charge of the Assembly election committee, and the leader of Opposition in the outgoing Assembly, Ajay Bhatt, is also in the race. He is a prominent partyman and was actively involved when the previous Congress government was in power. However, he lost from Ranikhet to Congress' Karan Mahara, and that may impact his own chances of becoming chief minister.

BJP's national executive member Trivendra Rawat has also silently entered the race. He is the party's candidate from the Doiwala seat, and secured a comfortable win.

However, it ultimately depends on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party national president Amit Shah, and who they think is best suited to lead the party in Uttarakhand. The RSS' stamp of approval will also determine the new CM's candidature. The BJP government at the state will, after all, will be closely tied to the RSS.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Fatih Karimov  Trend:

A brand-new Airbus aircraft landed in the Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran, on March 11, Mehr news agency reported.

The aircraft is Irans second Airbus plane delivered following the removal of international sanctions against the Islamic Republic in January 2016

The Airbus 330-200 passenger airplane left Toulouse, France at 3:00 (GMT +1) and landed in Tehran at 8:57 (GMT +3:30).

The A330 family, which includes Airbus highly-efficient A330-200, offers the most spacious cabin of any wide body aircraft in its category, allowing for a range of cabin interior possibilities.

The Airbus A330 is a medium- to long-range wide-body twin-engine jet. Versions of the A330 have a range of 5,000 to 13,430 kilometers and can accommodate up to 335 passengers in a two-class layout or carry 70 tons of cargo.

Irans first brand-new A321 Airbus landed in Tehran on January 12 after 38 years of international embargo. Prior to this, Iran had not received any new aircraft since the 1979 revolution.

The contract for the airplanes was signed last year when President Hassan Rouhani visited France, only a few days after the nuclear deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was put into force, ending decades-long economic sanctions on Iran.

Under the contract, Iran has put orders for 100 aircraft with Airbus. Iran made a similar deal with the American Boeing, but the prospect of it is overshadowed by the election of Donald Trump as the US president, as he has strongly opposed the nuclear deal and Irans economic freedom.

Under the sanctions, Irans aviation industry has become aged and remains underdeveloped. The country plans to buy about 500 new aircraft in the near future.
By Shadia Nasralla

| VIENNA

VIENNA Four planned Turkish political meetings in Austria were cancelled on Friday in the latest signs of unease across Europe over a series of campaign events to rally support among expatriate Turks for President Tayyip Erdogan.A spokesman for police in the city of Linz said the private owner of a venue there had cancelled an event featuring a party colleague of Erdogan.The town of Hoerbranz near the German border cancelled a separate event with a former Turkish minister because the organisers falsely labelled it as a book presentation.

Another event was scrapped in Herzogenburg, and a spokeswoman for a hotel in Wiener Neustadt, near Vienna, said it had cancelled a meeting planned for Sunday.Some European cities have blocked planned appearances by Turkish politicians to drum up support for Erdogan before an April 16 referendum on giving him sweeping new powers. Relations between Turkey and the European Union deteriorated last year when EU members criticised Erdogan for a mass crackdown on opponents in the wake of a failed coup.

Austria's interior minister said on Tuesday he wanted to change the law to permit a ban on foreign officials making speeches in the country if human rights or public order are threatened, but the bill has not reached parliament yet.Around 116,000 Turkish nationals live in Austria, a country of about 8.7 million.

Having survived the July coup, Erdogan says the referendum is needed to stabilise the country. European politicians accuse him of using the coup as a pretext for mass arrests and dismissals that stifle dissent.In separate developments, the mayor of Rotterdam said Turkey's foreign minister would not be allowed to campaign there on Saturday, and Swiss police cancelled a speech by a Turkish politician planned for Friday, citing "significant security risks". (Editing by Mark Trevelyan)

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By Tuvan Gumrukcu and Thomas Escritt

| ANKARA/ROTTERDAM

ANKARA/ROTTERDAM The Netherlands barred Turkey's foreign minister from landing in Rotterdam on Saturday in a row over Ankara's political campaigning among Turkish emigres, leading President Tayyip Erdogan to brand the fellow NATO member a "Nazi remnant".The extraordinary incident came hours after Mevlut Cavusoglu said he would fly to Rotterdam despite being banned from a rally there to marshal support for sweeping new powers Erdogan seeks. Europe, he said, must be rid of its "boss-like attitude".Cavusoglu, who was barred from a similar meeting in Hamburg last week but spoke instead from the Turkish consulate, accused the Dutch of treating the many Turkish citizens in the country like "hostages", cutting them off from Ankara."I sent them so they could contribute to your economy," he told CNN Turk TV, days ahead of Dutch polls where immigration may play a significant part. "They're not your captives.""If my going will increase tensions, let it be ... I am a foreign minister and I can go wherever I want," he added hours before his planned flight to Rotterdam was banned.Cavusoglu threatened harsh economic and political sanctions if the Dutch refused him entry, a threat that proved decisive for the Netherlands government.It cited public order and security concerns in withdrawing landing rights for Cavusoglu's flight. But it said the sanctions threat made the search for a reasonable solution impossible."This decision is a scandal and unacceptable in every way. It does not abide by diplomatic practices," Cavusoglu told reporters in Istanbul on Saturday evening.

Dutch anti-Muslim politician Geert Wilders, polling second ahead of Wednesday's elections, said in a tweet on Saturday: "To all Turks in the Netherlands who agree with Erdogan: Go to Turkey and NEVER come back!!"Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said: "This morning on TV (the Turkish minister) made clear he was threatening the Netherlands with sanctions and we can never negotiate with the Turks under such threats. So we decided ... in a conference call it was better for him not to come.""NAZI REMNANTS, FASCISTS"

Addressing a rally of supporters, Erdogan retaliated.

"Listen Netherlands, you'll jump once, you'll jump twice, but my people will thwart your game," he said. "You can cancel our foreign minister's flight as much as you want, but let's see how your flights will come to Turkey now.""They don't know diplomacy or politics. They are Nazi remnants. They are fascists," he added.Rutte called Erdogan's reference to Nazis and Fascists "a crazy remark". "I understand they're angry but this is of course way out of line," he said.Erdogan chafes at Western criticism of his mass arrests and dismissals of people authorities believe were linked to a failed July attempt by the military to topple him.

He maintains it is clear the West begrudges him new powers and seeks to engineer a "no" vote in the referendum.German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country Erdogan compared last week with Nazi Germany, has said she will do everything possible to prevent any spillover of Turkish political tensions onto German soil. Four planned Turkish rallies in Austria and one in Switzerland have also been cancelled due to the growing dispute.Cavusoglu is scheduled to speak in Metz, eastern France, on Sunday, an official at the Moselle regional prefecture told Reuters on Saturday, adding that there were currently no plans to prevent the meeting from going ahead.Following the ban on the foreign minister's visit, Turkish Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya will travel to Rotterdam by land, state-run Anadolu news agency said. She is currently in Germany.Erdogan is looking to the large number of emigre Turks living in Europe, especially Germany and the Netherlands, to help clinch victory in next month's referendum which will shape the future of a country whose position on the edge of the Middle East makes it of crucial strategic importance to NATO.He has cited domestic threats from Kurdish and Islamist militants and a July coup bid as cause to vote "yes" to his new powers. But he has also drawn on the emotionally charged row with Europe to portray Turkey as betrayed by allies while facing wars on its southern borders. (Additional reporting by Anthony Deutsch and Toby Sterling; Writing by Ralph Boulton; Editing by Alexander Smith and Helen Popper)

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By Emily Stephenson

| WASHINGTON

WASHINGTON An intruder carrying a backpack entered the White House grounds late Friday and was arrested at an entrance near the part of the building where the president resides, the U.S. Secret Service and CNN said on Saturday.President Donald Trump, who was in the White House at the time, was not in any danger from the security breach, CNN reported, citing an unnamed source. Neither the Secret Service nor the White House responded immediately to a request for further details.The male suspect scaled the South Grounds fence at the White House complex at 11:38 p.m. and was arrested by uniformed officers, the Secret Service said in a statement.

He was apprehended near the south portico entrance, where presidents often address the public, CNN said. The entrance is near the president's residence.The backpack carried by the intruder was screened and searched as a precaution, and no hazardous material was found, according the statement. The Secret Service searched the north and south grounds but nothing of concern turned up.Two years ago, a series of security breaches led to a shakeup of the agency charged with protecting the president, his family and other elected officials.

The most serious recent incident occurred in September 2014, when an Army veteran carrying a knife climbed the fence and pushed his way inside the White House before he was stopped. Another man wearing an American flag jumped the fence in November 2015. In April 2016, an intruder threw a backpack over the outer fence and then scaled it before getting arrested. The 2014 intrusion prompted lawmakers to criticize the agency and led to the resignation of its director Julia Pierson.

Joseph Clancy, her replacement, said in February that he planned to leave the position in March, allowing Trump to name his own security chief.The service's credibility was also damaged in 2012 when it was revealed that members had hired prostitutes while in Colombia in advance of a trip by then-President Barack Obama. Security for reporters entering the White House appeared to be normal on Saturday morning. (Additional reporting by Joseph Ax in New York; Writing by Frank McGurty; Editing by Franklin Paul)

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UNITED NATIONS Iraqi U.N. Ambassador Mohamed Ali Alhakim said on Friday there was "no evidence" that Islamic State had used chemical weapons in Mosul, where the militants are fighting off an offensive by U.S.-backed Iraqi forces.Alhakim said he spoke with officials in Baghdad at midday on Friday and "there was really no evidence that Daesh has used this chemical weapon." Daesh is another name for Islamic State.

The United Nations said last Saturday that 12 people, including women and children, had been treated for possible exposure to chemical weapons agents in Mosul since March 1.

The United Nations Security Council was briefed behind closed doors on the situation in Mosul on Friday by U.N. aid chief Stephen O'Brien and U.N. High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Kim Won-soo.

British U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft, president of the council for March, said the 15-member body believed that Iraq's investigation into possible chemical weapons attacks was ongoing."We expressed concern over reports of possible use of chemical weapons by Daesh and we look forward to the results of Iraq's investigation into those allegations," Rycroft told reporters after the briefing. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Sandra Maler)

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BAMAKO Mali's government proposed a bill on Friday to establish a new Senate chamber as part of a shake up of its constitution designed to reinforce democracy in the West African country, according to a government statement.The body will be one of eight key institutions of state that include the president, government, national assembly and supreme court, the government said after an extraordinary meeting of the council of ministers headed by President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.

"The draft law gives the president of the republic the responsibility to determine the policy of the nation and the right to appoint the prime minister and to terminate his functions without the need for him to resign," it said.

"It creates a parliament consisting of two chambers: the national assembly and the Senate," it said. The bill must be passed by the national assembly before it becomes law.

Security in Mali is bolstered by a deployment of French troops and a U.N. peacekeeping mission but despite this and years of peace talks, the country faces problems of banditry, unrest and Islamist militancy.Keita was sworn in to a five-year term as president after a multi-party election in 2013. (Reporting by Adama Diarra; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Sandra Maler)

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Damascus: Twin bombs killed 44 people in the Old City of Damascus on Saturday, a monitoring group said, in one of the bloodiest attacks in the heart of the Syrian capital.

A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shiite mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Several Shiite pilgrims were among the dead.

"There are also dozens of people wounded, some of them in a serious condition," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

The director general of the capital's Al-Mujtahed hospital told AFP earlier there were at least 28 people dead and 45 wounded.

The SANA state news agency reported that "two bombs planted by terrorists exploded near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Bab Musalla, causing dead and wounded."

Shiite shrines are a frequent target of attack for Sunni extremists of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group (IS), not only in Syria but also in neighbouring Iraq.

The Sayeda Zeinab mausoleum to the south of Damascus, Syria's most visited Shiite pilgrimage site, has been hit by several deadly bombings during the six-year-old civil war.

Twin suicide bombings in the high-security Kafr Sousa district of the capital in January killed 10 people, eight of them soldiers.

That attack was claimed by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front which said that it had targeted Russian military advisers working with the Syrian army.

It was widely seen as an attempt to disrupt UN-brokered peace talks that took place the following month which to the anger of Fateh al-Sham were supported by its former Islamist rebel ally Ahrar al-Sham.

UN envoy Staffan de Mistura has called a new round of talks for 23 March.

Fateh al-Sham has been repeatedly bombed in its northwestern stronghold this year, not only by the Syrian army and its Russian ally but also by a US-led coalition battling IS in both Syria and Iraq.

The rift over the UN-brokered talks between the rebels and the government has also seen deadly clashes between the jihadists and their former Islamist rebel allies.

The two groups had together seized virtually all of the northwestern province of Idlib but are now vying for territorial control.

Bomb attacks are rare in Damascus, a stronghold of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. The Syrian capital is sometimes the target of shelling by rebel groups who hold areas on the outskirts. On 16 December, a seven-year-old girl wearing an explosive belt blew herself up outside a police station in Midan district, wounding three police officers.

Two blasts near state security agencies in Kafr Sousa in December 2011 killed more than 40 people and wounded more than 150, the Syrian government said at the time.
By Denis Dyomkin and Tuvan Gumrukcu

| MOSCOW/ANKARA

MOSCOW/ANKARA President Tayyip Erdogan sought to build cooperation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Friday over military operations in Syria, as Turkey attempts to create a border "safe zone" free of Islamic State and the Kurdish YPG militia.Erdogan, referring to Islamic State's remaining stronghold, told a joint Moscow news conference with the Russian President "Of course, the real target now is Raqqa". Turkey is seeking a role for its military in the advance on Raqqa, but the United States is veering towards enlisting the Kurdish YPG militia - something contrary to Ankara's aim of banishing Kurdish fighters eastwards across the Euphrates river.Turkey considers the YPG the Syrian arm of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that has been fighting an insurrection on Turkish soil for 30 years. Washington, like Ankara, considers the PKK a terrorist group, but it backs the YPG.Russian-backed forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are also operating in the north of the country, close to Turkish borders. Washington and Moscow are concerned fast-moving military developments could lead to serious clashes between Turkish forces and the YPG.

"It should now be accepted that a terrorist organization cannot be defeated with another one," Erdogan said, referring to the enlistment of YPG by the United States to fight Islamic State. "As a country that has been battling terror for 35 years, terrorist organizations like Daesh (Islamic State), the YPG, Nusra front and others are organizations we face at all times.TURKISH-KURDISH CLASHES INTENSIFY

"We have kept all lines of communication open until now, and we will continue to do so from now on," Erdogan said."Whether it is Turkey or Russia, we are working in full cooperation militarily in Syria. Our chiefs of staff, foreign ministers, and intelligence agencies cooperate intensely."

The Turkish military said on Friday that 71 Kurdish militia fighters had been killed in Syria in the last week in what appeared to mark an escalation of clashes with the U.S.-backed YPG group vying for control of areas along Turkey's border. Including that 71, a total of 134 have been killed since Jan. 5.Syrian state media quoted a military source late on Thursday as saying Turkey's military had shelled Syrian government forces and their allies in northern Iraq, causing deaths and injuries. State-run SANA news agency quoted the military source as saying that the Turkish bombardment targeted Syrian border guard positions in the countryside near the northern city of Manbij. The area around Manbij has been controlled since last year by the Manbij Military Council, a local militia that is a part of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an umbrella organisation of armed groups of which the YPG is also a part. (Reporting by Ece Toksabay and Tuvan Gumrukcu; Writing by Ralph Boulton; Editing by Daren Butler, Larry King)

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Fatih Karimov  Trend:

Iran and Ukraine signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to boost economic cooperation.

The document was signed at the end of the Sixth Joint Economic Commission in Kiev, Mehr news agency reported March 11.

The deal covers cooperation in various fields, including agriculture, investment and finance, trade, industry and mining, steel making and machinery as well as geology, banking, oil, gas and petrochemicals.

The document also envisages developing cooperation in transportation, IT, engineering, consultation services, tourism and healthcare.

Irans Agriculture Minister Mahmoud Hojjati, who is in Ukraine heading a 40-member economic delegation, expressed hope that the economic commission meeting would open a new path in Tehran-Kiev cooperation.

Hojjati, who arrived in Kiev March 8, held meetings with Ukrainian officials and visited various production units in the country during his four-day stay.

Iran and Ukraine signed a document on comprehensive economic cooperation in agriculture, investment, oil, gas, energy and banking ties in March 2016.

The two countries are planning to increase their trade to $1 billion in the near future.
This week Samsung launched the Galaxy A5 (2017) and Galaxy A7 (2017)smartphones in India, introduced Galaxy C5 Pro in China, BlackBerry introduced Aurora Android smartphone in Indonesia, Lenovo launched Vibe B in India, and more that happened this week in our roundup.

Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) and Galaxy A7 (2017) smartphones that were unveiled earlier this year ahead of CES 2017 were launched in India earlier this week. These come with IP68 ratings for water and dust resistance, allowing it to withstand rain, sweat, sand and dust. The phones sport a metal frame and 3D glass back which offers them a premium look.

These have a USB Type-C port, Fast Charging, Always on Display and 16MP front and rear cameras. These also have support for Samsung Pay

The Galaxy A5 (2017) and A7 (2017) come in Black Sky and Gold Sand colors, are priced at Rs. 28,990 and Rs. 33,490, respectively and will be available across India from March 15th.

In China Samsung announced Galaxy C5 Pro with a 5.2-inch 1080p Super AMOLED display, is powered by an Octa-Core Snapdragon 626 SoC, runs on Android 6.0 (Marshmallow), has a 16-megapixel rear camera with dual-tone LED flash and a 16-megapixel front-facing camera, both with f/1.9 aperture.

It has unibody metal design, comes with dual SIM support and a fingerprint sensor on the front, below the display. It packs a 2600mAh battery with support for adaptive fast charging.

It comes in Gold, Blue and Rose Gold colors and is priced at 2499 yuan (US$ 360 / Rs. 24,130 approx.). It is available for pre-order in China and goes on sale later this month.

BlackBerrys partner PT BB Merah Putih this week announced BlackBerry Aurora in Indonesia that packs a 5.5-inch HD display, is powered by a quad-core Snadpragon 425 SoC, has 4GB of RAM and runs on Android 7.0 (Nougat).

BlackBerry said that the Aurora is specifically designed to appeal to Indonesian customers and is made in Indonesia. It comes in Gold, Silver and Black colors and is priced at RP 34,99,000 (US$ 260 / Rs. 17,476 approx.) in Indonesia. It will be available for pre-order till March 12, 2017.

Lenovo launched Vibe B with a 4.5-inch FWVGA display, 1 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6735M 64-bit processor, 1GB RAM, Android 6.0 (Marshmallow), 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. It comes in Matte Black and Matte White colors and is priced at Rs. 5,799.

Xiaomi launched Mi In-Ear Headphones Pro HD in India. It comes with hybrid drivers dual-dynamic and balanced armature drivers. It weighs just 17 grams and also comes with a built-in microphone for calls. It has 45 angled in-ear design that creates a good, comfortable seal and TPE wiring for the cables for durability with good rebound rate and less tangling. Android)

It comes in Silver color, is priced at Rs. 1,999 and is available through Mi.com.

In China Xiaomi introduced 90 Minutes Ultra Smart running shoes powered by Intel Curie module. The shoes have been developed in China by the Shanghai RunMi Technology Co. Ltd and can detect movement and store data such as distance covered, speed, calories lost. It can also detect when the user is running, walking or climbing. It promises up to 60 days of battery life.

It comes in black, surf blue color, black and pink colors and is priced at 299 Yuan (US$43 / Rs. 2880 approx.). It is available for order will start shipping by April 15th, 2017.

Fitbit announced Alta HR as the worlds slimmest wrist-based, continuous heart rate tracking device. It has PurePulse heart rate technology, offers automatic exercise recognition, sleep tracking and promises up to 7 days battery life.

It is available for pre-order for Rs. 14,999 on Amazon.in from 15th to 31st March 2017, will be available exclusively on Amazon.in from 1st to 15th April 2017, and from 16th April 2017 onwards across major India retailers including Reliance Digital, Croma, Helios, Jumbo and Vijay Sales retail stores. The Special Edition Alta HR (in Gun Metal and Rose Gold) costs Rs. 16,999. Classic fitness bands cost Rs. 2,999, Luxe Leather bands are priced at Rs. 5,999 and the Luxe Metal Bracelet is priced at Rs. 9,999.

Western Digital Corporation announced 256GB SanDisk Ultra microSDXC UHS-I card in India. It was introduced earlier this year at the CES 2017 as the worlds first microSD card that meets the Application Performance Class 1 (A1) requirements from the latest SD Associations SD 5.1 specifications. It launched 256GB SanDisk Extreme PRO USB 3.1 Solid State Flash Drive, which is its fastest, high-capacity USB flash drive to date and Extreme Go USB 3.1 Flash Drive.

The SanDisk Extreme PRO USB 3.1 Solid State Flash Drive starts at Rs.8,490 and the SanDisk Extreme Go USB 3.1 Flash Drive starts at Rs.3,990. It will be available soon on Amazon.in. The 256GB SanDisk Ultra UHS-I Card microSD card is priced at Rs. 18,990 and will be available starting April 1st.

Swipe Technologies launched Elite Sense with 4G VoLTE support. It packs a 5-inch HD screen, is powered by a 1.4GHz quad-core Snapdragon 425 processor, runs on Android 6.0 (Marshmallow), has a 13-megapixel camera with LED flash and a 8-megapixel front-facing camera. It has unibody metal design and comes with a fingerprint sensor on the back.

It comes in Space Grey and Champagne Gold colors, is priced at Rs. 7499 and is available exclusively from Flipkart.

Chinese smartphone maker iVOOMi launched iV505 with 4G VoLTE support in India. It packs a 5-inch qHD display, is powered by 1.3GHz quad-core processor, runs on Android 6.0 (Marshmallow), has a 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera as well. It has dual SIM support and packs a 3000mAh battery.

It comes in Black and Gold colors and is priced at Rs. 3,999. It is exclusively available from ShopClues.

Vivo this week, announced Y25 budget 4G smartphone. It has a 4.5-inch FWVGA screen, is powered by a quad-core MediaTek MT6580 SoC, has a 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera, but it still runs on Android 5.1 (Lollipop).

It has dual SIM support and comes with Smart Click that lets you hold the volume control to bring up your customized features or apps from a locked screen. It comes in white and grey colors and is priced at RM499 (US$ 112 / Rs. 7,475 approx.).
Back in November last year Samsung Electronics said that it has agreed to acquire Harman International Industries, Incorporated for $112.00 per share in cash, or total equity value of approximately $8 billion. Today Samsung announced it has completed the acquisition. This is the biggest overseas acquisition ever by a South Korean firm.

The completion follows the satisfaction of all conditions to the closing of the transaction, including approval of the transaction by HARMAN stockholders and receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals in the United States and certain foreign jurisdictions.

In connection with the completion of the transaction, HARMANs common stock will cease trading prior to market open on March 13, 2017 and will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.

HARMAN will operate as a standalone Samsung subsidiary, overseen by a Board of Directors led by Sohn. Mr. Paliwal will remain CEO of HARMAN, leading the Company with his management team, and will continue to serve as a member of its Board. Samsung is retaining HARMANs work force, headquarters and facilities, as well as all of its consumer and professional audio brands.

Commenting on the announcement, Dinesh Paliwal, HARMAN President and CEO, said:

We are excited to have completed the transaction, which provides compelling cash value to our stockholders, benefits our customers and provides new opportunities for our employees.Samsung shares our commitment to our customers and our culture of speed, innovation and execution. Working closely with automakers and other technology companies, Samsung and HARMAN will define  and drive  the future of automotive.
Finally, some good news for Chipotle. On Wednesday, the Mexican Grill won the dismissal of a lawsuit in which shareholders alleged the chain had deceived them about its ability to protect customers from outbreaks of food-borne illnesses.

The civil suit, filed back in January 2016 in the U.S. District Court of Southern New York by lead Plaintiffs Metzler Investment GmbH and Construction Laborers Pension Trust of Greater St. Louis, claimed the chain lied about how seriously it took food safety and the ability to keep consumers from contracting at least seven strains of norovirus, E.coli and salmonella outbreaks that erupted at several locations across the country in 2015, Reuters reports.

The suit alleged that the 2015 outbreaks were partially caused by the companys decision, in late 2014, to move the produce prepping from central commissary kitchens to individual locations. The suit goes on to claim that Chipotle made an effort to blame the suppliers for the cause of the outbreak at its onset.

The shareholders also accused Chipotle executives, including CEO Steve Ells, of suspiciously selling off millions of dollars worth of stock just a few months prior to the food safety outbreaks, hinting that Ells likely knew something might cause the chains stock price to take a dive in coming months. The judge rejected those claims.

The lawsuit had been seeking damages on behalf of investors who acquired Chipotle shares from February 2015 to January 2016.

Ultimately, U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla ruled that there was not enough evidence to prove Chipotle deceived shareholders about the risk of potential outbreaks or the seriousness of its food safety issues.

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There is no indication in the Complaint that Chipotles projections were inconsistent with or did not account for the Companys assessments of the impact of the food-borne illness outbreaks," Failla wrote in her decision. "And as long as the public statements are consistent with reasonably available data, corporate officials need not present an overly gloomy or cautious picture of current performance and future prospects."

Chipotle says it does not discuss pending litigation.

Chipotles latest victory comes amidst multiple courtroom battles. The chain settled out of court with 100 customers who became sick by E.coli or norovirus during the outbreak in the fall of 2015. Chipotle was also ordered to pay $600,000 in a gender discrimination lawsuit and most recently, sued for $2 billion for allegedly using a customers photo without permission.
To encourage a Florida doctor to write more prescriptions of the potent painkiller Subsys, executives of the drugs maker invited him to company headquarters near Phoenix and took him out for a night on the town, according to a federal indictment released Thursday.

Two top sales officials of Insys Therapeutics entertained the physician at a club, where they stayed until 4 a.m. Went fantastic last night, one of the companys regional sales managers wrote in a text message to a sales rep, the indictment says. He had to have had one of the best nights of his life.

The next week, the doctor wrote 17 prescriptions for Subsys  a legal form of the opioid fentanyl  when he usually averaged about three. He also received $260,050 in payments over three years for participating in the Insys speaking program  something federal officials allege was nothing more than a mechanism for bribing doctors.

Federal prosecutors in Boston allege the Florida doctor was one of several medical practitioners bribed by Insys employees as part of a national conspiracy to boost sales of Subsys. Six former Insys executives and sales managers were arrested Thursday in response to a 60-page indictment detailing allegations of bribery and kickbacks.

Insys said in a statement that it is cooperating with authorities and committed to complying with laws and regulations.

Read more: Former execs charged with bribing doctors to prescribe potent painkiller

Subsys was launched in March 2012 into a crowded field of competitors, which included other brand-name medications and several generics. The drug was approved only for cancer patients with intense flares of pain  a narrow market  and only about 2,000 doctors in the country prescribed fentanyl products. The drug is also expensive, costing thousands of dollars a month.

The company, prosecutors allege, overcame these challenges with a speaker program  whose stated purpose was to educate doctors on the use of the drug  to bribe doctors. In an email titled Live Speaker Targets, former Insys chief executive Michael Babich wrote to sales managers to make certain sales reps understood the important nature of having one of their top targets as a speaker. It can pay big dividends for them. In a text message to a sales rep, former Insys vice president of sales Alec Burlakoff wrote that doctors do not need to be good speakers, they need to write a lot of Subsys prescriptions.

To sweeten the pot, the Insys employees allegedly scheduled speaking events at establishments owned by doctors, or their families and friends. The events allegedly had little do with education: They were often held at high-priced restaurants and attendees were frequently just friends of the doctor hired as the speaker, the indictment alleges. Fake names were used on sign-in sheets, and some events had no attendees at all, according to prosecutors.

The indictment does not identify by name any of the practitioners who allegedly received the bribes and kickbacks.

The company meticulously tracked results from the speaker program, calculating a ratio of return on investment for each speaker using metrics such as the number of prescriptions written by the speaker and the total amount the company paid the doctor. If doctors failed to boost their prescribing after being paid to be an Insys speaker, the company would reduce the number of their speaking engagements, according to the indictment.

In the case of an advanced practice nurse in Connecticut, the sales manager for that state became frustrated when the nurse failed to prescribe more Subsys after being paid as a speaker. Very simply when I look at return on investment as she has not motivated any new prescriber as of yet and she is not significantly increasing her own business, I am going to have tremendous difficulty in justifying more programs, the manager wrote. The nurse eventually increased her prescribing and received $78,748 in speaking fees from the company.

One doctor in Arkansas allegedly promised Insys sales reps more scripts than we can handle once he started to be paid as part of the company speakers program.

Read more: A potent painkiller, and the drug makers marketing, are faulted in a womans death

In 2012, Burlakoff traveled to Michigan to meet with a doctor who owned a Saginaw pain clinic with more than 5,000 patients. Insys wanted him to write more Subsys prescriptions. After taking the doctor to dinner, the indictment alleges Burlakoff sent an email to members of the sales team telling them expect a nice bump fellas.

The Michigan doctor was enrolled in the speakers program, receiving payments totaling $138,435, and his prescribing of Subsys increased, according to the indictment. Doctors like the one in Michigan keep us in business, Burlakoff wrote. He added, lets get a few more and the rest  of this job is a joke.

An attorney for Burlakoff, George Vien of Boston, said his client would plead not guilty and fight the case. The other defendants or their lawyers couldnt be immediately reached for comment.

The Insys sales force targeted the top prescribers of all fentanyl products, according to the indictment.

When Babich received a list of doctors in the Insys speaker program writing a large number of prescriptions for competitors drugs, he allegedly emailed Burlakoff. I thought we owned the high decile folks? he wrote. Lots of big names on there.

The sales force for Insys reaped large financial gains of their own if the doctors they called upon increased their prescribing. In some cases, sales reps were assigned just one doctor  usually a big prescriber.

In Alabama, a sales rep was told by a superior he could make an additional $40,000 over three months if the doctor he was assigned to wrote just two Subsys prescriptions a week during that time.

The indictment alleges the former Insys employees also targeted doctors known to have questionable prescribing practices. In one case, the target was a doctor in the Chicago area that an Insys sales rep wrote in an email runs a very shady pill mill and only accepts cash. The doctor was eventually paid over $70,000 for company speaking events.

The key to the success of Subsys, according to the indictment, was incentivizing doctors to prescribe the drug to patients beyond the limited market of cancer patients suffering from breakthrough pain.

At a 2014 national sales meeting, Burlakoff told the sales force the cancer market was small potatoes. Thats nothing.

While the alleged bribes resulted in doctors writing more prescriptions for the drug, insurance companies were still reluctant to pay for Subsys prescribed to patients who did not have cancer.

To fix that problem, Babich and others allegedly created an elaborate system to trick insurers into making payments for off-label uses of the drug. They created a call center at Insys headquarters to handle insurance reimbursement approvals for doctors prescribing Subsys. Employees in this unit allegedly contacted insurers, creating the appearance they were calling from the office of the doctor who wrote the prescription, and deceiving them about the patients diagnosis and medical history. They often added a diagnosis of dysphagia, which is difficulty in swallowing. This gave a product like Subsys, which is a nasal spray, a big advantage over similar products that were in pill form and had to be swallowed. Other times, the employees of this unit would falsely claim the patient had cancer, according to the indictment.

Employees of the unit were rewarded with lucrative financial bonuses if the entire unit met a weekly target of reimbursement approvals. The target was known as The Gate.
In April of 1987 I was making the long trek across upstate New York heading back to college. Little did I know that less than 10 miles behind me, a bridge across the New York State Thruway had given way, sending 10 unsuspecting motorists plunging into the Schoharie River.

Fast forward to the summer of 2007, the entire nation watched in horror as a massive chunk of the I-35 bridge, crossing the Mississippi River just outside of Minnesota, gave way in rush hour traffic sending 13 people to their death and injuring nearly 150 Americans.

The next day on the banks of the river, politicians wrung their hands.

Democrats and Republicans alike always take a September 12th mindset to infrastructure failures. Our leaders intone that we can make certain this never happens again  until it does.

We should all remember Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty holding a news conference, just days after the I-35 bridge collapse, acknowledging that the bridge had been rated as "structurally deficient" for a full 17 years.

Today alone, nearly 500 trains will cross the Portal Bridge in New Jersey. Those trains will carry nearly 200,000 passengers. It is the busiest train bridge in the Western Hemisphere. The Portal Bridge is 105 years old.

Presidents and other elected officials have ignored this foundational responsibility of government for decades now.

Right now, there are more than 600,000 bridges in our nation that are knowingly rated to be "obsolete or structurally deficient."

President Trump has made it clear that he will not stand silently by and wait for the infrastructure equivalent of September 11th.

Im offering four key points critical to the impending debate.

1. We need to prioritize our spending. An infrastructure bill can't be to fund every pet project for every Member of Congress. The federal government just set a record for revenue. Washington, DC does not need more money - it needs to spend our money smarter and on the right priorities. Elected officials love to cut ribbons next to new bridges. Let's fix the ones that exist today or close them.

2. Pour concrete rather than fund pensions. A full 30 percent of the so called "stimulus spending" under President Obama in 2009 went to fund bureaucracy.

3. Reduce regulations. A perfect example of government run amuck and wasting taxpayer dollars is the New York State Wicks Law. Passed in 1924 to protect union laborers, the law requires that on all public projects, separate contracts must be let for plumbing, HVAC, and electrical. It is estimated that this antiquated law adds as much as 30% to construction projects. This taxpayer dollar sucking regulation must be eliminated.

4. Bring in private capital. After more than 50 years of public operation, Indiana recently privatized a more than 150 mile toll road in a nearly $4B contract. Rather than forcing taxpayers to foot the bill for modernization and enhanced customer improvements, the State of Indiana struck an arrangement to lease the toll road for the next 75 years to private operators that will improve the highway through user fees.

Infrastructure investment does not poll high. It's not at the top of American's list of priorities. But it is critical that our roads, bridges, dams and energy grid are those of a first world nation.

Today, China spends more on infrastructure than all of Europe and the United States, combined!

President Trump is putting a stake in the ground by saying and demonstrating that the safety of Americans is his top priority.

President Roosevelt had his Civilian Conservation Corp to create manually skilled labor jobs during the Great Depression. President Kennedy rallied the nation to "send a man to the moon and back safely by the end of the decade. President Eisenhower inspired the national highway network we use to travel each and every day.

This 21st century modernization initiative will make Americans safe, create good paying jobs, and demonstrate to over burdened taxpayers that government can actually deliver real value.
In July 2012 I was speaking at a youth retreat in the mountains of Tennessee when I received a call from CNN. It seemed that Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy had publicly commented on the issue of same-sex marriage and now the gay mafia were out to destroy him and his restaurant chain. Would I, asked CNN, be willing to offer the orthodox Christian perspective on homosexuality and defend Chick-fil-A in this controversy? After reviewing Cathys remarks and concluding that they were neither outrageous nor biblically incorrect, I agreed to the interview and, later that day I defended the Christian position on the network as vigorously as possible in the time that I had.

Shortly thereafter, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee called for Christians to mobilize and show their support for the embattled fast food restaurant with Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day. They did. Lines at the restaurant stretched for blocks. This event marked the first time I could remember Christians fighting back rather than meekly submitting to the media and special interest bullies.

But not all evangelical Christians were supportive of the Home of the Chicken Sandwich. In an article for World Magazine, Barnabas Piper, son of prominent evangelical pastor John Piper, wrote:

I will not be attending Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day on Wednesday. Heres why Convictions, especially biblical ones, will divide people. That is inevitable, but not desirable. The separation of believers and unbelievers, when it happens, must be a last resort or an unavoidable result. Actions to the contrary, those that clearly promote an us versus them mentality, are most often unhelpful. There is a time for Christians to engage in boycotting, such as when a business deals in obviously immoral areas or is clearly unethical in its methods. But for a mass of Christians to descend upon Chick-fil-A restaurants across the country tomorrow to support the leaderships view on this issue is, I believe, a bold mistake.

I was stupefied by these remarks. Piper is young and was, no doubt, well intentioned here. But, brother, if you cant be relied on to show up and order a combo meal in support of a company under attack for its commitment to Christian principles, when exactly can we count on you? This wasnt about the leaderships view on homosexuality; this was about the biblical view of marriage and society. Besides, Huckabee wasnt asking Piper or other Christians to die for their faith. He wasnt asking them to take to the streets and destroy property as protestors on the Left have recently done in such places as Ferguson and Berkeley. He was asking them to do nothing more than eat a chicken sandwich and some waffle fries for Jesus. Has any protest in history been easier or tastier?

A generation ago pop star Bonnie Tyler famously asked: Where have all the good men gone?

Since then, the situation has only gotten worse, Bonnie. As C.S. Lewis noted, men in the English-speaking world have largely been emasculated, and men in the Church are seldom an exception to this decades-long trend.

To stand strong for ones faith in Jesus Christ and push back against a culture that, in the words of Isaiah 5:20, call[s] evil good and good evil is to be divisive, unloving, bigoted, and intolerant.

This is because evangelicals have confused Christs command to love others with being likable, as if that were an attribute of God. (It isnt.) As such, they endeavor to be, above all else, inoffensive and polite. This doctrinal malpractice has given us a generation of men who are what Lewis called men without chests.

I am a child of the military. I was born at Fort Benning, Georgia and grew up at such places as Fort Gordon, Fort Campbell, and Fort Lewis.

The idea of fighting for things that matter has never been foreign to me. I fully recognize, as the Athenian statesman, Pericles, observed, Happiness depends on freedom, and freedom depends on courage.

My father, a career soldier, had a phrase he liked to employ whenever he saw a man behave in a manner that was less than manly. He would say something like, That was candy-assed. Of course, my father didnt invent the idiom, but in his use of it you didnt need further explanation. You knew exactly what he was talking about.

The term fits the kind of Christianity that has infected the Church and sapped it of its vitality and strength. The expression might offend the sensibilities of some of my readers to which I can only say, it might fit you.

I urge you instead to be offended by the way our Gods name is blasphemed in our country every day; by the 54 million children murdered in the holocaust of abortion since 1973; by the sordid sexual agenda that is eroding the very fabric of Western civilization; by the fact that Christians are dying for their faith, largely at the hands of Muslims, at a rate of 100,000 per year; and, most of all, by the reality that these things are being ignored, trivialized, or celebrated. These are things that offend me deeply, and I hope they offend you, too. Righteous anger has a place within the Christian life. Tap into it. In the words of Ephesians 4:26, Be angry and do not sin.

Evangelical Christians comprise a hefty 26 percent of the U.S. population. I fully believe that if they were to find their voices, their courage, and were to dispense with candy-assed Christianity, that we would see a Great Awakening in America. Indeed, we would see America become truly great again rather than superficially so. But it will, as I say, require courage, because the forces opposing us seem determined to burn this country to the ground.

That cannot go unchallenged.

When Jesus said to turn the other cheek, he did not mean to turn a blind eye. The highest calling of a Christian is not to be civil; it is to be salt and light.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Orkhan Quluzade  Trend:

Turkey wants good relations with all its neighbors, but wont open its border with Armenia until it withdraws from the Azerbaijani lands, Turkish media quoted Ahmet Arslan, minister of transport, maritime and communication, as saying March 11.

Unfortunately, Turkey closed its borders because of Armenia, although we do not want it. We want to trade and develop our relations with all neighbors. We have always suggested opening the border under condition of liberation of the Azerbaijani territories and return of Azerbaijani IDPs to their lands, the minister said.

We offer Armenia to get out of the blockade and use Turkey for transit to Europe.

Turkey is working to step up transit potential of its eastern province of Kars, according to Arslan.

Arslan added that the Ministry of Transport, Maritime and Communications is holding a tender for construction of the Kars-Digor-Tuzluca road to establish links between the Kars Province and Azerbaijans Nakhchivan, as well as Iran.

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.
No good options exist for dealing with the gathering danger of North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile program.

On the bright side, the Trump administration has taken several steps in the right direction by repudiating the wishful thinking of its predecessors. The president understands that sanctions and negotiations will not suffice to halt North Korea's determination to deploy nuclear missiles menacing to South Korea and long-range missiles capable of striking the United States.

The administration also appears to harbor no illusion that China -- North Korea's enabler for decades -- is an honest broker working to defuse tensions rather than exploit the vulnerability of the United States and its democratic allies in the region.

Instead of envisaging China as a diplomatic partner in trying to reign in North Korea's rogue regime, President Trump has bypassed Beijing in fashioning a more robust diplomatic strategy and military deterrent. President Trump wisely rejected a Chinese proposal that the United States and South Korea cancel military exercises in exchange for a counterfeit freeze of North Korea's ballistic missile and nuclear program.

Speaking for the president, Nicki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, pledged instead that "all options were on the table" after the latest barrage of North Korean Missile tests. That includes pushing for sterner sanctions, greater collaboration with our democratic allies in East Asia, deploying ballistic missile defense in South Korea, notwithstanding China' objection that ballistic missile defense threatened to undermine the credibility of China's nuclear deterrent and hence could provoke a dangerous arms race. Haley minced no words, describing North Korean tyrant Kim Jon-un as unbelievably arrogant and "not rational." Breaking starkly with the Obama administration's default position to engage rogue regimes, including North Korea, Haley insisted that "this is not the time for us to talk about freezing our dialogue with North Korea."

President Trump's sterner measures diplomatically, economically and military have done much to bolster U.S. credibility and capabilities regionally and globally regardless of what North Korea chooses to do. The energetic development and deployment of ballistic missile defense will substantially reduce America's vulnerability to nuclear blackmail everywhere, including East Asia.

Yet North Korea's nuclear program is too far along, its leaders too implacable and impervious to the suffering of its enslaved people for even the most robust deterrent/containment strategy to thwart the rogue regime's insatiable ambitions. The Trump administration will likely face a reckoning of choosing the least bad option of tolerating a nuclear North Korea or launching a preemptive military attack to prevent it.

How President Trump meets this stern challenge of choosing the lesser moral and geopolitical evil will have broad ramifications. Iran continues to test ballistic missiles in defiance of the spirit if not the letter of UN resolutions. President Obama's feckless nuclear deal with Tehran has facilitated that rogue regime's quest to cross the nuclear threshold even in the unlikely event that the militant mullahs abide by its porous and ineffective provisions. Nor is the agreement verifiable or enforceable in the unlikely event that the United States detects an unequivocal violation.

So President Trump must choose his words carefully to avoid lowering the barriers to aggression by speaking loudly while carrying a small stick. President Obama's cave-in on his Syrian red line resonated negatively not only in the Middle East, but convinced Russian President Vladimir Putin and an increasingly bellicose, expansionist Chinese Politburo that the United States issued hollow warnings that would vanish into the ether at the first sign of defiance. The lamentable record of the Obama administration internationally is a testament to the danger of not saying what you mean and meaning what you say.

If the Trump administration wishes to reverse the dangerous erosion of American credibility that Obama's Dangerous Doctrine has wrought, the president better be prepared to deliver on any vow he makes to prevent North Korea from crossing the nuclear threshold. Or he ought to define our goals more modestly as robust deterrence and provide ample means to make that posture credible. Otherwise, his administration will merely repeat the dangerous serial mistakes of his predecessors, lowering the barriers to aggression everywhere.

President Trump has thus far displayed sound instincts for rejecting the failed strategies of the past while choosing the combination of the least bad options for dealing with an unappeasable North Korean nuclear threat. Even so, he cannot tweet or bluster his way out of this dilemma any more than Obama's soaring rhetoric could substitute adequately for American credibility and resolve. The president would do well in this instance to pay heed to the sage advice of his most prudent, informed, battle tested advisors such as Secretary of Defense James Mattis and his NSC Advisor H.R. McMaster.

The gathering North Korean nuclear danger has bedeviled several presidents starting in the 1990's when North Korea swindled the Clinton administration into subsidizing its nuclear program in the fatuous hope that the regime would abide by its word.

President Trump has inherited a mess with North Korea that has no easy or risk free solution. How effectively he deals with it will profoundly affect the course of his presidency internationally.

Robert G. Kaufman is a professor at the Pepperdine University School of Public Policy and author of "Dangerous Doctrine: How Obama's Grand Strategy Weakened America."
A federal judge on Friday blocked President Trump 's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape their war-torn homeland by fleeing to Wisconsin.

The ruling is likely the first by a judge since Trump issued a revised travel ban on Monday, according to a spokesman for the Washington state attorney general, who has led states challenging the ban.

The Syrian man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon, alleging the new order is still an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion and right to due process. He asked Conley to block its enforcement against his family.

U.S. District Judge William Conley said there were daily threats to the Syrian man's wife and child that could cause "irreparable harm." He issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family. The order doesn't block the entire travel ban. It simply prevents Trump's administration from enforcing it against this family pending a March 21 hearing.

KELLYANNE CONWAY: NEW TRAVEL BAN 'WILL PASS LEGAL MUSTER'

The court appreciates that there may be important differences between the original executive order, and the revised executive order. ... As the order applies to the plaintiff here, however, the court finds his claims have at least some chance of prevailing for the reasons articulated by other courts, Conley wrote.

A Syrian Muslim man who was granted asylum and settled in Wisconsin has been working since last year to win U.S. government approval for his wife and 3-year-old daughter to leave the devastated city of Aleppo and join him here. The man, who is not identified because of fears for his family's safety, filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trump's first travel ban had wrongly stopped the visa process for his family.

After the Trump ban was blocked the first time, the approval process restarted for the Syrian family and they're now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the U.S. embassy, the last step before U.S. customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesn't have dates for the interviews yet and Trump's new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian man's attorneys.

Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that the new ban may not apply to this family anyway, although they did not go into details. There are various exemptions and waivers in the new ban including some that give consular officers flexibility to decide cases. Conley acknowledged that the family's situation is murky but still issued the order, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case.

The U.S Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment on it and Conley's order.

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. U.S. District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the entire order on Feb. 3.

The revised order issued Monday removed Iraq from the list of countries and would temporarily shuts down the refugee program. Unlike the first order, the new ban would not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian man's lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Assad 's regime and another group fighting in support of Assad. The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and traveled to pro-Assad areas to manage his family's business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife. He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.

The Associated Press contributed to this report
Syrian President Bashar Assad says President Trump has so far failed to show anything concrete toward his pledge to defeat the Islamic State terror group and calls U.S. forces inside his country invaders.

We haven't seen anything concrete yet regarding this rhetoric," Assad said in an interview published Saturday. We have hopes that this administration... is going to implement what we have heard.

Trump won the presidency in large part on his promise to defeat ISIS. And upon taking office in late January, he ordered his top military leaders to present within 30 days a new draft plan to dismantle the terror group. However, it is unclear whether they have delivered a report to Trump.

Assad also said the U.S.-backed military effort against ISIS in Syria has so far amounted to only a few raids but in theory he remains optimistic about cooperation between his regime and the Trump administration, according to the roughly 27-minute interview the Syrian president did with Chinese TV station Phoenix, which was posted Saturday on Syria's state-news agency SANA.

Many Republicans and military hawks were critical of former President Obamas efforts on ISIS and his dealings with Assad, the target of a six-year civil war to topple his regime.

Such critics point out that Obama and his administration would not acknowledge radical Islamic terrorism. And they say Obama failed to follow through on a 2012 statement that Assad would cross a red line in using chemical weapons on civilians, after evidence of such attack later became apparent.

Meanwhile, ISIS has flourished in largely the northern and remote regions of Syria amid the civil war.

U.S. military leaders have essentially limited public comments about the war of ISIS to efforts in Iraq, particularly now in west Mosul.

However, they said earlier this week that the United States is preparing to send roughly 400 additional support troops to Syria --- in addition to the roughly 500 already in the country -- for a multi-national effort to defeat ISIS in their stronghold of Raqqa.

Assad said in the interview that winning in Raqqa was "a priority for his regime and any foreign troops coming to Syria without our invitation or consultation or permission, they are invaders, whether they are American, Turkish, or any other one. And we dont think this is going to help.
Federal attorneys on Saturday identified the person who allegedly jumped a White House fence Friday night and got so deep into the compound that he was seen hiding behind one the mansions column before being apprehended.

The suspect has been identified as Jonathan Tuan Tran, 26, of Milpitas, Calif., according the U.S. Attorney's Office and court documents.

Tran purportedly entered the White House grounds at about 11:38 p.m. Friday with a backpack and was approaching the buildings south portico residence entrance when apprehended.

President Trump was inside the White House at the time and on Saturday said he appreciated the Secret Service efforts and that the accused is disturbed.

The Secret Service issue a statement on the incident at about noon Saturday that said the backpack contained no hazardous materials and that the unidentified suspect had no previous history with the agency.

However, court documents obtained by Fox News state Tran had two cans of mace in his possession, including one inside his jacket pocket.

Tran was charged late Saturday in a District of Columbia federal court with entering or remaining in restricted grounds while using or carrying a dangerous weapon. The federal offense carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

The Secret Service says the suspect scaled an outer-perimeter fence on the White House complexs southeast side, near the Treasury Building, and was arrested without further incident by an officer in the agencys Uniformed Division.

Court document state surveillance video shows Tran hiding behind a White House column.

And the arresting officer writes in the criminal complaint that he first observed Tran walking close to the exterior wall of the White House mansion and that Tran began heading toward the complexs south lawn upon being noticed.

The officer also states Tran, dressed in a hooded sweatshirt of jacket, told him, I am a friend of the president. I have an appointment.

The documents state Trans was also carrying an Apple laptop computer, a book written by Trump and a letter to the president.

In the letter, Tran mentions Russian hackers and that he has relevant information. Tran also writes that hes been called schizophrenic and that his phone and email communications have been read by a third party, according to the documents.

Tran is being held without bond, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for now has declined further comment. Trans next court appearance is Monday.

Friday's security breach follows a series of similar lapses that took place during the eight years that Barack Obama was president.

An especially embarrassing breach came in September 2014 when an Army veteran with mental health issues scaled a fence on the Pennsylvania Avenue side of the White House and made it deep inside the building, to the East Room, before the Secret Service could detain him.

The Obamas were not at home at the time. The incident was one of several breakdowns by the Secret Service that ultimately led to the resignation of the agency's director, Julia Pierson, the following month.

Fox News' Kristin Fisher, Matthew Dean and Serafin Gomez and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Muhammad Ali Jr. was detained and questioned at a Washington airport on Friday before being allowed to board a flight to Fort Lauderdale, a lawyer for the late heavyweight champion's son said.

Ali had traveled to Washington on Wednesday, without incident, to speak with members of a congressional subcommittee on border security about a previous detention. Ali and his mother, Khalilah Camacho Ali, were stopped at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport after returning from Jamaica on Feb. 7.

Attorney Chris Mancini said Ali was detained for 20 minutes after attempting to board a JetBlue Airways flight home to Florida on Friday. Mancini said Ali spoke to Department of Homeland Security officials by telephone and showed his driver's license and passport before being allowed to board.

Alis identity was confirmed by the agency before boarding the flight, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration said.

"None of this was happening Wednesday," Mancini said in a telephone interview. "Going to Washington obviously opened up a can of worms at DHS."

Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz was on the same flight as Ali. Schultz tweeted a photo with Ali saying that "religiously profiling son of 'The Greatest' will not make us safe."

On way home on DOMESTIC FLIGHT Muhammad Ali Jr. detained AGAIN by @DHSgov. Religiously profiling son of 'The Greatest' will not make us safe pic.twitter.com/KO3IVnRFax  D Wasserman Schultz (@DWStweets) March 10, 2017

Ali told members of Congress on Thursday that he felt like his "human rights" were violated.

"I felt just like I felt at my father's funeral. I didn't know what to think. I was just dumbfounded," Ali said.

The mother and son have said in interviews that they believe they have been stopped because they are Muslim with Arabic names. Muhammad Ali Jr. and his mother are both born in the United States.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
An outspoken Manhattan federal prosecutor known for fighting public corruption was fired Saturday afternoon.

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara tweeted that he "did not resign" and added, "Moments ago, I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life."

"One hallmark of justice is absolute independence, and that was my touchstone every day that I served. I want to thank the amazing people of the Southern District of New York, the greatest public servants in the world, for everything they do each day in pursuit of justice," Bharara said in a statement. "They will continue to do the great work of the Office under the leadership of Joon H. Kim, the current Deputy U.S. Attorney, who will serve as Acting U.S. Attorney.

A senior administration official, however, told Fox News that Bharara may be using this event for political gain. Bharara has long been speculated as a potential candidate for public office in New York.

The word "fired" was never used toward Bharara, accoding to the senior administration official, who added: "Preet is trying to make this into a thing. But it is not really a thing."

The senior administration official also noted that everyone was treated the same, meaning that all of the Obama-appointed US attorney were asked to step down.

A person with knowledge of U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's actions said earlier Saturday that he was taking President Trump up on his word that he can remain in his post. The person, who spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to comment publicly, said Bharara was remaining in his post after receiving assurances last year from Trump and Sessions that they wanted him to stay on.

However, a senior administration official told Fox News later Saturday night that Bharara's account of his meeting with Trump and Jeff Sessions at Trump Tower -- where he informed the press afterward that he was invited to stay on indefinitely as U.S. attorney -- was never confirmed by Trump's transition team but was solely an account from Bharara himself.

It was previously reported by the Associated Press that Bharara was not complying with Attorney General Jeff Sessions' request to resign along with other prosecutors appointed by former President Barack Obama.

New York Attorny General Eric Schneiderman issued a statement Saturday afternoon.

By abruptly removing 40+ US Attorneys - including @PreetBharara - Pres. Trump had again caused chaos in the federal govt. My statement: pic.twitter.com/6vvTZwxl4Z  Eric Schneiderman (@AGSchneiderman) March 11, 2017

Preet Bharara has been an exemplary U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. His relentless drive to root out public corruption, lock up terrorists, take on Wall Street, and stand up for what is right should serve as a model for all U.S. attorneys across the country. He will be sorely missed," said Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-NY, in a statement.

Spokespeople for Bharara's office declined comment after word Friday that Bharara's name was included on Sessions' list.

The Justice Department declined comment early Saturday.

The department said Friday that some U.S. attorneys, as in prior transitions, already had left the department. Now, "the Attorney General has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed U.S. Attorneys to tender their resignations," a spokeswoman said.

Until the new U.S. Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. Attorneys Offices will continue the great work of the Department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders, the statement added.

Department of Justice spokesperson Peter Carr told Fox News late Friday night: The President called Dana Boente and Rod Rosenstein tonight to inform them that he has declined to accept their resignation, and they will remain in their current positions.

It is customary, though not automatic, for the country's 93 U.S. attorneys to leave their positions once a new president is in office. Incoming administrations over the past several decades typically have replaced most U.S. attorneys during the first year or two.

The Obama administration allowed political appointees of President George W. Bush to serve until their replacement had been nominated and confirmed. One U.S. attorney appointed by Bush, Rod Rosenstein of Maryland, remained on the job for the entire Obama administration and is the current nominee for deputy attorney general.

But Sessions' actions are being closely scrutinized by Democrats after a rocky start to the attorney generals time at the Justice Department.

Weeks after his tight confirmation vote on Feb. 8, it emerged that Sessions had met twice with the Russian ambassador last year -- despite testifying during his confirmation hearing he had no communications with the Russians. Sessions later clarified his testimony, while recusing himself from any investigation into Russian influence in the 2016 campaign.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, issued a statement late Friday saying: Im surprised to hear that President Trump and Attorney General Sessions have abruptly fired all 46 remaining U.S. attorneys. "

Fox News White House Producer Serafin Gomez and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Parents at an elementary school in New Jersey are slamming a class assignment calling on fifth grade students to create slave auction posters that apparently ended up being hung in the school's hallway without explanation.

ABC 7 described some of the posters. In one case, a poster listed the names of slaves up for auction. The poster listed a 12-year-old girl named "Anne," who was described as "a fine housegirl." Another poster read, "All slaves raised on the plantation of John Carter," and specified that only cash is accepted.

NJ.com reported that there was a meeting called at the South Mountain Elementary School in South Orange, which is outside Newark. The paper reported that parents criticized the school on social media and the school district is planning a meeting.

School officials told the paper that the project is part of a larger overall assignment, and has been in place for 10 years.

"One of the anti-bias experts highlighted the fact that schools all over our country often skip over the more painful aspects of American History, and that we need to do a better job of acknowledging the uglier parts of our past, so that children learn the full story," John Ramos, the districts superintendent said in a note, the paper reported.

Ramos agreed that the posters hung in the hallway should have had an explanation. The posters were removed from the hallways.
Nicaraguan officials say a 25-year-old woman died after being thrown into a fire to drive "demons" from her body.

The woman, Vilma Trujillo Garcia, suffered burns over 80 percent of her body.

Vice President Rosario Murillo called her death "regrettable."

Prosecutors say evangelical pastor Juan Gregorio Rocha Romero and four other people have been arrested in her death.

Rocha Romero told the newspaper La Prensa that the woman fell into the fire and a demon exited her body.

The victims' husband, Reynaldo Peralta Rodriguez, said the mother of two was taken inside a church last week when members thought she was possessed after allegedly trying to attack people with a machete.
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A bear has been killed after it escaped from its enclosure at a zoo in the northern German town of Osnabrueck.

The German news agency dpa reported the bear was shot by zoo personnel and all visitors were temporarily evacuated on Saturday.

The head of the zoo, Andreas Busemann, said that, "We reacted immediately with our team, and in order to protect the visitors, we had to shoot him."

Busemann said the bear, called Taps, was one of the zoo's attractions, a so-called cappuccino bear  with a polar bear and a brown bear as parents.

He said it wasn't clear how the animal had managed to escape from the compound, but that police were investigating.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Orkhan Quluzade  Trend:

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has warned the Netherlands about possible sanctions.

The Netherlands threatens that it wont let my plane take off. I am flying to Rotterdam today. If the Netherlands cancels my flight permit, we will introduce serious sanctions, he said, Turkish media outlets reported.

In the Netherlands, Cavusoglu will take part in a rally in support of amendments to the Turkish Constitution.

Last week, Germany did not allow holding a number of Turkish rallies.

A referendum on constitutional amendments, which provide for introduction of presidential system in Turkey, will be held on Apr. 16.
I met Sharon Glasgow in 2010, when I attended Proverbs31 Ministries She Speaks Conference for the first time. I was excited to learn that Sharon, a member of the P31 Speakers Team, also lives in Fredericksburg. She is a beautiful woman who exudes a gentle grace and a quiet spirit.

Sharon and her husband, Dale, who works full time as an artist, have spent the last 22 years raising their five daughters on their family farm. As their daughters grew up, all but one got married on their property. Soon, their friends started to ask if they too could hold their weddings in the Glasgows idyllic setting.

With Dales art business not doing well, the family seized the opportunity to open their barn to the public as a wedding venue. From the beginning, Sharon saw their wedding business as more than a way to generate income, but also as a ministry to brides, their families and their friends. Each bride is shown Christs love and compassion. Sharon has personally prayed over 99 percent of the brides before their ceremonies.

Unfortunately, last fall, they received the devastating news that they may have to shut down all public events on their farm because they did not have an assembly use permit from the county. They applied and were granted the permit, on the condition that they bring their facilities up to commercial use codes at a cost of over $300,000.

Sharon describes the financial obstacle as a mountain that could not be moved. After raising five daughters, sending them to college and paying for weddings, they had no savings from which to draw.

Incredibly, they decided to move forward with the renovations in faith that God would provideand that is exactly what He has done. God has provided the materials, labor and money needed at the very moment it was needed over the past several months.

Miracle after miracle has occurred. Brides have called to book the farm site unseen. Strangers have stopped by to drop off money because God told them to do so. Their contractor, who is working 12-hour days, seven days a week has donated his time free of charge; 99 percent of their labor is free. Food donations pour in each day to feed their workers.

God foresaw their need years in advance when He seeded a strong oak tree from which the perfect, grade A, 25-foot barn beam was cut. Miracles and healings are taking place in the lives of those connected with the work on the farm.

With each passing day, a little more of their unmovable mountain is being chipped away. Just as Jesus taught in the Lords Prayer, Sharon is focusing on one day at a time and praying that God will provide each days bread as it comes.

Individuals from all over the world are following the happenings at the Glasgow farm. There are days when they have a line of people who have come just to be prayed over.

As each Facebook update proclaims the glory of God and the greatness of His provision, I admit to feeling a twinge of envy, at times. It is tempting to ask, Why them, Lord, and not me?

But when I step back and look at my own life as someone on the outside looking in, I realize that God has provided for all of [my] needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19) So often, we can see what God is doing in the lives of other people, but we miss how He is working in our own.

The miracles may not be as incredible. The provision may not be as tangible. Things may not always work out the way we want or expect, but nevertheless, when we look back we can see the fingerprints of an Almighty God on our lives.

It is evident that God has something incredible planned for the Glasgow farm. If you would like to be a part of His plan by donating time, services, food or finances, email Sharon at sharon@sharonglasgow.com.
Spotsylvania County leaders appear inclined to close the door Tuesday on a higher real-estate tax rate, despite a push by some public schools supporters for an increase.

The Board of Supervisors will vote then to advertise the rate, which it can only lowernot raiseafter the March 28 public hearing on next fiscal years budget. Supervisor Greg Benton, the swing vote on taxes, said hes pretty set on maintaining the current rate of 85 cents per $100 of assessed value.

Still, he added: Im hoping we can get the schools a little bit more money.

In recent weeks, Spotsylvania Education Association members and others have urged supervisors to meet the School Boards budget request for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

County Administrator Mark Taylors budget proposal keeps taxes steady, but is more than $4 million shy of what the School Board says it needs to help cover 2 percent pay raises, in addition to rising health care rates and Virginia Retirement System payments.

The seven-member Board of Supervisors would have to approve an 89-cent rate, or a 4-cent increase, to close that shortfall absent any changes to Taylors budget. None of the five supervisors interviewed for this story supported even advertising a rate that high.

Supervisor Paul Trampe, who recently proposed a 1-cent tax cut that would save the average homeowner about $25 a year, joined Benton in supporting an advertised rate of 85 cents. Theres no consensus on the board as to what savings we could support to get to 84 [cents], so I wouldnt want to lock us into that, he said in an email.

Supervisors David Ross and Timothy McLaughlin did not immediately reply to requests for comment, but have always aligned with Trampe on the advertised rate.

Meanwhile, Supervisors Greg Cebula, Gary Skinner and Chris Yakabouski said they hope to advertise a rate increase, but appear to be one vote short. Setting the current rate in stone would effectively cut off debate before the public hearing, they argued.

Benton said he would like to tap into carryover funds, or money that was budgeted but not spent this fiscal year, to help schools offset the health insurance increases.

He also said he thinks some of the county administrators proposed increases for the Sheriffs Officesuch as money for two part-time desk deputiescould go to schools instead.

But he said theres no way the county will be able to satisfy the School Boards entire request.

Yakabouski said he hopes to advertise an 86-cent rate, which he said gives us a little bit of breathing room. The average homeowner would pay an additional $25 a year under that rate.

Cebula said he did not have a particular rate in mind, but said advertising an increase is the only fair way to do things. It disincentivizes people to come to a public hearing  when they know upfront theyre not going to get anything, he said.

Skinner said he hopes to advertise an 87-cent rate to show the citizens that we are willing to listen.

Spotsylvania Education Association President Jeanne Bergeron, a teacher at Riverbend High School, said she will be disappointed but not surprised if supervisors stick with the current rate.

They dont seem to want to have any kind of discussion on itpublic discussion on it, she said.

Supervisors are scheduled to take a final vote on tax rates April 11.
Most of military forces at the Khost military airport in eastern Afghanistan, attacked on Saturday by militants, are foreigners, Sputnik reported.

According to TOLO news broadcaster, earlier in the day, three militants attacked the airport, including a suicide bomber, who detonated a car with explosives at the eastern gate of the airport. Two other attackers managed to enter the territory of the airport and start clashing with the security forces.

The attack started at around 2:30 p.m. local time (10:00 GMT), according to the broadcaster.

No immediate reports about the victims in the attack have been provided yet.

Earlier this week, a group of terrorists dressed as medical staff attacked the military Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan Hospital in the capital of Afghanistan, with the Islamic State (IS, a terrorist group outlawed in Russia and other countries) claiming responsibility for the assault. About 50 people died in the attack.

Afghanistan has been experiencing significant political, social and security-related instability for decades, as radical extremist organizations, including the Taliban and IS, continue to stage attacks against civilian and military targets. NATO's Resolute Support mission has been deployed in Afghanistan since 2015.
The federal Endangered Species Act has been called the world's gold standard for environmental protection. Passed in 1973, it strengthened earlier federal protections for animals that had been nearly wiped out by humans, including bald eagles, humpback whales and California condors.

But the act has faced opposition from those who believe it unfairly protects animals that sometimes poach livestock and that it unfairly restricts land use.

At a recent hearing to discuss "modernizing the Endangered Species Act," Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., head of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said the ESA "is not working today."

On the House side, Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop, R-Utah, said the act "has never been used for the rehabilitation of species. . . . It's been used to control the land. We've missed the entire purpose of the Endangered Species Act. It has been hijacked."

A former U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service director at the Senate hearing responded to calls that the law needed a dramatic change by reminding committee members of how the law is viewed in other parts of the world. "The Endangered Species Act is the world's gold standard" for conservation and protection of animals, said Daniel Ashe, now president and chief executive of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

"It's not perfect. It can be better," Ashe, "Your goal is to make it . . . stronger and better," Ashe said.

The world's flora and fauna are experiencing a global extinction crisis caused by human activity, according to many experts. But humans have also learned how to protect species and help them make a recovery. Here are eight species that would probably have disappeared already were it not for the Endangered Species Act.

Black-footed ferret

If raccoons could get plastic surgery, they'd transform themselves into black-footed ferrets. This variety of ferrets is the only one that's native to the Americas, but Americans are shoving them off their habitat with development, and they inadvertently introduced a plague to their primary food source, prairie dogs. Along with development that causes prairie dogs to scatter, the sylvatic plague, which caused the bubonic plague in humans, wiped out entire prairie dog populations and spread to ferrets.

Black-footed ferrets exist on about 2 percent of their historic range. Listed as endangered in 1967, they were twice considered extinct in the 20th century before a population of about 20 was found. the Fish and Wildlife Service partnered with the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Va., and zoos to breed the animals in captivity and reintroduce them into the wild in a bid to save them. The federal agency is also experimenting with using drones to scatter plague vaccine, encased in peanut butter tablets, to protect the animals against disease. There have been hopeful signs of a small rebound, but as development continues to slice up their habitat, their fate is still dicey.

Humpback whale

This is the famous singing whale. No one really knows why, but males, who do all the crooning, sing for up to 20 minutes at a time, sometimes all day, pausing only for a breath -- an underwater opera. The singing nearly stopped in the 1960s, when more than a century of commercial hunting took its toll. Humpback whales were listed as endangered in 15 habitats worldwide, and their numbers fell to 1,600.

They were listed as endangered in 1967 under the Endangered Species Conservation Act that preceded the current act. Nearly five decades later, they've rebounded to about 20,000 individuals across the world, enough to be de-listed in all but a few of their habitats.

Bald eagle

The bald eagle was designated as the national bird in 1782, just before the end of the Revolutionary War. Although the Americans and British stopped fighting, hostilities didn't end for eagles.

Name a threat, and bald eagles have faced it: illegal shooting, poisoning, habitat destruction and contamination of its food with the deadly chemical DDT. By the 1970s, when they were listed as endangered, bald eagles were on the verge of extinction. Wildlife officials teamed up with state and federal lawmakers to save them.

The first step was to ban DDT, ushering in a bald eagle recovery through conservation, including the protection of nesting areas. Bald eagle populations recently climbed to an estimated 70,000 birds from a low of about 400 breeding pairs in 1963, a recovery that the Fish and Wildlife Service called remarkable. They were removed from the endangered list in 2007.

American alligator

Why does this member of the crocodile family look so scary? It's basically a dinosaur. Alligators have been on Earth for 200 million years, hunting other animals and devouring them.

Gators aren't the only merciless animal. Humans nearly put an end to their existence through hunts and habitat destruction. Like the black-footed ferret, alligators were listed as endangered in 1967. Authorities banned hunting to protect it, the American alligator quickly rebounded, and in 1987 the service declared that the animal had fully recovered. American alligators exist from North Carolina to Florida on the Atlantic coast and from Florida to Texas on the Gulf coast. They abound in the Florida Everglades, where invasive Burmese pythons have begun to challenge them for the top spot on the food chain.

Grizzly bear

There's no mistaking a grizzly bear. Its powerful build, its walk and claws are iconic.

Those features are part of the reason scientists named grizzlies Ursus horribilis, "terrifying bear." Biologists don't like the term grizzly. They're a subspecies of the Kodiak bear and are officially the North American brown bear.

Other North American bears such as the polar bear are bigger. But grizzlies have a fearsome reputation. Some wonder why, considering that they are largely solitary, playful and can be communal eaters in areas where food is plentiful. Humans fear them, but grizzlies have proven no match for humans. Half a million grizzlies once roamed the Lower 48 states, from the northwestern corner of Washington to southern Wyoming. Now only about 1,800 remain.

Grizzlies were listed as threatened in the lower 48 states in 1975 after being reduced to 2 percent of their historic range. In their southernmost territory, inside Yellowstone National Park, they were fiercely protected, and hunting outside the park was ended. The bears' numbers have grown from about 130 to 700 in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, and now Fish and Wildlife is considering removing them from the list, sparking an ongoing fight with ranchers on one side, conservationists on the other and the federal government in the middle.

Florida manatee

Manatees have lived in Florida for about 45 million years, according to fossil records. They are big, gray, lumbering and docile marine mammals, plus they eat sea grasses, so people call them sea cows.

As Florida developed into a vacation and retirement paradise that swelled its population to 20 million, making it the fourth-most-populous state, sea cows found themselves in the path of boats. Sharp propellers butcher the animals, and they are harassed by snorkelers and tubers longing to touch them. Florida first acted to protect manatees as far back as 1893, and the federal government first protected them as an endangered species in 1967.

Aerial surveys in 1991 proved that their numbers had dropped from the tens of thousands to fewer than 1,300. In 2013, there were a record 800 manatee deaths caused mostly by humans. Faced with the extinction of the Florida manatee, an offshoot of the West Indian manatee that roams the Caribbean and South America, the state and federal government stepped up protections. They created manatee protection zones marked clearly for boaters, worked to minimize harassment, disturbance injury and mortality, and closely monitor the animal's habitat and population.

Manatee numbers are rebounding, with about 6,200 in the most recent annual count. Last year in January, Fish and Wildlife proposed to downgrade their status on the endangered list.

California condor

They are among the largest flying birds in the world, speeding at up to 55 mph on air currents in a search for carrion such as deer. Thousands of years ago, they weren't just California condors. They existed as far away as Florida.

But like every other animal on this list, it couldn't overcome human expansion into America. "As people settled the West, they often shot, poisoned, captured and disturbed the condors, collected their eggs, and reduced their food supply of antelope, elk, and other large wild animals. Eventually, condors could no longer survive in most places," according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

A few remaining condors were backed into the Southern California mountains by the turn of the last century. It's been illegal for anyone to kill a condor in California for 100 years. But the same chemical that nearly doomed eagles, DDT, was an invisible killer of condors. Compounding the problem, carrion killed by lead shot poisoned birds that fed on the carcasses. They've been protected by federal law since 1967 and state law since 1971.

By then, they were already too far gone. In 1982, only 23 were left worldwide. Five years later, they were rushed into a captive breeding program for intensive recovery. Without it, condors would probably no longer exist. In 1992, federal officials started releasing a few into the wild, and now there are 410 birds. Although the recovery program says there are "more California condors flying free in the wild" since the program's start, their survival is still an open question.

One of the first things the Interior Department did under its new secretary, Ryan Zinke, was rescind an Obama administration regulation that outlawed hunting with lead shot.

Gray wolf

The gray wolf, Canis lupis, has a public relations problem that's hard to overcome. In fables, it menaces Little Red Riding Hood and blows down the houses of pigs. In horror tales, a man unfortunate enough to be bitten by a werewolf transforms into one.

But wolves once roamed the whole of North America, the greatest distribution of any wild animal, and were an essential part of the ecology. They helped control populations of deer, elk and bison, ensuring that those animals roamed about rather than ruined areas by remaining too long, trampling the ground and demolishing trees that other animals relied on for habitat and safety.

As humans colonized the east and expanded to the west, ranchers came to despise wolf packs that killed cattle on instinct learned over thousands of years of hunting prey. They were hunted, shot, trapped and poisoned throughout the lower 48 states until they were on the brink of extinction.

Gray wolves were listed as endangered in 1978. Although some progress was made toward their recovery, they continue to be listed as endangered in 39 states and parts of another five because shooting and trapping still happen. A distinct north Rocky Mountain population was de-listed due to recovery six years ago.

Opponents of the endangered listing are working to remove wolves from the list, as conservationists complain that there isn't a sufficient number to escape extinction. But it's clear that protection has led to a rebound.
WHEN he was Ronald Reagans secretary of state, George Shultz was once asked about the CIAs disavowal of involvement in a mysterious recent bombing in Lebanon. Replied Shultz: If the CIA denies something, its denied.

Has there ever been a more dry, more wry, more ironic verdict on the world of espionage? Within it, there is admission and denial, smoke and mirrors, impenetrable fog and deliberate obfuscation. Truth? Ask the next guy.

Which is why my default view of espionage is to never believe anyone because everyone is trained in deception. This is not a value judgment; its a job description.

We learn, for example, from Tuesdays spectacular WikiLeaks dump that among the CIAs various and nefarious cybertools is the capacity to simulate intrusion by a foreign power, the equivalent of planting phony fingerprints on a smoking gun.

Who are you going to believe now? I can assure you that some enterprising Trumpite will use this revelation to claim that the whole storyline pointing to Russian interference in the U.S. election was a fabrication. And who was behind that? There is no end to this hall of mirrors. My rule, therefore, is: Stay away.

Hard to do with Washington caught up in one of its periodic conspiracy frenzies. Actually, two. One, anti-Donald Trump, is that he and his campaign colluded with Russian intelligence. The other, anti-Barack ObamaCIAdeep state, is that Obama wiretapped Trump Tower to ensnare candidate Trump.

The odd thing is that, as of today, there is no evidence for either charge. That wont, of course, stop the launch of multiple all-consuming investigations.

Collusion:

James Clapper, Obamas director of national intelligence, who has been deeply and publicly at odds with Trump, unequivocally states that he has seen zero evidence of any Trump campaign collusion with Russia. Nor has anyone else.

The contrary suspicion arises because its hard to explain why Michael Flynn falsely denied discussing sanctions with the Russian ambassador and why Jeff Sessions falsely denied having any contacts at all. That suggests concealment. But there was nothing inherently inappropriate with either behavior. So why conceal?

Suspicion, nonetheless, is far short of assertionand a fairly thin basis for a major investigation, let alone for a special prosecutor. To prosecute what exactly?

Wiretap:

The other storyline is simply fantastical. Congressional Republicans have uniformly run away from Trumps Obama-wiretap accusation. Clapper denies it. FBI Director James Comey denies it. Not a single member of Trumps own administration is willing to say its true.

Loopier still is to demand that Congress find the truth when the president could just pick up the phone and instruct the FBI, CIA and DNI to declare, on the record, whether this ever occurred. And if there really was an October 2016 FISA court order to wiretap Trump, the president could unilaterally declassify the information yesterday.

The bugging story is less plausible than a zombie invasion. Nevertheless, one could spin a milderand more plausiblescenario of executive abuse. It goes like this:

The intelligence agencies are allowed to listen in on foreigners. But if any Americans are swept up in the conversation, their part of it is supposed to be redacted or concealed to protect their identity. According to The New York Times, however, the Obama administration appears to have gone out of its way to make sure that information picked up about Trump associates contacts with Russians was as widely disseminated as possible.

Under Obama, did the agencies deliberately abuse the right to listen in on foreigners as a way to listen in, improperly, on Americans?

If they did, we will find out. But for now, all of this is mere conjuring. There is no evidence for either the collusion or the wiretap charge. We are headed down a rabbit hole. An enormous amount of heat and energy will be expended, endingmy guessroughly where we started.

What a waste. There is a major national agenda waiting to be debated and enacted. And there is trouble beyond the cozy confines of the capital that needs to be confronted. Self-created crisis can leave us distracted, spent and unprepared when the real thing hits.

Its unquiet out there. North Korea keeps testing missiles as practice for attacking U.S. bases in Japan. Meanwhile, we are scrambling to install an antimissile shield in South Korea as early as next month. Fuses are burning. When the detonations begin, wed better not be in the rabbit hole.

Charles Krauthammer is a columnist with The Washington Post Writers Group. Email him at letters@charleskrauthammer.com.
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Strip-tillage specialist Mzuri has announced the opening of a new manufacturing facility in Poland to meet the rapidly growing demand in export and home markets.

The move is a joint venture with Polish firm An-Agro, and the new factory is to be built in Bydgoszcz in the north of the country.

Most of the machinery produced at the site will be destined for Central and Eastern Europe, while Mzuris UK operation in Pershore will continue to manufacture, market and service machines for the UK, Scandinavian and Western European regions.

See also: Round-up of the latest strip till kit to cut your cultivation costs

These are very exciting times for the company and we look forward to pooling our resources with An-Agro to grow the European region further, says Mzuri managing director Martin Lole.

The business has been going from strength to strength with the demand more than doubling this year, both in the UK and overseas. With the interest being particularly strong in Poland, Russia and Ukraine, the decision to open a factory close to market will help us to better service the area.

The additional capacity in Poland is intended to free up some of the UKs production, which will allow us to be more responsive to the rapidly expanding UK market.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked the remaining 46 chief federal prosecutors left over from the Obama administration to resign "in order to ensure a uniform transition," the Justice Department said on Friday, Reuters reported.

The New York Times reported that the request from Sessions included Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, who had been expected to stay on. The report cited a person familiar with the matter, and Bharara's office had no comment on it. The Manhattan office handles some of the most critical business and criminal cases passing through the federal judicial system.

U.S. attorneys are political appointees, and the request from the Justice Department under President Donald Trump is part of a routine process, although not every new administration replaces all U.S. attorneys at once.

A law enforcement official said Bharara had expected to remain in his post. The official said Bharara had met with both Trump and Sessions and been advised that they wanted him to stay on as Manhattan U.S. Attorney.

The Justice Department statement said: "Until the new U.S. attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. attorneys offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders.

Robert Capers, U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, issued a statement saying he had been asked to resign. He said Bridget Rohde, the chief assistant U.S. attorney in that office, would take over his role in an acting capacity.

"It has been my greatest honor to serve my country, New York City and the people of this district for almost 14 years, with the last 17 months serving as United States Attorney," Capers said.
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The city of Corvallis enters a new budget cycle with a little bit of a cushion.

Because of slightly higher property tax revenues, mostly a function of the 1,000-resident Retreat student housing project west of the Oregon State University campus, the city will have an extra $250,000 to play with.

Also, the budget work got a boost when City Manager Mark Shepard completed his two-year plan to reduce the budget by $1 million, without a commensurate loss of service levels.

The cuts, which total $1,034,610, reduced the city workforce by 8.75 full-time equivalents (FTEs), although the process also resulted in some job additions and departmental increases.

Im not a supporter of across-the-board cuts, Shepard said. I look to target efficiencies. What are things we can stop doing?

The biggest cut, $305,000, eliminated three positions in the Development Services Division of the Community Development Department. The job losses were in the inspections and plan review staffs.

The section can be a challenge, Shepard said, because work load comes in peaks and valleys. Instead of staffing for the peaks, we are staffing for the anticipated average work load.

Shepard said the city will use contracted services when the work load spikes.

Shepard also consolidated the administrative aspects of five of his departments into one overseer, central administrative services manager Paul Jacobson, who began work last May. Three positions were lost in the consolidation.

We have to do business in a different way, Shepard said. But these were difficult decisions. Any time you are talking about cuts, these are challenging discussions. When you eliminate positions, you are dealing with people and their livelihood.

Shepard said he adopted the goal because I thought we needed to demonstrate to the community that we are good stewards of the funds that the community has entrusted us with.

Shepard said he had no plans for similar cuts in the future, but I want to continue to look for places in which we can find efficiencies. Shepard also noted that rising PERS costs will play a significant factor in future budget cycles.

Shepard said he would leave it to the Budget Commission to handle how to spend the additional $250,000 in property tax revenue.

The commission, which consists of the nine councilors and nine citizen representatives, begins its work Tuesday with a discussion of capital improvement projects. Shepard and Finance Director Nancy Brewer will deliver the budget message May 2, with departmental presentations to follow. Final approval by the City Council is scheduled for June 5.

The commission will have a bit of extra work this budget cycle. A task force working on unmet city needs and possible revenue increases completed its work at the end of the year, with the Budget Commission taking over the project.

A survey of residents is being analyzed and is supposed to be ready by April 30. The commission then will look at possible revenue increases, with a goal of raising somewhere between $4 million and $13 million.

The favored fee and tax increases of the task force were a local sales tax, a local income tax or a renewal of the local option property tax levy, which currently raises more than $3 million per year.

Any increases going to the voters would be on the November 2017 ballot.
The sentencing of Shannon Jones on federal fraud charges has been postponed again.

Jones, the former owner of Jones 5 Auto Sales, pleaded guilty on Oct. 12 to a single count of wire fraud in connection with the collapse of his business in late 2015.

He was originally scheduled to be sentenced in U.S. District Court in Eugene on Feb. 7, but in January the sentencing hearing was rescheduled for this coming Monday. Late this week the sentencing was postponed again, this time until April 24.

The delay was requested by federal prosecutors to allow refinement of restitution issues, according to Kevin Sonoff, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorneys Office in Oregon.

There are a lot of victims in this case, Sonoff said. We asked for additional time so that we could continue our thorough inquiry into and accounting of all losses to present the court with a complete and accurate picture.

Federal, state and local investigators have been tight-lipped about the case from day one, releasing very few details, and Jones has made no public statements.

In his plea agreement with prosecutors, however, Jones acknowledged that he systematically defrauded customers, lenders, vendors and business associates of his Corvallis used car dealership from early 2012 until the business was shut down in a police raid on Nov. 18, 2015. Jones could have faced up to 20 years in prison on the wire fraud charge, but in exchange for pleading guilty and promising to pay at least $1.3 million in restitution, prosecutors agreed to recommend a term of 30 to 37 months.

In a formal sentencing memorandum filed this week, the U.S. Attorneys Office asks District Judge Ann Aiken for a 30-month sentence plus three years probation, citing Jones lack of prior criminal history, his cooperation with prosecutors and the fact that he has two young children. The memorandum also recommends that Jones be ordered to pay restitution of $1,380,627.27 and asks for an additional 90-day window to allow more victims to submit claims.

The document also reveals some details of the case previously kept under wraps by investigators.

According to the sentencing memo, Jones fraudulent actions affected at least 119 victims, with 39 of them experiencing some form of financial loss ranging from several hundred dollars to $250,000.

Prosecutors outline a long-running scheme in which Jones accepted payments on vehicles with no intention of delivering the vehicles, obtained loans for vehicles for which he falsely claimed to hold title, took vehicles on consignment and sold them without providing the proceeds to the original owner, and falsely represented to associates and lenders the financial health of his business, the existence of collateral, and the intended use of short-term loan proceeds.

The document also paints a picture of what happened on the day Jones 5 Auto Sales closed for good and Shannon Jones dropped out of public view.

According to the memo, Corvallis police went to the dealership at 1475 N.W. Ninth St. after receiving a complaint that Jones was forging car titles to fraudulently obtain loans.

On arrival, they found a car transport trailer dispatched by NextGear Capital to seize vehicles that been used as collateral for loans. NextGear, an Indiana-based flooring company that provides financing for car dealerships secured by the titles to vehicles in the dealers inventory, claimed that Jones had defaulted on 26 loans but that only 14 of the collateral cars were on the lot.

Police also encountered a man who claimed that a vehicle he had placed on consignment with Jones 5 was being shipped to a new owner, even though he had not signed over the title or authorized the sale.
The police of German city of Essen conducted searches in neighboring Oberhausen city amid terror attack threats, detaining two people, the statement issued on Saturday said, Sputnik reported.

Earlier in the day, the police closed a shopping mall in Essen amid security concerns over a possible terror attack.

"Since 13:30 [12;30 GMT] the police have been conducting searches in an apartment in Oberhausen. The owner is currently being questioned. Police detained another man at 14:10 [13:10 GMT] in an Internet cafe in Oberhausen. The police will also question him and conduct searches in his apartment," the police said on Facebook.

Germany has been on edge after a string of Islamist-linked attacks last year, the deadliest being the truck-ramming of a Berlin Christmas market. The self-confessed Daesh (outlawed in Russia) terrorist group member, Anis Amri, drove a stolen truck into a crowd, killing 12 people and injuring 48 others.
Mit Brings, Guido Cantz, Paveier, Kasalla : Jecke Wiever lassen es bei der Madchensitzung in Konigswinter richtig krachen
President Tayyip Erdogan sought to build cooperation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Friday over military operations in Syria, as Turkey attempts to create a border "safe zone" free of Islamic State and the Kurdish YPG militia, Reuters reported.

Erdogan, referring to Islamic State's remaining stronghold, told a joint Moscow news conference with the Russian President "Of course, the real target now is Raqqa".

Turkey is seeking a role for its military in the advance on Raqqa, but the United States is veering toward enlisting the Kurdish YPG militia - something contrary to Ankara's aim of banishing Kurdish fighters eastwards across the Euphrates river.

Turkey considers the YPG the Syrian arm of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that has been fighting an insurrection on Turkish soil for 30 years. Washington, like Ankara, considers the PKK a terrorist group, but it backs the YPG.

Russian-backed forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are also operating in the north of the country, close to Turkish borders. Washington and Moscow are concerned fast-moving military developments could lead to serious clashes between Turkish forces and the YPG.

"It should now be accepted that a terrorist organization cannot be defeated with another one," Erdogan said, referring to the enlistment of YPG by the United States to fight Islamic State.

"As a country that has been battling terror for 35 years, terrorist organizations like Daesh (Islamic State), the YPG, Nusra front and others are organizations we face at all times.
British Newspaper wants Facebook and Google to be probed over fake news News oi -Shilpa Fake news may reduce further

British Newspaper industry has called for an investigation into Google, Facebook and the Digital Advertising Supply Chain in order to Combat Fake News. In its submission to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee's to inquiry fake news, the News Media Association(NMA) calls for an urgent investigation. It said that the digital advertising supply chain which favors fake news and helps it to thrive was "murky at best, fraudulent at worst".

NMA chairman Ashley Highfield says,"News media publishers are by far the biggest investors in original news content, accounting for 58 percent of the total UK investment. But the digital supply chain rewards the distributors of content, not the originators. Government and regulators cannot ignore forever the impact of the Google-Facebook duopoly on our media landscape."

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The NMA says that the fake news travels fast on social networking sites and it is easier to produce because creators don't have to spend time or money while reporting. Facebook has argued against this long back saying that its influence on the news business is unquestionable.

Audiences in the UK are proved more resilient to fake news than those in the US, says NMA. It clearly states that the fake news is threatening the viability of real news and the social network giants like Facebook and Google are the reason for its growing popularity unknowingly.

The British newspaper industry wants both of them to be investigated with an intention of figuring out how the problem can be reduced.

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Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016) to get Android Nougat update? News oi -Samden Sherpa Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016) currently runs on Android Marshmallow.

Previously the Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016) was spotted on the GFXBench listing website, and there were several key details revealed.

As per the earlier GFX listing, Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016) was seen to have a 4.7-inch HD display with 1280x720 pixel resolution and 5 finger gesture support. The device was said to have 1.5 GHz quad-core Samsung Exynos 7580 processor, Mali-T720 GPU, 1.5GB RAM, 16 GB of internal storage. No information was given about the battery or expandable memory in the listing.

Samsung rolling out Android 7.0 Nougat update to Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge

The listing also revealed that the Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016) came with a 13-megapixel autofocus rear camera and a 5-megapixel camera on the front for selfies. Connectivity options included Bluetooth, GPS, NFC and WiFi and the device also featured an accelerometer, digital compass, light and proximity sensors.

However, Samsung's Galaxy A3 (2016) has yet again appeared on the Geekbench benchmarking website and this time revealing further details. The device has appeared on GeekBench benchmarking website with the model number SM-A310F and the key highlight here again is that the said device is running Android Nougat OS.

Samsung Pay could soon come to non-premium Galaxy smartphones

Having said that, as per the listing on Geekbench, the Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016) has got 615 points in single-core test and in muli-core test it has received 3132 points. The listing further shows that the device features 1.5GB RAM and 1.50 GHz octa-core processor. That is all we get from the listing.

More significantly, considering the fact that Samsung has been testing the Nougat OS, the company could soon release the update to the Galaxy A3 (2016) smartphones.

Source

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TRAI recommends ombudsman for complaint redressal News oi -Priyanka The ombudsman will have offices at national levels and sub- national levels covering each state and it should have the power to levy penalties on the TSPs.

In order to "address consumer complaints more efficiently", Telecom Regulator Authority of India (TRAI) has pitched to set up an independent complaint/ Grievance resolution body or an 'ombudsman' for the telecom industry.

The regulator recommended a three-stage consumer grievance redressal mechanism starting with resolution by the telecom service provider (TSP) followed by the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum (CGRF) and the Determination by telecom ombudsman in the final stage.

Currently consumer grievances are taken up by call centre and a nodal officer.

RCom announces 'Joy of Holi' plan

Trai said,"The consumer should in the first instance approach TSP to seek a solution. It will be the duty of the TSP to look into the request and address the consumer's concerns within the time frames stipulated by the authority."

"If the operator fails to resolve the issue to the satisfaction of the consumer, remains unresponsive or is unable to resolve the complaint within the prescribed timelines, the consumer will have the option of moving onto the independent mechanism suggested by TRAI," it added. Adding that, this will consist of a process of a resolution based on fact finding by the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum or CGRF, followed by, if necessitated, determination by the telecom ombudsman

Only those complaints that have clearly identifiable and measurable rights will qualify, said the regulator. A centralised web based system will be placed for the flow of information from each level of the grievance redressal mechanism to the ombudsman, it added.

On the ways to create funding for establishing and running the ombudsman, the regulator suggested that no additional burden should be put on the TSPs, but a portion of the existing license fee can be used as the funding mechanism.

The ombudsman will have offices at national levels and sub- national levels covering each state and it should have the power to levy penalties on the TSPs, says the regulator.

It, however, will not handle complaints on disputes relating to third-party payment made using sources provided by TSPs (credit card payments, airline booking and bank transfers), email frauds, tower frauds, phishing, etc. On the need of an independent body for grievance redressal, Trai said that as per the current trends, on an average around 10 million complaints are lodged with the TSPs each quarter and that there is a general sense of "dissatisfaction among consumers about the TSP's established mechanisms and in particular about the quality of redressal offered by them".

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Eleven of the 55 suspects in a probe into last March's deadly car bomb attack in the Turkish capital could face life in jail, according to an indictment sent to Ankara's 4th High Criminal Court on Friday, Anadolu reported.

Responsibility for the March 13 suicide bombing that hit a major public transportation hub in Ankaras central Kizilay neighborhood, leaving 36 people dead and 349 others wounded, was claimed by TAK -- a terrorist group affiliated with the PKK, listed as a terrorist organization in Turkey, the U.S. and EU.

Five of the suspects, who are among the senior members of the PKK, face 37 times aggravated life imprisonment for disrupting the unity and territorial integrity of the state, and killing 36 people.

They also face a prison sentence of up to 7,646 years each on charges of attempting to murder 349 people, damaging property and possession of dangerous substances.

Moreover, prosecutors seek life imprisonment for six other suspects for disrupting the unity and territorial integrity of the state, while five suspects face up to 15 years in jail for being members of an armed terrorist organization.

More than 1,200 people, including security force personnel and civilians, have lost their lives since the PKK resumed its decades-old armed campaign in July 2015.
Chinese man held incommunicado for alleged espionage

ROC Central News Agency

2017/03/10 19:07:05

Taipei, March 10 (CNA) The Taipei District Court on Friday detained a Chinese man incommunicado who has been accused of trying to gather classified information, in violation of Taiwan's National Security Act.

The man, identified as Zhou Hongxu (), is accused of having obtained information from schools and government offices, and also of allegedly trying to recruit other people in an effort to develop a spy network, investigators said.

Zhou studied in an MBA program at National Chengchi University between 2012 and 2016. He left Taiwan in August 2016 after graduating.

He re-entered Taiwan in his capacity as a businessman, according to Justice Minister Chiu Tai-san ().

Premier Lin Chuan () said the government will not target Chinese students in the wake of Zhou's case, but will tackle the issue "from a broad perspective."

"The preventive measures will include building an internal defense system," he said.

The premier said there are many signs that the other side of the Taiwan Strait is adopting a similar approach.

"We must review our current system," the premier said, pointing out that combating espionage does not only involve classified information, but also industrial spies.

"We must find out if there are any blind spots that we've failed to notice," he said.

The Mainland Affairs Council, Taiwan's top China policy-charting body, said that the policy of welcoming Chinese students to Taiwan remains unchanged, but it called on these students to focus on their studies and not engage in unlawful activities.

MAC Minister Chang Hsiao-yeh () declined to comment on the case, saying only that "Taiwan, as a society ruled by law, will deal with anything that violates national security according to the law."

Meanwhile, National Chengchi University was taken by surprise by Zhou's case.

Wang Wen-chieh (), chief secretary of the university, said the school had asked the assistants and staff of the Office of Student Affairs about Zhou, and was informed that he did not act strangely, either in his studies or during extracurricular activities.

Wang said that the school accepts Chinese students through written screening, adding that some departments or graduate schools interview potential Chinese students via video conference or telephone.

But if Chinese students come to Taiwan with other purposes in mind, it is difficult for schools to detect them during the screening, Wang said.

He said that Zhou entered information regarding his taking part in the Communist Youth League of China during his admission, but added that the school does not treat students differently based on religious faith or political stance.

According to Education Minister Pan Wen-chung (), there are between 32,000 and 33,000 Chinese students in Taiwan for advanced studies or short-term study programs.

(By Chu Tze-wei, Chen Chun-hua, Wen Kuei-hsiang and Lilian Wu)

EDITEM/J

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Russia deems leaked data on CIA plausible: FM Lavrov

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:47AM

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Moscow considers the information recently leaked about the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)'s hacking techniques as "quite plausible."

The website WikiLeaks said on Tuesday that it had obtained and published thousands of documents from the CIA that purportedly revealed the agency's hacking and spying secrets. According to the leaks, the CIA sneaks into high-tech phones and televisions to spy on users around the world.

Lavrov said at a press conference on Thursday that Moscow had to take into account the information made public by the website.

"As for reports on the CIA's hacking arsenal, of course, we saw them I proceed from the assumption that experts consider this information quite plausible," Lavrov said.

The Russian diplomat said that Moscow had "to take into account everything we become aware of."

He also said that he did not use his own smartphone to talk about "sensitive issues" to avoid being spied on.

"I myself try not to bring any phones to talks regarding sensitive issues," Lavrov said. "At least, I seem to have managed not to get into any unpleasant situations for now."

The leaked documents purportedly showed that the CIA routinely used techniques that enabled its hackers to disguise themselves as hacking groups based in Russia and other countries.

Lavrov referred to past accusations that Russia hacked US systems and said the information recently leaked shed some light on how those allegations could be wrong, as Moscow has previously maintained.

"When we were accused of something, the Russian hackers' 'fingerprints' were cited as evidence," he said, adding, "Now, it becomes known that the CIA is capable of getting access to such fingerprints, and the agency consequently must have used it."

In theory, the hacking technique enables the CIA to fake digital forensic fingerprints to make Russia look guilty of infiltrating computer systems.

Most recently, the US accused Russian hackers of having gained illicit access to the Democratic National Committee (DNC)'s systems in an attempt to leak potentially compromising information on the Democratic Party and tilt the recent US presidential election in favor of the Republicans.

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Iran's sovereignty over 3 Islands irrefutable, ever-lasting: FM spox

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, March 10, IRNA -- Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said Iran's sovereignty over the three Persian Gulf islands of the Abu Musa, the Greater Tunb and the Lesser Tunb is an irrefutable and a perpetual fact.

Qasemi described as 'baseless' the repeated allegations aboit the three Iranian islands raised in the final statement of the 147th Arab League Council's ministerial meeting on March 7.

"Such allegations and entirely false statements would not cause any damage to Iran's sovereignty over the three islands,' said the spokesman.

On repeating the insubstantial allegation regarding Iran's interference in the internal affairs of certain Arab countries in the region, Qasemi said that the Islamic Republic of Iran has never interfered in internal affairs of any foreign country and essentially does not feel it needs to do so.

"Basically, it is not necessary for Iran to interfere in internal affairs of Arab countries. Pinning such unfounded and irrelevant charges on Iran is an unsafe and experienced refuge to put the blame of their internal problems on Iran and is a futile effort to escape a quagmire created by those countries" which is now working against them, he added.

Qasemi advised the Arab League to pay due attention not to forget its main goals by spending its time and money on repeating baseless claims.

9376**1394

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On new day of campaign, Saudi jets kill more Yemenis

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 6:38PM

At least 26 people have been killed in airstrikes by Saudi warplanes on a market in the western Yemeni province of Hudaydah.

The air raids that hit the market in Khawkhah district on Friday also left 10 people injured, according to Yemen's al-Masirah television.

Al-Masirah had earlier reported that Saudi jets continue to fly over Khawkhah, preventing ambulances from reaching the victims.

Saudi Arabia also launched two air raids on Abu Musa military camp in the same district.

Meanwhile, Saudi warplanes bombarded Mandaba area in Baqim district in the province of Sa'ada. The province's Kitaf district was also hit by an air raid.

Nihm district in Yemen's capital, Sana'a, was also hit by air raids. The warplanes used internationally-banned cluster bombs in one of the strikes.

The news comes a day after Amnesty International slammed the Saudi regime and its allies for dropping cluster bombs on residential areas in Yemen despite global outcry against the use of such weapons by the Riyadh-led coalition.

Also on Friday, Saudi jets pounded the Yemeni provinces of Hajjah and Ta'izz.

In retaliation for the Saudi aggression, Yemeni army and popular committees killed two Saudi soldiers and two other mercenaries in southwestern Saudi Arabia. Yemeni snipers killed the four in al-Shabaka military base in Najran.

Yemeni forces also targeted military positions in the Saudi provinces of Jizan and Asir.

Saudi Arabia began its deadly campaign against Yemen in late March 2015 in a bid to restore power to Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, Yemen's president who has resigned and is backed by Riyadh. The campaign also sought to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement.

The Saudi aggression has claimed the lives of over 12,000 people, according to figures compiled by the Yemeni non-governmental monitoring group Legal Center for Rights and Development.

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Yemenis kill 2 Saudi troops, several militants in retaliatory attacks

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 9:51AM

Two Saudi forces and two of their mercenaries have been killed during a retaliatory attack by Yemeni forces against the kingdom's soil.

The attack hit a military base in Saudi Arabia's southern border province of Najran on Thursday, Yemen's al-Masirah television reported.

Yemeni forces also shelled the installations of Saudi forces near another military base in Najran.

They also targeted positions of pro-Saudi militants with missiles in Yemen's Jawf Province, killing eight of them and wounding several others.

Saudi Arabia has been leading a deadly military campaign against Yemen since March 2015. The kingdom has also imposed an aerial and naval blockade on its southern neighbor.

Britain and the US have provided huge amounts of arms and military training to the Saudi forces.

The Saudi aggression, which allegedly seeks to restore Yemen's former government to power, has killed over 12,000 Yemenis according to the latest tallies.

Last month, the UN aid chief estimated that 19 million Yemenis were in pressing need of humanitarian assistance.

The UN humanitarian coordinator in Yemen has also warned of a deepening food crisis in the country, saying almost a quarter of the country's 27 million population is facing starvation.

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Japan, US holding joint drills in East China Sea

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 8:51AM

Marine forces from Japan and the United States are conducting joint military exercises in the East China Sea amid an escalation of tensions in the region.

Japan's Sankei Shimbun newspaper and Kyodo news agency reported on Friday that the two sides launched the military drills earlier this week. The maneuvers involve Japanese destroyers and a US Navy carrier strike group.

Sankei said the joint military drills were aimed at sending a warning to North Korea, which has been conducting ballistic missile tests in the region. The local media outlet added that the exercises were also meant to display the joint Japan-US military presence in the East China Sea, where Japan and China are locked in a long-running territorial dispute.

The US, an extra-regional country, has always taken sides will China's rival claimants in regional territorial disputes. Last month, US President Donald Trump gave assurances to Japan that Washington was steadfast in its commitment to Tokyo against China and North Korea.

"We're committed to the security of Japan The bond between our two nations and the friendship between our two peoples runs very, very deep. This administration is committed to bringing those ties even closer," Trump said in a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Washington on February 10.

Trump told Abe that his administration, like past US administrations, would take Japan's side in its territorial dispute with China over the disputed Diaoyus islands (known as Senkaku Islands in Japan).

China says the islands have been part of its territory since ancient times. Beijing has also called on the US "to take a responsible attitude, stop making wrong remarks... and avoid making the issue more complicated and bringing instability to the regional situation."

China is also involved in a dispute with the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, and Vietnam over territory in the South China Sea.

There are 77,000 US soldiers based in Japan and neighboring South Korea.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Anakhanum Hidayatova  Trend:

NATO says that Turkey is its strong and committed ally.

We welcome the improvement in Turkeys bilateral relations with Russia, the NATO office in Brussels told Trend March 11.

Commenting on Turkeys possible purchase of Russian S-400 air defence systems, NATO said it is up to Allies to decide what military equipment they buy.

What matters for NATO is that the equipment Allies acquire is able to operate together. Interoperability of our armed forces is fundamental to NATO for the conduct of our operations and missions.

Turkey has earlier stated its readiness to discuss with Russia a deal on purchase of the S-400 Triumf air defense systems, which are considered incompatible with similar systems used by NATO.

The S-400 is Russia's next-generation air defense system, carrying three different types of missiles capable of destroying aerial targets at a short-to-extremely-long range. The weapon is capable of tracking and destroying all existing aerial targets, including ballistics and cruise missiles.
Violence, Displacements in Colombia Continue Despite Peace Deal - UNHCR

Sputnik News

16:10 10.03.2017

Violence continues to uproot thousands of people in Colombia, despite a peace agreement signed last November between the Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  Violence and displacement of civilians in Colombia continue in spite of the peace agreement between the country's government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said in a statement on Friday.

"Violence continues to uproot thousands of people in Colombia, despite a peace agreement signed last November between the Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Fighting for territorial control in the Colombian Pacific Coast region among irregular armed groups has displaced 3,549 people (913 families) since the beginning of 2017, according to local authorities," the statement said, adding that there were over 11,300 displaced people in 2016.

Even in light of the government's efforts to tackle the crisis, the UNHCR expressed its concerns over the displacement in Colombia.

FARC was formed in 1964 as the military wing of Colombia's Communist Party. The half-century war between the FARC and the Colombian government claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Attempts by Bogota to negotiate a peace deal successfully ended in 2016, when a peace treaty was signed in November and then approved by the Colombian parliament in December.

 Sputnik

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IS Taking New Strategy in Afghanistan

By Ayesha Tanzeem March 10, 2017

The attack in Kabul that killed at least 30 people this week, claimed by the Islamic State militants, was different in strategy from the group's past assaults.

Those, like the one on a Shi'ite Hazara minority group protest in Kabul last year, had been simpler. Large public gatherings are easy targets for a suicide bomber.

An attack on a military hospital in a city like Kabul, where security is so tight one cannot get into a shopping mall without going through metal detectors, requires complex reconnaissance and pre-planning. It pointed to the group's ability to carry out a sophisticated, intelligence-driven operation, according to Barnett Rubin, associate director of the Center on International Cooperation.

"[T]hey were able to reconnoiter the hospital very well to figure out how to get into it, to smuggle all of the explosive material into Kabul, to have a safe house where they could set up everything, they obtained the proper clothing in order to disguise themselves as doctors and so on," Rubin said.

NATO and the Afghan government like to point out that their security operations have reduced IS's numbers in Afghanistan from several thousand to now under a thousand, and their territorial control from more than 10 districts to fewer than five.

Gone underground

However, some analysts think this may not be the right approach to gauging the strength of a militant group like IS, which seems to have adapted and adjusted its strategy.

"I don't think we know that their numbers have diminished," according to Rubin. "We know that maybe the numbers of them fighting in a military way have diminished but they have changed tactics. They have gone underground. We don't know what their numbers are," he said.

Kabul-based political analyst Intizar Khadim expressed similar thoughts.

"I'm not talking about the number of IS increasing," he said. "I'm talking about the resources that is enabling Daesh (IS) to have increased."

General Nicholson, the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, acknowledged in a briefing to the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee that IS Khorasan Province, as IS calls its local chapter, had "shown an ability to conduct attacks in Kabul and elsewhere in the country" despite its battlefield losses.

The Kabul attack involved five suicide bombers. But for those five to operate, they probably required many more as support staff. That indicated that ISKP had managed to set up support networks inside Kabul.

The Kabul-based Afghanistan Analysts Network, in a dispatch published on its website last year, claimed to have some evidence of at least three ISKP cells operating in Kabul.

"Over the past eighteen months, AAN has been consistently hearing stories of young men from Kabul having adopted the IS ideology and joining its 'battlefields' in Nangarhar, Afghanistan, as well as in Iraq and Syria," the dispatch published in October of last year claimed.

While most Afghans reject IS ideology as too cruel and alien to their culture, high unemployment and lucrative salary offers are a significant draw for former fighters without jobs, according to Khadim.

"In Middle East you see Daesh [IS] is giving food for war. In Afghanistan they are paying high prices for any warrior that is joining this group. They are paying high wages for their fighters for grabbing guns and fighting for them," Khadim said.

The withdrawal of most of the international security forces from Afghanistan led to a significant decline in economic activity in the country. The growth rate plummeted to 1.3 percent in 2014 while the rate of poverty climbed to 39.1 percent in 2013-14, according to the World Bank.

The resultant high unemployment gave a boost to the recruitment efforts of groups like the Afghan Taliban and the IS that had the ability to pay lucrative salaries compared to the local market place.

However, money was not the only factor driving young men to the IS.

Propaganda effort

ISKP operates a deft propaganda machine including social media, videos and literature, as well as an FM radio channel that keeps popping back up every time it is knocked down by NATO or Afghan forces. The FM can be heard in parts of the eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Kunar.

"ISKP's romanticization of living as one of its fighters is unparalleled in the jihadist media in Afghanistan," according to another dispatch published on AAN's website.

Anecdotal evidence from various parts of Afghanistan suggests a slow but steady stream of new IS recruits.

Local journalists in Nangarhar told VOA that the voice of one IS radio broadcaster sounded too much like a local journalist they knew who had disappeared from the scene.

Khadim also pointed to the Afghan government's failure in providing good governance in many parts of the country as a reason for people to turn to militant outfits.

On the other hand, the threat of IS was leading regional players like Russia and Iran to increase their efforts to get the Taliban onboard for a political settlement.

Iran, a mainly Shi'ite country, was afraid of anti-Shi'ite IS getting too close to its borders and Russia wanted to keep IS influence away from the Muslim population in its backyard.

Another silver lining on the horizon was the increased economic activity in the region. China wanted to expand its Belts and Roads initiative, including a portion in Pakistan involving investments of more than $40 billion. India and Japan were collaborating on a seaport in Iran at Chabahar.

All of this means that the cost of instability in Afghanistan has gone up and regional players have a greater incentive to help find solutions to the country's security problems.

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China Vows 'Strike' Against Dalai Lama as Tibetans Mark Uprising

By Yeshi Dorje March 10, 2017

As Tibetans around the world marked the 58th anniversary of Tibetan Uprising Day, Chinese officials in Beijing vowed to "resolutely strike" against the "Dalai Lama clique's separatist activities."

Che Dalha, the newly appointed chairman of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, said Beijing would take "a clear-cut stand against separatism."

China views the Dalai Lama, Tibet's Buddhist spiritual leader, as a dangerous separatist. The Nobel Peace laureate denies espousing violence and says he only wants genuine autonomy for Tibet.

Che's remarks, reported by Reuters, came as Tibetans in Dharamsala, the Indian city that is home to the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan administration-in-exile, held its annual commemoration of the Tibetan people's protest against Chinese occupation of Tibet that took place in Lhasa in 1959. Beijing refers to the action as a "peaceful liberation."

"Despite the repression and crackdown, Tibetans in Tibet have been at the forefront of the Tibetan freedom struggle," said Lobsang Sangay, political leader of the Tibetan administration-in-exile. "Even today as we speak, there is a major military presence in Lhasa ... making it reminiscent of a war zone."

Surveillance, displays of force

International human rights groups and exiles routinely condemn what they call China's oppressive rule in Tibetan areas. They say pervasive surveillance and displays of military force are being used to intimidate and quell dissent.

Since 2009, protests have included 145 Tibetans in Tibetan areas self-immolating, calling for "Freedom for Tibet" and "Return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Tibet."

Elsewhere on Friday, from Sydney to San Francisco to Tokyo, Tibetans and supporters marked the anniversary of what is known as the March 10th Uprising.

Indian police arrested 150 Tibetan activists affiliated with the Tibetan Youth Congress as they protested at the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi.

In Minneapolis, the City Council was expected to vote Friday on a resolution in support of Tibetan self-determination, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune. In a letter Wednesday, the Chinese consul general in Chicago expressed "deep concerns" about the council's plans to declare March 10 as Tibet Day.

Some cities, including Richmond, in the San Francisco Bay Area, flew the Tibetan national flag, which is banned in Tibet, to mark the event.

The anniversary commemorations coincided with China's annual National People's Conference in Beijing.

Beijing meeting

On Tuesday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with official delegates from the Tibetan Autonomous Region in Beijing, according to state-run China Tibet Online News. He said Tibet must implement President Xi Jinping's 2012 comment, which has since been a major political slogan in Tibet: "To govern the nation, we must protect the borders, and to protect the borders, we must first stabilize Tibet."

Li also talked about the importance of economic development in achieving stability in Tibet.

VOA's Tsering Wangyal in New Delhi contributed to this report, which originated with VOA's Tibetan Service.

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China opposes all forms of cyber attacks, urges US to stop such actions

People's Daily Online

By Hu Zexi from People's Daily (People's Daily Online) 08:58, March 10, 2017

China opposes all forms of cyber attacks, and urges the US side to stop eavesdropping, monitoring, spying and launching cyber attacks against China and other countries, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang stressed at a regular press conference on Thursday.

Geng made the remarks when asked about China's comments on the reported hacking of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) against Chinese electronic devices.

WikiLeaks on Tuesday posted nearly 9,000 documents that exposed the hacking capacity of the CIA, describing it as the biggest ever leak of confidential papers from the latter.

According to the trove of data released, CIA has a team of more than 5,000 registered hackers and has produced more than 1,000 malware systems, viruses, trojans, and other software that can infiltrate and take control of target electronics.

The agency uses these tools to intercept personal information, hack phone talks, and invade into others' daily life. For example, the Samsung smart TVs, as the website said, can be transformed into covert microphones after being hacked.

One day after Wikileaks released those purported confidential CIA documents, the US government launched an investigation on the leak. White House press secretary Sean Spicer declined to confirm the veracity of any of the information in the documents, but stressed the leaking "should be a major concern".

"China will stay firm to safeguard its own cyber security, " Geng stressed, adding that it will intensify dialogues and cooperation with international community to reach universally-accepted cyber rules within the UN framework and build a peaceful, secure, open, cooperative and orderly cyberspace.

China, on March 1, released its strategy on cyberspace cooperation. The International Strategy of Cooperation on Cyberspace, issued by Foreign Ministry and State Internet Information Office, is the first China has released regarding the virtual domain.

The strategic document called for a international cyberspace collaboration based on peace, sovereignty, shared governance and shared benefits.

Documents revealed by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden in July, 2013 to Der Spiegel showed that the US has conducted mass cyber-attacks on China, targeting Chinese state leaders and Huawei, a leading telecom solutions provider.

Attacks were also aimed at the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as Chinese banks and telecommunication companies. According to Der Spiegel, the spying operations also covered several former Chinese state leaders and some banks.

Subsequently, China's Internet Media Research Center said in a report that the Chinese government, after several months of investigation, has confirmed the veracity of most of Snowden's leaking.

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China to reduce army reserves as part of military reform

People's Daily Online

(Global Times) 08:30, March 10, 2017

China will reduce its army reserve while increasing reserves for other services, said a senior officer of the country's national defense mobilization department on Wednesday, on the sidelines of the ongoing sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC).

Sheng Bin, chief of the National Defense Mobilization Department of China's Central Military Commission (CMC), said while the army reserve will be reduced, the reserves of other military services including the navy, air force and the rocket force will be increased in a bid to keep up with China's military buildup, as the military reform has made headway.

The structure of the reserve forces will adapt to information warfare from traditional combat-oriented and mechanized ones, said the chief.

According to the CMC guideline, a new structure will be established in which the CMC will take charge of the overall administration of the People's Liberation Army, the Chinese People's Armed Police and the militia and reserve forces. The battle zone commands will focus on combat preparedness, and various military services will pursue development.

China has announced a cut of 300,000 troops by the end of 2017 to build a more elite and efficient military.

Major General Chen Zhou of the PLA Academy of Military Science said on Thursday that many officers will retire and will be assigned to new positions in this round of military reform.

China will step up efforts on the national level to help retired servicemen resettle to civilian life by adopting a series of laws and regulations, Chen said during a press conference on the sidelines of the ongoing sessions of the NPC.

China is short on detailed laws or regulations to assist servicemen and servicewomen, so when they return home, they are treated based on the level of development in their respective hometowns, Xu Guangyu, a senior adviser at the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association, told the Global Times.

Retired military personnel can return to civilian life in a more fair and balanced way, which will also encourage those still in service as well, Xu said on Thursday.

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Chinese leaders discuss economy, Belt&Road with lawmakers

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 08:25, March 10, 2017

Premier Li Keqiang and other leaders on Thursday discussed economic upgrading, Belt and Road Initiative, people's congress system, poverty alleviation, anti-corruption campaign and other topics with national lawmakers.

They joined deputies to the National People's Congress (NPC) in separate panel discussions at the NPC annual session.

Joining NPC deputies from Shaanxi Province, Premier Li called for developing high-end equipment manufacturing, information industry, modern logistics and rural e-commerce. Tourism and culture should also be boosted to create more jobs.

The provincial government should further streamline administration, delegate power to lower levels, improve services, play well the province's role as a key junction in implementing the Belt and Road Initiative, and take a lead in the development of China's western region.

Joining lawmakers from Jiangsu Province, Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, said people's congresses at various levels should implement the decisions made by the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee to ensure effective state governance under the Party's leadership.

He called for innovation in theory and practice of the people's congress system, which is China's fundamental political system.

Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, joined NPC deputies from Guizhou Province in a panel discussion.

Yu urged the province to continue optimizing the environment for developing private businesses, invigorating the private economy, and supporting private businesses' efforts to speed up transformation and upgrading.

Yu also highlighted targeted poverty alleviation, stressing more effective measures, enhanced implementation of policies and mobilization of all resources to win the battle against poverty.

Wang Qishan, secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, joined NPC deputies from Yunnan Province, calling for advancing the anti-corruption campaign, which accords with the aspirations of the Party and the people.

Calling inspections a kind of "political checkup," Wang said undesirable working styles including formalism and bureaucratism during the implementation of CPC Central Committee decisions must be rooted out.

Senior officials at key positions must guard against perfunctory working style and endeavor in a pragmatic way to live up to the people's expectations, he said.

Joining lawmakers from Chongqing Municipality, Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli highlighted the city's role as a strategic pivot in China's "Go West" strategy and asked the municipal government to actively fit into the Belt and Road Initiative and the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

He also urged Chongqing to push forward the supply-side structural reform, promote innovation-driven development and high-end manufacturing, coordinate rural and urban development, and protect the Three Gorges Reservoir and the Yangtze River.

Li Keqiang, Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli are all members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

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China upgrading navy to first class: Military officials

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 6:14AM

Senior Chinese military officials say their navy has been equipped with advanced hardware and is being upgraded to the highest global level.

Senior military officers told the official Xinhua news agency late on Thursday that the Chinese navy had put into service its new-generation J-20 stealth fighter. The aircraft was publicly unveiled at the Zhuhai airshow in November last year.

Wang Weiming, the deputy chief of staff of the People's Liberation Army Navy, said China was speeding up the development of its marine corps, adding destroyers and frigates, to step up air and sea patrols in its territories.

"Our sailors should stay vigilant and be able to deal with emergencies at all times," Wang said, adding, "We will intercept any intruding aircraft and follow every military vessel in areas under our responsibility."

Wang added that China's second aircraft carrier was in "good shape" and was now awaiting fitting.

Wang Huayong, the deputy political commissar of the Eastern Theater Command, said, that, "The aircraft carrier is still in training and trial stage."

Experts expect that the second domestically-built aircraft carrier will enter service around 2020, joining China's existing, Soviet-built aircraft carrier, the Liaoning.

Wang emphasized that Chinese forces were being upgraded for defensive purposes only.

Li Yanming, the political commissar of the Navy's armaments department, said marine forces would be provided with equipment that had "better quantity, quality, scope, and functionality."

China's "first-class navy should be equipped with first-class armaments," Li said.

Beijing earlier announced that it would increase its defense budget to meet its economic development and defense needs amid "outside meddling," a likely reference to frequent political and military jockeying by the United States in regional disputes involving China.

China is engaged in a territorial dispute with its neighbors in the South China Sea, where they have overlapping claims of sovereignty to a series of islands and reefs. Beijing is also entangled in a similar territorial dispute with Japan in the East China Sea.

In both cases, the United States has been fueling tensions between China and its neighbors by siding with Beijing's rivals.

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Chinese Stealth J-20 Jet Enters Service With PLA

Sputnik News

22:15 10.03.2017(updated 23:43 10.03.2017)

China has put its new Chengdu J20 stealth fighter jet in service, in efforts to develop a marine corps and a "first class" Navy, while simultaneously narrowing the military gap with US. Beijing's military is undergoing major upgrades, complete with advanced submarines and anti-satellite missiles, all under the supervision of President Xi Jinping.

Chinese planespotters first saw the J20 in 2010, and the public got its first glimpse of the craft at the Zhuhai airshow in November 2016. The military channel on China's state television confirmed that the plan had entered service on Thursday.

What remains to be seen is whether the J20 can evade radar with the same aptitude as Lockheed Martin's F-35 strike jet, or Lockheed's air-to-air combat jet F-22 Raptor. The development of the new Chinese aircraft began in the late 1990s and had its first flight in 2011.

In November 2016, aviation journalist Andreas Rupprecht wrote in the Aviationist, "The J-20 is a giant leap for the PLAAF both capability-wise and technology-wise. Did anyone of us expect a Chinese stealth fighter to be operational before 2020 when asked in, let's say, 2010?"

The speed of the craft's development outpaced that of the F-35, and was specifically built to exploit a weakness in the US Air Force airborne early warning and control aircraft, and unarmed aerial refuelers.

In 2014, while then-US President Barack Obama was attending an Asia-Pacific summit in China, Beijing presented an unfinished J-31 twin-engine jet, a craft meant to compete with the F-35.

President Donald Trump's unpredictable stance in the region has Beijing on edge as it continues to bolster its Navy. During an annual parliament meeting, People's Liberation Army Navy's (PLAN) Deputy Chief of Staff Wang Weiming told the Xinhua news agency, "We will intercept any intruding aircraft and follow every military vessel in areas under our responsibility." In describing China's marine corps development, he said, "Our sailors should stay vigilant and be able to deal with emergencies at all times."

Wang noted that Beijing's second indigenous aircraft carrier is in "good shape" and is in the process of being fitted. The new carrier is expected to enter service around 2020, along with the Liaoning, China's only other aircraft carrier.

PLAN's political commissar of armaments, Li Yanming, remarked that a "first-class navy should be equipped with first-class armaments," adding that manufacturing naval arms would have "better quantity, quality, scope, and functionality."

China's regional neighbors have been unnerved by its more aggressive stance in the South China Sea, with Beijing increasing defense spending and building artificial islands that are reportedly outfitted with weapons.

On Monday, Beijing announced that its defense budget would increase by 7 percent, adding a little over $150 billion, roughly a quarter of what Washington spends annually.

"The aircraft carrier is still in training and trial stage. The marines remain weak, and the number and quality of long-distance vessels do not meet expectations," said Wang Huayong, deputy political commissar of the Eastern Theatre Command.

 Sputnik

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Malaysian police confirm DPRK man killed in airport to be Kim Jong Nam

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 19:02, March 10, 2017

Malaysian police for the first time confirmed on Friday that a Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) man killed in Kuala Lumpur airport to be Kim Jong Nam, half-brother of DPRK leader Kim Jong Un.

"We have now established that Kim Chol is Kim Jong Nam," national police chief Khalid Abu Bakar told a press conference here, but declined to say if a DNA test had been carried out to identify the body.

"I will not tell you how we did it due to the safety and security of witnesses," he said, adding the police have fulfilled the requirements of laws on Kim Jong Nam's identification.

Malaysian police had previously identified the man as Kim Chol by citing his passport, and insisted that they needed family members to provide DNA samples to further identify the body.

He said the body would be handed over to the health ministry as police had completed the investigation on the identity.

The police have informed the relatives, but "it seems no one is taking (the body)," he added.

During the press conference, Khalid declined to elaborate further on the motive behind the killing.

Malaysia has declined the request by the DPRK government to hand over the body, triggering a diplomatic row between the two countries. In tit-for-tat moves, Malaysia and DPRK have both expelled the ambassador of the other's side and banned each other's citizens from leaving Malaysia or DPRK.

Khalid did not reveal the details of the negotiations, which are key to help Malaysia bring back nine of its nationals back from DPRK.

Malaysia has indicted two females suspects, one Vietnamese and one Indonesian, with murder as the police believed the two smeared a lethal chemical weapon called VX nerve agent on the face of Kim Jong Nam, which killed him within 15 to 20 minutes.

The police said four other DPRK suspects have fled the country. They also want to question three people in connection with the case, including a second secretary of the DPRK embassy in Kuala Lumpur and an employee of the DPRK national carrier Air Koryo.

Khalid said the police will continue to wait for the three to come forward, or arrests warrants will be issued.

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Indian Navy Can Be a Sitting Duck For Mines From Next Year

Sputnik News

18:09 10.03.2017(updated 18:22 10.03.2017)

Indian Navy needs at least 24 mine counter-measure vehicles to plug the shortfall. China has more than 100 such minesweepers and mine counter-measure vehicles.

New Delhi (Sputnik)  The inordinate delay in procurement will leave the Indian Navy, the world's fifth largest, without minesweepers which are essential for ships to detect, track and destroy mines laid by enemy forces to choke harbors and spread mayhem. This startling revelation came to light when the Indian government accepted before a parliamentary committee that all six mine counter-measure vehicles (MCMVs) currently operational in the Navy will be retired by 2018.

India had bought six MCMVs from the erstwhile Soviet Union in the 1970s. Last year, the Indian government agreed to build 12 new MCMVs with the South Korean collaboration at Goa Shipyard.

"The Ministry of Defense has informed that in respect of MCMVs, the last bid was submitted by South Korean company Kangnam Corporation on January 11, 2016. Even after a passage of almost a year, no decision could be taken on the matter. The MCMVs are slated for de-induction by 2016-2018. 2016 has already passed and moreover, building the MCMVs will also take considerable time," read a report submitted by the parliamentary committee on defense.

The $4.9 billion-deal with Kangnam Corporation was supposed to be inked with Goa Shipyard last year itself under transfer of technology agreement. India was expecting the delivery of the first MCMVs in 2021 but it may get further delayed due to technology transfer negotiation yet to be completed between India and the South Korean company. "The committee feels that the entire process of procurement of MCMVs will be delayed inordinately. Therefore, the committee desires that sincere and concerted efforts must be made with urgency to resolve the situation," the committee noted. This means that the Indian Navy will have to cope without any MCMVs for more than three years.

The Indian Navy needs at least 24 MCMVs to plug the shortfall. On the other hand, China has more than 100 minesweepers and MCMVs.

 Sputnik

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 11

By Anakhanum Hidayatova  Trend:

Turkey is very unlikely to receive visa-free access to the EU and the reason is quite simple  politics, Theodore Karasik, senior advisor to Gulf State Analytics, told Trend.

While Ankara has adhered to EU rules and regulations to gain visa-free access to Europe, Turkeys multiple internal problems complicate this process, according to him.

Karasik said the visa-free access to Europe is under review, however, adding Turkey is unlikely to get the access because it is too dangerous, as viewed from Europe.

Earlier, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker has said that the EU can abolish visas for Turkish citizens from Oct. 1, 2016 but only if Ankara fulfills all necessary conditions, in particular, changes its anti-terrorism legislation. Turkey has not fulfilled seven of the 72 conditions for lifting the visa regime with EU countries.

Ankara, in turn, has already abolished visas for citizens of all EU countries. However, the rules of the visa-free regime will come into force only after EU abolishes visas for Turkish citizens.
Iran Friendship Flotilla berths at Russian port

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:35AM

A fourth Iranian "Friendship Flotilla" has sailed for Russia across the Caspian Sea, docking at a port city in North Caucasus.

The naval group comprising the Damavand destroyer and the Darafsh missile cruiser berthed off the port of Makhachkala, the capital of Russia's Dagestan Republic, on Thursday.

The vessels were reportedly welcomed and escorted towards the port by the Grad Sviyazhsk, Uglich and Velikiy Ustyug missile corvettes.

The head of the Iranian crewmembers later met with Dagestani officials. They are also to visit Russian naval units in the Caspian and attend cultural events.

Iran has been tasking such flotillas with friendly visits to Russia since 2014. One such naval group was also sent to Azerbaijan last July on a visit aimed at enhancing bilateral ties with the republic.

Since 2005, Anzali has hosted four Russia naval groups, which had sailed to the Iranian Caspian port in order to friendly bilateral relations, enhancing naval interaction between the two nations, and also sending across the message of peace and amity throughout the waters.

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Iraqi forces achieve fresh territorial gains in, near Mosul

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 6:55PM

Iraqi government forces have registered more territorial gains in Mosul as they continue their joint operations with fighters from allied Popular Mobilization Units to push Takfiri Daesh terrorists out of their last urban stronghold in the Arab country.

Commander of the Federal Police Forces Lieutenant General Raed Shaker Jawdat announced on Friday that Iraqi police commandos and rapid response teams had launched a multi-pronged offensive on the western Bab al-Toub neighborhood of Mosul, killing 25 Daesh militants. There were three bombers among the slain extremists, Arabic-language al-Sumaria television network reported.

Iraqi forces also destroyed four explosive-laden cars, five motorcycle bombs in addition to a dozen rocket launchers, and seized 14 vehicles rigged with explosives.

Jawdat added that his forces continue to evacuate displaced families from battle zones to refugee camps in Khazir and Hamam al-Alil towns, which lie on the southern outskirts of Mosul.

Earlier, Commander of Nineveh Liberation Operation Lieutenant General Abdul Amir Yarallah said soldiers from the 9th Armored Division and Popular Mobilization Units  commonly known by the Arabic name Hashd al-Sha'abi, had freed the villages of al-Jammasah and Humaydat northwest of Mosul.

Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) members also wrested full control of al-Amel al-Oula and al-Amel al-Thaniyah neighborhoods in western Mosul, and hoisted the national flag over several buildings there.

On Friday morning, Iraqi federal police forces liberated Akidat and Nabi Sheet neighborhoods in the western part of Mosul.

Additionally, Iraqi army forces restored security and stability in five villages, including Alamlouk and Khojah Khalil, east of Badush.

Iraqi army soldiers and allied Hashd al-Sha'abi fighters launched the offensive to retake Mosul last October and since then they have made sweeping gains against Takfiri elements.

Iraqi forces took control of eastern Mosul in January after 100 days of fighting and launched the battle in the west on February 19.

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Peshmerga Confirm Plans for Iraqi Army Overhaul Don't Involve Kurdistan Forces

Sputnik News

21:48 10.03.2017(updated 21:59 10.03.2017)

An Iraqi government proposal to allow armed militias to become officially affiliated with the Iraqi armed forces does not concern the Peshmerga, whose independence is guaranteed by the constitution, Jibar Yawir, Secretary-General of the Kurdistan regional government's Peshmerga Ministry, told Sputnik.

Iraqi Prime Minister Dr. Haider Al-Abadi's recent comments in support of legislation that would give some militia groups official affiliation with the Iraqi army is a separate issue that doesn't affect the Peshmerga, Jibar Yawir, Secretary-General of the Kurdistan regional government's Peshmerga Ministry, told Sputnik.

Yawir said the Peshmerga, the military force of the autonomous region Iraqi Kurdistan, will continue to operate independently because Article 121 of the Iraqi constitution allows autonomous regions to have their own security and police forces.

He added that Al-Abadi had in mind illegal militias which obey various political or religious groups.

Abdel Sitar al Jamili, Secretary-General of the Nasserist Socialist Vanguard Party, told Sputnik that the creation of a single Iraqi armed force has been brought up regularly since the US invasion of Iraq.

The creation of a single fighting force independent of religious or political allegiances is important for the future of Iraq after Daesh is defeated and problems between Iraqi groups and political forces come to the fore again, Jamili said.

He added that his party welcomes the initiative, which he said would correct the mistakes made in recent years regarding the mismanagement of the army.

In November, the Iraqi parliament passed a law which would allow armed factions operating under the umbrella of the Popular Mobilization Units, a largely Shiite collection of militias, to become an official security body affiliated with the Iraqi armed forces.

However, Al Monitor reported that the law has not been enacted amid discontent from opponents such as the Sunni Union of Nationalist Forces (SUNF).

On Friday, it was reported that the Iraqi army has liberated the Amle district in southwestern Mosul from Daesh militants. The army's 92nd Brigade has also repelled an attack on the Tal Afar military airport, Al-Masdar online outlet reported.

 Sputnik

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Iraqi Forces Liberate Amle District in West Mosul From Daesh

Sputnik News

18:37 10.03.2017

Iraqi army liberated district in southwestern Mosul from militants of the Daesh, according to media reports.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  Iraqi army freed the Amle district in southwestern Mosul from militants of the Islamic State (the ISIL or Daesh terrorist group, outlawed in Russia), local media reported Friday.

The army's 92nd Brigade has also repelled an attack on the Tal Afar military airport, Al-Masdar online outlet reported.

The operation to recapture Mosul, the key stronghold of the Daesh in Iraq, began in October 2016 and resulted in the liberation of Mosul's eastern part this January, but fighting continues in the city's western areas.

Approximately 225,000 people were displaced in the area due to the ongoing clashes, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

 Sputnik

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Tokyo's Rising Military Might Threatens to Upset Fragile Pacific Balance

Sputnik News

18:17 10.03.2017(updated 20:06 10.03.2017)

Japan's Defense Minister Tomomi Inada stated that the country's Self-Defense Forces have the right to launch strikes against enemy territory, raising concerns about the prospects of Tokyo's ongoing military buildup.

Inada made this statement in response to the latest North Korean ballistic missile tests, adding that Tokyo considers all available means of protecting the national security, including military strikes against enemy targets abroad.

However, it remains unclear whether this stance contradicts Japan's pacifist constitution

In recent years Tokyo has significantly increased the country's defense budget, ramping up annual military spending up to $41.7 billion in 2016 and to $44.64 in 2017.

In 2015 Japan's parliament approved legislation that allows Japanese troops to be deployed overseas on combat missions and to participate in armed conflicts abroad, effectively overruling the nation's previous 'self-defense only' policy.

In 2016 Japan ranked seventh in the Global Firepower military strength rating, surpassing the military capabilities of countries like Turkey and Germany.

The Japanese Self-Defense Forces have evolved into a full-fledged professional army of some 270,000 servicemen, 678 battle tanks, 2,800 wheeled armored vehicles and 2,500 artillery systems. Japan's naval assets include 43 attack ships, 3 helicopter carriers, 27 mine-sweeper vessels and 17 submarines. The country's air force boasts some 700 military aircraft, including 119 helicopters.

Valery Kistanov, head of the Center of Japanese Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute of Far Eastern Studies, told RT that Japan's military spending is likely bigger than the official estimates, and amounts to about $47 billion per year.

"Japan's Self-Defense Forces became one of the most high-tech militaries in the world, so there are definitely some risks involved. If your neighbor has a rifle, and a loaded one at that, it's hard to predict how the relations between you and him may change in the future. Maybe the rifle will be fired?" Kistanov said.

He pointed out however that the military doctrines of both Russia and Japan rule out armed conflict between the two nations, and that Tokyo is more concerned about China and North Korea,

"There are US military bases in Japan, and missile defense capabilities (in the region) are being ramped up under the pretext of responding to the North Korean threat. These tendencies obviously raise justified concerns in Russia as the expansion of missile defenses in the Far East poses a threat to Russian interests and security by default," Kistanov surmised.

 Sputnik

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S. Korean president permanently removed from office as court upholds impeachment

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 10:44, March 10, 2017

South Korean President Park Geun-hye was ousted as the country's head of state after on Friday the constitutional court upheld a motion to impeach the scandal-ridden leader.

The court's acting Chief Justice Lee Jung-mi read the ruling on the impeachment, broadcast live nationwide, saying it was the unanimous decision of eight justices.

The acting chief justice said the court had made all-out efforts for a fair judgment, hoping their decision would become a base to lead South Korea towards reconciliation and remedy by ending division and chaos.

Lee, who is scheduled to retire on Monday, dismissed a request for retrial from Park's legal team, which demanded a full court's judgement by nine justices. The former chief justice stepped down on Jan. 31 after his term terminated, leaving one vacancy and Lee was nominated as the acting chief justice.

She said there had been no procedural error in the eight-justice court's decision.

The court dismissed Park's violation of press freedom for lack of evidence, saying Park's inaction to the 2014 ferry disaster is not subject to the impeachment judgment. The ferry disaster claimed more than 300 lives, mostly high school students on a school trip to the Jeju Island.

However, the court ruled that Park allowed her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil to meddle in state affairs from the shadows by leaking many of secret documents and influencing the appointment of government officials.

The ruling said Park also helped Choi seek personal gains by establishing two nonprofit foundations, which were set up with donations from major conglomerates.

South Koreans, who had called for Park's resignation, waved national flags and cheered outside the court in downtown Seoul after hearing the impeachment ruling.

A tearful mother and her daughter were among the anti-Park protesters who held placards that read "Impeachment is Victory of Candlelight Vigil" and "No THAAD."

Park's supporters, who rallied just hundreds of meters away on the street, remained silent and burst into tears following the verdict.

Some of the president's loyalists attempted to break into the court building and clashed with the police.

Local media reported that two of Park's supporters died of unidentified reasons during the rally. One of the dead is in his 70s.

Opinion polls have never changed in recent months, with almost eight out of 10 South Koreans demanding Park's ouster. About 15 percent people have insisted on the rejection or no decision on the impeachment.

By law, the court's ruling takes effect immediately after the reading. Park will be required to leave the presidential Blue House as she officially lost all of her presidential power as well as her title as the incumbent president.

President Park became the first South Korean leader to be forcibly removed from office through the impeachment. She was also the second president to be impeached in the country's constitutional history.

In March 2004, late President Roh Moo-hyun was impeached for his call on voters to support his own party in the parliamentary election of that year. About two months later, he was reinstated as the court ruled that his violation of an election law was not grave enough to boot him from office.

Park's impeachment is an unprecedented event in South Korea's modern history, so there is no specific law stipulating that the impeached leader must leave the Cheong Wa Dae by a given date.

Lee Jae-myung from the Minjoo Party, mayor of Seongnam city to the southeast of Seoul, said, "Today is a great day for people. Impeachment is the start to build a fair country free from corruption, foul play and privilege."

"Genuine unity will only be made possible when completely clearing away the legacy of old days," he added.

Cheong Wook-sik, director of local advocacy group Peace Network, believed the result was not surprising.

"President Park breached the constitution and fell short of people's expectations," he said.

Although the deployment of the controversial Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) was not the main reason for Park's impeachment, it adversely affected South Korea's foreign policy, he added.

Cheong hoped the new government to be produced in the upcoming election could revoke the THAAD deployment plan and mend South Korea's ties with China.

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday that he respected the court's decision.

Only when people, especially those who protested against the impeachment, accepted the ruling, "can the rule of law, which is the basic value of the South Korean constitution, stand upright," Ban was quoted by Yonhap news agency as saying.

Since the Dec. 9 passage in the National Assembly of the impeachment bill, a total of 20 hearings had been held in the court. It took 92 days before the court's final decision, longer than 64 days required for the 2004 ruling on Roh's impeachment. During the 64-day period, only seven hearings were held in 2004.

Park will be subject to indictment and detention by prosecutors as she lost her presidential immunity following the court's decision.

The court's ruling said Park had rejected face-to-face interrogations by state and special prosecutors despite her earlier pledge to accept, mentioning Park's rejection of prosecutors' attempt to search the presidential Blue House.

Prosecutors have identified Park as an accomplice of her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil, who is at the center of the corruption scandal that led to Park's impeachment, for multiple charges including bribery.

The scandal surfaced in late October, pushing millions of people into the streets to hold rival rallies for and against the impeachment every week. In its ruling the constitutional court said it hoped the ruling would end national division.

According to the constitution, an election to pick the next president will be held in 60 days and many expect it to fall on May 9.

Meanwhile, the South Korean military has been ordered to put on vigilance against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea given South Korea's current political situation, according to the Yonhap news agency.

U.S. State Department acting spokesman Mark Toner said in Washington DC that the United States will continue to work with Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn for the remainder of his tenure as the acting president.

"We look forward to a productive relationship with whomever the people of South Korea elect to be their next president," Toner said.

Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan will continue to cooperate with South Korea after the country's Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment of President Park.

International rating agency Moody's said the impeachment of Park has removed the political uncertainty in South Korea.

Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn convened a cabinet meeting shortly after the court's ruling.

Hwang will also hold a session of the National Security Council to discuss diplomatic and security issues.



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Impeachment of South Korean President Approved by Constitutional Court

Sputnik News

05:25 10.03.2017(updated 08:42 10.03.2017)

The South Korean Constitutional Court has upheld the parliament decision on impeaching the president.

TOKYO (Sputnik)  The Constitutional Court of South Korea has upheld the parliament decision to impeach President Park Geun-hye, suspended over a corruption scandal.

The court verdict was announced on Friday and was broadcast live by the South Korean YTN news channel. All 8 judges voted in favor of impeachment (the support of two thirds was needed for upholding the parliament decision).

Park Geun-hye will now be removed from her post and early presidential elections will be held in South Korea within 60 days.

Two demonstrations were held in Seoul as supporters and opponents of Park awaited the court decision. According to NHK, after the verdict was announced, participants of the pro-Park rally attacked media representatives on Friday, but no injuries were reported.

The South Korean parliament impeached Park in December 2016. The country's prime minister Hwang Kyo-ahn was then appointed acting president.

A political scandal around the South Korean president broke out in late October 2016, when media reported that Park had allowed her close associate Choi Soon-sil, who did not hold any official post, to get involved in state affairs.

Park allegedly extorted money from various corporations, including Samsung, with the assistance of Choi, who is currently under arrest.

According to the NHK broadcaster, Park is likely to face an investigation now that she has been removed from office. Before that, she was protected from criminal prosecution by law.

NHK said on Friday that Park will leave the Blue House, the official residence of the South Korean head of state in Seoul, on Friday.

 Sputnik

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Impeached Leader Was South Koreas's First Female President

By VOA News March 10, 2017

Park Geun-hye, the recently ousted president of South Korea, was the country's first female head of state.

Park was a longstanding member of the nation's political community. She grew up in the Blue House, the presidential mansion, as the daughter of late dictator Park Chung-hee, who ruled from 1961 to 1979.

Park served as the nation's first lady for five years after her mother, a popular first lady, was shot to death by a North Korean agent. The assassin was aiming for the president. Park carried out first lady political duties until her father was assassinated by his own spy chief in 1979.

Park's father was widely accused of suppressing dissent and abusing human rights. Park Geun-hye has said she regrets those aspects of her father's iron-fisted rule.

Before becoming president, Park served five terms as a lawmaker and had an unsuccessful run for president in the campaign before her triumphant turn.

Influence-peddling scandal

The stunning and sudden collapse of Park's presidency was caused by allegations that a multimillion dollar influence-peddling scandal was being run out of the Blue House.

In December, 234 members of the 300-seat National Assembly voted to impeach Park.

The president's image as a strong and incorruptible leader crumbled under allegations her longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil, secretly exploited her close relationship with Park to force Korean conglomerates to donate some $65 million to two dubious foundations, while at the same time funneling some of the funds and lucrative side contracts to companies owned by herself and her friends.

Park maintained her innocence

Park met with her Cabinet after the impeachment vote and refused to resign. However, she said she would abide by the outcome of the impeachment vote and plead her case before the Constitutional Court.

She has maintained the actions she took were in the national interest and has insisted she never personally benefited during her years of public service. She offered three public apologies for not being aware that some of her close associates may have been involved in some wrongdoing.

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Putin hails closer Moscow-Ankara ties on Syria crisis

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 3:59PM

Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised close interactions between Moscow and Ankara as part of efforts to find a promising solution to the nearly six-year-long foreign-sponsored militancy in Syria, which has killed thousands of people and left the Arab country in ruins.

"We are actively working to solve the most acute crises, first of all in Syria. I'm very pleased to note, and few seemed to expect it, that our military and special services have established such efficient and close contact," Putin said as he welcomed Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the start of talks focusing on Syria in the Kremlin on Friday.

He highlighted that the military authorities and intelligence services of Russia and Turkey have "a very trustful and effective dialogue" on Syria.

"We are pleased to see our ties recovering at a quick tempo," Putin pointed out.

The Russian president also praised the coordination between his country, Iran, and Turkey to maintain a ceasefire in Syria.

"As a result of the coordinated actions of Russia, Turkey and Iran, the truce in Syria is generally respected. The level of violence has significantly decreased. We agreed with our Turkish counterparts to further actively cooperate in the fight against terrorist groups, primarily with Daesh, working together through the military and special services," Putin stated.

Last December, Russian and Turkish diplomats met in Moscow with Iranian envoys and worked out a nationwide ceasefire in Syria, extending an earlier truce that ended years of fighting in Aleppo and put the strategic city back under the Damascus government's control.

Diplomats from the three countries have also mediated several rounds of peace negotiations between representatives of the Syrian government and armed opposition groups in Kazakhstan's capital city of Astana.

Erdogan, for his part, noted that cooperation in the construction of Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline, which will run from Russia's southern region of Krasnodar across the Black Sea to Turkish Thrace, and building of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey's southern province of Mersin, has regained pace and is increasingly developing.

Defense industry and energy are among the main areas of trade cooperation between Ankara and Moscow, the Turkish leader said.

The comments come as Turkey and Russia have been supporting opposing sides in the conflict in Syria. While Russia has stressed the need to support the legitimate Syrian government, Turkey has been offering support to the anti-Damascus militants.

Turkey, however, has recently been surprisingly gravitating toward Russia. A standoff in November 2015 had plunged the two countries' relations into turmoil.

Back then, the Turkish military shot down a Russian fighter jet as it was conducting operations over Syria. One of the two pilots of the Russian Sukhoi Su-24M was killed by foreign-backed Takfiri militants on the ground after parachuting out of the targeted jet.

Following the failed coup attempt in Turkey on July 16, 2016, Turkish officials, who had previously defended the downing of the Russian jet, distanced themselves from the incident, saying the bomber aircraft had been targeted by military personnel who later took part in the putsch attempt against Ankara.

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Russian Aerospace Forces to Receive Three An-148 Passenger Aircraft in 2017

Sputnik News

14:22 10.03.2017(updated 14:23 10.03.2017)

Three Antonov An-148 passenger aircraft will join the ranks of the Russian Aerospace Forces by 2018.

VORONEZH (Russia), (Sputnik)  Russia's Aerospace Forces will receive three Antonov An-148 passenger aircraft until the end of the year, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuriy Borisov said Friday.

"Speaking about An-148 planes, we expect to receive three aircraft this year," Borisov said, while visiting the PJSC Voronezh Aircraft Manufacturing Company.

He added that there was a contract on the delivery of 15 An-148 planes and the Aerospace Forces had already received 10 of them.

An-148 was designed in the 1990s and its first flight was carried out in 2004. The aircraft developed by Ukraine's Antonov company is produced both in Ukraine and in Russia's city of Voronezh. The jets could be used for transportation of both passengers and cargoes, according to Antonov's website.

 Sputnik

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Turkish premier has warned Europe not to interfere in the nation's internal affairs, hours after Dutch government canceled Turkish foreign minister's flight permit, Anadolu reported.

Speaking at a rally in western Balikesir province, Binali Yildirim said some European countries hosted PKK, Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) members and anti-Turkey figures.

"Do not do that! I warn that this does not fit into friendship, [and] alliance. Those who become friends of Turkey's enemies will display enmity against Turkey," the prime minister said.

Dutch Foreign Ministry announced early Saturday in a statement the Netherlands canceled Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's flight permit on grounds of "security" and "public safety". The foreign minister was scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam later Saturday.

"Europe, please do not put your nose into Turkey's internal affairs, politics," the prime minister told the crowd.

The Netherlands, Austria and Germany are some of the European countries that have canceled meetings of some Turkish ministers and politicians, which they planned as part of their Yes campaigns ahead of the referendum in Turkey, on April 16th.
Russian Aerospace Forces to Get 16 Sophisticated Su-34 Bombers This Year

Sputnik News

07:06 10.03.2017(updated 08:50 10.03.2017)

Russia's Aerospace Forces will get 16 new Sukhoi Su-34 fighter-bombers this year.

NOVOSIBIRSK (Sputnik)  Russia's Aerospace Forces will get 16 new Sukhoi Su-34 fighter-bombers in 2017, while the modernization of the aircraft will start in 2018, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuriy Borisov announced on Friday.

"This year, we expect additional deliveries of four aircraft and the total order volume for the current year is 16 Su-34s," Borisov said, adding that nine aircraft are already in the final stages of assembly.

According to the deputy defense minister, the Novosibirsk Aircraft Production Association (NAPO, or NAPA) has a long-term contract with the Russian Defense Ministry on the production of a total of 92 Su-34 strike fighters.

Borisov stressed that Su-34 aircraft have proved highly effective in the fight against terrorists in Syria.

"A program on the modernization of Su-34 is planned to start in 2018," the minister said.

On Thursday, Borisov announced that Russia's Aerospace Forces would receive 17 advanced Su-30SM fighter jets and 10 Yak-130 combat trainers in 2017.

 Sputnik

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Navalny: Political Change in Russia Is Only Solution to Corruption

By Danila Galperovich March 10, 2017

Russian opposition leader and anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny recently caused a stir on the internet with a documentary-style video about the lifestyle of Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev that has already been viewed millions of times.

According to the 50-minute film, Medvedev owns palatial mansions, yachts and even foreign wineries. Navalny says even though Medvedev's lavish assets are technically registered to close friends, they are, in fact, his own private treasures.

Legal experts have already weighed in, saying although the evidence would normally make for an effortless corruption indictment in Western courts, Medvedev hasn't violated key Russian statutes.

Navalny isn't convinced. He says the probe offers a sound foundation from which to launch criminal cases.

Medvedev has dismissed Navalny's video. "It's senseless to comment on propaganda attacks by an oppositional convict who's already canvassing for votes and fighting the regime," said the Russian prime minister's press secretary, Natalia Timakova, in a recent statement to Interfax that didn't address corruption allegations directly.

Navalny says he will run in next year's Russian presidential election, even though he was found guilty of embezzlement in a February trial that he and his supporters call a politically motivated prosecution. That verdict effectively barred him from running.

In his first long-format English-language interview since the documentary was released, Navalny tells VOA's Russian service why fighting corruption is the core of his political campaign, and why off-the-books extravagances are a kind of political prerequisite for ascending the highest echelons of Russian power.

QUESTION: What could your audience learn from your foundation's probe into Dmitry Medvedev? What are the key findings you and your colleagues have arrived at while investigating?

ANSWER: I think that the big story in our probe is not the fact that such high officials own that much property but that we've been able to uncover that. For many years  and it's not just what I say; many are aware of this, I think  corruption has been the foundation of [President Vladimir] Putin's regime. Corruption is the backbone of this political hierarchy. Putin's "social contract" with those in power is based on precisely that: You give me your political loyalty, and in exchange, you can steal as much as you want. That's why it's an obvious and well-known fact that all Putin's friends have become millionaires and billionaires. Newspapers talk about that, Forbes ratings confirm that. The thing is that many perceived Medvedev as just someone who is more into some [electronic] gadgets. But we've proven and shown that, in fact, he is no different than others in Putin's near circle. In fact, he is an avaricious man who is obsessed with property, yachts and some idea of a life of an Arab sheik.

Q: But perhaps in the circle that Putin created during his 17-year tenure, it is customary to own such property and income, gained through these specific means? Could it be a kind of symbol of some sort of fraternity, of belonging to this circle?

A: Are you asking whether you need to shoot someone in the head to join a gang, as they do in mobster movies? I feel like some of this, certainly, is there. If you want to make the grade  be a member of this group  naturally, you have "to get your hands dirty." They are all in this together, including corruption. Besides, it's important to remember that it is really a small circle of like-minded people from their times in the St. Petersburg mayor's office, where they were running small scams, like trading precious metals, and where they were directly tied to the organized criminal groups, to St. Petersburg mobsters. But I don't believe that just owning a palace is important to enter the group. More likely, it's the reverse. There is so much money that you have to do something with it. And how else are they going to spend it in Russia? So, that's how they spend it  by building palaces. They are spending it in line with their idea and concepts of a beautiful life.

Q: In other words, you can belong to the group without the riches?

A: I don't think that someone held a gun to Medvedev's head to make him buy these palaces. You can be in the circle and have billions in cash somewhere in your bank accounts, but you can also invest a part of those billions in palaces. It's just they consider it de rigueur to build those things. We see that it's typical for all of them: Putin built in [the Black Sea town of] Gelendzhik.  This is, in fact, as I see it, an important symbol of them playing a game of being "Russian noblemen and aristocracy." They consider themselves the reincarnation of an aristocracy that is created around an absolute monarch. And an important element in their understanding of this aristocracy are all these "ancestral estates," palaces, columns, various Greek-style caryatids.

Q: Do you believe there is anyone in Putin's circle who did not, as you put it, "get their hands dirty"?

A: Of course not. There are no such people. If there ever were, they fell off along the way. From the beginning, it was a group of cynical Soviet crooks who were running their scams at the mayor's office in St. Petersburg. If we look at these people's careers  Putin transferred to the presidential administration while working under Pavel Pavlovich Borodin [who headed the Kremlin's property management department under President Boris Yeltsin], who was also one of the personifications of corruption in the '90s. It means these people were involved in doing all of this for more than 20 years within their group. Of course, not only is there no one who is untainted there, but there is not a single person there who is not 100 percent "dirty."

Q: If they, as you put it, consider themselves a new aristocracy, then what, in their minds, should society as a whole look like?

A: The way I see and understand their actions, they are quite cynical. For public consumption, they always talk about  "the Russophobia of the West," but the main Russophobes in Russia are the ruling elites, who consider the Russian people brutes and rubes who don't understand anything, don't know anything and will always remain silent. And it doesn't matter how openly and blatantly you're stealing from these people  they will always remain silent, no matter what. And it makes perfect sense to steal all their money, since they will otherwise squander it all on vodka. They believe that it is  a country of people doomed to live in poverty because they are too dumb to protest. And it can all be done openly, as long as there are some sensible precautions  primarily, full censorship of the media, and secondly, control of the political system so that no outside candidate is allowed to run for elections.

Q: What can shake Russian society out of its passivity toward corruption, if it doesn't react to the most outrageous information?

A: We need to keep trying, keep doing it. We know that there are people in Russia  a lot of people  who believe that we must react, and they do. OK, today the society isn't very sensitive to these concerns. For 25 years, they witnessed absolute corruption during the "democrats" [of the 1990s], during the Putin regime, and prior to that, during the final years of the Soviet Union. There was heinous corruption in the Soviet Union. That's why, essentially, there is such a high level of tolerance, but it doesn't mean that we have to endure it and stop trying. We are spreading all this information; we're talking about it again and again. At least I try to represent the part of our society that cares.

Q: Are you concerned that in preaching "end corruption and things will be good," you are putting off people who see this as reminiscent of the Soviet-era "fight against stealing socialist property"?

A: I'm not concerned because I'm running for president [in 2018] with an extensive agenda. Obviously, I keep talking about corruption because it has been the main focus of my investigations, my professional career, in recent years. I really believe that corruption is the main obstacle to growth, including economic growth. But in the fight against corruption, I offer political solutions. I'm not talking about jailing six specific people  Medvedev and his friends. I'm saying that it's impossible to curb corruption without independent media, a competitive political system and transparent, fair courts. And this is where I stand out.

Q: But at least free media existed during Boris Yeltsin's presidency.

A: During Yeltsin's presidency, the horrible political mistake made that didn't allow Russia to transition to a path of democratic development was that no systemic political measures were taken so that the state itself would be built to fight corruption. For example, the judiciary system under Yeltsin remained in place from the Soviet era. The same people still adjudicate in the same courts. Yeltsin, unfortunately, couldn't guarantee freedom of the press. I'm talking about these things and trying to give you a comprehensive picture of this problem.

Q: Has the fact that you released your investigative video during your trip to Russia's regions to open up local electoral offices affected your campaign? Do people ask you about the film?

A: It absolutely has. Seven million people have watched the video on YouTube, more than 2 million have watched it on Odnoklassniki [the Russian social media site]. This means we've reached about 9 percent of the country's population and far more than 9 percent of its voters. We feel like the film has reached beyond the usual audience of political activists and provided information about myself and the campaign. Based on people's feedback and the number of volunteers who are registering, and simply people who stop me down on the street, we see that the film is playing a big positive role in our campaign.

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US State Department approves weapons sales to Saudi Arabia

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 1:14AM

The administration of US President Donald Trump has approved the resumption of weapons sales to Saudi Arabia which critics have linked to Riyadh's killing of civilians in Yemen, reports say.

The multi-million dollar deal will see precision-guided weaponry handed over to Riyadh which is conducting almost daily airstrikes in Yemen. Officials say the proposal needs the backing of the White House to go into effect.

The $1.15 billion deal was previously blocked by former President Barack Obama after Saudi warplanes targeted a funeral hall in Yemen killing scores of civilians, provoking international outcry.

The State Department's approval of the controversial measure indicates that the Trump administration is seeking closer ties with Saudi Arabia in the Yemen war.

The Obama administration canceled the deal for the sale of tanks and armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia in December last year, amid worldwide criticism about civilian deaths in Yemen.

More than 12,000 people have died as the result of the Saudi campaign in the kingdom's impoverished neighbor since March 2015, according to the latest tally by a Yemeni monitoring group.

The offensive was launched to undermine the Ansarullah movement and reinstate Yemen's former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a staunch ally of Riyadh.

The Pentagon has been providing logistic and surveillance support to Saudi Arabia in its military aggression against Yemen.

Meanwhile, the UK High Court is reviewing the country's weapons deals with Saudi Arabia, after activists accused the government of British Prime Minister Theresa May of complicity in Riyadh's war crimes against Yemen.

Brought by the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), the case includes submissions from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

Britain has signed off 3.3 billion in arms sales to Saudi Arabia since March 26, 2015, when Riyadh began its unprovoked aggression on its impoverished southern neighbor.

London, which has been one of the biggest suppliers of weapons to Riyadh for 40 years, has provided Tornado and Eurofighter Typhoon jets along with training to Saudi pilots participating in the war, which has killed thousands of Yemeni civilians.

The British government has also admitted to exporting 500 illegal cluster bombs to Saudi Arabia in the 1980s which the country used in its war on Yemen.

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Syria calls on UN to force Turkey to withdraw troops

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 5:46PM

Syria has called on the United Nations and the Security Council to oblige Turkey to immediately withdraw its "invading forces" from the Syrian territory, stop cross-border attacks and maintain regional and international security and stability.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry, in separate but identical letters to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Security Council President Matthew Rycroft on Friday, condemned Turkish military forces over their "aggressive" and "treacherous" violation of the Damascus government's sovereignty in flagrant infringement of the UN Charter, the principle of good neighborliness and Security Council resolutions on combating terrorism.

The statement noted that the Syrian government views Turkey as a terror sponsor, and holds Ankara fully responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people, destruction of Syria's infrastructure upon direct instructions from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his security forces, besides provision of all sorts of financial and military support.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry further urged the two world bodies to put an end to Turkish military attacks, describing the assaults as "a direct attempt by the Ankara government to hinder the progress of Syrian army forces and their allies in the fight against terror groups."

The statement came less than a day after an unnamed military source told Syria's official news agency SANA that Turkish forces had lobbed a barrage of artillery rounds and rockets at Syrian border guard posts near the city of Manbij, located only 40 kilometers from the Turkish border, killing and injuring scores of Syrian troopers.

On August 24, Turkish air force and special ground forces kicked off Operation Euphrates Shield inside Syria in a declared bid to support Free Syrian Army militants and rid the border area of Daesh terrorists and fighters from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and the Democratic Union Party (PYD).

The offensive was launched in coordination with the US-led military coalition, which has purportedly been fighting Daesh extremists since 2014.

The incursion was the first major Turkish military intervention in Syria, which drew strong condemnation from the Syrian government for violating the Arab country's sovereignty.

Erdogan said on November 29 that the Turkish army marched into Syria to end the rule of his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad.

The Turkish leader, however, backtracked on the comments two days later, asserting that the offensives there were aimed only at terrorists.

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Putin, Erdogan Pledge Cooperation To Help Bring End To Syrian Conflict

RFE/RL March 09, 2017

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, citing improved bilateral ties, pledged to work together to help bring an end to the conflict in Syria.

The two leaders held talks on March 10 to address the conflicts in Syria and Iraq, economic and energy ties, and efforts to combat terrorism.

"We are working actively on the settlement of the most acute crises in the world, first of all in Syria," Putin said. "I am pleased to say that nobody expected this, but at the level of military authorities, intelligence services, we have a very trustful, very effective dialogue."

Erdogan's trip to Moscow is seen as a chance for him to bolster ties with the Kremlin at a time when Turkey's relationship with the West has been fraying. It also comes amid tension with Turkey's NATO allies and the European Union.

Erdogan was sharply criticized by authorities in Germany after making comments accusing Berlin of "Nazi" practices when several German cities canceled rallies planned by Turkish government ministers.

The rallies were to be aimed at raising support from Turkish voters who live in Europe for a Turkish referendum that would give Erdogan more powers, a move criticized by many in the West who say it would consolidate too much power in the president's hands.

But relations between Russia and Turkey, regional rivals for centuries, have also had sharp ups and downs in the past two years.

Turkey and Russia support opposing sides in the Syrian war, and their ties were severely strained when Turkish jets shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border in November 2015.

That incident occurred weeks after Russia launched a campaign of air strikes in Syria targeting opponents of President Bashar al-Assad's government.

"As far as security matters in our region are concerned, I believe that it takes joint efforts to end bloodshed in Syria," Erdogan said after the meeting.

Russia and Turkey now jointly support a Kazakhstan-based series of negotiations to end the fighting in Syria, and have begun coordinating military operations there in some cases.

Russia said on March 9 it had lifted a ban on imports of carnations and some types of vegetables from Turkey that was imposed after the plane was shot down.

Erdogan said during the meeting that cooperation in implementing two energy projects, the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey and a planned natural-gas pipeline called Turkish Stream, was returning "very rapidly to previous levels."

Russian and Turkish media have reported that the talks would include a meeting of the high-level bilateral cooperation council that will include negotiations on the possible purchase by Turkey of Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems.

With reporting by Reuters, TASS, Interfax, and TRT TV

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-turkey-erdogan- putin-talks-moscow/28361524.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Israel Warns Russia That Iran's Presence In Syria Blocks Peace Deal

RFE/RL March 10, 2017

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told Russian President Vladimir Putin there can never be peace in Syria as long Iran maintains troops and advisers there.

"We discussed at length the matter of Iran, its objectives and intentions in Syria, and I clarified that there cannot be a peace deal in Syria when Iran is there and declares its intention to destroy Israel," Netanyahu said in footage supplied by his office after the two leaders met in Moscow on March 9.

Netanyahu's office issued the video and clarifying statements hours after Putin during the Moscow meeting appeared to dismiss Israel's concerns as outdated, saying they stemmed from ancient Persia's hostility toward Israel "in the fifth century B.C.," a fact which Netanyahu himself had mentioned to support his contention that Iran still poses a threat.

"We now live in a different world. Let us talk about that now," Putin said told Netanyahu, also apparently disregarding Netanyahu's earlier point that Iran has recently inscribed its ballistic missiles with messages about destroying Israel.

Iran is not only Israel's most vocal foe in the Middle East but also the staunchest ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his six-year civil war against mostly Sunni rebel groups. Tehran has provided Assad with military advisers and fighters, many of whom have been killed during the war.

Iran-backed Hizballah fighters from the Lebanese Shi'ite militia also have provided key support for Assad. Both Israel and the United States regard Hizballah as a "proxy" for Iran and a terrorist organization.

Iran "is arming itself and its forces against Israel, including from Syria territory and is, in fact, gaining a foothold to continue the fight against Israel," Netanyahu said.

"There cannot be peace when they continue the war and therefore they have to be removed."

Russia is also an ally of Syria and Iran and is seen as holding the balance of power in efforts to achieve a peace deal in Syria. The United Nations has been sponsoring peace negotiations in Geneva that are scheduled to resume later this month.

Israeli leaders and the Trump administration have maintained that Iran's presence in Syria during civil war that started in 2011 has increased its threat to Israel.

Last year, Avi Dichter, the chair of Israel's foreign affairs and defense committee, said Iran had tried several times to move forces into the Syrian Golan Heights, next to territory that Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war. Dichter said Israel repelled those moves.

Netanyahu has said that Israel has also carried out dozens of strikes to prevent weapons smuggling to Hizballah via Syria.

Two years ago, Israel and Russia agreed to coordinate military actions over Syria in order to avoid accidentally trading fire, and Netanyahu has made several trips to Moscow to discuss issues in the region.

This was the first time he has publicly stated afterward that Iran's presence in Syria posed an obstacle to peace. It coincides with the United States raising the same issue for the first time at the United Nations this week, and came after Netanyahu said he had a long telephone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump on the "dangers" Iran poses in the Middle East.

"I have just concluded an important meeting with President Putin where I made it clear regarding Syria that Israel has no objection to a new arrangement in Syria but we strongly object to the possibility that in such an arrangement Iran and its proxies will remain with a military presence in Syria," Netanyahu said, according to his office in Tel Aviv.

"I think that this was made clear in the best possible way. In my experience with President Putin, these things are not only important in order to prevent misunderstanding, but ultimately they also have an effect on the ground."

With reporting by AFP, TASS, and Reuters

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/israel-netanyahu-warns- russia-putin-iran-presence-syria-blocks- peace-deal/28361149.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Syrian Democratic Forces Pledge to Defeat Daesh 'Capital' Raqqa Single-Handedly

Sputnik News

18:02 10.03.2017(updated 18:08 10.03.2017)

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which include US-backed Kurdish and Arab fighters, are ready to liberate the Syrian city of Raqqa from Daesh without support from foreign troops, according to SDF spokesman Jihan Sheikh Ahmed.

RIA Novosti quoted Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) spokesman Jihan Sheikh Ahmed as saying that the SDF, a US-backed group dominated by the Syrian Kurdish militia group YPG, is poised and ready to drive Daesh (ISIL/ISIS) out of its Syrian stronghold Raqqa without foreign troops supporting its ground operation.

Raqqa, a city some 160 kilometers east of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, is in the process of being encircled by the SDF and US artillery and armored personnel carriers.

The Kurds have served as America's primary ally in the fight against Daesh.

Earlier, SDF spokesman Talal Silo said, referring to Raqqa, that they "expect that within a few weeks there will be a siege of the city."

He was also quoted by the Iranian news agency Fars as saying that the Arab-Kurdish detachments will not allow Turkey to participate in their military operation, since they see Ankara as "an occupant" in northern Syria.

Selo was echoed by Ahmed, who said that the strength of the SDF is growing, and that they have enough power to liberate Raqqa all by themselves.

"We do not need foreign troops to eradicate Daesh in Raqqa," Ahmad was quoted by the TV channel Kurdistan 24 as saying.

Operation Euphrates Rage, aimed at liberating Raqqa from Daesh, was launched by the SDF on November 5, 2016.

The city was captured by Daesh terrorists in 2013, and a year later, the Syrian army lost control of the remainder of Raqqa province.

In a recent interview, Syrian President Bashar Assad said that he does not consider the liberation of Raqqa, which in 2012 had a population of over 220,000, a priority task.

He stressed that priorities depend on the course of combat operations, and as far as Raqqa is concerned, "it is little more than a Daesh symbol."

 Sputnik

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Damascus Calls on UN to Make Turkey Stop Aggression and Withdraw Army From Syria

Sputnik News

16:07 10.03.2017(updated 16:41 10.03.2017)

Syria's Foreign Ministry has sent complaints to the UN Secretary-General and UN Security Council President over the Turkish army's continuing "aggression" against the war-torn country, the SANA news agency reported Friday.

DAMASCUS (Sputnik)  In its letters, the ministry also demanded from the UN and the international community to oblige Turkey to withdraw its troops from Syrian territory.

The foreign ministry said Turkey is responsible for destroying Syria's infrastructure, for the killing of tens of thousands of innocent children and for supporting terrorist groups, the media reported.

All actions of the Turkish forces were authorized by direct instruction of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said in the complaints.

On Thursday, a well informed source on the ground told Sputnik the Turkish army and its allies in the Euphrates Shield operation shelled Syrian border guard units deployed near the Kurdish-held Syrian city of Manbij, killing and injuring several people.

The border guard was deployed in the village of Arima, in the western suburbs of Manbij, the source said, specifying that the shelling took place at night.

On August 24, the Turkish army launched Operation Euphrates Shield against militants of the Daesh group, which is outlawed in Russia and many other countries. Turkish forces, with assistance from Syrian opposition fighters, occupied the city of Jarablus in northern Syria.

Erdogan said that the aim of the operation is to clear the territory of 5,000 square kilometers (1,930 square miles) in Syria as part of the operation and create a safe zone for refugees.

The operation has been widely criticized both by the Syrian Kurds and Damascus, who have accused Ankara of violating Syria's territorial integrity.

Earlier this week, Erdogan said that the next phase of Turkey's Euphrates Shield military campaign in northern Syria would target the Kurdish-controlled Manbij and called on the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) to leave the city.

 Sputnik

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Syrian Troops Reach Euphrates Bank for First Time in Four Years

Sputnik News

11:47 10.03.2017(updated 15:27 10.03.2017)

Syrian government forces have reached the Euphrates bank east of Khafsah for the first time in four years, maintaining control of a nine-mile coastline, the Russian General Staff said Friday.

"For the first time in four years, government forces have managed to reach the bank of the Euphrates River east of Khafsah. Fifteen kilometers of riverside is under their control," Col. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi, the chief of the Russian General Staff Main Operational Directorate, said.

He said the Syrian Army continues advancing east of Palmyra and extending the security zone to its north and south a week after liberating the city from terrorists.

"After taking control of the city of Palmyra, the Syrian government troops continue their offensive east of the city and, capturing dominant heights, extend the security zone to the north and south," Rudskoi said.

On March 2, the Syrian government forces regained control over Palmyra with the support of the Russian aircraft operating in Syria. The operation was carried out with minimal losses among the anti-terrorist troops.

The city was occupied by Daesh (banned in Russia) in May 2015 and was under control of the terrorists until March 2016, when the Syrian army supported by Russia's Aerospace Forces liberated it. However, the jihadists later succeeded to drive out the Syrian government forces in December 2016 after a large-scale offensive.

Nearly 200 Russian engineers and 32 pieces of equipment have arrived in Palmyra to begin mine clearance operations, according to the military official.

"The first unit of the Russian Armed Forces International Mine Action Center has arrived in Syria for mine clearance of liberated from terrorists Palmyra," Rudskoi said adding that the unit comprises 187 troops and 32 pieces of special equipment.

The Col. Gen. said "the regime of the cessation of hostilities introduced on December 30, 2016, continues to be maintained throughout Syria" and specified that "over the past week, agreements on the accession to reconciliation have been signed with officials from 47 settlements, whose total number has reached 1,338."

"The number of 'moderate opposition' units that declared their adherence to the cessation of hostilities has increased to 199," Rudskoi said.

Speaking about the situation in the eastern Aleppo province, the officer said that "a considerable success has been reached" and "over the past week, 92 settlements have been liberated from terrorists in an area of 479 square kilometers". He said the Syrian troops with the support of Russian aviation continued to fight Daesh.

"These successes became possible due to the activities of the Russian aircraft, which have conducted 452 strikes against Daesh targets in the eastern part of Aleppo province over a week. More than 600 militants have been killed, 16 infantry fighting vehicles, 41 pickup trucks armored with heavy machine guns have been destroyed," Rudskoy said.

The Syrian city of Aleppo, which was considered the economic capital of the country before the beginning of the civil war in 2011, had been under militants' control for several years and had been significantly damaged during the conflict. The city was liberated by government forces from militant groups in December 2016, however several militant and extremist groups are still fighting in the province.

The civil war in Syria has been lasting for around six years with government troops fighting against numerous opposition factions and terror organizations such as al-Nusra Front and Daesh, outlawed in Russia.

Moscow has been conducting a counter-terrorist campaign in Syria since September 30, 2015, at President Bashar Assad's request.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced in December that the Syrian government and armed opposition groups had reached an agreement on a nationwide ceasefire in Syria and on readiness to start peace talks.

Rudskoi added that the next round of Syrian peace talks in Astana will work on completing a single map of Daesh and al-Nusra Front terrorist groups' presence in the war-torn country.

"The meeting plans to complete a single map of al-Nusra Front and Daesh presence in Syria, agree on a project of a local reconciliation clause, form a working group on prisoner exchanges, discuss proposals to form an international coalition to clear UNESCO heritage sites of mines and create a constitutional commission," Rudskoi said during the briefing.

On Thursday, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said the next Astana talks round would be held on March 14-15.

The previous round of Astana talks took place on February 15-16 and resulted in the agreement of the participants to set up a ceasefire monitoring group comprising Iran, Russia and Turkey, that would report to the United Nations.

 Sputnik

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Turkey shells border posts near Syria's Manbij, kills army soldiers

Iran Press TV

Fri Mar 10, 2017 1:13AM

Turkish military forces have shelled the positions of Syrian government troops and their allied fighters from popular defense groups in the country's northwestern province of Aleppo, leaving several soldiers dead and injured.

An unnamed military source told Syria's official news agency SANA that Turkish forces lobbed a barrage of artillery rounds and rockets at Syrian border guard posts near the city of Manbij, located only 40 kilometers from the Turkish border, on Thursday.

The source added that the projectiles caused deaths and injuries, without providing an exact figure.

The military source further described the Turkish aggression on the Syrian territory an attempt to stop the progress of Syrian army forces and allied fighters in the fight against terrorist organizations.

On August 24, the Turkish air force and special ground forces kicked off Operation Euphrates Shield inside Syria in a declared bid to support Free Syrian Army militants and rid the border area of Daesh terrorists and fighters from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and the Democratic Union Party (PYD).

The offensive was launched in coordination with the US-led military coalition, which has purportedly been fighting Daesh extremists since 2014.

The incursion was the first major Turkish military intervention in Syria, which drew strong condemnation from the Syrian government for violating the Arab country's sovereignty.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on November 29 that the Turkish army marched into Syria to end the rule of President Bashar al-Assad.

The Turkish leader however backtracked on the comments two days later, asserting that the offensives there were aimed only at terrorists.

Syrian forces find militant tunnel near Damascus

Meanwhile, Syrian military forces have discovered a long tunnel used by foreign-sponsored militants during a mop-up operation on the outskirts of the capital Damascus.

Army soldiers and pro-government fighters from popular defense groups found the tunnel, which stretched as long as 300 meters, in the city of Harasta on the northeastern outskirts of Damascus on Thursday.

Al-Nusra Front (Jabhat Fateh al-Sham) terrorists apparently tried to use the 34-meter-deep tunnel to sneak into military sites in the area.

A military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the tunnel had fans for ventilation purposes as well as small rooms for terrorists to take refuge. It was divided into several branches, with the first section extending as long as 43 meters. The second branch was 25 meters long.

Syrian soldiers and their allies then packed the tunnel with explosives, and blew it up.

Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the conflict.

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The Turkish Foreign ministry has asked the Dutch ambassador to Turkey to extend his leave and not return to his position 'for some time', amid a heated row over rally bans, DailySabah reported.

"We do not want the Dutch ambassador, currently on leave, to return to his post for some time. It has been explained to our counterparts that this grave decision taken against Turkey and the Dutch Turkish community will cause serious problems diplomatically, politically, economically and in other areas," the ministry said in a statement released Saturday.

In the statement the ministry also said that the Dutch government's treatment to Turkish officials was "hostile" and "a first in 405 years of relations."

Meanwhile, the Dutch embassy in Ankara and the consulate building in Istanbul was sealed off by Turkish police due to security concerns. Turkish officials said that the residences of Dutch Consul-General and Charge d'affaires were also closed off.

Tensions between the two NATO partners escalated after the Dutch government barred Foreign Minister Cavusoglu's plane from landing in Rotterdam.

Earlier, Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya was blocked by Dutch police from entering the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam.
UN Accuses Turkey of Massive Destruction, Torture in Kurdish Areas

By Lisa Schlein March 10, 2017

A new report accuses Turkey's security forces of widespread and systematic human rights violations, including massive destruction of towns and killings of mainly Kurdish people in the southeast.

Turkey has denied repeated requests for access to the country by U.N. human rights investigators, so they have been forced to gather evidence through satellite imagery and interviews.

The report documents accounts of torture, enforced disappearances, violence against women and other human rights violations committed between July 2015 and December 2016 in southeast Turkey.

During that period, the report says government security operations displaced between 355,000 and one-half-million, mainly Kurdish people in more than 30 towns and neighborhoods.

The report describes the destruction of buildings in some villages. In one area, local authorities estimate 70 percent of the buildings were systematically destroyed by shelling.

U.N. human rights spokesman Rupert Colville said heavy damage also has been reported from other towns, including Cizre, in Sirnak Province.

"The report," said Colville, "describes how witnesses and family members of victims 'painted an apocalyptic picture of the wholesale destruction of neighborhoods' where, in early 2016, up to 189 men, women and children were trapped for weeks on end in basements without water, food, medical attention and power before being killed by fire, that had apparently been caused by shelling."

The report cites information received from the Turkish government accusing the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, which it considers a terrorist organization, of conducting violent attacks that killed and injured Turkish security forces and other individuals.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra-ad al-Hussein said he is alarmed at the ongoing deterioration of human rights since an attempted coup last July in Turkey. The human rights chief said he is particularly concerned that there has been no credible investigation of the hundreds of alleged unlawful killings, including those of women and children.

Given the magnitude of the alleged crimes, he said an independent investigation is both urgent and essential.

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Aid Groups Fear Mass Expulsion of Western NGOs From Turkey

By Jamie Dettmer March 10, 2017

United Nations officials and international aid workers fear the Turkish government is gearing up to shutter more Western nongovernment organizations working with Syrian refugees and overseeing cross-border relief missions inside Syria following the expulsion Tuesday of Mercy Corps, one of the world's biggest humanitarian nonprofits.

The offices of more than half-dozen major Western NGOs and aid organizations with offices in the southern Turkish border towns of Gaziantep and Hatay were visited this week by Turkish officials, who demanded registration documents as well as copies of staff lists. The officials also scrutinized the work permits of international employees.

At least two international NGOs have been ordered so far to undergo the laborious bureaucratic process of re-registering their presence in the country, according to several aid workers.

U.N. officials say they suspect all Western NGOs are likely to be instructed shortly to re-register and it is unclear whether they will be allowed in the meantime to continue working with more than 2 million Syrian refugees in Turkey or to transport relief supplies to hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians inside war-wracked Syria.

U.N. officials told VOA they are urgently seeking clarification from the Turkish authorities.

Internal 'read-out' leaked

According to an internal "read-out" by the U.N.'s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OHCA, Turkey's interior ministry "is planning on canceling all existing INGO registrations and asking INGOs to resubmit registration requests following new rules and regulations within three months."

The OHCA read-out, which was leaked to VOA, warns that the Turkish government is likely to use this process as a "way to choose which organizations they want to keep in country."

According to OHCA, the interior ministry recently held a meeting of all Turkey's regional governors to discuss new rules and regulations for INGOs  the first time, U.N. officials noted, that the Turkish government has organized a governor-level coordination meeting about international relief organizations.

Some of the most respected organizations on the international aid scene were among the agencies inspected this week, prompting mounting fears among aid workers that they are being targeted. They include: the International Rescue Committee, CARE International, Counterpart and Global Communities and International Medical Corps -- all are U.S.-based. The British NGO Integrity also was inspected.

Several other NGOs have been inspected but asked not to be listed for fear of incurring Ankara's wrath.

"Our offices in Gaziantep were visited this week," confirmed Holly Frew, a spokeswoman for Care. "We have heard other international NGOs have been inspected as well," she told VOA.

Frew said Care has not been asked to leave, but she said it is unusual for so many relief organizations to be inspected at the same time.

The spokeswoman for another aid organization confirmed her group had been visited, too. "Our offices were visited earlier this week by local authorities," she said. "They were checking staff work permits."

She said the organization's staff in Turkey believe it was "a routine visit and one that the authorities have the right to perform. Our documents were in order, and we had no problems. We have traditionally had a good working relationship with Turkish authorities and at this moment there is no reason to believe that will change."

'This really is ominous'

According to another aid worker, inspections by Turkish authorities in the past have taken place on an annual basis. "Since the Mercy Corps expulsion there has been an escalation in INGO inspections," he said. "This really is ominous," he added.

Mercy Corps, which has been working in Turkey since 2012, was informed abruptly on Tuesday by the Turkish interior ministry that it no longer had permission to work in Turkey and was ordered to shut down its operations immediately. The aid group said Turkish authorities offered no reason for the sudden closure and noted it had been working in close cooperation with the Turkish government.

In recent months pro-government Turkish newspapers have rounded on Western NGOs, and amid a mounting press clamor alleged Mercy Corps and other international aid groups have been helping terrorists and conspiring against the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Mercy Corps, which is based in Portland, Oregon, and other relief organizations have vehemently denied the claims.

"We have every confidence in the impartiality and the integrity of our operations. We're not a political organization and our reason for being is to deliver assistance to civilians who need it the most," Christine Bragale, Mercy Corps' director of media relations, told Britain's Daily Telegraph earlier this week.

Mercy Corps, which has received funding for its Syria relief operations from the U.S. and European governments, spent $34 million last year on Syria-related missions. Mercy Corps has had to lay off 300 relief workers because of the expulsion.

U.N. officials say the anti-NGO press campaign, which they suspect is orchestrated, has grown in ferocity and has spread to local newspapers across the country.

In the OHCA report it is noted: "Negative articles about INGOs (similar to those printed in Hatay) are now being printed in Gaziantep." Both Hatay and Gaziantep are relief hubs for Syria, and international NGOs organizing cross-border efforts generally base out of either town.

A Turkish government official told Reuters that the decision to expel Mercy Corps was "technical," arguing the NGO failed to meet documentation requirements. But aid workers and U.N. officials fear there was nothing technical about the expulsion of Mercy Corps.

US concerns about expulsion

State Department spokesman Mark Toner midweek said U.S. concerns about the expulsion of Mercy Corps have been communicated to Ankara as well as anxieties about the "impact it will have on critical humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations."

Relations between international NGOs and Erdogan's government have been fraught and often tense since the Syrian conflict started six years ago, aid workers say.

"The government has never wanted us in the country," said an international aid worker, who asked not to be identified. "It is horrible when aid becomes a pawn in a political game."

The registration process has often been difficult and Ankara has been strict about regulations governing what NGOs can do, where they can go and where they can send aid. The United Nations refugee agency has been blocked frequently from aiding Syrian refugees who are living outside official camps, U.N. officials say.

But relations have become much more fraught in recent months. Ankara has blocked international aid agencies from working in a Turkish-controlled zone carved out in northern Syria since August, preferring to work with Turkish NGOs favored by Erdogan, many of which are Islamist in ideology.

Analysts have noted that the press campaign against international relief organizations and Western NGOs tends to become more vehement when the Turkish government comes under criticism for alleged human rights abuses by Western governments.

Turkish nonprofits shuttered

The Erdogan government has targeted also domestic NGOs, shuttering hundreds of Turkish nonprofits since last July's failed coup attempt, claiming they are linked to the coup plotters, including exiled cleric Muhammed Fethullah Gulen, who lives in the U.S. and is accused by Erdogan of masterminding the military coup bid.

While acknowledging the latest moves against international NGOs may be part of what critics argue is a general crackdown on civil society in Turkey, Bassam al-Kuwaitli, a former member of the opposition Syrian National Council, suspects Ankara is determined to control international relief missions inside northern Syria.

"I think a lot of this has to do with Western relief assistance going to areas inside Syria controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces," he said. He notes pro-government Turkish newspapers this week accused Mercy Corps of assisting Turkey's banned Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. The Erdogan government views U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish militias fighting in Syria just as PKK offshoots.

An international aid worker noted the increased friction coincides with the arrival this week of a contingent of U.S. Marines, pre-positioning for an SDF assault on Raqqa.

Ankara has demanded that a Turkish-led Syrian Arab force mount the assault on Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State terror group, rather than Kurdish-led militias.

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Rapper Eminem attends The 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards held at Staples Center on February 13, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo : Getty Images/Larry Busacca)

There is some great news for fans of Detroit rapper Eminem in the United Kingdom. The "Rap God" rapper will be in Scotland and England in August.



It has been confirmed that Eminem is headlining music festivals in the U.K. on Aug. 24.He will headline an annual music festival in Glasgow, Scotland.



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The Glasgow Summer Sessions 2017 will be held at Bellahouston Park. Among the artists who will join Eminem there are his fellow Detroit rapper Danny Brown, New Jersey rapper Russ and hip hop supergroup Run The Jewels, Glasgow Evening Times reported.



This is the second time Eminem is headlining Glasgow Summer Sessions. He headlined the music festival for the first time in 2013. He was with Swedish DJ and record producer Avicii and Tennesee rock band Kings of Leon.



In August, the "Rap God" rapper will headline Reading and Leeds Festivals for the third time. He headlined the twin festivals for the first time in 2001. His fellow headliners at the time were Scottish rock band Travis and Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers.



In 2013, Eminem headlined Reading and Leeds Festivals again. California punk rock band Green Day and Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro were his co-headliners.



"Eminem returning to Reading and Leeds is beyond exciting," NME quoted Melvin Benn of Festival Republic as saying. "His 2013 headline performance was incredible and I can't want to have him back."



On Aug. 26, Eminem will headline Reading Festival 2017. It will be held at Little John's Farm on Richfield Avenue in Reading, Berkshire, England.



On Aug. 27, the Detroit rapper will headline Leeds Festival 2017. It will take place in Bramham Park in Leeds in West Yorkshire, England.



The two other headliners of Reading and Leeds Festivals 2017 are English rock bands Kasabian and Muse. More than 70 acts are also in the lineup including south London rapper Giggs.



Meanwhile, here is the music video of Eminem's song "Love the Way You Le" featuring Rihanna:






"Easter Sonata"  a complex four-movement piano composition from 19th century Germany  could only have been written by Felix Mendelssohn.

Or so thought many of the archivists, scholars and musicians who encountered it. The sonata was "masculine," "violent" and "ambitious," all the hallmarks of the celebrated Romantic era composer.

Written in 1829, the manuscript of "Easter Sonata" was considered "lost" for more than 140 years, until the original turned up in a French book shop bearing the signature "F Mendelssohn." The collector who bought it concluded the "F" stood for Felix.

It took yet another four decades and a lot of clever musicological sleuthing, but in 2010 a Duke University graduate student revealed what some had suspected all along: "Easter Sonata" was not written by Felix Mendelssohn, but by his sister, Fanny Mendelssohn, herself a musical prodigy.

On Wednesday, in honor of International Women's Day, "Easter Sonata" was performed under Fanny Mendelssohn's name for the first time in a public concert hall, bringing Fanny and her widely recognized masterpiece out of her brother's shadow after 188 years.

Pianist Sofya Gulyak performed the roughly 20-minute composition at the Royal College of Music in London. Among those in the audience was Fanny's great-great-great granddaughter, Sheila Hayman, a filmmaker and novelist who discussed the story behind "Easter Sonata" with the BBC and wrote about it for the Guardian.

"She was an amazing woman," Hayman said of Fanny Mendelssohn, "who persevered despite complete discouragement."

Fanny was born to a wealthy German family in 1805, three years before Felix. Both children displayed musical talents early on. By age 14, Hayman wrote in the Guardian, Fanny could play all of Bach's 48 preludes and fugues by heart. But her parents didn't allow her to pursue music as a career, believing it would be indecent for a young woman.

Her father's response was, in effect, "Very nice dear, but don't forget you're a girl, so you can forget about taking this stuff up publicly," Hayman wrote.

Felix's musical ambitions, on the other hand, were encouraged. In 1829, he set off on a tour throughout Europe to play and study composers, while Fanny stayed home.

In a diary entry written the day Felix left on his 1829 musical journey, Fanny wrote, "I played my Easter Sonata."

Written at 22 years old, the piece was among about 500 she composed before she died in 1847 of a stroke at 41 years old. Felix died less than six months later, with some experts saying his death was caused by sadness over losing his sister. The two were said to have been inseparable throughout their lives.

The manuscript of "Easter Sonata" remained hidden until a record collector and producer named Henri-Jacques Coudert reportedly found it in a Paris bookshop in 1970. Convinced it was a newly unearthed masterpiece by Felix, Coudert brought the manuscript to French pianist Eric Heidsieck, who made the first known recorded version of "Easter Sonata" in 1973.

It's not clear when people started to wonder if Fanny was the true composer.

A 1992 biography of Fanny says the sonata was "automatically" ascribed to her brother, even though it was not recorded in any of Felix's catalogues. The author of the biography, Francoise Tillard, said the manuscript's owner would "not allow anyone to consult the original."

"Even if one could recognize the hand of Felix or Fanny, there would be nothing to prove that one of them had not recopied the other's work," Tillard wrote, adding, somewhat prophetically, "the future will provide an answer to the questions raised by this piece."

That moment came in 2010, when Angela Mace Christian, then a Duke University graduate student, tracked the manuscript down in a private archive in Paris. Christian told Smithsonian Magazine she had followed a "documentary trail" of letters and diary entries.

"I was able to see that it was in [Fanny's] handwriting," Christian said. She added that the manuscript contained page numbers that were missing from a different manuscript composed by Fanny.

Those two clues were the "major factors pointing to the identification" that the sonata was hers, Christian said.

During the performance at the Royal College of Music, pianist Sofya Gulyak said the composition's "chorale"  the hymn-like final movement  served as a kind of coda to the story behind "Easter Sonata."

The chorale, Gulyak said, was "like an ascension, like an enlightenment in the end," which "says a lot about her spirit."
Director Karwai Wong joins 'The Grandmaster' stars Zhang Ziyi, Song Hye-Kyo and Tony Leung Chiu Wai at the 2013 Chinese Film Festival opening ceremony at Yeouido CGV in Seoul, South Korea. (Photo : Getty Images/Chung Sung-Jun)

South Korean TV series "Descendants of the Sun" starring Song Hye Kyo, 35, and Song Joong Ki, 31, is having a Chinese film adaptation. It will be directed by Zhang Yibai, 53, who wrote and directed the 2016 Chinese romantic drama film "I Belonged to You."



There are still no details about the cast of the Chinese "Descendants of the Sun" film. One actress that should be considered to play the female lead character is Hye Kyo's "The Crossing" co-star Zhang Ziyi, 38. The male and female lead characters in the original TV series are named Captaain Yoo Si Jin, also known as Big Boss, and Doctor Kang Mo Yeon, also known as Beauty, respectively.



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Big Boss is a soldier with outstanding academic and physical abilities. Coming from a family with a military background, he has high respect for his father.



On the other hand, Beauty is a cardiothoracic specialist. While she is not afraid to admit mistakes, she does not fall prey easily to her emotions.



If Ziyi is chosen to play the female lead character originally played by Hye Kyo, their "The Crossing" co-star Takeshi Kaneshiro should also play the male lead role originally played by Joong Ki.



Recently, Ziyi attended Milan Fashion Week 2017 in Italy with her "The Crossing" co-star Tong Dawei, PR Newswire reported. In 2016, the "Hidden Dragon, Crouching Tiger" star played a film actress who is not faithful to her husband who is a Chinese gangster (Ge You) in "The Wasted Times."



It will not be the first time for Ziyi and Yibai to work together if the former is chosen to play the female lead role in the Chinese film adaptation of "Descendants of the Sun." In 2016, Ziyi was also directed by Yibai in the Chinese romance anthology film "Run for Love."



Chinese TV production group Huace Film & TV has bought the rights to reproduce "Descendants of the Sun" into a film in China. Yibai told Wuhan Evening News that they will not rely on the reputation of the original drama but use it as a foundation to build an entirely new film and even make a better version.



Meanwhile, here is a video of Ziyi taking the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge:






89th Annual Academy Awards - Arrivals (Photo : Getty Images)

Rafindo Galesong, a production house in Indonesia, invited Chinese actors Jackie Chan and Jet Li to be part of the upcoming movie Pamanca at the Movie. However, it would not be starring roles but support roles, said Muhammad Basir, executive producer.



Lower Talent Fee



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Basir said scripts were sent to the two actors. He said when it comes to talent fee, Rafindo Galeson admitted the production would not be able to meet the standards of the two action stars. But Basir hopes Jackie Chan and Jet Li would still accept the offer and help improve Indonesias film industry, The Jakarta Post reported.



The film, set to begin preproduction in Makassar on March 11, is an epic historical period film set in the 1800s. The focus of the movie is pamanca, a traditional form of martial arts in South Sulawesi Province involving silat martial arts movements and pain resistance skills.



Rafindo Galeson plans to shoot Pamanca at the Movie at four different locations in South Sulawesi. These are the capital city Makassar, Bulukumba, Bone regencies and Parepare City.



2 Stuffed Pandas



Meanwhile, Jackie Chan explained why he received his honorary Oscar Award on Feb. 26 carrying two stuffed pandas wearing Ugg boots, Nature World News reported. Besides voicing a character in the 2009 movie Kung Fu Panda, he is also the foster parent of two pandas in China.



Jackie Chan told American Idol host Ryan Seacrest that he is also an ambassador for panda because he raised two pandas in China that were injured by the devastating Sichuan earthquake which killed 87,000 people. He donated $145,000 to the earthquake victims and received two stuffed pandas to represent the real pandas named Cheng Cheng and Long Long. The two stuffed pandas travel with Jackie Chan and join him at the red carpet just like when he got the honorary Oscar award.


With a new name, a new product and a big bucket of potential local government clients lined up, OpportunitySpace is about to complete a stint in the Y Combinator.Or rather, Tolemi . Thats going to be OpportunitySpaces new name as it takes lessons from the infamous Silicon Valley startup accelerator that served as a launching-off point for companies like Airbnb, Zenefits and Dropbox. Its a play on Ptolemy, the Greek polymath whose connection of prior geographic knowledge advanced cartography as a field.Sam Altman, president of Y Combinator (YC), said the companys team impressed him. But beyond that, the accelerator is becoming more interested in the government technology space as a whole.I think the most important change is theres an openness from the customer, which in this case is government, [being more] willing to sign on with startups  than five years ago, he said.As Tolemi works with YC  which offers a standard $120,000 investment and three months of corporate guidance in exchange for a 7 percent equity stake  the company is poised to expand the footprint of a new signature product for local government. The offering, called BuildingBlocks, is a riff on what the companys been doing all along: working to help government analyze neighborhood data.The software, delivered from the cloud, promises something more like situational awareness. By connecting lots of data sets together, the company is betting it can give cities, counties and other local government institutions a much easier way to find problem properties, understand what the best course of action to take on those properties is, and follow trends.And thats just the beginning. In the future, Tolemi Chief Executive Officer Andrew Kieve thinks BuildingBlocks could become useful for much more. The company will be watching what its customers are doing for clues on that.We want to make sure we hit a home run about blight and disinvestment," he said, "but we think theres a world of possibility out there."So far, Tolemi has 14 cities using the product, ranging in size from Pittsburg, Kan., to Philadelphia. But it has a pipeline of customers nearly three times that size that might start using it in the coming months. Outside of BuildingBlocks, the company has a history of working with counties as well.BuildingBlocks works by extracting data from silos, cleaning it up and putting it all on a map. It comes from a lot of different places  law enforcement, federal agencies, tax databases  and refreshes to keep the information current.For Louisville, Ky. , thats a stark difference from the old status quo. Louisvilles Vacant and Public Property Administration has been using the tool for more than a year to help identify vacant, run-down, disinvested real estate and deal with it  maybe by foreclosure, maybe by demolition, said administration Director Laura Grabowski. The goal is to get the property back into the hands of somebody who will make it useful again.Louisville has about 5,800 vacant structures, of which it owns about 600, and a goal of foreclosing on 100 every year. Before the new software, Grabowski described the process of identifying which projects truly needed intervention as scattershot.It wouldve been mounds of emails, multitudes of phone calls, trying to figure out who was the owner of what data, or what pieces of data. And normally that would have been several offices. It wouldve been the sheriffs department for the taxes, code enforcement for the code enforcement liens  it was just inefficient and it would take a ton of time, she said. Now, most of it is at our fingertips.Having that data at the ready tackles a problem the city used to run into a lot  uncertainty. The citys old way of doing things was to bring in consultants to identify problem areas of town and then make all those calls and send all those emails to try to track down as much information about individual properties as possible. Meanwhile there were a lot of questions about whether any given parcel was really in need of intervention.Now we can look at a tool and fairly instantly say, Yes we should or No we shouldnt, Grabowski said.It also means the city can see more clearly where the problem districts are, without bringing in consultants to do the work for them. That makes it easier to concentrate efforts near enough to each other that they might work well together to improve a neighborhood on the whole.Once you focus all your resources in one area, it inevitably helps all the project spend their money wiser, said Joshua Watkins, a real estate coordinator at the agency, adding that over time, the tool will also allow for better strategic planning  to the point where it might lead to wide-scale change.What the city can do," he said, "is compile data that makes the case for [Kentucky] policy."
Fires were down in Fishers, Ind., and the fire department wanted to maintain its value to the city. So the department expanded its role in the community and changed its name to Fishers Emergency Services.The department still puts out fires, but now, with the WeCare community paramedicine program started in November 2014, also tends to elderly patients who need followup care after hospital stays and youngsters who have had mental health problems.It was pretty exciting because we wear so many hats nowadays, said Fire Chief Steve Orusa. Anything you need without a gun we get called, including community paramedicine and mental health, two of our biggest initiatives.Orusa said the departments mentality is that they are responsible not only to help deliver quality health care, but also to help control cost.They started out simply  with blood pressure screenings, home safety surveys, CPR instruction  and have rapidly expanded to improve the departments value while improving the citys health care and curtailing cost.When an elderly person is discharged from the hospital, that person is vulnerable in the first few weeks to having to return to the emergency room for complications. The WeCare program will track these patients for 30 days after discharge, checking on meds, safety at home and even what the patient is eating.It has worked, reducing the readmission rate from 22 percent to 7 percent.Sometimes dumping an elderly person at the ER isnt in their best interest, Orusa said. We are creating a telebehavioral health presence for generations. Weve been able to reach back to a health professional and get advice, before transporting that person. That person can talk to a patient on an iPad, visualize them, articulate with them and we can then transport that patient to a treatment facility.There was also a gap in mental health care for young people, Orusa said. Weve got a mental health initiative in the community, and we realize that mental health is not only the worst-kept secret in the country but the worst-kept secret in our own community.Prior to the initiative, a young person who was taken to the hospital for exhibiting behavior that endangered themselves and others fell through the cracks after being released. There was no followup. Thats changed and now, with a partnership with local schools and a referendum that captured some tax dollars, the at-risk students will receive a continuum of care from WeCare, and the schools now have a mental health professional on staff.What we did was used HIPAA paperwork to get releases from the parents so when a child is released into the community, the school knows and can provide services privately and we can follow up with the community paramedicine program privately, Orusa said. Now there are no gaps for those kids.Shelley OConnell, director of Touchpoint Geriatric Services in Fishers said, Its truly a community program, providing health benefits and saving money in the long run.
Until now, many fans are waiting for the reunion of "The Heirs" stars Lee Min Ho, 29, and Park Shin Hye, 27. Recently, the two were named top celebrities in South Korea in an international survey.



The survey was conducted by the Korea Creative Content Agency with more than 4,700 Korean Wave fans who are based in the United States as respondents, The Strait Times has learned. They voted Lee as the top South Korean actor and Park as the female counterpart.



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Like most South Korean hit drama series, "The Heirs" Season 2 is not likely to happen. Regardless, fans seem to be saying that Lee and Park are ready to level up and pursue a Hollywood career, and what better way to do this than by including them in the cast of the upcoming ABC medical drama series "The Good Doctor," a remake of the South Korean medical drama series of the same name.



"The Good Doctor" is expected to premiere on ABC before 2018. It will be executive produced by "House" creator David Shore and "Hawaii Five-0" star Daniel Dae Kim, who was born in Busan, South Korea, but moved to the United States with his family when he was only two years old.



Shore wrote the script of the upcoming ABC series with Seth Gordon as the director. Kim is not included in the cast.



"Bates Motel" star Freddie Highmore will play the title role in the ABC series, TV Line has learned. He will play Dr. Shaun Murphy, a medical savant with autism.



Confirmed to be joining Highmore in the cast as series regulars are "Grey's Anatomy" alum Irene Keng and "CSI" New York" alum Hill Harper, who will play resident Dr. Elle McLean and head of surgery Dr. Horace Andrews, respectively Deadline has learned. The characters of the three actors work at the prestigious San Jose St. Bonaventure Hospital.



"The Good Doctor" marks Keng's TV comeback after playing "Grey's Anatomy" character Dr. Audrey Shaw in 2015. Also joining her in the cast of the upcoming ABC series are Nicholas Gonzalez, Antonia Thomas and Chuku Mudu.



It is still not impossible for Lee and Park to be added in the cast of the American remake of "The Good Doctor." Meanwhile, watch "The Legend of the Blue Sea" star singing "Love Motion" here:






$17.25 million is to be paid for compensation by the ministry of communications and information for mobile phone company's losses during Egypts January 25 Revolution: Minister Maged Osman

Egypts Minister of Communications and Information Maged Osman says the ministry intends to pay Egypts mobile phone companies around LE100 million ($17.25 million) in compensation for their losses during the January 25 Revolution.



Cellular phone and internet services were cut off in the early days of the revolt protests by order of the regime that the revolution was trying to oust and eventually did oust ex-president Hosni Mubarak.

Former president Hosni Mubarak and ex-ministers Habib El-Adli and former PM Ahmed Nazif have been fined $90.64 million after being found accountable for the deliberate cut in communications.

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Tarek Kamel should be questioned about communication cuts during Egypt's revolution and a list of calls by the accused should be accessed by court say lawyers

The defendants requested that former minister of communication Tarek Kamel be summoned to court for questioning over cutting all forms of communication, including phone and internet, during Egypt's January 25 Revolution.

They also requested that the court be shown a list of calls made by the accused, including the ousted president, during the days between 23 January and 11 February.

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Ousted president, former prime minster and minister of interior appeal against conviction for cutting communication links in Egypt in the early days of the 18-day uprising

The Supreme Administrative Court has adjourned the appeal hearing in the case against Hosni Mubarak in which he was found guilty, together with former prime minister Ahmed Nazif and former interior minister Habib El-Adly, of cutting communication, to the detriment of Egypts economy.

As part of their sentence, the trio were fined up to LE540 million.

The session for their appeal has been adjourned to 3 October.

The court has requested that the minutes of the 20 January meeting, which was headed by Nazif, is submitted to court together with all other decisions made by Defense Ministry, Interior Ministry and the General Intelligence between 21 and 28 January regarding the cutting all forms of communication.

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On Friday, Alexandria as well as other cities nationwide experienced a cold spell accompanied with high speed wind and rainfall

Related Heat wave hits Egypt till Thursday before cold spell returns

Two main ports in Egypt's coastal city of Alexandria continued to be shut Saturday for the second day due to bad weather conditions, state news agency MENA reported.

The closing of the Alexandria Bughazi and Dakheila ports aims to avoid ships colliding with each other or with the ports docks, Port Authority spokesman Reda El-Ghandour told MENA.

On Friday, Alexandria as well as other cities nationwide experienced a cold spell accompanied with high speed wind and rainfall.

Temperatures in Alexandria Saturday are expected to reach highs of 20 degrees Celsius and lows of 11 degrees.

Speedy winds are expected to end by Sunday, according to a statement issued by the Egyptian Meteorological Authority on their official Facebook page.

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Is Daylight Saving Time really needed? If so, why not year-round?
A Cairo Criminal court summoned on Saturday 11 medical examiners to hear their testimony in the trial of 67 defendants accused of involvement in the 2015 murder of Egypt's former top prosecutor Hisham Barakat.

The court has adjourned proceedings until 14 March as it hears the testimony of the medical examiners.

In June 2015, Barakat was killed in a Cairo bomb attack that struck his convoy in the upscale eastern Cairo district of Heliopolis.

Sixty-seven people have been charged for the murder, with the general prosecution accusing the defendants  who it says are members of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group  of conspiring with members of Gazas Hamas to kill the top attorney.

A militant group calling itself the Popular Resistance has claimed responsibility for the murder. A court designated the group a terrorist organisation in February.

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Gov. Roy Cooper today appointed former Forsyth County District Attorney Tom Keith to replace Craig Blitzer in the interim as Rockingham County district attorney.

I have confidence that he will bring strong oversight as a prosecutor and a manager during these times of uncertainty in Rockingham County, Cooper said in a news release. Criminal cases must proceed for both the victims and the accused, and for the safety of the community.

Keith begins his role as acting district attorney effective immediately.

Blitzer resigned from office at 9 p.m. Friday amid a probe into his office by the State Bureau of Investigation and allegations that he and Person/Caswell County District Attorney Wallace Bradsher hired their wives in a scheme to collect more than $100,000 a year, despite their wives rarely having worked.

News of Blitzer's resignation came two days after SBI agents raided his office and Judge Stuart Albright canceled Superior Court until March 20.

It is my hope that my resignation will help to promote the continued orderly administration of justice for District 17A, Blitzer said Saturday in a news release sent by his attorney Michael Grace.

The resignation left attorneys and lawyers waiting for information from the governor about who would be in place as district attorney on Monday.

State law allows Cooper, a Democrat, to appoint someone to replace Blitzer, a Republican, without input from his political party or the local bar association.

Keith, a Republican, served five terms as Forsyth County district attorney before retiring in 2009, 11 months shy of his term's end. The Winston-Salem Journal reported that Keith left his elected position early to devote more time to law enforcement and crime-prevention-related projects.

Under state law, Keith will take an oath of office and assume all authority and duties that Blitzer had.

Keith also will receive the same compensation as Blitzer, whose annual salary was $127,215.

Many questions arose Saturday morning about what happens to Blitzer's staff.

"All currently employed district attorney staff will remain employed regardless of Mr. Blitzer's resignation," said Sharon Gladwell, spokeswoman for the N.C. Administrative Office of the Courts. "However, the North Carolina General Statutes state that employees 'serve at the district attorney's pleasure.'"

Blitzer became the Rockingham County district attorney after taking his oath on Jan. 1, 2015. He won the Republican primary in May 2014 and had no opponent in the general election.

Just two days before Blitzer resigned, SBI agents spent five hours in his office searching a state computer and other items that were not disclosed in court documents.

Court records indicate SBI agents wanted to search a specific state-owned computer in Blitzer's possession. Both the search warrant and an inventory list of what was taken were sealed by a Wake County Superior Court judge.

Iredell County Superior Court Judge Joe Crosswhite confirmed exclusively to the News & Record in October that in July he had ordered an SBI investigation into Blitzer and Bradsher's offices on allegations of theft of state funds.

In February, Debra Halbrook, a former victim-witness legal assistant for the Caswell County district attorney's office, filed a whistleblower lawsuit in Wake County Superior Court alleging she was fired when Bradsher found out she reported him to the SBI in July.

After Halbrook filed the suit, Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman adopted the investigation.

Freeman said Wednesday she and the SBI continue to work closely together to investigate the allegations.
RALEIGH  On the same day North Carolinas House of Representatives introduced a companion bill to the Senates Raise the Age proposal, Gov. Roy Cooper threw his support behind the legislation.

Representatives  including Greensboro Republican Rep. Jon Hardister  filed earlier this week their version of the bill aimed at raising the age of charging for most crimes to 18. Only North Carolina and New York automatically consider 16-year-olds adults for all crimes, although New York allows 16- and 17-year-olds to petition that their cases be moved to juvenile court.

New York also is considering this year two bills to raise the criminal age to 18.

Five other states  Texas, Missouri, Michigan, Wisconsin and Georgia  have set the age of criminal responsibility at 17.

Law enforcement, the courts and experts on juveniles agree that raising the age makes sense for North Carolina, and thats why my budget includes initial investments to make this happen, Cooper said in a news release.

In his third term, Hardister said the issue has been on his mind for a long time.

This is something, frankly, that should have been done a long time ago, he said. Right now, in the North Carolina House, theres a prevailing agreement that this is the time.

House Bill 280 was moved to the House Committee on the Judiciary on Thursday, when it was expected to also advance to Appropriations.

State senators filed their bill Feb. 28. That legislation has advanced to the Senate Committee on Rules and Operations.

Under both bills, 16- and 17-year-olds would still be charged as adults in connection with the most heinous crimes such as murder, rape and other sexual offenses, narcotics trafficking, arsons and other crimes.

Both bills call for district attorneys and law enforcement officials across the state to gain more access to juvenile records, so they could take the records into account when determining what charges to pursue.

That compromise prompted the N.C. Sheriffs Association to support the proposed age change.

The bills would allow a victim of an alleged crime to review a decision to not file a juvenile petition, equivalent to filing a charge in the adult criminal justice system.

They also call for regular juvenile justice training for law enforcement officers. The training would include adolescent development and psychology instructions, relationship building to reduce delinquency, and best practices for handling incidents involving juveniles  arrests, referrals, diversion and detention.

Both also establish a 27-member Juvenile Jurisdiction Advisory Committee, which would develop a plan for implementing the changes to the juvenile justice system. The committee would extend juvenile matters to include 16- and 17-year-olds and come up with a plan that would include costs associated with expanding the system.

The committee would be required to monitor the changes and provide updates on the costs involved.

If young people go through the adult justice system, they are more likely to re-offend than if they go through the juvenile system, Hardister said. That increases costs to the state  because the offender isnt contributing to society and because it increases traffic in courts and prisons, he said.

SB 146 calls for the change to go into effect on July 1, 2018.

HB 280 calls for the victim review and the increased access to juvenile records by prosecutors to go into effect on July 1, 2018. It calls for the rest to go into effect on Dec. 1, 2019.

Some people look at this as being soft on crime, Hardister said. But, its actually the opposite. In the long run, this will reduce the cost on state government.
Updated 9 p.m.

GREENSBORO  Police are searching tonight for the person who shot a man in the parking lot of a College Road restaurant.

Police were called about 8:30 p.m. to the 700 block of College Road for a report of a shooting. The victim was shot in the parking lot of a Pizza Hut in the 600 block of College Road, said Lt. M.J. Harris with Greensboro police.

No motive for the shooting was immediately available.

Anyone with information about this shooting is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (336) 373-1000.

Posted 8:32 p.m.

GREENSBORO  Police are investigating a shooting tonight.

About 8:30 p.m., police were called to the 700 block of College Road, according to Greensboro police watch command.

The victim's condition was not immediately available.

This is a developing story.
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Egypt's Administrative Control Authority (ACA) has reported to the prosecution a senior official at the Ministry of Planning for taking a bribe of EGP 1.3 million from a company that does business with the ministry, the head of the ACAs media office confirmed to Ahram Online on Saturday.

We reported [the purchases manager at the ministry] on Thursday and he is now being interrogated by the public prosecution, said Mohamed El-Zahed of the ministrys media office.

The official allegedly received a bribe from a company that provides the ministry with computers and electronic equipment in exchange for leaking the bids from companies competing for ministry contracts.

The ACA is responsible for enforcing laws and regulations within state bodies.

In December, a senior official at Egypts Judicial State Council was arrested on bribery charges, with former secretary-general of the State Council Wael Shalaby arrested days later on the same charges.

Shalaby died in January, reportedly of suicide, while in custody.

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People, today we are going to take a look at Tesei-nomics.

It is a school of municipal finance that employs a twisted mix of un-used user fees and secret budget cuts that result in deferred building maintenance. Fiscal prudence is its claimed underlying tenet, but in reality, it costs taxpayers a lot of money

Lets start with the user fees. Each boating season somewhere between 600 and 850 boats are moored in the towns many anchorages. Boat owners pay $75 for each spot (the fee was $100 from 2009-2014). Some quick math reveals that the town has collected about $500,000 in fees over the past nine years. If you have been a mooring owner during this entire period, you have paid the town $825, including this seasons fee.

What have mooring owners received back in services? Nothing. Well, almost nothing. The town once provided dinghies to row out to boats if people didnt belong to a club with launch services. But those dinghies have disappeared.

This week, one of the Harbor Management Commission members up for re-appointment explained to an RTM committee that the commission was putting the fee money aside until they come up with a plan to spend it.

That is not to say, however, that some of the money has not been spent already. Each year, $15,000 is dedicated to the salary for one of Teseis assistants in Town Hall. Another $20,000 or so went to a law firm for an opinion to clarify the relative powers of legislative acts from the 1940s and 50s and state laws from the 1980s. The town did not like the firms conclusions and is ignoring them. The latest draft harbor management plan has cost about $20,000 to date. That is on top of at least $35,000 spent about 10 years ago on a vision for Greenwich Harbor from the same consultant.

Behind all these fees and expenditures are nine years of Teseis futile efforts to develop a harbor management plan that, among other things, would provide an outline for how fees would be spent to support boating and marine infrastructure. A state official said in mid-February that several parts of the draft plan are in conflict with the Connecticut Harbor Management Act, among them the powers grabbed by the Board of Selectmen from the state Harbormaster for Greenwich.

Tesei has tried to undermine Harbormaster Ian Macmillan since the day Governor Malloy named Macmillan harbormaster in 2011, over Teseis preferred candidate. It seems that the only marine management skill Tesei has mastered over these years is how to harbor a grudge.

Now, lets turn to secret budget cuts that cost taxpayers money. This hidden arrangement came to light during Board of Education Chairman Peter Sherrs appearance before three RTM committees to explain the school budget starting July 1, 2017. Heres what he said, as quoted in this newspaper.

There was a deal with the BET while there were large capital projects moving through the capital schedule like MISA and New Lebanon, Sherr said. They asked us to reduce that number for maintenance. Over the last five years, weve reduced it to about $7 or $8 million but we do not recommend to the town that they continue to do that. Our request is back to the proper rate and at least 90 percent of that money is pure maintenance projects. The proper rate for school maintenance Sherr referred to is $10 million annually.

That number had been agreed to in the early 2000s after years of deferred maintenance had left the schools with serious repair and maintenance issues. I could find no public record of any revision of that deal, either in BET or BOE minutes, or in press accounts.

I suspect that the deal was reached during the April 2013 BET meeting at which it voted on funding for the now-completed GHS auditorium and arts instructional space. Actually, the deal itself was probably agreed to when the BET called a recess after the tie vote. The Republicans went into a private room to caucus.

Tesei was in his office and came back into the meeting room to ask then-school board Chair Leslie Moriarity to speak with him privately. Not long after, the BET reconvened and Chairman Michael Mason used his tie-breaking vote to approve the $43 million project. Sherrs discussion about this in February was the first public mention of the deal.

Deferred building maintenance has cost Greenwich taxpayers millions of dollars over many years. The town ends up building new structures because it allows old ones to deteriorate beyond repair. And now it seems school maintenance has been shortchanged to the tune of $8 to $12 million over the past four years. Fiscal prudence? Responsible caretaking of public assets? Absolutely not.

And why did the Democrats go along with this shortsighted budget fix? Local Democratic leadership is fighting a charter change that fosters a 5-3 majority/minority party split of school board seats, but that split would be the best thing that ever happened to Democrats in Greenwich. They would be in the minority, where they belong unless they are willing to criticize the status quo.
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After Attorney General Jeff Sessions asked all remaining Obama-administration U.S. attorneys to leave, Deirdre M. Daly, announced her resignation Friday.

It has been a great honor and privilege to serve as Connecticuts United States attorney, Daly said in a statement. In fact, it has been a gift of a lifetime.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., blasted the Justice Department and President Donald Trumps administration over the ouster.

I am deeply saddened and surprised that the Trump Administration has fired Deirdre Daly, one of our nations most capable, experienced and dedicated federal prosecutors, said Blumenthal, who served as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut between 1977 and 1981.

Deidre Daly is a consummate career law enforcement professional whose intellect and integrity, experience and expertise make her a model United States Attorney, Blumenthal said. The timing is particularly surprising when no one has been suggested to replace her or the other ... U.S. Attorneys who have been fired.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores defended Sessions call for resignations.

As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the Department of Justice, said Flores in a statement. The Attorney General has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed U.S. Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition.

In neighboring New York, Preet Bharara, who has prosecuted a number of high profile corruption cases, was also let go as U.S. Attorney for Manhattan.

Flores said that until new U.S. attorneys are confirmed, the career prosecutors in the nations 94 U.S. attorneys offices will oversee cases.

The people of Connecticut will be in excellent hands with Acting U.S. Attorney Mike Gustafson, and the more than 100 career employees of the office who dedicate themselves to always doing what is right and just, Daly said in her statement.

The U.S. Attorneys Office enforces federal criminal laws in Connecticut and represents the federal government in civil litigation. The office says it has more than 60 assistant U.S. attorneys and about 50 staff members based in New Haven, Hartford and Bridgeport.

Daly had been the top federal prosecutor in the state since 2014, when she was nominated by Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

In 2015, she created the Connecticut Public Corruption Task Force to investigate the misuse of public funds.

Dalys office also has targeted drug dealers amid a spike in overdose deaths, sought to improve community-law enforcement relations in the wake of fatal shootings of blacks by police and aimed to crack down on hate crimes.

I am extremely proud of the tremendous accomplishments of the men and women of this office during my tenure, Daly said in announcing her resignation. I applaud their tireless work holding our most violent offenders accountable, protecting our children and our environment, standing up for our most vulnerable victims, and not hesitating to stand up to the powerful. Together, we also built bridges and trust with communities. I hope all of this work continues to thrive.

U.S. attorneys are political appointees who often are called upon to resign when a new president of a different party than the last president takes office. According to public record, Daly is a registered Democrat.

Flores noted that action is not unusual. The Clinton administration, for instance, had taken a similar step at the start of its presidency. Sessions himself was asked to resign as the U.S. attorney in Alabama in March, 1993 by Clintons Attorney General Janet Reno.

Sessions action comes a few days after the attorney general sent a memo to all his prosecutors telling them to use every tool they have to combat violent crime, one of his top priorities.

Blumenthal, however, said that firing, in effect, Obama-era U.S. attorneys would hurt anti-crime efforts.

This sweeping discharge of top prosecutors can only undermine vigorous efforts to combat organized crime, drug dealing, public corruption, hate crimes, espionage, and other crimes that threaten public safety and national security, Blumenthal said.

The Washington Post and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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GREENWICH  Conversations about the achievement gap in Greenwich tend to focus on elementary school kids.

But data from a new state report show a gap widening as grades rise, becoming largest at Greenwich High School.

At the high school, the performance gap in English, math and science between high-needs students and their peers is larger than the statewide average gap in each of those subjects.

At two of the towns three middle schools, Western and Central, the gap in math exceeds the statewide mean.

That is according to a new measure of student achievement released this year by the state Department of Education. Dubbed the Next Generation Accountability Report, it calculates the performance index rate of students in the three subjects based on a composite of scores on standardized tests  including the Smarter Balance Assessment, SAT and Connecticut Alternative Assessment, a test for special education students.

It measures the achievement gap in those subjects by subtracting the performance rate of high-needs students  those receiving Free and Reduced Price Lunch, English language learners and special education students  from that of non-high-needs students.

Math is where the problem is most flagrant.

Greenwich Highs math achievement gap is the biggest gulf in the district  wider than in any other subject at any other school.

More Information Achievement gaps worse than the state's The lines in red show where a student achievement gap in Greenwich - in a performance index calculated by the state Department of Education - exceeds the state average. Greenwich High School Non-high needs students High needs students Size of gap State mean gap English performance gap 74.2 51.5 22.7 16.6 Math performance gap 74.8 49.5 25.3 19.1 Science performance gap 75 56.2 18.8 17.3 Central Middle School English performance gap 75 59.4 15.6 16.6 Math performance gap 72.5 52.7 20.5 19.1 Science performance gap 65.9 52.4 13.5 17.3 Western Middle School English performance gap 75 62.8 12.2 16.6 Math performance gap 73.5 53.2 20.3 19.1 Science performance gap 67.4 51.2 16.1 17.3 Source: State Department of Education's Next Generation Accountability Report 2015-16 See More Collapse

The math performance index rate of non-high-needs students at GHS is 25.3 points higher than the rate for high-needs students. The state average gap in math is 19.1 points.

Another look

The achievement gap is about relative performance: How is one sub-group of students scoring compared to another group?

Greenwich school officials have not yet finished their analysis of the state report, released Feb. 28. But they theorized this week that Greenwich High, Central Middle and Western Middle schools achievement gaps could be caused by exceptionally strong performance by non-high-needs students at those schools.

Those students at the three schools do outperform state averages in English, math and science by significant margins. In English at all three schools, students are hitting the states performance target.

In most  but not all  cases, Greenwichs free and reduced-price lunch, English-language-learning and special education students are scoring better than the state average of students in those categories.

At Greenwich High, high-needs students performance in English is five points below the state average. In math, GHSs high-needs students are scoring half a point below the state average.

Other scores for high-needs students in town exceed state averages.

Our performance index score is in the top ten for Connecticut school districts and within the top three for DRGs A and B, said BOE member Jennifer Dayton. DRGs are groupings of schools with similar demographics. However, against our benchmark districts (DRG B), our high-need students in math and English are slightly behind in growth.

Greenwich must match the progress made in some other, nearby districts, she said.

If Stamfords Scofield Middle Schools high-need students can outperform their district performance index in math, we can certainly improve growth for our students disadvantaged by poverty, disability or language, she added.

What should be done?

School board members and district administrators are still digesting what the results data mean for Greenwich and what actions they should prompt going forward.

Greenwich Public Schools sent the raw data for the Next Generation Accountability Report to the Department of Education, explained Director of Communications Kim Eves, but the way the report analyzes the numbers is different from how the district internally measures student performance and the achievement gap, in some cases.

The report emphasized known performance issues, but it also confirmed emerging challenges that the board recently discovered looking at its own internal data, said Board of Education Chairman Peter Sherr. Emerging challenges to which we were not keenly aware would include those at Central Middle School and Greenwich High School.

Interim Superintendent of School Sal Corda said in a statement that the district will carefully review the report before taking any action.

Whenever we receive new data or, in this case, a new view of data, we take the time to analyze the information to see if we can discern new insights before we jump to any conclusions or implement new strategies, he said. Once we analyze the data, we will review it with school and program leaders to identify areas that may provide new insight and may require a course correction in terms of our improvement strategies. After we have conducted a thoughtful analysis and consultation with instructional leaders, we will share our findings with our staff, the Board of Education, our parents and the public.

For school board members, the results mean they will have to continue to ask challenging questions about the investments they are making, Sherr said.

The Board of Education spent $650,000 in 2014-15 and about $330,000 in 2015-16 to address the school systems disparities in academic performance. The district has worked to improve its summer school program, which is targeted toward students scoring below grade level. It has allocated supplemental funds to schools to implement measures to help their individual students become proficient.

We have also identified each student that is not meeting expected growth, and targeting instruction based on their needs to close gaps in achievement, said Corda.

The district in the past few years has launched the AVID, or Advancement Via Individual Determination, college-readiness program at Western Middle, Central Middle and Greenwich High schools. That program is also supported by funding from the nonprofit Greenwich Alliance for Education.

The district needs to stop efforts that are ineffective, continue initiatives that data show are working and investigate new strategies to improve achievement for all students, Sherr said.

What can we invest in that truly moves the needle? he asked. We are asking the administration to give us their recommendations.

emunson@greenwichtime.com; Twitter: @emiliemunson
The global mattress industry is expected to reach sales of $38 million by 2020. In the past two years, Dan Adler has disrupted this massive industry in several ways. And it all started as a one-man operation in Adlers apartment.

Adler is the founder of WinkBeds, an ecommerce mattress company thats grown by leaps and bounds over the past two years. Hes done it by straddling a divide that many businesses dont even attempt to cross. WinkBeds is premised on the aesthetics of traditional craftsmanship and made-to-order, handmade goods; at the same time, the company has produced one of the most high-tech mattresses on the market.

This dual identity of craftsman and techie has enabled WinkBeds to disrupt both the traditional and ecommerce mattress industries. The companys latest disruption tactic is embodied by the launch of the brands new coolControl base, which allows for active warming and heating of the mattress.

From a one-man show to a mattress sensation: Heres how Adler's disruption reshaped the mattress industry.

Humble beginnings.

Like most bootstrapping startups, Adler started small. Before he was an entrepreneur, he was a lawyer who wanted to do something with his life other than practice law. So he started WinkBeds in early 2015 and ran the tiny mattress company in the evenings after finishing his days at the law firm. He was able to gain traction initially by riding the coattails of Caspers launch, which placed online mattress sales on the cultural radar.

Related: Party of One: Setting Up Your Single-Person Corporation

Once he was selling a few mattresses a week, Adler quit his law job and began running the business from his apartment. For a while he was a one-man operation. He fielded customer service calls, manually input customers shipping info, ran the web chat, grew the brands presence on social media and took care of every other responsibility the business required.

In July 2015, Adlers hard work paid off: A popular mattress review site gave WinkBeds a stellar review. That publicity was all the company needed to skyrocket from selling three mattresses per week to 300 per month. Shortly thereafter, Adler brought on his first employee.

Disruption drives growth.

In the time since WinkBeds was founded, the business (and the team) has steadily grown. While the size of the company has changed, one thing has remained the same: WinkBeds is a success because it continually disrupts the traditional and the online mattress industries in unique and effective ways. Heres how WinkBeds used disruption to land on the mattress industry map.

1. Create a hybrid mattress.

At the time of WinkBeds launch, most online mattress retailers were choosing to go the bed-in-a-box route, which required that mattresses be entirely foam. But Adler recognized that the most popular mattresses in America are still innerspring.

Related: Branson: There Needs to Be 'Perpetual Revolution' Within Your Business

We saw an opportunity to sell higher-end luxury mattresses because it was an underserved market online, says Adler. So he decided to manufacturer the best of both worlds: A hybrid mattress that contains two layers of innerspring coils and a layer of foam on top. The design distinguished WinkBeds from many of its competitors and resonated with consumers, who are increasingly willing to shell out for luxury goods.

2. Manufacture in the USA.

Traditional mattress manufacturing and sales involves a tremendous amount of overseas labor and shipping. In contrast, says Adler, We believe in supporting American workers and the U.S. economy. To that end, all of WinkBeds mattresses are handmade to order outside of Madison, WI.

Keeping manufacturing in-country also allows WinkBeds to retain higher quality control and safety standards. For example, all of the foam used in WinkBeds mattresses is certified toxin-free by CertiPUR. The mattresses also rely on tencel, a moisture-wicking material thats more eco-friendly than cotton.

Maintaining strict quality and ethics standards has allowed the brand to be fully transparent with its customers. I think people like doing business with brands they can trust, says Adler. In fact, consumer trust has been central to WinkBeds success, as much of the brands growth is driven by word of mouth.

3. Develop unprecedented mattress tech.

One of the most common sleep problems people experience is sleeping hot, says Adler. Yet the mattress industry has struggled to create effective temperature control mechanisms for mattresses. It was here that Adler saw a major opportunity.

Shortly after launching WinkBeds, Adler started working on a top-secret project. The fruits of that labor were revealed on February 1, when WinkBeds launched its patented coolControl base. Its the first time anybody has been able to figure out how to actively heat and cool the mattress down, says Adler.

Related: How Small Companies Can Innovate Like Big Enterprises

The base functions much like a boxspring; but instead of simply supporting the mattress above it, the base locks into the mattress and allows for temperature control via a conduction process and the use of fans, which pump hot or cold air directly into the mattress. Users control the temperature of both sides of the bed (separately or together) via an app that offers five warm setting and five cool settings. The warm settings can heat the mattress up to 30 degrees warmer than room temperature; the cold setting allows the mattress to be as much as 12 degrees cooler than the air in the bedroom.

These disruptions have earned WinkBeds a major role in the ecommerce mattress scene. And its all the result of bootstrapping. Adler has never raised investor money, so the company has never been beholden to stakeholders or arbitrary revenue numbers.

Thats allowed us to take our time in developing high-quality products, says Adler. Its been a slow build. Its all related to great customer service and the quality of our product.

Related:

Disrupting a Sleeping Giant From His Apartment

Here's What Inspired Three Indian Veterans to Innovate in the Antibiotics Domain

Geneva Motor Show: Be Impressed By This Year's Future-Ready Cars



Copyright 2017 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Twin bombs targeting Shia pilgrims on Saturday killed 46 people in Damascus, most of them Iraqis, a monitoring group said, in one of the bloodiest attacks in the Syrian capital.

There have been periodic bomb attacks in Damascus, but the stronghold of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad has been largely spared the destruction faced by other major cities in six years of civil war.

A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shia mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"There are also dozens of people wounded, some of them in a serious condition," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

State television said there were 40 dead and 120 wounded after "terrorists detonated two bombs."

It broadcast footage of several white buses with their windows shattered, some of them heavily charred.

Shoes, glasses and wheelchairs laid scattered on the ground covered in blood.

Syrian Interior Minister Mohammad Shaar said the attack targeted "pilgrims of various Arab nationalities."

"The sole aim was to kill," he said.

The Iraqi foreign ministry said around 40 of its nationals were among the dead and 120 among the wounded.

A witness told an AFP photographer that the second bomb struck as passers-by gathered at the scene of the first attack, while state television said a booby-trapped motorcycle was defused nearby.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Shia shrines are a frequent target of attack for Sunni extremists of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State militants (IS), not only in Syria but also in neighbouring Iraq.

The foreign ministry in Damascus condemned "the cowardly terrorist attack which comes in response to victories of the Syrian Arab Army" against Islamist militants .

The Sayeda Zeinab mausoleum to the south of Damascus, Syria's most visited Shia pilgrimage site, has been hit by several deadly bombings during the war.

Twin suicide bombings in the high-security Kafr Sousa district of the capital in January killed 10 people, eight of them soldiers.

That attack was claimed by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front which said that it had targeted Russian military advisers working with the Syrian army.

It was widely seen as an attempt to disrupt UN-brokered peace talks that took place the following month which to the anger of Fateh al-Sham were supported by its former Islamist rebel ally Ahrar al-Sham.

UN envoy Staffan de Mistura has called a new round of talks for March 23.

Fateh al-Sham has been repeatedly bombed in its northwestern stronghold this year, not only by the Syrian army and its Russian ally but also by a US-led coalition battling IS in both Syria and Iraq.

The rift over the UN-brokered talks between the rebels and the government has also seen deadly clashes between Islamist militants and their former Islamist rebel allies.

The two groups had together seized virtually all of the northwestern province of Idlib but are now vying for territorial control.

In Baghdad, the foreign ministry blamed the Damascus attack on "takfiri groups", referring to Sunni extremists.

The bombings could provide the impetus for increased Iraqi strikes against IS in Syria, which Baghdad has already carried out near the border.

Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake Mosul -- the last IS-held city in Iraq -- in October.

They recaptured its eastern side and now have their sights set on its more densely populated west.

The Islamist militants' de facto capital in Syria, the northern city of Raqa, is under threat from advancing Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, a US-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab forces as well as Syrian government troops supported by Russia.

Three hundred families of foreign IS fighters have fled Raqa in 24 hours on boats across the Euphrates River to the south, the Observatory said Saturday.

While bomb attacks are rare in Damascus, the capital has been the target of shelling by rebels who hold areas on the outskirts.

The deadliest bombing around Damascus targeted the Shia shrine of Sayeb Zeinab in February 2016, costing 134 lives, in an attack claimed by IS.

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The LG G6 went on sale in the company's home country of South Korea yesterday, and now we have details on the device's launch day sales. According to a report out of the country, the company managed to sell 20,000 units on the first day.

That, if you compare, is better than how the LG G5 performed on its launch day (around 15,000 units). The company, in case you aren't aware, had received over 40,000 pre-orders for the G6 in Korea.

As for other markets, the phone will land in Israel on March 22, and its Australian launch is set for March 28. The handset is also up for pre-order in the UK.

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Last year's MWC saw the announcement of the Xiaomi Mi 5, but there was no Mi 6 to be seen in Barcelona this time around. Instead, it's been a steady flow of leaks and rumors on the upcoming Xiaomi phone and there's a new one from today to add to that list.

A source out of China now states that there will be two different-sized versions of the Mi 6 - a 5.15-inch one like the Mi 5, and a 5.7-inch one for phablet lovers. Both will be equipped with the Snapdragon 835 chipset, which is in line with previous reports.

Xiaomi Mi 5 from last year

What's curious about this particular report is that the Mi 6 will supposedly use the Sony IMX400 sensor - the same 3-layer stacked CMOS imager Sony announced a month ago. The sensor is featured in the Xperia XZ Premium and XZs and Sony showed off its 960fps high frame rate shooting capabilities in Barcelona - we even have a few videos of our own.

Previously, the Mi6 was rumored to employ the IMX386, and that still makes a little more sense - after all, why share you top-end sensor with the competition from day one? Then again, Xiaomi could be given a 'lite' version of the imager - let's say limited to 480fps. Pure speculation in our end, though, this last sentence.

As for the original source, it also claims that the larger Mi 6 (likely the Mi 6 Plus) will come with a dual camera setup, not unlike a certain iPhone 7 Plus.

The rumored launch date of the Xiaomi Mi 6 is April 16, so expect even more leaks and guesswork for another month.

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday likened a Dutch ban on his foreign minister's visit to Nazism, in a dramatic escalation of a row over campaign events abroad for Turkey's high stakes referendum.

The leader's strongly-worded comments came after The Hague said it would refuse Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's plane permission to land ahead of a rally to gather support for boosting Erdogan's powers.

The Dutch decision to ban Cavusoglu from visiting and holding a rally in the port city of Rotterdam came after Germany and other European nations also saw moves to block campaign events.

Unlike in Germany, however, where a string of planned rallies were barred by local authorities, in the Netherlands it was the government that stepped in to block Cavusoglu's visit.

"They are the vestiges of the Nazis, they are fascists," Erdogan told an Istanbul rally Saturday, days after he angrily compared moves to block rallies in Germany to "Nazi practices".

"Ban our foreign minister from flying however much you like, but from now on let's see how your flights will land in Turkey," Erdogan said.

The Turkish foreign ministry swiftly announced it had summoned the Dutch deputy ambassador in protest over the ban. The Dutch government said in a statement that its decision to bar Cavusoglu from visiting followed a Turkish threat of sanctions.

"For that reason the Netherlands has let it be known it will withdraw permission to land" for the minister's plane, it said.

The Netherlands is home to some 400,000 people of Turkish origin, and Ankara is keen to harness votes of the diaspora in Europe ahead of the April 16 referendum.

Erdogan accused the Netherlands of working against the "Yes" campaign and said: "Pressure however much you like. Abet terrorists in your country however much you like.

"It will backlash, and there's no doubt that we'll start retaliating after April 16... We are patient. Whoever is patient will reach victory."

The latest escalation came after a string of European towns and cities cancelled similar campaign rallies, citing logistical difficulties and security concerns.

Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders had warned Thursday that his government would not facilitate Cavusoglu's visit.

"We will not participate in a visit by a Turkish government official who wants to conduct a political campaign for a referendum," he said.

Dutch far-right anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders celebrated the government's ban, attributing it to "heavy PVV pressure", in a reference to his party.

"I call on Prime Minister (Mark) Rutte, in the name of millions of Dutch people, to refuse the Turkish minister access to the Netherlands!" he tweeted earlier Saturday.

"Don't let him land here!" wrote Wilders, whose party appears set to emerge as one of the largest in parliament in Wednesday's vote.

The latest row came after NATO allies Turkey and Germany sparred over the cancellation of a series of referendum campaign events there.

Germany is home to 1.4 million people eligible to vote in Turkey -- the fourth-largest electoral base after Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.

Although Berlin insisted that the string of cancellations by local authorities were down to logistical reasons, Turkish officials repeatedly hit back, leading to Erdogan's angry "Nazi" remark.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said such rhetoric was "depressing", belittled Holocaust victims and was "so out of place as to be unworthy of serious comment".

Berlin has emerged as a strident critic of Ankara's vast crackdown in the wake of the attempted putsch of last July, which has seen more than 100,000 people arrested, suspended from their jobs or sacked for alleged links to the plotters or to Kurdish militants.

Ankara has in turn accused Berlin of harbouring "terrorists" and failing to respond to requests to hand over suspects from the coup as well as Kurdish militants who it believes are members of the outlawed PKK group.

Elsewhere in Europe, Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern has called for an EU ban on Turkish politicians campaigning for the referendum.

And Swiss police on Friday blocked a rally supporting a "yes" vote in the referendum, amid uncertainty over whether the Turkish foreign minister would be allowed to host a similar event planned for Zurich this weekend.

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Haiti - Social : $3.9M to combat gender-based violence





As part of the International Women's Day, several women's organizations officially launched the project called "Kombat Vyolans". This three-year project is supported by the US government through the United States Agency for International Development International Development (USAID) and funded to the tune of US $ 3.9 million to combat violence against Haitian women and girls.



"Kombat Vyolans" aims to reduce Gender-Based Violence (GVA) in Haiti :



- By Supporting Haitian institutions concerned with gender-based violence;

- By Strengthening the capacity of organizations that deal with GBV victims;

- By connecting the actors and victims of GBV;

- By Enabling access to information on GBV;

- By promoting a gender-neutral society without violence.



"When a woman's safety and health are threatened, she is unable to take care of her person, her children or her family, let alone contribute to the development of her community. Gender-based violence is a blockade to any progress in any community," said Lovesun Parent, USAID's Gender Advisor.



Brian Shukan, Charge d'Affaires at the US Embassy in Haiti, said, "Today, USAID is proud to work directly with our Haitian partners to increase awareness of the dimension and iImpact of the problem, improve services for victims of violence and strengthen prevention. We will continue to support Haitian organizations and State entities in the fight against this scourge in Haiti." Also deploring the fact that rape in Haiti is criminalized only by a ministerial decree of 2005 and not by an Act. He called on Haitian lawmakers to speed up the adoption of a law on violence against women.



The "Kombat Vyolans" project is supported in particular by: the Center for the Promotion of Working Women (CPFO), the FOSREF and Ayiti Nexus in collaboration with the Haitian Women's Movement for Education and Development (MOUFHED), Women in Democracy (EDF) and The Edge Worldwide.



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - FLASH : Construction of a fence at the Dominican border





The members of the specialized land border security corps (CESFRONT) are building a perimeter fence to reinforce the Dominican border with Haiti and prevent the illegal passage of Haitians who trade illegally in the binational market, which is held twice a week in the city of Dajabon.



According to General Sugar Frugis Martinez, Director of CESFRONT of the border area of Dajabon, this perimeter fence aims to regulate the passage of traders in Dominican territory.



However, face of this measure to control the movement of persons, Dominican traders strongly reacted, saying that this closure is unnecessary and, according to them, will have a negative impact on trade in the region.



On Friday, despite this obstacle, hundreds of Haitians have illegally visited the market of Dajabon, through other border crossing points to bypass the fence and do their business on the binational market.



Meanwhile, the Dominican authorities found the rifle that had been stolen to the Captain Nelson Manuel Felipe Belliard after Haitian immigrants killed him by stabbing him in Los Rieles de Manzanillo last year while on patrol with a sergeant, who was also injured in the incident. https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19134-haiti-flash-haitian-killed-a-dominican-military-officer.html



SL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping politics...





BCEN, failure of Abel Descollines' appeal

The request for disqualification of the judges of the National Electoral Litigation Office (BCEN): Frinel Joseph, Jean Bernard Lucien, Jacky C. Pierre and Lewis Pierre, accused of favoritism by Senate candidate Abel Descolines (KID) was declared inadmissible by the CEP. The BCEN gives the victory to Rony Celestin to the detriment of Abel Descollines.



Rene Preval: Tribute of 3 former Heads of State

Yesterday Friday three former heads of State : Jocelerme Privert, Michel Martelly and Prosper Avril paid tribute to Rene Preval at the Museum of the National Pantheon (MUPANAH).



Haiti to EduSpot (Paris)

A Haitian delegation from the French Ministry of Education participated in the first edition of EduSpot in Paris (8 to 10 March 2017), themeeting place for digital actors for education, in the presence of the French Minister of Education Education, Mrs Najat Vallaud-Belkacem. The opportunity for the Haitian delegation to identify promising initiatives and to continue the partnership with the Canope Network for teacher training using new technologies https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19828-haiti-education-franco-haitian-cooperation-strengthened-partnership.html



Michaelle Jean in Haiti

This Saturday, Michaelle Jean, Secretary General of La Francophonie, will be in Haiti to attend the national funeral of former President Rene Preval who died on March 3, 2017. During her stay in Port-au-Prince, Jean will meet with President Jovenel Moise.



Mayor of Granby met Mayor Chevry

As part of the Municipal Cooperation Program (PCM), Ralph Youri Chevry, the Mayor of Port-au-Prince, received Pascal Monin, Mayor of the City of Granby (Quebec, Canada). Who was accompanied by his Director General, to share with the municipal authorities and senior officials of the Town Hall, his experiences and the challenges he faces as the Mayor of a growing city.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-20307-haiti-quebec-donation-of-granby-firefightersequipment.html



Ratification of 4 International Instruments

On Thursday, the Bureau of the National Assembly, in accordance with article 98.3 paragraph 3 of the Constitution, informed senators and deputies of the 50th Legislature, that a session in National Assembly will take place on Wednesday 15 March at 11:00 am, in the Legislative Building, with a view to ratifying 4 international conventions submitted by the Executive.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















We like to believe we're fair-minded, democratic, unbigoted. Would it were so. In fact, we readily deceive ourselves about our prejudices, stereotypes, racial profiles, and ingrained biases. Mahzarin Banaji, Cabot professor of social ethics in the department of psychology and Pforzheimer professor at the Radcliffe Institute, can prove it. In collaboration with Anthony Greenwald, Ph.D. '63, of the University of Washington, she has developed a psychological test that has collected data from 1.5 million website visitors since 1998. It demonstrates that nearly all of us have unconscious, preformed attitudes about race, sex, ethnicity, sexual preference, and obesity. "Yet when we ask people about their attitudes, that's not what we hear," Banaji says. "People report holding neutral attitudes. What people say explicitly is quite different from what the tool shows about their implicit attitudes. It's the dissociation or split between them that's interesting."

Banaji Photograph by Stu Rosner

Banaji, who works in the area of "social cognition," doesn't believe people are dissembling about their attitudes. "They truly believe that their attitude is neutralmost of us believe in fairness and egalitarianism," she says. But unconscious stereotypes are deeply embedded in both individuals and cultures. Common associations, like male:science or female:liberal arts, are stubbornly fixed in the unconscious, even when they run counter to consciously held beliefs. Banaji and Greenwald's Implicit Association Test (IAT) ferrets out these buried, automatic attitudes.

The IAT is available on-line. Its several versions plumb attitudes toward race, ethnicity (Asian American, Arab/Muslim), gender, sexual orientation, age, and body image (fat/thin). The racial IATs have drawn 500,000 responses, more than any other version. For five to 10 minutes (working at top speed to forestall conscious consideration), subjects sort pictures and words ("wonderful," "agony," "happy," "failure") into categories by using two computer keys. The IAT measures "latencies" (time delays) in response: which association takes longer to make, blackbad or blackgood? By computing the average difference in latencies between dozens of such pairings, the researchers quantify the IAT effect. "Speed reveals what is hidden from conscious awareness," Banaji says. "The architecture of the mind is such that when two things are repeatedly paired in our experience, we will respond quickly to their co-occurrence." a highly educated professional like Banaji admits, "I was taken aback by my inability to make the intended association, the difficulty in making the counter-stereotypical association between, say, female and career, or male and home." An analysis of 600,000 completed website tests shows that this incapacity is common. Intellectual knowledge is powerless to change certain drummed-in perceptions.

One Implicit Association Test measures how quickly we associate harmless objects, like flashlights, and weapons, like medieval axes, with African-American or European-American identity. Mahzarin Banaji

"The data suggest that our conscious and unconscious thoughts and feelings may be quite dissociated," Banaji reports. The gap between the conscious and unconscious has long interested psychoanalysts as well, but Banaji, an experimental psychologist, draws on a very different toolbox. "These are replicable methods, not case-based ones like those of psychoanalysis," she says. "[The IAT] can reveal the disparity between conscious and unconscious in just about anybody, and do it in a way that makes it accessible to the person taking the test."

Race, for example, shows large divergences between expressed and implicit attitudes. Overall, 73 percent of all test-takers automatically favored white over black. Explicitly, both black and white subjects preferred their own group, with blacks giving an especially strong endorsement to blackness. But the IAT reveals that unconsciously, whites prefer white to a much greater degree than admitted, and black subjects are close to neutral. Another kind of racial IAT explores weapons and race linkages, using photographs of old weapons like cannons and medieval axes that are not particularly associated with African Americans. Nonetheless, 70 percent of white subjects associated weapons with blacks, while only 7 percent linked them with whites.er, even implicit attitudes can be influenced. Several of Banaji's students have done lab experiments to show that situational factors, like receiving the IAT from a black experimenter, or viewing photographs of admired African Americans like Martin Luther King Jr. and Denzel Washington before testing, or reflecting beforehand on a question such as, "What are strong women like?" can mute the strength of unconscious leanings. Furthermore, the experience of taking the IAT, though possibly disturbing, may also have value for the test-taker. "Just as in other areas of life, we want our actions to be in line with our intentions," Banaji explains. "If we are aware of our biases, we can correct for themas when driving a car that drifts to the right, we steer left to go where we intend."
Turkish journalists and opposition lawmakers protested in Istanbul Saturday against the detention of reporters, as a crackdown on the media has accelerated after the failed coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"Journalism is not a crime" and "We will not remain silent," chanted the crowd of some 50 people, who railed against the conditions the journalists are held in.

"Many jailed journalists are not allowed to receive letters under the state of emergency conditions," said Baris Yarkadas, an opposition lawmaker with the Republican People's Party.

Yarkadas added he hoped the government would lift the ban. In a gesture of protest, the demonstrators mailed cards to their detained colleagues.

The Turkish government imposed a state of emergency in the wake of the failed July 15 coup attempt aiming to oust Erdogan, which critics say has been used for a massive clampdown on Erdogan's opponents and not merely suspected coup plotters.

According to journalists' associations, about 170 media outlets have been closed and nearly 800 press cards cancelled.

Turkey has also detained or expelled foreign correspondents for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Die Welt, and the French website Les Jours.

More than 100 journalists and media contributors are in jail, said Reporters Without Borders in a December report, which said the country led a rise in journalist detentions in 2016.

"The number of detained professional journalists in Turkey has risen 22 percent after quadrupling in the wake of the failed coup d'etat in July," it said.

Last month's detention of Deniz Yucel, 43, a German journalist for the Die Welt daily on terrorism-related charges has strained relations between Ankara and Berlin.

"Deniz Yucel is a professional, he is known to be a very good journalist," Fatih Polat, editor-in-chief of the Turkish daily Evrensel, told AFP.

"We will give any kind of support for his and other jailed journalists' release," he said.

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Remove Hawaii AG Doug Chin

From Sword and Shield of Hawaii via Change.org

In filing his repeated and frivolous law suits against the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, in the matter of President Trump's legal authority to protect the nation by Presidential Executive Orders, Hawaii Attorney General Douglas Chin, is endangering the people of the Hawaiian Islands.

Chin's ill advised law suits are bringing a bad name and disgraceful reputation to the State of Hawaii and the residents in their entirety before the rest of the nation and the world. His efforts may even cause international terrorists to focus on establishing Hawaii as a 'friendly base for operations'.

In filing these frivolous law suits neither Chin, nor the Hawaii Governor David Ige, have sought any input or approval whatsoever from the people of Hawaii in support of these efforts which are now drawing national and international attention.

We plea that Chin immediately CEASE & DESIST in trying to speak for 'we the people of Hawaii' -- Chin does not speak for us.

Further, We call upon Governor David Ige to ask Hawaii State Attorney General Doug Chin to step down and vacate his position as State Attorney General. We call upon the Hawaii State Senate to vote to remove Douglas S. Chin from his appointed office.

LINK: Sign Petition
Three hundred families of Islamic State (IS) militants have fled the Islamist militants' self-proclaimed Syrian capital of Raqa in 24 hours, as rival forces advance on the city, a monitor said Saturday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said "300 families of foreign fighters of IS have left the city of Raqa since dawn Friday to take refuge in the province of Deir Ezzor to the east and Hama to the west".

The northern city of Raqa is the target of advancing Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, a US-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab forces as well as Syrian government troops supported by Russia.

The Observatory's head, Rami Abdel Rahman, said that IS families were using the only remaining escape route, on boats across the Euphrates River to the south.

The United States on Thursday turned up the heat on the Islamist militants, sending an additional 400 American troops into Syria to support operations to retake Raqa.

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Hawaii Senate vote advances assisted suicide bill modeled on Oregon law

by Patrick Downes, National Catholic Reporter, March 10, 2017

The Hawaii Senate voted overwhelmingly March 7 to advance a bill permitting physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients.

Called the "Medical Aid in Dying" bill, S.B. 1129 passed with 22 votes in favor, three against. Two of the affirmative votes were cast "with reservations." The bill now goes to the state House of Representatives where it will be debated and voted on in committee before going before the full body.

The proposed law would allow an adult Hawaii resident diagnosed with a terminal illness and determined to have six or fewer months to live, to request a prescription for a lethal dose of medication to be self-administered to end his or her life.

The legislation has prompted a vigorous and passionate public debate over the past few months as both advocates and opponents shared experiences of dying friends and relatives and their own illnesses. The discussion also has included arguments over the role and responsibilities of doctors and the potential of elder abuse.

S.B. 1129, which is based on a law in Oregon, lists a number of "safeguards" intended to protect patients from abuse or victimization. These include confirmation by two physicians or advanced practice registered nurses of the patient's "diagnosis, prognosis, mental competence and voluntariness of the request."

The bill also requires that the patient must give both oral and written requests for the lethal medication, witnessed by two people, and that there be waiting periods between the requests and the writing of the prescription.

The Catholic Church in Hawaii has been actively opposing the bill.

In testimony against the bill dated Feb. 24, the Hawaii Catholic Conference, the public policy voice for the Catholic Church in Hawaii, stated that legal assisted suicide "can undermine the physician's role as healer, forever alter the doctorpatient relationship, and lessen the quality of care provided to patients at the end of life."

The Catholic conference pointed out the incongruity of the state promoting and facilitating suicide for one group of persons, calling it "dignified and humane," while "recognizing suicide as a serious statewide public health concern in all other circumstances."

The conference organized a statewide petition against the measure that so far has collected more than 5,000 signatures.

Honolulu Bishop Larry Silva, in a letter to parishioners in the Diocese of Honolulu published in the Feb. 10 issue of the Hawaii Catholic Herald, called the effort to legalize physician-assisted suicide as a "wolf in sheep's clothing" and "another manifestation  of the 'culture of death.'"

The bishop countered the argument that terminal illness "diminishes" a person's dignity or "true humanity."

"It costs a tremendous amount of time and money to care for someone who is very sick," he said. "Yet true compassion means 'suffering with' someone -- or allowing others to suffer with us -- and while it is very humbling, the most intimate bonds of human caring can be nurtured in just such circumstances."

Bishop Silva expressed concern that legalizing assisted suicide would open the door to a "culture of euthanasia" and abuse of the elderly.

"It is certainly cheaper and easier to end a life than to care for it in the midst of suffering," he said. "Will decisions be made on economic expediency? Will others around the patient, such as heirs, be more motivated to aid in the rapid demise of the patient for their own benefit? Will this be another weapon in the hands of those who already abuse the elders they care for, a problem that has become quite serious?"

"The suffering of others is a call to us all, not to end life by offering a lethal 'medication,' but to care for them in love, even when it is most difficult to do so," the bishop said.

Testimony by Eva Andrade, president of Hawaii Family Forum, a nondenominational educational organization, said that assisted suicide invites exploitation of vulnerable people.

"It puts the poor, elderly, sick and disabled at risk for abuse," she said, "no matter what the proposed safeguards. With elder abuse already a major problem in Hawaii, turning the right to die into a duty to die  creating subtle pressure on the elderly to end their lives early so as not to be a burden to their families  may very well be a consequence of this law."

Democratic state Sen. Breene Harimoto gave an emotional speech March 7 on the floor of the Senate opposing S.B. 1129, recounting his fight with pancreatic cancer.

He said he was "devastated" by the grim diagnosis in 2015 that the cancer had spread.

"I broke down and cried, thinking that I would die soon," he said. "I'm sure that if I chose not to suffer through surgeries, chemo and radiation, I would have been given just a few months to live.

"But after much prayer, my wife and I decided to have faith. I chose to fight for my life with every ounce of energy I had," he said.

After aggressive treatment, including extensive surgery, Harimoto said his cancer is in remission.

He concluded that if assisted suicide had been legal during his illness, it is likely that he would not be alive today.

"Thinking back on this experience, I wonder what anyone who is given six months or less to live would do with those death pills," he said. "It would be too easy and tempting in a moment of weakness and despair to reach for the pills to end it all. I'm glad I didn't have those pills when I was suffering so much or I wouldn't be here today."

"We should be making laws to give people a sense of hope, not making laws that allow physicians to assist in causing death," the senator said, calling it a "misplaced sense of compassion."
Hawaii Has No Case Against Revised Travel Executive Order

by Hans von Spakovsky, Heritage Foundation Daily Signal, March 10, 2017

The new lawsuit filed by Hawaii against President Donald Trumps revised March 6 immigration executive order is just as unsound as the lawsuits filed by other states against the original orderdespite what some courts have said about the original order or may say about the revised order.

Executive Order 13780, Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States, imposes a 90-day suspension of entry from six terrorist safe havens in the Middle East and Africa until the administration is assured that our vetting procedures are sufficient to prevent dangerous aliens from getting into our country.

The order doesnt apply to any foreigners who have already been granted a visa or permission to be in the country, such as permanent, resident aliens.

It also repeats the 120-day temporary suspension of refugee admissions for the same reason: to ensure we have sufficient vetting to stop what has happened in the past in the U.S. and has been happening in Europe in terms of terrorists successfully using the refugee process to get into the European Union.

Hawaiis lawsuit consists almost entirely of policy arguments as opposed to legal claims, and the legal claims that are made are far-fetched.

There seems little doubt that the lawsuit was filed in Hawaii to take advantage of the generally liberal nature of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and its dominance by Democratic appointees. Seventy-two percent of the judges on that court were appointed by Democratic presidents, and at the district court level in Hawaii, the lawsuit has been assigned to Judge Derrick Watson, a President Barack Obama appointee.

The complaint attacks the president for issuing an order that prevents immediate family members living in affected countries from visiting their relatives in the United States, claiming that it will also prevent universities, employers, and other institutions from being able to recruit or to welcome qualified individuals from the six designated countries.

The basic legal flaw in all of this is that foreign aliens, whether they have family in the U.S. or not, have no constitutional right to enter the country. Neither universities, employers, nor other institutions have any constitutional right to recruit foreign aliens for jobs or positions except to the extent that Congress, which has plenary power over immigration, allows them to do so.

The complaint does at least acknowledge that Congress gave the president plenary power, in 8 U.S.C. 1182(f), to suspend the entry of any aliens into the country if he believes their entry would be detrimental to the United States. However, the complaint claims the presidents order exceeds his authority under this statute.

But given its broad grant of authority, it is hard to imagine how the president could possibly be exceeding his authority.

That is particularly true given the fact that the revised order explicitly states how the six designated countries are connected to the terrorism problem we face.

Three of the countriesIran, Syria, and Sudanare listed by the State Department as official sponsors of terrorism, while the other threeLibya, Somalia, and Yemenwere listed as countries of concern because of their terrorism problems by Jeh Johnson, homeland security secretary under Obama.

None of this matters to Hawaii, which claims that these countries were chosen only in order to discriminate against the Muslim religion, a claim that cannot be supported by the facts or the plain terms of the executive order.

After all, there are approximately 50 countries in the world with a majority Muslim population, yet entry from all of those countries with the exception of these six is not restricted or affected in any way by this revised executive order.

Instead of making rational, legal arguments, this complaint reads like a press release and makes outrageous claims, such as comparing this revised executive order to the Chinese Exclusion acts and the imposition of martial law and Japanese internment after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

In fact, there are only seven pages of legal claims within the entire 38-page complaint.

The complaint also makes another basic error: It tries to fault the administration and claim some nefarious purpose behind the fact that these six countries were chosen and not other countries whose nationals have perpetrated fatal terrorist attacks in the United States.

But these six countries were chosen because they are either state sponsors of terrorism (and whose information on visa applicants can therefore not be trusted) or failing governments (like Libya) whose information cannot be trusted for similar reasons.

That stands in contrast to the working relationships we have with the government, military, and intelligence services of other countries such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, which makes vetting their citizens more reliable.

By the way, given all of the concern that Hawaii expresses in this complaint for visitors, immigrants, and refugees, it is ironic to note that according to the Office of Refugee Resettlement of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Hawaii only took in a grand total of seven refugees in fiscal year 2015 out of the almost 70,000 taken into the U.S.

None were from the six countries affected by the executive order. Only the very liberal and compassionate District of Columbia took in fewer refugeesfivethat year.

In addition to the state of Hawaii, the complaint was filed on behalf of Ismail Elshikh, the imam of the Muslim Association of Hawaii. His main claim is that because of the executive order, his mother, who is a Syrian national, will be prevented from obtaining a visa to visit or reunite with her family in Hawaii.

Yet the complaint admits that the last time she visited was in 2005. Given that, it seems contrived to base a claim of constitutional harm on an application for a visa being possibly delayed for another 90 days after a 12-year absence.

And, of course, the revised executive order does allow for case-by-case waivers by the secretary of state and the secretary of homeland security in appropriate circumstances, including when a foreign national seeks to enter the United States to visit or reside with a close family member  

There are a series of cases upholding the authority of the federal government to suspend visa entry. These include Knauff v. Shaughnessy (1950), in which the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the exclusion without a hearing or any other form of due process of the alien war bride of an American citizen because her entry was considered detrimental to the interests of the U.S.

Not only was this held to be constitutional, but the Supreme Court said that it was not within the province of any court to review the determination of the political branch of the Government to exclude a given alien.

Moreover, the admission of aliens into this country is not a right, but a privilege. The supposed due process rights of any such alien are limited to the procedures authorized by Congress.

The complaint even raises the First Amendment, claiming that Trumps order violates the Establishment Clause. The facts dont support that claim since this executive order does not discriminate on the basis of religion.

But more importantly, the Supreme Court said in 1972 in Kleindienst v. Mandel, an alien exclusion case, that it would not review the reasons for the executives determination nor test it by balancing its justification against the First Amendment.

This lawsuit appears to be a public relations exercise masquerading as a legal claim. If the Hawaii District Court or the 9th Circuit rule against this order, it will be another example of the courts ignoring the law and prior precedent.

Trumps revised executive order is both legal and reasonable. It balances the need for national security and protecting the safety of the American public with the compassion we show in our welcoming of immigrants and visitors from all over the world.

---30---

UPDATE March 13, 2017: Trump Admin Motion Against TRO


Maoist rebels on Saturday ambushed a paramilitary patrol in India's eastern Chhattisgarh state, killing 11 policemen, regional police said.

The attack on the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel took place in the forested area of Sukma district, a known area of Maoist activity, about 400 kms from the state capital, Raipur.

"Around 100 CRPF personnel had gone to provide security to ongoing road construction work when the Maoists ambushed them," Inspector General of Police Sunder Raj P. told Reuters.

Four policemen sustained injuries in the attack, he said.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh condemned the attack in separate statements on Twitter. Modi said in his statement that Singh would be in Sukma to assess the situation.

In 2010, Maoist fighters ambushed and killed at least 75 police by setting off explosives and firing from hilltops around dense forest in Chhattisgarh, in one of the worst attacks by the insurgents in years.

India then launched its largest-ever security operation, involving tens of thousands of federal troops and policemen, following the attack.

Maoist rebels accuse the Indian government of plundering the mineral rich and underdeveloped east and central regions of the country at the expenses of the poor and landless among whom they draw support.

The level of Maoist violence, however, has fallen in recent years.

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A former soldier has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years for threatening to kill the mother of his child and her partner.

Jonathan McSherry (35) is already serving a prison term for a sustained assault on another ex-partner, who suffered fractures to her eyes, face and skull.

McSherry, of Monastery Gate Avenue, Clondalkin, Dublin, yesterday pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to making threats to kill or cause serious harm to Nicola Nugent and Barry Horan at The Belgard Inn car park, Tallaght, on March 19, 2013.

The court heard that McSherry and his ex-partner Ms Nugent have a young son together. On the morning of March 19, McSherry contacted Ms Nugent and asked to meet in the car park of the pub to discuss an issue about their son.

She and her partner Mr Horan drove to the car park. McSherry was parked and he got out of his car and ran towards them.

McSherry began punching and kicking the victims' car "like a mad man", the court heard.

Garda Alan Young told Gerardine Small, prosecuting, that the victims saw something in McSherry's hand and believed it was a gun.

He shouted at Mr Horan: "You f**k with my son. You want a piece of me? I'm going to f**king plug you."

Begging

There were two other men present and Ms Nugent was begging them to get McSherry to stop. She also screamed at McSherry to stop and he told her: "You're dead. I'm going to kill you."

She fell to the ground and thought she was going to be killed, she told gardai later.

Judge Pauline Codd noted how the attack had left the victim suffering from sleeplessness and fear of McSherry.

She suspended the last two years of the sentence for two years on condition he keep the peace and receive anger management and addiction treatment.

Judge Codd said she was taking into consideration McSherry's guilty plea, his expressions of remorse and testimonials handed in on his behalf. She noted that he has actively engaged in treatment for his addiction issues.

Rebecca Smith, defending, said McSherry had a history of depression and drug addiction but had since turned his life around.

Last November, Judge Melanie Greally jailed McSherry for repeatedly punching and kicking another ex-partner in a sustained assault at Grange View Way, Clondalkin, on December 20, 2015.

Jessica Bowes begged for her life during the attack.

Judge Greally suspended the last year of a prison sentence of three-and-a-half years on condition that he remain alcohol free and that he attend a Probation Service group for men who engage in violence against women.

She also ordered him to refrain from having any contact with the victim. She backdated the sentence to March 2016.
The devastating fire which claimed the lives of a pregnant woman and three young children was caused by a candle, it has emerged.

Initial indications were that the fire at a women's refuge in west Dublin was caused by an electrical fault connected to the TV.

However, the Herald has learnt investigations into the tragic blaze at Kilcronan Avenue, Clondalkin, have since shown that the fire was caused by a candle situated close to the television in the living area.

Battled

Annemarie O'Brien (27), who was seven months pregnant, her daughter Paris (2) and three-year-old Holly O'Brien were all killed after the fire broke out at the accommodation.

Doctors battled to save the life of Jordan O'Brien (4), but he later also died.

Jordan and Holly's mother Biddy O'Brien, who was visiting her cousin Annemarie in the apartment at the time, has remained in a critical condition since the blaze.

She suffered extensive burns as well as smoke inhalation.

Family last night said they were hopeful Biddy would make a recovery after undergoing surgery.

Cousin Joanne Moorehouse said doctors were optimistic after she was treated for severe burns.

"She had an operation and came through it so we are praying now that it all goes well," Ms Moorehouse said.

"The doctors said they think she did well so we are praying now that it's all going to be grand."

Vigil

Family and friends have continued to hold a bedside vigil for Biddy.

They held a short ceremony in St James's Hospital last night in honour of Annemarie and the three children who died.

Ms Moorehouse said a wake for the victims was due to take place tomorrow, while the funerals will be held on Monday.

"We're still in a very deep state of sadness and it's not getting any easier," she said.

The two O'Brien women were raised like sisters, although they were cousins.

They grew up in the Bray area of Co Wicklow, and in Shankill, south Dublin.

The bodies will be taken to Colliers funeral home in Bray tomorrow at 2pm and a prayer service will be held at 3pm.

On Monday, there will be one funeral for all four victims at 10am at St Ann's Church in Shankill. The burial takes place at Springfield cemetery in Bray.
The vigil at the site of the hit-and-run that killed Karl Robertson. Photo: Gerry Mooney

A suspect in a fatal hit-and-run that left a 28-year-old man dead knew the victim and had even attended the same school, the Herald can reveal.

The suspect (30) was still helping gardai last night with their enquiries into the tragic death of Karl Robertson (28), who was knocked down while jogging on Hazelwood Drive in Artane at about 9.50pm on Wednesday.

Gardai are appealing for a taxi driver who picked up the suspect on Oscar Traynor Road and took him to Kilbarron Road in Coolock to come forward.

The driver did not stop after the incident and the van was burned out a short time later at Beechlawn Grove in Coolock, at the back of Parnell's GAA club.

Superintendent Gerard Donnelly from Coolock Garda Station made an appeal for information.

"Karl Robertson was out jogging and was hit by a white Renault Megane van at Hazelwood Drive," he said. "That van failed to remain at the scene."

Assisted

He said a 30-year-old man presented himself at Coolock Garda Station on Thursday evening and has assisted with enquiries.

He urged anyone who was in the Hazelwood Drive area on Wednesday night between 9.45pm and 10pm and who may have witnessed the collision to contact gardai at Coolock.

"In particular, I am most anxious to contact a man in his 20s who may not be from Ireland but who interacted with some of the people here who were assisting Karl at the scene," he said. "I am also aware that there may have been a couple, a man and a woman, out walking at Hazelwood Drive at the time of the collision and again I would appeal for them to come forward."

He said he was also anxious to trace the taxi driver who picked up a man in his early 30s on Oscar Traynor Road shortly after 10pm on Wednesday night and took his fare to the Kilbarron Avenue area of Coolock.

Supt Donnelly said he was satisfied that the man who presented himself and was questioned was the driver of the van and that the vehicle was not stolen.

Gardai are treating the accident as a hit-and-run.

Meanwhile, about 50 of Karl's work colleagues held a candlelight vigil at the site of the tragedy last night.

Tribute

Dunnes Stores' staff paid tribute to their friend by sharing memories and playing some of Karl's favourite music.

His aunt and work colleague, Margaret Barrett, told the Herald her nephew was the "kindest man" in the world.

"He had a heart of gold and was just such a beautiful person," she said.

"I'm so blessed that he was in my life and I'll never forget him.

"He always went out of his way for everyone and was a very quiet, respectful young man."

Karl's sister Niamh, who also attended the vigil, pleaded for the taxi driver to come forward to help police.

"I beg him to go to the garda because he could help them so much in their investigation," she said.

"I can't understand why anyone could do this."
Dubliners from an iconic inner city pub said they have been left "devastated" by the news that it's set to close next month.

The North American vulture fund owner of Jack Nealon's has decided to close the institution, leading to nine staff members losing their jobs.

The investment firm will not be operating the building as a pub, leading to regulars feeling shock and disappointment.

John O'Donoghue (37), from Dublin 12, has been going to the pub for years. He was there yesterday to watch the Wales v Ireland rugby match, but also to "cheer up the staff".

"I'm shocked. I only heard about it on Tuesday and I thought it was a joke at first. Then I realised the staff were being let go," he said.

Paul Daly (52) and Eilis Kennedy (57) were born in Dublin but live in London and they returned on Wednesday to discover Jack Nealon's would close.

"We came in for coffee and heard it was closing. It's absolutely horrendous, just shocking," said Mr Daly.

Jack Nealon's will shut on April 17, leaving its diverse customer base to find somewhere else to go.

Dreadful

Brian Kavanagh (53), from Skerries, has been to the pub many times.

"I would always come in to Nealon's. I'm raging. I think it will have a dreadful effect on the area because if you don't have a good, proper pub, I don't know what's going to happen. If you don't have a proper publican, you're banjaxed," he said.

The property was sold to a private US firm as part of a portfolio of loans in 2016.
Narendra Modi's party won a landslide victory in India's most populous state on Saturday in a massive vote of confidence for the prime minister halfway into his first term.

Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party won a surprise absolute majority in Uttar Pradesh in the north, which is home to 220 million people and seen as a key indicator of national politics.

Party leader Amit Shah called the win a "historic mandate" for the BJP, which also won a majority in the mountainous northern state of Uttarakhand, and claimed it would be able to form governments in Goa and Manipur.

"These results will set Indian politics in a new direction," he said at a press conference at the party's New Delhi headquarters.

"The faith that people have placed in the BJP and in Narendra Modi will pay off."

The BJP won 311 of the total 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh according to the figures on the election commission website and is expected to name its chief minister for the state on Sunday.

The party had been expected to perform well in UP, but few experts had predicted the scale of the victory in elections across five states viewed as a test of Modi's popularity after a controversial ban on high-value banknotes.

Modi's dominance has been largely unchallenged since he won the first overall majority in three decades in the 2014 general election on a pledge to wipe out corruption and kickstart the economy.

He already looks well-placed for re-election in 2019 over the centre-left Congress Party, which the BJP ousted from power in 2014.

In UP Congress ran in an alliance with the locally ruling Samajwadi Party (SP), but were trailing in a distant second.

Experts said the results showed Modi had succeeded in tapping into popular anger over corruption with the move, which was aimed at tackling tax evasion but also led to widespread chaos in a country where most transactions are cash-based.

"Modi played the populist card better than the other parties, including the ostensibly socialist parties like the SP and the Congress," said veteran political journalist Parsa Venkateshwar Rao.

"He sold the rhetoric of demonetisation as being anti-rich very well. I personally think demonetisation was a great folly, but in politics you can turn a bad economic decision into a great political play."

The BJP also made big gains in the northeastern state of Manipur, which shares a border with Myanmar and has long been plagued by separatist unrest.

The party won 21 of the 60 seats in the state, where it previously held none, behind Congress on 28.

Congress won in the northern state of Punjab, where it fended off a challenge from the fledgeling Aam Aadmi Party.

It was unclear who would form the next governments in Manipur and in Goa, where the Congress also led with 17 of the state's 40 seats, but fell short of a majority.

The results will strengthen the BJP's hand in parliament's upper house, where the lack of a majority has hampered its reform agenda.

In a tweet, Modi said he was overjoyed by the "unprecedented support from all sections of society" and congratulated party workers.

Deputy congress leader Rahul Gandhi congratulated the BJP on their UP win in a tweet and said his party would fight on.

Low-caste leader Mayawati, whose Bahujan Samaj Party was in third place in UP, said the results were "shocking" and asked the election commission to investigate the possibility voting machines had been tampered with.

Celebrations broke out at the BJP's headquarters in state capital Lucknow where euphoric supporters danced to drum beats and handed out sweets.

Many local voters said having the BJP in power both nationally and in the state assembly would be beneficial to UP.

"The state should now witness rapid development. Corruption and nepotism in governance would also come down," housewife Viti Kumar told AFP.

The BJP fared poorly in the last UP state elections in 2012, winning only 47 out of 403 assembly seats, but it clinched 73 out of 80 parliamentary constituencies in 2014 with Modi standing in the holy city of Varanasi on the banks of the Ganges.

Its win in Uttar Pradesh will have significant implications for the make-up of the Rajya Sabha -- the upper house of parliament.

The Rajya Sabha is based on parties' strength in the state assemblies, with the biggest states supplying the largest number of MPs.

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The two bands opened the concert series of the Jazz Tales Festival, running between 7 March and 1 April

On Friday, 10 March, The Rad Trads from the United States and Boghdady Big Band from Egypt gave the first concert of the Jazz Tales Festival, at the American University in Cairo's Ewart Hall, running between 7 March and 1 April, in Cairo and Alexandria.

The concert came after two days of jazz workshops both bands gave in Cairo.

The event opened with the performance of The Rad Trads, winning instant enthusiasm from the audience. The six musicians, all professional jazzists who founded the band in 2012, played several of their original tracks, continuously heating up listeners. When the musicians stepped down to the audience, the hall exploded in additional fervor.

In an interview given to Carol Banks Weber for AXS publication, The Rad Trad's trumpeter Michael Fatum explained that "The Rad Trads as a band are rooted in the joy, love, and experience of our live performance. We love breaking down barriers and sharing music with people in person, which has led us to perform for as many people in as many different settings as possible."

And, indeed, Ewart Hall's audience was the target of a lot of fun coming from the band, extended to the second half of the evening when Egypt's Boghdady Big Band took to the stage.

Founded by Magdy Boghdady, the Egyptian big band is well known to the local scene with regular performances at the Cairo Opera House and numerous other venues.

Their adrenaline-packed repertoire of many arrangements of well-known known jazz covers heated up already enthusiastic listeners who continued to dance on the hall's side aisles.

The concert ended with a long improvised track performed together by both bands, with the audience clapping heavily, cheering and dancing.

The Jazz Tales Festival is organised by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina's Arts Centre with its Cairo segment hosted by the American University.

Organised in cooperation with the American Consulate in Alexandria, the festival continues with several workshops and concerts until 1 April.

All events are open to audiences, musicians and jazz lovers for free.

The Rad Trads and Boghdady Big Band will give one more concert, in Alexandria, on 11 March.

Check the festival's complete programme here

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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Freedom of speech is a privilege. We need to treat it that way.
Attentively following their leader and tutor, a group of 10 amateur string players begin Johann Pachelbels Canon. This is one of their last rehearsals before the big event: a concert scheduled to take place at Cairos All Saints Cathedral on 17 March.



The ensemble, called Osiris String Orchestra, is a body initiated by the Awtar Quartet and it is the first orchestra for amateur musicians formed with an aim to develop their skills and give performance opportunities.



The idea of the Osiris String Orchestra began in November as a collaboration project between Awtar and Osiris for Art Production and Training, an independent arts centre that supported the logistical aspects of the ensemble.



Consisting of Egyptian musicians Yasser Ghoneim on first violin, Khaled Saleh on second violin, Essam Abdel Hamid on viola, and Mohamed Abdel Fattah on cello, Awtar was founded in 2012 and within a very short time established itself as one of the leading ensembles practicing an extremely dynamic outreach to a variety of audiences.



Our collaboration with Omar El-Moataz Bellah, Osiriss founder, seemed natural since we share similar artistic directions and we know each other well through Awtar Quartets performances and other trainings previously held at the Osiris Centre. We take care of the academic and artistic aspect of this new orchestra while Osiris provides a space for training, Khaled Saleh, Awtar Quartets violinist, told Ahram Online.



Auditions took three weeks and resulted in forming an ensemble that consists of nine violinists and one cellist trained by Saleh and Yasser Ghoneim from Awtar Quartet.





Coming from different walks of life, and being different ages, the students have versatile musical backgrounds, yet many of them have never performed in an orchestra and so this is a completely new experience to the passionate musicians.Those students are originally part of our audience and having amateurs playing classical music will allow an outreach to more similar amateurs, talents, and all types of listeners, says Saleh.Abdel Razek, who is in his early 30s and works as an accountant, told Ahram Online that he started playing violin very late. I struggled to find a music training centre that would teach music for students in their late 20s. I learned individually, through private lessons with violinists who play in the Cairo Opera House. But then I decided to join Awtar Quartets orchestra as I always wanted to be part of an orchestral ensemble. I knew about this orchestra idea a couple of months prior to its launch. Its great that it finally happened.Abdel Razek continued explaining how he admires Western classic music because it holds a sophisticated technique. Osiris String Orchestra helped me uncover the ethics of this profession, discipline and commitment. While learning about focus and my role in the orchestra, the workshop also responded to my passion for the violin and enhanced my musical performance.Lydia Malak, who is in her late 20s, also shares a passion towards the violin and music. She, too, studied violin through private one-on-one tutoring, and shares Abdel Razeks enthusiasm for this new experience of playing in an orchestral ensemble. She points to the new way of listening to music and to the other players. It also creates a lot of creative power.Awtar Quartet are known for engaging in dynamic community outreach where they play music to a variety of audiences in different neighbourhoods. I hope that I can join Awtar Quartet in future projects, performing in the streets and hospitals, which I believe influences diverse audiences positively and reaches a massive number of listeners, many of whom might not be able to reach performance venues, Malak commented to Ahram Online.

Malak and other amateur musicians may well continue, since as Saleh reveals, We hope that this project becomes permanent after our concert. We will hold further auditions in the summer to enlarge the orchestra and allow other students to join. This will also give us an opportunity to perform in orphanages, hospitals, and other venues, he explains.



For the time being, however, the Osiris String Orchestra is focused on their first concert. For the upcoming concert, we chose compositions that match the ensembles current entry level and allow them to advance gradually. Later they will be able to play more challenging works."



The event will include Pachelbel as well as Vivaldi, an arrangement of music from Beethovens 9th Symphony, and music from Game of Thrones, among other compositions.



It is very important to have an active amateur orchestra, Saleh comments. Classical music should be accessible to everyone, beyond the walls of the Cairo Opera House. It is also a very important learning experience for the players themselves.



Through twice-a-week orchestra trainings, Awtar Quartets teaching methodology works on development of individual skills and underlines maintaining harmony through teamwork. This strategy allows each of the players to recognise their role and importance in the collective performance, Saleh explains, adding that students are taught the traditions of a real orchestra.



He believes that through developing the players in an academic manner they are also deepening their understanding of music, and can go on to achieve many goals.



Nina Kamal, 30, decided to work a morning shift to give time for her love of music. She has been playing violin, an instrument she named Olga, for nine years. The Osiris String Orchestra taught me commitment and helped me reach my ultimate potential. The hard work through performance and practice is very inspirational, Kamal commented.



The orchestra is probably the biggest project Awtar Quartet is working on now. However, as the quartet keeps moving forward, exploring all possible territories in reaching out to new audiences, Saleh reveals that they already plan events where classic music will be braided with storytelling, an approach they have already explored and which proved very successful in reaching out to younger listeners. This time, Awtar thinks of using similar methods to reach older audiences as well.



On the other hand, Awtar Quartet is also discussing an option of playing music for autistic people. We are at the stage of studying their ages, needs and interests, so we can deliver the right type of music.



Osiris String Orchestra is not the first cooperation between Awtar and Osiris Centre or Omar El-Moataz Bellah. Last year, Awtar performed in a theatre play, Pipi Longstocking (or Janan), directed by El-Moataz Bellah, staged during the 6th Hakawy International Arts Festival for Children.



Programme:

Friday, 17 March, 8pm

Gosor Centre, All Saints Cathedral, Zamalek (behind the Marriott Hotel), Cairo

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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Egyptian and Russian paratroopers will conduct a joint military exercise on the Mediterranean coast in Egypt this month, the coutnry's military spokesman announced on Wednesday.

The military exercise, titled Protectors of Friendship 2016, will take place in the area of Al-Alamein, a coastal city a hundred miles west of Alexandria, from 15-26 October.

The drills will include the deployment of troops, equipment and vehicles, and the exchange of experiences between special forces.

Egyptian paratroopers have already arrived in the training area to undergo altitude military parachuting using different types of jets as preparation for the joint training.

According to the statement, the nine-day exercise comes in the framework of Egypt's joint military exercises for 2016-2017, which included 30 trainings with 20 Arab and African countries.

Egypts official announcement about the exercises comes a week after Russias defence ministry said that Russian paratroopers are expected to travel to Egypt in October to take part in joint military exercises to conduct rehearsals for combat against illegal armed groups in a desert setting.

"For the first time in history a Russian paratrooper unit with its own weaponry and equipment is planning to leave for Africa to participate in a joint international exercise," the ministry said in a statement.

In 2015, Russia and Egypt held a joint naval exercise off the coast of Alexandria, which included supply and communication exercises, search operations, and defence and firing exercises.

In September, Egypt's Defence Minister Sedki Sobhi flew to Russia to discuss various aspects of military cooperation between the two countries.

Septembers visit was the latest in a series of visits focused on boosting military cooperation between Egypt and Russia.

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Discussing health care with friends and family is not an easy task to say the least. President Donald Trump even said, Nobody knew health care could be so complicated.

Of course this was before the House of Representatives released details about the new health care bill that would replace the Affordable Care Act.

The conundrum of health care rests ironically square on multiple facets, including individual rights, cost of care, complex explanations, tax cuts, Medicare, Medicaid, state rights, and employer rights; all of which contribute to a gray blob of confusion and partisan rhetoric.

Access doesnt mean a d--- thing

A little more than a month ago, CNN was host to a debate night with Sens. Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz.

At one point, Sanders turned to Cruz and asked this simple question, Is every American entitled, and I underline that word, to health care as a right of being an American? Yes or no?

Of course, like the majority of politicians, there is not a simple response from Cruz. However, he makes excellent points about existing rights outlined in the constitution  free speech, freedom of religion, and right to bear arms.

Cruz also quotes perhaps one of the most well-known sentences ever written.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Cruz follows up with his direct answer, Access to health care is a right.

Youll notice, however, just as Sanders did, access to health care as a right does not answer the question Is every American entitled to health care as a right?

Sanders responded with a quip about an audience member having access to purchase coverage, but she cant afford it. She has access to purchase one of Trumps mansions, too, but she cant afford it.

Access doesnt mean a d--- thing, Sanders said.

Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness  everyone should enjoy these rights and be entitled to affordable health care.

The buzz word, access, has been floating around congressmen and congresswomens mouths for months.

GOP Rep. Jason Chaffetz, of Utah, discussed expanded access Americans would have to health care earlier this week.

During the interview, the reporter pointed out access isnt the same as having real health insurance.

Well, were getting rid of the individual mandate. Were getting rid of those things that people said that they dont want, Chaffetz said in the CNN interview. And you know what, Americans have choices. And theyve gotta make a choice.

And so maybe rather than getting that new iPhone that they just love and they want to go spend hundreds of dollars on that, maybe they should invest that in their own health care.

Chaffetzs ignorance regarding health care and costs is feeding into an unhealthy, and inaccurate, conversation about the needs of millions of Americans.

Individuals with chronic, terminal or unexpected health needs should not be punished with lack of coverage and left with costly access.

What does the Affordable Care Act provide?

If you were to ask this question to any number of outraged Americans, the answer would be, Nothing but increased premiums and deductibles.

In fact, a survey by the New York Times revealed one-third of Americans did not know Obamacare and the Affordable Care Act are one and the same.

The greatest failure of the Affordable Care Act was a lack of public explanation of benefits for the American people. What little public relations campaign existed was not nearly enough to combat the opposition.

Naysayers exceptionally crushed the ACA benefits with a resounding efficiency and clear message of infringed rights partnered with increased costs.

Here are some of the benefits provided by the ACA outlined by the New York Times:

 It slowed the growth of payment rates to hospitals and other providers  essentially decreasing the cost of Medicare for 57 million senior citizens.

 If it is repealed, an $802 billion shortfall would have to be paid by those with Medicare to cover the cost so seniors wouldnt face higher deductibles and co-payments.

 It provided free preventative benefits like screenings.

 It lowered prescription drugs cost.

 It required companies to provide insurance.

 If workers logged more than 30 hours a week, it required the company to provide insurance.

 It prevented companies or insurance providers from refusing to cover an individual with a pre-existing condition.

 If an individual has a pre-existing condition, the individuals premium would not be substantially higher vs. someone with no pre-existing conditions.

 It prevented older individuals from being lambasted with premium increases because of their age.

 It expanded Medicaid so if you made less than $16,400 per year, you could have insurance coverage.

 It eliminated the use of lifetime limits preventing insurance companies from putting a $1 million limit on your policy (cancer treatment or long-term care could easily exceed $1 million).

There is no denying costs have increased  premiums and deductibles are unreasonable at best. But, is the ACA responsible for the increased premiums and deductibles or is greed the culprit?

GOP health care bill

One of the most significant changes in the GOP health care bill targets Medicaid.

The Associated Press reports, The bill would overhaul the framework of Medicaid, ending its open-ended federal financing States would gain flexibility to cap enrollment and change benefits.

While the impact is reported as unclear to the AP, states opposed to expanded Medicaid, like North Carolina, could provide even less assistance to those in need.

Another significant change is how tax credits are doled out for private coverage for individuals. The current law provides income-based credits for consumers buying government-regulated plans through HealthCare.gov and state insurance markets.

Under the Affordable Care Act, in laymans terms, if your income is closer to $16,000, you receive additional tax credits than if you were to make substantially more. So, if your North Carolina coverage was going to be $500 per month, the government might grant you $300 in subsidies to lower the monthly premium based on your yearly income.

The GOP bill provides credits based on age, gradually phasing down for individuals making over $75,000, or married couples earning more than $150,000. This plan does not take into account income differences below $75,000.

Someone who makes $74,000 will receive the same credit as someone making $17,000 if they are the same age.

The tax credits dont take into account high deductibles, either. The current law provides cost-sharing subsidies for low-to-moderate income people.

The GOP bill eliminates those subsidies, but allows people to make much higher contributions to tax-sheltered health savings accounts.

Contributions to a health savings account are vastly different than subsidies. The subsidies directly lower the out-of-pocket costs that hit your bank account. A health savings account merely directs more of your money toward health care costs. The tax break is minimal for someone making around $20,000.

In the end, low-to-moderate incomes will suffer the higher cost of health care deductibles and co-payments.

Thankfully, the GOP plan includes pre-existing conditions protection; although, there is no clear indication as to how it will be funded.

Without the individual mandate, insurance companies and individuals could face higher costs. The mandate required everyone to be insured thus paying into a system where healthy people helped fund the cost of covering critical illnesses.

Under the GOP plan, if consumers dont continue health insurance coverage and require critical care, insurance companies can charge an additional 30 percent premium for a year.

Finally, the current law requires insurers to charge no more than three times what they charge young adults for older people seeking coverage. The GOP bill would allow insurers to charge five times.

AARP said the bill would dramatically increase health care costs for people age 50 to 64, and put the health care of millions at risk, according to an AP report.

The American Medical Association said Wednesday that the bill would result in millions of Americans losing coverage and benefits, while making coverage more expensive  if not out of reach  for poor and sick Americans, again, echoing a catastrophic concern for Americans.

Tax cuts

About 20 taxes were removed in the GOP bill; taxes that were established as law under the Affordable Care Act. At first glance, you might think, hey, thats a good thing  fewer taxes. But who is benefiting?

The biggest tax cut would eliminate a 3.8 percent tax on investment income for high-income individuals and families. Eliminating the tax would save these taxpayers $158 billion over the next decade, according to an AP report.

Another tax cut would repeal a .9 percent Medicare tax on wages above $200,000  another cut for the wealthiest Americans. This cut would drain the Medicare trust fund even quicker than is already projected by the Senate Finance Committee.

The two tax cuts would put $275 billion in the pockets of the wealthiest Americans over 10 years. Thats enough money to stack $1 bills more than 18,672 miles high  well above most satellites orbiting Earth.

What do the lower and middle classes get? A tax credit that most likely will be less than the subsidies provided to reduce premiums for most Americans.

The majority of Americans also get a damaged Medicare system quickly running low on funds while the wealthy become wealthier.

But the GOP health care bill isnt just looking out for the wealthiest; its looking out for the insurance companies, health providers and pharmaceutical companies.

The bill would remove an annual fee based on market share saving providers $145 billion over 10 years. It would remove a fee for drugmakers and importers saving pharmaceutical companies $25 billion over 10 years. It would save medical device importers and makers $20 billion over 10 years. It allows insurance companies to deduct executives pay saving $400 million over 10 years.

What does this mean? It means more money for everyone but the majority of Americans desperate for Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

The business of health care

Most Americans pride themselves on celebrating a capitalist society  unfortunately, a lot of the same people dont quite understand capitalism.

If you were to ask about the cost of health care in America, I wager most would say its outrageously high.

If you ask what they dont like about the Affordable Care Act, most will say they dont like the government meddling in or mandating health care.

How do you control a business that sees Americans as a means to their new Maserati? In fact, how do you control a business when its lobbyists are smothering politicians to keep the cash flowing?

The Affordable Care Act and the GOP health care bill are an attempt. They both address an outcry from politicians constituents that health care in America is broken. I would argue the ACA is a half-measure and the GOP bill is far from a solution.

The average cost in North Carolina for an inpatient stay at a hospital is $1,786 per day. Thats $12,502 per week and more than $50,000 per month. That figure does not include the cost of procedures or specialists  merely the stay.

The insurance companies are no better.

In North Carolina, health care monthly premiums overall for a single person in 2015 cost $339. That number increased 27 percent to $430 in 2016. Families paid monthly premiums of $1,013 in 2015. That number increased 27 percent to $1,286 in 2016, according to The Commonwealth Funds health insurance marketplace premiums map.

Those figures dont include a deductible of hundreds of dollars the consumer must pay.

In our society, especially after the recession, companies (regardless of the health industry) have sought higher profit margins  often at the expense of employees.

The rising trend must be addressed  it is abundantly clear health providers and insurance companies will not change. Pockets will continue to be lined while back-breaking expenses fall on the low-to-moderate income families.

Change

The model needs to change. I would propose a single-payer health insurance system.

It would fund health coverage for all Americans, universally, from a single fund like Medicare. With that control, the government could regulate prices and make certain every American has adequate care.

This would be an entitled right  not mere access.

If you are as concerned about health care in America as I am, please contact your representatives. Real change can happen  the elected officials, regardless of party, represent you. Let your voice be heard.

 Sen. Thom Tillis: 202-224-6342

 Sen. Richard Burr: 202-224-3154

 Rep. Patrick McHenry: 202-225-2576

 Rep. Virginia Foxx: 202-225-2071

 Rep. Mark Meadows: 202-225-6401

Jon LaFontaine is the editor of the Hickory Daily Record.
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It was one of the most bitterly fought elections in recent times. But as the results emerged across five states on Saturday and the fate of parties and candidates sealed, top politicians cutting across party lines decided to bury the hatchet and graciously congratulated each other for well-fought victories.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter.

Follow live: Election result updates

I congratulate Shri Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand, Gandhi said.

Modi replied promptly: Thank you. Long live democracy!

I congratulate Shri. Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) March 11, 2017

Thank you. Long live democracy! https://t.co/hJoGsO5lGA  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

Earlier in the day, the PM reached out to Captain Amarinder Singh who is being credited with the Congress thumoing victory in Punjab.

Spoke to @capt_amarinder & congratulated him on the win in Punjab. Also wished him a happy birthday & prayed for his long & healthy life, Modi tweeted.

Spoke to @capt_amarinder & congratulated him on the win in Punjab. Also wished him a happy birthday & prayed for his long & healthy life.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

The Captain was equally gracious in his reply. Thankyou @narendramodi ji for your good wishes. I look forward to working with you for the betterment of Punjab.

Election strategist Prashant Kishors I-PAC or the Indian Political Action Committee that advised Captain Amarinder Singh, even saluted AAP workers for putting up a tough fight in Punjab.

To all AAP volunteers and grassroots workers, you were one of the toughest competitors we faced!

The tweet tagged Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and AAPs Punjab Twitter handles.

Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat, who resigned following the Congresss humiliating defeat in the state, saluted Modis revolution but cheekily added EVM Chamatkar, perhaps a reference to BSP chief Mayawatis allegation that electronic voting machines were manipulated in the BJPs favour.

I also want to congratulate Modi kranti and EVM chamatkar, Rawat told a news channel.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee also congratulated the winners in different states.

In a democracy, we must respect each other because some will win, some will lose. Trust the people 2/2  Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) March 11, 2017

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The Bharatiya Janata Party was on course for stunning election victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand on Saturday, in a personal triumph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that might ensure his partys near-domination of politics in India.

Votes were also being counted to elect new assemblies in Punjab, Goa and Manipur.

But the biggest surprise was from the battleground state of Uttar Pradesh, where counting trends signalled ringing endorsement for Prime Minister Modis stewardship of the economy, especially the controversial decision to scrap 500-and 1000-rupee banknotes.

Trends showed the party leading in 303 of the states 403 seats, leaving the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance way behind at 71 seats. The Bahujan Samaj Party, once a dominant power, faced decimation.

For Modi, who staked his personal reputation on a high-octane campaign in Uttar Pradesh, winning the politically crucial state will boost his chances for a second term in the national elections in 2019.

For live updates of Goa and Manipur results, click here

For our live coverage, click here

WINNING CAMPAIGN

Early trends also suggested a clean sweep for the BJP in Uttarakhand, where the Congress is now in power. The party was leading in 58 of 70 seats for which trends were available. State chief minister Harish Rawat lost one seat (Haridwar) and was trailing in another he contested.

In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP campaigned on Modis pro-development credentials as well as its Hindutva agenda that appeared to have helped consolidate votes on religious lines.

In a state where people tend to vote along traditional caste and religious lines, and successive governments exploited communal divisions to fire up their base, Modi appears to have managed to expanded his appeal among a cross section of castes and sub-castes that traditionally voted for the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party.

It is a Modi wave. The wave which started with 2014 Lok Sabha elections is continuing in 2017 and the momentum will go beyond the 2019 general elections, said party state chief Keshav Prasad Maurya, a front-runner to be the next chief minister.

Early counting showed the BJPs vote share in Uttar Pradesh to be more than 40% (the party got 42% votes in Lok Sabha elections in 2014), a stunning achievement likely to be credited to Amit Shah, the BJP president and Modis chief election strategist.

The celebrations would go on till late Holi is what party workers say at #BJP #Delhi headquarters #ElectionResults @htTweets pic.twitter.com/lGxEki0wFH  Sweta Goswami (@sweta_goswami) 11 March 2017

CONGRESS REGAINS PUNJAB, AAP FADES

Exit polls, which have a patchy record in India, had shown the BJP would storm to power in at least three states, including Uttar Pradesh where the party is trying to regain power after about 15 years.

At stake were also the survival of the Congress and relevance for a clutch of regional outfits, especially for Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwals ability to take his party beyond the national capital, where it won power in 2015.

Early trends did not bring happy news for Kejriwal. The party was trailing behind the Congress in Punjab which was leading 61 of 115 seats for which trends were available. State chief minister Parkash Singh Badal was ahead of Congresss Captain Amarinder Singh in Lambi. Singh was, however, leading in his home seat Patiala.

The AAP might also fail to make any impression in Goa, with its chief minister candidate Elvis Gomes losing his pocket borough.

In Manipur, the BJP and Congress were seen neck-and-neck.

People have fought the elections on our behalf in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and results have vindicated their faith in us, BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya said.

For our complete coverage of assembly election results, click here
A humble weaver of silk sarees in Varanasi, a wealthy exporter of Mirzapur carpets, a glass blower bursting his lungs in Firozabad, a leather tanner in Kanpur, a woman zari embroiderer slaving away for a pittance in Lucknow, a sugarcane farmer in Saharanpur, a burnisher of brass artefacts in Moradabad, an unemployed youth in Bahraich  may all be Muslims by birth but they are also individuals with independent political opinions, often unconnected with their religious identity. They are part of the vast and varied tapestry of the countrys highest populated state. This polyglot collection of individuals is far too often lumped together as a Muslim vote bank that unitedly goes to the polls to elect a pre-determined party or candidate.

Several electoral studies of voting behaviour, including a recent detailed analysis in the Economic and Political Weekly on How Muslims Vote in Uttar Pradesh, clearly show that the idea of a monolithic Muslim vote bank is just a misguided opinion without any credible evidence. Repeated opinion polls also show that Muslim voters, along with all other communities and castes, are more concerned about employment, price rise, corruption and other economic issues than they are about purely communal or caste identities. I can vouch for this, as during my recent electoral foray in UP, I found voters increasingly resentful about being asked about their caste or community identity. Such a question seemed to be disrespectful of their existence as individuals with distinct views.

Yet, all the major political parties in the UP election chose to either revile (BJP) or woo (BSP, Samajwadi-Congress) Muslims as an assumed vote bank. They specifically targeted the 73 constituencies where Muslims form over 30% of the electorate and another 70 constituencies where Muslims constitute 20% to 30%. In a state where Hindus form 79.7% of the population and Muslims 19.3%, according to the 2011 census; these political formations and the media have over-played the electoral role of Muslims.

With the election results on Saturday morning showing an overwhelming majority of seats going to the BJP out of the UP Assemblys total of 403 seats, it has become apparent that Muslims have voted in a fragmented manner and not as a bloc. Mayawatis BSP fielded 99 Muslim candidates and the Samajwadi Party 56 Muslim candidates in the election. This over-representation of Muslims has not only confused Muslim voters but also consolidated the Hindu vote in favour of the BJP, regardless of caste. As a result, only a handful of Muslims have been elected to the new UP Assembly while 69 Muslims MLAs were elected in 2012, the highest since the countrys independence.

In Kairana constituency, despite the consolidation of Hindu votes due to the widely believed false rumours that Hindus were being forcibly evicted from the area, the SP has won thanks to the 63% of Muslim voters.

The Muslims have clearly not voted for the BJP as they fear that party and the Sangh Parivar which has, since 2014, repeatedly made false accusations against Muslims on issues like love jihad, cow slaughter, forced conversion, forced migration of Hindus, etc. In return, the BJP has totally ignored Muslims and did not field a single Muslim candidate in the UP election. As for the BSP, despite its forceful push to get Muslim votes, the Samajwadi-Congress alliance has remained ahead of the BSP among Muslims.

Now that Prime Minister Modi has had a historic triumph in UP, it is about time he included Muslims in his sabka sath sabka vikas development programme, so that Muslims may vote for him in the 2019 national election.

Jawid Laiq is a political commentator who has been covering nationwide elections since 1977. The views expressed are personal.
A hung assembly in Goa has sparked off a tug of war between the Congress and the BJP to form the next government in the state.

The Congress which emerged the single largest party in assembly elections by bagging 17 out of the 40 seats, said it will stake its claim for majority on Sunday even as the BJP expressed its confidence of forming the government to retain power.

All India Congress Committee general secretary Digvijay Singh who is the partys observer for Goa, said that the party is in touch with independents and other non-BJP parties to enlist their support to achieve majority (21 or more) before approaching the governor with the list.

We are going to hold the legislature party meeting in the morning where the elected MLAs would choose the leader. Soon after that we will approach the governor and stake claim for majority with the letters of support from independents, Singh said adding that around 10 independents, apart from NCPs elected candidate Churchil Alamao and an independent candidate who the Congress had backed, are in touch with the party for offering support.

To a question on enlisting the support of the Goa Forward Party (winner of 3 seats) which has expressed willingness to support the BJP, Singh said, we are talking to everybody.

Claiming that the Congress with 17 MLAs is in a better position to garner majority than the BJP (13), Singh said, there will be no compromise with the manifesto even if we enter into understanding with others.

The BJP which was expected to do well under the direction of former chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, won 13 seats, down from its 2012 rally of 21. Parrikars successor and incumbent Chief Minister Laxmikant Parrikar lost his home seat of Mandrem to the Congresss Dayanand Sopte by over 7,000 votes.

Former BJP ally, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) won three seats while the newly formed Goa Forward Party won three, independent candidates got three and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) won one seat.

The Aam Aadmi Partys much anticipated entry into Goa politics ended badly: the party failed to win a single seat, Chief Ministerial candidate Elvis Gomes came fourth in Cuncolim, and several candidates forfeited their deposits.

Coalition Karma

Goa is no stranger to coalition governments  six of the past 12 elections have resulted in hung assemblies  suggesting the next few days could witness hectic horse-trading.

In a press conference after the results, Parrikar attributed the BJPs loss to the personal incumbency of candidates, but said his party was confident of forming the government. Many have expressed to side with BJP instead of Congress, Parrikar said.

Sources said the BJP was confident of winning over the newly-minted Goa Forward Party, which has 3 seats, and could reach out to the MGP  a former ally that parted ways only in November last year. The MGP, which won 3 seats as well, has been part of every single government  BJP or Congress  since 1998.

Live updates I After fractured mandate, Parrikar says confident of BJP forming govt in Goa

Goa election: A lot at stake for BJP, AAP in this multi-cornered fight

Ex-CMs win

Apart from the BJPs Parsekar, who lost his seat; five former chief ministers  4 from the Congress alone - contested this poll, and all won comfortably.

While Digambar Kamat won from Margao, Ravi Nayak retained his seat from Ponda. Luizhino Faleiro won from Navelim constituency while Pratapsinh Rane maintained his winning streak from Valpoi constituency by emerging a victor for a record 12th time. Churchill Alemao (NCP) won from Benaulim constituency.

The Congress victories were attributed to a strong performance in South Goa, which is home to the partys traditional Catholic vote base.

The surprise was the little known Goa Forward party, which won three out of the four candidates they had fielded in this election. The winners include Vijay Sardesai, who is considered to be close to former Congress chief minister Digambar Kamat, from Fatorda constituency.
After offering his Friday prayers in a local mosque in Muzaffarnagars Budhana area, 28-year-old Mohammad Naushad sounded upbeat about the election results expected the next day. Myself and every Muslim I know, have been praying for Akhilesh Yadavs victory. This time we voted with passion. We voted to redeem respect, said Naushad who lost his house in the communal riots of 2013.

Naushad and almost everyone in Nayi Basti, a colony of around 70 families of riot-affected Muslims in Budhana, said that they voted for the Samajwadi Party (SP).

Reasons: It gave them compensation; development work done by SP; the BSP remained silent on riots; RLD is considered a party of Jats who caused maximum damage to Muslims during riots.

We are waiting for this election result like we do for Eid ka Chaand (new moon which marks the festival of Eid), said Naushads father Mohammad Yunus.

SPs victory, Yunus said, would mean that people have taught a lesson to BJP and BJP win would mean that Muslims would have to live in fear.

After 24 hours, as results started pouring in, the mood was sombre in Nayi Basti. Groups of men watching TV were stunned, silent and grappling to put the result into perspective. By 3 pm, they had stopped watching TV and went back to their daily chores.

In Muzaffarnagar and adjoining Shamli - two worst riot affected districts - the SP could win only one out of nine seats.

Hindu nilaambit ho gaye (Hindus got consolidated). And Muslims got divided. There is no other way to read this result, said Naushad.

The result of UP assembly election 2017 offers new patterns on Muslim electorate in the state.

It is evident that the Muslim vote is not a monolith. Take Rohilkhand region, for example, where assembly seats have 30-60% of Muslim population. While the SP continues to enjoy the support of the community, the BSP, along with RLD and AIMIM were fighting to wean away the Muslim vote from the SPs fold. It resulted in reverse polarisation of Hindu vote in this region and BJP became the unintended beneficiary, winning Muslim dominated seats of Badaun, Shahjahanpur, Pilibhit and Moradabad Nagar.

Musalmano ko bhi sabaq sikhna chahiye. Kabhi ek jut nahi hote. (This is a lesson for Muslims. They are never united), grumbled Ishtiaq Khan, watching election result on TV in Budhana.

The result also challenges the theory that Muslims vote only to defeat the BJP. Not all Muslims across UP form a block go stop the BJP. Where they do, their calculation is not always right. Plus, like any other community, Muslims could also vote for a strong candidate or the one whom the village Panchayat wanted them to back or to oust the candidate who did not perform up to the mark.

Thirdly, the result proves that a party can win UP without reaching out to Muslims. It appears that the BJP s rainbow coalition of upper castes, non-Yadav OBCs and some Dalit communities yielded result. So did its decision of not giving even a single ticket to a candidate from the Muslim community, a smart ploy to consolidate the Hindu vote. Add to that the vitriolic comments by Yogi Aditya Nath, numerous mentions of triple talaq, PM talking about power supply given to graveyards. And the polarisation is complete.

Lastly, the Yadav family feud did have a negative impact on the ruling party in UP. Many Muslim SP supporters in the partys bastions in central UP told this reporter that they would vote for SP despite the infighting. But the refrain changed in Muzaffarnagar where Muslims did not rule out BSP because of the dynamics within SP.

Jhagda le dooba inko. Ham toh keh hi rahe they (The infighting sank them. I predicted as much), said Iqbal Khan, former pradhan of Jogiya Kheda village in Budhana.

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The BJP may have faced a lot of flak for roping in tainted Congress MLAs and other leaders from the party weeks before the February 4 elections, but the decision to induct them may have just helped the BJP save some face in Goa on Saturday, when it is facing a tough contest from the Congress.

The BJP inducted two sitting MLAs, namely Mauvin Godinho and Pandurang Madkaikar, from the Congress in December. While Godinho won the Dabolim assembly seat by defeating his nearest rival from the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party by a margin of 2,494 votes, Madkaikar won the Cumbharjua seat by 8,434 votes, beating Congress candidate Xavier Fialho.

Speaking to reporters after he was announced the winner, Madkaikar justified his move to join the BJP. I was confident of winning these elections. Joining BJP helped me all the more. The margin shows that, he said.

Madkaikar and Godinho had been repeatedly accused of corruption by the BJP, whose leaders had also filed corruption cases against the duo in the past.

At the time of their induction into the BJP, the state party leadership including Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had to face a lot of flak from the Opposition, which accused them of doing a u-turn on graft charges.

The BJP, which won 21 seats in the 40-member Goa legislative assembly in 2012, is currently tied with the Congress, with both parties winning 12 seats each out of the 33 constituencies where results have been announced. Both the Congress and the BJP have also secured leads in two constituencies each.

Among others who were inducted in the BJP from the Congress party on the eve of the February 4 polls, is newly elected MLA from Bicholim Pravin Zantye, who defeated Congress candidate Santosh Sawant by 4,974 votes.

Speaking to IANS after being declared winner, Zantye said that he had to overcome disgruntled elements in the BJP to emerge victorious. I had to fight the Congress as well as some people within my party to earn this victory, Zantye said.

Zantyes entry into the BJP had irked sitting MLA and Speaker Anant Shet, who was denied a ticket by the saffron party.

Vijay Pai Khot, who is contesting the Canacona assembly seat, is yet another candidate who had been roped into the BJP from the Congress. Counting for the Canacona assembly seat is still on.
The grand success of the BJP in the 2017 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh can be attributed to its social engineering strategy crafted by Amit Shah. He successfully mobilised non-Yadav OBCs, non-Jatav SCs, scattered MBCs and their respective caste parties by successfully associating with them. This created a grand alliance of castes. Another additional factor for the BJPs success was a polarisation in its favour.

The BJP made intense efforts to bring within its court almost 40 numerically small MBCs such as Gaur, Luhar, Kumahar, Bind, Mallah, Pal, Rajbhar, Chauhan etc. on a large scale. Though these castes are numerically small, they create a huge vote bank when united. Amit Shah himself attended their caste meetings, and the BJP gave these caste leaders large roles in its organisation during the campaigning. In order to polarise such castes in favour of the BJP, the party made an alliance with Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party under Om Prakash Rajbhars leadership. Amit Shah also participated in functions organised in the memory of caste leader Suheldev and even started a train in his name.

Other important political parties also left no stone unturned in trying to appeal to the Dalits and most backward castes (MBCs). The BSP under Mayawatis leadership spoke about keeping its Dalit vote bank intact in these elections; while the BJP and SP-Congress alliance tried to associate non-Jatav Dalits by giving them party tickets and important posts in the party organisation.

Just like the BJP, the SPCongress alliance too kept its focus on the non-Jatav Dalits during these elections. They were of the view that the Jatavs were already in favour of the BSP so it would be easier to lure the non-Jatav Dalits. The SP also followed the strategy of providing political representation to non-Jatav Dalit castes by giving them party tickets during the election and important posts in the party organisation.

Mayawati provided tickets to 87 Dalit candidates, while trying to associate with other non-Jatav Dalits such as Pasis, Khatiks, Dhobis etc., in addition to the Jatavs. The BSP had no doubts about its Dalit voter base, but there could be various reasons behind the party losing this. The first is that the BSP has failed to fulfil the aspirations of the Jatav middle class many times. Secondly, an aggression was built up among small Dalit groups due to the inclusion of non-Dalits in the party. This led the smaller Dalit groups to move towards other political parties.

There were other issues which did not go Mayawatis wau such as the Dalit-Muslim alliance not working in favour of the BSP as anticipated. Educated Muslims also did not support the BSP because they did not believe in the partys promise of a fair trial for Muslims accused of terrorism. Rural Muslims could also not connect with the development promises of the BSP.

It looks like the BSP will have to seriously rethink its strategies.

Badri Narayan is a professor at Govind Ballabh Pant Social Science Institute, Allahabad. The views expressed are personal
Make no mistake. The BJP win in Uttar Pradesh is a defining moment in Indian democracy.

In the past 25 years, never has a party so decisively controlled the levers of power in both Delhi and UP, home to 200 million and the heart of Indian politics. Rarely has a party been able to expand its social base, in such quick time, in such an unprecedented manner, across Hindu castes.

And not since the 1960s has a party exercised such dominance in national politics. The BJP was strong in the west, it was expanding in the east, but it did not have a state in the core heartland, from Delhi all the way to West Bengal, even though it was seen as a cow-belt party. That has now been addressed  and how.

And that is really the big question.

How did the BJP win UP?

Modi ki sarkar

Travelling on the ground, it is astonishing to see the admiration Narendra Modi evokes. We travelled in the aftermath of the decision on demonetisation, expecting to find anger, but saw people  in some of the poorest districts of UP  hailing him. Voters said he had delivered on what he promised, that he had taken on the rich and corrupt, that the gains accrued from the exercise would be eventually transferred to the poor.

The enthusiasm for demonetisation in itself subsided in subsequent months, but the faith in Modi did not. From Bareilly to Balia, from Meerut to Gorakhpur, from Shravasti to Jhansi, we found voters who gave a definite answer to who would they vote for.

Modiji

Why? Some said he was a decisive leader. Others said he had increased Indias image abroad. Some said he was rooted  zameen ke neta hain, he has emerged from the ground. Many pointed to tangible schemes like Jan Dhan Yojana or Ujwala. Some said he would bring vikas.

But the majority did not even have specific answers. It was an emotional connect they had with Modi, it was just deep and abiding faith that the man meant well, and the man would transform India and UP.

And when Modi made this his election, campaigning intensively, promising to the people that if the government at the Centre and the state was the same, this faith only seems to have doubled. In January, we had heard even Modi supporters make a distinction between a bada and chhota election, a national and a state election, and how winning the latter may not be easy.

But it is now clear that the distinction collapsed. Modi ran Delhi, but UP voters believed he could  sitting in Delhi  also run Lucknow, and run Lucknow better than the local contenders in the race.

And that is why there is no doubt that what we will see in Lucknow now on will not just be a BJP sarkar, but Modijis sarkar.

The 60% formula

Bhai saheb, the 60% formula is working, said a key BJP leader, sitting in Varanasi, in the final lap of the elections. He had explained to us, four months ago, what this formula entailed.

The BJP assumed that Muslims, and a majority of Yadavs and Jatavs would not vote for the party. This would leave 55-60% of the electorate for the BJP to target. And in order to do this, the party had to expand its social base.

The BJP has always been most successful in UP when it has constructed a coalition of upper castes and non-Yadav OBCs. Kalyan Singh was a product of this alliance, within the broader Hindutva umbrella. And it is no surprise that the last time the BJP won an outright majority in the state was on the basis of this alliance. That collapsed in the mid- to late-90s.

In 2014, it reappeared. Modis OBC identity, besides other factors, struck a chord with the states backward communities. The partys upper caste base stayed with it. And Dalit sub communities too drifted to the BJP.

This is what the party had to replicate in the state.

And to do this, it embarked on a three-pronged strategy  appoint someone from a non-Yadav OBC community (Keshav Prasad Maurya) as state president; appoint office bearers in districts from these communities; and give them the highest number of tickets that the party has yet awarded to provide representation. This was ambitious social engineering, for it ran the risk of alienating the partys older supporters. Amit Shah and the partys organisation man in UP, Sunil Bansal, took the risk. It paid off.

The party also expanded in rural areas. It put up candidates in panchayat elections last year. Out of 3,100 seats, it contested in 2,800 and won only 300. But in the process, it created a pool of active leaders at the rural level across districts.

They also had the most risky ticket distribution exercise in the partys history in UP so far.

A leader had explained to us that in 60 seats, the BJP had never won an election  for these seats, it happily imported leaders from other outfits even at the cost of ideological dilution. In another 20 seats, it was vulnerable  it was willing to look elsewhere for these seats too. And when leaders come from other parties, they bring in associates who have to be accommodated too. So in 100 seats, by the BJPs own admission, tickets were given to people who did not have a history with the organisation. Many of these leaders were from communities beyond the BJPs core base.

The party also gave tickets keeping the future in mind  and so younger leaders from all communities, Brahmins, Banias, Thakurs, OBCs, Dalits  were picked. This generated resentment among the older lot as well those in the same generation who had lost out, running the risk of internal sabotage. The Varanasi South constituency was an example of this. The popular Bengali MLA, Shyam Dev Rai Chaudhary Dada, was denied a ticket  because the party wanted to promote an alternative, younger local Brahman face. There was anger, but it took the risk.

With this ambitious but extremely careful and meticulously planned strategy, the BJP has not only won this election. It has transformed its own partys character, and has created a generation of leaders who will stand the party in good stead for years to come.

The Hindu card

But Modis brand and the careful construction of multi-caste alliances would probably not have been enough. The party also carefully played the Hindu card.

It is difficult for the BJP to win an election in states with a substantial Muslim presence  for the simple reason that it starts from a minus 20 disadvantage. It has to rely on the rest of the electorate. To do this, it has to be internally inclusive of Hindu castes and since it did not give any tickets to Muslims, it had room to do so in UP.

It also has to inevitably infuse its campaign with a flavour of communal polarisation.

We saw this in west UP, where candidates proudly declared themselves to be the epitome of Hindu pride. We saw this when Modi himself, couched under the framework of non-discrimination, brought up Diwali and Ramzan, kabristan and shamshanghat. We saw this in rally after rally where Amit Shah directly accused the SP government of dispensing development benefits based on religious and caste identity.

There was latent resentment among many Hindu communities at what they perceived as the administrations pro-Muslim tilt. There was also a degree of annoyance at both the alliance and the BSPs efforts to woo Muslims and make that the centre piece of their respective campaigns. This provided enough room to the BJP to construct the image of other parties as pandering to the minorities.

Ironically, the Muslim vote itself  these results indicate  appears to have split between the alliance and the BSP. Or even if it has gone largely to the alliance, it was not able to supplement it with other parties. This holds a lesson for secular parties who peg their electoral prospects only on Muslim consolidation.

You do not win an election only with your strategy. You win it with the mistakes the other side makes. In retrospect, the family feud in the SP took a toll on its organisation. Akhilesh Yadav was unable to wash off anti-incumbency. The delay in ticket distribution and campaigning cost him. The alliance itself with the Congress seems to have yielded little benefit.

Mayawati seems to have been left with little besides her core vote. The fact that she sits in Delhi and Lucknow, and barely travels to the districts when in opposition, has come back to haunt her. Her feudal style of functioning is clearly not helping either.

And so mix of the Modi magic, careful caste management and social engineering, a risky but smart ticket distribution strategy, the use of the Hindu card, and errors by the opposition has catapulted the BJP to power in Lucknow. The verdict will redefine Indian politics.

@prashantktm

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In the final leg of the 2014 general elections, Narendra Modi dramatically announced in a rally, Yeh dil maange more. It was a quintessential Modi soundbite: the BJPs internal polls had captured a surge but the party leadership of Modi and his lieutenant, Amit Shah, were determined to push beyond mission 272 towards a triple hundred. The rest, as they say, is history.

Twenty two months later, the 2017 assembly elections have shown that the BJPs appetite is clearly undiminished. When Modi undertook a three-day intensive roadshow-cum-rally programme in his adopted home of Varanasi, it was seen by some as a sign of desperation. More than one analyst predicted that the Modi juggernaut was being halted in the complex caste and community matrix of Uttar Pradesh. As it turns out, the BJP has swept the city and the entire eastern UP belt which went to the polls in the seventh and last phase. What was seen as desperation is perhaps a reflection of a trademark Modi-Shah campaign mantra: when ahead, simply go for the jugular.

For full coverage on UP election, click here

It is this constant hunger and desire for success that separates Modi from star politicians before him. Indira Gandhi was just as popular and authoritarian but maybe less driven (she actually had interests beyond politics!). The BJPs original Lucknow poster boy, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, was charismatic and arguably a much finer public speaker; but he clearly lacked the ruthlessness that is part of the Modi persona. The Atal-Advani era was a gentler one and the BJP was still an exclusivist party struggling to shed its Brahmin-Bania upper caste image. The Ram Mandir movement aided the partys political expansion, especially in UP, but it was never able to fully accommodate the aspirations of a new India because its leadership was still haunted by the dominance of the CongressNehruvian system.

By contrast, the Modi-Shah model is determined to rewrite history in electoral and ideological terms and is designed to take no prisoners. The defeats in Delhi and Bihar were setbacks but it didnt stop Gujarats political duo from sticking to their ambitious goal of a Congress-Mukt Bharat. When Shah first spoke of it in 2014, it sounded like the typical bombast of an arrogant politician; now, it appears almost prophetic. The Congress is now in power in barely five and a half states in the country, the BJP rules in more than ten. It is now the principal pole of Indian politics: there wasnt a constituency in UP where the BJP wasnt in the fight this time; a remarkable turnaround for a party which won just 47 seats in the state five years ago. Even in distant Manipur, the BJP has gained significantlymore proof of its geographical spread.

March 6, Rajdeep Sardesai predicted: BJP will win the UP elections | Opinion

At the heart of this strategy lies a personality-centric approach which is best described as Modi 360. If in 2014 a virtual Modi was transported into remote homes across India through hologram technologies, he is now being driven into the public imagination by constant marketing of the governments achievements across media platforms. From Start Up India to Mudra Yojana, from the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana to the soil card scheme, the message of a leader in 24X7 hyper-active mode who the propaganda machine tells us barely sleeps or takes a break is sought to be reinforced. From anti-corruption demonetisation to tough on terror surgical strikes, there isnt any space that the Modi cult doesnt seek to monopolise. Crucially, a large segment of the population trusts Modi. Its a credibility quotient that has seen the poor ready to bear the hardship of note-bandi.

Indeed, as faceless RSS functionaries build a solid booth-level network during elections, as social engineering co-opts new caste groups, as an unapologetic political Hindutva consolidates a Hindu nationalist identity, Modi is now the mascot for a brand of aggressive politics that has never been seen before in this country. In the 50s and 60s, as the Congress won election after election, the umbrella social-political coalition under the Nehru-Indira leadership and the goodwill of the freedom movement sustained their dominance. Now, we have a new dominant force which is built around an intoxicating mix of hope, Hindutva, and personal magnetism. 2017 has confirmed that 2014 was no aberration. A distinctive, hardnosed political order is being constructed.

Rajdeep Sardesai is a senior journalist and the author of 2014: The Election That Changed India

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The Bharatiya Janata Party won stunning election victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand on Saturday, a personal triumph for Prime Minister Narendra Modi that could now ensure his partys near-domination of politics in India.

Riding on Modis charismatic campaign, the BJP registered the biggest-ever victory by any political party in Uttar Pradesh since Indira Gandhi led the Congress to 309 seats in 1980 before the state was divided. In doing so the saffron outfit replicated its landslide victory in the 2014 national polls.

The results routed the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance, as well as the Bahujan Samaj Party, once a dominant power in a state where the BJP last ruled in 2002.

Winning the politically crucial state could help Modi set the tone for a second term in the national elections in 2019. The mandate also signaled a ringing endorsement of his policies, especially his controversial decision to scrap 500-and 1000-rupee banknotes, which led to a cash crunch but was welcomed by many as helpful in fighting corruption.

For Prime Minister Modi, who staked his personal reputation on a high-octane campaign in Uttar Pradesh, winning the politically crucial state will boost his chances for a second term in the national elections in 2019.

Follow our election coverage on Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi congratulated Modi on Twitter, saying his partys fight to win the hearts and minds of the people would, however, continue.

Modi tweeted back within minutes: Thank you Long live democracy.

But few political pundits foresaw the scale of the BJPs victory in Uttar Pradesh, where Modi staked his personal reputation on a high-octane campaign.

Election commission data showed the BJPs vote share in the UP doubled to about 39.7% over the last assembly polls in 2012, a stunning achievement also credited to Amit Shah, the BJP president and Modis chief election strategist. The party had bagged 42.6% votes in Lok Sabha elections in 2014.

Even in states where the Congress was ahead the BJP registered a higher vote share. The party bagged 32.5% votes in Goa to Congresss 28.4% while in Manipur it got 36.2% versus its rivals tally of 35.1%.

Congress wrests Punjab, AAP routed

Also at stake in these polls were the survival of the Congress and relevance for a clutch of regional parties, especially the Aam Aadmi Party which was seeking to expand its influence beyond the national capital where it won power in 2015.

The BJP wrested Uttarakhand from the Congress. The two were neck-and-neck in Manipur and Goa where smaller parties will now hold the balance of power.

For the Congress, some consolation came from Punjab, where the party rode anti-incumbency to decisively boot out the Akali Dal-BJP alliance.

For AAP supremo and Delhi chief minster Arvind Kejriwal, the poll results punctured his national ambitions for now.

The party won just 20 seats in Punjab and failed to open its account in Goa despite a months-long campaign that saw Kejriwal spending much time away from Delhi.

We accept the peoples mandate with full humility. All party workers worked very hard. Our struggle will continue, Kejriwal tweeted.

Innovative campaign

Early on in the campaign, the BJP sought to leverage Prime Minister Modis pro-development credentials but weeks before the close of the polls played its Hindutva card that appeared to have helped it consolidate votes on religious lines.

In a state where people tend to vote along traditional caste and religious lines, and successive governments exploited communal divisions to fire up their base, Modi expanded his appeal among a cross section of castes and sub-castes that traditionally voted for the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party.

Several other factors also helped.

To leverage Modis social status as a member of the Other Backward Classes (OBC), the BJP started a special unit in Uttar Pradesh to mobilise OBC support in 2015. Additionally, Shahs decision to appoint Keshav Prasad Maurya as the party state president ensured a new social combination -- consolidating roughly 40% non-Yadav Other Backward Caste votes.

Given his Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh background, the 47-year-old Phulpur MP received full organisational support and the backing of a sizeable population of Kushwahas in eastern UP.

How the hell did almost all the experts/analysts miss this wave in UP? Its a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah said in a Twitter post.

The Congress admitted that the loss in Uttar Pradesh  its campaign was led by party vice-president Rahul Gandhi  was hurtful.

Yes, UP is a bad loss, it hurts, said party spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi. I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring for the Congress as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy.

Click here for Assembly elections live updates.
The contest in Goa is far from over - the Congress has won 13 of the states 40 seats so far and the BJP is close behind with 12. Despite making a lot of noise, AAP drew a blank.

The loss in Goa is a big setback for the AAP which had been bankingon the state to expand its footprints.

1. It was always a tough call given Goa, for the first time, was seeing so many parties slug it out - the Congress, the BJP, AAP, NCP and a coalition of Shiv Sena and a rebel RSS group.

2.Defence minister Manohar Parrikar, BJPs strategist for the state, remains a force to be reckoned with. The former Goa chief minister campaigned heavily in his home state, although he was evasive about his political future - will he continue in Delhi or move back to Goa? Its a relevant question given chief minister Laxmikant Parsekars unexpected loss.

Live election coverage

3.The Congress ambitious manifesto that included banning the states casinos might be paying off. Despite its campaign being derailed by infighting, which started as early as July 2016, the party may still win.

4.The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) - with a local, idealist running for chief minister - failed to win a single seat. Despite Delhi chief minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwals campaign efforts his political brand did not translate to votes.

5.AAP was thrown off by the uniqueness of every constituency even though they prepared for it: they had individual manifestoes for each of Goas 40 seats.

6.The breakaway alliance of Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM), NCP and Shiv Sena did not cut into BJPs Hindu vote.

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As the assembly election results roll in, its clear the Congress stands firmly rejected in Uttarakhand as well as in Uttar Pradesh along with its recently acquired ally, the Samajwadi Party. Uttarakhand and UP are actually erstwhile conjoined twins separated in November 2000. But in the classic manner of such twins they obviously continue to think alike. Both have finally chosen to vote in a BJP government that both had rejected in the past elections rejecting the secular politics and/or older caste based vote banks offered by the incumbent chief ministers and their parties. With a jubilant BJP happily set to swear in chief ministers in both states, the voters have given Prime Minister Narendra Modi the power to choose who he wishes to govern them for the next five years.

As the adrenaline subsides, a sense of fear among Modis detractors will be followed by a realisation that the opposition to the PM in the mainstream and social media did nothing to diminish his charisma. The BJPs communication in the rural hinterland, through Hindi-speaking right wing cadre, was successful. A section of English media may have been was soft on them, but the Congress, the BSP and the SP failed to persuade the poor, the day-wage workers, the jobless young to vote against those they portrayed as the perpetrators of notebandi, communalism and Manuvad.

Why did the tribals in eastern UP, in the hilly regions of Uttarakhand, almost invisible in the English media so far, who had vociferously protested against large dams and outsiders and the mining mafia in their area, choose Modi and his party? Fear of the rulers such as they have harboured for decades may not be a good guide to political wisdom, but latest results reveal that when poor people act on their fears, they usually end up opting for the rule of those that rule by fear. Think Maharashtra, think Tamil Nadu .

This election has proved that Modi is right: When all is said and done, what the marginalised will respond to and cheer  be it in films or rallies  is a spectacle. Lenin said of Stalin This cook will give us peppery dishes. In Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, all the macho talk of nation building, tricolour flying, and Modis branding of the party has been like a peppery dish. People have lapped it up. In 2014, and again in 2017, the peppery dishes he served, helped Modi reduce his opponents to figures of fun while allowing his party to gloss over several serious questions: The Ram Mandir, Kairana, beef ban and last, but not the least, demonetisation.

The questions to be asked dispassionately now are: How did Uttar Pradesh pass so quickly from samajvad to Hindutva and reject a youthful leader it seemed to like a lot? And why did Uttarakhand, being led by a seasoned Harish Rawat, revert to the BJP it had rejected five years ago on grave charges of corruption and nepotism? The glib answer  that the majority remains deeply religious, and therefore, communal, is only half-true. Remember this same communal majority denied Vajpayees government a second term and gave two consecutive terms to the Manmohan Singh-Sonia combine.

Lesson for the media and pollsters: Only double checked facts and linguistic felicity will rule. Rumour and crowd-sourced scholarship will only create Greek choruses for prime time slots, which wail and heckle in English, signifying nothing to the common man.

Mrinal Pande is former chairperson, Prasar Bharti and a senior journalist.
The thumping BJP victory in Uttar Pradesh  combined with the results in Uttarakhand, it amounts to a sweep of the old, pre-bifurcation UP  is arguably a greater achievement for Narendra Modi than his 2014 Lok Sabha triumph.

Back then, Modi had a great deal going for him: he had a record of economic success in Gujarat; and his main rival, Congress, was completely discredited by a scandal-tainted second term in government. Smart political management by Amit Shah had wrapped Modi in a cloak of inevitability.

This time around, the odds were to some degree against Modi.

He couldnt run on his record: Modi has not yet had significant economic success as Prime Minister  at least, not the kind that most voters can feel. His biggest economic gamble, demonetisation, has not yet delivered results that would be tangible to anybody pressing a button at the polling booth. If anything, most voters were still experiencing the pain wrought by demonetisation.

For all the hype of Modis foreign visits, he has not yet scored a major foreign-policy win. Where it matters most, relations with Indias neighbours, there has been no change for the better: with Pakistan and, to a certain degree China, relations are actually worse.

Whereas the Congress, led by an indisposed Sonia Gandhi and an inexperienced Rahul Gandhi, was practically supine in 2014; in UP Modi was up against two formidable rivals  on paper, anyway  the charismatic Akhilesh Yadav, and the redoubtable Mayawati.

There was nothing inevitable about a BJP win this time. Indeed, Modi had lost some of his aura of invincibility with state-level defeats in Bihar and Delhi.

What did not change was Modis personal appeal to voters. In 2017, as in 2014, large numbers of UP-ites were convinced that he, more than anybody else, would serve their best interests. But it was not a given that his own credibility would deliver victory in the state: after all, UP has a history of voting one way in general elections and another in assembly polls.

Finally, Modi had to overcome the drift that usually follows a big election win. Weve seen this before: winners become complacent, party factions start bickering, sloth and corruption creep in.

The fact that Modi overcame all those things makes 2017 a bigger feather in his cap than 2014.

Bobby Ghosh is editor-in-chief of Hindustan Times

Twitter: @ghoshworld

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Goa has come up on top when it comes to voters hitting the NOTA button in the latest round of assembly polls, closely followed by Uttarakhand.

In Goa, 1.2% of the voters chose NOTA (None of the Above), followed by 1% in Uttarakhand, latest data available with the Election Commission of India showed. In Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP swept the election, the percentage of voters who opted for NOTA was 0.9%.

The figure stood at 0.7% in Punjab while around 0.5% of the people who exercised their voting right in Manipur chose NOTA.

While more than 4,800 candidates were in the fray in UP, Goa saw over 250 contestants. More than 600 people contested in Uttarakhand and over 1,100 in Punjab. Nearly 100 persons stood for the election in Manipur.

There are 40 constituencies in Goa, 70 in Uttarakhand, 60 in Manipur, 117 in Punjab and 403 in Uttar Pradesh.

BJP recorded stunning victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand while Congress wrested Punjab from SAD-BJP alliance, which has been ruling the state for 10 years.

Both in Manipur and Goa, the elections have thrown up split verdicts with a slight edge for the Congress.
The BJP won 57 of Uttarakhands 70 seats, leaving the ruling Congress with a measly 11. Here are the takeaways from BJPs crushing victory, and Congresss worst defeat in the young hill state

1 The BJP organised well and early, and reaped the dividends. The party began campaigning nearly a year before the February 15 polls and kept the momentum going with multiple rallies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed four rallies in three days between February 10 and 12.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed four rallies in three days between February 10 and 12.

2 The Congress rout reflected in the total annihilation of chief minister Harish Rawat, who was confident of victory. He lost in both seats he contested  by over 12,000 votes in Haridwar (rural) and by 2,000 votes in Kiccha.

3 There was never any room for a third player. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) fared poorly. They won no seats. Most of AAPs state leaders defected either to the Congress or the BJP. The states lone regional party, the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (UKD), didnt win any seat either.

4 The Congress was a one-man show: chief minister Rawat. A sting video showed him purportedly trying to bribe lawmakers after a clutch of Congress rebels sided with the BJP, triggering a political crisis in the state last year. The corruption taint stuck.

Harish Rawat He lost in both seats he contested. (PTI)

5 The partys grassroots organisation is poor, and it showed. It lost 11 leaders to the BJP, including top candidates such as Harak Singh Rawat, known to have sway over Rajput votes in Garhwal. Yashpal Arya, a senior Dalit leader, also switched sides to the BJP. As did Vijay Bahuguna, whom Harish Rawat had replaced in 2014 after a bitter power struggle. Bahuguna is the son of a former CM and carries his fathers political legacy.

6 Political strategist Prashant Kishor didnt turn things around. He wasnt even roped in until January and his involvement hurt more than it helped because it appeared like the party itself was sidelined.

Prashant Kishor.

7 The Congresss attempt to turn demonetisation of 500- and 1,000-rupee notes, which forced a cash crunch, into a BJP weak link had little resonance in the hills.

Full coverage of 2017 Assembly elections
Analysis of marriage and death data last week shows that there were 281,700 weddings last year compared to 281,000 deaths. Weddings long outnumbered deaths, but the difference narrowed from 150,000 in 1990 to 70,000 in 2010.

There are now more funerals than weddings in Korea as the birthrate remains at a record low and many baulk at the cost of getting married. Last year, the number of marriages and deaths was about even and this year, deaths are expected to outpace nuptials.

More and more young Koreans are delaying marriage while society is aging rapidly. According to Statistics Korea, 280,000 marriages are expected this year but 296,000 deaths. That also affects the business structure, with many wedding halls closing as new funeral parlors pop up.

In 2014, there were 844 registered wedding halls, down 12.8 percent from 968 in 2006, while the number of funeral homes rose 21.5 percent over the same period from 1,570 to 1,908.

Statistics Korea began tracking census and other data in 1970, and the only time there were more deaths than marriages in Korea was in 1973. But that was an exception whereas now the trend seems ingrained.

The number of weddings had stood above 300,000 since the 1990s but fell below 280,000 last year. In contrast, the number of deaths had hovered at around 240,000 since 1990 but rose to 250,000 in 2010 and 280,000 in 2016.

Kim Tae-heon at the Korea National University of Education said, "The number of Koreans of marriageable age is declining while the number of deaths is expected to reach new records."

Provincial regions, which are home to large numbers of senior citizens, have long seen the number of deaths surpass the number of weddings, and the same is true in the major cities of Busan and Daegu. In Seoul, weddings still outnumber deaths, but the difference narrowed from 30,000 in 2012 to 14,000 last year.
RJD President Lalu Prasad Yadav today supported BSP chief Mayawatis allegations that EVMs were tampered in the Uttar Pradesh polls and demanded a probe by the Election Commission.

What Mayawatiji is saying should definitely be probed by the Election Commission, Prasad told reporters.

Its known that Gujarat is the hub of EVM manufacturing, hence tampering of EVMs cannot be ruled out.

We had complained to the EC about this in the past and also held demonstrations on the issue. The EC had assured that mock polls would be conducted in every booth before the actual polling in which representatives of all parties could check whether the EVMs were working properly or not, the RJD chief said in support of demand for probe.

I dont know whether mock polls were held in UP or not, Prasad, who had campaigned in favour of Samajwadi Party said.

BSP chief Mayawati comes for press conference at mall avenue residence in Lucknow, India on Saturday.

He demanded that the EVMs in which votes were counted today should be kept safely and the EC should get it probed whether there were any technical defects in them or not.

On the poll result in UP, Prasad said, The Congress-SP combine failed to communicate properly to the people and BJP managed to lure them with false promises.
As Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi offered congratulations to PM Narendra Modi and the BJP for their wins in the UP and Uttarakhand assembly elections, Twitter, being Twitter, decided that it was the perfect opportunity to dust off their favourite punching bag and take fresh jabs.

While the SP-Congress alliance failed to pay off for Akhilesh Yadav, his decision to partner up with Gandhi in his home state of Uttar Pradesh was widely mocked online. Both Gandhi and Yadav are the heirs to powerful political dynasties, which the memesters wasted no time in reminding everyone.

Another politician who bore the brunt of the attack was Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, who was making strong inroads into Punjab, which his Aam Aadmi Party lost to the Congress.

Here are some of the best memes we found

Right now Akhilesh Yadav to his Dad and Rahul Gandhi to his Mom be like...#ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/4CUGb81uHW  Rashi Kakkar (@rashi_kakkar) March 11, 2017

Haha.. This one is Epic.. SP would have done certainly better if there was no alliance with Cong #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/HsqlIjxvnc  Ankit Chaudhary (@entrepreneur987) March 11, 2017

Jokes Apart. Let's Take A Moment & Thank Rahul Gandhi For Entertaining Us Throughout The Election Campaign..#ElectionResults #Elections2017 pic.twitter.com/7P0mLsGTQV  Sir Ravindra Jadeja (@SirJadeja) March 11, 2017

#ElectionResults Scenes after BJP sweeping Uttar Pradesh #Elections2017

MODI a true leader for Hindustan  pic.twitter.com/TFQfSIyOuO  Sanket Sanghavi (@SanketSanghavi2) March 11, 2017

Once again 56" Rocks !! Feel proud to share this !!#ElectionResults#Elections2017

Uttar Pradesh pic.twitter.com/px6nWTYcAG  Mahesh Vikram Hegde (@mvmeet) March 11, 2017

Akhilesh and Rahul hiding themselves right now. #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/DKJgE1hwDB  Piyush Shahi HMP (@Piyushkshahi) March 11, 2017

Akhilesh: agar elections haar Gaye to?



Rahul Gandhi: tu apna dekh le, hame to aadat hai



#UPElections  Divya (@divyamehraj30) March 11, 2017

#ElectionResults

Rahne do beta tumse na ho payega .... pic.twitter.com/fgN7CkBELz  Rohit Pandey (@Me_Rohit45) March 11, 2017

Full election coverage
They lost the race, by a narrow margin, but are still likely to emerge victorious. Thats the story of BJP, which failed to win a single seat in Manipur in 2012, and is now headed to form the next government.

Despite having the highest number of seats, 28 of the total 60, Congress, which ruled for the past 15 years, is unlikely to get support from the smaller parties, to reach the magic figure of 31 seats.

The BJP, on the other, hand, which got 21 seats, seems to have all the cards at its disposal and just needs to play them well. Party workers and leaders are already celebrating Holi.

This election was the most closely contested one in Manipurs recent history and both sides, Congress and BJP, did their best to win the battle of perception to secure votes.

The ruling Congress tried blaming the Centre for the blockade of highways by United Naga Council and also raked up the 2015 Framework Agreement between New Delhi and NSCN-IM, trying to convey to voters that Manipur might lose territory, if the deal gets implemented.

The BJP, on its part, through high voltage rallies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party chief Amit Shah and home minister Rajnath Singh, successfully managed to fend off the allegations.

Since law and order is a state subject, BJP leaders but the blame of failing to remove the four-month-old blockade at Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singhs door and also assured voters that Manipur wont lose any territory.

The ruling chief minister, who has been at the helm since 2002, was also targeted. In his Imphal rally, Modi called him a 10% chief minister, insinuating Okram Ibobi Singh took a commission for development work.

Despite being part of Nagaland Peoples Front-led government in Nagaland, the party stayed clear of any pre-poll alliance with the outfit in Manipur, keeping in view sentiments of Meiteis in the valley area.

NPF won four seats in the Naga-dominated hills areas, and the party is expected to give outside support to BJP. National Peoples Party, which won four seats and Lok Janshakti with one, are expected to join government.

The partys Assam strategy, of weaning away Congress MLAs ahead of polls, however, had a fifty-fifty success rate. Three of the six Congress legislators, who switched sides, wonthe other three lost.

Since no party secured majority, stability of the government could be a factor in coming days---something which the state hadnt witnessed since 2002.

.

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Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah said on Saturday that the Uttar Pradesh verdict was a validation of the trust and connect that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had developed with the poorer sections of society.

Shah said the saffron partys two alliance partners in Uttar Pradesh would get ministerial jobs in the new government, adding competence will be the only criterion in picking the chief minister.

It is both Holi and Diwali for us today, Shah told journalists.

The politics of appeasement or caste and family affiliations is over. Voters want all-round development and the welfare of the poor.

Rajdeep Sardesai writes on BJP win: Modi 360 and Modi 24X7: Politics of hope, aggression, magnetism

As Modis chief election strategist, the 52-year-old is being credited  after the prime minister  with the partys stunning success in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The victories will also likely silence many party members who resent his closeness to Modi and blamed him for the loss in Bihar assembly polls in 2015.

Shah refused to comment on BSP leader Mayawatis charge that the EVMs were tampered.

The voters  poor sections in particular  have solidly backed the Prime Ministers demonetization move. The poor sections respect the Prime Minister for his efforts in bringing improvements to their living conditions through various governmental initiatives. This is the situation in UP and the other states as well, Shah said.

Asked about the reasons for the defeat of the Congress-Samajwadi Party combine in UP, Shah said, Kaam Bolta Hai  a veiled mocking of state chief Akhilesh Yadavs campaign slogan.

In the case relating to Gayatri Prajapati  the rape accused Samajwadi Party leader who is absconding  the BJP chief said the police would do its job.

He expressed no regret for the BJPs defeat in Punjab, adding that there would be no rethink on the partys alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal. We will study the Punjab verdict, he said.

Shah said he expected the Opposition to come forward to debate every issue in parliament.

Quizzed on the reasons for Prime Minister long stay of three days in Varanasi in the last phase of campaign, the BJP chief said the Prime Minister had himself asked the party to change his schedule for Varanasi. He wanted to meet the people there. He is MP from there.

Follow full election coverage here
The BJPs stunning victory in Uttar Pradesh was a vote for the nationalist powers and will pave the way for the construction of a Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) said on Saturday.

Welcoming the BJPs crushing majority in Indias largest state, the VHP  an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh  said it expected the construction of the temple to start at the earliest.

We believed earlier too that the BJP will fulfill the demand (for a temple), but there is no doubt now that the Ram Temple will be constructed in Ayodhya. We now expect the BJP to do it at the earliest, Surendra Jain, the international joint general secretary of the VHP told HT.

The Shiv Sena also echoed the same sentiment and congratulated the BJP. Rams period of exile has ended, Sena MP Sanjay Raut told reporters.

His comments came as trends and results for UP showed the BJP on course for a two-thirds majority in the state, leaving the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance and the Bahujan Samaj Party far behind.

The RSS-affiliate has been steering the Ram Temple movement and has been pressing the BJP to expedite construction in an issue that is emotive for many Hindus. The controversial temple is also at the heart of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement in the nineties that benefited the BJP. VHP wants a temple built at the site where the Babri Masjid  which was demolished in 1992  once stood.

During the election campaign for the seven-phases UP polls, the BJP brass stayed away from publicly campaigning from the contentious issue, even as some of its more hard-line members such as Yogi Adityanath, stoked the issue to consolidate the Hindutva vote.

The MP  known to make provocative speeches  ensured that the issue of a Temple in Ayodhya found a mention in his public speeches. He assured that a temple would come up even as he took potshots at his opponents, the SP and the BSP for engaging in politics on communal lines.

Senior BJP leader in the state, Vinay Katiyar also raised the issue several times, he was quoted by ANI to have asserted that development, education and employment are there in the city, but are meaningless without the temple.

The RSS and BJP leadership however maintained a safe stance. While RSS brass refrain from commenting on the issue, BJP president Amit Shah chose to leave the decision to the Supreme Court, which is hearing the issue and said, the government under BJP rule would follow constitutional norms to build Ram Mandir in UP.

While releasing the manifesto in Lucknow, he said his government would press for an early solution to the temple issue within the ambit of the constitution.

The VHP, however thinks the issue, which has been a flashpoint between the communities for over decades, could be resolved if the government opts for brining a Bill in Parliament. Jain earlier told Hindustan Times that the VHP has already met over 500 MPs across party lines and has secured their support for the Ram Temple.

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When the Sirsa-headquartered Dera Sacha Sauda declared its support to the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (SAD-BJP) combine with just four days to go for polling in Punjab, the Akalis thought it to be a game-changing move.

The move was fraught with danger given the decade-long history of friction and fracas between the Sikhs and dera followers and the Akal Takhts directive against the dera. The gambit has only blown up in the faces of the Akali Dal.

The Akalis have suffered a rout due to a strong undercurrent of discontent sweeping the three regions  Malwa, Majha and Doaba. Accused of arrogance and high-handedness, the SAD-BJP tally dwindled sharply in a clear indication that the deras call to its followers did not evoke the expected response.

The state is dotted with hundreds of small or big deras, or sects, headed by self-styled godmen with huge followings, especially among the Dalits and poor sections. A few like Radha Soami, Dera Sacha Sauda, Dera Sachkhand Ballan, Dera Nurmahal and Damdami Taksal, which hold a considerable sway, are in great demand in poll seasons with bigwigs of most political parties wooing them fervently for quick electoral gains.

Both Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal paid visits to Dera Radha Soami in Beas and Sachkhand Ballan in the run-up to the state elections. Others like Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh, deputy chief minister Sukhbir Badal and Punjab BJP president Vijay Sampla also did rounds of the deras. The Akalis even fielded Dera Ballans men to woo its followers, but both have lost.

No dera, except the Dera Sacha Sauda, had given a public call to its followers. The Sirsa dera has 35 lakh followers in Punjab  almost 70% of them in Malwa that alone accounts for 69 seats. The Akali Dal, however fared poorly in most of these seats in a clear indication that the deras call did not help them in the end.

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The Election Commission on Saturday said there is no merit to the Bahujan Samaj Partys (BSP) complaints over the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) possibly being tampered with in Uttar Pradesh.

Soon after the BJPs landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh, where it romped home with three-fourths of the 403 seats, the BSP supremo Mayawati dismissed the poll outcome and called for a fresh election.

However, the commission wrote to BSPs national general secretary Satish Misra saying it found no merit in the allegations, and the prayers made in your letter are not legally tenable.

The safeguards are implemented transparently with the involvement of political parties, candidates and their representatives at every stage to build their confidence on efficacy and reliability of EVMs. The prescribed administrative process has been fully complied with in UP and Uttarakhand, the EC wrote.

Mayawati, a former CM of the state who was expected to grab a substantial share of the votes, blamed her partys loss on EVM tampering and shot off a complaint to the poll panel.

While she called for the voting machines to be examined by technical experts from a foreign country and to withdraw their use in future elections, the Commission defended the use of EVMs.

Various preventive and precautionary measures have been put in place by the Commission for the operation, maintenance and storage of the EVMs, the panel wrote, going on to say that the EC has firm conviction and complete satisfaction that EVMs cannot be tampered with.

The Commission also ruled out returning to the ballot system, pointing out that the introduction of the EVMs helped prevent several electoral malpractices and resulted in more efficient conduct of elections.

The courts have upheld the use of EVMsthey are mechanically and electronically protected to prevent any tampering, the BSP was told.

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During the poll campaign in Uttar Pradesh, BJP chief Amit Shah told nearly every journalist he met that once the results were announced, newspapers headline would be: BJP demonetises opposition. He might not be far off the mark.

BJPs stellar show in Uttar Pradesh not only leaves the opposition shell shocked, it also strengthens the grip of Narendra Modi and Shah over the party and the country.

The two politicians from Gujarat have built a new BJP, much to the discomfort of some veterans. They have also created a new social combination that places a premium on the backward communities at the cost of the partys traditional supporters.

The stunning show in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand will go a long way in helping the Modi-Shah duo to continue their experiment of pushing a new set of leaders in these two states, much as they did in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand.

Saturdays result helps Shah in two ways. First, it reinforces his image of being a leader who knows the art of winning elections. Modi called him the man of the match for the BJPs dream run in the 2014 general elections. Under Shahs leadership, the BJP put up its best performance ever first in Uttar Pradesh in Lok Sabha elections  securing 71 of 80 seats in the state  and now in these Assembly polls.

With the routing of the BJP in the Bihar and Delhi Assembly polls in 2015, Shahs image was dented. But he returned with a bang in subsequent elections in other states.

While the BJP did ride the Modi wave in UP, Shahs contributions cant be over-emphasised. It was he and his men who decided every candidate and devised every strategy. The partys stupendous show in UP helps him silence critics in the party who questioned his style of functioning over the past two-and-a half years.

He has been in total command of the party, to the displeasure of others and even the RSS on occasion. From appointments in the party to the distribution of election tickets, Shah had the last word. This victory will give him a reason to be more assertive.

It also gives him more power to bring about desired changes in the BJPs organisation at the central and state levels. Shah is continuing with the old team, and there has been a buzz about an impending reshuffle. His critics blame him for putting a premium on allegiance while assigning organisational jobs. After the result in UP, he can brush such criticism aside and build a team of his own.

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National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Saturday said the early trends of assembly elections show its a BJP tsunami in Uttar Pradesh and not just a ripple in a small pond, while he advised the Opposition to forget 2019 and start planning for the 2024 general elections.

As the trends came in, Abdullah tweeted: In a nutshell there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi & the BJP in 2019. At this rate we might as well forget 2019 & start planning/hoping for 2024.

The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said the Opposition needs to shift its strategy from mere criticism to a positive alternative and the results in other states give some hope that the BJP is not unbeatable.

In a series of tweets, Abdullah said: Punjab, Goa and Manipur would certainly suggest that the BJP isnt unbeatable but strategy needs to shift from criticism to positive alternate. Ive said this before & Ill say it again the voter needs to be given an alternative agenda that is based on what we will do better.

Criticising the PM will only take us so far. The voter needs to know there is an option available to them that has a clear +ve road map, added Abdullah.

How the hell did almost all the experts/analysts miss this wave in UP? Its a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond, he tweeted.

The NC leader also listed the outcomes of the election results for three major fronts in the elections -- the BJP, the Congress and the AAP.

Positives for BJP - obviously UP & Uttarakhand & the overwhelming mandate. Implications for Rajya Sabha & President V/President elections.

Positives for Congress - Punjab & at this stage they have their nose ahead in Manipur & Goa. Big positive AAP has not emerged as alternative.

Positives for AAP - they have emerged as a player in states outside Delhi but they were believed to be winning Punjab at this time last year.
For poll strategist Prashant Kishor, the time for basking in the glory of past achievements just got over.

Though the Congress registered a resounding victory in Punjab, the win was largely attributed to Captain Amarinder Singhs charisma and the ten-year anti-incumbency factor against the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP combine rather than Kishors campaign strategy.

But Kishor will have much explaining to do on his role in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, where the Congress has been reduced to ashes. It was Kishor who had persuaded the Congress leadership to go in for an alliance with the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh and fight the assembly elections under outgoing chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.

The move backfired for the Congress.

Full election coverage here

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Unlike his stint with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, Kishor had a relatively tough assignment with the Congress.

Right from the beginning, he remained a persona non grata in the Congress. At the time of hiring Kishor early last year, Congress leaders had insisted his expertise is needed to help the party adapt to changes in the mode of campaign in the internet age with social media having assumed much significance.

But Kishor found it difficult to implement all his ideas in the grand old party. A few of his suggestions that Rahul Gandhi be declared the partys UP chief ministerial candidate and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra should lead the campaign were rejected outright by the Congress leadership.

A section in the Uttar Pradesh Congress had also complained to the party high command about Kishors autocratic style of functioning and unsolicited interference in organisational matters, and cited his unilateral decision to summon the meetings of party office bearers.

Then, his meeting with Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav had again angered some Congress leaders. Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Raj Babbar claimed that Kishor did not have the mandate to talk on the alliance issue and any negotiation on a tie-up with any political party has to be done by the party leadership and not the poll strategist.

Rajdeep Sardesai writes Modi 360 and Modi 24X7: Politics of hope, aggression, magnetism

Babbar and Kishor were at loggerheads over issues related to the party organisation. Babbar had once remarked that Rahul Gandhi and not Kishor is his leader.

Kishor was in favour of a grand alliance in UP and had contended that the move will check the BJPs rise in the countrys politically important state but Congress leaders were wary of any truck with Mulayam. However, Kishor finally prevailed over the Congress to play the second fiddle to the SP under chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.

He had also rubbed Punjab Congress Captain Amarinder Singh up the wrong way initially by meeting expelled leaders Jagmeet Singh Brar and Bir Devinder. An enraged Amarinder issued a statement that no one had authorised Kishor to meet the expelled leaders and warned him not to exceed his brief.

As reports of unease within the party grew, the Congress clarified that Kishors role is limited only to suggesting relevant points for manifesto and election campaign in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

The party told him in no uncertain terms to stay away from organisational matters and ticket distribution.

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Abe said Japan would continue to assist South Sudan in other ways such as with food and humanitarian support, and will keep some personnel at the UN peacekeeping command office. "As South Sudan enters a new phase of nation-building, we have decided that we can now put an end to our infrastructure building efforts,'' Abe told reporters.

The team, which arrived in South Sudan in November, was Japan's first to have an expanded mandate to use force if necessary to protect civilians and UN staff. The Japanese military's use of force is limited by its post-World War II constitution.

Japan is ending its peacekeeping mission in troubled South Sudan after five years, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Friday. Abe said Japan would not renew the mission after the current rotation returns in May. The 350-person team has focused on road construction.

The decision to withdraw comes amid concern about the safety of Japanese troops in South Sudan.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga denied that was the reason for the decision. "The decision is a result of our comprehensive considerations and not because of the deteriorating security situation," he said. "We have reached a certain point in the repair work.''

Ateny Wek Ateny, a spokesman for South Sudan President Salva Kiir, said he was not aware of the Japanese decision. Japanese officials said Tokyo has notified both South Sudan's government and the United Nations of its decision to end the mission.

The South Sudan mission was the longest for Japanese troops, who also have served in Golan Heights, Cambodia and other areas for post-cease-fire assistance limited to noncombat roles. Japanese opposition lawmakers and peace activists have criticized the Abe government for allegedly violating the country's war-renouncing principles by continuing the mission while clashes occurred in South Sudan.

The departure of the Japanese peacekeepers is a setback for international support of South Sudan's government. In a speech last month, Kiir singled out Abe and Japan for "continued support to the government and people of South Sudan.''

Hopes were high that South Sudan would have peace and stability after its independence from neighboring Sudan in 2011. But the country plunged into ethnic violence in December 2013 when forces loyal to Kiir, a Dinka, started battling those loyal to Riek Machar, his former vice president who is a Nuer.

A peace deal signed in August 2015 has not stopped the fighting, and clashes last July between forces loyal to Kiir and Machar set off further violence. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and forced 3.1 million to flee their homes. An estimated 100,000 people are experiencing famine, and another 1 million people are on the brink of starvation.

The UN Security Council decided in August to send an additional 4,000 peacekeepers after clashes the previous month killed hundreds in South Sudan's capital, Juba. South Sudan initially objected to the force and delayed its deployment. Some progress on sending the extra troops has recently been made, and the deployment of an advance contingent of Rwandan forces is being finalized, according to a report by the UN secretary-general this week.
The Aam Aadmi Party and its Delhi-based leadership that remote controlled the Punjab campaign may have just frittered away the fledgling outfits biggest chance to expand its footprint outside Delhi.

For a party that nurtures national ambitions and is in a hurry to get there, the AAP seems to have made mistakes in the border state that cost it dearly.

Here are five reasons why AAP lost:

The outsider tag stuck: The AAP leadership refused to address the grievances of its regional leaders. AAP bosses in New Delhi threw out Punjab convenor Sucha Singh Chhottepur last year in September. Chhottepur and his supporters had complained against the partys high command imposing central leaders Sanjay Singh and Durgesh Pathak on the Punjab unit. The two, he alleged were foisting outsiders on the state unit. Its key leaders and Sikh faces in the contest HS Phoolka and Jarnail Singh are both from Delhi and not Punjab. Both Congress and SAD-BJP combine used the outsider tag against AAP in their campaign.

Failure to respect the local leadership: It wasnt just Chhottepur and his supporters that AAP leaders in Delhi turned away. Out of the four MPs who won from Punjab in 2014, the party suspended Dharamvira Gandhi (of Patiala) and Harinder Singh Khalsa (Fatehgarh Sahib) over petty differences. They were charged with anti-party activities while the two accused the central leadrship (again) of being undemocratic. Congress reaped the benefit of backing its local leadership under Amarinder Singh.

Excessive focus on Malwa: The party focussed too hard on Malwa which has 69 seats and has traditionally held the key to power in Punjab and not the Majha and Doaba regions which together account for 48 (or 40%) seats in the state. The lop-sided approach left AAP weak in too many spots.

Peaked too early: In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, AAP had won four out of the 13 seats encashing the anti-incumbency in the state against the SAD-BJP combine. Punjab showed it was willing to trust a new comer pushing the party into campaign mode for 2017. But as elections to the assembly drew closer, infighting within the ranks surfaced.

Failure to stitch alliance with Sidhu: AAP wooed and then shooed away former BJP leader Navjot Singh Sidhu who took away with him MLAs Navjot Kaur and Pargat Singh. The alliance could have helped AAP in Majha where Sidhu had won from Amritsar thrice.

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The BJP top brass has started the process to pick its chief minister for Uttarakhand with poll surveys pointing to the partys win in the assembly election, the results of which will be out on Saturday, insiders said.

BJP chief Amit Shah is keeping a watch over the process that is being kept under wraps, they said. He (Shah) recently sought complete information on its four second-rung leaders being considered for the top job from his sources in the partys state unit, a BJP senior leader told HT on Friday.

He was referring to the partys state chief Ajay Bhatt, its national executive member Satpal Maharaj and two other leaders Prakash Pant and Trivendra Singh Rawat.

Maharaj, 66, a relatively new entrant to the BJP, happens to be the most senior leader among them. A former Congress strongman, the spiritual guru joined the BJP after the 2014 Lok Sabha elections following his differences with chief minister Harish Rawat.

Maharaj had been a Union minister of state in the HD Deve Gowda government in the late 1990s. Three other BJP veterans competing for the post of chief minister also have administrative experience. Pant had been the parliamentary affairs minister besides being the first Speaker of the Uttarakhand assembly. Singh and Bhatt had also been ministers. Singh had worked for the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) and Bhatt had been associated with it since his childhood days. Both rose through the ranks like Pant, a BJP strategist.

All of them have a long political innings to play as they are below 60. All these four second-rung leaders of our party fulfil all its administrative and organisational criteria required for the post of chief minister, a senior state BJP office-bearer said. The high command is taking no chance and started the selection process long before the counting day to ensure the best pick for the top job, he said.

No wonder, the partys top brass is appraising all the four candidates administrative and organisational capabilities, a highly placed source in the BJP said. According to him, it is being closely assessed who among the four has the capability to deliver the best in terms of governance.

It is also being assessed who among them would be the most acceptable to party workers and the elected legislators, a party leader said, adding that the best among the four would be picked by the central parliamentary board. His name would be announced among the members of the partys legislature wing and they will accept him as their leader before he would be declared as the chief minister, the party leader clarified.

Sources said Shah and other central leaders have had separate meetings with the four prospective CMs in Delhi.

Maharaj, when contacted, refused to comment on the selection process, nor on reports about the high command having separate meetings with the prospective chief ministers.

Such interactions are common in a party and also a part of the political process, said Maharaj.

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Goas BJP chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar on Saturday suffered a shock defeat to former party leader Dayanand Sopte who had joined the Congress in 2012.

Parsekars loss in Mandrem was one of the biggest setbacks for the BJP in the coastal state where it was facing a stiff challenge from the Congress.

A lifelong BJP politician, Parsekar took over as chief minister in 2014 after Manohar Parrikar left for New Delhi to take up office as the Union minister for defence in Prime Minister Narendra Modis cabinet.

BJP insiders said Parsekar had struggled to impose his will on the party and his government.

#goa Congress workers celebrate win over current BJP CM, laxmikant parsekar in Mandrem #GoaElection2017 @htTweets pic.twitter.com/iQOzdXhQST  Aman Sethi (@Amannama) 11 March 2017

During campaiging for election 2017, the BJP leadership had refused to endorse Parsekar as the partys choice for chief minister. Instead, senior party leaders like Nitin Gadkari and Amit Shah suggested that the high command could ask either Manohar Parrikar or Shripad Naik, another Union minister, to take charge if the party was re-elected.

Sopte, on the other hand, contested his first election in 2007 when he won the Pernem seat on a BJP ticket.

When Pernem was designated as a reserved constituency in 2012, Sopte joined the Congress and contested the Mandrem seat, which he lost to Parsekar, the then chief of the BJPs Goa unit.

Largely unknown outside his constituency, Sopte is believed to be close to Goa Congress chief Luizinho Faleiro, and is expected to get an ministerial seat, should his party form the government.

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The stunning verdict of Punjab voters in favour of the Congress is a historic rebuke to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and a humiliating end of 10-year rule of the SAD-BJP combine in the state.

This hammering of the Akalis at the hustings  with 15 seats in its kitty, down from 56 in 2012  is significant as this is for the first time the party suffered the debacle of this size and scale.

The assembly poll results have left the SAD in tatters. Frontline leaders were decimated along with eight ministers. And, its chief, Sukhbir Singh Badal, had to scrap hard in Jalalabad to win. Clearly, the verdict amounts to a repudiation of SAD patriarch and chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and voters rejecting his development agenda.

LIVE | Punjab election results 2017: Whats happening right now?

In its Malwa bastion, SAD won only eight of the 69 seats and in Majha, it managed to win only Majitha and Batala seats. In the Dalit-dominated Doaba, the party won five seats. Partys Lehra candidate and former finance minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa won with the highest margin of 26,815 votes among the Akali nominees.

Panthic anger, sulking cadre, corrupt coterie that surrounded the Akali leadership alienated the foot soldiers and did the party in. Further, reliance on dera support, doles and the Dalits boomeranged. The open support of deras, especially Sirsabased Dera Sacha Sauda, failed to sail the SAD ship to victory. Sukhbirs much-touted halqa in-charge system to rehabilitate the defeated party men fuelled anti-Akali anger as they became synonymous with cash-and-carry tactics and high-handedness.

Also, Sukhbirs strategy to duck the anti-incumbency ire fell flat. The seats of nine sitting MLAs were changed and 15 MLAs were dropped, while 23 fresh candidates were fielded, besides six turncoats.

Finally, Panth hammered the last nail in the coffin. When in political hot waters, Akalis war cry used to be Panth in peril. It was for the first time that Panth derailed Sukhbirs plan to score a hat-trick at the hustings and dented and damaged the Akalis beyond repair.

At the core of the Panthic anger was non-resolution of sacrilege issue that snowballed into anti-Akali surge. The sulking cadre did not stand to defend the party and deserted the trenches.

The coterie of shady and non-taksali leaders, plus mediocre bureaucrats surrounded Sukhbir.

This led to complete disconnect with the time-tested foot soldiers. They concluded that brokers and middleman have taken over and the party jathedars found themselves unheard at the highest level. This is the single largest reason behind erosion of vote bank and route of the Akali Dal.

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It lost the race by a narrow margin but is still likely to emerge victorious. Thats the story of the BJP, which had failed to win a single seat in Manipur in 2012, and is now headed to form the next government in the northeastern state.

Despite getting the highest number of seats -- 28 of the total 60 -- in the Manipur assembly elections, the Congress, which ruled the state for the past 15 years, is unlikely to get support from smaller parties to reach the magic figure of 31.

The BJP, on the other, hand, which secured 21 seats, seems to have all the cards at its disposal and just needs to play them well. Party workers and leaders are already celebrating Holi.

This election was the most closely contested one in Manipurs recent history and both sides, the Congress and BJP, did their best to win the battle of perception to secure votes.

Read: Manipur polls: Emotional Irom Sharmila quits politics after debut debacle

The ruling Congress tried to blame the Centre for the blockade of highways by the United Naga Council and also raked up the 2015 Framework Agreement between New Delhi and the Naga insurgent group, NSCN-IM -- trying to convey to voters that Manipur may lose territory if the deal is implemented.

The BJP, with the help of high-voltage rallies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party chief Amit Shah and home minister Rajnath Singh, successfully fended off the allegations.

Since law and order is a state subject, BJP leaders accused Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh of failing to remove the four-month-old blockade and assured voters that Manipur wont lose any territory.

The chief minister, who has been at the helm since 2002, was also targeted. Modi in his Imphal rally called him a 10% chief minister, insinuating that Ibobi Singh took commission for development work.

Read: Assembly Elections 2017: Why these results are a bigger feather in Modis cap than the 2014 victory

Despite being part of the Nagaland Peoples Front (NPF)-led government in Nagaland, the party stayed clear of any pre-poll alliance with the outfit in Manipur, keeping in view sentiments of Meiteis in the valley area.

The NPF won four seats in the Naga-dominated hills areas, and the party is expected to give outside support to the BJP.

The National Peoples Party, which won four seats, and the Lok Janshakti, with one, are expected to join the government.

The BJPs Assam strategy, of weaning away Congress MLAs ahead of polls, however, had a fifty-fifty success rate. Three of the six Congress legislators, who switched sides, won. The other three lost.

Since no party secured majority, stability of the government could be a factor in coming days---something which the state hadnt seen since 2002.

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Voters in Manipur failed to give a clear verdict in the assembly polls, with the ruling Congress and a resurgent BJP locked in a close contest in the northeastern state on Saturday.

By 6 pm, 10 hours after counting of votes began, Congress had won 28 of the total 60 seats. The saffron party followed close behind with 21.

Follow live: Election result updates

Smaller parties such as the National Peoples Party (NPP), which bagged 4 seats, and Nagaland Peoples Front (NPF) with 4 would be crucial to government formation in the state.

The saffron party appeared to have the upper hand as the NPP and NPF are already part of BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), an anti-Congress front comprising regional parties.

We may be the second largest party, but we are confident of forming the government as smaller parties and the lone independent winner will be supporting us, said a senior BJP leader on condition of anonymity.

Talks have already begun with NPP, NPF, Lok Janshakti Party (which has one seat) and All India Trinamool Congress (one seat). A meeting of elected BJP legislators is slated late on Saturday night.

The BJP had secured just 2% of the votes in the last elections and failed to win any of the 19 seats it contested. This time it contested all 60 seats.

Due to sentiments in the Meitei-dominated valley area against NPF, efforts are on to get outside support from the party. BJP is part of the NPF-led Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN) government in Nagaland.

Rights activist Irom Sharmila who contested against Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh in Thoubal got only 90 votes. Singh retained the seat with 18649 votes with BJPs L Basanta coming second with 8179 votes.

I dont feel ashamed of my defeat but am fed up of elections and wont contest again in future. But I want my party, Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) to continue, the 43-year-old told Hindustan Times.

Prominent losers were rural development minister in the ruling government M Okendro, who lost to BJP in Heirok, and former Congress minister and National Peoples Party candidate P Tonsing, who lost to BJP in Churachandpur.

Senior BJP leader and potential chief minister candidate Th Chaoba Singh, who lost to N Loken of Congress in Nambol, and former opposition firebrand and BJP candidate from Langthbal O Joy, who lost to Lok Janshakti Party, were other important losers.

Unfortunately, we are below our expectations. BJP tricked voters with money power and false promises. They also colluded with NSCN-IM to rig votes in Naga-dominated areas, state Congress president TN Haokip told HT.

The Congress has also initiated talks with smaller parties, but it is unlikely to cobble the required figure of 31 seats needed to form government.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati dismissed the Uttar Pradesh assembly election results on Saturday afternoon and called for fresh polls, hours after trends and results indicated a crushing victory for her outfit in Indias largest state.

Speaking to reporters, Mayawati accused the BJP  which appeared on course for a two-thirds majority in the 403-member assembly  of murdering democracy and said tampering of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) was responsible for her partys poor showing.

Either the EVMs did not accept votes other than BJP, or the votes of other parties have gone to BJP in the EVMs, news agency ANI quoted the Dalit leader as saying.

I have written to Election Commission in this regard, people no more have faith in EVM machines: Mayawati,BSP #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/3EkbRZHf8h  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

Polling should be held afresh under the old system in which voters were given ballot papers to cast their vote. Even in USA ballot papers are used in elections after technical fault was detected in EVMs, she said.

She said she had written to the election commission to cancel the election results. The BSP  which was attempting to forge a Dalit-Muslim alliance  was pushed to a dismal third position, leading in just 20-odd seats.

The EVMs should be sealed and examined by technical experts from a foreign country or else BJP will manage local experts. The use of EVMs should be stopped in future Lok Sabha, assembly and local bodies election also, else the ruling party will manipulate the results, she said.

Talking to HT, an election commission officer ruled out tampering of EVMs. In 2009 Lok Sabha election too, some political parties raised the issue of manipulation in the EVMs. The EC had got it checked by technical experts. The EC has also introduced Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) EVMs where the voter gets a paper slip after he casts his vote. The name of the political party and symbol is mentioned on the slip, he said.

In her press conference, Mayawati said the BJP won the election in Muslim-dominated areas of West UP and Rohilkhand. The Muslim voters have not supported the BJP then how come their vote has been transferred to BJP. Several Muslim community leaders expressed surprise over the massive victory of BJP candidates in their constituency, she added.

After the 2014 Lok Sabha election, non-BJP political parties raised the issue of EVM tampering before the election commission. Similar grievance was raised by political parties after Maharashtra municipal election, she said.

In the press conference held by Mayawati on March 6, a journalist had raised the issue of tampering of EVMs. She had then rejected his allegation and rebuffed him, stating that he was a BJP agent. On Saturday she said, I was not aware that the journalist was aware of the manipulations in the EVMs.

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The BJP swept to power in Uttar Pradesh with a two-thirds majority on Saturday and the largest vote share of any party in the state since 1957. While the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance fared poorly, the biggest loser was the Bahujan Samaj Party.

This is how the BJP won Indias most-populous state:

1. The Modi factor

Prime Minister Narendra Modi evokes massive admiration across Uttar Pradesh. Voters believed he had delivered on his promises. The enthusiasm for demonetisation may have subsided along the line, but the faith in Modi as a decisive leader didnt. From Jan Dhan Yojana, to Indias image abroad, to the general idea of development, people felt the man would transform India and UP. Modi too seized on his enduring appeal and campaigned extensively in the state.

2. Organisation

While the Samajwadi Party was caught in an internal feud and the BSP in a state of virtual invisibility, the BJP was on with its campaign. The party organised 88 youth-centric, 77 women-centric, 200 OBC-centric, 18 Dalit-centric and 14 trader-centric events, and held numerous state, regional and sector-level meetings with booth workers. It deployed 403 Parivartan Vans in each constituency. The party also launched a Mann ki Baat campaign that received 34 lakh responses. It created four Facebook pages and 6,608 Whatsapp groups.

3. The 60 percent formula

The BJP assumed that Muslims, and a majority of Yadavs and Jatavs, would not vote for the party. This would leave 55-60% of the electorate for BJP to target. So the party put together a plan to pool together upper-caste Hindus, non-Yadav OBCs and non-Jatav Dalits into a sweeping voter base. It gave them space across the organisation. The state president was an OBC; many district office bearers were from OBC communities; the party gave the highest number of tickets it has ever done to people from OBC communities. And it provided a narrative of how it would channel their aspirations, and counter the domination of Yadavs.

4. Hindu card

The party carefully played the Hindu card. The strategy was clear in west UP, where candidates proudly declared themselves to be the epitome of Hindu pride. PM Modi himself brought up Diwali and Ramzan, kabristan and shamshanghat right after the third phase. In rally after rally, Amit Shah directly accused the SP government of dispensing development benefits based on religious and caste identity.

5. Mistakes others made

The family feud in SP took a toll on its campaign momentum. Akhilesh Yadav was unable to wash off anti-incumbency. The delay in ticket distribution and campaigning cost him dearly. The alliance with Congress seems to have yielded little benefit. The Bahujan Samaj Party is left with little besides its core vote. The fact that Mayawati sits in Delhi and Lucknow, and barely travels to the districts when in Opposition, has come back to haunt her.
Buoyed by BJPs stunning victory in Uttar Pradesh assembly poll, the partys senior Bihar leader Sushil Kumar Modi thanked Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for not contesting in the state, which, he said, helped his party to come to power.

Nitish Kumar not fighting UP elections also helped BJP. Thanks to Nitishji, he said.

The senior party leader took a dig at RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav saying, If Lalu Prasadji would not have gone to UP and abused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Samajwadi Party could have gained 2-4 seats.

Watch: What made Modi the Shah of Uttar Pradesh

Crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the partys strong showing in the high-stakes UP assembly polls, he said the resounding victory is a result of his policies such as demonetisation.

Victory of BJP in UP is victory of NaMo and demonetisation, he tweeted.

Showering praise on BJP national president Amit Shah, Sushil Modi in another tweet said Shah is the man of the match.

UP was able to counter anti-Reservation and outsider tags which we couldnt do in Bihar, he said.

Bihar BJP leaders  Bihar unit chief Nityanand Rai, leader of opposition Prem Kumar and senior party leader Nand Kishore Yadav, among others, celebrated the partys victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand at the state party office on Saturday.

Rai also credited Prime Minister Narendra Modis ability to connect with the poor for the unprecedented mandate the party has received.
Holi started early at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) office in Lucknow on Saturday.

Uttar Pradesh BJP president Keshav Prasad Maurya, 48, was the most sought after leader at the partys state headquarters as it became clear the BJP was on course to end its vanvaas in UP. Maurya, however, credited the victory to Modi magic.

Maurya had addressed nearly 250 rallies during the campaign, the most by a BJP leader.

His campaign credo, inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modis during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, was: Yeh sochkar vote dijiyega ki aapka Keshav chunaav lad raha hai (vote considering the fact as if your Keshav is contesting the polls).

HT caught up with the BJPs man of the moment and a likely contender for the chief ministers post.

Q: Has the outcome really sunk in?

A: Well, I had already said, abki baar, 300 paar (This time, more than 300 seats). We were confident of a two-third majority. The results are yet another confirmation of the countrys trust in PM Modi. The UP results will affect the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Now its certain that the country will re-elect Modiji in 2019.

Q: But were you seriously hoping for this kind of a sweep?

A: We were. Its a confirmation that Modijis appeal hasnt dimmed. In fact, his magic is increasing. In a democracy people are king and they believed in Modijis sabka saath, sabka vikas (development for all).

Q: BJP had said that UP results would be a virtual referendum on demonetisation.

A: The results are there for all to see. Modiji kept on saying that each and every move of his is taken for the welfare of the poor. The poor believed the PM. I hope UP ke ladke (a reference to Akhilesh Yadav) as well as BSP and other cynics too realise now.

Q: So who is going to be the CM candidate? Are you among the front runners?

A: The partys parliamentary board will decide on the CM-pick. The BJP has several candidates and who becomes the CM is not for the state unit to decide anyway.

Q: What are going to be partys focus areas, your agenda?

A: Azam Khans buffaloes are certainly not going to be the focus as was the case during SP rule. Our focus, our commitment would be the Lok Kalyan Sankalp Patra that we are committed to. Our Sankalp Patra would usher in true Ram Rajya in UP. We will focus on development of all, appeasement of none.

Q: Did your rural penetration and OBC connect strategy pay dividends?

A: Rural UP responded to Modijis appeal as did urban UP. OBCs sided with BJP for sure as did other caste groups. In fact, UP didnt vote for BJP on caste lines. It voted for development.

Q: You had in your rallies promised probe into cases of corruption by SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawati. Have you had a change of heart?

A: No. We will definitely inquire into cases of corruption and action would be taken against whosoever is found guilty. We wont compromise on corruption. Akhilesh tried to project a false reality of development through advertisements.

Q: Would your allies Apna Dal and SBSP be a part of the government?

A: Yes. I believe so. But the final decision would of course be taken by the party high command.

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Faced with a shrinking pool of visas, the U.S. embassy in Kabul has started turning away Afghan military translators and other Afghan nationals seeking to immigrate to the United States through a decade-old special visa program.

A State Department official said Friday the embassy stopped scheduling new special immigrant visa interviews for Afghans on March 1 after concluding that it had enough unused visas only for those who are already in the final stages of the application process.

As of March 5, only 1,437 special immigrant visas were available for Afghans, while there were more than 15,000 Afghans in various stages of the application process, the official said, adding that the embassy expects to exhaust its pool of visas by June 1.

"The department regularly makes adjustments to our visa processing in order to ensure that we do not exceed the visa numbers allocated by Congress," the official said, requesting anonymity to discuss the change in policy. "We do not expect to resume scheduling appointments unless new SIV numbers are allocated by Congress."

While the official said the U.S. remains committed to supporting Afghans that have helped the U.S. mission at great personal risk, advocates for Afghan refugees slammed the decision.

"This devastating development means that thousands of trusted allies will remain in danger, waiting for Congress to allocate visas that were clearly needed months ago," said Betsy Fisher, policy director for the International Refugee Assistance Project in New York.


In BJPs landslide in Uttar Pradesh, Asaduddin Owaisis All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) failed to make a start in its electoral debut and drew a blank in all the 39 seats it contested.

In a state with 19.3% Muslim voters, AIMIM fielded candidates on seats where Muslim voters were in large numbers and focused its campaign there.

However, the results were a complete letdown.

The most prominent AIMIM candidate was Zia-ur-Rehman, the grandson of BSP MP Shafeequr Rehman Barq. Rehman finished second in Sambhal with 60,426 votes behind SPs Iqbal Mehmood who got 79,248.

Another promising AIMIM candidate Mohd Tabish Khan came fifth with 19,040 votes from Mehdawal seat (Sant Kabir Nagar). BJPs Rakesh Singh Baghel won the seat, polling 86,97 votes.

Owaisi said the results proved that secular parties have failed the Muslims yet again and asserted that the Muslim vote bank is a myth.

We contested only in 38 seats and even if you say we played spoilsport in these seats, what about other constituencies? Why these secular parties failed miserably is the question they need to answer, Owaisi told HT.

He said there is no point in getting into a blame game unless secular parties make up their mind to see the reality and empower Muslims.

The focus should be empowerment and not playing vote bank politics, which in any way is a myth.

AIMIM had held its first public rally post demonetisation at Shohratgarh in Siddhartnagar on December 19.

Buoyed by the public turnout at Shohratgarh, AIMIM office-bearers had exuded confidence of making inroads and opening its account in the UP assembly.

By targeting the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) and the BJP in his election speech, the firebrand AIMIM chief made it clear who he would attack. In his speeches, he highlighted failures of the SP government in Muslim dominated assembly constituencies.

The Muslim leader, who was denied permission by authorities to hold meetings in communally sensitive cities like Kanpur, Agra, Azamgarh and Saharanpur, said he would continue to focus on UP. This is our first election in the state. We are here to stay.
The Uttar Pradesh election results not only underline Rahul Gandhis failure, but also that of Priyanka Gandhi who was part of the poll strategy, Union minister Smriti Irani said on Saturday.

Taking a dig at Rahul over Congress poor performance in the crucial state polls, Irani said only blaming the AICC vice president will be an injustice to him.

One has to do justice. This is not only Mr Rahul Gandhis failure. Ghulam Nabi Azad had very magnanimously claimed that Priyanka is very much part of the strategy.

I think the sibling (Priyanka) waiting in the wings has equally failed. So to say only Rahul has failed will be injustice to him, she told reporters New Delhi.

The Union textile minister said that she would like to ask the Congress vice president in Akhilesh style that khao ganga maa ki kasam aur batao UP ko kiska saath pasand hai (Swear in the name of mother Ganga and say whom does Uttar Pradesh like).

Irani had contested against Rahul Gandhi from Amethi in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and lost.

On being asked whether she was a contender for the chief ministers post, the BJP leader said there was no need to speculate and that the partys Parliamentary Board will take a decision in this regard.

The partys massive win in the state is a victory of Prime Minister Narendra Modis government at the Centre, she said.

In our party merit wins over dynasty. This is one political organisation which has made a humble citizen as the prime minister of the country. This victory is the victory of the Modi government and its policies, Irani added.

The BJP and its allies marched ahead in 305 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh as per trends from all the 403 seats, which showed the SP-Congress coalition leading in 68 places and BSP in only 20.
Despite Modi-magic sweeping state polls in Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand, Punjab proved to be an antithesis. In the results declared on Saturday, Bharatiya janata party (BJP) suffered a major setback as it could win only 3 seats of total 23 candidates it fielded.

The saffron partys fortunes sunk with its coalition partner Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which could only win on just 15 seats out of total 94 of its candidates. BJP is falling considerably from the previous two assembly polls. It won 19 seats in 2007 and 12 in 2012. Similarly the vote share is also shrinking 5.4% this time, 7.13% in 2012 and 8.21% in 2007.

BJP won one each seat in three regions of the state  Majha, Doaba and Malwa. Its two candidates  Dinesh Singh Babbu from Sujanpur and Som Parkash from Phagwara repeated, and first timer Arun Narang got elected from Abohar. Som Parkash won despite opposition by Sampla camp.

It two ministers  Anil Joshi who held the portfolio of local bodies minister in SAD-BJP coalition government and Surjeet Jyani a health minister, both lost badly from Amritsar North and Fazilka. Jyani came poor third and while Joshi a runner lost with a margin of over 11,000 votes.

BJP has lost en-block all its seats in the urban sectors where it has its trusted vote bank. It lost all four in Amritsar and three each in Jalandhar and Ludhiana, where its a huge losing margin from 5,000 to 42,000 votes.

Demonetization announced by PM Narendra Modi in November month last year proved a setback for the BJP, which is visible in its performance in the urban sector. It seems BJP leaders felt the undercurrents, as its candidate Anil Joshi in one of his poll campaign meetings openly sought forgiveness from the people of his constituency, claiming not role in it.

The saffron party also badly lost on semi-urban seats such as Rajpura (Harjeet Grewal with 32,557 margin), Pathankot (Ashwini Sharma with 11,170 margin), Hoshiarpur (Tikshan Sud with 11,233 margin) and Ferozpur city (Sukhpal Singh Nannu with 29,587 margin).

BJP in Punjab, actually, failed to insulate itself from the negative perception its coalition partner SAD earned after ten years of rule in the state. This was expected because we failed to protect ourselves from the public ire Akalis suffered. We were punished a severely as Akalis, said a BJP leader who doesnt want to be quoted at a wrong time. Leaders in the party are also questioning state unit president Vijay Samplas wisdom on the choice of candidates.

Sampla magic could only work on a new face from Abohar where a debutant Arun Narang and other two are old timers. As the party leaders in BJP are seeking Samplas head, he said, he bows his head to the mandate by people.

A beginning was made by the partys top leaders to disassociate itself from the Akali after the poor results in 2014 parliament, when BJP made government in the centre but Punjab was a dampener. Balramji Das Tandon now governor Chhattisgarh, in his report post the 2014 polls asked SAD-BJP to discontinue system of centralising power to halqa incharge and other course correction, later voices were raised by the BJP cadres to disassociate itself from the Akalis, but the suggestions became meaningless for the saffron party cadres in the desire to continue in the government.

Other than it personal reasons BJP also suffered due to external factors. Maur bomb blast five days before the poll day killing six persons, the attempts by aam aamdi party (AAP) to placate the radicals and drifting towards the radicals, it seems the Hindu voters drifted en-masse towards the Congress. Top national leaders of the party who campaigned in Punjab gave a token presence, their failed to make much difference to their partys poll fortunes.

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In the electoral battle between a Captain and a General, Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh showed little mercy on his superior (going by the army ranks they held) JJ Singh of the Akali Dal . The Captain decimated the General by 52,335 votes, the highest ever victory margin in Punjab assembly polls. Worst still, JJ Singh finished a poor third and forfeited his security deposit.

Capt Amarinder bagged 72,586 votes, almost 70% of total votes polled. General JJ Singh was polled only 11,677 votes, less than Dr Balbir Singh of the Aam Aadmi Party, who bagged 20,179 votes to stand second.

Also read | UK Punjabis hail Congress win; Amarinder on trial

Also read | Election results: A happy birthday for Amarinder, set to be Punjab chief minister

The Capt juggernaut went full steam right from the first round of the counting and the margin kept increasing as the time progressed. After third round, General JJ Singh could see the writing on the wall as the lead surpassed 10,000 votes. I accept defeat and wish good luck for Amarinder for the victory and on his birthday. I will remain available for Patiala residents for help, said JJ Singh, as he left the counting hall.

In his four consecutive wins from Patiala seat, Amarinders victory margin has been increasing. In 2012, Amarinder won by 42,318 votes and in 2007 polls, his victory margin was 32,695. Amarinders first win from Patiala seat was in year 2002 and he became the chief minister at that time.

As Amarinder was busy canvassing in Punjab, his wife Preneet Kaur, daughter Jayainder Kaur and granddaughter Seherinder Kaur, held the fort for him.

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For Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh, his 75th birthday on Saturday will probably rank as the most memorable.

A former soldier, he scripted a huge win for the Congress in Punjab, proving most exit polls wrong that predicted a tight contest with Arvind Kejriwals Aam Aadmi Party.

While the AAP was left miles behind, the ruling SAD-BJP recorded its worst-ever performance in the state.

In his home turf of Patiala, the Captain prevailed over the general when he beat former army chief and Shiromani Akali Dal candidate Gen JJ Singh. He lost to chief minister Parkash Singh Badal in Lambi, but is not complaining.

Before he entered the poll arena, Amarinder had to do some fighting of his own. He literally arm-twisted the party high command into dropping his predecessor, Partap Bajwa, to hand over the state unit to him.

A third straight defeat on his watch would have been a loss of face for Amarinder personally and a big blow to the party.

Out of favour and sidelined after the 2012 shock defeat, Amarinders political career was resurrected by bitter rival Bajwa.

Ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election, he proposed that Amarinder take on BJPs Arun Jaitley from Amritsar, an election that he won.

Bajwa, on the hand, lost to BJPs Vinod Khanna in Gurdaspur.

An emboldened Amarinder openly took on Bajwa and even challenged the leadership of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, dubbing him a political novice.

His threat to split the Punjab Congress seemed to have worked, as the high command named him the state chief a fourth time.

Captains promises End drug menace in four weeks Debt waiver for farmers One job per family Boost industry and trade

But, it was a different Amarinder that Punjab saw this time.

Poll strategist Prashant Kishor built several campaigns around Brand Captain such as Coffee with Captain or Halke Vich Captain (Captain in assembly segment).

He also ensured that Amarinder was on the move, was accessible to workers and his poll pitch resonated with the youth, who account for half the states voters.

The former royal was no more the chopper-hopping politician, who started his campaign day late and ended it early.

This time, he was the early bird -- he hit the road in January 2016, a year before the election was called.

Amarinder also dumped his infamous coterie for the war-room led by Kishors team, I-PAC. He worked closely with high command appointees such as Asha Kumari and Harish Chaudhary and his grandson, Nirvan Singh.

Amarinder has won a famous victory for the Congress, battered by at a string of poll defeats. But, he has promised voters the moon. His real test will be to come good on his promises.

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Its curtains for Shiromani Akali Dal patriarch Parkash Singh Badal, who strode Punjab like a colossus for 69 years.

Badal, who at 89 was the oldest chief minister in country, was on way out on Saturday after his SAD clocked it worst-ever tally of 15 in the 117-member Punjab assembly.

The man who owed his almost 70-year long political innings to his extraordinary connect with the common man was vanquished by the Congress led by bete noire and former Patiala royal Capt Amarinder Singh.

Badal can, however, draw some consolation from his win over Amarinder from his stronghold Lambi, which he retained by a margin of more than 22,000 votes. Amarinder, who won from Patiala, finished a poor third in the race.

Its an unceremonious exit for the five-time chief minister who had a shoe hurled at him in the run-up to the election as his government faced public anger over corruption and the drug menace the border state is battling.

It must have come as a shock to Badal who practised decorum in political discourse, said Jagroop Sekhon of political science department in Amritsars Guru Nanak Dev University.

It also marks the end of bridge or moderate politics that came to define Badal.

Despite being a staunch Akali, Badal was a great reconciler, said Ashutosh Kumar, who teaches political science at Chandigarhs Panjab University.

Badal led several morchas (protest movements) over issues facing the state and Sikhs but never adopted an anti-Hindu or anti-India stance even when Sikh insurgency was at its peak, Kumar said.

In fact, Badal, who partnered the Jan Sangh four times, is one of the oldest allies of the BJP, a partnership in its twentieth year.

Badal, an 11-time MLA, transformed the panthic party, with focus firmly on Sikhs, into a Punjabi party that fielded 11 Hindus in the 2012 polls.

For Hindus, who account for 42% of Punjabs population, he was the biggest guarantor of peace after the end of militancy. Starting out as a sarpanch -- he was youngest to be elected to that office in Punjab -- Badal support base were farmers or the Jat Sikhs to whom he gave a slew of subsidies, including free power.

A shrewd politician, he also wooed the Dalits, who account for 31.9% of the states population, with the atta-dal scheme and other freebies that won him a second successive term in 2012.

But the largesse made both the peasantry and the Dalits dependent on doles. The green revolution had run its course but Badal failed to diversify.

Though the Satluj Yamuna Link canal has been a stumbling block for 34 years, Badal did little to resolve it. Congresss Amarinder Singh blames him for the recent Supreme Court ruling asking Punjab to complete its side of the canal, saying, Badal failed to put Punjabs point across in the court.

Badal also undermined the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and Akal Takht, the two pillars of Sikh politics. Its a fact that Badal, as SAD leader, decided the chief of the SGPC, which is responsible for the upkeep of gurdwaras.

But, the most damning charge against Badal is of nepotism --turning SAD, the countrys second oldest party known for its strong cadre, into a family affair.

The cabinet had three members of his family  son Sukhbir Badal, son-in-law Adesh Partap Singh Kairon and Sukhbirs brother-in-law Bikram Singh Majithia.

Deputy chief minister Sukhbirs wife Harsimrat is a union minister. Eager to prop Sukhbir as his heir and to ensure a smooth sailing for him, Badal allocated tickets to the kin of his party colleagues, effectively decimating the partys cadre-based structure.

Charges of corruption and widespread drug abuse in the state ultimately led to his downfall. People may blame Sukhbir, but it happened under Badals watch, Sekhon said.

The Akalis lost because Badal centralised power and decentralised terror, he said, referring to the party halka (assembly segment) in-charges, who were hand-picked by Sukhbir and became a law unto themselves.

Above all, Punjab declined under Badal, who had showed immense promise when he introduced Adarsh schools and industrial focal points.

Once among the five richest states of the country, Punjab now ranks 12th on the basis of gross domestic product. The ageing patriarch did little for the youth, who count for 53% of the states voters. Punjabs unemployment rate of 16.8% was way ahead of the national average of 11.6% in 2015-16.

The discontent against the Badal government can be gauged from the fact that Punjab saw 25,000 protests, the highest in country, between 2008 to 2015, records of the Bureau of Police Research and Development show.

Its an irony that a political leader who drew strength from people failed to sense their mood. Even after the partys worst showing, he seemed bemused, choosing to focus on his victory and that of his son.

Badal has been a survivor. That he will live on in the history of Punjab is a given. Whether his party will be able to survive under his son is another matter.

Five highs 1) A proponent of communal harmony, Badal kept divisive elements at bay during Sikh insurgency 2) An advocate of bridge politics, he maintained communal harmony by forging alliances with the Jan Sangh and then the BJP 3) Transformed SAD into an inclusive, moderate Punjabi party 4) Led SAD to two consecutive assembly election wins, unprecedented in the history of the state 5) Put development and governance on top of the electoral agenda, even if at the level of rhetoric

Five lows 1) Destroyed the SADs cadre-based structure, reducing it to a family fiefdom 2) Presided over one of the most corrupt governments in the state, packing his cabinet with his son, son-in-law and sons brother-in-law 3) Damaged the democratic character of both the SGPC and the Akal Takht, the two pillars of the Sikh panth 4) Was ambivalent in his stand on Sikh militants 5) Failed to handle the sectarian conflicts with the Nirankaris and the Dera Sacha Sauda
One was new to politics, the other a veteran. But both were heavyweights in their own right, coming from commanding political dynasties.

Samajwadi Partys Aparna Yadav, 26, known as Chhoti Bahu, was attempting to wrest the prestigious Lucknow Cantonment seat from sitting MLA Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who switched loyalty from the Congress to the BJP late last year.

But as trends and results poured in on Saturday, it became clear that the veteran Joshi had grabbed a decisive lead over the novice, whose gamble of winning a non-secure seat appeared to have failed.

Talking to Hindustan Times, Joshi said, I have developed a personal relationship with Lucknow Cantonment. Added to it is the charm of BJP, which has won the constituency five times in a row till I won it in 2012. I knew that it will be easy for me to win the seat.

Aparnas father-in-law Mulayam Singh Yadav is the former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. Joshis father, the late Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna, too, was the UP chief minister. Aparnas brother-in-law Akhilesh Yadav is the incumbent UP chief minister. Joshis brother Vijay Bahuguna had been the Uttarakhand chief minister.

Both also have strong links to the academic world. Aparna has studied international politics at the University of Manchester and Joshi is a retired history professor of Allahabad University.

Joshi is also turning out to be the top turncoat winner of this season in UP.

For the first time, the Samajwadi Party (SP) fielded a Yadav clan member for a seat that it has never won before. Joshi wrested the Lucknow Cantonment seat from BJP in 2012. Earlier, the BJP had won the seat five times since 1991.

Aparna had a headstart in campaigning as SP had announced ticket to her in March 2016 itself, while Joshi got the ticket shortly before the poll notification.

The Shivpal Yadav camp had announced a ticket for Aparna in March last year when the SP feud was nothing more than an undercurrent.

When the feud became intense, and two separate lists of candidates started coming from the SP and Aparnas political fate looked uncertain. The picture turned rosy for her when Akhilesh Yadav confirmed the ticket to her in his final list. But the BJP giving the ticket to Joshi had made Lucknow Cantt a level-playing field.

Mulayams elder daughter-in-law Dimple Yadav, too, had lost her first election to Congress Raj Babbar in Firozabad Lok Sabha by-polls in 2009.

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The BJPs dominant show in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls has put a big question mark over the politics of maha gathbandhan in the run up to the 2019 general elections.

The third front alternative  a coalition of big and small parties  have assumed power on two occasions at the Centre and several times in Uttar Pradesh.

Follow Live: Election result updates

As late as 2015, a mahagathbandhan of the JD(U), RJD and Congress had successfully checkmated the saffron party in Bihar.

But the near decimation of the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance in Uttar Pradesh might have ended prospects of a coming together of oppostion parties in the next Lok Sabha polls.

Old socialists, who had successfully orchestrated identity politics in the Hindi heartland states in the last three decades, are either dead or have been diminished by advancing age.

Much hope was reposed in the youthful Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav to emerge the poster boy of a reinvented brand of socialist politics.

The SP-Congress alliance of UP was no more than a patchwork as compared to the show of complete unity put up by the RJD-JDU-Congress in adjoining Bihar ahead of the 2015 assembly elections.

Akhilesh spurned offers from Ajit Singhs Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and Nitish Kumars Janata Dal (United) to align with the grouping. There was no effort to rope in BSP leader Mayawati for a pre-poll alliance. The absence of Sonia and Priyanka Gandhi also took considerable sheen off the maha gathbandhan pitch.

The outcome may have been somewhat different if more effort had been made in stitching together a genuine alliance, an SP leader said.

Coalition governments have come into existence on several occasions in UP, but none of these have lasted a full term, mainly due to clash of egos between regional satraps. The SP-Congress alliance was not able to achieve traction with voters on account of this  and other related factors, a veteran UP watcher said.

It is a thumping loss and devastating setback to alternative politics. The message is loud and clear: Regional leaders must sink differences and take lessons from the Bihar model. It is a now-or-never situation, JD (U) spokesperson KC Tyagi said.

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UP coalition governments

 1967: Chaudhary Charan Singh (Bharatiya Kranti Dal) becomes chief minister of the first non-Congress coalition government which lasts 328 days.

 Mulayam Singh Yadav (Janata DalSocialist) becomes chief minister in December 1989, supported by Congress. Government lasts one year, 201 days.

 Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP) becomes chief minister in 1993, supported by the BSP. Government lasts one year and 181 days.

 Mayawati (BSP) becomes chief minister in March 1997 with the support of the BJP. Government lasts 184 days.

 Mayawati (BSP) becomes chief minister in May 2002, with support of the BJP. Government lasts one year and 118 days.

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Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday conceded defeat in the state and said the loss of his Samajwadi Party would be analysed. He also said that the alliance with the Congress will continue despite the defeat.

I accept the peoples verdict. I congratulate the people for their choice, Akhilesh Yadav said at a press conference here. Asked about Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawatis allegation of voting machines being tampered with, he said: If question has been raised on EVMs, the government should probe it. I will also look at it on my level.

Watch | How BJP won Uttar Pradesh: Decoding the Dalit vote

On the impact of demonetisation on the polls, he said, People were told the money of the rich would come to the bank and go to the poor. Let us see how much of the post-demonetisation money reaches the poor.

Asked if he would take the responsibility for the defeat, Akhilesh Yadav said: We will first analyse the defeat, I can comment only after that.

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The massive victory of the BJP in the Uttar Pradesh election has come as a surprise. While it was expected that it would be the single-largest party, there was also a perception that there could be a hung assembly due to the aggressive fight by opposition parties. As in 2014, it is a Modi rather than a BJP victory. The lack of strong BJP leaders in UP and a CM candidate did not matter as Narendra Modi took over the role of the chief campaigner. Also, the BJP has evolved into a disciplined, cadre-based party under its president Amit Shah, who has run a well-organised campaign.

While much has been said about Modis charisma, a fundamental reason for the success of the BJP is the lack of mass leaders in the Samajwadi Party, and more particularly the Congress. The emergence of Akhilesh Yadav as a young, development-oriented leader came too late and he could not shed the baggage of the SP as a feudal, corrupt party that tolerated riots in 2013 and has links with mafia dons. Also, the absence of Mulayam Singh Yadav, a senior, backward caste leader, worked against the party. For the Congress, dynasty has clearly not worked; Rahul Gandhi has not delivered over a number of elections. Many capable, second-line leaders in the party have been sidelined; where local leaders get space the party has performed well, as in Punjab.

The SP-Congress alliance, therefore, proved to be a disaster. It was hoped the former would attract the Yadav and Muslim votes; the latter upper caste votes. But, the upper castes moved towards the BJP while the Muslim vote got divided between the alliance and the BSP, giving the BJP an advantage. Moreover, the alliance leaders calculated narrowly on the basis of caste/community; they spent their time attacking Modi offering no alternative agenda to the electorate.

The BSP has performed poorly. While the 2000s have witnessed a decline in identity politics, it would be wrong to write off the BSP or Mayawati. Caste-based inequality remains a reality; but identity alone no longer appeals to the Dalits or Muslims. A young, post-Independence, educated, lower middle-class generation is demanding quality education, jobs and rapid development in UP. In 2007, Mayawati introduced a broad-based developmental agenda, but her reaching out to the Brahmins disappointed the Dalits. Clearly, she has the complex task of bringing together identity and development, to remain politically relevant.

In contrast, the BJP cast it net wider. Since the late 1990s, the BJP has been mobilising to create a more inclusive, non-Brahminical Hindutva through the RSS and local leaders such as Yogi Adityanath. Modis communal remarks were not so much against Muslims, but to consolidate this new Hindutva vote-bank. They paid rich dividends: The Jats in western UP, the OBCs in eastern UP and non-Jatav Dalits have supported the BJP. Added to this, Modis promise of development and clever twisting of demonetisation into a class issue, which would extract black-money from the rich, has made him the messiah of the poor.

The results suggest a tectonic shift in UP and national politics; the BJP has made a big breakthrough after 15 years. We are witnessing the emergence of a post-identity, post- globalisation polity where an aspirational and consumerist Hindu middle-class focused on development does not seem bothered by the rise of a majoritarian democracy. The collapse of the Congress and the social justice parties in UP  a key state  has perhaps opened the door for consolidation of Right-wing forces in the country and the possibility of victory in 2019.

Sudha Pai is national fellow, Indian Council of Social Sciences, and former professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University

The views expressed are personal
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has won 56 of Uttarakhands 70 seats to wrest power from the Congress, which managed to win only 11.

Result of Lohaghat assembly constituency will be declared on March 15 after a re-polling at a booth where results in an EVM didnt show up due to technical glitch, the Election Commission has said.

Bitten by Modi wave swaying Uttarakhand, chief minister Harish Rawat, who lost from both the seats he contested, tendered his resignation to governor KK Paul on Saturday evening.

The Congress debacle showed its poor connect with the grassroots workers, especially after it lost 11 leaders to the BJP, including Harak Singh Rawat, Yashpal Arya and former CM Vijay Bahuguna.

Also, what worked for the BJPs cause was the one-man show by outgoing chief minister Rawat, who has been accused of corruption following more than one sting operation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi promise of central funds and all around development of the state clicked with people.

The BJP has wrested power from the Congress, but would have tough time to select the chief minister with many senior leaders, including former atleast three CMs, vying for the post.

The BJPs parliamentary party is meeting in Delhi on Sunday to decide on the future course. The new CM is likely to be elected after Holi.

Here are the highlights of Uttarakhand assembly election results:

9/30pm: The Election Commission has ordered a re-polling at booth number 128 of Lohaghar assembly constituency on March 15 after results in an EVM didnt show up due to a technical glitch. The results will be announced at 6pm that day, the EC said.

5.34pm: Latest trends: BJP 56, Congress 11, Independent 2

5.20pm: Im Sudama of Congress, says Harish Rawat, who lost both the seats he contested

5.10pm: Kazi Mohammad Nizamuddin of the Congress defeated BSPs Sarbat Karim Ansari by 2,668 votes to win Manglore seat.

5pm: Deshraj Karanwal of the BJP emerged victorious in Jhabreda seat by defeating the Congress Rajpal Singh with a margin of 2,253 votes.

4.50pm: Victory in Uttarakhand is special; I assure people of the state that BJP will serve them with dedication, says PM Modi.

4:17 pm: Harish Rawat says, Salute Modi wave and EVM magic. The EC should check misuse of money power in polls. 

4:06 pm: Indira Hridyesh of Congress wins from Haldwani by 6557 votes.

4:00 pm: Speaker Govind Singh of Congress Kunjwal wins Jageshwar seat.

3:30 pm: Chief minister Harish Rawat met governor KK Paul to tender his resignation. He has been asked to continue till the formation of next government.

Uttarakhand: Harish Rawat tenders resignation from the post of CM (file pic) pic.twitter.com/NndpGLQ3VT  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

3:05 pm: Rekha Arya of BJP wins from Someshwar seat.

2:45 pm: BJP candidate Satpal Maharaj wins by 8,200 votes from Chaubattakhal.

2:33 pm: Current Uttarakhand result status

2:02 pm: Sanjeev Arya of BJP wins from Nainital.

1:52 pm: BJP state president Ajay Bhatt loses from Ranikhet.

Congress chief Kishore Upadhyay says, Congress is like a phoenix, will rise again.

#Uttarakhand: Cong chief Kishore Upadhyay to HT: Cong is like a phoenix, will rise again @htTweets @ht_uttarakhand pic.twitter.com/v1UChRoQA0  Neha Pant (@thenehapant) March 11, 2017

1:35 pm: Independent Ram Singh Kaida wins from Bhimtal.

Congress headquarters in Dehradun wears a deserted look.

1:16 pm: CM Harish Rawat to meet Governor KK Paul at 3 PM today. Likely to tender resignation.

1:11pm: BJP state president Ajay Bhatt trailing by 4,000 votes in Ranikhet.

Gopal Rawat of BJP leading by more than 6,800 votes in Gangotri.

BJPs Naveen Dumka wins Lalkuan seat.

1:07 pm: Veteran Congress leader and state finance minister Indira Hridyesh now leads by 5000 votes in Haldwani.

12:57 pm: Saurabh Bahuguna of BJP wins Sitarganj seat by 28,450 votes.

12:53 pm: Congress Furqan Ahmad wins from Kaliyar seat by 1,400 votes.

BJP state in-charge Shyam Jaju speaks on selection of chief minister.

12:45 pm: BJPs Rajesh Shukla won by 42 votes defeating chief minister Harish Rawat from Kiccha.

12:40 pm: Spiritual guru and BJP candidate Satpal Maharaj leading by about 4,000 votes from Chaubattakhal.

Former CM Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank (L) congratulates BJP state in-charge Shyam Jaju. (Vinay SK/ HT Photo)

12:30 pm: Pritam Singh of Congress wins from Chakrata by 4,400 votes.

BJPs Pardeep Batra wins from Roorkee.

12:20 pm: Harish Rawat loses from Kichha as well.

Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat loses from Kichha seat #ElectionResults  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

BJP candidate Suresh Rathor wins from Jawalapur.

12:10 pm: Haldwani Mayor and BJP candidate Jogendra Pal Singh Rautela leads by 3104 votes over finance minister Indira Hridyesh of Congress.

BJP supporters celebrating in Uttarakhand.

11:57 am: BJPs Pranav Singh wins by 10,000 votes in Khanpur seat.

Trivendra Singh Rawat, the forerunner for the post of chief minister, speaks to reporters.

Trivendra Singh Rawat forerunner for CM and contesting from Doiwala @htTweets #Uttarakhand Polls pic.twitter.com/PCvR1gsKcG  Nihi Sharma (@sharmanihi) March 11, 2017

11:49 am: Harish Rawat loses from Haridwar rural, BJP Swami Yatishwranad wins by 12,000 votes.

BJPs Sanjay Gupta wins from Laksar seat by 5000 votes.

11:35 am: Shocker for sitting Congress MLA Rajkumar who is trailing by around 2000 votes in Rajpur seat, was considered to be a strong bet.

#UttarakhandElection2017 kaji Nizamuddin of Congress wins from Mangalore seat in Haridwar @htTweets  Anupam Trivedi (@anuptri) March 11, 2017

11:23 am: Swami Yatishwranad leading ahead of chief minister Harish Rawat by 11,000 votes in Haridwar rural.

BJP MLA Swami Yatishwranad wins Haridwar rural. (HT Photo)

11:10 am: Harish Rawat trailing in Haridwar Rural but closing the gap in Kichha.

10:57 am: Former chief minister BC Khanduris daughter Ritu leading by over 2,000 votes from Yamkeshwar.

BJPs Harbans Kapoor leading in Dehradun Cantt by 8,174 votes.

BJPs Satpal Maharaj leading by more than 3,000 votes in Chaubattakha.

Harish Rawat behind by 11, 000 votes from Haridwar rural seat.

Ranjeet Rawat of Congress ahead by 1,204 votes on Ramnagar seat.

BJP activists gather outside counting centre in Haldwani. (HT Photo)

10:52 am: BJP Swami Yatishwranad leading by 8000 votes from Haridwar rural.

Congress Rajpal Singh is leading by 2000 votes in Jhabrera seat.

Congress is leading by 3000 votes in Mangalore seat.

EVMs being packed and sealed after counting in Rajpur road counting centre. (HT Photo)

10:40 am: BJPs Ganesh Joshi leading with 3572 votes in Mussoorie.

Navprabhat of Congress leading by 341 votes.

 Munna Singh Chauhan behind in third phase.

Pradeep Singh Pal of Congress ahead on Didihat seat. Prakash Pant leads on Pithoragarh seat

 Subhash Pandey of BJP ahead of Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal of Congress in Jageshwar seat.

 Haldwani mayor and BJP candidate Jogendra Pal Singh Rautela ahead of Indira Hridyesh of Congress by 4121 votes after 4 rounds.

10:24 am: Congress rebel and Independent candidate Ram Singh Kaida leading from Bhimtal after fourth round.

Congress Pritam Singh and Ranjeet Rawat leading from Chakrata and Ramnagar respectively.

10: 15 am: Chief minister Harish Rawat lagging behind in both Haridwar rural and Kichha. Rawat behind by 6500 in fifth round from Haridwar rural seat.

Key BJP candidates are leading in the following constituencies

Satpal Maharaj from Chaubattakhal .

 Rekha Arya from Someshwar .

 Harak Singh Rawat in Kotdwar.

 Daleep Singh Rawat in Lansdowne.

 Partys youngest candidate Vinod Kandari in Deoprayag.

10:00 am: Close fight between BSP and Congress in Mangalore seat. Congress candidate Qazi Nizamuddin is leading by 1,000 votes.

Khanpur BJP candidate Pranav Singh is leading by 6,000 votes.

Congress contestant Ambrish Kumar from Ranipur seat is leading by 1300 votes

9:50 am: Congress chief Kishore Upadhyay ahead by 650 votes in Sahaspur seat.

Three-time Congress MLA Pritam Singh ahead by 4,554 votes in Chakrata seat.

Seven- time BJP MLA Harsbans Kapoor ahead by 3,444 votes in Dehradun Cantt seat.

9:26 am: Harish Rawat trailing by 6000 vote from Haridwar rural seat. BJPs Swami Yatishwranad is leading.

Status of various candidates in Uttarakhand election. (Election Commission/ screengrab)

9:20 am:

9:10 am: BJP leading in 27 constituencies, Congress in 3.

CM Harish Rawat also trails from Kichha seat.

9:07 am: BJP is leading in as many as 23 seats as compared to 10 of Congress after the first round of polling.

Ganesh Joshi, BJP lawmaker who beat up police horse Shaktiman, is leading from Mussoorie seat by 2700 votes

MLA Ganesh Joshi seen beating police horse Shaktiman, who eventually died in Dehradun last year. (Vinay Santosh Kumar/HT Photo)

9:00 am: In Haridwar rural seat, BJP candidate Swami Yatishwranad leading by 2500 votes.

8: 57 am: BJP ahead in Haridwar rural seat in first round of counting. CM Harish Rawat is contesting from this seat.

BJP also leading in Jhabrea seat.

8:55 am: Water-proof tunnel set up to take EVMs from storeroom to counting centres.

8:50 am: Early trends- Uttarakhand: BJP; 4, Congress: 2, Others 0

Early trends suggest CM Harish Rawat leading from Haridwar rural.

In Nainital district, BJP ahead on 2 seats, Congress on 1.

Kailash Gehtodi of BJP ahead on Champawat seat . Mayukh Meher of Congress ahead on Pithoragarh seat

8: 42 am: BJP and Congress leading in one seat each.

#UttarakhandElection2017 Latest trends: Congress and BJP leading on one each.  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

8:42 am: MeT has predicted rains across most places in kumaon and many places in Garhwal region today.

8:38 am: EVMs of Sahaspur constituency being carried towards counting centre at Sports College, Raipur in Dehradun right now.

8:23 am:

Counting begins at Haridwar rural seat from where chief minister Harish Rawat is contesting.

8:20 am:

8:20 am: Counting begins for 6 seats at Haldwani centre.

8:00 am: Counting starts for 9 assembly seats in Dehradun city.

8:00 am: Counting of votes in the five states including Uttarakhand begin.

Map of Uttarakhand (Election Commission)
Uttarakhand appeared set on Saturday to stick to its tradition of not re-electing the party in power as the BJP took a clear lead over the ruling Congress as early trends from counting of votes in the hill state showed.

Initial trends showed the BJP leading in 44 seats, while the Congress was ahead in 22. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) was ahead in just 2 seats. The early trends matched exit poll predictions which showed a BJP win.

If the final results match the trends, it could be the biggest win for any political party in the state where the vote share difference between Congress and BJP was less than two percentage points in 2012.

Trends show a BJP sweep in the hill regions of Uttarakhand while the Congress has managed a few seats in the plains.

Among those who were trailing included chief minister Harish Rawat from Haridwar rural and Kicha --- the two seats he is contesting from.

Those leading included state Congress president Kishore Upadhayay from Sahapur in Dehradun, Trivendra Singh Rawat of BJP from Doiwala, Rita Khandhuri, daughter of former CM B C Khanduri from Yamkeshwar and Satpal Maharaj from Chaubattakhal.

Chief minister Harish Rawat was the Congress face whereas the BJP projected the work of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The next challenge for the BJP would be finalising the chief minister candidate. Party president Amit Shah has already announced that the CM would be from the elected legislators.

Watch: Analysis on overall counting trends

Trivendra Singh Rawat is said to be front runner along with former chief minister Bhagat Singh Koshyari and Satpal Maharaj.

The Congress leaders attributed the likely loss due to poor organisational work, infighting and delay in ticket distribution. Many also found fault in Rawat going on announcement spree without much developmental work on ground.
Kashmir is a touchy subject, one that plays on all our fears about the unraveling of India, of the disintegration of a hard-won nationhood, of the death of the dream of a multi-ethnic, multi-religious happy-happy land out of Manmohan Desai, the withering away of the long-held ideal of unity-in-diversity. In the days when it still seemed absurd that an intemperate comment on Facebook could land anyone in jail, virtual discussions often featured exhortations to Kashmiris to be part of the Indian dream, to get on the bullet train that would surely deliver us all into a shining future. Why, many wondered, would Kashmiris want to cleave to Pakistan, that bizarre land obsessed with an idea of national identity wrapped up in ever-stricter notions of religious purity? That way madness lies. The suggestion that Kashmir could be an independent nation was usually countered with the comment that it would in all likelihood be promptly swallowed by China.

These days, the rest of India rarely talks to Kashmiris even on social media comment threads unless its to yell them down. They have been collectively transformed into that recalcitrant child who needs to be taught the error of his ways. Behold how the child throws stones; cant he be more cheerful when he loses an eye to pellets? Well, he deserved it for shouting for azadi in the streets, and for mourning at the funeral of the young militant. And, oh, the wretch isnt grateful that the army helped out during the floods either. Really, its our boys against those boys, our martyrs against their terrorists. Anyone who believes otherwise is anti-national, a human rights fraud squirting crocodile tears and deserves to be silenced too. Line them up, unleash the trolls, let the studio talking heads in bomber jackets take aim, and if the going is good, lathi could crunch bone at some demonstration too.

Family finds shelter, Dal Lake / Srinagar / 2014 (Syed Shahriyar )

Flipping through Witness/Kashmir 1986-2016/Nine Photographers prompts the viewer/reader to think about all these things, to confront the role of the Indian state in Kashmir, and the complicity of the Indian middle class  many of our sons, brothers, fathers and husbands have their guns trained on those boys with stones clenched in their fists . It makes us think about whats happening there because weve bought into the idea that the ends justify the means, that brutalization and the nearly 68,000 lives lost over three decades -- almost 8000 Kashmiris remain missing -- is a small price to pay to maintain an idea of India. Witness edited by documentary film maker Sanjay Kak forces you to look at what youd rather not -- at the wretched, the tortured and the maimed.

Horse and Cemetery / Srinagar, 2011 (Sumit Dayal)

Its impossible to unsee Dar Yasins eerie image of silhouetted mourners perched on trees gazing down at the body of a militant in Pehlipora. Javed Dars After Killing of Policeman/Srinagar/2013 has a man scooping blood off a street with his bare hands; in Sumit Dayals Shakeel and his Son Suzain/Shopian/2009 a dumbstruck crowd stares at Shakeel Ahmed Ahangar cradling his infant son as he speaks of the abduction, rape and murder of his wife Niloufer and sister Asiya by the security forces. Its a relief then to look at Javed Dars exuberant picture of migrant labourers, clearly a mother and her teenage son from Bihar perhaps, exulting in the snow, and to chance upon Showkat Nandas postcard of a little girl at Fatehkadal Market that slips out of the volume. There are other more sombre postcards too from Varmul, part of Nandas portraits of boys on the run, stone-throwers, kids in hoodies like your own teen son, but whose eyes are infinitely older.

Crackdown by Soldiers / Srinagar 1993 (Meraj Ud Din )

With its striking images that appear in a range of formats including on foldouts and postcards, flipping through Witness, which is fashioned like a box file  a folder of photographs of the missing or the dead perhaps -- complete with a string to hold it all together, is a tactile experience. The reader finds herself breathing in the scent of the pages and catching the glutinous whiff of the binding, as she traces the journey of each of the nine photographers in the book  the oldest Meraj Ud Din began clicking pictures in the 1980s, the youngest, Azaan Shah, isnt yet 20. Kak, does a fine job of getting each to speak about their work, their inner lives, memories and fears  the last two are often intertwined in Kashmir. Javed Dar recounts how, in 1992, his father got hollowed out by just that one night when I was picked up by the Army. He grew old overnight. Dars own 17-year-old son was hit by a bullet in October 2015.

Dye sprayed on protestors/ Srinagar, 2013 (Javed Dar )

There are a million nightmares now. Showkat Nandas cousin was gunned down on a bridge in Baramulla in 1989; a year later, his 16-year-old brother set off across the Line of Control, looking for training in handling arms. He died in an accident while crossing the mountain passes. The family never saw his body.

The fear is inescapable.

Read more: Framing Kashmir

Aftermath of grenade attack / Srinagar, 2006 (Altaf Qadri )

Strangely, as Kak too points out in his introduction, very few pictures of the Kashmiri Pandit exodus from the Valley in the early 1990s exist though abandoned Pandit homes haunt an otherwise idyllic landscape. Meraj Ud Dins image of the Wandhama massacre of 1998 seems to be one of the few images of the Valleys vanished Hindu community. The veterans pictures of the identification of bodies, of counter-insurgents like Kukka Parray, and of a soldier looking at footwear scattered on a highway in Bijbhera town after 50 people were killed there are particularly affecting.

Stone throwers pose ( AP Images 2017 / Dar Yasin)

But Witness isnt just a chronicle of the horrors visited upon Kashmir; its a compendium of superlative images backed by text that urges the reader, with a deliberate absence of hysteria, to look at one of the most wretched, morally fraught issues facing the nation today. In the midst of this, the book also presents photographs of unexpected beauty. Syed Shahriyars deep consciousness, as a Shia, of belonging to a minority informs his striking shots of Muharram, while Sumit Dayals Horse and Cemetery, that incorporates his dead grandfathers writing, recalls frames from Tarkovsky. Javeed Shahs wonderful image of village boys leaping into a stream in Yusmarg as a nonchalant group of girls looks on speaks of exuberance, innocence, even the early fashioning of gender roles and the idea of propriety.

Sanjay Kak

While Kak argues for photography and photojournalism to be recognized as a contemporary art form in Kashmir and hopes this book will trigger a conversation around the place of creative practices in this world in conflict, the true value of this book lies in how it guides the reader/viewer to a place of greater empathy and feeling.

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Its strange but in most of India it is actually easier to get Chinese food than it is to find a South Indian restaurant. And nearly everywhere abroad, when you ask for Indian food, you will get some variation of North Indian cuisine: tandoori chicken or rogan josh or naan.

When you do get South Indian food in North India, it consists of dishes that would be considered snacks in the South: dosas, idlis, medu vadas and uttapam. Sometimes these snacks are cooked to high standards, but generally they are canteen staples, popular because they are cheap. And even those who enjoy them rarely bother to venture further and try other South Indian dishes.

Such canteen favourites as the masala dosa were popularised in Mumbai in the late 50s and early 60s by restaurateurs from Karnataka (most of them Bunts from Mangalore) who wanted to service a growing South Indian immigrant community. In those days, Mumbai was full of what were called Udupi restaurants (because many of the restaurateurs came from Udupi near Mangalore) and though idlis and dosas were meant for the general public, the staple dish at Udupi places was rice with vegetables and sambar, which is why they all had signs outside reading Rice Plate is Ready.

Over the years, the Bunts came to run canteens at companies all over Mumbai. Their idli-dosa dishes were popular in a largely vegetarian city because they were cheap and relatively easy to make. Many of todays great restaurateurs started out in those canteens. Jayaram Banan, the millionaire owner of the Sagar and Swagath chains, ran away from an abusive father in Mangalore when he was in his early teens and found a job washing dishes at a canteen in Mumbai.

While most Indian chefs will concede that Malayali food is terrific, it has still not found the acceptance I imagined it would.

It is a measure of Banans entrepreneurial skill that he rose from such humble beginnings to running his own canteens and finally, to journeying to Delhi where he set up the first Sagar and introduced Punjabis to the simple charm of the masala dosa. There are many such stories of entrepreneurial South Indians who became Dosa Millionaires.

The next generation of Bunt restaurateurs moved from dosas to shellfish and though they run many of Indias most famous prawn-and-crab restaurants, there is nothing authentically South Indian about their food. Some do serve a few Mangalorean gassis, but they dont understand the cuisines of Andhra Pradesh and Kerala at all and their menus are a mishmash of Malvani recipes (Malvan is in Maharashtra) and Indian-Chinese (the famous Crab in Butter Garlic Sauce is as South Indian as Jackie Chan; it found fame on Trishnas Chinese menu).

Karavalli at the Gateway Hotel in Bengaluru is a coastal restaurant based on home recipes from South Indian families.

The hotel chains have traditionally been much more adventurous with South Indian food than the stand-alone sector. The leader was the Taj Group, whose Camellia Panjabi discovered the (non-vegetarian) Chettinad cuisine of Tamil Nadu in the 80s. The Taj Group opened The Raintree at the Connemara in Chennai to showcase that food. Other South Indian specialities (including many meat dishes from Andhra Pradesh as well as Keralas appams) turned up on the menu of Southern Comfort at the Taj Residency (the hotel now has some idiotic Vivanta-type name; though fortunately not for much longer) in Bengaluru and finally, in what might have been her greatest creation, Panjabi opened Karavalli, a coastal restaurant based on home recipes from South Indian families at the Gateway Hotel in Bengaluru. Karavalli turned Sriram Aylur, its brilliant chef, into a star; he later went to London and won a Michelin star at Quilon for the same sort of food.

Though the Taj Group was the first Indian chain to discover the secrets of homestyle South Indian cooking, ITC retaliated with Dakshin in Chennai. This wounded the Taj Group so deeply that Ajit Kerkar, the groups boss and Shankar Menon, its Southern head, commissioned chef Nat Natarajan to locate ancient recipes from families all over South India. Natarajan started Southern Spice at the Taj Coromandel in Chennai in 1996 and it is a tribute to the Taj Group that both Karavalli and Southern Spice are all still among Indias finest restaurants.

The success of the Taj Group restaurants led me to believe that South Indian cuisine would take off nationally. I thought Andhra food (already popular in the South through such restaurant chains as Amravathi and RR) would sweep India. I was wrong. Then, I believed that the cuisine of Kerala (in my view, Indias finest) would be the next big thing. And while most Indian chefs will concede that Malayali food is terrific, it has still not found the acceptance I imagined it would.

But ITC now seems ready to carry on the work started by the Taj Group all those years ago. Over the last decade, the chain has worked beyond its reputation for North Indian biryanis and kebabs by opening excellent East Asian restaurants (the Japanese Edo in Bengaluru and the hip Tian in Delhi) and three very good Ottimos (Italian restaurants) in Bengaluru, Delhi and Chennai.

Now, it has taken everyone by surprise by preparing to launch a modern South Indian restaurant at the Grand Chola in Chennai. The restaurant, to be called Avartan (they are insisting on spelling it Avartana, like Rama and Lakshmana, which is just stupid so I will call it Avartan), is not ready to open yet. But because Anil Chadha, ITCs brightest General Manager, values feedback and because Ajit Bangera, the chef, is an old friend, they gave me a preview last week.

Slated to open in April, Avartana restaurant at ITC Grand Chola in Chennai is three generations ahead of the Groups famous restaurant, Dakshin.

I was, quite frankly, stunned by what Ajit (a Taj and ITC veteran who has cooked in Australia, but is, essentially, a South Indian from Mangalore) and his team have come up with.

Not every dish I tried will make it to the final menu but over 90 per cent of the food was sensational. Dosas were served taco style with a filling of chicken with imli and chilli. Karela was slit open, dehydrated, fried till crisp and then topped with aloo and shallots. A local pork belly was slow roasted and served with a masala inspired by Coorgs Pandi curry. Curd rice was transformed once a little sago was added to vary the texture and the pickle turned into a sauce. A local mud crab claw was fried in tempura batter and placed on a bed of red chilli chutney. Bheja was turned into a light and airy fritter. Slices of buffalo meat were tossed with black pepper and served with a masala uttapam. And a delicious rasam came with dehydrated vegetables.

Ajit Bangera is clear that he does not want to tart up or reinvent great South Indian classics. Instead, he wants to take South Indian flavours and masalas and pair them with a few staples (appams, dosas, uttapams, rasams etc.) to create a cuisine that is recognisably South Indian in the mouth, but is not gimmicky or show-offy. There is science involved in the cooking, but most of it stays in the kitchen and does not ponce around on the plate.

Other great chefs have had similar ideas. Manish Mehrotra uses classic South Indian spice mixes, Gaggan Anand makes the worlds lightest idli and Srijith Gopinath puts beluga caviar on a mini-appam. But, as far as I know, nobody has planned an entire restaurant around a reimagining of South Indian spices, flavours and textures.

Avartan is an extremely ambitious restaurant. It is three generations ahead of Dakshin and two generations ahead of the Taj Groups Southern Spice. More risky still, they are opening in Chennai, where there is already a resistance to reinterpreting the food people eat at home.

At Avartana restaurant, crab claws are fried in tempura batter and placed on a bed of red chilli chutney.

I dont know when Avartan will finally open (they say, April), but if they can maintain the standards of the food that I was served, then ITC has a winner and Bangera has the restaurant he will be remembered by.

In a month or so, the Taj Groups two Michelin-starred Malayalis, Sriram and Srijith, will be cooking at much-awaited pop-ups in Delhi and Mumbai. And the stand-alone sector is finally showing a few signs of wanting to engage with the cuisine of the South.

Things have never looked better for South Indian food. Perhaps it is time to put aside that bhatura and to try an appam instead! Finally, the South shall rise again!

From HT Brunch, February 26, 2017

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Late last year, we had planned to visit America, home to our extended family, with New York as the first stop. But that was before Donald Trumps infamous travel ban and the news that immigration officers in the US now had the right to scroll through your phone and laptop before letting you into the country. (And if they asked you for the passwords to your social media accounts to check that you were not an undesirable alien, you were supposed to hand them over or risk being flown right back to your point of origin.)

Not my idea of fun. And I suspect, not your idea of fun either.

After all, who in their right minds would want to vacation in a country in which even valid visa holders are treated as potential criminals/terrorists who must prove their innocence before being let in?

But while America presents its own peculiar challenges, the rest of the world isnt a much better bet at this moment. Turkey (another destination we had been toying with) seems a bit dicey after a spate of terrorist attacks. Paris has seen terror wreak havoc on its streets. And we keep being told that London is next on the jihadi hit list.

So, if you are a scaredy-cat like me and dont fancy the idea of taking your life into your hands every time you venture out on holiday, then heres a plan for you. This year, stick to vacationing in India. Theres so much to see and do in this vast subcontinent of ours that you wont miss going abroad at all. And what you save on airfare, you can spend on experiences.

If the idea appeals to you, then heres a handy (though far from comprehensive) list of all the things that you can do and the places you can visit without ever leaving our borders.

Go temple-hopping

No, I dont mean a pilgrimage necessarily, though I always find a trip to, say, Vaishno Devi or Tirupati, very invigorating. You can always do the religious thing, if that floats your boat. But even if you are a non-believer, a trip to such destinations as Khajuraho, Varanasi, the Sun Temple at Konark, the ancient Martand temple in Kashmir, is an amazing experience in and of itself. The sculptures, the magnificent architecture, the patina of the ages, all of it makes for stunning visual beauty and gives a sense of how far back our civilization extends.

Such ancient cities as Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu with its rock reliefs that date back to the seventh century and Hampi in Karnataka, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site are well worth a visit. And if you are up to climbing around 700 steps, then head up the hill at Shravanabelagola, Karnataka, to get a close look at the Gomateshwara Bahubali statue, which dates back to the 10th century, the biggest sculpture ever to be hewn from a single piece of rock.

Be a beach bum

Speaking for myself, I find Goa to be a crashing bore, with overcrowded beaches and murky water. If you want a beach holiday in India, the best place to go is the Andaman Islands, where the white sand beaches are pristine and bordered with the clearest blue water. Head out there before the hordes discover it.

Hit the mountain trails

No matter which part of India you live in, a hill station is never too far away. From Kolkata, it is easy to access Sikkim and Bhutan. If you are in Delhi, then the ski slopes of Gulmarg are a short plane ride away, as are the picturesque peaks of Uttarakhand. In the South, you can head to Ooty, Munnar, Kodaikanal or Coorg. And those who live in the West of India, can visit Mount Abu, which has an added attraction in the shape of the Jain Dilwara temples built between the 11th and 13th centuries.

Go healthy and holistic

If you are feeling a bit rundown and in need of some rejuvenation, take a spa break. In India, you are spoilt for choice when it comes to this category. You can go all fancy and spend a fortune at such upmarket resorts as Ananda in the Himalayas. Or you could go in for a more earthy and intense experience at such Kerala spas as Kairali, which bills itself as an Ayurvedic healing village and offers treatment for such diverse conditions as arthritis, bronchitis and hypertension. Or you can simply drive to a spa resort near your city for a weekend break, involving lots of massages and heaps of indolence.

Answer the call of the wild

When it comes to wildlife, India has a virtual embarrassment of riches. Want to catch a glimpse of a tiger in the wild? You can visit Ranthambore in Rajasthan, Bandhavgarh and Kanha in Madhya Pradesh. If you live down south, then the Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu and Periyar National Park in Kerala are good options. Kaziranga National Park in Assam also has enough tigers to qualify as a tiger reserve, even though its main claim to fame is as a rhinoceros sanctuary  it houses two-thirds of the worlds great one-horned rhinoceros (along with a large population of elephants) and is classed as World Heritage Site. If bird-watching is your thing, then you cant go wrong with the Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary, now restyled as the Keoladeo National Park.

So, put away that passport for now. And go the swadeshi way when it comes to travel. I promise you wont regret it.

From HT Brunch, March 12, 2017

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Its 5pm on a breezy evening, and the sight of a DSLR perched on a tripod seems to have sent the crowds at Chandni Chowk into a tizzy. At a dusty bylane overlooking the majestic Jama Masjid, a feisty five-year-old tugs at my kurta, asking me the name of the film being shot. This is no film shoot. We are just clicking a few quick photographs, I tell him. Not convinced, he continues to hog the frame, much to the dismay of my photographer colleague. Eventually, he gives in to my pleas, finally making way for a clear shot.

Straight ahead, Yana Rattigan, Mariya Stadnik and Sofia Mattson show no signs of being perturbed by the throng around them. Sitting in the cycle rickshaw, their poise is unwavering. Once the shot is done, I have to ask if they have ever modelled before. They laugh. The wrestling mat is our ramp, winks Rattigan, as the other two nod in agreement.

Yana Rattigan, Mariya Stadnik and Sofia Mattson at Haveli Dharampura in Delhis Chandni Chowk (Raj K Raj)

So it is. For each of the three is an international wrestling champion. Rattigan won a silver medal for England at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games (48 kg category), while Stadnik and Mattson bagged silver and bronze medals for Azerbaijan and Sweden at the Rio Olympics last year (in the 48 kg and 58 kg categories respectively). Mattson and Stadnik even participated in the Pro Wrestling League tournament that took place in India earlier this year. The former made it as far as the finals (as part of team Haryana Hammers), and the latter was unbeatable in individual bouts that she faced as part of Delhi Sultans.

An Indian Avatar

On this evening though, the trios mood is clear: they dont want to talk about wrestling. Instead, they are kicked about visiting Old Delhi and soaking in its sights and smells. We want to make the most of this trip, emphasises Rattigan, who first visited Delhi two years ago.

Sofia Mattson, Yana Rattigan and Mariya Stadnik in Indian wear at Haveli Dharampura in Delhis Chandni Chowk (Raj K Raj)

Such is their enthusiasm for all things Indian that when I ask them if theyd like to explore Chandni Chowk dressed in ethnic Indian wear, they agree almost instantly. Will we be wearing the sari? asks an eager Mattson. No, I say. Salwar kameezes. I havent worn that either, so why not? she enthuses.

Just like that, in less than 15 minutes, the three swap their casuals for Indian ensembles: Mattson has slipped into a pink and blue salwar kameez, while Rattigan opts for a bright green one, and Stadnik now looks resplendent in a black salwar suit offset with a creme dupatta.

Getting Street-Smart

Wandering the streets of Chandni Chowk, it soon becomes evident that Rattigan is the loquacious one, perhaps because shes been to Delhi earlier.

I heard a lot about Chandni Chowk, but couldnt come here then for lack of time. Its the rich culture in these streets that truly defines a citys character, she says.

Stadnik, on the other hand, has been bumping into people almost all the time; the 28-year-old admits that this relentless stream of people on the streets is an overdose of sensory indulgence. Its very intriguing to see how people go about their work despite the crowd, she adds.

Mattson, meanwhile, is struck by the contrast between these streets and the ones back home. In Helsingborg (Sweden), where I come from, I dont see more than five people on the streets on a given day. But here, the whole place is so alive. One has to be alert all the time, she says.

Mariya Stadnik, Yana Rattigan and Sofia Mattson in a cycle rickshaw near Jama Masjid (Raj K Raj )

The women also get acquainted with another fact: Chandni Chowks narrow alleys and sharp bends and turns are best negotiated in a cycle rickshaw or on foot. Rattigan asserts that she doesnt find it worrisome at all. Walking is the best way to explore a place. How else can one see so many colours in all their glory? In London where I live, we only see blacks, blues and greys, so this place is such a treat for the eyes, she says.

Dupatta Lessons

Rattigan (centre) drapes a dupatta around her head at Chandni Chowks Gupta Ladies Tailor Shop while the other two look on (Raj K Raj )

The trio makes a predictable first stop in Chandni Chowk: a tailors shop. Gupta Ladies Tailor Shop is tucked away inside an alley, and has floor-to-ceiling racks overflowing with bright clothes. An infectious, child-like enthusiasm grips the trio now and Rattigan takes the lead in combing through the shelves. Picking up a mustard yellow swathe, she asks the lady behind the sewing machine what it is called. Its a dupatta, comes the reply, and Rattigan repeats the word, pleased with her lesson. Next, she enquires how to pose with it. Draping the dupatta around her head, Rattigan is now keen to look at herself in the mirror, especially since Mattson and Mariya have broken into giggles.

Some more laughs later, Rattigan returns the dupatta to the shelf and laments the lack of saris in the shop. Mattson chimes in too. The sari is so beautiful; when I told my friends Id be visiting India, they told me to make sure I clicked some photos of women in saris, she says.

The Bollywood Connection

Stadnik, who speaks broken English, has been mostly quiet so far. But something seems to have caught her eye; she is visibly distracted by a firecracker box lying on the street. A closer look reveals images of Deepika Padukone on them, and I tell her about the Bollywood actress via Rattigan, who is playing translator. Stadnik shows no signs of recognition, but instead has Rattigan tell me how she loved watching Slumdog Millionaire. Thats not Bollywood though, clarifies Rattigan on her own, even before I have a chance to do so. Sometime back, I saw the old Hindi film, Seeta Aur Geeta; I loved it from start to finish. I am also happy that a film like Dangal was made. Its based on the real-life story of my wrestler friend, Geeta Phogat, and its commendable that Bollywood has recognised her journey by making a film on her, Rattigan says.

Impressed by her knowledge about Bollywood, I check with Mattson if she knows of it too. But the 26-year-old shakes her head, her big smile firmly pasted in place.

Chai and Conversations

From seekh kebabs at Karims to jalebis at Old Famous Jalebi Wala, no trip to Chandni Chowk is complete without delving into its epicurean delights. Rattigan, for one, says that she is yearning for dal and roti. I have recommended the dal and rice pairing to Mariya and Sofia, as this will be their first brush with Indian cuisine. The rice will help contain the spiciness of the dal, says Rattigan, who is also a chef at a London hotel.

But the trios manager interjects at this point to let us know that they are running short of time now. With no time for a meal, I suggest a chai break.

Stadnik is wary of the beverage, but Mattson and Rattigan lap it up. Its milky and rich in sugar  whats not to like? remarks Mattson, as the three enter the chai shop and watch the chaiwala at work. The chai goes beautifully with the weather, agrees Rattigan.

And now that Chandni Chowk has been covered, whats next on their list? Rattigan says she is hoping to visit some temples. I have heard a lot about the Golden Temple in Amritsar and the Akshardham temple in Delhi. Lets see if going there is possible anytime soon.

Stadnik is keen on seeing elephants. I love elephants and I collect pachyderm figurines from each country I visit, she says, after much prodding. Mattson too wants to see more of the country. I cant rattle off names of places like Yana (Rattigan), but I surely want to see more of India, she says.

More than anything else, the three agree unanimously on one thing: that they loved playing dress up, even if it was just for a day. All the attention made me feel like Angelina Jolie, exclaims Rattigan. Given their rigorous schedule and the sweat they break into in pursuit of excellence, this was a brief but well-deserved celebration, wed say.

Location courtesy: Haveli Dharampura

Hair and make-up: Blossom Kochhar College of Creative Arts & Design

Follow @PrabhuVidya on Twitter

From HT Brunch, March 12, 2017

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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday denied a request to list what would have been the first U.S. exchange-traded fund built to track bitcoin, the digital currency.

Investors Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have been trying for more than three years to convince the SEC to let it bring the Bitcoin ETF to market. CBOE Holdings Incs (CBOE.O) Bats exchange had applied to list the ETF.

The digital currencys price plunged BTC=BTSP, falling as much as 18 percent in trading immediately after the decision before rebounding slightly. It last traded down 7.8 percent to $1,098.

Bitcoin had scaled to a record of nearly $1,300 this month, higher than the price of an ounce of gold, as investors speculated that an ETF holding the digital currency could woo more people into buying the asset.

Bitcoin is a virtual currency that can be used to move money around the world quickly and with relative anonymity, without the need for a central authority, such as a bank or government.

Yet bitcoin presents a new set of risks to investors given its limited adoption, a number of massive cybersecurity breaches affecting bitcoin owners and the lack of consistent treatment of the assets by governments.

Based on the record before it, the Commission believes that the significant markets for bitcoin are unregulated, the SEC said in a statement. The commission notes that bitcoin is still in the relatively early stages of its development and that, over time, regulated bitcoin-related markets of significant size may develop.

The regulators have questions and concerns about how the funds would work and whether they could be priced and trade effectively, according to a financial industry source familiar with the SECs thinking.

We began this journey almost four years ago, and are determined to see it through, said Tyler Winklevoss, CFO of Digital Asset Services LLC. We agree with the SEC that regulation and oversight are important to the health of any marketplace and the safety of all investors.

The Winklevoss twins are best known for their feud with Facebook Inc (FB.O) founder Mark Zuckerberg over whether he stole the idea for what became the worlds most popular social networking website from them. The former Olympic rowers ultimately settled their legal dispute, which was dramatized in the 2010 film The Social Network.

Since then they have become major investors in the digital currency, which relies on mining computers that validate blocks of transactions by competing to solve mathematical puzzles. The first to solve the puzzle and clear the transaction is rewarded with new bitcoins. Solutions to the puzzle come roughly every 10 minutes.

Advocates of the currency and the technology it relies on to document transactions, blockchain, were dismayed by the ruling.

How do we develop well-capitalized and regulated markets in the U.S. and Europe if financial innovators arent allowed to bring products to market that grow domestic demand for digital currencies like bitcoin? asked Jerry Brito, executive director of Coin Center, an advocacy group.

Spencer Bogart, head of research at Blockchain Capital, said bitcoins price could fall as much as 20 percent but that its long-term adoption will continue.

A Bats spokeswoman said the exchange is reviewing the SECs statement and would have no further comment.

There are two other bitcoin ETF applications awaiting a verdict from the SEC. Grayscale Investments LLCs Bitcoin Investment Trust, backed by early bitcoin advocate Barry Silbert and his Digital Currency Group, filed an application last year.

SolidX Partners Inc, a U.S. technology company that provides blockchain services, also filed its ETF application last year.
This is the biggest mandate since Independence, said BJP chief Amit Shah, addressing a press conference at the partys headquarters in Delhi. The party is leading in more than 300 seats in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh. Shah said the BJP will form government in four states -- UP, Manipur, Goa and Uttarakhand. The people accepted politics of performance. This historic mandate will take the country in a new direction, said Shah. Move past Hindu-Muslim, a voter is a voter, he told the gathering. Politics of development should take place. The results will be seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modis policies, including the shock recall of 500-and 1000-rupee banknotes. Shah said the peoples faith in the prime minister had only increased after the demonetisation move.

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Theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking overcame amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative disease that confined him to a wheelchair, to communicate his theories on black holes and quantum gravity using a speech-synthesising software operated with his cheek movement picked up by an infrared switch mounted on his spectacles.

Now others with ALS and locked in patients  people with normal brain function with an inability to speak or use their limbs  will be able to do the same using a less complicated device. And at a fraction of the cost.

Using seed money from angel investors, Israeli researchers have developed a wearable device called EyeControl that uses eye movement and swipe technology on mobile phones to enable ALS patients to speak using only their eyes.

The device can also give voice to other locked in people who have lost their ability to verbally communicate because of other disorders, such as stroke and cerebral palsy. Stroke is among the worlds leading cause of disability, which often includes loss of speech.

The device has been developed by EyeControl using image-processing and eye-tracking method, said Tania Suares, head of business development, EyeControl at MEDinIsrael, one of the worlds biggest medical innovation conference in Tel Aviv in Israel.

The lightweight device has an infrared camera connected to a plastic eyeglass frame and a credit-card sized computer that captures and translates eye movements into audio commands.

These commands are then transmitted to a smartphone or tablet using Bluetooth to help locked in patients communicate using text to speech technology, said Suares.

The device can anytime and everywhere, even in the bath.

Clinical trials of the prototype are expected to get over by the end of the year, after which the technology will be able to an estimated 1.2 million locked-in patients around the world at a fraction of the cost of the available devices.

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Diabetes management is headed to become easier with work progressing on disruptive innovations such as Googles digital contact lenses that measure blood glucose levels from tears, or Mercks smart glucose-responsive insulin designed to turn on when you need it and off when you dont.

While these innovations are work in progress  Googles patented its technology and Mercks smart insulin is in early human trials  transformative innovators are using technology to make diabetes management easier with fewer injections and finger-pricks, less data overload, no pain and no worry. More important, these technologies optimise blood glucose control and lower life-threatening risk of sudden peaks and falls in blood glucose levels.

Small wonder

A monitor the size of a thumb-drive and a cellphone help monitor glucose fluctuations and manage diabetes, which affects close to 70 million persons in India. More than one million persons died of diabetes-related complications in India in 2015, estimates the World Diabetes Federation.

Using data stored in GlucoMe, doctors can personalise diabetes management, which makes the system popular with physicians.

GlucoMe is a digital diabetes care platform that records glucose measurements and insulin doses on cloud using the patients iOS or Android smartphone and send actionable realtime alerts and compliance recommendations to optimise diabetes control, said Yiftah Ben Aharon, CEO, GlucoMe, while presenting his product at Israels health innovation conference MEDinIsrael. It improve adherence and ensures compliance by enabling remote monitoring irrespective of where the patient is, says Aharon.

Using data stored in the device, doctors can personalise diabetes management, which makes the system popular with physicians. We dont sell directly to patients, but work through doctors who use it to remotely monitor patient condition, adjust treatment plans and send recommendations directly to patients.

No-pain monitoring

This sensor clipped to your earlobe gives you a blood glucose reading within 60 seconds without drawing blood. The machine, called GlucoTrack Model DF-F, uses a noninvasive sensor clipped to your earlobe and a combination of ultrasonic, electromagnetic and thermal algorithms to measure physiological parameters correlated with blood glucose level to draw an accurate reading.

GlucoTrack Model DF-Fs sensor, clipped to your earlobe, gives you a blood glucose reading within 60 seconds without drawing blood.

The results are displayed within a minute on a USB-connected smartphone or tablet, which stores all readings to help you track fluctuations over time, says Avner Gal, president and CEO of Intergrity Applications, which has developed the system.

Before use, GlucoTrack is calibrated using three finger-pricks over the course of 30 minutes. While one device can be shared by three persons, each person needs an individual ear clip, which needs to be replaced every six months, to get a reading.

A word of warning. Since GlucoTrack uses indirect measurement and readings may get affected by noise inside the body and wind and temperatures beyond a range of 15 to 35 degrees Celsius, it is meant for indoor use and the device alerts if the environment is sub-optimal.

GlucoTrack DF-F is meant only adults with Type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes and costs US$2,000 and each ear clip costs $180 in Europe. It is undergoing regulatory trials for US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.

Monitoring on the go

You just need to slap on this small, round water-resistant sensor on the back of your upper arm for continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). Abbotts FreeStyle Libre Pro system gives a simplified, visual snapshot of glucose levels, along with patterns and trends to help your doctor make customised treatment decisions.

Abbotts FreeStyle Libre Pro system has a sensor that can be worn on the back of your upper arm for continuous glucose monitoring (CGM).

The disposable sensor measures glucose in interstitial fluid through a small (5mm long, 0.4mm wide) filament inserted under the skin and stores the data to make your glycaemic profile using glucose readings taken every 15 minutes  which is 1,340 times over 14 days. The uninterrupted data stored in the sensor is downloaded by the doctor to make dose and time prescription based on glucose fluctuations.

Each sensor costs US$60 and the single reader device, which the doctor can use for multiple patients, costs $65.

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A 3,500-year-old colossal mass burial ground, believed to be from the Megalithic period, has been unearthed by a research team of Tirupati-based Sri Venkateswara University.

The discovery was made in Nellore districts Pidikitimala village, a senior varsity professor said.

The mass burial ground is spread over 100 acres with over a dozen cist burials, each measuring 30 feet by 27 feet, in Raakasi Mitta area, around 60 km from Tirupati, professor at the Department of Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology, Dr V Sakuntalamma, said.

Cists, an early type of grave, were mainly used for burials in the Bronze Age. They usually contained one or more bodies of both men and women.

The professor said huge boulders in conical and round shapes were found around each burial.

Some burials had two layers of circles with boulders around them, she said, adding that all the finds are believed to be over 3500-years-old Megalithic burials.

Some axes and scrappers were also collected by the team for academic purposes, she said.

The discovery happened by chance after a student from a village close to the site informed them about it a year ago. Subsequently, students, research scholars and professors from the department rushed to the spot and found it, she said.

Our team has visited the place three times and we will continue our visits to the site for research. We will not take up excavation work on the site as we are not supposed to do so, she said.

The professor said they had not informed the Archaeological Survey of India of their find as it is was not their responsibility.

However, recently UGC was informed about it, along with other research works to be taken up on UGC funds, she said.

Dr Sakuntalamma said the team noticed that about 50 acres at the site had already been damaged by some persons using earth movers and other machinery.
This birthday present beats all. Voters gift-wrapped Punjab for Captain Amarinder Singh, with counting trends on Saturday pointing to a massive win for the Congress in the border state.

Amarinder, who turned 75 on Saturday, is all set to be the next chief minister of what could be his last stint in politics  he has said the 2017 assembly election will be his last.

He won the Patiala (Urban) seat by a huge margin though he lost to chief minister Parkash Singh Badal in Lambi.

Campaigning vigorously, Amarinder not only dethroned the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP combine but also managed to check the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which was threatening to pull an upset win in the border state.

He even snatched AAPs poll planks of drug abuse and corruption, and it seems to have worked. AAPs decision not to name a chief ministerial candidate and the outsider tag on the Arvind Kejriwal-led outfit also seems to have helped Amarinder.

For our live coverage of Punjab assembly election results, click here

Going by the trends, the voters of Punjab seem to have reposed their faith in the veteran Congress leader. The erstwhile royal and a former chief minister turned out to be more credible than leaders of rival parties. His long innings in politics and administrative experience made him a trustworthy figure.

With Amarinder taking over as the chief minister, the Congress leadership will have to find another person to lead its state unit to keep up the momentum going till the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu and Youth Congress chief Raja Amarinder Singh Brar are the two top contenders to replace Amarinder as the state party chief.

Amarinder, who was leading in Patiala (Urban), avenged his 2012 defeat when the SAD-BJP coalition created history by retaining power though it was on a weak wicket.

Before the surprise disruption, Punjab had not given a formation two successive terms since 1966 when it was re-organised along the linguistic formula.

In both 2012 and 2017 elections, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had announced Amarinder the partys chief ministerial candidate, a deviation from the partys policy of not naming its pick for the top post.

Usually, the practice in the Congress is to keep the issue open and alive as there are several claimants to the chief ministers post and let the elected legislators authorise the Congress leadership to take a decision.

While the move backfired in 2012, it paid rich dividends in 2017. The victory will also silence Amarinders detractors in the party. Prior to being appointed as the state chief, Amarinder was engaged in a bitter power struggle with predecessor Partap Singh Bajwa.

Read: Five reasons how Kejriwal-led AAP threw away Punjab elections, hurt national ambition

For full coverage of assembly elections, click here

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It was expected to be the biggest hurdle for the assembly polls. But in the end the four-month-old blockade of national highways by United Naga Council (UNC) failed to affect the election.

Polling took place without any major incident of violence and there was heavy voter turnout of over 86% in both phases in valley and hill districts.

But the allegations and counter-allegations by Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party on how each dealt with it and the message they were able to deliver to the voters did matter in the outcome.

Blockades arent new to Manipur. The state has witnessed many in the past years, some stretching several months. But this is the first blockade that continued over an election.

In 2011 there was a 122-day long blockade when Congress was in power in the state and in the Centre. How come the state government didnt blame New Delhi at that time? questioned N. Biren Singh, senior BJP leader.

While ruling Congress tried to blame the BJP-led government at Centre for failing to do enough to end the blockade, the saffron party retorted by pointing out that law and order was a state subject.

The way BJP leaders promised to end the blockade once it comes to power, made it clear they were behind instigation of the blockade and wanted it to continue for political gain, state Congress president TN Haokip said.

As residents suffered and campaigning picked up, both parties tried to impress upon voters that the other was responsible for the blockade continuing for so long.

The first two months of the blockade, which started on November 1, were the most difficult, with supplies of essential goods and medicines running out in Imphal Valley and petrol and diesel sold at exorbitant prices in black market.

Situation eased in the weeks leading to the polls with convoys of trucks escorted by security personnel entering the state and additional fuel being brought by air.

However, there are fears in Imphal that the situation would change for the worse after the polls.

BJP had promised to end the blockade soon after coming to power. But with the state poised for a hung assembly, government formation would take time, and the blockade could continue.

The blockade started as a result of the state government creating new districts without consulting Nagas. That decision needs to be reviewed, otherwise the blockade will continue, UNC general secretary Milan Shimray told HT.

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At least 11 people were killed and many others were seriously injured when a private bus collided head-on with a truck early on Saturday near Uruli-Kanchan town in Maharashtras Pune district.

The dead include 5 women and 6 men and have been identified as Vijay Kale, Jyoti Kale, Yogesh Lokhande, Jaywant Chavan, Revati Chavan, Yogita Chavan, Jagdish Pandit, Shailaja Pandit, Pradip Awchat and Sulbha Awcha. A girls body is yet to be identified.

The injured have been admitted to nearby private hospitals.

Eleven people in the bus died on the spot. (Ht Photo)

According to preliminary reports, driver of the Tempo Traveller lost control over the vehicle when some animal unexpectedly started crossing the road near Urali-Kanchan, 40 km away from Pune, on Pune-Hyderabad highway.

A group of residents from Mumbais Mulund reportedly hired the bus for Akkalkot in Solapur district, a famous pilgrimage in south Maharashtra, and left in the night.

Police on the spot of accident. (HT Photo)

Police and medical teams have rushed to the spot and rescue operation is in progress.

Traffic on the busy Pune-Hyderabad highway has been affected and was diverted to an alternate route.
Chinese goods have made their way into army canteens and the countrys top auditor is fuming over it.

In its latest report tabled in Parliament, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) found that locally-available daily use products were being imported from China and sold in Canteen Stores Department outlets. The CSD sells goods at subsidised rates to soldiers, ex-servicemen.

The report cited the examples of blankets, doormats, raincoats, slippers and handbags of Chinese origin on CSD shelves.

The report said the introduction of such imported items lacked justification and worked against the governments initiative of encouraging the domestic small scale industries.

Further, independent quality inspection of the imported items introduced by CSD was not carried out to ensure quality standard of the goods vis-a-vis comparable products in India, said the report on the working of CSD whose sales amounted to Rs 15,781 crore in 2015-16.

In its defence, the CSD said there was no ban on importing items from China. Importing items by medium enterprises contributes to economy and providing employment to Indian people.

The report said there was nothing to show if the needs of consumers or the popularity of the product was ascertained.

Imported items were introduced without conducting market survey and quality checks, the report said. The number of consumer goods listed with CSD stood at 5,548 as of March 2016.

The CAG also raised questions about irregularities in liquor sales in 20 unit run canteens. The report pegged the cost of excess drawn liquor at Rs 5.14 crore, flagging concerns about illegal sales in the market.
Calcutta high court judge CS Karnan stepped up his tirade against the Supreme Court and his fellow judges on Saturday by releasing his written allegations against two Madas high court judges.

He alleged that one had tampered records to get into service and amassed wealth through unfair means while the other had raped an intern.

Justice Karnan had made these allegations in 2013 and 2014. "I wrote to the chief justice of Madras high court but no action has been taken against them. I brought specific allegations against 20 judges. But while those 20 are silent, a seven-member bench of the SC issued a warrant against me. Today I openly admit that Indian judiciary is corrupt," Karnan said at a press conference at his residence .

"These seven judges don't know law. The SC did not apply mind. That's why public confidence (in the judiciary) is decreasing day by day," he said.

Asked whether he would appear before the SC on or before the deadline (March 31), Karnan said "Why? For what purpose? This is a wrong order. It is out of law."

On Friday, Karnan had signed an order in front of the media at his residence, directing the Central Bureau of Investigation to "register, investigate and file a report before the appropriate court of law under Article 226 read with Section 482 CrPC to prevent abuse of process of any court...."

"I am a sitting high court judge. Any place where I sit and pass an order becomes the court," Karnan said. Asked whether he had the power to issue a directive even to the President, he however said: "I have humbly appealed to President. Who can direct the President of India?" Later he changed the word "direct" to "request."

When he was asked whether the director general of Bengal Police, who is supposed to execute the warrant, or the CBI had got in touch with him, Karnan said, "Not so far." One of his associates, a lawyer of the Madras HC, said copies of Karnan's order had been sent to the CBI as well as the judges of the SC.

Asked whether it was appropriate for a sitting judge to talk to the media, Justice Karnan said, It is a national issue. It should reach the people. Let there be transparency. Whats the secret? Nobody takes a suo motu warrant against a sitting judge.
India has said that outfits like the Haqqani network, LeT and JeM should be treated like terrorist groups and warned that terrorisms resurgent forces are not given sanctuaries and safe havens in any form.

The unimpeded and increasingly brutal terrorist attacks, the territorial gains by terrorist groups with support from outside Afghanistan and the emerging grave humanitarian crises are all portents of dreadful times, Indias Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin said on Friday during a Security Council session on the situation in Afghanistan.

It is our first and foremost duty to ensure that the resurgent forces of terrorism and extremism do not find sanctuaries and safe havens in any name, form or manifestation, he said, adding that experience has shown when foreign assistance is available to insurgents, situations tend to fester and take a greater toll.

He strongly warned against differentiating between good and bad terrorists as well as playing one group against the other.

The Taliban, Haqqani Network, al Qaeda, Daesh, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and others of their ilk are all terror organisations, many of them proscribed by the UN. They should be treated like terrorist organisations and their activities universally opposed, he said.

In a criticism of the world body, Akbaruddin said it is obvious that the political process the UN had started and the sanction regimes it had split have not quite worked.

The fact that the Council has not acted on the Taliban leaders as it had vowed in resolution 1988 is now well documented, he said.

The Indian envoy also strongly criticised the Security Councils subsidiary body for taking four months to confirm the death of the leader of the Taliban.

It is now 7 months and we are still counting as we await the decision of the Councils same subsidiary on freezing the accounts of that slain terrorist, he said.

Akbaruddin cautioned that the international community cannot stand and watch from the sidelines as gains achieved by them and the Afghan people towards the war-torn countrys development in the last decades are reversed.

India called for decisive action to combat terror groups, saying nations have had to pay a costly price for their inactions in the past.

While territories are captured by terrorists, people are killed and threatened to go back to a situation perhaps same as or worse than what they fled, can we remain just looking on? Standing, where we are today, it is imperative that we take action and take it decisively. We must not forget the implications the world faced in 2001 for its lack of action. History never forgives those who forget it, he added.
Renewing its call to the world to not differentiate between good and bad terrorists, India told the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Friday that all terrorist groups must be treated like terrorist organisations and their activities (be) universally opposed.

The Taliban, the Haqqani Network, al-Qaeda, Daesh (another name for Islamic State), Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and others of their ilk are all terror organisations, many of them proscribed by UN, said Syed Akbaruddin, Indian permanent representative to United Nations, in a statement at UNSC discussion on the security situation in Afghanistan. He also highlighted problems posed to Afghanistan by the resurgent forces of terrorism and extremism finding sanctuaries and safe haven across the border. Experience shows that situations in which foreign assistance is available to insurgents tend to fester and take a a greater toll, he said.

The reference here was unmistakably to cross-border support for terrorists in Pakistan, which granted sanctuary to the Taliban and the Haqqani Network, as declared repeatedly by the US as well, and Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad.

And the call to not differentiate between terrorists was aimed not only at Pakistan but also China  one of the five permanent members of UNSC  which is blocking the UN from designating Jaish-e-Mohammads Masood Azhar as a terrorist.

Criticising UN, he said it is obvious that the political process the world body had started and the sanction regimes it had split have not quite worked. The fact that the Council has not acted on Taliban leaders as it had vowed in resolution 1988 is now well documented, he said.
The admission of a petition by Supreme Court last Monday against Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu in connection with the cash-for-votes case of 2015 has come as a morale booster for the YSR Congress party.

Its president YS Jaganmohan Reddy faces trial in the special CBI court in a disproportionate assets case.

YSR Congress supporters are launching a campaign on social media and filing online petitions, demanding that Naidu be prosecuted. In the past three days, more than 10,000 petitions were mobilised by Jagans supporters through online forum change.org to be submitted to the Chief Justice of India Jagdish Singh Khehar and other judges of the Supreme Court.

They point out that the Telangana ACB had made several references to Naidu in their charge sheet , which clearly showed his involvement in the case.

It has become a norm of our society, where the rich and powerful are easily able to escape the law. We pray the court to order an impartial investigation into this case and bring the culprits to face the law of land, the petitions said.

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notices to Naidu on a special leave petition filed by YSR Congress party MLA Alla Ramakrishna Reddy and asked the former to file a counter. Reddy sought the courts direction for registration of a case against Naidu under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The TDP supremo told media in Vijayawada that he had received notices in as many as 26 cases filed by his opponents in the past, but they could not prove any charges. There is no merit in the case, he said.

However, YSR Congress official spokesman Ambati Rambabu said, He should resign from the chief minister post on moral grounds, since the Supreme Court has taken cognizance of the case and issued him notice in the cash-for-vote case.

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Police have recovered the Nobel citation of social activist Kailash Satyarthi that was stolen from his south Delhi home along with several other valuables by a group of three brothers over a month ago, officials said on Saturday.

They said that after their arrest when the brothers refused to reveal where they had discarded the citation, investigators deployed sources to gather information about the places they visited the day after the theft on February 6.

Delhi police arrest 3 people they involved in Kailash Satyarthi's house burglary case and recover Nobel prizes replica in New Delhi, India, on Sunday, February 12, 2017. (Ravi Choudhary/HT PHOTO)

The breakthrough came on Friday evening when one of the informers told the police that the trio also visited the Aravali forests after the crime. The citation was found in a bag that was hidden under a rock in Aravali Biodiversity Park in south Delhi. The bag was sniffed out by police dogs after a three-hour search on Friday evening.

Apart from the citation, the thieves had also stolen a replica of the Nobel Prize won by Satyarthi, some jewellery and several gifts he had received during his visits to various countries.

Delhi Police show the three accused involved in the burglary at Noble Laureate Kailash Satyarthi's house at PHQ in New Delhi on Sunday. (PTI)

The thieves were arrested five days after the burglary and most of the stolen items were recovered.

Satyarthi, a childrens rights activist, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014, which he shared with Pakistans Malala Yousafzai.
Manipurs iconic activist Irom Sharmila on Saturday announced she is quitting electoral politics, barely a few hours after her debut polls ended in a debacle  she managed just 90 votes in her contest against chief minister O Ibobi singh.

I dont feel ashamed of my defeat but am fed up of elections and wont contest again in future, Sharmila told Hindustan Times.

But I want my party, Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) to survive.

For 16 years, Sharmila was a role-model for the people of Manipur, a fearless activist who staged the worlds longest hunger strike against what is widely seen as a draconian law.

Follow live | Election result coverage

And her decision to contest the 2017 assembly election against the Congress chief minister was billed as the battle to watch out for this poll season.

On Saturday, the battle emerged as a no-contest as Sharmila, 43, managed just 90 votes to hand, probably, one of the easiest electoral victories for the Congress leader.

Sharmila said she wants to go on a month-long retreat to an ashram in south India, most likely in Kerala or Karnataka, and contemplate.

It was not the result I expected. During electioneering, all the masses whom I met were sympathetic to my cause. But they ended up voting for others, due to their selfish motives, she said.

She, however, refused to answer a question on her earlier declaration of marrying longtime partner Desmond Coutanho, an NRI with roots in Goa, after the elections.

Experts attribute Sharmilas debacle to her calling off her strike against the AFSPA, which many saw as big climbdown.

Sharmila formed the PRJA but failed to find resonance among voters. Two other candidates from the party also lost.

Againsts Sharmilas 90 votes, the chief minister got 18,649 votes while the second-placed L Basanta of BJP got 8179.

We really like her cause (for repealing AFSPA), but were compelled to support someone whom we think is capable of fighting back and winning the elections, said Y Roben (42), a resident of Thoubal.

After all, election and politics is a number game.

Full coverage of assembly elections

Sharing similar sentiments, first time voter W Biseshwar (22) told HT that even if she had been elected, her party would not have been able to play key role in forming the next government.

People here dont vote in favour of party or personality. The one who is influential usually wins, said N Manitombi (54), a vegetable vendor at the iconic all-woman market in state capital Imphal.

Several of Sharmilas close associates were against her decision of quitting the fast and entering politics. Some of them, even family members, deserted her.

Undeterred, she cycled across Imphal Valley, interacting with voters and seeking their blessings. The party, the first to be crowd-funded, also received Rs 50,000 as donation from AAP leader and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.

However, PRJAs lack of presence in the grass roots and organisational structure worked against Sharmila.

Two other PRJA candidates, Harvard-educated Erendro Leichombam who contested from Thangmeiband, and Najima Bibi, the lone Muslim woman candidate in fray who contested from Wabagai, too failed to attract voters.

Sharmila  also known as a Iron Lady of Manipur  had said the aim of her political struggle will be to bring non-violence, peace and understanding to the northeastern state, wreaked by decades of militancy that has left hundreds of civilians and security dead.

She had launched her hunger strike in 2000 after security personnel gunned down 10 civilians on suspicion of militant links.

Full interactive coverage of Manipur elections
Suspected Maoist rebels ambushed a road opening party of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Saturday and killed at least 12 troopers in insurgency-hit Sukma district of Chhattisgarh.

The attack took place at 9.10am near Kotacheru under Bheji police station in Sukma - one of the worst-Maoist affected districts in the country. The Maoists also looted 10 weapons from the dead personnel in the area around 450km away from the state capital.

Troops of A/E 219 battalion were on a road opening duty and providing security for road construction in the area when they were ambushed. The ambush was followed up by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack, a CRPF official said in New Delhi.

Five troopers were injured in the attack. Three of them were stated to be critical initially.

The injured were brought to Raipur and admitted to a government hospital, the official added. One of the critically injured later died, taking the toll to 12.

Besides weapons, the Maoists also looted two VHF radio sets that the CRPF team was carrying. The CRPF party consisted of 112 personnel.

Since the attack site is an interior area, the only way of communication is through a satellite phone, said the CRPF official.

Additional forces have been rushed to the spot and the bodies of the dead soldiers are being retrieved, he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to the families of slain CRPF personnel .

He also spoke to home minister Rajnath Singh on the situation in Sukma who will be going to Sukma to take stock of the situation.

Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs & condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

The home minister said that the Centre was in direct communication with the state government. In a series of tweets, Rajnath Singh said that those who perpetrated the incident will be brought to justice.

I have spoken to CM Ch'garh @drramansingh regarding the Sukma incident. The state govt. is providing all medical assistance to the injured.  Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) March 11, 2017

The Centre is in direct communication with the state government. Those who perpetrated this incident in Sukma will be brought to justice  Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) March 11, 2017

Last month, two Special Task Force (STF) personnel, including an assistant platoon commander, were killed in an encounter in Kondagaon district of Chhattisgarh.
Bhagalpur: A court in Bihars Bhagalpur district has issued a non-bailable warrant against ML Choudhury, former vice-chancellor of Bihar Agriculture University (BAU), Sabour, for alleged irregularities in appointments during his tenure.

The special investigation team (SIT), probing the alleged irregularities in appointment of assistant professors-cum-junior scientists in BAU, had moved the court of additional chief judicial magistrate (ACJM)-10 Ashutosh Pandey on Thursday for issuance of the arrest warrant.

The former VC, who was served notice by the SIT for interrogation earlier this week, did not turn up.

Police said an FIR was lodged against Choudhury after a probe committee, headed by retired Patna high court judge justice Syed Mohammed Mahfooz Alam, constituted in 2015, had indicted him for anomalies in appointment. The panel found that many appointments during his tenure were made by ignoring the candidates performance in written test and academic records.

READ: Bihar university moves for FIR against ex-VC over job scam

Choudhary was the vice chancellor of the BAU till 2015 before he won the assembly election from Tarapur in Munger district on a JD(U) ticket. He has since been suspended from JD(U).

Bhagalpur senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manoj Kumar said the regional passport office had been also approached by police for impounding the passport of Choudhury.

READ: FIR against ex-vice chancellor of Bihar Agriculture University

The SIT, in course of investigation, has so far has interrogated more than 12 persons in connection with the alleged irregular appointments. They include those who were appointed as assistant professors-cum-junior scientists and members of the committee involved in selection process.

The SIT has also issued notices to more than a dozen members of the selection committee, including some from other states.

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Pakistans powerful military continues to play a strong role in the countrys national security and foreign affairs, the US State Departments Office of Inspector General has said.

The Pakistani military continues to play a strong role in national security and foreign affairs. The country faces external and internal challenges to its stability from crime and terrorism, it said in a report on the inspection of US Embassy in Islamabad and its other consulates in Pakistan.

In the report running into more than 20 pages, the Inspector General said US-Pakistan relationship encompasses issues of critical importance to American national security. These include counter-terrorism, nuclear non-proliferation, peace in Afghanistan, and domestic and South Asian regional economic growth and development.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif (R), along with senior military officials, stands on the deck of a ship to observe the formation of participating naval vessels, during the closing ceremony of the Pakistan Navys Multinational Exercise AMAN-17, in the North Arabian Sea, Pakistan, February 14, 2017. (REUTERS)

Mission Pakistans highest policy priorities are to promote regional stability, combat terrorism, and support a secure, economically vibrant, and stable Pakistani democracy, it said.

Three unrelated events in 2011, an incident in Lahore involving an American citizen, the killing of Osama bin Laden in a raid in Abbottabad, and the Salala border clash, were perceived as challenges to Pakistani sovereignty and a set back for US-Pakistan cooperation, it said.

Since then, the two governments have taken steps to improve relations, culminating in Secretary John Kerrys 2015 visit to Islamabad to co-chair the Strategic Dialogue and the Pakistani Prime Ministers visit to the US the same year.

Nevertheless, bilateral challenges remain, including advancing the Afghanistan reconciliation process, combating terrorism, and promoting civil society, the empowerment of women, and the rule of law, the report said.

Observing that Pakistan is one of the largest recipients of US foreign assistance, the report said that in fiscal 2015, Pakistan received USD 803 million, including USD 538 million in civilian and USD 265 million in security assistance.

Civilian assistance is centered on five sectors: energy, economic growth, stabilisation, education and health. Security assistance focuses on counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency.

However, the Office of the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan reported a 61% decrease in foreign assistance funds to Pakistan from its peak in 2010 to the 2017 request, due to changing regional priorities.

In its report, the Inspector General said that the cashier advance at Consulate General Karachi is excessive.

The Class B cashier advance of USD 110,000 for Consulate General Karachi exceeds the standard level, defined as the amount the cashier requires for one weeks activity plus an amount sufficient to cover replenishment turn-around time, it said.

Although Consulate General Karachi required this amount at one point, its cash requirements diminished in 2015.

The Inspector General said embassy in Islamabad did not use the Departments automated Fleet Management Integrated System to manage its USD 14 million vehicle fleet.
The half-charred body of a 60-year-old man with a stick inserted in his private parts was found at Dhoolkheda village in Bhilwara district on Saturday, police said.

On being informed by the villagers, police recovered the body which was lying near a canal in the village.

Suspecting it to be a case of murder, we have registered a case against unidentified persons and an investigation is underway, SHO of Mandal Police Station, Harish Kumar Sankhla said.

The deceased has been identified as Gangaram Gujjar of Kishanpura village in Rajsamand district. His family members have been identified about the incident and the body will be handed over to them after post-mortem, Sankhla said.
A South Sudanese rebel group has said it has captured two Indian oil engineers whom it claimed were working with the government.

The Sudan Peoples Liberation Army-In Opposition (SPLA-IO) said it captured the engineers, identified as Ambross Edward and Muggy Vijaya Boopathy, from a new oilfield in Guelguk North in Upper Nile after fierce fighting between rebel and government forces, according to South Sudan News Agency.

SPLA-IO spokesman William Gatjiath Deng said in a statement the Indians refused to respect repeated warnings from the military command of the armed opposition. He claimed the engineers were working for the South Sudan government led by President Salva Kiir Mayardit and were captured on March 9.

Deng said on Saturday the two Indians will be held until a decision is made on their fate by opposition leader Riek Machar, who is in exile in South Africa.

Another opposition spokesman, Mabior Garang, said ransom or other demands are unlikely because they would be would be inconsistent with our objectives.

The Indian Embassy in South Sudan had no immediate comment.

The rebel group also said that its forces disintegrated, defeated, and killed at least 33 government soldiers in the fighting and took control of the area.

Deng said foreign oil workers should think before they set foot in any oil production site and that oil companies (should) value the lives of their employees.

Last week, the rebels had warned foreign workers to stop risking their lives in oil production sites. The rebels have also said they want to stop oil production till a peaceful solution is reached with the government.

The new oilfield in Guelguk North, located near the border with Sudan, is one of the main oil production areas and a source of revenue for the South Sudan government.

The East African country has been devastated by three years of civil war.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor gave a lesson to a British interviewer about the contributions India made towards the colonial empire after being asked to talk about the trickle down of the repatriation of the funds to the UK.

Tharoor told Sky News Colin Brazier there were vast sums that were sent to the United Kingdom and not just a trickle and that the more important thing is the moral case and not just the money.

What really matters is for Britain to look within and to recognise that there is something to be apologetic about, the former United Nations diplomat said.

The MP from Thiruvananthapuram talked about how Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau apologised to India over the Komagata Maru incident of 1914 when Canada turned away more than 350 Indian migrants seeking a better life, even though the Canadians didnt kill anybody themselves.

To my mind, I think, just taking collective responsibility is a moral step that the British have simply not contemplated even after 200 years of profiting from their empire, he said.

Do you know that a million Indians fought unarmed for the British side? Do you know that it was largely Indian soldiers who stopped the German advance in Ypres in the beginning of the war? Do you know India supplied pack animals, food, clothing, rations and even rail lines ripped out of the ground in India and sent off to aid the war effort? And that the total contribution of Indians in cash and kind is estimated, in todays money, at about 80 million, he added.

I am quite sure you dont know that. Because the British dont tell you that.

In 2015, Tharoor had argued for reparations from Britain to its former colonies at the Oxford Union debate critiquing Britains role in India. And in his latest book Inglorious Empire: What the British Did to India, he has made a blistering critique of the colonial legacy from the arrival of the East India Company to the end of the Raj.

He has argued in the book that the various institutions that the British left behind in India were brought in to enhance their control and make profits.

Tharoor has also blasted the UK governments branding of bilateral deals with Commonwealth nations after Brexit as Empire 2.0, saying it will go down like a lead balloon.
Buoyed by her partys landslide win in Uttar Pradesh, chief minister Vasundhara Raje on Saturday said the BJP will replicate the performance during the 2018 Rajasthan assembly poll.

This is Modi Magic (Prime Minister Narendra Modi). For the first, the BJP has won so many seats in Uttar Pradesh. The huge mandate is result of able leadership of Modi and party chief Amit Shah, she said.

In coming assembly polls in Rajasthan, we will win with huge mandate under leadership of Modi.

After this historic win, the whole country is coloured saffron. We celebrated Holi after the results, while Congress did it early  it seems they were aware of the results, she said.

BJP state unit president Ashok Paranami said his partys win in two states  Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand - is result of good governance and development.

Peoples faith has increased on the BJP in view of the schemes, polices and development works by the Modi government, he said.

BJP workers and leaders celebrated the partys win by bursting firecrackers, distributing sweets and playing with colours at the state headquarters here.
A seven-year-old male leopard was run over on Saturday at 7 am near Ozarde village, close to Talegaon on the Mumbai-Pune expressway. This is the fourth leopard to be killed in four months in the state.

Wildlife conservationists said leopards are forced to enter residential areas owing to the destruction of their habitat, a declining prey base and a lack of adequate space and water sources. Since these cats prefer to move around at night, they are often hit and killed by vehicles travelling on roads that cross wildlife corridors.

According to the Pune forest department, the leopard was hit by a high-speed vehicle travelling from Mumbai to Pune. The post-mortem revealed that the leopards right leg was injured and this is possibly why it could not cross the road in time. The hit-and-run shattered the animals rib cage. It died of brain haemorrhage, said Satyajeet Gujar, deputy conservator of forest, Pune territorial.

A case was registered under section 9 (prohibition of hunting) of the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA),1972 against unidentified people. Leopards are protected under schedule 1 of WPA.

Local forest guards are in the process of tracing the vehicle. We will check CCTV camera footage from the toll closest to the accident spot. The local police have also been informed, said S Takawale, range forest officer from the area. As such cases are on the rise across Maharashtra, we want to nab the accused so that there is some deterrence.

Fourth incident in four months

 On February 24, a six-year-old male leopard was run over by a speeding vehicle near the Sativali, Vasai on National Highway 8, also known as the Mumbai-Ahmadabad highway.

 On January 26, a four-year-old female leopard was killed in a road accident along the Pune-Nasik highway.

 On November 2 last year, a six-year-old male leopard died on the spot after being hit by an unidentified vehicle near Ghoti toll naka, 140km from Mumbai.

Also read: Little to fear from leopards if not provoked, say SGNP, forest officials

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A Class 9 student died with asthma on Friday while she was hosting a party for her seniors.

Fifteen-year-old Svetlana Fernandes was a Mulund resident and a student of Billabong High International School in Thane.

Speaking about the incident, Ranjini Krishnaswamy, the director- principal of Billabong High International School in Thane, said, The incident did not happen within the school premises. Fernandes was a part of the group that was hosting a farewell party for Class 10 students as their board exams just got over.

She added, Fernandes was asthmatic and had a bout of breathlessness during the party. Unfortunately, she was not carrying her pump. The teachers rushed her to the hospital but the doctors could not save her. The school authorities, however, refused to comment on whether they were aware about Fernandes medical condition or not.

Navin Augustine, a Thane resident whose daughter is studying in the same school, said, It was an unfortunate incident. School authorities take details of the students medical conditions such as allergy and update it regularly.

He added, We also have to provide the details of our family doctor along with line of treatment. What happened appears to have been just an accident.

One of Fernandes classmate said, She was a charming girl, always bubbly full of energy. She was a brilliant student who was a favourite among her friends and teachers. We are yet to actually believe that she is no more with us.

Fernandes was the only child of her parents. Her father was in Hong Kong when he got the news. He will reach Mumbai on Sunday. The teens funeral will take place on Sunday at Mulund Cemetry in Mulund (East).

An officer from Shrinagar police station in Thane said,The student was initially taken to Shree Hospital but as it did not have ICU facility, she was shifted to Dhanwantri Hospital in Mulund where she was declared dead by the doctors. The place where the students were having the party fell under the jurisdiction of the Shrinagar police but since the deceased was from Mulund, the case was transferred to the Mulund (West) police station.

We have filed an accidental death report. The family members have not filed any complaints yet, said an officer from Mulund west police station said.

Also read: Asthma patients more vulnerable to flu than others
The Islamic Research Foundations (IRF) guest relations manager, Arshi Qureshi, booked for radicalising young people who left India to join ISIS, had induced them to convert to Islam by promising them that they would get 72 virgin women in heaven, said National Investigation Agency (NIA) sources.

Qureshi was arrested for radicalising Nagpada-based businessman Abdul Khan. The case is being investigated by the NIA, which stated in its charge sheet that Qureshi would conduct meetings at IRFs Dongri centre, where people were allegedly radicalised. The sessions in which people were converted to Islam were called revert sessions.

The charge sheet adds that those who attended these sessions held by Qureshi subsequently joined the Islamic State (IS). The statements of witnesses reveal that the young people who converted to Islam at Qureshis behest had also asked several of their relatives to attend such sessions.

A witness who had attended training sessions at Dongri told the NIA that Qureshi would preach about converting to Islam and would call it the best religion.

Qureshi told us that only Muslims go to Jannat (heaven). He said every Muslim get 72 hurs (virgins) in heaven. He told us no one ages beyond 30 to 32 years in heaven and they can enjoy the afterlife indefinitely, reads the witness statement given to NIA on January 12.

Qureshi used to tell all the revertees that Hijrat (migration) is duty of every Muslim. He said that as the prophet had shifted from Mecca to Medina, we should also leave your homes. The witness said Quereshis colleage added him to a tele-messaging group, which had 50 members.

A young man  the relative of a woman who converted from Christianity to Islam and left to join ISIS with many other young people from Kerala  said Qureshi persuaded him to convert too. The witness, whose identity has been kept a secret for security reasons, said Qureshi had introduced him to Islam and taught him follow the religion.

I had started following Islam. But, I soon got frustrated with this forced transition and so I returned to my former religion. After I left, Qureshi kept calling me and asking me why I had abandoned Islam. He said he would clarify whatever doubts I had. He kept calling me for almost a month, the witness said.

The charge sheet reveals that Qureshi came under the scanner at his workplace after he tried to impose his practices there. In a statement to the NIA, former public relations manager of the IRF and former operations manager of Harmony Media Pvt Ltd, Maqbool Barwelkar said Qureshi was warned not to argue with staff who did not want to adhere to his principles.

Read

Arshi Qureshi arranged for funds for ISIS recruits: Mumbai crime branch

IRF employee radicalised ISIS recruit in Mumbai, says NIA charge sheet

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Abdul Rashid Abdulla,wanted in connection with the Kerala Islamic State (IS) case, had tried to induce more people to join IS even after he left India, witnesses who were in touch with Rashid told investigating agencies.

After reaching ISIS camps, Rashid contacted his friends and classmates to talk about a course on Islam that he had attended in Sri Lanka. These people are now witnesses and their statements are part of the charge sheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) as part of the case registered by the father of one of the 22 missing young people.

In his conversations with these witnesses, Rashid tried to coerce them to join ISIS said he could tell them how to get there.

One of Rashids close friends, whose identity has been kept a secret for security reasons, told the agency Rashid contacted him after he left India. Rashid invited me to join him within two weeks. He told me that he would give me information about the route. However, I was uninterested and did not reply to him, said the witness.

The charge sheet contains the statements of Rashids colleagues and staff of Peace Foundation as well as students who had participated in a course on Islam at Ad-dur Salaffiya in Sri Lanka. Sources said Rashid was in touch with 40 students, of which 18 were from India.

Rashid and other members were expelled from the course for propagating ISIS ideology among the students. A witness who knew that Rashid was in touch with some of the students, said Rashid invited one of his friends to join ISIS.

In his statement, he said one of the missing youth who had gone to Sri Lanka with Rashid had told him it was risky to go there and it was difficult to turn back.

One of Rashids colleagues said he had tried to induce the foundations staff and get them to join training sessions. The witness said Rashid used a browser to search for material that could not be traced by the agency. I asked him how anyone could go to Syria. Rashid said that when people go to Turkey, IS recruits help them cross to Syria at the border, he told the NIA.

Rashid, who worked as the head of the other cognitive areas department (OCA) of the Peace Foundation, Kozhikode, was in a key position to influence young people to join ISIS, said the NIA. The agency said he would lecture the youth on Jihad and ISIS ideologies. Members were also shown videos propagating ISIS ideology and violence, reads the charge sheet file by the NIA.

Read

Cops to record statements of friends of Kerala ISIS suspect Ashfaque

Kerala ISIS case: Accused used farming to disguise groups activities, says NIA

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The Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) massive victory in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, will lend stability to its government in Maharashtra, its leaders said on Saturday.

Political analysts too opined that the response the BJP is getting from voters means its troublesome ally, Shiv Sena, will be forced to soften its stand towards the BJP.

A bitter fight and subsequent severance of ties between the Sena and the BJP ahead of the recent Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections had raised the questions over the stability of the Fadnavis government in the state. Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackerays statement, soon after the BMC results, that not only the Mumbai mayor, but even the chief minister of the state will be from his party had raised many eyebrows in the political corridors. Shiv Senas stand of teaming up with the opposition on the issue of the loan waiver in the legislature too had reinforced the widened rift between the two ruling parties. The talks of the Shiv Sena pulling out of the government in the wake of this, had gathered momentum of late. But the astonishing success of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh will help push the opposition, and the Shiv Sena, a step backward, according to analysts.

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said, minutes after the results of the UP election were announced, his government was stable and there will be no mid-term polls in the state. He also has reminded its ally that the Uttar Pradesh results have underlined the mood of the nation. Opponents join hands when they feel threatened from the all-round success of the BJP. But, it will not pose any threat to the government, he said soon after the results.

When Shiv Sena refused to seek BJPs support to install a mayor in the BMC even after falling short of the majority mark, the Congress and NCP tried to extend their support. Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, had gone saying his party was ready to face mid-term polls and they will not go with the BJP in any situation. This had led to a buzz in the political corridors about the possibility of the three parties coming together to dislodge the BJP from the government. Though the idea did not get any further endorsement, the bitterness between BJP and Sena remained of the same scale.

According to a source, the states BJP leaders even discussed the possibilty of the Sena pulling out with its central leadership. The central leadership had reportedly reassured Fadnavis about the partys strong position even if the mid-term polls are held.

The Shiv Sena will now have to think twice before taking any challenging step against the BJP after todays results. There will be paradigm shift in India politics post the UP results and that will have a natural reflection in Maharashtra too. Sena too will have to soften the stand it took during the BMC polls last month, said Prakash Bal, political analyst.

The analysts also said the results will have a bearing on the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and the Assembly elections to be held in two years. According to a Congress leader, the Opposition has now no option, but to put up a united front against the winning streak.

Not only the Shiv Sena, but even the Congress and NCP too have a huge existential challenge before them ahead of the 2019 elections, said Hemant Desai, another analyst.

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The Navi Mumbai police on Saturday arrested four people, who they say are responsible for leaking the questions of the Marathi and Secretarial Practice papers of the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) exams through a mobile messaging application. The police had earlier arrested four people for allegedly posting the images of the question papers on WhatsApp.

The accused masterminds have been identified as Anand Ramdas Kamat, 43, trustee and principal of Mount Mary School, Virar, Ganesh Sudhakar Rane, 30, head clerk, Mount Mary school, advocate Nikhil Shankar Rane, 29, who conducts tuitions and Vinesh Ashok Dhotre, 27, a teacher at Lokmanya Junior College in Nalasopara, who also conducts tuitions.

Madhukar Pandey, joint commissioner of police, Navi Mumbai, said, Kamat and Ganesh Rane would open the packets containing the questions papers that arrived at their centre. They would take photos of the pages of the question papers with the phone of a Class 11 student.

They would send the images to Nikhil Rane, who would share it with Dhotre. Dhotre, who had formed various WhatsApp groups comprising his students, shared the images on those groups and collected money from the students, according to Pandey.

Kamat and Ganesh Rane are alleged to have been paid Rs20,000 each by Nikhil Rane and Dhotre for each paper.

According to Pandey, the accused have been found involved in both the cases of leaking the questions of the Marathi and Secretarial Practice papers.

We are investigating if they were involved in the cases that have been registered in Mumbai as well and also how much money they have collected.

The police had earlier last week arrested Rahul Bachelal Bhaskar, 22, Azharuddin Kamaruddin Shaikh, 20, Mohammad Aman Mohammad Islam Shaikh, 19 and Suresh Vimalchand Jha, 26.

The accused have been arrested by the Vashi police under The Maharashtra Prevention of Malpractices at University, Board and other Specified Examination Act,1982 r/w Sec 72 of IT Act.

The accused, who were presented before the JMFC court, Vashi, were remanded in police custody till March 18.

Read

6th HSC paper leak in nine days in Mumbai, three students booked
Sahibabad, the biggest assembly seat in Uttar Pradesh, will now have a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA who believes development works will not suffer as the party is in power at the Centre and in the state. The district also has a BJP MP.

The win is largely attributed to the development works carried out by prime minster Narendra Modi. He has gained the trust of people. Parties tried to project demonetisation in a negative manner but people went with the PM. There was definitely a wave in favour of PM Modi and the BJP similar to what prevailed during 2014 general elections, Sunil Sharma, BJPs winning candidate from Sahibabad, said.

Apart from the local development works, my focus will be on curbing crime, he said.

Of the 11 contesting candidates, Sharma secured 61.82% votes of a total of 4,24,989 votes cast on February 11. His victory margin of 1,50,685 is also the biggest in all five segments in the district. The constituency has 8,65,275 voters.

This time, people from urban settlements such as Kaushambi, Indirapuram, Vaishali and Vasundhara came out to vote in large numbers. On the polling day, a number of voters had said they will vote for better Centre-state coordination as it will speed up development works.

Despite unprecedented publicity campaigns by the district administration, the polling percentage failed to pick up from 2012 and was recorded at 49.12%. More than half the votes went to the BJP candidate.

Sharma and his nearest opponent Amarpal Sharma were in a neck-to-neck contest during the first four rounds of counting on Saturday. From the fifth round, the BJP candidate took the lead and finally won.

Sahibabad is marred by issues such as hardness in groundwater, and lack of degree colleges, government hospitals and playground facilities for youngsters. Sharma said he will take these issues on priority.

The seat was expected to have a three-way contest but Sharmas figures narrate a different story. BSPs Jalaluddin Siddiqui, who finished third, could muster only 41,654 votes. As many as 3,057 voters preferred the none of the above (NOTA) option.

Before the polls, BSPs sitting MLA Amarpal Sharma was expelled from the party. Though there were rumors that he would join the BJP, he eventually shook hands with the Congress and contested as the Congress/Samajwadi Party alliance candidate.

Amarpal Sharma was the first MLA from Sahibabad constituency that was formed in 2012. Five years ago, he had trounced BJPs Sunil Sharma who was the then sitting MLA from Ghaziabad seat.

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It came as a shocker for Jharkhand high court chief justice P K Mohanty when a Ranchi resident sought judicial intervention to curb breeding of mosquitoes in the capital city.

It is shocking and painful that a citizen has to take recourse to the high court for saving himself from mosquito bite which exposes the poor functioning of the authorities concerned, he said admitting that he himself is a sufferer of this menace.

The matter came to light when advocate Rajiv Kumar, representing the petitioner, Diwan Indranil Sinha, urged for an early hearing of the case.

The division bench headed by the chief justice wanted to know the exigency involved in the case that warranted early hearing. The lawyer replied that the city was gripped with the mosquito menace causing discomfort to residents.

Yes, it is true. Even I have been experiencing disturbed sleep due to mosquito bites. I never imagined that this city would have so many mosquitoes. Is the municipality carrying out regular fogging exercise? If this is the state of affairs in the capital city, what would be the condition of other cities and villages? the chief justice said and fixed March 24 to hear the case.

Sources in the Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) said they have only 11 automounted fogging machines, which are not enough to carry out fogging in every ward daily.

However, RMC officials said they would soon purchase 20 automounted fogging machines so that fogging could be done every three day in each ward.

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The Election Commission of India has announced April 9 to hold assembly bye-poll for the scheduled tribe (ST) reserved Litipara seat which went vacant after the death of JMM legislator Dr Anil Murmu in January this year.

The election notification will be issued on March 14 and the last date for filing nomination is March 21. Voting will take place on April 9 with counting on April 13. The model code of conduct has come into effect in the district of Pakur under which Litipara seat falls.

With the announcement of poll dates, political parties, including the ruling BJP having 43 seats in the 81-member house have geared up to increase their tally in the Jharkhand assembly. Litipara assembly constituency in Santhal Pargana region is considered to be a JMM bastion with the party registering three consecutive win in 2005, 2009 and 2014 assembly polls.

The BJP in 2014 assembly polls had contested Litipara assembly seat fielding a turncoat candidate Simon Marandi, an old JMM stalwart. The then legislator Simon Marandi had resigned from JMM to join the BJP just before the election but failed to make it to assembly in 2014. Marandi later resigned from the party finding a bleak future in the BJP.

Political pundits, however, opined that the BJP has nothing to lose as the said constituency had always been a JMM bastion and the saffron brigade has never won the seat in independent India.

Sources in the BJP said that with the demise of JMM legislator Dr Anil Murmu, the party could field his widow. Murmus wife would have sympathy votes as happened in two bye bolls--Godda and Panki--held last year in Jharkhand that had witnessed victory of the sons of deceased legislators of the respective constituencies, sources said. Moreover, the party hopes that it would gain on account of its development policies and growing popularity.

On the other hand, the JMM is reportedly desperate to launch partys patriarch Sibu Sorens younger son Basant Soren in active politics. The party, however, had failed to secure a win for him in 2016 Rajya Sabha polls. The JMM in all likelihood would not lose this chance as the stage is perfectly set for launching Basant, political pundits said.

They, however, see Simon Marandi, a leader with a strong influence on voters, as another factor who can change the result. Marandi too wanted to launch his son Dinesh William Marandi into politics and therefore grapevine is rife that the latter may join the Congress or the JVM (P). William may contest the election as an independent candidate. If this happens, the BJP is likely to gain due to split in votes between JMM candidate and Marandi.

We have sought feedback from senior leaders of the region to zero in on a suitable candidate for the bye-poll, said state Congress president Sukhdeo Bhagat.
A second-year MBBS student of Ranchis Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) hanged himself to death at his hostel room on Friday.

Police have confirmed that it was a case of suicide and they were investigating the reason behind that.

Officer incharge of Bariatu police station, D K Srivastava, said the deceased student Vishal Kumar was a resident of Heavy Engineering Corporation (HEC) residential area in the state capital.

It looks like a sure shot case of suicide. The boy hanged himself to the ceiling fan in his college hostel. We are investigating all possible angles to see what compelled him to take the extreme step, said Srivastava, adding that no suicide note was recovered from the room in hostel no. 2.

RIMS director B L Sherwal did not respond to HTs calls. No official statement on the case was issued by the medical college by the time the report was filed.

This is the second suicide in RIMS hostel in less than a year. A postgraduate medical student Parmindar Murmus decomposed body had been found in a hostel room at RIMS in September last year.

Students at RIMS on Friday told the police that Vishal had distanced himself from his classmates of late and preferred staying alone most of the time. They also told the police that Vishal was possibly suffering from academic pressure and stress.
Malayali actor Bhavana, who got engaged to Kannada actor-producer Naveen on Thursday, wants a simple wedding, her mother Pushpa has revealed.

The wedding is likely to take place at the end of 2017 with the venue and other details still to be decided. Both parties want a simple wedding. It might not be easy for Naveens entire family to come over here so they might be attending the reception. Also, she has films to complete before planning the wedding, said Pushpa.

Bhavana and Naveen got engaged on Thursday at a private ceremony in Bhavanas hometown Thrissur.

The ceremony was supposed to be held on March 3 but the dates got pushed owing to deaths in the family. Its not long since Naveen lost his mother and Bhavana her father.

We meant to hold a simple ring exchange before the photos of the deceased, but Naveens family, who are Telugus settled in Bangalore, wanted the rituals to be done according to their customs. So, garlands were exchanged which made some people think that it was her wedding, Pushpa was quoted as saying by Times of India.

She also added that the ceremony was meant to be a low-key affair but the photos got leaked somehow. Only our close family was present. Nine people had come from Naveens family. Manju Warrier and Samyuktha Varma came only after knowing about it. But they come here often even otherwise.

Bhavana, who made her debut in 2002 in Nammal, is currently shooting for Prithvirajs Adam. Her films  Honey Bee 2 and Adventures of Omanakuttan  are ready for release.

The couple first met in 2012, on the sets of Kannada film Romeo.

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Women constantly underestimate themselves and their potential to earn at par or better than men, which may be one of the major reasons thwarting the efforts to end gender pay gap, claim researchers.

The study from University of Bath in the UK finds that women underestimate their earnings prospects, leading to lower expectations and little inclination to push for higher wages or promotion, or seek a better paid position.

Conversely, men consistently overestimate their prospects. When reality fails to live up to their optimistic expectations they are dissatisfied and more likely than women to try to engineer a pay rise or promotion, or change jobs in the pursuit of better pay.

The finding adds to the complex mix of causes of the gender pay gap reported as work, society and family, and calls into question the efficacy of policy measures to address the gap.

Despite being lower paid than men, it is well documented that women are more satisfied at work than their male counterparts.

Economists have been trying to explain the paradox of the contented female worker, or why women are happy at work despite pay inequality.

The findings are based on analysis from the British Household Panel Survey  a major longitudinal study  tracking individuals expectations of salaries from unemployment to paid employment.

The results suggest men have a tendency to overestimate what they would be paid, while women underestimated their pay prospects, adding to the body of evidence that shows women underestimate their abilities, while men consistently overestimate their capabilities.

If low female expectations in terms of pay is fuelled by a pessimistic outlook, then even without discrimination and progression-related issues, women will continue to underestimate themselves and continue to inadvertently accept pay inequality, said Chris Dawson, Senior Lecturer at University of Bath.

It has serious implications for policy that is trying to address the gender pay gap and suggests more needs to be done to actively advance women at work, without relying on them to self-select for promotion and senior opportunities, Dawson said.

The takeaway message of this research is not about putting the responsibility on women, but recognising that without policy measures to address this, we run the risk of never closing the gender pay gap, he said.

Whilst the role of unconscious bias in gender relations in the workplace has been well documented, this new research demonstrates the role of unconscious pessimism and passivity on the part of women, said Veronica Hope Hailey, Dean of the Universitys School of Management.

It shows the importance of people management practices that enable and encourage women to progress and recognize their value, she said.

The study was published in the Journal of Economic Behaviour and Organisation.

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In a very strong way, Tamil filmmaker, actor and poet, Leena Manimekalai, reminds this writer of the fiery Bollywood star, Kangana Ranaut. Both have this overwhelming passion about what they believe in and what they stand for. Ranauts earlier battle with someone as powerful as Hrithik Roshan, and her present verbal duel with an even more powerful figure in the world of Hindi cinema, Karan Johar, go beyond the niceties of so-called feminism. To this writer, Ranauts anger against Johars accusations are perfectly justified. In a similar way, Manimekalais grievances with mainstream cinema are worth pondering over. We all know how the big Indian cinema houses/producers muffle the voices of small, independent movies  many of which are remarkable in a myriad ways.

Last week, this writer heard Manimekalai speak for almost two hours addressing a gathering of wide-eyed film enthusiasts  students, young documentary makers, writers and so on  in Chennai. And she minced no words while airing her views about what was wrong with Indian cinema. She said that people like Anurag Kashyap were part of a mafia that was controlling festivals like Cannes, by aligning with some French producers. She called the Central Board of Film Certification names, and said that Pahlaj Nihalani was bent on silencing the fascinatingly created small, independent movies like Alankrita Shrivastavas Lipstick Under My Burkha (Lipstick Wale Sapne) and Jayan Cherians Ka Bodyscapes.

And it only seemed to fit in perfectly well with Manimekalais mood and thinking that she ought be all set to make a film on Kamala Das, the Malayalam poet, known for her forthrightness and rebellious streak. Manimekalais script on Das was ready three years ago, and Malayalam helmer Kamal (not Haasan), had agreed to direct Leenas work. She herself was to play Kamala.

But then, at some point Kamal dreamt big, roped in Vidya Balan  who subsequently fearing a Hindutva backlash (Das had converted to Islam in her later years), walked out of the movie. And now  as Manimekalai told this writer during a chat the other evening in Chennai  Malayalam actor, Manju Warrier, would essay Kamala Das. I was appalled by Kamals decision, because we also know Manjus political leaning... So I have decided to take my script and make the film myself.

Manimekalai has never been afraid of speaking her mind or making a kind of cinema that was bold and honest. The movie on Kamala Das will fit in perfectly well with Manimekalais views.

Going back in time, Manimekalai is a engineer by profession who floated into Tamil director Bharathirajas team as an assistant  an assignment her family was dead against, even though her father had a done a doctoral thesis on the helmer. It was okay for a man to dabble in cinema, but a woman could not.

So Manimekalai had to leave Bharathiraja, but she could not forget the medium. After a short tryst with another mainstream Tamil director, Cheran, she got into Tamil television serials as a producer and anchor.

But something was pushing me towards independent cinema, she quips, and in 2003, she began making documentaries, and it was one such project which took her to Dhanushkodi  on the island of Rameshwaram that was wiped out during a severe cyclone in the early 1960s.

I thought I would do a documentary on Rosemary, a character who appears in my fiction feature, Sengadal (2011). I began my project in 2009  the year the 30-year ethnic war in Sri Lanka between minority Tamils and Majority Sinhalas ended with the death of Vellupillai Prabhakaran, leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). I had also been a part of the Tamil resistance movement in Chennai. I will call myself pro-Tamil, but not pro-LTTE. So you find yourself in a no-mans land, and you are at once seen as an enemy, Manimekalai avers.

Sengadal or Dead Sea is a 2011 Tamil film written and directed by Leena Manimekalai.

This is one reason why Sengadal or Dead Sea attracted problems. But I was fascinated by the stories of the Sri Lankan Tamils who had suffered at the hands of both the countrys predominantly Sinhala military and the dictatorial attitude of the LTTE. One of them, Rosemary, was the widow of a Tamil fishermen who was killed by the Sri Lankan Navy. She then landed in the refugee camp in Dhanushkodi. There are 300 families there. And Rosemary helped me discover the distraught families. When I found that each one of them had a story to say, I decided that I must cross over to the realm of fiction to narrate something powerful. Sengadal happened, Manimekalai says.

She had a massive issue with the censor board before Sengadal got a screening certificate. But of course. She wonders why when there are so many movies on the Nazis and Jews, we should be so touchy about the Sri Lankan Tamils. A million of them were displaced during the war, and there are so many stories to be told about them.

Sengadal, Prasanna Vithanages With You Without You and Jaques Audiards Dheepan  which won the Palm dOr last year at Cannes  are perhaps three of the very few films on this subject.

But, before Manimekalai will embark on Kamala Das, she plans to film Sunshine  a story about the tragedy of the cargo ship, Sun Sea, which sailed with 492 Sri Lankan Tamils from Thailand to Canada, but was not allowed to dock. A lot of people died.

Manimekalai seems all set to sail on one perilous journey after another, passionate as she is with opening the Pandoras Box of heart-wrenching tales of simple suffering folks from an island nation.

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US President Donald Trump has asked 46 United States attorneys to step down, including Preet Bharara, the high-profile Indian American who as head of the Southern district of New York had jurisdiction over Wall Street.

All were nominees of former President Barack Obama, and there was nothing unusual in their firing  former President Bill Clinton had sacked more than 90 in a day  but some have objected to the manner in which the resignations were sought.

As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States Attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the department of justice, Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores, wrote in an email cited by The New York Times. The attorney general (Jeff Sessions) has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed US attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition.

There was some confusion if all resignations will be accepted  Trump called two on the list to reject their resignations. Bharara was not one of them.

US attorneys prosecute federal crimes, and Bharara had built a reputation for pursuing securities crimes that had earned him the sobriquet Sheriff of Wall Street  among his most famous convictions was that of fellow Indian-American Rajat Gupta, formerly the head of McKinsey and director Goldman Sachs.

His sacking was most surprising, considering he had apparently been asked by Trump to continue. The attorney in November had said that Trump asked him to stay on. The president-elect asked, presumably because hes a New Yorker... to meet with me to discuss whether or not Id be prepared to stay on as the United States attorney to do the work as we have done it, independently, without fear or favour for the last seven years, Bharara told reporters after a meet with Trump.

We had a good meeting. I said I would absolutely consider staying on. I agreed to stay on. I have already spoken to Senator Sessions, who is as you know is the nominee to be the attorney general. He also asked that I stay on, and so I expect that I will be continuing to work at the Southern district.

He was the first Obama appointee to have been asked to continue.

In 2013, Bhararas handling of the case involving Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade  who was arrested for providing false information on a visa application for a domestic help  led to criticism from India. According to sources close to Bharara, the episode had irked the attorney, especially personal attacks by some in India who had accused him of being too aggressive in this instance.
A fugitive Italian mobster who had been living in Mexico under a false identity was behind bars on Saturday after being tracked down on Facebook, police said.

Giulio Perrone, who is in his mid-sixties, had been a fugitive since 1998, when his lawyers failed in a final appeal against a 22-year prison sentence for links to the Naples mafia, the Camorra, and international drug trafficking.

He was first charged in 1993 after he and his wife were arrested while trying to import 16 kilos (35 pounds) of cocaine.

Perrone disappeared the following year and had been unheard of until Italian police established, through Facebook, that he was living as Saverio Garcia Galiero, in Tampico, in the state of Tamaulipas in Mexico.

The police did not reveal details of how they traced him through the social media site.

Under the extensive powers Italian investigators enjoy when involved in anti-mafia cases, they could have been monitoring the online activity of associates of Perrone in Italy.

Or they may have come across a picture of him by using image-recognition software, which is an increasingly useful tool for detectives tracking fugitives.

Perrone, who had remarried and had Mexican children, was described by police as a prominent figure in Italys drug trade in the 1980s and early 1990s, acting as a wholesale supplier to Camorra clans.

He was arrested earlier this month at his Mexican home and deported, arriving late on Friday in Rome.
Iraqi paramilitary forces announced on Saturday that they had discovered a mass grave at Badush prison near Mosul containing the remains of hundreds of people executed by the Islamic State group.

IS reportedly killed up to 600 people after seizing the jail in 2014, and was also said to have held hundreds of kidnapped women from Iraqs Yazidi minority at the facility.

The Iraqi military said that forces from the Hashed al-Shaabi -- an umbrella group of pro-government forces that are dominated by Iran-backed Shiite militias -- were among the units that recaptured the prison from the jihadists.

Hashed forces found a large mass grave containing the remains of around 500 civilian prisoners in (Badush) prison who were executed by (IS) gangs after they controlled the prison during their occupation of Mosul, they said.

The Hashed did not say how they reached that figure, which could not be independently confirmed, but it is in keeping with a Human Rights Watch report of IS killings at Badush.

According to HRW, IS gunmen executed up to 600 inmates from Badush prison on June 10, 2014, forcing them to kneel along a nearby ravine and then shooting them with assault rifles.

Iraqi lawmaker Vian Dakhil also said that year that the jihadists were holding more than 500 Yazidi women at Badush.

IS targeted the Yazidi religious minority in a brutal campaign of executions, kidnapping and rape, killing men and holding women and girls as sex slaves.

IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained most of the territory they lost.

Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake Mosul -- the last IS-held city in Iraq -- in October, recapturing its eastern side before setting their sights on its smaller but more densely populated west.

ak-wd/dr
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has sought help from Pakistans influential clerics to fight extremism, saying on Saturday they should change the mindset of people who see terrorists as Islamic fighters.

Take a firm stand against those who are causing disunity among Muslims, Sharif told clerics during a seminar at Jamia Naeemia, a leading seminary in Lahore of the majority Sunni school of thought.

The religious scholars, he said, should help dismantle a narrative characterised by militants killing thousands of people over the past decade in hopes of overthrowing the government and enforcing Taliban-style laws. They should also present a counter-narrative against the extremist mindset to realise the dream of peace.

Sharif told the audience that his governments action against terrorists could not have the desired effect if people continued to support the ideology the militants propagated. He noted that a number of people were convinced that some militant organisations were fighting for the supremacy of Islam.

Such organisations had been given oxygen through the support of these sympathizers, he added.

(The mosques pulpit) is still the most effective way of reaching out to the people of the country. You can spread the message of unity from here and shut the doors of terrorism in the country, Sharif said.

Religious scholars in the past disagreed with each other, but they never incited hatred in their followers hearts regarding other sects, he said.

Sharif asked the religious scholars to promote the true teachings of Islam and take the war against terrorists to its logical end.

The premier was speaking on the death anniversary of Sarfaraz Naeemi, the founder of Jamia Naeemia who was killed by terrorists for his moderate views. Sharif said the sacrifice made by Naeemi and others would not go in vain and his government would trace the remaining terror networks in the country.

His appeal came a day after a bill was introduced in Parliament that would legalise trials of suspected militants in military courts. Along with such trials, Pakistan has carried out operations against militants but violence has continued.
A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trumps administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape their war-torn homeland by fleeing to Wisconsin.

The ruling likely is the first by a judge since Trump issued a revised travel ban on Monday, according to a spokesman for the Washington state attorney general, who has led states challenging the ban.

A Syrian Muslim man who was granted asylum and settled in Wisconsin has been working since last year to win US government approval for his wife and 3-year-old daughter to leave the devastated city of Aleppo and join him here. The man, who is not identified because of fears for his familys safety, filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trumps first travel ban had wrongly stopped the visa process for his family. US District Judge William Conley set that challenge aside after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the entire Trump travel order.

Trump signed a new executive order on Monday. The Syrian man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon, alleging the new order is still an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion and right to due process. He asked Conley to block its enforcement against his family.

Judge Conley granted that request, saying there were daily threats to the Syrian mans wife and child that could cause irreparable harm. He issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family. The order doesnt block the entire travel ban. It simply prevents Trumps administration from enforcing it against this family pending a March 21 hearing.

After the Trump ban was blocked the first time, the approval process restarted for the Syrian family and theyre now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the US embassy, the last step before US customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesnt have dates for the interviews yet and Trumps new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian mans attorneys.

Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that the new ban may not apply to this family anyway, although they did not go into details. There are various exemptions and waivers in the new ban including some that give consular officers flexibility to decide cases. Conley acknowledged that the familys situation is murky but still issued the order, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case.

The US Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian mans complaint and declined further comment on it and Conleys order.

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travellers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. US District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the entire order on Feb. 3.

The revised order issued Monday removed Iraq from the list of countries and would temporarily shuts down the refugee program. Unlike the first order, the new ban would not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian mans lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assads regime and another group fighting in support of Assad. The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and traveled to pro-Assad areas to manage his familys business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife. He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.
At least 22 civilians were killed on Friday and dozens wounded when a Saudi-led coalition air strike hit a market in western Yemen causing a fire to break out, a local official said.

Missiles launched by fighter jets of the Arab alliance hit a market selling the mild narcotic leaf qat, which is popular among Yemenis, near the Red Sea fishing town of Khoukha.

Rescue workers on Friday night were battling a blaze in the market caused by the attack and pulling bodies out of the rubble some of which were burnt beyond recognition, according to Hashim Azazi, deputy governor of Hodeidah province.

Map locating Khouka on the Red Sea, site of a deadly air strike Friday. - AFP / AFP (AFP)

All of those killed were civilians, none were holding weapons, said Azazi.

A coalition spokesperson was not immediately available to comment.

Khoukha and the nearby city of Hodeidah are controlled by Iran-allied Houthi fighters who in 2014 overran Yemens capital Sanaa and forced the Saudi-backed government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee into exile.

Yemeni government forces backed by Gulf Arab troops recaptured control of the southern Red Sea city of al-Mokha last month in a push that paved the way for an advance on Hodeidah, the countrys main port city.

The fighting on Yemens west coast has displaced nearly 50,000 people in the last six weeks among them children suffering from malnutrition forced to live in schools and in tents on streets, a United Nations refugee agency spokesman told a news briefing in Geneva on Friday.

The blocking of main roads by warring parties is hampering humanitarian access to those in need.

The incident at Khawkhah resulted in a number of civilian deaths and injuries. Were deeply saddened by this tragic loss of life, UNHCR spokeswoman for Yemen Shabia Mantoo told Reuters.

The Saudi-led coalition was formed in 2015 to fight the Houthis and troops loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh who have fired missiles into neighboring Saudi Arabia.

Fridays attacks were the latest in a series of coalition-led strikes that have hit schools, hospitals, markets and private homes.

In December, the coalition acknowledged that it had made limited use of British-made cluster bombs, but said it had stopped using them.

Nearly half of Yemens 22 provinces are on the verge of famine, according to the U.N. World Food Programme, as a result of the war that has drawn in regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia.
South Korean police on Saturday braced for more violence between opponents and supporters of ousted President Park Geun-hye, who was stripped of her powers by the Constitutional Court over a corruption scandal that has plunged the country into a political turmoil.

Three people died and dozens were injured in clashes between police and Parks supporters after the ruling Friday, according to police, which detained seven protesters for questioning.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency was planning to deploy nearly 20,000 officers and hundreds of buses to separate the two crowds, whose passionate rallies have divided the streets near the presidential palace in the past several weekends as the scandal worsened.

The courts decision capped a stunning fall for the countrys first female leader. Park rode a wave of lingering conservative nostalgia for her late dictator father to victory in 2012, only to see her presidency crumble as millions of furious protesters filled the nations streets.

The ruling allows possible criminal proceedings against the 65-year-old Park  prosecutors have already named her a criminal suspect  and makes her South Koreas first democratically elected leader to be removed from office since democracy replaced dictatorship in the late 1980s.

It also deepens South Koreas political and security uncertainty as it faces existential threats from North Korea, reported economic retaliation from a China furious about Seouls cooperation with the U.S. on an anti-missile system, and questions in Seoul about the new Trump administrations commitment to the countries security alliance.

Parks acts of violating the constitution and law are a betrayal of the public trust, Acting Chief Justice Lee Jung-mi said. The benefits of protecting the constitution that can be earned by dismissing the defendant are overwhelmingly big. Hereupon, in a unanimous decision by the court panel, we issue a verdict: We dismiss the defendant, President Park Geun-hye.

Lee accused Park of colluding with longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil to extort tens of millions of dollars from businesses and letting Choi, a private citizen, meddle in state affairs and receive and look at documents with state secrets. Those allegations were previously made by prosecutors, but Park has refused to undergo any questioning, citing a law that gives a sitting leader immunity from prosecution.

It is not clear when prosecutors will try to interview her.

Park hasnt vacated the presidential Blue House yet, as her aides are preparing for her return to her private home in southern Seoul, according to her office. Park has not made a public statement on her removal.

Parks lawyer, Seo Seok-gu, who had previously compared her impeachment to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, called the verdict a tragic decision made under popular pressure and questioned the fairness of what he called a kangaroo court.

South Korea must now hold an election within two months to choose Parks successor. Liberal Moon Jae-in, who lost to Park in the 2012 election, currently enjoys a comfortable lead in opinion surveys.

Pre-verdict surveys showed that 70 to 80 percent of South Koreans wanted the court to approve Parks impeachment. But there have been worries that Parks ouster would further polarize the country and cause violence.

Sensing history, thousands of people  both pro-Park supporters, many of them dressed in army-style fatigues and wearing red berets, and those who wanted Park gone  gathered around the Constitutional Court building and a huge public square in downtown Seoul.

Some of Parks supporters reacted with anger after the ruling, shouting and hitting police officers and reporters with plastic flag poles and steel ladders and climbing on police buses. Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, the acting head of state, pleaded for peace and urge protesters to move on. Anti-Park protesters celebrated by marching in the streets near the Blue House, carrying flags, signs and an effigy of Park dressed in prison clothes and tied up with rope.

Police and hospital officials said three people died while protesting Parks removal. A man in his 70s, believed to be a Park supporter, died after a large speaker that had been mounted on a police truck fell on his head, police said. They are questioning a Park supporter who allegedly knocked off the speaker by stealing a police bus and crashing it into the truck.

Police said that another man in his 70s died early Saturday after collapsing near the court. An official from the nearby Kangbuk Samsung Hospital said another man brought from the pro-Park rally died shortly after receiving CPR at the hospital.

Prosecutors have arrested and indicted a slew of high-profile figures over the scandal, including Parks confidante Choi, top Park administration officials and Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong.
Donald Trump has invited Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to the White House to discuss peace talks in their first contact since the US President took office in January.

Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rdeneh said that Abbas would travel very soon.

The White House said in a statement that the two leaders on Friday discussed ways to advance peace throughout the Middle East, including a comprehensive agreement that would end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The president emphasized his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal, the White House said. The president noted that such a deal would not only give Israelis and Palestinians the peace and security they deserve, but that it would reverberate positively throughout the region and the world.

Trump underscored that such a peace agreement must be negotiated directly between the two parties, and that the United States will work closely with Palestinian and Israeli leadership to make progress toward that goal, the statement said.

We are ready to deal with President Trump and the Israeli government to resume the negotiations, Abu Rdeneh said. If the Israelis are ready, President Abbas has committed himself to a peaceful deal with President Trump.

Abu Rdeneh added that President Trump is a very honest man, very courageous man, looking for a deal, a just deal.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government.

The last round of US-mediated peace talks collapsed in 2014.

Fridays call was the first between Trump and Abbas since Trump took office.

In his efforts to secure Palestinian statehood, Abbas has spent many hours on the phone and in meetings with US presidents and secretaries of state over the past decade, but has been unsuccessful when reaching out to Trump  until now.

Trump is unpopular among Palestinians because he appeared to break from his predecessor and adopt friendlier positions toward the Israeli government; ambivalence has marked his position toward a two-state solution to the conflict, hes considering to move the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, which the Palestinians seek as the capital of their future state, and has adopted a more lenient approach to Israel building settlements in territory claimed by the Palestinians.

However, Trumps administration last week warned Israel against annexing parts of the occupied West Bank, saying it would trigger an immediate crisis between the two allies.

The move suggested Trump may be returning to more traditional US policy and will not give Israel free rein to expand its control over the West Bank and sideline the Palestinians, as Israeli nationalists had hoped.
Twin bombs killed 44 people in the Old City of Damascus on Saturday, a monitoring group said, in one of the bloodiest attacks in the heart of the Syrian capital.

A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shia mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Several Shiite pilgrims were among the dead.

There are also dozens of people wounded, some of them in a serious condition, Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

The director general of the capitals Al-Mujtahed hospital told AFP earlier there were at least 28 people dead and 45 wounded.

The SANA state news agency reported that two bombs planted by terrorists exploded near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery in Bab Musalla, causing dead and wounded.

Shiite shrines are a frequent target of attack for Sunni extremists of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group (IS), not only in Syria but also in neighbouring Iraq.

The Sayeda Zeinab mausoleum to the south of Damascus, Syrias most visited Shiite pilgrimage site, has been hit by several deadly bombings during the six-year-old civil war.

Twin suicide bombings in the high-security Kafr Sousa district of the capital in January killed 10 people, eight of them soldiers.

- More peace talks planned -

That attack was claimed by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front which said that it had targeted Russian military advisers working with the Syrian army.

It was widely seen as an attempt to disrupt UN-brokered peace talks that took place the following month which to the anger of Fateh al-Sham were supported by its former Islamist rebel ally Ahrar al-Sham.

UN envoy Staffan de Mistura has called a new round of talks for March 23.

Fateh al-Sham has been repeatedly bombed in its northwestern stronghold this year, not only by the Syrian army and its Russian ally but also by a US-led coalition battling IS in both Syria and Iraq.

The rift over the UN-brokered talks between the rebels and the government has also seen deadly clashes between the jihadists and their former Islamist rebel allies.

The two groups had together seized virtually all of the northwestern province of Idlib but are now vying for territorial control.

Bomb attacks are rare in Damascus, a stronghold of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

The Syrian capital is sometimes the target of shelling by rebel groups who hold areas on the outskirts.

On December 16 a seven-year-old girl wearing an explosive belt blew herself up outside a police station in Midan district, wounding three police officers.

Two blasts near state security agencies in Kafr Sousa in December 2011 killed more than 40 people and wounded more than 150, the Syrian government said at the time.
The Congress victory in Punjab assembly elections was widely welcomed in London  home to a large Punjabi diaspora  with opinion ranging from a cautious welcome to Amarinder Singh to dismissing the challenge posed by a party led by comedians.

Several community leaders and individuals closely involved with the election told Hindustan Times that the change in Chandigarh had generated much hope that serious issues facing the state such as drugs, alcohol and corruption would now be tackled in right earnest.

Sandeep Bisht, spokesman of Aam Admi Party UK, said the result was not disappointing, but less than expected, and added that it was remarkable that the party was on course to win 25 per cent of the seats in a state that was much different from Delhi, where the party is in power.

The UK unit of the party had collected the pound equivalent of Rs 48 lakh for election-related expenditure, and 235 party members from Britain had travelled to the state to campaign. AAP was the most visible among parties in areas such as Southall.

But Harjeet Singh, vice-president of Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Southall, said: A comedian was leader of the party in the state. Comedians can entertain, but cannot run a state. It is wrong for NRIs to go and support any party during elections from here.

According to him, the Punjab electorate had voted very carefully. It was more a defeat for the Badals than a victory for the Congress, he said, but added that the people had voted for a strong leadership in the persona of Amarinder Singh.

Bipin Jha, a Portsmouth-based doctor, a former AAP member and associate of election consultant Prashant Kishore, said he played a key role in weaning Navjot Singh Sidhu (among others) away from AAP and joining hands with Amarinder Singh, and expressed delight at the result.

Jasdev Singh Rai of the British Sikh Consultative Forum, said: The results are good for Punjab with a mature old hand able to lead the state back to some sort of development after years of tensions between Sikhs and the Akali regime.

Although it is difficult for Sikhs to back the Congress in view of the 1984 attack on Sri Darbar Sahib, the issue of drugs and lack of investment has affected the state. Amarinder Singh has promised to eradicate the drug problem within 4 weeks: in a way he is on trial now to see if he can deliver on this.

We also hope his government will now assist in resolving many of the issues that his party created in 1984. We hope he will cooperate in the dialogue process between Sikhs and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rai added.

Harsev Bains, a Southall community leader and vice-president of the Indian Workers Association, said: People of Punjab have voted overwhelmingly for change and an end to the Akali-BJP combine led by the Badals. Punjab has been stripped of its assets and its youth destroyed by drugs.

The outcome is in favour of experience and stability in Punjab. Congress has been provided a mandate for governance and must learn from the past. The electrote cannot be fooled by false undelivered promises and have removed incumbent governments, he added.

Sunil Chopra, Labour councillor, former lord mayor of Southwark and a former vice-president of the Youth Congress in India, was delighted with the results: People are fed up and have realised that you cannot stay in power if you dont tackle abuse of drugs and alcohol. The Congress is slowly coming back all over the country.
Chinese president Xi Jinping has urged security forces to erect a Great Wall of Steel around the violence-hit region of Xinjiang after an apparent spike in killing that authorities blame on Islamic extremists, the media reported on Saturday.

Xi issued the traditional military rallying call on Friday during a session of the National Peoples Congress, Chinas annual parliament in Beijing, The Guardian reported.

Xi called on officials to act to bring lasting peace and stability to the landlocked border region, which has a history of ethnic violence and terror attacks.

Maintaining stability in Xinjiang is a political responsibility, he said.

Xis comments follow a series of massive anti-terror rallies in Xinjiang, which is home to the Muslim Uighur minority, the daily said.

Stiff new anti-extremism regulations were being prepared, handing authorities special powers to deal with those deemed a terror threat, including the ability to hold extremist leaders in solitary confinement.

One senior official told the Global Times daily that in applying the new rules the government needed to distinguish between ethnic habits and extremist practices.
Half Moon Bay, CA (94019)

Today

Partly cloudy in the morning. Increasing clouds with periods of showers later in the day. Thunder possible. High 57F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Periods of rain. Thunder possible. Low 48F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 100%.
After having a gigantic drill used to create a new reservoir outside of Atlanta named after him in a naming contest (its called Driller Mike), state senator Nan Orrock sponsored a resolution honoring Killer Mike for his work on water infrastructure and his general community outreach efforts. As part of the honor Killer Mike, whose real name is Michael Render, got a chance to speak on the state senate floor.

Killer Mike took the opportunity to speak on a number of issues, all while wearing his chunky gold chain. Read part of his statements below.

Our children deserve decent housing. Gentrification should not make children poor. Our school systems deserve more attention. Our teachers deserve more money. Our firemen deserve more money. And our policemen deserve more than new guns. They deserve to have enough cops on the street to be involved in the community. The charge that I give all of us in this hall today is to make sure that Georgia remains an equitable place not only for water, but for education, for workers rights, for where were living. It should be as fair for a rural white man in Georgia whos trying to live by the land, as it is for a kid on the Westside of Atlanta trying to survive the concrete.

[via WABE]

KillerMike
Travion King will serve time for the $3 million heist.
Numerous websites, including this one, reported that YG breached a $60,000 contract by performing Fuck Donald Trump at San Diego State University last weekend. SPIN reports YG received his full paycheck for the concert due to the simple fact that the performance of the incendiary anti-Trump anthem was never explicitly forbidden in the contract he signed.

According to Associated Students of SDSU spokesperson Raven Tyson, YG was informally asked not to perform FDT, and a performance of the song did not constitute a breach of contract.

During booking discussions with Live Nation, the student Greenfest committee that selected the artist and planned the GreenFest concert requested that YG not perform his song, FDT, Tyson told SPIN by email. The student Greenfest Committee was advised that an artist can be asked, but that there is a possibility that the artist will still play the song. On the night of the concert, YG indicated that he wanted to play the song FDT even though he had been asked not to by Associated Students. Associated Students indicated that payment would not be withheld if he played the song. YG was paid his full $60,000 fee for performing at Greenfest.

Read YGs HNHH digital cover story here.

YG
What's the one question law firms don't want to hear? "In which city are you headquartered?"

Law firms twist themselves into knots to avoid tying themselves down to a single home office in this global world. Gone are the days when law firms identified with one city or even one state. Today, they want to be everywhere at once, creating the appearance that no one office is more important than another.

"It gives the impression of global reach, knowledge and prestige," said Steve Werner, professor of management at the C.T. Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston.

Even firms with strong local roots are reluctant to lay claim to the city that made them famous. For example, no law firm is more quintessentially tied to Houston's trajectory from tiny backwater to the nation's fourth largest city than Baker Botts. The firm was established in Houston in 1840, five years before Texas became a state. It represented some of the city's founding leaders. Later, it represented the scores of oil companies that sprung up after the Lucas gusher erupted at the Spindletop oil field in 1901, helping to make Houston the nation's energy capital.

But today? Baker Botts does not have a main headquarters office, the firm's public relations department responded when first asked. Then, asked when Houston stopped being the firm's headquarters, the law firm emailed a clarification: The Houston office acts like its headquarters.

A few minutes later, the firm came back with an update: Baker Botts is based in Houston.

The reluctance of staking claim to one office as home base began when firms began to open satellite locations. Lawyers based in, say, Los Angeles didn't want to advertise their California ties to clients who have business needs in New York or London, according to legal industry analysts.

Bill Cobb, who consults with law firms on strategic issues from his local office, said that by not specifying a single headquarters, firms can more freely market themselves to clients. Once firms grow to 500 lawyers with multiple offices, they rarely claim a headquarters, he said.

And with several out-of-state firms opening offices in Houston to expand practices in energy, health care and financial services, it's often difficult to tell where they're coming from.

Reed Smith opened its Houston office four years ago and now has 63 lawyers. The firm, which got its start in Pittsburgh in the 1870s, counted the Mellon and Carnegie families as among its first clients. But the firm says it doesn't have an official headquarters. The office in Houston, like Pittsburgh, is just one of 26 for the firm with 1,800 lawyers.

There is no central power center at Reed Smith, said Kenneth Broughton, managing partner of the firm's Houston office. To illustrate, Broughton noted that the firm's largest office is London with 380 lawyers, but its managing partner works out of a small office in Tysons Corner, Va., across the road from a shopping mall.

"I've never reported to Pittsburgh," he said.

Even Vinson & Elkins, founded 100 years ago in Houston, also has gone the global marketing route, downplaying its deep local roots. The firm was co-founded by Judge James A. Elkins Sr., part of a group of powerful business leaders who in the 1930s began to plot Houston's future from a suite in the Lamar Hotel, later helping to bring Johnson Space Center to town and get the Astrodome built.

Today, Vinson & Elkins markets itself as a international law firm with 700 lawyers in 16 offices and prefers to be described that way. But it doesn't take offense if anyone refers to it as based in Houston, the location of its largest office, director of communications Darrin Schlegel said.

Clients have mixed views on the trend. Blaine Edwards, assistant general counsel for Houston oil field services company Superior Energy Services, said firms are walking away from local roots that made them great in the first place and that make them appealing today.

"In my mind, it's a little bit sad," said Edwards, who hires outside firms to handle contract disputes, personal injury claims and employment disputes. "If I'm going into Singapore or India or South America or even Europe, what I want to do is find the local firms based there a long time and know everything about the local laws, customs and courts."

On the other hand, Sharon Birkman, CEO of Houston-based Birkman International, which develops personality and career assessment tools, said she focuses on a firm's expertise, reputation and costs, rather than geography.

"It doesn't matter to me whether they have an office in Paris or Dubai," she said.

But it's often more than marketing when it comes to law firms without headquarters, legal consultants say. It's also a way to keep the peace.

Law firms are built as partnerships, organizational structures that imply collegiality, not hierarchy. Without a primary office, firms can appear to function more like networks rather than top-down operations, which in turn can help attract and retain legal talent in different locations. Otherwise, lawyers eager to make partner or move into senior leadership roles worry they won't get noticed if they are working in satellite offices.

That weighed on Houston energy lawyer Tracie Renfroe 11 years ago when she was pondering whether to leave her job at Bracewell, a law firm with deep Houston roots, for King & Spalding, then a relative newcomer to Houston. King & Spalding, which established its local office in 1995, is closely tied to Atlanta, opening there in 1885. Four hundred out of the firm's 1,000 lawyers work out of Atlanta, its largest office. The firm's chairman has his office in Atlanta.

Renfroe was worried the Atlanta office would drive decisions and resources. But the firm is structured so senior members of the leadership team are spread among the firm's 19 offices. That includes Renfroe, who leads the firm's energy practice and serves as managing partner of King & Spalding's Houston office, which has 87 lawyers.

With improvements in technology that let lawyers work anywhere for any client, the question of headquarters is almost irrelevant, Renfroe said. "There is not really a center of gravity."
Job growth in Texas surged in January as conditions in the oil and gas industry improved and optimism among employers increased.

Texas employers added more than 51,000 jobs in January, led by hiring in professional and business services, such as lawyers, accountants and consultants, which gained 14,000 jobs, as well as manufacturing, which added 7,300 positions, the state Workforce Commission reported. It was biggest monthly gain in manufacturing since 1990.

Oil and gas added 1,900 jobs in January, as the rig count continued to increase, although the industry's payrolls are still 10 percent lower than a year ago. The number of rigs in Texas has more than doubled to 390 since hitting bottom in May, with the state accounting for more than half the 748 rigs in operation across the U.S., according to Houston oil field services company Baker Hughes.

The unemployment rate was 4.8 percent, unchanged from the previous month.

In surveys by the Dallas Federal Reserve, businesses in the state have reported hiring and sales increases in recent months, buoyed by the yet-unrealized promise of regulatory rollbacks on energy production, agriculture and manufacturing coming from the administration of President Donald Trump.

Dallas Fed economists wrote this week they expect the Texas economy to shift into a higher gear this year, projecting annual employment growth will accelerate to as much as 2.5 percent.

Houston, however, continues to lag the rest of the state, with job growth essentially flat over the past year. Houston's unemployment rate climbed to 5.8 percent in January, from 4.9 percent a year ago. Analysts said that could be an indication that workers are coming off the sidelines to look for jobs as the market comes back, although the economy is not yet growing fast enough to absorb them.

Local economic conditions have shown slow but consistent improvement in recent months. The local purchasing managers' index, a poll of area businesses that serves as a broad measure of industrial activity, showed increases in sales, purchases and employment in January - its fifth month of positive territory.

The state's most oil- and gas-dependent metro areas, Midland and Odessa, are still showing employment declines of 2.2 percent and 2.6 percent over the year. Jobs in College Station grew at 5.4 percent, faster than anywhere in the state.
Rising concerns about fossil fuels, interest in rooftop solar and shifts in how power is distributed are upending the traditional role of utility companies, according to chief executives.

The CEOs, speaking last week at the CERA-Week by IHS Markit energy conference, said the changes are leading many companies to remake their business models for the first time in decades. They are divesting coal-fired power plants, investing more heavily in renewable energy and adjusting to the prospect of competing with their own customers in generating electricity. In California, for example, about 4,000 to 5,000 customers of the utility Edison International install solar systems on their rooftops every month to make their own power, selling the excess to the grid, CEO Pedro Pizarro said. That means utilities may have to become both distributors and brokers who match power producers with customers.

"That is a long-term trend," he said. "You can't stop that technology, and you can't stop customers that want to get into it."

It's not unique to California. The trend of customers wanting more control over their power has become an everyday concern for the German manufacturing company Siemens, which makes transmission lines, wind turbines and solar panels, among other products. People want to make their own power and sell it back to the grid, said Judy Marks, CEO of Siemens USA.

Isabelle Kocher, CEO of the French power company Engie, said she, too, sees "tectonic change" in the world's power mix. Last month, Engie sold all of its U.S. coal and natural-gas fired power plants to Houston-based Dynegy for $3.3 billion. Engie plans to invest billions of dollars in renewables, Kocher said.

Even in Texas, a center of fossil fuel production, the winds of change are literally blowing. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which oversees 90 percent of the state's electric grid, now gets a third of its power from wind farms. Solar farms are expanding around the state, and there are more options for installing rooftop solar as panel costs continue to drop, according to industry officials.

President Donald Trump has pledged to roll back the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan, which sought to limit emissions from power plants, but such a move is unlikely to have much effect on the expansion of renewables in Texas, said Toby Baker, a commissioner with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the state's environmental protection agency.

"With the cost of solar, the amount of wind coming online, the market is doing what the Clean Power Plan was trying to do," Baker said, speaking on a panel addressing changes in Texas' power mix. "Regulations are important, but at the end of the day, low-cost natural gas and zero-cost wind are driving this more than regulation."

Despite the changes, power lines in Texas and around the country are not set up to have customers both send and receive electricity from the grid, said Paula Gold-Williams, the CEO of San Antonio's municipal utility, CPS Energy. Companies will have to invest in upgrading and changing their electricity distribution systems to handle independent power flowing into their distribution systems.

In 2011, CPS announced that it would shut down its coal-fired J.T. Deely power plant by 2018 - which would make it the first coal-fired plant to be closed in Texas.

On Thursday, Barry Smitherman, who formerly served on both Texas' Public Utility Commission and Railroad Commission, said the economics are in favor of retiring expensive and inefficient coal-fired power plants, and that the company should retire more plants to save money that it can reinvest elsewhere.
With President Donald Trump promising to renegotiate NAFTA, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said any deal would reflect the degree to which the two economies are dependent on one another.

"Canada is very aware of the opportunities that come with the close integration with the American market, but we also know millions upon millions of good-paying middle-class jobs here in the United States, including right here in Texas, that depend upon Canada," he said during a news conference in downtown Houston.
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As oil land in West Texas' prolific Permian Basin gets more expensive and harder to secure, companies are looking at the potential of other fields, from the Gulf of Mexico to Argentina.

"There are 'sweet spots' that haven't really been tackled yet," said Frank Patterson, executive vice president of Oklahoma City driller Chesapeake Energy Corp.

Companies like Chesapeake, Royal Dutch Shell and the offshore firm Houston Energy are looking across the globe for oil fields that stack up to the Permian.

Drilling in the Permian Basin, the oil and gas land under the plains surrounding Midland, has led the industry's nascent recovery. As crude prices plummeted from $100 a barrel in early 2014 to $26 a barrel in early 2016, companies pulled 1,500 rigs, or three-quarters of their 2014 peak, out of U.S. oil and gas fields.

But as prices began rising last year, oil companies began sending rigs back to the Permian, even as other U.S. fields remained fallow. By the end of 2016, the Permian rig count had doubled, according to oil services provider Baker Hughes; other fields were still adding a just few rigs here and there.

Oil companies praised the Permian's "stacked pay," or multiple layers of oil and gas underground. That meant they could access several reservoirs from one drilling pad, driving down the cost of drilling, increasing volumes recovered and leading to profits, even with low prices.

More Information Beyond the Permian: Other promising oil and gas fields Utica shale, Northeast U.S. Marcellus shale, Northeast U.S. Montney formation Northern Alberta, Canada Vaca Muerta shale Argentina Keathley Canyon, deep-water Gulf of Mexico See More Collapse

At the same time, however, Permian land prices boomed, rising from a few thousand dollars an acre before the shale revolution to as much as $60,000 an acre last year as leases became much more difficult to secure.

Some companies, like Chesapeake, declined to buy in. Chesapeake is focusing on large holdings in the Marcellus and Utica shale plays, both in the northeastern U.S., and Oklahoma oil and gas fields like the STACK.

Royal Dutch Shell is finding success in the Utica, the Montney formation in northern Alberta, and in the Vaca Muerta shale field in Argentina, said Chandler Wilhelm, vice president of emerging basins for Shell. The layers of oil and gas in the Vaca Muerta remind him of the Permian.

Houston Energy sees its future in streamlining offshore drilling, using more interchangeable equipment to lower costs, said Ron Neal, founder of the oil production company.

"You do not have to have a unique well head, a unique pipe for every situation," Neal said.

Neal said break-even costs have dropped into the high $20s per barrel.

The Permian will be hard to match, Patterson said, but that doesn't mean other big finds aren't lurking.

"You just have to get good at what you do," he said.
Tuf Cooper, known as "The Justin Bieber of Rodeo," commanded long lines at Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo's autograph stations earlier this week, as hordes of young women waited hours to catch a glimpse of him.

But if you didn't get to meet him and see that smile in person during his first super series here in Houston, don't worry. You'll have a second chance.
GALVESTON - Two people who said they witnessed the officer-involved shooting of a woman in Galveston said Friday that she was carrying a pink-and-black BB gun shortly before she was shot dead by an off-duty city police officer.

Toni Jo Collins, who died at the scene, was shoved against a fence after the BB gun was kicked away, pistol-whipped as she lay on the ground, and then shot after she stood up and faced the officer with a stick in her hand, said her boyfriend, 48-year-old Victor Mangun.

"That man, he shot my baby in the heart like it was nothin'," Mangun said.

Details of Mangun's version could not be verified, but a neighbor who witnessed the incident confirmed that Collins was carrying a BB gun when she went into the alley, where she was shot at about 6:20 p.m. Thursday. The alley is near the intersection of Broadway Boulevard and 10th Street.

Charles Green, 40, who lives next to the alley, said he saw Collins minutes before she was killed and he could clearly see that she was carrying a BB gun. He said he did not feel threatened.

"I can't fathom why he shot her," Green said. He said he did not realize that the man with a gun was a police officer and never heard him identify himself.

Police identified the policeman as K-9 Officer Evan Fraley, 25, a three-year veteran. He has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation, Lt. Joshua Schirard said.

Schirard said he was unable to comment on the accounts of witnesses who spoke with The Chronicle.

"Due to the fact that the investigation is still ongoing, those details have not been released as of yet," Schirard said. "It is important to also note that we are not conducting the criminal investigation, so we are not even privvy to many of those details."

Arguing in alley

Mangun said he and Collins, 35, were arguing loudly in the alley when an SUV came to a sudden stop nearby and a man armed with a pistol jumped out and ordered them to the ground. He, too, said the man never identified himself as a police officer.

The shooting is being investigated by the Galveston County sheriff and district attorney, and city police are conducting a separate internal investigation to determine whether Fraley complied with department policy, Schirard said.

Shirard declined to elaborate on the sketchy police account, saying he did not want to jeopardize the investigation.

Police said Fraley was leaving a residence with his family on 11th Street and Broadway when he observed some type of disturbance in a nearby alleyway. The police account did not mention the SUV, saying only that as Fraley approached the scene, he saw a woman brandishing a gun and quickly separated from his family.

Collins was later transported to the University of Texas Medical Branch emergency room, where she was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.

Shirard declined to identify Collins' weapon, citing the ongoing investigation. But a woman who identified herself as Collins' best friend said she was carrying a pink and black BB gun. "She got it for Christmas and she was proud of it," said Yvonne Perry, 51.

Mangun, who does maintenance for an apartment complex across the street from the alley entrance, said he and Collins had met in a halfway house in Austin and been together about two years. "She had the prettiest smile," he said. She called him "Boo" and he called her "Boo and Honeysuckle," Mangun said.

"We were going to be together no matter what," Mangun said. "She didn't deserve to die."

'It's a BB gun'

Green, the neighbor, said he was in his garage when he heard shouting. He walked into the street in front of his house to see what was happening when he saw an SUV jerk to a stop and a man emerge with a gun.

Mangun said he lay on the ground as Fraley ordered, but Collins held up the BB gun patterned after a lever-action rifle, holding it with one hand by the lever. "She held it up and says, 'It's a Daisy BB gun,' " he said.

Mangun urged her to lie on the ground, but she said, "I'm not going to get on the ground. It's a BB gun," Mangun recalled.

The officer pushed Collins into a fence and she fell to the ground, then he kicked the BB gun away, Mangun said. Green said he also saw the officer push Collins roughly into the fence.

Unaware that the man with a gun was a police officer, Green called 911 and ushered his children into the house when he saw him wave the gun back and forth between Collins and Mangun. He recalled shouting at the 911 operator, "Get down here, he's going to shoot somebody."

Mangun alleged that the officer grabbed Collins by her shirt and struck her several times with his pistol. Despite the beating, Collins grabbed a stick and stood up facing the officer, he said. "She said, 'I ain't backing up,' " Mangun said.

It's unclear how many shots were fired. Green said he heard a single shot.

Mangun said one of the officers responding to the 911 call kicked him in the side. He lifted his shirt to show a bruise.

He was taken to police headquarters and questioned, then summoned to speak with a sergeant, he said. "That's when they told me that my Honeysuckle had died,' Mangun said.

0ne of the couple's friends, David Rutkowski, 47, said he is trying to raise enough money to send Collins' body back to Oklahoma so she can be buried beside her mother.
Chad Holley, whose filmed 2010 beating by Houston police officers made national headlines, was cleared Friday on capital murder charges.

A Harris County grand jury declined to indict the 22-year-old in the Sept. 21 shooting death of David Trejo-Gonzalez, 42, in a north Houston apartment complex parking lot.

Holley learned that he was free from a potential life sentence or the death penalty during a visit at the Harris County jail from his longtime supporter, Quanell X.

"When I told him that the charges had been dismissed, he broke down and started crying and said he thanked God," the activist said. "He had been praying every day, he said, because he knew he was not guilty."

According to court and medical examiner records, a man demanded money from Trejo-Gonzalez before he was fatally shot once in the chest. Holley was accused on the strength of an account by an unidentified witness, but he has maintained his innocence.

J. Philip Scardino, Holley's defense attorney, has said for months that his client was accused on thin proof.

"There wasn't much of a case to begin with. This case just turned on the testimony of a person who is not very credible and there wasn't any physical evidence. There was no gun, no fingerprints, no DNA, no tangible forensic evidence that connected Mr. Holley with the crime," Scardino said. "I think the grand jury saw that for what it was and said: We can't indict someone on this kind of evidence."

Jim Leitner, grand jury division bureau chief for the Harris County District Attorney's Office, said grand jurors in the future could review the case.

"If other substantive evidence emerges, the law allows for a grand jury to again consider this matter," he said in a statement issued Friday by the District Attorney's office.

When Holley was charged in December with capital murder, he had been in the Harris County jail for two months on alleged probation violations.

In 2013, he received seven years of deferred adjudication under a felony burglary plea deal. That probation was in effect in October when he was arrested on misdemeanor charges of theft and trespassing.

During a February hearing, State District Judge Hazel Jones noted that Holley was not complying with probation restrictions and denied him bail, but said she would reconsider her order after the murder charge was considered by a grand jury.

Holley was a 15-year-old high school sophomore in 2010 when he was beaten by Houston police as he fled a burglary arrest. The incident gained national attention in 2011 when surveillance video surfaced that showed officers kicking and punching the unarmed teen.

Quanell leaked that film just as footage from security cameras and cell phones increasingly were beginning to substantiate allegations of police brutality.

A dozen officers were disciplined and four were indicted on misdemeanor charges. Two took plea deals, one was convicted by a jury and the fourth was acquitted. Holley was convicted of burglary in juvenile court and received probation.

Quanell has mentored the young man since the police beating and continues to fulfill a promise to "keep an eye on Chad" made to his mother. Joyce Holley died of cancer in 2014.

"The main thing now is to get him out of jail, get him a job, get him going to work and help him to stay on track," the activist said.
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U.S. Attorney Ken Magidson announced Friday he is stepping down from his position as chief law enforcement officer for the Southern District of Texas on the same day Attorney General Jeff Sessions asked for the resignation of all remaining U.S. attorneys appointed during the Obama administration.

"It has been an honor and privilege to serve," Magidson, 68, said in a statement. "It has been a hallmark of my administration to ensure that our office lived up to the ideals of justice."

Magidson, a Washington, D.C., native who received his law degree from South Texas College of Law, was nominated by President Barack Obama in June 2011 and began serving as U.S. attorney on Sept. 30, 2011, following his unanimous confirmation by the U.S. Senate.

Prior to his nomination for U.S. attorney by a Democrat, Magidson was appointed by then-Gov. Rick Perry, a Republican and currently secretary of energy in the Trump administration, as Harris County's interim district attorney following the 2008 resignation of former DA Chuck Rosenthal.

Sessions' order affects all 46 remaining U.S. attorneys. According to the Tribune News Service, 47 others have already resigned.

Seeking the resignations of politically appointed U.S. attorneys is not unprecedented, especially when a new political party moves into the White House. In 1993, following the election of President Bill Clinton, Attorney General Janet Reno sacked the ones who had been appointed by President George H.W. Bush. At the time, Sessions was a U.S. attorney in Alabama.

Under the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, the departures of the sitting U.S. attorneys were generally staggered until their successors were confirmed.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said Sessions wanted to "ensure a uniform transition" to the incoming administration and said career prosecutors will run things until the new U.S. attorneys are confirmed, according to the Tribune News Service.

Magidson's second-in-command, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez, is expected to assume control of the Southern District of Texas which stretches from the Houston area to Laredo and employs 370 people, including about 180 assistant U.S. attorneys.

During his 5 -year tenure, federal prosecutors in Magidson's office won almost 40,000 convictions. Among those was Omar Faraj Al Hardan, a 24-year-old Houston man charged with attempting to travel overseas and join ISIS. In November 2014, Al Hardan took a loyalty oath to the terrorist organization, according to his plea agreement. Prior to his arrest, he had taken tactical training with an AK-47 and said he wanted to learn how to build remote detonators for improvised explosive devices. He remains in custody at the Federal Detention Center in Houston and is facing 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

In July 2016, Magidson's office secured a 46-month federal prison sentence for a former St. Louis Cardinals executive convicted of hacking the Astros.

"This is a serious federal crime. It involves computer crime - cybercrime," Magidson said at the time. "This is a very serious offense and obviously the court saw it as well."

The Southern District of Texas also focused on combatting sexual exploitation crimes against children - convicting on average one defendant each week during Magidson's tenure - and human trafficking.

Hortencia Medeles-Arguello, also known as Raquel Garcia or "Tencha," was the woman behind a 14-defendant sex trafficking ring operating in Houston. Following a 10 day trial in April 2015, a federal jury convicted her on all counts and sentenced her to life in prison.

"These were human beings - women and children - who were treated as a commodity," Magidson said after the trial. "They came from their home countries hoping for a better life, only to be enslaved and forced into unspeakable acts."

On announcing his resignation, Magidson said his time spent as U.S. attorney in Houston was "a great blessing and a hallmark of my career."

"I am confident that our office will continue to live up to these ideals," Magidson said.

Gabrielle Banks contributed to this report.
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VICTORIA - A day after a suspect believed to be connected to the fire that destroyed the Victoria Islamic Center appeared in federal court, activity around the mosque continued at a brisk but modified pace.

Instead of piling into the main building for Friday prayer, the congregants walked past an empty field where the mosque once stood and filled two temporary buildings. A hired armed guard confirmed with each attendee their purpose for being there.

"We've been very much on edge, looking over our shoulders," said Dr. Irfan Qureshi, a mosque board member, in between appointments Friday morning at his clinic. Since the January blaze, he has noticed a few families have stopped attending events and prayers at the mosque because of safety concerns.

In the wake of January's fire, the mosque became a rallying point for this city about 130 miles southwest of Houston. Jewish and Protestant groups volunteered to help at the mosque, which reportedly raised more than $1 million in donations for rebuilding.

On Friday, a review of court documents and an interview with a former high school friend revealed new details about the 25-year-old suspect, Marq Vincent Perez, described as an extremist who was having trouble adjusting to his post-military life.

On March 3, authorities arrested Perez less than a mile away from the mosque grounds. While he's been charged with possession of fire-starting devices, he has not yet been charged in the mosque blaze.

Perez burglarized the mosque on Jan. 22 and then again on Jan. 28, when he started the fire, prosecutors say, with the intent of destroying the mosque. According to testimony presented in court Thursday, Perez did not hide his disdain for Muslims and took several steps to carry out his planned actions. But his attorney described Perez as a "substantial citizen."

"We have some degree of comfort knowing the main suspect is in custody," said Qureshi. "But the flip side is this is a 25-year-old. He has a family. If he's convicted, that's a young life that's affected."

Qureshi added that Muslims have not been the only religious group targeted in recent months, referencing the Jewish community centers and cemeteries vandalized in recent weeks. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Texas has had 105 hate crimes since the November election. Nationwide, 127 incidents have been tracked as "anti-Muslim."

At a detention hearing Thursday, investigators described Perez as a volatile man who harassed his best friend of 10 years, Victoria resident Stephen Ruiz. They also read clips from Facebook messages sent by Perez that hinted at a hostile attitude toward Muslims. Ruiz described Perez as a right-wing extremist, noting that Perez did not like foreigners.

Investigators said Ruiz's vehicle was vandalized with a shotgun and an explosive device made up of fireworks tied together. An undetonated explosive - similar to the one found at the mosque fire - was found March 3 where Ruiz's car was vandalized. Ruiz declined Friday afternoon to speak about the ongoing investigation but shared details of his relationship with Perez. They met during freshman year of high school at a weekly teenage hangout at a local church, where he described Perez as "quiet and reserved." Perez liked video games, and always seemed fascinated by the military, he said.

After high school, Perez apparently joined the U.S. Air Force for just a few weeks, according to testimony, and came back "unable to adjust," Ruiz said. Ever since then, his friend changed, becoming "more violent, more aggressive," he said.

No one answered the door Friday at the home where Perez was arrested, believed to be where Perez lived with Victoria resident Matilda Cano. The couple welcomed a son in January.

Next-door neighbor Thomas Alvarado said Perez had not lived there for more than six months. When he had resided there, Alvarado only saw him "go to work, come back and park his car." Occasionally he saw Perez standing outside with a couple of other men, but when they saw Alvarado they went inside.

On the morning of March 3, Alvarado saw red lights through his front window and Perez getting pulled out of the home and put into a car. He saw officials carry out three paper grocery bags' worth of what he assumed was evidence. Court records show evidence seized included a laptop, fireworks and a missing electric meter.

Perez's lawyer, Mark Di Carlo, said the testimony related to the mosque fire wasn't relevant to his client's charge, and described much of the evidence presented as "hearsay upon hearsay."

Di Carlo said the evidence is based on two confidential informants, one of whom may be involved in the mosque burglary as well. Neither testified or were subject to cross-examination, he said.

Di Carlo said his next steps would be to defend the charge Perez is accused of - possession of an incendiary device - and try to get him released from custody.

If Perez is charged in relation to the mosque fire, Di Carlo said they will "meet that issue when we come to it." He has not been informed of his client's next court date.

Back at the Friday prayer, Imam Osama Hassan delivered his sermon.

"Allah commands you to forgive who oppressed you or hurt you," he said to the group of almost 40. He wove in passages and verses of the Quran, giving examples of the Prophet Yusuf to repeatedly stress one common theme, forgiveness.

"When you forgive somebody, you free your past," he said.

After prayer, another board member got on the mic and told attendees when security cameras would be installed and reminded them about a Friday night potluck. With the lack of kitchen in the temporary buildings, they opted for pizza with homemade rice, hummus and lentils.

Chronicle staff writers Margaret Kadifa and John Harden and Express-News researcher Misty Harris contributed to this report.
The White House and House Republican leaders on Friday came together behind their plan to overhaul the Affordable Care Act, including a provision that has drawn criticism from conservatives who are pressing for a more aggressive attack on the law.

After President Donald Trump met at the White House with the House GOP leaders, his chief spokesman said the president fully supports the bill's timeline for phasing out the expansion of Medicaid under the ACA, which some on the right would like to accelerate.

Earlier in the day, the House leaders dismissed the idea of speeding up, as they have done for several days.

"Right now the date that's in the bill is what the president supports," White House press secretary Sean Spicer told reporters, adding: "It's not a question of negotiation."

Spicer's comments also suggested that Trump had reversed himself after meeting with House leaders on Friday; earlier in the week, the president had told several leaders of outside conservative groups that he was open to negotiating the proposal's details.

If so, Trump's new stance gives Speaker Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis., the measure's top booster, new momentum at the end of a difficult week when many GOP lawmakers questioned whether it could pass in the House.

Trump's support could change that dynamic next week, when the independent Congressional Budget Office is scheduled to release its estimates of the measure's cost and impact on insurance coverage.

Conservative members have argued that the American Health Care Act, as the proposal is named, should move up by two years plans to phase out one of Obamacare's signature features, an expansion of Medicaid as a way to insure more Americans.

On Friday morning, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said at a news conference on Capitol Hill: "I think right now that would be very difficult to do."

The current bill would phase out expansion by 2020, and the conservatives have to move that date to 2018.

In brief comments to reporters at the start of his meeting with lawmakers, Trump congratulated them for advancing their legislation through two committees this week and voiced optimism about the road ahead.

"This is the time we're going to get it done," Trump said. "We're working together. We have some great results. We have tremendous spirit. And I think it's something that's just going to happen very shortly."

After their meeting with Trump, the House GOP leaders said they were willing to listen to different perspectives, but warned against stalling.

"We'll continue to listen; we'll continue to make improvements where we can," said Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. "But there's no question: This is the bill at the end of the day that will come to the president's desk."
NEW YORK - Maybe the CIA is spying on you through your television set after all.

Documents released by WikiLeaks allege a CIA surveillance program that targets everyday gadgets ranging from smart TVs to smartphones to cars. Such snooping, WikiLeaks said, could turn some of these devices into recorders of everyday conversations - and could also circumvent data-scrambling encryption on communications apps such as Facebook's WhatsApp.

WikiLeaks is, for now, withholding details on the specific hacks used "until a consensus emerges" on the nature of the CIA's program and how the methods should be "analyzed, disarmed and published." But WikiLeaks - a nonprofit that routinely publishes confidential documents, frequently from government sources - claims that the data and documents it obtained reveal a broad program to bypass security measures on everyday products.

San Bernardino case

If true, the disclosure could spark new privacy tensions between the government and the technology industry. Relations have been fraught since 2013, when former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden disclosed secret NSA surveillance of phone and digital communications.

Just last year, the two sides feuded over the FBI's calls for Apple to rewrite its operating system so that agents could break into the locked iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino attackers. The FBI ultimately broke into the phone with the help of an outside party; the agency has neither disclosed the party nor the nature of the vulnerability, preventing Apple from fixing it.

According to WikiLeaks, much of the CIA program centered on dozens of vulnerabilities it discovered but didn't disclose to the gadget makers. Common practice calls for government agencies to disclose such flaws to companies privately, so that they could fix them.

Instead, WikiLeaks claims, the CIA held on to the knowledge in order to conduct a variety of attacks. As a result, tech companies such as Apple, Google and Microsoft haven't been able to make the necessary fixes.

"Serious vulnerabilities not disclosed to the manufacturers places huge swathes of the population and critical infrastructure at risk to foreign intelligence or cyber criminals who independently discover or hear rumors of the vulnerability," WikiLeaks wrote in a press release. "If the CIA can discover such vulnerabilities, so can others."

Tools of the trade

Not everyone is worried.

Alan Paller, director of research for the cybersecurity training outfit SANS Institute, said the case boils down to "spies who use their tools to do what they are paid to do." He said criminals already have similar tools - and he's more worried about that.

Rich Mogull, CEO of the security research firm Securosis, said that agencies gathering intelligence on other organizations and governments need, by definition, technical exploits that aren't public.

If they're authentic, the leaked CIA documents frame a stark reality: It may be that no digital conversation, photo or other slice of life can be shielded from spies and other intruders.

"It's getting to the point where anything you say, write or electronically transmit on a phone, you have to assume that it is going to be compromised in some way," said Robert Cattanach, a former U.S. Department of Justice attorney who now specializes in cybersecurity and privacy for the law firm Dorsey & Whitney.
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The resignation of Mayor Sylvester Turner's top deputy - a social justice advocate and one of the mayor's few confidants in a sea of senior staff appointed by the previous mayor - is fueling worry among aides and allies about the administration's commitment to the progressive policy goals on which he campaigned.

Turner for months has downplayed his unusual decision to entrust much of the implementation and communication of his policies to his predecessor's staff, urging focus on big-ticket accomplishments, such as bringing a pension reform deal to the state legislature, soothing tempers on City Council and closing last year's $160 million budget gap.

However, chief of staff Alison Brock's departure just 15 months into Turner's term has stoked renewed angst among supporters who think Turner has not championed the progressive platform for which they worked to get him elected.

"We're a little concerned, because she was that voice at the table, so we were confident our concerns were being heard," said Tarsha Jackson of the Texas Organizing Project. "Now, we're just hopeful the mayor gets someone that shares his vision, the vision that he had when he ran for office. We don't have an ally in the mayor's office right now."

Jackson, who met and befriended Brock in 2004 when she was Turner's legislative aide, said TOP's attempts to reform city economic development policies have stalled, despite Brock's support.

Labor leader Linda Morales said the same of her efforts to push an ordinance asking city contractors to provide better wages, community engagement and job training.

"Labor wants to be a partner with the mayor," she said. "We want him to speak to his staff and get on the program with us because it's his agenda we're trying to push."

'Maybe too cautious'

Turner distinguished himself as a candidate on such issues, calling for a higher minimum wage and pushing the city to require recipients of tax incentives to pay higher salaries. He also decried Houston's economic inequality, stressing the need to "build a city for the middle class."

Despite maintaining similar rhetoric in office, the mayor has hesitated to bring forward sweeping progressive policy proposals. His much-hyped "Complete Communities" plan aimed at revitalizing Houston's under-served neighborhoods, for example, still awaits implementation. As for employee benefits, the city passed an ordinance last year suggesting companies seeking tax breaks offer additional benefits but did not require them to do so.

"The mayor is being cautious, in my opinion maybe too cautious. He's got issues he wants to pass at the state Legislature, so he's trying to make his way through the land mines without having folks hurt his possibility of passing pension reform," said Morales, of the Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO. "I understand that totally, but there's other things I know, as a collective, progressives want to move."

The mayor bristled at any perception of sluggish progress.

"Compare my track record with any previous mayor, and if they did as much. Name me one mayor in the last 20 years that has brought forth a pension reform package to this point.  Name me one mayor that has attended more events than I have," Turner told reporters. "Even though I came in on a very close vote, I have governed in a very uniform, universal fashion."

Texas Southern University political scientist Jay Aiyer largely agreed.

"Other than (former Mayor Bob) Lanier, he's probably the most successful first-term mayor I've seen," said Aiyer, who served as former mayor Lee Brown's chief of staff.

Turner also listed a series of appointments, from police chief to city attorney and director of government relations.

Turner has tapped several new department directors and created such positions as chief resilience officer and education czar, though public education does not fall under the city's purview.

Holdovers from Parker team

Yet, roughly two-thirds of those who regularly attend senior staff meetings were appointed by former Mayor Annise Parker, including the communications staff, chief operating officer, chief development officer, chief financial officer and council liaison.

Parker, like Turner, advocated for her share of progressive causes, including enhancing green space, combating homelessness and introducing an equal rights ordinance. Her policy agenda differed widely from Turner's, however, particularly when it came to economic development.

Whereas Parker approached development with an eye toward catalyzing growth, Turner chiefly is concerned with economic justice.

"I am committed to making sure that we do not have two cities in one - of haves and have-nots," the mayor said in his inauguration speech, and regularly repeats.

On the campaign trail, Turner often criticized a Parker program that sought to lure residential housing downtown by subsidizing up to $15,000 per apartment without requiring developers to set aside any affordable units.

She also expanded 15 of the city's 26 economic development zones and approved 27 tax reimbursement deals known as 380 agreements, many with giants such as Schlumberger, Halliburton and UPS.

These efforts were spearheaded by Chief Development Officer Andy Icken, who some council members referred to openly as the "mini-mayor" for the sway he held over policy.

Turner has kept Icken in the same role, even tasking him with shepherding his Complete Communities initiative.

"It's the same Andy. I don't see anything different in that office. I don't see a vision out of that office," Morales said. "Staff is instrumental in moving stuff. (The mayor) cannot have his hand on everything. His staff has to prepare him, has to brief him, and has to be a mover of policy."

Icken did not respond to a request for comment.

"If you didn't view the Parker administration as particularly successful and all you're left with is people from the Parker administration  I think it certainly would be of some concern," Aiyer said. Development aside, Frances Valdez, state director of the immigration group United We Dream and a member of Turner's criminal justice transition committee, questioned the mayor's reluctance to weigh in on the national immigration debate.

"I had hoped that the mayor would have developed or implemented actual policies, especially to protect the immigrant community, and it seems like all he's willing to do is make broad statements, which doesn't actually provide protection," Valdez said. "Saying Houston is a welcoming city doesn't actually provide protection."

Staff needs 'same vision'

Some advocates said they view Chief Policy Officer Janice Evans, also the mayor's communications director, as an impediment to a more aggressive stance on such issues. Though Evans said she no longer oversees staff members who focus on immigration, advocates said this remains the structure in practice and said she has shown little interest in engaging with their concerns.

Evans said earlier this week that who fills senior staff roles matters less than what the mayor directs those employees to do, arguing each mayor's vision is implemented by default with each daily decision.

Jackson was skeptical of that view.

"Ensuring that he has people around him that have the same compassion and the same vision he does, nothing will fall through the cracks," she said. "He can't be in four or five places at one time, and that's what I see him doing."
In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas ruled late Friday that boundaries of some of the 36 congressional districts in the state violate the Voting Rights Act and the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

"This is a great victory for LULAC, the people of Texas and the Latino community," wrote Luis Roberto Vera, Jr., League of United Latin American Citizens' national general counsel.

At issue is the ongoing court battle over Texas' 2011 district maps and whether minority voting strength was diluted.

In December, plaintiffs including the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, the Texas Latino Redistricting Task Force and the LULAC filed a motion for a ruling. They had sued the state in 2011, claiming the maps adopted for state House, Senate and Texas congressional districts were unconstitutional and harm minority voters.

The boundaries of districts are redrawn every 10 years after the census is completed.

"Tonight the courts ruled what we knew all along  Texas intentionally discriminated against communities of color to dilute the voting power of Latinos and African Americans. All Texans deserve the right to elect their candidate of choice," said Rafael Anchia, chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus. "We demand swift action by the Texas Legislature to allow all communities to cast a ballot that counts."

In the opinion issued Friday night, the two-judge majority said the rights of Hispanic voters in Southwest Texas, including Nueces County, must be addressed.

"When the Legislature decided to place the county's Hispanic voters in an Anglo district," the court said, it "had the effect and was intended to dilute their opportunity to elect their candidate of choice."

They also said race predominated in the drawing of the 35th Congressional District in Central Texas represented by Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin.

U.S. District Judges Orlando Garcia and Xavier Rodriguez wrote the majority opinion.

They cited one expert witness who noted "that Harris and Fort Bend Counties added about 920,000 people between 2000 and 2010 and all the growth was minorities , as the two-county Anglo populations declined by about 42,000. The expert also said "that this minority growth and its local (generally southwestern Harris County and the eastern half of Fort Bend County should make it easy to provide additional minority opportunity in Houston."

Further, the judges said, evidence "despite the act that minorities were responsible for the growth in the area, and new district (CD36) was placed partly in Harris County, no new minority district was drawn in the Houston area."

However, the judges said the plaintiffs failed "to prove intentional vote dilution in the Houston area."

In dissent, U.S. Circuit Judge Jerry E. Smith said, "This case is really about only whether the congressional lines in the challenged districts were drawn for racial or partisan purposes. That is complicated, and the two considerations often overlap."

With the exception of the Dallas/Fort Worth area, he agreed with the state's " assertion that the plaintiffs and the United States have utterly failed to prove that the 2011 Texas Legislature enacted (the challenged plans) for the purpose of diluting minority voting strength rather than protecting incumbents and preserving Republican political strength won in the 2010 elections."

In his view, "Texas redistricting in 2011 was essentially about politics, not race."
The Environmental Protection Agency serves as pollution referee in the competition between industry and nature. As in any contest, nobody complains when the ref makes a questionable call that helps out their side. But everyone should start to worry when the referee runs out on the field, grabs the ball and stiff-arms his way toward the end zone.

That's basically what Scott Pruitt, head of the EPA, did during an interview with CNBC at CERAWeek here in Houston.

The man in charge of our national environmental policy said that he did not believe carbon dioxide was a "primary contributor" to global warming.

"I think that measuring with precision human activity on the climate is something very challenging to do and there's tremendous disagreement about the degree of impact. So no, I would not agree that it's a primary contributor to the global warming that we see," Pruitt told CNBC host Joe Kernen.

That's news not only to the EPA, which has a mandate to regulate carbon emissions, but also to the oil and gas industry.

Those multi-billion-dollar international corporations rely on brilliant scientists and engineers to transform impenetrable shale into major oil plays, or drill under the crushing pressure of ocean depths. There's no room for error - any hope for success in high-risk, high-reward endeavors means that you have to follow facts where they lead and keep personal opinions aside.

That's why companies like ExxonMobil, BP, Royal Dutch Shell, Saudi Aramco and Total all recognize the reality and risks of man-made global warming.

Rex W. Tillerson, former ExxonMobil CEO and current U.S. secretary of state, even supported a revenue-neutral carbon tax.

That sentiment was echoed at CERAWeek. Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih delivered a keynote address on Tuesday advocating for investments to help shrink the carbon footprint of fossil fuels. And on Thursday, Royal Dutch Shell Chief Executive Ben van Beurden gave a speech urging the industry to make progress on transitioning to cleaner energy.

Representatives from the European Union, Russia, Iran, Canada and all over the globe took the stage at the Hilton Americas this past week. Petroleum is an international business, and whether Pruitt likes it or not, the world is moving ahead on carbon regulations.

The Trump administration cannot keep reality at bay. The industry is already preparing itself for inevitable global warming rules. Pruitt's refusal to get on their level has started to hurt long-term plans.

In Fort Bend County, NRG Energy recently brought online a $1 billion carbon-capture project at a coal-fired power plant. Now this Houston-based innovation may be the last of its kind for a while, as Michael Hardy wrote in Texas Monthly, because Trump's proposed cuts to environmental regulations render it uneconomic. That's bad news for NRG's investment.

Trump won't be president forever, and you can bet that the next EPA chief won't be as industry-friendly. If he wants to make the best use of his time, Pruitt should start advocating for simple and predictable regulations that will reduce carbon emissions without burdening our oil and gas companies. He can start by listening to James A. Baker III's call for a carbon tax.

Pruitt isn't a player for the oil and gas industry, and he can't call their plays for them. He's the referee now, and it is time to start acting like it.
In an era of unparalleled hyperpartisan politics and political disenchantment, young people feel more disengaged from government than ever. And between a student debt crisis and a standardized testing craze, our education system has been demotivating students from kindergarten to college. There is a solution - but let me first demonstrate the problem.

The statistics speak for themselves. In one 2015 poll, a majority of millennials said they almost never trust an authority figure to do the right thing. Which authority figures? The Harvard University study found consistent distrust across the board: from the U.S. president, Congress and Supreme Court to federal, state and local governments. Voter turnout numbers are even more striking. Fewer than 50 percent of millennials ages 18-24 have voted in any presidential election since 1972, including last year's.

Here in Texas, it's no surprise young people are detached when they feel marginalized as public school students. While students are shuttled from class to class on fixed bell times for nearly 16,000 hours of their lives before graduating, they are never asked for feedback. While school districts are required to solicit input and hear public comment from teachers, parents and community members, students are forgotten, even as they are the primary consumers of the education "product" the state is delivering. Students are left disenfranchised, disenchanted and civically disengaged from the very system that shapes their futures. When these young people grow up, they may be less inclined to participate in civic life, and the prospect of such apathetic Texans should concern all of us.

The status quo needs to change, and legislation is under consideration to help move Texas toward better engagement of public school students. The solution is actually pretty straightforward and deserves support. To ameliorate youth disengagement, we have to engage youth in government that affects their daily lives. The easiest place to start is in the schools that nurture children for nearly two decades before they enter the "real world." Proposals to require school districts to engage their students before any major curriculum initiative have been sponsored by state Rep. Jim Murphy, R-Houston, and state Sen. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston. The bills, HB 1585 and SB 508, are nonpartisan, virtually cost-free and best of all, common-sense.

If passed, the 1,200-plus school districts of Texas would be required to develop their own student advisory programs, flexible to local community needs. Some districts could convene student council presidents from each high school monthly for feedback sessions. Other districts could send staff to each school to make presentations during pep rallies or other student gatherings, and later collect feedback from a subsequent survey. Houston ISD officials could attend HISD Student Congress meetings and brainstorm curriculum changes alongside their student membership.

Passage of the bills means more than changing district curriculum processes. It signifies a call to our leaders to regularly invite young people to the table and seriously consider their ideas. By authentically engaging those who feel shoved to the margins, we reincorporate the disenchanted - and their perspectives - into the social fabric. By including youth in the decision-making that affects them the most, we use their passion productively in the form of civic participation.

When asked sincerely about youth issues, young people will passionately share their perspectives. Last summer, I watched as 10 high school students picked randomly from an audience sat before a crowd of adults and shared surprising stories of the impact that school underfunding had on their education. One school not only lacked teachers, but also toilet paper. I guarantee that young people have stories and insight that will astonish adults, if they make the effort to listen. Adults, yes, even educators, might be surprised by how much they learn.

Tameez is the founding speaker of the HISD Student Congress and a lead co-author of an amicus brief written by Texas students submitted to the Texas Supreme Court. He helped lawmakers develop HB 1585 and SB 508, which are the subject of this commentary.
Authorities arrested a St. Louis man at about 6:35 p.m. Friday in a double shooting that occurred Wednesday afternoon near Licking.

Michael L. Hunter, 35, was charged Friday afternoon with two counts of armed criminal action, two counts of domestic assault and unlawful possession of a firearm.

The Texas County Sheriffs Department is investigating the double-shooting incident and a fire that occurred west of Licking. Texas County Sheriff James Sigman said Hunter was arrested in St. Louis, but was known to frequent the Licking area.

Sigman said a report came in at about 2 p.m. Wednesday of a shooting in the area of Highways 32 and N. Sigman said deputies responded and spoke with two male victims who each suffered a single gunshot wound with non-life-threatening injuries.

The victims were transported to Texas County Memorial Hospital and treated.

About an hour later, a call was received regarding a vehicle on fire that spread to a nearby residence. Sigman said authorities believe the shootings and vehicle fire are likely related incidents.

A vehicle of interest was described as a maroon or burgundy newer model Ford F-250 4-door crew cab driven by a white male in his mid-to-late 30s.

Anyone who has information about either of these incidents, or witnessed anything with regard to them, is encouraged to call the Texas County Sheriffs Department at 417-967-4165

We believe at this time it is an isolated incident between individuals who knew each other and there is no threat to the community at this time, Sigman said.
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The petitioners challenged the Constitutional amendment that enabled the government to make a special 10% quota for the advancement of any economically weaker section.
Volunteer in Reno County

The Volunteer Center of Reno County, a United Way Agency, is a central clearinghouse for volunteer opportunities in Reno County.
Ballina Mayor Michael Loftus brought a bottle of whiskey for Fran Curley, head of the Irish Sister City Committee. Mayor Linda Tyer and Mayor Michael Loftus. Mayor Linda Tyer. Council Vice President John Krol. Sister City Commission Chairman Andy Kelly. Irish Sister City Committee Chairman Fran Curley. Mayor Linda Tyer read a proclamation. Loftus gifted glassware with Ballina's crest in it. Mayor Linda Tyer presented her own gifts to Loftus. PreviousNext

Pittsfield Welcomes Irish Sister City Mayor



Ballina Mayor Michael Loftus was welcomed during a reception at City Hall. PITTSFIELD, Mass.  When Michael Loftus got to town after a lengthy flight from Ireland, he knew where to go. He's been here before.

The mayor of Ballina, Ireland returned to Pittsfield on Friday for his second visit. He comes from the Pittsfield's sister city, a partnership that's last 19 years and still going strong.

"To me, coming here today and this weekend, has meant an awful lot. It is an honor to get the opportunity to come back here," Loftus said.

The longstanding relationship serves as a way for the two cities to share cultures and ideas. Each trip includes a reception at City Hall welcoming visitors from Ballina and when city residents go there, Ballina returns the favor. Last year Loftus, when he was a councilor, was joined by an entire delegation. This year, he came back on his own.

"I didn't need to be shown where to go with my Google maps. I knew exactly where I was going because I was brought to all of the places to see," Loftus said.

He found his way to the City Council Chambers where he joined members of the Sister City Commission, department heads, and elected officials to welcome him. Mayor Linda Tyer read a proclamation and the two mayors exchanged gifts from their cities.

"They've carried on these great friendships," Tyer said of the Sister City Commission, which organizes these trips for each of the city's sister cities.

Council Vice President John Krol said Pittsfield was built on being welcoming to other cultures, countries and immigrants. Despite what may be happening on the national political level, Krol says the city will continue to be welcoming.

"That is the history of our country and the history of Pittsfield," Krol said. "This city represents welcoming and banding together."

The Sister City Commission agrees and has voted to also take a role in welcoming immigrants and refugees. Andy Kelly, chairman of the commission, said the board voted to serve as a liaison between the city and any incoming immigrants or refugees.

"I'm a child of immigrants as are all of you," Kelly said.

Despite living in different corners of the world and having different cultures, Irish Sister City Committee Fran Curley says there is an interconnection between all people.

Last night when Loftus first arrive, Curley and Loftus met at the Crowne Plaza. There they met a man whose ancestors came from the same town as Loftus. The two exchanged cards and Loftus is going to help with some ancestry research. It is those types of connections Curley says he loves.

"I love the interconnections between people," Curley said.

As for the gifts, Tyer presented Loftus a Pittsfield t-shirt, a bottle of the locally-made Fire Cider, and a book of historic postcards from the city. Loftus gave gifts to Tyer, the mayor's Executive Assistant Catherine Van Bramer, Krol, and members of the Irish Sister City Committee.

He had brought books, lapel pins featuring the flags of Ireland and the United State linked, lapel pins with the Ballina crest, books highlighting sights in County Mayo, and glassware with the Ballina crest. And bottles of whiskey.

The Irish Sister City Committee will now take Loftus around the county and beyond to show him even more of the Berkshires than he had experienced before.
Lets face it, the days of dropping cheesy pick-up lines at social gatherings are coming to an end. We would be hearing less cheesy lines like Did it hurt when you fell from heaven? or Was your dad a thief? Because he stole the stars and put them in your eyes.

The traditional approach to getting an opposite sex to talk to you or take an interest in you by actually talking to them face to face is slowly fading. Our cavemen instincts of hunting is slowly being overtaken by convenience  The equivalent of a caveman ordering pizza delivery instead of hunting.

Digital Dating  Broken Barriers

Before the advent of internet dating, we used to head to various places to socialize and meet people - bars, pubs, clubs, parties, weddings, places of worship and even the library! It took physical effort and mental courage to walk up to someone and introduce oneself.

Back then, its victory when phone numbers were exchanged, which then led on to conversations to get to know each other to actually going on a date to get to know the person further. Unfortunately, all these would have to take place in the location or country you reside in  flying in and out of the country can be costly!

Now, with online dating websites and apps, it has become so easy to find a partner or in this case, a match  even from a different country if you wish. You can judge if you like the person by looking at their picture and also read their profile details to see if theyre your type.

Computers and servers in these virtual dating agencies filter the millions of people in their databases to find you your closest match. Youre able to scroll through profiles of people near you on your smartphone and send them a flirty text copied from a google search you just did, bypassing the effort and anxiety of thinking of what you would like to say to your match.

Not everybody on the Internet is whom they seem to be

You might be a guy and scrolling through profiles on a dating site and then you spot a nice girl who you might like to date. You send her a message  and she answers in a kind and lovely manner. She wants to know you better! She wants to talk to you! But behind the guise of that sweet-sounding woman may actually be a man --- a beardy cybercriminal who only wanted to get your phone number to scam you.

Last year, Russian police have arrested two men from Smolensk who pretended to be young, attractive girls stealing the hearts of men in Moscow and then threatening and tricking them into sending rather big sums of money. The criminals were found to have actually earned about one million Russian rubles (or USD16,500) with this scheme.

Now, some of you are thinking that men are more gullible in this area, but there are many cases where women have been scammed of money by their internet lovers. However, the real figures on romantic frauds are never known. Many of the victims, especially married people, prefer to keep silent.

Also, there are instances where website employees behaved like scammers as there were only a few women registered on the site. So they create accounts of pretty girls themselves using pictures copied from anywhere on the internet. Then, there are bots created to lure newcomers into chat and get them to pay money to continue the conversation.

So just believe us: anyone can be reeled in. This is how Monica Whitty, a cyber-psychologist from the University of Leicester explains the situation to the DailyMail:

You dont have to be vulnerable. You can be a highly intelligent person with a good job. The strategies these fraudsters use are highly sophisticated.

Whitty has acquired much experience working with victims of romance frauds. She admits that victims meet double pressure: they blame themselves and their friends and relatives do the same. Most crime victims are given sympathy and support, but in the case of online fraud, friends and family are furious. Their response is, How could you be so gullible?

Valentines Day cometh

As we approach the official day of love, most of us will receive the traditional anonymous Valentines  albeit in digital form. Usually it doesnt take a rocket scientist to guess the author but some come as a surprise and the admirer is unknown. Your curiosity is quite understandable in this case, but do not let it reduce your vigilance  instead of romance, such letters typically lead to malware or real money loss.

While installing a reliable internet security suite such as Kaspersky Internet Security 2017 will secure from malware and malicious links, it will not protect you from a broken heart.

So to keep you safe from being broken hearted and scammed this Valentines Day, we have put together list of common scams and some tips to ensure your safety and your digital life is not compromised:

Scam: Mutual connection

This is where a scammer contacts you via social channels and claims having common interest or a mutual connection with you maybe from an introduction at a wedding or large gathering. If youre a serial poster of pictures and havent updated your privacy settings, its easy guesswork for the cybercriminals.

Tip: If you receive such a claim, and no matter how desperate you are, dismiss the conversation and never add that person as a friend. Also, update your privacy settings to share with only those you know.

Scam: Intimate Activity

A very common scam especially for those in a long distance internet dating relationship. After an intense courtship period, the scammer asks the victim to connect with them via webcam and chat. The fraudsters webcam is mysteriously broken, but they heap praise on their victim and, with a combination of flattery and persistence, convince their partner to partially disrobe or perform other intimate acts. The scammer then reveals their true identity. They claim to have made a video recording and threaten to share the video with mutual social media friends or post the recording online, unless the victim sends money. Once the victim complies, the cycle beginsdemands increase until the victim finally refuses.

Tip: If it involves a webcam and you are asked to perform indecent acts, never ever give into to the demands, no matter what they are. If the relationship is real, then you would wait to meet each other in person.

Scam: Fake Dating Sites

The recent Ashely Madison leak offers a glimpse into the world of fake dating sites. Services claim to offer legitimate meetups, but are either severely underpopulated or awash with scammers and bots.

Tip: Look out for sign-up questionnaires that are light on personal details, but heavy on questions about finances. Also watch for an influx of attention just after youve created your profile. If all your profile contains is a few lines of text, no photo and no set preferences, but you start getting message after message from potential suitors, chances are youve stumbled across a fake dating site.

Other things to pay attention to even on legitimate dating sites  lets face it, scammers are everywhere - include the following:

Suspicious Spelling and Grammar

If they supposedly come from an English-speaking nation, be on the lookout for awful spelling and grammar. While not everyone looking for love online has the soul and finesse of William Shakespeare, truly terrible grammatical errors and run-on sentences are red flags. The same goes for emails. Native English speakers have a natural cadence when they speak and write that isnt easily mimicked. Be suspicious if something seems off about the tone or pacing.

Cut-and-Paste

If messages and profile descriptions read too well, be worried. Often, scammers wont bother writing their own material, but instead lift it from other websites or dating profiles. Here, its a good idea to run suspicious text through an Internet search to see if any matches come up. If they do, dont message or respond to this scam artist.

Weird Links

Legitimate users often post links to their favourite bands, travel destinations or hobbies. Scammers typically fill their profiles with links to low-quality spam sites that are trying to sell a product or teach you to get rich quick. You may also find links to X-rated websitesa warning sign that the profile isnt entirely legitimate.

Double Time

While strong feelings often accompany the first few weeks of any new romance, scammers will try to accelerate this process even further by offering not only a huge volume of compliments and kind words, but also intimate details of their own life that they have never shared with anyone else. What can be even more troubling is if after just a few chat sessions or emails, theyre asking for a small amount of money to cover strange expensesperhaps theyre stranded in a foreign country, have a family member in medical distress or have just been robbed, and need you to wire transfer money ASAP. If requests for money are ever on the table, walk away.

As we get closer to Valentines Day, everyone, especially single folks will be scurrying to find themselves a date with a potential Mr. or Ms. Right. One of the many ways would be through the use of internet dating sites or apps. We would like to arm everyone with knowledge about common romance scams and how to avoid these fraudsters so you can skip the fake romance and seek out your true love instead, said Sylvia Ng, General Manager at Kaspersky Lab Southeast Asia.
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The Imperial War Museum (IWM) is Britains national museum on war. It presents a history of the whole country during wartime since 1914, alongside its former empire and dominions. This year, IWM is celebrating its centenary.

During World War I, a process to found an official institution to document the ongoing conflict began. At the opening of the museum on June 9 1920, King George V spoke of the hopes which had fuelled the foundation, saying: We cannot say with what eyes posterity will regard this museum, nor what ideas it will arouse in their minds. We hope and pray that as the result of what we have done and suffered they may be able to look back upon war, its instruments and its organisation as belonging to a dead past.

Of course, these hopes were totally dashed by September 1939. While World War I may have created the institution, it was World War II which transformed it into the museum that exists today.

Founding: 1917-1920

The idea of the museum came about at a bleak time for Britain. In 1917 the countrys strategic situation abroad was precarious, while at home society reeled from the effort of waging total war. Morale had sunk very low. Past research suggests that the war museum was founded in reaction to this dire situation: both to counter war weariness within the population and to commemorate the sacrifices made by all people for the country.

A view of the Army Gallery inside the Crystal Palace (IWM)

Both needs would undoubtedly have featured in the final decision to go ahead with the project. But the argument that the operational requirement of countering war weariness was its driving force feels most convincing. When Sir Alfred Mond MP proposed the idea to the War Cabinet, the British government had just undergone a political coup, with the new Prime Minister, David Lloyd George, asserting himself by reorganising Britains institutions and rejuvenating its war effort.

Further evidence that the initiative was operationally driven lies in its initial budget  just 3,000  and that during 1916 all national museums were closed to save money. State orchestrated commemoration would certainly not have been a top priority at this time.

A view of one of the art galleries inside Crystal Palace (IWM)

Following the cabinets approval, an organising committee was created. Its main concern was to amass the institutions collections. Collection subcommittees were formed, each with a specific focus, the range of which highlights the organisers aspirations to found a museum that was representative of the national effort.

It has been argued (in the early 90s) that this work was the most all-encompassing documentation programme ever undertaken by a cultural heritage institution. The material collected encompassed objects that would previously have been considered by many curators as valueless: trophies, for example, or photographs, personal effects and artwork produced by everyday people. The collection essentially became ethnographic, a snapshot of a nation locked in war.

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The museum opened in June 1920, initially at the Crystal Palace, in Sydenham, south London. Of course, by this stage, the original aim of countering war weariness had been annulled with the end of the war. An attempt to define the museum as a national war memorial had also flopped.

And so the organisers redrafted the projects purpose. Now, the idea was to create a museum that covered the whole British Empire and its dominions, so raising the instiutions profile. Accordingly the name of the museum changed from the National War Museum to the Imperial War Museum  the word imperial signifying its broader international remit, rather than subject matter.

Reinvention: 1939-1946

Over the interwar years IWM changed little, apart from several relocations. In line with the Kings opening speech, it focused on the war to end all wars (as World War I was then known), commemorating its sacrifices and championing the message that war is folly. But World War II quashed the concept of the war to end all wars, and threatened IWM with cultural irrelevancy. Reinvention became essential for its long-term continuance.

When World War II broke, IWM closed to the public. But the museum did not stop working. Leslie Bradley, IWMs director general at the time, pushed to convince its trustees and the government of the need to document the new conflict. Eventually, the museum received the permission needed and, in December 1939, started collecting.

The first exhibition held by IWM following its reopening during 1946 (IWM)

With limited resources, IWM focused initially on collecting ephemera such as posters, information pamphlets and other documentation. At the same time it tried to enrol the services and government departments into earmarking and saving artefacts for exhibition after the war. This was not an easy task  these bodies were concerned with more pressing matters. But by the wars conclusion, sufficient cooperation had facilitated a range of impressive material. One such accession, made early in the process, was the piece of paper signed by both Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler not long before hostilities began.

A view of enemy relics in IWMs first exhibition following its reopening (IWM)

IWM reopened in 1946. In galleries once reserved for the Great War, artefacts of a newer, more terrible conflict shared the space. The museum of the war to end all wars was no more, and a museum which would eventually cover all Anglo-Commonwealth conflict since 1914 was born. Since then, new museums have opened in Duxford and Manchester. HMS Belfast and the Churchill War Rooms are also part of the IWM family.

Conceived partly as a propaganda tool, IWM must have defied some initial expectations in reaching the age of a hundred. Through doing so, it has become one of the most important institutions on war perpetrated by Britain, the Commonwealth and other countries during the 20th and 21st centuries.

Beyond its propensity to adapt, perhaps the dark underbelly of IWMs success is peoples innate interest in conflict. As Dian Lees, the current director general has said: War is always going to be fascinating to a certain section of the audience, and our job is to broaden that audience.

Where IWM will be in another hundred years remains to be seen. But in an increasingly uncertain world, one can conjecture that the interest in it across the UK and further afield will not subside anytime soon.

Philip W Deans is a PhD candidate at Newcastle University. This article first appeared on The Conversation (theconversation.com)
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Thursday (9 March) was the 20th anniversary of the death of Notorious BIG and a fitting tribute was paid to the rapper - in the House of Representatives.

Rep Hakeem Jeffries used the platform to pay his respects to the hip-hop star, also know as Biggie Smalls, by reciting lyrics from his 1994 track Juicy.

The congressman went on to state that the legacy of Biggie - born Christopher Wallace in 1972 - would love on forever.

Jeffries said: Ive got the privilege of representing the district where Biggie Smalls was raised. We know he went from negative to positive and emerged as one of the worlds most important hip-hop stars.

He went on to describe his story as the classic embodiment of the American dream" adding that "Biggie Smalls is gone but he will never be forgotten.

The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Show all 20 1 /20 The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Beyonce The Demands: 1 Large table for catering dressed with white tablecloths. Dressing room should be 78 degrees 4 Brand New White Towels in bathroom (2 face & 2 body) Hot Food: Juicy Baked Chicken: Legs, Wings & Breast only (Please season with fresh garlic, season salt, black pepper, and Cayenne pepper HEAVILY SEASONED!!) Steamed Garlic Broccoli Lightly Seasoned Green Beans Lightly Seasoned Steamed Spinach Beyonce can only have Pepsi products. 1 Case of Aquafina water (half cold, half room temperature) 1 Hot Tea Set up (Please have NEW Coffee Pot) Sliced Lemons Wedges Rose scented candles Lighter for candles CD player Getty The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Adele The Demands: 12 Small bottles still (non-carbonated) spring water (at room temperature) 1 Electric kettle for BOILING water 6 Large mugs for tea. All mugs should be new, washed and dried. 6 metal teaspoons 2 Squeezy bottles clear honey (not organic) 1 Bottle very best quality red wine (Italian, French or Spanish) 1 Assortment of chewing gum 1 Pack Marlboro Light plus 1 disposable cigarette lighter 1 Small selection fresh fruit, to include bananas, apples, grapes, fresh berries NO CITRUS FRUIT! 1 Small plate of assorted freshly made, individually wrapped sandwiches, to include chicken salad. Sandwiches must NOT contain tomatoes, vinegar, chili or citrus fruit PA The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Kanye West The Demands: 1 Tub Plain Yogurt for dipping 4 small Yoplait Yogurt 1 Bowl of assorted nuts 1 Bowl of Sunkist Salted Pistachio Nuts (No Red Coloring) 2 Packs of Extra Chewing Gum 1 Bottle of Hot Sauce (Tabasco, Caribbean Type) 1 Box of Toothpicks 1 750 ml bottle of Hennessey Liquor 1 750 ml bottle of SKY or Absolut Vodka 1 Bottle of Patron Silver Tequila 4 Six Packs of Heineken Beer Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty, David Parsons/iStock The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Rihanna The Demands: 5 AC power outlets Adequate lighting for a relaxed atmosphere White drapes to cover lockers and/or brick 1 Humidifier 1 Large throw rug  plush and animal print (Cheetah, Leopard)  must be CLEAN, as she will walk on it barefoot. Pipe and Drape the room in Dark Blue or Black drapes with Icy Blue Chiffon draped nicely on top 6 Candles  Archipelago Black Forest (if you can't get these, please let me know ASAP as we have a 2nd choice of candle for Ri). 4 Small, clear, square vases with White Tulips, no foliage (2nd choice: White Casablanca Lilies no foliage, 3rd choice: White Freesia, no foliage) The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Katy Perry The Demands: Arrangement of pink fresh flowers. White and purple hydrangeas, pink & white roses and peonies. If not available, seasonal white flowers to include white orchidsABSOLUTELY NO CARNATIONS. A box of Huggies baby nature care wipes 6 Vitamin waters zero, assorted flavors Bowl of whole fresh organic grown fruit (apples, bananas, oranges and grapes) Plate of fresh-cut Crudites (to include cucumber, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, snap peas, celery) w/ ranch dip Snyder's of Hanover Honey Mustard & Onion Pretzel Jar of Salsa Baked (blue corn if possible) Tortilla Chips Freeze dried strawberries 2 bottles of Santa Margarita Pinot Grigio Throat coat, Twinnings Chamomile PG tips and Mint medley tea. Fuze slenderize assorted flavors A jar of quality honey Plastic drinking straws AFP/Getty Images The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Paul McCartney The Demands: All lamps must be halogen floor lamps with dimmer switch. Only animal free materials (cottons, denims, velour, etc.) Do not provide furniture made of any animal skin or print. Do not provide artificial versions of animal skin or print either. No leather seating is allowed in the black stretch limousine either. Arrange for a dry cleaner before arrival. 6 Full and leafy floor plants, but no trees. We want plants that are just as full on the bottom as the top such as palm, bamboo, peace lilies, etc. No tree trunks! $50.00 - One large arrangement of white Casablanca lilies with lots of foliage. $40.00 - One long stemmed arrangement of pale pink and white roses with lots of foliage. $35 One arrangement of freesia. It comes in various colors so please mix them up. Freesia is a favorite. 20 dozen clean towels outside of the production office AP The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Mariah Carey The Demands: Each room must be draped. Black drapes are fine. The entry door should open into the living room space, not the dressing room. Temperature should be about 75 degrees. 1 Three Seat Couch  Plain Color, no busy patterns; black, dark grey, cream, dark pink are fine 12 1 Liters of Fiji Water 3 Bottles Chardonnay  Chilled 12 Coke 12 Diet Coke 12 Vanilla Protein Drinks 6 Sparkling Water (Pellegrino) 12 Melon Flavor Gatorade 6 Red Wine Glasses 6 White Wine Glasses 4 Joe Malone Vanilla Candles 2 Vases White Roses Fried Chicken (warm) 12 Small Bottles water (room temperature) 3 Whole lemons and honey Sugarless gum Getty The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Eminem The Demands: 25 pound dumbbells 24-Diet Coke 16oz plastic bottles 12 Diet Coke 12oz cans 6 Verner ginger ale soda (or Schweppes) 48 Daisani, Poland Spring 12oz bottles NO Evian 1 Loaf white bread 1 Loaf wheat bread 6 Lunchables snacks (3 turkeys & 3 ham with cheese) 6 Cans Red Bull 16 Cans Sugar-Free Red Bull Large fresh jumbo shrimps with cocktail sauce and plenty of lemons 1 Jar of banana pepper rings Getty Images The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Grace Jones The Demands: 6 Bottles of Louis Roederer Cristal Champagne 3 Bottles of French Vintage red wine (e.g. St Emilion, Medoc, Bordeaux) 3 Bottles of French Vintage white wine (e.g. Sancerre, Pouilly Fuisse) 2 Dozen Findeclare or Colchester Oysters on ice (unopened)(Grace does her own shucking.) 2 Sashimi and Sushi platters for 8 people 6 Fresh lemons 1 Bottle of Tabasco sauce 1 Fresh fruit platter for 8 people 6 Bottles of Coca Cola 12 Bottles of still and sparkling water 12 Bottles of fresh fruit juices Wine glasses, champagne flutes, tumblers (all glass, no plastic) Cutlery and sharp knife 1 Oyster knife 1 Make up mirror (no neon strip lighting, only opaque white bulbs) Fresh towels, clothes hangers, clothes rail 3-4 Bunches of flowersprefer lilys and orchids Sofa and arm chairs Andy Sturmey The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Drake The Demands: Four dozen natural-scented incense sticks Dr. Bronners peppermint soap Pork-free food E-Z Wider rolling papers and a pack of Dutch Master President cigars Pinot Grigio Heineken Bottles of Jack Daniels Patron Silver tequila Nivea chapstick A bottle of Hennesey or Courvoisier Grey Goose Andis T-Outliner trimmers Extra sets of speakers champagnepapi/Instagram The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Jack White The Demands: 1 dozen chicken wings (buffalo, teryaki, suprise us) 1 bowl of FRESH HOME-MADE GUACAMOLE 8 champagne flutes (real glass) 8 wine glasses (real glass) 8 highball glasses (real glass) 1 hummus & pita chips iPod player with sufficient volume control NO fluorescent lighting PLEASE NOTE: This is a NO BANANA TOUR. (Seriously) Getty The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Madonna The Demands: 200-person entourage 2o international phone lines Her backstage room must look exactly like her own home (that means she ships around her furniture) Special flower-scented fabric Actual flowers Personal chef who prepares only vegan foods Her own dry-cleaning service AP The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Alicia Keys Alicia Keys performs at the UEFA Champions League Final Getty The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Jay Z The Demands: 7 sets of metal silverware 1 Lighter 3 Glade Candles (French Vanilla, Rain shower, Wild Berry, Tangerine Ginger) 3 Cans of Chunk White Tuna 10 Nutri-Grain Bars (Blueberry, Cherry, Apple, Strawberry) 6 Individual Packets of Quaker Oats Instant Oatmeal (Brown Sugar and Apple Cinnamon) 1 Assorted Fruit Platter with strawberries, seedless red grapes, bananas, mango, blueberries, cantaloupe and raspberries 2 Cases of beer (one imported and one domestic; brands preferred: Amstel Light, Corona, Bud, Bud Light or local beer) 3 menus for local seafood and Italian restaurants to order meals for Alicia Getty The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Mary J. Blige The Demands: 2 Humidifiers 10 medium prewashed bath sized towels NO DAIRY OR PORK OF ANY KIND!! 10 1.5 liter bottles of FIJI water (absolutely, positively must be FIJI) 6 cans of Diet Dr. Pepper 6 cans of Schweeps Ginger Ale 2 packs of Mentos  cinnamon fresh only 6 cans of Red Bull energy drink 6 bottles of Black Cherry Propells in sports bottle 8 sets of silverware 24 napkins 1 tub of clean ice Getty Images The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Lady Gaga The Demands: 2 Bottles of white wine with wine opener  Kendall Jackson or Robert Mondavi preferred 1 Pack of Straws 1 Cushioned office style chair TV with cable and a DVD player 1 Rolling clothing rack 4 Unscented candles Cool-mist humidifier 3 fans Tea kettle, organic ginger and lemongrass tea and honey are very important. 1 4 pack of Red Bull Light (on ice) 2 Bottles of Green Tea 1 Container of Guacamole Hot dogs (Yves veggie dogs eaten with toothpicks) A smoothie station (with frozen berries, fuze and whey protein or non-fat Greek yogurt) Blender needed 1 Plate of cheese (non-smelly, non-sweaty on ice) with whole wheat/healthy crackers A mix of assorted fresh fruit (cut and must have edible skin OR edible seeds OR citrus) Getty The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Cher The Demands: 1 Wig Room 1 Room for Dr. Stacey 1 bottle of fine red wine (No Kendall Jackson) 1 bottle of fine white wine (No Kendall Jackson) 4 Cokes 4 Diet Cokes 1 coffee table 1 end table for the phone to be placed on TV with VCR with a cable Hook up. Please make sure we can get the following channels: Turner Classic Movies or AMC The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Taylor Swift The Demands: If arriving before 11 a.m., the following from Starbucks: 1 Grande ICED Caramel Latte w/ 2 sweet-n-lows 1 Grande ICED Americano w/ 2 sweet-n-lows with soy milk 1 slice pumpkin loaf 1 Stick Butter 3 Boxes Kraft Macaroni/Cheese 2 Four Packs of Red Bull 1 12 Pack Corona Beer 1 12 Pack New Castle Beer 1 Bottle Welch's Grape Juice 1 Avocado 1 Bag of Twizzlers red licorice 1 Case of Smart Water 1 Pint Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream 1 Pint Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Brownie Frozen Yogurt The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Iggy Pop The Demands: A copy of USA Today that's got a story about morbidly obese people in it 6 bottles of Grolsch or decent local beer F loads of good red wines 6 large bottles of good quality sparkling water 3 cases x 12 oz bottles of still mineral water 6 bottles of alcohol free beer 1 case of big bottles of good, premium beer A bottle of vodka Cauliflower/broccoli, cut into individual florets and thrown immediately into the garbage. I f hate that Getty Images The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts Van Halen The Demands: Nuts Pretzels M&MS (WARNING: ABSOLUTELY NO BROWN ONES) 1 large tube of KY jelly 3 packs of Marlboro cigarettes (box) Herring in sour cream 2 gallons non-carbonated, bottled spring water 3 fifths Jack Daniels Black Label bourbon 2 fifths Stolichnaya vodka 1 pint Southern Comfort 2 bottles Blue Nun white wine Getty Images

Wallace was killed in an unsolved drive-by shooting on 9 March 1997 - he was just 24 years old.
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Los Angeles based three piece LANY bring their catalogue of feel-good pop sounds and relatable lyrics to a sold-out crowd at Gorilla in Manchester.

Its one of three UK shows in support of their forthcoming self-titled debut album, and it follows an equally sticky outing at Sound Control in the same city last summer.

Airing new material, viral hits and highlights from their three EPs, its only the unreleased tracks (The Breakup, Purple Teeth and It Was Love) that fans struggle to sing back at a louder volume than frontman Paul Klein.

Seasoned live performers with headlines tours across the US, Europe and their fair share of festivals, including a slot at Reading and Leeds last year; their set is tight and complete with an impressive light show despite the venues relatively small size.

As the lights begin to flicker, Klein (vocals, guitar and keys), multi-instrumentalist Les Priest and drummer Jake Goss set the bar high with opener yea, babe, no way.

Taken from kinda, last years EP, this is the release that resonates most with those here tonight.

The stage is drenched in red for WHERE THE HELL ARE MY FRIENDS, which sees the band question loneliness in the age of the internet and is received rapturously. Pink skies is matched with a similar furore, pink hues and a bouquet of plastic pink roses is waved frantically in the midst of it all.

Rocking wet hair, in an effort to keep cool as the temperatures soar on stage, Klein eventually ties his shoulder length mane up  much to the delight of one audience member who yelled that demand moments earlier.

The final song, It Was Love, is the real highlight.

Its a sprawling second half which may be self-indulgent with its drum solos and keyboard riffs, but its entirely necessary as it gives LANY the opportunity and space to showcase their skill; this particular brand of sun-kissed California pop proves the perfect pick-me-up for this cold night in Manchester.
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Chef and restaurateur Stevie Parle was a canny child. Over evening meals shared with his siblings and parents in Birmingham, he preferred to help with the cooking rather than endure the washing up afterwards  in this way, the passion that would shape his career was born. Now at just 32, he owns five buzzing London restaurants, having just launched Rome-inspired Palatino in Clerkenwell.

At 16, Parles natural talent and enthusiasm led him to Darina Allens Ballymaloe Cookery School in County Cork, and on to his first professional cooking job at The River Cafe in Hammersmith. Parle was just 17  the youngest cook Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers had ever employed at their famed riverside restaurant, where he learned to master superlative Italian fare.

Then it was on to Michelin-star chef Skye Gyngells local and seasonal cooking at Petersham Nurseries Cafe, before Sam and Sam Clarks Moorish dishes at Moro in Exmouth Market. Each of these acclaimed London venues sowed a seed of varied creativity which would later form a theme in Parles own restaurants.

Parle's restaurant Palatino has been inspired by Rome

Chef and innovator Parle was a pop-up restaurant trailblazer with his Moveable Kitchen, serving his own style of cooking in unused restaurants. In 2009, at just 24, he opened Dock Kitchen at Portobello Dock near Ladbroke Grove, west London. Parle had arrived.

Variation is key to his cooking. Dock Kitchen offers a seasonal, farm-to-table menu, while Rotorino in Dalston serves Southern Italian plates. British cooking stars at Craft London, with Southern French fare at Sardine in Islington. And now theres Palatino, a neighbourhood restaurant specialising in simple yet elegant food inspired by memories of Parles first trip to Rome when he was 17. Recipes are based on ancient dishes, gently tweaked, including bream with onions, pine nuts, raisins and vinegar; chicken, pancetta and pistachio meatballs with polenta, and freshly made ravioli with spinach and squash.

Recommended Drinking cafe mocha can improve your attention span

Across all five venues, the menus are producer-led. The dishes stem from traditional roots, and the design and atmosphere are of equal importance. All our restaurants are different brands and quite distinct from one another, says Parle. By adding a constraint [a specific cuisine for each] it gives you some boundaries to work within but still allows you to be creative.

Such varied dining requires an equally wide-ranging wine list. Parles 45-bin choice at Palatino, with more than 30 all-Italian grape varieties, offers a perfect opportunity to discover unusual styles, regions and rare vintages by the glass. Here, the chef-proprietor reveals his wine wisdom:

What is your approach to drinking wine?

I like drinking wine; I like the act of enjoying wine  preferably at home. Im privileged and lucky enough to have visited a lot of vineyards and I tend to drink wines from producers I know, or have met. I like to think about them and visualise the place that has produced these wines; the people and their stories. At The River Cafe we used to have an annual trip with David Gleave MW, which always stands out in my memories. When this isnt the case I want to drink something that leaves a certain taste of where its from, retaining its craft and identity.

What do you love about food and wine, and matching the two?

Good food is good food and good wine is good wine. I think the two things often go together anyway and we shouldn't look past this too much. I prioritise the overall dining experience and I want my guests to be happy, to enjoy themselves and be relaxed. Of course some things are best paired together in certain ways, but I want this to seem effortless and not overdone.

Parle cooks up food and wine pairings for us from his new menu at Palatino:

Selvapiana Vigneto Bucerchiale, Chianti Rufina Riserva, 2012

26.04, ExelWines.co.uk

This is a reserve from the Selvapiana house in Chianti Rufina  refined, elegant and with something of the rustic appeal to it. Its one of the best buys and a real benchmark in Italian wines. Pair it with Bombolotti ragu Marcella, a hearty pasta dish inspired by the Italian food writer Marcella Hazan.

Proprieta Sperino Coste della Sesia Rosso Uvaggio, 2013

26.46, RichardGrangerWines.co.uk

From Alto-Piedmont, Luca De Marchi, son of the now-legendary Paolo (Isole e Olena, Tuscany), stumbled across this old family winery some 15 to 20 years ago. The Nebbiolo base is blended with more local Vespolina and Croatina and the result is a delicious, rich, fruity red. I really like this one, its great to drink on its own or with antipasti and more. Its elegant, slightly peppery and a fun, easy-drinking style. Pair with the Speck on our antipasti menu.

Lagrein, Erste + Neue, Alto-Adige, 2015

19.99, Christopher Keiller Fine Wine Services; call 02380 582259

This is a really unusual grape variety, only grown on about 400 hectares. Its big, bold, has a tight fruit content and is going down a storm with guests and the staff, too. We cant quite put our finger on it, but we all love it. Pair this with most meat dishes, ideally with our Saltimbocca

Lambrusco, Solco Paltrinieri, Modena, NV

15.95, BuonVino.co.uk

This is great and shouldnt be sneered it. Cheerful, delicious and yet still serious with long-lasting taste, its a great drink with snacks and ideal with our fried sage leaves with honey and vinegar.

Barolo Cicala, Aldo Conterno, Piedmont

From 131 (depending on the vintage), HedonismWines.co.uk

Why not? We are really happy to offer all our wines by the glass and we think this is a perfect, benchmark Barolo. Its luscious, rounded and extremely elegant and with the 99 vintage its a great find. One of the best wine producers in Piedmont and we think everyone should try it. This is ideal with our pork chop, served with a sauce of anchovy, olives and cream.
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This has been a dark week in the world of technology, with WikiLeaks mammoth Vault 7 document release making for some deeply unpleasant reading.

The 8,761 files published by the whistle-blowing organisation allegedly came straight from the CIA, which is believed to have been using a variety of hacking methods to secretly spy on people through their electronic devices.

The agency is also said to be capable of pinning the blame for cyber attacks on other countries.

WikiLeaks is set to follow this up by publishing the redacted details of all of the CIAs cyber weapons, but will give technology companies initial exclusive access to them, to prepare themselves against hackers.

Fortunately, there are also a number of simple steps that ordinary people can take to protect themselves, without going off-grid.

1. Update your phone

The agency was able to remotely control and monitor phone activity, both on Android and iOS, according to the WikiLeaks documents. Both Apple and Google have said that theyve addressed many of the vulnerabilities allegedly exploited by the CIA.

The best thing users can do is update to the latest available version of their phones operating system, as this provides the highest level of protection. Apple and Google have pledged to fix any remaining flaws, so you can expect more software updates to become available in the near future.

Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty

2. Check your TV

Weeping Angel is one of the most chilling revelations of them all, allowing the CIA to turn smart TVs into covert microphones, according to WikiLeaks. The attack, which is said to have been developed alongside the MI5, enabled agents to infiltrate TVs and make them appear to be turned off.

In this Fake Off state, they could listen in on everything that people were saying around them, and send the recordings to a CIA server over a web connection.

Only a select group of Samsung models are reported to be vulnerable to the hack. These are: UNES8000F, E8000GF plasma, UNES7550F, UNF8000 series, F8500 plasma, UNF7500 series and UNF7000 series. Even then, they have to be running old firmware, such as versions versions 1111, 1112 or 1116.

Its also understood that a CIA agent would have had to have physical access to a TV in order to carry out the Weeping Angel hack, but you can ensure its not been tampered with by switching your set off and checking the back of it for a blue LED.

You can see which firmware version your TV is running by going to the main menu, choosing support and then software update. From here, you can update to the secure version 1118.

3. Stop using Internet Explorer

A short section in the Vault 7 leaks says that the CIA used a very simple technique to steal passwords saved by Internet Explorer.

Microsoft ended support for Internet Explorer 8, 9 and 10 over a year ago, meaning that only version 11 receives security updates from the company. The browser has no future though, with IE11 confirmed as the final iteration, and Microsoft itself recommends that users choose alternatives.

Edge is the default browser on the latest versions of Windows, with Chrome and Firefox its main competitors, and all three are better to use than Internet Explorer. Whats more, Google says that Chrome has already fixed most of the vulnerabilities the CIA was allegedly capable of taking advantage of.

4. Dont rely on antivirus

The Vault 7 documents say that antivirus programs were hoodwinked by the CIA, which used a variety of techniques and tricks to bypass them. Often seen as the ultimate safety net by consumers, even they can't stand up to the CIA.

CIA hackers developed successful attacks against most well known anti-virus programs, according to WikiLeaks. These are documented in AV defeats, Personal Security Products, Detecting and defeating PSPs and PSP/Debugger/RE Avoidance.

21 separate security products are listed in the leak, including: Avast, AVG, Avira, Bitdefender, ClamAV, Comodo, DaRT, ESET, F-Secure, GDATA, Kaspersky, Malwarebytes, McAfee, Microsoft Security Essentials, Norton, Panda, Rising, Symantec, Trend Micro, Zemana Antilogger and Zone Alarm.

Most of the details have been redacted, but one of a handful of remaining sections reads, F-Secure has generally been a lower tier product that causes us minimal difficulty. The only annoyance we have observed is that F-Secure has an apparent entropy-based heuristic that flags Trojaned applications or other binaries containing encrypted/compressed payloads. Two defeats are known to exist.

5. Get serious about your data

This is general good practice, but its more relevant than ever in the wake of the Vault 7 leaks. Take extra care with your data, only downloading the apps you really need to use.

The recent case of the Meitu app is a good one to consider. The light-hearted photo-editing app didnt do very much, but demanded a disconcertingly huge number of permissions, including access to the phones contacts, messages, IMEI number and USB storage. All of this information was being to servers in China.

On the search side, DuckDuckGo, a privacy-focused search engine, is becoming an increasingly popular service for web users, who have lost faith in the traditional tech giants.
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Microsoft has become the latest technology giant to respond to WikiLeaks release of 8,761 documents allegedly detailing the CIAs spying methods.

The files forming the enormous Vault 7 release claim that the agency was able to exploit zero-day vulnerabilities in Windows, which it used to secretly monitor users.

Microsoft has encouraged customers to update to the latest version of its desktop operating system, saying that most of the vulnerabilities allegedly used by the CIA have already been patched.

Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty

Most of the issues are dated and likely have been addressed in its latest software, a Microsoft spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal.

Older versions of Windows, however, could still be at risk.

Microsofts statement echoes previous responses made by Apple and Google, who were forced into action by WikiLeaks claim that the CIA also took advantage of unknown flaws in iOS and Android.

Both firms urged customers to update to the latest software, as doing so as gives them the highest level of protection possible. They are currently working to fix any outstanding issues.

Julian Assange, meanwhile, has offered to give technology companies exclusive access to redacted documents detailing all of the CIAs cyber weapons, in order to help them to prepare themselves against hackers.
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The love between a man and his dog knows no bounds, but how far would you go to save your best friend if he or she went missing?

One couple from San Jose in California are searching to the ends of the Earth and have postponed their wedding to allow them to focus on finding their beloved dog, Theo.

Trendee King and her fiance James Galley have put up posters and fliers all around their local neighbourhood, offered a reward of $3,500 (2,880), placed newspaper ads and even hired a pet detective in the hope of finding Theo.

The black and tan Brussels griffon, whos just one year old, has been missing since February 13, when he ran out of the front door of his dog-sitters home.

King was celebrating having found a wedding dress when Galley called to tell her the worrying news. He sounded very panicked, King told the Mercury News, adding that My heart sank and I was terrified.

The couple have been searching high and low ever since Theo went missing, roaming the streets and calling for their little pooch every day for nearly a month.

Weve been everywhere. Weve been to every shelter, every vet, every Petsmart, King said.

Whats more, the couple decided to postpone their impending wedding to allow them to focus on finding Theo.

Theres just no way Im going to plan a wedding right now, King said. Its impossible, its a full-time job [searching for Theo]. We go for 12 hours, 14 hours some days.

King and Galleys search has received a lot of support on social media - one Instagram user in particular helped spread the word when he shared a post about Theo with his six million followers.

And there have been occasions where someones thought theyd seen Theo, only for it to be a false alarm.

I get hundreds of calls a day that maybe this is your dog or maybe this is a sighting, so I have to go to make sure its not him, King said.

My phone rings off the hook all day long and its all false leads Its a lot of stress and crying.

But the couple wont stop searching.

I wont give up until hes home, King said. Most of the time theyre close to where they were lost. I just think its persistence and getting as many eyes on it as possible. We have faith.

Of course, the couple have received some criticism and mocking for the lengths theyve gone to in the search for Theo, but any dog owner will be able to understand just how important a part of the family a dog is.

People without dogs dont get it, but people with dogs understand, she added. Youd go to the ends of the Earth. Theres nothing that you wouldnt do because theyre family.
In north-west Switzerland, two people shot dead two persons. They also injured another at a cafe here in Basel, as per stated by police.

Police as per the sources news in a statement said that Two men came into Cafe 56 around 8.15 pm local time and fired several rounds of shots, Two customers were killed. Another is in a critical condition.

The Basel prosecutors office as per the sources news in a statement said that The reason behind the attack is not yet known and will be investigated,

The accused are on the run according to police.

Also Read:

Three arrested by police in murder case of a woman

Three people died as van rams in wall

Girl attacked with the glass bottle by a man
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Do you want to know what the most stolen book is?  This from a guy at Foyles bookshop on Charing Cross Road. Particularly among 15- or 16-year old boys.  Obviously I wanted to know. You may be wondering, though, why he was even asking me this question in the first place. And you would be right to infer that (a) I was once a 15- or 16-year old boy and (b) to my everlasting shame I once stole a book from a bookshop  specifically, Sartres Being and Nothingness. My only reasonable excuse is that the book made me do it. And it was in French. And I did ultimately pay for it (just not in actual cash as such). Anyway, it turns out that this weighty tome is not the most popular covetable work. The surprising thing is that it is not the Kama Sutra or some more contemporary equivalent either. The most stolen book among delinquent teenage literati is in fact The Outsider, by Albert Camus.

For starters it is a slim paperback in the English edition (with a new Penguin translation, moreover, by Sandra Smith). Therefore, eminently nickable, which was not as true of the Sartre, which required the hidden depths of a herringbone overcoat. The Outsider (originally LEtranger, known as The Stranger in the US, first published in 1942) is a mere 30-something-thousand words long. A short novel. But there are other slim paperbacks crying out to be stolen. So its nothing to do with size. The thing about The Outsider is that it is one of the greatest short novels ever written. A manifesto of coolness (or Degree Zero writing as Roland Barthes called its stylistic minimalism and lack of affect). A hymn to sex, death, and swimming. And an exploration of what it feels like to be alive, in an alienated, anomic way. But I would add one more consideration, which is this: it is 100 per cent wrong in its claims to outsider status.

At least, it is now. Maybe it always was. The hero Meursault is a white man, brought up as a Catholic, born in Algeria (as Camus was), then a French colony (or, technically, a departement of France). So, admittedly, fairly weird. But to my way of thinking no white guy can really stake a claim to being the true outsider. Least of all President Trump, for all his pseudo-anti-establishment bluster. Or former president George Bush, who at least apparently read The Outsider. White guys are part of the global patriarchy club. The Arab that Meursault shoots on the beach, leading to imprisonment and trial in the second part of the book, would perhaps have a more valid claim, on the grounds of being anonymous and one of the colonised (Kamel Daouds The Meursault Investigation finally confers a name upon him, Musa).

If you were to re-write The Outsider today rather than lifting a copy of the original, the hero would have to be a woman, since she would not therefore belong to the massive gentlemens club that is the world. And she would have to be a lapsed Muslim, since she would then be a fugitive from the highly normative, repressive and protocol-obsessed system that is organised religion. And she could be a lesbian, but that seems to me optional. Maybe bisexual, or transitioning, I havent made up my mind about that. I dont want to tell her how to conduct her love life.

While I was at it  this renovation of the creaking Camusian architecture  I would almost certainly make it a little more thrilling. This is the other thing about The Outsider. In the age of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Jack Reacher, it reads like a thriller manque. It lacks a third act. I mean, take that prison sequence, for example. So Meursault just sits there talking philosophy or theology or exchanging absurdist remarks. Come on, Albert! Its a prison, not a seminary. Where are the sex and drugs and violence?

Back in the real world Ive met one or two of the New Outsiders. I know an American drop-out ex-Muslim who now describes herself as nothing. And I thought Elif Shafak, the Turkish author, struck a similar note when I heard her speak at the LSE recently. Surrounded by sectarian believers, she is a secularist who loathes and detests tribalism. But the most articulate New Outsider I have yet come across is a British/Afghan woman by the name of Mohadesa. I had a conversation with her at the British Library, over a cup of tea. I think she deserves attention because although we know all about the lapsed Catholic and so on, the very idea of a lapsed female Muslim is apt to seem like an oxymoron. It isnt. Or if it is, Mohadesa is a living oxymoron.

Mohadesa is in open revolt against everything...

She was born in Afghanistan but brought up in England by refugee parents fleeing conflict. Her first language was Farsi and she studied the Koran in Arabic. She is now in her twenties, lives in London and the Netherlands, and is in open revolt against everything her family and religion and background stand for. Meursault  to go back to Camus  is indifferent when his girlfriend suggests they get married, doesnt care one way or the other, and when she asks if he really loves her, he replies that that didnt mean anything but doubtless he didnt. Marie is perturbed, but they still have a lot of sex. Mohadesa is more Meursault than Marie. In fact, she is more articulate than old Meursault. There are three things I value and cherish the most,  she said. 1. Sex; 2. Not believing in God; 3. Being outspoken. One of her close relatives was a virgin when she married. Sex is one of the biggest pleasures. Why would you refuse that? 

Meursault in jail agrees to see the chaplain. But gets sick of the guy trying to convert him. And in the end cracks up when the chaplain promises to pray for his soul. None of his certitudes was worth a single strand of a womans hair.  Mohadesa, similarly, has become a militant atheist. She was brought up within Islam, her parents are Shia, her sister is Sunni. She had an epiphany aged 16 when a Somali friend said to her, So this Allah of yours  if he is so wonderful and benevolent and all that, how comes he needs you to pay homage to him five times a day? Isnt that rather arrogant and selfish?  The 16-year old Mohadesa was outraged and spluttered and remonstrated (How dare you blah blah! ) but her friend had planted a seed. To the great consternation of her family, she stopped praying to the celestial dictator. Then she read the Stoics and Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens. Now I worship Hitchens, she said.

Meursault attends the funeral of his mother. The classic opening line of The Outsider is, Today, Maman died. Or perhaps yesterday, I dont know.  Good line, and he still gets punished for not seeming to care quite enough about his poor old Ma. In my hypothetical New Outsider novel, with a young female protagonist, possibly called Nada (with a nod in the direction of Carmen Laforets 1945 novel) of course its her father who has to die. And personally I reckon, in the best thriller tradition, she would have to kill him. Its more thriller, more noir. Let me stress, Mohadesa has killed no one. But she scorns and rejects her cultural heritage. Her family naturally believe that she has been possessed by the devil, or a demon, but still hope she will get married, which will save her. Afghan women get married at 18 and theyre treated as chattels. Why would I be enthusiastic about that? 

She once got involved in a fight at Kabul airport when some guys were hassling a woman. Mohadesa was wearing the headscarf and the guys were shocked and outraged that she would stick her oar in. Men are terrified of me, she said. Mohadesa is writing a book about how you can re-train your brain or transform your neural programming. In 90 days. Its a mix of existentialism, Buddhism, neuroscience, with a dash of cultural anthropology, and hints of Kahlil Gibran, all anchored in her personal experience. She calls it a technology for living. Another way of giving the status quo a good kicking. She embraces willing ignorance, shamelessness, non-dualism, and a Rimbaud-like disordering of perception. And she wants to make speeches like Colonel Gaddafi.

If you want to hate me in five minutes, thats fine by me, she said. I don't want anybody liking me. I like that.

Marcello Mastroianna as Meursault in the 1967 film adaptation of The Stranger (Rex) (Rex Features)

I feel, in order to be correct and fair, after all this putting the boot into religion, I should say that, of course, I respect Islam and all other faith-based systems. The fact is I dont. The word respect is practically devoid of meaning so I try to avoid it as much as possible. If anyone says, with respect, we all know they are lying, so why bother? Yours respectfully". Cobblers. True outsiders lack respect. Just for a change I want to tip the hat to all those who dont normally get the hat-tip, because they dont have a name. The nameless. The vast network of those who do not have a network. The category of those who do not belong to any category. They are the unclassified and unclassifiable. They acknowledge no god and no religion and no nation. They dont want to belong to any club that will have them as a member. They are the outsiders of today. Im inexplicable, as Mohadesa puts it.

She likes to use the rather cool word noneity (unknown to me, I admit)  the opposite of all those who sign up to an identity, or fully subscribe to all those forms you have to fill in or Facebook profiles or ticking the boxes in the passport application. The dark matter of our world, vast and mysterious. Whoever does not fit in a box. Meursault maybe, Mohadesa definitely. And you who, at certain times in certain moods on certain days, who start to doubt who you are and where you really belong and whether the job you are in, or the religion, or the marriage, or the country, are really the perfect fit for you after all. And that, I suspect, is simply everyone.

By the way, the Foyles guy told me that they let off the up-and-coming outsiders who want to steal The Outsider with a gentle warning, if they catch them. Its a benevolent tradition. At least theyre readers, he said. We dont want to lose them.

Andy Martin is the author of Reacher Said Nothing: Lee Child and the Making of Make Me (Bantam Press, RRP 18. 99). And the forthcoming existentialist thriller, Nada. He teaches at the University of Cambridge. Follow him @andymartinink
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A bereaved daughter has described the UK system for looking after the aged as an open sewer that allows crime to come into care for the elderly, after a carer who stole from her father in his own home walked free from court.

Theresa Stratton, 39, rifled through 74-year-old Parkinsons sufferer David Skerritts wallet and stole 130, before allegedly leaving him with the words: You have a lovely day, sweetheart.

Mr Skerritts daughter Joanne Martinez told The Independent that after discovering what had happened, her frail father felt betrayed and terrified that associates of Stratton would come to his home and beat him up for having contacted the Police.

Miss Martinez, 47, said that within a month of discovering the crime on September 9 2015, her father had entered hospital. A month after that, she said, her father was designated as having zero mental capacity because of dementia that had not been evident prior to the theft.

He never returned to his bungalow in Rustington, West Sussex, and died of a chest infection on 9 September 2016, a year to the day after discovering the theft.

After Stratton, of Dorset Close, Littlehampton, West Sussex, was convicted of theft at Chichester Crown Court on March 1, Judge Christopher Parker QC told her she would almost certainly face a prison sentence.

But when the judge sentenced her on Friday, Stratton received only a 12-month suspended prison sentence and a 260-hour unpaid work order, allowing her to walk out of court without serving any time in jail.

The lack of an immediate jail sentence, said Miss Martinez, Rocked my entire world. I just felt, Shes won."

Fighting tears, she added: This is such a personal crime: we trusted her, and she robbed him blind in his own home. But she has got what she wanted. Shes had a slap on the wrist and is now walking around the community with a smile on her face.

Wheres the justice in that?

Hours after sentence was passed, Miss Martinez learned The Sun was alleging that staff at Caremark, the network for whom Stratton had worked in Sussex, had been performing online sex shows while supposedly working at a Caremark Wolverhampton area franchise office in Walsall, West Midlands.

I threw up, said Miss Martinez. I was physically sick. I just cant believe the state of this country and how it is treating its elderly. There are good carers  some of the local workers, like the head of Caremark in Worthing [West Sussex], do care and are mortified by what has happened to my father.

"But that doesnt change the fact that the system is an open sewer that allows crime to come into care for the elderly.

Her father, she said, had been hilarious, forever telling Dad jokes, and always loving.

He would never let you down. He would drive out in his pyjamas to pick you up if he needed to. The little girl standing on her fathers feet as he does the dance moves: that was me and Dad, every Sunday lunchtime.

Mr Skerritt died of a chest infection last September

An orphan brought up by the Salvation Army, Mr Skerritt had met his wife Patricia while he was working as an apprentice electrician in Wimbledon Park, south London, and she was a hairdresser in the salon two doors down.

They were, said Miss Martinez, devoted to each other from the moment of their first date, when she turned up wearing a woolly hat and he discovered  amid much laughter from both of them  that it was concealing green hair from a tinting experiment that had gone wrong.

They married in 1963 and were only parted when Patricia died of ovarian cancer aged 63 in 2006.

Miss Martinez said she had been immensely proud of her dad, who while working as a TV engineer for Radio Rentals installed televisions for the Royal Family, and in 1991 received a Royal Victorian Medal for service to the Queen.

Mr Skerritt at Buckingham Palace with wife, Patricia, after receiving his Royal Victorian Medal in 1991

After he began to suffer from Parkinsons Disease, Miss Martinez would drive the 185 miles from her home in Snettisham, Norfolk, to her fathers South Coast bungalow every weekend.

The first carers who helped her father as he became housebound, incapable of routine tasks and in need of a frame for walking, were lovely, said Miss Martinez.

But unavoidable logistical problems with getting carers to give Mr Skerritt his medicines on time eventually meant a switch of companies to the Worthing branch of Caremark.

On August 19 2015, two days after Caremark took over, Stratton visited Mr Skerritt and stole from him.

The theft was discovered on September 9, after Mr Skerritt realised his money was missing. Miss Martinez saw Stratton stealing when she viewed the footage from CCTV cameras the family had installed as precaution in case her father fell and no-one could work out where he was.

I was shocked, said Miss Martinez. I saw her telling him You have a lovely day sweetheart, after robbing him blind in his own house.

Dad felt incensed, betrayed and terrified. He was frightened of her. After the Police were called, he told me I dont want some big beefy bloke she knows coming round and punching me in the face. I cant defend myself.

Joanne Martinez (left) says Theresa Stratton stole from her father three days after this photo was taken

Despite her anger at those higher up the companys national hierarchy, Miss Martinez stressed that managers at the local Caremark office in Worthing were diligent, supportive, and traumatised by what had happened.

They sacked Stratton on the spot, she added.

But Miss Martinez said her father was shellshocked.

She said: He was a shell of himself because of the Parkinsons anyway. The distress created another shell.

It finished everything: his appetite, his sleeping, his ability to trust anyone

He went into hospital on October 5 2015 and never went home. At the beginning of November, social services assessed him as having zero mental capacity through dementia.

Before becoming distressed by the crime, said Miss Martinez, her father had exhibited no signs of dementia.

She moved him to a care home in Wells next the Sea, Norfolk, near her own house.

We had a nice little time before he died, said Miss Martinez. I miss him so much, but because of what happened, I have never had the chance to grieve.

Caremark operates as a national network of about 75 separate, independent franchised companies, and a spokesman for Caremark Worthing said they had no connection to any other franchises, including ones in the West Midlands.

Commenting on Strattons conviction, the Caremark Worthing spokesman said: Caremark (Worthing) views the care and wellbeing of our clients as paramount, and we take any issues of alleged abuse of our clients extremely seriously.

All our staff are vetted, DBS checked and trained in order to safeguard the vulnerable people we care for, and therefore this incident of theft by one of our care workers is highly regrettable. As soon as the theft was discovered we dismissed Ms Stratton.

We continue to strive to provide a high standard of care to vulnerable people in our community through thorough training, support and supervision of all our staff.

Responding to The Suns allegations, Kevin Lewis, the national Chief Executive of Caremark Ltd, said: We are shocked at the alleged actions of two members of staff employed by the Wolverhampton franchisee. I have spoken to the owner to understand what has happened and what actions have been taken.

At no time was the care of clients put at risk as the services provided by Caremark are delivered at the client's home. This incident appears to have taken place in an administrative office, but at this time a full investigation is being carried out to determine exactly what has happened.

Obviously, we cannot discuss the details of the incident until our investigation has been completed. We will work fully with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) regarding this incident.

Chris Williams, owner of the Caremark franchise in Wolverhampton said: I am shocked and surprised by this incident. This is clearly not the kind of behaviour we would tolerate in our business. I am undertaking a full investigation into the circumstances of the incident and we are currently speaking to all those involved.
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A retired vicar who abused a choirboy more than 35 years ago has been jailed for four years after his victim gave evidence through eye-tracking technology that translated his blinks into words.

Cyril Ashton Rowe, 78, was convicted at Bournemouth Crown Court in February of three counts of indecent assault against the same victim between 1979 and 1981. He was sentenced at the same court to four years in prison.

His victim - who was abused between the ages of nine and 11 - died of motor neurone disease on the day the verdict was returned.

He died before he could be informed of the jurys conclusion, although he had achieved his dying wish of giving evidence against Rowe, the Crown Prosecution service said in a statement

The 47-year-old, who was not able to speak or write, gave evidence during the trial via a link from a hospice in Sydenham.

Eye-tracking technology helped him describe how Rowe would lock the church door, pin him down and sexually abuse him, before apologising and giving him 1.

The former choirboy said there were 20 different occasions when the abuse took place at the vicarage of St Matthias' Church in Stoke Newington in London and in a choir practice room.

A police investigation in August 2015 was launched after the victim informed members of his family, who then contacted members of the diocese.

Rowe was charged on 6 September 2016 after being interviewed under caution in January the same year.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 5 November 2022 Demonstrators with placards calling for a General Election march near the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 4 November 2022 A peacock is seen in the early winter sunshine in the Dutch Gardens in Holland Park AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 3 November 2022 A villager cooks roti bread at the site of the annual Camel Fair in Pushkar, in India's desert state of Rajasthan AFP via Getty Images 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

Investigating officer, Detective Sergeant Hannah Stewart, said: "It was extremely traumatic for the victim to relive his ordeal after so many years.

"Through his brave determination, his evidence - given to detectives during hours of meticulous interviews, and at court - enabled the conviction of Rowe for these serious sexual offences.

"This conviction is a fitting tribute to the courage of the victim, who sadly died during these proceedings."

CPS London reviewing lawyer David Nixon said: The way Cyril Rowes victim was allowed to use this eye-tracking technology over video link shows how the CPS can help victims and witnesses who might otherwise struggle to give evidence in court.

This man was determined to seek justice against the vicar who had abused him all those years ago and these special measures enabled that to happen.

They included a live video link into the court from his hospice bed, an intermediary to help him on the day, and help for his sister to use a video link too, as she wanted to stay close to him in his final days.

"As a result the jury were able to hear his powerful testimony which has ultimately led to the convictions and todays sentence.
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Restaurants in the UK will need a decade to replace their EU staff with British employees after Brexit because not enough home-grown workers want the jobs, the head of the British Hospitality Association (BHA) has warned.

BHA chair Ufi Ibrahim estimated that the UKs hotel and restaurant chains would go bankrupt, landing a heavy blow to the economy, unless EU nationals were permitted to keep working in low-skilled jobs after Britain exited the bloc.

The association chiefs comments come after the director of human resources at Pret a Manger told a parliamentary committee that only one in 50 job applications her company received were from British nationals and the business may struggle to attract staff after Brexit.

Echoing Pret a Manger's concerns, Ms Ibrahim told The Guardian: It is going to be very, very tough indeed,

It will be a very long time for businesses like Pret a Manger to replace EU staff because they are largely based in the south-east.

I think it will take 10 years to build a future talent pipeline.

MPs will decide on Monday whether to accept an amendment to The European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill that guarantees the rights of EU nationals. On Tuesday, the Prime Minister is expected to use a briefing on the EU summit in the Commons to formally trigger the leaving process.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 5 November 2022 Demonstrators with placards calling for a General Election march near the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 4 November 2022 A peacock is seen in the early winter sunshine in the Dutch Gardens in Holland Park AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 3 November 2022 A villager cooks roti bread at the site of the annual Camel Fair in Pushkar, in India's desert state of Rajasthan AFP via Getty Images 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

Andrea Wareham, head of human resources at Pret a Manger, told the House of Lords economic affairs select committee on Wednesday she doubted higher wages would draw UK citizens to the industry.

I actually dont think increasing pay would do the trick, she said.

I can only talk for Pret on this, but we do pay well above the National Living Wage, we do have great benefits and we offer fantastic careers.

Recommended Mars bars face sharp price hikes after Brexit

It really is a case of do people want to work in our industry? We are not seen always as a desirable place to work."

Pret a Manger employs people from 110 different nationalities, with 65 per cent of those from outside the UK being EU citizens.

The BHA is calling for the government to better promote non-academic career paths  including hospitality  within schools. But until more British youngsters opt for a career in catering the industry, it said it will continue to rely on attracting EU workers.
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A trio of robbers were jailed after executing a sophisticated jewellery heist only to discover they had in fact stolen sandwiches.

Qasim Hussain, 28, Hassan Mahmood, 26, and 27-year-old Naheem Hussain were sentenced to more than 20 years behind bars after they mugged the owners of a jewellery shop.

The husband and wife, who ran the business in Leeds, were closing up for the night when they were attacked by the gang, the Telegraph reported.

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Punching the man in the face, the group grabbed the holdalls they were carrying thinking they contained expensive jewellery.

But the trio later discovered they had swiped their packed lunch, with the bags containing sandwiches, Tupperware and groceries.

Despite the blunder, Leeds Crown Court heard the three men meticulously planned the crime.

Judge Tom Bayliss QC said: "It was a professionally planned, commercial robbery carried out with a degree of sophistication, but ultimately gaining you nothing but your convictions."

Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Show all 30 1 /30 Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Property found in Sterling Road living room Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence The gravestone at Edmonton Cemetery Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Images of items in situ beneath the gravestone at Edmonton Cemetery Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Property found in Sterling Road living room Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Jewellery recovered from Edmonton Cemetery Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Jewellery recovered from Edmonton Cemetery Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Recovered from Tupperware box at Beresford Gardens Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Recovered from Tupperware box at Beresford Gardens Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Items of jewellery recovered from Sterling Road Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Recovered from Tupperware box at Beresford Gardens Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Blue plastic bag containing wristwatches found in casserole dish in the kitchen cupboard at Bletsoe Walk Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Quantity of facemasks and empty box on Park Avenue Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Forensic for Dummies book found in large cabin on Park Avenue Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Walkie-talkie found in utility room on Park Avenue Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Two white metal rings and stones in bag found in bedroom on Park Avenue Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Staircase from the courtyard up to the fire exit, onto Greville Street Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Picture of dismantled alarm box Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Cut wire in the alarm cupboard Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Lift (ground floor) with out of order sign Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Pair of earrings found in dining room at Heene Road Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Quantity of banknotes found under microwave in the kitchen at Winkley Street Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Envelope containing a quantity of cash found in plastic folder on shelf in bedroom at Winkley Street Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Diamond ring found in wardrobe in front bedroom at Heene Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Skirting board to the left of the mantle removed, at Winkley Street address Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Yellow duster cloth concealed behind skirting board, at Winkley Street address Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Plastic bag containing jewellery found in void at the top of small understairs cupboard in hall, at Winkley Street address Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Three Churchill white metal coins found inside kitchen cupboard at the location on Bletsoe Walk Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Jewellery recovered from Edmonton Cemetery Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence Items of jewellery recovered from Sterling Road Metropolitan Police Hatton Garden jewellery heist: The evidence White and yellow rings in casserole dish in kitchen cupboard at Bletsoe Walk Metropolitan Police

They had driven to Halifax, West Yorkshire, two days before they struck, the court heard, to steal a car to use in the robbery.

The vehicle was spotted on CCTV a day before the attack as they cased out the jewellers'.

Mahmood, a medical sciences student, had sourced the balaclavas to wear during the raid, and arranged for the car to be torched along with the disguises after the job.

But firefighters were able to put out the flames and police recovered the balaclavas and DNA from the vehicle.

The trio were found guilty of robbery, assault with intent to rob after a trial.

Qasim Hussain and Mohmood were jailed for nine years each, while Naheem Hussain received a three-year sentence.
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Britain's High Court has published a Twitter How-to guide as part of a pioneering defamation case that media pundits are calling Twibel.

Writer Jack Monroe was awarded 24,000 in damages after suing MailOnline columnist Katie Hopkins, who in a series of tweets implied the prominent poverty campaigner had defaced a war memorial.

In a case of mistaken identity, Hopkins sent Monroe a message that read: Scrawled on any memorials recently? Vandalised the memory of those who fought for your freedom. Grandma got any more medals?

The MailOnline writer had actually meant to direct the abuse to New Statesman columnist Laurie Penny, who had said she didnt have a problem with seeing graffiti on a memorial to women of the Second World War, which read: F*** Tory scum.

Legal experts say the ruling is the most prominent case in English law involving libel on social media, and as such the court was forced to publish a How Twitter Works guide as part of its official ruling.

Mr Justice Warby said that while Twitter was widely used and very well known, he conceded it was a relatively new medium, and not every knows all the details of how it works.

The 26-point guide, agreed by both parties, was released as an appendix to the judgement, explaining the history of the social networking site and exactly how users are able to interact with each other.

The guide makes observations such as: A person who sets up a Twitter account begins by creating a username (sometimes called Twitter handle) which begins with an @ symbol: e.g. @Person.

Different users of Twitter (e.g. @A, @B and @C) can also choose to follow @Persons tweets, meaning that @Persons regular tweets will appear in the Timelines of each of @Persons followers: i.e. @Persons tweet appear in @As Timeline, @Bs Timeline and @Cs Timeline.

Many Twitter users were bemused by the guides matter of fact description.

Lawyer Mark Lewis, acting for the food blogger, said the ruling proved there was no such thing as a Twitteroutlaw.

The price of not saying sorry has been very high. Hopkins has had to pay out of her own pocket a six-figure sum in damages and costs for a tweet that should have been deleted within minutes as soon as she was told it was wrong, he said.

Hopkins claimed that Twitter was just the Wild West where anything goes. The judge has shown that there is no such thing as a Twitteroutlaw.

Speaking after the decision was announced, the poverty activist said: It has been a very long and very arduous process. There have been many times when I have almost given up and walked away. But I started something and I had to see it through, and I have done.
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Police were called when a protest erupted at a school in North Yorkshire after students were limited to two toilet breaks a day.

Officers were forced to be called in after up to 40 students took to the playing fields on Friday morning protesting the controversial new rule at Bedale High School.

Parents have criticised the school after being informed the 580 pupils were only allowed a bathroom break between 11.05am and 11.25am, and 12.25pm and 12.45pm.

The decision was criticised as "breaching human rights", but the 11-16 comprehensive school maintains the toilets are accessible on request and to those who held a 'medical card'.

Parents first learned of the new policy by a letter in February, which ITV reported as saying: "There is no access to the main building (where the toilets are located) after 12.45pm."

Lunch finishes at 1.10pm, adding to the outrage.

One parent, who posted anonymously on Facebook, said: I believe that this is humiliating and undignified and is a breach of human rights to be denied access to toilets at any other time unless you have a medical need, and totally ridiculous to say that you cannot go to the toilet after you have had lunch.

My daughter had stayed behind in her class to do extra work and then went to the toilet at 12.45pm but staff wouldn't let her go.

In pictures: World Toilet Day Show all 20 1 /20 In pictures: World Toilet Day In pictures: World Toilet Day Bangladesh Rubina, 38, has lived in Mollar Bosti slum in Dhaka for 3 years. She moved from the countryside when her husband got a job in Dhaka. The toilet she uses is known as a shared hanging toilet and is situated 20 metres from her house. She says that once, in middle of the night, she went to the toilet and someone knocked the toilet door so hard she thought they were going to break the door down. She got very scared and since then, she has been too scared to use the toilet after 9pm In pictures: World Toilet Day Haiti Martine is 27 years old. She lives near a river in Cayimithe. "I don't have an enclosed toilet. My toilet is a hole in the ground by my house, which is now full and has become really dangerous. I only use it at night when I can have some privacy. In the day time, I use a community toilet which is about 15 minutes away from my house" In pictures: World Toilet Day Belgium Rosalie, 9, goes to school in Brussels. "At my school we have separate toilets for girls and boys on every floor. My classroom is on the 3rd floor. We have 22 toilets, which are shared between 230 pupils and 20 adults. The teachers at school let us go to the toilet whenever we need to" In pictures: World Toilet Day India Saritadevi lives in Ittava village in Uttar Pradesh. She has no access to a toilet in her house and so uses a local field. She suffers from a lack of dignity and privacy when she visits the toilet. She says she is humiliated by men, enduring people throwing stones at her, shouting abuse, making vulgar gestures, and playing offensive songs In pictures: World Toilet Day Australia Renee is an artist who left her former home in the densely populated suburbs of Sydney to live a quieter life in bush surrounds, a one-hour drive north of the city. She has built a shed on ten acres of land and has included an outside toilet and bathroom. Ironically, Renee is able to enjoy total privacy out in the open as she is surrounded by wild bush and forest, far from other houses In pictures: World Toilet Day Ghana Ima, 47, is a public toilet attendant in Kumasi, Ghanas second largest city. She lives in a rented room with her husband and four children aged 14-22. She is a very dedicated worker and relies on the income from her job to fund her children's education. She does not have a toilet at home. During the day, she uses the public toilet where she works, but at night she is forced to use plastic bags as it is not safe to walk long distances in the dark In pictures: World Toilet Day UK June is the Allotment Secretary at Gordon Road Allotments in Finchley, North London. "We used to have a portable toilet, which had to be emptied every so often. It was very smelly and not very nice. Now we have a waterless compost loo, which enables women to stay down at the allotment all day if they wish. It also makes a big difference when we have Open Days. This year, for the first time, we were in the National Gardens Scheme book and had an open day with 170 visitors. We wouldnt have been allowed to host this event without the compost loo" In pictures: World Toilet Day Thailand Sineha, 71, uses a public toilet which is inside the temple she visits. "They are convenient and cleaned daily by the maid. It is a safe place because we have security guards here 24 hours a day and separate toilets for men and women" In pictures: World Toilet Day Mozambique Assucena, 14, is a Grade 8 student who loves to study and play football. She lives with her mother, grandmother, sister and two cousins. Her grandmother sells beer to provide for her extended family. Assucena shares a toilet with more than 30 other people from different families. "When it rains, the toilet floods. It really smells bad" In pictures: World Toilet Day Ecuador Fabiola, 69, lives in Cumbaya, a valley near Quito. Between the ages of seven and 21, she shared a toilet with 20 other people, who lived in her condominium. Now she lives in a large apartment, which has five bathrooms. Her bathroom is the biggest one and she is very proud of it as her current situation contrasts vividly with her childhood In pictures: World Toilet Day Brazil Lorena, 16, is a student. She has just moved into one of Rio de Janeiro's favelas. "I dont have a toilet but I am working hard to try and build one. In the meantime, I have to use my mother's. We only get water on Thursdays and Sundays, when the taps are opened. One day I would like to have a bathroom with running water. I am very vain, I like to have my hair and nails done and use perfume. Some people around here have been in poor health, partly due to the poor sanitation situation in the area" In pictures: World Toilet Day USA Mary is a writer who lives in New York City. "Living with two housemates, it is important to schedule our bathroom time and take turns cleaning it. I used to live in Beijing, where I had to use a public bathroom as my apartment didn't have a private toilet. While it was safe and relatively clean, I used to hate putting my coat on just to go to bathroom in the middle of night during winter. That experience made me really appreciate the privacy and comfort of having a clean toilet at home" In pictures: World Toilet Day Ethiopia Meseret, a restaurant manager in Addis Ababa, shares a one bedroom government house with her two children, two sisters and mother. She was widowed nine years ago when her husband was shot during the aftermath of the 2005 elections. Her shared toilet is a long way away so at night, for safety, the family use the side yard next to their house In pictures: World Toilet Day Japan Eiko, 61, lives in Tokyo. "Since this department store is close to my home, I often come here for shopping. When I was a child, the public toilets were not clean and smelled bad, but every time I use the bathroom here, I feel so relaxed. I could spend many hours here!" The department stores toilet, called the "switch room", is a special place where people can switch their mood and feel relaxed. The toilets are an extreme example of good sanitation and have features like surround sound music and heated seats. In the powder room next to the toilets, Eiko can charge her mobile phone, watch TV and have a foot massage, turning a basic daily function that we all have to do into a pleasurable and multisensory experience In pictures: World Toilet Day South Africa Nombini has two Porta Potties, which are used by the 12 people who live in her home. When she first moved to Khayelitsha in 2005, she did not have a toilet so she had to go in the bush, across a main road. "It was terrible in the bush, the cars hit you. When we were given a Porta Potty in 2009, it was much better than going in the bush. Flush toilets are first class compared to the Porta Potty though. My dream is to have a flush toilet" In pictures: World Toilet Day Zambia Susan, 46, is the founder of a community school for children with physical and mental disabilities. "It makes me proud and happy to teach disabled children so that in the future they can have a better life and not just stay at home. I was attacked by Polio at the age of two. Its not easy being disabled in Lusaka. Using the toilet is a challenge, especially in the rainy season, as I have to crawl to the toilets on my hands" In pictures: World Toilet Day Kenya Eunice is the Co-Founder of Kasarani Academy in Naivasha. Previously, the school only had two toilets which were used by 250 pupils. Tenants living nearby used the toilets as well and left them in a poor condition. Because of this, Eunice found that the children preferred to practice open defecation in the grounds around the school, which quickly became a public health issue. Eunice and her husband Paul have now invested in child-friendly toilets. These tiny toilets have prevented adults using them as they cannot fit through the doors. "Parents will enrol their children here because of our child friendly toilets" In pictures: World Toilet Day Romania Ghita, 48, from Buzescu village, says she is the proud owner of one of the biggest bathrooms in the village. It is 20 square meters. 35% of the population of Buzescu village are Romas who are prosperous and proud to show it off. However, there is no running water or sewerage in the village so toilets are on-site In pictures: World Toilet Day Madagascar Vanessa, 17, is a student who lives in Antananarivo. She says she worries when she is on her period at school. "At home, I have a shower outside my house and I can keep clean but when Im at school, I feel embarrassed during my periods as there is no space to change or wash. I worry that my sanitary napkin will leak if I keep it on for too long while Im waiting to come back home to change it" In pictures: World Toilet Day Cambodia Ms Moeun Sothy is a secondary school student, who lives with her grandmother and her aunty. At home she is responsible for collecting water for the household from the local water source. At her school she is on the childrens rota for cleaning the school toilets once a week. She believes that handwashing with soap is really important, especially after using the toilet

I wrote to the Head saying I felt this was a breach of human rights and she wrote back saying that those with medical issues would need to get a note from the doctor.

It's appalling, the fact that if they have got medical issues they have got to show a pass, they are making them a target for bullies, it's just degrading.

And Pupil Madelaine Anderson agreed, writing: "I find this unfair on everyone not only girls but also boys, not everyone needs to have a 'medical note' to be allowed to use the toilet."

But a notice posted on Bedale High's website defended the move, saying the new behavioural code was part of an overall action plan.

They said: The code also includes tighter rules on uniform and on reducing the numbers of students outside of classrooms during lesson time.

"As part of this the school has reminded students that toilets are freely accessible during specific periods at lunchtime and break time but that students who need the toilet during lessons, or need access for medical reasons, will always be given access on request. Toilets are therefore accessible at all times."

A spokesman for North Yorkshire police confirmed they were called to a protest at the school but advised staff it was not a police matter.
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A gay Ugandan-born asylum seeker is facing deportation to his place of birth, where homosexuality is punishable by life imprisonment.

Abbey Kyeyune, who has been living in the Manchester since 2014, told The Independent Home Office officials decided he had failed to sufficiently prove his sexuality.

He fled Uganda after his family members discovered that he was having a relationship with another man, and became physically violent towards him.

After leaving Uganda, Mr Kyeyune was told that the Ugandan authorities had issued a warrant for his arrest. He also discovered that his boyfriend had been arrested and detained because of his sexuality.

Mr Kyeyune is being detained at Campsfield House, and is due to be deported on a flight to Uganda on Monday.

He said he could not return to his family, and had no other friends that he could stay with in his native Kampala.

I cant go back home, because my family will kill me, Mr Kyeyune said. I have been very happy in Manchester. I have many friends there, and I have been going to church a lot.

LGBT+ rights around the globe Show all 9 1 /9 LGBT+ rights around the globe LGBT+ rights around the globe Russia Russias antipathy towards homosexuality has been well established following the efforts of human rights campaigners. However, while it is legal to be homosexual, LGBT couples are offered no protections from discrimination. They are also actively discriminated against by a 2013 law criminalising LGBT propaganda allowing the arrest of numerous Russian LGBT activists. AFP/Getty LGBT+ rights around the globe Brunei Brunei recently introduced a law to make sodomy punishable by stoning to death. It was already illegal and punishable by up to 10 years in prison AFP/Getty LGBT+ rights around the globe Mauritania Men who are found having sex with other men face stoning, while lesbians can be imprisoned, under Sharia law. However, the state has reportedly not executed anyone for this crime since 1987 Alamy LGBT+ rights around the globe Sudan Both male and female same-sex sexual activity is illegal under Sudanese law. Men can be executed on their third offence, women on their fourth Getty LGBT+ rights around the globe Saudi Arabia Homosexuality and gender realignment is illegal and punishable by death, imprisonment, whipping and chemical castration Getty LGBT+ rights around the globe Yemen The official position within the country is that there are no gays. LGBT inviduals, if discovered by the government, are likely to face intense pressure. Punishments range from flogging to the death penalty Getty LGBT+ rights around the globe Nigeria Both male and female same-sex sexual activity is illegal and in some northern states punishable with death by stoning. This is not a policy enacted across the entire country, although there is a prevalent anti-LGBT agenda pushed by the government. In 2007 a Pew survey established that 97% of the population felt that homosexuality should not be accepted. It is punishable by 14 years in prison Reuters LGBT+ rights around the globe Somalia Homosexuality was established as a crime in 1888 and under new Somali Penal Code established in 1973 homosexual sex can be punishable by three years in prison. A person can be put to death for being a homosexual Reuters LGBT+ rights around the globe Iraq Although same-sex relationships have been decriminalised, much of the population still suffer from intense discrimination. Additionally, in some of the country over-run by the extremist organisation Isis, LGBT individuals can face death by stoning Getty

The Home Office has previously claimed that a lesbian woman could not be gay because she had children, while a bisexual man has said he felt compelled to submit intimate photos of himself to help prove his case.

Updated guidance on LGBT asylum claims was recently published by the Home Office, which forbids detailed questioning in regard to sexual practices and requests for sexually explicit evidence.

However, Mr Kyeyunes Home Office interview occurred before this new guidance was in place.

In February, the Home Office was criticised after it suggested deported gay men could live safely in Afghanistan if they pretended to be straight.

Philip Jones, who started a Change.org petition to stop Mr Kyeyune's deportation, and runs a support group for LGBT asylum seekers in Manchester, said Mr Kyeyune had a strong support network in Manchester.

When he first started coming to the meetings, he was a bit quiet and subdued. I think, because of how hed been treated at home, he found it difficult to get over the shock of having to flee.

UK: Protesters swarm Yarl's Wood detention centre demanding closure

But I think he just needed to meet people like himself. And I got the sense that he was really coming to terms with the situation, and enjoying being a gay man amongst other gay men.

Karen Doyle, a spokesperson for Movement for Justice, an advocacy group for asylum seekers rights, said: LGBT asylum seekers are put in the impossible position of trying to 'prove' their sexuality.

Ask any UK-born LGBT person to remember the names of all the people they have slept with and dates, describe exactly the process of realising that you are LGBT it's an impossible burden of proof for anyone to bear, let alone if you have suffered severe trauma and abuse because of your sexuality.

The truth is that, especially post-Brexit, the drive is to get immigration numbers down. That means deporting as many people as possible as quickly as possible.

Decision makers see their job not as helping someone to tell a difficult story but to get that person to trip up, find the faults, make them anxious and ultimately to say no.

A Home Office spokesperson said: The UK has a proud history of granting asylum to those who genuinely need it, and every case is carefully considered on its individual merits.

Where people establish a genuine need for protection or a well founded fear of persecution refuge will be granted. If someone is found not to need our protection, we expect them to leave the country voluntarily. Where they do not, we will seek to enforce their departure.
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White men have become an endangered species at the top of British business, according to Tesco chairman John Allan.

Mr Allan, who earns 650,000 a year, is one of nine men who sit on Tescos executive board, alongside three women. All board members are white. Mr Allan took over the role from Sir Richard Broadbent, a white man, in 2015.

There are no full-time female executives on Tescos board.

Speaking to a business conference, Mr Allan said: For a thousand years men have got most of these jobs. The pendulum has swung very significantly the other way and will do for the foreseeable future.

If you are a white male, tough. You are an endangered species and you are going to have to work twice as hard.

Tesco's executive board of directors (Tesco.com)

If you are female and from an ethnic background and preferably both, then you are in an extremely propitious period, he added.

Last year, Nicky Morgan, the women and equalities minister, expressed concern that efforts to appoint more women to top business jobs had stalled.

Less than a quarter of FTSE 100 boardroom recruits in the six months to March 2016 were women, the lowest level since 2011, according to the Female FTSE Board Report.

There are still more people called John chairing FTSE 100 boards than there are women, said Morgan.

In 2016, Mr Allan was one of 14 men named John who are CEOs or chairmen of FTSE100 companies. By contrast, there were just seven women chairing FTSE companies  half as many.

According to last year's reports, just 8 per cent of those directors were not white. By contrast, people from minority ethnic backgrounds made up 14 per cent of the UKs workforce at large.

Mr Allan later said his comments had been taken out of context.

It was intended to be humorous, a bit hyperbolic.

The context was that I was talking to a bunch of aspiring non-executive directors, many of whom were women, and I wanted to give them some encouragement and, therefore, I used that rather colourful turn of speech, he said.

And the audience, I think, was quite amused and quite enjoyed it.

Mr Allan has been contacted for comment.
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Pro-European campaigners are to hold their biggest day of action since the referendum on Saturday with more than 100 simultaneous events across the country.

The push to gain momentum for their cause will include street stalls and leafleting and comes ahead of critical Brexit votes in the House of Commons next week.

Volunteers for the Open Britain campaign group will aim to speak with thousands of people during the day to convince them of the need to mobilise.

Recommended Mars bars face sharp price hikes after Brexit

Labour MP Daniel Zeichner, who will be out in his constituency of Cambridge, said: I support the work done by the campaign Open Britain, which is fighting against a hard Brexit.

The Prime Minister's plan to leave the single market and the customs union will severely damage our economy and I am against any deal which will adversely affect our vibrant and tolerant country.

Pro-European residents of Cambridge and towns across the country should show support for the EU and the ideals it stands for.

On Monday the legislation giving Theresa May the power to trigger Article 50 returns to the Commons where MPs will vote on whether to accept to amendments to the bill backed by the House of Lords.

 Brexit, Budget and Donald Trump: PM's Brussels talk in 60 seconds

The changes would see the bill also give EU citizens the same rights to live and work in Britain after Brexit as they had before, and give MPs a meaningful vote on the final Brexit deal.

The leaflet produced for the day of action, Lets Get the Best Deal for Britain, calls on voters to write to their MPs asking them to support the two amendments and commit to opposing any Brexit deal that would make their constituents poorer.

Open Britain wants MPs from across the House to follow the example of the House of Lords and vote for the amendments before Article 50 is triggered.

Theresa May speaks during a press conference at the Council of the European Union, during an EU summit in Brussels (Getty)

The campaign has e-mailed its supporter list of more than 500,000 people urging them to get in touch with their MPs, with template emails available for both the amendments on EU nationals and a meaningful vote.

Street stalls will be held in locations across the country, including London, Bristol and Manchester, with many in areas that voted to leave the EU including Milton Keynes, Weston-super-Mare, Ripon, Marlborough, Leighton Buzzard, Sutton, Fareham in Hampshire and Sevenoaks in Kent.

Ms May is under pressure from Tory backbenchers to make concessions on the Article 50 Bill, in particular on the amendment to give Parliament a meaningful vote.
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Left-wing commentator Owen Jones has said he will quit all social media for the foreseeable future, after intense criticism from "keyboard warriors" from across the political spectrum.

Mr Jones said those on the hard left of the Labour Party had called him a "right-wing sellout careerist who's allied to Tony Blair and possibly in the pay of the Israeli government."

"[They believe] the Guardian have brainwashed me, that I was never really left-wing, and so on and so forth", Mr Jones wrote in a statement on his Facebook page.

Mr Jones also said those with more centrist views had blamed him for "the destruction of the Labour Party", presumably a reference to his support for both of Jeremy Corbyn's leadership bids.

The Guardian columnist has, until recently, been a consistent supporter of Mr Corbyn. During the 2015 leadership campaign, Mr Jones spoke at a number of Momentum rallies in support of the leader of the opposition.

However, after Labour lost the Copeland by election in February, becoming the first opposition party to lose a seat to the government since 1982, Mr Jones appeared to join calls for Mr Corbyn to stand down as leader.

Writing in the Guardian the day after the results, Mr Jones said: "If Corbyn decides he is unable to confront the multiple existential crises enveloping Labour, then an agreement should be struck where he can stand down in exchange for the guarantee of an MP from the new generation [of Labour MPs]."

"Both Corbyn and the parliamentary Labour party... should be aware that history is a savage judge".

It has been reported that Mr Jones favours Clive Lewis, the former shadow Business Secretary, to be the new leader.

Mr Jones' statement, posted to his Facebook page on Saturday morning, said he feared for the future of a Left which was prone to in-fighting and division.

"If [the Left] is overtaken by a loud minority who are, increasingly, bound by utter hatred towards anyone deemed to deviate from their sanctity of their cause, then there is no future."

"If they succeed, they'll turn the left into an ever diminished rump that, to the rest of the population, comes across as vicious, vindictive, and spiteful, and certainly not a cause they'll want to be part of."

The statement also signalled a move away from journalism.

"I don't even enjoy writing", said Mr Jones, who said he was "considering whether there's something else I can do with my life".
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Jeremy Corbyn has said a second Scottish independence referendum would be "absolutely fine" and that it "should be held" if there was demand for it.

The Labour leader indicated that he did not believe Westminster should seek to block a second vote if Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon brought one forward.

"If a referendum is held then it is absolutely fine, it should be held," Mr Corbyn said after he was asked whether a second plebiscite was inevitable.

"I don't think it's the job of Westminster or the Labour Party to prevent people holding referenda."

As a caveat, the Labour leader, who was speaking to the Press Association, added: "I do think we should set it within the context of the economic relationship with the rest of the UK and the question of devolution of EU to English regions and to Scotland, and to parts of Scotland rather than just to the government in Holyrood, because the principle of regionalism is it goes to everybody within a region, not just to the central powers and the SNP have a bit of a tendency to centralise things around themselves."

The position appears to put Mr Corbyn at odds with Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale, who has said she does not want a second vote and wants to move on from the independence issue. Shortly after Mr Corbyn's comments emerged, the SNP's Ms Sturgeon tweeted: "Always a pleasure to have Jeremy Corbyn campaigning in Scotland".

Scottish voters backed remaining in the UK by 45 per cent to 55 per cent in September 2014.

Ms Sturgeon has said another independence ballot is "highly likely" if Scotland is pulled from the EU single market despite having voted Remain.

The First Minister, who won a renewed mandate in elections in May last year, said this week that the autumn of 2018 would be a "common sense" time to hold another independence vote.

She told the BBC that she was "not ruling anything out".

Labour is holding its economic conference in Glasgow this weekend; shadow Chancellor John McDonnell pledged to make Scotland the cornerstone of a new "arc of prosperity".

"Labours "arc of prosperity" wouldn't be based on slashing corporation taxes, as the SNP have advocated," he told attendees.

Scotland goes to the polls Show all 20 1 /20 Scotland goes to the polls Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Piper Ryan Randall leads a pro-Scottish independence rally in the suburbs of Edinburgh Getty Images Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides A "No" campaigner bursts into song as the BBC's Nick Robinson walks past Getty Images Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Chris McAleese holds a Saltire flag as he speaks with Gerrard Corrigan, left, and Robbie Devine outside Bannockburn Polling Station in Scotland AP Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides George Mackay and his daughter Anne Mackay run a polling station from their caravan at Coulags near Lochcarron PA Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Voters arrive at the polling station in the village hall in the remote Highland area of Lochcarron, Scotland PA Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides A No campaign supporter and Yes campaign supporter debate with each outside the Scottish Parliament building in Edinburgh, Scotland AP Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Martin Greenhouse arrived at Partick polling station wearing a Scottish football jersey with the number 14 - for 2014 - on the back. Martin said that he'd lived in Scotland for years and would be remaining north of border regardless of the outcome tonight. "Westminster does London very well. But not the rest of Britain. Devolution works, independence will work better and the regions of England will take note. That's why my wife and I are voting YES." James Cusick/The Independent Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides A supporter of the 'Yes' campaign stands outside a polling station Reuters Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides A yes supporter talks with a man and a woman with a Union flag in George Square, just a few hours before polling stations will close in the Scottish independence referendum Getty Images Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Chris McAleese at Bannockburn Polling Station, as voters go to the polls in the Scottish Referendum PA Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Ryan Randall plays the bagpipes outside a polling station in Edinburgh, Scotland Reuters Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Fashion makes a point on voting day in the Scottish Independence referendum in Stirling EPA Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Voters come to Notre Dame Primary School polling station as the people of Scotland take to the polls to decide their country's fate Getty Images Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Voters come to Notre Dame Primary School polling station as the people of Scotland take to the poles to decide their country's fate in a historic vote Getty Images Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond chats to school children at Strichen Primary School in Strichen PA Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown with No campaigners outside the polling station at North Queensferry Community Centre as polls open PA Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond gives the thumbs up after voting in the Scottish referendum in Aberdeenshire, Scotland EPA Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Residents take part in a "short walk to freedom" march in Edinburgh Reuters Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides Young voters leave a polling station in Charlotte Square, Edinburgh Reuters Scotland goes to the polls Scotland decides David Aguilar, left, and Aleix Sarri from Catalonia, who are visiting Scotland to support the Scottish independence referendum, gesture and hold up a placard supporting a Yes vote at passing motorists in Edinburgh, Scotland AP

"It would be one that had Scotland as its cornerstone, within a more federal UK and benefiting from the shared values of our European neighbours.

"And in contrast to a Tory Government in Westminster that wishes to turn Britain into a tax haven off the coast of Europe. Or the leadership of the SNP in Edinburgh, which seeks to cut Scotland off from not just Europe, but also Britain."

A spokesperson for Jeremy Corbyn said: "Jeremy reaffirmed our position today that if the Scottish Parliament votes for a referendum, it would be wrong for Westminster to block it. Labour continues to oppose a further referendum in the Scottish Parliament and would campaign against independence if one were held."
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Theresa May could begin the formal process for leaving the European Union by triggering Article 50 as early as Tuesday, officials in the UK and Brussels have said.

The European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill is set to be debated by MPs on Monday, when they will decide whether to accept two amendments added by the House of Lords.

On Tuesday, the Prime Minister will brief MPs in the Commons about this weeks EU summit, and it is understood she may use the occasion to formally trigger the leaving process.

One of the amendments voted through by the House of Lords would force the Government to give MPs a meaningful vote on the final Brexit deal before the country withdrew from the bloc.

The other change asks the Government to guarantee the rights of EU citizens when it leaves.

Ms May has committed the Government to triggering Article 50 by the end of March, which leaves less than three weeks in which to pull the trigger.

But unnamed Westminster sources have reportedly said that the action could come as soon as Tuesday or Wednesday next week.

 Theresa May suffers second defeat in Lords over Brexit

If the Brexit bill does not pass smoothly through the Commons, upcoming elections in the Netherlands may force the Prime Minister to delay until the end of the month.

Meanwhile, Labour has made a direct appeal for Ms May to allow the bills two changes to pass.

In a letter, the party called on the Prime Minister to give in to demands for a meaningful parliamentary vote on the final exit package and guarantee protections for EU nationals living in Britain.

Peers defeated the Government on both issues but MPs are expected to overturn the changes when the Brexit bill returns to the House of Commons next week.

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

The letter, sent by shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer and Baroness Smith, shadow leader of the Lords, said the changes would not damage the PMs plans to trigger Article 50 by the end of the month.

It said: Labour supported both these amendments in the House of Commons. Labour peers both led and helped pass them in the House of Lords, and Labour will continue to fully support these amendments on Monday.

Recommended Theresa May faces pressure from Tory MPs ahead of crunch Brexit votes

You will understand, however, our concerns that government ministers (including David Davis in the House of Commons yesterday during the Exiting the EU oral questions) have indicated they will simply ignore these amendments and seek to delete them from the bill, before any debate or consideration in the House of Commons on the substantive issues raised in the Lords debates.

Surely the issues raised in the Lords and such large majorities from across the House are worthy of greater consideration?

We are making this direct appeal to you and hope that you will give it your urgent personal attention.
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Three families who helped shelter former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden in Hong Kong in 2013 after his mass leak of information about surveillance programmes have asked Canada for asylum, their lawyer said on Friday.

The families - three Sri Lankan adults, a Filipina, and three stateless children - have had long-pending asylum claims in Hong Kong that they fear may soon be rejected, lawyer Marc-Andre Seguin said in a phone interview from Hong Kong.

Seguin said the families had been thrust into the spotlight after the September release of the Oliver Stone film "Snowden" which referred to their role in Snowden's flight from the United States in 2013 and, eventually, to Russia.

Seguin said the families and Hong Kong-based lawyer Robert Tibbo, who introduced his clients to Snowden, now face increasingly adverse circumstances in Hong Kong.

They said that they have been "actively sought by Sri Lankan operatives" in recent months and fear for their safety in Hong Kong, Seguin said. Reuters could not independently verify their stories.

A spokeswoman for Canada's immigration minister said his office does not comment on current or possible cases and could not confirm or deny having received the applications.

Hong Kong authorities have yet to confirm that they are investigating claims Sri Lankan operatives were working in the territory, but a Security Bureau spokesman said it was illegal for foreign agencies to carry out law enforcement action within Hong Kong.

"Everyone in Hong Kong is protected by Hong Kong laws regardless of his or her identity and background," the bureau spokesman said.

Snowden's leaks of classified information about government surveillance programmes caused an international furor over the reach of U.S. spy operations. His defenders see him as a whistleblower who exposed the extent of government snooping on citizens. He has been allowed to remain in Russia for another three years and will next year qualify to apply for Russian citizenship, his Russian lawyer was quoted as saying in January.

Reuters
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The Pentagon has announced it will investigate a nude photo scandal affecting the armed forces after it was discovered that images of female Marines were being shared online.

Defence Secretary James Mattis condemned those involved in sharing the images and said "all appropriate action" was being taken across service branches.

"Lack of respect for the dignity and humanity of fellow members of the Department of Defence is unacceptable and counter to unit cohesion," he said.

The scandal broke when it was discovered nude photos of female servicewomen were being shared online by male colleagues, often accompanied by obscene, misogynist commentary, in a closed Facebook group called "Marines United."

The group reportedly had upwards of 30,000 members before being shut down, however it has since emerged the scandal runs much deeper.

More photos were uncovered on the military page of photo sharing site Anon-IB, enveloping the entire US armed forces in the scandal.

Some of the photos are believed to have been taken without consent, while others may have been consensual but posted without permission.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service announced it will investigate the practice, however, according to a top Marine official, fewer than 10 female Marines have made a formal complaint about the images.

General Robert Neller made an impassioned plea for women who may have been affected to come forward with their complaints.

"I'm going to ask them to trust us and I understand why that might be a bit of a reach for them right now," he said.

"The only way that there is going to be accountability in this is if somebody comes forward and tells us what happened to them."

He also vowed to hold those involved accountable and condemned the practice saying "there is no honour in denigrating a fellow Marine."

"If you're participating in this type of behaviour in any way shape or form - you're not helping me or your Marine Corps," he said.

"You know we claim that being a Marine is a special title and something that you earn. There's honour here. But there is no honour in denigrating a fellow Marine in any way shape or form."

The Senate Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on the matter next week.

The US Code of Military Justice explicitly outlaws distribution of sexually explicit photos of others without their consent as an offence punishable by court-martial.
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Donald Trumps spokesman Sean Spicer surprised reporters by making a joke about comedian Melissa McCarthy's impression of him on NBC show Saturday Night Live.

The White House Press Secretary, responding to a question from the press pack that he appeared to consider trivial, quipped: Dont make me make this podium move, a reference to the routine in which Ms McCarthy lampoons his famously combative style.

The underlying premise of the impression is that Mr Spicer often reacts angrily to questions he does not like, and his uncharacteristic good humour had reporters laughing.

Mr Spicer made the joke when he was asked why he and the President had tweeted about employment figures within half an hour of the latest figures being released in violation of federal rules.

Suggesting reporters had trivialised their reporting, Mr Spicer said: What I understand is that rule was instituted to deal with market fluctuations. I could be wrong, but I believe that's why it was instituted.

"I think tweeting out 'great way to start a Friday, here are the actual numbers that you all have reported' is a bit silly. I mean, don't make me make the podium move.

Melissa MCarthy's impression of Sean Spicer

Mr Spicer has not enjoyed the easiest relationship with reporters since he became Mr Trumps official mouthpiece, adopting a combative style towards journalists which mirrors that of the President.

Ms McCarthy, an actress and comedian who starred in the film Bridesmaids, performed her latest eight-minute spoof of a Spicer press conference last Saturday, savaging journalists for being losers who ask stupid questions before she picked up her podium and attacked a reporter with it.

The skit has also satirised Mr Spicer for hawking Ivanka Trump products, with Vanity Fair writing in a review that the sketch goes right to the jugular.

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Both Mr Spicer and Mr Trump have repeatedly accused journalists of reporting fake news about the new administration.

In his first White House briefing, he lambasted journalists for their coverage of the presidential inauguration, accusing them of misreporting the number of people in the crowd.

He further antagonised the press when he banned journalists from leading outlets including the BBC and the New York Times from attending a recent briefing.

There have been reports that Mr Trump regrets hiring the Republican stalwart and that his first choice for the role was his close aide, Kellyanne Conway.
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An outspoken New York federal prosecutor known for fiercely railing against public corruption has been fired after he refused an order from Donald Trump's administration to stand down.

It emerged on Friday that Attorney General Jeff Sessions was seeking the resignations of 46 US attorneys who served under the leadership of Barack Obama.

However, US Attorney Preet Bharara refused to resign, announcing on Twitter on Saturday that he was instead sacked from his position.

"I did not resign," he said. "Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honour of my professional life."

His dismissal comes months after he met with the President at Trump Tower, telling reporters afterwards the president had asked him to stay on and he was intending to do so.

Many of the federal prosecutors who were nominated by Mr Obama had already left their positions before the request, but some had stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said on Friday the forced resignations were necessary in order to ensure a uniform transition.

Until the new US attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US attorney's offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting and deterring the most violent offenders, she said in a statement.

Within hours of the order, US attorneys around the country  including in New Jersey, Rhode Island, Minnesota and Montana  had publicly announced their resignations.

Although it is customary for the 93 US attorneys to leave their positions when a new President enters the office, the changes do not usually happen all at once. Mr Sessions lost his position as US attorney for the Southern District of Alabama in a similar sweep by then-Attorney General Janet Reno in 1993.

In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Show all 30 1 /30 In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President-elect Donald Trump acknowledges guests as he arrives on the platform at the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Donald Trump is sworn in as the 45th president of the United States by Chief Justice John Roberts as Melania Trump looks on during the 58th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington AP In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President Donald Trump shakes hands with Justice John Roberts after taking the oath at inauguration ceremonies swearing in Trump as the 45th president of the United States Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President Donald Trump raises his fists after his inauguration on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol Getty In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. President-elect Donald Trump greets outgoing President Barack Obama before Trump is inaugurated during ceremonies on the Capitol in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump resident-elect Donald Trump arrives on the platform of the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Attendees partake in the inauguration ceremonies to swear in Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States at the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump US President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address during ceremonies at the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. President Donald Trump waves with wife Melania during the Inaugural Parade in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters registered their rage against the new president Friday in a chaotic confrontation with police who used pepper spray and stun grenades in a melee just blocks from Donald Trump's inaugural parade route. Scores were arrested for trashing property and attacking officers AP In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators protest against US President Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A woman holds a sign before the start of the Presidential Inauguration of Donald Trump at Freedom Plaza in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Anti-Trump protesters prepare banners for a protest against the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump, in Berlin REUTERS In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators shout slogans against US President-elect Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators march, block foot traffic and clash with U.S. Capitol Police at the entry checkpoints for the Inauguration of Donald Trump Alamy Live News In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators display a banner as people arrive for US President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A man displays a placard as people lineup to get into the National Mall for the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump raise their hands as they are surrounded by police on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A demonstrator wearing a mask depicting Donald Trump protests outside the US Embassy in London Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators hold placards as they protest outside the US Embassy in London Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Former US President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush arrive for the Presidential Inauguration at the US Capitol Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden share an umbrella as President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address at the inauguration in Washington DC Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton arrive on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. Vice President Mike Pence takes the oath of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Advisors to President-elect Donald Trump, Kellyanne Conway and Steve Bannon depart from services at St. John's Church during the Presidential Inauguration in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump take cover as they are hit by pepper spray by police on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump An activist demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump is helped after being hit by pepper spray on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A police officer tries to tackle a protester demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump Reuters/Adrees Latif In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Police arrest and detain a protester in the street in Washington DC Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A police officer falls to the ground as another shoots pepper spray at protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters

Questions about Mr Bharara were directed to the Justice Department by the White House on Saturday.

Mr Bharara was appointed by Mr Obama in 2009. In frequent public appearances, Mr Bharara has decried public corruption after successfully prosecuting over a dozen state lawmakers, Democrats and Republicans alike.

One US attorney appointed by President George W Bush  Rod Rosenstein of Maryland  remained in his position for the duration of the Obama administration.

A Justice Department spokesman, Peter Carr, said Mr Trump has asked Rosenstein and Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente, who has served as US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, to stay on.

Tim Purdon, a former US attorney for North Dakota in the Obama administration, recalled that President Barack Obama permitted Bush appointees to remain on until their successors had been appointed and confirmed.

The way the Obama administration handled it was appropriate and respectful and classy, he said. This saddens me because many of these people are great public servants and now they are being asked to leave.

Montana's US Attorney Mike Cotter said he received a phone call from Acting Attorney General Dana Boente telling him the president has directed this".

I think it's very unprofessional and I'm very disappointed, he said. What happened today on Friday, March 10, that was so important that all Obama appointees who are US attorneys need to be gone?

I gotta write that [resignation] letter. It's going to be a one-liner, he added.

New York Senator Charles Schumer, a Democrat, said in a statement last week that he was troubled to learn of the resignation demands, particularly of Mr Bharara, since Mr Trump called him in November and assured him that he wanted Bharara to remain Manhattan's top federal prosecutor.

Mr Schumer said that by requesting immediate resignations, Mr Trump was interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice.

Mr Bharara, who was once lauded on the cover of Time magazine as the man who is busting Wall Street after successfully prosecuting dozens of insider traders, has in the past few years set his sights on prosecuting over a dozen state officeholders  Democrats and Republicans  including New York's two most powerful legislators.

The request from Mr Sessions came as Bharara's office is prosecuting former associates of Democratic Govenor Andrew Cuomo in a bribery case. Also, prosecutors recently interviewed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as part of a probe into his fundraising. The mayor's press secretary has said the mayor is cooperating and that he and his staff had acted appropriately.

Mr Sessions' decision to include Mr Bharara's name on the list of resignations of holdovers from the Obama administration surprised Manhattan prosecutors and other political figures.

New York State Assemblyman Steven McLaughlin, a Republican, had urged Mr Trump and Mr Sessions to reconsider. Big mistake, he wrote on Twitter.

The request for resignations came just days after Mr Trump claimed that Mr Obama tapped his telephones during last year's election. FBI Director James Comey privately asked the Justice Department to dispute the claim because he believed the allegations were false. Mr Bharara worked for Mr Comey when he was US attorney in Manhattan under President George W Bush.

Additional reporting from Associated Press
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Bernie Sanders has launched a scathing attack on Donald Trump, who he described as a "pathological liar" with authoritarian ambitions.

Speaking to The Guardian, Mr Sanders, who challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination last year, said he believed Mr Trump's lies were an attempt on the President's part to "undermine the foundations of American democracy."

The Vermont senator pointed to Mr Trump's unsubstantiated claims about mass voter fraud in US elections and his dismissal of District Judge James L Robart as a "so-called judge", after he temporarily blocked the President's ban on travellers from Muslim-majority nations from entering the United States.

The President has also recently accused Barack Obama of wire-tapping Trump Tower, without producing any evidence to substantiate this claim.

Mr Sanders has been a vocal critic of the President since he took office in January. He recently described the revised version of Mr Trump's travel ban as "racist and anti-Islamic", and accused him of "stirring up fear and hatred against immigrants" after it emerged the President plans to regularly publish a list of crimes committed by non-US citizens.

 Bernie Sanders: Trump is a pathological liar

Mr Sanders said that these statements were intended to discredit the media, politicians, and the judiciary, in order to give the public the impression that "the only person in America who is telling the truth is the President, Donald Trump."

He also used the interview to call on Republican politicians to join him in opposing Donald Trump in the interests of defending American democracy.

"It is incumbent upon [Republicans], in this moment in history, to stand up and say that what Trump is doing is not what the United States is about", Mr Sanders said.

Mr Sanders also said that "despair is not an option", and called for a grassroots movement, bringing together progressive groups from across the political spectrum, to oppose the President.

However, the senator, who is the longest-serving Independent in the history of Congress, also said the Democratic Party must accept some responsibility for Trump's rise to power.

"What we have seen over the last 30 or 40 years is a Democratic party that has transformed itself from a party of the working class to a party significantly controlled by a liberal elite which has moved very far away from the needs of the middle class and working families of this country."
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Donald Trump was unaware his former national security adviser, General Michael Flynn, who resigned last month, was acting as a foreign agent for another foreign country, the US President's spokesman has said.

Mr Flynn, a retired army general, told the US Justice Departments Foreign Agent Registration Unit he received $530,000 to lobby on behalf of a Turkish company  just weeks before he was appointed as Mr Trumps most senior national security aide.

The US Presidents spokesman insisted the Mr Trump was unaware that his close adviser was a foreign agent.

The paperwork, filed voluntarily by Mr Flynns lawyer, said the retired general had carried out work between August and November 2016 that could be construed to have principally benefited the Republic of Turkey.

US law states any citizen working on behalf of a foreign government or political entity must register with the Justice Department, and failure to do so is a criminal offence.

Mr Flynn worked on behalf of a Turkish company rather than the government, but the nature of the work was deemed to be potentially beneficial to the state.

Ekim Alptekin, the businessman who employed Flynn Intel Group Ltd., told the Associated Press the documents were a response to "political pressure" and he did not agree with Mr Flynn's decision to register with the Justice Department.

"I disagree with the filing," he said. "It would be different if I was working for the government, but I am not taking directions from anyone in the government."

In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Show all 30 1 /30 In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President-elect Donald Trump acknowledges guests as he arrives on the platform at the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Donald Trump is sworn in as the 45th president of the United States by Chief Justice John Roberts as Melania Trump looks on during the 58th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington AP In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President Donald Trump shakes hands with Justice John Roberts after taking the oath at inauguration ceremonies swearing in Trump as the 45th president of the United States Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President Donald Trump raises his fists after his inauguration on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol Getty In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. President-elect Donald Trump greets outgoing President Barack Obama before Trump is inaugurated during ceremonies on the Capitol in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump resident-elect Donald Trump arrives on the platform of the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Attendees partake in the inauguration ceremonies to swear in Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States at the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump US President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address during ceremonies at the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. President Donald Trump waves with wife Melania during the Inaugural Parade in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters registered their rage against the new president Friday in a chaotic confrontation with police who used pepper spray and stun grenades in a melee just blocks from Donald Trump's inaugural parade route. Scores were arrested for trashing property and attacking officers AP In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators protest against US President Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A woman holds a sign before the start of the Presidential Inauguration of Donald Trump at Freedom Plaza in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Anti-Trump protesters prepare banners for a protest against the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump, in Berlin REUTERS In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators shout slogans against US President-elect Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators march, block foot traffic and clash with U.S. Capitol Police at the entry checkpoints for the Inauguration of Donald Trump Alamy Live News In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators display a banner as people arrive for US President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A man displays a placard as people lineup to get into the National Mall for the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump raise their hands as they are surrounded by police on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A demonstrator wearing a mask depicting Donald Trump protests outside the US Embassy in London Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators hold placards as they protest outside the US Embassy in London Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Former US President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush arrive for the Presidential Inauguration at the US Capitol Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden share an umbrella as President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address at the inauguration in Washington DC Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton arrive on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. Vice President Mike Pence takes the oath of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Advisors to President-elect Donald Trump, Kellyanne Conway and Steve Bannon depart from services at St. John's Church during the Presidential Inauguration in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump take cover as they are hit by pepper spray by police on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump An activist demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump is helped after being hit by pepper spray on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A police officer tries to tackle a protester demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump Reuters/Adrees Latif In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Police arrest and detain a protester in the street in Washington DC Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A police officer falls to the ground as another shoots pepper spray at protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters

Mr Alptekin added that he had asked for some of the $530,000 in payments to the Flynn Intel Group to be returned to him because he was unhappy with the company's performance.

Asked at the White House daily briefing on Thursday whether Mr Trump had known about his advisers other role, the Presidents press secretary, Sean Spicer, said: I dont believe that was known.

Mr Flynn was forced to resign last month after it was revealed he had lied about the nature of his contacts with Russian officials. The former general had insisted he had not discussed the issue of US sanctions against Russia with Sergey Kislyak, Moscows ambassador to the US, in the weeks before formally taking office. However, leaked intelligence intercepts showed this was untrue.

The newly-filed documents show Mr Flynn met with at least two Turkish government ministers in September, at a time when he was also working as an adviser to Mr Trump.

 Donald Trump is questioned over whether he ordered General Flynn to discuss sanctions with Russia

The work he carried out involved collecting information on Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim cleric who Turkey accuses of being behind a failed coup in July 2016, and lobbying American officials to take action against him.

At the time he was being paid by Mr Alptekin, Mr Flynn also wrote an opinion article for The Hill, the US online political newspaper, praising Turkey and urging closer co-operation with the country.

We need to adjust our foreign policy to recognise Turkey as a priority, he wrote. We need to see the world from Turkeys perspective.

The forces of radical Islam derive their ideology from radical clerics like Gulen, who is running a scam. We should not provide him safe haven. In this crisis, it is imperative that we remember who our real friends are.
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Donald Trumps new travel ban has suffered its first legal setback after a federal judge blocked its enforcement against a Syrian family trying to flee the war in their own country.

A Syrian Muslim who has already escaped to Wisconsin and is seeking asylum for his wife and three-year-old daughter who remain in the war-torn country filed a lawsuit on Friday alleging that Mr Trumps second ban was just as problematic as the first.

The man, who said he was tortured in Syria, called the new travel ban anti-Muslim and claimed it violated his right to due process, equal protection and freedom of religion.

He wanted the ban to be declared unconstitutional and for a halt to be imposed on enforcement against his daughter and his wife, who according to the lawsuit has faced rape threats from pro-regime forces.

And hours after the man filed his complaint in Madison, Judge William Conley, chief judge of the federal court in Wisconsin's western district, issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family.

Setting a 21 March date for a full hearing of the issues, Judge Conley, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, concluded the Syrian man had "presented some likelihood of success on the merits" of his case and that his family faced "significant risk of irreparable harm" if forced to remain in Syria.

He set a 21 March date for a full hearing of the case.

Where this leaves Mr Trumps second attempt at a travel ban was not immediately clear.

The restraining order does not block the entire travel ban, it simply prevents Mr Trump's administration from enforcing it against this specific family.

During a teleconference with Judge Conley on Friday, US government lawyers also argued that the new travel ban does not apply to asylum seekers like the Syrian mans wife and daughter.

The Syrians lawyers, however, insist that it does.

The US Justice Department is continuing to defend the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined to comment further.

The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Show all 9 1 /9 The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the media White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer takes questions during the daily press briefing Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Union leaders applaud US President Donald Trump for signing an executive order withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations during a meeting in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington DC. Mr Trump issued a presidential memorandum in January announcing that the US would withdraw from the trade deal Getty The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Mexico wall A US Border Patrol vehicle sits waiting for illegal immigrants at a fence opening near the US-Mexico border near McAllen, Texas. The number of incoming immigrants has surged ahead of the upcoming Presidential inauguration of Donald Trump, who has pledged to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. A signature campaign promise, Mr Trump outlined his intention to build a border wall on the US-Mexico border days after taking office Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and abortion US President Donald Trump signs an executive order as Chief of Staff Reince Priebus looks on in the Oval Office of the White House. Mr Trump reinstated a ban on American financial aide being granted to non-governmental organizations that provide abortion counseling, provide abortion referrals, or advocate for abortion access outside of the United States Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Dakota Access pipeline Opponents of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines hold a rally as they protest US President Donald Trump's executive orders advancing their construction, at Columbus Circle in New York. US President Donald Trump signed executive orders reviving the construction of two controversial oil pipelines, but said the projects would be subject to renegotiation Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and 'Obamacare' Nancy Pelosi who is the minority leader of the House of Representatives speaks beside House Democrats at an event to protect the Affordable Care Act in Los Angeles, California. US President Donald Trump's effort to make good on his campaign promise to repeal and replace the healthcare law failed when Republicans failed to get enough votes. Mr Trump has promised to revisit the matter Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Donald Trump and 'sanctuary cities' US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January threatening to pull funding for so-called "sanctuary cities" if they do not comply with federal immigration law AP The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the travel ban US President Donald Trump has attempted twice to restrict travel into the United States from several predominantly Muslim countries. The first attempt, in February, was met with swift opposition from protesters who flocked to airports around the country. That travel ban was later blocked by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The second ban was blocked by a federal judge a day before it was scheduled to be implemented in mid-March SANDY HUFFAKER/AFP/Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and climate change US President Donald Trump sought to dismantle several of his predecessor's actions on climate change in March. His order instructed the Environmental Protection Agency to reevaluate the Clean Power Plan, which would cap power plant emissions Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

The Syrian man has been trying since 2016 to win asylum for his wife and daughter. He filed a federal lawsuit in February against the first travel ban. That lawsuit, though, was superseded by events when a federal judge in Washington state blocked the travel ban altogether.

Thinking the threat of a travel ban had passed, the wife and daughter started preparations to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the US embassy, the last step before US customs officials decide whether to issue them visas.

But then came news that the second travel ban would come into force on March 16.

With the wife and daughter yet to be given dates for their visa interviews, the family now feared that they would be caught by the enforcement of the second travel ban.

With this in mind, the Syrian father filed his potentially groundbreaking new complaint on Friday afternoon.

It now remains to be seen whether the second travel ban will run into legal obstacles similar to those faced by the first ban, which started with an executive order issued by Mr Trump in January.

This stopped travellers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States.

The first ban sparked numerous lawsuits, including the Syrian refugee's initial federal complaint in Wisconsin. US District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the ban on February 3.

Mr Trump issued a new order on Monday that removed Iraq from the list of countries and temporarily shuts down the refugee programme.

 Donald Trump signs revised travel ban

Unlike the first order, the new ban will not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban on Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian man's lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assad's regime and one fighting in support of Assad.

The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and travelled to pro-Assad areas to manage his family's business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife.

He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.

He has filed all his court actions anonymously to protect his family.
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Senior staff at the US State Department have been left with literally nothing to do under Donald Trump, it has been claimed.

Micah Zenko, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations think tank, said after giving a talk to an unusually large audience at the State Department, a member of the departments senior executive service admitted the high attendance was because: Weve literally nothing else to do.

The claim has fuelled fears that Mr Trump is deliberately sidelining and running down the US equivalent of the Foreign Office, and may prefer increased defence spending and military might over soft power diplomacy.

Mr Zenkos observation was immediately disputed by one senior State Department Official, Conrad Tribble, Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, who said having nothing to do was certainly not my experience today or any day.

But the claim was made on the same day that it emerged that the State Departments own spokesman had no idea that Mexicos foreign minister was visiting Washington. This is despite it being established convention for foreign secretaries to be received by their State Department counterpart when visiting the US capital.

But at a press conference on Thursday, acting State Department spokesman Mark Toner found out from a journalist that Luis Videgaray was meeting with Jared Kushner (Mr Trumps son-in-law and senior advisor), economic adviser Gary Cohn, and National Security Adviser General HR McMaster.

Recommended China to step up naval patrols in response to Trump stance

When asked Is there no State Department meeting? And if not, why not?, Mr Toner replied: Good Question. I was unaware that he was  the foreign minister was in town. And Im not sure  I cant speak to whether theres going to be any meetings at the State Department at any level.

Mr Videgaray later explained he had spoken to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the head of the State Department, on Wednesday night to let him know he would be in Washington.

Some observers, however, took spokesman Toners ignorance as reinforcing the impression given by one State Department official who earlier this month told The Atlantic: I dont think this administration thinks the State Department needs to exist. They really want to blow this place up.

They think Jared [Kushner, Trumps son-in-law] can do everything.

Its reminiscent of the developing countries where Ive served, added the State Department official. The family rules everything, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs knows nothing.

The same report painted a picture of a State Department that had been left adrift and listless by the Trump administration, with one staffer saying: I used to love my job. Now, it feels like coming to the hospital to take care of a terminally ill family member. You come in every day, you bring flowers, you brush their hair, paint their nails, even though you know theres no point.

The cafeteria is so crowded all day, said another State Department officer. No ones doing anything.

The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Show all 9 1 /9 The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the media White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer takes questions during the daily press briefing Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Union leaders applaud US President Donald Trump for signing an executive order withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations during a meeting in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington DC. Mr Trump issued a presidential memorandum in January announcing that the US would withdraw from the trade deal Getty The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Mexico wall A US Border Patrol vehicle sits waiting for illegal immigrants at a fence opening near the US-Mexico border near McAllen, Texas. The number of incoming immigrants has surged ahead of the upcoming Presidential inauguration of Donald Trump, who has pledged to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. A signature campaign promise, Mr Trump outlined his intention to build a border wall on the US-Mexico border days after taking office Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and abortion US President Donald Trump signs an executive order as Chief of Staff Reince Priebus looks on in the Oval Office of the White House. Mr Trump reinstated a ban on American financial aide being granted to non-governmental organizations that provide abortion counseling, provide abortion referrals, or advocate for abortion access outside of the United States Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Dakota Access pipeline Opponents of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines hold a rally as they protest US President Donald Trump's executive orders advancing their construction, at Columbus Circle in New York. US President Donald Trump signed executive orders reviving the construction of two controversial oil pipelines, but said the projects would be subject to renegotiation Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and 'Obamacare' Nancy Pelosi who is the minority leader of the House of Representatives speaks beside House Democrats at an event to protect the Affordable Care Act in Los Angeles, California. US President Donald Trump's effort to make good on his campaign promise to repeal and replace the healthcare law failed when Republicans failed to get enough votes. Mr Trump has promised to revisit the matter Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Donald Trump and 'sanctuary cities' US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January threatening to pull funding for so-called "sanctuary cities" if they do not comply with federal immigration law AP The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the travel ban US President Donald Trump has attempted twice to restrict travel into the United States from several predominantly Muslim countries. The first attempt, in February, was met with swift opposition from protesters who flocked to airports around the country. That travel ban was later blocked by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The second ban was blocked by a federal judge a day before it was scheduled to be implemented in mid-March SANDY HUFFAKER/AFP/Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and climate change US President Donald Trump sought to dismantle several of his predecessor's actions on climate change in March. His order instructed the Environmental Protection Agency to reevaluate the Clean Power Plan, which would cap power plant emissions Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

The allegations come amid reports of Mr Trump planning to cut State Department funding by more than a third, while promising one of the greatest military build-ups in American history  even though annual military spending already stands at $600 billion, compared to $50 billion for the State Department.

The spending plans prompted 121 retired generals and admirals to write an open letter to Congress and members of the Trump administration arguing against cuts to the State Department and expressing: Our strong conviction that elevating and strengthening diplomacy and development alongside defence are critical to keeping America safe.

The 121 former senior military officers added: We know from our service in uniform that many of the crises our nation faces do not have military solutions alone  from confronting violent extremist groups like ISIS in the Middle East and North Africa to preventing pandemics like Ebola and stabilizing weak and fragile states that can lead to greater instability.

The State Department, USAID, Millennium Challenge Corporation, Peace Corps and other development agencies are critical to preventing conflict and reducing the need to put our men and women in uniform in harms way.

The military will lead the fight against terrorism on the battlefield, but it needs strong civilian partners in the battle against the drivers of extremism lack of opportunity, insecurity, injustice, and hopelessness.

But key presidential aide Steve Bannon, former executive chair of far-right news site Breitbart, drew cheers at last months Conservative Political Action Conference when he spoke of one of the Trump administrations goals being: deconstruction of the administrative state.

Other Trump supporters have spoken of a desire to cut back State Department spending that they claimed was excessive under Barack Obama, due to the previous presidents fondness for projects on things like climate change and biodiversity.

James Carafano, who was a member of the Trump transition team, has insisted: If you look at the departments budget, it has significantly ballooned since 2008 and all of that growth, outside of diplomatic security, is in Obamas pet projects.

Mr Trump himself has seemed happy that senior government positions have been left unfilled since he took office, telling Fox News at the end of last month: A lot of those jobs, I dont want to appoint, because theyre unnecessary to have.
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Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked dozens of chief federal prosecutors appointed by Barack Obama to resign "to ensure a uniform transition" under Donald Trump's new administration, the Justice Department has announced.

A statement issued by the Justice Department confirmed the mass cull of senior legal expertise, a move that while not unusual has prompted a backlash from some serving attorneys.

The statement said: "Until the new US attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US attorneys offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders.

It is customary for the country's 93 US attorneys to leave their positions once a new president is in office, but the departures are not automatic.

In fact, past presidents have often allowed judicial appointees to remain in post until their successor has been confirmed.

One US attorney appointed by President George W Bush remained on the job for the entire Obama administration.

Montana's US Attorney Mike Cotter said the way Mr Sessions had handled the transition was unprofessional.

I'm very disappointed. What happened today on Friday, March 10, that was so important that all Obama appointees who are US attorneys need to be gone?

"I gotta write that (resignation) letter. It's going to be a one-line.

Tim Purdon, a former US attorney for North Dakota under the Obama administration, was also critical of the move.

He said: "The way the Obama administration handled it was appropriate and respectful and classy.

"This saddens me because many of these people are great public servants and now they are being asked to leave."

 Trump says he still has 'total' confidence in Jeff Sessions

US attorneys are federal prosecutors who are nominated by the president, generally upon the recommendation of a senator, and are responsible for prosecuting federal crimes in the territories they oversee.

They report to Justice Department in Washington, and their priorities are expected to be in line with those of the attorney general.

It is not clear if all 46 of the US attorneys will actually resign, and if Mr Sessions will accept all of their resignation offers if they do.

Additional reporting AP and Reuters
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Donald Trumps chief spokesman Sean Spicer claimed that employment statistics put out by previous administrations may have been phoney but the latest statistics showing growth are very real.

The President has repeatedly said employment figures are not to be trusted, but was keen to take credit for the latest positive statistic, taking to Twitter before they were officially made public.

The monthly jobs report comes courtesy of the nonpartisan federal Bureau of Labour Statistics, but as recently as December, Mr Trump described it as "total fiction".

The White House Press Secretary told journalists at his latest briefing: The President said to quote him very clearly. They may have been phoney in the past, but its very real now.

On Day 50 of the Trump administration, Mr Spicer drew attention to figures showing steady growth in the US jobs market.

During the first full month of the Trump presidency, 235,000 new jobs were added, following on from 238,000 in January.

Mr Spicer dismissed claims that former President Barack Obama deserves credit for the growth, saying the improved picture was entirely down to Mr Trump.

He has jump started job creation, not only because of his executive actions, but also through the surge in economic confidence and optimism that has been inspired since his election," he said.

President Trump knows exactly what business need to thrive and grow, therefore adding well-paying and steady jobs to the market.

Recommended Donald Trump and Sean Spicer tweeted about jobs report too early

The unemployment rate in the US now stands at 4.7 per cent, according to the latest statistics.

Following Mr Trumps pledge to bring jobs back to the so-called rust belt, Mr Spicer said there had been significant growth in the mining, construction and manufacturing sectors of the economy.

He added that Mr Trump intends to press on with withdrawing from key trade deals: The President looks forward to continuing his work with the private sector to clear road blocks to key infrastructure projects, withdraw from job-killing trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership and slash the bureaucratic red tape that makes additional hiring difficult for American businesses.

Recommended China could replace America in TPP after Trump withdrawal

The 12 nation Trans-Pacific partnership was Mr Obamas signature trade deal but was abandoned with a stroke of Mr Trumps pen during his first week in the Oval Office.

The agreement, which had not been approved by Congress when Mr Trump took office, would have linked a dozen nations from Canada and Chile to Australia and Japan in a complex trading bloc agreement, with the aim of competing with a buoyant Chinese economy.

But Mr Trump said the deal risked undercutting US workers by including low-wage countries like Vietnam and Malaysia in the bloc.

A breakdown of the labour market figures show that construction jobs rose by 58,000  the best growth since March 2007 - and followed a 40,000 increase in January. Manufacturing payrolls gained 28,000, a three-year high. Meanwhile, retail positions fell by 26,000, the most since December 2012.

Some economists and commentators said that unseasonably warm weather may have aided the growth in construction jobs as last month was the second warmest February on record in the mainland US.

During his campaign, Mr Trump repeatedly pledged to put America first and said he aims to create 25 million jobs over 10 years, which would require additions of 208,000 a month, or 2.5 million positions a year.
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The former director of the CIA has claimed millennials being employed by American security services are more likely to leak information because they are culturally different from their elders.

Speaking after WikiLeaks published thousands of documents appearing to reveal methods to access mobile phones, computers and event smart televisions from the worlds biggest technology brands, Michael Hayden said the need to hire young coders was part of the problem.

In order to do this kind of stuff, we have to recruit from a certain demographic, he told the BBC.

 Julian Assange announces WikiLeaks will publish CIA cyber weapons

I dont mean to judge them at all but this group of Millennials and related groups simply have different understandings of the words loyalty, secrecy and transparency than certainly my generation did.

So we bring these folks into the agency  good Americans, all, I assume  but culturally they have different instincts than the people who made the decision to hire them.

We may be running into this different cultural approach that we saw with Chelsea Manning, with Edward Snowden and now, perhaps, with a third actor.

Mr Hayden, a retired four-star general who ran the CIA under George W Bush after being Director of the National Security Agency, said the latest security breach was incredibly damaging.

He said the tactics exposed were needed to conduct legitimate foreign intelligence, adding: Its made my country and my countrys friends less safe.

It was not immediately clear how WikiLeaks obtained the information, with the group saying its material came from an isolated, high-security network inside the CIA's Center for Cyber Intelligence.

Julian Assange said parts of the documents would be withheld (Reuters)

It did not say whether the files were removed by a rogue employee or if the theft involved hacking a federal contractor working for the CIA, or perhaps breaking into a staging server where such information might have been temporarily stored.

The archive appears to have been circulated among former US government hackers and contractors in an unauthorized manner, one of whom has provided WikiLeaks with portions of the archive, WikiLeaks said in a statement.

Around 800,000 government employees hold top security clearance, including 21,000 in CIA alone after a huge increase in information sharing after 9/11, creating a large pool of suspects for intelligence services to sift through.

Investigators suspect an agency contractor could once again be responsible for the teak, in what would be another embarrassing failure for special software and human resources programmes intended to catch so-called insider threats.

Donald Trump declared I love WikiLeaks during the election campaign while reading from hacked Democratic National Committee emails that damaged his opponent Hillary Clinton.

But the White House struck a different tone this week, with Mr Trumps spokesman claiming there was a big difference between the two cases.

The President is extremely concerned about this, Sean Spicer told reporters.

Playing with our nation's national security is not something that should be taken lightly under this administration.

In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Show all 30 1 /30 In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President-elect Donald Trump acknowledges guests as he arrives on the platform at the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Donald Trump is sworn in as the 45th president of the United States by Chief Justice John Roberts as Melania Trump looks on during the 58th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington AP In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President Donald Trump shakes hands with Justice John Roberts after taking the oath at inauguration ceremonies swearing in Trump as the 45th president of the United States Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump President Donald Trump raises his fists after his inauguration on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol Getty In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. President-elect Donald Trump greets outgoing President Barack Obama before Trump is inaugurated during ceremonies on the Capitol in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump resident-elect Donald Trump arrives on the platform of the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Attendees partake in the inauguration ceremonies to swear in Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States at the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump US President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address during ceremonies at the US Capitol in Washington DC Getty In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. President Donald Trump waves with wife Melania during the Inaugural Parade in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters registered their rage against the new president Friday in a chaotic confrontation with police who used pepper spray and stun grenades in a melee just blocks from Donald Trump's inaugural parade route. Scores were arrested for trashing property and attacking officers AP In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators protest against US President Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A woman holds a sign before the start of the Presidential Inauguration of Donald Trump at Freedom Plaza in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Anti-Trump protesters prepare banners for a protest against the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump, in Berlin REUTERS In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators shout slogans against US President-elect Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators march, block foot traffic and clash with U.S. Capitol Police at the entry checkpoints for the Inauguration of Donald Trump Alamy Live News In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators display a banner as people arrive for US President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A man displays a placard as people lineup to get into the National Mall for the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump in Washington DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump raise their hands as they are surrounded by police on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A demonstrator wearing a mask depicting Donald Trump protests outside the US Embassy in London Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Demonstrators hold placards as they protest outside the US Embassy in London Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Former US President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush arrive for the Presidential Inauguration at the US Capitol Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden share an umbrella as President Donald Trump delivers his inaugural address at the inauguration in Washington DC Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton arrive on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump U.S. Vice President Mike Pence takes the oath of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC Getty Images In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Advisors to President-elect Donald Trump, Kellyanne Conway and Steve Bannon depart from services at St. John's Church during the Presidential Inauguration in Washington Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump take cover as they are hit by pepper spray by police on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump An activist demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump is helped after being hit by pepper spray on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A police officer tries to tackle a protester demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump Reuters/Adrees Latif In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump Police arrest and detain a protester in the street in Washington DC Rex In pictures: Protests, pomp and Donald Trump A police officer falls to the ground as another shoots pepper spray at protesters demonstrating against U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the inauguration in Washington DC Reuters

Some analysts argued the leak was beneficial to Mr Trump, who has publicly attacked his own intelligence agencies while dismissing a report last year that concluded Russia interfered in the US election to benefit the President.

The documents detailed CIA hacking tools the government employs to break into users' computers, mobile phones and even smart televisions from companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft and Samsung and subvert the worlds most popular technology.

They describe clandestine methods for bypassing or defeating encryption, antivirus tools and other protective security features intended to keep the private information of citizens and corporations safe from prying eyes.

The tools listed in the documents carry bizarre names, including Time Stomper, Fight Club, Jukebox, Bartender, Wild Turkey, Margarita and RickyBobby, a racing driver character in the comedy film Talladega Nights.

Broad exchanges of tools and information between the CIA, NSA and foreign intelligence services in the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand were included in the leaks.

The CIA would not comment on the authenticity of the documents or the investigation into their source, but said its mission was to aggressively collect foreign intelligence to protect the US and was legally prohibited from targeting American citizens in their homes.

The American public should be deeply troubled by any WikiLeaks disclosure designed to damage the intelligence communitys ability to protect America against terrorists and other adversaries, a spokesperson added.

Additional reporting by agencies
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Police have shut down a shopping centre in Germany after receiving intelligence over a potential terror attack.

Authorities in Essen said the centre in Limbecker Platz was closed for security reasons as searches continued.

Police have concrete indications of a possible attack," a spokesperson for North Rhine Westphalia Police said.

Dogs begin searching Limbecker Platz shopping mall in Essen, Germany, yesterday (Reuters)

In order to avoid possible danger to visitors, they will not be able to enter the shopping halls or the car park. The current investigation indicates that the threat refers only to the shopping centre.

The force said investigators were urgently looking into the origin of the attack threat using specialist forces, and a phone number has been set up for concerned residents.

A notice was posted on the Limbecker Platz website asking customers for their understanding as it remained closed for security checks yesterday.

Opened in 2008, it is one of the largest shopping centres in Germany, containing around 200 businesses and visited by more than 50,000 people a day.

Essen Police have arrested two men in connection with the threat  one in his flat in nearby Oberhausen and a second suspect in a web cafe in the city.

Officials said the alert was received on Friday from another, unspecified, security authority and investigations ran through the night.

Oberhausen's Centro shopping centre was also revealed to be a potential target, with officers stationed there as a precaution.

Germany remains on high alert following a series of Isis-inspired terror attacks, including the massacre of 12 people when a lorry was rammed into a Berlin Christmas market in December. Following the large-scale attacks in Paris and Brussels, Isis propaganda has encouraged jihadis to carry out atrocities on soft targets like transport hubs that have little security.

The latest security alert in Germany comes days after a man injured seven people with an axe in a rampage at Dusseldorfs main railway station.

Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Show all 18 1 /18 Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Several people have been killed after a lorry drove into crowds at a Christmas market in Berlin REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch Berlin Christmas market lorry attack 'At least nine' people have been killed and more than 50 injured. AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Emergency Services rush a Berlin market victim to an ambulance Associated Press Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Police cordoned off the square at Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church following the incident REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Rescue workers inspect the lorry that crashed into a Christmas market close to the Kaiser Wilhelm memorial church in Berlin EPA Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Emergency crews inspect the lorry that ploughed into a Berlin Christmas market, killing at least nine people AFP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Fire crews attend the scene of the attack AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Armed police secure the site of a lorry attack at a Christmas market in Berlin REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Crushed debris is visible beneath the wheels of the vehicle REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack An injured man is pushed to an ambulance REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Medics attend an injured person after the lorry attack which killed at least nine and injured more than 50 people AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters examine the lorry which was rammed into a Berlin Christmas market REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack A person is carried into an ambulance REUTERS Berlin Christmas market lorry attack View of the lorry that crashed into a Christmas market in Berlin, killing at least nine and injuring at least 50 people AFP/Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Rescue workers push a person on a stretcher to an ambulance Getty Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters assess the damage after the lorry rammed the Christmas market, killing 'at least nine', and injuring more than 50 people AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Firefighters stand beside a toppled Christmas tree at the site of the suspected terrorist attack in a Berlin Christmas market AP Berlin Christmas market lorry attack Damaged stalls at the scene of the incident at a Berlin Christmas market where at least nine people have been killed EPA

Police said there was no indication of a link to terrorism and described the 36-year-old suspect as mentally ill.

Numerous arrests have been made over suspected terror plots, including an Isis supporter found manufacturing explosives to bomb an airport in Berlin last year.

Germanys federal prosecutor charged three suspected Isis members with planning a terror attack in Dusseldorf.

Officials said the two of the Syrian men, aged between 25 and 27, investigated smuggling routes to Europe for jihadis in 2014, sending several refugees as tests before journeying along the migrant route themselves in 2015.

They allegedly drew the third suspect into the plot and worked with an Isis bomb maker already deployed to Germany, planning to detonate two suicide bombs in Dusseldorfs popular Old Town before other militants massacred as many passers-by with guns as possible.

The plan was thwarted after one of the conspirators turned himself into French authorities in February last year.

Security fears have put additional pressure on Angela Merkel as she campaigns for a fourth term as Germany's Chancellor, with anti-immigration parties boosted by concern over her refugee policy.
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The Netherlands has withdrawn permission for a plane carrying Turkeys foreign minister to land in the country ahead of a rally supporting expanded powers for Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The Turkish President responded by comparing the Dutch government to Nazis while addressing a rally of supporters in Istanbul, just days after using the same label against the German government over cancellations.

You can stop our foreign minister's plane all you want, let's see how your planes will come to Turkey from now on, Mr Erdogan told booing crowds.

They do not know politics or international diplomacy... these Nazi remnants, they are fascists.

Protestors at a Saturday night demonstration in front of the consulate of the Netherlands in Istanbul (Getty Images)

Hundreds of protesters gathered near the Dutch Embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara, despite the street where it is located being sealed off by police.

Demonstrators waved Turkish and Ottoman flags, shouted anti-Dutch slogans and some threw eggs, according to state-run TRT Television.

Authorities also closed off the Dutch consulate, residences of the Dutch ambassador, the head of the embassy and the consul general as tensions between the NATO partners escalated.

Mark Rutte, the Dutch Prime Minister, called the remarks crazy at a campaign event. I understand they're angry, but this of course was way out of line, he added.

A spokesperson for the Dutch government said the move was taken because of risks to public order and security caused by the proposed visit by Mevlut Cavusoglu to Rotterdam on Saturday.

A statement added that while the Netherlands and Turkey could search for an acceptable solution, Ankara was not respecting the rules relating to public gatherings.

Many Dutch people with a Turkish background are authorised to vote in the referendum over the Turkish constitution, it said.

The Dutch government does not have any opposition to gatherings in our country to inform them about it. But these gatherings are not allowed to contribute to tensions in our society and everyone who wants to hold a gathering is obliged to follow instructions of those in authority, so that public order and safety can be guaranteed.

Turkey's foreign minister has been attempting to tour Europe to gather support for a constitutional referendum next month (Getty)

Mr Cavusoglu said he had arrived in Metz in eastern France for a political rally on Saturday evening, tweeting that he was there to "to have a meeting with our Consuls General and to gather with our citizens".

French officials said a rally by Cavusoglu planned for Sunday with the local Turkish population has been authorised and will be allowed to take place unless it represents a threat to public order.

The Dutch government said discussions had been held over whether a smaller meeting could be held in a Turkish consulate or embassy, but that its suggestions had been met with threats of sanctions.

Recommended Angela Merkel tells Turkey to stop calling Germans Nazis

This makes the search for a reasonable solution impossible, a spokesperson added.

Therefore the Netherlands has decided to withdraw landing rights. The Netherlands regrets the course of events and remains committed to dialogue with Turkey.

Mr Cavusoglu said the decision was a scandal in every way and cannot be accepted.

Speaking at Istanbul's airport, he said the Dutch are trying to prevent Turkish officials from meeting voters in Europe, adding: So they cancelled it due to security concerns, what, so is the minister a terrorist? We will give them the response they deserve.

He had already been barred from addressing a Turkish rally on the upcoming constitutional referendum by local authorities Rotterdam, but vowed to visit the city regardless.

It was the latest of a series of prohibitions on campaigning in Europe by Turkish leaders drumming up support among the countrys expat voters, including several in Germany.

Turkey summoned the Dutch charge d'affaires to the foreign ministry in Ankara as the dispute continued on Saturday. It came just days before the Netherlands goes to the polls in parliamentary elections on 15 March.

Anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders has attempted to capitalise on the controversy with Turkey, leading a small protest outside the country's embassy and calling Mr Erdogan a dictator.

Leave us alone, lobby in your own country, and stay away, he said ahead of Mr Cavusoglu's planned rally. We would not allow lobbying for North Korea or Saudi Arabia in our country either, he added, calling for the entire Turkish cabinet to be declared persona non grata.

In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Show all 17 1 /17 In pictures: Turkey coup attempt In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish President Erdogan attends the funeral service for victims of the thwarted coup in Istanbul at Fatih mosque on July 17, 2016 in Istanbul, Turkey Burak Kara/Getty Images In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Soldiers involved in the coup attempt surrender on Bosphorus bridge with their hands raised in Istanbul on 16 July, 2016 Gokhan Tan/Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt A civilian beats a soldier after troops involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, 16 July, 2016 REUTERS/Murad Sezer In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Surrendered Turkish soldiers who were involved in the coup are beaten by a civilian Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Soliders involved in the coup attempt surrender on Bosphorus bridge Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wave flags as they capture a Turkish Army vehicle Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt People pose near a tank after troops involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, 16 July, 2016 Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers block Istanbul's Bosphorus Brigde Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt A Turkish military stands guard near the Taksim Square in Istanbul Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Pierre Crom/Twitter In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers secure the area as supporters of Recep Tayyip Erdogan protest in Istanbul's Taksim square AP In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Murad Sezer/Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers detain police officers during a security shutdown of the Bosphorus Bridge Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish Army armoured personnel carriers in the main streets of Istanbul Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Chaos reigned in Istanbul as tanks drove through the streets EPA/TOLGA BOZOGLU In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks to media in the resort town of Marmaris Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Supporters of President Erdogan celebrate in Ankara following the suppression of the attempted coup Reuters

With tensions growing between the EU and Turkey, Mr Cavusoglu repeated threats to cancel agreements including last years deal to stem the flow of refugees to Greece if the bloc failed to implement promised visa liberalisation for Turks.

He said Turkey would present a final text to the bloc on progress of the deal and either it will all be cancelled, including the visa liberalisation and migrant deal, or it will all be implemented.

At least four German local authorities have withdrawn permission for pro-Erdogan campaign events, as well as areas of Austria and Switzerland. Allies of the Turkish President are targeting more than a million Turkish voters living in Europe who will be eligible to cast a ballot in the vote on 16 April.

The referendum could see Turkeys parliamentary system replaced with an executive presidency using constitutional amendments that have alarmed human rights groups.

Germanys refusals have sparked a diplomatic row seeing Angela Merkels government repeatedly compared to Nazis by Mr Erdogan and his ministers.

All cancellations have cited safety and administrative issues but have been linked to concern over a post-coup crackdown seeing thousands of people detained in Turkey, including a Die Welt journalist who was jailed on terror charges after reporting on government corruption.

Turkey's EU minister, Omer Celik, said the decision will go down in history as a dark spot on the Netherlands democracy and diplomacy.

He wrote on Twitter that it was not befitting of friendship, adding: This decision does not suit our alliance and our friendship that has spanned centuries. If racist Geert Wilders were in power in the Netherlands, he'd make such a decision.

Turkey's Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya was also blocked by Dutch police from entering the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, NOS News reported.
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Bashar al-Assad says he is open to cooperation with Donald Trump over the US presidents promising policies for the Syrian civil war.

The new administration has not officially deviated from the USs longstanding position of opposing the Assad regime while calling for a political transition to ensure long-term stability.

But Mr Trump made complimentary statements about the Syrian president during his election campaign, calling him much tougher and much smarter than Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama before conceding that he was a bad guy.

 Donald Trump open to working with Moscow to fight Isis in Syria

In the same televised debate, he suggested he could drop the USs military and financial support for Syrian rebel groups, claiming: Were giving them lots of money, lots of everything [but] we dont know who they are.

Mr Trumps statements on the civil war have focused on atrocities committed by Isis, rather than war crimes attributed to Assads forces and allies.

The Syrian president told Chinese journalists Mr Trumps focus was a promising approach but that no concrete proposals had emerged.

Asked whether there was potential for cooperation with the Trump administration, Assad replied: In theory, yes, but practically, not yet, because theres no link between Syria and the United States on the formal level.

He said there had been no contact between himself and Mr Trump but suggested Damascus was open to formal talks, adding: We have more hopes now regarding the American party because of the new administration.

In January President Trump ordered military commanders to draw up a plan to defeat Isis within weeks but details of the strategy have not been made public.

Hundreds of US marines and Army Rangers have arrived in northern Syria in recent days to bolster rebel allies in an impending assault on Isiss de facto capital of Raqqa.

A US convoy arrives at a village near the northern Syrian city of Manbij on 5 March (Getty)

The deployment, planned under the Obama administration, intensifies American cooperation with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) rebel alliance  the coalitions most effective allies against Isis on the ground.

But the move has angered Turkey which classes Kurdish groups in the SDF as terrorists and is backing Free Syrian Army factions to push them back from swathes of territory seized along the Turkish border.

Assad has dismissed suggestions his government may have green-lit the deployment, accusing the US of creating problems and destroying countries with interventionist wars.

Any foreign troops coming to Syria without our invitation or consultation or permission, they are invaders, whether they are American, Turkish, or any other one, he told Hong Kong-based broadcaster Phoenix.

The Syrian president also called the US-led coalitions air raids illegal and ineffective, while repeating allegations of widespread links between opposition groups and al-Qaeda.

Regardless, Assad said he expected the war to be over by 2018  ending with his victory.

If we presume that you dont have foreign intervention, it will take a few months, he added. We always have hope that this year is going to be the last year.

After retaking the ancient city of Palmyra from Isis for a second time, the regimes next main target is expected to be rebel strongholds in Idlib province, to which fighters from eastern Aleppo were evacuated.

In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij Show all 11 1 /11 In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij Women and children celebrating after being freed from Isis in Manbij, Syria, on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij A man cuts the beard of a civilian who was freed from Isis by the SDF in Manbij on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij Women carry newborn babies while running after being freed from Isis in Manbij, Syria, on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij A woman freed from Isis hugs an SDF fighter in Manbij on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij A woman adding her veil to a pile of niqabs burning in Manbij, Syria, after being freed from Isis on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij Children celebrating on top of a lorry after being freed from Isis in Manbij, Syria, on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij A man and child freed from Isis by the SDF in Manbij on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij A woman carrying her children walks towards SDF fighters after being freed from Isis in Manbij, Syria, on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij A woman and child freed from Isis in Manbij, Syria, on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij An SDF fighter kisses a crying man who was freed from Isis in Manbij, Syria, on 12 August Reuters In pictures: Civilians freed from Isis in Manbij Hundreds of civilians freed from Isis in Manbij, Syria, on 12 August Reuters

Al-Qaeda affiliates are interspersed with Islamist and opposition rebels in the region but Assad and his allies describe all groups as terrorists, despite efforts to agree on a common list of designated groups at the UN.

Russias entrance into the conflict in 2015 is credited with turning the tide in Assads favour with the firepower provided by Vladimir Putins air force and large deployments on the ground.

Rebel groups have seized swathes of territory from Isis but as the terrorist group has been driven back, tensions between rival opposition factions have exploded into open conflict.

The opposition council in Manbij has handed some territory over to the Syrian regime in efforts to create a buffer between fighting US-backed and Turkey-backed forces, with American troops sent to monitor frontlines.

Emergency talks were held between Turkish, American and Russian military commanders last week in an effort to calm the clashes.

Analysts have warned of the potential for a full-blown proxy war in Syria where Russia, Iran, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and Iraqi militias are supporting Assad, while Turkey and the US-led coalition back rival rebel groups.

A new round of UN-brokered peace talks in Geneva failed to make any progress as the conflicts six-year anniversary approaches, and rebels have called for the postponement of separate Russian-backed negotiations in Kazakhstan.

The new round of talks in Geneva will start on 23 March.
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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he would visit the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday despite an official ban on him addressing a rally of Turks there backing the granting of new powers to President Tayyip Erdogan.

Cavusoglu said the Dutch government was effectively taking Turkish citizens hostage by banning the rally. It was the latest of a series of bans on campaigning in Europe, largely Germany, by Turkish leaders for an April referendum on Erdogan's powers.

"These people are not your captives," he said in an interview with CNN Turk television.

Cavusoglu said if the Netherlands refused him permission to fly to Rotterdam, Turkey would respond with harsh economic and political sanctions.

But Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb, announcing the ban on a public appearance late on Friday, said there was no question of him being excluded from the Netherlands.

Cavusoglu, reflecting growing tensions between Turkey and European allies, said deals with the European Union, including an agreement on stemming a flow of migrants, would be jeopardised if the bloc failed to implement promised visa liberalisation for Turks.

He said Turkey would present a final text to the bloc on progress of the deal "and either it will all be cancelled, including the visa liberalisation and migrant deal, or it will all be implemented."

Turkey and the EU last year agreed a deal to stem a record flow of migrants to Europe in exchange for billions of euros in aid to Turkey and the lifting of short-term visa requirements on Turkish citizens.

Reuters
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Amal Clooney is pregnant! Did you know that? Pregnant! Enriched with the Hollywood sperm of her husband George, Clooney is currently in the process of growing not one but two  two!  babies. And she is blossoming, says the Sun. Also, she wore yellow, which is a brave colour in which to show off her bump (the Mirror). Brave Amal Clooney. But also, oh dear, reckless Amal Clooney, because what has she got on her feet? Heels. Not one, not two, not three, but four inch heels. Towering heels, in fact, the Daily Mail reports.

As we all know this is a very unwise thing for a pregnant woman to do. Although given that only weeks ago the Mail was engaging in important investigative journalism revealing that: A flat shoe may be comfortable, but it can have the effect of making any saddlebags more evident. Perhaps we should instead be saying sensible Amal Clooney? After all, when the worlds media is looking at, scrutinising and inspecting every portion of your body, it would be unfortunate to draw attention to the wrong kind of bumps.

Recommended Full transcript of Amal Clooney United Nations speech on Isis

As well as being pregnant, Amal Clooney is also an international human rights lawyer who is currently petitioning the UN to take action on Isiss genocidal atrocities in Iraq against the Yazidi people. In some of the pictures of Amal Clooney with her blossoming bump, in her brave yellow and her towering shoes, you can even see Nadia Murad  a young Yazidi woman who was enslaved and raped by Isis, and who Clooney is now representing.

But what do mass murders and mass rapes have to interest us when we could be talking about the fascinating business of the Clooney uterus? Because whatever you do as a woman, you always have to be dragged back to your femaleness and judged on your femininity.

You might think youre a professional of some standing engaged in urgent humanitarian action, but  ha ha!  no chance. You are the support structure to a swelling womb. You are a fashion plate, entered into the eternally unwinnable game of Frump or Slut?.

There is no privacy in a pregnant body, as any woman whos been pregnant can tell you. All the judgement and intrusion that is generally aimed at women is redoubled against those gestating: everything you eat is up for judgement, everything you do is an occasion for tutting, and anyone who fancies it feels entitled to lay a hand on your belly because, hey, is it even your belly anymore when youre growing a person in there?

The female body is an amazing thing. In any reasonable society, the press and public would be falling back in awe from Amal Clooney, not rushing up to prod her. What other sane response could there be to someone who is not only taking on Isis, but doing it while her body simply gets on with assembling new humans, cell by cell? But we do not live in a reasonable society. We live in a world where a womans body is never her own. In representing Murad, Clooney is taking on the most horrifically violent manifestation of that truth; in her treatment by the press, Clooney is subject to its most facile form.
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This week a father was jailed for 21 years for sexual offences including the long-term sexual abuse of his two daughters. The abuse of his younger daughter began when she confided in him that she might be a lesbian. It is reported that the father decided to rape his daughter to prove that sex with men was better.

For those of us who work with asylum-seeking women, this story of the rape of a lesbian or bisexual woman is all too familiar. Corrective rape, as it is chillingly known, is a common experience for women in countries where homosexuality is illegal or culturally disapproved of.

No wonder such women seek asylum in the UK, a country which in some ways flies the gay flag with pride, allowing same-sex marriage and protecting LGBT people with laws prohibiting discrimination. However, rather than being protected and given sanctuary when they arrive in the UK, so many of these women end up locked up indefinitely in Yarls Wood Immigration Removal Centre in Bedfordshire.

Yarls Wood has been engulfed in controversy since it opened. A 2015 report found that women held there were routinely being watched in intimate situations by male guards. In the same year, a Channel 4 News report filmed guards making racist and sexist comments about detainees. Being locked up is in itself traumatic, and levels of mental distress and self-harm there are high. In 2015 the then chief inspector of prisons, Nick Hardwick, singled out Yarls Wood as a place of national concern.

Yarls Wood "national concern"

Research conducted in 2014 found that 72 per cent of women in Yarls Wood have experienced rape; 18 per cent of respondents were lesbians.

Indeed, as a Yarls Wood befriender, I have met many women who have suffered sexual violence. Almost half of the women I have visited since 2015 have been lesbian or bisexual. All of those women had come to the UK to escape persecution in their home countries.

Corrective rape is a common trauma for such women. Grace, who grew up in Uganda, became aware of being a lesbian as a teenager. While at university in Kampala she started a relationship with a woman, Rachel. After attending a student LGBT demonstration, Grace said she was arrested and raped and tortured by prison guards, who taunted her about being a lesbian.

Detention centre publicised safety award just 24 hours after man died in custody Show all 1 1 /1 Detention centre publicised safety award just 24 hours after man died in custody Detention centre publicised safety award just 24 hours after man died in custody 368137.bin PA

Having fled to the UK on a student visa she claimed asylum and was initially refused. She ended up detained in Yarls Wood. Of her time there, Grace said: It triggered flashbacks of Luzira prison [in Uganda], and I was shouting and crying, saying there were men in the room, that they would rape me.

You do not have your freedom, you are powerless, you do not know what will happen next. So my terror kept coming back and I became suicidal. When I was on suicide watch they would put male officers to watch me. They would watch me all night, right by my bed.

Grace spent five months locked up in Yarls Wood. With the help of the charity Medical Justice and other organisations she was able to amass enough evidence to be granted refugee status. But why was Grace detained in Yarls Wood in the first place?

Let us be horrified by the thought of a lesbian or bisexual woman being raped due to her sexuality. But let us also remember that we routinely detain, disbelieve and often deport such women  sometimes to their death. If we really are to be an LGBT-friendly nation, this has to stop.

Sarah Cope is the acting communications executive at Women for Refugee Women. Names in this piece have been changed to preserve anonymity.

Graces story, as well as that of other refugee women, is detailed in Women for Refugee Womens report, The Way Ahead: an asylum system without detention.
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A confession: Ive no secret sources at the CIA, know nobody at the NSA to treat for coffee, and have yet to receive an encrypted file from anyone at one of the 15 or so other US intelligence agencies.

Some people do, though. And its their stories that have dominated the media in recent weeks  a steady drip of anecdote and innuendo, with some supporting facts and an attendant caveat, suggesting the 45th US president may be an agent of Moscow; the so-called Siberian Candidate.

For millions, such stories are a welcome balm. However disturbing and treasonous a proposition they represent, to supporters of Hillary Clinton, they assuage the still sharp pain of defeat.

Mr Trump has dismissed claims of having links to Russia (Getty)

It enables them to explain the seemingly inexplicable; how did perhaps the most prepared presidential candidate in US political history lose to the host of The Apprentice?

There are two problems with this. Firstly, to date, there remains no evidence that the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government to influence the election.

Yes the Russians may have wanted to sway its outcome, just as the US and the UK have for decades  and with greater impact  interfered with elections around the world. Yet there is no evidence they succeeded.

Yes Trump said very early on that he wanted to reset the strategic relationship with Russia, a relationship he believed had been hampered by a Cold War mind-set. He said it would be better for everyone if he got along with Vladimir Putin.

And yes members of his team may have have met Russian officials in the run up to the election, something diplomats say is common for all prospective administrations. And indeed, some of those officials may have failed to come clean about those meetings or conversations, an error or miscalculation that cost General Michael Flynn his job as National Security Adviser.

 Trump admits to relationship with Putin in resurfaced video

There is lots we dont know about Trumps relationship with Russia, and more may come out. Releasing his tax returns would go some way to providing us with a better insight. But for now, there remains no evidence  at least not evidence that has been made public  that might lead to Trumps impeachment.

The point was underscored by James Clapper, who served as the director of the National Intelligence Agency for Barack Obama and who stood down on 20 January.

Appearing on NBC's Meet the Press on March 5, Clapper, who appears to have had a testy relationship with Trump, was asked directly if intelligence existed of improper contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.

We did not include any evidence in our report, Clapper replied. He continued: I say, our, thats NSA, FBI and CIA, with my office, the Director of National Intelligence, that had anything, that had any reflection of collusion between members of the Trump campaign and the Russians.

His interviewer persisted: I understand that. But does it exist?"

Not to my knowledge, said Clapper, who conceded it was possible that evidence had emerged since he stood down in January.

In the absence of genuine evidence, for journalists trying to make sense of the chaos of first 50 days of the Trump administration, Clappers comments may the best we have for now.

The second reason the Siberian Candidate theory is so dangerous is that it is a distraction from more pressing issues. Based on Trumps first weeks in office, it is clear he is a threat to many things that Americans value  the independence of the press, Americas history of welcoming refugees, the primacy of science, protection of the environment.

Trumps rhetoric is based on bigotry and divisiveness and it has already proved toxic. Reports of hate crimes against Muslims and other minorities are on rise, the hard won rights of the LGBTQ community may be threatened.

For people who care about protecting such values, the challenge is huge.

The Russia obsession also distracts from something else  the genesis of Trumps route to the Oval Office. Many factors led to the New York tycoons victory over the Democrats  complacency on the part of Clinton, tactical errors by her campaign team, and the dramatic 11th-hour intervention of FBI director James Comey who announced the probe into her use of a private email server had been reopened.

But beyond that, Trump tapped into an anger and desperation of millions of Americans, many of them from small towns, many of them white, many without college degrees, but who decided the brash billionaire was their best chance.

In the same way that many people in Britain who voted to leave the EU felt they had little to lose by leaving, so millions of Americans believed Trump was the best shot at generating jobs in parts of the country that had suffered from globalisation. Some may have been attracted by the harsh language of his immigration stance, but hundreds of thousands of decent, hard-working people believed he was worth a roll of the dice.

To believe that Trumps journey to the White House started in Moscow, rather than in places such as Weirton, West Virginia, or East Liverpool, Ohio, is an insult to those people.

And for those opposed to Trump, the longer they refuse to see where his victory came from, the harder it will be to stop him winning in four years.
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Well it finally happened: the announcement to repeal and replace Obamacare was made with much fanfare and thunderous applause resembling a Saturday night frat party.

The reverse Robin Hood Trumpcare will adversely impact low- and middle-income segments of the population  including a majority of Trump supporters  in favour of large tax breaks for corporations and insurance companies. It will also defund Planned Parenthood and eliminate abortion coverage.

The Republican proposal retains Obamacares requirement that insurers cover people with pre-existing conditions and allows children below the age of 26 to be included in their parents health plan, but the revenue-generating individual mandate to buy insurance and associated fines has been replaced by a confusing set of age-based tax credits. As someone ruefully observed, this is like throwing a 6ft rope to rescue someone trapped in a 20ft well.

Unsurprisingly, Trump has reneged on his big campaign promises: health insurance for everybody with coverage that would be much less expensive and much better".

Its a sad testimony that the greatest country in the world fails to offer the most basic entitlement to its citizens of universal health care for all  a cradle-to-grave coverage offered my most European countries and our cousins to the north. This could dramatically lower healthcare costs by eliminating insurance company overheads and profits and dramatically lower pharmaceutical drug prices. It is obscene to continue to allow insurance companies to profit from peoples sickness.

Tejinder Uberoi

Los Altos, California

There are European countries are doing their fair share for refugees

The UN human rights chief isnt entirely right in stating that political leaders are showing chilling indifference to the plight of refugees. The UN estimates that the global population of forcibly displaced people has surpassed the entire population of the UK.

Poor and small countries like Lebanon and Jordan have taken more than their fair share of refugees on behalf of the international community. Their health and education services, energy structures and economies are struggling to cope with the huge burdens of refugees.

The UN Refugee Agency would be better advised liaising with donor countries, UN agencies and other international organisations to mitigate the worrisome social, environmental and economic constraints; and help forge political solutions that end conflicts and persecution that drive mass displacement and migration.

Dr Munjed Farid al Qutob

London NW2

Remembering the lives lost in Iraq and Afghanistan

The memorial unveiled by the Queen last week dedicated to the 682 servicemen and women who lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan between 1990 and 2015 is a worthy and valuable gesture to the British people.

The sight of so much human life being wasted is proof of the idiocy of mankind and especially that portion which is in authority.

It would seem, therefore, that this memorial will stand for generations as a reminder to many of the extent the masters of authority will go to further their ignominious geopolitical aims with stark regard for the number of lives needlessly expended.

Not only the lives lost in their own forces but also the immeasurably more lives lost, military and especially civilian, in the wretched countries they invaded to inhumanely further those geopolitical aims.

It might also remind us in perpetuity of the turmoil they left behind and particularly how Isis, inevitably perhaps, arose from the ashes.

William Burns

Edinburgh

I should be allowed to vote as a Scot, even though I live in England

The Cabinet Office has promised expats a say on how their country is governed  a vote. Thats wonderfully democratic for those expats who will now get to vote even though they have lived outside the UK for more than 15 years.

So can the Cabinet Office explain to me why I, as a Scot currently residing in England, was deprived of the right to vote in the referendum to decide my nations future? I am dependent on Scotland for my public sector pension and I ought to have a say in the countrys direction. Why do I not have a vote in determining the Scottish government? Will I be enfranchised for the next referendum? These are questions the Cabinet Office must address, if only for the sake of consistency.

Brian Mathieson

Plymouth

Why is telling women to be careful blaming the victim?

Recently I used a car park which displayed a large sign urging me not to leave valuables on display. The following day in a station concourse I read a notice which warned that pickpockets and other opportunist thieves operate in that area.

Are these not scandalous examples of blaming the victim? I should be able to leave my iPad and SatNav wherever I find most convenient, without people stealing them.

Ven Paddy Benso, archdeacon of Hereford

Hereford

We should have another Brexit vote

British law states that at least every five years there shall be a general election when the people have a chance to change their minds.

Should they not then, after a while, have a chance to change a decision made at a referendum?

Patrick Streeter

London E16
Alan Hughes at the launch of the new Conrad Dublin in Earlsfort Terrace. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Alan Hughes has said he struggled to grasp his lines during the filming of his debut appearance on TG4 soap opera Ros na Run.

The TV3 presenter admitted he did not have a flair for the Irish language in secondary school which made memorising the script very difficult indeed ahead of his role in the soap.

Speaking to the Irish Star's Chic magazine, Alan said his teachers would be shocked to see him on the Spiddal-based drama as he was so terrible at Irish in secondary school.

The Ireland AM star said his try at acting was a far cry from his role on the morning talk show, and said it was interesting to do something so outside of his comfort zone.

"After 16 years of live TV where you only get one chance to do something, this was totally different. It was so funny because we did this scene over and over again, and by the eighth take I was going 'Oh s**t, this is my fault' but they kept reassuring me there was a boom in the shot or a door banging. Any excuse to make me feel better," he said.

After finally nailing his lines, the actor said he is anticipating his appearance in the show and joked that he feels an Irish Film and Television Award coming his way.

Expand Expand Previous Next Close Alan Hughes and Karl Broderick married in a secret ceremony in September Happy holidays: Alan Hughes and Karl Broderick are heading for Sri Lanka. Photo: Brian McEvoy / Facebook

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"I feel an IFTA Coming on! I'd never say no [top returning to soapland]. You see a lot of people who have done TV end up in soaps," he said.

Meanwhile, the presenter has just returned from Sri Lanka, where he celebrated his honeymoon with husband Karl Broderick. The couple tied the knot in a low key ceremony in Powerscourt Hotel in September, six years after their 2011 civil partnership.

"Nobody knew we were doing it. We only told our families while we were on the way there," he said.
There were some intruders in the background Credit: BBC

The grandmother of the children who interrupted their dad during a live broadcast for BBC World News on Friday has said the siblings' television debut "was hilarious".

Professor Robert Kelly was being interviewed on BBC about the impeachment of South Korean president Park Geun-hye, when his daughter Marion (4) and son James, nine months, bounded into the room in a clip that quickly went viral internationally.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Ellen Kelly, the mum of the American professor, said the children must have assumed their dad was speaking to their grandparents and rushed into the room to have a chat.

"Robert usually Skypes with us from his home office, which is where he did the interview.

"The kids probably heard voices coming from the computer and assumed it was us.

"It was just hilarious."

Professor Kelly's mum, who lives in Cleveland, Ohio, said she hopes the clip doesn't overshadow her son's career as a respected expert in Asian politics.

"Life happens. The lesson is to lock the door."
In the late 1920s, the aviator, adventurer, war hero and occasional film-maker Merian C Cooper was wandering the canyons of midtown Manhattan when he looked up, saw a plane flying over a skyscraper and had a kind of vision. What Cooper saw was a giant ape on top of the building, swatting away war planes like they were wasps and terrorising passers-by below. It was Kong, though the name and the back-story would be added later.

King Kong was a monster hit in the spring of 1933, a sequel followed, then the giant ape was sidelined for several decades by Hitler, Stalin and the Cold War. In the 1960s the Japanese got hold of him, and Toho Studios pumped out two cheerfully trashy Kong films that horrified his creator. And had Cooper still been alive to comment, he'd doubtless have had a thing or two to say about Dino de Laurentis's rather camp and excessive 1976 Kong blockbuster.

In 2005, Peter Jackson treated the great Hollywood monster with the respect he deserved, using astonishing special effects to create a Kong that looked, behaved and sounded like a real gorilla. But Jackson tends to be over-earnest - he managed to take Lord of the Rings seriously for God's sake - and his King Kong lacked the brassy B-movie charm of the original.

Kong: Skull Island, on the other hand, embraces its schlocky origins with aplomb. Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts, the film wittily combines the Kong story with the mood and aesthetics of the Vietnam War, and the result is a giddy but hugely enjoyable cross between a Godzilla picture and Apocalypse Now.

An uncharted island has been discovered in South East Asian waters, and two Washington wonks (John Goodman, Jing Tian) persuade their politicial superior to green-light a secret expedition. It's 1973, America's disastrous campaign in Vietnam is winding down, and so a crack helicopter combat team led by Lieutenant Colonel Preston Packard (Samuel L Jackson) is seconded to the expedition, along with a British SAS captain, James Conrad (Tom Hiddleston), and an intrepid photojournalist called Mason Weaver (Brie Larson).

They fly towards the mist-shrouded Skull Island not knowing quite what to expect, although with a name like that they really should have.

Refreshingly, Kong appears as soon as they get there, knocking helicopters out of the sky and treading on survivors. He's the island's apex predator, and views all intruders as an existential threat. Colonel Packard loses half his unit and becomes obsessed with killing Kong. But that won't be easy, and meanwhile there are plenty of other things to worry about, from hostile natives to a particularly nasty species of extant carnivorous dinosaurs.

A very decent cast includes a typically quirky turn from John C Reilly, playing a pilot who crashed on the island in the 1940s and thinks World War Two is still on. And while Samuel L Jackson's scenery-chewing soldier is the villain of the piece, Tom Hiddleston and Brie Larson are the ones who begin to realise that the ape is no mindless behemoth, especially when Kong takes a bit of a shine to Larson's character. And who can blame him?

Kong: Skull Island never makes the mistake of taking itself too seriously: it feels like a B-movie that was given a huge budget by accident and knew exactly what to do with it. The Vietnam idea is a terrific one, giving the film a ready-made aesthetic that intentionally recalls a dozen or so 1970s and 80s war movies. There are lots of jokes too, about that war, Nixon's America and the ineptness of US ultramontanism.

But in the end, all Kong movies stand or fall on their special-effects, and this one's are fantastic. This Kong seems bigger, grumpier than ever, and he and his dinosaur foes are rendered in breathtaking detail, especially during a terrific climactic monster battle. Kong may have harder battles ahead, as the producers are already planning a sequel co-starring his old enemy Godzilla. I'd watch that.

Kong: Skull Island

(12A, 118mins)

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4 Stars

Films coming soon...

Beauty and the Beast (Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Josh Gad); Get Out (Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford, Catherine Keener); Personal Shopper (Kristen Stewart, Lars Eidinger); The Salesman (Shahab Hosseini).
Bernie Kerridge, who as a child was in the Tuam Mothers and Babies Home, protesting outside the Bon Secours Hospital in Galway following the scandal. Photo: Hany Marzouk

The religious order at the centre of the Tuam babies burial scandal has been paid 43.5m over the past 10 years by the private hospital group it runs.

Accounts for Bon Secours Health System Ltd reveal the payments were made to Bon Secours Sisters Ireland in respect of the leasing of buildings and interest on loans advanced by the order. The payments mean that, unlike many other religious orders in Ireland, the Bon Secours Sisters are in rude financial health.

However, the order has refused to say what it does with the money paid to it by the hospital group.

Its finances have come under sharp focus in recent days, with calls made in the Dail and the Seanad for the order's resources to be made available to survivors of the Tuam home and relatives of those who died.

The order operated a mother and baby home in the Co Galway town between 1925 and 1961. Historian Catherine Corless believes the remains of almost 800 children may have been buried in underground chambers at the property.

Bon Secours Health System Ltd has private hospitals in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Tralee, as well as a private clinic in Cavan and a care village in Cork.

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Its most recent set of accounts, for 2015, showed a payment of just under 4m was made to the order that year in respect of the leasing of buildings and interest on loans.

The accounts also revealed the hospital group generated a profit of 2.3m.

The order refused to discuss its finances when questions on the issue were posed by the Irish Independent. "The Bon Secours have no comment to make on the financial questions," it said in a statement.

The refusal to comment means it remains unclear whether the order would consider making a financial contribution to survivors of the Tuam home or their relatives.

It is also unclear if the order will consider assisting financially with anticipated efforts to identify the remains discovered by the Mother and Baby Home Commission in Tuam.

The order said it was co-operating with the commission, but declined to go into specifics.

"The order is co-operating fully with it, which means that we cannot comment on any aspect of it as to do so would be to commit an offence," the statement said.

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Notes in the Bon Secours Health System Ltd financial accounts indicate there are plans for significant investment in the group of hospitals in the coming years. Some 9m was spent upgrading facilities in 2015 and further investment of up to 150m is planned by 2020.

The hospital group catered for almost 100,000 patients in 2015 and employed 350 medical consultants and over 2,700 additional personnel.

In the Dail this week, People Before Profit TD Brid Smith called for the order to be disbanded and its resources used to compensate families involved and to provide memorial services for the children buried in Tuam and other homes.

In the Seanad, Sinn Fein senator Maire Devine said profits from the hospital group "need to be given back to the Irish people and to the women and children who were so dreadfully treated".

However, Maeve O'Rourke, the legal advisor to the Clann, a group assisting people give evidence to the commission, said compensation was not on its agenda at present.

Ms O'Rourke said access to records and archives was the key concern. "What people want right now is access to information and there are major concerns about the secrecy surrounding the commission of investigation," she said.
A star witness in the upcoming Peter Charleton Inquiry has been served with disciplinary action by Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan in a move that has caused deep concern among the force.

Superintendent David Taylor was yesterday informed he is to face an internal investigation into allegations he leaked information to the media.

The news emerged during a tumultuous week for the garda force, which is now frantically preparing for potential serious reputational damage as a result of the evidence set to be heard at the inquiry.

As revealed by the Irish Independent yesterday, Mrs O'Sullivan is to appoint some of her close associates - two of whom are retired from the force - to an internal unit tasked with being the liaison with Judge Charleton.

Her associates include retired assistant commissioner Mick O'Sullivan, former chief superintendent Brendan Mangan and Detective Superintendent Tony Howard, who is a senior member of the Organised Crime Unit and the right-hand man of Det Chief Supt, Jim McGowan, the Commissioner's husband.

Despite the unrest caused by the appointments, Mrs O'Sullivan was last night showing no signs of backing down. There is, however, major question marks over how she could secure the appointments without first consulting the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER).

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The wage bills incurred by the two retired officers could be substantial - a tab that will be picked up by the taxpayer. It's understood, however, that justice officials did inform garda management in recent days they could put in the appropriate preparations for the Charleton Inquiry.

But whether Mrs O'Sullivan will survive until the outcome of that inquiry is another matter entirely.

For this newspaper can today reveal Sergeant Maurice McCabe - the key whistleblower at the centre of the inquiry - has written to Taoiseach Enda Kenny and the Policing Authority to demand the Commissioner steps aside.

Sgt McCabe, who was allegedly subjected to a smear campaign by senior garda management, has already told Tanaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald that Mrs O'Sullivan's departure from the post is a necessity.

Sources say he has yet to receive any meaningful reply from any of the aforementioned players.

But now, as the inquiry steps up a gear, the man who admitted involvement in the McCabe smear campaign has been put under yet another investigation. It must have been a case of deja vu for Supt David Taylor, given that he faced the same allegation in 2015 - before being cleared by the DPP last month.

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Garda management claims it was merely following protocol by initiating an internal probe after the DPP found there wasn't sufficient evidence to prosecute Supt Taylor, who was recently re-appointed to his position following a 23-month suspension.

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Supt Taylor's evidence is arguably the most important Judge Charleton will hear.

When Supt Taylor decided to make a protected disclosure, he took the biggest gamble of his life. Who knows whether it will pay off. One man who has staked his political reputation on the garda issue is Independent TD Mick Wallace.

He is in no doubt what the Government should do now if, as he says, "justice has any chance of prevailing".

"If the Government has any appetite for the truth, it doesn't make any sense for them to leave the Commissioner in position."
Judge Jacqueline Linnane heard that Mr Butterly (70) had paid only 1,500 off his mortgage debt last year and just 1,000 in 2015 (Stock image)

Colm Butterly, one of the Butterly brothers who owned the ill-fated Stardust Night Club, is fighting to save his home in leafy Clontarf, Dublin, being taken by his mortgage company.

Barrister Shaula Connaughton-Deeny told the Circuit Civil Court she had been instructed by EBS Mortgage Finance Limited to seek possession of Mr Butterly's family home at Seacourt, Clontarf, Dublin 3.

Judge Jacqueline Linnane heard that Mr Butterly (70) had paid only 1,500 off his mortgage debt last year and just 1,000 in 2015.

Ms Connaughton-Deeny, who appeared with Ronan Daly Jermyn solicitors, for the bank, said Mr Butterly had borrowed 203,200 from the EBS Building Society in December 1996 and had taken out a further loan of 240,000 in August 2008. Both loans had been secured on the house and the total debt now due on both loans is more than 160,000.

She told the court that this figure included arrears in excess of 80,000 and increasing. Mr Butterly had told the bank he was out of work.

Mr Butterly said he had an arrangement to repay the debt at 1,012 a month and had done so up until August 2012 when a receiver had been appointed by AIB to his group of companies, including Patrick Butterly and Sons Limited (in receivership) and Butterly.

He said he had been unable to keep up monthly payments following the loss of income. He had no job but was now engaging in some consultancy work and intended renewing repayments to the bank.

Judge Linnane asked how he proposed entering into some repayment arrangement with the bank when he did not have a job. The judge suggested he look at the matter realistically and consider selling the property.

A solicitor for Mr Butterly, who said he would be seeking to come off record for the defendant, told the court that there was still substantial equity in the property being sought by the mortgage company and asked for an adjournment to allow Mr Butterly engage with the bank.

Judge Linnane said there had already been two judgment mortgages registered against the same property in 2012 and 2014 by another financial institution and clearly he had other debts.

Judge Linnane said she would adjourn the proceedings peremptorily against the defendant until early May to see if some realistic arrangement could be entered into.
Anne Shortall who was beaten to death with a hammer

We have been accustomed to dry as dust accounts in the courtroom - and of terrible events being distilled down into mere mechanics.

But as the lead detective working on the disappearance of Anne Shortall (47), Detective Sergeant Fergus O'Brien's narrative on events which transpired was so vivid and distressing, we might have been observing the events with our own eyes.

A hush hung in courtroom six and defendant Roy Webster (39) wept quietly in his seat.

He wiped his eyes as Det Sgt O'Brien outlined how distraught Mr Webster's family had been as they gathered in the kitchen after he admitted that, yes, he had hurt Anne Shortall. He denies a charge of murder.

"He's crying," whispered some of the Shortall family in the courtroom.

Mr Webster took some time to gather himself and then sat with his head hanging low as he continued to listen intently to Det Sgt O'Brien's compelling words.

Mr Webster had told gardai that he is a member of the Masonic Lodge in Wicklow - describing it "basically a charitable organisation".

He had worked at his own fitted kitchen company, Ashwood Kitchens.

Part of his distress that day was in telling gardai how hard he had worked to build the business up - but mostly he was concerned for his children and the future.

He had admitted to gardai that he had had "a fling" with Ms Shortall "once at Christmas". She had been trying to get in contact with him on Facebook, but he had declined.

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She knew he was a married man with two children, he explained to gardai.

Det Sgt O'Brien described to the jury how they had taken Mr Webster's van for forensic examination after he had said that he had met Ms Shortall on April 3, 2015, the evening she disappeared.

It was Good Friday.

Det Sgt O'Brien rang Mr Webster's land line to ask him if he could point out the exact spot at which Ms Shortall had got out of his van.

Mr Webster had asked him to come out to the house because he had no transportation.

His wife Sinead came in with the couple's six-week-old baby and said she wanted to ask the detective something.

She had been quite annoyed at what was appearing on social media and the fact that a photograph of Roy had appeared in the paper that day, he said.

Det Sgt O'Brien said he had been trying to calm her down when Mrs Webster turned to Roy, still with the baby in her arms and asked her husband if he had anything to say that he was not saying.

Mrs Webster was sitting with the baby in her arms at the table, he explained.

"She turned to Roy and said 'Roy, have you anything to say that you are not saying?' And he said 'no', and she said 'if you have something to say tell us now'.

"She spoke softly to him, she said 'did you hurt her?' He hesitated, his head was down, he started to cry," Det Sgt O'Brien said.

"I did," Mr Webster had said. Mrs Webster had again challenged him and he confessed to hitting Ms Shortall with a hammer.

"Where is she?" Det Sgt O'Brien had asked then.

"In the workshop," Mr Webster replied.

"In our workshop?" asked his wife and he said: "Yes."

"At that stage, we all went quiet and Sinead fell to her knees and she may have let out a sound like a gasp and she still had her child in her arms," Det Sgt O'Brien said.

"Roy at that stage started crying uncontrollably, sobbing heavily for a period of time, gulps of crying and then when that ended he started talking profusely."

Paper was sent for, in order to transcribe Mr Webster's words.

He said he had hit her with a hammer - describing it as having been "a mistake that is after destroying so many lives".

"I was trying to keep it together for everyone but she had me against the wall. Everything I had worked so hard for.

"She was just threatening and threatening," he told them.

A brooding silence hung in court as Det Sgt O'Brien described how they had sat around the table, "just saying nothing".

Mrs Webster then made a couple of phone calls and her husband started crying again, "sobbing quietly, talking about his children and his future".

His parents, who lived next door, came in and Mr Webster took his six-week-old son, bottle-feeding him.

His sister then arrived and was "screaming", said Det Sgt O'Brien, adding that Mr Webster had apologised to his parents.

Other members of the accused's family arrived, all distraught, he said.

Throughout this account, the defendant had begun to weep quietly in court.

Later, Brendan Grehan, counsel for the Defence, put it to Det Sgt O'Brien that it had been "hugely emotional".

"A hugely emotional scene, judge," Det Sgt O'Brien agreed, adding that Mr Webster had been "sobbing relentlessly".

"There was a six-week-old baby in the mix having to be fed," said Mr Grehan.

"And his wife had a diabetic incident where she had to inject herself."

Det Sgt O'Brien agreed.

By now, the defendant had recovered his composure and sat gazing into the middle distance as the court heard of the discovery of Ms Shortall's body behind some boards.
Excitement was in the air at Collins Barracks this morning as over a hundred students set off across Europe for Jailbreak 2017.

116 students are currently making their way across Europe to the unknown Location X, gathering clues to where the final destination as they go along.

Now in its fifth year, Jailbreak is Irelands largest student-run fundraiser.

To participate in the event, each team of two had to raise 400 in aid of the event charity partners Amnesty International and St. Vincent de Paul.

So far 44,000 has been raised in at of the two designated charities.

The pairs are not allowed to use the money raised prior to their departure this morning and instead have to raise money as they travel towards Location X.

Updates from each team are being tweeted throughout the weekend from Jailbreaks Twitter account. The first team to make it to Location X will be deemed winners of the event.
Mario Rosenstock as Michael Flatley at Haven's charity event with members of the Riverdance team Photo:Mark Condren

Emma Warren lead dancer with Riverdance has some fun with Mario Rosenstock as Michael Flatley at Haven's charity event. Photo:Mark Condren

Carmel Buckley, Yvrose Telfort Ismael, Pierre Richard Ismael, founders of Hope House Haiti and Leslie Buckley, at the Haven Gala Concert 2017at the Convention Centre Dublin Photo: Fergal Phillips

A host of stars have turned out this evening to support Havens recovery work in Haiti in the wake of Hurricane Matthew.

The event comes after Riverdance Director John McColgans eye opening and thought provoking trip to the region last November.

The director wanted to experience the first hand reality of life on the ground and document how the Haitian people are rebuilding their lives following the devastation of the third major natural disaster in Haiti in just six years.

Celebrities who will join Riverdance on stage include Mario Rosenstock, Brian Kennedy, Kila, Roisin O and Patrick Bergin.

The event in Dublins Convention Centre is hosted by MCs Miriam OCallaghan and Brendan OConnor. It aims to raise awareness and support for the Haitian people, in a country which remains one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere.

Meanwhile, Chairman and Founder of Haven, Leslie Buckley, said it is a privilege to welcome the McColgan family to the region.

Mr. Buckley explained how, during the McColgans visit, they had witnessed the gravity of the situation, while greatly aiding recovery efforts by raising awareness through their documentary work.

We aim to create further support, and appeal to the generous Irish public to join us to help the people of Haiti in their recovery, he added.

Havens team has spent the last eight years leading recovery work on the remote island of Ile a Vache, which lay at the eye of Hurricane Matthew, the most powerful hurricane to hit Haiti in over fifty years.

Having focused on the emergency response and successfully preventing the spread of cholera, the team is now focusing on supporting local people to restart their livelihoods, restore their destroyed farms, and rebuild their damaged homes.
Well-known journalist Patricia Danaher has resigned from a regional board of The Ireland Funds in protest at the group's decision to honour US Vice President Mike Pence.

The philanthropic network, which backs Irish-related causes around the world, will host a Washington dinner in honour of Mr Pence next Wednesday.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny is set to be among the attendees at the event.

However, Ms Danaher has described the move as "an appalling error of judgement".

She described Mr Pence as the vice-president of "the most hateful, divisive and destructive administration".

In response, the president and CEO of The Ireland Funds, Kieran McLoughlin, told the Irish Independent it honours the highest ranking Irish- American in the US government every year.

"Over the past 25 years this has included a sitting president, two vice presidents, four speakers of the House and 25 senators and members of Congress," he said.

Past honourees include Ted Kennedy, John McCain, Tim Kaine and George Mitchell.

"The purpose as always is to gather in an non-partisan environment to celebrate Irish-American relations and to advance the case for Ireland," Mr McLoughlin said. More than $500,000 (468,000) will be raised at the dinner.
The scene of the accident

A mother and baby had a miracle escape in Cork after a car ploughed into a parked vehicle which then crushed the infant's buggy against a wooden telegraph pole.

The buggy was partially crushed between the left wing of the parked car and the heavy wooden pole. The six-month-old baby boy suffered head and soft tissue injuries in the incident.

It is understood he was strapped in the buggy at the time as he was being brought home by his mother.

He was rushed to Cork University Hospital (CUH) but is expected to make a full recovery.

However, because he sustained a head injury he is expected to remain in CUH for several days for observation before he is discharged.

The boy's mother was treated at the scene for shock before also being taken to CUH for assessment for minor injuries.

It is understood she hurt her back in the incident.

She is being treated at CUH and is able to stay by her child's bedside.

Gardai are appealing for witnesses to the freak accident last Wednesday to contact them.

The incident occurred shortly before 4pm on the Blackrock Road. It is understood a car skidded out of control and mounted a footpath.

"It really is a miracle that we are not dealing with a tragedy," a Garda source said.

"This could so easily have had a tragic ending."
A Northern Irish mother has claimed that her 10-year-old daughter was attacked by a gang of teenage boys.

Sharon Lindsay told BelfastLive that her daughter was returning from a shop just minutes away from their home in Carrickfergus when a group of students attacked her.

The mother of two claimed that the gang of five or six students from Carrickfergus College gathered around her daughter and punched her in the stomach and verbally abused her.

The incident occurred when the schoolgirl was leaving the shop on Thursday morning at approximately 8:20am.

Sharon claims that the group told her daughter to f**k off before punching her in the stomach.

"Then one of them dragged her by the wrist and tried to drag her round the back of the shop. Now I can't even think about why they would have done that, but thankfully she was able to get away, she said.

Sharon stated that she daughter did not inform her of the incident when she returned home and that she was only made aware of it when her daughter reported the event at school.

"It was when she got into school that she completely broke down and told the principal who then informed me.

"When she called me I can tell you I've never moved as quickly out of my house, I was absolutely horrified, I was shocked, shaking with anger, not at my daughter obviously but at these kids. Who does that to a young child?"

Sharon reported the incident to the police when she became aware of it. She said that they could identify the boys as students of Carrickfergus College because of their uniform.

A PSNI spokesman confirmed: "On Thursday 9th March, it was reported to police that at approximately 8.20am a young female was assaulted in the Castlemara Drive area of Carrickfergus.

"The female victim did not receive any injuries as a result of the incident, however she was left badly shaken. Enquiries into this incident are currently ongoing."

Independent.ie contacted Carrickfergus College for a comment.
A Fine Gael Councillor has come in for criticism after an insensitive tweet about a boy with autism who spoke on The Late Late Show last night.

Hughie Malone, a boy with autism spoke on The Late Late Show last night about the symptoms of autism and how those with autism should be treated.

During Malones appearance on the show last night, Fine Gael Cllr. Brian Murphy took to Twitter and wrote: Some kid on Late Late Show just said he wants to fly planes into buildings when he grows up #LateLateShow

He then went on to blame what he said on his depression over the Ireland loss in yesterdays Six Nations rugby match.

@brianmurphycllr Tone deaf. Word of advice. Delete your original tweet. Go to bed and come up with a more sensible and thought out response in the morning.  Richard Chambers (@newschambers) March 10, 2017

The Kid on the Late Late was a great Kid, I just quoted him from the Late Late, did not even know that he was joking or that he had autism  Cllr Brian Murphy (@brianmurphycllr) March 11, 2017

My apologies for what I said about the young kid on the Late Late, I was depressed over the Ireland loss and just flicked on at the end.

Cllr. Murphy has since retracted and deleted both of the above tweets. Screenshots of the original tweets are still available to view on Twitter.

Independent.ie contacted Cllr. Murphy for a statement to which he responded: My reasoning was I did not even know he had autism, I only flicked on the late late a second beforehand after the rugby, I think he might have been telling a joke anyway.

At 12:55am, he tweeted: The kid on the Late Late was a great kid, I just quoted him from the Late Late, did not even know that he was joking or that he had autism.

@brianmurphycllr If you want to be in politics when you grow up you need to start checking the facts before tweeting...see @realDonaldTrump  Mark O'Doherty (@MarkODoherty66) March 11, 2017

@brianmurphycllr that's it Brian you just react away without context or knowing the facts there like a good lad.  Gordon Gaffney (@irishengteacher) March 11, 2017

He went on to tweet a number of Twitter accounts including RTE News, Trinity Young Fine Gael and Fine Gael Mayo and stated that he never abused anybody.

Twitter users were quick to hit back at Cllr Murphys apology, with users calling him immature and ignorant.

I dont get sincerity in this. You referred to him as some kid & tweeted without facts & blamed rugby. How immature, one user wrote.

Hughie Malone took his time on The Late Late Show to highlight how people should perceive and deal with autistic people.

From what Ive seen of it, theres just so many different symptoms that are put under autism and they whole thing is that one person with autism could have combination of symptoms that would mean it would be absolutely impossible to prevent them from going outside and yelling in public, he said.

Another person could not be convinced no matter what to talk to someone. Its just such a blanket statement.

When Ryan Tubridy asked Malone if it annoys him when people blanket group those with autism, he said: I think that does annoy me because some people just take the most common symptoms of autism and say thats autism.

A lot of people live their entire lives having autism and never get a diagnosis because a lot of people dont want to admit they have autism, he said.
An Irish DJ was minutes away from being caught up in an axe attack in a German train station last week.

Meghann Scully and her boyfriend were due to arrive in Dusseldorf at the same time as an axe-wielding man went on a rampage, leaving seven people injured.

The couple missed their train from Cologne following a platform change that they were unaware of and had to board the following train a half an hour later.

The train that they were on stopped just short of the platform and the doors didnt open.

Speaking to independent.ie, Meghann said: "We were just there waiting to get off and nothing was happened and we were like this is a bit weird and the doors just werent opening.

"An announcer came on and it was all in German but we cant speak the language. In my head I didnt really know what was going on. I lived in London for a year and a half and trains were always stopping due to electrical faults and all those thing," she said.

"While we were waiting for the doors to open a load of ambulances went by and I thought that was a bit unusual but I thought nothing of it again."

After a period of time sitting on the tracks, the announcer came back on. It was at this point that Meghann asked an English speaking German passenger what the problem was.

Sitting on a train at Dusseldorf Station for over an hour and a half! Reports of attacks inside the station!  Meghann Scully (@Meghann_Scully) March 9, 2017

We are being taken back to another station as we cannot exit praying for those inside https://t.co/8hnWq6TQOn  Meghann Scully (@Meghann_Scully) March 9, 2017

Made it to our hotel after being dropped 20km away from Dusseldorf! We are staying right beside the station! Cops still at the scene! pic.twitter.com/lmgY4FQsMu  Meghann Scully (@Meghann_Scully) March 9, 2017

"He told me that something bad has happened. I just threw on my mobile data and I checked Twitter and there it was, it was all unfolding inside," she said.

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"I couldnt believe it and then a bit of panic came over me because I didnt even know if we were safe on the train.

"I was with my boyfriend and he kept me calm but if I was on my own there I think I would have gotten really upset because we didnt know anything and without any English announcements, not being told anything and being left sitting inside on that train for over two hours I was really nervous," she said.

Meghann, a DJ for Spin South West, and her boyfriend were kept on the train for two and a half hours before being diverted to a town 20km away.

From the town, they got a taxi back to their hotel in Dusseldorf, which was just 300 yards away from the train station.

"By the time we got back there, it was really quite there wasnt many people around at all. There was news reporters arriving. There were still a lot of guards and ambulances around the place.

"Instead of going down and having a look we went straight to our hotel because we wanted to stay indoors as there was talks that there was a second man at large with an axe as well," she added.

The pair left Dusseldorf the following morning and Meghann described the atmosphere as unusual because "everything was back to normal as if nothing ever happened".

"In a way I was grateful that we missed that first train because we would have been there when it actually happened and it would have been really horrible to see and be caught up in it all," she said.

"It was just so frightening to think that was happening in the station when we were just outside on the tracks," she said.
This is the dramatic moment police swooped on a house in a seaside town as the manhunt for a dangerous fugitive continued.

Heavily armed officers forced their way into the property in Portrush in the search for missing prisoner Michael Smith.

The 38-year-old - a suspect in a high-profile murder case - went missing earlier this week after being mistakenly released from Maghaberry Prison.

A senior detective said that Smith had "an extensive history of violence", and urged the public not to approach him.

Since then the PSNI has mounted a major search to find him.

On Thursday night the operation moved to Portrush after a tip-off that Smith might be in the town.

The drama unfolded around midnight.

Police moved in after a member of the public believed they had spotted the fugitive earlier that evening.

Officers were quickly at the scene with an unmarked unit deployed to carry out surveillance.

Soon afterwards a squad of armed officers raided the property.

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However, there was no sign of Smith. It is believed to have been a false alarm.

The dramatic scenes were captured by Belfast Telegraph photographer Kevin Scott.

Mr Scott said: "The sound of heavy engine roars echoed through the side streets as three unmarked Audi A6 estate cars carrying the heavily armed officers arrived.

"Within moments the officers had guns drawn and had surrounded the house.

"They were saying: 'Armed police - Michael Smith, come to the door now and you won't be hurt'."

Mr Scott said two occupants of the house - who it later emerged were not linked to Smith in any way - were brought on to the street.

"I heard screaming in the property as the officers at the front door ordered another male and female occupant to the street," he added.

"They were saying to them: 'You won't be hurt, you won't be hurt. Walk this way and show me your hands'. With the occupants on the street the armed response officers advanced on the front room and, room by room, searched for Michael.

"Officers reached the bottom of the stairs before once again challenging Michael, who they believed was present.

"They were saying: 'Armed police - Michael, this is your last chance, we know you are here, come to the top of the stairs'."

Mr Scott said the officers worked their way through the house, before satisfying themselves that the fugitive was not at the address.

"After a full search the officers noted that he was not present at the property," he added.

"Officers began to exit the property before searching a shed and a gas bottle storage unit at the back of the property.

"The operation lasted 15 minutes and officers cleared the scene immediately afterwards."

Smith has been charged with the murder of Stephen Carson, who was shot dead in his Belfast home in front of his partner and nine-year-old son in February 2016.

On Thursday a senior official at the Northern Ireland Prison Service apologised to Mr Carson's family for the blunder.

Ronnie Armour said a "very serious mistake" was made when Smith was allowed to leave Maghaberry to attend a family event on Tuesday.

In a public appeal police described the missing prisoner as "dangerous".

They also urged the public not to approach Smith, who was last seen in the Finaghy area of Belfast at 12.30pm on Tuesday, because of his "extensive history of violence".

An investigation has been launched into how the mistake was made. East Belfast MP Gavin Robinson described Smith's release as a "catastrophic blunder" that "shatters confidence in the justice system".
The annual Liz and Noels Lunch for Chernobyl Children International saw heart wrenching stories of Ukranian children born with disabilities as a result of the nuclear disaster.

A video released at the event told the harrowing story of a young girl called Nastia and her mother who make use of the charitys community care programme.

Nastia was born with a hydrocephalic condition as a result of her mothers exposure to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986.

Nastia underwent a procedure to provide her with a shunt which went radically wrong and caused a major brain infection.

As a result, Nastia was left with severe brain damage which causes her to have several convulsions a day.

The funds raised through events like the annual lunch allow Chernobyl Children International to provide the essential medicine, general care and nursing care for children like Nastia.

The video also displays footage of a one day old baby who was born with just a partially formed heart.

He was expected to only live for a couple of hours. However, Irish doctor Bill Novick and the charitys cardiac team were in Ukraine on the night and managed to save his life.

They worked through the night in shifts to carry out the surgery which they successfully performed.

The team would not have been able to be there were it not for the vital funds raised at Liz and Noels Chernobyl lunch last year.

The annual lunch was hosted by Chernobyl Children International board directors Liz ODonnell and businessman Noel Kelly.

Speaking ahead of the lunch Liz ODonnell said, Adi Roche and Chernobyl Children International are wholly dependent on the support of individuals and corporate donors to sustain their critical lifesaving work.

It would be too easy to dispatch the suffering and unmet needs of those affected by the worst nuclear disaster to history.

For three decades Adi Roche has not only provided medical and humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable children in Belarus and Ukraine she has, through her advocacy, kept the focus on the environmental health and social fallout of the Chernobyl disaster. It is a privilege to support her important work with this event each year, she said.

Appearances were made by Pat Kenny, 2FM broadcaster Dave Fanning, style gurus Lisa Fitzpatrick and Yvonne Connolly, along with Operation Transformations Dr. Ciara Kelly.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny's impatience with the British government surfaced in Brussels after a meeting with Theresa May left him none the wiser about her Brexit plans.

Mr Kenny wanted a nod and wink as to when Mrs May will trigger Article 50 and finally get the formal divorce proceedings under way.

Timing is everything now for the Taoiseach because events of recent weeks saw Fine Gael TDs lose their patience with him.

And yet there is an acceptance that he will lead Ireland into the initial Brexit talks - so the date really matters to him.

"We didn't cause this. We have to put up with the consequences of it," he said yesterday while calling for Britain to make their position clearer.

It was a glimpse of a 'tough talking' Enda that we're likely to see again in the coming week as he tries to shake the tag of 'lame duck' Taoiseach.

Mr Kenny takes off on his farewell tour of the United States today.

Five cities in seven days. If nothing else the itinerary shows the Taoiseach still has the stamina for the job.

Mr Kenny came perilously close to falling on the back of the Garda whistleblower revelations a few weeks ago but managed to buy himself time. That was important.

Had he resigned on the back of a fictional conversation with Katherine Zappone the history books would suggest he was carried out in disgrace.

But by signalling his intention to step down after St Patrick's Day he can walk out with his head held high.

Fine Gael will lavish him with praise, happy in the knowledge they didn't have to push him, and there will be tributes from all sides of Leinster House.

So it will be interesting to watch the Taoiseach's language as he travels across America this week.

Officially his two aims are to highlight Ireland's priorities in the context of Brexit and to make the case of immigration reform.

But with endless speeches to be made Mr Kenny has the opportunity to set the tone for his exit.

Right now there are two ways of reviewing the Kenny era. There's one where a Fine Gael-led Government tried to introduce water charges and now seem set to create a precedent where lawbreakers are not pursued.

And then there is the version where he helped resuscitate a deadbeat Fine Gael party in 2002 and led the country out of recession.

Over the coming days you can expect Mr Kenny to talk a lot about the second image. He will no doubt use opportunities like 'Ireland Day' at Bloomberg Headquarters to talk about the economic recovery.

And then there will be his meeting with Donald Trump, which presents another opportunity to play the tough guy. Whether he embraces the chance to stand up to the bully and risk becoming a victim of Mr Trump's Twitter account remains to be seen.

It might sound like a strange statement but Mr Kenny is most at home being Taoiseach when he's not actually at home.

While we often shudder at his 'dad jokes' and air guitar at home, overseas the Taoiseach works the room in a way that makes everybody comfortable.

The week ahead is diplomatically difficult, but it's also an opportunity to go out on high.
Local residents left teddy bears and flowers as tribute to the victims of the fire in Clondalkin. Photo: Arthur Carron

Victims of Clondalkin fire. (From left clockwise) Holly (3), AnneMarie (27), Biddy (aged in her 30s), Jordan (4) and Paris (2) O'Brien

A safe place to live and a candle of comfort to light the darkness. It's what anyone would want in life. And for Annemarie O'Brien, surely that was no different.

Tucked up in the Cluainin Cronan apartment complex in Clondalkin, run by the Sonas charity for people affected by domestic violence, both Annemarie and her two-year-old daughter Paris were out of harm's way.

At seven months' pregnant, Annemarie was excited about the birth of her first son, who was due before summer.

Her friend Joanne Moorehouse told how the expectant mother was happy when she visited Holles Street just last week.

"She told me she was expecting a boy and was really excited," she said.

"She said she was looking for a house to bring up Paris and the new baby in."

But all of that comfort, all of that security, and all of that hope went up in flames in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Not only did the fire claim the lives of Annemarie and Paris, it also snuffed out the lives of Holly and Jordan O'Brien, aged three and four, and left their mother, Biddy O'Brien, battling for life.

Biddy remains in a critical condition but her family last night said they were hopeful she would recover following surgery. She suffered severe burns in the fire.

Biddy and her children had been visiting Annemarie and Paris. They were first cousins but reared liked sisters.

Expand Close Local residents left teddy bears and flowers as tribute to the victims of the fire in Clondalkin Picture: Arthur Carron / Facebook

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Since the tragedy, family members have spoken of the bond between the two. Photos posted on social media show the two posing together, happy and smiling.

Investigators from An Garda Siochana and Dublin Fire Brigade, who spent two days searching the first floor apartment for forensic clues, now believe a candle burning beside the television was the source of the fire.

If there is a lesson at all to be learned, it is the reminder of how smoke is a silent killer, and can claim its victims even while they sleep in their beds.

From the outside, you would scarcely believe there had been a fire in the apartment at all.

The only visual clues were a blackened window and a soot stain above an air vent.

Sadly, it would later emerge that the wider O'Brien family had been here before and experienced this particular grief, just 17 months earlier counting their dead after the Carrickmines fire that turned a halting site into an inferno.

That blaze left five adults and five children dead. One of the women who died was also pregnant.

In that case, it is believed an oven caused the fire in the unit the victims slept in, and smoke inhalation was the cause of death.

Annemarie was related to the Lynch family, members of which were among the deceased in Carrickmines.

She attended the funerals of all those who perished and friends told how she was deeply affected by the deaths.

And even before that, Annemarie had lost a brother, Andy, in a fire in a prefab behind a Bray church where he was sleeping in January 2011.

Tragedy heaped upon tragedy, tightly bound with bands of sorrow, sodden with tears.

It is hard to find any positives in such circumstances, especially when what happened in Clondalkin took place against the backdrop of International Women's Day - a day when womanhood, sisterhood and motherhood were celebrated worldwide.

And just days earlier, the wider Traveller community were celebrating being recognised as an ethnic minority in Ireland - a move they hope will help Travellers attain human rights and improve living conditions.

But if any positive exists, it is in the reaction from all of society to the anguish and hurt the O'Brien families and the wider Traveller community are suffering.

The residents of Cluainin Cronan are all in short-term accommodation, but people, Traveller and non-Traveller, came in their scores to pay their respects to those who perished in the apartment.

A spokesperson for the Bray Travellers Community Development Group, Jim O'Brien, said the "grieving is absolutely unreal".

Mr O'Brien is also a cousin of Annemarie O'Brien.

"We have seen with our own eyes the expressions of grief from the wider community, and we have acknowledged and embrace that," he told the Irish Independent.

The next step now for the O'Brien families is trying to organise funerals for Annemarie, Paris, Jordan and Holly next Monday, and pray for Biddy, who does not yet know her two children, a woman she grew up with as a sister, and little Paris, are gone.
US forces patrol the edge of Manbij, Syria, a flashpoint between Turkish troops and allied Syrian fighters and US-backed Kurds. Photo: AP

A significant development in the northern Aleppo countryside was the decision of the Kurdish-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) last week to hand over villages west of the city of Manbij to the Syrian government.

This allows for a government-controlled buffer zone, backed by Russian support, to prevent Turkish-backed Euphrates Shield (ES) from attacking Manbij, held by the SDF-affiliated Manbij Military Council (MMC).

ES forces have clashed with the SDF over the last few days, backed by Turkish armour and artillery strikes.

Now as Syrian government forces enter the frontline of west Manbij, they too have come under Turkish fire.

While Turkey has tried to convince the US to end its support for the SDF, arguing that a Turkish operation can capture the last Isil-held stronghold of Raqqa instead, the Kurds not only continue to enjoy US support but a rapport with the Russians as well.

Irish journalist Patrick Cockburn argued this week that "the traditional mix of rivalry and cooperation that has characterised relations between the US and Russia in Syria is shifting towards greater cooperation", which threatens to isolate Turkey if it continues its aggression against the Kurds.

Stephen Oliver Murray

Ballsbridge, Dublin 4

Paddy's Day junkets cost taxpayer

The annual junket pilgrimages of our ministers and other politicians going abroad on St Patrick's Day is once again upon us. These junkets are an expensive joke that have to be funded by the taxpayer.

Of course, those going on such trips will staunchly defend them by saying that they greatly benefit this country. However, there is never any tangible evidence that any jobs or other benefits ever accrue from those specific trips.

It would be nice to know what the itinerary is and brief given to those politicians, and who of importance are they going to meet on their travels and what important announcements will be made by them on their return.

Why are we sending these individuals abroad, as we are already sending IDA executives and representatives from other State agencies abroad on a continual basis to promote Ireland?

In any case, it appears that no other country sends its politicians abroad on its national holiday. American politicians do not go globetrotting on their Independence Day, nor French politicians on Bastille Day.

Of all the years, with the advent of Brexit and all it entails, this St Patrick's Day could be an opportunity lost as we are only sending one minister, Richard Bruton, to England. Junior Minister Finian McGrath is also going to Scotland.

Since the UK is our largest trading partner, and if the Government is serious about its concerns around Brexit, then the Government ought to be concentrating the efforts of our politicians there, instead of having them pointlessly gallivanting around the world to places whose people probably do not even know where Ireland is.

Christy Kelly

Templeglantine, Co Limerick

Greyhound industry allegations

RTE's 'Prime Time' report on March 9 about the Irish greyhound industry was stomach churning. Here is an industry on its knees financially even with the benefit of massive State funding, at a time when many essential public and voluntary services are crying out for support. This subsidisation by the taxpayer continues despite allegations of greyhound doping, race-fixing, managerial incompetence, and cruel abandonment and killing of greyhounds whose racing days are over.

The 'Prime Time' report included a disturbing revelation that a man severely censured in Australia for feeding a live animal to a greyhound (a practice known as "blooding") was able to come to Ireland and become fully involved in our own greyhound industry.

The Irish Greyhound Board defended its efforts to keep the "sport" drug-free, welfare conscious, and generally above reproach, but I was less than impressed by an assurance from one of its officials that there can be "no place in the industry for live animal baiting".

I agree with the sentiment 100pc, but I would point out that hare coursing is defined legally in many countries where it is banned as "live animal baiting". The definition, in my opinion, is an accurate and reasonable one. Video footage posted on YouTube shows hares being mauled, forcibly struck and otherwise injured or terrorised at Irish coursing events.

The 'Prime Time' programme asked if the industry had a future. My question is: given its reputation and track record, does it deserve one?

John Fitzgerald

Callan, Co Kilkenny

Wind turbines: 'put people first'

Communications Minister Denis Naughton left the Fine Gael party because he believed that standing up for the health of Roscommon people who voted for him was more important than his own political career. He strongly opposed the Fine Gael government's decision to close Roscommon Hospital's Accident and Emergency Department and he knew that his opposition would mean that he would have to leave the party.

Mr Naughton now needs that same determination to protect the health and welfare of the 19 families from Sliabh Ban in Co Roscommon who are being woken up at night by noise from nearby wind turbines.

Mr Naughton has promised to bring forward new wind energy guidelines this month which will define noise limits for turbines. He will be under a lot of pressure from wind energy developers, the green lobby and government officials to meet greenhouse gas emission targets by keeping wind energy viable in the midst of rural communities.

Once again Mr Naughton is faced with the choice of prioritising a government policy or protecting the health and human rights of rural people. As his campaign slogan states, this is his chance to 'put people first'.

Mike de Jong

Sliabh Ban Community Group

Strokestown, Co Roscommon

Is free-range market cracked?

I write regarding the news that Irish eggs producers will no longer be able to use the label 'free-range', as they will have to keep their birds inside due to instances of bird flu in wild birds (Irish Independent, March 9).

Does this mean the chickens have come home to roost for free-range eggs?

John Williams

Clonmel, Co Tipperary
Brewers, history buffs, feminists and politicans joined Sabrina Higgins, Ireland's First Lady, for a weekend of events commemorating Dorothy Macardle in the Oriel Centre, Dundalk Gaol, last weekend.

Entitled 'An Unrepentant Propagandist', the weekend of talks, music and theatrical performances was the brainchild of Constance Short who used the expertise she had shown as Arts Officer in the 1980s to coax and cajole contributors, sponsors and audiences for what is hoped will become an annual event.

The weekend kicked off with the launch of The Dorothy Macardle Society on Friday night, followed by readings from Dorothy's work and inspiring musical performances.

Saturday saw talks about various aspects of Dorothy's life, including the history of her family, her work as an writer and revolutionary, her place in Europe, and her contribution as a feminist and republican. Speakers including amateur historian Lea Hennessy, film maker Lelia Doolan, former MPs Clare Short and Bernadette Devlin McAliskey, while the lively question and answer sessions were chaired by Laurena Rafferty, Mark Fearon, James MacGuill and Tom Dooley.

The final lecture on Sunday was by Ailbhe Rogers, who spoke about the women who were interned in Dundalk during the Civil War, with Art Agnew chairing the Q&A afterwards.

'We had full houses all weekend and I had invited people who I thought would have a special interest in the event,' said Constance. 'They came from all over Ireland as well as England.

Thus many in audience had family connections with Dorothy, such as Ann Gallagher whose mother Cecilia had been imprisoned at the same time, Noel Kilfoyle whose family had offered her a safe house, and former employees of Macardle Brewery.

'The theatre and music was brilliant and I have to thank all those who went off and organised these performances,' continued Constance. She paid tribute to Sharon McArdle and her fellow actors for their production of Dorothy's play 'Anne Kavanagh' and the POP-UP Productions with Joan Ryan's new play 'After Midnight' written especially for the weekend, and MC Mona Daly Fachler.

'There was great music from traditional musicians Kay Webster & co, as well as former Macardle Music Award winners Patricia Treacy, Cliodhna Ryan and Robert Finnegan, and I'm very grateful for them for taking part.'

Constance also thanked the sponsors Carmel Naughton, John Teeling, Frank McArdle and Louth County Council, as well as the Oriel Centre for hosting the event.
The now-suspended police chief in the district of Yongsan has been booked for an investigation, along with the head of the Yongsan Ward office and two others, on charges of profess...
Louth Village Pharmacy is seeking the public's vote to help them win the Go Green with Green Angel Skincare Challenge - a nationwide search to find Ireland's most creative shop window.

The competition challenges Green Angel stockists to produce the country's best St Patrick's Day-themed window featuring the successful Irish skincare brand.

The Louth Village Pharmacy Main Street, Louth Village is registered for the public vote in the Green Angel Skincare Challenge which closes on March 13.

All of the entrants' pictures will be posted on the Green Angel Skincare Facebook page where the public can vote for their favourite store and staff to win valuable prizes plus a 1,000 contribution to a charity of their choice.

The panel of judges will choose the best window from the top 12 based on public votes.

And one lucky voter in each county will win a luxury hamper of Green Angel products.

Green Angel stockists can still register for the competition, which closes on March 13, by emailing info@greenangel.ie or phoning 01 412 4900.

'With over 700 stockists, Green Angel Skincare has been one of the great growth stories in the Irish beauty industry', said Gina O'Brien of Viva Displays.

'We would urge all of our stockists to dress their windows imaginatively, help get their towns buzzing, and let the public vote for their favourite window', said Mary Mitchell, Creative Director Green Angel.
The fourth annual 'Tour de Leinster' cycle is set to be held again this year to raise funds for the Louth/Meath branch of Down Syndrome Ireland.

Registration has just opened for the event, which is a major fundraiser for the work of Down Syndrome Ireland.

Kevin Hampson, a parent and member of the Down Syndrome Ireland's Louth/Meath branch, highlighted how funds raised from the Tour de Leinster are spent locally

'The Early Intervention Development Programme is for pre-school children with Down syndrome. Our Early Intervention specialists call to the homes of the children for two sessions a month during the school term. It's basically therapy in a play situation and covers many aspects such as motor skills, hand eye coordination, some speech and language, singing and coordination so it's very wide ranging. The money raised from the Tour de Leinster helps with the funding shortfall to run this programme for approximately 50 local children.'

This year's cycle, taking place from Thursday, September 14th to Sunday, September 17th, will cover 600 km over four days. The challenge gives cyclists the chance to cycle with Irish Tour de France and Giro D'italia legend Stephen Roche, who will cycle shoulder to shoulder with participating cyclists for the four days. Interested cyclists can visit www.downsyndrome.ie/tour-de-leinster/ for more information and to register or call 01 4266500.
Dundalk-born solicitor Conor Breen, who passed away aged 56 on February 22 was remembered as a very popular, hard-working and diligent lawyer in tributes paid at last week's District Court.

Speaking on behalf of his fellow solicitors in Dundalk, Mr Frank McDonnell said that while Mr Breen's death was not unexpected, it was sudden and came as a shock to everyone who knew him. He had qualified as a solicitor in 1985 and was a partner in McDonough and Breen, where he was principal for a number of years. It was a great source of pride to him that his son Niall and daughter Cliona had followed his footsteps into the legal profession.

Mr Breen had been a master of many legal disciplines and was equally at home in the High Court or the Labour Court. He had endless empathy and energy, was a hard worker and very diligent. He made for a very formidable advocate in court and was always well briefed and well prepared, and looked after his clients' interests. He was also a fair man and was a great loss to the legal profession, to his colleauges and staff, and the administers of law in the north east. He would be greatly missed and well remembered.

Mr McDonnell offered his condolences to Mr Breen's wife, father, children and extended family.

Barrister Mr Ciaran Oaks BL described Mr Breen as 'a very distinguished lawyer' who had many friends, saying that people 'had a real fondness for him,' and he was 'great craic' out of court. He was someone with 'the very finest qualities' and was a great loss to Co Louth and the general public. He offered his condolences to the Breen family on behalf of the Bar Association.

Speaking on behalf of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr Fergus Mullen remembered Mr Breen as 'a formidable opponent and a great colleague' who would be sorely missed and always remember.

Mr Padraig Duffy offered condolences on behalf of the Drogheda Bar Association said Mr Breen was 'a lovely, lovely man' who would be fondly remembered.

County Register Mairead Ahern extended sympathy to Mr Breen's family on behalf of the court staff. He was, she said 'a true professional as a solicitor, always strong, dogged in his representation of clients, and well regarded by everyone.' He was proud that his legacy of honesty, professionalism and integrity was being carried on by his son and daughter, who were both a huge credit to him.

Inspector Martin Beggy, on behalf of the Garda Siochana, said Mr Breen was 'a very courteous and professional gentleman and easy to deal with.'

Ms Sheena Norton, offered condolences on behalf of the Probation Service,

Judge Patria McDonnelly, speaking on behalf of the Circuit Court board described Mr Bren as 'a man of outstanding qualities and abilities.'

Judge Gerard Haughton said that while he didn't know Mr Breen personally, he knew that the resident Judge Flann Brennan would have loved to have been there to pay tribute to Mr Breen who was obviously 'an extraordinary man in legal and personal terms'.

Mr Niall Breen thanked all those who had paid tribute to his father and said he would do his utmost to carry on his legacy.
Archbishop Eamon Martin has weighed in on the Brexit debate - and raised concerns over any return of a hard border.

As parish priest of Dundalk, his words have echoed across the current crucial debates.

Expressing concern about the threats Britain's vote to leave the European Union poses to cross-border movement in Ireland, he said the country's bishops want guarantees that Brexit will not further divide the island.

'As one Church, we want to have assurances that the possibility to move between the North and the Republic will remain the same as today,'

Reiterating how a hard border would divide dioceses such as his own Archdiocese of Armagh, Dr Martin said the bishops are particularly troubled by how Brexit would be likely to affect communities in the border counties.

'We are genuinely concerned because we do not want what is known as a hard border; an actual border that would heavily impact border communities,' he said.
The building in Drogheda that serves as a community mental health facility is much more modern and for purpose than its counterpart in Dundalk, Gerry Adams has said.

The Louth TD met with representatives of the HSE Louth Meath Mental Health team at the Singleton House Community Mental Health facility in Drogheda and was struck by the contrast between this facility and the Ladywell Centre in Dundalk.

He said: 'The staff at Ladywell are superb; however the premises are totally unacceptable, they are outdated, unsuitable, damp and urgently need to be upgraded.

'The difference in Singleton House and Ladywell is stark. Singleton House is a state of the art, bright and modern facility which staff I met are rightly proud of.

'The contrast with the Ladywell premises could not be more pronounced. I have written to Minister Helen McEntee to raise concerns about the need for investment in Dundalk to service north Louth and I again urge her to visit Ladywell'.
Make sure you are not missing out on the opportunity to grow your business this week. The Louth Enterprise Office's local enterprise week continues to Friday and there are still spaces left for businesses involved in retail, opportunities to improve financial security, grow your business networks and learn how to get paid as the future of money is discussed in Paypal on Friday.

Everyone's invited to be inspired to develop their businesses at the LEO's special celebration of entrepreneurship as they encourage you to #Believe in yourself and your business ideas. Tomorrow, there is a free insight into cyber security at the Crowne Plaza from 7.45am. while Bellingham Castle is the venue on Thursday for the EURES event highlighting cross border employment incentives and supports for SMES.

And Thursday will be rounded off by the national enterprise awards hosted by Anton Savage at the County Museum in Dundalk. For more, see localenterprise.ie/louth.
A house that was empty for just two minutes was targeted in a break-in that was noticed by the homeowner when they returned to the property but didn't go inside.

Dundalk Gardai are investigating the burglary which happened between 9.38pm and 9.40pm at Nicholas Street on Wednesday. The resident noticed a window open and contacted Gardai who found that a chair had been used by the burglar to get out the kitchen window at the back.

And a walker from Dublin who parked their car at Ravensdale Park returned to find that it had been broken into and the purse that had been in the front of the vehicle had been stolen.

The incident happened on Wednesday afternoon, some time between 1pm and 2.30pm when the front passenger window was broken and the wallet that was stolen contained some cash and bank cards.

The break-in prompted Gardai to again warn motorists to be vigilant about leaving valuables in cars for any length of time, particularly in remote areas. Gardai also reported that two people were arrested this week for drink driving.
Works at St. Joseph's Redemptorist church have been towering over the Dundalk skyline for almost a year now.

And the completion of the major refurbishment to the historic church and monastery is almost within sight, the Argus has learned.

'We have almost finished the first phase, which was repairs and works on the roof,' said Rector, Fr. Michael Cusack.

Redemptorist priests and staff at the monastery moved from the premises nearly twelve months ago ahead of the major works programme and extension, which is set to give the popular 'novena church' a 21st century upgrade.

Fr. Michael Cusack explained with a preservation in place on the building, they are unable to alter any of the actual structure of the buildings, but are in process of a significant overhaul of plumbing and wiring.

'We are currently moving on to the second phase, which is the stripping out and refurbishment of the monastery, and all of the plumbing and re-wiring that will entail.'

He admitted that budget constraints meant that they are no longer set to build a two storey extension at the rear of the church as planned.

'Instead we have a single storey building now to be built,' said Fr. Cusack.

He added that the works have been a constant source of queries from parishioners and other locals alike.

'We have had a very mild winter, which has enabled us to keep works on schedule, despite some hitches along the way. So we can assure everyone that the novena will go ahead as planned again this year, there are no worries about that!'

'We are hoping that works will be completed by September, and are looking forward to seeing the 21 newly refurbished rooms in the monastery also.'

The works will also include an upgrade to St. Gerard's Hall, and an archives and central library which will be available in Dundalk for the first time.'
Carrick Road residents, and particularly those from Railway Terrace, showed their generosity last week by fundraising for a pensioner whose house was badly damaged in an incident earlier this year.

The Railway Terrace house was damaged in the early hours when a car crashed through a wall at the front of the property and hit the home. The 21-year-old driver was arrested in connection with the incident.

A quiz night was held in Kennedy's Pub on Thursday for the woman whose home was badly damaged, which raised 1300 and which will be used to refurbish and redecorate the house.

There were 16 teams and the Murtagh family from 1 Railway Terrace won the quiz.

The event was co-ordinated by Eva Beirne of ALONE. She said: 'It was absolutely fantastic to see such heart felt support for this lady, not only from the local businesses who generously gave raffle prizes, but also from the community who came out to participate. 'I would like to thank Eugene McGeough from Kennedy's for hosting the event, a big thank you also goes to Matt Keating from Dundalk Men's Shed who helped organise the night and of course a massive thank you goes to our sponsors; The Value Centre, Spar Carrick Road, The Carrickdale Hotel, The Jockeys Bar, Jackie's Restaurant, BC Electric, Market Fresh and the Cooley Men's Shed.

'Perhaps the most important thing that came from the night was that this lady said that she felt cared for by the community in Dundalk and most importantly that she felt safe to move back into her own home, it was a great, great night'.

Railway Terrace residents have appealed to Louth County Council to reinforce the wall at the front of the houses.
More than 17,000 people in County Wicklow have a disability.

This is according to Laura English of the Disability Federation of Ireland, who gave a presentation to Greystones Municipal District last Tuesday evening.

Laura explained that since the start of the year, she has been working two days a week with the local authority on disability issues.

She said that this came from work done by a local access group in Arklow, particularly Miriam Murphy, who worked to get money put aside in the budget for disability issues.

Laura has been working for 18 months putting a proposal together. She said that Wicklow is the only county in the country putting funding into this.

The meeting heard that 13 per cent of the population has a disability, this is expected to increase with the next census results.

The disabilities include a broad range including learning, psychological, physical, sight, hearing and others.

In Ireland, people with disabilities were historically institutionalised, segregated from the community, and 'cared for' under the charity model. From the 1990s onward, legislative change, activism and external factors have created a shift in thinking. People with disabilities are demanding their rights and are increasingly viewed as equal citizens.

In Laura's presentation, she told members that disability is possibly the 'last acceptable prejudice'.

Almost 13 per cent of people with disabilities live in consistent poverty. 66 per cent of people with disabilities are unemployed, and 16 per cent did not progress beyond primary school, compared to 4 per cent of people without a disability.

Ireland is the last country in the entire EU and one of the last in the world to ratify the United Nations Convention on the rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD).

She mentioned that 24 hours notice is required for passengers with disabilities to travel on some Irish Rail services, and 5 per cent of taxis are accessible.

'There is a big difference between living in the community and being part of it,' said Laura.

Some of the objectives in the community include building natural supports with family friends and neighbours, addressing accessibility challenges, education and awareness raising, and creating opportunities for everyone to benefit.

Wicklow has a total population of 136,640 people. 13 per cent of these, or 17,616, have a disability, be it physical and sensory, intellectual, mental health or chronic illness.

Cathaoirleach of the district Jennifer Whitmore said that she is absolutely delighted to see Laura working with the local authority. She said that the figures presented are quite stark and she hopes that an environment can be created in which the voices of people with a disability can be heard.

Cllr Grainne McLoughlin asked what the council can do to support Laura's work. 'There's no way I will be able to achieve everything, two days a week, on my own,' she said. 'The answer is to empower people with disabilities to do it for themselves.' She said that there are good advocacy groups in Wicklow.
Bray engineer Stephen Fox and Cathaoirleach of Bray Municipal District attended last Tuesday's meeting in Greystones to discuss Bray Head.

Mr Fox explained that in 2007 Bray Town Council and Wicklow County Council made a Special Amenity Area Order (SAAO) regarding Bray Head.

A committee was set up and one of the conditions of the order was a five-year management plan.

The committee lapsed, however, until renewed effort led by Cllr Matthews to produce the plan.

Mr Fox said that the plan would be circulated to members in Greystones and Bray, then brought to the full council to be adopted.

The plan would include works to trails, signage and ongoing maintenance within a budget of 7,000. Mr Fox said that if more funding was required, they could advocate for more funding in the budget.

'The council should be putting in more money - it's so important,' said Cllr Grainne McLoughlin.

Mr Fox said he believes most of the objectives can be completed. He said that there is a provision to review the plan annually.

Cllr Tom Fortune said that he was previously on the committee. The members and visitors from Bray agreed that it would be useful to have a Greystones representative on the committee and it was agreed that he would join.

Cllr Matthews said that the two districts could come together to look for more funding going forward. He and Cllr John Ryan are also on the committee, as well as residents, landowners and other stakeholders.
A Wicklow man who beat his girlfriend for over an hour and bit her on the face after they had an argument in their home has been given a suspended sentence.

Judge Melanie Greally said Bray resident Ian Sheridan (32) carried out a very serious assault involving considerable violence but that a 'custodial sentence is not necessitated'. She said Sheridan had dealt with his 'demons' including addressing his drink and drug problems.

The judge noted Sheridan raised 1,600 in compensation for his former partner Patricia Rodriguez, but that she did not want to accept it. The money would instead be donated to the women's refuge Ms Rodriguez attended after the assault.

Judge Greally imposed a three-year sentence which she suspended for three years on condition Sheridan keeps the peace and engages with the restorative justice programme.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that after the assault Ms Rodriguez sneaked out of the house when Sheridan eventually fell asleep. She never returned to the home again and spent some time in a women's refuge. The couple had moved in together the previous month.

Sheridan of New Brighton Terrace, Parnell Road, Bray pleaded guilty to assault causing harm on February 21, 2015.

Garda Paul Newport told Maddie Grant BL, prosecuting, that Ms Rodriguez and Sheridan had an argument at their home that evening. She left to get some fresh air and coffee before returning back home. Sheridan arrived back an hour and half later.

Ms Rodriguez later told gardai she could smell alcohol from Sheridan and assumed he had been drinking.

Sheridan then grabbed her hair, punched her around her eye and bit her face twice around her jaw. He also punched her all over her body.

The victim said the violence lasted an hour or two and he wouldn't stop when she asked him to. Sheridan dragged her from the bedroom to the living room during the attack.

It came to an end when she suggested they go to sleep. She lay in bed awake and when she felt he had fallen asleep, she left, leaving most of her belongings behind.

Sheridan was arrested but made no admissions during interview. He has previous convictions for theft, public order and road traffic offences.

A victim impact and medical reports were handed into court but not read out.

Gda Newport agreed with Kim Moloney BL, defending that Sheridan had offered Ms Rodriguez 1,600 as a token of his remorse and handed in a letter of apology.

Counsel told Judge Greally that her client suffered from psychosis brought on by drug and alcohol abuse but he was now no longer using drugs. A probation report concluded that he was at a low risk of re-offending.
Residents of the River Lane area are taking stock and considering how to proceed, following a council vote to allow a ramp into the Dargle from the end of the People's Park.

Councillors voted 24 in favour, five against, two absent, and one abstained at a meeting of Wicklow County Council on Monday.

'Disappointed would be the main sentiment by everybody,' said spokesman Eugene Raeside. 'We didn't want this to go ahead. We feel that there are issues regarding public safety.'

He said that legal issues raised by the residents on a previous occasion should have been investigated before the vote went ahead. Members heard on Monday that the council's legal advice is that they are free to proceed.

'We are still in the process of looking at the legalities of this even if the council are not,' said Mr Raeside. 'By allowing the vote to go ahead, they appear quite happy with the legal advice. But it contradicts our legal advice,' he said.

Mr Raeside said that the group's plans are not fully formed, but they are talking to their legal team about the best way forward.

'That's where we're at. We're taking stock, and we're all exhausted. We felt the councillors could have allowed another month to the next meeting, to assure us and satisfy the councillors who were bringing the legal issues forward,' said Mr Raeside. 'We are trying now to do what the executive in the council should be doing.'

The council's part eight planning application is to build a ramp for essential maintenance to the flood defence scheme at the river.

The residents have proposed an alternative location at The Slang, however engineer Marc Devereux has said that this is not a suitable site.

Residents have suffered noise and disruption opposite their homes for the past five years during works, they have told councillors. Part of the People's Park, part of the ramp area, was the subject of a CPO, according to officials, and they said that their legal advices is that they can work on the area.
Cllr Grainne McLoughlin and Cllr Derek Mitchell called for Delgany to be upgraded in their notice of motion.

They said that it was a matter of urgency that the village roads, footpaths and signage be upgraded, irrespective of plans for one way systems, plans to purchase land, or anything to do with the planned NTA scheme. 'The village needs attention immediately and cannot wait for long term plans,' they said.

'The village just needs attention. Forget about the CPO of land - it's not going to happen in my lifetime,' said Cllr McLoughlin.

She said that the paths are dangerous and the village is a big mess. 'It will be years before the scheme is done to sort out the junction. Can we get the traffic down to 30km/h? There are things we can do.'

Cllr Derek Mitchell said that the plan was come up with eight to 10 years ago with four phases, and it was going to require land from two properties.

'Another scheme came along, a one-way scheme, which wouldn't require land,' he said. 'I feel we should get on with getting that land as well as sorting what's here. Some minor works could be done.'

Cllr Gerry Walsh said that footpath repairs could be done immediately and should be addressed.

'It's good to have the bigger plans, but sometimes while waiting the little things start falling through. The village looks tired and needs to be tidied up,' said Cllr Jennifer Whitmore. 'Small things would make a huge difference.'

Engineer Ruairi O'Hanlon agreed that some of the paths are in a poor state. He noted that some of them are being used as car parking areas rather than paths.

He said that he could look at applying for funding for specific locations. 'I don't believe in throwing good money after bad,' said Mr O'Hanlon. 'I do think the plan should be followed. Certainly we can try to implement where we can.'

They said that he understands the scheme will go to part eight this year.
Congratulations to the drama team of the TY class at St. Mary's Secondary School, Charleville that won the overall prize in the All-Ireland final of the countrywide TY Schools Drama Competition at the Mullingar Arts Centre in Co. Westmeath, on last Saturday night.

The Charleville girls staged their play, 'No Smoke without Fire,' which was co-written and directed by local playwright Katie Holly.

The journey to the Transition Year All-Ireland drama final began last December when Katie Holly met with a group of 26 students at St. Mary's for drama workshops. Out of these came stories and characters, through improvisation, which Katie then shaped into the script of 'No Smoke without Fire'.

"I was blessed with meeting a very talented and enthusiastic group of young women who gave 100% commitment to the process, the rehearsals and the performance," said Katie.

After a shaky start in the regional heat in the Briery Gap Theatre in Macroom the adjudicator, Michael Twomey, commented on the strength of the script but also advised the group to work on their projection. The actors worked tirelessly under the direction of Katie, along with the support of Ms Sheehan and the staff at St. Mary's.

Teachers moved out of their classes to facilitate rehearsals and also helped with the production of props and travelled with the girls to performances, which was greatly appreciated.

The St. Mary's girls competed against 14 other TY teams drawn from all over the country in the Mullingar Arts Centre last Saturday night, March 4, and emerged being crowned overall winners of the All-Ireland TY Drama Finals 2017.

This is a great achievement for the school, made even sweeter by the fact that Katie Holly is a past pupil of St. Mary's. "Her professionalism and commitment is second to none and we are extremely grateful to her. We wish her every success in the years ahead," said Ms Sheehan.
While Mallow can consider itself fortunate to have a number of aesthetically striking buildings, the Clock House, quite possibly due to its prominent position at the end of Davis Street is one that possesses a universal appeal to locals and visitors to the town alike.

While it is not clear in which year the Clock House was completed, it is known that construction took place under the direction of Sir Charles Denham Jephson-Norreys of Mallow Castle. Sir Charles' talents as an amateur architect and the scale of his ambition for the Clock House were already evidenced through his direction in the construction of the Market House (1823) and the Spa House (1828).

Under a 99-year-lease, dated April 30, 1860 Sir Charles contracted with the trustees of Richard Langford Esq to; 'within said period of five-years expend and layout in the erection of such House, building or office Fifty Pounds sterling at the least'.

An advertisement from 1861 seems to suggest that the Clock Tower was already in place, with the main body of what was to become known as the Clock House built afterwards. This may account for the varying dates attributed to the completion of the Clock House, with the clock itself transferred from one of the towers in Mallow Castle and the bell cast at Millerd St in Cork City.

The ad, placed in the Cork Recorder in October, 1861, announced 'TO BE LET, the LARGE HOUSE adjoining the Clock Tower at the eastern end of the Main Street and also sought a 'Person of Capital' who will carry out a First-Class business in them. The rent, considering the large cost of their erection, will be found moderate'. Michael Nunan, who had been in business in Mallow in the 1860's, came to eventually occupy the building. Within a short space of time the new building had become a key feature of the town and was even mentioned in an article celebrating the marriage of the Prince of Wales in 1863.

The long and varied career of the first Clock House tenant came to an end in early 1900 when Michael Nunan passed away, with the large crowd that lined the streets of the town testament to his popularity and high standing within the local community.

The Nunan name and family continued their association with the building for at least another 35-years with Michael's daughter, Honora Mary Celestine Nunan, who was described as a Brewer's Agent and Vintner, listed at the address in 1903.

Following Honora's death in 1908 the licence was transferred to her younger sister Louisa McDonnell who managed the public house in the Clock House until 1918 when the licence passed to her sister-in-law Hannah Nunan.

The transfer of the licence may have been hastened by the floods of 1916, when the River Blackwater burst its banks inundating Bridge Street, Bridewell Lane, St Joseph's Road, Spa Walk and Spa Terrace. The Clock House was also not left unscathed.

Throughout the period of uncertainty that marked the War of Independence and the Civil War the Clock House remained a public house. In 1929 the Clock house was placed on sale and despite the town flourishing remained unsold until 1940 when it was bought by The Hazelwood Land Industries Co, owned by local family the Lysaghts.

Local woman Sheila Owens ran a shop in the building, which was one of the first businesses in Mallow to sell oranges after WWII. Such was the interest in this new 'exotic' fruit that a queue formed outside the Clock House. In 1940 Edward Kelly replaced John Kelly as the occupier of the upper part of the building. He was replaced in 1943 by Lieutenant White, with one Larry Enderson taking over the lease in 1946.

In 1947 Martin McGrath applied for a licence to 'sell beer, cider' spirits and wine....at my house known as the Clock House and he opened the Ingle Nook Bar soon after. He shared the occupancy of the building with the newly formed Clock House Mineral Company, while Larry Enderson continued to work in the upper part of the building.

By 1948 the Clock House Mineral Company, founded by Sean Moylan and John McGrath, was listed as the sole occupant and a bottling plant was constructed on the site now occupied by Mull's Bar from where the company produced their distinctive mineral drinks and bottled Guinness for distribution across North Cork.

From the mid 1950's the Clock House in its entirety was put up for rent and a variety of occasional tenants used it including local sisters Kitty and Julia Linehan who ran a confectionery business which they put up for sale as a "going concern" in 1957.

The new cafe, trading as R & K Magner, continued to trade well and diversified into catering, eventually operating canteens in the Mart, Dairygold and the Beet factory.

The cafe closed in 1971 and two years later the Clock House was purchased and used as the Mallow district office of the First National Building Society until 1977. In 1978 the Cork Examiner published an article outlining plans for the renovation of the Clock House by its new owner, local chartered accountant Colman Dalton.

The Dalton practise continued to trade there until 2009, when it moved to new premises at Buttery Court in the Market Square development. Ironically, the new shopping centre was built on the site of the old Market House - built by Sir Charles Denham Jephson Norreys in 1823.
Cork County Council is to to expand its diaspora initiative - which aims to connect Cork parishes with their global diaspora - to several new towns across North Cork.

The initiative, which has enjoyed success in building relationships throughout the world, will now open out to Castletownroche, Fermoy, Lombardstown and Mitchelstown following its success in Cork City and other towns across the county.

Cork Mayor Seamus McGrath said: "The Cork County Community Diaspora is a joint initiative between Cork County Council, Cork Foundation and the National Diaspora Programme 'Ireland Reaching Out' and will provide a fantastic opportunity for Cork parishes to discover their descendants, encourage them to visit while also significantly increasing international awareness of these locations in the first instance."

Laura Colleran, Project Manager of Ireland Reaching Out said of the initiative: "We want to connect with parishes across the island of Ireland and get communities to engage with their diaspora. It is fantastic to see Cork leading the way in Diaspora and Community Development."

Padraic Vallely, CEO of Cork Foundation, was delighted with the response to the initiative so far and said it is planned to host two training days, which will be open to all parishes across the county.

"We have had a very strong response with parishes from all across Cork County looking forward to engage with their diaspora. Following on from these training days, we aim to liaise with the relevant parishes, and help them reach out to the Cork community abroad," he said.

If you are interested in tracing your area's diaspora, visit www.IrelandXo.com
Gardai identified and arrested a robber who held up a post-office in Mid-Cork and tracked him for over 60kms through North Cork to his rented home in Co Limerick using CCTV footage, a court heard last week as the man was jailed for four years for the offence.

Gary Walsh, (32) who lived in Blarney but moved to Ballincollig as a teenager, was sentenced to five years with the final year suspended after he pleaded guilty at Cork Circuit Criminal Court to the robbery of 3,800 at Blarney Post Office on January 24, 2017.

Det Garda Maurice Leahy of Blarney Garda Station told how Walsh entered the post office in the village at around 1.45pm and calmly queued behind the only other customer at the counter before handing over a note to the staff member telling her that this was a robbery and to hand over cash.

He then gave the woman a plastic bag which she filled with cash and he calmly walked from the post office to a car which he had parked nearby and made good his getaway to his rented property at Apartment 3, Retail Park, Kilmallock, Co Limerick.

Det Garda Leahy said that Walsh was driving a dark coloured Toyota Avensis with silver door handles and silver hub caps and gardai began checking CCTV around Blarney and various towns in Co Cork and were able to trace his journey via Mallow and Charleville to Kilmallock, some 65kms away.

Gardai arrested Walsh at his apartment on January 30th 2017 - some six days after the robbery and they found 1,600 in a jacket pocket which he admitted were part of the proceeds of the robbery and he made full admissions.

Det Garda Leahy said that the only discrepancy in the version of events between Walsh and the staff member at Blarney Post Office was that she said that he had a firearm concealed up his sleeve whereas he said that it was an iron bar.

Walsh told the gardai that he had disposed of the iron bar and the clothing he was wearing on the day of the robbery by dumping them in a river but the river was in flood at the time and gardai were unable to locate either, said Det Garda Leahy.

He said that Walsh had 42 previous convictions, mainly for road traffic violations, but he had a previous conviction for robbery of a shop in Macroom in 2008 for which he was sentenced to three years.

He also had a conviction for robbery from Swansea Crown Court in May 2013 for which he had been sentenced to four years in jail and he received a two-year sentence for possession of an imitation firearm but was released on licence by the UK authorities in April 2016.

Defence barrister, Peter O'Flynn BL said his client had co-operated fully with gardai from the moment he was arrested, he had expressed remorse for his actions and had written a letter of apology to the post office staff member.

He said that Walsh had originally been addicted to cocaine when he carried out the robbery in Macroom in 2008 and he later had issues with prescription drugs and alcohol but he had gone on a rehabilitation course while in jail in the UK and had been drug free since.

Judge David Riordan noted his early plea of guilty which had allowed the case to be fast-tracked through the criminal justice system and he noted that he had saved the victim the trauma of a trial and the state the cost of a trial by his guilty plea.

Walsh told gardai he had committed the robbery to help with a family matter but when Judge Riordan questioned whether he had any receipts for the missing 2,200 to support this explanation for the robbery, Mr O' Flynn said that his client had no such receipts.

Judge Riordan sentenced Walsh to five years in jail with one year suspended for the robbery on condition he be of good behaviour for a period of three years and he sentenced him to three years concurrent on a second charge of possession of the proceeds of crime in Kilmallock on January 30th.
A former priest from North Cork has lost a personal appeal to Pope Francis against his dismissal from the priesthood after the pontiff found that an Irish canonical court was right to defrock him for "the crime of abusing minors".

Dan Duane (78) had already lost two appeals against a decision by the Canonical Court in Ireland to dismiss him from the priesthood after it found that he had sexually abused five girls while serving as a priest in Diocese of Cloyne in the 1970s and 1980s.

But last year, Mr Duane made a third and personal appeal to Pope Francis after the Pope declared 2016 to be A Holy Year of Mercy. However, the Pope confirmed on Friday to the Bishop of Cloyne, Dr William Crean, that he agreed with the earlier decision to reject Mr Duane's appeal against dismissal.

A Diocese of Cloyne spokesman said this week that "Bishop Crean can confirm that he has received the response of Rome to Dan Duane's appeal and there is no change in the judgement that has already been made, that is to say that Dan Duane has been dismissed from the clerical state."

According to the Diocese of Cloyne spokesman, the confirmation by Pope Francis of the earlier decision made by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith means that Mr Duane cannot present himself as a priest and is prevented from celebrating any of the sacraments.

Mr Duane had denied any impropriety at the canonical court hearing held at the Nano Nagle Centre in Killavullen, but the three priest judges ruled in March 2013 that they were satisfied to a standard of "moral certainty" and found him guilty of the complaints by the five women.

The Diocese of Cloyne spokesman confirmed Bishop Crean wrote this week to Mr Duane, who continues to live at the presbytery in Cecilstown near Kanturk, to inform him that Pope Francis had rejected his personal appeal and agreed with the earlier judgement to dismiss him from the priesthood.

A native of Doneraile in North Cork, Mr Duane, who was ordained a priest in 1963 and served in a variety of parishes in the diocese as well as at St Colman's College in Fermoy, had been forbidden from exercising his priestly ministry and from wearing clerical attire since 2006.

Mr Duane was twice tried at Cork Circuit Criminal Court on counts of sexually abusing teenage girls in North Cork in the early 1980s but he was acquitted on the first occasion in May 2011 on the direction of the trial judge and on the second occasion in November 2011 he was acquitted by a jury.
Minister Murphy meets some of the pupils to discuss their selected flags. Photos by John Sheehan

Minister Murphy and MEP Deirdre Clune with Berrings NS pupils, during the launch of the European themed Blue Star Programme

Berrings NS Junior Infants Tess Logue and Vivienne Brislone wear the national flags of our European cousins at the launch of the Blue Star Programme which was attended by Minister for European Affairs Dara Murphy. Photo by John Sheehan

While our UK neighbours may be wrangling with the implications of an imminent Brexit, there was certainly no sign of Euro-scepticism in Inniscarra on Friday as the school celebrated Irelands strong links with the European Union.

The pupils had carefully prepared the colourful flags of the European Union members and all were on display as Minister of State for European Affairs, Data Protection and EU Digital Single Market, Dara Murphy paid a special visit.

Minister Murphy was officially launching the school's participation in the Blue Star Programme 2016-2017.

The objective of the programme, now in its sixth year, is to foster better understanding and knowledge among Irish primary pupils of how the European Union affects our lives.

This year, the programme, which is managed by European Movement Ireland, has more than 165 schools from 26 counties registered, with over 12,500 participating pupils. Classroom projects and activities have already begun in earnest across the country and that is certainly the case at Berrings NS.

"I'm delighted to be launching the Blue Star Programme here in Berrings National School today and to see that the school has signed up for the programme, like many other schools around the country," Minister Murphy said

"Blue Star is an exciting programme that allows pupils to learn about our rich European heritage and the importance of the EU today.

"It's fantastic to see the hard work and effort put in to all the projects by the children and their teachers and I know this is mirrored in over 165 schools taking part in the project this year."

"All primary schools are eligible to register for the Programme," said Ms Noelle O'Connell, Executive Director of European Movement Ireland. "We already provide lots of material, advice and a curriculum," Ms O'Connell continued, adding, "we're here to help, no matter how big or small a national school is".
A Cork mother whose twins spent the first three months of their lives in the Neonatal Unit in Cork University Maternity Hospital wants to help other premature babies by raising funds for the unit.

Abby and Seamus O'Leary from Ballymakeera recently celebrated the first birthday of their beautiful and healthy twins.

Abimay and Gerard were born on February 25th, 2016. Gerard weighed only 1lb 11oz while Abimay was 2lb 6oz when they came into the world over three months early.

Due to complications with the pregnancy and fears that baby Gerard might not survive, a decision was taken to induce Abbey at just 28 weeks.

"We were told at 25 weeks that Gerard may not make it, so for the next three weeks I went for a scan twice a week to see was he and his twin both alive."

"It was such a traumatic and difficult time. We didn't know what would happen," recalls Abby.

Following their birth the twins were immediately rushed to the neonatal unit at Cork University Hospital.

"It was terrifying when they were born. They were so small and we didn't even know if they would survive. "

The twins, who both suffered from heart conditions and underdeveloped lungs, remained in the unit for almost three months before they came home.

During that time Abby and her husband, Seamus, who also have a 14-year old daughter, Monica, spent every moment with their new additions to the family.

Abimay was allowed home after 10 weeks and Gerard after 13 weeks.

Last week the twins, who have since undergone heart surgery, celebrated their first birthday and are looking forward to a bright future.

Having seen first-hand the care at the neonatal unit the couple now want to give back to say thanks for all the help they received.

This week they have launched "Tiny Steps for Preemie Babies" which is a 5k and 10k fun run at the Top of Coom pub on Sunday, March 19 at 12pm.

There are two routes - a 5k and 10k both starting at the Top of Coom Bar and crossing the border from Kerry into Cork and back again. The start and finish line will be at the Top of Coom where refreshments will be served afterwards.

"We wanted to do something special to say thanks for all the support the neonatal unit gave us back. We were lucky to have such wonderful care for our twins and we want other families to get the same help and support we did."

"We can't thank CUH enough for all the help they gave us and we are hoping that by raising funds we can show how grateful we are."

"It is so frightening when your babies are so small but the staff and care at the neonatal unit made it so much easier and now we can help other parents."

The neonatal unit at CUMH is used by Cork and Kerry parents.

The race will be officially timed and t-shirts will also be available. The event is open to walkers, joggers and runners and even babies in buggies. It is hoped that everyone will com out and take "tiny steps" for premature babies.

"We want everyone to come along and support this very worthwhile cause. We all know families who have had children who are born premature and this unit is what helps them so please come along and take part in this event," say Abby.

Registration is now open and costs 20 for adults, 10 for 10-18 year olds and under-10s are free unless they would like a T-shirt for which the entry fee is 10. More details can be found on the Facebook event page Tiny Steps for Preemie Babies.
Over 80 ladies from all corners of Cork County attended the Local Enterprise Office Women in Business Regional Conference 2017, which was held at the Springfort Hall Hotel in Mallow on Monday.

The event, organised by Local Enterprise Offices, was the first of the National Enterprise Business week events in Cork. The theme of the event was 'Starting local, Growing Global' and welcomed speakers from within Cork City and County and from Dublin. Guest speakers included Noelle O'Connor of Tan Organics and Sarah O'Connor, co-founder of Coolbeans, along with a panel discussion from local female Entrepreneurs.

Noelle O'Connor, founder and owner of Tan Organics, spoke about her journey from a one room beauty salon to producing and manufacturing her own tanning product which is now exported to 26 countries globally. She spoke of her journey and the importance of passion and persistence in building a business and pointed out that the road to success s is rarely smooth.

"This is a female only event. Times have certainly changed, however, being in business or any professional position is different for a woman. For that reason we make no apology for holding a female only event. They are a necessary part of supporting female Entrepreneurship," said Sharon Corcoran, Director of services for Economic Development, Enterprise and Tourism with Cork County Council.

Sarah O'Connor, Co-Founder of Coolbeans. A native of County Cork is now located in Dublin from where she runs her food business in partnership with Isolde Johnson. Sarah spoke about the importance of celebrating the little things while learning valuable lessons from what at times are costly mistakes.

Ingrid DeDoncker of Equiddity, Siobhain Steele of Siobhain Steele Ceramics, Louise Ryan of Ball and Socket and Oh Naturelle along with Caroline Workman of Belvelley Smokehouse took part in a panel discussion which was facilitated by Theresa Mulvihill of Smart Marketing Ltd. Topics such as Brexit, business supports, routes to market and key points for success were discussed.

The commonalities among all panellists included the importance of building a winning team, focused and targeted marketing campaigns and the ability to be creative and innovative in an ever competing world.

Businesses in attendance spanned many sectors and included professional services, health and well being, retail, financial services, food businesses, manufacturing, craft and technology.
After a sold out national tour of Ireland in 2015, The Sokalo Remix Project returns and will make its Louth debut on the 15th March at Droichead Arts Centre.

The Sokalo Remix Project is a transatlantic artistic collaboration between Montreal-based dance company [ZGMA] and four professional artists from the Irish traditional performing arts, Leitrim sean nos dancer Edwina Guckian and Mayo's Liam Scanlon, dancer and concertina player Caitlin Nic Gabhann from Meath and Achill's virtuoso harper Laoise Kelly.

The project began in 2015 with a tour of Ireland and Canada, visiting five provinces there. Now the artistic team that brought that production to life are back again with a remixed version that once again fuses Quebecois and Irish traditional music and dance cultures.

Each time they meet, the artists involved in the project produce a magical spectacle that highlights the proximity of Irish and Quebecois traditional cultures, while offering a new aesthetics and a new vision of folklore, merging both traditional and contemporary life.

Laoise Kelly is regarded throughout the world as the most significant Irish harper of her generation, Edwina Guckian and Liam Scanlon are renowned across Ireland for their innovative take on Sean Nos dancing while Riverdance star Caitlin Nic Gabhann is not just gifted with her feet but is also 3 times All Ireland concertina champion.

The performance will take place on Wednesday, March 15th at 8.00 pm. Tickets are available on 041 98 33946 or online at www.droichead.com
The Drogheda Schoolchildren's League is raising funds for a home venue and facilities for the league.

To help raise funds, the DCSL have a major upcoming Dance event in the T.L.T Theatre on the 29th April.

It's been billed 'A Chance to Dance' and is set to be a superb night.

Tickets to the event will cost 20 and will be available shortly. Any donations or possible raffle prizes would be appreciated. This is a fantastic opportunity to help deliver much needed playing facilities for the Children of Drogheda.

If anyone has any queries please contact Keith Wallace on 083 0077527 or Greg Doran on 087 2297135.
Our Lady's College Greenhills Parents Council Annual Six Week draw is now under way. Winners for week 1 are 1st Prize: 150 - Joe Leech, 2nd Prize: 100 - Niall Kearney and 3rd Prize 50 - Alisa Quilty. Week 2 draw is this Friday. Cash Prizes each week, 2 per line per week for 6 weeks.

Louth MS AGM

The Louth branch of MS Ireland will hold their AGM on Tuesday, March 21st at 7.30 p.m.in O'Connell's clubrooms The Grove Castlebellingham. All those affected by MS are welcome to attend.

Ardee Legion meeting

Ardee Legion of Mary are holding a Patrician Meeting in the Convent of Mercy, Ardee on Wednesday 15th March at 7.30pm. A film will be shown on how science tests faith in The Eucharist and is a most interesting film. A discussion will follow the film. All are welcome and refreshments will be served.
Gardai in Laytown are investigating an attempted armed robbery at the KFC takeaway at the Drogheda Retail Park.

The incident happened on Sunday evening when two men, one of who was armed, approached the door of the takeaway outlet located in the Drogheda Retail Park. Staff were inside, however the door was locked and the pair were unable to gain entry.

When they realised they would not be able to gain access to the premises the pair ran back to a vehicle, an 03 Offaly registered car, and drove off.

The car was found abandoned a short time later in Lagavooren Manor and two hi-vis jackets the pair were wearing when they attempted to gain entry to the premises were found in a ditch in Rosevale.

Gardai in Laytown are investigating the incident and would like to hear from anyone who may have been in the vicinity of the retail park on Sunday afternoon or who may have spotted the pair in the local area around this time.
A young man who was caught with cannabis herb in his underwear has been given the benefit of Section 1.1 of the Probation Act.

Ryan Matthews (20) was searched after he was acting in a suspicious manner in Clogherhead and was brought to Drogheda Garda Station for a further search as gardai believed he had drugs on his person.

'The drugs were found in his underwear,' Inspector Brendan Cadden told Drogheda District Court.

The defendant admitted the drugs were for his own personal use. He has no previous convictions.

The defendant, of John Kirk Estate in Clogherhead pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of drugs under Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act at Drogheda Garda Station on February 20th, 2016.

Defence solicitor Patrick Goodwin said the 20-year-old, who is receiving social welfare, is 'embarrassed' to be before the court.

'He can come up with money for the court poor box if required and I am asking you to give him a chance,' Mr Goodwin said to Judge Gerard Haughton.

Judge Naughton asked the defendant if he was to do a urine test today would it come back clear, to which the defendant 'No problem, it would be clear.'

Judge Naughton said he would take the defendant's word and applied Section 1.1 of the Probation Act.
The Drogheda Boundary Committee is recommending no change to the present situation, but urges greater co-operation between Meath and Louth local authorities.

A committee was tasked with carrying out a review of the boundary between County Louth and County Meath.

The Committee engaged in an extensive consultation process as part of its work, with both local authorities and received 409 unique submissions from the public and interested parties.

'Having considered all the issues in the context of the terms of reference, the Committee recommends that no change to the existing boundary should take place. It recommends that a new programme of structured cooperation be immediately initiated by both local authorities to develop an innovative governance system for Drogheda,' the group stated.

'This should build on existing good cooperation between the authorities and focus on the development of an agreed vision for the area, a joint Local Area Plan for Drogheda, a joint retail strategy, the possible expansion of shared services, the development of a Service Delivery Plan with specific provision made for housing estates bisected by the county boundary, the further development of the identity of Drogheda and other matters.

'In making these recommendations the Committee acknowledges the advantages that would result from a boundary change. It also acknowledges the previous cooperation between the two local authorities on a significant number of issues and the positive approach by elected members and staff to the future development of the Drogheda.

'The Committee further recommends that if substantial progress is not made on the issues mentioned above, within defined time frames, the Minister should reconsider all options, including extending the boundary at a future date. The details of such an extension should be finalised at that stage following consideration of progress made by the individual local authorities in advancing the above recommendations.'
Two brothers of a man, who was shot dead nearly three years ago, have been given four month suspended sentences for their involvement in a 'vicious' fight which broke out in a busy street just before midday in the summer of 2015.

Clifford (41) and Jimmy (39) Whitehouse produced a brush and a chair during the fight, which was described as 'vicious and nasty' and took place in front of nearly 100 onlookers in Drogheda.

The men alleged a member of the Maguire family, with whom they were involved in a feud with, started to shout abuse at them as they walked along the West Street in the town.

Both groups stopped in the middle of the road, holding up traffic as the fight broke out.

Jimmy went to a van where he got a brush while Clifford used an iron chair to hold against the Maguires, Drogheda District Court heard.

'Then a physical fist fight broke out,' said Inspector Brendan Cadden.

'A large number of people gathered and it was a very vicious and nasty fight held in broad daylight in the town.'

Both men pleaded guilty to affray on West Street on July 13th, 2015.

Clifford, of Marley Court, Drogheda, has 36 previous convictions including a conviction for violent disorder, burglary and possession of knives.

Jimmy, of Beechwood Avenue, Drogheda, has 11 previous convictions including a conviction for careless driving and three under Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act.

Defence solicitor Patrick Goodwin said both men have been under threat for the past two to three years and their brother Benny was shot dead in Balbriggan after he dropped his child to school in 2014.

'Their brother was shot dead in relation to a similar feud,' said Mr Goodwin.

'During the course of the fight the others produced a knife and that's what made the defendants arm themselves with a brush and a chair. It's not an excuse but an explanation,' he said.

'It's a complicated situation as both sides were subject to violent assaults during the course of the affray.'

Mr Goodwin said there has been no trouble with the Maguire family since this fight.

He asked Judge Gearty to consider a suspended sentence for the men as 'the heat seems to have gone out of the situation and there has been no re-occurrence in the feud.'

Judge Gearty said she would like to hope the heat is gone.

'I am aware something similar happens in various towns around the country but I don't know what it's ever about,' she said and sentenced the men to four months in prison which she suspended for two years and bound the men to the peace for two years.
Recently, for some pupils in three primary schools in Louth, Fridays became even better with the visit to the school of artists, artwork, and the Cathaoirleach of Louth County Council.

To mark the midway point of Picture This, Louth County Council's schools programme of visual arts engagement, Cllr. Paul Bell, Cathaoirleach, Louth County Council accompanied project co-ordinator, Claire Halpin, and artist Breda Marron, on their regular Friday visits to the three participating schools in Picture This.

"I was delighted to be able to see for myself the valuable work being carried out in these three schools by Clare and the artists, and it was a great opportunity to meet and talk with the children and the teachers. It's important for every young person to develop an understanding of the visual arts, and initiatives such as Picture This introduces young people to contemporary paintings, print and sculptures. What makes this unique is that they often get to meet the artists who made the pieces in the first place." said Cllr. Bell.

All of the artworks going out to the schools are part of Taisce Lu, the art collection of Louth County Council. Says Brian Harten, County Arts Officer, "We wanted to find new ways to make these artworks relevant and real to people in Louth, so in 2016 and 2017, we established "Irish, Alive and Mostly Female". This initiative saw seven Secondary schools choose artworks from the collection on-line, and then have the artworks brought to their school. Debate and discussion was facilitated by arts educationalists, and each school was visited by artists and artworks for ten weeks. The response from both students and teachers was very positive, and we amended the programme to make it more suitable for primary school children."

This phase of Picture This has three primary schools participatint. They are St Joseph's National School, C.B.S. Primary School, both in Dundalk, and St. Paul's National School, Walshestown.
Forget about tribal histories or the colour of your county jersey - the extension of the Drogheda town boundary into East Meath, impacting on some 6,000 people, just didn't make sense, an East Meath councillor claims.

'This was all about Drogheda extending, which is already playing a strong second fiddle to Dundalk, but the people didn't want it,' Paddy Meade stated. 'They wanted to stay in County Meath and in fact, I believe places like Stameen, which were in Meath, want to go back to the county.

'This all started when I was Mayor of the Laytown/Bettystown area and I would congratulate the councillors and officials for working together on this. The people put in their submissions and 79% were against a change,' he added.

Now he feels a long term goal of Meath County Council should be to bring the border back to the river.

'Estates like Millmount Abbey, which secured 10,000 in funding from the Meath Roadworks Programme recently, Ard Ri and The Oaks are as much a part of Meath as estates in Navan or Kells. I got to know the people in these places during the discussions and I hope to see them get more funding for projects,'he stated.

'Across the road, in places like Meadowview, they have been waiting for projects for years and that's unfair. Louth CC has a growing deficit in funding and maybe some of these estates would be better suited to be in Meath.'
Labhras O Murchu the Director-General of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann has said there was 'no weakness' in Drogheda's bid to host Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann 2018.

Visiting Drogheda last Thursday with his Ardchomhairle colleagues Labhras praised the spirit behind the bid during a meeting with the Drogheda Fleadh Bid Committee, County Council Representatives, Members of the Emergency Services and local volunteers.

Lolo Robinson, Cathaoirleach of Drogheda Comhaltas, was praised by Labhras for setting the tone for the bid and the partnership with the local authority lead by Joan Martin was evident in the work done and the sense of ownership in the town.

Drogheda is competing against Cork for the honour of staging Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann 2018. Labhras commented that everyone in the town should feel that this is their Fleadh and it was very evident that this will be the case in Drogheda; which is a perfect sized town to host the Fleadh.

Lolo responded by saying awarding the Fleadh to Drogheda would ultimately create enormous tourism and economic benefits but most importantly the legacy of traditional Irish music, dance and language would last for generations.

The vote to choose the host town will take place at Comhaltas HQ this Saturday 11th March.

The public can back the bid by liking Fleadh Drogheda on Facebook, following @FleadhDrogheda on Twitter and Instagram and using the hashtag #FleadhDrogheda when you Tweet and check out Drogheda Comhaltas new website on www.drogheadcomhaltas.com
Highlanes Gallery, Drogheda, is proud to host the largest and most comprehensive exhibition by one of Ireland's foremost international contemporary artists, Susan MacWilliam. MacWilliam's work is guaranteed to enthral visitors with a dramatic series of video installations, sculpture and photography that promise to stretch the imagination and stir the mind.

The compelling and thought-provoking exhibition, which enjoyed record visitor numbers at the acclaimed F.E. McWilliam Gallery and Studio in Banbridge, will also be touring an additional two key arts venues across Ireland in 2017.

"Highlanes Gallery is an established venue for arts and culture in Ireland and I'm thrilled that my work will be exhibited in such a stunning and intriguing building. This body of work explores ideas and narratives of vision and perception, of reality and illusion, and of worlds of the paranormal and the super-sensory. I look forward to my work reaching new audiences,' Susan stated.

A specialised programme focusing on those living with Alzheimer's and Dementia will accompany the exhibition - several of the subjects of MacWilliam's videos have been aged in their 80s and 90s and the narrative quality of many of her works, together with the historic subject matter, provides rich ground for specialist sessions with local Alzheimer cafe groups and more general tours for older people.

Born in Belfast and based between Belfast and Dublin, where she lectures at the National College of Art and Design, MacWilliam has exhibited nationally and internationally with solo shows in places from New York to Derby.

Aoife Ruane, Director of Highlanes Gallery, said: "Since its inaugural launch in Northern Ireland last year, we have been waiting in eager anticipation to open the exhibition to the public for the first time at Highlanes Gallery, which is a perfect venue for this striking exhibition. We hope that by facilitating this outstanding body of work that more people will be inspired to delve more deeply into a fascinating range of subject areas." The exhibition is supported by a joint initiative by the Arts Council of Ireland/An Chomahirle Ealaion and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.

The exhibition will run until Saturday 8th April.
A serial thief who stole over 100 worth of groceries from a Drogheda supermarket did so to feed her four children, a court has heard.

Stacey Kennedy (29), who has 16 previous convictions, including five for thefts, has been given a six month suspended sentence after she admitted the offence.

The defendant went into Tesco Extra on the Donore Road and stole 111.48 worth of groceries.

She didn't produce cash nor a bank card and left the supermarket without paying for the goods.

The defendant was intercepted as she left the supermarket and the goods were recovered.

The defendant, of Beechwood Drive in Drogheda pleaded guilty to the theft of the groceries from the supermarket June 8th, 2016.

Defence solicitor Patrick Goodwin said the defendant is 'embarrassed to be here, again.'

'She has four children and took the items as she had no food for hem. She acknowledges it was very stupid and assures the court she won't re-offend,' said Mr Goodwin.

Judge Gerard Naughton said he has a difficulty as the defendant has already been given the benefit of the Probation Act and a suspended sentence.

'It doesn't seem to have had much effect on her,' said Judge Haughton.

'The amount she stole is trivial but the fact is she has previous,' he said and handed the defendant a six months sentence, which he suspended for 12 months.

'This might or might not have an effect," he said. 'She is getting close to offences where she may need a prison sentence.'
Wexford County Council has refused planning permission for a new solar farm on an eleven hectare site at Banogue, Courtown.

Renewable Energy Solutions (RES) Ltd. applied to create a temporary ground mounted solar farm to generate renewable electricity, which was to include solar arrays and associated infrastructure.

The Council said its reason for refusal was that 'the proposed development due to its scale, siting, and elevated nature of the site, fails to have regard to its setting in the landscape and, therefore, would have an adverse effect on the visual amenity of the area and be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.'

The inspector's report noted that Wexford County Council is pro-active in promoting the green economy in rural areas, but this support 'is not carte blanche and is based on the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.'

It added 'Wexford County Council is being extremely careful in the extent of solar development it permits and, in particular, with their impacts on the landscape of County Wexford.'
A cold March sun shone brightly in Enniscorthy as the family and friends of the late David (Motcha) Walsh gathered for their final farewell.

Hundreds gathered outside St Aidan's Cathedral to meet the funeral cortege as it made its way down from the Walsh family home in Moran Park.

There was a stunned silence as his heartbroken father and brothers lifted the remains of their beloved David from the hearse which was adorned with many floral tributes including ones that read son, uncle, dad, Motcha, nephew and Davey.

29-year-old David was found with a stab wound to his neck outside his home in Sydney, Australia, on February 18. His fiancee Tina Cahill (25) from New Ross was arrested at the scene and charged with his murder.

His body was brought into the Cathedral to the strains of the popular Christy Moore song 'The Voyage' which was sung by soloist Stephen Murphy.

David's brother Paddy delivered a beautifully poignant eulogy in which he remembered his brother's 'cheeky grin'.

Full of emotion but speaking with a quiet dignity and grace, Paddy spoke of horrible coincidence which saw his brother being buried on St David's Day.

'As I stayed up last night with David as I had spent so many nights sitting up with him chatting I thought of the way February was drawing to a close and how March 1 is St David's Day. I was reminiscing about David. Everyone here knew who he was and what a character he was. I was trying to think of a few words to say here today but a few words would never sum up David.

'He was a real character. Anyone who was lucky enough to have met Motcha never forgot him. He left an everlasting memory and touched the hearts of everyone he met. He was unique. Motcha was always smiling and laughing - he never took anything too seriously.

'The only thing he took seriously was his family, our mam and dad and his three special little girls. They meant everything to him.

'Although he was far away from home he never really left home. There are just so many things that could be said about him. I was glancing at some of the stuff and I was picturing his cheeky grin and smile.

'Motcha, until we meet again brother, rest in peace.'

Welcoming the congregation Fr Odhran Furlong said 'it is an incredibly sad occasion. It's the first day of spring, St David's Day, Ash Wednesday and how great it would be if they were the only reasons that brought us here. But our hearts are charged with a different task and our prayers are for Motcha as his soul is gathered back home.'

Fr Odhran offered up prayers for David's heartbroken parents, John and Ann, his daughters Ava, Aine and Erin, their mother Caroline, his brothers Jonathan, Paddy, Barry, Steven, Kalem, his sister Faith and his extended family and friends.

He prayed that God would 'visit their hearts with comfort and peace'.

David's young sister Faith performed the first reading from the Book of Ecclesiastes, the popular A Time for Everything. Despite her tender years her voice rang loud and clear throughout the Cathedral and although it broke with emotion several times she cut a dignified figure.

Soloist Stephen Murphy sung the psalm, The Lord is my Shepherd before David's brother Kalem read from a reading from the first letter of St Paul to the Corinthians while the Gospel came from the Book of Matthew.

In the sermon Fr Odhran said that 'there are many other things we wish we were doing right now and there have been many times over the past few days when you have wished to feel any other way.'

He said that Motcha's family, daughters and friends might feel 'they have no music in them, perhaps no happiness, no joy, no confidence or even faith in God' adding that 'those left behind everything changes forever.

'Without the person we loved life no longer carries the same meaning or joy. We worry and wonder about the future and wonder how will we go on without this person. Our hearts go out to you.

'So many people here know what it is like to look into an empty chair, to want to tell a parent about wonderful in life only to remember they are not there.

'We want to hear their voices or Skype them but no matter how hard we strain we won't hear that voice again.

'So many of us know what it is like to mourn and know that since you heard the unbelievable news of Motcha's death there has been a persistent silence.'

However he said that mourning is hugely important. 'When we mourn properly we work though our loss. It won't create an instance peace but it will bring healing even though you will still miss Motcha more than words can say it.

'It doesn't mean that you don't cry or miss Motcha or get over his death - quite the opposite. You learn to live with it. Our pain is soothed to the point of peace which allows us to remember.

'All of us feel such pain and sorrow since Motcha died and a comfort comes through the great power and strength of love. We wouldn't be mourning if we hadn't loved so deep.'

Fr Odhran said that Motcha's life was 'way too short' but said 'we pray that God will bring peace to all who loved Motcha in his life'.

During the Prayers of the Faithful David's daughter Erin remembered how 'Daddy had fought the good fight, he had finished the race and kept the faith'. Prayers were also offered up for all those who had died, the sick and Motcha's family and friends.

His daughters Ava and Aine brought up the offertory gifts of bread and wine.

After communion Ava and Aine both recited the David Harkin poem, He is Gone, calling on the mourners not to 'shed tears that he is gone' but 'smile because he has lived'.

Ava said: 'You can close your eyes and pray that he will come back. Or you can open your eyes and see all that he has left. Your heart can be empty because you can't see him. Or you can be full of the love that you shared. You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday. Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday.'

Reciting the second half of the poem, Aine said: 'You can remember him and only that he is gone. Or you can cherish his memory and let it live on. You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back. Or you can do what he would want: smile, open your eyes, love and go on.'

After they had finished there was a hushed silence in the Cathedral before the mourners broke into applause.

Fr Odhran, speaking on behalf of the Walsh family, thanked everyone who had supported them over the past 'number of very, very difficult days' and said he hoped that God would give David's daughter Ava the gift of comfort as she returned to the Cathedral on Saturday to receive the sacrament of Confirmation.

He said that although Motcha's family and friends felt great sadness in their parting they should 'take comfort in the fact you will see him again'.

Soloist Stephen Murphy sang You Raise Me Up as David's remains were carried from the Cathedral by his father and brothers.

Outside members of Enniscorthy United, the club with which David used to play prior to his emigration, formed a guard of honour. The Irish flag and an Enniscorthy United jersey were draped on his coffin as he made his final journey to Enniscorthy Cemetery with the cortege being led by a lone bagpiper.
I am glad to say that I had the distinct pleasure recently of having tea with former Minister for Education, Minister for Health, and Minister for Public Enterprise and author of Just Mary and The Letters of my Life - the affable Mary O'Rourke, who was at Enniscorthy Library speaking about her latest book.

And what a pleasure it was to meet and converse with this most entertaining, hugely amusing, extremely interesting, warm, genial grande dame of Irish politics, who at 81 has just written her second book - The Letters of My Life.

I had met Mary O'Rourke on previous occasions and she reminded me that the last time was four years ago in the Ferrycarrig Hotel - not a bad memory for an octogenarian. Mary also has that rare gift for a politician of making others feel that they, rather than her, are the important ones and when press photographer Ger Hore arrived she immediately offered him a cup of tea, as if she were the host in her own kitchen at home in Athlone and not the guest speaker at Enniscorthy Library.

We chatted amicably about her trip through the midlands and Storm Doris, Ger Hore told her about being on the presidential campaign with her late brother Brian and she told us how often she hears stories of Brian from people who met him. 'And they always seem so proud to have known him,' she said happily.

James Browne TD was the next to call in to see Mary and she complimented him for something he had said on Mental Health in the Dail during the week, telling him that he was most articulate - praise indeed from teacher, politican and author Mary O'Rourke.

We talked of Enniscorthy and Strawberry Fairs and Literary Festivals and inevitably Vinegar Hill and 1798 and she was intrigued with the name Scalders and the reason we got it. She was about 10 minutes behind schedule at this stage so decided she'd better head in and begin her talk but not before she had a word with Enda from Byrnes Bookshop who was looking after the sales of her book on the night. Mary remembered him by name of course from her previous time at the library - Enda also being her late husband's name and dear to her heart.

She immediately captured the Enniscorthy audience talking about and reading from the wonderful collection of letters to people past and present, close and distant, living and dead. Each letter is warm, and beautifully written and offers gratitude to the recipient for the difference they made to Mary's life even though they may not have known it.

Mary has done what most of us would like to do but properly never will, tell people what they mean to us and in her letters she speaks to the dead as if they are listening exactly the same as the living, a testament to her strong faith and belief that we will all meet again in a better place.

The Letters of My Life is full of nostalgia, friendship and gratitude and give a tremendous insight into one of Ireland's best-known and most-loved public figures.
Balbriggan Tourism got its 2017 programme off to a super start with its first cultural event of the year taking place.

The event at St Peter and Paul's Church was organised in order to celebrate and promote the great art by Harry Clarke whose two stained-glass windows are located in the Church to the left and right of the main altar.

Harry Clarke (1889 - 1931) is described as a genius of his age. He was a stained-glass artist and illustrator who died at the young age of 41 having created over 160 stained-glass windows for religious and commercial commissions, as well as numerous book illustrations and other works.

The first part of the event consisted of a talk on the two Balbriggan windows, The Visitation and The Widow's Son, by the art historian and Harry Clarke scholar, Dr. Nicola Gordon Bowe.

Dr. Bowe gave a very detailed and captivating talk about the two Balbriggan windows and the artist who created them.

Dr Gordon Bowe is an Associate Fellow at the Faculty of Visual Culture, National College of Art and Design in Dublin; Visiting Professor, School of Art and Design Research Institute at the University of Ulster; and Honorary Research Fellow, University of Wales.

Her most recent publications include a revised and updated edition of her seminal biography Harry Clarke: The Life and Work, and a biography of Ulster-born stained glass and graphic artist Wilhelmina Geddes, published by The Four Courts Press, Dublin in 2015.

The members of Balbriggan Tourism Committee, chaired by Cllr Tony Murphy, were delighted with such a great turn out on the day.

The audience included, among many local dignitaries and other distinguished guests, a curator from RIA, the architectural historian Brendan Grimes, Dr. Margarita Cappock, Head of Collections at the Hugh Lane Gallery, Tony Kiely, DIT School of Hospitality Management and Tourism and Coilin O'Reilly, Fingal County Council Head of Tourism Development.

Dr. Bowe's talk was followed by the unveiling of three full-colour plaques, celebrating the windows which Balbriggan Tourism commissioned and had installed outside the Church. Mayor of Fingal Cllr. Darragh Butler officiated at the plaque unveiling.

Balbriggan Tourism Committee have been working on developing a tourism proposition for Balbriggan.

One of the key components of Failte Ireland's tourism campaigns for Ireland is the promotion of cultural tourism. Balbriggan is very fortunate to be the location of these magnificent windows which enhance the town's appeal to the culturally curious visitor.

A set of four postcards depicting images from both of the Harry Clarke Balbriggan windows can be purchased at the offices of Balbriggan Tourism and Balbriggan Chamber of Commerce opposite the courthouse on George's Square. They are on sale for 1 each.
Talented actor and playwright from Swords, David Gilna is getting ready to pass on some of his wisdom and experience to budding actors in the town in new adult drama classes for beginners.

The classes kick off this Wednesday, March 8 at 7.30pm in The Lord Mayors in Swords where a drop-in class will be conducted for anyone who wants come along. This introductory class will just cost 10 and will give you a taster of what David plans to teach in the classes.

Speaking to the Fingal Independent, David explained: 'This course is a practical, enjoyable and confidence building introduction to the craft of acting and improvisation.

'This course is useful for those who wish to expand their general communication skills.

'No previous acting experience is required - only a willingness to participate. This is an ideal acting class for beginners or people reconnecting with the medium of drama.'

The critically acclaimed playwright and actor said that a few locals had approached him with the idea of setting up drama classes in the town for adults and he finally decided to take the plunge and see what interest and talent there is out there to be tapped.

In a recent interview with the Fingal Independent, David revealed a longer-term ambition he has to establish a performing arts school in Swords.

He said the town's planned new Civic and Cultural Centre could provide a home for that school and would give that building's auditorium a useful purpose during the daytime.
Hundreds of people gathered in support of the local fire brigade at fire stations across Fingal at the weekend where protests were held against moves to break up the Dublin Fire Brigade Emergency Medical Service that could threaten the region's vital fire ambulance service.

Large protests were held at Balbriggan Fire Station and at Swords Fire Station with hundreds of people lining up alongside the local fire officers in support of their fight to retain all aspects of its medical emergency services.

The local fire stations were taking part in a day of protests that were held in stations across Dublin for an hour on Saturday and explaining the move, Siptu Organiser, Brendan O'Brien said: 'These protests, which are being held at all 12 fire stations across the city, highlight the opposition of firefighters and their supporters to an attempt by senior management in Dublin City Council to break up the DFB Emergency Medical Service by removing its ambulance call and dispatch function.

'Removal of this function breaks a key link in the DFB Emergency Medical Service chain and reduces its effectiveness and will result in response time delays.'

SIPTU DFB firefighters voted by 93% to 7% in favour of strike action and 97% to 3% in favour of industrial action, in a ballot counted on Friday, February 17. The SIPTU DFB Strike Committee has considered the options available to it and will announce its next steps in the campaign to retain the DFB Emergency Medical Service as a fully functioning operation in the coming days.

Balbriggan councillors were invited to the local fire station recently and were told by Hughie O'Leary, District Officer for Dublin Fire Brigade that Balbriggan has the busiest retained fire service in the country and that 50% of all of its calls are for medical emergencies, the very part of the service that is now under threat.

That led Cllr Tony Murphy (IA) to say that lives were at risk in north Fingal if the threat to the service was not successfully resisted.

The view was the same in Swords, where local fire officer and Siptu representative, Garry Hayden said that the safety of fire officers and the public were being 'compromised' by the threatened break-up of the service.

This week, another local TD has added her voice to the chorus telling Dublin City Council - who have responsibility for the service across all four Dublin local authority areas, including Fingal - and the HSE to leave the service alone.

Sinn Fein Health Spokesperson Louise O'Reilly TD, said: 'If it isn't broke, don't fix it.'

She added: 'The removal of any element of DFB's Fire Based Emergency Medical Service systems would have an adverse effect on patient care.'

For the second time in as many weeks, Deputy Darragh O'Brien TD and Fianna Fail councillors also joined the protest in support of the fire brigade. Deputy O'Brien said the bottom line was this service works 'extremely well' and should be retained.
A form of words that had raised fears locally that new housing was in the works for Knocksedan has been removed from the Fingal County Development Plan.

The plan contains an objective for a feasibility study of this area of western Swords to address a number of infrastructural deficits around this estate and neighbouring ones like Ridgewood.

Residents in the area became alarmed at a form of words in that objective that suggested the feasibility study was being conducted with a view to developing housing in the area and now Fingal planners have agreed to remove the offending line from the objective.

In fact, planners argued against a proposal to rezone land in this area for housing earlier in the development plan process and were backed by a majority of councillors in blocking that proposal.

Director of Planning at the council, Ann Marie Farrelly moved to reassure locals and said there was 'no proposal to rezone any land (at this location'.

Cllr Joe Newman (NP) said that residents had become concerned that the feasibility study would be a 'trojan horse to open up the Knocksedan lands for development' which he said would impact on existing residents' quality of life and erode the green belty.

Cllr Newman again proposed a pet project of his when he said he favoured the development of an 'urban forest' in the area with a 'green buffer zone' that would stretch from Ridgewood to Oldtown/Mooretown and on to Lissenhall.

Cllr Eugene Coppinger (AAA/PBP) also emphasised the importance of the green belt and said residents feared developing these lands would result in 'concrete from Knocksedan to Ridgewood and Boroimhe'. Cllr Duncan Smith (Lab) welcomed the council's move to remove the offending words from the objective for a feasibility study and said that study should address some strategic issues in the broader area that need to be resolved like connecting Knocksedan to the rest of Swords, providing a second exit from the giant Ridgewood estate and that provision of a Western Distributor Road. Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Darragh Butler (FF) agreed and said he also hoped the study would help deliver a 'greenway' along the Ward River Valley.

Ms Farrelly welcomed the contribution from residents in public consultation and said the plan was 'improved' as a result.
The manager of Boroimhe Shopping Centre is mounting a campaign to finally address a 10-year-old problem on the estate that leads to congestion and long delays exiting and entering the centre and puts the lives of pedestrians crossing at a nearby junction at risk in what he calls, a daily 'crapshoot'.

Fergal Barrett, Boroimhe Shopping Centre Manager, took up the position a year ago and has been shocked at the seeing cars take up to 15 minutes to exit the centre at peak times.

He has written to local councillors, to the Fingal County Council executive and started a petition, all with a view to installing new traffic lights at the T-junction at Boroimhe Road and Boroimhe Blackthorn, a junction he described as a 'crapshoot' for crossing pedestrians who said are 'taking their lives into their own hands'.

The ongoing traffic problems around the centre are also harming business for the traders operating there, according to the centre manager who said traders are reporting a recent fall off in business of the order of 10% to 15%.

He acknowledges this may have a lot to do with the arrival of new competition from German multi-national retailers but said addressing the traffic problems in the area was now more important then ever, to give local traders 'a level playing field' to compete with these giant new rivals.

Mr Barrett said: 'This very serious and hazardous traffic congestion is negatively affecting the quality of life for the residents of the Boroimhe, Ridgewood and Applewood estates, along with the livelihoods of the tenants in Boroimhe Shopping Centre.

'The very heavy traffic in the morning and evening rush hour is causing a very serious hazard and congestion resulting in delays to customers of Boroimhe shopping centre accessing and egressing to Boroimhe Road and delays to residents who are trying to start their morning or evening commute.

He added: 'Residents and customers of Boroimhe Shopping Centre who attempt to turn onto Boroimhe Road heading East, do not have adequate line of sight due to the congestion of traffic backed up at Forest Road. This results in a very hazardous situation for motorists as well as bus routes.'

He said there had been 'multiple accidents' in the area and there was 'dangerous traffic conditions for people who are older or have disabilities'.

Mr Barrett added: 'We are very much a community shopping centre and are committed to local business and community activities and organisations. We strongly support local business and follow best practice planning policy and face growing competition from discount retailers.'

Appealing for support for his campaign, the centre manager said: 'On behalf of our tenants who contribute to the local council through the rates and the greater property tax paying community, we ask that you support our application to install a traffic light at the junction of Boroimhe Road and Boroimhe Blackthorn T-Junction to reduce the risk to motorists and to minimise the inconvenience to the residents and customers who share this entrance with the Boroimhe Shopping Centre.'
Tesco Ireland has announced that 450 local projects, nine in County Wexford, will benefit in the new cycle Tesco Community Fund. For the next eight weeks, customers are being encouraged to use their blue tokens in store to vote for their preferred local cause enabling them to make a big difference in their own communities.

So far Tesco stores across County Wexford have supported over 140 local projects donating over 46,000 ranging from schools to seals and much more.

* Shoppers in Tesco Gorey can vote for Rasper Players Drama Group, Fighting Blindness or Little Rascals Pre-School.

* Tesco New Ross will be supporting CBS Secondary School, Geraldine O'Hanrahan's GAA Club and Rathgarogue National School.

* Wexford Extra customers will be able to support Piercestown National School, Murrintown Community Centre or Clonard Holy Family Pre-School.
Twenty-nine County Wexford schools do not have a National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) psychologist assigned to them, a figure described by a local deputy as extraordinary.

The figures were contained in response to a parliamentary question tabled by Fianna Fail last week.

The National Educational Psychological Service works with both primary and post-primary schools and is concerned with learning, behaviour, social and emotional development.

Deputy James Browne said the figures are deeply worrying and clearly demonstrate the crisis that the school psychologist service is currently going through.

'It's extraordinary that 29 schools in Wexford do not have access to a professional psychologist when you consider the extreme stresses that many children undergo as they grow older.

'We have known for some time that the school psychologist service is drastically understaffed. For example, in most instances it takes over a year for students to be assessed for special education needs,' he said. Deputy Browne said this is having a detrimental impact on these children's development as it affects their access to Resource Teaching Hours and Learning Supports. Overall children in these schools have limited access to psychological supports and counselling services when a crisis presents.

He said Fianna Fail has been raising concerns about the understaffing of the NEPS for some time now.

'This is why we made the recruitment of 100 new psychologists a condition of our Confidence and Supply Arrangement to facilitate a minority Government. I will be working with my party colleagues to ensure that this commitment is adhered to so that Wexford schools can get the resources they need to help support the development of their pupils,' he said.

The Department of Education was asked to comment but failed to respond.
The Gorey-based charity Talk to Tom has launched a major fundraising campaign to help secure a premises of its own.

It was recently forced to find alternative rented accommodation as the lease on its current premises on the Fort Road was not renewed.

The charity's new fundraising sub-committee has begun a 'Euro for Life' campaign which encourages local employees and employers to donate a euro a week from their wages. The donation is made at source.

'Our landlord has asked for vacant possession by the end of March,' said CEO Ray Cullen. 'It has come as a shock and we have now found ourselves in the position that we have to move while 34 vulnerable children are depending on our services.'

Since it was founded in 2012, Talk to Tom has provided more than 9,000 hours of professional psychotherapy services to over 500 people. It has trained over 1,500 people in life-saving suicide intervention and well-being programmes. At present, 62 people are attending counselling services, the youngest of whom is four-years-old.

Talk to Tom provides group and individual support services to the families and friends that have been affected by suicide in the county. It also offers training programmes to individuals, groups, and businesses, as well as a schools' programme. No staff member is paid, and no state funding is given.

Ray said that waiting times for child or adolescent services in the health service are between 18 to 24 months. 'Last year, the CALMS services and the counselling service provided by FDYS and funded by the HSE were moved from Gorey, putting extra demand on us, financially and operationally,' he said. 'We are filling the gap for the HSE, and regularly get referrals from other agencies.'

He said that as a temporary measure, they are moving all services to an office suite on the top floor of Pugin Court on St Michael's Road above the charity's shop. 'This means there will be no break in our services,' he emphasised. 'No-one should be worried that they will be left without a service.'

He said that the organisation's work is as important as ever. 'Four weeks ago, a mother contacted us in a very bad way,' he said. 'Her eleven-year-old daughter had attempted to take her own life while in a national school. The child spent five days in Wexford General Hospital, and then was told there was an 18 to 24 month waiting list for access to child and adolescent services.'

'We immediately arranged services for the girl within 24 hours,' he added. 'We also got help for her family and friends.'

'Eight weeks ago, a parent found her 16-year-old son having attempted to take his life,' he continued. 'Having been treated medically, he was left on a waiting list for services. Ninety per cent of people that come to us are on waiting lists for services.'

Ray said that Talk to Tom now plans to raise funds to purchase or build its own premises so vulnerable people won't be left in this position again. 'Our child and adolescent psychotherapist Heather Gillan has emphasised that any change of location can have a negative impact on any vulnerable person's treatment,' he commented.

Talk to Tom was recently given full charitable status and has its own charity number. This means there is complete transparency and complete governance.

To contact Talk to Tom, phone 0818 303 061. To support the Euro for Life campaign, contact the fundraising committee chairman Donie Dunbar on 083 3700287.
A local family has begun a fundraising appeal for sensory and development equipment for their 10-month-old daughter who is awaiting treatment for a large tumour which has filled her mouth. Baby Kyra Hutchins from Bunclody was born on May 1, 2016, to parents Amy and Anthony, who are originally from Gorey.

Amy said that when Kyra was born, she had a baseline heart rate of 80 bpm and spent five days in the special care baby unit in Wexford General before being allowed to go home. 'Kyra had a blue coloured lump in her mouth which we were told is okay,' she said, but added that Kyra had trouble feeding from the start. She was told this would get better.

'As the days went on, the lump in Kyra's mouth got bigger, a lot bigger,' she continued. 'One morning, at five weeks old, Kyra woke up in extreme discomfort. I rang our family doctor immediately.'

An urgent referral was made to Wexford General, and from there on Our Lady's Children's Hospital, Crumlin. During an out-patient appointment there three days later, Kyra was admitted straight away, and tests and scans began.

'A week into our stay in Crumlin, we were told Kyra had lymphangioma tumour in her mouth,' said Amy. 'This was devastating for us as we knew this meant Kyra's early childhood would be spent in hospital.' As Kyra couldn't take a bottle, she had to be fed through a nasogastric tube.

After ten days, Kyra developed breathing difficulties and was rushed to intensive care and put on life support. 'We and her medical team made the decision that a tracheostomy (an artificial airway tube) would be the best option for Kyra, so she went through this life saving operation, and spent the next 21 days in intensive care being weaned off the life support machine,' explained Amy.

When she finally began to breathe on her own, Kyra was moved to the baby ward where she spent six months while her parents trained to become competent careers for Kyra's needs.

It was then decided to give Kyra some normality and bring her home to spend time with her parents, two brothers and sister, while she awaits treatment. Amy said that Kyra has turned into a very happy-go-lucky baby and loves to smile, but treatment dates are approaching and Kyra is going to face her biggest challenge yet - scilotherapy, chemotherapy and radiation.

Kyra being peg-fed and is slowly progressing with her feeding, but she cannot crawl as her bones are weak; she can't be given a bath; and she can't suck a soother as the tumour has taken up all the space in her mouth. 'We have not heard Kyra's little voice since the day she was rushed to ICU,' said Amy, 'not as much as a first word or crying sound.'

Kyra depends on sensory equipment to keep her brain active. 'She absolutely loves lights and would really benefit from sensory and development equipment,' explained Amy. 'Our goal is to raise 5,000 to provide Kyra with a hospital cot and all her sensory equipment, so we would appeal to everyone if you can spare any donation, however big or small, everything will help.' Donate by visiting Kyra's page - Kyra's Road to Recovery - on www.GoFundMe.com .
Gardai are appealing for information on an aggravated burglary which occurred in the yard of a house at Mount Alexander, Gorey, on Friday, February 10, last.

Two men, one of whom was carrying a hammer, approached the householder between 6.30 a.m. and 7 a.m. and demanded cash from him. They then assaulted the man, who is in his forties, and 'man-handled him' before making off with an undisclosed sum of cash.

He was left badly shaken, but unhurt. The hammer was not used in the incident.

The thieves were described as wearing dark clothes, and their faces were covered by balaclavas. They fled the scene on foot but it is not known if transport was waiting nearby.

Gorey gardai are anxious to hear from anyone who was in the area at the time and may have information on the movements of the raiders before and after the incident, and particularly on the mode of transport used. Gorey Garda Station can be contacted on 053 9430690.
A production directed by the renowned actress Fiona Shaw as well as operatic adaptations of stories from James Joyce's Dubliners are among the highlights of the newly announced Wexford Festival Opera programme for 2017.

The main stage operas are Luigi Cherubini's Medea conducted by Stephen Barlow and directed by the actress Fiona Shaw; Jacopo Foroni's Margherita conducted by Timothy Myers and directed by Michael Sturm and Franco Alfano's Risurrezione, based on the Leo Tolstoy novel, conducted by Francesco Cilluffo and directed by Rosetta Cucchi.

The highly anticipated Margherita by Foroni hasn't been seen or heard since it premiered in Milan in 1848. After an enthusiastic reception, it went into decline like so many other Wexford operatic revivals.

Fiona Shaw is known for her award-winning theatre and film acting work including playing the lead in Medea in a production that originated at the Abbey Theatre and eventually moving to Broadway, earning her a Tony nomination.

In recent times, she has been making an impact as an opera director with productions such as Riders to the Sea, Henze's Elegy for Young Lovers and the Marriage of Figaro for English National Opera and the Rape of Lucretia for Glyndebourne and the Deutsche Oper, Berlin.

The Cork native, who is known for her celebrated acting performances with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre, will also deliver this year's Dr Tom Walsh Lecture at the festival on October 21 in Clayton Whites Hotel.

The second lecture of the programme will be given by Sylvia L'Ecuyer, the Canadian broadcaster and associate professor of musicology at the Faculty of Music of the University of Montreal who will talk about Operas of the Past, Mirrors of our Present, exploring the trends in updating operas into contemporary circumstances.

In addition to the three evening operas, there will be three daytime ShortWorks, approximately one hour in length, presented at Clayton Whites Hotel, offering a condensed version of a more familiar opera performed by cast members of the evening operas.

These include Dubliners by Irish composer Andrew Synnott with adaptation and text by Arthur Riordan featuring two one-act operas based on Counterparts and The Boarding House from Joyce's Dubliners which will receive its world premiere for four performances only in a co-production with Opera Theatre Company.

The other Shortworks are Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi, containing some of opera's most beloved arias including 'la donne e mobile' and La Scala di seta by Gioachino Rossini, an early work by the composer in the form of a fast-moving comedy.

Artists and performance dates for this year's lunch-time recitals featuring principal artists of the festival performing their favourite repertoire in St Iberius Church, will be announced closer to the festival.

One event in St. Iberius Church that has been confirmed is The Thomas Moore Songbook, a programme of Moore's Irish Melodies presented by Una Hunt, Ireland's leading authority on Irish composers whose music has been largely forgotten or neglected. There will be two performances on Thursday, October 20 and Saturday, October 28.

One of Ireland's most successful pianists, Dubliner Finghin Collins will perform a piano recital in the O'Reilly Theatre on bank holiday Monday, October 30. Having studied at the Royal Irish Academy of Music with John O'Connor and the Geneva Conservatoire with Dominique Merlet, Finghin, he achieved international success and developed a flourishing career that takes him all over Europe, the US and the Far East.

Now in its 66th year, the international festival will run over an extended 18-day period this year from Thursday, October 19 to Sunday, November 5.

Priority booking for Friends of Wexford Festival Opera will open on a staged basis from Saturday, March 25. Tickets go on sale to the public on April 15. See wexfordopera.com for details.
Rotary Club of Killarney Young Musician of the Year Laura Hynes, Eve Buckley, Harry O'Connor, Katarina Roberts, Alan McLoughlin and Emily Sullivan with (back) Barry Murphy organising committee, Angela O'Connor Rotary President and Sean Tracey Organiser at The Acoustic Club, Gleneagle Hotel, Killarney on Saturday. Photo by Michelle Cooper Galvin

Harry O'Connor from Kenmare is the 2017 Killarney Rotary Club 'Young Musician of the Year'. Harry took the prestigious title in what was the 17th year of the popular musical event.

Harry qualified from the previous rounds which were held at the KDYS earlier on Saturday before the focus switched to the Acoustic Club in The Gleneagle Hotel on Saturday evening.

The musical extravaganza took place over two days and each year the event showcases the best up-and-coming talent Kerry has to offer giving them a platform on which to showcase their talents. The evening was also embellished by the participation of past winners who returned to the scene of their achievement to delight the audience. The event was very well attended over both days by family and friends intent on offering their support to the musicians.

For many of the musicians it was also their first time performing publicly and they will no doubt benefit from this experience. The Rotary Club also expressed its thanks to the KDYS, parents, families and The Gleneagle Hotel.
Tarbert is set for a big literary weekend in celebration of wonderful homegrown talent, living and dead, over two nights at the Community Centre on Friday and Saturday next.

Acclaimed modernist poet Thomas McGreevy and debut novelist Kevin Hurley are the subjects of the twin celebrations in a weekend marking a proud moment for the locality.

First up is the event in remembrance of Thomas McGreevy marking the 50th anniversary of his death (March 16, 1967) at the Community Centre in Tarbert on Friday night, March 10, next.

Born and reared on the Glin Road in a home still owned by the family, McGreevy fought in the First World War as Second Lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery, being wounded twice at the Somme.

Following the war he studied at the Sorbonne in Paris becoming firm friends with Samuel Beckett - who would later champion his poetry.

Considered the first modernist Irish poet, he was regarded as one of the three key Irish poets of WW1.

The event begins with a Memorial Mass from 6.30pm followed by what's certain to be an illuminating talk from another Tarbert native Professor Emeritus John Coolahan called 'The abiding influence of his Tarbert childhood and youth on Thomas McGreevy'.

Meanwhile, on Saturday night it is Tarbert native Kevin Hurley who will be the focus of his community as he comes back from his adopted Dublin home to launch his first novel September Will Tell - an historic romance set in and around his home town. A retired teacher, Kevin Hurley returns home regularly but this visit will, of course, be extra special as he finds himself feted at the Community Centre on Saturday, March 11, at 8pm. For more information on both events visit www.tarbert.ie.
How better to kick off a Cheltenham preview night than by a live 'phone-in' with one of the top three horse owners heading to the Cotswolds?

Trust the expert race town of Listowel to deliver the goods.

None other than Rich Ricci answered event MC Pat Healy's call at the start of the annual Cheltenham Preview night in Christy Walsh's Well Bar on Sunday - one of the big yearly fundraisers for the local operations of the Kerry Parents' and Friends' Association.

US native and former Barclays Bank high-roller Ricci is one of the three top racehorse owners at the festival, alongside Michael O'Leary's Gigginstown House Stud and JP McManus.

"He was great, gave us about 25 minutes of his time to go through every day's racing, every horse he has entered, and numerous other insights into the festival," Christy Walsh said.

Over then to the panel physically present in the famous bar: Listowel's very own independent bookie Berkie Browne - sponsoring the event - Willie Mullins' assistant David Casey, three-time Kerry National winner Eric McNamara and Missunited trainer Michael Winters. Billy Keane walked the floor in 'hilarious' form with the roving mike as the panel fielded one question after another amid the mounting race excitement.

"It was another great year for the event with 200 in to hear what the panel had to say and to support the Kerry Parents' and Friends' Association." It's estimated the KPFA raised over 2,000 from the door and raffle sales alone on the night.

But they could be onto an even greater winner with the charity bets, sponsored by Berkie Browne with enhanced prices, taken by the panel as all the winnings are to go to the KPFA. The bets were as follows: 100 on On The Fringe at 2/1; 50 each way on Tiger Roll at 33/1 and a 100 double on Un De Scoux and On The Fringe at 12/1. "They won 1,300 last year so it's another great fundraising stream for the charity."
Pupils and teachers from Scoil Mhuire Gan Smal in Lixnaw pictured in Siamsa Tire last Friday morning for the local screening of their Fis Film Project entitled 'Time to Change'

Pupils and staff from all over Kerry were at a high pitch of excitement in Siamsa Tire last Friday morning as they gathered in the foyer of the Tralee venue for the local screenings all of the various schools entries in the Fis Film Project.

The Fis Project, organised in collaboration with the Education Centre in Tralee, PDST Technology in Education, IADT and Kerry Film Festival, is designed to help celebrate the art of film-making in schools.

FIS (literally translated as 'Vision') is a Department of Education project designed to introduce film to the Primary School Curriculum.

The project has been going from strength to strength over the past number of years with a big increase in the number of participants from local schools taking part with a number of teachers reporting that children love working with this medium and are being highly stimulated by the range of creative opportunities it provides.

Each year, the Education Centre in Tralee works in collaboration with the team at the Kerry Film Festival to ensure each school that enters a project to Fis is invited to present their films at local screenings such as the one that was held in Siamsa last Friday. This then provides students and teachers involved in FIS with an opportunity to share and celebrate their work.

This year's local screening of films in Siamsa saw nine different schools from around Kerry taking part on the day; they were CBS Primary School, Tralee, Spa NS, St. Joseph's NS, Ballyheigue, Scoil Realt Na Mara, Tuosist, Holy Family NS, Rathmore, Moyderwell Mercy Primary School, Killury NS;, Scoil Muire Gan Smal, Lixnaw and Ardfert NS.

Organisers of the event were on hand to congratulate all of the schools, including all of the hardworking teachers and students on the extraordinary work and success that they have undertaken in the course of their project; two of the schools in Scoil Mhuire Gan Smal in Lixnaw and Ardfert NS went on to win awards at the National FIS Film Awards in the Helix in November of last year.
Minister for State for Communications and the National Drugs Strategy Catherine Byrne with Cllr Tom McEllistrim Kerry Life Skills, Colm Ni Shuilleabhain Principal Presentation Monastery School, Sheila Casey Chairperson Kerry Life Skills (back) Sean Coffey Principal St Brendan's, Colm McEvoy CEP Education Training Board, teacher Eric O'Connor, Seamus Whitty Kerry Life Skills and senior pupils at Presentation Monastery NS Killarney on Friday. Photo by Michelle Cooper Galvin

The Minister of State for Communities and National Drugs Strategy, Catherine Byrne, was treated to a morning of sprightly enthusiasm when she visited the Kingdom to assess the great work being done by Kerry Life Skills (KLS).

KLS have been busy working with young people in primary and post-primary schools throughout Kerry for over thirteen years and on this occasion the Minister sat in on a workshop in the Kerry Life Skills' mobile classroom with 6th class boys from 'The Mon' primary school in Killarney.

The Minister heard from the class about their fun experiences of working in the mobile classroom for the past 8 years. Afterwards, there was an opportunity for her to meet the class where they asked questions about her own work and told her about their efforts to promote cultural diversity.

Accompanying the Minister was Colm O Suilleabhain, principal of The Monastery, and Sean Coffey, principal of St Brendan's College, Killarney. Together they outlined the continuity provided by the KLS service and emphasised its ability to support the work of the school by engaging interactively with students, regardless of their age.

The Minister was very enthusiastic by what she saw and the great work being done in Kerry. She also praised efforts to ensure the work continues on a sustainable level. With this in mind, Sheila Casey - Kerry Life Skills Chairperson - introduced Colm McEvoy, CEO of Kerry ETB, with whom Kerry Life Skills are exploring a partnership.

"Any day you get people from so many different backgrounds and organisations thinking about how to support young people is brilliant," said Seamus Whitty, Project Manager with KLS. "You had primary and secondary schools represented, as well as students from all over the world involved in promoting wellbeing for young people. It was really positive and Minister Byrne really understood what we're trying to do here in Kerry," he added.

Kerry Life Skills supports the positive mental health and overall well-being of young people. Its original concept was a joint initiative.
Kerrys very own Superhero Thimble will be launched at the K-Con event in the INEC in April

We here in Kerry have been blessed with a great deal many things, be it wonderful scenery, a supreme penchant for sport or more recently, as the home for all things Star Wars.

Well, it seems that we can now add our very own resident superhero to our list of accolades after it was revealed that Jason Browne and his fellow publishers at the Buttonpress Publications are to launch only the second ever issue of Kerry hero 'Thimble' at the K-Con event in the INEC in Killarney this April.

Thimble, or Cora Downey as she's also known as, hails from the the scenic Black Valley area here in Kerry and thanks to the magical powers that were gifted to her at birth by her Aunt Maeb, she has the amazing gift of communicating with animals.

As a result of a weak heart, Thimble usually stands at the miniature height of just over three inches, but can grow to just under regular human size with the use of magic and is already fast on her way to becoming a powerful magician and fighter herself.

Issue one of 'Thimble' is already on sale and can be purchased through the Buttonpress Publications website; issue 2 will be available to buy at the K-Con event in the INEC in Killarney whoch is scheduled to take place on the weekend of April 1 - April 3.

All of the Buttonpress Publications comic books are suitable for children of all ages so parents need not worry about any unsuitable stories for any of their kids.
A Killorglin man lost an arm in an horrific accident in the centre of Hemel Hempstead in the UK on Thursday as he was working on-street at a manhole.

David Hoare, of Tullig, Killorglin, was struck by a car and fell through the open manhole he was working on in the course of the incident.

Hertfordshire police launched a hit-and-run investigation hours later as they issued an appeal to the owner of a white 'Kia-type' vehicle to come forward and assist in their inquiries.

Mr Hoare (46), who is described as a very popular and well-known member of the Killorglin community, had to be rushed by air ambulance to hospital where medics were later forced to amputate his arm.

Police described his injuries as 'very serious' on Friday. "This man has suffered very serious injuries, which are now not thought to be life-threatening, but are very serious," Sergeant Sam Cordingley of the Beds, Cambs and Herts Road Policing Unit said on Friday.

"He is currently undergoing surgery for his injuries. We urgently need to speak to the driver of the small white Kia type vehicle," Sgt Cordingley said.

Shock was keenly felt in Killorglin as news of the horrific accident spread.

"Killorglin is a very tight-knit community so we're all deeply upset at what happened David who is very well regarded in his home town," local Sinn Fein County Councillor Damian Quigg told The Kerryman.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with David and his family as he recovers from this awful incident," he added.

Mr Hoare was carrying out repairs to a manhole at a roundabout in the centre of Hemel Hempstead at 10.25pm on Thursday night when the accident happened.

Police believe the car which struck Mr Hoare continued in the direction of the Leighton Buzzard Road, asking members of the public with any knowledge of potential interest to come forward.

"If you have any information about this incident or who the driver may be, then please contact police as soon as possible as your information may prove vital in helping us understand the circumstances of the collision," Sgt Cordingley added.

He said police believe the accident caused an oil leak to the car, also urging any mechanics to have been asked to repair a car of the description offered to come forward also.
Members of Beale GAA club are in turmoil this week following the death of much-loved club man Padhraic Moran in last Wednesday's freak road accident near Birdhill.

"On a personal level we've lost a wonderful friend; on a club and town level the loss is every bit as great," close friend and Beale GAA assistant secretary John Hennessy told The Kerryman.

The club came out in full force to form a massive guard of honour at his funeral from St John's Church in Ballybunion on Monday morning in clear testament to the affection in which he was held.

Mr Moran died on Wednesday when his car skidded off the Dublin to Limerick road and into a ravine - between the Birdhill and Castletroy junctions - in a freak hail shower. He was on his way back from Dublin to his beloved wife Anne at their Corbally home when the crash occurred, just minutes after he called her to say he was nearly there.

Finuge native Anne, his mother Mai, brothers Michael, Peter and Diarmuid, sister Kerry, nephews, nieces and extended family were comforted by thousands of mourners over the week, with Ballybunion rallying to the popular family's side throughout Monday and Tuesday.

Mr Moran worked in insurance for the last 11 years as a highly-regarded employee of Zurich Life.

A son of the late, great Micko Moran and a first cousin of Kerry legend Ogie Moran, he lived for all things Beale and Kerry, as well as Munster rugby.

"Padhraic and the entire Moran family were so proud to attend the recent launch of the Beale GAA history 'Sand in our Boots' in which they feature heavily. It's just so hard to make sense of his loss so soon after the high of the launch and the McNamee Award," Mr Hennessy said.

"Padhraic was an absolute gentleman, someone who engaged fully with everyone he met, asking after their families and always enquiring about the fortunes of Beale on his regular trips to visit his mother Mai at her home on the Cliff Road. He went about things in his own quiet way always and was incredibly generous when it came to fundraising for Beale and for so many other sporting organisations in North Kerry," Mr Hennessy added.
Senior Gardai in Dublin have admitted the success of 'Operation Thor' - their crackdown on roving burglar gangs in the midlands - has driven the criminals into Kerry and other more isolated counties located away from the national motorway network.

In a bid to avoid the ongoing Garda swoop, the mainly city-based gangs responsible for a reign of terror across the midlands are swapping the motorway network for back roads and moving their operations out of the midlands and into south Munster and Connacht.

While the motorways were used as the spine of the gangs' operations the old primary road network has now become their chosen trade route.

This move away from the motorways has seen the gangs target homes and businesses in rural parts of Kerry, Cork, Clare, Donegal, Galway and Mayo.

Kerry Garda Chief Superintendent Tom Myers said there had been a "sharp rise" in the number of burglaries in the county in the last two months.

In just the last two weeks six houses were robbed in three hours near Killarney while six homes and businesses were burgled in north Kerry. Two highly mobile gangs from Cork and Limerick are believed to be responsible.

In Ardfert two weeks ago a man aged in his 60s was held hostage for an hour an a half when a professional gang raided his home and a neighbouring business.

Senior Officers at Garda HQ in Dublin said Operation Thor has been a major success, leading to a significant decline in burglaries in its target area.

However they admitted that crime gangs operating from Dublin, Limerick, Cork and Waterford, have modified their operating tactics in direct response to Operation Thor.

The gangs are also devoting more resources to local intelligence sources - paying 'spotters' in specific areas to identify target houses for them.

The houses are marked with innocent-looking items like socks draped on gates or paint on telegraph poles to identify them to the burglar gangs.

Instead of driving high powered cars, the gangs are swapping to more nondescript vehicles and driving on back roads when they are scouting areas.

Senior Garda sources said that while Operation Thor had been a success the unfortunate side effect was that gangs - some of them violent - had switched their attention to rural areas that had previously escaped their attention.

Gardai are also increasingly concerned at the way gangs and local 'spotters' are using social media to help identify when houses are temporarily empty or owners are away.

"We have come across cases where particular homes have been robbed and the suspicion is that it was on the clear basis of information obtained from social media postings by the family involved," a senior Garda has warned.

"People need to be very careful of what they are posting on social media about their movements."

Operation Thor - a specialist operation designed to tackle criminal burglary gangs - has resulted in hundreds of arrests since its inception in 2016.

The 5 million operation involves increased garda visibility; targeted searches; high visibility checkpoints; increased motorway patrols; use of intelligence and technology to target known offenders and gangs and a national awareness campaign.
Dr Brendan O'Keeffe Mary Immaculate College (centre) with (left to right) John Joe Harmon, Cllr Johnny Healy Rae, Noel Spillane CEO SKDP and Siobhan Griffin Kerry County Council at Milltown on Thursday

Dr Brendan O'Keeffe Mary Immaculate College (centre) presenting his report on Milltown Demographic and Socio-Economic Profile with (left to right) Amanda McAllister, Cllr Michael O'Shea Mayor of Kerry, Michael McCarthy and Paul O'Raw at Milltown on Thursday. Photo by Michelle Cooper Galvin

Milltown is losing out as its locals commuting to work are shopping where they work rather than where they live, according to a socio-economic report carried out by a lecturer at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick.

Dr Brendan O'Keeffe's report showed that while Milltown's population ballooned during the boom, its economic base has contracted severely since.

The report found the town has a disproportionate number of 'brownfield' sites and empty shops for a conurbation of its size.

But while change has posed challenges to Milltown, Dr O'Keeffe also outlined many benefits the town has reaped in terms of local amenities, and the potential of its young population.

Kerry County Council sanctioned the report, and approached Dr O'Keeffe in November to undertake the study. The resulting body of work, based primarily on census data, led Dr O'Keeffe to conclude that the 'pace and scale of change to Milltown is unprecedented among towns and villages in Kerry.'

He found the town's population has exploded over the last three decades; in 1991 it was Kerry's 20th largest urban centre, but by 2011 had climbed to 10th.

Between 2002 and 2011 alone, the Milltown Electoral Division's population jumped by over 60 per cent from just over 1,200 to almost 2,000 people. Half of all the area's dwellings were built during this period.

"Change has brought many benefits to Milltown," Dr O'Keeffe said. "New schools, a childcare facility, a community centre and playground are among the amenities that have come on stream.

"Milltown is also more youthful than many towns of its size, and has the potential to further harness social and knowledge capital.

"But change has also presented new challenges as services and infrastructure need further investment in order to service the increased population and enable Milltown to be competitive and grow in a sustainable manner."

Dr O'Keeffe said Milltown's profile means it will require strategic responses from Kerry County Council and other statutory bodies.

His report encouraged the community to make full use of its connections with other towns and villages on the Wild Atlantic Way, as well as its association with Listry and Castlemaine.

"While Milltown's profile has changed very considerably, it has sustained itself for generations because of the relationship between town and countryside," he added. "Milltown is where people from nearby town-lands come to shop, learn, socialise, and worship. Sustaining the link between town and countryside will be integral to Milltown's future sustainable development."

Kerry County Council has said it considers this study the first part of developing a socio-economic plan for Milltown. A funding structure for such a plan will be laid out in response to discussion with Milltown's community on the area's future.
Over 230 delegates attended Ireland's first nZEB (Nearly Zero Energy Buildings) held in Enniscorthy last Thursday.

Representatives of the architectural, construction and local authority sectors were given detailed briefings on nZEB building methods from a panel of experts from Ireland and abroad.

The conference was opened by Simon Coveney TD, Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, who set the tone of the one-day event by outlining Government thinking in respect of Ireland's future housing needs. He said Ireland will introduce nZEB building compliance regulations by 2018 for all public buildings and by 2020 for other construction projects.

The Enniscorthy conference, the first of its kind to take place in advance of the new regulations, was designed to inform all interested parties of what is required in the future.

The event was organised by nZebra, a subsidiary company of MosArt Ltd., a Rathnew, County Wicklow based firm of architects, whose Managing Director Tomas O'Leary is from Enniscorthy.

MosArt has been providing sustainable building and landscape design services since 1993 and is presently responsible for the design, detailing and certification of Wexford County Council's nZEB Housing Scheme at The Moyne, Enniscorthy, which is the first local authority housing scheme in Ireland to be built to nZEB specifications.

At Thursday's conference, Mr O'Leary, brought delegates on a step-by-step 'behind the scenes' construction of an nZEB house, with the aid of a 30-minute video, outlining solutions for building designers and contractors aiming to achieve cost-optimal sustainable buildings.

His presentation was one of many which dealing with every aspect of nZEB construction methods which are designed to deliver accelerated and affordable future-proof housing for the 21st century.

The theme of the conference was set by Sean Armstrong, Senior Housing Standards Advisor at the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government who detailed the 'Roadmap for Delivering nZEB in Ireland'. His submission outlined Government thinking and gave a clear outline of what will be expected in the aftermath of nZEB's introduction.

Wexford County Council's Chief Executive Tom Enright, gave a thought provoking insight into the work involved in the construction of an nZEB Scheme when he outlined the methods employed in the Council's scheme at The Moyne, Enniscorthy, while Quantity Surveyor Seamus Mullins gave a cost analysis for delivering nZEB which, he said, was cheaper than a conventional build.

Other speakers included Andree Dargan, County Architect, Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council; Christy O' Sullivan, Managing Director, ILTP Consulting; Dr. Shane Colclough, University of Ulster, and Dragomir Tzanev from Bulgaria who outlined what is required to train construction workers to deliver nZEB in Ireland.The conference concluded with a panel discussion on 'The Way ahead for Ireland' involving Pat Cox, Former President of the European Parliament; Jim Gannon, Chief Executive, Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, and Tom Parlon, Director General, Construction Federation of Ireland, with each speaker offering forthright views on what is needed for the successful introduction of nZEB in Ireland.
Wexford gardai have been carrying out door-to-door enquiries in south Wexford in a new probe into the murder of tragic Bridgetown mother Fiona Sinnott.

Householders living along two possible routes that 19 year old Fiona could have travelled to reach her rented home in Ballyhit, Broadway on the night she left Butler's pub in Broadway shortly after midnight on February 8 1998, are being interviewed again 19 years after the initial investigation.

Gardai have also been contacting people who previously lived in the area and have since moved to other locations.

The enquiries began as gardai appealed to anyone with information on Fiona's disappearance to come forward at the same time that a reconstruction of her last movements was broadcast by the CrimeCall programme on RTE television.

The gardai especially want to hear from or about four individuals who were seen by a passing motorist at Kisha Cross between midnight and 12.30 am that night.A male and a female were involved in an argument and two males in their late teens or early twenties were seen a short distance away - none of them have ever come forward and gardai are anxious to trace them.

A team of detectives and uniformed gardai have been assigned to a renewed inquiry which has seen forensic officers re-examining the cottage in which Fiona lived with her then 11-month old daughter Emma. The case was upgraded from a missing person to a murder case in 2005.Samples have been taken from the house and laboratory results are being awaited. Chief Superintendent John Roche of Wexford Garda Station which is co-ordinating the investigation said thanks to technological advances, new tests can yield results many years later even if a suspect area or item has been cleaned.

DNA profiles can be generated from stains which was not possible in 1998 when Fiona went missing. 'Our technical team carried out a new examination of the house about three weeks ago and we are still awaiting the results,' said the Garda boss.

The Chief Superintendent said since the fresh investigation began, officers have gathered small pieces of new information which could assist the gardai in their enquiries and since the appeal, a number of telephone calls have been received from members of the public offering information.'If there are people out there who have any information, however insignificant they feel it might be, please contact us. We will deal with it in the strictest confidence. If they don't want to contact Wexford Garda Station, they can ring the confidential telephone line on 1800 666 111,' he said.
Sunday marked 50 years since the closure of the Good Shepherd's Magdalene Laundry in New Ross and the biggest crowd to ever attend a Flowers for Magdalene ceremony braved the cold spring weather to remember the 62 women who lived and died within the walls of the old Good Shepherd laundry in New Ross.

120 people ranging in ages from seven to their mid-90s travelled to St Stephen's Cemetery for the event which was organised once again by artist Nancy Rochford Flynn. Following the revelations on Saturday confirming the discovery of baby remains in Tuam, there was an added sense of tragedy and sadness to this year's event.

Rochford-Flynn welcomed everyone to the ceremony and Maureen O'Sullivan who lived and worked in the Good Shepherd laundry in New Ross read a poem entitled Behind Stone Wall which was written about her.

Rochford-Flynn spoke of the importance of communities coming together in these times and of how timely it was for everyone to be gathering in the wake of the Tuam scandal.

She said the women who were incarcerated in the laundries had their hair cut and names taken from them and how they were dehumanised.

'The dehumansiation of the penitent woman was the religious orders way of saying to the person that the way forward was salvation.'

New Ross mother and daughter Anne and Roisin Wayne read testimonies from young girls who went from industrial schools into a Magdalene laundry. Following this Maedhbh Flynn and Sinead Croarkin laid 62 flowers in memory of the women who lived and died behind the convent walls. As each woman's name was called a flower was laid and following this everyone in attendance came forward and laid a flower in the cemetery. Aideen Ni Riada sang the song I'll Stand by You by The Pretenders and Rochford-Flynn spoke of the symbol of the Flowers for Magdalene flag, the snowdrop, and how it symbolises strength.

Poet Nora Clifford Kelly from Gorey recited her powerful poem The Promise of Spirit and concluding the ceremony Rochford Flynn spoke of how the current revelations highlight once again the period in Irish society when Irish women were treated the worst. Michael Fottrell composed an anthem called Flag of Flowers which was sung, closing the ceremony, which Rochford-Flynn described as being one of healing and remembering.
In May 2010 a group of budding actors came together in the Marion Hall, Calry and discussed resurrecting Dram in Calry once again.

The discussion was enthusiastic and within weeks a producer was in place and rehearsals for "MacBeth the Clary Way " were underway.

Deirdre Staunton the producer at that time said that all those involved wanted to take things slowly, gain local support and trust and ensure that many others would join the merry band of actors in Calry.

This drama group has not taken things as slowly as once planned and has gone from strength to strength. Each winter a very successful Pantomime involving 3rd class from the local primary school is produced, with one act and two act plays drawing huge audiences to the hall each Spring.

Last year the group brought Caitlin Ni Houlihan on the drama circuit for one act plays and performed both North and South of the border. In addition RTE used some footage from this production in a documentary about Arthur Shields the Abbey actor who later played Padraig Pearse in Hollywood and who took part in the Rebels' last stand in the 1916 Rising.

This was not Calry community's first drama group. Drama has been part of life in Calry on and off since the 1950s. Plays were performed in the old (now demolished) FCA hall. After the Marian Hall was built Pat Tucker and Miss Tench were involved in drama and directed plays such as Paul Twining. Padraig Foran came to Calry in 1958 and he took up the baton and produced many plays in the Marian Hall and indeed many other venues around the county. Plays such as The Country Boy, Many Young men of Twenty and Anyone can Rob A Bank were favourites. Times and fashions changed and in the 1980s Tops of the Town and Scor were more popular than plays. Calry participated very successfully in both. There was a hiatus then as amateur drama was not as popular in the era of TV and video.

Later this month this group will be producing their first ever musical and promise to thrill audiences in the Marion hall Calry. Another challenge for the energetic group and one that they have met with humour and enthusiasm according to Deirdre Staunton the director. With a talented cast of 20, Oklahoma promises to thrill audiences of all ages in the Marion Hall Calry March 23rd - 25th at 8pm nightly. Adult 10 Euro, children 5 euro. Tickets available at Regional Stores, Ballinode.
10th February 1939: General Solchager receives Francos Spanish Nationalist troops at Col De Portus, a deep valley in the eastern Pyrenees, during the Spanish Civil War

International Women's Day March 8th, is a global celebration of women's achievements in culture, sports, politics and society.

In Ireland and indeed Sligo many women have made their mark throughout history, many well known but some are relatively unknown, which is the case of Sligo's Hannah Rutledge Ormesby.

Born in Sligo in 1902, Ormesby can be considered the only Irishwoman to die in the Spanish Civil War.

Ormesby came from a well to do family who resided at the estate of Belleville in Dromore West and went to Spain with a British medical unit in 1937 to aid republicans fighting against General Francos fascists.

In 1936 Spain's democratically elected left wing republican government was over thrown in a coup by right wing fascists led by General Francisco Franco.

What followed was a bitter civil war which saw the inclusion of brigades from other countries fighting on either side.

Here in Ireland those who supported the fascists joined Eoin O' Duffy's Irish Brigade and went to Spain to fight alongside the Francoists.

Those in Ireland who supported Spanish republicans came from a pool of left leaning ideologies. Trade unionists and IRA members with socialist inclinations signed up to the 15th International Brigade to fight against the spread of fascism in Spain.

Hannah Rutledge Ormesby, who was known better as 'Ruth', was a qualified nurse and arrived in Spain on the 4th of April 1937 with a British medical unit sympathetic to the left wing Republicans.

Although she declared herself of 'no political affiliation' her sympathies lay with those who were dispossessed of their democratic right.

In Spain, Ruth Ormesby worked under Surgeon Dr. L. Quemada who would later eulogise the Sligo lady as a 'hard working efficient nurse.'

The conditions under which Ruth and her comrades worked were often unbearable. During the Summer, the sun scorched the soil around them and helped spread illnesses among patients weakened by gun shot wounds and shrapnel injuries.

During the height of a swealtering August on the Aragon front in 1937, Ruth and the other nurses and doctors had to tend to their patients in the middle of a three day wind storm that covered their field hospital in dust. The mobile field hospital at La Puebla de Hijar near Quinto in Aragon was in the thick of fierce fighting and in a 12 day period it saw up to 160 operations carried out.

A Spanish Medical Aid Committee report described the harsh climate Ruth and her comrades had to endure: "Nurses including Ruth Ormesby worked day and night. The percentage of wounded who died was very low.

"They ate and slept when they could snatch a few minutes out in the open or if on duty for 20 or 30 hour stretches they lay down in the wards so that they could be ready at a minutes notice."

During the intense fighting on the Aragon front, Ruth and her fellow nurses there were credited with turning four wooden huts into a field hospital.

This field hospital had no electricity or running water but served to save the Iives of many people including those fighting with the 15th International Brigade and civilians caught up in the conflict.

There are differing accounts regarding the last moments of Ruth Ormesby's life. What is known is that she perished following a fire in a medical aid flat in Barcelona in April 1938.

One account states that a Primus stove exploded as Ruth and another nurse were making tea.

Unfortunately petrol was used as a replacement for paraffin. During war items such as parrafin are usually rationed.

Another account has it that a petrol can being used to keep a door shut had exploded, thus trapping Ruth and another nurse.

Whatever the real cause of the fire, it claimed the life of Ruth Ormesby who in utter desperation flung her badly burnt body out of the 7th floor window.

It was a sad end for the 35 year old who had dedicated her life to saving others but alas, could not save herself.

No inquest followed, and it is assumed Ruth was laid to rest in Spanish soil.

Those she had helped would find themselves on the losing side of the Spanish civil war and endure decades of dictatorship rule under General Franco.

Hannah 'Ruth' Ormesby may not be well known in the land of her birth but as we celebrate International Women's Day, this Sligo lady rightly secures her place in the pantheon of Irish women who went out in the world to make a difference.
Noel Corr is undeniably one of the longest serving and dedicated members of The Model's Volunteer team. Every Wednesday Noel rises early to take the bus from his hometown in Bundoran, Co. Donegal to Sligo Town to donate his time as a gallery invigilator.

Noel tells the Sligo Champion why he volunteers and why he thinks others should too:

"I started volunteering at The Model about seven and a half years ago on the 25th of May, 2010.

"I've always been interested in art, now and again I would go to Dublin, to the National Gallery. I used to come here to The Model every Wednesday anyway. I came for the art and the cafe! For me, it's a day out."

"I volunteer from 10am - 2pm. There's a nice atmosphere in the galleries. What I really like is that I meet a lot of different people.

"Later in the year, during the summer season, you meet Europeans, Americans & Australians I've met so many over the years and I've made friends with a couple of them."

Mr. Corr says he chose to give his free time to The Model because he enjoys the peace.

"I picked The Model because it is a peaceful place to come to, you know you can relax.

"I will probably stay here. I come to Sligo every Wednesday anyway, 12 months of the year. So I'm going to keep volunteering as long as I'm still alive!," he said.

He says he would recommend volunteering at The Model to anyone who is interested in art and has time on their hands.

"Volunteering would be good for anyone at college who may want to do something during the summer months. But anyone who's interested in art could volunteer here.

"Coming to the Model, there's a lot that you learn about the arts and the art world and it's a great place to be, I get on with everyone.

"They're just a nice bunch of staff here and that's important. You can come here and have a laugh and a joke & that's just as important as anything else!"

If you are interested in joining the volunteer team at The Model please contact getinvolved@themodel.ie.
Sligo District Court was shown CCTV footage from a house which captured a man walking up the front path and hurling a rock through the front window.

Charged with committing the offence at a house at St Michael's Terrace on June 4th 2016 was Val McLoughlin (63) of Stephen McDonagh Place.

After viewing the CCTV and hearing from the householder, Giselle Doyle, Judge Kevin Kilrane said the defendant had carried out an "evil act."

He said the defendant, who had a dispute with the household he had broken the wndow in, had told the court "a tissue of lies from beginning to end."

The defendant, who had denied the charge, had acted in a premeditated way and was partially camoflauged with a wollen cap as he carried out the damage.

The court was told Ms Doyle, the mother of a young child, had installed CCTV at her home after an upstairs bedroom window was broken in a similar incident on May 31st.

Ms Doyle said threats had made to her by McLoughlin and that she had since left the house since the incidents.

Garda Kevin Donegan told the court that he went to Ms Doyle's house at around 2pm and saw that a concrete rock had been put through her front sitting room window.

He later viewed CCTV footage of the incident and he was satisifed on viewing it that it was the defendant who had carried out the damage

Witness subsequently met with the defendant on June 6th and arrested him for questioning for causing criminal damage.

The CCTV was shown to the defendant who denied he had anything to do with it. Ms Doyle said that about 1pm on the same date she was on her way to collect her daughter at Abbey Street when the defendant drove past and was sniggering and laughing at her.

He told her that he heard what had happened her rear window and that she would want to watch the front of her house next.

Ms Doyle said she was certain the man in the CCTV was McLoughlin.

The defendant told the court he had nothing to do with the incident. It was put to him by Inspector Donal Sweeney (prosecuting) that it was him in the CCTV and the defendant replied that it wasn't.

"I didn't break any window," he said.

"It's clear as day to me that it's you" - Inspector.

"No, it's not me" - defendant.

He also denied having had a conversation with Ms Doyle at Abbey Street earlier.

"I never spoke to her in my life and that's the Gospel truth," he said.

He said he did have words with a Wayne McLoughlin, who was the father of Ms Doyle's daughter, and wh allegedly stated that he was going to have his son shot.

Mr Gerard McGovern, solicitor (defending) pleaded that it was a sad state of affairs and it appeared there was ongoing family disputes.

"I hope they can see sense and that the hand of friendship can go out here today," he said.

Mr McGovern added: "I ask you to bear in mind that there is a family dispute going on."

Judge Kilrane said McLoughlin had shown no remorse. The Judge said he was finding that the defendant did say those things to Ms Doyle.

The defendant had gone into the property in a most cowardly fashion where a young woman was rearing her child and he knew she was in fear and dread and he traded on that and had no concern for their safety.

"I view this very seriously," said Judge Kilrane jailing McLoughlin for five months. Recognisances were fixed in the event of an appeal.

Mr McGovern asked the Judge if would consider suspending the sentence but Judge Kilrane said he would only do so if there was clear evidence of acceptance which there wasn't any at present.

The Judge refused a request to adjourn the matter to a court sitting the next day saying he would give the defendant, "five minutes."

When the court resumed Mr McGovern said that unfortunately the defendant did not agree with the decision of the court.

The defendant was also not in a position to take up his baill immediately as he didn't have the independent surety in place and the cash bond of 700.

Mr McGovern was given leave to mention the matter again at Ballyshannon District Court the next morning.

Earlier, at the same curt, McLoughlin had a charge of breaking a rear bedroom window of Ms Doyle's house on May 31st around 3am dimissed.

Doyle told the court that the previous night around 7 or 8pm she was putting rubbish in the wheelie bin at the front of her house when the defendant drove past and told her that she'd want to watch her house tonight.

Later that night she heard a smash at the back of her house and she rang the Gardai. She told Mr McGovern that did not see who broke the window. She was in a front room with her then three year old daughter.

Garda Dave McDonagh told the court arrested the defendant in connection with the incident on July 17th. He denied any dealings with Ms Doyle on the evening in question.

He also stated that he was in bed and that he knew nothing about a smashed window. He described Ms Doyle's claim that he had threatened her as a pack of lies.

At the conclusion of the evidence Mr McGovern sought a dismiss.

Judge Kilrane said he accepted everthing which Ms Doyle had said and she was quite honest nd she didn't extend her evidence beyond what she heard.

The evidence certainly raised a lot of suspicion but this was not the same as guilt. He said the case was not proven and dismissed the charge.
Sligo Traveller Support Group (STSG) has expressed its delight that the State will recognise Travellers as an ethnic group for the first time.

The campaign to recognise Traveller ethnicity has been ongoing for decades.

It's estimated there are some 40,000 Travellers in Ireland with approximately 500 living in Sligo.

Numerous bodies have recommended for some time that the Irish state recognises Traveller ethnicity including the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, the Ombudsman for Children, and a number of United Nations committees such as the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women.

STSG manger Bernadette Maughan said: "This is a truly historic day for Travellers in Ireland.

"After years of hard work we are absolutely delighted that our unique culture, identity, history and ethnicity will be formally recognised by the State.

"On a practical level it will help direct much needed targeted services at those who need education, medical and accommodation supports. What is as important though is the confidence this historic announcement will give us as a community to meet the challenges that we face.

"It is also fantastic for young Travellers in that they can now grow up confident that their own identity, culture and history is as important as any other group in society".

The new status for the Travelling community has also been welcomed by Councillor Martin Baker, chairperson of the Traveller Accommodation Consultative Committee.

He said the Travelling community have their own traditions and ways and these needed to be respected.

"No matter who you are or your background everyone should be treated equally," he said.

Local Traveller, Bernard Sweeney, who contested the last General Election, said that as far as he was concerned the recognition of Traveller ethnicity was just phase one and the next step would be the seeking of a formal apology from the State for forcing assimilation into the settled community on them.

He said this was evident across all areas of Irish life including the education system and with regard to children taken into care.

This, he said, had led to a lot of confusion amongst the Travelling community and an identity crisis for many.

Mr Sweeney said it had been 90 years of oppression of the Travelling community with generations of families growing up in denial of their ethnicity and being subjected to racism and social exclusion.

"While the recognition is an historic moment for the Travelling community it is very much a bitter sweet moment," he said.

Mr Sweeney said the recognition of Traveller ethnicity wasn't like a magic wand and put everything right and in fact he believed it might magnify the some of the settled community's prejudices.

He added: "It's a symbolic thing really. It was something which we knew we always had but which the State had always denied us."

Mr Sweeney said the 40,000 travelling community were the descendants of the true Irish natives.

He also spoke of the work needed to be done in terms of providing Traveller accommodation and how many local authorities return money regularly which is earmarked for Traveller accommodation with objections from communities "still being pandered to."

Martin Collins, Pavee Point Director said the announcement shone a light on Travellers' rich distinct history and culture and sent out a message of respect and inclusion.

He said: "It also lays to rest notions that Travellers are a primitive, dysfunctional, failed settled people who originated from the famine and who just need to be normalised and civilised by the State.

"We know that acknowledging Traveller ethnicity does not solve the problems that Travellers face in their daily lives - discrimination, unemployment, lack of proper accommodation and poor educational outcomes.

"But respect for our culture has the potential to deconstruct centuries of internalised shame within the Traveller community and allow future generations of Travellers to grow up with pride in their identity."
Joe Tully, his wife Kirsi, Anu Vikevainen, chairperson of the Finnish Society of Ireland, and Merja OConnor, treasurer of the Finnish Society of Ireland, at Joes exhibition in Arklow Library

Arklow photographer Joe Tully unveiled his latest collection of work in a new exhibition commemorating a special year in Finnish history - the 100th anniversary of the country's independence.

The exhibition was officially opened on Thursday, February 23, at 7 p.m. and it runs at Arklow Library until Saturday, March 11.

Joe said that the inspiration for the exhibition was his travels to Finland over the years.

'Over the past 10 years I have made several trips to Finland and have become absorbed by the country and its people. Known as a land of the 'midnight sun', there is so very much more to Finland than seemingly interminable summer days and equally long winter nights.

'The people, known worldwide for their reticence bordering on shyness, are warm and friendly and know how to let their hair down to a standard which even the Irish find difficult to match.'

The body of work, 40 photographs in total, demonstrates the variety of the Finnish landscape along with scenes of an architectural interest and receives the sanction of 'Suomi 100', the Finnish centenary celebrations committee.

Joe said: 'Photography is a technical craft, which in some hands, becomes an art form in its own right. It is all about image making and was never meant to be an exercise in technical discussion, nor in the perfection of technique in isolation from the completed image.

'I therefore make no effort to describe the equipment used in the production of my images, nor to go into the fine details regarding their production. After all, who would ever ask a painter to describe the size of the brushes used or the technical qualities of his paints.

'My images hang on the gallery wall, for what they are in themselves. If any one of them excites within you, emotions of happiness or surprise, tranquillity or unrest, joy or sadness, then in some small measure they have reached out to your 'soul' and I shall be content with that, for, is not this the task of the artist.'

Joe said he had been delighted with how the exhibition went and by people's reactions to his photographs. 'Overall I think it went down very well with people', he said.
Arklow Camera Club will be holding its annual member's exhibition in the Arklow Library from March 13 to 25.

Although open to the public from March 13, there will be a special opening reception to be held on Tuesday evening March 14 at 7pm sharp. The club committee and members hope to see a large crowd at the opening so they can showcase their work.

Arklow Camera Club is Arklow's oldest photographic association. It is the perfect forum in which to learn the basics and to learn more advanced techniques. The members meet at Marshlands Leisure Centre just off the Dublin Road at least once per month.

For information contact www.arklowcameraclub.ie or on facebook at www.facebook.com/arklowcameraclub/.
The Wicklow Uplands Council is backing a proposed bill that would extend the period when vegetation can be burned in upland areas.

March 1 saw the close of the prescribed burning season in Ireland. The Heritage Bill - which will allow the burning of upland vegetation in March, when weather conditions are not conducive in the previous months - was debated in the Seanad this week and has the support of the council.

'Fire has an important role in habitat management so long as it is managed properly,' said Charlotte Rosemond, Communications Officer with Wicklow Uplands Council.

'Controlled rotational burning provides a mosaic of habitats which supports better grazing and greater biodiversity. Wildfires have a devastating effect on upland habitats.

'Successful controlled burning also greatly reduces the chances of a wildfire taking hold in upland regions. Unmanaged monocultures of bracken, heather or gorse are not good for biodiversity and provide fuel for wildfires that can take hold in the dry summer months,' said Ms Rosemond.

The Uplands Council maintains there is a growing lobby against the burning of vegetation, in any form, purporting to support upland biodiversity.

There is a lack of data in Ireland, however the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has published advisory sheets for landowners in the UK on how to encourage Curlew in upland areas with similar habitats and climates to ours (available from www.rspb.org.uk). These factsheets identify that controlled rotational burning plays an important role in providing attractive nesting sites for both Curlew and Red Grouse.

'Most importantly the permitted season for the controlled burning of upland vegetation in the UK is between October 1 and April 15,' said Ms Rosemond. 'The current burning season in the Republic of Ireland makes no distinction between upland and lowland habitats.

'Wicklow Uplands Council supported the extension in the burning season based on data on mean nesting of upland birds provided by the British Ornithological Trust.

'These extra weeks are key to carrying out controlled burning when the weather is favourable and before vegetation becomes too dry.

'When undertaken responsibly, controlled burning is an important management tool in the future of upland habitat management.

'Negative public perception of burning of vegetation in our uplands is understandable given the devastation caused by wildfire. However, there is vast difference between controlled managed burning and uncontrolled wildfires,' she said.

Wicklow Uplands Council is an independent, voluntary organisation representing the interests of over 50 member groups and individuals.
An up-and-coming photographer has landed a gold medal at the Irish Photographic Federation Nature Picture of the Year with a stunning photograph of a seal basking in the sea off the Wicklow coastline.

Christopher Howes, originally from Wicklow town but now living in Arklow, picked up his medal in the colour print non-advanced section at a gala ceremony held in the D Hotel in Drogheda.

He beat off some stiff competition in the national final having only qualified from the regional finals, which were held in Palmerstown in Dublin in January.

Christopher's photograph was aptly titled 'Breaking the Waves' and was taken at the Seal Beach near Wicklow Head. The judges he impressed were Rikki O'Neill, Gwen Charnock and Mick Durham.

Christopher is also a member of the Wicklow Town Photography Club and was delighted with his win. 'I just want to thank everyone for their support down the years, including family members, friends and club members.
Wicklow County Council spent almost 500,000 renovating 11 vacant houses last year.

Deputy Pat Casey said figures show that the council spent 465,533.86 in renovating 11 vacant housing units known as 'voids' in 2016.

The Wicklow TD who is Fianna Fail spokesperson on housing had previously expressed concern to the Dail Housing Committee about the lack of proper management.

'My knowledge of local government is that we haven't been inspecting our properties often enough to the detriment of the property itself. We should be looking for at least a minimum of one annual inspection of each property', said Deputy Casey.

'When a tenant moves out, we don't know what condition the house is in because we might not have been in it for ten years and we end up with a nightmare cost to repair that house."

'Central Government should properly resource local authorities such as Wicklow to ensure that all rental properties are managed correctly including an annual inspection.

'This would be standard practice in any functioning housing body and an international norm.'

Party colleague and local councillor Pat Kennedy agreed but said: 'The council do not have the staff or the money to manage the existing housing stock which in and of itself is not sufficient to meet demand.

'The Fine Gael led Government needs to get serious about how local government is funded if we are to have any meaningful role in getting to grips with our housing crisis.'
Over 30 members of the local community gathered in Hollywood Community Centre recently for the inaugural meeting of the Hollywood Community Forum.

The seeds of the Hollywood forum were sown in autumn last year, when a number of local community activists became aware of possible funding through the Government's Town and Village Renewal Scheme for Rural Ireland and, after a number of meetings, created a list of projects that could attract funding from the scheme.

It was decided to establish a community forum and at the inaugural meeting, on Tuesday, February 28, Eddie Phillips highlighted the potential for the development of the village's existing walks and trails while Aideen Klauer presented the list of potential projects. Alison Keogh of County Wicklow Partnership presented the Rural Development Programme and explained how to put forward applications for funding. Among those in attendance were Denis Halpin from the Uplands Council, Cllr Jim Ruttle, and Eleanor Sutherland of the St Kevins' Way.

At the meeting, the following committee members were elected: chairperson - Jim Ruttle; vice-chair - Mary O'Callaghan; secretary - Adieen Klauer; assistant secretary - Ann Halpin; treasurers - Kay Hogan and Richard Burke; and public relations officer - Eddie Phillips. The next meeting will be held at 8 p,m, on Tuesday, March 28, in Hollywood Community Hall.
Grand Marshall Captain Ray Tumulty will lead a St Patrick's Day parade with a real international vibe, thanks to the addition of a German brass band to Wicklow town's annual festivities.

For a second time, parade stalwarts St Patrick's Pipe Band will be joined by the 'Schoppeblaser' brass band from Wicklow's twin town of Eichenzell, for the celebrations on Friday, March 17.

Retired army captain Ray Tumulty, whose long and distinguished career with the Irish Defence Forces spanned 34 years, has been unveiled as the Grand Marshal for this year's parade and, according to parade chairman Geoff Kane, it is a fitting choice.

'We are delighted that Captain Tumulty is our Grand Marshal,' said Mr Kane. 'He is a man who has served his country over many years both at home and abroad and, above all else, he is a man very proud of his Wicklow roots and his family ties with the town.

'The St Patrick's Day parade is a great family and community day out and I'd like to take this opportunity to thank every organisation taking part - the clubs, schools, organisations and individuals - who make the parade the biggest community event in Wicklow's calendar.'

Mr Kane also sent his thanks and praise to his fellow committee members (Stephen Morley, Justin Doran, Garrett O'Reilly, David Porter and Claire Gallagher) who 'put in a huge amount of work to make this happen year in and year out'.

The parade starts at 3.15 p.m. on St Patrick's Day at Whitegates.

All participants are asked to register before the parade and registration forms are available by sending an email to wicklowparade@gmail.com.

Participants are asked to arrive at the start in good time and to follow the instructions of stewards at all times.

Organisers have issued an appeal for volunteers to help with marshalling parade. Anyone who can give up even a couple of hours is asked to either email the parade at the address above or call Garry at 087 6324641. For more details on the parade, visit the 'St Patrick's Day Parade Wicklow Town' page on Facebook or follow '@WicklowParade' on Twitter.
A Carnew mother of three was given time at Gorey District Court last Wednesday to produce insurance certs for vehicles she was driving when stopped by gardai on three different occasions.

Samantha Fitzgerald of 16 Tomacork View, Carnew, is charged with: driving without insurance or a licence, and failing to produce either, after being stopped at Coolmeelagh, Bunclody, on July 13, 2015; driving without insurance, a licence, or an NCT, and failing to produce evidence of any of these, and non-display of two discs, at Aske, Gorey, on July 13, 2015; and driving without insurance, a licence or an NCT at Fort Road, Gorey, on September 23, 2015.

Her newly-appointed solicitor Tom Honan said that she didn't have her insurance documents with her and asked for time to familiarise himself with the history of the case.

Judge Hamill pointed out that she was previously convicted of no insurance, but got this judgement set aside. When the case was to be re-heard last year, she didn't turn up.

'It escapes me how she doesn't know that she has to produce the insurance,' said the judge.

The defendant told the court she missed the previous hearing because her child was in hospital. She insisted she had insurance cover for the vehicles on the dates in question but forgot them as she was in a rush out the door that morning.

'All you have to do is give (your solicitor) your insurance and that will sort the whole matter out and it will be dismissed,' advised Judge Hamill.

The matter was put back to April 5. She also has to get details of her licence.
American actress and comedian Roseanne Barr took to Twitter to accuse Ireland of hosting radical antisemites, in a series of tweets about Irish history last night.

Ireland hosting radical antisemites whose goal is the Destruction of Jewish Tribal Lands and Jewish Sovereignty in Judea (Israel). #Boycott she wrote.

One user was quick to reply with the statement get used to it. Ireland will stand by those suffering injustice. Freedom for Palestine.

Barr went on to display a lack of knowledge of Irish history when she hit back and said give Ireland back to the British too.

Barrs Twitter rant continued into the early hours of the morning as complaints continued to pour into her statements.

One user questioned Barr on the evidence she has of rampant antisemitism in Ireland to which she replied of course, stupid.

Ive tweeted seven links about it today on my (timeline), she wrote.

Barrs Twitter timeline is currently full of tweets of news articles and blog posts which, in her eyes, outline the anti-sematic attitude of Irish people.

Ireland hosting radical antisemites whose goal is th Destruction of Jewish Tribal Lands and Jewish Sovereignty in Judea (Israel). #Boycott  Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) March 10, 2017

@therealroseanne get used to it. Ireland will stand by those suffering injustice. Freedom for Palestine.  Damian deBrun (@1ddebrun) March 10, 2017

the lefty Irish R up to their armpits in hosting anti semitic festivals abt killing all jews in Israel, but h8 me saying give Ireland away2.  Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) March 10, 2017

The lefty Irish R up to their armpits in hosting anti semitic festivals (about) killing all jews in Israel but h8 me saying give Ireland away, she tweeted.

She went on to claim that Jews are leaving your country after centuries there (because) of anti semitism,

Video of the Day

Youre talking about a tiny minority of extremists in one part of the country, Twitter user Aidan OBrein said.

Catholics in NI related to the Palestine struggle (because) they see themselves as the victims of an oppressive occupying force, he said.

Barr has received nothing but backlash from Twitter users in response to her tweets, with no support for her statements coming in.
Oxfam Ireland has called for immediate and urgent action to respond to what the UN has described as the worlds largest humanitarian crisis since the Second World War.

The UN has warned that more than 20 million people across South Sudan, Yemen, north east Nigeria and Somalia face starvation and famine.

Oxfam recently warned that the world stands on the brink of an unprecedented four famines in 2017 due to a catastrophic failure of the global community to uphold its obligations to the most vulnerable of people.

The aid agency is already helping over a million people in Yemen, more than 600,000 in South Sudan, over 200,000 in Nigeria and plans to begin a response to the drought in Somalia. Oxfam Ireland is appealing for members of the public to donate to its hunger crisis appeal.

Oxfam Ireland Chief Executive Jim Clarken said: Yemen is on the brink of famine after nearly two years of devastating conflict. After months of early warnings, famine was declared last month in parts of South Sudan. In northern Nigeria it is likely that some 400,000 people living in areas cut off from aid are already suffering famine. The primary driver of these crises is conflict, though in Somalia it is drought.

To see people in famine in 2017 is the ultimate betrayal of our common humanity. When famine strikes, it is not a sudden phenomenon. Going hungry is a slow and agonising process. It comes when warnings go ignored.

"We must learn from failures in the past to respond with sufficient speed. UN appeals for humanitarian funding have grown ever bigger yet the response has not matched the need. There is now a urgent humanitarian imperative to meet the $4.4 billion needed for the aid response for these crises at the required scale.

If the international community acts collectively now with a massive injection of aid, backed with diplomatic clout driven by the imperative to save lives, we can prevent a catastrophic loss of life. Without financial support, an already stretched international humanitarian system will not be able to cope and many more people will die.

There is an urgent need for increased diplomatic efforts to convene ceasefires, enable safe passage by those fleeing insecurity and secure access by aid agencies to those in need of assistance.

People can donate to Oxfam Irelands hunger crisis appeal at www.oxfamireland.org/hunger
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is to visit the White House 'very soon' (AP)

US President Donald Trump has invited Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to the White House to discuss resuming peace talks in their first contact since Mr Trump took office in January.

Mr Abbas' spokesman Nabil Abu Rdeneh said that Abbas would travel "very soon".

The White House said in a statement that the two leaders had discussed ways to advance peace throughout the Middle East, including a comprehensive agreement that would end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"The president emphasised his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal," the White House said.

"The president noted that such a deal would not only give Israelis and Palestinians the peace and security they deserve, but that it would reverberate positively throughout the region and the world."

Mr Trump underscored that such a peace agreement must be negotiated directly between the two parties, and that the United States will work closely with Palestinian and Israeli leadership to make progress toward that goal, the statement said.

"We are ready to deal with President Trump and the Israeli government to resume the negotiations," Mr Abu Rdeneh said. "If the Israelis are ready, President Abbas has committed himself to a peaceful deal with President Trump."

Mr Abu Rdeneh added that "President Trump is a very honest man, very courageous man, looking for a deal, a just deal."

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government.

The last round of US-mediated peace talks collapsed in 2014.

AP
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte talks to well-wishers during a campaign stop in Breda, Netherlands (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Supporters of Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan stage a protest outside the Dutch consulate in Istanbul (AP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the Dutch as "Nazi remnants and fascists" as a diplomatic row escalated over a cancelled rally.

The Dutch government sparked a war of words after it withdrew landing permission for the Turkish foreign minister's aircraft.

The move drew a furious reaction from the Turkish president, fuelling a diplomatic dispute between the two Nato allies over campaigning for a Turkish referendum on constitutional reform.

The Dutch government said it had withdrawn the permission because of "risks to public order and security" caused by the proposed visit of Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to Rotterdam.

Mr Erdogan promised retaliation against Dutch diplomatic flights.

"You can stop our foreign minister's plane all you want, let's see how your planes will come to Turkey from now on," Erdogan said at a rally in Istanbul.

He said the Dutch "do not know politics or international diplomacy", adding "these Nazi remnants, they are fascists"

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte called Mr Erdogan's "fascists" comment "a crazy remark".

He said: "I understand they are angry but this is of course way out of line."

Mr Rutte said it was not right "for Turkish ministers to campaign in the Netherlands among Dutch people - with potentially a Turkish passport, yes - but first of all Dutch people."

Despite the angry exchange, Mr Rutte said it was important to keep good relations with Turkey.

"We will do everything to keep the relations with Turkey as good as possible, as strong as possible," he said.

But Mr Cavusoglu also repeated the government's charges that bans on rallies are "fascist practices".

He said the German and Dutch bans on campaigns for a "yes" vote in the April 16 referendum on constitutional changes means that Europe is "taking a side for a 'no' vote". The constitutional changes would give the president more powers.

The Dutch government said it had been searching with Turkish authorities for an "acceptable solution" to Mr Cavusoglu's plan to campaign in the Netherlands, but "before these talks were completed, Turkish authorities publicly threatened sanctions. That makes the search for a reasonable solution impossible".

The spat between the countries later sparked protests in Rotterdam and Istanbul.

About 100 pro-Turkish demonstrators gathered outside the Turkish Consulate in Rotterdam at dusk with flags in a peaceful protest.

Dozens also marched in Istanbul and laid a black wreath in front of the Dutch Consulate amid a heavy police presence.

A Turkish foreign ministry official said access to and from the Dutch Embassy in Ankara and the consulate in Istanbul has been closed off for security reasons.

The official said entries and exits were closed at the two locations. Similar precautions were taken at the Dutch charge d'affaires' house and the ambassador's residence.

The Turkish foreign ministry also said it does not want to see the Dutch ambassador, who is out of the country, to return to his post for some time because of the divisive dispute which comes just days before the Netherlands goes to the polls in a March 15 election for the lower house of Parliament.

The campaign has been dominated by issues of identity, with anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders set to make strong gains.

AP
A 69-year-old solicitor who headbutted the father of an EastEnders star in the High Court has been given an 18-month suspended sentence.

Philip Saunders assaulted Mohammad Reza Ghadami after a hearing in the Royal Courts of Justice, London, on April 7 2016 - leaving him with a fractured nose, Inner London Crown Court heard.

Mr Ghadami, whose son Davood plays Kush in the BBC soap, required treatment under general anaesthetic after the incident.

Saunders was found guilty by a jury of assault occasioning actual bodily harm after a trial on January 31, and was given an 18-month suspended sentence during the hearing on Friday afternoon.

CCTV of the clash played during the trial showed the property lawyer, of Vale Close, Maida Vale in north London, being stopped from passing by Mr Ghadami during an exchange inside the court.

He then swings his pilot case between Saunders' legs, prompting Saunders to lunge forwards and headbutt Mr Ghadami.

Sentencing, Recorder Steven Gasztowicz QC said Saunders had completely lost his self-control when he "quite deliberately headbutted him".

He said it was "clear from the CCTV footage that you could have left his presence without doing anything like that".

"The offence was committed in a High Court building where any litigant" should "feel safe, however annoying they may be and whatever is going on".

Mr Gasztowicz said a solicitor "is trusted to act properly in such buildings" even when there as a litigant.

However, he said the assault was on the spur of the moment and noted that it was an isolated incident.

Defending, David Nathan QC said there was "a very high degree of provocation" between the pair "against the background of tension" in relation to long-running civil proceedings at the High Court.

Mr Ghadami flung abuse at Saunders, calling him "a piece of s**t" and used "words to the effect" of "don't be so Jewish", Mr Nathan said.

He said the comments "effectively broke the camel's back", leading Saunders to headbutt Mr Ghadami in a "moment of madness".

Mr Nathan described Saunders as a "man of good character with no previous convictions" who had been a solicitor for more than 40 years.

Mr Gasztowicz said he had decided to suspend the sentence of 18 months as an "exceptional measure" for two years.

He ordered Saunders to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, and issued an electronically monitored curfew of between the hours of 8pm and 6am.

Saunders was also made to pay the prosecution costs of 5,000 within 28 days and was given a restraining order banning him from contacting Mr Ghadami - unless through a solicitor - for five years.

Saunders will also face a disciplinary tribunal.
Franciss greater flexibility towards some of the Churchs contemporary problems has been a pillar of his papacy. Image: Reuters/Alessandro Bianchi/File Photo

The Catholic Church should consider allowing married men to become priests, Pope Francis said, in what would be a radical departure from current Vatican teaching.

The lifting of the ban on married men being ordained would apply only in specific circumstances, for instance in remote areas of the world where priests are in short supply, the Pope said. But it would effectively reverse the centuries-old principle that Roman Catholic priests must be celibate.

In an interview with Germany's 'Die Zeit' newspaper, the pontiff said he was open to the idea of so-called "viri probati" - married men of deep faith who are already involved in the Church - being allowed to become priests.

"We must consider if viri probati is a possibility. Then we must determine what tasks they can perform, for example, in remote communities," he said.

Francis's greater flexibility towards some of the Church's contemporary problems has been a pillar of his papacy.

The compassion he has brought to bear on issues such as whether Catholics who divorce and then remarry should be allowed to take Communion has earned him rock star status among liberals but earned the opprobrium of many conservatives, especially in the US.

As the Church's first Latin American Pope, Francis is acutely aware that large countries like Brazil suffer from a lack of priests. In the Amazon region, for instance, there is just one priest for every 10,000 Catholics. Loosening the rules on who can be ordained could help solve that problem.

There are already a limited number of married priests, including Anglican ministers who defected to Rome, some Coptic Catholics and members of some Eastern rite Catholic churches. ( Daily Telegraph London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
The Netherlands barred Turkey's Foreign Minister from flying to Rotterdam on Saturday and President Tayyip Erdogan responded by calling his NATO partner a "Nazi remnant" as a row over Ankara campaigning among emigre Turkish voters intensified.

Rotterdam had banned Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu from attending a Turkish rally in support of Erdogan's drive for sweeping new powers, to be put to a referendum next month.

The Dutch are due to vote in a national election on Wednesday, in which anti-immigration sentiment has played a prominent role with nationalist candidate Geert Wilders calling Erdogan a dictator.

Cavusoglu had said on Saturday morning he would fly to Rotterdam anyway and accused the Dutch of treating Turkish citizens in the country like "hostages".

"I sent them so they could contribute to your economy ... They're not your captives," he told CNN Turk television.

"If my going will increase tensions, let it be. What damage will my going have on them? I am a foreign minister and I can go wherever I want," he said before the Dutch barred his flight.

Cavusoglu had threatened harsh economic and political sanctions if the Dutch refused him entry, a threat that proved decisive for the Netherlands government.

It cited public order and security concerns in withdrawing landing rights for Cavusoglu's flight. But it said the sanctions threat made the search for a reasonable solution impossible.

Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte said that while the Netherlands and Turkey could search for "an acceptable solution", Turkey was not respecting the rules relating to public gatherings.

"Many Dutch people with a Turkish background are authorized to vote in the referendum over the Turkish constitution. The Dutch government does not have any protest against gatherings in our country to inform them about it," he said on Facebook.

"But these gatherings may not contribute to tensions in our society and everyone who wants to hold a gathering is obliged to follow instructions of those in authority so that public order and safety can be guaranteed," Rutte added.

SPILLOVER FEAR

Four planned Turkish rallies in Austria and one in Switzerland have also been cancelled in the dispute.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country Erdogan compared last week with Nazi Germany, has said she will do everything possible to prevent any spillover of Turkish political tensions onto German soil.

Cavusoglu said Turks in Germany were under systematic pressure from police and intelligence services.

Erdogan is looking to the large number of emigre Turks living in Europe, especially Germany and the Netherlands, to help clinch victory in next month's referendum which will shape the future of a country whose position on the edge of the Middle East makes it of crucial strategic importance to NATO.

He has cited domestic threats from Kurdish and Islamist militants and a July coup bid as cause to vote "yes" to his new powers. But he has also drawn on the emotionally charged row with Europe to portray Turkey as betrayed by allies, facing wars on its southern borders and in need of strong leadership.

"Listen Netherlands, you'll jump once, you'll jump twice, but my people will thwart your game," Erdogan said. "You can cancel our foreign minister's flight as much as you want, but let's see how your flights come to Turkey now.

"They don't know diplomacy or politics. They are Nazi remnants. They are fascists."

Erdogan chafes at Western criticism of his mass arrests and dismissals of people authorities believe were linked to a failed July attempt by the military to topple him.

Cavusoglu made a veiled threat of possible realignment of Turkey in the world in a reference to Russia.

"The Netherlands should stop this faulty understanding and approach...If they think Turkey will take whatever they do, that Turkey is gone. I told them this, stop this boss-like attitude. If Europe keeps this up, they will lose many places, including Russia and us.
Police and emergency workers stand outside the main railway station following what police described as an axe attack. Photo by Alexander Scheuber/Getty Images

An elderly man was attacked with a machete in Dusseldorf yesterday, just hours after a similar attack by a mentally ill asylum-seeker wielding an axe left nine people injured at the city's train station.

In a third attack, tear gas was sprayed inside a train carriage carrying around 50 passengers including a family with two young children in Hamburg last night.

The 80-year-old victim of the machete attack, who has not been named, was rushed to hospital after being assaulted in a car park on the northern outskirts of the city yesterday. His attacker remains at large.

Teachers and students at the nearby Theodor-Fliedner-Gymnasium were told to stay indoors as police cordoned off a woodland area near Kalkumer Schlossallee, the site of the car park.

Hours before he was attacked, a 36-year-old man from Kosovo wounded nine passengers with an axe at Dusseldorf train station before trying to escape by jumping from a bridge on to a street where, injured by the fall, he was arrested. ( Daily Telegraph London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Police in the western German city of Essen sealed off a shopping centre in the centre of town and ordered it to remain closed on Saturday due to concrete indications of a possible attack.

Germany is on high alert following major radical Islamist attacks in France and Belgium and after a failed asylum seeker from Tunisia drove a truck into a Berlin Christmas market in December, killing 12 people.

"Yesterday we received very serious indications from security sources that a possible attack was planned here for today and would be carried out," a spokesman for Essen police told Reuters Television. "That is why we were forced to take these measures."

Earlier, a police spokesman told a German broadcaster that they had viewed the threat as a possible "terrorist" attack.

Armed police and vans surrounded the shopping centre, one of Germany's biggest with more than 200 retail outlets, but roads nearby were open to traffic.

Essen, in the industrial Ruhr region, has nearly 600,000 inhabitants.
Maria Garcia, centre, cries during the wake for her 16-year-old daughter Siona Hernandez Garcia, who died in a youth shelter fire in Ciudad Peronia, Guatemala (Moises Castillo/AP)

Families have buried some of the 38 girls killed in a fire at an overcrowded government-run youth shelter in Guatemala as authorities try to determine exactly what happened.

The death toll mounted as girls succumbed to burns from Wednesday's disaster, which officials said began when mattresses were set on fire during a protest by the shelter's residents.

Questions remained over why someone among the girls set the blaze and whether doors remained locked as the girls pleaded for their lives.

Parents and relatives said many of the young people at the shelter, which had both female and male residents, had been sent there because of abuse, poverty or family problems. Others were ordered there by judges after run-ins with police, officials said.

Authorities at the Roosevelt Hospital where many of the girls were taken for treatment of their burns said on Saturday that another girl had died, taking the death toll to 38. Nineteen of the girls died at the scene and another 19 died later in local hospitals.

Various groups have said they plan to gather on Saturday to protest the deaths and demand the resignation of Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales.

The president has blamed the government's "rigid" and "insensitive" system for dealing with troubled youths and has promised to reform protective services for some 1,500 minors currently living in youth shelters around the country.

Carlos Soto, administrator of Hospital San Juan de Dios, another hospital caring for many of the burned children, said medical specialists had arrived from Galveston, Texas, to help evaluate the condition of several with the intention of having them travel to the United States for treatment.

Mr Soto said that it was hoped that at least four of the girls could travel to the US this weekend. He said the girls had burns on their faces, torsos and legs.

AP
Bharatiya Janata Party supporters raise cutouts of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as they celebrate winning seats in the state of Uttar Pradesh (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

India's governing Hindu nationalist party was heading for landslide victories on Saturday in key state legislature elections that are seen as a referendum on the performance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nearly three-year-old government.

Leaders from Mr Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party said the party's victory in Uttar Pradesh, India's largest state, would boost his chances of winning another term as prime minister in 2019 elections.

The Election Commission said the BJP won 216 out of 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh's legislature and was leading in another 93 voting districts in the state. The party's president, Amit Shah, described it as "a historic verdict".

The party had also won 42 of 70 seats and was leading in another 15 constituencies in another northern state, Uttarakhand, wresting power from the Congress party, the main opposition at the national level.

Final results from the elections - held in February and early March - were expected later on Saturday.

Mr Modi tweeted: "Am overjoyed that BJP has received unprecedented support from all sections of society. Huge support from the youth is gladdening."

The Congress party had a face-saving win in Punjab state, where it captured 70 of 117 seats and was leading in another eight voting districts. It was fighting a close battle with the BJP in western Goa state and north-eastern Manipur state, according to the Election Commission.

Rahul Gandhi, the Congress party vice president, seems to have failed to make any impact for his party in Uttar Pradesh, located in the Hindi heartland, with his party winning five seats and leading in another two constituencies. The party's ally, the Samajwadi Party, had won 33 seats and was leading in 16 other voting districts.

Sandeep Dikshit, a Congress party leader, said "it will be unfair to blame the party's debacle entirely on Rahul Gandhi".

The victory will come as a big morale-booster for Mr Modi, who had extensively campaigned in the region for his party nominees.

"The BJP has reached new heights in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh states and changed the political picture of the country," India's home minister, Rajnath Singh, said in New Delhi. The party will be returning to power in Uttar Pradesh after 14 years.

Kapil Sibal, a senior Congress party leader, conceded that "no doubt, it's an astounding victory for the BJP".

Mr Modi's party appears to have successfully forged a coalition of upper, middle-ranking and lower castes in Uttar Pradesh.

"The elections prove that the BJP was able to break caste and class barriers," social scientist P Kumar, of the Giri Institute of Development Studies, said in Lucknow, the state capital.

Mr Modi maintained his party's winning run in the state, with the BJP winning 71 of Uttar Pradesh's 80 seats in India's Parliament in 2014 national elections.

The opposition Congress and other rivals of the BJP vainly hoped that the voters would punish Mr Modi's government for its decision to demonetise the country's highest-value currency bills in November, which brought immense economic hardship, especially to the poor.

Mr Modi called India's massive demonetisation drive, which withdrew 86% of the country's currency bills from the system, to cleanse the system of tax evasion and corruption.

Banks and ATMs witnessed massive queues of people for months. ATMs were not refilled for days and banks ran out of cash within a few hours of opening.

The government was able to tide over the problem as voting got under way last month.

"People have strongly supported Modi on the demonetisation issue," said party president Mr Shah, adding that they believed it was a step taken to recover unaccounted money hoarded by the rich.

A majority of Indians earn and spend in cash, either due to habit or because they are too poor to have access to banks.

Since taking office in May 2014, Mr Modi's government has been pumping funds into boosting education, while increasing spending on roads, irrigation and other infrastructure. It has also been reforming India's complicated tax regime.

AP
An elderly man holds a child in west Mosul yesterday as Iraqi forces advance in the city in the ongoing battle to seize it from the jihadists of the Isil group. Photo: Getty

Soon after sunrise a large dark circle of smoke appeared like a halo over Mosul's Old City - a sign to advancing troops that Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) is not about to give it up without a fight.

The Iraqi army had hoped to surprise the jihadists by launching an operation to recapture the historic quarter under cover of darkness on Thursday night.

Expand Close A fighter from Iraqs elite Counter-Terrorism Service takes cover inside a building in Shuhada, west Mosul. Photo: Getty Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp A fighter from Iraqs elite Counter-Terrorism Service takes cover inside a building in Shuhada, west Mosul. Photo: Getty Images

But Isil had a surprise of its own - just as daylight broke it set fire to miles of cloth sheets that had been covering the market, as well as cars and even houses, in order to obscure the view for coalition pilots.

Then came the counterattack.

Waves of suicide car bombs and mortar fire so fierce that the elite police units were forced to turn back and hold their position on the outskirts.

"Just when you think they are looking weak, they come back stronger," Sgt Alaa Hassan, from a position 4km south of Mosul, said.

The battle for the Old City is expected to be the toughest yet. It is densely populated with narrow streets, and troops will have to abandon their Humvees for house-to-house fighting.

Some 50,000 civilians have fled since the offensive on western Mosul began last month.

But more than half a million are thought to still be trapped in the 25pc of the city still in Isil hands.

In the past two days this reporter has seen thousands flee, some with stories of being used as shields by jihadists who threatened to kill them if they tried to run.

Many had hunkered down in the basements of their homes for days without food or water as the battle raged above them and, yesterday, they walked wearily through the wreckage of burned-out cars and craters in the al-Mansour neighbourhood and up the hill to a screening centre where men were separated from women and children and loaded on to trucks.

One woman picked up her baby and lifted his T-shirt, his ribs clearly visible and his stomach concave.

"I have had nothing and so I haven't been producing milk," Umm Laith (26) said.

Her older children ran to the soldiers who were handing out bread, but her infant son was too weak to eat the scraps they brought back.

The Iraqi army, under pressure to finish the operation by summer, has been storming through areas at a rate of one every few days.

This week it captured the provincial government buildings, the central bank branch and a museum where militants had filmed themselves destroying priceless statues in 2015.

it is now just a matter of yards from the al-Nuri Mosque where, in July 2014, Isil leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi first proclaimed the so-called "Caliphate" in his only public appearance.

However, this speed of advance has taken its toll. The army was forced to retreat earlier this week after trying to take the government buildings with too few men, so repeating a mistake that caused the deaths of up to 100 troops at the al-Salam hospital, on the eastern side of the city, in December.

Three months after it was liberated, Isil is still launching attacks on the eastern side of this city which is divided by the Tigris river.

A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a restaurant last month, killing four and wounding dozens and, yesterday, Isil fired rockets at two mosques in the east as hundreds gathered for prayers.

"Daesh [the Arabic acronym for Isil] knows they are losing and they are lashing out at freed areas to punish the people," Sgt Hassan said.

"They will not win this war, but [for us] it [is] about saving the lives of as many people as we can before they are defeated." ( Daily Telegraph London)
Bashar Assad said Russia hopes it can bring the US and Turkey into co-operating with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria

The priority for Syria's military is to reach the Islamic State terror group's capital of Raqqa, President Bashar Assad has told a Chinese TV station.

US-backed Kurdish-led forces are also advancing towards the city.

In the interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV which was broadcast on Saturday, Mr Assad said another IS stronghold, Deir el-Zour, can be targeted in parallel.

He said "in theory" he shares the same priority with US President Donald Trump of fighting terrorism, but that they have had no formal contact yet.

He added that Russia, a major ally, hopes it can bring the US and Turkey into co-operating with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. The Assad government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups.

Mr Assad has said all foreign troops on Syrian soil without invitation or consultation with the Syrian government are considered "invaders".

AP
Malnourished children at a camp in Baidoa, Somalia, which has been hit by drought (AP)

The world faces the largest humanitarian crisis since the United Nations was founded in 1945 with more than 20 million people in four countries facing starvation and famine, the UN humanitarian chief has said.

Stephen O'Brien told the UN Security Council that "without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death" and "many more will suffer and die from disease".

He urged an immediate injection of funds for Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and north-east Nigeria plus safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian aid "to avert a catastrophe".

"To be precise," Mr O'Brien said, "we need 4.4 billion dollars (3.6 billion) by July."

Without a major infusion of money, he said, children will be stunted by severe malnutrition and will not be able to go to school, gains in economic development will be reversed and "livelihoods, futures and hope will be lost".

UN and food organisations define famine as when more than 30% of children under the age of five suffer from acute malnutrition and mortality rates are two or more deaths per 10,000 people every day, among other criteria.

"Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the United Nations," Mr O'Brien said. "Now, more than 20 million people across four countries face starvation and famine."

Mr O'Brien said the largest humanitarian crisis is in Yemen where two thirds of the population - 18.8 million people - need aid and more than seven million people are hungry and don't know where their next meal will come from. "That is three million people more than in January," he said.

The Arab world's poorest nation is engulfed in conflict and Mr O'Brien said more than 48,000 people fled fighting just in the past two months.

During his recent visit to Yemen, Mr O'Brien said he met senior leaders of the government and the Shiite Houthi rebels who control the capital Sanaa, and all promised access for aid.

"Yet all parties to the conflict are arbitrarily denying sustained humanitarian access and politicise aid," he said, warning if that behaviour doesn't change now "they must be held accountable for the inevitable famine, unnecessary deaths and associated amplification in suffering that will follow."

For 2017, O'Brien said 2.1 billion dollars (1.7 billion) is needed to reach 12 million Yemenis "with life-saving assistance and protection" but only 6% has been received so far. He announced that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will chair a pledging conference for Yemen on April 25 in Geneva.

The UN humanitarian chief also visited South Sudan, the world's newest nation which has been ravaged by a three-year civil war, and said "the situation is worse than it has ever been".

"The famine in South Sudan is man-made," he said. "Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine - as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."

Mr O'Brien said more than 7.5 million people need aid, up by 1.4 million from last year, and about 3.4 million South Sudanese are displaced by fighting including almost 200,000 who have fled the country since January.

"More than one million children are estimated to be acutely malnourished across the country, including 270,000 children who face the imminent risk of death should they not be reached in time with assistance," he said. "Meanwhile, the cholera outbreak that began in June 2016 has spread to more locations."

In Somalia, which Mr O'Brien also visited, more than half the population - 6.2 million people - need humanitarian assistance and protection, including 2.9 million who are at risk of famine and require immediate help "to save or sustain their lives."

He warned that close to one million children under the age of five will be "acutely malnourished" this year.

"What I saw and heard during my visit to Somalia was distressing - women and children walk for weeks in search of food and water. They have lost their livestock, water sources have dried up and they have nothing left to survive on," Mr O'Brien said. "With everything lost, women, boys, girls and men now move to urban centres."

The humanitarian chief said current indicators mirror "the tragic picture of 2011 when Somalia last suffered a famine." But he said the UN's humanitarian partners have a larger footprint, better controls on resources, and a stronger partnership with the new government which recently declared the drought a national disaster.

"To be clear, we can avert a famine," Mr O'Brien said. "We're ready despite incredible risk and danger... but we need those huge funds now."

In north-east Nigeria, a seven-year uprising by the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 people and driven 2.6 million from their homes. A UN humanitarian coordinator said last month that malnutrition in the north-east is so pronounced that some adults are too weak to walk and some communities have lost all their toddlers.

AP
New York, Mar 10 (Just Earth News): Highlighting the multifaceted nature of the crisis in Africa's Lake Chad Basin, the deputy United Nations chief underlined the need for a holistic approach that includes responding to the Boko Haram as well as closing the gap between humanitarian assistance and development interventions.

Lasting recovery will entail supporting reconstruction of schools, health centres, and reviving essential infrastructure [] that support the necessary livelihoods, Amina Mohammed, the UN Deputy Secretary-General, told the Security Council on Thursday.

Effective prevention of future radicalization and violence will also entail comprehensive responses that benefit all members of society, she added.

Mohammed's briefing follows last week's visit of the Security Council to the region and a global UN-backed conference to raise funding to sustain critical aid operations in the region, held on 24 February.

According to estimates, more than 10 million people in the Lake Chad Basin are in need of humanitarian assistance, including more than seven million needing food support, with 515,000 children affected by severe acute malnutrition.

Noting the response by UN agencies to support the local populations and the contributions pledged by countries at the Oslo Humanitarian Conference, the Deputy Secretary-General said that the needs outstripped the resources and urged UN Member States to ensure that the $1.5 billion humanitarian appeal is funded fully.

Speaking on the region's security challenges and the activities of Boko Haram, Mohammed informed the Council of UN's work to document information on human rights abuses, as well as its assistance to affected countries to ensure that their counter-terrorism efforts fully complied with international human rights, humanitarian and refugee laws.

In particular, she spoke of the plight of women affected by Boko Haram, many of whom are still displaced in camps, detained by the authorities, or are struggling to reintegrate into their communities.

We also need to scale up efforts to provide access to sexual and reproductive health and psychosocial support and livelihood support for female-headed households, she said, noting the need to ensure that women have key roles in the response  from food distribution and camp management to all efforts to counter violent extremism, restore state authority and build peace.

Further in her remarks, Mohammed also underlined the need to address the root causes of the crisis to achieve durable peace and of the importance of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development for the region.

My single clear message on Thursday is that the solution lies in holistic thinking, she noted, hailing the role of the African Union and the continent's regional organizations to peace, security and the integrated implementation of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development and Africa's own Agenda 2063.

UN Photo/Manuel Elias

Source: www.justearthnews.com
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Priyanka Chopra is riding high on success in Hollywood, but she hasnt forgotten her roots. After having produced Marathi, Punjabi as well as Bhojpuri flicks in the past, Priyanka Chopras production venture Purple Pebble Pictures is all set to bankroll a Sikkimese film.

AFP

The movie is titled Pahuna. The story of the movie will revolve around three Nepali kids who get separated from their family while trying to flee away from the country because of Maoist agitation. It is a story about love, courage as well as strength.

AFP

Announcing the project in collaboration with Sikkim Tourism Ministry, Priyanka Chopra said in a statement, This is a genre that I have always been very excited about and I am glad that I am in a position today to do something meaningful in this space. We are honoured that the local government has extended their support to Pahuna. Not only the cast but also the crew working on the movie will be hired from Sikkim.

AFP

This is the first Sikkim film that her banner will produce. Purple Pebble Pictures has produced Punjab film Sarvann, Marathi movie Ventilator and Kay Re Rascalaa, as well as Bhojpuri flick Bam Bam Bol Raha Hai in the past.

Priyanka is quite keen on exploring regional cinema!
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Cyber police at Bandra-Kurla Complex has arrested a man from Kolkata for syphoning Rs 34,000 from a 20-year-old college student who ordered an iPhone 6s on a free classified advertisement website.

Sabhyasachi Mistry uploaded the fake advertisement for the phone's sale for Rs 40,000 when it was priced twice that amount in the market in 2016. But Akshay Avsare received a parcel that contained four papers cut in the shape of a cell phone in an iPhone box on April 18, 2016, four days after he made an online payment. Mistry has duped people posting fake advertisements, police said.

Reuters/Representational Image

Police cracked the case 11 months later when they tracked down Mistry to Kestopur in Kolkata and arrested him in a week. Mistry was identified after police got in touch with the bank and got details of the fake account and place from where the money was withdrawn.

"Several debit cards of various banks and many SIM cards have been seized from Mistry. He used various accounts to get money from victims. He placed fake advertisements and duped people. He used to tell people to make an online payment and provide a bank account to transfer the amount, to get the product delivered," said a police officer.

Mumbai-based Avsare realised he was duped when he tried to contact Mistry after he received papers in the parcel.

Avsare said, "I ordered for an iPhone 6s when I came across the advertisement for Rs 40,000. When I called the person who posted the advertisement, he provided me with his bank account details and told me to pay Rs 34,000. I deposited the money in my friend's account using National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT)."

Insurance Journal/ Representational Image

Police found that Mistry used fake documents to open over a dozen accounts that he used in the fraud.

"Mistry used new bank accounts and SIMs for each fraud. He took precautions to avoid detection," said the officer.
A private member's bill aimed at declaring countries 'sponsors of terrorism' was withdrawn from the Rajya Sabha after the government disfavoured it in the Rajya Sabha.

Money Jihad/representational image

The 'Declaration of Countries as Sponsor of Terrorism Bill', moved by Independent member Rajeev Chandrasekhar, got support from several members cutting across party lines but the government said there was no need for such a legislation.

The bill provided for declaring any country as State sponsor of terrorism and withdrawing of economic and trade relations with such a country. It also provided for creating legal, economic and travel sanctions for citizens of such a country and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

After a debate, Minister of State for Home Gangaram Ahir asked Chandrasekhar to withdraw the bill which the Independent member did.

rstv/representational image

Earlier, participating in the debate on the bill, nominated member KTS Tulsi said, "I am not opposed to the bill but I have my doubts. We need to examine the practical utility of declaring Pakistan as a terror state."

Samajwadi Party member Javed Ali Khan said, "Though I support the Bill, it should also include Israel in the list as it is sponsoring terrorism in the Middle East."

reuters

Supporting the Bill, YSRCP member Vijay Sai Reddy said Pakistan has a dual policy on terrorism - bad terrorist and good terrorist. Those who attack Pakistani establishments are bad terrorists and those who attack Indians are good terrorists.

Congress member Abhishek Singhvi suggested some changes in the bill, saying some actionable points should be included in it.

BJP member Subramanian Swamy suggested that India should again intervene in Pakistan like it had done earlier in East Pakistan which led to the creation of Bangladesh. "Time has come for taking a decision," he said.

Reuters/representational image

His party colleague Swapan Dasgupta said everybody knows what Pakistan is.

"The bill is wonderful but it offers nothing," he added.
When it comes to Kashmir, India has one strong stand. It does not need any third party - even if it is United Nations - to come and dictate terms. Once again, India has made it clear that only a bilateral solution to the Kashmir issue is possible, amid signs that new United Nations (UN) secretary general Antonio Gutterres, was looking at ways to break the deadlock between the two nations.

BCCL

Responding to reports that Guterres was considering opening a conversation with senior Indian and Pakistani officials on Kashmir, government sources said, "Our position on addressing all issues between India and Pakistan bilaterally has not changed."

Guterres' spokesperson Farhan Haq was quoted as saying that the Secretary General, "Will talk to different officials if it helps (to) move the process along. That's something that he is looking into. Beyond that, I have nothing new to say about the issue".

Also Read: Mehbooba Mufti Says There'll Be No Peace Till Pandits Feel Safe Living In Kashmir

PTI

Also Read: Despite Army And Government Warnings, ISIS, Pakistan Flags Are Back In Jammu & Kashmir

Haq was answering journalists' questions about the situation in Kashmir, and if Guterres had been able to understand the Kashmir dispute and would he be talking to PM Narendra Modi to start a dialogue with Pakistan.

When asked if there was a timeline as to when the UN chief would talk to leaders from the two countries, Haq said that, as with any number of long-running situations, there were "a lot of complex issues" that needed to be examined. The UN chief "will... certainly...try to see what can be done to improve the situation on the ground", Haq said.

BCCL

Also Read: Security Forces Adopt New Strategy To Tackle Kashmiri Stone Pelters Who Help Terrorists Flee

Pakistan has repeatedly asked the UN to intervene in Kashmir, particularly after the months-long unrest and violence in the Kashmir Valley last year.

Guterres' predecessor Ban Ki-moon had expressed concern at the violence but refrained from offering facilitation or mediation. India has been opposed to any third party involvement since 1972.
With the decommissioning of INS Viraat -- worlds oldest aircraft carrier -- on Monday, India is left with a single carrier, the INS Vikramaditya. Now it is steadily pacing towards having a second carrier, an indigenous one, which will be called the Vikrant like the first ever Indian carrier.

BCCL

India has been operating aircraft carriers for decades, starting from its first one, INS Vikrant, then to Viraat and now Vikramaditya. In the future it is looking at operating the new Vikrant, most likely in Visakhapatnam for its proximity to China.

Watch 58 years of INS Viraat

"The threat scenario during the era of Viraat was different as compared to now, when there is growing Chinese naval activity in areas surrounding India. And if a conflict breaks out, India needs to be better prepared in regard to the protection of its carriers," explained an expert.

China, on the other hand, has built ships and submarines to protect its first aircraft carrier, Liaoning. Although being a formidable neighbour, China may not fall in comparison with decades of experience in carrier operations which India has, but the former is building itself as a naval power.

In September 2012, China had commissioned the Liaoning -- procured from Ukraine and then reworked upon. In November, 2016, it was reported that the carrier was combat ready. It is now quickly building its second one, Type-001A. And reports are emerging of its third carrier, Type 002, being built.

China has been showing its military prowess, including conducting military drills, with Liaoning, in the disputed South China Sea. It had recently passed through the Strait of Taiwan, causing the country to reach a state of operational readiness. And all this is happening in Indias neighbourhood.

With progress of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), starting from Gwadar Port, and China having provided naval warships to Pakistan for the sites protection, India needs to start acting fast to better secure its areas with the growing military presence of China around it.

Indian Navy

While experts said India has the experience in operating the air wings from carriers, what is badly needed for the Vikramaditya and future carriers is protection and support against submarines. This can be done in the form of a carrier battle group. "This means more ships and anti-submarine helicopters," said a Naval expert.

"An aircraft carrier never sails alone. It is a high value unit, so one needs other ships and anti-submarine helicopters to protect it," added the expert.

A problem point for India is it currently has a minimal number of anti-submarine helicopters, meant to provide close support to the carrier and its group. "The issue is not that we dont know how to protect our carriers, the issue is regarding such helicopters. To be combat-worthy, merely having an aircraft carrier and an air wing is not enough, we need a support system," explained another expert.

The need for this system becomes increasingly important keeping in view Chinas recent naval exercises in the Indian Ocean, which India considers as its backyard. The Indian Navy has also sighted Chinese nuclear submarines in the region. Navy Chief Admiral Sunil

Lanba had stated in December last year that a Chinese nuclear submarine had done a port call in Karachi. Soon thereafter satellite images of Chinese nuclear submarines docking in Karachi were made public on Twitter.

Reuters

Center for Strategic & International Studies

India

INS Vikramaditya

1. The ships journey as a formidable fighting machine began on December 26, 1978, in the Black Sea Shipyard in Nikolayev, Ukraine, when its keel was laid as the fourth Kiev class aircraft carrying cruiser, Baku.

indian navy

2. The ship was capable of operating Yakolev YAK-38 Forger VTOL aircraft, similar to the British Sea Harriers. It also had Kamov helicopters for anti-submarine, surface reconnaissance and search and rescue purposes.

3. The ship was offered to the Indian Navy in 1995.

4. In July 1999, the ship was towed to Severodvinsk (Russia) for repair and refit for re-commissioning in the Indian Navy as INS Vikramaditya.

5. The ship was gifted to India for free and the latter would only pay for its repair and refurbishment. It was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 2013.

BCCL

6. Fourth generation fighter aircraft, the MiG 29K and twin-seater MiG 29 KUB, operate from Vikramaditya. But the carrier is a STOBAR (Short Take Off But Arrested Recovery) one, meaning aircraft launch under their own power with the assistance of a ski-jump and land with the help of an arrestor gear. This indicates that aircraft may be required to limit their weapons and fuel to be able to launch.

indian navy

7. But the MiG 29K/KUB is riddled with problems relating to its airframe, engine and fly-by-wire system, according to a report tabled in Parliament in July last year by Indias national auditor, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). Aircraft were being technically accepted despite having discrepancies, it said.

8. The service life of the aircraft is 6000 hours and the issues it is facing would further reduce its operational life, said CAG.

9. But the ship has a host of arsenal for modern warfare. It can carry a maximum of 34 aircraft- MiG 29K (24 in total), Kamov KM-31, Kamov Ka-28, Sea King, ALH-Dhruv and Chetak. The Navy also said the MiG-29K will provide it with better combat capabilities over the Sea Harriers.

10. The carrier is seen as a game changer for India and a force to reckon with in the Indian Ocean Region.

11. But there is a shortage of Multi-Role Helicopters with anti-submarine capabilities, which protect ships and carriers from enemy submarines. The Navy requires 147 such helicopters. It also wants 123 more such choppers.

12. The ship is fitted with Long Range Air Surveillance Radars, creating a surveillance bubble around the ship for detecting threats up to 500 kms, explained the Navy.

INS Vikrant

1. This will be Indias first indigenous aircraft carrier and is being called the IAC.

BCCL

2. The IAC is being constructed at the Cochin Shipyard Limited.

3. The carrier would have a maximum speed of 28 knots, according to a CAG 2016 report on the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard.

4. According to the Ministrys 2002 proposal, the trials/delivery of the IAC was to be completed in 2010, but until 2013, only its launching, meaning lowering the ship into water for the first time on completion of its outer hull and part of machinery, took place.

5. It is estimated that the IACs trials or delivery would be in 2023 as against December 2018.

6. The Defence Ministrys proposal to the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) in 2002 brought out that 30 aircraft of various types- 12 MiG29K, eight Advanced Light Helicopters, two Kamov-31 and eight Sea Harriers/Light Combat Aircraft were envisaged to operate from the IAC.

BCCL

7. Both the MiG-29K and Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) were to operate from VIkramaditya and Vikrant. But Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba in December last year said the LCA is not up to the mark yet. The Navy said the LCA is too heavy and cannot take off with full fuel and weapons load. Due to which they are searching for another fighter aircraft for carrier borne operations within the next five years.

8. But the LCA naval program will stay according to Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. At Indias biggest aerospace show, Aero India, held in Bangalore in February this year, he had said the Navy wants a twin engine and for that the Naval LCA has to be tested.

9. In January this year, the Navy had issued a Request for Information (RFI) to procure 57 Multi-Role Carrier Borne Fighters for its aircraft carriers. The requirements of the aircraft are it should be capable to fly during day and night, and to be used for air defence and reconnaissance missions.

10. Dassault Aviations Rafale M, Saabs Gripen Maritime fighter and Boeings F-18 Super Hornet are likely to compete for the project.

BCCL

BCCL

Boeing

11. But India is getting all the help it can on aircraft carriers. India and the US have have formed a Joint Working Group on Aircraft Carrier Technology Co-operation. The US has also offered its state of the art electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) technology and advanced arresting gear for Indias second indigenous carrier, IAC-2 or Vishal.

Watch EMALS testing

China

Liaoning

1. This is Chinas first and only aircraft carrier. It was made after reworking on a older Russian model, the Varyag, which was being redone by Ukraine but abandoned due to lack of funds. The Chinese purchased the ship from Ukraine for $20 million in 1998.

Jeff Head

2. It was commissioned into the Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) in September, 2012, as CV-16, the Liaoning and conducted her first aircraft landing and take-off qualification trials in Novermber of the same year.

Jeff Head

3. PLAN developed a naval version of its indigenous aircraft, J 11B, called the J-15 for this carrier. The J-15 is an improved version of the fourth generation Russian Su-33, which operates from the Russian aircraft carrier, Kuznetsov, according to reports.

4. In 2012, the J-15 successfully completed takeoffs and landings on the Liaoning.

5. The J-15 could affect the regional military balance, as it likely exceeds the aerodynamic capabilities of all aircraft, except the US F-22 Raptors. The Lockheed Martin F-22 is a fifth generation stealth aircraft being used by the US Air Force.

6. The J-15s combat radius could extend as far as 700 km from the carrier. A nuclear submarine to fall in range to launch an anti-ship missile would require hours, but a J-15 can cover that distance in a few minutes.

AFP

7. The Chinese also plan to use a new, fifth generation fighter jet, J-31 or FC-31, which is very similar to the US 5th generation fighter, F-35, according to reports. The J-31 will be a stealth aircraft. But such aircraft with China will be a significant shift in the balance of power.

Watch Liaoning in 3-D

8. China is flexing its muscles in the disputed South China Sea. It has conducted military drills with the Liaoning and other naval warships. In January this year, it carried out takeoff and landings, involving the J-15s, according to PTI.

9. The Liaoning is also larger than the Vikramaditya, with a deck 20 metres longer and weighing about 15,000 tons more. But the Liaoning is smaller than the US Nimitz-class carrier USS Ronald Reagan, stationed with the US Seventh Fleet in Japan. Its steam turbine power plant limits its top speed, giving it a typical speed of 20 knots.

Reagan.navy.mil

10. The Liaonings air wing consists of 24 J-15 fighters, larger in number than the Japanese anti-submarine helicopter destroyer, Izumo, but lesser than Ronald Reagans 55 fixed wing aircraft, according to a US based think tank, Centre for Strategic & International Studies .

11. The Liaonings air wing also suffers from inadequate personnel training and experience as compared to other countries. Its pilots began training on the ship in November 2012 and in 2015 the PLAN certified its first wing of J-15 pilots. It also lacks experience in carrier operations, as the Liaoning was only commissioned in the Chinese Navy in 2012. US and India, on the other hand, have been operating aircraft carriers for decades.

12. The physical limitations of the Liaoning indicate that it will be best suited for regional missions. As the PLAN develops its capabilities, future missions could take it further away from Chinas periphery, estimates CSIS.

Type 001A

1. Chinas first domestically built aircraft carrier, Type 001A, is near completion in Dalian. It will begin service in 2020, as reported by Chinas state media Global Times.

2. The combat capabilities and technologies of the Type 001A will be much more advanced than the Liaoning.

3. The new carrier will take two years to be outfitted with the required weapons and equipment, said the Chinese media.

4. Most of the construction and design work has been completed. Its hull has already been assembled.

5. On December 31, 2015, the Chinese defence ministry announced the construction of the 001A, according to Global Times.

6. The carrier with a displacement of 50,000 tons will have J-15 fighters and other aircraft.

Watch J-15 in action

7. The design and construction of this carrier is based on experience and training from the Liaoning.

8. The 001A is a STOBAR based carrier, meaning it will use a ski jump to launch aircraft like the Liaoning, unlike the US carriers which use aircraft catapult.

Type 002

1. China is also developing a third aircraft carrier in Shanghai, as per Global Times.

2. This one will be different compared to its predecessors. In the Type 002, China will not adopt the STOBAR, including the ski-jump, equipped in Vikramaditya, Liaoning and Type 001A. Instead, the 002 will be entirely different and be similar to US aircrafts, rather than a Russian one.

3. China is looking into the catapult technology used in CATOBAR (Catapult Assisted Take-Off But Arrested Recovery) type carriers. It is examining steam catapults, according to Global Times. This will ensure heavier aircraft to be launched from the carrier. More advanced aircraft carriers such as the soon to be commissioned USS Gerald Ford of the US Navy are testing the state of the art, Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, more advanced than steam catapults.

4. The Type 002 is estimated to be Chinas latest weaponry to counterbalance US naval power in the Asia-Pacific.
India is clearly taking a strong stand against the Pakistan-based terror groups at the international forums. It has said that outfits like the Haqqani network, LeT and JeM should be treated like terrorist groups and warned that terrorism's "resurgent forces" are not given sanctuaries and safe havens in any form.

Reuters

During a Security Council session on the situation in Afghanistan, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin said, "The unimpeded and increasingly brutal terrorist attacks, the territorial gains by terrorist groups with support from outside Afghanistan and the emerging grave humanitarian crises are all portents of dreadful times."

"It is our first and foremost duty to ensure that the resurgent forces of terrorism and extremism do not find sanctuaries and safe havens in any name, form or manifestation," he said, adding that experience has shown when "foreign assistance" is available to insurgents, situations tend to fester and take a greater toll.

He strongly warned against differentiating between good and bad terrorists as well as playing one group against the other.

"The Taliban, Haqqani Network, Al-Qaeda, Daesh, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and others of their ilk are all terror organisations, many of them proscribed by the UN. They should be treated like terrorist organisations and their activities universally opposed," he said.

Reuters

Akbaruddin cautioned that the international community cannot stand and watch from the sidelines as gains achieved by them and the Afghan people towards the war-torn country's development in the last decades are reversed.

India called for decisive action to combat terror groups, saying nations have had to pay a costly price for their inactions in the past.

AFP/ Representative Image

"While territories are captured by terrorists, people are killed and threatened to go back to a situation perhaps same as or worse than what they fled, can we just keep looking on? Standing, where we are today, it is imperative that we take action and take it decisively. We must not forget the implications the world faced in 2001 for its lack of action. History never forgives those who forget it," he added.

The ambassador voiced concern that in the last few months, terrorism in Afghanistan has grown enormously in its intensity, brutality and scope.

UN envoy for Afghanistan Tadamichi Yamamoto expressed concern over the deteriorating security situation in the war-torn nation, urging the Taliban to enter peace talks without preconditions and warning against attacks by foreign fighters, including ISIS.
Recently a river in Spain turned fluorescent green, sparking fears of poisoning among people. Following the incident, a lake in Australia has gone pink. However, there is no reason to panic as the lake would return to its normal colour when the weather cools down and rains return for Australia's winter in June.

AFP

What turns a lake pink?

Since the lake is salty, it would turn pink when there is an apt combination of salinity and salt organisms. Some lakes change colour when there are brine shrimp in it. It is observed that when brine shrimp eats algae and its carotenoids, it turns pink.

In the case of Westgate Park's salt lake, algae grown in the salt crust at the bottom of the lake produced the red pigment (beta carotene) turning the lake into pink.

Is it safe to take a dive into the lake?

Well, no. As much as lovely the lake looks, the view should be enjoyed from the distance. Because if the water goes inside your eyes, it will give a burning sensation and it would also crystallize your eyelids. The Parks Victoria Facebook page has warned the residents to not dive into the lake.

The local residents and photographers are having great fun as they pose for pictures at the lake.
It seems like the world is going to hell in a handbasket. We are all living in the middle of an acute humanitarian crisis. A new UN report states that we are on the brink of the worst humanitarian crisis since 1945. Yes, you read that right!

Reuters

The study reveals that 20 million people in Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan and Nigeria. are facing starvation and famine. The UN humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien warns that this year alone, 1.4 million children could starve to death.

"We stand at a critical point in history. Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the UN, O'Brien told the UN Security Council.

He urged an immediate injection of funds for Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and northeast Nigeria plus safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian aid "to avert a catastrophe."

Reuters

A heartbreaking situation

If things are not taken seriously, there will be "mass displacements", "reversed development gains" and people simply succumbing to disease or dying of starvation, warned Stephen O'Brien.

During his visit to South Sudan, a nation ravaged by a three-year civil war, he said that "The famine in the country is man-made. Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine  as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."

18 million people in Yemen are in dire need of help, nearly seven million people have no access to food and the fighting is adding fuel to the fire.

Reuters

In Nigeria, the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 people and drove millions out of the country. This another country that dangerously running short of food pushing millions to the brink of starvation.

Similarly in Somalia 6.2 million people are in of need aid, 2.9 million of whom require immediate assistance.

Preventable Crisis

On a positive note, Stephen O'Brien said, with "coordinated and prioritised plans" and timely financial assistance, It is possible to avert this crisis, to avert these famines, to avert these looming human catastrophes."

Source: UN
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has been known for many quotes but we have decided to select 5 of his memorable Quotes.

Here are five memorable quotes from the ex-presidents speech.

1. It is easier to win an election than to right the wrongs of a badly fouled situation. When you are outside, what you see and know are nothing compared with the reality.

2. I understand President Buharis frustration on the state of the economy inherited by him. It was the same reason and situation that brought about cry for change, otherwise there would be no need for change if it was all nice and rosy.

3. Before that debt relief, we were spending almost $3bn to service our debt annually and the quantum of the debt was not going down. Rather, if we defaulted, we paid penalty which was added on. Economy neither obeys orders nor does it work according to wishes. It must be worked upon with all factors considered and most stakeholders involved.

4. Once you are a member, you are co-opted and your mouth is stuffed with rottenness and corruption that you cannot opt out as you go home with not less than N15m a month for a senator and N10m a month for a member of the House of Representatives. The National Assembly is a den of corruption by a gang of unarmed robbers.

5. Our lawmakers are lawbreakers. They are the accused, the prosecutor, the defenders and the judge in their own case. Most of them conduct themselves and believe that they are not answerable to anybody. They are blatant in their misbehaviour, cavalier in their misconduct and arrogant in the misuse of parliamentary immunity as a shield against reprisals for their irresponsible acts of malfeasance and/or outright banditry.

( Punch Nigeria)
Popular Ghanaian actress, Yvonne Okoro who is originally from a Nigerian and Ghanaian descent and whose movies are some of the best selling in Nigeria Cinemas and the rest of the world has given her thoughts on Ghanaians complaints and the AMVCA.

Speaking with Joy News, the talented actress noted that Ghanaians are quick to complain when Nigerians and South Africans bag all the awards, but they never put in effort to vote for the movies they claim to support.

Yvonnes movie received multiple nominations but did not win any. She however blames Ghanaians for never proving their dedication to their movie industry.

She said:

It means people didnt vote thats what it means. When you say this, people get angry. They go and watch the thing (award shows) and go like why are Nigerians only winning, why are South Africans winning but its a viewers choice awards, youre meant to vote so that the one that you want to win, would win. And youll realize that we have that problem.

We talk a lot about supporting, oh yes! Let her go, were so proud of you but nobody goes out there to vote if you look at Big Brother and all these shows, the person cannot win if you dont vote. So youll realize that for my last movie Contract, the ones (awards) I won were all by the jury and not by popular votes so that should tell you that Ghanaians dont know how to vote and when you dont win, they would want to ask you why you didnt or, get angry and say why are Nigerians winning. Its because they vote for their people. No matter how terrible the movie is, they go out there and vote because they want their country to win.

Whats most important is that, next time, lets not just celebrate the person or the fact that shes been nominated. Yeah being nominated is fantastic but trust me, winning is the best. So next time, lets go out there and vote for Ghana, vote for your people so that they can win but the fact that we were nominated and at least Ghana represented, I think its a beautiful thing but it would have been better if I won.

On what Yvonne Okoro thinks about her works being the only ones recognised by the awards competition:

I dont know because I didnt watch any of the movies and dont know the movies churned out last year or last two years but its a very competitive award show.

Sometimes, a movie not making it doesnt mean its not good. Its good, better, best, so its like your movie might be good but there are better ones or, you didnt follow due process so because of that and due to a certain reason, your movie will be disqualified. And these things, they wouldnt come and tell you that your movie was disqualified but you just wont make it so in the end, your movie might have been great, but you wouldnt get to that point.
President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari said on Friday he would need more rest and health tests after coming home from nearly two months of medical leave in Britain during which his deputy, Yemi Osinbajo, stamped his authority on economic policy.

Shortly after arriving back from London, the 74-year former general told officials he was feeling much better but wanted to rest over the weekend, raising questions about his ability to run Africas biggest economy and most populous nation. Osinbajo, a lawyer who is seen as more business-friendly than Buhari, played an active role in driving policy changes in Africas top oil producer during the presidents seven-week absence.

The Nigerian stock market jumped to a one-month high when Buhari returned, but trimmed gains after his comments about his continued ill-health raised fears of policy confusion and a power vacuum. Dressed in a dark kaftan and Muslim prayer cap, Buhari walked stiffly but unaided from his plane after it landed at an air force base in the northern city of Kaduna.

After greeting a handful of provincial and military officials, he boarded a helicopter to Abuja to address Osinbajo and his top military and security commanders in a brief speech.

I deliberately came back towards the weekend so that the Vice President will continue and I will continue to rest, Buhari said at the presidential villa. All I need is to do further follow-ups within some weeks.

He said he was conscious of the needs of the economy, mired in its first recession in 25 years due to a collapse in oil revenues, but failed to clarify Osinbajos role or the extent of his powers now Buhari is back home. Buhari had formally made him acting president when he left for treatment, but that appointment can only stand when the President is out of the country. Buhari also did not reveal details of his sickness.

I couldnt recall when last I had a blood transfusion, he said. About his treatment in London he added: Blood transfusions, going to the laboratories and so on and forth.

Buhari has travelled to Britain several times to consult doctors since his election two years ago. Officials have refused to disclose details, saying only that he had undergone routine tests. This fuelled speculation that his health was worse than publicly admitted.

( Reuters)
President Muhammadu Buhari who returned to the country yesterday is expected to resume presidential duties on Monday, after transmitting a letter to the Senate, notifying it of his intention to take back power. This is coming Fifty-one days after Buhari left the shores of the country supposedly on vacation. He arrived Nigeria through Kaduna Airport.

The President was flown to Abuja in a helicopter where he was received by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, governors, service chiefs and full members of his cabinet after which he read a thank you speech to the audience before retiring to spend quality time with his family after being away for over seven weeks.

On arrival in Abuja, Buhari personally confirmed that he had been ill all the while contrary to weeks of denial about his ill health.

He declared: I have rested as much as humanly possible. I have received, I think the best of treatment l could receive. I couldnt recall being so sick since I was a young man, including in the military with its ups and downs. I found out that technology is going so fast that if you have a lot of confidence, you better keep it because you need it. Blood transfusions, going to the laboratories and so on and so forth but I am very pleased that we, when I say we, I mean the government and the people all over are trying to keep in touch with technology.

I couldnt recall when last I had blood transfusion. I couldnt recall, honestly, I can say in my 70 years. I couldnt remember this drug that Nigerians take so much; very common I think one of our terrible things is self-drug administration. We have to trust our doctors more. In the place I visited, they only take drugs when it is absolutely necessary. They dont just swallow everything.

Buhari praised Yemi Osinbajo for holding forte for him and charged him to sustain the job he has been doing while he is resting.

However, his media aide, Femi Adesina, swiftly clarified his principals comment on his tweeter handle @FemAdesina that the presidents comment did not imply that he was not yet ready to resume, disclosing that the president will transmit a letter of resumption to the National Assembly on Monday to formally end the period of his vacation.

To underscore the presidents decision to rest more, he did not come out for Jumat prayers in Villa Mosque yesterday.

Buhari who flew into Kaduna from London as a result of the closure of Abuja Airport at 7.47 am yesterday was conveyed to the Presidential Villa by a chopper at about 8.40 am and was received by government functionaries and service chiefs.

He thanked Nigerians who prayed for his sound health irrespective of religious affiliation, describing it as a demonstration of their continued support for the government despite the prevalent economic hardship in the land.

According to him, the only way to show appreciation for such goodwill shown towards him by Nigerians was to rededicate himself to serving and protecting their interest.

Buhari said he was pleased that Osinbajo enjoyed the period of his (Buhari) vacation through the delivery of services to the nation, submitting that his return notwithstanding, the acting president still has much more to do.

The president who said age and intellect were still at the disposal of the acting president, encouraged him to sustain the work he was doing when he was away, his return notwithstanding, explaining that he had deliberately returned in a weekend so that he could continue to rest.

Having said that, I am pleased that I am back. I am pleased that the Vice President enjoyed this break and he has to do much more this time around. Youth and intellect is squarely behind him, age and purely military experience is behind me.

Continue to do the work. Nigeria will continue whether we are here or not and my single most important advice is: take education of everybody under your responsibility very seriously, your children, our relatives, our constituencies, education, education, education. We must do more on education. I deliberately came back towards the weekend so that the Vice President will continue and I will continue to rest, the president said.

Buhari said he was conscious of funds and advised government officials to ensure they do everything at their disposal to cut costs adding that he had rested as much as any man could do, received the best treatment so far and felt much better even though he would have to do some follow-up on his treatment in the next few weeks.

He appealed to Nigerians to avoid sending delegations to Abuja to welcome him but instead pray for the peace, progress and unity of the country. He also said he had two issues to disclose  the first for the nations consumption through the press while the second would be a private discussion between him and the vice president.

I am deeply grateful to all Nigerian Muslims and Christians alike who have prayed and continued to pray for my good health. This is a testimony that in spite of the hardship being experienced, Nigerians support the government in its efforts to tackle our countrys challenges.

The best way for me to pay you all is to rededicate myself to serving you by protecting your interest and keeping your trust. I thank you very much. I feel much better now. I will need to do further follow-ups within some weeks. Rather than sending delegations to Abuja to welcome me, may I appeal to our people to continue to pray for the countrys unity, progress and prosperity. I thank you very much and may God bless our country.

Whatever the case, I am very grateful that Nigerians are appreciative of what all of us are doing as a group. I am very pleased with them.

Responding, Osinbajo who welcomed the president back on behalf of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) said the moment he held forte for the president was quite interesting as he thanked him for the confidence he placed in him during the period.

He also hailed the president for demonstrating his belief in the laws of the land through adherence to constitutional provisions by handing over power, saying both himself and the entire nation were grateful to him.

He also told the president that he had a challenging experience touring different parts of the country.

Mr. President, again on behalf of FEC, we welcome you back home. We are very grateful to God that you are back home hale and hearty. Mr. president, I must say that personally, this has been a very interesting few days for me. First, I must say that I want to thank you very much for the confidence reposed in me by handing over the realm of government to me in the capacity of acting president.

I think more importantly is that you demonstrated the belief in our system which is even more important than anything else. The constitution which we all swore to is important because it outlines the code of conduct. I want to say not only am I, but I am sure the entire nation is grateful to you, he said.

Also speaking, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Olonishakin, who spoke on behalf of service chiefs and the nations armed forces, thanked Nigerians and God for bringing the president back to the country.

He assured that the armed forces would ensure that the presidents desires on the nations security were achieved as he expressed the militarys appreciation to the president for his support.

The president had left the country on January 19, 2017, four days earlier than the scheduled take-off of the commencement of a scheduled 10-day vacation with the promise that he would return on February 6 to resume his duty.

According to a letter dated January 18, 2017, addressed to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, respectively, Buhari said he would proceed on a ten-day vacation on January 23, during which he promised to see his medical consultants in the United Kingdom.

Assuring that he would return to the country on February 6, Buhari said while he was away, Osinbajo, would act as the president and accordingly discharge the functions of his office.

But on February 5, the Presidency announced the extension of his vacation indefinitely, saying the president wanted to receive the results of various medical tests conducted on him and be certified okay by his doctors before leaving London.

Since then, the rumors mill had been cranking up over the presidents state of health.

Reduce Political Tension, PDP Tells Buhari

The PDP National Caretaker Committee led by Ahmed Makarfi, has urged President Buhari to take urgent steps to reduce political tension and bring all Nigerians together.

APC, Atiku Urge Unity As Buhari Returns

Meanwhile, a chieftain of the ruling party and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed joy and relief at the return of Buhari.

The APC also said that it believed that Buhari is now well rested and has returned with new vigour and optimism to fix the challenges facing our people and fulfil the promises our party made to Nigerians during the 2015 elections.

In a statement issued yesterday by the APCs National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party commended the president for saving the country needless controversies by following due process in attending to his health challenges.

The party assured that the government was fully committed to the party manifesto of Change, couched on true transformation in every area of national life.

In welcoming the president back to Nigeria, Ariku urged all to join hands to ensure unity in the country.

Source: Thisday
It was the end of the road for Mr. Tajudeen Oso as his life was taken by his employee on March 3, 2017. The empolyee who is 20-year-old, Precious Victor, a barman at Kings Bar located at Anifowose, Mushin area of Lagos, realised that he had had enough of his bosses excesses.

According to Precious, All I wanted to do was to threaten him a little, get N63,000 from him and run away.

According to him, he realised he could not carry out the plan alone, so he enlisted the help of one of his friends, Kelechi, and another acquaintance, a customer named Ahmed.

But Victor said things went terribly wrong with their plan. By evening of that day, his boss, Oso, lay dead.

The man had been stabbed twice in the stomach. He bled to death on the premises of his bar.

Faced with the horror of their deed, Kelechi fled. Victor also fled in a car driven by Ahmed.

On Friday, as they were paraded before journalists at the Lagos State Police Command Headquarters, Victor and Ahmed, who were apprehended after fleeing, explained how the incident went down.

Victor said, I live in an accommodation on the premises of the bar. Kelechi lives with me as well. I was actually introduced to my boss (the victim)by Kelechis boss. We discussed the plan and when Ahmed, whom I had known as a regular customer, came to the bar to drink on Friday, I also told him about the plan and he said he was interested.

The plan was only to threaten my boss, and tell him we needed . We had no plan to kill him.

That day, I was hiding in the kitchen when Kelechi put our plan in motion. But something went wrong. He hit my boss in the head with a bottle. When I heard noise, I came out. My boss then said, Precious, you people want to kill me? I said no but he came towards me and bit me in the stomach. He was dragging me and would not let go.

Kelechi was dragging him so that he could free me but when he did not, Kelechi took a knife and stabbed him twice in the stomach.

Victor refused to say what he wanted to do with the money he wanted from his boss. All he said was he wanted to use it to do different things.

Ahmed on the other hand said that even though he was told about the plan to do something, he did not know the details of what Victor was up to.

He insisted that he was just a University of Maiduguri undergraduate who was at the wrong place at the wrong time.

According to him, he agreed to drive Victor away from the scene to help him but did not know that he had committed such a crime in the bar.

I got to their bar on Friday, March 3. I was drinking when he came to me to ask if I could drive. I said yes, he gave me the car key and I put it in the ignition. It did not start. He had told me earlier in the day that he was planning to do something and asked if I was interested, I said yes even though I did not know what it was, Ahmed said.

The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Police Command, Mr. Fatai Owoseni, who paraded the suspects, explained that they would be charged to court as soon as investigation into the case was concluded.

( Punch Nigeria )
Seven persons were killed in the latest Fulani attack on Tiv community, Mkgovur village in Buruku local government area of Benue State.

According to reports, it was gathered that Fulani herdsmen around 8 am yesterday invaded the community armed with guns and machete and unleashed terror on the villagers.

Reasons for the attack is not really clear as at the time of filing this report, according to the leader of Benue State chapter of Myetiala Cattle Rearers Association of Nigerian said that the resistance of the villagers to allow the herders stay in their midst might have been responsible for the attack.

According to the villager who simply identified himself as Tyorsase said several persons were killed and dozens of people injured and taken to undisclosed hospital in Gboko.

Mr Tyosase who spoke to our correspondent said, I had travelled to the village on Friday only to wake up early this morning to see Fulani herdsmen invading our village as early as 8 am, the men who were in large numbers were fully armed shooting sporadically and they entered our houses shot people and macheted many.

As of the time I escaped from the village, about seven lifeless bodies were found on the ground while several persons could not be traced as am talking to you now, several persons sustained various degree of injuries and taken to hospital, he added.

Confirming the attack, the leader of Myetialla Cattle Rearers Association of Nigeria, Mr Garus Gololo told our correspondent on phone that the herders were not indigenous Fulani (Fulani born and known to Benue people) they came from Taraba and went to Mkgovur village on Friday but were resisted by the villagers.

According to him, It is our agreement now that any Fulani man not known to the host community be not allowed to stay in any community in Benue, so when the herders entered Mkgovur village the villagers refused them stay, I think this was what provoked them to have invaded the village this morning.

When asked of the casualties, Gololo said, I can not give the number of people who died but I have sent one of our members to go there for more details.

The State Police Public Relation Officer, PPRO, Assistant Superintendent of Police, ASP, Moses Yamu confirmed the attack but said he was yet to be given the detail report from Area Commander in Gboko.

Im awaiting a message from Area Commander, Gboko, he replied in a message sent to our correspondent.

( Punch Nigeria )
A helicopter carrying high-level business executives crashed onto a Turkish highway yesterday, killing five people on board, after it hit a television tower in an outlying district of Istanbul, NTV television said.

An official of Kugu Havacilik, a company involved in issuing the license for the helicopter, told Reuters it belonged to the Eczacibasi pharmaceuticals and household products group. Eczacibasi was not immediately available for comment.

The Sikorsky S-76 helicopter had taken off from Istanbuls main Ataturk airport with seven people on board.

CNN Turk quoted local officials as saying the seven included three Turks, two of them pilots, and four foreigners. The DHA agency said four Russians were in the helicopter.

CNN Turk quoted a local official as saying first indications were that a total of five people had been killed. No-one on the ground appeared to have been affected.

The identity of the victims was not immediately clear.

Source: Leadership
The lady involved in an alleged marriage scandal with the overseer of the Omega Fire Ministries, Johnson Suleman, has said that her affair with the cleric involved a lot of sex.

Stephanie Otobo, speaking at a press conference in Lagos on Friday, said she spent time with Mr. Suleman in Naples, New York, and Lagos.

Most of the times we spent together, we had sex, Ms. Otobo told journalists.

I refused to have a party with him because Im not a lesbian and I dont like women touching me.

He told me he did that with all his past girlfriends, that I was the only one (who refused), that its very rude that I can do that to him.

Ms. Otobo and Mr. Suleman (popularly known as Apostle Suleman) have been engaged in accusations and counter-accusations this week with the lady insisting the pastor reneged on a marriage promise made last year.

Mr. Suleman denies the claims, insisting he never met the lady.

On Thursday, the cleric threatened to sue Festus Keyamo, Ms. Otobos lawyer, demanding a retraction of his clients allegation of forceful abortion of her pregnancy, among other allegations, and N1 billion as damages.

Sex, money

During the week, Ms. Otobo, 23, had released explicit photographs of herself and Mr. Suleman in a phone conversation, a revelation her critics said was a photoshop.

She also said the cleric had confided in her that sexual relations with his wife was virtually non-existent.

On Friday, inside Mr. Keyamos Lagos office, journalists pressed her for more evidence  an incontrovertible one like bank statements, phone records, messages.

After Ms. Otobo had said she had more explicit photos of Mr. Suleman, including one he was holding his joystick, a reporter asked her the size of Mr. Sulemans manhood and to rate his performance in bed.

Is it big? Is it small? the reporter elucidated, about the size.

Wellits not very small, its an average size, Ms. Otobo responded.

Hes very good (in bed), he likes to end it off on the back, on your back all the time, I dont know why.

And also, even while sleeping, he doesnt wanna stop, hes dozing off he goes continue, I go Daddy, youre sleeping. He doesnt wanna stop; he wants to keep going while sleeping.

She also said Mr. Suleman hardly eats his meals.

I dont really get into people that much, that dont wanna talk, I focus more on him and me. If Im poke-nosing, I dont think I will last with him that long.

But I know he cant eat, because I can say things that I saw when spending time with him. He has I dont know you know when a wicked brother when no one is pursuing them, he just cant eat, hes worried, hes always worried.

He cant eat, he wants me to pet him to eat, then Ill beg him Daddy please eat, and he goes I love you so much.

In his response to Ms. Otobo, whom he claimed was a self-confessed stripper based in Canada, Mr. Suleman denied ever having a physical contact with the lady, saying they only communicated via phone.

But the lady said they had spent time in hotels in Naples, Italy; New York, and Lagos between June 2015 when they met and last year.

We were in New York together, two months after I left Napoli. Then he invited me to Nigeria. We were always having sex, she said.

In Nigeria, we stayed at Protea Hotel in Ikeja. theres another hotel after Airport Hotel; theres a gas station, theres a new hotel on your right, thats where he gave me something to drink. I thought it was juice, he brought it, he said lets drink together, and then he didnt want to drink, he wanted to eat.

[Apostle Johnson Suleman]

The night he gave me 8,000 Euros, he was trying to show me that this was real and it would never end, I think he was trying to capture me both physically, spiritually, and mentally. Giving somebody so much money, youre trying to capture them so that without you, they cannot live, because you wanna make yourself their god, thats what he was trying to do.

When he came, he was like, this was all I realized today, here you go, on the table. Then he said this is how much I love you. After the three days crusade (in Naples), he collected all the money, I was inside, and said, this is all I realized. He gave me everything.

He told me this was discreet, we couldnt even call a taxi in the morning when he wanted to discharge me, he had to take a walk with me from his hotel by 4 a.m. to my hotel. I was worried because it could be dangerous, in a place where I dont know, a new country and everything. He walked me to my hotel and stayed till 7 am and went back to his hotel. He said because we have to be discreet, we cannot call a taxi.

Ms. Otobo said she didnt save up enough evidence because she didnt know all of these would be happening.

She also said most of her evidence were lost after her laptop was stolen on arrival at the Lagos airport last year.

I wanted to get rid of him and deleted his number, everything. It was when I suspected something was going on, last year, it was when I started gathering evidence.

Police investigation

The police, last Monday, arraigned Ms. Otobo before a Chief Magistrate Court in Lagos on a four-count charge of terrorism, fraud, and blackmail.

She pleaded not guilty.

At Fridays press conference, Ms. Otobo called upon the police to check her bank records to see how Mr. Suleman sent her money directly from his bank account.

Apart from the cash that he gives me, like a lot of cash that he gives me. Im not talking about 8,000 Euros, Im not talking about 12,000 Dollars in two weeks, she said.

If I was a cheap prostitute, how much do you send a cheap prostitute in Canada all the way from Nigeria. Im based in Canada Im sure there are a lot of women that needs money here in Nigeria, how many women or cheap prostitutes has he sent money here in Nigeria?

We are petitioning the police on that. And also the issue of photoshopping pictures, in between the photoshopped pictures there should be an original copy if the pictures were photoshopped, it must be photoshopped from something, he should provide that. Because I have the cell phones that I used to take the pictures, I still have every original pictures.

Source: Sahara Reporters
The Kano State Agency for the Control of Aids said 20,822 patients had benefited in its free drugs programme in 12 local government areas in the state.

Director-General of the agency, Dr Usman Bashir, made this known on Saturday in Kano while receiving the programmes report from the Coordinator, Dr Ashiru Rajab.

He said that the drugs were distributed through the agencys Multi-Disease Medical Outreach, adding that the local government areas covered were Kura, Gezawa, Dawakin-Tofa, Bichi and the eight metropolitan councils in Kano city.

Bashir said that the beneficiaries comprised 6,780 males and 14,042 females.

He commended the councils chairmen and traditional rulers in the areas for supporting the programme.

He expressed delight that the people in the state had embraced the programme through logistics support and impressive turnout.

The director-general said that the objective of the programme had been achieved, pointing out that People Living With HIV (PLWH), hypertension and diabetes were identified and referred to appropriate centres for further management.

Bashir added that patients with minor ailments such as malaria were also treated and provided with medicine free of charge.

He appealed to the people to adopt the culture of regular medical checks, advising that doing so would enable individuals to be aware of their health status.

He thanked the state government for making the just-concluded HIV Development Project II in the state successful.

Presenting the report earlier, Rajab said that the personnel deployed by SACA for the outreach programme did well and that host communities also provided needed cooperation.

Source: Voice of Nigeria
Three days after the community clash in Ile -Ife, Osun State ,the last batch of Hausas residing in Sabo where the crisis took place have reportedly left the town according to eye witness report.

This is in spite of the appeal from the Osun State Government and the Oni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.

Traders in the area have also been counting their losses after the mayhem as commercial activities still remain grounded.

The relocation of the Hausas is as a result of the bloody clash which left seven persons dead with several others injured in the ancient city of the state in Southwest Nigeria.

Barely 24 hours after the incident, Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, imposed a two-day curfew in Ile Ife.

Spokesman for the Governor, Mr Semiu Okanlawon, said the decision was compelled by the breach of the peace in the area which has led to avoidable destruction of lives and property.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Aminu Koji, who confirmed the casualty figure to reporters, explained that the clash was caused by an altercation between a Yoruba woman and a Hausa man on Tuesday.

He said the situation was consequently brought under control on the directive of Oba Ogunwusi.

The DCP said the incident left many homeless while goods worth millions of Naira were destroyed.
The closure of the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport in Abuja has caused about 4, 300 out of the 8,694 flights to be cancelled following the diversion of flights to the Kaduna International Airport.

While seven out of the eight international airlines plying the Abuja airport have suspended flights to the Kaduna airport, reports have revealed that most local airlines have reduced their flights by 50 per cent.

The Federal Government had on Wednesday closed the NAIA, the countrys second busiest airport, for six weeks to repair its runway and diverted the airports operations to the Kaduna airport, which is about two hours drive from Abuja.

With the development, Saturday PUNCH learnt that about 50 per cent of the number of flights operated from NAIA on the average have been affected as airlines have been forced to opt for skeletal operations.

It was learnt that about 14,300 passengers used the Abuja airport daily, while an average of about 207 flights landed or left the facility every day.

And for the six-week period that the Abuja airport will be shut for repairs, operators in the aviation sector said about 605,000 passengers would have been airlifted, but noted that this number would definitely be reduced by 50 per cent as many airlines are going to cut down the number of flights to Kaduna.

This, according to them, is because the traffic at the Kaduna airport cannot be compared to what obtained at the Abuja airport, adding that passengers were not showing enough willingness to use the Kaduna airport yet.

For instance, Chairman, Movement Committee from Abuja to Kaduna, who doubles as the Chairman, Skypower Express, Capt. Mohammed Joji, said, According to our statistics, we are supposed to have about 14,520 passengers, about 207 flights with eight foreign airlines and eight domestic airlines. These are the numbers that went to Abuja.

But out of the eight international airlines, only Ethiopian Airlines is using the Kaduna airport.

Meanwhile, the 207 aircraft movement (comprising arrivals and departures) that would have been handled daily at the airport would add up to 8,694 flights for the six weeks period (42 days) that NAIA will be closed.

Therefore, the expected 50 per cent reduction in the number of flights that will use the Kaduna airport as an alternative to the NAIA will cut the 8,694 flights down to 4,347. This also means that about half of 605,000 passengers (300,000 passengers) will not be airlifted.

Aside from the refusal by many foreign airlines to use the Kaduna airport as an alternative to the NAIA, it was also learnt that domestic airlines would reduce their frequencies to the alternative airport during the six weeks period.

For instance, Abuja Airport Manager for Azman Air, Mr. Abdullahi Saroke, told our correspondent that local carriers would definitely cut down their flight services to the Kaduna airport.

He said, Definitely what you are getting out of Abuja cannot be got out of Kaduna. For instance, in Abuja we operate two flights from the NAIA to Lagos. For airlines that have the highest frequency like Dana, Medview, and Air Peace, who carry out about six to seven flights daily, I dont foresee such kind of flight services happening in Kaduna.

They have to cut down those schedules except they want to be flying empty aircraft up and down. I think for a start, the cut down is going to be by about 50 per cent for airlines to see how the traffic situation will pan out. And Im sure that that is what is going to happen for now.

One thing you should know is that the highest traffic days out of or into Abuja have always been Thursdays/Fridays and Sundays/Mondays. These are days when all airlines operate all their schedules out of Abuja to Lagos or from Lagos to Abuja because you have high movement of passengers moving during these days. However, by next week we should be able to considerably understand what the actual situation will look like.

On whether Azman Air would increase its flights to Kaduna during the six-week period of closure of the Abuja airport, Saroke said, We are going to be having two flights out of Kaduna to Lagos for now, with the hope that traffic will increase so that we can equally increase the frequency. But for now, we are still going to maintain our early morning flight, then introduce the afternoon or the evening flight. The traffic at Kaduna wasnt encouraging today (Thursday), but we hope that maybe by next week or so things will improve and airlines will have more reasons to go there.

Another domestic airline official with Aero Contractors confirmed to our correspondent that local carriers would reduce their operations to Kaduna and that flights would reduce considerably.

You shouldnt expect the full services we got at the Abuja airport to be replicated in Kaduna during the six weeks because it wont be possible. The reduction will be up to 50 per cent because a lot of people are still skeptical about this whole exercise, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.

However, the Federal Government has expressed confidence that more foreign airlines would eventually use KIA in order to reduce their losses.

The Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, said, They will come. For sure, whoever is not in Kaduna at the moment, Im sure you cannot count his losses. So, I believe that British Airways, Lufthansa Air France etc. are probably regretting now, and I pray that they will respond and start landing in Kaduna.

( Punch Nigeria )
A large number of graduates who were beneficiaries of the N. Power Scheme organised by the Federal government have begun protest over alleged disqualification and non-payment of their stipends by the Federal Government.

The protesters who stormed the Secretariat of Nigeria Union of Journalists, Oke-Ilewo, Abeokuta armed with placards with various inscriptions , lamented that they have worked for he federal government, but, yet to be paid since last year December.

The leader of the protesters Mutairu Olalekan , said there are series of issues facing volunteers in this state, starting from non payment of stipend, unjust disqualification, login issues, missing of selected volunteers names from verified list and many more. But, in a swift reaction, the State Focal Person for the Scheme, who is also Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs ,Barr. Adeleke Adewolu said no state government has any involvement in the payment of the scheme.

Adewolu who spoke with newsmen while reacting to the protest by the Nigeria power volunteers, said, once the beneficiaries have been deployed to the state, they become Npower volunteer corp members.
A Nigerian Navy (NN) Seaman, Haruna Umar, has been dismissed from service after he was caught with 14.55kg of Marijuana.

Umar was dismissed and handed over to operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) after a court martial found him guilty of the offence. The suspect was arrested in June last year after he was caught with the drugs.

A statement signed by the spokesperson for the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) BEECROFT, Lieutenant Elizabeth Ibrahim, warned people not to transact any business with him as a military man.

On June 7, 2016, a Seaman H. Umar with force number X13555 was arrested for being in possession of about 14.55kg of illicit substance suspected to be canabis sativa.

He was summarily tried and the legal review of the trial indicated that the accused was properly charged and due process was complied with during the trial. He was found guilty and the sentence of dismissal was awarded to him for peddling illicit drugs. Accordingly, the ex-rating was handed over to the NDLEA for necessary action.

This is to inform the public that the ex-rating is no longer a member of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Anyone who transacts business with him does so at his or her own risk. she added

Source: Naijaloaded
President Muhammadu Buhari has asked Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo to continue in acting capacity while he keeps resting.

Buhari returned to the country on Friday morning after a medical vacation in the UK.

Shortly after his arrival, he met with top government officials at the first lady conference room of the presidential villa in Abuja.

Abba Kyari, chief of staff to the president; Babagana Monguno, national security adviser; Lawal Daura, director-general of the Department of State Services (DSS) and Femi Adesina, presidential spokesman; were among those who attended the meeting.

Abdullahi Ganduje, governor of Kano state, and Abdulaziz Yari, his Zamfara state counterpart, also attended.

Buhari expressed gratitude to all those who prayed for him during his time in London, and asked for more prayers.

He said he was feeling better, but still needed to rest.

He retired into his residence at the end of the meeting.

President Buhari, first lady, Aisha and one of his grand daughter

Buharis wife and one of his grand children

Buhari left the country on January 19, after transmitting a letter to the national assembly that he was going on a 10-day vacation.

He told the lawmakers that he had handed over to Osinbajo, who was in Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum, at the time.

Osinbajo had to cut short his trip to take over the responsibilities.

Buhari was expected back in the country on February 5, but he extended his vacation indefinitely, saying he was awaiting results of some medical tests.

Two weeks after, Adesina said the results of the tests showed his principal needed a longer period of rest.

But on Sunday, Buhari hinted that his the end of his medical vacation was near.

The president had told Yahaya Bello, governor of Kogi state, that he would soon to the country to continue his assignment of providing purposeful leadership for the nation.

Source: Naijaloaded
Efforts to reduce the activities of criminal in the country by the Nigeria Police has been on a good rise, as the Adamawa State Police Command arrested eight persons and recovered N3.8m during a raid on criminal hideouts.

The raid was in response to a new charge by Commissioner of Police in the state, Oyekunle Adegboyega, who called for more dedication from officers in the fight against criminals and syndicates.

According to the Public Relations Officer of the Command, Othman Abubakar, scores of street urchins popularly known as Yanshila, were also dislodged during the exercise.

He said, Three of the Yanshila boys notorious for carrying out petty theft were also caught with one barreta pistol during the raid.

The new Commissioner of Police has given all area commanders matching orders to flush out criminals in their domain. Im happy to say that they have woken up and we are seeing the results.

Since we made the arrest of these eight suspects, the area has been a bit calm.

( Punch Nigeria )
Femi Adesina, spokesman of President Muhammadu Buhari, says his principal will send a letter to the national assembly on Monday, and formally resume his duties.

Adesina said the letter would make Buharis return to the country formal and constitutional.

PMB will Monday transmit letter to N Assembly on his return to the country. That makes his return to work formal, and constitutional, he wrote on Twitter.

Buhari informed the legislative arm of government when he was going on vacation, and also passed the message across when there was the need to extend his leave indefinitely.

Earlier on Friday, Buhari told members of cabinet that he came back towards the weekend so that Vice-President Osinbajo will continue and I will continue to rest.

Source: Nigeria Today
Justice Gabriel Kolawole of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, yesterday struck out a suit by Senator Umaru Dahiru, a governorship aspirant of the All Progressive Congress (APC) seeking the removal of Aminu Waziri Tambuwal as the Governor of Sokoto state.

The senator had last month filed an application to amend an originating summons seeking Tambuwals removal as Governor of Sokoto state.

Justice Kolawole had adjourned the matter till yesterday to rule on the plaintiffs application, which he said constitute a gross abuse of the process of the court and consequently, struck it out.

The judge also dismissed plaintiffs motion on notice dated January

30, 2017 and marked FHC/ABJ/CS/09/2017, which emanated from an earlier suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/11/2015, filed on January 27, 2015 by Senator Umaru Dahiru and Barrister Aliyu Abubakar Sanyinna, seeking Tambuwals removal from office on the basis that the governor was wrongly nominated by APC as the governorship candidate of the party in the election which held on April 11, 2015.

Last year, the Supreme Court remitted the case file marked FHC/ABJ/CS/11/2015, back to the Federal High Court for a fresh trial on the ground that, there is life in the case in spite of the conduct of the governorship election that produced Tambuwal.

The apex court had disagreed with Tambuwal in his claim that the case of the plaintiff challenging his nomination by APC had become academic and hypothetical. In the suit, the plaintiff is seeking the nullification of the return of Tambuwal as the governorship candidate of APC in the 2015 gubernatorial election in Sokoto state.

The application also sought the return of Dahiru in place of Tambuwal as governor of Sokoto state.

But the 1st defendant (APC) and 2nd defendant (Tambuwal) vehemently objected to the application of the plaintiffs.

However, ruling on the application for amendment filed by the plaintiff, Justice Kolawole apart from dismissing the application equally struck out the motion on notic

Source: Leadership
It is clearly obvious that the separation drama between Nigerian actress, Tonto Dike and her man, Dr. Oladunni Churchill is sadly one that would be hanging around a little much longer as a Ghanaian policeman has revealed one of the violent outbursts of the actress and mother of one on her husband.

Recall that Tonto Dike had in the past couple of weeks made allegations against her estranged husband as she claimed he had infected her with STDs adding that the gifts she flaunted on her social media page were bought by her in order to help him promote his brand.

The actress recently granted a Tell All interview in which she further alleged that she was sexually abused during her 17-months- marriage to the philanthropist adding that she has more proof to confirm that he had extra-marital affairs with his Personal Assistant and Actress, Rosaline Meurer.

Well the aftermath of her the interview with the Media Room Hub has revealed that actress, Tonto Dikeh might have lied about being assaulted by estranged husband, Oladunni Churchill.

In a new video which surfaced online published by Asempa News in Ghana, a policeman identified as Supt. Joseph Oppong, a Crime Officer at the Madina Divisional Police was seen reading a statement which was allegedly written by the actress estranged husband during one of their fights in Ghana.

The policeman while reading the statement noted that the police department received a call from Churchills Trasaaco estate in Ghana and upon response to the distress call found out that Tonto Dike had in rage pulled a gun on her husband and destroyed things in the house in rage.

Oppong while reading the statement noted that the actress during her rage had claimed her husband, Oladunni Churchill was cheating.

Oppong further revealed that the actress upon their arrival had destroyed properties worth $15,000 adding that the policemen had to restrain her from destroying more properties.

This report is another twist to the ongoing marriage separation saga going on between Dikeh and Churchill.

The actress had been getting sympathies from her fans following some revelations she made in her interview with the Media Room Hub, but that may now be affected following new information.
A medical doctor by the name , Emmanuel Ogah has been arrested by the Ogun State Police Command for for allegedly stabbing his 62- year- old mother, Mrs Janet Ogah, to death.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, said the suspect was arrested on Thursday March 9, following a complaint from one Cletus Ogah who reported the incident at Itele- Ota Divisional headquarters of the command that his younger brother had stabbed their mother to death.

Upon the complaint, Oyeyemi said the Divisional Police Officer, Lukman Raheem led detectives to the scene at No 16 Ololade street Lafenwa, Itele- Ota where the suspect was promptly arrested.

He said preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect who had just finished his National Youth Service Corps programme came back home three days earlier and had been having squabbles with the deceased since then.

Oyeyemi, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, said the suspect, in his statement, claimed that his mother was in the habit of insulting and disgracing him in the presence of her apprentices, hence, he took her life.

He said the remains of the 62- year- old food vendor have been deposited at the Ota General Hospital morgue for autopsy.

Meanwhile, the state Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspect to homicide section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for further investigation.

The deceased was said to be a food vendor. ( Punch Nigeria)
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leadership crisis has taken another turn as Caretaker Committee Chairman, Ahmed Makarfi, yesterday vowed to chase out National Chairman, Ali Modu Sheriff.

Spokesman for his faction, Dayo Adeyeye, said it would be a disaster for the party to allow Sheriff preside over the planned convention.

It called Sheriff, a snake under the partys roof, adding that the Caretaker Committee, in agreement with all organs and stakeholders in the PDP, would deploy all legal means to ensure that Sheriff is removed.

Asking Sheriff to stop parading himself as the chairman of the PDP, the Makarfi camp pointed out that the spirit and letter of the February 17 judgment of the Port Harcourt Division of the Court of Appeal did not confer the chairmanship on the ex-Borno State Governor.

Adeyeye said: To buttress this, the general public will also recall that the judgment of the Appeal Court, Port Harcourt Division of Friday, February 17, 2017 that nullified the national convention of May 21, 2016 limited itself solely to the legality or otherwise of the National Convention of May 21st, 2016 and not on the legality or otherwise of the appointment of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as the Acting National Chairman of the PDP.

Firstly, let us remind the public of our earlier calls on Senator Ali Modu Sheriff to stop parading himself as Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) following the judgement of an Abuja High Court delivered by Justice Valentine Ashi on June 29, 2016 in which the court nullified the 2014 Amendment to the PDP Constitution that produced Senator Sheriff as Acting National Chairman of the PDP.

This judgment was never appealed by Senator Sheriff and the time frame stipulated by law for the appeal has elapsed and, as such, the judgment subsists.

Another judgment delivered on August 17, 2016 by Justice Nwamaka Ogbonnaya of the FCT High Court in Abuja reaffirmed the sack of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as the chairman of the PDP on the ground that the judgment of Justice Valentine Ashi, which nullified his appointment, has not been set aside or vacated and therefore its subsisting.

Justice Ogbonnaya further held that all actions taken by Senator Ali Modu Sheriff are null, void and of no effect; and the Order further restrained him from parading himself as the Acting National Chairman of the party.

Once again, he is currently an illegal Acting National Chairman, given the decisions of the courts, the constitution of the PDP, decision of the National Convention coupled with his act of breaking and entering into the national secretariat of our great party.

It is interesting to note that Senator Sheriff is very much aware of the binding implication of the subsisting judgments on his status as national chairman because we have been reliably informed that he is now seeking the leave of court to appeal the judgment. But, unfortunately, time is against this latter move. So, he is an illegal national chairman.

Source: Naijaloaded
25-year-old Ms. Hope Usang, has been arrested after being linked to arms leased out to robbers in Cross River State.

The female armourer was arrested alongside 21 others by the Cross River State Police Command, after a robbery victim, Paschal Bisong of Ekpeyong Effiok street in Calabar Municipality, laid a complaint.

The Cross River State Police Commissioner, Hafiz Inuwa, who spoke to newsmen said his men swung into action immediately, arresting Emmanuel Edet-Etim and Idoreyin Usa, who confessed they got their arms from Usang.

In our efforts to build a safe Cross River, we must not tolerate any form of arms proliferation. On February 24, following a report by one Paschal Bisong of a robbery attack, my men swung into action, leading to the arrest of two suspects, Emmanuel Edet-Etim and Idoreyin Usa. The suspects confessed that one Hope Usang supplied them with arms for the robbery. When my men stormed Usangs house, they recovered three revolvers, four rounds of ammunition, one pistol, one locally-made pistol among others he said.

Usang, who spoke to a Vanguard correspondent, claimed the gun belonged to her boyfriend who is a student;

The guns belong to my boyfriend, a student. I never knew that he was keeping some guns in my house.

However when asked to name her boyfriend, she refused.

The States Police Commissioner further disclosed that the arrested suspects will be charged to court for robbery, rape, kidnapping, murder, cultism, illegal possession of fire arms among others.

Source: Naijaloaded
The war for IT talent in 2017 is becoming even more competitive -- and even more expensive. The demand for talent certainly isn't slowing down, and companies are offering hefty compensation packages to try and fill open roles.

Tech jobs in big data, IT security, and software development, for example, are paying big bucks for both entry- and senior-level positions, especially if you live in one of the five largest metro areas in the United States, according to Randstad's 2017 Salary Guide.

"The biggest takeaway here is that salary is still the No. 1 factor candidates consider when looking at new opportunities. The recent Gallup State of the American Workforce survey showed that about 37 percent of people would leave their job for a salary increase of 20 percent or less -- it doesn't take much, but candidates today know their worth and they can name their price. It's a candidate's market," says Jennifer Selden, regional recruiting director at Randstad Technologies.

[ Related story: How unfilled tech jobs impact the U.S. economy ]

And those prices can be pretty steep, especially for technologists with particularly high-demand skills in and around the five biggest metro areas in the United States: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, and Philadelphia.

Here, according to Randstad's 2017 Salary Guide data, are three of the hottest IT jobs -- cybersecurity engineer, Java developer, and big data software development architect -- and what candidates can expect to make at both entry and senior level in the five largest U.S. metro areas.

Cybersecurity engineer

1. New York

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $106,648

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience):$143,381

2. Los Angeles

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $102,188

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $137,175

3. Chicago

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $97,305

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $128,161

4. Houston

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $98,928

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $134,095

5. Philadelphia

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $98,436

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $131,407

[ Related story: 15 Unfilled tech jobs that cost the U.S. billions ]

Java developer

1. New York

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $99,395

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $160,680

2. Los Angeles

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $66,950

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $133,900

3. Chicago

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $74,160

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $133,900

4. Houston

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $72,100

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $113,300

5. Philadelphia

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $87,550

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $128,750

[ Related story: Why happy developers equal happy customers ]

Big data software development architect

1. New York

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $101,852

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $144,164

2. Los Angeles

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $97,626

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $137,918

3. Chicago

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $100,000

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $140,000

4. Houston

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $94,374

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $134,829

5. Philadelphia

Entry-level pay (0-3 years experience): $94,122

Senior-level pay (8+ years experience): $132,113

Related Video

This story, "What the top 5 metro areas pay for hot IT jobs" was originally published by CIO .
President Donald Trump's administration has signaled that it has no immediate plans to change the H-1B program. Critics are roiled. They wanted Trump to act before April 1, the day the U.S. accepts visa applications for the new year.

But no one knows for sure. New rumors circulate that Trump will act, maybe next week, but the White House won't say.

The IEEE-USA said Friday that Trump's inaction on the H-1B visa "will cost American jobs." The group now believes that action before April is unlikely, and that may be because of something Sean Spicer, the press secretary, said this week.

Spicer was asked at a press briefing Wednesday if there was any plan to "revamp the H-1B program by April 1." Spicer said the president was focused on border security.

Regarding the H-1B program, Spicer said: "There is a natural desire to have a full at -- a comprehensive look at that." He gave no hint as to when that might happen.

Trump repeatedly called for reform during his campaign and after, the IEEE-USA points out.

"By Trump not yet keeping his promise, American tech workers will continue to lose their jobs and their ability to take care of their families," said IEEE-USA president Karen Pedersen, in a statement. "This is in direct contrast to what he told us all last year."

Industry analysts, however, see what's unfolding a little differently. They do believe that the Trump administration is impacting IT services, even indirectly.

"It is clear that many firms are postponing or canceling offshoring activity, as they wait to see what happens on the political front," said Peter Bendor-Samuel, the CEO of outsourcing consultancy and research firm Everest Group. This is actually "accelerating the adoption of the new digital models which do not require offshoring."

"No U.S. firm wants to be tweeted about," said Bendor-Samuel.

Clients -- firms that buy IT services -- are nervous about the environment, said David Rutchik, executive managing director at Pace Harmon, an outsourcing management consulting firm.

Senior-level corporate executives, including CEOs, are concerned. They are worried about news coverage, or worse, being "called out on Twitter" by Trump for outsourcing jobs, said Rutchik. "They are afraid of what it may look like politically."

This may be hurting the bottom line of some IT services firms.

For the top five Indian services firms, Everest is forecasting revenue growth declining in constant currency from 8.7% last year to 6.3% this year.

Rutchik said public companies will still be under pressure to deliver cost savings and may outsource nonetheless, but he expects system that automat processes to also gain in adoption.

The analysts say political uncertainty is prompting IT services firms to hire more U.S. nationals to reduce reliance on visa workers.

The political climate is "telling the providers that they need to step up their focus on building out capabilities and resources in the U.S.," said Rutchik.

The U.S. distributes the H-1B visas by lottery shortly after April 1 -- if it receives more petitions than the cap. Last year more than 230,000 petitions were received. Critics had been hoping that that Trump might change the visa distribution from a pure lottery to a system that gives preference, for instance, to non-dependent H-1B firms, those with less than 15% of their workers on a visa.

That change would have put India-based firms in the back of the H-1B distribution line, but IT services such firms as Accenture and IBM, which are not H-1B dependent, would have been unaffected.

Trump may still take action on H-1B visas apart from the lottery, says Bendor-Samuel. As an example, he points to the administration's recent action to suspend fast-track premium processing for six months.

"Providers are not home free this year and face increased resistance to their model regardless of the delay in the actual law changes," said Bendor-Samuel. "The net effect is that they will be able to utilize H-1B, but at a greater expense and to a lesser degree."

But the IEEE-USA believes that IT outsourcers get as many as 50,000 of the 85,000 H-1B visas. "Rather than using H-1B workers themselves, outsourcing companies rent their workers to third-parties at below-market rates. American workers, after training many of these new employees, will lose their jobs," said Pedersen.

This story, "Fears arise that Trump has dropped ball on H-1B reform" was originally published by Computerworld .
A joint venture between landscaping contractor Carl J. Sanders Construction Inc. and building contractor Kahne Corp. has purchased an 8-acre parcel in the Tehaleh development near Bonney Lake, Wash., on which they plan to build a 100,000-square-foot self-storage facility. The asset will include climate-controlled units and covered spaces for boat/RV storage, according to a press release. The partnership is scheduled to break ground this month and expects to complete the project by years end.

The self-storage project will be the third commercial development in the employment-based master-planned community, joining a coffee shop and restaurant. Tehaleh is a 4,700-acre community being developed by American Newland Communities LP and North America Sekisui House LLC (NASH). When complete, itll include up to 9,700 homes and a 419-acre employment center with 3.9 million square feet of commercial and retail use, the release stated. Itll also feature more than 1,800 acres of parks, trails and open space.

Were thrilled to join the thriving Tehaleh community, said Kelly Kahne, owner of Kahne Corp. As an Enumclaw, Wash.-based business, were local through and through, and we cant wait to bring top-quality storage and service to Tehaleh.

The storage facility will be built at 198th Avenue E. and Cascadia Boulevard, south of the communitys entry roundabout, according to the source.

Through ongoing research and understanding the long-term needs for the community, adding the Kahne Corp. to Tehaleh makes perfect sense, and we look forward to thoughtfully growing the commercial side of the community, said Scott Jones, senior vice president and division manager for Newland Communities, which serves as the larger projects master developer. This is the next step in an exciting journey, where businesses offer residents everything they want in one place, while preserving the unique outdoor lifestyle that is so popular at Tehaleh.

Tehaleh is owned by American Newland and NASH through a joint venture. The partnership has more than 30 assets in 11 states. Newland Communities is the development arm of American Newland, while NASH is a U.S.-based subsidiary of Sekisui House Ltd., a Japan-based homebuilder and developer.
Update 05/30/17  Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback signed the final version of SB 14 into law on May 15, giving self-storage operators in the state the ability to sell tenant insurance and collect premiums with rent. The final version includes a provision that allows the insurance commissioner to authorize the fingerprinting of license applicants for state and federal background checks. The language requiring operators to complete continuing-education courses on a biennial basis was removed in committee.

The house approved the bill 111-11 on May 2, while the senate passed it 37-3 on May 4.

"It was a terrific effort by our lobbyist Whitney Damron and the members of the [Kansas Self Storage Owners Association]," said Marcus Dunn, director of government relations for the SSA, in a May 29 e-mail newsletter to its members.

Kansas lawmakers are also considering a bill that would remove the sales-tax exemption from self-storage and several other services.

3/23/17  The Kansas House of Representatives yesterday passed an amended version of the senate bill that would allow self-storage operators to sell tenant insurance to customers. With a 99-24 vote, legislators approved adding a limited line of insurance in the states insurance code and requiring storage operators to obtain and maintain a self-storage unit qualification to sell coverage, according to the source.

The amended version also provides a path for self-storage businesses to sell other types of coverage, including bail-bond, crop, travel and variable-life insurance. New language would require operators to complete continuing-education courses on a biennial basis for each license held. Agents holding only the self-storage qualification would be required to complete two credits in courses certified as self-service storage unit under the property-and-casualty category, according to the bill.

Each agent would have to provide the insurance commissioner proof of course completion for each license held by his renewal date or face up to a 90-day suspension and $100 penalty for each license suspended.

Among the provisions removed from the bill was the $5,000 limitation in coverage on stored items.

Hawkins, a benefits consultant, was integral to the bill changes, the source reported. Rep. Tom Cox, who works for a company that operates self-storage facilities outside of Kansas and had advocated for the previous version of SB14, said earlier this week that the new language would likely kill this bill. I would not consider this a friendly amendment, he told the source. Cox indicated he voted in favor of the amended version anyway to advance the bill out of the house and allow discussion on the measure to continue in the senate.

3/10/17  The Kansas Association of Insurance Agents (KAIA) is fighting a bill under consideration that would allow self-storage operators in the state to sell tenant insurance to customers. Similar to measures adopted in other states, Senate Bill 14 (SB14) would grant facility operators a limited license to offer tenants up to $5,000 in coverage on stored items through an insurance carrier. Though self-storage employees acting as agents would be required to undergo training, they wouldnt be fully licensed, according to the source.

[Insurance agents] do not oppose storage facilities selling this insurance, Will Larson, an attorney for KAIA, told the source. What they do oppose is the people [who] will be selling it will not be licensed.

Though any insurance training given to self-storage operators would have to be approved by the Kansas Insurance Department, KAIA believes this isnt enough. We oppose chopping up the insurance industry to limited segments and then employing non-licensed people to sell it, Larson said.

SB14 easily passed through the senate in February with a 38-1 vote, but its currently under review by the house insurance committee. State representative Dan Hawkins agrees with KAIAs position and told the source he plans to propose an amendment requiring self-storage operators to be fully licensed before selling tenant insurance.

He also believes the bill could cause other problems for insurance carriers. I am worried the [storage] companies are not going to know how to handle claims and deal with these cases, Hawkins said.

Whitney Damron, a lobbyist working on behalf of the national Self Storage Association, believes the objections are off base, pointing out that 25 states, including neighboring Missouri, have passed similar legislation. Safeguards in the bill include the coverage limitation and a requirement for operators to post a sign informing customers they may already be covered under an existing policy and encouraging them to contact their primary carrier, Damron told the source. These policies make this law clearer and will protect customers, he said.

Damron also argued the measure would benefit customers who dont have homeowners insurance such as active members of the military who are deployed overseas.

A house vote will take place if SB14 is passed through committee.
Atlanta-based Brannen Development Co. received zoning approval from the city council to build a three-story self-storage facility in Snellville, Ga. The 2-acre property at 2387-97 Lenora Church Road includes a partially built, 48,000-square-foot steel structure that will be replaced by a 72,000-square-foot, climate-controlled facility, according to the source. A portion of the site shares parking with Carlin Vision Surgery Center, a medical facility.

The land is zoned for office/professional in the citys 2030 Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use Map, but a market study conducted by Brannen showed there isnt demand for this type of development. In its zoning request, the company noted the partially built structure has been a site of vandalism and a shelter for local transients for more than a decade.

As part of the zoning approval, the storage units cant be used for manufacturing, retail or wholesale, or office or other business uses, the source reported.
The decisive point of the privatization campaign began in 2005, when Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the IRGC enjoyed an executive majority of people who shared their vision for the regime. At this point, Khamenei began to implement a profound restructuring of Irans economy, including the ownership of a wide range of industries and institutions, writes Alireza Jafarzadeh, deputy director of the Washington office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, who is credited with exposing Iranian nuclear sites in Natanz and Arak in 2002, triggering International Atomic Energy Agency inspections.

In an article for Fox News, he says, This first took the form of an official directive issued in May 2005. The government was instructed to transfer 80 percent of its economic enterprises to non-government public, private and cooperative sectors by the end of 2009. Among these were large mines, primary industries (including downstream oil and gas), foreign commerce, banks, insurance, power generation, post, roads, railroads, airlines, and shipping companies. By some estimates, close to $12B in shares were transferred over just three years, from 2005 to 2008.

The Supreme Leaders office and its various branches, including the dominant Setad (the armed services), and the bonyads (foundations), were the beneficiaries of the bulk of these transfers. These institutions have control over all decision-making, legislative mechanisms, intelligence gathering, and access to budgetary commitments. According to Jafarzadeh, this resulted in the rise of powerhouses that act as the main players and control the western companies who enter into the Iranian economy.

The U.S. office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran recently release the newly published, Rise of the Revolutionary Guards Financial Empire: How the Supreme Leader and the IRGC Rob the People to Fund International Terror, that identifies the 14 economic powerhouses directly or indirectly controlled by Khamenei, the IRGC, or their affiliates.

According to a recent Reuters calculation, Setads holdings alone total about $95 billion. Additionally, these entities are tax-exempt while some also receive annual government funding.

The Supreme Leader and the IRGC control at least 50 percent of Irans GDP, and they use the profits to fund activities such as the conflict in Syria, the terrorism and sectarianism in Iraq, the war in Yemen, the nuclear and missile programs, the security apparatus in Iran, and fundamentalist operations around the world. In the end, Irans national economy has been made to serve the domestic suppression, warmongering, export of fundamentalism, and terrorism, writes Jafarzadeh.

He adds, Tehran is spending between $15-20 billion annually to fund the war in Syria, including at least $1B in salaries to its proxies. IRGC Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani spends billions of dollars in Iraq to fund the Shiite militias and instigate sectarian violence. At least one billion dollars is provided to Hezbollah in Lebanon annually, and Tehran has poured at least 1.3 billion dollars into the coffers of Hamas.

While Western companies would like to believe that they make deals with the private sector, many of the official banks and companies are backed by institutions controlled by the IRGC. The West cannot ignore the reality that those who run Irans economy are those who suppress the Iranian population and export the terrorism that threatens the West.

To do business with Iran is to do business with Khamenei and the IRGC, writes Jafarzadeh.

By designating the IRGC as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, the Trump administration has an opportunity to cut off resources to the IRGC and impose limitations on its profit-making, terror-funding operation. There would most likely be bipartisan agreement in the US Congress on this issue.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny is this morning travelling to the US for a week-long St Patrick's Day visit, writes Fiachra O Cionnaith of the Irish Examiner.

It could prove crucial to Ireland's future relationship with Donald Trump, the imminent Brexit fallout and the Irish economy.

Mr Kenny will begin his five-city visit with an address in Philadelphia tomorrow, before attending events in Rhode Island, Boston, Washington DC and New York between now and St Patrick's Day on Friday.

The highlight of the trip will be the annual bilateral meeting with US president Donald Trump at the White House.

Mr Kenny has promised to raise concerns over Mr Trump's deeply controversial six-nation Muslim travel ban at their meeting on Thursday - the same day as the plan is legally introduced.

The meeting, which is also expected to see Mr Kenny raise the plight of undocumented Irish in the US and the need to ensure US firms stay based in Ireland, will also take place a day after German chancellor Angela Merkel meets Mr Trump at the same venue.

While the week of engagements is likely to prove crucial to Irish people in the US and the national economy, it will also take place at a time when Britain is expected to trigger Article 50 - and therefore its Brexit departure from the EU.

This is expected to be triggered next week, with widespread suggestions it will occur as early as Wednesday.

Among Mr Kenny's other engagements on a trip which also comes amid looming plans for his resignation as Taoiseach are:

- meetings with Boston mayor Marty Walsh and Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker on Monday before celebrations to mark the 100th anniversary of John F Kennedy's birth

- a Tuesday visit to TF Green airport for the official launch of the Norwegian Airlines flights to the US from Cork and Dublin

- A Thursday meeting with US vice-president Mike Pence during which Mr Kenny will highlight "Ireland's commitment to EU membership, emphasising the importance of the EU's core values of human dignity, freedom, democracy and equality"

- and Mr Kenny's participation in the New York St Patrick's Day parade on Friday, before a "major event" to promote Ireland hosted by businessman Michael Bloomberg at Bloomberg Headquarters.

For regular updates on the visit, log on to www.irishexaminer.com, follow @ocionnaith and @irishexaminer on Twitter, or follow the Irish Examiner on Facebook.
A young man who claimed that he was still in a relationship with a young woman crashed head-on into a car in which she was a front-seat passenger and now that cars driver has been awarded 12,000 compensation.

Gary McCarthy brought the case against Alan Healy of 23 The Funchion, Rivervalley, Mallow, Cork. McCarthys address was given as Campbell Parade, Bondi Beach, Australia, as he was living there when proceedings were initiated, writes Liam Heylin of the Irish Examiner.

Judge David Riordan said at Cork Circuit Court: The issue in the case is whether the evidence given by the plaintiff and his witness is such that  leaving aside emotive issues  Alan Healy drove his vehicle into the plaintiffs vehicle thereby causing injuries.

The judge referred to the defendants claim that he had simply thrown a wheel brace at the plaintiffs car, damaging the side of it. However, the judge said that on an examination of the damage done by the wheel brace to the side of the car, it was clear that there had to have been significant force used, much greater than would have resulted from merely tossing it at the car.

He said the defendant presented the case as if he and the plaintiff were like two bulls in a field facing each other but that is not what happened. Mr Healy drove into Mr McCarthys car. The judge assessed damages at 12,000 for minor lower back pain and whiplash type injury.

Mr McCarthy said he and his girlfriend, Vicky Murphy, were returning home at around midnight from a drive-in movie at Carrigtwohill on March 8, 2012.

They were confronted with the defendant driving towards them from the opposite direction on a narrow road at Grenagh.

Mr McCarthy said there was a head-on collision in which he was jolted forward and that the defendant kept driving at him forcing his car backwards.

He said Mr Healy jumped out of his car and came at him with an object in his hand. He said Mr Healy banged the car with the object and that he (Mr McCarthy) drove away and made a complaint to gardai.

Defence barrister, Meg Burke, questioned the plaintiff on evidence that he was unable to do heavy work while living in Australia. She presented Facebook pictures of Mr McCarthy on an elephant and on another occasion on a bike. He said they were more recent pictures.

Ms Murphy testified that her relationship with Alan Healy had ended a few weeks before this night and she disputed his evidence that they were still going out together on the night.

She said she was not injured in the crash. Alan Healy testified that on the night he was still going out with Vicky Murphy and that he heard that she was with someone else.

He said he waited in his car on the road for an hour or an hour and a half and claimed that it was Mr McCarthy who drove into him at low speed and not the other way around.

He also said that he did a stupid thing by throwing the wheel brace at the side of the car. He denied slapping the car with the wheel brace as described by the plaintiff.

This article first appeared in today's Read More: Irish Examiner.
US President Donald Trump has invited Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to the White House to discuss resuming peace talks in their first contact since Mr Trump took office in January.

Mr Abbas' spokesman Nabil Abu Rdeneh said that Abbas would travel "very soon".

The White House said in a statement that the two leaders had discussed ways to advance peace throughout the Middle East, including a comprehensive agreement that would end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"The president emphasised his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal," the White House said.

"The president noted that such a deal would not only give Israelis and Palestinians the peace and security they deserve, but that it would reverberate positively throughout the region and the world."

Mr Trump underscored that such a peace agreement must be negotiated directly between the two parties, and that the United States will work closely with Palestinian and Israeli leadership to make progress toward that goal, the statement said.

"We are ready to deal with President Trump and the Israeli government to resume the negotiations," Mr Abu Rdeneh said. "If the Israelis are ready, President Abbas has committed himself to a peaceful deal with President Trump."

Mr Abu Rdeneh added that "President Trump is a very honest man, very courageous man, looking for a deal, a just deal."

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government.

The last round of US-mediated peace talks collapsed in 2014.

AP
Melania Trump's invitation to high-powered women to join her for lunch at the White House was about more than honouring International Women's Day.

It marked a "coming out", almost two months into President Donald Trump's term, for a First Lady described by her husband as a "very private person".

She had spent a couple of weeks lying low at the family's Manhattan penthouse while Mr Trump got down to work in Washington. Now, the former model is taking her first steps into her very public new role.

Mrs Trump strode into the State Dining Room for her first solo White House event after an announcer intoned: "Ladies and gentlemen, the First Lady of the United States, Melania Trump."

She was greeted by an all-female group of about 50 people, including ambassadors, Cabinet members, at least one US senator and stepdaughter Ivanka Trump.

Mrs Trump asked guests for suggestions on how best to empower women and girls worldwide, possibly foreshadowing women's empowerment as an issue she would pursue as First Lady. The president said recently that his wife, who turns 47 next month, feels strongly about "women's difficulties".

"I will work alongside you in ensuring that the gender of one's birth does not determine one's treatment in society," she told guests, according to a tweet by a White House official.

The White House allowed a small pool of journalists to watch as guests and the First Lady arrived for Wednesday's lunch, but they were ushered out as Mrs Trump began to speak. The White House press office promised to distribute the text of her prepared remarks after the event, but a transcript has not been released.

In recent weeks, Mrs Trump helped plan their first big White House social event, an annual, black-tie dinner for the nation's governors. She followed up with a trip the next day to Mount Vernon, George Washington's estate in Virginia, where she was hosted by the governors' spouses.

The First Lady has made other quiet appearances, watching her husband sign legislation and executive orders, and accompanying him to the Capitol for a speech to Congress.

Celebrated #InternationalWomensDay in the White House with incredible women pic.twitter.com/7l1I6pcdqf  Melania Trump 45 Archived (@FLOTUS45) March 8, 2017

She took her counterparts from Japan and Israel on cultural outings and quickly learned the burden of new scrutiny and protocol when she was criticised for not being at the White House to greet the Japanese prime minister's wife.

Instead, Mrs Trump met the president, Shinzo Abe, and his wife, Akie, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland for an Air Force One flight to Florida. Mr Trump treated Mr Abe to a weekend at his estate in Palm Beach, Florida. Mrs Trump then took Mrs Abe on a tour of a nearby Japanese garden.

"We see her physical presence," said Jean Harris, professor of political science and women's studies at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania.

All First Ladies go through an adjustment period as they figure out how to handle one of the most unforgiving roles in American political life. Unlike many of Mrs Trump's predecessors, who were politically experienced through marriage to governors or members of Congress, she is married to a lifelong businessman who never held elective office until he became president.

Complicating her White House launch is the couple's decision for the First Lady to continue living at Trump Tower until their 10-year-old son, Barron, finishes the school year. She is not expected to live full-time at the White House for at least several more months, leaving Mr Trump largely on his own and without a traditional source of moral support.

Mrs Trump has also been slow to staff the East Wing of the White House, where the First Lady's office is based. She so far has named only a social secretary and a chief of staff. The president has said he does not want to fill hundreds of government vacancies because they are "unnecessary", which could include the East Wing.

And the slow pace of building her staff could be complicating operations.

It is customary for the White House Visitors Office to close temporarily during a change in administration since political appointees do the work. But this year's shutdown lasted longer than usual, frustrating members of Congress who are responsible for distributing White House public tour tickets to constituents. Tours resumed earlier this week after a more than six-week pause.

Speculation about whether the Trumps would continue the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn had been mounting until they announced this week that it will be held on April 17.

The First Lady's popularity has risen 16 percentage points since her husband's inauguration on January 20, according to recent polling by CNN, climbing to 52% from 36%.

Kate Andersen Brower, author of First Women, said the public sees Mrs Trump as a calming force and as someone who has embraced being a mother.

"She's really the polar opposite of him," she said, noting that the First Lady barely tweets, unlike her husband's daily Twitter habit.

Mrs Trump also had not been seen in public for several weeks after the inauguration, whereas the president appears on camera most days of the week.

"I think most people find it endearing that she doesn't crave the spotlight in a way that he clearly does," Ms Brower said.

Prof Harris said the public is giving Mrs Trump "a little bit of a honeymoon period" but predicted the mood will change if she does not move to the White House.

AP
The UK government is under pressure to bring down users electricity costs at the same time as subsidising low-carbon generation to help meet its carbon emission reduction targets and plug a looming supply gap.

The next government auction setting prices for new renewable power projects will open in April and Clark MacFarlane, Siemens managing director for offshore wind, said this could see offshore wind costs fall below new nuclear for the first time.
VW general counsel Manfred Doess made the plea on the companys behalf after he said at a hearing in US District Court in Detroit that he was authorised by the board of directors of VW to enter a guilty plea.

Your honour, VW AG is pleading guilty to all three counts because it is guilty on all three counts, Doess told the court. US District Judge Sean Cox accepted the guilty plea to conspiracy to commit fraud, obstruction of justice and entry of goods by false statement charges.

Doess said the criminal acts occurred in Germany and the US. It is unclear how the settlement will affect proposed legal action on this side of the Atlantic.

In recent months, more than 800 motorists had contacted ODwyer Solicitors in Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo, which is representing claimants over the Volkswagen emissions scandal.

In Britain, where 1.2 million cars are affected, law firm Harcus Sinclair UK, which is being supported by Slater and Gordon, had thousands of drivers signed up to potential legal action.

Under the US deal, VW agreed to sweeping reforms, new audits and oversight by an independent monitor for three years after admitting to installing secret software in 580,000 US vehicles to enable it to beat emissions tests over a six-year period and emit up to 40 times legally allowable pollution.

An assistant US attorney, John Neal, told the court that the emissions scheme was a well thought-out, planned offence that went to the top of the organisation.

He said VW could have faced $17bn to $34bn in fines under sentencing guidelines. Volkswagen agreed to change the way it operates in the US and other countries under the settlement.

VW, the worlds largest carmaker by sales, in January agreed to pay $4.3bn in US civil and criminal fines. VW agreed to spend up to $25bn in the US. n Irish Examiner staff and Reuters
In an interview with Corks Red FM, Dr Crean said the story of what happened at the home should be told.

This is part of our national story in the 20th century. It is only unfolding slowly. The truth may be very difficult. But it is best we have the truth in relation to it, he said.

In 1922 the Sacred Heart Home in Bessborough, Co Cork, managed by the Sisters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, was opened. Similar homes were set up by them in Roscrea, Co Tipperary, and Castlepollard, Co Westmeath, in the 1930s.

Following the discovery of human remains in a mass grave on the grounds of the mother and baby home in Tuam, Co Galway, there have been calls for similar investigations to take place in other facilities. The Mother and Baby Homes Commission says there is no decision to carry out any excavations at Bessborough.

June Goulding, a midwife who worked at Bessborough from 1951, described conditions there in The Light in the Window.

She said women who gave birth at Bessborough were not given pain relief in labour or stitches after birth, and when they developed abscesses from breastfeeding they were denied penicillin.

One nun who ran the labour ward in the 1950s also forbade any moaning in childbirth. Girls who could not afford to make donations to the Sacred Heart order had to spend another three years after their babies were born working around the home to make amends for their pregnancy.

At Ms Gouldings first Bessborough birth, she asked someone at the hospital what painkillers were used in labour. Nobody gets any here, nurse. They just have to suffer, she was told.

In the wake of the Tuam revelations many women who endured severe treatment at the hands of nuns in Bessborough have contacted radio stations to tell their story.
Following the publication of the Comptroller and Auditor Generals report into the cost of the Ryan Report into child abuse in 2009 and redress scheme for victims, ministers renewed calls for the orders to share a 50/50 split of the huge costs.

Yesterday, Public Expenditure and Reform Minister Paschal Donohoe said the indemnity agreement struck with the religious by government 16 years ago is very frustrating and Education and Skills Minister Richard Bruton said our hands are tied when it came to options such as seeking title deeds to schools.

Separately, the Irish SOCA (Survivors of Child Abuse) group said Pope Francis should break the impasse.

Enda Kenny should travel to Rome as soon as practical and demand a comprehensive and honourable settlement of all matters connected with the child abuse scandals which implicate the servants of the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland.

These matters have dragged on for too long.

According to the C&AG report, the Daughters of Charity offered 10m after the Ryan Reports publication but delivered only 4m.

A statement yesterday on behalf of the order said: The Daughters of Charity have honoured virtually all of its commitments made to the Government in regard to redress and we are currently finalising the sale of property, and will then transfer the proceeds to the State, so as to honour our entire commitment.

That followed a similar statement from the Christian Brothers and from the Sisters of Mercy, which according to the C&AG Report had, as of the end of 2015, delivered 24.9m of the 127.5m it pledged in 2009.

The Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy has honoured all of its commitments to the Government in relation to the redress scheme.

It said there had been delays in formal transfer of ownership of some properties and the economic downturn meant the State accrued reduced financial gains through property transfers.

The Department of Education said payments since the period covered by the C&AG report included another 11.2m in voluntary cash contributions from congregations, and four additional properties transferred under the 2002 Indemnity Agreement, with 11 yet to be completed.

Three properties were transferred to the minister for education while ministerial consents have been given for the transfer of Beaumont Convalescent Home to the HSE.
Child protection experts are now trying to prepare parents and schools to deal with the troubling realisation that their children may be not just be at risk but may be a risk because they are not only vulnerable to abuse but may be perpetuating it among their own peer group.

Anne-Marie McAlinden said sexting  sending explicit images and messages by mobile  and the sharing of indecent images on social media was now so common, practiced by 40% of teenagers, that many saw no problem with it or how wrong it was to pressurise others to join in.

Not every child is engaged in it but many of them are and there is a normalisation of practices such as sexting, she said. Many children regard it as only flirting  they actually see that as safer in many instances than contact forms of sexual interaction.

Prof McAlinden, from Queens University Belfast, spoke at a conference on the sexual abuse of children in a cyber context jointly hosted by Temple Street and Our Ladys childrens hospitals.

The only answer is education, she said. Some schools are ahead of the game but many need to step up to the plate here and have more education programmes that are not just about stranger danger and online safety in terms of the older man coming to groom you.

Programmes need to have a wider recognition of online safety in terms of what can happen between peers and to frame that not just in terms of dangers online but in terms of privacy, healthy relationships, respect for yourself, respect for others, safeguarding your image online and broader life skills.

Parents also need to educate themselves, she said.

Its hugely difficult for parents, she said. What is normal for children, or what is the new normal, changes daily and us adults are the catch-up generation.

Its about educating yourself about what your children are doing, how theyre spending their time online, who theyre talking to and who theyre interacting with. Thats not to say be a helicopter parent either, because they do need some level of autonomy as children exploring the world  but talking to them is very important.

She said service providers also needed to be forced to improve their response.

For example, if indecent images are posted on Facebook, that theyre made take those down, she said. That doesnt always happen, or theres a delay, and its gone viral and the damage has already been done.
Patricia Condron, of 5, Dunmanus Park, Knocknaheeny, Cork, testified at Cork Circuit Court that she went to House and Home in Blackpool shopping centre in Cork on September 20, 2013, to buy a Rocking Bee  a type of small rocking horse designed for use by an infant She said she paid 20 for it. Her mother was parked outside the shop.

Bridget Condron said she then came into the shop and got the Rocking Bee from her daughter, who was going to buy something else. She said the woman in the shop came from behind Bridget Condron and said: You took the Bee from the shop.
Karl Robertson, 28, was hit by a white Renault Megane van while out jogging on Hazlewood Drive, Artane, Dublin, at around 9.50pm on Wednesday.

Mr Robertson received medical assistance at the scene before being taken to Beaumont Hospital, where he died from his injuries on Thursday night.

The van was discovered burnt out at Beechlawn Grove, Coolock, close to Parnells GAA Club, a short time after the hit and run.

A 30-year-old man was yesterday assisting gardai at Coolock Garda Station with their investigations into the incident.

Superintendent Gerard Donnelly yesterday appealed for help from members of the public who may have information in relation to the incident.

I am most anxious to contact a 20-year-old, possibly not from Ireland, but who interacted with some of the people here who were assisting Karl at the scene, Supt Donnelly said.

That person indicated that he had witnessed the collision and I would ask him to come forward.

There may have been a couple out walking here.

I am also anxious to trace a taxi driver who picked up a man in his early 30s on Oscar Traynor Road shortly after 10pm, and he brought that fare to the Kilbarron Avenue area.

Anyone with information is asked to contact gardai at Coolock Garda Station on 01 6664200, The Garda Confidential Line 1800 666111, or any garda station.
Mr Quinn, an education minister in the previous government, said the Church should pay its fair share of the 1.6bn of the cost of redress payments.

However, they should hand over the keys in order to share the burden of the cost of redress payments to the victims of abuse, he said.

The Christian Brothers control many of the schools in their jurisdiction and, usually, they are only answerable to themselves or to someone who is based in Rome, who in turn is answerable to the Pope.

Mr Quinn was critical of Pope Francis, who he accused of failing of delivering on behalf of the Church.

I see no sense of movement or engagement or responsibility coming from Pope Francis. This is a historical scandal to which the State and the Church were involved, he said.

Mr Quinn said the taxpayer has compensated abuse victims with 1.6bn.

It has cost you, me, and everybody else 1.6bn, which could have and should have been spent in so many different ways, said Mr Quinn.

It is a far cry from the 50:50 deal that many people wanted, including what the Department of Finance wanted, and it is a far cry from what the religious themselves promised.

Mr Quinn said Church-run schools must hand over the ownership of schools to the State as a gesture of sympathy to those abused.

I dont want to see them bankrupted, I dont want to cause them hardship, he said.

They could solve this honourably and with dignity by handing over the keys of those properties used for educational purposes to the Irish people as a public token of their remorse and their sympathy with those Irish people involved from this shameful period of our history.

During his term of office, Mr Quinn was repeatedly frustrated by the Church over its failure to meet its obligations under an agreement with the State.

They wont accept the principle of 50/50, he said in 2013. Theyve paid out some money, theyve come back with a certain amount. Theyre shy about 200m and if I had that my problems would be solved.
Fr Joe Young said the current licensing law forbidding drinking in pubs on that day was absolutely and totally pointless given the amount of drink being consumed at home.

Publicans organisations are lobbying politicians to allow pubs open on Friday, April 14, claiming the closure at the start of the Easter holiday was hitting tourism.

Fr Young, said: People should be allowed make up their own minds on whether to drink alcohol on Good Friday, regardless of whether it is in a pub.

It would not bother me at all if pubs opened on Good Friday. But I think the real issue is getting lost in this debate: why people feel the need to drink alcohol on Good Friday.

Irelands relationship with alcohol, particularly in the context of mental health, depression, and suicide has to be examined. We cannot ignore the number of people taking their own lives and the role alcohol plays.

Fr Seamus Enright, head of the Redemptorists in the city, said he was neutral on the subject of pubs opening on Good Friday.

A part of me feels that it is nice to have one day in the year that is not commercial and another part feels Ireland has to change a lot and not everybody is Catholic or religious and, in other countries, people live out their faith without any civic or legal supports, said Fr Enright.

A part of me would like to keep it and another part of me wouldnt be very upset if it were changed.

I would worry about so much now being seen in economic terms, and I feel that much now in society is being subordinated to an economic reading rather than looking at whats good for the community. Sometimes I feel that we are sacrificing everything for the sake of economic benefit.

Seven years ago, Limerick pubs were permitted to open from 6pm to 11pm on Good Friday by Judge Tom ODonnell to facilitate rugby fans attending a Munster v Leinster game at Thomond Park.

At the time, councillor Jim Long poured a ceremonial first pint on the dot of 6pm in a packed Souths Bar on Quinlans St.
Gardai, along with police from the other states, co-ordinated by the EU police agency, Europol, arrested the couriers.

According to Europols Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment, 2017, a hike in cocaine production in Colombia could lead to intensified trafficking into the EU.

Brazil is among the main countries of departure for couriers trafficking cocaine to the EU, said the report.

This has been confirmed by the results of Operation Fuleco, an effort by member states, supported by Europol, targeting cocaine couriers arriving to the EUs major airports.

Nearly 200 cocaine couriers were arrested and almost 500kg of cocaine were seized in the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, and Ireland.

The report said that over the last two years, the production of cocaine in Colombia has intensified significantly. It said: An increase in the production output in Colombia will likely impact on the EU, in the form of intensified trafficking activity, as well as greater availability of cocaine on drug markets in the member states.

The modus operandi associated with the cocaine trade has largely remained the same, with it typically trafficked as part of large shipments in containers, or in smaller quantities by couriers.

The main routes are into Spain, with a northern route into Netherlands, Belgium and, on occasion, through Britain and Ireland. A southern route splits to west and south Africa.

The United Arab Emirates and destinations in East Africa have emerged as hubs for cocaine couriers travelling to the EU. Cruise ships departing from the Caribbean are increasingly used to traffic cocaine to the EU.

More organised criminal groups (OCGs) are involved in cocaine-trafficking than in any other criminal activity. There are 5,000 OCGs in the EU now, operating at an international level, compared to 3,600 OCGs in 2013.
Luxembourgs foreign and European affairs minister Jean Asselborn, who has been in office since 2000, made the remark as he said the EU may need to reassess where it is at the end of autumn when the outcome of French, German, Dutch, and Czech elections are known.

Speaking to reporters at Dublin Castle after a bilateral meeting with Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan, Mr Asselborn said the French election on April 23 will be crucial for the direction the rest of the EU takes.

Specifically raising Ms le Pen and the possibility of her Front National rising to power, Mr Asselborn  who was described by Mr Flanagan as the father of foreign ministers and a man of influence and knowledge  said this would be disastrous for the EU.

In France, it is crucial, he said. We dont need in Europe Le Pen, and France doesnt need Le Pen. We have to defend our values in the EU, and Le Pen wants to destroy our values.

Mr Asselborn said similar issues in upcoming elections in Germany and the Czech Republic later this year pose similar risks which cannot simply be resolved by a declaration from Rome that we can fix the EU next month.

While insisting [Geert] Wilders will never be prime minister in the Netherlands, where the far-right politician is gaining ground, he admitted that at the end of autumn we will see where we are with the EU.

The comments were made as Mr Flanagan pressed home the need to prevent a hard border returning to the North, an issue Mr Asselborn supported during a visit to Cavan-Monaghan yesterday.

Separately, both politicians said Ireland and Luxembourg  two countries which will be in direct competition for companies fleeing Britain over Brexit  must ensure it is on a level playing field after insurer AIG controversially chose Luxembourg earlier this week.

Asked about the post-election situation in the North, Mr Flanagan said he believes the parties can come to an agreement within two weeks, thereby avoiding a second election.
Gary McCarthy brought the case against Alan Healy of 23 The Funchion, Rivervalley, Mallow, Cork. McCarthys address was given as Campbell Parade, Bondi Beach, Australia, as he was living there when proceedings were initiated.

Judge David Riordan said at Cork Circuit Court: The issue in the case is whether the evidence given by the plaintiff and his witness is such that  leaving aside emotive issues  Alan Healy drove his vehicle into the plaintiffs vehicle thereby causing injuries.

The judge referred to the defendants claim that he had simply thrown a wheel brace at the plaintiffs car, damaging the side of it. However, the judge said that on an examination of the damage done by the wheel brace to the side of the car, it was clear that there had to have been significant force used, much greater than would have resulted from merely tossing it at the car.

He said the defendant presented the case as if he and the plaintiff were like two bulls in a field facing each other but that is not what happened. Mr Healy drove into Mr McCarthys car. The judge assessed damages at 12,000 for minor lower back pain and whiplash type injury.

Mr McCarthy said he and his girlfriend, Vicky Murphy, were returning home at around midnight from a drive-in movie at Carrigtwohill on March 8, 2012.

They were confronted with the defendant driving towards them from the opposite direction on a narrow road at Grenagh.

Mr McCarthy said there was a head-on collision in which he was jolted forward and that the defendant kept driving at him forcing his car backwards.

He said Mr Healy jumped out of his car and came at him with an object in his hand. He said Mr Healy banged the car with the object and that he (Mr McCarthy) drove away and made a complaint to gardai.

Defence barrister, Meg Burke, questioned the plaintiff on evidence that he was unable to do heavy work while living in Australia. She presented Facebook pictures of Mr McCarthy on an elephant and on another occasion on a bike. He said they were more recent pictures.

Ms Murphy testified that her relationship with Alan Healy had ended a few weeks before this night and she disputed his evidence that they were still going out together on the night.

She said she was not injured in the crash. Alan Healy testified that on the night he was still going out with Vicky Murphy and that he heard that she was with someone else.

He said he waited in his car on the road for an hour or an hour and a half and claimed that it was Mr McCarthy who drove into him at low speed and not the other way around.

He also said that he did a stupid thing by throwing the wheel brace at the side of the car. He denied slapping the car with the wheel brace as described by the plaintiff.
However, the Pope insists he is not advocating removing the celibacy requirement from the priesthood. Rather he said he was willing to consider whether viri probati, married men of proven faith, could be ordained.

He made his comments in German newspaper Die Zeit We must consider if viri probati is a possibility. Then we must determine what tasks they can perform, for example, in remote communities, he was quoted as saying.
The 2016 NewsBrands Ireland Journalist of the Year was speaking at a national competition that encourages students to read newspapers.

This year more than 8,000 transition year students took part in the NewsBrands Ireland Press Pass initiative and yesterday in Dublins Convention Centre, 16 national finalists were awarded for their journalist endeavours.

Mr Clifford said he was an engineer before moving into journalism in his late 20s and loves being at the centre of things and conveying what is happening to readers.

For any of you interested in pursuing a career in journalism - go for it and read everything! @Mickcliff #PressPass  NewsBrands Ireland (@newsbrandsirl) March 10, 2017

One issue could lead to another and become a story of major public interest: You can pull one thread, and it leads to another.

Believe me, it is a career that is certainly very rewarding. You wont get rich, but you will have a hell of a lot of good times along the way, said Mr Clifford.

The #PressPass winners with guest of honour @Finianmcgrathtd. Congratulations to all the talented students who received awards today. pic.twitter.com/ElIDpirjV3  NewsBrands Ireland (@newsbrandsirl) March 10, 2017

Disabilities Minister Finian McGrath, who presented the students with their awards, said newspapers have a vital role to play in any free society.

They are the watchdogs, chroniclers, and the eyes and ears that go where most cannot be. Just look at the past few weeks  good journalism in Ireland has helped to uncover some of the most unpleasant scandals of our past.

Mr McGrath praised Mr Clifford for bringing the plight of Garda whistle blower Sgt Maurice McCabe to national attention. He also praised another Irish Examiner journalist, Conall O Fatharta, for his lengthy and in-depth investigations into the Tuam Mother and Baby Home.

Two other Irish Examiner writers, Fiachra O Cionnaith and Daniel McConnell, were praised for their investigation into alleged abuse at a foster care home in the South East that led to the Grace inquiry.

Mr McGrath said Press Pass is a fantastic initiative that promotes literacy and critical thinking skills by bringing newspapers into classrooms and encouraging students to study them in depth: When you engage with newspapers you engage with society.

"When young people engage with society, that society benefits enormously from their input and their energy.

NewsBrands Ireland chairman Vincent Crowley thanked Irish Examiner news editor John OMahony and the newspapers marketing graphic artist, Edward Butt, for producing the Press Pass guidebook.

Participating schools receive newspapers and a specially-created workbook free of charge. The students are encouraged to read and analyse the newspapers and submit an original work of journalism.

This years overall winner is Tomas O hUallachain from Pobalscoil Chorca Dhuibhne, An Daingean, Co Kerry. Tomas is one of three national winners from Pobalscoil Chorca Dhuibhne.

His English teachers, Fergal Daly and Fiona Kirwan, said Tomas picked up on a good news story after his neighbour, Tomas Mac an t-Saoir, pedalled across America to raise funds and awareness for the Donal Walsh Live Life Foundation.

The winning entry exemplified many of the features that form the basis of good journalism - Prof John Horgan #PressPass  NewsBrands Ireland (@newsbrandsirl) March 10, 2017

Chairman of the judging panel, the former press ombudsman Prof John Horgan, said Tomas engaged the reader from start to finish in a way many professional journalists would salute.

As well as the overall winner there were five category winners:

Features:

Caitriona Ni Chonaill, Colaiste Ghobnatan, Baile Mhic Ire, Co Cork.

Opinion:

Siofra ODwyer, Scoil Mhuire, Buncrana, Co Donegal.

News:

Kate Ni Dhubhain, Pobalscoil Chorca Dhuibhne, An Daingean, Co Kerry.

Sport:

Emma McGoey, Mean Scoil Mhuire, Longford.

Photojournalism:

Jack Farrell, Causeway Comprehensive School, Causeway, Co Kerry.
Saturday, March 11th, 2017 (1:19 am) - Score 1,059

The Cumbria Council has quietly reclassified 146 postcodes for inclusion into their Connecting Cumbria project with BT after they were originally left out due to a conflict over the commercial coverage of Solways wireless broadband network, which meant they werent eligible for state aid support.

At present the state aid supported project is working hard to roll-out superfast broadband (24Mbps+) services to reach 95% of premises in the county by around mid-2018, most of which are being delivered by the expansion of FTTC and a few FTTP services via Openreachs (BT) national network. So far nearly 90% of local homes and businesses have already been covered.

However when the original Phase 2 Intervention Area map was published in late 2015 many local people noticed that large areas had been excluded from potential improvements because of claims that a local alternative network provider, Solway Communications, already provided a superfast service. Readers may recall that we wrote several related articles on this in 2016 (examples here and here).

Solway typically runs a Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) network and they do have a 30Mbps option on their website, although quite a few locals of the affected areas found that they were either shielded from a line of sight view of one of Solways masts, or they could not buy a connection fast enough to be termed superfast.

The EUs State Aid rules limit the use of public funding in situations where there is a risk of overbuilding another superfast capable network. However this didnt stop locals from launching a 15 month campaign to correct the de-scoping of their areas and include them back into the Connecting Cumbria deployment, which also won the support of both the Hayton Parish Council and local MP Rory Stewart (Penrith and The Border).

The good news is that the areas have now been included back into the project.

Connecting Cumbria Statement In 2015 Cumbria County Councils public consultation, which sought to identify areas which do not have Next Generation (NGA) broadband infrastructure or where there are no plans to provide such infrastructure over the next three years, closed and state aid Intervention Area was set for the Connecting Cumbria programme. Further to this evidence has emerged that NGA services are not available in a number of postcodes where coverage had been claimed during the public consultation. Following conclusion of our consultation, conducted between 16th January and 13th February 2017, we can confirm that suitable evidence has been put forward to confirm NGA service availability in the 146 postcodes considered for reclassification as NGA white. On the basis of this Cumbria County Council and Broadband Delivery UK have concluded that NGA services are not available in these postcodes and they should now be reclassified as NGA White thus becoming eligible for publicly funded intervention under the Connecting Cumbria programme.

The bad news is that re-adding the areas back into the scheme will not automatically see them being upgraded, more investment will be required. As Connecting Cumbria explains, a postcode becoming NGA White does not guarantee that NGA broadband deployment activity will be undertaken  [we will] continue to work as efficiently as possible to reach as many properties as we can across Cumbria with available funding.

However Cumbria has yet to announce how they will spend the reinvestment from clawback (public investment that BT returns as a result of high take-up) and this could provide an opportunity to target at least some of the previously overlooked areas. Speaking of which..
Tim Gallagher, senior manager of Leaf and Electric Vehicles for Nissan, has officially confirmed to IEVs that the long-awaited all-new Leaf is ready to reveal globally and finally go on sale later this year. However, there aren't any exact details on the new EV yet, the rumor mill has been circulating out news that the Leaf will have an autonomous driving ability.

According to a tweet from @NissanEVnewsUS, the 2018 Nissan Leaf will debut this September. Since tweets are limited to 140 characters, not a lot of information was given out but previous interactions with Nissan executives help piece together a few details. The 2017 Nissan Leaf currently gets 107 miles per charge, but sooner it may change. "We can get to 200 or even 300 miles. We can. The question is cost," answered Takao Asami, Nissan Senior Vice President of research and advanced engineering, when asked at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show.

The lithium-ion battery that will come with 2018 Leaf has already made an appearance in the Renault Zoe EV, which currently get 189 miles per charge, at least when it debuted at last year's Paris Motor Show. The supplier for the 2018 Leaf's battery will be LG Chem and there are high hopes for a more acceptable range. Also, Nissan announced earlier this year that the new version of the LEAF will feature its ProPILOT, a driver assist system comparable to Tesla's Autopilot.

Furthermore, apart from the performance upgrades expected with the new powertrain, the next-gen is also set to feature a significant design refresh. Far behind the launch of the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV, the 2018 Leaf is said to have a similar price range of the Bolt EV or slightly higher price which depends on the specifications. If the Leaf is released soon after its September debut, it would be about the same time the Tesla Model 3 production starts going full-swing.
Samsung has already revealed a while back that it will acquire Harman International. Now, the Galaxy-maker has announced that the acquisition has finally reached its completion. With an $8 billion cash deal, the automotive and consumer electronics company is now owned by Samsung. Former stockholders of Harman will be receiving $112 per share.

Nevertheless, the acquisition won't merge the two companies as a whole. Harman will be a standalone company with its own board of directors. It will have Samsung Electronics President / CSO Young Sohn as its chairman and retain all of Harman's workforce and facilities. This includes Dinesh Paliwal who will be keeping his role as the company's CEO. Harman's brands will likewise move forward as usual, including the audio brand Harman/Kardon that has been used in a number of PCs, tablets, and smartphones.

Samsung did share that its main interest in Harman is the latter's automotive business, which provides Harman majority of its revenue. Nevertheless, it's also safe to assume that Samsung can likewise find a good use for the acquired company's audio technology. Android Authority said that there's a good chance that Harman's audio tech could also reach Samsung's smartphones at some point.

Both Samsung and Harman have shared their optimisms about the acquisition. Samsung's Sohn said that the company sees "transformative opportunities" in automotive, mobile and home industries. Harman's Paliwal, on the other hand, said that they are likewise excited that the transaction has finally completed. The executive expressed his joy regarding the "compelling cash value" for the stockholders, the new opportunities for Harman's employees and the undeniable benefits for its customers.

Now that the acquisition has been completed, Harman's common stock will stop trading until the March 13 market-open. It would also be removed from the New York Stock Exchange. For those who are unaware of Harman's background, this company engineers and designs connected products for automakers, enterprises, and consumers. As per Business Wire, more than 25 million autos of today have Harman's audio and connected car systems. The company then has a workforce of around 30,000 people worldwide.
After accusing Uber of stealing its self-driving car secrets, Google's Waymo has filed a preliminary injunction against the company. The said injunction asks Uber to quit using the technologies that Google claimed to have been stolen from them. According to Waymo's previous accusations, Uber has stolen its LiDAR system via the former Google engineer named Anthony Levandowski.

As per the sworn testimony by forensic security engineer Gary Brown, Levandowski downloaded 14,000 confidential files that revolve around Waymo's self-driving car project. It was said that the former employee took the massive files in December 2015 and then left the company one month after. Levandowski worked for Google for nine years before leaving to start his own business called Otto. Otto was then purchased by Uber who also took Levandowski as a top executive for the company.

While it's only Levandowski who has been making headlines for the alleged theft of intellectual property, he isn't the only former Waymo employee who has been accused of downloading Google's self-driving car materials. A mechanical engineer named Radu Raduta and former global supply manager for self-driving cars named Sameer Kshirsagar are also accused of stealing confidential files from Waymo. It's worth noting that these two former Google employees have joined Levandowski in building Otto, as per Business Insider.

Uber, on the other hand, has not been very generous in explaining its side of the story, although the company made a short statement denying Waymo's allegation. After Google filed a lawsuit against Uber, the latter released a response saying that the allegation was just a "baseless attempt" to hinder a competitor. The company failed to address the specific issues like the alleged download of 14,000 worth of files and the amusing similarity of its LiDAR system to the one created by Waymo. Uber is likewise yet to comment on the recent injunction filed by Waymo.
Human rights groups are expecting a rise in health risks in female children with the recently passed Child Marriage Law in Bangladesh, which allows children as young as 14 to be married off by their parents. More alarming is that it also introduces a legal loophole that sets no age limit for wedlock. The controversial new law was criticized by public groups for taking a devastating step backwards in the fight against child marriage in which victims could be forced to marry child rapists.

The Child Marriage Restraint Bill keeps the legal age of marriage as 18 for women and 21 for men but introduces exceptions in special cases. Campaigners say the new provisions effectively sets the marriageable age at zero. Meher Afroze Chumkstate, minister for women and childrens affairs, tries to calm critics by explaining that the bill would include special permission from the court in the case of the marriage of a minor after assessing applications, which will prevent abuse.

However, the Child Rights Advocacy Coalition in Bangladesh, says that the new law could be abused and poses a "risk" to children's health. Early marriage causes millions of girls to drop out of education. Young brides are expected to work in their husbands households, subjecting them to the same hazards as child domestic worker, the First Post reports.

Moreover, there are fears the bill could be used to force victims of sexual abuse or pregnant rape victims to marry their abusers. In Bangladesh, there is a cultural need to protect the 'honour' of girls who have become pregnant, which was widely cited by the Bangladesh government as the reason for this provision. However, Human Rights watchers assert that marriage is not the best way to protect adolescent girls as it even exposes them to greater harm, the Independent reports.

Campaigners call on the Bangladesh government to focus on eradicating the root causes of child marriage to prevent rise in child health risks. They also suggest the tackling of critical health issues such as healthcare, sex education, contraception and childcare. The new child marriage provisions will be finalized on March 12.
The statue of what is believed to be Ramses II has been found in one of the slums in Cairo. The statue has been found by archeologists under groundwater. Ramses II statue has been found in an Egyptian city slum.

The discovery has been made by archeologists from Germany and Egypt. Khaled al-Anani, head of the Antiquities Ministry in Egypt, said that the bust and lower part of the statue's head has been found. Fragments of the statue such as the ear and right eye have also been found.

The statue is tall at 26 feet in height. It is made out of quartzite and is believed to be 3,000 years old. The statue does not have any inscription to identify it, though archeologists believe it to be that of Ramses II. The statue is in close proximity to a temple devoted to him.

Aside from the statue of Ramses II, a statue of his grandson, Seti II has been found on the site. Researchers from the University of Leipzig together with the Ministry of Antiquities have made the discovery in one of the slums in Cairo. Industrial waste and rubble have made excavation of the statue to be difficult, according to National Geographic.

The excavation work will continue at the site. Pieces of the statue are yet to be found. If the statue would be restored, it would then be put on display at the Grand Egyptian Museum which would be opened next year.

The site where the statue has been found is in the working class area of Matariya, as The Independent reports. The place used to be the site of a temple dedicated to Ra, which was built by Ramses II. The temple was later destroyed though its obelisks were moved to Alexandria or Europe, while some of the stones of the temple were used for other buildings.

Many of such artefacts are said to be still underneath Cairo, buried after centuries of building and development. The finding of the statue is one such example that many more are waiting to be found. The Ramses II statue has been found in an Egyptian city slum. A study shows that neighborhood environment determines health.
The Zika virus has been affecting many people. A new research shows that it can also have serious effects on the heart. The Zika virus could have harmful heart effects as well.

Data coming from the American College of Cardiology has shown that the Zika virus has more harmful effects. These harmful effects can cause heart issues in people not previously known to have it. Nine patients were seen at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Caracas, Venezuela have developed heart rhythm problems and at least two-thirds of them have evidence of heart failure after being affected by the Zika virus.

Other mosquito-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever have effects on the heart. The researchers though have been surprised by the severity of the heart effects of the Zika virus, as observed by Karina Gonzalez Carta, M.D., lead author of the study and a research fellow at Mayo Clinic as well as a cardiologist. Even for the small number of cases, the severity of the Zika virus' effect on the heart has already been noted.

Of the nine patients that have been seen, six of them were female. The average age of the patients was 47 years old. The symptoms associated with heart disease have been reported by the patients. These include shortness of breath, palpitations, and fatigue, according to Science Daily.

The patients also went through EKG. In the test, eight of the patients were found to have serious heart concerns. The patients then had to undergo further heart monitoring, which included an echocardiogram and a cardiac MRI study. Six cases have been found to have heart failure as well, as News Wise reports.

The patients have been monitored since July 2016. The heart conditions have not been resolved yet, though the symptoms have been improved after treatment. Dr. Carta has said that those who had Zika virus should be aware of the heart effects that it has.

The Zika virus has many effects, one of which affects the heart. The Zika virus could have harmful heart effects. A gene causing sudden death has recently been found.
A day after it was revealed through WikiLeaks that the CIA has allegedly explored hacking vehicle computer-control systems, including BlackBerry's QNX OS, the company said its software is safe.

"We are not currently aware of any attacks or exploits against BlackBerry products or services, including QNX. Still, the news is a bit frightening, now that we are in the semi-autonomous driving age and evolving towards fully self-driving cars," Marty Beard, BlackBerry's chief operating officer stated in a blog.

BlackBerry claims its QNX software is in 60 million cars represented by more than 240 car models. The company has its sights set on becoming the leading end-to-end software platform provider in connected cars.

Today, QNX software can not only be found in a vehicle's in-vehicle infotainment system, but also in support of vehicle telematics, instrument clusters and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).

On Wednesday, WikiLeaks released more than 8,700 documents it claimed came from the CIA's Center for Cyber Intelligence. Some of the documents indicated the intelligence agency had looked at exploiting security vulnerabilities in smartphones, smart TVs and vehicle computer systems. The aim is allegedly to be able to activate the devices' microphones and cameras to be able to spy on enemies.

"As of October 2014, the CIA was also looking at infecting the vehicle control systems used by modern cars and trucks," the WikiLeaks post stated. "The purpose of such control is not specified, but it would permit the CIA to engage in nearly undetectable assassinations."

David Kleidemacher, BlackBerry's chief security officer, said what keeps him up at night is that vehicles are such a rich target of opportunity for nation states and terrorists.

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"If you're a terrorist and you're trying to do a lot of damage, would you rather hijack and fly airplane into the Twin Towers... or would you rather find a way to hijack 10 million cars at once because there's a common Internet connection between them? Wouldn't that be more attractive to a terrorist?" Kleidemacher said. "The fact that people don't think that's a real threat is deeply disturbing to me."

QNX, however, doesn't have the same vulnerabilities as consumer, or even enterprise-class, OSes, because as a system critical to vehicle safety, it has been designed without root vulnerabilities, according to Kleidemacher.

QNX, he said, is based on a microkernel architecture, which compartmentalizes functions such as the networking stack, the file system, software drivers, and memory.

In a standard OS, built using a monolithic kernel architecture, if an attacker gains root access they then have free run of the entire system. That's why so many cyberattacks ultimately boil down to fooling the OS into thinking the attacker is a root user.

"There haven't been any vulnerabilities in either the current or previous versions of QNX," Kleidemacher said, adding that QNX is also the only automotive software that meets ISO 26262 -- the highest automotive safety integrity level possible.

Following the documents by WikiLeaks, security experts said they weren't surprised the CIA has been looking into vulnerabilities, but they were dismayed that the agency has been hoarding them.

"The agencies are supposed to reveal vulnerabilities so companies can fix them and keep Americans safe. This is an example of a huge agency not following those rules and leaving people exposed to vulnerabilities so they can exploit them," said Kit Walsh, a staff attorney with the privacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).

Cryptographer and computer security specialist Bruce Schneier said what's needed is government regulation.

"This is a huge problem," Schneier said. "It's things that affect the world in a direct physical manner and will cause harm to property and life."

Modern vehicles have anywhere from 60 to 100 microprocessors or electronic control units (ECUs) and over 100 million lines of software code. And, increasingly, vehicles are being connected to the Internet via Wi-Fi, leaving them open to remote hacking.

Automakers are also exploring ways to connect cars to each other and the roadway infrastructure around them to enable autonomous features, such as automated navigation, being able to detect roadway obstructions and alleviate intersection backups by the cars 'reading' when traffic lights are changing.

Kleidermacher agreed there is a lack of regulatory oversight with regard to automotive software safety, and that needs to be corrected.

Last year, President Barack Obama created the Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity with the task of speaking to industry experts to develop ways to enhance cybersecurity.

BlackBerry was one of 100 organizations interviewed for ideas on how to buttress security.

The biggest gap facing high-risk, critical wireless infrastructures, such as healthcare devices such as pacemakers, Kleidermacher said, is that consumers don't have proof that the systems are secure.

Last August, for example, whitehat hackers proved St. Jude Medical Inc.'s cardiac implants, such as such as pacemakers and defibrillators, were vulnerable to potentially life-threatening cyber attacks. St. Jude initially disputed its implants were hacked, but independent security experts later proved they were vulnerable.

The reason consumers don't know whether an internet-connected device is vulnerable to hacking or not is there's no federal mandate requiring independent certification of those devices, Kleidermacher said.

"If you look at defense systems. If you look at financial systems, like smart cards, there's well-established programs for evaluating security," Kleidermacher said. "But in automotive there isn't such a standard."

"That's the biggest problem right now," Kleidermacher said, "is you and I have no clue whether or not these systems are secure."
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Imagine being able to communicate with Kate Middleton every single day and getting to be present for all her official appearances. If this is something that you can see yourself doing as a job, then youre in luck, as the Duchess of Cambridge is currently looking for a new royal assistant.

According to People, the young royals private secretary, Rebecca Deacon, is leaving her position this summer. Deacon has held the position since 2012 and has worked for the royal family for a decade. Before joining the Cambridges household, she worked for Prince Harrys charity, Sentebale.

In a statement (via Daily Mail), a Kensington Palace spokeswoman said, Their Royal Highnesses are incredibly grateful for all the hard work and support Rebecca has provided over the past ten years, and wish her well in the next phase of her career.

It was reported that Deacon is leaving as she is about to be wed to Adam Priestly later this month. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are expected to attend the wedding. The palace has yet to reveal who will take Deacons place.

It is unclear whether Kensington Palace will advertise the position or whether they have already chosen Deacons replacement. The Royal Household has an online job board, and currently, there are seven open positions on it, but the assistant job has not been posted as of this writing.

Among the Duchess assistants duties include handling the royals schedule and accompanying her on all official engagements, which means that whoever gets hired for the position will be based in the U.K. and will get to travel with the Cambridges on overseas tours. The assistant also ensures that the Duchess is briefed on who she is going to meet during programs and engagements.

The royal assistants duties have not been detailed. But according to Hello Giggles, anyone who will step into Deacons shoes has to follow the Duchess around and carry her bouquets and gifts, as the royal is often presented with these items wherever she goes.

The new assistant will also reportedly help to make sure that the Duchess always looks flawless. As the mother-of-two never carries a purse during official engagements, the assistant must make sure that she has everything that the Duchess will need to look presentable, such as a tube of lipstick and a hairbrush.

For more, check out Jobs & Hires report on female characters in literature with the best leadership skills.
U.S. tech giant Microsoft announced some big plans to create new jobs in St. Louis, Missouri, The Sacramento Bee reported. The plans is expected to give Missouri a big boost as it could create several jobs and could help the state build its name as one of the sought after technology centers in the United States.

Microsoft is planning to build a regional office at the Cortex tech hub in St. Louis. The regional hub will bring 150 jobs to the area, which would be welcome news for the unemployed sector.

Several companies have been touting that they plan to invest more money in the United States. They have also been announcing their plans to create more jobs. The moves are not surprising given that President Donald Trump had been putting some pressure on companies to make investments in the country.

Jobs & Hire previously reported that Spotify promised to create 832 jobs in New York. The job creation is part of the digital music company's plan to move to New York.

Microsoft has decided to move its offices to the Central West End technology district in St. Louis, Missouri from the CityPlace office complex in Creve Coeur, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The tech giant is planning to spend millions to occupy an office and lab complex worth $55 million.

With the announcement, it looks like Missouri bested other states in clinching the deal with Microsoft. The tech giant will set up the St. Louis office as its new regional headquarters for several states, including Missouri, Kansas and Tennessee.

The tech giant is planning to build a new Microsoft Technology Center within the regional office. In the center, company employees will be asked to collaborate with customers to design custom information technology systems. The move is expected to be beneficial to both clients and employees.
Hearing set for potential Microfibres auction

A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge has set a March 20 hearing to review a motion that would vacate the assets sale of defunct Microfibres Inc. to a Turkish textile company and order a second auction.

Microfibres, based in Pawtucket, R.I., filed for Chapter 7 voluntary bankruptcy protection Jan. 27, 2016  the same day it closed its Pawtucket, Winston-Salem and Lee County, Miss., facilities and ceased production. A Chapter 7 filing signifies the company wants court permission to liquidate its assets.

The Winston-Salem plant had 125 employees when it closed. The local workforce was at 270 as recently as 2004. The Pawtucket facility had 58 employees, and the Mississippi facility had two.

On Feb. 8, a judge approved an asset purchase offer of $5.92 million from Tukek Holding Anonim Sikretiased on Feb. 8. Tukek was identified as owner of Flokser Inc., and a strategic buyer in the international textile sector.

The auction was held after trustee Joseph DiOrio accepted in July, then rejected in August, an offer of $5.98 million by Cram Holdings Group LLC of Charlotte. DiOrio said in a filing he rejected Crams offer after determining the company did not provide satisfactory evidence of its ability to fund its obligations to complete the purchase.

Cram said it was prepared to bid $6.44 million for the assets, which it claimed would have produced $216,000 more to the bankruptcy estate than the Tukek offer.

Richard Craver

Shareholders approve sale of B/E Aerospace

B/E Aerospace Inc. shareholders approved on a 79 percent support rate Thursday the $8.3 billion sale of the company to Rockwell Collins Inc.

Rockwell said more than 90 percent of its shareowners approved the issuance of the common stock needed to complete the deal.

B/E agreed Oct. 23 to be sold for $6.4 billion in cash and stock and $1.9 billion in B/E debt. B/E shareholders would own 20 percent of Rockwell.

Although B/E is based on Wellington, Fla., its largest U.S. workforce  1,300 employees  is in Winston-Salem. B/E has 10,057 employees globally, according to MSNMoney.com.

The acquisition is expected to close later this spring. It still needs regulatory approval.

Richard Craver

Settlement conference set in closed hospital lawsuit

A settlement conference has been set for 1:30 p.m. March 24 involving a class-action WARN lawsuit filed by three former employees of the closed Yadkinville hospital.

The hearing will be held before Judge William Osteen Jr. in the Greensboro courthouse of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of N.C. Osteen already has approved April 3 for jury selection, with a trial expected to take four to five days.

Yadkin Valley Community Hospital was shut down May 22, 2015, by CAH Acquisition 10 LLC. CAH remained in the hospital until Yadkin County took possession through a federal court agreement on July 15, 2015. In September 2015, former employees Carrie Hutson, Jeanna Simmons and Jenifer Swanner filed the request pursuing salaries and benefits tied to the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, or WARN. The potential number of class-action members could be as high as 150.

The plaintiffs are suing CAH; HMC/CAH Consolidated Inc., which held the hospital license; and parent company Rural Community Hospitals of America LLC. Hutson worked at the hospital for more than three years, Simmons eight years and Swanner more than 13 years.

Employees must file a lawsuit in federal court to assert WARN rights.
Triad residents will soon have double the flight options for catching a game with the World Series champion Chicago Cubs and visiting other Windy City destinations.

On July 5, American Airlines will begin offering three daily nonstop flights from Piedmont Triad International Airport to Chicagos OHare International Airport through a regional jet provider with a 50-seat capacity.

American is matching the daily nonstop flight frequency of United Airlines, whose PTI departures typically are at 7:05 a.m., 10:17 a.m. and 5:11 p.m.

Two of Americans flights to Chicago offer an earlier departure time at 5:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. Return flights leave Chicago at 7 a.m., noon and 7 p.m. Tickets are expected to go on sale next week.

Chicago has been a top market at PTI for at least 15 years, said Steve Showfety, the chairman of the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority. Our analysis shows that there is enough demand for additional flights to do well with service to the Chicago market. American Airlines clearly came to the same conclusion.

The American service will expand the number of PTIs nonstop flights to 54, though Allegiant Airlines flights to the St. Petersburg/Clearwater and Orlando airports are not daily.

Chicago would tie New Yorks LaGuardia Airport for third place in nonstop service from PTI, trailing Charlotte with nine flights from PTI and Atlanta with eight.

Chicago also becomes only the second daily nonstop destination with service from two airlines serving PTI. The other is LaGuardia with four flights from Delta and two from American. Passengers could potentially see lower fares.

PTI officials have been concerned for years that a lack of direct nonstop competition, as well as the top low-fare carriers, has led potential Triad customers to travel to Charlotte or Raleigh for lower-cost flights.

In an era when the major airlines are pulling out of many medium-sized airports, it is good to see American Airlines ramp up service from PTI to Chicago OHare, said Keith Debbage, a joint professor of geography and sustainable tourism and hospitality at UNC Greensboro.

Historically, Chicago has been a top-five market for PTI, and the new American Airlines service should trigger more price competition leading to potentially lower air fares.
Two prominent rating agencies are warning that the proposed American Health Care Act could put increased pressure on health-care systems operating revenue and bottom lines.

The AHCA cleared two U.S. House committees this week and is being prepared for debate on the House floor. Senators from both parties have expressed enough issues with the House plan to say they may not vote for the current version.

The main concern for S&P Global Ratings and Moodys is how the plan alters federal funding for Medicaid.

For example, the groups expressed concern that the ACHA would change funding for Medicaid from an open-ended entitlement to a system based on payments that will be made to the states based on a capped per-capita amount.

This plan would reduce federal government spending for health care, especially for Medicaid, S&P Global said.

As a result, S&P Global said ratings in the hospital subsector  all hospitals, notwithstanding tax status  could be most at risk ... with the impact to be spread out over a number of years, but the main impact beginning in 2020.

Meanwhile, Moodys said the AHCA would be credit negative for not-for-profit hospitals if it were to become law in its current form.

The new legislation would reduce the number of people with health insurance, increase bad debt and uncompensated care costs, and freeze Medicaid expansion in 2020.

It would change how subsidies are calculated for people who buy coverage on the (federal health insurance) exchanges, which would reduce the subsidy available to many people, prompting them to drop insurance coverage.

S&P Global said that repealing the individual mandate to obtain health insurance and replacing it with a continuous coverage requirement will only modestly increase insurance coverage.

Although Moodys considers as positive allowing Medicaid expansion to continue through 2020 before freezing enrollment, this is not enough to compensate for the credit negative aspects of the legislation.

Joanne Ruhland, vice president of governmental relations with Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, said the center considers the AHCA as just the first step by Congress of proposed options in the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act.

We are working closely with the members of the N.C. congressional delegation as this process unfolds to ensure that the final bill includes language so that the citizens continue to receive access to high-quality care.

Novant Health Inc. and Cone Health deferred comment to the N.C. Hospital Association.

Julie Henry, an association spokeswoman, said points made by the rating agencies appear to be consistent with our concerns.

NCHA has maintained that any replacement plan must sustain the insurance coverage gains that we saw under the ACA.

We know that people who dont have access to affordable insurance will not get the preventive care they need, resulting in an increased volume of patients coming to emergency departments for care.

As the health-care safety net for our communities, hospitals and health systems shoulder the financial burden for uninsured and underinsured patients, Henry said.

In the most recent quarterly reports for the Triads three main health-care systems, each had an increase in bad debt.

According to the American Hospital Association, bad debt is defined as services for which hospitals anticipate, but do not receive, payment from patients who have the financial means to pay.

Novants provision for bad debt in fiscal 2016 was $204.5 million, up from $195.9 million a year ago.

Wake Forest Baptist reported that through the first half of fiscal 2016-17, it had $117.8 million in bad debt, compared with just under $76 million the year before.

Cone Health reported in its first quarter of fiscal 2017-18 having bad debt of $36.4 million, up 10.1 percent from a year ago.

S&P Global said passage of the current AHCA version could add to the stress in the sector and could lead to a negative outlook over time, especially for safety net providers which are especially vulnerable to Medicaid reductions.

However, it said that because the funding reductions in the bill are spread out enough that an immediate negative outlook for 2017 is not warranted.

We expect that the final version will be somewhat different from the current proposal.

Moodys said it is concerned that the AHCA would allow insurers to charge up to five times more for older than younger individuals, compared with three times currently.

It will raise costs for older enrollees, causing more of them to drop coverage, which is credit negative for hospitals ... given that older people have greater health care needs.

As they lose coverage, hospitals would incur greater uncompensated care and bad-debt costs.
WENTWORTH  Gov. Roy Cooper appointed former Forsyth County District Attorney Tom Keith as interim Rockingham County District Attorney replacing Craig Blitzer who resigned Friday.

Blitzer resigned from office at 9 p.m. Friday amidst a State Bureau of Investigation probe into his office and allegations that he and Person/Caswell County District Attorney Wallace Bradsher hired their wives in a scheme to collect more than $100,000 a year, despite their wives rarely working.

News of Blitzer's resignation came two days after SBI agents raided his office and Judge Stuart Albright canceled Superior Court until March 20.

Blitzer did not immediately return a voicemail requesting comment.

Blitzer's resignation left attorneys and lawyers waiting for information from the governor about who would be in place as district attorney Monday.

State law allows Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, to appoint someone to fill the Republican district attorney's position without input from his political party or the local Bar association.

Keith, a Republican, served five-terms as Forsyth County District Attorney before retiring in 2009, 11 months shy of his term's end. The Winston-Salem Journal reported that Keith left his elected position early to devote more time to law enforcement and crime-prevention related projects.

Under state law, Keith will take an oath of office and assume all authority and duties that Blitzer had. He will also receive the same compensation.

Blitzer received an annual salary of $127,215.

Many questions arose Saturday morning about what happens to Blitzer's staff.

"All currently employed district attorney staff will remain employed regardless of Mr. Blitzer's resignation," said Sharon Gladwell, spokeswoman for the N.C. Administrative Office of the Courts. "However, the North Carolina General Statutes state that employees 'serve at the district attorney's pleasure.'"

Blitzer became the Rockingham County District Attorney after taking his oath of office on Jan. 1, 2015. He won the Republican primary in May 2014 and had no opponent in the General Election.

Blitzer's resignation Friday came two days after SBI agents spent five hours in Blitzer's office searching a state computer and other items that were not disclosed in court documents.

Court records indicate SBI agents wanted to search a specific state-owned computer in Blitzer's possession. Both the search warrant and an inventory list of what was taken was sealed by a Wake County Superior Court judge.

Iredell County Superior Court Judge Joe Crosswhite confirmed exclusively to the News & Record in October that in July he ordered an SBI investigation into Blitzer and Bradsher's offices for the alleged theft of state funds.

In February, former Caswell County District Attorney Victim-Witness Legal Assistant Debra Halbrook filed a whistleblower lawsuit in Wake County Superior Court stating that she was fired from her job when Bradsher found out she reported him to the SBI in July.

The SBI investigation is ongoing.

After Halbrook filed the lawsuit Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman adopted the investigation.

Freeman said Wednesday she and the SBI continue to work closely together to investigate the allegations.
Local bills now before the North Carolina General Assembly would remove a conflict between state law and the Winston-Salem city charter that caused confusion about which rules to follow during the 2016 municipal election season.

House Bill 245 and Senate Bill 181, which are identical, eliminate a provision in the Winston-Salem charter that requires an independent or nonpartisan candidate for the mayoral office or council to gather signatures amounting to 25 percent of the number of people who were able to vote in the preceding municipal election.

Under the new wording for the charter, independent or nonpartisan candidates will follow the procedure set out by the uniform municipal election laws set forth in the states General Statutes.

The signature threshold became a point of controversy in the 2016 mayoral contest, when JoAnne Allen started gathering signatures to appear on the ballot as an unaffiliated candidate running against incumbent Mayor Allen Joines, who is a Democrat.

Allen was initially told by the Forsyth County elections office that she needed about 5,800 signatures to get on the ballot. That number represented 4 percent of the citys registered voters, and was calculated under the state law governing municipal elections generally.

City attorney Angela Carmon then discovered a provision in the city charter that called for the 25 percent threshold, and communicated that to the elections office. That office told Allen on Jan. 7, 2016 that she would have to get almost 34,000 signatures to get onto the ballot.

Allen cried foul and accused Carmon of trying to thwart her campaign. Carmon denied the charge and said she found out about the charter requirement while researching the rules governing how much help city staff members can give to candidates during an election.

At any rate, Carmon did more research on the issue and concluded later in January that the state rules trumped the threshold mentioned in the city charter. Carmon found a 1971 law that said the state municipal election rules would overrule any local rules.

The elections board then told Allen she only needed the original number of some 5,800 signatures, which she had to turn in toward the end of September that year.

As it turned out, Allen didnt get enough signatures and had to mount her campaign as a write-in effort. Allen collected 3,167 write-in votes in a contest that Mayor Allen Joines won easily with 88,784 votes. There were 2,430 other write-in votes cast in the contest.

The bills changing the city charter are being sponsored in the N.C. House by representatives Debra Conrad, Ed Hanes, Donny Lambeth and Evelyn Terry. In the Senate, Sen. Paul Lowe is the sponsor.

When council members set forth their legislative priorities this year, changing the charter to make it conform to state law was one of the items on the list.

But not the only one: Another pair of local bills, one in the House and one in the Senate, would give the city the ability to recoup some of the costs associated with sending notices to the owners of properties that fall out of compliance with the citys housing code.

The bills are House Bill 111, sponsored by Conrad, Hanes, Lambeth and Terry, and Senate Bill 51, sponsored by Sen. Joyce Krawiec and Lowe.

The bill comes about because the city has to publish notice of housing condemnation cases when it is unable to make contact with a property owner. City officials say the city spends about $18,000 a year on these notices, but has had no way to recoup the money.

Under the bill, the money spent on the notice becomes a lien on the property, allowing the city to collect the money when the property sells.
NEW YORK  Singing, dancing and Chicago was the formula NBC used for a weekly victory in the ratings.

The Voice returned from a hiatus and received three of the top four slots in the Nielsen companys list of the most-watched programs last week.

The exception was Little Big Shots, the debut of another variety show, this one featuring talented youngsters with Steve Harvey as host.

NBC, rebooting for the midseason, also landed in the top 20 with all four of producer Dick Wolfs Chicago-based dramas that aired last week, including the latest, Chicago Justice.

NBC averaged 7.3 million viewers in prime-time for the week. CBS was second with 6.1 million, ABC had 3.2 million, Fox had 2.4 million, Univision had 2 million, Telemundo had 1.4 million, the CW had 1.39 million and ION Television had 1.3 million.

Fox News Channel was the most popular cable network, benefiting from its coverage of President Trumps address to Congress. It averaged 3.38 million viewers in prime-time. ESPN had 1.75 million, HGTV had 1.63 million, USA had 1.56 million and MSNBC had 1.53 million.

ABCs World News Tonight topped the evening newscasts with an average of 8.5 million viewers. NBCs Nightly News was second with 8.3 million and the CBS Evening News had 6.7 million viewers.

For the week of Feb. 27-March 5, the top 10 shows, their networks and viewerships: The Voice (Monday), NBC, 13.03 million; Little Big Shots, NBC, 11.72 million; The Voice (Tuesday), NBC, 11.35 million; The Voice (Thursday), NBC, 10.69 million; 60 Minutes, CBS, 10.68 million; President Trump Address to Congress, Fox News, 10.68 million; The Walking Dead, AMC, 10.16 million; Presidential Address Analysis, Fox News, 10.15 million; Chicago PD, NBC, 9.59 million; NCIS: Los Angeles, CBS, 9.46 million.
[JURIST] Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey [official profile] declared on Thursday that Massachusetts will be joining fellow states in suing President Donald Trump to block his new travel ban executed on Monday. Trumps new executive order [text] has removed Iraq from the former list of travel-restricted countries and suspended the refugee program for 120 days. Healey stated [Boston report] that the second ban, despite such changes, remains discriminatory and unconstitutional. Massachusetts will join Washington, Hawaii, Oregon, and New York in requesting Judge James Robart [official profile] to apply his previous travel ban suspension to the revised ban. Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson [official profile] recently stated [JURIST report] that the new ban still violates the Equal Protection Clause and Establishment Clause of the United State Constitution [14th Amendment]. Despite legal challenges, the revised ban is scheduled to take effect on March 16.

President Donald Trumps [official bio] series of executive orders overhauling immigration in the name of protecting the borders from terrorist threats have led to a series of legal challenges. JURIST Guest Columnist Ali Khan of Washburn University School of Law discussed the effects of the original travel ban on the increased harassment [JURIST op-ed] at US airports by US Customs and Border Protection officials. As much as the order has had an impact on those trying to get into the United States, it has also tested the very fabric of the US system of governance. In February JURIST Guest Columnist Victor Williams discussed how the travel restrictions imposed by the Trump administration has tested the separation of powers [JURIST op-ed]between the executive and judicial branches of government.
[JURIST] The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) [official website] published a report [JURIST report] on Friday describing a plethora of human rights violations committed by the Turkish government between July 2015 and December 2016. Satellite imagery analysis has revealed [OHCHR report] that Turkey has systematically bombed over 30 southeastern towns, forcing civilians to either be killed or trapped for days in their own basements. Between 335,000 and 500,000 civilians have been displaced as a result of shelling, and the destruction has made it impossible to perform forensics tests to identify victims. The report further detailed incidences of torture, disappearances, cutoffs from basic necessities, violence against women, and expropriation. The Turkish government has thus far justified their actions by claiming that victims were part of terrorist organizations. More specifically, the government has taken aim against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), an identified terrorist group allegedly responsible for numerous crimes including kidnappings, roadblocks, and the prevention of access to medical services. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad Al Hussein [official profile] has acknowledged the governments recent violations as a response to the nations attempted coup in July 2016. Hussein has expressed concern over recent allegations and called on Turkey to grant the UN access to investigate recently affected areas.

Since the failed coup in Turkey in July, where Turkish military forces tried to overthrow the government, the Turkish government has taken several controversial steps to strengthen its power. Earlier in March around 330 individuals were put on trial [JURIST report] for alleged involvement in the attempted coup. In January the Turkish Parliament approved a plan [JURIST report], which, if approved by a popular vote later this year, would increase presidential power within the country and would allow President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to stay in office until 2029. In November Turkey significantly restricted the activities of NGOs like human rights organizations and childrens groups and arrested opposition party leaders [JURIST report] alleging they were connected to terror organizations. In October Human Rights Watch warned [JURIST report] that the emergency decrees put in place after the failed coup, had resulted in serious human rights violations.
HOLDREGE  When south-central Nebraska surface water irrigators track their water supplies, they look at what is happening upstream of Lake McConaughy, the main storage reservoir for Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District.

Lake inflows come from the North Platte Rivers Rocky Mountain headwaters that pass through several federal reservoirs, provide water for irrigation districts in southeast Wyoming and the Nebraska Panhandle, and also are affected by groundwater use near the river and its tributaries.

At Mondays Central Water Users annual meeting in Holdrege John Berge, general manager of the Scottsbluff-based North Platte Natural Resources District said, As the most upstream NRD in the state in the Platte Basin ... we know a lot of eyes are on what we do, so that we use only the water we need.

Berge said the NPNRD works with leaders of 26 surface water irrigation districts in the Panhandle, and also with CNPPID and other downstream water interests.

The water needs changed for the NPNRD when defined by the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources as overappropriated. Now, goals must be met in an integrated water management plan written by the NPNRD and NRD that addresses the imbalance of water resources and uses.

Berge said groundwater is allocated throughout his district: 60 inches over five years in the Pumpkin Creek Watershed and 70 inches over five years in the North Platte Valley.

There has been a moratorium on net new irrigated acres and new wells in the district since 2002, although new well permits were allowed for another six months be for the well moratorium took effect.

Berge, who has been NPNRD general manager for four years, said 364 new wells were drilled in those six months. Ill tell you that probably was a mistake, he added.

Although district officials have looked at groundwater recharge projects to benefit river flows, Berge said the biggest, most expensive effort has been paying incentives to get producers to retire irrigated acres and take other conservation measures. In the past four years, approximately 4,000 acres in the NRD were returned to dryland,

Because that can have a negative tax base impact for schools, cities and other local entities, NPNRD officials try to spread out the retired acres to avoid putting a greater burden on a particular county or community. Berge said county officials and other NRD residents know that a water resources-uses balance isnt achieved, something worse could happen.

To qualify for the incentive, the irrigated acres to be retired must have had at least a 98 percent river depletion.

Berge said there are approximately 26,500 such acres within the NPNRD. Unfortunately, these also are among the most highly productive ag lands in our district, he added.

Another goal is to have landowners keep acres enrolled in federal conservation programs so they dont return to irrigated production and further increase depletions, Berge said.

He said one idea from NPNRD producers was for the district to buy back unused irrigation allocations, rather than have that water carry over into a new allocation period. Thats especially important in wet years, like 2016, when some Panhandle areas averaged 26 inches of precipitation.

Incentives also are paid to producers willing to retire irrigation from odd-shaped fields and to plant more drought-tolerant crops. Berge said the hope is that farmers will continue with those crops.

Were focusing more money on managing water than we have ever done before, he said, including about half of the districts annual budget.

Berge said a goal by the end of next year is to have 861 flowmeters on a telemetry system allowing results to be read from the NRD office. That will save administration costs and provide real-time information that can be shared with landowners.

The units also can be set up as mini weather stations, he said.

Funding for the project includes a $750,000 Nebraska Environmental Trust grant.

Berge said he wants downstream water users to know that NPNRD groundwater use has declined by 20 percent to 25 percent from pre-meter times to today, and work continues on more conservation innovations.

Economic impacts must be considered, he said, such as knowing how water conservation could affect the areas sugar processing industry that has a $300 million economic impact.

He reminds Panhandle residents that ample rainfall the past four years isnt a new normal. It takes just a year or two of dry conditions and well be right back in the soup, Berge said.
LEXINGTON  Several ag producer training-certification sessions will be offered in Dawson, Buffalo and Phelps counties over the next three weeks.

Pesticide training will be from 9 a.m. to noon and 1-4 p.m. Thursday and at the same times March 21 at the Buffalo County Extension office in Kearney, and from 9 a.m. to noon March 22 at the Monsanto Water Utilization Learning Center at Gothenburg.

Preregister at the Buffalo or Dawson Extension offices. See a complete list of training dates in Nebraska at http://pested.unl.ed.

Training for producers planning to chemigate for the first time in 2017 or needing to renew certification will be at 1:30 p.m. March 28 at the Phelps County Ag Center in Holdrege. The contact person for registrations is Extension Educator Todd Whitney at 308-995-4222.

For additional locations and dates, visit the website at http://go.unl.edu/f9re.

There also is information about the training and testing at http://water.unl.edu/cropswater/chemigation.
KEARNEY  When she surveys a scratched-up, 50-year-old, battered dresser, Carol Stuhr doesnt foresee the dump, she sees what it could be if restored to its former glory.

Thanks to Pinterest and Annie Sloan chalk paint.

I started making furniture as a hobby about three years ago. I loved art in high school and college but opted to go into the medical field because of my brother, the Kearneyite said.

Her brother told her she wouldnt make any money as an artist, but a job in the medical field would make her money.

By day, Stuhr works as a microbiologist at CHI Health St. Francis in Grand Island. Its a job she loves, and she says she has the best of both worlds because of her business, Flippin Fab Furniture Design.

I come home in the evenings and work on a piece of furniture, she said.

Her hobby began when someone offered her an old, shabby desk. She spray painted it white and sold it for $35. Pinterest became her teacher as she learned about chalk paint techniques, the use of brushes, stencils and various finishes.

A wax finish creates a different look compared to shellac, polyurethane or an antique glaze. I researched different ideas, looks, techniques and taught myself.

Her pieces range from $25-$450 depending on the amount of restoration, the size of the project, and time invested into each piece. She also does custom orders.

When customers light up with joy because I took a piece of furniture and met their vision, it makes me happy, she said. One of the reasons Flippin Fab has become popular is the quality of the pieces.

Furniture isnt made like it used to be. Its rare to find quality craftsmanship and real wood. Theyre usually made of pressed particle board, which doesnt stand up to life and time, Stuhr said.

The furniture she finds often is on the way to the dump, but when she rescues a piece, she adds a fresh face, new knobs and elbow grease.

My husband, Jerry, helps a lot, too, whether its sanding or being the muscle to get the furniture here or delivered, she said.

The creative process begins in her garage. More often than not, she envisions how the piece could be used while she listens to podcasts. I kind of think the whole process from start to finish is a God thing. When I get done with a piece, I think, Wow. I cant believe that came from my hands, she said.

A new venture for Stuhr is The Artisans Market in Nebraska. The growing organization is one of 150 groups in an international network with more than 60,000 juried members. A juried member must meet criteria and standards to be approved to sell on the market.

Its a tedious process. I had to submit several pieces and prove that I offer delivery for my customers, Stuhr said.

Once an artist becomes a member, all posts in the Artisans Markets of Nebraska are approved before going live in the group.

Its worth the process, and there are some amazing finds in the group, she said.

Stuhr is looking forward to the garage sale season of summertime. I cant wait to visit flea markets, garage sales and the Junk Jaunt. You never know what youre going to find.

Flippin Fab Furniture Design can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Flippinfabfurniture/.

Visit the artisans market at https://www.facebook.com/groups/theartisanmarketsnebraska/.

@HeatherRig
KEARNEY  When it comes to creating short stories, Jessica Hollander starts with her own life.

My writing is always based in my own personal anxieties, she said, according to a press release. I want to kind of exaggerate and blow up the stories in ways that are not autobiographical. Its fiction, and its exaggerated to a whole other level.

Her short story collection, In These Times the Home Is a Tired Place, Hollander explores modern expectations and the ideals of American life.

Im really interested in thinking about the standard path of expectations that everybody is expected to walk down; getting married, having kids  all these standard moments, she said. I wanted to know how buying into that version of the ideal American life can cause people to give up some of their individuality. People have expectations that living that kind of life will make them happy.

Hollander will read from her short stories as part of Prairie Art Brothers Front Porch Reading Series at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the G.W. Frank Museum of History and Culture at 2010 University Drive on the West Campus of the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Admission to the reading is free.

Jessica Modran will also read from her works.

Hollander hopes to probe the happiness and to dissect the discomfort of modern life in ways that reveal the flaws of her characters. She starts with her own experiences. Some of those experiences come from her life as a graduate student before she began working as an instructor at the University of Nebraska at Kearney where she teaches writing.

Being in academia with a lot of graduate students, which is when some of the stories were written, people were not doing the kinds of things I write about in these stories  having children, Hollander said. Not many of the professors had kids. That lifestyle of having those things was looked at cynically by the people I was around.

Some of those attitudes affected her writing.

I have a lot of anxiety, personally, about whether this is really what I want or have I just been brought up to want this? Hollander said. Some of the stories are about the anxieties I have for my future. How am I as a mother? How are my kids going to regard me when Im older?

Originally from Ann Arbor, Mich., the writer currently makes her home in Kearney with her husband, Richard, and her two children, Oliver and Chloe.

Even in her extended family, Hollander sometimes has challenges separating her personal life with her fiction.

My grandmother read my collection and said, Jessica, I thought you had a happy childhood.

Writing short fiction allows Hollander to experiment with style, plot, characters and settings.

Every story can be its own experiment stylistically or with language, she said. It doesnt have to be what youd expect in a traditional novel. I also like the loose unity of a story collection along with the tension that comes between stories.

Creating a collection of short fiction gives her more opportunities to explore the order of events than a chronological, traditional novel that has a more straight-through story line.

As for style, Hollander considers her writing as what she terms hyper-realism.

I compare it to photo realism in art where you can see a painting that looks like a photograph, she said. As you get closer, you notice that the colors are too vivid, its too bright. The effect is that its kind of unsettling. It feels familiar, but its pushing its way toward surrealism.

Hollander looks to Hemingway, J.D. Salinger and Raymond Carver for influence  along with Jennifer Egans short story collection, A Visit from the Goon Squad, the 2010 National Book Critics Award winner for fiction.

Its one of my favorite books because the structure of the book as a whole feels so chaotic, she said. You have to really be an active reader to stay with the connections between the stories.

While she mostly explores fiction in her work, poetry also influences her writing.

My exposure to poetry has made my fiction writing a lot more interesting, Hollander said.

The Front Porch Reading Series gives authors a chance to read from their works in a public setting. The next reading features Nebraska Poet Laureate Twyla Hansen on May 9.
LINCOLN  South Platte United Chambers of Commerce members and nonmembers may participate in SPUCC Legislative Day at the Unicameral Wednesday.

Former state Sen. Tom Carlson of Holdrege will be the host, and the group will attend legislative bill hearings and a floor debate. Participants will meet tour guide Jeff Buettner, Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District public relations coordinator, at about 10:45 a.m. in the Capitol Rotunda.

Transportation will be provided by CNPPID for up to eight passengers leaving at 7:30 a.m. from Holdrege with pickups at Axtell, Minden and along Interstate 80. There also is assistance to arrange carpools to Lincoln.

CNPPID is providing lunch at the Nebraska Club.

To make reservations for the meal and/or transportation, contact Jean at 308-991-8657 or info@spucc.com.
ST. GEORGE, Utah  Janet Bohner Kirby, 85, of Ivins died Monday, Feb. 27, 2017, at Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George.

Metcalf Mortuary in St. George is in charge of arrangements.



Janet Bohner was born on Oct. 14, 1931, in Lincoln, Neb. She graduated from Lincoln High School in 1949 and from the University of Nebraska in 1954. After a short stint as an airline stewardess, she moved to Loveland, Colo., where she began her lifelong career in teaching.

In 1955, she married Robert Kirby, a fellow teacher who had recently returned stateside after service in the U.S. Air Force. The two remained married until Roberts death in 2011.

Although Janet taught in Colorado and California, the majority of her career was spent in Kearney, Neb. She received her masters degree in education from Kearney State College in 1984.

Never one to demand the spotlight, Janets skill and compassion as a teacher were nonetheless recognized by her pupils. It was not uncommon for students to remain in contact with her for years, and even decades, after passing through her second-grade classroom. Well after Janets retirement in 1997, cards and letters from her students continued to arrive, thanking her for being such a positive role model.

After retirement, Janet and Robert moved to Ivins. There, Janet split her time between volunteering, writing, painting and exploring alarmingly remote backroads with her husband. In the less hair-raising of these pastimes, Janet was twice honored by the Utah Writers Guild for her picture books.

Throughout her life, Janet provided an endless well of support for her family. She is survived by her sons, Greg, Robert and William Kirby; granddaughters, Marissa and Rebecca Kirby; and grandsons, Zachery and Joshua Kirby.

Memorials are suggested to the Ivins Animal Shelter & Adoption Center, 474 N. 200 W., Ivins, UT 84738.

Visit www.metcalfmortuary.com for condolences, full obituary and funeral listings.
A rose to ... author John G. Neihardt, who so poignantly captured the mystical essence of Nebraskas Native American culture in books such as Black Elk Speaks. To compose his book, the northeast Nebraska writer spent untold hours interviewing Black Elk, a Lakota holy man, and then showcasing the teachings of Black Elk in a marvelous text.

Anybody in the Kearney area who is enthused about Nebraska history as we celebrate our states 150th year has an opportunity Monday at Kearney Public Library to delve into Lakota culture and Native American philosophies. At 7 p.m., speaker Nancy Gillis and her audience will explore the unique personal and spiritual bond between Neihardt and Black Elk that began in 1931. There is arguably no one better equipped to talk about Black Elk and Neihardt that Gillis, who is of Cherokee and Choctaw heritage, and served from 1997-2014 with the Neihardt Foundations Institute for Vision and Learning. Today she teaches at Wayne State College, Northeast Community College, Nebraska Indian Community College, and Little Priest Tribal College, where her classes cover Native American history and culture.

While there is probably nobody who knows as much about Neihardt and Black Elk, there may be no better time for Nebraskans to immerse themselves in the rich history of their state  including the history of its original inhabitants. For that reason, we strongly encourage anyone with a curiosity about Native American culture and Nebraska literature to clear their calendars and attend Monday nights session at KPL.

A raspberry to ... going overboard, as President Donald Trump risks doing by gutting the Environmental Protection Agency. Trump is calling for steep funding cuts and threatens executive orders to hamstring EPA enforcement and green initiatives. The president also has proposed that for every new regulation adopted, federal bureaucrats must eliminate two existing regulations.

The EPA is not so popular here in farm country, especially after the attempts to regulate airborne dust and standing water in road ditches. Those clearly are examples of federal overreach. However, by so severely reining in the EPA and appointing non-scientific personalities to key environmental positions, the Trump administration might just go too far.

Should the EPAs controversial Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) be stricken from the books? By all means, but we caution the president and his supporters to seek a middle ground and watch out for the unintended consequences of going too far too fast.
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

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This Nov. 16, 2015 photo provided by Dale Smith shows part of an old slaughterhouse in Mekoryuk, Alaska, that has since been demolished. The building is being replaced with a new slaughterhouse as part of a federally funded endeavor to expand the tribal government's commercial reindeer subsidiary with the herd that was introduced a century ago. (Dale Smith via AP)
Kilkenny's Lions club donated to eleven different organisations throughout the county, last Friday night at an event they held in Bollards, Kilkenny. This is one of many events planned for this year, as the Lion's club celebrates its 50th anniversary.

The eleven cheque donations were made to organistations throughout the county including L'Arche, Callan. Camphill Community, Thomastown. Newpark Close Family Resource Centre, Kilkenny, Prague House, Kilkenny, Good Sheperd Centre, Kilkenny, Castlcomer Day Care Centre, School Completion Programme, Nore Dragon Paddlers, Cairde Club, Clara club over 60s and Sub Aqua, Kilkenny.

Lions Club President, Padraig Keegan spoke on the night thanking the clubs partners and commitee mebers who organised the event, Philip O'Neill and Marie Kennedy and also to George Chandler who was MC on the night.

Kilkenny mayor Patrick O'Neill paid tribute to the Lions club for their great work over the years and also thanked the organistations who were being presented to on the night saying that they play a huge role in improving the services availabe in their local communities.

Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council Matt Doran also spoke on the night, remarking about the positive contribution Kilkenny Lions Club has made in Kilkenny over its 50 years including their incredible charity work and community engagement within the county.
Still Standing: Four the Moments legacy honoured at Nova Scotia Music Week

When a quartet of Halifax women began singing together a cappella in the name of social justice in 1982, there was little in the way of a music industry at play in Atlantic Canada. And even if there had been, its likely that Four the Moment would ...
The Securities and Exchange Commission denied approval of the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust ETF, an exchange-traded fund that would track the value of digital currency bitcoin. Friday's highly anticipated decision came nearly four years  and a dozen amendments  after the fund was first proposed and delayed indefinitely making gaining access to the currency as easy as logging into your online brokerage account.

Bitcoin is a so-called cryptocurrency  an encrypted digital currency created by computer programmers that can be exchanged electronically for goods and services. It serves as an alternative to traditional currencies, such as the U.S. dollar or the euro. For now, you can buy bitcoins on online exchanges, which often require an involved registration process and premium prices. Or you can mine them (create them), using extremely sophisticated computer codes. The value of a single bitcoin is determined by investor speculation. Worth almost nothing when it was created eight years ago, bitcoin hit a record high above $1,300 this week, topping the price of an ounce of gold, before tumbling on the heels of the SEC rejection. The rise of bitcoin has been volatile, marked by steep dips that were triggered, in some cases, by high-profile hacks of online bitcoin exchanges.

The ETF proposed by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (yes, the same set of twins who claimed Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea for Facebook and sued him over it) would have traded on the Bats Global Markets exchange under the symbol COIN. The fund would have tracked the value of bitcoins, backed by "baskets" of the virtual currency. Like any other ETF, the fund could have been bought or sold through a brokerage account. The SEC expressed concern over the unregulated nature of bitcoin markets, though ETF Trends Editor Tom Lydon said investors could've been relatively confident that the ETF would be structurally sound. Thats to say, it would have accurately tracked the price of bitcoin and would have sufficient security measures in place to deter the sorts of hacks that have cropped up at online bitcoin exchanges.

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Eight years into a bull market, Lydon says, the appeal of such an instrument is apparent. Alternative investing is something that individual investors, advisers and institutions are thinking about. Bitcoin is an area of the market thats not well-correlated with stocks, bonds or even other currencies, he says.

But even if the ETF had been deemed suitable for individual investors, like any investment, Lydon says, you need to look under the hood. Two other bitcoin ETFs are currently under review by the SEC, and it's unclear what, if any, next steps the Winklevoss brothers will take. Bitcoin is surprisingly widely held and regularly traded  but nowhere near the level of mainstream ETFs. Because of the way theyre created, bitcoins are available on a limited basis, which, based on increased demand, would help increase the price. These factors check many investors boxes for alternative investments. But investors who own any bitcoin ETF would need to understand the factors that cause prices to fluctuate and have a plan in place for rapid swings in the marketplace. For individual investors, tracking the complex world of digital currencies might be too much to ask. The risk factors listed in the prospectus include attacks by malicious actors and botnets that could corrupt the bitcoin code, among other things.

Even if the bitcoin ETF had been approved, the wisest move an investor could have made would be to hold off, says Ben Johnson, director of global ETF and passive strategies research at Morningstar. The reason ETFs tracking the U.S. dollar work is that there are more than 7 billion people who think its worth something. That may not always be the case with bitcoin, he says. If youre looking for non-correlated investing instruments, you might explore precious metals, via SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD (opens in new tab)), or more active strategies, such as Merger Fund (MERFX (opens in new tab)), a mutual fund that aims to capture upticks in stock price when mergers are announced. As for bitcoin, says Johnson: Its every bit as suitable to an individual investor as a lottery ticket.
A guest post by Ben Nettleton:

My Grandmother was a very wise woman, one of her memorable remarks when reflecting on 80 odd years was never judge the present generation by your own standards, you dont know the challenges and difficulties they face.

I was reflecting on that remark against the recent publicity over Wellington College Students. Watching the frenzy build, listening to John Campbell on Checkpoint stoking the fire with sanctimonious indignation. Listening to the School Principal outline carefully rehearsed public relations influenced statements.

It is sadly becoming all too common; indeed, these are almost a weekly occurrence. We have the online world to thank. Once upon a time the social justice warriors could be filtered by newspapers editorial departments, restricted to once a month, or just filed in the rubbish bin. Now they roam wild and free, a cause just looking for a problem. Primed to scream the house down upon discovering anything that offends their view of how the world should be, regardless of whether it is merely silly teenage bravado.

To be clear (assuming the relevant warriors have managed to read this far without popping a blood vessel) I am not condoning what said the students concerned said, they were stupid and they didnt think, and I am certain they will learn from the experience. But that is my point the teenage years are formative they are when you learn a lot of life lessons, such as if you drink 4 cruisers in 20 minutes youre going to throw up or that the girl you imagined was your one and only true love probably isnt and the world may not end after all and countless other things.

I was at University around a decade or so ago, High School a bit before, we had MSN messenger usually on dial up. It had its problems but they are nothing on what teenagers are encountering today through the rapid rise and develop of numerous social media platforms. Recently on Dunedin News Facebook page a lynch mob of 200 plus formed based on a video being posted of a Kings High School student yelling dumb things at a Queens High School girl, we didnt have the context of the video, what preceded it or what happened after, but this is not the type of detail the online community cares to concern itself with, they are usually far too busy constructing the gallows, the Otago Daily Times joining in to boot.

If we think hard enough I think we can all remember the challenges we faced in our teenage years, they are called growing pains for a reason. All too often baby boomers remark to me thank goodness they didnt have social media in my day. In a previous capacity as a school board of trustees member I sat on numerous board discipline committees, it used to frustrate the hell out of me, having a student in front of me who had been bounced up to us for something horrendous, and the best explanation they managed to come up with is I dont know why I did it. A retired School Principal gave me some good insight pointing out when they tell you they dont know, they are being honest, they dont always know why they do things, theyre brains are still wiring up, science suggests this can take till 25.

In our rush to condemn we are all too quick to forget our own misdemeanors at that age. The behavior needs dealt with and schools and parents are well resourced to do that. A media feeding frenzy adds nothing. As my young brother, (somewhat closer to the demographic) said to me if schools are going to hold a special assembly every time some teenage guy says some stupid shit on Facebook, they are not going to get much done.

So, knowing that teenagers make bad decisions, impulsive decisions, why an earth is appropriate to summon the rabble and have such a public tarring and feathering session. Yes, some media dont identify names but New Zealand is a small place and it is unlikely to have anything other than token effect.

It is my great fear (as overseas evidence would appear to suggest) it is only a matter of time before his type of unethical reporting results in a tragedy. For the doctrinal social justice warriors, the means will no doubt justify the ends. However, given our media will no doubt be wringing their hands upon such an event, perhaps they could pause to consider on how their actions contribute.
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Officials break ground for Summit Medical Group at Tellico Village

MARCH 11, 2017 at 4:24 p.m.





Summit Medical Group and Tellico Village Property Owners Association (POA) prepare to break ground Wednesday, March 8, on a new primary care facility to open within the lifestyle community in early fall. Pictured from left: Bruce Johnson, Tellico Village POA president; Dr. Michael Passarello, Summit Medical Group board chair; Ed Curtis, Summit Medical Group CEO; Winston Blazer, Tellico Village POA General Manager; Dr. Eric Penniman, Summit Medical Group Executive Medical Director; and John Bordelon, Tellico Village HOA president. Image courtesy of Summit Medical.



On March 8, Summit Medical Group and Tellico Village Property Owners Association (POA) broke ground on a new primary care facility to open within the lifestyle community in early fall. Summit Medical Group at Tellico Village will serve the healthcare needs of the residents and surrounding area.



Summit Medical Group is East Tennessees largest primary care organization. Plans to open a primary care office in Tellico Village marks the first Summit facility of its kind within a residential community in East Tennessee.



Providing healthcare on-site within a residential community is a forward-looking concept, Summit Medical Group CEO Ed Curtis said. Weve partnered to bring the excellence and convenience of a Summit primary care practice to the residents of Tellico Village and the local community. Were excited to announce more in the coming months about the locations services and the physician and providers who will serve patients there.



Summit Medical Group at Tellico Village will offer comprehensive primary care, digital X-ray and lab services, physical therapy and specialty service partners. Most insurance plans are accepted.



Tellico Village is one of the Southeasts premier communities, and were known for superior amenities that help residents enjoy a truly special and fulfilling active lifestyle, said Tellico Village POA General Manager Winston Blazer. Bringing Summit Medical Group on site was the clear choice to extend our array of top-quality services and amenities into a new category of healthcare. It provides our residents with the convenience they expect to help them continue the lifestyle they enjoy.



For more information about Summit Medical Group, visit www.summitmedical.com. To learn about Tellico Village, visit tellicovillage.org. Published March 11, 2017
By Yi Whan-woo





Lody Embrechts

Dutch Ambassador to South Korea Lody Embrechts is believed to have played a key role in helping the family of Kim Jong-nam, the slain half-brother of North Korea's ruler, to resettle and avoid Pyongyang's possible assassination attempts.

Cheollima Civil Defense, an organization that posted a YouTube clip of Kim's eldest son Kim Han-sol, Tuesday, gave special thanks to Embrechts for a "timely and strong response" in relocating the surviving family members secretly following Kim's assassination in Malaysia, Feb. 13.

Kim's family was believed to be under the protection of the Chinese government in Macau when Kim was murdered.

Cheollima Civil Defense purportedly has protected Kim Han-sol, his mother and sister, and helped them relocate to an unidentified country with support from the governments of the United States, China, the Netherlands and a fourth country that it did not disclose.

"We publicly express our gratitude for the emergency humanitarian assistance afforded to us in protecting this family by the governments of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the People's Republic of China, the United States of America, and a fourth that will remain unnamed. We also recognize our colleagues who remain in the North or within its system who provide critical assistance in extracting such individuals," Cheollima Civil Defense stated on its website. "In particular, we recognize Ambassador Embrechts, the representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, for his timely and strong response to our sudden request for assistance."

Citing that Embrechts doubles as the Dutch ambassador to North Korea, the organization said he "is a credit to the people of the Netherlands and their long and principled stance for human rights and humanitarian norms."

The Dutch Embassy in South Korea refused to confirm these claims.

In an email interview with Yonhap News Agency, Wednesday, Remco Breuker, a Korean studies professor at Leiden University in the Netherlands, speculated Embrechts made the "right decision" concerning helping Kim's family to find a place to hide. Breuker said he and Embrechts have known each other for over 20 years.

Diplomatic sources said Embrechts has been open and friendly with South Korea, citing that his wife is a Korean and his level of Korean language proficiency is "quite good."

He has been serving his ambassadorship in Seoul since February 2015.

This is the second time he has worked in South Korea. He previously worked at the Netherlands Embassy here as a commerce official from 1993 to 1997.

Some diplomatic sources speculated Kim's family may have found shelter as refugees in the Netherlands.

"It's possible Kim Han-sol wanted to go to the Netherlands considering he studied in Europe in the past," a source said.

The sources also said South Korea may be the fourth country that helped the surviving family members move to an undisclosed location.

"Cheollima Civil Defense possibly did not reveal the name of the fourth country deliberately after considering the sensitive relations between the two Koreas," it said.
The Seoul police chief on Saturday vowed to sternly deal with any violence against journalists during street rallies to oppose President Park Geun-hye's ouster, a day after angry protesters assaulted the press and damaged their cameras and other equipment.

"We will sternly deal with any violent acts against journalists during protests and rallies in accordance with the law and principle," said Kim Jung-hoon, chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.

On Friday, around 10 journalists were attacked by protesters who expressed discontent with the Constitutional Court's decision to uphold the impeachment of Park over a corruption scandal.

"We express regret over the violent actions against reporters," Kim said, adding he will track down those responsible for the incident.












WASHINGTON (AP)  Some of Donald Trump's boasts from the first weeks of his presidency were dashed by developments in recent days. For example, builders of the Keystone XL pipeline were let off the hook from a buy-American requirement that Trump had promised.

On another front, though, there's now some substance behind his cherry-picking claims that jobs are growing under his watch. A robust jobs report gave him a fresh load of cherries.

Over the past week, Trump took credit when it was not always due and assigned blame that was misplaced. Two of his Cabinet members went rogue on science and history: One dismissed the consensus on the leading cause of global warming, and the other lumped slaves together with immigrants.

A look at some of those recent claims by Trump and his team:

TRUMP, in a tweet Tuesday: "122 vicious prisoners, released by the Obama Administration from Gitmo, have returned to the battlefield. Just another terrible decision!"

THE FACTS: Wrong administration, for the most part.

A national intelligence report says 122 men who were held at Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. base in Cuba, were confirmed to have re-engaged in hostilities after their release. But 113 of them were freed during George W. Bush's presidency and only nine during Obama's. The report said an additional 86 released prisoners were suspected of returning to militant activities; nearly all of those prisoners were let go under Bush.

___

SEAN SPICER: Trump press secretary, in a tweet Friday: "Great news for American workers: economy added 235,000 new jobs, unemployment rate drops to 4.7% in first report for @POTUS Trump."

THE FACTS: Spicer accurately cited the official unemployment rate, a statistic his boss repeatedly denounced as bogus when it reflected favorably on Obama.

During the campaign and again after his election, as Obama-era unemployment dropped to and hovered at healthier levels, Trump claimed the real jobless rate was on the order of 40 percent or more. He got that number by counting people who could conceivably work, including millions who don't want to because they are retirees, students or otherwise out of the workforce by choice. "The unemployment number, as you know, is totally fiction," Trump said in December after his victory.

Story continues

Now, the 4.7 unemployment rate for February  down from 4.8 percent  is being hailed as evidence of Trump's employment revival. Challenged about the inconsistency, Spicer cracked that Trump had specifically told him in reference to the unemployment reports: "They may have been phony in the past, but it's very real now."

There was more good news for Trump's first full month in office: gains in pay as well as the addition of 235,000 jobs.

___

TRUMP, in a video Monday about Exxon Mobil investments in the Gulf region: "This is something that was done to a large extent because of our policies and the policies of this new administration. I said we're bringing back jobs. This is one big example of it."

THE FACTS: That's a big stretch because the company's "Growing the Gulf" program involves investments that started in 2013 and are continuing until 2022 at least. The company's announcement added details to its plan to spend $20 billion over 10 years on refineries, chemical and liquefied natural gas plants along the Gulf Coast. It was latest in a string of corporate announcements about jobs and spending that date back to plans made when Obama was president.

___

SPICER, at a briefing Wednesday: "If you're looking at the CBO for accuracy, you're looking in the wrong place." He added: "I mean they were way, way off the last time in every aspect of how they scored and projected Obamacare."

THE FACTS: Though no projection can be flawless, the Congressional Budget Office is the best place to look for accurate, nonpartisan forecasts of the impact of legislation, according to many Republicans, Democrats and independent analysts whose high esteem for the office is a rare point of consensus in politically charged Washington.

The congressional scorekeepers were largely right on most broad points about Obama's health care law, not way off on "every aspect." They correctly predicted that insurance coverage would expand substantially and that employer-sponsored coverage would not plunge.

Spicer accurately called them out on one front: CBO forecasters thought 23 million people would be enrolled in the law's exchanges last year, and the number proved to be about 12 million. Experts said CBO was off on that estimate in part because it overestimated the extent to which the individual mandate, which penalizes uninsured people, would prompt them to buy coverage.

The office will be scoring the expected impact of a Trump-backed plan to "repeal and replace" Obama's law. Spicer's criticism appeared designed to soften the ground if the CBO predicts the new plan would result in widespread loss of health coverage.

___

BEN CARSON, housing and urban affairs secretary, in a speech Monday to his staff: "There were other immigrants who came here on the bottom of slave ships, worked even longer, even harder for less."

THE FACTS: In history's eyes, that statement was at least a faux pas, because slaves are not considered immigrants.

Carson, the only black Cabinet member, later amended his comment, calling slaves "involuntary immigrants."

Rana Hogarth, a history professor and expert on American slavery at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, said comparing slaves to immigrants was "inappropriate and wildly inaccurate." She said immigration "suggests a desire of a person to make the journey."

___

SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS, White House spokeswoman, on why Trump's directive on the use of U.S. steel and pipe does not apply to the Keystone XL project, March 3: "It's specific to new pipelines or those that are being repaired" and since "the steel is already literally sitting there, it would be hard to go back."

THE FACTS: With that explanation, Trump's story about demanding U.S. content in two pipeline projects vaporized. Keystone XL would not be subjected to the requirement. Nor would the Dakota Access pipeline, because it's all but complete.

Trump had earlier described "getting ready to sign Keystone and Dakota" directives reviving both projects and coming up with the idea of inserting a clause ensuring "we're gonna make that pipe right here in America." The material "comes from the United States or we're not building it."

No such clause was inserted. Instead, he signed an executive action calling for pipelines to be made from U.S. materials "to the maximum extent possible and to the extent permitted by law." That's short of a mandate and, in any event, excludes the two pipelines.

___

TRUMP, in one of a series of tweets March 4: "How low has President Obama gone to tapp my phones during the very sacred election process. This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!"

THE FACTS: Trump's startling accusation that Obama tapped his phones during the campaign was presented without evidence when he made it and nothing has emerged in the week since to support it.

FBI Director James Comey privately asked the Justice Department to dispute the claim because he believed it to be untrue, lawmakers from both parties were baffled by it and Trump's aides could not explain the basis of it.

As if to explain the Obama administration's taste for snooping generally, Spicer asserted that Fox News Channel reporter James Rosen "had his phones, multiple phones, tapped," by the Obama administration. That's not what happened, as far as is known. Eric Holder, then the attorney general, got a judge's permission to look through records of Rosen's phone calls and emails from 2009 as the government sought to identify the leaker for a Rosen story about North Korea. That tells who was on a call and when, but not what was discussed.

___

SCOTT PRUITT, EPA administrator, in a CNBC interview Thursday, on the impact of carbon dioxide, or human activity, on global warming: "No, I would not agree that it's a primary contributor to the global warming that we see."

THE FACTS: That's contrary to a scientific consensus and the conclusions of a variety of U.S. government agencies, including his own.

Pruitt was asked specifically about carbon dioxide as a cause for global warming. He answered more generally, saying there is "tremendous uncertainty" about the impact of human-generated heat-trapping gases.

In either case, he's swimming against a tide of research.

All man-made greenhouse gases carbon dioxide, methane, halocarbons and nitrogen oxide  are responsible for about 60 times more added warming than natural causes, according to calculations from the Nobel Prize winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change organized by the United Nations. Just carbon dioxide alone contributes 33 times more added warming than natural causes.

___

Associated Press writers Seth Borenstein, Matthew Daly, Christopher S. Rugaber, Jesse J. Holland and Andrew Taylor in Washington, Ben Fox in Miami and David Bauder in New York contributed to this report.

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Find all AP Fact Checks at http://apne.ws/2kbx8bd

EDITOR'S NOTE _ A look at the veracity of claims by political figures
South Korea's election watchdog chief vowed Saturday to administer the upcoming presidential by-election "transparently and fairly," and called on the nation to turn it into an opportunity to restore national unity.

Kim Yong-deok, the chairperson of the National Election Commission (NEC), made the remarks a day after the Constitutional Court ruled to dismiss President Park Geun-hye and set the stage for the election two months later.

"This year's presidential election should be an opportunity to restore national unity and integration beyond conflicts and divisions," Kim said.

"The NEC views the meaning of this election, which will be held under grave circumstances, with a heavy heart, and will fulfill our constitutional duties to manage the election strictly and fairly," he added.

Noting that the election should be prepared within a short period of time, Kim said that the NEC will quickly disseminate information on candidates and their policy pledges, and "sternly" respond to any election irregularities.












The Securities and Exchange Commission denied approval of the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust ETF, an exchange-traded fund that would track the value of digital currency bitcoin. Friday's highly anticipated decision came nearly four years - and a dozen amendments - after the fund was first proposed and delayed indefinitely making gaining access to the currency as easy as logging into your online brokerage account.

Bitcoin is a so-called "cryptocurrency" - an encrypted digital currency created by computer programmers that can be exchanged electronically for goods and services. It serves as an alternative to traditional currencies, such as the U.S. dollar or the euro. For now, you can buy bitcoins on online exchanges, which often require an involved registration process and premium prices. Or you can "mine" them (create them), using extremely sophisticated computer codes. The value of a single bitcoin is determined by investor speculation. Worth almost nothing when it was created eight years ago, bitcoin hit a record high above $1,300 this week, topping the price of an ounce of gold, before tumbling on the heels of the SEC rejection. The rise of bitcoin has been volatile, marked by steep dips that were triggered, in some cases, by high-profile hacks of online bitcoin exchanges.

The ETF proposed by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (yes, the same set of twins who claimed Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea for Facebook and sued him over it) would have traded on the Bats Global Markets exchange under the symbol COIN. The fund would have tracked the value of bitcoins, backed by "baskets" of the virtual currency. Like any other ETF, the fund could have been bought or sold through a brokerage account. The SEC expressed concern over the unregulated nature of bitcoin markets, though ETF Trends Editor Tom Lydon said investors could've been relatively confident that the ETF would be structurally sound. That's to say, it would have accurately tracked the price of bitcoin and would have sufficient security measures in place to deter the sorts of hacks that have cropped up at online bitcoin exchanges.

Eight years into a bull market, Lydon says, the appeal of such an instrument is apparent. "Alternative investing is something that individual investors, advisers and institutions are thinking about. Bitcoin is an area of the market that's not well-correlated with stocks, bonds or even other currencies," he says.

But even if the ETF had been deemed suitable for individual investors, like any investment, Lydon says, you need to look under the hood. Two other bitcoin ETFs are currently under review by the SEC, and it's unclear what, if any, next steps the Winklevoss brothers will take. Bitcoin is surprisingly widely held and regularly traded -- but nowhere near the level of mainstream ETFs. Because of the way they're created, bitcoins are available on a limited basis, which, based on increased demand, would help increase the price. These factors check many investors' boxes for alternative investments. But investors who own any bitcoin ETF would need to understand the factors that cause prices to fluctuate and have a plan in place for rapid swings in the marketplace. For individual investors, tracking the complex world of digital currencies might be too much to ask. The risk factors listed in the prospectus include attacks by malicious actors and botnets that could corrupt the bitcoin code, among other things.

Even if the bitcoin ETF had been approved, the wisest move an investor could have made would be to hold off, says Ben Johnson, director of global ETF and passive strategies research at Morningstar. "The reason ETFs tracking the U.S. dollar work is that there are more than 7 billion people who think it's worth something. That may not always be the case with bitcoin," he says. If you're looking for "non-correlated" investing instruments, you might explore precious metals, via SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD), or more active strategies, such as Merger Fund (MERFX), a mutual fund that aims to capture upticks in stock price when mergers are announced. As for bitcoin, says Johnson: "It's every bit as suitable to an individual investor as a lottery ticket."

EDITOR'S PICKS



Copyright 2017 The Kiplinger Washington Editors
Financial Abuse of Nursing Home Residents Can Be the Result of Negligence by Management, Says Boca Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Joe Osborne

BOCA RATON, FL / ACCESSWIRE / March 11, 2017 / Nursing home and assisted living facility residents are at risk of financial abuse by unscrupulous staff members. You may have thought the facility could be trusted with your family member, but, the reality is, there may be staff members willing to steal and management unwilling to take the necessary steps to stop it. Boca nursing home abuse lawyer Joe Osborne says nursing home residents are often targeted by employees who treat residents as ATM's, not people.





The amount of money embezzled and stolen from the elderly and frail in this country is truly astounding states the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau1 (CFPB).

One study estimates elderly Americans had at least $2.9 billion stolen from them due to financial exploitation by a wide range of criminals in 2010, though the true cost may be much higher.

A 2011 study stated that only a fraction of these cases are reported and investigated. Protective services agencies or programs for victims dealt with about one in 44 cases of financial exploitation.

The CFPB lists some warning signs of potential financial abuse, including:

Missing possessions.

Possessions replaced with cheaper ones.

The resident lacks basics (such as underwear) but his or her personal needs account is depleted.

Blank deposit slips or withdrawal forms are in plain sight for easy taking.

A new acquaintance shows intense affection for the resident, isolating he or she from others.

Checks or other financial documents signed or dated when the resident can no longer write.

Suspicious signatures (there are many versions, some are shaky, others firm).

The resident's checkbook shows checks made out to "cash" frequently and/or check numbers are out of sequence.

One extreme example of financial abuse is that of Avigdor Ziskin, whose son, Zachary Ziskin, accuses his father's former nursing home, Regents Park at Aventura in Northeast Miami-Dade, of negligently allowing staff to financially exploit his father over a five-year period, costing $2.5 million according to the Miami Herald.2. A lawsuit filed against the nursing home claims:

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Employees would write out checks to themselves, or to other people, using Victor's checking accounts.

Would force Victor to sign the checks or would forge his signature.

If the nursing home failed to screen its employees to at least try to prevent hiring someone who may financially exploit a resident and that resulted in the thefts, the nursing home may have acted negligently. Nursing homes are responsible for the well being of their residents, including taking steps to make sure they're not the victims of theft by staff, residents, or visitors.

The exploitation can be:

Simple theft of money, an ATM or credit card or identity theft.

A scheme involving getting into the good graces of a nursing home resident to convince him or her the employee should be handling their finances, resulting in bank accounts being emptied, investments sold, and property being signed over.

Staff members could also forge signatures or threaten a resident if checks or legal forms aren't signed.

In these cases it's often difficult, if not impossible, to get back the money stolen by the individual employees. But, if it can be shown the nursing home acted negligently and didn't prevent the thefts, or failed to become aware of them and stop them, a legal action might be able to recoup the losses. Victims of financial exploitation may also be victims of other types of abuse and neglect.

If you or a loved one have suffered financial exploitation by the staff of a nursing home in the South Florida area, contact Boca nursing home abuse lawyer Joe Osborne at (561) 800-4011 or fill out this online contact form. You can discuss your case, how the law may apply and your best legal options to protect your rights and obtain compensation for the harm done.

Footnotes:

1CFPB http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201406_cfpb_guide_protecting-residents-from-financial-exploitation.pdf

2 Miami Herald http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/aventura/article86493302.html

Source: http://www.oa-lawfirm.com/beware-financial-abuse-loved-one-says-boca-nursing-home-abuse-lawyer/

SOURCE: Joe Osborne via Submit Press Release 123
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / March 11, 2017 / Renowned real estate developer and community philanthropist Boris Mizhen was in attendance at the Social Media Strategies Summit in Las Vegas. The event was invaluable in gaining fresh perspectives and new ideas on the latest advances in the digital marketing landscape. Boris Mizhen has long been a believer in leveraging the latest technology to push brand awareness and marketing. He once said that 2015 had been the first year that Internet traffic on mobile phones and tablets outpaced the growth of traffic on desktop and laptop machines, making social media a legitimate marketing option. Mizhen also indicated that video advertisements on platforms like Facebook and Snapchat were making clear headway in the marketing realm and users seemed to respond to these online ads. He emphasized that Facebook, in particular, was valuable for these marketing efforts, as it was the single most popular app among smartphone users.



https://www.facebook.com/bmizhen

Mizhen takes an interest in the advent of products such as the Apple Watch and other wearable tech that is currently in development and close to market phase. "Optimizing wearable technology to advertiser's needs is encouraging firms to be creative with how to achieve their targets. The future will definitely bring some of the most experimental new methods as to how companies get people to interact with adverts or messages," says Boris Mizhen. Emphasizing the role of social media in the 21st century markets, he predicts a tremendous rise in trends toward 'app indexing', noting that for mobile users, "an app can do everything that a desktop site can. We are only a few years away from making websites as we know them completely obsolete as current online patterns will soon grow into a powerful force that will dramatically change the way businesses operate." Boris Mizhen foresees a move toward sponsored content, with organizations paying to promote a third-party product or service.



The Social Media Strategies Summit is a perfect fit for Mizhen, as it delves into areas such as analytics, Twitter, mobile marketing, and social enterprise. The SMS workshops covered an array of topics including video marketing tactics for social media, cross-channel branding appealing to users on different online outlets, ways to get the most out of content marketing, and brand reputation management. Speakers included Cisco Editorial Producer Stephanie Ellen Chan; Time, Inc. Director of Creative Strategy Melanie Deziel; Mattel brand marketer Lisa Perez; U-Haul Social Media Manager Ken Schneider; MGM Resorts International VP of Social Media and Content Strategy Beverly Jackson; and Honigman Media CEO Brian Honigman.



Boris Mizhen is a leading New York City-based real estate developer and online marketing expert. His career in real estate was achieved when he demonstrated to be one of the most innovative online marketers in the world. Mizhen owns and manages dozens of successful properties across the North Eastern United States and is continuously looking for new ways to advance the workings of the real estate industry. His passion for buying and improving housing for people of differing economic backgrounds parallels his love for charitable work, including the Jewish Foundation of Greater New Haven and Chabad of the Shoreline, whose festival they have acted as the primary sponsors for a decade.

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Boris Mizhen - Property Developer and Philanthropist: http://borismizhennews.com

Boris Mizhen - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bmizhen

Boris Mizhen -- Proud to Donate to Yale-New Haven Hospital: http://www.streetinsider.com/Press+Releases/Boris+Mizhen+--+Proud+to+Donate+to+Yale-New+Haven+Hospital/11166539.html

Contact Information:

Boris Mizhen

www.borismizhennews.com

boris@borismizhennews.com

SOURCE: Boris Mizhen
PRESS RELEASE

Rohrabacher Ridicules Testimony on Russian Threat to Estonia

March 10, 2017 (EIRNS)Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.), a realist who fights against the demonization of Russia and those who want to work with it, intervened in a March 9 hearing of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee on "Russian Disinformation," which had recruited former Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves (2006-2016) to testify on Russias aggression toward bordering Estonia. A.J. Vicens of Mother Jones reported on the hearing.

Former President Ilves testified,

"In September 2014, Russian security service agents crossed the border and kidnapped and detained Eston Kohver, an agent with Estonias equivalent of the FBI. The Russian government accused Kohver of being a spy and sentenced him to 15 years in prison."

In Rep. Rohrabachers turn to question Ilves, he attacked the U.S. establishments demonization of Russia and Trumps alleged dealings with Russia, as "absurd," declaring, "In order to get Russia, we are now destabilizing our own democratic system here with that kind of nonsense."

Rohrabacher asked Ilves to provide examples of Russian military aggression. Ilves referred to a border incident, which Rohrabacher dismissed:

"So you had a situation of corruption at the borderone of your border guards disappeared. I mean, military aggression? Has there been any cross-border, at all, military action on the part of the Russians in Estonia?"

Ilves replied, "Well, we have constant violations of our border by military jets. Thats one thing, and thats consistent," he said, claiming these incidents have "massively increased in the last four years."

Rohrabacher replied that he had visited the Baltic states after hearing stories of Russian military aggression, and found "not one report of actual military aggression." He added that the United States has sent

"our tanks up there, having B-52 mock raids on Russia, over Estonia, toward the Soviet capital, in the name of stopping Soviet military aggression that never existed. This has got to stop or were going to end up in war."

Rohrabacher continued,

"[Russia is] being run by tough guys: sort of like Mayor Daley, in Chicago, is transported to Russia. Daley beat demonstrators up and did not represent anything that America was all about, but he was not some vicious dictator. He had been elected by his people and we would try to unelect him as well." "Do you remember the Phoenix Program in Vietnam? I remember the Phoenix Program. I supported the Phoenix Program. We murdered hundreds of local officials. How about Allende? How about Diem? How about any number of people during the Cold War that we assassinated? Thats wrong; its wrong to do that, but please do not say that Russia is the only country that commits these kinds of crimes."

He added, "Whats happening in Russia, of course, is you have a country watching out for its national interest."
PRESS RELEASE

Senate Democrats Take On Nuclear Cruise Missile, Denounce Limited Nuclear War

Mar. 10, 2017 (EIRNS)Nine Democratic senators, led by Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, introduced legislation yesterday, to slow down development of the Long Range Stand-Off (LRSO) cruise missile, one element of the nuclear modernization program begun under the Obama Administration. The legislation would freeze funding for the weapon at the 2017 level of $95.6 million a year and the life extension program for the W80-4 warhead to go into it at $220.2 million a year. Such levels likely mean a long-term delay for the development of the weapon, which is in its early stages of design and development, reports Defense News. "If the United States wants other countries to reduce their nuclear arsenals and restrain their nuclear war plans, we must take the lead," Markey said in a statement.

"Instead of wasting billions of dollars on this dangerous new nuclear weapon that will do nothing to keep our nation safe, we should preserve Americas resources and pursue a global ban on nuclear cruise missiles."

The bills prospects are low, however, because of the broad, bipartisan support in the Congress for the nuclear modernization program.Midweek, Gen. Paul Selva, the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, argued, during a House Armed Services Committee hearing, that in order to get rid of cruise missiles, the U.S. had to build the LRSO first, in order to be able to use it as a bargaining chip.

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), a well known critic of the LRSO who is a co-sponsor of Markeys bill, excoriated the Defense Science Board, meanwhile, for producing a report in December which urges the president to consider altering existing and planned U.S. armaments to achieve a greater number of lower-yield weapons that could provide a "tailored nuclear option for limited use." The report calls for resuming nuclear testing.

Feinstein calls on the Secretary of Defense to reject the recommendations in the report. Instead, she proposes that the U.S. should join with Russia to lead the way to a global ban on nuclear-tipped cruise missiles.

Feinstein states this in an Oped in the Washington Post March 3, warning,

"Let me be crystal clear: There is no such thing as limited use nuclear weapons, and for a Pentagon advisory board to promote their development is absolutely unacceptable."

She said, "This is even more problematic given President Trumps comments in support of a nuclear arms race." She warned that "Designing new low-yield nuclear weapons for limited strikes dangerously lowers the threshold for their use," and that

"Such a recommendation undermines the stability created by deterrence, thereby increasing the likelihood of sparking an unwinnable nuclear war."

She debunked more testing. "Resuming nuclear testing would only encourage others to follow suit," she wrote. "The world is made far less safe if other nations begin testing and continue to pursue new nuclear weapons and capabilities."
PRESS RELEASE

Trump Advisor Roger Stone Goes After Deep State, Reaffirms Support for Glass-Steagall

March 10, 2017 (EIRNS)An interview with Roger Stonelong time political operative, and "unofficial" adviser of Donald Trump, was done live this morning on the KTKK radio show in Salt Lake City, by host Paul Jensen. Stone concentrated on two themes. To begin with, he sharply attacked the whole "Russia did it premise," beginning with exposing the latest attack on him, as the one alleged to be the "go-between for Trump with Russia." The latest attack accuses him of being in contact with suspected hacker Guccifer 2.0, who was initially identified as the "hacker" of Democratic National Committee documents. Stone said that it is true that he had been in contact with Guccifer 2.0he once sent him a tweet to congratulate him for continuing to bring out the truth. That tweet is now the basis for the charge that Stone worked with Guccifer, the Russian agent, to elect Trump!

Stone said that this is a fraud, designed to get rid of Trump. The Obama administration got a FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) warrant to investigate him (Stone). He said that they now know everything that Im doing, they know Im talking to Alex Jones, to Harley Schlanger, to Donald Trump, but one thing they havent found is any connection to Russia, either the government, Russian spies, Russian diplomats, etc.because there has been no contact. He said he wants a special prosecutor, he wants televised hearings, because this would expose that leaders of the "two-party duopoly are trying to conduct a coup against our President."

Asked if he believes that the FBI got a secret warrant, authorized by the Obama Department of Justice, to conduct surveillance on Trump during the campaign, Stone said unequivocally that they did. Whether Obama personally ordered it is beside the point. Stone said that Nixon didnt personally approve the Watergate break-in, but he went down for it. Why is Obama not being held to the same standard as Nixon? Secretly investigating a Presidential candidate is a violation of the Constitution.

The whole rationale for investigating Trump is false, there was no collusion with Russia. The Clinton and Obama crowd, and the Bush Republicans, fear they will lose everything. Thats why they are organizing a coup.

The second main theme taken up by Stone was to answer the question as to why Trump is surrounding himself with some of the very establishment insiders he ran against. Stone said he has some worries about this, but then made an important point: Trumps policies have been unaffected, he is keeping his promises made during the campaign. As examples, he mentioned the attack on free trade agreements, adding that Trump will "deconstruct Dodd-Frank, and says he will restore Glass-SteagallIm very happy about that." He added that Trump rejected Mnuchins choices to be Deputy Treasury Secretaries, and he was also happy that Eliot Abrams did not get a job in the State Department. Some of those Trump has brought in may be part of an attempt to unify the Party behind him, but then he added, "The rats are not driving the ship, but they are on board."

The last segment of the program was turned over to Harley Schlanger, to respond to Stones comments. Schlanger confirmed there is a coup underway, but that Trump and his allies are fighting it. To defeat the coupsters, they must be more direct in identifying who is involved, including Obama, Soros, and Deep State operatives such as Clapper and Brennan, and especially British intelligence operations, but also why they are so desperate, that the financial system is poised for a collapse, and they are losing control.

Schlanger emphasized what Stone said about Glass-Steagall, as a central flank developed by the LaRouche movement. He concluded by saying people should stop whining about who has been appointed, etc., and instead get into the fight, beginning with going to the LaRouche PAC website, and joining its battle to crush the British Empire and their puppets.
Thailand has confirmed two cases of microcephaly caused by the Zika virus, the first time the A city worker fumigates the area to control the spread of mosquitoes at a university in Bangkok, Thailand, September 13, 2016. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha/File Photo

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has added four countries to its list of places with local transmission of the Zika virus.

The Zika virus, which is mainly transmitted by mosquitoes, has been spreading around the world since 2015. Once infected, only about 20% of people ever show symptoms, which most commonly include fever, rash, joint pain, and red eyes.

The newly identified countries with mosquito-transmitted Zika are:

Angola

Guinea-Bissau

Maldives

Solomon Islands

It's the first time since November in which the CDC has updated its list of countries with local transmission. (The most recent additions were Palau and Montserrat.) Here's the updated list of all the places with the virus.

Zika is most troubling because of its link to birth defects, including microcephaly  a condition in which a child is born with an abnormally small head  in infants whose mothers have had Zika. The virus has also been linked to a neurological condition called Guillain-Barre syndrome.

In November the World Health Organization said Zika was no longer an international public-health emergency. "We are not downgrading the importance of Zika, by placing this as a longer program of work, we are sending the message that Zika is here to stay," Dr. Peter Salama, the executive director of WHO's Health Emergencies Program, said at the time.

NOW WATCH: CDC on Zika virus: It's 'scarier than we initially thought'





More From Business Insider


PRESS RELEASE

New Report from UN Refugee Agency: Yemen War Displaces Tens of Thousands

Mar. 10, 2017 (EIRNS)The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees released a statement today, from UNHCR spokesperson William Spindler, that reports that intensified hostilities across western and central Yemen continue to force tens of thousands of people to flee their homes, with many now struggling to cope in abysmal conditions. More than 62,000 people, including 48,000 in the governate of Taizz, have been reported to be displaced within the last six weeks. Most of those displaced are in dire need of assistance and have found shelter in communal and public spaces, including schools and health facilities, while others are living in unfinished buildings or even out in the open, the statement goes on.

A number of those displaced, including many children, have been reported as suffering from malnutrition, while others are distressed and in need of psycho-social assistance. Many of the displaced are sheltered in crowded, unsanitary conditions, which increases the risk of disease outbreaks.

The UNHCR is unable to provide any more than the most urgent support for the displaced, as the UNHCRs budget for Yemen is only 7 percent funded.

"UNHCRs assistance, including non-food items and shelter, is now restricted to new waves of displacement and we are no longer able to support regular distributions including to internally displaced Yemenis living in collective centers and informal settlements,"

said Spindler.
After years of watching airlines pack more passengers per plane, lawmakers and passenger rights advocates are moving on separate tracks to keep airline seats and passenger legroom from shrinking further.

Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate teamed up this week to introduce a bill calling on the Federal Aviation Administration to establish a minimum seat size and legroom distance.

This bill isnt just about comfort, its about creating safer conditions for millions of travelers, said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who introduced the bill along with Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), and Reps. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.).

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An effort failed last year to add such seat standards into an FAA funding bill.

The FAA also refused last year a request by a passenger rights group to adopt a rule creating such a minimum seat size.

That passenger rights group, known as Flyers Rights, filed a lawsuit with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, protesting the FAAs decision.

An attorney for the passenger rights group, Joseph Sandler, testified before the court Friday, saying the shrinking seats and tighter legroom make it difficult for passengers to escape a plane in case of an emergency.

The FAA allows airlines to squeeze as many seats in a cabin as the carriers want as long as the passengers have enough room to escape the cabin in an emergency within 90 seconds. The agency says all U.S. airlines now meet that safety standard.

Neither the federal bill nor the Flyers Rights petition proposes a minimum seat size or legroom distance. Instead, both call on the FAA to come up with such standards.

hugo.martin@latimes.com

To read more about the travel and tourism industries, follow @hugomartin on Twitter.
Long Beach Airport is the only airport in Southern California that doesnt allow car-hailing businesses such as Uber and Lyft to pick up travelers at the terminals.

That is about to change. The regional airport has announced that it will launch a pilot program, starting April 5, to allow the car-hailing businesses to pick up and drop off passengers at the airport.



For the record: This article states that Long Beach Airport is the only airport in Southern California that does not allow car-hailing businesses such as Uber and Lyft to pick up travelers at the terminal. Ontario International Airport is still working on reaching an agreement to allow car-hailing businesses to pick up passengers at the terminals.

This is a great opportunity to modernize our regulations and allow taxis and ride-share companies an environment to compete fairly while still improving services for travelers, Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia said.

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Last year, the city had considered joining every other airport in the region in allowing such businesses but decided to study the idea first.

Until the pilot program starts, the airport allows ride-hailing businesses such as Uber to drop passengers off at the airport but they cant pick up.

Under the pilot program, which will last at least six months, the car-hailing companies pay the city $3 a trip to pick up passengers at the terminal. Once the pilot program is completed, the Long Beach City Council will consider adopting a law to permanently allow the businesses to operate at the airport, city officials said.

Los Angeles International Airport, John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, Hollywood Burbank Airport and San Diego International Airport have similar financial arrangements to have car-hailing companies pay a fee of $2.25 to $4 per trip.

hugo.martin@latimes.com

To read more about the travel and tourism industries, follow @hugomartin on Twitter.
The second travel ban proposed by the Trump administration, redesigned to better withstand legal challenges, is just as likely as the previous ban to reduce travel to the U.S., industry representatives say.

The latest executive order temporarily bans travel from six Middle Eastern countries and imposes a temporary ban on all refugees. President Trumps previous order was blocked by federal courts.

The administrations restriction of travel to the United States for nationals of six countries and a perceived anti-welcome sentiment have caused deep concerns across the international travel and tourism community, said Ernest Wooden Jr., chief executive of the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board.

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The U.S. Travel Assn., the trade group for the nations $2.1-trillion travel industry, echoed Woodens comments.

The question remains whether the revised order did enough to mollify the prospective traveler from Canada, Europe or elsewhere around the world who may have been put off by the initial travel ban, said Roger Dow, chief executive of the group.

There is yet no conclusive data to show that travel has dropped since the new ban was announced. However, a survey of 324 corporate travel managers from the U.S. and Europe found that 37% of U.S. travel managers expect the new ban will reduce travel to the U.S. while 47% of European managers said they expect a reduction in travel to the U.S.

The survey, conducted on behalf of the Global Business Travel Assn., a trade group for the worlds business travel managers, also found that the ban made 34% of travel managers worried about the harassment of U.S. travelers visiting the Middle East.

There is always the risk that closing our borders sends the message that the United States is closed for business, said Michael McCormick, executive director and chief operating officer of the trade group.

hugo.martin@latimes.com

To read more about the travel and tourism industries, follow @hugomartin on Twitter.
International engineering corporations, boutique architectural firms and tiny mom-and-pop builders with names like Loko-Koko are lining up to help build President Trumps border wall, despite the fact that Mexico has said it wont pay for it and polls show that many Americans dont want it.

Since the Department of Homeland Security placed a presolicitation notice on the Federal Business Opportunities website in late February for the design and build of several prototype wall structures in the vicinity of the United States border Mexico, more than 600 interested vendors across the country have signed on, including almost 100 entities from California.

Kevin Rouhani of Meridian Precast Inc., a Westwood-based company that produces prefabricated walls and concrete panels and has worked on government infrastructure such as BART stations in the Bay Area, says he is keeping an eye on the specifications of the project to see if it might suit his company.

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Any big project in general that has some sort of potential, well follow and see if it has anything for us, said Rouhani.

Halbert Construction of El Cajon, near San Diego, which has experience working with the federal government including projects at the U.S.-Mexico border, is also listed as an interested vendor. The company worked on a small pedestrian bridge that connects San Ysidro with Tijuana and built a small stretch of fence around the border station.

If its going to happen, we would like a piece of it, said Halbert project coordinator Jimmy Benavente, shortly after the presolicitation was posted. We try not to bring our political beliefs into it.

Certainly, the wall is one of the most politically divisive architectural projects to be proposed by a president.

At least six in 10 U.S. voters oppose it, according to a poll released by Quinnipiac University late last month. Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas), whose district includes 800 miles of U.S.-Mexico border, came out against it. And on Tuesday, Sen. Claire McCaskill, a ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, sent a letter to Homeland Security chief John F. Kelly, asking how the DHS planned to pay for the wall. (Budgets for the project have been estimated to run from $15 billion to $40 billion.)

That same day, Politico reported that the Trump administration was considering cuts to the Coast Guard and the Transportation Security Administration, among other agencies, to help fund the project  which drew an outcry from critics.

We try not to bring our political beliefs into it.  Jimmy Benavente, Halbert project coordinator

And there has been the hastiness in the design process. The presolicitation stated that a more formal call for entries would go online on March 8 and that concept papers would be due four days later  providing 96 hours to design a prototype for what could serve as the model of one of the biggest infrastructure projects in American history.

This week, DHS slightly delayed and extended that deadline. The formal solicitation will instead go online sometime around March 15 and concept papers will be due five days later.

The revised post also noted that the government was seeking a wall that was nominally 30 feet tall, that will meet requirements for aesthetics, anti-climbing, and resistance to tampering or damage.

The mere mention of the word aesthetics had the art and design types tittering on Twitter; a reporter for Talking Points Memo noted that the word may be a nod toward Trumps continual use of the words big, beautiful when describing the wall.

Regardless of how attractive it may look, the construction of the U.S.-Mexico border wall is no ordinary infrastructure project. Theres its massive scale. Trump wants a contiguous, physical wall along all 2,000 miles of border with Mexico  which means a whole lot of steel and concrete (not to mention construction jobs).

And theres a 47-year-old treaty with Mexico that dictates that no structure can interfere with the flow of cross-border waterways, such as the Rio Grande.

There are also the environmental concerns; a contiguous structure could affect more than 111 endangered species, as well as various wildlife refuges and protected wetlands.

For some in the design community, the wall has raised all kinds of ethical issues. Last year, the architectural website ArchDaily generated an outcry when it announced a competition titled Building the Border Wall? One architect called for a boycott of the site in response. Others wondered whether the competition encouraged xenophobia. And a lengthy piece in the New Republic explored whether the competition missed the point on the borders more pressing needs, such as municipal infrastructure for the informal settlements known as colonias.

Design and architecture writer Kriston Capps, who has been following the topic of the walls design and construction closely on the urbanism website Citylab, wrote in one essay that any company (or companies) picked for the job faces a sincere reputational risk.

No Ban, No Wall has emerged as a rallying cry for Muslim and Latino communities and their allies at protests held across the nation, he adds. The firm that wins the final [request for proposals] may also earn undesirable exposure from activists.

The attention the project has received has made some companies press shy. One project manager at a small construction company in Alta Loma said, Im not sure its something we really want to engage in.

Benavente says he tries to look past the issue of politics: Its been a topic since the political race started and, in our office, political beliefs aside, we like to keep our doors open.

A section of the border fence seen in Nogales, Arizona, on the US-Mexico border. (Jim Watson / AFP / Getty Images)

And while its too early to talk design, he notes that its not going to be easy to build.

A 30-foot building, thats not hard, says Benavente. But a 30-foot-tall wall, thats another story. I could put it up on firm ground pretty easy. But if youre dealing with desert or a lake bed, its going to get more difficult.

Its not like you take two pieces of wood, fill it with concrete and then were good, he adds. It takes a lot more engineering than that.

Rod Hadrian oversees Hadrian Construction in Carlsbad and he says the controversies surrounding the wall dont concern him much. Im an older gentleman, he says, I know cement.

Hes more interested in pitching a synthetic panel system employed by his company that might offer a more efficient construction method than pouring cement in place all along 2,000 miles of border.

Plus, theres his last name  which he shares with the Roman emperor who built a massive wall in what is now northern England. Hes never visited Hadrians Wall, but he notes that his high school Latin teacher once gave him a passing grade based on his last name.

If I tried to market this, I could probably use my name, he jokes.

One of the more unusual vendors to appear on the presolicitation list was a small, bicoastal design studio called JuneJuly, founded by architects Jake Matatyaou, who is based in Los Angeles, and Kyle Hovenkotter, in New York. Matatyaou is on the faculty at SCI-Arc, the Southern California Institute of Architecture in downtown Los Angeles; Hovenkotter teaches at Columbia University and the Pratt Institute, among others.

For both, the border is a long-running area of interest.

Were interested in conversations around the future of cities, especially with respect to borders, says Hovenkotter. We think we want to approach this project as honestly as we can.

In the past, the pair has worked on a conceptual project, titled Approaching Borders, that tries to subvert the infrastructure of the border so that it becomes a point of linkage, rather than separation. For example: placing two-way video feeds at points along the wall so that people at the border can connect visually with people in other cities such as Washington, New York and Mexico City  a way of using the tools of surveillance to connect.

If we begin with the fact that were building a hard border, something physical and material, we start with the question, What is an aesthetically aware, humanitarianly minded thing? asks Matatyaou. Can it have a more humane interface than something that is just technical and tactical and is about demarcation and territorialization?

Are they concerned about the ethics of working on such a controversial piece of infrastructure?

In an ideal world, states Matatyaou, there would be no border, and certainly, no wall.

Borders already exist far removed from walls that circumscribe territorial boundaries, he adds. Walls, material or otherwise, exist within every American city.

Adds Hovenkotter: I take a post-national position. I think the nation-state is a kind of outdated construct. And I think they are creating more political problems than solutions. But I also understand that if there is a system in which to play, you might want to play in it and make the best of it.

Whatever gets built, Benavente of Halbert notes that nothing is going to be foolproof.

Unless youre putting a wall thats 200 feet tall and 100 feet underground, he says, there are people who are going to tunnel under or create mobile structures to advance over the top.

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carolina.miranda@latimes.com

@cmonstah

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Noel Wells is a multi-hyphenate who seems to keep adding new hyphens. Her first movie as a writer-director, in which she also stars, is Mr. Roosevelt. Its premiering as part of this years South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas.

Originally from San Antonio, Wells, 30, attended the University of Texas at Austin before moving to Los Angeles. After a series of online comedy videos racked up millions of views, she appeared on Saturday Night Live for the 2013-14 season, gaining attention for her spot-on impressions of young celebrities such as Zooey Deschanel, Lena Dunham and Emma Stone.

After leaving SNL, Wells appeared as the female lead/romantic interest on the first season of Aziz Ansaris acclaimed series Master of None; costarred with Jessica Williams in the movie The Incredible Jessica James, which premiered at this years Sundance Film Festival; and she just finished shooting the movie Happy Anniversary, co-starring Ben Schwartz. Wells also has an upcoming series at Comedy Central that she co-wrote, co-created and stars in.

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In Mr. Roosevelt, Wells plays Emily, a young woman struggling to make it in Los Angeles who is suddenly called back to Austin after the death of a loved one. There she confronts all the ways in which she continually gets in the way of her own success.

Working with cinematographer Dagmar Weaver-Madsen, Wells shot Mr. Roosevelt on Super 16 and is very excited that a 35 mm print will screen at the SXSW festival. I think its going to feel like I made a movie, she said with clear delight.

Your movie includes what is bound to be the contentious claim that tacos in Austin are superior to tacos in Los Angeles. Please explain.

I dont know what it is. Maybe its the hot sauce. Mexican food in Texas, which is Tex-Mex, it just has a very distinct flavor, and its very rich, and the experimentation of tacos in Austin just takes it to another level. And when I moved to California, I thought it was going to be so amazing here, but everything here is just burritos and everything tastes like plain rice. The hot sauce is mild. There are taco trucks that are OK, but it just doesnt have that kick. I think people from Texas will definitely know what Im talking about.

You went back to Austin to make your movie. Why?

For me, it always felt like my first movie would be there. So much of my formative years were there, and Im still kind of unpacking that. Its a town filled with all these incredible, supportive people, and I really wanted to celebrate it. Also, its just such a great setting and filled with all these characters and I wanted to collaborate with my friends and people that Ive known who are still there. And me being like, OK, now, Ive got the capability to make a movie, can we do something?

In the film, you deliver a monologue in which you decry being labeled a quirky girl as a way to diminish a womans intellect and power. Is that how you feel in real life?

It happens all the time. Emily the character, she gets upset about it and so she goes on her soapbox tirade. Where Ive gotten to the point where its fun to be underestimated by people. People are constantly talking down to me. When I was on SNL, they were like, Dont worry, youre a cute girl and Lorne Michaels likes cute girls. And it blew my mind that people didnt see me for how I felt about myself. And you just learn that people arent in your brain and theyre not in your body and they dont know the richness of whats happening in your mind and they dont know your anxiety. They just dont know it.

So they see you and just think, Oh, cute girl, and they dont see all the work that I did before. They dont know how I got here. Even when I was making my movie, people would say, How did you get a movie made? And it was like, If a guy wrote his own movie, would you ask why he was directing it? Of course, hes doing it. So when people ask me how I did it, its because I wrote a  movie and I was going to make it no matter what. And that kind of stuff Im learning to not let it bother me as much.

The trick that I have in my back pocket is that I am very OK with becoming very vulnerable really fast and just being incredibly honest.  Noel Wells

Your roles on Master of None and Mr. Roosevelt show you have a real knack as a performer to shift from a manic comic energy to something much more emotionally real. Where does that come from?

Maybe this will inform the quirky girl thing. My comedy, whats driving me, is a very dark, sad thing. I have a dark sense of humor, and I find the world incredibly bleak. Everybody is a cartoon to me, even myself. Its just a part of me. And the trick that I have in my back pocket is that I am very OK with becoming very vulnerable really fast and just being incredibly honest. I dont like pretending Im something that Im not. Its real and its there and its in everybody. And people hide those things, but its the most interesting part of people, and the most interesting things about characters is when you get to see them flip.

There was an interview with you last year that featured an astonishing parenthetical.

I know! It was so crazy. I was like, Lady, come on.

Were you surprised to see starts to cry in brackets in the middle of one of your answers?

I cried. And I cry all the time. Im an emotional human being and I dont think there is anything wrong with that. I will continue to cry. I might cry in this interview; itll be fine. I dont mind crying. I did another interview with somebody where I opened up and he was like, I cant believe how vulnerable youre getting. And I was like, Why are we all pretending all the time? Im crying, deal with it. If you cant handle it, maybe its on you.

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Mark.Olsen@latimes.com

Follow on Twitter: @IndieFocus
A titan of 90s hip-hop  a genre that was once the scourge of Washington pearl-clutchers  has been lauded on the floor of Congress.

Hakeem Jeffries, a Democratic congressional representative from Brooklyn and Queens, gave a speech Thursday to Congress marking the 20th anniversary of Notorious B.I.G.s murder in Los Angeles.

Biggies 1997 slaying in L.A. was an epochal event in contemporary music history, and Jeffries noted it by citing the timeless first lines of Juicy  now forever enshrined in the congressional record  and lauding Biggies contributions to his district.

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He died 20 years ago today in a tragedy that occurred in Los Angeles, but his words live on forever. Ive got the privilege of representing the district where Biggie Smalls was raised. We know he went from negative to positive and emerged as one of the worlds most important hip-hop stars.

Jeffries posted the speech on Twitter. Watch it, and remember it fondly as one of the few productive things that has happened recently in Congress.

For breaking music news, follow @augustbrown on Twitter.

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As questions and arguments about equality and individual rights in America have become more complex and heated over the last few years, so too has each installment of John Ridleys Emmy-winning anthology series, American Crime.

The first season of the ABC show revolved around race and class, the second gender and sexuality. Both featured a tragic event that forced the very different paths of the shows characters to converge. And in this world of cause and effect, where one life influences the other like a chain of dominoes, one cant escape the idea that we are all connected.

The third season, which premieres Sunday, continues the tradition but offers the broadest story line to date.

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The drama takes place in North Carolina and its theme is human trafficking, be it bused-in migrant workers trapped on farms or local teenage prostitutes farmed out by their pimps. Slavery is a subject in which Ridley is well-versed: he won an adapted screenplay Oscar for 12 Years a Slave.

American Crime opens with Luis Salazar (Benito Martinez) crossing the U.S./Mexico border illegally in search of his son, Teo, a migrant worker who disappeared in the fields of North Carolina. What Salazar finds is a world of unchecked abuse and indentured servitude  Mexican workers live a dozen or more in dirty trailers and must keep toiling to pay off never-ending debts for the food and shelter theyre given.

Its an American story as old as The Grapes of Wrath, and if were to believe documentaries such as Food Chains, one thats being played out on farms across the U.S. today.

The family that runs the farm has turned a blind eye to the inhumane practices carried out by its managers, but has indirectly encouraged the poor treatment of pickers by continually cutting the bottom line in order to stay competitive. A tragic event compels the wife of one of the farms owners, Jeanette Hesby (Felicity Huffman), to investigate whats happening to the workers.

In addition to the farm story line, we meet several other characters in the first half of the series including Kimara Walters (Regina King), a social worker who counsels teen prostitutes caught up in trafficking rings. But these arent immigrants tricked into coming to the U.S. on the false promise of a legitimate job. They are American kids with drug problems, no family and nowhere to go other than with a pimp who gives them some sort of purpose. The 17-year-old prostitute, Shae (Ana Mulvoy-Ten), is one of Kimaras main cases.

Also introduced are furniture store owner Nicholas Coates (Timothy Hutton) and his wife Clair, (Lili Taylor)  who have problems of their own  and their French-speaking au pair Gabrielle (Mickaelle X. Bizet) who just arrived from Haiti and will soon find out what shes gotten herself into.

Along the way, the eight-episode series folds in scenarios about a womans right to choose, the toll corporate greed has taken on the lower economic rungs of society and how drug problems are perceived and discussed when they occur in the suburbs versus the inner city.

But this is no forced game of connect-the-dots, where topical subject matter must be tackled in a comprehensive breakdown of how doomed we all are. Rather, American Crime artfully follows several different narratives that end up moving through the same obstacle course but with very different outcomes.

The buildup is slower here and requires more patience than the last two seasons, partly because this installment of American Crime is more ambitious and covers more terrain.

But Martinez has a presence that, no matter the circumstances and shifting story landscape, keeps the first half of this iteration solidly invested in his plight. The love he has for his son is juxtaposed with the way migrant workers are viewed in America: disposable, interchangeable or maybe not at all. Invisible.

Teo is bright, too chatty, a boy who always makes those around him laugh. He is not just a migrant worker, he is someones missing boy.

The characters are played by much of the same cast who populated the first two seasons of American Crime, which is a good thing given the talent pool.

The drawbacks, however, come in the form of a few characters who are either a bit unrealized or out of sorts in the environments in which theyve been placed. Huffmans Jeanette in particular is unbelievably naive when it comes to the business of the farm: Workers are being treated poorly? How a mature woman could be married into a farm family all her adult life and not know this seems implausible.

OxyContin addict Coy Henson (Connor Jessup) ends up picking on the farm, initially for food, shelter and drug money. Though he serves as a plot device, a white American kid working in the fields is a hard sell  even in a fictional drama.

And Kings Kimara is supposed to be a veteran social worker but seems to be plodding through difficult situations for the first time here, treading lightly in her effort to get troubled young people off the streets and into shelters and rehab programs.

Creator Ridley makes a quick appearance in the first half of the series as a farm worker rights advocate, speaking at a meeting to raise awareness. The food on your table comes with a price that you cant see, but somebody has to pay, he says. You can choose to ignore that, but what you cant do is be ignorant.

Theres no turning away from those hard truths in American Crime, a series that throws light into the darker corners of American society.

American Crime

Where: ABC

When: 10 p.m. Sunday

Rating: TV-14-DLS (may be unsuitable for children under the age of 14 with advisories for suggestive dialogue, coarse language and sex)

lorraine.ali@latimes.com

@lorraineali
Friends keep asking, What do you guys need? What do you guys need? and I always respond tequila, stock tips and those nubby little cigars that bookies chew like cannoli. They laugh as if Im kidding.

I shrug and go back to caring for Posh, which is a little like being the executive assistant to a demanding studio mogul. Sure, the pay is modest, and the hours are merciless, but you get to be around greatness.

Theres another narcissist here to see you, I announce.

Who? Posh asks.

Your son, I say.

Or it could be a daughter or one of the dogs or one of the Chardonnay Moms, who drop in for lunch to check on how their dear friend is progressing.

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Send him in anyway, she says of her son.

One day at a time, we deal with cancer. Some weeks, we have five medical appointments, occasionally two in one day. With her in the backseat, I drive to all of them, avoiding potholes, sudden stops and police standoffs.

Ever tried that on an L.A. freeway? Its like a video game. Its like driving across a breakwater of broken toasters.

I could complain, but I wont.

Smooth driving is imperative, because Posh is bone weary from three weeks of chemo. She suffers every little bump. In my defense, I explain that I havent driven this carefully since we ferried our third and last baby home from the hospital.

Um, we had four, she says.

Seriously?

Yes, she says.

No wonder theres never enough cake.

Mostly, we dont mind these little outings. They are vital to her recovery, and a chance to get out of the house. Daytime TV is worse than boring, its belligerent. If the insipid talk shows dont eat your brain, the food shows will. Me, Id rather chew a wad of aluminum foil than watch one more episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.

I mean, whats the big deal about dives? We live in one.

Speaking of cooking shows, I got in trouble the other day for reorganizing a kitchen drawer.

It was making me nuts the way the utensil drawer would jam at 6 in the morning, when all I was trying to do was make the little guy a few eggs before school.

What would happen is Id open the drawer for the spatula, and a whisk or a turkey baster would jam the over-stuffed drawer, so Id have to tug-tug-tug  curse  tug-tug-tug before I could eventually clear it.

You gotta take care of yourself, is another thing I keep hearing from friends.

I have to take care of everything, is what I think to myself.

Life being what it is, my wife and daughter didnt really appreciate that I reorganized this drawer. It wasnt so much that it worked better that annoyed them; it was my audacity at doing it without their blessing, which is something I would never get anyway, so I just went ahead and did it. I think of it as Hannibal attacking Trebia.

Anyway, the reorganized drawer is working smoothly and now they dont so much trust me around the kitchen, where the cereal cabinet might be next. Trust me, there are cereals in there that predate oxygen.

I could complain, but I wont.

Be sure to take care of yourself, someone texts.

Yeah, but first I have to feed the baby hummingbird.

As youve learned, our place has long been a landing pad for misfits and lost souls, so its no wonder that the homeless hummingbird found her way to our front porch. When you have three or four children, whats one more mouth?

Thing is, I never really liked hummingbirds. Tiny and operatic in their movements, they seem to make life look too easy. If theres anything I know about life, its that its never too easy.

Anyway, one morning the Siberian puppy was in the yard, praying for snow, when she nosed something that nosed her back. It was a newborn bird, small as your belly button.

Unable to find the nest, the older boy scooped the hummingbird into a shallow box. For four days, we have fed her sugar water from an old toothbrush.

She seemed to like me, this hummingbird. I suspect it was my mustache or my skinny jeans, or maybe her eyesight was still a little smeary. No matter. Tony Soprano had his ducks; I have this homeless baby hummingbird. Its a small joy, but as one reader put it, Everything looks different with cancer.

Almost hourly -- and a tad miraculously -- her birth mother still comes to feed her. This must be confusing for the young bird. In her mind, she must think she has two moms: the gorgeous green angel and me, the idiot with the old toothbrush.

She could complain. But she wont.

Chris.Erskine@latimes.com

Twitter: @erskinetimes

Greetings from chemo bay No. 8
USC names retired aerospace executive Wanda Austin as acting president, announces Nikias departure By Harriet Ryan USC appointed a retired aerospace executive as interim president and laid out a detailed plan for selecting a permanent leader Tuesday, ending speculation about whether outgoing President C.L. Max Nikias might remain in the post. Nikias, embattled over his administrations handling of a campus gynecologist accused of sexually abusing patients, relinquished his duties after a meeting of USCs board. The trustees tapped one of their own, Wanda Austin, an alumna and former president of the Aerospace Corp., to temporarily run the university. The trustees also approved the formation of a search committee and the hiring of firm Isaacson, Miller to coordinate the selection of a successor. A second search company, Heidrick & Struggles, will also advise trustees. Read More Facebook

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Ex-student sues elite Brentwood School after teacher is charged with sexually abusing him By Richard Winton A former student sued the elite Brentwood School on Monday in the wake of a female teacher being charged with repeatedly having sex with the minor, alleging that other faculty members encouraged the unlawful behavior and failed to report it to authorities. The lawsuit accuses the private school, whose students include the children of many of Hollywoods elite and L.A.s powerful, of acting negligently and allowing Aimee Palmitessa to abuse and batter the teenager sexually. The suit alleges that the student was abused in summer 2017 after one of the schools counselors offered words of encouragement to the then-17-year-old, identified in the suit as only John Doe, to engage in an illegal relationship with the teacher. Read More Facebook

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Civil jury vindicates fired Montebello school executives in whistleblower case By Howard Blume The Montebello school district is in dire straits  at risk of insolvency and under apparent criminal investigation. An outside audit in July found some teachers earning more than $200,000 a year, as well as improper raises, excess paid vacation time and inappropriate overtime, sick leave and car allowances. Fixing the district and pinpointing blame could take time. Read More Facebook

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L.A. schools fall short on safety measures, new report warns By Howard Blume After the mass shooting at Floridas Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in February, Los Angeles school officials reassured parents that much had been done to keep local schools safe. California had tougher gun laws, after all, and the school district paid close attention to students mental health. But a new report issued Monday by a panel convened to take a close look offers some cause for concern, flagging inconsistent campus safety measures, thinly spread mental health staff and inadequate coordination between the school district and other public agencies. With the stakes this high, we must strive to do better, said L.A. City Atty. Mike Feuer, who assembled the panel. Read More Facebook

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L.A. school district says more are graduating, but rate may not show it By Howard Blume The L.A. Unified School District has hopes of continuing its winning streak this year with another record graduation rate, but the official numbers may not show it. A senior district administrator warned the board Tuesday that graduation rates were likely to decline 2% to 3% across the state, even though L.A. Unified is likely doing better than ever in producing graduates, he said. The issue is that the state will now count high school students who transfer to adult school as dropouts, said Oscar Lafarga, who heads the districts office of data and accountability. Previously, schools treated these students as though they had simply enrolled in another high school, he said. Read More Facebook

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Betsy DeVos to California: Not so fast on that federal education plan By Joy Resmovits In April, Californias top education officials breathed a sigh of relief. After months of debate and back-and-forth with Betsy DeVos staff, they had finalized a plan to satisfy a major education law that aims to make sure all students get a decent education. The state focused on aligning its plan to fulfill the requirements of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act with Californias Local Control Funding Formula, which gives extra money to districts to help students who come from low-income families, are in the foster system or are English learners. But this week, DeVos team said not so fast. Jason Botel, the U.S. Department of Educations principal deputy assistant secretary, sent California education officials a letter asking for more information in such areas as measuring student progress, graduation rates and English learners. In an unsigned statement, the California Department of Education declared itself surprised and disappointed because officials thought  after a meeting with federal officials in Washington  that they were on the right track to get approval. Now the Every Student Succeeds Act plan will be up for discussion once again at the July meeting of the State Board of Education. The U.S. Department of Education has already approved most state plans. Every Student Succeeds is the Obama administrations 2015 replacement for the No Child Left Behind Act. Facebook

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L.A. school board sets a new goal: prepare every grad to be eligible to apply for Cal State or UC By Sonali Kohli Last month, Los Angeles school board president proposed a spate of highly ambitious mandates aimed at ensuring that every district graduate be eligible to apply to one of the states public four-year universities by 2023. By the time the L.A. Unified school board unanimously approved the resolution Tuesday, the original language had been watered down. The goal is no longer that in five years 100% of students meet the long list of benchmarks, which include not just college eligibility for graduates but first-grade reading proficiency and English fluency by sixth grade for all students who enter the district in kindergarten or first grade speaking another language. The original college-readiness goal, for example, called for 100% of all high school students to be eligible to apply to one of the states four-year universities. Now the goal seems to offer more wiggle room: Prepare all high school graduates to be eligible to apply to a California four-year university. Read More Facebook

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We have been hurt. More women say they were mistreated by USC gynecologist By Richard Winton USC student Anika Narayanan says she vividly recalls her first appointment with Dr. George Tyndall at the campus health center, alleging that he made several explicit comments during an examination she felt was inappropriate and invasive. When she came back for a second visit in 2016 after a nonconsensual sexual encounter, he allegedly chastised her, she said in a civil lawsuit and at a press conference Tuesday. He asked me if I had forgotten to use a condom again,  said Narayanan, 21. At one point, she said, Tyndall asked if I did a lot of doggy style,  she said. Read More Facebook

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L.A. Unified gives inspector general brief contract extension By Howard Blume The Los Angeles school board on Tuesday extended the contract of Ken Bramlett, its inspector general, by three months, though his job is far from secure and questions remain about the future direction of his watchdog office. Board members also unanimously promoted Vivian Ekchian, who had been the runner-up for the superintendents job, to deputy superintendent  the districts No. 2 position. Both moves had elements of peacemaking between different factions on the board. Read More Facebook

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USCs handling of complaints about campus gynecologist is being investigated by federal government By Harriet Ryan The U.S. Department of Education announced Monday that it has launched an investigation into how the University of Southern California handled misconduct complaints against a campus gynecologist, the latest fallout in a scandal that has prompted the resignation of USCs president, two law enforcement investigations and dozens of lawsuits. In revealing the inquiry by the departments Office of Civil Rights, officials rebuked USC for what they alleged was improper withholding of information about Dr. George Tyndall during a previous federal investigation. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who has been criticized for taking a less vigorous approach to examining sexual misconduct than predecessors, called for a systemic examination of USC and urged administrators to fully cooperate. Read More Facebook

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Judge to sentence woman and her boyfriend for the murder of an 8-year-old that led to L.A. child welfare reforms By Marisa Gerber A woman and her boyfriend are expected to be sentenced Thursday for the torture and murder of an 8-year-old boy whose killing in 2013 provoked public outrage, prompted sweeping reform of Los Angeles Countys child welfare system, and led to unprecedented criminal charges against social workers who handled the childs case. Pearl Sinthia Fernandez, 34, faces life in prison without the possibility of parole for her role in the death of her son, Gabriel. A jury decided last year that her boyfriend, Isauro Aguirre, 37, should be executed. When paramedics arrived at the boys Palmdale home in May 2013, Gabriel had slipped out of consciousness. He had a fractured skull, broken ribs, burned skin, missing teeth and BB pellets embedded in his groin. A paramedic would later testify that every inch of the boys small body had been abused. Read More Facebook

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L.A. Unifieds spending out of step with similar school systems, task force says By Howard Blume The Los Angeles school district is out of step with similar school systems, spending more on teachers pay and health benefits and less on activities that could enhance student learning, according to a new report by an outside task force. The L.A. Unified School District Advisory Task Force did not make specific recommendations, but instead posed a series of questions it said the district needs to answer to make sure its funding is aimed at providing a full opportunity for all students to succeed. What were trying to say is: Lets put the data on the table. Lets look at the truth. Lets be transparent and here are the numbers, said task force member Renata Simril. This is not to say that  we should cut teachers salaries. Read More Facebook

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Top USC medical school official feared dean was doing drugs and alerted administration, he testifies By Paul Pringle A former vice dean of USCs Keck School of Medicine testified Tuesday that he feared the schools then-dean, Dr. Carmen A. Puliafito, could be doing drugs and expressed concerns about his general well-being to the universitys No. 2 administrator before Puliafito abruptly left his job in 2016. Dr. Henri Fords testimony at a hearing of the state Medical Board marks the first suggestion that any USC administrator had suspicions about Puliafitos possible drug use before he stepped down. A Times investigation in 2017 found Puliafito led a secret second life of using illegal drugs with a circle of young criminals and addicts. Puliafito testified about his behavior at the hearing Tuesday, saying he took drugs with one young woman on a weekly basis. Ford said that he decided to alert USC Provost Michael Quick after receiving reports in early 2016 that Puliafito was partying in hotels with people of questionable reputation, and that he came to worry about his mental stability. Read More Facebook

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Why L.A. Unified may face financial crisis even with a giant surplus this year By Jessica Calefati With more than half a billion dollars socked away for next school year, the Los Angeles Unified School District hardly seems just two years from financial ruin. Its a scenario that is especially tough to swallow if youre a low-wage worker seeking a raise or a teacher who wants smaller classes. But budget documents show that todays $548-million surplus cannot be sustained  and that even basic services face steep, seemingly unavoidable cuts because of massive problems barreling the districts way. Theres a disconnect between the rosy short-term picture and what we know is coming, said board member Kelly Gonez. Read More Facebook

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We have failed: Top USC officials try to reassure students amid gynecologist scandal By Joy Resmovits Top administrators at USC are reaching out to students in the wake of misconduct allegations against the universitys longtime gynecologist, acknowledging failings and vowing reforms as they try to address growing outrage over the revelations. Several USC deans have sent out messages trying to reassure students and faculty that the university is committed to changing. We have failed, wrote Jack H. Knott, dean of USCs Sol Price School of Public Policy, in a May 24 letter. What happened is antithetical to everything we know is right. Read More Facebook

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Rick Caruso is named chair of USCs trustees, vows swift investigation of gynecologist scandal By Thomas Curwen The University of Southern Californias board of trustees has elected mall magnate Rick Caruso to be the new chair of the board, giving fresh leadership as the university navigates a widening scandal involving a longtime campus gynecologist. The move marks the latest effort by USC to address the case, which has sparked a criminal investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department and dozens of civil lawsuits. More than 400 people have contacted a hotline that the university established for patients to make reports about their experience with Dr. George Tyndall. In his first act as chairman, Caruso announced that the white-shoe L.A. law firm OMelveny & Myers would conduct a thorough and independent investigation into the gynecologists conduct and reporting failures at the clinic. He set an ambitious timeline for the review, pledging it would conclude before students return for the fall semester. Read More Facebook

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UC Berkeley students persistence helps win more liberal rules for in-state tuition By Teresa Watanabe Ifechukwu Okeke thought shed be a shoo-in for in-state tuition when she was admitted to UC Berkeley for fall 2016. She had moved to the United States from Nigeria in 2012 to go to Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga. By the time she got her acceptance to transfer to UC to study molecular and cell biology, she had lived in California four years. She had a California drivers license, bank account and rental records as proof. UC Berkeley, however, ruled she was a nonresident  which meant she would have to pay nearly $27,000 more. Read More Facebook

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State medical board calls former County-USC doctor a sexual predator, suspends his license By Matt Hamilton A UCLA cardiologist has been temporarily stripped of his medical license after state regulators described him as a sexual predator who assaulted three female colleagues when he was working and training at L.A. County-USC Medical Center. Read More Facebook

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Global California 2030 aims to get more students learning more languages By Joy Resmovits Tom Torlakson (Andrew Seng / Associated Press) Outgoing state Supt. of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson on Wednesday announced a new statewide effort to encourage students to learn more languages. Called Global California 2030, its goal is to help more students become fluent in multiple tongues. Torlakson said that by 2030, he wants half of the states 6.2 million K-12 students to participate in classes or programs that lead to proficiency in two or more languages. By 2040, he wants three out of four students to be proficient enough to earn the State Seal of Biliteracy. Torlakson announced the initiative at Cahuenga Elementary School, which offers a dual-language immersion program in English and Korean. Californias public school students speak more than 60 languages at home, and 40% come to school with knowledge of a language other than English. Torlakson called his plan a call to action that invites parents, legislators, educators and community members to pool resources to expand language offerings in schools and get more bilingual teachers trained. He said the state already is working with Mexico and Spain to expand a teacher-exchange program. Fluency, the plan argues, can help students succeed economically  and language acquisition can help their overall critical thinking. The initiative builds on Proposition 58, a ballot initiative passed in 2016 that undid an earlier requirement that English learners be taught in English-immersion classes unless their parents signed waivers. Torlakson recently visited Mexico and met with that countrys education secretary. They later signed a pact to increase collaboration, particularly in language education. This [Global California 2030] is great follow-through on Toms part and very important, Patricia Gandara, a UCLA education professor who hosted the Mexico meeting, said in an email. It hands over a plan to move forward in an area in which California has a unique advantage, but must seize the opportunity. Facebook

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Jury convicts man of murder in 2015 slaying of UCLA student found inside her burning apartment By Marisa Gerber A jury on Tuesday convicted a man in the 2015 slaying of a UCLA student found dead inside her burning apartment  a gruesome stabbing case that led to a fierce rebuke of the police response amid concerns that the killing could have been prevented. The panel deliberated for about six hours before finding Alberto Medina, 24, guilty of murder, arson, burglary and animal cruelty. On Sept. 21, 2015, firefighters found the charred body of Andrea DelVesco inside her apartment after responding to the complex a block from campus. The 21-year-old student  an Austin, Texas, native known to her sorority sisters as a fearless giver who befriended others with ease  was stabbed at least 19 times, authorities said. Read More Facebook

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LAPD begins sweeping criminal probe of former USC gynecologist while urging patients to come forward By Adam Elmahrek The Los Angeles Police Department said Tuesday it is investigating 52 complaints of misconduct filed by former patients of USCs longtime campus gynecologist as detectives launch a sweeping criminal probe into the scandal that has rocked the university. LAPD detectives also made an appeal for other patients who feel mistreated to come forward, noting that thousands of students were examined by Dr. George Tyndall during his nearly 30-year career at USC. More than 410 people have contacted a university hotline about the physician since The Times revealed the allegations this month. Tyndalls behavior and practices appear to go beyond the norms of the medical profession and gynecological examinations, said Asst. Chief Beatrice Girmala. We sincerely realize that victims may have difficulty recounting such details to investigators. We are empathetic and ready to listen. Read More Facebook

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At L.A.'s only school for the deaf, parents want leaders who speak the same language By Anna M. Phillips Ever since her son was 6 months old, Juliet Hidalgo has been bringing him to the Marlton School, a low-slung building in Baldwin Hills that for generations has been a second home for deaf and hard-of-hearing students in Los Angeles. Marlton staff taught Hidalgos brother and sister, both of whom are deaf. The school was where her deaf son learned to make the signs for milk and food. Hidalgo had planned to enroll her daughter, taking advantage of a popular program that allows hearing children to learn American Sign Language alongside their deaf siblings. But after more than a decade of involvement, she and other family members are considering withdrawing their children. They are not alone. Read More Facebook

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Fueled by unlimited donations, independent groups play their biggest role yet in a California primary for governor By Ryan Menezes An unprecedented amount of money from wealthy donors, unions and corporations is flowing into the California governors race, giving independent groups  unrestricted by contribution limits  a greater say in picking the states chief executive than ever before. The groups have already spent more than $26 million through Thursday, the most ever spent by noncandidate committees in a gubernatorial primary, according to a Times analysis of campaign finance reports. California elections have always been expensive, and the future is even more expensive, said Jack Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College and a former state Republican leader. The stakes are very real. Read More Facebook

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2 hurt in Indiana middle school shooting; suspect in custody, authorities say By Associated Press Authorities say two victims in a shooting at a suburban Indianapolis school are being taken to a hospital and the lone suspect is in custody. Bryant Orem, a spokesman for the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office, said in a news release that the victims in Friday mornings attack at Noblesville West Middle School are being taken to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis and their families have been notified. He says no other information is available about the victims. Orem said the suspect is believed to have acted alone and was taken into custody. No additional information about the suspect was made public. Read More Facebook

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For new L.A. schools chief Austin Beutner, some key unions are giving no honeymoon period By Howard Blume In the less than two weeks since Austin Beutner took charge of Los Angeles schools, unions representing teachers and administrators have staged a job action and a protest. Theyve made it clear that they will not give the new superintendent the traditional honeymoon period, and they are bashing him for his wealth and lack of experience running either a school or a school district. Beutner is a billionaire investment banker with zero qualifications, local teachers union President Alex Caputo-Pearl told members in a phone alert urging them to participate in a Thursday afternoon rally in Grand Park. The board is saying that billionaires who made their money blowing institutions up and making money off it know best  not the education professionals who have dedicated our careers to working with students. Read More Facebook

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Pressure grows on Board of Trustees amid USC gynecologist scandal By Paul Pringle USCs large and powerful Board of Trustees is coming under growing pressure to provide a stronger hand as the university faces a crisis over misconduct allegations against the campus longtime gynecologist that has prompted calls for President C.L. Max Nikias to step down. Allegations that Dr. George Tyndall mistreated students during his nearly 30 years at USC have roiled the campus, with about 300 people coming forward to make reports to the university and the Los Angeles Police Department launching a criminal investigation. USC is already beginning to face what is expected to be costly litigation by women who say they were victimized by the physician. So far, the trustees to whom Nikias reports have expressed sympathy for the women who have come forward and launched an independent investigation while also publicly backing the president. Read More Facebook

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UC regents approve leaner budget for Janet Napolitano By Teresa Watanabe University of California regents on Thursday unanimously approved a leaner, more transparent budget for President Janet Napolitano, moving to address political criticism over the systems central office operations. The $876.4-million budget for 2018-19 reflects spending cuts of 2%, including reductions in staffing, travel and such systemwide programs as public service law fellowships, carbon neutrality and food security. Napolitano shifted $30 million to campuses for housing needs and $10 million to UC Riverside to support its five-year-old medical school. She also permanently redirected $8.5 million annually to help enroll more California students, as required by the state. Read More Facebook

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USCs Academic Senate calls on university president to resign after a series of scandals By Matt Hamilton The body that represents USCs faculty called on President C.L. Max Nikias to resign Wednesday in the wake of relevations that the universitys longtime gynecologist faced years of accusations of misconduct by students and colleagues at the campus health clinic. The Academic Senate took the vote late Wednesday afternoon after a fiery town hall meeting attended by more than 100 faculty members, many of whom voiced outrage over Nikias and the Board of Trustees leadership. The vote came a day after the trustees executive committee stood firmly behind Nikias, saying it has full confidence in his leadership, ethics and values. At the town hall meeting, Senate President Paul Rosenbloom said he did not think Nikias or Provost Michael Quick committed wrongdoing but that the university president deserved criticism for a lack of transparency. Read More Facebook

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Californias public universities on the way to getting a big longed-for boost in funding By Teresa Watanabe The University of California and California State University systems are poised to get major funding boosts that will help them enroll thousands of additional state students and eliminate the need for tuition increases in the coming school year. A key Assembly budget panel on Wednesday approved $117.5 million in new funds for the UC. A Senate panel approved a similar sum last week. The same committees recently approved even more funding for the Cal State system. Read More Facebook

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UC regents to scrutinize Janet Napolitanos office budget in a step toward stronger oversight By Teresa Watanabe University of California regents this week plan to scrutinize the budget of President Janet Napolitano, whose office came under political fire last year for questionable spending and murky accounting. Regents will vote on the proposed $876.4-million budget for 2018-19 during their two-day meeting, which starts Wednesday, at UC San Francisco. They also will discuss state funding, financial aid, online education and transfer student policies. Board Chairman George Kieffer said regents are stepping up to exert stronger oversight of the presidents office after a blistering state audit last year found financial problems including an unreported $175 million budget reserve. Read More Facebook

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State legislative panels approve major funding boost for Cal State By Teresa Watanabe After months of intensive lobbying, Cal State University has convinced two key legislative panels to approve funding to enroll nearly 11,000 more students, hire more faculty and expand housing aid to those without shelter this fall. An Assembly budget panel on Tuesday approved $215.7 million more for Cal State, adding to Gov. Jerry Browns proposed $92.1 million general fund increase. A Senate budget panel approved a similar increase last week. The extra funding  which went beyond Cal States own request to the Legislature of $171 million  is still subject to final budget negotiations with Brown. But the actions by the Senate and Assembly panels amount to a demand from Democrats that the governor hike higher education spending. Cal State University is the workhorse undergraduate university serving hundreds of thousands of Californians, said Assemblyman Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento), who heads the Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Education Finance. We need more graduates for the California workforce and higher education is the ticket to the middle class. Cal State Chancellor Timothy P. White hailed the actions, but said it was too soon to celebrate. The CSU has a singular focus on helping students earn high-quality degrees sooner, and the entire university community has rallied to reinforce that message to our states lawmakers, he said in a statement. The actions taken thus far by the Assembly and Senate are promising and show that our message is being received, but there is still work to be done. Funding for the University of California was not taken up Tuesday as originally scheduled. McCarty would not comment on sticking points but said he was confident that a resolution would be reached this week. Were looking to provide resources above whats in the governors budget, but negotiations are ongoing, he said in an interview. State per-student funding is not what it once was, leaving both Cal State and the UC in a tough financial squeeze. Both systems raised tuition last year after a six-year freeze on higher costs. For this year, Cal State had asked for funding to enroll an additional 3,621 students, but both the Senate and Assembly panels approved three times that amount. Cal State, the largest public university system in the nation, turned away 32,000 eligible students last year because its campuses werent able to accommodate them. The panels asked that at least $50 million of the extra funding be used to hire more tenure-track faculty to help boost graduation rates. The Assembly panel also approved one-time funding of $5 million to ease hunger on campuses and $14 million for rapid rehousing pilot projects at three campuses, offering needy students rental support and short-term case management. Other items approved include $5 million to support the CSU Long Beach Shark Labs research on sharks and beach safety and $2 million for equal employment opportunity practices. This post has been updated to include comments from Assemblyman Kevin McCarty and Cal State Chancellor Timothy P. White. Facebook

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Faculty members call for USC president to step down: He has lost the moral authority to lead By Matt Hamilton Two hundred USC professors on Tuesday demanded the resignation of university President C. L. Max Nikias, saying he had lost the moral authority to lead in the wake of revelations that a campus gynecologist was kept on staff for decades despite repeated complaints of misconduct. Read More Facebook

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Gun battle, negotiations lasted 15 minutes before Texas school shooter was apprehended, sheriff says By Molly Hennessy-Fiske Minutes after a school shooter opened fire in an art class last week, killing 10 people and wounding 13, including a local police officer, fellow officers returned fire in a protracted gun battle before isolating the suspect, the local sheriff said Monday. Galveston County Sheriff Henry Trochesset praised first responders as well as Santa Fe Police Officer John Barnes, who was working as a resource officer at the school the day of the shooting. Their actions, he said, prevented the attack from spreading to other classrooms and potentially claiming additional victims. As officials continue to probe last Fridays shooting at Santa Fe High School, students are worried about returning to the scene of the attack when classes resume next week. Read More Facebook

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6 women sue USC, alleging they were victimized by campus gynecologist By Richard Winton Six women filed civil lawsuits Monday alleging that a longtime gynecologist at the University of Southern California sexually victimized them under the pretext of medical care and that USC failed to address complaints from clinic staff about the doctors behavior. One woman alleged Dr. George Tyndall forced his entire ungloved hand into her vagina during an appointment in 2003 while making vulgar remarks about her genitalia, according to one of the lawsuits. Another woman alleged that Tyndall groped her breasts in a 2008 visit and that later he falsely told her she likely had AIDS. A third woman accused the doctor of grazing his ungloved fingers over her nude body and leering at her during a purported skin exam, the lawsuit states. The wave of litigation comes as USC continues to grapple with the scandal, which legal experts said could prove costly to the university as scores of former patients come forward about their experiences with the gynecologist. Read More Facebook

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Fatalities reported in Texas high school shooting; suspect arrested, officials say By Associated Press Houston-area media citing unnamed law enforcement officials are reporting that there are fatalities following a shooting at a local high school Friday morning. Television station KHOU and the Houston Chronicle are citing unnamed federal, county and police officials following the shooting at Santa Fe High School, which went on lockdown around 8 a.m. The Associated Press has not been able to confirm the reports. The school district has confirmed an unspecified number of injuries but said it wouldnt immediately release further details. Assistant Principal Cris Richardson said a suspect has been arrested and secured. Read More Facebook

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This student followed the new L.A. schools chief on his first-day tour Melissa Barales-Lopez, a senior at Garfield High School followed Supt. Austin Beutner on his first day on the job, as he toured a variety of programs around the Los Angeles Unified School District. Heres what she took from the experience. LAUSD students and staff alike are looking for a personal champion, someone who will address and improve the difficulties afflicting their education.  What LAUSD students need is someone whos willing to listen and learn, someone who can understand the current issues affecting their schools and act to efficiently amend them, someone who can unlock the full potential of LAUSD students and enable them to reach their goals. During the entirety of his first day, superintendent Austin Beutner did indeed demonstrate a willingness to learn. Posing questions to teachers and students, Beutner engaged with the student communities he encountered to gain a better comprehension of the minutiae and nuances that distinguish each school inside an overwhelmingly large district. From inquiries about Grand View Boulevard Elementary Schools dual language program to questions regarding the services of LAUSDs after-school program, Beyond the Bell, Beutner revealed he has a lot to learn about the system. But, Beutner also showcased a willingness to tackle challenges head-on on his first day. Read More Facebook

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USC let a gynecologist continue treating students despite years of misconduct allegations By Matt Hamilton For nearly 30 years, the University of Southern Californias student health clinic had one full-time gynecologist: Dr. George Tyndall. Tall and garrulous with distinctive jet black hair, he treated tens of thousands of female students, many of them teenagers seeing a gynecologist for the first time. Few who lay down on Tyndalls exam table at the Engemann Student Health Center knew that he had been accused repeatedly of misconduct toward young patients. The complaints began in the 1990s, when co-workers alleged he was improperly photographing students genitals. In the years that followed, patients and nursing staff accused him again and again of creepy behavior, including touching women inappropriately during pelvic exams and making sexually suggestive remarks about their bodies. Read More Facebook

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Cal State trustees to discuss Browns latest budget proposal, which they say still falls $171 million short By Joy Resmovits Just how much money does California State University need to serve its students? In recent years, this question has been front and center for the nations largest public university system. Cal States leaders say that to keep their campuses quality from slipping, they need much more money than the state is giving them. This year, theyre also at odds with Gov. Jerry Brown on the question of whether any extra money should come in one-time bursts or be ongoing. Read More Facebook

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On his first day as L.A. schools chief, Beutner plans a day of visits across the district By Howard Blume L.A. Unifieds new superintendent, Austin Beutner, will kick off his first day of work on Tuesday with a choreographed tour of the nations second-largest school district, from the San Fernando Valley to Carson. His day is scheduled to begin at 5:15 a.m. at a school bus depot and end more than 12 hours later at a parent meeting at Garfield High School. Along the way, Beutner is expected to be joined by school district administrators, L.A. Unified board members and the vice president of the union that represents school bus drivers. Though he will be covering a lot of ground, Beutners tour has him skipping Tuesdays school board meeting, when board members are expected to discuss labor negotiations in closed session. Read More Facebook

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Cal State trustees to discuss Browns latest budget proposal, which they say still falls $171 million short By Joy Resmovits Just how much money does California State University need to serve its students? In recent years, this question has been front and center for the nations largest public university system. Cal States leaders say that to keep their campuses quality from slipping, they need much more money than the state is giving them. This year, theyre also at odds with Gov. Jerry Brown on the question of whether any extra money should come in one-time bursts or be ongoing. Read More Facebook

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Why a handful of rich charter school supporters are spending millions to elect Antonio Villaraigosa as governor By Ryan Menezes California voters have seen a barrage of sunny television ads in recent weeks touting former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosas record on finances, crime and education, aired by Families & Teachers for Antonio Villaraigosa for Governor 2018. But the group is, in fact, largely funded by a handful of wealthy charter-school supporters. Together they have spent more than $13 million in less than a month to boost Villaraigosas chances in the June 5 primary  at a time when his fundraising and poll numbers are lagging. Reed Hastings, the founder of Netflix, jump-started the group with a $7-million check, by far the largest donation to support any candidate in the election. Their efforts are part of a broader proxy war among Democrats between teachers unions  longtime stalwarts of the party  and those who argue that the groups have failed low-income and minority schoolchildren. Read More Facebook

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Talking schools with L.A. Unifieds new superintendent By Anna M. Phillips Austin Beutner, who officially starts Tuesday as the new superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, is taking on a famously difficult job at a particularly difficult time. The school board is divided and did not back him unanimously. The nations second-largest school district has deep-seated problems, including declining enrollment, lagging academic achievement and rising pension and healthcare costs that eat away at its budget. The 58-year-old former investment banker and former L.A. Times publisher has years of experience in the financial world but none as an educator. Earlier this week, he sat down with the Times education team to discuss the challenges facing the district, which has about 60,000 employees and 500,000 students in traditional public schools. He did not talk about his plans  saying repeatedly, stay tuned  but he spoke in broad terms about his mindset in approaching the tough decisions ahead. Read More Facebook

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Suspect detained, authorities search campus after reports of armed man at Palmdale high school By James Queally One person has been detained after a report of an armed man at a Palmdale high school sparked a massive law enforcement response Friday morning. The suspect was spotted at 7:05 a.m. on the campus of Highland High School in Palmdale, according to Sheriffs Department spokeswoman Nicole Nishida. The person was detained in a nearby parking lot, according to Nishida, who did not know whether that person was an adult or juvenile. Deputies at the scene are clearing the school methodically, and students will be transported home via school buses once the campus is deemed safe, Nishida said. Read More Facebook

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The education of Bertha Perez: How a UC Merced custodians disenchantment led to a political awakening By Robin Abcarian Its the third day of a three-day strike, and UC Merced custodian Bertha Perez is taking a break from a picket line at the universitys unremarkable entrance, an intersection with stop lights. Photos from other UC campuses this week have shown big crowds of striking service workers  members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees  marching and chanting pro-labor slogans as they try to force the University of California back to the negotiating table. But here, at UC Merced, whose handful of big buildings rise from a flat expanse of farmland, the picket line is tiny, maybe two dozen workers and a few students. Its not a big-city-style show of force. Then again, a union sympathizer is banging relentlessly on a snare drum, so its noisier than youd expect. Read More Facebook

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Ref Rodriguez resigns from teacher credentialing commission By Howard Blume Ref Rodriguez appears during a court appearance. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times) Los Angeles school board member Ref Rodriguez has resigned from the states Commission on Teacher Credentialing, which oversees the integrity and quality of Californias teachers. Rodriguez faces felony and misdemeanor charges for political money laundering. Separately, his former employer, a charter school organization, has accused him of improperly authorizing checks to a nonprofit under his control. Rodriguez has denied wrongdoing. Rodriguezs resignation from the state body was effective May 4, days after he cast a crucial vote as part of a narrow majority that voted to authorize contract negotiations with Austin Beutner to become superintendent of the L.A. Unified School District. Beutners first official day on the job is Tuesday. Rodriguez remains in his $125,000-a-year position on the Los Angeles Board of Education. The mission of the state body is to ensure integrity, relevance, and high quality in the preparation, certification, and discipline of Californias teachers. Critics had questioned Rodriguezs continued service on the commission, given that teachers can be suspended from work if they face criminal charges. They also can lose their jobs for lapses in personal behavior, such as excessive drinking, with the potential to affect their performance. Police in Pasadena arrested Rodriguez on a Friday afternoon in March for public drunkenness. He was not charged in the incident and has apologized. The state commission reviews teacher discipline cases and can take action to remove a teachers credential to work in a California classroom. The commission has 15 members. Rodriguezs departure was disclosed in a one-sentence announcement on the agencys website. Facebook

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School board members request for restraining order against blogger is rejected By Priscella Vega An Orange County Superior Court judge on Wednesday denied a school board members petition for a permanent restraining order against a Huntington Beach blogger. Attorney Jeffrey W. Shields filed the petition on behalf of Ocean View School District trustee Gina Clayton-Tarvin, 46, who alleged in court documents that Charles Keeler Johnson, 56, has threatened her on social media and at school board meetings, causing her to fear for my own safety and for that of my immediate family members. Johnson, who goes by Chuck and publishes HBSledgehammer.com, said the trustee tried to stifle his freedom of speech. He also contended that Clayton-Tarvin took his blog posts and Facebook comments too seriously and out of context, saying anyone who is afraid of metaphors has serious issues. Read More Facebook

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Deal with workers averts one-day strike that could have shut down L.A. schools By Howard Blume Los Angeles school district and union officials announced a contract agreement Tuesday night that averted a one-day strike planned for next week. The pact, which runs through June 2020, removes one labor problem from the desk of incoming Supt. Austin Beutner  whose first day on the job would have coincided with the strike. Plenty of other challenges remain. Read More Facebook

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UC labor strike expands with show of support from more unions By Teresa Watanabe Fong Chuu is a registered nurse who has assisted with countless liver transplants, kidney surgeries and gastric bypasses during 34 years at UCLA. Working with her are scrub technicians who sterilize equipment, hand medical instruments to the surgeon and dress patient wounds. They are a team, Chuu says, which is why she walked off her job Tuesday in support of those technicians and other members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299. The 25,000 member AFSCME local, the University of Californias largest employee union, launched a three-day strike Monday. Read More Facebook

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We are humans too: Voices of UCLAs striking custodians, hospital aides and imaging technicians By Joy Resmovits Demonstrators parade in front of Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) This week, thousands of UC employees are staging a three-day strike for better pay and working conditions. On Monday, more than 20,000 custodians, cooks, lab technicians, nurse aides and other members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299 walked off their jobs. By Tuesday, two more unions joined in sympathy strikes. The union and UC reached a bargaining impasse last year. The university has said it wont meet the workers demands. The strikers said they wanted better pay, more equity in the allocation of work, stable healthcare premiums and an end to the universitys use of contract workers. These are their stories. Read More Facebook

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Massive UC workers strike disrupts dining, classes and medical services By Joy Resmovits A massive labor strike across the University of California on Monday forced medical centers to reschedule more than 12,000 surgeries, cancer treatments and appointments, and campuses to cancel some classes and limit dining services. More than 20,000 members of UCs largest employee union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299, walked off their jobs on the first day of a three-day strike. They include custodians, gardeners, cooks, truck drivers, lab technicians and nurse aides. Two altercations involving protesters and people driving near the rallies were reported at UCLA and UC Santa Cruz. At UCLA, police took a man into custody Monday after he drove his vehicle into a crowd, hitting three staff members. They were treated for minor injuries at the scene and released, said Lt. Kevin Kilgore of the UCLA Police Department. Read More Facebook

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Sen. Kamala Harris to skip UC Berkeley commencement in support of striking workers By Teresa Watanabe California Sen. Kamala Harris has canceled plans to deliver UC Berkeleys commencement address this weekend in support of UC workers who are on strike over wages and health benefits. Due to the ongoing labor dispute, Sen. Harris regretfully cannot attend and speak at this years commencement ceremony at UC Berkeley, said a statement from Harris office issued Monday. She wishes the graduates and their families a joyous commencement weekend and success for the future. They are bright young leaders and our country is counting on them. UCs largest employee union, the 25,000-member American Federation of County, State and Municipal Employees Local 3299, launched a three-day strike Monday and had earlier called for a speakers boycott. The union and university reached a bargaining impasse last year and subsequent mediation efforts have failed to produce an agreement. The union is asking for a multiyear contract with a 6% annual pay increase while the university is offering 3% annual increases over four years. UC Berkeley Chancellor Carol Christ will deliver the keynote address instead, the university announced. About 5,800 students are expected to participate in the ceremony Saturday. Facebook

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School mural depicting Trumps bloody, severed head sparks controversy By Gary Warth A Chula Vista school mural that depicts the bloody, severed head of President Trump on a spear sparked a controversy that prompted officials to cover it and issue a response distancing themselves from the work. The statement also said the artist will alter the painting. We understand that there was a mural painted at the event this past weekend that does not align with our schools philosophy of non-violence, read the statement from MAAC Community Charter School director Tommy Ramirez. We have been in communication with the artist  who has agreed to modify the artwork  to better align with the schools philosophy. Read More Facebook

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New blackface incident at Cal Poly prompts calls for state investigation By Kim Christensen Cal Poly San Luis Obispo officials have asked the state attorney generals office to investigate after a new photo of a white student in blackface surfaced on a fraternity groups private Snapchat. I am outraged, Cal Poly President Jeffrey D. Armstrong said in a video address Friday to the campus. These vile and absolutely unacceptable acts cannot continue. We must not allow these acts to define us as an institution. Armstrong said the latest photo was intended to imitate an incident last month in which a white member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity was photographed at a party wearing blackface. Read More Facebook

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More than 50,000 UC workers set to strike this week but campuses will remain open By Teresa Watanabe More than 50,000 workers across the University of California are set to strike this week, causing potential disruptions to surgery schedules, food preparation and campus maintenance. The systems 10 campuses and five medical centers are to remain open, with classes scheduled as planned. UCs largest employee union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299, plans to begin a three-day strike Monday involving 25,000 workers, including custodians, gardeners, cooks, truck drivers, lab technicians and nurse aides. Read More Facebook

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New L.A. schools chief Beutner pledges to listen, learn and take action By Howard Blume New Los Angeles schools Supt. Austin Beutner proved Wednesday that hes a quick learner even without an education background. Like countless public officials before him, he appeared at an important event  his first speech and news conference  with a photogenic background of students. His message  that he would put those students first  seemed heartfelt if hardly original. Nor was it a huge surprise that he pledged to push cooperatively but unflinchingly to improve the districts academic performance and stabilize its finances. As an introduction, Beutner, a former investment banker who made a fortune on Wall Street, offered little flash, but that was partly the point. Read More Facebook

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In a school lockdown, one student takes stock of the stressful scene At the beginning of lunch one day late last month, Duarte High School, Northview Middle School, and California School of the Arts-San Gabriel Valley were advised by the Los Angeles Sheriffs Department to go into lockdown mode due to police activity in the immediate area. Phalaen Chang, a junior at the California School of the Arts, wrote a series of notes on her iPhone while she sat in a room with her classmates. By the time the lockdown ended an hour later, she wrote, she knew which of her friends would hold open the door for others, be the ones calming others down, be the ones barricading the doors. She knew that all of them have the potential to be such strong people. Read More Facebook

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Tale as old as time: L.A. Unified superintendent pick follows a historical pattern of outside-the-box choices By Joy Resmovits L.A. Unified has long gone back and forth between picking insiders and outsiders to run the nations second largest school district. The choice of Austin Beutner, announced Tuesday, places the district squarely back in the outsider camp  months after a consummate insider, Supt. Michelle King, announced that she had cancer and would not return to the job. Check out this timeline of former L.A. superintendents to see how the school board members have changed their minds, sometimes favoring leaders who come from the world of education and sometimes executives from elsewhere, recruited to shock the system into change. At one point, the district hired someone from the military  retired Navy Vice Adm. David L. Brewer III, who served as superintendent from 2006-2008. In hiring Brewer, board members had opted for a non-educator  largely because they sought a fresh thinker, unwedded to the bureaucracy, unafraid to make bold, even unorthodox moves, reads a 2008 Times story. Facebook

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Austin Beutner named superintendent of Los Angeles schools By Howard Blume Austin Beutner, a philanthropist and former investment banker, on Tuesday was named superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, the nations second-largest school system. His selection was the biggest move yet by a Los Angeles school board majority elected with major support from charter school advocates. The decision came after lengthy public testimony, most of it in support of the other remaining finalist, interim Supt. Vivian Ekchian, who is well known within the school system. Beutner, 58, has no background leading a school or school district. Less than 2 years ago, a school board with a very different balance of power named Michelle King, a former teacher who rose through the district throughout her career, to L.A. Unifieds top job. Read More Facebook

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Hearing delay gives both sides more time in Ref Rodriguezs potential trial By Howard Blume Ref Rodriguez and his attorneys will have more time to prepare their defense against charges of political money laundering, a judge ruled Monday. The preliminary hearing in the case had been scheduled to begin May 9, but that date will now be pushed back to July 23 per the ruling from L.A. Superior Court Judge Deborah S. Brazil. Rodriguez, 46, faces three felony charges of conspiracy, perjury and procuring and offering a false or forged instrument, as well as 25 misdemeanor counts related to the alleged campaign money laundering. Read More Facebook

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L.A. school board poised to name Beutner as superintendent By Howard Blume The Los Angeles Board of Education is poised to select philanthropist and former investment banker Austin Beutner to be the next superintendent of the nations second-largest school system. Barring a last-minute development, the only mystery is whether Beutner emerges with four or five votes from the boards seven members. Terms of his contract already have been under discussion, according to sources close to the process who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak. The selection of Beutner, 58, who has no experience managing a school or a school district, would be a signal that the board majority that took control nearly a year ago wants to rely on business management skills instead of insider educational expertise. Read More Facebook

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Teacher walkouts in Arizona and Colorado continue national debate on money for schools By Michael Livingston Following the lead of teachers who walked off the job in other states in recent weeks, thousands of teachers and their supporters took to the streets in Arizona and Colorado for the second day in a row to demand better pay and more funding for education. Read More Facebook

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Three decades before the #MeToo movement, UC San Diego led the way against sexual assault By Teresa Watanabe When Nancy Wahlig first started her fight against sexual assault, one company was marketing a capsule for women to stash in their bras and then smash to release a vile odor. Because of the very nature of society, the only person who can prevent rape is the woman herself, read a 1981 advertisement for the Repulse rape deterrent. Ideas about how to prevent sexual violence have come a long way since then, and Wahlig has helped lead that evolution on college campuses. In 1988, she started UC San Diegos Sexual Assault Resource Center (SARC), the first stand-alone program at the University of California. Today, she remains the systems most senior specialist. Read More Facebook

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Andres Alonso withdraws from consideration for L.A. schools job By Howard Blume Andres Alonso, believed to be one of three remaining finalists to lead the Los Angeles school system, has withdrawn from consideration. The remaining known candidates in the confidential search are former investment banker Austin Beutner and interim Supt. Vivian Ekchian. Alonso, 60, announced his decision on Twitter on Thursday night, saying he had notified the L.A. Unified School District on Monday. The exit of Alonso, the former Baltimore schools chief, seems to solidify the front-runner status of Beutner, who also was a former L.A. Times publisher and a Los Angeles deputy mayor. He held each of those positions for about a year. Read More Facebook

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Heres why the apparent increase in autism spectrum disorders may be good for U.S. children By Karen Kaplan The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder among American children continues to rise, new government data suggest. And that may be a good thing. Among 11 sites across the U.S. where records of 8-year-olds are scrutinized in detail, 1 in 59 kids was deemed to have ASD in 2014. Thats up from 1 in 68 in 2012. Normally, health officials would prefer to see less of a disease, not more of it. But in this case, the higher number is probably a sign that more children of color who are on the autism spectrum are being recognized as such and getting services to help them, according to a report published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Read More Facebook

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UC shelves tuition increase for now, in hopes of getting more state funding By Teresa Watanabe University of California regents will not vote on a tuition increase next month, shelving the plan for now in hopes that state lawmakers will come through with more funding. Raising tuition is always a last resort and one we take very seriously, UC President Janet Napolitano said Thursday in a statement. We will continue to advocate with our students who are doing a tremendous job of educating legislators about the necessity of adequately funding the university to ensure UC remains a world-class institution and engine of economic growth for our state. Last week, Cal State Chancellor Timothy P. White said the 23-campus system no longer would consider a plan to raise tuition for the 2018-19 academic year. But unlike Cal State, UC officials have not taken a tuition increase off the table entirely. Read More Facebook

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A chemical spill, unchecked eyewash stations, poor training: Audit details Cal States lax lab safety By Joy Resmovits In May 2016, two bottles tumbled off a poorly supported shelf and broke, leading to a chemical spill in a Sacramento State University lab. The liquid got onto one students legs and soaked anothers feet. Five employees cleaned up the mess, even though no one knew for sure what it was and whether it was dangerous. They called fellow employee Kim Harrington, their union representative, to let her know what happened. Read More Facebook

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After blackface incident, minority students at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo say they dont feel welcome By Hailey Branson-Potts Aaliyah Ramos was walking through the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo campus last year when a prospective student approached her. Ramos was the only black person, the young woman said, that she and her mother had seen that day. They asked about the quality of education and the diversity of the student body. Ramos, a mechanical engineering student, didnt want to sugarcoat the truth: Cal Poly long has been predominantly white. But she told the young woman  who also was black  that she didnt want to discourage her from applying, because that wouldnt help with diversity at a school where only 0.7% of students are African American  the lowest percentage of any university in the California State system. Read More Facebook

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El Camino Real Charter High School in Woodland Hills wins the 2018 U.S. Academic Decathlon By Carlos Lozano El Camino Real Charter High School in Woodland Hills has won the 2018 U.S. Academic Decathlon, officials said. The winner was announced early Saturday at a ceremony in Frisco, Texas. More than 600 students from the U.S., Canada, China and the United Kingdom gathered there over the last three days to compete in the 37th annual U.S. Academic Decathlon. Congratulations to El Camino Real Charter High School for another impressive victory, said Vivian Ekchian, interim superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District. Your academic stamina and competitive spirit to win is remarkable. The entire L.A. Unified family is so proud of you. Read More Facebook

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Anticipation mounts as L.A. school board meets over superintendent selection By Howard Blume The Los Angeles Board of Education is reconvening in closed session Friday at noon as anticipation mounts about the choice of the next leader of the nations second-largest school system. The presumed front-runner is former investment banker and philanthropist Austin Beutner, but interim Supt. Vivian Ekchian and former Baltimore Supt. Andres Alonso also are in the running. Most district insiders appear to be rooting for Ekchian, who has spent her entire career in education within the school system. After her 10 years as a teacher, her roles have included head of human resources, chief labor negotiator and regional administrator for campuses in the west San Fernando Valley. Shes managed the district since September, when then-Supt. Michelle King went on medical leave and chose Ekchian to fill in for her. King, who is battling cancer, never returned and announced her retirement in January. Numerous influential civic leaders have urged  and pressured  the board to select Beutner. Also lending their weight have been advocates for charter schools, which are independently operated, growing in number and competing for students with district-operated campuses. Four of the seven board members  enough to control the outcome  were elected with major financial support from charter supporters. Beutner has two ongoing connections with the L.A. Unified School District. The first is his leadership of an outside task force that is making recommendations on how to improve the school system. The second is his charity, Vision to Learn, which supplies glasses to low-income students. The charity and the school system are in a dispute at the moment over who is responsible for delays in providing services to students as part of a $6 million contract, half of which is paid for by L.A. Unified. Unlike Ekchian and Buetner, Alonso, who currently teaches at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, has no deep-seated local constituency, but the prospect of his selection has generated some excitement. While in Baltimore, Alonso was recognized for pushing for progress at low-performing schools, and for being willing to take strong action. While in Baltimore, he also weathered a test-score cheating scandal and occasionally rocky relations with the teachers union. But by the time he resigned, after six years, he and union leaders seemed to be working together without rancor. Leaders of some community groups have split from the pro-Beutner camp. They worry that Beutners approach to confronting the districts financial problems could shut out their voices or involve severe economic cutbacks that would undermine programs that are helping students. Some prefer Ekchian; some Alonso. Theyve been reluctant to speak out publicly because theyll have to work with whoever is selected, but they have tried to get the ear of board members. On Friday morning, one leader of a community group decided to come out in favor of Alonso. L.A. Unified has the opportunity to bring in an instructional leader of color with a history of success, said Alberto Retana, president and chief executive of Community Coalition, which works on behalf of low-income students and families in South Los Angeles. If we have a shot at that, we should go for it  because its in the best interests of our kids and of our community. Retana said his statement was not meant to criticize Beutner or Ekchian but to alert board members that there also is community support for Alonso. Facebook

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Cal State leader shelves proposed tuition hike: Its the right thing to do, but its not without risk By Joy Resmovits Cal State, the nations largest public university system, will no longer consider a plan to raise tuition for the 2018-19 academic year, Chancellor Timothy P. White announced Friday. The decision is a bet that Sacramento will come through in the end. If Cal State loses that bet, it could mean cuts to campus programs. White said in an interview that Californias economy is strong enough that families should not be shouldering the burden of higher college costs. Read More Facebook

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L.A. students to participate in national walkout activities on Friday By Joy Resmovits Students are taking to the streets again Friday to protest gun violence on the 19th anniversary of the Columbine school shooting. Starting at 10 a.m., students at many schools will spend 13 seconds honoring the 13 people  12 students and one teacher  killed on that day in Littleton, Colo. After that, theyll participate in a host of different activities. Within L.A. Unified, one school is having an open-mic event for students to talk about school violence, and lawmakers are visiting campuses to hear students thoughts. According to a central hub for organizing the protests  written by the students of Ridgefield High School in Connecticut  the walkouts are intended to drive the political change necessary to curb school violence. The day is also a time for students to interact on an elevated platform they have never had before, the site states. It is a day of discourse and thoughtful sharing. Bringing together communities and students to get a national discussion rolling. Organizers have suggested using the event to convey the importance of curbing gun violence to legislators. They are encouraging students to push legislation that would ban assault weapons and tighten up rules around who can buy guns and how. Over 2,500 schools nationwide are expected to participate. In L.A., some students  at campuses including Eagle Rock High School, the Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts and Bravo Medical Magnet  plan to walk out. Students from various schools expect to join area marches, including those in Santa Monica and Huntington Park. Other schools are hosting career days and voter registration drives. At 1 p.m., students plan to start a rally in front of L.A. Unified headquarters. For the record: An earlier version of this article stated that 12 teachers and one student were killed in the Columbine shooting. The opposite is true: twelve students and one teacher died. Facebook

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Stabbing of popular student devastates South El Monte High School; teen friend suspected in slaying By Sonali Kohli When administrators at South El Monte High School called Jeremy Sanchezs parents to say he never showed up for class Wednesday, his father began to worry. It was unusual for the 17-year-old junior to miss school, so his father filed a missing persons report and assembled two of Jeremys close friends to look for the popular student-athlete. Their search took them to a scenic stretch of the San Gabriel River Trail, where one of the friends  a 16-year-old boy  made a tragic discovery. Among the bushes in the riverbed near Thienes Avenue and Parkway Drive was Jeremys body, punctured with stab wounds, according to Lt. John Corina of the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department. Read More Facebook

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Racist fliers spark outrage at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo By Alene Tchekmedyian Soon after Neal MacDougall arrived on the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo campus Tuesday, the professor noticed university police standing outside a restroom near his office. A racial slur against African Americans had been scrawled in red marker on a stall wall. Later, he discovered a series of racist fliers pinned up next to his door. Someone had also slashed posters hed hung outside his office supporting students in the country illegally. The discovery was the latest controversy on the prestigious campus  which the president said is less than 55% white  that MacDougall said demonstrates a culture of racism at the university. Last week, photographs emerged of white fraternity members, including one in blackface, flashing gang signs. Read More Facebook

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The superintendent waiting game, paying for L.A.'s College Promise, Princetons slave history: Whats new in education By Joy Resmovits Acting LAUSD superintendent Vivian Ekchian is a finalist for the permanent job. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) In and around Los Angeles: The L.A. Unified school board spent 10 hours interviewing and discussing candidates for superintendent. When they adjourned after 10 p.m., they said they would reconvene on Friday. Who is paying for Mayor Eric Garcettis much-touted College Promise, a program that promises two years of community college for LAUSD grads? In California: The Legislature is considering a proposal that would boost K-12 education funding for black students. When the cost of living is taken into account, California has the highest rate of child poverty. Nationwide: The families of two children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School are suing Alex Jones and Infowars for saying the school massacre never occurred. Princeton will name two spaces  an arch and a garden  after slaves who lived or worked on the campus. Facebook

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L.A. school board meets privately with finalists and debates choice for school district leader By Howard Blume The Los Angeles Board of Education adjourned late Tuesday after spending more than 10 hours interviewing candidates and trying to reach a decision on who would be the next leader of the nations second-largest school system. When the meeting finally recessed at 10:11 p.m., a spokesman announced only that the school board would reconvene Friday at noon. Going into the days meetings, there were apparently four finalists, according to sources who could not be named because they were unauthorized to speak. Read More Facebook

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Two Sandy Hook families sue Alex Jones and Infowars for saying the school massacre never happened By David Altimari Families of two children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School have filed lawsuits in Texas against controversial radio host Alex Jones for continually claiming the massacre never happened. Neil Heslin, the father of Jesse Lewis, and Leonard Pozner and Veronique De La Rosa, whose son Noah Pozner died in the massacre, filed separate lawsuits late Monday in Travis County, Texas. The lawsuits allege that Jones defamed the parents by constantly calling them crisis actors and insisting the shooting was a false flag operation; they also claim Jones accusations have led to death threats against the Sandy Hook families by Jones followers. Read More Facebook

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Beutner emerges as a top pick for L.A. schools superintendent amid last-minute jockeying By Howard Blume Austin Beutner has emerged as a leading contender to run the Los Angeles school district, with backers saying he is smart enough and tough enough to confront its financial and academic struggles. Though he does not have a background in education, the former investment banker has in the last year examined some of the districts intractable problems, serving as co-chair of an outside task force with the support of then-Supt. Michelle King. Sources inside and outside the school district said Beutner appears to have more support on the seven-member board than other finalists, and his name could come up for a vote as early as Tuesday. Read More Facebook

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Challenge at Chicago school construction site: Watch for 38,000 unmarked graves By Nereida Moreno A 15-year effort to build a school in Chicagos Dunning neighborhood is underway with an unusual complication: Construction workers are taking careful steps to avoid disturbing human remains that may lie beneath the soil. The $70-million school is to be built on the grounds of a former Cook County Poor House, where an estimated 38,000 people were buried in unmarked graves. Among the dead are residents who were too poor to afford funeral costs, unclaimed bodies and patients from the countys insane asylum. There can be and there have been bodies found all over the place, said Barry Fleig, a genealogist and cemetery researcher who began investigating the site in 1989. Its a spooky, scary place. Read More Facebook

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Oklahoma teacher walkout winds down despite lawmakers failure to meet demands By Washington Post Oklahomas largest teachers union has announced an end to a walkout that has drawn thousands of educators out of classrooms and to the state Capitol demanding greater investment in the states schools, which have endured the nations steepest funding cuts. The announcement Thursday from the Oklahoma Education Assn. does not necessarily end the protests at the Capitol, as teachers not affiliated with the union vowed to stay longer. Instead of a walkout, the union and school districts across the state have said they plan to send delegations of teachers to Oklahoma City to keep the pressure on lawmakers. Teachers and their supporters have also promised to push education issues to the forefront of November elections, when the state chooses a new governor. As school districts begin to reopen, the protests may lose steam. The Legislature is not in session Friday, and observers are waiting to see what happens Monday, when lawmakers return. Read More Facebook

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Most Californians are worried about school shooting threats and oppose arming teachers, survey finds By Joy Resmovits Hamilton High School student Aiyana Dabriel holds a sign during a March 14 walkout in support of the Parkland shooting victims. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) Most Californians are worried that a school shooting like the one that occurred in Parkland, Fla., in February could shed blood closer to home, a new survey found. Some 73% percent of adults and 82% of public school parents said they were very concerned or somewhat concerned about school shootings. The Public Policy Institute of California surveyed 1,704 adults in the state by phone just after the March for Our Lives protest against gun violence. Latino and black respondents were significantly more likely to be concerned about school violence than white or Asian respondents, the institute found. Two-thirds of adults and public school parents said they opposed letting more educators carry weapons in school. The response differed across party lines, with 86% of Democrats and 69% of independents voicing their opposition, while 60% percent of Republicans said they would support a measure to arm educators. The poll, which had a margin of error of 3.2% in either direction, also asked Californians about school funding, educational issues in the governors race and the impact of immigration enforcement on students. You can find the full results here. Facebook

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Californias largest virtual charter school network agrees to contract with its teachers By Anna M. Phillips Nearly four years after teachers at Californias largest online charter school voted to unionize, they have reached a deal to increase pay and create job protections, according to a spokesman for the California Teachers Assn. The contract, which is still tentative and subject to ratification, is a victory for the teachers union. Although charter schools are publicly funded, most are privately managed and their employees arent protected by labor contracts. Under the terms of the contract  the result of years of negotiation and legal wrangling  approximately 500 teachers working for California Virtual Academies will no longer be at-will employees who can be dismissed for almost any reason. Their average salary will rise to just over $45,000, according to union estimates, a figure that remains far below the norm for traditional public school teachers. Still, it is an improvement over the previous average of $38,000. The accord also places a limit on the number of students each teacher is responsible for monitoring in online homeroom classes. Were very satisfied with the gains we made, said teacher Brianna Carroll, president of California Virtual Educators United. I think were going to see some extraordinary changes in our schools. According to Carroll, teachers at California Virtual Academies  better known as CAVA  had grown frustrated with the organizations foot-dragging and were making preparations to go on strike when CAVAs leadership agreed to the deal. CAVA and K12, the Virginia-based for-profit company linked to its schools, did not immediately respond to an email Tuesday asking for comment. The network currently operates nine virtual charter schools across California. In 2016, the charter network agreed to pay $8.5 million to settle claims of false advertising, misleading parents and inadequate instruction. The state attorney generals office had also accused K12 of controlling the charters for its own financial benefit. Neither CAVA nor K12 admitted to wrongdoing in the settlement. A year later, the state imposed a $2-million fine on CAVA after an audit found that it had misspent public funds. The network disputed the findings. Facebook

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School board approves a new formula for funding high-need schools By Sonali Kohli L.A. schools will soon get more money if they are located in neighborhoods with such problems as high levels of gun violence and asthma. The Los Angeles Unified school board voted unanimously Tuesday to adopt a new formula to determine how to dole out some funding to schools, based not only on the characteristics of the student populations but on the traumas that affect the communities around campuses. The new formula will be applied to $25 million in funding next fiscal year and about $263 million annually in future years  a small part of the districts $7.5 billion annual budget. Read More Facebook

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Protesters demand Ref Rodriguez resignation outside school board meeting By Sonali Kohli Students, parents, teachers and UTLA marching outside the board meeting chanting "Ref resign" pic.twitter.com/W0LRWZSIXY  Sonali Kohli  (@Sonali_Kohli) April 10, 2018 A few dozen parents, students and teachers marched outside the Los Angeles Unified School Board meeting Tuesday, some calling for board member Ref Rodriguez to resign the week after news broke that he was taken into custody on suspicion of being drunk in public at a Pasadena bar and restaurant. Rodriguez was not cited or charged in that incident, but was held for more than five and a half hours before being released. The school board member faces felony and misdemeanor charges for political money laundering. He is accused of getting more than two dozen people people to donate to his campaign for his school board seat with the understanding that he would reimburse them. He stepped down from his post as school board president after he was charged last fall, but he did not give up his seat on the board. He has pleaded not guilty to three felony counts of conspiracy, perjury, and procuring and offering a false or forged instrument, as well as 25 misdemeanor counts related to the alleged campaign money laundering. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May. He cant give his full focus to our students, said Rebecca LaFond, a Highland Park parent whose three children marched with her as she chanted, Ref resign. One daughter marched in front of her, using a drum stick to hit the bottom of a gallon-size empty water jug. Our kids deserve someone who has the utmost ethical standards representing them, LaFond said. The protests continued into the board meeting, where some addressed Rodriguez directly, calling on him to step down during public comment portions of the meeting. Rodriguez, through his chief of staff, declined to comment. Some parents outside the board meeting did not know about the charges against Rodriguez but came out to protest the possibility of sharing their school campuses with charter schools. Protesters also oppose colocation  not all of the parents are here to ask Ref Rodriguez to step down pic.twitter.com/1Co8zQ9zSi  Sonali Kohli  (@Sonali_Kohli) April 10, 2018 Cynthia Martinez said her son, who goes to Christopher Dena Elementary School in Boyle Heights, has been bullied in the past by students from a charter school sharing the campus. She said she didnt know who Rodriguez was. Some parents and teachers are worried about losing computer labs, robotics rooms and fitness centers if they are required to share their campus with charter schools, said Ilse Escobar, a parent community organizer for United Teachers Los Angeles. The issues of Rodriguez and colocation are related, Escobar said. Rodriguez is part of a majority on the school board elected with financial backing from charter school supporters, and many parents, she said, feel that the school board is compromised if he is a part of it. Staff reporter Howard Blume contributed to this post. Facebook

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Delaine Eastin tries to gain momentum in the California governors race, one voter at a time By Seema Mehta Delaine Eastin was a sophomore in high school when a drama teacher urged her to try out for a part in The Man Who Came to Dinner. She hesitated until he told her: This is a metaphor for your whole life. If you never try out, you will never get the part. Eastin auditioned and won the role. Decades later, the advice sticks with the former state schools chief, this time in her unlikely run for governor. Despite calls for more women in leadership roles in state politics following sexual misconduct allegations in Sacramento, Eastin has been largely overlooked in the race, lagging far behind her Democratic rivals in fundraising and the polls. Read More Facebook

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Arizona high court rejects in-state tuition for DACA recipients By Associated Press Young immigrants granted deferred deportation status under a program started by President Obama are not eligible for lower in-state college tuition, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Monday. The unanimous ruling will affect at least 2,000 students attending the states largest community college district and hundreds more at other colleges and the states three public universities. The Maricopa County Community Colleges District and state universities said they would begin raising tuition immediately for the coming school year. Read More Facebook

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New York high school students injured when bus strikes overpass By Associated Press A charter bus carrying teenagers returning from a spring break trip Sunday night struck a bridge overpass on Long Island, seriously injuring six passengers and mangling the entire length of the top of the bus. The crash happened shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday on the Southern State Parkway in Lakeview, according to New York State Police. One of the six injured passengers had very serious injuries, said State Police Maj. David Candelaria. Thirty-seven other passengers suffered minor injuries. Read More Facebook

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Some good news for California in national student test scores By Joy Resmovits Every two years, the nations fourth- and eighth-graders are tested in math and reading  and newly released results from last years tests give California at least a little reason to be pleased. The 2017 results  out Monday night  were mostly flat nationwide compared with 2015, though the average score in eighth-grade reading went up. But while that improvement largely came from the increased scores of the highest-performing students, California eighth-graders showed some reading progress from the lowest levels to the highest. Read More Facebook

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Under state control, Inglewood school districts financial picture worsened By Anna M. Phillips When Eugenio Villa agreed to return to the Inglewood schools for a second tour last summer, he knew the district remained one of Californias most troubled. Inglewood Unified had been nearly insolvent when it was taken over by the state Department of Education in 2012. Six years later, its enrollment was still declining. Its school buildings were tired  some edging into decrepitude. Its test scores and graduation rates were still below the state average. And the public was out of patience. Still, Villa, who had signed back on as the districts chief business official, was shocked at what he found when he arrived in June 2017. Two years earlier, he had left the school system on what he thought was firm ground. Read More Facebook

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Charter school group drops two lawsuits against L.A. Unified By Howard Blume A charter schools advocacy group last week announced that it would end two long-running lawsuits in which it was seeking more classroom space and construction money from the Los Angeles school district. The decision, the California Charter Schools Assn. said, reflects better relations between charter schools and the L.A. Unified School District. But the move also suggests that the litigation, which already contributed to significant gains for area charters, was unlikely to produce much more. It takes time, money and effort to litigate, said Ricardo Soto, general counsel for the charter group. Maybe its better to see if we can find the time and opportunity for collaboration. Read More Facebook

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L.A. school board member Ref Rodriguez is arrested on suspicion of public intoxication By Richard Winton Los Angeles school board member Ref Rodriguez was arrested recently on suspicion of being drunk in public at a Pasadena restaurant, the latest trouble for an elected official who faces political money-laundering charges. Pasadena police took Rodriguez into custody on March 16, according to city spokeswoman Lisa Derderian. Officers arrested Rodriguez at about 4:30 p.m. at the Yard House restaurant and bar at the Paseo Mall and held him in jail for more than five-and-a-half hours. Rodriguez was ultimately released without being cited or charged, Derderian told The Times. Other details about the arrest were not available, she said. Read More Facebook

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Kentucky teachers rally at Capitol over state budget By Associated Press Thousands of Kentucky teachers filled the streets near the state Capitol in Frankfort on a cold, overcast Monday to rally for education funding. Teachers and other school employees gathered outside the Kentucky Education Assn. a couple of blocks from the Capitol chanting, Stop the war on public education and holding or posting signs that say, Weve Had Enough. Were madder than hornets, and the hornets are swarming today, said Claudette Green, a retired teacher and principal. Read More Facebook

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SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's stock market regulator said on Friday that several infrastructure projects which use a public-private partnership (PPP) model have been approved to issue securities, letting them tap a new source of funding.

Beijing has promoted the PPP model, which channels private money into public infrastructure projects, as local governments reel under heavy debt. But private investors have shown only lukewarm interest in such projects, which typically lock up capital for lengthy periods.

The China Securities and Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said on its official microblog that the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges have approved the securitization schemes for multiple PPP infrastructure projects.

"Asset securitization can make existing PPP assets more liquid, expand the funding channel for infrastructure projects, lower financing costs, and better attract private capital participation," CSRC said.

Through securitization, infrastructure assets are turned into publicly-traded securities, freeing up capital while also meeting the demands of longer-term investors such as mutual funds and pension funds.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) said on Friday that it has approved securitization plans for three PPP projects, including a water treatment project that will raise 530 million yuan ($76.7 million), and one for a tunnel, which intends to raise 1.16 billion yuan.

CSRC said the stock exchanges are reviewing applications from the first batch of nine PPP projects that want to issue securities.

($1 = 6.9140 Chinese yuan)

(Reporting by Samuel Shen and John Ruwitch; Editing by Richard Borsuk)
When the grandmother of a Mira Mesa military veterans family was sent back to Mexico last week, her devastated relatives focused on the central role she played in the family, helping raise her two small grandchildren whose father is serving as a contractor in Afghanistan.

More details of her deportation came out this week, as immigration officials offered details of a felony welfare fraud conviction against the woman, Clarissa Arredondo, and disclosed that she had previously been deported.

Arredondo, 43, was removed to Tijuana on March 3 after being detained on Valentines Day. Hers is one of many cases around the nation arousing attention as President Trump rolls out his immigration policies.

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Arredondo was previously removed from the U.S. in 2005, according to Lauren Mack, spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

At that time, Mack said, Arredondo tried to enter the United States at the Otay Mesa port of entry and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers determined that she did not have authorization to enter the country. Border officials sent Arredondo back to Mexico using a process called expedited removal.

Mack said that border officials used a process called expedited removal, which gave them the authority to send Arredondo back across the border without letting her see an immigration judge.

That order was still on her record when immigration officials targeted her last month. Mack said that gave border officials the authority to remove her again without giving her a hearing with an immigration judge.

Arredondo was targeted based on her immigration and criminal history, Mack said.

Bardis Vakili, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union in San Diego, said he found the use of the expedited process in Arredondos case troubling.

Any time we hear that a longtime member of our community has been ripped from her family and deported without seeing a judge, we are going to be concerned, Vakili said in an emailed statement. We have already documented ICEs utter disregard for the sanctity of military families, and this incident just continues the agencys pattern of terrorizing patriotic immigrant communities.

Arredondo pleaded guilty to a felony after being charged with misrepresenting her income level to obtain food stamps and cash assistance for her children between May 2001 and March 2003. Based on records at San Diego Superior Court, Arredondo apparently paid $6,633 in restitution and served five years on probation. According to terms of her plea deal, she was permitted to petition the court to reduce the conviction to a misdemeanor. There were no documents indicating that she did so. ICEs records indicate that the conviction remains a felony.

According to the initial documents filed by Cynthia Stewart, a public assistance fraud investigator, less assistance would have been paid had it been known that the representations were false.

Arredondo worked several cleaning jobs to take care of her three children as a single parent, according to her daughter, Adriana Aparicio.

Somebody who was working a bunch of bottom-tier jobs cleaning hotels and apartments, and raising three kids with an absent father, its not like she was personally enriching herself on welfare, said Ev Meade, director of the Trans-Border Institute at the University of San Diego. I would find that hard to believe. She broke the law, but what did she break the law to do? It wasnt criminal violence. It wasnt a threat to the broader community. It was trying to provide for her kids.

Meade said he believes people are being deported under the Trump administration who would not have been deported under former President Obama  although its hard to tell. He said that the Department of Homeland Security has a history of not being very transparent, making it difficult to know how enforcement now differs from enforcement under previous administrations.

We dont often understand what the government is doing with regard to immigration because we dont have the information that we need to make an assessment of it, Meade said. Since its behind closed doors, people can choose to believe whatever they want about it, and you can find an echo chamber for all of the wildest myths about immigration that anyone can cook up.

Kate Morrissey writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

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UPDATES:

March 13, 10:30 a.m.: This article was updated with details about Arredondos felony welfare fraud conviction.
Congressmen Darrell Issa and Duncan Hunter were confronted by rowdy protesters Saturday at separate back-to-back town hall meetings.

It was the first time the North County Republicans held forums with their constituents since Donald Trump became president, and in San Diego, like many parts of the country, the congressmen were met by opponents of the new administrations agenda.

Healthcare was a major topic of concern at both town halls.

In Oceanside, before taking the stage in front of a crowd of 500 constituents, Issa spoke with a few people, including a 10-year-old Orange County boy who asked whether Issa would guarantee that he would have affordable healthcare.

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Issa told the boy hed asked the question exactly the right way, noting that the child used the word affordable. He promised healthcare would be a topic of discussion at future town halls.

Outside the auditorium where Issa spoke, 100-plus people waved signs and chanted, This is what democracy looks like.

Most were concerned about a proposal to replace the Affordable Care Act and other Trump administration policies. Inside the sometimes raucous meeting, when Issa referred to the healthcare act as Obamacare, the crowd jeered and some yelled its official name.

Its not affordable, Issa responded.

At one point, when Issa referenced the situation with Russia, in which the country interfered in last years elections, some in the audience chanted, Do your job!

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) speaks at a town hall meeting to discuss healthcare reform in Oceanside on Saturday. (Hayne Palmour IV/The San Diego Union-Tribune via AP)

The first town hall ran about an hour. The second, with Hunter, was longer and noisier.

Healthcare was still the common thread during the 90-minute discussion in Ramona, in which attendees sometimes shouted at each other and exchanged insults.

Crowd estimates ranged from 300 to 400 at the Ramona Mainstage, and hundreds more lined up outside, most of whom were protesting Hunter as well as Trump. The Sheriffs Department estimated about 1,000 people total at the event.

Hunter said he isnt completely satisfied with the new American Health Care Act, which was introduced earlier in the week. But he said generally supports the replacement plan because he thinks it will make insurance cheaper, and therefore, more accessible, than the Affordable Care Act.

We know it is going to disrupt the market, Hunter said. I dont believe in guaranteed healthcare. I believe in guaranteed access to healthcare that people can afford.

But he sometimes antagonized the crowd. When people booed one of Trumps policies, Hunter sang a line from Queens hit We are the Champions in response.

Answering a question from the galley, he said he would not support an independent investigation into Russian interference in last years elections, but he said he does back various investigations by Congress.

The intelligence community, Hunter said, is filled with seditious Obama folks who hate Donald Trump as much as you do and are trying to undermine the administration.

I would think you would be for freedom and liberty, not for an Orwellian government, which is what we have right now, he said.

He said he believes that Trumps emails and communications were intercepted when Obama was in office, but when questioned by a reporter, he later said he has no proof of that claim.

In a tweet earlier this month, Trump said Obama had wiretapped his phone. The White House has not provided any explanation or support for the claim, which Obama and his intelligence officials have denied.

Sheriffs Deputy Jerry Hartman said an extra 14 deputies were brought in to help manage the crowd and traffic, but there were no arrests, despite some heated tempers.

The congressmans father, former Rep. Duncan Hunter, spoke with people waiting outside. He said the protesters were upset about the outcome of the democratic process and werent being fair to the new administration.

Youre seeing folks who were on the losing side who have decided to protest rather than give the president a chance, he said. To some degree, they are disrespecting democracy.

A push for the town halls has been brewing. Every Tuesday for the last few months, a couple of hundred people have gathered outside Issas Vista office, demanding the congressman meet with them.

Less intense crowds have appeared outside Hunters offices in Temecula and El Cajon.

About two weeks ago, Issa surprised the protesters by making an appearance outside his office. For about 90 minutes, he took questions from the crowd, which included about six dozen Trump supporters.

The unexpected event came hours before a town hall organized by activists who wanted Issa to address their concerns about promised changes to the Affordable Care Act. Issa was invited but did not attend that event, citing a scheduling conflict.

Figueroa and Stewart write for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com

Joshua.stewart@sduniontribune.com

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For the second time, Reggie Cole is walking out of court a free man.

Cole, whose murder conviction in a 1994 killing was previously overturned after he spent 16 years in prison, pleaded no contest this week to mayhem and assault charges stemming from an unrelated 2012 shooting, and will be allowed to serve a suspended sentence of 18 years, according to Sarah Ardalani, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorneys office. He must also serve five years of formal probation and perform 200 hours of community service, Ardalani said.



For the record: This story mistakenly says Cole pleaded no contest to mayhem and assault charges. He pleaded no contest only to the mayhem charge; the assault charge was dismissed. The story also misidentifies Coles co-defendant in the 1994 murder trial as Anthony Obie. His name is Obie Anthony.

Superior Court Judge Laura Walton also ordered Cole on Thursday not to associate with members of the street gang that prosecutors claim Cole belongs to, Ardalani said.

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The 42-year-old Compton native has been in legal battles with the city and the district attorneys office for years, arguing that he had nothing to do with the 1994 murder of a man shot outside a South L.A. brothel that sent him to prison for years. Cole and his friend, Anthony Obie, were convicted of murder based largely on the testimony of an eyewitness who judges later determined had lied on the stand.

Coles conviction was eventually thrown out, and he was released from prison in 2011.

A judge found him factually innocent of the 1994 shooting, ruling than the Los Angeles Police Department detectives who investigated the slaying had withheld potential exculpatory evidence and knew their star witness  a pimp who was offered a reduced sentence on unrelated charges in exchange for his testimony  had been untruthful.

He settled a wrongful imprisonment lawsuit against the city for $5.2 million this year. Obie received $8 million in a settlement with the city from a similar suit.

But Cole was arrested again in 2015, when he was accused of shooting a gang member in the leg three years earlier. He faced a life sentence if convicted.

During his trial last year, a jury deadlocked on the mayhem and assault charges.

james.queally@latimes.com

Follow @JamesQueallyLAT for crime and police news in California.
The skull still had a thatch of brown hair attached. The lower jaw was missing, and the forehead had a hole in it.

Many of the bodies, the hands were tied. They were blindfolded and shot in the forehead, said Omar Hasan as he surveyed remains scattered beside a sinkhole Islamic State had turned into a mass grave.

A captain in a local Sunni tribal militia that polices the area around the village of Al Houd since it was freed in November, Hasan helped excavate the mass grave, where locals found 25 remains. But land mines planted by Islamic State have already killed some volunteers.

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Hasan suspects the sinkhole was used to dump victims from Al Houd until last year. Excavators have found womens veils, childrens clothes and severed heads. So far, none of the remains have been identified.

Hasan, 30, pointed to a long bone affixed with a metal plate. It brought to mind a police officer he knew, who was wounded in the leg by a roadside bomb and then went missing after Islamic State seized the town in 2014.

Thats him. Im sure, Hasan said.

Mass graves are all too familiar in Iraq. Even before the rise of Islamic State, Iraqi authorities struggled to cope with the task of excavating mass burials from the reign of Saddam Hussein, when up to a million Iraqis disappeared.

But recent discoveries underscore the savagery of Islamic State. In Al Houd 118 people went missing under two years of the jihadists rule. Two of them were Hasans relatives.

As the Iraqi-led coalition advances into Mosul, residents returning home have grown impatient with government officials responsible for investigating mass graves and are starting themselves, sometimes with deadly results.

Ten days ago, a mine exploded at Al Houd, killing four Sunni militia members who had been digging and trying to defuse a second mine planted nearby, Hasan said.

Late last month, a booby trap at another massive desert grave farther south of here killed half a dozen visitors including a Shiite militia commander and Shifa Gardi, 30, a Kurdish television reporter. The grave, also in a sinkhole, is known as the khasfa, and located in an area called the Valley of Death.

The United Nations and other international groups have suggested some of the mass graves may indicate genocide or war crimes, and Human Rights Watch has called on the Iraqi government to preserve the sites.

Fawaz Abdulabbas, deputy head of the Iraq program for the International Commission on Missing Persons, which assists Iraqi government officials with excavating mass graves, said no current total exists of mass graves in Iraq.

No one can say that  we are finding new ones every day, he said.

The Associated Press documented at least 72 mass graves from Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, containing as many as 15,000 bodies, as of last summer. More graves have been found since.

Dozens of mass graves around the northern town of Sinjar likely contain the remains of hundreds of Yazidi religious minorities executed by Islamic State (those digging at Al Houd claim Yazidi women were killed there, too). Farther south, mass graves around the city of Tikrit contain the remains of an estimated 1,700 soldiers from Camp Speicher massacred by the militants three years ago.

Adil Amash, left, and Hussein Hassan, who have been digging at the mass grave to try to find missing relatives, show Sunni militia member Sgt. Major Yasser Ahmed a list they have compiled of 118 people missing or presumed dead. (Molly Hennessy-Fiske / Los Angeles Times)

Abdulabbas group and Iraqs forensic team were excavating at the Camp Speicher site this week. He said they have identified scores of mass graves in Sinjar, but that they are full of booby traps and have been fenced off until they can be cleared.

In addition to risking their lives, untrained volunteers excavating mass graves risk contaminating them, Abdulabbas said. Thats what happened in 2003, he said, when families dug at mass graves south of Baghdad from a 1991 Shiite uprising, disrupting the site.

They destroyed evidence, even the remains, because they are not experts, Abdulabbas said. What we are trying to do is collect information from the families and try to help with the exhumation.

Belkis Wille, senior Iraq researcher at Human Rights Watch, said she knows of at least a dozen mass graves in northern Iraq alone, one of which  the massive grave known as khafsa, which she visited recently  may contain thousands of bodies.

She said it would take months to remove land mines and the de-mining organizations are overloaded trying to decontaminate areas for returns, so this is just not going to be the priority.

Portions of some mass graves, such as one north of Al Houd in Hamam Alil that Wille estimates could contain 300 bodies, are fenced off with warning signs posted by Abdulabbas group.

But even the Hamam Alil site wasnt marked with land mine warnings or guarded this week, when locals could be seen walking across it.

Dont walk there  its not clear yet! cautioned Mohammed Yaseen, a Sunni militia member whose three cousins, former policemen executed by Islamic State when they tried to flee last October, were found buried at the site with their identifications.

Yaseen, 21, said Iraqi forces are still busy removing mines from more populated, heavily-trafficked parts of town. But he understands why families come to search for their dead, despite the risks. They found the remains of women and children, including a newborn. Some of the bodies had been beheaded.

Yaseen pointed to the spot where his cousins were found.

The bodies were left on the ground like trash, he said, repeating an Arabic proverb: To honor the dead is to bury them.

Sunni militia member Sgt. Major Yasser Ahmed, who has been digging at the mass grave to help identify those killed by Islamic State, said locals have grown frustrated with the central government for not sending experts to handle the exhumations. (Molly Hennessy-Fiske / Los Angeles Times)

There are also practical reasons relatives dig: it can be difficult to claim government pensions and other benefits without a death certificate. At Al Houd, volunteers were taking remains to a nearby hospital for DNA tests. The excavation was halted after the explosion on Feb. 28.

Local volunteers claim to have located or defused about 200 land mines, marking them with gray stones that blend into the landscape. They plan to return soon, once local experts deem the site safe.

Until then, remains they had intended to deliver to the hospital sit exposed to the elements and mixed with clothing and debris at the remote site about five miles from the main road through town. When the wind shifts, the stench rises.

Flies circled a second skull, a torso and two desiccated hands that sat next to a brown sandal and a flowered blanket. Beside them, inside an open white grain sack, a partial skeleton was jumbled together. In a field several yards away, a foot protruded from a pair of blue drawstring pants.

Animals dragged it, said fellow Sunni militia member Sgt. Major Yasser Ahmed, 37, who has also been digging at the site.

Ahmed frowned, shaking his head. Sunni dissatisfaction with the Shiite-dominated central government initially helped fuel support for Islamic State in the Mosul area. Many residents now credit Iraqi forces with freeing villages like Al Houd, but the longer mass graves sit unattended, the more unrest builds.

As Sunnis, no one is helping us with this issue, Ahmed said. They dont know how to handle our problems. We are not happy with what the government is doing.

Another fellow militia member, Salam Khalaf, 31, lost 28 members of his family under Islamic State, including a brother. He refuses to dig at the site until professionals arrive to excavate properly. But he is the exception.

Its a disaster whats happening to the bodies there. Its hard for us to identify them. We need the government, some NGOs or international institutions to come and check, said Saad Hussein Ali, 43, who runs a shawarma stand in town and knows 34 of those still missing.

Even the father of a 21-year-old killed defusing the land mine at the mass grave said he understands why people dig at the site and would not try to dissuade them.

We tried the local authorities, the federal government, even asked for help from the [U.S.-led] coalition. But we dont think it will happen soon. So we will get the bodies, said Hussein Hassan, 30, a Sunni lawyer who had been digging in search of 26 dead or missing relatives the day the land mine exploded.

As he reviewed a list of the missing in a local square dedicated to children executed there by Islamic State, Hassan said he plans to return to dig at the mass grave again soon.

We will not leave anyone behind, he said. We will be out there digging until no one is left.

molly.hennessy-fiske@latimes.com

@mollyhf

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Its almost spring somehow, which means that its time to set your clocks ahead: Daylight saving time is Sunday. So maybe go to bed early tonight, but not before you get a good dinner. You could make it yourself, of course  make some mac and cheese with your kid, regardless of how old she is; or pick up some sustainable, wild-caught fish from Michael Cimarustis Cape Seafood and Provisions. Or you could get some excellent lamb barbacoa at Maestro in Old Pasadena.

Because chef Danny Godinezs new Mexican restaurant is the subject of Jonathan Golds latest review, and though the barbacoa may be more refined than youre used to, it is excellent  and you can order mezcal with it. If you like your dinner more in the style of country fair food, we have a comforting (or discomforting, depending on what you think of clam chowder on your fries) list of mash-up dishes. In other news, Alton Brown is coming to town, Burritos La Palma has opened a new shop, and chef Josef Centeno has expanded beyond DTLA to Culver City.

 Amy Scattergood

New Mexican cooking in Old Town Pasadena

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This week, Jonathan heads to Maestro, the Mexican restaurant in Pasadena recently opened by chef Danny Godinez. Godinez has three restaurants in Orange County, and his latest continues his project of applying fine dining technique to regional Mexican cooking. So theres a dish of day boat scallops with rice, huitlacoche and epazote foam  and a lamb barbacoa with a broth like perfectly executed demi-glace. All that, and mezcal too.

Chef Danny Godinez holds his grilled octopus dish at Maestro in Pasadena. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Clam chowder fries? You heard right

If you follow food trends or spend way too much time on Instagram, you likely know all about mash-up foods, things like the Cronut and the ramen burger. This week deputy Food editor Jenn Harris gives a guide to eight other hybrid foods you can find right now in L.A., food combos that are admittedly odd, but also taste really good (because, unsurprisingly, not all of these combos work out right). Whats good? Pizza dumplings. Puffles.

Chowder fries (French fries topped with clam chowder and bacon) from Slapfish in Huntington Beach. (Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times)

Alton Brown is coming to town

Food writer Margy Rochlin interviews the cookbook author, TV personality and veteran of Good Eats, Cutthroat Kitchen and Iron Chef America. Because not only has Alton Brown written another cookbook, but hes doing a two-night show at the Pantages soon. Imagine an old school variety show, but with cooking demos and songs about food.

More fun with burritos, etc.

If you love birria-filled burritos, and who does not, youre in luck: Burritos La Palma, the El Monte shop that makes one of Jonathans favorite burritos, has opened a new branch in Santa Ana. Jenn also has news of Josef Centenos new baco place in Culver City and a rotisserie chicken shop coming to Sherman Oaks later this year.

The birria burrito from Burritos La Palma. (Ken Kwok / Los Angeles Times)

The Los Angeles Times Food Bowl: Want to spend 31 days exploring the food of this city through a Night Market, forums, dinners, films, pop-ups and more dining and drinking? A month-long food festival is coming to L.A. in May.

The Daily Meal, the food and drink website under the editorial direction of Colman Andrews, is now one of our partners. Check out their 101 best pizzas in America and other stories, recipes and videos.

Jonathan Golds 101 Best Restaurants, the authoritative annual guide to local dining, is online for subscribers and now features his 2016 Best Restaurants. If you didnt get a copy of the booklet, you can order one online here.

City of Gold, Laura Gabberts documentary of Jonathan Golds Los Angeles, is available on Amazon.

Check us out on Instagram @latimesfood

In the Kitchen: Sign up for our weekly cooking newsletter

Check out the thousands of recipes in our Recipe Database.

Feedback? Wed love to hear from you. Email us at food@latimes.com.
So what exactly is the governments word worth? Were about to find out.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents last month raided the home of a man in Washington state for whom they had a deportation order. Asleep in the same house was the mans son, Daniel Ramirez Medina, 23, who had been brought to the U.S. at age 7 and who, under President Obamas Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, has been granted permission to remain and work in the country. When the ICE agents asked where he was born, Ramirez told them, Mexico, but added that he had received a deferral from deportation under DACA.

What happened next is under dispute, but after a brief conversation in which the agents say Ramirez told them he was in the country illegally, Ramirez was taken into custody. He now sits in a federal detention center, his DACA protection revoked, and is headed for a deportation hearing.

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The government says it revoked Ramirezs DACA status because ICE agents concluded he has gang affiliations, based on Ramirezs statements to them and a tattoo. Ramirez denies that he told agents he associates with gang members despite what his lawyers described as intense pressure to do so, and said his La Paz BCS tattoo reflects his birthplace: La Paz, in Baja California Sur.

All in all, the governments reasons for revoking Ramirezs DACA protection and putting him in deportation proceedings are pretty flimsy, especially since the government had twice before  in 2014 and 2016  determined that Ramirez had no criminal convictions or gang affiliations and found no other evidence that he might pose a threat to public safety and thus be ineligible for the program. It stretches credulity to think that two rounds of background checks conducted where Ramirez grew up in the Central Valley missed red flags that the ICE agents in Washington have so miraculously found.

Its troubling that the government can upend someones life based on such thin accusations. People eligible for DACA apply for approval and pay a $495 processing fee to cover the costs of the background check. If approved, the government promises not to seek deportation for two years unless the recipient commits an act that makes him or her ineligible.

Of course, the government should be able to revoke DACA protections if it can demonstrate that a recipient has broken the law or otherwise fallen out of eligibility. In fact, it has revoked DACA relief for 1,500 people since the program began.

But the government should not break faith with recipients so easily as it has done with Ramirez, disrupting his life based on a he said-he said interrogation and agents questionable interpretation of a tattoo. That is neither just nor fair. If Ramirez ultimately is deported, it suggests that the governments promises of protection are not to be taken seriously.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
To the editor: Not often one to agree with Jonah Goldberg, I commend him for voicing thoughts privately held by many fellow conservatives. (All Trump has to do is sound presidential to get everything he wants. Instead, he logs on to Twitter, Opinion, March 6)

President Trumps GOP faithful exulted over his recent presidential reading of speechwriters words off of a teleprompter, only to despair days later when he couldnt resist firing off a loony tweet barrage.

So Goldberg, in essence, asks: If Trump cant help himself, how can he help us?

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Good question, which leads to a more consequential one: If Republican leaders cant bring themselves to condemn Trumps chronic lack of composure and veracity, how can our noble democratic experiment be saved?

Sandra Perez, Santa Maria

..

To the editor: I was appalled by Goldberg describing Trumps speech to Congress as presidential. The bar is set too low for this president.

Trump put a grieving widow in the gallery for the world to see her pain, which was caused by this presidents reckless decision to send her husband on a dangerous military operation. He veered off script to talk about the applause her late husband received. In that moment, he desecrated the soldier.

I am an Israeli-born woman living in the U.S., and if Trump had said this to the Israeli Knesset, he would have been booed off the stage. A death of a soldier is sacred and should never be belittled by mentioning applause.

Trump should go back to The Apprentice and receive all the applause he deserves as a showman. Presidential he is not.

Nona Horowitz, Los Angeles

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To the editor: The death of Sandra Duran is a tragedy all around, compounded by the fact that it was completely avoidable. (Man who had been deported to Mexico five times charged in deadly L.A. car crash, March 7)

Suspect Estuardo Alvarado, who in the past pleaded no contest to driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license, has been deported from the U.S. five times. Yet was back again (illegally) when he allegedly killed Duran while fleeing an earlier traffic accident he caused while driving drunk.

What really struck me was the statement that studies have found that immigrants, whether in the country legally or not, commit crimes at a lower rate than native-born Americans. If someone is in the country illegally, then by definition he or she is breaking the law.

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The laws still exist, whether or not the reporters choose to ignore the ones they dislike or disagree with.

Jeff Pressman, Bell Canyon

..

To the editor: Stories on illegal immigration routinely report on how difficult it is to sneak into our country, often stating those entering illegally risk their lives.

How difficult can it be if people can be deported five times and return yet again, only to allegedly commit crimes that result in the deaths of women such as Duran in Los Angeles and Kathryn Steinle in San Francisco?

Gerry Swider, Sherman Oaks

..

To the editor: A citizen breaking the law goes to jail, and an immigrant breaking the same law gets deported. Like the man charged with vehicular homicide, some deportees readily slip back in and allegedly engage in more criminal activity.

The state and local governments should take action. Surely, this is a law enforcement practice we can oppose.

Parrish Hirasaki, Redondo Beach

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook

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When then-Sen. Barbara Boxer pondered her retirement, she envisioned informally advising President Hillary Clinton and a Democratic Senate, traveling the country to deliver speeches and spending more time with her husband of 55 years.

I was so excited, Boxer told an audience of several hundred Friday at UC Berkeley, where she donated her congressional archives. Whoops.

After the November election took place, with Donald Trump in the White House and Republicans in control of both houses of Congress, where Boxer served for 34 years, her retirement plans shifted  to countering the new president and preparing to go to battle in 2018.

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It all took a turn. I was determined not to lose my voice or in any way slow down, she said.

Boxer, in her first major speaking event since retiring from the Senate, discussed the 2016 election, Trumps presidency, her tenure and her future at the inaugural speech of the Barbara Boxer Lecture Series, which will occur annually at Berkeley.

The former senator blamed Clintons loss on poor turnout in Midwestern states that lean Democratic, caused by the negativity of the campaign and the investigations of Clintons emails, which the Democratic nominee did a terrible job of dealing with, Boxer said.

Boxer, 76, said she could not bear to watch Trumps inauguration speech, but read it instead. Then she reviewed inaugural speeches by 10 previous presidents, both Republicans and Democrats.

They lifted you up, Boxer said. I fought Ronald Reagan in hand-to-hand combat. His speech was uplifting: Were all together. Nobody fought harder [than me] against George W. Bush. I read his speech: uplifting, beautiful.

She said the sole call for unity in Trumps speech was when he said all Americans spill the same blood.

Thats dark. And that was about the happiest thing he said, she said.

Boxer said she was initially hopeful that Trump, who made inflammatory remarks about women, immigrants, the disabled and others throughout the campaign, would be tempered once he took office.

Its way worse than I expected. I was one of those people who thought once he gets there, hes impacted by the magnificence of the White House, hes basking in the glow of victory and history, and hell change, Boxer said in an interview with The Times. Hes gotten way worse, and I think were in a very dangerous time.

She accused Trump of acting like a dictator and a tyrant, criticizing him for focusing his attacks on the press, which he has labeled an enemy of the American people.

As an elected official, the press made me completely crazy, she said. At the end of the day you accept it because we know its probably the most important foundation of our Constitution  an institution that has been protected for a reason, to protect against someone like this.

She said it was not only the legacy of former President Obama that is at risk, but the ideals and values the nation was founded on. She referenced a familiar rallying song embraced by organizers: Freedom is a hard won thing. / You have to work for it / fight for it / day and night for it / and every generations got to do it again.

Thats both heartening and disheartening, Boxer said. You think something is settled, like voting rights, like civil rights, like human rights. No discrimination, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, you think its all settled. Then you wake up one day and its all at risk. And guess what, that day is here.

She said she was heartened by the marches and protests, but cautioned that it was critical to harness that energy and use it to win elections.

We can say, Oh, I did a great job. I marched five miles. No. Youve got to do more and more, Boxer said. Become a leader; 2018 is the first chance to check and balance the right-wing forces in Congress. You need to stand up because this is an assault.

Boxer said she sees her role as part motivational speaker, especially to young women.

What I see happening is an amazing awakening, and an alarm has gone off and I think people are moving to take control of politics, which before maybe they were part of around the edges  or maybe not at all, she said. I know how to do this. I know how to win and I know how to run campaigns.

Part of Boxers retirement plan remains intact: She is still getting paid to make speeches and is cooking more frequently at home  lamb chops are a particular favorite of her husband, Stewart. And shes throwing monthly dinner parties at their Palm Desert home.

But a large part of her energies are devoted to tapping her enviable donor rolls to raise money for her political action committee to help candidates and voter turnout in the midterm elections. She expects to raise $1 million by June.

Boxer, never known as a shrinking violet during her time in office, has also taken to using social media to needle Republicans in the nations capital.

I figured if [Trump] tweets, Im tweeting, Boxer told a capacity crowd at Hertz Hall on the college campus.

On Friday, as the House worked to replace Obamacare, she tweeted, To GOP: What did you do today at the office, dear? I took insurance away from 20 million people.

Boxer has been out of office for only two months. Its a new phase for her, after spending a decade in the House and then 24 years in the Senate.

It feels like a year and half since I left; that shows how busy Ive been, she said.

seema.mehta@latimes.com

For the latest on national and California politics, follow @LATSeema on Twitter.

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DailyFX.com -

- The CSRC, NDRC and the housing regulator addressed issues on Chinese financial markets.

- Chinas Foreign Minister commented on national strategies and China-U.S. relationship.

- Looking for more trade ideas? Review DailyFXs 2017 Trading Guides.

Multiple Chinese ministers made remarks at press conferences of the annual National Peoples Congress. Here are the highlights and how they could impact Chinas economy and financial markets.

China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC)Chairman Liu Shiyu:

Stabilizing markets, strengthening regulations and progressing in reforms were the regulators key tasks in 2016.

This is likely continue to be the case in 2017. The Chairman emphasized the importance of market stability a couple of times in the Q&A session. Avoiding market chaos, such as what was seen in January 2016, is crucial for implementing any reform on Chinese capital markets.

Suspending IPO will not help the economy in the long term.

The CSRC suspended IPO for about five months after Chinese equities crashed in July 2015. Yet, this can only be a temporary tool according to the regulator. More importantly, the Chairman told that innovative technology companies and companies that can contribute to supply-side reforms are welcomed to finance through capital markets.

National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) Chairman He Lifeng and Vice Chair Nin Jizhe:

Chinas energy prices are more market-driven and largely impacted by international commodity prices. Increases in coal, steel, petrochemical and nonferrous metal prices have contributed to 80% of the growth in Producer Price Index (PPI).

The gap between Chinas PPI and CPI has widened over the past few months, partly driven by the fast rising energy prices. Last November, the NDRC launched a series of measures to curb the soaring coal prices. In 2017, the regulator is expected to continue to closely watch energy and other commodity prices.

Chinas steel industrys annual capacity was about 1.1 billion tons before 2016 and the annual consumption in steel was 800 million tons; the capacity utilization ratio was 70%. The regulator plans to increase the ratio to 80%, a normal level. As a result, the production cuts target is set to be 50 million tons in 2017 after the steel industry reduced 65 million tons of capacity in 2016.

Story continues

Supply-side reform is one of the top three tasks for the country in 2017. The NDRC disclosed the designated capacity level that they want steel companies to reach.

The Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Chen Zhenggao:

The property market has been stabilizing from January to March. [Chinese cities] have made progress in reducing housing inventory. He believes that in the rest of 2017, the housing market could maintain relatively stable as well.

The risk of property price bubbles has been a major concern to Chinese regulators. The home loans gauge has also become a major indicator that impacts Chinas monetary policy. In order to continue to curb property prices, policymakers may place more restrictions on the market.

Chinas Foreign Minister Wang Yi:

China will host the One-Belt, One-Road summit in May and is expected to sign multiple deals with its partners on infrastructure projects.

One-Belt, One-Road is a strategy that will not only help China to export excessive capacity but also can strengthen ties with Asian and East-European countries.

China-U.S. relationship is transitioning steadily and developing in a positive direction through intense communication and joint efforts of both sides.

For Chinas fiscal policy, read Chinese Finance Minister Xiao Jies remarks on fiscal deficit ratio and tax reforms.

To receive reports from this analyst,sign up for Renee Mu distribution list.



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DailyFX provides forex news and technical analysis on the trends that influence the global currency markets.

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Adam Schiff views documents White House says back Trump surveillance claim By Michael A. Memoli (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press) Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) traveled to the White House Friday to view documents President Trump has said partially vindicate his claim that his predecessor ordered surveillance of him during the campaign. In a statement, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee said he was told they were precisely the same materials viewed previously by the committees chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Tulare), which Schiff said should now be shared with the full panel membership. Nothing I could see today warranted a departure from the normal review procedures, Schiff said, adding that he could not discuss the contents of the documents, which remain classified. Nunes was shown the documents last week by White House officials surreptitiously, then announced to reporters the next day that he needed urgently to go to the White House to brief Trump about them. Schiff, in his statement, said that the White House has yet to explain why senior White House staff apparently shared these materials with but one member of either [Intelligence] committee, only for their contents to be briefed back to the White House. Schiff also had a brief but cordial meeting with Trump during his time at the White House, a spokesman said. White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters earlier Friday that other Democrats have been invited to the White House to view the materials, which he said would shed light on their investigation. Both the House and Senate Intelligence Committees are conducting separate reviews of Russian interference into the 2016 election; Trump has asked each panel to also probe his own claim that his predecessor engaged in wire tapping of his phones at Trump Tower during the campaign, an assertion that has been denied by Nunes as well as the heads of the FBI and intelligence agencies. Facebook

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Mnuchin regrets plugging The Lego Batman Movie, pledges to exercise greater caution in the future By Jim Puzzanghera Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Friday told a top government ethics official he should not have publicly plugged The Lego Batman Movie  a film in which he has a financial stake  and promised to exercise greater caution in the future. I take very seriously my ethical responsibilities as a presidential appointee and the head of the Department of the Treasury, Mnuchin wrote to Walter Shaub, director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. On Monday, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) asked Shaub to determine whether Mnuchin had committed an ethics violation last week when he discussed the movie during an event hosted by the Axios news website that aired on C-SPAN2. Read More Facebook

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Rep. Adam Schiff says its too early to consider an immunity deal for Michael Flynn By Associated Press The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee says its too early to consider an immunity deal for President Trumps former national security advisor. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) says that Michael Flynn even discussing possible immunity in exchange for protection from prosecution is a grave and momentous step because of the seniority of his former position. Schiff says the House Intelligence Committee is interested in hearing Flynns story, but there would have to be coordination with the Senate Intelligence Committee and the Justice Department on the terms. The House and Senate intelligence committees and the FBI are investigating Russias meddling in the 2016 election. The investigation includes scrutiny of Flynns ties with Russia. Read More Facebook

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Trump administration admonishes California chief justice over claim that agents are stalking immigrants By Del Quentin Wilber U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions (Mark Wilson / Getty Images) The Trump administration on Friday fired back at Californias top judge, disputing her characterization this month that federal immigration agents were stalking courthouses to make arrests. In a letter to Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, leaders of Trumps Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security objected to her description of federal agents conduct. As the chief judicial officer of the state of California, your characterization of federal law enforcement is particularly troubling, wrote Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, objecting to Cantil-Sakauyes use of the word stalking. They said agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were using courthouses to arrest immigrants in the U.S. illegally, in part, because California and some of its local jurisdictions prohibit their officials from cooperating with federal agencies in detaining such immigrants under most conditions. Sessions and Kelly told Californias top judge that she should consider taking her concerns to Gov. Jerry Brown and the cities and counties that limit local law enforcements involvement with immigration agents. Cantil-Sakauye, a former prosecutor who rose through the judicial ranks as an appointee of Republican governors, said through a spokesman that she appreciated the Trump administrations admission that they are in state courthouses making federal arrests. Making arrests at courthouses, in my view, undermines public safety because victims and witnesses will fear coming to courthouses to help enforce the law, she said Friday. She expressed disappointment that courthouses, given local and state public safety concerns, were not listed as sensitive areas offlimits to agents. Federal policy lists schools, churches and hospitals as sensitive areas. The letter from the Justice Department officials defended the arrests of immigrants at courthouses. By apprehending suspects after they have passed through security screening at courthouses, federal agents are less likely to encounter anyone who is armed, the letter said. The arrest of individuals by ICE officers and agents is predicated on investigation and targeting of specific persons who have been identified by ICE and other law enforcement agencies as subject to arrest, they wrote. Cantil-Sakauye had asked the Trump administration on March 16 to stop immigration agents from seeking immigrants at the states courthouses. Courthouses should not be used as bait in the necessary enforcement of our countrys immigration laws, she wrote in a letter to Sessions and Kelly. Her letter did not say which courthouses had been the location of such stalking, but judges and lawyers in Southern California have complained of seeing immigration agents posted near courts. She said she feared the practice would erode public trust in the state courts. Sessions and Kelly urged Cantil-Sakauye to speak to Brown and other officials who have enacted policies that occasionally necessitate ICE officers and agents to make arrests at courthouses and other public places. Facebook

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Back in the spotlight, Hillary Clinton takes aim at Trumps budget By Evan Halper Hillary Clinton stepped back into the spotlight this week after laying relatively low since the election, and she had some advice for President Trump: Tear up the White House budget plan. Clinton was at the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security to bestow an award named in her honor to Colombian leaders who helped bring an end to war in that country and elevate the role of women in the peace process. She spoke of the progress the world has made in advancing womens rights since she spoke forcefully on the issue two decades ago when the U.N. gathered world leaders to address it in Beijing. But she warned that progress is threatened by Trump. We are seeing signals of a shift that should alarm us all, Clinton said. This administrations proposed cuts to international health, development and diplomacy would be a blow to women and children and a grave mistake for our country. Clinton then raised the letter signed by 120 former generals and admirals beseeching the Trump administration not to make the cuts. These distinguished men and women who have served in uniform recognize that turning our back on diplomacy wont make our country safer. It will undermine our security and our standing in the world. A lot has changed since Clinton was on the campaign trail, but some things about her style on the stump havent. She pulled out a favorite line from last year as she began to talk about a study that backed up her point about the damage Trumps budget plan could do. Here I go again, Clinton said to whooping and cheering from an audience of mostly female students, talking about research evidence and facts. Facebook

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Seeking a way forward, Trump increasingly finds himself at odds with his own party By Michael A. Memoli (Evan Vucci / Associated Press ) President Trump won his office in spite of the best efforts of some in his party. Now, the tenuous nature of the bonds between Trump and the GOP are increasingly on public display as the president openly feuds with conservatives and White House officials debate whether to reach out to Democrats in order to restart his domestic agenda. The latest and strongest evidence came Thursday as Trump escalated his political battle against the members of the House Freedom Caucus, the conservative lawmakers who helped block the healthcare bill he backed. Early in the morning, he said on Twitter that the caucus would hurt the entire Republican agenda if they dont get on the team. We must fight them, & Dems, in 2018! he added. It was an extraordinary message, suggesting that Trump might try to back challengers in primaries against lawmakers of his own party  something few presidents have tried, none with much success. Read More Facebook

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Tillerson tells NATO allies to pay more, do more to fight terrorism By Catherine Stupp Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Friday promised NATO allies that the United States will stand by their side but also expected them to spend more on defense and do more to fight terrorism. Tillerson participated in a day of discussions with foreign ministers from the 27 other NATO member nations, his first with the full roster of allies, who were sent scrambling last week to accommodate the top U.S. diplomat after he said he could not attend the meeting originally planned for early April. The United States is committed to ensuring NATO has the capabilities to support our collective defense. We understand that a threat against one of us is a threat against all of us, Tillerson said. But, he added, as President Trump has made clear, it is no longer sustainable for the U.S. to maintain a disproportionate share of NATOs defense expenditures. The United States is amping up pressure on NATO members to increase their defense spending to 2% of gross domestic product, in line with a 2014 agreement among the alliances 28 member countries to meet the target by 2024. Only five NATO countries meet the 2% threshold. The U.S. spends 3.61% of its GDP on defense, more than any other member of the alliance. Tillerson said that if countries have not met the 2% spending goal by the end of the year, they should at least have a concrete plan that clearly articulates how, with annual milestone progress commitments, the pledge will be fulfilled. Pressure to meet that strict deadline is likely to upset some allies. German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel told reporters before Fridays meeting that he thinks it would be completely unrealistic for Germany to bring its military defense spending up to 2% of GDP. I dont know any politician in Germany who thinks that this would be reachable or desirable, Gabriel said. Germany is increasing its military spending this year to $39 billion, or 1.2% of its GDP. Gabriel rejected the Trump administrations focus on military expenditures, arguing that humanitarian aid and Germanys spending to take in refugees should be considered part of the defense budget. Tillerson also called on allies to take a greater role in the fight against terrorism. NATO can and should do more, he said. Fighting terrorism is the top national security priority for the United States, as it should be for all of us. Tillersons earlier announcement that he would skip the meeting struck a nerve among the alliance members, coming at a sensitive time when tensions between the Trump administration and NATO allies have soared. The schedule change caused an awkward protocol shuffle, with a handful of foreign ministers unable to make it to Brussels. What was supposed to be a two-day meeting was compressed into half of a day. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg tried to cast optimism on the last-minute schedule change, calling it a sign of the strong transatlantic unity and flexibility of our alliance that we were able to find a date. The foreign ministers meeting is crucial because it lays the groundwork for a NATO summit with heads of state in May, which will be President Trumps first overseas trip since taking office. Tillersons day of talks at NATO headquarters in Brussels follows visits from Defense Secretary James Mattis and Vice President Mike Pence, who attempted to dispel fears that the Trump administration will seek to loosen ties with the alliance. Trump called NATO obsolete in an interview published days before his inauguration. He later insisted, during German Chancellor Angela Merkels visit to the White House earlier this month, that the U.S. will maintain its strong commitment to the alliance. Tillerson arrived in Brussels on Friday morning after meeting Thursday in Ankara, Turkey, with that countrys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to discuss terrorism and Syria, though the leaders failed to reach an agreement on how to combat Islamic State. Facebook

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Trump weighs in on Michael Flynns request for immunity President Trumps former national security advisor, retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, is seeking immunity from prosecution in return for testifying to the House and Senate intelligence committees, a congressional aide said. The development was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Gen. Flynn certainly had a story to tell, and he very much wants to tell it, should the circumstances permit, his lawyer, Robert Kelner, said in a statement. No reasonable person, who has the benefit of advice from counsel, would submit to questioning in such a highly politicized, witch-hunt environment without assurances from unfair prosecution. On Friday morning, Trump tweeted his support for Flynns request. Flynn was ousted as Trumps national security advisor last month after news reports disclosed that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about phone conversations with Sergey Kislyak, Russias ambassador to the U.S. The calls were picked up by U.S. surveillance targeting the Russian envoy, and a description of the contents was leaked to the Washington Post after the Justice Department warned the White House that Flynn could be subject to blackmail. Read More Facebook

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Former national security advisor Michael Flynn seeks immunity By David S. Cloud President Trumps former national security advisor, retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, has been seeking immunity from prosecution in return for testifying to the House and Senate intelligence committees, a congressional official confirmed Thursday. The negotiations were first reported by the Wall Street Journal. In a statement, Flynns lawyer, Robert Kelner, said Gen. Flynn certainly had a story to tell and he very much wants to tell it, should the circumstances permit. No reasonable person, who has the benefit of advice from counsel, would submit to questioning in such a highly politicized, witch-hunt environment without assurances from unfair prosecution. Trump fired Flynn three weeks into the new administration after news reports disclosed that he had lied to White House colleagues, including Vice President Mike Pence, about his contacts with Sergey Kislyak, Russias ambassador to the U.S. In December, Flynn had telephone conversations with Kislyak in which he discussed sanctions that the Obama administration had recently imposed on Russia to punish Moscow for its interference in the 2016 presidential election. Flynn denied to Pence and other officials that he had discussed the sanctions with Kislyak. So far, the committees, which are investigating Russian interference and whether anyone close to Trump colluded with Moscow, have not taken Flynn up on his offer, the Journal reported. Facebook

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Trump administration appeals Hawaii judges order against travel ban By Jaweed Kaleem The Department of Justice has appealed a Hawaii court order that brought President Trumps travel ban to a national halt. The government has argued that the president was well within his authority to restrict travel from six Muslim-majority countries and put a pause on refugee resettlement. The appeal Thursday to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals came a day after U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson in Honolulu refused to dismiss his temporary block of the travel ban that he issued on March 15. With the appeal, the government is now fighting to reinstate the travel ban in two appeals courts on opposite ends of the country. That increases the likelihood that one of the cases will make it to the U.S. Supreme Court. Earlier this month, the Department of Justice appealed a Maryland district judges order against the travel ban to the U.S. 4th District Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va. Both rulings in Hawaii and Maryland said Trumps executive order discriminated against Muslims. Watson and U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang in Maryland cited Trumps campaign promises to suspend Muslim travel to the U.S. as proof of his orders anti-Muslim bias. The Hawaii ruling is broader than the Maryland one. It blocks a 90-day pause on travel to the U.S. from nationals of six majority-Muslim countries and a 120-day moratorium on new refugee resettlement. The Maryland ruling only halted the ban on travel into the U.S. by citizens of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The 9th Circuit, which has jurisdiction over nine Western states, is the same court where a panel of three judges denied a government request last month to reverse ruling against the first travel ban by a federal judge in Washington state. Trump, in turn, lambasted the bad court and signed a new executive order on travel on March 6 that was modified in an attempt to survive court challenges. Facebook

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Senate heads for nuclear option if Democrats filibuster Gorsuch nomination By Lisa Mascaro One of the Senates most serious jobs  confirming the presidents choice for a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court  has devolved into a game of political chicken. Senators are heading toward an institution-defining showdown next week as Democrats promise to try to block President Trumps nominee, Judge Neil M. Gorsuch, with a filibuster, a rarely seen maneuver for high court appointments. Republicans are threatening to respond by changing long-standing Senate rules to circumvent the 60 votes that would be needed to overcome a filibuster. Instead they would allow confirmation with a simple majority. The outcome has the potential to not only shape the future of the Supreme Court  which has been without a full bench since the sudden death of Justice Antonin Scalia last year  it also could crush one final vestige of bipartisanship in the Senate, altering the upper chamber for years to come. The battle over the Supreme Court seat was always expected to be a partisan affair in todays heated political climate. But the polemics intensified after the Republican majority denied President Obamas nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, a confirmation hearing ahead of last years presidential election. Read More Facebook

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Scalias seat has been vacant longer than any Supreme Court justices in nearly 50 years By Colleen Shalby (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) Its been more than 400 days since Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalias death left his seat vacant. With Republicans having blocked a vote on then-President Obamas nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, and with Senate Democrats now making plans to filibuster President Trumps nominee, Judge Neil M. Gorsuch, it could take even longer to replace Scalia. Its not unheard of for a justices seat to remain empty for a considerable amount of time. Pew Research Center did the math and found that the longest gap was 841 days, in the mid-1840s, from the time of Henry Baldwins death to his replacement Robert Griers confirmation. But the last time in recent history that a vacancys duration in this range occurred was after Abe Fortas resigned in 1969. It took 391 days to fill that seat, an interval that ended in 1970 when Harry Blackmun  the justice who authored the courts landmark opinion in Roe vs. Wade  was confirmed. Blackmun was President Nixons third pick to fill that seat. The second-longest vacancy in recent years occurred in 1988. It took 237 days to fill Lewis Powells seat after he retired, with Anthony Kennedy succeeding him. Its been 58 days and counting since Trump nominated Gorsuch. Heres how his waiting time from nomination to confirmation stacks up against the current justices: Elena Kagan: 87 days

Sonia Sotomayor: 66 days

Samuel A. Alito Jr.: 82 days

John G. Roberts Jr.: 23 days

Stephen G. Breyer: 73 days

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: 50 days

Clarence Thomas: 99 days

Anthony M. Kennedy: 65 days If Gorsuch is confirmed soon, he wont start considering cases until the courts new term in October.

And if hes not confirmed? Trump would nominate another successor to Scalia  theres no limit on how many times he can do that. Until Scalias seat is filled, lower courts decisions serve as tie-breakers. Facebook

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Sens. Manchin and Heitkamp become first Democrats to announce support for Gorsuch By David Savage Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota became the first Democrats to say they will vote for Judge Neil Gorsuch and not support the effort to filibuster his confirmation to the Supreme Court. Their announcements came as no surprise. Both are centrists who have to run for reelection next year in states that voted overwhelmingly for Trump. After considering his record, watching his testimony in front of the Judiciary Committee and meeting with him twice, I will vote to confirm him to be the ninth justice on the Supreme Court, Manchin said. I have found him to be an honest and thoughtful man.... I have not found any reasons why this jurist should not be a Supreme Court justice. Heitkamp said she was impressed with Gorsuchs record as a judge. This vote does not diminish how disturbed I am by what the Republicans did to Judge [Merrick] Garland, referring to the GOP-led Senates refusal last year to consider President Obamas choice to fill the seat of the late Justice Antonin Scalia. But I was taught that two wrongs dont make a right, she said. The Republican majority in the Senate needs six more Democrats to join with them if they hope to stop the expected filibuster of President Trumps Supreme Court nominee. It takes 60 votes to end the debate under the Senates current rules. But the 52 Republicans may vote to simply eliminate this requirement if the Democrats stand firm against Gorsuch. On Monday, the Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to approve Gorsuch on a party line vote and send the nomination to the Senate floor. A final vote is expected April 7. Facebook

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White House invites lawmakers to see intelligence material after New York Times report By Noah Bierman The White House has invited House and Senate intelligence committee chairs to review documents that it says were recently discovered by national security staff that could help determine whether information gathered about American citizens was mishandled. White House spokesman Sean Spicer would not say whether these are the same documents that Rep. Devin Nunes, the Tulare Republican who chairs the House intelligence committee, said he reviewed last week. Nunes has refused to identify his sources. Some saw his disclosure as an attempt to give credence to President Trumps widely refuted claim that President Obama had ordered wiretaps on his phone during the campaign. Nunes said the material he reviewed suggested that intelligence agencies had incidentally collected information about Trump or his associates. He has declined to be more specific or share the information with the committee. But the New York Times reported Thursday, citing unnamed sources, that two White House officials helped Nunes get access to the documents. And now the same information may be provided to other members of the Intelligence committee. In a letter to the bipartisan group of intelligence leaders sent Thursday, White House Counsel Donald McGhan said administration lawyers would supervise the review given the sensitivity of the documents to protect the extremely sensitive intelligence sources and methods. The letter calls on the committee to investigate the possibility that classified information was inappropriately gathered and handled and whether civil liberties of American citizens were violated. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank), the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told reporters that he welcomed the chance to review the materials, though he said he would be obligated to share them with the rest of his committee. More troubling to Schiff, he said, was the cloak and dagger stuff and circuitous route that the White House national security staff appears to have used to disseminate the materials in that secret meeting with Nunes. Schiff said White House staff may have been trying to launder information through the committee, rather than simply providing it directly to the president. If that was designed to hide the origin of the materials, that raises profound questions about just what the White House is doing, Schiff said. We need to get to the bottom of whether this was some sort of stratagem by the White House. In a letter to McGhan, Schiff said answering the White Houses questions would require asking intelligence agencies how the information in the documents was gathered. I hope you will confirm to the committee whether these materials are the same as those first shared with Nunes, Schiff wrote. 2:11: This story was updated with staff reporting Facebook

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Trumps team: A network of ties to Russia By Angelica Quintero The FBI is investigating possible coordination between people associated with the Trump campaign and Russian authorities during the 2016 election. The U.S. intelligence community has said it is confident that the Russian government directed hacking operations and intended to interfere with the U.S. election process. Take a look at how some high-profile people have been drawn into the investigation. See the graphic  Facebook

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Former RNC official is first to depart senior West Wing staff By Michael A. Memoli A former top Republican National Committee official and ally of White House chief of staff Reince Priebus will depart her West Wing post in the first significant shake-up of President Trumps senior staff. Politico first reported that Katie Walsh, the deputy White House chief of staff, will leave to take on an advisory position with political groups that were formed to support the presidents agenda from the outside. Walsh had served as chief of staff at the RNC when Priebus was party chair. At the White House, she served in a similar capacity under Priebus, tasked with overseeing the senior staff and the scheduling operation. Though White House officials denied the move was a signal of disharmony within the senior ranks, her departure spoke to issues dogging the new administration  a top-heavy operation in the West Wing and also the inability of the president to sustain the kind of grassroots support for his agenda that proved key to his electoral win. It was abundantly clear we didnt have air cover when it came to the calls coming into lawmakers, and nobody can fix this problem like Katie Walsh, Priebus told reporters later, according to Time. Facebook

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Putin: Read my lips, there was no Russian meddling in U.S. vote By Ann M. Simmons Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto during the International Arctic Forum in Arkhangelsk, Russia, on Thursday. (Sergei Karpukhim / AFP/Getty Images) Calling the accusations lies, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday denied that Moscow meddled in last years U.S. elections. Read my lips, no, Putin said during a panel moderated by CNBC, according to a report on the news agencys website. All those things are fictional, illusory and provocations, lies, the Russian president said. All these are used for domestic American political agendas. The anti-Russian card is played by different political forces inside the United States to trade on that and consolidate their positions inside. Putins comments came as the Senate Intelligence Committee was set to begin a hearing entitled Disinformation: A Primer in Russian Active Measures and Influence Campaigns, which will focus on understanding the method of Russias active disinformation campaign and assess the extent of Moscows interference. FBI Director James Comey confirmed earlier this month that his agency was investigating Russias intrusion into the 2016 poll and whether there was any collusion between Moscow and President Trumps campaign. Read More Facebook

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Trump levels extraordinary threat against GOP conservatives; Ryan says he understands presidents frustration By Noah Bierman House Speaker Paul D. Ryan commiserated with President Trump Thursday after the president launched a Twitter assault on the group of rebellious Republicans known as the Freedom Caucus. I understand the frustration, I share the frustration, Ryan told reporters Thursday, when asked to respond to Trumps threat to campaign against fellow Republicans. Freedom Caucus members, who back limited government and have defined themselves in opposition to the Washington establishment, have been a major headache for GOP leaders. Ever since the Republicans took control of the House in 2010, conservative refusal to back key bills to fund government agencies has forced GOP leaders to negotiate with Democrats for the votes they need. Freedom Caucus members helped lead the charge against former Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio). The caucus was blamed by many Republicans last week for torpedoing the leaderships plan, backed by Trump, to make significant changes to Obamacare. Still, Trumps threat to fight them in the 2018 elections was an extraordinary step. Trump had previously made electoral threats against wayward members of his party, but Thursdays tweet was especially direct, threatening to treat them the same way as Democrats. The Freedom Caucus will hurt the entire Republican agenda if they don't get on the team, & fast. We must fight them, & Dems, in 2018!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 30, 2017 Freedom Caucus members have begun pushing back aggressively. A spokeswoman for the group argued on Twitter that Trump did not have his facts right and that Republican moderates were equally responsible for sinking the healthcare bill. View Twitter post Finding Trump supporters to challenge Republicans in a primary would be hard and could further thrust the GOP into civil war. Trump, despite low poll numbers nationally, remains popular in core Republican districts. Many members of Congress, however, ran ahead of him in their districts in the last election. The president has also suggested he might be open to cutting deals with Democrats, something the White House has discussed but not followed through on. That would also be difficult, given the rancor on the left. Ryan said Thursday that the best path is for Republicans to come together on healthcare and other issues About 90% of our conference is for this bill to repeal and replace Obamcare, and about 10% are not. And thats not enough to pass a bill, he said. What I am encouraging our members to do is to keep talking with each other until we can get the consensus to pass this bill. But its very understandable that the president is frustrated that we havent gotten to where we need to go, because this is something that we all said we would do. Facebook

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Pence casts tie-breaking vote to advance bill that would let states withhold federal funds from Planned Parenthood By Lisa Mascaro Republicans needed Vice President Mike Pence to cast a tie-breaking vote Thursday in the Senate to advance legislation that rolls back rules preventing states from withholding certain federal funds to Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers. With opposition from two Republican women, Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Republicans did not have enough votes with their slim 52-seat majority to advance the bill. Pence, a longtime opponent of abortion, arrived to cast the vote breaking the 50-50 tie  and will be expected to do so later Thursday on final passage. We just saw a historic moment, said Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) It is a sad day for the United States Senate. The measure rolls back a regulation finalized at the end of President Obamas administration that explicitly prevented states from denying federal Title X family planning funds to clinics, like Planned Parenthood, that also provide abortion services. Under longstanding practice, no federal funds can be used for abortions, but federal family planning money can flow to the clinics to provide other healthcare services. Some Republican-led state governments had been moving in recent years to choke off Title X funds from any clinics that offered abortion service. The Obama rule sought to prohibit such practices. The bill Thursday, sponsored by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), has already cleared the House. It is part of a series of bills being passed by Congress under the so-called Congressional Review Act, which allows federal regulations put in place during the final days of the previous administration to be undone by simple majority passage. Passage by the Senate later Thursday would send it to the White House for President Trumps signature. Busy day in D.C., but always happy to make time to meet visitors touring the Capitol. pic.twitter.com/4q6JG8wP0E  Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) March 30, 2017 Facebook

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Senate committee narrowly approves Acostas nomination to be Labor secretary By Jim Puzzanghera (Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP) A Senate committee on Thursday narrowly approved R. Alexander Acosta to be Labor secretary, moving to fill one of President Trumps few remaining vacant Cabinet posts. The nomination of Acosta, a law school dean and former Justice Department official, was approved by a 12-11 vote by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. All of the panels Republicans supported the nomination; all of the Democrats were opposed. If confirmed in a full Senate vote, which is expected soon, Acosta will be the only Latino in Trumps Cabinet. A date for the final vote hasnt been set. Read More Facebook

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Follow the money and the trail of dead Russians, expert urges senators By Del Quentin Wilber (Susan Walsh / Associated Press) The Senate Intelligence Committee hearing Thursday into Russian efforts to influence the November elections has been a long history lesson, tracing Moscows decades-long efforts to use misinformation to undermine democracies. But Clinton Watts, of the Center for Cyber and Homeland Security at George Washington University, provided a roadmap to better understanding the Kremlins efforts. He urged senators and the U.S. government to follow the money to figure out how misinformation websites and social media outlets are being funded. While the Russians conducted their hacking in the Internets shadows, their efforts to influence the election was hardly a secret, he said. You can hack stuff and be covert, but you cant influence and be covert, he said. You have to ultimately show your hand. And thats why we have been able to discover it online. The second way to trace Russian influence was more ominous: Follow the trail of dead Russians, he said. There have been more dead Russians in the past three months that are tied to this investigation, he added. They are dropping dead, even in Western countries. Watts didnt finish the thought but was likely referring to a spate of deaths of high-profile Russians, some of which appeared to be assassinations although others appear to have been from natural causes. With the daytime execution of a Russian politician in Ukraine last week, at least eight Russian politicians, activists, ambassadors and a former intelligence official have died since the U.S. election. Facebook

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Russia has stepped up efforts to influence elections, experts tell Senate panel By David S. Cloud (Susan Walsh / Associated Press) Moscow has stepped up its interference in U.S. and European elections, using social media, hacking and other tools to undermine public confidence and to raise doubts about the U.S as an ally, Russia experts told the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday. The committee was taking testimony from experts in Russian propaganda and intelligence operations as part of its investigation into Moscows meddling in the 2016 election. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the top Democrat on the panel, emphasized that in addition to examining the broad topic of Russian efforts to influence the election, the panel also must seek to answer whether President Trumps campaign had contact with Russian officials last year, noting the the FBI has opened its own probe. I will not prejudge the outcome of our investigation. We are seeking to determine if there is an actual fire, but there is clearly a lot of smoke, Warner said. Dr. Eugene Rumer, Director of the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told the panel that Russian President Vladimir Putin probably viewed Moscows meddling in the U.S. election as an unqualified success. Facebook

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Tillerson meets Turkish officials to seek support for battle against Islamic State in Syria By Umar Farooq Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Thursday met for more than two hours with Turkeys president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as they hoped to shore up troubled relations between their nations. Making his first trip to Turkey, Tillerson became the highest-ranking Trump administration official to hold a face-to-face session with Erdogan, an increasingly authoritarian leader who is also a NATO member and key ally in the fight against Islamic State in Syria. The meeting went longer than planned. Turkey and the United States disagree sharply on how to combat Islamic State: Washington supports Kurdish militias that Erdogan regards as an arm of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which Turkey and the U.S. consider a terrorist organization. Trying to fight against Daesh through terrorist organizations such as ... extensions of the PKK, would be like shooting yourself in the foot, Erdogans senior advisor, Ibrahim Kalin, said ahead of Thursdays meeting. Daesh is a pejorative Arabic acronym for Islamic State. Read More Facebook

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Hawaii judge extends national halt on Trumps travel ban By Jaweed Kaleem Donald Trump in San Diego in May. (John Gastaldo / San Diego Union-Tribune)) The Hawaii federal judge who brought President Trumps revised travel ban to a national halt this month extended his order blocking the bans enforcement. The move Wednesday sets the stage for the Justice Department to appeal to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse the ruling. U.S. District Judge Derrick Watsons original order halting the travel ban was issued March 15, a day before the ban was to go into effect, in the form of a temporary restraining order. At a hearing in Honolulu on Wednesday, federal lawyers asked Watson to either dismiss that order or narrow the restrictions to apply to fewer parts of the travel ban. Instead, Watson said he would turn the order into a preliminary injunction, which has the effect of extending his order blocking the travel ban for a longer period. Watson said he would keep intact the restrictions on the travel ban -- a block of its 90-day moratorium on travel to the U.S. from nationals of six majority-Muslim countries and its 120-day pause on new refugee resettlement. If the Justice Department appeals the case, it will be heard in the same court that upheld a national halt to Trumps first travel ban last month after a Seattle federal judge ruled against it. The administration has already appealed to the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals a Maryland judges more limited March 16 ruling that stopped enforcement of the travel orders country-specific ban. Both the Hawaii and Maryland judges found Trumps executive order to discriminate against Muslims. They used the presidents campaign statements promising to suspend Muslim travel to the U.S. as evidence of the orders anti-Muslim bias. Government lawyers have argued that the president is not singling out Muslims but instead acting within his power to restrict immigration and safeguard national security while better vetting procedures are developed to prevent potential terrorists from entering the U.S. Trump has said hell take the case over the travel ban to the U.S. Supreme Court. Facebook

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Ivanka Trump gets formal White House role, with ethics obligations but no pay By Michael A. Memoli (Brendan Smialowski / AFP-Getty Images) Ivanka Trump is taking on a more formal White House role  with a title but not a paycheck  a move intended to quell ethics concerns raised about her status in her fathers administration. In a statement, the White House noted that the presidents elder daughter already had an unprecedented role in the administration different from that of previous presidential children. She now will take the title of special advisor to the president, and therefore assume the same responsibility to abide by ethics standards that other federal employees have, the statement said. The decision demonstrates the administrations commitment to ethics, transparency and compliance, the administration said. Although Ivanka Trump already had a West Wing office  as does her husband, senior advisor Jared Kushner  she now will have increased opportunities to lead initiatives driving real policy benefits for the American public that would not have been available to her previously, a White House spokesman said. The announcement came on a day when President Trump sought to promote his administrations commitment to empowering women. He delivered remarks at an East Room event that included other top women in his Cabinet, including U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and Small Business Administration head Linda McMahon. Ivanka Trump held a roundtable with female business owners earlier, Press Secretary Sean Spicer said. Earlier Wednesday, leading Senate Democrats sent a letter to the Office of Government Ethics raising concerns about the increasing, albeit unspecified position Ivanka Trump had held and the potential conflicts of interest that her government position might trigger with her personal businesses, including a retail clothing brand. The letter from Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Tom Carper (D-Del.) asked the agency whether Trump would be required to divest herself of personal assets or if she could be required to recuse herself from certain functions. Trumps new position was first reported by the New York Times. In a statement to the paper, Trump said she was acting in response to ethics concerns, but noted she already had been voluntarily complying with all ethics rules. Facebook

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Russia inquiry one of the biggest congressional probes in decade, senators say By David Lauter Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), right, and Mark Warner (D-Va.). (Susan Walsh / Associated Press) The Senate Intelligence Committees probe into Russian involvement in the 2016 U.S. presidential election will be one of the biggest investigations in years and has already involved an unprecedented level of cooperation between Congress and U.S. spy agencies, the panels chairman said Wednesday. At a Capitol Hill news conference, the committee chairman, Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, and its ranking Democrat, Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, emphasized the bipartisan nature of the panels efforts, drawing a determined, though unstated, contrast with the partisan dysfunction of a parallel investigation in the House. The committee will go wherever the intelligence leads us, Burr said. And he pointedly refused to endorse White House statements that investigators inevitably will find that there was no collusion between President Trumps campaign and the Russians. It would be crazy to try to draw any conclusions at this point, Burr said. We know that our challenge is to answer that question to the American people, Burr said, referring to the issue of Trumps involvement. Warner said he had confidence in Richard Burr to run a fair investigation and produce a bipartisan conclusion. Warner said Americans should not lose sight of what the investigation is about: An outside foreign adversary effectively tried to hijack the election and favor one candidate over the other. They didnt do it because it was in the best interest of the American people, he said. "[Russian President] Vladimir Putins goal is a weaker United States. The Russian action should be a concern of all Americans regardless of party affiliation, he added. The committee staff already has reviewed thousands of pages of intelligence documents and has begun scheduling interviews with a list of 20 preliminary witnesses, who will be questioned in private before the panel holds public hearings, Burr said. He strongly implied that one of the potential witnesses is retired Gen. Michael Flynn, who was fired from his post as national security advisor to Trump after the disclosure that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence and others about his contacts with Russias ambassador to the U.S. You would think less of us if the committee had not talked with Flynn, Burr told reporters. The witnesses, including Jared Kushner, the presidents son-in-law and advisor, will be questioned when the committee is ready, he said. Facebook

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Justice Department watchdog finds DEA cash seizure program may pose risk to civil liberties By Del Quentin Wilber A Ukiah, Calif., police officer works with a dog to search for drugs or cash in a motorists car on May 14, 2014. (Francine Orr/ Los Angeles Times) The way the Drug Enforcement Administration seizes cash and other assets may pose a risk to civil liberties, the Justice Departments internal watchdog reported Wednesday. The Justice Departments inspector general also determined that the agency does not measure or track how its asset seizure activities advance criminal investigations. Over the last decade, more than $28 billion has been seized through the departments asset forfeiture program. The effort and others in states have generated intense controversy in recent years, with critics contending that many seizures are unfair because some who lose their assets are never charged with crimes. Law enforcement officials, however, say that seizing property and cash is a key tool in disrupting criminal organizations and compensating the victims of crimes. Former Atty. Gen. Eric Holder in 2015 limited how state and local authorities can obtain seized funds by working with federal agents. In its report released Wednesday, the inspector general examined 100 cases in which the DEA seized cash. Eighty-five of the cases involved interdiction at transportation hubs, such as airports or parcel centers. Nearly 80 of those seizures resulted from the direct observation of agents or local police. The inspector general and the Justice Department have raised concerns in the past about such stops and searches, in part, due to the potential for racial profiling. Of the 100 cases, the DEA could verify that only 44 advanced ongoing investigations, led to a new investigation, or resulted in an arrest or prosecution, the inspector general found. When seizure and administrative forfeitures do not ultimately advance an investigation or prosecution, law enforcement creates the appearance, and risks the reality, that it is more interested in seizing and forfeiting cash than advancing an investigation or prosecution, the report said. The inspector general also found that the Justice Department does not provide enough training or require state and local officers working on federal task forces to be trained on asset forfeiture policies. The Justice Department responded in a letter to the inspector general that its analysis was flawed and its sample significantly underreported the amount of seized funds that are ultimately returned. In a statement, Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said, Asset forfeiture is a powerful and effective law enforcement tool, allowing the department to compensate victims, deprive criminals of the proceeds of their crimes, remove the tools of crime from criminal organizations, and deter crime. The department believes that the ongoing public debate about asset forfeiture is healthy, she added, but as outlined in our formal response, we strongly disagree with large swaths of this report and its flawed methodology that failed to address the essential role asset forfeiture plays combating some of the most sophisticated criminal actors and organizations, including terrorist financiers, cyber criminals, fraudsters, human traffickers, and drug cartels. 9:23 a.m.: This story was updated with Justice Department comment. Facebook

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Hoax. Con job. Chinese plot. Trump tweets have bashed climate science for years By Michael Finnegan President Trump signs an executive order Tuesday to rescind Obama administration policies on climate change. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press) As President Trump moved to halt federal efforts against global warming on Tuesday, he avoided an important phrase: climate change. It was the same story during his campaign for president; Trump rarely mentioned it. When he pledged in May to withdraw the United States from the Paris treaty, a pact among nearly every nation on Earth to reduce the carbon emissions that cause global warming, it was one of the few occasions when Trump broached the topic. Trumps muted approach made political sense. To reject science is to risk alienating millions of moderate voters who support action to stop global warming. But before Trump started running for president, he often bluntly attacked climate science. Some highlights from his Twitter feed: Read More Facebook

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Supreme Court rules in favor of merchants who want to advertise credit card fees By David Savage Supreme Court rules on swipe fees (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press)) Merchants may soon have the right to tell customers that they will pay a surcharge if they use a credit card rather than pay with cash. The Supreme Court cast doubt Wednesday on laws in California, New York, Florida and seven other states that make it illegal for sellers to impose a surcharge on credit card sales. In a 8-0 decision, the justices said these laws regulate speech and may be challenged as violations of the 1st Amendment. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said these laws do not prevent merchants from offering a discount for those who pay cash. Rather, they simply forbid disclosing that a posted price includes a surcharge of 2% to 3% for using a credit or debit card. Merchants want to pass the fees along only to their customers who choose to use credit cards, he said. They also want to make clear that they are not the bad guys -- that the credit card companies, not the merchants, are responsible for the higher prices. But the ruling Wednesday was only a partial victory for the five New York businesses, including a hair salon and an ice cream parlor in Brooklyn, that sued to challenge the ban on advertising or disclosing surcharges for using credit cards. The U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York had upheld the law on the grounds it was a price regulation, not a speech restriction. Roberts and the high court disagreed. What the law does is regulate how sellers may communicate their prices, he said. A merchant who wants to charge $10 for cash and $10.30 for credit may not convey that price any way he pleases. He is not free to say '$10, with a 3% credit card surcharge. But the justices did not strike down the state laws, instead sending the case back to the New York court to decide whether this speech regulation could be justified. Sometimes, laws are used to regulate the words of commercial transactions to prevent buyers from being fooled or confused. Until recently, the major credit card companies had imposed contract restrictions that prevented merchants from disclosing surcharges. But those provisions have challenged and knocked down. That in turn led to new legal challenges against the state laws which forbid sellers from disclosing these surcharges. The case decided Wednesday was Expressions Hair Design vs. Schneiderman. Facebook

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Trumps poll numbers are low. But the people who put him in office say its not time to judge him  yet By Noah Bierman Its been five months since the euphoria of a Donald Trump rally at the local arena brought optimism to this former Democratic stronghold. The snow from a long winter has begun melting into the rocky soil, and the digital sign in a torn-up parking lot blinks hopefully: Warm days are coming. President Trump has yet to deliver jobs or the repeal of Obamacare. But here, in an area crucial to his unexpected election victory, many residents are more frustrated with what they see as obstruction and a rush to judgment than they are with Trump. Give him six months to prove himself, said an information technology supervisor. Give him a year, said a service manager. Give him four years, said a retired print shop owner. Give the man a chance, said Crystal Matthews, a 59-year-old hospital employee. Theyre just going to fight him tooth and nail, the whole way. Read More Facebook

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To fight womans defamation claim, Trump cites the Bill Clinton-Paula Jones case  which the president lost By David Savage President Trump is citing Bill Clintons famous sexual harassment battle in his effort to block a California womans lawsuit claiming Trump lied about groping her in the Beverly Hills Hotel in 2007. Problem is, Clinton lost that bid for legal immunity when the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in 1997 that the chief executive is not shielded from responding to a civil suit regarding his private behavior. Read More Facebook

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House sends Trump bill to kill landmark broadband privacy regulations By Jim Puzzanghera Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) sponsored the repeal bill. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) The House voted Tuesday to kill landmark privacy restrictions for Internet service providers and sent the bill to the White House, which indicated President Trump would sign it and invalidate the rules before they go into effect. The measure, approved largely along party lines, repeals tough new Federal Communications Commission regulations that would require broadband companies to get explicit customer permission before using or sharing most of their personal information. The data include health information, website browsing history, app usage and the geographic information from mobile devices. The rules also tighten data security requirements. Republicans, along with AT&T Inc., Charter Communications Inc., Comcast Corp. and other providers of high-speed Internet service, strongly opposed the rules. They argued that the restrictions are tougher than those for websites and social networks that also collect and use the highly valuable consumer data, which companies use to target advertising. Read More Facebook

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U.S. commander says theres a fair chance that coalition airstrike is responsible for civilian casualties in Mosul By W.J. Hennigan Rescuers are still recovering bodies from a suspected U.S. airstrike in the Iraqi city of Mosul. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) The top U.S. general commanding the fight against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria said that the U.S.-led coalition was probably responsible for a blast that killed more than 200 people. If we did it, and I would say theres at least a fair chance that we did, it was an unintentional accident of war and we will transparently report it to you, Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend told reporters Tuesday via teleconference from Baghdad. He made the comments in response to witness reports that an airstrike by the U.S.-led coalition leveled a large apartment block and killed scores of civilians, including women and children, in west Mosuls Jadidah neighborhood on March 17. My initial assessment is that we probably had a role in these casualties, Townsend said. But investigators are still trying to determine whether other factors -- possibly including repeated airstrikes in the neighborhood or an explosive device accidentally or deliberately planted near the building -- could have led to its collapse. The fact that the whole building collapsed contradicts our involvement, Townsend said. The munition that we used should not have collapsed an entire building. So thats one of those things were trying to figure out in the investigative process. Read More Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown calls Trump energy plan a colossal mistake that will galvanize climate change activists By Evan Halper Gov. Jerry Brown. (Gregory Bull / Associated Press) California Gov. Jerry Brown warned that President Trump has just made a colossal mistake in gutting the federal governments effort to combat climate change, which will ignite a response Trump is unprepared to handle. It defies science itself, Brown said in a call to The Times shortly after Trump signed an executive order that aims to bring an abrupt halt to the United States leadership on global warming. Erasing climate change may take place in Donald Trumps mind, but nowhere else. Yes, there is going to be a counter-movement, Brown vowed, predicting Trumps actions will mobilize environmentalists in a way President Obama never could. I have met with many heads of state, ambassadors. This is a growing movement. President Trumps outrageous move will galvanize the contrary force. Things have been a bit tepid [in climate activism]. But this conflict, this sharpening of the contradiction, will energize those who believe climate change is an existential threat. Brown and other big-state governors and mayors are moving swiftly to fill the global leadership vacuum Trump created with Tuesdays directive, which stops short of officially pulling the U.S. out of the Paris climate accord of 2015. I see Washington declining in influence, but the momentum being maintained by California and other states aligned with China and those who are willing to do something, said Brown, who will be traveling to China soon for meetings on climate. There is a growing activism on the part of millions of people who will not stand by and let Donald Trump effectively tear up the Paris agreement and destroy Americas climate leadership and jeopardize the health and well being of so many people. In the face of Trumps retreat on climate, Brown said California will step up its own efforts to push others toward clean energy. We are not fully meeting the challenge of climate change yet, he said. We are doubling down on our commitment. We are reaching out to other states in America and throughout the world and other countries . We have plenty of fuel to build this movement. This is real, Brown said of the threat created by climate change. The nations of the world have recognized it in Paris  I will continue doing my best to work with and rouse the world community, whatever the politicians in Washington do or dont do. Facebook

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Trump orders government to dismantle Obamas climate change policies By Evan Halper  President Trump ordered an abrupt halt to Americas crusade against climate change. (March 29, 2017) (Sign up for our free video newsletter here http://bit.ly/2n6VKPR) President Trump on Tuesday ordered the federal government to retreat from the battle against climate change launched by President Obama, issuing a directive aimed at dismantling the core policies that have made the U.S. a global leader in curbing emissions. The plan unveiled by Trump reflects an about-face for the U.S. on energy, and it puts into jeopardy the nations ability to meet the obligations it agreed to under the global warming pact signed in Paris with 194 other nations. It would shelve the landmark Clean Power Plan that mandates electricity companies reduce their emissions. It seeks to dislodge consideration of climate throughout the federal government, where it has been a factor in every relevant decision in recent years. My administration is putting an end to the war on coal, Trump said. I am taking historic steps to lift the restrictions on American energy to reverse government intrusions and to cancel job killing regulations. Under the order, the government will abandon the social cost of carbon that regulators had painstakingly calculated and begun factoring into their decision on permit applications and rulemaking. Restrictions on methane releases at oil and gas drilling facilities would be eased. Agencies will also stop contemplating climate impacts as they launch into new projects, and restrictions on coal leasing and fracking on federal lands will be lifted. The directive, for which progressive states and environmentalists have been preparing for months, is certain to set off years of litigation and conflicts between Washington and state capitols. Some of the most far-reaching policies Trump is seeking to bring to a halt cannot be canceled unilaterally and require lengthy administrative proceedings. But others he can end with the stroke of his pen. Smoke rises from the Colstrip Steam Electric Station, a coal-burning power plant in Colstrip, Mont., on July 1, 2103. (Matt Brown / Associated Press) Facebook

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A trade war is brewing inside the White House between rival camps By Don Lee Soon after President Trump took office, an executive order was quietly drafted to suspend talks with China on an obscure but potentially far-reaching treaty about bilateral investment. After eight years and two dozen rounds of negotiations, the treaty terms were almost in final form. Pulling out after so much time and effort would send a clear message that the Trump administration meant to take a new and tougher approach to China. But the executive order never even got to the presidents desk. It was quietly shelved, according to sources inside and outside the White House, at the behest of former Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn, now Trumps top economic advisor. Killing the order was a small victory for a White House faction that supports free trade and the global economy. But it was only an opening skirmish in what promises to be a long and bitter struggle over trade policy that so far is being waged behind the scenes in the Trump administration. Read More Facebook

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Supreme Court reverses death sentence for Texas inmate who could not tell time or name the days of the week By David Savage The Supreme Court set aside a death sentence on Tuesday for a Texas inmate who as a 13-year-old could not tell time or name the days of the week, concluding he should not be executed in light of his mental disability. In a 5-3 decision, the justices reversed the Texas state appeals court that had restored a death sentence given to Bobby James Moore, a 57-year old prisoner who shot and killed a store clerk in a botched robbery in 1980. At issue was whether Moore had a mental disability that would make his execution cruel and unusual punishment under the 8th Amendment. The justices banned states from executing prisoners with a mental disability, but they left states some flexibility to set the standards. But three years ago, the justices faulted Florida authorities for relying almost entirely on I.Q. scores. In the Texas case decided Tuesday, the justices said state judges had ignored ample evidence that Moore had severe mental disability as a child. That evidence was not overcome by the fact that he had adapted well in prison, they said. At 13, Moore lacked the basic understanding of the days of the week, the months of the year and the seasons; he could scarcely tell time or comprehend the standards of measure, said Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. After failing every subject in the ninth grade, Moore dropped out of high school. Cast out of his home, he survived on the streets, eating from trash cans, even after two bouts of food poisoning. After fatally shooting the clerk in the 1980 robbery, he was sentenced to death. The Texas courts reexamined his sentence after the high court abolished capital punishment in 2002 for defendants with a mental disability. A state judge listened to experts and set aside Moores death sentence, But the states criminal appeals court disagreed. Its judges said Moore had demonstrated adaptive strength by living on the streets and carrying out a robbery, and therefore did not qualify as having a severe mental impairment. Ginsburg said the state judges had relied on an outdated understanding of mental disability, and her opinion in Moore vs. Texas said the state court must reconsidere its decision. Justices Anthony M. Kennedy, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan agreed. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. dissented. While he agreed the states authorities may have used outdated standards, Moore had I.Q. scores ranging from 69 to 79 that show he did not have the significantly sub-average intellectual functioning that would exempt him from the death penalty. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito agreed. Facebook

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The Freedom Caucus roars back to relevance to challenge Trumps agenda and strategy By Lisa Mascaro When House Speaker Paul D. Ryan pulled the plug on the GOPs Obamacare overhaul, lawmakers spilled out of the Capitol basement, angry, frustrated and stunned. But Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), leader of the conservative and rebellious House Freedom Caucus that led the fight against the bill, was uncharacteristically quiet, downplaying his political victory and mulling over the next move. After coming together to battle President Obama and becoming a driving force in the Republican Party, this 30-member-plus bloc of deficit hawks and right-flank conservatives had appeared for a while to be pushed aside by the movement that swept President Trump into office. But after helping defeat the GOP healthcare overhaul, the Freedom Caucus has roared back to relevance as a political power in the Trump era. It has reasserted itself as not just a renegade assemblage of mostly back-bench lawmakers, but as a core block of votes that Trump will need to push past the healthcare debacle to tax reform, budget battles and other issues. These guys saved the Republicans, said Adam Brandon, president of FreedomWorks, a group that organized a North Carolina rally on Monday in honor of Meadows. As beaten and battered as they are, weve got a group thats willing to take the hard decisions. If youre going to drain the swamp, these are the guys who are going to do it. Read More Facebook

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White House stopped Yates testimony about Russian meddling in presidential election, lawyer says By Associated Press A lawyer for former Deputy Atty. Gen. Sally Yates said in letters last week that the Trump administration had moved to squelch her testimony in a hearing about Russian meddling in the presidential election. In the letters, attorney David ONeil said he understood the Justice Department was invoking further constraints on testimony she could provide at a House Intelligence Committee hearing that had been scheduled for Tuesday. He said the departments position was that all actions she took as deputy attorney general were client confidences that could not be disclosed without written approval. The Washington Post first reported the letters. A person familiar with the situation confirmed them as authentic to the Associated Press. The White House called the Post story entirely false. Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Tulare), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and part of Trumps transition team, last week announced that the committee was canceling the planned public hearing with Yates and two former Obama administration intelligence officials  the former director of national intelligence, James Clapper, and former CIA Director John Brennan. Read More Facebook

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Did Mnuchin cross an ethical line in plugging The Lego Batman Movie? A senator wants to know By Jim Puzzanghera (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press) A Democratic senator wants to know if Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin committed an ethics violation when he publicly plugged The Lego Batman Movie, a film in which he has a financial stake. A former Hollywood financier, Mnuchin was asked at the end of a question-and-answer session on Friday hosted by the Axios news website to name a movie people should see. Well, Im not allowed to promote anything that Im involved in. So I just want to have the legal disclosure, youve asked me the question and I am not promoting any product, Mnuchin said at the event, which aired on C-SPAN2. But you should send all your kids to Lego Batman,  he said. The crowd laughed. But Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, wasnt amused. Hes asking the U.S. Office of Government Ethics to look into the comments. Read More Facebook

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Venezuela hits back in showdown with OAS, U.S. over democracy By Tracy Wilkinson The Venezuelan foreign minister had harsh words Monday for the regional organization that is considering sanctioning her country for its failure to hold democratic elections. Delcy Rodriguez, the foreign minister, accused the Organization of American States of wanting not to punish Venezuela but to destroy it. Rodriguez appeared at an OAS panel convened in Washington. D.C., after the United States and 13 other of the hemispheres nations united to demand the leftist Venezuelan government free political prisoners and set a date for long-overdue elections. Failure to do so, the 14 countries warned, could trigger a decision to suspend Venezuela from the 69-year-old regional body. OAS Secretary-General Luis Almagro, a former Uruguayan foreign minister, has been especially critical of Venezuelas embattled government. He noted that President Nicolas Maduro canceled both a referendum that could have recalled his government and later regional elections, after the opposition made huge gains in parliamentary voting in 2015. In addition, thousands of people have been arrested for their political beliefs, Almagro said, including opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez, who has been in jail for three years. But Rodriguez, in a speech to the OAS panel, said Venezuelas revolution continues strong. She accused Almagro of being a stooge of the U.S. government, a lying mercenary who is a traitor to everything a Latin American diplomat should represent. He lacks independence when he voluntarily bows to the wishes of the most powerful nation of this organization -- and becomes its spokesman, Rodriguez said. Although the OAS has often been accused of pro-Washington tendencies, 13 nations in addition to the United States have joined to condemn Venezuela, a significant shift in Latin America away from populist regimes. Other leftist-ruled countries, like Bolivia, have said they will support Venezuela. Rodriguez said the accusations against her government were unilateral, unjustified and biased. She called on the OAS to suspend discussion of Venezuela, but another session was scheduled to proceed on Tuesday -- the same day Maduros Socialist Party is planning big anti-imperialism marches at home. All of the countries most critical of Venezuela, including the United States, say suspension of the oil-rich, Caribbean country from the OAS should be a measure of last resort. Despite its oil wealth, Venezuela is in the throes of an economic and humanitarian disaster, with severe shortages of food and medicine and skyrocketing inflation and homicide rates. Facebook

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Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions criticizes sanctuary cities but offers no new policies By Michael A. Memoli  Decrying the safety risk posed when cities dont cooperate with federal immigration authorities, Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions repeated previous statements that the Trump administration would seek to deny so-called sanctuary cities some federal grant fun Decrying the safety risk posed when cities dont cooperate with federal immigration authorities, Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions repeated previous statements that the Trump administration would seek to deny so-called sanctuary cities some federal grant funds, but offered no new policies. Despite his high-profile appearance at the White House briefing room, Sessions merely reiterated Obama administration policy related to immigration. Justice Department officials said any new measures would be weeks or months in the future. The Obama administration issued instructions last July that required any cities applying for Justice Department grant programs be in compliance with federal law requiring cooperation between local, state and federal agencies with requests from the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Sessions noted that any jurisdiction applying for grants from his department would have to certify that compliance. The Justice Department already has been requiring that, which indicates that police and sheriff departments which currently have Justice Department grants already have been asserting that they are meeting the requirements of federal law. Although many cities have policies that they, or critics, characterize using the label sanctuary, those policies do not necessarily mean they are violating the law. Sessions did say that the Justice Department could in the future institute additional requirements, but announced none. Fundamentally, we intend to use all the lawful authority we have to make sure that our state and local officials, who are so important to law enforcement, are in sync with the federal government, he said. He did offer a warning to jurisdictions considering adopting sanctuary status. The California legislature is considering a proposal to institute the designation statewide; Sessions, though, singled out Maryland for a similar proposal. That would be such a mistake, Sessions said, while noting Marylands Republican governor opposes the change proposed by the heavily-Democratic legislature. Sessions cited a high-profile case in San Francisco where a 32-year-old woman was killed by man who had been previously deported multiple times despite a request by immigration authorities to continue his detention to illustrate the administrations case against such policies. Countless Americans would be alive today and countless loved ones would not be grieving today if these policies of sanctuary cities were ended, Sessions claimed. Facebook

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Devin Nunes plot thickens, as his spokesman concedes he met source for surveillance claim at White House By David S. Cloud The day before the House Intelligence Committee chairman revealed that conversations by Trump transition officials may have been inadvertently picked up by U.S. surveillance, he met with the source of the information at the White House, his spokesman said Monday Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Tulare), went to the White House because there was a facility there for reviewing classified information, said Jack Langer, a spokesman for Nunes, who has refused to divulge the identity of his source. Chairman Nunes met with his source at the White House grounds in order to have proximity to a secure location where he could view the information provided by the source, Langer said. The latest news added another twist to a bizarre series of events last week: On Monday, FBI Director James Comey testified before Nunes committee that his investigators were looking at possible coordination during the presidential campaign between Russian officials and people close to Preisdent Trump. Tuesday night, Nunes went to the White House where someone showed him documents related to U.S. intelligence surveillance, according to his statement. On Wednesday, Nunes announced to reporters that he had seen evidence indicating that people close to Trump had been subjects of surveillance during the transition. He then went to the White House, saying that he needed to brief Trump about the revelations. On Thursday, Nunes apologized to committee members for not having shown the evidence to them before briefing the president. Later that day, his spokesman conceded that Nunes did not know for sure that any Trump aides had actually been subject to surveillance, just that their names had appeared in intelligence reports, which could have resulted from other people talking about them. That sequence of events could buttress Democrats claims that the episode last week was a White House ploy to shift attention away from the FBI investigation. Democrats already have been saying Nunes should be disqualified from heading an inquiry into whether Trumps aides had improper contacts with Russia. Nunes statement left several questions unanswered. One is why he would have had to go to the White House unless his source worked there, because members of Congress have access to a secure facility at the U.S. Capitol. Asked to explain Nunes actions, Langer said in an email, The information comprised executive branch documents that have not been provided to Congress. Because of classification rules, the source could not simply put the documents in a backpack and walk them over to the House Intelligence Committee space.  He added: The White House grounds was the best location to safeguard the proper chain of custody and classification of these documents, so the Chairman could view them in a legal way. Last week, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer had dismissed speculation that the White House had supplied Nunes with the information, saying that the suggestion did not pass the smell test. He added, however, that he did not for sure what Nunes had told Trump or where his information came from. After Nunes apologized to members of his committee Thursday and promised to thoroughly investigate the surveillance, several lawmakers said Nunes had promised to provide them the surveillance information he had received. That has not occurred yet. In his first statement last week, Nunes said he was concerned that some Trump transition officials identities might have been improperly revealed in intelligence reports, despite rules requiring them to be kept confidential in most cases. The Chairman is extremely concerned by the possible improper unmasking of names of U.S. citizens, and he began looking into this issue even before President Trump tweeted his assertion that Trump Tower had been wiretapped, Langer said. Whether any officials names actually were unmasked is unclear. The ranking Democrat on the committee, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) has questioned Nunes assertions about improper unmasking. But Schiff noted that he has not seen the documents Nunes claims to have seen. Schiff had no comment on the news that Nunes had seen the documents at the White House. UPDATES 10:20 a.m.: This article was updated with staff reporting. This article was originally published as an Associated Press report at 9:06 a.m. Facebook

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Venezuela in showdown with OAS, U.S. over political prisoners By Tracy Wilkinson The besieged leftist government of Venezuela is under mounting pressure after the United States and 13 of the hemispheres other leading nations demanded the release of political prisoners and other pro-democracy concessions. The Organization of American States, the regions main collective body, has threatened to suspend Venezuela because of what it called the autocratic repression imposed by President Nicolas Maduro. Maduros foreign minister, Delcy Rodriguez, will appear Monday before an OAS panel in Washington to plead her governments case. This comes after members of the Venezuelan delegation stormed out of OAS meetings last week, according to diplomats. OAS Secretary-General Luis Almagro, in a report on Venezuela, noted that Maduro canceled both a referendum that could have recalled his government and later regional elections, after the opposition made huge gains in parliamentary voting in 2015. A Maduro-controlled Supreme Court then stripped the parliament of much of its power. In addition, thousands of people have been arrested for their political beliefs, Almagro said, including opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez, who has been in jail for three years. The OAS is demanding Venezuela hold elections or risk suspension from the group, a drastic measure. The last time a country was suspended was when the military and right-wing politicians staged a coup against the elected president in Honduras in 2009. Under OAS regulations, a country can be suspended when the democratic order is altered. Venezuela is in the throes of a devastating economic and humanitarian crisis. The oil-rich country has among the highest homicide and inflation rates in the world and suffers from severe shortages of food and medicine. The Maduro government angrily condemned the OAS actions as imperialist interference and vowed to resist. Adan Chavez, brother of the late Hugo Chavez, the socialist strongman who set Venezuela on its revolutionary path, claimed the OAS was plotting a coup against Maduro. Maduro views much of his opposition as right-wing oligarchs who have long repressed the poor. Although the OAS has often been accused of pro-Washington tendencies, it is significant that 13 nations in addition to the United States are united in condemning Venezuela. This marks a shift away from populist regimes in much of Latin America. The Trump administration, which has shown little interest in Latin America beyond Mexico, did issue instructions to diplomats to find ways through the OAS to put pressure on Venezuela, according to people familiar with the matter. Those instructions came despite parallel administration plans to slash funds to the OAS and other multilateral institutions like the United Nations. Trump recently spoke by telephone to the presidents of Chile and Brazil and in both cases discussed Venezuela, the White House said. And he met at the White House with Lilian Tintori, the wife of Lopez, the jailed opposition leader, as she lobbied for her husbands freedom. The Treasury Department earlier this year slapped sanctions on Venezuelas vice president, Tareck El Aissami, alleging he was a major drug trafficker, charges he denied. Were not pushing for Venezuelas expulsion from the OAS at this time, State Department spokesman Mark Toner said late last week. However, we do think the OAS is the appropriate venue to deal with the ongoing situation in Venezuela, he said. Elections are essential to securing accountability, and the Venezuelan people deserve a voice in creating solutions to the myriad economic, political, and social and humanitarian challenges that they face. Facebook

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Trump takes to Twitter to blame GOP hard-liners over healthcare failure By Laura King (Mandel Ngan / AFP-Getty Images) President Trump on Sunday blamed fellow Republicans and two influential conservative advocacy groups for last weeks failure of the GOP healthcare plan. The president had said on Friday that it was the fault of Democrats that House Speaker Paul D. Ryan pulled the measure from consideration rather than putting it forth for a floor showdown that the GOP leadership would have lost. In a Sunday morning tweet, the president appeared to shift culpability to the House Freedom Caucus, a conservative group of GOP lawmakers who were key to depriving Trump and his camp of the votes needed for passage. Democrats are smiling over the bills failure, Trump declared on Twitter. The Freedom Caucus, he said, had saved President Obamas Affordable Care Act with the help of Heritage Action and the Club for Growth, two organizations that had opposed the GOP measure. The chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), declined to engage in any sparring with the White House, instead predicting that a Trump-led Republican effort to overhaul Obamas signature healthcare legislation eventually would move ahead. At the end of the day, the most valuable player will be President Trump, he said on ABCs This Week. Meadows also insisted there had been no conversation about any attempt to force out Ryan, who is being blamed for failing to marshal sufficient support for the measure he had spearheaded. Trump so far has refrained from public criticism of the speaker, but  again on Twitter  he specifically urged followers to watch a Fox News segment on Saturday night, featuring commentator Jeanine Pirro excoriating Ryan and calling for him to be ousted. That gave rise to speculation that Trump would seek to force the speaker to take the fall for the debacle. Read More Facebook

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After the GOP healthcare bill fizzles, Trump blames the Democrats and says he learned a lot about loyalty By Brian Bennett  President Trump addresses the cancellation of a vote Friday on the GOPs plan to overhaul the Affordable Care Act. After failing to land a deal on the healthcare bill, President Trump on Friday blamed Democrats, even though the GOP controls Congress and the White House, and made few overtures across the aisle when pushing the bill. When you get no votes from the other side -- meaning Democrats -- it is really a difficult situation, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office after a revolt by Republican lawmakers forced House leaders to stop a vote in their bid to overhaul the Affordable Care Act. Trump insisted that the current healthcare law, commonly known as Obamacare, will collapse under its own weight, and then Democrats will want to make a deal with the White House. I truly believe the Democrats will come to us, Trump said. In the meantime, Trump is moving his attention to pushing through a tax reform bill, he said. We will probably be going really hard for the big tax cuts and tax reform -- thats next, he said. Trump, who has spent decades negotiating real estate deals and seeing many of them fall through, seemed sanguine discussing the effort he put into getting a healthcare reform bill passed. This was an interesting period of time, Trump said. We learned a lot about loyalty and we learned a lot about the vote-getting process. Trump stopped short of blaming House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) and avoided singling out the group of conservative Republican lawmakers, who dug in their heels in opposition. Lawmakers in the House Freedom Caucus that largely stood against the bill are very good people and friends of mind, he said. I was disappointed because we could have had it, he said. Im a little surprised, he said. When asked by a reporter if he would reach out now to Democrats for ideas on how to get a deal, Trump said, No, I think we need to let Obamacare go its way for a little while. Then well see how things go. Facebook

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Tillerson will meet with NATO counterparts, after all By Tracy Wilkinson Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will meet with NATO allies next week in Brussels, a move that could quell controversy over his earlier decision to skip a long-planned summit of the transatlantic alliance. The State Department said Friday that Tillerson added a stop at NATO headquarters in Brussels to a previously scheduled trip to the Turkish capital of Ankara. Tillerson will be in Ankara on Thursday to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other senior Turkish officials to discuss the fight against Islamic State militants in Syria and to reaffirm Turkeys important role in ensuring regional stability, the State Department said. The next day, he will go to NATO, the State Department said. NATO officials were attempting to put together a session with the other 27 allied nations. Earlier this week, news that Tillerson would miss the NATO ministerial meeting set for April 5-6, roiled the alliance. Administration officials said Tillerson would have to be in Washington to attend President Trumps first face-to-face meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping on April 6-7. At the same time, Tillersons aides announced he would be traveling to Moscow the following week. Criticism was swift from European allies but also from several former American diplomats and key U.S. lawmakers, who said the decision raised questions about the Trump administrations commitment to NATO. During his campaign, Trump called the alliance obsolete, although more recently he has voiced support for it while also demanding members spend more money on defense. In response, Tillersons aides said they were exchanging possible alternative dates with NATO to attempt to arrange a meeting in which all parties could participate. It was not yet clear if next Fridays meeting will take the place of the April 5-6 session, which as of late Friday remained on NATOs formal calendar. Diplomats considered the ministerial meeting as especially important because it will lay the groundwork for a May 25 NATO summit of heads of state and government, which Trump has said he will attend. Facebook

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Charter promises Trump something new ($25-billion investment) and something old (20,000 jobs) By Jim Puzzanghera Charter Communications Chief Executive Thomas Rutledge. (Mandel Ngan / AFP/Getty Images) The chief executive of Charter Communications committed in a meeting with President Trump on Friday to invest $25 billion on broadband infrastructure while joining a trend of business leaders touting previously announced job creation at the White House. In the case of Charter  Southern Californias dominant cable-TV and Internet service provider  Chief Executive Thomas Rutledge said he expected to hire 20,000 new U.S. employees over the next four years. Charter had made the hiring promise in 2015 when it was purchasing Time Warner Cable. The new development was the time period in which it will occur. Nevertheless, Trump indicated the job creation was triggered by his election. Read More Facebook

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Threats made against Hawaii judge who ruled against travel ban By Jaweed Kaleem (George Lee / The Star-Advertiser via AP) The Hawaii federal judge who brought President Trumps revised travel ban to a national halt last week has become the target of threats. U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson has received the threats since his March 15 ruling, according to FBI spokeswoman Michele Ernst. Ernst said the FBI is ready to assist but declined to provide more information. The U.S. Marshals Service also said it would not give details. The U.S. Marshals Service is responsible for the protection of federal judicial officials, including judges and prosecutors, and we take that responsibility very seriously, the agency said in a statement. While we do not discuss our specific security measures, we continuously review the security measures in place for all federal judges and take appropriate steps to provide additional protection when it is warranted. Watson, a judge in the U.S. District Court of Hawaii in Honolulu, issued a scathing 43-page opinion against the travel ban the day before it was to go into effect. He wrote that, despite the bans stated secular purpose, Trumps own words marked the executive order as a fulfillment of the presidents campaign promise to temporarily bar Muslims from coming to the U.S. The illogic of the governments contention is palpable, Watson said. In response, Trump said Watsons ruling was terrible and makes us look weak. Trump has vowed to take the travel ban case to the U.S. Supreme Court. An appeal of a separate Maryland federal judges ruling against the travel ban is currently pending in the U.S. 4th District Court of Appeals. Facebook

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House GOP gives up on healthcare bill as Trump suffers first legislative defeat By Lisa Mascaro Unable to muster enough support from his own party, House Speaker Paul D. Ryan again postponed a vote Friday on the GOPs plan to overhaul the Affordable Care Act. The move came at the request of President Trump, who just Thursday night issued an ultimatum that lawmakers should hold the vote regardless of the outcome. It was the second time House GOP leaders had to delay a final reckon
A 31-year-old Valencia man was found guilty by a jury on Wednesday of attacking his ex-girlfriend and stabbing two other people in a Burbank home in 2015.

Cameron Reed Hansen was found guilty of two counts of attempted voluntary manslaughter and one count of injuring his girlfriend, according to the Los Angeles County district attorneys office. Hansen struck his ex-girlfriend and repeatedly stabbed his ex-girlfriends mother and her mothers partner on the night of March 3, 2015, according to court testimony.

The trial spanned two weeks and included testimony from neighbors, police officers and the victims. Jury deliberation took three days.

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Hansen was originally charged with two counts of attempted murder, but jurors decided to convict him of attempted manslaughter instead  a lesser charge that doesnt carry a life sentence.

They made their decision. Its not an unreasonable decision, Deputy District Atty. Carolina Lugo said. I think he was good for the original counts, and hes looking in the neighborhood of 20 years.

Alex Kessel, Hansens attorney, said there were mixed feelings toward the jurys verdict. He said Hansen is relieved hes not facing life in prison but that his client doesnt consider himself guilty of any crime.

Hansen was only defending himself from the three women who attacked him and not the other way around, according to Kessel.

However, the judge rejected the self-defense argument.

Obviously were pleased that he wasnt convicted of the charge that could have led to a life sentence, Kessel said.

Hansen is scheduled to reappear in court May 11 for sentencing.

--

Andy Nguyen, andy.nguyen@latimes.com

Twitter: @Andy_Truc
Voters in Burbank and Glendale were among area residents who supported a Los Angeles County ballot measure that aims to address homelessness.

With 100% of precincts reporting, the L.A. County Registrar-Recorder reported that 67.4% of voters supported Measure H, which was just above the two-thirds majority needed for it to pass. However, officials have yet to call the election because late absentee votes and provisional ballots will still be counted over the next few days.

Should the two-thirds majority hold, Measure H would establish a quarter-cent sales tax in the county to fund programs designed to combat the ongoing homelessness issue seen in cities across L.A. County.

The tax is projected to generate about $355 million annually over the next 10 years.

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The revenue could be used for programs and services such as substance-abuse treatment, housing subsidies, case-management services, mental-health programs, transportation and affordable housing, according to an impartial analysis written by the Los Angeles County Counsel.

The money generated would be distributed to various cities and nonprofits in the county based on need, which would be decided by a panel of 50 people from various agencies and nonprofits.

In Burbank, 4,358 voters supported the quarter-cent tax, while 2,094 residents voted against it.

Barbara Howell, chief executive of the nonprofit Burbank Temporary Aid Center, known as BTAC, said she understands that although there are some people in the county who might be burdened by an additional tax, the ballot measure is necessary to start addressing homelessness issues she thinks have been ignored for years.

I know that [an] additional tax is not what most people in [Southern] California really would like, but Measure H is going to help us aggressively address homelessness and the causes of it in our community, she said.

Howell said that she does not know if BTAC will receive any funding from the county, but she is pleased knowing that a big first step has been taken to deal with homelessness.

She added that, even though the ballot measure may be approved soon, it will still take some time to get all the programs up and running.

Its not going to solve the problem tomorrow, Howell said. Theres a lot of pieces that need to fall into place, so I hope the greater Los Angeles area will also be patient and supportive as we get those things in place.

In Glendale, there were 6,392 voters who supported Measure H, while 3,531 residents voted against it.

Natalie Komuro, executive director of the nonprofit Ascencia in Glendale, said her organization sees Measure H as a possibility that could increase local investment in homeless services and help with emergency housing.

Komuro, who has about 30 years of experience with homeless services, said the ballot measures approval is the result of years of working and understanding the different ways to help homeless people.

For the casual observer, it may seem like its something thats been thrown out there as a Hail Mary, but this is not that, she said. This is something that has been building up for years and years. Im looking at this like, Holy cow, finally.

Additionally, there were 727 voters in favor of the special tax in the unincorporated areas of La Crescenta, and 527 residents who opposed it.

--

Anthony Clark Carpio, anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com

Twitter: @acocarpio
The proliferation of drones is prompting Laguna Beach and other Orange County cities to consider regulating use of the remote-controlled aircraft  which have a number of commercial uses but also generate safety and privacy concerns.

For real estate agents, drones can provide breathtaking images of the coastline and the more intimate interiors of a house. For filmmakers shooting commercials or movies, the coast can be a popular spot.

The Laguna Beach City Council earlier this week backed off from enacting an ordinance after a few commercial operators balked at its proposed regulations, characterizing them as overreach.

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Laguna Police Chief Laura Farinella had proposed the ordinance after receiving several drone-related complaints in the last few years, including reports of the aircraft hitting people, disturbing pets and hovering near people in the buff, she said.

Farinella said she received one call from a resident who reported drones flying over an outdoor shower where his kids bathe.

If someone is flying a drone close to you, I dont have a law that says someone cant do that, she told the council.

Licensed drone pilot John Barrett flies his professional model camera drone above Rockpile Beach in Laguna Beach on Friday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

But the commercial drone pilots at the meeting said the problems cited by the city are covered under Federal Aviation Administration rules and suggested that all thats needed is more education.

We share, as business owners, as commercial drone operators, your concerns about the people who are flying like idiots, Joseph Cockrell, a certified commercial drone pilot, told the council. They make the rest of us look bad.

Farinella and the other city officials said they understood but wanted a mechanism for backing up the FAA rules.

I do agree we have a problem here, said John Barrett, a Laguna Beach filmmaker and certified drone pilot. The problem is not with the drones themselves. Its the fact our local police officers cannot enforce [FAA regulations].

Huntington Beach encountered similar pushback from commercial operators when city staff in September proposed a drone ordinance, which the council denied, Assistant City Manager Ken Domer said Friday.

It was prescriptive, Domer said of the proposed law, drafted in anticipation of the Breitling Huntington Beach Airshow to protect safety. Among other rules, the ordinance would have given the police chief authority to designate no-fly zones because of privacy or safety concerns.

Huntington Beach staff is providing feedback to the Assn. of California Cities  Orange County, which is developing a model ordinance that cities could use as a framework and tailor accordingly.

The association could not be reached for comment Friday.

Licensed drone pilot John Barrett flies his professional model camera drone above Rockpile Beach in Laguna Beach on Friday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

Consistency across jurisdictions is important, Domer said.

If each city had its own unique drone ordinance, that would be confusing for drone operators, Domer said.

Costa Mesa doesnt have an ordinance specifically pertaining to drones, but it allows owners of electric-powered or radio-controlled model aircraft to operate their devices in a specific area of Fairview Park, provided they obtain proper permits.

Owners of drones, which can weigh as little as 8 ounces and as much as 55 pounds, must register them with the FAA, at a $5 charge.

Commercial operators must obtain a drone pilots license from the FAA and adhere to guidelines that include keeping the crafts in their sightlines; flying them no more than 400 feet off the ground during daylight hours, or 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset; yielding the right of way to other aircraft; and not flying over people.

Recreational operators arent beholden to the daylight guideline but are expected to yield to manned aircraft, keep drones at or below 400 feet and not fly over people, stadiums or sporting events or emergencies, such as fires.

In an interview, Farinella said some drones locally have prevented operators of fire-retardant-dropping aircraft from doing their jobs.

Anyone who operates a drone unsafely or in violation of FAA regulations can face a civil fine of up to $27,500 per violation, FAA spokesman Ian Gregor wrote in an email.

The FAA has initiated several dozen enforcement actions nationwide, Gregor said.

Our preference is generally to try to educate the pilot about safe operations, Gregor said. If we can educate on the front end, we dont have to take enforcement action after the fact. However, we do not hesitate to take a strong enforcement action when the circumstances warrant it.

Licensed drone pilot John Barrett flies his professional model camera drone at Heisler Park in Laguna Beach on Friday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

Noise from drones was also an issue for Mayor Toni Iseman.

All of a sudden I could not hear the ocean, Iseman told fellow council members, referring to a specific incident. All I could hear was the buzzing of the drone.

If you are hearing the drone, someone is flying that drone illegally, Barrett said.

Drones are not allowed to fly over private property without permission, he added.

Lagunas council voted to have Mayor Pro Tem Kelly Boyd and Farinella meet with licensed drone pilots to see what can be done about drone misuse.

According to the rejected proposed rules, no drone user would have been able to operate the craft in a way that endangers life or property, interferes with a parade or motorcade, or threatens birds.

In addition, recreational drone flights would have been prohibited above certain areas such as Heisler Park, Treasure Island Park near the Montage Laguna Beach and all city beaches.

Currently, Laguna requires a permit for the taking of commercial photos, and drones are included under that requirement.

bryce.alderton@latimes.com

Twitter: @AldertonBryce
Christian Gray is mere months from earning his diploma from Back Bay High School, an alternative campus in Costa Mesa.

A few years ago, thoughts of graduating and pursuing a career in aviation didnt cross his mind. He had befriended the wrong people. Moved back and forth from his mothers to his fathers. Fallen behind in school credits.

But Christian, now 17, expects to graduate with the class of 2017, an against-the-odds feat for students who often come from disadvantaged backgrounds. Many of them credit Back Bay, part of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, with encouraging them to complete their educations and contemplate what they will do afterward.

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In anticipation of that transition, seniors dress in business casual clothes, prepare written personal statements and share their life stories with a panel of community notables.

Senior Christian Gray, right, shakes hands with Ken Dufour after group interviews at Back Bay High School on Friday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

This years panel included Valerie Venegas, director of student activities at Golden West College; Cat Katz, president of the American Legion; Phil Reynolds of the Rotary Club of Newport; Tom Damiani, Bob Kinton, Joe Brown and Ken Dufour, each of the Exchange Club of Newport; and Tracy Camarano, a Back Bay English teacher.

On Friday, panelists took about 20 minutes with each student to ask questions about their plans after graduation.

Interviewers Phil Reynolds, Tom Damiani, Bob Kinton and Joe Brown agree about a job well done from the students who participated in interviews at Back Bay High School on Friday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

Christian said that before Back Bay he didnt have friends and felt down. He realized going to the gym was a healthy outlet to alleviate extra energy. Now he tries to go daily and freely volunteers to help others stay fit. He even started his workout line, Triumph Gym Apparel.

While going to the gym has been an influential part of his life, Christian said he read an article explaining how aircraft were built in the 1950s, inspiring his decision to pursue a degree in aviation in hopes of one day becoming a Navy helicopter pilot.

To earn money, hes helped build and sell bikes for GreenLine Bicycles, a factory shop specializing in beach cruisers and accessories. He banks a small portion of each paycheck, $10 to $40, for college.

I want a full-on career with the Navy for at least 25 years, Christian said. Then maybe I can work at the local airport.

Senior Christian Gray answers questions during interviews at Back Bay High School on Friday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

Panel members were impressed with his life story and how he seemed to have his act together.

Camarano, the English teacher, described Christian as a student who completely changed his life around.

Another student, Brijan Ochoa-Sanchez, 18, used his essay to write about how he attended a variety of elementary schools. His parents had divorced, and his mother returned to Mexico.

Back Bay senior Brijan Ochoa-Sanchez shakes hands with one of the interviewers, Phil Reynolds, at Back Bay High School on Friday. (Don Leach / Daily Pilot)

It wasnt until Ochoa-Sanchez attended Back Bay that he felt encouraged to graduate and then later pursue his associates degree. He wants to become a mechanic and obtain any good paying job.

Hes not that kid anymore  he has a fun spirit in class, Camarano said. He doesnt harbor these angry feelings anymore.

Ochoa-Sanchez assisted the school custodian by helping clean rooms and set up for meetings in the multipurpose room.

The Exchange Clubs Dufour prompted Ochoa-Sanchez to carefully consider his career goals.

Think seriously, why do you want to be a mechanic? he said. Do you ever wonder to yourself how automobiles work?

The American Legions Katz chimed in: Success is what you are as a person. You work on that every day you wake up.

In addition, Katz offered the students this observation : Each person overcomes a lot of obstacles, and youve proved to yourself that you can accomplish things. Make sure you have a path in getting into helicopter engineering once in the Navy because there will be more obstacles in your life.

priscella.vega@latimes.com

Twitter: @VegaPriscella
In the first round of campaign finance reports for the race to fill three open seats on the Glendale City Council, an incumbent and two former candidates are the fundraising leaders among 10 hopefuls.

When considering only total monetary and nonmonetary contributions, second-time candidate Rick Dinger was the leader with a total of $35,908 received for the filing period covering Jan. 1 through Feb 28.

Another returning candidate, Vrej Agajanian was the second-highest fundraiser with $26,651.

According to financial forms released on Feb. 23, the majority of spending by candidates went to campaign literature and mailings, staff and consulting.

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Dinger said he attributes his fundraising lead to the network of support from individuals and organizations hes built during the past 14 years since his first bid for a City Council seat.

From Democrats and Republicans to teachers and business owners, Ive built a broad base, Dinger said. People know I work well with others, and when I get involved, I make things happen.

Agajanian is already planning his next major fundraising event and sending out the next wave of campaign mailers.

Its not about me, its about listening to Glendale, Agajanian said.

Coming in a close third was incumbent Zareh Sinanyan, with $25,560 in total contributions. During his first run in 2013, Sinanyan raised just over that amount during the same period with almost $32,000 in cash donations  ahead of then-incumbents Ara Najarian and Laura Friedman.

Najarian, who also has a seat on the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority board at stake, raised $12,220  roughly $10,000 short of funds raised during the same period in 2013.

Business owner and retired U.S. Army Gen. Mark MacCarley reported $53,997 in his campaign disclosure filings, but $48,000 of that was from a self-made loan.

Grant Michals, information technology consultant and president of the Glendale Homeowners Coordinating Council, also lent $2,500 to himself, ending the filing period with $3,025 in total contributions.

Retired businessman Mike Mohill took a $6,000 loan from his wife, Lorraine, on top of $4,250 in contributions.

Susan Wolfson, an account clerk for the city of La Canada Flintridge, reported a $1,748 loan with no contributions.

Onnik Mehrabian, a Glendale business owner, raised $300.

Professional photographer Mike Van Gorder filed a disclosure form stating that his campaign did not anticipate receiving or spending more than $2,000. Van Gorder said he expects to surpass $2,000 at some point during his campaign but added that his run is designed to show that money and government shouldnt be one and the same.

Its really kind of gross that you need over $55,000 to have a successful municipal campaign, Van Gorder said. These are two-month campaigns and some of these people are going to end up spending over $100,000.

--

Jeff Landa, jeff.landa@latimes.com

Twitter: @JeffLanda
In the race for a seat on the Glendale Community College board of trustees, three candidates are competing for a seat to represent District 4 in the colleges first district-based election.

Two of those candidates  Yvette Vartanian Davis and Rondi Werner  are nearly head-to-head in what they have raised and spent on their campaigns, so far, according to the most recent campaign disclosure statements.

District 4 represents all Glendale neighborhoods south of East Colorado Street, including Adams Hill.

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Between this past January through Feb. 18, Davis raised nearly $6,000, including $3,450 in contributions and a $2,500 loan to herself.

Davis spent slightly more than $1,000 combined on a campaign consultant and mailers.

To get out the vote, she said shes attended meet-and-greets and knocked on residents doors, where shes discussed investing in more programs at Glendale Community College that will lead students directly into careers, such as a robust, two-year auto-shop program.

Although Davis own path as a student took her from Glendale Community College to USC, she recognizes that not everybody wants to do four-year universities, she said. Im getting a lot of passionate responses about that.

Also through mid-February, Werner received $4,800 in contributions and spent nearly $1,000 on campaign literature.

Shes been meeting residents face to face and talking with them about their desire for high-quality, affordable public education. Shes also discussed plans surrounding the Garfield campus, which is located in District 4 and offers many adult education programs.

The current board of trustees, flush with a $325-million facilities bond voters passed in November, agreed last month to issue the first $122 million of it, and the board also agreed to explore purchasing property near the Garfield campus.

Ive been talking to some of the constituents about that, letting them know theyre planning to expand that campus, Werner said.

She said the bond and recent news that Glendale Community College received full accreditation contributes to a really exciting time for the college. Her experience as a construction contract administrator at a time when officials are planning to purchase and develop property is vital at this particular time, she added.

Another District 4 candidate, Victor Garcia, Jr., said he filed paperwork confirming he would not spend or receive more than $2,000 in contributions for his campaign.

While hes spent about $200 on campaign literature, Garcia has been more focused on meeting residents in person, particularly Glendales Latino community.

I want to show that in a very real way, were here, Garcia said, adding that talking to people in their homes is key because he anticipates residents will spread news of Garcias candidacy by word of mouth when they talk to their children or neighbors.

Garcia, a current UC Santa Barbara senior, said he wants the Glendale Unified school board and college board of trustees to work more closely together to serve local students.

Were sister boards, and the reality is, we need to be a lot more integrated, Garcia said.

Hes also not afraid to discuss the negative perception that local high school students have of Glendale Community College.

When it comes to issues like that, we need to address them head on, Garcia said.

Elsewhere, two incumbents are running without opposition in Districts 2 and 3.

District 2, where current board member Ann Ransford is running unopposed, sweeps from just south of Honolulu Avenue in Montrose and east to Scholl Canyon.

Shes reported about $70 in contributions but had not spent any funds through Feb. 18.

Fellow incumbent Armine Hacopian, who is running to represent District 3  encompassing much of northwest Glendale  filed paperwork stating she anticipates raising less than $2,000 and does not expect to spend more than that on her campaign.

--

Kelly Corrigan, kelly.corrigan@latimes.com

Twitter: @kellymcorrigan
Onnik Mehrabian, a business owner living in Glendale, remembers the first day he came to the United States from Iran with his wife Armineh in 1978.

Hes even memorized the flight number, airline and exact time he arrived to Los Angeles International Airport, en route to a life in Glendale. Mehrabian was 26 and worked at a car rental agency in Iran when he emigrated.

I couldnt sleep the first night, Mehrabian said. I was in America, and I was so excited.

After almost 40 years as a business owner and property investor, Mehrabian now wants to fill a seat on the City Council as a way of giving back.

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Mehrabian is the current owner of Cars 911, a car dealership in the Glassell Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. The same location formerly housed Glendale Kia, which he ran for more than 20 years before selling it in 2014.

Mehrabian is a member of the L.A. County Small Business Commission and is a reserve deputy sheriff with the county. He also was on Glendales Traffic Commission for four years.

Three signature issues are front and center on Mehrabians website and campaign mailers: government transparency, better schools and the support of local businesses.

I would start by walking the streets to see what businesses, in my mind, are falling apart. I can give them a chance to tell me exactly what is happening, what they need and what I can do for them, Mehrabian said. I will give them a suggestion and if I dont know how to do it, Ill ask someone [who does].

One of Mehrabians ideas for government accessibility is opening a separate location to help residents better understand local laws and educate them on how to approach city government with any issues they may have.

Mehrabian said hed like to gather resources, such as high-end friends, who could provide forms of financial aid to college freshmen in the area struggling to make it through schools.

Im going to ask them to give [financial aid] to kids that are living in Glendale, Mehrabian said.

Mehrabian is also advocating for more parks and open spaces.

In 2014, Mehrabian was fined $22,500 by the Los Angeles Ethics Commission for failing to disclose the purchase of two large signs displayed on the Golden State (5) Freeway supporting the 2013 reelection campaign of former L.A. City Atty. Carmen Trutanich.

Mehrabian said of the fine that he was trying to support Trutanich, who is a close family friend.

Also, according to the L.A. County Assessors office, Mehrabian hasnt paid taxes on a piece of property where a church is located in Glendale since 2014.

He said the property is being refinanced and the back taxes will be covered in no more than a month.

--

Jeff Landa, jeff.landa@latimes.com

Twitter: @JeffLanda
I dont favor Measure L on the upcoming April 4 ballot. Term limits for elected officials concede the institutional memory to staff and lobbyists. With that comes power. Every election is already a term limit. Voters have the power to replace elected officials every time their term ends. We can also choose to keep those in office who have served the people well.

No given office holder will have your same opinion on every issue so one should consider their overall contribution to the welfare of the citys residents. Democracy is participatory. A citizens job is to pay attention, learn about the candidates and issues and vote in every election for which they are eligible.

I urge a no vote on L. The last day to register for the April 4 election is March 20. You can do it online anytime, registertovote.ca.gov.

Sharon Weisman

Glendale

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GTA should pull endorsement

In 2013, when Zareh Sinanyan was a candidate for Glendale City Council, it was discovered that he had made dozens of racist, homophobic remarks online, using anti-LGBTQ slurs, threatening rape, and insulting Mexicans and Muslims). He did this as a man in his early 30s, denied it in front of City Council, and confessed once he was elected. He lost Rep. Adam Schiffs and Eric Garcettis endorsements. This is public record.

Sinanyan has earned the endorsements of state Sen. Portantino, the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, ANCA, and the Glendale Teachers Assn. for the 2017 election. Why?

In February, the GUSD school board passed a safe haven resolution in support of undocumented students. Sinanyan made no public statement in favor of this resolution as other local candidates did. It would have been an easy gesture for Sinanyan to show his commitment to all Glendale residents. This self-proclaimed progressive does not even mention social justice on his campaign site.

The Glendale Teachers Assn. has in effect legitimized the behavior it works to fight with GUSD anti-bullying campaigns. Somewhere, there are students going down the rabbit hole of Sinanyans comments and learning that hate speech is fine. No organization needs to endorse candidates. As we hold the current president of the United States accountable for bigotry, how can we set a double standard and give Sinanyan a pass? Any GUSD teacher who posted such comments would be fired.

Contrary to what Sinanyan  and those who excuse his behavior  believes, words are never just words. The GTA should publicly withdraw its endorsement. It is the right thing to do.

Elizabeth Vitanza

John Ballon

Glendale

..

Resolve to impeach Trump

Its time to impeach Donald Trump.

The city of Alameda recently voted to adopt a resolution to impeach the president, and the city of Glendale should follow suit.

Trump is a racist, bigoted misogynist who ridicules disabled people, cozies up to Russia, and refuses to release his tax returns. The dealings of his administration are already turning out to be a disaster, and things can only get worse.

Im imploring concerned Glendale residents  in fact, all concerned Americans  to contact their City Council and urge that the resolution to impeach be adopted. The basis of the resolution is that Trump is violating the Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution, has flagrantly broken the law and is therefore unfit to continue in office.

Heres a resource for more information: resolution@impeachdonaldtrumpnow.org.

The time to act has come.

Tom Stapleton

Glendale
So there I was last Nov. 10, still pretty much shell-shocked and reeling following a presidential election whose result I could hardly fathom.

That morning, Id learned that President Obama would be meeting with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House a scant 36 hours after Trumps win had been confirmed.

What could these men who so obviously loathed one another possibly have discussed in that room? The awkward and surreal post-meeting media briefing of three minutes supplied few clues. Both spoke in vague generalities and appeared to be in deep emotional pain. The meeting itself had to have been grotesquely difficult.

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This all got me to thinking. It was rather like Greek tragedy to have this clash of the titans following such a bitter and divisive campaign during which the president deemed Trump unfit to serve and Trump challenged President Obamas very citizenship.

Hes the founder of ISIS! Trump declared during one memorable campaign rally.

And now here they were, meeting in the same room, evidently to demonstrate that in the United States of America  no matter how angry and alienated we are  there must be a peaceful transfer of power lest our democracy implode.

It occurred to me that day that someone ought to write a stage play about this. It was simply too delicious a moment not to frame as a form of art. So sure was I of this that, for a few weeks, I kept checking online to see which playwright had announced his or her intention to craft the meeting as a play.

However, it quickly became apparent that no one was going to do what I believed to be a no-brainer. So I did it myself.

The fact Id never before written a play that had made it to a stage somehow wasnt all that relevant to my mind. Something inside drove me to action. And in tandem with a longtime stage director named Lee Costello, who specialized in turning amateurs into playwrights, I knocked out a rough draft of a script in some two weeks.

What I couldnt know at the time I started this process was that it is indeed a process. Seasoned playwrights often require eight months, 10 months, a year, even several years putting together a script worthy of getting up onto a stage.

But as a journalist, I lacked the patience for this more deliberate course. There was too much going down in the country in the wake of Trumps victory and inauguration to dawdle. I heard a clock ticking over my shoulder that whispered, Hurry up. This thing could soon be irrelevant. Quickly, quickly!

This proved the driving incentive behind Transition, my new play about that Trump-Obama meeting that officially opens tonight at the Lounge Theatre in Hollywood (a short jaunt from Burbank and Glendale) and plays for five weekends with 14 performances through April 16.

What it means, of course, is that this was play-mounting on steroids. The original very raw script went through countless revisions in a very short time. Brilliant actors to play Trump (Harry S. Murphy), Obama (Joshua Wolf Coleman) and a presidential aide (Trevor Alkazian) were secured. A magnificent producer (Racquel Lehrman) and creative team was brought in.

And now here we are, a scant four months (almost to the day) since the meeting itself happened. Yet weve got a polished production in place, which is rather astounding.

More importantly, weve managed to create precisely what Id envisioned: A theatrical experience thats neither sketch comedy nor satire but an educated 75-minute imagining of what might really have gone on in that room, interspersed with satirical flourishes.

Is it balanced? In truth, no. Its likely that people will come away from Transition knowing precisely where the playwright lands on the political spectrum. Yet is it fair to Trump? I believe it is. We portray him as the boorish, narcissistic bully that he is but at the same take him deadly seriously.

The country doesnt need another buffoonish Trump caricature a la Alec Baldwin. But I believed it could use a project that demonstrates the depth of our presidents self-serving depravity.

Some will dismiss the play as liberal propaganda, which is their right. But at the least, we have hopefully succeeded in shedding light on what is for many of us a harrowing, nightmarish moment in America.

For Transition tickets, go to www.plays411.com/transition.

--

RAY RICHMOND is a writer in Los Angeles. Email: ray@rayrichco.com.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Friday he hopes to start the formal process of renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement in coming weeks.

Under U.S. law, the government must tell Congress 90 days before it signs any new trade agreement. Ross said he wants to take the step of notifying lawmakers "sometime in the next couple of weeks."

"We are now in the very early stages" of having the talks to change NAFTA, he said in a joint press conference with Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal, Mexico's economic minister.

President Donald Trump has aimed to quickly make good on his campaign promises, including scrapping or tweaking trade deals he deems bad for the United States. The president has slammed NAFTA, and Mexico's role in it in particular, saying it has sapped manufacturing jobs from the U.S.

The administration has suggested it will try to seek bilateral trade deals rather than those with several nations. Ross said a revised NAFTA will either be two bilateral agreements with Mexico and Canada with "symmetrical provisions" or "one new" deal among the three countries.

Guajardo seemed more set on talks talking place among the three countries.

"NAFTA is a trilateral agreement and it would make a lot of sense to have trilateral discussions," he said. He added that Mexico will be ready to start negotiations by the end of May.

Mexico and Canada are two vital trading partners for the U.S., partly due to NAFTA, which has been in place for more than two decades. Ross said the deal "needs an update" and has not necessarily adapted to changes in the three nations' economies.
Comedian Don Knotts, best known for his character Barney Fife on the CBS series The Andy Griffith Show, tries to transfer success onto the silver screen with The Reluctant Astronaut.

I know what I can do best, and the studios let me work on the scripts, he told The Los Angeles Times in 1967. Ill spend as much as three or four months between pictures just writing. My cinema roles are strictly tailor-made.

After appearing in several movies, in 1979 Knotts returned to television in Threes Company.

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Knotts died in 2006 at 81. Check out this Los Angeles Times obituary: Don Knotts, star of The Andy Griffith Show, dead at 81.
In the biggest election in the world this year  in terms of population, at least  Indias governing Hindu nationalist party recorded a massive victory that underscored the widespread popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Led by Modis vigorous campaigning, the Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP, won 325 of 403 state assembly seats in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, easily dethroning a powerful incumbent party and shrugging off the effects of the prime ministers controversial decision to withdraw most of Indias cash from circulation in November.

The demonetization measure, which Modi said would reduce corruption in the form of undeclared assets and modernize Indias economy, had the greatest impact on daily wage earners, leading some experts to predict that the BJP would struggle among the states large lower middle class.

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But Saturdays results in Uttar Pradesh  home to more than 200 million people, more than all but five countries  suggested that the move was far more popular than analysts and political opponents had expected and sets Modi up well for national elections due in just over two years.

People like leaders who take risks, said Rajdeep Sardesai, a prominent television journalist. The fact is Modi still enjoys credibility and trust from an average voter. If nearly three years into his term, he has won U.P. on his image, then Modi can look at 2019 with confidence.

In other state assembly results announced Saturday, the BJP won a sizable majority in rural Uttarakhand state but fell short in the northern farming state of Punjab, which was won by the opposition Indian National Congress. No party won a majority in two smaller states, Goa and Manipur.

The results could help Modis party gain ground in the upper house of parliament, whose composition is dictated in part by state assemblies, and whose current members have stymied many of Modis economic reform proposals, saying they would hurt the poor.

The BJP controls 13 of Indias 29 state assemblies, but by far the biggest prize is Uttar Pradesh, where it had not held a majority since 1991.

In barely three years in power, Modis swaggering style and promises of economic change have made him a towering national leader in a country where politics often are dictated by caste and region.

In some of the remotest villages of Uttar Pradesh, where the demonetization policy was thought to have caused the most disruption, many voters said that even though they were struggling, they supported the move because it took on the dishonest rich.

Because of the large numbers of voters, balloting took place in several phases starting Feb. 11. Speaking before she cast her ballot last month in rural Amethi, a bastion of the rival congress, Shraddha Tiwari, a 20-year-old arts student, said Modi had gone after people who had stashed so-called black money in their homes.

Modi is decisive, she said. Even if it had an adverse impact on some of us, it was important for the larger good of the country.

The BJP won despite not declaring its candidate for chief minister, Uttar Pradeshs top executive. Modi was the only name that mattered to many voters, who cited the positive changes he had brought to the western state of Gujarat in more than a decade as its leader.

Sachin Sharma, 22-year-old vendor in the remote village of Udwa, said he voted for the BJP because of his support for Modi  and because of images of Gujarat he had seen on WhatsApp, despite never having left his own state.

The coordination between the state and [the central government in New Delhi] would be good, Sharma said. And we all know how well Modi has developed Gujarat.

Critics said the BJP appealed to religious differences and accused Modi and his party members of making several questionable assertions while campaigning in Uttar Pradesh, which has a large Muslim minority.

At one rally, Modi attacked the incumbent Samajwadi Party by saying it did not allocate as much electricity for the Hindu holiday of Diwali as it did for a Muslim festival  which media reports later showed was false.

His party has been accused of promoting a pro-Hindu agenda at the expense of the roughly 20% of Indians who are Muslims, Christians or of other faiths.

One of the biggest challenges for Modis party in leading Uttar Pradesh will be to ensure Muslims dont feel marginalized, said Sardesai, who pointed out that of all the BJPs incoming assembly members in the state, not one is Muslim.

Special correspondent Parth M.N. reported from Mumbai, India, and Times staff writer Bengali from Yangon, Myanmar.

shashank.bengali@latimes.com

Follow @SBengali on Twitter for more news from South Asia

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The Canadian company Blackberry Limited may have stopped designing their hardware on 2015, to give way for their outsourcing partners, but its software still lives on and the charm of every newly introduced smartphone is still contagious. On the recently held Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, Blackberry has introduced Blackberry KEYOne and it has then been anticipated to be launched in different parts of the world. Following that great news is another Blackberry smartphone from BB Merah Putih, one of Blackberry's partners in Indonesia, as they called it Blackberry Aurora.

With the looks of an ordinary touchscreen smartphone, Blackberry Aurora is the first Blackberry ever made by the Indonesian manufacturer based on reports from Digital Trends. First launched in Indonesia, and hopefully but not so sure, to be distributed worldwide, Aurora came in line with the first new Blackberry phones to be sold after Blackberry Limited's announcement on 2015. For now, Indonesian consumers will have the first impressions of the new Blackberry and the specifics will definitely amaze them.

Coming with a wide 5.5 -inch scratch resistant glass screen, the Blackberry Aurora is powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 processor with Adreno 308 GPU. According to reports from Gizmo Times, it has an internal storage of 32 GB and 4 GB RAM and a microSD card slot support and a fully updated Android Nougat 7.0. It also has good camera features of the 13-megapixel rear camera and an 8-megapixel camera on the front and a 3,000 mAh battery that the company says will provide over 20 hours of battery life.

Blackberry Aurora has three colors to choose from black, silver, and gold and is already sold through pre-orders starting from March 3 to March 12. Aurora is priced at IDR 3,499,000 of around $260 but it is for now only sold in Indonesia. Depending on the product's feedback, Blackberry Aurora has yet to prove if it is worth for international distribution.
Potatoes have been proven to grow on Martian environment and that is good news for the potential Martian colonists in the next decades to come. True enough, in a simulated chamber called CubeSat, potato seeds were able to grow their crops even on as it was treated by the extreme conditions of Mars. With this new discovery, this super food can feed not only the first Martian colony, but it can solve the basic problem of malnutrition and hunger.

Using the soil taken from the Pampas de La Joya Desert in southern Peru, the potato seeds were then planted as it was studied that this specific soil from Peru has the same qualities as that from Mars' soil. Based on a report from Futurism, this project of the International Potato Center (CIP) called the "Potatoes on Mars Project" was already reenacted by Matt Damon in a scene from the movie "The Martian." Seriously, though, the project aims to know if potatoes can really grow on Mars' diverse atmospheric conditions, as CIP collaborates with NASA's Ames Research Center (NASA ARC).

Potato seeds were then enclosed on a CubeSat made by Peru's University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) and were treated with controlled amounts of air, pressure, oxygen and carbon dioxide. As for the radiation in Mars, LED lights were used and controls to modify the exact temperature of Mar's day and night phases. According to reports from Christian Science Monitor, if these potatoes are able to survive and grow on their designated CubeSat, chances are that the tubers can be planted directly on Mars.

The project was studied for a month and upon their observation, the potato seeds have grown into leaves, as it further gives hope that food security problems can now be solved. Hunger and Malnourishment are already worldwide problems that need attention, but the occurrence of climate change has already destroyed the environment. Poor soil quality leads to hunger in remote areas, therefore, with this breakthrough, farmers can still be growing and harvest food even on these situations.
Pret Bharara

Among the 46 US attorneys appointed by President Barack Obama asked to resign on Friday by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, one name seemed at least slightly curious: Preet Bharara, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York.

That's because President Donald Trump invited him to Trump Tower in late November during the transition period and asked him to stay on at his post.

Following their meeting on November 30, Bharara told reporters he "agreed to stay on" after speaking with the then-President-elect.

"The President-elect asked, presumably because he's a New Yorker and is aware of the great work that our office has done over the past seven years, asked to meet with me to discuss whether or not I'd be prepared to stay on as the United States attorney to do the work as we have done it, independently, without fear or favor for the last seven years," Bharara said.

"I have already spoken to Sen. Sessions, who is, as you know, is the nominee to be the attorney general," he continued. "He also asked that I stay on, and so I expect that I will be continuing to work at the southern district."

One of the highest-profile US attorneys, Bharara built a reputation on vigorously going after corruption cases involving New York elected officials and aides of those office holders. In addition, the Wall Street industry was within his scope as US attorney.

Currently, his office is looking into a case related to a top adviser of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, as well as a probe into allegations that New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio and his allies engaged in a pay-for-play.

The Friday move by the Justice Department was to ask for the resignations of all remaining US attorney's appointed by Obama. The move is not unusual. For example, soon after President Bill Clinton first took office, asked all 93 US attorneys to resign on the same day. The attorneys are political appointees.

"As was the case in prior transitions, many of the United States Attorneys nominated by the previous administration already have left the Department of Justice," Justice Department spokesperson Sarah Isgur Flores told the New York Times in an email. "The Attorney General has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed US Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition."

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"Until the new US Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US Attorneys Offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer released a statement on Friday evening expressing his troubles with the requests for resignations.

"Im troubled to learn of reports of requests for resignations from the remaining US attorneys, particularly that of Preet Bharara, after the president initiated a call to me in November and assured me he wanted Mr. Bharara to continue to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District," Schumer said. "While its true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for U.S. Attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesnt put ongoing investigations at risk. They ask for letters of resignation but the attorneys are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed."

"By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining US attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the president is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice," The New York Democrat continued.

The call for the resignations came less than a day after Fox News host Sean Hannity  an unabashed Trump supporter with a massive audience  called for a "purge" of the Justice Department employees appointed by Obama during his opening monologue.

NOW WATCH: 'F--- you for that': Milo Yiannopoulos attacks the media in a press conference after resigning from Breitbart





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Don't take the 235K jobs number at face value, Goldman's chief economist says

The 235,000 jobs added in February may be an impressive number, but don't take the better-than-expected report as is without considering the circumstances, Jan Hatzius said Friday.

"I don't think you should take this 235,000 at face value," Hatzius, chief economist at Goldman Sachs, told CNBC. "We've seen almost 100,000 jobs added in the construction sector in the last two months, and the warm winter, I think, had something to do with that."

He told " Squawk on the Street " that the boost in construction hiring could also affect later reports.

"We should expect some payback over the next month, or two months, or maybe three months," Hatzius said.

Still, the strong report all but solidifies the case for a March rate hike by the Federal Reserve , even raising the possibility of more increases in 2017.

"I think four hikes is definitely possible," Hatzius said, but noted that his firm's prediction remains at three hikes this year and a possible balance sheet adjustment in late 2017.

"I think the Fed's showing that going every three months is something that they are, in principle, comfortable with," Hatzius said. "Of course, it always depends on how the numbers come in and what happens to financial conditions."

The economist added that easing financial conditions since the Fed's meeting in December are an important trend for investors to keep in mind.

"If you get a sharp tightening, we might regret this change. But our best guess is that won't happen," Hatzius said.

But various indicators within the report are all telling a story of improving economic conditions, leading labor economist Ed Lazear told CNBC's " Squawk Alley " on Friday.

Lazear, who chaired the Council of Economic Advisors under President George W. Bush, said that upticks in labor participation and wage growth and a decline in workers taking up part-time jobs for involuntary reasons show that the economy is steadily recovering.

"I like the employment-to-population ratio because it's really the bottom line," Lazear said. "What that tells you is the number of people working relative to the number of people who could be working. That number is at an eight-year high at 60 percent."

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Though still a ways off from pre-recession numbers, that employment-to-population balance indicates that labor force participation is getting better, Lazear contended.

He added that while the 2.8 percent uptick in wages isn't "gangbusters," it indicates "real wage growth [and] real increases in the standard of living for the typical worker."

Lazear said these trends signal a "mature" recovery supported by robust market activity and good data. The one laggard is productivity growth, which he said was "key" to a full recovery.

"It's the thing that affects labor demand. It means more jobs, it means higher wages. So, without productivity growth, we're not going to get there," Lazear said.

But there's a fix, and President Donald Trump and Washington Republicans are on the way to making it happen, Lazear said.

"My view is the way to get productivity growth moving again is to make sure that we lower the taxes on capital," the economist said. "Fortunately, both Congress and the president are talking about some reforms that will bring that about."
* Bombs targeted pilgrims visiting site near Old City

* Assad backed in war by Shi'ite militias from Iraq

* Iraq calls for international condemnation of "ugly crime" (Adds Iraqi foreign ministry statement)

By Tom Perry and Kinda Makieh

BEIRUT/DAMASCUS, March 11 (Reuters) - A double bomb attack targeting Shi'ite pilgrims in Damascus killed at least 40 Iraqis and wounded 120 more who were going to pray at a nearby shrine, the Iraqi foreign ministry said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Saturday's attack, which the Hezbollah-run al-Manar TV station said had been carried out by two suicide bombers.

Footage broadcast by Syrian state TV showed two badly damaged buses with their windows blown out. The area was splattered with blood and shoes were scattered on the ground.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been supported in the country's war by Shi'ite militias from countries including Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon.

The attack took place at a bus station where the pilgrims had been brought to visit the nearby Bab al-Saghir cemetery, named after one of the seven gates of the Old City of Damascus.

The second blast went off some 10 minutes after the first at around 10 a.m. (0800 GMT), inflicting casualties on civil defence workers who had gathered to tend to the casualties, the Damascus correspondent for al-Manar told the station by phone.

The pilgrims were due to pray at the cemetery after visiting the Sayeda Zeinab shrine just outside Damascus, he said.

Sayeda Zeinab - the granddaughter of the Prophet Mohammad - is venerated by Shi'ites and her shrine is a site of mass pilgrimage for Shi'ites from across the world. It has also been a magnet for Shi'ite militiamen in Syria.

Iran has backed Assad in the conflict that erupted in 2011. The Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah is also fighting in support of Assad.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based organisation that reports on the war, said the number of dead was at least 44. The death toll was expected to rise due to the many serious injuries, it added.

Last June, Islamic State claimed responsibility for bomb attacks near the Sayeda Zeinab shrine. The last bomb attack in Damascus was in January, when a suicide bomber hit the heavily police Kafr Sousa neighbourhood, killing at least seven people.

(Additional reporting by Maher Chmaytelli in Baghdad; Editing by Alexander Smith and Dominic Evans)
Rotary volunteers from five Lehigh Valley groups on Saturday packed and shipped 20,000 meals to local food banks.

Meals of rice and beans and apple cinnamon oatmeal were handled Saturday morning by more than 100 volunteers at the Haupert Union Building on the Moravian College campus in Bethlehem.

It's the first time the five Rotary clubs -- Bethlehem, Bethlehem Morning Star, Easton, Nazareth and Saucon -- have collaborated on a project, according to a news release. They raised $5,000 to do it.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
More than 150 tattoo artists filled the Sands Bethlehem Event Center Friday for the start of 10th Annual Skindustry Tattoo Expo, running through Sunday.

The convention features on-site inkings from artists both local and from as far off as New Zealand. Special events throughout the weekend include seminars for skills like equipment assembly, an auction, and contests for the best black and gray tattoos, best color tattoos and tattoo of the day.

Friday's snowy weather was no deterrent for attendees and artists, many of whom called this their favorite tattoo convention every year.

"A lot of the conventions are way too big, almost impersonal," said artist Dave Drell, who has been coming up from Baltimore since nearly the festival's start. "This is like a big gang of friends, rather than a disparate group of people."

Sean Duffy, of Dublin, Pa., also liked the intimacy -- half the fun of these shows, he said, was meeting and talking to new people. He was working on a monarch butterfly in a space scene for a customer. While prepping for the appointment, he did some research and learned that a "galactic butterfly" was an ancient Mesoamerican symbol.

"That's my favorite part of the job," he said. "Now I know a little bit about the Aztecs."

Artists lured passersby to their booths with bowls of candy and impressive displays of their work. Those who had manned a both all 10 years, like Jen Andersen of Inkpulsive, received a special pin for their loyalty. But newcomers appreciated the low-key vibe, too.

"It's chill. It's the perfect size," Gianna Phillips, a first-timer from Philadelphia, said as she gave fellow artist Devin Coley a tattoo of a panther head.

For its size, though, there is plenty of variety on display, from the morbid (lots of skulls and Grim Reapers) to the famous (Princess Leia). Jennifer Henry, of Emmaus, sought out Josh Bodwell, of Tannersville, Pa., specifically for his specialty in pop culture tattoos. She trusted him to pull off a tattoo of Marvin the Martian that's been rattling around in her head for 20 years.

"There's no ego," Andersen, the 10-year veteran, said. "It's all people who want to be here."

Andrew Doerfler may be reached at adoerfler@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @adoerfler or on Facebook.
Uber

The exterior of Uber's headquarters is seen March 1, 2017, in San Francisco. A driver for UberX, a subsidiary in which private vehicle owners pick up passengers via a smartphone app, was accidentally shot early Sunday, March 5, 2017, while driving on Interstate 78 in Lehigh County, according to Pennsylvania State Police. (AP Photo | For lehighvalleylive.com)

An Uber driver was treated and released from the hospital after being accidentally shot by a passenger last weekend, Pennsylvania State Police said Friday.

It occurred about 12:21 a.m. Sunday as Christopher Coulthard, 33, of Whitehall Township, was driving on Interstate 78 West near mile-marker 62.1 in Upper Saucon Township, state police at Fogelsville said in a news release.

Couthard was able to dial 911 and was taken by ambulance to Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township.

His passenger, 24-year-old Stefan E. Zdanowicz, was transferring a legally carried, concealed 9mm handgun from a jacket pocket to another pocket when he accidentally fired a shot, Trooper Robert E. Devers says in the release.

The round penetrated the rear of the driver's seat, struck Coulthard in the left side of his back and exited his body, lodging in the driver's seat cushion, according to police.

Zdanowicz, of Bethlehem, was "highly intoxicated" at the time, police said.

He was arraigned Friday before District Judge Daniel Trexler on misdemeanor counts of simple assault, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief.

He was released on $7,500 unsecured bail and faces a preliminary hearing tentatively scheduled March 20 before Trexler.

Uber began offering its UberX service, in which drivers pick up passengers in privately owned vehicles, in January 2015 in the Lehigh Valley.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Hackettstown is expected to draw several thousand people on Sunday to Main Street for its annual St. Patrick's Day parade.

Among them will be at least one resident of the New Jersey municipality's sister city: the similarly named Hacketstown, Ireland.

The bond between the two is unusual. They appear to share no history, or even the same spelling.

No, this tale of two towns started more than 20 years ago with a letter between firefighters.

The towns are separated by about 3,200 miles and one letter "t." The similar names seem to be the only thing the towns have in common.

The Irish Hacketstown is in County Carlow in the southeast corner of the country and his home to a little less than 1,000 people. Also notable, it is said to be the home of one of Elvis Presley's ancestors.

On the other hand, New Jersey's Hackettstown in Warren County has a population of about 9,600, according to the U.S. Census. It is said to be named for Samuel Hackett, a local entrepreneur and businessman in the town's early days.

The area was home to German and Irish immigrants, town Clerk/Administrator Bill Kuster said, though it's not known if any came from the other Hacketstown.

The ocean-spanning connection began in 1995 when Joe Barnes, a retired firefighter in the Irish town, got a letter from Hackettstown, New Jersey, firefighter Jeff Saunders. At first, Barnes didn't know what to make of it.

"At first I thought it was a little bit of a crank," Barnes said in an interview during a visit six years ago.

The letter was addressed, Barnes more recently recalled, to the fire department of Hacketstown, Ireland (not County Carlow) and included a description of the New Jersey department. It asked if the Irish town's fire department was real, Barnes said.

He replied it was indeed and provided some information. A year later, firefighters of the Irish Hacketstown were invited to the New Jersey department's 120th anniversary parade, which Barnes and another firefighter attended.

Since then, he -- and sometimes others -- has visited every second year and the relationships between the two towns have grown.

In 2011, the two municipalities were proclaimed "sister cities" by the New Jersey Hackettstown's government.

Since the first letters, there has been at least one student exchange. Dignitaries have gone back and forth over the years to visit and participate in parades and other events.

From left to right: Hackettstown (New Jersey) High School students Elke Muzikar and Becky Dudley talk with visiting students Julie O'Brien and Trish O'Toole from Hacketstown, Ireland, during an exchange program in 1999. (NJ Advance Media file photo)

"It's a very small town. Just a couple bars and other things," Mary Litwheler, who with her husband is hosting Barnes on his visit, said of the Irish Hacketstown. "It's a wonderful little town."

Former Hackettstown (N.J.) Mayor Michael Lavery is among those who have traveled to the other town for its Easter parade. He recalled getting a police escort into town, and seeing a "shrine" to the New Jersey town's fire department with gifts including a helmet and axe.

"It's a really nice town, really nice people," Lavery said. "Really can't say enough great things about them."

Barnes and Lavery developed a friendship. Since Lavery is serving as the grand marshall of Sunday's local St. Patrick's Day parade, Barnes surprised him at a banquet held Wednesday.

When asked why he continues to visit, the Irish citizen's response was simple: "Because I like it."

"If something special happens in a place, it's always a special meaning," he said. "Hackettstown is a special meaning for me."

HACKETTSTOWN'S ST. PATRICK'S DAY PARADE

The Hackettstown Business Improvement District is hosting its ninth annual St. Patrick's Day parade on Sunday. There are 90 participating groups, 12 bands and eight floats, organizers say.

When: 3:30 p.m.

Where: From the post office at 120 Grand Ave. down Main Street to Union Cemetery.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
By Tuvan Gumrukcu and Thomas Escritt ANKARA/ROTTERDAM (Reuters) - The Netherlands barred Turkey's foreign minister from landing in Rotterdam on Saturday in a row over Ankara's political campaigning among Turkish emigres, leading President Tayyip Erdogan to brand its fellow NATO member a "Nazi remnant". The dispute escalated in the evening as Turkey's family minister was prevented by police from entering the Turkish consulate in the Rotterdam while hundreds of protesters waving Turkish flags gathered outside demanding to see the minister. Turkey's foreign ministry said it did not want the Dutch ambassador to Ankara to return from leave "for some time". Turkish authorities sealed off the Dutch embassy in Ankara and consulate in Istanbul in apparent retaliation and hundreds gathered there for protests at the Dutch action. President Erdogan is looking to the large number of emigre Turks living in Europe, especially in Germany and the Netherlands, to help clinch victory next month in a referendum that would give the presidency sweeping new powers. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she will do everything possible to prevent Turkish political tensions spilling onto German soil and four rallies in Austria and one in Switzerland have been cancelled due to the growing dispute. Erdogan has cited domestic threats from Kurdish and Islamist militants and a July coup bid as cause to vote "yes" to his new powers. But he has also drawn on the emotionally charged row with Europe to portray Turkey as betrayed by allies while facing wars on its southern borders. The Dutch government had banned Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu from attending a rally on Saturday in Rotterdam but he said he would fly there anyway, saying Europe must be rid of its "boss-like attitude". Cavusoglu, who was barred from a similar meeting in Hamburg last week but spoke instead from the Turkish consulate, accused the Dutch of treating the many Turkish citizens in the country like hostages, cutting them off from Ankara. "If my going will increase tensions, let it be ... I am a foreign minister and I can go wherever I want," he added hours before his planned flight to Rotterdam was banned. SANCTIONS THREAT Cavusoglu threatened harsh economic and political sanctions if the Dutch refused him entry, and those threats proved decisive for the Netherlands government. It cited public order and security concerns in withdrawing landing rights for Cavusoglu's flight and said the threat of sanctions made the search for a reasonable solution impossible. "This decision is a scandal and unacceptable in every way. It does not abide by diplomatic practices," Cavusoglu told reporters in Istanbul on Saturday evening. Dutch anti-Muslim politician Geert Wilders, polling second ahead of Wednesday's elections, said in a tweet on Saturday: "To all Turks in the Netherlands who agree with Erdogan: Go to Turkey and NEVER come back!!" Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said: "This morning on TV (the Turkish minister) made clear he was threatening the Netherlands with sanctions and we can never negotiate with the Turks under such threats. So we decided ... in a conference call it was better for him not to come." Once the foreign minister had been prevented from landing in Rotterdam, Turkey's family minister decided to travel to the city by road from neighbouring Germany instead but was stopped by police in the Dutch city. "We have been stopped 30 metres from our Rotterdam consulate and we are not allowed to enter," Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya wrote on Twitter. "NAZI REMNANTS, FASCISTS" Addressing a rally of supporters, Erdogan retaliated to the decision to prevent the Turkish foreign minister from visiting Rotterdam. "Listen Netherlands, you'll jump once, you'll jump twice, but my people will thwart your game," he said. "You can cancel our foreign minister's flight as much as you want, but let's see how your flights will come to Turkey now." "They don't know diplomacy or politics. They are Nazi remnants. They are fascists," he said. Rutte called Erdogan's reference to Nazis and Fascists "a crazy remark". "I understand they're angry but this is of course way out of line," he said. Erdogan chafes at Western criticism of his mass arrests and dismissals of people authorities believe were linked to a failed July attempt by the military to topple him. He maintains it is clear the West begrudges him new powers and seeks to engineer a "no" vote in the referendum. Barred from the Netherlands Cavusoglu arrived in France on Saturday ahead of a planned speech to Turkish emigres in the northeastern city of Metz on Sunday, a Reuters witness said. Earlier, an official at the Moselle regional prefecture told Reuters there were currently no plans to prevent the meeting from going ahead. A member of the Union of European Turkish Democrats also said on Saturday via a Facebook post that the Turkish foreign minister would no longer come to Switzerland for a planned event on Sunday after failing to find a suitable venue. Zurich's security department, which had unsuccessfully lobbied the federal government in Bern to ban Cavusoglu's appearance, said in a statement on Saturday evening it was relieved the event had been cancelled. (Additional reporting by Anthony Deutsch and Toby Sterling; writing by Ralph Boulton; editing by Helen Popper and David Clarke)
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Michael Lalor - Portlaoise

The death took place on Friday, March 10 of Michael Lalor of Ballycarnan, Portlaoise.



Beloved husband of Peig and much loved father of Matthew, Rena, Esther, Geraldine, Rosemary and PJ. Deeply regretted by his family, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, extended family relatives and friends.

Reposing at his home on Saturday from 6pm with rosary recital at 9pm. Removal on Sunday at 5.45pm to arrive at SS Peter & Paul's church Portlaoise for 6.30pm. Requiem Mass on Monday at 12 noon. Interment afterwards in SS Peter & Paul's cemetery

Peter Daly - Rathdowney

The death took place on Friday, March 10 of Peter Daly of High Street, Rathdowney.

Peacefully, at the Mater Hospital, Dublin. Predeceased by his wife Bridie. Deeply regretted by his son Peter-Paul and his daughter Ann-Marie, his beloved grandchildren Tara, Shane, Shannon, Ciara and Jessica, daughter-in-law Geraldine, son-in-law Liam, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends.

Reposing at O' Sullivan's Funeral Home, Rathdowney on Saturday evening from 7pm with rosary at 8.30pm. Funeral Mass on Sunday at 11am in the Church Of The Holy Trinity, Rathdowney followed by burial in Rathdowney Local Cemetery.

Margaret Donoghue - Portlaoise

The death took place on Thursday, March 9 of Margaret Donoghue (nee Phelan) of Market Square, Portlaoise.

In the care of Oakdale Nursing Home, Portarlington, Passed away peacefully surrounded by her loving family.

Beloved wife of the late Daniel, and dearly loved mother to Sheila (Stack), Mary, Sean, Seamus and Catherine (Browne). Deeply regretted by her family, brother Jack, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends

Reposing at her residence from 4pm on Saturday with rosary at 8pm. Removal at 2pm on Sunday to arrive at SS Peter and Pauls Church for 2.30pm Requiem Mass. Interment will follow afterwards in SS Peter and Pauls Cemetery, Portlaoise.

James Horan - Ballyfin

The death took place on Tuesday, March 7 of James (Jim) Horan of Deerpark, Ballyfin.

Peacefully in the care of the staff of St. Vincent's Hospital, Mountmellick. Deeply regretted by his brother and sisters Mary, Betty and Sean, nieces, nephews, neighbours, relatives and friends.

Reposing in Moloney's Funeral Home, Mountmellick from 6pm on Wednesday, Funeral Prayers at 7pm. Removal at 7.45pm to St. Fintan's Church, Ballyfin arriving at 8.15pm. Requiem Mass on Thursday at 11am. Burial after in St. Fintan's Cemetery.

Philomena Keyes - Mountrath

The death took place on Tuesday, March 7 of Philomena (Phyl) Keyes (nee Phillips) of 18 St. Fintan's Terrace, Mountrath.

Formally Lalor-Fitzpatrick. Peacefully, surrounded by her family, and in the care of staff of St. Vincent's Hospital Mountmellick. Predeceased by her son Alan. Deeply regretted by her husband Patrick (Paddy) sons, daughters, grandchildren, great grandchildren, brother, sisters, extended family, relatives, neighbours and friends.

Reposing at Burke's Funeral Home Mountrath on Wednesday evening from 7pm, with Rosary at 9pm. Removal on Thursday morning to St. Fintan's Church Mountrath, for Requiem Mass at 11am, followed by burial in St. Fintan's Cemetery, Mountrath.

Noel McCartney - Coolrain

The death took place on Monday, March 6 of Noel McCartney of Coolrain.

Peacefully at home, surrounded by his family, following an illness bravely borne. Deeply regretted by his wife Carmel, sons Alan and Barry, daughter Karen, daughter-in-law Annmarie, grandchildren Kathlyn, Kyle and Ella, brothers, sisters-in-law, mother-in-law Phil, extended family, relatives, neighbours and many, many friends.

Reposing at his home on Tuesday evening. Reposing at this home all day on Wednesday, with rosary at 9pm. Removal on Thursday afternoon to St. Fergal's Church, Camross, for Requiem Mass at 1pm, followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery.

Alan Newth - Portlaoise

The death took place on Monday, March 6 of Alan Newth of 'Avoncilff', Mountrath, Rd., Portlaoise.

In the care of the staff of Droimnin Nursing Home, Stradbally. Peacefully, with his family. Beloved husband of Anna. Deeply regretted by his family, son, daughters, sons-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandchildren, great-grandchild, nephew Nigel and wife Sue, relatives and friends.

Cremation will take place privately at Mount Jerome.
In the hours following the icy gales of Storm Doris, I caught up with Lynne at Tauntons most distinguished hotel, The Castle. This is the final instalment of our chat. You can read the others here.

You were and still are a campaigner against important issues such as Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), child abuse and violence against women. However, perhaps your greatest achievement is being the originator and architect of the equal marriage act, which was passed into law in 2013. No party had equal marriage in their 2010 manifestos nor was it part of the coalition agreement. Why did you take this issue on and why is it important to you?

When we entered into coalition, 20 ministerial posts had to be filled. After two days, I received a call from [the then deputy PM] Nick Clegg offering me the post of Equalities Minister. In fact, I ended up with three-quarters of me as a Home Office minister and one-quarter as Equalities Minister. So Im a minister in the coalition, we have Liberal Democrats in government, and Im thinking to myself Ive got to do something to make sure everyone knows that there are Liberals in this government. It never crossed my mind that it wasnt in the manifestos or portfolio because to me it was an obvious piece of equalities work that needed doing. Labour were great with civil partnerships, but I thought they were a kind of apartheid  one rule for gay people and one rule for straight people. My view is that you should have marriage and civil partnerships for both gay and straight, both for both. The states job is to facilitate that union, not to judge if one is good or one is bad. We were all new Liberal Democrat ministers and didnt have a clue what we were doing, so the Institute for Government put on a morning instruction for newbie Liberal ministers. They invited Michael Heseltine and Andrew Adonis to advise us. Heseltine said you are going to be really busy. You do not understand the tsunami of work that will hit you when you become a minister. You will have debates, orals, speeches, correspondence and endless other things. Your diary will be full from morning to night. If you do not ruthlessly prioritise one or two things you want to get done in your time in the sun, you will not achieve it. You will be a very good minister doing very important things but you wont have done anything you went into politics for. Adonis encouraged us to trust our civil servants. He said it wasnt like The Thick of It or Yes Minister, although, I have to say, I thought it was quite like Yes Minister! He told us If you dont direct your civil servants, they will fill your diary from first thing in the morning until midnight, all with very worthy things but youll just be executing what they want you to do. If you trust your civil servants, you have to direct them. They will go to the ends of the earth for you. As I walked back from the Institute for Government to the Home Office, it just crystallised in my brain that I wanted to do same sex marriage because it was a piece of equalities legislation that needed doing. I came back into my office and said to one of my assistant private secretaries I want to do same sex marriage, what do I do? That is literally how it started. If I hadnt had that morning, we would not have same sex marriage. Its really strange how things happen.

Can you explain the process? What did you have to do?

To get a new policy into government programme, the Secretary of State of the department that the policy emanates has to write round to all the other Secretaries of State, and every one of them has to agree it. That is how you introduce new policies. My assistant private secretary said well Minister, you need to write some words, and well take them to the then Home Secretary [Theresa May] for approval. If she approves, she will write round. My first effort wasnt good enough, apparently. I remember sitting in the basement cafe at the House of Commons with my assistant private secretary, who said youve got to make it stronger if you want to get it into legislation. In one sentence it has to take you from A to Z. The words were something like It has become clear to me that there is a genuine desire by those with an interest in these matters to move to same sex marriage and straight civil partnerships. We wish to move to legislation within this parliament. The actual words are in my book. The wording went to Theresa May whose reputation was not great on matters LGBT, but I had sussed that she wanted to change her past. It took two or three days before the word came back that she was prepared to back me. She then conducted a write round to the cabinet ministers. Any cabinet minister has a veto. Both Philip Hammond and Iain Duncan Smith vetoed. David Cameron overruled them because he, like Theresa, wanted to recast the Conservative Party away from their homophobic track record. Thus it began. Many things had to be sorted, but eventually it was made public at our party conference in 2011. After 18 months of working out all the parameters and, as it was my baby, Nick [Clegg] got agreement for me to announce it. Theres a lot of argy bargy that goes on about who will announce what at party conferences. About two days before, Camerons special advisors rang mine. They said if I did not drop civil partnerships for straight people from the bill, its dead in the water. We argued back and forth for about six hours but he wasnt budging, so I gave way. I thought okay, same sex marriage is the important equalities step and Im sure straight civil partnerships will follow at some point. Unfortunately, I had to drop civil partnerships to get the same sex marriage bill through.

Do you know why Cameron objected to straight civil partnerships being included in the bill?

Yes I do. Cameron did not believe in living together and, as far as he was concerned, civil partnerships were living together. In the Conservative world, marriage is the gold standard and anything else is not appropriate.

In that case, why didnt he repeal civil partnerships?

For 18 months arguments raged behind closed doors. The Tories said that if we have same sex marriage they want to get rid of civil partnerships altogether. My argument was that some people believe in marriage, some do not. We should facilitate both, whether you are gay or straight. When this didnt work, I took to stomping around the Home Office saying oh my God, youre doing all of this to ingratiate yourself with the LGBT community after your hideous past, and if you abolish civil partnerships they will hate you again. That worked!

But you still didnt get straight civil partnerships though.

No, but the consultation, which I announced at Conference, turned out to be the biggest in history. It still is today. There was a question in there about straight civil partnerships, and religious marriage wasnt included at the beginning because the Conservatives wouldnt have it, but it came in.

You were met with much opposition to the bill, with a certain lobby group branding it appalling. Were there any stumbling blocks you came up against, and how supportive were your colleagues especially your superiors, for example the then Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg?

There were a number of things that made me think I could do same sex marriage. I could see a route through. One of which was that the three leaders of the main parties were on the record, mostly in pink news, as saying that they wanted to do same sex marriage, although, as you rightly said, it wasnt in the manifestos. Nick was the first of the leaders to say, without doubt, it should happen. Cameron said it should and then it shouldnt. He flip-flopped. Surprisingly, when asked during the Labour leadership contest, Ed Miliband claimed that it wasnt a big issue as no-one was asking him about it. After he became leader a year later, he changed his mind.

Nick was a honey. He was lovely and very supportive. I had a lot of support, some from surprising places. I could send a whole number of people out to bat.

Yes, I met with some fierce opposition too. The bishops kicked up quite a lot of fuss. Theresa had them in her office to talk to them. She is religious you know, she is a vicars daughter, but she was quite clear about her support for me on this. I did run into some hideous homophobes. The evangelicals, for instance, shocked me rigid at one meeting. At the meeting, I was joined by the Jewish Board of Deputies, Catholics, CoE and the evangelicals. The evangelical was getting so het up. He was saying these homosexuals will be sorry that they started this. We will see them back in their trenches. My civil servant next to me was gay. I thought how can you sit there and say these terrible things? I had death and rape threats and all sorts of other threats. I wrote an article for the Telegraph titled The Church Doesnt Own Marriage. It was quite provocative as a title, and everything fell on my head! The simple fact is that the Church does not own marriage. Nevertheless, the most senior Catholic in the country at the time Archbishop OBrien, for example, used lots of homophobic language, equating it to bestiality and other really stupid things. A year later, he was defrocked for inappropriate sexual behaviour with young priests. I rest my case!

After the consultation closed in mid-2012, your Tory successor announced that the bill would be put before a vote in Parliament, which as we know passed. Besides the dropping of straight civil partnerships from the bill, how happy are you with the law, and are there any other amendments that you think should be made?

I am super happy. There were a few anomalies that we could never get passed. One was the definition of consummation. The divorce rational is slightly different for same sex couples as opposed to opposite sex couples. Adultery is not a ground for divorce for someone of the same sex, you have unreasonable behaviour instead, but case law will eventually sort that out. There is a tiny difference on one section of pensions. Otherwise, it is absolutely wonderful and the same. Obviously, I wanted the amendment for straight civil partnerships. I didnt think we needed the Triple Lock for the CoE. That was the only thing that changed. I didnt take the legislation through myself because I had already tied it all up and didnt need to actually do it. I knew it would go through. I had no worries about that. Maria Miller, who subsequently took the bill through, included it. I imagine the CoE must have said you arent making us special. We are the established Church! The law actually protects all religions. We introduced religious same sex marriage, which as I said wasnt in the original bill, because we would be outside of the Equalities Act if we didnt. Literally, in my first few weeks as a minister, we also passed the law allowing civil partnerships in religious premises, which meant you could sign the register in the church if that church wanted it. That got through the Lords because it was permissive. That permissive law protects those religions that want to do it. Those that dont, do not have to. They cannot be forced either way. The whole cry during the same sex marriage bill was from the religions. They were concerned that they would be forced, against their will, into marrying same sex couples and would be taken off to the European Court of Justice if they refused, which was a load of rubbish.

So you do not believe that the government should have the power to force churches to accept equal marriage?

I dont think its possible. It remains permissive. I do not think that the orthodox religions, which include CoE, Catholics, Orthodox Jews and all Muslim groups, would do it. We have religious freedom in this country. This means that you cannot force them to do things. However, no one should have to choose between his or her religion and their sexuality. They need to move their position on this. I dont think that this is achievable through law, but it is ridiculous to preach love when you dont love all of your congregation equally.

Thats the vast majority of religions then isnt it?

Yes, and I think that they are all at fault.

What are your thoughts on the recent unsuccessful court case that aimed at overturning the ban on heterosexual couples entering into civil partnerships?

Well, straight civil partnerships will happen at some point. Its an inevitability, as it leaves an inequality that is not sustainable. It would be wonderful if the government would just do it. Theyve already had a review and a consultation, and everyone has come back saying yes, let it happen but nothing does. This is because the government does not really want it to happen. I think that this case will be taken to the Supreme Court. I just wish people would do things themselves in a timely manner, not wait to be forced by law. Its bloody stupid! Although the court didnt give the judgment, it did say that something isnt right and it needs working out. As I say, the Tories would still prefer to remove civil partnerships altogether. Thats the concern. During my time there, I prevented them from doing so by promising to cause a lot of trouble if they tried. Ive written a few blogs on the subject to try and wake the LGBT community to what the Tories might be up to, if it does come to that. I do hope the Tories will see the light.

* Rob May is a Political History PhD student and Lib Dem activist.
A PHARMACY has been convicted and fined 1,500 for breaching regulations in supplying a number of licensed animal products to customers without a prescription and for failing to keep full records of all their transactions.

Judge Marian OLeary at Limerick District Court heard that Widdess Fitzgibbon Pharmacy on Roches Street was subject to a routine but unannounced inspection by the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland on December 12, 2014.

Marian Fitzgibbon, director of the pharmacy, pleaded guilty to three offences under Section 11 of the Regulation of Retail Pharmacy Business Regulations (2008).

An inspector with the PSI told the court that a large volume of veterinary medicines were present in the pharmacy, and they then reviewed records of supplies, which were described as not sufficient.

They detailed that all pharmacies have to keep a register of all incoming and outgoing supplies, including details of the batch number, the name and address of the purchaser, and the serial number to ensure full traceability.

The inspector was furnished with hand-written accounts including some of these details, but they did not include records of batch numbers or prescription numbers.

The court was told that a vet treating an animal has to write a prescription, but in this case prescriptions were written retrospectively by a vet, who was not named in court.

The inspector with the PSI expressed concerns of any possibility that certain prescriptions could be given in error to the wrong animals, specifically those used in the food producing industry.

The court heard that other litigation against the pharmacy may be taken, but the terms of which and by whom was not specified.

The directors of the pharmacy are Marian Fitzgibbon, who was present in court, and her mother, who is aged 85.

Defending, Suzanne Mullally, BL, said that her client was fully co-operative during the investigation and made frank admissions. She met these charges head on and pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity, said Ms Mullally.

In the days after the inspection, the authority wrote to the company outlining immediate concerns and seeking undertakings.

Ms Fitzgibbon wrote back with remedial steps to be taken, and the court heard she has since invested 40,000 in her premises.

No complaint was made against the pharmacy, which employs eight people. Ms Mullally said the pharmacy is of some antiquity, dating back to 1908, and that it was taken over by Ms Fitzgibbons father in 1950. Judge O'Leary imposed three fines of 500 each, with six months to pay, and ordered that a contribution of 3,000 be be paid towards the prosecutions legal costs within one month. She was well aware of what she was doing, said Judge OLeary.
A GROUP set up in opposition to the 150m Northern Distributor Road will this Saturday hold an open meeting outlining their vision of where the link should go.

The East Limerick Action Group (ELAG) will hold the meeting at Ahane GAA Club from 4pm.

It follows the news that fresh plans for the road  which may link the citys northside with Plassey, the Dublin Road, and ultimately the M7  will be debated at the May meeting of Limerick City and County Council.

Residents along the Mountshannon Road and its surrounds remain opposed to the scheme for fears over flooding in the area.

ELAG has already described the plans outlined by the council as reckless, environmentally destructive and wholly unnecessary.

Valerie Foley, who chairs the group say they have been inundated with messages of support and she noted that every house they had visited since the council had dusted off and resubmitted.

The original proposals were decisively rejected by council members in August 2015.

But it is understood this time around, with a flyover set to traverse the Mountshannon Road, opposition from council members  who ultimately have the final say on the scheme  will be diminished.

Ms Foley said that ELAG had been able to piece together a collection of images, maps and plans that showed the proposed route and all the information would now be on display in Ahane GAA hall.

The meeting comes as council chief executive Conn Murray upped the ante on the controversial link.

Speaking to Limericks business community at an event in the Savoy Hotel, he said it is critical piece of the jigsaw in terms of delivering foreign direct investment to the city.

The Northern Distributor Road, which will come before our council shortly, must be delivered. It is a critical piece of infrastructure, which connects our airport, opens up the north part of our city, and indeed gives huge opportunities to south county Clare. It links us back right across the university and at the heart of that is the Limerick Institute of Technology which is growing its campus to meet the needs that we know are coming down the track.
THE presence of taxi on-demand firm Uber was one of the key reasons another high-tech firm WP Engine set up in the city centre.

Thats according to April Downing, the chief financial officer of WP Engine, which operates in Patrick Street.

Late last year, the Texas-based firm, which exists to power digital experiences for websites and applications built on the WordPress platform, announced 100 new positions.

While most other technology firms prefer to locate on the peripheries of cities, Ms Downing said WP Engine is different.

When we were making our decision about coming to Limerick, we were unique in that we wanted to be in the city centre. One of the other technology companies we spoke to was Uber.

"It was nice to be able to meet with them, and find out why they decided to make this decision. It was a really important part of the decision to help us invest, she explained.

Uber for its part, operates out of the Thomas Street centre, and is ramping up to a total workforce of 300 here. WP Engine has teamed up with the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) to offer a scholarship to Moyross man Evan Lane, 24.

Having met the mature student, Ms Downing revealed he happened upon a career in computers and technology almost by accident.

He was first thinking about doing marketing. As part of this, he had an IT class. Off the back of this, he realised he had an interest in technology. It was then he started pursuing his degree in computer systems and network management, April added.

For his part, Evan said: During my recent marketing course my love for IT just grew and grew, its a really exciting time for tech, and its great to play a small part in it.

This scholarship will help me with the financial side of college allowing me to focus more on my studies, something which I am sincerely grateful for. Im excited to be able to pursue a career in an industry Im really enthusiastic about and cant wait to get started, he added.

As well as receiving financial backing, Evan will also spend time at WP Engines headquarters here.

It is the support WP Engine has enjoyed from Limericks business community which Texas native Ms Downing says made the firm want to give back to the local area.

Very quickly, we appreciated reducing the barrier for people to get an education was a great way in which to give back to the community, she explained.

Ms Downing said WP Engine has no regrets about setting up in Limerick, describing it as an incredible community.

Of the 100 jobs the firm pledged back in October, Ms Downing said they have hired around 20 people so far, and would hope to take on the remaining people within three years.

But wed do it faster if it made sense, she said.

The team here is spectacular. Everyone is so devoted, they are so considerate. Our customers love the interaction. Its really nice to have a location which is just an extension of our broader team in Texas, she added.
The U.S. presidential election reflected the "full exposure of the hypocritical nature of U.S. democracy", one-party China has claimed in the annual human rights report of its geopolitical and economic rival.

"In 2016, money politics and power-for-money deals had controlled the presidential election, which was full of lies and farces," China's yearly report said.

China's state council information office published its summary of perceived U.S. human rights violations on Friday in response to Washington's criticisms of Beijing last week.

The annual report, which depicts a sorry tale for the U.S. political system, appeared to source almost all of its allegations of human rights abuses from U.S. media groups. Many of the same publications Beijing cited are either frequently attacked by Beijing or blocked in the country altogether.

Human rights 'myth'

China's report, which accuses the White House of a range of offenses from corruption to racism and police brutality, also criticized Washington for posing as the global "judge of human rights" while committing the same offenses both domestically and internationally.

"With the gunshots lingering in people's ears behind the Statue of Liberty, worsening racial discrimination and the election farce dominated by money politics, the self-proclaimed human rights defender has exposed its human rights 'myth' with its own deeds," the report said.

The U.S. often accuses China of having a lamentable human rights record and argued in its own report that Beijing has purposefully curtailed the freedoms of citizens in both Hong Kong and Macau.

China currently imposes strict limits on the freedom of speech and has been regularly condemned for arbitrary detentions, wide-ranging corruption and brutality.
ONE OF the worlds most renowned modern poets, Richard Blanco wishes to return to Limerick city as a writer-in-residence, he has exclusively told the Limerick Leader.

Blanco, 49, is one of five inaugural poets in US history  others including Robert Frost  after former president Barack Obama invited him to read his most acclaimed poem, One Today, at his second inauguration ceremony in 2013.

The famous writer, who is an openly-gay, immigrant Latino of Cuban-American status, recently delivered a talk to celebrate the Kate OBrien Literary Festival, at the Limerick City Art Gallery, at which he said that he felt Limerick was his second home.

His two-day sojourn marked his second stay in Limerick city  his previous visit was in August 2014, when he served as writer-in-residence as part of the National City of Culture designation.

Speaking to the Limerick Leader from No 1 Pery Square Hotel, Blanco said that he was very happy to return to the city, and is looking to return in the near future.

I am trying to plot, already, some kind of residency with the University of Limerick, or I hear that the city has residency apartments, so I have started to investigate that.

He added: Theres something inexplicably wonderful about Limerick that I cant quite figure out, yet. I think part of it is the authenticity of Limerick.

And, of course, a city is made up of people and a community, so that is part of it. One can go to many lovely cities but never really meet people who actually live there.

And Limerick is wonderful in that sense, it feels like I am living the way the Irish live, and I get to see that in every moment on the street and in the cafe.

During his first Irish media interview with this newspaper in 2014, the Maine man fondly recalled meeting Barack Obama for the first time in the Oval Office, describing him as a tremendously friendly person.

Since that interview, Richard has built a stronger relationship with the former US president, after being appointed to a focus group for the new Barack Obama Presidential Center, which is due to be open in its doors in Chicago within the next five years.

His role, he explained, is to create a narrative for the facility, which will look back on Obamas eight years as an influential world leader.

When asked what he considered to be the new American narrative since the election of Donald Trump, he said the difference has been a polar extreme.

Theres a resurrecting of a narrative that never really existed, of Making America great again, appealing to a nostalgic vision that probably never was.

So, theres clearly a change in rhetoric, a rhetoric of exclusion and inclusion. But, at the same token, it doesnt come as a complete surprise, because I think the way our democracy has always moved, the pendulum has always swung.

The thing is, this swing of the pendulum is really shocking. Its really a polar extreme, he explained.

Inspired by the two-week residency in 2014, Blanco penned the poem Leaving Limerick in the Rain, which has since been written in the form of classical music.

He recited the poem, for the first time to a Limerick audience, at the Pery Square gallery, which was met with thunderous applause by those in attendance.

Twenty minutes before jumping into a taxi to Shannon Airport, Richard admitted that the short vacation to Limerick was kind of a teaser.

I felt that this trip was too short. I wanted to hang out more, and drink more! he laughed.
CLOSE to 1,000 people have taken part in a protest against plans by Irish Cement to switch to burning tyres and waste in Mungret.

The demonstration, organised by Limerick Against Pollution, kicked off from the steps of City Hall this Saturday lunchtime.

Residents in Raheen, Dooradoyle, Mungret and other surrounding areas are furious after Irish Cement secured conditional planning permission for the reforms, which will see the use of petroleum coke phased out, and replaced with solid recovered waste and used tyres.

Theyre concerned that burning used tyres will release a number of toxic emissions into the air including dioxins, furans and sulphur dioxide which will in turn cause a range of health problems.

However, Irish Cement has always maintained that due to the fact the burning will take place at such a high temperature, there will not be an increase in emissions into the air. In fact, the company says it is necessary for it to reduce its carbon emissions.

Addressing the crowd, Clare Keating of Limerick Against Pollution said: This proposal brings with it new risks for Limerick: fires, disease, explosions. If an accident were to occur when burning plastics and tyres, the implications for Limerick would be catastrophic. The clean-up would cost the state billions to recover from a serious dioxin spill.

The protest comes against the backdrop of Limerick City and County Council giving the green light to Irish Cement to develop the physical part of the project in Mungret. The focus now shifts to the Environmental Protection Agency, which will decide whether or not Irish Cement may be given a licence to operate in Mungret.

One of the demonstrators, Emily Dubosz, a homeowner in the Mungret area, described the councils verdict as insane.

It is completely unacceptable to the residents of Mungret, and the surrounding area. We have to take into account the last few years when the winds were really strong. Its not only about the air. Its about the fauna and all the animals. Farmers will be affected by this too, she said.

As the march progressed, demonstrators chanted: Limerick City, full of grace, County Council your disgrace, in reference to the grant of planning permission.

Smog and poison everywhere, Irish Cement we despair, also followed.

The crowd  including many children  were also given masks covering their mouths to wear.

There was a big turnout of local politicians, including Deputies Willie ODea, Maurice Quinlivan, Jan OSullivan plus Senators Maria Byrne and Kieran ODonnell.

They were joined by Cllrs James Collins, Daniel Butler, Cian Prendiville, Elenora Hogan, John Loftus, John Gilligan, Malachy McCreesh and others.

What a day to make you proud to see over 1000 people unite against Irish Cement by @LAP_Limerick #cleanairlimerick #limerickandproud pic.twitter.com/gQRzgE3qHg  Cllr Daniel Butler (@DanielButlerFG) March 11, 2017

.@Limerick_Leader @LAP_Limerick family protest march against waste incineration at Mungret Cement was a big success. #CleanAirLimerick pic.twitter.com/CfKAo0mXYf  Cllr. James Collins (@jamesjcollins) March 11, 2017

The march was followed by a family fun day at the Peoples Park.

For more from the event, and pictures, please see Mondays edition of the Limerick Leader.
Mar 10, 2017, 12 PM

By Denise McCarty

Iran's philatelic bureau, PhilaIran, was closed after the release of a stamp showing the Madonna and Child, according to a report Linns received in early January from Armen Hovsepian of ArmenStamp.

The 9,000-rial stamp was issued in 2016 for Cinema Day, which is observed in Iran on Sept. 12.

The commemorative depicts Mary holding the newborn Jesus whose head is emitting a bright light. Two women, representing angels according to Hovsepian, are pictured on the right. This central design is surrounded by an image of a film strip.

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English-language inscriptions on the stamp include the country name I.R. Iran (Islamic Republic of Iran) and Anniversary of Cinema Day.

Hovespian reported to Linns that the Islamic clergy were so angered by the stamp that PhilaIran was shut down and has not yet reopened as of early March. He added that the stamp was being recalled because most post offices were refusing to sell it.

Mary (Maryam) is venerated in the Islamic religion and is the only woman mentioned by name in the Quran. Her son Jesus (Isa) is considered a prophet.

In 1982, Iran issued a stamp (Scott 2099) with the English inscription Glorification of Christs birth.

The design depicts a robed figure holding a scale of justice and a verse from the Quran relative to Christ, according to the description in the Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue.

As noted in the Scott Standard catalog, the importation of stamps of Iran is prohibited in the United States since Oct. 29, 1987.
By Michel Rose and Andrew Callus PARIS (Reuters) - Former prime minister Alain Juppe on Friday threw his support behind Francois Fillon's French presidential bid, hoping to heal party divisions days after he sharply criticized the conservative candidate in a speech. Juppe, who was defeated by Fillon in the center-right primaries in November, had been seen by many conservatives as a potential 'plan B' after Fillon became embroiled in a scandal over his wife's pay. On Monday he ruled out taking Fillon's place and a rebellion that was forming behind him fizzled out. "Even if just a passenger, I'm not jumping ship during the storm," Juppe tweeted on Friday. The move could help The Republicans come from behind in opinion polls by encouraging Juppe's more centrist supporters to stick with the party rather than switch to the favorite, independent Emmanuel Macron. Fillon now has a fine campaign line to tread because victory also depends on attracting voters away from the other leading candidate, Marine Le Pen, the far-right National Front leader. Only two top candidates from a first round vote on April 23 will contest the second round on May 7. Opinion polls show Fillon coming third in the first round and Macron going on to become president. Two polls on Friday showed Macron and Le Pen level in the first round vote with Fillon lagging well behind in third. In his speech on Monday renouncing the chance to run, Juppe, the 71-year-old mayor of Bordeaux, had harsh words for Fillon, who expects to be placed under formal investigation over payments to his wife when he sees investigating magistrates on March 15. Juppe accused Fillon of wasting the strong lead his party was enjoying before the scandal broke, called him obstinate, and expressed disquiet at his attacks on the media and judiciary investigating the case. MACRON BROADENING SUPPORT Polls have shown that some of those who backed Juppe are reluctant to support Fillon, offering an opportunity for Macron. He has already this week won support from a former Communist party head, the previous Socialist mayor of Paris, a right-wing former minister, and is in talks with the popular outgoing Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. Macron was campaigning on Thursday and Friday in Juppe's territory in Bordeaux, where he hailed Juppe as "a great leader" and dismissed left-wing and right-wing politicians for trying to place him in either camp. "We have to build a majority for this project. Don't believe that the candidate of the left which is tearing itself apart can achieve it, but don't believe that the National Front candidate can build a real majority," Macron told a campaign rally. "And don't think either that the sad candidate of the right that is uniting reactionaries and opportunists can build anything." Macron, who was previously economy minister under Socialist President Francois Hollande, has faced blistering criticism since Thursday from Socialist candidate Benoit Hamon. Currently lying in a distant fourth place, Hamon said Macron was "immature" and labeled his program dangerous for the country. "I don't think he will be ready to tackle the challenge of being the head of state, which means facing the European question, Mr Trump, Mr Putin and especially facing his own people," Hamon told France 2 television. (Editing by John Irish and Robin Pomeroy)
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Iraqi U.N. Ambassador Mohamed Ali Alhakim said on Friday there was "no evidence" that Islamic State had used chemical weapons in Mosul, where the militants are fighting off an offensive by U.S.-backed Iraqi forces. Alhakim said he spoke with officials in Baghdad at midday on Friday and "there was really no evidence that Daesh has used this chemical weapon." Daesh is another name for Islamic State. The United Nations said last Saturday that 12 people, including women and children, had been treated for possible exposure to chemical weapons agents in Mosul since March 1. The United Nations Security Council was briefed behind closed doors on the situation in Mosul on Friday by U.N. aid chief Stephen O'Brien and U.N. High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Kim Won-soo. British U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft, president of the council for March, said the 15-member body believed that Iraq's investigation into possible chemical weapons attacks was ongoing. "We expressed concern over reports of possible use of chemical weapons by Daesh and we look forward to the results of Iraq's investigation into those allegations," Rycroft told reporters after the briefing. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Sandra Maler)
Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey is taking on President Donald Trump over his travel ban--again.

Massachusetts will join a lawsuit against Trumps latest travel ban, according to a statement Healey released Thursday. The state was part of an earlier lawsuit against Trumps original travel policy that the American Civil Liberties Union filed on behalf of two Massachusetts professors. Massachusetts will drop that initial lawsuit when it joins the second one early next week.

"President Trump's second travel ban remains a discriminatory and unconstitutional attempt to make good on his campaign promise to implement a Muslim ban," Healey said in a statement Thursday. "We are consolidating our legal efforts and joining fellow states, led by Washington, in continuing to challenge this administration's unlawful immigration policies."

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The White House released a revised travel ban on Monday after the original order signed by President Trump was struck down in court after causing nationwide chaos. The new measure, effective March 16, attempts to sidestep the legal pitfalls of the earlier order by imposing a 90-day restriction on citizens from six--rather than seven--majority-Muslim nations entering the U.S. The revised order does not apply to people from Iraq, it allows for more exemptions, and it does not issue an indefinite prohibition against Syrian refugees.

Despite the new measures tweaks, states have launched challenges to its constitutionality. Hawaii was the first, requesting emergency court intervention on Wednesday to halt the order. It asked a federal court in Hawaii to grant a temporary restraining order that should apply nationally, arguing that the measure would harm the states economy by restricting tourism and do damage to state universities by hampering their efforts to recruit students and faculty.

Story continues

Massachusetts will join the suit that Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said hes filing against the new ban. Minnesota is joining Washingtons legal challenge as well, and New York and Oregon have also vowed to sign on. Ferguson said that despite the narrowing of the bans scope, the new version is still discriminatory against Muslims and will cause unnecessary harm to the states residents, universities and businesses.

The governments stance is that the president has wide authority to implement immigration policy and that the travel rules are necessary to protect national security.

Healey, the first openly gay attorney general, has seen her national star skyrocket in the early days of Trumps presidency. The day after his inauguration she vowed to be vigilant in challenging the legality of his policies. The message from the people of Massachusetts is: We'll see you in court, Healey said on January 21 on the Boston Common alongside Massachusetts senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Healey was pointed in describing how she views her job in the Trump era. "We need to stand up for the rule of the law," she said. "And if the administration attempts to carry out unconstitutional campaign promises, we need to be there to take that on."

See original article on Fortune.com

More from Fortune.com
Don't forget to move your clock forward an hour overnight Saturday (March 12), as daylight saving time begins Sunday. And yes, this is the time change that takes an hour away from your day, but spring is on its way.

Daylight saving time (not savings, as many people say) begins at 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, March 13. "Smart" devices may change time automatically, manual clocks don't, so make sure to move them an hour ahead, from 2 a.m. to 3 a.m.

Why are we "springing forward" on Sunday? Daylight saving time (DST) is designed to provide an extra hour of evening sunlight, and so the clocks will remain in DST for eight months until Nov. 6, when daylight saving time ends for the year.

The father of DST, Benjamin Franklin proposed the idea in 1784 as a way to conserve energy, said David Prerau, author of "Seize the Daylight: The Curious and Contentious Story of Daylight Saving Time" (Thunder's Mouth Press, 2005). The idea was that people would spend that extra hour of daylight outdoors, rather than sitting inside, wasting energy on lighting and energy-sucking appliances, Franklin reasoned.

However, science has not provided absolute evidence to support the idea that daylight saving translates into energy savings, according to several studies, including a 2007 Department of Energy study and a 1997 study on a residential home in Kansas, Live Science previously reported. Research published in November 2021 in the journal Energy Reports (opens in new tab) suggested the springtime clock changes did not equal energy savings; in that study, scientists examined energy consumption in Turkey before and after the country stopped following DST changes in 2016. The researchers noted the findings should also apply to the U.S. due to its location within a similar latitude range.

Even so, Franklin's idea spread in the 20th century. In 1908, a city in Ontario, Canada, became the first modern region to officially implement DST, according to timeanddate.com (opens in new tab). The Germans began following DST in May 1916, with the goal of conserving fuel during World War I. The rest of Europe followed suit soon after, and the United States officially adopted daylight saving time in 1918.

However, American farmers objected to the change, since it eliminated an hour of their morning light; in fact, it's a myth that daylight saving time helps farmers. So, the country dropped the time change until World War II, and only a select number of states chose to follow it after the war's end.

Because daylight saving time was practiced at different times in different states, it threw the country's time zones into disarray. It wasn't until the Uniform Time Act of 1966 that daylight saving time acquired a standard start and stop time  although states themselves can choose whether to participate.

But why Sunday and why at 2 a.m.? That day and time were chosen to have the least impact on individuals. Its late enough that most people will be home, and very few bars and restaurants should be impacted. In addition, when you move your clock at 2 a.m., you are not switching to another day; it would be confusing if the clock change occurred at say 11:30 p.m., because you would then be moving to the wee hours of the next day. The time switch also happens early enough that early-shift workers or churchgoers shouldnt be impacted, according to the WebExhibits (opens in new tab), an online museum.

Currently, two U.S. states  Hawaii and most of Arizona (with the exception of the Navajo Nation)  don't observe daylight saving time.

Every year, several states put forth bills or voter-led initiatives to ditch daylight saving time. However, it's anyone's guess whether these bills will become enforced law. Until then, don't forget to wake up an hour earlier on Sunday, unless you want to be late for brunch.

Editor's note: This article was first published in 2019 and updated on March 12, 2022. Originally published on Live Science.
King Kong is back, and bigger than ever, in the new movie "Kong: Skull Island" (Warner Bros. Pictures, 2017).

King Kong is back.

The famed film ape stomped back into theaters Friday (March 10) in the movie "Kong: Skull Island." The film explores the massive beast's origin story on the uncharted and mysterious island that he inhabits, along with a variety of other oversize and dangerous creatures.

The newest incarnation of the gigantic primate towers over his predecessors, director Jordan Vogt-Roberts told The Hollywood Reporter in June 2016, claiming that his Kong was "not [a] 10-foot or 30-foot, but a 100-foot ape." [Video: Giant Ape King Kong Reigns in "Kong: Skull Island"]

Some land animals were once as large as Kong, or even bigger, but they are long extinct. And many animals alive today, such as wolves, bears, big cats and even primates, are significantly smaller than their extinct relatives that lived long ago. What enables animals to reach spectacular sizes, and why can't today's creatures achieve Kong-like stature?

Blue whales are the only modern animals that come close to matching Kong's great size, with adult whales measuring up to 100 feet (31 meters) long. But millions of years ago, creatures that were even larger walked the Earth  such as the dinosaur called Argentinosaurus, which measured about 140 feet (46.7 m) from nose to tail tip. The Argentinosaurus belonged to a dinosaur group known as sauropods, long-necked plant-eaters that lived 136 million to 66 million years ago and that represent the biggest land animals that ever lived.

Though Kong appears to be the last of his kind, enormous ape-like skulls and skeletons hint that other giant primates once roamed Skull Island. (Image credit: Warner Bros. Pictures)

Land mammals, however, have never quite managed to get as big as dinosaurs did. The largest land mammal of all time  a rhino-like herbivore called Indricotherium that lived between 34 million and 23 million years ago  stood only about 16 feet (5 m) tall. The biggest known primate  the hulking Gigantopithecus, which went extinct 100,000 years ago  barely cleared 10 feet (3 m) in height.

Different metabolic strategies could explain why mammals lagged where dinosaurs enlarged, said John Flynn, Frick Curator of Fossil Mammals in the Division of Paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. [In Images: How King Kong Measures Up]

"Because they're warm-blooded, mammals have very high energetic needs," Flynn told Live Science. And the bigger the animal, the more costly it becomes to fuel that warm-blooded engine, he said.

"When you get to be [the] size of an elephant or an Indricotherium, you must find mechanisms to be incredibly efficient for extracting energy from the food that you get. Or you have to eat incredibly high-energy food, or you have to be eating all the time  or both," he said.

The island rule

The long and short of it is that a number of ecological factors help determine whether a species follows an evolutionary path to enormous size, said Mark Lomolino, a professor at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, and author of a study on the body-size evolution of island vertebrates, published in 2005 in the Journal of Biogeography.

"Body size determines how much you need to eat and how you can dominate other species in competition for resources. In mainland systems, species increase or decrease in body size to fill different niches," Lomolino told Live Science.

But on islands, the rules are different. There are usually fewer mammals than on the mainland, and that removes some of the forces that drive species to diversify, he said. However, a pattern called "the island rule" also emerges: Big animals tend to get smaller, and small animals tend to get bigger, Lomolino said. [The World's Biggest Beasts: Here and Gone (Photos)]

Animals on the fictional Skull Island, however, apparently ignored the island rule, as a primate that closely resembles a gorilla somehow evolved to be 100 feet tall.

"Kong: Skull Island" introduces unnerving reptilian creatures that share Kong's island home. (Image credit: Warner Bros. Pictures)

Farewell to the giants

Many large mammals that are alive today have extinct relatives that were supersized  though not quite Kong size.

In the Northern Hemisphere during the last ice age, large mammal species like mastodons, mammoths, dire wolves, giant bears and saber-toothed cats all grew to be larger than their modern cousins. Many of those ancient beasts disappeared during what is known as the Quaternary extinction event, which occurred about 12,000 years ago, at the end of the Pleistocene epoch.

Dramatic climate change was a factor, but the arrival of humans played an even bigger role in big mammals' decline and eventual extinction, researchers explained in a study published in 2014 in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

"They couldn't handle the new predator turning up," study lead author Chris Sandom, a lecturer in biology at the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom, told Live Science in 2014.

And in a world increasingly shaped by human activity, the biggest wild animals alive today face an uncertain future. In fact, most of Earth's largest creatures  about 59 percent of carnivores and 60 percent of herbivores  could be extinct by 2100, conservation biologists warned in a study published in July 2016 in the journal BioScience.

The researchers outlined steps that could halt or slow destructive practices threatening big animals, such as rhinos, gorillas and tigers. But unless action is taken  and quickly  the planet could face a future in which any kind of large wildlife seems as fantastic as the great beast King Kong, and can only be glimpsed in movies.

Original article on Live Science.
Six years have passed since the Fukushima nuclear disaster on March 11, 2011, but Japan is still dealing with its impacts. Decommissioning the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant poses unprecedented technical challenges. More than 100,000 people were evacuated but only about 13 percent have returned home, although the government has announced that it is safe to return to some evacuation zones.

In late 2016 the government estimated total costs from the nuclear accident at about 22 trillion yen, or about US$188 billion  approximately twice as high as its previous estimate. The government is developing a plan under which consumers and citizens will bear some of those costs through higher electric rates, taxes or both.

The Japanese public has lost faith in nuclear safety regulation, and a majority favors phasing out nuclear power. However, Japan's current energy policy assumes nuclear power will play a role. To move forward, Japan needs to find a new way of making decisions about its energy future.

Uncertainty over nuclear power

When the earthquake and tsunami struck in 2011, Japan had 54 operating nuclear reactors which produced about one-third of its electricity supply. After the meltdowns at Fukushima, Japanese utilities shut down their 50 intact reactors one by one. In 2012 then-Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's government announced that it would try to phase out all nuclear power by 2040, after existing plants reached the end of their 40-year licensed operating lives.

Now, however, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who took office at the end of 2012, says that Japan "cannot do without" nuclear power. Three reactors have started back up under new standards issued by Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority, which was created in 2012 to regulate nuclear safety. One was shut down again due to legal challenges by citizens groups. Another 21 restart applications are under review.

In April 2014 the government released its first post-Fukushima strategic energy plan, which called for keeping some nuclear plants as baseload power sources  stations that run consistently around the clock. The plan did not rule out building new nuclear plants. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), which is responsible for national energy policy, published a long-term plan in 2015 which suggested that nuclear power should produce 20 to 22 percent of Japan's electricity by 2030.

Meanwhile, thanks mainly to strong energy conservation efforts and increased energy efficiency, total electricity demand has been falling since 2011. There has been no power shortage even without nuclear power plants. The price of electricity rose by more than 20 percent in 2012 and 2013, but then stabilized and even declined slightly as consumers reduced fossil fuel use.

Japan's Basic Energy Law requires the government to release a strategic energy plan every three years, so debate over the new plan is expected to start sometime this year.

Public mistrust

The most serious challenge that policymakers and the nuclear industry face in Japan is a loss of public trust, which remains low six years after the meltdowns. In a 2015 poll by the pro-nuclear Japan Atomic Energy Relations Organization, 47.9 percent of respondents said that nuclear energy should be abolished gradually and 14.8 percent said that it should be abolished immediately. Only 10.1 percent said that the use of nuclear energy should be maintained, and a mere 1.7 percent said that it should be increased.

Another survey by the newspaper Asahi Shimbun in 2016 was even more negative. Fifty-seven percent of the public opposed restarting existing nuclear power plants even if they satisfied new regulatory standards, and 73 percent supported a phaseout of nuclear power, with 14 percent advocating an immediate shutdown of all nuclear plants.

Who should pay to clean up Fukushima?

METI's 22 trillion yen estimate for total damages from the Fukushima meltdowns is equivalent to about one-fifth of Japan's annual general accounting budget. About 40 percent of this sum will cover decommissioning the crippled nuclear reactors. Compensation expenses account for another 40 percent, and the remainder will pay for decontaminating affected areas for residents.

Under a special financing scheme enacted after the Fukushima disaster, Tepco, the utility responsible for the accident, is expected to pay cleanup costs, aided by favorable government-backed financing. However, with cost estimates rising, the government has proposed to have Tepco bear roughly 70 percent of the cost, with other electricity companies contributing about 20 percent and the government  that is, taxpayers  paying about 10 percent.

This decision has generated criticism both from experts and consumers. In a December 2016 poll by the business newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun, one-third of respondents (the largest group) said that Tepco should bear all costs and no additional charges should be added to electricity rates. Without greater transparency and accountability, the government will have trouble convincing the public to share in cleanup costs.

Other nuclear burdens: Spent fuel and separated plutonium

Japanese nuclear operators and governments also must find safe and secure ways to manage growing stockpiles of irradiated nuclear fuel and weapon-usable separated plutonium.

At the end of 2016 Japan had 14,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel stored at nuclear power plants, filling about 70 percent of its onsite storage capacity. Government policy calls for reprocessing spent fuel to recover its plutonium and uranium content. But the fuel storage pool at Rokkasho, Japan's only commercial reprocessing plant, is nearly full, and a planned interim storage facility at Mutsu has not started up yet.

The best option would be to move spent fuel to dry cask storage, which withstood the earthquake and tsunami at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Dry cask storage is widely used in many countries, but Japan currently has it at only a few nuclear sites. In my view, increasing this capacity and finding a candidate site for final disposal of spent fuel are urgent priorities.

Japan also has nearly 48 tons of separated plutonium, of which 10.8 tons are stored in Japan and 37.1 tons are in France and the United Kingdom. Just one ton of separated plutonium is enough material to make more than 120 crude nuclear weapons.

Many countries have expressed concerns about Japan's plans to store plutonium and use it in nuclear fuel. Some, such as China, worry that Japan could use the material to quickly produce nuclear weapons.

Now, when Japan has only two reactors operating and its future nuclear capacity is uncertain, there is less rationale than ever to continue separating plutonium. Maintaining this policy could increase security concerns and regional tensions, and might spur a "plutonium race" in the region.

As a close observer of Japanese nuclear policy decisions from both inside and outside of the government, I know that change in this sector does not happen quickly. But in my view, the Abe government should consider fundamental shifts in nuclear energy policy to recover public trust. Staying on the current path may undermine Japan's economic and political security. The top priority should be to initiate a national debate and a comprehensive assessment of Japan's nuclear policy.

Tatsujiro Suzuki, Professor and Director, Research Center for Nuclear Weapons Abolition, Nagasaki University.

Editor's note: This article has been corrected to reflect the fact that one ton of separated plutonium is enough to produce more than 120 crude nuclear weapons.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
College acceptance letters start hitting students inboxes this month, as teenagers around the country finally learn whether theyll be attending Dream U or Back Up State this fall.

Millions of students will be accepted at more than one school, and their decisions on where to attend will be based on a variety of factors, not least of which is cost.

Related: The 15 Most Expensive Colleges in America

Those costs can be daunting. The average published price for tuition and room and board at a four-year private school is $45,370, according to The College Board, but at the priciest schools students paying full freight will have to pony up nearly $25,000 more than that.

According to our analysis of the most recent data from the Chronicle of Higher Education and College Factual, the most expensive college in America is Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, California. A year at its sunny campus will cost an eye-popping $69,717 -- $52,666 for tuition and $17,051 for room and board. Coming in second is Columbia University at $68,405, and the University of Chicago is third on the list at $67,584.

Most students, of course, wont pay that much. Nearly nine in 10 first-time, full-time freshmen at private universities receive some sort of institutional aid, with the average award amounting to 49 percent of tuition and fees, according to the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

Colleges often use big tuition discounts in the form of financial aid packages as a means of competing for students to boost their enrollment numbers and look better on college rankings. But that may backfire if the sticker price ends up scaring away potential customers.

More than two thirds of families factored the price of a college when narrowing their list of schools, and 55 percent eliminate schools from their list before the even began the college application process, according to Sallie Mae.

Click here to see the 15 colleges and universities with the highest sticker prices in the country.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
SAN JOSE DEL CABO, Mexico (AP)  Prosecutors said six bodies had been found dumped on Thursday and Friday around the twin resorts of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula, which has been the scene of increasing violence in recent months.

The prosecutors' office said a woman's body was discovered on a road leading to the airport along with several doses of methamphetamine and marijuana. The bodies of three men were found wrapped in plastic bags and a tarp in San Jose del Cabo and the bodies showed signs of torture. A man and a woman were found shot to death in the area near the airport.
Homeowners who have experienced a water leak in the last six months will get a little more relief from the city thanks to an amendment to the city's Unavoidable Leak Adjustment Ordinance.

The council unanimously approved the amendment during its regular council meeting Thursday.

The city council approved the original ordinance in 2011 which provides customers with an adjustment to their bill based on their average consumption and lost water charged at the lowest rate charged per 1,000 gallons.

According to Assistant City Manager Steve Williams, if the homeowner could provide proof of the leak, such as a plumber's bill, the city would adjust the bill.

However, he said during the council's workshop prior to the regular meeting Thursday, the ordinance did not provide an adjustment for the Surface water Conversion/San Jacinto River Authority pass through fee. The SJRA fee is in addition to the city's fees.

"Over time, the fee has grown, as you are aware," he said. "When we adopted the ordinance, the fee was 50 cents. Now it is $2.85 per 1,000 gallons. So what we have is people incurring these enormous bills.

"We would like to be able to adjust the SJRA fee as well as our rate."

The SJRA fee is a pass-through fee to customers to pay for the SJRA's $500 million pipeline project as part of the Groundwater Reduction Plan. The pipes pump Lake Conroe water to Conroe and The Woodlands in order to absorb the 30-percent groundwater reduction for all large-volume groundwater users (based on 2009 consumption) as mandated by the Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District. The project includes a surface-water treatment plant at the Lake Conroe dam, 55 miles of treated water transmission pipelines and piping, metering and blending facilities at each of the surface-water delivery points.

Councilman Guy Martin asked about making the ordinance retro-active to help customers who have paid or are paying large bills due to an unavoidable leak.

Williams said that would be the council's decision on how far back the ordinance would cover.

"I'm all for it," he said. "But what about the people that are paying because that is as far as the city would negotiate down."

The council agreed with Martin in making the amendment retro-active.

"We appreciate y'alls' efforts here in trying to help our citizens with high water bills," said Mayor Toby Powell. "It is something we are all conscious of and we are looking for any way we can to help them."
Justin Trudeau

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau received an unusually warm reception of his keynote address at an energy industry conference in Texas on Thursday evening.

"No country would find 173 billion barrels of oil in the ground and just leave them there," Trudeau said in his address to oil and gas industry executives at Houston's CERAWeek conference, discussing Alberta's vast oil sands reserves.

Trudeau's speech was met with a standing ovation from the more than 1,200 attendees  an unordinary reaction to a keynote speaker, conference-goers told the CBC. The prime minister was also given an award for his efforts to balance environmental protection and energy production.

"The resource will be developed. Our job is to ensure that this is done responsibly, safely, and sustainably," Trudeau said. "Nothing is more essential to the US economy than access to a secure, reliable source of energy. Canada is that source."

Trudeau has been under fire from Canada's oil industry after he stumbled while discussing the topic in January. He told an audience in Ontario that the oil sands should be phased out, later telling The Globe and Mail that he "misspoke."

Trudeau's speech also touted his support for the Keystone XL pipeline, one of the few areas where he and US President Donald Trump share common ground.

He further discussed juggling the priorities of combatting climate change and bolstering Canada's oil and gas industry.

Oil Sands Mine

Under Trudeau, Canada's Liberal government has approved new pipelines while working with provinces to implement a carbon-pricing scheme.

The prime minister has long maintained that developing fossil-fuel resources can go "hand in hand" with fighting climate change.

"It's a tremendous business opportunity to lead on climate change," Trudeau told The Guardian in December. He said that one of the fundamental responsibilities of his office was to get "resources to market" in "sustainable ways" while also working to strengthen Canada's middle class.

Story continues

"You cannot make a choice anymore on what's good for the environment and what's good for the economy," Trudeau told The Guardian.

Trudeau on Thursday also took a parting shot at the Trump administration's proposed border adjustment tax, which wouldn't allow business to deduct the cost of imported goods.

"Anything that creates impediments at the border, extra tariffs, or new taxes is something we are concerned with," Trudeau said. "You can applaud against the border adjustment tax."

Watch Trudeau's full speech:

NOW WATCH: A body-language expert analyzes Trump's unique handshakes





More From Business Insider


Muslims and terrorists  in too much of the public imagination, the two are conflated. And they are apparently given equal standing in the mind of President Trump, our commander-in-chief of wild imaginings these days.

This is why his revised travel ban on Muslim-majority countries is only nominally an improvement over his previous haphazard, chaos-inducing effort that was shut down by the federal courts. The underlying problems remain. It still relies on this faulty, unproven equation of Islam and terrorism  and it doesnt keep us any safer.

In this version, Iraq is no longer among the banned countries because it is an ally in the fight against the Islamic State. And the new ban does not exempt religious minority groups, a feature of the first ban that critics said pointed to an explicit anti-Muslim bias. But the fact is that the six remaining countries: Libya, Sudan, Syria, Iran, Yemen and Somalia are overwhelmingly Muslim majority countries. This is still a Muslim ban, but one that ignores countries where terrorism also exists, such as Colombia, Venezuela, the Philippines and Pakistan.

The new ban will also cease to target U.S. legal permanent residents who travel from those countries and those who have refugee or asylum status here.

The administration says that hundreds of people from abroad have been convicted of terrorism related-crimes. And it says that more than 300 refugees are actively being investigated by counter-terrorism authorities, even if the administration wont name their countries of origin. But this is akin to blaming the vast majority of immigrants  or Americans  who commit no crimes for the misdeeds of the few who do.

These bans are temporary until new extreme vetting procedures can be crafted. But serious vetting already occurs for refugees, why it is about a two-year process.

Its still doubtful if this new ban can withstand court scrutiny. It is arbitrary and theres the matter of the presidents campaign rhetoric in which he explicitly called for a Muslim ban  and even, perhaps, closing down mosques.

This ban plays to the same fears and should not be allowed to stand.
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DailyFX.com -

S&P 500 & Nikkei 225 at Risk with FOMC, BoJ on the Docket

Whats inside:

S&P looking to hold support and turn higher; FOMC expected to raise rates on Wednesday

The Nikkei 225 is on the verge of a pattern breakout; BoJ on Thursday

The DAX is tip-toeing the December trend-line, rising wedge formation in view; ZEW Survey on Tuesday

See the Webinar Calendar for a schedule of upcoming live events with DailyFX analysts.

Global equity indices ended neutral to slightly off for the week. The ECB met on Thursday and held on their path for monetary policy as expected, with Mario Draghi saying nothing to spark any significant volatility in European markets. The U.S. jobs report on Friday showed the U.S. economy adding 227k new jobs in February, compared to market expectations of 200k. U.S. index futures initially reacted higher in pre-market trade but then weakened a bit once the cash markets opened. Looking ahead to next week, we have a few important economic events, with the FOMC rate decision front and center on Wednesday, and to a lesser degree the BoJ on Thursday.

S&P 500

In the U.S., all high impact economic events are slated for Wednesday outside of the UofM Confidence Survey on Friday. Wednesday kicks off with the February Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Advance Retail Sales figures in the earlier part of the day, but markets are unlikely to react much with the FOMC rate decision later in the day. The market is pricing in a nearly 100% chance of a 25-bps rate hike, so barring a 0 or 50-bps move, attention will be on the language of the Fed and any forward guidance.

Turning to the charts, the S&P 500 gradually declined into the Feb 16 trend-line which has passed through price action and acted as an inflection point on several occasions in recent months. The market very nearly came to the 2/24 day low, as well. The reversal on Thursday from support is somewhat encouraging for keeping the trend pointed higher. With another smallish decline or move side-ways the trend-line off the November low could come into play in conjunction with the Feb 16 t-line. We will look to this as support this coming week; and if the market should drop below both lines of support and the Thursday low of 2354, well abandon our neutral to bullish bias in favor of more weakness.

Story continues

S&P 500: Daily

S&P 500 & Nikkei 225 at Risk with FOMC, BoJ on the Docket

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Nikkei 225

The big event out of Japan will come on Thursday, with the BoJ meeting. Expectations are for a fairly benign outcome, with the central bank not expected to make any changes to current policy. However, with that said, as per usual, expect the unexpected and manage risk accordingly.

Thus far this year, the Nikkei has been a laggard among major global indices, with all its gains effectively coming on the first day of trade in January. Its been consolidating since, and while it had a false breakout from a symmetrical triangle to start the month, its poised to make a run at higher prices from a slightly different variation of the pattern  an ascending wedge. The target over the near-term is the 20k mark, which isnt just a psychological level, but an important swing-high created back in 2015 when the Japanese index traded up to 20012. The depth of the wedge points to a more sanguine outcome, as the measured move target (MMT) is about 900 points higher, or 20300 from Fridays close. Keep an eye on USDJPY, the two run together, and while not in lockstep in terms of performance the correlation is generally quite high (current 21-day correlation = 54%).

Nikkei 225: Daily

S&P 500 & Nikkei 225 at Risk with FOMC, BoJ on the Docket

Created with TradingView

DAX

There isnt a whole lot of key data this week out of Germany or the Eurozone, with the only high impact data slated for Tuesday when the German ZEW Survey will be released. The market will likely focus on how risk markets perform surrounding the FOMC and BoJ meetings.

Turning to the techs: The DAX is hanging on by a thread to key trend-line support rising up from the December swing low. The trend-line was thoroughly tested to end February and taken to task once again this past week; this makes it the line-in-the-sand for longs. The convergence of top-side and bottom-side trend-lines is creating a rising wedge scenario, which could lead to an explosive move one way or another upon triggering. Were getting close. A top-side break of overhead trend-lines originating from peaks in 2016 would likely lead to a test or better of the 12391 record highs set in 2015. Conversely, a break of the wedge to the down-side, which will also involve a break of the all-important December trend-line, could lead to a rush of selling as the market is caught leaning the wrong the way.

DAX: Daily

S&P 500 & Nikkei 225 at Risk with FOMC, BoJ on the Docket

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---Written by Paul Robinson, Market Analyst

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On February 15 the EU Parliament voted to ratify the CETA (EU-Canada Economic and Comprehensive Trade Agreement) agreement, with the four Fine Gael MEPs voting in favour of the deal, and all other Irish MEPs rejecting it. This decision cleared the way for the EU to provisionally apply the deal.



The Irish Congress of Trade Unions was represented by Frank Keoghan. Other delegates included Patrick Kent, President, Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association, Michael Ewing, Coordinator of the Irish Environmental Network, Attracta Ui Bhroin, representing the Environmental Law Implementation Group, Seamus Maye, Chairperson, International Small Business Alliance and Anna Kavanagh, Stop CETA Alliance Ireland, from Legan in Co Longford.



The delegation stressed the urgency of Fianna Fail and Labour coming out against this treaty as the Fine Gael led government Government has indicated it will ratify the agreement under Art 29.5.2 of the Irish Constitution when it comes before the Dail shortly. It will only require a simple Dail majority for Ireland to ratify this treaty. The Seanad have no vote on this despite the fact that a motion proposed by Senator Alice Mary Higgins to oppose CETA was carried by a majority in the Seanad last October.



Attracta Ui Bhroin explained how CETA, if ratified will result in a profound transfer of power to foreign multi-nationals via the Investment Court System (ICS). This will allow foreign multi-nationals to sue the Irish government if it passes laws resulting in a loss of their profits. Other countries like Argentina that are tied into similar trade deals have had to pay massive compensation to private water companies when they capped the price of drinking water.



Patrick Kent, President, Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association has campaigned against CETA since it was first mooted. CETA allows for 50,000 tonnes of extra beef from Canada to be imported into the EU. This will have an adverse effect on Irish farmers. A 2015 Teagasc report found that 67% of small farms were not economically viable and CETA will be the final nail in the coffin for these farmers.



Frank Keoghan from ICTU spoke about proposed changes to workers rights and employment The Employment Committee of the EU Parliament voted to reject the deal consequent on its concerns about the negative impacts to employment across the EU. His view was shared by Seamus Maye from the ISBA who says that the small and medium business sector which accounts for 67% of total EU employment will not be able to compete with large multinational corporations as a result of new regulations introduced by CETA.



Michael Ewing from the IEN emphasised that the regulatory chill effect of the Investor Court System will be the death knell of effective action to tackle climate change. The fear of being sued will prevent future governments from introducing legislation to curb carbon emissions.



Anna Kavanagh says that if the government ratifies CETA it will be the single biggest loss of our sovereignty since the Act of Union 1800 which brought in direct rule from London.



Deputy Penrose told the group that he is vehemently opposed to CETA and will be raising the issue with the Labour Parliamentary Party.



Deputy Troy will also be raising the issue with the Fianna Fail Parliamentary party. It was put to him that Fianna Fail has the power to block the ratification of CETA and Anna Kavanagh said that CETA will be an issue in the Longford-Westmeath constituency if elections are held prior to the Dail vote on it.

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Longford farmers warned as ICSA chief says sustainable downsizing may be needed
A charity fundraiser who is estimated to have raised over 20 million for good causes, will mark his landmark 50th birthday with a fundraising walk across Ireland, this month.

Gorta-Self Help Africas Ronan Scully is using his landmark birthday in March to do what he does best, as he aims to raise 20,000 for both his own charity and for Galway Rape Crisis Centre, with a Bay to Bay walk from Dublin city centre to his home in Galway.

The charity walk will enable him to celebrate two memorable milestones too, as Ronan is also using the occasion to mark 25 years in the world of international development and charity.

Having worked for a number of years with Mother Teresas Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, Ronan Scully then spent more than a decade in India, Nepal, Angola, Ethiopia, Kenya and Sierra Leone with Irish-based humanitarian organisation GOAL, before taking up his current role as business development coordinator in the West of Ireland with Gorta-Self Help Africa.

In the past 15 years he estimates that he has generated in excess of 20 million for these, and other worthwhile causes.

The upcoming 250 km trip will start from the Gorta-Self Help Africas Dublin headquarters on Monday, March 27 next, and will conclude with a 5k charity walk on the promenade in Salthill, Galway, on Saturday afternoon at 3pm on April 1. All are welcome to join him in Salthill for this event, and registration for the wall will take place at Claddagh Hall on that morning.

Offaly-born Ronan will be joined at different stages of the walk by family, friends and supporters, while staff from Galvins Menswear in Tullamore, are amongst those who have signed up to join him along the route.

A former RTE Operation Transformation finalist, Ronan Scully has organized races, walks, climbs, social events, charity galas, and fundraising expeditions too numerous to mention through the years, and even undertook a hike to the North Pole in aid of various charities, a number of years ago.

Ronan is also currently arranging a charity hike for Gorta-Self Help Africa along the famous Camino de Santiago de Compostela at the end of May, and will bring a party of close to 30 supporters of that charity on a trip to Ethiopia, later this year.

Paying tribute to all who have supported him in his efforts over the past 25 years, Ronan Scully said that the upcoming cross-country walk would give him a chance to say thank you to the many people who had supported him in his work with some of the poorest people on our planet.

The Irish people are amongst the most generous people in the world. I feel very blessed and humbled to be able to do what I do, and to know that so many people have been willing to give their time, their hard earned money and their efforts to support a host of good causes, he said.

Participants are welcome to join Ronan at any stage along the route, or to donate directly to his appeal by visiting www.selfhelpafrica. org or go directly to his events page by visiting https:// selfhelpafrica.org/ie/ baytobay/.
Culture / Art Republik

The 30th edition of TEFAF Maastricht opens March 10, welcoming 270 exhibitors for its annual marketplace for fine art, antiques and collectibles, two months before organizers inaugurate a new fair across the Atlantic

Mar 11, 2017 | By AFP Relaxnews

The European Fine Art Foundation (TEFAF) is known for its carefully curated selection of exhibitors and attracts major dealers from around the world who come to view works that span 7,000 years of art. Exhibitors are divided into sections covering such areas as antiques, classical antiquities, design, Haute Joaillerie, modern art, paintings and paper.

This year, a loan exhibition housed in the TEFAF Paper section will focus on significant Italian paintings and sculptures from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries from the Gallerie Borghese in Rome. Called Galleria Borghese  An Italian Legacy, the show will feature 13 pieces that offer a look into the art of collecting.

For its Curated section, TEFAF Maastricht has this year chosen the theme La Grande Horizontale, focusing on works by contemporary artists based on the reclining or recumbent figure.

At the Art Symposium, set for the fairs opening day, the TEFAF Art Market Report for 2017 will be presented. Among the findings of the report are a shift from auctions to dealer sales in 2016. While the auction market in Asia remains stable, Europe saw a drop in auction sales; the drop in the United States was especially dramatic at 41 percent. Dealer sales, meanwhile, rose 20-25 percent over 2016, such that private sales now account for about 70 percent of all sales worldwide.

While the majority of art dealers were optimistic about the potential for online platforms to help increase sales, dealers also said they still believed that fairs remain the most effective arenas for acquiring new and prospective customers, according to the report.

These findings point to the continuing importance of fairs such as TEFAF, whose appeal is evidenced by its decision to launch in New York in 2016. The fair began its fall New York edition last year; a second annual event there will hold its inaugural edition this May.

TEFAF Maastricht runs March 10-19.
By Joel Schectman and Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions abruptly asked the remaining 46 chief federal prosecutors left over from the Obama administration to resign on Friday, including Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, who had been asked to stay on in November by then President-elect Donald Trump. Although U.S. attorneys are political appointees, and the request from Trump's Justice Department is part of a routine process, the move came as a surprise. Not every new administration replaces all U.S. attorneys at once. A Justice Department spokeswoman confirmed the resignation requests included Bharara, whose office handles some of the most critical business and criminal cases passing through the federal judicial system. Bharara met with Trump in Trump Tower on Nov. 30. After, Bharara told reporters the two had a "good meeting" and he had agreed to stay on. On Friday, Bharara was unsure where he stood because he did not know if the person who contacted him about resigning was aware that Trump had asked him to remain in office, according to a source familiar with the matter. It was not immediately clear if all resignations would ultimately be accepted. A Justice Department spokesman said on Friday Trump had called Dana Boente, acting U.S. deputy attorney general, to decline his resignation. Trump also called Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein, his pick to take over as deputy attorney general, to keep him in his post, the spokesman said. CORRUPTION CRUSADER Bharara, appointed by Democratic President Barack Obama in 2009, has pursued an aggressive push against corruption in state and city politics and is known for his prosecution of white-collar criminal cases. He also has been overseeing a federal probe into New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's fundraising. In November, he announced charges against two defendants in connection with what he called a multimillion-dollar fraud and kickback scheme at Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc . He has also brought dozens of successful cases against insider traders, including a $1.8 billion settlement and plea deal in 2013 with hedge fund SAC Capital Advisors LP. His office has secured settlements with companies including General Motors Co and JPMorgan Chase & Co ; won several convictions and guilty pleas of former employees of Ponzi scheme operator Bernard Madoff; and prosecuted Suleiman Abu Ghaith, a son-in-law of the late al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Bharara's priorities have often matched those set by Obama's Justice Department, which potentially puts him at odds with the Trump administration. Amid an increase in civil rights investigations nationally, for example, Bharara's office joined a lawsuit that led to a settlement in 2015 aimed at reducing violence in New York City's Rikers Island jail complex. U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, said in a statement that he was "troubled" to learn of the requests for resignations, "particularly that of Preet Bharara." As Schumer's chief counsel, Bharara helped lead the investigation of the dismissals of U.S. attorneys in 2006 during the George W. Bush administration. Robert Capers, U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, issued a statement saying he had been asked to resign. He said Bridget Rohde, the chief assistant U.S. attorney in that office, would take over his role in an acting capacity. The Justice Department said on Friday: "Until the new U.S. attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. attorneys offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders. (Reporting by Eric Walsh, Mark Hosenball and Joel Schechtman in Washington and Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Bill Rigby)
If there is one theme dominating financial media this week, it's this: With stocks near record highs, above-average valuations and the bull turning eight, the bull market may be on borrowed time. One article in The Wall Street Journalcites above-average valuations and argues this market is only for speculators-not investors.[i] A CBS News Moneywatchpiece counsels you to repeatedly sell slices of your equity holdings (never mind the trading costs and taxes) and boost cash, trembling before record highs. A blog post in The Wall Street Journalquotes one analyst as claiming the bull market is currently a whopping 127 years old-"long in the tooth!"-because one bull market year translates into 15.875 human years, we guess.[ii] We could go on, but suffice it to say many pundits argue owning stocks now is unwise. Here is an alternate theory: That is entirely backwards.

A basic, yet often overlooked, maxim: If you need growth to reach your financial goals, whatever percentage you allocate to stocks is your default. Not cash. What does that mean? It means you don't need to find one, five or 10 solid "reasons to be bullish"[iii] to own stocks. (Though those may be nice.) What you need is the reverse: a sound, bearish reason not to own stocks. That is, a probable, negative factor carrying trillions of dollars' worth of economic impact that you see and most don't. They don't come often. Sometimes the general public is euphoric and just misses an elephant hiding in plain sight. Other times, it's out of the blue. The keys are the size and that it is probable, not possible.[iv] That the market is near a record high doesn't register. Valuations are close to the first thing you learn in security analysis and, as such, they feature nearly daily in most financial publications. Widely known. Moreover, high valuations often get higher; cheap stocks and markets frequently get cheaper. Valuations aren't predictive. Finally, however you calculate its age, this bull market has been feared "long in the tooth" for years. It's time to accept the fact bull markets don't die of old age.

It's natural to be worried about where stocks will head. This is perhaps especially true if you sat out of stocks for long stretches in this bull market. It's hard to give up on a thesis that another downdraft will give you a better entry point, or thereabouts. Heck, maybe this is wrong, but perhaps it isn't just the direction that worries folks per se. Perhaps the embarrassment of suffering a market decline freezes folks-they don't want to feel like a "sucker" who bought in last.[v]

I hope I'm wrong and that isn't your situation, but if it is, consider this your absolution: If you need growth, you need not feel like a sucker for buying or owning stocks today, no matter what follows. Wisdom is realizing cash, bonds and other low-returning securities won't give you the growth you need. Wisdom is seeing no one can be certain of where markets go from here-investing is about probabilities. Wisdom is recognizing only an extreme stroke of luck will lead anyone to pinpoint this bull's peak in real time. Wisdom is seeing if you maintain an allocation to low-returning assets, the probability you reach a growth goal is low. It's higher, even with the risk of a downturn, if you own the higher returning asset class-stocks. Wisdom is knowing whether or not owning stocks results in success in a month, two months, six months isn't the right measure of your decision making. The better question: Are you on track for your long-run goals or not?

The future has never been perfectly clear at any point in market history. There was-and always is-the chance of a downturn ahead. So focus on controlling what you can: how you invest.
Trump's First Month and Gold

Trump has been president for more than a month. What has he done so far and how will it affect the gold market? Trump's presidency has begun like no other - four weeks of conflict and chaos: travel ban, war with media and intelligence agencies, and the resignation of Flynn as a national security advisor. However, beneath the noise, Trump has been steadily fulfilling his campaign promises, or so it seems. The pace of actions has been very intense - so far, Trump has signed more than 20 executive orders or memoranda, submitted a few bills, nominated one Supreme Court justice, and talked to several foreign leaders. However, investors should be aware that there is a huge gap between what the new administration has said and what it has done in reality - most of Trump's orders have not changed the reality in any significant way (for example, take the order authorizing the construction of a border wall - without Congress' approval of funding for that purpose, the order is meaningless).

Anyway, markets keep tracking Trump's conflated words or actions with both trepidation and excitement. The point is that the new president is two-faced. Investors love his big promises about the deregulation and tax cuts, but tremble because of his foreign policy and protectionist stance. From the beginning, Trump's presidency has been rather chaotic and filled with aggressive diplomacy. Although the transition period is always a rather nervous time, the past month was unique in that matter, which sparked some safe-haven demand for gold as a hedge against the unpredictability of Trump. Indeed, his diplomacy is turning geopolitics on its head (and there was even a small diplomatic crisis with Australia - one of the strongest allies of the U.S, can you believe it?), although he may just be using chaos as a tool to run the government and to negotiate better deals with other countries. In the meantime, investors started slightly correcting their excessive expectations of Trump boosting economic growth. Then there was a pullback in the U.S. dollar, while gold rallied, as one can see in the chart below.

Chart 1: The price of gold (yellow line, left axis, London P.M. Fix) and the U.S. dollar (green line, right axis, broad Trade Weighted Index) over the last year.





However, we believe that there are more downward risks stemming from Trump for gold. Why? The reason is that the new president seems to be backing off his protectionist trade policies, which were the biggest market risk. You see, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said after a meeting with the U.S. president that Trump shared his view that Japan's monetary policy was not currency manipulation. Similarly, in a phone call with China's leader Xi Jinping, Trump agreed to honor the one China' policy. And he has not yet labeled China a currency manipulator, suggesting perhaps some willingness to pull back from some of his more extreme ideas. It goes without saying that the softening of Trump's stance toward China and Japan reduced the risk of a trade war and would be welcomed by the financial markets, but not necessarily by gold bulls.

Summing up, the first month of the Trump's presidency is behind us. The transition has been quite dysfunctional so far, although Trump seemed to be determined to fulfill his promises (or to pretend to do so at least). He undertook a lot of executive actions, but most of them were just good for showing-off. The most important development during these weeks was backing off from the most extreme ideas about trade policies (which could trigger a trade war). Trump's previous threats could have been a negotiating strategy only, his famous art of the deal. Surely, it may be too early to declare a withdrawal from protectionism, especially given the fact that Trump's economic advisors are clearly against free trade with China, and Trump's unpredictability itself. However, after Trump's latest exchanges with Japan and China, the biggest risks associated with the new administration should dissipate a bit. It could be negative for gold, which may lose some of its safe-haven demand.

Thank you.

If you enjoyed the above analysis and would you like to know more about the gold ETFs and their impact on gold price, we invite you to read the April Market Overview report. If you're interested in the detailed price analysis and price projections with targets, we invite you to sign up for our Gold & Silver Trading Alerts . If you're not ready to subscribe at this time, we invite you to sign up for our gold newsletter and stay up-to-date with our latest free articles. It's free and you can unsubscribe anytime.

Arkadiusz Sieron

Sunshine Profits Market Overview Editor

Disclaimer

All essays, research and information found above represent analyses and opinions of Przemyslaw Radomski, CFA and Sunshine Profits' associates only. As such, it may prove wrong and be a subject to change without notice. Opinions and analyses were based on data available to authors of respective essays at the time of writing. Although the information provided above is based on careful research and sources that are believed to be accurate, Przemyslaw Radomski, CFA and his associates do not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the data or information reported. The opinions published above are neither an offer nor a recommendation to purchase or sell any securities. Mr. Radomski is not a Registered Securities Advisor. By reading Przemyslaw Radomski's, CFA reports you fully agree that he will not be held responsible or liable for any decisions you make regarding any information provided in these reports. Investing, trading and speculation in any financial markets may involve high risk of loss. Przemyslaw Radomski, CFA, Sunshine Profits' employees and affiliates as well as members of their families may have a short or long position in any securities, including those mentioned in any of the reports or essays, and may make additional purchases and/or sales of those securities without notice.

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American Men Are Giving Up on Jobs

Ive written about this before, but there are 10 million American males between the age of 24 and 64 who have literally dropped out of the workforce. It means that they have given up on finding a job or are simply not looking.

But, focusing on just one subset among those who are 2464, we see that white working-class males labor force participation rate has dropped to 59%.

The Economist has created something called a Forgotten Men Index, which shows the gap between white working-class men in particular and all men in general.

I bring this data up because white working-class men have become the focus of much current political discussion. The participation numbers are similar or worse for other racial categories except for Asians.

Among the 10 million men not in the workforcemen who are not even looking for a job57% of the Caucasian population between 21 and 55 collect disability benefits, which means they can get Medicaid benefits and cheap narcotics.

Opioid addiction has become rampant in 50-something men.

This Isnt New

For the first time in the last 250 years of history, we are watching the probable longevity rates within a demographic segment of the population fall. That specific demographic is working men in their 50s, and the main causes of early death in this cohort are alcohol, drug abuse, and suicide.

Shrinking workforce participation is not a recent trend; Ive written about it plenty. It has been happening since the 60s, through every administration and every tax reform. It seems that with every major technological advance, a certain portion of the working population doesnt find a way forward to take advantage of the next set of opportunities.

Let me pull a few random quotes from Nicholas Eberstadts powerful book Men Without Work. These are just a few of the almost 40 pages that I copied and made notes on from his 200-page book. I could literally write a whole letter just focusing on what I think are important quotes.

The work rate has improved since 2014, but it would be unwise to exaggerate that turnaround. As of early 2016, our adult work rate was still at its lowest level in three decades. If our nations work rate today were back to its start-of-the-century highs, approximately 10 million more Americans would currently have paying jobs.

Here, then, is the underlying contradiction of economic life in Americas second Gilded Age: A period of what might at best be described as indifferent economic growth has somehow produced markedly more wealth for its wealth-holders and markedly less work for its workers. This paradox may help explain a number of otherwise perplexing features of our time, such as the steep drop in popular satisfaction with the direction of the country, the increasing attraction of extremist voices in electoral politics, and why overwhelming majorities continue to tell public opinion pollsters, year after year, that our ever-richer America is still stuck in a recession.

All of these assessments draw upon data on labor market dynamics: job openings, new hires, quit ratios, unemployment filings and the like. And all those data are informativeas far as they go. But they miss also something, a big something: the deterioration of work rates for American men

Between 1948 and 2015, the work rate for U.S. men twenty and older fell from 85.8 percent to 68.2 percent. Thus the proportion of American men twenty and older without paid work more than doubled, from 14 percent to almost 32 percent. Granted, the work rate for adult men in 2015 was over a percentage point higher than 2010 (its all-time low). But purportedly near full employment conditions notwithstanding, the work rate for the twenty-plus male was more than a fifth lower in 2015 than in 1948.

Its Happening All Across the Board

Recent data over the last number of years have begun to show that it is not just the American male who is struggling. The participation rate of female workers is beginning to decline as well.

The trend in the workplace has not been our friend. And any reasonable analysis suggests that in the future, the rate at which jobs are being lost to new technologies is only going to double and triple.

This is one of the central problems facing society today, not just in the US but all across the developed world.

Do you think the trends will be any different in Europe, England, Japan, or China? Those countries will all have their own ways of dealing with this problem, of course, but as Ive shared before, technology is going to put a strain on the number of jobs available to people without specific technical expertise.

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TrumpCare: Different Plan, Same Problems

With his widely followed, and positively reviewed, address to Congress last week, President Trump showed how easy it could be to unite Washington around a big-budget centrist agenda on health care, immigration, taxes, infrastructure and the military. But the continued accusations surrounding his campaigns alleged Russian connections, and the Presidents conspiratorial responses, have insured that the battle lines have only hardened. However, anyone with even a casual concern with ballooning government debt should take notice just how easily both parties in Washington would agree to vastly expand the gushing red ink if a political truce can be brokered. Those fears should galvanize around the newly-issued Republican replacement for Obamacare. If such a monstrous bill could successfully navigate Congress, we would find ourselves stuck deeper in a deficit deluge than we can possibly imagine.

Best Selling author Peter Schiff is the CEO and Chief Global Strategist of Euro Pacific Capital. His podcasts are available on The Peter Schiff Channel on Youtube

Catch Peter's latest thoughts on the U.S. and International markets in the Euro Pacific Capital Catch Peter's latest thoughts on the U.S. and International markets in the Euro Pacific Capital Summer 2015 Global Investor Newsletter!

Obamacare attempted to rewrite the laws of economics by preventing insurance companies from charging high-risk customers more than low-risk customers. But to make this work without bankrupting the companies, all agreed that the young and healthy would need to be forced to buy insurance. The flaw that doomed the law was that the penalties for not buying were too low to actually motivate healthy people to buy. Consumers were charged just a few hundred dollars per year to forego insurance that would have cost many thousands. Given that they could always decide to get insurance in the future, at no added cost, the choice was a no-brainer. Without these healthy people keeping costs down, insurance premiums have risen alarmingly.Ironically, the Supreme Court noticed this flaw as well. In sustaining the Laws constitutionality, Justice Roberts argued that the relative lightness of the penalties was insufficient to compel anyone to buy insurance and, as a result, he considered them to be a tax that could be voluntarily avoided rather than a coercive penalty to force commercial activity. (Presumably had the tax been high enough to actually work, it would have rendered Obamacare unconstitutional  see my 2012 commentary).However, the Republican replacement plan, which removes all taxes on individuals who dont buy insurance, and all penalties on employers who do not provide insurance to their employees, will actually make the problem far worse.The only reason healthy people buy health insurance is that they know that if they wait until they get really sick no insurance company will sell them a policy. The same principal holds true for all insurance products. You cant buy auto insurance after you get into an accident. You cant buy life insurance at a reasonable cost after your doctor has given you six months to live. The fact that your car is already wrecked, or your arteries already clogged, are pre-existing conditions that no insurance company would be expected to ignore.Allowing voters the low-cost option to buy health insurance after they actually need it is very popular. Its like promising motorists they can stop paying their monthly auto insurance premium and just buy a policy after they have an accident. If the government were to require this, all auto insurance companies would quickly go out of business (unless they were bailed out by the government).Obamas solution was to use the penalties to force healthy people to buy insurance before they actually needed it. As the years wore on, the relatively low cost of the subsidized exchange plans and the availability of those plans to anyone proved popular. However, the mandates and penalties, as well as skyrocketing premiums for non-subsidized policies, were clearly unpopular.The Republicans have taken the brave political approach of keeping the parts that are popular (subsidized access, pre-existing conditions waivers, expansion of childrens coverage until age 26) and jettisoning those that are not (the mandates and the penalties). The new plan pretends to offer a replacement to the Obamacare penalties by allowing insurance companies to charge a 30% increase to the premium for those who come back into the system after having previously allowed their coverage to lapse. But the problem here is that the premium increase is far too small to force anyone healthy to buy insurance. In fact, it is so low that any healthy person currently insured may decide to drop coverage.The effect of this law, were it actually enacted, would be the death of the health insurance industry. As the law removes the requirement that larger employers provide insurance, I believe that big companies would look to self-insure employees for routine care. For example, employer and employees could pay into a common risk pool that would set their own deductibles and co-pays. For employees who incur medical charges in excess of the cost of an actual policy, the pool could provide funds to pay for outside insurance at the increased 30% premium. As a result insurance costs would be encountered only if there is a need.Self-employed individuals would only buy insurance if the total cost was less than the tax credit provided by the new plan. If they cant find such coverage, they would likely buy a new form of insurance that this law may create: A policy that would pay for health insurance premiums if the user ever got sick enough to need them. Such insurance would be very cheap, as the maximum exposure to the insurance company is only 130% of the premium for a standard health insurance policy.In the end, the only people buying health insurance would be those who can buy it for free using their tax credits and really sick people for whom insurance premiums are cheaper than their medical bills. But as insurance companies lose money on the latter group, they will be forced to raise their premiums on the former. This puts us right back in the box we are stuck in with Obamacare.As premiums soar well above the amount of the tax credits, more people will drop out. Unless the amount of the tax credits rises substantially, which will cost a fortune, all health insurance companies will eventually go out of business. The end result will be socialized medicine, only it will be Trump not Obama that gets the blame. It seems to me that this would be a political loser for the conservative cause. I would rather we go down in flames with Obamacare as then, at least, we will have a chance at a free market solution that could actually work.The government has a very poor track record with containing the cost of a service when it gives consumers money to buy it. Think student aid and college tuition. Plus the plan is constructed in a way that makes it ripe for potential abuse. Whenever the government is giving away money, people always game the system to get it. Think about the wide-spread fraud in welfare, food stamps, disability, and even cell phone credits. Trumpcare will be no different. Many people will buy catastrophic plans with extremely high deductibles just so they can pocket the difference between the tax credits and the costs of the plans. If they actually incur a medical condition that results in a high out-of-pocket expense, they can just switch their coverage to one with a much lower deductible. Such a switch may even be possible without the 30% premium for lapsed coverage.If Trump and the Republican leadership can push this monstrosity through, despite the obvious mathematical shortcomings, look for them to make similar efforts on infrastructure and defense spending. All this adds up to uncounted trillions in new debt, and a giant step closer to the utter bankruptcy of the nation. But the real danger lies in the possibility that the law is voted down by conservative Republicans and Trump turns instead to Democrats.In contrast to the former mission statement of the Republican Party, Trump believes that government solutions can work as long as they are smart. The opening weeks of the Trump presidency were dominated by combative rhetoric, conservative and pro-business appointments, and nationalistic executive orders. And while this approach sent Democrats and the media into convulsions, it solidified the loyalty of Trumps political base, and allows him to pivot toward the center if he wants. If he could peel off some Red State Democrats, he would be in a position to enact some of the biggest spending increases that the country has ever seen, even if fiscally conservative Republicans bolt.If those conservatives defeat the new health care bill, Trump could look to partner with Democrats in a heartbeat. Of course, to get that support, he would have to make the current bill even more generous. Lets hope that his self-inflicted wounds continue to prevent such an unholy alliance.

Read the original article at Euro Pacific Capital

Regards,

Peter Schiff

Euro Pacific Capital

http://www.europac.net/

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Gold Mining Stocks Q4 2016 Fundamentals

The gold miners stocks have corrected hard in recent weeks, hammered by a gold pullback driven by soaring Fed-rate-hike odds. Like any considerable selloff, this has spawned serious bearish sentiment. But the gold miners underlying operating fundamentals remain quite strong, proving the recent selling was purely psychological. This sectors just-reported fourth-quarter results are impressive, very bullish.

Four times a year publicly-traded companies release treasure troves of valuable information in the form of quarterly reports. Required by securities regulators, these quarterly results are exceedingly important for investors and speculators. They dispel all the sentimental distortions surrounding prevailing stock-price levels, revealing the underlying hard fundamental realities. They serve to re-anchor perceptions.

After spending decades intensely studying and actively trading this contrarian sector, there is no gold-stock data I look forward to more than their quarterly reports. They offer a true and clear snapshot of whats really going on, shattering all the misconceptions bred by the ever-shifting winds of sentiment. If you have capital deployed in this sector but dont watch the quarterlies, youre shooting yourself in the foot.

Normally quarterlies are due 45 calendar days after quarter-ends, in the form of 10-Qs required by the SEC for American companies. But after the final quarter of fiscal years, which are calendar years for most gold miners, that deadline extends out up to 90 days depending on company size. The 10-K annual reports required once a year are bigger, more complex, and require fully-audited numbers unlike 10-Qs.

So it takes companies more time to prepare full-year financials and then get them audited by CPAs right in the heart of their busy season. As a gold-stock trader this additional Q4 delay is irritating, since the data is getting stale by Q1s end. But as a CPA and former Big Six auditor of mining companies, I have some understanding of just how much work goes into an SEC-mandated 10-K annual report. It is enormous!

This extended Q4-reporting window naturally delays the analysis of Q4 results. While I can start digging into the first three quarters results 5 or 6 weeks after those interim quarter-ends, I have to wait longer for the fiscal-year quarter-ends. Thankfully the great majority of gold miners have reported by 8 or 9 weeks, so we dont have to wait until early Q2 to analyze Q4 results. The elite gold miners Q416 was very interesting.

The definitive list of major gold-mining stocks to analyze comes from the worlds most-popular gold-stock investment vehicle, the GDX VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF. Its composition and performance are similar to the benchmark HUI gold-stock index. GDX utterly dominates this sector, with no meaningful competition. This week GDXs net assets are 53.6x larger than the next-biggest 1x-long major-gold-miners ETF!

Being included in GDX is the gold standard for gold miners, as it requires deep analysis and vetting by elite analysts. And due to ETF investing eclipsing individual-stock investing, major-ETF inclusion is one of the most-important considerations for picking great gold stocks. As the vast pools of fund capital flow into leading ETFs, these ETFs in turn buy shares in their underlying companies bidding their prices higher.

This week GDX included a whopping 51 component gold miners! That term is used somewhat loosely, as this ETF also includes major silver miners, silver streamers, and gold royalty companies. Still, all the worlds great gold miners are GDX components. For weeks Ive been digging into the 10-Ks of the top 34 GDX component companies, an arbitrary number chosen because it fits neatly into the tables below.

Collectively these top 34 stocks account for 90.8% of GDXs total weighting, a commanding sample by any standard. While the large majority of these Q416 results have been released, a few are still coming later in March. I didnt want to delay this important analysis for them alone. GDX also contains foreign miners from Australia, South Africa, and the UK, which report in half-year increments instead of quarterly.

I waded through all available Q416 results released as of this Wednesday and fed a bunch of data into a spreadsheet, some of which made it into these tables. If a field is blank, that means a company didnt report that data for Q4. If a companys entire line is blank, that gold miner hasnt released Q4 results yet. But with 31 of these top 34 GDX components already releasing at least some Q4 data, theres plenty to analyze.

The gold miners Q416 results collectively offer an amazing fundamental snapshot of this now-battered contrarian sector. They clearly reveal whether there is any fundamental justification at all for the recent sharp selloff. In less than 3 weeks since mid-February, that HUI gold-stock index has plunged 16.6% on a mere 2.5% gold drop! Thats wildly excessive and purely sentimental, as the hard fundamental data proves.

In these tables the first couple columns show each GDX components symbol and weighting within this ETF as of this Wednesday. While most of these gold stocks trade in the States, not all of them do. So if you cant find a symbol here, its a listing from a companys primary foreign stock exchange. Next comes each companys Q416 gold production in ounces, which is mostly reported by them in pure-gold terms.

Most gold miners also produce byproduct metals like silver and copper. These are valuable, as they are sold to offset some of the considerable costs of gold mining. Some companies report their quarterly gold production including silver, a construct called gold-equivalent ounces. I included that instead if no pure-gold numbers were reported. Financial and operational reporting varies widely from company to company.

Thats followed by the quarter-on-quarter change, the absolute percentage difference between Q316 and Q416. This offers a more-granular read on companies performance trends than year-over-year comparisons. QoQ changes are also listed for the rest of the data, which includes cash costs per ounce of gold mined, all-in sustaining costs per ounce, operating cash flows generated, and actual accounting profits.

After spending lots of time digesting these elite gold miners latest quarterly reports, it is fully apparent that gold stocks recent sharp selloff wasnt fundamentally righteous at all. Gold-stock traders got scared because gold was sliding on an extraordinary surge in futures-implied Fed-rate-hike odds, not because of bad data from these miners. That means this anomalous recent selloff will soon reverse with sentiment.

In most businesses, the hardest thing is actually selling the products produced. But gold miners dont share that problem, as they can easily sell every single ounce theyre able to wrest from the bowels of the Earth. Despite the stragglers that havent reported Q416 results yet, the elite gold miners of GDX had an amazing quarter production-wise. Their collective gold mined totaled a massive 10,317k ounces.

That equals 320.9 metric tons of gold. To put this into perspective, the World Gold Council which is the definitive arbiter of global gold supply-and-demand data reported total Q416 mine supply of 810.9t. Thus this handful of top GDX companies is responsible for almost 40% of worldwide gold production! Much gold is produced as a byproduct at companies not specializing in this metal, making primary miners valuable.

Incredibly these top GDX components gold production skyrocketed 4.2% quarter-on-quarter compared to Q316! And thats not including the miners that havent released Q4 results yet. So despite all the extreme gold carnage last quarter, these elite gold miners still had the capital to really boost production. 23 of these top 34 GDX companies had an average QoQ production jump of 14.9%, which is immensely strong.

Remember gold suffered one of its worst quarters ever in Q416, plunging 12.7% on extreme GLD gold-ETF-share selling by stock investors thanks to that post-election Trumphoria stock-market surge. The gold miners didnt produce more because of golds fall, those mine expansions were long-planned. It takes many years and big capital investments to grow production, gold supply cant be turned on like a spigot.

This coincidental much-higher quarterly gold production helped offset a considerable fraction of the operating impact from much-lower gold prices. After a strong Q316 where gold averaged $1334, it fell 8.8% to average $1218 in Q4. Incidentally so far in Q117, gold is averaging a nearly-identical $1215 as of the middle of this week. So last quarters strong gold-mining economics should apply equally well to this quarter!

Gold deposits certainly arent homogenous, with different areas in the same ore bodies having major variations in gold mineralization. The rates at which mines can process ore are fixed, so lower-grade or higher-grade ore directly affects quarterly production. With new mines ramping up to speed at some of these major GDX companies, odds are their increased gold production will mostly prove durable going forward.

The main reason why gold-mining profits are so highly leveraged to gold prices is mining costs are essentially fixed during mine-planning stages. No matter where prevailing gold prices are, running the actual mining operations requires largely-constant costs. Miners generally employ the same number of people, operate the same number of haul trucks and excavators, and run the same mills quarter after quarter.

So gold-mining profits, and thus potential stock prices, are determined almost solely by the difference between mining costs and current gold levels. Whenever gold stocks see a sharp selloff like in recent weeks, the resulting bearish sentiment implies this sector suffered a big fundamental impairment. But the excellent collective Q416 cost data of these elite GDX gold miners decisively proves this isnt the case.

There are two major ways to measure gold-mining costs, classic cash costs per ounce and the superior all-in sustaining costs per ounce. Both are useful measures. Cash costs are the acid test of gold-miner survivability in lower-gold-price environments, showing the worst-case gold levels necessary to keep the mines running. All-in sustaining costs reveal where gold needs to trade to maintain current operations indefinitely.

Cash costs naturally encompass all cash expenses necessary to produce each ounce of gold, including all direct production costs, mine-level administration, smelting, refining, transport, regulatory, royalty, and tax expenses. In Q416, these top GDX-component gold miners that reported cash costs averaged just $628 per ounce. Thats a substantial 3.1% improvement from Q3, and just around half current gold levels.

15 of the 24 top GDX components reporting cash costs last quarter saw big average declines of 10.5%. That makes sense given their collective sharply-higher gold production. The more gold ounces to spread the largely-fixed mining costs across, the lower the final per-ounce number. The gold miners are in no real fundamental peril as long as gold prices remain above cash costs. And $628 gold isnt in the cards!

Way more important than cash costs are the far-superior all-in sustaining costs. They were introduced by the World Gold Council in June 2013 to give investors a much-better understanding of what it really costs to maintain a gold mine as an ongoing concern. AISC include all direct cash costs, but then add on everything else that is necessary to maintain and replenish operations at current gold-production levels.

These additional expenses include exploration for new gold to mine to replace depleting deposits, mine-development and construction expenses, remediation, and mine reclamation. They also include the corporate-level administration expenses necessary to oversee gold mines. All-in sustaining costs are the most-important gold-mining cost metric by far for investors, revealing miners true operating profitability.

In Q416, these top 34 GDX components reporting AISC averaged a level of just $875 per ounce! So as long as gold stays above that price, these gold miners can keep operating at current production levels indefinitely. While this was up 2.4% from Q3s $855, that quarterly increase was largely due to a single outlier. Hecla Mining finally started reporting gold AISC last quarter after bucking that trend for years.

Heclas $1247 AISC was the highest by far among these top-GDX-component gold miners. Without this one smaller gold miners maiden AISC report, the average retreats to $860 which is largely unchanged from Q3s levels. I was kind of surprised to see AISC not fall given the higher production to spread these costs across. But that was offset by higher costs for new mine and expansion builds at some of these companies.

Given the GDX major gold miners $875 average all-in sustaining costs and Q4s $1218 average gold price, gold mining was very profitable. Despite golds sharp plunge, that still yielded excellent average operating profits of $342 per ounce. That equates to a 28% profit margin, fat levels that most industries would kill for. Yet the flighty gold-stock traders often convince themselves gold miners are in mortal peril.

While they never are, the gold miners profits do suffer serious downside leverage to falling gold prices. This is the mirror image of their huge upside leverage to rising gold prices, illustrating the double-edged-sword nature of this core fundamental relationship. In Q316 gold averaged $1334 while GDX miners AISC averaged $855. That made for hefty gold-mining profits of $479 per ounce among these elite companies!

While the average gold price only fell 8.8% in Q4, the major gold miners per-ounce earnings plunged by 28.6%. So there was fundamental justification for the HUIs steep 21.1% Q4 slide, given gold suffering one of its worst quarters ever. But sentiment in late Q4, like now, was far too bearish given the still-good operating profits from gold mining. Traders often wrongly extrapolate gold falling indefinitely, which cant happen.

Assuming Q416s gold-mining costs carry into Q117, the gold-mining industry is still thriving right now despite these sentiment-depressed gold-stock levels! Q1s average quarter-to-date gold price of $1215 is nearly identical to Q4s, naturally yielding nearly-identical mining profits of $340 per ounce. So the gold-stock traders should be salivating at the great buying opportunity just presented by a psychology-fueled anomaly.

And after suffering miserably in golds dark bear years of 2013 to 2015, these elite GDX gold miners are hellbent on keeping costs in check. 22 of these top 34 GDX gold miners have given all-in-sustaining-cost guidance for full-year 2017. And that averaged $927 per ounce, which is only about 5.9% higher than Q4s levels. As long as gold rallies more than that this year, gold-mining profitability will improve.

After studying gold miners quarterly results and press releases for many years, Ive found they tend to intentionally lowball their outlooks. They conservatively forecast lower annual gold production along with higher annual costs than they actually achieve. That is prudent expectation management, setting them up to exceed expectations later in years which drives their stock prices higher. That makes everyone happy.

So Id be really surprised if AISC in 2017 rise materially from last years levels between $850 and $875. And as gold inevitably recovers majorly on the big mean-reversion buying coming from stock investors and futures speculators, gold-mining profits will explode higher. That will entice capital back into these beaten-down gold stocks, catapulting them sharply higher from here. Were on the verge of a major new upleg.

Q4s lower gold prices naturally hit operating cash flows, which totaled just $3199m across the 22 top GDX companies reporting them so far. Thats down 35.6% from Q3s levels. But this decline is overstated due to the year-end financial reporting. In my Q316 analysis of the major gold miners operating results, fully 30 of these 34 companies reported cash flows generated from operations. So the Q4 sample size is too small.

That gap will close by the end of March when the stragglers report, but one way to compare things now is with reporting companies average OCF. That ran $145m in Q4, down just 12.1% from Q3s $165m. That makes more sense given the increased production among these elite GDX gold miners last quarter, which helped to offset some of golds weakness. The gold miners OCF generation in Q416 was still quite strong.

But largely because of non-cash writedowns due to lower gold prices, the gold miners accounting profits didnt fare well in Q4. Among the 20 top GDX components reporting so far, they actually totaled a loss of $592m! That compares to Q316s radically-larger $707m in profits. But again those came from 27 GDX components that quarter, as the quarterly reports come out much sooner than year-ending annual reports.

Gold mining has always been highly profitable in quarters with higher prevailing gold prices, and far less profitable in other quarters where gold is lower. Given their highly-leveraged relationship with gold, this sectors earnings can be very volatile quarter-to-quarter. But smoothed over the past year, the gold miners profitability rocketed higher in 2016. Thats why the HUI soared 64.0% higher last year despite Q4s plunge!

And theres no reason the gold miners arent going to enjoy another big up year in 2017. Their latest operating results proved quite strong considering the extreme gold selling in the wake of that election surprise. Gold itself still needs to mean revert dramatically higher as investors and speculators alike start to migrate back in to re-establish prudent portfolio-diversifying positions. That will lead to soaring gold-mining profits.

While investors and speculators alike can certainly play gold stocks coming rebound rally with the major ETFs like GDX, the best gains by far will be won in individual gold stocks with superior fundamentals. Their upside will trounce the ETFs, which are burdened by over-diversification and underperforming gold stocks. A carefully-handpicked portfolio of elite gold and silver miners will generate much-greater wealth creation.

At Zeal weve literally spent tens of thousands of hours researching individual gold stocks and markets, so we can better decide what to trade and when. As of the end of Q4, this has resulted in 906 stock trades recommended in real-time to our newsletter subscribers since 2001. Fighting the crowd to buy low and sell high is very profitable, as all these trades averaged stellar annualized realized gains of +22.0%!

The key to this success is staying informed and being contrarian. That means buying low when others are scared. So weve been aggressively adding new trades in recent weeks selloff. An easy way to keep abreast is through our acclaimed weekly and monthly newsletters. They draw on our vast experience, knowledge, wisdom, and ongoing research to explain whats going on in the markets, why, and how to trade them with specific stocks. For only $10 per issue, you can learn to think, trade, and thrive like a contrarian. Subscribe today, and get deployed in great gold stocks before they surge again!

The bottom line is the major gold miners fundamentals in just-reported Q416 remained quite strong and bullish despite golds sharp post-election plunge. While operating cash flows and profits suffered as expected, this industrys critical all-in sustaining costs remained far below prevailing gold prices. That means the gold miners continue to generate big operating cash flows to expand operations and pay down debt.

And once gold itself inevitably mean reverts higher, gold-mining profits are going to soar again like they did last year. Investors and speculators alike are radically underdeployed in gold thanks to their huge Q4 selling. So gold investment demand will surge as these extreme Trumphoria-distorted stock markets roll over. That will fuel big fundamentally-justified gold-stock buying, catapulting this sector far higher.

Adam Hamilton, CPA

So how can you profit from this information? We publish an acclaimed monthly newsletter, Zeal Intelligence , that details exactly what we are doing in terms of actual stock and options trading based on all the lessons we have learned in our market research. Please consider joining us each month for tactical trading details and more in our premium Zeal Intelligence service at  www.zealllc.com/subscribe.htm

Questions for Adam? I would be more than happy to address them through my private consulting business. Please visit www.zealllc.com/adam.htm for more information.

Thoughts, comments, or flames? Fire away at zelotes@zealllc.com . Due to my staggering and perpetually increasing e-mail load, I regret that I am not able to respond to comments personally. I will read all messages though and really appreciate your feedback!

Copyright 2000 - 2017 Zeal Research ( www.ZealLLC.com )

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




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Philadelphia's Aqua String Band (Mummers) performs at the Student Prince as part of their Aqua Tour in Springfield in March 2016.

(Frederick J. Gore photo)

Open since mid-February, the Iron Kettle has brought a new dining experience to Southampton.

Located in the Red Rock Plaza on Route 10, the Iron Kettle shares space with Johnny Diamonds Bar; the new operation offers a series of menus that describe the restaurant's breakfast, lunch, and dinner agenda.

The day-starter selection includes the likes of "Benes" (eggs Benedict-style variations), extra-thick French toast, omelets, and breakfast sandwiches.

There's an extensive array of sandwiches at lunch, from a Cuban and "Greek Chicken" to club sandwiches, wraps, burgers, and "dogs."

At dinner the kitchen at the Iron Kettle turns out the likes of seafood diavlo, chicken Marsala, steak tips, and fried whole belly clams.

Open daily from 6 a.m.; the Iron Kettle also serves Sunday brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

* * *

Though it's Springfield's best-known German restaurant, the Student Prince Cafe and Fort Restaurant will be going green.

From Tuesday, March 14 through Sunday, March 19 the eatery will be featuring a St. Patrick's Day menu that will incorporate a number of Irish favorites.

The highlight of the week is an appearance by Philadelphia's renowned Aqua String Band on Thursday, March 16 from 5 p.m. until 6 p.m.

The next evening, on St. Patrick's Day itself, the Aqua String Band will be joined by Holyoke's Caledonian Pipe Band for a 6 p.m. session.

An encore by both groups will be presented in the International Biergraten later that night from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.

For dinner reservations either night (which are strongly encouraged), contact the Student Prince at (413) 734-7475.

* * *

On Friday, the Farm Table in Bernardston will be celebrating St. Patrick's Day with a three course prix-fixe menu of Irish cuisine.

First course choices will include cabbage salad, Irish soda bread, or bangers & oats; the trio of available entre selections is to be corned beef & cabbage, shepard's pie, and pan-roasted Faroe Island salmon.

Two sweet finales will be on offer - bread pudding with a Jameson custard sauce or Guinness chocolate cake with a Bailey's Irish Cream frosting.

Served from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., the special menu is $45; the Farm Table's regular menu will also be available.

Celtic harpist Jaimee Lee Joroff will be providing background music for the evening.

Contact the Farm Table at (413) 648-5200 for more details or to make reservations.

* * *

The Munich Haus in Chicopee will be hosting another in its series of Game Feasts 2017 on Saturday, March 25 starting at 6 p.m.

Focal point of the event will be a Hunter's Harvest buffet; a carving station will feature a selection of roasted game meats like bison, venison, and elk.

Other buffet offerings are to include wild turkey schnitzel, game stew, and fried alligator. A selection of side dishes will also be part of the menu choices.

Tickets are $55 and must be purchased in advance. Contact the Munich Haus at (413) 594-8788 or go on line to munichhaus.com

* * *

Longhorn SteakHouse, with locations in West Springfield and Enfield, Conn. is debuting all-new menu items as part of a limited duration promotion.

Headlining this new cluster of offerings is a 14-ounce Delmonico steak. Other choices include grilled lamb chops, seasoned steakhouse wings, and a strawberries & cream shortcake dessert. Whole roasted carrots with whiskey caramel butter are a side dish option.

More information on the LongHorn Steakhouse menu and locations can be found at their website, LongHornSteakhouse.com

* * *

The Dairy Queen system will be celebrating the start of the spring season with a "Free Cone Day."

Planned for Monday, March 20 at all of the chain's participating "non-mall" locations, DQ "fans" can enjoy a free small vanilla soft-serve, one per customer while supplies last.

This third annual Free Cone Day will also benefit the Children's Miracle Hospital Network, with DQ locations accepting donations as part of the day's promotions. In 2016 the Dairy Queen system's Free Cone Day raised more than $200,000 for the network's hospitals.

For information on participation in Free Cone Day, contact individual Dairy Queen locations in Chicopee and Enfield, Conn.

* * *

McDonald's Corp., the world's largest restaurant brand, is betting big on technology to revive its sagging fortunes.

Beset by stagnant sales and soft customer counts, the burger giant has committed itself to offering curbside service, mobile ordering, and payment from mobile devices at all its domestic locations by the end of 2017.

In addition, McDonald's plans to step up its roll out of automated ordering kiosks inside its restaurants, with a target of having them chain wide by 2020.

Based on an updated McDonald's smartphone app, the curbside service is a particularly interesting effort. Customers can place an order on the app, which has the ability, using geo-fencing technology, to alert a particular restaurant when that customer arrives on site to pick up his or her order. McDonald's runners will then deliver that curbside orders directly to the appropriate customer's car.

The updated McDonald's app will additionally incorporate "order ahead" capabilities for those who prefer to use existing McDonald's drive-thru facilities.The chain is also aggressively testing delivery in several Florida markets.



Hugh Robert is a faculty member in Holyoke Community College's hospitality and culinary arts program and has over 40 years of restaurant and educational experience. Please send items of interest to Off the Menu at the Republican, P.O. Box 1329, Springfield, MA 01101; Robert can also be reached at OffTheMenuGuy@aol.com






GREENFIELD - Two Athol men pleaded guilty in Franklin Superior Court on Friday to involuntary manslaughter, as well as a number of other charges relating to the 2015 overdose death of 21-year-old Jordan Tarbell.

31-year-old Eric Legare and 34-year-old Brian Welvaert, both of Athol, pleaded guilty to the charges against them during separate hearings on Thursday, according to a statement by Mary Carey, Communications Director for the Northwestern DA's office.

On May 5, 2015, Jordan Tarbell died after consuming a fatal dose of heroin sold to him by Legare. Welvaert was the driver of the car in which Legare purchased heroin in Holyoke to sell in the Athol area.

At the time of his overdose, Tarbell had just recently been released from an addiction treatment center.

Legare, charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter, three counts of heroin distribution, a count of possession with intent to distribute heroin, and a charge of conspiracy to violate drug laws, was sentenced to five years in jail. Carey said Legare will be given credit for 451 days served in jail but will not be eligible for parole.

Welvaert, who pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, heroin distribution, misleading police, and conspiracy to violate drug laws, was sentenced to 6 months in jail with two years probation.
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3/7/17 - HOLYOKE - A public hearing was filled with folks eager to speak on Tuesday, March 7, 2017 at the Holyoke Senior Center at 291 Pine St. on a proposal to demolish the closed Mater Dolorosa Church at Maple and Lyman streets.

(MIKE PLAISANCE / THE REPUBLICAN)

HOLYOKE -- A public hearing won't continue on Monday as scheduled because notice of the meeting in which the hearing was to be held on a proposal to demolish the closed Mater Dolorosa Church was improperly posted under state law.

The Historical Commission will convene the meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday in the City Hall auditorium but immediately move to continue the public hearing to another date. That's according to Debbie U. Oppermann, senior project manager with the Holyoke Department of Planning and Economic Development, in an email to the city clerk's office on Friday.

The public hearing on the church demolition proposal began Tuesday and lasted four hours.

Under the Massachusetts Open Meeting Law, meetings and hearings must be posted in a public place and online at least 48 hours in business days in advance of the meeting. While notice of the Historical Commission meeting that was scheduled for Monday was posted on the bulletin board outside the city clerk's office at City Hall, the notice failed to mention the public hearing, officials said.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield, which owns Mater Dolorosa Church at Maple and Lyman streets, has requested a permit for emergency demolition of the 116-year-old church.

Diocese consultants said that deterioration makes demolition of church necessary because the steeple could collapse and pieces from it have broken off and fallen to the ground. The Diocese requested a permit to begin emergency demolition on Jan. 27.

But Building Commissioner Damian J. Cote on Feb. 1 declined the emergency demolition order and referred the proposal to the Historical Commission.

The commission is holding the public hearing to take testimony as it determines whether the historical significance of the church property outweighs the Diocese assertions that demolition is necessary.

In June 2011, the Diocese cited declining parishioner numbers and concerns about the steeple's stability in shutting down Mater Dolorosa Church. The Diocese combined Mater Dolorosa with the former Holy Cross Church to form Our Lady of the Cross Parish at 23 Sycamore St.

The Historical Commission began the public hearing on the church demolition proposal by taking four hours of testimony on Tuesday at the Senior Center but that still wasn't enough time to accommodate all those who want to address the matter. The commission halted the hearing at 10:30 p.m.

Remarks during the hearing focused on parishioners' devotion to the closed church, distrust of the Diocese, disputes about the extent of the structure's deterioration, safety concerns and repair costs, and the practical need to accept that parish populations change and buildings age.

Options for the commission include approving demolition of the church, and of a separate building, the Immaculate Conception Social Hall at 94 Ely St., or imposing a delay in demolition of up to six months.
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This fake ID is one of many that Luis Lebron-Rivera was allegedly found with after U.S. Marshals led a multi-agency raid on a School Street apartment early Thursday morning. (Photo courtesy of U.S. Marshals)

(u.s. marshals service)

SPRINGFIELD -- A man arrested here Thursday in connection with a triple murder in Puerto Rico is an alleged gang member and cocaine dealer who is awaiting trial in drug conspiracy case.

The suspect, Luis Lebron-Rivera, 27, is affiliated with the Los Solidos street gang and was arrested in January following a raid on a gang-controlled building at 90 High St. in Springfield, according to the arrest report.

When police entered the building, Lebron-Rivera allegedly ran into a vacant apartment and threw a plastic bag with 8.4 grams of crack cocaine out a window, the arrest report said.

The building is "under direct control of the Los Solidos street gang" and the site of increased drug sales and gang activity in recent months, the report said.

The High Street neighborhood has long been a stronghold for Los Solidos, with rival gangs fighting for a larger share of their lucrative drug market, the report added.

Lebron-Rivera and three others -- Carlos Suarez, 21, Robert Soto, 34, and Eddie Jenkins, 36, all of Springfield -- were arrested on Jan. 6 and charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, conspiracy to violate drug laws and trespassing.

He was out on $500 bail in that case when federal marshals, teaming up with city and state police, arrested him Thursday in connection with a triple murder in San Juan, Puerto Rico in 2011. He was carrying several fake IDs and refused to identify himself when taken into custody, investigators said.

A judge ordered him held without right to bail during a hearing in Springfield District Court. No decision on extraditing him to Puerto Rico was made during the session.

It is unclear how long Lebron-Rivera has been living in Springfield, but no other arrests, convictions or restraining orders are noted in paperwork from his January arrest. Investigators suspect he fled the island after the 2011 killings, which were believed to be gang-related.

The events leading to Lebron-Rivera's capture began a week after his drug arrest in Springfield. On Jan. 13, Puerto Rican authorities named him in three murder warrants in the 2011 case, and requested his extradition; in a related move, his name was entered into the National Crime Information Center's database three days later.

Within weeks, the U.S. marshals office in Connecticut developed information that Lebron-Rivera had been living in the Springfield area; by then, his name, date of birth, mugshot, tattoos and other information were recorded in Springfield District Court files, which listed his address as 90 High St., 2rd floor, right.

On Thursday, when a team of federal, state and city agents assembled to take him into custody, Lebron-Rivera was found nearby at 47 School St. The School Street apartment, like the one at 90 High St., turned out to be abandoned, police said.

The neighborhood has drawn increased scrutiny since the body of Judith Kimball, 25, of Greenfield, was discovered in a dumpster behind 30 High St. in early December. The cause of death has yet to be determined, but the case has led to stepped up enforcement in the area, including the January raid at 90 High St., according to court records.

Lebron-Rivera's next scheduled court date is April 4 in Springfield. Unless he fights extradition, however, he could be back in Puerto Rico by then.
howard schultz starbucks

Starbucks stores are being inundated with mobile orders, and that's drastically slowing down service and alienating customers.

At a UBS conference this week, company executives revealed how they plan to fix the problem.

In the near-term, their solutions include adding more employees to stores to handle the influx of orders, UBS restaurant analyst Dennis Geiger said on a call with reporters following the conference.

Starbucks also plans to make some small tweaks to the store layout to free up more space around the pickup counter.

In the longer term, Starbucks is considering more drastic measures, including a complete reconfiguration of the store that would make room for two separate lines: one for in-store orders, and another for mobile orders, Geiger said.

To free up space, the company is considering removing most of the merchandise like mugs from the stores, and instead selling those products online.

Starbucks

Starbucks executives also discussed the possibility of adding cubbies to stores where customers would pick up their orders.

The longer-term fixes would likely be implemented within one to two years, Geiger said.

Starbucks revealed its issues with slowing service in January, after reporting that quarterly same-store transactions, a measure of customer traffic, dropped 2%.

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz blamed the drop in transactions on congestion from the popularity of mobile orders.

"We are facing this congestion problem and the anxiety of the customer," he said on CNBC in January. "It is a problem that we will solve. It won't take us that long. We have been on it now for 30 days, and in the quarters that follow we will get back to the experience that you have come to expect."

NOW WATCH: Customers are developing new habits and it's killing Applebee's and Buffalo Wild Wings





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It should come as no surprise that each year, higher education graduates millions of students into career paths that leave them unhappy and unfulfilled. They suffer from a crisis of meaning.

During a recent lecture in my Trinity College course on American higher education, I asked my students, "Why do you go to college?" Most of them answered, in various forms, "To get a job."

Not one mentioned going to college to explore their purpose or to embark on a meaningful life.

By Angel B. Perez

Full Story: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2017/03/10/its-not-just-about-jobs-colleges-must-help-students-find-their-passions/?utm_term=.7ad1e40df3d8
Today, the economic incentives that have helped electric vehicles gain a toehold in America are under attack, state by state.

When Georgia repealed its generous $5,000 tax credit on electric vehicles in July 2015, and instead slapped a $200 registration fee on electric cars, sales quickly tumbled.

In the month before the repeal, nearly 1,300 electric vehicles were sold in the state. By August, those sales had all but evaporated  to just 97 cars.

It was a hint of what would come.

By HIROKO TABUCHI

Full Story: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/11/business/energy-environment/electric-cars-hybrid-tax-credits.html?hpw&rref=business&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-regionion=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well

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Bipartisan support emerges for electric car fee that would affect thousands in Montana http://www.matr.net/article-75525.html

Electric car charge stations come to Missoula Through Northwestern Energy Partnership http://www.matr.net/article-75914.html
For many, if not most businesses, getting found online is critical for drawing in new customers. Todays customer is searching for services, products, advice and entertainment on Google. The higher were listed, the better chance we have of getting new business.

Which is why many companies employ people who specialize in "search engine optimization" (SEO) services. These experts are tasked with helping their clients get the highest ranking possible on a Google search so that they can generate more website traffic, attract leads, increase brand awareness and ultimately grow revenues. When Google makes even the slightest change to its website ranking algorithms, the effects can be monumentally good, or bad, to many companies around the world.

By Gene Marks

Full Story: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-small-business/wp/2017/03/10/an-unconfirmed-change-in-how-google-ranks-web-pages-is-freaking-some-people-out/?utm_term=.1f002c988c4b
Bison Engineering, Inc., is a Montana-based, employee-owned environmental engineering firm with 36 years of experience in helping our clients comply with air quality regulations. We specialize in air quality permitting, emissions testing and ambient air monitoring. We are looking for a data analyst to produce and audit environmental testing reports and documents in our Billings, Montana branch location.

Interested applicants must have experience in data analysis, data entry in Excel and report creation in Word. The candidates primary responsibilities will include organization and reduction of raw environmental test data, auditing, report preparation and quality assurance and control. The successful candidate will need to travel and participate in limited field testing activities including equipment and laboratory preparation. Applicants should possess strong communication skills, attention to detail and the ability to work independently and in teams. A two or four year technical/science degree is required. Additional requirements for the position include advanced knowledge and proficiency in algebra, Microsoft Word and Excel.

A commitment to workplace safety is essential and employees will be subject to drug and alcohol testing.

Bison offers a competitive salary and a full benefits package including a 401k retirement plan and bonuses based on performance. Please send resume to:

Bison Engineering, Inc.

Attention: Erik Anspach

1400 11th Avenue

Helena, MT 59601

Or via email to [email protected]

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

***

Wed appreciate it if youd mention that you found this opportunity on MATR.net Thank you
Le leader du MSM etait en compagnie des candidats du No 4, Port Louis/Montagne Longue pour le lancement de la campagne pour les legislatives 2019 a Sainte Croix.

Pravind Jugnauth a pendant un peu plus de 50 minutes fais le bilan de son action qui est bien mieux que SAJ a soulignee Joe Lesjongard lors de son introduction.

Le leader de lAlliance MSM/ML a promis la creation de 10,000 emplois pour les jeunes et les diplomes, la promotion pour les Sergents de police apres 20 ans de carriere, des assurances pour les membres de la Mauritius Police Force, la pension a Rs 13,500.00 a a fin de son mandat sil est reconduit comme chef de gouvernement.

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In a historic and united show of solidarity for a continent that contributes only 5% to global emissions, more than 30 heads of state and global leaders committed to prioritize actions that help African countries adapt to the impacts of climate change and build forward better.

Africa now faces the dual onslaught of climate change  currently estimated at between $7 billion and $15 billion each year  and Covid-19, which has claimed 114,000 lives. The African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) expects that the impact of climate change on the continent could rise to $50 billion each year by 2040, with a further 3% decline each year in GDP by 2050.

Speaking Tuesday, during a virtual Leaders Dialogue convened by the African Development Bank (www.AFD.org), the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA.org) and the Africa Adaptation Initiative, more than 30 heads of state and global leaders rallied behind the bold new Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (https://bit.ly/3cYoMgw). The programs objective is to mobilize $25 billion to accelerate climate change adaptation actions across Africa.

President Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and African Union Chairperson, invited his fellow leaders to: revisit our climate ambitions and accelerate the implementation of our actions planned under our national priorities. To do this we will need to focus on actions to adapt to the impacts of climate change, these include nature-based solutions, energy transition, enhanced transparency framework, technology transfer and climate finance.

The Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program is built to address the impacts of Covid-19, climate change, and the continents worst recession in 25 years. This is why todays unprecedented show of support for the financing of African adaptation is so significant.

According to Ban Ki-moon, the 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation, The Covid-19 pandemic is eroding recent progress in building climate resilience and leaving countries and communities more vulnerable to future shocks. Africa must make up for lost ground and lost time. Climate change did not stop because of Covid-19, and neither should the urgent task of preparing humanity to live with the multiple effects of a warming planet.

President Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon, and Chair of the African Union-led Africa Adaptation Initiative, spoke of Gabons record in emission reductions. He said that Gabon is one of the few countries in the world that is carbon positive. We have to insist that equal attention be paid to climate adaptation and mitigation in climate finance. Africa calls on the developed nations to shoulder the historic responsibility and to join the program to accelerate the adaptation in Africa, President Bongo said.

African Development Bank President Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina said: With our partners, we intend to mobilize $25 billion in financing for the success of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program. It is time for developed countries to meet their promise of providing $100 billion annually for climate finance. And a greater share of this should go to climate adaptation. So far, more than 20 trillion dollars have gone into Covid-19 stimulus packages in developed countries. The International Monetary Funds plan to issue $650 billion of new Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to boost global reserves and liquidity will be enormously helpful to support green growth and climate financing for economic recovery. I applaud the leadership of the US government and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, especially, on this big push.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said: African nations are showing leadershipThe Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, and many other ambitious African initiatives, must be empowered to fully deliver on their goals. 

Guterres added: Universal access to energy in Africa, a priority in the coming years, could be provided primarily through renewable energy. I call for a comprehensive package of support to meet these dual objectives by COP 26. It is achievable, it is necessary, it is overdue, and it is smart.

Speaking on behalf of US President Joseph R. Biden, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said: The United States remains a committed development partner for Africa and a huge supporter of the African Development Bank. Africa contributed the least to climate change but is suffering the worst of its effects. I congratulate the African Development Bank and the Global Center for Adaptation for developing the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program. We support the program to help ensure that together, we can avoid the worst effects of climate change.

The Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, as launched by the African Development Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation, revolves around several transformative initiatives:

Climate Smart Digital Technologies for Agriculture and Food Security aims to scale up access to climate-smart digital technologies for at least 30 million farmers in Africa. The African Infrastructure Resilience Accelerator will scale up investment for climate-resilient urban and rural infrastructure in key sectors. These include water, transport, energy, and waste management for a circular economy. Empowering Youth for Entrepreneurship and Job Creation in Climate Resilience will provide one million youths with skills for climate adaptation and support 10,000 small and medium size youth-led businesses to create green jobs. Innovative Financial Initiatives for Africa will help close adaptation finance gaps, enhance access to existing finance and mobilize new public and private sector investment.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said: As well as facing the health and economic crisis caused by the pandemic, countries in Africa are among the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Tackling this dual challenge requires putting adaptation at the heart of Africas recovery  so countries build resilience to climate change and spur economic activity. This pandemic has shown us the importance of investing in people. And that is so, so very valuable for Africa, which has a fast-growing young population. This begins by improving education, healthcare, and food security, and in that context, I warmly welcome the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program.

Speaking on behalf of French President Emmanuel Macron, the Chief Executive of the French Development Agency, Remy Rioux said: Africa is providing solutions to climate change, including the Great Green Wall and the Desert to Power initiative of the African Development Bank to build the worlds largest solar zone in the Sahel of Africa. France fully supports the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program.

Moderating the Leaders Dialogue, Dr. Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation, said: Africa has a unique opportunity to advance its development exponentially if it invests now in a climate-smart adapted future based on a deep understanding of climate risks and solutions that put nature and people at the center.

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Canon , a global provider of imaging technologies and services, is partnering with the United Nations to take part in the Global Week to #Act4SDGs from the 17th  28th September.

Canon will showcase its commitments to the UNs Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as featuring in the UNs Turning Point Dialogue interview series to discuss the importance of storytelling to educate and inspire action.

The Global Week to #Act4SDGs, which launched in 2017, is designed to flip the script on prevailing global narratives of apathy and fatalism to instead focus on positive messages that can drive actionable change. The week aims to drive inspiration in others through a series of activities including workshops and panel discussions, raising awareness of the work being done to create sustainable change and encouraging others to take action.

Canon will be encouraging its community of partners and regional HQs around the world to get involved by sharing the activity on social media and encouraging partners in local regions to share any local initiatives that are driving forward positive change. #Act4SDGs ambition for 2021 is to inspire at least 100 million people to take individual and collective SDG action, up from 56 million in 2020, with its overall target being to mobilise 1 billion actions by 2030.

Global Good Awards shortlisters Mr & Mishal Faraz

Throughout the week, Canon will be sharing content on how young people are already working towards the SDGs through its Young People Programme (YPP). Canons YPP aims to educate young people across EMEA on the power of visual storytelling, in turn enabling them to create sustainable change by driving projects covering a range of topics including gender equality, wildlife conservation and climate change.

The Global Week will shine a light of hope across borders, to show that our actions as individuals matter. It is a global mobilization of collective action, bringing about transformative change and turn it around for people and the planet. The Young People Program from Canon not only trains youth to visually express themselves in a creative, it allows us to listen, see, and understand their point of view. With Canons support these voices can be heard far and wide, and I am proud of our ongoing partnership as it continues to grow each year. Marina Ponti, Director UN SDG Action Campaign.

The Global Week will also feature the UNs Turning Point Dialogue series, consisting of short interviews in which established and emerging changemakers will voice their thoughts on the important issues that affect our world. As part of this, the Canon Engagement Lead for Developing Nations, Jeanine El Moughrabi, and Lens on Live Project co-founder, Sam Powers will be taking part in a panel to discuss turning it around for youth empowerment through visual storytelling, and their work on a recent Canon YPP in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The Congo Young People Programme, named Operation Goma, works with students aged 16-24 comprising of Internally Displaced Persons, orphans and those living in extreme poverty. Over six months, instructors from the local community will run six courses including photography, computer literacy and entrepreneurship. By empowering young people with these skills and the tools for communication, the programme aims to equip them to become agents of change and inspire movement within their communities.

Ahead of the talk, Jeanine El Moughrabi says, Its so important that we work to provide opportunities such as the YPP to developing regions and empower the participants to tell their stories in their own voice. By doing so, we can not only help young people from disadvantaged communities to develop their skills and create change for themselves and their communities, but we can also spread the message of the importance of education in inspiring long-term, sustainable action.

The UN and Canon collaborative dialogue Turning it around for youth empowerment through visual storytelling will be live at the following link https://act4sdgs.org from 16th September at 18:30 CET.

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Shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank (Toronto Stock Exchange: TD-CA) dropped Friday after Canadian news outlet CBC News reported that employees of the bank were being pressured to meet high sales revenue goals.

The Canada-traded stock closed the day down more than 5 percent, tracking for its biggest one-day decline since April 2009.

"We don't believe [the CBC report] is an accurate portrayal of who we are, or that it reflects the experience of most of our employees," TD Bank said in a statement, adding that they are taking the concerns seriously.

Attention on TD Bank's sales practices had already surfaced Monday, when CBC reported that employees of TD Bank claimed they were under "incredible pressure" to profit off of customers. The employees tried to meet "unrealistic" quarterly goals and sales targets by signing customers up for unneeded products and services, the report said.

Then on Friday, CBC published a report describing the high-pressure corporate environment leading to the scandal. Many employees told CBC they were on medical leave due to the pressure to meet high sales targets.

TD Bank Group last reported first quarter profits of $2.5 billion, becoming the largest bank in Canada based on assets, CBC said.

TD Bank shares 3-month performance
SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  A day after a court removed her from power over a corruption scandal, ousted South Korean President Park Geun-hye maintained her silence on Saturday as her opponents and supporters divided the capital's streets with massive rallies that showed a nation deeply split over its future.

Park has been unseen and unheard from since the Constitutional Court's ruling on Friday, which ended a power struggle that had consumed the nation for months. Park, whose fate was left in the court's hands after her parliamentary impeachment in December, has yet to vacate the presidential Blue House, with her aides saying they need more time to prepare for her return to her private home in Seoul.

Carrying flags and candles and cheering jubilantly, tens of thousands of people occupied a boulevard in downtown Seoul to celebrate Park's ouster. Meanwhile, in a nearby grass square, a large crowd of Park's supporters glumly waved national flags near a stage where organizers, wearing red caps and military uniforms, vowed to resist what they called a "political assassination."

Police had braced for violence between the two crowds after three people died and dozens were injured in clashes between police and Park's supporters after the ruling on Friday. Nearly 20,000 police officers were deployed on Saturday to monitor the protesters, who were also separated by tight perimeters created by hundreds of police buses.

The anti-Park protesters shouted "The candles have won!" and "Arrest Park Geun-hye!" as they began marching toward the Blue House. The protesters, who held candles during their massive evening demonstrations in recent months, loosely call themselves the Candle Force.

The court's decision capped a stunning fall for the country's first female leader. Park rode a wave of lingering conservative nostalgia for her late dictator father to victory in 2012, only to see her presidency crumble as millions of furious protesters filled the nation's streets.

Story continues

While the ruling might have irrevocably derailed Park's political career, analysts saw defiance in her silence, saying that Park was perhaps hoping to use the growing anger of her followers to rebuild support.

"By being quiet, she's making it loud and clear that she won't accept the court's ruling," said Yul Shin, a professor at Seoul's Myongji University. "Nobody knows when she will leave the Blue House, but maybe she wanted to see how large the crowd was tonight at the pro-Park rally."

The ruling allows possible criminal proceedings against the 65-year-old Park  prosecutors have already named her a criminal suspect  and makes her South Korea's first democratically elected leader to be removed from office since democracy replaced dictatorship in the late 1980s.

It also deepens South Korea's political and security uncertainty as it faces existential threats from North Korea, reported economic retaliation from a China furious about Seoul's cooperation with the U.S. on an anti-missile system, and questions in Seoul about the Trump administration's commitment to the U.S.-South Korea security alliance.

South Korea must hold an election within two months to choose Park's successor. Liberal Moon Jae-in, who lost to Park in the 2012 election, currently enjoys a comfortable lead in opinion polls.

Kim Yong-deok, the chief of the National Election Commission, said Saturday that the election would be managed "accurately and perfectly" and urged the public to participate in a vote that would "determine the fate of the Republic of Korea," referring to South Korea's formal name.

The Constitutional Court accused Park of colluding with longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil to extort tens of millions of dollars from businesses and letting Choi, a private citizen, meddle in state affairs and receive and look at documents with state secrets. Those allegations were previously made by prosecutors, but Park has refused to undergo any questioning, citing a law that gives a sitting leader immunity from prosecution.

It is not clear when prosecutors will try to interview her.

Prosecutors have arrested and indicted a slew of high-profile figures over the scandal, including Choi and Samsung's de facto chief, Lee Jae-yong.

Park's lawyer, Seo Seok-gu, who had previously compared her impeachment to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, called the verdict a "tragic decision" made under popular pressure and questioned the fairness of what he called a "kangaroo court."

Some of Park's supporters reacted with anger after the ruling, shouting and hitting police officers and reporters with plastic flag poles and steel ladders and climbing on police buses. Police and hospital officials said three people died while protesting Park's removal, including a man in his 70s who died early Saturday after collapsing near the court.

___

Associated Press writers Hyung-jin Kim and Foster Klug contributed to this report.
The audience of this years high school talent show will experience a show that represents the artistic energies of MHS students.

Karah Wilson, drama teacher and head of the Titan Theatre program at the high school, said the show will include, a lot of vocalists, some piano players, some dancers, and lyrical dancers. Its going to be a really neat show.

The show will be Tuesday at 7 p.m. The doors of the high school auditorium will open at 6:30 p.m.

I am both excited and nervous about performing, said 10 th grader Lyric Fletcher, I always have been. I love to do what I do, but I get really bad stage fright when I get in front of people.

She overcomes the stress by focusing on what her performances mean to the audience.  Every year I perform at school, but also at the YMCA, and I always have people walking by that stop to watch, and I love to see it put a smile on their faces. Also, when young children walk by and they seem so amazed, I feel like I have some impact on them, especially a few years ago when I was even asked to teach a group of eager students how to hula hoop and make routines of their own, said Fletcher.

She also strives to send a message through her performance this year; she hopes her song choice touches the audience, My routine is to a very upbeat Christian song that I hope could impact someone in the audience. I hope that I can inspire others to try something new, even if it seems impossible.

Most of the performers wish to send this type of message through their performances as well.

Sophomore Channing Wellman said she also wants people to know that you can accomplish anything if you try hard enough.

Senior Naly Yang, who will be performing a lyrical dance similar to those she performs for the MHS Color Guard team, wants the audience, to feel the music and see the passion I have for the art. I want them to be as mesmerized as I am by color guard. I want them to see a quality performance and let them develop their own story behind the choreography.

These students are excited to show off their skills, and their intentions for the show are completely pure. Their main goal is to impact the audience, instead of focusing on winning.

The participants are full of excitement and nerves regarding their performances in the show. Show your Titan Pride by coming out to support an amazing display of talent from McDowell High School.

There will be three winners who will be ranked as first, second or third place. No participants will be sent to a county talent show; only middle school and elementary school winners will be sent to the county show, which has been taken over by McDowell Early College.

Tickets for the show are $5 for adults and $2 for any student between kindergarten through college. Students can reserve their tickets this year through a link sent to their school email. Seats are limited, so reserving them is a great option.
By Harry Pearl SYDNEY (Reuters) - Tesla Inc boss Elon Musk spoke with the premier of South Australia on Saturday after the tech entrepreneur offered to install $25 million of battery storage within 100 days to prevent recurring blackouts that have disrupted the state. The proposal follows a string of power outages, including a blackout that left industry crippled for up to two weeks and stoked fears of more outages across the national electricity market due to tight supplies. "Just spoke with Premier of South Australia (Jay Weatherill). Very impressed. Govt is clearly committed to a smart, quick solution," Musk wrote on Twitter on Saturday. Weatherill said in a statement on Saturday the conversation about the battery proposal was "positive". Musk made the offer on Twitter on Friday, saying if the work was not completed in 100 days it would be free. His proposal made headlines in Australia, which is in the midst of a heated debate about the national electricity market and energy security. Musk proposed the battery storage fix in response to a comment on social media by Mike Cannon-Brookes, the co-founder of Australian software maker Atlassian Corp. Cannon-Brookes said he would be willing to line up funding and political support if Tesla could supply batteries that would solve South Australia's problems. Musk responded by tweeting: "Tesla will get the system installed and working 100 days from contract signature or it is free. That serious enough for you?" He quoted a price of $250 per kilowatt hour for 100 megawatt hour systems, which would imply a price of $25 million for the battery packs. (Reporting by Harry Pearl; Editing by Sam Holmes)
Trump Nieto Mexico

Debate over the effects and future of the NAFTA trade deal have been but one point of contention between Mexico and the US since President Donald Trump took office.

There are number of potential sticking points and murky details about any NAFTA renegotiation, but it's becoming more clear when it could actually go down.

"We're now in the early stages of the TPA process, the Trade Promotion Authority, the so-called fast track," US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told Bloomberg on March 8.

"And that process, by its own nature, has a couple of months starting point before anything very serious happens, so youre talking the latter part of this year before real negotiations get underway," he said.

"I think the negotiations, hopefully, wont take more than a year," Ross added. "How long it will take to implement them and to get the reductions  thats a different question."

Ross appeared to accelerate the timeline on Friday. "We are now in the very early stages" of having talks to change NAFTA, he said during a joint press conference with Mexican Economy Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo.

US law requires the government to tell Congress 90 days prior to signing a new trade agreement. Ross said he wanted to notify Congress "sometime in the next couple weeks."

Wilbur Ross Ildefonso Guajardo Commerce Secretary Economy Minister

Guajardo, who appeared set on the talks being a three-way affair involving Canada, said Mexico would be ready to start talks by the end of May.

For Mexico, the timing and duration of any talks over NAFTA  which could take years  is more than just a logistical matter.

"There is a particularly concerning scenario for Mexico, which is very protracted and long negotiations that would subject Mexico to an extended period of uncertainty, leading to very uncertain outcomes at the end of the tunnel," Roberto Simon, the lead political analyst for Latin America at FTI Consulting, told Business Insider in February.

Story continues

"This extended period of uncertainty could even get closer to the 2018 election, and then NAFTA would definitely become a hot topic for the campaign," Simon said, "and it would certainly shape the negotiations in very detrimental ways, I think, to both countries."

Mexico protest government Donald Trump Pena Nieto pinata effigy

Trump's rise to power in the US, with his saber-rattling against Mexico, has roiled the political scene in the US's southern neighbor.

Enrique Pena Nieto, Mexico's current president, has seen his popularity fall to historic lows in recent months, as a combination of deep-seated corruption, poor economic performance, and rising violence weigh on the public's perception of him and his party.

While Mexico's political classes have responded to Trump's attacks with some solidarity with their president, Mexican displeasure with Trump and with their government's responses to him have buoyed the candidacy of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a two-time leftist presidential candidate seen as the most willing to rebuke Trump and defend the interests of Mexicans who haven't benefited from the leadership of Pena Nieto and his predecessors.

In an early December poll, Lopez Obrador had the highest favorability rating, at 31%, well more than the 19% of Margarita Zavala, PAN candidate and wife of former President Felipe Calderon. Lopez Obrador's unfavorability was also the highest, at 37%.

Lopez Obrador's advantage over other possible candidates  including Interior Minister Miguel Osorio Chong and Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray, both of the PRI  has continued in polls conducted this year.

"We'll have elections in 2018," Simon told Business Insider. "Lopez Obrador is the front runner, and already polls are showing that Mexicans see him as the best person to confront Donald Trump, but even if he's not elected what you'll see is that confrontation with the United States will push even the center parties  center-right or center-left parties, like PRI or PAN  to more extreme positions, because you'll have to respond to demands from the electorate."

Mexico Donald Trump protest Ciudad Juarez

The possibility of a protracted negotiation presents another challenge for the current Mexican government.

Lopez Obrador's continuing popularity coupled with the Trump administration's hardline ("Ive told the president repeatedly, hes made my job much easier by softening up the adverse parties," Ross said) may box Pena Nieto in, leading him to make a bad decision on an imperfect deal.

"There is another risk, which is, let's say, that Trump gets really tough, and then, in the end, Pena Nieto decides to say, 'You know what, we're going to sign a deal with you even though the deal is blatantly detrimental to Mexico's interests in some points,'" Simon said. "Then the perception inside Mexico that the deal is illegitimate and was signed by a very unpopular president, accused of corruption."

"So in this sense what could happen is Pena Nieto signs a deal now, and the next president says, 'Look ... this is like a trap for Mexico, and I'm getting out of it,'" he added. "So in a way you don't end the uncertainty now, and again it fuels antiestablishment feeling inside Mexico, and the uncertainty stays very high."

US Mexico remittances exchange rate dollar peso migrants immigrants

Mexican and US negotiators may see eye to eye on some issues whenever those talks get started.

"The Mexicans have indicated that they are open to renegotiating a few things," said Simon, who noted that there were some in Mexico urging the government not to negotiate rather than risk an "ambush."

Guajardo, in his interview with Bloomberg, cited the age of the NAFTA deal, saying that the evolution of the energy sector  closed when the deal was first signed but opened to foreign investment in 2013  and the growth of ecommerce and telecom industries warranted reconsideration.

US Mexico border crossing Nogales Arizona migrant

Ross echoed that sentiment: "Our economy is very different from what it was when that treaty was entered into."

But, given the uncertainty hanging over the renegotiations, the possibility of recriminations also exists.

Ross, who said the US had "been in a trade war for decades" that led to its deficit with Mexico, said all sides knew they would have to make concessions in the renegotiation but didn't address retaliatory measures.

Some  including the Mexican foreign minister  have suggested that Mexico could retaliate against US policies like a border-adjusted tax by levying its own tariffs, targeting products from states that supported Trump.

Mexico has also started moving to shore up trade deals with the EU, China, and other countries in Latin America. Though, Simon said, given the immense scale of Mexico's trade relationship with the US, new trade agreements would do little offset even a small change to NAFTA.

When asked about retaliatory measures, Guajardo demurred, saying, "Lets wait and hope that this dialogue will be highly constructive for the three countries."

NOW WATCH: These are the foods that would be affected by a 20% tax on Mexican goods





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WASHINGTON

March 10, 2017

Pennsylvania

Philadelphia

Jane L. Delgado

Pennsylvania

1.5 cents

January 1, 2017

City of Philadelphia

Lora Jean Williams

Su Familia Helpline

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "The beverage industry has pursued a strategy of legal obstruction and put profits over the health of people. I am confident that the Commonwealth Court ofwill rule instead in favor of the health and well-being of the residents of," said Dr., President and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, the nation's leading Hispanic health advocacy group.Today, the Alliance and a diverse group of partners filed an amicus brief with the Commonwealth Court ofin support of aper ounce sugary beverages tax (levied on distributors of sweetened beverages) that went into effect on. The brief cited scientific literature on the contribution of sugary drinks to obesity and chronic disease such as diabetes, targeted marketing to youth and racial and ethnic groups, and reduction of sugary drink consumption as part of a strategy for improved community health. The brief also argues forcefully for the right of the elected members of the Philadelphia City Council to govern for the public's health and welfare."We are proud to be on the right side of this issue for the health of all communities and families. Thesugary beverages tax is a common-sense approach to promote healthier environments for all and will serve as a model for the nation," concluded Dr. Delgado.Docket Nos. 2077, 2078 CD 2016)is the nation's foremost science-based source of information and trusted non-partisan advocate for the best health outcomes for all. The Alliance represents thousands of Hispanic health providers across the nation providing services to more than 15 million each year. For more information, visit www.healthyamericas.org or call the Alliance'sat 1-866-783-2645, or find us on Facebook at healthyamericas or on Twitter at health4americas.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-alliance-for-hispanic-health-joins-friends-of-the-court-brief-in-support-of-city-of-philadelphia-sugary-drink-tax-and-healthy-communities-300422184.html



SOURCE National Alliance for Hispanic Health




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The researchers found that the majority of skin cancers in black transplant patients occurred in sun-protected areas, like the groin-genital area, and most of those lesions tested positive for high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV). Further, nonwhite organ transplant recipients were less likely than their white counterparts to have regular skin evaluations by a dermatologist and to know the signs of skin cancer. The results were published this week in JAMA Dermatology.These findings suggest that dermatologists need to evaluate, counsel and treat organ transplant recipients differently based on their race, according to principal investigator Christina Lee Chung, associate professor of dermatology in the College of Medicine."Practitioners need to know there is not a one-size-fits-all model for their patients," said Chung, who is the director of the Drexel Dermatology Center for Transplant Patients.The study builds on a previous report from Drexel Dermatology, which identified 19 skin cancer lesions in 6% of 259 nonwhite patients. The authors concluded that all organ transplant recipients, regardless of race, should receive routine, total-body screenings for skin cancer.In their most recent study, the researchers compared medical records of 412 organ transplant recipients - including 154 white patients and 258 nonwhite (black, Asian or Hispanic) - who were referred to the Drexel Dermatology Center for Transplant Patients between 2011 and 2016. As one of the only models of its kind in the country, the center provides post-transplant dermatological care to every patient who is transplanted by and/or followed by the Drexel University and Hahnemann University Hospital Transplant Programs. That means that every patient, regardless of race is screened annually for skin cancer. This provided a rich dataset for the research team to analyze.Two hundred eighty-nine transplant recipients exhibited malignant, infectious or inflammatory conditions during their evaluation. However, their primary acute diagnoses differed greatly by race. In 82 white patients, skin cancer was the most common acute problem requiring attention at first visit. Black and Hispanic patients, by contrast, were most often diagnosed with inflammatory or infectious processes, such as fungal infections, warts, eczema, psoriasis and rashes.Overall, squamous cell carcinoma in situ was the most common type of skin cancer diagnosed in each racial or ethnic group. But the location of the cancerous lesions again depended on the race of the patient. Most lesions in white and Asian patients occurred in sun-exposed areas of the body, like the scalp, neck, chest and back. For black patients, the lesions were primarily found in the groin.Moreover, six of the nine lesions found on black patients tested positive for high-risk HPV strains, suggesting a strong association between the virus and skin cancer for African-Americans. Chung says it is still unclear why African-American transplant patients would have higher rates of HPV-related skin cancer. But the findings from this study show that dermatologists need to closely examine the groin, genital and perianal areas in this population.Additionally, although early detection of cancer is vital, nonwhite transplant recipients would also benefit from addressing fungal and HPV infections, which can be persistent and magnify over time, she said."A lot of times doctors are so worried about preventing skin cancer, that they are not thinking about other problems that can greatly affect a person's quality of life," Chung said. "But if patients of color who are at risk for these conditions are evaluated early, then they can get a jumpstart on treatment before the issues become chronic and frustrating."The researchers also provided questionnaires to 66 organ transplant recipients to find out more about the patients' awareness of skin cancer prevention. 77% of white patients were aware their skin cancer risk was increased, compared to 68% of nonwhites. Only 11% of nonwhite patients reported having regular dermatologic examinations, compared to 36% of whites. Finally, 45% of white patients, but only 25% of nonwhite, reported knowing the signs of skin cancer.The study authors note that the high rates of nonwhite individuals knowing their risk of skin cancer is likely thanks to the strong emphasis that the Drexel University and Hahnemann Hospital Transplant Programs place on the importance of dermatology as part of comprehensive post-transplant care.The researchers' total findings underscore the importance of skin cancer screening guidelines for organ transplant recipients, with counseling and treatment contingent on skin type and race."Right now, we don't have any consensus screening guidelines pertaining to post-transplant skin cancer development," Chung said. "For the future, screening protocols, patient educational materials, and risk assessment tools must be developed that specifically address the non-white population."Source: Eurekalert
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Miller was lead author of a new study measuring attitudes on transgender rights issues that found significant support for protection of general civil rights for transgender people - like equal access to military service, employment and housing non-discrimination laws. However, public opinion is more divided on policies that relate to the body and gender roles, such as people being able to choose which public restroom to use based on one's gender identity or the ability to change one's sex on a state-issued driver's license."On traditional civil rights debates, people are more liberal on those issues when it comes to transgender people," Miller said. "On policies that are more body-related, such as physical changes and physical presentation of gender, all of which are more specific to the transgender community, more Americans seem to differentiate those and can be more conservative on those questions. People don't see all transgender rights questions equally."The journal Politics, Groups, and Identities recently published the study online. The article, "Transgender politics as body politics: effects of disgust sensitivity and authoritarianism on transgender rights attitudes," includes Don Haider-Markel, chair and professor of the KU Department of Political Science, as a co-author, and the research team has completed a series of studies on transgender politics that will appear in a variety of journals this year.Miller said regarding body-centric policy questions - such as questions about public restroom choice, or whether Medicare or health insurance companies should be required to pay for gender reassignment surgery or hormone therapy - those most opposed are people who report having a higher tendency to feel disgusted in general, though not specifically about transgender people. Also, more opposed are those who score higher on a psychological trait called "authoritarianism," which represents a higher need for order or to see the world in black-and-white terms. These individuals may place greater value on conforming to traditional social norms.The researchers found those traits outweighed factors such as partisanship, ideology, and demographics in shaping attitudes about transgender rights, he said.The findings would make sense given that much of the controversy surrounding debates at the federal level and in state legislatures have centered around transgender rights policies such as public restrooms, identity on driver's licenses, and coverage for medical procedures."For many Americans, when they think about transgender people, their mind is on the body and how that defines transgender people in some ways, and maybe how that makes them different in some ways," Miller said.The study could provide insight for transgender rights advocates. Oftentimes it is communicated that it is taboo or offensive to discuss issues surrounding the body and transgender people, such as how someone dresses or how someone is undergoing medical transformations to their body."Certainly, I understand people have the attitude that it is 'none of your business' or 'why would you ask that?'" Miller said. "But I think the implication of our research is that the evidence points toward the body being a major consideration that people have. So, if you want to lead society in a more accepting direction on things like the bathroom debate, you might be doing yourself more harm than good to not engage with questions about the body and to shut down those questions and discussions."It is likely most people won't have direct contact with a transgender person, he said. However, as mass media news coverage and depictions of characters in popular culture becomes more common, that could influence how people think about the minority group. That also could spur more people to become curious and ask more questions about the transgender community, spurring some of those conversations that might be seen as taboo, he said."That's an area where engagement may be uncomfortable for some people," Miller said, "but it could be beneficial if you want people to be more sympathetic and understanding of the experiences that transgender people have."Source: Eurekalert
Foal Eagle 2015

China's foreign minister said on Wednesday that North Korea could curb its nuclear weapons program if the US agreed to stop conducting military drills with South Korea  something the US rejected.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi rehashed the offer, one that the US has heard from North Korea before, on Wednesday, saying that the US, South Korea, and North Korea were like two trains on a collision course.

"The question is: Are the two sides really ready for a head-on collision?" Wang told reporters, according to the Military Times. "Our priority now is to flash the red light and apply the brakes on both trains."

But Mark Toner, the acting spokesman for the State Department, stressed that "the onus is on North Korea to take meaningful actions toward denuclearization and refrain from provocations," saying at a press briefing that comparing the US's transparent, planned, defensive, and 40-year-old military drills with North Korea's 24 ballistic missile launches in 2016 was a case of "apples to oranges."

However, Toner admitted that "all of the efforts that we have taken thus far to attempt to persuade North Korea to, again, engage in meaningful negotiations, have fallen short," and that the US needs to consider new ways to engage the rogue regime.

The suggestion from Wang comes at a time when China appears increasingly worried about the situation between North and South Korea. China has heavily protested the deployment of a purely defensive missile system to South Korea in the wake of the latest tests.

Pukguksong-2 north korea missile

Story continues

A Wall Street Journal article cited sources as saying the US may be considering military action against the Kim regime, and Japanese defense officials told Reuters they would seek to develop their own first strike capability to cripple North Korea's nuclear infrastructure before the Hermit Kingdom could fire a shot.

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A commanding general has introduced charges for two Marine drill instructors accused of hazing recruits at Parris Island, including a senior enlisted member who allegedly threw a Muslim recruit in a dryer and turned it on and who later was alleged to have likely provided the impetus for another Muslim recruit's suicide.

The senior drill instructor, Gunnery Sgt. Joseph Felix, will face an Article 32 investigative hearing March 16 on charges of failure to obey a lawful general order, cruelty and maltreatment, false official statement, drunk and disorderly conduct and obstruction of justice, officials said.

Officials with Marine Corps Training and Education Command announced the charges on Friday, but didn't release the name of the accused because the legal actions haven't yet been finalized. Even so, multiple sources confirmed his identity to Military.com.

Felix is the former senior drill instructor alleged to have hazed two Muslim recruits in separate incidents, one of which occurred moments before the suicide death of 20-year-old Pakistani-American recruit Raheel Siddiqui last March at the South Carolina base, sources said.

While investigations substantiated that Felix as the drill instructor was involved in both incidents, it's unclear which events are detailed in his charges.

Attempts to reach his military attorney, Capt. Richard Korges, were unsuccessful.

Another drill instructor, a sergeant, will have an Article 32 hearing March 17 on charges of failure to obey a lawful general order, cruelty and maltreatment, false official statement, and drunk and disorderly conduct.

An attorney for the sergeant, who has not been identified, spoke to his successful career on the drill field in a statement provided to Military.com.

"My client completed a successful tour on the drill field during which he trained hundreds of recruits," said Brian Magee, a defense attorney with Military Justice Attorneys in South Carolina. "He has endured well over a year of investigations that reveal nothing except baseless allegations by a few individuals with questionable and selfish motives. We look forward to our first opportunity to confront them under oath."

Both hearings are set to take place at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, officials with the command said. In the military justice system, service members are not formally charged and trial dates set until after the Article 32 process.

The alleged hazing was uncovered in a wide-ranging trio of investigations launched after the death of Siddiqui.

Siddiqui took his own life by jumping from the third story of a barracks building, moments after being slapped and berated by the senior drill instructor identified by sources as Felix. Felix was also the purported primary instigator in a 2015 incident in which a Muslim recruit was allegedly hazed in the middle of the night using an industrial clothes dryer, causing burns to his neck and shoulders, and forced to shout "Allah Akbar" loud enough to wake the other recruits.

Investigators stopped short of substantiating that drill instructors found culpable in the investigations were motivated by specific racial bias or Islamophobia. They pointed out that recruits of all races were routinely singled out by drill instructors within the scope of the investigations on account of their backgrounds and ethnicity, citing one incident in which a Russian recruit was allegedly asked if he was a communist spy.

Also Friday, command officials detailed charges or trial dates for four other Marine drill instructors who have previously faced investigative hearings in other incidents of alleged hazing at Parris Island.

Staff Sgt. Antonio B. Burke, has been charged with disobeying a noncommissioned officer, failure to obey a lawful order, cruelty and maltreatment, false official statement, wrongful appropriation, and general misconduct, and is pending date and time for arraignment, officials said.

Staff Sgt. Matthew Bacchus, charged with failure to obey a lawful general order, cruelty and maltreatment, and false official statement, will face trial April 10-14 at Quantico, officials said.

Staff Sgt. Jose Lucena-Martinez, charged with failure to obey a lawful general order, will face trial May 15-19 at Quantico.

Sgt. Riley Gress, charged with failure to obey a lawful general order, cruelty and maltreatment, and false official statement, will begin his trial May 22 at Quantico.

Bacchus, Lucena-Martinez and Gress have had dates set for special court-martial proceedings. Special courts-martial, an intermediate-level military trial, are reserved for troops facing no more than 12 months' confinement.

"Referral and preferral of charges are accusations," a command spokesman, Capt. Joshua Pena, said in a release. "All Marines are presumed innocent until proven guilty."

The Marines' top officer said when the hazing allegations were made public last year that all the alleged incidents, which took place within Parris Island's 3rd Recruit Training Battalion, were not indicative of the larger culture within Marine Corps boot camp or the Corps in general.

"When America's men and women commit to becoming Marines, we make a promise to them. We pledge to train them with firmness, fairness, dignity and compassion," Gen. Robert Neller said in a statement released in September.

He added, "Simply stated, the manner in which we make Marines is as important as the finished product. Recruit training is, and will remain, physically and mentally challenging so that we can produce disciplined, ethical, basically trained Marines."

Editor's note: This story was updated to correct the charge for Staff Sgt. Jose Lucena-Martinez in the 17th paragraph.

-- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck.
A former CIA official made an alarming statement about North Korea's ability to strike the U.S. with a ballistic missile.

Bruce Klingner, a former CIA deputy division chief for Korea, said the isolated nation is closer than people realize to developing a nuclear missile that could cross the ocean and strike the U.S.

"We can expect an [intercontinental ballistic missile] test this year with full capability within the next few years," Klingner told Fox News.

North Korea has provoked the world by firing ballistic missiles in defiance of a United Nations Security Council resolution prohibiting the country from doing so. And those tests have sparked global fear that North Korea could soon attack foreign countries with nuclear weaponry.

Related Video:

North Korea Medium-Range Ballistic Missile Launch

In his annual address earlier this year, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un said the country was in the final stages of test-launching an "intercontinental ballistic rocket." But some, including President Trump, have said the threats were intended to make the world shiver -- but weren't based on reality.

"North Korea just stated that it is in the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon capable of reaching parts of the U.S. It won't happen!" the president tweeted in January.

North Korea has so far conducted five nuclear tests, claiming success as recently as September of last year.

Instability in the region continues, as South Korea's top court has upheld the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye. Many experts in the area believe that Kim Jong-un could try to capitalize on the uncertainty gripping the nation.

In a Senate Armed Services subcommittee hearing on Wednesday, Gary Samore, former Obama White House Coordinator for Arms Control and Weapons of Mass Destruction, testified on the global nuclear weapons environment. He called North Korea's mission to achieve a nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile the "most significant and the most immediate" of new nuclear threats.

"It's difficult to calculate or predict when North Korea might achieve that capability, a reliable nuclear-armed [intercontinental ballistic missile]," Samore said. "Certainly with the pace of testing they've been carrying out something in the next five to 10 years seems like a reasonable guess."

Klingner believes North Korea should be put back on the terrorist list. He told Fox News that in 2013, "Kim Jong-un was photographed in front of a map of the U.S. which appeared to show four targets for North Korean missiles -- Hawaii, San Diego, Washington D.C. and perhaps Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana."

He said several four-stars generals believe North Korea already has the ability to launch nuclear-tipped missiles.

"However, most experts think Pyongyang does not yet have that ability since the regime hasn't tested and demonstrated a reentry vehicle for its [intercontinental missiles]," he said.

There have been reports that Trump is mulling a proposal that would send B-52 bombers to Korea. But a spokesman for the U.S. Pacific Command told Fox News' Jennifer Griffin that, "there are no plans at this time to send B52s to South Korea" to participate in the war games currently taking place on the Korean peninsula.

In a detailed report for the Heritage foundation, Klingner writes, "preemptive attacks on test flights that do not clearly pose a security threat could trigger a war with a nuclear-armed state that also has a large conventional military force poised along the border with South Korea."

Klingner said if the U.S. tries to interfere with North Korea's nuclear missile race, it has to tread gently.

"Trying to target North Korean mobile nuclear missiles in a crisis is like trying to win three-card monte on a New York street corner," Klingner said, "there's a high risk you'll lose more than your shirt."
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...
Vietnam veteran Percy Jones is one of thousands who have served in the military and now suffers from depression. Jones fought his battle with depression for years and eventually began isolating himself, making matters worse.

"I got angry easily and I was always very nervous," Jones told Fox News."I couldn't sleep. I started drinking too much. It got to the point where I was suicidal. I just didn't want to live."

It's not just veterans who are at risk of depression, as 11,887 active duty service members received a diagnosis between January and May of 2016 alone. That number adds to the 774,000 veterans who received a possible diagnosis of major depression in 2016.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is providing a new option to help fight the disorder called Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, or rTMS therapy. It's a device that uses an electromagnet charged with electricity that is applied to specific points on the patient's head. The powerful magnetic field can then affect the brain cells of the person suffering from depression.

The VA purchased 40 rTMS devices to be distributed at facilities across the country.

Jones is the first South Carolina patient to receive rTMS therapy. He began seeing Dr. Mark George, the man who invented rTMS therapy, and enrolled in a national trial at the Charleston VA. The therapy involves up to 30 sessions over a six-week period. Jones' treatments lasted 30 minutes per day, five days per week, for six weeks straight. Jones says he saw results shortly after enrolling in the trial.

"In the first week and a half I could feel a difference," Jones said. "I started realizing that I was myself again."

Kate Beaver, a spokesperson for the VA in Charleston, told Fox News that 60 percent of patients that received the treatment for clinical trials reported their depression improved or disappeared.

"Some patients who get well will stay well indefinitely," Beaver said. "Others may need 'booster' sessions from time to time."

Beaver said there are a few side effects that patients experienced during or shortly after getting the treatment: scalp discomfort, headache, facial twitching or pain which can be treated with over the counter pain medications.

"These symptoms tend to lessen or go away over treatment time," Beaver said. "Seizure during treatment is the most serious known risk of TMS, and only a very few cases of seizure have been reported. There is little evidence of risk of seizures using TMS the way it is used for depression."

Most insurance companies do not cover the procedure, which could mean thousands in out-of-pocket costs. Terrence Hayes, spokesman for the VA, said the department is currently working with various insurance companies to get better coverage. He said veterans will likely pay a small portion of the overall cost.

"The full course of therapy is variable and can cost between $6,000 and $12,000, depending upon the patient's condition and the number of sessions needed," Beaver said.

Twenty rTMS devices, costing up to $100,000, will be delivered this year and 20 more are planned for 2018. This decision came nearly three weeks after President Trump announced that it was his top priority to ensure that veterans get the care they need when and where they need it.
Achiievers Equities' commodity report on Copper

Copper trading range for the day is 375.5-388.1.

Copper once again slid to settle at 381.70 after solid U.S. jobs data and on signs that a disruption at mine may soon ease.

An end to the disruption at mine may be on the horizon, after BHP Billiton, said it may try to restart production at Escondida.

Copper stocks in LME-registered warehouses rose a further 38,775 tonnes, increased 126,575 tonnes, or 64 per cent, this month.

SELL COPPER APR 2017 @ 383.50 SL 386.50 TGT 379.50-376.00.MCX.

For all commodities report, click here Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

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Answer: Air Odisha.

As part of restructuring of operations to increase efficiency, Tata Motors is likely to redesignate about 1,000 executives, people privy to the developments at the carmaker told CNBC-TV18.

The reshuffling exercise, meant to remove duplicity in the companys functions, may lead to rightsizing of Tata Motors, they said. The move comes after Managing Director and Chief Executive Guenter Butschek provided details of the new roles and responsibilities in an office circular on January 25.

The step, effective from April 1, is aimed at quickening decision making by reducing the number of management layers to five from the current 14.
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Tax tribunal ITAT as upheld levy of Rs 10,247 crore capital gains tax on UK's Cairn Energy Plc but has held that interest cannot be charged on it as the demand was raised using retrospective tax legislation.

ITAT, in an order dated March 9, 2017, held that Cairn Energy was liable to pay the tax on share transfer it did through an internal reorganisation of its India business in 2006, prior to getting Cairn India listed on stock exchanges.

The tribunal also said that Cairn India should have withheld tax on capital gains made by its parent company. It was parallely sent a demand notice by the Income Tax department for not doing so.

Cairn Energy had approached ITAT after it was slapped with an tax assessment order of Rs 10,247 crore in January 2014. Later, it also initiated international arbitration against the tax demand, which is still pending.

The I-T department had raised a total tax demand of Rs 29,047 crore on Cairn Energy, including Rs 18,800 crore in backdated interest. A similar tax demand was also raised on Cairn India, the Indian subsidiary of Cairn Energy which the British firm sold to Anil Agarwal's Vedanta Group in 2011.

In its plea before the ITAT, Cairn Energy had said that the assessing officer had "erred" in raising tax demand by invoking the retrospective amendment to Section 9 of the Act introduced in the Finance Act, 2012, which was not on the statute when the India-United Kingdom Tax Treaty entered into force.

"It is therefore submitted that the taxability of the Appellant should have been determined under the provisions of section 9(l)(i) the Act which were applicable when the India - United Kingdom Tax Treaty was entered into force," Cairn Energy said.

The ITAT said the provisions of DTAA where it simply provides that particular income would be chargeable to tax in accordance with the provisions of domestic laws, such article in DTAA also cannot the limit the boundaries of domestic tax laws.

"In view of this, we do not find any force in the argument of the assessee and dismiss ... the appeal," ITAT said.

With regard to interest payment, it opined that assessee cannot be burdened with interest u/s 234A and 234B of the Act on tax liability arising out of retrospective amendment w.e.f.

April 1, 1962, in the provision of section 9(1) of the Income Tax Act.

"We have carefully considered the rival contentions. In the present case the interest has been charged on the tax payable by the assessee which has arisen because of retrospective amendment made by The Finance Act, 2012.

"Therefore, it is correct on the part of the assessee to submit that it could not have visualise its liability for payment of advance in the year of transaction therefore, there cannot be any interest payable by the assessee u/s 234A and 234B of the Act," the ITAT ruled.
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State-run Coal India today said it is expecting around 400 million tonnes of output this fiscal from its 121 projects that are under operations.

There are 121 major ongoing coal projects under implementation and the expected contribution is of about 400 million tonnes in FY 2016-17, the company said.

CIL will make a presentation at investors' meet, to be held from March 13-15 in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Coal India's 65 new projects, with a targeted capacity of 302.88 million tonnes per year, were identified in FY 2014-15, of which project reports for 57 projects have been formulated, it said.

"Out of these 57 projects, 22 projects having ultimate capacity of 180.51 million tonnes per annum have been approved," it said.

CIL currently operates 15 washeries and is planning to set up 27 new washeries with a capacity 120.18 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).

Coal India accounts for over 80 per cent of domestic coal production.
Uber CEO Travis Kalanicks argument with Fawzi Kamal, a cab driver in San Francisco caught on video this week shows similar frustrations that cabbies in Delhi, Mumbai or Bangalore are having with the taxi app.

After attaching cars with Uber and garnering huge incentives since 2015, the drivers are now clueless. As they open their app based dashboards and bank account statements each week, they wonder about falling incomes, decreasing fare rates, rising commissions and lesser demand across Indian cities.

In protest, the drivers attached with Ola and Uber called a strike across cities of Delhi, Hyderabad and Bengaluru last month.

The strikes were as expected unsuccessful. The taxi aggregators Ola and Uber did not back down on drivers demands of stopping oversupply, reducing commissions, increasing fares or banning carpool. The drivers who were left to fend for their livelihood came back to work even as the companies applied surge pricing to entice drivers to come back to work.

There is no way out if a driver wants to get out of this mess. Drivers say that often they are stuck with an illiquid asset once a car is bought on loan, and attached with a taxi aggregator. The only options out of it is to sell the cab at a loss or keep driving the cab with the incomes falling further, often completely dependent upon the changes in the app on a regular (read weekly) basis. Opening a taxi business remains a non option as nobody can match up the fare rates offered by heavily funded taxi apps.

The incentive schemes have become more stringent and commissions have risen to over 25 percent per ride. Most drivers Moneycontrol talked to said they end up making just Rs 1 as profit per kilometre after deducting all overheads.

A cab usually runs for over 400 kilometres in a city such as Delhi. Thus, the cabbies end up making just Rs 12,000 as earnings after deducting all expenses. This is even lower than the Rs 15,000- Rs 18,000 per month salary a driver earns attached with a corporate, hotel, or a travel operator.

The fate of taxi drivers is now directly dependent upon the investors who fund these aggregators. In wake of falling funding, most aggregators end up increasing commissions than reducing fare rates, which ends up hurting drivers and cab owners more than passengers.

The public has an option to turn back to using subways, auto rickshaw, regular taxis and buses. The drivers attached with the taxi apps have nowhere to go.

The argument of Uber CEO with the cab driver

In a dashboard cam video obtained by Bloomberg News, a cab driver in San Francisco Fawzi Kamal is seen arguing with Uber CEO Travis Kalanick over falling fares.

You chose to buy everyone a ride. I lost USD 97,000 because of you. I'm bankrupt because of you, Kamal is seen arguing with Uber CEO Kalanick.

Last month Moneycontrol spoke to drivers in Delhi who shared a similar sentiment.

"We can't work at such low prices. We are not demanding anything unreasonable, we just need these companies to provide us prices fixed by the government and reduce commissions, said Chandrakesh, a driver with Sarvodaya Driver Association of Delhi, who went on strike against his falling income.

Kamal also echoed a similar sentiment directly with Kalanick.

Youre raising the standards, and youre dropping the prices. We could go higher and more expensive, Kamal told Kalanick.

Kalanick, however, retorted back. "You know what? Some people don't like to take responsibility for their own s---. They blame everything in their life on somebody else. Good luck," he said getting out of the car.

Ubers CEO apologizes after argument with the driver

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick sent the following note to all Uber employees Tuesday evening.

By now Im sure youve seen the video where I treated an Uber driver disrespectfully. To say that I am ashamed is an extreme understatement. My job as your leader is to leadand that starts with behaving in a way that makes us all proud. That is not what I did, and it cannot be explained away, he said.

The criticism weve received is a stark reminder that I must fundamentally change as a leader and grow up. This is the first time Ive been willing to admit that I need leadership help and I intend to get it, the CEO said.

I want to profoundly apologize to Fawzi, as well as the driver and rider community, and to the Uber team, he added.

However, what Uber drivers across the world may appreciate more than an apology is to listen to their concerns and not squeeze them to the hilt, in the mad race to kill competition.

(This is an opinion piece)
Kunal Bahl, CEO of India's e-commerce firm Snapdeal, poses after an interview with Reuters in Mumbai, India, February 6, 2017. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade - RTX2ZT38

Priyanka Sahay

The time was 3:30 pm. The venue: Centre B - one of the swanky towers of Snapdeal's corporate office in Gurgaon.

At a long awaited townhall on Wednesday, the remaining Snapdeal employees waited with bated breath on the status of their jobs even as the concluding retrenchment exercise has impacted over 2000 staffers.

About 300-400 employees waited as Snapdeal's co-founders -- Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, entered.

The founders were working remotely for a few days and conducting meetings out of Delhi's hotels to avoid confrontation with staff who were being retrenched.

The duo stood along with multiple business heads - Jayant Sood, chief customer experience officer, Vishal Chaddha, senior vice president, market development and Mayank Jain, head of growth, among others, employees present at the townhall told Moneycontrol.

It was the first townhall after one of the largest retrenchment exercises ever taken in Indian e-commerce concluded.

Bahl took the lead and spoke first. The context of the speech was whether the retrenchment was necessary and the way foreword for Snapdeal -- a plan for the next 24 months.

"The company has decided to focus on a targeted set of customers instead of being a platform for one and all," said an employee who was present at the townhall meeting.

"The categories which were run on less or no margin will be under scanner. Either we will figure out how to make it economical or else won't run it now," the employee added.

Both the founders took around an hour to address the employees.

The rest one hour was spent in responding to the questions of the employees -- some serious, some not so much.

Everyone had a quick laugh and broke ice when an employee quipped that he was concerned about the employers not taking their salaries, and asking by when will they start doing that.

Will there be further lay offs? Asked another concerned employee.

Bahl took up the question and answered - 'No'.

Vacating buildings, consolidating offices

"Most of the questions were directly addressed by Bahl on a macro level and Bansal added his perspective. The team heads picked up questions as they were very specific to the departments," said another employee who was present on the occasion.

The Wednesday town hall was for the business team. Thursday's townhall saw people from the technology department.

The teams have also been asked to shift to Centre A, as the company plans to vacate Centre B, in its efforts to cut costs, especially when the team sizes have shrunk massively, said the employee quoted above.

However he wasn't aware if the company planned to rent the space to someone else.

According him, Bahl told the employees that the company was at its best net margins ever and was "almost" operationally profitable.

The target is to achieve profitability in the next 20-24 months.

While the retrenchment exercise has completed, the same is yet to happen at the payments unit Freecharge.

More exits at top at Snapdeal

Meanwhile senior executives at Snapdeal including vice president of engineering Amitava Ghosh, head of mergers and acquisitions Abhishek Kumar and head of partnerships and strategic investments Tony Navin, have either exited or put in their papers.

This follows the mass layoffs even as the company has given three months salary to those whose positions have been axed.

Even as the company continues to be in conversation with the existing investor Softbank for a round of funding, there are reports hinting at a possible merger of the company with payments and e-commerce firm Paytm which is now expanding its e-commerce platform.

Alibaba is a common investor on both Snapdeal and Paytm.

Industry experts are calling it a much needed course correction which will change the narrative of the entire e-commerce industry in India, from now on.

"The current situation is a wakeup call for every internet company which was growing primarily by money in the bank from investors.. We will soon see money in the bank not being the primary criteria on whether an internet business is stable or doing well," said Sreedhar Prasad, partner, e-commerce, KPMG in India.
After BJP's landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's risk taking abilities will get further reinforced, said the Deputy Managing Editor of Mint, Anil Padmanabhan. After this win, Modi must now focus on the banks' NPA issues, he added.

"The government needs out-of-the-box solutions to deal with the NPA debacle. We will have to see if the PM will monetise the social capital that he has earned after this victory," he said.

While Padmanabhan is concerned about the country's bad asset problem, Mohandas Pai, Chairman of Manipal Global Education, is worried about the unemployment issue. He said the NDA government is more biased towards the capital intensive industry rather than job focussed ones.

"Tax rates of 30-35 percent for labour intensive industries and manufacturing industries paying only 25 percent effective tax as per the latest Budget and too much of automation and capital intensity. All this needs to change," said Pai.

He said this is a fantastic victory for government reforms. While infrastructure may go up after this victory, only hope is for the government to make special provisions to boost employment in the country, he added.

He is of the opinion that government should promote urbanisation to increase job opportunities in the country.

"Cities give you 75 percent of the total revenues and maybe 75-80 percent of total good jobs. So, we have to focus on cities, urbanisation has to accelerate. Tamil Nadu's per capita gross domestic product (GDP) is four times Bihar and Tamil Nadu is 52 percent urban as against Bihar which is 12 percent.

"So, focus on cities. In the next two years, if these are done, a lot of jobs will be created and that should carry them," he said.

However, Sanjay Dutt of Quantum Securities argues that jobs growth does not come in, in a year or two. It rather takes more than 10 years for the job scenario in the country to bounce back.

He added that BJP's manifesto for UP is pro development, and Modi will try his best to bring about an increase in employment opportunites in the state going ahead.
Image

Motor insurance policies take the longest time to be passed while health claims have among the shortest time for passage. According to data on general insurance claims by the Insurance Brokers Association of India (IBAI), only around 3 percent health claims have been pending for more than one year.

Lower the claims pendency ratio, better is the insurance company in terms of the measured ratio. For the quarter ending June 30, 2016, public sector general insurers including Oriental Insurance, New India Assurance, National Insurance and United India Insurance have less than 6 percent pending claims in the health space.

Similarly, private sector general insurers too also low pendency ratio. Large ones like SBI General, Cholamandalam MS, HDFC ERGO, Tata AIG, ICICI Lombard, and Bajaj Allianz have less than 5 percent health claims pending.

Third party motor insurance is mandatory and there is no limit on the claims that are filed under this category. Hence, whatever the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal passes in its order has to be paid. The third party cover comes into force if there is an accidental death due to a vehicle. The policyholders insurer pays the claims.

Often, the courts and tribunal give an order to pay high claims and the insurer contests this. While there are fixed amounts for train and air accidents, there is no such fixed compensation for road accidents. Hence disputes arise and there are also mega Lok Adalats held where claims are settled.

Standalone health insurers including Apollo Munich, Religare Health, CignaTTK, Max Bupa and Star Health have zero claims pending for more than one year.

Insurance company officials said that during the proposal stage itself, underwriting heads look into what are the existing conditions of the prospective policyholder and the exclusions under the particular scheme so that claims are not unnecessarily delayed.
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Insurance regulator Irdai today said it is yet to make listing of insurance companies mandatory as the industry is not ready for it.

As of now, ICICI Prudential Life is the only listed insurer, while New India and GIC Re are likely to be the first two state-owned insurance firms to get listed some time soon after the government recently said it wanted all the state-run non-life players to merge and be publicly traded.

The regulator had come out with a discussion paper on mandatory listing of insurance companies which have been in operations for 10 years, last August.

"We have not made it mandatory as yet. It's still in the form of a draft," Irdai chairman TS Vijayan told reporters while speaking on the sidelines of an Insurance Brokers Association event here.

"The industry is not too happy making it compulsory.

So for the time being, it will not be mandatory," he added.

As of now, there are 55 insurance firms in the country, of which 24 are in the life insurance business and the rest 31 are non-life players.

Meanwhile, after suggesting a steep hike in third party motor premium, the regulator today said there is room for a premium hike in the group health insurance segment as well to make the industry more viable.

Yesterday, Vijayan had said "Irdai has already come up with an exposure draft on this for which we are seeking opinion from various stakeholders. Hike in the third-party motor premium is inevitable. The quantum of the increase depends on what feedback we receive from the stakeholders." PTI KD BEN RMT .
business Trump intends to do what he said he would: Julius Baer US President Donald Trump has a very unpredictable style but he does intend to do what he said he would, says Mark Matthews, Head Research, Bank Julius Baer.
In September 2013, the Supreme Court had ordered that all Indian voters should be given an option to choose None of the Above popularly known as NOTA if they are do not wish to vote for any of the candidates standing in for elections in that particular location. While in the initial stages, NOTA failed to make an impact, assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Goa in 2017 have brought NOTA votes to the forefront.

According to latest data from the Election Commission of India, about 4.3 lakh voters across the country pressed NOTA on the electronic voting machines. Of this, Uttar Pradesh with 403 constituencies has the largest share of NOTA votes at over 3.2 lakh. Punjab had about 65,000 NOTA votes and Uttarakhand at 30,000 NOTA votes.

Election Commission in the past has said that while NOTA votes are counted, they are considered invalid votes. Hence, even if 98 of 100 voters in a particular constituency chose NOTA and one candidate gets 2 votes, he will be declared a winner. India follows the first past the post system in elections wherein whichever candidates gets one vote more than the second candidate wins in the election in a particular location. Therefore, political experts are of the view that NOTA is essentially a wastage of a vote since it makes no impact in the electoral outcome in any election, be it assembly elections or the Lok Sabha elections.

The objective with which NOTA was introduced was to enable the electorate, who do not wish to vote for any of the candidates, to exercise their right without violation of the secrecy of their decision.

Source: Election Commission of India

Note: Data for counting till 12pm, March 11
Supporters of Indias Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) celebrate after learning of the initial poll results outside the party headquarters in New Delhi, India, March 11, 2017. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi - RTX30K45

Thanks for staying tuned to our coverage.

The dynamic duo of PM Narendra Modi and BJP party chief Amit Shah led the party to victory in the crucial states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, as the election results were tallied today.

Whereas in the state of Punjab, Capt. Amarinder Singh and Navjot Singh Sindhu led Congress to victory.

For Goa and Manipur none of the parties could manage to reach the halfway mark.

5:40 pm Speaking to Network18, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that farm loans will surely be waived if it was announced.



Thank you. Long live democracy! https://t.co/hJoGsO5lGA

 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

Prime Minister Narendra Modi replies to Rahul Gandhi's tweet

5:18 pm

5:13 pm Alliance with Congress was not a bad decision. Have benefited from it: Akhilesh Yadav

5:10 pm Yadav says, if concern has been raised (by Mayawati) on tampering with Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), the government should probe it. Will look in to the matter on my own level as well.

5:08 pm Respect and accept the decision of the people: Akhilesh Yadav

5:05 pm Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav addresses a press conference. Says alliance with Congress will continue in the future as well.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi congratulates BJP on the victory.

I congratulate Shri. Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) March 11, 2017

4:55 pm Mahindra Groups Executive Chairman Anand Mahindra says the BJP's resounding victory points to a long-term leadership. Investors like The markets may well applaud on Tuesday, he says. Here's his tweet



Investors value predictability & stability.BJP's resounding victory in UP points to long term leadership. Markets may well applaud next week  anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) March 11, 2017



4:50 pm Dissent has begun in the Congress ranks. Former Delhi Chief Minister's son and Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit hits out at Rahul Gandhi. "Everyone including Rahul Gandhi should take the blame," he said. There is a need for surgical intervention in the Congress, he added.

4:45 pm We've spent the past few hours explaining the UP results to you, but this picture pretty much sums things up:

4:40 pm: Samajwadi Party's Shivpal Singh Yadav has won the Jaswantnagar constituency with over 1.25 lakh votes. BJP candidate Manish Yadav Patre way behind at just over 74,000 votes.

The Congress hopes of forming a government have been raised. It has won 14 seats so far, while BJP tally stands at 12. Of the 40-seat assembly, 39 seats have been accounted for.

Meanwhile, the Congress is in touch with the NCP, Maharashtra Gomantak and independents. The NCP has one 1 seat; Maharashtrawadi Gomantak and Independents won 3 seats each.

Goa Forward Party chief Vijay Sardesai says: Can't take Congress for granted, we'll support them. Need to see how our party can grow. We will take stock of final numbers this evening.

4:20 pm: With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) clinching majority in UP and Uttarakhand, experts foresee bullish times ahead for the market. On a panel discussion on CNBC-TV18, experts predicted a gap-up opening for the markets on Tuesday and opined that this was a beginning of a bull run. Here's the report:

Market to cheer UP verdict; keep an eye on earnings: Experts

4:15 pm: After BJPs thumping victory in Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, political parties will look for scapegoats. There will likely be voices and concerns raised on how Samajwadi Party, Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party went about campaigning for the state election.

READ MORE  UP Debacle: Akhilesh & Rahul have some tough questions to answer

4:10 pm Wishing citizens a happy Holi, Amit Shah signs off from the press conference.

4:05 pm Amit Shah put to rest doubts on alliances. All parties that came with us will be part of the government, he says.

4:00 pm The BJP will strive to improve the law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh, says Amit Shah. This is the start of politics of performance, he adds.

3:53 pm Meanwhile, in Goa, potential kingmaker Vijay Sardesai of Goa Forward Party says the Congress can't take its support for granted in forming the government. Sardesai's party is leading in three seats.

3:53 pm On Mayawati's allegations that the UP elections were rigged, Shah says: "She has a lot on her mind."

3:50 pm The next chief minister of Uttar Pradesh will not be chosen based on caste, but only on performance, says Shah. He says it is heartening that the poor have put their faith in Narendra Modi.

3:47 pm Shah says the BJP leadership will meet tomorrow evening and discuss the next course of action in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa. Might name four chief ministerial candidates.

He refuses to be drawn into the Hindu-Muslim issue, saying a voter is a voter.

3:43 pm Shah says the country will only achieve double-digit growth when Uttar Pradesh achieves the same and promises the BJP will work towards making this a reality.

3:41 pm Shah says Narendra Modi is the most popular leader since independence and that personal attacks against him had backfired. He says the BJP only believes in the politics of performance and development.

3.39 pm Amit Shah calls it a victory of the people and says the results prove that people have accepted the central government's policies including demonetisation.

3.37 pm A smiling Amit Shah starts off by extending his wishes for Holi. He says the party is on its way to forming the government in four states - Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur - and calls it a historic mandate.

The result is clear in two of those states, but Manipur and Goa remains close.

3.35 pm BJP President Amit Shah is now seated and ready to address the media at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi.

3:30 pm The BJP and Congress are still neck and neck in Goa, but the saffron party has suffered some serious body blows. While Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar lost his seat, his cabinet colleagues Mahadev Naik, Dilip Parulekar, Dayanand Mandrekar, Rajendra Arlekar, and Avertan Furtardo also tasted defeat.

We told you a short while ago about the stalemate in Manipur. Now, CNN-News18's Subhajit Sengupta says the BJP will attempt to form a coalition government in the North East state.

BJP all set to form alliance govt in Manipur as well. 22+ 4 ( NPP)+3(NPF)+1(LJP)= 30. 5 more seats left to be declared. #resultswithnews18 pic.twitter.com/aeHPeRoW7s Subhajit Sengupta (@SubhajitSG) March 11, 2017

3:20 pm Here's the full story on Mayawati's allegations that the UP elections were rigged:

Mayawati seeks a re-election, says EVMs tampered with

3:15 pm Manipur and Goa continue to keep us in suspense. Not much has changed in the past hour. It's still anybody's game.

3:10 pm In Punjab, Captain Amarinder Singh can enjoy the moment, but plenty of speed bumps lie ahead. Abhijit Chatterjee takes stock:

After grand swansong win, challenges abound for Amarinder

3.05 pm More on what these results mean for Rahul Gandhi. It's safe to say that the party's trust in his leadership will further erode.

He will be seen as a leader who failed to identify the right alliance and made the party politically irrelevant in its home state, the place where Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi contested elections.

Now, questions may finally be raised over whether the Congress should look outside the Nehru-Gandhi family leadership. That said, sister Priyanka Gandhi may also assume a larger role.

3:00 pm Throwback to five years ago, when a sombre Rahul Gandhi and sister Priyanka walked arm-in-arm after speaking to the media following the declaration of the Uttar Pradesh election results. Rahul had campaigned tirelessly and was the party's face in UP, but returned with only 28 seats.

2:55 pm Pictures from Punjab of celebrations in the Amarinder Singh camp. Double joy today as it's also his 75th birthday.

BJP President Amit Shah has arrived at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi and receives a hero's welcome. He is expected to address the media at 3.30pm.

In many ways, this is Amit Shah's victory. After sweeping Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 Lok sabha elections, he has ensured an encore in the 2017 Assembly polls.

2:45 pm Ayodhya has special significance for the BJP. The party has wrested the seat from the ruling SP. BJP candidate Ved Prakash Gupta defeated sitting Samajwadi Party MLA Tej Narayan Pandey.

2:40 pm Former cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu walked the talk in these elections. He switched from the BJP to the Congress and ended up on the winning side.

2:38 pm The dead heat continues in Goa and Manipur. The latest numbers have the BJP and Congress with the same number of seats in both states.

2:35 pm We've spent the past few hours explaining the UP results to you, but this GIF pretty much sums things up:

2:32 pm That mugshot shows Harish Rawat smiling, but he's got no reason to be cheerful. It's been a decimation in Uttarakhand, both personally and for the party.

First reactions coming in from Prime Minister Narendra Modi! And it's a surprise. Instead of addressing his own supporters after the BJP's strong show in UP, he's chosen instead to congratulate Congress rival Amarinder Singh.

Spoke to @capt_amarinder & congratulated him on the win in Punjab. Also wished him a happy birthday & prayed for his long & healthy life. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

2:20 pm Is Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh a possible chief ministerial candidate? He is a trusted hand but the central government may be averse to letting him leave Delhi.

2:15 pm Let's take a look at where we stand as of 2pm. Still awaiting a clear picture from Manipur and Goa.

2:05 pm Here's the update from Lambi, where Parkash Singh Badal has won with 66,375 votes. Amarinder Singh ended with a 43,605-vote tally.

2:00 pm Birthday boy Captain Amarinder Singh has won in Patiala constituency. Here's how he fared.

1:55 pm A quick update on the press conferences this evening. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah may address party workers at 4:30 pm. Outgoing UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav will address the media at 5 pm.

1:53 pm In UP, the SP-Congress tally is now looking even worse. The alliance is currently leading only in 57 seats.

Akhilesh Yadav unveils party manifesto ahead of Assembly election, in Lucknow on Sunday. PTI Photo by Nand Kumar(PTI1_22_2017_000057B)" width="378" height="214" />

1:50 pm Moving over to Manipur now. Leads are available for 45 out of the 60 seats. The BJP, which did not win a single seat last time round, is leading in 19 seats while the ruling Congress is ahead in 17 constituencies.

1:45 pm Mayawati alleges that the voting machines were tampered with. "Any button you pressed, the vote went to the BJP," claims the BSP chief.

She says the election results are shocking and hard to swallow. The BSP is leading in just 20 of the 403 seats.

Expelled Samajwadi Party Amar Singh leader continues his tirade against Akhilesh Yadav

#ResultsWithNews18 "The Chief Minister of UP was very arrogant. He is grounded very badly" - Amar Singh, former @SamajwadiParty leader pic.twitter.com/d6ycWaL3pE News18 (@CNNnews18) March 11, 2017

1:35pm For India's most populous state, spinning new jobs is critical for its long-term prospects. Moneycontrol's Gaurav Choudhury takes a look at the economic realities in Uttar Pradesh.

COMMENT: Politics out of the way, it is over to economics for UP

1:32 pm This is big. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat has lost in both the constituencies from which he contested. Insult to injury for the former Union minister.

1:30 pm Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has spoken out for the first time since the results started coming in. This was supposed to be a big day for the Aam Aadmi Party's national ambitions, but hasn't turned out too well. Back to the drawing table.



                Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) March 11, 2017



1:20 pm Still no clear winner in Goa but sources say the state Congress unit will meet at 6pm and stake a claim to form the government with the help of the Nationalist Congress Party and smaller parties.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar earlier lost in his constituency.

1:10 pm BJP leader Ritu Bahuguna Joshi, a long-time Congress leader before going saffron recently, has ruled herself out of the race for UP chief minister.

The BJP party is in full swing in Uttar Pradesh. And why not? This is a resounding victory for Narendra Modi and his merry men.

1:00 pm So as things stand, we have big wins for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Punjab has officially gone to the Congress. We're still waiting on the results from Manipur and Goa. The BJP and Congress are even stevens in both states with half the trends available.

12:50 pm Senior Congress Leader Kapil Sibal tells CNN-News18:

"It is worrying that the BJP managed to succeed with saffronisation of UP. It is their polarization ideology that has worked. They have nothing to offer to people in terms of development.''

12:40 pm Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah may address party workers at 4.30 pm.

12:35 pm If you're just joining us and wondering who's the star of the show, then look no further:.

12:30 pm Captain Amarinder Singh, who will be the next Chief Minister of Punjab, thanks the people for the partys victory. It is Amarinder Singhs 75th birthday today.

The Congress Legislature Party will take a call on the swearing-in date on Sunday.

12:20 pm SP leader Shivpal Yadav, the brother of Mulayam Singh Yadav, takes a veiled dig at his nephew and outgoing chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.

"This defeat has happened due to ego issues of few people. Mulayam Singh and I were insulted," he said.

12:16 pm Union minister Smriti Irani calls Priyanka Gandhi a paper tiger, says the UP election results show the people's massive confidence in Narendra Modi.

12:15 pm Senior BJP leader Rajiv Pratap Rudy says it's finally time to align the UP government with the central government on the road to development. He thinks the UP result is an absolute endorsement of the government's policies.

On GST, he says there will be teething problems, but the country's biggest tax reform will roll out on schedule on July 1.

12:10 pm What do the Assembly election results mean for you, the investor? Moneycontrol's Madhuchanda Dey weighs in with some words of wisdom:

Assembly Elections 2017: Now pick strong banks, affordable housing, GST gainers

12:05 pm Former cricketer Navjyot Singh Sidhu, a man known for his colourful words, criticises the Congress' opponents. Sidhu switched loyalties from the BJP to the Congress ahead of these elections.

"Two Badals with egos have been defeated," said Sidhu. "This is a new year's gift for Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi."

Word on the street is that Sidhu has been offered the post of Deputy Chief Minister.

12:03 pm Often a kingmaker, Amar Singh says Akhilesh Yadav will soon be going to jail. He doesn't explain why though.

12.02 pm Forget 2019, focus on 2024, says former J&K chief minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah.



At this rate we might as well forget 2019 & start planning/hoping for 2024.  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017



12:00 pm Goa is known to be laidback, and the election results are proving that notion right. Just 40 seats in the state but leads are available for only half of the seats.

11:55 am Uttar Pradesh has chosen capability over dynastic politics, says Jitender Singh, MoS in the Prime Minister's Office.

11:50 am In Thoubal, Manipur, Irom Sharmila has won 51 votes. The Iron Lady had made her political debut in these elections.

11: 45 am Captain Amarinder Singh is expected to address a press conference shortly.

11:40 am BREAKING | Samajwadi Party had conceded defeat in Uttar Pradesh

11:35 am Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar has lost in Mandrem. Big setback.

11:30 am BJP leader Ram Madhav says major credit to BJP's victory in Uttar Pradesh goes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.BJP was able to put the Congress and Ibobi Singh on the defensive in Manipur.

11:25 am In Punjab, birthday boy Captain Amarinder Singh is seen leading in Patiala stronghold. His comrade Manpreet Singh Badal is ahead in Bathinda Urban constituency. Overall, estimates now show Congress is set to wrest power from the SAD-BJP combine in the state.

READ: Punjab Elections 2017: Congress looks set to take charge in Punjab

11:20 am In the key Naugawan Sadat, Kairana and Meerut constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP candidates are leading.

Here's UP election from Lalu Prasad Yadav's point of view

11:15 am In an interview to Network18 in January, Amit Shah had said he was confident of winning a 2/3rd majority in Uttar Pradesh.

11:10 am Not good news for the Aam Aadmi Party in Goa, where its chief ministerial candidate Elvis Gomes is in third place in Cuncolim.

11:05 am It's a triple century for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh! Exit polls predicted a BJP win but no one could have predicted this dominance:

11:00 amSo what are the key takeaways so far? In short, the BJP is in a very comfortably position having swept the country's most populous state just two years ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The Congress is still struggling for pan-India relevance despite its win in Punjab and the Aam Aadmi Party's ambition of becoming a national party is still distant dream.

10:56 amIt's still slow going in Manipur and Goa. Leads available for only half the seats in each state and the Congress and BJP are neck-and-neck in both.

10:55 amHere's the story of what happened in Uttarakhand: Do read:

Uttarakhand elections 2017: Modi wave sweeps across state

10:50 amThe BJP is in focus, but it's important to look at what has happened to the Bahujan Samaj Party. After not winning a single seat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, party chief Mayawati went all out to woo the minorities this time around. But the party has won only 20 seats. Five years ago, it was in power in Uttar Pradesh.

10:47 amUttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav will likely meet the state Governor at 2pm to submit his resignation.

10:45 amConsolidation for the Congress in Punjab. A win here has kept the grand old party relevant and has somewhat proved a face-saver for party Vice-President Rahul Gandhi.

10:42 amIt just gets better and better for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh. The party is set to form the government in the state with a massive 3/4th majority. Almost 300 seats for the saffron party now.

10:40 amKeshav Maurya, among the favourites to take the chief minister's chair, brushes away suggestions that he will assume the post and says the party leadership will take a call. Maurya is the head of the BJP's state unit.

10:35 amWatch our home page too for stories and analysis on the election results. For now, take a look at Sandeep Sinha's piece on why the BJP has claimed Uttar Pradesh:

Assembly Elections 2017: 5 reasons why BJP swept Uttar Pradesh

10:30 amBJP leader and Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad says the UP election results show that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the "messiah of the poor". This is the first official reaction from the government.

10:25 amCongress stands by its decision to join hands with the Samajwadi Party in UP. No word from Akhilesh Yadav yet.

10:22 amBad news for Irom Sharmila. Reports coming in suggest that she has lost to Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh from Thoubal constituency in Manipur. Sharmila is making her electoral debut after ending her 16-year fast last August.

10:20 am Fireband UP BJP leader Yogi Adityanath , possibly a CM candidate, has spoken:"People of UP have shunned SP-Congress. They want development without any discrimination and that's why they have voted for BJP."

10:15 amLet's look at where we currently stand in all the five states:

10:13 am After UP and Uttarakhand, the Modi tsunami could well continue in the Gujarat, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh assembly elections set to take place over the next year or so.

10:10 am Here's the complete picture in UP as of now:

10:06Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi says the UP result is not a verdict on demonetisation. A bad decision will remain one, he says.

10:05In UP, the attention will soon turn to who will become the next chief minister. The picture will get clearer in the coming days but here's an early take on who could sit in the chief minister's chair:

BJP CM nominee list includes Keshav Maurya & Yogi Adityanath

10:00Two hours since counting began and we have reached a landmark moment in Indian politics. The BJP, already in power at the Centre, now has control of the country's most populous state. It's a result which will influence everything from Rajya Sabha elections to picking the next President of India.

The SP has started accepting the inevitable:



We will accept the people's mandate, says SP leader Shivpal Yadavhttps://t.co/VGRmUe52eE pic.twitter.com/6N1jJOoiNh  ABP News (@abpnewstv) March 11, 2017



09:55

Akhilesh Yadav on Friday spoke about secular forces coming together to defeat the BJP. As things stand, the combine would not have half as many seats as the BJP.

09:50Some bad news for the BJP in Goa. Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar is reportedly trailing in his constituency of Mandrem.

09:48The BJP has now crossed the 275-mark in Uttar Pradesh. The SP-Congress is far behind in second place with 78 seats.



BJP leading in Uttar Pradesh: Party workers celebrate in Lucknow #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/SmmoBRNKSV

 ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

Meanwhile, the celebrations are well and truly underway:

09:44 am CNN-News18 calls the election for the Congress in Punjab!

Birthday boy Amarinder Singh's Congress has crossed the halfway mark with 59 seats. The Akali Dal-BJP and AAP are far behind and have yet to cross the 30 seats each.

09:41 amTo add insult to injury in Uttarakhand, Chief Minister Harish Rawat is trailing in both seats where he is contesting - Kiccha and Haridwar rural.

09:37 amThings have been happening thick and fast, so let's pause to take stock. Official confirmation awaited for a BJP win in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The Congress leads in Punjab. Leads from Goa and Manipur are slowly coming in and it's too early to establish a clear winner.

09:35 amThe BJP isn't done in Uttar Pradesh. It's now up to 242 seats. Remember that it won just 48 seats five years ago.

09:32 amThe Congress is establishing a clear lead in Punjab now with 46 leads. The Congress and the Akali Dal-BJP share 23 leads apiece. Looks like the Congress will cross the halfway mark of 59.

09:27 am CNN-News 18 calls the election for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh! The party will form the next goverment in the state.

Here are the numbers:

Others:

229662811

09:22 amAs far as leads go, the BJP has now crossed the halfway mark in Uttar Pradesh. Meanwhile, SP's Shivpal Yadav is trailing in his constituency.

09:20 amCNN-News18 calls the election for the BJP in Uttarakhand! Four more states to go!

09:15 amTrends indicate that the BJP has crossed the halfway mark of 35 in Uttarakhand, with the ruling Congress just hitting double digits.

09:10 amFrom the looks of it, there is no stopping the BJP's surge in UP. Leads in 160 of the 236 seats for which trends are available so far. Just 42 short of the halfway mark.

Some confident talk coming in from a potential chief ministerial candidate:



We are winning with 2/3rd majority, SP and BSP will be wiped out:Keshav Prasad Maurya,UP BJP Chief #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/sbxMLHgNLN  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017



09:05 amIn Punjab, the Congress has an early lead with AAP close on its heels. A win here is crucial for the Congress as its hopes in Uttar Pradesh seem to be quickly fading.

Here's what the picture was at 9 am:

09:03 am:BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra has a look at the UP results. Says he can smile but it's not yet time to beam. Call it cautious optimism, as market experts love to say.

09:00 amAn hour of counting completed and the BJP has crossed the 100-mark in Uttar Pradesh. The halfway mark is 202 and the party is well on its way there. Here's how things stand as of 9 am:

Others: 7

Meanwhile, Congress' Captain Amarinder Singh in now trailing in his constituency of Lambi in Punjab. Congress' Navjot Singh Sidhu is leading in Amritsar East.

08:57 amMore news from UP. And the BJP is rampant, leading in 90 of the 132 seats for which trends are available so far. It looks like a saffron sweep is on the cards with the SP-Cong combine far behind on 17 seats and the BSP on 15 seats.

BJP President Amit Shah must be smiling.

08:55 am In Manipur, the BJP did not win a single seat in the previous Assembly elections. Now, it's leading in nine seats. Not good news for the Congress.

08:50 amLess than an hour into counting and it's quite clear who's the leader in UP. We have trends for 88 seats, with the BJP leading in 63 and the SP-Cong alliance ahead in 15. It's a long way to go to 403 seats but the BJP is clearly in pole position.

It's slow going in other states but Irom Sharmila is trailing in Manipur. In Punjab, two chief ministerial candidates are leading - the Akali Dal's Parkash Singh Badal and the Congress' Captain Amarinder Singh.

08:45 am:Some more leads coming in from Uttarakhand,

08:40 amNumbers coming in thick and fast now. Trends for 55 seats available in UP and the BJP leads in 31. Remember, the party won just 48 of the 403 seats in the 2012 Assembly polls. Let's look at status of the other states too as of 8.30 am:

08:35 amLeads for 40 seats now in UP, primarily in Western UP. The BJP leads in 24 seats while the SP-Congress combine is ahead in 11.

08:30 am Here at Moneycontrol, we're also interested in the impact of these elections on stock markets. Read Madhuchanda Dey's take on what we can expect:

COMMENT: Election results and stock markets: This too shall pass!



#UttarPradeshElection2017 : Drone cameras being used for surveillance near a counting centre in Lucknow #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/yP5j1ms0hf

 ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

08:25 amBJP takes an early lead in UP, with 10 seats to six of the SP. These are just leads, of course.

08:23 am

We've got our first trends coming in and it's a seat each for the SP and the BSP in Western Uttar Pradesh.

08:22 am Here's an alternative take. Exit polls predict a BJP win in UP, but a writer who travelled extensively through the state feels they could go wrong.

READ: Could exit polls go horribly wrong in UP? Here are five reasons

08: 15 am While the BJP is expected to claim Uttar Pradesh, it's the only major force in the state to have not announced a chief ministerial candidate. Let's take a quick peek at the contenders:

08.10 am And we conclude our exit poll roundup with Manipur. Okram Ibobi Singh is often called India's most popular chief minister but the BJP could spring a surprise. Remember that 'Iron Lady' Irom Sharmila is also in the fray.

08.07 am Things are rather interesting in Punjab. Exit polls have been unanimous on the ouster of the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine. But the Congress and new entrant Aam Aadmi Party could end up finishing neck-and-neck.

08.05 am On to Uttarakhand now, where the Harish Rawat government has been on shaky ground for quite some time. This is one of the few states still under Congress rule so it will be desperately looking to retain control.

08.00 am And we're off! Counting has officially begun in all the five states. We should have a clear picture of who's won what by noon.

Interested in how counting takes place? Read below to find out more:

07.58 am Now let's look at Goa. BJP's Manohar Parrikar ruled the roost here before being appointed Defence Minister. Laximant Parsekar took the reins since will be looking to retain power. The Congress and Aam Aadmi Party are look to cause an upset.

07.55 am Let's take a look at what the exit polls predict for Uttar Pradesh. Remember, the Samajwadi Party has been in power here since 2012. But the BJP swept the state in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

07.50 am

All eyes are on Uttar Pradesh, the country's most populous state which sends 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha. A win for the Bharatiya Janata Party here will be seen as a mandate on the Narendra Modi government's policies at the Centre, most notably the note ban that was enforced in November.Watch this Insight 18 video to find out what's at stake in Uttar Pradesh:Good morning and welcome to our rolling coverage of the results of the 2017 Assembly elections in five states - Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur. We'll be with you right through the day.
Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi waves following a joint statement to the press with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, in Los Pinos presidential residence in Mexico City, Wednesday, June 8, 2016. Modi met with the Mexican President Wednesday evening during a short working visit to the country.(AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Praveen Rai

The elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa are crucial signposts in the electoral cycle of Indian politics as it is not only a mid-term appraisal of the Government at Centre but also sets the agenda of the next General elections. The state election held in the country after independence was an extension of the national contest between the Congress and parties opposed to its ideas.

But the nature of electoral competition in states changed after the emergence of regional parties in states which coincided with a simultaneous decline of Congress party dominance.

The state hustings which used to be an ideological contest changed trajectory to a political battle on development entwined with caste community matrix and local issues taking precedence over national agenda.

The election in five states was a referendum on demonetization 3.0 undertaken by the Modi government creating a sharp political divide with the narrative shifting to BJP versus the rest. The BJP contested the polls on the twin issues of Indias surgical strike against terrorist camps in Pakistan and the remonetisation of the economy to end black money corruption in the country with customized local issues in each state. The party was buoyant after winning the municipal and third-tier elections in Maharashtra and Odisha after demonetization but was testing it first time in a state elections which is not only different in its magnitude of reach but also in issues which appeal to the voters.

The election results reveal that the issue struck a resonance with the people and the electorate of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand handed the saffron party one of the biggest mandates unparalleled in the history of Indian elections.

The Modi wave which had brought rich electoral dividends in 2014 general elections seemed to be declining after its honeymoon period was over and had almost become a ripple in Bihar elections 2015.

This had given the parties opposed to it a chance in this round of elections. The SP-Congress alliance banked on the development work of the SP government and its alliance maths while the BSP focused on the strong image of Mayawati as the custodian of law and order to win the elections.

The diminishing Modi wave resurfaced in UP with such intensity that the SP-Congress alliance and the BSP was completely drowned in the deluge which followed the electoral fury. It not only decimated the regional parties in the state but also buried the identity based brand of politics which flourished for a long span in the state.

The verdict in UP changed the victory patterns of the BJP which had lost all the state elections when it faced a strong regional party like the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal or the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu. The defeat of SP and the BSP has sent a strong message to states ruled by non BJP parties that have insulated themselves from the saffron surge that it could be breached in future.

The reenergized Modi Magic not only cast its spell on the voters of UP but also in neighbouring Uttarakhand leading to landslide win for the BJP and pave way for stability after a long period of political turmoil.

The victory in the hill state was on expected lines as the BJP has defeated the Congress in every state election after coming to power in the centre.

However, the state of Punjab arrested this trend which could be an exception rather than a rule. The state which hogged the election headlines most after UP was Punjab which witnessed a triangular contest between the incumbent SAD-BJP alliance, the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party.

The main fight was between the Congress and the AAP with the Delhi party confident of repeating its performance in the countrys capital and kick start its electoral expansion pan India. The Congress capitalised on the anti incumbency of the SAD-BJP government and cross voting by Akali voters to register a spectacular win by defeating the AAP and coming back to power after ten years in opposition benches.

The loss of AAP is a major setback for the fledgling party as it lost its foothold in the state gained during the last Lok Sabha elections and emerge as a nationwide alternative to the BJP. The election verdict in Manipur and Goa is split with the BJP emerging as the largest party in Manipur after a neck to neck fight and would be in a striking distance in forming the government.

The election verdict in UP will bestow the BJP the numbers required in the Rajya Sabha to do legislative business and pass important bills that get stuck in parliamentary logjams and also in electing the next President of India. The BJPs victory has provided the much needed political traction and paved the way for the saffron party to return back to power in the 2019 election and provide a long term political and economic stability. However this comes with a rider. The party has needs to be humble after the massive victories and shield itself from arrogance, as power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The Congress party which vacated the space for the BJP to take centre stage in Indian politics saved itself from embarrassment by a consolation win in Punjab and take solace from dropping the idea of Priyanka Gandhi campaign in UP as she is the last hope or the only trump card which can revive the party in future.

The opposition parties lost the plot and should refrain from the idea of vetting an all party secular alliance to counter the BJP surge as it will fail in stopping the saffron juggernaut. The index of opposition unity will only create a political backlash against it and further aid the BJP to spread its wings in the country. The dust and celebrations of state elections will soon die down but the semi final hustings in five states will be remembered in electoral archives as the resurrection of the Modi wave.

Pravin Rai
In a neck-and-neck contest in the state of Manipur, the 15-year Congress rule is leading marginally with Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh winning against the human activist Irom Sharmila by a huge margin of 15,000 votes.

The three-time Congress Chief Minister Singh was fighting from the prestigious Thoubal constituency against Manipurs iron lady and his nearest BJP rival Leitanthem Basanta Singh.

In an emotional breakdown, Sharmila told the Indian Express that she will never contest elections again.

Sharmila, who ended her 16-year indefinite hunger strike in August last year, demanding a repeal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), managed to secure just 90 votes. She had set up Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) last year and was contesting only three seats.

At 1.50 pm, of the total 60 seats, the Congress inched ahead at 23 seats while BJP was at 21 with 1 seat to the Left Party. A total of 143 people had chosen NOTA (none of the above).

In all, 265 candidates were in the fray for election to the 60-member State Assembly.

Congress was led by its mascot Ibobi Singh who ruled for three terms without a strong opposition, while BJP was steered by master strategist Himanta Biswa Sarma, Assam Cabinet minister and convenor of the BJP-led North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA).

On the one hand, it was vital for the Congress to retain Manipur to rejuvenate the party, while for BJP it was important to gain more ground in the north-eastern region after a decisive victory in Assam last year and its government in Arunachal Pradesh. In Nagaland, too, it is present as a part of the ruling Naga Peoples Front (NPF)-led coalition.

BJPs vote share in the 2012 Assembly elections was 2.12 percent, against Congresss 42.80 percent. It did not win a single seat of the 19 seats it fought, whereas the Congress won 42 seats.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJPs vote share jumped to 11.98 percent, while that of the Congress declined marginally to 41.91 percent.

In 2017 Assembly elections, across political parties bigwigs from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi were seen campaigning despite the recent insurgence.

The State was reeling from economic blockade with its two National Highways (NH2 and NH37) under siege enforced by United Naga Council (UNC). This resulted in shortage of essential commodities and violence breakout.

And just as matters started going out of hand, Chief Minister Ibobi Singh came up with a masterstroke by creating seven districts.

As both the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP saw this as a burning issue and game changer for the elections, it definitely has tweaked the vote share substantially.

Congress had alleged that BJP had, in 2015, signed a secret pact with National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isaac-Muivah) to dismember Manipur in the Naga peace talks.

During the election campaign, Rahul Gandhi dared BJP to make the pact public, while Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh stated, There is no mention of Manipur in the Framework Agreement with NSCN(I-M). The Congress is not doing healthy politics.

Congress was fighting fake encounter deaths, nepotism and favouritism in government jobs and slow development in its 15-year rule.

The state has seen deep divide between the people in the hills which has 20 seats with 89 percent of states geographical area and the Imphal Valley dominated by the Meiteis constituting 40 seats with only 11 percent of the area.

The Communist Part of India (CPI), forged an alliance with the NCP, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Aam Aadmi Party, the Janata Dal (United) and the Manipur National Democratic Front.

However, it seems that the Congress with a lower share than before and BJP gaining ground are set to call the shots in the Assembly while the six-party alliance of Left and democratic parties has been unable to shake any ground.
The race to control Goa, the small coastal state known for tourism and rich iron-ore deposits, could be heading for a hung assembly where support of other smaller parties could play a decisive role.

Congress is ahead in 17 seats, three more than BJP's 14 in a neck-and-neck race, according to latest counting trends. The magic figure to form the government is 21 in the 40 seat strong state assembly .

Others including Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (3), Goa Forward Party (3), the Nationalist Congress Party (1) and independents (3) are leading in 10 seats. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is yet to open it account.

In a major setback for BJP - along with the sitting Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar five other state ministers including Mahadev Naik, Dilip Parulekar, Dayanand Mandrekar, Rajendra Arlekar and Avertan Furtardo suffered defeats.

While five Congress chief minister hopefuls  Pratapsingh Rane, Luizinho Faleiro, Churchill Alemao, Ravi Naik and Digambar Kamat have won.

The decent show in Goa raised Congress hopes of forming government. The party said it is in touch with NCP (1 seat) and MGP (3 seats) and the Independents (3) for support.

Goa Forward Party, which is leading in 3 seats remained non-commital on its support.

"Cong can't take for granted we'll support them. Need to see how our party can grow. Will take stock of final numbers this evening," said Vijay Sardesai, Goa Forward Party chief.

The BJPs reported CM candidate is apparently Manohar Parrikar. As it is sitting CM Palsekar has lost.

BJP's chief Amit Shah expressed confidence that his party will form the government in Goa.

The exit polls for Goa Assembly elections forecasted a close fight between the ruling BJP and the Congress, giving a slight edge to BJP. AAP is also making its debut in the Goa Assembly elections and had fielded 39 candidates.

The Congress has contested 27 seats and has extended support to two other candidates while the BJP has fielded 36 candidates and is supporting two independents.

The old regional Maharashtra Gomantak Party-Goa Suraksha Manch-Shiv Sena have teamed up contesting 34 seats eating into BJPs vote. The counting trends indicate Goa, may slip away from BJP control. The party was struggling with the vacuum created by its tall leader Manohar Parrikar who left state chief ministership for Delhi to join the Central Cabinet as Union Defence Minister in 2014.

Laxmikant Parsekar, who took over the reins in Goa struggled to be a credible successor to Parrikar. Analysts say the other factors contributed to Goa BJPs lacklustre performance include division among sections of BJP and RSS leadership and the economic hardship due to ban on iron-ore mining.

Before the ban iron-ore mining was contributing around 30 percent to state coffers helping it to take up many welfare measures.

The ban on iron ore extraction and export in Goa imposed in 2012, was lifted by Supreme Court in April, 2014, with a cap on export till 20 million metric tons.

The mining belt of Bicholim, Sankhalim, Sanguem, and Quepem talukas, are hit hard by mining slowdown. The cap on exports coupled with lack of enthusiasm among mining companies to revive their activities, has hurt the business sentiment of this belt.

Congress promised restoration of mining incorporating Supreme Court guidelines. Scrap Goa Investment Promotion Board. Return to and owners all unused lands of Goa Industrial Development Corporation.

Goa, ruled by the Portuguese for 450 years until 1961, is not only Indias smallest state in terms of land area, but also has one of the smallest assemblies with just 40 members. The state scores well on human development indicators.

Christians account for nearly 25 percent of Goas population, and the archdiocese of Goa has always played a political role in local elections. In 2012, Christians are believed to have voted for the BJP, largely due to the personal appeal of Parrikar.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) and Amit Shah, the president of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), wave to their supporters during a campaign rally ahead of state assembly elections, at Ramlila ground in New Delhi January 10, 2015. REUTERS/Anindito Mukherjee (INDIA - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR4KTIV

There are perils lurking in every corner when you enter a crucial poll without a face, even if the party be Narendra Modis BJP. For one, there are different claimants for the top post, then the caste satraps snapping at your heels. But for Chief Architect Amit Shah, the foundation for the campaign is all that mattered.

"Chunavspasht se ladajatahai, chunav ka Lakshya Jeet hota hai, (elections are fought to be one, there is no middle path in electoral politics)," he would often say to his colleagues in closed-door meetings.

Uttar Pradesh had to be won at any cost, after all, the state had made the most significant contribution of 73 MPs to the BJP's victory. And it was that victory that made the former minister of state for home in Gujarat the national president of Indias ruling party.

And Shah knew well that the vote share of 42 percent they netted in 2014 could not be directly translated into an assembly victory in 2017.Something more was needed.

A series of events in the last two years highlight how early the BJP actually started preparing for Battleground UP. The new social combination of consolidating roughly 40 percent non-Yadav OBCs began with appointing Phulpur MP Keshav Prasad Maurya as the partystate president on April, 8, 2016.

A relative light-weight, 47-year-old Mauryacomes from a humble background and entered politics through RSS and VHP/BajrangDal. Despite criticism that Maurya had criminal cases against him, shah was confident of his choice.

This ensured that the RSS would give full organisational support and the Kushwahas who are significantly high in Eastern UP would back the BJP. A Khsuwaha vote for BJP is also one less for SP.

The party also kept the suspense over who could be its CM candidate.Speculation was high that an OBC state president would mean an upper caste CM candidate as the outgoing state chief and Meerut MLA LaxmikantBajpai was a Brahmin.

Party insiders say that the decision to not project a CM actually worked for them because that didnt lead to divisions. What was seen as its biggest disadvantage initially proved to be the BJPs biggest advantage with the elections converting into a mid-term referendum on Brand Modi.

And UP nodded in agreement. Brand Modi swept Indias largest state, BJPs biggest victory yet after 2014.

BJP's own assessment is that it is a kind of pro-incumbency, a vote for the Central government. It is also a victory for the welfare schemes of the Modi government. UP has Over 52 lakh Ujjawala beneficiaries, 4 lakh registered beneficiaries of Atal Pension Yojana, 3 crore Jan Dhan accounts, there has been a disbursement of Rs20,000 crore in Mudra.

And then Modis masterstroke, the demonetisation drive, ended up creating a new class constituency aswell.

A look at a number of defections that happened before the elections and one realises the caste arithmetic that was being carefully worked out. Besides the appointment of Keshav Prasad Maurya, in 2015 the Bjp would create an OBC cell for the first time in its history.

It appointed SP Bhagel as the OBC morcha president. Keeping in mind this crucial constituency the party will also rope in Mayawati's close confidante Swamy Prasad Maurya. In the ticket distribution, the non-yadav OBCs will be wooed through 140 seats.

Besides this constituency the party tried to aggressively win over the non-Jatavdalits who impact close to 83 seats. They were given 70 tickets despite them being less in percentage in comparison to Jatavs who are 12 percent in UP, while the non-Jatavs are 10 percent.

Such was the level of micro planning that inorder to win over the 4 percent Pasi community which is the second largest Dalit constituency - the bjp president even agreed to stretch himself to accommodate the demands of the leader from this community.

BJP gave outside support to RK Chaudhury who had refused to contest on a BJP ticket. The Pasis have a significant number in central UP and the BJP has 3 Pasi MPs as well.

Sources in team Amit shah highlight his efforts at striking an effective alliance at multiple levels saying how Apna Dal MP Anupriya Patel's induction into the council of ministers in the second round of cabinet reshuffle was a move keeping in mind the caste calculations. Adding that alliance with Bhartiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar in Purvanchal was again a move keeping in mind his influence over 40-50 Seats.

In 2016, the BJP president had held a Yuva Town Hall and had connected to nearly 74,000 youth of UP via videoconferencing in 156 locations. Sources say that UP ki man kibaatprogramme was carried out to get response for the party's manifesto. How the Lok Sankalp Patra was a document drafted after consulting 40 lakh people through whatsapp, twitter and other methods.

It was through this process of collection called Jan Akanksha that the party decided to emphasise on its farm loan waiver and other points around women safety that featured in the manifesto.

Giving more details of how effective their campaign was, party strategists say there were a series of Yuva Sammelans and Mahila Sammelans to connect to the youth and women. Inorder to reach out to the traders upset by the demonetisation the party leadership held 14 contact programmes with them.

The party's parivartan yatra which began from 4 different corners of the state and converged in Lucknow covered over 8000 km and managed to contact nearly 50 lakh people in the state.

Over the last two years ever since he took charge as the party president Shah had been aggressively pushing for membership drive in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Party sources say that in the last one year alone the party managed 1 crore 80 lakh primary members. 75,000 party workers were given training at the mandal and district level.

In order to ensure booth management all 1 lakh 47,401 booths had committees consisting of 10-21 members everywhere.

The party sources say that the prime minister's decision to campaign aggressively in his constituency Varanasi before the last phase was solely his decision. The party was worried that even one seat loss in his constituency would be highlighted more by the opposition. The prime minister did manage to stamp this as his victory alone.
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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,
Ex-choir director in Bucks County pleads no contest to molesting two students, secretly filming another
Dress to slay! These historically accurate Lorica medieval armour leggings are ready to take down the competition.

You may have seen armour leggings before, but these medieval armour leggings by Elena Hutchinson of Lorica Clothing focus on historical accuracy.

On her successful Kickstarter campaign, she explains that Lorica is the Latin term for body armour. In Christian monastic tradition, a lorica was a prayer of protection. Here at Mookychick, weve always believed your clothes can be your armour and these leggings take it to the next level.

These armour leggings are based on real medieval armour which is currently on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Ausberg Medieval Armour Leggings

The Augsberg leggings are inspired by German Gothic plate armour in the 15th century Roman Empire. The fluted metal was designed to deflect crushing blows.

Henry VIII Leggings

The Henry VIII leggings are based on the intricate armour worn by the king into battle in his later military campaigns.

Scudamore Leggings

The Scudamore leggings carry the design of field armour worn by Elizabethan courtier, solider and confirmed jouster Sir James Scudamore. The armour was designed by artist Jacob Halder who also kitted out Scudamore Senior.

Cleaning up the world, taking out the trash.

All these medieval armour leggings are soft, stretchy, moisture-wicking and, in the words of Lorica clothing, stank-free. It gets even better. As well as being 14% spandex, each pair of leggings contains 86% yarn recycled from plastic bottles (so thats about twenty bottles each). Its a dirty world we live in. Sometimes you gotta take the fight to where its needed.

Where to buy

The Lorica Leggings Kickstarter was successful, so these leggings are literally happening.

Lorica Clothings Elena Hutchinson has more plans for future clothing lines with historical accuracy and defiance at their core. Shes already got patterns for skater dresses with a bodice inspired by Henry VIIIs armour on the go. These will be heading into the battle training grounds soon, as they were dependent on a stretch goal which has already been met. Onwards, with valiant heart.

Now go forth and slay!

Photos credit: Lorica Clothing

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Due to anxiety I felt when thinking of joining an exercise facility again, I found myself sitting in the car at Phifer Wellness Center, stalling.

Years ago, I had belonged, and attended many classes in the pool for water aerobics with Pat. I tracked my progress with the weight machines, and had a routine going.

This time I looked for an experience of a different nature. I wanted to join a group called Silver Sneakers, in which older folks (mostly female) work in a group on gaining muscle, core strength, coordination, and balance,

I suppose I felt self-conscious because of how my bodys changed with 20 years with Parkinsons disease, and time away from Phifer for the last 14 years.. I felt the facility, and people who had stayed with it, unlike me, would be intimidating. My fear felt tangible and real to me in that moment.

Finally the warm inviting weather for February in Morganton, with the early blooms that appear this time of year, won me over. I focused on how much I really wanted to feel strong again with as much stamina as possible. I remembered how good it is feeling tired after using up stored energy in the muscles. I yearned for a good workout.

But, first I had to walk in the building.

After feeling for my water bottle and bag for the umpteenth time, to see if Id avoided locking my car keys in the car, I asked myself, what if I fell down in the middle of the carpeted workout area, or worse, fell off the weight machines, or got choked in the swimming pool like in the Valdese pool, when I tried out for their triathlon?

Finally I made a move, and stumbled though the door. I cranked my voice volume into the hearing range, when a very nice and friendly male staff pleasantly greeted me. He smiled through his explanations of how to fill in the expected forms and list of rules.

Then the real fun began: I heard familiar voices around me, exclaiming a noisy greeting. I looked up to see I was surrounded by friendly hugs and squeals from my smiling peers. There were names to relearn, faces to go with the appropriate bodies, but I felt immediately relieved of any dread or shame.

(Why cant we ever remember it will turn out this way before we walk in?)

One woman I talked to from Valdese explained how she decided to come to Phifer, even though she needs a walker and is in her eighties. Listening to her story made me feel proud to be in this brave group of seniors, who are working on maintaining strength and independence. I belonged, and I could breathe easier.

Next I paid attention to a hello from my new personal trainer who was going to meet with me privately. The onlookers assured me that I had been assigned to one of the good ones- a sweet woman named Sarah, who moved here from Arizona. Sarah walked me upstairs where I began to tell her about myself.

While filling out the forms, she gave me positive reactions to my body-fat ratio. She declared that I had kept my muscles, promising me more to come. I relished in the fact, that I still had muscles to bring into these new efforts. How affirming it is to receive pleasant, and positive feedback from the staff right from the beginning.

We warmed up for the class by going outside and walking rapidly twice around the building. It felt great that I could sort of keep up, and didnt fall. I was out of breath, walking back in just like everybody.

I was also introduced to the kettle weight, a heavy oval weight, swung up by a handle. Ill have to get a lot stronger to manage lifting it without straining. I have much to look forward to in this endeavor. I may try Yoga 1 and Water Mobility.

Phifer seems to me to have a good variety of services for people looking to improve their quality of life, even for us who have been around the track a few times.

Terri Robins is a member of the Morganton Writers' Group.
The youth of Waldensian Presbyterian Church in Valdese do their part every year to put a dent in childhood hunger worldwide.

Nine youths, ages 12-20, and three adults, including Jason Adams, director of Christian education, participated in the churchs annual 30-Hour Famine event on Friday, Feb. 24 and Saturday, Feb. 25, to coincide with the global event created by World Vision International to raise funds for and awareness of the thousands of children starving around the world. Adams said $1 feeds a child for a day.

World Vision International, described as an evangelical Christian humanitarian aid, development and advocacy organization founded to meet the emergency needs of missionaries, designed the program as a supplement to their efforts to get people to support individual children with a consistent supply of food. The purpose of the event is to open students eyes to the truth about global hunger and help them learn what God wants us all to do about it, according to www.30hourfamine.org.

The youth at WPC went for 30 hours with no food while they raised money for WVI. Adams, who has led church youth to celebrate the event annually for more than a decade, said they were allowed to drink beverages.

The idea is to really focus the kids on (the fact that) there are people who are having to move throughout their day with no food, and no plan as to how it comes to them, Adams said. I want them to get a small taste of what its like to go through that.

The youth sunk plastic spoons in the ground at the church to represent how many children would have died of starvation worldwide just during the church service.

Its actually gone way down since the 30-Hour Famine started, Adams said. Its about 8,000 kids a day.

He also stressed to the youth the importance of access to clean water with an activity where they divided into teams to hold out a gallon of water as long as they could.

Then we started talking about how there are places in the world where people have to carry their water for a long distance, what amounts to hours during the day, Adams said. And that water might be not even be clean.

The event includes a community service project each year. This year, Adams coordinated with the North Carolina Department of Transportation to have the youth complete a roadside cleanup on NC 181.

A lot of our kids love that area due to hiking and biking, so I thought we would help beautify that area in the county, Adams said.

Both last year and this year, the youth at WPC raised about $1,000 to send to WVI. Adams said it is a reputable organization to send donations to, since they have themselves audited each year. He said 80 percent of the funds WVI gets goes directly to feed children in need.

The group ends the fast each year with a celebration at a restaurant. At last years meal at El Paso restaurant, Adams hit home a final lesson on childhood hunger. After the youth ordered their food, he had servers bring each one a small bowl of rice.

Once everyone got their rice, I asked, What if you had to wait a few days to eat, and this is what you get?

WPC Pastor the Rev. Dr. Kevin Frederick said he appreciated the way the event inspires the churchs youth to look at something beyond themselves.

It helps to educate the youth about the needs that exist in the world that they would have no idea about otherwise, Frederick said. By focusing on that, theyre able to do something to address world hunger and have a mindfulness that the food we consume, or more likely throw away, is a commodity we should not waste or take for granted.

The next 30-Hour Famine worldwide event will take place on April 28-29. To learn more, visit www.30hourfamine.org.

Tammie Gercken can be reached at tgercken@morganton.com.
Somewhere deep in the dark recesses of our minds, we all know that our lives will most likely end one day. Along the way, we have these moments when things change the trajectory of our lives. It might be a crisis, a death, a near death, a deployment, an ending to a relationship, or  well you get the point. These transitional moments have a way of redirecting our lives.

When were more immature, we tend to think that our lives are completely in our own control. What isnt in our control we work our butts off to try and secure. When were more immature, strength is the greatest goal because it seems to our young selves to be the best way to secure our situations. Our youthful selves tend to be all full of bluster and energy, scripting for ourselves what we think we want (even though our brains arent fully formed until were around 26 or so). Some of us go through our whole lives trying to control our lives and the environments around us. For some, when their skin finally starts to sag and their hair turn gray, the fight lingers with hair dyes, plastic surgery, tanning booths, and angry raging against the plight of aging. To paraphrase Ecclesiastes: Its just vanity.

Last week on my radio show, I played a new song from The Cold War Kids called Love Is Mystical. At first I just thought it was more 20-something sense-making of love and relationships, but as I pulled the lyrics to talk about them, I realized something else was going on.

Living life with no need for the brakes / Something happens when I lean on my mistakes says the songs bridge. It isnt often that our mistakes are held up as something worth leaning on (though the President famously claims that hes never made mistakes). But people who are honest with themselves know that mistakes and regrets are just part of life. In fact, it seems to be the course of our natural lives that thats the only way we actually grow up.

It turns out that, according to NME, Nathan Willet of The Cold War Kids had been reading Falling Upward by a Franciscan priest named Richard Rohr. Its a book about how our mistakes and the falling of our lives opens up so many new possibilities to us and, in fact, lead us to insight. Willet said, It's about supernatural love  looking for inspiration and meaning, surrendering to feeling, love calling out your name; that journey we must go on to find it. That journey is how we grow and relax into our lives.

The chorus to the song, heard over and over, says, Love is mystical / Love will break the chains / You might feel invincible / And you might be afraid / Light in darkness will show you the way / Give you the power to believe again. This is not a failed attempt at making sense of romance, but a deep thought about what transforms our lives and the only real point of life  love. The trick to love for all of our striving and straining to be strong (invincible) is that love is so doggone vulnerable. And vulnerability is too doggone true to what we do to ourselves as well as what happens to us  mistakes and disasters happen and its really out of our control. The truth is that our striving to be in control is what prohibits our growing up, the strength that we think we possess is most often the surest sign of just how weak we really are.

On the other hand, surrendering to love that is mystical may the way to discovering just who we really are. Our ultimate growing up wont come from being super strong and invincible, but from laying aside all of the illusions we have about ourselves to embrace our truest, best selves.

Jonathan Henley is the host of Road Signs radio show, which airs Sunday nights from 10 p.m. to midnight on 1065 The End. Contact Henley via email at roadsigns@1065.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/roadsignsradio. Read past columns and join his blog at www.1065.com/onair/road-signs-51152/.
International Women's Day is a once-a-year acknowledgment of what women do every day of the year, which is to keep the world afloat with our labor  paid and unpaid.

March 8 fell on a Wednesday this year. Here in the U.S., some of the organizers of January's Women's March encouraged women to wear red and take to the streets again. In addition to protesting, we were to avoid shopping  except at female-owned businesses  and boycott our jobs to show the impact of "A Day Without a Woman."

An admirable cause, no question, but it's one that brings out the crankiness in me, I confess. One of the challenges of showing support for women in America is how to do this without excluding most of the women in America who need it most.

Many women who take care of patients, for example, couldn't take the day off without potentially harming those they've committed their lives to helping. My friend Amy Johnson responded to my post about this on Facebook, and she said it better than I ever could:

"I am a nurse in an OB/GYN office completely run by women. The only males are two of our physicians who are amazing advocates for women, having devoted their entire careers to their care. There can be no 'Day Without A Woman' day-off here because we would not be able to serve the 60 women we will see today for prenatal care and GYN-related issues like Pap tests, breast exams and STD treatment if there were. We will consider our work serving the healthcare needs of women to be our contribution to the cause  today and every day."

Women who take care of children, such as teachers and day care workers, very likely added an additional burden to the lives of other women who had to scramble to find alternative child care, often at extra cost, if they chose to boycott work. Some of these school communities reportedly organized volunteers for alternative child care, but I understand why some parents would balk. For 10 years, I was a single mother with a job and no family nearby. Safe, reliable child care was a constant source of stress and worry, but I would never have entrusted the care of my child to strangers. Now a seasoned grandmother, I know that for all of my outdated ways, I am still in sync with most of today's parents on that one.

Now let's consider hourly wage earners, who are the backbone and the beating heart of labor in this country. They cannot take off work without fear of losing their jobs. After years of interviewing such women and writing about their lives, I thought I understood the full burden of their work. It took only 10 minutes today in a national chain store to discover a new depth to my cluelessness.

I approached three different female employees to talk about Wednesday's protest, and each balked at the sight of my notebook. One of them told me, "I know you think you're helping, but if corporate finds out I talked to you without permission, I'm fired."

Think about that. They couldn't even describe what it means to be a woman right now without fear of reprisal from their bosses. Never have I felt more privileged for getting paid to say whatever's on my mind.

Also, let's keep this in mind: A high percentage of hourly wage labor is performed by women who are not white. Optics matter here. When public protests are populated by mostly white women who have control over their schedules and their lives, even the most honorable of causes can come off as a lucky hobby.

I have been thrilled by the throngs of women marching in the streets of America for the women of America. Makes me feel the weight of my years, in a good way.

But if there's one thing age hasn't cured in me, it's my impatience.

Let's figure out what comes next.

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), visit www.creators.com.
Sensationally Improved Brandon Curry Takes New Zealand Pro

Written by Peter McGough

11 March 2017

Red Hot Curry

Sensationally Improved Brandon Curry Takes New Zealand Pro

Well we can't say we were not warned. For the past month Brandon Curry has been posting shots showing his progress during his time being camped out at Bader Boodais Oxygen Gym in Kuwait. Like many who have gone there (Victor Martinez, Nathan De Ashe, Roelly Winklaar for starters) Brandons physique was completely revamped during his Kuwait experience. The gym is like a boot camp in which the trainees work to a strict schedule of eating, sleeping, training, with no social distractions. There is no magic water out there, its a case of trainees focusing totally on bodybuilding and peaking for a contest and nothing else.

The pay off to that work ethic formula laid down by Bader Boodai is that Brandon took a straight firsts victory at todays New Zealand Pro, held in the countrys largest city, Auckland.

Brandon is now so much fuller and thicker than weve never seen him to the point that in some shots he reminds one of the density of Bertil Fox. This is the best ever physique weve seen from Brandon who turned pro in 2010, and in the last seven years has had a bit of an up-and-down career. The peaks before today being victories at the 2013 Arnold Classic Brazil and the 2015 Toronto Pro. On the other hand he has double digit placings on his record and in his last two Olympias (2013 and 2015) finished out of the top 15. Based on this New Zealand showing those days are over, and he looms as a top ten Olympia candidate and perhaps top six if he improves even more.

In New Zealand he relegated Dallas McCarver (runner-up at last weeks Arnold Classic and pre-contest favorite for the Auckland bash) to second place. Dallas, still only 25, obviously tried to streamline his look from last week and it didn't work out; he now goes on to Australia next week to renew flexing hostilities with Brandon. In third was Juan More.

On a personal note I have always found Brandon to be one of the most likeable pros on the scene and he contradicts the stereotype of the driven bodybuilder who has no time for anyone else but himself, by the wonderful family life he enjoys with gorgeous wife Brandy (who competes as well) and their five children. All together now, Awwww!





Will Brandon be able to maintain, or improve, his form next week in Australia or will Dallas McCarver nail it for the Melbourne soiree. To find out stay tuned to musculardevelopment.com



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Sacramento, CA  Lawyers could get disciplined for having sex with their clients.

The new rules were passed by the State Bar of California Board of Trustees on Thursday as part of an overhaul of attorney conduct standards. Current state rules bar attorneys from coercing a client into sex or demanding sex in exchange for legal representation. The new rule bans sex all together between lawyers and clients. This would put California in line with more than a dozen other states that have a similar blanket sex ban.

Supporters argue the relationship between a lawyer and client is inherently unequal, so any sexual relationship is potentially coercive. But critics call the rules an unjustified invasion of privacy.

The new rule now heads to the California Supreme Court, which has the final say.
CA Controller Betty Yee Speaks In Sonora View Photos

Sacramento, CA  Californias $6.52 billion revenues for February did not meet the projections in Governor Jerry Browns proposed 201718 budget, according to the State Controllers office Betty Yee.

Januarys monthly cash flow report, which was released on Friday, showed the amount fell behind by $772.7 million, or 10.6 percent. Yee added that recent month-to-month fluctuations have not developed a clear pattern as Januarys revenues beat projections by 6.2 percent. She explained that the variance can often be as simple as one large payment due on the first of the month being recorded on the last day of the prior month.

Personal income taxes, corporation taxes, and retail sales and use taxes all fell short of Januarys revised budget estimates for February. However, the smallest of the three, corporation taxes, topped fiscal year-to-date projections in the proposed budget.

For the first eight months of the 2016-17 fiscal year that began in July, total revenues of $73.28 billion are $663.9 million below last summers budget estimates, and $888.1 million short of Januarys revised fiscal year-to-date predictions. Yee reports that the state ended February with unused borrowable resources of $27.44 billion, which was $3.27 billion more than predicted in the governors proposed budget.
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A group of retired U.S. Marines has begun a campaign to name a Navy warship in honor of Joseph Rosenthal, the former Chronicle photographer who took the famous picture of Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima in World War II.

Joe Rosenthal took one of the greatest photographs in history, and yet he has been bypassed by history, said Tom Graves, a member of the Marine Corps Correspondents Association who is spearheading the drive.

Graves and members of the Marines Memorial Association in San Francisco have an online petition  www.ussjoe.org. They have over 1,300 signatures and plan to get thousands more before submitting them to the Secretary of the Navy.

So far they have the support of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, and hundreds of Marines and veterans. Graves hopes to get the backing of many more political bodies, including the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

Rosenthal, then a civilian war correspondent working for the Associated Press, took the picture of the Marines raising the flag atop Suribachi mountain on Iwo Jima on Feb. 23, 1945.

The picture appeared in Sunday newspapers around the world a week later and became an instant classic. Its been reproduced on a poster for war bonds and on a postage stamp. It was recreated as a statue and is the centerpiece of the United States Marine Corps War Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia near Washington, D.C.

Rosenthals picture also became a symbol of the Marine Corps, particularly of the Marines bloody, five-week battle for Iwo Jima, a volcanic island of only 8 square miles. Iwo Jima is small, but controlling it was important since it is just over 600 miles from the Japanese home islands and within bombing range.

Two Marine divisions stormed the island in mid-February 1945 against fierce Japanese resistance. The Japanese had no hope of holding the island; instead they fought a holding action to the death. By the time the battle ended on March 26, only 216 Japanese soldiers out of a garrison of 21,000 survived. A total of 6,821 Americans died, including three of the Marines in Rosenthals picture.

Iwo Jima is in the fabric of the Marine Corps legacy more than any other battle, Marine Col. Thomas Prentice, commanding officer of the 23rd Marine Regiment, told a gathering to commemorate the battles 72nd anniversary this week at the Marines Memorial Club in San Francisco.

Prentice was not born when the Marines captured Iwo Jima, but eight veterans of the battle were on hand.

I celebrated my 21st birthday on Iwo, veteran Roy Earle said. I wasnt sure if Id have another birthday, much less to live to be 90. Hes 93, and flew from his home in Maine for the occasion.

Graves, a commercial photographer and historian, believes that Rosenthals picture shows the essence of the Iwo Jima battle. Naming a ship for Joe Rosenthal would also represent Iwo Jima, the Marines and the Pacific war, he said.

Rosenthal won a Pulitzer Prize for the photograph and after the war spent 35 years as a Chronicle staff photographer. He retired in 1981 and died in 2006.

Two other naval ships have been named for San Franciscans. The destroyer Callaghan was named for Adm. David Callaghan, a native of the city who was killed aboard the cruiser San Francisco in 1942. The fleet oiler Harvey Milk was named for the slain Navy veteran, city supervisor and gay rights leader in 2016.

Carl Nolte is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cnolte@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @carlnoltesf
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Its not quite St. Patricks Day, but that minor detail didnt stop San Francisco from celebrating the Irish holiday Saturday.

The 166th annual parade came about a week before the official Irish cultural celebration, through it carried as much fanfare as one would expect on the actual March 17 holiday.

A motorcade took off from Market and Second streets a half-hour before noon, leading the way for the green-kilted Irish Pipers Band to start the procession with drums and bagpipes.

Jenni ORourke of San Francisco was among the thousands of spectators, wearing a bright green wig, green clover pajama pants, a matching green shirt and a Guinness Beer top hat.

ORourke and her husband looked on at the floats as their daughters  ages 7, 5 and 3  scurried into the road to get candy that was thrown to spectators.

We love it. We come every year, said ORourke, 36. I grew up doing it with my mom, and we can pass it to our kids. Its so much fun, and we get to dress up.

Before the floats, cars and marching bands headed down Market Street, a festival had already begun at Civic Center. The road at Polk and Grove streets was closed off as a mini carnival for kids brought attractions like a tea cup ride, a cotton candy booth and a Scooby-Doo-themed bounce house.

A couple of dozen tents took over the front lawn of City Hall, offering everything from green masks and beads to beer-battered Irish fries and corned beef sandwiches.

The song American Idiot blasted through speakers on the lawn, a selection possibly chosen because the band who performs the tune is called Green Day.

Gregory Dobson, co-owner of the Rocklin-based cookie bar Fookie, sold fudge cookies at one tent as he wore a green shirt and a sash that said,  Kiss Me Im Irish.

Im so psyched. Im Irish, Dobson said. This is my holiday.

Right in front of City Hall, Andy Rod and his friend, Marie Brohmen, sat in green folding chairs as they awaited the floats. Rod, a 59-year-old native of San Francisco, said the parade had been a family tradition, even though hes not Irish.

More for you St. Paddy's Day parade reroutes traffic in downtown SF

Ive been coming to this since I was a little kid, said Rod, who came an hour early to get the spot. My father used to bring me to the parade. That was kind of like the most fun thing we could do.

His friend, Brohmen, however, was new to the parade and said she expected to have fun, despite her issues with the warm weather.

I dont do well in the sun, said Brohmen, 58. This white girl likes her shade.

St. Patricks Day was once a largely religious holiday, beginning as a Roman Catholic feast to honor the eponymous patron saint, who died March 17, 461. But stateside, the day has become more a celebration and reminder of Irish heritage.

Maureen Delapp, who came from Placerville (El Dorado County) for the parade with her fiance, said the event was a chance to share the culture.

Delapp, 47, said she grew up in an Irish family in Boston, where the parade was always an anticipated gathering for the citys large Irish population. Now, she said, she can feel that same camaraderie on the West Coast.

Coming to the parade brings back memories of childhood, Delapp said. Everyone laughs and jokes and wears their green and gets together.

Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno
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An armed woman barricaded herself inside a residential hotel in San Franciscos Mission District for seven hours Friday, before surrendering shortly after 9 p.m., police said.

Police had been talking to the woman for about 2 hours when she stepped into the hallway and was taken into custody, said Sgt. Michael Andraychak of the San Francisco Police Department. She was taken to a hospital for evaluation, he said.

The incident, which police said caused them to close busy Valencia Street and bring in a negotiating team, was reported just before 2 p.m. at the Crown Hotel at 528 Valencia Street, near the Mission District Police Station.

The standoff started inside the residential hotel when a person going door to door in the building doing pest control services was greeted by a woman with a gun, Andraychak said.

The victim, who was not identified, was able to escape unharmed, Andraychak said, but the armed woman then set up a barricade inside a room on the second floor. Police negotiators establish voice contact with her about 6:30, and by 8 p.m. officers were talking to her from the hallway in the hotel.

Andraychak would not identify the armed woman but said she was known to police.

Valencia Street was closed between 16th and 18th Streets as a SWAT team and negotiators were brought in to try to contact the barricaded woman, said Officer Robert Rueca, a spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department.

No shots were initially fired, Rueca said. Dozens of officers surrounded the area and later pushed the street closures back both east and west on 16th Street. People in surrounding buildings were ordered to shelter in place.

Rebecca Pierce, 27, who was dining at Thanh Tam Il Restaurant in the 500 block of Valencia Street across from the incident, said at first police told her and other patrons to stay inside the restaurant.

About half an hour later, police officers re-entered the restaurant to tell her to evacuate because the restaurant was in the line of fire, sending Pierce running toward 17th Street, she said.

The only time I really feared for my safety was when I had to enter the street unprotected, she said. Im shell shocked and still processing what happened, but Im doing OK.

No injuries were reported, and it wasnt immediately clear what caused the confrontation, Rueca said.

The Crown Hotel was acquired by the Tenderloin Housing Clinic in October and is part of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housings portfolio of buildings that provide transitional housing. Of the 55 units in the building, 30 are set aside for homeless veterans.

Tenderloin Housing Clinic Executive Director Randy Shaw said that the barricaded woman already resided in the hotel when his group took it over.

He called the long episode an enormous inconvenience for residents.

Michael Bodley and Filipa Ioannou are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: mbodley@sfchronicle.com and fioannou@Sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @michael_bodley and @obioannoukenobi
A senior citizen reportedly shot at two bouncers inside a Houston bar early Saturday, after a fight between them, according to police.

Houston police were called around 1:30 a.m. to Bar 1 on Old Spanish Trail, when a man got into a fight with two bouncers inside the bar. Witnesses told police the two bouncers were "savagely" attacking the old man, who then drew a gun and struck one of the bouncers.
GREENWICH  The Planning and Zoning Commission this week voted against an application to change town zoning regulations that could have affected the allowable sizes of homes in Greenwich neighborhoods.

Theresa Hatton, president of the Greenwich Association of Realtors, submitted the proposed amendment last August. Her changes would have altered how the floor area ratio (FAR) of a home is determined, allowing for more space to be omitted when making that calculation. The omissions would have allowed larger homes to meet floor-area limits when calculated in square feet.

Commission members said they felt the changes could have a negative impact on neighborhoods.

Per the town Plan of Conservation and Development, this is predominantly a residential community, Commission Chairman Richard Maitland said at the Planning meeting Tuesday. Naturally how we develop and redevelop and impact our neighbors is of paramount importance.

The proposed amendment would have changed when attics and basements counted as part of a houses square footage  potentially allowing those areas to become larger and allow more space in other floors of a house.

Currently, an attic that measures 40 percent of the floor below it is considered part of the total area of the home. The text amendment would have increased that to 50 percent.

At the larger size, proponents said, attics could be wider and serve a larger variety of uses. The attic dimensions could be taller and wider before they would be counted part of the square footage of the house.

A house could be bigger and taller and still fall within the regulations.

The proposal would allow for exceptions for uninhabitable attic space and space only accessible by pull-down stairs or a ceiling scuttle.

Similar changes would have been made to basement heights and floor area calculations.

Hatton requested the ceiling height limit for basements above the grade plane -- above ground level  be increased from 3 to 5 feet, changing what constitutes an above-ground story.

Basement floor area would be determined after deducting crawl spaces and designated space for parking, laundry and mechanical equipment. Similar to the attic calculation, a basement would not be counted in a homes square footage until it measured more than 50 percent of the floor above it.

Prospective builders or homeowners currently can seek variances from zoning officials if their plans do not comply to a neighborhoods zoned limits, but commissioners were wary of passing a blanket change to the rules.

One of the primary concerns, Planning and Zoning Director Katie DeLuca said, is that floor area could potentially be transferred from areas that would no longer count (basements and attics) as per the proposal, to the first and second floor of the home. Permitting more bulk is not one of the goals outlined in the POCD.

The Conservation Commission also had concerns about the proposed changes.

The proposal does not go far enough to protect the natural environment, Conservation Director Denise Savageau said in a letter encouraging the commission to deny the application.

Savageau included a report prepared by environmental analyst Aleksandra Moch detailing how grade plane regulations impact the environment.

The Commission said it wants to see more information on how the environment could be adversely affected around homes built by the proposed guidelines.

Although the application was denied, DeLuca said Thursday morning, the Commission directors were quick to point out that there were a lot of positive components.

The Commission has recommended Hatton make changes to the amendments language and consider resubmitting it.
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There's movement afoot to change public school finance, and Humble's State Rep. Dan Huberty is at the center of it.

Chair of the House Public Education Committee, Huberty has announced House Bill 21, which would put $1.6 billion into the system.

"We've never done this in the last 30 years, where we tried to change the school finance system without the court telling us to do so," Huberty said at a hearing March 7. "We've asked input; we invited people to come. We're talking about 5.3 million children, and we don't take that lightly."

The bill increases the basic allotment (a number used to calculate how much state funding districts receive) and simplifies transportation funding to allow charter and schools under recapture to receive funds.

It also provides funding to help districts educate students with dyslexia, but the bullet points that got the most attention at the March 7 public hearing would decrease the amount of money districts under recapture (also known as the Robin Hood system) pay to the state and repeal extra funding some school districts receive through a program called Additional State Aid for Tax Reduction, or ASATR.

ASATR is scheduled to expire this year, meaning the districts that rely on its funding, will lose that revenue if nothing is changed. Huberty's bill allows for $100 million in hardship assistance for two years for districts affected by the changes. Already, ASATR adds up to $200 million, which means all districts affected would not be fully funded. According to testimony March 7, 5 percent of Texas' districts would be negatively affected by the bill.

"We can't fix the entire school finance system this year, but we can start trying," Huberty said.

"I agree with you totally," added Rep. Ken King, R-Canadian, who sits on the education committee. "This is more than a great first step. I mean we took a giant leap in something I haven't seen before. It's not perfect, but that's why we come back next time."

Most who spoke at the hearing agreed.

Melanie Bush, president of the Conroe Independent School District board, said she sees a lot of positives in the bill. The district would receive a $3.7 million boost in 2018 and $3.87 million in 2019. However, its transportation budget would drop nearly $3 million, eating up most of the increased revenue.

Texas City ISD Superintendent Cynthia Lusignolo noted her district depends on both recapture funds and ASATR, which means it would take a double hit to state funding. It also recently took over La Marque ISD after it was shut down by the state.

"We have no way to generate the revenue," Lusignolo said. "There's no way for us to have prepared for the loss of ASATR  If ASATR dies, I see very difficult paths to success at Texas City ISD."

However, Lusignolo said industrial growth forecasted for the area would bring the district away from ASATR naturally in the next five or six years.

Houston Independent School District, too, has been struggling under the recapture system, trying to determine how to deal with $77 million owed to the state. In November, voters rejected a proposition to purchase attendance credits and pay off the bill, leaving the district with only one other option, cutting the district's lucrative commercial properties from the tax roll.

Mike Lunceford, Houston ISD trustee, hoped to see House Bill 21 expeditiously. Not only would the district's recapture payments be reduced, but Houston ISD would be eligible for transportation funding.

The district is bringing the issue back to voters again in May, and Lunceford was hopeful Huberty's legislation could make a difference.

"I can go to my constituents and say, 'You need to rethink this,'" Lunceford said. "Keep the property, pay the tax, and hopefully we can get a better funding system down the road."

Huberty pledged to make tweaks to the legislation and introduce a substitute this week.
Beaumont police officers arrested two car burglary suspects in the act on Friday night at a popular Mexican restaurant, BPD announced in a Facebook post.

Officers were called to the Lupe Tortilla restaurant at 2050 Interstate 10 around 9:10 p.m. by a concerned patron, the post said.
UPPER THUMB  A majority of residents in Huron County who are still experiencing power outage from this week's "tropical storm level winds" can expect their power to be restored by Sunday night, according to DTE Energy.

In the aftermath of Wednesday's windstorm, with gusts reaching as high as 60 miles per hour, nearly 800,000 people were left without power in the state of Michigan.

At its peak, about 1,900 residents in Huron County were still without power on Thursday. That number was cut in half to 950 reported on Friday, according to Carly Getz, spokesperson for DTE Energy.

"We're still hoping to have 90 percent of residents restored by Sunday evening," Getz told the Tribune.

As for the remaining 10 percent, an estimate is still unclear when power will be restored.

Crews have been working 16-hour shifts around the clock, Getz said, and additional crews were called from at least four surrounding states to assist. On Thursday, 4,000 power lines were reported down in the state, but as of Friday, that number has increased to 9,000.

"Because we've been having a warmer winter than normal, a lot of trees were uprooted and hit the power lines," Getz said.

For safety purposes, DTE is still advising customers to never drive, or approach, a downed power line. If a power line falls on your vehicle, remain inside until help arrives.

"We understand how frustrating it can be to not have power," Getz said. " ... We ask them (customers) to be patient and if they have friends or family members who are elder, be good neighbors and check on them every so often."

As of Friday, no injuries have been reported during the three-day span.
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Area fire departments parked outside Ware-Smith-Woolever Funeral Home to pay their respects to former Larkin Township Fire Chief Fritz Bobalek before his service on Friday.

Bobalek, 69, died on Monday of pancreatic cancer. He served in the U.S. Army for two years in Vietnam, worked for the Midland County Sheriffs Office for 29 years and spent 32 years with the Larkin Township Fire Department where he was fire chief for 10 of those years.
Tara Moore | Getty Images

From Denmark to Canada, countries around the world differ in what they offer employees. And some countries seem to have it a little better than others.

Scoring a 7.5 out of 10 on the employee happiness meter, Denmark takes the cake for one of the best countries to work in. On average, people work 37 hours a week and get 100 percent paid sick leave for 30 days out of the year.
Washington

After accusing German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the campaign trail of "ruining Germany" by welcoming refugees, President Donald Trump will have his first face-to-face meeting with the German leader at the White House on Tuesday.

The two were expected to discuss strengthening the NATO alliance, collaborating to fight terrorism and taking steps to resolve the conflict in Ukraine, White House officials said Friday.

Trump's first encounter will be aimed at building a personal rapport with a European partner who was among former President Barack Obama's strongest allies and international confidantes, according to the officials, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity despite the president's criticism of anonymous sources.

White House officials said Trump would press Germany to set an example on the need for NATO members to spend more on defense, which Germany has resisted.

White House officials said Trump was eager to hear Merkel's views on her interactions with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia. The two leaders may also discuss the Paris accord on climate change.
A man with Parkinson's disease went for a hike in some rugged terrain near the Texas-Mexican border near Bracketteville.

A few hours later he became lost.
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A man with a distinct neck tattoo wanted on several felony warrants and suspected in a string of restaurant robberies was arrested after a chase Friday afternoon on the Southeast Side.

Steven Joyner, 19, was apprehended on a warrant for aggravated robbery and could face more charges, Officer Douglas Greene, a San Antonio Police Department spokesman, said.

Hell, naw, man, Joyner said when asked by media if he admitted to the robbery as he was being led by police to a vehicle heading to jail from the police station at 555 Academic Court.

RELATED: Second Church's Chicken held up in past week by 'same guys

He then called for the freedom of his little brother in explicit language, adding that he loved his (woman), and that he was the realest 19 year old youre gonna know.

Greene said that Joyner was the passenger of a vehicle that police pulled over in the 4700 block of Pecan Valley.

He ran, but was caught 10 minutes later in the 3400 block of East Southcross Boulevard by officers with SAPDs Street Crimes unit and the U.S. Marshals Task Force, officials said.

Joyner is also facing charges of evading arrest and unlawful carrying of a weapon after a handgun was found after the chase, Greene said.

Joyner was the subject of a Crime Stoppers poster after he and an accomplice allegedly robbed a Churchs Chicken in February off 1313 S. W.W. White, police said.

RELATED: SAPD: Gunmen hold up Church's Chicken, flee scene in burgundy sedan

The same restaurant was robbed at gunpoint several times after by two masked men, police said.

A pretty distinct tattoo on Joyner's neck that says TAY helped police in receiving tips on his whereabouts, Greene said.

We took those leads as well (with) the surveillance footage that we have of Mr. Joyner and witness information ... to have warrants issued for his arrest, Greene said.

Joyner was also wanted on a warrant out of Guadalupe County, but details of the accusation were unavailable Friday night.

The driver of the vehicle pulled over by police is also being questioned and could face charges in the case.

jbeltran@express-news.net

Twitter: @JBfromSA
Two San Antonio-area districts were among three invalidated by a federal judicial panel in San Antonio late Friday.

In a 2-1 ruling, the panel concluded that race, instead of partisan advantage, drove the decisions by the Republican-controlled Legislature to redraw District 23, which is held by U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-San Antonio; District 35, which stretches from Austin to San Antonio and is held by Democrat U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, and District 27, which includes Nueces County.

The nearly 200-page ruling invalidates those districts, and could have a filter-down effect on nearby districts if the ruling stands. The case was filed six years ago by minority voters and civil-rights groups, among others.

Doggett, who won his 12th House term in November, congratulated the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) for pursuing the case and said he intends to file for re-election no matter what the courts ultimately rule.

The court has repudiated the Republican refusal to treat Hispanics fairly in accordance with the Voting Rights Act. It requires the creation of genuine Hispanic-influence districts, not crooked lines that are only designed to increase Republican domination. Everyone loses when Republican gerrymandering makes elected officials less accessible and less accountable, he said in a statement.

I will continue living on IH 35, determined to serve effectively all of my constituents from South San Antonio to North Austin, he added.

In examining Hurds district, the panel found that the state Legislature drew the district lines to manipulate Latino voter turnout, and in the process denied Latino voters equal opportunity and had the intent and effect of diluting Latino voter opportunity.

There was both discriminatory motive and improper use of race to achieve the desired goal, the ruling states in the portion looking at Hurds district.

Hurd responded defiantly, noting the success he, an African-American, has experienced in a minority district.

I represent a 70 percent Hispanic district that produced record turnout in 2016, voted for Hillary Clinton and against my Democratic opponent. I passed nine pieces of legislation signed into law last Congress, more than any other member in the country, he said in a statement.

The voters graded my paper and saw fit to vote me back in office. No matter the district lines, I will continue that hard work on behalf of all of my constituents, he said.

The ruling comes more than two years after a lengthy trial in August 2014. Writing for the majority were U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia, a Democrat appointed to the bench by President Clinton, and U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez, a Republican appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush. Rodriguez also served on the Texas Supreme Court, where former Gov. Rick Perry appointed him to replace Greg Abbott.

Justice Jerry Smith, a Republican appointed to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by President Reagan, filed a dissent that not only dissects the case, but also takes shots at the Justice Department, which intervened under the Obama administration and backed some of the plaintiffs'arguments.

And Smiths dissent notes this may not be the end of the case because Texas could appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which the state might try to convince to overturn the ruling, or to block it pending another court review.
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San Antonio transgender activist Lauryn Farris blasted WOAI-TVs Thursday night town hall special on Texas controversial bathroom bill as unbalanced and lacking satisfactory representation of the trans community.

It was a pep rally for those in favor of SB6, Farris, the Alamo Region coordinator for the Transgender Education Network of Texas, said Friday.

Farris, who attended the WOAI forum held in the Tobin Performing Arts Center Thursday evening, said she was particularly irked over the omission of a young transgender voice  or a parent of a trans student  as trans children and teens attending public schools would be among those most harmed by the bill.

Fifteen minutes into the event, Farris and a group of other SB6 opponents walked out, chanting trans rights are human rights.

Senate Bill 6 states transgender individuals must use public bathrooms that correspond to the gender on their birth certificates rather than their gender identities. Trans students in public schools and universities also would have to adhere to the bill, which recently advanced to the Texas Senate in Austin.

Opponents say its discriminatory, but those in favor of the bill defend it as a way to keep women safe by keeping men out of the ladies room.

The Your Voice,Your Future event was moderated by WOAI anchorman Randy Beamer. The first half-hour aired live from 6:30 to 7 p.m. on WOAI. The entire hour, which concluded at 7:30 p.m., could be accessed online on WOAIs website.

GLAAD, the media-monitoring organization which represents gay, bisexual and transgender people, followed up the walkout with a news release Friday. It also charged WOAI with presenting an unbalanced discussion, emphasizing the panels failure to include a trans student voice.

By failing to provide equal representation in the debate on Senate Bill 6  a measure that would openly discriminate against transgender Texans  WOAI and the Sinclair Broadcasting Group are blatantly ignoring the basic journalistic responsibility of fairness, Sarah Kate Ellis, President and CEO of GLAAD, stated in the release.

Amanda Emery, executive producer of news at WOAI and KABB, and Blaise Labbe, director of news for WOAI and KABB, countered that they did reach out to many in the trans community, including parents, but were unsuccessful in finding more to participate.

Besides, Emery said the event was designed to be about all aspects of SB6, not just a discussion about transgender youth. The economic impact, the religious impact, the psychological impact on both sides, and the transgender (community) was obviously part of that discussion as well, she said.

The final five-person panel included both proponents and opponents of the legislation. Those against the bill included Ramiro Cavazos, president of San Antonios Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Shaneka Calloway, a local therapist who often works with the LGBTQ community. On the pro side of SB 6 was Mike Knuffke of the San Antonio Family Association and Weston Martinez, a Republican activist.

The lone transgender voice was Kolby Balcom, a Navy veteran.

The back-and-forth among the speakers often became heated, and, by the end of the hour, it was clear that neither side had found much common ground.

Exasperated by the repeated assertion that the bill was designed to keep men out of womens restrooms, Balcom suggested what was really needed was a better understanding of trans people.

A transgender woman is not a man. You dont know who youre talking about, Balcom said. We shouldnt have a town hall; we should have a gender discussion 101.

jjakle@express-news.net
A 54-year-old Brownwood man was arrested Wednesday on three counts of possession of child pornography and may face up to 30 years in prison if convicted, a news release said Thursday.

Robert Odean Fry was taken into custody by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxtons Child Exploitation Unit. Fry could face up to 10 years in prison for each of the three charges he was arrested on, according to a news release.
The following list includes recent reports from the Midland County Sheriffs Office and the Midland Police Department.

Thursday, March 9

1:36 a.m.  A deputy assisted a Midland police officer with a traffic stop resulting in an arrest in the city.

1:47 a.m.  A motorist was arrested in the 3700 block of Bay City Road for drunken driving.

2:23 a.m.  Police investigated a home invasion that occurred in the 1500 block of Maryland Street.

2:55 a.m.  A Saginaw woman, 32, was cited in Midland for a restricted license violation.

5:06 a.m.  A Mount Pleasant woman, 39, was arrested in Greendale Township for driving while her license was suspended and on two warrants.

8:11 a.m.  A deputy removed a speed limit sign that was bent over and hanging in an Ingersoll Township roadway. The road commission was notified to replace the sign.

4:06 p.m.  A deputy was called to a Lee Township home after a 20-year-old man arrived and attempted to take a vehicle that did not belong to him. The man was arrested on a warrant.

5:33 p.m.  A deputy assisted Lee Township firefighters at the scene of a brush fire.

6:39 p.m.  Gasoline, valued at $10, was stolen from a Lincoln Township gas station.

8:57 p.m.  A Homer Township resident reported a vehicle sustained $400 damage due to being scratched while either parked at a Homer Township business or the Midland Mall.

Wednesday, March 8

12:05 a.m.  A motorist was arrested at Isabella and Smith streets for driving on a suspended license.

8:07 a.m.  Police assisted sheriffs deputies at North Saginaw and Stark roads.

9:24 a.m.  Property was stolen from the 3200 block of Spruce Street.

9:31 a.m.  A motorist was found to be driving without insurance after a traffic crash at East Lyon Road and Washington Street.

4:17 p.m.  Officers assisted probation agents in the 200 block of West Ellsworth Street.

5:41 p.m.  Police were called to a domestic assault at a Washington Street address.
For more than two years during World War II, Wallace B. Kirkpatrick was locked up in a German camp as a prisoner of war, but he didnt let that define his experience.

Returning home to marry and start a family, Kirkpatrick seldom spoke of the war.

We knew he was a POW, but thats about all we knew, his oldest daughter Melissa B. Kirkpatrick said. He didnt talk about at all.

A logistics specialist at Kelly AFB, Kirkpatrick lived a full life: worshiping in the Presbyterian church, teaching his children values to live by and nurturing his marriage.

He took responsibility for his part of the world, Melissa Kirkpatrick said.

Kirkpatrick died March 3 at 96.

Born on a farm near Reagan, Kirkpatrick moved to Port Arthur after graduating from high school, working at a radio station and studying radio telegraphy in preparation to join the Merchant Marines.

That changed after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.

Enlisting in the Army Air Forces immediately, Kirkpatrick tested well, so that made him officer material, his son James Kirkpatrick said.

Completing officer training at Nader AFB, Kirkpatrick was flying his third mission in the 306th Bombardment Group as the navigator on a B-17 Flying Fortress when his plane collided with another aircraft over France.

More Information Wallace B. Kirkpatrick Born: Jan. 19, 1921, Falls County Died: March 3, 2017, San Antonio Preceded by: Wife Mary Joe Bradley Kirkpatrick; parents George Lynn and Herman H. Kirkpatrick; a brother. Survived by: Daughters Melissa B. Kirkpatrick, Joe-Beth Kirkpatrick, Tara L. Kirkpatrick and son-in-law Tim D. McKee; son James B. Kirkpatrick and daughter-in-law Nan; six grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren. Services: Funeral was Friday. See More Collapse

Barely making it out of the plane, Kirkpatrick parachuted to safety, only to be captured by German forces and sent to Stalag Luft III in Poland.

It was there that he played a role in the preparation of an escape that would later be featured in the 1963 movie The Great Escape, disposing of the dirt produced from the tunnel being dug under the camp by hiding it in his trousers and letting it fall to the ground as he strolled the compound.

Kirkpatrick never participated in the escape as all American POWS had been moved to another camp by the time it occurred.

He was released in June 1945.

Returning to Texas, Kirkpatrick was living in San Antonio, where his mother lived, when he met his future wife. They married about six months later.

Kirkpatrick remained in the Air Force Reserves, working in the Civil Service at Fort Sam Houston and then Kelly AFB.

Recalled for duty during the Korean War, Kirkpatrick was stationed in France, accompanied by his wife and first daughter, overseeing a supply depot near Chataureux, France.

Returning to Kelly AFB after France, Kirkpatrick completed a 35-year career with the government, retiring in 1976.

As a father, Kirkpatrick was formidable, strict, but not mean, Melissa Kirkpatrick said. He had high expectations and he also wasnt one of these people who would tell you whats so; he wanted to argue it out  talk about it.

Admonishing his children to think when they were misbehaving, Kirkpatrick brooked no foolishness with us as children, his daughter Tara Kirkpatrick said. We had to think! Think it through.

A natural problem solver, Kirkpatrick was always fascinated by how things were built; airplanes, bridges, a house, daughter Joe-Beth Kirkpatrick said.

What he liked was making stuff work, Melissa Kirkpatrick said. And in the case of working in logistics, making the system work.

After their youngest child graduated from high school, Kirkpatrick and his wife moved to Bandera and became involved in the local senior center and other activities.

Quietly faithful, Kirkpatrick made sure his children attended church growing up and later helped to establish Pipe Creek Presbyterian Church.

It was always important to him that we attend, Melissa Kirkpatrick said. He would seldom  use that language of religion; it was his actions.

mheidbrink@express-news.net
The South By Southwest Conference & Festivals is an international convergence of top-shelf creatives.

Touted as a a premier destination for discovery, the gathering is a collection of entertainers and visionaries, merchants and developers brought together in a showcase celebrating what the world is doing and what its going to do next. It was developed as a venue so the rest of America and the world could see firsthand that creativity in the Lone Star State  and the Southwest  isnt limited to Texas blues, wildflower art and Native American-inspired jewelry. For 10 days Austin, our states progressive darling, is showing the out-of-towners how we do things in the Lone Star State.

The walk-up cost for the Platinum Pass, which allows participants into every event at the conference, is $1,650, although cheaper passes can be had for $1,325 at the door. Fat cats with better planning skills likely got theirs last summer for around $800. Thats without transportation and lodging, of course; such a convergence doesnt come cheap  or without political implications.

When a clause in the contract that the conferences handlers offered international participants danced a little too close to a threat of deportation, it wasnt surprising that the pre-SXSW hum of excitement was reduced to a cutting-edge gasp. Thing is, its often hard to make out the details above the roar of presumption.

Musician Felix Walworth canceled a performance by his band Told Slant after reading in his SXSW contract that performers visiting America to perform at the festival could be reported to immigration authorities if certain rules were broken. Among those rules, according to a part of the contract that Walworth tweeted, are limitations that prevent international performers holding nonwork visas allowing them to play at SXSW events from playing anywhere else during their stay.

SXSW Director Roland Swenson reportedly explained that the artist agreement outlined only what could happen, and that no artist had ever been deported.

But something that sounds like a threat of deportation? In Texas? Awkward.

Retweets and likes amassed. Lawmakers weighed in; U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro told the San Antonio Express-News that he hoped the festival cleared the issue soon; state Rep. Diego Bernal, according to the Rivard Report, withdrew from SXSW participation in a panel about the bathroom bill.

And because of the attention, SXSW organizers announced that in the spirit of keeping the gathering a safe space for all, going forward it would change the wording in the contract and remove any mention of deportation or immigration officials.

In this political climate, the organization posted on its website, especially as it relates to immigration, we recognize the heightened importance of standing together against injustice.

Thats how change happens: Someone speaks up, other someones vocally have their back, and, eventually, those someones are heard. It doesnt hurt if the other someones are politicians. Or participants spending thousands of dollars. Or sponsors of an event that draws participants with thousands of dollars to spend.

In between the latest shows, screenings, panel discussions and contests, the quick, clever, rich and accomplished might stay in the zone and shine a spotlight on the many sides of immigration that make the whole thing so complicated, as well as the other hot issues that keep people logged in and posting. Entertainers and communicators are key players in how we see ourselves and how we treat each other, and the power these creatives hold is massive.

Its not enough to say something is not a political gathering, because everything involving those who can change our lives is political. And its not as simple as a misunderstood contract, is it? Its been a big fight in America for centuries.

One could sell tickets  really expensive ones.

mariaanglin@yahoo.com
As many of us learned in elementary school, March 2, 1836, is Texas Independence Day.

Oddly, Texas is no longer independent since in 1845 (only a short nine years later), Anglo immigrant insurgents who illegally declared Texas independence from Mexico traded their independence to join the U.S. as a slave state.

And contrary to what we were taught in grade school about the 1836 Texas revolt, the independence journey began in 1810. As such, the birth of Texas independence undeniably comes with a Spanish-Mexican pedigree. Yet the struggle for libertys formula leaves this out and is typically ignored in mainstream Texas history.

Sadly, much more of U.S. (and Texas) history is left out of textbooks. For example, at the national level, both Roanoke and Jamestown, representing the earliest English settlements in what is now the United States, already had Spanish footprints.

Likewise, in Texas, most people dont realize that Sam Houstons endeavors for Texas independence took over a work in progress. Tejanas and Tejanos had already done the heavy lifting, sacrificing and dying for Texas independence. For example, on April 6, 1813, Texas first president, Jose Bernardo Gutierrez de Lara, proclaimed the first Texas Declaration of Independence to jubilant Bexarenos outside the Spanish Governors Palace. He signed the first Texas Constitution a week later.

As such, the significance of March 2 Texas Independence is  at best  only an episode in a much older chain of events.

The fact is that in rendering overall U.S. history, the roles of Spanish people, places and events, when mentioned at all, are typically distorted, discarded or dismissed.

So, it is with Francisco Vasquez de Coronado (1510-54), a strong courageous leader who figures prominently in the early history of both Texas and the United States. Still, he is often mocked in U.S. history books for what mainstream historians perceive as an outlandish quest, searching for the mythical city of Quivira.

Likewise, students in U.S. classrooms learn about the Spaniards lust for gold, search for imaginary places and brutality toward Native Americans. Rarely are they tutored about Spanish explorers positive impact in U.S. history.

Based on slanted lesson plans, students are most likely to recall unflattering details, not positive attributes. In fact, the English, Dutch, French and U.S. colonists own a significant share of brutal treatment toward Native Americans.

The fact that Spanish royal and religious leaders forbade ill treatment of indigenous people is well documented. They labored endlessly in attempts to avoid it but were generally hampered by the great distance involved. Many of the more ignoble violators of human rights were arrested, charged with crimes and fairly punished in Spanish courts.

So, a summary of the life of Vasquez de Coronado is in order. To start, heres a little-known aspect of his story: Throughout his life, Francisco never used the last name of Coronado by itself. He used one of two last names, Vasquez or Vasquez de Coronado.

Vasquez de Coronado developed the first detailed exploration reports and the first glimpse of the people, vegetation and terrain of the Southwest (New Mexico), the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas. Attesting to their accuracy, his travel logs were used for years as authoritative documents for later explorers and settlers.

As with other explorers of his day, Vasquez de Coronado was fascinated by a prevailing myth of a mysterious island called Antilia, far into the Atlantic Ocean. Ancient maps even included the site. Supposedly, the Muslim invasion of Spain had caused seven Portuguese bishops to load all they owned in boats, and they sailed off and resettled far away in the sea. As such, when Columbus reached Espanola in 1492, European experts believed he had reached the Island of Antilia, and so named the group of islands. That name  the Antilles  remains to this day.

Most, if not all, 15th-century Europeans believed in the Antilia legend and the Strait of Anian, along with other legends. When famous explorer John Cabot first landed on the upper eastern shore of America, sailing for the king of England, he named the land Seven Cities. He believed he had found Antilia.

In initiating his 1539-40 journey, Vasquez de Coronado, governor of Nueva Galicia, was also hoping to equal the good fortunes of Hernan Cortes and Francisco Pizarro by finding another Aztec empire in the north. After dispatching forward parties, the explorer was encouraged by promising reports. He split up his large expedition, totaling nearly 400 military men, families, more than 2,000 Native American allies, and large herds of horses, cattle and sheep.

This is verified as the first massive movement of Europeans into New Mexico. At times, contact with hostile natives was vicious. Even so, Capt. Garcia Lopez de Cardenas, leading one of Vasquez de Coronados subgroups, was among the first Europeans to see the Grand Canyon.

In 1541, the Spanish traveled through a grassy area they equated with a never-ending sea (Llano Estacado) in northern New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle. Of special note to Texans is the fact that on May 29, 1541, Father Juan Padilla, a priest in the Vasquez de Coronado expedition, offered the first American Thanksgiving Day religious ceremony in the Palo Duro Canyon in the Texas Panhandle. A historical plaque identifies the site.

Although Vasquez de Coronado and Hernando de Soto visited the same region at the same time in Kansas and Arkansas, they missed each other by about 300 miles. Three intrepid Spanish explorers were the first Europeans to travel in todays middle United States  Vasquez de Coronado, de Soto and Juan de Onate. Thrown from his horse in 1542, Vasquez de Coronado was greatly limited by his injuries. He returned to Mexico City where his health worsened.

Francisco Vasquez de Coronado died in 1554 at the young age of 44.

Most explorers in America seem to have Spanish rather than English names. When you understand this, you understand that they have earned their place in history. The strong foundation of the authentic story of the U.S. rests on logs and cartography prepared by Spaniards Alonso Alvarez de Pineda, Esteban Gomez, Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon, Pedro de Salazar, Fortun Jimenez, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, Bartolome Ferrer and so many others.

They merit but rarely receive their fair share of recognition, respect and equal treatment with Anglo Saxon characters in U.S. history books.

Its time to render U.S. and Texas history in a seamless manner. Mainstream U.S. historians must learn to enfold vital Spanish contributions to our nations founding. In Texas, pre-1836 Spanish-Mexican people, places and events must no longer be arbitrarily edited out of Texas history just because they dont fit the Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston models.

Likewise, the Texas State Board of Education must stop using 1836 as the Texas history baseline.

Finally, if you want to learn more of the Spanish-Mexican pioneers who founded this great place we call Texas, plan to attend the 38th Texas State Hispanic Genealogical and Historical Conference, Sept. 28-30, sponsored by the Tejano Genealogy Society of Austin, at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Austin.

Jose Joe Antonio Lopez was born and raised in Laredo and is a U.S. Air Force veteran. He lives in Universal City and is the author of four books. His latest is Preserving Early Texas History (Essays of an Eighth-Generation South Texan). This article was first published by the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service.
The suburban city of Converse has emerged as the big winner in its pending annexation agreement with the city of San Antonio.

Converse stands to gain millions in revenue from the agreement as it triples in area over the next 17 years. The San Antonio City Council recently approved the annexation agreement, and the Converse City Council will take up the matter later this month. There are many good reasons to approve this plan.

Converse, on the Northeast Side, has a population of about 22,000 residents spread over an area of about 7 square miles. But that would change if the agreement is formalized. Converse would roughly triple in size to 22 square miles as it adds 46,600 new residents over the next 17 years.

Thats thousands of rooftops. With this growth will come 85 more police officers, 57 more firefighters, two new fire stations and a police substation. This is according to projections for the annexation agreement.

On top of this, Converse will gain about $8.6 million in revenue over those 17 years. This is because Converse will be annexing key commercial corridors along Loop 1604, I-10 and other areas prime for new construction. Converse gets to better control growth, and expand and improve services without raising taxes, and comes out financially ahead by millions of dollars.

Thats quite a trifecta for a suburban city.

But there is more. Converse will also be doing some powerful social good as the annexation includes the neighborhoods of Camelot II and the Glen. The two neighborhoods in unincorporated Bexar County have long lacked appropriate services and been plagued with trash and blight issues. But a trash service pilot program in the Camelot II area between the city of San Antonio and Bexar County has been remarkably effective, cleaning up streets and alleys and dramatically improving the quality of life.

The city of San Antonio has said it will continue to provide this trash service until Camelot II is annexed. But in a new development, San Antonio also will extend the trash service to the Glen until annexation takes effect.

That means further stabilizing these neighborhoods before they come under Converses control. Thats an obvious net benefit to Converse  at no cost.

Why annex these neighborhoods? On the practical side, San Antonio would never give up prime commercial and residential turf, millions in revenue, to Converse without including these neighborhoods in the annexation agreement. Thats just reality. But another reality is that what happens in Camelot II and the Glen already affects Converse. Problems in these neighborhoods spill over city limits.

Annexation empowers Converse to address these issues through code enforcement, community investment and quicker response times for public safety.

The agreement is also interesting because about 1,200 homes in the Northampton subdivision will switch from San Antonio to Converse. This is just a small part of the agreement, but it reflects a certain regional wisdom. Converse was already providing Northampton with emergency services, a reminder that Converse is simply better equipped to serve this part of our community than San Antonio.

We strongly recommend Converse City Council approve this annexation plan. Mayor Al Suarez and Converse staff have shown remarkable leadership. This agreement serves Converse, first and foremost, but also the region. Its yet another reminder that we are a metro area with many distinct municipalities and needs, but we are also one community.
Love the insights of your famed syndicated political cartoonist Michael Ramirez.

Thanks for carrying him!

Julie Norton-Keidel

Moral equivalent

The mandate to buy health care insurance seems to be a major sticking point for Republicans. But we have a similar mandate with automobile insurance. One cannot own and operate a vehicle without insurance, subject to a substantial fine.

This is to protect property in case of an accident due to negligence or carelessness. Buyers, lenders and the innocent are protected. Perhaps driving is a privilege, not a right. But those who believe owning a vehicle is not necessary to the well-being of many people are fooling themselves.

If the government can mandate car insurance for protection, health insurance mandates also make sense. We are contributing to society by accepting responsibility for our property. If we require it for property  our vehicles  it seems that requiring it to protect our own welfare is at least a moral equivalent. It is common sense.

Jerry Kempe, New Braunfels

Free speech

Re: Fliers announcing Trinity visit by conservative author defaced, Metro, Feb. 28:

The article describing how students reacted to receiving fliers publicizing the Dinesh DSouza lecture is an example of the alt-right manipulation of facts.

The student responses to the distribution of fliers was an exercise in free speech. The fliers were not defaced; they were simply used as a means for response. Where was the intimidation?

Joel Last

New recession

Another campaign promise, this one to reduce the national debt, has gone by the wayside, thanks to our so-called president.

He is proposing a huge increase to the more than $600 billion defense budget that already has had little accountability. He is willing to waste $25 billion on an unpopular and unnecessary wall and, of course, he favors huge tax breaks that mostly benefit millionaires, while increasing the deficit. Cuts in Medicare will hurt many of the poor when they lose their health care coverage. Cuts in the EPA may save a little but by dumping waste into our rivers, oceans and air, will create an environmental disaster for generations.

Most can agree with economists that this proposal, like those in the previous Republican administration, will certainly create another recession. More spending with less revenues equals a recession, with more misery for more people.

Adam Castillo

Term explained

Re: Truth or dare, Opinion, Feb 26:

The reader who equates the term alternative facts with lies should consider the more likely possibility that Kellyanne Conways use of the term was referring to the fact that data from credible sources disputed the view expressed in the media that the viewership numbers for Donald Trumps inauguration were much less than those for Barack Obamas. The media spin and this readers use of the phrase alternative fact when referring to Gen. Michael Flynn continues to perpetuate the erroneous notion that this phrase is synonymous with lies.

In the case of Gen. Flynn, his comments were not alternative facts but more likely lies. Alternative points of view, based on alternative factual data sources, can often result in alternative conclusions resulting in alternative opinions that are neither fact nor lie. If Ms. Conway had used the phrase alternative data, would the media and this reader immediately equate this phrase with lies without first determining the source(s), quality and veracity of the data?

Clearly, this is an ethical approach to evaluating the alternative or actual facts reported or pronounced by the media or any individual.

Frank Wians, Helotes

Kudos to Huberty

Re: House ed panel chairman declares vouchers dead, front page, March 1:

Texas House Education Chairman Dan Huberty, R-Houston, has nixed controversial school voucher legislation. This is a step in the right direction for the education of our children. Equitable funding for public education has been a challenge for decades, the Legislature unable to resolve the issue.

Undercutting monies for our districts further hamstrings the efforts of our dedicated teachers. And lets not forget that charters and alternative schools, the intended recipients of vouchers, are not held to the same accountability standards as our public schools.

Kudos to Mr. Huberty for his stance on this matter.

Rick Rodriguez

Refuge for whom?

If you want to make our city  or any city  a sanctuary city, then we should reduce some of our property taxes because we would probably have to help fund some of those who, unfortunately, have come to our city illegally!

The relief would come in especially handy for some of our senior citizens who have not had any children in a public school system for years and have to pay the highest part of their taxes to the school systems!

Also, again the word is illegal, and the word basically means that they have broken the law.

James Carl Collazo

Free market

Re: Getting your wish, Your Turn, March 1:

I had to laugh at this letter, in which the author assumes the constituents getting rowdy at town halls are disgruntled Republicans afraid of losing Obamacare. I dont know if its naivete or not, but news flash, these are Democrats causing all the ruckus, not Republicans. Being a constituent means eligible voters living in that district. I imagine several of these belly-achers are professional protesters the party or some other left- wing group funded.

The ACA is awful legislation, authored by awful people and shoved down our throats on a pure party line by an awful party. And signed into law by an awful president. The sooner it is repealed and replaced the better. Let the free market do what it does best.

Gene Peterson
FORMER finance minister Ignatius Chombo, currently in remand prison and facing a litany of corruption charges, is reportedly under investigation over the unprocedural construction of a business complex which accommodates CBZ Bank in Pomona, the Airport Road scandal and corruption involving land among other allegations, the Zimbabwe Independent has learnt.

Sources said the Central Intelligence Organisation, which compiled many reports on Chombos alleged corruption, had forwarded the documents to police for investigation.

Chombo was arrested last week after being dumped at his house by the military which seized him as part of Operation Restore Legacy which saw soldiers storming some ministers houses and confining former President Robert Mugabe to his Blue Roof house.

He has appeared in court twice facing corruption charges and has been remanded in custody to December 8.

Sources said the police were investigating various allegations laid against Chombo over the years including those which the authorities deliberately turned a blind eye to, because of his close relations with Mugabe.

At one time a dossier was prepared to and handed to Mugabe by the CIO for actioning but instead the president went on to appoint Chombo as Home Affairs minister. This was seen as a clear message that he was untouchable.

During the inclusive government era, former Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, also urged Mugabe to allow Chombo to be investigated for corruption allegations but Mugabe declined.

Investigations during the inclusive government era into the US$80 million Airport Road construction saga, Harare city councillors uncovered evidence that a controversial Estonian company, Augur, was being used as a conduit to fleece the municipality of millions of dollars and vast tracts of prime land.

Chombo, senior council employees and a caretaker commission which ran council affairs in 2008 were implicated. Copies of the council report compiled after the investigation were sent to Tsvangirai and parliament for further investigation. Council also threatened to approach the Anti-Corruption Commission and police.

The case against Chombo was strengthened when investigations revealed that a company owned by Chombo, Harvest Net Investments, shared the same address as Augur at 62 Quorn Avenue, Mt Pleasant, Harare.

The Airport Road deal was signed in 2008 and the project should have been completed in 2010 but missed targets due to abuse of funds. The project was eventually completed in 2014.

Chombo is also accused of fraudulently acquiring stand number 61 of Helensvale (also known as stand 61 of Glenlorne) which measures 193 716 square metres and another piece of council land, subdivision K of Nthaba, which he sold to a third party without paying for it.

Documents seen by this newspaper show that stand 61 was reserved for recreational purposes and it was not supposed to be sold by the city council.

On October 4 1990 a full council meeting resolved to subdivide stand 61 and sell it to people on the housing waiting list as serviced stands, reads part of the document.

In June 1994 the decision to subdivide the stand 61 of Helensvale was rescinded after objection from the residents of Budleigh Park, reads part of the report presented to the Serious Fraud division of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) under case number IR 0407725 by the then acting mayor Charity Bango.

The documents also show that several applications by companies and individuals who wanted to buy the land were turned down, citing the resolution of the council pertaining to the use of that particular piece of land.

Apart from Airport Road, other projects under Augur included the Pomona Business Complex and Bluffhill Development which, according to the Harare City Council, were approved in violation of the Regional Town and Country Planning Act of 1996.

It has now emerged that the City of Harares Highlands District Office had in 2012 called for an investigation into the construction of a multi-million-dollar commercial business complex in Pomona.

According to a letter to the urban planning director Psychology Chiwanga by the Highlands District Office on April 26 2012, Chombo gave the go-ahead for the complex to be built without council approval.

In the letter, the district manager said the construction of the business complex was not above board.

Subsequent to a site visit made on 23/03/2012, a recent follow-up site visit on the 17th of April 2012 revealed that the Chinese developers are constructing a commercial building which I am informed accommodates CBZ Bank, etc, on a stand zoned residential according to Borrowdale Local Development Plan Number 32, reads part of the letter.

In another case, ER-09/2011, Chombo is said to have sold council land to a third party without paying for it.

Documents reveal that on June 25 2004 the secretary for the Ministry of Local Government and National Housing, only identified as Simon Pazvakawambwa, wrote to the city valuer and estates manager, identified as Fransisco, requesting that subdivision K of Nthaba Glenlorne be transferred to Chombo.

The above stand was allocated to Dr. I.M.C Chombo in 1995, reads part of the letter dated June 25 2004.

On September 19 2005, Pazvakawambwa wrote another later to the city valuer giving details to effect the land transfer however contrary to his earlier letter where he alleged the land was allocated to Chombo in 1995 he stated that the land was bought for Z$6301 on January 1 1997.

After acquiring the land, Chombo went on to sell the stand to Alois Ndziva Chimeri on September 5 2003 for Z$250 000 000 and the purchase price was paid in full.

Questions have also been raised over Chombos wealth. In their divorce papers, Marian claimed she and Chombo owned businesses, farms, homes and residential stands in Harares leafy suburbs of Mt Pleasant, Alexandra Park, Greendale, Borrowdale and other towns around the country, luxury cars and vast tracts of land.

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By Wolf Richter, a San Francisco based executive, entrepreneur, start up specialist, and author, with extensive international work experience. Originally published at Wolf Street

One of the hardest things to do is to shrink your way to profitability.

Let me say this upfront: When an at-risk too-big-to-fail bank raises fresh capital from investors, its a great thing for affected taxpayers. When push comes to shove, every dollar thus extracted from investors lowers the burden on taxpayers.

Since the Financial Crisis, Deutsche Bank has been raising capital in large waves  $20 billion so far. And now, its new efforts to raise another $8.5 billion by selling shares would bring the total to $28.5 billion, and it would nicely dilute existing shareholders further, and it would be a great thing for affected taxpayers.

Not that taxpayers would be off the hook: The assets on Deutsche Banks opaque balance sheet equal 58% of Germanys GDP. That $8.5 billion in new capital would nevertheless lower both the risks for affected taxpayers. So Im all for it. But I just love the way theyre going about doing it.

So Deutsche Bank CEO John Cryan came out this week to persuade existing shareholders (not taxpayers) that diluting their stakes by selling $8.5 billion of new shares would be a good thing for them. If they wanted to maintain their stakes, they could buy into the offer. He supported this with a new emergency turnaround plan. No one can remember how many emergency turnaround plans Deutsche Bank has been trotting out over the years.

The new plan calls for boosting the retail business in Germany, and so it abandoned old plans to sell Postbank. Its going to compete with largely state-owned cooperative banks. Its going to be just as tough as it was before it had decided in one of its prior turnaround plans to cut its exposure to the German retail business. And it wants to strengthen its global investment bank, after it had decided to shrink it in one of the prior plans.

The capital raising buys them time, Moodys Peter Nerby told Reuters. You can go along their plan point by point and the main thing you can tick off is capital and derisking. One of the hardest things to do is to shrink your way to profitability.

But maybe because throwing more money at it is better than losing what they have already sunk into it, Deutsche Banks three largest investors who together own nearly 20%  a group of Qatari funds controlled by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, US fund manager Blackrock, and Chinas HNA Group  are likely to back the capital hike, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

One of the other options would be that Deutsche Bank might not make it, and their existing equity stakes would dissolve in financial smoke.

The Qatari funds, which own nearly 10%, have been on board with a capital raise since October last year and had expressed their willingness to buy more shares to protect their stake if the bank were to raise more capital. Today Reuters reported:

That stance has not changed since, and an official in Sheikh Hamads office confirmed that the former prime minister had met with Deutsche Bank in recent weeks, but declined to comment.

Blackrock, which owns nearly 6% of Deutsche Bank in its funds, is, according to Reuters likely to take up its rights, partly because many of its funds are bound to do so because of the lenders stock market weighting.

HNA Group, a conglomerate with big interests in airlines and a passion for global acquisitions, owns 3% of Deutsche Bank and is also willing to buy more shares to protect its stake from dilution, a person familiar with its thinking told Reuters.

All this is somewhat ironic. On September 26, 2016, when Deutsche Bank shares were threatening to drop into the single digits, it denied rumors that it would sell shares and dilute the already beaten-up shareholders further. That question is currently not on the agenda, it said at the time.

But the world changes in five months. Full-fledged support from the ECB, jawboning from the German government, and the Qatari funds much hyped willingness to buy more shares helped. Wall Street was looking for a buying opportunity. And of course the outgoing US administration desperately wanted to settle the residential-mortgage-backed-securities case. The Department of Justice had initially asked for $14 billion in fines, but then in the last days of its reign gave Deutsche Bank a huge incentive and finally settled for about half, $7.2 billion.

All these efforts in unison bore fruit. Its shares have since soared 75% to 17.94 and its infamous CoCo bonds  contingent convertible perpetual bonds that are designed to be bailed in in case of trouble before taxpayers get to foot the bill  have regained life, with the 6% bonds jumping 30% to 95.22 cents on the euro. And the support from the Big Three shareholders has pumped up shares 2.6% today. If they had turned their backs, no telling what would have happened. Thats why they practically have to tag along  just to protect their investments.

When prices are high (or at least off the floor), thats the time to sell shares, raise capital, and dilute shareholders, as it had done before in 2010 and 2014, only to see its shares fall afterwards all over again to ever lower lows as the nagging details of reality kept catching up with it.

So how long before the stock market hits the wall? Read This is Worse than Before the Last Three Crashes
By John Helmer, the longest continuously serving foreign correspondent in Russia, and the only western journalist to direct his own bureau independent of single national or commercial ties. Helmer has also been a professor of political science, and an advisor to government heads in Greece, the United States, and Asia. He is the first and only member of a US presidential administration (Jimmy Carter) to establish himself in Russia. Originally published at Dances with Bears

The Australian Government refuses to declare the destruction of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 a terrorist act, and is withholding state payments of $75,000 to each of the families of the 38 Australian nationals or residents killed when the plane was shot down in eastern Ukraine on July 14, 2014.

The Australian Attorney-General, George Brandis, has written to advise Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull (lead image, left; right image, Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko) there is insufficient evidence of what and who caused the MH17 crash to meet the Australian statutory test of a terrorist act. Because the Attorney-Generals legal opinion flatly contradicts Turnbulls public opinions, Brandiss advice is top-secret; he refuses to answer questions about the analysis of the MH17 incident which he and his subordinates, along with Australian intelligence agencies and the Australian Federal Police, have been conducting for more than two years.

In public Turnbull said on Monday: Vladimir Putins Russia is subject to international sanctions, to which Australia is a part, because of his conduct in shooting down the MH17 airliner in which 38 Australians were killed. Lets not forget that. That was a shocking international crime.

On Wednesday Turnbull was asked to explain why, after so long, the Prime Minister, on the advice of the Attorney-General, refuses to designate the MH17 incident as criminal terrorism according to the provisions of the Supporting Australian Victims of Terrorism Overseas Act. Turnbull replied through a spokesman that he is still investigating. The criminal investigation of MH17 is ongoing. The outcomes of this investigation could be relevant in determining whether this incident should be declared for the purposes of the Australian Victims of Terrorism Overseas Payment scheme.

Brandis was asked to explain the reason for the legal opinion Canberra sources confirm he has sent to the prime ministry denying the MH17 incident was terrorism. That he has provided the advice on AVTOP is confirmed by a source in Turnbulls office.

AVTOP is the Canberra acronym for Australian Victims of Terrorism Overseas Payment. This is how the AVTOP scheme operates, and how eligibility is decided, according to the Australian social security ministry. It records that the last terrorism incident for which Australians qualify for AVTOP compensation was the Westgate shopping mall killings in Nairobi on September 21, 2013. There were 67 fatal casualties in that incident, and more than double that number of wounded. One Australian was killed. On October 6, 2013, two weeks after the incident, the Australian prime minister issued a formal designation of the terrorist incident for AVTOP compensation. That commenced on October 21, one month after the incident, according to the statutory filing in the Australian parliament.



Source: https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2013L01799/Explanatory%20Statement/Text

The prime minister then was Tony Abbott; his attorney-general was Eric Abetz.

In March 2016 Turnbull had replaced Abbott as prime minister; the attorney-general was Brandis. They agreed to designate three bombing attacks in Brussels, at the airport and at a city train station, as terrorist incidents for AVTOP. The date of the incidents was March 22 (pictured below). The date of the Turnbull-Landis designation was May 6  45 days later.

There are press reports that Australians were in Brussels, and were anxious; there are no reports of Australians being killed or wounded in the attacks.

Why were successive Australian officials so quick to designate the Nairobi and Brussels incidents as terrorism, before the local police and courts had time to investigate and prosecute, and why have the Australian officials spent two years and eight months refusing to designate the Ukrainian incident? Canberra sources believe the answer is that there is no legal basis in the Australian Criminal Code for doing so because the evidence of terrorism in the MH17 case isnt there.

The 2013 and 2016 designations, along with the Canberra sources, identify a terrorist incident according to the Australian Criminal Code. Officials working under Brandis and Turnbull must satisfy the Attorney-General and Prime Minister that the incident comes under the Codes sub-section 100.1(1). This says a terrorist act means an action or threat of action where: (b) the action is done or the threat is made with the intention of advancing a political, religious or ideological cause; and (c) the action is done or the threat is made with the intention of: (i) coercing, or influencing by intimidation, the government of the Commonwealth or a State, Territory or foreign country, or of part of a State, Territory or foreign country; or (ii) intimidating the public or a section of the public.

For background on the debate among government officials, police and lawyers about the impact of Australian law on the MH17 incident, read this.

Canberra sources explain that even if Brandis had told Turnbull there was enough evidence to certify the MH17 shoot-down as a terrorist incident, according to the criminal code provisions, the prime minister still has a broad discretion in deciding whether or not to make a declaration regarding a particular incident.

That Turnbull hasnt done so for the MH17 carnage means he doesnt want to do so  and not only because of his attorney-generals advice. Turnbull was also behind press leaks that as a cabinet minister under Prime Minister Abbott in August 2014, he opposed a scheme of Abbotts to send 3,000 Australian troops to join Dutch and other NATO forces in a US-backed military operation in eastern Ukraine. Abbott and NATO had prepared the justification for the military operation as Russian state terrorism in downing the MH17. Turnbull arranged for his son-in-law to reveal the cabinet papers and intelligence reports from the time, and to record his assessment that Abbott was foolhardy. For that story, click here.

Australian sources who know Turnbull dont agree in their interpretation of what he is now saying and doing. Some sources believe that with his political mouth Turnbull is backing the US position against Russia and protecting himself from opposition party attacks that he is soft on the Kremlin. With his legal mind Turnbull knows there is no admissible evidence and no prospect of prosecuting terrorism in the MH17 case.

The Australians havent realized that their decision that the MH17 is not a terrorist act undermines this months proceedings in The Netherlands, where the Ukrainian government has applied to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to convict Russia of financing, arming and aiding terrorist acts, including the destruction of MH17. The lawyers engaged this week at The Hague havent realized either.

The 45-page Ukrainian claim against Moscow to the ICJ is dated January 16, 2017, and can be read here. The US law firm Covington & Burling is defending the Kiev government; the advocates for the Russian side include British and French lawyers.

Advocates for Kiev at the ICJ this week: left US lawyer Marney Cheek; right, Olena Zerkal, Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine

According to the Ukrainian claim, the destruction of MH17 was an act of terrorism. When the Russian Federation delivered this deadly surface-to-air missile system to the DPR, it knew precisely the type of organization it was aiding The Russian government knew or should have known that their proxies would use these powerful antiaircraft weapons in a manner consistent with their previous pattern of disregard for civilian life.

By the early summer of 2014, the Russian Federation was well aware that its proxies operating on Ukrainian territory were engaged in a pattern and practice of terrorizing civilians. Yet rather than intervening to abate those actions, the Russian Federations response was to substantially increase these groups firepower by supplying them with powerful weapons. An early result of this decision was the attack on Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17. In July 2014, as part of this escalation of arms supplies and other support, the Russian Federation delivered a Buk surface-to-air missile system to DPR-associated forces. Those illegal armed groups used the Buk system to commit a devastating surface-to-air attack, destroying a civilian airliner transiting Ukrainian airspace and murdering the 298 individuals on boardThese perpetrators committed this terrorist attack with the direct support of the Russian government There is no evidence that the Russian Federation has taken any responsibility before the peoples of the world for supporting this horrific terrorist act.

Ukraine respectfully requests the Court to adjudge and declare that the Russian Federation bears international responsibility, by virtue of its sponsorship of terrorism and failure to prevent the financing of terrorism under the Convention, for the acts of terrorism committed by its proxies in Ukraine, including: a.The shoot-down of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17.

The Russian presentations in open court so far can be read here. Ilya Rogachev, Director of the Department of New Challenges and Threats at the Russian Foreign Ministry, testified in front of 16 judges of the court on March 7. Rogachev was followed for the Russian side by London Queens Counsel, Samuel Wordsworth.

According to Rogachev, it should be noted that during the summer of 2014 the Ukrainian Armys anti-aircraft missile regiment No. 156, equipped with BUK-M1 missile systems, was stationed in the zone of conflict. The regiments headquarters and its first division were located in Avdiivka near Donestk, its second division in Mariupol and its third in Lugansk. In total the regiment was armed with 17 BUK-M1 SAMs, identical to the one identified by the JIT.

He went on to argue that whether the Ukrainian forces fired the BUK missile, or whether the separatists did, there is no evidence that either force intended to do so. It is enough to note, said Rogachev, that neither the DSB [Dutch Safety Board] nor the JIT [Joint Investigation Team] appear to be concluding that the civil airliner was shot down with malicious intent or, which is what matters most for today, that the equipment allegedly used was provided for that specific purpose.

The JIT, according to Turnbulls spokesman in Canberra this week, includes Australia,Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine. The spokesman said they remain committed to ensuring those responsible for the downing of MH17 are held to account. On the other hand, the evidence so far produced by the JIT hasnt satisfied the admissibility and prosecution tests of the Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers on the JIT staff. The AFPs Commissioner Andrew Colvin reports to the Australian Justice Minister and he, as well as the AFP, are part of the portfolio of Attorney- General Brandis.

In two Australian coroners court hearings, the AFP has revealed serious reservations about the Dutch evidence and Ukrainian claims in the MH17 investigation; for details read this and this.

Turnbull adds through his spokesman an additional qualification. The outcomes of this investigation could be relevant in determining whether the downing of MH17 was a terrorist act. In Australian law and in the Prime Ministers judgement, could means not now  and not at the International Court.

For the action to fall under the Montreal Convention, Rogachev testified this week in The Hague, referring to the principal international treaty covering compensation for aircraft incidents, the intention must have been to shoot down a civilian aircraft

Wordsworth told the ICJ judges that for every act alleged in the court papers by the Kiev regime, there is a separate requirement of specific intent. So far as concerns Ukraines allegations with respect to Flight MH17, Article 2.1 (a) incorporates the offences under the Montreal Convention, which comprise the unlawful and intentional destruction of a civilian aircraft. So far as concerns the other allegations of Ukraine, there is a requirement of both specific intent and purpose. Article 2 (1) (b) refers to: (b) Any other act intended to cause death or serious bodily injury to a civilian, or to any other person not taking an active part in the hostilities in a situation of armed conflict, when the purpose of such act, by its nature or context, is to intimidate a population, or to compel a government or an international organization to do or to abstain from doing any act.

Wordsworth was repeating in open court what the Australian Attorney-General has already advised the Australian Prime Minister. Because the Australians have decided there is no case for a terrorist act to justify compensating their own citizens, the Ukrainians have already lost their case.
Kyle Busch Motorsports reveals driver lineup, switch to Chevrolet for 2023 Chase Purdy will drive full-time for the team and Jack Wood will be part of a rotation with Kyle Busch on a second truck.
Saturday, March 11, 2017 by: Vicki Batts Tags: Costco , organic food , Whole Foods This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author

(Natural News) Whole Foods was once the most popular place to go for all things healthy and organic, but it seems that many shoppers are expanding their horizons  and reeling in savings  by shopping elsewhere. One of the nations most popular big-box retailers, Costco, has stepped up their organic offerings and consumers are definitely taking notice.

For the last three years, Costco has managed to outdo other conventional retailers when it comes to the sale of organic produce. And in 2015, the wholesaling giants $4 billion in organic sales surpassed Whole Foods, which reported only $3.5 billion.

Costcos organic sales are growing so rapidly, that in 2016 the retailer announced that they would be pursuing an initiative to help their farmers purchase more land, so they can grow more organic food. CEO Craig Jelinek reportedly told investors, We cannot get enough organics to stay in business day in and day out.

On the other hand, Whole Foods continues to encounter difficulties of a different sort. While Costco is doing their best to keep with extremely high demand, Whole Foods has hit what the Chicago Tribune reportedly described as their worst sales slump in more than a decade.

After six consecutive quarters of same-store declines, Whole Foods was forced to close the doors of nine different stores.

Whole Foods has also been host to more than its fair share of scandals. For example, in 2016, Mike Adams reported on how the business was supporting Monsantos plans to obfuscate proper GMO labeling laws.

Whole Foods current decline and their reprehensible behavior lie in stark contrast with Costco. Assistant Vice President and General Merchandise Manager Heather Shavey says that Costco had been preparing for their rise to the top of the organic marketplace for more than five years. Shavey notes that while many retailers thought organics were nothing more than a passing trend, Costco chose to invest in the clean food market.

Clearly, their dedication has come with handsome rewards.

Not only has Costco taken an interest in the number of organic items offered in their stores, but they have also taken the entire organic landscape to heart. As Organic Authority explains, less than one percent of US farmland is certified organic, but Costco began looking for ways to help increase the amount of organic farmland in 2016.

Costcos new program seeks to offer financial assistance to farmers looking to expand and grow their farms by purchasing more land. In return, Costco merely asks for first dibs on the organic produce that they grow. The retailer has even purchased its own cattle and is working with the owners of organic fields in Nebraska to raise them.

Not only is Costco making organic food more accessible, they are giving back to the industry by providing farmers with the opportunity for growth.

It is no wonder why Costcos organic sales continue to soar.

Sources:

OrganicAuthority.com

SeattleTimes.com

NaturalNews.com

NaturalNews.com
Saturday, March 11, 2017 by: Thomas Dishaw Tags: crime , doctor , identity theft , India , priority This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author

(Natural News) A man who pretended to be a doctor for almost 12 years is on the run after authorities pressed charges against him.

Shyam Acharya allegedly stole Dr. Sarang Chitales name and medical credentials while living in India . He was able to create a fake passport to move to Australia, and then used the stolen documents to register with the Medical Board of New South Wales. He worked at Manly, Hornsby, Wyong and Gosford Hospitals from 2003 to 2014, under the assumed identity.

Before stealing Dr. Chitales identity, the only accreditation that Acharya had received was that of a junior doctor, which in the UK is someone who is a qualified medical practitioner in a postgraduate program. While an investigation into his record as a fake physician turned up no medical issues that he had personally caused, authorities have detected his involvement in a team that botched a procedure involving a broken limb.

Acharya left hospital work after New South Wales began implementing the federal AHPRA bodys policy; he only received limited registration each year under this new system. After three years of being unable to satisfy the necessary checks and balances, Acharya lost his right to practice. It is believed that he continued his fraud by getting work with a private company where he did not have to deal with patients. Acharya was incredibly proficient at faking his qualifications, and was held in high regard by the peers he duped. (RELATED: Get all the news Google doesnt want you to see at Censored.news)

Authorities will not specify how Acharya was caught after a decade-long charade, simply saying, The way he was caught they dont want that to be published  because they want to be able to, in effect, catch people. Mr. Acharya has been charged by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency with a breach of the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, and faces a fine of up to $30,000.

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard says jail time is needed as a penalty in this scandal, and says he believes the current $30,000 fine is woefully inadequate.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton agrees with Hazzard, and says that the case shows a big failing of the system, warning that the consequences could have been diabolical if Acharya had posed a national security threat. Both are moot points, as Acharyas whereabouts are currently unknown, although a search to locate him is underway.

The real Dr. Chitale currently works in the UK, and has found the situation both distressing and shocking.

Sources

9News.com.au

DailyTelegraph.com.au

TheAustralian.com.au
(Natural News) Is the government really trying to tax kombucha? Those in the kombucha industry have had concerns about a federal smack-down for years. In 2015, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) even sent warning letters to a number of kombucha brewers to accuse them of producing beverages that supposedly exceeded the allowable alcohol limit. And once again, the TTB used the opportunity to threaten the industry with regulation, hefty fines, and legal action.

In 2010, kombucha was seized from store shelves due to claims that the popular fermented beverage contained too much alcohol. Since that time, however, most large kombucha companies have reformulated their products to ensure that they comply with federal guidelines and do not exceed the 0.5 percent alcohol limit. Of course, the government is never happy when health products begin to pick up steam, and as the popularity of kombucha continues to increase, the threat of regulation and taxation has once again reared its ugly head.

The global market for kombucha is expected to expand from an approximate $600 million in 2015 to an estimated $1.8 billion by 2020. Its no surprise that the federal government wants to find a way to stick their grubby little fingers in a pot with so much potential.

Jamba Dunn, the head of Rowdy Mermaid Kombucha, says he worries about federal action every single day. For years, the TTB has been monitoring kombucha makers for potential alcohol amount violations. One of the letters sent out by the agency made its way to The Denver Post, and the publication reports it made mention of a fine that could cost up to $11,000. Offenders could even become subject to the costly regulations and taxes that go along with the alcohol industry.

Surely echoing the concerns of countless others in the kombucha industry, Dunn commented, We live in fear that we will get one of those letters.

States introduce bills to protect kombucha manufacturers

In mid-February, Colorado lawmakers introduced a bill that was cleverly titled, the Keeping Our Manufacturers from Being Unfairly Taxed with Championing Health Act, or simply the KOMBUCHA act for short. The bill aims to increase the alcohol by volume (often seen simply as ABV) limit for kombucha from 0.5 percent to 1.25 percent. This would leave kombucha, which generally contains less than 1 percent ABV, free from the federal governments alcohol taxation and regulation practices.

Currently, kombucha sometimes falls under the jurisdiction of the TBB  even though many manufacturers have taken steps to reduce the amount of alcohol that forms in their products. While the politicians in the United States have grown immensely divided, it seems that kombucha is something they can agree on. Colorado Democrat, Rep. Jared Polis and Republican Rep. Scott Tipton joined forces to sponsor the bill in the House of Representatives.

Colorado is not alone in their efforts to reduce the burden the federal government has on the kombucha industry and the small businesses it is largely comprised of. Senator Ron Wyden, from Oregon, also joined in their efforts to introduce the KOMBUCHA act. In February, Wydens team sent out a press release describing the bill as a way to modernize outdated federal alcohol taxes and regulations on kombucha companies in Oregon and nationwide.

This legislation would update taxes and regulations so these small businesses can continue to build on their achievements creating good jobs and good flavor for kombuchas many fans, the senator said. Wyden also noted that the growth of kombucha production has helped create jobs not only in Oregon, but across the country.

Kombucha makers say that they are hopeful that with this massive reform, they will be able to reallocate some of their funds to hire more workers and grow their businesses. Perhaps in addition to being known for its health benefits, the beverage will be revered for its economic benefits, too.

Sources:

NaturalBlaze.com

Investopedia.comyOregonLive.com

DenverPost.com
(Natural News) Heroin has flourished in West Virginia over the past decade, especially since officials cracked down on prescription drugs. In 2015, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, West Virginias drug overdose death rate stood at 41.5 cases per 100,000 residents, the highest rate in the country and nearly three times the national average.

This epidemic is now causing a strain on funeral homes as well as a state funded program that provides burial assistance for impoverished families. West Virginias Indigent Burial Program has existed for decades, but with the increase of heroin-related deaths, their resources are being depleted at a faster rate. And as overdoses rise many funeral homes are finding that they cannot keep up with the demand for services.

The Indigent Burial Program is a unique program because a majority of states dont provide such services at the state level, and most of the ones that do, limit them to recipients of Medicaid, SNAP or other social programs for the poor. Frederick Kitchen, president of the West Virginia Funeral Directors Association, said the state Department of Human Services earmarks almost $2 million a year to help cover the burial costs for destitute individuals. The state offers funeral homes $1,250 per person to cover expenses in cases where the deceased has no funds nor anyone willing or able to pay the funeral costs. (RELATED: Get all the news Google is trying to hide from you at Censored.news)

The program has paid for so many burials for citizens who have died from drug overdoses that in 2014 they were out of money by June. In 2015, the programs budget was completely drained by March. For this current fiscal year set to end in June, 1,508 burials have already been submitted for payment through the Indigent Burial Program, according to Allison Adler, a spokesperson for state DHHR Secretary Bill Crouch.

How did things spiral this far out of control? West Virginia was ranked the third poorest State in 2016 . The median household income is $42,019; they have the highest unemployment rate of 6.7%, and the 7th highest poverty rate of 17.9%. West Virginias population is one of the largest recipients of government assistance programs such as SNAP and Medicaid. Economic despair, widespread unemployment, inadequate mental health facilities and a sense of isolation in communities have all contributed to the widespread abuse of heroin. In Huntington, WV for example, about one in four of its 49,000 residents is hooked on heroin or some other opioid. On August 15, 2016, this catastrophe came to a head when 28 overdoses were reported in a five-hour span.

Many of these overdoses occur among the younger population, most of whom dont have life insurance, funds to cover a funeral, or even jobs. Parents or grandparents often spend a fortune on a child or grandchild who is fighting an addiction, so when overdoses occur many families, unfortunately, do not have the finances to prepare a proper funeral.

Sources:

Washingtonpost.com

Benefitspro.com

CBS.com
Saturday, March 11, 2017 by: Jayson Veley Tags: California , earthquake , natural disasters This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author

(Natural News) Should Californians start preparing for a potentially massive earthquake thats looming on the horizon? Going by data presented in a recent study, it may be a good idea, if not now then at least some time in the not so distant future.

The study shows how a 7.4 tremblor could potentially rupture underneath Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego Counties, producing an earthquake that would be 30 times more powerful than the 6.4 magnitude quake of 1933 in Long Beach, which claimed the lives of 120 people.

But reaching the status of a 7.4 magnitude earthquake would not necessarily be easy. Indeed, certain circumstances would have to be in place to bring about a natural disaster of such epic proportions. Besides rupturing the Newport-Inglewood fault in Los Angeles and Orange counties, the quake would also have to impact the Rose Canyon fault system. The fault system, which hasnt been ruptured since roughly 1650, runs entirely through downtown San Diego. (RELATED: What caused Oklahomas recent record-breaking earthquake?)

Valerie Sahakian, the lead author of the study, explained that these two fault zones are actually one continuous fault zone. Sahakian wrote the study while working towards her doctorate degree at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. She is now a research geophysicist working with the U.S. Geological Survey. (RELATED: Scientists warn that massive earthquakes may be right around the corner.)

While scientists in the past have reported that the gaps between the two faults reached as far as 3 miles apart, this new study indicates that the gaps are actually much closer at 1.25 miles apart. Sahakian explained that this is the reason the two faults are actually characterized as one continuous fault.

Caltech seismologist Egill Hauksson said that even though there was already an existing consensus that the two faults were actually one, we now have real evidence that this is the case.

Because of the geographic location of the faults on a map, it was very difficult to prove this to be true. So in the year 2013, Scripps researchers traveled out in boats and spent over 100 days collecting data. In the end, they were able to create a rather detailed map of the sea floor using technology that is similar to sonar used by submarines.

While the study serves as a horrifying reminder that San Diego and Orange County could one day be destroyed by a massive earthquake, the chances that it will happen anytime soon are slim. In our lifetime, the chances of a tremblor on the Newport-Inglewood/Rose Canyon fault are less than the chances of a tremblor on the southern San Andreas Fault.

So while Californians are safe from a devastating 7.4 magnitude earthquake for now, the information presented in this study is still worth taking into consideration.

Sources

LAtimes.com

OnlineLibrary.Wiley.com
Saturday, March 11, 2017 by: Jayson Veley Tags: cremation , India , Rachna Sisodia , Sharda hospital This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author

(Natural News) When loved ones die, there are multiple ways that people choose to immortalize them. The most common way, of course, is to bury the deceased friend or relative inside of a coffin with a tombstone resting on the surface. Another unique process, which is relatively new, involves using the body as fertilizer to grow a tree, symbolizing rebirth and eternal life. More commonly, people choose to cremate their loved ones, often storing their ashes in an urn or some type of locket. (RELATED: You wont believe what this Washington group proposes we do with the dead.)

No one would ever expect the cremation process to go wrong; typically, its very smooth and peaceful. Unfortunately, for 24-year-old Rachna Sisodia, that may not have been the case.

Rachna Sisodia was a student who was declared dead on February 25 at Sharda hospital in northern India. She died as a result of a lung infection. (RELATED: Learn how to treat respiratory tract infections with everyday foods and spices.)

Sisodias husband, 23-year-old Devesh Chaudhary, drove her body to a funeral pyre two hours away to begin the cremation process. However, police quickly arrived on the scene and pulled Sisodias body out of the fire after it was revealed that she might have still been alive.

A post-mortem found that Rachna had ash in her respiratory tract, and a second post-mortem revealed that the cause of death was shock caused by being burnt alive. Clearly, a mistake was made at the hospital when Rachna was falsely pronounced dead.

A hospital spokesperson explained what had happened to the Hindustan Times. This happens when someone is burnt alive, the spokesperson said. The particles go inside with the breath. If a person is dead, such particles cannot reach the lungs and windpipe. So the doctors concluded that the woman was burnt alive on the pyre. Medics at Sharda hospital strongly disagreed with the explanation, insisting that Sisodia did in fact die at the hospital.

The doctor who conducted the post-mortem, Dr. Pankaj Mishra, told the Times of India that he couldnt be one hundred percent sure that the body itself was actually Sisodias, due to the fact that it was burnt to the point where it was nearly unidentifiable.

Devesh Chaudhary told the media that he thinks he is being framed for his wifes murder.

Even though the medics at Sharda hospital insist that the 24-year-old was officially dead at the hospital, and even though Dr. Mishra was unable to say for certain whether the body he performed the post-mortem on was Sisodias, the mere thought of a young woman being accidentally burnt alive is a terrifying one. Regardless of how she died, though, may her family find comfort and may she rest in peace.

Sources:

Telegraph.co.uk

TimesOfIndia.IndiaTimes.com
Activists and business leaders gathered in San Francisco to show support for so-called "sanctuary restaurants."

The movement is led by the Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA), a trade association representing 1,000 San Francisco restaurants. GGRA says many restaurants are staffed by immigrants and are now working to train restaurant workers on their legal rights.

Nati Ramirez, owner of Don Ramon's restaurant, said that as fear surrounding ICE raids and anti-immigration rhetoric grows, she is taking steps to educate her community about their rights.

"We need to go forth and educate the immigrants that are workers at any businesses here in San Francisco so they're not frightened to go out in the evenings and think that ICE will be out there to catch them," Ramirez said.

Nati Ramirez, owner of SF's Don Ramon's, speaking about becoming a sanctuary restaurant to protect workers and customers. @nbcbayarea pic.twitter.com/1LzDuNfQeU  Rebecca Greenway (@RebeccaGreenway) March 10, 2017

The GGRA announced Friday it will be sponsoring a workshop for any restaurant owners and employees in the city fro 9 to 10:30 a.m. on March 20 at Don Ramons Restaurant, 225 11st Street.

"The goal of the workshop is for restaurants to learn how to protect their workers and customers in the face of increasingly anti-immigrant policies coming from the Trump Administration," GGRA said in a statement regarding the "Know Your Rights" workshop.
When Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor speaks, people listen  and many did exactly that at Stanford University on Friday.

Sotomayor wrapped up her Bay Area tour by telling students that people can work together even in divided times. Her message was met with enthusiasm as she spoke about overcoming challenges, both personal and those the United States is facing.

Then-President Barack Obama in 2009 nominated Sotomayor for the highest court in the nation.

We can't denigrate the other culture, we can't denigrate our culture. I take great pride in the Latina I am, said Sotomayor, who walked among audience members, answered questions and even accepted a "Fear the Nerds" T-shirt.

Stanford student Emily Walck left the auditorium energized.

"I think she's amazing and her perspective, being a woman of color and overcoming the difficult things she's had to overcome to get to the places she's been, is really inspiring, Walck said.

Aliyah Chavez echoed the same sentiment.

"It was one of the most incredible talks Ive seen, and I've seen President Obama, I've seen Oprah, and she was hands down the best one, she gushed.

Sotomoyar, who on Thursday spoke to law students at the University of California, Berkeley offered some advice to the next generation  likely to face political conflicts  on how to reach compromises.

"What they're afraid of, what they think they need to give them comfort, to get them closer to your point of view, if you can address those things, you can persuade those people," she said.
A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape their war-torn homeland by fleeing to Wisconsin.

The ruling likely is the first by a judge since Trump issued a revised travel ban on Monday, according to a spokesman for the Washington state attorney general, who has led states challenging the ban.

A Syrian Muslim man who was granted asylum and settled in Wisconsin has been working since last year to win U.S. government approval for his wife and 3-year-old daughter to leave the devastated city of Aleppo and join him here. The man, who is not identified because of fears for his family's safety, filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trump's first travel ban had wrongly stopped the visa process for his family. U.S. District Judge Michael Conley set that challenge aside after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the entire Trump travel order.

Trump signed a new executive order on Monday. The Syrian man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon, alleging the new order is still an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion and right to due process. He asked Conley to block its enforcement against his family.

Judge Conley granted that request, saying there were daily threats to the Syrian man's wife and child that could cause "irreparable harm." He issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family. The order doesn't block the entire travel ban. It simply prevents Trump's administration from enforcing it against this family pending a March 21 hearing.

After the Trump ban was blocked the first time, the approval process restarted for the Syrian family and they're now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the U.S. embassy, the last step before U.S. customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesn't have dates for the interviews yet and Trump's new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian man's attorneys.

Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that the new ban may not apply to this family anyway, although they did not go into details. There are various exemptions and waivers in the new ban including some that give consular officers flexibility to decide cases. Conley acknowledged that the family's situation is murky but still issued the order, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case.

The U.S. Justice Department is defending the ban. Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment on it and Conley's order.

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. U.S. District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the entire order on Feb. 3.

The revised order issued Monday removed Iraq from the list of countries and temporarily shuts down the refugee program. Unlike the first order, the new ban would not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban Wednesday; other states with Democratic attorneys general plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian man's lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assad's regime and another group fighting in support of Assad. The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and traveled to pro-Assad areas to manage his family's business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife. He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.
An off-duty police officer hiking in a wooded area on Friday discovered human remains believed to those of a man who went missing nearly three months ago, according to Derry police.

The off-duty officer was hiking in a wooded area off Rockingham Road in Derry when he discovered the remains. Jack Walsh, a 63-year-old Derry resident with special needs, went missing back on Dec. 12, 2016 when he walked away from an appointment at Parkland Medical Center.

The Walsh family issued the following statement:

"Earlier today a body was found in Derry NH off of Rockingham Rd (Rte 28). It is with heavy hearts that we disclose that it was, in fact, Jack. We thank you all for being supportive and overwhelmingly helpful for the last three months. As of right now we have limited information and will share with you upon any new findings."

Walshs family said they reported him missing to Derry police right away, but officials didnt notify the public for another three days, and Walshs family said that was three days too late.

"We feel that if there had been some type of alert in those first 24 or 48 hours, it would have been very easy to locate him," Connolly said at the time.

There is no so-called "Silver Alert" in the state of New Hampshire. A Silver Alert, much like an Amber Alert, is a public notification system that prompts text messages, television interruptions, even reverse 911 calls when an adult with special needs is missing.
Organizers of Boston's St. Patrick's Day parade reversed course on Friday and said they would allow a group of gay veterans to march in this year's parade.

The South Boston Allied War Veterans Council announced on the parade's Twitter account that it had signed an "acceptance letter" that would clear the way for OutVets to participate.

OutVets said later Friday night that it would accept the invitation to march.

"We look forward to marching proudly on March 19 and honoring the service and sacrifice of those brave men and women who have sacrificed for our country," the group said in a statement.

Pleased with the reversal, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Bakers office released a statement which read, Governor Baker and Lieutenant Governor Polito were disappointed some parade organizers attempted to discriminate against individuals who served this country with honor and are pleased OutVets will now participate in the parade.

An earlier vote by the council to bar OutVets from marching drew immediate condemnation from high-profile politicians, some of whom said they would not march if the gay veterans were excluded. It caused some sponsors to back out and stirred up a furor on social media.

"This has gone on much, much too long and it's something that needed to be corrected," the parade's lead organizer, Tim Duross, told NBC Boston. "It was a mistake, really, with regard to the thought of barring any veterans."

Duross says he couldn't convince the rest of the council to allow OutVets to march, so he made the decision unilaterally, a move he was able to make because his name is on the permit.

"It may be my last decision as parade organizer, but it's the right thing to do," he said.

Later, after an hour-long meeting, the council voted unanimously to stand behind Duross' decision.

Officials like Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced they would boycott the parade when they learned the group had been barred. City Councilor Tito Jackson, a mayoral candidate in Boston, said he will not take part regardless of whether OutVets participates.

"I am proud to have marched in the South Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade only when our LGBTQ veterans have also been invited to participate. I did look forward to doing the same this year, but after the shabby and disrespectful way OutVets, a group of distinguished and honorable LGBTQ veterans, have been treated by some of the parade's organizers ... I have no interest in participating in this event until members of the LGBTQ community are permanently included," Jackson said in a statement.

Earlier Friday, OutVets executive director Bryan Bishop said the vets had been told the original decision to bar them was because of their rainbow symbols.

Bishop said the council offered to allow the group to march if its members did not display the rainbow flag, a symbol of gay pride, which is on their banner and their jackets.

The group said no.

"I almost fell out of the chair at that point, said, 'You gotta be kidding me,'" Bishop said.

He said OutVets has displayed the rainbow at the parade the last two years.

"It infuriates me to look at the veterans that I know, gay and straight, who have served this country with valor and honor and distinction, and just because you're a veteran who happens to be gay your service is somehow less than someone who is not of the LGBT community or someone who's not gay," he said.

Edmondson, the OutVets lawyer, described the letter as "generic" and said it did not make fully clear whether the gay group would be allowed to display its banner.

Another veterans group, Veterans for Peace, said it also had been denied permission to participate. That group has been trying unsuccessfully for several years to march.

OutVets was first allowed to participate in the parade in 2015, in what was seen as a groundbreaking decision after parade organizers had, for decades, resisted the inclusion of gay groups. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, which in 1995 upheld the council's right to bar gay groups on free speech grounds.

The council said in a statement Thursday its decision had been misinterpreted.

"The council is accepting of all people and organizations, but it will not permit messages that conflict with the overall theme of the parade," the statement said.

That decision resulted in backlash from other veterans' organizations.

The council is made up of representatives from several South Boston American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars posts.

The Michael J. Perkins American Legion Post said it had withdrawn from the council.

The Perkins post in a statement on its Facebook page didn't mention the OutVets decision but said it decided to withdraw because "recent efforts by several non-veteran parade volunteers to guide decision making has resulted in the subversion of the council as an organization being led by veterans."

Another former member of the council, the Thomas J. Fitzgerald VFW Post, assailed the council's decision to bar OutVets.

The Fitzgerald post withdrew from the council last year over the decision to bar Veterans for Peace.
Around fourteen hundred employees at North Eastern Illinois University will be forced to take unpaid leave for five days over the universitys spring break due to the state budget crisis, officials say.

We are impacting about 1,100 employees and about 300 student aides who will have to go without pay for those days, said interim Northeastern President Richard Helldobler.

The shutdown will also impact students and neighbors who use school facilities like the fitness center and gym, which will be closed during the furlough.

Weve never had balanced budgets in Illinois, Gov. Bruce Rauner said. And we have got to stop that, its unaffordable, and its bankrupting our state.

Repairs at the school are put on hold, like visibly broken windows, a sagging ceiling above a swimming poolthe school says it cant afford to fix them.

Illinois is second to New Jersey in the number of college going students we export every year, said Helldobler. And this budget crisis isnt helping.

There will likely be more furlough days announced, officials say, while North Eastern works with its unions before announcing the next steps.
A New York man is the 15th person to be charged in an ongoing investigation into fraudulent purchases at a north suburban Deer Park Apple store.

Officers were called to the Deer Park Apple store at 7:45 p.m. Thursday when 19-year-old Jose E. Baez-Polanco tried to use someone elses identity to open a credit account and buy a new iPhone, according to the Lake County sheriffs office.

Baez-Polanco, who lives in New York City, was charged with felony counts of burglary, identity theft and retail theft, the sheriffs office said. He is being held at the Lake County Jail on a $100,000 bond and his next court date was scheduled for March 14.

Baez-Polancos arrest was the latest in an ongoing investigation into high-value thefts through deceptive means at the Deer Park Apple store. The sheriffs office made 14 other arrests in 2016 and 2017. All of the suspects  except a man from San Francisco  are from New York or Michigan.

The sheriffs office continues to provide increased patrols at the store.
U.S. Attorney Zachary Fardon of the Northern District of Illinois is among 46 U.S. Attorneys being asked to resign by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the Justice Department said Friday.

Sources tell NBC 5 Fardon is expected to resign as early as Monday.

Many of the federal prosecutors who were nominated by President Barack Obama have already left their positions. But the nearly four dozen who stayed on have been asked to leave, in order to ensure a uniform transition, Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said in a statement.

"Until the new U.S. attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. attorney's offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting and deterring the most violent offenders," she said.

It is customary, though not automatic, for the country's 93 U.S. attorneys to leave their positions once a new president is in office. Former President Bill Clinton fired all 93 in a single day. In 2006, President George W. Bush and his Attorney General Alberto Gonzales faced a firestorm of criticism when seven Clinton holdovers were fired. The ensuing controversy eventually led to the resignations of nine Justice Department officials, including Gonzales himself.

The Obama administration allowed political appointees of President George W. Bush to serve until their replacement had been nominated and confirmed. One U.S. attorney appointed by Bush, Rod Rosenstein of Maryland, remained on the job for the entire Obama administration and is the current nominee for deputy attorney general.

On Wednesday, Sessions called for his local prosecutors to shift their focus to the nations most violent offenders. As he addressed reporters Thursday, Fardon said he thought Chicago was already doing a good job in that regard, but welcomed the new emphasis.

This administration cares and wants us to use every tool and resource we have to focus on addressing these issues and trying to turn this tide in violence, he said. And thats a good thing in my judgment.

Until a permanent nomination is made, Fardon is expected to be replaced temporarily by First Assistant Joel Levin, a veteran prosecutor who, with Fardon, was part of the team who prosecuted former Gov. George Ryan.
Authorities are investigating a pair of violent robberies that police believe may have been committed by the same offender on Chicagos North Side.

The most recent incident occurred just steps from Wrigley Field in the citys Wrigleyville neighborhood Thursday night.

A 24-year-old woman told police she was in the back of her apartment building in the 3700 block of N. Fremont St. around 8:30 p.m. when a man approached her and pulled out a gun. [[415892923, C]]

He then demanded her belongings and forced her into the trunk of her blue 2012 Mazda, where he sexually assaulted her, officials said.

Police said the suspect then took off on an hour-and-a-half joyride that spanned more than 20 miles, all while the woman was locked inside the trunk of the vehicle. He made several stops attempting to withdraw money from ATMs, according to police, before crashing the vehicle into a tree in the 11500 block of S. Throop St. on the citys Far South Side.

Authorities said that is when the woman said she used the emergency trunk release to free herself, fleeing the scene. [[415893043, C]]

Chicago police are still searching for the offender, who they believe may also be responsible for a similar attack just 10 days before in the citys Lake View neighborhood.

Around 12 a.m. on Feb. 28, a 25-year-old woman was walking to her car in the 1200 block of W. Barry Ave. when a man approached her and displayed a handgun, according to a community alert from Chicago police. [[415932393, C]]

The man then demanded the victim give him all her money, authorities said. She complied, at which point he then forced her into her vehicle and sexually assaulted her before fleeing on foot.

We do know that this person left a gun in the car, and the detectives are looking at that evidence for any fingerprints to help catch this person, 46th Ward Alderman James Cappleman said of Thursdays incident. [[415151943, C]]

Its horrific and the police commander himself said hes not seen this before, Cappleman added. But we take this very seriously and we want to catch this person.

Police have increased patrols in the area in the wake of the assaults and are warning area residents to be alert and aware of their surroundings.

No one is in custody in connection with either incident, and anyone with information is asked to contact detectives at (312) 744-8261.
St. Patrick's Day may not be until Friday, but Chicago was more than ready to celebrate the holiday this weekend.

Festivities kicked off with the annual dyeing of the Chicago River at 9 a.m. Saturday morning. Thousands of spectators decked out in their finest green apparel gathered downtown to observe the tradition, now in its 55th year. [[415948603, C]]

Members of the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers union have been dumping a secret concoction off the sides of their boats since 1962.

It takes more than 45 pounds of the environmentally friendly vegetable dye to color the water, using a powdered formula that begins orange before it mixes with the water to turn the river bright green. [[415947073, C]]

Hours later, the city's St. Patrick's Day Parade stepped off nearby at the corner of Columbus Dr and Balbo Ave around 12 p.m. Marchers headed north to Monroe St for around three hours.

Saturday's parade was just the first of many celebrations across the city. [[415820863, C]]

The Irish American Heritage Center hosted a St. Patrick's Festival all day Saturday, while the South Side Irish Parade and the Northwest Side Irish Parade were both scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. Sunday.
A local college student who was attacked while living in Africa said she plans to continue her missionary work after being inspired by a Chicago plastic surgeon.

Fatima Elalaoui, 21, is the daughter of a diplomat and was living in the east African country of Ivory Coast in 2011 when the country became embroiled in civil war. She said she was translating for Westerners when rebels supporting the countrys newly-elected president attacked her.

The hit to the nose was the hit that knocked me out, Elalaoui said. I put up a fight and it just didn't look the same.

Her nose was flattened. But despite widespread atrocities and repeated warnings to leave the country, Elalaoui remained to help others. She later served as a missionary in Niger.

It was therapy to me, just seeing these little kids who have nothing and the little you offer them makes them so happy, Elalaoui said.

Elalaoui returned to the Chicago area to attend college. Yet she said she was emotionally and physically scarred. And seeing her nose was a reminder of the attack.

I couldnt ignore it, Elalaoui said. It was a trigger.

Recently, she met Dr. Anil Shah, a facial plastic surgeon who reconstructed her nose and corrected her breathing at a discounted price.

If I can help her out and have that image of herself again and restore some of that self, you know, I feel indebted to her, Shah said.

Elalaoui is now seeing herself again and said Shah reinforced her plan to go back in to the humanitarian field.

I will get my degree and I will go back and I will fight for those children and for those rights, Elalaoui said. Dr. Shaw re-inspired me with his act of kindness.

Shah said he is hoping to raise donations to cover the entire cost of Elalaouis operation.
A Chicago Public Schools student has to get out of her wheelchair and push herself up and down stairs at her North Side magnet school because the building is not compliant with federal disability law, according to a lawsuit.

The girl, identified as G.P., has to leave class early at Drummond Montessori Magnet School, 1845 W. Cortland St., because the school has no elevator and only one wheelchair lift from street level to the schools first floor, according to the suit.

G.P. gets to her second-floor classroom by transferring from her wheelchair at the stairwell then scooting on her bottom up the stairs, the suit says. She has to do this between classes to avoid getting jostled by other students using the stairs.

G.P. and her mother Karen P. filed the suit Friday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against CPS CEO Forest Claypool and the CPS Board. It accuses Chicago Public Schools of discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

A spokesman for CPS declined to comment on the suit.

G.P. entered Drummond Montessori in the early childhood classroom in 2012, according to Access Living, a nonprofit advocacy group assisting in the lawsuit.

In 2015, when she was 7 years old, she was diagnosed with Gaucher disease, a rare condition that leads to bone death due to lack of blood supply, according to Access Living and her doctor. The condition affects her mobility and requires the use of a wheelchair.

The three-story school was built in 1893, the suit states.

A complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Educations Office of Civil Rights by Access Living in 1994 resulted in a settlement that required CPS to make their magnet schools accessible to students with disabilities, the group said.

The magnet school was opened in the Thomas Drummond Elementary School building in 2004, the suit said.

In a November 2016 letter, G.Ps doctor expressed concern to CPS officials about G.P.s safety and the impact on her education of the use of scooting as a long-term solution.

Finally, forcing [G.P.] to move up and down the stairs on her bottom  denies her personal dignity, Dr. Barbara K. Burton wrote.

In conferences with CPS officials, Karen P. was told G.P. would be moved to a new school because CPS was not going to make the building accessible to individuals who require a wheelchair, according to the suit. Karen also asked if G.P.s classes could be moved to the first floor, but was denied.

My daughter needs to stay at Drummond, not just for academic benefits, but also because of the relationships and support systems she has formed over several years, Karen said in a statement provided by Access Living. When my daughter was recovering from her first major surgery, the thing that kept her going was knowing that she could go back to her school.

The suit asks the court to order CPS to make Drummond Montessori accessible to standards that should have been in place when the school opened in 2004, Access Living contends.

Disabled and non-disabled students have a right to access Magnet Schools in Chicago, Charles Petrof, senior attorney at Access Living, said in a statement. CPS cannot force a Second-Grade student to choose between scooting up stairs on her bottom and staying in her school and community.
Teachers at a network of charter schools in Chicago have reached a tentative contract agreement, averting a possible strike.

A union representing the teachers, counselors and support staff announced the two-year agreement late Thursday with ASPIRA schools. It's subject to a ratification vote.

The tentative agreement includes raises, trimming the school year without affecting educational time for students and increasing vacation time.

Charter chairman Fernando Grillo says in a statement that they "look forward building a strong future for ASPIRA."

Teachers at the four schools are represented by the Chicago Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff, a branch of the American Federation of Teachers union. They've been negotiating for a new contract since last year and had voted to go on strike.
Connecticut lost about 200 jobs total in 2016, capping of a year that saw Democrats lose their majority in the Connecticut Senate, and shed even more seats in the House of Representatives, as they argued the state economy was in better shape than was being reported.

Overall, more than 4,300 government jobs were lost in 2016, compared to the creation of 4,100 private sector jobs.

Gov. Dannel Malloy downplayed the bad news for the entire year, while also pumping up the 5,700 jobs created in January of this year.

Weve recovered about 80,000 jobs since the end of the great recession, and were relatively flat last year some months up some months down but relatively flat, the governor said Friday.

Connecticuts unemployment rate fell to 4.4 percent, below the national unemployment rate, but that figure was clouded, Republicans said, by the state being underwater in net job creation.

These numbers are truly pathetic, wrote Republican President Pro Tem Len Fasano, who saw his caucus grow to 18, even with Democrats in the Connecticut State Senate during last years elections.

He added, Our Republican message to Connecticut taxpayers and businesses is: It doesnt have to be this way.

Joe Brennan, with the Connecticut Business and Industry Association, said while 2016 was a difficult year for the state, he said hes looking ahead to 2017, and added that the January jobs figure was a great start.

We want to see that private sector growth, Brennan said.

He cautioned, however, that reductions to city and town budgets could end up being a kind of invisible business tax if property tax rates are forced higher.

Brennan said, They may not get it on one tax but they get it on another so we have to see if that comes out in a wash through the legislative process."

One business that views 2017 as the year for serious growth and performance is F3 Technology Partners in West Hartford.

The company specializes in data storage, and has made significant investments in cybersecurity and cloud computing.

"I'd call it a good year, said F3s president Tom Colleary. We got better people, we got better customers than we had in 2015 and we're set up now for future success.

Colleary said he was successful in recruiting new employees to his company in 2016, which he said led to serious gains in the new sectors the company pursued. Even though the revenue figures werent quite as high as they could have been, Colleary said, he views 2017 as a year where the company can reach new heights.

"I'd call it a good year. We got better people, we got better customers than we had in 2015 and we're set up now for future success.

We expect to jump quickly," he said.

As for doing business in whats considered a high-tax state like Connecticut, Colleary said the state needs to do more to help small businesses. F3 Technology Partners has less than fifteen employees.

Colleary said if the state devotes more time and effort to helping companies like his, then years like 2016 will only be in the rearview mirror.

"This is where the future is. Both in small business and both in high tech so these are the type, we are the type of company that the state needs to pay attention to."
When Robert Stannard heard a loud bang and noticed the power go out, his customers told him a car had just smashed into a pole.

Stannard immediately ran outside and realized time was running out for the people in the car.

"There was a lot of smoke inside. The car window was up on the driver side, so I pulled the window until it broke," said Stannard, who owns Bobby's World of Cards & Comics. "I asked if there was anyone else in the car. I tried to open the door but couldn't get the door open."

With the doors jammed shut on both sides, the National Guard veteran yelled for fire extinguishers and used them to suppress the flames. Around that time, Middletown Police arrived.

"The fire started to get going again as we were there, and we began trying to get the individuals out of the vehicle," said Officer Nick Puorro said in an exclusive interview with NBC Connecticut.

Officers Nick Puorro, Matt Freiman, Michael Pellegrini, Josh Ward, and Matt Tiano were the first officers on scene.

Despite the intensifying flames, the thick smoke, and the danger of electric wires dangling above, the men rushed forward to help.

"It happened so quick. My first instinct was to just get the passenger out," said Officer Pellegrini. "The smoke was very dense. We couldn't really see in there, so we just started reaching."

Blinded by the smoke, the officers and Stannard managed to pull the driver and her passenger to safety.

Police tell us both are expected to survive.

Officers give credit to Stannard for his courage and quick thinking.

"He was more than willing to sacrifice his safety," said Officer Freiman.

Stannard credits the officers and other first responders for their actions.

"I just did what anyone would do. I give those guys a lot of credit," said Stannard.

Without all of them working together, the ending to Thursday night's crash could have ended in tragedy.

"In that situation we have a job to do: try to save those people. And that's what we try to do," said Officer Puorro.

"Someone's in trouble, you know, you help. There's nothing more to it than that," said Stannard.

Officers Puorro and Freiman have been with the department for several years. Officer Pellegrini joined the force two months ago. All of them are back out on the job tonight.
It appears a solar company forced to take its panels off a roof after the homeowner complained to the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters in 2015 may have a tough time doing more business in Connecticut.

BeFree Solar of Madison has signed a settlement that it cannot participate in a state program that reduced the price of a solar setup by almost 10 percent, putting it at a competitive disadvantage. This settlement came after a tense hearing almost six months ago.

Several BeFree supporters attended a hearing by the Connecticut Green Bank, whose incentive and lending programs over the past five years have helped get funding for over 20,000 clean power projects in our state.

"We negotiated a contract with BeFree and we found their cooperation excellent," customer David Newton told Green Bank board members.

At the hearing the Green Bank outlined problems it had with BeFree. Those include a Killingworth man profiled by the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters, who said BeFree installed lower quality solar panels on his roof, and he wanted them removed.

In fact, but for an NBC Connecticut story, this issue would still likely be unresolved," Connecticut Green Bank attorney Brian Farnen said.

BeFree insists the Killingworth case was an exception. It has told the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters, "There is a time lag between the signing of the contract and the installation of the solar panels because of the volume of people that have signed up. In that time frame, the original brand of solar panels can become unavailable and our contract allows the substitution of equipment. All homeowners are informed of this at the time they sign up."

The Connecticut Green Bank explained the solar installation in Killingworth was just one of a host of problems.

"It is beyond dispute, that BeFree improperly submitted packing slips to receive a working capital loan that they were not entitled to. In fact, they did this 66 times," Farnen said.

BeFree co-owner Kapil Luthra put the blame on the Green Bank, accusing it of having a confusing, bureaucratic, paperwork loan process, Throughout the Green Bank process, since 2012, they have forms that they never clearly fix.

Farnen responded, Only one other contractor did not do it properly, which means, others ... got it."

In the end BeFree signed a settlement, agreeing not to participate in any more Green Bank programs. It also voluntarily surrendered its home improvement license last fall, and according the state licensing website, it has not been renewed. Neither the Green Bank or BeFree can comment further, as part of the settlement agreement.
STORIES YOU MIGHT LIKE
Atreall Campbell was found dead on her living room floor back in November 2014. At first it appeared that the 82-year-old died of natural causes, until the medical examiner determined something much more sinister. She died of manual strangulation.

Joppee is one of the last remaining freedman's towns in Texas. It's located less than 10 miles from downtown Dallas. Campbell and her family called the historic settlement home for more than a half century.

Campbell quickly became known for her Southern home cooking, and her niece, Mariam Matthews-Fields, holds dear a red jar filled with her aunt's culinary diary. It's one of only a few sentiments left.

"My daughter came in, and it was dark in the house, and hollered out for Auntie, and I said maybe she's still at church?" Matthews-Fields said.

Campbell was considered the matriarch of her Joppee Baptist church. She was an honorary usher who never missed a morning on the prayer line and certainly never a daily phone call to her sister, Hester Johnson.

"When I didn't hear from her on my birthday, I knew that something had happened and I kept calling and kept calling," said Johnson.

It was Nov. 7, 2014.

Campbell was found dead on the living room floor.

"She died with her hands in the air. We're thinking, God she died praising the Lord," said Matthews-Fields.

Sadly, her hands were in the air for a very different reason.

Dallas police say Campbell was strangled. She died trying to defend herself.

"We couldn't believe it. We were all in disbelief that who would do this," said Matthews-Fields.

Campbell was last seen alive on Nov. 4. It was Election Day, and she was voting at her church. Her death sent shock waves through the community, especially after it was ruled a homicide.

Dallas Police Detective Michael Yeric opened Campbell's case file for NBC 5, which contains crime scene reports and witness statements. One of those statements was from from her live-in nephew who was almost immediately named a person of interest. That man was interviewed and eventually released.

The case then went cold.

"The physical evidence we've exhausted," said Yeric. "We're just hoping for some sort of break in the case."

It would be a break Campbell's family is desperate to see. They're hopeful for an ending to that dark secret in Joppee.

"You have not gotten away with this. You will not get away with this, and justice will be served for Atreall Campbell," said Matthews-Fields.

Dallas police are asking anyone with information in the 2014 murder case to come forward. Tips can be anonymous.
The man in charge of the largest school bus operation in North Texas it out. Rick Sorrells the superintendent of Dallas County schools retired under a cloud of controversy as the agency deals with a financial crisis and questions about it's school bus stop arm camera program.

Cameras mounted to the stop-arms of school buses have worked well in other cities to keep kids safe, but NBC 5 Investigates discovered Dallas County Schools spent more than $17 million in bond money to buy stop-arm cameras and on-board security cameras when they could have received some of the equipment for free.

Thousands of times a day across the state of Texas drivers run past a stop sign sticking out from a school bus.

Dallas County Schools, an intermediate educational agency that serves Dallas Countys 14 independent school districts, wanted to crack down on the problem for the 11 school districts whose bus lines they manage.

Every day you see and hear of near misses, said Rick Sorrells, superintendent of Dallas County Schools.

Sorrells decided to use bond money to install a system that includes stop-arm cameras outside of the bus and security cameras inside of the bus.

Our program was a student safety program where we want it on every single bus thats there, Sorrells said.

The district predicted the cameras would pay for themselves in a couple of years.

A budget document obtained by NBC 5 Investigates estimated the cameras would bring in more than $10 million in fines for the first year alone. But NBC 5 Investigates discovered the district only brought in $3.5 million in a year.

Why? The first problem is theyve been unable to collect most of the fines.

The district said their current collection rate is about 40 percent, leaving approximately $6 million in unpaid fines. The district just executed an agreement in October to allow a collection agency to go after those who havent paid.

Theres another reason Dallas County Schools arent collecting more fines. Right now only the City of Dallas has a local ordinance allowing stop-arm cameras. That means when the cameras catch people in other Dallas County cities that dont have an ordinance allowing the cameras, the police cant write the ticket.

The district said theyre working on getting other cites to pass those laws, but meanwhile they still paid to put cameras on buses running in areas where they cant even write tickets.

Instead of depending on ticket money to pay for the cameras the district could have done something different. In Georgia, a number of school districts have installed stop-arm cameras for free.

NBC 5 Investigates traveled to suburban Atlanta, Ga., where the Cobb County School District was among the first in the nation to install stop-arm cameras.

Cobb County transportation director Rick Grisham signed a deal with American Traffic Solutions, one of the countrys biggest red-light traffic camera providers. For Cobb County schools, ATS installed school bus stop-arm cameras, maintains the camera and even collects the fines for no upfront fee.

In exchange, Cobb County splits the fine revenue with ATS for the first five years. At the end of five years the district will own the cameras outright.

Im proud to say were producing something thats not costing or a burden to the school district, said Grisham.

I can only tell you that of all the bus clients we work with, not one has ever spent a dime of taxpayer money to fund one of these programs, said David Jackson, ATS.

ATS did not bid on the Dallas County Schools job because the district only wanted to buy the cameras, not to enter a revenue-sharing deal in exchange for cameras.

Sorrells knew about the programs that offer free cameras but said the ones he saw only included putting cameras on a portion of the fleet and Dallas County Schools wanted cameras on every bus in the county. He believes thats better for the safety of kids.

Meanwhile, ATS said you dont need to put cameras on all of the buses in a fleet for the program to be successful.

Usually violations follow the old 80-20 rule. Eighty percent of the violations end up on the most dangerous routes, that 20 percent of routes, said Jackson.

In Cobb County, they put them on 10 percent of buses that are evenly distributed throughout the county. Cobb County said the number of violations went way down.

Grisham said within three years violations were cut in half.

Thats great news for safety, but when violations go down so does the revenue.

Several camera vendors and school districts told NBC5 Investigates most cities see a 40-70 percent drop in violations after the first year.

That could be bad news for Dallas County Schools plan to quickly pay off its $17 million camera bill.

Sorrells doesnt think purchasing the cameras was a gamble because, we were going to purchase the camera equipment anyway.

Sorrells still believes the stop-arm cameras will pay for themselves, and the security cameras inside the buses, in less than three years, but ironically, while Dallas County Schools tries to pay off the bill, the district is telling other school districts they dont need to buy the cameras.

NBC 5 Investigates discovered Dallas County Schools formed a business partnership with the company it purchased cameras from and theyre now jointly marketing the cameras to other districts across the state.

In a sales presentation, the district pushes the exact kind of revenue-sharing deal it decided against, offering to give other districts free cameras in exchange for a cut of the fines. An excerpt from the presentation says, What sets us apart? We make it easy - the BusGuard system comes at no cost to your district, its 100 percent free.

Dallas County Schools purchased the equipment, owns the equipment, so that we can provide safety across every student thats in the district, said Sorrells.

So, while Dallas County Schools tires to make the ride to school less risky, time will tell if they made a risky financial decision in the process.

Ultimately, DCS spent more than $75 million on the camera program -- borrowing money to pay for much of the equipment. DCS also borrowed more than $20 million from the agency's own general fund to help pay for the program. But they never collected enough to cover the expenses.

DCS is now in danger of running out of cash and defaulting on its debts. The agency announced a restructuring plan this week that would give DCS five additional years to pay back debt - freeing up cash to stay in business.

On Wednesday, Sorrels announced his retirement -- just days after State Senator Royce West called on Sorrells to resign.
When the St. Patrick's Day Parade rolls down Greenville Avenue Saturday morning, an estimated 130,000 people are expected to pack the two-mile route. It's the fourth-largest St. Patrick's Day parade in the country.

"Everybody is cheering and yelling and screaming and smiling," said parade producer Mauricio Navarro. "It's intoxicating!"

Navarro spends a year planning for the big day.

"It's turning out to be one of my biggest favorite holidays," he said, smiling. "My father told me I'm about 3-percent Irish, so on this one day, that 3 percent turns into about 300 percent. I start thinking that I'm an O'Navarro."

Along Greenville Avenue Friday night, setup crews started their work as the sun started to set, putting up fencing, tables and barricades. After midnight, streets around Greenville Avenue will close.

"It's a lot of work and it's a lot of fun," said Peter Kenny, owner of The Dubliner, a pub on Lower Greenville. "There's five million people in Ireland and 30 million outside of Ireland, and on that day, everybody's Irish!"

Lower Greenville hosts the St. Patrick's Day Block Party.

"It's always a great party," Kenny said.

Throughout the day, the Dallas Police Department will be watching over all the festivities along the parade route and Lower Greenville. Police say there are "no documented threats" towards the events, but urge people to be vigilant and report anything suspicious.

The parade starts at 11 a.m. Organizers urge spectators to take DART to the parade or use ridesharing.

Next year's St. Patrick's Day celebration in Dallas will take place on the actual holiday, March 17, 2018.
Many kids are out of school and families across North Texas are headed out of town for Spring Break.

Travel and technology have been combining more these days and it's helping to make life a little simpler.

Some of this stuff you may already know but not realize how much it's growing and expanding.

Companies are making it easier to access your money, which means you and your kids could wind up spending more than planned.

You'll find the technology everywhere. Disney World uses "magic bands." It's a little bracelet you attach to your wrist and it "magically" lets you buy things.

It's your ticket to the park, and your room key all rolled into one. It uses Radio-Frequency Identification Technology or RFID. It's a chip embedded in the bracelet that has everything you need while on your trip. Resorts, hotels, and cruise lines and now even airlines are using the technology.

Delta Air Lines talked to NBC 5 Responds as they launched the service last year and provided some video as to how it works. A tiny chip is now inside your luggage tag, kind of like Apple's "Find my iPhone." It allows the airline to see your bag at all times.

"We're able to see how quickly the customer's luggage is moving through the various part of the routing to get on the airplane," said Sandy Gordon of Delta Air Lines.

It gets better. The chip not only shows where your bag is, but will shut down the conveyor belt if your bag is about to head to Boise instead of your destination in the Bahamas.

It's all designed to simplify your trip and eliminate the bumps. So no more digging for keys or even carrying your wallet.

But here's what you should remember:

That's real money on your bracelet. It becomes so easy to swipe you kind of forget you're spending cash, kids especially. Many hotels will let you limit how much they can spend or any at all.

Check your accounts regularly while you're gone. Most companies swear there's no personal information stored on the RFID chips, but hackers are always hard at work and you never know what they can figure out. So log online and make sure your money's still there.

And lastly, know what you're giving up. RFID not only tracks bags, it can track you. Letting the resort know where you are and what time you got there. Some companies can take note of what activities you used or how much you spent, so if you don't like the idea of big brother watching, it may not be for you.
After Manhattan federal prosecutor announced he was fired Saturday for refusing a request a day earlier to resign, he received support from various people, thanking him for his service in rooting out corruption and wrongdoing.

Preet Bharara, 48, made the announcement on his personal Twitter account after it became widely known hours earlier that he did not intend to step down in response to Attorney General Jeff Sessions' request that leftover appointees of former President Barack Obama quit.

Noticias Telemundo 40 hablo con autoridades quienes ofrecen recomendaciones sobre lo que debe de tomar en cuenta en caso de una emergencia y por las inclemencias del tiempo.

New York Attorney General Eric T. Scheiderman issued a statement saying Bharara "served with honor and distinction" and "will be sorely missed."

"President Trumps abrupt and unexplained decision to summarily remove over 40 U.S. Attorneys has once again caused chaos in the federal government and led to questions about whether the Justice Department's vital and non-partisan work will continue under Attorney General Sessions, as it must," Schneiderman continued.

U.S. Senator of New York Chuck Schumer also released a statement Saturday in response to the firing of Bharara:

Preet Bharara has been an exemplary U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. His relentless drive to root out public corruption, lock up terrorists, take on Wall Street, and stand up for what is right should serve as a model for all U.S. attorneys across the country. He will be sorely missed.

Preet Bharara was an excellent US attorney. Took on Wall St, public corruption & terrorists. Hell be sorely missed.  Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) March 11, 2017

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is not expected to comment on Bharara's firing because de Blasio was under investigation over trading of government favors for political donations.

Annemarie McAvoy, a former Brooklyn federal prosecutor, says it was not surprising President Donald Trump might want Bharara gone since there's a good chance any subpoena seeking information about Trump campaign links to Russians would go through his office.

However, Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor, says a purge of prosecutors is within Trump's rights.

Several others reacted to the firing on social media:
Many South Bay students and parents are up in arms after school officials canceled a field trip to Yosemite.

Cupertino Union School District officials said they were forced to cancel the week-long trip due to safety concerns. Last Sunday, a woman was killed when a Ponderosa pine crashed onto a tent-cabin in Half Dome Village, according to the San Jose Mercury News.

"This is a decision that we did not take lightly as we know how much it means to our students, and to the members of our team who spend countless hours organizing it," Superintendent Wendy Gudalewicz said in a letter to sent to families. "Unfortunately, due to the extremely dangerous road conditions, and the death of an individual at the camp on Sunday, our organizing team has recommended that it is the best interest of student safety to cancel the trip."

Students from Kennedy Middle School were on their way to Yosemite last week, but were forced to turn around after officials were alerted the children's safety was at risk.

Cupertino Middle School and two other schools were also planning trips. The district made the announcement to cancel the trips during a meeting Wednesday.

Some parents said they have been raising money since October and spent up to $1,000 for their students to attend the annual trip. Gudalewicz said the district is working to reimburse families.

The Mercury News reports $1.34 million was raised by parents and supporters to finance this year's Yosemite trips.
House Republicans released their replacement plan for the Affordable Care Act on March 6. How does the GOPs American Health Care Act differ from the ACA? We look at the major provisions.

Is there a requirement to have insurance or pay a tax?

No. For all months after Dec. 31, 2015, the bill eliminates the tax penalties that the ACA imposes on nonexempt individuals for not having health insurance, as well as employers with 50 or more full-time workers who do not offer health insurance to their employees. (To be clear, unless this bill becomes law quickly, those filing their 2016 tax returns will still be subject to the penalty.)

Are insurance companies required to offer coverage regardless of preexisting conditions?

Yes, but theres a penalty for not having continuous coverage. Under both the ACA and the GOP bill, insurers cant deny coverage to anyone based on health status. Under the GOP bill, they can, however, charge 30 percent higher premiums for one year, regardless of health status, to those entering the individual market who didnt have continuous coverage, which is defined as a lapse of coverage of 63 days or more over the previous 12 months.

What happens to the expansion of Medicaid?

It will be phased out.

Prior to the ACA, Medicaid was available to groups including qualified low-income families, pregnant women, children and the disabled. The ACA expanded eligibility to all individuals under age 65 who earn up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level (about $16,643 a year for an individual), but only in states that opted for the expansion. Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have opted in to the expansion, which includes enhanced federal funding, so far. More than 11 million newly eligible adults had enrolled in Medicaid through March 2016, according to an analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation of data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Under the Republican health care plan, no new enrollment can occur under this Medicaid expansion after Dec. 31, 2019. States that have yet to opt in to the expansion by that date also will not be able to do so afterward.

To be clear, the bill doesnt eliminate the Medicaid expansion coverage for those who are enrolled prior to 2020. But if they have a break in coverage for more than one month after Dec. 31, 2019, they wont be able to re-enroll (unless a state wanted to cover the cost itself).

The Republican plan includes another notable change to Medicaid. It would cap the amount of federal funding that states can receive per Medicaid enrollee, with varying amounts for each category of enrollee, such as children, and the blind and disabled. Currently, the federal government guarantees matching funds to states for qualifying Medicaid expenses, regardless of cost.

Are insurers required to cover certain benefits?

Yes. The bill keeps the essential health benefits requirement under the ACA. Insurance companies would still have to cover 10 health services, including maternity coverage, prescription drugs and mental health care. State Medicaid plans, however, would not have to meet this requirement after Dec. 31, 2019.

Are there subsidies to help individuals buy insurance? How do they differ from the Affordable Care Act?

There are two forms of financial assistance under the ACA: premium tax credits (which would change under the GOP plan) and cost-sharing to lower out-of-pocket costs (which would be eliminated).

Lets look at the premium tax credits first. They would be available to individuals who buy their own coverage on the individual, or nongroup, market. But instead of a sliding scale based on income, as under the ACA, the Republican plans tax credits are based on age, with older Americans getting more. (The plan, however, allows insurers to charge older Americans up to five times more than younger people, as we will explain later.)

The ACA tax credits also take into account the local cost of insurance, varying the amount of the credit in order to put a cap on the amount an individual or family would have to spend for their premiums. The Republican plan doesnt do that. (See this explanation from the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation for more on how the ACA tax credits are currently calculated.)

There are income limits under the GOP bill. Those earning under $75,000, or $150,000 for a married couple, in modified adjusted gross income, get the same, fixed amounts for their age groups  starting at $2,000 a year for those under age 30, increasing in $500 increments per decade in age, up to $4,000 a year for those 60 and older. The tax credits are capped at $14,000 per family, using the five oldest family members to calculate the amount. This new structure would begin in 2020, with modifications in 2018 and 2019 to give more to younger people and less to older people.

For those earning above those income thresholds, the tax credit is reduced by 10 percent of the amount earned above the threshold. For instance, an individual age 60 or older earning $100,000 a year would get a tax credit of $1,500 ($4,000 minus 10 percent of $25,000).

That hypothetical 60-year-old gets $0 in tax credits under the ACA. But if our 60-year-old earns $30,000 a year, she would likely get more under the ACA than the GOP plan: In Franklin County, Ohio, for instance, the tax credit would be $6,550 under the ACA in 2020 and $4,000 under the Republican plan. (This interactive map from the KFF shows the difference in tax credits under the health care plans.)

As for the cost-sharing subsidies available now under the ACA  which can lower out-of-pocket costs for copays and other expenses for those earning between 100 percent and 250 percent of the federal poverty level  those would be eliminated in 2020. However, the GOP bill sets up a Patient and State Stability Fund, with $100 billion in funding over nine years with state matching requirements, that can be used for various purposes, including lowering out-of-pocket costs of a states residents.

Small-business tax credits would end in 2020. The health insurance marketplaces stay, but the tax credits can be used for plans sold outside of those marketplaces. And the different levels of plans (bronze, silver, etc.) based on actuarial value (the percentage of costs covered) are eliminated; anyone can buy a catastrophic plan, not just those under 30 as is the case with the ACA.

What does the bill do regarding health savings accounts?

It increases the contribution limits for tax-exempt HSAs, from $3,400 for individuals and $6,750 for families now to $6,550 and $13,100, respectively. Excess money from a premium tax credit also can be contributed and wont count toward that limit. It allows individuals to use HSA money for over-the-counter drugs, something the ACA had limited to only over-the-counter drugs for which individuals had obtained a prescription.

There were so-called winners and losers in the individual market under the ACA. How would that change under this bill?

Both the current law and the Republican proposal primarily impact the individual market, where 7 percent of the U.S. population buys its own health insurance. As weve written many times, how the ACA affected someone in this market depended on their individual circumstances  and the same goes for the House Republicans plan. In general, because the ACA said that insurers could no longer vary premiums based on health status and limited the variation based on age, older and sicker individuals could have paid less than they had before, while younger and healthier individuals could have paid more.

The GOP plan allows a wider variation in pricing based on age: Insurers can charge older individuals up to five times as much as younger people, and states can change that ratio. Under the ACA, the ratio was 3:1. So, younger individuals may see lower premiums under this bill, while older individuals could see higher premiums.

Older Americans do get higher tax credits than younger Americans under the Republican plan, but whether that amounts to more or less generous tax credits than under the ACA depends on other individual circumstances, including income and local insurance pricing. Those with low incomes could do worse under the GOP plan, while those who earned too much to qualify for tax credits under the ACA (an individual making more than $48,240) would get tax credits.

We would encourage readers to use the Kaiser Family Foundations interactive map to see how tax credits may change, depending on various circumstances. Generally, people who are older, lower-income, or live in high-premium areas (like Alaska and Arizona) receive larger tax credits under the ACA than they would under the American Health Care Act replacement, KFF says. Conversely, some people who are younger, higher-income, or live in low-premium areas (like Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Washington) may receive larger assistance under the replacement plan.

Which ACA taxes go away under the GOP plan?

Many of the ACA taxes would be eliminated.

As we said, the bill eliminates all fines on individuals for not having insurance and large employers for not offering insurance. Also, beginning in 2018, for high-income taxpayers, the bill eliminates the 3.8 percent tax on certain net investment income and the 0.9 percent additional Medicare tax on earnings above a threshold. That same year, the bill repeals the 2.3 percent tax on the sale price of certain medical devices and the 10 percent tax on indoor tanning services. It also gets rid of the annual fees on entities, according to the IRS, in the business of providing health insurance for United States health risks, as well as fees on each covered entity engaged in the business of manufacturing or importing branded prescription drugs.

It reduces the tax on distributions from health savings accounts (HSAs) not used for qualified medical expenses from 20 percent to 10 percent and the tax on such distributions from Archer medical savings accounts (MSAs) from 20 percent to 15 percent. It lowers the threshold for receiving a tax deduction for medical expenses from 10 percent to 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income. And from 2020 through 2024, the bill suspends the so-called Cadillac tax, a 40 percent excise tax on high-cost insurance plans offered by employers.

Will young adults under the age of 26 still be able to remain on their parents plans?

Yes. The bill does not affect this provision of the ACA.

How does the bill treat abortion?

It puts a one-year freeze on funding to states for payments to a prohibited entity, defined as one that, among other criteria, provides abortions other than those due to rape, incest or danger to the life of the mother. This would include funding to Planned Parenthood under Medicaid, which is most of the organizations government funding. Under current law, Planned Parenthood cant use federal money for abortions, except those in cases of rape, incest or risk to the mothers life.

Also under the GOP plan, tax credits cant be used to purchase insurance that covers abortion beyond those three exceptions. Health insurance companies would still be able to offer separate coverage for expanded coverage of abortions, which individuals could then purchase on their own.

How many people will have insurance under the plan, as compared with the ACA?

We dont yet have estimates from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which will analyze the bill. But one early analysis from S&P Global Ratings estimated a decline in the insured of 6 million to 10 million people under the bill.

How much will the bill cost, as compared with the ACA?

Well have to wait on that information from the CBO as well.

Where can I get more information?

The full text of the bill is here. A detailed summary is available from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Editors Note: This story will be updated and revised on our website, FactCheck.org, as new information becomes available. Those who are not reading this on FactCheck.org can click here for the latest version.
A 15-month-old was hospitalized Saturday afternoon after a dog bit the child's face, according to police.

A Miami Police spokesperson said the girl went to feed the neighbor's dog, something the toddler often did, when the dog attacked her.

The toddler was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The child is in stable condition.

The owner said the dog was taken away by animal services. The dog is a Pitbull Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix, according to the owner.

No further information has been made available.

Check back with NBC 6 for updates.
Police are searching for the driver who struck woman Saturday while she crossed a Miami street in a wheelchair.

The woman was crossing at Northwest 17th Avenue and Northwest 69th Street at around 1:50 a.m., when a white Nissan Altima struck her, according to investigators.

Witnesses told police the vehicle went around the corner for a short period of time before returning back to the scene of the crash, and then fled northbound on Northwest 17th Avenue.

Miami Fire Rescue transported the woman to Jackson Memorials Ryder Trauma Center, where she remains in critical condition.

The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Miami Police Department at (305) 603-6525. Those with information that wish to remain anonymous can contact Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471- TIPS (8477).
Ocean Drive in Miami Beach was shut down for hours Friday as spring break crowds filled the sand and streets.

Aerial footage showed hundreds of college students frolicking on the sand.

Miami Beach Police closed Ocean Drive from 7th Street to 11th Street as officers transitioned beachgoers from the sand to the road for cleanup crews.

This is expected to be the busiest weekend for Spring Break as many schools in Florida and Georgia are on break and students flock to South Florida shores.

The City does a lot of planning fo Spring Break season. March 3 through April 16th is designated as a high-impact period.

"The challenge is making sure we have it staffed properly and have the right people in the right place at the right time," said Miami Beach Commissioner Michael Grieco.

Friday night alone, there were at least 65 police officers on bicycles, ATVs and on foot. The cost was a little more than $35,000.

"We want everybody to have a good time out here safely, responsibly and the police are out here to make sure everybody's safe and following the rules," said Grieco.

Police said there have been a handful of arrests for minor offenses in the last seven days.
Seraphim said: I

You need to do some reading on Tarek Fatah, on Islamofascism, that looks like what is happening through his definitions in Canada, he spoke out and warned the Canadian Senate in 2014 Click to expand...

Muslims brain wash their kids into Islam as soon as they are old enough to understand.Then they use fear and they threatened them if they think otherwise.That's why the book of hate does not allow you to leave IslamOne of the few good Muslims we have in Canada.We need more of this kind and less of the other kindIslamIslam Sharia rules.1- Jihad war against all non-Muslims to establish the religion- duty of all Muslims. 2- A Caliph can seize office via force. 3- The heads of any Islamic State (Caliph) can not be charged for murder, adultery, robbery, theft, drinking & rape. 4- A percentage of Zakat (alms) must go to jihad. 5- Obligatory to obey the Caliph, even if unjust. 6- A caliph must be Muslim, non-slave & male. 7- A Caliph can not amend sharia. 8- A Muslim who leaves Islam (apostate) to be killed immediately. 9- A Muslim is forgiven for murder of: a) an apostasy b) an adulterer c) a highway robber. Vigilante & honour killings acceptable. 10- A Muslim can not get the death penalty if he kills a non-Muslim. 11- Sharia retains slavery and sexual slavery and regulates it. No punishment for killing slaves. Arab Muslims have slaves today. 12- Sharia dictates death by stoning, beheading, for sins like killing, adultery, prostitution. Quranic punishments include chopping off of hands and feet, floggings, beatings for stealing, sexual promiscuity, robbery, burglary. 13- Non-Muslims are not equal to Muslims and must comply to Sharia (pay Zizzya: poll tax). They can not marry Muslim women, have religious scriptures, or celebrate religious holidays or funerals or build churches. A non-Muslim to be killed if they have sex with a Muslim woman or lead a Muslim from Islam. 14- It is a crime for a non-Muslim to sell weapons to someone using them on Muslims. Non-Muslims cannot curse a Muslim, say derogatory things of Allah, the Prophet, or Islam, or talk about weak points of Muslims.However, Muslims can curse, criticize or say anything derogatory to the religions of others.p15- A non-Muslim cannot inherit from a Muslim. 16- Banks interest is not allowed. 17- No testimony in court from people of low-level jobs. People are not equal in Islamic law. 18- A non-Muslim authority cannot decide over a non-Muslim minority. 19- Homosexuality punished by death. 20- No age limit for marriage of girls. The marriage contract can take place after birth and be consummated at age 8 years. 21- Rebelliousness or disagreement by a wife nullifies the husbands obligation to support her, he can beat her & stop her leaving the home. 22- Divorce is only by the husband, as easy as :I divorce you, effective immediately. 23- No common property of a husband and wife. The husbands property does not automatically go to the wife after his death. 24- A woman inherits half what a man inherits. A Daughter or sister gets half a son or brother. 25- A man can have 4 wives. The wife has no right to divorce him even if he is polygamous. 26- The dowry and marriage contract is for the man to 'rent' the womans sexual organs. 27- A man can rape any slave women captured (concubines), the woman marriage is annulled. 28- The testimony of a woman in court is half the value of a man. 29- A woman loses all custody if she remarries. 30- A rapist only has to pay bride-money (dowry) but does not marry the rape victim. 31- A Muslim woman must cover every inch of her body Awrah, as all her body is a sex organ. Some schools of Sharia allow the face and some dont. 32- A Muslim man is forgiven if he kills his wife caught in adultery. However, the opposite is not true for women since "he could marry the woman he was caught with." 33-It is obligatory for a Muslim to lie about Islam. Taquiyya (Islamic Deception). No feeling of guilt or shame is associated with the lies. 34. The perpetrators of genocide, mass rape and plunder not punished if they repent - Codified Islamic Law Vol 1 # 13. 35. To prove rape, a woman must have 4 male witnesses. Womens testimony not accepted - Thousands of raped women & girls are charged with Zena and punished by Sharia courts. 36. All modern music is prohibited & punishable by Sharia. Only Islamic songs allowed.gcg-------The laws of Islam in Quran & Hadith.
At a school which has a marine science magnet program, you would naturally expect to find students who are concerned about environmental conservation. Keyla Correia takes that concern and turns it into passion. She founded a club at her school, Plastic Free Mermaids, that has its own website now.

"Our primary mission is to spread awareness about plastic pollution through education, outreach, and cleanups," Keyla explains.

More than 20 students have joined the club at South Broward High School, and they don't just talk about ridding the oceans of plastic garbage, they walk the walk, staging frequent shoreline cleanup days. They get it and work for the cause.

"By cleaning up and then educating about it the participants have like, a connection between what they're doing and it makes a bigger impact," Keyla said.

An impact, first and foremost, among her classmates.

"For example, the beach cleanup, I never done that before and I wouldn't have done it if I wasn't part of the club, I wouldn't understand the meaning behind it and the impact we have on nature by just leaving a straw on the floor," said Daniel Ortiz, one of Keyla's classmates.

Keyla took her activism and focused it on her school. She wrote a grant proposal that ended up netting the school a refillable water bottle station.

It's a popular spot on campus. Every time a bottle is filled up, it registers on a counter, which lets everyone know how many plastic bottles they've prevented from potentially ending up in the waterways of South Florida.

Teacher Debra Hixon sponsors the Plastic Free Mermaids club.

"She does inspire others around her, as I mentioned, she started the club, she's the president of a few others so because of her passion, she makes everyone else really excited about being part of the organization," Hixon said.

"And she basically instills in us to promote everywhere we go our club and everything that we do to help get everyone else on the bandwagon," said classmate and club member Eileen McGregor.

Academically, Keyla's one of the top students in her school. She's going off to the University of Florida next year, where she wants to study veterinary medicine and eventually specialize in aquatic animals. First, though, she's extending her reach and partnering with kids in India, Cambodia, Kenya, and Lebanon to clean up the oceans. She goes to conferences and lobbies local government agencies about conservation. Keyla thinks her message is getting through.

"It's like little bits of inspiration that I expose the people to and I spread my love to them and they are just addicted to it," Keyla said.

Getting people addicted to conservation and cleaning up the oceans? That's clearly a worthy goal.
The Brooklyn man shot in the head Monday by his neighbor, a retired NYPD cop, has died after days on life support, police say.

Joseph Stepinski, 45, died Friday at Bellevue Hospital, where he had been on life support since being shot in front of his home at 185 Greenpoint Ave., according to police.

His neighbor, Gene Barrett, was arrested at the scene charges of attempted murder, robbery, assault and burglary. It's unclear if charges will be upgraded.

Barrett, 51, retired from the NYPD in 2002 after nine years on the force, according to his defense attorney. He was injured on the job and retired on disability.

A motive is still not clear in the shooting, but Luis Andino, a friend of Barrett, told News 4 Monday that the victim would "stalk him, spy on him, walk into his apartment. These are things he'd complain about."
The father of an abused 7-year-old Brooklyn girl killed in 2006 by her stepfather has received a $750,000 settlement from the city after he alleged the city failed to protect her.

The girl, Nixzmary Brown, died in January 2006 when her stepfather Cesar Rodriguez beat her as a punishment for stealing yogurt. Both Rodriguez and the girl's mother, Nixzaliz Santiago, were acquitted of murder but convicted of manslaughter. Rodriguez is serving 29 years in prison, and Santiago up to 43 years.

The case hastened reforms in New York's child welfare agency and made the little girl's name synonymous with child abuse.

ACS Commissioner David Hansell said in a statement to News 4 Friday, "The death of Nixzmary Brown was a horrific tragedy that rightfully prompted deep reforms at ACS beginning a decade ago."

"We made progress on all, and sincerely hope that today's settlement brings some closure to those who knew and loved Nixzmary," he said.

Despite Rodriguez delivering the fatal blow to little Nixzmary, Santiago was sentenced to a longer prison term because, according to prosecutors, she failed to save her child's life by taking her to the hospital.

"Being held accountable is one and the same under the law," a prosecutor told reporters at the time of her sentencing. "It's not just you beat her and that's it."

Evidence at her trial included grim crime-scene photos from the room where Nixzmary was bound to a chair, starved and forced to urinate in a litter box. Nixzmary was so malnourished when she died that she weighed only 36 pounds -- about half the weight of an average girl that age.

A defense attorney said Santiago tried twice to stop her husband from hitting the girl, and didn't know he continued beating her until she died. She said Santiago was a loving but overworked mother caring for five other children, and was afraid of her husband.

The case of Nixzmary Brown bears resemblance to that of Zymere Perkins, the 6-year-old boy who died last September from fatal child abuse syndrome. On the day he died, his mother's boyfriend allegedly beat him with a broomstick and hung him by his shirt over the back of the bathroom door, apparently enraged when the boy defecated in the living room of their Hamilton Heights apartment, court documents say.

His case sparked new scrutiny on ACS, and Gladys Carrion resigned as commissioner in the wake of Zymere's and other children's deaths. David Hansell was appointed as the new ACS commissioner last month.
A defiant Manhattan federal prosecutor who says "absolute independence" was his touchstone for over seven years as he battled public corruption announced he was fired Saturday after he refused to resign.

Preet Bharara, 48, revealed his firing on his personal Twitter account. Several hours later, it was learned President Donald Trump had reached out through a secretary on his staff to Bharara on Thursday but the two men never spoke.

The attempted contact  described by a person told about the conversations who requested anonymity  continued the unusual dynamic between Trump and the high profile prosecutor that stretched to Nov. 30, when Bharara emerged from a Trump Tower meeting with Trump to say the then-president-elect had asked him to stay on the job.

The person who requested anonymity because of the talks' private nature said the secretary late Thursday left a voicemail asking Bharara to call back. Bharara reported the call to Sessions' chief of staff, Joseph "Jody" Hunt, who agreed it was best that Bharara not speak directly with Trump, the person said. Bharara then called the White House, telling the secretary he had spoken to the Justice Department and it was agreed he and Trump should not speak.

Bharara was informed he was fired by Dana Boente, the acting deputy attorney general, shortly after it became widely known that he did not intend to step down in response to Attorney General Jeff Sessions' request that leftover appointees of former President Barack Obama quit.

"I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired," Bharara said in a tweet.

In a statement later, he said: "Serving my country as U.S. Attorney here for the past seven years will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life, no matter what else I do or how long I live. One hallmark of justice is absolute independence, and that was my touchstone every day that I served."

He said current Deputy U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim will serve as acting U.S. attorney.

The Justice Department late Saturday confirmed Bharara was no longer U.S. attorney but declined to expound.

Meanwhile, Michigan Rep. John Conyers, the House Judiciary Committee's top Democrat, requested Saturday that the committee receive a summary of probes linked to Trump, whether they touch on his administration, transition, campaign and organization, "so that we can understand the full implications of this weekend's firings."

He said he suspected Bharara "could be reviewing a range of potential improper activity emanating from Trump Tower and the Trump campaign, as well as entities with financial ties to the president or the Trump organization."

Bharara was appointed by former President Barack Obama in 2009. In frequent public appearances, Bharara has decried public corruption after successfully prosecuting over a dozen state lawmakers, Democrats and Republicans alike.

Sessions' decision to include Bharara's name on the list of 46 resignations of holdovers from the Obama administration surprised Manhattan prosecutors.

While it is customary for a new president to replace virtually all of the 93 U.S. attorneys, it often occurs at a slower pace. Sessions lost his position as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Alabama in a similar sweep by then-Attorney General Janet Reno in 1993.

Robert Morgenthau, a Democratic U.S. attorney in Manhattan, famously held out for nearly a year after Republican President Richard Nixon's 1969 inauguration, saying he needed to see some important cases through. He ultimately left in January 1970, after the White House declared he was being replaced and announced a nominee.

New York Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat, said in a statement Friday that he was "troubled to learn" of the resignation demands, particularly of Bharara, since Trump called him in November and assured him he wanted Bharara to remain in place.

Bharara met Trump Nov. 30, saying afterward he'd been asked to remain in the job. Bharara, once lauded on the cover of Time magazine as the man who is "busting Wall Street" after successfully prosecuting dozens of insider traders, has in recent years gone after over a dozen state officeholders,  including New York's two most powerful lawmakers.

It also recently was revealed that his office is investigating the financial terms of settlements of sexual-harassment claims against Fox News by its employees.

The request from Sessions came as Bharara's office is prosecuting former associates of Democratic Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in a bribery case. Also, prosecutors recently interviewed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as part of a probe into his fundraising. The mayor's press secretary has said the mayor is cooperating and that he and his staff had acted appropriately.

The request for resignations came after Trump last weekend claimed Obama tapped his telephones during last year's election. FBI Director James Comey privately asked the Justice Department to dispute the claim because he believed the allegations were false. Bharara worked for Comey when he was U.S. attorney in Manhattan under President George W. Bush.

Annemarie McAvoy, a former Brooklyn federal prosecutor, said it was not surprising Trump might want Bharara gone since there's a good chance any subpoena seeking information about Trump campaign links to Russians would go through his office. She said it was also possible Trump wanted "to take out as many people as they can in the prior administration given the leaks and problems that they're having."

Last week, the quick-witted Bharara initiated a new personal Twitter feed and sent an ominous message in which he linked an AP video of a Senate hearing focusing on whether federal prosecutors were fired for political reasons.

"This Senate hearing on political interference @DOJ was 10 yrs ago today," Bharara wrote. "Is that me in the background? Boy I've aged."
Forty-six U.S. attorneys appointed by Barack Obama during his presidency have been asked to step down, including Preet Bharara, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, the Department of Justice says.

Also asked to resign were Paul Fishman in New Jersey and Robert Capers in Brooklyn.

It was initially unclear if Bharara's resignation would be accepted by the White House. The 48-year-old prosecutor, who is known as tough on insider trading and public corruption, was appointed to his job in 2009 by Obama and had been kept on as U.S. attorney after meeting with Trump after his election last November.

President Trump told Bharara at the time he planned to keep him on given his record, according to NBC News sources. It was possible Trump could choose not to accept Bharara's resignation.

But a White House spokesman and DOJ spokesman separately told NBC News late Friday the administration will accept all but two resignations, that of Dana Boente of northern Virginia and of Rod Rosenstein of Maryland. That means Bharara's will be among the resignations that are accepted, the senior White House official said.

Bharara wasn't commenting Friday.

Fishman said in a statement, "It has been the greatest professional experience that I can possibly imagine to have served in this office for the past seven and a half years... I am enormously grateful for the opportunity I was given to lead the men and women who work in this office."

Capers in Brooklyn said, "It has been my greatest honor to serve my country, New York City and the people of this district for almost 14 years, with the last 17 months serving as United States Attorney."

Many of the U.S. attorneys nominated by Obama's administration already have left the Department of Justice, as was the case in prior transitions, according to Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores.

The 46 of the total 93 U.S. attorneys who were still in their posts were all political appointees. Attorney General Jeff Sessions asked them Friday to step down "in order to ensure a uniform transition," NBC News reports.

Flores said, "Until the new U.S. Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. Attorney's Offices will continue the great work of the Department in investigating, prosecuting and deterring our most violent offenders."

In a statement late Friday, New York Sen. Charles Schumer said he was "troubled to learn of reports of requests for resignations from the remaining U.S. attorneys, particularly that of Preet Bharara."

"While it's true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for U.S. attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesn't put ongoing investigations at risk. They ask for letters of resignation but the attorneys are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed," the senator said.

Schumer said that by requesting immediate resignations, Trump was "interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice."
The Chicago River was dyed green Saturday to kick off St. Patricks Day celebrations across the city.

Now in its 55th year, the annual tradition draws hundreds of thousands of spectators to downtown Chicago ahead of the city's St. Patrick's Day parade. [[415820863, C]]

The event began at 9 a.m., when members of the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers union started to dump a secret concoction off the sides of their boats.

It takes more than 45 pounds of the environmentally friendly vegetable dye to color the water, using a powdered formula that begins orange before it mixes with the water to turn the river bright green. [[415947073, C]]

Legend has it that the green water connects Chicago to Ireland, as it flows into the Illinois River, the Mississippi River, the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, all the way into the Irish Sea.

The dye typically lasts about five hours before fading away, meaning it will stay bright green for the 2017 St. Patricks Day Parade, which steps off at 12 p.m. on the corner of Columbus Drive and Balbo before continuing north to Monroe.
Jeffrey Perelman, a well-known Philadelphia philanthropist and Main Line billionaire who infamously sued his father several years ago, suffered a defeat in another lawsuit this week over a neighbor's proposal to build a new house.

Perelman and his wife, Marsha, lost an appeal in Commonwealth Court over proposed construction at 115 Cherry Lane in Lower Merion. The court ruled that the property owner, Aram Jerrehian Jr., has the right to build a house.

In addition to a power couple with a famous last name, the dispute involves a property steeped in history. The 3.8-acre parcel identified in the suit as the Pool Lot is part of a one-time 40-acre estate called Hedgeley.

Hedgeley dates to the 1870s when William Winsor bought the sprawling land in the hills of Lower Merion's Wynnewood section. It remained a single estate off Cherry Lane until the 1950s when Winsors heir died and the land was split into four parcels by Orphans Court. One of those lots became the Pool Lot.

The exclusive neighborhood of long driveways and massive mansions is home to some of Philadelphia richest business owners and entrepreneurs. Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie lives on an estate of his own a block away from the Hedgeley properties.

An attorney who represented Lower Merion Township in the appeal to Commonwealth Court said after the ruling that the Perelmans interest in preventing Jerrehian from building on the Pool Lot appeared to be as simple as keeping the status quo in the sparsely populated area.

The property is from what I understand a very lovely piece of ground and the neighbor would like to maintain the privacy that the community there offers, attorney Gilbert High, of the law firm High Schwartz, said.

A three-judge panel of Commonwealth Court heard the case in September after Jerrehian appealed a ruling by the Lower Merion Zoning Board that he would have to seek a variance to build a new home on the property.

The zoning board found that the lot did not have what it deemed the proper street access required by township code, despite a finding by Lower Merions zoning officer that the lot did appear to pass muster for new construction without a variance.

A Common Pleas Court upheld the boards ruling.

Attorneys for the Perelmans and Jerrehian presented arguments to Commonwealth Court. The Perelmans made two claims: that 115 Cherry Lane did not have adequate street access, and that it was not an official subdivision from the adjacent 103 Cherry Lane.

Jerrehian bought 115 Cherry Lane in 2006 from Bert and Anne OMalley. The OMalleys sold 103 Cherry Lane a year earlier to a separate buyer.

The court rejected both of the Perelmans claims. Separately, the court affirmed Jerrehians claim that the township zoning board did not apply its code properly when it determined the Pool Lot did not have adequate street access.

The Perelmans could appeal to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court or ask the Commonwealth Court to reconsider its ruling. Their lead attorney, Kenneth E. Aaron, did not respond to requests for comment. Another attorney for the Perelmans said she could not comment on whether the couple will use either option, or drop the case.

Jeffrey Perelman is the younger of two sons to Raymond and the late Ruth Perelman. His lawsuit against his father and older brother, Ronald, shook Philadelphia high society in 2010. The suit, dubbed Perelman v. Perelman, was related to the familys extensive billion-dollar business holdings.

Both Jeffrey and Marsha Perelman have served on numerous boards of the largest institutions in the Philadelphia region.

Jerrehian and his attorney did not respond to requests for comment.

High, the township attorney, said that if the Perelmans decide to drop their case the only thing left for Jerrehian to do before constructing a new house on the Pool Lot is to get a building permit from Lower Merion.

Its not a life or death case, High said. Theyre neighbors.
I HOPE YOU DONT HAVE TRAVEL PLANS TUESDAY

This is going to be nasty-at best. We only had one significant snow last winter, and it was a whopper -- 22.4 inches in Philadelphia. That was the equivalent of an average winter snow in the city for an entire winter! This coming storm shouldnt be quite as big, but a lot of us are going to get more than a foot of snow.

The snow will start Monday evening (between 10 p.m. to midnight) and quickly accumulate. Remember, the roads are cold this time after this bitter cold weekend. Snow will immediately stick to untreated surfaces throughout the area. And by morning, what should be the a.m. rush wont be one. Heavy snow, with very poor visibility, and gusty winds will make travel hazardous. And in areas that see the snow change to heavy sleet or rain (with possible thunderstorms), it will be a huge mess. [[415981023, C]]

THE LATEST ON THE STORM

Big winter storms in this part of the country have been studied for hundreds of years. Benjamin Franklin is credited with discovering "noreasters," where the LOW pressure center tracks TO the northeast, but the wind is blowing FROM the northeast. He managed to figure it out, without sophisticated satellites, radar, or even a network of observations. Pretty impressive!

This storm is going to become a classic Noreaster. But, as usual, the storm track is crucial. Its that nearby Atlantic Ocean that causes the difficulty (of course, if there was no ocean there, the storm wouldnt form in the first place). A track too close to the coast allows warmer air to move in, changing snow to rain. Tracks too far offshore lead to less precipitation. Miss the track forecast by a mere 50 miles and there can be a difference between 2 inches and 10 inches or even more. [[273571721, C]]

Computer models were in pretty good agreement last Thursday for the storm, but started to diverge by Saturday. Snow projections for Philadelphia from one model gave us a mere 2 inches, while another one was up to 24 inches! Yes, at the same time. With the same atmosphere. Wonder why winter storm forecasting is hard on the East Coast?

TODAYS MODELS

Here are three models from Sunday that are valid at 8 a.m. Tuesday. These models disagreed a good bit 24 hours earlier, but are very similar now. All three have a strong LOW along or just off the mid-Atlantic coast. The NAM, GFS, and Canadian all show major winter storms affecting our area, with a lot of rain near the coast and a lot of snow well inland.

Getty Images

The dark blue represents the heaviest snow, which would fall at 1 to 2 inches per hour (or even more for the darkest blue). This is likely the peak of the storm-the heaviest snow inland, heaviest sleet and rain near the coast, and the strongest winds at the coast. Unfortunately, this is close to the time of high tide in South Jersey. Very heavy rain along with 60 mph gusts, and high tide add up to possible significant flooding at the Jersey Shore.



The one thing preventing many 20-inch-plus snows this time is the speed of the storm. Below is the forecast map for a mere 12 hours after the above maps:

Getty Images

The LOW is now off the coast of Maine. That means the storm is moving more than 35 mph. The faster the storm moves, the fewer hours of snow will fall. And the biggest snowstorms here move much slower than this one will. Some storms in the past have stalled. The famous Blizzard of 1888 actually moved from well offshore back toward the coast, leading to many more hours of heavy snow.



Some snow could fall later Tuesday and even Tuesday night, but the bulk of the accumulation will come between 10 p.m. Monday and 1 p.m. Tuesday.

Stay with the NBC10 First Alert Weather team for the latest weather updates including alerts, maps and forecasts.

As the snow creeps closer, crews are preparing for what could be a very busy few days on the roads. NBC10s Matt DeLucia is in Plymouth Meeting with more on the preparation along the Pennsylvania Turnpike and at local hardware stores.

The major winter storm could bring a mixed bag of weather to the Jersey Shore including rain, flooding, gusty winds and beach erosion. NBC10s Katy Zachry is in Atlantic City with more on how the show is preparing for the storm.

Get the latest weather from NBC10.com:
U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter is holding a town hall event in Ramona Saturday.

The event got underway at 10 a.m. and the first thing Hunter told the crowd was how impressed he is with President Donald Trump.

Amid rising tensions at local town halls, three local representatives - one Democrat and two Republicans - are coming home to San Diego to speak with their constituents.

U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa (R- 49th District), U.S. Rep. Susan Davis (D- 53rd District) and Hunter will hold separate town hall events in San Diego County Saturday.

The @RepDuncanHunter town hall underway - 1st thing he said was how great a job @realDonaldTrump is doing #nbc7 pic.twitter.com/OkYVpePTt6  Steven Luke (@stevenlukenbc) March 11, 2017

The Representatives are expected to discuss health care reform, local legislative priorities and other issues important to constituents. San Diegans will also have opportunities to speak directly with their Representatives to ask questions and share input.

Hunter's town hall is taking place at Mainstage Ramona, located at 626 Main St.

Issa will hold morning and afternoon sessions at the Junior Seau Recreation Center in Oceanside.

Davis will live stream her town hall starting at 10 a.m. because the venue reached capacity.

NBC 7's Alex Presha is in Oceanside where police are preparing for a large turnout and possible protests.
Americans are afraid of everything.Air Canada denies U.S. security chief's assertion that its jets have been focus of any terror plotsU.S. Homeland Secretary John Kelly says there have been countless attempts by terrorists to blow up passenger jets operated by Air Canada and U.S. airlines  plots that have been stopped because of U.S. and Canadian intelligence agencies."The most significant threat is a terrorist attack I think on aviation. That seems to be their Stanley Cup playoff. They want to knock down airplanes and they are trying every day to do it," Mr. Kelly told CTV's Power Play on Friday after meeting with senior Trudeau cabinet ministers on Parliament Hill."I can't count the number of airplanes that have not been blown up in flight, whether they are United [Airlines] or Air Canada but I can tell you there are dozens of plots ongoing all the time." Air Canada issued a strong denial that the airline had been the focus of any terrorist plot."Air Canada's policy is generally not to discuss issues of security. However there is no truth whatsoever in the suggestion that Air Canada may have been involved in such threats," spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick told The Globe and Mail.Mr. Kelly would not provide further details, saying the information was classified, but he added that Canada and the United States are considered "hard targets" by terrorists because of the security measures the two countries have put in place and their seamless co-operation on the sharing of information, including on passengers.Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale did not deny that there had been terrorist threats against Air Canada when asked about Mr. Kelly's comments."No there is not a new specific threat against Air Canada. Obviously if that were to be the case, we would be taking a range of actions, but the secretary was not referring to a new immediate threat."He acknowledged aircraft terrorism was of high concern but played down the immediate dangers to airline passengers.
It was a full day for Ray Chavez, the oldest living veteran survivor of the Attack on Pearl Harbor, as he celebrated his 105th birthday with family and friends in San Diego Friday.

Chavez birthday festivities kicked off at his gym where he keeps in shape. Hes got two more parties planned for the weekend - the big bash takes places Saturday on deck of USS Midway.

Some might choose to skip a workout on their birthday, but not Chavez. On arrival, he got right into his normal routine and, as he put it, earned himself a piece of cake.

Chavez may not agree, but he earned much more than a piece of birthday cake more than 70 years ago serving missions on minesweeper and attack transport ships, responding to Pearl Harbor the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, and aiding in the Liberation of the Philippines and the Battle of Okinawa.

On Friday, his first stop was the stationary bike.

Chavez scooched in and began to pedal with his daughter in the bike next to him. He quickly worked up to a proud pace, saving enough air and energy to have a chat with his friend Jack Scalia, an American actor heavily involved in military appreciation campaigns.

After some time on the bike, Chavez moved to the leg extension machine, made multiple passes through a balance-centric obstacle course and marched out a few sets of high-knees.

In between reps he fielded questions about his time on earth from media and enamored party guests. Most simply asked for advice; how hed made it through 105 years healthy and happy.

Obey the laws, for one thing, Chavez said sternly.

He also said making friends was high on his list.

Once he finished his workout, the real party began.

An Elvis impersonator sang America the Beautiful and Jeff Senour of Called to Service sang a tune he wrote to honor the nations military. The cherry on top was a kiss on the cheek from a woman, and her dog, dressed in a hula skirt.

Finally it was time for cake. Chavez was gracious enough to answer more questions in between bites. When asked what it feels like to be 105 years old, his reply was short and sweet.

Good, said Chavez, with a smile.

As for his birthday wish for the coming year, Chavez had this to say: Whatever good comes along, I wish everybody would share it.

When asked why he thought so many people were at the gym for this birthday, the humble veteran simply said, I really dont know.

After so much attention on Chavez own advice and words of wisdom, he was asked what the best piece of advice he had ever received was.

To get as much education as you can and also to be kind to all people, especially the elderly and the less fortunate. Thats what I remember most, he said.

That advice came from his parents.

Chavez recalled being called to active duty as one of the most important memories of his life.

War. Being in right in the middle of it, Chavez said. It was quite a surprise. I saw everything. Smoke and fire.

As the oldest living veteran of the attack, Chavez flew to Honolulu to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor last December. He was accompanied by his daughter, a U.S. Navy veteran, and escorted by San Diego firefighter Mitch Mendler and retired New York firefighter Joe Torillo, a survivor of the 9/11 attacks.
Metal detectors and evidence markers in hand, investigators searched a park in Southcrest Friday, following up on possible leads related to the shooting death of San Diego Police Department (SDPD) Officer Jonathan JD De Guzman.

At 8:45 a.m., several police vehicles were parked near the Southcrest Recreation Center at South 40th and Alpha streets. Investigators cordoned certain sections of the park, including some grassy areas, and used metal detectors. They placed small flags in certain areas and took notes.

The park is located just a few blocks from Acacia Grove Way, the street where De Guzman and his partner SDPD Officer Wade Irwin were gunned down while on duty on July 28, 2016.

San Diego Deputy District Attorney Michael Runyon told NBC 7 that investigators from the SDPD Homicide Unit, along with evidence collection specialists, were at the park following up on leads and possible evidence that may be related to the ongoing investigation of the shooting of De Guzman and Irwin.

Runyon said the work would likely take all day.

[Theyre] documenting certain items of potential interest, he explained.

Runyon said he could not elaborate on what those items might be or what investigators were looking for, as the investigation is ongoing.

The deadly shooting of De Guzman and Irwin last summer shook San Diego to its core. The city has rallied time and time again to support the fallen officer's family.

Irwin survived the shooting, but was seriously injured.

The SDPD officers were shot when they stopped suspect Jesse Michael Gomez, 52, and asked if he lived in the area.

Gomez opened fire at point-blank range at both officers, shooting Irwin in the throat and hitting De Guzman with multiple bullets. The attack happened so quickly, prosecutors said De Guzman never even had a chance to draw his service weapon.

De Guzman was a 16-year veteran of the SDPD, beloved by his colleagues and family. In 2003, the officer survived a stabbing while on duty, and was awarded a Purple Heart by the department for his valor. Zimmerman said that even after that incident, De Guzman eagerly returned to the force and his passion to protect the public never wavered.

Since his killing, De Guzman has been memorialized in many ways around San Diego. Just this past Monday, the U.S. Post Office in the Eastlake community of Chula Vista, California, was named in honor of the fallen officer.
The son of a tow truck driver is making an emotional plea with drivers.

The 19-year-old who recently lost his dad said if more drivers took their time, it could give people like his dad more time to live and enjoy their loved ones.

Michael Griffith is the oldest of his three brothers, and he is left to do the speaking for the family after his father was fatally run over by a drunk driver on State Route 52.

I dont believe a better person could have been taken out by a worse person, Griffith told NBC 7.

His dad, 55-year-old Fred Griffith was trying to help a disabled trash truck on the freeway near Mast Boulevard last month. A driver swerved into the shoulder, ending Griffiths life.

It is my understanding it was an instant death and he didnt suffer, Michael Griffith told NBC 7.

Michael Gilbert Gray, 48, is accused of driving away after the crash, until an off-duty officer stopped him about a mile away. Gray had a half-finished open bottle of vodka in the car with him, Griffith said, and a law enforcement source confirmed to NBC 7.

Griffith said he believes most drivers would not be as reckless and heartless as Gray but he said the majority of drivers are dangerously unaware of the rules of the road when it comes to tow truck drivers.

The tow operators are also considered first responders, often arriving at traffic hazards and crash scenes before police and fire.

Drivers need to slow down and change lanes when it is safe to do so to give tow truck drivers room to operate, according to Griffith and the California Highway Patrol (CHP).

He was where he should have been. He wasnt doing anything. He wasnt sticking out in a lane, said CHP Officer Jake Sanchez

Griffith said his mom and his 14 and 17 year old brothers lost a wonderful father and husband, and San Diego lost a good man.

As a father, he was incredibly caring, and he was always interested in what you had to say, Griffith remembered.

Griffith said his father had a special gift for lending a listening ear to those contemplating suicide, often convincing them that life was worth living.

He did that many times, Griffith said. Unfortunately the final time he had a chance to do it, the person jumped before my dad had the chance to get through traffic on the other side. My dad always told me that really tore him up on the inside. Because the last thing he did was look into his eyes.

Griffith urged drivers, in memory of his dad, to study the rules of the road around tow truck drivers.

Many lives have been lost. And people just need to be more aware of how just a simple lane change can save someones life, Griffith said.

According to accident data compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, injury and fatality rates among emergency responders  including tow truck drivers  are more than twice the national average for all industries.

Its 10 minutes max that you could be late to your job. Whats worse? 10 minutes late or someone dying? Griffith said.

On Saturday morning, more than 100 tow truck and flatbed carriers from across San Diego County came together honor his father. The procession traveled from RoadOne Towing on Chesapeake Drive around 11:30 a.m.

There was a crowd gathered as nearly 100 tow trucks drove down highway 52 east to pay tribute to #FredGriffith #NBC7 was there. pic.twitter.com/vWncWo6Va6  Llarisa Abreu (@LlarisaAbreu) March 11, 2017

Click here if you would like to donate to the family.
President Donald Trumps new executive order on foreign nationals entering the U.S. says more than 300 refugees in the United States are currently the subjects of counterterrorism investigations. Attorney General Jeff Sessions repeated that figure in his remarks on the new order. But it is a statistic without any context.

The White House and Department of Justice have declined to provide the total number of counterterrorism investigations underway or how it defines the term counterterrorism investigation. Thats important context, because FBI guidelines allow three levels of investigation to address a potential threat to national security, beginning with assessments  which do not require any particular factual predication, as explained in a 2014 inspectors general report.

In recent years, the F.B.I. has averaged 10,000 assessments annually, and 7,000 to 10,000 preliminary or full investigations involving international terrorism, the New York Times reported last year.

On the same day that Trump signed the executive order, Reuters reported, The FBI is investigating 300 people who were admitted into the United States as refugees as part of 1,000 counterterrorism investigations involving Islamic State or individuals inspired by the militant group, congressional sources told Reuters on Monday, citing senior administration officials. But a federal law enforcement official told us that report is not accurate and advised us to avoid the 300 out of 1,000 construct.

The law enforcement official, who asked to remain anonymous, said in FBI parlance investigations, as used in the executive order, means full investigations. The official would not say how many full investigations involving terrorism are underway, but referred us to the Times article that said the FBI averages 7,000 to 10,000 preliminary or full investigations a year.

If so, then that would mean that refugees are not 30 percent of counterterrorism investigations  as reported by Reuters and repeated by some news outlets  but rather somewhere between 3 percent and 4.3 percent. But we dont know for sure, because the administration wont say.

What we do know is that few terrorism investigations result in prosecutions. We also know that no refugees were involved in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and no refugees have been responsible for any terrorism-related deaths in the U.S. since 9/11, as we have written before.

Refugees a Threat to National Security?

We began asking the Trump administration for information about counterterrorism investigations involving refugees on March 6, when the president signed a new executive order on foreign terrorist entry. The new order revokes and replaces an earlier version  executive order 13769  that was blocked by the federal courts.

The new order imposes a 90-day travel ban on the citizens of six predominately Muslim countries (Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen) who do not have valid visas, and suspends the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program for 120 days. The order said the delay is needed to improve screening and vetting procedures.

Refugees undergo the highest degree of screening of any traveler to the U.S., according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. That screening process takes 18 months to two years and includes fingerprinting and checking records against databases maintained by the National Counterterrorism Center, the Pentagon, the FBI and Interpol, as we have previously written.

The order justifies the revised restrictions on entry into the U.S. by declaring that foreign-born nationals, including refugees, have proved to be threats to our national security.

As we also have reported, the U.S. has accepted more than 3 million refugees since 1975, but few of them attempted terrorist attacks on U.S. soil. A 2016 report by the libertarian Cato Institute called Terrorism and Immigration identified 154 foreign-born people, including 20 refugees, who were convicted of carrying out or attempting to carry out a terrorist attack in the U.S. over a 40-year period, from 1975 to 2015.

Three refugees were responsible for three terrorism-related deaths  all in the 1970s, according to the Cato report.

Separately, Kathleen Newland of the Migration Policy Institute came to a similar conclusion in 2015, when she looked at the number of terrorism-related prosecutions involving refugees since the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. No one in the U.S. has been killed in a terrorist incident by a resettled refugee since 9/11, Newland told us in an email for this story.

Unlike the first executive order, the new order included new language about current counterterrorism investigations involving refugees.

Executive Order, March 6: The Attorney General has reported to me that more than 300 persons who entered the United States as refugees are currently the subjects of counterterrorism investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Sessions, the attorney general, made a similar statement in remarks on the day the new executive order was signed.

Sessions, March 6: We also know that people seeking to support or commit terrorist attacks here will try to enter through our refugee program. In fact, today more than 300 people who came here as refugees are under FBI investigation for potential terrorism-related activities.

We repeatedly sent emails to the White House, the Justice Department and the FBI, seeking information on the current investigations. Specifically, we asked if the more than 300 refugees are under full investigation, preliminary investigation, or are they at the assessment level. The White House referred us to the Justice Department, which told us it would provide no additional information.

Context is important. Knowing that there are more than 300 refugees under investigation without any other information reminds us of the late comedian George Carlins gag about sportscasters who referred to games in progress as partial scores. Carlin would joke, Heres a partial score: Notre Dame 6.

FBI Terror Investigations

After the 9/11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people, the FBI adopted guidelines that greatly expanded its investigative powers.

In December 2008, then-Attorney General Mike Mukasey changed the FBIs Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide that gave the FBI more leeway to engage in proactive investigative work without the level of evidence required by preliminary or full investigations, according to an April 2013 report, The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Terrorism Investigations, by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.

CRS, April 24, 2013: The most prominent changes in the Mukasey Guidelines and the DIOG concern assessments. Agents and analysts may now use assessments outside of the more traditional preliminary and full investigations, which require some level of factual predication. Preliminary investigations can be opened with any allegation or information indicative of possible criminal activity or threats to the national security. Opening a full investigation requires an articulable factual basis of possible criminal or national threat activity. On the other hand, opening an assessment does not require particular factual predication.

The investigative methods used during the assessment stage are generally those of relatively low intrusiveness, such as obtaining publicly available information, checking government records, and requesting information from members of the public, according to the FBI. CRS says that includes public surveillance and the use of confidential informants to penetrate conspiracies.

As a result of the so-called Mukasey guidelines, the number of people under FBI surveillance sharply increased. CRS said that the FBI in a three-month period from December 2008 to March 2009 initiated 11,667 assessments, although only 427 of them advanced to preliminary or full investigations. Officials noted that about one-third of the assessments resulted from vague tips, CRS said.

Over a two-year period, from March 25, 2009, to March 31, 2011, the FBI opened 42,888 assessments of people or groups to see whether they were terrorists or spies, according to government data obtained by the New York Times under a FOIA request.

Information gathered by agents during those assessments had led to 1,986 preliminary or full investigations, the Times wrote in that Aug. 23, 2011, story.

We dont know if the counterterrorism investigations cited in the executive order are assessments, preliminary or full investigations. As we said earlier, the federal law enforcement official we contacted for this story told us they refer to full investigations and referred us to last years New York Times article that said the FBI in recent years has averaged 7,000 to 10,000 preliminary or full investigations a year. That Times story also said, Most investigations never end in prosecution.

Its silly for them to cite investigations, most of which will never lead to convictions or even charges being filed, to support a public policy like this, Alex Nowrasteh, author of the Cato report on terrorism and immigration, told us an email.

David Bier, an immigration policy analyst at Cato, wrote in a March 8 blog that the U.S. averaged 27 terrorism convictions per year in the five years from 2010 to 2014, which was based on a database of terrorism and terrorism-related convictions compiled by the DOJs National Security Division. Citing the New York Times article from last year for the number of FBI preliminary and full investigations, Bier estimated that about 0.3 percent of all terrorism investigations result in convictions.

Taking the middle of the 7,000 to 10,000 range for the number of new FBI investigations (8,500) would mean that only about 0.3 percent of all terrorism investigations end in terrorism convictions, Bier wrote.

Of course, there are incidents of refugees who have attempted terrorist attacks in the U.S., just as there have been incidents involving U.S. citizens, green-card holders and visa holders. Trumps executive order mentions two terrorism cases involving refugees  including the conviction of Mohamed Osman Mohamud, a native of Somalia who had been brought to the United States as a child refugee.

As we have written before, Mohamud was charged in an undercover sting operation with attempting to set off a fake bomb supplied by undercover FBI agents at a Christmas tree-lighting ceremony in Portland. He was sentenced in October 2014 to 30 years in prison.

Mohamud was only 5 years old when he entered the U.S., so it is not clear if anyone that young would have been denied entry under more extreme vetting, as Trump has advocated.

The executive order also referenced the convictions of Iraqi refugees Waad Ramadan Alwan and Mohanad Shareef Hammadi. The U.S. was unaware when Alwan entered the country in 2009 that he was involved in planting and detonating IEDs against U.S. troops in Iraq. After learning of Alwans criminal past, the FBI set up a sting operation that led to the arrest of Alwan and Hammadi on multiple terrorism charges related to a conspiracy to kill Americans overseas. They were sentenced in January 2013, as we have written before.

The case involving the two Iraqi refugees  which Kellyanne Conway, Trumps counselor, mistakenly referred to as the Bowling Green massacre  did not result in any deaths. But it did lead to a tightening of the vetting process at the time.

It is understandable that the Trump administration has sought to justify the need for its new executive order. After all, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the first order in part because the administration failed to present evidence to explain the need for the Executive Order. For this reason, perhaps, the new order cited ongoing counterterrorism investigations of more than 300 refugees. But the administration renders that number meaningless by failing to provide any other information.

FactCheck.org is a non-partisan non-profit organization that will hold candidates and key figures accountable during the 2016 presidential campaign. FactCheck.org will check facts of speeches, advertisements and more for NBC.
A 4-year-old boy is expected to survive after his 6-year-old brother accidentally shot him Friday night, police say.

The two boys found a handgun in their house in the 5800 block of Falkirk Avenue in Baltimore, Maryland, police said. They started playing with the gun and it went off and shot the 4-year-old in the upper body.

Police said their father was home at the time and rushed his son to the hospital. Officers arrived to the hospital about 6:20 p.m.

The little boy is in stable condition.

No charges have been announced.
A Montgomery County mom cried tears of joy Friday as she got to meet the police officer who found her 7-year-old daughter.

Sahara, who has autism, ran off from her babysitter Saturday, March 4 and left her home in Germantown, Maryland, without a coat in the bitter cold.

"No parent ever wants to get that call that their child is missing, especially a non-verbal special needs child. I was frantic," Sahara's mother Mary Wimpy said.

For more than an hour, Montgomery County police officers searched for Sahara on the ground with K9s and in the air with a helicopter.

Officer Jonathan Pruziner remembered from his training that people with autism are often attracted to water and started searching in the area of a nearby pond.

He found Sahara cold and wet near the pond.

"She was really cold and I've suffered from hypothermia in the past and I was pretty sure that's what was going on, Pruziner said.

"She was pale. She was shaking. She was foaming at the mouth. I thought she was dying," Wimpy said.

Sahara was taken to a local hospital and then to the Childrens National Medical Center to be treated for hypothermia. She has since made a complete recovery and was all smiles Friday as her mom thanked Pruziner.

"That's why cops suit up in the morning...for calls like this," Pruziner said.
Maryland is joining a lawsuit against President Donald Trump's revised travel ban.

Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh announced in a statement Friday that Maryland plans to join the lawsuit filed by Washington state.

Washington, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon, New York and Massachusetts plan to file a new complaint challenging the revised travel ban Monday. Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said Thursday he was asking a federal judge to find that his order last month halting the old travel ban applies to the new one, too.

In joining with Washington state, Frosh is using a new authority granted by the state legislature. Fearful of President Trump's policies, the Maryland General Assembly empowered Frosh, a Democrat, to sue the federal government without permission from the state's Republican governor.
One of Virginia's wealthiest cities has an unpleasant sewage problem.

Part of Alexandria's sewer system gets overwhelmed during almost any type of wet weather, sending untreated waste into nearby waterways and on to the Potomac River scores of times each year.

The Washington suburb isn't alone. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimated nearly 860 cities nationwide have the same problem.

Alexandria has started addressing it, but some lawmakers found its timeline too lax. So they passed a bill requiring a fix by 2025.

The measure led to an outcry from Alexandria, which said that deadline is impossible to meet. It also highlighted a divide often on display at the statehouse between northern Virginia lawmakers and everyone else.

The bill is pending with the governor, who hasn't said whether he supports it.
No officers will be charged in the fatal shooting of an armed man in Southeast D.C. following a 2015 police chase.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia announced Friday that it has finished reviewing the actions of four officers from the Prince George's County and Forest Heights, Maryland, police departments who were involved in the shooting of James Covington Jr. on Nov. 2, 2015.

The federal prosecutor's office said in a statement that the shooting followed the armed carjacking of a man in Fort Washington, Maryland. Officials said Covington, who was found driving the vehicle, bailed out of the car following a chase and pointed a gun at police.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said evidence showed that officers were acting in self-defense at the time of the shooting.
A pedestrian was killed when she was struck by a bicyclist on Thursday in northwest Washington, according to detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department.

Investigators said a woman, Jane Bennett Clark, 65, of Takoma Park, Maryland, stepped off the curb in the crosswalk at the intersection of 13th Street, Northwest, and I Street, Northwest, around 6:45 p.m. on March 9. They said a bicyclist traveling on 13th Street, Northwest, struck the woman, causing her to fall on the ground.

Clark was taken to the hospital for treatment. She was pronounced dead on Friday, March 10.

Detectives said the bicyclist remained on the scene when the collision occurred. They are still investigating the circumstances around the crash.
Typical Canadian asked question. The question should be what progress

can we make in the relationship. The world has changed. Canada has a

lot of new opportunities to find new partners to trade with. American is a

protectionist country now and we can fill a big gap in the trade world. I used

to me more protectionist but I see some opportunity here.

First we should trade with those who can afford to buy and actually pay for

our product.

Two we should seek new trading partners and depend less on American trade.

Three we should use the products we have as leverage in the marketplace.

Here are a couple of examples. If our partners throw their weight around we

can cut our oil output to America and sell it elsewhere remember the agreement

is being negotiated. Oil is one how about power. We would not want to cause

water problems they don't have access in bulk to our water but we can say we

are no longer going to supply power automatically on the North American Grid.

Our advantage is we have more power than we need, if the Americans withdrew

power to our regions where its cheaper to buy theirs, we can fill our own needs

they don't have enough.

I prefer a win win in negotiating a deal but if we are to be bullied the time has come

to use our assets to bring pressure on the people at the table.

Some say what about food? Or what about manufacturing? They are more than

likely to close plants in Canada anyway lets look for new partnerships or encourage

Canadian young people to engage in growth here at home and abroad.

We have a chance to unshackle ourselves from an agreement we can improve

With the world changing we can find new partners and do just find
An Arlington woman was arrested this week and charged with four counts of welfare fraud for collecting over $100,000 in benefits  all while her husband was a high-earning attorney in D.C., police say.

Police say a six-month investigation into Helen Agbapuruonwu, 41, found that the mother of four had collected benefits like food stamps and Medicaid assistance for the past six years.

While Helen was collecting benefits, her husband, Fidelis Agbapuruonwu, was earning $1.5 million per year as a lawyer, according to court documents obtained by News4.

In 2001, Fidelis received the prestigious Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship which helped pay his way through law school.

Fidelis LinkedIn page claims he works for the D.C. firm of Mayer Brown, but today the firm said he no longer works there. Court officials believe Fidelis, a Nigerian immigrant, has fled the country and is somewhere in Africa.

The director of the pre-school the Agbapuruonwus children once attended said she is shocked by the allegations against family.

I have to believe its not true, she said.

Helen Agbapuruonwus defense lawyer declined to comment.

Police say they hope this case is a deterrent to anyone who thinks about trying to cheat the system.

We hope it sends a message that if you are taking public assistance its truly intended for those in need, and were committed to ensuring those who need the most help receive it, said Arlington County Police spokeswoman Ashley Savage.
WikiLeaks surprised friends and foes of the U.S. government this week by releasing classified information that allegedly describes tools used by the Central Intelligence Agency to hack devices outside of the American border.

The sites news release called the leaks -- codenamed Vault 7 -- the largest ever publication of confidential documents on the agency.

They were highly classified, and I think that their release did cause damage to U.S. national security, said Nate Jones, director of the Freedom of Information Act Project at the National Security Archive at George Washington University.

The whistleblower who shared Vault 7 wishes to initiate a public debate about the security, creation, use, proliferation and democratic control of cyberweapons, according to WikiLeaks.

Classified documents tend to relate to military action or intelligence. There are three types: confidential, secret, and top secret, each of which would cause damage to the national security of the United States on an escalating scale if released, according to Executive Order 13526, which details government classifications and was signed by Barack Obama in December 2009. When information is especially delicate, it may be assigned to a Special Access Program that limits its distribution even further.

Jones noted that pretty much anything can be classified -- officials joke that they could classify a ham sandwich if they wanted. Something as benign as a diplomats private opinion on the days news could be confidential, he said.

Even secret or top secret documents arent always hard-hitting.

A wiretap could be very, very, very highly classified, but it could just be a guy talking about his cat, Jones said, because the method of collecting information is sensitive even if the intel is not.

Though some of the WikiLeaks cache is classified, Joel R. Reidenberg, law professor at Fordham University and visiting professor at Princeton University, said its content shouldnt come as a shock to anyone who follows the news.

When the FBI gained access to the San Bernardino shooters iPhone last year, it was clear the American intelligence community had developed the ability to circumvent cellphone security measures.

But he believes that Vault 7 will still prove detrimental to American national security.

It reveals the scope of tools that the U.S. government has, Reidenberg said. In doing that, its providing information to adversaries about what we can and cant do.

The WikiLeaks documents were misrepresented by the media at first, experts say. Some articles originally implied that the CIA had found ways to get into encrypted messaging apps, like WhatsApp and Signal. Instead, the documents show the CIA has been hacking into individual devices, from iPhones to smart TVs, according to the New York Times.

Such a slow and tedious process assumes the United States still lacks the technology to get into protected messaging systems, which enemies of the state now know.

The leak also gives tech companies like Apple and Android the ability to fix their devices security loopholes so the CIA can no longer use the tools its developed.

Jones said that he wanted to know what companies like Apple and Android are doing to close the backdoors that had allowed the CIA to hack into their products.

The agency has not authenticated the documents, and a spokesperson was unwilling to comment on the record.

In a press release, a CIA representative wrote, The American public should be deeply troubled by any Wikileaks disclosure designed to damage the Intelligence Communitys ability to protect America against terrorists and other adversaries. Such disclosures not only jeopardize U.S. personnel and operations, but also equip our adversaries with tools and information to do us harm.

The statement noted that the CIA is legally prohibited from conducting electronic surveillance targeting individuals here at home, including our fellow Americans, and CIA does not do so.

Reidenberg said that unlike the Edward Snowden leaks about the National Security Agency, from what he had seen and heard about Vault 7, there is no indication the CIA spied on U.S. citizens.

Also unlike Snowden, WikiLeaks' Julian Assange is not an American, but an Australian who has actively sought to disseminate classified information about a government that is not his.

It is certainly an aggressive, hostile act against the United States because its designed to compromise the CIAs ability to do its job, Reidenberg said.

Jones took a more moderate tone.

I think that every disclosure has some harm and has some benefits, and you cant just say that everything is wholly good or wholly bad, he said.
Figures in camouflage and ski masks gather at a fishing lodge. Many are armed with long knives, bayonets and hatchets, NBC News reported.

The 35 men and women are on the hunt in Strandzha Massif, a forested mountain range on Bulgaria's border with Turkey. Migrants trying to cross into Europe are their prey.

Patches on their irregular uniforms  a coat of arms bearing a snarling wolf's head framed by Cyrillic text  proclaim them to be members of the Bulgarian National Movement Shipka, abbreviated in Bulgarian as "BNO Shipka."

Conspiracy theories abound among BNO Shipka members, some of whom make a point of speaking Russian.

Krassimir Kanev, a founder of the human rights group Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, sees BNO Shipka and similar groups as xenophobic nationalists at best, or at worst, violent and racist extremists.
Connecticut's U.S. attorney Deirdre M. Daly announced that she will step down, effective immediately, following Attorney General Jeff Sessions seeking the resignations of 46 other state prosecutors across the country.

Mike Gustafson will be the acting U.S. attorney for the state.

It has been a great honor and privilege to serve as Connecticuts United States Attorney," Daly said. "I applaud their tireless work holding our most violent offenders accountable, protecting our children and our environment, standing up for our most vulnerable victims, and not hesitating to stand up to the powerful. Together, we also built bridges and trust with communities. I hope all of this work continues to thrive."

Daly was appointed to lead the U.S. Attorneys Office in Connecticut in May 2014, and was the first woman to be appointed, and later confirmed to run the office in Connecticut history.

Her tenure was focused on cracking down on the illegal drug trade, and corruption. It was during her time as U.S. attorney that the government prevailed in convicting former Connecticut governor John Rowland on corruption charges, sending him to federal prison for a second time.

In a statement, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, himself a former US Attorney from 1977 to 1981, said he was saddened and surprised to hear of Dalys ouster.

He said in a statement, The timing is particularly surprising when no one has been suggested to replace her or the other forty-four U.S. Attorneys who have been fired. This sweeping discharge of top prosecutors can only undermine vigorous efforts to combat organized crime, drug dealing, public corruption, hate crimes, espionage, and other crimes that threaten public safety and national security.

Many of the federal prosecutors who were nominated by former President Barack Obama have already left their positions, but the nearly four dozen who stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration have been asked to leave "in order to ensure a uniform transition," Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said.

It is customary for the country's 93 U.S. attorneys to leave their positions once a new president is in office, but the departures are not automatic.

Connecticut could be considered a wildcard because of the familys deep connections to the state. Trump once called Greenwich home.

One high ranking GOP source told NBC Connecticut the options for Connecticut are wide-ranging for Dalys replacement.

If the administration were to consider political insiders, former State Representative, and recent candidate for Congress John Shabans name has been mentioned, same with GOP Delegate Sue Hatfield.

Further, Justin Clark, a well-connected GOP insider who ran Tom Foleys campaign for governor in 2014 could be an influential force for Trump and Sessions.

Clark is a recent resident of West Hartford and a veteran of Republican state politics. He was tapped to help with the presidential transition, served as Trumps Deputy National Political Director during the campaign, and now serves as the Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs.

With an asset like Clark, the Trump administration would not have to look far for names that could help move along law enforcement and other policy goals within the office of the U.S. attorney.
A de-icing truck tipped over after a collision with a plane at Logan International Airport Friday, injuring one person, according to the Massachusetts Port Authority.

Alaskan Airlines says the bucket from the truck "came into contact with the left wing of AS Flight 769." The employee in the truck, according to the airline, was hospitalized.

No one on the plane was injured, and the airlines canceled a flight from Boston to San Diego Friday night.

"We're deeply sorry for the inconvenience this has caused our guests and we're working to fly a spare aircraft to Boston tomorrow morning to fly the 181 passengers to San Diego," the airline said in a statement.
A fire destroyed several businesses Saturday morning at a strip mall in Framingham, Massachusetts.

The blaze broke out at the Old Park Village Shopping Center on Concord Street at 2 a.m. and quickly reached 3-alarms.

Ten businesses were destroyed in the fire.

The owner of the building said the structure has been in the same family since it was built in the 80's. Among the businesses in the mall are two salons, a chiropractor's office, a cosmetics store, an optician and a dance studio.

The business that suffered the most damage was J & M Diner which had been a fixture at the mall for about 20 years.

Its a place where people come and quite often you see someone you know, said Framingham resident Joann Thorpe when talking about the diner.

Property owner Mike Brossi says his uncle and father started the business in the 1980s and promises they will rebuild.

The exact cause of the fire remains under investigation but the owner was told it started in the attic.
A man was sentenced to six years in prison for his role in a credit union robbery in Manchester, New Hampshire, in March 2015.

According to the records, Derek Potocki, 32, previously of Manchester, New Hampshire, pressured 28-year-old Melissa Bourcher to rob a bank for him.

Following Potockis instructions, an unarmed Bourcher entered the Members First Credit Union on Bridge Street in Manchester on March 3, 2015. She handed a note to the teller and got around $6,250.

Potocki was arrested on March 12, 2015 and pleaded guilty. After serving his prison sentence, Potocki will spend three years on supervised release.

Bourcher also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 41 months in prison.
After a decades long absence, Narragansett Beer is coming back home to Rhode Island.

The popular New England beer stopped its production in Rhode Island in 1983 after a new owner bought the company. Most of the product is still made in New York but now, after more than 30 years, brewing will return to Pawtucket.

The founders of Narragansett say the new building, a former manufacturing complex, is the perfect space for distribution. Other brewing companies that need extra space will share the new facility in Pawtucket. The space has a tap room along with a restaurant. Pawtucket Mayor Donald Grebien sees the facility as a major attraction and an opportunity for a boost in tourism.

Additionally, the founders have brought on some local talent to help with the brewing. Thirteen Rhode Island natives have been hired so far and they plan to hire another dozen.

The first batch of beer to be brewed in Rhode Island will aptly be called Its About Time.
The gay veterans group previously banned from Bostons St. Patricks Day parade has decided they will march in this years parade.

An earlier vote from the South Boston Allied War Veterans Council which barred OutVets from marching drew immediate backlash from high-profile politicians, many of who said they would not march if the gay veterans were excluded. It also caused some sponsors to back out and grew in controversy as word spread on social media.

"This has gone on much, much too long and it's something that needed to be corrected," the parade's lead organizer, Tim Duross, told NBC Boston. "It was a mistake, really, with regard to the thought of barring any veterans."

Duross says he was unable convince the rest of the council to allow OutVets to march, so he made the decision unilaterally, a move he was able to make because his name is on the permit.

"It may be my last decision as parade organizer, but it's the right thing to do," he said.

Later, after an hour-long meeting, the council voted unanimously to stand behind Duross' decision.

Officials like Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced they would boycott the parade when they learned the group had been barred. City Councilor Tito Jackson, a mayoral candidate in Boston, said he will not take part regardless of whether OutVets participates.

After learning the decision was reversed, OutVets released a statement accepting the councils invitation and confirming their participation in the march.

We are honored and humbled by all the outpouring of support that has been displayed for our LGBTQ Veterans  who are one of the most unrepresented demographic in our Veterans community, the statement read. We look forward to marching proudly on March 19th and honoring the service and sacrifice of those brave men and women who have sacrificed for our country. 

Governor Baker also spoke out and stated he and Lieutenant Governor Polito were, disappointed with the attempt to discriminate against individuals who served this country with honor and are pleased OutVets will now participate in the parade."

Ed Flynn, one of the first council members to speak out about the ban, also expressed his joy in learning the decision was overturned. OutVets never should have been banned in the first place. South Boston is an inclusive community, and with this development, we are one step closer to a parade that reflects that spirit.

OutVets added that they were encouraged by the Councils decision to reform the policies involving parade management arguing that the changes will make the parade, more inclusive and transparent for the entire community.
A Massachusetts prisoner is in custody after escaping Friday in Framingham, authorities confirm.

The Middlesex County Sheriff's Office says 28-year-old Christian James Horne of Framingham was apprehended after he fled Framingham District Court.

According to the sheriff's office, Horne got away while he was being escorted from the courthouse.

Massachusetts State Police, who assisted Framingham police with the search, said the the man had been arrested on domestic assault and battery charges.

After the incident Friday, the sheriff's office says Horne was returned to Middlesex Jail and House of Correction to face an added charge of escape.
Erdogan muscle against D.C. protesters came from Canada



I would think now that they have been proven to have lied on their refugee application they should be sent back to Turkey.....Two Toronto men in attack made failed refugee claims here 15 years ago. One cited distaste for waging war on Kurds.Video footage shows a man identified by theas Alpkenan running toward protesters and repeatedly punching a male demonstrator. Another protester then hits Alpkenan with a bullhorn, leaving him bleeding from his forehead. Ahmet is also seen repeatedly punching a male protester, and kicking the man after he falls to the ground. Neither was arrested or charged.The U.S. Department of State condemned the actions of Turkish security personnel. We are communicating our concern to the Turkish government in the strongest possible terms,Alpkenan and Ahmet live in Toronto, according to their Facebook profiles, which feature an identical photo of the pair posing with Erdogan. Ahmets profile lists him as the owner and operator of an electrical contractor with an office in North York. An employee who answered the phone on Friday said Ahmet would not be commenting, and that hes just not gonna return calls.
Massachusetts police are searching for a man responsible for a bank robbery in Brighton.

Authorities say on March 6 a black man with medium build and height entered the TD bank in Brighton and approached the teller. The man reportedly handed her a noted that stated he had a bomb and demanded money. The teller complied and the suspect fled the bank on foot.

This suspect has been placed on the list of Massachusetts Most Wanted.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the FBI Robbery Task Force at (617) 680-4525.
Police in Lawrence, Massachusetts are searching for multiple individuals who may have been involved in an armed home invasion on Friday afternoon.

The incident occurred around 3 p.m. on Springfield Street, and the scene remains very active, with multiple officers and police K-9 dogs present.

A police source said there were three people inside the home - a pregnant woman and two men. It is believed that one of the men was shot because blood was found inside the home.

Acccording to The Eagle-Tribune, police are searching for four armed men believed to have been involved in the home invasion in addition to the man who was shot, who fled from the scene.
The suspicious death of a 22-year-old in New Hampshire is now being treated as a homicide after officials identified a stab wound as the cause of death.

A reported disturbance brought State Troopers to 18 Edgewood Road in Durham at 1:00 a.m. on Saturday. When they arrived, the officers discovered a body.

The victim has been identified as Michael Barrett, a 22-year-old from Dover, New Hampshire. An autopsy performed on Sunday determined Barrett died from a stab wound.

Although Barrett was found on the outskirts of the University of New Hampshire, a spokesperson from the university tells NBC Boston he is not a student.

The incident is now being investigated as a homicide.

Officials do not believe there is any threat to the community and are looking into whether Barretts death involved the use of self-defense.

Anyone with information regarding the case is asked to contact Sergeant John Sonia with the New Hampshire State Police.
Rising prices affect us all, and Anna Heydon urges us to spare a thought for those who will be struggling with the cost of living this winter.

Rising prices affect us all, and Anna Heydon urges us to spare a thought for those who will be struggling with the cost of living this winter.

Covid leaf memorial at Norwich church St Peter Mancroft Church Norwich Presents The Leaves of the Trees an installation by sculptor Peter Walker which provides a memorial for those who died of Covid-19 Read more

Community Chaplaincy Norfolk begins a new chapter Community Chaplaincy Norfolk (CCN) celebrated the beginning of a new chapter this week, as the new chair of trustees Chris Tomlinson led his first annual meeting. Read more

Lowestoft Christians launch on-line bible helps app The Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth branch of Good News for Everyone (GNFE), formerly the Gideons, have introduced a new mobile phone app called On-line Bible Helps. Read more

Addicts' rehabilitation centre plan for Drayton Hall Christian addiction charity Teen Challenge London is planning to turn Drayton Hall near Norwich into its headquarters and a rehabilitation centre for men, after it was gifted the freehold of the hall by its owner, the Lind Trust. Read more

The power of positive protest Philip Young encourages us to take a stand for what we believe, and has just written to Therese Coffey regarding climate change and the forthcoming COP 27. He explains why we should be prepared to protest. Read more

Norwich church celebrates with cribs and trees Rosebery Road Methodist Church in Norwich will be holding its annual Cribs and Trees Festival in December. Read more

Transforming Norwich lunch offers ministry tips Ex-Brighton vicar, Rev Phil Moon, will offer tips on how to keep going in ministry to the Transforming Norwich leaders lunch on Wednesday November 16. Read more

Quiet Waters in Bungay offers healing retreat Quiet Waters Christian Retreat in Bungay is holding a gentle day retreat exploring healing in the Kingdom of God. Read more

Latest Norfolk Christian community events Events of interest to the Norwich and Norfolk Christian community happening over the next few weeks are listed. Read more

Norfolk ministry coaching duo are guest speakers Former church leaders and now freelance ministry coaches, Jonathan and Paige Squirrell, are the guest speakers at the next dinner of Norwich FGB on Monday, November 21. Read more

Bringing light to Halloween Anna Price encourages Christians to engage positively with Halloween rather than hide away, on what many see as the darkest night of the year. Read more

First service takes place at Norwich church site SOUL Church hosted around 400 people for a special service on the site of their new building on Heartsease Lane. Read more

Dereham draws up list of warm places for winter As rising energy prices make it harder to heat homes, churches in Dereham are leading the way in creating warm spaces where people can go. Read more

South Norfolk church scoops national award A medieval Anglican church in a tiny hamlet in South Norfolk has won a national award and a 10,000 boost. Read more

Dereham churches help people to help themselves A group of churches in Dereham have launched an ambitious project which aims to meet needs in the town, including the provision of food and skills training. Read more

Halloween light in Gorleston church On Halloween this year, St Mary Magdalene Church in Gorleston will be preparing to welcome around 200 families to experience their Light on a Dark Night event. Read more

An opportunity for Norwich to pray for the nation Rev Nigel Fox, who has served as a Methodist Minister for 15 years in Norwich, shares an open invitation to pray for the nation at a crucial moment. Read more
Cisco's security team today called the weakness in Apache Struts critical and is evaluating many its products to assess the impact.

The company said it will publish a list of vulnerable products here as it learns of them.

Earlier this week Apache revealed a vulnerability in the Jakarta multipart parser used in Apache Struts2 that could let an attacker execute commands remotely on the targeted system using whats known as acrafted Content-Type header value.

-More on Network World: Ciscos Jasper deal  one year, 18 million new IoT devices later, challenges remain+

Cisco wrote in its warning: The vulnerability is due to improper handling of the Content-Type header value when performing a file upload based on the Jakarta multipart parser of the affected software. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by persuading a targeted user to upload a malicious file. Once the Jakarta multipart parser of the affected application uploads the file, the attacker could have the ability to execute arbitrary code. Any workarounds, when available, will be documented in the Cisco bugs, which are accessible through the Cisco Bug Search Tool. Cisco has released free software updates that address the vulnerability described in this advisory. Customers may only install and expect support for software versions and feature sets for which they have purchased a license.

On Thursday, the IDG News Service wrote that on Monday Apache Struts developers fixed a high-impact vulnerability in the framework's Jakarta Multipart parser. Hours later, an exploit for the flaw appeared on Chinese-language websites and this was almost immediately followed by real-world attacks, according to researchers from Cisco.

The vulnerability is very easy to exploit and allows attackers to execute system commands with the privileges of the user running the web server process. If the web server is configured to run as root, the system is completely compromised, but executing code as a lower-privileged user is also a serious security threat, IDG wrote.

What's even worse is that the Java web application doesn't even need to implement file upload functionality via the Jakarta Multipart parser in order to be vulnerable. According to researchers from Qualys, the simple presence on the web server of this component, which is part of the Apache Struts framework by default, is enough to allow exploitation, IDG wrote.

Cisco said it was evaluating wide variety of products, including the Cisco Aironet 2700 Series Access Points; Mobility Services Engine, Wireless LAN Controller and UCS 6200 Series Fabric Interconnects.

Other products being evaluated include:

Cisco ASR 5000 Series

Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC)

Cisco Broadband Access Center for Telco and Wireless

Cisco IOS XR Software

Cisco MDS 9000 Series Multilayer Switches

Cisco Nexus 1000V InterCloud

Cisco Nexus 1000V Series Switches

Cisco Nexus 1000V Switch for VMware vSphere

Cisco Nexus 3000 Series Switches

Cisco Nexus 5000 Series Switches

Cisco Nexus 6000 Series Switches

Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches

Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switches

Check out these other hot stories:

IBM technology moves even closer to human speech recognition parity

Juniper product development chief resigns, company resets engineering makeup

Cisco Talos warns of new Cryptolocker ransomware campaigns

Extreme grabs Avayas networking business for $100M

Cisco reinforces HyperFlex hyperconvergence system with power, management features

U.S. Marshals warn against dual phone scams

Avaya wants out of S.F. stadium suite, not too impressed with 49ers either

Cisco warns of NetFlow appliance vulnerability

Cisco Jasper grows Internet of Things reach, breadth

Cisco tries to squash Smart Install security abuse

Space X to zoom two citizen astronauts to the moon

Verizon and Cisco team to bring 5G network pilot program to the masses

IBM, Vermont Electric spawn intelligent energy software company
Sergeant tells Hungerford Town Council meeting officers will no longer attend thefts of less than 100

POLICE will no longer send an officer out to nearly all instances of shoplifting.

As exclusively reported in the Newbury Weekly News on Thursday officers will now only be sent out if more than 100 worth of items are stolen.

The shock announcement was made as Hungerfords former police station goes up for sale, and as the neighbourhood team reported five instances of shoplifting in the town in the past month alone.

Sergeant Holly Nicholls, standing in for the local teams Inspector Warren McKeown, dropped the bombshell at a meeting of Hungerford Town Council on Monday night.

She revealed that, in a new delivery model, complaints will be dealt with under a triage system and said: For example, we wouldnt necessarily deal with shopliftings of less than 100 now  in other words, nearly all of them.

She added: Our main priorities are violence against the person, burglaries, theft from motor vehicles and so on.

Town councillor Carolann Farrell asked: So, less than 100 and you wont be coming out to it?

Sgt Nicholls replied: Yes.

We wont be making arrests all the time and taking it through the courts  its not practical.

She said that the district council would be encouraged to deal with some issues, such as ongoing disputes between neighbours, and added: We will be working more closely with the council to deal with some things; it will be much quicker and more flexible.

In these times of austerity we need to be more cost effective.

Asked how shopkeepers would deal with thieves in future, Sgt Nicholls said they could be given a form to fill in and hand to police.

Although the town police station is closed, Sgt Nicholls said some officers would be based at the new tri-service fire station.

But she added: Hungerford is away from the main hub of the command district so its felt that officers should start their tour of duty from Newbury to better manage their time and allocate where they need to be going.

But there will very much be a visible presence with no reduction in the number of officers.

Thames Valley Police had not responded to a request for more details on the triage system as this newspaper went to press.

n WHAT do you think of the new strategy? Send your views to john.garvey@newburynews. co.uk or telephone reporter John Garvey on (01635) 564 528.


Obama deported millions, killed thousands and now hes out to slyly depose his successor, so why does everyone think hes President Perfect?

By Piers Morgan for MailOnline10 March 2017That Barack Obamas a lovely guy, right?Handsome, intelligent, eloquent, charming, witty; he can sing, dance, shoot hoops, and make speeches that stir the soul.Oh, and hes a great husband, father, son and friend.In fact, to many around the world, President Perfect is the complete antithesis of his replacement Donald Trump.Thats why millions have marched to protest against the current POTUS, who they brand the new Hitler.Why, they squeal with rage, cant Monster Trump just be more like Saint Obama?Hmmm.Forgive me if I dont join the ecstatic global race to canonize Mr Obama quite so enthusiastically.For beneath his ever-smiley beatific halo lies a rather different, far murkier reality.My favourite question for the anti-Trump brigade is this: How many people did Barack Obama deport from America during his eight years as President?Most people guess 5,000, maybe 10,000. Even those with a good knowledge of how the real world of US immigration policy works rarely respond with a number higher than around 500,000.In fact, Obama deported nearly THREE MILLION people.That is the most deported by any president, ever.His appalled critics even dubbed him Deporter-in-Chief.When challenged, Obama loved to pretend that he was only deporting criminals.The truth is very different. Over half of all immigrants deported under Obama had no criminal convictions. Many others were slung out for minor offences involving traffic violations or marijuana possession.Obama also loved to make out that when it came to killing people, he was a very reluctant dove; a man of peace, not war.Again, the truth is the complete opposite.He was at war longer than any president in US history, and is the only president to have served two whole terms with America at war.By contrast, the much-maligned Jimmy Carter never ordered a US military bullet to be fired in anger during his four-year tenure.Obama was a hawk, alright, and a lethal one.Recently released figures revealed that in 2016, US special operations were active in 70% of the worlds nations, or 138 countries. This was a 130% increase over Bushs administration.In the same year, Obama ordered his military to drop at least 26,171 bombs. Thats 72 a day, or three every hour.They rained relentlessly down on seven majority-Muslim countries  Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Somalia and Pakistan.Yes, Bomber Barack deliberately targeted Muslims, folks.Only he wasnt exposing them to extreme vetting as Trump wants to do. He was killing them.Obama ordered 10 times more drone strikes than George W. Bush, a mind-blowing statistic.Yet when he left office, his administration laughably tried to claim only 117 civilians died in all this bombing.That was an obvious lie.Independent assessors put the estimated death toll massively higher, in the 1000s.So Obama killed a lot of innocent people but prefers us not to know about it.He also allowed a lot of other innocent people to die in Syria by choking when President Assad crossed Obamas chemical weapons red line.That empowered both Assad and Vladimir Putin, and weakened America.This wasnt the only time Obama said one thing and did another.His lofty moral principles were never more startlingly exposed than with his broken election pledge in 2008 to shut Guantanamo Bay.As president, Barack Obama will close the detention center facility at Guantanamo, it stated.Not might or will try but will.Yet, its still open, eight years later, and remains a toweringly disgraceful monument of illegal detention and torture that makes a mockery of Obamas claim to stand for justice and fairness.Broken promises became a theme of Obamas tenure.Under him, over 250,000 people in America died from gun violence.Obama tearfully vowed to the parents of the 20 slain children at Sandy Hook elementary school he would get action on new gun control laws, a message he repeated ad nauseam after each mass shooting.But he failed to get anything done at all. Instead, he was battered into submission by the NRA, and the mayhem and slaughter has continued, unabated.There have been more than 180 shootings at schools and colleges in the US since Sandy Hook alone.Obama also promised to bring hope and change to Washington but again, failed miserably. Asked about this near the end of his presidency, he admitted to Vice News: Well, that didnt work out. There is no doubt that one of the central goals that I had was to make the politics in Washington work better. I havent accomplished that.His other failures make equally unedifying reading.Drug abuse in America, particularly involving opiates, rocketed to obscene levels in the Obama years.Racial tensions, especially between police and civilians, worsened to levels not seen since the 60s and 70s.Violent crime, on a downward curve for several decades, spiked by 15% in each of the last two years.(Obamas hometown Chicago, run by his former chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, is one of the cities most responsible for that spike.)Even Obamacare, his once-vaunted flagship health program, has disintegrated amid bitter acrimony and soaring costs to millions of Americans.As for Monster President Trumps war with the media, arguably the single worst offender in presidential history when it came to attacking press freedom wasyouve guessed it, Barack Obama.Under Obama, the Justice Department and FBI spied on reporters by monitoring their phone records, and pursued Fox News reporter James Rosens private emails, then misled Congress about it.His administration set a record for failing to provide information requested by the press and public under the Freedom of Information Act.It used the Espionage Act to prosecute whistle-blowing leakers more than all of his predecessors combined.Veteran New York Times reporter James Risen said Obamas administration was the greatest enemy of press freedom that we have encountered in at least a generation. Others say it was even worse than in the Nixon era.Mr Transparent turned out to be as transparent as the heavily fortified doors on the presidential car, The Beast.So, no, I dont share the view that Barack Obama was a great or even good president.History will, I suspect, judge him far more harshly than the current blindly-loyal sycophants who love the way he sings like Al Green.Even less impressive than his record as president is Obamas behaviour since leaving office.His predecessor George W. Bush was a divisive and polarizing president, particularly due to his appalling misjudgement in waging the Iraq War.Yet he vowed when he left office not to publicly criticize his successor, believing the job to be hard enough as it is, and to his great credit, he kept his word.There must have been many things Obama did or said which Bush disagreed with, but he never stirred the media pot about them or plotted against him.Obama, by contrast, seems hell-bent on bringing Trump down.A close Obama family friend told DailyMail.com last week that Obamas goal now was to oust Trump by forcing his resignation or through his impeachment.Hes turned his new home in Washington, just two miles from the White House, into a nerve centre for the mounting insurgency against Trump, even moving his long time consigliere Valerie Jarrett into the mansion.Obamas former Attorney General Eric Holder told reporters: Its coming. Hes coming. And hes ready to roll.Im sure he is.But as Saint Obama rolls against Monster Trump, it may be worth remembering just what a deadly, deporting, press freedom-destroying, and generally weak president he was himself.Read more: PIERS MORGAN: Obama deported millions & killed thousands | Daily Mail Online Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
By IANS

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley met with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Urjit Patel and other senior officials here on Friday to discuss the issue of banks' non-performing assets (NPAs) or bad loans, sources said.



"Lot of options were discussed for early resolution of stressed assets. RBI made some suggestions and these will be taken forward to and be given a concrete shape," the sources told reporters after the meeting.



The meeting discussed the idea of a Private Asset Management Company (PAMC), as well as a National Asset Management Company (NAMC), to tackle the bad loans issue proposed recently by RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya.



As per the plan, the banking sector could be asked to restructure about 50 large stressed assets in sectors like metals, construction, telecom and textiles, by December 31, 2017.



According to sources, the meeting also discussed the concept of a "bad bank" that has been proposed by Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian, who was also present at Friday's meeting.



"We will have to weigh the pros and cons well before using tax payers' money to set up a bad bank," they said.



The magnitude of the problem can be guaged from the NPA figures of state-run banks, which at the end of the current fiscal's second quarter that ended in September, rose to Rs 6.3 lakh crore, as compared to Rs 5.5 lakh crore at the end of the first quarter.



The meeting was also attended by RBI Deputy Governor S.S. Mundra, Principal Economic Advisor Sanjiv Sanyal, Financial Services Secretary Anjuly Chib Duggal and Corporate Affairs Secretary Tapan Ray.

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley met with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Urjit Patel and other senior officials here on Friday to discuss the issue of banks' non-performing assets (NPAs) or bad loans, sources said. "Lot of options were discussed for early resolution of stressed assets. RBI made some suggestions and these will be taken forward to and be given a concrete shape," the sources told reporters after the meeting. The meeting discussed the idea of a Private Asset Management Company (PAMC), as well as a National Asset Management Company (NAMC), to tackle the bad loans issue proposed recently by RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya. As per the plan, the banking sector could be asked to restructure about 50 large stressed assets in sectors like metals, construction, telecom and textiles, by December 31, 2017. According to sources, the meeting also discussed the concept of a "bad bank" that has been proposed by Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian, who was also present at Friday's meeting. "We will have to weigh the pros and cons well before using tax payers' money to set up a bad bank," they said. The magnitude of the problem can be guaged from the NPA figures of state-run banks, which at the end of the current fiscal's second quarter that ended in September, rose to Rs 6.3 lakh crore, as compared to Rs 5.5 lakh crore at the end of the first quarter. The meeting was also attended by RBI Deputy Governor S.S. Mundra, Principal Economic Advisor Sanjiv Sanyal, Financial Services Secretary Anjuly Chib Duggal and Corporate Affairs Secretary Tapan Ray.
Nirupama Viswanathan By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: With the Lok Sabha amending the law on maternity benefits on Thursday, extending maternity leave from the earlier 12 weeks to more than double, 26 weeks, small and medium-scale industries may choose to hire more men than women, fear those working in industries.



Subramanyam S, CEO of Ascent HR, said: Small and medium industries cannot afford to offer six months of paid leave for their women employees. In the long run, it can bring down the composition of women in the workforce.

Subramanyams organisation has a workforce of about 1,500, of which 37 per cent are women. While the move is clearly aimed at giving women sufficient time before rejoining work to ensure the childs physical and mental well being, it may have unintended consequences.



Going by a 2016 study by Assocham-Thought Arbitrage Research, Indian women in the workforce fell by 10 per cent in the last decade. However, women and womens rights activists said that it was a welcome move despite the risk.

V Vasanthi Devi, former Chairperson of State Womens Commission, said, There is a definite possibility of employers preferring to hire more men to women after this move, but it is nevertheless a good decision considering there are often one excuse or the other made for not hiring women.



The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill was approved by Rajya Sabha in August 2016. Along with the 26 week maternity leave, the bill also called for establishments with more than 50 employees to provide for creche facilities at a prescribed distance and to which women were to be allowed four visits a day.

Gowri G, who worked at a start-up with about 200 employees before she became pregnant with her first child, said she was asked to resign since she had asked for a months extension of the three months of maternity leave that she was entitled to.



I have to start from scratch. I hope Ill find a job after the six-month break, she said adding that the amendment was anyway a welcome relief. Employers are not happy since the bill indicates they have to bear the entire cost of the leave.

Under the Maternity Benefits Act 1961 that allowed women 12 weeks of paid maternity leave, it was mandated that the employers bear the entire cost whereas in some countries like the United Kingdom, the leave is funded by both the employer and the government.



V Vijayramkumar, Co-founder of Heptagon, a start-up, who is also a father, said that exploring work-at-home options would be ideal in a small company set-up.



Work has now become a state of mind. It doesnt matter where the work is done from. As soon as they are physically ready to work, women can work for a few hours from their homes, he said.



On whether the 26 weeks that is suggested was ideal, Rajsri Shankar, a consultant obstetrician at a private hospital said that this period was more essential for the childs overall development than for the mothers physical recovery.



We speak about exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months. So leave for at least six months is necessary since there are no provisions for feeding at many workplaces. There must also be an option for unpaid leave for women who want to feed for a longer period, she said.

CHENNAI: With the Lok Sabha amending the law on maternity benefits on Thursday, extending maternity leave from the earlier 12 weeks to more than double, 26 weeks, small and medium-scale industries may choose to hire more men than women, fear those working in industries. Subramanyam S, CEO of Ascent HR, said: Small and medium industries cannot afford to offer six months of paid leave for their women employees. In the long run, it can bring down the composition of women in the workforce. Subramanyams organisation has a workforce of about 1,500, of which 37 per cent are women. While the move is clearly aimed at giving women sufficient time before rejoining work to ensure the childs physical and mental well being, it may have unintended consequences. Going by a 2016 study by Assocham-Thought Arbitrage Research, Indian women in the workforce fell by 10 per cent in the last decade. However, women and womens rights activists said that it was a welcome move despite the risk. V Vasanthi Devi, former Chairperson of State Womens Commission, said, There is a definite possibility of employers preferring to hire more men to women after this move, but it is nevertheless a good decision considering there are often one excuse or the other made for not hiring women. The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill was approved by Rajya Sabha in August 2016. Along with the 26 week maternity leave, the bill also called for establishments with more than 50 employees to provide for creche facilities at a prescribed distance and to which women were to be allowed four visits a day. Gowri G, who worked at a start-up with about 200 employees before she became pregnant with her first child, said she was asked to resign since she had asked for a months extension of the three months of maternity leave that she was entitled to. I have to start from scratch. I hope Ill find a job after the six-month break, she said adding that the amendment was anyway a welcome relief. Employers are not happy since the bill indicates they have to bear the entire cost of the leave. Under the Maternity Benefits Act 1961 that allowed women 12 weeks of paid maternity leave, it was mandated that the employers bear the entire cost whereas in some countries like the United Kingdom, the leave is funded by both the employer and the government. V Vijayramkumar, Co-founder of Heptagon, a start-up, who is also a father, said that exploring work-at-home options would be ideal in a small company set-up. Work has now become a state of mind. It doesnt matter where the work is done from. As soon as they are physically ready to work, women can work for a few hours from their homes, he said. On whether the 26 weeks that is suggested was ideal, Rajsri Shankar, a consultant obstetrician at a private hospital said that this period was more essential for the childs overall development than for the mothers physical recovery. We speak about exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months. So leave for at least six months is necessary since there are no provisions for feeding at many workplaces. There must also be an option for unpaid leave for women who want to feed for a longer period, she said.
NEW DELHI: Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthis nobel citation has been recovered by Delhi police.

According to the Delhi police, the citation has been found from a ridge area. Delhi police has already arrested three persons in connection with the theft of the Nobel replica, the citation etc from Satyarthis house.

Reacting to the recovery, Kailash Satyarthi said that he is thankful to Delhi police. I am thankful to the Delhi Police for their efforts to recover the Nobel replica and the original citation. The Nobel belongs to every Indian citizen and child. Since I am the son of a policeman, I have always understood their sense of responsibility and commitment towards the nation, Satyarthi added.

Three persons in the intervening night of February 6 and 7 had stolen the Nobel replica and the original citation and other valuables from Satyarthis house situated in south-east Delhi.

NEW DELHI: Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthis nobel citation has been recovered by Delhi police. According to the Delhi police, the citation has been found from a ridge area. Delhi police has already arrested three persons in connection with the theft of the Nobel replica, the citation etc from Satyarthis house. Reacting to the recovery, Kailash Satyarthi said that he is thankful to Delhi police. I am thankful to the Delhi Police for their efforts to recover the Nobel replica and the original citation. The Nobel belongs to every Indian citizen and child. Since I am the son of a policeman, I have always understood their sense of responsibility and commitment towards the nation, Satyarthi added. Three persons in the intervening night of February 6 and 7 had stolen the Nobel replica and the original citation and other valuables from Satyarthis house situated in south-east Delhi.
By IANS

LOS ANGELES: Former California Republican Governor and Hollywood actor Arnold Schwarzenegger is reportedly considering a run for the US Senate in 2018, to replace Democratic Senate Dianne Feinstein.

Grand Old Party (GOP) political insiders in California said Schwarzenegger is thinking about a political comeback, reports aceshowbiz.com.

One GOP veteran told Politico magazine that his entry into the 2018 Senate race "would give Arnold the stage to jam Donald Trump for the next 16 months".

GOP political consultant Luis Alvarado said: "In politics after (President) Donald Trump, nothing is crazy any longer. We're in third dimension here."

Alvarado also said that Schwarzenegger's return to politics would be seen by Republicans as "almost like a silver bullet" to counter the President.

"Donald Trump has had the ability to manipulate all the news and cameras to him, and Arnold Schwarzenegger would be like kryptonite, or an anti-matter device, that would somehow restore balance in this universe of madness," he said.

ALSO READ: Donald Trump mocks Arnold Schwarzenegger again over Celebrity Apprentice, says he didnt quit but was fired for bad ratings

Schwarzenegger had earlier this week poked fun at Trump for tweeting about him so much, saying that it appears the President is "in love" with him.

LOS ANGELES: Former California Republican Governor and Hollywood actor Arnold Schwarzenegger is reportedly considering a run for the US Senate in 2018, to replace Democratic Senate Dianne Feinstein. Grand Old Party (GOP) political insiders in California said Schwarzenegger is thinking about a political comeback, reports aceshowbiz.com. One GOP veteran told Politico magazine that his entry into the 2018 Senate race "would give Arnold the stage to jam Donald Trump for the next 16 months". GOP political consultant Luis Alvarado said: "In politics after (President) Donald Trump, nothing is crazy any longer. We're in third dimension here." Alvarado also said that Schwarzenegger's return to politics would be seen by Republicans as "almost like a silver bullet" to counter the President. "Donald Trump has had the ability to manipulate all the news and cameras to him, and Arnold Schwarzenegger would be like kryptonite, or an anti-matter device, that would somehow restore balance in this universe of madness," he said. ALSO READ: Donald Trump mocks Arnold Schwarzenegger again over Celebrity Apprentice, says he didnt quit but was fired for bad ratings Schwarzenegger had earlier this week poked fun at Trump for tweeting about him so much, saying that it appears the President is "in love" with him.
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By IANS

NEW YORK: Middle-aged people who experience a rapid drop in blood pressure often causing dizziness may be at an increased risk of developing cognitive decline and dementia 20 years later, a study said.



The findings suggest that these temporary episodes -- known as orthostatic hypotension -- may cause lasting damage, possibly because they reduce needed blood flow to the brain.



Orthostatic hypotension is defined as a drop of 20 mmHg or more in systolic blood pressure -- the top number which refers to the amount of pressure in arteries during contraction of the heart muscle -- or 10 mmHg or more in diastolic blood pressure -- the bottom number which refers to blood pressure when the heart muscle is between beats.



"We found that those people who suffered from orthostatic hypotension in middle age were 40 per cent more likely to develope dementia than those who did not," said lead author Andreea Rawlings, post-doctoral student at the Johns Hopkins University in Maryland, US.



Rawlings siad it was a significant finding and it required better understanding of what was happening.



"Identifying risk factors for cognitive decline and dementia is important for understanding disease progression, and being able to identify those most at risk gives us possible strategies for prevention and intervention," Rawlings added.



For the study, presented at the American Heart Association's EPI|LIFESTYLE 2017 Scientific Sessions in Oregon, US, the researchers analysed 703 people with an average age of 54 years.



However, it is not possible to tease out for certain whether the orthostatic hypotension was an indicator of some other underlying disease or whether the drop in blood pressure itself is the cause, Rawlings said.



Though it was likely that the reduction in blood flow to the brain, however temporary, could have lasting consequences, the author added.

NEW YORK: Middle-aged people who experience a rapid drop in blood pressure often causing dizziness may be at an increased risk of developing cognitive decline and dementia 20 years later, a study said. The findings suggest that these temporary episodes -- known as orthostatic hypotension -- may cause lasting damage, possibly because they reduce needed blood flow to the brain. Orthostatic hypotension is defined as a drop of 20 mmHg or more in systolic blood pressure -- the top number which refers to the amount of pressure in arteries during contraction of the heart muscle -- or 10 mmHg or more in diastolic blood pressure -- the bottom number which refers to blood pressure when the heart muscle is between beats. "We found that those people who suffered from orthostatic hypotension in middle age were 40 per cent more likely to develope dementia than those who did not," said lead author Andreea Rawlings, post-doctoral student at the Johns Hopkins University in Maryland, US. Rawlings siad it was a significant finding and it required better understanding of what was happening. "Identifying risk factors for cognitive decline and dementia is important for understanding disease progression, and being able to identify those most at risk gives us possible strategies for prevention and intervention," Rawlings added. For the study, presented at the American Heart Association's EPI|LIFESTYLE 2017 Scientific Sessions in Oregon, US, the researchers analysed 703 people with an average age of 54 years. However, it is not possible to tease out for certain whether the orthostatic hypotension was an indicator of some other underlying disease or whether the drop in blood pressure itself is the cause, Rawlings said. Though it was likely that the reduction in blood flow to the brain, however temporary, could have lasting consequences, the author added.
By Online Desk

As counting of votes comes to an end across all five states, here are how things panned out.

In Uttar Pradesh, it was BJP who gained a huge mandate, by winning 312 out of 403 seats. The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance ended up with only 55 seats, while Mayawati's BSP got only 19. In Punjab, however, Captain Amarinder Singh-led Congress bounced back with a clear mandate of 77 seats in the 117-strong State Assembly, while the ruling SAD-BJP alliance ended up only with 18. The Aam Aadmi Party came a far second with 20 seats. The hilly state of Uttarakhand followed the same trend of UP, as BJP received 56 seats, while Congress fell well short with 11. However, there is no clear winner in Manipur and Goa yet. In Manipur, Congress has got 28 seats so far, two short of the majority. BJP here is at a close second with 21 seats, while independents secured 11 seats. Among them, the Naga Peoples Front, which has won 4 seats, is likely to support a non-Congress government, according to sources. In Goa, the Congress and BJP got 17 and 13 votes respectively, in the 40-member assembly, both falling short of the halff-way mark.

As counting of votes comes to an end across all five states, here are how things panned out. In Uttar Pradesh, it was BJP who gained a huge mandate, by winning 312 out of 403 seats. The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance ended up with only 55 seats, while Mayawati's BSP got only 19. In Punjab, however, Captain Amarinder Singh-led Congress bounced back with a clear mandate of 77 seats in the 117-strong State Assembly, while the ruling SAD-BJP alliance ended up only with 18. The Aam Aadmi Party came a far second with 20 seats. The hilly state of Uttarakhand followed the same trend of UP, as BJP received 56 seats, while Congress fell well short with 11. However, there is no clear winner in Manipur and Goa yet. In Manipur, Congress has got 28 seats so far, two short of the majority. BJP here is at a close second with 21 seats, while independents secured 11 seats. Among them, the Naga Peoples Front, which has won 4 seats, is likely to support a non-Congress government, according to sources. In Goa, the Congress and BJP got 17 and 13 votes respectively, in the 40-member assembly, both falling short of the halff-way mark.
Last year on the JNU campus, Umar Khalid had shouted slogans for the breakup of India and the slaughter of the Supreme Court judges who dared to pronounce Afzal Guru guilty. Some self-confessed leftist-liberal intellectuals are now shamelessly trying to take advantage of the pathetic slowness with which our legal system movesby exalting Khalids and the Kanhaiyas of this world to the status of national heroes and youth icons. Cases of sedition are pending against Khalid and Kanhaiya. Where was the need to invite such an individual to Ramjas College? He would have added one more azadi rant to the many he had raised in JNU. Besides, why had the college wanted to host a seminar on Bastar and Cultures of Protest? The moment this seminar was cancelled, there was manufactured outrage on the campus, and even sections of media virtually exploded with angst. Calls for debate and discussion on our campuses are good, but we need to remember that the situation in J&K and Maoist areas has gone far beyond the level of discussion and debate.

Kalashnikovs are spitting bullets and people are killed daily. There are violent attempts to overthrow the state and dismember the nation. Yet, under the guise of freedom of speech, votaries of such sedition and treachery are being lionised as youth icons. For the past eight years, tax payers have been forced to subsidise the never-ending PhD projects of comrades Kanhaiya and Khalid, who go about in the business class, on jet-setting political tours to arouse this country and ask to overthrow its duly constituted government. Some apologists for such seditious speech, however, remind us of the campus protests against the invasion of Vietnam and Iraq. These were foreign countries that the US was invading. Are these liberal activists equating Kashmir with Vietnam? Is J&K to be deemed a foreign country? The equation is highly odious. Section 37 of Indian Constitution lays down the duties of an Indian. Foremost among these is to uphold the unity, integrity and sovereignty of India. We see this being reviled on a daily basis on the JNU campus and yet, sections of media go overboard to celebrate such traitors and separatists as national heroes and youth icons of protest. Protest against what? The unity, integrity and sovereignty of India?

Few people care to remember that the troubles in strife-torn Syria actually began in the universities of Damascus and Aleppo. There is not one building left standing there today. When we see what is happening in the Jawaharlal Nehru, Jadavpur and Hyderabad universities, and now Ramjas College, one is struck by the ominous similarities of tone and content. There is a concerted assault upon Indias sense of nationhood. Nationalism is being equated to unvarnished evil. Few countries have had their sense of self so comprehensively attacked and destroyed as Indias was in the Colonial era. After the 1857 revoltthe British resolved that Indians would never reunite. They exploited each and every fault line of caste, creed, language and ethnicity to divide and rule Indians and prevent the emergence of a pan-Indian identity. Seventy years after Independence, the rear guard of colonialism is still active in our universities under the cloak of leftist-liberalism to divide and break up this country; to cheer every separatist movement and propel every seditionist student leader to instant stardom. The argument of free speech is being shamelessly used to advocate the breakup of India, to applaud and encourage every separatist. First slogans on Burhan Wani were heard not in the Valley, but in JNU. In any other nation-state that would be deemed high treason. In India, it is being given the veneer of free speech.

There is the curious case of Gurmehar Kaur. I demand that a through probe be ordered to ascertain who gave her death/rape threats. That individual needs to be taken to task with all the severity at the command of the state. There is, however, speculation that this threat was purportedly given by a left-wing student union leader to propel her into stardom and confer on her the halo of victimhood. This needs to be probed, for it would then amount to a well-crafted conspiracy. Kaur recently morphed into an arch-angel of India-Pakistan peace. She was seen in the company of Ram Subramanian, AAPs media advisor, and John Dayal, a famous India-basher. Last year, she had put out an impassioned video that not Pakistan but war killed her father. Hence, she wanted peace between India and Pakistan. And what would be the way to achieve it? Her AAP has the pat answerhand over Kashmir to Pakistan on a platter! Viewed in this light, Kaurs pleas for peace do have some sinister overtones of capitulationism. What is disturbing is the manufactured outrage and instant stardom that was conferred upon her by so-called Leftist-liberals of our English print media. There are undertones of a rather deep-seated subversive conspiracy. The intention is to weaken Indias collective will and resolve to tackle the state-sponsored terrorism emanating from Pakistan. There is a capitulationist agenda designed to force India to tamely surrender Kashmir to Pakistan. Traitors and turncoats are out to break up and balkanise India. Its time we faced them squarely.

Maj. Gen. (Retd) G D Bakshi

War veteran and strategic analyst

gagandeep.bakshi@yahoo.com

Last year on the JNU campus, Umar Khalid had shouted slogans for the breakup of India and the slaughter of the Supreme Court judges who dared to pronounce Afzal Guru guilty. Some self-confessed leftist-liberal intellectuals are now shamelessly trying to take advantage of the pathetic slowness with which our legal system movesby exalting Khalids and the Kanhaiyas of this world to the status of national heroes and youth icons. Cases of sedition are pending against Khalid and Kanhaiya. Where was the need to invite such an individual to Ramjas College? He would have added one more azadi rant to the many he had raised in JNU. Besides, why had the college wanted to host a seminar on Bastar and Cultures of Protest? The moment this seminar was cancelled, there was manufactured outrage on the campus, and even sections of media virtually exploded with angst. Calls for debate and discussion on our campuses are good, but we need to remember that the situation in J&K and Maoist areas has gone far beyond the level of discussion and debate. Kalashnikovs are spitting bullets and people are killed daily. There are violent attempts to overthrow the state and dismember the nation. Yet, under the guise of freedom of speech, votaries of such sedition and treachery are being lionised as youth icons. For the past eight years, tax payers have been forced to subsidise the never-ending PhD projects of comrades Kanhaiya and Khalid, who go about in the business class, on jet-setting political tours to arouse this country and ask to overthrow its duly constituted government. Some apologists for such seditious speech, however, remind us of the campus protests against the invasion of Vietnam and Iraq. These were foreign countries that the US was invading. Are these liberal activists equating Kashmir with Vietnam? Is J&K to be deemed a foreign country? The equation is highly odious. Section 37 of Indian Constitution lays down the duties of an Indian. Foremost among these is to uphold the unity, integrity and sovereignty of India. We see this being reviled on a daily basis on the JNU campus and yet, sections of media go overboard to celebrate such traitors and separatists as national heroes and youth icons of protest. Protest against what? The unity, integrity and sovereignty of India? Few people care to remember that the troubles in strife-torn Syria actually began in the universities of Damascus and Aleppo. There is not one building left standing there today. When we see what is happening in the Jawaharlal Nehru, Jadavpur and Hyderabad universities, and now Ramjas College, one is struck by the ominous similarities of tone and content. There is a concerted assault upon Indias sense of nationhood. Nationalism is being equated to unvarnished evil. Few countries have had their sense of self so comprehensively attacked and destroyed as Indias was in the Colonial era. After the 1857 revoltthe British resolved that Indians would never reunite. They exploited each and every fault line of caste, creed, language and ethnicity to divide and rule Indians and prevent the emergence of a pan-Indian identity. Seventy years after Independence, the rear guard of colonialism is still active in our universities under the cloak of leftist-liberalism to divide and break up this country; to cheer every separatist movement and propel every seditionist student leader to instant stardom. The argument of free speech is being shamelessly used to advocate the breakup of India, to applaud and encourage every separatist. First slogans on Burhan Wani were heard not in the Valley, but in JNU. In any other nation-state that would be deemed high treason. In India, it is being given the veneer of free speech. There is the curious case of Gurmehar Kaur. I demand that a through probe be ordered to ascertain who gave her death/rape threats. That individual needs to be taken to task with all the severity at the command of the state. There is, however, speculation that this threat was purportedly given by a left-wing student union leader to propel her into stardom and confer on her the halo of victimhood. This needs to be probed, for it would then amount to a well-crafted conspiracy. Kaur recently morphed into an arch-angel of India-Pakistan peace. She was seen in the company of Ram Subramanian, AAPs media advisor, and John Dayal, a famous India-basher. Last year, she had put out an impassioned video that not Pakistan but war killed her father. Hence, she wanted peace between India and Pakistan. And what would be the way to achieve it? Her AAP has the pat answerhand over Kashmir to Pakistan on a platter! Viewed in this light, Kaurs pleas for peace do have some sinister overtones of capitulationism. What is disturbing is the manufactured outrage and instant stardom that was conferred upon her by so-called Leftist-liberals of our English print media. There are undertones of a rather deep-seated subversive conspiracy. The intention is to weaken Indias collective will and resolve to tackle the state-sponsored terrorism emanating from Pakistan. There is a capitulationist agenda designed to force India to tamely surrender Kashmir to Pakistan. Traitors and turncoats are out to break up and balkanise India. Its time we faced them squarely. Maj. Gen. (Retd) G D Bakshi War veteran and strategic analyst gagandeep.bakshi@yahoo.com
By PTI

RAIPUR: As many as 1064 people, including the security personnel, have lost their lives in various Naxal incidents in Chhattisgarh during 2010-16, the Legislative Assembly was informed today. "Total 3,507 Naxal incidents took place in the state from 2010 till 2016. In these incidents, 205 CRPF personnel, 43 SPOs (special police officers), 210 policemen, 49 other security forces personnel, 26 government officers/employees and 531 civilians were killed," Home Minister Ramsewak Paikra stated in a written reply in the House in response to a question by the Congress Legislative Party Leader T S Singhdeo.

As many as 2057 naxals surrendered during this period, with the highest number of surrenders at 1214 reported in 2016. "Similarly, 4939 Maoists were arrested and 149 convicted during this period. Besides, court hearing was not started against 34 arrested naxals," it added.

The reply also stated that state government has received a sum of Rs 58,683.63 lakh as a special package from the Centre under different schemes, including construction of fortified police stations, for Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas between 2010-16.

RAIPUR: As many as 1064 people, including the security personnel, have lost their lives in various Naxal incidents in Chhattisgarh during 2010-16, the Legislative Assembly was informed today. "Total 3,507 Naxal incidents took place in the state from 2010 till 2016. In these incidents, 205 CRPF personnel, 43 SPOs (special police officers), 210 policemen, 49 other security forces personnel, 26 government officers/employees and 531 civilians were killed," Home Minister Ramsewak Paikra stated in a written reply in the House in response to a question by the Congress Legislative Party Leader T S Singhdeo. As many as 2057 naxals surrendered during this period, with the highest number of surrenders at 1214 reported in 2016. "Similarly, 4939 Maoists were arrested and 149 convicted during this period. Besides, court hearing was not started against 34 arrested naxals," it added. The reply also stated that state government has received a sum of Rs 58,683.63 lakh as a special package from the Centre under different schemes, including construction of fortified police stations, for Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas between 2010-16.
Manish Anand By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Battered by Bihar and Delhi debacles, Team Amit Shah is keeping fingers crossed for redemption from the outcome of the five state Assembly elections. Apparently not expecting much hope from Punjab, the team Amit Shah is hoping to win rest of the four states to come back on the winning path to stay on course for a number of states lining up for polls later this year and in 2018.



With the 2015 Bihar verdict still haunting the core members of the team Amit Shah, the BJP leaders are pinning hope on Uttar Pradesh. The favourable UP verdict will redeem the team Amit Shah and lift the morale, which had taken sever beating after back to back big losses in Delhi and Bihar at the hands of Arvind Kejriwal and Nitish Kumar respectively. UP and Bihar constituted the bedrock of the 2014 mandate to the Narendra Modi government. Bihar is gone, and all hope is now with UP, said a senior BJP functionary.



The intensity of the BJP campaign in UP where Modi alone addressed as many as 30 rallies, besides three roadshows in his Parliamentary constituency Varanasi, was marked with the eagerness on the part of the team Amit Shah to win the state decisively to leave a mark of an electoral authority. In the event of the BJP losing UP, which when seen along with Bihar, will clearly rob the moral authority of the Modi government, as the two states account for 105 Lok Sabha seats out of the total 282 won by the saffron outfit in 2014, stated another BJP functionary.



Even while the BJP had returned to the winning track by bagging Assam, the party leaders attribute the success to the general secretary Ram Madhav and the demographic dividends that the saffron outfit had reaped against the Congress led by Tarun Gogoi, who had been in power for 15 years. With UP alone accounting for 403 Assembly seats out of a total of 630, which went to the polls in the five states, the BJP leaders claim that a decisive victory would firmly establish Brand Modi as intact in the Indian politics.



Later this year, the BJP has to brace up for elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. While the BJP has to show its expansion in south with approaching polls for Karnataka Assembly elections, the saffron outfit will have to defend its power in crucial states  Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhatisgarh in 2018. The Saturday verdict in the five states will lay the path for other states lining for polls. A decisive win in UP will help the BJP to gain a winning momentum in upcoming polls, which will become easier with the Congress weakening, added the BJP functionary.



Incidentally, the BJP will face Congress as its main rival in all the upcoming state elections later this year and in 2018.

NEW DELHI: Battered by Bihar and Delhi debacles, Team Amit Shah is keeping fingers crossed for redemption from the outcome of the five state Assembly elections. Apparently not expecting much hope from Punjab, the team Amit Shah is hoping to win rest of the four states to come back on the winning path to stay on course for a number of states lining up for polls later this year and in 2018. With the 2015 Bihar verdict still haunting the core members of the team Amit Shah, the BJP leaders are pinning hope on Uttar Pradesh. The favourable UP verdict will redeem the team Amit Shah and lift the morale, which had taken sever beating after back to back big losses in Delhi and Bihar at the hands of Arvind Kejriwal and Nitish Kumar respectively. UP and Bihar constituted the bedrock of the 2014 mandate to the Narendra Modi government. Bihar is gone, and all hope is now with UP, said a senior BJP functionary. The intensity of the BJP campaign in UP where Modi alone addressed as many as 30 rallies, besides three roadshows in his Parliamentary constituency Varanasi, was marked with the eagerness on the part of the team Amit Shah to win the state decisively to leave a mark of an electoral authority. In the event of the BJP losing UP, which when seen along with Bihar, will clearly rob the moral authority of the Modi government, as the two states account for 105 Lok Sabha seats out of the total 282 won by the saffron outfit in 2014, stated another BJP functionary. Even while the BJP had returned to the winning track by bagging Assam, the party leaders attribute the success to the general secretary Ram Madhav and the demographic dividends that the saffron outfit had reaped against the Congress led by Tarun Gogoi, who had been in power for 15 years. With UP alone accounting for 403 Assembly seats out of a total of 630, which went to the polls in the five states, the BJP leaders claim that a decisive victory would firmly establish Brand Modi as intact in the Indian politics. Later this year, the BJP has to brace up for elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. While the BJP has to show its expansion in south with approaching polls for Karnataka Assembly elections, the saffron outfit will have to defend its power in crucial states  Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhatisgarh in 2018. The Saturday verdict in the five states will lay the path for other states lining for polls. A decisive win in UP will help the BJP to gain a winning momentum in upcoming polls, which will become easier with the Congress weakening, added the BJP functionary. Incidentally, the BJP will face Congress as its main rival in all the upcoming state elections later this year and in 2018.
Manish Anand By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Amid blowing of conch and beatings of drums, the BJP headquarter has turned into a sea of festivities, with saffron flag of the outfit fluttering in scores of party workers. Union Ministers are making a beeline to give bytes and also lauded the hard work of party chief Amit Shah, besides stating firmly that the development agenda of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been endorsed by the people.

The unprecedented victory of the BJP as indicated by the early trends appears to have electrified the mood of the party workers. Union Ministers and a number of supporters of Amit Shah seem struggling to control their jubilation.

"The victory belongs to the poor people of the country who have shown faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his development agenda. Dalits have also shown with the verdict that the BJP is the only party which could fulfil their aspirations. The Modi government will firmly stay on path of development," said Union Minister Piyush Goyal, who struggled to make himself audible amidst sloganeering and fire-crackers drowning his soft voice.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad termed the impending verdict historical, saying even in Punjab people don't seem to have rejected the NDA in the manner as had been projected. "In all states, the people have backed the BJP in an unprecedented manner. Even people in Manipur have shown faith in the BJP. This verdict is against the negative politics of the Opposition parties and their campaign against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The time has come for them to introspect, said Prasad.

BJP chief's key aide and party general secretary Bhupinder Yadav claimed that the people have endorsed the Modi government's decision on demonetization and rejected the Opposition parties for campaigning against action against black money.

NEW DELHI: Amid blowing of conch and beatings of drums, the BJP headquarter has turned into a sea of festivities, with saffron flag of the outfit fluttering in scores of party workers. Union Ministers are making a beeline to give bytes and also lauded the hard work of party chief Amit Shah, besides stating firmly that the development agenda of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been endorsed by the people. The unprecedented victory of the BJP as indicated by the early trends appears to have electrified the mood of the party workers. Union Ministers and a number of supporters of Amit Shah seem struggling to control their jubilation. "The victory belongs to the poor people of the country who have shown faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his development agenda. Dalits have also shown with the verdict that the BJP is the only party which could fulfil their aspirations. The Modi government will firmly stay on path of development," said Union Minister Piyush Goyal, who struggled to make himself audible amidst sloganeering and fire-crackers drowning his soft voice. Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad termed the impending verdict historical, saying even in Punjab people don't seem to have rejected the NDA in the manner as had been projected. "In all states, the people have backed the BJP in an unprecedented manner. Even people in Manipur have shown faith in the BJP. This verdict is against the negative politics of the Opposition parties and their campaign against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The time has come for them to introspect, said Prasad. BJP chief's key aide and party general secretary Bhupinder Yadav claimed that the people have endorsed the Modi government's decision on demonetization and rejected the Opposition parties for campaigning against action against black money.
By IANS

CHANDIGARH: The Congress party on Saturday swept back to power in Punjab after a decade, with veteran Amarinder Singh set to return as Chief Minister of the border state.



The Congress, headed for a two-thirds majority in the 117-seat Punjab assembly, defeated the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party combine. The party's win also turned on its head the BJP's 'Congress Mukt Bharat' (Congress free India) slogan.



The Congress won 76 seats and was leading in one more.



Having won Punjab for his party on his 75th birthday, Amarinder Singh said his first priority would be to eradicate drugs from the state.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose BJP was piggy-backing to power with the Shiromani Akali Dal in Punjab for the past decade, spoke to Amarinder Singh and congratulated him on the victory.



The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which had run a high-voltage campaign in the state and claimed it could win up to 100 seats, got only 20 seats. Its ally, Lok Insaaf Party, won two seats.



The AAP beat the Akali Dal to emerge at second spot, and will be the main opposition in the new assembly.



The Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alliance, which ruled Punjab since 2007, finished a poor third with 18 seats. The Akalis won 15 seats while the BJP won three seats.



Ten ministers, including two from the BJP, in the Parkash Singh Badal government were defeated.



Congress candidate Gurjeet Singh Aujla won the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat comprehensively by 199,189 votes. The by-election was held along with the assembly polls.



"The people of Punjab have given us a big mandate. Our first priority will be to eradicate drugs from Punjab. I have vowed to finish drugs within four weeks," a visibly happy Amarinder Singh, who was Chief Minister from 2002-07, told the media.



He was non-committal on having cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu as Deputy Chief Minister in the new government.



"That will be decided by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi. All ministers will be decided by the party leadership."



In Chandigarh, security was enhanced outside the private bungalow of Amarinder Singh in the upscale Sector 10 on Saturday morning itself as early trends started coming in. A metal detector and more security personnel were deployed as the number of visitors increased.



Outgoing Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, a five-time Chief Minister, accepted defeat and said he will resign on Sunday.



Badal, 89, the oldest Chief Minister in the country, said: "I am grateful to the people of Punjab for giving me an opportunity to serve them. I am fully satisfied with all the things I was able to do. I seek forgiveness for any mistakes."



On the Lambi assembly seat, where Amarinder Singh had challenged Badal on his (Badal's) home turf, Badal won by 22,770 votes. But Amarinder Singh won his traditional Patiala Urban seat by over 52,400 votes.



The Chief Minister's son Sukhbir Singh Badal, the Akali Dal President, won in Jalalabad over AAP's Bhagwant Singh Mann by a margin of 18,500 votes.



Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, who won from the Amritsar-east assembly seat by over 42,000 votes, dubbed the Congress victory as its "revival" and blamed the Akali rout on its leadership's "arrogance and turning the treasury into personal property".



Sidhu, who left the BJP to join the Congress last year, also attacked Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. "Kejriwal had wrong intentions. It is a huge defeat for him."



Prominent AAP winners included Sukhpal Singh Khaira, H.S. Phoolka and Kanwar Sandhu. The AAP also finished second in 26 constituencies.



Prominent losers included former Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal (Congress), Sunil Jakhar (Congress), Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu (Congress), Punjab ministers Adaish Pratap Singh Kairon, Tota Singh, Sikander Singh Maluka and former Army chief, Gen J.J. Singh.



The Congress ended up with a vote share of 38.5 per cent from the votes polled in the election. The Akali Dal got 25.3 per cent while its ally BJP got 5.3 per cent. The AAP finished with 23.8 per cent of the vote.

CHANDIGARH: The Congress party on Saturday swept back to power in Punjab after a decade, with veteran Amarinder Singh set to return as Chief Minister of the border state. The Congress, headed for a two-thirds majority in the 117-seat Punjab assembly, defeated the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party combine. The party's win also turned on its head the BJP's 'Congress Mukt Bharat' (Congress free India) slogan. The Congress won 76 seats and was leading in one more. Having won Punjab for his party on his 75th birthday, Amarinder Singh said his first priority would be to eradicate drugs from the state. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose BJP was piggy-backing to power with the Shiromani Akali Dal in Punjab for the past decade, spoke to Amarinder Singh and congratulated him on the victory. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which had run a high-voltage campaign in the state and claimed it could win up to 100 seats, got only 20 seats. Its ally, Lok Insaaf Party, won two seats. The AAP beat the Akali Dal to emerge at second spot, and will be the main opposition in the new assembly. The Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alliance, which ruled Punjab since 2007, finished a poor third with 18 seats. The Akalis won 15 seats while the BJP won three seats. Ten ministers, including two from the BJP, in the Parkash Singh Badal government were defeated. Congress candidate Gurjeet Singh Aujla won the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat comprehensively by 199,189 votes. The by-election was held along with the assembly polls. "The people of Punjab have given us a big mandate. Our first priority will be to eradicate drugs from Punjab. I have vowed to finish drugs within four weeks," a visibly happy Amarinder Singh, who was Chief Minister from 2002-07, told the media. He was non-committal on having cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu as Deputy Chief Minister in the new government. "That will be decided by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi. All ministers will be decided by the party leadership." In Chandigarh, security was enhanced outside the private bungalow of Amarinder Singh in the upscale Sector 10 on Saturday morning itself as early trends started coming in. A metal detector and more security personnel were deployed as the number of visitors increased. Outgoing Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, a five-time Chief Minister, accepted defeat and said he will resign on Sunday. Badal, 89, the oldest Chief Minister in the country, said: "I am grateful to the people of Punjab for giving me an opportunity to serve them. I am fully satisfied with all the things I was able to do. I seek forgiveness for any mistakes." On the Lambi assembly seat, where Amarinder Singh had challenged Badal on his (Badal's) home turf, Badal won by 22,770 votes. But Amarinder Singh won his traditional Patiala Urban seat by over 52,400 votes. The Chief Minister's son Sukhbir Singh Badal, the Akali Dal President, won in Jalalabad over AAP's Bhagwant Singh Mann by a margin of 18,500 votes. Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, who won from the Amritsar-east assembly seat by over 42,000 votes, dubbed the Congress victory as its "revival" and blamed the Akali rout on its leadership's "arrogance and turning the treasury into personal property". Sidhu, who left the BJP to join the Congress last year, also attacked Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. "Kejriwal had wrong intentions. It is a huge defeat for him." Prominent AAP winners included Sukhpal Singh Khaira, H.S. Phoolka and Kanwar Sandhu. The AAP also finished second in 26 constituencies. Prominent losers included former Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal (Congress), Sunil Jakhar (Congress), Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu (Congress), Punjab ministers Adaish Pratap Singh Kairon, Tota Singh, Sikander Singh Maluka and former Army chief, Gen J.J. Singh. The Congress ended up with a vote share of 38.5 per cent from the votes polled in the election. The Akali Dal got 25.3 per cent while its ally BJP got 5.3 per cent. The AAP finished with 23.8 per cent of the vote.
Anand ST Das By

Express News Service

PATNA: Lalu Prasad Yadav managed to keep the BJP away from power in Bihar just a year after a Modi wave swept the general elections in 2014 by forging a successful alliance between his RJD and Chief Minister Nitish Kumars JD(U), but he was shocked by a resurgence of the BJP tsunami in the most populous state of Uttar Pradesh today. Nonplussed, perhaps, the RJD chief Saturday demanded that electronic voting machines (EVMs) used for polling in that state be examined by the Election Commission of India (ECI), suggesting, like the routed BSPs party chief Mayawati, that they may have been rigged.

After avoiding the media for several hours when reports of BJPs sweeping victory in neighbouring UP poured in, Lalu emerged in the evening and spoke to journalists. Echoing Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati, Lalu said there seemed to be a possibility that the EVMs had been manipulated to help the BJP.

Despite his disbelief, Lalu uttered the regular gracious words about accepting the peoples mandate but placed a part of the blame for the SP-Congress alliances loss on the feud in SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadavs family.

Mayawatijees statements have come on the EVMs. The EVMs need to be examined. They are made in Gujarat and were supplied from there, he said, hinting that they may have been tampered with in the BJP ruled state. We had earlier raised this issue and approached Election Commission of India, he continued.

The Election Commission had assured us that mock polls would be conducted before the real polls. We dont know if mock polls were conducted in the presence of representatives of all political parties before deploying those EVMs in polling booths. I think the EVMs were not examined and I demand that this issue be probed by Election Commission of India, he said.

Not merely accusing the BJP of possibly rigging the voting machines, Lalu also charged the BJP with taking advantage of social divisions in UP although Akhilesh government had done tremendous development work in the state over the past five years. These fascist people (BJP) communalised society. In the campaigns, they hardly talked of their performance at the Centre in the past two-and-a-half years. There is now fear that they would harm social justice by ending reservation, said Lalu.

I had campaigned only in the last phase of the UP polls. The mandate has been the opposite of what I had seen. I welcome the mandate. Akhilesh is right in saying that the people were lured by BJP. We failed in countering their lure, added Lalu.

He said the clash in Mulayam Singh Yadavs family played a role though it was patched up later. But still such a mandate was not expected at all, Lalu said, unable to contain his disbelief.

PATNA: Lalu Prasad Yadav managed to keep the BJP away from power in Bihar just a year after a Modi wave swept the general elections in 2014 by forging a successful alliance between his RJD and Chief Minister Nitish Kumars JD(U), but he was shocked by a resurgence of the BJP tsunami in the most populous state of Uttar Pradesh today. Nonplussed, perhaps, the RJD chief Saturday demanded that electronic voting machines (EVMs) used for polling in that state be examined by the Election Commission of India (ECI), suggesting, like the routed BSPs party chief Mayawati, that they may have been rigged. After avoiding the media for several hours when reports of BJPs sweeping victory in neighbouring UP poured in, Lalu emerged in the evening and spoke to journalists. Echoing Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati, Lalu said there seemed to be a possibility that the EVMs had been manipulated to help the BJP. Despite his disbelief, Lalu uttered the regular gracious words about accepting the peoples mandate but placed a part of the blame for the SP-Congress alliances loss on the feud in SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadavs family. Mayawatijees statements have come on the EVMs. The EVMs need to be examined. They are made in Gujarat and were supplied from there, he said, hinting that they may have been tampered with in the BJP ruled state. We had earlier raised this issue and approached Election Commission of India, he continued. The Election Commission had assured us that mock polls would be conducted before the real polls. We dont know if mock polls were conducted in the presence of representatives of all political parties before deploying those EVMs in polling booths. I think the EVMs were not examined and I demand that this issue be probed by Election Commission of India, he said. Not merely accusing the BJP of possibly rigging the voting machines, Lalu also charged the BJP with taking advantage of social divisions in UP although Akhilesh government had done tremendous development work in the state over the past five years. These fascist people (BJP) communalised society. In the campaigns, they hardly talked of their performance at the Centre in the past two-and-a-half years. There is now fear that they would harm social justice by ending reservation, said Lalu. I had campaigned only in the last phase of the UP polls. The mandate has been the opposite of what I had seen. I welcome the mandate. Akhilesh is right in saying that the people were lured by BJP. We failed in countering their lure, added Lalu. He said the clash in Mulayam Singh Yadavs family played a role though it was patched up later. But still such a mandate was not expected at all, Lalu said, unable to contain his disbelief.
By PTI

IMPHAL: After her dismal performance in the Manipur assembly elections, human rights activist Irom Sharmila today announced that she would quit politics but continue her fight against the AFSPA in the state.

"I am fed up with this political system. I have decided to quit active politics. I will move to south India as I need to calm my mind," Sharmila told PTI. "But I will continue my fight against AFSPA until and unless it is repealed. But I will fight as a social activist," she said.

Sharmila, who contested from Thoubal constituency against Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh was relegated to the fourth position. She secured just 90 votes.

The two other candidates of her newly floated party Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) lost their deposits.

IMPHAL: After her dismal performance in the Manipur assembly elections, human rights activist Irom Sharmila today announced that she would quit politics but continue her fight against the AFSPA in the state. "I am fed up with this political system. I have decided to quit active politics. I will move to south India as I need to calm my mind," Sharmila told PTI. "But I will continue my fight against AFSPA until and unless it is repealed. But I will fight as a social activist," she said. Sharmila, who contested from Thoubal constituency against Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh was relegated to the fourth position. She secured just 90 votes. The two other candidates of her newly floated party Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) lost their deposits.
Hemant Kumar Rout By

Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: India on Saturday successfully conducted maiden test of extended-range supersonic cruise missile BrahMos from a defence base off Odisha coast.



The technology upgrade comes after Indias full membership to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) which removed caps on the strike range of BrahMos. The range has been now enhanced from 290 km to 450 km.



Defence sources said the missile was fired from a mobile autonomous launcher (MAL) deployed in full configuration at Chandipur-based launching complex-III of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at about 11.30 am.



The missile took off successfully and hit the designated target meeting all mission parameters. All telemetry and tracking stations including naval ships near terminal point have tracked the trajectory.



Confirming that the mission was successful, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Brahmos Aerospace Limited Dr Sudhir Kumar Mishra, who witnessed the launch, described it as a text book launch executed with high precision.



In a historical first, the formidable missile system once again proved its mettle to precisely hit enemy targets at much higher range. The land-attack version of the supersonic cruise system met its mission parameters in a copybook manner, he said.



The unique weapon system has empowered all three wings of the Indian armed forces with impeccable anti-ship and land attack capability.



With the successful test firing, the armed forces will be empowered to knock down enemy targets far beyond 400 km. BrahMos has proved its prowess once again as the best supersonic cruise missile system in the world, Dr Mishra claimed.



DRDO Chairman Dr S Christopher congratulated the BrahMos team, DRDO and scientists of Russias NPO Mashinostroyenia (NPOM) involved in the successful mission.



The nine-meter-long missile can travel at thrice the speed of sound and carry a conventional warhead weighing upto 300 kg.



The missile can be fired on three different targets or in a variety of other combinations near simultaneously. The land-based version is also equipped with inertial navigation system and global positioning system.



The strike range was enhanced only with better internal systems including fuel management. There was no change in other dimensions, informed an official associated with the project.



The missile, which derives its name from the Brahmaputra and Moskova rivers, was developed by an Indo-Russian joint venture after the two countries signed an agreement in February 1998.



The Indian army is the first army in the World to have a regiment of supersonic cruise missile with advanced capabilities.

BHUBANESWAR: India on Saturday successfully conducted maiden test of extended-range supersonic cruise missile BrahMos from a defence base off Odisha coast. The technology upgrade comes after Indias full membership to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) which removed caps on the strike range of BrahMos. The range has been now enhanced from 290 km to 450 km. Defence sources said the missile was fired from a mobile autonomous launcher (MAL) deployed in full configuration at Chandipur-based launching complex-III of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at about 11.30 am. The missile took off successfully and hit the designated target meeting all mission parameters. All telemetry and tracking stations including naval ships near terminal point have tracked the trajectory. Confirming that the mission was successful, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Brahmos Aerospace Limited Dr Sudhir Kumar Mishra, who witnessed the launch, described it as a text book launch executed with high precision. In a historical first, the formidable missile system once again proved its mettle to precisely hit enemy targets at much higher range. The land-attack version of the supersonic cruise system met its mission parameters in a copybook manner, he said. The unique weapon system has empowered all three wings of the Indian armed forces with impeccable anti-ship and land attack capability. With the successful test firing, the armed forces will be empowered to knock down enemy targets far beyond 400 km. BrahMos has proved its prowess once again as the best supersonic cruise missile system in the world, Dr Mishra claimed. DRDO Chairman Dr S Christopher congratulated the BrahMos team, DRDO and scientists of Russias NPO Mashinostroyenia (NPOM) involved in the successful mission. The nine-meter-long missile can travel at thrice the speed of sound and carry a conventional warhead weighing upto 300 kg. The missile can be fired on three different targets or in a variety of other combinations near simultaneously. The land-based version is also equipped with inertial navigation system and global positioning system. The strike range was enhanced only with better internal systems including fuel management. There was no change in other dimensions, informed an official associated with the project. The missile, which derives its name from the Brahmaputra and Moskova rivers, was developed by an Indo-Russian joint venture after the two countries signed an agreement in February 1998. The Indian army is the first army in the World to have a regiment of supersonic cruise missile with advanced capabilities.
The Fremont Area Alzheimers Committee (FAAC) is sponsoring a full day educational event designed for family and professional caregivers on Thursday, April 20th at Kimmel Theater on the campus of Midland University.

The event called Finding Hope, Humor & Heart in Caregiving will feature author Elaine Sanchez who wrote Letters from Madelyn, Chronicles of a Caregiver, which deals with challenges of being a caregiver through the story of a 70-year-old Kansas woman named Madelyn Kubin who becomes a family caregiver after her husband suffers a stroke.

At the event Sanchez will be giving two keynote addresses as well as conducting interactive sessions on caregiver anger and guilt, depression and grief, managing dementia-related challenging behaviors, and self-care.

Our main purpose is to make the public aware of Alzheimers disease and to provide that caregiver education to help alleviate some of the stress and uncertainty of not knowing what to do, Committee President Riley Faulkner said.

So we like to host this event every year, usually at Midland, and we try to bring in credible speakers that have experience with dementia and Alzheimers.

The event will begin with a keynote address from Sanchez from 9:15 to 10:30 a.m., and will be capped off by another address from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.

Sanchez, who co-founded the website caregiverhelp.com, will also be conducting an interactive session of caregiver self-care.

Often times caregivers get burnt out, there is a lot of stress devoting all of their time toward taking care of somebody with dementia, typically a loved one, and they forget to take care of themselves, Faulkner said.

Family caregivers of those who have Alzheimers and dementia often find it difficult to make time for themselves because of some of the behaviors associated with the diseases.

Every form of dementia is different but some experience behaviors such as hallucinations, and some have a problem with wandering, so a lot of those factors can make a day to day living a challenge for the caregiver, Faulkner said.

The FAAC formed as a collaborative effort in 2008 between local organizations and individuals to fund research to end Alzheimers disease and impart education for those providing care.

Out of the funds raised, 60 percent goes toward funding institutions conducting cutting edge research in Alzheimers disease and dementia. The remaining 40 percent is used for grants to fund caregiver support and programming in the Fremont area.

According to information on the Alzheimers Associations website, the disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.

When people are faced with the challenges of it they dont know where to turn, who to talk to and what to do so thats the primary focus of our education event is to reach those caregivers that have no other avenue, and no one to turn to understand and know what to expect next, Faulkner said.

The event is free to the public and professional caregivers will receive 5 continued education units (CEU) by attending the full event. Lunch will also be provided from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

To register to attend the event go to http://alzheimers-fremont.org, or call 402-753-2078 for more information.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The embattled business tycoon Vijay Mallya said on Friday that he was ready to negotiate with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on `9,000 crore loan default. Public sector banks have policies for one-time settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled.

Why should this be denied to us? Our substantial offer before the honourable Supreme Court was rejected by banks without consideration.

I am ready to talk settlement on fair basis, he said in a tweet. Wish the SC would intervene and put an end to all this by directing banks and us to negotiate and settle. We are ready. Mallya added that he has humbly obeyed every single court order and seems as if government is bent on holding me guilty without fair trial. The allegations before the Supreme Court only prove the attitude of the government, he said.

Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Friday took to Twitter saying he is ready to negotiate with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on `9,000-crore loan default.

Mallya also accused the government of holding him guilty without a fair trial as he faces heat in the Supreme Court over the loan default.

A day after the Supreme Court asked Mallya about his assets and transfer of $40 million to his children, he took to the twitter to clarify his position. He also offered to negotiate with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on his `9,000 crore loan default.

Public Sector Banks have policies for One Time Settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled. Why should this be denied to us? he said in a tweet as he sought negotiations with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on the `9,000-crore loan default.

He said his offer for settlement has been rejected by the lenders without consideration.

Our substantial offer before the Honble Supreme Court was rejected by Banks without consideration. Am ready to talk settlement on fair basis, he said.

Public sector banks have policies for one-time settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled. Why should this be denied to us? Our substantial offer before the honourable Supreme Court was rejected by banks without consideration. (I) am ready to talk settlement on fair basis, Mallya said in a tweet.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka High Court on Friday issued a bailable warrant against Mallya for `50 lakh, to be served at his UK address through Ministry of Home Affairs, returnable by June 1.

A Division Bench of justices B S Patil and B V Nagarathna issued the warrant, as Mallya failed to appear in response to the bailable warrant issued at his Bengaluru address, in connection to a contempt petition filed by the consortium of banks.

On January 27, while hearing the contempt petition filed by the consortium of banks, the High Court had issued a bailable warrant against Mallya, returnable by February 17, to his Bengaluru address, as he failed to appear before it on December 2, 2016. According to the consortium of banks, when the matter was pending before the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) as well as the HC, it came to know that Mallya had pledged 1,04,86,666 shares of UB Limited held by him and a further 1,04,64,288 shares held by him and his son Siddarth Mallya to Standard Chartered Bank, in violation of his oral undertaking given before the DRT.

NEW DELHI: The embattled business tycoon Vijay Mallya said on Friday that he was ready to negotiate with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on `9,000 crore loan default. Public sector banks have policies for one-time settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled. Why should this be denied to us? Our substantial offer before the honourable Supreme Court was rejected by banks without consideration. I am ready to talk settlement on fair basis, he said in a tweet. Wish the SC would intervene and put an end to all this by directing banks and us to negotiate and settle. We are ready. Mallya added that he has humbly obeyed every single court order and seems as if government is bent on holding me guilty without fair trial. The allegations before the Supreme Court only prove the attitude of the government, he said. Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Friday took to Twitter saying he is ready to negotiate with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on `9,000-crore loan default. Mallya also accused the government of holding him guilty without a fair trial as he faces heat in the Supreme Court over the loan default. A day after the Supreme Court asked Mallya about his assets and transfer of $40 million to his children, he took to the twitter to clarify his position. He also offered to negotiate with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on his `9,000 crore loan default. Public Sector Banks have policies for One Time Settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled. Why should this be denied to us? he said in a tweet as he sought negotiations with banks to pay a one-time settlement charge on the `9,000-crore loan default. He said his offer for settlement has been rejected by the lenders without consideration. Our substantial offer before the Honble Supreme Court was rejected by Banks without consideration. Am ready to talk settlement on fair basis, he said. Public sector banks have policies for one-time settlements. Hundreds of borrowers have settled. Why should this be denied to us? Our substantial offer before the honourable Supreme Court was rejected by banks without consideration. (I) am ready to talk settlement on fair basis, Mallya said in a tweet. Meanwhile, the Karnataka High Court on Friday issued a bailable warrant against Mallya for `50 lakh, to be served at his UK address through Ministry of Home Affairs, returnable by June 1. A Division Bench of justices B S Patil and B V Nagarathna issued the warrant, as Mallya failed to appear in response to the bailable warrant issued at his Bengaluru address, in connection to a contempt petition filed by the consortium of banks. On January 27, while hearing the contempt petition filed by the consortium of banks, the High Court had issued a bailable warrant against Mallya, returnable by February 17, to his Bengaluru address, as he failed to appear before it on December 2, 2016. According to the consortium of banks, when the matter was pending before the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) as well as the HC, it came to know that Mallya had pledged 1,04,86,666 shares of UB Limited held by him and a further 1,04,64,288 shares held by him and his son Siddarth Mallya to Standard Chartered Bank, in violation of his oral undertaking given before the DRT.
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: With the Modi wave sweeping Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmirs former Chief Minister and Opposition National Conference working president Omar Abdullah on Saturday said there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability, who can take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi andthe BJP in 2019 general elections and advised the opposition to forget 2019 elections and start planning for 2024 polls.

In a series of tweets after BJPs landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Omar said, In a nutshell, there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi and the BJP in 2019.

He said at this rate, the opposition might have to forget 2019 general elections in the country and start planning and hoping for 2024 elections.

I said "at this rate", which allows scope for change provided we wake up to the scale of the challenge and make an effort to change, said Omar, who was Minister of State for External Affairs during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government.

He opined that the parties would have to change strategies to beat the saffron party. BJP isn't unbeatable but strategy needs to shift from criticism to positive alternate.

I have said this before and I will say it again that the voter needs to be given an alternative agenda that is based on what we will do better, Omar said adding, Criticising PM will only take us so far. The voter needs to know there is an option available to them that has a clear positive road map.

On BJPs win in UP, the former J&K CM said, How the hell did almost all the experts and analysts miss this wave in UP. It's a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond.

He advised the opposition politicians better to face up to reality today and do something about it than bury the collective heads in the sand. A spade is a spade is a spade.

On debate that PM Modi is the most popular leader in the country since independence, Omar said, Perhaps when he gets a mandate greater than Rajiv Gandhi's in 1984, we can begin to discuss this boastful claim.

He said the BJP win in UP and other states will have implications for Rajya Sabha and President and Vice President elections.

Meanwhile, J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said BJPs landslide victory in UP and Uttarakhand polls and impressive performance in Manipur and Goa is a clear and decisive mandate for the governance, developmental and economic agenda of PM Modi.

I congratulate PM Modi and his party on this resounding victory which is an endorsement of his governments governance, developmental and economic agenda, she said.





SRINAGAR: With the Modi wave sweeping Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmirs former Chief Minister and Opposition National Conference working president Omar Abdullah on Saturday said there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability, who can take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi andthe BJP in 2019 general elections and advised the opposition to forget 2019 elections and start planning for 2024 polls. In a series of tweets after BJPs landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Omar said, In a nutshell, there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi and the BJP in 2019. He said at this rate, the opposition might have to forget 2019 general elections in the country and start planning and hoping for 2024 elections. I said "at this rate", which allows scope for change provided we wake up to the scale of the challenge and make an effort to change, said Omar, who was Minister of State for External Affairs during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government. He opined that the parties would have to change strategies to beat the saffron party. BJP isn't unbeatable but strategy needs to shift from criticism to positive alternate. I have said this before and I will say it again that the voter needs to be given an alternative agenda that is based on what we will do better, Omar said adding, Criticising PM will only take us so far. The voter needs to know there is an option available to them that has a clear positive road map. On BJPs win in UP, the former J&K CM said, How the hell did almost all the experts and analysts miss this wave in UP. It's a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond. He advised the opposition politicians better to face up to reality today and do something about it than bury the collective heads in the sand. A spade is a spade is a spade. On debate that PM Modi is the most popular leader in the country since independence, Omar said, Perhaps when he gets a mandate greater than Rajiv Gandhi's in 1984, we can begin to discuss this boastful claim. He said the BJP win in UP and other states will have implications for Rajya Sabha and President and Vice President elections. Meanwhile, J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said BJPs landslide victory in UP and Uttarakhand polls and impressive performance in Manipur and Goa is a clear and decisive mandate for the governance, developmental and economic agenda of PM Modi. I congratulate PM Modi and his party on this resounding victory which is an endorsement of his governments governance, developmental and economic agenda, she said.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A day after exit polls predicted the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) having an upper hand in four of the five states which went to polls, leaders of various political parties are busy taking the sting out of the projections saying exit polls are not always reliable.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi said the exit polls were wrong and claimed the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance would win the elections.

The exit polls had indicated the BJP had a clear lead over other parties in the state even as one of them predicted 285 seats for the saffron party.

Gandhi pointed out the fact that the predictions had gone wrong during the Bihar Assembly elections and this time also, the situation would be the same.

During the 2015 Bihar Assembly elections, most exit polls had predicted a BJP victory. However, the Grand Alliance of the JD (U), the RJD and the Congress had swept the state.

Gandhi is not alone in trashing the predictions of the exit polls.Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad rubbished the exit polls asserting the prediction would fall flat the way it did in Bihar elections.

Like in Bihar elections, all the exit polls would fall flat in Uttar Pradesh where Samajwadi Party-Congress would emerge victorious, Prasad said.

In Bihar elections in 2015, exit polls had predicted BJP-led NDA as the winner. But when EVMs were opened and votes counted, all the predictions were proved wrong, he said a day before counting. Prasad had campaigned for some candidates of the SP-Congress alliance led by Akhilesh Yadav.

When senior Congress leader and party UP general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad was asked if Gandhi, who single-handedly spearheaded the party campaign in the Uttar Pradesh, would be responsible for the loss or victory, he said, elections are not a referendum on individuals.

The SP-Congress alliance will win the UP elections despite the exit poll claims, he indicated.

Party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala also proclaimed, We will win all five states, including UP in alliance with the SP.

The confidence is equally reassuring in the North-east. Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh is confident his party will retain power.I am optimistic about a clear mandate in favour of Congress. This is a kind of a referendum. We are confident that we will win between 40 and 42 seats. Wait till Saturday and you will know, he told New Indian Express. The BJP is in no mood to shift the focus away from the exit poll predictions.

The Congress wanted to gain mileage by making the polls an issue between Nagas and Meiteis. But people knew the kind of game which the Congress and Ibobi were playing, former Congress minister and BJP spokesperson N Biren told Express.

CHENNAI: A day after exit polls predicted the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) having an upper hand in four of the five states which went to polls, leaders of various political parties are busy taking the sting out of the projections saying exit polls are not always reliable. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi said the exit polls were wrong and claimed the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance would win the elections. The exit polls had indicated the BJP had a clear lead over other parties in the state even as one of them predicted 285 seats for the saffron party. Gandhi pointed out the fact that the predictions had gone wrong during the Bihar Assembly elections and this time also, the situation would be the same. During the 2015 Bihar Assembly elections, most exit polls had predicted a BJP victory. However, the Grand Alliance of the JD (U), the RJD and the Congress had swept the state. Gandhi is not alone in trashing the predictions of the exit polls.Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad rubbished the exit polls asserting the prediction would fall flat the way it did in Bihar elections. Like in Bihar elections, all the exit polls would fall flat in Uttar Pradesh where Samajwadi Party-Congress would emerge victorious, Prasad said. In Bihar elections in 2015, exit polls had predicted BJP-led NDA as the winner. But when EVMs were opened and votes counted, all the predictions were proved wrong, he said a day before counting. Prasad had campaigned for some candidates of the SP-Congress alliance led by Akhilesh Yadav. When senior Congress leader and party UP general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad was asked if Gandhi, who single-handedly spearheaded the party campaign in the Uttar Pradesh, would be responsible for the loss or victory, he said, elections are not a referendum on individuals. The SP-Congress alliance will win the UP elections despite the exit poll claims, he indicated. Party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala also proclaimed, We will win all five states, including UP in alliance with the SP. The confidence is equally reassuring in the North-east. Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh is confident his party will retain power.I am optimistic about a clear mandate in favour of Congress. This is a kind of a referendum. We are confident that we will win between 40 and 42 seats. Wait till Saturday and you will know, he told New Indian Express. The BJP is in no mood to shift the focus away from the exit poll predictions. The Congress wanted to gain mileage by making the polls an issue between Nagas and Meiteis. But people knew the kind of game which the Congress and Ibobi were playing, former Congress minister and BJP spokesperson N Biren told Express.
By IANS

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed grief over the death of 11 CRPF personnel in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh in a Maoist attack and said that Home Minister Rajnath Singh would be going there.



"Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi said in a tweet.



"Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said.



Eleven CRPF personnel were killed and five others injured in a Maoist attack near Bhejji of Sukma district in tribal Bastar region. The Maoists also looted weapons from the dead personnel.



Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs & condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

Home Minister Rajnath Singh also condoled the deaths and said the perpetrators of the attack will be brought to justice.



"Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased," the Home Minister said.



He said he had spoken to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, and the state government is providing all medical assistance to the injured.



"The Centre is in direct communication with the state government. Those who perpetrated this incident in Sukma will be brought to justice," he said.

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed grief over the death of 11 CRPF personnel in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh in a Maoist attack and said that Home Minister Rajnath Singh would be going there. "Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi said in a tweet. "Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said. Eleven CRPF personnel were killed and five others injured in a Maoist attack near Bhejji of Sukma district in tribal Bastar region. The Maoists also looted weapons from the dead personnel. Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs & condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017 Home Minister Rajnath Singh also condoled the deaths and said the perpetrators of the attack will be brought to justice. "Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased," the Home Minister said. He said he had spoken to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, and the state government is providing all medical assistance to the injured. "The Centre is in direct communication with the state government. Those who perpetrated this incident in Sukma will be brought to justice," he said.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Sri Lanka has released 77 of 85 Indian fishermen arrested last week after an alleged firing incident that resulted in the death of an Indian fisherman. The released fishermen are presently in Jaffna and would soon be repatriated. Seized fishing boats, however, remain with Sri Lanka.

Seventy-seven out of 85 Indian fishermen have been released by Sri Lanka government. They are put up in Jaffna and await repatriation. Release of remaining fishermen is expected soon, Gopal Baglay from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The MEA was in negotiation with Sri Lanka to get the fishermen released. India also has 19 Sri Lankan fishermen in its custody.

The Indian government had expressed deep concerns at the shooting of Indian fisherman allegedly by the Sri Lankan Navy, an accusation denied by Sri Lanka that contended that the Sri Lankan Navy is not mandated to fire upon fishermen. The 22-year-old fisherman from Tamil Nadu was allegedly shot dead a little short from Katchatheevu Island that was ceded by India to the Island nation in 1974 in a bilateral pact.

Fishing is the economic mainstay of northern Sri Lanka and the fishermen have been demanding their Indian counterparts to stop bottom-trawling that they contend has been damaging the marine ecosystem.

Since 2014, the Sri Lankan Navy has seized more than 100 fishing trawlers; while they have released the Indian fishermen, they refuse to release the trawlers.

NEW DELHI: Sri Lanka has released 77 of 85 Indian fishermen arrested last week after an alleged firing incident that resulted in the death of an Indian fisherman. The released fishermen are presently in Jaffna and would soon be repatriated. Seized fishing boats, however, remain with Sri Lanka. Seventy-seven out of 85 Indian fishermen have been released by Sri Lanka government. They are put up in Jaffna and await repatriation. Release of remaining fishermen is expected soon, Gopal Baglay from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. The MEA was in negotiation with Sri Lanka to get the fishermen released. India also has 19 Sri Lankan fishermen in its custody. The Indian government had expressed deep concerns at the shooting of Indian fisherman allegedly by the Sri Lankan Navy, an accusation denied by Sri Lanka that contended that the Sri Lankan Navy is not mandated to fire upon fishermen. The 22-year-old fisherman from Tamil Nadu was allegedly shot dead a little short from Katchatheevu Island that was ceded by India to the Island nation in 1974 in a bilateral pact. Fishing is the economic mainstay of northern Sri Lanka and the fishermen have been demanding their Indian counterparts to stop bottom-trawling that they contend has been damaging the marine ecosystem. Since 2014, the Sri Lankan Navy has seized more than 100 fishing trawlers; while they have released the Indian fishermen, they refuse to release the trawlers.
By PTI

JAIPUR: The half-charred body of a 60-year-old man with a stick inserted in his private parts was found at Dhoolkheda village in Bhilwara district today, police said.

On being informed by the villagers, police recovered the body which was lying near a canal in the village.

"Suspecting it to be a case of murder we have registered a case against unidentified persons and an investigation is underway, SHO of Mandal Police Station, Harish Kumar Sankhla said.

The deceased has been identified as Gangaram Gujjar of Kishanpura village in Rajsamand district. His family members have been identified about the incident and the body will be handed over to them after post-mortem, Sankhla said.

JAIPUR: The half-charred body of a 60-year-old man with a stick inserted in his private parts was found at Dhoolkheda village in Bhilwara district today, police said. On being informed by the villagers, police recovered the body which was lying near a canal in the village. "Suspecting it to be a case of murder we have registered a case against unidentified persons and an investigation is underway, SHO of Mandal Police Station, Harish Kumar Sankhla said. The deceased has been identified as Gangaram Gujjar of Kishanpura village in Rajsamand district. His family members have been identified about the incident and the body will be handed over to them after post-mortem, Sankhla said.
Gautam Pingle By

The expression feudalism or feudal is currently used as a pejorative in India. What exactly is this feudalism?



From A.D. 9001400, centralised rule in Europe had collapsed in the face of unpredictable terror raids and invasions from Scandinavians in the north, Hungarians in the east and Arabs in the south. The kings granted control of specified territory, its resources and people to loyal chieftains and warriors so that they could maintain armed horsemen, castles and forts for security of the land and people. In this way, a decentralised military strength and governance was created which allowed it to quickly cope with intermittent attacks by these non-state actors. Feudalism in Europe ended after foreign terror acts declined and led to stronger and more effective central rule.



As for India, Kautilya describes the Magadhan Empire in his Arthashastra in extraordinary detail. It was a highly centralised system with paid officials and standing armies without any intermediary feudal groups. However, from A.D. 900 onward, India saw the collapse of the central rule of Hindu kings in the face of Muslim terror raids and subsequent invasions. As in Europe, feudal entities in India also developed around the same period to cope with these unpredictable and lightning raids.



After the conquest, Muslim rulers, however, adopted a system of granting jagirs and their revenues to their military commanders for maintaining armed men and to ensure their rule over the Hindu population. These jagirs were at the rulers will and pleasure and, later, tended to be granted to the heirs of the jagirdar.



With the dominance of British centralised power in the early 19th century, this jagirdari system ceased altogether to be an effective or necessary governance and military structure. The British tolerated the hollow shell of this defunct institution and developed the zamindari system instead. They were all abolished by the Indian Republic in the 1950s.



But today we see not the rise of the old jagirdari order but a new jagirdari system. Every elected member of any entity now has a right to the resources of that entity and to dominate and exercise power over the people connected with it. Elected leaders use these resources and their loyal cadres to reinforce and extend this jagirdari across successive electoral terms. So much so, that there are now electoral dynasties at every level of Indian polity. With the electorate used to traditional hereditary succession in the exercise of power, it seems that this new jagirdari has taken firm root.



However, the new jagirdari is illegitimate and depends largely on illegal control of constituents and manipulation of the electoral process. As such, the newly-elected jagirdars needs to appease, bribe and satisfy their superiors in the jagirdari hierarchy as well as ensure that the legal system does not act against their interests.



Heads of non-political state institutionsjudges, bureaucrats, professional managers, technicians, scientists, academics, doctors and other specialistsare unelected leaders. Leaders of privately governed voluntary bodies, trade unions, housing and other associations, charitable institutions join this group of unelected institutional leaders.



This extends to chiefs of private corporate entities based on public shareholding. However, despite their professional competence and vastly higher level of education and their merit-based status, they act in a similar manner as the elected jagirdars and against their institutions interests and purpose.



Thus what is clear is that an informal and illegitimate jagirdari order now pervades the country in almost every institution of the Republic. If this is the outcome of the democratic process, what future does the polity have?



What we have seen in recent times is an increasing tendency among voters to prefer efficient and honest electoral candidates. But what is distressing is that once they win, those elected tend to gravitate towards the normal. They cite the need to recover funds spent in the election to bribe voters, appease their party leaders, cater to the special groups that supported them and generally take care of the interests of their family, caste and religion. They are also conscious that they have a limited period in office. Everything that they do is intended either to reinforce the probability of re-election or at least provide for their economic and political future if they lose in the next election.



It seems that with the growth of literacy and education combined with access to information through the mass medianewspapers, radio and television, Internet and social mediaas well as word of mouth, things will change. Over time, people become educated and gain confidence in their economic future and their own ability to raise a family by themselves. Their dependence on, and fear of, the elected jagirdars and institutional jagirdars begins to diminish.



Many of the best and brightest among our youth emigrate to countries requiring and honouring merit, competence, honesty and hard work. Such a tendency is also beginning to appear in our urban areas which now contain 40 per cent of the Indian population. However, unless the Republic is liberated from the control of all these jagirdars, things will not change for the better very soon.



To sum up: Politics of the new jagirdari order is a politics of immediate material gain. Cleaning up the electoral jagirdari order is also critical because of its enormously dysfunctional effect on other state and non-state institutions and their services including those of the two main branches of governance of the Republic the executive and judiciary.



(The author is Former Dean of Research at Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad. Email: gautam.pingle@gmail.com)

The expression feudalism or feudal is currently used as a pejorative in India. What exactly is this feudalism? From A.D. 9001400, centralised rule in Europe had collapsed in the face of unpredictable terror raids and invasions from Scandinavians in the north, Hungarians in the east and Arabs in the south. The kings granted control of specified territory, its resources and people to loyal chieftains and warriors so that they could maintain armed horsemen, castles and forts for security of the land and people. In this way, a decentralised military strength and governance was created which allowed it to quickly cope with intermittent attacks by these non-state actors. Feudalism in Europe ended after foreign terror acts declined and led to stronger and more effective central rule. As for India, Kautilya describes the Magadhan Empire in his Arthashastra in extraordinary detail. It was a highly centralised system with paid officials and standing armies without any intermediary feudal groups. However, from A.D. 900 onward, India saw the collapse of the central rule of Hindu kings in the face of Muslim terror raids and subsequent invasions. As in Europe, feudal entities in India also developed around the same period to cope with these unpredictable and lightning raids. After the conquest, Muslim rulers, however, adopted a system of granting jagirs and their revenues to their military commanders for maintaining armed men and to ensure their rule over the Hindu population. These jagirs were at the rulers will and pleasure and, later, tended to be granted to the heirs of the jagirdar. With the dominance of British centralised power in the early 19th century, this jagirdari system ceased altogether to be an effective or necessary governance and military structure. The British tolerated the hollow shell of this defunct institution and developed the zamindari system instead. They were all abolished by the Indian Republic in the 1950s. But today we see not the rise of the old jagirdari order but a new jagirdari system. Every elected member of any entity now has a right to the resources of that entity and to dominate and exercise power over the people connected with it. Elected leaders use these resources and their loyal cadres to reinforce and extend this jagirdari across successive electoral terms. So much so, that there are now electoral dynasties at every level of Indian polity. With the electorate used to traditional hereditary succession in the exercise of power, it seems that this new jagirdari has taken firm root. However, the new jagirdari is illegitimate and depends largely on illegal control of constituents and manipulation of the electoral process. As such, the newly-elected jagirdars needs to appease, bribe and satisfy their superiors in the jagirdari hierarchy as well as ensure that the legal system does not act against their interests. Heads of non-political state institutionsjudges, bureaucrats, professional managers, technicians, scientists, academics, doctors and other specialistsare unelected leaders. Leaders of privately governed voluntary bodies, trade unions, housing and other associations, charitable institutions join this group of unelected institutional leaders. This extends to chiefs of private corporate entities based on public shareholding. However, despite their professional competence and vastly higher level of education and their merit-based status, they act in a similar manner as the elected jagirdars and against their institutions interests and purpose. Thus what is clear is that an informal and illegitimate jagirdari order now pervades the country in almost every institution of the Republic. If this is the outcome of the democratic process, what future does the polity have? What we have seen in recent times is an increasing tendency among voters to prefer efficient and honest electoral candidates. But what is distressing is that once they win, those elected tend to gravitate towards the normal. They cite the need to recover funds spent in the election to bribe voters, appease their party leaders, cater to the special groups that supported them and generally take care of the interests of their family, caste and religion. They are also conscious that they have a limited period in office. Everything that they do is intended either to reinforce the probability of re-election or at least provide for their economic and political future if they lose in the next election. It seems that with the growth of literacy and education combined with access to information through the mass medianewspapers, radio and television, Internet and social mediaas well as word of mouth, things will change. Over time, people become educated and gain confidence in their economic future and their own ability to raise a family by themselves. Their dependence on, and fear of, the elected jagirdars and institutional jagirdars begins to diminish. Many of the best and brightest among our youth emigrate to countries requiring and honouring merit, competence, honesty and hard work. Such a tendency is also beginning to appear in our urban areas which now contain 40 per cent of the Indian population. However, unless the Republic is liberated from the control of all these jagirdars, things will not change for the better very soon. To sum up: Politics of the new jagirdari order is a politics of immediate material gain. Cleaning up the electoral jagirdari order is also critical because of its enormously dysfunctional effect on other state and non-state institutions and their services including those of the two main branches of governance of the Republic the executive and judiciary.(The author is Former Dean of Research at Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad. Email: gautam.pingle@gmail.com)
By Express News Service

KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will soon file its first charge sheet against suspected members of the Islamic States south Indian module busted from Kanakamala in Kannur.



Officers said documentation work had started and the charge sheet would be filed before the agencys court within two weeks. This is to prevent statutory bail to the accused set to complete 180 days in judicial custody in the first week of April.

As per the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, investigation against the accused has to be completed within 180 days, said an officer. If a charge sheet is not filed, the accused will become eligible for statutory bail. The first charge sheet will be filed to prevent this. The agency will request the court for permission to carry out further investigation.

Since the case is of a grave nature involving IS sympathisers, further probe will be required, said the officer.Following a tip-off in October, the NIA raided Kanakamala and arrested six IS suspects.



They were plotting attacks across different locations in south India.



There are 14 accused at present, including Subahani Haja Moideen of Thodupuzha who fought for the IS at Mosul in Iraq.

KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will soon file its first charge sheet against suspected members of the Islamic States south Indian module busted from Kanakamala in Kannur. Officers said documentation work had started and the charge sheet would be filed before the agencys court within two weeks. This is to prevent statutory bail to the accused set to complete 180 days in judicial custody in the first week of April. As per the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, investigation against the accused has to be completed within 180 days, said an officer. If a charge sheet is not filed, the accused will become eligible for statutory bail. The first charge sheet will be filed to prevent this. The agency will request the court for permission to carry out further investigation. Since the case is of a grave nature involving IS sympathisers, further probe will be required, said the officer.Following a tip-off in October, the NIA raided Kanakamala and arrested six IS suspects. They were plotting attacks across different locations in south India. There are 14 accused at present, including Subahani Haja Moideen of Thodupuzha who fought for the IS at Mosul in Iraq.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After a three-year stint as the KPCC president, V M Sudheeran on Friday took everyone by surprise announcing his resignation from the top post. The reason: Serious health issues aggravated by a fall while attending a party function in Kozhikode recently. Sudheeran said issues within the party had no role in him arriving at the decision. The 67-year-old Congress leader said the resignation letter would be sent to the AICC president soon.

The party is going through a demanding phase, championing the cause of common man and fighting against the anti-people policies of the state and Central governments. It is impossible to stay away from the struggle against this, even for a day. Anarchy is prevailing in the state. My ribs were damaged during a recent fall and doctors have prescribed a long spell of rest for natural healing. At the moment, I cannot live up to the expectations of the party and supporters or oversee the reconstitution of the partys grassroots committees - essential to make the organisation more vibrant.

KPCC president V M Sudheeran

going through his resignation

letter at the Indira Bhavan in

Thiruvananthapuram on

Friday | B P Deepu

I cannot do justice to the post of KPCC president with my present health status. I did justice to whatever positions I had held and remained active. I cannot do it now, he said. Sudheeran said he hadnt discussed his decision to step down with any of his colleagues, acting on his own volition. I could have gone on leave or given temporary charge to some senior office-bearer. But it is against my conscience. My commitment to the well being of the party is above my personal interests.

New challenges are arising every day in the state due to the misrule of the LDF Government and the policies of the BJP Government at the Centre have added to it. I cannot keep myself away from discharging duties while being the KPCC president, he said. AICC will make alternative arrangements. A new president will be announced soon, he said. Sudheeran thanked party workers, media, senior leader A K Antony, AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi and other leaders for their valuable support.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After a three-year stint as the KPCC president, V M Sudheeran on Friday took everyone by surprise announcing his resignation from the top post. The reason: Serious health issues aggravated by a fall while attending a party function in Kozhikode recently. Sudheeran said issues within the party had no role in him arriving at the decision. The 67-year-old Congress leader said the resignation letter would be sent to the AICC president soon. The party is going through a demanding phase, championing the cause of common man and fighting against the anti-people policies of the state and Central governments. It is impossible to stay away from the struggle against this, even for a day. Anarchy is prevailing in the state. My ribs were damaged during a recent fall and doctors have prescribed a long spell of rest for natural healing. At the moment, I cannot live up to the expectations of the party and supporters or oversee the reconstitution of the partys grassroots committees - essential to make the organisation more vibrant. KPCC president V M Sudheeran going through his resignation letter at the Indira Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday | B P DeepuI cannot do justice to the post of KPCC president with my present health status. I did justice to whatever positions I had held and remained active. I cannot do it now, he said. Sudheeran said he hadnt discussed his decision to step down with any of his colleagues, acting on his own volition. I could have gone on leave or given temporary charge to some senior office-bearer. But it is against my conscience. My commitment to the well being of the party is above my personal interests. New challenges are arising every day in the state due to the misrule of the LDF Government and the policies of the BJP Government at the Centre have added to it. I cannot keep myself away from discharging duties while being the KPCC president, he said. AICC will make alternative arrangements. A new president will be announced soon, he said. Sudheeran thanked party workers, media, senior leader A K Antony, AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi and other leaders for their valuable support.
Mathew A Thomas By

Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When the reins of the party state unit was entrusted with V M Sudheeran by the high command on February 11,2014, what had weighed in his favour was a clean image and boldness in framing and airing views. When he steps down from the KPCC presidents post after three years in a dramatic manner, the same USPs are intact in his baggage.

It was an open secret in the party in recent times that Sudheerans tenure as president will not be too long, as the High Command had reportedly assured many to look into the demand for a change of leadership. There are many who feel that the accident Sudheeran had met with last week and attendant health issues pinning him down was only a trigger to say quits.



The prominent A and I factions captained by Oommen Chandy and Ramesh Chennithala were not at all enthused with the induction of Sudheeran as president. Many a stand of Sudheeran including in the liquor policy had put the former UDF government led by Chandy on the defensive.

He was held responsible by many as one who had spoiled the chances of the UDF in its attempt for a second coming in a row to rule the state.



Idealistic and always perched on a moral high ground, Sudheeran had cultivated a small but assertive base in the political and public domain of the state over the years as a non-corrupt and bold leader. He had put his imprints in all the posts he had held in his career,while the state had witnessed it right from his stint as president of KSU and Youth Congress and as an MLA, MP, Assembly Speaker and minister.

By wielding the clout of a fighter,his words were received with rapt attention though he had earned many critics as well. The main criticism against Sudheeran was that he was self-centred,a trait often billed by critics against his mentor A K Antony also,and caged in his own image consciousness. But his stint as KPCC president had gradually changed his approach as running the party was no mean task. Like a headmaster,he had charted programmes and gave the party more visibility,though the end results remain disputed. Willy-nilly,a small group had encircled Sudheeran also, a criticism taken to the party High Commands table to counter his anti-groups stand.

Sudheerans exit from the KPCC screen can be viewed like ending a song when the voice remains sweet. Out of power, the state unit of Congress may not have much to worry over his resignation. The responses pouring in after his resignation attest it even as all are sympathetic on his health issues. But his immediate successor will definitely find a comparison with the days of the former KPCC president. It will have a bearing on Congress politics in the state,for the better or worse.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When the reins of the party state unit was entrusted with V M Sudheeran by the high command on February 11,2014, what had weighed in his favour was a clean image and boldness in framing and airing views. When he steps down from the KPCC presidents post after three years in a dramatic manner, the same USPs are intact in his baggage. It was an open secret in the party in recent times that Sudheerans tenure as president will not be too long, as the High Command had reportedly assured many to look into the demand for a change of leadership. There are many who feel that the accident Sudheeran had met with last week and attendant health issues pinning him down was only a trigger to say quits. The prominent A and I factions captained by Oommen Chandy and Ramesh Chennithala were not at all enthused with the induction of Sudheeran as president. Many a stand of Sudheeran including in the liquor policy had put the former UDF government led by Chandy on the defensive. He was held responsible by many as one who had spoiled the chances of the UDF in its attempt for a second coming in a row to rule the state. Idealistic and always perched on a moral high ground, Sudheeran had cultivated a small but assertive base in the political and public domain of the state over the years as a non-corrupt and bold leader. He had put his imprints in all the posts he had held in his career,while the state had witnessed it right from his stint as president of KSU and Youth Congress and as an MLA, MP, Assembly Speaker and minister. By wielding the clout of a fighter,his words were received with rapt attention though he had earned many critics as well. The main criticism against Sudheeran was that he was self-centred,a trait often billed by critics against his mentor A K Antony also,and caged in his own image consciousness. But his stint as KPCC president had gradually changed his approach as running the party was no mean task. Like a headmaster,he had charted programmes and gave the party more visibility,though the end results remain disputed. Willy-nilly,a small group had encircled Sudheeran also, a criticism taken to the party High Commands table to counter his anti-groups stand. Sudheerans exit from the KPCC screen can be viewed like ending a song when the voice remains sweet. Out of power, the state unit of Congress may not have much to worry over his resignation. The responses pouring in after his resignation attest it even as all are sympathetic on his health issues. But his immediate successor will definitely find a comparison with the days of the former KPCC president. It will have a bearing on Congress politics in the state,for the better or worse.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: THE stage is set for crucial developmental test of an extended-range version of supersonic cruise missile BrahMos. The world-class nuclear capable missile with advanced seeker software is likely to be test-fired from a defence base off the Odisha coast on Saturday. This is the first test of the missile after its strike range was extended following Indias entry in Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). The strike range of the new BrahMos missile has been enhanced from 290 km to 450 km. Defence sources said the missile will be tested from the launching complex-IV of Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Abdul Kalam Island. Jointly developed by India and Russia, the missile has the capability to fly at a speed of Mach 2.8.

Since it is a joint venture project, the range of more than 300 km was forbidden for non-MTCR countries. Scientists from Russia have been camping here along with scientists of BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited (BAPL). The weapon system will be fired from a mobile launcher (MAL), which is an autonomous vehicle having its own communication, power supply and fire control system.

The test is aimed at gauging the efficiency of the weapon systems superior version which is incorporated with an advanced seeker software having target discriminating capabilities. The missile, having such capabilities, can distinguish a particular target from a group of targets. A defence official said another version of the missile with a strike range of 800 km is under development. BrahMos variants can be launched from land, air, sea and under water. The missile can effectively engage ground targets from an altitude as low as 10 metres for surgical strikes at terror training camps across the border without causing collateral damage.

BHUBANESWAR: THE stage is set for crucial developmental test of an extended-range version of supersonic cruise missile BrahMos. The world-class nuclear capable missile with advanced seeker software is likely to be test-fired from a defence base off the Odisha coast on Saturday. This is the first test of the missile after its strike range was extended following Indias entry in Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). The strike range of the new BrahMos missile has been enhanced from 290 km to 450 km. Defence sources said the missile will be tested from the launching complex-IV of Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Abdul Kalam Island. Jointly developed by India and Russia, the missile has the capability to fly at a speed of Mach 2.8. Since it is a joint venture project, the range of more than 300 km was forbidden for non-MTCR countries. Scientists from Russia have been camping here along with scientists of BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited (BAPL). The weapon system will be fired from a mobile launcher (MAL), which is an autonomous vehicle having its own communication, power supply and fire control system. The test is aimed at gauging the efficiency of the weapon systems superior version which is incorporated with an advanced seeker software having target discriminating capabilities. The missile, having such capabilities, can distinguish a particular target from a group of targets. A defence official said another version of the missile with a strike range of 800 km is under development. BrahMos variants can be launched from land, air, sea and under water. The missile can effectively engage ground targets from an altitude as low as 10 metres for surgical strikes at terror training camps across the border without causing collateral damage.
By Express News Service

RAYAGADA: About 200 Dongria Kondhs of Niyamgiri hills staged a demonstration in front of the district police office here on Friday demanding release of Bari Pidikaka of Tahali village, Dashuru Kadraka and Saiba Pushika of Gortha village, who were arrested on charges of being militia. Wielding axes, Dongria Kondhs of Bissamcuttack, Muniguda and Kalyansighpur blocks took out a rally to the district police office protesting atrocities against them.

Ladda Sikaka, convener of Niyamgiri Surakhya Samiti (NSS), said unable to fight the Maoists, police are targeting innocent Dongria Kondhs branding them as Maoist supporters. On Friday, seven of them met Additional SP Patitapaban Choudhury. Another team of 15 Dongria Kondhs will meet the SP on March 15. The tribals also sought the intervention of the SP for the release of Dongrias. They have threatened to stage mass protests from Rayagada to Bhubaneswar if their demands are not met.

RAYAGADA: About 200 Dongria Kondhs of Niyamgiri hills staged a demonstration in front of the district police office here on Friday demanding release of Bari Pidikaka of Tahali village, Dashuru Kadraka and Saiba Pushika of Gortha village, who were arrested on charges of being militia. Wielding axes, Dongria Kondhs of Bissamcuttack, Muniguda and Kalyansighpur blocks took out a rally to the district police office protesting atrocities against them. Ladda Sikaka, convener of Niyamgiri Surakhya Samiti (NSS), said unable to fight the Maoists, police are targeting innocent Dongria Kondhs branding them as Maoist supporters. On Friday, seven of them met Additional SP Patitapaban Choudhury. Another team of 15 Dongria Kondhs will meet the SP on March 15. The tribals also sought the intervention of the SP for the release of Dongrias. They have threatened to stage mass protests from Rayagada to Bhubaneswar if their demands are not met.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Taking legal recourse to unsettle V K Sasikala-led faction of AIADMK, the rebel faction of the party led by former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam on Friday filed a case in the Supreme Court challenging the trust vote held in the TN Assembly on February 18.



We have filed the case in the SC challenging the manner in which the confidence motion was adopted, Ma Foi K Pandiarajan, former Minister for School Education, told reporters here.

He added that 26 points of violations regarding the rules and the rights bestowed by the Constitution were raised in the petition. We have mentioned the failure of the Speaker to take the motion under Rule 286 enabling secret ballot and not ensuring the rights bestowed by Article 32 of Constitution.



Similarly, the petition raised questions of violating the commitments made to the Governor that included freeing the MLAs held captive at a private resort in Kuvathoor in Kancheepuram district after the swearing-in ceremony. Pandiarajan stated that the petition also pointed the fingers on passing the confidence motion.



The entrepreneur-turned-politician also hoped to get a favourable verdict from the Election Commission of India.

CHENNAI: Taking legal recourse to unsettle V K Sasikala-led faction of AIADMK, the rebel faction of the party led by former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam on Friday filed a case in the Supreme Court challenging the trust vote held in the TN Assembly on February 18. We have filed the case in the SC challenging the manner in which the confidence motion was adopted, Ma Foi K Pandiarajan, former Minister for School Education, told reporters here. He added that 26 points of violations regarding the rules and the rights bestowed by the Constitution were raised in the petition. We have mentioned the failure of the Speaker to take the motion under Rule 286 enabling secret ballot and not ensuring the rights bestowed by Article 32 of Constitution. Similarly, the petition raised questions of violating the commitments made to the Governor that included freeing the MLAs held captive at a private resort in Kuvathoor in Kancheepuram district after the swearing-in ceremony. Pandiarajan stated that the petition also pointed the fingers on passing the confidence motion. The entrepreneur-turned-politician also hoped to get a favourable verdict from the Election Commission of India.
By Express News Service

VIRUDHUNAGAR : Five persons, including three women, were killed and four injured in a blast at a firecracker manufacturing unit in Vetrilaiurani Village near Sattur here on Saturday.



Official sources said the cracker unit  Nagamalli Fireworks  is owned by Sakthishanmugam, a resident of Mani Nagar at Sivakasi Taluk in Virudhunagar district, and licensed by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation. There are 15 working sheds in the cracker unit and it employs nearly 70 workers.



The mishap took place on Saturday morning, when one of the workers, Shanmugavel (40), hailing from Melaotampatti village, was mixing chemicals required to manufacture crackers inside the chemical mixing room. Suddenly, there was an explosion, caused due to friction. Shanmugavel sustained severe burns and died on the spot. The chemical mixing room was completely demolished.

The spark from the blast, meanwhile, landed on the crackers kept in nearby sheds, leading to another explosion, killing Paulraj (45), Murugeshwari (21), Kalarani (38) from Vetrilaiurani and Vijaya (35) from Melakothainachiyarpuram on the spot. Four persons  Parvathy (40), Ilavarasi (18), Sankaramoorthy (40) and Anandammal (55) from Vetrilaiurani village  sustained injuries and were admitted to Government Sivakasi Hospital.

Three sheds were also damaged in the blast. Later, fire and rescue service personnel arrived and recovered the five bodies from among the debris. SP M Rajarajan and District Revenue Officer C Muthukumaran inspected the cracker unit. Mahendran, the foreman of the unit, surrendered later.



Rs 5 lakh compensation

Relatives of the deceased staged a protest in front of the cracker unit, seeking compensation. They withdrew their stir as the cracker unit administration assured to give compensation to the family members.



In the afternoon, Minister for Milk and Dairy Development K T Rajendra Balaji, along with Collector A Sivagnanam and SP Rajarajan, visited the Government Sivakasi Hospital and spoke to the family members of the deceased. The Minister also handed over a cheque of `5.50 lakh each given by the cracker unit management to the kin.

VIRUDHUNAGAR : Five persons, including three women, were killed and four injured in a blast at a firecracker manufacturing unit in Vetrilaiurani Village near Sattur here on Saturday.  Official sources said the cracker unit  Nagamalli Fireworks  is owned by Sakthishanmugam, a resident of Mani Nagar at Sivakasi Taluk in Virudhunagar district, and licensed by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation. There are 15 working sheds in the cracker unit and it employs nearly 70 workers. The mishap took place on Saturday morning, when one of the workers, Shanmugavel (40), hailing from Melaotampatti village, was mixing chemicals required to manufacture crackers inside the chemical mixing room. Suddenly, there was an explosion, caused due to friction. Shanmugavel sustained severe burns and died on the spot. The chemical mixing room was completely demolished. The spark from the blast, meanwhile, landed on the crackers kept in nearby sheds, leading to another explosion, killing Paulraj (45), Murugeshwari (21), Kalarani (38) from Vetrilaiurani and Vijaya (35) from Melakothainachiyarpuram on the spot. Four persons  Parvathy (40), Ilavarasi (18), Sankaramoorthy (40) and Anandammal (55) from Vetrilaiurani village  sustained injuries and were admitted to Government Sivakasi Hospital. Three sheds were also damaged in the blast. Later, fire and rescue service personnel arrived and recovered the five bodies from among the debris. SP M Rajarajan and District Revenue Officer C Muthukumaran inspected the cracker unit. Mahendran, the foreman of the unit, surrendered later. Rs 5 lakh compensation Relatives of the deceased staged a protest in front of the cracker unit, seeking compensation. They withdrew their stir as the cracker unit administration assured to give compensation to the family members. In the afternoon, Minister for Milk and Dairy Development K T Rajendra Balaji, along with Collector A Sivagnanam and SP Rajarajan, visited the Government Sivakasi Hospital and spoke to the family members of the deceased. The Minister also handed over a cheque of `5.50 lakh each given by the cracker unit management to the kin.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: The first day of the Assembly witnessed fireworks with the opposition parties terming Governor ESL Narasimhans customary speech as one full of lies and half-truths.



When the Governor was reading out the achievements of the State government, during his address to the joint session of the State Legislature here on Friday, principal opposition party, the Congress, MLAs and MLCs raised slogans terming it as blatant lies and staged a walk out along with TDP members. Leader of the Opposition K Jana Reddy and Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) chief N Uttam Kumar Reddy ridiculed the Governors claims.

Governors speech is far from the truth. There is no mention of TRS poll promises such as distribution of three acres of land to each Dalit family. Governor has been reading out the same speech for the past three years, Jana Reddy said. Uttam Kumar Reddy said that there was no mention of flagship schemes in the address including double bedroom houses for the poor, 12 per cent reservations for Muslims and STs, farmers suicides.

The figures of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth in the State were fake. The State government did not clear crop loan waiver and fee reimbursement dues citing drop in growth rate and cash crunch. However, now the same government is claiming that the States GSDP growth was 13.7 per cent and higher than the national average, he said. Joining chorus with the Congress, TDP TS unit working president A Revanth Reddy too rejected the Governors claims. Reddy said that the TRS government had made the Governor lie. BJP MLA Chinthala Ramachandra Reddy and MLC N Ramachandra Rao said there was nothing new in the governors speech.

Legislative Affairs Minister T Harish Rao said all the opposition parties had become obstacles for States development.



Session to last 18 days

The budget session, will last till March 27. State budget for the coming fiscal year will be presented on Monday, said the Business Advisory Committee before speaker Madhusudana Chary. Oppositions demand for sessions extension was rejected by the speaker.

HYDERABAD: The first day of the Assembly witnessed fireworks with the opposition parties terming Governor ESL Narasimhans customary speech as one full of lies and half-truths. When the Governor was reading out the achievements of the State government, during his address to the joint session of the State Legislature here on Friday, principal opposition party, the Congress, MLAs and MLCs raised slogans terming it as blatant lies and staged a walk out along with TDP members. Leader of the Opposition K Jana Reddy and Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) chief N Uttam Kumar Reddy ridiculed the Governors claims. Governors speech is far from the truth. There is no mention of TRS poll promises such as distribution of three acres of land to each Dalit family. Governor has been reading out the same speech for the past three years, Jana Reddy said. Uttam Kumar Reddy said that there was no mention of flagship schemes in the address including double bedroom houses for the poor, 12 per cent reservations for Muslims and STs, farmers suicides. The figures of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth in the State were fake. The State government did not clear crop loan waiver and fee reimbursement dues citing drop in growth rate and cash crunch. However, now the same government is claiming that the States GSDP growth was 13.7 per cent and higher than the national average, he said. Joining chorus with the Congress, TDP TS unit working president A Revanth Reddy too rejected the Governors claims. Reddy said that the TRS government had made the Governor lie. BJP MLA Chinthala Ramachandra Reddy and MLC N Ramachandra Rao said there was nothing new in the governors speech. Legislative Affairs Minister T Harish Rao said all the opposition parties had become obstacles for States development.Session to last 18 days The budget session, will last till March 27. State budget for the coming fiscal year will be presented on Monday, said the Business Advisory Committee before speaker Madhusudana Chary. Oppositions demand for sessions extension was rejected by the speaker.
By PTI

ADEN: An air strike by a Saudi-led Arab coalition on a market in Yemen killed 20 civilians and six rebels, medical and military sources said. The aircraft tried to target rebels yesterday at a roadblock on the southern outskirts of the Red Sea port of Khoukha, but the fighters fled to a market where they were attacked, the sources said.

The attack took place at the entrance to a market selling the mild narcotic leaf qat, which is very popular among Yemeni men. A military source close to Saudi-backed President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi said that by fleeing to the market, the rebels had used civilians as "human shields".

The rebel television channel Al-Masirah also reported the air strike, but give a slightly higher toll of 27 killed and said dozens more were wounded. The Saudi-led coalition which has been battling Shiite Huthi rebels opposed to Hadi was not immediately available for comment. The Arab force has come under repeated criticism over civilian casualties in Yemen.

In December, it acknowledged that it had made "limited use" of British-made cluster bombs but said it had stopped using them. On Thursday, Amnesty International accused the coalition of using banned Brazilian-manufactured cluster munitions in raids on residential areas in northern Saada province, a Shiite stronghold. The conflict in Yemen has left more than 7,400 people dead and 40,000 wounded since the coalition intervened on the government's side in March 2015, the United Nations says.

ADEN: An air strike by a Saudi-led Arab coalition on a market in Yemen killed 20 civilians and six rebels, medical and military sources said. The aircraft tried to target rebels yesterday at a roadblock on the southern outskirts of the Red Sea port of Khoukha, but the fighters fled to a market where they were attacked, the sources said. The attack took place at the entrance to a market selling the mild narcotic leaf qat, which is very popular among Yemeni men. A military source close to Saudi-backed President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi said that by fleeing to the market, the rebels had used civilians as "human shields". The rebel television channel Al-Masirah also reported the air strike, but give a slightly higher toll of 27 killed and said dozens more were wounded. The Saudi-led coalition which has been battling Shiite Huthi rebels opposed to Hadi was not immediately available for comment. The Arab force has come under repeated criticism over civilian casualties in Yemen. In December, it acknowledged that it had made "limited use" of British-made cluster bombs but said it had stopped using them. On Thursday, Amnesty International accused the coalition of using banned Brazilian-manufactured cluster munitions in raids on residential areas in northern Saada province, a Shiite stronghold. The conflict in Yemen has left more than 7,400 people dead and 40,000 wounded since the coalition intervened on the government's side in March 2015, the United Nations says.
By AFP

ROTTERDAM: Hundreds of Dutch citizens packed into a Rotterdam mosque Friday for an animated debate on the role of Muslims in the country, a central theme as key elections loom.

The Essalam mosque -- the biggest in The Netherlands -- hosted the evening, which comes as the Freedom Party (PVV) of far-right anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders appears set to emerge as one of the largest in parliament in Wednesday's vote.

Wilders has vowed to bar Muslim immigrants, close mosques and ban sales of the Koran, and new polls late Friday suggested he was consolidating his second place behind Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Liberal VVD and could be poised for his best polls showing ever.

Participants voiced their fears and anxieties as well as incomprehension at growing polarisation in The Netherlands, which has long prided itself on its culture of tolerance.

"I have become someone else in the eyes of others," said blogger Nourdeen Wildeman who has a large following on social media.

"Without doubt, the dangers posed by Islamic State group and other radical Muslim groups have pushed people to look at each other differently."

Some 12.9 million voters will head to the polls next Wednesday in a general election seen as a key litmus test of the rise of populist and far-right parties ahead of other national votes in Europe later this year.

Estimates put the country's Muslim population at between 840,000 to 960,000, or around 5.0 percent of some 17 million people. Most are of Turkish or Moroccan descent, according to the Dutch central statistics office.

While the blonde-haired Wilders, dubbed by some "the Dutch Trump," did not attend the debate, his presence loomed large even if few voiced his name.

"I see too many people who shut themselves away, who hide in their corner and think 'This will pass eventually'," said Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb.

"But it won't just pass if you are a spectator and take a back-row seat."

The first immigrant Muslim mayor to be elected in the country, Aboutaleb remains popular in the port city which has a large immigrant population.

A member of the Labour party who was born in Morocco and came to the country as a boy, he has personally taken issue with some of Wilders's incendiary remarks.

- Not accepted -

But despite being convicted of discrimination last year, Wilders has not reined in his rhetoric. He officially launched his election campaign in mid-February by denouncing those he called "Moroccan scum" and vowing to return The Netherlands to the Dutch.

"We are seeing that people are less accepted," said Farid Azarkan, a leading member of the party called Denk, or "Think" in Dutch.

Some 40 percent of Turkish- and Moroccan-Dutch citizens say "I don't feel at home, because I am not accepted," he said.

Denk, created in 2015, is predicted to win two seats in the 150-seat parliament, according to the latest polls released Friday by respected pollster Maurice de Hond.

Rutte's Liberal VVD, the ruling partner in the outgoing coalition, is seen winning a narrow lead with 24 seats, while Wilders's PVV and a long-established Dutch party the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) are predicted to take 22 each.

In third place, the polls suggested the left-wing ecologists GroenLinks could complete a stunning rise by winning 20 seats.

ROTTERDAM: Hundreds of Dutch citizens packed into a Rotterdam mosque Friday for an animated debate on the role of Muslims in the country, a central theme as key elections loom. The Essalam mosque -- the biggest in The Netherlands -- hosted the evening, which comes as the Freedom Party (PVV) of far-right anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders appears set to emerge as one of the largest in parliament in Wednesday's vote. Wilders has vowed to bar Muslim immigrants, close mosques and ban sales of the Koran, and new polls late Friday suggested he was consolidating his second place behind Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Liberal VVD and could be poised for his best polls showing ever. Participants voiced their fears and anxieties as well as incomprehension at growing polarisation in The Netherlands, which has long prided itself on its culture of tolerance. "I have become someone else in the eyes of others," said blogger Nourdeen Wildeman who has a large following on social media. "Without doubt, the dangers posed by Islamic State group and other radical Muslim groups have pushed people to look at each other differently." Some 12.9 million voters will head to the polls next Wednesday in a general election seen as a key litmus test of the rise of populist and far-right parties ahead of other national votes in Europe later this year. Estimates put the country's Muslim population at between 840,000 to 960,000, or around 5.0 percent of some 17 million people. Most are of Turkish or Moroccan descent, according to the Dutch central statistics office. While the blonde-haired Wilders, dubbed by some "the Dutch Trump," did not attend the debate, his presence loomed large even if few voiced his name. "I see too many people who shut themselves away, who hide in their corner and think 'This will pass eventually'," said Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb. "But it won't just pass if you are a spectator and take a back-row seat." The first immigrant Muslim mayor to be elected in the country, Aboutaleb remains popular in the port city which has a large immigrant population. A member of the Labour party who was born in Morocco and came to the country as a boy, he has personally taken issue with some of Wilders's incendiary remarks. - Not accepted - But despite being convicted of discrimination last year, Wilders has not reined in his rhetoric. He officially launched his election campaign in mid-February by denouncing those he called "Moroccan scum" and vowing to return The Netherlands to the Dutch. "We are seeing that people are less accepted," said Farid Azarkan, a leading member of the party called Denk, or "Think" in Dutch. Some 40 percent of Turkish- and Moroccan-Dutch citizens say "I don't feel at home, because I am not accepted," he said. Denk, created in 2015, is predicted to win two seats in the 150-seat parliament, according to the latest polls released Friday by respected pollster Maurice de Hond. Rutte's Liberal VVD, the ruling partner in the outgoing coalition, is seen winning a narrow lead with 24 seats, while Wilders's PVV and a long-established Dutch party the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) are predicted to take 22 each. In third place, the polls suggested the left-wing ecologists GroenLinks could complete a stunning rise by winning 20 seats.
By Associated Press

BERLIN: Police ordered a shopping mall in the western German city of Essen not to open on Saturday after receiving credible tips of an imminent attack.

The shopping centre and the adjacent parking lot stayed closed as about a hundred police officers positioned themselves around the compound to make sure nobody could enter the mall. Several officers scoured the inside of the building to bring out early morning cleaning staff.

"As police, we are the security authority here and have decided to close the mall," police spokesman Christoph Wickhorst said, adding that they had been tipped off late on Friday by other security agencies. He did not want to provide further details because of the ongoing investigation.

The downtown mall at Limbecker Platz square will be closed for the entire day. The mall is one of the biggest in Germany with more than 200 stores, according to the shopping centre's website.

In 2016, three people were injured in an attack on a Sikh temple in Essen by radicalized German-born Muslim teenagers.

Germany has been on the edge following a series of attacks in public places over the past year.

BERLIN: Police ordered a shopping mall in the western German city of Essen not to open on Saturday after receiving credible tips of an imminent attack. The shopping centre and the adjacent parking lot stayed closed as about a hundred police officers positioned themselves around the compound to make sure nobody could enter the mall. Several officers scoured the inside of the building to bring out early morning cleaning staff. "As police, we are the security authority here and have decided to close the mall," police spokesman Christoph Wickhorst said, adding that they had been tipped off late on Friday by other security agencies. He did not want to provide further details because of the ongoing investigation. The downtown mall at Limbecker Platz square will be closed for the entire day. The mall is one of the biggest in Germany with more than 200 stores, according to the shopping centre's website. In 2016, three people were injured in an attack on a Sikh temple in Essen by radicalized German-born Muslim teenagers. Germany has been on the edge following a series of attacks in public places over the past year.
By PTI

UNITED NATIONS: Iraq's UN envoy has said there was no evidence that the Islamic State group had used chemical weapons in the battle for Mosul. Ambassador Mohamed Alhakim said he conveyed the information to the United Nations after speaking with his government in Baghdad yesterday.

"There is really no evidence that Daesh has used this chemical weapon," Alhakim told reporters ahead of a Security Council meeting on Iraq. Daesh is the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State (IS). The Red Cross had reported that seven people, five of them children, had been hospitalised near Mosul in early March suffering from exposure to a chemical agent.

The US Defense Department said that IS militants were developing rudimentary chemical weapons such as mustard gas at the University of Mosul. Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake west Mosul, the largest population centre still held by the jihadists, on February 19. Alhakim said Iraq had been in contact with The Hague-based Organisation for the Prohibition for Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which could dispatch a team of experts in the event of a suspected toxic gas attack.

Following the closed-door Security Council meeting on Iraq, British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said the Iraqi investigation of the alleged chemical attacks had not been completed and that the council had expressed concern. "We look forward to the results of Iraq's investigation into those allegations," said Rycroft, who holds the council presidency this month.

UNITED NATIONS: Iraq's UN envoy has said there was no evidence that the Islamic State group had used chemical weapons in the battle for Mosul. Ambassador Mohamed Alhakim said he conveyed the information to the United Nations after speaking with his government in Baghdad yesterday. "There is really no evidence that Daesh has used this chemical weapon," Alhakim told reporters ahead of a Security Council meeting on Iraq. Daesh is the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State (IS). The Red Cross had reported that seven people, five of them children, had been hospitalised near Mosul in early March suffering from exposure to a chemical agent. The US Defense Department said that IS militants were developing rudimentary chemical weapons such as mustard gas at the University of Mosul. Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake west Mosul, the largest population centre still held by the jihadists, on February 19. Alhakim said Iraq had been in contact with The Hague-based Organisation for the Prohibition for Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which could dispatch a team of experts in the event of a suspected toxic gas attack. Following the closed-door Security Council meeting on Iraq, British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said the Iraqi investigation of the alleged chemical attacks had not been completed and that the council had expressed concern. "We look forward to the results of Iraq's investigation into those allegations," said Rycroft, who holds the council presidency this month.
By ANI

ISLAMABAD: Indias Deputy High Commissioner in Paksitan J.P. Singh was summoned by the Foreign Office and reportedly informed about Islamabads strong objection to 2007 Ajmer blast case accused Swami Aseemanand being acquitted by National Investigation (NIA) Court.

Swami Aseemanand was accused in the Ajmer blast case as per the NIA's chargesheet filed in 2007.

The agency accused Aseemamand of hatching the conspiracy of bombing the Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti shrine, which killed three people and injured 17.

The hearing into the matter was postponed multiple times as witnesses made applications delaying their appearance before the court, citing a threat to their lives among other reasons.

The investigation in the matter was later handed over to the ATS (Anti-Terrorism Squad) in November 2007.

Later in December 2010, the chief judicial magistrates court permitted the National Investigation Agency to interrogate the accused.

After the change of government at the Centre in 2014, the case was fast-tracked.

Aseemanand is an accused in several other cases, including that of blast at Hyderabad's Mecca Masjid in 2007 and the explosion in the same year on the Samjhauta Express train in which led to the killing of 70 passengers on the train running between India and Pakistan.

He was jailed in 2010 after allegedly admitting to his involvement in the terror attack on the train.

Aseemanand later said he had been tortured and made to give a false statement.

ISLAMABAD: Indias Deputy High Commissioner in Paksitan J.P. Singh was summoned by the Foreign Office and reportedly informed about Islamabads strong objection to 2007 Ajmer blast case accused Swami Aseemanand being acquitted by National Investigation (NIA) Court. Swami Aseemanand was accused in the Ajmer blast case as per the NIA's chargesheet filed in 2007. The agency accused Aseemamand of hatching the conspiracy of bombing the Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti shrine, which killed three people and injured 17. The hearing into the matter was postponed multiple times as witnesses made applications delaying their appearance before the court, citing a threat to their lives among other reasons. The investigation in the matter was later handed over to the ATS (Anti-Terrorism Squad) in November 2007. Later in December 2010, the chief judicial magistrates court permitted the National Investigation Agency to interrogate the accused. After the change of government at the Centre in 2014, the case was fast-tracked. Aseemanand is an accused in several other cases, including that of blast at Hyderabad's Mecca Masjid in 2007 and the explosion in the same year on the Samjhauta Express train in which led to the killing of 70 passengers on the train running between India and Pakistan. He was jailed in 2010 after allegedly admitting to his involvement in the terror attack on the train. Aseemanand later said he had been tortured and made to give a false statement.
By AFP

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump's revamped travel ban is facing its first major legal setback, after a federal judge halted enforcement of the directive that would deny US entry to the wife and child of a Syrian refugee already granted asylum.

In a preliminary restraining order issued on Friday that applies only to the Syrian man and his family, US District Judge William Conley in Wisconsin said the plaintiff "is at great risk of suffering irreparable harm" if the directive is carried out.

The man chose to remain anonymous because his wife and child are still living in war-wracked Aleppo.

The order marked the first ruling against the revised directive, which temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries.

It denies US entry to all refugees for 120 days and halts for 90 days the granting of visas to nationals from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan.

The new order, unveiled on Monday, is due to go into effect on March 16. Lifting an indefinite Syrian refugee travel ban and reducing the number of blacklisted countries by removing Iraq, it replaces a previous iteration issued in January that was blocked in federal court.

"The court appreciates that there may be important differences between the original executive order and the revised executive order issued on March 6, 2017," Conley wrote.

"As the order applies to the plaintiff here, however, the court finds his claims have at least some chance of prevailing for the reasons articulated by other courts."

He set a hearing for March 21.

- 'New coat of paint' -

In another legal challenge, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint on behalf of several refugee assistance groups over the controversial executive order.

"Putting a new coat of paint on the Muslim ban doesn't solve its fundamental problem, which is that the Constitution and our laws prohibit religious discrimination," said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU's immigrant rights project.

"The further President Trump goes down this path, the clearer it is that he is violating that basic rule."

The ACLU, the preeminent US civil liberties group, and the National Immigration Law Center brought the suit on behalf of the International Refugee Assistance Project and the refugee resettlement group HIAS, as well as several individuals.

The suit alleges that the new executive order violates the constitutional protection of freedom of religion in that it is "intended and designed to target and discriminate against Muslims, and it does just that in operation."

"Rarely in American history has governmental intent to discriminate against a particular faith and its adherents been so plain," the complaint says, alleging the new order will cause "irreparable harm" and asking for an injunction.

A federal judge in Maryland, Theodore Chuang, has scheduled a hearing in the case for March 15 -- the day before the measure is due to take effect.

- 'Still a Muslim ban' -

Separately, a federal judge in Seattle who issued a nationwide halt to Trump's original travel restrictions denied a motion to have the same ruling apply to the modified measures, saying at least one of the parties must first file additional court papers.

The state of Maryland said it would join on Monday the suit filed by the attorney general from Washington state, which also has the support of Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Oregon.

"President Trump's second executive order is still a Muslim ban," Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh said in a statement.

"The administration persists in an effort to implement a policy that is inhumane and unconstitutional, but also makes us less safe, not more safe."

The state of Hawaii has filed a separate complaint, and a hearing in that case on whether to impose a national restraining order is set for March 15 as well.

The White House cites national security in justifying the ban, arguing that it needs time to implement "extreme vetting" procedures to keep Islamic militants from entering the country.

Polls show American public opinion is deeply divided on the issue. Most indicate a slight majority of voters opposed, with strong support among Trump's political base.

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump's revamped travel ban is facing its first major legal setback, after a federal judge halted enforcement of the directive that would deny US entry to the wife and child of a Syrian refugee already granted asylum. In a preliminary restraining order issued on Friday that applies only to the Syrian man and his family, US District Judge William Conley in Wisconsin said the plaintiff "is at great risk of suffering irreparable harm" if the directive is carried out. The man chose to remain anonymous because his wife and child are still living in war-wracked Aleppo. The order marked the first ruling against the revised directive, which temporarily closes US borders to all refugees and citizens from six mainly-Muslim countries. It denies US entry to all refugees for 120 days and halts for 90 days the granting of visas to nationals from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan. The new order, unveiled on Monday, is due to go into effect on March 16. Lifting an indefinite Syrian refugee travel ban and reducing the number of blacklisted countries by removing Iraq, it replaces a previous iteration issued in January that was blocked in federal court. "The court appreciates that there may be important differences between the original executive order and the revised executive order issued on March 6, 2017," Conley wrote. "As the order applies to the plaintiff here, however, the court finds his claims have at least some chance of prevailing for the reasons articulated by other courts." He set a hearing for March 21. - 'New coat of paint' - In another legal challenge, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint on behalf of several refugee assistance groups over the controversial executive order. "Putting a new coat of paint on the Muslim ban doesn't solve its fundamental problem, which is that the Constitution and our laws prohibit religious discrimination," said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU's immigrant rights project. "The further President Trump goes down this path, the clearer it is that he is violating that basic rule." The ACLU, the preeminent US civil liberties group, and the National Immigration Law Center brought the suit on behalf of the International Refugee Assistance Project and the refugee resettlement group HIAS, as well as several individuals. The suit alleges that the new executive order violates the constitutional protection of freedom of religion in that it is "intended and designed to target and discriminate against Muslims, and it does just that in operation." "Rarely in American history has governmental intent to discriminate against a particular faith and its adherents been so plain," the complaint says, alleging the new order will cause "irreparable harm" and asking for an injunction. A federal judge in Maryland, Theodore Chuang, has scheduled a hearing in the case for March 15 -- the day before the measure is due to take effect. - 'Still a Muslim ban' - Separately, a federal judge in Seattle who issued a nationwide halt to Trump's original travel restrictions denied a motion to have the same ruling apply to the modified measures, saying at least one of the parties must first file additional court papers. The state of Maryland said it would join on Monday the suit filed by the attorney general from Washington state, which also has the support of Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Oregon. "President Trump's second executive order is still a Muslim ban," Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh said in a statement. "The administration persists in an effort to implement a policy that is inhumane and unconstitutional, but also makes us less safe, not more safe." The state of Hawaii has filed a separate complaint, and a hearing in that case on whether to impose a national restraining order is set for March 15 as well. The White House cites national security in justifying the ban, arguing that it needs time to implement "extreme vetting" procedures to keep Islamic militants from entering the country. Polls show American public opinion is deeply divided on the issue. Most indicate a slight majority of voters opposed, with strong support among Trump's political base.
By IANS

KABUL: Afghani people on Friday slammed the government over "security entities failure" to check terrorist activities and protect ordinary citizens in the wake of bloody attack on Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan Hospital in Kabul that claimed 30 lives.



"Believe me I have lost the hope for future. The terrorists even do not spare hospital, the patients or the doctors. The terrorists' indiscriminate attacks usually claim the lives of ordinary people," Xinhua quoted Kabul resident Ghulam Dastgir as saying.



At least 30 persons were killed and 70 injured when three explosions rocked Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan military hospital on Wednesday.



The attack on hospital, which is located in the fortified Wazir Akbar Khan district next to US embassy and many more diplomatic missions in broad daylight, has raised questions among Afghans whether the Afghan security apparatus are able to curb terror networks.



However, deputy to defence ministry, Mohammad Radmanish has said that the case of attack on hospital requires more investigation to know how the terrorists penetrated into the military hospital.



KABUL: Afghani people on Friday slammed the government over "security entities failure" to check terrorist activities and protect ordinary citizens in the wake of bloody attack on Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan Hospital in Kabul that claimed 30 lives. "Believe me I have lost the hope for future. The terrorists even do not spare hospital, the patients or the doctors. The terrorists' indiscriminate attacks usually claim the lives of ordinary people," Xinhua quoted Kabul resident Ghulam Dastgir as saying. At least 30 persons were killed and 70 injured when three explosions rocked Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan military hospital on Wednesday. The attack on hospital, which is located in the fortified Wazir Akbar Khan district next to US embassy and many more diplomatic missions in broad daylight, has raised questions among Afghans whether the Afghan security apparatus are able to curb terror networks. However, deputy to defence ministry, Mohammad Radmanish has said that the case of attack on hospital requires more investigation to know how the terrorists penetrated into the military hospital.
By PTI

MADISON: A Syrian refugee trying to bring his family to Wisconsin is renewing his challenge of President Donald Trump's travel ban in federal court. The man initially challenged Trump's first travel ban in a federal lawsuit he filed in February.

The man filed the action anonymously to protect his wife and 3-year-old daughter. US District Judge Michael Conley declared the lawsuit moot after a federal judge in Washington blocked the ban but invited the refugee to check in again after Trump issued his second ban.

The man filed a new complaint yesterday alleging the new ban is unconstitutional, too, and will prevent his wife and daughter from obtaining the visas they need to reach Wisconsin. The US Justice Department is defending the ban. A spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to an email.

MADISON: A Syrian refugee trying to bring his family to Wisconsin is renewing his challenge of President Donald Trump's travel ban in federal court. The man initially challenged Trump's first travel ban in a federal lawsuit he filed in February. The man filed the action anonymously to protect his wife and 3-year-old daughter. US District Judge Michael Conley declared the lawsuit moot after a federal judge in Washington blocked the ban but invited the refugee to check in again after Trump issued his second ban. The man filed a new complaint yesterday alleging the new ban is unconstitutional, too, and will prevent his wife and daughter from obtaining the visas they need to reach Wisconsin. The US Justice Department is defending the ban. A spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to an email.
By Express News Service

COLOMBO: The 5,000 Tamil Nadu fishermen who were to attend the annual St. Anthonys Feast in Kachchativu island on Saturday and Sunday failed to turn up today.

Only Sri Lankan fishermen are currently participating in the festival which is being held at the renovated and expanded St.Anthonys chapel.

The renovation was executed for the Diocese of Jaffna by the Sri Lankan navy, free of charge, Sri Lankan officials said.

Indian officials said that they will proceed to the island only if the Indian fishermen change their mind and come.

Our presence will be useful only if the Indian fishermen come, they said.

Sri Lankan officials and churchmen from the Diocese of Jaffna are disappointed as they, in conjunction with the Sri Lankan navy had made all arrangements including breakfast, lunch and dinner packets for the thousands expected to come from Tamil Nadu. Sri Lankan and Indian coast guards were in readiness to escort the pilgrims up and down.

However, there is still hope that the fishermen will change their mind and come on Sunday-- the actual Feast day.

To bring peace to the fishing community stretching from Rameswaram in the South to Nagapattinam in the North of Tamil Nadu, the Indian and Sri Lankan governments have started the process of releasing fishermen in each others custody. Fifty were released by Sri Lanka on Friday.

India is expected to follow suit.

The fishermen of Tamil Nadu on the Indian side of Palk Strait which divides the two countries have been agitating for action against the Sri Lankan navy for allegedly killing 22-year-old Britjo of Rameswaram on the India side of the maritime border near Kachchativu island. They have refused to take charge of Britjos body till the concerned Sri Lankan naval rating is arrested. They are demanding that the Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj come and see them and assure action against Sri Lanka. They are also seeking the expulsion of Sri Lankan diplomats.

The agitation has spread to all coastal areas of Tamil Nadu and has elicited strong statements from political parties in Tamil Nadu.

Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari took up the issue with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena when he met the latter at the Indian Ocean summit in Indonesia. After the meeting, the Indian and Sri Lankan governments decided to release all the fishermen in each others custody. Out of the 85

Indian fishermen in Sri Lankan custody, 53 were released on Friday. There are 19 Sri Lankan fishermen in Indian custody still.

But this has not assuaged the feelings of the agitating Indian fishermen. They consider it to be inadequate. They are also sore that Sri Lanka has not uttered a word about releasing the 134 Indian boats in its custody.

Sri Lanka has denied that its navy had shot Britjo. To prove this, Colombo has said that it will investigate on the basis of GPS evidence. India is yet to make its views known on the investigation.



COLOMBO: The 5,000 Tamil Nadu fishermen who were to attend the annual St. Anthonys Feast in Kachchativu island on Saturday and Sunday failed to turn up today. Only Sri Lankan fishermen are currently participating in the festival which is being held at the renovated and expanded St.Anthonys chapel. The renovation was executed for the Diocese of Jaffna by the Sri Lankan navy, free of charge, Sri Lankan officials said. Indian officials said that they will proceed to the island only if the Indian fishermen change their mind and come. Our presence will be useful only if the Indian fishermen come, they said. Sri Lankan officials and churchmen from the Diocese of Jaffna are disappointed as they, in conjunction with the Sri Lankan navy had made all arrangements including breakfast, lunch and dinner packets for the thousands expected to come from Tamil Nadu. Sri Lankan and Indian coast guards were in readiness to escort the pilgrims up and down. However, there is still hope that the fishermen will change their mind and come on Sunday-- the actual Feast day. To bring peace to the fishing community stretching from Rameswaram in the South to Nagapattinam in the North of Tamil Nadu, the Indian and Sri Lankan governments have started the process of releasing fishermen in each others custody. Fifty were released by Sri Lanka on Friday. India is expected to follow suit. The fishermen of Tamil Nadu on the Indian side of Palk Strait which divides the two countries have been agitating for action against the Sri Lankan navy for allegedly killing 22-year-old Britjo of Rameswaram on the India side of the maritime border near Kachchativu island. They have refused to take charge of Britjos body till the concerned Sri Lankan naval rating is arrested. They are demanding that the Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj come and see them and assure action against Sri Lanka. They are also seeking the expulsion of Sri Lankan diplomats. The agitation has spread to all coastal areas of Tamil Nadu and has elicited strong statements from political parties in Tamil Nadu. Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari took up the issue with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena when he met the latter at the Indian Ocean summit in Indonesia. After the meeting, the Indian and Sri Lankan governments decided to release all the fishermen in each others custody. Out of the 85 Indian fishermen in Sri Lankan custody, 53 were released on Friday. There are 19 Sri Lankan fishermen in Indian custody still. But this has not assuaged the feelings of the agitating Indian fishermen. They consider it to be inadequate. They are also sore that Sri Lanka has not uttered a word about releasing the 134 Indian boats in its custody. Sri Lanka has denied that its navy had shot Britjo. To prove this, Colombo has said that it will investigate on the basis of GPS evidence. India is yet to make its views known on the investigation.
By IANS

LONDON: Theresa May could formally trigger Brexit as early as Tuesday after European leaders revealed that they were already making preparations for an announcement.



Ministers were increasingly confident that May's Article 50 bill could clear both the Commons and the Lords on Monday, The Telegraph reported on Friday.



The swift passage of the legislation would clear the way for May to trigger Brexit negotiations in the Commons on Tuesday.



The announcement would help May move the debate away from Philip Hammond's Budget. Downing Street has said that Article 50 will be triggered by the end of the month but refused to commit to a date.



It came as Donald Tusk, the head of the European Council, said that EU leaders were prepared to respond within 48 hours of May triggering Brexit.



Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, confirmed that if May invokes Article 50 next week an "extraordinary meeting" of the remaining 27 members of the EU would be held on April 6.



It comes after the Government was defeated in the House of Lords on two amendments to the Article 50 bill.

LONDON: Theresa May could formally trigger Brexit as early as Tuesday after European leaders revealed that they were already making preparations for an announcement. Ministers were increasingly confident that May's Article 50 bill could clear both the Commons and the Lords on Monday, The Telegraph reported on Friday. The swift passage of the legislation would clear the way for May to trigger Brexit negotiations in the Commons on Tuesday. The announcement would help May move the debate away from Philip Hammond's Budget. Downing Street has said that Article 50 will be triggered by the end of the month but refused to commit to a date. It came as Donald Tusk, the head of the European Council, said that EU leaders were prepared to respond within 48 hours of May triggering Brexit. Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, confirmed that if May invokes Article 50 next week an "extraordinary meeting" of the remaining 27 members of the EU would be held on April 6. It comes after the Government was defeated in the House of Lords on two amendments to the Article 50 bill.
By Associated Press

BEIRUT: Twin blasts Saturday near holy shrines frequented by Shiites in the Syrian capital Damascus killed at least 40 people, most of them Iraqis, according to Syrian and Iraqi officials.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. Islamic State militants have carried out similar attacks before against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere. Extremist Sunni groups, such as IS, view Shiites as apostates and consider shrines a form of idolatry.

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot, apparently where the explosions went off near Bab al-Saghir cemetery. The cemetery is one of Damascus' most ancient and is where several prominent religious figures are buried.

Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar visited the wounded in local hospitals. He said 40 were killed and 120 were wounded. He said the attacks targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were touring area's shrines.

Iraq's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 Iraqis were killed and 120 wounded. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims to the shrines were targeted. He said a crisis response team has been formed to expedite the identification and transport of the killed and wounded.

"The ministry calls on the international community to condemn this heinous terrorist crime that targeted civilian Iraqi visitors to the holy shrines. It also urges a firm and decisive stand against the takfiri groups responsible for them," Jamal said in a statement. Takfiri is an Arabic derogatory term referring to extremist Sunni Muslims  such as members of the Islamic State group  who accuse other Muslims of being infidels.

Iraqi, Iranian and other Asian Shiites often visit shrines in Syria.

There were conflicting reports about what caused the explosions. State news agency SANA said the blasts were caused by bombs placed near the cemetery and that at least 33 were killed and more than a hundred wounded.

Lebanon's Al-Manar TV quoted Syrian officials saying twin suicide attacks killed 40. The military media arm of Hezbollah, Lebanon's militant group close to Damascus, said two suicide bombers blew themselves up 15 minutes apart near the shrines, leading to the large number of casualties. Arab TV Al-Mayadeen, airing the conflicting reports, also said at least 40 were killed. The area was sealed after the explosions.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group with activists on the ground, said at least 46 were killed in the twin explosions. The group said the first blast came after a suicide bomber blew himself up among the pilgrims near the shrines. It was not clear what caused the second explosion, the group said, adding that the death toll is likely higher because dozens were wounded.

Mohammed Haytham al-Hosseini, head of the National Hospital in Damascus, told pro-government Sama TV that 41 killed arrived to his facility. He said at least three wounded were in critical condition.

A similar attack in Damascus last year targeted one of the most revered Shiite shrines and was claimed by Islamic State militants.

Bab al-Saghir is one of the seven gates of the old city of Damascus and houses a cemetery where a number of early Islam religious figures, including family members of Prophet Muhammad and figures revered by Shiites, are buried.

Also Saturday, Syria's President Bashar Assad said in an interview that his military's priority is to reach the Islamic State group's de-facto capital of Raqqa  toward which U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces are also advancing.

The interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV was aired Saturday and shared by the Syrian Presidency website. Assad said another IS stronghold, Deir el-Zour, may be targeted in parallel.

Syria's battlefields have become increasingly crowded. U.S-led coalition forces in collaboration with Syrian Kurdish fighters as well as Turkish troops and Syrian allies and Syrian government troops, backed by Russia and Iran, are all converging to clear northern Syria of the remnants of Islamic State militants. In some incidents, the teeming battlefield has caused friction between rival groups, as well as several civilian casualties.

Assad said that "in theory" he shares the same priority with U.S. President Donald Trump of fighting terrorism but that they have had no formal contact yet. He said Russia, a major ally, hopes it can urge the U.S. and Turkey to cooperate with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. Assad's government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups.

Assad said all foreign troops on Syrian soil without invitation or consultation with the Syrian government are considered "invaders."

BEIRUT: Twin blasts Saturday near holy shrines frequented by Shiites in the Syrian capital Damascus killed at least 40 people, most of them Iraqis, according to Syrian and Iraqi officials. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. Islamic State militants have carried out similar attacks before against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere. Extremist Sunni groups, such as IS, view Shiites as apostates and consider shrines a form of idolatry. Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot, apparently where the explosions went off near Bab al-Saghir cemetery. The cemetery is one of Damascus' most ancient and is where several prominent religious figures are buried. Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar visited the wounded in local hospitals. He said 40 were killed and 120 were wounded. He said the attacks targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were touring area's shrines. Iraq's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 Iraqis were killed and 120 wounded. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims to the shrines were targeted. He said a crisis response team has been formed to expedite the identification and transport of the killed and wounded. "The ministry calls on the international community to condemn this heinous terrorist crime that targeted civilian Iraqi visitors to the holy shrines. It also urges a firm and decisive stand against the takfiri groups responsible for them," Jamal said in a statement. Takfiri is an Arabic derogatory term referring to extremist Sunni Muslims  such as members of the Islamic State group  who accuse other Muslims of being infidels. Iraqi, Iranian and other Asian Shiites often visit shrines in Syria. There were conflicting reports about what caused the explosions. State news agency SANA said the blasts were caused by bombs placed near the cemetery and that at least 33 were killed and more than a hundred wounded. Lebanon's Al-Manar TV quoted Syrian officials saying twin suicide attacks killed 40. The military media arm of Hezbollah, Lebanon's militant group close to Damascus, said two suicide bombers blew themselves up 15 minutes apart near the shrines, leading to the large number of casualties. Arab TV Al-Mayadeen, airing the conflicting reports, also said at least 40 were killed. The area was sealed after the explosions. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group with activists on the ground, said at least 46 were killed in the twin explosions. The group said the first blast came after a suicide bomber blew himself up among the pilgrims near the shrines. It was not clear what caused the second explosion, the group said, adding that the death toll is likely higher because dozens were wounded. Mohammed Haytham al-Hosseini, head of the National Hospital in Damascus, told pro-government Sama TV that 41 killed arrived to his facility. He said at least three wounded were in critical condition. A similar attack in Damascus last year targeted one of the most revered Shiite shrines and was claimed by Islamic State militants. Bab al-Saghir is one of the seven gates of the old city of Damascus and houses a cemetery where a number of early Islam religious figures, including family members of Prophet Muhammad and figures revered by Shiites, are buried. Also Saturday, Syria's President Bashar Assad said in an interview that his military's priority is to reach the Islamic State group's de-facto capital of Raqqa  toward which U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces are also advancing. The interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV was aired Saturday and shared by the Syrian Presidency website. Assad said another IS stronghold, Deir el-Zour, may be targeted in parallel. Syria's battlefields have become increasingly crowded. U.S-led coalition forces in collaboration with Syrian Kurdish fighters as well as Turkish troops and Syrian allies and Syrian government troops, backed by Russia and Iran, are all converging to clear northern Syria of the remnants of Islamic State militants. In some incidents, the teeming battlefield has caused friction between rival groups, as well as several civilian casualties. Assad said that "in theory" he shares the same priority with U.S. President Donald Trump of fighting terrorism but that they have had no formal contact yet. He said Russia, a major ally, hopes it can urge the U.S. and Turkey to cooperate with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. Assad's government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups. Assad said all foreign troops on Syrian soil without invitation or consultation with the Syrian government are considered "invaders."
By PTI

UNITED NATIONS: The world faces the largest humanitarian crisis since the United Nations was founded in 1945 with more than 20 million people in four countries facing starvation and famine, the UN humanitarian chief has said.

Stephen O'Brien yesterday told the UN Security Council that "without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death" and "many more will suffer and die from disease." He urged an immediate injection of funds for Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and northeast Nigeria plus safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian aid "to avert a catastrophe." "To be precise," O'Brien said, "we need USD 4.4 billion by July." Without a major infusion of money, he said, children will be stunted by severe malnutrition and won't be able to go to school, gains in economic development will be reversed and "livelihoods, futures and hope will be lost."

UN and food organisations define famine as when more than 30 per cent of children under age 5 suffer from acute malnutrition and mortality rates are two or more deaths per 10,000 people every day, among other criteria. "Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the United Nations," O'Brien said.

"Now, more than 20 million people across four countries face starvation and famine." O'Brien said the largest humanitarian crisis is in Yemen where two-thirds of the population 18.8 million people need aid and more than seven million people are hungry and don't know where their next meal will come from. "That is three million people more than in January," he said.

The Arab world's poorest nation is engulfed in conflict and O'Brien said more than 48,000 people fled fighting just in the past two months. During his recent visit to Yemen, O'Brien said he met senior leaders of the government and the Shiite Houthi rebels who control the capital Sanaa, and all promised access for aid. "Yet all parties to the conflict are arbitrarily denying sustained humanitarian access and politicise aid," he said, warning if that behaviour doesn't change now "they must be held accountable for the inevitable famine, unnecessary deaths and associated amplification in suffering that will follow."

For 2017, O'Brien said $2.1 billion is needed to reach 12 million Yemenis "with life-saving assistance and protection" but only 6 per cent has been received so far. He announced that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will chair a pledging conference for Yemen on April 25 in Geneva. The UN humanitarian chief also visited South Sudan, the world's newest nation which has been ravaged by a three-year civil war, and said "the situation is worse than it has ever been." "The famine in South Sudan is man-made," he said. "Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."

UNITED NATIONS: The world faces the largest humanitarian crisis since the United Nations was founded in 1945 with more than 20 million people in four countries facing starvation and famine, the UN humanitarian chief has said. Stephen O'Brien yesterday told the UN Security Council that "without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death" and "many more will suffer and die from disease." He urged an immediate injection of funds for Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and northeast Nigeria plus safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian aid "to avert a catastrophe." "To be precise," O'Brien said, "we need USD 4.4 billion by July." Without a major infusion of money, he said, children will be stunted by severe malnutrition and won't be able to go to school, gains in economic development will be reversed and "livelihoods, futures and hope will be lost." UN and food organisations define famine as when more than 30 per cent of children under age 5 suffer from acute malnutrition and mortality rates are two or more deaths per 10,000 people every day, among other criteria. "Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the United Nations," O'Brien said. "Now, more than 20 million people across four countries face starvation and famine." O'Brien said the largest humanitarian crisis is in Yemen where two-thirds of the population 18.8 million people need aid and more than seven million people are hungry and don't know where their next meal will come from. "That is three million people more than in January," he said. The Arab world's poorest nation is engulfed in conflict and O'Brien said more than 48,000 people fled fighting just in the past two months. During his recent visit to Yemen, O'Brien said he met senior leaders of the government and the Shiite Houthi rebels who control the capital Sanaa, and all promised access for aid. "Yet all parties to the conflict are arbitrarily denying sustained humanitarian access and politicise aid," he said, warning if that behaviour doesn't change now "they must be held accountable for the inevitable famine, unnecessary deaths and associated amplification in suffering that will follow." For 2017, O'Brien said $2.1 billion is needed to reach 12 million Yemenis "with life-saving assistance and protection" but only 6 per cent has been received so far. He announced that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will chair a pledging conference for Yemen on April 25 in Geneva. The UN humanitarian chief also visited South Sudan, the world's newest nation which has been ravaged by a three-year civil war, and said "the situation is worse than it has ever been." "The famine in South Sudan is man-made," he said. "Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."
A deadly incident at the states maximum security prison in Tecumseh last week has once again put a public focus on the important work of reforming the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services (NDCS). In my first two years as Governor, corrections reform has been a top priority to ensure we are protecting public safety. Working with the Legislature and Courts, we have begun to address challenges with our prison population, successfully lobbied for additional investments, improved staffing and recruitment, expanded programming opportunities, and assessed security needs.

One of the first areas we worked to address during my first legislative session as Governor is our prison population. Nebraskas prisons have been full for decades. Governors and Legislatures since at least the 1980s have worked to address this challenge. In 2015, the Legislature made changes to the states sentencing laws to better utilize parole and supervised release for non-violent criminals. Instead of growing, the states prison population has started to decline falling from 5,392 in May 2015 to 5,236 last month as changes take effect.

In the last two years, NDCS Director Scott Frakes and I have successfully worked with the Legislature to secure new investments in NDCS. In 2015, we worked with the Legislature to secure an additional $37 million over two years for the agency to improve operations, hire additional behavioral health staff, and expand security staffing. In 2016, the Legislature and I agreed upon an additional $26 million to expand existing prison facilities, which will allow for the addition of 148 more beds as well as much-needed programming space.

While the $26 million expansion is built, NDCS is working in other areas to improve their facilities. A 100-bed temporary unit will help alleviate stress on our system while the expansion is under construction. Director Frakes has been working to establish mission specific housing, and is advocating for another $75 million investment in housing to help deliver better programming for elderly inmates and those with behavioral health needs.

Last summer, Director Frakes and the Council of State Governments unveiled an analysis of programming in NDCS facilities. Good news: Our corrections system provides quality programming. The final analysis recommended re-sequencing existing programming and better utilizing staff to deliver programming. Additionally, my administration has worked with non-profits to expand privately funded programming opportunities including a new program to develop entrepreneurial skills as well as faith-based programs.

Recruitment and retention of staffing has also been a focus for Director Frakes. Last year, the Legislature provided $1.5 million to assist the agency with developing new retention strategies which include paying bonuses and work-life balance initiatives. Director Frakes and I have advocated for moving to 12-hour shifts for corrections officers. Additionally, Director Frakes and I have worked to improve employee pay by negotiating pay raises with the states labor union for our corrections officers. We are now working with the Legislature to fund those increases in the upcoming budget.

Finally, Director Frakes has worked to improve the security of NDCS facilities. Last year, he worked with his wardens to conducted a system wide audit of facility security. The Legislature invested an additional $5 million in security staffing the last two years, and we have requested additional funding to improve security in my budget request under consideration by the Legislature.

The problems in corrections did not occur overnight, and they wont be solved overnight. It has taken a multi-year focus from all three branches of state government, and my office continues to prioritize reform.

The next critical step for NDCS is working with the Legislature to secure the funding needed for their budget request. As I mentioned earlier, our request includes expanding programming space and beds for inmates seeking behavioral health treatment, improving facility security, and securing additional funds for job training for inmates. Properly addressing mental health is key to successful reentry and reducing the recidivism rate. Over ninety percent of the people who enter our corrections system eventually return to our communities.

Corrections will continue to have challenges even as reform progresses. The people we house in our prisons are there because they broke the law. Nebraska is not the only state that faces these challenges. In the last several months, prisons in Florida, Michigan, Massachusetts, California, and Delaware have grappled with prison disturbances.

In this legislative session and beyond, my administration will keep our focus on transforming NDCS. This transformation matters for Nebraska because it will help to better protect public safety and help the Nebraskans leaving our prison system become a part of growing our state. If you have comments on the direction of reform, or thoughts on any other issues, feel free to contact my office at pete.ricketts@nebraska.gov or by calling 402-471-2244.
Who are Newport's top taxpayers? Take a look at the top 50.
Pregnancy and the time after giving birth can be particularly emotional for many women. In fact, when screened in their doctor's office, approximately 13 percent of women respond that they experience depression during those times. Low-income women are particularly vulnerable. A study in 2010 showed that more than half of urban, low-income women would meet the criteria for a depression diagnosis when screened between two weeks to 14 months postpartum.

In 2016, the United States Preventive Services Task Force concluded that screening certain patients for depression, including pregnant and postpartum women, in their primary care physician office could improve their health outcomes. However, while these women are being screened, many do not receive appropriate follow up care or a referral for treatment when they screen positive.

Boston Medical Center (BMC) researchers are working to address the gap in treatment for these women and improve their health outcomes by comparing two interventions that take place in the patient's primary care physician offices. The study, funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), will evaluate whether providing initial depression treatment in a primary care setting will result in fewer disparities for low-income women, as well as when during the pregnancy and postpartum period is the most accurate time to screen for depression.

For women who screen positive, one group will meet with peer (non-MD) providers for one or two sessions to help engage them and process the results of their screen to determine appropriate next steps. This approach, called Engagement-Focused Care Coordination, helps providers motivate these women to explore treatment options and connect them with mental health services outside of their primary care office when necessary. The second group of women will meet with a peer provider, again in their primary care physician's office, for six sessions. This approach, called Problem Solving Education, provides immediate cognitive-behavioral health services, as well as a referral to additional treatment if their symptoms persist.

"This study will allow us to better understand the when and the how of getting these women access to critical behavioral health services," said Michael Silverstein, MD, MPH, a pediatrician at BMC.

In order to increase access to behavioral health services, many health practices and systems are integrating these services into primary care practices, creating a more holistic approach to patient care. However, this is not yet widespread, leaving many barriers to accessing behavioral health services for many patients.

"Depression is a serious health issue and we need to do a better job getting these women access to treatment for the health and safety of these patients and their families," added Silverstein, who also is associate professor of pediatrics at Boston University School of Medicine. "We will work to identify best practices and guidelines that can be replicated in practices across the country to greatly benefit patients' mental health outcomes."

Source: Boston University Medical Center
A research collaboration between Mississippi State University and Cardiff University in the United Kingdom aims to increase understanding of infant head trauma.

Using funds from an Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council grant, researchers from both institutions will continue working to create highly-detailed 3-D and computational models of the infant brain, which will advance forensic analysis and safety research related to infant head trauma.

"We're trying to get as close as possible to reality," said Raj Prabhu, MSU assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering. "This is the first modeling research attempt that combines the best of experimentation and the best of computational modeling."

Infant head trauma is one of the leading causes of death in young children, but there is not enough biomechanical data available to gain a full understanding of injuries to specific areas of the brain, according to Prabhu. With a better understanding of the infant brain, scientists and companies can design products that are more effective in protecting infants during harmful situations, such as car crashes.

The research team from MSU and Cardiff received approximately $400,000 over four years in grant funds. Wilburn Whittington, Research Engineer III at MSU's Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems, has conducted research at MSU on the impact of intermediate loading rates, which has informed the research of Prabhu and his colleagues.

In addition to informing research that will improve infant safety measures, the team's work could also improve the investigation of infant deaths from head trauma. Mike Jones, senior lecturer in Cardiff University's School of Engineering and Barrister-at-Law, has spent over a decade examining infant head trauma cases and testifying in U.K. courts of law as a forensic pathologist. He said he is hoping this research will provide clearer data for use in criminal investigations.

"I'm hoping the research will provide mechanisms as to identifying fractures and evidence as to where a brain injury is more likely to occur given a certain scenario," Jones said. "This allows for a differential diagnosis between the clinical picture and the cause. That's where we're hoping to go with the study."

Jones was introduced to researchers from MSU's Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems through the efforts of MSU Vice President for Research and Economic Development David Shaw and Roger King, executive director of MSU's Institute for Computational Research in Engineering and Science. Jones eventually made multiple trips to Mississippi to discuss collaboration possibilities. He said MSU's computational ability, coupled with the university's ongoing traumatic brain injury research, proved to be a quality fit for his research interests.

"It's almost as if it was meant to be," Jones said. "Mississippi State had the exact suite of skills I need to do the work."

A key component of the research will be producing an accurate brain model that incorporates cerebrospinal fluid moving through the brain, building upon previous research that created a validated head and skull model. Allan Mason Jones, a senior engineering lecturer at Cardiff, is working on fluid-structure interaction modeling for the project.

Prabhu, who received his doctorate from MSU in 2011 while studying traumatic brain injury at blast loads, said the models could lead to a better understanding of brain injuries and accelerate analysis of the infant brain.

"Let's say you have 200 different types of injury situations based on velocity, impact, height, etc.," Prabhu said. "To run all those tests may take close to 200 tests. If you implement the computer model, using a method to sample just a few points, once you have these different answers, you can interpolate any injury scenario. So instead of doing 200 tests, you only need 20 tests."
Toxicology as a science has not evolved to keep pace with the chemical revolution, according to Thomas Hartung writing in the International Journal of Risk Assessment and Management, Hartung highlights ten problems that must be addressed if toxicology is to be made fit for purpose in the 21st Century.

Until the industrial revolution almost the complete gamut of poisons and toxins lay in the natural realm. Lethal alkaloids from toxic plants, arsenic-containing rocks, noxious fumes from fires and plenty of other sources of risk. It wasn't until the Industrial Revolution and the maturation of alchemy to chemistry, that synthetic chemicals became an issue. In the 19th and 20th century, chemists identified literally tens of millions more chemicals in nature and in their laboratories and turned what was essentially a world of arsenic and old lace into the vast chemical space of toxicity we know, but cannot comprehend fully today.

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According to Hartung of the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, in Baltimore, Maryland, USA and also of the University of Konstanz, Germany, there are ten main issues to be addressed in modernising toxicology:

The disparity of testing requirements and risk acceptance for different products and geographical areas, throughput and costs of testing versus testing needs, limited predictivity for humans, precautionary approaches from drug development adapted to other areas, animal use, new products not suitable for traditional tests, new hazards not covered, mixtures of toxicants not addressed, individual susceptibilities and vulnerable subpopulations not covered, and poor basic research and publication standards.

Hartung concedes that it is relatively easy to criticise and yet the issues seem obvious in his analysis and that change is needed. He suggests that given the intransigence in the world of international toxicological policies and methods this overarching issue must be overcome first before these ten issues can be addressed. "While current approaches are still needed, there is room for substantial change," he says. "To meet the challenges of the 21st century, revolution rather than evolution is required."
The intestine has a high rate of cellular regeneration due to the wear and tear originated by its function degrading and absorbing nutrients and eliminating waste. The entire cell wall is renewed once a week approximately. This explains why the intestine holds a large number of stem cells in constant division, thereby producing new cell populations of the various types present in this organ.

Researchers at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) headed by ICREA investigator Eduard Batlle, head of the Colorectal Cancer Laboratory, have discovered a new group of intestinal stem cells with very different characteristics to those of the abundant and active stem cells already known in this organ. Performed in collaboration with the Centro Nacional de Analisis Genomico (CNAG-CRG), the study has been published in Cell Stem Cell. These new group of stem cells are quiescent, that is to say, they do not proliferate and are apparently dormant.

The researchers describe them as a reservoir of stem cells--it is estimated that there is one quiescent cell for every 10 active intestinal stem cells. In healthy conditions, these cells have no apparent relevant function. However, they are important in situations of stress, , for example, after chemotherapy, in inflammatory processes, and in tissue infections--all conditions in which the population of "normal/active" stem cells is depleted. These quiescent cells would serve to regenerate the organ by giving rise to the various types of cells present in the intestine, renewing the population of "normal/active" stem cells, and restoring balance to the tissue.

Eduard Batlle explains that the discovery of quiescent stem cells in the intestine reveals that stem cell biology is more complex that previously appreciated and that it does not follow ahierarchical model of cell organisation. "In intestinal cell hierarchy, there are no cells above others, so the two populations are in a continual balance to ensure the proper function of the organ".

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Most drugs against cancer have a secondary effect on the cells that are dividing in our tissues. "Because quiescent stem cells divide infrequently, they are resistant to many types of chemotherapy and they regenerate the tissue that this treatment has damaged," explains Eduard Batlle, head of one of the labs of international prestige in research into intestinal stem cells and their involvement in colorectal cancer.

Quiescent cells are present in many kinds of tissue. However, in spite of their relevance in tissue regeneration, increasing evidence points to their involvement in tumour development. "It is difficult to study these cells, mainly because they are scarce and there are technical limitations with respect to monitoring, straining and distinguishing them from the others," explains Francisco Barriga, first author of the study and current postdoctoral fellow at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

Using advanced techniques, such as genetic tracing of cell lineages and transcriptomic analysis of individual cells, performed by CNAG-CRG and the Bioinformatics and Biostatistics Unit at IRB Barcelona, the group has identified the distinct genetic programme used by quiescent stem cells with respect to normal intestinal ones. This work has been done over six years.

The researchers have labelled this cell population with a specific marker, the Mex3a protein, which has allowed them to track it over time. "We intend to continue studying quiescent stem cells in health and disease and to discover the function of the genes that distinguish them in the colon and in other organs," says Batlle.
While many anti-aging drugs don't live up to their claim, a tightly replicated study by Rutgers and a group of researchers from around the country discovered that a chemical used to detect amyloid plaques found in the brains of those with Alzheimer's extended the lifespan of thousands of roundworms similar in molecular form, function and genetics to humans.

In a study involving more than 44,000 animals published in Nature Communications, researchers from Rutgers, The University of Oregon, and the Buck Institute for Research on Aging in California tested 10 different compounds from multiple species of roundworms that featured more genetic diversity than can be found between mice and humans, and found that Thioflavin T was the most effective in increasing the lifespan in all species and doubling it in one.

Up until now, chemical compounds that have been found to extend life in worms and mice have been most often studied in animals with specific - and somewhat uniform -- genetic backgrounds. But Thioflavin T worked in all the genetically diverse species, possibly by preventing damaged and misfolded proteins which in humans contributes to age-related diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's.

"These worms may have been the same basic animal but, like humans, their genes had a lot of variation which means that they could have responded to interventions differently," said Monica Driscoll, co-principal investigator and distinguished professor of molecular biology and biochemistry, School of Arts and Sciences. "We found this one compound did have a positive effect on all the strains, which is important if you want to find the best candidate intervention for healthy aging across a large swath of the population.''

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The research was the result of four year grants awarded to Rutgers and its collaborators from the National Institute of Aging, the University of Oregon, and the Buck Institute. What is important about the findings besides discovering a possible anti-aging compound is the fact that Rutgers and the other two institutions closely coordinated their activities, used identical protocols and were able to reproduce the same results.

The scientific community often has been criticized for spending money and conducting research that cannot be reproduced by other laboratories. In a study published in PLOS Biology in 2015, it was estimated that $28 billion was spent on preclinical studies in which the findings made in one research study could not be reproduced in another.

"By documenting in unprecedented detail everything we do in the lab, we were able to get close to seeing identical results across three labs," said Driscoll. Detailing how this work is done is just as important as our results."

This is particularly important for aging research, Driscoll said, because the targeted outcome is not to just extend life but to increase the quality.

"In my opinion, the real goal of aging research should not be longevity at all but rather a person's health span -- how long they can maintain an active, disease free, high quality of life," Driscoll said. "The greatest risk factor for diseases like diabetes, cancer and neurodegenerative disease is age, so that is why research looking at delaying the onset of age-associated decline is so important."

Source: http://news.rutgers.edu/research-news/chemical-used-detect-sticky-buildup-brains-alzheimer%E2%80%99s-victims-extends-roundworm-lifespan/20170308#.WMGk3W8rKUl
Sediment contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyl, or PCBs, from the bottom of the New Bedford Harbor is the No. 1 source of airborne PCBs in the neighborhoods surrounding the port, according to new research by the University of Iowa and Boston University School of Public Health.

In fact, airborne PCB emissions from the harbor are so high that researchers say it is the single largest continuous source of airborne PCBs ever measured from natural waters in the U.S. and Canada.

The East Coast harbor is one of the largest PCB Superfund sites in the nation, currently undergoing clean-up. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has monitored airborne PCB levels near the harbor since 1999, the levels measured in this study are consistent with levels measured by EPA, however this is the first time that researchers have focused on the harbor as a unique source of airborne PCBs.

"Our study shows that people in the neighborhoods around the harbor are being exposed to airborne PCBs and that those PCBs are coming from the harbor, not from a variety of sources," says Keri Hornbuckle, professor of civil and environmental engineering at IIHR-Hydroscience & Engineering at the University of Iowa, and core leader of the Iowa Superfund Research Program.

Residents have been concerned with air quality since dredging to clean the port started in 1994. Industry in the area used PCBs to produce electric devices from 1940 until the late 1970s, when the EPA banned the manufacture of PCBs due to health concerns. "As our knowledge grew about the high levels of PCBs in the sediments and water, we began to question the air from this site," explains Karen Vilandry, President of the community-based organization, Hands Across the River Coalition.

"The community requested this study and they played an integral role in its completion," says Wendy Heiger-Bernays, associate professor at the Boston University School of Public Health and co-author of the study, which was published in Environmental Science & Technology Letters.

Researchers used calculated emissions and atmospheric dispersion modeling to confirm New Bedford Harbor as the source of airborne PCBs. PCBs are released from the sludge at the bottom of the port and escape into the water and air.

Researchers worked with residents affiliated with Hands Across the River Coalition to select air sampling locations at 18 sites in New Bedford, Fairhaven, Dartmouth, and Acushnet. Air samples were taken during three consecutive periods from July to November, 2015. The highest readings for airborne PCBs were from air sampling locations closest to the harbor.

"In terms of remediation, it is important to understand that the harbor is the largest contributor to local levels of airborne PCBs," says Hornbuckle.

PCBs can cause a variety of adverse health effects, including an increased risk for cancer in humans. However, researchers are quick to add that the effects of long-term inhalation of airborne PCBs are still uncertain.

"There is much more work to be done," says Andres Martinez, lead author and research engineer at IIHR--Hydroscience & Engineering at the University of Iowa. "For example, some members of the community believe that the local mud flats are also a source of PCBs. We haven't looked at that yet."

Researchers are hopeful that residents will continue to help them prioritize next steps.

Community engagement in the study was assisted by Alternatives for Community & the Environment (ACE) and Toxics Action Center.

"Every time we went to collect the monitors from residents' homes, we were faced with the same question: 'Should I be worried?' said Claire Miller of Toxics Action Center, "exposure is a 24/7 reality for folks living near the harbor, and this study is an important step forward."
A French study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, has linked lack of sleep and late bedtimes to a reduction in the volume of gray matter in the brains of teenagers.



Poor sleep habits in teenagers are associated with modifications in the anatomy of the maturing adolescent brain, according to researchers at the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, INSERM, Unit 1000 "Neuroimaging & Psychiatry."



Scientists studied the brains and the sleep habits of 177 14-year-old students middle schools in the Paris region.



On average, the students went to bed at 10:20pm and got up at 7:06am during the week, and went to bed at 23:30pm and got up at 9:45am at the weekend.



The researchers found that less than seven hours of sleep during the week and late weekend bedtimes were associated with lower volumes of gray matter in certain parts of the brain.



More significantly, they found that the later teens went to bed at the weekend, the more their gray matter was diminished, according to study author and INSERM research director, Jean Luc Martinot.



These modifications affect three regions of the brain in particular -- the frontal, anterior cingulate and precuneus cortex regions -- associated with attention, concentration and the ability to carry out simultaneous tasks.



What's more, tiredness from lack of sleep may not be the only cause of poorer school performance. The researchers found that poor grade averages were associated with less gray matter in frontal regions, where volume is reduced by late weekend bedtimes.



The scientists advise parents to be particularly vigilant about teenagers' weekend sleep routines to maximize the potential for brain development and to favor academic success.
Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs & condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) 11 March 2017

The incident occurred in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 kms away from the state capital, at 9:15 am when 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task. The Bhejji area in south Bastar region of the state is notorious for Naxal attacks and many security personnel have been killed here in the past.

Spoke to Home Minister @rajnathsingh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) 11 March 2017

: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed grief over the death of 12 CRPF personnel in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh in a Maoist attack and said that Home Minister Rajnath Singh would be going there."Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi said in a tweet."Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said.Home Minister Rajnath Singh also condoled the deaths and said the perpetrators of the attack will be brought to justice."Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased," the Home Minister said.On Saturday, Naxals ambushed a CRPF patrol party in the Maoist hotbed of Sukma inChhattisgarh and looted their arms. Four personnel were also injured in the Naxal attack and two of them were stated to be critical.The Naxals also looted ten weapons like INSAS and AK series assault rifles and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said."The troops were part of the road clearing party that has been securing an under-construction road between Bhejji and Kottacheru. They were ambushed by Maoists who set off multiple hidden IEDs on the ground and opened fire. The squad effectively retaliated before twelve made the supreme sacrifice," acting CRPF DG Sudeep Lakhtakia said.He added that Maoists are trying to disrupt normal life and activities in this area as the Central Reserve Police Force has increased its presence here and got re-opened a local 'haat' (market) last year here after it was forcibly shut by the red ultras.Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh who will be travelling to Sukma.Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh has strongly condemned the Maoista ttack and described it as a "cowardly act".Security personnel have laid down their lives to free Bastar from violence and Maoist terror. Their sacrifice will not go in vain. "I salute their sacrifice," CM Raman Singh said, adding ultras were frustrated with development of road network in the region.He also extended condolences to the bereaved families.The CRPF chief and senior officials are also rushing to Raipur.A senior Chhattisgarh official said that the road opening party was passing through the forests between Bhejji and Kottacheru villages when Naxals opened indiscriminate fire on them.According to a CRPF official,summer season is regarded as an offensive period by rebels asthey observe annual 'tactical counter offensive campaign' (TCOC). The dry weather is a favourable period for carrying out ambushes in the vast jungle terrain and this attack would have been planned by Maoists led by hardcore Maoist cadre Hidma who is active in southern part of Bastar, the paramilitary official added.However, further investigation would reveal the details, he added.The injured have been air lifted and brought to the CRPF field hospital in Bheji and few others have been transferred to Raipur.A special counter-Naxal team of CoBRA has been rushed to the ambush spot as reinforcement to sanitise the area and launch a search.Another senior CRPF officer said the ambush site has very weak mobile phone connectivity and communication is being done through satellite phones."It is estimated that a hundred plus Maoist squad was present in the area when the ambush was launched. These are preliminary inputs. More details are awaited," the officer said.(-With inputs from agencies)
BJP may not have emerged as the single largest party in Goa but was successful in securing a maximum of 32.5 per cent of the total votes.

As per the data released by the Election Commission, the Congress, which bagged 17 seats to become the single largest party, secured 28.4 per cent of the total votes.

BJP won in 13 seats, falling eight short of getting the absolute majority.

As it happened.

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The ruling Congress finished as the single-largest party, but three short of a majority in a hung Manipur Assembly on Saturday, with the BJP, for the first time, emerging the second largest outfit in the northeastern state where smaller parties and an independent lawmaker now held the key to government formation.

As it happened.

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As BJP registered a stunning victory in the state, BSP Chief Mayawati alleged that the EVMs were tampered in such a way that whichever button was pressed, the vote went to BJP.

Backing Mayawati, Akhilesh Yadav said that there should be a probe in the matter.

As it happened.

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But all that notwithstanding, the UP Lok Sabha verdict is an emphatic assertion of his leadership - both within and outside - by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It is much beyond any referendum on just demonetisation. If the BJP today is being seen as a party of not just the urban and upper caste India, it alludes towards a paradigm shift in the political arena.

The party will be facing its next electoral test in Karnataka soon. A resurgent BJP under Yeddyurappa is rearing to take another shot at power. But the biggest challenge for the Congress in the run up to the next general elections would be the three states of Rajasthan, MP and Chhattisgarh. In all these provinces Congress faces a direct challenge from the BJP. And, of late, Congress has shown signs of fatigue in taking on the BJP in a direct contest.

: Sunil Bansal had poured warm milk into a bowl of corn flakes when a worker rushed in to apprise Amit Shah's key aide in UP of the latest trends. It was only thirty minutes past eight, and a quiet and composed Bansal told the exited worker to calm down."Only postal ballots have been counted," he said.By the time he had finished his breakfast, BJP had taken an unassailable lead over SP and BSP in UP, which obviously prompted a question about the next chief minister of UP."Parliamentary Board will decide that. But it's a huge responsibility especially in the run up to the next Lok Sabha polls," he said.It was clear that in this hour of victory, the Sangh pracharak from the ABVP stock had his eyes clearly on general elections 2019.In the next Lok Sabha polls, BJP would be facing the electorate with an incumbency of 73 LS MPs and over three hundred MLAs. The party would have had completed 5 years in power at the Centre and almost two years in UP.The aam-aadmi space was something which Congress, for many decades, has well appropriated to itself. The grand old party this elections seems to have got a lifeline in Punjab and probably Goa, but for the Congress the current political situation presents an existential crisis like never before. Kejriwal will be off the back for a while now, but in politics, as in life, there is no vaccum.And if it indeed is an existential crisis, Congress has to decide why it is in the business of politics. The UP outcome only diminishes its utility as a junior alliance partner to regional parties. The resume thus far - from West Bengal to Tamil Nadu - is not very encouraging.Congress' USP has been its centrist positioning in the national politics. It has in the past demonstrated great flexibility to take both the Left and the Right of the centre along.But in the last five years it seems to have taken such a decisive step towards the Left leaving lots of free space for the BJP to fill in. Congress's strength in the LS today is commensurate with that of the Left in the Indian polity.As for the two regional parties in UP, SP seems to be better placed to survive the shock defeat. Akhilesh Yadav has been in power for five years. His party will be the main opposition to the BJP in the Assembly.But for Mayawati, this is the third rejection in five years that she has had to face from the electorate. Its social base is shrinking. With this strength, BSP will not be able to send even a single MP to the RS in the future.BSP will have to think fast, and BSP will have to think beyond caste. BSP president Kanshi Ram for one never shied away from experimenting. In the last ten years there have been many occasions BSP could have participated in government outside UP by lending support. But that has not happened. BSP today in UP faces the threat of being reduced to a mere repository of Jatav votes.On the contrary, the BJP after 15 years of vanvaas has been successful in getting its caste arithmetic right. In the process, the party has settled on one more issue: the next Presidential Election.
New Delhi: Billed as the crucial semi-final before the ultimate test of Lok Sabha elections in 2019, the 'crown state' of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday witnessed the arrival of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP with flying colours. Defying all odds, the BJP struck over a 300-seat mark, bringing the highly touted SP-Congress alliance to its knees.



Here are the ten key takeaways from Uttar Pradesh Election results 2017:



UP is not Bihar: All that worked in Bihar elections 2016 failed to take off in Uttar Pradesh  the success of Bihars mahagathbandhan of RJD, JDU and Congress was not replicated in the Uttar Pradesh. This leaves the SP leaders thinking if it was a coming together of unequals? Was the alliance a bad strategy considering Congresss dismal performance for the past three decades? Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav could have gone alone, especially after wresting power from father and Uncle.



The Dalit-Muslim unity didnt take off: The amount of noise the unity of Dalits and Muslims created, it was not matched by the outcome on the D-Day. If the two groups, Muslims and Dalits, had voted en bloc, the Bahujan Samaj Party would not have been running on number three. The two groups together constitute 40% of voter percentage, and can easily form or topple a government with this strength.



Prashant Kishor's first failure: The Prashant Kishor bubble has been burst. His resume would mention designing a winnable campaign for the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the success of the grand alliance in Bihar. But Uttar Pradesh was not for him.



Muslims voted for BJP? The mandate given to Bharatiya Janta Party appears to have an overwhelming support of Muslims. Did Triple Talaq issue bring Muslim women to vote for the BJP?



BJP makes a comeback after decades, while Congress faces worst performance: The Bharatiya Janata Party won 300+ seats, putting up the best show that was not even seen during Kalyan Singhs regime as the Chief Minister. On the other hand, Congress faced embarrassment for winning seats in single digit.



Mayawatis strategy of giving 100 Muslim candidates tickets didnt work: The BJP didnt give any ticket to the Muslim candidate, while Mayawati gave tickets to 100 of them. Her strategy didnt work with Muslims either, and as it appears led to the consolidation of Hindu votes in favor of the BJP.



Women voted against the prevailing law and order situation: The data by the Election Commission of India revealed that women voters came out in big numbers to cast their votes. With the BJP getting the massive mandate, the women have voted for safer state with better law and order situation.



Brand Modi intact: Despite demonetisation, Prime Minister Narendra Modis appeal has not gone away from the mind of the voters in Uttar Pradesh. The act was taken as an axe against the rich and in favour of the poor.



BJP won over other castes by caste-based tickets: With the aggressive strategy, and to the point caste calculations, the saffron party won over the non-Yadav OBCs like Kurmis, Koeris, Lodhs, Telis, Kumhars and Kahars. The BJP wooed them by giving tickets to candidates belonging to these castes.



Nothing is permanent in politics: With BJPs thundering victory, it is again reiterated no fortune or failure is permanent in politics  what goes comes back maybe with big numbers.


: "If only Bhaiyyaji had spent some time with us we would have done better," says a party worker in Raebareli. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is called bhaiyaji and in this name for her is the acknowledgment that Priyanka is the tough one.It is a refrain that is set to grow louder in the coming days in Raebareli, Amethi and beyond Uttar Pradesh.For the Congress this election in UP stood out not just for the alliance with SP but also for the fact that it was a solo show by Rahul Gandhi.Sonia Gandhi did no campaign while Priyanka went to Raebareli for only two rallies, both accompanied by Rahul. The party made it very clear, however, that Priyanka was the architect of the alliance and that she was micro-managing the polls."She is controlling everything and, in fact, has more knowledge about all the constituencies," veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad assured the sceptics.But for most Congress workers this just wasn't enough, yet every SOS sent to bring Priyanka fell on deaf ears. As elections progressed it was clear that for the SP-Congress alliance things werent going according to plans, especially after the fourth phase. But having taken a conscious call not to bring Priyanka in, the only way out for the Congress was to make her presence felt through proxy. Azad was asked to address the media and tell them that Priyanka was the boss and she was very much in the picture.But why was Priyanka kept away? In the last Assembly polls in UP, Priyanka had addressed about 50 sabhas and had parked herself in Raebareli and Amethi till the last vote was cast.Party sources say that at a strategy meeting in October it was suggested by Prashant Kishor that Priyanka should either be the CM face or at least station herself in the state and campaign all over. But as talks of a SP-Congress alliance firmed up, Priyanka decided to opt out. It was decided by her that the focus should be on the UP ke ladke. It was felt that any word from her or speech would take the attention away from Rahul.Most within the party accept the fact that in comparison to Rahul, it is Priyanka who is more articulate and would grab eyeballs. While it was okay for a Dimple Yadav to be beside Akhilesh, it was not okay for Priyanka to be seen beside her brother.In the last Lok Sabha polls and Assembly elections as well, Priyanka's attack on Modi and Smriti Irani had consistently grabbed headlines for days. This didn't suit the strategists this time round.The upshot: Congress is staring at its worst ever defeat in Uttar Pradesh  a state home to the Nehru-Gandhis  with its score being limited to 7 seats.So once again, why was Priyanka kept out of the scene in such a crucial election?Well, the apprehension was that Priyanka in Amethi and Raebareli would shift the focus away from Akhilesh and Rahul. Priyanka was scheduled to be in Amethi for three days but this was cancelled at the last minute. The reason given was that her son had an eye ailment for which she had to go to Hyderabad. But the real reason also lay in the fact that Priyanka would be a distraction. The sister towers over the brother when they are on the field of action. Ask any party worker or a journalist.In fact, not just Priyanka, it was a conscious call that Sonia too would stay away. While the decision of Rahul to take over as party president is a long-project waiting to happen, this was Sonia's way of sending the message that henceforth all elections and big events of the party would have Rahul as its face.And then there is a whimper of a plan to "save" Priyanka for the grand finale in 2019.By herself, Priyanka has to answer if she accepts the blame for this near-decimation. After all, she was the strategist credited with cobbling together the alliance and was claimed to be "micro-managing" things.
Lucknow: There are perils lurking in every corner when you enter a crucial poll without a face, even if the party is Narendra Modis BJP. For one, there are different claimants for the top post, then the caste satraps snapping at your heels. But for Chief Architect Amit Shah, the foundation for the campaign is all that mattered.



"Chunav spashtata se lada jata hai, chunav ka lakshya jeet hota hai, (Elections are fought with clarity of mind with the single objective of victory)," he would often say to his colleagues in closed-door meetings.



Uttar Pradesh had to be won at any cost, after all, the state had made the most significant contribution of 73 MPs to the BJP's victory. And it was that victory that made the former minister of state for home in Gujarat the national president of Indias ruling party.



And Shah knew well that the vote share of 42 percent they netted in 2014 could not be directly translated into an assembly victory in 2017. Something more was needed.



A series of events in the last two years highlight how early the BJP actually started preparing for Battleground UP. The new social combination of consolidating roughly 40 percent non-Yadav OBCs began with appointing Phulpur MP Keshav Prasad Maurya as the party's state president on April, 8, 2016.



A relative light-weight, 47-year-old Maurya comes from a humble background and entered politics through RSS and VHP/Bajrang Dal. Despite criticism that Maurya had criminal cases against him, shah was confident of his choice.



This ensured that the RSS would give full organisational support and the Kushwahas, a significantly population in Eastern UP, would back the BJP. A Khsuwaha vote for BJP is also one less for SP.



The party also kept the suspense over who could be its CM candidate. Speculation was high that an OBC state president would mean an upper caste CM candidate as the outgoing state chief and Meerut MLA Laxmikant Bajpai was a Brahmin.



Party insiders say that the decision to not project a CM actually worked for them because that didnt lead to divisions. What was seen as its biggest disadvantage initially proved to be the BJPs biggest advantage with the elections converting into a mid-term referendum on Brand Modi.



And UP nodded in agreement. Brand Modi swept Indias largest state, BJPs biggest victory yet after 2014.



BJP's own assessment is that it is a kind of pro-incumbency, a vote for the Central government. It is also a victory for the welfare schemes of the Modi government. UP has Over 52 lakh Ujjawala beneficiaries, 4 lakh registered beneficiaries of Atal Pension Yojana, 3 crore Jan Dhan accounts, there has been a disbursement of Rs 20,000 crore in Mudra.



And then Modis masterstroke, the demonetisation drive, ended up creating a new class constituency as well.



A look at a number of defections that happened before the elections revealed the caste arithmetic that was being carefully worked out. Besides the appointment of Keshav Prasad Maurya, in 2015 the BJP created an OBC cell for the first time in its history.



It appointed SP Bhagel as the OBC morcha president. Keeping in mind this crucial constituency, the party also roped in Mayawati's close confidante Swamy Prasad Maurya. In the ticket distribution, the non-Yadav OBCs were wooed through 140 seats.



Besides this constituency, the party tried to aggressively win over the non-Jatav Dalits who impact close to 83 seats. They were given 70 tickets despite them being less in percentage in comparison to Jatavs who are 12 percent in UP, while the non-Jatavs are 10 percent.



Such was the level of micro-planning that in order to win over four percent Pasi community which is the second-largest Dalit constituency - the BJP president even agreed to stretch himself to accommodate the demands of the leader from this community.



The BJP also gave outside support to RK Chaudhury who had refused to contest on a BJP ticket. The Pasis have a significant number in central UP and the BJP has 3 Pasi MPs as well.



Sources in team Amit shah highlight his efforts at striking an effective alliance at multiple levels saying how Apna Dal MP Anupriya Patel's induction into the council of ministers in the second round of cabinet reshuffle was a move keeping in mind the caste calculations. Adding to that, alliance with Bhartiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar in Purvanchal was again a move keeping in mind his influence over 40-50 Seats.



In 2016, the BJP president had held a Yuva Town Hall and had connected to nearly 74,000 youth of UP via videoconferencing in 156 locations. Sources say that UP ki man ki baat programme was carried out to get response for the party's manifesto. The Lok Sankalp Patra was a document drafted after consulting 40 lakh people through whatsapp, twitter and other methods.



It was through this process of collection called Jan Akanksha that the party decided to emphasise on its farm loan waiver and other points around women safety that featured in the manifesto.



Giving more details of how effective their campaign was, party strategists say there were a series of Yuva Sammelans and Mahila Sammelans to connect to the youth and women. In order to reach out to the traders upset by the demonetisation the party leadership held 14 contact programmes with them.



The party's parivartan yatra which began from four different corners of the state and converged in Lucknow covered over 8000 km and managed to contact nearly 50 lakh people in the state.



Over the last two years ever since he took charge as the party president Shah had been aggressively pushing for membership drive in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Party sources say that in the last one year alone the party managed 1 crore 80 lakh primary members. 75,000 party workers were given training at the mandal and district level.



In order to ensure booth management all 1 lakh 47,401 booths had committees consisting of 10-21 members everywhere.



The party sources say that the prime minister's decision to campaign aggressively in his constituency Varanasi before the last phase was solely his decision. The party was worried that even one seat loss in his constituency would be highlighted more by the opposition. The prime minister did manage to stamp this as his victory alone.
New Delhi: Indian politics has witnessed a decisive shift with Saturdays UP poll results. Not only did the BJP wave contain its opposition  BSP, SP and Congress  to historic lows, it set a personal record in Uttarakhand as well.



BJPs record performances in UP and Uttarakhand arent just going to benefit the party in these states alone. By winning these two states BJP will reap several other indirect benefits such as an improved tally in Rajya Sabha, and improving its chances of electing President and vice-President of its choice.



But will the numbers be enough?



Rajya Sabha



Out of the 250 members in the Rajya Sabha, the BJP has 56 members while the Congress has 59. To approve any bill, the BJP needs approval of at least 126 members of Rajya Sabha.



But the actual fight between the two, when it comes to seeking Houses approval on a bill or a motion, is better understood when one takes into account the alliance partners of both the national parties.



So When BJP relies on the support of parties like Telugu Desam and Shiv Sena its tally goes up to 126, which is still short of majority. This is where BJPs UP win comes in.



UP sends the highest number of members in Rajya Sabha: 31. But only 10 of these seats might be up for election by 2019. According to a report, by 2019, 69 other Rajya Sabha seats would be up for grabs from states which include Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa and Gujarat. Of these 69 seats, BJP holds 23 seats and Congress 21, and smaller parties like Trinamool Congress, CPI (M) hold smaller shares.



Even if BJP grabs half of these seats, and this would be the best case scenario, it still wont reach the halfway mark; at least for the next few years.



But with an increasing hold over Rajya Sabha, BJPs leverage in the House will also increase.



Presidential and Vice Presidential elections



This will be perhaps be the first time that BJP has come into a position where it will be able to appoint, or at least influence, the office of the next President.



The last time BJP came close to this was in 2012 when it picked Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. But this time BJP has a clear edge when it comes to picking up the top boss in Rashtrapati Bhawan.



The term of the President Pranab Mukherjee ends on July 24, 2017. Presidents are chosen through an electoral college made up of state legislators and members of Parliament.



But all votes are not counted equal. Every MLA of a state is given a fixed number of votes, which is based on the population of the state. The higher the population, the greater the value of their vote. Now being most populous state, UP legislators, an overwhelming number of which will now be from BJP, will carry votes of highest value.



As far as the office of the Vice-President goes, Hamid Ansari is due to retire on August 10, 2017. Vice-Presidential elections are much simpler; a straight contest between the members of the Parliament.



Having 55 Rajya Sabha MPs plus 282 Lok Sabha MPs gives the party an edge over any opposition. For the post of the Vice-President, BJP could nominate a member of its allies to keep them in good humour.


In 2014, a local BJP worker in Ghazipur opened a dhaba on the outskirts of the city. He invited Manoj Sinha, the local MP, to inaugurate the dhaba but did not expect him to turn up. Sinha was, after all, a Union Minister by this point. To the workers surprise, Sinha made it for the inauguration. This connect with his constituents is not uncharacteristic of Sinha. At least till late last year, he spent most weekends in his native Ghazipur. However, the weekends are not spent lazing with family but holding darbars with people from all over the district. Every Saturday and Sunday, over a hundred people gather at his Ghazipur residence with their complaints and Sinha gives them all a patient hearing, even offering tea to all. The Ghazipur MP, who has never fought a Vidhan Sabha election, is now the frontrunner for the post of UP Chief Minister.On March 11, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) created history by winning its biggest mandate in UP ever. Repeating its model from Maharashtra and Haryana, the BJP decided not to declare a CM candidate for the UP polls. A decision will now be made after the BJPs parliamentary party meeting on Saturday.While UP BJP chief Keshav Prasad Maurya has been ruled out, the names doing the rounds now are Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Manoj Sinha. BJP sources say that Sinha is a front runner because he is an Ajatshatru  a man without enemies. He (Sinha) is friendly with all factions in the BJP. Above all, he enjoys the confidence of both Amit Shah and Narendra Modi. BJP wants to avoid any sign of internal infighting. In such a scenario, they will want someone who is acceptable to all sides. He is close to Modi on one hand, and Rajnath Singh on the other. He is not overly ambitious so he can never be threat to Modi, a close aide of the minister told News18.Sinha cut his teeth in politics as a student leader. In 1982, at the age of 23, he became the president of the Banaras Hindu University (BHU). However, it wasnt until 1998 that he got his big break and was elected to the Lok Sabha. He was elected again in 1999 and after a long hiatus, returned to the Parliament in 2014. The PM showed his faith in Sinha by appointing him to the cabinet. During the 2017 Assembly campaign, he was one of the few star campaigners allotted a helicopter to himself.Modis trust in Sinha comes from his Mr Clean image. He is believed to be a no-nonsense, work-oriented minister. Sources close to Sinha said that during his time as Minister of State (MoS) Railways, he often picked up the slack when Cabinet Minister Suresh Prabhu dropped the ball. Suresh Prabhu confined himself to bringing in new technology while Sinha was largely looking after the day-to-day affairs. He impressed Modi during his time in railways and that is why he was given independent charge of Telecom Ministry after the Cabinet reshuffle, a source said.
The two-room set in the residential section of the Constitution Club of India on Rafi Marg in Delhi bears no nameplate.However, in the last two years whenever Sunil Bansal was in town, most BJP ticket seekers from West UP were seen queuing up at this nondescript flat on the second floor of the building.It is here that the low profile RSS pracharak, now on deputation to the BJP, stays in the national capital. Bansal comes from the ABVP stable, born and brought up in Rajasthan. He was deputed to assist Amit Shah in UP in the run up to the 2014 general elections. He, along with RSS Joint General Secretary Dr Krishna Gopal, played a key role in party campaign.In 2017, Bansal has once again emerged as the quiet back room boy both in planning and execution. Here perhaps lessons learnt from Bihar in 2015 came in handy for the party in scripting a recovery after 15 years in opposition.Quite unlike in Bihar, in UP BJP did not attempt to impinge upon the core Yadav vote bank of the main adversary: the Samajwadi Party. That was evident in the ticket allocation. Bihar polls had showed that dominant OBC communities tend to stick to parties with strong mandal credentials.In UP, thus, BJP attempted to wean away non-Yadav OBC which is an amorphous group of about 30 percent vote base. Of these, a section has voted for the BJP in the past. The challenge was to rope in the MBC castes which have traditionally dovetailed with BSP's dalit votes.Elevation of Keshav Maurya, the MP from Phulpur was a part of this strategy. Induction of Mayawati loyalist Swamy Prasad Maurya was yet another. Alliance with small political outfits like Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party and Apna Dal in East UP completed this ensemble.The added advantage in mobilising these communities was twofold: unlike the core BJP upper caste voters, the MBCs which constitute nearly 15 percent of the total electorate in UP as a community are aggressive and tenacious in electoral politics.With social alliances in place, ticket distribution was the next big challenge. Even at the highest level, and despite an occasional tiff, Bansal in most cases stuck to his panel of possible nominees.Towards the end, and with a lot at stake, Bansal and Shah, however, agreed to make concessions to accommodate sons and daughters of nearly all top state BJP leaders.BJP has come to power in UP for the first time in 1991. Since then, its tally in every successive Vidhan Sabha election has dwindled both in terms of vote and seat share. The party has been able to buck this trend after a good 25 years.


Thankyou @narendramodi ji for your good wishes. I look forward to working with you for the betterment of Punjab. https://t.co/igyXezowuM

 Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) March 11, 2017



I thank the people of Goa & Manipur for their support to BJP. We will always work for the wellbeing of these states.



 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017





I congratulate Shri. Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand

 Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) March 11, 2017



Thank you. Long live democracy! https://t.co/hJoGsO5lGA



 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017



As soon as the leads started trickling in on Saturday, BJP leaders made a beeline towards TV cameras to hail the victory. Conspicuously absent from TV screens was the man of the moment, Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Party president Amit Shah addressed a press conference in the evening and announced that the party had prepared a "grand welcome" for the Prime Minister at the party headquarters for Sunday.There will be a grand welcome for Prime Minister Modi at the BJP headquarters at 6 pm tomorrow (Sunday). The CM candidates for the four states will also be announced, Shah told reporters at 11, Ashoka Road. He added, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged as the tallest leader in the country and even BJP's political rivals have to admit it.While the PM did not come out to speak, his Twitter feed remained active throughout the day. His first tweet on the elections was in the afternoon, when he congratulated the Congress for its emphatic win in Punjab. Spoke to @capt_amarinder & congratulated him on the win in Punjab. Also wished him a happy birthday & prayed for his long & healthy life, he tweeted.Amarinder Singh even replied to the PM saying, Thankyou @narendramodi ji for your good wishes. I look forward to working with you for the betterment of Punjab.Then, in a series of tweets, Modi said, Gratitude to the people of India for the continued faith, support and affection for the BJP. This is very humbling &A Twitter interaction between the PM and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi garnered thousands of reactions from users. Gandhi tweeted his congratulations to the PM saying, I congratulate Shri. Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand.The PM responded, Thank you. Long live democracy!
Even before election results started trickling in, the writing on the wall was clear. The ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP combine was on its way out. After ten years of Akali rule, Punjabis were eager for change. Even 'Baba Badal', described as a "phoenix that rises from the ashes", could not salvage the state government's reputation ahead of the assembly polls.

Over the last five years, however, things started to look bad for the SAD. After ten years of power, the Akalis went into the polls facing a strong anti-incumbency wave.

: In 2007, when Parkash Singh Badal was vying to be Chief Minister of Punjab for the fourth time in his career, a reporter asked him if his age was an impediment. "Bhaj ke dhikawan?" (Should I run and show you?) he quipped in response. This, perhaps, sums up the never-say-die spirit of the five-time Punjab CM, affectionately known as 'Baba' among dedicated party workers.The political journey of Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is one for the history books. His first foray in politics, much before he became an MLA, was when as a 20-year-old he first became the Sarpanch of Badal village. Ten years later, he made his debut in the Punjab legislative assembly and in 1970, was sworn in as chief minister for the first time. In 1947 he became the youngest Sarpanch in India. In 2012, in an election that defied expectations, he became the oldest Chief Minister in India. 2017, which is likely to be Badal's last election, saw an unceremonious end to a 70-year-old political career.Professor Ashutosh Kumar at the department of political science in Punjab University describes Badal as a 'survivor'. Of his 70 years in politics, he spent 17 in prison for his political activism  a fact that led Prime Minister Modi to call him the "Nelson Mandela" of Indian politics. "Parkash Singh Badal is the ultimate political survivor. He has seen many ups and downs in politics. The reason he has survived is because he is a moderate figure. He never took an extreme position, even during the height of militancy in Punjab. He maintained an arm's length from separatists and maintained his belief in the constitution. Even when he was in prison, he did not take an extreme position. So when people were looking for an end to the violence, he emerged as the tallest figure in Punjab politics. To this day, there is no politician in Punjab higher in stature than him," says Kumar.It is, perhaps, due to his stature that spared him from personal attacks during a highly-charged political campaign in 2017. Most of the attacks by opponents were directed at his son and Punjab Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal, Sukhbir's wife Harsimrat Kaur and his brother-in-law Bikram Singh Majithia. Even Badal senior's most bitter critics grudgingly admit that he is a man of the people". In that, says Kumar, Badal is comparable to Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav. "Both Badal and Yadav are sons of the soil. Both have spent years touring villages in their respective states and have deep bonds with local party workers, down to the booth level. Their sons, Sukhbir and Akhilesh, may have inherited their political legacies, but they don't have the same kind of connect. Nobody can deny that Badal's is firmly rooted in the Punjabi hinterland."There are many factors that have solidified Badal's image as a "survivor". Chief among them is his ability to form formidable alliances  both political and familial. His son Sukhbir is married to Harsimrat Kaur from the influential Majithia clan and his daughter Preneet Kaur is married to Adesh Pratap Singh Kairon, the son of powerful former Punjab CM Pratap Singh Kairon. In 1998, when the SAD joined the alliance led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, it was seen as an "alliance of extremes", much like the BJP-PDP alliance in Jammu and Kashmir of today. Kumar says, "The BJP and SAD were polar opposites. One was a party with support among Sikhs in rural areas and the other was a party of urban Hindu voters. But we must remember that it was an alliance of extremes. Both parties actually complemented each other.The biggest poll issue in Punjab this year was the drug menace. According to an affidavit filed by the state's Department of Social Security, over 16% of the state's population was struggling with drug addiction. Both the AAP and the Congress promised a 'nasha-mukt Punjab' (Drug-free Punjab). The state government's response, however, was to live in denial. When asked about the drug menace, Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal said "only 0.06%" of Punjab's 2.77 crore people were drug addicts. He hit out at Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal for "defaming" Punjab.According to Kumar, much of the blame for bad governance fell on Sukhbir Singh Badal. "The image that went out was that an ageing Badal had given up the day-to-day functioning of the government to his son. Ten years of Akali misrule dented the party's credibility beyond repair. The road ahead is very tough. Parkash Singh Badal will most likely retire before the next election and Sukhbir lacks the political acumen of his father to resurrect the party."
People accepted politics of performance; this historic mandate will take the country to new direction: Amit Shah on #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/5Bpk3bhqeF  ANI (@ANI_news) 11 March 2017

We will form government in 4 states (UP, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa), even in Punjab we got a good vote share: Amit Shah #ElectionResult pic.twitter.com/KqUMZFSYTG  ANI (@ANI_news) 11 March 2017

: If there is one place where brand Modi competed with another factor, it was Amethi. It was also riding on the "sympathy wave" for Garima Singh, the BJP candidate and "estranged wife" of Sanjay Singh, the Congress leader and the Raja of Amethi.Garima was seen as someone who had been wronged and needed to get justice through vote. It helped that she was picked against Congress' Ameeta Singh for whom the Raja himself campaigned.Ameeta lost the last Assembly election to SPs Gayatri Prajapati and this time to the first rani. With Garima's victory, BJP made inroads into Rahul Gandhi's Lok Sabha constituency.The royal battle that began between Sanjay Singh and his first wife Garima brought a personal touch to the political. Anyone who attended the BJP candidate's campaign was witness to the sympathy wave in her favour. The people cried on her being fraudulently divorced and removed from Amethi"."Every time Garima spoke in public, listeners started crying. In one of my sabhas with her, I had to wait for the emotions to subside. It was only when people gained control of their emotions that I went to address them. Women were moved by her story of injustice," said Govind Singh Chauhan, district spokesperson of BJP.He added, "The family drama was part of the campaign  she was out for decades and lived with no help from her husband. All this touched a personal chord with villagers." The support for her had been building up since 2014, when villagers fought for the real rani to claim her presence in the famed Bhupati Bhawan. That year, villagers protested which lead to firing and a policeman died in that incident."The 2014 incident cemented her ties with the locals. She was reclusive but when she appeared in public, there was enthusiasm among people. They wanted to know who their rani was and how she fought the personal battles," said Krishna Prasad Singh, a local advocate. "People stood in support of Garima and that translated into votes for her," he said.The factor was considered by BJP leaders who preferred to give the first rani the ticket instead of any of her family members - her son Anant Vikram Singh, daughters Mahima and Shaivya, besides her grandson and Anant's wife Shambhavi were part of the campaigns."Mat se nyaya denge (We will give her justice through our vote)," said Lal, a farmer in Amethi. He was not the only one to think that it is upon him to make the real rani get her due.Keshav Prasad, an advocate said, "I have seen hundreds of women crying in her sabhas and campaigns. In Amethi there is one factor bigger than Modi: sympathy for Garima. The party, too, realised the potential of this story to translate into votes and gave a novice in politics the BJP ticket."Sudhanshu Shukla, general secretary BJP in Amethi, said that in Amethi, Modi wave worked and so did the sympathy wave: "Women have supported her  they know if she does not win she will be ousted from Amethi. That will be un-nyaya (injustice) and people don't want that to happen. They have the sentiment that she was fraudulently divorced and according to Hindu Marriage, he cannot have another wife while the first one is still there."Both wives of Sanjay Singh mentioned his name as spouse in their affidavit.The narration of the family saga was marked by the appeals for saving "Bharat ki sanskriti by voting for Garima. The narrative was woven with political campaigns, signing off, Prasad said, "It is running like a film script - justice for nayika (heroine) while dand (punishment) for khalanayika (villainess)."
As the Assembly elections in the five states turned into a virtual referendum on Modi's popularity and demonetisation, the BJP decimated the ruling SP, its alliance partner Congress and Mayawati's BSP in UP.

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday romped home in Uttar Pradesh with a record breaking margin along with a landslide win in Uttarakhand, while the Congress achieved a similar feat in Punjab. The Congress also emerged as the single largest party in the hung Assembly of Goa and Manipur respectively.In UP and Uttarakhand, the BJP juggernaut bagged three-fourth majority. Congress' Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost both seats that he contested in the hill state.The BJP returned to power in the politically crucial state of UP after a gap of 15 years during which the SP and the BSP held sway.Meanwhile, Congress led by former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh stormed to power in Punjab after a hiatus of 10 years, with 77 seats, just one seat short of two-third majority.It was a birthday present for Amarinder, who turned 75 on Saturday, as the Congress routed the SAD-BJP combine and dashed hopes of Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which was confident of sweeping the Assembly polls on its debut.BJP leaders hailed the spectacular victories of BJP as a vindication of Modi's popularity and his pro-poor policies with some calling it a "tsunami".Shah, who crafted and conducted the election strategy in UP, said the results have catapulted Modi to the stature of the "tallest leader" since independence."The only factor for the win is the performance of the Modi government," Shah told a press conference in Delhi. "The outcome has shown the faith the poor have reposed in Modi.... Even his political rivals will have to admit that he has emerged as the tallest leader in the country since independence," he said."This is the victory of the corruption-free rule and pro-poor policies under the leadership" of Modi, he tweeted earlier.At the end of vote counting, the BJP bagged 312 seats on its own with a nearly 40 per cent vote share and with allies Apna Dal (Soneylal Patel) and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) their strength goes up to 324 in a House of 403. The BJP had just 47 seats in the outgoing House.The previous best showing by BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of Ram Janam Bhoomi movement, when it got majority on its own winning 221 seats out of 425 in an undivided state.The highest number of seats bagged by a single party in the UP Assembly polls was in 1977 when Janata Party got 352 seats when Uttarakhand was part of the state.BJP had not put forward any chief ministerial candidate in UP where it also did not put up any Muslim candidate.The UP chief minister will be selected tomorrow by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party in the state.The ruling SP whose campaign was steered by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on development agenda received a severe drubbing getting only 47 seats as against its previous tally of 224 while alliance partner Congress was reduced to single digits(7), down by 21 seats.SP received a major jolt in Lucknow Cantt seat where its patron Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav lost to BJP's Rita Bahujuna Joshi, who left Congress ahead of the elections.BSP could garner only 19 seats in a huge slump from the previous tally of 80.The results in UP and Uttarakhand set off celebrations in BJP offices and party strongholds. Party members danced and distributed sweets on streets and BJP offices.Women gathered in groups to watch results on TV and danced as the results came in. One party leader said Holi, which will be celebrated on Sunday and Monday, has come a day early.Winning 77 of the 117 Assembly seats, Congress stormed back to power in Punjab riding a strong anti-incumbency wave against the ruling SAD-BJP combine and warding off a spirited challenge by newcomer AAP.The party put up its second best performance in the state. In the 1992 state elections, it had won 87 seats. With 77 MLAs it just one seat short of a two-third majority. The Congress had 46 seats in the outgoing House. In addition, Congress also won the bypoll to the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat.The SAD-BJP alliance finished at number three spot in the state polls, behind AAP, which emerged as the largest opposition party with 20 seats. However, the number fell way short of Arvind Kejriwal's claim that AAP will win 100 seats.The Parkash Singh Badal-led SAD won 15 seats, down from its earlier tally of 56 seats while ally BJP bagged three seats against the 12 it had won in 2012. At a packed press conference in Chandigarh, a beaming Amarinder Singh, who was the Congress' chief ministerial face, hit out at the SAD claiming it had brought the state "down to its knees" and mocked Kejriwal, saying he was like a "summer storm that had come and gone".In Uttarakhand, BJP bagged 56 out of 70 seats at stake in the state to storm to power reducing Congress to just 11 seats. It is for the first time in the 16-year history of Uttarakhand that a party has emerged with an impressive tally like that recorded by the BJP.BJP suffered reverses in Goa where its tally was reduced to 13 from 21 in the 40-member house as the poll results threw up a hung Assembly where opposition Congress emerged the single largest party with 17 seats. Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Goa Forward and Independents won three each and NCP bagged one seat. The majority mark is 21 seats. Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar bit the dust in Mandrem.Four former Congress chief ministers - Digambar Kamat, Pratapsinh Rane, Ravi Naik and Luiznho Falerio - emerged victorious.Apart from humiliating defeat of Parsekar, who lost by over 7,000 votes, six ministers of BJP also fell by the wayside. The verdict would give smaller parties like newly formed Goa Forward and MGP with a role in ministry formation.The poor showing of the BJP, which had won 21 seats last time, is also seen as a setback for Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who had led the campaign from the front, fuelling speculation he may return to his home state as chief minister. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which hit the state with a big fanfare, drew a blank.Congress sources said that as the single largest party, it would stake claim to form the next government and was confident of getting support from independents and others.Shortly after the results were out, Parrikar said that the BJP remains in the race for forming the government. "It is a fractured mandate. We are awaiting the response of smaller parties," he told reporters in Panaji.Like in Goa, it was a hung House in Manipur with ruling Congress bagging 28 out of the total 60 seats and BJP getting 21. Congress, which had won 42 seats in the 2012 Assembly poll, suffered a jolt as it managed to capture only 28 seats this time but is in the race for government formation as it emerged as a single largest party. BJP, on the other hand, took a giant leap forward capturing 21 seats as the party had none in the outgoing House.BJP's vote share of 36 per cent is higher than 34.7 per cent secured by Congress.Three-time Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh romped home from Thoubal constituency defeating his nearest BJP rival L Basanta Singh by 10,400 votes.Human rights activist Irom Sharmila who had contested against Ibobi Singh, secured only 90 votes and was relegated to the fourth position.Manipur PCC President T N Haokip said that his party would form the next government with the help of "like-minded secular and regional parties."
New Delhi: Muslim voters in Uttar Pradesh could have voted in significant numbers for the BJP, endorsing its stand on issues like womens rights, president All India Muslim Women Personal Law Board Lucknow Shaista Amber told News18.



It is quite likely that Muslims have voted for the BJP. Considering the fact that they took the stand for Muslim women rights I wont be surprised if some sections have shown favor with the party, Amber said.



Muslims are known for tactical voting. But this time the community has voted for issues, Amber, a major critic of the practice of Triple Talaq, told News18. The BJP-government at the Centre had recently submitted an affidavit to the Supreme Court saying the system violates fundamental rights of Muslim women.



The vote has been cast for dignity of Muslims, who dont want to live like second class citizens and want employment, opportunities for themselves. The parties have so far only promised but not delivered  it appears Muslims have given BJP a chance to do something for them, she said.



BJP on Saturday swept Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections defying all predictions of a tight three-cornered with SP-Congress alliance and BSP. Both the alliance and BSP were hoping to net Muslim votes, but the absolute nature of the sweep  BJP was leading in 310 out of the 402 seats  indicate that the community is undergoing a rethink vis-a-vis its stand towards BJP.



Muslims constitute 19% of UPs population and is the single largest block after Dalits.



In Kanpur, noted academic AK Varma from the Centre for the Study of Society and Politics seem to agree with Amber.



This kind of mandate is not possible without the votes from Muslims, he said.



Varma pointed out that while conducting surveys for his think tank in Uttar Pradesh he saw Muslim women showing support for the BJP. It was a surprise for us to note that the young Muslim girls were vocal about their support to BJP and that was because of the triple talaq issue. The party wants to ban that practice and it has worked for the party in some way, he said.



Modis inclusive politics has been accepted by all  even if there were communal or disturbing events the PM Narendra Modi disowned all of that, he said.



Varma said the media missed BJPs experiment in Mewat, where the party selected 100 Muslims dominated villages and tried to address their problems, gave them attention and tried to solve them. That outreach also helped. In Fatehpur we saw the Muslim population giving BJP the mandate, including the the karigars and ansaris in the state. Also in notebandi was seen an attack on the rich and pro-poor.



Professor Asmer Beg of the Aligarh Muslim University, also the Co-ordinator for Centre for Study of Developing Societies in Uttar Pradesh, said he was not surprised to know if Muslims have given their votes for BJP.



It is very likely that Muslims have voted for the BJP and it is no surprise because the data shows that in 2014 Lok Sabha elections 10% Muslims voted for BJP, he said.
New Delhi/Lucknow: The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance in Uttar Pradesh began quite well with the two UP ke ladke  Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi  clad in white kurtas and black jackets making a joint public appearance at the Taj Hotel in Lucknow on January 29, 2017.



They say well begun is half done. The voters of UP affirmed that the boys of UP were half baked.



What went wrong with the alliance? Why did it lack the punch of the potent Nitish-Lalu combine in Bihar of just 2 years ago?



Lets start with Friendly fights  a euphemism for SP and Congress putting up candidates in the same constituency and neither UP boy being able to rein in their party. SP patriarch Mulayam Yadav refused to campaign for alliance candidates, his sole appearances reserved for his brother Shivpal Yadav, who is estranged from Akhilesh.



And Priyanka Gandhi, perhaps the biggest crowd puller for Congress, postponed her campaign in the family pocket boroughs of Rae Bareli and Amethi, because of the friendly fights.



So just why did a promising alliance, that had the social equations firmly on its side, struggle to take off?



During the course of the campaign News18 spoke to a number of people on the ground, including leaders from the SP and the Congress, the candidates fielded by these parties, and the strategists working behind the scenes.



All of them swore that Akhilesh and Rahul did not lack in chemistry. But both struggled to shed legacy burdens and were up against walls unique to their parties.



Insiders pointed out that the alliance wasnt really a coming together of two political parties but a political partnership between two individuals.



It didnt have the endorsement of Mulayam Singh Yadav, who on more than one occasion openly criticised any pre-poll alliance of his party with the Congress. Since its creation in 1992, the SP has always fought elections alone.



An old Mulayam loyalist told News18 how the wily Hindi heartland politician felt that a pre-poll alliance could only come at the SPs cost. Party ka jhanda girta hai (our flag goes down), this leader remembered Mulayam saying.



SP veterans said that by giving 105 seats to the Congress  which today exists on the margins of UP polity after ruling unchallenged for several decades  Akhilesh Yadav condemned the SP to irrelevance in those seats.



He has given oxygen to a dead Congress at the cost of annihilating ourselves, which would boomerang in the long term for SP, this leader said.



And then there was the little thing about UP boys political cunning. Among the backroom boys, there were many who pointed out that the seeds of discord were evident from the first press conference onwards.



At that press conference, the two UP ke ladke appeared in sync with each other, showering praises on each other, hugging, smiling and talking about how they exchanged messages and made a perfect made-for-each-other picture.



The optics couldnt have been better until they started taking questions from the media. Rahul Gandhi sounded impatient and angry while Akhilesh Yadav appeared unruffled. When questions were asked about what happened to the 27 saal behaal plank (the slogan with which the Congress started its campaign to show how UP has been, in its view, destroyed by successive SP and BSP governments that ruled the state for 27 years after dislodging the Congress), Rahul didnt hesitate in playing down the achievements during the SPs tenure.



He said Akhilesh may have worked, but hadnt really delivered on all counts. The young Chief Minister, whose campaign pitch has been kaam bolta hai (My work speaks for itself), was quick to defend this rebuffing of his track record.



Besides, there was no shortage of political analysts who felt the alliance would have worked better if Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Mulayam Singh were on board. On the Congress side, the alliance architects were Priyanka Gandhi and Prashant Kishor, with little involvement of Sonia.



Congress leaders would contend that given the historical animosity between Sonia and Mulayam - thanks to the wily Yadav famously ditching the Congress president at the last hour in 1999 - bringing them on board would be a difficult task.



And then there were the inevitable comparisons between that other unlikely combo, which worked like a dream in trouncing the BJP in the Bihar Assembly polls in 2015. Both JD(U)s Nitish Kumar and RJDs Lalu Prasad Yadav, despite their historical rivalry, were deeply methodical in their approach when it came to the Bihar Mahagatbandhan.



While it was Kishor who brought both the SP-Congress and the JD(U)-RJD together, the Nitish-Lalu duo had realised the necessity to sink their personal differences. An anecdote illustrates this: Nitish called up Lalu as the results for the 2014 General Elections started coming in indicating a Narendra Modi sweep, and discussed how they should hold on to their forts.



A source privy to this call told News18 that Nitish expressed concerns that Lalu Yadav's wife Rabri Devi and daughter Misa Bharti had both lost. The two talked about how the RJD-JD(U) combined vote share was more than the BJPs and that the picture would have been different if they had fought the 2014 polls together. That ice-breaker of a phone call brought them together in the by-elections where the alliance showcased their might, winning six of 10 seats.



So, when seat sharing talks began for the Mahagatbandhan in 2015 it went smoothly because the groundwork had been laid. Yes, it helped a lot that both Nitish and Lalu were essentially running one-man shows. Every decision regarding the Mahagatbandhan  its working, common agenda and campaigning  rested solely with them alone, not with anyone else.



The picture was very different when it came to UPs boys. For starters, there is a deeply entrenched bureaucracy within the Congress and the decision-making process is multi-layered.



Akhilesh Yadav was doing a difficult balancing act since he had got hold of the party machinery only after the polls were declared, thanks to the Yadav family feud. This, SP sources said, made him cautious, as he was wary of upsetting too many apple carts within.



Sources said that Rahul Gandhi may have dismissed their mutual disagreements as operational, but it was making the day-to-day working of the alliance difficult. With a plethora of opinions, and a battery of second and third rung leaders, the decision making was slow, whereas time is of an essence in any election.



The bane of friendly contests then, was just the tip of the iceberg for an alliance thats struggling to do justice to its potential.



An SP leader close to Akhilesh told News18 that the feeling inside the party remained that the SP was carrying the burden of the Congress. So just why did his leader hand over 105 seats to the Congress on a platter? Akhilesh had agreed in-principle, so he gave Congress a long rope, the SP leader shrugged.
On a sunny Friday afternoon, about 25 people attended a Lynchburg College forum to learn how solar power soon could provide energy at LC.

In a presentation led by Steve Bright, LC vice president of business and finance, students, staff and faculty members learned about a new proposal that would allow LC to enter a power purchase agreement.

The proposal is a partnership with Solar City, a vendor that would install solar arrays at no cost to LC and then sell the power to campus.

Bright estimated that over 20 years  the length of the agreement with Solar City, a California-based solar energy company  LC stands to save $432,141. However, the use of clean power also would provide LC with energy credits to sell, which could lift savings to $900,000.

LC, which has purchased landfill gas since 2014 to power campus, sold renewable energy credits in August 2016 for nearly $340,000.

Bright referred to the long-term plan as a financial slam dunk.

I dont see why we wouldnt do this, Bright told the audience.

Bright proposed four areas on campus for installment of solar arrays but said up to 15 areas were considered before deciding on the proposed four.

Proposed locations are behind Tate Hall over parking areas, the roof of the Graduate Health Sciences Building and possibly over nearby parking areas, the parking lot behind Dillard Hall and over the commuter lot, and over a parking area located off Thomas Road.

Heres an opportunity right in front of us, right now, in locations that work for us, which I think is exciting, Bright said.

The presentation was met with overwhelming approval from the audience as indicated by a unanimous show of hands in support of the idea. Despite that approval, questions lingered about specifics of the plan.

Art professor Richard Pumphrey expressed concern over whether the solar panels would be built in the U.S. or in China. Though supportive of the plan, he is concerned about the labor conditions in China.

Bright replied while it was too soon to determine where the panels installed by Solar City will come from, it was worth asking the company about as LC moves forward with the plan.

Michael Dunmyer, a junior environmental studies major from Centreville, Maryland, was supportive of solar power but had objections to the possibility of removing trees near one of the parking lots to provide space for a solar array to be installed there.

I think it might come off as a bit hypocritical to be cutting down trees to put up panels, Dunmyer said during the forum.

Bright said the trees would be required to come down, but it is the practice of LC to plant trees to replace those that are removed.

With consensus approval from the audience Friday, Bright said he would report their feedback to LCs Board of Trustees in order to move forward with the proposal. Though an immediate timeline was not clear, if an agreement with Solar City is approved within the next month, it could take six to nine months to install the solar arrays.

Bright said a U.S. Department of Energy SunShot grant, awarded to the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia  of which LC is a member  has allowed the college to pursue solar power at no cost. The $800,000 grant encourages schools to develop clean energy plans.

Current clean energy efforts by LC include low-flow water fixtures, high-efficiency lighting, hot water systems powered by solar and submeters in residence halls to monitor energy use by individuals.

Earlier this month, LC was one of nine schools honored by the national Jessie Ball duPont Fund Energy Initiative for energy reduction efforts.
A Lynchburg resident was arrested Friday in connection with a suspected bomb threat to Lynchburg General and Virginia Baptist hospitals, according to a Lynchburg Police Department news release.

Ronald ONeil, 53, of Lynchburg, was charged with one count of threatening to bomb a building, the release states.

The bomb threat was phoned into a hospital call center March 4, according to the release, and the case was handed off to Detective H. G.Blomquist, with LPDs Crime Investigations Unit, after the scene was determined to be safe.

ONeil currently is being held at the Blue Ridge Regional Jail without bond.

Those with information on the incident can contact Blomquist at (434) 485-7267 or Crime Stoppers at 1-888-798-5900. Anonymous tips can be submitted at cvcrimestoppers.org or by texting CVCS and the tip to 274637.
Officials have identified the driver of the tractor-trailer that flipped onto its side Thursday afternoon on U.S. 460 near Airport Road.

Dexter Roberts, 52, of North Carolina, was charged with failure to maintain proper control of his vehicle, Virginia State Trooper T. Z. Beams said Friday. Beams previously stated Thursday that Roberts was going to be charged with reckless driving, but he clarified Friday that was no longer the case.

Roberts had been driving down eastbound U.S. 460 when he crossed the median into westbound U.S. 460, flipping the tractor-trailer onto its side and blocking westbound traffic for four hours and 15 minutes, Beams said.

Beams said Roberts had been taken to Lynchburg General Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. He was unable to say if Roberts still was hospitalized as of Friday afternoon.
Thumbs down to Eric Zehr, a member of the Campbell County Board of Supervisors from the Rustburg District, for not respecting the wall of separation between official county business and partisan, political party business.

It turns out that last month, Zehr emailed a county staffer and asked that person to put together a letter to get to his six colleagues on the board. The secretary dutifully complied, copying the text of Zehrs communication to official county stationary and mailing it to the other supervisors.

Sounds inocuous enough, right?

Well, it turns out the letter was a questionnaire from the socially conservative Virginia First Foundation seeking to ascertain the stances of the supervisors on rights for transgender persons, specifically whether a transgender school student should be allowed to use the restroom of the gender the student identifies with. And the survey itself was to be returned to the Campbell County Republican Party.

Oh, and did we mention Supervisor Zehr is also the chairman of the Campbell GOP?

Thats what ticked off one supervisor who believed it was inappropriate for county staff and resources be expended on a political party mailing.

What concerns us more is that Supervisor/Party Chairman Zehr didnt think to separate his roles as an elected official and party leader, that he thought nothing of calling up a county employee  as a supervisor  and asking that a partisan survey be mailed to his colleagues and returned to him  as the local party leader.

Thats a wall of separation that shouldnt be breached; in the future, we hope Supervisor Zehr remembers the hot water Chairman Zehr got him in before doing something like that again.

* * *

Thumbs up to Ernie Cash of Madison Heights who stepped down last month as a member of the Monelison Volunteer Fire Department after more than 45 years with the organization.

Actually, it was 45 years and four months when Cash officially hung up his firefighters gear for the last time Feb. 19, but whos counting?

Cash joined the Monelison department in 1971 and, in 1980, was elected chief, a position he would hold for the next 20 years.

The almost half-a-century that Cash devoted to serving his friends and neighbors in the Madison Heights, Monroe and Elon areas of Amherst County have been times of great change in the field. Helmets were plastic with only a protective covering for the ears. Clad in a three-quarter length coat, firefighters wore rubber boots and gloves. Today, even the smallest volunteer department has access to high-tech equipment that makes the dangerous job much safer than it was in 1971.

But what made the job easier for Cash wasnt a new truck or an oxygen tank; it was his wife who put up with years of call-outs in the middle of the night and all the other stresses of a firefighters life.

Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Cash.
Home News Sports Social Obituaries Events Letters State settles with ENA, CenturyLink March 10, 2017 Governor C.L. Butch Otter and legislative leaders agreed Thursday to settle all financial claims by Education Networks of America (ENA) and CenturyLink for their development of the Idaho Education Network broadband system for Idahos public schools.



The negotiated settlements require payment totaling $3,461,213. That includes $1,516,533 to ENA and $972,840 each to ENA and CenturyLink for money owed to them by Idaho school districts.



In return, ENA and CenturyLink agreed to drop all claims against the State and all its agencies, entities and employees, including the Department of Administration and Idahos public school districts. Those claims totaled about $13 million, including at least $11 million against the State and at least $1.9 million against the school districts.



This is welcome progress toward clearing the way for us to continue providing the best possible educational experience to every public school in Idaho, Governor Otter said. Im hopeful that this will help clear the way toward continuing expanded utilization of technology for improving student outcomes and the range of learning opportunities provided by our schools.



The capabilities developed through the IEN remain a valuable tool for improving education throughout Idaho. This isnt about the quality or importance of the product; its about the importance of our procurement process and our responsibility to ensure that it meets not only the letter of the law but the perception of propriety, Idaho Senate President Pro Tem Brent Hill said.



It was very important for the State of Idaho to get this issue taken care of so we can stay focused on our efforts to build and maintain the kind of school system that our students, parents, communities and employers need, Idaho House Speaker Scott Bedke said. We feel like this settlement is in the best interest of the States reputation, our school districts and everyone who benefits from the Idaho Education Network. Questions or comments about this article? Click here to e-mail!
Phagwa on this weekend

In TT the celebration takes place at several venues with cultural programmes.

Villages come together to enjoy chowtal (folk songs) as well as the throwing of abeer on each other.

This ritual which was brought here by the indentured labourers has become popular and attracts a wide cross section of people.

Today, Phagwa celebrations will be held at SWAHA Tulsi Manas Mandir of Coalmine Road, Sangre Grande.

The programme begins at 6 pm and will feature chowtal singing, dances and drama.

There will be a dramatic enactment of the Prahlad story and also a lecture by Swahas Pundit Balram Persad.

Tomorrow, celebrations will continue throughout TT and the Maha Sabha will host events at Knowles Street Recreation Ground, Tarouba Recreation Ground, Lower Mc Bean Temple Grounds, Munroe Road Temple Grounds, Parvatie Girls Hindu College, Debe, Solidad Recreation Ground, Claxton Bay, Avidesh Samaroo Park Endeavour Village, Couva Recreation Ground and Monkey Town Temple Grounds, Barrackpore.

The Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Cultural Co-operation (MGICC), which is the cultural wing of the High Commission of India, will also celebrate Phagwa tomorrow from 10 am to 2 pm.

The Shiva Jyoti Hindu Organisation of St Helena will also host its annual event at the temple grounds Ojah Maharaj Avenue, Las Lomas tomorrow from 1 pm to 6 pm, at Skinner Park, San Fernando.

The Phagwa festival is based on the teaching of the ancient character named Bhakta Prahlad.

He was a prince who was subjected to torture by his father, the wicked king Hiranyakasipu.

Prahlad who did devotion to Lord Vishnu was saved from being destroyed by his father.

In the early days of indentureship, this festival was observed very modestly because of the many constraints that the Hindus faced.

Today it is celebrated on a national scale and with grand style
Woman held for double murder

The elderly mother and daughter lived in a mansion at the corner of Gonzalez Street and SS Erin Road in De Gannes Village, Siparia. On Carnival Monday (February 28) a neighbour who went to check on them, discovered their bodies in an advanced state of decomposition. Subsequent autopsies revealed that they died because of multiple stab wounds.

On Tuesday at their funeral service held at La Divina Pastora RC, Roman Catholic priest Fr Martin Sirju offered prayers for police investigators to find the killers. Delivering the homily, before hundreds of mourners among them President Anthony Carmona, Fr Sirju said that it was not uncommon for criminals to remain on the run without ever being charged. Residents had described the mother as a tough and astute businesswoman who owned several prime residential and commercial properties in south Trinidad.

Investigators of Homicide Region III are continuing investigations.
Media must be accurate, balanced

Speaking after a visit to his alma mater, Naparima Boys College in San Fernando, Sir Trevor dismissed the phenomenon of fake news which is also perpetuated by social media platforms, saying this makes the job of media professionals increasingly difficult.

Asked about the impact of social media, Sir Trevor said, its everywhere and its constantly at you. Its not always the kind of thing that corresponds with the traditions that we have all been taught about, for example, I was always told what you do should be accurate, it should be well-balanced. Well Im not too sure we can say that about all social media. But the fact is, it is there, itss not going to change and we have to cope and I think it makes the business of straining off what is actually relevant, what is important and what is factual, I think it makes that very, very difficult, he said. Regarding the fake news phenomenon, Sir Trevor said: I dont go into too much of that nonsense of fake news. I think thats a distraction, there is a vast, vast acre of information and the job of processing that information gets much, much more difficult. Every day it becomes more difficult. McDonald also noted that Trinidad and Tobago possesses a very strong tradition of journalism and recalled that persons from within the Commonwealth had been brought into Trinidad to assist in developing its news media.

I go back to the days when a lot of people from the Commonwealth were brought into Trinidad to help train people because I think even then it was realised how important journalists were and in particular information and I think some Prime Ministers took it to a degree, almost too far, and Eric Williams, when he became the Prime Minister thought his press conferences should be kind of lectures to the nation every week which was broadcast again on the radio, Sir Trevor said.

Even in that, whatever you talked about, seems to be a recognition of the importance of information, its one of my creeds, people must be informed if they are to make proper decisions and so I thought even then the tradition is great, Im sure it is now, he said. Asked how journalism had changed over the years, McDonald said, its changed enormously and I think its the speed with which one has to gather information, assess it and make the kind of proper judgements as to whats going on. He cited an example of him having to stay in the Philippines for about six to seven weeks before I actually began to understand and appreciate what was happening, and if you just jetted in for a few days, its rather difficult to make that proper judgement about the politics of the place. One of the great problems of today is that we are all supposed to do it in an instant, he said, adding, and of course the multiplicity of media platforms all talk about doing it quickly, up to the minute news, breaking news, happening now, there is a rush to fill acres and acres of space for the news and Im sure its well done but there are some issues that take a little more time to be considered and I think I was lucky to have that path. I am not too sure how I would have fared in the more hectic pace of todays world, he said.

Earlier, addressing the student body, Sir Trevor, who was welcomed with a standing ovation by both students and teachers, advised them that success was not possible without hard work. You do not succeed without working, it is absolutely essential, he said.

Sir Trevor told students to make full use of their educational opportunities as it was the key to continued success. He recalled that Naparima College taught me that whoever you are, however humble is your background, you can be successful if you are prepared to work hard. Sir Trevor also posed for photos with several staff members who gushed over him with one staff member showing off a copy of a book which was written by him.

In 1992, Sir Trevor was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the Queens honours list. He received a knighthood in 1999 for his service to journalism and was awarded with a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) fellowship at the 2011 British Academy Television Awards.
Tourism consultant: TDC has been dysfunctional

Lisa Shandilya, consultant at Revolution Destination, which consults in tourism and hospitality, said an act and policy for the TDC to operate effectively had not been established, so the TDC became dysfunctional, a runaway horse with a lot of money being spent unnecessarily because people in the organisation did not understand the tourism industry.

The hiring practices were all skewed based on political affiliations, Shandilya said. She believes the move towards splitting the organisation into two is a good idea but is dependent on the marketing of the tourism product.

Basically, there is a difference between marketing tourism products for the island versus the brand destination of Trinidad and Tobago. So one has to be clear in terms of the act and the policy and the direction for both authorities before they go diving into another situation where the government agencies will be dysfunctional once more. So they have to be clear on their plans. You cannot say you are going to be using the Bahamian model, because in The Bahamas you have Nassau in terms of how they market their islands, but you also have the monopolies of where the Government funding comes from. She said the Government had to be very careful in terms of how it dissolved the TDC and created the different authorities. Noting Tourism Minister Shamfa Cudjoes statement on the need for a regulatory authority to set basic standards for all tourism operators, she said that authority already existed within the TDC, but did not function for Tobago.

She said such a regulatory authority for standards and quality of the tourism products would have to be established in any organisation, because basically, You are selling your tourism product. Shandilya said both islands have fantastic tourism products compared to many of the islands in the Caribbean but there had been too many people in management positions both in Trinidad and in Tobago who held their positions as a result of nepotism and were only there based on whoever was in government.

So you have a strong alliance to whatever the political will is, and if the political will is just to not do anything, the management will have to follow suit. Lorraine Pouchet, president of the Incoming Tour Operators Association, also said she was not surprised at the decision to close down the TDC, because she suspected that decision had been in the making for some time.

However, she said several organisations including hers, the Hotel Restaurants and Tourism Association, the Hotel Association in Tobago and the Tour Operators Association in Tobago, had been meeting and had been corresponding with the TDC about the direction of its marketing strategy. She said the organisations were not happy with it and felt it was important that Trinidad and Tobago have their own marketing representatives and their own marketing strategies, because the products were essentially different, and the target market that might be attracted to Tobago might not be attracted to Trinidad.

She said the organisations felt the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) was double dipping in the marketing by getting funding from Central Government through the THA to do its marketing and also getting funding from the TDC, Which meant that we had less funding available to us in Trinidad to market. She said Trinidad has a tremendous amount of potential in the tourism sector, so the association has no problem with the dividing of the marketing strategy, although Trinidad and Tobago was still a brand and its concern would be how to tie in the three. This had to be a very scientific approach, she said, because the Trinidad brand included a wide variety of tourism activity and sights and attractions that would not be found in Tobago.
CWU concerned about TDC dissolution

On Thursday, Tourism Minister Shamfa Cudjoe announced at the post-Cabinet press briefing that Cabinet agreed to dissolve the company and establish two entities. One to focus on tourism in Trinidad and another for Tobago .

In a paid advertisement in todays newspapers, the CWU says the decision reeks of anti-union, anti-worker tendencies .

Months after the Union submitted its proposals for a new Collective Agreement for the workers of the TDC, the Government wants to now dissolve the Company and start over with two new entities. In effect, the Government would be denying those workers their right to have trade union representation, which they are legitimately entitled to have. The union says its secretary general Joseph Remy received a call from Cudjoe at about 1.14 pm on Thursday where she informed him of Cabinets decision .

The minister told Remy there would be a new regulatory body in response to a query about the status of workers of the bargaining unit adding that she would have to engage the union in subsequent discussions .

The CWU says that in January, the TDC commenced an investigation into the award of a contract to Beckles Environmental Services Limited on July 7, 2016 relative to drainage and associated works along the Maracas Bay car park .

A meeting was supposed to be held on March 6 to reveal the findings of the investigations but it was postponed .

The union is questioning the timing of Governments decision which was done before the investigation into the award of this contract was revealed .

We are left asking what would become of the findings of this investigation, the union said .

The CWU advised the Government they would not roll over and allow the workers at TDC to be trampled upon.
Free hugs from a man who admits to a dark past

With this knowledge 30-year-old Sean Dalipsingh has embarked on a campaign offering free hugs to individuals with the hope of spreading love to strangers who he believes may be experiencing pain, anger and malice.

Dalipsingh is promising to travel throughout all districts within Trinidad and Tobago offering free hugs to anyone along the streets. He would be holding a sign with the words Free Hugs and offering hugs to everyone.

His journey first started two weeks ago in Port-of-Spain. Yesterday he walked through San Fernando with his sign. He said many times people face challenges in their lives and have no one to talk to or offer comfort.

You see someone just walking the road and they face many challenges and that may have them bitter. Would it not be a wonderful thing if a hug could get them through the day? Sometimes all we need is someone to hug us, he told Newsday. Dalipsingh admitted that he also made mistakes which have now tarnished his character. He is among thousands listed on a Florida registry for sexual offenders. His mug shot and profile are easily accessible on the internet. But Dalipsingh said that he expects many people to pass judgement and paint him as a monster or paedophile because they do not have all the facts.

At the time, I was young (15 years old) and the female was 11 years old.

He was charged with sexual battery and three years in prison after which he was deported to Trinidad.

Sexual battery is defined when a person has unconsensual oral, vaginal or anal contact with another person. However in Florida the law states that if the victim is under the age of 12, the State does not have to show the victims lack of consent to charge the offender.

It is something that happened in my teenage years and I will pay the price for a lifetime but I am a strong person. Dalipsingh said the criticisms which he may be subjected to would not deter him on his quest to bring a smile to a persons face.

He said many people have called him horrible names since.

People have laughed at me and said that I am a pervert for wanting to hug people, but that is far from the truth. I just want to make someones day brighter.

There is too much pain and sadness in this country, he said.

Dalipsingh said because of the outpouring of negative criticisms he received on social media with some labelling him as a sex offender, his spirit was dampened but he promised to continue his quest.
It May Not Be the Time

You Think It Is
A man has been charged with holding eight women against their will inside a million-dollar home in the suburbs of Atlanta, NBC News reports. Authorities say 33-year-old Kenndric Roberts met the women online and offered them modeling jobs. But once they moved into the 6,800-square-foot, five-bedroom house he was renting, things changed, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The womenwho range in age from 19 to 22tell police Roberts threatened them if they tried to leave, forced them to work at strip clubs, threatened their families, and made them get plastic surgery. One of the women referred to Roberts as "our boss," the AP reports. It's unclear how long the women had been in the home.

What authorities now believe was a human trafficking operation was discovered Tuesday when one of the women called 911 and asked police to help her escape a "very bad situation" in a "very nice house." She said a man who had a "house full of girls" was threatening to kill her if she left. Police responded and found the eight women. Roberts was arrested on Wednesday. He's been charged with multiple counts of false imprisonment, trafficking persons for labor, and more. Federal charges are also possible. The women have been returned to their families or placed in safe houses. (Read more human trafficking stories.)
The White House claims it didn't know about it when he was hired as national security adviserand Mike Pence says it backs up President Trump's decision to fire him. Mike Flynn filed paperwork this week stating that he was a foreign agent lobbying on behalf of the Turkish government and despite the White House denial, sources tell the New York Times and the AP, among other outlets, that Flynn's lawyers told the Trump team before the inauguration about the work he did on behalf of Inovo, company owned by a Turkish businessman. Flynn's work "could be construed to have principally benefited the Republic of Turkey," the filing on behalf of Flynn and his company, Flynn Intel Group, states.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer admitted Friday that Flynn's lawyer had contacted a transition lawyer wondering whether he should register as a foreign agent, but it was considered a private decision, NBC reports. "That wasn't the role for the transition," Spicer said. "This was a personal matter, it's a business matter." Flynn's company received $530,000 under a contract that continued until the day after Election Day, meaning that Flynn was a paid foreign agent while he was sitting in on classified briefings as an adviser to Trump. The day before the election, Flynn wrote an op-ed in the Hill calling for the extradition to Turkey of "shady Islamic mullah" Fethullah Gulen, a Pennsylvania resident Turkey blames for last year's coup attempt. (Read more Michael Flynn stories.)
All hail the new kings of the dine and dash. Authorities and restaurateurs in northwest Spain are on the lookout after a huge group of hungry people is suspected of skating out on massive bills around the region. One such incident happened Feb. 27 at the Carmen Hotel in Bembibre, where 120 diners were celebrating the christening of two boys, the AP reports. Owner Antonio Rodriguez says the diners racked up a $2,300 bill then left "in a stampede" before the cake showed up. According to the Local, the diners actually danced the conga out the door and to their cars. Rodriguez says it was like "something they'd planned," but there wasn't anything he could do "because these were huge men with muscles."

Within days and a few miles of the Carmen Hotel incident, a wedding party of between 160 and 200 guests skipped out on a $10,600 bill at El Rincon de Pepin in Ponferrado. The guests reportedly went outside to set off celebratory fireworks after the meal but before coffee and never returned. "They didn't say anything," El Rincon de Pepin owner Laura Arias tells the BBC. "They just disappeared." It's believed the same group is responsible for both incidents, as well as a potential third. Authorities started investigating after restaurateurs claimed to have identified some of the dine-and-dashers through photos posted on Facebook. A man from Romania believed to be a ringleader has been arrested. (These dine-and-dashers allegedly hit their waitress with a car, too.)
A California couple has postponed their wedding to dedicate all their time, energy, and money to finding a missing family member: their dog. "The only thing I can think about right now is finding Theo," Trendee King tells CBS San Francisco. The 1-year-old Brussels griffon escaped from a dog-sitter Feb. 13 in San Jose while King was in Los Angeles buying a wedding dress. She immediately flew home, and the search was on. King and fiance James Galley have put up 800 laminated posters, hired a pet detective, offered a $3,500 reward, run newspaper ads, and spent every day since Theo ran away looking for him, the San Jose Mercury News reports.

But that's not all. The couple, who describe the hunt for Theo as a "full-time job," used a bloodhound to track their missing pup and even dug up the remains of a dog buried by the side of the road in order to have a vet identity them, Fox News reports. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, King, a Hollywood makeup artist, and Galley, an executive at Netflix, have spent thousands of dollars looking for Theo. King says it's "torture" not knowing where her beloved dog is and they will search "to the ends of the Earth" to find Theo, who has his own Instagram page. I wont give up until hes home, she tells the Mercury News. (Missing dog found three years later and 1,200 miles away.)
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New Delhi:

The BJP headed for a stunning victory on Saturday in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, trampling a fragmented opposition that had hoped the demonetisation exercise would have chipped away at Prime Minister Narendra Modis popularity.

The BJP was also locked in a close contest in Goa and Manipur with the Congress, which won the consolation prize of Punjab where it was certain to form the government.

The party was now set to return to power after a 14-year gap during which regional parties such as the SP and BSP had held sway.

BJP President Amit Shah on Saturday addressed media at party headquarters calling it a historic mandate. People accepted politics of performance; this historic mandate will take the country to new direction, he said.

Here are the Live updates:

#9:00 PM

Telangana CM KC Rao writes to PM Narendra Modi, congratulating him on #ElectionResults in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand. pic.twitter.com/FbjhEXc4Zc  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#8:30 PM

Dehradun: Harish Rawat tendered his resignation from post of Uttarakhand CM to Governor K. K. Paul, earlier today. pic.twitter.com/K3MhvxRTTP  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#7:50 PM

We humbly accept this victory and will tirelessly work towards development: Union Minister Ananth Kumar #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/lLDDuUjYyO  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017





#7:41 PM

Result of total 60 seats in Manipur: BJP wins 21, Cong 28, NPP 4, NPF 4, LJP 1, AITC 1 & Independent 1

#7:40 PM

Congress's Gurjit Singh Aujla wins bypolls to Amritsar Lok Sabha seat, defeats BJP'S Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina by 1,99,189 votes

#7:35 PM

Can't have simplistic conclusions like UP vote was in favour of demonetisation, can't say it was a referendum on note ban: Chidambaram

#7:30 PM

BJP will have a majority in Rajya Sabha once elections are held for the Upper House of Parliament: Chidamrabam

#7:25 PM

Election results have established PM Narendra Modi as the most dominant person with a country-wide appeal: Congress leader P Chidambaram

#7:10 PM

EC replies to BSP's letter allegeing manipulation of EVMs,says no merit found in allegation & prayers made in letter are not legally tenable pic.twitter.com/T7idAzfLb2  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#6:55 PM

Election Commission to Mayawati: No merit in allegations of EVM tampering in UP polls



Party will stake claim if it gets enough support: Manohar Parrikar, BJP on #GoaElectionResults pic.twitter.com/29bitbFeoA  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

We don't try to pass on the buck; we all responsible for fractured mandate: Manohar Parrikar, BJP on #GoaElectionResults pic.twitter.com/uGDjehQnLW  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#6:44 PM

We welcome the public mandate, allegations of Mayawati ji should be probed: Lalu Prasad Yadav #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/agaynvxwru  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

Will be good if state leaders instead of commenting on national politics, focus more on their state & its people: Surjewala on Omar Abdullah pic.twitter.com/5Ddno6MCyD  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

Omar Abdullah is our friend we respect him but he needs to focus on National Conf. & matters of J&K: Surjewala on Abdullah's tweet on PM pic.twitter.com/Ltsp9kZKoj  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#6:40 pm

Akhilesh Yadav submitted his resignation to Governor Ram Naik, from position of Uttar Pradesh CM #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/He4s9taSJn  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017





#6:35 PM

Unhe janaadesh ka aadar karna chahiye.Akhilesh Yadav ne EVM pe sawaal uthakar apni prashaasnik kshamta pe sawaal uthaya hai: KP Maurya, BJP pic.twitter.com/PSU8erf2l0  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#6:18 PM

Results of total 40 seats in Goa declared: Cong wins 17, BJP 13, NCP 1, MGP 3, GFP 3 & Independent 3

#6:15 PM

Manipur Election Results: BJP 21, INC 26, NPP 4, NPF 4, LJP 1, AITC 1 & Independent 1

#6:13 PM

Goa Election Results: BJP 13, Cong 16, NCP 1, MGP 3, GFP 3 & Independent 3



We hope that BJP will rise above politics of shamsaan-kabristaan and work towards development: RS Surjewala, Cong #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/IkAG6Xsdbb  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#6:02 PM

Goa Election Results: BJP wins 13, Cong 15, NCP 1, MGP 3, GFP 3 & Independent 3



It is a mandate for continuation of 2014's developmental agenda: Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/SFtat5csBg  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#6:00 PM

Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar resigns

#5:49 PM

Akhilesh Yadav submits his resignation to Governor Ram Naik, from position of Uttar Pradesh CM

#5:40 PM

I want to quit fighting any type of election: Irom Sharmila after losing election #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/ednIn2MCow  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017





#5:20 PM

Manipur Election Results: BJP wins 22, Cong 24, NPP 4, NPF 4, LJP 1, AITC 1 & Independent 1

#5:15 PM

Manipur Election Results: BJP wins 22, Cong 24, NCP 4, NPF 4, LJP 1, AITC 1 & Independent 1

#5:11 PM

Its also quite possible that people didnt like Express Way much so they voted for Bullet Train.

#5:11 PM

If question has been raised (by Mayawati) on EVMs, govt should probe it. I will also look at it on my level: Akhilesh Yadav



#5:10 PM

UP CM Akhilesh Yadav addresses the media at his residence in Lucknow

#5:05 PM

Thank you. Long live democracy! https://t.co/hJoGsO5lGA  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

#5:00 PM

Goa Election Results: BJP wins 12, Congress 14, NCP 1, MGP 3, GFP 3, Independent 3

#4:55 PM

I thank everyone in Punjab for their immense faith & support. This is a mandate for a brighter future for Punjab and it's youth:Rahul Gandhi

#4:50 PM

I congratulate Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand: Rahul Gandhi,Congress vice president (file pic) pic.twitter.com/pIK5E5vSLC  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017





#4:40 PM

I am indebted by people's mandate: Swati Singh (wife of expelled BJP leader Dayashankar Singh ) won from Sarojini Nagar seat #ElectionResult pic.twitter.com/d5tlXkqoB8  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#4:35 PM

One is BJP & weve been against them;other is Cong that has setting with BJP. Will think on alliance partner-Vijay Sardesia,GoaForwardParty pic.twitter.com/hTyiZbK5i6  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#4:32 PM

Manipur Election Results: BJP wins 20, Cong 22, LJP 1, NPF 3, NPP 4



Uttarakhand BJP president Ajay Bhatt loses to Karan Mahara of Congress by 4981 votes from Ranikhet assembly constituency #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/m1ILpELy05  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#4:24 PM

Manipur Election Results: BJP wins 20, Cong 20, LJP 1, NPF 3, NPP 3



Gratitude to the people of India for the continued faith, support and affection for the BJP. This is very humbling & overwhelming.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

#4:05 PM

Goa Election Results : BJP 12, Cong 14, NCP 1, MGP 3, GFP 3, Independent 2

#4:00 PM

Manipur Election Results: BJP wins 20, Cong 18, LJP 1, NPF 3, NPP 3

The prime minister has clearly established himself as the predominant leader in India, said Aarti Jerath, a political analyst, on NDTV.

BJP president Amit Shah, who crafted and conducted the election strategy in UP, credited Modi and his policies for the victory.

Live Coverage of Election results: Uttar Pradesh | Uttarakhand | Punjab | Goa | Manipur |

This is the victory of the corruption-free rule and pro-poor polices under the leadership of Modi, he tweeted.

BJP has reached new heights in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh and changed the political picture of the country, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said amid scenes of jubilation at party offices in UP.

Party members danced and distributed sweets on streets and BJP offices. Women gathered in groups to watch results on TV danced as the results came in. One party leader said Holi, which will be celebrated on Sunday and Monday, has come a day early.

Terming the BJP victory as shocking and difficult to swallow, BSP leader Mayawati hinted at vote fraud in the elections that were spread over seven phases during the last two months in the five states.

She provided no evidence for her allegation, and it is unlikely to be taken seriously. Her party is expected to finish third.

After five hours of counting, the BJP was ahead in xxx races in UP. Along with its allies Apna Dal (Soneylal Patel) and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP), the party will likely control at least 305 seats for a comfortable two-thirds majority in the 403-member legislative assembly.

ALSO READ | Election Results 2017: Will Jhaadu sweep its magic again? Here's what at stake for AAP in Punjab and Goa

The party had however not put forward any chief ministerial candidate. BJP leaders said the decision will be taken by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party in the state soon.

The BJP, which had just 47 seats in the outgoing Assembly, garnered 40 per cent vote share in the most riveting contest seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Modis popularity and demonetisation.

The party also went to the elections without fielding any Muslim candidate.

The nascent SP-Congress coalition was ahead in only 64 seats while Mayawatis BSP was a distant third leading only in 20 places. The SP, whose campaign was spearheaded by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on development agenda, led in 55 seats.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi acknowledged the partys defeat was massive.

ALSO READ | We will win all five states, including UP in alliance with the SP: Congress

Yes, UP is a bad loss, it hurts...I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring thinking for the Congress as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy, Singhvi said.

The previous best showing by BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of Ram Janam Bhoomi movement, when it got majority on its own winning 221 seats out of 425 in an undivided state.

SP leader and a state minister, Gayatri Prajapati, who is wanted in an alleged gangrape case and attempt to rape a minor, was trailing in Amethi, where Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Sinh, was leading.

Ameeta Singh (Cong), the current wife of Sanjay Sinh was also trailing.

ALSO READ | Election Results 2017: How poll outcome will affect fortunes of SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav in Uttar Pradesh

In Noida, Home Minister Rajnath Singhs son Pankaj Singh was leading by an impressive margin.

The trends also showed BJPs Sangeet Singh Som, who was booked in the Muzaffarnagar riots, was leading in Sardhana.

Kailash Vijaywargia, a BJP general secretary, that the perception that the BJP was a party of the upper caste has been demolished as all sections of the society including Dalits and Muslims voted for it.

The central government schemes have benefitted everyone. Muslim women have also benefitted from the schemes. Modi has created confidence in every section, he said.

ALSO READ | Election Results 2017: Who will win Goa, will Manohar Parrikar return as CM?

In Uttarakhand, the BJP put up a splendid show and is leading in 56 seats in the 70-member Assembly while Congress was way behind ahead in only 10 seats. Congress Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost Haridwar (Rural) seat to BJPs Yatishwaranand by over 12,000 votes.

Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad attributed the partys poor show in the politically crucial UP to public mood and said its performance will be scrutinised.

He, however, stressed that Congress gains in Punjab and likeliness of the party forming government in Goa, ruled by the BJP until before the elections, should not be ignored

In Punjab, the Congress won 16 and was leading in 60 of the 117 constituencies while the AAP, making a debut in Punjab Assembly polls, was in second position winning six seats and ahead in 16.

The ruling SAD was demolished with the party winning one and leading in 13 while its coalition partner BJP led in three seats.

Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh, who is the partys chief ministerial face, thanked people of the state for their overwhelming support.

HERE IS WHAT HAPPENED SINCE MORNING: Election Results 2017 | Move past Hindu-Muslim, a voter is a voter; politics of development should take precedence: Amit Shah

The Congress legislature party will meet tomorrow to elect its leader, he said.

In Goa where trends and results were available for 25 seats, the ruling BJP and Congress won seven seats each and were also leading in two seats each, in what could lead to a hung Assembly whose strength is 40.

The BJP suffered a big reverse when Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar lost to his Congress rival from Mandrem. Former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat (Congress) won from Margao constituency.

In Manipur, the ruling Congress won 9 seats and was ahead in seven while the BJP bagged four leading in 12, according to details available for 39 out of 40 constituencies.

Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh won from Thoubal Assembly seat by a margin of 10,400 votes. Rights activist Irom Sharmila, making her poll debut, was relegated to the fourth position.

Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

UP Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Uttarakhand Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Punjab Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Goa Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Manipur Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

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New Delhi:

Rajkummar Rao, who has stunned the audience with the intriguing trailer of his upcoming movie 'Trapped', says he is yet to learn a lot of things about acting.

The actor was all praises for Mr. Perfectionist Aamir Khan and his way of working. He not just admitted that he is keen to learn his working style, but also stated that he wouldn't mind getting trapped with Aamir to understand his perspective of cinema.

"I want to get 'trapped' with Aamir Khan sir as he is a very talented actor. I would love to learn lot of things from him like what he thinks about films, the preparation that he does. I wish to take his intelligence," Rajkummar was quoted as saying.

Produced by Phantom Films, "Trapped" is about a man, played by Rajkummar, who gets trapped in his apartment in a high-rise building in Mumbai, with no escape route.

While director Vikramaditya Motwane has high hopes with the movie, Rajkumar's lady love too has sung praises for the actor's performance in the movie and cited it as his best work so far.

'Trapped' is slated to hit the screens on March 17.

For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Muzaffarnagar:

More than 304 cartons of liquor were found hidden inside an oil tanker during an anti-smuggling drive ahead of Holi, district excise department officials said on Friday.



One person has been arrested and four others are absconding. The illegal liquor worth Rs 15 lakh was being smuggled from Haryana, District Excise Officer Akhilesh Kumar said.



The oil tanker was intercepted during the drive on the Delhi-Dehradun National Highway yesterday, he said.



In another incident, police seized 145 cartons of liquor at Yamuna Bridge near the UP-Haryana border last evening.



The liquor was being smuggled from Haryana in a truck, police said.A case has been registered in this connection, they said.

Watch live coverage of UP election results 2017

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

The Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday said performance in Punjab and Goa polls were not up to expectations and will introspect on the reasons behind it.

As per the counting trends, the party was not doing well in Punjab, where it was seen as an alternative to the Akalis and the Congress, and Goa, where it hoped to put up a spirited fight.

"We are disappointed with the results. We will introspect on the reasons behind the (poor) performance," senior AAP leader Ashutosh said.

AAP leader and Delhi minister Kapil Mishra said the party had not expected such results in Punjab and Goa.

"This was not expected and it its the time to review," Mishra said.

He, however, added that the party has made its impact felt at the national stage.

As the counting of votes started in the morning, Atishi Marlena, Ashutosh and other senior party leaders went to Kejriwal's residence.

The party had put tri-colour balloons on the Flag Staff Road, the lane that houses the Chief Minister's official bungalow, and installed LED screens to show live results.

Party workers had gathered outside Kejriwal's residence, but as the trends indicated that party is not winning any of the two states, the crowd started ebbing.

The party had put all its might and resources in Punjab and Goa. Kejriwal had himself addressed over 95 rallies in Punjab over the past few months.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

India on Saturday successfully test-fired BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from Odisha coast, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) officials said. The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile can carry a warhead of 300 kg.



The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was test-fired from a mobile launcher from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur around 11.33 AM, .



It was an excellent launch and a great success, a senior DRDO scientist associated with this project said.



The two-stage missile, one being solid and the second one ramjet liquid propellant, has already been inducted into the Army and Navy, while the Air Force version is in final stage of trial, they said.



The Army is already equipped with three regiments of Block III version of Brahmos missiles.

While induction of the first version of Brahmos missile system in the Indian Navy began in 2005 with INS Rajput, it is now fully operational with two regiments of the Army, they said.



After two successful test trials of Brahmos missile from INS Kolkata in June 2014 and February 2015, test firing from INS Kochi on September 30, 2015 had validated the newly commissioned ships systems.



The air launch version and the submarine launch version of the missile system are in progress.



The Army has so far placed orders for the BrahMos missile to be deployed by three regiments of the Army and two of them have already been inducted operationally.



BrahMos Aerospace, an Indo-Russian joint venture, is also in advance stage of test launching the air version of the sophisticated missile system and work on the project is in progress.



(With inputs from PTI)

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Chandigarh/New Delhi:

The counting of votes in Punjab concluded for 117 assembly seats at 54 centres in 27 locations of the state which witnessed massive majority for Congress while exit of ruling SAD-BJP alliance.

The debutant AAP also failed to perform but yet emerged as the second largest party in the state with 20 seats. Among VIP candidates, Captain Amarinder Singh, Navjot Singh Sidhu and Parkash Singh won their constituencies.

Earlier, all exit polls had unanimously predicted a drubbing for the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine. However, it is now clear that Congress is going to rule the state for the next five years. See what the exit poll had predicted-

As it happened-

#7:30 PM

Counting of votes concludes in Punjab. Here is the final tally of seats: Congress- 77, AAP- 20, SAD-BJP alliance- 18 (15+3), Others- 2

#5:40 PM

Latest update: Congress ahead on 77 seats, AAP comes next with 20 seats. SAD-BJP alliance trailing behind with 18 seats.

#4:55 PM

Congress VP Rahul Gandhi congratulates voters of Punjab, calls mandate fruitful for the future of Punjab.

I thank everyone in Punjab for their immense faith and support. This is a mandate for a brighter future for Punjab and it's youth  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) March 11, 2017

#4:15 PM

Captain Amrinder Singh responds back to PM Modi's congratulatory message, says looking forward to work with you.

Thankyou @narendramodi ji for your good wishes. I look forward to working with you for the betterment of Punjab. https://t.co/igyXezowuM  Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) March 11, 2017

#3:56 PM

Latest update: Congress wins 67 seats till now. AAP on number 2 with 20 seats in its kitty. BJP-SAD alliance trailing with 17 seats.

#03:43 PM

AAP's Bhagwant Mann loses to SAD's Sukhbir Singh Badal from Jalalabad seat.

#03:32 PM

Congress registers victory at 76 seats, AAP get 23 while SAD gets 18 seats till now.

#02:55 PM

-Congress leads with 75 seats, SAD with 18 seats and AAP in 24 seats

#02: 27 PM

-PM Narendra Narendra Modi speaks to Captain Amarinder Singh, congratulates him on the win in Punjab

#01:18 PM

-Congress leads with 75 seats, SAD with 18 seats and AAP in 24 seats

#01: 49 PM

-Congress leads with 77 seats, SAD with 17 seats and AAP in 25 seats



#01:14 PM

-Congress leads with 77 seats, SAD with 16 seats and AAP in 25 seats

#01:08 PM

-We will discuss the reasons in the core committee meeting & analyse each aspect of our performance in the elections: Prakash Singh Badal-ANI

#01:02 PM

-Congress leads with 75 seats, SAD with 16 seats and AAP in 25 seats



#12:42 PM

-Navjot Singh Sidhu wins from Amritsar (East) by a margin of over 42,000 votes

#12:31 PM

-Parkash Singh Badal wins Lambi seat, defeats Amarinder Singh by 20,000 votes

#12: 29 PM

-CLP Meeting has been called on Sunday at 2 PM: Captain Amarinder Singh, Congress-ANI

#12:04 PM

-Captain Amarinder Singh wins Patiala seat by a margin of over 51000 votes

#12:01 PM

-This is the revival of the Congress, it is just the beginning. Congress will spread from here: Navjot Singh Sidhu-ANI

#11:59 AM

-Congress leads with 75 seats, SAD with 17 seats and AAP in 25 seats

#11:45 AM

-Congress leads with 72 seats, SAD with 18 seats and AAP in 27 seats

#11: 22AM

-Congress leads with 70 seats, SAD with 19 seats and AAP in 27 seats



#11:09 AM

-Congress leads with 64 seats, SAD with 20 seats and AAP in 27 seats



#11:02 AM

-Captain Amarinder Singh leads from Patiala

#10:53 AM

-Congress leads with 64 seats, SAD with 24 seats and AAP in 27 seats



#10:52 AM

-Congress leads with 63, SAD with 26 seats and AAP in 27 seats

#10:27 AM

-Congress leads with 63, SAD with 27 seats and AAP in 26 seats

#10:18AM

-Congress leads with 60, SAD with 25 seats and AAP in 22 seats



#10:14 AM

-Congress leads with 60, SAD with 24 seats and AAP in 22 seats



#10:05 AM

-Congress leads with 55, SAD with 24 seats and AAP in 22 seats

#9:55 AM

-Congress leads with 55, SAD with 24 seats and AAP in 22 seats



# 9:51 AM

AAP candidate Bhagwant Mann leads from Jalalabad while congress l;eader Navjot singh ahead in Amritsar

#9:47 AM

-Congress leads with 56, SAD with 16 seats and AAP in 23 seats



#9:41 AM

-Congress leads with 44, SAD with 18 and AAP in 23 seats



# 9:37 AM

-Congress leads with 36, SAD with 15 and AAP in 17 seats

#9:30 AM

-Congress leads with 34 seats

# 9:26 AM

-Congress leads with 31 seats

#9: 22 AM

-SAD leads with 12 seats while AAP 15 seats

#9:11 AM

-Congress leads with 25 seats

#9:07 AM

-Congress leads with 24 seats, AAP in 14 seats & SAD with 7 seats

#9:05 AM

-Congress leads with 23 seats while AAP in 13 seats

#9:01 AM

-Congress leads with 22 seats

#8:58 AM

-Congress leads with 19 seats while AAP in 12 seats

#8:53 AM

Punjab official EC trends: SAD 2, Congress 1 and AAP 1

#8:51 AM

-AAP leads with 10 seats

# 8:48 AM

-Parkash Singh badal leads from Lambi constituency, Amarinder trails

#8:46 AM

-AAP leads with 8 seats

#8:43 AM

-AAP leads with 7 seats

#8: 39AM

-Congress leads with 15 seats, AAP on 5 seats

#8:36 AM

-Parkash Singh Badal leads in his constituency

#8:34 AM

-Congress leads in 12 seats

#8:31 AM

-AAP lead in 2 seats

#8: 29AM

- Congress-2, SAD-1 lead in vote count





Top candidates to watch out for

Captain Amarinder Singh and Navjot Singh Sidhu from Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal's Parkash Singh Badal and Sukhbir Singh Badal and AAP's Bhagwant Mann are the key candidates in the Punjab assembly elections. However, the active participation by the Delhi chief minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal has fueled speculations that he will have a major roll to play if AAP gets near the majority mark.



More than 14,000 officials have been deployed at the counting centers, where tight security arrangements have been made to ensure that the exercise is completed peacefully.



Unauthorised persons would not be allowed to enter the counting centers. Nobody, barring the election observers, would be allowed to carry mobile phones there, the spokesman said.



Despite the exit polls predicting a total rout for the ruling SAD-BJP alliance, which is targeting a third term in the state, 89-year-old Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal claimed the combine will win 72 seats.



State Congress chief Amarinder Singh claimed his party would emerge victorious on 65 seats, while the AAP was confident of bagging close to 100 seats.

The state went to polls in single phase on February 4 and recorded 78.60 per cent polling as against 78.57 per cent voter turnout in 2012.

As many as 1,145 candidates are in the fray, 81 of whom are female and one transgender.

The SAD contested 94 seats and its ally BJP 23. The Congress contested all the seats. The AAP and its ally Lok Insaf Party, led by the Bains brothers of Ludhiana, are fighting on 112 and 5 seats respectively.

Punjab Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage



UP Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage



Manipur Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Uttarakhand Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage



Goa Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage



Live Coverage of Election results: Uttar Pradesh | Uttarakhand | Punjab | Goa | Manipur |



For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Lucknow/New Delhi:

The counting of votes for all the 403 Uttar Pradesh Assembly seats concluded on Saturday. The trends had given indication about the high-stakes electoral battle between the ruling Samajwadi Party, BSP, BJP and the Congress. But BJP gained a huge majority in the state.



The results of exit polls on Thursday by various agencies have confirmed the widespread feeling that the voter sentiment is still in the favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party and it could emerge as the single largest party in the politically-prized state.



Coverage of Election results: Uttarakhand | Punjab | Goa | Manipur |

As it happened:

#7:44pm: BJP+ wins 311 seats, SP 47, Congress 7, BSP 19

#7:12pm: BJP+ wins 309 seats, leading on 3; SP 47; Congress 7; BSP 19

#6:47pm: BJP+ wins 299 seats, leading on 13; SP 45; Congress 7; BSP 19

#6:11pm: BJP+ wins 287 seats, leading on 25; SP 45; Congress 7; BSP 17

#5:51pm: Akhilesh Yadav submits his resignation to Governor Ram Naik, from position of Uttar Pradesh CM

#5:47pm: BJP+ wins 273 seats, leading on 38; SP 44; Congress 7; BSP 16

#5:24pm: BJP+ wins 262 seats, leading on 49; SP 43; Congress 6; BSP 16

#5:17pm: BJP+ wins 258 seats, leading on 53; SP 41; Congress 6; BSP 16

#5:13pm: It might be possible that people did not liked expressway and voted for Bullet Train, says AKhilesh Yadav

#5:10pm: If question has been raised (by Mayawati) on EVMs, govt should probe it. I will also look at it on my level: Akhilesh Yadav

#5:08pm: Rahul Gandhi congratulates PM Narendra Modi and the BJP on their victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand

#5:07pm: Congress loses all four seats in Amethi, BJP wins three of them

#4:54pm: BJP+ wins 234 seats, leading on 75; SP 35; Congress 6; BSP 14

#4:44pm: Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav loses to BJP's Rita Bahujuna Joshi by margin of 33,796 votes in Lucknow Cantt seat

#4:42pm: Swati Singh, wife of expelled BJP leader Dayashankar Singh, celebrates after winning from Sarojini Nagar seat

Swati Singh, wife of expelled BJP leader Dayashankar Singh, celebrates after winning from Sarojini Nagar seat #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/ZVuZzpW0oc  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#4:41pm: BSP's Mukhtar Ansari wins from Mau with 97199 votes

#4:33pm: BJP+ wins 205 seats, leading on 104; SP 32; Congress 5; BSP 11

#4:13pm: BJP+ wins 177 seats, leading on 130; SP 29; Congress 4; BSP 8

#3:20pm: BJP+ wins 92 seats, leading on 227; SP 20; Congress 1; BSP 4

#3:05pm: BJP+ wins 85 seats, leading on 233; SP 16; Congress 1; BSP 4

#2:59pm: BJP+ wins 73 seats, leading on 245; SP 15; Congress 1; BSP 2

Delhi: BJP President Amit Shah at BJP HQ #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/4DmiU0TtjU  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#2:48pm: BJP+ wins 57 seats, leading on 259; SP 11; Congress 1; BSP 2

#2:45pm: BJP+ wins 50 seats, leading on 276; SP 10; Congress 1; BSP 2

#2:40pm: BJP+ wins 44 seats, leading on 276; SP 7; Congress 1; BSP 2

#ECI data says BJP wins 43; SP 7; Congress 1; BSP 2



Follow live updates at: https://t.co/hfHvuLsxgk pic.twitter.com/R19ap25LCy  News Nation (@NewsNationTV) March 11, 2017

#2:30pm: BJP+ wins 38 seats, leading on 276; SP, Congress win 1 each; BSP 2

#2:00pm: BJP wins 15 seats, leading on 305; SP, Congress win 1 each; BSP leading on 18; Others on 8

#With help of foreign expert team,EVMs must be investigated. Elections should be held again with the old ballot paper voting in UP: Mayawati

#Results of the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand assembly polls must be stopped immediately, this is my request to Election Commission: Mayawati



#I have written to Election Commission in this regard, people no more have faith in EVM machines: Mayawati,BSP



#I challenge BJP, Modi and Amit Shah to hold elections with ballot papers and prove their majority is true: Mayawati

Most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to BJP, makes it evident that voting machines were manipulated: Mayawati,BSP pic.twitter.com/DdXjaqMkQF  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

Either the EVMs did not accept votes other than BJP, or the votes of other parties have gone to BJP in the EVMs: Mayawati pic.twitter.com/qF741k0DpT  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP)

#BJP could not have won without tampered EVMs in 2014 Lok Sabha elections as well: Mayawati

#Faulty EVMs allowed BJP to gain votes in Muslim dominated areas as well, which strengthens the doubt: Mayawati



#Votes cast for other parties also go to BJP due to faulty EVMs: Mayawati



#1:35pm:BSP chief Maywati addresses press conference



#1:30pm: BJP wins 6 seats, leading on 300; SP, Congress win 1 each

BJP supporters celebrate in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh #uttarpradeshpolls2017 pic.twitter.com/wVTMs052ye  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017



#1:25pm: BJP wins 3 - leads in 303; SP wins 1 - leads in 61; Congress ahead in 10; BSP 18 and others 7

#1:25pm: BJP state president Keshav Maurya will brief to Media at 6.00 PM at BJP HQ

#1:20pm: Congress accepts defeat, says loss hurts - fundamental restructuring required, click here to read more

#1:10pm: Result tally: BJP declared winner on 3; SP wins 1 seat; Trends: BJP ahead on 307; SP-Cong - 67; BSP 18 and others 8

#1:09pm: Rajnath, Adityanath or Maurya- who will be the CM as BJP sweeps Uttar Pradesh, click here to read more

#1:05pm: BJP wins 3 seats, leading on 307; SP wins 1

#12:56pm: SP's Ujjwal Raman Singh wins from Karchhana (Allahabad)

#12:52pm: Manish Anuragi wins Hamirpur; BJP wins 3 seats, leading on 302; SP-Cong at 66; BSP only 23

#12:45am: BJP's Kunwar Brijesh wins from Deoband; BJP wins 2 seats, leading on 303; SP-Cong at 66; BSP only 23



#12:45pm: This is a win of Modiji's leadership and Amit Shah ji's hard work. It has broken all barriers of religion,caste,creed etc:Smriti Irani on UP



#12:45pm: CM Akhilesh Yadav to address the media at 5 PM today

SP ne UP mein samasyaaon ka pahaad khada kar rakha hai: Pankaj Singh, BJP on #uttarpradeshpolls2017 pic.twitter.com/zE2eB4VMJZ  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#12:20am: BJP wins in Noida, leading on 306 seats; SP-Cong at 72; BSP only 17 and others winning 7

WATCH: BJP UP state president Keshav Prasad Maurya celebrates in Lucknow as BJP leading in Uttar Pradesh pic.twitter.com/PkH2RNMAqm  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#11:42am: Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj wins Noida for BJP

#11:23am: BJP winning state with 305 seats; SP-Cong at 72; BSP only 17

#11:15am: We respect the mandate, but development has lost and votebank politics has won: Rajiv Shukla, Congres

#11:07am: BJP winning state with 304 seats; SP-Cong at 69; BSP only 21

#10:55am: BJP sweeps state with lead on 303; SP-Cong at 70; BSP only 21









#10:46am: BJP+ ahead on 299; SP-Cong at 73; BSP leads on 22

BJP leading in Uttar Pradesh: Party workers celebrate in Kanpur. #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/KfE5Dv10iq  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#10:43am: BJP+ ahead on 297; SP-Cong at 73; BSP leads on 24

#UttarPradeshElection2017 Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj leading by 15766 votes from Noida seat #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/7vMHun13hZ  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#10:40am: People have rejected the SP-Congress alliance in a big way, this is a vote for development: Yogi Adityanath, BJP

#10:37am: BJP+ ahead on 296; SP-Cong at 73; BSP leads on 25

#10:23am: BJP+ ahead on 280; SP-Cong struggling at 79; BSP leads on 28

#10:11am: BJP+ ahead on 277; SP-Cong struggling at 80; BSP leads on 30

#10:05am: BJP+ ahead on 273; SP-Cong struggling at 80; BSP leads on 26

#9:58am: BJP+ ahead on 271; SP-Cong struggling at 88; BSP leads on 28

#9:55am: Modi wave outshine Ram Mandir wave: Last time BJP won 221 seats was in 1991

#9:51am:BJP+ ahead on 265; SP-Cong struggling at 73; BSP leads on 28

#9:45am: BJP workers begin celebration (For story and video, click here)

#9:35am: BJP+ ahead on 237; SP-Cong struggling at 66; BSP leads on 36

#9:18am: BJP+ ahead in 197 seats; SP-Cong struggling at 48; BSP lead on 33

#9:18am: Mukhtar Ansari trailing in Mau now

#9:18am: BJP+ ahead in 186 seats; SP-Cong struggling at 48; BSP lead on 31

#9:15am:BJP+ ahead in 179 seats; SP-Cong struggling at 48; BSP lead on 31

#9:14am:BJP+ ahead in 161 seats; SP-Cong struggling at 46; BSP lead on 31

#9:11am: Trends in for 218 seats; BJP+ 141; SP-Cong 42; BSP 28

#9:08am: SP's Gayatri Prajapati leads in Amethi

#9:07am: BJP's Swati Singh trailing in BJP

#9:07am:Trends in for 194 seats; BJP+ 123; SP-Cong 39; BSP - 25

#9:05am: Trends in for 180 seats; BJP+ 116; SP-Cong 36; BSP - 25

#9:00am: UP ministers Azam Khan (from Rampur) and Gayatri Prajapati(from Amethi) leading

#9:00am: Trends in for 169 seats; BJP+ 105; SP-Cong 36; BSP - 25

#8:59am: Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav trailing from Lucknow Cantt seat

#8:57am: Trends in for 161 seats; BJP+ 99; SP-Cong 34; BSP - 25

#8:55am: Trends in for 149 seats; BJP+ 87; SP-Cong 34; BSP - 25

#8:52am: Trends in for 135 seats; BJP+ 77; SP-Cong 34; BSP - 21

#8:51am: Uttar Pradesh Election 2017 Azam Khan's son Abdullah trailing from Swar, Rampur

#8:48 am: Trends for 121 seats: BJP -72; SP-Cong - 29; BSP - 19; Others - 1

#8:48 am: Morning trends indicate clean sweep by Modi wave; BJP ahead on over 58 seats

#8:46am: Trends in 103 seats, BJP reaches 56, SP-Cong 27; BSP winning on 19

#8:44am: BJP's Rita Bahuguna leads from Lucknow Cantt; Pankaj Singh (BJP) leads in Noida; Garima Singh (BJP) leads in Amethi

#8:44am: Trends in 90 seats, BJP reaches 50, SP-Cong 25; BSP winning on 15

#8:40am: Trends put BJP ahead on 41 seats, SP-Cong lead on 29; BSP winning on 15

#8:39 am: Early trends put BJP ahead on 35 seats, SP-Cong lead on 32; BSP winning on 17

#UttarPradeshElection2017 Counting shuru ho gayi hai, humari badi jeet hogi: Shivpal Yadav, SP #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/7C91hJWhcJ  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#UttarPradeshElection2017 : Drone cameras being used for surveillance near a counting centre in Lucknow #ElectionResultspic.twitter.com/yP5j1ms0hf  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP)

#8:34am: Early trends put BJP leagues ahead, SP-Cong lead on 28 seats; BSP winning on 16

#8:30am: BJP surges ahead on over 20 seats; SP second with 18; BSP 14

#8:24am:BJP lead on 9 seats; SP - 8; BSP - 5; Congress - 1

#8:22am:BJP leads on 5 seats; SP, BSP ahead on 4; Congress 1

#8:22am: BSP leading from Bulandshahr

#8:18am: BJP leads on 4; SP on 4 and BSP on 4

#8:18am: Independent candidate Raja Bhaia leads from Kunda

#8:15am: BJP leads on 2 seats in UP

#8:15am: First trends in, BSP leader Mukhtar Ansari leads in Mau

#8:00am

Counting begins for UP assembly election results 2017

#UttarPradeshElection2017 Security arrangements in place outside counting centres in Moradabad #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/XlwpiN5Zec  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

#7:00am

We are winning with 2/3rd majority, SP and BSP will be wiped out:Keshav Prasad Maurya,UP BJP Chief



#6:45am



SP-Congress alliance will win today, and we will expose the people who were conspiring against CM: Rajendra Chaudhary,SP



#6:45am



Prayers for Election results begin: BJP candidate from Lucknow Cantt Rita Bahuguna Joshi offers prayers at Hazratganj's Hanuman Temple; Samajwadi Party workers perform Havan in Lucknow



The fate of candidates from Uttar Pradesh's 403 assembly constituencies spanning across 75 districts will be out in few hours.



Top candidates to watch out for



It is no secret that fate of Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, senior leader Azam Khan, BSP chief Mayawati, BJP state president Keshav Prasad Maurya, Smriti Irani, Rajnath Singh's elder son Pankaj Singh and Congress' Sheila Dikshit will be on the line.



In addition to general observers, a micro-observer will be deputed at each and every counting table to keep an eye on counting.



Three-tier security arrangements have been made to ensure full proof security in and around the counting centres.



Only central para-military forces will be deployed inside the counting centres while local police will be deployed in the outer circle and armed forces from other states will be around the centres to prevent the entry of any unauthorised persons.



20,000 personnel of central forces were being deployed, police said.



A total of 78 counting centres have been set up in the state. In three districts of Amethi, Azamgarh and Kushinagar two counting centres each have been set up and in remaining all 72 district counting will be held at one place.



The Election Commission has issued strict guidelines on security arrangements for counting of votes. It has prohibited mobile phones inside the counting halls.



As part of the three-tier security arrangements, adequate local police force shall be stationed at first point of entry to check the identity of the persons seeking entry into the counting premises.



A senior magistrate will be posted at the entrance to control the crowd and regulate the entry. The Election commission has said the 100-metre area around a counting premise or campus should be demarcated as pedestrian zone and no vehicles should be allowed within this perimeter.



Additional CCTV cameras will be installed at such locations from where the carrying of EVMs from strong rooms to the counting hall can be recorded for effective monitoring.



Uttar Pradesh had seven-phase polling that started on February 11 and ended on March 8.

Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

UP Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Uttarakhand Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Punjab Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Goa Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Manipur Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

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Imphal:

After a poor performance in the Manipur assembly elections, human rights activist Irom Sharmila announced on Saturday that she would leave politics but continue her fight against the AFSPA in the state.

"I am fed up with this political system. I have decided to quit active politics. I will move to south India as I need to calm my mind," Sharmila told PTI.

"But I will continue my fight against AFSPA until and unless it is repealed. But I will fight as a social activist," she said. Sharmila, who contested from Thoubal constituency against Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh was relegated to the fourth position.

Also Read: Live Manipur Election Results 2017 updates: BJP -21, Cong -25, NPF -4, OTH -7

She secured just 90 votes. The two other candidates of her newly floated party Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) lost their deposits.

Also Read: Manipur Results 2017: Modi wave in tough competition with Congress in Imphal

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Raipur:

Twelve CRPF personnel were on Saturday killed and their arms looted when Maoists ambushed their patrol party in the Naxal hotbed of Sukma in Chhattisgarh.



Four personnel were also injured in the Naxal attack and two of them were stated to be critical.



The incident occurred in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 kms away from the state capital, at 9:15 AM when 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task.



The Bhejji area in south Bastar region of the state is notorious for Naxal attacks and many security personnel have been killed here in the past.



The Naxals also looted ten weapons like INSAS and AK series assault rifles and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.



"The troops were part of the road clearing party that has been securing an under-construction road between Bhejji and Kottacheru. They were ambushed by Naxals who set off multiple hidden IEDs on the ground and opened fire. The squad effectively retaliated before twelve made the supreme sacrifice," acting CRPF DG Sudeep Lakhtakia said.



He added that Maoists are trying to disrupt normal life and activities in this area as the Central Reserve Police Force has increased its presence here and got re-opened a local 'haat' (market) last year here after it was forcibly shut by the red ultras.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh who will be travelling to Sukma.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh has strongly condemned the Maoist attack and described it as a "cowardly act".



Security personnel have laid down their lives to free Bastar from violence and Maoist terror. Their sacrifice will not go in vain. "I salute their sacrifice," the CM said, adding ultras were frustrated with development of road network in the region.



He also extended condolences to the bereaved families.



The CRPF chief and senior officials are also rushing to Raipur.



A senior Chhattisgarh official told PTI that the road opening party A was passing through the forests between Bhejji and Kottacheru villages when Naxals opened indiscriminate fire on them.



According to a CRPF official, summer season is regarded as an offensive period by rebels as?they observe annual 'tactical counter offensive campaign' (TCOC).



The dry weather is a favourable period for carrying out ambushes in the vast jungle terrain and this attack would have been planned by Maoists led by hardcore naxal cadre Hidma who is active in southern part of Bastar, the paramilitary official added.



However, further investigation would reveal the details, he added.



The injured have been air lifted and brought to the CRPF field hospital in Bheji and few others have been transferred to Raipur.



A special counter-Naxal team of CoBRA has been rushed to the ambush spot as reinforcement to sanitise the area and launch a search.



Another senior CRPF officer said the ambush site has very weak mobile phone connectivity and communication is being done through satellite phones.



"It is estimated that a hundred plus Maoist squad was present in the area when the ambush was launched. These are preliminary inputs. More details are awaited," the officer said.A



The deceased CRPF personnel have been identified as Inspector Jagjit Singh, Assistant Sub-inspectors H B Bhatt and Narender Kumar Singh, Head Constables Jagdish Prasad Vishnoi and P R Minde and Constables Mangesh Pal Pandey, Rampal Singh Yadav, Goraknath, Nand Kumar

Patra, Satish Kumar Verma, K Shankar and Suresh Kumar.



Constables Jaidev Parmanik and Salim are critically injured.



The CRPF is working without a regular chief for over a week now as the government has not appointed a new Director General after K Durga Prasad retired on February 28..

Chhattisgarh: According to latest information, 9 CRPF jawans have lost their lives in Maoist attack in Sukma says CM Raman Singh pic.twitter.com/lcrDL5cAyi a ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

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New Delhi:

Making a strong comeback in the state, Congress witnessed an absolute majority leaving the rivals way behind, including the debutant Aam Aadmi Party, and gave some reprieve to the party high command.

Anti-incumbency against Badals worked in state and people chose the grand old party over Aam Aadmi Party.The leadership of Captain Amarinder Singh has got blessings of the people who have high hopes on him to save the state from drugs and other major problems of the state. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a phone call to Captain Amarinder Singh and congratulated him on the win in Punjab.

On the other hand, Aam Aadmi Party, which was making tall claims before polls results, accepted the defeat and congratulated the Congress party and BJP for victory, He also thanked his volunteers and candidates for well-fought elections.

The outgoing ruling party Shiromani Akali Dal also accepted its defeat. CM Parkash Singh Badal will submit its resignation to Governor on Sunday in Chandigarh. He told that the party would discuss its defeat in the meeting of core committee.

We will discuss the reasons in the core committee meeting & analyse each aspect of our performance in the elections: Prakash Singh Badal pic.twitter.com/jnSI6VEvn1





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New Delhi:

It is a major reprieve for the Congress party as it swept the state in the assembly polls unseating SAD-BJP alliance that ruled the state for a decade. The debutant Aam AAdmi Party did not do well as it was expected from the party. Even, the exit polls results showed that AAP could give a blow to their rivals but it seems bleak in the trends.

The bigwigs like Parkash Singh Badal, Navjot Singh Sidhu and Bhagwant Mann are leading in their constituencies Lambi, Amritsar and Jalalabad respectively while it was setback for Captain Amarinder Singh and Sukhwinder Singh Badal who are trailing to Parkash Singh Badal and Bhagwant Mann respectively.

It was a major setback for the Aam Aadmi Party which had high hopes after winning four Lok Sabha seats during Lok Sabha polls in 2014.

Navjot Singh Sidhu said the party would revive from this win and it is just the beginning. He slammed Kejriwal, saying that the latter's intention was not right and it was the reason of his party's loss.

"This is the revival of the Congress, it is just the beginning. Congress will spread from here," Sidhu said while addressing a press conference over poll results.

Punjab's Chief ministerial candidate Captain Amarinder Singh hailed the victory and informed that the CLP meet has been called on Sunday. the outgoing Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said that the party will discuss the reason of its loss in the core committee.

CLP Meeting has been called tomorrow at 2 PM: Captain Amarinder Singh,Congress #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/FcYfSFCZP4  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

"We will discuss the reasons in the core committee meeting & analyse each aspect of our performance in the elections," said Parkash Singh Badal while addressing the media.

Also Read: Punjab Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

We will discuss the reasons in the core committee meeting & analyse each aspect of our performance in the elections: Prakash Singh Badal pic.twitter.com/jnSI6VEvn1  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

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New Delhi/Raipur:

Twelve CRPF personnel were on Saturday killed and their arms looted when Maoists ambushed their patrol party in the Naxal hotbed of Sukma in Chhattisgarh.



Four personnel were also injured in the Naxal attack and two of them were stated to be critical.



The incident occurred in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 kms away from the state capital, at 9:15 AM when 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task.

Chhattisgarh: Mortal remains of CRPF jawans who lost their lives in Sukma Maoist attack brought to Dr BR Ambedkar Hospital in Raipur pic.twitter.com/4hqjq0FMvz a ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

#BhejiAmbush martyr count of 219 Bn, CRPF rises to 12 as one more injured loses fight with life enroute to hospital. https://t.co/CFYfIm4jqu a CRPF (@crpfindia) March 11, 2017

A

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed sadness over the killing of CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh.

Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs & condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly a Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017



He said Home Minister Rajnath Singh will be travelling to Sukma to take stock of the situation.



"Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs & condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi tweeted.



"Spoke to Home Minister @rajnathsingh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he added.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi also strongly condemned the killing of 12 CRPF men in Sukma.



Saluting the CRPF men for their supreme and unforgettable sacrifices, Gandhi said her thoughts and prayers were with the families of the victims.



"India stands united in fight against terrorism and the government should give a befitting reply to the forces spreading terror in India," she said in a statement.



The Bhejji area in south Bastar region of the state is notorious for Naxal attacks and many security personnel have been killed here in the past.



The Naxals also looted ten weapons like INSAS and AK series assault rifles and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.



"The troops were part of the road clearing party that has been securing an under-construction road between Bhejji and Kottacheru. They were ambushed by Naxals who set off multiple hidden IEDs on the ground and opened fire. The squad effectively retaliated before twelve made theA supreme sacrifice," acting CRPF DG Sudeep Lakhtakia said.



He added that Maoists are trying to disrupt normal life and activities in this area as the Central Reserve Police Force has increased its presence here and got re-opened a local 'haat' (market) last year here after it was forcibly shut by the red ultras.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh who will be travelling to Sukma.



Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh has strongly condemned the Maoist attack and described it as a "cowardly act".



Security personnel have laid down their lives to free Bastar from violence and Maoist terror. Their sacrifice will not go in vain. "I salute theirA sacrifice," the CM said, adding ultras were frustrated with development of road network in the region.



He also extended condolences to the bereaved families.



The CRPF chief and senior officials are also rushing to Raipur.



A senior Chhattisgarh official said that the road opening party A was passing through the forests between Bhejji and Kottacheru villages when Naxals opened indiscriminate fire on them.



According to a CRPF official,?summer season is regarded as an offensive period by rebels as they observe annual 'tactical counter offensive campaign' (TCOC).



The dry weather is a favourable period for carrying out ambushes in the vast jungle terrain and this attack would have been planned by Maoists led by hardcore naxal cadre Hidma who is active in southern part of Bastar, the paramilitary official added.



However, further investigation would reveal the details, he added.



The injured have been air lifted and brought to the CRPF field hospital in Bheji and few others have been transferred to Raipur.



A special counter-Naxal team of CoBRA has been rushed to the ambush spot as reinforcement to sanitise the area and launch a search.



Another senior CRPF officer said the ambush site has very weak mobile phone connectivity and communication is being done through satellite phones.



"It is estimated that a hundred plus Maoist squad was present in the area when the ambush was launched. These are preliminary inputs. More details are awaited," the officer said.A



The deceased CRPF personnel have been identified as Inspector Jagjit Singh, Assistant Sub-inspectors H B Bhatt and Narender Kumar Singh, Head Constables Jagdish Prasad Vishnoi and P R Minde and Constables Mangesh Pal Pandey, Rampal Singh Yadav, Goraknath, Nand Kumar Patra, Satish Kumar Verma, K Shankar and Suresh Kumar.



Constables Jaidev Parmanik and Salim are critically injured.



The CRPF is working without a regular chief for over a week now as the government has not appointed a new Director General after K Durga Prasad retired on February 28.



(With inputs from PTI)

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New Delhi:

The BJP was on Saturday on course for a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and the party was locked in a close contest with Congress in Goa and Manipur.

According to trends and results available after six hours of counting of votes in the Assembly polls in the five states, the BJP, which did not have a chief ministerial face in UP, was ahead in 300 out of 403 constituencies in a stunning showing which party leaders credited to a 'Modi wave'.

As the opposition meltdown continues and Prime Minister Narendra Modi keeps driving more electoral success for BJP across the country, the experts and even the strong opposition leaders have silently agreed that indeed Modi wave exists and continues to strive.

Read | Election Results 2017: BJP sweeps Uttar Pradesh with Modi wave; Mayawati alleges voting machines were tampered

National Conference's Omar Abdullah tweeted on Saturday: "How the hell did almost all the experts/analysts miss this wave in UP? It's a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond."

In a series of tweets Abdullah expressed his opinion and suggestions for the opposition parties in India.

In a nutshell there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi & the BJP in 2019.  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

At this rate we might as well forget 2019 & start planning/hoping for 2024.  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

Punjab, Goa & Manipur would certainly suggest that the BJP isn't unbeatable but strategy needs to shift from criticism to positive alternate  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

I've said this before & I'll say it again the voter needs to be given an alternative agenda that is based on what we will do better.  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

Criticising the PM will only take us so far. The voter needs to know there is an option available to them that has a clear +ve road map.  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

How the hell did almost all the experts/analysts miss this wave in UP? It's a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond.  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

Positives for BJP - obviously UP & Uttarakhand & the overwhelming mandate. Implications for Rajya Sabha & President V/President elections.  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

Positives for Congress - Punjab & at this stage they have their nose ahead in Manipur & Goa. Big positive AAP has not emerged as alternative  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

Positives for AAP - they have emerged as a player in states outside Delhi but they were believed to be winning Punjab at this time last year  Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) March 11, 2017

The phenomenon of Modi wave originated during the Lok Sabha elections of 2014 and it was meant for just that and as soon as elections were over, the critics started challenging whether the Modi-wave will continue to give mileage to the BJP.

But, except Delhi and Bihar, the BJP kept on winning elections after elections across the country right from civic body polls to the magical victory in Uttar Pradesh.

Critics say that Modi has been a polarising figure and he believes in divisive politics. But the thing Modi does well is that he keeps his focus on his voters and followers only with talks about development and corruption. He doesnt do anything that disappoints his fan base. He would rather play silent and even encourage his haters to bark more. And by this strategy his gains both ways.

Read | UP election results 2017: Modi wave resurrects, BJP heads towards clear majority

In his speechs, he talks about himself and his government, and his opponents also talk about him and his government to criticise him. And this may the biggest reason why the opposition leaders fail to get support during elections.

The Opposition needs to understand that Modi doesnt lose heart with hate speeches against him as he just loves to retaliate with phrase like 'jitna kichhad uchhaloge, kamal utna hi kamal khilega' (the more you throw mud, more the lotus will grow).

There is a list of leaders who have launched personal attacks on Modi, and by doing that they played the most significant role in the making of the Modi-wave, which is just refusing to fade even since he has spent almost three years in the central government.

One important thing which goes in Modi's favour is that he always talk about corruption-free India and development, and there is not a single charge of corruption against him till now.

Read | Uttarakhand Results 2017: BJP to form goverment with clear majority

His opponents come together to just one thing  blame Modi and deny that any Modi wave exists.

From Akhilesh to Rahul Gandhi and from Sonia Gandhi to Mulayam Singh, all of them accuse Modi for being communal, but the voters have stopped believing in them it seems.

One big thing which people like about Modi is he focuses more on giving a bigger picture to people  the need for development and economic growth.

Modi's opponents do blame him saying he believes in marketing strategy only. There's nothing wrong if his marketing has shown excellence.

Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Marketing strategy works only when it doesn't get support from the leader's excellence. Aab ki baar Modi sarkar and Achhe din phrases were two biggest examples of marketing which clicked for Modi in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. That marketing wouldnt have worked if Modi was not loved by people.

The faith people of India have, however, gets reciprocated by Modi's words and action in government  which is why there is a Modi TsuNaMo.

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New Delhi/Lucknow:

haratiya Janata Party workers have started celebrations in Lucknow as the party has gained massive leads in morning trends of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections results.

At 9:30am, from 331 seats the trends gave BJP+ lead on 225 seats, while SP-Congress alliance was struggling with lead on only 62 seats. And Mayawatis BSP is trailing with lead on just 36 seats.

Pundits credit BJPs performance to massive Modi wave in the state induced by innumerable rallies and roadshows by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The counting for 403 seats assembly will conclude by 5 pm on Saturday.

Celebrations in Lucknow as BJP leading in Uttar Pradesh. #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/XzbxNV8WgJ  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

BJP workers start celebrations across the nation as party inches closer to clean sweep in UP#UPelectionResults#ElectionResults2017 pic.twitter.com/XQf6WdNTxh  News Nation (@NewsNationTV) March 11, 2017

BJP leading in Uttar Pradesh: Party workers celebrate in Kanpur. #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/KfE5Dv10iq  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017





Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

UP Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Uttarakhand Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Punjab Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Goa Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

Manipur Assembly Election Results 2017: Full Coverage

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Kiev:

Ukraines army reported on Saturday, two soldiers killed in clashes with Russian-backed rebels, in a new uptick in violence across eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told reporters that two servicemen were killed and another 16 wounded in the past 24 hours, accusing insurgents of using heavy weapons against government troops.

A rebel spokesman in the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic meanwhile said that one of its fighters had been killed, the rebels news agency reported.

The latest casualties along eastern Ukraines volatile frontline come despite the warring sides announcing a truce deal in February that has failed to stop the violence entirely.

International monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said on Friday that they had recorded double the number of ceasefire violations compared to the previous week.

The deputy head of the OSCEs monitoring mission, Alexander Hug, said on Friday that 16 civilians had been killed in the region since the start of the year.

The OSCE said on Saturday that two mortar rounds had exploded near its monitors cars in a rebel-controlled village northwest of the government-held city of Mariupol yesterday.

No monitors were injured in the incident, the OSCE said.

Nearly 10,000 people have been killed since the start of a pro-Russian insurgency in 2014 which Kiev and the West accuse Moscow of masterminding.

That conflict, and Russias annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, have pushed ties between Moscow and the West to their lowest point since the Cold War.

For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Scientists warn a massive earthquake is on the horizon for California

Should Californians start preparing for a potentially massive earthquake thats looming on the horizon? Going by data presented in a recent study, it may be a good idea, if not now then at least some time in the not so distant future.

The study shows how a 7.4 tremblor could potentially rupture underneath Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego Counties, producing an earthquake that would be 30 times more powerful than the 6.4 magnitude quake of 1933 in Long Beach, which claimed the lives of 120 people.

But reaching the status of a 7.4 magnitude earthquake would not necessarily be easy. Indeed, certain circumstances would have to be in place to bring about a natural disaster of such epic proportions. Besides rupturing the Newport-Inglewood fault in Los Angeles and Orange counties, the quake would also have to impact the Rose Canyon fault system. The fault system, which hasnt been ruptured since roughly 1650, runs entirely through downtown San Diego. (RELATED: What caused Oklahomas recent record-breaking earthquake?)

Valerie Sahakian, the lead author of the study, explained that these two fault zones are actually one continuous fault zone. Sahakian wrote the study while working towards her doctorate degree at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. She is now a research geophysicist working with the U.S. Geological Survey. (RELATED: Scientists warn that massive earthquakes may be right around the corner.)

While scientists in the past have reported that the gaps between the two faults reached as far as 3 miles apart, this new study indicates that the gaps are actually much closer at 1.25 miles apart. Sahakian explained that this is the reason the two faults are actually characterized as one continuous fault.

Caltech seismologist Egill Hauksson said that even though there was already an existing consensus that the two faults were actually one, we now have real evidence that this is the case.

Because of the geographic location of the faults on a map, it was very difficult to prove this to be true. So in the year 2013, Scripps researchers traveled out in boats and spent over 100 days collecting data. In the end, they were able to create a rather detailed map of the sea floor using technology that is similar to sonar used by submarines.

While the study serves as a horrifying reminder that San Diego and Orange County could one day be destroyed by a massive earthquake, the chances that it will happen anytime soon are slim. In our lifetime, the chances of a tremblor on the Newport-Inglewood/Rose Canyon fault are less than the chances of a tremblor on the southern San Andreas Fault.

So while Californians are safe from a devastating 7.4 magnitude earthquake for now, the information presented in this study is still worth taking into consideration.

Sources

LAtimes.com

OnlineLibrary.Wiley.com

Submit a correction >>
UNCASVILLE - As far as a musical journey goes, Florida Georgia Line only gets you as far as the South Carolina border.

But at times its a fun ride.

One of the hottest country rock bands out there, the two-man front of Brian BK Kelley and Tyler Hubbard certainly bring plenty to the table.

Thats what made the show - part of the bands Dig Your Roots tour -- running out of gas short of arrival so disappointing.

The band appeared Friday night at the Mohegan Sun Arena and repeated their efforts on Saturday with a pair of sold-out shows.

Both Kelley and Hubbard, who found each other while students at Belmont College, are talented. Theyre good-looking. They can sure sing. And they command the stage with a presence that makes you want to watch them and root for a good show.

During Friday nights show at Mohegan, they burst onto the stage with flames afire - literally - as they belted out their hit song This Is How We Roll.

By the time they got into Round Here it appeared the two were in sync and a special night be on the horizon.

Alas, though, the momentum failed to keep building.

Its only been nine years since Kelley, who hails from Florida, and Hubbard, who is from Georgia, joined forces in college.

According to the bands bio, they were discovered by Nickelback producer Joey Moi at a country fair.

The two definitely come off as appreciative of their growing legion of fans, but perhaps it is their youth as headlining performers that leaves them just short of giving those fans a mind-blowing night to remember.

Dont get me wrong. Florida Georgia Line put on a good show, but they said they wanted to blow the roof of the and, well, in the long run it barely rattled.

The opening nine-song run peaked with a good, solid version of God, Your Mama and Me and then Hubbard and Kelley went to the far end of the arena for an acoustical set of songs for those party people in the cheaper seats.

Its a bit of a cliche move nowadays, but the fans up back certainly deserve an up-close look at the performers.

Added to the disappointment of those down front was the fact the pair opted to perform H.O.L.Y. - the bands current big hit - was performed with their back to a majority of the crowd, behind a raised soundboard that left some big spenders looking up at the video screens.

By the time the trio returned to the main stage, for two final songs and a three-song encore - capped by another hit, Cruise - all the momentum from the early surge was lost.

While the crowd was still appreciative, they didnt appear to be in any mood to blow the roof off of anything.

Two other critiques:

The show was played in Connecticut. While its safe to the say the crowd knew that, Hubbard reminded fans maybe a dozen times or more by not just thanking them, but saying Thank you, Connecticut over and over and over again. One or two thank yous are understandable as a band tries to connect with is audience. But considering a big portion of the house probably came from Rhode Island and Massachusetts, it got old fast.

Also, while country music and drinking go hand in hand in many cases, it appears FGLs tour was sponsored by a whiskey company whose name was brought up again and again throughout the night.

If I wanted commercials with my concerts, Id go to CMT.

In summary, Florida Georgia Line was so close to putting on an amazing show and certainly has a lot of pieces in place.
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RIDGEFIELDState Rep. John Frey (R-111) and Rep. Michael Ferguson (R-138) are asking the state legislature to set a May 5 deadline to complete its two-year budget.

The representatives joined the House Republican caucus in calling for the deadline, which is aimed at ensuring municipalities know how much state funding they will receive before they make final budget decisions. Towns usually vote on their local budgets in April or May, while the state does not finish its budget until June or later.
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SHERMAN  If you ask Thomas White, 85, what it takes to get a movie made, hell say happenstance and opportunity.

But in his case it also took an old Bentley, a leaderless theater troupe looking for work, an acquaintance with jazz great Ornette Coleman, an endorsement from Salvador Dali and the willingness to spend nearly every penny he had.

White made his only feature film, Whos Crazy?, in 1965. After a handful of screenings the following year in the back alleys of the prestigious Cannes Film Festival  where it put famed director Jean-Luc Godard to sleep  he managed to show it less than a dozen times over the next couple of years. Finally he shelved it.

And shelved it stayed until recently, when a Coleman fan who had heard the soundtrack called White at his home in Sherman. Yes, he was the Thomas White who made the film, and yes, he still had it  in a box in his closet.

Since its rediscovery, Whos Crazy?" has been heralded as a lost masterwork of French New Wave cinema. It got its second premiere Friday at Lincoln Center and will be screened repeatedly over the next several days.

The story of Whites film  in which a bus carrying inmates of an insane asylum breaks down in the Belgian countryside, where they briefly create a new society in an abandoned farmhouse  is as crazy as anything in its plot.

The expats

The story opens in Paris in 1964.

White was a scrawny 33-year-old American who had been traveling around Europe for years when he heard that the New York-based Living Theater troupe had left the U.S. after tax problems ensnared its leaders, actress Judith Malina and poet Julian Beck. The 25 actors needed work.

When they arrived, who was waiting for them? White asked. Me.

White had $50,000 and a 33-page script for what would become Whos Crazy? He hired the Living Theater group to act in the film, and they set off for Belgium in the Bentley, a beat-up Chrysler and a borrowed bus for 10 days of shooting.

They followed the script as far as it went, but largely improvised. Actors played inmates who cooked a lavish meal, staged poetry exhibitions, experimented with fire and even pretended to get married before being rounded up and sent back to the asylum.

White edited the film and screened it at a film festival in Switzerland that year. No one seemed to like it, so he decided to re-edit it while searching for someone willing to do a soundtrack on the cheap.

A saxophonist and jazz fan, White had been introduced to Coleman, who was also living in Paris. They even played together occasionally, and he knew that Coleman, though a major figure in jazz, was not a rich man.

I remember he told me that he had earned only $3 in royalties, White said.

So he gave Coleman $3,000  just about all the money I could possibly afford  and a print of the film.

The making of the soundtrack was taped for a TV documentary by British filmmaker Dick Fontaine, who kept his cameras rolling for three days as Coleman and his band worked their way through the film scene by scene. White also appears, sometimes giving directions, sometimes squabbling with the band.

When the soundtrack was finished, White had it added to the film, along with French subtitles.

Eager to show Whos Crazy? again, White decided to invite Dali, the surrealist painter and sometime filmmaker, who also lived in Paris. He thought the subject might appeal to Dali, who had once been quoted as saying, There is only one difference between a madman and me: The madman thinks he is sane; I know I am mad.

Surprisingly, Dali showed up for the screening. But the subtitles were out of sync, so what the actors said never quite matched the words on the screen.

Perhaps for that very reason, Dali liked what he saw. On his way out of the theater, he stopped to talk to White.

Those kind of crazy people  those are the people I was afraid Id be, Dali said.

On the strength of Dalis endorsement, White was invited to Cannes. But before he could show the film in such a setting, he had to get it properly synced.

He was nearly out of money, but he still had a way of encouraging people to think he had plenty.

I managed to inspire confidence in all the people I couldnt pay by driving around in a Bentley, he said.

He got a film lab to agree to redo the film without advance payment. The new print, however, wasnt ready until 11 a.m. of the day Whos Crazy? was set to show in Cannes. And while the lab was willing to let him have the print, it wouldnt part with the negative until he paid his bill.

With just hours to get the film to Cannes, more than 500 miles away, White tried to get an airline ticket to nearby Nice. Flights were sold out, so he started haranguing private pilots. One finally agreed to take what little money he had left to fly him to Nice.

When they got to the Nice airport  just half an hour before the 6 p.m. showing  his contact was waiting on the tarmac. White dropped the film canisters into the mans arms and off the man went.

The movie arrived just in time, and nobody was the wiser, White said.

Whos Crazy? had three screenings at Cannes, but got none of the buzz that marks success at a film festival. Godard, whose endorsement could have been the making of the film, fell asleep watching it. Richard Lester, who directed the Beatles Help and A Hard Days Night," asked White about his next movie but showed little interest in this one.

White managed to get the film shown a few more times elsewhere in Europe, but still no buzz. He had no better luck after returning to the States in 1968. He remembers at one point lugging a cardboard box full of film canisters through Greenwich Village,and getting no takers.

Eventually he gave up and put the film away. He settled in Buffalo, N.Y., and made a living producing commercials. In 1988, he and his wife, Nancy Astor White, a photographer, moved to Sherman to raise horses.

At one point he posted a clip from "Whos Crazy? online, but it still generated no interest.

Meanwhile, the documentary about his collaboration with Coleman appeared periodically on British and American television.

White eventually sold Coleman's soundtrack, which developed its own cult following among the jazzmans devotees. But the film of which it was a part was eventually considered lost."

Stateside

Then, about two years ago, White got a call from Vanessa McDonnell, a Coleman fan and film programmer for an art house in Brooklyn.

McDonnell, 36, had heard about Who's Crazy? and wanted to show it as a remembrance of Coleman, who died in June 2015. She had talked to collectors and even an expert in the Library of Congress in an attempt to find the film, but everyone had told her it was lost. She refused to give up.

I was obsessed, McDonnell said. I kind of went down the rabbit hole.

She hunted online for Thomas Whites in a certain age range and started making calls, first in New York and, when that turned up nothing, in nearby states.

It was around the 35th call that she finally found the right Thomas White. He invited her to visit.

McDonnell and John Klacsmann of Anthology Film Archives drove to Sherman and watched the film.

The print was dirty, with bad splices, scratches and snapped sprocket holes, but McDonnell thought it was pretty astounding nonetheless.

Klacsmann was able to restore the print and make a digital version, which has had several screenings since early 2016.

Finally, the critics took note.

As it turns out, Whos Crazy? is  well, I hesitate to use the M-word, masterwork, because mastery is beside the point  but its a cinematic thrill, an artistic achievement that deserves an honored place in the history books, wrote the New Yorkers Richard Brody.

Recently, Kino Lorber  an art-house company similar to archival giants Criterion Collection and Janus Films  decided to distribute the movie  a stamp of approval that helped get it onto the radar of the Lincoln Center Film Society.

McDonnell was thrilled.

Im just so happy Thomas can get the recognition he so deserves as an artist, she said.

And White, who says he always thought the film was special, is overwhelmed by the long-delayed response to the great artistic work of his life.

Im not damned by faint praise anymore, he said. Im really getting some pretty good reviews. I think some of those reviews  other filmmakers would die for."

blytton@hearstmediact.com; 203-731-3411; @bglytton
Chinas state media reports that that the fifth-generation J-20 stealth fighter has been put into active military service and this is two years earlier than previously expected. Chinas military has not confirmed this.

Military insiders said the appearance of J-20s in the air force was meant as a warning to Japan and South Korea, which are expected to buy US F-35 stealth fighters now that China has equally advanced warplanes.

The J-20 stealth fighter has weaker engines and is not as stealthy as the US F-22. However, the J-20 would be able to put US Aircraft carriers at risk and would be able to attack refueling planes and AWAC radar planes.

Thursdays report did not provide details on where the fighter will likely be deployed.

Video footage aired by CCTV afternoon produced J-20 fighters alongside PLA Y-20 transport planes and H-6K bombers. The broadcast did not say how many J-20s were operational.

The report said the new aircraft had joined joint drills with troops, rocket forces and the navy.

A source close to the PLA said the J-20s were all equipped with home-made WS-15 engines, but because the engine had not entered mass production, only a few J-20s were available for service.

There are still a series of technical problems that need to be tackled [on the J-20], including the reliability of its WS-15 engines, [and the planes] control system, stealth coat and hull materials and infrared sensor, Said the source, who requested anonymity

In the US as a result of the US deploying a batch of F-35s in Japan in January, and South Korea planning to have 40 F-35s in 2018, its urgent for China to show off its achievements as soon as possible, the source said, adding That more J-20s would join the PLA this year.

The J20 has radar-absorbent paint, a redesigned canopy, redesigned external features such as air intakes and wheel doors, and  most importantly  a new nose to accommodate an active electronically scanned radar (AESA). A gold standard among modern fighters, AESA radars create discrete beams of radio waves that allow detection without revealing the aircraft carrying ita key requirement for stealth aircraft.

The fighter jets engines has proven a problem for China. The J-20 needs two powerful, high-performance engines to supercruise  aviation jargon for cruising above the speed of sound with a full load of weapons and fuel. Chinas aviation industry has lagged far behind those of the West and Russia in the development of high-performance jet engines. Early J-20 models are flying with imported Russian AL-31FN engines, as its predecessor plane, the J-10, did, but production aircraft are expected to fly with domestically built Xian WS-15 engines offering 50 percent more thrust.

But what exactly is this plane for? A twin-engine aircraft with three internal weapons bays is capable of a range of missions. One potential use for the J-20 is as a long-range strike aircraft, capable of penetrating enemy air defense networks to launch missiles against high-value ground targets such as airfields, command and control bases, and other military installations.

Aviation analysts Mike Yeo and Chris Pocock believe that based on the emphasis on frontal-aspect low visibility the J-20 is meant to be a long-range interceptor. In that case, the J-20 would detect and shoot at enemy planes head-on from beyond visual range. Such a role would make the J-20s less-effective stealth from the sides and rear less of an issue than if it was intended to be a penetrating strike jet that would travel deep into enemy territory and need to be stealthy from all angles.

The J20 is less stealthy and has inferior engines compared to the US F22 and F35.

SOURCES- South China Morning Post, CCTV
General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced today that it has developed a High Energy Pulsed Power Container (HEPPC) that provides twice the energy density than existing railgun pulsed power solutions. The HEPPC can reduce the number of pulsed power containers required to launch projectiles or hybrid missiles from a railgun weapon system, providing greater flexibility for future Navy and Army railgun applications.

For the past decade, GA-EMS has provided pulsed power in support of the Navys railgun program, stated Nick Bucci, vice president Missile Defense and Space Systems at GA-EMS. Our next generation HEPPC breaks our own energy density record and exceeds the capabilities of other available railgun pulsed power container solutions. What we have packed into a 10 foot standard shipping container is equivalent to what is currently available in a 20 foot shipping container, doubling the energy density to provide greater flexibility for ship and land-based installations and maneuverability for mobile applications.

GA-EMS internally funded the development of the HEPPC in support of a Multi-mission Medium Range Railgun Weapons System, which integrates pulsed power, launcher, hybrid missile, and fire control technologies. Each HEPPC includes high energy pulsed power modules with an energy content of more than 415 kilojoules (kJ) per module. Each module utilizes GA-EMS world-record-breaking high energy density capacitors.

Early proof of concept General Atomic Pulsed power

Rendering of the pulsed power shipping container concept

Blitzer railgun pulsed power

The HEPPC represents our commitment to pioneering the development of critical power and energy technologies to support the militarys current and future operational requirements, continued Bucci. We continue to invest in and advance railgun technologies. We are performing risk reduction and technology maturation, and testing hybrid missiles under real-world conditions to provide critical capabilities needed to counter complex threats, cost effectively.

GA-EMS is advancing technology development toward multi-mission railgun weapon systems. Railguns launch hybrid missiles using electromagnetic forces instead of chemical propellants and can deliver muzzle velocities greater than twice those of conventional guns. GA-EMS railgun technology, when integrated into a weapon system that includes the launcher, high density capacitor driven pulsed power and weapon fire control system, can launch hybrid missiles with shorter time-to-target and greater effectiveness at longer range.

US Army Howitzer firing 5000 mph high velocity projectiles

An Army Howitzer is now firing a 5,000-miles per hour, high-tech, electromagnetic Hyper Velocity Projectile, initially developed as a Navy weapon, an effort to fast-track increasing lethal and effective weapons to warzones and key strategic locations, Pentagon officials said.

Firing from an Army Howitzer, the rail gun hypervelocity projectile can fire a 5,000-mile and hour projectile at enemy targets to include buildings, force concentrations, weapons systems, drones, aircraft,vehicle bunkers and even incoming enemy missiles and artillery rounds.

Howitzer firing high velocity projectile

The Navy is evaluating whether to mount its new Electromagnetic Rail Gun weapon from the high-tech DDG 1000 destroyer by the mid-2020s
Tests of the second-stage engine for Russias fifth-generation PAK FA fighter jet have been delayed a year and will start in 2018. Previously trials of the PAK FA main engine were due to begin in 2017, with the entire project to be completed by 2020.

The next-generation Saturn izdeliye 30sometime referred to as the izdeliye 129are the engines for the T-50. There are few details available about the izdeliye 30 engines, but the new powerplant is expected to deliver 24,054lbs dry thrust and 39,566lbs of afterburning thrust.

With the new engine installed, the PAK-FA should be able to offer kinematic performance comparable to the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptorcruising without afterburner at speeds exceeding Mach 1.5 with a maximum speed greater than Mach 2.0 at altitudes of around 60,000ft. Performance-wise it certainly looks to compete with the Raptor, one senior military official with extensive experience on U.S. fifth-generation fighters told me some time ago.

The Russians have developed active electronically scanned array(AESA) radars, infrared sensors and excellent electronic warfare systems, one of the big questions that remain is how well the Russians have integrated the jets avionics.

The Russians will probably be able to resolve technical glitches with the PAK-FA and field a capable operational aircraft.

The main geopolitical balance of power question is how many the Russians will be able to build and when the technology would be sold to India, China or other countries.
SHAREHOLDER ALERT: Goldberg Law PC Announces an Investigation of The Toronto-Dominion Bank and Advises Investors with Losses to Contact the Firm

Goldberg Law PC announces that it is investigating The Toronto-Dominion Bank ("TD" or the "Company") (NYSE: TD) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws.

If you purchased or otherwise acquired TD shares and would like more information regarding the investigation, we encourage you to click here, or contact Michael Goldberg or Brian Schall, of Goldberg Law PC, 999 Avenue of the Stars Suite 1100, Los Angeles, CA (News - Alert) 90067, at 800-977-7401, to discuss your rights without cost to you. You can also reach us through the firm's website at http://www.Goldberglawpc.com, or by email at [email protected].







On March 10, 2017, CBC News disclosed a report regarding the pressures placed on TD Bank branch employees to sell customers unnecessary products. The report alleges current and former TD Bank employees described a working environment that has "zero focus on ethics."

When this information was revealed to investors, the value of TD fell, causing investors harm.

If you have any questions concerning your legal rights, please immediately contact Goldberg Law PC at 800-977-7401, or visit our website at http://www.Goldberglawpc.com, or email us at [email protected].

Goldberg Law PC represents shareholders around the world and specializes in securities class actions and shareholder rights litigation.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170310005739/en/
[March 10, 2017] EQUITY ALERT: Rosen Law Firm Files Securities Class Action Lawsuit Against Adeptus Health Inc.

Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, announces that it has filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of purchasers of Adeptus Health Inc. securities (NYSE:ADPT) from April 29, 2016 through March 1, 2017, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit seeks to recover damages for Adeptus investors under the federal securities laws. To join the Adeptus class action, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-1066.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. or Kevin Chan, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] or [email protected] for information on the class action. NO CLASS HAS YET BEEN CERTIFIED IN THE ABOVE ACTION. UNTIL A CLASS IS CERTIFIED, YOU ARE NOT REPRESENTED BY COUNSEL UNLESS YOU RETAIN ONE. YOU MAY ALSO REMAIN AN ABSENT CLASS MEMBER AND DO NOTHING AT THIS POINT. YOU MAY RETAIN COUNSEL OF YOUR CHOICE. According to the lawsuit, defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements ad/or failed to disclose that: (1) Adeptus had material weaknesses in its internal control over financial reporting in the areas of revenue recognition, accounts receivable, accounting for a contribution to an unconsolidated joint venture, and accounting for equity in (loss) earnings of unconsolidated joint ventures; and (2) as a result, defendants' statements about Adeptus' business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.



A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than May 9, 2017. If you wish to join the litigation, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-1066.html or to discuss your rights or interests regarding this class action, please contact Phillip Kim or Kevin Chan of Rosen Law Firm toll free at 866-767-3653 or via email at [email protected] or [email protected]. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn (News - Alert): https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm or on Twitter (News - Alert): https://twitter.com/rosen_firm.

Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170310005747/en/

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[March 10, 2017] Ameri100 acquires ATCG, a SAP Cloud services firm

PRINCETON, N.J., March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- AMERI Holdings, Inc. ("Ameri100" or the "Company") (OTCQB: AMRH), today announced the acquisition of ATCG Solutions ("ATCG"), a system integration firm specializing in providing end-to-end SAP Enterprise Cloud Services. ATCG brings deep expertise in the areas of SAP HANA, Hybris, SuccessFactors and Business Intelligence. This acquisition reinforces Ameri100's position as a leading global systems integrator and service provider across the entire SAP product portfolio. ATCG Solutions, founded in 2013 and based in Folsom, California, will strengthen Ameri100's SAP cloud service capabilities and presence in the U.S. market. "We are excited about the acquisition of ATCG, which, in a short span of time, has established itself as a strong player in the high-growth SAP Cloud services segment. The combination of ATCG and Ameri100 will allow us to better serve our combined customers worldwide," said Giri Devanur, President and CEO of Ameri100. "With this acquisition, Ameri100 has successfully completed 8 acquisitions since its inception with several attractive target firms in the pipeline," he added. Brent Kelton, CEO of ATCG Solutions and now Ameri100 Executive Vice President and Head of Sales, commented, "ATCG has been able to establish itself as a prominent player in the SAP consulting market with its cloud services. This combination will bring to both ATCG and Ameri100 customers expanded skills and a deep knowledge base that leverages Ameri100's global partner network and capabilities." Lokesh Sikaria, Managing Partner of Moneta Ventures, a majority stakeholder in ATCG Solutions, commented, "We see a perfect complement of services and markets served between ATCG and Ameri100, one that augurs well for clients and employees of both companies." With the acquisition of ATCG, Ameri100 continues to demonstrate its commitment to strengthening its capabilities in SAP services and premium consulting to transform businesses through strategic growth. Ameri100, through both organic growth and strategic acquisitions, has a goal of achieving an annualized revenue run-rate of $100 million by the end of 2017. About AMERI Holdings, Inc. AMERI Holdings, Inc. is a SAPglobal systems integrator that enables clients to achieve business value through SAP solutions. Ameri100 combines business strategy and deep technical implementation expertise to provide premium SAP digital services to exceptional companies globally. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, with offices in New York, Atlanta, Dallas, Phoenix, Kansas City and Toronto, as well as offshore centers in Bangalore, Mumbai and Chennai India, the Company is a global leader in consulting and technology solutions. Ameri100 is a Lean Enterprise Architecture Partner (LEAP), enabling clients to outperform the competition and stay ahead of the innovation curve. The Company leverages a global partner ecosystem that has deep knowledge and skills to provide innovative solutions for clients. For further information, visit www.ameri100.com.



About ATCG Solutions ATCG Solutions provides its clients with a wide range of information technology development, consultancy and managed services with an emphasis on the design, build and rollout of SAP solutions and related products. ATCG has dedicated practices and solutions focused on SAP Hybris, SAP BI/BW on HANA, SAP S/4 HANA, SAP SuccessFactors and SAP Managed Services. Headquartered in Folsom, California, ATCG prides itself on the high quality and experience of its consultants and the timeliness with which it delivers project based solutions. ATCG is a certified SAP Services Partner with additional partner designations specific to SAP SuccessFactors and SAP Hybris. ATCG has offices in Folsom, CA, Irvine, CA, Houston, TX, Dallas, TX, Baton Rouge, LA, and an offshore center in Noida, India.

Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes forward-looking statements that relate to the business and expected future events or future performance of Ameri100 and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause its actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Words such as, but not limited to, "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "targets," "likely," "will," "would," "could," and similar expressions or phrases identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements about Ameri100's financial and growth projections as well as statements concerning our plans, predictions, estimates, strategies, intentions, beliefs and other information concerning our business and the markets in which we operate. The future performance of Ameri100 may be adversely affected by the following risks and uncertainties: the level of market demand for our services, the highly-competitive market for the types of services that we offer, market conditions that could cause our customers to reduce their spending for our services, our ability to create, acquire and build new businesses and to grow our existing businesses, our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel, currency fluctuations and market conditions around the world, and other risks not specifically mentioned herein but those that are common to industry. For a more detailed discussion of these factors and risks, investors should review Ameri100's reports on Form 10-K and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which can be accessed through the SEC's website. Forward-looking statements in this press release are based on management's beliefs and opinions at the time the statements are made. All forward- looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement, and Ameri100 undertakes no duty to update this information to reflect future events, information or circumstances. Press Contact Carlos Fernandez

100 Canal Pointe Blvd, Suite 108 Princeton, NJ 08540

Phone: (732) 243-9250

Email: [email protected] To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ameri100-acquires-atcg-a-sap-cloud-services-firm-300422165.html SOURCE Ameri100

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SHAREHOLDER ALERT: Goldberg Law PC Announces an Investigation of Desarrolladora Homex S.A.B. de C.V. and Advises Investors with Losses to Contact the Firm

Goldberg Law PC announces that it is investigating Desarrolladora Homex S.A.B. de C.V. ("Desarrolladora" or the "Company") (formerly NYSE: HXM; formerly OTCMKTS: DHOXQ; formerly OTCMKTS: DHOXY) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws.

If you purchased or otherwise acquired Desarrolladora shares and would like more information regarding the investigation, we encourage you to click here, or contact Michael Goldberg or Brian Schall, of Goldberg Law PC, 1999 Avenue of the Stars Suite 1100, Los Angeles, CA (News - Alert) 90067, at 800-977-7401, to discuss your rights without cost to you. You can also reach us through the firm's website at http://www.Goldberglawpc.com, or by email at [email protected].







The SEC (News - Alert) revealed that Homex agreed to settle charges that it announced artificial sales of more than 100,000 homes with the intention of increasing revenues.

According The SEC, the Company inflated the amount of homes purchased during a three-year period by about 317% and overstated its revenue by 355% (or approximately $3.3 billion). It was delisted from the New York Stock Exchange in May 2014.

If you have any questions concerning your legal rights, please immediately contact Goldberg Law PC at 800-977-7401, or visit our website at http://www.Goldberglawpc.com, or email us at [email protected].

Goldberg Law PC represents shareholders around the world and specializes in securities class actions and shareholder rights litigation.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170310005753/en/
[March 10, 2017] ViON Cloud Experts Address Market as Fears Rise from Recent AWS S3 Outage

ViON Corporation, a market leader in the design, delivery and maintenance of mission critical IT infrastructure solutions, today released new guidance for organizations as they re-evaluate their cloud strategy in light of the widespread AWS outage last week. As a long-term advisor in cloud computing for agencies and commercial enterprises, ViON is sharing the content throughout their network to help customers and non-customers gain stability amid a perfect storm of questions across the market. "The outage shines a light on the vulnerability that IT managers and c-level executives face in business operations and data management - and we realize what a tremendous responsibility it is to plan for and anticipate all the possibilities," explained Rob Davies, Executive Vice President of Operations. "We've served these leaders for many years and we feel it's important to continue serving this community with sound advice and information as the stakes rise higher and higher." The company has authore new blog (www.vion.com/blog/) and other content available on its website (www.vion.com) to help organizations evaluate the cloud landscape and the trades-offs associated with public vs. private cloud as well as the cost implications. Additionally, ViON's cloud team addresses proper preparedness and redundancy models to help the market avoid disruption. This is the beginning of series of information the company plans to provide to support the market in understand and adopting best practices for cloud architecture.



About ViON Corporation (News - Alert) ViON Corporation designs, delivers and maintains mission-critical IT infrastructure solutions on an enterprise scale for the military, governments and commercial businesses. ViON is well known for its cost-effective compute, network and storage capabilities, delivered on premise or through the cloud anywhere on earth. Supported by cleared resources that are highly trained and armed with the industry's latest certifications and specializations, ViON has a legacy of helping its customers meet business goals and mission objectives, support warfighters and deliver citizen services and drive innovation and business growth. The veteran-owned business is located in Herndon, Virginia with field offices throughout the United States. For more information visit www.vion.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170310005763/en/

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WHY:

Everyone knows someone who has been impacted by childhood cancer. The deVere brothers host this yearly event in honor of their father, Dr. Ralph deVere White M.D., a Senior Advisor Emeritus with U.C. Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center. Through their efforts, the brothers have raised more than $1.5 million for cancer research. Their passion has inspired celebrity head-shaving participants and fueled the friendly rivalry with Mulvaney. According to Henry deVere: "Simon and I look forward to another successful St. Baldrick's and to summer vacation. We've been taking Patrick Mulvaney to school all month."
[March 11, 2017] Actor Dhanush's Directorial Debut - Power Paandi Music Released, Tops Charts

CHENNAI, India, March 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Power Paandi, the Tamil feature film starring Raj Kiran, written and directed by leading actor Dhanush with music by Sean Roldan had its music release online on 9th March 2017. The movie is produced by Wunderbar Films, run by its promoters Dhanush and Aishwarya Rajinikant Dhanush. The album has been receiving rave reviews from critics and audiences on social media, and topped the iTunes Tamil charts within 11 hours of release and continues to remain so. Dhanush, who has featured in over 30 films, has collaboraed with music director Sean Roldan, who debuted in 2014 and had given music to critically acclaimed movie Joker (2016) which won accolades and awards for its music (Best Music from Norway Film Festival). Dhanush has also written lyrics for 2 of the songs and sang in 1. Directors Selvaraghavan (Dhanush's brother) and Rajumurgan (Of Joker and Cuckoo fame) have also penned lyrics for the album. It's also to be noted that Dhanush has now written over 32 songs, including viral hit 'Why This Kolaveri' and the blockbuster album of 2014 'VIP' (Velai Illa Pattadhari). The lbum has been released by Wundebar Films' own label Wunderbar Studios via their digital and music partner Divo. This is Wunderbar Studio's 6th release in the last 3 years and has garnered over 300 million streams (audio/video) which led to change the trend, especially in Tamil film's music industry to retain music rights and distribute via Divo, who has now worked with over 100+ films in South India in a similar model, including 2016's biggest Tamil Hit AR Rahman's 'Achcham Yenbadhu Madaiyamada', and Kannada's biggest hit of 16-17 'Kirik Party'.



According to Shahir Muneer, founder and director of Divo, Dhanush was a trendsetter way back in 2014. He was able to see the potential in digital media, and wanted to create presence in the space, especially for film, from his own production house. This came at a time when music majors were ruling the market and there was no option for releasing an album other than through them, and agree to their mandates. Divo enabled not only for Dhanush to retain the copyright and generate income and royalties for his albums and works, but also enabled a 360 degree digital presence including enabling his official social media presence on Facebook, etc. About Divo TV Private Limited

A digital media company based in Chennai, India, founded by Shahir Muneer in 2013 is a private limited firm started as a startup YouTube network . The company today works as an online video network with over 2 billion views with their content partners which include Film Production Houses, TV Channels and Independent creators mainly in Tamil and Kannada for the online video distribution, monetization and rights management. As a music distributor and publisher, Divo is among top 3 players along with the majors for releases 2014 onwards in Tamil music. Divo is also a digital marketing company managing social media assets of multiple celebs and brands from South lndia like Dhanush, Kamal Haasan, AR Murugadoss, to name few.

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President Muhammadu Buhari is happy to be back home hale and hearty, but he has a medical advice for all Nigerians which we should not...

President Muhammadu Buhari is happy to be back home hale and hearty, but he has a medical advice for all Nigerians which we should not miss in the euphoria of his return.I think one of our terrible things is self-drug administration, he noted in his address while speaking with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and other top government officials on Friday.I cant remember this drug that Nigerians take so much, very commonHaving received good treatment which is obviously not available in the country, Buhari said we have to trust our doctors more and trust ourselves moreAccording to the President over there they only take drugs when it is absolutely necessary. They dont just swallow everything.While noting the technological advancement in medical treatment in United Kingdom, Buhari said  I found out that technology is going so fast that if you have a lot of confidence you better keep it because you need it.Blood transfusions, going to the laboratories, and so on and so forth, but I am very pleased that we, when I say we I mean the government and the people all over are trying to keep with technology, he added.
The Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr. Victor Ndoma- Egba, has said the return of President Muhammadu Buhari...

The Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr. Victor Ndoma- Egba, has said the return of President Muhammadu Buhari to the country after his medical vacation in the United Kingdom is a great relief from anxiety.In a statement issued by the head of his media team, Ms Clara Braide, in Abuja on Friday, Ndoma-Egba said the absence of the President from the country had understandably generated anxiety.We thank God that the President is back and ready to return to the challenge of nation building, the NDDC chairman said.Ndoma-Egba congratulated Vice President Yemi Osinbajo for what he described as capable manner in steering the ship of the state during the Presidents absence.He (Osinbajo) has demonstrated that he is a loyal and competent vice-president and that there is only one presidency, he said.NAN
Mr. Osita Okechukwu, on Saturday fired back at Mr. Reno Omokri, an ex-aide of former President Goodluck Jonathan, over his recent verbal ...

Mr. Osita Okechukwu, on Saturday fired back at Mr. Reno Omokri, an ex-aide of former President Goodluck Jonathan, over his recent verbal attacks on President Muhammadu Buhari.The Director General of the Voice of Nigeria,In Renos recent statement, he had asked Buhari to be a ceremony president and allow his Vice, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo perform the duties of the President, especially in relation to the economy.However, in an interview on Saturday, the VON DG said Reno had actually shown that he was a non-democrat, who was suffering from the bazaar era of former President Jonathan.He said, I have my sympathy for Reno; he was one of the greatest beneficiaries of Jonathans bazaar; he lost the bazaar but he still remembers the bumper years of sharing budget fund.I see him as one suffering from the nostalgia of a bazaar era; now he is in the fridge, he has to see everybody as enemy; we dont expect anything different from what he is doing.He was in the publicity team of Jonathan; now that the bazaar has collapsed, he resorted to throwing stones.From his latest statement, we can even see that he is not a democrat; he would have known that we have nothing like acting President in Nigerias Constitution.On President Buharis return, Okechukwu said God had shown rumour mongers that death and life belonged to him.We thank God so much; for us in the Christiandon, we have a song that He gathers whole world in His hands; so we rely on Him, every one of us.If we want to be honest, we have our own drugs in our hands; some are carrying drugs for hypertension, some for diarrhea, diabetes, constant malaria, some for cancer; its only God that keeps us alive.President Buhari is not the person that is sick; so, we pray to God to guide and keep him.We need him in this country because even though we all believe in the sovereignty of this country, he epitomizes it. His being alive will strengthen democracy, strengthen the unity and progress on the country, he stated.Meanwhile, the Buhari Support Organization, (BSO) Enugu State Chapter, has also expressed delight over the Presidents return.In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Eze Chibueze, the BSO thanked the Almighty God for his return, stating that it has reinforced our infinite confidence in Almighty God, the one in his hands the world rests. And on the worldly sphere his return has put an end to unwarranted suspense, anxiety and all manner of rumours from traducers some of whom wished him dead.BSO Enugu State in league with patriots and well meaning Nigerians had maintained that the life of any of us rests squarely in the hands of God.We subscribe to the ageless folklore which posits a scenario that while women in the village were anxiously waiting for the old dry tree to fall in the harmattan, to be used as firewood, year in and year out the harmattan came and went, the old tree stood its ground whereas the fresh young trees fell with the rain.In sum, we pray that Mr President reflects the old tree cited above so that the quiet Buhari revolution aimed at laying a solid foundation for a transparent, prosperous and progressive Nigeria will be consummated, the group further stated.
South Koreas President Park Geun-hye has finally lost the battle to stay in office as the constitutional court has upheld her impeachment...

South Koreas President Park Geun-hye has finally lost the battle to stay in office as the constitutional court has upheld her impeachment by the parliament.She was indicted over a graft scandal involving big business, including Samsung, that has gripped the country for months.Geun-hye, the first woman to be elected president also becomes South Koreas first democratically elected leader to be forced from office.A presidential election will be held in 60 days, according to the constitution.We remove Park Geun-hye from office, Lee Jung-mi, acting president of the court, told the hearing.Her actions betrayed the peoples confidence. They are a grave violation of law which cannot be tolerated.The ruling to uphold parliaments December 9 vote to impeach Geun-hye over an influence-peddling scandal is the most dramatic twist in a political crisis that has gripped the country for months, Reuters reported.The political crisis has come at a time when rival North Korea is pushing ahead with its missile programme and tension is brewing with China over a US missile-defense system being deployed in South Korea.The Seoul markets benchmark KOSPI index KS11 rose after the ruling.As the saga is coming to an end, markets will be relieved that South Korea finally can push forward to press ahead with electing new leadership, said Trinh Nguyen, senior economist at Natixis in Hong Kong.And the hope is that this will allow the country to have a new leader that can address long-standing challenges such as labor market reforms and escalated geopolitical tensions.Geun-hye, 65, was accused of colluding with a friend, Choi Soon-sil, and a former presidential aide, both of whom have been on trial, to pressure big businesses to donate to two foundations set up to back her policy initiatives.She was also accused of soliciting bribes from the head of the Samsung Group for government favours, including backing a merger of two Samsung affiliates in 2015 that was seen as supporting the succession of control over the countrys largest chaebol conglomerate.Geun-hye has denied any wrongdoing.Hundreds of demonstrators, both for and against Park, have gathered at the courthouse, which was barricaded by police buses.Prosecutors have named Geun-hye, who now loses her presidential immunity from prosecution, as an accomplice in two court cases linked to the scandal, suggesting she is likely to be investigated and could face legal proceedings.Geun-hye was stripped of her powers after parliament voted to impeach her but has remained in the presidents official compound, the Blue House.She did not appear in court on Friday.Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn was appointed acting president and will remain in that post until the election.The scandal has led to weekly protests by tens of thousands of people, not only those who want Geun-hye to step down but also her supporters calling for her to stay on in power.
The Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out an application filed by Senator Umar Dahiru seeking to amend the suit challenging the nomin...

The Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out an application filed by Senator Umar Dahiru seeking to amend the suit challenging the nomination and subsequent election of Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State.Senator Dahiru based his motion on the basis that the Governor was wrongly nominated by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the election which held on April 11, 2015.However, neither the plaintiff Senator Dahiru, nor Governor Tambuwal, were in court for the ruling.In his ruling, Justice Gabriel Kolawole, dismissed the application for amendment because it was not the application remitted by the Supreme Court for retrial.Justice Kolawole held that the plaintiff had claimed in his motion on notice filed on January 27, 2015 that the primary election conducted on December 4, 2014 by the APC which produced Governor Tambuwal was a sham and in gross violation of the Electoral Act 2010 and the APC Election Guidelines.He, however, said the plaintiff had then somersaulted to file a fresh motion on notice, seeking the variation of his pleadings in his earlier suit to the effect that he should be declared governor based on the same primary election.The judge said the plaintiff intended to steal a match which [he] originally said was null and void, and in essence to have a second bite of the cherry.On this basis, the judge consequently struck out the plaintiffs motion in its entirety.Justice Kolawole added that granting the application will occasion injustice on the part of the first and second defendants because the motion on notice did not intend to cure any misnomer.He highlighted that granting the application for amendment of the reliefs would change the nature and character of the case file which the Supreme Court had remitted to the High Court for retrial.The judge ruled that in view of the fact that the application is dismissed, the case file has become empty and there is nothing to adjourn or be heard, adding that the suit is struck out and has been dismissed.While counsel to the defendants, Jubrin Okutekpa, applaud the ruling, lawyer to Senator Dahiru, Abdulhamid Mohammed, said they would study the judgement for the next step to take.
The Edo State Government has declared seven days mourning for the death of former Military Governor of defunct Mid-West State and defunct ...

The Edo State Government has declared seven days mourning for the death of former Military Governor of defunct Mid-West State and defunct Bendel State, Brigadier General Samuel Ogbemudia (rtd).The State Government also announced the opening of a condolence register at the Government House in Benin City.A statement endorsed by the Chief Press Secretary, Mr John Mayaki, said interested people in the state can send in their condolences on the passing on of the renowned political leader whose strong foundation in governance helped to consolidate the infrastructural, social and economic development of both Delta and Edo states, which comprised the old Bendel State.The register will be open from 8am to 4pm for seven days starting from today, March 10 at the Government House in Benin City, as well as all the 18 local governments across the state, the statement said, adding that the condolence register will remain open on Saturday and Sunday.A spokesman for the family, Gentleman Amegor, said Dr. Ogbemudia died on Thursday night at the age of 84 at a private hospital in Lagos.While serving as Governor of the old Bendel State, Dr. Ogbemudia initiated improvements in the areas of sports, urban development, education, public transportation, housing, commerce and agriculture.
Some excited Nigerian youths took to the streets yesterday to celebrate president Muhammadu Buhari in their own way after his return from ...

Some excited Nigerian youths took to the streets yesterday to celebrate president Muhammadu Buhari in their own way after his return from medical vacation abroad. Several groups in various locations sang, drummed and danced to welcome the president.A group of youths paraded a cow which was "designed" to express support for the President as the paraded it through the streets singing Oyoyo! Baba Oyoyo!Some others killed camels and rams to celebrate the president's return.
A man simply identified as Supt. Jospeh Oppong, Crime Officer at the Madina Divisional Police in Ghana, has added a new twist to the marriage scandal between actress Tonto Dikeh and her ex-husband, Oladunni Churchill.In a video uploaded on YouTube by Ghanaian media outlet, Asempa News, Oppong could be seen reading a statement allegedly written by Churchill during one of his fights with Tonto.Churchill in the statement alleged that Tonto broke things in his Trasacco Estate house in worth $15,000 and took his gun, with which she threatened to shoot his houseboy and brother.He also claimed that the Nollywood actress came with petrol to burn the building.Few days ago, Tonto narrated the pain she faced in her marriage to Churchill, in an interview with Azuka Ogujiuba accusing him of domestic violence and adultery.
After a 50-day extended medical vacation in the United Kingdom, President Muhammadu Buhari returned to Nigeria yesterday ,saying he coul...

After a 50-day extended medical vacation in the United Kingdom, President Muhammadu Buhari returned to Nigeria yesterday ,saying he could not recollect being this sick in his 74 years on earth.He had originally planned to be away for 18 days but ended up spending 36 days more, undergoing tests, receiving treatment and resting.I couldnt recall being so sick since I was a young man, including the military with its ups and downs, Buhari told ministers and state governors at a reception for him in Abuja moments after his arrival via Kaduna.He did not reveal the ailment he was treated for, but confirmed that he got blood transfusion during the vacation.He hinted that he would be returning abroad within some weeks for further follow up.Buhari said that the poor state of the economy occupied his thoughts even in his sick bed.I am very conscious of the economy. I have rested as much as humanly possible, I have received, I think, the best of treatment I could receive, he said as he shared his experience in the UK with the audience, including Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.I found out that technology is going so fast that if you have a lot of confidence you better keep it because you need it. Blood transfusions, going to the laboratories, and so on and so forth, but I am very pleased that we, when I say we, I mean the government and the people all over are trying to keep with technology.I couldnt recall when last I had blood transfusion; I couldnt recall, honestly I can say in my 70 years. I couldnt remember this drug that Nigerians take so much, very common.I think one of our terrible things is self drug administration. We have to trust our doctors more and trust ourselves more because over there they only take drugs when it is absolutely necessary. They dont just swallow everything.Having said that, I am pleased that I am back. I am pleased that the Vice President enjoyed this break and he has to do much more this time around.Youth and intellect is squarely behind him; age and purely military experience is behind me.Continue to do the work. Nigeria will continue whether we are here or not and my single most important advice is: take the education of everybody under your responsibility very seriously. Your children, our relatives, our constituencies. Education,education,education. We must do more on education.Osinbajo: its been interesting going around in borrowed robesI deliberately came back towards the weekend, so that the Vice President will continue and I will continue to rest.The President thanked all Nigerians of all faiths who have prayed and continued to pray for his good health.This is a testimony that in spite of the hardship being experienced, Nigerians support the government in its efforts to tackle our countrys challenges, he said.The best way for me to pay you all is to rededicate myself to serving you, protecting your interest and keeping your trust. I thank you very much. I feel much better now. All I will need is to do further follow ups within some weeks.He appealed for more prayers by Nigerians especially for the countrys unity, progress and prosperity.He threw light on how he worked out his vacation with Vice President Osinbajo.When it was getting to Christmas, I told the Vice President, I knew he had a church programme therefore he had to go home, I said ok, let us do it turn by turn. You go for Christmas and the New Year and when you come back I will go. He said yes.I suspected he didnt go home. When he came back, I said ok it will be my turn in some months time. This time around I said we better do the same, I didnt know he had the same principles, but for me I feel that I was a little more tired than I probably was in last 18 months.Whatever the case, I am very grateful that Nigerians are appreciative of what all of us are doing as a group. I am very pleased with them.Speaking on behalf of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), the Vice President said: We are very grateful to God that you are back home hale and hearty.Mr.President, I must say that personally, this has been a very interesting few days for me. First I must say that I want to thank you very much for the confidence reposed in me by handing over the realm of government to me in the capacity of acting president.I think more important is that you demonstrated the belief in our system which is even more important than anything else.The constitution which we all swore to is important because it outlines the code of conduct. I want to say not only am I, but I am sure the entire nation, is grateful to you.For me, I must say that it has been an interesting period going around the nation in borrowed robes. I must say I had a very interesting and challenging time but above all, the President gave us the good support.First Lady Aisha, children, relations in happy moodAfter the reception,the President moved to his official quarters where his wife, Aisha, their children and relations had converged to set eyes on him.Photographs emerged of the President surrounded by Aisha, the children and relations ,beaming with smiles.The wife of the Vice President,Dolapo, was also there.A Presidential jet -5N-FGN- conveying Buhari, his Aide-de-Camp (ADC), Lawal Abubakar; Chief Security Officer Bashir Bindawa; Chief Police Security Officer (CPSO), Abdulkareem Dauda;and Personal Assistant one Mohammed Sabihu landed at the Nigerian Air Force Base ,Kaduna at about 7.40am yesterday.The plane could not land in Abuja because of the on-going repairs at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport.Buhari clad in a black caftan with a black cap to match walked down the plane.On hand to welcome him back were Kaduna State Deputy Governor Barnabas Yusuf Bala and other top government officials and military officers.After the airport reception, he moved into a waiting helicopter that took him to Abuja.The helicopter touched down at the Presidential Villa helipad at 8.42 a.m.He was greeted by Osinbajo and other top officials including Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara State; Chief of Staff Abba Kyari; Department of State Services Director-General Lawal Daura; National Security Adviser (NSA) Babagana Monguno; Defense Minister Mansur Dan-Ali, Service Chiefs and Permanent Secretary State House, Jalal Arabi,From the helipad, the President was driven t to the First Lady Conference Hall for the meeting with the ministers and governors.The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), John Odigie-Oyegun, Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Gamduje and Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello were already in the hall with the cabinet members waiting for the President.Information and Culture Minister Lai Mohammed described yesterday as a day of joy.The Presidents return, according to the minister, was a vindication of governments position that Buhari was alive.The Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin on behalf of the service chiefs and the armed forces also thanked God for bringing the President back.Yari welcomed the President on behalf of the 36 state governors.Buhari to inform NASS of his return on MondayBuhari is expected to transmit a letter to the National Assembly on Monday informing the legislature of his return to the country.The President in seeking the extension of his vacation in February, did not disclose when he would return to the country.His Special Adviser on Media and Publicity,Mr. Femi Adesina, said yesterday on his Twitter handle that : PMB will Monday transmit letter to N Assembly on his return to the country. That makes his return to work formal, and constitutional.
The Senate yesterday got a response from the Comptroller General of Customs, retired Col. Hameed Ali, on its summons to him to appear be...

The Senate yesterday got a response from the Comptroller General of Customs, retired Col. Hameed Ali, on its summons to him to appear before it on March 15 and to come in uniform.Ali,a former military governor of Kaduna State, agreed to appear before the Senate, but not in uniform.He declared that he is not employed to wear uniform.He told TVC that rather he was appointed to work effectively.He was summoned by the fuming senators over the new order by the Customs Service for all old vehicles to pay their customs duty.Customs offered a 60 per cent rebate for vehicles from 2015 below.But speaking in an interview on TVC, Ali said: Let me say I will appear before the Senate. With regard to uniform, certainly no.Why is it so? I was not appointed to wear uniform. I am sorry to say, I dont know why Senate is talking about uniform.The Senate, in a motion raised by Senator Dino Melaye on Thursday, summoned him to appear before it in uniform to explain why Customs has not suspended its Customs policy on vehicle duty despite the directive of the lawmakers.But, according to him, what should be a concern to the National Assembly in its oversight function, is whether he is performing his duty, and not whether I am in uniform or not.He, however, noted that at the time of the interview, he was yet to receive any letter of invitation from the Senate.He stressed that he would honour the lawmakers invitation, should they follow due process to summon him, but certainly not through the media.His words: There is a procedure for inviting members of the executive to appear to the Senate. If that procedure is followed, we will abide by that procedure. No member of the executive is invited on media network ,either on the television or the radio. If they follow that procedure, we will appear before them.Up to this moment, I have not seen any correspondence from the Senate in my office.He defended his appointment as Comptroller General from outside the Customs saying: In that same law, it says that there shall be deputy comptroller-generals appointed by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria from among the Nigeria Customs Service.So that gives you a very clear cut that today or any day, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria can decide to appoint a Comptroller-General outside the Nigeria Customs Service, but it cannot appoint Deputy Comptroller Generals outside the Nigeria Customs Service.He posited that the law empowers President Muhammadu Buhari to appoint the Comptroller-General from outside the organization.He claimed that some motorists use only one number plate to drive up to 20 vehicles.Explaining the genesis of the vehicle duty policy, he said that upon the ban of importation of vehicles through land boarders, the Association of Motor Dealers of Nigeria (AMDON) confessed that they had cars that were smuggled into Nigeria.The dealers, according to him, sought for assistance which led to the issue of creating a vehicle seats for their regularization.Ali said: We said that all the vehicles that were smuggled, you will bring them to a vehicle seat and regularize them. We said we would help, but you must pay the duty.
Residents of Jos and Maiduguri yesterday trooped to the streets to celebrate the return of President Muhammad Buhari to Nigeria from Lon...

Residents of Jos and Maiduguri yesterday trooped to the streets to celebrate the return of President Muhammad Buhari to Nigeria from London.Men and women, boys and girls massed on Bauchi Road, Jos, singing and dancing.The jubilation soon sparked a traffic jam.Mr. Kwajafa Hassan, a resident, described the return of Buhari as the will of God.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that some residents of Gwange, New GRA, Damboa,Borno State, went into wild celebration following the news of the Presidents return.The President is held in very high esteem in the state following the return of peace to the area which had been largely under the control of Boko Haram insurgents before his assumption of office in May 2015.Malam Isyaku Muhammad, said the prayers of Nigerians for President Buhari have not been in vain.The Borno people had embarked on fasting, prayers and supplication over the presidents health when he was announced to be sick in London.We believe that our prayers have been answered, Muhammad said.Ibrahim Bashir, who resides in Damboa road area of Maiduguri said the Presidents home coming was a huge relief after the tension over his rumoured health.The return of President Buhari is worthy of celebration; as you know the President and the Vice President were already taking steps toward resuscitating our ailing economy.We need only Buhari and his VP to continue fighting corruption and recovering all the tax payers money stashed away by corrupt politicians.Malam Sale Bulkachuwa, another resident said we must continue to pray for the President for sound health to enable him continue to fight insurgency in the country. We are so happy and our prayers remain with the president.Malam Audu Sokoto, said that President Buhari remained God chosen for the people of Nigeria.Today I am slaughtering a N50, 000 ram to celebrate Buharis return, he said.Kano residents also trooped into the streets to express their gratitude to God for the safe return of President Buhari.Some of the residents said that they were happy that the President returned to the country safely and in good health.I heard the news of his return and since then I have been very happy, because Buhari means well for our country, a resident, Lawal Garba said.Another resident, Mukhtar Dahiru-Rigachikun, said he had no words to express his happiness on the safe return of President Buhari.I have no words to express my happiness and gratitude to God for bringing him back to the country safely and in good health.The only thing I want to add is that Nigerians should thank God for returning him safely and those wishing him dead should desist from such wishful thinking, he said.He urged Nigerians irrespective of religious and political inclination to continue to pray for the sustenance of peace and unity in the country.Even diehard cynics know that Buhari has done well in tackling the security challenges which bedeviled the country especially in the Northeast region, he said.Also commenting, Malam Bala expressed happiness on the safe return of the President and advised Nigerians not to relent in their prayers for Buhari and his administration.Malam Jalaluddeen, a civil servant, expressed the hope that the President would continue with the good works he had started especially the fight against corruption and insurgency.Even though the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo has done well in his absence, they will now put heads together to move the country forward, he added.The Yoruba community in Zaria, Kaduna State, comprising Muslims and Christians yesterday offered a special joint prayer to God for the Presidents successful return.The prayer session was organised by a traditional title holder, the Wakilin Yarbawan Zazzau, Alhaji Isyaku Bello.Yoruba clerics from both faiths who converged on the residence of Wakilin Yarbawa since 7:00a.m prayed extensively for the President.Leading the prayer session, the Imam, Zaria Muslim Council, Imam Alhaji Abdurrasaq Olayiwola and Prophet Abraham Ojo (JP), said prayers heal all worries.The clergymen prayed God to bestow wisdom on President Buhari and Governor Nasiru El-Rufai of Kaduna State to enable them discharge their legitimate responsibilities effectively.They also prayed for unity amongst Nigerians and prevailing peace in Kaduna State in particular and Nigeria at large.The clerics also prayed God to heal the President, give him the wisdom, power and ability to deliver the goods successfully.In his contribution, the President-General, Yoruba Community, Chief Isaac Otolorin lauded the efforts of the organiser of prayer for his foresight.Otolorin stressed the need for all Nigerians irrespective of religious, tribal and political leaning to collectively pray for the President.
Nigerian Police force has approved the promotion and commendation of officers and men of the Force who were part of the team that killed n...

Nigerian Police force has approved the promotion and commendation of officers and men of the Force who were part of the team that killed notorious kidnapper, Henry Chubueze, popularly known as Vampire.The Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris made the recommendation.For those who were recently promoted among the team, IGP Idris approved for them the Commendation for Courage Medal, while others were promoted.The team involved in the operation, the Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team, is headed by recently-promoted Assistant Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari.According to The Eagle Online, one of those involved in the operation that led to the death of Vampire and six of his gang members, Sergeant Innocent Augustine, is still on admission.Augustine was said to have been hit by multiple bullets during the operation and he is responding to treatment very well and was equally promoted.Vampire was the kidnapper who was freed by his gang members in the premises of the Imo State High Court in Owerri.After several days of trailing, the IRT had an encounter with Vampire and his team, during which he was killed alongside six members of the gang.
A group of commercial tricyclists in Kano have begun offering free rides to commuters, to celebrate the return of President Muhammadu Bu...

A group of commercial tricyclists in Kano have begun offering free rides to commuters, to celebrate the return of President Muhammadu Buhari from medical vacation in London.One of the tricyclists Malam Badamasi Aminu, told journalists in Kano on Saturday that the decision was made after a friend shared the idea with yhe association.He said consequently members refilled their vehicles petrol tank on Friday and offered free ride to all the passengers that patronised them. According to him, We prayed devotedly for the health of the President while he was in London, and it seems our prayers have been answered so we need to thank God in some way.Aminu further said that about 10 tricyclists offered same gesture to show gratitude to God for returning the president safely. A passenger, who enjoyed a free ride, Malama Habiba Abdul, told journalists that it was a commendable gesture and prayed to God to grant the them the reward, better job and wealth. youths in Kano have been expressing happiness in various forms, including prayers and offering alms on arrival of the president on Friday. Buhari returned to the country after a 50-day medical leave in London.
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The Rev. Kevin Gugliotta, seen at left in a police mugshot and at right in a portrait for the Archdiocese of Newark, was arrested on child pornography charges in October.

HONESDALE, Pa. (AP) -- A Roman Catholic priest from New Jersey has pleaded guilty in Pennsylvania to uploading child pornography to an internet chat room.

The Rev. Kevin Gugliotta of Mahwah pleaded guilty to dissemination of child pornography. He faces up to seven years in prison when he's sentenced June 8 in Wayne County, Pennsylvania.

District Attorney Janine Edwards said Friday that Gugliotta downloaded child pornography to a personal laptop from his second home in Gouldsboro. The 55-year-old priest then uploaded the files to a chat room on 20 separate occasions last summer. The site alerted law enforcement.

Gugliotta was parochial vicar at Holy Spirit Church in Union, New Jersey. Newark Archbishop John J. Myers removed Gugliotta from ministry.

Gugliotta had previously been suspended from ministry in 2003 for allegedly molesting a teenage boy in the 1980s. But because the incident occurred when he was still a layman and before he entered the priesthood, the Archdiocese of Newark ruled he could not be punished and quietly reinstated him in 2004.

He went on to have a long career in the priesthood, including ministering to youth groups.
CAMDEN -- Three South Jersey companies are proposing an 18-story, $245-million office building for the rapidly-changing waterfront in Camden.

Camden Tower, as they're calling it, would house the offices for the three companies, bringing 869 jobs to the city. The partners in the project are Conner Strong & Buckelew, NFI and The Michaels Organization.

Conner Strong & Buckelew, an insurance brokerage headed by South Jersey businessman and Democratic powerbroker George E. Norcross III, announced Friday that the group of businesses had filed an application proposing the project to the state under the Grow NJ Program.

The program seeks to create and keep jobs in Camden and other cities in the state by offering tax credits from $500 to $5,000 per job, per year.

Several companies lured by the offer are in various stages of moving to Camden, including Holtec and Subaru, and the Philadelphia 76ers training facility was recently completed. Liberty Property Trust is planning a $1 billion project including a 222,376-square-foot office building that will hold the headquarters of American Water.

The three companies plan to split the space in Camden Tower fairly evenly but are seeking tax credits on different investment amounts:

-- Conner Strong & Buckelew, which would bring at least 253 jobs, would invest $86,239,720.

-- NFI, a logistics company, would bring 341 jobs and plans an investment of $79,377,980.

-- The Michaels Organization, a development and real estate company, would bring 275 jobs and make an investment of $79,378,750.

Under the program, the credits they're seeking on those investments would only be fully collectable 10 years later, if the companies make their investment and meet job creation and retention targets, according to the release.

If everything goes as planned, the building would be ready for occupancy in August 2019.

"If our applications are approved by the EDA, we will each be investing tens of millions of dollars and aligning the futures of our companies with the future of Camden," Norcross said.

The group may also invest another $100 million in new apartments and a hotel along the waterfront, which the release said would bring their total investment in the city to over $350 million.

"We are incredibly excited about the future of Camden and about the future of our Organization being headquartered there," The Michaels Organization President John J. O'Donnell said in the release. "This move will enable us to offer our growing workforce a world-class, state-of-the art headquarters location in a city that is once again poised for greatness."

The release also mentions that an investor group including relatives of Norcross -- - excluding his brother, Congressman Donald Norcross, D-Camden -- purchased the Ferry Terminal Building last fall for office space.*

Rebecca Everett may be reached at reverett@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccajeverett. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

*This story was changed from an earlier version to correct information about the owners of the Ferry Terminal Building.
WHITEVILLE, N.C.-- A man who was wanted for killing a woman in Irvington's first homicide of 2017 was hospitalized Friday after shooting himself in the head, First Assistant Essex County Prosecutor Thomas Fennelly said.

Authorities in Essex County learned Tim McAllister, 54, may have been hiding in North Carolina since allegedly shooting Tajimiah Phillips, 31, of Newark Feb. 25, Fennelly said.

Investigators from the North Carolina SBI as well as local police located McAllister at an apartment complex near Whiteville and moved in to arrest him, WWAY 3 News reported. As officers closed in, McAllister shot himself in the head, authorities said.

McAllister was in critical condition at New Hanover County Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, N.C., Fennelly said late Friday night.
PAULSBORO -- The first import of Russian steel has come into Paulsboro's new port, marking the first of many shipments in a deal with NLMK Group which will bring in more than 1 million tons of the metal annually.

But what do we know about the deal?

Who is NLMK, the Russian steelmaker?

NMLK Group is a steel manufacturer headquartered in Russia. The company mines and makes the steel, where it is then sent to customers in Russia, North America and Europe to be manufactured.

According to their website, NLMK makes up 22 percent of the steel production market in Russia. They claim to be one of the most efficient and profitable steelmakers in the world thanks to their self-sufficiency in raw materials, energy, and technology.

Where do they operate in the United States?

NLMK has two plants in the United States: NLMK Pennsylvania in Farrell, Pa., and NLMK Indiana in Portage.

NLMK Pennsylvania is a supplier of carbon and alloy steel, including cold-rolled and hot-rolled coils, as well as galvanized coils. To keep the supply and demand fulfilled, the Pennsylvania facility will receive 1.5 million tons per year, all coming from the Paulsboro port.

NLMK Indiana supplies hot rolled coils, made from steel melted at an on-site Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) melt shop and steel imported from Russia.

Ron Beck, vice president of products and supply chain for NLMK, explained that during the summer months, the Indiana facility receives some steel through ships on Lake Michigan.

"In the winter months, though, the lake freezes up and we need to get the supplemental steel from somewhere," he added. "That additional steel will come from the Paulsboro port."

With a total of 1.8 million tons of steel coming to the port for the facilities, NLMK will have roughly 3 ships per month coming into the port.

What happens when the steel leaves Paulsboro?

After the ship rolls in, it takes roughly five or six days to unload all of it. Paulsboro's port is set up to streamline the process to make it as efficient as possible, utilizing electronic cranes and railways on site.

The cranes lift the steel slabs out of the ships and onto trucks waiting close by which deliver the steel to train, yards away. From there, the slabs are taken on the rails to Pennsylvania and Indiana.

What do they make with the steel?

With three different types of coils being produced, the steel has many uses after it leaves the NLMK facilities. According to Beck, the cold rolled coils are used for HVAC duct work, metal panels on buildings, and architectural panels for stadiums and hospitals. The coils are also sold to automotive industry buyers for vehicle trim, brackets and hydraulic tubing used for brake lines. Many appliance pieces, including parts of refrigerators, also come from these cold rolled coils.

The hot rolled coils are used primarily for pipe and tubing which is used for RV and tractor-trailers frames. Drilling and fracking processes and equipment also come from hot rolled coils.

Is their steel being used in any pipelines?

The big question, asked by many, was if this Russian steel would be used for pipeline projects in the United States.

"We've been on pipeline projects before, yes, but as far as the ones that are currently making news right now, we are not involved," said Beck. "We aren't supplying to that."

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Jan. 24, stating any pipeline projects would be have to be made from American steel. Days later, he amended that order to say the regulations would only be used for new projects, existing projects, such as the Keystone and Dakota pipelines, could use foreign steel.

Caitlyn Stulpin may be reached at cstulpin@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitstulpin. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
EAST GREENWICH TWP. -- Fourth-graders at the Samuel Mickle School in East Greenwich Township put on a living wax history museum on Wednesday to honor Black History and Women's History month.

All 184 students chose a biography or autobiography that highlights a notable African American or woman who has made a significant impact on American History and did their research about the subject.

This year, students dressed as notable people including Harriet Tubman, Jackie Robinson and Betsy Ross.

For the museum, each student was assigned to prepare a 30-second to one-minute speech about the person's life and the qualities that made the person famous and notable.

Parents, grandparents and other relatives, as well as other members of the school community, were invited to see the wax museum gala.

Caitlyn Stulpin may be reached at cstulpin@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitstulpin. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
UNION CITY -- A viewing and prayer service were scheduled for Friday for the toddler killed March 4 in a fast-moving fire in an apartment building in which the child's father was badly burned.

Relatives of Eddie Gonzalez Jr. - who died just weeks before his second birthday - were expected to gather at the Leber Funeral Home in the city where a service was planned for early Friday evening. The funeral costs have been covered by funds that Mayor Brian Stack provided through his civic association, an aide to the mayor confirmed.

The child was killed in the fire that was reported at 1:02 a.m. March 4 in a building at 1404 Summit Ave. The child lived in a second-floor apartment.

His father, Eddie Sr., was critically injured trying to rescue his son, authorities said.

The Hudson County Prosecutor's Office said the father had been released from St. Barnabas Medical Center Burn Unit on Friday, where he was taken after suffering burns.

A total of 15 apartments were damaged or destroyed in the fire, including units in buildings at 1402, 1404, 1406 and 1408 Summit Ave., and 40 tenants were left homeless.

Oritani Bank, which is based in Washington Township and has a branch in Union City, is collecting and matching donations to assist the fire victims.

The bank is collecting funds to assist these families, and will match all cash donations up to a total of $10,000, Oritani officials said in a statement.

"This terrible fire has affected many innocent individuals of our community and it is our duty to help them," said bank president and CEO Kevin Lynch.

Burning embers from the blaze were carried on high winds and landed more than a block away, on the Saints Joseph and Michael Church, setting the steeple on fire and causing it to collapse into the street.

The prosecutor's office on Friday said the cause of the fire was still under investigation.

Tom Haydon may be reached at thaydon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Tom_HaydonSL. Find NJ.com on Facebook
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Officers arrived at the El Amir Grocery Store on Bergen Avenue a little after 3 a.m. Friday morning and found that an unknown person had broken the store's glass door and stolen $1,500 worth of cigarettes.

(Journal file photo)

JERSEY CITY -- Police responding to a burglar alarm at a convenience store on the city's West Side found that more than $1,000 worth of cigarettes had been stolen during a burglary, authorities said.

Officers arrived at the El Amir Grocery Store on Bergen Avenue a little after 3 a.m. on March 10 and found that somone had broken the store's glass door, according to a police report.

No one was in the store at the time, but cops found cigarettes scattered behind the store's register, the report said.

The store's owner arrived shortly after and told police that $1,500 worth of cigarettes had been taken, police said.

No arrests were made on the scene, the report said.
'We are here': Transgender community town hall gets ear of city leaders, NOPD
Housing a Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson asks people to raise their hands and take the nice challenge as he speaks to HUD employees in Washington, Monday, March 6, 2017. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
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.
TREYNOR  March is a tough month for the Hatcher family of Treynor.

Marjorie and Bill Hatchers son, Robert, was murdered on March 8. He would be 49 this year on his birthday, March 21.

The 2007 murder remains unsolved as his family reflects on 10 years without Robert.

Some closure would be wonderful, Marjorie Hatcher said. We miss him so much.

On March 8, a decade ago, Robert Hatcher was walking on the pedestrian trail under the Interstate 480 bridge, on his way home from a job fair, family members said. Court documents also indicate he was there to meet two men about a money issue. Details beyond that are scarce.

Authorities found Hatcher on the trail, the victim of multiple gunshot wounds. He was 38, leaving behind a widow, Christine.

Sgt. Mark Stuart with the Council Bluffs Police Department said the agency has reassigned the still-open case.

We want to get a fresh set of eyes on it, Stuart said. Itll never be over until the family gets their day in court.

Stuart said detectives will review the case material, possibly determining if advancements in technology warrant the retesting of any evidence. The sergeant said theres nothing to suggest the first investigation wasnt complete and thorough, but the department thought another look at the case could be helpful.

Were trying to find something to get this pushed over the top, he said.

Two men were arrested in connection with Hatchers death more than 18 months after the shooting. An affidavit in support of the arrest warrant stated the gun used in the murder was taped to a brick and thrown in the Missouri River. The murder weapon was never found.

Additionally, informants had told investigators a number of stories about the two men, but investigators have found little physical evidence in the aftermath of the killing.

The charges against both men were dropped in February of 2009 by the Pottawattamie County Attorneys Office because of that lack of evidence.

The department said it has received a number of leads in the case throughout the years since, though nothing substantial enough to result in an arrest. The Hatcher family hopes that will change this time.

Hopefully, theyll find something when they go back over it, theyll be able to do something, Marjorie Hatcher said. Make an arrest thatll hold.

Anyone with information related to the case is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (712) 328-STOP (7867).

Another loss strikes family

This year March is even tougher for the Hatchers, too. Their daughter, Billie Jo Gubbels of Council Bluffs died at the age of 50 in December from liver disease.

Its just really hard to start every day and know two of your kids are gone, youre never going to see them again, Marjorie Hatcher said. Your heart is just empty.

The Hatchers live in Treynor, where Robert, brother Tim and Billie Jo grew up. Theyre the fourth generation in the town on Marjories side. Robert graduated from Treynor High School in 1987. Hes buried in Zion Congregational Church Cemetery there.

Im hoping the flowers make it, Marjorie Hatcher said during a visit to the grave, where shed put yellow and purple pansies in a pot.

Youd think it would get easier, she said, looking over the grave. But it doesnt.

Robert held a number of jobs after high school, including at the Travel America Cafe off the Lake Manawa exit of Interstate 80 in Council Bluffs and as a cook at Ameristar Casino before his death.

Its been hard. You want to know the answers. Why? Why did they have to do that? It doesnt make sense, Marjorie Hatcher said. It just does not make any sense at all. It breaks your heart.
An Omaha man is charged with stealing $3,000 in prescription painkillers from a Council Bluffs pharmacy for which he worked.

Justin Gardner, 23, faces two Class C felony counts: one count of possession with intent to deliver alprazolam  a sedative commonly referred to as Xanax  and possession with intent to deliver hydrocodone, a painkiller. He also has a second-degree theft charge.

If convicted, Gardner faces up to 20 years in prison.

According to the police report, officers were dispatched to the Walgreens at 2508 West Broadway on Wednesday for a theft report, police said. According to the report, police spoke with an employee at the pharmacy, who said he had been investigating the theft of medications there.

Gardner, who was an employee there, admitted to the manager he had stolen the drugs. Police met with Gardner in the managers office, and he later admitted to detectives he stole the pills and sold them.

Gardner was arrested and taken to jail without incident. He is currently being held in the Pottawattamie County Jail on $10,000 bond and his preliminary hearing is set for Friday, March 17.

 Reporter Mike Bell can be reached at (712) 325-5764 or by email at mbell@nonpareilonline.com.
Two Bedford residents are in custody after they stole items from a Sidney grocery and led authorities on a foot pursuit.

Laura Vaughn, 43, and Casey Lee Baker, 37, were arrested on Thursday evening after an incident at Sidney Foods, according to the Fremont County Sheriffs Office.

Deputies were called to the grocery around 4:45 p.m. on U.S. Highway 275 on the report of a theft in progress.

Witnesses said they saw a man and women stealing items from the store. When confronted, Vaughn and Baker fled on foot to a nearby trailer park, the sheriffs office said.

Authorities arrested Vaughn nearby in possession of items taken from the store, the sheriffs office said. They arrested her on suspicion of fifth-degree theft and interference with official acts. Shes being held on a $600 bond.

The agency deployed its K-9 unit in the trailer park but initially did not find Baker. During a later search authorities found the suspect in one of the homes.

Baker was arrested on suspicion of fifth-degree theft and interference with official acts. Authorities also found Baker is wanted on a warrant out of Wisconsin. Hes been held on no bond.

 News Editor Mike Brownlee can be reached at (712) 325-5732 or by email at mbrownlee@nonpareilonline.com.
North Platte has a rich history dating back to the mid-1800s, and many homes that were constructed between that time and 1907.

Kaycee Anderson, library researcher and historian, spoke about period homes to a full house Friday at the North Platte Public Library. She took the crowd from the home built by James Belton in 1874 to a home built in 1908 by J.C. Federhoff, who died before he could move into the residence.

Anderson advised the group that the homes currently are all private residences and she would not name the owners.

Please dont go knocking on the doors and asking for a tour of the house, Anderson said. I dont want to get into trouble.

Belton came to North Platte as a coppersmith and built his house at 218 W. Fourth St.

The house was turned into a hospital in 1912, but apparently Belton still lived in it, Anderson said. Belton died in 1915.

Later the house was turned into apartments, until 1981 when it became the Thrift Center.

If his name sounds familiar, his daughter Minnie married William McDonald, Anderson said.

The McDonald-Belton gymnasium at the South Campus of North Platte Community College is named after the couple.

Anderson shared many interesting stories she has found on some of the homes.

Anders Kocken emigrated from Sweden in 1865 and he was a tailor, Anderson said. He made a lot of Buffalo Bills fancy jackets.

Kocken arrived in North Platte in 1875 and purchased the lot where he built his home at 220 W. Sixth St.

He started building right away, Anderson said. Whats interesting is that he built this one-story brick house in the shape of an L, and when they were putting the roof on the house, a storm came through and the house was struck by lightning.

There is still a crack going down the wall on the east side of the house from that lightning strike.

Another immigrant was Dr. Nicholas McCabe. He ran away from home in Ireland and came to North Platte in 1874. In 1907 he built the house at 820 W. Fifth St.

I just found this one a couple of weeks ago, Anderson said. This is a super gigantic house.

A house built by Horace E. Votaw at 1110 W. Fourth St. in 1907 had an interesting basement that no one knew about until recently.

This is my favorite because it has a weird history to it and I have not been able to find out why, Anderson said. I had a lady call me and she said We just bought this house, and we want to know the history of the house because there is something really weird about it in the basement.

Anderson had not been doing house research at the time, but asked for the address and learned it was the Votaw house.

This might have started my interest in researching historic houses, Anderson said. I asked what was weird about the basement and she said Theres two jail cells in the basement.

After doing some searching, Anderson could find nothing that would indicate any reason for the jail cells being in the house. Those particular owners later sold the house, and when Anderson toured it, the jail cells had been removed.

George Field built his home at 502 W. Fifth St. in 1908. He was a partner in a lumber yard. Anderson said Fields partner in the business pilfered Fields girlfriend away from him and married her, breaking up the business partnership.

Then Field later married and finished the house on June 30, 1908, Anderson said. He then went to Omaha for furnishings, but came back with a new car instead.

Because of high interest in this program, the library has scheduled a second presentation on March 30 at 7 p.m.
MERRILLVILLE  Several sectors of the Northwest Indiana economy are experiencing labor shortages, according to members of The Times Board of Economists.

The construction, fast food and trucking industries are among those with jobs available.

"We have had and will continue to have labor shortages, with the retirements of a lot of our stable workforce," said Bill Hasse, president of Hasse Construction. "The most skilled building trades are the electrician, the carpenter and the millwright. Those would be the ones that are hardest to get."

The Times Board of Economists is made up of 19 Northwest Indiana business leaders, who represent a cross-section of industries throughout the Region. They meet to discuss issues of importance in each of their industries and exchange viewpoints on the state of the economy.

Northwest Indiana has a 5.8 percent unemployment rate, yet there are thousands of open positions, said Linda Woloshansky, president and CEO at the Center of Workforce Innovations in Valparaiso. In many cases, prospective employees don't have the skills employers are looking for.

"Manufacturing is no longer raising your hand, signing up and doing your applications," Woloshansky said. "It is developing skills ... going into training programs to develop those skills."

But she said things seem to be improving.

"After a period of promoting our best jobs in Northwest Indiana in skilled trades, we're now seeing people who actually want to go into those jobs," she said. "There has been a change in interest and readiness for high-school graduates and college graduates. They are better prepared than ever before. That's because schools are listening to what employers are saying is needed."

She said there's a need for welders locally, and "at any given time in Northwest Indiana there could be close to 1,000 openings for truck drivers."

She expects job growth to continue.

"With the current potential politically at the national level, we might see reduced taxes, great infrastructure improvement and investment in construction."

Lower-skilled industries in the Region also lack workers. John Barney is president of Barney Industries, which operates 11 fast food restaurants in Northwest Indiana. He said he has dozens of job openings he can't fill.

"We'd hire 55 today if we could get it. It's finding the people and finding the quality people you need to have," he said. "I think we need more immigration. They say we have an oversupply in the workforce. We do not have an oversupply in the workforce. We are struggling to find people.

"The management side is equally difficult. If we don't grow our own management, we don't get them. That to me is probably the biggest issue of the future of our business."

Still, Barney contended that an increase in the minimum wage wouldn't help his business.

"If you raise the minimum wage by $5, you're not going to have any QSR (quick service restaurant) businesses left," he said. "Or they're all going to be charging $10 a hamburger."

"We pay more than the minimum wage now," he added. "We pay more in some markets and less in some other markets. That's the way it should be. Most all businesses are that way."

He said the government's overtime rule causes his workers to take two jobs. Since quick service restaurants don't want to incur overtime premium costs, the employees go to a competitor's restaurant for extra hours when they would be willing to stay at his restaurants for straight pay.

He also said Obamacare's requirement that businesses provide health insurance to employees who work at least 30 hours a week causes companies like his to keep workers under that number of hours.

"The government gets in everybody's business, and they really should get out of it and it would be helpful for the lower level people," he said.
Not many people can say they met Oprah Winfrey, but Griffith resident Jody Tibbs did.

It was a shock  I never win anything, Tibbs said. The coordinator and the people who planned this trip they left nothing out. We were so spoiled.

Tibbs was one of 12 Weight Watchers members who won a sweepstakes sponsored by weight-loss company. The winners were awarded the opportunity to attend The Better Together retreat, which took place in February at the Bacara Resort & Spa in Santa Barbara, California. Winfrey, who is a major shareholder in Weight Watchers and a successful member, joined them for lunch.

We were in a reception area having cocktails and in she walked. It was ... I dont know how to describe it. It was awesome, said Tibbs, who has lost 24 pounds on the program. Everybody was all smiles. She was so personable  she really is."

The attendees did a variety of activities during the retreat  a cruise on a private catamaran, Yoga, Pilates, a massage, etc.

Oprahs personal chef, Sonny Sweetman, and "Top Chef" Season 2015 winner Chef Mei Lin prepared one of Oprahs favorite Weight Watchers-friendly lunches for everyone to enjoy, which was Tibbs favorite part of the trip.

There were eight winners from the United States and four international winners. Each winner was able to bring a guest. Tibbs brought her son.

Oprah was sitting in the middle of the table, but before the lunch started she stood by us at the end of the table. She had everyone hold hands and kind of did a grace. She was holding my sons hand. I said to him later, 'Do you realize whose hand you were holding?' " Tibbs said. She is very inspiring.

Sweetman autographed the new Oprah Winfrey cookbook, Food, Health and Happiness: On Point Recipes for Great Meals and a Better Life. Sweetman and Oprah wrote the book together, which was released in January.

Each guest got to take the book home along with a myriad of other goodies.

Tibbs said after her trip she felt her dedication to Weight Watchers was heightened.

Ive been doing Weight Watchers for a while  Ive seen the program change, and Ive always stayed with it," she said. "Its something you can do every day of your life because its a lifestyle. Ive always been very enthusiastic about it.

Tibbs also said she was happy she got to meet Bob Greene, an exercise physiologist who has worked with Oprah for more than 15 years.

It was trip of the lifetime, Tibbs said.
An elderly New Chicago woman with dementia, missing since Sunday, has been found safe and sound, police said Thursday night.

Maria Ramos, 74, was located about 4 p.m. Thursday in Chicago by her son, New Chicago Police Chief James Richardson said. Ramos was reportedly traveling to all of her favorite places in the city since she first went missing on Sunday, Richardson said.

She was found after she left one of her favorite restaurants in Chicago on 18th Street, Richardson said.

At about 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Ramos had left the home she shares with her daughter Rosemary Herrera Meza to buy tortillas at a nearby store, Herrera Meza said.

Richardson said two women came forward Wednesday and told police they gave Ramos a ride to a train station. Ramos was last seen Sunday afternoon leaving Millennium Station in Chicago via the Randolph Street route, police said.

Ramos approached the two women for a ride at a gas station, and they took her to the Gary Metro Center and bought her a Shore Shore Line ticket, New Chicago Police Chief James Richardson and Herrera Meza said.

The women were grief-stricken, Richardson said.

"They were just doing a good deed," he said, adding Ramos didn't appear confused and knew the location of the train station.

However, the story Ramos told them indicated she was confused. She told the women she was going to work at a Tyson Foods facility where she was employed years ago, Herrera Meza said.

The women told police Ramos had tortillas with her, Herrera Meza said.

Ramos was at the Metro Center about 11:30 a.m. Sunday and likely boarded a westbound train about 1:38 p.m. She arrived in Chicago about 2:45 p.m., police said.

Herrera Meza said her sister, who lives in Chicago, had been canvassing the area. They also called locations their mother might frequent, she said.

Richardson said he had contacted Chicago police to be on the lookout and had been gathering documentation needed to issue a Silver Alert in Illinois and Indiana.

Im so happy shes been found," Richardson said.
For 100 years, Girl Scout Cookies have boosted not only appetites, but the coffers of local Scout troops, the communities they serve and the special projects these girls undertake.

Since 1917, cookie sales have enabled Girl Scouts to attend summer camp, help the military, donate to animal shelters and even build a school in South America.

Besides, its fun selling something people like.

I enjoy all the fun we get to have with our friends, said Ariella Windsor, 8, a member of Hobart Girl Scout Troop 30409. Shes also learned you have to hold your sign in front of you for cars.

Windsor and fellow troop members were selling cookies last weekend outside a local video rental shop. Despite cold weather, the girls drew customers, some of them relatives, others just shopping for their favorite cookies.

Community service

Troop 30409 Leader Jenna Morgan, who involves family members in the project, hopes that through these annual sales, the girls love the community service aspect, that they learn responsibility and to pay it forward.

All net proceeds from cookie sales return to local troops. Troop 30409 supports care packages for military personnel serving overseas.

Winfield Troop 35424 used nearly $700 of its proceeds to purchase a pediatric reclining chair for a local 6-year-old boy who broke his femur in an accident.

Troop 30379 from Hobart plans to assist the Hobart Humane Society and enable girls to attend summer camp at no charge. Amy Ortiz, a troop leader, believes cookie sales show her girls you can do things through fundraising that make the community a little brighter.

Julia Harshman, a leader of two LaPorte troops, said the sales campaign gives girls an opportunity to get out into the community. Its not easy selling in the winter, and these girls learn you have to work hard for what you earn.

Cookie history

Today nearly 1 million Girl Scouts participate in cookie sales, generating nearly $800 million during an average season, according to the Girl Scouts of the United States of America. Girl Scout Cookies began in 1917, when an Oklahoma troop decided to fund its projects by selling homemade cookies.

As the project grew, more cookies were added. Pat Mikash, a Dyer Girl Scout 50 years ago, recalls only a handful of cookies, including thin mints, sandwich and shortbread.

There was not a lot of variety, said Mikash. Cookies were a lot cheaper, and the boxes were bigger. Back then we sold to neighbors and family. Dad never took them to work, like they do now. But it was fun.

Its fun and crazy, said LOreal Payton, media relations manager for Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana. A lot of girls have told us cookie sales really built up business skills they can use for the rest of their lives.

Sales kick off in January, with Scouts initially taking orders door-to-door. After cookies arrive in February, Scouts sell in the community and at local businesses. The campaign concludes in late March.

One incentive for increasing sales is awarding prizes to top salespeople. Ava Ortiz, 7, from Troop 30379, sold 864 boxes last year.

As this young entrepreneur has learned from cookie sales, girls can do anything, Ortiz said.
INDIANAPOLIS  A former two-term Lake County councilman and four-term state representative is throwing his hat in the ring for a shot at chairman of the Indiana State Democratic Party.

John C. Aguilera filed his intent Friday to challenge Democratic John Zody, of Bloomington, at the party's March 18 reorganization meeting in Indianapolis.

I think we need to be moving in a new direction because of the way that things have happened here across the country. So I put my name forward, Aguilera told The Times on Saturday.

Aguilera unsuccessfully ran for mayor of East Chicago in 2011 at a time when then mayor, George Pabey, was under federal indictment on corruption charges.

Aguilera isn't the only one vying for the Democratic party's top spot. Four-term state Sen. Lonnie Randolph, D-East Chicago, last week filed his notice of intent to challenge Zody.

Randolph at the time said he believes the Indiana Democratic Party needs a new leader after Democratic candidates lost in every statewide election last year.

Randolph said Zody and other party leaders repeatedly have failed to follow the preferences of loyal Democrats in selecting candidates or advancing issues, and simply continuing on the same path is the wrong direction for the party.

"The key in my view to winning elections in the state is a diversified ticket," Randolph said. "The diversification can only be achieved by inclusion. The inclusion of people with new, fresh and modern ideals as to how to go about winning elections."
INDIANAPOLIS  Gov. Eric Holcomb signed an executive order Friday that extends for 30 more days the East Chicago disaster emergency that he declared last month due to lead contamination in parts of the city.

The order directs state agencies to continue working with their federal counterparts to obtain funding to expedite demolition of the West Calumet Housing Complex, remediation of lead-contaminated soil and replacement of lead water pipes in the USS Lead Superfund site.

The 322-acre Superfund site covered by the disaster emergency is bounded by East Chicago Avenue on the north, East 151st Street on the south, the Indiana Harbor Canal on the west, and Parrish Avenue on the east.

The order also continues enhanced state assistance to local housing authority officials as staff helps relocate the remaining families from the lead- and arsenic-contaminated West Calumet Housing Complex so it can be secured for eventual demolition and redevelopment.

The city on Friday welcomed Holcombs extension.

We thank Governor Holcomb for extending the emergency declaration for 30 days, for his diligent work addressing the complex problems that our city faces, City Attorney Carla Morgan said in a statement on behalf of the city.

Holcombs announcement comes just days after East Chicago Mayor Anthony Copeland submitted a report to the state outlining $56 million in needs for water filters for residents in the Superfund site, lead pipe replacement, expanded blood testing for lead and arsenic, lead hazard removal in homes, and more. Copeland also requested $1.2 million to replacement faucet fixtures and drinking water fountains throughout the school district.

The citys report says the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority's board will take up two grants  for security and demolition of the West Calumet Housing Complex  during its upcoming March 23 meeting, set for 10 a.m. in Indianapolis.

Copeland also requested $473,000 from the state for water filters. Around the same time, several community groups petitioned the EPA to use its emergency powers, as the agency did in Flint, Michigan, to immediately provide, or order the city or state to provide, free faucet filters.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management on Friday said the agency has no comment on the community groups petition to the EPA regarding drinking water. A spokeswoman said, EPA has received the petition requesting that the agency take emergency action under the Safe Drinking Water Act in East Chicago, Ind. EPA will review the petition and will continue to work with the city and state to protect the health of East Chicago residents.

Mandatory transfer from public housing

Just over 90 families remain at the complex. They must move out by April 1 or face involuntary relocation by the East Chicago Housing Authority.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development earlier this month gave the local housing authority the ability to initiate emergency transfers to other public housing  but a Chicago-based housing justice watchdog group is pushing back against HUDs decision, arguing the involuntary, temporary relocation of the remaining households is unnecessary and a detriment to families.

Kate Walz, director of housing justice with the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, said Friday an April 1 closure of the housing site will not accomplish the goal of safe relocation to better communities.

In a letter urging HUD this month to reverse its decision, the Shriver Center called the move a failure on HUDs part to fully consider the implications of its decision or to properly evaluate the serious adverse consequences for the remaining residents.

Without a reversal of this decision, we will have no choice but to pursue all possible legal strategies to halt the mandatory transfer, the letter stated.

In the letter, the Shriver Center outlined a series of issues that the emergency location failed to reconsider: limited housing availability, paperwork delays, and initial confusion about moving assistance availability. There were also considerable delays in executing a contract for enhanced mobility counseling  on-site work did not begin until Feb. 14, Walz said.

James Cunningham, deputy regional administrator for HUD, said Friday HUD staff is reviewing the Shriver Centers request but has yet to render a decision. In the meantime, HUD will continue to work closely with the state in safely relocation West Calumet residents.

We appreciate the state of Indianas partnership on this, Cunningham said.

The mobility counseling in place now will continue, even if families temporarily relocate, he said.

Times Staff Writers Sarah Reese and Dan Carden contributed to this report.
Gov. Jerry Brown will not take no for an answer.

His administration is pushing ahead to issue $2.6 billion in bonds to keep up work on the bullet train, even though the funding for the $64 billion project is drying up everywhere else.

The federal governments initial $3.3 billion, part of the 2009 stimulus bill, is apparently the last of the money that Washington plans to sink into the project. The Trump administration just canceled a $647 million grant that was supposed to be used to electrify Caltrain in the Bay Area. Thats needed if the tracks are one day going to be part of a blended system that would be called high-speed rail.

The governors plan to fund the trains construction with 25 percent of the states cap-and-trade revenues is falling apart, too. Under AB32, the 2006 Global Warming Solutions Act, the state auctions off permits to emit greenhouse gases. The revenue is supposed to be spent on projects that reduce greenhouse gases.

But the cap-and-trade program has problems, including a lawsuit contending that its an illegal tax, an impending end date of 2020 unless the Legislature renews it, and weaker-than-projected demand for the permits. The states latest auction was expected to bring in $600 million. It raised only $10 million.

Part of the funding for the bullet train, or so voters were told in 2008, would come from private investors. They would help to cover the cost of construction so they could share in the profits once the trains started running. So far, not even Bernie Madoffs investors have fallen for it.

But still, Gov. Brown pushes forward on this mission to bring high-speed rail to California, even as maintenance of the states essential roads and bridges is deferred and underfunded.

Its a mystery, or maybe it isnt.

When the worlds first bullet train began operation in Japan in 1964, high-speed rail was celebrated as the future of transportation.

In 1964, Jerry Brown was 26 years old, freshly graduated from Yale Law School and on his way to being elected California secretary of state in 1970. Four years later he would be elected governor.

Maybe you remember the 70s. Early in the decade there was an Arab oil embargo and a sober (though incorrect) consensus that the Earth was rapidly running out of fossil fuels. Californias roads were full of Ford LTDs and Chevy Bel Air 350 V8s that got 12 miles to the gallon and drove like a sofa on a rocket.

Then in 1979, the Shah of Iran was overthrown. The Ayatollah Khomeini came to power and cut Irans oil production, sending U.S. gasoline prices to the sky. Soon Californias roads were full of fuel-efficient little Japanese cars. Japan had the technology America lacked. Not only that, Japan had a bullet train.

Gov. Jerry Brown was just past his 40th birthday.

Now 78, Brown is in his second term as governor for the second time, and the future of transportation is still out there like Captain Ahabs great white whale.

If Sigmund Freud worked two shifts, he still couldnt figure out why Brown is obsessed with having a bullet train, or maybe he could, but the fact remains that California voters agreed to a high-speed rail line that goes from San Francisco to Los Angeles without a tax increase or a public subsidy, and what theyre getting is a lot of debt and a train to Wasco.

Thats the latest plan. The first operating segment of the bullet train will be built from San Jose to a field near Wasco, population 26,000, about 40 minutes northwest of Bakersfield. Thats by car. By bullet train youd be in Bakersfield faster, but the project doesnt have the funding to get to Bakersfield.

The bullet train doesnt really have a source of funding at all, but the High Speed Rail Authority pushed back against a news report that the train is a financial wreck. In mid-January, a state employee with the title of Information Officer II blasted out an email complaining about the serious mischaracterization of a project that has brought significant and tangible benefits in California communities.

Cited as evidence of this were two reports  one from the U.S. Department of Transportation titled, Shovel-Worthy: What the Recovery Act Taught Us About Investing in Our Nations Infrastructure, and one from the U.S. Treasury Department titled, 40 Proposed U.S. Transportation and Water Infrastructure Projects of Major Economic Significance.

In the second report, which focuses on major infrastructure projects that have stalled for one reason or another, the California High Speed Rail project is listed as having up to $260 billion in economic benefits, third-highest of the 40 projects. However, those benefits were calculated based on the fantasy completion of the entire 800-mile rail system, because the real value to the nation would be delivered only if the entire program or a large portion thereof was completed.

The Shovel-Worthy report brags that $2 billion of stimulus funds for high-speed rail were spent creating jobs in the Central Valley, with significant small and disadvantaged business participation. Theres a new concrete plant in Fresno that recycles gray water. Theres a certified Hispanic-owned business based in L.A. County that has a contract to relocate utility lines.

Thats very nice, but kind of expensive. If you want to get from L.A. to San Francisco, a 1979 Datsun is still faster.

Susan Shelley is a columnist for the Southern California News Group. Reach her at Susan@SusanShelley.com and follow her on Twitter: @Susan_Shelley.
If youve enjoyed a beer in North Iowa during the past 50 years, chances are it came to your hands courtesy of Kabrick Distributing in Mason City.

Three generations of Kabrick and Hahn family members have kept busy quenching North Iowas prodigious thirst for beer.

In 2013, I was awarded our 50-year distributorship award from Anheuser-Busch, said Jason Hahn, 44, current president of Kabrick Distributing.

Jasons grandfather, Jack Kabrick, came from Mitchell, South Dakota, in 1963 to buy an existing Budweiser wholesale business in Mason City. He heard about it from his brother, Red Kabrick, who ran another distributorship in Britt at that time.

My grandfather owned a liquor store in Mitchell, Jason said. When he came here, the Mason City business was really a small-town operation, with one truck.

Jim Hahn, Jasons father, also moved to Mason City to join the business, after Jim finished four years in military service including duty in Vietnam.

Jason grew up with the company.

I remember coming down here to work when I would ride my bike, Jason said. I started with redemption work and helping out wherever it was needed in the warehouse.

After graduating from Mason City High School in 1991 and attending North Iowa Area Community College for two years, he started full-time at the business in 1995. He moved up into management and eventually became president when Jim retired about 10 years ago.

Expansion underway

Today, Kabrick Distributing sells more than 800,000 cases of Anheuser-Busch products in a year, as well as handling many craft beers from smaller breweries. Its sales area covers Mitchell, Floyd, Chickasaw, Howard, and Worth counties, plus half of Cerro Gordo County.

Its really seasonal, Jason noted. We sell more beer in July than in February and March combined.

The companys current location at 1809 S. Benjamin Ave. is the third site for Kabrick since 1963, and now the third expansion at this address is underway. The $650,000 project added 4,000 square feet to the warehouse, with refrigeration and vertical racking to be installed by mid-March.

Its basically a cooler for kegs and packaged beer, Jason said. The expansion is due to the wide variety of tap and packaged beer we sell now.

Jason explained distributorship in Iowa is a three-tiered system, with distributors like Kabrick in the middle between brewers and retail access points for the consumer.

Anheuser-Busch is the main brewer that we sell, about 97 percent of our business. Most of our product comes out of St. Louis, he said. Our top sellers are Budweiser, Bud Light, Busch Light, Michelob Golden Light, and Michelob Ultra.

Jason said Michelob Ultra is the companys fastest growing brand.

Our sales of Mic Ultra went up 42 percent in 2016," he said. "I can see that brand continuing to go up.

Anheuser-Busch markets this low-calorie, low-carbohydrate beer for those who choose to live exceptionally. Bud Light and Busch Light are Kabricks No. 1 sellers.

We shifted gears about seven years ago and changed our business plan a little, Jason said. We started picking up craft beers.

These beverages are made in a traditional way by small, independent breweries in various regions.

Craft beer is really hot right now. The first one we signed was Toppling Goliath out of Decorah," he said. "We strongly support our local craft beers, like Mason City Brewery and Worth Brewery.

Other Iowa beers carried by Kabrick Distributing include Mill Stream, from Amana; Exile, Des Moines; and Back Pocket, Coralville. It also handles national craft beers like Sierra Nevada and regional brands like Summit from Minneapolis. Anheuser-Busch ships its product to Mason City, but Kabrick picks up from the craft brewers.

Kabrick Distributing has what Jason calls a hybrid selling system, reaching both on-premise and off-premise outlets.

On-premise customers are businesses that sell drinks at their locations, like bars and restaurants. Off-premise customers include groceries, liquor stores, and convenience stores that sell packaged beverages to consumers. Kabrick sells to approximately 340 accounts.

Local operation

Kabricks biggest challenge, according to Jason, is the declining population and aging demographics in our area. He said population in Kabricks sales district declined 7 percent in the past 10 years.

The declining population problem is huge. Thats why we always encourage new businesses to come to town. The more people live here, the more product well sell, he said. In a lot of rural towns, the average age is getting up there. Kids dont stay on farms in small towns anymore.

Kabrick Distributing has 28 full-time employees, all with full benefits. Night-shift employees load the trucks, and drivers get to the warehouse at 5 a.m.

We charge the redemption fee, and we pick up and crush our own cans and bottles. Repair work on neon beer signs that you see in businesses is all done here in house, Jason said.

Were a family-owned business, so everything we do is local. That includes our accountant, lawyer, insurance, plumbers, electricians. We never outsource outside our area. We like people to support us, so we support them, too. Thats why we picked up local beers.

Kabrick Distributing is a presence behind almost all events in its commercial reach. In addition to being the pipeline for beer, Kabrick spends about $130,000 annually in local marketing to support community events and functions.

The biggest misconception about us is that people think of us as Anheuser-Busch. They think, 'Hey, just call up St. Louis.' But everything we do comes out of our own pocket, Jason said.

The recently announced route through North Iowa for the Registers Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, or RAGBRAI, will keep the companys employees hopping in 2017. The event brings at least 10,000 riders through Iowa communities during one week in July.

This year, we have three overnight towns in our region: Clear Lake, Charles City, and Cresco, Jason said. We will talk RAGBRAI every day between now and July.

Familiar crew

Jason noted that much of the companys leadership and management comes from general manager Tim Scholl, of Rockwell.

Hes worked here since 1982, worked under my father, he said. Tims kind of the backbone here. He believes in hard work, the work-before-play ethic.

Jon Benson is the sales manager, but also can be found checking on a delivery truck that isnt running right.

We all wear several hats, Jason said. We can be making business decisions in the morning and delivering in the afternoon.

Most of the companys team leaders and sales managers have been on payroll since the early '90s.

There is longevity in all our top management, said Jason.

His son J.J. is a senior this year at Newman. Tim has a son at NIACC. They both work part-time in the family business.

Its not only the men in the family that have kept Kabrick Distributing humming along.

My niece Lindzie Umbarger is our graphic designer, in the same job her mom Michelle used to have here. My mom Mairead worked here, too, and my grandma Maxine, both secretaries, Jason said.

While printing banners to go up at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake for the Winter Dance Party weekend, Lindzie said, I love it, its lots of fun. Working in a family business gives me a little more pride. My mom did this job for eight years. Its a great atmosphere. Even people who arent family, they feel like family here.

Jason recognizes that there arent many family-owned businesses anymore and is grateful for the opportunity.

There are some challenges - you see your family every day, he joked. But its great to still have that and be local, support the local people.
Longtime Irvine resident Helen Tornquist is calling Big D home now after volunteering for a transfer to north Texas.

Her kids moved out. Her marriage is over. And she had planned to retire out of state anyway because California is just too expensive. Last year, she sold her four-bedroom home of 13 years and moved to the Dallas area, where she manages a customer call center.

I reached out to my boss and said, I am available to go to a new location. Where do you want me to go? said Tornquist, 57, a graduate of both UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton. California is a great place to be, but its pretty expensive. And its getting pretty crowded.

Tornquist is one of thousands of Southern California residents who each year is throwing in the towel and moving out of state.

During the first 10 months of 2016, 5,706 residents of Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties took out loans to buy a primary residence out of state, a CoreLogic analysis of mortgage applications shows.

Thats not counting the number of people who paid cash for a home or who, like Tornquist, are renting.

Lower home prices and taxes, less congestion, family ties or a more conservative environment are luring Southern Californians to leave the state, some transplants say.

But housing costs clearly are the chief factor. Southern Californias housing market is one of the most expensive in the nation, with the median house price averaging $473,000 in 2016, double the U.S. average.

And the costs are even higher in Orange and Los Angeles counties, which accounted for most of the regions out-migration. The CoreLogic study showed one out of every four Los Angeles-Orange County homebuyers moved out of their county.

About 8.3 percent moved to the Inland Empire, while 8.2 percent left the state altogether.

Generally, what youre seeing is people in high housing cost areas are moving to lower-cost areas, said Archana Pradhan, a CoreLogic economist and the studys author.

More leaving than coming

Irvine real estate broker Dale Cheema noted that these migration patterns occur every time home prices go up.

Typically, a buyer with $550,000 can get a small, two-bedroom, two-bath condo in Irvine, he said. In Riverside County, that same amount buys a four-bedroom house with a three-car garage and twice the square footage.

You can imagine how enticing that is, to go from a matchbook to a single-family home. Then its worth the drive, he said. Its affordability more than anything else.

CoreLogics study is just the latest in a series of reports showing California among the nations leaders in out-migration, trailing only New York and Illinois in net out-migration numbers.

About 266,000 more people left California than moved in from other states from 2010 to 2015, U.S. Census data show.

Orange County lost nearly 11,000 residents to other California counties or other states. Los Angeles County lost almost 270,000 but Riverside County offset that loss with a net gain of 66,000 people.

To be fair, that doesnt include people moving to California and the region from overseas, which more than offsets the loss to other states in California and Orange County. It also doesnt take into account Californias largest-in-nation population.

When taking population into account, net migration to other states accounted for 0.2 percent of all residents in 2015, 24th highest in the nation.

And CoreLogics figures also show that 73 percent of Southern Californians who bought a home last year stayed in their respective counties.

Theyre from all over

Still, the out-migration is significant enough that real estate agents in neighboring states are noticing.

Deborah Leffler, an agent with Keller Williams Realty in Boise, Idaho, started seeing a wave of California transplants moving to her area in 2012 or 2013.

You have them from San Diego. You have them from Northern California. You have them from the L.A. area. You have them from all over, Leffler said.

Californians can buy a house in Boise for less than it costs to rent in the Golden State, she said. Retirees also can use proceeds from a California sale to buy a home in Boise and still have a nest egg.

Laura Reed and her ex-husband moved to Boise from North Orange County in 2011, drawn by the lower cost of living, conservative politics and less restrictive gun laws.

We knew for sure we could not retire in California, and didnt want to, Reed said in a phone interview. We were sick of the traffic. Traffic everywhere. And the number of people, the crowding.

Sean Stafford, a Laguna Beach transplant working as an agent in Bend, Oregon, guessed that as many as 30 percent to 40 percent of out-of-state homebuyers in his area are Californians, drawn by elbow room, clean air and everything from fishing, kayaking to world-class mountain climbing.

You get more bang for your buck up here, thats for sure, Stafford said. For a million dollars, you can get a big house with some acreage and some views.

Money and other motives

The 10 departing residents interviewed for this story included a Long Beach police officer who is considering a move to Bend or the Portland area after he retires so his daughter can pay in-state tuition at the University of Oregon. It also included a Costa Mesa retiree who said moving to Las Vegas will save him $16,000 a year. After 10 years, that adds up, he said.

Gary Gailmor, 81, and his wife, Linda, traded their manufactured home in Lake Forest last month for a house in Surprise, Arizona, saving money and moving closer to their daughter and grandchildren.

For Jennifer Leach and her family, however, money isnt a motive for leaving.

Leach recently put her familys Ladera Ranch house up for sale and signed a purchase agreement for a house near Denver because of a new California law mandating vaccines for school children.

I dont believe in the government telling me what I have to do as a parent, so Im leaving the state, Leach said. Im literally leaving because of this law.

Tornquist, the Dallas-area call center manager, has traded the risk of earthquakes for the threat of tornadoes. But shes happy to be living again in an area where theres still lots of farmland and open space nearby.

She probably wont stay in Dallas when she retires. Shes thinking about settling in Colorado or some other town in the West. Just not California.

If I could get away from the San Andreas fault and go to a place thats less expensive, that would be better for retirement, she said.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7734 or JeffCollins@scng.com
SANTA ANA  A former city of Placentia financial-services manager was sentenced Friday to 25 years in prison for embezzling more than $5 million from the financially strapped municipality.

Michael Minh Nguyen accepted a court offer requiring that he admit to dozens of felonies, including those for embezzlement and money laundering, and agree to pay about $10 million in fines and $2.6 million in restitution.

You understand you owe the city of Placentia this money? Orange County Superior Court Judge Gary S. Paer asked Nguyen about the restitution, noting that the accord would be set in stone.

Yes, Nguyen answered.

Deputy District Attorney Marc Labreche has helped the city recover around $3 million of the embezzled money. Insurance at one point was expected to bring in $1 million more.

The prosecutor noted that Nguyen, 34, had taken advantage of a time of turnover in Placentias financial-services department, which he was running on an interim basis. He was arrested in April.

Placentia City Administrator Damien Arrula, during the hearing, said that he and other city leaders are still working to regain the trust of residents and erase the dark stain Nguyen left on the community.

Perhaps what pains me the most is that you, Mr. Nguyen, grew up here and spent most of your professional career in this area, Arrula said in court on Friday. This was your home. This was our home. And you took a torch to it.

Rudy Loewenstein, Nguyens attorney, said after the court proceeding that prosecutors had overcharged his client, and that the sentence was too harsh. Had the case gone to trial, Nguyen could have faced up to 100 years in prison if convicted of all of the charges.

I thought the offer by the judge was grossly high in comparison to other cases, Loewenstein said. However, my client wanted to make an admission; he wanted to accept responsibility, so it was his choice.

With the conviction of Nguyen, prosecutors have turned their attention to two other men  Michael McDonald, a Las Vegas high roller, and Herbert Trotter Jr., a Los Angeles financial executive. Arrest warrants have been issued for both.

Both men are accused by prosecutors of receiving some of the stolen money from Nguyen. Trotter is suspected of laundering about $1.2 million of the embezzled funds, according to the Orange County District Attorneys Office, while McDonald is accused of laundering nearly $750,000.

The District Attorneys Office confirmed that it was alleging that the two men knew the money had been embezzled.

Nguyen was left with little to show for the millions of dollars in embezzled funds, Labreche said, having squandered the money on poor investments and bad gambling bets. Nguyen was trying to help his parents, who had gone through Chapter 13 bankruptcy and faced nearly $700,000 in debt.

Its not to minimize his conduct, but my client was not living the lifestyle of the rich and famous, Loewenstein said. One thing led to another, and he got in over his head.

According to previously released court records, a suspicious wire transfer to McDonald originally tipped off city officials, who were contacted by casino employees, to the embezzlement.

D.A. Investigator Craig Koki in an affidavit submitted to the Orange County Superior Court last year wrote that employees at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino were suspicious when McDonald tried to persuade them to accept a wire transfer from the city of Placentia, which he allegedly claimed was for a film project.

A closer look at the city books found suspicious wire transfers to a handful of other businesses, including Trotter and the Talaton Group LLC. Trotter is a managing partner for the Talaton Group, a Beverly Hills financial company that helps raise capital for clients.

Trotter last year told a Register reporter that Nguyen had come to the company to get help raising money for nail salons his aunt wanted to open, as well as a potential real estate deal in Las Vegas. During the interview, Trotter denied knowing of any wrongdoing by Nguyen.

Labreche said he was unable to comment on whether Nguyen is cooperating with the DAs office in regards to the charges against McDonald and Trotter.

In the wake of the embezzlement, city leaders took steps to strengthen its accounting systems. A fraud hotline was also established for reporting suspected cases of fraud, waste or abuse by employees, contractors or vendors.

Contact the writer: semery@ocregister.com
Fran Sdao, a mild-mannered former PTA mom from Mission Viejo, doesnt come across like a Democratic Party boss wholl muscle the famously Republican Orange County to the blue side of the aisle.

Yet thats just the beginning of whats expected of the new county party chairwoman. Democrats ongoing surge here is increasingly attracting national attention as long-secure GOP seats are suddenly considered to be in play.

County Democrats have been steadily closing the voter registration gap since Republicans high-point of 22-percentage points in 1990. They have halved the amount from 8 points to 3.7 points in the past year alone. In November, the county voted for the Democratic presidential nominee for the first time since 1936 and distaste for President Donald Trump is fueling unprecedented levels of Democratic grassroots activism.

Preparing a plan for the next phase is Sdao, who was groomed for the county party chairmanship by predecessor Henry Vandermeir. She was unanimously voted into the post Jan. 9 after two potential opponents decided instead on vice-chairman posts.

People who take Frans niceness and gentility as weakness do so at their own peril, said Dan Jacobson, chairman of the well-heeled Democratic Foundation of Orange County. Shes strong.

Sdao caught Jacobsons eye shortly after she joined the foundation, whose business-oriented members include many major donors. Three years later  in 2015  he recruited her for the board of directors in order to take better advantage of the ideas she was bringing to the table.

Now as chairwoman of the county party, Sdaos faces the challenge of getting more Democrats elected. While voter registration has been on a steady trajectory favoring the party, Republicans maintain a disproportionate advantage among office holders.

In the countys six congressional seats, Democrats are outnumbered 2-1. Same with the countys 12 state legislative seats. In local, non-partisan posts  which often serve as training grounds for higher office  the situation is even worse.

There are no Democrats on the five-member county Board of Supervisors. The vast majority of city council and school board members are also Republicans. In Stanton, for example, Democrats have a 20-point advantage in voter registration, but not a single council member.

Jacobson said that county Democrats too often fail to field strong, well-backed candidates, something Sdao also acknowledged,

Fran is such a great communicator with such great intuition, shell get the right candidates for the right positions, Jacobson said.

Other key challenges facing Sdao are turning the anti-Trump protests into productive Democratic Party energy and keeping perennial party infighting between progressives and establishment Democrats under control.

Longtime progressive activist Jeff LeTourneau ran unsuccessfully for the chairmanship in 2013 and was considering running again this year. But after speaking with Sdao, he decided to seek a vice-chairmanship instead.

She brings a welcoming face to the party after years of it not being that way, said LeTourneau, whos complained that the monied business interests have been running the party. With (predecessor) Henry Vandermeir, it was top-down with very little room of other ideas and input. Shes made it clear shes very interested in input from everyone.

If there is one word to describe Fran, its disarming. She has a demeanor and approach that makes her welcome anywhere.

Political beginnings

Sdao  pronounced sah-DAY-oh  grew up in Quakertown outside of Philadelphia, in a Democratic household.

I went door-to-door with my father, campaigning for JFK, said Sdao, 64. We had a picture of (Franklin) Roosevelt in the house. I thought we were related. When we went to his house in Hyde Park, my sister and I were surprised that we werent going to spend the night there.

She got a bachelors degree in psychology and spent 20 years working in human relations. By the time she moved with her husband and two children to Mission Viejo, in 1997, shed stopped working and had begun turning her attention to volunteer activity.

She joined the PTA, then became its president. In 2006, she joined the Canyon Democratic Club. In 2008, she got heavily involved with the recall of Capistrano Unified School District board members.

I made the mistake of saying, Recalling people is no good if you dont have candidates to replace them, she said. So they said, Why dont you go find them?

Two board members were recalled and replaced by candidates recruited by Sdao. Today, six of the seven board members are backed by the pro-recall faction.

Sdao then told Vandermeir she was interested in getting more involved with the county party. That led to her being named vice chairman for south Orange County and bolstering Democratic club participation that part of the county.

Vandermeir began taking Sdao with him to meetings with major donors and other insiders, preparing her to take the reins. That helped fortify the network shed already been building in South County, with the Democratic Foundation and as a board member of Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties.

For years, Republican women have found South County to be fertile ground for entry into politics. The pattern is much like Sdaos: College-educated women set their professions aside, raise their kids, get involved with school and local politics, and go up the ladder from there.

South Countys Republican ranks include Rep. Mimi Walters, state Sen. Pat Bates, county Supervisor Lisa Bartlett, and Board of Equalization Chairwoman Diane Harkey.

But Sdao is the first south county Democrat to be making a mark beyond a city council or school district. Shes determined not to be the last.

I love going out and talking to everybody  spotting potential candidates and getting to know them, she said. Thats the fun part.

Momentum

In Orange County, Hillary Clinton beat Trump by nearly 9 percentage points. Thats attracted attention nationwide and has already resulted in funding from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to hire two organizers for the county.

While Orange Countys four Republican members of Congress won reelection last year, Clinton prevailed in all four districts and Democrats smell opportunity. There are only 23 such districts nationwide. And the district that straddles the Orange-San Diego county line found Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista winning by less than 1 percent. The New York Times wrote that he may be the most vulnerable House member.

The national spotlight is on us, Sdao said. We have to step up.

Working to her advantage is anti-Trump furor, marked by the Jan. 21 Womens March, the Indivisible movement and several other efforts.

Its awesome, she said. We were all comatose from Nov. 9 until Jan. 20. Then came the march and it just breathed life into us. These Indivisible guys really struck a chord.  Were going to as many of these groups as we can and get them to come to Democratic club meetings.

The flood of newly engaged voters includes demographic groups who arent typically prevalent in party activism, including young people and including women from south county coming out of the closet, Sdao said.

At the South Orange County Democratic Clubs monthly meetings, we used to be happy if we could get 20 or 25 people, she said. The last meeting they had, there were 300 people. Every single club has said their meetings have doubled and tripled.

Independent of the county party, a flood of old and new activists have begun weekly pilgrimages to Republican Congress members district offices, demanding town hall meetings to express their views.

If we can harness some of this passion and redirect it from congressional races into local races, well win, she said, noting that county Republicans have been networking at the local level for decades. Were playing catchup.

Melahat Rafiei, a political consultant and a member of the Democratic National Committee, is among those confident Sdao will be making new inroads and building on current momentum.

These are newcomers to politics  shell know how to get them involved and productive, said Rafiei, a former executive director for the county party. I really like her personality and no-drama attitude.

And while all eyes are on the 2018 congressional elections, political scientist Jodi Balma says it may be in subsequent elections that Sdao will most reveal her worth.

I think her long-term strategy is more important to the party than what happens next, whether she can build candidates who can run for Congress in the future. said the Fullerton College professor.

Contact the writer: mwisckol@scng.com
SACRAMENTO  A California man has pleaded guilty to stabbing the U.S. airman who weeks earlier was hailed as a hero for helping thwart a terror attack aboard a French train.

Shelly Orio, a spokeswoman for the Sacramento County district attorneys office, says James Tran pleaded guilty to attempted murder Friday, less than a week before he was to go on trial.

The 29-year-old faces a nine-year prison sentence.

He admitted knifing Air Force Staff Sgt. Spencer Stone in 2015 during a fight near a Sacramento bar.

Stone is one of three Sacramento men who tackled a gunman with ties to radical Islam on a Paris-bound passenger train in August 2015.

Trans attorney, Donald Masuda, did not immediately return messages from The Associated Press.

Tran is set for sentencing May 12.
Two fallen Costa Mesa police officers were honored Friday on the 30th anniversary of their deaths.

Officers James David Ketchum and John William Mike Libolt, and civilian Jeffrey A. Pollard, were killed March 10, 1987 when Costa Mesa helicopter Eagle II collided with a Newport Beach police helicopter over Irvine while they were in pursuit of a suspected car thief.

Libolt and Ketchum were both 39 years old at the time. Pollard, of Tustin, was 27.

The fiery crash occurred as the Costa Mesa helicopter was handing off the pursuit to the Newport Beach helicopter. No one was killed in that chopper, which made a hard landing, injuring the pilot and another officer.

Ketchum and Libolt were the citys first officers killed in the line of duty in the departments history.

Those in attendance at Fridays ceremony included family members and Costa Mesa police officials, as well as police department retirees.

A helicopter flew over the gathered crowd following an invocation by Police Chaplain Dave Brooks.

At the conclusion of the event, a wall memorial was unveiled to honor Libolt and Ketchum.
With most California governments and police agencies resisting President Donald Trumps push to increase immigration enforcement and deportations, Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens is bucking the trend, telling the Trump administration she wants her department to cooperate more closely with federal immigration agents.

Last month, Hutchens met with several high ranking members of Trumps administration in Washington D.C., in part to communicate how her department, and possibly law enforcement in other large American counties, would be willing to impose federal immigration laws.

Her message: Neighborhood enforcement is off the table, but an enhanced immigration role in jails would be welcome.

Specifically, Hutchens  who was in D.C. in her role as president of the Major Counties Sheriffs Association  said she asked the administration to provide a legal directive for her to detain some immigrants convicted of violent or other serious crimes beyond their set release dates so federal agents could retrieve and deport them.

That practice is prohibited under California law and federal courts have found it to be in violation of the Fourth Amendment. Its unclear if any directive from the executive branch could stand up in court. Hutchens believes fewer criminals will be released to the streets of Orange County if her deputies are allowed to work more closely with ICE agents.

Hutchens meetings with administration officials came came two weeks after Trump signed a Jan. 25 executive order directing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to develop stronger partnerships with police and sheriffs departments and to punish municipalities that dont cooperate with the agency.

It also came as the Orange County Sheriffs Dept., along with the Orange County District Attorney, is being investigated by the U.S. Dept. of Justices Civil Rights division.

During her time in D.C., Hutchens met briefly with Trump and held longer conversations with U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Acting Director of ICE Thomas Homan, and Homeland Security Secretary Gen. John Kelly.

Hutchens desire to have Orange County deputies play a stronger role in immigration work isnt new. Hutchens unsuccessfully petitioned President Barack Obamas administration for similar legal protections to allow her department to honor ICE detainers. She believes holding some immigrants beyond their scheduled release dates in county jail could keep criminals from being released to local neighborhoods.

But Trump has expanded the scope of immigrants targeted for deportation. And Hutchens said Sessions seemed willing to listen to that, and find a fix that would create rules that would allow her department to hold people legally under ICE detainers.

Locally, at least, Hutchens is an outlier. Many law enforcement agencies in California, including the Los Angeles Police Department, have announced plans to not allow ICE to use their officers and jails to to supplement federal immigration enforcement. Legislators in cities and counties in California, including Santa Ana, among others, have said they want the state to obstruct or reduce cooperation with ICE.

Hutchens put limits on her willingness to collaborate with ICE, telling Homan and Kelly that it is not the job of sheriffs deputies to enforce immigration law in neighborhoods and that deputies would not begin stopping or arresting people based on their immigration status. She said the two men didnt dispute her assertion and didnt seem surprised that we would say that.

But during a phone call with Sessions, Hutchens asked for the administration to find a way for counties to honor ICE detainers even though courts have ruled it is unconstitutional. Orange County currently notifies ICE when undocumented immigrants convicted of violent or serious crimes are scheduled for release. But nearly 10 percent of the time, the agency fails to show up when those inmates are let out, Hutchens said.

If they get released prior to ICE trying to pick them up, the next thing ICE is going to do is search for that person in the community, where theyre going to go out and serve a search warrant  and thats dangerous for the community and ICE officers, Hutchens said, explaining why she likes the ICE detainers.

Orange County already has a closer relationship with ICE than any county in California. The Orange County Sheriffs Dept. is the only one in the state to have a deal that allows sheriffs deputies to act legally as ICE agents in some circumstances, an arrangement known as a 287(g) agreement.

The interagency partnership is limited to the countys jails, where deputies are allowed to question people they suspect might be undocumented immigrants in order to determine their legal status. That information, supplied to ICE, helps the agency identify people who arent in federal databases, allowing those individuals to be targeted for deportation. The agreement also requires deputies to share arrest data, documents and supporting evidence if ICE asks for it.

Critics suggest Hutchens is asking the Trump administration to circumvent the courts.

Jennie Pasquarella, director of immigrant rights at the ACLU California, said the Trump administration cant legally accommodate Hutchens request for an ICE detainer. Whats more, she said such an order  if local deputies acted on it  might leave the county vulnerable to a potentially expensive civil lawsuit.

Pasquarella pointed out that deputies holding immigrants solely at the request of federal agents would violate both Californias Trust Act, which specifically outlaws the practice, and the constitution, which holds that people cant be imprisoned without due process.

Courts recently have agreed. In 2014, a federal judge in Oregon ruled that ICEs detainers violate inmates civil rights and that it was illegal for local jails to honor ICE detainers. Since then, those extended holds have largely ceased nationwide.

Pasquarella also believes the detainers might only have legal weight if they were issued for federal immigration crimes, not civil violations  but that would only affect a relatively small group of people who have been deported and re-entered the U.S.

It sounds like a request for a vague way to hold people, Pasquarella said. And really the devil is in the details of whatever proposal the Trump administration would come up with to allow them to hold someone legally.

When Hutchens was asked what legal mechanism would allow her to hold undocumented immigrants beyond their release date, she said that was a question for the federal government to answer. Orange County Sheriffs Department spokesman Lt. Mark Stichter later said Hutchens wouldnt hold anyone on an ICE detainer if doing so were in violation of any law.

Stichter said the Sheriffs Dept. has never held anyone past their release date, before or after the Trust Act was established.

Salvador Sarmiento, a campaign coordinator for the National Day Laborers Organizing Network, criticized Hutchens for wanting in any way to work more closely with ICE.

She has been the regressive figure in law enforcement in California, Sarmiento said. While the whole state is moving forward, this sheriff is digging her heels into the ground.

But Deborah Pauly, an elected member of the Republican Party of Orange County Central Committee, said she supported Hutchens request and questioned whether undocumented immigrants have Fourth Amendment rights.

I think what shes talking about is a step in the right direction and I would take it even further,  Pauly said. Those who are in this country illegally have already broken the law, and I really question whether they have constitutional protections because the constitution is for Americans.

The Department of Justice did not respond to requests for comment about Hutchens conversation with Session or her statement that Sessions said he would seek a fix to the legal questions over ICE detainers.

Staff writer Grace Wyler contributed to this story.

Contact the writer: jgraham@scng.com or 714-796-7960
OCEANSIDE  More than 1,000 people showed up at two town halls on Saturday to hear Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista, explain his stances on a variety of hot-button issues.

The nine-term congressman, who narrowly won reelection last year, spent upwards of three hours at the Junior Seau Recreation Center fielding questions from constituents. He was the first Orange County House member to hold such an event.

Issa addressed concerns regarding the repeal of Obamacare, calls to defund Planned Parenthood and the Environmental Protection Agency, and ties between members of President Donald Trumps cabinet and Russia.

No answer came without a smattering of jeers.

When pertinent, attendees held up signs that said Agree on one side and Disagree on the other.

Though Issa said the Affordable Care Act is not affordable, he said that some provisions should remain intact, such as children staying on their parents health care plan through age 26. He said mental illnesses should be covered, and that he would fight against what has been described as an age tax, charging older Americans more for health care, with every bone in my body.

He said he has his own plan to replace Obamacare, but didnt say how he would vote on the Republicans health care bill.

Issa also said Planned Parenthood and other womens health agencies should remain funded. And he endorsed an independent investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

While Issa answered questions inside, a couple hundred protesters outside held signs praising the Affordable Care Act and urged Issa to Do your job! A chorus of Show me what democracy looks like/This is what democracy looks like and Darrrrr-elllll chants echoed down the shore.

Dmitry Demidov, who has lived in America for 21 years and is critical of the Trump administrations ties to Russia, wore a Russian-styled police hat as he stood outside the building and held a red banner that read Make Russia Great Again.

Among those inside were veteran Democratic activist Mike Levin, who recently announced his candidacy for Issas seat in 2018. When Levin asked about the EPA and climate change, Issa said he does not support reducing the agencys funding.

The EPA is not a Republican or a Democratic organization, Issa said. Its an organization that has a mandate and I will continue to support sensible aspects of that mandate and funding for it.

Cancer-survivor Karen Abrams, of Encinitas, who attended both town halls, said Issa gave the proper sound bites that people want to hear, but didnt provide much insight into how he planned to back up his claims.

Many members of Indivisible groups attended the forums; the past couple months, members of the grassroots political movement have marched to Issas office daily in an attempt to air their grievances with him and the Trump administration.

About two weeks ago, Issa appeared outside of his office and fielded questions for 90 minutes.

Now more than ever, we need to be able to speak to our members of Congress, said Ellen Montanari, a 63-year-old Solana Beach resident and a member of Indivisible 49 out of San Diego. He (Issa) owes us that much.

Joe Sillstrop, 59, wore a Make America Great Again cap to the first town hall. He traveled to Oceanside to show his support for Issa, to encourage him to keep up the good work and focus on whats important, he said.

The Solana Beach resident said he understood why many attendees were upset, but hoped Issa knew there also were people there behind him.

Keep up the good fight, keep up your enthusiasm, Sillstrop said, encouraging the congressman. Youre not unappreciated.

Cade Gilbert, 10, and Ava Crozier, 9, woke up at half past 5 to attend the first town hall.

The Ladera Ranch children wore matching white shirts that read Congress is playing Russian Roulette with my future.

The current administration is shaping the future for our young children, said Croziers mother, Valerie, who said her daughter missed a youth soccer game to attend the event. Theres too much at stake to do nothing. Its important for them to know early what issues are in front of them, and its important for them to take a stand.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7724 or bwhitehead@scng.com
Barack Obama took two important steps on North Korea before leaving office. First, he made sure his successor, Donald Trump, knew the regime in Pyongyang would pose a daunting challenge; second, he made sure the world knew that was his parting message to the new administration.

This year, the world is set to discover how, if at all, the United States can effectively respond. Although the path forward is shadowy, prospects for cooperation with China are brighter than it first appears.

Beijing is well aware of how broadly unsuccessful Washingtons approach to date has been. The Norths nuclear and missile programs, according to the New York Times, are still far more resilient than many experts thought, posing such a danger that Mr. Obama, as he left office, warned President Trump they were likely to be the most urgent problem he would confront.

On the other hand, it is now public knowledge that the new U.S. left of launch strategy, designed to digitally cripple nuclear missiles at or before launch, could successfully humiliate the North right at the moment of seeming triumph. Indeed, the program may already have caused a string of problems blunting potential crises.

Yet Beijing doesnt want the North so humiliated that its shaky regime fractures further or begins to collapse. And Kim Jong Un is already in the midst of a purge striking in its brazenness and scope. He had his half-brother, who enjoyed Chinese protection, murdered with an illegal nerve poison at a Malaysian airport terminal, and he used anti-aircraft guns to theatrically terminate a string of key deputies. Then, on Monday, Kim launched four missiles that plunged into the Sea of Japan, a move seen as an advanced test of its ability to wage nuclear war.

Although nuclear and missile tests are nothing new, the volume and location of the launches did raise analysts eyebrows on both sides of the Pacific. Rather than simply testing in one location, the North has begun spreading out its launches. That means it has moved on from kicking the tires of its military hardware to running increasingly robust military simulations. That it would do so in an already unsettled and uncertain political moment suggests its appetite for recklessness has precipitously grown. Convinced that the United States, South Korea, and Japan hope to strike first in an open conflict, Pyongyang wants to beat the allies to the punch  with nukes.

Beijing doesnt want that either. Nuclear exchanges are bad for business; whats more, millions of desperate refugees from the North, some possibly stricken with radiation sickness, would be very bad for Chinas own stability. The influx would not only introduce an indigestible minority into Chinas complex plans for cultural homogenization, but throw a monkey wrench into its economic strategy, which must maintain year-over-year growth without overheating or precipitating a crash.

Thats why China has taken the momentous step of trying to bring the North and the United States together for talks. Chinas foreign minister, Wang Yi, urged North Korea earlier Wednesday to suspend missile tests in return for a suspension of U.S.-South Korea military exercises, calling the two parties accelerating trains coming toward each other with neither side willing to give way, according to the Washington Post.

Unfortunately for Beijing, the United States rejected the offer. Demanding some sort of positive action from North Korea before any talks are considered, Nikki Haley, Trumps new United Nations ambassador, vowed were not ruling anything out and were considering every option thats on the table.

Heres where things get complicated. There is bipartisan agreement at the highest levels in Washington that China can apply much more leverage against the North than it has to date. At the same time, Beijing believes that the U.S.-South Korean deployment of THAAD, a sophisticated missile defense system fielded to help counter Kims nuclear threat, has espionage applications that impinge on Chinese sovereignty and its regional supremacy.

Continued nuclear saber rattling makes THAAD look reasonable, and in an effort to punish provocations, Chinese recently ceased coal shipments to the needy North until the end of the year. It wasnt enough. All told, all three of China, North Korea and the United States are upset with the status quo  but none stands to benefit from a full-blown crisis.

Its a nettlesome problem even with plenty of time to work toward a solution. And under the present circumstances, time is of the essence. Even if Kim Jong Uns rocky rule were to be replaced with something more stable, North Koreas destitution and isolation are untenable from the standpoint of China, which needs to ensure that as migration increases within its borders, social and political cohesion is not threatened  as it would be by an imploding Pyongyang regime.

Already, Chinas ascendant role in the global marketplace has complicated its push for greater ethno-nationalist uniformity. Hundreds of thousands of African migrants, for instance, have concentrated in Guangzhou, and not all of them are happy with their new lives. Although Chinas huge population will dwarf even massive population inflows, Beijing is at pains to prevent draining conflicts within the nations sprawling territory; ISIS has begun to signal an interest in bringing its worldwide war to restive Xinjiang province.

Strangely, in other words, Chinas globalization strategy has led it into a thicket of predicaments similar to those that fueled President Trumps election. Increased migration, cultural disunity, and the threat of terrorism are costs Beijing may have to pay for the economic growth and influence it needs to pursue its long-term goals  much as the United States has done. But if China can persuade the administration to view the challenge sympathetically, perhaps the White House can also convince Beijing to work more swiftly and resourcefully to bring an end to North Koreas menacing and corrosive blight on East Asia and around the world.

James Poulos is a columnist for the Southern California News Group.
The current administrations proposed repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act is on the minds of a lot of women in Orange County.

Politics aside, every day in my office patients ask me questions about what the future holds for women with breast cancer and those who are undergoing screenings for early detection.

I can understand their worry, which unfortunately is piled upon their anxieties about their battle with breast cancer.

While many in my profession have debated the merits of the ACA and its changes to how we as physicians and surgeons practice medicine, most doctors do believe the law improved health care for women, particularly in providing incentives for preventive screenings. The law made it affordable for Orange County women (and men) to get preventive tests, such as mammography or colonoscopies.

On Monday, the administration released its proposed new health bill that would replace President Obamas Affordable Care Act. At this point, few details have been released so its hard to know if the ACAs preventive-health related items will remain intact or be repealed. I am hoping that many of the positive provisions in the ACA remain intact, particularly as we have seen good outcomes for womens health, such as:

 A rise in mammography screenings. A study from University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center found that at least for mammography, eliminating out-of-pocket expenses has greatly increased the population of people who are getting screened.

 Two years following the introduction of the ACA, the mammography rate increased among Medicare beneficiaries across all economic classes, according to the study, which was published in the American Cancer Societys Cancer Journal.

 While the study showed that mammography rates increased across the board, the most important aspect of the study showed that low-income women got screenings too, improving access for a hard-to-reach and engage population.

Right now, under the ACA, mammography is lumped into preventive care and not subject to co-pays. These routine tests dont prevent breast cancer but can help detect it sooner when its more treatable. I believe that some women will skip their mammogram if they have to pay out of pocket, particularly those living in underserved communities of Orange County.

The ACA also provides support for breast feeding and working mothers. Some provisions allow for breast pumps and professional lactation services. Studies have shown that breastfeeding lowers moms lifetime risks of breast cancer.

More worrisome to many breast cancer patients was the potential repeal of ACA regulation that covered pre-existing conditions. Before the ACA, you could be denied health care coverage because you had a pre-existing condition like breast cancer. I am pleased to see that in the proposed new replacement bill announced Monday this provision remains intact. Quite simply, it saves lives.

I anticipate reviewing this administrations replacement bill for the fine details. I hope that preventive care  given its value in the health care system and its importance for women in particular  remains a top priority for all of our legislators regardless of party affiliation. In the battle against breast cancer, which will claim about 40,000 daughters, moms and grandmothers this year in the United States, there should be no party lines. We have the most advanced technology and tools to find it early; lets not leave them unused.

Michele Carpenter, MD, is an Orange County breast cancer surgeon and is current chief of staff of St. Joseph Hospital, Orange.
GENEVA  Turkeys military and police have killed hundreds of people during operations against Kurdish rebels in southeastern Turkey, the United Nations said on Friday in a report that listed summary killings, torture, rape and widespread destruction of property among an array of human rights abuses.

The report, by the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, details how operations by the Turkish infantry, artillery, tanks and possibly aircraft drove up to half a million people from their homes over a 17-month period from July 2015 to the end of 2016.

Though the report is focused on the conduct of security forces in southeastern Turkey, the 25-page document underscores the deepening alarm of the United Nations over the measures ordered by Turkeys president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, since a failed coup attempt in July 2016.

The state of emergency Erdogan imposed after the coup appeared to target criticism, not terrorism, Zeid Raad al-Hussein, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said here on Tuesday.

The Turkish government refused to comment on the report.

Critics of Erdogan charge that he called off a truce with the Kurds in 2015 to stoke nationalist sentiments after his party fared poorly in parliamentary elections. After the failed coup, he used his enhanced emergency powers to crack down on Kurdish political leaders, intellectuals and others who voiced support for the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, which is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

The report said measures taken by the government in the southeast since the failed coup, including arrests of parliamentarians, mass dismissals of public officials and closing of almost all Kurdish-language media, had been aimed at suppressing dissent in general and opposition political parties in particular.

Al-Hussein said he was particularly concerned by reports that no credible investigation has been conducted into hundreds of alleged unlawful killings, including women and children. He called for an independent investigation without restrictions, noting that his investigators had been denied access to the Kurdish areas.

The report said that about 2,000 people had died in security operations in the southeast, citing information provided by the government. That included close to 800 members of the security forces and 1,200 others who the report said may or may not have been involved in violent action against the government.

The Turkish authorities were acting in a difficult security environment, the report acknowledged, citing attacks, killings and kidnappings carried out by the PKK.

Nevertheless, by compiling information from interviews with victims and their relatives and by using satellite imagery, investigators for the United Nations verified a variety of abuses by the security forces, among them extrajudicial killings, disappearances, torture, violence against women and the prevention of access to medical care, food and water.

Investigators found that many of the worst abuses occurred during curfews, when the movement of people was restricted and entire neighborhoods were cut off for days at a time.

Witnesses interviewed in the town of Cizre, along the Tigris River in the southeast, described apocalyptic scenes of wholesale destruction. Investigators were able to document at least 189 people who were trapped for weeks in basements without food, water, medical aid or electricity before dying in fires started by artillery shelling by security forces. Ambulances were prevented from entering the area to take out the sick and wounded, causing deaths that could have been avoided.

Many of the victims simply disappeared in the wholesale destruction of large residential areas carried out by the military, which attacked systematically with heavy weapons, including bombing strikes the report said. The destruction peaked in August.

Investigators also reported that authorities refused to investigate civilian deaths, accusing local residents of supporting terrorism. The family of one woman who disappeared in Cizre was given three small pieces of charred flesh identified though DNA testing, investigators reported. When a sister of the missing woman then tried to start legal proceedings, she was charged with terrorism offenses.

The United Nations said the report released on Friday would be the first of a series produced every few months by the human rights office, whether or not its investigators were granted the access they needed.

Hussein was determined, Rupert Colville, his spokesman, told reporters in Geneva, that states should not be rewarded for such tactics.
Before spring arrives and our attention turns to blue sky, dancing daffodils, and why the corn planters GPS isnt working, lets take a few minutes to lock in key numbers that will dominate the still-young farm and ranch year.

For example, as of Wednesday, March 8, Congress has 66 legislative days remaining until its lengthy August break.

Thats 66 days to debate and hopefully pass all or parts of promised Obamacare reforms; complete an overhaul of the complex federal tax code; design and fund the Presidents $1-trillion infrastructure spending plan; tackle the White Houses proposed, multi-billion-dollar border wall with Mexico; and, if farmers and ranchers have their way, outline the essential elements of a 2018 Farm Bill.

All this Herculean lifting, however, still excludes raising the federal debt ceiling by March 31, tackling the very unbalanced Trump budget plan by Oct. 1, and conducting investigations into alleged Russian connections to current White House and former Trump campaign staff.

Other important numbers to keep in mind this year are contained in the Feb. 13 U.S Department of Agricultures Net Farm Income Forecast. Most are, predictably, bleak.

According to USDA, 2017 net farm income will be $62.3 billion, down 8.7 percent from 2016, the fourth consecutive year of decline, and the lowest since 2002 that, coincidentally, was another Farm Bill-writing year.

Even more worrisome, 2017 farm asset values will drop $32 billion nationwide, farm debt will increase 5.2 percent, or a modest $20 billion, and farm equity will decline another $51 billion after a $61 billion decline the year before.

USDAs 2017 crop acreage and production forecast, released Feb. 24, confirms the income numbers. Big acres and big crops, barring weather disasters, are seen for both corn and soybeans. Projected 2017-18 prices are anything but big; $3.70 for corn and $9.60 for soybeans are just a dime taller than 2016 average prices for both.

The real surprise contained in the number-packed report was 2017 wheat acreage. USDA pegs it at a shockingly small 46 million. Thats 10 million acres fewer than just three years ago and a collapse of nearly 30 million acres since peak plantings in 1981.

The drop-off is due to two causes, explains USDA:  declining returns compared with other crops and changes in government programs that allow farmers more planting flexibility.

Thats the official line. Unofficially, climate change and todays crop insurance-based Farm Bill are the key reasons higher valued corn and soybean acres continue to replace lower-return wheat in Kansas, South Dakota, and North Dakota.

Some other numbers are just as revealing as the wheat data.

For example, two weeks ago the White House proposed cutting the 2018 Environmental Protection Agency budget by nearly 25 percent. Few rose to defend the agency but EPAs current budget is, in fact, surprisingly small  $8.1 billion, or just under 0.25 percent of all annual federal spending.

By comparison, direct government program payments paid to U.S. farmers this year will hit $12.5 billion, or 50 percent more than all EPA spending and six times the proposed EPA budget cuts.

Despite the slow U.S. ag economy, the Australian ag sector is poised to enjoy its fourth record-setting year in row. The bullishness spurred one Aussie mining baron and a partner to pay $294 million (U.S.) for the nations biggest cattle ranch, S. Kidman & Co., last December.

Just how big is big by Down Under standards?

Big. The ranch includes 19.2 million deeded acres and leases for another 24.9 million acres. Combined, leased and owned acres are equal in size to North Dakota. The new owners will need it: they have a combined cattle herd of 300,000 head.

Still, commented the new owner, 300,000 head only puts her company in the top three of the nations cattle producers.
This is part 1 of a three-part series. Read Part 2 and Part 3

Ryan Morris and Ronald Moore began life as one.

Identical twins start as a single embryo that collapses in on itself, creating two balls of cells where once there was one. They grow into two genetically identical human beings.

Twenty-three years later, Ryan and Ronald could scarcely be more different.

Consigned to separate childhoods by the state of California shortly after their birth, their disparate lives stand in stark contrast to their identical genes.

Ronald drives a pickup, works as a client-relations and facility manager for an imaging company and practices mixed martial arts. He enjoys making art in different mediums and says family is No. 1.

Ryan suffers from a long list of maladies requiring powerful medications. He has the intellectual capacity of a kindergartener. He cant make his own medical decisions and requires a legal guardian to protect him.

Ryan also is married to that guardian, Sean Spicer. He is a truck driver 18 years Ryans senior.

Despite their differences, one piece of twin lore seems to hold true for Ryan and Ronald. After long separations, reunited twins often report a profound and intense intimacy that one researcher described as being as close to the coordinated, harmonious relations for which we all strive as two human beings are likely to get.

When Ryan and Ronald finally saw one another at a Temecula courthouse after more than a dozen years apart, they threw their arms around one another in a powerful embrace captured in family photos and video. Onlookers wept as the twins clung to one another, rocking slowly from side to side. In court, Ryan refused to let go of Ronalds hand.

All I know, and have ever known, is that I love my identical twin brother and want so much to see him, Ronald would later argue in a petition to Riverside Superior Court, seeking to be appointed one of Ryans legal guardians.

I want to hug him, talk to him, play with him, and let him know that he matters to me and the rest of the family. I want a stable relationship with my twin brother, and to be involved and active in his life, as a brother and friend.

Its a battle Ronald and his biological family have been waging for nearly two decades  one that has made headlines in years past and is scheduled for a hearing this week that could force a pivotal legal decision in a case that raises uncomfortable questions.

Those questions go beyond whether identical twins should be raised together or apart, or even how much power the state can wield over families.

Can a man with cognitive disabilities so serious that he cant think abstractly, manage money or care for himself, give informed consent to a marriage and intimate relationship?

And does the equation change if that disabled person marries someone of normal intelligence, who then becomes his court-appointed caretaker, empowered to make the most fundamental life decisions?

Disability-rights advocates approached such questions cautiously. Relationships between the cognitively disabled and those of regular intelligence are rare, but activists have fought to secure the rights of disabled people to marry and fully express their sexuality. The goal has been to give individuals more freedom, not less.

People with developmental disabilities  particularly intellectual disabilities  have been marginalized, said Katie Hornberger, director of Clients Rights Advocacy for the nonprofit Disability Rights California. People treat them as giant children. If they have the intellectual capacity of a 5-year-old, well, thats how they scored on a test.

But theres a lot of knowledge that comes from existing in this world, Hornberger said. I need help to ride a city bus, but my clients with intellectual disabilities do that every day of their lives. Whos smarter?

The right to control marriage and sexual contact are just such fundamental human rights, she added. They should not be proscribed.

Robert D. Dinerstein, director of the Disability Rights Law Clinic at American Universitys Washington College of Law in Washington, D.C., said a person under a full conservatorship can consent to a marriage or a sexual relationship, but court tests might be necessary.

The decision is contextual and requires examining a number of factors, including whether the person has a sufficient understanding, perhaps with the support of others, of the relationship he or she is about to enter, Dinerstein said. Also important is determining whether he or she can weigh the pros and cons of the choice involved, and somewhat more controversially whether he or she can appreciate the nature of the decision (and its broader implications).

And, of course, one would want to make sure that no one was coercing the person to engage in the relationship against the persons will, Dinerstein said.

Something in the balance of power between Ryan and his husband profoundly disturbs his twin brother, sister, aunts and grandmother. They have grave concerns, voiced in court filings, that Ryans husband may be sexually abusing and controlling him, causing irreparable harm.

Spicer, Ryans husband and legal conservator, said thats untrue. Hes doing his best to take good care of Ryan, he told the court, and Ryan wants him to remain as conservator. Does he get a say in this matter? the husband asked.

Indeed, Ryan does have a say, a Riverside County judge said. But the judge ordered the Public Guardians office to investigate the situation nonetheless, and explain why a neutral party, such as the Public Guardians office itself, shouldnt step in as Ryans guardian.

The unusual case has complex legal and emotional crosscurrents, and those officially charged with assessing Ryans well-being have come to opposite conclusions.

The publicly funded attorney appointed to represent Ryan says Ryan is happy living with his husband, and favors the status quo. Under no circumstances does Ryan want his family members as conservators, because he believes they are trying to break up his marriage and are engaged in heavy-handed harassment against his chosen life partner, Ryans attorney argued in court documents.

The state investigator who recently conducted the judges court-ordered review questioned Ryans comprehension of his wedding, and gave a positive review to Ryans biological family, concluding it could offer a genuinely viable alternative to naming the state as Ryans legal guardian.

Indeed, every person and every agency that has ever had influence over Ryans life  government social workers, the court system, his biological family, the foster mother who adopted him and now Ryans husband  insist that they only want whats best for Ryan, and are striving to give him the freedom he deserves.

But they have very different ideas about what that means.

TWO BIRTHDAYS

Ronald and Ryan were born three months early at Huntington Beach Hospital, as tiny and frail as baby birds. Ronald, the healthy twin, came late in the evening on Jan. 9, 1994; Ryan followed 2 hours later, after midnight on Jan. 10.

The infants were swept immediately into county custody. Their mother had a history of mental illness and had not received prenatal care, according to a social workers report at the time. Grandmother Tamara Mukai Mazzei said she sat vigil most every night for six months as the babies struggled in intensive care, heading to work at a San Clemente beauty salon the next day, bleary-eyed. Mukai Mazzei had been in similar circumstances before: She was raising her troubled daughters two older children, and intended to take the boys as soon as they were strong enough to come home.

Mukai Mazzei, an intense Italian immigrant with startling green eyes and shimmering red hair, thought it was only logical that the twins grow up with their big sisters, Jamie and Krystal, and all the aunts and uncles and cousins in their big, extended family.

When the twins were about 16 months old, Mukai Mazzei got half her wish. Ronald was healthy enough to come home. Ryan wasnt.

Ryan had been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, asthma and other maladies, according to court records. His motor skills and speech were impaired. He was prone to seizures. He required care 24/7, much more specialized care than Mukai Mazzei could give, officials told her. Mukai Mazzei told social workers that shed be happy to learn whatever skills were necessary. But Ryan was placed in one specialized foster home after another for the first few years of his life  care that cost the county some $5,000 per month. At the time, the state would only provide such financial support to foster care and institutional programs, not to families of patients.

Mukai Mazzei, Ronald and the sisters visited Ryan weekly and often took him home for overnight visits. Ronalds bedroom was yellow, brimming with books and toys, and optimistically furnished with two beds  one for each twin. We used to play, go to the beach, sing songs and watch the trains pass in San Clemente, sister Jamie Moore said in court documents. I always remembered how Ryan loved the train  he would smile, point and say, CHOO CHOO!

The bond between the brothers was obvious, Jamie said. Sometimes they would just go on and on, mimicking each other and laughing, that they forgot anyone else was even there.

Family members never gave up hope theyd bring Ryan home for good. Then, as the twins approached their fourth birthday, Ryan was transferred to a foster home in the Tustin foothills that catered to severely disabled children. Most could not walk or speak. Mukai Mazzei worried Ryan would become isolated and lonely, living with children so much more disabled than he.

Who will he play with? Mukai Mazzei wondered.

IF I SHOULD DIE BEFORE I WAKE

The Tustin foster home was run by Michelle Morris, whod worked in the past for Los Angeles County as an adoption social worker. Shed also written If I Should Die Before I Wake, a disturbing 1982 novel about father-daughter incest. It was based on a friends experience, she said, and she hoped to raise awareness about sexual abuse.

The book evolved into an off-Broadway play, and Morris became a regular at benefits for abused children, she told the Register more than a decade ago. At a Costa Mesa home for medically fragile children, she met a lanky 7-year-old with cerebral palsy who stole her heart. Learning to love the child taught Morris a great deal: If youre a religious person  you feel closer to God, she told the Los Angeles Times in 1992. These children call out the best in us.

Morris declined to be interviewed for this story. But in a 2004 interview with the Register, she said that as disabled children in foster care grow up, theyre often moved to different homes. You need a home all your life, not just when youre little and cute, she said.

Morris and her husband, Larry Kerin, formed the Lifeplan Childrens Services nonprofit in the 1990s and opened the Michelle Morris Family Home for disabled children. She was licensed by the state to care for six severely disabled children. The beds filled up quickly.

Clean, good condition, concluded the first annual review conducted by the Orange County Regional Center, a quasi-governmental organization that contracts with the state to provide services for the disabled. Pass with flying colors. Additional staff are on board to provide services above and beyond the call of duty. Good job!

Some parents who placed disabled children in Morris and Kerins home praised the couple as a godsend, saying they finally had peace of mind that their children were being well cared-for.

But there were complaints, too, ranging from neglect and lack of supervision to improper record-keeping, according to state records. In 1997  the year that Ryan arrived  state investigators said Morris husband left a 9-year-old, nonverbal child at a Social Services office in frustration after the state failed to pay for the childs care for two consecutive months. Kerin apologized, according to state records, but regulators declared his presence a threat to the health and safety of the children. He was forbidden to enter Morris foster home. No charges were filed, and he was later granted permission to return.

ADOPTED

Ryans grandmother and Morris quickly clashed. Mukai Mazzei feared Ryan wasnt getting enough positive role models in a home with such severely disabled children. She felt Morris was motivated by the $5,000 a month she received for his care, and that Morris overstated Ryans problems to get more money, according to court documents filed in 2000 by Mukai Mazzei as part of the custody fight over Ryan.

Morris argued that Mukai Mazzei was in denial about Ryans disabilities and didnt supervise him adequately when he spent nights at Mukai Mazzeis house. Morris also alleged that Mukai Mazzei didnt follow Ryans medical regimen correctly and that he would return to Morris foster home with scrapes and bruises. Visits with his siblings overstimulated him and made him prone to dangerous seizures, Morris said in court documents.

Mukai Mazzei said that scrapes and bruises happen when children are finally free to run and play, but officials concluded that she was in denial about the severity of Ryans disabilities. The biological familys visits with Ryan were curtailed. When Ryan was 5, Morris declared her intention to adopt him, prompting an all-out war over the little boy with the wire-rim glasses.

There are so many children out there that need a loving home, why are you going to steal a child from a family that wants him, especially a twin? asked the twins aunt, Monica Mukai.

Generally, the law awards custody to family members, but not when a child has been in long-term foster care. Then, the burden is on the biological family to prove that the foster placement  the stable thing in his life  is harmful.

In Juvenile Court, county social workers again sided with Morris. Grandmother Mukai didnt have an adequate understanding of Ryans special needs and couldnt provide the level of one-on-one, 24-hour supervision that Morris could, a social workers report said. Ryan also had forged a strong bond with Morris and made great developmental strides in her care, Morris attorney argued  progress that would be jeopardized if Ryan went to his biological family.

They said I did it for the money, Morris told the Register at the time. Thats a joke. I did it because we love him.

The adoption was finalized in 2002. Ryans biological family had visitation rights as long as it was in Ryans best interest.

Morris concluded it wasnt, claiming Ryans biological relatives were trying to turn him against his adoptive family. Communication ceased.

I was not even allowed to say goodbye, Mukai Mazzei said. To him, Grandma just disappeared.

The twins were 8 that first Christmas after the adoption, when Ronald wrote a letter to Ryan that was turned away by Morris, according to the grandmother. Two smiling stick figures stood tall on a hill. I miss you, the letter said. I would like to see you again. I love you. We are brothers forever and ever.

Ronald did not see Ryan again until 2015, after their 22nd birthday. Ronald would be surprised to learn he had a brother-in-law.

Contact the writer: tsforza@scng.com
TOKYO  Japan is ending its peacekeeping mission in troubled South Sudan after five years, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Friday.

Abe said Japan would not renew the mission after the current rotation returns in May. The 350-person team has focused on road construction.

The team, which arrived in South Sudan in November, was Japans first with an expanded mandate to use force if necessary to protect civilians and U.N. staff. The Japanese militarys use of force is limited by the post-World War II constitution.

Abe said Japan would continue to assist South Sudan in other ways such as with food and humanitarian support, and will keep some personnel at the U.N. peacekeeping command office.

As South Sudan enters a new phase of nation-building, we have decided that we can now put an end to our infrastructure building efforts, Abe told reporters.

The announcement came amid concern about the safety of the Japanese troops in South Sudan. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, however, denied that led to the decision.

The decision is a result of our comprehensive considerations and not because of the deteriorating security situation, he said.

Ateny Wek Ateny, a spokesman for South Sudan President Salva Kiir, said he was not aware of the Japanese decision. Japanese officials said Tokyo has notified both South Sudans government and the United Nations of its decision.

U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq confirmed that Japan informed the U.N. that it was withdrawing its roughly 350-member engineering contingent at the end of its current rotation in May.

Theyve been in that post for many years and theyve been performing a very valuable function and have been a key part of the efforts by the U.N. mission there to protect civilians, he said. We appreciate the work that theyve done, and certainly well continue to engage with the government of Japan to make sure that Japan can contribute usefully to other peacekeeping missions in the future.

Haq was asked what message Japans withdrawal sends in light of U.N. officials raising alarm bells about the risk of genocide in South Sudan.

I dont think it needs to send an overall message, he said. Its a fact of life that different countries contribute troops and rotate them out at different times. Well try to make up for the loss of that engineering component as quickly as we can.

Japanese defense officials have recently come under fire over their reluctance to explain the deteriorating security situation in the area where Japans troops operate. The peacekeepers daily log from last July, which the defense ministry initially said had been destroyed, described nearby clashes and concern about becoming embroiled in the fighting. Defense Minister Tomomi Inada has repeatedly refused to acknowledge any local combat action.

Opposition lawmakers and peace activists have accused the government of trying to cover up the worsening safety situation. They say the government violated Japans war-renouncing constitutional principles by continuing with the mission despite the nearby fighting.

Japans earlier missions in South Sudan and other areas, including Golan Heights and Cambodia were limited to post-cease-fire assistance and noncombat roles.

The departure of the Japanese peacekeepers is a setback for international support of South Sudans government. In a speech last month, Kiir singled out Abe and Japan for continued support to the government and people of South Sudan.

Hopes were high that South Sudan would have peace and stability after its independence from neighboring Sudan in 2011. But the country plunged into ethnic violence in December 2013 between forces loyal to Kiir and those loyal to his former vice president.

A peace deal signed in August 2015 has failed, and clashes last July between the two forces set off further violence, killing tens of thousands of people and forcing 3.1 million to flee their homes. An estimated 100,000 people are experiencing famine, and 1 million others are on the brink of starvation.

The U.N. Security Council decided in August to send 4,000 more peacekeepers after clashes the previous month killed hundreds in South Sudans capital, Juba. Some progress was mentioned in a U.N. secretary-generals report this week.
SACRAMENTO  A federal judge is overriding a California state law to help combat a growing problem of inmates dying from drug overdoses.

U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson on Friday approved waiving state law to allow licensed vocational nurses to administer the overdose antidote naloxone. The antidote can reverse respiratory failures from opioid overdoses.

A federal receiver says drug overdoses are among the leading causes of deaths in California state prisons, killing an average of 17 inmates each year. Thats triple the national prison drug overdose death rate.

California law says licensed vocational nurses can only inject patients when they are ordered to do so by a doctor. But the 1,800 nurses are often the first responders to medical problems within the prison system.

The state agreed to waive that requirement.
WASHINGTON  When President Donald Trump welcomes Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to the Oval Office on Tuesday, their meeting will take on a symbolism unlike any he has held so far: The great disrupter confronts the leader some regard as the last defender of the liberal world order.

Trump and Merkel are poles apart on issues like immigration and trade; they have circled each other warily since the U.S. presidential election. But both sides, officials said, are determined not to let this first meeting devolve into a clash of competing worldviews.

Merkel has been studying Trumps speeches to get an insight into the new presidents thinking. U.S. officials said Trump would ask the chancellor for advice on how to deal with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, whom, after dozens of meetings over her 11 years in power, she knows better than any other leader in the West.

The threat posed by Russia to Europe could give Merkel and Trump a sliver of common ground. The Trump administration is demanding that Germany and its other NATO allies increase their military budgets, a message the Germans appear to be taking to heart, even if their spending still falls well short of what the United States would like.

You might almost call it serendipity, said Josef Joffe, the publisher and editor of the German paper Die Zeit. Just as Trump is pushing the Europeans to shape up and pay up, the Germans have quite independently realized they are facing a strategic threat on their eastern border.

But if Trump and Merkel find common cause on NATO, they risk new tensions over trade. Administration officials have railed against Germanys huge trade surplus with the United States. One of Trumps top economic advisers, Peter Navarro, recently accused Germany of exploiting its trading partners by depressing the euro to boost its exports.

Merkel plans to push back hard on what the Germans view as blatant protectionism. She is bringing a delegation of corporate chiefs from BMW, Siemens, and other German companies with major U.S. operations. They will talk about apprenticeship programs to train U.S. workers.

The thing shell come back with is, Do you know that there are thousands of Americans working for German companies in the U.S? said Jackson Janes, the president of the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Few leaders have displayed Merkels adroitness in handling swaggering, strongman leaders, whether it is Putin or Silvio Berlusconi of Italy. But in Trump, shes up against a different kind of testosterone-driven guy, Joffe said. Here is a guy who talked in the campaign as if he was going to put the ax to the liberal international world order.

In an interview with a British newspaper in January, Trump said Merkel had made a catastrophic mistake in letting tends of thousands of refugees from Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East enter Germany. I respect her and I like her, but I think it was a mistake, he said. People make mistakes, but I think it was a really big mistake.

He declined to say whether he would support Merkel in running for a fourth term as chancellor  a position repeated by a senior administration official who briefed reporters about her visit on Friday. It was a stark contrast to Merkels relationship with President Barack Obama, one of his closest with any foreign leader.

Merkel, however, also managed to have a productive relationship with President George W. Bush, even though he, like Trump, was deeply unpopular in Germany in the aftermath of the Iraq War. Some experts said that could be a blueprint for how she approached Trump.

Its a tightrope walk, said Jeffrey Rathke, the deputy director of the Europe Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She needs a strong trans-Atlantic relationship. But, he added, she doesnt want to be too close to the U.S. administration.

Merkel has studiously avoided a confrontation with Trump. She said she would judge him by his actions rather than his words. And she has dismissed as absurd the suggestion that she was the last bastion of a liberal world order  a label that would put her at odds with Trump.

When Trump first announced his temporary travel ban on people from seven majority-Muslim countries in January, Merkel patiently explained to him over the phone that the Geneva Conventions oblige countries to protect refugees of war on humanitarian grounds.

In their briefing on Friday, White House officials said they expected a robust exchange between Trump and Merkel on issues ranging from the European Union and the financing of NATO to trade and the campaign against the Islamic State. There has been an unusual degree of preparation for this meeting, given that it is not expected to produce any significant announcements on economic or security issues.

For the Germans, however, the Trump White House remains something of a riddle. Hard-line ideological players, like Navarro and the chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon, vie with more conventional, realist ones, like Gary D. Cohn, the director of the National Economic Council, and Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, the national security adviser.

Navarro, for example, complains that Germany uses unequal treatment of a tax rebate on its exports to disadvantage U.S. exports. Bannon told a visiting German diplomat that the White House viewed the European Union as a flawed construct and preferred to negotiate with Germany and other European countries one on one.

The problem is that Germany, as a member of the European Union, cannot legally negotiate its own trade agreements with the United States. On Friday, another senior administration official who did not want to be identified conceded that point, saying that any new trade deal with Germany would have to be negotiated with the European Union. But that official also said Trump would raise Germanys persistent trade surplus with Merkel.

The chancellor is likely to make a fervent case for the European Union, not just as an economic bloc but also as a political project that has brought peace and prosperity to Europe. White House officials said Friday that Trump would not be shy about his views of Brussels, but that the United States wanted to keep a strong partnership with it.

Perhaps the most sensitive topic for the two leaders will be Russia. Questions about ties between Trumps presidential campaign and Russia continue to hang over him, while Merkel is preparing to run for re-election in a Germany that is fearful that the Russian government will meddle in its campaign like it did in the United States.

German officials are encouraged that Trump has so far not radically tilted U.S. policy toward Moscow. But they point nervously to Breitbart, the far-right website until recently run by Bannon, which is setting up an outpost in Germany and could seek to influence the vote. Russia, they note, can cause plenty of mischief, even without help from the United States.

I think theyll skirt around the Russia issue, Janes of Johns Hopkins said. Theyll stay at 30,000 feet.
Agricultural News

Governor Mary Fallin Signs Letter to USDA Urging CRP Grazing Restrictions be Temporarily Lifted

This afternoon, Governor Mary Fallin signed a joint letter with the governors of Texas, Kansas and New Mexico requesting the acting Secretary of Agriculture Mike Young of the United States Department of Agriculture to temporarily suspend grazing restrictions in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP).





Due to the wildfires burning more than 1.5 million acres across the four states, livestock producers are experiencing extreme grazing land shortages. Daily operations of farmers and ranchers have been forced to cease as they work to move livestock to a safe grazing area away from the wildfires.





If the emergency grazing authorization is approved by Secretary Young, livestock producers affected by the wildfires would be provided access to more land for their livestock to graze on. CRP is a voluntary land conservation program administer by Farm Service Agency (FSA) of USDA to help agricultural producers safeguard environmentally sensitive land.





According to FSA, emergency grazing of CRP designated land is authorized under certain conditions to provide relief to livestock producers due to certain natural disasters.





The letter was sent to Secretary Young this afternoon and stated "These fires have also devastated critical infrastructure, including fencing, on farms and ranches in our states. The Emergency Conservation Program provides critical financial resources to affected farmers and ranchers to rebuild fences. We urge the Farm Service Agency to expedite the implementation of the Emergency Conservation Program in our states pursuant to Title 7, part 701 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The sooner the program is implemented, the faster the livestock industries in our states can begin to rebuild from this devastating event."







Source - Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food & Forestry













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CHICAGO (AP)  Rookie doctors can work up to 24 hours straight under new work limits taking effect this summer  a move that supporters say will enhance training, and foes maintain will do just the opposite.

A Chicago-based group that establishes work standards for U.S. medical school graduates has voted to eliminate a 16-hour cap for first-year residents.

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education announced the move Friday as part of revisions that include reinstating the longer limit for rookies  the same maximum allowed for advanced residents.

The change came with support from within Omahas two medical schools.

Dr. Joann Porter, associate dean for graduate medical education at Creighton University, said the change will allow residents to work in more real-life situations.

Porter submitted comments in support of ending the 16-hour workday limit for first-year doctors. First-year residents need to learn how to follow a very ill patient, see the results of their treatment plans and determine how to adapt them. And they need to do it under the guidance of more experienced physicians.

You cant change just when you hit the streets (and begin working) without supervision, she said.

A study released in February found no effect on patient outcomes when surgeons in training were allowed to work longer shifts. The University of Nebraska Medical Center served as one of the sites for the study that was the basis for the change.

Its very evidence-based, Porter said. Its an important move.

Porter said residents will welcome the change. I think they felt it (the 16-hour requirement) limited their time to be with their full team, she said. The senior residents could stay all night, but they couldnt.

But Dr. Samantha Harrington, a first-year resident at Cambridge Hospital near Boston, thinks the change will endanger the safety of residents and patients. She said her 14-hour shifts are already plenty long. To stay awake while driving home after work, she sometimes rolls down the window to let the freezing air blast her in the face.

Dr. Rowen Zetterman, co-chairman of a task force that spent two years looking into the issue, said the principal reason for the return to the 24-hour shift was that practitioners felt the shorter shift interfered with the team approach increasingly used in health care. Having one team member leave and another enter interfered with the overall safety and quality of care for patients.

We now recognize the team of health care is what really counts, said Zetterman, a professor of internal medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

He stressed that the new standards strengthen well-being requirements for residents and attending physicians. The average workweek remains limited to 80 hours. But for the first time, any home calls or charting from home counts in that time, said Zetterman, who is chairman of the board of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.

World-Herald staff writer Julie Anderson contributed to this report.

Copyright 2017 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed
With spring break about to start for many students, state health officials are reminding those planning trips to areas with active Zika to protect themselves from mosquitoes.

The virus has spread to more than 60 countries and territories, including some popular spring break destinations such as Mexico and Puerto Rico. Local transmission of the virus also has been reported in Texas and Florida. Other mosquito-borne illnesses, including dengue and chikungunya, also are found in many of the same areas as Zika.

Dr. Tom Safranek, Nebraskas state epidemiologist, said would-be travelers should start by checking whether their destination is a Zika-affected area. Those who are pregnant or considering becoming pregnant in the near future should postpone such trips unless absolutely necessary. Warnings urging pregnant women to avoid travel to Florida remain in place despite massive mosquito-control efforts in the state.

Safranek stressed that such reminders include people traveling on mission trips. The state has had reports of members of such groups returning and coming down with chikungunya.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week added four new countries to the list of those with local Zika transmission: Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Maldives and Solomon Islands. The latest travel advisories can be found at cdc.gov.

For more information about what to do before, during and after a trip to a Zika-affected area, visit cdc.gov.

To prevent mosquito bites, wear long-sleeve shirts and long pants; stay in dwellings with air conditioning or screens on all doors and windows; and properly use federally registered insect repellents. Find a list of them at cdc.gov.

A total of 4,813 travel-related cases of Zika have been reported in the United States to date, as well as 221 cases acquired within the country. Fourteen travel-related cases have been identified in Nebraska.

While the virus is spread primarily through the bite of an infected mosquito, it also can be spread through sexual contact. The primary mosquito that transmits Zika, dengue and chikungunya  Aedes aegypti  is found in tropical areas and the Southern United States but is not established in Nebraska.

However, the mosquito is a daytime feeder rather than a nighttime one like the mosquitoes most people are familiar with, and it tends to reside close to human dwellings.

It makes it a bit more challenging, Safranek said.
Oil broke to a three-month low on Friday, dropping under $49 per barrel as the market struggles with oversupply. Prices are falling as U.S. shale oil drillers have increased production while U.S. imports of oil rose as well, swelling U.S. oil stockpiles to record highs.

Shockingly, oil prices are dropping even as OPEC has maintained its production cuts and geopolitical threats swirl around the world. Under normal conditions, the recent missile tests from North Korea and Iran would spark a major oil rally, but the tests of the past two weeks were received as duds by oil traders.

Crudes collapse also worried stock market investors and triggered a sell-off on Wall Street, leading to the first weekly decline for U.S. stock markets in over a month.

If oil prices continue dropping, many analysts expect U.S. production to decline, eventually hurting oil-producing communities from Texas to North Dakota, as many drillers need $50 per barrel to turn a profit.

USDA report crushes beans

Soybeans tumbled this week after the USDA raised its expectations for Brazils bean crop. Brazil is the worlds second-largest soybean grower and is Americas primary rival for soy exports onto the global market. As Brazils crop grows and exports rise, U.S. farmers are forced to lower prices to keep up with our southern competitors.

These concerns knocked beans to near the lowest price of the year, trading down to $9.93 per bushel Friday morning. This price drop comes at a critical time for U.S. farmers, who are preparing to plant a record-breaking number of soybean acres this coming season. If prices keep dropping and producers havent protected their crop values, some could end up working all year just to lose money.

Data in the report also added downward pressure to corn prices as the Brazilian and Argentinian crops would add to large world supplies. Corn traded to a one-month low on Friday near $3.56 per bushel.

Walt and Alex Breitinger are commodity futures brokers in Silver Lake, Kansas. They can be reached at 800-411-3888 or www.paragoninvestments.com.
PEORIA, Ill. (AP)  Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis planned to open this years State of the City speech by thanking Caterpillar Inc. for its longtime commitment to the central Illinois town, declaring We wouldnt be Peoria without Caterpillar.

Its been that way for decades in Peoria and in other company towns across the United States. A major employer provided generations of locals with jobs and gave the cities a central identity, while executives helped keep cultural institutions, Rotary clubs and higher-end housing markets healthy.

Now, many of those midsize communities are looking for a new identity as more companies trade their longtime hometowns for major cities with easier access to global markets and to the lifestyle talented young workers want, with public transit, nightlife and trendy restaurants.

Caterpillars recent decision to move 300 top headquarters jobs to the Chicago area made Peoria the latest city with a vacuum to fill. In 2014, Decatur, Illinois, lost Archer Daniels Midland to Chicago after 40 years in the town. ConAgra Foods moved its headquarters and 1,000 jobs last year from Omaha to Chicago. The new Conagra Brands retains a presence with workers on Omahas riverfront.

Some companies also are leaving suburban areas for downtowns, though the suburbs are still a popular choice. General Electric is moving its executives from a suburban campus in Fairfield, Connecticut, to downtown Boston, and McDonalds said last year it will relocate to downtown Chicago from a sprawling headquarters in suburban Oak Brook.

A study by the virtual think tank CityObservatory.org found that the number of jobs located within three miles of the city center grew by nearly 2 percent between 2011 and 2014, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. Center city jobs grew slightly faster than those in the periphery in one recent seven-year period, a reversal from much of the past several decades.

I dont know that Id call it a trend yet, but it certainly is becoming one, said Tom Murphy, a former Pittsburgh mayor and senior resident fellow at the Urban Land Institute. Maybe for the first time in history, rather than having people follow where jobs are ... were beginning to see jobs following people instead.

By a 2-to-1 margin, young college graduates are now choosing a place to live first, then finding a job, said Joe Cortright, director of CityObservatory.org.

For companies recruiting top talent, the biggest competitive advantage is to be in the city, Cortright said.

The change is adding to the divide between urban and smaller communities in the U.S., especially in the Midwest, which is beset with sagging manufacturing industries.

We joke about that theres the great state of Chicago, and then theres the rest of Illinois, said Bishop Harold Dawson Jr., a lifelong Peoria resident and pastor of New Life Christian Church.

Like many locals, Dawson can rattle off a list of relatives whose livelihoods in Peoria have depended on Caterpillar. The company known as CAT for short established its first plant in Peoria in 1909 and employs more than 12,000 workers in the area, even after several layoffs.

The city of about 110,000 has been trying to breathe more life into its downtown and a scenic stretch along the Illinois River. But while new restaurants, coffee shops and apartments are opening, Ardis acknowledged that few people would call the area dynamic. And parts of the citys core are seeing growing poverty.

The headquarters move has been a blow to the citys collective morale.

There is emotion around the decision, said Jeff Griffin, president of the Peoria Area Chamber. Peoria is not unique in that tragedy across the country.

Griffin said he and his counterpart in Omaha talked recently about the importance of diversifying the local economy  relying on small business rather than large corporations.

Part of the big challenge is leadership needs to recognize the rules have changed, Murphy said. They need to think about how they build their cities and the amenities they offer, and be really clear about what their competitive advantages are today, not what they were 100 years ago.

A city should perhaps think about spending on public transit rather than highways, he said.

Improving the atmosphere of downtown seems to be helping some midsize cities recoup from the loss of major businesses, urban experts say.

In Greenville, South Carolina, where the decline of the textile industry left a huge gap in the economy, leadership arranged to remove a four-lane bridge that obstructed the view of a scenic waterfall, and added trees and cafes and sidewalks. A downtown that was once dead is now beautiful and hugely successful, Murphy said. In addition to drawing tourists, the city has a booming advanced manufacturing industry, anchored by companies such as BMW.

But other places, such as Decatur, are struggling to find a new identity. The city has the second-highest unemployment rate in Illinois, and Moodys Analytics warns that the lack of jobs could push the city back into recession.

Across the Midwest and Northeast in particular, a number of midsize cities are facing big challenges, Cortright said.

What do we do with the Peorias? he added. I dont think we know what the answer to that is.

Peoria has a growing health care industry and is home to other companies such as Maui Jim sunglasses and Bump Box, a monthly delivery of skincare and other products for pregnant women.

Ardis said the city just has to find more.

Were not just going to roll over and play dead, he said.
Delayed tax refunds. A depressed agricultural industry. Slow mall traffic. A weak Canadian dollar.

Buckle Inc. management blamed these factors and more on another quarter of dismal sales Friday, when the company reported its fourth-quarter earnings.

Analysts on a conference call peppered management with questions about store locations and potential closings, the companys e-commerce strategy and whether the company will undertake a formal cost-cutting initiative.

What percentage (of Buckle stores) would you say are in crappy malls? one analyst asked Chief Executive Dennis Nelson on the call.

Many of the Buckles stores are in traditional shopping malls, which have seen falling foot traffic over the year nationally. And many of the stores are in smaller communities that have been hit hard by low commodity prices, Nelson said. The weak Canadian dollar means fewer Canadians are coming across the border to shop in American stores, he said. He also referenced delayed tax refunds for some Americans due to a change in the tax code.

With the traffic in the malls down  I think that has also had an effect, Nelson said, adding that online shopping has taken a bite out of the companys sales, too. I think theres a lot of combinations there that were good for us for a number of years and have kind of all hit at the same time.

Nelson said the Buckle has no plans for a formal cost-cutting initiative, or any mass store closings.

We would expect probably a few more closings over the year, but we dont see any large change in our store base, Nelson said. The company has 468 store across 44 states in the U.S.

The Kearney, Nebraska-based teen apparel retailer reported same-store sales for the quarter were down 16 percent compared with the same quarter a year ago. Same-store sales measures sales at stores open for at least a year.

Like many retailers, especially those in malls, the Buckle has been reporting declining same-store sales since late 2013.

Meanwhile, even online sales were down  the most recent quarter by about 9 percent.

The company reported earnings of 74 cents per diluted share; Wall Street analysts polled by FactSet had expected the company to earn 80 cents per share.

When asked what the strategy is to improve sales, Nelson said changing tastes and preferences will eventually favor Buckle again.

The last year has been a situation where its more about managing the business than trying to generate extra sales, Nelson said.

As for driving traffic and sales online, Nelson said the company was evaluating marketing efforts to get more eyes on its website. But the company wont sacrifice profitability to drive traffic, as many other retailers do, he said. The Buckle does not offer steep sales, discounts or free shipping both ways.

Its probably not so hard to generate more sales if you dont care about the bottom line, Nelson said.
IOWA CITY (AP)  An inmate has been charged with second-degree murder in the October beating death of a fellow prisoner at Iowas maximum-security penitentiary, a prosecutor said Friday.

The death of Michael Whitworth was the first homicide inside an Iowa prison since 2010. It has raised questions about safety at the new Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison.

A criminal complaint dated Thursday alleges that Whitworth and inmate Lha Sam Southideth-Whiten, 35, got into an altercation inside a prison cafeteria on Oct. 20.

Southideth-Whiten punched Whitworth in the face, causing him to fall backward to the floor, according to the complaint signed by Lee County Attorney Ross Braden. He continued to strike his face and head even though Whitworth was bleeding heavily and appeared to be unconscious once he hit the ground, the complaint said, citing surveillance video of the beating.

Whitworth, 46, died of his injuries 10 days later at a hospital. An autopsy ruled his death a homicide caused by blunt force trauma.

Prison records show that Southideth-Whiten ignored a correctional officers commands to stop during the attack. A prison judge has already held Southideth-Whiten responsible for the death, disciplining him with 180 days of detention and stripping him of 180 days of earned time.

To be convicted of second-degree murder, prosecutors would have to show that Southideth-Whiten acted with malice aforethought but not premeditation. He faces a mandatory sentence of 50 years in prison if convicted and would have to serve 35 before becoming eligible for parole.

Copyright 2017 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
When 9-year-old Hannah Fernandes woke up Saturday morning, she was full of nerves.

It was her first time competing in the Midwest Spelling Bee. She was up against 70 other third- through eighth-graders whod won their school and county bees around Nebraska and Iowa. And her hopes werent exactly high.

I thought I was going to get out in the written rounds, Fernandes said.

But low and behold, Fernandes not only made it past the written rounds but beat four finalists in 18 oral rounds to take the regions highest spelling honor. The fourth-grader from St. Stephen the Martyr is headed to Washington, D.C., to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

It took more than three tense hours to crown the champion of the 88th annual Midwest Spelling Bee, sponsored by The World-Herald. The competition drew about 200 to the Omaha Public Schools Teachers Administration Center near 32nd and Burt Streets. Only four girls made it to the oral rounds: one from Blair, one from Papillion and two from Omaha.

After a few rounds, only the two Omaha contestants remained on the auditoriums stage. Deeksha Sridher, a seventh-grader at Millard North Middle School, and Fernandes went back and forth for more than 10 rounds. In three of the rounds, both girls misspelled words, keeping the competition alive.

A little after 2 p.m., enunciator Charles Johanningsmeier, a University of Nebraska at Omaha literature professor, gave Sridher the word sloganeer. Sridher misspelled it.

Now it was Fernandes turn. Cautiously, she spelled parvule. Johanningsmeier whispered with the judges before asking her to spell the word again. She repeated it. There was more whispering among Johanningsmeier and the judges.

The audience waited in silence. Fernandes stood alone at the microphone.

Johanningsmeier returned to his microphone and apologized for the delay. Youve won, he said.

The auditorium erupted with applause. When it died down, Fernandes flew off the stage into her familys arms.

Im really happy, Fernandes said as the crowd began filtering out of the room.

Her mother, Sharmila Braganza, stood nearby with a camcorder, tears in her eyes. Sridher came over to shake her hand and say congratulations.

Last year, Sridher represented Nebraska in the National Geographic Bee.

Fernandes won an all-expenses-paid trip for two to Washington for the national spelling bee from May 28 to June 2. She also landed a cash prize, Websters Third New International Dictionary, a 2017 U.S. Mint proof set from Jay Sugarman and a one-year subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica Online Premium.

Kids have competed for a spot in the Scripps National Spelling Bee since 1925. This year, 11 million students will compete in school, district and regional bees across the country.

Jennifer Reinke, who lives near York, came to watch Saturdays competition. This year is the 50th anniversary of when she won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in 1967 as an eighth-grader.

She hasnt been to the Midwest Regional Bee since 1977, and she said she was impressed with the spellers of today.

They ask more questions, and the words are harder than they were 50 years ago, she said.
DES MOINES (AP)  For years a utility that supplies drinking water to Iowas capital city has spent millions of dollars to rid its water supply of pollutants that run off farm fields upstream. Eventually officials filed a lawsuit to force the agricultural counties to clamp down on the runoff.

But the state Legislature, now controlled by Republicans who won big majorities in the November election, has decided to address the issue in a different way. Its preparing to dissolve the utility, effectively killing the lawsuit.

GOP lawmakers say the change is meant to allow the cities in the area more direct control of their own water. But supporters of the Des Moines Water Works, an independent utility that has served the region for a century, say the move is a bold show of power by farm interests in a Legislature where conservatives now hold sway.

This is just a smoke screen, said Bill Stowe, the utilitys CEO. Its based on protecting industrial agriculture.

The legislation ending the utility was proposed by a pig farmer who lives nearly 100 miles from Des Moines whose farm has been fined for mishandling hog waste. The legislation is moving through an agriculture committee, rather than a government-focused panel.

Its hard to overstate the importance of farming in Iowa, the nations leader in the production of corn, eggs and pork. The state with slightly more than 3 million people has 22 million hogs and 55 million chickens on about 9,000 large-scale animal farms.

Much of the 20 billion gallons of liquid manure produced annually is spread as fertilizer on farmland, and runoff is blamed for causing more than 750 Iowa waterways to be reported to the Environmental Protection Agency as impaired.

Two years ago, the Des Moines Water Works sued three counties over rising nitrate levels in the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers, from which the utility draws water. The utility complained that cleaning the water has cost Des Moines-area residents millions of dollars to operate a filtration system that when installed was intended to be used rarely. Federal regulations require nitrate levels below 10 milligrams per liter, but river levels have been measured at up to four times that amount.

Republican lawmakers and GOP Gov. Terry Branstad have been critical of the lawsuit and have said officials should rely on voluntary methods to reduce pollution from farms.

The new legislation would transfer the assets and control of the independent water utilities in Des Moines and the suburbs of Urbandale and West Des Moines to their respective cities. Iowa law currently allows water boards to be dissolved only by a public vote. In a 2003 election in the suburb of West Des Moines, 90 percent of voters chose to keep the independent water board rather than transfer power to the City Council.

Republican Rep. Jarad Klein, who introduced the legislation, said the Water Works board should have been more willing to listen to ratepayers and elected officials from surrounding areas.

If they were more willing to listen, we might not be here today, Klein said.

Farm groups have said the lawsuit soured relationships and has done nothing to improve water quality. Farmers are voluntarily using measures such as grass filters and buffer strips to contain runoff, according to Iowa Farm Bureau President Craig Hill.

That work will and must continue, he said.

But Stowe said those efforts arent working, as shown by continued high nitrate levels in rivers.

If the bill passes, as expected, the presiding judge could dismiss the lawsuit if its clear the board that filed the case no longer exists.

Stowe said the bill is a way to scare off others who might think of taking on Iowas agriculture industry.

This has a chilling effect on people who are advocating for environmental protection, he said.

The Iowa Farm Bureau has denied pushing for the change, though it has repeatedly criticized Des Moines Water Works and Stowe for filing the lawsuit.

The legislation has outraged environment groups and some Des Moines-area legislators, but Democrats have little way of stopping it since losing control of the Senate in the November election.

Some city leaders said earlier they were open to the change, saying they feared even more restrictive legislation.

Councilwoman Christine Hensley, a Republican, said the new system could allow better coordination among cities.

But some Des Moines residents at a public hearing complained about bearing the cost of continued pollution.

This would allow corporate ag to continue to pollute our waterways, said resident Cherie Mortice. This is like asking Des Moines ratepayers to swallow a porcupine.

Copyright 2017 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
DES MOINES (AP)  Officials say more than 220,000 poor or disabled Iowa residents could lose access to Mercy Health Network because of a contract dispute with a Medicaid management company.

The patients receive Medicaid through AmeriHealth Caritas, one of three companies the state hired last year to run the program. The Des Moines Register reported that AmeriHealth has told those patients in a recent letter that its been unable to negotiate new contract terms with Mercy. AmeriHealth said the Mercy system no longer would be an AmeriHealth network provider if a deal isnt struck by July 1.

AmeriHealth officials said Mercy could continue serving those patients if it were to accept lower, out-of-network fees.

The Mercy Health Network includes Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines, hospitals in 12 other cities, plus about 200 clinics.

Mercy Health Network officials said the insurance company is trying to cut rates that the two sides previously agreed to.

MHN is disappointed that AmeriHealth-Caritas has chosen to terminate the contract so quickly, Mercy Health Network Vice President Janell Pittman said in an email. We are working collaboratively with AmeriHealth-Caritas with the hope that participants will continue to receive affordable care from MHNs award-winning providers in metro and rural communities across the state.

AmeriHealth spokesman Joshua Brett said his company was seeking to establish a sustainable Medicaid program by negotiating different payment rates for services.

AmeriHealth Caritas Iowa is taking this action now so that there is no impact on our members, as they can continue to see their providers while we work to agree on new contract terms, Brett said in an email.

The states shift to private Medicaid management has been heavily criticized, with some predicting the for-profit companies would aggressively try to cut costs and limit services in order to turn a profit. Supporters contend it can save Iowa money by providing more efficient and effective care.

Copyright 2017 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Its that time of year in North Iowa when all our thoughts turn toward the prospect of summer: warm breezes, open lakes, and happy crowds of people enjoying the sun.

It also happens to be the time of year when those in the business of promoting tourism are out there working hard to remind visitors to include North Iowa in their travels.

Libbey Patton, director of tourism at the Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, recently traveled to Schaumburg, Illinois, for a big tourism trade show. At a booth shared with Air Choice One, the flight service between Mason City Airport and Chicago, she talked with travel planners about the easy access and exceptional attractions in our area.

Tourism is really looking strong, Patton said. The last two years Clear Lake has been breaking records on hotel counts. Winters are also a lot stronger.

Patton has directed tourism here for seven years and previously was director of sales at the Best Western hotel in Clear Lake, so her whole career has been dedicated to promoting this area.

Lindsey James, executive director of Visit Mason City Iowa, said, Much of what we do is invisible to local people. We do a lot of marketing outside of the area. Local residents might not be aware of how many events come to this area or how many people come from outside Mason City to participate, or why they chose Mason City in the first place.

James, who has been directing Visit Mason City for about a year, stepped up to the position after seven years as a project coordinator in the office.

People are pleasantly surprised to learn about Mason City and all we have to offer, James said. We reach visitors by advertising, attending trade shows, and marketing. If I go to a trade show, Ill sit down with planners and talk about our Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, music heritage, Clear Lake, and all this area has to offer.

"They realize we have enough to fill at least a day on a tour. Often groups are passing through Iowa on the way to somewhere else. They have a good experience here and become repeat customers.

Mason City offers 494 lodging rooms, and Clear Lake has 447 hotel rooms. Patton said there also are about 40 homes offered as vacation rentals around Clear Lake.

James said, It can be a challenge at times, but if we can get them to listen and embrace the opportunity, they love it. We get so much positive feedback. We offer site visits to show them whats available. That personal touch, our level of service, and then seeing it first hand just blows them away.

Visitors spent $95.4 million in Mason City during 2015, the most recent figures available, according to James. For all of Cerro Gordo County, visitor spending that year was $191.09 million. That includes hotel, shopping, dining, and gas. She also said there are 1,500 tourism-related jobs in Cerro Gordo County.

Patton said, One of biggest challenges is appealing to people to take their vacation time, really unplugging and unwinding."

James noted that this region is easy to navigate, offers big-town amenities, and its affordable.

When groups host events here, they see an increase in attendance. We attribute that to our location, easy to get to midway between Minneapolis and Des Moines, and it doesnt cost a lot to come and stay.

Activities by the tourism centers are funded through a portion of the states hotel/motel tax.

Visit Mason City has a legal agreement with the city. We receive 45 percent of the hotel/motel tax, James said. State code allows the community to access the tax, but its required to invest in tourism. Visit Mason City was founded in 1985 when the city decided to pursue use of this tax.

Visitor spending for 2015 in Clear Lake was $67.996 million. Like Mason City, tourism activities of the Clear Lake Chamber are funded through the towns hotel/motel tax revenue, according to Patton. Some goes to economic development, some to lake restoration.

Our Chamber, city, tourism, and economic development all work in sync and come to the table with what needs to be done," Patton said. "For instance, were closing streets all the time for events.

Patton said tourism encompasses more than just getting visitors to the area. Its also about keeping visitors and resources safe.

Water quality is a big deal for us, she said.

The Chamber supports the Iowas Water and Land Legacys efforts to fund the Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund, created through a constitutional amendment passed by Iowa voters in 2010.

The fund would be filled by an increase to the state sales tax of three-eighths of 1 cent. Revenue from the sales tax would go to many natural resource and recreation projects.

The act was passed, but its never been funded, Patton said. Were definitely behind that initiative. These are things behind the scenes besides what events are going on.

Because of its location on Interstate 35, Patton said the Clear Lake Chamber also has been consulting the Cerro Gordo County Emergency Management Agency on how to work with hotels and restaurants to take care of people stranded in town by blizzards, tornadoes, and other emergencies.

In February, the Chamber partnered with Crisis Intervention Center to put on a Clear Lake Human Trafficking and Prevention Program.

It does go on in our community, with our interstate location. Its not fun to talk about, but its important to be a leader in getting issues to forefront, Patton said.

The event included a guest speaker; specific training for hotel staff members on things to look for; and an attempt to get Any Kid, Anywhere curriculum introduced in the local schools next year.
More Catholic, more charity, less funding that comes with strings attached.

Thats the new vision for Catholic Charities of Omaha as it aims to do away with all its government contracts and grants by 2018.

The move by the charitable arm of the Archdiocese of Omaha comes in the wake of officials decision last year to pull out of addiction recovery and mental health services. Government reimbursements of more than $9 million failed to keep up with the cost of those services, officials said, and government contracts came with requirements that board members felt ran afoul of the charitys Christian mission.

The move  made with the advice of a Denver law firm  is one being made by nonprofits across the country, including many Catholic Charities organizations, as leaders no longer want to deal with government rules.

Catholic Charities of Omaha announced last year that it was getting out of addiction treatment, citing cost and government regulations  including a local ordinance that bans job discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

With freedom from the regulations comes a new focus on engagement, to be outlined in a strategic plan expected in May or June. A recent partnership with the Omaha Society of St. Vincent de Paul marks one of Catholic Charities first steps toward the collaborative model of volunteerism it envisions.

Without government funds, the budget for Catholic Charities of Omaha will drop to less than a fourth of what it was last year, falling from $16.2 million to between $3 million and $4 million. The organizations staff also has been reduced from 250 employees to 70. Most of those people took positions with the behavioral health and addiction treatment groups that took over for Catholic Charities.

The bulk of the agencys contracts with the government were for the behavioral health services it no longer will provide. Catholic Charities has transferred the citys only public detoxification center to Douglas County, and CenterPointe of Lincoln took over residential substance abuse treatment programs at Campus for Hope.

Catholic Charities also receives an additional $500,000 per year in government funds. Most of that goes to a domestic violence shelter. By the end of 2017, board members hope to say no to that money too.

We certainly arent panicked about filling that gap, said Bob Gunia, a board member. We are putting our faith in the people to support this work.

Catholic Charities funding will now depend solely on private donations and fundraisers such as tonights Irish Fest, to be held at Embassy Suites La Vista. The gala, now in its 25th year, is the biggest annual fundraiser for the organization. It raised more than $500,000 last year.

Attendees this year will hear a message about the future of Catholic Charities and how it plans to continue current services, which include two food pantries, a domestic violence shelter, legal assistance for immigrants, microbusiness training, pregnancy counseling and adoptions.

That future also will bring new leadership, as John Griffith plans to leave his role as executive director in June after about eight years in the job. Griffith said he had been planning to leave for a while. The position is posted, and the board is reviewing candidates, Griffith said.

I will always be a huge supporter of Catholic Charities and plan to be one of the volunteers helping to support the mission going forward, Griffith told The World-Herald in an email.

But exactly what that mission will look like remains unclear. A strategic plan isnt likely to be released until late spring, following a needs assessment of the 23 counties in the archdiocese. Catholic Charities is working with the Pennsylvania-based Catholic Leadership Institute, a lay consulting agency that last year helped with surveys as part of Omaha Archbishop George Lucass pastoral priorities.

One of those priorities was creating a culture, CEO Dan Cellucci said, that enabled Gods mercy to be received and lived. Translated, It can mean a lot of different things for a Catholic today.

Really, he said, its modeling the love of Christ in all different aspects of our lives.

Cellucci said his organization will spend the next six months or so helping Catholic Charities figure out how to turn the general into the specific. This will mean the group will be talking to Catholic Charities staff members, board members, volunteers and active parishioners. The group will help come up with goals and plans with budgets and timetables.

Its a great opportunity, Cellucci said, to mobilize Catholics around service work and in their faith lives. And the efforts can help lure back disaffected Catholics interested in service.

The leading question for the strategic plan, board member Gunia said, will be:  How best can we connect the faithful to service to others? In this moment, we dont have those answers.

Gunia said a strategic plan would emphasize parishioner involvement. Thats a much-needed rebranding, said the Rev. Mike Eckley of St. Pius X parish in Omaha. Eckley also is a Catholic Charities of Omaha board member.

After working for several years in rural parishes within the archdiocese, Eckley noticed that while Catholics knew of Catholic Charities, they didnt understand its range of services or ways to get involved.

People really are looking for those opportunities, he said, but need to know where to look.

This message of engagement  getting parishioners out of the pews to work directly with the needy  came from both Pope Francis and Archbishop Lucas during last years Holy Year of Mercy. There was this strong desire in (the archbishops) heart that people would enter into the lives of those living in misery, said Tim McNeil, chancellor of the archdiocese. In Lucass listening sessions last year, many parishioners expressed a desire for opportunities to do just that.

Those opportunities were just lost when the majority of our time and efforts was going to (behavioral health), Griffith said.

Last year the organization hired lawyers at the Denver office of Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie to review its government contracts. The firm specializes in religious freedom issues. Scott Browning, a partner at the firm, said Lucas sought the national perspective as he looked to refocus the Catholic Charities mission.

This kind of self-reflection among religious organizations is very typical, Browning said. This isnt a Catholic-specific issue. Religious organizations all over the country are asking if the government is really the best business partner.

Browning said for Catholic Charities of Omaha, the question was not Has the government already restricted us? but Can it?

Nine of the organizations contracts with governments specifically restricted proselytizing or inherently religious activity, which would include prayer and worship, Browning said. One other contract, for immigration services, banned discriminating against clients for their sexual orientation, though Catholic Charities said those services were and will continue to be open to anyone.

Limitations on evangelizing really drove this decision, Browning said. It takes a strong leader to say no to money thats out there in order to stay true to the mission of the organization.

Getting out of government contracts has become a trend among other Catholic Charities across the country, but also among nonreligious nonprofits, too, said David Thompson, vice president of public policy at the National Council of Nonprofits.

Its just become an expensive hassle for nonprofits to partner with the government, he said. Research has shown that the government can fail to pay the full cost of the contracted services or can change the contracts midstream.

Former local nonprofit leader Del Bomberger, who ran the Stephen Center homeless shelter, hailed the move by Catholic Charities.

I am 100 percent in favor of this change, said Bomberger, who formerly dealt with Catholic Charities because of their shared population: homeless people and people with addictions.

Bomberger said government rules can be overly burdensome. And he said its important to mobilize a strong, active volunteer corps for two reasons. First, dedicated volunteers can save a nonprofit time and money. Second, working face to face with people in poverty helps improve understanding and build compassion.

Catholic Charities of Omaha will continue to seek charitable foundation dollars and United Way funding. Some foundations may have restrictions against donating to religious organizations, and United Way of the Midlands does not provide grants for a program that is solely religious in nature.

Board members said Catholic Charities will continue to serve those of all faiths.

We dont do these services because the people served are Catholic, we do it because we are Catholic, Gunia said. Now we are looking at a potential new service  a beautiful mix of Catholic counseling that incorporates a spiritual component as well. Its been odd to say we serve the poor but only so far that we cant serve the whole body, mind and soul.

Catholic Charities will continue to have licensed professionals in any behavioral health services it decides to continue. Volunteer opportunities would be in other areas, such as food pantries, Griffith said.

The model of person-to-person service already is in the metro area: the Omaha Council of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul has more than 500 volunteers who make home visits to people in need.

In December the St. Vincent de Paul office moved into Catholic Charities Juan Diego Center in South Omaha, marking the beginning of the agencies partnership. St. Vincent de Paul, a national Catholic lay organization with local societies, takes no government funding.

McNeil said the future of Catholic Charities may include more such collaborations.

All of this will be a challenge, but it is time for a shift, he said, adding that the organization is in the best possible position to get people excited.

All of this  the archbishops plan, where we were at with Catholic Charities funding  seemed to fall into place, he said. It feels like it was by Gods design to help us look to the future.
Joseph C. Vitek was a man who had a passion for the work he did and the people with whom he worked.

The former head of Douglas County Corrections and Nebraskas prison system was described by attorney David Herzog as helpful, reasonable, respectful and available to give advice, even after his retirement in 1996.

Herzog said Vitek was always willing to share his expertise in the area of prison management and prisoners rights.

Vitek died Feb. 28 at Lakeside Hospital from complications related to a fall. He was 83.

Vitek was born in Chicago to Joseph and Lena Vitek, immigrants from Czechoslovakia. He attended school in Chicago before joining the Army and becoming a paratrooper. After leaving the Army, Vitek graduated from Northern Illinois University with a teaching degree. He began his career at the Illinois penitentiary at Stateville, overseeing the prisons school.

According to a Chicago Tribune article from July 1962, he was transferred to the Illinois penitentiary at Pontiac in 1961 and became the youngest prison warden in the United States at 28.

Vitek spent time as a prison warden in New Hampshire before moving to Nebraska in the mid-1970s. He served as Nebraskas corrections director until the late 1970s. Vitek worked as the Douglas County corrections director until retiring in 1996.

As a Douglas County Board member, Clare Duda worked with Vitek. Duda said board members had confidence in Vitek, which made their job easy. Duda said Vitek was pleasant, professional and well-respected by the board members.

During his time in Nebraska, Vitek helped create a work-release program and the installation of a Native American sweat lodge.

Bob Houston met Vitek shortly after Houston left college and started work at the Nebraska State Penitentiary. Houston said Vitek had a huge heart and felt a responsibility to help inmates return to the community. This was his force behind the work-release program. Houston followed in the footsteps of someone he called a good friend, serving as the director of corrections for Douglas County and for the state.

Vitek often traveled after his retirement, including visiting relatives in the Czech Republic.

Alice Freeman, one of Viteks daughters, said her father had a good sense of humor. He gave himself the nickname Joe the Jailer, and when he met others, he told them that he had spent his life in prison. Freeman said he was likable and passionate about his work. She said he cared about the well-being of those around him and put his heart and soul into everything he did.

In addition to Freeman, Vitek is survived by children Jim Vitek, Joseph Vitek and Barb Vitek, all of Omaha, John Vitek of Milwaukee and Bart Vitek of Los Angeles; sister Georgia Mozis of New Buffalo, Michigan; five grandchildren; and one great-grandson.

The funeral Mass was last week at St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Church.
A man who alleges that Lincoln police officers beat him while he was unconscious outside a restaurant last year has filed a suit against them and the city in U.S. District Court.

The suit alleges seven officers deliberately violated Barine Deezias rights under the U.S. Constitutions Fourth, Fifth and 14th Amendments and the Civil Rights Act.

It asserts that the 36-year-old Lincoln resident was falsely arrested and imprisoned and that the officers used excessive force.

Two of the officers slammed Deezia into a Jimmy Johns window under a free smells sign on March 20, 2016, the suit alleges.

This case is an egregious example of police misconduct, featuring multiple violations of (Deezias) rights, wrote his attorneys, Richard Boucher and Seth Morris, in the suits complaint, which was filed on Wednesday.

Lincoln City Attorney Jeff Kirkpatrick said Friday that the officers had acted appropriately. None has been disciplined for improperly following department policies or procedures in connection with Deezias arrest, though Kirkpatrick said there may have been minor infractions he had not been alerted to. That Deezia was injured during his arrest was unfortunate, Kirkpatrick said.

Deezia suffered a broken shoulder blade, cuts and bruises when, the suit alleges, officers punched his back during the arrest in downtown Lincoln after an officer used an inside takedown that caused him to hit his head on a brick sidewalk.

The suit alleges that, before he was beaten, Deezia had not thrown punches, acted aggressively, made any threats, or physically impeded (the officers) investigation.

In an April 2016 interview with The World-Herald, Deezia said his alleged mistreatment was racially motivated.

Deezia was charged with obstructing a peace officer resisting arrest, and at a trial, a jury found him not guilty in November.

Three officers saw Deezia and another man carrying a woman, who was drunk and unconscious, near 14th and O Streets about 2 a.m. on March 20. Officers went to talk to the group to make sure the woman was safe, according to a probable-cause affidavit one of them wrote.

The officer spoke to another woman to figure out what was happening when Deezia was verbally aggressive toward the woman and told her not to talk to police, according to the affidavit.

The confrontation escalated, with wrestling and shoving between Deezia and officers, the affidavit said.

According to the suit, the officers questioned Deezia and his friends about what bar they were at because the officers intended to pursue a tavern violation.

The officers named in the suit are Gregory Graham, Aaron Peth, Trey Wayne, Andrew Winkler, Mark Moore, Patrick Murphy and Jason Drager.
Responding to recent wildfires in Kansas, Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts has temporarily lifted some requirements for trucks traveling through Nebraska to aid in the relief effort.

Ricketts has waived the length and weight requirements for those trucks, through March 17.

There is likely to be an increased number of trucks carrying hay and livestock, said Matt Miltenberger, the governors chief of staff, and this temporary waiver will expedite efforts to provide assistance to victims of the wildfires.
The financial woes of Kansas, which is facing a colossal budget shortfall, took another odd twist earlier this month, and an already messy situation got even messier.

State government expenses are estimated to outpace income by about $1.1 billion through June 2019. So how to balance the budget? The answer has proved elusive, and the debate over what to do has embroiled the governor, lawmakers and the state Supreme Court.

Depending on ones point of view, whats happening in Kansas reflects disciplined government spending or a foolhardy bet that tax cuts would boost the economy.

Here are key things to know about the budget crisis thats being watched by policymakers across the country.

Q: What happened March 2 in Kansas Supreme Court?

A: The states Supreme Court ruled that Kansas schools are not adequately funded by the Legislature.

Q: Was it expected?

A: Definitely. The Supreme Court had already ruled last year that there was a grave disparity in state funds received by rich districts and poor districts.

A key issue concerns interpretation of language. Kansas operates its education budget under a court ruling dictating that funding among all its schools must be adequate (they must be given enough money to operate) and equitable (it must be shared fairly).

In 2016, a majority of the Supreme Court found that Kansas school funding was inequitable, setting off a frenzied period of uncertainty in the state capital, Topeka, where lawmakers were given a June 30, 2016, deadline to fix the formula or face the shutdown of all Kansas public schools.

Q: Sounds like a standoff. Was it?

A: Yes. And the legislators blinked, rearranging the budget to add $38 million to schools.

But then lawmakers who opposed the courts ruling fought back by dragging the justices who composed the majority into expensive retention races in November.

All the justices won, kept their seats and ruled against the school funding formula again March 2.

Q: Back up: How did we get here?

A: There are hundreds of bar graphs and pie charts and, someday, probably cartoons to illustrate this, but the very quick version is: Republican Gov. Sam Brownback proposed dramatic cuts to personal income tax receipts in 2012, a position consistent with the Tea Party movement that aimed to take spending out of government hands.

The Legislature approved the tax cuts. The strategy has faded somewhat nationally but lives on as the governing philosophy in Kansas, even though the cuts did not spur economic growth as their proponents predicted. Result: the gaping holes in the state budget.

Q: What are the schools like now?

A: In relatively well-off areas like the Kansas City suburbs, theyre fine. In poor areas, not so good. Thats what the Kansas Supreme Court said in its ruling:

Not only is the State failing to provide approximately one-fourth of all its public school K-12 students with the basic skills of both reading and math, but it is also leaving behind significant groups of harder-to-educate students.

Q: Is it a failing of individual districts, or is the court criticizing the whole school funding formula?

A: The court is saying that Brownbacks entire block grant funding system will not work for schools. A block grant is only minimally responsive to financially important changing conditions such as increased enrollment.

Q: What happens now?

A: Lawmakers have until June 30 to come up with a new school finance formula, which is expected to cost the state $500 million to $1 billion on top of its $6-billion education budget.

School funding advocates have pushed legislators to complete a new funding formula much sooner. Legislators opposed to the change to the school funding formula wondered aloud where the money would come from.

Q: What about those legislators? If there was no impetus to change things after 2014, when the state Supreme Court said disparities in school funding violated the state constitution, why would they budge now?

A: A lot has changed since 2014  primarily, elections.

More than 20 allies of Brownback lost their seats in Novembers election. Democrats and moderate conservatives made education a central issue of their campaigns. Those Brownback allies who did survive mostly skirted the issue of school funding in their campaigns.

Q: If lawmakers cant cut from the schools, where will they cut?

A: Thats going to be the next tough conversation in what is sure to be a series of tough conversations among GOP lawmakers looking to fix budget deficits in the next 30 months. Thats about the time it will take for the states budget deficit to hit $1.1 billion. In the meantime, the state hopes for more revenue from an increased sales tax.

Q: And what about Brownbacks budget cuts overall  what effects are they having?

A: So far, not good. Legislators are desperately trying to repeal Brownbacks personal income tax cuts and exemptions for 330,000 farmers and business owners, but they cant quite get the requisite support.

In late February, Brownback vetoed a bill that would have ended his income tax cut, and when legislators tried to override his veto, the governors allies squeaked out a win.

It was close, though. The House voted 85-40 to override, one more vote than lawmakers needed. The Senate rejected the veto override 24-16, three votes shy of an override.

Although the override failed, its notable that it came close to passing in a Legislature controlled by Republicans.
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Kejriwal now claims BJP offered to spare Sisodia, Jain if AAP backs out of Gujarat polls

AAP \"merely a party of UT Delhi\", only Cong can challenge BJP in Gujarat, HP: Azad

AAP says it is disappointed with its Punjab show

India

ians-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, March 11: The AAP said on Saturday it was disappointed it did not win the Punjab assembly election but added that even becoming the main opposition was an achievement.

"We were hoping to form a government in Punjab," Aam Aadmi Party leader Ashutosh told IANS. "We are disappointed with the result," he said, as vote count showed the Congress sweeping to victory in assembly election.

"But for a new party (in the state) even coming at the second place is also a big thing," Ashutosh added. "Don't underestimate this."

He said all the AAP leaders needed to introspect where the party's assessment of taking power in the border state with more than 100 of the 117 seats went wrong.

IANS
After humiliating defeat, Irom vows not to contest polls; PRAJA to continue its work

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

Imphal, March 11: It was a defeat that has shocked all of us. The iconic peace activist Irom Sharmila, who contested polls for the first time from Thoubal, Manipur, lost to Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh. In her maiden election, Sharmila managed to get just 90 votes. The results of the Manipur Assembly elections were declared on Saturday. The elections took place in two phases--on March 4 and March 8.

After the results, an emotional Sharmila, with tears in her eyes, told Indian Express that she was never going to contest elections again in her life. Perhaps, it was not the defeat, but the way Manipur voted against her. Like you, we are also wondering how could a well-known personality like Sharmila, who was on a hunger strike for 16 years to protest against the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act, be rejected in such a 'bad' manner by her own people.

But many say Sharmila's defeat was anticipated, but no one thought that she would be humiliated in such a way. Her popularity in the state started eroding the day she decided to end her fast last year. Even her mother refused to let her stay in their house after Sharmila broke her fast and was released by the police.

A large-section of Manipuri did not like her decision to end her hunger strike. After ending her fast last year, Irom formed her political party-- Peoples' Resurgence and Justice Alliance. Her party contested from three constituencies this time. The 44-year-old peace activist-turned-politician, however, wants her political outfit to continue its journey. Sharmila plans to fight against the AFSPA through her political party.

OneIndia News
Amarinder Singh calls kejriwal 'a summer storm & he is gone'

India

oi-Madhuri

Having won Punjab for his party on his 75th birthday, Congress Punjab head and its Chief Ministerial candidate Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday credited the party's stellar electoral performance to party President Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul.

"I thank you people of Punjab, my leadership Rahulji and Soniaji," Amarinder Singh told reporters in his first remarks to the media after the Congress appeared set to return to power in Punjab.

When asked about his deputy chief minister, Singh said that it is upto for Rahul Gandhi to decide. "That will be decided by the Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi. All ministers will be decided by the party leadership," Amarinder said.

"The people of Punjab have given us a big mandate. Our first priority will be to eradicate drugs from Punjab. I have vowed to finish drugs within four weeks," a visibly happy Amarinder, who led the Congress back to power after a decade, told media after trends indicated that Congress was headed to a big win in the the state.

''We go by what our central leadership thinks is best. People of Punjab want industry and jobs,'' said.

He further called Arvind Kejriwal as a summer storm and he is gone. Taking a dig at Kejriwal, Singh said,''I said on the very first day that the voter of Punjab is very smart. They understood the AAP has no leadership, no credibility.

Punjab has 117 seats, a party needs 59 to form the government.

OneIndia News
Biggest win post Independence, says Amit Shah

India

oi-Anusha

A smiling Amit shah addressed the press at the BJP headquarters in Delhi after BJP's resounding victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. While thanking the voters and party workers, the BJP's national president called BJP's victory historic. Amit Shah claimed that people had voted for politics of performance over caste and community lines.

"People have supported Modi's vision. This has been the biggest victory since independence. People have voted on the basis of performance. People have appreciated politics of performance," Amit Shah said. He also credited the victory to BJP's pro-poor policies and initiative like demonetisation. "Poor of the country have confidence in Narendra Modi and the entire nation looks up to him with expectations. The people appreciate government's initiatives of demonetisation and Jan dhan," Amit Shah added.

"Move past Hindu-Muslim"

Calling it a victory beyond the holds of caste, community and creed, Shah claimed that Narendra Modi's leadership and BJP workers' effort led to the victory. "Move past Hindu-Muslim; a voter is a voter. Politics of development should take place," Shah added.

Amit Shah's Kaam bolta hai jibe

Taking a jibe at Samajwadi party's campaign tagline, 'Kaam bolta hai', Amit Shah chose to answer a question on BJP's victory with the same line. "People have given their verdict. Work speaks for itself," Amit Shah said. Claiming that Demonetisation, in fact, helped the BJP seal the tremendous victory, Amit Shah deemed the move a hit with the people.

"Akhilesh and Rahul Gandhi criticised demonetisation at every chance but this verdict shows that the people of the country support the Prime Minister's decision. The poor of the country identify with the vision Prime Minister has," he said.

On the question of the next Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Amit Shah maintained that the Prime Miniter would be accorded a hero's welcome on Sunday at the party's headquarters in Delhi after which the parliamentary committee will choose the Chief Minister.

"We accept out defeat in Punjab. The prime Minister has already called and congratulated Capt Amarinder Singh," Amit Shah said.

OneIndia News
BJP annihilates Congress' Harish Rawat Sarkar in Uttarakhand

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

Dehradun, March 11: The current trend clearly indicates that the Congress have been completely ousted by the Bharatiya Janata Party in Uttarakhand. Like Uttar Pradesh, the voters of the hill state in northern India voted massively for the saffron party.

According to current trend, the BJP is leading in 55 seats and the Congress in just 15 seats in the 70-member Uttarakhand Assembly. Thus it looks like the incumbent chief minister Harish Rawat has to tender his resignation by tonight. Even reports say Rawat himself is trailing with as many as 10,995 votes to BJP's Yatishwaranand in Haridwar Rural constituency.

According to reports, BJP cadres have already started celebrating in the capital city Dehradun. In Uttarakhand, it has always been a neck to neck fight for the rivals--the BJP and the Congress. However, it looks like this time the BJP is way ahead than the Congress.

OneIndia News
Power equation changes gears in UP

P Chidambaram accuses BJP of using 7 phase poll in UP to polarise voters

Highest number of women MLAs in UP since Independence

How the numbers add up in UP: This is what BJP's win percentage was

Raj Babbar offers to resign as UP Congress president

Samajwadi Party, allies may cross 400 mark in UP election 2022: Akhilesh Yadav

BJP celebrates UP, Uttarakhand win

India

oi-Lisa

Lucknow, March 11: Riding on the Narendra Modi wave, the BJP on Saturday trounced rivals the SP-Congress and the BSP in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, getting a two-thirds majority in the 403-House.

The SP won 44 seats and was ahead in 3 seats. Its ally the Congress got 7 seats. The BSP won 16 seats and was leading in 4 seats.

Jubilant BJP members celebrated the win in a colourful way and distributed sweets. Look at some pictures of celebrations by BJP members.

UP BJP president celebrates Uttar Pradesh BJP president Keshav Prasad Maurya celebrating with supporters as the early trends show the party's pyrrhic victory in the state assembly polls, at BJP office in Lucknow. Photo credit: PTI Muslim BJP supporters celebrate Muslim BJP supporters celebrate the party's victory in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections at the party office in Lucknow. Photo credit: PTI Celebrations in Varanasi Bharatiya Janata Party members celebrate the party's lead in UP and Uttarakhand state elections, at the party office in Varanasi. Photo credit: PTI Supporters distribute sweets BJP supporters celebrate as early trends show the party's thumping win in the UP election results assembly polls, in Bikaner. Photo credit: PTI BJP members in Ranchi celebrate BJP supporters celebrate the party's sweep in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Assembly elections, in Ranchi. Photo credit: PTI

OneIndia News
P Chidambaram accuses BJP of using 7 phase poll in UP to polarise voters

How the numbers add up in UP: This is what BJP's win percentage was

BJP credits Narendra Modi, Amit Shah for UP victory

India

ians-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, March 11: The BJP is set to take power in Uttar Pradesh and the credit for this goes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party spokesperson Sambit Patra said on Saturday.

"The victory goes to Modi for his hard work, for his vision, for his pro-poor agenda," Patra told IndiaToday TV.

"He is the first Prime Minister in contemporary times who really worked for the poor. The tangible benefits that the poor got because of Modi is what has transpired this eleection in the way we are seeing," he said.

He also gave due credit to BJP President Amit Shah.

"His strategy was absolute micro management at every booth level and he maintained right from the beginning that we will be coming to power with a two-third majority (in Uttar Pradesh)."

IANS
MASON CITY | There are substantial costs to city taxpayers in the hotel/convention center proposal offered by Gatehouse Capital of Dallas, Texas.

The company is requiring a developer's fee of at least $400,000, and it could be more, city officials said Friday.

In addition, two bond issues requiring voter approval would be necessary.

Gatehouse is one of two developers to submit proposals to the city. It is proposing to build a 100-room hotel in the south parking lot of Southbridge Mall with a skyway linking it to The Music Man Square. It is proposing to build a conference center that could host up to 1,000 attendees as well as a standalone museum and ballroom in The Music Man Square.

The hotel must have a value of $10 million because $10 million in private investment is needed to meet a state requirement for Iowa Reinvestment Act funding. The city is seeking state help to finance its River City Renaissance project that includes the hotel, music pavilion, mixed-use building, parking ramp and ice arena/multipurpose center.

City Administrator Brent Trout said Friday it is unclear whether Gatehouse's developer's fee is just for the hotel, in which case it would be $400,000, or for the entire project  including the convention center, museum and skyway  which would increase the cost considerably. He said that will be determined in talks with Gatehouse.

In addition, there are costs to the city that would require bond issues approved by voters.

One is for "mezzanine" or "gap" financing that fills a financing gap between an owner's equity and bank financing. The city is estimating that cost at $3 to $3.5 million.

The other is for the building of the skyway, museum and convention center, which were not included in the application for state funding.

G8 Development of San Diego is proposing to build a four-story, 93-room Courtyard by Marriott Hotel with a conference center and bistro in the parking lot west of City Hall.

G8 is owned by Philip Chodur, who defaulted on a hotel development agreement last year because he could not come up with financing. This year, he has provided a letter from Live Oak Bank in North Carolina verifying financing is in place.

Chodur is an experienced residential property developer but has never built a hotel. Gatehouse has built many hotels throughout the country.

Chodur is working with Henkel Construction Co. of Mason City as general contractor. Gatehouse has been working with Snyder Contruction Co. of Clear Lake for several months.

The city has spent $360,000 in engineering fees for a parking ramp that would be built next to Chodur's hotel. The estimated cost of the parking ramp is $7.5 million and would be funded through grants, local option sales tax revenue and tax increment financing.

Another city expense is $40,000 in legal work for the development agreement with Chodur, in which he defaulted.

A problem with the Gatehouse proposal is that the city owns the Southbridge parking lots and has had a longstanding agreement with the mall to provide 990 parking spaces. In exchange, the mall takes care of snow plowing and other maintenance expenses.

The proposed Gatehouse site impedes on the parking agreement. That is an issue that would have to be worked out  "a hurdle," said Trout.

He said city officials knew that Gatehouse was working on a hotel plan but could not get involved because of its exclusive agreement with Chodur.

After Chodur defaulted, the city asked for new proposals, and Gateway and Chodur submitted plans by the March 1 deadline.

Council members Paul Adams, John Lee and Travis Hickey said Friday they received copies of the proposals after Tuesday's council meeting, one day prior to the special meeting at which they were asked to consider the proposals.

The council voted to put off making any decision until its March 21 meeting.
BJP meet on Sunday to chose CMs for four states

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

The BJP's Parliamentary board will meet on Sunday to decide on the chief ministerial candidate for the four states that the party won in. The party meeting is scheduled to be held in New Delhi at 6 pm on Sunday.

The party won the elections in Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Goa and Uttarakhand. The party is likely to take a final decision on who would be leading the four states. In Uttar Pradesh, there are at least four candidates who are in the fray to become the CM. Keshav Maurya is one of the front-runners to the CM's post in UP.

Amit Shah, the national president of the BJP, told the media that the BJP will form the government in all the four states and this is one of the biggest victories since Independence. He credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership for this victory.

OneInida News
Congress wins just 7 seats in UP, fails to open account in Amethi

India

oi-Anusha

The BJP's win is historic indeed, but in the process of making a record, the party has managed to create another history. For the first time, the Congress, along with its alliance partner Samajwadi party lost all seats in Amethi with the BJP managing to win four out of five seats. The BJP managed to seize seats in Congress president Sonai Gandhi's Parliamentary constituency Raebareli creating history on Saturday.

The biggest fall from grace for Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi in particular, and Congress, as a whole came with the party managing to save just one of the five assembly constituencies in Amethi at the courtesy of Samajwadi party candidate Rakesh Pratap. The Congress-SP alliance's candidates were reduced to a pulp with the BJP colouring the Congress bastions in Saffron.

Fall from grace for the Congress

After an agreement with its alliance partner, the SP, the Congress contested from 105 seats in the assembly polls. Of the 105 seats that it contested in, the Congress has managed to win only 7 seats. In the 2012 polls, the Congress had won 28 seats. The numbers speak for themselves.

The SP in Uttar Pradesh may have committed the same mistake that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam did in Tamil Nadu assembly polls of 2016. In its alliance with the DMK in Tamil Nadu, the Congress fought for 41 seats out of the 232 assembly constituency seats but managed to win merely 8 seats. The loss in seats where Congress contested made a dent in the DMK's overall performance ultimately paving way for the AIADMK to win. The AIADMK had in fact lost 16 seats and the DMK had managed to win 66 seats more than what it had won in the previous elections.

Had the Congress won considerably in the seats allotted to it, the political scenario in Tamil Nadu would have been different. The same, however, cannot be said for Uttar Pradesh given the mammoth majority with which BJP won.

OneIndia News
Counting of votes for all 5 states starts today, trends expected by 11 AM

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Mar 11: Counting of votes for the high- stakes assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur will take place on Saturday morning with trends expected to be available by 11 am.

By 12 noon, a final picture could emerge on who would be the major players in the five states. Election Commission officials said the counting of votes commences at 8 am and will be completed by late evening. Counting will take place at 157 centres -- Punjab (53), Goa (2), UP (75), Uttarakhand (15) and Manipur (12).

According to Election Commission guidelines, half-an-hour after the postal ballots are counted, the process of counting of EVM votes begins. The 'ballot unit' is switched on in the presence of senior poll officials and counting agents of candidates and the result command keyed in to get the results per machine. Where a paper trail audit or 'voter-verified paper audit trail' has been used, the counting agent can call for a count of the paper slips in the drop box attached to the voting machine, but a final count is taken by the returning officer.

Once the results are declared, the names of the winning candidates will find mention in the gazette. The gazette notification will initiate the process to form the next legislative assemblies in the states.

Exit polls by various news channel had predicted a hung assembly in the key Hindi heartland state of Uttar Pradesh where BJP would emerge as the single largest party, winning anywhere between 164 and 210 of the 403 seats.

Most polls also forecast a close fight between the Congress, which is seeking to return to power in Punjab after a hiatus of 10 years, and Arvind Kejriwal's AAP, making its debut in the assembly polls in the state. They predicted victory for BJP in Uttarakhand, but the saffron party, though likely to lead the table in Goa, was projected to fall short of a majority in the tiny coastal state.

PTI
Digvijaya Singh says Rahul Gandhi will not step down as VP of Congress

India

ians-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, March 11: Congress veteran Digvijaya Singh on Saturday said there was no question of party Vice President Rahul Gandhi stepping down, in the wake of the poor showing in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.

"There is no question of Rahul Gandhi stepping down," said Singh in reply to media queries about change in the Congress top leadership.

"The Nehru-Gandhi family is the greatest binding factor for the Congress and the leadership has to come to Rahul," he said.

With the BJP surging towards a decisive victory both in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Singh admitted that the Congress party needed to build regional leaders.

"I have said this earlier also that we need to build up new leadership in states. We have to take decisive action to build up the party where we do not have strong regional leaders," added Singh.

The party is however poised to win in Punjab, and is ahead in Manipur and Goa.

IANS
Hope Ram temple will be constructed soon, says Shiv Sena

India

pti-PTI

Mumbai, Mar 11: The Shiv Sena on Saturday congratulated BJP for its stunning victory in Uttar Pradesh and hoped that the Ram temple will now be constructed soon in Ayodhya. "Ram's period of exile has ended. We now hope that Ram temple will be constructed soon in Ayodhya," Sena MP Sanjay Raut told. The ties between the two allies, who fought the recent civic elections separately, have been strained and Sena had often taken a dig at BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the run up to the assembly polls.

"The Assembly results in five states are out. We welcome the win of BJP. We also congratulate the Prime Minister on this victory," he added. Referring to the Congress' win in Punjab, Raut said that people have voted for a change wherever there was a credible alternative to the incumbent government.

In an apparent reference to the Samajwadi Party and its ally Congress, which lost the Uttar Pradesh polls to BJP, Raut remarked that those who lost the polls will now realise the importance of Shiv Sena and the manner in which it stopped the Modi wave from entering Mumbai.

"These elections, however, will have no bearing on the politics of Maharashtra. We will talk about the state politics after a week when much of the wave would have subsided and new governments established," Raut said. The BJP has more than doubled its vote share in Uttar Pradesh to reach 40 per cent since the last Assembly elections.

PTI
Is MGP the new kingmaker in Goa?

India

oi-Shubir

By Shubir Rishi

Although unlikely to win many seats, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party could be a likely kingmaker for a new Goa assembly. But, if it does emerge as even the fourth-largest party in the state, say, with about four or five members of legislative party, it could be the key in government formation.

The party won the first elections after the end of Portuguese colonial rule in 1961, lost its mojo after being ousted from power by defections in early 1979.

Some of its candidates have a strong base, and have long-established networks of support in their constituencies. If so, if they win enough seats to dictate the terms of a coalition, it will be mostly thanks to these candidates.

In January, the MGP snapped its alliance with the ruling BJP in Goa. MGP president Deepak Dhavalikar had said his party would contest 22 of the 40 assembly seats and soon formalise an alliance with rebel RSS leader Subhash Velingkar's outfit.

MGP ministers Deepak and Sudin Dhavalikar were sacked by Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar from the cabinet in December, following their criticism of his leadership. The sacking of the ministers had virtually signaled the beginning of the end of the alliance between the two parties. "We will contest 22 seats... We already have an in-principle understanding with Goa Suraksha Manch," Dhavalikar said.

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Story first published: Saturday, March 11, 2017, 11:41 [IST]
Manipur 'betrays' Iron Lady: Only 85 people voted for Irom Sharmila

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

Imphal, March 11: It was a 'shocking' defeat for peace activist-turned-politician Irom Sharmila in Manipur Assembly elections 2017 on Saturday. The 'Iron Lady' of Manipur managed to get just 85 votes in her maiden election in the state, say reports.

The defeat of Sharmila has shocked not just the people of Manipur, but the entire nation. It is difficult to believe that a person who fought for the people of the state against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act without eating anything for 16 years will lose an election so badly. In a way, Manipur cheated Sharmila.

Political debutant and founder of the Peoples' Resurgence and Justice Alliance Sharmila has lost election in Thoubal, Manipur, to Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh, say reports on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, 'Iron Lady' of Manipur, Sharmila said she is not much affected by the exit poll result, adding that in case of her defeat she will try again in the 2019 General Election.

"I do not feel much affected by the result. It depends upon the people's mindset. I don't feel much affected by it, because people can still change their minds and everybody knows muscle and money power is being openly used by parties," she told ANI.

"What we really need to be is the power to bring the change and make the difference from dark to light. In case of my defeat, I want to try in 2019 election," she added.

Sharmila ended her 16 years hunger strike against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act last year. Afterwards, she formed her own political outfit.

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Story first published: Saturday, March 11, 2017, 11:01 [IST]
UP election results: Mayawati demands re-election, says EVMs have been tampered with

India

oi-Anusha

After a humiliating defeat in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, Bahujan Samaj party Supremo Mayawati demanded re-elections alleging that Electronic Voting machines were tampered with. Addressing the media in Lucknow, Mayawati said that the results were 'very surprising and unbelievable'.

"Most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to the BJP, makes it evident that voting machines were manipulated," she said.

"Either the EVMs did not accept votes other than to the BJP, or the votes of other parties have gone to the BJP in the EVMs," Mayawati added.

Mayawati said that she had written to the Election Commission about people not having faith in the electronic voting machines and that the counting and announcement of results of assembly polls of both Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh should be stopped immediately.

"If the prime minister and BJP president Amit Shah are in the clear, let there be elections with ballot papers. The truth will then be out," she demanded.

I have written to Election Commission in this regard, people no more have faith in EVM machines: Mayawati,BSP #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/3EkbRZHf8h  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 11, 2017

The BSP supremo who was reduced to a non-entity with the BJP's massive victory in Uttar Pradesh demanded that the EVMs be investigated with the help of foreign experts and that elections should be held once again using the old ballot paper method of polling.

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Narendra Modi saddened by death of CRPF personnel

India

ians-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, March 11: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed grief over the death of 11 CRPF personnel in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh in a Maoist attack and said that Home Minister Rajnath Singh would be going there.

"Saddened by the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. Tributes to the martyrs and condolences to their families. May the injured recover quickly," Modi said in a tweet.

"Spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh Ji on the situation in Sukma. He is going to Sukma to take stock of the situation," he said.

Eleven CRPF personnel were killed and five others injured in a Maoist attack near Bhejji of Sukma district in tribal Bastar region. The Maoists also looted weapons from the dead personnel.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh also condoled the deaths and said the perpetrators of the attack will be brought to justice.

"Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased," the Home Minister said.

He said he had spoken to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh, and the state government is providing all medical assistance to the injured.

"The Centre is in direct communication with the state government. Those who perpetrated this incident in Sukma will be brought to justice," he said.

IANS
Sad to see grand old party implode: Omar Abdullah on Azad's resignation from Congress

Omar Abdullah stresses on need to change strategy to beat BJP

India

ians-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, March 11: Political parties need to shift their strategy from criticism to positive alternate if they want to beat the BJP, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said on Saturday.

"Punjab, Goa and Manipur would certainly suggest that the BJP isn't unbeatable but strategy needs to shift from criticism to positive alternate," Omar, who is also Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, tweeted.

Omar added that at present there was no leader with a pan-India acceptability who could take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2019.

"At this rate, we might as well forget 2019 and start planning (and) hoping for 2024," he added.

Omar's remarks came as BJP cruised towards victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand while the Congress was ahead in Punjab and Manipur in the assembly polls.

Congress and the BJP were neck and neck in Goa.

IANS
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Punjab election results: What did not work for AAP?

India

oi-Gulam Rabbani

Chandigarh: The Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday witnessed a big defeat in Punjab. Why didn't AAP's Delhi magic didn't work in Punjab? The Congress is set for a comeback in Punjab after 10 years. The party is leading in over 70 seats. But the results strongly indicate that the Aam Aadmi Party's dreams of seizing its second state after Delhi are over.

AAP is at the second spot, with the ruling Akali-BJP combine doing a little better than exit polls had predicted.

The AAP manifesto could also be the reason behind a great loss for the AAP. The party before the election, had promised to implement the 6th Pay Commission and regularising of contractual employees

The AAP launched a manifesto for government employees, promising to implement the 6th Pay Commission, besides assuring regularisation of contractual employees, if voted to power in the 2017 Punjab assembly polls.

Government employees in Punjab are an important part of the state machinery, therefore keeping in mind their demands, the party launched a manifesto that addresses their issues, AAP manifesto committee head Kanwar Sandhu said.

Now if a person goes through the Congress manifesto, it has promised to employment for youth and smart phones for youth, free education for girls, free textbooks to the students and to tackle the drug mafia issue as soon as it comes to prayer. However, after losing the polls in both in Punjab and Goa, the AAP party has decided to review the issues that let them down in Punjab.

Punjab AAP in-charge Sanjay Singh has taken to Twitter and had said that the results will prove wrong and AAP will remain unbeaten. The exit polls on Friday declared that Congress and AAP would go neck in neck.

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Punjab election results: AAP Ka Kya Hoga?

India

oi-Madhuri

Saturday morning began and ended very differently than Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had ever anticipated. After two decades, the Congress came into the picture in Punjab and a major development during this assembly election was that of the AAP who made its debut in the state.

The Congress was headed for a two-third majority in the 117-seat Punjab assembly, with veteran Amarinder Singh set to return as chief minister of the border state. The Grand Old Party, which had been out of power in Punjab for a decade, had won 75 seats and was leading on 2 others, paving the way for the next Congress government in Punjab.

The AAP, which claimed it could win up to 100 seats, got only 22. Its ally, Lok Insaf Party, won two seats. The saving grace for the AAP is that it will be the main opposition in the new assembly.

The Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance, which ruled Punjab since 2007, was set to finish a poor third with 18 seats.

Earlier on Saturday, the area outside the Aam Aadmi Party chief's Delhi home was decorated with hundreds of saffron, white and green balloons. A huge LED screen showed leads as they came in. Bollywood music composer AR Rahman's popular hit anthem Jai Ho blared from loud speakers.

And of course, Twitter did not spare Kejriwal either
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Raj Babbar offers to resign as UP Congress president

Samajwadi Party, allies may cross 400 mark in UP election 2022: Akhilesh Yadav

Rajnath Singh thanks people for historic win in UP, Uttarakhand

India

ians-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, March 11: Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for the BJP's 'historic victory' in the two states.

Rajnath Singh attributed the victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment to the public, his efficient leadership and our commitment to good governance.

"We thank all the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for this historic victory and express gratitude towards them."

This, he said, was not a victory but a mega victory.

"The BJP has changed the political picture of the country by touching the new era of success in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand," he tweeted.

IANS
Russian UN ambassador: Cause of death won't be made public

India

pti-PTI

New York, March 10: The New York City medical examiner's office, citing diplomatic protocol, will not release the cause and manner of death for Russia's ambassador to the United Nations, who died suddenly last month after collapsing in his office.

An autopsy was performed on Ambassador Vitaly Churkin last month, but the death required further study. The additional tests were completed, but Julie Bolcer, spokeswoman for the city's medical examiner, said today that the city's law department told the office not to release any further information, "in order to comply with international law and protocol."

The U.S. Department of State asked the city in writing on Feb. 24 to not reveal the autopsy results, because Churkin's diplomatic immunity survives his death. "The United States insists on the dignified handling of the remains of our diplomatic personnel who pass away abroad (including in Russia) and works to prevent unnecessary disclosures regarding the circumstances of their deaths," wrote James Donovan, minister counselor for host country affairs for the U.S. mission to the UN.

In a follow-up letter on March 1, the State Department noted that the Russian Federation raised concerns after the autopsy had been conducted, and "voluntary statements reported in the media about Ambassador Churkin's medical history" prompted complaints from Russian diplomats.

"The information reported was very private in nature and included information about which even they had no knowledge," Donovan wrote in the follow-up letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio's international affairs office. Russia's U.N. Mission had no comment. The medical examiner is responsible for investigating deaths that occur by criminal violence, accident, suicide, suddenly or when the person seemed healthy, or if someone died in any unusual or suspicious manner.

Most of the deaths investigated by the office are not suspicious. City policy is to release the cause of death. Donovan argued that state policies could be overruled by federal authority where "it creates an obstacle to the achievement of the President's foreign policy as reflected in an international agreement." Churkin, who died Feb. 20 at a hospital at age 64, had been Russia's envoy at the U.N. since 2006.

He was the longest-serving ambassador on the Security Council, the U.N.'s most powerful body. He was buried in Moscow, where he was praised by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov praised as an "exceptional professional and people's diplomat." The Order of Courage, a medal awarded posthumously to Churkin by President Vladimir Putin, was displayed at his coffin.

PTI
Sonia condemns Sukma naxal attack, calls it 'cowardly'

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Mar 11: Congress President Sonia Gandhi has strongly condemned the killing of 12 CRPF men in Chhattisgarh's Sukma and described the Naxal attack as dastardly and cowardly.

Saluting the CRPF men for their supreme and unforgettable sacrifices, Gandhi said her thoughts and prayers were with the families of the victims.

"India stands united in fight against terrorism and the government should give a befitting reply to the forces spreading terror in India," she said in a statement.

Twelve personnel of the Central Reserved Police Force were killed and their arms looted when Naxals ambushed their patrol party in the Maoist hotbed of Sukma in Chhattisgarh.

Four personnel were injured in the Naxal attack and two of them were stated to be critical. The incident occurred in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 km off the state capital Raipur, at 9:15 am when 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task.

[Chhattisgarh: 12 CRPF personnel killed in Naxal attack]

The Bhejji area in south Bastar region of the state is notorious for Naxal attacks and many security personnel have been killed there in the past.

PTI
UP elections: 0.9 percent exercised NOTA

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Only one per cent of the voters have used None Of The Above option. A total of 11,22,07 have exercised this option. The exact per centage of those who have exercised the NOTA is 0.9 per cent.

The total number of voters in Uttar Pradesh is 134,351,297. The state has a total of 403 constituencies. Prior to the elections there were reports that the power of the NOTA was being underestimated in the state of UP.

NOTA is a ballot option that a voter can chose instead of giving their vote to any of the candidates. In the year 2009, the Election Commission of India had asked the Supreme Court to offer this option on the EVMs. The government had however opposed the same. But the SC ruled that every voter must have the right to register a NOTA. The option has been available since 2013.

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Story first published: Saturday, March 11, 2017, 11:09 [IST]
Uttarakhand Election Results 2017: BJP trounces Congress

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

This one is a direct contest between traditional rivals BJP and Congress. As the state has seen in the past, a high voter turnout is usually the sign of change, so the BJP is hoping that it holds true in the state. Five years ago, it had lost the chance of forming the government when the Congress won 32 (with the help of the BSP) and the saffron party 31.

Click Here for the LIVE Updates:

But since then, several Congress leaders have jumped ship and joined the BJP -- this includes former chief minister Vijay Bahuguna (who is not contesting the election this time).

Either party will need 36 seats to form the government.

The Uttarakhand election results will be announced on Saturday giving clarity on who will govern the hill state that has seen hectic political drama all of 2016. The two-way battle between the BJP and the incumbent Congress government has seen many rebels switch parties and contesting from same constituencies but on different party tickets. The fight for Uttarakhand was neck to neck in 2012 elections as well with the Congress winning 32 seats and the BJP winning 31.

Winning 36 of the 70 assembly constituency seats in Uttarakhand will ensure a party's absolute win the elections. 4 out of 6 exit polls have predicted a comfortable win for the BJP in Uttarakhand while two others predict it to be a tug-of-war between the Congress and the BJP.

[Exit Poll 2017 at a glance]

Catch all the updates for the Uttarakhand assembly election results 2017 right here:

6.00 pm: BJP's Saurav Bahuguna, son of Vijay Bahuguna, wins Sitarganj by defeating Malti Biswas of the Congress by 28,540 votes

5.30 pm: BJP wins 56 seats; leads in one, Congress wins 11 and Others 2

4.27 pm: BJP state president Ajay Bhatt loses from Ranikhet by 4,981 to Karan Mahara of the Congress.

4.15 pm: BJP: 32 wins; 25 leading, Congress: 8 wins; 3 leading and Independent candidates: 1 win; 1 leading: Election Commission

Uttarakhand: Harish Rawat tenders resignation from the post of CM (file pic) pic.twitter.com/NndpGLQ3VT  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

3.45 pm: Uttarakhand: Harish Rawat tenders resignation from the post of CM

3.05 pm: Uttarakhand BJP President and sitting MLA Ajay Bhatt loses home seat of Ranikhet

3.05 pm: BJP has won 80% seats

2.05 pm: Uttarakhand trends: BJP--55, Congress--8 and Others--2

2.05 pm: BJP wins 3 and Congress 2 seats

                        Amit Shah (@AmitShah) March 11, 2017

13.06 pm: BJP is leading in 55 seats in the 70-member Uttarakhand assembly, while the ruling Congress was racing ahead in 11 -- except Chief Minister Harish Rawat who lost both his Haridwar (Rural) Kichha seats. Trends are available now for all 70 seats out of which BJP leads in 55, Congress in 11 and Independents in 4, the state election office here said.

11.23 am: Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat loses from Kichha seat

Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat loses from Haridwar rural seat pic.twitter.com/x6wpj4RSw7  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

11.55 am: Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat loses from Haridwar rural seat

11.15 am: Uttarakhand Leads: BJP--52, Congress: 16 and Independent-- 2

10.35 am: Uttarakhand Leads: BJP - 54, Congress - 13, BSP - 1, Other - 1

10.35 am: BJP cadres celebrate victory in Dehradun

9.50 am: Uttarakhand leads: BJP - 48, Congress - 12 and BSP - 1

9.27 am: Chief Minister Harish Rawat trailing from Haridwar Rural seat.

9.25 am: Leads in Uttarakhand: BJP 44, Congress 12, Others 1

9.22 am: BJP gets early lead with 37 seats, Congress at 10, while BSP and Others get 1 each.

9.20 am: The Bharatiya Janata Party has been projected to unseat Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat -- the majority mark is 36.

9.09 am: Leads: BJP 15, Congress 8

Latest trends from Uttarakhand: Congress and BJP leading on 10 each pic.twitter.com/tyhvYpbRDM  ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

9.05am: Uttarakhand: Congress and BJP leading on 10 each, reports ANI.

8.58 am: Lead: BJP 3, Congress 3

8.52 am: Lead: BJP 4, Congress 1

8.45 am: What will happen in constituencies with turncoat candidates? With a number of Congress turncoats trying their luck as BJP candidates this time it will be interesting to watch what happens in constituencies like Narendranagar, Bajpur, Roorkee, Khanpur, Kedarnath, Kotdwar, Sitarganj and Nainital from where erstwhile Congress rebels or their wards have been fielded by the saffron party: Reports PTI

8.45 am: Lead - BJP 1 Congress 1

8.36 am: Counting of votes at 15 centres across Uttarakhand is underway

8.15 am: In Uttarakhand, no party might get a majority. According to experts, both the BJP and the Congress are likely to miss getting absolute majority in the 70-member assembly in the state. The independent candidates will again hold the key. Parties like the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Uttarakhand Krandi Dal are likely to win one or two seats.

7.00 am: Ahead of results, incumbent Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat is confident of the Congress' win. He is ready to welcome independent candidates in government formation even if the Congress gets the majority.

Assembly Poll Results 2012: Uttarakhand Parties Won INC 32 BJP 31 BSP 03 Others 03 Uttarakhand Kranti Dal 01

OneIndia News
In Pics: Thousands come out to vote in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh

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Uttarakhand Elections results 2017: High security ahead of counting of votes

India

oi-PTI

Dehradun, March 11: Extensive arrangements have been made for the counting of the Uttarakhand state polls where 637 candidates from 70 seats await the results with bated breath. A total of 15 counting centres have been set up across Uttarakhand and deployment of security personnel and counting personnel made as per specifications of the Election Commission, Chief Electoral Officer Radha Raturi said.

864 counting tables have been put up where counting for 10,854 polling stations will be carried out.

Ten companies of central paramilitary forces, 14 of Provincial Armed Constabulary, 3,000 constables, 350 head constables, 550 sub-inspectors, 50 inspectors, and 30 gazetted officers have been put on counting duty, she said.

Polling for 69 out of a total of 70 seats was held in Uttarakhand on February 15. Voting for the Karnaprayag seat had to be rescheduled by the commission for March 9 owing to the sudden death of BSP nominee Kuldip Singh Kanwasi in a road accident just a couple of days before the polls.

Counting will begin at 8 am and go on till all results come in, she said.

There are a total of 70 assembly seats in Uttarakhand from where main power contenders Congress and BJP have fielded their candidates.

With a number of Congress turncoats trying their luck as BJP candidates this time it will be interesting to watch what happens in constituencies like Narendranagar, Bajpur, Roorkee, Khanpur, Kedarnath, Kotdwar, Sitarganj and Nainital from where erstwhile Congress rebels or their wards have been fielded by the BJP.

Barring Amrita Rawat and Vijay Bahuguna, all the Congress turncoats who are also sitting MLAs, have been fielded by the BJP. However, Amrita's husband Satpal Maharaj and Bahuguna's second son Saurav Bahuguna are in the fray as BJP nominees.

Chaubattakhal from where BJP's Satpal Maharaj is in the fray and Kichcha and Haridwar (rural) the two seats from where chief minister Harish Rawat is seeking a second term, will also evoke much curiosity. It will also be interesting to see what happens in Sahaspur from where PCC president Kishore Upadhaya is contesting.

Ranikhet is important as state BJP president and Leader of Opposition Ajay Bhatt is contesting from there whereas Dhanolti holds much interest as Congress is supporting independent nominee Pritam Singh Panwar from the seat despite fielding Manmohan Mall from there.

PTI
Rajnath Singh

It may be recalled that Union Home Minister, Rajnath Singh was initially a frontrunner to the post. However he indicated that he had no intentions of leaving Delhi.

Keshav Maurya

Maurya is in the hot seat and is a frontrunner to the coveted post of UP chief minister. The reason why Maurya's name has cropped up is because the BJP worked on the non-Yadav OBC and upper caste mobilisation to rope in the votes.

Gorakhpur MP Yogi Adityanath

The priest-turned-politician never shies away from making controversial remarks, be it about Pakistan or Islam. The 44-year-old leader also rebelled against his party on several occasions, but because of the sway he holds over the 'Hindu' voters, the BJP can't ignore his 'leadership qualities.'

MP Santosh Gangwar

Gangwar, from the Kurmi community, is a veteran BJP member of Parliament since 1989, losing only one election in 2009 by a narrow margin. His community has traditionally voted for the BJP in the Rohelkhand region.

Telecom Minister and Ghazipur MP Manoj Sinha

A graduate from the Benaras University, Sinha belongs to the Bhumihar community. He has also been the minister of state for railways.

Uma Bharti

The Cabinet minister was one of the most controversial figures in the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and has been chief minister before. She resigned from the post in August 2004, when an arrest warrant was issued against her regarding the 1994 Hubli riot case.

Kalraj Mishra

The Brahmin leader a member of parliament of the same from Deoria constituency in Uttar Pradesh. He was a cabinet minister in UP government holding the portfolios of public works, medical education and tourism during March 1997 -- August 2000 period.
P Chidambaram accuses BJP of using 7 phase poll in UP to polarise voters

Highest number of women MLAs in UP since Independence

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Yogi Adityanth says UP rejected politics of appeasement

India

ians-IANS

By Ians English

Lucknow, March 11: The voter in Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP is set to form a government, has rejected the "politics of appeasement", party leader Yogi Adityanath said on Saturday.

The MP told IANS that the people's mandate for the Bharatiya Janata Party was in favour of the credo pitched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi: 'Sabka saath, sabka vikaas' (Development for all).

"People have rejected the politics of appeasement and discrimination," he said, in an apparent reference to the poor showing by the ruling Samajwadi Party and its ally the Congress.

"People want development for all, without any discrimination," he said.

"The good governance model of the Modi government and in BJP-ruled states attracted people towards the party," he added.

IANS
MASON CITY | The public is invited to attend a live webcast of Trinity Institute 2017: Water Justice on March 22-24 at St. Johns Episcopal Church.

The webcast will feature storytellers from Standing Rock, South Dakota: Flint, Michigan; the Great Barrier Reef, Australia; and other locations.

Time will be set aside so those at partner sites can engage in small group discussion.

Those who wish to attend are invited to a soup supper at 5:30 p.m. on March 22 at St. Johns, followed by the opening service from Trinity Wall Street Church in New York at 6 p.m. and the keynote address by former U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer at 7 p.m.

The March 23 sessions begin at 8 a.m. and end at 4:45 p.m. The March 24 sessions begin at 8 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. A light breakfast and lunch will be offered both days.

Freewill offerings will be accepted for the conference and for meals. The public is invited to attend just part of the conference or the entire event.

To register, contact Richard Paxson at sjec.finance@gmail.com. For more information on the conference, visit TI2017.org.
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MASON CITY | A Mason City man was arrested Friday after a cable and pipe locator reported stolen from an Alliant Energy employee was found in his garage.

Mitch Buesing, 27, was charged with felony second-degree theft.

Police found the cable and pipe locator when they searched Buesing's residence on Oak Run Drive Friday.

The locator's serial number matched a locator reported stolen by an Alliant employee on Dec. 29, according to the criminal complaint.

The locator was worth $3,200.

Buesing was being held in the Cerro Gordo County Jail Friday afternoon on $5,000 cash or surety bond.

Mason City man flees police, found hiding in pond, officials say MASON CITY  A shoeless Mason City man who allegedly ran from sheriffs deputies was found h

Buesing is scheduled to be tried April 4 on felony counts of first-degree theft and second-degree burglary.

In that case he is accused of entering a residence on Sept. 3 on Owl Avenue in rural Mason City and taking jewelry and silverware.

Authorities say he ran out the back door when the resident returned home.

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PORT MORESBY:K3 billion UBS loan is mainly responsible for the countrys cash-strapped economic crisis, says Papua New Guineas Opposition Leader Don Polye.Mr Polye also attributed it briefly to downturn in commodity prices.The countrys debt level, he said, is K30 billion against PNGs aggregate wealth (total Gross Domestic Product) of K46 billion.He added that the countrys revenues were used to repay the loans overseas.Our countrys future has been tied down under this huge loan which the Prime Minister Peter ONeill has sanctioned. Next government will have a big challenge to address it.2017 Budget books show less about it. Loans secured through the balance sheet of the State Owned Entities are not on the budget books. If the Prime Minister does not address this, we will go down the path of Greece, he warnedyesterday (Thursday) when speaking at a launch of a community association at Keltiga village in the Western Highlands.A K2 billion, he stated, is sourced externally to boast the development component in the deficit budget.Debt to GDP ratio (K30 billion divided by K46 billion multiplied by 100 per cent), he said, is over 65 per cent, exceeding the legal ceiling of 30 per cent under the Fiscal Responsibility Act.When PM ONeill got K3 billion loan to buy 10.1 per cent shares in the Oil Search, it meant we had sacrificed our development budget for the duration of the loan repayment. Its repayment with interest is over K4 billion.As a result most rural areas lack basic developments in the country. The governments poor economic management, especially the cash flow problem is the main denominator. This is the truth I am telling you. Businesses and development associations can only be successful when there is sufficient cash flow.The government says the problem will be improved in a year but this is unrealistic. It will take over 15 to 20 years. The Prime Minister has failed to manage the countrys economy.That is why our people are suffering more. It makes me angry because I am a father. I have got children. I do not want them to suffer much more. We should all be mad with the government. Associations and businesses will find it hard to get off the ground because the government support is not there,Polye further said the economy should grow, making commercial banks become flexible on loan terms and conditions.Polye has committed K1000 to the association as its seed capital.The government must provide the services like roads, water and electricity supplies to boast the agriculture industry. Without roads, buyers of fresh produces wont be here at your door. They will feel discouraged. When we are in government, we will fix these problems. We know how to fix them, he said.
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In the days since he helped fellow Republicans unveil their long-awaited health care plan, Congressman Greg Walden has watched nearly every major group in the medical and insurance industries come out against it.

Now some of that pushback is coming from rural Oregon, including his own district, which could be hit hard by the plan.

The massive expansion of the Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act gave rural hospitals a badly needed infusion of new paying customers. The American Health Care Plan lawmakers released Monday would roll it back, and then some.

"I'm in hardcore Republican territory, but there's no question the expansion of coverage for people who didn't have coverage before is a marvelous thing," said Charlie Tveit, chief executive officer of Lake Health District, which runs a hospital in remote Lakeview. "Without doubt it helped our hospital. It allowed us to expand our operation a little, and it reduced our charity care."

The Republicans' repeal and replacement legislation for the Affordable Care Act dramatically changes the health care landscape. It drops the individual mandate requiring all adults to buy health insurance and institutes dramatic tax credits and subsidy changes. It also retreats from the massive 2014 Medicaid expansion that added hundreds of thousands of Oregonians to the federal system's rolls and slashes the federal contribution to that program after 2020.

Like Walden, Tveit sees the need to rein in government spending on health care. But the cutbacks outlined in the Republican plan -- which by some estimates could cost 10 million Americans their coverage -- has him worried. "When we look at what the Republicans delivered, we're all concerned."

A who's who of Beltway power players -- mainstream medical and insurance industry groups, the progressive fringe and Tea Party conservatives alike -- have condemned the GOP plan. You know you've missed the legislative sweet spot when the American Medical Association, AARP, big insurers, Elizabeth Warren and the Koch brothers are united against your bill.

But perhaps the most important constituent, President Donald Trump, has offered a most enthusiastic endorsement. And it took just 18 hours for Walden and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan to get the bill through the House Ways and Means Committee.

Burns, Oregon, is a long way from Washington, D.C. As Dan Grigg, chief executive officer of Harney District Hospital acknowledges, Burns is a long way from anywhere. When you're two hours from Bend and two-and-a-half hours from Boise, it's vitally important for local residents to have a high-quality hospital in their midst.

That was the message Grigg tried to convey to Walden in a March 8 letter. The Medicaid expansion pushed Harney District Hospital into the black for the first time in years and allowed it to go on a small hiring spree: two doctors.

The financial numbers illustrate the medical center's dramatic turnaround in the expansion years. Harney District Hospital posted total patient revenue of $11.6 million in the second quarter of 2016, the most recent period available. That's 38 percent higher than the same quarter before the expansion.

Now Grigg is worried the hospital's turnaround could come to a skidding halt. "If the Medicaid funds went away, it certainly will create some significant financial challenges," he said. "If that expansion population didn't have coverage, we'd likely still be taking care of them. It would be real tough."

The same is true at small hospitals across the state. Dr. Carla McKelvey, a prominent pediatrician in Coos Bay, said the Affordable Care Act not only reduced the rate of uninsured Coos County residents from 12 percent to 6 percent, it stabilized hospitals in Reedsport, Coquille, Bandon and Gold Beach. "I fear without the [Affordable Care Act] they will close," she said.

The Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems said "rural hospitals' financial picture has improved since the full implementation of the ACA, but their situation still remains largely precarious." Fourteen Oregon hospitals posted negative operating margins in 2015, compared with 23 in 2013.

Walden declined to comment for this report. But on Wednesday he said that all the handwringing about the legislation is misplaced.

"It's tough to do entitlement reform, it's tough to make these changes, but I think at the end of day, seniors are going to be fine," he told The Washington Post. "If you're on Medicaid today, you'll be on Medicaid tomorrow. States can intercede here and help out. So there's more to this story."

But to fill the funding gap that would be created if the Republican plan is enacted, states would need billions of dollars, money state officials say they don't have.

"I think it's preposterous to say the states can just step up," said Nathan Johnson, chief policy officer at the Washington State Health Authority. "We're not in a position to take on that obligation.

The federal government liberalized qualifying standards for Medicaid so that people earning 133 percent of the federal poverty level could get coverage. In Oregon, about 400,000 people joined the program, in Washington state, 700,000.

In some rural counties, more than 30 percent of the population went on Medicaid. Ironically, the Oregon counties that voted most heavily for Trump - who made dismantling Obamacare a central pledge of his campaign -- now stand to lose the most in terms of access to health care.

The numbers are huge. Between them, the state and federal governments are spending $6.5 billion a year for coverage for nearly a million people, just in Oregon.

Tveit, the hospital director in Lakeview, said that's a troubling number. "I think a lot of people who voted for Trump were of the belief that giving away that kind of largesse is unsustainable," he said. "Free lunches are great. But someone's got to pick up the tab."

Oregon already faces a funding crunch this year as the federal government's share of the cost went from 100 percent to 95 percent, creating a new $350 million obligation for the state.

Under the Republican plan, federal funding for the expansion population wouldn't disappear. Rather, in 2020, that share would decline in Oregon from 95 percent to 65 percent for new and returning members. In some states, like California, the federal share would shrink to 50 percent.

It's clear that Walden and Ryan are walking a political tightrope. Walden spent part of last week trying to win over the Freedom Caucus and other hard-right elements in Congress who dismissed the plan as Obamacare-lite. Walden told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that opponents of the bill should chill out -- that more legislation could follow that will make the overall package more free-market oriented.

Speculation grew late in the week that Tea Party Republicans wanted the rollback of the Medicaid expansion to start immediately instead of waiting for 2020 and that Trump was willing to consider that possibility. Walden reportedly insisted on the three-year phase-in.

That was hardly comforting to liberal advocates of universal coverage, like Gov. Kate Brown. On Wednesday, she called on Congress to delay voting on the health care bill and said she's directed Oregon health care and insurance regulators to work up an analysis on the bill's probable impact.

"Today, as a result of the Affordable Care Act, approximately 500,000 Oregonians have gained health care coverage through Medicaid or receive financial support to buy private health insurance," Brown said. "In just three years, our state's uninsured rate has dropped from 15 to 5 percent. In that same time, 23,300 health care jobs have been created in Oregon. These are vital economic drivers in rural parts of our state."

McKelvey, the Coos Bay pediatrician, said she too wrote to Walden urging him to rethink the rollback on the Medicaid expansion.

"I've met him several times, I think he's a thoughtful man, and I think he really cares about rural Oregon," she said. "I would ask him what is his plan to support this population?"

-- Jeff Manning

503-294-7606, jmanning@oregonian.com
MEDFORD -- A hatchery in southwest Oregon's Rogue River Basin is having its operations put up for competitive bidding.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and several private companies will be able to bid on the Cole Rivers hatchery next week, The Mail Tribune reported.

The hatchery is one of seven owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Oregon and operated by the department. The cooperative agreement allows the state to raise salmon, steelhead and trout as mitigation for wild fish habitat lost by the construction of Corps dams.

Federal officials determined that five of the hatcheries can likely remain under state operation, while the Leaburg Hatchery in the Willamette Valley will be shut down. The hatchery will have its trout production put out for public bid to be raised for the Corps elsewhere, the agency said.

The decision to put Cole Rivers out to bid comes after the Corps announced last month that a review of its contracting rules found running mitigation hatcheries on a contract basis was more appropriate than the cooperative agreements.

"The program itself isn't changing," said Corps spokeswoman Michelle Helms. "It's the way we administer it. We're still dedicated to fulfilling our mitigation responsibilities."

The agreement for the state to run Cole Rivers expires June 30. The winning bidder would take over July 1 with a one-year contract that includes the potential for two one-year extensions.

The hatchery releases nearly 2.8 million salmon, steelhead and trout annually throughout the Rogue Basin.

Rogue River angling groups and ODFW biologists have expressed concerns that a private company would not have the expertise to raise the fish. The Corps promised the fish to support sport and commercial fishing interests as mitigation for building the Lost Creek and Applegate dams.

"I'm frustrated," said Scott Patterson, ODFW's fish propagation program manager. "I'm sure everybody on the Rogue is."

-- The Associated Press
Screen Shot 2017-03-10 at 11.52.09 PM.png

Vestal K-8 in is one of four schools the Portland teacher's union has deemed in "crisis" and in need of help. Portland Public Schools administrators say they are working to get plans in place for all four schools.

(Portland Public Schools)

A handful of schools in Oregon's largest district have devolved into chaos as Portland Public Schools tries to embrace less punitive approaches toward discipline.

Vestal School, which serves nearly 400 students at its location on Northeast 82nd Avenue, is a vivid example of the district's failure to respond to those problems, teachers and some parents say.

It is a school in crisis, they say, and a lack of support and leadership from above has allowed it degrade to the point that parents are pulling children out and some teachers have fled.

In a typical Oregon elementary school, most teachers agree with the statement "Teachers are allowed to focus on educating students with minimal disruptions," a statewide survey found in 2016. At Vestal, just two of 31 teachers agreed.

Many parents' complaints center on the school's overall climate, which they say is disruptive and too often violent and feels out of control. The school's enrollment dropped by 30 students from fall 2015 to fall 2016, and at least 11 more students have been pulled out since then.

Until recently, parents' and teachers' complaints went nowhere. Last week, the senior director who oversees the school, Lisa McCall, and her boss, Assistant Superintendent Antonio Lopez professed ignorance of or downplayed the problems that have left parents, students and teachers distraught at the school's disrespectful climate and poor learning environment.

Interim Superintendent Bob McKean, however, said Wednesday that plans will be made and acted upon this week to tackle problems at Vestal and three other schools the teacher's union says can't wait any longer for help.



"If you have kids and teachers and administrators who are struggling, it's incumbent on us to find out why," McKean said. "It's not necessarily a situation where you go in with a heavy hand. You go in and see what you can do to help."

McKean told The Oregonian/OregonLive he wants the district to be able to react rapidly and from an informed perspective. To that end, he wants central administrators to become more plugged in to the schools by talking to more people inside them. The goal is to offer help, then keep an eye on what works and watch data such as results of surveys periodically sent to all Portland teachers and parents.

Red flags that Vestal needed help have been there for years. Parents pleaded publicly in 2014 for the school to get an assistant principal because, while it is small, its strains were great. In spring 2016, teachers decided en masse to quit or work elsewhere.

Amanda Reed, a parent who has been involved at Vestal for three years, said, "When we got to Vestal, we knew it had a bad reputation. Even though we had heard all of these horrible things, we felt like Vestal was getting better. We had this new principal, we had these new programs."



That was essentially the narrative the district relied on too, until this month.

District efforts over the years to improve the school appear to have done more harm than good, says McKean, who visited the school a few weeks ago after hearing about concerns. Different departments in central office overloaded the school with initiatives, putting a burden on the school that the district didn't manage well, he said.

McKean said Vestal fell victim to the district's silo culture that's been laid bare by auditors for years but came into sharper focus because of the obvious role it played in last year's lead in drinking water crisis. Well-meaning departments in central office didn't realize how much they had collectively dumped on Vestal, and the senior director didn't have this full picture either, he said.

Compounding the problem, the school year opened with a new assistant principal who had to miss several days due to a family matter and ultimately left for the same reason, leaving the school in the lurch, McKean said.

Much of the teaching staff was also new, with 12 of the school's 28 teachers having left at the end of 2015-16.

The traditional sixth-grade participation in Outdoor School, a treasured Portland tradition, had to be delayed because Vestal's sixth grade was in too much chaos and conflict to spend three days together in the woods.

"Whenever people would complain or have concerns, my immediate response was 'We have to stay around. We have to be a part of the solution,'" said Reed, whose older child attended Vestal before high school and younger daughter is a sixth-grader. "We need everybody to pull together and not abandon our neighborhood school."

But in the end, Reed felt forced to do just that. Last semester she pulled her daughter out of Vestal.

"I find the current lack of effective classroom support to teachers and disciplinary consequences to students to be abusive," Reed wrote. "By making room for disrespect, defiance, hostility, and violence, we are communicating to the children of Vestal, 'You can't do any better than this.'"

This week, Reed and other parents took their frustrations online, writing a Change.org petition begging the school board to tackle "escalating school violence, plummeting academic performance and unresolvable conflict" with Principal Emily Glasgow.

Portland Teachers Association President Suzanne Cohen said the petition is a good summary of the issues her union has been trying to get the district to face at Vestal for a long time.

Reed said she personally likes Glasgow and hesitated to call her out in the petition, but felt "regardless of any personal experience I've had with the principal, it just is where the buck stops at a school." She said it's possible the district is to blame for problems, but it's "above my pay grade as a parent" to know, which is why she wants an investigation.



"If Vestal just got some attention right now, all I care is that it becomes impossible to pretend any longer like there are not problems at Vestal," Reed said. "My goal is to make enough noise that somebody finally turns around and says 'What?'"

McKean said he met Glasgow when he visited the school and found her to be a "quality educator." Other district officials also praised her work and qualifications.

Glasgow would not agree to be interviewed for this article.

The petition has exposed the painful community debate among Vestal parents who want to support their neighborhood school but disagree on how and what needs to be addressed.

Some Vestal parents have said they don't recognize the school in the petition. The Vestal they know has a strong, involved principal and children who are thriving in a diverse, supportive community.

Vestal is the second Portland school in recent weeks where the district has taken sudden and swift action after a history of sluggish and tempered responses to concerns.

Recently, the district began an investigation of the principal of Ockley Green Middle School, who is now on leave. The North Portland school is one of four the union called out for McKean as being "in crisis" and needing district leadership to step up. The other two are Lent K-8 School in Southeast Portland and Cesar Chavez K-8 School in North Portland. Cohen said just because the union has deemed a school in crisis does not mean the principal is the problem.

Three of the four schools are K-8s, a configuration the district plans to dismantle after parent and activists complained they offer less to students who need more. Ockley Green, a K-8 until this year, now serves grades five through eight, which is also not ideal, district officials say. The four also serve enrollments that are majority children of color and low-income. Vestal and Ockley Green enroll a substantial share of white and middle-class students, however. And there are schools with far more poverty and mobility among their students where the climate is fine, even as the district has turned to restorative justice in place of harsh punishment and suspensions.

The challenges at the four "crisis schools" differ. But all are struggling with what's called a "climate plan" - a document required under the teachers' contract which hammers out how school discipline will be handled.

The plans spell out expectations of students and the consequences when they are not met.

"It's everything from 'How do we walk in a hallway?' to 'Are we allowed to say bad words?' and where it escalates: 'Can we throw a chair?' 'Can we push a teacher?' and 'What happens when I do these things?'" Cohen explained. "It makes people feel on edge. There's uncertainty about what happens when a student exhibits these behaviors that leaves everyone on edge."

The approach to discipline in Portland Public Schools has radically changed in acknowledgement that black and special education students have long been suspended at far higher rates than other students. The change has gone smoothly or hit just a few bumps in most schools.

But in a few, the switch has spurred or magnified huge problems - which district overseers failed to notice as they compounded and which have yet to be fixed.

Cohen said Ockley Green presented a situation where the union felt the response was too slow, but when it did happen, it was unusually -- and refreshingly -- fast. She said this might be attributed to the district feeling that, on paper, Ockley should have been doing fine with plans that were put in place. That illusion likely shattered once district officials actually went to the school and began talking to people beyond the senior director who oversees Ockley Green, Cohen speculated.

Lopez, the assistant superintendent, oversees the eight senior directors who each supervise roughly 10 principals and has since 2014. In an interview with The Oregonian/OregonLive Tuesday, he said he didn't think the district's approach to Vestal was unusual. He said the district checks in with the union and responds as needed when concerns come up. He added there are always lots of different perspectives on what is happening at a particular school, with some teachers or parents feeling something is wrong when others think things are going great.

But the union says what's happening is unusual. For the first time in a long time, they see hopeful signs of action and accountability. And they say it is coming not from a high-level employee whose direct responsibility it is to make such change, but from McKean, the district's chief executive and a leader new to Portland Public Schools.



District communications staffers had directed The Oregonian/OregonLive to Lopez as a person knowledgeable of Vestal's complicated history as a school serving a diverse, low-income population. But when asked about this history, Lopez said he didn't know Vestal's past.

McCall, who has been the senior director overseeing Vestal since 2014, said she hadn't heard many complaints about the school and said a lot of good was happening. She acknowledged Vestal had experienced high teacher churn this year, but couldn't say why.

"I hear very positive things that are going on, but there are also some concerns more around the school culture and climate," McCall said. "Parents really want the best for the child so I don't see that in a sense as a bad thing. If from their perspective things are not working, well then let's say, 'How can we do things better?' I see this as opportunity."



McKean said it's a fair criticism that the district's response to concerns about Vestal and the other crisis schools should have been quicker this year. He said it's possible he played a role in any delay because he had to get up to speed on the district, having only taken the helm at in late August.



The teacher's union is cautiously optimistic about the district's assurances of change.

When the union deems schools "in crisis," she said, "they need immediate intervention and can't wait. When you have educators who feel unsafe and can't teach, immediate action is needed," Cohen said. "We're grateful that the majority of schools are not in crisis -- but I don't even think there should be one."

-- Bethany Barnes

Have a tip about Portland Public Schools? Email Bethany: bbarnes@oregonian.com
NEW YORK (AP) -- Jayson Tatum scored 24 points and No. 14 Duke rallied past No. 6 North Carolina with another lightning-fast surge in the second half, taking advantage of foul trouble for Tar Heels point guard Joel Berry II and beating its fierce rival 93-83 on Friday night in the Atlantic Coast Conference semifinals.

Luke Kennard had 20 points and Grayson Allen added 18 off the bench for the Blue Devils (26-8), who will play for the title Saturday night in Brooklyn against No. 16 Florida State or No. 22 Notre Dame.

By winning the second game between the teams in seven days, fifth-seeded Duke took two of three in the season series against the top-seeded Tar Heels (27-7). It was their first ACC Tournament matchup since the Blue Devils won the 2011 championship game.

The rubber match this year was settled on the streets of New York City rather than Tobacco Road, some 500 miles from the Dean Dome and Cameron Indoor Stadium as the ACC took its postseason showcase to the Big Apple for the first time.

Regardless of the locale, this edition of the storied rivalry had many of the usual elements -- complete with players and roaring blue-clad fans from both teams taking issue with the officiating.

Perhaps the primary missing staple was a tense finish after Duke outscored defending champion North Carolina by 15 points during a 10-minute span while Berry was on the bench with four fouls. The decisive spurt put the Blue Devils ahead 77-70 after Allen hit Harry Giles for an alley-oop slam with 5:30 left, and they cruised home from there.

Kennedy Meeks had 19 points and 12 rebounds for the taller, deeper and more experienced Tar Heels, who dominated inside early but blew a 13-point lead in the second half. They squandered a chance to tie Duke for the most ACC Tournament titles and might have cost themselves a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Freshman guard Frank Jackson added 15 points for Duke, which quickly climbed out of a 12-point hole in the second half of Thursday's quarterfinal win over No. 10 Louisville.

Showing some impressive stamina, Duke won its third game in three days against a conference rival with a winning record. No team has won four games in four days at the ACC Tournament.

Back home where the schools are separated by about 10 miles, they split two intense games over the past month -- with each program winning on its own court. North Carolina beat the Blue Devils 90-83 last Saturday in the regular-season finale.

Their latest tussle took place on one of the busiest blocks in Brooklyn. And no doubt, the opportunity to showcase college basketball's best rivalry in the nation's largest media market was exactly the dream scenario the ACC envisioned when it moved its postseason tournament north this year -- a touchy topic down south that boiled up again this week.

So when Duke and Carolina both won Thursday, it brought a true taste of Tobacco Road to the home of Nathan's Famous hot dogs, smack in the middle of the bustling borough that hosted baseball's most passionate regional rivalries once upon a time: Giants-Dodgers; Yankees-Dodgers.

It was the fifth time the teams played outside the state of North Carolina -- three at the ACC Tournament in Atlanta, plus a Tar Heels victory in the 1971 NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden.

Both schools are loaded with area alumni, though, and the Barclays Center stands were bathed in both shades of blue after a snowy morning in New York, where the Empire State Building was lit in ACC school colors at sunset.

BIG PICTURE

Duke: Improved to 13-8 against UNC at the ACC Tournament and 98-44 in the event overall, breaking a tie with the Tar Heels for the best record in the tournament's 64-year history.

North Carolina: Fell short in its attempt to become the first team to repeat as ACC Tournament champion since Duke (2009-11). The Tar Heels had won their last five semifinal games.

WHERE IT STANDS

North Carolina leads the all-time series 135-110.

UP NEXT

Duke: Goes for its 20th ACC Tournament championship Saturday night against second-seeded Florida State or third-seeded Notre Dame. North Carolina is next with 18.

North Carolina: Probably no worse than a No. 2 seed when the NCAA Tournament pairings are announced Sunday.
CLARION | Darwin Anderson, 67, of Clarion, died Thursday, March 9, 2017, at University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City.

Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, March 14, at the United Church of Christ Congregational, in Clarion.

Visitation will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, March 12, at Ewing Funeral Home, Clarion, and will continue one hour prior to services at the church on Monday.

Ewing Funeral Home, Clarion.
Sean Spicer, Mike Pence, Betsy DeVos

Vice President Mike Pence introduces Betsy DeVos at a recent meeting with leaders of historically black colleges at which the education secretary referred to their institutions as successful examples of school choice.

(Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo)

Carrie Leonetti

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos ironically touted historically black colleges and universities as a successful example of her beloved pet cause of "school choice." Of course, the existence of historically black institutions in America, in many cases, is the result of the opposite of school choice. Instead, they are a legacy of the "separate but equal" regime of segregated public schools that existed prior to the Supreme Court's decision in Brown vs. Board of Education, which in reality was a regime of separate but unequal and inadequate funding for black education.

In 1865, Congress created the federal Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands to assist former enslaved people in the South, including with the creation and supervision of schools. The Freedman's Bureau and black community organizations sponsored the creation of 24 private black colleges and training schools, primarily in the South, in response to the systematic state-sanctioned regime of racial segregation preventing black Americans from being integrated into existing white schools.

In 1890, Congress passed the Morrill Act, allowing Southern states to appropriate existing black colleges and to create new land-grant public universities for African Americans. Following the Supreme Court's infamous decision in Plessy vs. Ferguson, "separate but equal" became the organizing principle of public education throughout much of the United States. Even after Brown formally ended segregated education in 1954, many black college students chose to attend historically black institutions in order to escape prejudice and institutionalized racial discrimination in historically white colleges. Studies have continued to show that predominantly white universities suffer from institutionalized bigotry and racism, both overt and subtle.

But Secretary DeVos's "gaffe" not only reflected ignorance and callousness about the history of American school segregation, it was cruelly Orwellian in its level of distortion. The school privatization movement that DeVos champions itself has its roots in racial oppression. The "school choice" movement originated in white resistance to school integration, when, after Brown, Southern states offered vouchers to white students so they could attend all-white private schools -- beyond the reach of the Equal Protection Clause -- to escape their newly integrated public schools. Its more recent iteration has largely worsened racial inequality and the achievement gap in public schools by diverting public funds primarily to the benefit of wealthier, whiter students and contributing to the resegregation of public schools in some areas.

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In short, the only legacy that historically black institutions and school choice share is what law professor Molly O'Brien has described as "the white conservative pursuit of dominance and privilege."

Carrie Leonetti is an associate professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Oregon School of Law in Portland.
A jury returned guilty verdicts Friday on at least one felony charge against each of the last four defendants in the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge - a victory for prosecutors who took a devastating blow at the first trial.

Defense lawyers immediately decried the convictions of the more minor players as a miscarriage of justice when the ringleaders got off last fall.

This time, a federal jury determined Jason Patrick, described by prosecutors as one of the organizers of the armed occupation, and Darryl Thorn, who worked on a security detail and did guard duty, were guilty of conspiracy.

Jurors found they had prevented employees with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service or U.S. Bureau of Land Management from doing their work at the eastern Oregon refuge through intimidation, threat or force.

They acquitted the other two men on trial, Duane Ehmer and Jake Ryan, of the conspiracy count, but convicted both of willfully damaging federal property by using a refuge excavator to dig two deep trenches on the high desert expanse.

The jury also found Thorn guilty of possessing guns in a federal facility, but acquitted Patrick and Ryan of the same charge.

The seven women and five men deliberated for two and a half days after a 10-day trial that proved much less dramatic than the first trial last fall when takeover leader Ammon Bundy and six other key occupiers won acquittals.

But this one had its moments.

Patrick, who said it's turkey-hunting season where he lives in Georgia, made turkey calls in the courtroom before the judge and jury entered to announce the verdicts, prompting a deputy U.S. marshal to tell him to cut it out.

"So, who's getting Tased?" blurted Matthew Schindler, a defense lawyer from the first trial who sat in the back of the courtroom, referencing the bizarre end to last fall's trial when marshals tackled and used a Taser stun gun on Ammon Bundy's lawyer.

U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown ordered defendants, their lawyers and spectators not to react when the verdicts came in - "not audibly, not in behavior, no reaction" -- or they would be removed.

Oregon's U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams declared "justice has been served" and said his office didn't prosecute the defendants for their beliefs, but for their conduct.

"We cannot have people taking over government offices and facilities at the end of a gun and expect no consequence," he said. "The rule of law matters. Taking up arms because you do not like how things are done can never be accepted as a lawful way to protest. ... A voice for change and one's vote are more effective than threats and an AR-15."

That the government snared some of the bit players versus the occupation's instigators wasn't lost on the defendants, said their lawyers and legal observers.

"Just about everybody would agree if you look at this from the perspective of overall justice, it's kind of hard to square an acquittal in the first case and convictions in this second case,'' said Kevin Sali, a Portland-area criminal defense lawyer not tied to the case.

"There is baked into our justice system a lot of imperfection and unpredictability. It's an unfortunate but accepted fact that it doesn't always produce results that are correct or just or fair.''

Defense lawyers, deflated but vowing to appeal, complained about the judge's restrictions on the number of witnesses they could call, what they perceived as the government's unfair offer of plea deals to some defendants but not others and the fact that the jury wasn't allowed to consider misdemeanor charges pending against the defendants. The judge will issue her own verdicts on the misdemeanors, ranging from trespassing to tampering with equipment.

Patrick said he believed if jurors had known he was also facing misdemeanor charges, they wouldn't have convicted him of the felony.

"They don't know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," he said.

Defense lawyer Jesse Merrithew, who represents Ryan, said he was disappointed that the jury convicted Ryan and Ehmer of depredation of government property, a felony that could bring up to six years in prison.

He also called it blatantly unfair that prosecutors didn't offer Ryan a plea deal, but did to occupier Sean Anderson, who appeared in a video to fire into the air at an FBI surveillance plane, helped set up the west encampment at the refuge and didn't surrender until the final day on Feb. 11, 2016. Ryan had no criminal record and arrived at the refuge in the middle of January and left on Jan. 27, 2016.

"I don't know how you justify a more harsh sentence for Jake Ryan who dug a hole,'' Merrithew said. "They don't seem to care who they hold accountable.''

Ryan and Ehmer built the trenches because they thought the FBI planned to raid the refuge, said Merrithew and Ehmer's lawyer, Michele Kohler.

"They were simply terrified, trying to do what they had to do to survive,'' Merrithew said.

Kohler said she believed the judge unfairly restricted the number of defense witnesses to avoid repetitive testimony.

"I feel I failed in presenting more witnesses who could have talked about (Ehmer's) mindset, but at the same time when you have Judge Brown breathing down on you 'No, it's cumulative!' you cut your case down,'' she said.

There's no doubt prosecutors sharpened their case this time, zeroing in on how the actions of the men on trial revealed their intent to intimidate federal workers and explaining that jurors didn't need to see a formal written or verbal agreement to find a conspiracy.

"We did make some strategic changes based on the way the evidence was presented, the manner in which it was presented, certainly emphasizing how the FBI handled the investigation,'' said Assistant U.S. Attorney Ethan Knight.

For example, prosecutors called Greg Bretzing, then the Oregon FBI's special agent in charge, to testify that the FBI didn't want to get too close to the refuge and let people come and go because agents didn't want to provoke confrontation. He hadn't testified in the first trial.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow said prosecutors also concentrated more on the 41-day occupation's effect on refuge employees. "In the first case, there seemed to be a lack of focus on the employees that were actually impeded by this,'' he said. "I think the jury got that this time.''

The government called on the employees to talk about their fears before and during the occupation, which didn't happen in the first case.

"This shows the advantage of getting a do-over,'' said Tung Yin, a Lewis & Clark Law School professor. "You see what happens when the prosecution gets to look at what went wrong in the first trial, and they were able to make changes. They streamlined parts of the case and bolstered other parts.''

Testimony showed that Patrick had attended a Dec. 29, 2015, meeting in a Burns home where Ammon Bundy first shared his idea to seize the refuge. Patrick also was among the first convoy of occupiers to arrive at the refuge on Jan. 2, 2016, and conduct a building-to-building sweep of the property.

"It's not the outcome Jason wanted, but I think he was happy that the jury got to consider his story," said his lawyer, Andrew Kohlmetz.

A video in the darkened refuge bunkhouse on the night of Jan. 26, 2016, showed Thorn with several assault rifles and arguing for occupiers to remain at the refuge after the arrest of its leaders. He "came to fight," he said.

We're inside the Federal Courthouse with Loren Cannon, special agent in charge of FBI's Portland division, and Billy J. Williams, Oregon's US attorney, answering questions about #oregonstandoff trial. Posted by The Oregonian on Friday, March 10, 2017

Williams said the decision to pursue conspiracy charges against Patrick, Thorn and the other two men and add misdemeanor charges was a joint agreement between his office and officials at the U.S. Department of Justice.

"The evidence didn't change in terms of who was arrested following the occupation. And so we believe in the wrongfulness of that conduct, and that the matter needed to be brought before the jury and that includes the remaining four defendants," he said.

The U.S. attorney praised the federal employees who returned to take the witness stand for this trial.

"Our communities and state are stronger because of our joint effort to bring these individuals to justice, and we as Oregonians can now begin to move past these unfortunate events," Williams said.

But Kohler said she believed the government's handling of the prosecutions won't deter the defendants or their supporters, but make them more determined in their challenge to federal control over public land.

"I think this fight is going to continue. I think the new Sagebrush Rebellion has ignited," Kohler said.

Ehmer, who tried to pass the time awaiting a verdict doing silversmith work on a truck parked outside the courthouse Friday morning, said he was disappointed that "now I'm a felon."

"I'm headed home to go ride my pony for a couple months, and then I'm going to take my mom fishing. That's about it," he said, before leaving for his eastern Oregon hometown of Irrigon in his truck. Ehmer was a common sight at the refuge, riding his horse "Hellboy'' and hoisting the American flag there.

Thorn, who was offered a deal by the government seeking his plea to a misdemeanor trespass charge and a sentence of probation with all other charges dismissed, backed out of the deal just before the trial began.

Before the verdicts were read, he said he felt he needed to stand in the courtroom with his co-defendants, citing the words of occupation spokesman Robert "LaVoy" Finicum, who before his death had said "it matters how you stand.''

State police fatally shot Finicum after he sped away from a police stop on Jan. 26, 2016, and then emerged from his truck after crashing into a snowbank. Police said they shot him after he reached at least twice into his jacket, where he had a loaded 9mm handgun.

In all, 26 people involved in the occupation were indicted on the felony conspiracy charge. Eleven faced trial and 11others pleaded guilty to the charge, though several asked to withdraw their pleas. The government dropped the charge against another defendant, independent broadcaster Pete Santilli. Three others pleaded guilty to misdemeanor trespassing.

Sentencing for defendants convicted Friday isn't expected until at least mid-May. The conspiracy and depredation of government property charges each carry up to six year sentences; the weapons charge up to five years.

The government will consider the severity of the conduct, the impact it had on the community, federal employees and the Burns Paiute Tribe, Knight said.

Defense lawyers likely will cite mitigating factors and the acquittal of the occupation leaders to argue for reduced sentences.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
When Gov. Kate Brown hired former Rep. Peter Buckley to influence lawmakers' budget choices, she should have known his hands would be tied.

After all, she championed the 2007 law that prohibits lawmakers from lobbying during the first session after they leave office.

Buckley, hired Tuesday to serve as Brown's first long-term budget adviser barely two months after leaving the legislature, will stick to working with fellow Brown staffers and people outside the capitol and steer clear of lawmakers, at least for now, Brown spokesman Chris Pair said late Friday.

The governor's concession that Buckley's role will be constrained represented a reversal and came after the legislature's top attorney determined that the former lawmaker is prohibited from lobbying.

The opinion, first reported by The Eugene Register-Guard, was issued Thursday in a confidential response to a question from an unnamed Oregon lawmaker and obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive on Friday.

In it, Legislative Counsel Dexter Johnson wrote that Buckley is prohibited from attempting to sway lawmakers on particular pieces of legislation, currying favor with lawmakers and asking his fellow staffers or anyone else to lobby. That is true because of the 2007 law Brown sponsored and that Buckley also supported.

However, Johnson wrote, "Buckley may generally perform all other activities in undertaking a senior staff position with Governor Brown's office." Such activities could include discussing "legislative matters" or "public policy issues" with Brown and her staffers.

As a rule, Oregon governors' policy advisers register as lobbyists because their jobs require them to promote specific policies to lawmakers.

When the governor hired Buckley, she "wanted him to have the ability to lobby legislators this session if it came up," and fully believed that was permitted, said Pair.

Early Friday afternoon, he told The Oregonian the governor's office had vetted Buckley before hiring him and was confident that the law would not apply.

Pair said that belief is based on a 2009 opinion from the Oregon Government Ethics Commission that said the 2007 law did not apply to three statewide elected officials, because they were lobbying on behalf of their respective state agencies. Although the opinion only addressed elected officials, Pair said it would apply to Buckley because he also would be considered a public official lobbying for a state agency.

"Before hiring Buckley, the governor's office carefully studied the law and guidance from the Oregon Ethics Commission," Pair said in a statement. "The lobbying restriction was always meant to be a restriction against private contract lobbying, not working for the governor."

But the governor's office reversed its stance later Friday, saying Buckley would "not necessarily lobby legislators this session on budget-related issues." Instead, he would work with fellow staffers and those outside the capitol.

Brown plans to seek an ethics commission opinion on the issue and could modify her stance again, based on its finding.

Buckley will earn an annual salary of about $65,000. He will work 20 hours per week, and will likely split his time between Salem and Ashland, Pair said.

Buckley also works for the Southern Oregon Education Service District, managing its Southern Oregon Success program. According to executive assistant Jessica Bach, he works part-time, though more than 20 hours a week. At $43.29 per hour, he earns at least $45,000 per year. He also receives medical and dental benefits and qualifies for a public employee pension, Bach said.

Pair said the lobbying restriction will not limit Buckley, whose focus is the state's budget over future cycles, starting with the 2019-21 budget. Brown's newly hired senior director of budget and children's policy Debbie Koreski will focus on the upcoming budget, he said.

Pair said the governor's office is seeking a formal interpretation from the Ethics Commission for clarification, and will follow its recommendation. However, even if the commission's opinion allows Buckley to lobby the Legislature, he might not need to, given his focus on future budgets, Pair said.

The governor's office reversal came after Senate Republican Leader Ted Ferrioli called Friday for Buckley to step aside immediately and complete the "cooling off period" for the remainder of the session.

"Gov. Brown is not a detail person," Ferrioli said in a statement. "Errors are to be expected. It's what comes after that makes a difference."

-- Anna Marum

amarum@oregonian.com

503-294-5911

@annamarum
SALEM -- A group of Oregon mayors lobbied state officials Thursday to ask for money and other help to solve their cities' homelessness problems.

"Local government in America right now is the dumping ground for all of society's problems," Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler told reporters gathered in the Capitol's basement pressroom. "To be honest, we're not going to take it anymore."

The scourge of opioid and heroin addiction, homelessness and a failing mental health safety net that is "an embarrassment among industrialized nations" are only some of the problems foisted on city governments, Wheeler said.

What's more, dwindling federal funds for social assistance programs, such as Section 8 housing vouchers, make addressing those problems that much more difficult, he said.

"We need the state government and we need the federal government to understand this is not a local government problem," Wheeler said. "This cannot be solved by local government alone, or even with the resources of the private and philanthropic sector."

Mayors of numerous other Portland-are cities, who are members of the Metropolitan Mayors' Consortium along with Wheeler, agreed that the state should help cities combat homelessness and shortages of affordable housing.

Homelessness is perhaps the most "vexing" problem that cities face, said Gresham Mayor Shane Bemis. But cities have limited resources, he said.

"We've talked with other mayors from across the United States," Bemis said. "They're all dealing with similar issues."

Cornelius Mayor Jeffrey Dalin said his city will soon be breaking ground on a new library with 45 units of affordable housing for seniors on the second and third floors. That's the good news.

Cornelius, Ore. Mayor Jeffrey Dalin speaks to reporters on Thursday, March 9, 2017 at the Oregon State Capitol.

"The bad news: ten years we've been working on this," Dalin said. "Ten years it took to get to this point."

He said allowing tax credits for the project's developers is what finally made it financially feasible. If the state or federal government would expand those tax credit programs, perhaps more housing could get built, he said. The other mayors nodded.

Unlike the other mayors, Wheeler said he supports two bills before the Legislature that would prevent tenant evictions without cause and allow cities to establish rent controls.

Wheeler said that although the mayors don't agree on everything, they came to Salem to lobby as one voice and get what assistance they can.

"We don't have the resources," he said. "We're asking for it and we need help."

-- Gordon R. Friedman

GFriedman@Oregonian.com; 503-221-8209
AX074_0D14_9.JPG

The tenure of former Port of Portland executive director Lloyd Anderson preceded the current Port headquarters buiding at Portland International Airport. (ZGF Architects/Nick Merrick)

Lloyd Anderson, who served from 1974 through 1987 as Port of Portland executive director, died Thursday. He was 91.

Anderson also served on the Portland City Council from 1969 to 1974 where he oversaw public works. For five years before that, he was the Portland regional manager for CH2M-Hill, the multi-national consulting firm.

Anderson earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 1950 at the University of Washington. He grew up on a farm in Snohomish, Washington.

There have been five Port executive directors since the agency was combined with city's Commission of Public Docks in 1970, Port executive director Bill Wyatt said Saturday. Anderson was the second director under the new structure.

"Lloyd set the standard against which all of us are measured," Wyatt said.

Wyatt recalled during his own tenure making a business call in Seoul, South Korea, on Hyundai, a Port client since 1986 when it established an auto import facility.

Wyatt said the Hyundai chairman unexpectedly emerged during his meeting with other Hyundai officials.

"Do you know why we're in Portland?" the chairman asked Wyatt.

It was because of a visit Anderson made to the company years earlier, the chairman said, Wyatt recalled. The chairman said Hyundai had not reached its potential when Anderson visited and that Anderson encouraged the company to pick Portland when the company began to export.

"Lloyd loved stories and he loved that story," Wyatt said.

Anderson lived about four decades on a houseboat on the Willamette River near Sellwood with his wife, Pauline Anderson. The couple married March 2, 1968.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by his children, Zel Brook, Pamela Anderson, Penny Brill; and stepchildren, Erik Gilson, Joanna Gilson, Linnea Gilson, Signe Gilson, and Maria deValpine; grandchildren, Rob Whiting, Andrew Kurtzman, Anna Brill, Katie Brill, Harley Gilson-Smith, Norah Newman, Soren Kounts, Annika Kounts, Peter Sistrom, Zoe Hulme; and three great-grandchildren.

Celebration of Life will be held at 2 p.m., March 26, in the Oaks Park Dance Pavilion. Donations may be made in his honor to the ACLU of Oregon.

--Allan Brettman

503-294-5900

@allanbrettman
CLARION | Dwight Whelan, 83, of Clarion, died Friday, March 10, 2017, at the Clarion Wellness and Rehabilitation Center.

Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, March 20, at First Lutheran Church in Clarion with Pastor Grant Woodley officiating.

Burial will be held at the Belmond Cemetery in Belmond.

Visitation will be held one hour prior to services at the church on Monday, March 20.

Ewing Funeral Home, Clarion.
MASON CITY | Jean Ann Robertson, 66, Mason City, passed away Thursday, March 9, 2017, at Good Shepherd Health Center in Mason City, after a long struggle with lung cancer.

A celebration of her life will be 1:30 p.m. Monday, March 13, 2017, at Hogan-Bremer-Moore Colonial Chapel, 126 Third St. N.E., Mason City, with the Rev. Paul Collier of the First Presbyterian Church in Mason City officiating.

Inurnment will be held at a later date in the Forest Cemetery in Oskaloosa.

Visitation will be held one hour prior to her service on Monday in the chapel.

The family would like to suggest that those wishing to give a memorial in her memory may wish to consider memorial contributions to the North Iowa Humane Society.

Jean was born on July 20, 1950, in Oskaloosa, Iowa, the daughter of Gordon and Shirley (Riggle) Robertson. She graduated from Oskaloosa Senior High School in 1968, where she was active in the band, pep club, and served as the editor of the school newspaper. Following her graduation, she attended the University of Iowa and William Penn where she earned her degrees in Sociology and Psychology, and received her Masters in Social Work from the University of Minnesota.

Her career in social work began in 1974 when she went to work for Families Inc. in West Branch, Iowa. She later moved to Mason City in 1980, and began work for the Iowa Department of Social Services until her retirement in 2010. Jean devoted her life as an advocate for the underrepresented.

Aside from work, her passions included her beloved cats, animals rescue and an unquenchable love of collecting.

She was actively involved as a member of P.E.O. Chapter LO.

One of her favorite scripture passages is from 2 Timothy 4:6-9, I have competed well. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. She wanted to be remembered with smiles and laughter.

She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Mason City.

Special thanks to the staff at Good Shepherd Health Care Center in Mason City.

Those left to cherish her memory are her brother, Andy (Mary) Robertson of Rohnert Park, CA; her niece, Hannah Robertson of Flagstaff, AZ; her uncle, Jack Knell of Los Altos, CA; her cousins, Jim Knell of Pasadena, CA, and Janet Kendrick of West Minster, CO; as well as many friends.

Jean was preceded in death by her parents, Gordon and Shirley Robertson; and her aunts, Ginny Knell, and Arbor Robertson.
RENWICK | Robert Bob Lane, 87, of Renwick, died Wednesday, March 8, 2017, at his home near Renwick.

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, March 13, at the Renwick United Methodist Church with the Rev. Lynn Gardner officiating.

Burial will be in Elmwood Cemetery.

Visitation will be 3-7 p.m. on Sunday, March 12, at the Renwick United Methodist Church.

Oakcrest Funeral ServicesRenwick.
Free Airplane

Rides for Kids

Free Young Eagle Flights offered to anyone 8-17 years old, with a signed permission slip by a legal guardian, from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, March 11. Pilots first explain all the parts of the aircraft then describe the flight and fly it. The EAA Chapter 1093 Young Eagles program is a unique way of welcoming young people (ages 8-17) to the exhilaration and freedom of flight. The program is sponsored by the EAA Aviation Foundation, which is a non-profit organization, dedicated to providing motivational aviation experience for the younger generation. This is a free event at the Midland Barstow Airport, 2800 E. Airport Road, Midland. For more information, call (989) 835-3231.

Families in Nature:

The Season of Syrup

Venture out to the Chippewa Nature Center, between 1 and 2 p.m. Saturday, March 11 for the monthly Families in Nature program series. Join CNCs naturalists for this outdoor program to explore the wonders of Michigans seasons. Naturalist Jeanne Henderson will explain the Sugarbush in its prime season. Learn how to identify Sugar Maples, tap for sap and see how maple syrup is made. For more information e-mail info@chippewanaturecenter.org.

An Afternoon at

the Sugarhouse

Saturdays and Sundays in March, (except Maple Syrup Day March 18) visit the Beech-Maple woods, where buckets decorate trees and where, on warm days, you can hear sap dripping into the buckets at Chippewa Nature Center. Watch the steam rise off the evaporator pan in the sugarhouse as the sap is boiled down to make sweet maple syrup. An interpreter will be on hand during open hours 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. to explain the process.

Full Moon Stroll

From 6:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday, March 11, Interpretive Naturalist Jeanne Henderson will lead a walk by the light of the full moon at Chippewa Nature Center. Look for animal tracks, listen for owls and check for other sights and sounds of wildlife.

Story Hour:

Maple Trees

Story Hour at Chippewa Nature is designed for little ones ages 3 to 5 years old and an adult. Each week between 9:30 and 10:30 a.m. or 11 a.m. to noon spend an hour learning about nature. This weeks story hour takes place on March 16, with the theme: Maple Trees. The hour will include a story, crafts, time outdoors and other age appropriate activities.

Maple Syrup Day

Venture out to CNC for Maple Syrup Day, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 18, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. enjoy a day filled with food and fun for all ages. Admission is free for CNC members and all children. Admission is $4/nonmember adult. Visit the website www.chippewanaturecenter.org to learn more about this day filled with crafts, activities, history, wagon rides and maple syrup.

NEMCSA Head Start Preschool Programs

NEMCSA Head Start is a free preschool program for qualifying families with children ages 3 to 4. Head Start also serves children with special needs and/or disabilities. Head Start is a member of the Midland County Regional Preschool Partnership. First step to enroll is to complete a preschool interest form online at www.michiganpreschool.org. NEMCSA Head Start offers full day and half-day preschool classrooms that run four days a week. Classroom locations in the Midland and Sanford areas include sites at Longview Early Childhood Center, First Baptist Church, Grace Bible Church and Sanford Early Childhood Center. Contact Katie Estelle at (989) 832-0968 or Kelly Scoles at (989) 832-7520 to schedule an application appointment to learn if your family is eligible for these free NEMCSA Head Start Preschool Program.
You have a right to know what your government is doing.

Theres even a week to celebrate open access to information. Sunday will start the annual Sunshine Week, which seeks to inform people about your right to know.

The week celebrates the Freedom of Information Act, Open Meetings Act and other efforts to ensure citizens have access government records.

In Michigan, a movement has been gaining ground to make the governors office subject to the states Freedom of Information Act, and to create the Legislative Open Records Act to place the Legislature under public disclosure laws. We support these bills moving through the Legislature and will eagerly support any efforts to increase access.

Making information available to residents and the press ensures a well-informed citizenry. In a time where fake news is making news, having access to facts is all the more important.

We commend the House Michigan Competitiveness Committee for approving a bipartisan 11-bill package that makes state government more transparent. State Rep. Roger Hauck, R-Union Township, introduced a bill that is part of the package subjecting the governor and lieutenant governor to the Freedom of Information Act in addition to creating the Legislative Open Records Act.

Local units of government and school boards are all subject to open records laws, and it simply makes sense that state officials should be subject to the same scrutiny, Hauck said in a news release. People deserve the right to see how their tax dollars are used, and these bills achieve that goal.

A similar package of legislation was passed by the House in the last session, but failed to clear the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof opposes efforts to subject the governors office and the Legislature to open records requests. We hope his colleagues can impress upon the senator the importance of building trust in the state government at this point in time.

Open access to information is a right Michigan residents deserve to have, and the sooner, the better.
Daylight saving time (theres no s on saving) starts at 2 a.m. March 12. Most of us will spring ahead before we go to bed, setting our clocks ahead one hour tonight.

My husband has always been in the habit of adjusting just one clock the night before and resetting all the others the next day. I prefer to advance all the clocks in the house before going to sleep Saturday so I dont feel so bad when I look at the time on Sunday. Theres not much more depressing than looking at a clock and realizing you dont have as much time as you thought.

Over the years, weve reached a happy medium: He changes the digital displays in the kitchen (there seem to be a million) and on the clocks I cant reach without a step stool. I change the rest, including the display in my car which, for some reason, always requires me digging out the users manual for a refresher course.

Thankfully, most mobile devices, tablets, etc., change themselves. Still, there will be a few times on Sunday when Ill look at the time and ask, Is this the right time? Is it really noon or is it 11 a.m.?

I dont know about you, but for me, all this time-switching gets old. Its been 10 years since DST was moved from April to the second Sunday in March (thanks to the Energy Policy Act), and Im still not used to it. Maybe I should move to Arizona, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands or American Samoa. They dont observe DST.

My friends dont mind losing an hour in the spring because theyre eager for more daylight later in the day. By March, theyre ready for signs of warmer weather and the chance to be outside. In the fall, when the clocks go back an hour and darkness descends earlier, most folks console themselves with the thought of gaining an extra hour of sleep.

According to the Farmers Almanac, we have Founding Father Benjamin Franklin to thank for the time saving idea. Apparently he suggested in an editorial written to Parisians that they might save on candles if they got out of bed earlier and took advantage of available daylight.

In the U.S., we implemented daylight saving time in 1918 but repealed it in 1920. During World War II, we tried it again to save fuel. Over the years, theres been much debate about the actual energy savings. Some people enjoy the extra daylight after the typical 9 to 5 day; others, such as dairy farmers and parents of young children, not so much. Cows dont wear wristwatches. (Its udder folly to think theyll adjust.)

My grandmother, I recently learned, wrote a letter to the editor of The Pantagraph in 1949, advocating a return to standard time.

Have you ever tried to put a child to bed with the sun streaming through the windows? she wrote.

She ended her letter, Lets stay on standard time this year and relax.

The practice did not change as a result of the letter, but in protest, she kept her family on standard time that summer. Being farmers, they worked, played and slept according to the sunrise and sunset. If her children had to be somewhere at a particular time, such as Sunday school, grandma adjusted her appointment book, not the clock.

She may have been on to something, I said to my husband, thinking of grandmas rebellion nearly 70 years ago.

Tomorrow (or hopefully tonight), my husband and I will begin the biannual ritual of adjusting all our clocks, watches and digital displays. Before we know it, it will be Nov. 5, and well get to reset them all over again.
NORMAL  A massive water main break in Normal has been repaired and samples for state testing of water safety were drawn about 7 p.m. Friday, meaning the townwide boil order likely will remain in effect until Saturday evening.

The break occurred about 11:30 p.m. Thursday in the 1000 block of East College Avenue and repairs were completed at 4 p.m.

"Water department officials anticipate that the boil order will be lifted sometime Saturday evening," said Normal Director of Communications Dan Irvin in a news release that was updated Friday night.

"Testing of these samples requires 24 hours, per (Environmental Protection Agency) regulation."

Due to the size of the break, the water system pressure dropped to a level that required a townwide boil order effective immediately. The break prompted some businesses to close and others to restrict service.

Town issues boil order fact sheet The town of Normal has posted this fact sheet on its website. Call the water department at 3

The boil order was issued about 5:45 a.m. Residents should bring water to a rolling boil for three to five minutes before using it for drinking or cooking.

Normal City Manager Mark Peterson urged residents to follow the boil order but said those who used water Friday morning before seeing it should be fine. Even under a boil order, it's safe for residents to bathe, shower and do laundry, according to EPA information.

The chances of any kind of bacteria or substance getting into the system is extremely remote, and even if it did, the chlorine probably would take care of it, Peterson said. Your exposure is much greater diving into any public swimming pool.

Midwest Food Bank will distribute water from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at its new location, 2301 Warehouse Road, Normal, for affected Normal residents. They can pick up one case of water per household.

We are often called upon to provide disaster relief at many locations, Director of Operations Mike Hoffman said. This is an opportunity to offer help right in our own community.

Abby Strader, co-owner of Fort Jesse Cafe in Normal, arrived at the restaurant at 6 a.m. Friday without knowing of the boil order.

Our first group of customers were the ones who told us, said Strader. So we ran to Wal-Mart and grabbed 20 gallons of water, bags of ice and liters of soda.

Strader said employees scrambled to sanitize ice bins and go back to the basics when making tea and coffee.

We figured it out and made it work. Food preparation is a little more time consuming, but everyone is taking it on as a challenge, she said.

Moes Southwest Grill in Normal remained open and General Manager Shelbee Dickman said the boil order made things a little rough.

Because of the unsanitized water, we have to have water stations set up for all employees with boiled water, towels and soap. We cant use any faucets, said Dickman.

Fountain soda and brewed tea were not available, but the store provided canned soda.

Thanks to a 30-gallon pot normally used to cook beans, Dickman said the restaurant can always have boiling water ready for cleaning and cooking.

Medici restaurant in uptown Normal found it easier to close for the day as a precaution, said General Manager Joe Slane.

We cant wash dishes, serve soda, rinse lettuce or even wash our hands, said Slane. We could boil water to do the dishes and rinse produce, but that would be impossible to manage.

Slane is hopeful the restaurant will be open for lunch on Saturday, depending on the status of the boil order.

Epiphany Catholic School, located in the area of the break, was closed Friday and all activities are canceled, the school announced on its website, because it is without water service.

The school should reopen Monday after the main break left several inches of water in some parts of the school.

Advocate BroMenn Medical Center was maintaining normal operations on Friday by using a combination of water from Bloomington, boiled water and bottled water, said officials.

At Illinois State University, which begins spring break this weekend, word of the boil order was being spread to students and faculty via social media and mass emails relaying information from the town, said Eric Jome, director of media relations. Information also is available on the campus websites home page.

In addition, signs were being posted at water fountains around residence halls and other campus locations.

Housing staff is providing bottled water in residence halls, he said, with main campus dining facilities offering limited service.

McLean County Unit 5 schools were open and had water service Friday, but steps were taken to ensure that students and staff do not drink water from fountains.

Spokeswoman Dayna Brown also said bottled water was brought to each school and kitchen staff.

Not surprisingly, there were a steady stream of people purchasing bottled water at Meijer Friday.

Just looking at the customers who are in my checkout lanes, the vast majority of them have some form of water in their shopping carts, said the store director, Mike Anderson, about 10:15 a.m. Friday.

Boiling water Q&A The Centers for Disease Control has produced this Q&A related to the issuance of boil orders.

Store managers at the Wal-Mart Supercenter, 300 Greenbriar Drive, were also busy coordinating the distribution of bottled water, said an employee who answered the phone about 9:40 a.m. Friday.

Illinois EPA mandates that the boil order be imposed for a minimum of 24 hours starting when the repairs are completed, which was about 7 p.m. Friday, said the town.

So, the boil order will remain in effect until laboratory sampling confirms that "the water quality has not been compromised," the department said in a statement.
The speakers platform at Tuesdays event where Gov. Bruce Rauner heralded Rivian Automotives purchase of the vacant Mitsubishi plant was a gloomy metaphor for the state of affairs between our local municipal governments.

In cheerier times, Bloomingtons mayor would almost certainly have been part of the official party, standing alongside the mayor of Normal, local state legislators, Rivians CEO, the state director of commerce and economic opportunity, the chairman of the McLean County Board and the head of the Bloomington-Normal Economic Development Council as the governor said nice things about Rivian and Bloomington-Normal.

Not this time. There was no invitation for Mayor Tari Renner after Bloomingtons City Council voted to unilaterally end the Metro Zone agreement. Normal officials were so steamed they even decided (temporarily, as it turned out) they wouldnt be part of the EDCs annual One Voice lobbying trip to Washington 11 days from now. Thats when local officials present a unified wish list for federal funding to members of Illinois congressional delegation.

Timing of the Metro Zone quarrel isn't good  not while the community is trying to diversify and grow its economy.

Earlier this year, a little-noticed state of Illinois economic forecast prepared by Moodys identified the Bloomington metro area as one of eight in the Midwest that have slipped into recession, three others in Illinois being Carbondale, Peoria and the Quad Cities. Thats a sobering assessment for a community that not long ago considered itself recession-proof.

At Mondays Normal council meeting, Mayor Chris Koos talked about cracks in the communitys foundation as he closed an hour-long discussion about the Metro Zone disagreement, referring specifically to the realignment of State Farm and Mitsubishi leaving the community.

To their credit, Normal council members generally lowered the rhetorical temperature, not repeating the harshest language that appeared in the prickly statement they issued hours after Bloomington voted 7-2 to end the economic development agreement.

And credit Renner for being in the audience at the Normal session along with Jim Fruin and Diana Hauman, the two Bloomington aldermen who voted against ending the arrangement.

They heard Paul Harmon, Normals mayor when the zone was created 30 years ago, say such agreements advance the overall community, but dont always provide equal benefits to the two cities.

He cited a pair of examples: Bloomington and Normal residents pay the same property tax rate to support the local airport, but the town doesnt benefit from taxes derived from commercial development the airport has attracted to Bloomingtons east side. And Harmon discussed a relatively new sewage treatment plant financed by fees paid by residents of both cities. He said it has cost Normal millions to pump sewage over the ridge to the plant south of Bloomington.

What wasnt mentioned is that Bloomington chose not to contribute to the economic incentives that brought Rivian to the Metro Zone, but that if the current agreement remains in place and Rivian is a success with suppliers and vendors returning to Normal acreage near the plant, Bloomington would get half the stepped-up property and other taxes paid to Normal.

All is not lost. Twin City officials are still speaking to one another. Renner and Koos met privately the day after Normal released its stinging statement. They stood together at Thursday nights anti-hate rally (a good thing). Renner and several Bloomington council members attended a Rivian reception in uptown Tuesday evening. Council members from both sides of Division Street have exchanged phone calls.

Perhaps the best thing would be for everyone to take a deep breath, get past next months municipal elections and then see if we cant hit the reset button on Twin City cooperation, collaboration and sense of a unified but concerned community.
The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, recently shared an anecdote about what it's like to raise a toddler princess. She said her nearly 2-year-old daughter Princess Charlotte is the boss of the household.

The actual boss of the British Monarchy Queen Elizabeth II, on the other hand, had a toddler encounter at an event for soldiers. A 2-year-old boy had a meltdown right in front of the queen.

The Duchess and the Queen attended the opening of a new war memorial Thursday. Middleton was talking to mothers of soldiers when the subject of raising toddlers came up. She could happily relate to little kids ruling the roost.

"She said that Charlotte is growing up really fast. She is the one in charge," a soldiers' wife, Samantha Burge, said, according to Hello. The Duchess also revealed that while Princess Charlotte bosses everybody around, she and big brother Prince George, 3, have become "very good friends."

Burge was grateful for the chance to exchange mommy notes with Middleton. "I wanted a mommy talk," she said, according to People. "I wanted to talk about something else than [war]," she added.

Meanwhile, a toddler had a major meltdown as Queen Elizabeth II exchanged pleasantries with British soldiers in the same event. Alfie Lunn attended the memorial with his parents who both serve the military but he didn't seem to be impressed about meeting the Queen of England.

The little guy threw a tantrum right in front of Queen Elizabeth II instead of handing her a bunch of flowers, Telegraph reported. Lunn's mom said the Queen remained cordial and was "very understanding" of her little boy.

"She thanked us, she asked Mark when he last got back from tour, and thanked Alfie for the flowers," mom Corporal Michele Lunn said. Watch the toddler and the Queen in the video below.
United States officials are closely monitoring the yellow fever outbreak in Brazil. Authorities believe the case might be the next Zika as it might spread across borders.

Two health experts contended in an essay published in the New England Journal of Medicine the likelihood of yellow fever getting to the United States is low but it could still spread in the country via travel-related transmissions. Zika first broke out outside the United States and Florida became the hot bed of the virus after travel-related cases were confirmed, CNN reported.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and his colleague, Dr. Catharine Paules, said yellow fever could be more evident in warmer regions. They also said, "In an era of frequent international travel, any marked increase in domestic cases in Brazil raises the possibility of travel-related cases."

Zika spread in Brazil in 2015 then subsequently affected 60 more countries. The current yellow fever outbreak started in Brazil in December and numbers have since increased. As of March, the yellow fever outbreak killed 220. Data showed that a total of 326 cases was confirmed while 916 were listed to be suspected cases, Men's Health revealed.

Most of the cases are confined to rural areas but some cases moved closer to Rio de Janeiro. It is possible that yellow fever will continue to spread in urban areas due to the denser communities in the latter. Most of the citizens there are also believed to have not been vaccinated against the virus.

Just like Zika virus, yellow fever is transmitted to humans via the bite of an infected mosquito. Symptoms of yellow fever are likened to flu and could include fever, headache, vomiting, fatigue, jaundice, and nausea. Around 15 percent of the suspected cases evolve into a more severe form and it causes internal bleeding, organ failure, and shock.

Meanwhile, most outbreaks occurred in South AmerIca and Africa in the past. Even though it only showed flu-like symptoms, the disease could also lead to death.
BRITT | Verna M. Hilbert, 93, of Britt, died Friday, March 10, 2017, at Westview Care Center in Britt.

Funeral Mass will be held at 1:30 p.m. Monday, March 13, at St. Patricks Catholic Church in Britt with Fr. Jim Dubert officiating.

Burial will be in St. Patricks Catholic Cemetery near Britt.

A Rosary will be said starting at 2 p.m. at Ewing Funeral Chapel, in Britt, on Sunday, March 12, with visitation following from 2-4 p.m.

Ewing Funeral Chapel, Britt.
A mother-of-two took to Instagram to post about her two children, one of whom is terminally ill and is battling cancer. The post went viral after the comforting words of the big brother touched many hearts.

The mother, Sheryl Blanksby, said she was getting ready to go in the bathroom while her husband was in the kitchen. However, she said something was off because her older child was not making any noises. She went to check on her toddler and her infant in the living room.

Blanksby said she had her phone ready to see what her two boys were up to as she expected they did something but she was stunned at what happened next. She shared on her post, "I was expecting my baby to be covered in Nutella or something but instead I saw this. My preschooler is telling his baby brother 'Kuya (big brother) is here. Everything is OK.'" "Kuya" is a Filipino term for older brother or an older person, FOX News reported.

The photo made its rounds online. It currently has 2,851 likes and more than 200 comments, which are mostly motivational statements for the mom while others sent their well-wishes to the baby. Some commenters came from different countries and they said they read the article online and did not expect to read such heart-tugging post.

Blanksby and her husband, Jon, knew about the condition of their younger baby when he was only 11 weeks old back in February this year. Doctors told the couple the baby had a malignant rhabdoid tumor. He underwent surgery to have his kidney removed but doctors determined later his cancer was terminal, A Plus revealed.

The mother-of-two, who is a blogger, took to her website last December to discuss why her infant baby, identified as Thomas, is a "Rainbow Baby," which pertains to babies born after a miscarriage. Just this March 4, Blanksby shared on her blog that it felt like it was just yesterday when she gave birth to Thomas but now she is writing about his unpreventable death.

Blanksby documents her baby's milestones on her social media networks. The family enjoys outings and doing other things as they want to do as much while their baby is still alive.

A GoFundMe page was set up for the family and in the past 22 days, the campaign raised over $35,000, which was more than the $20,000 goal. The family used the funds for their trips to make memories with Thomas.
David T. King, William Webster, and Eric Svendsen

[Max Pixel / CC0 public domain]

***

(4-17-09)

***

Recently, some prominent anti-Catholics online have tried to make out that I am merely a self-published author, when in fact I now have four of my books published by two major Catholic publishers: Our Sunday Visitor (the largest Catholic publisher in the world), and Sophia Institute Press: a highly respected publisher that specializes in Catholic classics. Two of my books had been published by the year 2003; three by 2004, and four by 2007. Shortly, Ill have two more out: one with Sophia ( Bible Proofs for Catholic Truths ) and one with Saint Benedict Press (a Chesterton quotations book ), making a total of six; with many more to come, by all reasonable indications and communications to me by my editors. [the total is now ten, with an additional ten  and likely many more to come  published electronically by Logos / Faithlife : the worlds largest electronic publisher of Christian books]

*

As always with these anti-Catholic naysayers, there has to be a glaring double standard. As I was eating my dinner tonight I was pondering a few of the big names among anti-Catholics online and who their publishers were. One of these luminaries of the anti-Catholic online provincial world is Pastor David T. King: the most ill-mannered man, bar none (including atheists and other non-Christians),  though Gene Troll Bridges comes close  that Ive ever encountered online in 12 years. He referred to me recently (3 April 2009 on James Swans site) as a filthy, foulmouthed Romanist.

David T. King is co-author with William Webster of a three-volume set on sola Scriptura: Holy Scripture: the Ground and Pillar of Our Faith (see vol. 1 / vol. 2 / vol. 3 on Amazon. I couldnt recall, sitting at dinner, try as I might, the name of the publisher. Well, after cruising over to trusty Amazon, I discovered that it is the publishing industry titan Christian Resources, based in Battle Ground, Washington. Ever heard of them? I didnt think so. Youre not alone. I did a bunch of Google searches in an effort to track down this publisher, to see what other books it has published. It took some work, as nothing was coming up.

After some difficulty, and after finding the location of the publisher in a Google Book Search, I finally ran across a website for this operation [defunct link]. And what did I find? Well, sure enough, it is a self-publishing operation. Very impressive, isnt it? Right on the home page, we read:

Christian Resources is a non-profit teaching, apologetics and publishing ministry . . . The director and Founder of Christian Resources is William Webster.

Ah; how difficult it is to publish your own book, without the burden of outside editors, or any quality control. Perhaps there is a board of directors? Maybe; though at this website one obtains no information whatsoever about that, if indeed it is the case. All we find are ten additional books by Webster. I fail to see how this makes him somehow a superior apologist. He publishes 13 of his own books with his own publishing company. Ive done 13 of mine with Lulu. The difference, of course, is that I also have four books (soon to be six) with actual publishers, with boards and editors, and theological monitoring by scholars and bishops and priests, and operations independent of little ole Dave Armstrong, whereas Webster and King have none of that. They just have their own books published by themselves.

I thought that at least Webster must have advanced degrees in theology and philosophy in order to attain to the sublime title of apologist. So I set out on another difficult searching journey on the Internet, to look for his credentials. Well, I found this:

William A. Webster is a business man, living with his wife and children in Battle Ground, Washington. He has already authored The Christian Following Christ as Lord and Salvation, The Bible, and Roman Catholicism, and is a founder of Christian Resources, Inc., a tape and book ministry dedicated to teaching and evangelism.

Now, that doesnt tell us a whole heck of a lot, does it? We dont even know what business he is in, for heavens sake. He founded a ministry. Big wow. Many have done that. Who is he accountable to? What denominational affiliation does he have? We learn none of that. All we know is that he has basically proclaimed himself an apologist and publishes his own books. Well, I should qualify that a little bit. His book, The Church of Rome at the Bar of History (1996) was published by Banner of Truth. At least that is a real publisher. Give credit where it is due . . . It specializes in the classics of Protestant history. That being the case, it is quite analogous from a Protestant perspective, to my publisher Sophia Institute Press, which specializes in Catholic classics. Thus, Webster has no more credentials than I do in that regard, and arguably even less.

I continued to search in vain for the mans education or credentials of any sort, other than being a businessman and self-publisher. I remembered that he had a chapter in a book in my own library, of several different authors, Roman Catholicism (1994; Chicago: Moody Press, edited by John Armstrong). I thought that might say something about his education and background. And alas, my search ended. On p. 11, in the Contributors section I learned that Webster obtained a B.A. from Southern Methodist University in who knows what?, and is a businessman.

He was the least credentialed contributor of all those in the book (13 in all). That made him (at least at that time) no more formally educated than I am myself, with my B.A. in sociology and minor in psychology (Wayne State Univ., Detroit, 1982, cum laude). Elsewhere, I learned that the degree was in history (not theology), that Webster is a pastor, and that he was a graduate of the Evangelical Institute in Greenville, SC.

Thats better, but what degree? The website for this school gives little information on degrees available, or whether it is an accredited institution. On a web page for the U.S. Department of Education about accreditation, I couldnt find the school listed under South Carolina. Perhaps I missed something. But it looks like Webster is little more educated than I am.
Luxembourg court rejects US bid to freeze Iran assets; Washington appeals: CBI Chief

03/09/17

Source: Press TV

The governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) says a Luxembourg court has rejected the US efforts to freeze $1.6 billion of Iranian assets in the European country, adding that Washington has appealed the ruling.

"A Luxembourg court dismissed the US request for the freeze of $1.6 billion of Iranian assets in its first verdict, and the decision has been appealed and will be considered soon," Valiollah Seif told reporters on the sidelines of a cabinet session on Wednesday.



Seif said that the office of Iran's legal services and CBI lawyers are following up on the case until the final verdict is issued.



He added that the request to seize Iran's dollar bonds in Luxembourg was made by the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks in the US.



Seif's remarks came in reaction to a report by The New York Times that, citing people familiar with the case, said a judge in Luxembourg had quietly put a freeze on $1.6 billion in assets belonging to the CBI.



The report said that the freeze on the Iranian assets in Luxembourg was as compensation for the victims of the September 11 attacks.



On Tuesday, CBI Legal Chief Executive Ardeshir Fereydouni said that the US move to seize Iranian oversees assets ran counter to international law.



Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Majid Takht-e-Ravanchi has also rejected the US bid as "completely unlawful and baseless."



The US claims that Iran helped the al-Qaeda terrorist group in conducting the September 11, 2001 attacks. Iran has repeatedly rejected the allegation.



The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of hijacked-plane strikes in New York, the Washington D.C. area and Pennsylvania, which killed nearly 3,000 people.



None of the 19 hijackers that carried out the attacks were Iranian citizens. Fifteen were from Saudi Arabia while the others were from the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Lebanon.
Photos: 2nd Airbus plane purchased by Iran lands in Tehran

03/11/17

Report by Press TV; photos by Amin Jalali, Islamic Republic News Agency

A second airplane purchased by Iran through a major post-sanctions deal with the European aviation giant Airbus has landed in the capital, Tehran. The Airbus A330-200 took off from the French city of Toulouse on Saturday and landed at Tehran's Mehrabad International Airport later in the day.

The aircraft had been officially delivered to Iran earlier in Toulouse. It will now be operated by Iran's national flag carrier Iran Air.



The plane, which has 32 business class and 206 economy class seats, is suitable for long-distance flights.











Its delivery to Iran was made possible under a 18-billion-dollar deal Iran signed with Airbus last year to purchase 100 new planes, including 46 aircraft from the A320 family, 38 from the A330 family, and 16 from the A350 XWB.

Officials attend a ceremony held beside the Airbus A330-200 after it touched down at Mehrabad Airport in Tehran.

















The first Airbus plane - an A320 - arrived in Tehran on January 11.



In 2016, Iran inked another agreement worth 16.6 billion dollars to buy 80 new planes from US aviation company Boeing, comprising 50 737 airliners and 30 777s.

Iran Air is also expected to finalize an accord with European manufacturer ATR to purchase 20 turboprops.



The agreements came after the restrictions imposed on Iran's aviation industry were lifted following a nuclear agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).



The JCPOA was negotiated between Iran and the P5+1 countries - the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia plus Germany. It was finalized on July 14, 2015 and started being implemented on January 16, 2016.



Under the deal, limits were put on Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for, among other things, the removal of all nuclear-related bans against the Islamic Republic.


Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian has a rosy view of the companys future. Despite controversy over the online bulletin boards role in the election of Donald Trump and the proliferation of white nationalism on its forums, Ohanian describes Reddit as the global watercooler where peoples minds are changed about things.

Ohanian gave an impassioned defense of Reddit and its potential during a solo talk on the opening day of South by Southwests interactive programming. As evidence of Reddits better nature, he pointed to stats like this one: With more than 280 million monthly active users submitting millions of posts, 99.98 percent of those conversations are never reported for content violations.

The .02 percent of conversations that are reported are certainly egregious. Ohanian hinted at but didnt actually address the companys move last month to ban three so-called alt-right forums, which werent removed for hate speech, but for doxxing. He said he and cofounder Steve Huffman decided upon their return to the company in 2015 that Reddit needed teams dedicated to community, trust and safety, and anti-evil. Reddit has said its committed to allowing free speech and preventing harassment on its platform, which the company has discovered can be a difficult line to toe. Twitter is in the same boat.

Ohanian pointed to a forum called /r/changemyview as another sign of Reddits potential. On that subreddit, posters share a belief they have and then ask other Redditors to change their minds. The most convincing responses, many with citations to back up their reasoning, are upvoted. In 30 percent of cases, the original poster says their view has been changed.

Ohanian said hed like to put /r/changemyview in front of more eyeballs. Reddit is looking at front-page relevance as a way to introduce new users to the site and expose existing users to undiscovered subreddits. Its in the early stages of testing. A trendy social-networking feature that wont be coming to Reddit anytime soon?

Live video is not anywhere near the top of the list, Ohanian said, despite his admiration of streaming platforms like Twitch.

At times, Ohanian seemed a little unrealistic about Reddits place in the worldor at least downplayed its negatives. But he sounded so hopeful.

I want everyone to have their home and their voice on Reddit, he said. Thats the only reason Steve and I came back. We know the potential Reddit has. Weve seen it happen despite itself.

We didnt even have a mobile website until a year ago, so people were pinching and zooming the desktop browser on the smartphone, he added. I dont know why we did that to you.
A man was jailed Thursday, March 9 suspected of attacking a man and a woman with a knife the day prior to his arrest.

Deputies found Brandon Marsh, 36 of Yucaipa at a home in the 900 Block of 3rd Street in Calimesa.

Marsh along with the homeowner David Cash, 50, who is accused of hiding Marsh, were taken into custody.

Marsh is accused of forcing his way into a Yucaipa home Wednesday and attacking a woman with a knife before allegedly assaulting her, according to a San Bernardino County sheriffs news release. A 63-year-old man tried to intervene, but officials say Marsh also attacked him.

Deputies learned Marsh was possibly hiding in the Calimesa home. A search warrant was served and Marsh was taken into custody.

During the warrant service detectives found five rifles, two shotguns, four semi-automatic handguns, two assault rifles, and a large amount of ammunition, according to the release.

Investigators also found a usable amount of methamphetamine along with the weapons, although officials didnt specify what defines a usable amount of the street drug.

Both men were booked into West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga.

Marsh was booked for suspicion of domestic violence, assault with deadly weapon, criminal threats and possession of drugs while armed with loaded firearms. He is being held in lieu of $1.2 million bail.

Cash was booked for suspicion of drug possession. Hes being held in lieu of $60,000 bail.

Detectives believe there may be more victims who havent come forward.

Anyone with information is asked to call authorities at 909-918-2305.
Once upon a time, evaluating a California public school was as simple as looking at a single number.

The Academic Performance Index was a score between 200 and 1,000, with schools aiming to get an 800 or better. It was simple, it was clear.

And it was incomplete.

Although it combined the results of several school test scores, the API score really just measured one thing: How well students did on standardized tests, which experts increasingly believe just reflects students socio-economic status for the most part.

The API score didnt give any information about other measures of student success, or about the climate at the school, all of which matter to parents and the real estate agents using the information to market houses to them.

OUT WITH THE OLD

Even if California education officials loved the API score, they were forced to make a change when the old California Standards Tests were mothballed in favor of the new Common Core-aligned Smarter Balanced tests. The state school board put an end to API scores in 2014, after 14 years of them being calculated.

In January, Californias State Board of Education finalized the key elements of a new school accountability system, although some details will still be worked out over the coming year. Its called the California School Dashboard, a website where the public will be able to get a number of metrics on a schools or a districts performance.

The dashboard will be available online at CASchoolDashboard.org, although until Wednesday, when its scheduled to go live, its just a blank page.

The API was an overly narrow and simplistic way of measuring school success, said Joshua Daniels, spokesman for the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence, which advises and assists school districts, county superintendents of schools and charter schools. Part of its role is to train educators on how to use and interpret the dashboard.

IN WITH THE NEW

Beyond looking at students performance in English language arts and mathematics, the new dashboard includes measures of chronic absenteeism at a school, suspension rate, the progress students who dont speak English at home made in learning English, graduation rate, what the school does to prepare students for colleges and careers, and more.

 Interactive graphic: How to read the new California School Dashboard

You have multiple indicators on a dashboard, and some of them you look at more than others, Daniels said. The great thing about the system is it doesnt force parents to look at one indicator. It allows parents to look at whats important to them.

Elliott Duchon, Jurupa Unified School District superintendent, said its important to include measures such as graduation and suspension rates and English learners progress.

Sometimes we find students who achieve well arent always successful. We need to look at other things, (like) how are they doing emotionally, Duchon said.

For example, chronic absenteeism is a problem in schools across California. An estimated 210,000 kindergarten through fifth-grade students in the state missed 10 percent of the 2015-16 school year. Seven percent of elementary students are chronically absent, according to a 2016 report issued by the California Department of Justice.

That costs schools funding, because schools are paid in large part based on their average daily attendance. Those students also tend to fall behind, do poorly on tests and are at a higher risk of dropping out and getting involved in the criminal justice system.

Suspended students are twice as likely to drop out and three times as likely to enter the criminal justice system, according to experts.

Students whose speak Spanish or another language continue to struggle academically, state data show. English learners scored lower than other students on the 2016 California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress. They also trail in graduation rates, college admission and other categories. More than one in five California students  almost 1.4 million pupils  is an English learner. Their performance is tracked as part of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, which replaced the No Child Left Behind law.

COLOR-CODED

And in perhaps the biggest break from the single-number API score era, the scores in each category on the dashboard arent static numbers but color codes, reflecting how the score has changed over time. Scores are also given as pie charts, for color-blind users, with five pieces of pie being the best.

A score thats shown significant improvements gets a better color code than one thats been stagnant or one thats in decline. The five-point scale goes from red, the worst, through orange, yellow, green and blue, the best.

You may be getting a yellow, but upon further investigation, you might be comfortable with that, Daniels said. Even if you get a blue or a green, you may not be happy with that: Youve got to understand why that is.

Overall, he said, the new system might be confusing to Californians at first, but says its a definite improvement over what came before.

Just because its comprehensive doesnt mean its overly complex, Daniels said. It certainly is more nuanced and detailed than the API.

Staff Writer Stephen Wall contributed to this report.
A fugitive who was wanted in San Diego County in connection with drug and fraud cases was arrested by a task force in Moreno Valley on Wednesday, March 8, according to officials.

Winston Rudolph Dawkins, 49, was arrested at a home in the 28000 block of Hillsdale Avenue in Moreno Valley after the Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force, Team 5, served a search warrant there, according to a news release from the Riverside County District Attorneys Office.

The team consists of members of the Riverside County District Attorneys Office, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and inspectors from the United States Marshal Service, according to the release

Dawkins was arrested for warrants in the drug and fraud cases out of San Diego County.

He was also arrested on suspicion of possessing marijuana for sale and being a felon in possession of a handgun after deputies found seven pounds of processed marijuana, two handguns and $18,000 in cash when they served the warrant, according to officials.

Officials say the Riverside County District Attorneys Office will review evidence in connection with the marijuana and handgun discovery and determine whether new charges should be filed against Dawkins.
The leaders of Californias public higher education system say they are adamant about resisting any efforts by President Donald Trump to affect the standing of immigrant students on the states campuses.

Our university police will not serve as surrogates for ICE, said University of California President Janet Napolitano, reiterating her stance on the issue. They wont be participating with ICE. We wont be turning over student records without a warrant.

Napolitano, along with California State University Chancellor Timothy White and Eloy Ortiz Oakley, chancellor of the California Community Colleges, met Friday in Sacramento at a lunch sponsored by the Public Policy Institute of California.

They discussed increasing the number of college graduates in the state, the importance of addressing Californias diverse population and state funding. But questions about creating a safe environment for students of immigrant families  whether or not the students are immigrants themselves  and the impact of the proposed travel ban drew the most pointed responses from the three leaders.

The UC operates in a globalized environment, and we see the best scholars from around the world, Napolitano said, noting that such scholars come to teach and do research at UC campuses. To the extent the travel ban interrupts (that), it also sends the message that the U.S. is no longer a welcoming country. The message is of our country being very isolationist. That is contrary to the values of our country.

White said the idea of restricting access to scholars and students is troubling.

We found the pronouncements of the new administration the antithesis of what were trying to do in the California public university community, he said. Im an immigrant from Argentina. I know personally what this means.

He said the White House proposals were the result of a policy built on irrationality, (which) we find unacceptable.

White said he was proud that he and Napolitano were among the first higher education leaders to object to such policies.

We created a wave across the nation, he said.

Oakley said he and his fellow leaders have a responsibility to fight what he called a culture of fear, and to press for more protections.

We can argue DACA students are safer but theyre really not, Oakley said, referring to a class of students who came as children and were granted protected status by the Obama Administration.

Many see undocumented residents in greater danger of being deported under new standards being implemented by federal officials.

We need to ensure that these students do not live in fear, Oakley said. You can pull them out of school directly, or you can cause them so much stress they dont complete their education. We have to do more to make sure those families are safe.

During a discussion on college costs, Oakley said the community college system needs to do more to educate its students about financial aid opportunities.

When looking at the average costs students pay, he said, its more expensive to go to community college than to UC Davis, because so many students dont access aid. Thats why you see low completion rates, because so many students work.

In terms of financial support, Oakley said, California needs to rethink the way it looks at community college.

Both White and Napolitano said they are working to add more dormitories to their schools in order to bring down the cost of living, which is often far more than the cost of tuition.

Our students are telling us that the cost of housing is a killer, Napolitano said. We want them to be able to go to school and not have to work a lot of hours on the outside.
Heres how area members of Congress voted on major issues last week.

HOUSE

$578 BILLION FOR U.S. MILITARY: Voting 371-48, the House on Wednesday passed a $577.9 billion military appropriations bill for fiscal 2017 that includes $61.8 billion in emergency funding for war fighting in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen and other combat zones. The bill would fund a 2.1 percent military pay raise; fund weapons systems for the four branches; set troop strengths of 1.3 million active-duty and 826,000 Guard and reserve personnel; fund programs for military victims of sexual assault and provide $50 billion-plus for active-duty, family and retiree health care.

A yes vote was to send the bill (HR 1301) to the Senate.

Voting yes: Ken Calvert, R-Corona; Paul Cook, R- Yucca Valley; Pete Aguilar, D-Redlands; Norma Torres, D-Pomona; Raul Ruiz, D-La Quinta; and Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine.

Voting no: Mark Takano, D-Riverside

OFFICIAL COST PROJECTIONS ON HEALTH BILL: Voting 232-189, the House on Wednesday blocked a bid by Democrats to delay committee and floor votes on the Republicans new health care bill until after the Congressional Budget Office releases its official, nonpartisan cost projections. This vote was in response to the GOP leaderships allowing committees to approve the bill without waiting several days for the CBO to complete its work. The American Health Care Act was introduced March 6 and the Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce committees voted three days later to approve it.

A yes vote on the resolution (H Res 174) was to quash a Democratic bid to delay committee votes on the bill until after the CBO issues cost projections.

Voting yes: Calvert,Cook and Hunter.

Voting no: Aguilar, Torres, Ruiz and Takano.

LAWSUITS INVOLVING THE EMOLUMENTS CLAUSE: Voting 186-232, the House on Friday defeated a Democratic motion that sought to exempt from HR 720 (below) any lawsuits alleging violations by President Donald Trump of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, which prohibits presidents from accepting payments of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State without the consent of Congress. Although the president has removed himself from active management of the Trump Organization, he retains his ownership.

A yes vote was to adopt the Democratic motion.

Voting yes: Aguilar, Torres, Ruiz and Takano.

Voting no: Calvert, Cook and Hunter.

PENALTIES FOR LAWSUITS DEEMED FRIVOLOUS: Voting 230-188, the House on Friday passed a GOP-drafted bill requiring federal courts to impose financial penalties on plaintiffs who file lawsuits deemed frivolous by the presiding judge. The bill would require offending parties to pay compensation such as attorneys fees to those on the receiving end of frivolous suits. At present, judges can levy such penalties at their discretion.

A yes vote on HR 720 was to send the bill to the Senate.

Voting yes: Calvert, Cook and Hunter.

Voting no: Aguilar, Torres, Ruiz and Takano.

JURISDICTION OVER CIVIL LAWSUITS: Voting 224-194, the House on Thursday passed a GOP-drafted bill (HR 725) aimed at shifting many civil lawsuits from state courts, where plaintiffs such as consumers are thought to fare better, to federal courts, which are seen as more friendly to defendants such as corporations. Backers said the bill would combat fraudulent forum-shopping by plaintiffs lawyers, while opponents said it seeks to fix a problem that does not exist. The bill gives federal trial-level judges more tools for assigning cases to federal courts in diversity of jurisdiction proceedings.

A yes vote was to send the bill to the Senate.

Voting yes: Calvert, Cook and Hunter.

Voting no: Aguilar, Torres, Ruiz and Takano.

ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT LAWSUITS: Voting 187-233, the House on Thursday defeated a Democratic motion to exempt from HR 725 (above) any civil lawsuits concerning ethical conduct and standards in all levels of government.

A yes vote was to adopt the Democratic motion.

Voting yes: Aguilar, Torres, Ruiz and Takano.

Voting no: Calvert, Cook and Hunter.

CLASS-ACTION SUITS, ASBESTOS CLAIMS: Voting 220-201, the House on Thursday passed a GOP bill (HR 985) that would tighten rules for federal class-action suits in order to bar unqualified claimants from collecting payments. The bill would allow courts to certify only suits in which all members of the class are shown to have suffered the same type and scope of injuries. The bill would delay compensation to some disease victims in suits based on workplace exposure to asbestos.

A yes vote was to send the bill to the Senate.

Voting yes: Calvert, Cook and Hunter.

Voting no: Aguilar, Torres, Ruiz and Takano.

DRINKING-WATER LAWSUITS: Voting 188-234, the House on Thursday defeated a motion by Democrats that sought to exempt from HR 985 (above) any federal class-action lawsuits filed to protect public drinking-water supplies from contamination such as that which occurred in Flint, Mich.

A yes vote backed the drinking-water exemption.

Voting yes: Aguilar, Torres, Ruiz and Takano.

Voting no: Calvert,Cook and Hunter.

SENATE

WORKPLACE RULE FOR CONTRACTORS: The Senate on Monday voted 49-48 to nullify a federal regulation aimed at keeping federal contractors in compliance with 14 major workplace laws, including the Fair Labor Standards Act, Americans With Disabilities Act, Civil Rights Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, Occupational Health and Safety Act and Age Discrimination in Employment Act. Under the rule, when companies bid for contracts worth at least $500,000, they must self-report any actual or alleged violations of those laws in the previous three years to government procurement officials, who would factor the information into decisions on whether to award contracts. A federal court ruling has temporarily kept the rule from taking effect.

A yes vote was to send the nullification measure (HJ Res 37) to Trump.

Voting no: Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; and Kamala Harris, D-Calif.

MANAGEMENT OF PUBLIC LAND IN THE WEST: Voting 51-48, the Senate on Tuesday nullified a regulation that would update Bureau of Land Management procedures for obtaining science-based information and public comments in its management of 245 million publicly owned acres in western states. The BLM said the Planning 2.0 rule would help it balance competing uses such as ranching, recreation, conservation, drilling, mining, military activity and economic development. But critics called it a land grab that would harm local economies, crimp private property rights and restrict grazing, logging and drilling access. Two years in the making and the subject of more than 3,000 public comments, the rule would update procedures in place since the 1980s.

A yes vote was to send the nullification measure (HJ Res 44) to Trump.

Voting no: Feinstein and Harris

TO NULLIFY TEACHER-TRAINING RULE: Voting 59 for and 40 against, the Senate on Wednesday nullified a rule that would upgrade federally set standards for the collegiate training of future teachers in K-12 classrooms. Critics said the rule would infringe on state and local education prerogatives.

A yes vote was to send the nullification measure (HJ Res 58) to Trump.

Voting no: Feinstein and Harris

Copyright 2017, Thomas Voting Reports, Inc.
More than two dozen properties that border a Riverside environmental cleanup site will be tested for contamination, state officials said this week.

The state Department of Toxic Substances Control, which is overseeing the cleanup on a former sewer plant site between Crest and Rutland avenues in the Arlanza neighborhood, released a draft plan for neighborhood testing Tuesday, March 7.

The plan proposes taking soil samples from the yards of 28 homes, most of which are on the south side of the 62-acre site, known as the ag park because it once hosted agricultural fairs and activities.

The samples will be tested for cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, which have been found on the site and are the reason for the cleanup there.

State officials have said they dont believe the site poses an immediate threat to public health, but residents have raised concerns for several years that contaminated dust may have blown from the property into their homes.

The offsite testing plan describes where samples should be taken based on models of where dust might have blown, and how the samples will be collected and tested.

The plan doesnt explain whether the state would test more homes or offer to clean them if high levels of contamination were to be found.

The draft plan is the first step, and officials will decide whats next based on what the tests find, said Dot Lofstrom, state toxics division chief for the brownfields and environmental restoration program.

Were going out with an absolute open mind, she said. Were going to collect the data. The datas whats going to drive this investigation.

The next step is to seek permission to test from homeowners whose properties are on the list. The state toxics department is accepting public comments on the draft testing plan through April 7 and will hold an informational meeting Thursday, March 23.

Marilyn Whitney, an activist whose Keating Drive home is proposed for testing, said the plan is a starting point, but theres more homes that need to be tested.

Residents also wanted state officials to test for contamination inside their homes, Whitney said, but thats not in the plan. She has collected detailed information on people and pets in the neighborhood whose illnesses and deaths she attributes to contamination from the ag park.

There will be a lawsuit if things are not cleaned up and our homes are not tested inside and out, Whitney said.

Separately, the California Department of Public Health and federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry announced last fall they would investigate residents health concerns, but its unclear how far that inquiry has progressed.

The offsite plan also suggests testing at Rutland Park, which is on the east side of the ag park site, and a strip of city-owned property along the sites west side.

Lofstrom said the state is aware of an Alvord Unified School District board members concern for nearby Norte Vista High School and Terrace Elementary School but there arent current plans to test the campuses.

We told (the school board) that it was very unlikely that a mile away there would be any airborne PCB dust, she said, but the state will reevaluate whether to test other sites after it gets data from the homes.

Offsite testing could begin by May. State officials have no estimate of what it will cost.

Reach the reporter:

951-368-9461, arobinson@scng.com or @arobinson_pe on Twitter
Hemet police officials say that a 42-year-old Hemet man turned himself in to police for questioning Friday, March 10, in connection with a Tuesday evening hit and run crash that killed a man

Montez Landing was arrested on suspicion of felony hit and run and released the same day after posting bail, according to a Hemet police news release.

Police officials say at 2 p.m. Friday traffic investigators received an anonymous tip that a possible suspect vehicle  a white SUV  was in the Valle Vista area, and had what appeared to be traffic accident damage that was suspiciously covered up.

Investigators impounded the SUV as evidence. Landing, the vehicles owner, turned himself in at the Hemet Police Department offices later that afternoon, according to the release.

Police say that before he was arrested, Landing was cooperative and provided them with a thorough statement.

Police say that 66-year-old Daniel Silva, a pedestrian, was killed Tuesday night in the area of Florida Avenue and Mayflower Street after being struck by a white SUV. The SUV, they say, did not stop to render aid.
Riverside and Moreno Valley voters will choose city council members on June 6.

Moreno Valleys ballot will be short, with four candidates vying to represent District 4. Riverside residents will vote on who should fill seats in Wards 2, 4 and 6.

Candidates in both cities had to file papers by 5 p.m. Friday, March 10. Moreno Valley will open polling places for its election; Riversides election will be conducted by mail only.

In Riverside, three candidates are running for the Ward 2 seat. Councilman Andy Melendrez is seeking a fourth term and faces two challengers: community advocate Kevin Dawson and Baptist pastor Jon Harris. Two other potential candidates did not qualify for the ballot.

The other two races are two-way contests between councilmen and newcomers. Ward 4 Councilman Paul Davis  hoping for a third term  faces Chuck Conder, an aide to Ward 5 Councilman Chris Mac Arthur. In Ward 6, Councilman Jim Perry will make his first re-election bid against Rafael Elizalde, district director for Rep. Mark Takano, D-Riverside.

However, Suleko Charles Chuck Mahatadse, who ran for the Ward 6 seat in 2013, on Friday filed a statement indicating he intends to run, and he could still pursue a write-in candidacy but would not appear on the ballot, City Clerk Colleen Nicol said.

In Moreno Valley, four candidates are running in a special election to fill the District 4 City Council seat left open after Yxstian Gutierrez was elected mayor in November.

The candidates are parks and recreation commissioner James C. Baker II, social worker Cheylynda Barnard; youth program director Ulises Cabrera; and small business owner Hector Diaz, who ran for Assembly last year.

In a change from its past practice, Moreno Valley city did not make the names of candidates available until after the clerks office closed at 4:30 p.m. Friday.

City Attorney Martin Koczanowicz said Wednesday, March 8, he did not consider candidate logs a public document until they were final and said theres absolutely no public interest in making them available earlier.

David Snyder, executive director of the First Amendment Coalition, of which The Press-Enterprise is a member, said candidate statements must remain confidential until the filing period closes, but a separate log containing a list of names is a public document that must be disclosed, according to state election laws.

Its of huge public interest and I would say the practice that the previous regime followed in releasing the logs is consistent with the requirement of the California Public Records Act, Snyder said. I dont see the justification for withholding those.

Riverside posted an online list in mid-February that named everyone who had taken nomination papers, and it was updated when candidates returned the papers and qualified for the ballot.

Reach the reporters:

951-368-9461, arobinson@scng.com or @arobinson_pe on Twitter

951-368-9558, ighori@scng.com or @ImranGhori1 on Twitter
Former Finance Minister, Seth Terkper is warning of dire repercussions on Ghanas economy given the reduction of taxes by the Akufo-Add led government.



According to him, the reduction will only encourage smuggling and deprive government of needed taxes for development.



His comment comes after Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta while delivering the 2017 Budget in Parliament announced government's decision to abolish eight taxes and reduce four others, many of which were set by the previous government.



The taxes the Minister listed to be abolished and reduced include;



(a) Abolish one percent special import levy,



(b) Abolish 17.5 VAT on financial services



(c) Abolish 17.5% VAT on selected imported medicines



(d) Initiate steps to remove import duties on raw materials and machinery



(e) Abolish 17.5 VAT on domestic airline tickets



(f) Abolish 5% VAT on real estates



(g) Abolish excise duty on petroleum



(h) Reduce special petroleum tax rate from 17.5% to 15%



(i) Abolish duties on importation of spare parts.



(j) Abolish levies imposed on Kayayei's by local authorities



(k) Replace the 17.5 VAT on Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) traders to a flat rate of 3.5 percent



(l) Reduce National Electrification levy



According to Mr Ofori-Atta, many of the taxes were nuisance taxes, and hence the removal will ease the difficulties imposed on Ghanaians.



But Former Finance Minister in an interview with Joy News said the tax cuts is a recipe for disaster.



He explained that tax free spare parts importation is only going to deprive Ghana of revenues.



Seth Terper urged government to weigh the pros and cons before implementing the reduction.

Source: adomonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Sampson Mensah, a 31-year-old taxi driver who is accused of having anal sex with a 15-year-old boy at Teshie has appeared before an Accra Circuit Court.



Charged with defilement, Mensah pleaded not guilty.



The court presided over by Mrs Abena Oppong Adjin-Doku admitted him to bail in the sum of GH?30, 000.00 with three sureties one to be justified.



Mr. Edwin Osafo, Counsel for the accused prayed the court to admit his client to bail as he has been in custody for a long time.



According to Mr. Osafo Mensah would not abscond if granted bail.



Prosecution Detective Inspector Kofi Atimbire said the complainant was the mother of the victim and accused person is a driver living at Teshie but has now moved to Awutu Bawjiase.



In 2015, prosecution said the accused person met the victim and proposed to have anal sex with him.



Based on that accused person lured the victim into his room and did same.



According to the prosecutor, the practice continued to December 2016 when the complaint got wind of the matter through the victims sister.



The victims sister said her brother (the Victim) had been chatting with accused on phone and their conversation bordered on sex



Prosecution said the complainant quizzed the victim and he admitted that he had had countless anal sex with the accused.



The complainant therefore arranged with the victim to invite the accused person to the house so they could have fun.



On February 17, this year, based on the invitation, accused visited the victim in the house. The complainant planted someone in the room to monitor the accused in the act.



The accused was then arrested and sent to the Police.



The matter has been adjourned to April 4.

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.

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The US Ambassador to Ghana, Robert Jackson, says it is very expensive to travel through the Kotoka International Airport as compared to other African countries.



The situation impedes US investment in Ghana and also compels most US investors to focus on other countries within the sub-region, according to him.



Ambassador Jackson, who revealed this when he paid a courtesy call on the Business Development Minister, Mohammed Ibrahim Awal yesterday in Accra, mentioned that hotels in Ghana are also very expensive compared to other African countries.



There is a steady increase in the number of American companies that want to use Ghana as their West African hub, but there are some things that are also holding them back like very expensive travel cost.



Your airport is very expensive relative to other airports in the sub-region, he said.



Visa Challenges



Ambassador Jackson also complained about the delays in issuing visas to US citizens by the Ghanaian Embassy in the United States.



He said, We see that the speed with which your Embassy in the United States processes visas is about three weeks. We have our own Visa issues but we process our own Visas within 48 hours.



I dont know what process occurs in your embassies overseas but I know that some of your embassies in Europe are far faster than your embassies in Washington.



The US envoy said, If we are really serious about developing business, then I want to be totally honest and say I like to see the Embassies in Washington moving faster. If you want more visitors and businesses to come to Ghana, then making it easier to get visas will help with that.



The Business Development Minister, on his part, assured the envoy that issues related to visas would be dealt with to ensure that more US investors travel to Ghana to invest.



He said the Akufo-Addo administration was committed to creating an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.



I want the relations between the two countries to expand and to do that we will have to work together to eliminate issues that impede business growth in Ghana to attract more US investors, the Minister told the envoy.



Ghanas trade volume with the U.S. is estimated at $1.2 billion.



The US contributed to about $900 million, with Ghana accounting for the remaining $300 million.

Source: JFM Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Posters indicating a possible return of ex-President John Mahama for the 2020 elections are surfacing.



The poster displays a beautiful picture of the ex-president wearing a black and white smock with the inscription, John Mahama for President 2020 and an additional message underneath the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) umbrella logo which reads, Still Changing LivesStill Transforming Ghana.



Dubai Trip



President Mahama reportedly jetted out to Dubai immediately after attending the 60th independence anniversary national parade at the Independence Square, Accra, on Monday where he celebrated his wife, Lordinas 54th birthday with their children using a red colour.



It is however, unclear who might be behind the posters, as the former president has not also made any official statement announcing a comeback or otherwise.



But his spokesperson, Joyce Bawa-Mogtari, says talks over whether or not John Mahama would make a comeback to lead the NDC in the 2020 general election after sending it to opposition were not over.



According to Ms. Bawa-Mogtari who was the campaign spokesperson for the John Mahama 2016 campaign team, the former president still receives numerous calls from high-ranking party members persuading him to soften his earlier stance which suggested that family members had advised him against leading the NDC in 2020.



She told pro-NDC radio Gold on Wednesday that the former president constantly ignores discussions of his possible return to active politics and that he is yet to make up his mind.



Bawa-Mogtari, a former deputy transport minister under the Mahama regime, indicated that she is for Mahama 2020.



Thank You Tour



There are unconfirmed reports that the former president is going to embark on a Thank You tour nationwide when he returns from Dubai.



Some party sources have said he is going to use the tour to test his popularity and make a final determination on whether he would contest for the NDC in 2020.



Daily Guide learnt that the tour could be undertaken with party people and some opinion leaders coerced to openly canvass for his return to form the basis for his declaration to contest the 2020 polls.



He had wanted to embark on the Thank You tour last December after he had failed to secure a re-election but changed his mind following criticism that it was imprudent to do so, especially coming at a time the NDC had been defeated by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the government was on its way out.



New Candidate



DAILY GUIDE has learnt that there is going to be a keen competition in the NDC over who should be the partys candidate for the 2020 presidential election.



Majority within the partys leadership are said to be looking for a new face to lead the party, but others have moved forcefully to get President Mahama to contest again.



Names like former Finance Minister Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, former University of Professional Studies Accra (UPSA) Rector Prof Joshua Alabi and former National Health Insurance Authority (NHIS) boss Sylvester Mensah are coming up strongly within the NDC circles.



Dr Duffuor and Sly Mensah have denied any interest in the NDC flagbearership race for now.



However, probable candidates like former Vice President Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur and former Trade and Industry Minister Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah are said to have cooled down their interests in the race and it is getting clearer that the two stalwarts may not contest at all. Goosie Tannor, a cadre, has also come out strongly for the NDC presidential candidature slot.



Family Pressure



Already, family members of ex-President Mahama have reportedly been persuading him not to contest the presidential election in 2020.



Some analysts have said the huge gap of over one million votes garnered by President Akufo-Addo against Mahama showed that the ex-President will have a daunting task if he considers contesting again for 2020.



During the period of the investiture of President Akufo-Addo, the junior brother of the ex-president, Ibrahim Mahama said, John has given his all in politics to the NDC and Ghana and we think it is just fair that we allow him to rest. We were very supportive and instrumental in convincing him to partner Prof. Mills, and when the time came for him to contest for president, we supported and advised him to go for itnow we have advised him not to make a comeback in 2020.



Comeback Dream



However, ex-President Mahama appears to want to give it another shot and there are ongoing behind-the-scene moves to ensure that the comeback agenda is on course.



An NDC source alleged that before Mahama emplaned for Dubai, he met some people and urged them to stage-manage as if NDC people were calling on him to contest.



He wants to start it by a Thank You tour across the country but for now, we are still searching for who is going to lead us in 2020.



Cadres Front



According to the source, the NDC is looking for what he called a grass root party person whom the cadres have deep trust in since they were of the view that they were neglected by both the Mills/Mahama administrations.

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.

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Member of Parliament for Akwapem South, Hon. O. B. Amoah is questioning the immediate past NDC government about the whereabouts of the US$663,229,496 they promised Ghanaians of raising to finance the construction of the Accra Sewer and Storm Drainage Alleviation works, popularly known as Conti Project.



The project was aimed at improving storm water flow, drainage and sewer systems in the Accra Metropolitan Area with a primary focus on works within the designated flood zones in the Odaw Basin and the Korle Lagoon to alleviate the frequent flooding and improve sanitary conditions.



The focus was to tackle priority drains needing construction and upgrade drains in the following areas: Odaw Upstream, Mataheko, South Kaneshie, South Awudome, Onyasia Tributaries, Nima Main and Nima Tributaries, Sukura/Mampon Drain and the Industrial area drain.



According to the Akwapem South law maker, even though Parliament on October 25, 2012, approved all the agreements covering the project, till date Ghanaians have no knowledge about the whether the said money was released or not.



It is only under the NDC that they promises to solve the flood situation and said that they have gone for US$663million and went ahead to take the President to the site to cut the sod for the commencement of the project. Mr. Speaker, as we speak now, not a Cent has come to this country, he noted.



Hon. Amoah made this observation, Thursday, March 9, 2017, when contributing to the debate on the 2017 Budget on the floor of Parliament.



The project, Kasapafmonline.com learnt also received further Preliminary Commitment from the America Export Import Bank in March 2013 with the contract subsequently signed between the Accra Metropolitan Assembly and the contractor  Conti on June 11, 2013.



The contract sum was in two folds; a loan agreement of US$538,299,497 between the Government of the Republic of Ghana and the United States of America for the construction of the Accra Sanitary Sewer and Storm Water Drainage Alleviation Works project; and a loan agreement of US$125,000,000 between the Government of the Republic of Ghana and Standard Chartered Bank for the construction of the Accra Sewer and Storm Water Drainage Alleviation Works project.



Then Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Alhaji Collins Dauda wrote to Parliament on July 22, 2015 in response to a request for further information about the said project by the MP for Akwapem South that while the loan was being processed, preliminary works commenced immediately after the signing of the contract along the Korle Lagoon Ecological Restoration Project (KLERP) to forestall the occurrence of flooding.



The work he added was executed by Contis local partners with the government advancing some payments to the said local partners in June 2015.



He further told Parliament that the project has since 2015 been put on hold pending the completion of the loan processes which were still going.



Hon. O. B. Amoah commenting further told the August House that failure on the part of the NDC to secure the loan for the Conti project among others made the umbrella familys legacy under local government very abysmal.



NDC bequeathed us with weak decentralization, poor waste management services, congested and dirty urban communities, poorly managed assemblies, poverty and its associated deaths, he noted.



He said the NPP under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will do far better than the NDC did, stressing that the 2017 Budget will vindicate him.



We are promising that there should be a national urban policy and under this we are saying that with the geographic info systems, we will develop a better addressing system more especially, we are addressing fiscal discipline, and we are promising fiscal transparency, fiscal accountability and priority at the local level. All these were missing under the eight years administration of the NDC, he stressed.







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.

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The son of legendary heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali and his mother, Alis second wife Khalilah Camacho-Ali, have been detained for a second time by the American Department of Homeland Security.

Muhammad Ali Jr. was first detained with his mother in Florida after returning from Jamaica in February, where they were speaking at a Black History Month event. Customs and Border Protection have denied detaining the pair on that occasion, but on Thursday Ali testified in Washington at a Democratic forum on the Trump administrations immigration policies, called Ali v. Trump: The Fight for American Values, that he was targeted by the CBP, saying:

I believe they were religiously and racially profiling me.

On that occasion, its believed that Ali Jr. and Camacho-Ali were detained for their Arabic-sounding names, according to a family spokesman.

But this time, when the mother and son were detained at Reagan National Airport in Washington, directly after participating in anti-discrimination lobbying, it seems something more sinister may have been at play.

Ali Jr.s lawyer, Chris Mancini, said that Ali Jr. had quite obviously been put on a different status, i.e. a watch list, that alerts border officials to his movements. He told the Associated Press:

Going to Washington obviously opened up a can of worms at DHS.

According to Mancini, DHS officials didnt believe that Ali Jr. was actually Muhammad Alis son, despite his valid ID; they then detained him for 20 to 25 minutes while repeatedly asking him where he was from.

All of which is hard to disentangle from the fact that US President Donald Trumps so-called Muslim ban  the executive order banning travellers from a number of countries for 90 days  has appeared to empower American border protection officials to the detriment of pretty much everyone else.

A prominent Democrat happened to be on the same flight as Ali Jr., and provided this apt comment:

On way home on DOMESTIC FLIGHT Muhammad Ali Jr. detained AGAIN by @DHSgov. Religiously profiling son of The Greatest will not make us safe pic.twitter.com/KO3IVnRFax  D Wasserman Schultz (@DWStweets) March 10, 2017

The fact that Ali Jr. and his mother were detained while coming home from lobbying for the introduction of an anti-racial and religious profiling act is only the icing on this whole tragic, baffling cake.

Source: Washington Post.

Image: Chip Somodevilla / Getty.
Oh, Sean. Sean Spicer. Spicey Sean. Mate. Things havent been going great for you the last couple months, have they?

The latest in a series of gaffes by the beleaguered Trump administration Press Secretary saw Spicer attend a press conference with a pin on his lapel upside down.

Might not sound like such a big deal  until you find out that it was an American flag pin.

For those not up to date on semaphore*, the United States flag is only flown upside down as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.

Obviously, Twitter is having a field day.

First weve got the House of Cards Twitter account noting the apparent allegiance to the shows iconography:

Your loyalty has not gone unnoticed. https://t.co/ba1kz1yvXF  House of Cards (@HouseofCards) March 10, 2017

And the shows creator digging the boot in a little further:

Well it aint the first time Trump & Co. have been guilty of plagiarism pic.twitter.com/VygkmCXeku  Beau Willimon (@BeauWillimon) March 10, 2017

And then, of course, a number of concerned citizens in varying degrees of seriousness, trying to figure out exactly what Our Sean was really trying to communicate:

Sean Spicers American flag pin is upside down. Upside down flag is a distress symbol. Headline: Metaphor Delivers Press Conference.  Erin ??Gloria?? Ryan (@morninggloria) March 10, 2017

Its obvious that Sean Spicer wearing his flag pin upside down was a clear signal to CIA, FBI, ETC that the White House has been compromised  Brad Reason (@BradReason) March 10, 2017

 President Bannon (@PRESlDENTBANNON) March 10, 2017

Im not certain, but Id wager Sean Spicers upside down flag pin was a secret cry for help. @PressSec we can help, you just gotta open up. pic.twitter.com/SBZDfCrsbQ  Matthew D. Dho (@MattDho) March 10, 2017

Sean Spicer wearing his flag pin upside down is the most accurate representation of this presidency Ive seen so far  Dakota Driver (@dakota_driver7) March 10, 2017

[Sean Spicers flag pin is upside down] DARK STATUE OF LIBERTY: ok, even I think thats a bit much. pic.twitter.com/LJZRNcxDmZ  Jesse McLaren (@McJesse) March 10, 2017

Was the Spicey Boy actually signalling for help? Considering the fact that he corrected his pins orientation when reporters at the press conference pointed it out, like probably not. But the world can dream.

*I KNOW that semaphore is different to flag signalling but YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN.

Image: Twitter / @Variety.
Australian actress Melissa George is facing attempted kidnapping charges in France, as she battles former partner, entrepreneur Jean-David Blanc, for custody of their two children.

The alleged incident occurred last September, when the star of Greys Anatomy and The Good Wife attempted to board a private plane for the U.S. with her sons, and French border police led them off.

Blanc has since pressed charges for attempted kidnapping, claiming George was trying to violate an arrangement that neither would take the children out of the country without the others written permission.

George herself has not commented, but her lawyer Christophe Ayela has told media that the trip was arranged before the couples separation last year, and adding:

There was no kidnapping attempt. Ms George did not know that there was a legal travel ban placed on the children.

The pairs relationship ended last September 7, when George presented at a Parisian police station in the early hours of the morning showing facial injuries, and pressed assault charges against Blanc.

Blanc also pressed assault charges against George, showing scratches on his body as evidence she attacked him, and a judge ultimately said it was impossible to know who had started the altercation, and convicted both parties.

The court ordered Blanc to pay George 1000 euros in damages, and ordered her to pay him one euro, with a suspended fine of 5000 euros. Both parties reportedly plan to appeal.

The pair currently have a joint custody arrangement, and the children are to spend alternating weeks with their mother and father, and per a family court order, written consent is required for them to leave the country.

Its terrible for her career, disastrous, Ayela said of the order. The two children are forbidden to leave the country without the written consent of the father. And of course he refuses to allow this.

Ayela claimed that the order compromises Georges ability to work as an actress, saying: How can she be back to France every second week if she works abroad? Its a ridiculous decision.

Source: Telegraph / News Corp.

Photo: Kevin Tachman / Getty.
Were sure John Goodman and his The Big Lebowski co-star Jeff Bridges have more in common than starring in one of the best films of all time, but hell, were glad the latter saw it fit to don The Dudes cardigan once more.

At Goodmans well-bloody-deserved Hollywood Walk Of Fame ceremony, the shaggy dropkick uncle of your dreams saw it fit to reprise The Dudes blessed knitwear to deliver some words on his pal:

Well, hes a good actor, hes a good man. John Goodman, yeah. Hes one of us.

At that point, you may have noticed a couple of extra loud chuckles emanating from the audience, cause some Coen Brothers fans caught on straight away to the fact Bridges totally aped the films beaut eulogy scene.

All we can say is we totally abide by this friendship, dudes.

Source and photo: Variety / YouTube.
Donald Trump,Justin Trudeau,Mike Flynn

In this Feb. 13, 2017 file photo, Mike Flynn arrives for a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Flynn, President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, who was fired from the White House last month, has registered as a foreign agent with the Justice Department for work that may have aided the Turkish government in exchange for $530,000. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

(Evan Vucci, AP file photo)

WASHINGTON (AP) -- An attorney for former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn told President Donald Trump's transition team before the inauguration that Flynn might register with the government as a foreign agent, White House officials acknowledged.

According to a person with knowledge of the discussions, Flynn's representatives also had a second conversation with the White House counsel's office after the inauguration and made clear the national security adviser would indeed be registering with the Justice Department.

On Friday, the White House said it had no recollection of the second conversation. But on Saturday, a White House official said the post-inauguration conversation did occur.

Both the White House official and person with knowledge of the discussions insisted on anonymity in order to disclose the private conversations.

The disclosures Friday indicate that Trump transition lawyers did not view Flynn's lobbying work for a Turkish businessman as a liability for an official who serves as the president's closest adviser on security and international affairs. They also raise new questions about whether Trump's transition team, and later his White House lawyers, fully vetted Flynn.

Flynn's registration this week with the Justice Department disclosed lobbying by him and his firm that may have benefited the government of Turkey.

That work involved research, informational materials and a video on the cleric Fethullah Gulen. Turkish President Erdogan has accused Gulen, who lives in Pennsylvania, of orchestrating a botched coup last summer. Erdogan has called for Gulen's extradition, a request the Obama administration rebuffed.

Trump fired Flynn last month on other grounds -- that he misled Vice President Mike Pence and other White House officials about his conversations with Russia's ambassador to the U.S. Flynn's registration comes amid intense scrutiny over his and other Trump associates' potential contacts with Russia. The FBI is investigating, as are House and Senate intelligence committees.

Flynn registered with the Justice Department on Tuesday, citing $530,000 worth of lobbying. His work on behalf of a company owned by Turkish businessman Ekim Alptekin occurred at the same time he was advising Trump's presidential campaign.

Among those told of Flynn's potential Justice Department registration during the transition was Don McGahn, a campaign lawyer who has gone on to become White House counsel, according to a person with direct knowledge of the conversations between Flynn's representatives and the transition team.

A White House official said McGahn and others were not aware of the details of Flynn's work. It's not clear why the Trump advisers did not seek additional information once Flynn's lawyers raised the issue.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said the president had not been aware Flynn might register as a foreign agent. He said that when Flynn's lawyer raised the possible filing with the transition team, Trump's attorneys responded that it was a personal matter and not something they would consult on.

"It's a business matter, it's not something that would be appropriate for a government entity to give someone guidance on when they should file as an individual," Spicer said. He dismissed questions about whether Flynn's work should have raised red flags for the new administration, saying the retired Army lieutenant general had "impeccable credentials."

In the filings with the Justice Department's Foreign Agent Registration Unit, Flynn and his firm, Flynn Intel Group Inc., acknowledged that his work for Alptekin's company "could be construed to have principally benefited the Republic of Turkey." The lobbying on behalf of Inovo BV, a Dutch-based company owned by Alptekin, occurred from August through November.

Flynn's filing said that he and his firm were not certain whether Turkey's government was involved in Inovo's hiring of them as lobbyists. The firm said it was aware, however, that Alptekin "consulted with officials of the Republic of Turkey regarding potential work by Flynn Intel Group."

The firm also acknowledged that Alptekin introduced Flynn to two senior Turkish government officials in September, but it identified them only by their titles. The officials included in the meeting were Turkey's minister of foreign affairs, Mevlut Cavusoglu, and Turkish Energy Minister Berat Albayrak, who is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's son-in-law.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Alptekin said Flynn and his firm filed the registration under pressure from Justice Department officials. Alptekin said he disagreed with the decision to register. He also said he had asked for some of his money back.
A 65-mile stretch of the eastbound Pennsylvania Turnpike will be closed for seven hours this weekend as crews install a new digital sign and bridge beams in Cumberland County.

The closure between the Breezewood and Carlisle exits will be in effect from 11:30 p.m. Saturday until 6:30 a.m. Sunday, according to the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.

The closure will allow workers to safely install an overhead digital message sign above the eastbound lanes of the turnpike at milepost 223.7, PennDOT said. It also will allow crews to place beams above the eastbound lanes for a new overhead bridge at mile post 205.205.35.

Alternate-route cards will be available to exiting travelers during the closure. Drivers should allow for an extra hour of driving time when a detour is in place.

The recommended detour for eastbound motorists is: Exit at Breezewood, take Route 30 west (.3 miles) to I-70 east (I-70 exit MD #26, 48 miles) to I-81 north (58 miles) to Route 11 south; reenter at Carlisle Interchange (#226).

The following interchanges and ramps will be closed as noted, starting at the Breezewood Interchange at 11:30 p.m., Saturday, March 11 and proceeding eastward with the others closing as traffic clears the site.

Breezewood Interchange (#161) eastbound ramp will be closed to all traffic.

Sidling Hill Service Plaza eastbound ramp will be closed to all traffic.

Fort Littleton (#180) eastbound ramp will be closed to truck traffic.

Willow Hill (#189) eastbound ramp will be closed to truck traffic.

Blue Mountain (#201) eastbound ramp will be closed to all traffic.

Cumberland Valley Service Plaza will be closed to all traffic

Cars will be allowed to enter eastbound at the Fort Littleton and Willow Hill Interchanges but must exit at the Blue Mountain Interchange (#201). No truck entrance will be allowed.

Additionally, the Pennsylvania State Police in conjunction with Turnpike Maintenance will be conducting traffic paces during the closure in the westbound direction, PennDOT said.

For more traffic information, follow live traffic updates, accident reports and road closures below from PennDOT, Total Traffic Network and other Twitter sources.

Get a look at conditions on local roads -- via PennDOT traffic cameras -- anytime here on PennLive. For Pennsylvania Turnpike updates and possible travel delays visit the Turnpike website here.

Tweet us at @pennlive with any incidents you see on your commute or send a submission to submissions@pennlive.com.
ICE/ raids

Moises Sandoval, proprietor of La Estrella, a grocery store that caters to the Latin American community of Allison Hill in Harrisburg, says business has taken a 70 percent downturn amid fears of raids by ICE agents.

(Ivey DeJesus/PennLive)

The shelves in Moises Sandoval's store brim with rows of noodle and tortilla bags, tins of frijoles, bottles of salsa picante and stacks of seasonings and spices.

Business for Sandoval, the proprietor of La Estrella - a green grocer and dried-goods market along Derry Street that caters mainly to Mexicans and Central Americans - has been very good over the years as the Allison Hill neighborhood welcomed legions of families from those regions.

The owners of Tacos Mi Tierra, a Mexican restaurant in Allison Hill, say they have felt the impact of the fears of ICE raids.

These days, though, business is slow.

"Business has died," Sandoval said Friday, standing behind the register counter, with, at the time, only one customer in the store.

"The majority of people have left. They have left for other counties or cities. Some people just aren't coming out."

Sandoval attributes the reason for the downturn to the reports of raids by agents of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement - or ICE. Since January, he estimates, more than 200 people in the immediate area have been apprehended.

"My business is dying," he said. "I depend on the Hispanic community. Now we are going to have to close for the next four years.

Sandoval is alluding to the plan put forth by President Trump to arrest and deport undocumented immigrants. Across the country, media reports recount narratives of surprise pre-dawn ICE raids on homes, workplaces and even shelters, although ICE has yet to put a figure to the activity. Instead, it has released statements to media outlets indicating that the current rate is consistent with that of recent years.

But for the business community of this largely Latino enclave of Allison Hill, the specter of ICE has had a significant impact on the community.

Sandoval said he has seen a 70 percent decrease in his business.

Across the street, Salvador Sandoval, who helps out in his father's business Tacos Mi Tierra, a Mexican restaurant, said that rumors abound across the community of ICE raids, and that while people tend to exaggerate, 200 seems a low estimate.

Victor Acosta, owner of Paks Supermarket in Harrisburg, says he has felt the impact of the community's fears of raids.

"I'm not going to lie," he said Friday as he helped to prep the food ingredients. "I'm not downplaying it. It has had an effect."

He said he hears reports of families being separated after ICE detains a member of a family.

"People are scared," Salvador Sandoval said.

Victor Acosta, owner of Paks Supermarket on the corner of Derry and 13th streets, said the reports of ICE raids continue to keep a lot of customers away.

"People are fearful," he said. "They don't want to go out."

Acosta said he has seen ICE stakeouts near the entrance to Interstate 83, and at times has seen agents leading those arrested into white vans.

With customers from across the whole of Latin America, Acosta said the current state of fear among some of Allison Hill's residents has trickled down to his business.

"We feel the impact," he said.

Immigration agents flood Allison Hill in Harrisburg: 'Families have been broken up'
The young woman had purchased a $25 Visa gift card, and was clutching it in her hand, trying to figure out how she could get it to her husband.

He was in a car, on his way to work at a Harrisburg pizzeria Thursday when he was apprehended by agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, she said. He was one of four undocumented immigrants that were apprehended during the same stop.

She said her husband, who now sits in immigration detention in York County Prison, is the sole breadwinner for a family that includes two daughters, ages 8 and a year-and-a-half. The young woman is trying to figure out a way to get the card to him so that he can call her from the prison.

Latinos living and working on Allison Hill say they've heard that Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been conducting sweeps across Harrisburg in recent weeks, taking scores of undocumented immigrants into custody.

The woman whose husband was detained Thursday speaks little English. She spoke very softly, her voice trembling as she shares her profound apprehension for the future of her family.

"Estoy muy triste," she said in her native Spanish.

"I am very sad. "I don't know what is going to happen."

Like her husband, the woman, who is from Jalisco, Mexico, is undocumented. She has been in the U.S. nine years; her husband 10. He's worked all those 10 years, most recently in a pizza shop. She said neither has ever committed a crime. Fearing she could also be detained, she asked that her name not be used.

Across the country, tens of thousands of ICE agents, emboldened by President Trump's plan to arrest and deport undocumented immigrants, have in recent months swept through shelters, places of employment and airports scouring for individuals without legal status, The New York Times reports. The Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency of ICE and the Border Patrol, has detailed plans for speedier deportations, the newspaper reports.

ICE officials could not be reached for confirmation on the number of people apprehended and detained in recent months. Mayor Eric Papenfuse said he has spoken with ICE, and that the level of enforcement is not new, but a continuation of past practices. The federal agency reiterated that in a statement to ABC27 on Friday.

But residents of this vibrant community say they believe hundreds of people have been taken into custody since January. They talk of hearing of near-daily raids, and sometimes multiple raids in a day.

Gloria Vazquez Merrick, executive director of the Latino Hispanic American Community Center, said that a few months ago she would have heard reports of ICE conducting one or two raids per month. These days raids are being reported on a daily basis.

"Despite other people's opinion, they have escalated," she said. "It definitely has come to a head. It's every day now."

Moises Sandoval, proprietor of La Estrella, a green grocer and dried-goods market along Derry Street that caters mainly to Mexicans and Central Americans, says the raids have impacted his community.

"It's very sad," he said. "They are taking the husbands and leaving children behind alone."

Sandoval said ICE agents start as early as 4 a.m.

"It's really concentrated here for about a two-mile radius," he said. "They drive around two to a car in unmarked cars ... starting at 4, 5 or 6 a.m."

Victor Acosta, owner of Paks Supermarket on the corner of Derry and 13th streets, said he has seen ICE agents on stakeouts pulling cars over near the Interstate 83 access ramp off 13th Street.

"Sometimes they put 50 people in a van," he said. "They pull someone over and they take everyone."

Merrick says the community is gripped with fear.

"People stop by to tell [ask] us if we heard about the latest raid," she said. "They are fearful. They want to talk to someone."

Merrick, whose non-profit organization is able to connect people with resources, said she is focusing on the humanitarian mission of the organization, helping those who could be affected by the raids to plan and prepare for possible detention.

In particular, Merrick said, the focus is on parents. She has heard stories of children left behind in school, waiting for a parent who has been detained by ICE.

Merrick said the recent raids have affected the entire community - not just undocumented immigrants but citizens and their children as well. Families often are blended, with many families including both U.S. citizens and undocumented immigrants.

"It's impacting everyone. There is a lot of fear, a lot of anxiety," she said. "People are crying and nothing's happened to them yet. It's just the thought of what could happen."

Merrick said she has had reports of ICE agents knocking on front doors and asking, "Do Mexicans live here?"

Merrick says misconceptions abound, and taint the way Americans in general view some members of her community.

"There is a misconception that everyone being picked up, rounded up or apprehended are criminals or felons," she said. "In a lot of cases they are not. They are on the street corner being picked up because they are waiting for a ride to work. They are being stopped because they fit the profile. Even though we think that's not happening, it's happening."

Merrick said she is directing people to the appropriate agencies that can provide legal help and assistance in procuring food and heat.

She is concerned, though, that members of the community affected by the ICE raids are so afraid of leaving their homes they are not even going to the food bank to get food for their families.

"They are afraid to go and stand in line to get food. They are afraid they are going to be questioned," she said.

On Friday the young woman whose husband sits in prison was at a loss for words, her mind solely occupied with her husband and her daughters -- and how to get the gift card she bought to her husband so he can call her.

"We have to eat," she said. "I don't know how we are going to eat without an income."
On one hand: Bipartisan blockbuster. Clean(er) energy. Construction boon. Job-saver. Even community-saver.

On the other: Political power play. Oversight avoidance. Shutting out the public. Perhaps not the best deal  for consumers and the environment.

Welcome to the varying ways people describe a bill approved Tuesday that allows Xcel Energy Inc. to build a 786-megawatt natural gas-fired generating plant in Becker, largely without having to follow the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission's normal review-and-approval process for such projects.

Introduced early in the session, this proposal zipped through the House and Senate with relative ease. Gov. Mark Dayton, who has recently clashed with the Legislature on various PUC matters, eagerly signed it Tuesday.

Good for region but ...

From this board's perspective, the fast-track approval is welcome to counter the economic blow of Xcel's plans to shutter two of its three coal-fired plants at the Sherburne County Generating Station in the next 10 years. Sherco provides about 75 percent of the tax base for the city of Becker, and the shutdowns are expected to result in job losses for about half Sherco's workforce. However, the new plant will provide short-term construction jobs and up to 150 permanent positions, which is better than nothing.

While that's good, there is no denying this approach skirts established procedures, largely by not requiring the PUC ultimately issue the required "certificate of need." Traditionally, that official state approval came after a lengthy review process that included siting decisions, examinations of other power options, and even how much a plant could cost to build.

Essentially, the role of PUC in this and similar projects is to find the best balance of energy, economic and environmental needs for all of Minnesota.

How Xcel fares in striking that balance without extensive PUC oversight will be watched closely  and should serve as a gauge for similar requests in the future, be they from Xcel or any other utility provider.

Why the need?

The plant, to cost between $800 million and $1 billion, is needed because Xcel, driven in large part by public pressure to reduce carbon emissions, is taking two of its three coal-fired plants at Sherco offline as it moves toward natural gas and renewable energy sources. The third, newer coal burner will continue to operate.

Xcel has said this gas-fired plant is needed in Becker to stabilize the electricity supply it provides through its grid system. Remember, that's a lot. Built in the 1970s, Sherco has long been the largest power plant in the state. In fact, the 786-megawatt plant will provide only about half the power now generated at Sherco.

Good or bad

Again, this approach can be seen as good or bad, depending on your priorities.

From a purely economic viewpoint, it gives Becker (and much of the region) a sense of relief in knowing the community still will be home to a substantial Xcel operation  and the city's tax base won't be completely decimated.

As for consumer and public costs, perhaps the saving grace of the legislation are ratepayer protections that were added in early February after several key stakeholders raised concerns about how potential cost overruns could be passed to consumers. Changes made to the bill now require some PUC review as well as the PUC's ability to stop Xcel from tapping ratepayers for excessive costs.

Of course, that also does not guarantee the cheapest nor most environment-friendly power plant.

This editorial appeared in the March 4 edition of the St. Cloud (Minnesota) Times.
Prayer vigil with Mayor and Police Chief at City Hall

Harrisburg mayor Eric Robert Papenfuse, shown in this July 11, 2016 file photo, says there there have been no widespread "roundups" of undocumented immigrants in Harrisburg. Daniel Zampogna, PennLive

(Daniel Zampogna, Pennlive)

HARRISBURG--While residents in Allison Hill have been abuzz in recent weeks about a reported increase in immigration raids and arrests, Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse said there have been no widespread "roundups" of undocumented immigrants.

"There is no flooding of agents in the city," he said.

Instead, Papenfuse said immigration agents told police Friday that they are serving targeted warrants, "not randomly looking to deport residents."

Papenfuse said the efforts are very similar to what occurred under President Obama's administration.

"People are justifiably scared by the tone of the national conversation around immigration," he said. "But what was alleged in this morning's PennLive article is simply not true...Let's have a serious conversation about immigration policy, but let's not exploit people's fears and cause even more rifts in the community by propagating rumors that are simply not true."

Immigration officials did not provide statistics to Harrisburg police officials, and ICE officials did not return calls from PennLive. So the level of enforcement is difficult to verify independently.

Residents and community leaders, however, believe that the enforcement has ramped up, particularly in Allison Hill around the area of 13th and Derry streets. Residents believe ICE agents have taken in up to 200 people since January. Store owners told PennLive that have seen raids daily at times and immigration agents riding around in unmarked cars.

Movement of Immigrant Leaders in Pennsylvania, or MILPA, is planning a 6 p.m. news conference Monday about raids in the area. One of the speakers will be a Harrisburg businesswoman who lost three relatives in the past two months in different immigration raids, said Harrisburg City Councilwoman Shamaine Daniels.

Daniels, an immigration attorney, also has a client whose van was followed by agents after leaving his job at a warehouse.

"It was very arbitrary," she said.

The mayor said he doesn't doubt that arrests are occuring, but he said: "That's always happened...It's only now an issue because everyone is on edge."

Residents are on edge, Daniels said, that's true. But Daniels added that there is something new and tangible: Pennsylvania is now a "target," or priority state for immigration enforcement when it didn't used to be.

"A lot of the raids under Obama didn't happen in Pennsylvania," she said. "Whenever they do targets, they bring in agents from other places to boost the efforts."

Marching orders given to ICE agents also have changed recently, according to William Stock, an immigration attorney from Philadelphia who is national president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

"I think it's necessary to be clear that the national policy has shifted," he said.

Immigration agents previously were told to stand-down if they came across undocumented immigrants who had not otherwise violated the law and who were in sympathetic situations, Stock said.

"Those cases were not a priority," he said.

But that has changed, he said.

"ICE folks now see the number of people deported as their highest priority," he said.

Stock said he doesn't have any insight into what was occurring on the ground in Harrisburg. But he said residents could be detecting the new administration's policy to pick up all undocumented immigrants they encounter while looking for their original target.

"So they're not being particularly discriminating," he said of the agents. "It's creating a lot of collateral damage."
A Lebanon County man was charged with phoning in a threat to 911 that the Lebanon VA Medical Center was going to blow up last summer, county detectives say.

Scot Moyer

Scot Moyer, 50, was charged with terroristic threats and was released from Lebanon County prison on $15,000 bail.

Moyer is accused of calling in a threat at 8:23 a.m. July 14, 2016 that "Building 17 at the Lebanon VA is going to blow up in ten minutes."

The VA immediately evacuated Building 17, which is an outpatient treatment facility for veterans, of all patients and personnel. A search of the building by the state police bomb detection K9 unit yielded no suspicious packages or explosive devices. Patients and personnel were allowed back in the building around noon.

As a result of the bomb threat, there were 736 cancelled appointments for veterans, including laboratory services, detectives said.
Trump:Nixon collage.jpg

Photos via Wikimedia Commons.

With comparisons continuing to be made between President Donald Trump and Richard Nixon, side-by-side photos of a Pittsburgh woman using nearly identical signs to protest both men have now gone viral.

The photos -- taken 43 years apart -- show 76-year-old Rosemary Duffy of Crafton protesting both presidents outside the federal building in downtown Pittsburgh.

In the first, captured after the Watergate scandal and shortly before Nixon was pardoned by President Gerald Ford in 1974, Duffy holds a sign reading "Honk if you think Nixon should go to jail."

A second photo, conceived by Duffy's son, Hugh Twyman, and taken by her granddaughter, shows the mother of five and grandmother of 10 recently holding an identical sign with Trump's name replacing Nixon's at the same location outside the federal building.

"I believe it more now than I did with Nixon, that he [Trump] should be in jail," Duffy told PennLive by phone on Friday.

She said that at the time of the first photo she was a member of the Thomas Merton Center, a center for social justice in Pittsburgh. She joined a protest outside the federal building that had been organized by the group and found the pre-prepared "Honk if you think Nixon should go to jail" sign there.

A photo of Duffy carrying the sign was captured by a photographer with the now-defunct Pittsburgh Press and saved by her mother.

Fast forward four decades, and Duffy recently rejoined the Thomas Merton Center and local protests against President Trump and Republican Senator Pat Toomey in Pittsburgh.

Duffy said that after her son saw her at one of the events, it occurred to him to recreate the Pittsburgh Press' Nixon protest photo, which the family had kept in a scrapbook. (PennLive asked for and was shown a copy of the original photo as published in August of 1974.)

"I actually reproduced the sign using a projector and tracing the original onto the new sign," Twyman told PennLive.

The resulting before-and-after photo was posted by Twyman online two weeks ago and has been widely shared since.

The Monday after he posted it, he said it had amassed "maybe 500 views and 200 shares."

A week later, and Hugh said it was being shared 1,000 times an hour from one of his social media accounts alone.

In addition to duplicating the earlier sign, Twyman said the recreation process involved convincing his mother to mimic the stony expression she had in the first photo.

"She's not in any way a sour woman, she was just in a bad mood that day for some reason. When we redid the photo, I said, 'You gotta look pissed, mom," Twyman recalled.

He said she agreed, adding, "she was all for it."

And while the photos have garnered shares and praise online, they have also garnered criticism from Trump supporters who feel incarceration a more fitting punishment for his Democratic opponent in the presidential race, or even his Democratic predecessor in the Oval Office.

"We expected a backlash because this is such a divided country right now," Twyman said. "But the more vulgar things being said, you just have to ignore those things."

He continued: "She is adamant and sides with the fact that he [Trump] should be in jail. She's against everything he stands for, just everything."

Indeed, Duffy cites Trump's cabinet picks, his campaign's alleged ties to Russia and his refusal to release his tax returns in summing up her opposition.

"What's he hiding?" she added.

As for the reaction the photos of his mother have received online, Twyman put it this way: "We try to tell her about all the shares and going viral and she says, 'Well, I don't know about all that. I just know he [Trump] should be in jail.'"

In speaking with PennLive Friday, Duffy was similarly nonchalant.

"I'm not a social media person. I just get a kick out of the grandkids' reaction. I have 10 grandkids and they're having fun with it."
UPDATE: 3 girls in burn unit, firefighter in critical condition

Harrisburg Bureau of Fire said Saturday morning that an update would be coming at noon on the fire where three minors were pulled from a home on Friday.

Squad 8 also announced via Facebook that a platoon lieutenant was involved in a serious accident while responding to the fire and it would also release details on his condition.

3-11-2017 Very sad night for the HBF.We had services for retired Fireman Dan Wolfe.At the end of the service the "B"... Posted by Squad 8 - Harrisburg Bureau of Fire on Saturday, March 11, 2017

Harrisburg Fire Chief Brian Enterline said on Twitter that more details would be coming this morning while firefighters come to terms with what happened.

Enterline later tweeted that a news conference would be held at noon.

To all of our @hbgfire media contacts..... We are not avoiding you, we are composing ourselves after an extremely devistating night...  Brian Enterline (@HbgCaptain) March 11, 2017

Press conference for last night's @hbgfire scheduled for noon today at city Hall..... No other requests will be honored until then  Brian Enterline (@HbgCaptain) March 11, 2017

The fire was reported shortly before 8 p.m. Video taken at the scene by 717 memes shows rescuers bringing a person out of the burning home and working on them at the scene. (Disclaimer: Some of the video contains graphic language.)

The Red Cross said via Twitter that it is assisting those evacuated from their homes because of the fire.
Paul Ryan,Greg Walden,Kevin McCarthy

House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis., center, standing with Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., right, and House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., left, speaks during a news conference on the American Health Care Act on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, March 7, 2017. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

(Susan Walsh)

By Eugene Robinson

It's time to put an end to the myth that Republicans believe in fiscal responsibility. Saving taxpayer dollars takes a back seat to the ideological imperative of blaming and shaming the poor.

Eugene Robinson (PennLive file)

Witness the GOP's long-awaited plan to replace the Affordable Care Act. House committees are moving forward on the legislation before the Congressional Budget Office has even had a chance to estimate how much the measure will cost.

Why the rush?

Because if the plan doesn't snatch away health insurance coverage from millions of people -- and both President Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan swear it won't -- then it's surely going to cost a ton.

The Republican plan would take away the ACA's subsidies and replace them with refundable tax credits based solely on age for incomes up to $75,000 for an individual and $150,000 for a married couple.

This means a windfall for those who are older and well-to-do.

In essence, the plan would expand government assistance to encompass many who don't really need it -- in order to avoid targeting help toward those who do.

The GOP plan would also eliminate the ACA's penalty fee for not having health insurance, which goes into the public till -- and replace it with a different penalty fee that goes to the insurance companies.

Apparently Republicans have no problem committing what they once called "extortion" if the benefit goes to private companies, not the common good.

Keep in mind that Trump and GOP leaders in Congress promise that after dealing with health care they will seek huge tax cuts, including for the wealthy. As fiscal policy, how does this make sense?

It doesn't. It only makes sense as ideology. In today's Republican Party, policies have to satisfy the belief that the less fortunate are poor by choice.

Rarely do Republicans just come out and accuse the poor of being lazy freeloaders, but Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, came close.

He suggested that "rather than getting that new iPhone that they just love and want to go spend hundreds of dollars on that, maybe they should invest in their own health care."

The priciest iPhone advertised on Apple's website is a 7 Plus model with 256 gigabytes of storage and all the bells and whistles.

It costs $969.

If Chaffetz will cancel his health insurance plan, I will write him a check for that amount -- and wish him the best of luck providing health care for his family. Maybe he'll be able to pay for a single visit to the emergency room.

It would be one thing if the GOP's mean-spirited ideology actually saved money, but it doesn't. Quite the contrary, in fact.

When you ask Republicans what they're going to cut, they mention foreign aid -- which totals about $35 billion, or slightly less than 1 percent of federal spending.

They threaten to eviscerate smaller agencies by cutting $6 billion here or $8 billion there -- but at the same time, they applaud Trump's pledge to increase the $600 billion defense budget by an incredible 10 percent.

They're going to end up spending more -- perhaps lots more -- and collecting less in tax revenue. And this is the party that claims to care about deficits and debt?

But wait, Republicans say, we're going to "save" the big entitlement programs by trimming benefits. Yeah, sure. I'm not holding my breath.

The problem is that Medicare and Social Security serve middle-class and upper-crust taxpayers, including many who share the GOP's punish-the-poor belief system. If you think these ACA-focused town halls are hostile, just you wait.

The fact is that among recent administrations, at least, Democratic presidents have been the relative skinflints. Bill Clinton, you will recall, actually balanced the budget -- and yes, he had help from Republicans in Congress.

Barack Obama spent heavily at first to save the economy, which was teetering on the edge of a dreadful abyss, but he ended up slashing the deficit in half and presiding over years of uninterrupted economic growth.

George W. Bush, on the other hand, fought hugely expensive wars in Afghanistan and Iraq without accounting for them in his budgets.

He also convinced Congress to expand Medicare to cover prescription drugs, which was compassionate but costly.

Trump promises to be even more of a big spender. Among other things, he promises a trillion-dollar program to renew the nation's infrastructure. Imagine the Republican howling if Obama had suggested such a thing.

The GOP will surely persist in its sanctimony about balanced budgets, but no one should pay any attention. Republicans, we see what you're doing.

Eugene Robinson is a columnist for The Washington Post. His work appears on Saturdays on PennLive.
north-korea-rocket-launch-2b41ea2536b55fbd.jpg

A South Korean man watches a TV news program with a file footage about North Korea's rocket launch at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016. North Korea on Sunday defied international warnings and launched a long-range rocket that the United Nations and others call a cover for a banned test of technology for a missile that could strike the U.S. mainland. The letters on the screen read: "North Korea launched a long-range rocket." (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Dennis Dombrowski

As I contemplated writing a piece for the As I See It column, taking a humorous tack was initially the way I thought I should go...given the fact that this would perhaps give me an edge passing the editorial review. I took this approach two years ago when I wrote about our collective mania when it comes to our handheld devices. However, with current political circumstances being as crazy as they are, I feel compelled to write about something that has become very unsettling for me.

With all the goings-on happening in the news every day, and the accompanying frenzy of analysis regarding the alleged Russian connection, one item in particular has popped out at me like no other, and it has me scared silly. This is the North Korea issue.

If you haven't been hiding under a rock over the last few weeks, you will have noticed that North Korea has been carrying on a number of test missile launches. This is not necessarily surprising, because one would almost expect Kim Jong Un to rattle our new president. However, this is not the disconcerting aspect from my view. What is truly alarming is some of the news coverage I've witnessed over the last three weeks regarding this new activity by North Korea.

Going back to February 19, CBS aired a segment on its very popular 60 Minutes program. In this opening story, correspondent Bill Whitaker interviewed the defecting Deputy Ambassador to Britain from the DPK. This gentleman spoke of the vulnerability of Seoul, South Korea, as well as some details as to how Kim Jong Un operates with an iron hand inside North Korea. This was intriguing to listen to, and set the stage for the next portion of this report.

Bill Whitaker then traveled to the DMZ (demilitarized zone), which separates North and South Korea. He took us inside the command center, where they are on a constant war footing, poised to react at a moment's notice. He then interviewed four-star General Vincent Brooks, the commanding officer of our 28,000 troops on the ground there.

In the interview, Bill asked General Brooks what would be our response if North Korea were to launch a strike at South Korea. The general's response was that the response would be "effective and overwhelming". Bill then asked, would the United States "wipe North Korea off the map?" General Brooks replied very matter-of-factly, "whatever overwhelms you."

I have to tell you, this back and forth nearly knocked me off my seat on the couch. Here we had a commanding general talking candidly about the viability of a limited nuclear strike. He also alluded to a preemptive strike, should that be deemed necessary. What is so frightening about this exchange is the very fact that a discussion is being carried on about opening Pandora's box -- the very thing that decades of detente have worked so hard to avoid. The very notion of believing that the United States, or any other nuclear power can unleash a pre-emptive strike -- or a retaliatory strike for that matter -- and keep things contained, is absolutely insane!

In actuality, were one of the nuclear powers to decide to launch, for whatever reason, the hair-trigger state of global nuclear power would be tripped...if the United States launched a pre-emptive strike at North Korea, is Russia and China going to react in kind? What would lead them to believe that our country would not attack them as well? Is Israel going to do something foolish if something got started? How about India and Pakistan?

Since this broadcast, I've seen two more news items where this idea of limited nuclear war has been broached. One was on CNN about ten days ago, when senators John McCain and Lindsay Graham conducted a quasi- town hall with Dana Bash moderating. At one point, Lindsay Graham mentioned that we may have to carry out a limited nuclear strike against the DPRK before they improve their ICBM technology. And then, just the other night, again on CNN, Erin Burnett during the course of her program spoke of a potential preemptive strike that may need to happen.

Is anybody else out there as worried as I am about this? Are we really allowing the notion of preemptive strikes and limited nuclear war to become normalized?And with our current president at the helm, do we think rational thought will be applied to any decisions made when the critical moment arises?

Dennis Dombrowski was born in Erie, Pa. and currently lives in Hampden Township with his wife and daughter. He is a retired IT manager and plays classical guitar. He has two other grown children and three granddaughters.
By Jim T. Ryan

Staff Writer

The Penn Twp. supervisors on Feb. 28 approved a letter of support for a company that is proposing to open a medical marijuana dispensary in the township if the company is approved for a license from the state.

The action came toward the end of the meeting after Chairman Brian Peters said the township had been contacted by the dispensary company called Solace, which inquired about whether such a business would be allowed in a commercial zone on Routes 11/15.

The support is the second such approval the supervisors have given to a medical cannabis proposal since December, when they also gave support to PA Options for Wellness, a company of local pharmaceutical and financial executives who are proposing a cannabis grow and processing facility at the business campus on New Bloomfield Road. If it receives a license, the facility would employ as many as 80 people to manufacture oils and other pharmaceutical-grade cannabis products.

The dispensary proposed for Routes 11/15 would employ up to 20 people in a secure shop to distribute such products, Peters said. He recently had a conversation with company representatives. The shop would include a security entrance that requires prescriptions, background checks and other physical security measures before a patient is admitted. It's proposed hours of operation would be 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., he said.

The state law passed last year makes pharmaceutical cannabis products available to patients suffering from severe and chronic diseases, such as seizures, post-traumatic stress disorder, HIV/AIDS and cancer with a doctor's prescription. The law does not permit marijuana to be used in its raw form for smoking or ingestion.

Solace Wellness Centers -- as the company calls them on its website -- are a division of Bluestone Biomedical Group. It bills itself as premier medical cannabis centers in Pennsylvania. The company website is solacewellnesscenter.com. The company can also be found on Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites.

A company representative declined to comment on its plans when reached by phone last week, saying they were waiting for the state application process to open March 17. The representative did confirm the company has a central Pennsylvania ownership group, as Peters had said at the township meeting.

Solace has not submitted formal plans to the township for any type of approval.

After the approval, Peters clarified his position about medical cannabis and differentiated it from legalized recreational marijuana, which has gained steam around the country and even in public opinion in Pennsylvania recently.

"I'm for cannabis, but I'm not for dispensing marijuana," Peters said.

Several states, such as Colorado, have legalized or decriminalized recreational use of marijuana. And public opinion in Pennsylvania supports recreational legalization. A Quinnipiac University poll last year found 57 percent of Pennsylvanians favor legalization of small amounts.

Gov. Tom Wolf has expressed support for decriminalization, as did Perry's state Sen. John DiSanto during the campaign last year.

Peters said even though polls favor it, he does not support recreational legalization. He said the township would limit local cannabis facilities to medical uses if the state ever moved to legalize recreational use.

Supervisor appointed

The supervisors had a full board for the meeting after they appointed Pam A. Huss to the open supervisor position at the beginning.

Huss, 50, is a Penn Twp. native and an administrative assistant in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives with the Human Services Committee.

"I want our local community to grow," Huss said. "There are things on the horizon and I'm excited by that."

Huss is married to Roger Huss. They have four children and five grandchildren.

Peters said the township had received three applications for the supervisor position. The other two candidates were Jesse Boyer and Tim Myers.

The vacant supervisor seat was due to the resignation of Brian Maguire in January. There is about 10 months left in his term. If Huss wants to continue as a supervisor after 2017, she'll have to run for election this year.

Wheels of business

The Forrer Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership is expanding its car lot on the south side of the building and received approval from the supervisors for the improvements.

Two buildings there have been demolished to make room for the new display lot, and the business intends to make improvements that will simplify entry to dealership as well as screen nearby homes from lights and noise, said Joe Burget Jr. with planning firm Burget and Associates. He presented the plans to the supervisors for approval at the meeting.

The dealership will install guide rails along the south side of the lot to limit entrance and exit to the main entry after construction of the lot is complete, Burget said. It will also add buffer trees between the dealership and nearby homes.

Conflict

Three men challenged Supervisor Peters at the meeting, alleging he had violated his oath of office and demanding his resignation, although Peters said that wasn't going to happen.

John Holman, John McTernan and Gary Korth confronted Peters during the public comment period at the meeting's outset, reading statements from meetings and incidents that happened last year and in 2015. Holman was ejected from the Kinkora Pythian Home after disagreements with staff that year.

The men allege police and officials are conspiring against them and depriving people of their First Amendment rights to freedom of religion.

Supervisor Joe Landis said Kinkora had contacted the township police to have Holman ushered off site for trespassing, which is their prerogative under the law. The supervisors were asked to interfere with that process, which they can't do, he said.

When Holman's time expired during the comment period, he was not allowed to continue speaking. Peters said that Holman was out of line.

Korth and McTernan took up the cause. The men allege charges would be filed, but were not allowed to continue commenting after they persisted in going after Peters. Landis said it had devolved into character assassination.

"It was a personal attack," Landis said later. "It had nothing to do with township business."

Peters declined to comment about the incident after the meeting other than to say, "It's not true."

Jim T. Ryan can be reached via e-mail at jtryan@perrycountytimes.com
JoBurg girls' cross country captures school's first state championship

After falling just short of a regional title last Saturday, the JoBurg girls responded by claiming the ultimate prize at MIS this past weekend.
TORONTO, March 10, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bionik Laboratories (OTCQB:BNKL) announced today that it has been made aware of and requested by the OTC Markets Group, Inc. to comment on recent trading and promotional activity concerning its common stock.



On March 10, 2017, OTC Markets informed the Company that it became aware of certain promotional activities concerning Bionik Laboratories and its common stock. OTC Markets informed the Company that it had received copies of promotional newsletter emails encouraging investors to purchase the Companys common stock. The Company has been informed that this promotional activity coincided with higher than average trading volume in the Companys stock. The Company was unaware of the promotional activity until after the close of business on March 8, 2017 when an individual advised the Company. At such time, the Company began to investigate the source of such activities and the responsible parties and the extent of the email newsletters dissemination. The Company continues to investigate the full nature and content of this promotional activity. The Company currently uses IRTH Communications LLC to provide investor relations services. Since January of 2016, the Company also used the services of Jenene Thomas Communication LLC, Barretto Pacific Corp., Zacks Investment Research, PR Newswire, and Globe Newswire for investor relations and/or other related services.

Bionik states definitively that the Company, its officers, directors and, to the Companys knowledge, its controlling shareholders (i.e., shareholders owning 10% or more of the Companys securities) have not, directly or indirectly, authorized or been involved in any way (including payment to a third-party) with the creation or distribution of promotional materials including these email newsletters; and that the Company, its officers, directors and, to the knowledge of the Company, any controlling shareholders, have not sold or purchased the Companys securities within the past 90 days. Further, the Company has not issued any securities which are convertible or convertible at a discount to the current market rate at the time of the issuance.

The Company was not aware of the promotional materials author or its affiliated entities or persons until after close of business on March 8 at which time we immediately commenced an investigation. The Companys recent press releases have reported on and provided disclosure of legitimate and ongoing corporate activity only, and are not part of any promotional activities or campaign, stated Peter Bloch, CEO of Bionik Laboratories. The Company encourages those interested in the Company to rely solely on information included in its press releases combined with its filings and disclosures made with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

No officer or director has purchased or sold any shares of capital stock in 2017. Any transactions in the Companys securities by officers and directors (none of which have been made) would be disclosed in a Form 4 within the two day time period as required by securities laws.

About Bionik Laboratories

Bionik Laboratories (BNKL), is a global, pioneering robotics company focused on providing rehabilitation and mobility solutions to individuals with neurological disorders. The Company has a portfolio of products focused on upper and lower extremity rehabilitation for stroke and other mobility impaired patients, including three products on the market and four products in varying stages of development. The InMotion Systems - the InMotion ARM, InMotion Wrist, InMotion Hand and InMotion AnkleBot, are designed to provide intelligent, patient-adaptive therapy in a manner that has been clinically verified to maximize neuro-recovery. Bionik is also developing a lower-body exoskeleton, ARKE, designed to allow paraplegics as well as other wheelchair users the ability to rehabilitate through walking. ARKE is expected to be designed to continually adapt to a patients ability and provide real time feedback to the physiotherapist.

For more information, please visit www.bioniklabs.com and connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Forward-Looking Statements

Any statements contained in this press release that do not describe historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements regarding (i) the plans and objectives of management for future operations, including plans or objectives relating to the design, development and commercialization of human exoskeletons and other robotic rehabilitation products, (ii) a projection of income (including income/loss), earnings (including earnings/loss) per share, capital expenditures, dividends, capital structure or other financial items, (iii) the Company's future financial performance and (iv) the assumptions underlying or relating to any statement described in points (i), (ii) or (iii) above. Such forward-looking statements are not meant to predict or guarantee actual results, performance, events or circumstances and may not be realized because they are based upon the Company's current projections, plans, objectives, beliefs, expectations, estimates and assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties and other influences, many of which the Company has no control over. Actual results and the timing of certain events and circumstances may differ materially from those described by the forward-looking statements as a result of these risks and uncertainties. Factors that may influence or contribute to the inaccuracy of the forward-looking statements or cause actual results to differ materially from expected or desired results may include, without limitation, the Company's inability to obtain additional financing, the significant length of time and resources associated with the development of our products and related insufficient cash flows and resulting illiquidity, the Company's inability to expand the Company's business, significant government regulation of medical devices and the healthcare industry, lack of product diversification, volatility in the price of the Company's raw materials, and the Company's failure to implement the Company's business plans or strategies. These and other factors are identified and described in more detail in the Company's filings with the SEC. The Company does not undertake to update these forward-looking statements.
A major study found that long hours for young doctors did not lead to worse patient outcomes Read more

In July, novice doctors-in-training again will be permitted to work 28 hours straight instead of the current limit of 16, the latest turn in a long-running debate over whether sleep-deprived doctors can care properly for patients.

The Chicago-based council that accredits physician-education programs on Friday announced the elimination of the 16-hour cap for first-year medical residents, which it imposed in 2011.

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education said the longer shifts will improve continuity of patient care because there will be fewer handoffs from doctor to doctor. The change will also return first-year residents, called interns, to the same schedule as more advanced residents.

The controversial decision to allow 28 hours straight, including four hours to hand off care, relied heavily on a national study of surgical residents led by researchers in Chicago and Philadelphia. That study found longer hours did not compromise patient safety, and actually led to greater satisfaction with training among the young doctors.

Critics, including the consumer group Public Citizen and the American Medical Student Association, have called the study deeply flawed.

Diana Huang, who is about to graduate from the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia, said the council's decision "seemed like a foregone conclusion, but it's still disappointing."

"As an intern, you're getting the hang of things. To be that tired and try to take care of people, even with a lot of oversight, it's a scary thing," said Huang. The Pittsburgh native, along with new graduates across the nation, will find out March 17, "Match Day," where she will do her residency in family medicine.

The potentially dangerous effects of fatigue and sleep deprivation have been at the heart of the duty hours debate since at least 1984, when an 18-year-old college student died under the care of residents at New York Hospital.

"Studies have shown that if you've been awake for more than 24 hours, it's as if you were somewhat drunk," said Michael Natter, who is graduating from the Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. "The last thing I would ever do is show up to a hospital drunk. There is also data showing that finger sticks go up [with longer hours], and residents have more car accidents when they're driving home."

Sunny Kar, a third-year resident at Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Stratford, was not subject to the 16-hour cap as an intern because osteopathic training programs maintained the 28-hour limit. He sees valid arguments on both sides.

"When you're learning, you want to spend the maximum amount of time; you want to be forever available," Kar said. "But the flip side is, fatigue is a real problem, and there are going to be more mistakes the more fatigued you are."

Anai Kothari, a third-year surgical resident who served on the council task force that evaluated residency education requirements, said the 16-hour limit forced him to miss critical moments with his patients during his first year of training.

It created "this artificial divide between upper-level and the new residents that are coming in," said Kothari, who works at Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago. "It really does fracture the team. That impacts patient safety, certainly, but it also really affects how you're educated."

The Washington Post contributed to this article.
Sergeant Ward Smith of the Kansas City (MO) Police Department has been named the 2016 NRA Law Enforcement Firearm Instructor of the Year. (Photo: NRA)

The NRA Law Enforcement Division has named Sergeant Ward Smith of the Kansas City (MO) Police Department the 2016 NRA Law Enforcement Firearm Instructor of the Year.

Smith is a 29-year veteran with the KCPD, which consists of approximately 1,350 sworn members and 550 civilian employees. He was first certified as an NRA Firearms Instructor in 1984 while serving with the Excelsior Springs Police Department, prior to joining the KCPD.

At the KCPD, Smith has been assigned to the Professional Development and Research Bureau/Firearms Training and Tactics Section since 2006. Prior assignments include basic training supervisor, SWAT supervisor, Special Operations Division-Operations sergeant, and patrol supervisor.

He currently serves as the Missouri Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) firearms subject matter expert, subject matter expert to the Missouri Attorney Generals office, board member of the National Law Enforcement Training Center, co-chairman of the officer-involved shooting review panel for KCPD, notable events review panel member for KCPD, and an officer involved shooting investigative team member for the KC Metro area.

Smith has received his agencys Medal of Valor, the Metropolitan Police Chiefs Association Award for Valor, two certificates of commendation for heroism, two meritorious service awards, and 10 special unit citations. He holds several NRA Law Enforcement Firearm Instructor certifications, is a certified Force Science Institute Force Analyst, and has authored articles on firearms training and use of force.

Additionally, he is the author of the KCPD Badge Placement Study, which analyzed how officers scan and identify subjects during a critical situation, specifically other officers in plainclothes. This study was published in several industry periodicals.

Upon assignment to the firearms training and tactics section of the KCPD, Smith did a comprehensive review of training and teaching methodology, specifically looking for any practices that kept officers from reaching their potential. By refocusing efforts that placed the development of personnel at the center of the training effort, the KCPD firearms training and tactics staff steadily increased the number of officers who could qualify on their first attempt.

The KCPD firearms training and tactics staff are responsible for triannual training for the members of the agency, which totals over 16,000 man-hours of training each year. Additionally, they provide mandatory training for Kansas Citys more than 2,200 privately licensed security officers, more than 120 hours of training for each Kansas City Missouri Regional Training Academy Recruit class, and specialty classes in light-mounted firearms, patrol rifle, precision rifle, advanced handgun, and several other disciplines.

The KCPD has been at the forefront of training in regard to De-escalation techniques and controlling proximity during critical incidents. Smith and his training staff have been recognized nationally for training developed to address these issues. Smith has developed presentations for the KCPD Citizens Police Academy, the KCPD Family Association, and the annual Take Your Kid to Work program, where department members children receive firearms safety training and participate in zombie-themed and alien-themed tactical simulated missions.

Smith stays active in regional firearms competitions, including the Johnson County (KS) Sheriff's Department Shootout, benefiting Special Olympics, and the Kansas City Metro Crime Commission Border Showdown, which pits the best shooters from Kansas and Missouri against each other to benefit the Surviving Spouse and Family Endowment Fund, benefiting the families of fallen officers. Smith won the individual competition in 2015 and 2016, and his team took top honors in 2016 as well.

Smith says he would like to thank his staff  Officer Spike Angle, Officer Mark Fogel, Officer AnnMarie Herrera, Instructor David Andress, and Instructor William Conroy  for their continued commitment, and his entire chain of command  Captain Stephenie Price, Major Wayne Stewart, Deputy Chief Robert Kuehl and Chief Darryl Forte, for their constant support.

As NRAs Law Enforcement Firearm Instructor of the Year, Smith will receive a Smith & Wesson firearm, donated by Smith & Wesson, as well as a plaque.
The owner of a Lakewood, WA, security company is behind bars for allegedly pointing a gun at a mans head while posing as a police officer.

Michael James Landen Jr., 38, was arrested Feb. 20 and charged with trying to pull another driver over  on busy Interstate 5  with lights flashing.

According to court documents, a King County Sheriffs Office detective witnessed the incident and followed Landens car off the Seneca Street exit in Seattle.

Sheriff John Urquhart said Landen told the driver of a white sedan that he was a cop, pulled a gun on him. He thought he was going to get shot.

Landens security company is called P.O.I.I.C.E. Upon first glance, the badge he wears appears to say police; however the letters stand for Professional Officers Involved in Community Enhancement, the News Tribune reports.
Photo: Police File

The pressure on American law enforcement agencies to field tools that can subdue dangerous armed and unarmed individuals without using deadly force has never been greater than today. Officers are now operating in an environment where every police shooting is scrutinized by the public and the press not in terms of legal justification but in terms of necessity. And even officer-involved shootings where the suspect wielded a gun or fired at the officer can be ginned up as acts of excessive force and police brutality by anti-police activists.

The answer according to many experts is less-lethal weapons that can be fired from a distance and effect subjects with blunt force or chemical irritant or both. These tools are not new but the philosophy about using them, when to use them, and which officer should have them is changing.

There was a time about 20 years ago now when the beanbag shotgun was making inroads into patrol operations. The then new drag-stabilized sock round had overcome many of the issues agencies had with earlier designs of bean bag rounds. But there were some unfortunate incidents where officers fired lethal loads at subjects by accident and there was the general replacement of 12-gauge shotguns in patrol cars with patrol rifles, so the bean bag launcher became a specialty item. On many agencies its use was reserved for supervisors or even for tactical officers only.

Now that agencies are seeking alternatives to using deadly force in situations with armed subjects who are not immediately endangering officers or the public such as people trying to commit suicide by cop, they are taking a second look at less-lethal launchers that can fire projectiles to incapacitate or disarm subjects at ranges far beyond the capabilities of conducted electrical weapons. More importantly, the trend is to put these tools in the hands of first-responding officers.

Experts say there are three types of projectile-firing less-lethal tools that agencies wishing to upgrade the options available to their patrol officers are now fielding or considering for the near future: paintball-type systems, 12-gauge shotguns, and 40mm launchers.

Air-Launched Irritant

For nearly 20 years, PepperBall (www.pepperball.com) has been synonymous with the concept of using irritant filled paintballs in law enforcement, corrections, and military operations. The company's full-sized air launch systems are a common sight during riots, as they can fire more than 100 PAVA-filled paintballs on a single small tank of compressed air.

Now PepperBall is promoting the use of its newest products for patrol operations. Last year the company introduced the VKS (Variable Kinetic System), a select-fire paintball rifle with the look, feel, and fire control of an AR-15/M4. The VKS is a versatile less-lethal weapon that can fire Pepperball's paintball-style projectiles from a hopper or the company's more precise and harder hitting fin-stabilized VXR rounds from a magazine.

Glenn Katz, PepperBall's EVP of global sales, says the conical VXR round fired from the VKS is accurate out to 150 feet, provides twice as much blunt impact as the company's standard paintball ammo, and can carry the same payloads, including PAVA (an organic capsaicinoid powder), PAVA combined with CS, and/or marking dye. It's also easy to keep on target. "There's no recoil in a pneumatic system," Katz says. "So you can quickly stack rounds on top of each other at extended range."

PepperBall is also hoping to make its systems a fixture on patrol officers' duty belts. At this year's Shooting Hunting and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show, the company introduced the TCP (Tactical Control Pistol). PepperBall's new semi-auto pistol fires VXR fin-stabilized rounds from a six-round magazine that contains both the ammo and a CO2 or nitrogen propellant cartridge, so the TCP can be quickly reloaded in the same manner as a duty pistol. The company says the TCP is accurate to 65 feet.

Katz says more and more agencies are asking about ways to provide air-launched less-lethal weapons to their patrol officers. "They are looking for options on the lower end of the force spectrum that will be effective and give officers greater standoff distance to keep them and the public safe," he says.

The Sponge Gun

If agencies are looking for a long-range less-lethal option that can deliver a wallop, they would have a hard time finding a more suitable weapon than the Defense Technology (www.safariland.com) 40LMTS. The 40mm launcher, which the press and some law enforcement agencies refer to as the "sponge gun," is accurate to 300 meters and can inflict blunt trauma at distances ranging from 1.5 meters (5 feet) to 70 meters (230 feet).

Safariland VP for Less Lethal Dave Dubay says he designed the 40LMTS to be the most accurate and effective less-lethal launcher on the market. The LMT in the launcher's product designation stands for Lewis Machine & Tool; the rifle maker produces the launcher for DefTech. "This is a precision weapon system," Dubay says. "It's made to the same exacting specs as an AR."

But the 40LMTS is considerably smaller and lighter than an AR. It weighs about 3.5 pounds and an adjustable Rogers buttstock gives the launcher a compact footprint allowing it to be carried up front in patrol vehicles. At this year's SHOT show, Safariland showed a Blac-Rac (www.blac-rac.com) gun rack for patrol vehicles with both a patrol AR and the 40LMTS locked in place. Dubay says the 40LMTS is not designed to be stashed in the trunk. "When you get out of the car and it's not right there, you are not going to the back of the car to get it out," he explains.

Ideally, patrol officers using the "sponge gun" will have lethal cover backup by other officers. However, patrol officers won't always have that ideal situation. Dubay says a lone officer needing to use a less-lethal impact round can wield the launcher on a sling and quickly transition to his or her duty gun in the same manner he or she would transition from an AR on a sling to a handgun. Officers also can quickly reload the single-shot launcher from a variety of carriers ranging in capacity from three-round buttstock caddies to 20-round bandoliers.

Despite the fact the muzzle of a 40mm launcher is quite intimidating, Dubay says it is a very safe option for effecting blunt force on a person. "Up close with a 12-gauge impact projectile you have to worry about energy density and penetration. For a 40mm impact projectile to penetrate you would have to shoot it at very high velocity."

DefTech makes a wide variety of munitions for the 40LMTS and other 40mm launchers, including the company's new four-shot model. The most popular DefTech 40mm ammo for patrol operations is the ExactImpact sponge round, hence the name "sponge gun." Dubay says it is an extremely versatile round that provides point-of-aim, point-of-impact accuracy out to 100 feet and can be used safely as close as 5 feet. "The energy density on impact is the same. It's not like you get hit with a fastball at 5 feet and a balloon at 100 feet," he says.

Back to the Bean Bag

Defense Technology's 40mm launcher has been deployed for patrol operations with a number of agencies both large and small, including the Los Angeles and Dallas police departments. But Dubay says he realizes not every agency has the resources to acquire the tool. "I am not telling people to throw away their shotguns and 12-gauge less-lethal rounds," he says. "If I'm a small agency and I have 12-gauge shotguns then that is what I am going to use.

Steve Ijames, a retired Springfield (MO) Police Department major and less-lethal weapons expert, is a big proponent of bean bag rounds and other impact munitions regardless of launcher. "If I have to deal with a guy at 2 a.m. holding a knife to his own throat, I will be begging for a bean bag launcher," he says. And he has a blunt message for law enforcement executives who have taken 12-gauge shotguns and other bean bag launchers away from their patrol officers. "If your officers don't have a spontaneous capability in the field for subject incapacitation beyond the range of a TASER, then you as a chief are derelict in your duty," he says.

Ijames is amused that agencies are promoting 12-gauge bean bags and other impact munitions to the communities they serve as if they were something new, but he's all in favor of the trend. "Everybody's got shotguns," he says, arguing for bringing the weapons out of storage and back into patrol cars so they can be used to prevent killing subjects when they can be incapacitated by less-lethal munitions instead. "In the hands of properly trained officers bean bag shotguns are a force multiplier and a life-saver," Ijames adds.

The growing popularity of 12-gauge less-lethal munitions in law enforcement is evidenced by the companies that are still producing them and the ones that are adding 12-gauge rounds to their product lines. PepperBall, best known for its air-launched projectiles, plans to introduce a line of 12-gauge rounds sometime this year. The shotgun munitions use primers and no powder to launch the company's PAVA-filled VXR fin-stabilized rounds at speeds of up to 325 feet per second. That velocity is about the same as the company's air-launched projectiles, but Katz says the company is answering customer demand. "Many of our customers have weapons closets filled with shotguns, and they wanted a self-contained VXR solution for them."

Tactics and Deployment

Ijames believes agencies shouldn't get caught up in the technology of the less-lethal weapon systems they use and should keep their eyes on the goal of reducing lethal shootings by officers. "Less lethal is a concept. It's not about the tools in the toolbox," he says.

Retired LAPD captain and less-lethal weapon expert Greg Meyer echoes that statement. "The technology is what we've got," he says. "Given that, the questions become how do you use them? When do you use them? When do you not use them? And what tactics are most effective for ending the incident before it degenerates into a deadly force scenario? The policy that has stood the test of time is that you use them when it is not a deadly force situation, but it's unsafe to approach the subject to go hands on."

Meyer, who started working with less-lethal weapons 35 years ago, says communication with the subject and with fellow officers is essential to successful deployment of less-lethal munitions to resolve an incident that could quickly escalate into a deadly force situation. And if time permits, he recommends that officers on the scene form a team.

Each officer in the team has to know his or her role, for example, verbal communication with the subject, lethal cover, and less-lethal deployment. To achieve that level of coordination, training and cross-training are essential. "On scene it becomes critical that each officer know his or her role and that whoever is in charge assign duties to the team," Meyer says.

That person in charge does not have to be a supervisor, Meyer says. "I've always believed front line officers should be equipped with less-lethal weapons. We've seen case after case where the supervisors were the only ones with the TASERs or the bean bag guns and they arrived too late for those tools to be used."

Dubay makes that argument to agencies all the time and some are very receptive of the message. "You have to equip your patrol officers with viable tools to do the job," he says. "Preventing the need for the use of lethal force is a great thing for everyonethe agency, the subject, and the community. Nobody wins in a lethal force encounter."
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This column is often noting that there has always been a contingent of hate in the population and that the hateful contingent also makes up most of the stupid contingent. And despite what some readers may believe, it is acutely disappointing to ever have to comment about how nasty other Americans are to their fellow citizens, but the truth is often disappointing and a curse for a classical cynic.

A day or so ago someone had the temerity to ask this author what was wrong with Trumps hateful, racist rhetoric during the campaign and continuing unabated, and why are liberals so appalled at hearing it come from the man living in the White House. Seriously, the person asking the question wanted an answer, but only to condemn a legitimate reason as an excuse to silence the real Americans many sane Americans consider the stupid and hateful contingent.

For a growing number of American citizens, whats wrong with a politician inciting hate among the stupid contingent is all too real, and not in a good way, and all too frightening. There are more than enough examples of Trump and companys hateful rhetoric producing the results their hate-speech intended to deliver, and last week a journalist, Dan Cohen, revealed that there is a herd mentality among Trumps angry acolytes targeting more than just Muslims and Mexicans.

Mr. Cohen reported on, and documented, a Phoenix Arizona rally for the Trump that went from bad to seriously ugly including calling for a liberal genocide and evicting Jews out of their Christian America. Apparently, those calling for exterminating liberals and deporting Jews were incited by Republican politicians who may genuinely be part of the hateful contingent, but they are not stupid; unless they dont know precisely what their prodding will produce.

As one commenter on Cohens article rightly noted, besides the Trump effect emboldening racists, evangelical fanatics, and xenophobes, it has transformed an already toxic public discourse into a forum for every ignoramus to spout their death wish for anyone who refuses to go along with their twisted vision of what their America will become with Trump in the White House. The commenter wrote:

One of the primary effects the Trump phenomenon has had on the political discourse is to normalize proud ignorance in public. This deeply misinformed contingent is always there, but Trump has given them the confidence to speak their minds.

As Mr. Cohen noted, that confidence produced a decidedly dangerous insight into how close those deeply misinformed Trump supporters are to acting on their deep-seated hate and it leaves one wondering how long before they stop the stupid talk and start shooting. It is important to note that none of the hate being espoused today began with Trump, and it is not something he created, But he did take advantage of it after American citizens elected an African American man as their President. It is also noteworthy that the simmering hate and resulting vitriol was not because Barack Obama won the presidency, it was always there for Republicans to tap into and Trump the Republican is no exception.

Some of the comments reported by Dan Cohen are typical of a certain kind of American that almost always includes armed militias, evangelical zealots, and white supremacists; what some would call the typical rank-and-file Republican. Those kind of Americans were ripe for incitement to express their hate to a reporter and only white Christians were exempt. For dogs sake, even Senator John McCain was branded as a communist in his home state by conservatives that almost assuredly voted for him in the November election. Now they are angry that McCain is not in thrall of the Trump.

One of the rallys participants, a Vietnam-era veteran, summed up the attitude that the crowd expressed toward anyone they considered their enemy and condensed them all into the Democratic Party; a segment of the American people that the Trumps real Americans need to wipe out.

The Democratic Party is the socialist party in the United States because they are anti-Americans, theyre not pro-Americans. Theyre liars and misleaders, and they want to wipe us out. And we need to wipe them out.

Now it may seem that this is just an isolated group of angry, hateful, stupid people talking, but talk turns into action and since the election the action has become more frequent and more deadly. In fact, one of the three separate white male terrorists arrested during a six-day period a couple of weeks ago railed on his fellow real American white supremacists for being all talk and never taking action. Fortunately he was arrested before he could launch an attack on non-white people. Remember, there have been several shootings and attacks on minorities and vandalism targeting Jews and Muslims since the election; often accompanied by references to the Trumps presidency and calls to get out of my America.

This author has made a few decades worth of trips around the Sun and observed some relatively tense moments in the nations history during those orbits. However, the rancor and threats of violence against other American citizens coming rapid fire from one specific group is unprecedented and terrifying. It is true that there isnt much common ground for conservatives and liberals to meet on, seldom has been, but the level of abject hate leading to calls for a liberal genocide is beyond partisan politics. It is a clarion call to exterminate any group that may possibly align with non-conservatives and as it was throughout Barack Obamas tenure in the White House, Republicans have been silent because they are terrified of offending their supporters or criticizing their expressions of intense hate.

The accusations from Republican voters that Senator John McCain is a communist informs that it isnt just liberals, Jews, Muslims and Mexicans Trumps people want to exterminate, it is anyone who fails to meet the requirements to be a Trump follower; a white Christian raging with hate and stupid enough to express that hate in public.
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Imagine you have a small business that is in direct competition with a business owned by the President of the United States. Its an unprecedented reality for Khalid Pitts and Diane Gross, who own Cork Wine bar in DC and are suing Donald Trump over what they say are unfair business practices.

We already know the Constitution prohibits the president from receiving benefits, be it gifts or money, from foreign governments. We also know that every word the president utters (or tweets) can impact policy in other countries and influence the stock market.

We also know that foreign governments hoping to influence the president stayed at his DC hotel  one reason ethics experts said he should sell the hotel. Instead, Trump announced that his sons would run the hotel. Still, Donald Trump has a controlling interest in the hotel and he has all the influence that comes with being president.

On Wednesday, Cork Wine bar sued Trump and his DC hotel for unfair business practices. When the hotel opened on September 12, it was just another competitor. Following the election that changed because many organizations and individuals, including citizens of nations other than the United States, substantially increased their use of the Hotel and its various facilities to the detriment of Cork.

Its a fact that diplomats are staying at the hotel to influence Trump, as reflected in a Washington Post article, back in November.

Why wouldnt I stay at his hotel blocks from the White House, so I can tell the new president, I love your new hotel! Isnt it rude to come to his city and say, I am staying at your competitor?  said one Asian diplomat.

It stands to reason that others hoping to influence the President and the government are applying the same logic. However, this is not where the allegation of unfair business practices ends. The plaintiffs go on to say,

The effects of that unfair advantage are magnified greatly by marketing activities of the Hotels officers and employees and the similar activities of defendant Trump, his family, and the White House staff and/or advisors,

The couple says they have lost business to Trumps DC hotel since the election. Thats what is key. There was no demonstrable loss of income when Trump was a candidate. Only when he started using the presidency to promote the hotel.

That means there is a tangible measurable harm that can be tied to Trumps use of the presidency to promote his business interests, including Trump International Hotel. Since Trump is the first president to refuse to divest from his business holdings, we are in uncharted legal territory.

We already know that since the election, Trump (and senior staff) used the presidency to promote Trump International Hotel by holding press conference/infomercials there. We know Trump used the presidency to give an unparalleled advantage to daughter Ivankas business interests by scolding Nordstom via Twitter. We also know from Melania Trumps libel suit that the alleged libel prevented her from cashing in on being first lady.

Common sense suggests that Trump has used the presidency to have a competitive edge over business competitors. Common sense suggests that this is an unfair business practice. There is reason to believe the court could see it that way too.

Its clear from Trumps previous conduct that he is not above using the presidency to benefit his and his familys business interests. According to ethics experts, it is unethical. Common sense, combined with the facts suggest it is also an unfair business practice. After all, how does a small business compete with a president and his staff who can get advertising worth millions of dollars for free by holding press conferences at Trump International Hotel?

While this is about business practices, it isnt about money. The lawyers representing Cork are working on this case pro bono. For their part, the plaintiffs are not seeking a financial remedy. Rather, they want a court order to stop the unfair competition. Their lawyers say this can be accomplished by closing the hotel and its restaurants for the period that Trump is president. Trump and his family can fully divest their interests or Trump could resign.

Naturally, the Trump family is dismissive. According to Eric Trump, Its people who have nothing better to do, so they harass and they harass and the [court] will throw it outIts ridiculous.

What is ridiculous and offensive is a first family that believes it is entitled to cash in on the presidency. Its also ridiculous to suggest there is nothing wrong with using the presidency to promote the Trump familys businesses. Ultimately, its up to the court to decide if doing so amounts to an unfair business practice under the law.
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Rep. Bill Flores (R-TX) fell apart while MSNBCs Kate Snow was questioning him on what would happen if someone got sick while on the Republican Obamacare replacement plan. His answers revealed that folks would be screwed.

Video:

Snow asked the congressman from Texas what would happen to a woman if she got pregnant, but didnt buy maternal coverage on Trumpcare?

Flores answered, Well, what we hope to do is give you an option where you could buy the enhanced plan. Now, you would have to pay a surcharge for that because you got in after the pregnancy occurred, so wed like to do that. The other thing we could offer is that maybe depending on the income level maybe they could get on to the expanded Medicaid coverage during the first couple of years of this, after that they cant, so there could be some options that we could use.

Snow asked what would happen if somebody got cancer. Flores answered, What we dont want to do is have a wild wild west when it comes to coverage, so were going to turn this back to the states, and the states are going to come up with different options for people. I mean this is more age related than in terms of saying Im going to buy a policy that doesnt have cancer coverage. Im going to buy a policy that doesnt cover tonsillectomies things like that. What we would like to see the states do is say ok, heres your plan that does this is you are in the 50-60 age band for instance, or if you are in the 40-50 age band, you can buy a certain kind of coverage.

What Flores was admitting was sick people are going to be left with few options under Trumpcare. You wont be able to go on Medicaid, because after the first two years, Medicaid is going to be cut. The only option for a person who gets sick will be to get into an expensive high-risk pool that will limit their coverage.

Rep. Flores also admitted that Republicans are going to be raising prices and rationing care. The point designing policies and limiting what people can buy based on age is to give older individuals less health care.

The driving rationale behind this plan is that costs will be kept down by giving sick and older people less coverage at a higher price.

If you are a woman and you experience an unexpected pregnancy, youre out of luck unless you have a big pile of money to buy the care you and your baby will need. If you get sick, youre also out of luck, because Trumpcare isnt going to expand to cover you.

Rep. Flores was making it up on the fly, and as the questions got harder, he admitted what no Republican wants to say.

Trumpcare is a terrible deal for every American.
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The American Civil Liberties Union is trying to channel the surge of anti-Trump energy with a first-ever resistance training planned for Saturday, which weeks to help newly motivated progressives take on the dangerous policies of Donald Trump.

The event is called PeoplePower and will live stream from Miami and be seen by thousands of local organizations across the country.

March 11: Go to a #PeoplePower watch party to watch a livestream of ACLUs first Resistance Training. https://t.co/p1cJe0kpa0 pic.twitter.com/V5RnzpBn0t  ACLU National (@ACLU) March 4, 2017

According to Reuters, the training will focus on issues that have been front-and-center during the early weeks of the Trump administration, like immigration, freedom of speech and reproductive rights. The new White House has already set the country back in each of those areas, from enacting a Muslim ban, limiting access to the press, and supporting a health care bill that defunds Planned Parenthood.

On Saturdays edition of AM Joy, Padma Lakshmi, who will give a presentation during the live stream, described the first weeks of the Trump administration as an emergency and said the training is a chance for people to fight back.

She said, There is an emergency going on and I dont know what its going to take for people to say, You know what, enough is enough.'

As Reuters also points out, the resistance training is a shift from the legal tactics the ACLU normally focuses on, but the groups executive director says roughly 135,000 have already signed up. Just since Trumps election, ACLU has seen its membership triple.

Clearly, progressives across the country are more motivated now than they have been in a long time. If Trump wants to push dangerous policies that fly in the face of American democracy, hell first have to get past a united and empowered opposition.
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As Donald Trump repeatedly spews the bogus deep state claim that Obama administration holdovers are secretly trying to bring down the new White House, one former ethics lawyer under George W. Bush is saying its the new administration that appears to be behind a covert operation to undermine the United States.

In an interview on CNN on Friday night, Bush ethics lawyer Richard Painter said the current situation in the White House is complete chaos and says he is worried that the White House has KGB agents running around the West Wing.

Video:

Painter said:

It makes no sense to run a government this way and allow foreign agents into the government and have the president not even know  say youre draining the swamp and yet you bring in people who have close ties to the Russians and other countries as well and on the payroll of the Turkish government  This is a completely chaotic situation, and then Gen. Flynn lied about his contacts with the Russians, lied to the vice president, and weve had the attorney general in testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee say he did not contact the Russians when he had contacts with the Russians. People are not being honest about their foreign contacts, and talk about this deep state theory as if there are somehow Obama moles in the government undermining the Trump administration  Im more worried about KGB agents running around the West Wing or the National Security Council.

Painters comments come in the midst of continued investigations into Russias ties to the Trump administration and as recent reports say that Michael Flynn was a paid foreign agent working for a Turkish firm during the campaign.

Once again, Trump and his team deny having any knowledge of such work by Flynn, even though Flynns lawyers informed the transition team of his work before Trump was sworn in.

All of this raises another important question: Is there anything this White House actually does know or are they simply playing dumb to cover up a massive scandal?
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We have arrived at that surreal moment when a presidential candidate from our last election, a Republican who ran as an independent against an oligarch who ran as a Republican, asks his fellow conservatives a question that until this past year would have been a no-brainer.

We all saw the Trump supporters and their Russian flags at CPAC.

So it is not with tongue in cheek that pointing to the photo above of Rocky Balboa facing down Russian titan Drago in 1985s Rocky IV, Evan McMullin asks,

A blink test for former conservatives: who do you support in this fight? pic.twitter.com/nsvS6AZ9il  Evan McMullin (@Evan_McMullin) March 11, 2017

There is some irony in the fact that Donald Trump offered Sylvester Stallone the chairmanship of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). But Stallone already passed the blink test when he said,

I love Donald Trump. Hes a great Dickensian character. You know what I mean? There are certain people like Arnold, Babe Ruth, that are bigger than life. But I dont know how that translates [laughs] to running the world.

We just witnessed the president of the United State fire wholesale 46 U.S. attorneys for fear that President Obama is out to get him.

A president who has labeled the press the opposition party and enemies of the American people.

A president who claims our own intelligence community, the so-called Deep State is his enemy.

And that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, who hacked the U.S. elections on Trumps behalf is his friend.

It seems elementary math that if Putin is Trumps friend and that our own press and intelligence community are his enemies, then Trump is not by any measure an American president.

Rob Reiner tweeted last night,

DT is the most corrupt POTUS in my lifetime. Don't let a soulless pathological liar numb you with his mountain of lies. Democracy at stake.  Rob Reiner (@robreiner) March 11, 2017

The scale of Trumps corruption by itself ought to see Donald Trump impeached and removed from office. But the Russian scandal only gets deeper and deeper, as George Takei noted:

Trump advisor Stone tweeted about the Podesta hack BEFORE it happened. Now he admits DMing with the actual DNC hacker. Coincidence? Please. https://t.co/UwL9yKjvbA  George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) March 10, 2017

For eight years, Republicans dug deep to invent scandals about President Barack Obama. None of them were true, from his birthplace in Kenya to his Islamic beliefs, let alone his status as Antichrist. Now, faced with very real scandals about Donald Trump, many of these same men and women want to forget the whole thing and move on.

And not only the GOP and Trumps state news, Fox News, but the press. As Media Matters Eric Boehlert observes , no doubt with some disbelief,

[W]eird. more scribes warning journalists to go slow on the Russia storywhere were all those Go Slow warnings re: Hillary emails?

Because even being an agent of a hostile foreign power isnt enough to deter them from the realization of the holy grail of the conservative agenda: tax breaks for the rich and the servitude of the middle class with a little theocracy on the side.

Theyve been aiming for this since Goldwaters defeat in 1964. If you think a little treason will deter them now, youre mistaken. If Vladimir Putin offered them all this on a platter, theyd vote for him. In fact, they did vote for him.

And they are reaffirming their vote before our eyes.
Charleston, SC (29403)

Today

Plentiful sunshine. Near record high temperatures. High 81F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear early, then a few clouds later on. Low around 65F. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 mph.
With fall in the air, cyclamen start peeking through the leaf litter, giving the woodland garden a splash of color when most plants have finished blooming. As those pink, white or magenta blooms unfurl and appear, it is a memorable sight to see. Read moreFall charmers and winter wonders
The Nexx Level Sports Center, planned to be built in Irmo, would host major sports tournaments weekly, and is projected to bring $51 million in spending to the area in the first five years, if developers can line up the financial support needed to build it. Read moreProposed Columbia area sports complex seeking financial commitments from county, state
The oft-told story of a frog perishing in a pot as the water slowly warms and then cooks him is not actually based in fact; the metaphor persists because it describes something that is true: We are less aware of change that occurs gradually than when it happens all at once. Read moreEditorial: Referendums based on slow evolution: Berkeley, Dorchester aren't so rural anymore
A Rochester man has been convicted of third-degree murder for the role he played in the 2015 overdose of a 35-year-old man.

Judge Kathy Wallace found Darnell McDaniels, 54, guilty Wednesday in Olmsted County District Court. Sentencing for McDaniels  who is already in prison on a separate drug overdose case  hasn't been set.

The charge comes in connection with the death of Daniel Paul Kean, who overdosed on heroin two years ago. McDaniels sold the heroin to Kean.

The case began at 5:53 p.m. Jan. 22, 2015, when officers were sent to a medical call at the Reza House, 1623 Fourth St. NW.

Kean had been found unresponsive by his roommate; attempts to resuscitate him failed. Police found a spoon with heroin still in it, as well as a hypodermic needle. The roommate said he hadn't seen any evidence of heroin use until he called law enforcement.

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Five days later, the roommate was arrested on an unrelated warrant; during an interview, he said a man he knew as "Big" had come to the house not long before the overdose. Officers knew McDaniels was known by the street name "Big."

Investigators obtained surveillance video from the halfway/recovery house, which showed the following sequence of events:

McDaniels arrived at the house at 4:03 p.m. and went directly to the common bathroom of the residence. Seconds later, he came out of the bathroom and walked into the room Kean and his roommate shared.

Two minutes later, McDaniels left the halfway house.

Kean "staggered" out of his room a couple of minutes later, the complaint says, went into the bathroom for about a minute, then returned to his room.

It was six minutes from the time McDaniels  now gone  first arrived at the residence.

At 5:39  about 90 minutes after McDaniels' arrival, the video shows Kean's roommate leave the room and bring two other residents back into it.

Police arrived on the scene at 5:46 p.m.; Kean is already dead.

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On March 2, 2015, the final toxicology results of his autopsy identified the cause of death as acute heroin and ethanol intoxication.

On April 12, 2015, authorities interviewed McDaniels, who acknowledged being at the Reza House and previously selling heroin to Kean, but denied any transaction that day. He claimed Kean asked him for heroin that day, but McDaniels was "out of product," court documents say.

He told investigators Kean was getting ready to shoot up heroin when he arrived but didn't see Kean use it.

McDaniels said he was at the house to speak to someone about getting a room there.

The director of Reza House, however, said McDaniels had been denied admission a week before  and was told not to come back.

The roommate was interviewed again the day after McDaniels' statement. He repeated he hadn't seen any heroin paraphernalia in the room before McDaniels' visit but did see Kean and McDaniels shake hands, possibly indicating what law enforcement calls a hand-to-hand transaction.

Less than three months after Kean's death, McDaniels sold heroin to someone who overdosed in an apartment building at 625 First St. SW.

The victim survived, but McDaniels was charged with third-degree controlled substance crime and sentenced a year later to 49 months in prison.

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On Feb. 29, 2016, while out on bond for the First Street case, McDaniels was present at 16 Seventh Ave. NW when another person overdosed on heroin. He claimed he had "no idea" where the victim got the heroin, and was never charged in the case.

The victim survived the incident.
It's a question without a real answer, and Mark Ostrem knows it.

How many convicted sex offenders live in Minnesota without having to be a part of the predatory offender registry?

"More than you can imagine," the Olmsted County attorney said, but because there's no tracking system, there's no way to pinpoint the number.

In other words, while there are 17,620 current offenders with active registrations in Minnesota  all but 1,294 of them compliant  there are also potentially many more past offenders in the state who are not registered and at risk to reoffend.

Cannon Falls resident Joel Hempel Sr. was allowed to play the role of Santa Claus in a holiday parade; neither a Google search before the event nor a quick scan of the state's public court records would have revealed information about his 1989 conviction for second-degree criminal sexual assault.

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The registry wasn't enacted until 1991, allowing Hempel to avoid the myriad rules and regulations that strictly limit what a registrant can do  things like playing Santa.

"To the extent that records are now so accessible, it's easy to find records of current events," Ostrem said, but cases like Hempel's "predate the internet and predate our electronic search tools.

"Most (older court records) were just never put in" the automated system, he explained, "and if it's expired from the registration  or he never had to register  unless you know what you're looking for and can go pawing around in the files, you'll probably have to go up to the (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension). That's the only place you're probably going to be able to find it."

Indeed, staff at the Goodhue County Courthouse had to do a dedicated search to track down the original documents pertaining to Hempel's case. It was not entered in the county's electronic filing system: It was simply too old, and the transfer to electronic files has to stop somewhere, obviously.

The fact that it was still there at all was hardly a given.

"At some point we do destroy records," Ostrem said. "Most courts and law enforcement destroy them after about 10 years."

There's a reason for that, and it has everything to do with due process.

"Defense attorneys would say, 'he did his time, he served out whatever sentence was pronounced, his rights have been restored, that file is closed, you shouldn't be able to continue punishing him.'

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"As a former defense attorney, I can appreciate that," Ostrem said, but that doesn't make it any easier when he hears stories like Hempel's.

"The scary thing is, that's probably largely the behavior that got him into trouble to begin with, out there grooming them," the attorney said.

Hempel's victim, Heather Oldeen, agrees. She was 11 when Hempel  then 28  sexually assaulted her over the Fourth of July weekend in 1988.

He groomed her, said Oldeen; often-neglected, she was thrilled with the attention he gave her prior to the abuse.

The fact that Hempel spent so many years largely unchecked haunts her. Seeing him as Santa Claus prompted her to begin a change.org petition , which suggests that all convicted offenders be required to register, no matter when their offense.

She's made the legal system work for her in a different way, by taking advantage of the Minnesota Child Victims Act. A temporary law that allowed victims of child sexual abuse to file a civil action against their abuser, it provided an opportunity for Oldeen to fight back.

She sued Hempel in Goodhue County; last month, Judge Lawrence Clark awarded her damages of $1.55 million, $900,000 of which was for physical and emotional injury.

Among her evidence: A handwritten letter from Hempel that said in part, "...what I did in 1988 was wrong. I wish I could change things but I can't. I'm sorry. I live with this every day, I'm not happy for what I did..."

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He admitted in open court that he had written and signed the letter, saying, "there's nothing I can do about it. I can't change nothing."

Hempel didn't deny any of the allegations, he told Clark.

Still, he's not required to register as a predatory offender.

"The frustrating thing is, sometimes the best we can do just isn't quite good enough," Ostrem said. "As parents, we always think someone has 'vetted' this person, and they should be safe."

That's the world we live in today, said Rochester Police Chief Roger Peterson.

"It can't all be about being scared, but the safety aspect of protecting your kids does start with talking to your kids, teaching them to avoid circumstances," he said.

"They don't need to be terrified, but they need to know the fundamental things: If you don't feel safe in a situation, if you don't feel something is right, get out of it."

That goes for adults, too, Peterson said, who shouldn't take anything for granted.

In addition to the "stranger danger" lessons, kids should know that "if somebody's telling them not to talk about something, then something's wrong," he said.
Kevin Tyrone Williams, 42, a Level 3 predatory offender, was released from prison in July and moved to a halfway house on Campus Drive Southeast in Rochester.

He moved Feb. 27 to the 3800 block of U.S. Highway 14 East; a notification meeting for the community is set for 6 p.m. Monday at Victory Baptist Church, 606 36th Ave. SE in Rochester.

Representatives from the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office, the Dodge-Fillmore-Olmsted County Community Corrections Department and the Minnesota Department of Corrections will be present to explain the circumstances surrounding his release.

Williams is not wanted by law enforcement, and has served the sentence imposed on him by the court. The meeting is informational only.

He has a history of sexual contact, including penetration, with adult females he knows. He has used a weapon, force and threats to gain compliance, his record shows, and has broken into a residence to gain access.

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Williams is black, 6 feet tall, weighs 208 pounds and has black hair and brown eyes. He was convicted in 2006 and sentenced to 33 months in prison.

Additional information on Williams or any other Level 3 predatory offender in Minnesota can be found by visiting https://coms.doc.state.mn.us/Level3/Search.asp.
"I don't want people to feel sorry for me," Heather Oldeen said. "People have had it worse."

Kind of hard to imagine that.

The youngest of four sisters, Oldeen's childhood was traumatic  even before her days-long sexual assault by a family friend when she was 11.

'We were completely neglected'

Amy Oldeen McEwen, the second oldest, called their childhood "a dog-eat-dog world. We had no nobody. We had no guidance. We literally had no food, at times we had no furniture and usually slept on cheap pool float toys; we'd do anything for a bar of soap."

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Their mother, whom the sisters say was a drug addict, left the girls alone for extended periods of time, McEwen said.

"If she left on Friday, we knew we wouldn't see her for at least three days," she said. "We were never monitored, we were just completely neglected."

All four of them were physically or sexually assaulted as children, either by family or "friends," McEwen said.

"I tracked down the social worker from my youth who agreed to talk with me," she said. "I asked him specifically why we were never taken (out of the home), why stuff wasn't done. (Our mother) was just always on the run from the law" and child protective services, the man told her.

The oldest sibling has been in and out of prison for 20 years; McEwen was on her own by age 15, living with a man who was 10 years older. She went through drug treatment at 21; after a struggle with alcohol, she's been sober for five years.

Another sister left at 13, moving out of state with a 19-year-old, McEwen said, "and nobody ever looked for her. Not one police report was filed.

"We've all had a lot of issues," she said about herself and her sisters. "Our mother disconnected from all of us  she hasn't called me in 20 years. We've all chosen to cope in different ways."

Criminal histories

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For Oldeen, who didn't tell anyone about the 1988 assault by Joel Hempel Sr., it was behavioral.

She was sent to a foster home in Welch, where she was finally able to talk about the trauma. Her foster parents reported it to authorities, and Hempel was charged in 1989 with three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct .

He pleaded guilty to an amended count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and received a stayed prison term. Hempel violated his probation in 1999 and was sent to prison for two years, but hasn't picked up any new criminal charges since his release in 2002.

The same can't be said for Oldeen, whose first brush with the law occurred in 1995.

She began to drink and use marijuana, despite her vow that "I was never going to do that, because I know what it does."

Oldeen's drug use and related crimes escalated  "I shouldn't have gotten as many chances as I did," she says now  until April 2012, when she was sent to prison.

She served just under three years, and was released in December 2014.

A probation violation in March 2015 landed her in jail for two months; a felony charge of aiding and abetting in a counterfeit case with a former boyfriend sent her back to prison until January 2016.

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Upon release, Oldeen went to treatment; she was arrested with "an empty meth pipe" in March 2016 and went back to prison until Oct. 10.

"This is the longest I've made it (clean)," she said last week. "It's the most honest I've been," with herself and others.

'I've never dealt with it'

Oldeen now realizes the trauma of her childhood likely played a role in her chaotic adulthood.

She received very little therapy when the abuse was discovered in 1989; self-medicating with drugs and alcohol seemed to be the answer.

"I don't think anyone ever realizes the extent of the damage," Oldeen said. "I could never talk about it. I never got to deal with it, and it ruined my whole life. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of seeing my kids."

She has four, ranging in age from 20 to 9.

McEwen has raised the two oldest; the two youngest have been together in a foster family most of their lives.

"I cut off all contact with her 17 years ago, when I took her children," McEwen said of her sister. "I made a decision to keep those children safe and give them a home life they could never have there, and that meant keeping both parents out of their lives."

The two reconnected in December, when Oldeen approached McEwen to find out what she knew about the abuse by Hempel.

Though she was about 15 when Oldeen was assaulted, McEwen doesn't remember anything about it.

"It literally took her bringing me the police reports before I believed her. It's very clear (in the documents) they're talking about me, that I read something in her journal," McEwen said, "but I have no memory of knowing about it."

In fact, she added, "I don't have a lot of memories with Heather, but she really never stood a chance, you know? I just don't have a childhood memory, and the ones I have are really ugly."

Oldeen would agree.

"There were so many reports of neglect," she said, "and nobody did anything."

The sisters have learned adult relatives knew about their abuse, something that infuriates McEwen and just saddens Oldeen.

"My whole life is surreal," she said. "I get sick of using, and I've lost so much. I don't really know what else to do. I'm miserable and I'm lost and I feel like my life is falling apart, all while I'm trying to get better."

Trying to recover

Despite his criminal history of child sexual abuse, Hempel doesn't appear on the predatory offender registry, and never has. His conviction predates the registration requirement law that went into effect in 1991.

It means he can legally be wherever he wants, including around children. That upsets Oldeen, who first learned about it in November when Hempel played Santa Claus in a holiday parade in Cannon Falls.

Using the Minnesota Child Victims Act , which reopened the statute of limitations for childhood victims of criminal sexual conduct, Oldeen sued him civilly in Goodhue County District Court. In February, Judge Lawrence Clark awarded her $1.55 million for physical and emotional injury, loss of income, and future medical and psychological expenses.

Hempel didn't deny the abuse during the default hearing.

He didn't respond to requests for comment on this story.

Oldeen also created a change.org petition , suggesting that people convicted of certain sex offenses against children before the creation of the registry still be required to register.

She freely admits something else: She loved Hempel, and she wants to know why it happened.

"He was all I had," Oldeen said, recognizing how strange it sounds.

But to a girl who had nothing and no one, it wasn't just abuse, it was a betrayal. Prior to that weekend of rape, Oldeen had spent a lot of time with Hempel, his pregnant girlfriend and their toddler. It was the closest thing to a family she'd ever had.

As an adult working through the trauma, Oldeen knows he was grooming her, setting her up for the assault.

"He preyed on my family," she said. "I had no foundation (at home) of morals or decency  then that happened to me, and it compounded everything."

Moving forward

"Life is pretty exhausting," Oldeen said. "I've gone from (dealing with) drinking to drugs to anxiety. You have to make a conscious choice all day, every day, and it's exhausting."

She's in therapy, sees her probation officer multiple times a week and has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder .

McEwen hopes her sister can stay focused this time.

"I choose to not take (child sexual abuse) on as a cause, but if this is what keeps Heather on the straight and narrow ... and she can use it to better the world, then good," she said.

Oldeen, for her part, said she continues to feel like it was her fault. That's why the answer from Hempel is so important to her.

"Do I need it? Yes. Why? I don't know. I just do," she said. "Maybe because I was only 11.

"I know now it's nobody's fault but his, but I was blaming everyone else," Oldeen said. "It took me 40 years, it cost me my kids, it cost me everything to get to that point."

Her sister carries her own guilt.

"Heather deserves something good in her life, and she deserves to have her voice heard," McEwen said. "Clearly a lot of people heard it, and nobody did anything  including me."
It's been almost 30 years since Joel Hempel Sr. asked Heather Oldeen to babysit over the Fourth of July weekend in Cannon Falls.

The fair was in town, and Hempel worked as a carny; he had a pregnant girlfriend and a toddler.

Oldeen was happy to oblige. She liked him, and she loved his little boy.

But by the end of the long weekend, Hempel had sexually assaulted Oldeen multiple times.

She was 11.

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The police report came nearly a year later; three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct were filed.

Hempel pleaded guilty in 1989 to an amended charge of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and received a five-year prison term, stayed for 10 years.

He violated the terms of his probation by living with a woman who had small children, which activated his stayed prison term. He was given credit for the five months he'd spent in jail when he was first arrested, and spent just two years in prison before his release in 2002.

Oldeen, who never saw Hempel after that dreadful weekend, believed he'd never have the opportunity to hurt another child, thanks to the conviction in her own case.

Fast forward to November of last year, when Oldeen visited Cannon Falls during the kickoff to the holiday season, which featured a parade.

On one of the floats? Hempel  dressed as Santa Claus.

That was it for Oldeen, who was horrified that her abuser not only had access to children, he was practically a magnet.

But don't blame the group that asked Hempel to play the role, because the members would have had to do some serious digging to know about his past.

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Hempel was convicted in 1989, the same year Jacob Wetterling was abducted from a country road near St. Cloud. As a result of that kidnapping, the Minnesota Legislature created the sex offender registry in 1991.

The law, which was renamed the Predatory Offender Registration law in 1993, requires convicted sex offenders to register their addresses with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for at least 10 years following their release from prison. Some offenses require lifetime registration.

Because he was convicted before the registry became law, Hempel has never had to register.

A quick Google search in November wouldn't have revealed anything about his conviction, either.

Just one public site , freebackgroundcheck.org, provided his name and criminal history. Even that, though, gave very little information.

So how do you know if your neighbor or co-worker  or that friendly Santa Claus  has a history of sexual assault?

Oldeen's change.org petition suggesting that all convicted offenders be required to register, no matter when their offense, is unlikely to be effective, experts say.

"Retroactivity almost never happens," said Olmsted County Attorney Mark Ostrem, because it's "a huge constitutional rights and due process issue.

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"When we put people on the registry now, we tell them up front that they'll be on the registry," he said. "But this person was never told back in 1989 that he'd be subject to registration, and that could have impacted whether he plead guilty or went to trial or what evidence was presented. All we can do is move forward."

The best advice is old advice: Talk to your kids. Listen to your kids. Believe your kids.
Rochester's Forestry Division is asking property owners with ash trees to be aware city staff is inspecting their trees for signs of emerald ash borer infestation.

City ordinance mandates the park department deal with infested trees on both public and private land within city limits to lessen the impact of the invasive ash borer, which kills trees when larvae tunnel under a tree's bark.

Rochester adopted a plan for dealing with the emerald ash borer last year, noting an estimated 15 percent of all the trees in the city are ash trees. The plan calls for removing infected trees, suppressing the insects, slowing infestation and saving trees when possible.

The first step of the plan is surveying the estimated 12,400 ash trees in the city.

On Tuesday, the Rochester Park Board approved three contracts, totaling $46,255, to remove 105 infested ash trees on public property.

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In preparing the 2017 city budget, the Rochester City Council approved hiring a full-time staff member and setting aside $141,000 to address emerald ash borer concerns this year. The original park department request was for $175,000 and a new employee.
As the Rochester Charter Commission waits to hear the results of an April 3 public hearing on proposed home-rule charter changes regarding the description of city administrator duties, members will discuss potential changes for city council members next week.

The Charter Commission meets at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday in room 104 of City Hall, 201 Fourth St. SE.

The proposed meeting agenda includes the question: "Should the charter be used to lessen the burden on council members by increasing the number of wards, providing support staff, etc?"

The city charter offers basic guidelines for how local government operates, and the commission can suggest changes, which require either unanimous city council approval or a successful public ballot.

During its January meeting , the commission invited city administrator Stevan Kvenvold to discuss the duties of his position, which he has filled since 1979 and will leave this year. During that discussion, Kvenvold also offered insights to other potential charter changes, including ward numbers and council support staff.

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He said adding wards is unlikely to reduce the burden on council members and suggested any added support staff should be centralized, rather than individualized for council members.

When talking about the number of council wards, Kvenvold points to Wisconsin and other areas where city councils and county boards have members in the double digits.

"They have a situation where they have so many it becomes difficult to have an effective, functioning government, and they have to subdivide themselves into committees to govern certain parts of the organization," he said Friday, noting it sets up groups of elected officials who make decisions for the whole body.

As a result, he said it could limit representation on some issues without reducing council members' duties in general.

In a Feb. 25 commentary in the Post Bulletin, council member Nick Campion indicated he sees advantages to creating smaller wards, noting he represents slightly more than 19,000 people in Ward 3.

Friday, he said the goal isn't about reducing burden on council members. Rather, he said improving responsiveness of local government should be the goal.

"Adding additional wards and council members increases responsiveness and improves the connectedness between residents and their local government," he said.

In addition to the question regarding options for council wards and staffing, the Charter Commission is slated to discuss whether members see a need to add a process for initiatives and referendums to the city charter.
AUSTIN  Vision 2020 raised more than $1 million to fund its projects in 2016. Since 2012, the group has raised more than $24 million, according to Vision 2020 Director Greg Siems.

Formed in 2011, Vision 2020 is a community initiative aimed at making Austin a better place. Hundreds of volunteers and dozens of committees work every year to meet the organization's goals, including the creation of a new community recreation center, fostering a business-friendly environment, and increasing community pride.

Siems said the volunteers make Vision 2020 what it is.

"They're the folks working with the time and the focus to make our community a better place," he said.

Siems took over as director of Vision 2020 in November 2015 and has spent the past year and a half learning about Austin and the needs of its citizens.

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"We have so many great people who are working to make this town a better place."

Siems noted three success stories from the previous year, as well as some other notable accomplishments.

1. The Spam Museum

The museum moved into its new 14,000-square-foot location at 101 Third Ave. NE on April 22. Vision 2020s downtown committee has advocated and lobbied for the project since its inception.

Since its grand opening, the museum has seen more than 100,000 visitors from all over the world.

"You can't really replicate that with any other attractions," Siems said. "It always seems to be busy whenever the museum is open. More folks are stopping to eat at our local restaurants or shopping at local businesses. It's been a great thing."

Honorable mentions

 The Destination Downtown committee met with the city to make aesthetic improvements downtown, including adding parking lot signs and removing several old information kiosks.

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 Volunteers assisted in organizing "Harvest Fest" in September  along with Summer Kickoff and Fall Fest  that brought more than 2,000 people to downtown Austin.

 The Business Friendly Environment Committee helped in the development of a 5-year property tax abatement program for businesses to create more jobs. The Small Business Development Center started offering expanded hours of free counseling for entrepreneurs.

 Hy-Vee is opening a new store at the old Oak Park Mall site. This was made possible with a $3.6 million Hormel Foundation grant in 2015 to help Austin purchase the site.

 Community Pride and Spirit volunteers created hundreds of Valentine's cards to deliver to law enforcement and senior citizens. The Community Home Improvement Program finished its fourth year helping homeowners in need. More than 60 properties were fixed by Habitat for Humanity.

 Groundwork was done to create an online database of volunteers to match local opportunities with interested community members. Also, a new food waste recovery initiative was begun to help use leftovers from restaurants and grocery stores at the Salvation Army.

 Gateway to Austin volunteers secured funding for enhancements to the 11th Drive Northeast bridge over Interstate 90. It is the first bridge to be replaced using standards set by the Austin Visual Quality Manual. This means wider sidewalks, improved lighting and guardrails, and new landscaping.

2. Community recreation center

After some tense debate, the Austin City Council and the YMCA came together to create a $35 million community recreation center with Austin Utilities.

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The city and the YMCA reached an impasse over the first proposed lease agreement. Austin wanted affordable access for taxpayers, while the Y wanted to maintain membership and budget. There were also concerns of preserving the historic municipal plant site.

Eventually, all the pieces fell into place. The city council approved the lease agreement in a 5-2 vote on Oct. 17.

"The rec center needed approval at different levels, and so we really couldn't move forward until the pieces were in place," Siems said. "It all worked out and we're moving forward."

Vision 2020 is assisting with a $5 million fundraising campaign, which coincides with the Hormel Foundation's $25 million grant, which is the biggest gift in foundation history.

Honorable mentions

 Waterways volunteers helped secure $130,000 in grants through the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Hormel Foundation to acquire flood-prone land near Ramsey Mill Pond. The area will be redeveloped to create more recreational opportunities.

 Volunteers lobbied elected officials at the state for bonding dollars for the Ramsey Mill Pond project and improvements for the Fourth Avenue Northeast dam. They also received $2,000 from the Austin Area Foundation to create a new canoe-kayak launch site for the Cedar River State Water Trail.

 The Packer Dome at Wescott Field finished its first successful season and reopened again for team practices and track users in November.

3. Red Bike program

The free Red Bike Program aims to encourage healthy living and reduce traffic congestion by providing a free transportation option for residents. The program completed its 2016 season with 30 bikes used.

"The folks involved are really excited to expand on it in 2017," Siems said. "Just having the year of experience under our belt, we still have a lot of donated bikes that we can fix up and put out for folks to use."

Honorable mentions

 Gateway to Austin volunteers helped with installing way-finding signage around town.

 Dozens of children and adults received low-cost helmets during the third annual Bike Safety Day

 The Biking and Walking Trails Committee secured a $100,000 grant from The Hormel Foundation to expand and improve Austin's new mountain biking trail. They also secured $60,000 from the city and The Hormel Foundation to extend a trail leading into the southwest edge of Todd Park.

Source:Vision 2020 progress report.
After a six-year tenure at Rochester Downtown Farmers Market , the market's manager David Kotsonas will be making a move to the St. Paul Farmers Market.

Kotsonas, who submitted his resignation this week, will head to St. Paul at the end of the month. During his time in Rochester, he's built a strong, community-focused market that's seen significant growth.

"David took us from a good farmers market, to a very integral part of Saturday the Rochester community," said Jim Syverson, current president of the market's board of directors on Friday.

When he started, Kotsonas said he loved the already-established market, which has been around since 1985, and "didn't want to change anything coming in." He was tasked with handling the market's business side, which included marketing, advertising, increasing sponsorships, recruiting vendors and community outreach.

Under his tenure, the market was voted No. 1 in the state in a 2014 Star Tribune "Best of Minnesota" reader's poll. He's taken the market from about 70 vendors, drawing a crowd of about 3,500 people, to more than 100 vendors that regularly pull in up to 6,000 people.

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Striking a balance between what the community wants and the needs of the vendors has been the goal, he said.

After a customer survey revealed people wanted to be able to purchase things like food and coffee while browsing the market, he pushed for concessions vendors. This required a little bit of convincing for the 100 vendors that had to vote on the idea for it to be approved.

"In a way, I kind of had 100 bosses," Kotsonas, said laughing.

The other major advancement he's made is with the "Market Bucks" program, which provides a dollar-for-dollar match to SNAP, or food stamps, recipients for produce at the market. This has helped local low-income families buy locally produced, healthier foods, he said.

The program has gone from matching about $3,000 a year, to about $25,000.

Kotsonas got the word out about the program through visiting English as a second language classes at the Hawthorne Education Center and partnering with the University of Minnesota Extension to teach groups about nutrition and what's available at the market.

Another big effort, which started in the last six months, is to create a non-profit as a separate, "fundraising engine and fiscal agent" for the market as it searches for a permanent location. Though that hasn't been finalized yet, it's something that will continue after he leaves.

The Rochester Downtown Farmers Market is a "growers only" market, which means vendors are only allowed to sell the produce they've grown themselves. Everything comes from within a 50-mile radius and "there's definitely pride in that," Kotsonas said, "because we're the real deal."

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"Keep the focus on the food and the grower because it's a great relationship that can be built between the community, or 'the eaters,' when they're buying straight from the person who grew it," he said.

The St. Paul Farmer's Market, where Kotsonas is heading, is the largest "growers only" market in the state. It's run by the St. Paul Grower's Association and has 18 different locations throughout the Twin Cities metro area.

"So it's going to be a really big challenge for me," he said. "It's a really big machine and I'm looking forward to it. You got to keep upping yourself and pushing to do more."

A sort of jack of all trades when it came to business sense, Kotsonas came to Rochester about nine years ago for a job opportunity. Before that, he'd run a record store in Portland and worked as a traveling musician for several decades, which was why he was skilled in low-budget promotion and putting on a good show. It was a natural fit.

Kotsonas said a big reason for the move to St. Paul is that his family is concentrated in the Twin Cities area.

What he'll miss most about Rochester, he said: "the people."

Syverson said more will be announced after the board of directors meeting next week, but "we're excited to find the person to fit our vision and goals for the Rochester Downtown Farmers Market and the community."

"It's a huge loss," said Lori Feyen, who has been a vendor with the market for 15 years and was on the board of directors when Kotsonas was hired. "He's taken us to another level."

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Feyen said Kotsonas was "even-keeled, genuine and easy to talk to," which made his easy to work with. She also noted he also worked well with advertisers and sponsors, and was "tenacious" with pulling in a Mayo Clinic sponsorship.

"We need to move quickly and find a replacement, so I just hope that we're able to do that," Feyen said. "I don't want to lose any of the momentum."

"He's wonderful, she added. "We're going to miss him terribly."
I have argued that social justice is a nonsensical term. Justice has always been understood in our tradition as justice for the individual, qua individual. When a person goes to court, either in a criminal or a civil case, our system strives to provide him with a result that is fair given what he has done or failed to do.

This is what we understand justice to be. Thus, when we say that justice should be blind, we mean, among other things, that it should be rendered without regard to a persons social status and without regard to the demands of any social agenda.

Social justice says essentially the opposite. Thus, there is no room for a concept with that name. The thing signified by social justice should be called something else  like socialism.

Environmental justice isnt nonsensical in the way social justice is. But if environmental policies are adjudged unjust not because they are unfair to individuals qua individuals, but because of their impact on groups, the concept becomes problematic.

The EPA has an Office of Environmental Justice. According to Roger Clegg, it targets environmental policies and practices that have a disparate impact on certain groups. As Clegg explains:

[T]his means that the government tells an agribusiness, for example, This pesticide that you are using is making children sick in a nearby neighborhood. Now, we know that you dont intend any racial discrimination, and we would be okay with children getting sick if the neighborhood were racially mixed, but the problem is that it is a heavily minority neighborhood. Therefore, you must stop.

(Emphasis added)

This isnt justice. If the business were deliberately targeting minority neighborhoods, that would be unjust because individuals would not be getting fair treatment. But when illegality depends on unintended racial outcomes, such that its okay if children get sick in a racially mixed neighborhood but not in a predominant African-American one, justice has been perverted.

We know, moreover, that when the EPA itself induces an environmental disaster, it will stiff the victims. Wheres the environmental justice in that?

I am happy to report, therefore, that the Trump administration has announced its intention to close the Office of Environmental Justice, and that the administrations proposed budget starts the job by making cuts in the offices budget and personnel. As a result, the long-time head of the office has announced his resignation.

The news isnt nearly as good as it sounds, however. Clegg notes that administration has also said it still supports the idea of environmental justice and that this work will be done elsewhere at EPA. Indeed, the EPA announced yesterday that it is launching an environmental justice investigation against the Hawaii Department of Agriculture and Agribusiness Development Corporation.

The demise of the Office of Environmental Justice looks like a way to save money, not a policy reversal. The Trump administration apparently intends to deliver environmental justice lite, just as it is now backing Obamacare lite.

To borrow the words of Guy de Maupassant, in the Trump administration things are never as good or as bad as one thinks.
The Associated Press is bidding to overtake the New York Times as the most biased news source in America. To perhaps a greater degree even than the Times and the Washington Post, the AP has set itself up as the opposition to the Trump administration. Often, its bias has to be seen to be believed. As with this story: Jobs report no longer phony, Trump says, now that its his.

The AP jumps straight into the fray, attacking the president:

President Donald Trump is embracing government numbers he once maligned as phony as he tries to take credit for the latest U.S. jobs report. The new administration on Friday promoted Labor Department statistics that show U.S. employers added 235,000 jobs in February. The unemployment rate dipped to 4.7 percent from 4.8 percent.

***

What a difference from last years presidential campaign, when Trump repeatedly assailed the reports legitimacy. Back then, candidate Trump denounced phony unemployment numbers he claimed had been invented to make the Democrats look good. Dont believe those phony numbers when you hear 4.9 and 5 percent unemployment. The numbers probably 28, 29, as high as 35, he said last February, on the day of the New Hampshire presidential primary. The 5 percent figure is one of the biggest hoaxes in modern politics, he said.

The AP is conflating two different statistics. Trump didnt say the jobs numbers are phony, he said the unemployment rate is more or less meaningless. He is right about that. The unemployment rate has become largely irrelevant, for two reasons. First, it doesnt distinguish between full-time and part-time work. Second, it simply leaves out those who have left the job market. There is no contradiction in pointing out the limits of that statistic, while being happy that more than 200,000 jobs are added to the economy.

The AP keeps battling:

During a speech at the Detroit Economic club last year, Trump pointed to figures that show one in five American households do not have a single member in the labor force. He failed to mention the one in five includes children, young people in school and senior citizens who are retired.

That doesnt even make sense. A household comprised entirely of children? Or young people in school? The AP reporter seems to have dashed this off without even thinking about what his sentence was supposed to mean.

The AP wants to make sure President Trump doesnt get any credit for the currently strengthening economy:

While business and consumer confidence have risen since the presidential election, economists also say its too soon for Trump to be taking credit for jobs. No new economic policies have yet been enacted, said Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the West. Instead, he pointed to an unusually mild winter that likely boosted hiring by construction firms.

Right. But, as many observers have pointed out, businesses are encouraged by the prospect of lower taxes and, especially, less irrational regulation. It makes perfect sense that some of them are hiring in anticipation of an improving business climate.

But dont tell that to the Associated Press.
Andrew Luger is the United States Attorney for Minnesota. Appointed by President Obama at the suggestion of one or the other of Minnesotas two Democratic Senators, he had no reason to think that his days in office would continue in the Trump administration. When I ran into him in the downtown Minneapolis skyway a few days after the election, I asked him if he knew what he was going to do next. He said he didnt. He didnt mention that President-elect Trump might seek his continued service, and it was obvious to me that Trump wouldnt.

Andy is a liberal Democrat and the position of United States Attorney is a plum appointment. Moreover, as I noted in the Star Tribune column Islam and Minnesota: Can we hear some straight talk for a change?, Luger is Exhibit B among the Minnesota public officials who are big into lecturing Minnesotans on the current wave of Islamophobia. (Governor Mark Dayton is Exhibit A.)

What is Islamphobia? Islamophobia is the entirely rational response of citizens concerned about the phenomenon that President Trump is pleased to call radical Islamic terrorism. Lugers office has successfully prosecuted local Somali devotees.

Among other things, Luger has enthusiastically promoted the Minnesota experiment in Countering Violent Extremism. The program goes under the name Building Community Resilience, another classic euphemism of the Obama era. When it came to combating terrorism, the Obama administration was never short of euphemisms.

Building Community Resilience is to funnel cash to programs supporting Minnesotas Somali community. The memorandum of understanding signed by Luger and Minnesota Somali community leaders reflects the wariness of Somali-Minnesotans. It stipulates that the program will not be used for surveillance purposes by any law enforcement agency or by any person working for or on behalf of any law enforcement agency.

According to Lugers office: Building Community Resilience includes a call for expanded youth programming, mentoring opportunities, higher education scholarships, new job opportunities and training, and increased engagement between religious leaders and Somali youth.

Call me crazy, as I wrote in the linked Star Tribune column, but Im going to go out on a limb and say we would be better off without Building Community Resilience.

Luger is a poor fit to serve as a United States Attorney under President Trump. He is nevertheless one of the 46 incumbent United States Attorneys who hadnt gotten around to submitting his resignation following the election and inauguration of Trump as president. Yesterday Luger submitted his resignation in response to the request of Attorney General Sessions.

The Star Tribune makes an anti-Trump story out of business as usual. Stephen Montemayor makes something out of nothing in Minnesotas U.S. Attorney resigns in sweep of Obmaa holdovers.

To make something out of nothing, Montemayor turns to Senator Klobuchar: Klobuchar said she will campaign for Luger to be renominated and has already spoken to Sessions and his deputy attorney general about Lugers work. His professionalism is so much bigger than any partisan decision, she said.

Thats very touching. Montemayor doesnt bother to note how little weight Klobuchars assessment should be given by Attorney General Sessions. Klobuchar was of course one of the Democratic Klowns who voted against Sessionss confirmation, as she did nine other of Trumps cabinet appointees.

That applies even more so to Senator Franken, to whom Montemayor also turns. Franken called Luger a dedicated public servant who has served the people of Minnesota with distinction and also vowed to strongly urge the new administration to renominate him to this post.

Yes, Frankens urging will go far with Sessions. Franken of course served as the leader of the Democratic opposition to Sessionss confirmation in the Judiciary Committee. Now Franken accuses Sessions of perjury.

For those who need to brush up on ancient history  Montemayor offers his readers no help  the New York Times has posted a useful tabulation of the votes of Senators on Trumps cabinet nominees.

Reading Montemayor quoting Klobuchar and Franken on Lugers resignation, I wonder. How stupid do they think we are? That question is addressed to Montemayor as well as Klobuchar and Franken.

Well, I could go on. Montemayor cites legal experts raising questions about the difficulties facing the office after Luger. How will they carry on?

Montemayor was apparently unable to find a single source worthy of quotation to support the offices transition to a Republican United States Attorney. Im going to go out on a limb one more time and say I dont think he tried very hard.

And dont even ask me about Tom Heffelfinger, one of the 93 United States Attorneys whose resignation President Clinton sought in 1993 (along with that of Sessions himself) and one of the eight whose resignation President Bush sought in his second term. Montemayor quotes Heffelfinger: This is not good.

Readers seeking an explanation for adults rather than a fairy tale for liberal children may want to turn to former Assistant United States Attorney Andrew McCarthy. Andy explains what is happening for intelligent readers in his weekly NRO column this morning. Quotable quote: It is only natural, then, that a president will want his power wielded by his own appointees, whom he trusts to carry out his policy program. And it thus follows that, when there is a transition between administrations that see the world, and the Justice Departments role in it, as differently as the Obama and Trump administrations, there will be sweeping turnover, carried out rapidly. That is as it should be.
I wrote here about how congressional Republicans are subscribing to the view that key parts of Obamacare cannot be repealed through reconciliation  i.e., without 60 votes. This view holds that the GOP cannot repeal the price-hiking, competition-destroying regulations that form the core of Obamacare because the parliamentarian, pursuant to the Byrd Rule, wont allow such repeal through the budget reconciliation process.

I took issue with that view. First, the parliamentarian is not empowered to veto legislation. She can make rulings, but they can be overturned by a simple majority vote.

Second, there would be a sound argument for overturning a ruling that the Obamacare regulations cant be repealed through reconciliation. The regs in question are part of a single, integrated Obamacare scheme. It is the scheme, not each and every element of it, that must pass the Byrd Rule test by having a budget effect  and surely it does.

Daniel Horowitz at Conservative Review explodes the basis for a parliamentarians veto over repeal of Obamacare regulations. He links to an article by Charles Blahous of the Manhattan Institute citing a statement by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) that its projected savings estimates for a repeal of Obamacare are directly affected by whether the Obamacare insurance regulations are repealed. Although it can be argued that these effects are incidental to non-budgetary considerations, Blahous notes that the Senate has already accepted, during prior repeal efforts, that similar effects bring legislation within whats allowed under reconciliation.

Moreover, Horowitz shows that the current repeal bill being pushed by Speaker Ryan repeals certain Obamacare regulations, thus undercutting the claim that the Byrd Rule precludes this. He writes:

The fine print of their own bill self-incriminates their contention that regulations cannot be repealed through the budget reconciliation. . .Two of the 24 [Obamacare] regulations [listed by the CBOl are actually repealed or modified in this GOP bill. They are called actuarial value and age-rating restrictions. . . . Its not important to get into the details of what these regulations do, but the inclusion of them in the GOP bill demonstrates incontrovertibly that when Speaker Paul Ryan. . .wants to stick regulation repeal into budget reconciliation he can. There are also several other extraneous provisions in the bill that dont have a positive budgetary effect, yet Republicans dont seem to worry about the parliamentarian striking them out of the process.

Why, then, are congressional Republicans preemptively surrendering to the parliamentary  or, more precisely, to what they think she might do? One theory is that they dont want a true, market-based repeal measure because they are afraid too many people will lose coverage in the short-term, and they fear the political fallout.

Republicans are promising to push such a measure after they bring about the repeal contained in the Ryan plan. But they are prepared (if not eager) to accept the view that the second bill needs 60 votes. In other words, they expect the second repeal to fail.

Heres how this may play out. Republicans pass a repeal bill that doesnt repeal the key Obamacare regulations. This repeal doesnt make anyone happy. Republicans then propose true repeal. Democrats block it.

Republicans blame Democrats for their unwillingness to fix the mess. Democrats blame Republicans for creating the mess through the initial repeal.

Americans suffer. Americans take it out on Republican.
This may be the dumbest news story of the day, courtesy of the anti-Republican Associated Press: Attorney general seeks resignations of 46 US attorneys. This was blared as a breaking news story on newspaper sites across the country.

Of course the administration is asking the prior administrations U.S. Attorneys to resign. U.S Attorneys are political appointees who serve at the pleasure of the president, just like the Secretary of State or the head of the EPA. Every president installs his own U.S. attorneys, who will carry out policy in line with the priorities of his Attorney General. There are 93 U.S. attorneys; why do you think Attorney General Sessions is only calling for the resignation of 46? Because the other half have already quit.

Not all of those resignations need be, or will be, accepted. Presidents sometimes keep U.S. Attorneys appointed by a predecessor in place. But in every administration, the large majority are replaced. This is not a news story of any significance.

And yet, this is exactly how the Associated Press and other news outlets destroyed Alberto Gonzales, Attorney General under George W. Bush. Gonzales replaced eight U.S. Attorneysall of them Bush appointeesand Chuck Schumer incited the press to carry on as though it were some kind of scandal. The whole thing was absurd, but hysteria brought on by a united front of liberal news media destroyed Gonzaless career.

So the AP figures, why not try again? Its article acknowledges that U.S. Attorneys are political appointees whose resignation is routine, and yet gives the last word to a Democratic Party operative:

Montanas U.S. Attorney Mike Cotter said he received a phone call from Boente telling him the president has directed this. I think its very unprofessional and Im very disappointed, he said. What happened today on Friday, March 10, that was so important that all Obama appointees who are US attorneys need to be gone? I gotta write that (resignation) letter. Its going to be a one-liner, he added.

An absurd finish to a silly news article. Nothing happened today, on March 10. Rather, something happened last November 8, when Donald Trump was elected president. Like prior presidents, he is installing his own nominees as U.S. Attorneys. The AP reporter understands this, but deliberately tries to mislead readers of his story, which will appear in hundreds of newspapers.

Andy McCarthy has more.
The International Air Transport Association, IATA, on Friday said airlines from Sub-Saharan Africa had zero passenger fatalities in 2016.

A breakdown of the jet hull loss rates by region of operator (per million departures), according to IATA, shows that while the sub-Saharan African Region recorded no fatalities in 2016, it recorded 2.50 between 2011 and 2015; Asia Pacific Region recorded 0.38 in 2016, having recorded 0.42 between 2011 and 2015.

Meanwhile, European Region recorded 0.27 in 2016, and 0.12 between 2011 and 2015; Latin America/Caribbean Region 0.79 in 2016, and 0.63 between 2011 and 2015.

In the same vein, the Middle East/North Africa Region recorded 2.49 in 2016, while it had 0.72 between 2011 and 2015; and North America Region recorded 0.31 in 2016, and 0.17 between 2011 and 2015.

The IATA report noted that sub-Saharan African had its best safety performance in the last decade in the year under review.

In a release posted on the organisations website for the 2016 safety performance of commercial airline industry on Friday, IATA disclosed that the region however recorded one non-fatal turboprop hull loss.

According to IATAs Director-General, Alexandre de Juniac, the all accident rate was 2.30 per one million departures, compared to 9.73 for the previous five years.

Mr. de Juniac said the sub-continent also saw continued improvement in

turboprop safety, with a turboprop hull loss rate of 1.56, which is 85 per cent lower than its 2011-2015 yearly average.

Sub-Saharan airlines delivered a very strong performance in 2016. But we must not rest on this success. Safety is earned every day, he said.

African nations should maintain this strong momentum by making Issa and the IATA Standard Safety Assessment (for those carriers that are not eligible for IOSA) part of their airline certification process.

Regional governments also need to accelerate the implementation of

ICAOs safety-related standards and recommended practices (SARPS).

The IATA boss said that as of year-end 2016, only 22 African countries had at least 60 per cent SARPS implementation, noting that the 33 sub-Saharan airlines on the IOSA registry performed nearly twice as well as non-IOSA airlines in 2016 in terms of all accidents.

He maintained that they also performed 7.5 times better than non-issue operators in the 2012-2016 period.

Mr. de Juniac said the all-accident rate around the world, which was measured in accidents per 1 million flights, was 1.61 percent, an improvement from 1.79 percent in 2015.

He noted that the 2016 major-jet-accident rate, measured in hull losses per 1 million flights, was 0.39, which was the equivalent of one major accident for every 2.56 million flights.

This was not as good as the rate of 0.32 achieved in 2015 and was also above the five-year rate (2011-2015) of 0.36, Mr. de Juniac said.

There were 10 fatal accidents with 268 fatalities. This compares with an average of 13.4 fatal accidents and 371 fatalities per year in the previous five-year period (2011-2015), he added.

The IATA boss also disclosed that the number of total accidents, fatal accidents and fatalities all declined versus the five-year average, which, according to him, showed that aviation continues to become safer.

We did take a step back on some key parameters from the exceptional

performance of 2015; however, flying is still the safest form of long distance travel. And safety remains the top priority of all involved in aviation, he said.

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The Foreign Affairs Ministry is offering no explanation for its decision to flout a new governments anti-corruption policy, by sacking a whistle blower who exposed an alleged $229,000 fraud.

Ntia Thompson was fired after sending a petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, asking it to probe an allegation of fraud involving some top officials of the Directorate of Technical Cooperation in Africa, DTCA.

The move came just two months after the Buhari administration, through the Executive Council of the Federation, approved the whistle-blowing policy, promising full protection and restitution for any informant against harassment, intimidation or victimisation.

Mr. Ntia, an assistant director with the DTCA in charge of the SERVICOM Unit, who blew the lid on how $229,000 and N800, 000 were allegedly diverted, was sacked on February 7.

Official documents seen by PREMIUM TIMES showed that although the money was withdrawn from the Nigerian Technical Cooperation Fund, NTCF, there was no evidence it was used for the purpose it was meant.

The NTCF is a trust fund domiciled with the African Development Bank, AfDB, but jointly managed by the bank and the agency on behalf of the Federal Government.

The documents show that officials of the agency withdrew the money for the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the NTCF, for which $36,852.00 was allocated. The amount was also meant for the monitoring of various projects executed from the Trust Fund across Africa.

Some employees of the DTCA suspected fraud when another N800, 000.00 was withdrawn by the same officials allegedly for SERVICOM sensitization seminar in the Directorate and the sale of boarded government vehicles.

Amid concerns the funds may have been diverted, Mr. Thompson petitioned the EFCC to investigate the allegation. He also petitioned the Police Inspector General, Ibrahim Idris, expressing concerns about his safety.

Although the anti-graft agency launched an investigation into the petition, its effort only resulted in compelling the officials to refund about N800, 000, PREMIUM TIMES learnt.

Shortly after, the DTCA management issued Mr. Thompson a query, accusing him of leaking official information to the Commission, thereby subjecting the agency to public ridicule and embarrassment.

On December 19, 2016, Mr. Thompson was served a letter by the Head, Department of Administration/Secretary to the Senior Staff Appointment, Promotion and Disciplinary Committee, Sanda Isah, suspending him from office with immediate effect.

Mr. Isahs letter, seen by PREMIUM TIMES, accused Mr. Thompson of petitioning the IGP over alleged threat to his life and that of his family members by the Acting Director-General and Head of Programmes Management of DTCA, Mohammed Kachallah and Garba Mohammed, respectively.

In view of the weighty nature of this allegation, the police carried out a thorough inquest into the matter and turned in the final report. The report exonerated the two officers mentioned in the allegation of criminal intimidation, thereby establishing that you made false claims against government officials.

Against the backdrop of these serious infractions, the Inter-ministerial meeting of the Senior Staff Appointment, Promotion and Disciplinary Committee met and looked into these issues in line with the provisions of the PSR.

The committee recommended for your suspension from office pending the outcome of a final report of a sub-committee set up on the matter.

After two months on suspension, the whistleblowers career was abruptly terminated on February 7, 2017.

Mr. Thompson was only aware of his sack through a post on the DTCAs notice Board informing staff that the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Khadija Abba-Ibrahim, who supervises the agency, had authorised his compulsory retirement from service.

The notice was signed by Mr. Isah, the same Head of Administration Department in DTCA, who had earlier issued the suspension letter.

A notice posted on the board of the DTCA to all staff read: I am directed to inform you that following the recommendations of the Senior Staff Appointment Promotion and Disciplinary Committee on Acts of Serious Misconduct against Mr. Ntia U. Thompson, the Honourable Minister of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Chairman Presidential Inter-Ministerial Committee on the DTCA, has approved the Compulsory Retirement of Mr. Ntia U. Thompson from the services of the DTCA with effect from 7th February 2017.

In view of the above, Mr. Ntia U Thompson ceased to be a staff of the DTCA with effect from 7th February 2017. All members of staff and the general public are hereby advised to take note.

When PREMIUM TIMES called Mr. Isah on telephone to clarify some issues about the circumstances of Mr. Thompsons sack, he said he could not give such details, as he was directed to sign the letter that conveyed the information.

He refused to mention who gave the directive, neither was he prepared to speak on allegation that members of the 14-member panel constituted to investigate allegations of breach of civil service rules leveled against Mr. Thompson were compromised.

The Director-General of DTCA, Muhammed Kachallah, refused to respond to our calls and text messages.

The spokesman for the foreign affairs ministry, Clement Aduku, did not also respond.

Gideon Dangiwa, the man tasked with interrogating Mr. Thompson as the disciplinary panel met, also refused to give details of his findings.

I cannot discuss the details of my findings with you. Go to the Chairman, DTCA, he will give you his file, record of service and details of what he (Mr. Thompson) did. I was only co-opted into the committee. He is not working here (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), he said.

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The American oil giant, ExxonMobil, has explained why it cannot move its head office in Nigeria, from Lagos to Akwa Ibom State where the company produces oil.

The demands for International Oil Companies, IOCs, in Nigeria to relocate their head offices from Lagos to the Niger Delta region resurfaced recently during the acting President Yemi Osinbajos tour of the troubled region.

During his visit to Akwa Ibom, Mr. Osinbajo directed the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, to engage with the IOCs on the way forward over the calls for their relocation.

The acting presidents directive was seen as a major boost to campaigns by Niger Delta States to have oil companies relocate to their states of operation.

But ExxonMobil, in a response to a similar demand on it some 12 years ago, had said that the relocation of its head office to Akwa Ibom wouldnt have a significant impact on the state, and also that such movement was not practical for a number of reasons.

In a 2005 letter addressed to a U.S-based Nigerian environment activist, Tom-Mbeke Ekanem, the oil company said, Mobil has three businesses in Nigeria which are managed by one Lead Country Manager. It is essential that the headquarters of each of those businesses be consolidated in one office where support services can be shared.

Lagos offers each of those businesses a convenient and well-suited hub from which all three businesses can be efficiently conducted and coordinated by that manager.

The letter was written from the ExxonMobils international headquarters, Texas, in the U.S, and signed by the then Public Affairs Manager, Fred Marshall.

Mr. Ekanem published the letter on Friday on an Internet discussion group, Ibom Forum.

The company said another reason why they wouldnt relocate their head office was that their primary federal government contacts in Nigeria were based in Lagos.

It said that Akwa Ibom was still getting huge benefits from its operation, despite the companys head office being in Lagos.

The majority of MPNs business activity is centered in Akwa Ibom. MPNs operational headquarters are in QIT, Ibeno, where about 80 percent of MPN employees are based, Mr. Marshall said in the letter.

MPN also has a liaison office in Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom, to facilitate interactions with the state government.

Additionally, the majority of our community assistance is focused on Akwa Ibom.

Another consideration is that MPN participates in a joint venture in which the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) has a 60 percent interest. Hence, the majority of any relocation cost would be primarily borne by NNPC.

PREMIUM TIMES contacted Ogechukwu Udeagha, the Manager, Media and Communications, in Mobil, to find out what is the companys position on the current agitation, but he declined comment.

During Mr. Osinbajos visit to Akwa Ibom, one of the speakers who made a case against the federal government, Mobil and other IOCs operating in the state was Nduese Essien, a former minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development.

Mr. Essien told the acting president, Apart from the 13 per cent oil derivation money paid to the state government, the oil producing communities in Akwa Ibom have nothing to show for several years of oil exploration in the state.

The federal government has shown no interest in meaningful development and presence in the areas, other than providing policemen and other security personnel in the area.

They only provide policemen and other security to ensure that oil flows uninterrupted in the area.

The oil services companies come from outside Akwa Ibom with their workers whose taxis are paid to their places of residence. The auxiliary benefits and the multiplier effects of operating in the oil producing area are therefore lost.

Mr. Essien said the story of oil exploration in the state was the story of woes, and added that the state was exceptionally peaceful in the Niger Delta region because the elders prevailed upon the youth not to bomb oil pipelines.

We can no longer guarantee that the youth will continue to listen to us if the federal government continues to ignore us, Mr. Essien said, pleading with the federal government to reward the state with needed projects and human development.

He reiterated the demand of the people that oil companies operating in the state should move their headquarters to the state.

Today, all those impediments ranging from lack of airport, road network, housing, and accommodation have been conquered. They dont have any excuse not to move their headquarters to Akwa Ibom.

The agitation for the relocation of Mobils headquarters was initiated about 15 years ago by the then Akwa Ibom governor, Victor Attah, who is known for his call for resource control and fiscal federalism.

During his administration, in 2001, Mr. Attah brought the World Conference of Mayors to the state to use it to further the agitation against Mobil.

After their conference in Eket, the mayors who came all the way from the U.S and Europe added their voices to the call for Mobil to relocate its head office to the state.

Mr. Ekanem, the environment activist that ExxonMobil wrote to, believed that a lot of changes have taken place in the last 12 years that should compel Mobil to change its stand on the issue.

If nothing else, now that Nigerian Vice President has thrown his weight behind this thorny issue, our state government and the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly should be emboldened to take on this issue with renewed vigor and optimism, Mr. Ekanem wrote on Ibom Forum.

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Several Nigerians have expressed joy at President Muhammad Buharis arrival in the country from the United Kingdom.

The PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party said on Friday that the return of President Muhammadu Buhari marked a significant moment in the current political dispensation in the country.

Mr. Buhari returned from the United Kingdom Friday morning after spending 50 days on medical vacation.

Ahmed Makarfi, chairman of the interim national leadership of the PDP, said in a statement Friday night that the party was grateful to God for keeping the president alive, but urged him to show more transparency about his health crisis.

We pray for the presidents complete recovery and advise the Presidency to be more transparent in managing the Health of President Muhmmadu Buhari. Nigerians deserves to know the health status of their President and how its being managed.

Walid Jibrin, the Chairman of Board of Trustees of the PDP, told PREMIUM TIMES in a text message Friday evening that the opposition party heartily welcomed the presidents arrival.

The most important thing is that Buhari has returned safely, Mr. Jibrin, a former senator, said. PDP shall continue to pray for him and may Almighty Allah gives him more strength.

Mr, Jibrin belongs to the Makarfi-led faction of the PDP.

The APC

The ruling All Progressives Congress said it heartily welcomed the president back into the country.

In a statement issued by its national spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, the the party said it believed Mr. Buhari was now well rested and returned with new vigour and optimism to fix the challenges facing our people and fulfil the promises our party made to Nigerians during the 2015 elections.< The party also expressed appreciation to the president for relinquishing power to his deputy ahead of his trip abroad. "We thank the president for following due process and properly handing over to his deputy, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and thereby saving the country the needless controversies and crises that we experienced in the past." Mr. Abdullahi also commended Mr. Osinbajo for "competently holding the fort on behalf of Mr. President and for his loyalty and commitment to the change agenda of our party." Atiku Abubakar

A former vice president and chieftain of All Progressives Congress, Atiku Abubakar, expressed joy and relief at the return of Mr. Buhari from the United Kingdom

In a statement released by his media office on Friday, Mr. Abubakar said Mr. Buharis safe return was a happy moment not only as a fellow party member but also as a Nigerian that has tremendous goodwill and best wishes for the president.

He said the return will immediately put an end to the uncertainty and the conspiracy theories that attended his 50 days absence.

He called on Nigerians to unite behind their common interests and speak with one voice instead of nursing bitterness against one another because of political differences.

Sokoto governor

Similarly, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State saw the presidents return as source of renewed strength for the country.

In a statement distributed by his media aide, Imam Imam, Mr. Tambuwal said he was particularly grateful to Nigerians for rising in unison to pray for the ailing leader.

Nigerians from all walks of life prayed for their president, now that God has answered their prayers, culminating in the safereturn of the President, we should continue to pray for him and his family, Mr. Tambuwal said.

The president has shown uncommon commitment to solvingthe myriad of problems bedevilling the nation. We have absolute confidence in his ability to take us higher as a nation.< Students union

In its reaction, foremost Nigerian students body, NANS, said they were elated to learn of Mr. Buharis arrival after several weeks abroad.

About three hundred of them held a demonstration outside the National Mosque in Abuja on Friday afternoon.

Chinonso Obasi, the unions president, said the fact that Mr. Buhari returned safe and sound back to our fatherland 51 days after he went overseas on medical vacation was a manifestation of the countrys national motto: Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress.

The students had called for a three-day national prayer for the president earlier this week.

When we joined other patriotic citizens to pray for the quick recovery and early return of Mr. President, some people wondered why NANS should be declaring three days of prayer for the recuperation and rejuvenation of the President.

One thing you cannot take away from Nigeria, our country, is that God is interested in our unity and progress. That is why whenever Nigerians come together to demand anything from God, He graciously grants it, the students said.

They implored the president to tackle, head on, all the lingering political and economic crisis in the country.

He should tackle with renewed vigour the cankerworm of corruption and all forms of insecurity that are threatening the nations future.

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Sulaiman Aledeh, a Channels Television anchor and producer, has left the Lagos-based broadcaster for AriseTV, he told PREMIUM TIMES Saturday.

Mr. Aledeh, 43, made his debut on AriseTV, owned by newspaper publisher, Nduka Obaigbena, on Saturday evening, reading the stations 4:00 p.m. bulletin.

My babies and their mother, parents and family are so fine with my decision to move on, Mr. Aledeh told PREMIUM TIMES by telephone Saturday.

Mr. Aledeh spent eight years with Channels Television, and was well known as a co-anchor of the breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily.

His departure from the station was effective March 2.

He said he had mulled the move for some time, especially amongst his immediate family members, because his routine at the station was becoming boring.

It was time to move, Mr. Aledeh said. Almost eight years, I needed greater challenges and not routine that was getting boring for me.

Mr. Aledeh said his friendship with his former employers and colleagues remains cordial.

I have no quarrel with anyone, he said.

Mr. Aledeh said he would use his tenure under his new employers to do broadcasting in a more friendly and professional way across diverse cultures and people with special attention on the African people.

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President Muhammadu Buhari has described late Samuel Ogbemudia as an elder statesman who diligently served the country with courage and dedication at crucial moments in her history.

The Edo state government, meanwhile, has declared seven days of mourning in honour of the late Mr. Ogbemudia.

Mr. Ogbemudia, a former governor of the defunct Midwest region and old Bendel State, died on Thursday at a private hospital in Lagos.

He was 84.

He was also a retired brigadier-general in the Nigerian army and had fought in the countrys civil war.

The late politician and administrator was a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Mr. Buhari, in a statement issued on Friday by his spokesperson, Femi Adesina, said that the late Mr. Ogbemudia had a distinguished career in the Nigerian military and in public administration, and has left an impressive legacy of hard work, discipline and commitment to communal, state, regional and national development.

Mr. Adesina said, The President recalls the unique role of the elder statesman in the nations return to civilian rule in 1999 and trusts that, as a tireless advocate for equity, he will be long remembered and honoured for his dedication to the advancement of his people, especially in the fields of education, social welfare and infrastructure.

Mr. Buhari condoled with the family of the late Mr. Ogbemudia, the government and people of Edo over the loss.

Nigerias former vice president and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Atiku Abubakar, said that the passing on of Mr. Ogbemudia was a painful loss not only to the late politicians family and Edo, but to the entire country.

Mr. Abubakar said Mr. Ogbemudia would be remembered as a leader who was dedicated to Nigerias reconstruction after the civil war.

He (Ogbemudia) initiated improvements in the areas of sports, urban development, education, public transportation, housing and commerce, said Mr. Abubakar, in a statement released on Friday by his media office in Abuja.

The former vice president said that Mr. Ogbemudia did so well that in later years his administration would become a reference point for good governance.

Mr. Abubakar, who said he had a brotherly relationship with the late Mr. Ogbemudia, recalled how both of them and other politicians worked together to established the PDP following the restoration of democracy in the country between 1998 and1999.

Both Mr. Atiku and Mr. Ogbemudia had served as members of the partys Board of Trustees.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, in his condolence to the government and people of Edo, described as indelible and iconic, Mr. Ogbemudias contributions to the development of the state when he was the military governor of the defunct Mid-Western and later Bendel State.

Mr. Dogara urged the nations leaders to copy from Mr. Ogbemudias leadership style.

He is a reminder that we, as leaders, must engage in activities that will promote the growth, development and well-being of our people, Mr. Dogara added.

Tony Momoh, a former Minister of Information and Culture, while mourning the passing on of Mr. Ogbemudia, said, Everyone who ever worked in old Bendel State, now Edo, has always looked at what he did as a yardstick.

Mr. Momoh said that the country would have proudly produced world class swimmers by now if what the late governor did in swimming had been followed through.

Oluremi Sonaiya, the presidential candidate of KOWA Party in the 2015 election, said late Mr. Ogbemudia was a towering figure in the nations politics and that his contributions to national development would long be remembered.

I urge the family members to remain strong in the knowledge that we are holding them in our thoughts and prayers, NAN quoted Mrs. Sonaiya as saying.

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Mobile telecoms operator, Etisalat Nigeria, got reprieve on Friday following a breakthrough in its negotiations with three Nigerian banks that threatened to take over the business over a $1.72 billion (about N541.8 billion) loan.

At the end of the talks on Friday held at the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN office in Lagos, at the instance of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, the creditor consortium of banks were prevailed upon to reconsider their demands and halt their attempt to take over Etisalat.

Spokesperson of the NCC, Tony Ojobo, described the meeting as very productive and constructive, saying Fridays meeting succeeded in halting the attempt by Etisalats creditors at bringing it under any form of takeover and develop a restructured repayment plan.

Receivership was completely taken off the table in a meeting that was very productive and constructive, Mr. Ojobo said in a statement.

He said during the meeting, the banks and the mobile network operator agreed actions that would bring all parties closest to a resolution.

The CBN and NCC were able to secure for Etisalat the necessary oxygen to enable it continue to meet urgent operational expenses, Mr. Ojobo said.

The NCC spokesperson said the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, who presided over the meeting, was firm in his declaration about what needed to be done by both parties towards a quick resolution of the crisis.

Although Mr. Emefiele did not give details on those things that need to be done to resolve the crisis, the NCC equally made it clear that parties involved must ensure they did everything necessary to protect the 23 million Etisalat subscribers and the telecoms industry, to prevent scaring away potential investors.

Mr. Ojobo said to ensure that Etisalat remained in business, while the consortium of banks continued to meet their obligations to their customers, another meeting was scheduled for March 16 to agree on a payment restructuring path on the repayment of the loan going forward.

Besides, he said the NCC would also lead the CBN in a crucial meeting with Etisalats shareholders anytime soon to continue to explore ways to resolve the crisis

Following a meeting in Abuja on Thursday between the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Umar Danbatta and the Mr. Emefiele, it was resolved that another meeting be convened to deliberate on how best to stave off the attempt by the banks to take over Etisalat.

The meeting had also agreed to invite Etisalat management and the affected banks to a crucial meeting on Friday, to find an amicable resolution of the crisis.

The consortium of some foreign and Nigerian banks, including Guaranty Trust Bank, Access Bank and Zenith Bank, had threatened to take over Etisalat after it defaulted in its debt servicing obligation agreed since 2016.

The loan, obtained in 2015, involved a foreign-backed guaranteed bond for Etisalat to use in financing a major network rehabilitation and expansion of its operational base in Nigeria.

But, the companys continued failure to meet the repayment schedule angered the banks into threatening to take over the company.

Etisalat had blamed its inability to fulfill its obligations to the banks on the current economic recession in Nigeria.

Although the NCC had intervened, pleading with the banks to reconsider their attempt to take over the mobile telecom firm, it became necessary to involve the CBN to prevail on the banks to come up with restructured repayment schedule for the loan in the alternative.

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The president of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Samson Ayokunle, has congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari, his family and Nigerians on his return to the country 51 days after he left for London, for medical reasons.

President Buhari, who returned Friday had a brief meeting with the Federal Executive Council, service chiefs and other top government functionaries said the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo who had been acting in his stead while away would continue to act.

Welcoming him back to the country, Mr. Ayokunle, in a statement issued and signed by his Special Assistant (Media and Communications), Adebayo Oladeji, rejoiced with the first family and the country and urged Nigerians, especially, Christians, not to cease praying for a total and perfect healing for him.

CAN rejoices with the family of President Muhammadu Buhari, the government and the whole nation on his return to the country after spending 51 days abroad for medical reasons. We will continue praying for his full recovery in order to be able to continue the task of rebuilding the country and most especially, to end the economic recession and its attendant problems.

We urge him to do everything within his power to strengthen Naira which has been facing unprecedented devaluation since its emergence in order to bring the much awaited relief to the people who have been groaning under the yoke of the economic recession.

The CAN president praised President Buhari for handing over power to his deputy as mandated by the constitution and commended Mr. Osinbajo for living up to the expectation of his principal and the people.

It is worthy to commend President Buhari for transferring power to the Vice President, Osinbajo whole away to avoid any breach of the constitution as we witnessed in recent history. We also acknowledged the loyalty, commitment and dedication of his deputy who live up to the expectation, the statement said.

The statement noted with dismay the failure of the government at all levels to pay workers and the pensioners as and when due which has compounded the problem in the polity.

It is disheartening to note that workers and pensioners are being denied of their inalienable right nation-wide as a result of the poor management of the meager resources at all levels of the government and it is our prayer that God will help President Buhari and his team to bring the economy out of the wood sooner than later.

Our prayers, complimenting the efforts of those who are at the helm of the affairs will go a long way in bringing back the golden era with an accelerated speed. Our God who did it in Samaria is still on the throne on our behalf, he said.

The body tasks its members to always remember that praying for those at the helms of the affairs of the country is a divine mandate.

The Scripture tasks us to be praying for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior (1 Timothy 2:2-3).

As Christians, it is a divine mandate to be interceding for our leaders in order for us to enjoy the benefits that our country brings; we must strive to always pray for the people who have been made to rule over us, irrespective of our political and religious differences.

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Former military dictator, Ibrahim Babangida, on Saturday re-echoed his support for a two-party system, and declared that it was the best option toward deepening democracy.

Mr. Babangida spoke in Minna, when the Strategy and Inter-Party Affairs Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presented to him, its report on how to move the party forward.

Gradually, my earlier suggestion about the practice of a two-party system is gradually coming to the fore in the country.

In 1999, when I was advocating for a two-party system, some of my colleagues had their doubts, but I told them that it provides a choice, which is the first essence of democracy, he said.

He expressed optimism that PDP could still rule for 60 years provided it can put its house in order.

The former head of state said the PDP was the only political party, whose presence had been felt, known and accepted by the people.

PDPs presence is felt not only in Abuja or Lagos, but down to the lowest level.

If you go to the grassroots, the ordinary man will talk about PDP; that is the asset the party has and should use to spring back to reckoning.

Already, it is accepted and known. All you have to do is work harder and try to convince the people back to your fold, he said.

Earlier, Jerry Gana, chairman of the committee, had urged the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to allow opposition political parties to always voice their opinion on issues.

Mr. Gana also advised the APC to allow rival parties to develop so as to offer Nigerians other options at all times.

The presence of opposition is key to democratic growth; we must allow Nigerians to listen to the other side, he said.

He described Mr. Babangida as a visionary leader, who read the future and advocated a two-party system long ago.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that Mr. Gana was accompanied by Aminu Wali, Raymond Dokpesi, Tom Ikimi, Emeka Ihedioha, Rufai Alkali and former Niger governor, Babangida Aliyu.

(NAN)

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The probe panel set up by the Inspector General of Police, Abubakar Idris, to investigate the communal clash which occurred in Ile-Ife between Yoruba and Hausa/Fulani ethnic groups, arrived Osun on Saturday.

Osun Police Commands Public Relations Officer, Folasade Odoro, confirmed the arrival of the Hammed Bello  led panel in the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mr. Idris had appointed Mr. Bello, Commissioner in charge of Military Police at the Force Headquarters, to head the panel.

The panel is to look into the immediate and remote causes of the clash and submitted its findings to the police authorities for appropriate action to prevent future occurrence of the incident.

The team is expected to visit leaders of the ethnic groups involved in the conflict as well as pay courtesy visit on the Ooni of Ife, Adeyeye Ogunwusi, in his palace.

Mrs. Odoro told journalists that apart from investigating the cause of the conflict, the panel would also work out how to ensure cordial relationship between the groups in conflict.

She said detectives were still on the trail of some suspected culprits, adding that 10 persons had been arrested and were assisting the Police in their investigation.

According to her, relative peace has returned to the city, with anti-riot policemen and other security operatives fully on ground to ensure that there is no breach of the peace.

(NAN)

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In Atlantic County, property foreclosures and sheriffs sales can draw a crowd.

Almost every Thursday, the scheduled sheriffs sales that are the bitter end of the foreclosure process attract up to 150 people interested in buying property, said county Sheriff Frank Balles. When Balles took office in 2009, the more typical turnout was three to five buyers, he said.

In the years since, of course, Atlantic County has become the national foreclosure leader. In 2016, the county topped the U.S. for the third straight year with a foreclosure rate of nearly 3.4 percent.

That means one of every 30 Atlantic County homes had some form of foreclosure activity last year  either a default notice, auction scheduled or bank repossession, according to ATTOM Data Solutions. That private company compiles foreclosure statistics in more than 2,500 counties nationwide.

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Now, the Stockton Center for Community Engagement hopes its home countys ongoing foreclosure crisis will draw a crowd to Stockton Universitys Galloway Township campus Thursday. The center has set up a seminar on foreclosures that day and invited a panel of people regularly involved with the process to explain the details, and invited anyone with foreclosure concerns to come and listen to those experts.

Balles will be one of the speakers, joining a lawyer with New Jersey Legal Services and three officials of the states court system. The program includes time for public questions.

Merydawilda Colon, executive director of the Center for Community Engagement and a Stockton social-work professor, said she set up the seminar based on requests from the community.

The general public is not aware of the process and what to do if they get a foreclosure notice, she said.

And because New Jersey also has the unwanted status of leading the nation in foreclosure rates  at almost 25 percent higher than No. 2 Delaware, according to ATTOM Data  the center will record video with plans to broadcast it around the state, Colon said.

When its his turn to speak, Balles plans to describe some official options available to people trying to stay in their homes. They include the states HomeKeeper and HomeSaver programs, both offered by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, which can give up to $50,000 to homeowners who qualify.

Ocean City Boardwalk performer rules move forward OCEAN CITY  It seems like local musicians and city merchants have finally come to an agreem

The sheriff said hell also talk about the end of the line for people who cant get that help, those weekly sheriffs sales at the criminal courthouse in Mays Landing.

Some days, its so packed in here that we have people out in the hallway, he said Thursday, after a sale that started at noon and ended about an hour later. And although everything that goes up for auction at a sheriffs sale is in legal or financial distress, that doesnt mean the properties are all in physical distress.

The highest we sold last year was $3 million, in Longport, Balles said. Another one in Margate was $2.4 million. But other properties sell for $1,000.

Anthony DAlicandro also has lots of experience with foreclosures in Atlantic County. He owns Dwell Real Estate in Linwood, and although hes not speaking at Stocktons session, he hears regularly from homeowners worried about foreclosure. He has a few encouraging thoughts for them.

Only one out of four homes that gets a foreclosure notice served will actually have a completed foreclosure, he says. The rest either become current, or negotiate some kind of modification with the bank, or they might just sell it, not as a foreclosure.

His most basic advice: They really have to be in communication with the bank about their options, he said, because different lenders have different policies. Still, he added, One thing for sure, the bank doesnt want the property. They want to find a way to get out of it.

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And if the borrowers will work with the mortgage company on a short sale, the lenders will cover the closing costs. So the former homeowners dont have to worry about paying anything at settlement. Some lenders are even offering  relocation assistance, so the sellers are walking out with some sort of a check, DAlicandro added.

Richard J. Shaffer III owns Resorts LTD Inc., an Egg Harbor Township real estate agency. He said 78 percent of his business these days involves some stage of foreclosure  and he jokes that 78 percent of the real estate questions he answers also involve foreclosure.

For homeowners in trouble, the main problem is that they come to me too late, when they already have a sheriffs sale date. Theres not much I can do then, Shaffer said.

Instead, when a homeowner gets that first foreclosure notice, they should act right away. Be proactive, not reactive, Shaffer said. There are a lot of options if you start early on. But if you let it go on, its like a cancer. Sometimes theres nothing the doctor can do.
FOLSOM  It took four years and hours of practice, but Alexandria Ciurlino, 13, a seventh-grader at St. Vincent de Paul School in Mays Landing, won the 2017 South Jersey Spelling Bee, held Saturday at Folsom Elementary School.

Ciurlino will advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Maryland starting May 28.

Ciurlino burst into tears after spelling congregation to win the competition in the 25th round. She beat students from 41 schools in Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem counties.

Second-place winner Emily Chau, of Galloway Township Middle School, missed motley.

Third place went to Paarth Verma, of Roland Rogers School in Galloway Township, who misspelled brevity.

Ciurlino first competed in fourth grade, and she came in seventh last year. She said she practices every day.

Her father, Robert, said she will also compete in the Camden Diocese spelling bee Sunday. He estimated her last word list had 1,100 words on it. But Ciurlino admitted she wasnt sure of a couple of words until the judges told her she was correct.

Several students dropped out in each of the early rounds. By round 12 just four students remained, the three winners and Sarah Ramos, 14, a Northfield Community School eighth-grader.

The four battled it out for seven more rounds until Ramos missed ipecac in round 18.

Verma, who placed fifth last year, said his third place finish made him happy. A fifth grader, he still has a couple more chances to come back.

This years bee was coordinated by Folsom School language arts teacher Tiffany Hathaway. Charles Wray, of Atlantic Cape Community College, was the announcer. Richard Russell, of Atlantic Cape, and Jeanne DelColle, of Stockton University, judged the contest.

This is an opportunity for students to showcase their academic talents, Hathaway said. At the school level, it is primarily memorization.

But at the national level, which has a bank of some 470,000 words, they will also have to apply rules, concepts and patterns of spelling.

The winner gets an all-expense paid trip to the finals. The primary sponsor of the local bee is South Jersey Gas, along with NJ Manufacturers, Lunch with Lynch and Atlantic Sweetener.
A man landed at JFK Airport earlier this month with ten pounds of cocaine taped to his legs, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Juan Carlos Galan Luperon arrived at JFK on March 4th, on a flight from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. Luperon is a US citizen, according to DHS.

"During his examination, Mr. Luperon exhibited numerous signs of nervousness and his pants appeared to be rather snug," a press release from the agency detailed.

A search revealed the packages taped to Luperon's legs. The white powder within those packages tested positive for cocaineten pounds, with an estimated value of $164,000.

Luperon has since been charged with narcotics smuggling, and faces trial in the US Eastern District Court of New York.

His joins a long list of similarly foiled missions, and is particularly reminiscent of these duct tape diapers.


Dear Abby: Schoolchildren, especially middle school or high school students who may not be socially adept, often eat lunch alone because they dont know what to do when it comes to joining other kids at the lunch table. My grandson, who is on the autism spectrum, is one of them.

Classmates would be doing a great service if they said, Hey, Josh. Come sit with me. Its a small way to help others, and they could serve as examples/mentors. Kids with autism or some other challenges can learn socialization from helpful peers who are good in this arena.

Its lonely to eat lunch by yourself. Please encourage your readers to consider this.  Someone Who Cares in San Diego

Someone Who Cares in San Diego: Im glad to do that. The pain of social isolation can last far beyond the elementary and middle school years and color a persons expectations of rejection into adulthood. Much of it could be avoided if parents took the time to explain to their children how important it is to treat others with kindness.

In recent years, attention is finally being paid to this. A national organization, Beyond Differences, started a program called No One Eats Alone that teaches students how to make friends at lunchtime  which can be the most painful part of the school day. Its their most popular program, and schools in all 50 states participate. For more information about the work they do, visit www.beyond differences.org.

It might be helpful if an adult family member discussed your grandsons isolation with a counselor at his school. Some schools have started programs in which children who sit alone are gathered together at lunchtime with a teacher or a school therapist so they are not isolated. This creates a safe space for autistic children. Regardless of how these lunches are organized, the presence of a trained adult is paramount.

Dear Abby: My son and daughter-in-law recently had a baby girl. My daughter-in-law and her family have extreme OCD and are afraid of germs. I wash my hands all the time, but still she seems to cringe when I or anyone in my family holds the baby.

I want a relationship with my granddaughter. I have expressed my concern to my son, but I dont want to cause an argument. How can I approach this without causing friction?  Grandma S. in New York

Dear Grandma S.: Your daughter-in-law is a brand-new mother. Many new parents are nervous about their babies being exposed to germs.

A way to approach it would be to talk with your daughter-in-law in a nonconfrontational way and tell her you have seen her reaction when you hold your granddaughter. Explain that you are careful about hand-washing, and ask if there is anything else she feels you should do. It might make her feel more in control and put her mind at ease.

Write to Dear Abby at P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069 or at dearabby.com.
I want to talk about the Missing Richard Simmons Podcast which has recently shot to number one on iTunes but first  a story.

My mother's full-time job as a cocktail waitress in Atlantic City and a lack of siblings left my grandmother, my primary babysitter at the time, scrambling to keep a younger-me occupied.

It was sometime in the summer of 1996 or 1997 that she ordered Richard Simmons' complete VHS collection of Broadway Sweat.

When my swing-set or Nickelodeon couldn't satiate my boredom, kicking my legs with Simmons to Hello Dolly always did the trick.

But I forgot about the fun summer I had with Simmons until the podcast's creator and host, Dan Taberski, brought the sequins-clad fitness guru back into my purview.

Taberskis story weaves through Simmons' mysterious withdrawal from the limelight three years ago. The podcast, which is still ongoing, is peppered with heart-felt testimonies of friends and longtime clients who are equally perplexed by Simmons disappearance.

Undoubtedly, the stories paint a heart-wrenching picture of a kind Simmons who kept in touch with strangers across the nation who were struggling to lose weight, sometimes even calling them weekly, and devoting his life to helping others with weight loss.

He's described as the kind of guy that rushes out of his mansion to greet Hollywood tour buses for endless selfies and still taught classes at his Beverly Hills Slimmons studio, which he opened well before "Sweatin' to the Oldies" and television appearances made him a millionaire.

Theres also the story of a man falling apart  literally at the seams  as his hyper-sexualized, Slimmons classes would sometimes devolve into Simmons weeping in front of his regulars.

The podcast doesnt fail to point out that Simmons big-personality has been the butt of celebrity jokes for well over two decades and his private-life revolved around his elderly Dalmatian and housekeeper of 30 years, Teresa Reveles.

For a moment, years ago, Taberski was let into Simmons' private circle after being invited to his house. Even then, Taberski said he had expressed an interest in doing a documentary about the celebrity."

Taberski, too, was once a client, having found the Slimmons class in what sounds like a field-trip to what he expected to be a proverbial freak show, though he only tip-toes around admitting that.

He, likes others, describe being reeled in by Simmons eccentric orbit. He, like the others, seemed pulled into his wild rotation and in some ways, its hard not to picture them salivating over Simmons erratic, hilarious behaviors.

Its not that the podcast isnt brilliant. No doubt, its riveting and worth every second you listen to it  but theres something terribly wrong here.

No, its not the maid, who others have claimed is holding Simmons hostage in his mansion. Even Taberski himself seems to be leaning that way.

Its hard not to walk away from the four most recent episodes feeling a bit disturbed by the painstakingly obvious signs that theres something wrong with Simmons.

And it comes from some of the most unlikely sources, ironically not his so called client friends, who could see from a mile away that this wasnt a man who was doing well.

Obvious signs of depression aside, Simmons' life sounds like an endless cycle of exhausting, superficial human interaction. While Simmons is falling apart in front of his classes, the people who supposedly care about him are gleefully curling mini-weights and doing jumping jacks, watching the show.

If that's not troublesome, Simmons account of nearly killing himself through an eating disorder should be.

Its just this reviewer's speculation, but it's unsettling to think that Simmons withdrawal from the limelight was a potent mix of depression and being sick of being a tragic clown for the public.

Friends and Taberski will insist this wasn't the case  that there's no way he would disappear without so much as an email.

But there's no doubt the Simmons gave everyone all that he had. And without any response to Taberski so far, maybe it's fair to ask if Simmons even wants to reemerge.

If that's the case, it doesn't make it any less worrisome.

The road to hell is sometimes paved with good intentions, so they say, so it's hard to juggle whether "Missing Richard Simmons" is accomplishing its goal of finding a friend they so dearly miss or exploiting a man who, quite frankly, might just need a break.

To keep digging, especially in light of the LAPD coming out to say that the star is fine after a recent house check, seems like this might be the perfect opportunity to have a "leave Brittany alone," movement.

The podcast has been, no doubt, fascinating, and every morsel of information about the inter workings of Simmons is worth savoring.

But if Taberski keeps facing more slammed doors in his face by those closest to Simmons, who he's trying to use to gain access to Simmons himself, it might be worth putting this "mystery," to bed.
Dozens of journalists are huddled around Mac computers as videos, stories and page layouts are created.

Its a time when phrases such as fake news and alternative facts are being thrown around and media outlets are facing criticism, but these journalists are ready to take on any challenge to help get the facts to the public.

Well, someday.

This particular group of journalists  students in a new media program  is working to get the news out to Egg Harbor Township High School first.

They are getting an intro to filming and editing and the basic principles of a daily news show, high school communications teacher Allison Fenton said. We see it as an opportunity to expose them to it.

New this year is the communications academy, a set of classes freshmen through seniors who are interested in journalism can take to find their strengths before reaching costly college classes. By their senior year, students can partner with Stockton University and get an internship with EHT-TV Channel 97.

These classes steer you into a career thats really needed, said freshman Michael Le, 15, as he tested out Photoshop effects on an image. Most things revolve around media.

Part of the communications wing features a television studio complete with multiple cameras and anchor chairs where the students work to put out the daily newscast for the school.

Amanda Swankoski, a junior, has been through multiple journalism classes and hopes to attend a school such as Montclair State University for print journalism or teaching. Swankoski said being a student journalist has helped her stay connected at the school  and came with some welcomed surprises.

I talked to a lot of students I didnt know about, Swankoski said. I got to know them for what they did outside of school.

As for fake news, the 16-year-old said, the communications classes help to decipher between the two.

For Tatiana Tennant, 22, a communications major at Atlantic Cape Community College, journalism is a way to explore feminism.

I got interested in journalism with a documentary by Gloria Steinem, Tennant said. Im interested in traveling around the world and writing about the stigma of mental illness and sexual assault.

Tennant said she recently wrote her first piece with a focus on feminism for the newly reinstated college paper, and it was important to her to not let readers know which side she, as the author, is on.

Its hard, I hear all the time about how the media screws things up, she said. Eventually I want to be part of a part of a publication that is straight facts.

Atlantic Cape communications Professor Joy Jones-Carmack said the communications department has always taught the line between real and fake news, but after the 2016 election, they have more presence in everyday conversation.

Those in public relations and journalists are having to do a lot more now, they have to keep up with 24/7 media the average person doesnt know how to distinguish between the two.

She said the communications department stresses to students that just because they may not agree with an article, that doesnt make it fake news  but straying from facts by adding speculation for a more shocking sentence does.

Atlantic Cape communications major Katie Weightman, 23, is the student editor of the the colleges Atlantic Cape Review, so she is tasked with making sure her peers adhere to journalistic ethics.

I tell everyone to check their sources, and then check their sources, Weightman said. We hear in other classes that there are students who do believe the media cant be trusted and we can be trusted. Being ethical is something we all strive to be.

Weightman said despite criticism toward journalism, the presidential election has caused her to be more involved in social issues and she wants to keep the momentum and inspiration going as she completes her degree and pursues a career in journalism.

In the next five years, if I was in investigative journalism, that would be awesome.
Wallpaper is ready for its next act. The polarizing paint alternative and longtime decorating taboo has returned to fashion thanks to ultra-stylish prints, dimensional fabrics and new materials that make it easy to install and, yes, to remove. Offering more drama than paint, its a fun way to transform a room and reflect your personal style without breaking the bank. Some designers even liken it to contemporary art for the mass market.

Its a risk, said Kati Curtis, a designer with offices in New York and Los Angeles. But, boy, can it pay off.

Whats caused the big comeback? Its easy to attribute the sales spike to style bloggers, HGTV and Instagram, but at the core of wallpapers new popularity is a hint of rebellion.

Curtis says the renewed interest is in part a backlash to the sterile grays-whites-neutrals of the 90s and early aughts, and the more recent obsession with the layered rugs and clustered collectibles of the California bohemian aesthetic. Wallcoverings offer a personal touch and less stuff. People want their homes to feel special and unique, she said. Wallpaper is the perfect toy to do that with polish.

Paulina Berberian, a creative director at Brewster Home Fashions, a wallcovering company, credits millennial consumers with driving the trend, as theyre new to the housing market and to wallpaper itself. Young people who grew up in the clean, minimalism era have never had wallpaper, she says. Its likely they know it only as a design punchline, the busy 80s florals popular with dentists and grandmas.

So, naturally, I think theyre drawn to it because it feels new and exciting, she said. And theyre making it their own.

Indeed, todays popular papers are vastly different from the old school. The prints are dramatically oversized and fantastically whimsical, with characters that feel pulled from a storybook and patterns right from the runway. The colors are richer. The fabrics are textured and sometimes three-dimensional. And the images have a lifelike sharpness thanks to advances in digital printing.

Speaking of which, weve hardly scratched the surface when it comes to custom-printed papers. Erin Burke, who runs the contemporary home furnishings website Burke Decor, frequently receives requests to scale and print wallpapers made from personal photos that can be tiled or enlarged to mural size. It sounds strange, but remember, wallpaper is a conversation piece, she said, adding that hotels and restaurants already do this in bar areas and bathrooms.

If theres a common thread to modern wallpaper application, its restraint. Designers suggest using it sparingly and purposefully, in one or two rooms or perhaps a single accent wall though fabric papers such as grass cloth should cover a whole room. For consumers, thats low-cost and low-maintenance. An artsy, adventurous print can speak for itself, Curtis says.

Low maintenance is key. Installing and removing wallpaper used to be a notorious headache, so technology  including new adhesive formulas and stick-and-peel fabrics that strip off walls without leaving residue  has done wonders for its reputation. The days of scraping and steaming are over, Berberian said. Less mess, less stress.

Sue Wadden, director of color marketing at Sherwin-Williams, says wallpaper has never been more affordable or more convenient. Sherwin-Williams, the countrys largest wallpaper distributor, is planning to release four new books of wallcoverings this year, putting its total catalogue at more than 100,000 options.

Those numbers arent exactly comforting for folks who are already overwhelmed by all the patterns, textures, fabrics and materials to choose from. Where do you start? And when prices range from $25 to $500 per roll, generally, how do you set a budget?

Here, weve offered a few guidelines for choosing, using and removing wallpaper:

Types: Wallpaper is categorized by its material and adhesive coating. Nonwoven substrate paper is popular with renters because it dry-strips easily from the wall. Prepasted papers come with a water-activated adhesive backing. Both are durable, strippable and generally grease-resistant, which makes them smart choices for those with children or pets. Wallpapers are typically sold as single rolls or bolts (double rolls).

Print matching: The match tells you how to line up the pattern from strip to strip. There are three types: straight, random and drop. Straight-match papers run the width of the paper and across the seam onto the next strip. Random-match papers continue seamlessly no matter what. Drop-match papers require extra planning and must be aligned horizontally and vertically on either side, as the pattern is slightly offset from strip to strip.

Pastes and booking: Pre-pasted wallpapers usually need to be booked, which means wetting the paper and letting it sit, usually for about 10 minutes, while the glue activates. Unpasted papers dont come with adhesive, so youll need to paste the wall or the back of the paper.

Repeats and waste: Repeats are the number of inches a pattern stretches vertically until it repeats itself. Generally, the lower the repeat, the lower the waste. Solids and textures, for example, have no repeat and little waste because the amount youll need is easy to calculate.

Calculating coverage: Before you buy, you need to determine how much wallpaper you need. This gets tricky when you take windows and doors into account, so using an online calculator (such as those offered by Lowes and Home Depot) is recommended. Exact roll measurements vary by manufacturer, but most cover 25 to 28 square feet. Retailers often price wallpaper by the single roll but sell only double or triple rolls.

Upkeep: Wallpapers are surprisingly durable, and these days, maintaining them is easy. Scrubbable papers can be cleaned with a sponge and detergent. Washable papers can be gently cleaned or wiped with a damp cloth.

Removal: Commitment-phobes should look for two types of paper: strippable and peelable. The former can be removed without water or chemicals and leave no backing. The latter peels off the wall and may leave some adhesive residue behind, which can be removed with soap and water.
At Jims Lunch in Millville, the cheeseburger with everything is king.

But theres a chance another iconic New Jersey sandwich muscles in on what diners at Jims and other eateries in the state prefer on a bun.

Two bills in the Legislature would make the pork-roll-and-cheese sandwich New Jerseys official state sandwich. Two bills apparently are required because of the states geography  the meat product is called pork roll in South Jersey and Taylor ham in parts of North Jersey.

I think its stupid, said Nikki Maul as she flipped burgers and Texas wieners on the grill in the front window at Jims Lunch.

Still, theres no doubt the pork-roll-and-cheese sandwich is a staple on boardwalks and in diners, restaurants, convenience stores and kitchens throughout New Jersey, where it has strong roots.

Pork roll was first mass produced by Taylor Provisions Inc. in Trenton in the late 19th century.

State lore contends pork roll may have helped win the Revolutionary War. Continental troops reportedly carried pork roll, or a version of it, in their rations when they attacked Trenton in January 1777.

The bills to make pork-roll-and-cheese the state sandwich have gone nowhere since landing in the Assemblys State and Local Government Committee in April.

Some customers at Jims Lunch said Friday thats fine with them.

Waste of time, Gerry Torpey, of Galloway Township, said between bites of his tuna-salad sandwich.

For Torpey, it might just be a matter of taste.

When asked if he likes pork roll, Torpey said, Not really. Its OK.

Sitting next to Torpey was Millville resident Tom Bacon, who contends the push for a state sandwich is just more nonsense by legislators.

Is that all they have to do? he asked, adding it costs taxpayers every time a bill is introduced.

Karen Heck, of Toms River, said shes devoted to pork-roll consumption, but making it the state sandwich is silly.

We have much more to worry about in the state, she said.

Still, there are die-hard pork roll advocates.

The alternative rock band Ween released a song, Pork Roll Egg and Cheese, in 1991. The delicacy is mentioned in the chorus, after lyrics that reference breathing and a mega-wedge.

So, Mom, if you please, pass me the pork roll, egg and cheese, if you please. On a kaiser bun, part of the chorus goes.

Ween was based in New Hope, Pennsylvania, across the Delaware River.

Millville resident Noel Jacquet seemed to be only person in Jims Lunch who thought pork roll and cheese worthy to be a state sandwich.

Awesome, she said. There are places you go where you cant get it.

Jacquet said she has never seen anyone turn down a state sandwich.

In the end, its something Jims Lunch customers dont have to worry about.

Jims serves pork roll only with eggs and potatoes for breakfast.
GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP  It was 1:31 p.m. Saturday when a radio message went out to Atlantic County firefighters: Harold Whitey Swartz had answered his last call.

The message was the final tribute Saturday to the man who spent more than 50 years working in the countys firefighting community. About 20 of those years were spent as the countys fire marshal.(tncms-asset)e4e53b96-06ba-11e7-95af-00163ec2aa77(/tncms-asset)

Hundreds of firefighters came to his viewing in dress uniform. Dozens of fire engines were in the procession that accompanied his body from the Wimberg Funeral Home to St. Marks and All Saints Episcopal Church.

Swartzs casket was in the lead, carried in the back of a 1938 Brockway fire engine driven by his son Harold Jr. The engine left the funeral home after a few tolls of its bell. Its siren then sounded along the route to the church.(tncms-asset)7864153c-ffa3-11e6-8139-00163ec2aa77(/tncms-asset)

During his funeral service, Rev. Thomas Sweeney, who also is Atlantic Countys fire chaplain, said he and Swartz would sometimes talk about heaven. Sweeney said Swartz called heaven the big firehouse in the sky.

I know, after many conversations with him, that hes going to like it there, Sweeney said.

And on a personal note, Sweeney recalled how Swartz convinced him to become the countys fire chaplain, a duty that Sweeney said introduced him to many brave men and women.

I thank you, Whitey, with all my heart, Sweeney said.

Swartz, 80, died March 2.(tncms-asset)24cd4486-05cd-11e7-8d6e-00163ec2aa77(/tncms-asset)

While he was primarily known for his work in firefighting, he was also a historian, photographer and collector of model trains and firefighting memorabilia.

The route to the church Saturday passed the Firefighters Museum of Southern New Jersey that Swartz built on Ridgewood Avenue in Galloway Township. The museum has one of the most extensive collections of firefighting equipment in the state, including the first Atlantic City firetruck.

Swartz was also known for the large model train layout he had in the basement of his home.

In his eulogy Saturday, Harold Jr. again told the story of coming home and finding children lined up to see the trains. The visit never cost those children a penny, he said, and every child left with a piece of penny candy.

It was truly a gift to everyone who saw it, he said. He just wanted to share his passion with other people.

Harold Jr. said his father also had another passion.

He had a deep, deep love for the state of New Jersey, and especially Atlantic County, Harold Jr. said.(tncms-asset)e8496edc-04fe-11e7-9a30-00163ec2aa77(/tncms-asset)

Upon arriving at the church, the Broadway engine passed under a large American flag held aloft by ladders from the Pleasantville Fire Department and Bayview Volunteer Fire Company. Swartz worked for the Pleasantville department for 31 years.

On Thursday, Pleasantville fire personnel cleaned and prepared the truck for the funeral. A plaque was placed on an outside wall of the station in Swartzs honor.

A line of firefighters saluted smartly as Swartzs casket was carried into the church.

Atlantic County Office of Emergency Management Director Vince Jones said the large turnout was expected.

He knew everybody, Jones said. His reach was way beyond Atlantic County.

I had the pleasure of growing up around the corner from Whitey and his family, Pleasantville Fire Chief Steve Wilkins said. You dont see this kind of funeral very often, but this sendoff is appropriate.(tncms-asset)9e89dd14-ffa3-11e6-b203-00163ec2aa77(/tncms-asset)

The services for Swartz was the second major funeral in the area for a first responder in the past three months.

In December, police from at least a half-dozen states lined up in front of Boardwalk Hall to honor New Jersey State Police Trooper Frankie Williams, of Egg Harbor Township, who died in a car crash on duty Dec. 6.
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GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP  Harold Whitey Swartz will answer his last fire call Saturday.

The former Atlantic County fire marshal, who spent more than a half-century as part of the local firefighting community, will be given the honor of a funeral usually reserved for firefighters who die in the line of duty and life members.

Saturdays funeral will include dozens of firetrucks from departments throughout the county and state. It also will include police and EMS personnel, with an honor guard to salute the man many affectionately called Whitey.

Swartz, 80, of Galloway Township, died March 2. He served Atlantic County for 56 years.

County officials said they expect 200 to 300 firefighters to attend the funeral. Vince Jones, commissioner of the Office of Emergency Management, said that number could easily double.

He knew everybody, Jones said. His reach was way beyond Atlantic County.

I had the pleasure of growing up around the corner from Whitey and his family, Pleasantville Fire Chief Steve Wilkins said. You dont see this kind of funeral very often, but this send-off is appropriate.

A ladder truck from the Pleasantville Fire Department, where Swartz worked for 31 years, will hold up a large American flag Saturday near Galloways Church of St. Mark and All Saints.

On Thursday, members of the department cleaned and prepared the truck for the funeral. A plaque was placed on an outside wall of the station in Swartzs honor.

A firefighter killed in the line of duty or a life member of a fire company can have his or her casket carried to the funeral by a firetruck. Swartzs casket will be carried on his 1938 Brockway truck, which will be driven in the parade by his son Harold Jr.

Harold Jr. said his brothers, John and Robert, and several grandchildren will ride in the truck during the procession. He said his dad used to take his brothers and him out for ice cream in the Brockway.

An honor guard will attend, which is customary for firefighter funerals. Firefighters serving as honor guard stand at the head and foot of the casket while pallbearers place an American flag over it, according to the National Volunteer Fire Council.

Taps is generally played sometime during the ceremony.

The procession will pass the Firefighters Museum of Southern New Jersey that Swartz built on Ridgewood Avenue in Galloway. It has one of the most extensive collections of firefighting equipment in the state, including the first Atlantic City firetruck.

The first version of the museum, a garage next to Swartzs house in Pleasantville, opened in 1972 and featured a 1929 Ahrensfox he stripped down and rebuilt himself.

Harold Jr. said the Ahrensfox was Whiteys first love of all the collectibles he owned.

After the services for Swartz are completed, a message will come through the firefighting frequency on the Atlantic County radio system saying Whitey has answered his last call.

The services for Swartz will be the second major funeral in the area for a first responder in the past three months.

In December, police from at least a half-dozen states lined up in front of Boardwalk Hall to honor New Jersey State Police Trooper Frankie Williams, of Egg Harbor Township, who died in a car crash on duty Dec. 6.
The end of winter means the dawn of budget season for local governments.

Across South Jersey, municipalities will introduce annual spending plans that cover everything from multimillion-dollar union contracts to Christmas parades.

Changes in municipal budgets could mean more or fewer police officers, firefighters and EMTs as well as higher taxes for residents. But despite the large impact these documents have on daily life, most towns will pass their budgets with little fanfare and little input from the public.

In modern-day life, people chase their kids or work for their paycheck, said Michael Hinchman, head of the revenue and expenditure committee for Fairness in Taxes, a watchdog organization in Ocean City. The only time a lot of this gets paid attention to is if there is a big change.

Some budgets may go unnoticed even if there is a big change, especially in the sleepy shore towns. In Ventnor, taxes are expected to go up about 8 percent this year. Part of that is because of an expensive revaluation of property taxes in the town.

Its not the budget we wanted, but its the budget we needed, Mayor Beth Holtzman said, adding the city also had to pay down comp time owed to police officers and firefighters. We were handed a plate (from the last administration) that was pretty much empty.

Holtzman said that while the budget has shown a big increase in taxes, not many people have reached out to her to voice their displeasure.

Part of that could be because many of the towns residential properties are second homes, lived in only seasonally.

Those people usually arent around during budget time and do not get to vote for local officials, said Jim Tweed, the current chairman of Fairness in Taxes.

Buena Vista Township Mayor Chuck Chiarello said his town usually remains pretty stable, so the participation in budget hearings is low.

We have certain residents who follow the budget, he said. But I wouldnt say its a huge majority.

This year, however, the town is grappling with costly tax appeals totaling $600,000 in refunds that will raise the tax rate. Chiarello said the township will not fill a vacant position and will sell some land to try to mitigate the damage so taxpayers arent dramatically affected.(tncms-asset)928c7766-0538-11e7-b6bf-00163ec2aa77(/tncms-asset)

Chiarello added he doesnt know whether more people will show up to voice concerns when they adopt the budget.

Both Holtzman and Chiarello said when there is feedback, its generally about things that are beyond the control of the municipality. Some of those things include contracts with unions that were collectively bargained or higher rates from the county or state governments.

We as local officials sometimes take a hit for things that are out of our power, Chiarello said. We cant control the school aid or the PILOT bill for the Atlantic City casinos.

What the officials can control, however, are day-to-day events and sources of revenue. Holtzman said everything from Christmas lights on public buildings to the annual holiday parade is included in the budget.

There are many things that are so minute in a $30 million budget that are so important, she said. Its an investment.

Holtzman said things like that could be cut to save money, but they are important to have to keep resident morale high.

Ultimately, Holtzman said she believes part of the reason there isnt much feedback on the budget is because the residents trust the people they elect to make the best decisions for the town.(tncms-asset)2a8b6888-0502-11e7-a46c-00163ec2aa77(/tncms-asset)

People arent generally proactive with things like this, she said, adding she and the city commissioners set up one-on-one meetings with anyone who has specific concerns about the budget. But thats because everyone is so busy. They need to trust who they voted for.

But Tweed and Hinchman say trust may not always be enough, and that watchdog groups like Fairness in Taxes try to keep residents informed of discrepancies in the budget and the spending of taxpayer dollars.

Some of the things the organization advocates for are hotel-room taxes and real estate transaction taxes that could take some of the burden off year-round property taxpayers in Ocean City. Tweed said the organization goes through every line of the proposed municipal budgets.

We are literally the only watchdog group in town, he said. Over time, asking questions and challenging things on the budget can make a difference. If someone isnt paying attention, then you shouldnt expect good government.
Mayor de Blasio and Governor Cuomo, who seem perpetually on the verge of main eventing SummerSlam at the Barclays Center, put their differences aside this morning and announced that in the wake of a bomb threat against the Jewish Children's Museum, the city and state were teaming up to offer a new cash reward for anyone who had information that led to an arrest and conviction in a suspected hate crime.

According to a joint press release from the two officials, the city and state have partnered to increase the reward offered for information leading to a hate crimes conviction from $5,000 to $20,000. "The recent spate of threats against our Jewish community are threats against all of us. Those directed at children are particularly disturbing. As New Yorkers, we stand united in the face of cowardly tactics designed to frighten, disrupt and divide us," de Blasio said in a statement announcing the reward.

The Statue of Liberty holds the torch high in New Yorks Harbor, an eternal reminder that our state will always be the beacon for tolerance and acceptance. We have zero tolerance for intolerance, and I encourage all New Yorkers to report any instance of hate, bias or discrimination," Cuomo said in a statement.

On top of the bomb threat against the Jewish Children's Museum yesterday, a bomb threat was also called into the Jewish Association Services for the Aged in Midwood this morning. John Miller, the head of the NYPD's intelligence unit, told CBS this morning that the department believes a single person using a spoofing device to hide their identity is behind the majority of the calls.

100 hate crimes have been reported in New York City since the beginning of 2017 according to the press release, which is more than twice as many reported hate crimes than in the same period in 2016. Last year, through mid-November, there was a 31.5 percent increase in bias crimes when compared to the same time period in 2015.

In addition to the increased reward that's being offered, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and 17 other senators sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security head General John Kelly asking him to "increase federal funds programmed to the Nonprofit Security Grant Program" and give it $50 million in funding. The NSGP provides funding for security enhancements for non-profits that are under a high threat of terrorist attack.

In the letter asking for the funding, Gillibrand and the other senators mentioned the 100 threats to JCCs around the country and the instances of Jewish cemetery vandalism nationwide, in addition to cases like a violent bigot who shot a Sikh man in Seattle after yelling at him to "go back to your country" and an incident in Dearborn, Michigan in which someone called a mosque and told someone there that Muslims should "be eradicated."
Pot risk like other drugs

Regarding the Feb. 14 Digital Voices comment on the story, Should recreational marijuana be legal in New Jersey?:

The reactionary statement that large scale marijuana use can cause brain damage was one right out of Reefer Madness and the pages of government propagandists. Almost any drug used on a large scale is going to cause brain damage, alcohol included. Many other commenters online defended decriminalizing pot.

Jeffrey McLaughlin

Absecon

Tax evasion humor

I laughed out loud when I read Mary Bangles statement to the judge at her sentencing for tax evasion. She said her husband, Charles, makes me a better person.

Wow, what a stunning lack of personal insight on her part. That statement speaks volumes as to how she could have possibly ended up in the situation she is in today.

Mary Michaels

Somers Point

Religion for violent schools

Regarding the Feb. 20 story, Schools discuss keeping students safe when anxiety linked to violence:

The reason given for violence in public schools is neighborhood and societal anxiety. The violence includes 3,660 fights last year, more than 1,000 weapons confiscated and 17,650 bullying investigations. Solutions range from random checks on lockers and desks to school districts maintaining school preparedness checklists and the state Department of Education making unannounced spot checks,

The real solution to stopping this violence is to put God and prayer back in schools as it was previously.

Peter Fantacone

Mays Landing

Donated flowers taken

I asked public works to put topsoil in the area of the playground on First Avenue, Weymouth, which they did. I in turn planted flowers out of my own pocket, day lilies, a ground cover, daffodils and tulips. I knew I would be battling animals and weather. Little did I know I would be battling residents as well. A local Boy Scout troop came in to spruce up the area last spring, and they planted some shrubs.

The past two years people have cut the flowers, apparently for table vases. Day lilies are gone. I caught a woman digging up bulbs and filling up a bag. She had two young children with her. I told her I bought them and planted them, told her about the Boy Scouts efforts, told her about the top soil, and she kept the bulbs anyway.

I could complain about my money being wasted, but I want to vent about morals.

She is raising two kids. What kind of morals are adults teaching kids? Kids are the future, Ive been told. I shudder to think what the future holds.

Its time for the silent majority to find a respectful way to have its say about conditions in the country.

Dave French

Mays Landing

Mediocrity is everywhere

I asked a stock clerk at a department store if there were more water gallons to be put out on the shelves. He told me there was water in the stockroom but nobody can bring it out until the night shift. After complaining, the store told me to call ahead the next time I wanted water. Call ahead for water?

At work I see only reactive measures to problems. If you know you have a problem employee, get rid of him. These people look out for themselves, not their job. I see equipment in disrepair yet no accountability for who is responsible to maintain it. On a recent visit to a restaurant, my wife and I got no acknowledgement from the staff for 10 minutes. We left.

My car mechanic thinks he can charge me whatever he wants without me questioning it. A dentist charged me $1,100 for a crown. Its as if they just make prices up to see if people will pay them. How about the doctor who leaves you waiting for 30 minutes when you hear them outside the door talking about last nights date or a party they attended? Total disregard for your time.

Dont settle for mediocrity. Demand excellence. Its out there.

Jim Pasquale

Hammonton
To avoid any freak-outs in the genre of "WHAT'S THAT MILITARY PLANE CIRCLING MIDTOWN MANHATTAN?", the NYPD wants to let you know there are two upcoming training exercises in the city involving ten military helicopters on Saturday afternoon, March 11, and on Tuesday, March 14.

Here's the notice from the police:
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.




EDMONTON, Alberta, March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Alberta Investment Management Corporation ("AIMCo"), on behalf of certain of its clients, is pleased to announce that it has signed a letter of commitment with Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited ("Fairfax") (TSX:FFH)(TSX:FFH.U) to invest US$500 million in order to indirectly acquire just over 10% of the issued and outstanding shares of Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, AG ("Allied World"), simultaneously with the previously announced acquisition of Allied World by Fairfax and subject to certain approvals. The transaction is anticipated to close by the end of the second quarter of 2017.

AIMCo's investment in Allied World provides its clients an attractive opportunity to gain direct exposure to a global provider of innovative property, casualty and specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions, with an exceptional track record of underwriting.

"On behalf of our clients, AIMCo is very pleased to make this investment in Allied World," states Kevin Uebelein, Chief Executive Officer of AIMCo. "We look forward to working with the team of Allied World, and to be joining Fairfax, OMERS and the other co-investors in this significant transaction."

"We are thrilled that AIMCo has chosen to partner with us," said Prem Watsa, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Fairfax. "AIMCo has an excellent investing reputation and this is a relationship that we expect to continue to build over time."

About Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo)

AIMCo is one of Canada's largest and most diversified institutional investment managers with more than $95 billion of assets under management. AIMCo was established on January 1, 2008 with a mandate to provide superior long-term investment results for its clients. AIMCo operates at arms-length from the Government of Alberta and invests globally on behalf of 32 pension, endowment and government funds in the Province of Alberta. For more information on AIMCo please visit http://www.aimco.alberta.ca.

About Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (Fairfax)

Fairfax is a holding company which, through its subsidiaries, is engaged in property and casualty insurance and reinsurance and investment management.

Media Contact: Denes Nemeth, Corporate Communication, O: +1-780-392-3857, M: +1-780-932-4013, E: denes.nemeth@aimco.alberta.ca

SOURCE Alberta Investment Management Corp.
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TORONTO, March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

BMO Financial Group (TSX:BMO)(NYSE:BMO) today announced that it has filed its 2017 Notice of Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders and Management Proxy Circular with securities regulators and has mailed to common shareholders of Bank of Montreal. The document is available on the Bank's website at https://www.bmo.com/home/about/banking/investor-relations/annual-general-meeting, as well as on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com and on EDGAR at http://www.sec.gov.

BMO's Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders will be held at the BMO Institute for Learning, in Toronto, on Tuesday, April 4, 2017, at 9:30 a.m. EDT. The management proxy circular contains key information for shareholders regarding the meeting and the items to be voted on, including the election of directors, the appointment of auditors, the advisory vote on the approach to executive compensation, and confirmation of a by-law amendment regarding the maximum aggregate board compensation limit, as well as information on the shareholder proposals. The management proxy circular also contains a detailed description of the approach to executive compensation.

About BMO Financial Group

Established in 1817, and currently marking its 200th year of operations, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified financial services provider based in North America. With total assets of $692 billion as of January 31, 2017, and more than 45,000 employees, BMO provides a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

Internet: http://www.bmo.com

For News Media Enquiries:

Paul Gammal, Toronto, paul.gammal@bmo.com , +1(416)867-3996

Frederic Tremblay, Montreal, frederic1.tremblay@bmo.com, +1(514) 877-1873

For Investor Relations Enquiries:

Jill Homenuk, Toronto, jill.homenuk@bmo.com , +1(416)867-4770

Christine Viau, Toronto, christine.viau@bmo.com , +1(416)867-6956





SOURCE BMO Financial Group
TORONTO and TAMPA, Florida, March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Cott Corporation (NYSE:COT; TSX:BCB) today announced that it will present at the Consumer Analyst Group Europe 2017 Annual Conference in London on Monday, March 20, 2017.

The presentation, which will begin at approximately 1:15 p.m. (GMT), will be webcast through the investor relations section of Cott's website at http://www.cott.com and will be archived for replay for a period of two weeks following the event.

For purposes of public disclosure, including this and future similar events, Cott uses the investor relations section of its website as the primary channel for publishing key information to its investors, some of which may contain material and previously non-public information.

About Cott Corporation

Cott is a diversified beverage company with a leading volume-based national presence in the North America and European home and office bottled water delivery industry, a leader in custom coffee roasting and blending of iced tea for the U.S. foodservice industry, and one of the world's largest producers of beverages on behalf of retailers, brand owners and distributors. Our platform reaches over 2.3 million customers or delivery points across North America and Europe supported by strategically located sales and distribution facilities and fleets, as well as wholesalers and distributors. This enables us to efficiently service residences, businesses, restaurant chains, hotels and motels, small and large retailers, and healthcare facilities.

Website: http://www.cott.com

Jarrod Langhans, Investor Relations, Tel: +1(813)313-1732, Investorrelations@cott.com

SOURCE Cott Corporation
STOCKHOLM, March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Global softwood lumber trade increased 12 percent year-over-year to reach a new record-high of 121 million m3 in 2016, per estimates by WRI. Since the global financial recession in 2009, there has been a steady climb in international trade of lumber, with shipments the past seven years having increased as much as 66 percent.

This is an excerpt from the newly released market report Wood Resource Quarterly.

For subscription to the full 52-page report, please visit www.woodprices.com

Global Lumber Trade

Global softwood lumber trade increased 12 percent year-over-year to reach a new record-high of 121 million m3 in 2016, per estimates by WRI. Since the global financial recession in 2009, there has been a steady climb in international trade of lumber, with shipments the past seven years having increased as much as 66 percent. While it is no surprise that China is a major driver for the dramatic rise in lumber shipments worldwide the past seven years, it is interesting to note that the US has actually increased softwood lumber imports more than China.

Lumber markets  North America

Lumber exports from British Columbia reached their highest levels since 2006 in 2016. Lumber shipments from the province to the US were up 25% year-over-year, while export volumes to Asia have fallen about eight percent. Shipments to China were up in the 4Q/16 after having reached a six-year low in the 3Q/16. Export volumes to the US in December 2016 accounted for 63% of BC exports, up from 55% two years ago.

Lumber markets  Northern Europe

Lumber prices in the Nordic countries have been at historically low levels during most of 2015 and 2016. Although prices increased in both Finland and Sweden during the spring and summer of 2016, this upward trend was short-lived and prices fell during the fall, and in the 4Q/16, were back down to about the same level as in the 4Q/15. During the first ten months of 2016, Finland increased lumber exports by ten percent as compared to the same period in 2015 and the country is on pace to reach a record high in 2016. It is interesting to note that the three biggest export markets for Finnish sawmills are all outside Europe; Egypt, Japan and China.

Lumber markets  China

China imported record high volumes of softwood lumber in 2016. Despite relatively pessimistic forecasts for wood demand early in 2016, China's need for imported wood picked up during the summer and fall with import volumes in the 4Q/16 being up about 20 percent as compared to the 4Q/15, according to the Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ). Import values for lumber to China rose during most of 2016 with average prices in December 2016 being about six percent higher than in December 2015. The increases during 2016 came after two years of sharply declining prices.

Lumber market  Japan

Japanese softwood lumber imports in 2016 were the highest they have been in three years as total wood demand in the country picked up 3.6% from 2015. There has been a slow but steady shift in the sourcing of lumber away from North America to Europe and Eastern Russia the past few years. From 2015 to 2016, the North American market share fell from 39% to 35%, while the market share of lumber from Russia and the Nordic countries increased from 39% to 42% year-over-year. Both domestic and import prices (in US dollar terms) have fallen in Japan during the second half of 2016, mostly because of a weaker Yen.

Lumber market  Russia

The weak Ruble continued to be a boon for Russian lumber exporters during 2016, with shipments jumping over ten percent from 2015, reports the WRQ. During the past three years, export volumes have increased 26% with China being the destination for more than half of the shipments from Russia. China and Japan were the shining lights for Russian lumber exporters in 2016 as they were the only two markets of the top ten markets that imported more lumber in 2016 than in 2015.

Global lumber, sawlog and pulpwood market reporting is included in the 52-page quarterly publication Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ). The report, which was established in 1988 and has subscribers in over 30 countries, tracks sawlog, pulpwood, wood chip, lumber and pellet prices, trade and market developments in most key regions around the world. To subscribe to the WRQ, please go to www.woodprices.com

CONTACT:

Wood Resources International LLC

Hakan Ekstrom

info@woodprices.com

www.woodprices.com

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

http://news.cision.com/wood-resources-international-llc/r/global-trade-of-softwood-lumber-has-gone-up-66-percent-in-seven-years--while-lumber-prices-have-fall,c2210005

The following files are available for download: http://mb.cision.com/Main/1902/2210005/641006.pdf

Global trade of softwood lumber has gone up 66 percent in seven years, while lumber prices have fallen substantially over the same time-period

SOURCE Wood Resources International LLC
MIAMI, March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In a two-week trial, a toddler, Kara Smalls received a jury verdict of $46.5 Million in compensatory damages against a family doctor, Dr. Jonathan Lewis, employed by Ouachita Valley Family Clinic, a Baptist Health Affiliate and also against Ouachita County Medical Center. The plaintiff was represented by Stuart N. Ratzan and Stuart J. Weissman of Ratzan Law Group, P.A., Miami, FL. Ratzan Law Group was assisted by Jim Lyons of Lyons & Cone, P.A., Jonesboro, AR and Kimberly Boldt and Mario Giommoni of The Boldt Law Firm, Boca Raton, FL. The verdict was entered on Thursday March 9, 2017.

Kara Smalls' parents alleged that medical negligence and failure to properly manage and treat newborn jaundice in their baby immediately after her birth in June, 2014, led to the development of kernicterus in baby Kara Smalls' brain.

The untreated jaundice led to permanent disability and irreversible brain damage. As a result, the child is locked into a body that will never work properly. She cannot walk, talk, feed herself, or care for herself independently, yet she has normal cognitive function. She can think, feel, and emote like a normal child. She will likely be bound to a wheelchair and adaptive walking aids for the rest of her life. She will also require 24 hour care and supervision as well as intensive medical treatment for the remainder of her life.

Kernicterus is a serious condition that can lead to significant brain damage and in severe cases, death. It is imperative for medical personnel to be able to detect the telltale signs of jaundice and treat it promptly. Newborn jaundice is easy to diagnose with a pinprick of blood and simple to treat with phototherapy lights.

Kara Smalls' parents alleged at trial that the doctor and hospital ignored generally accepted national patient safety guidelines for the management and treatment of newborn jaundice. The national patient safety guidelines were developed in 2004 and 2009, yet the doctor and hospital chose not to adopt or follow the national standard of care. The defendants ignored the high initial bilirubin reading as well as the jaundice in the first 24 hours of the baby's life, yet chose not to do any repeat blood testing and not administer phototherapy lights before discharge. After the baby was sent home, her bilirubin blood level got so high that it penetrated her brain and caused profound brain damage.

"The defendants argued at trial that South Arkansas doctors and hospitals are free to ignore the patient safety rules and do what they want; the defendants argued that the standard of care is lower In South Arkansas than the rest of the country," said Stuart N. Ratzan, lead trial lawyer for the child.

At trial, Ratzan countered that any community where doctors and hospitals deliver babies, and have available to them the technology to test for bilirubin and to provide phototherapy lights, is a community where the patient safety rules apply. The defendant hospital and the defendant doctor in Camden, AR did indeed have the necessary equipment.

The plaintiffs argued, therefore, that the defendant doctor and defendant hospital in Camden, AR, like everyone else in the United States who treats newborn babies, were required to follow the prevailing patient safety rules. The plaintiffs argued that when doctors and hospitals break the patient safety rules anywhere in the United States, including South Arkansas, they should be fully accountable for the consequences.

"We are encouraged by the jury's commitment to the patient safety rules for South Arkansas, and we are thrilled that the jury devoted itself to a verdict that would provide for Kara Smalls, age 2 1/2, for the rest of her life. Newborn babies need and deserve competent medical care in all of the United States, whether it's Ouachita County, AR, Pulaski County, AR, Miami, FL, or anywhere else in the country," Ratzan said.

The jury found defendants Jonathan Lewis and Ouachita County Medical Center negligent for violating the national guidelines.

Ratzan Law Group, PA is a boutique trial practice that is dedicated to building and retaining a safe society through diligent and sophisticated advocacy. It champions its clients' cases against powerful interests, including insurance companies, hospitals, manufacturers, doctors and corporations in order to hold wrongdoers accountable for the harm they do to others, and to help make sure it does not happen again. The firm focuses its practice on medical malpractice, product liability and commercial trials. For additional information, call (305) 374-6366 or log on to www.ratzanlawgroup.com. Connect via Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Contact

Paula Kordi

Public Relations/GrupoUno

[email protected]

(305) 448-6111

SOURCE Ratzan Law Group, PA

Related Links

http://www.ratzanlawgroup.com


IRVINE, Calif., March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CommerceWest Bank (OTCBB:CWBK) provided unconditional care to help children and families through difficult times by supporting Seneca Orange County. Seneca was the charity partner of the Marconi Foundation for Kids, which strives to raise a million dollars a year for at-risk youth in Orange County. Seneca's Guided Animal Intervention Therapy program provides support to children who have experienced loss, neglect and trauma.

"It is important for us to continue to support our community and especially at-risk youth," stated Ivo A. Tjan, CEO of CommerceWest Bank. He continued, "It is important for them to have a deep sense of pride and accomplishment as they overcome challenges. We are deeply honored to have a life-changing impact on the children that work with Seneca Orange County."

CommerceWest Bank is a California based full service commercial bank with a unique vision and culture of focusing exclusively on the business community. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Irvine, California. The Bank serves businesses throughout the state with an emphasis on clients in Orange County, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Riverside Counties. We are a full service business bank and offer a wide range of commercial banking services, including concierge services, remote deposit solution, online banking, mobile banking, lines of credit, working capital loans, commercial real estate loans, SBA loans, and cash management services.

Mission Statement: CommerceWest Bank will create a complete banking experience for each client, catering to businesses and their specific banking needs, while accommodating our clients and providing them high-quality, low stress and personally tailored banking and financial services.

Please visit www.cwbk.com to learn more about the bank. "BANK ON THE DIFFERENCE"

SOURCE CommerceWest Bank

Related Links

http://www.cwbk.com


TROY, Mich., March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Jay Jagannathan, M.D., prominently known as one of the United States' top neurosurgeons, has opened its newest clinical office of Jagannathan Neurosurgical Institute  www.mi-neurosurgery.com. The newest office at 3290 W. Big Beaver Road, Suite 150, Troy, Mich., marks the Institute's fourth location in the state of Michigan  with two in the Detroit area, one in central Michigan (West Branch) and one in far-northern Michigan (Sault Ste. Marie).

The practice has specialists in neurosurgery, neurology and pain management and provides interdisciplinary treatment for patients with chronic pain, spine and other neurological conditions. Dr. Jagannathan is known nationally for his minimally invasive surgical techniques that allow patients to recover faster with less discomfort.

"We are thrilled to open such a premier clinical facility to treat our patients who live in the Detroit area," said Dr. Jagannathan, who received a proclamation from City of Troy Mayor Dane Slater, who welcomed Dr. Jagannathan and his staff at a special ribbon-cutting ceremony and recognized the doctor for his prominent work to assist patients with spine and neurosurgical disorders. "We certainly appreciate the warm welcome from Mayor Slater and other dignitaries from the City of Troy who attended and toured our new office."

Dr. Jagannathan is a Diplomate of the American Board of Neurological Surgery, the American Academy of Neurological and Orthopedic Surgery and the American Board of Spinal Surgery. He was named a "Spine Surgeon to Know" by Becker's Spine Review and a "Featured Neurosurgeon" in Hour Detroit magazine's 'Top Docs' issue in 2014, 2015 and 2016. He received the Patients' Choice Award and Compassionate Doctor Recognition from Vitals.com in 2014, 2015 and 2016. In 2016 he was rated the Top Neurosurgeon in Metro Detroit by RateMDs.com. Dr. Jagannathan received his M.D. degree from the University of Maryland School of Medicine. His neurosurgery residency was at the University of Virginia Health Sciences Center and the Wayne State University School of Medicine where he was Chief Resident. He is a Fellow of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons.

Dr. Jagannathan has published numerous papers and book chapters in the areas of spine surgery, radiosurgery and neuro-oncology and has been the recipient of numerous awards including the

Synthes Award for craniofacial research as well as the Cone Pevehouse Award for socioeconomic research, both from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. He was named a

'rising star' in spine surgery by In-Spine magazine.

He is actively involved in organized neurosurgery and served as a member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) Young Neurosurgeons Committee and on

the Executive Committee of the Section on Tumors. He also represented Michigan on the

Council of State Neurosurgical Societies.

Dr. Jagannathan is a resident of Birmingham, Mich.

Media Contact: Jeff Caponigro at Caponigro Public Relations Inc., [email protected]

or (248) 353-3270

SOURCE Jagannathan Neurosurgery

Related Links

http://mi-neurosurgery.com


EDISON, N.J., March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "The Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters have consistently prided ourselves on aggressively advocating on behalf of workers in the construction industry, whether they are our members or not. The March 9, 2017 article printed by the Buffalo News does not accurately reflect a conversation had with our representative concerning organizing activities or the views of our union concerning immigration.

We have advocated for reform in the area of employee misclassification in the construction industry for years. This exploitation of workers cheats not only those workers, but honest businesses and taxpayers. This was the sole focus of our activity as it relates to the projects mentioned in the article.

We are NOT immigration officials nor do we devote resources or direct our own personnel to conduct themselves as such. The article falsely claims that members of our organization alerted immigration officials concerning the specific raids mentioned in the story. I will state unequivocally that the Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters has not and will not conduct such activities.

We are proud of our efforts to support ALL workers' rights. Any allegation to the contrary is patently false."

About the NRCC:

The Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters (NRCC) represents thousands of hard working men and women throughout the states of Delaware and New Jersey, plus regions in Maryland, New York, and Pennsylvania, making it one of the largest trade unions on the East Coast. The NRCC equips professional craftsmen with the skills that are demanded in today's construction industry. Its regional structure ensures that the organization can work cooperatively with contractors and maintain the superior quality of workmanship that contractors have come to expect from union carpenters.

For more information about the NRCC, go to: http://www.northeastcarpenters.org

SOURCE Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters (NRCC)

Related Links

http://www.northeastcarpenters.org


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
Washington, March 11 : The 45th tenant of the White House was livid. His newly minted Attorney General's failure to disclose a couple of meetings with Moscow's envoy had raised new questions about his Russian connection.

Coming as it did weeks after the disastrous rollout of his original ban on travel from seven terror prone Muslim majority countries and the forced resignation of his top security advisor, Donald Trump decided to take matter into his own hands.

Ever proud of his "The Art of the Deal", 45 did what he does best: foil with an early morning tweet from his plush weekend retreat at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, dubbed the White House South.

"Terrible!" Trump fired a salvo taking aim at 44, his predecessor. "Just found out that (Barack) Obama had my 'wires tapped' in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!"

"How low has President Obama gone to tapp (sic) my phones during the very sacred election process," he alleged in another offering no harder evidence than a media report.

"This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!" the former reality TV star thundered comparing it to the infamous affair that had brought about the downfall of Richard Nixon in the 1970s.

Even as an Obama spokesman and his top spy denied the wiretapping claim, a reportedly "incredulous" FBI Director James Comey asked the Justice Department to publicly knock down the allegations. But the Department's silence so far only fuelled more speculation.

That set the chatteratti aflutter. The pundits were aghast. Time magazine ran a cover with a crumbling Washington monument branding it "Trump's war on Washington".

Opposition Democratic House minority leader Nancy Pelosi called him the "deflector-in-chief," accusing him of manipulating news coverage.

Call it what you will. Lost in the din were Democrats' strident demands for the resignation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions even as he recused himself from any investigation of Trump campaign's Russia connection.

Ever falling for the juicy, the media also had little inclination for discussing the impact of Trump's dismantling or loosening of 90 odd regulations dealing with from Wall Street to environment or plans to spend a trillion dollars to fix America's ageing infrastructure.

Itching for a fight, the brash billionaire doubled down calling for a Congressional probe into his claim as Comey met with the Congress 'Gang of Eight' given access to top intelligence matters to brief them on the Russia probe.

With his regime leaking like a sieve, Trump's Attorney General fired 46 of the nation's top prosecutors, including Manhattan's desi "Sheriff of Wall Street", Preet Bharara.

Press Secretary Sean Spicer suggested some people 'burrowed' into the government during eight years of the Obama rule were still working to advance his agenda. But he denied that the CIA was working to root them out.

Marking his 50 days in office, Trump issued a new improved travel ban custom tailored to court rulings as Republicans unveiled their plan to "repeal and replace" the "disastrous" Obamacare, his predecessor's signature health care law.

As Democrats dubbed it "anti-poor" and Republican critics scoffed at it as "Obamacare Lite," Trump in full salesman mode warned Republicans that not passing a bill could result in a "bloodbath" for the party in 2018 Congressional elections.

A good jobs report indicating the economy added a robust 235,000 jobs in his first full month in office and the unemployment rate in February inched down to 4.7 percent also came in as a gift to crow about.

Meanwhile, that "nasty woman" Hillary Clinton celebrated International Women's Day by telling followers to "stand up, resist, run for office" as she sported a new fancy hairdo with bangs on Snapchat in a snazzy red jacket.

Trump's 2016 Democratic presidential rival also came to haunt him in the White House as he came out to greet a group of cheering, screaming fifth graders oblivious of a giant portrait of the former first lady staring down from the wall behind him.

But the Manhattan mogul has little to worry about with the Clinton clan not having learnt any lessons from her stunning loss to Trump as evident from daughter Chelsea's take on National Pancake Day.

While a few greeted her tweet of some very green spinach pancakes as a healthy choice, many mocked her hilariously reminding the Clintons: "This is why Hillary lost."

(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)
Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh), March 11 : Hastinapur in Meerut district of western Uttar Pradesh and Kasganj in the state's Doab region stood by their reputation of being bellwether constituencies of the Hindi heartland with the voters reposing their faith in the BJP, which is all set to form the government after over 14 years.

Located to the west of the Ganga, Hastinapur, the legendary capital of the Kauravas in the Mahabharata, may have lost much of its glory, but it has earned a reputation of going to the party that rules Uttar Pradesh.

Similarly, Kasganj has always found itself on the winning side despite "Indira lehar", the coalition era and the waves of Mandal and Mandir or stable BSP-SP governments in the state.

In Hastinapur, the BJP's Dinesh Khatik defeated the Bahujan Samaj Party's Yogesh Verma with a margin of over 20,000 votes.

In 2012, the Samajwadi Party's Prabhu Dayal Balmiki emerged victorious as the party came to power and Akhilesh Yadav became the Chief Minister.

Balmiki won in the 2012 elections by a narrow margin of 6,641 votes against Yogesh Verma, then a Peace Party candidate. Verma, who won the seat in 2007 as a BSP candidate, has since rejoined the party and was its nominee for the seat. The BSP ruled the state from 2007 to 2012.

For several years after Independence, Hastinapur's seat -- and the state -- went to the Congress. But later, it also elected candidates from the Bharatiya Kranti Dal (BKD), Janata Party, Janata Dal, Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

Most of the time, the winning candidate's party was elected to rule the state, giving Hastinapur the stature of a somewhat prescient constituency.

Interestingly, when Hastinapur in 1996 elected an independent candidate, Atul Kumar, no party got an absolute majority, forcing imposition of President's Rule for some months.

That, however, was not unusual for the state through much of the 1990s.

Hastinapur elected a non-Congress candidate for the first time in 1969. The BKD won here and also ascended to power in Lucknow. The Congress regained the seat in 1974 and the party returned to power.

The Congress lost the seat in the Janata Party wave of 1977 and the state saw a government led by Ram Naresh Yadav of that party. He later joined the Congress. In 1980 and 1985, the Congress won the seat and saw a string of party leaders becoming Chief Ministers for brief tenures -- V.P. Singh, Sripati Mishra, N.D. Tiwari twice, and Vir Bahadur Singh.

In 1989, the seat went to the Janata Dal and Mulayam Singh Yadav became the state's Chief Minister for the first time that year.

Much of the 1990s was a period of ferment in Uttar Pradesh and saw Mulayam Singh's second tenure (1993), several BJP Chief Ministers (Kalyan Singh, Ram Prakash Gupta, Rajnath Singh), and the rise of Mayawati, who became Chief Minister twice (1995 and 1997).

It was during this period of turmoil that Hastinapur turned to its lone independent legislator.

In more recent times, as politics in the state became more stable, the SP's Balmiki won the seat in 2002. Though Uttar Pradesh saw the formation of a BSP-BJP government for over a year (Mayawati's third stint as Chief Minister), the SP eventually returned to power under Mulayam Singh.

The BSP won the seat in 2007 and Mayawati became Chief Minister for her fourth term. In 2012, Hastinapur re-elected Balmiki and the SP formed a government in Uttar Pradesh with Akhilesh Yadav as Chief Minister.

Kasganj, situated on the banks of river Kali, has something special as for the last 43 years, in each of the 11 assembly elections since 1974 it has voted for the party which has also won Uttar Pradesh.

This time Kasganj elected BJP's Devendra Singh Rajput and the party is all set to rule the state.

Rajput defeated SP's Hasrat Ullah Shervani with over a margin of 15,000 votes. In 2012, SP's Manpal Singh won the seat.

Last time, the BJP won this seat was in 1991 when it made history by winning a clear majority in the state. Kalyan Singh became the Chief Minister.

Earlier, in 1974, Manpal Singh won Kasganj on a Congress ticket. After the Emergency, the Janata Party swept the state and the country alike. That year, Netram Singh became the Janata Party's MLA from Kasganj.

In 1980, the Congress was back in power, as was Manpal Singh in Kasganj. He won another election in 1985, as did the Congress in Uttar Pradesh.

In 1989, when Mulayam Singh Yadav became the Chief Minister, Kasganj's winning MLA was Goverdhan Singh. He too belonged to the Janata Party.

(Brajendra Nath Singh can be contacted at brajendra.n@ians.in )
New Delhi, March 11 : The Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had to face a "humiliating defeat" in Uttar Pradesh assembly elections chiefly because she did not let the party develop and kept it limited to herself, experts believe.

"It was bound to happen. The BSP had started losing ground long ago," Kancha Ilaiah, political scientist, writer and activist for Dalit rights, told IANS.

He said like other parties, the BSP had only one person and that was Mayawati. She should have developed the party with other persons taking the lead in other roles," he said, adding that "no party can work with one person".

Ilaiah said that BSP, like other parties, should have other wings as well.

He said the BSP has no spokesperson and that went against its overall interest.

Ilaiah said he believes that Mayawati failed to "show her mettle as a leader" and did not do much for the Dalits.

The BSP ended up with only 19 seats in a house of 403 members while the BJP along with allies swept the state with 325 seats.

"She took the Dalits for granted and it went against her party interest," he said.

"Mayawati has lost direction and grip over the party," he added.

The Dalit activist said that allegations regarding BSP ticket distribution also went against her.

"Allegations that she charges for party tickets created a wrong impression among her followers," he said, adding that the ticket distribution process should have been corrected.

Sheoraj Singh Bechain, another well-known and respected Dalit writer in Hindi, expressed similar views on why Mayawati performed so badly in the Uttar Pradesh elections.

"She should have worked for the education of the Dalits. They shifted to cities knowing that she was not doing enough for them in the state," he told IANS.

He said the Dalit and the Other Backward Class votes got divided as she failed to satisfy their needs.

"Mayawati did not realise the ground realities and lost the elections badly," he said, adding that the Dalits, who formed a major part of the BSP vote base, drifted away from her as they realised that even being in power for a long time she did not do anything for them.

Earlier in the day, after the election results started coming in, the BSP chief said they were "very surprising", and alleged that electronic voting machines had been "managed" to favour the Bharatiya Janata Party.

"These election results are very surprising. It is very difficult to accept them," said Mayawati.

Mayawati has been out of power in Uttar Pradesh since March 2012.

(Sushil Kumar can be contacted at sushil.k@ians.in)
Students can enjoy fun new math games for grade 3 Mathseeds now includes 170 structured math lessons designed to teach early numeracy skills for students in kindergarten through grade 2.

Blake eLearning have added ten brand new lessons to their online math program, Mathseeds.

Mathseeds now includes 170 sequential math lessons designed to teach early numeracy skills for students in kindergarten through grade 2.

The new Mathseeds lessons are set in unique locations around the worldincluding Sydney, Rio de Janeiro, and San Cristobal Island. The lessons include guided interactive activities that encourage students to learn and apply new math skills to real-world situations.

Lessons 161 to 170 cover topics for students in grade 3 math, including telling time to the minute, reading map coordinates, and identifying odd and even numbers. Students also investigate different chance experiments and learn to identify prisms and pyramids.

Mathseeds was created specifically to meet the needs of early learners at home and in the classroom. The program is designed by the same team of educators behind the multi-award winning Reading Eggs program, who have over 30 years of experience in publishing quality educational resources.

The popular online math program includes hundreds of online math games, structured lessons, songs, colorful animations, and collectible rewards which motivate children to keep learning and improving.

Teachers can access thousands of resources in Mathseeds, including lesson plans, worksheets, automated grading and assessment, and digital big books to support their students learning. Mathseeds also includes a placement test which places each student at the appropriate starting level.

The program aligns to state standards and can be used by parents and homeschoolers.

Teachers can sign up for a complimentary trial of Mathseeds for their school by visiting http://www.mathseeds.com/schools.
Special Check Presentation at Florida Hospital Carrollwood Most people look forward to receiving gifts on their birthday however, Dr. Patel is celebrating his birthday today, by giving back

Florida Hospital Carrollwood is honored to receive this significant donation of $5 million from Dr. Kiran Patel and his wife, Dr. Pallavi Patel. This gift will help fund a $21 million project aimed to bring a modernized Catheterization (Cath) Lab and sizable Emergency Department expansion to the Tampa Bay community.

We are all in, to help make Florida Hospital Carrollwoods Cardiac Cath Lab second to none and are excited to bring this advanced facility to the community that we call home, said Dr. Kiran Patel.

A noted Indian American entrepreneur and philanthropist from Tampa, Dr. Kiran Patel is the Chairman and President of Freedom Health, Inc. and Optimum Health, Inc. in Florida. He sees philanthropy as his responsibility and passion. Dr. Patel built the WellCare Management Group which he sold in 2002 to a private equity group. The Patels have used these proceeds to continue their generous philanthropic work in the Tampa Bay community. Recently, Dr. Patel purchased the former Clearwater Christian College property and has plans to create a college of osteopathic medicine to attract more doctors to this area. Their non-profit organization, the Kiran and Pallavi Patel Foundation for Global Understanding, funds a number of initiatives in health, education and culture. It even offers an annual scholarship to the underprivileged youth in the United States.

As longtime residents of the Carrollwood community, the Patels have been giving back to the Tampa Bay area for decades. In addition to their previous accomplishments, Dr. Patel served as an accomplished Cardiologist and his wife, Dr. Pallavi Patel specialized in Pediatrics.

We feel blessed that the Patels have chosen Florida Hospital Carrollwood to donate $5 million. This major contribution will help us better serve our community by building a state-of-the-art Cath Lab. In addition, these funds will go directly to expanding our Emergency Department. Most people look forward to receiving gifts on their birthday however, Dr. Patel is celebrating his birthday today, by giving back to the community, said Joe Johnson, President and CEO of Florida Hospital Carrollwood.

Earlier this morning, Dr. Kiran Patel celebrated his birthday with his loving wife by his side as well as Florida Hospital Carrollwoods fellow physicians and staff by officially pledging $5 million to these hospital projects.

The new Cath Lab will open in July 2017 and ground-breaking on the Dr. Kiran C. Patel Emergency Department expansion will occur in late 2017.

About Florida Hospital Carrollwood

Conveniently located for Tampa Bay Area residents, Florida Hospital Carrollwood is a 120-bed acute care facility that specializes in providing comprehensive medical services in an environment of Christian compassion and healing. Awarded by the Florida Hospital Association for Leadership in Quality and Patient Safety in 2014 and 2015, the hospital is a member of the West Florida Division of Florida Hospital and Adventist Health System. Florida Hospital Carrollwood offers recognized spine, orthopedic and bariatric surgical services, as well as Emergency, Cardiology, and Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Medicine services with highly skilled clinical staff and physicians dedicated to providing the highest quality of care with an inspired approach. For more information, please visit fhcarrollwood.org
NACDS is setting the tone for even higher levels of collaboration that we are seeking with other segments of the healthcare delivery system, with policymakers and with thought leaders.

As more than 400 pharmacy advocates from 47 states meet with more than 90 percent of the U.S. Congress next week, a Washington, D.C. advertising initiative will help to tell their story. The ads state: Pharmacists provide access to better healthcare every day, and were here to provide access to health policy solutions.

The grassroots advocacy event is the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill  now in its ninth year. Print and digital advertising will draw focus to the personalized stories of participating NACDS member company representatives, student pharmacists, state pharmacy association representatives and other allies.

NACDS will bring our Access Agenda to Capitol Hill with the personal insights and experiences of pharmacy team members who serve as the face of neighborhood healthcare, said NACDS President and CEO Steven C. Anderson, IOM, CAE. The ads emphasize the point that pharmacy is a go-to source for public policy solutions, just as pharmacy is a go-to source for accessible, quality and affordable health and wellness services.

The ads refer viewers to a microsite (http://accessagenda.nacds.org/) summarizing policy positions that advocates will take to members of Congress. Among them, NACDS is urging a commitment to the cost-effective prescription drug benefit in Medicaid and in Medicare amid the current discussions of potential changes to the Affordable Care Act. NACDS also is urging enactment of the Pharmacy and Medically Underserved Areas Enhancement Act (H.R. 592 and S. 109), to improve healthcare access for medically underserved Medicare patients.

NACDS is drawing attention to pharmacys role in a positive and proactive public dialogue about healthcare issues. For example, in addition to our meetings on Capitol Hill, the NACDS RxIMPACT program welcomes members of Congress for pharmacy tours and other in-district and in-state events, which are incredibly helpful for demonstrating real-life healthcare issues in real-life settings, Anderson explained.

NACDS is setting the tone for even higher levels of collaboration that we are seeking with other segments of the healthcare delivery system, with policymakers and with thought leaders. NACDS is committed to thinking like a start-up, and to positioning the Association more like a think-tank to collaborate for innovative solutions.

NACDS RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill will be held March 14 and 15 in Washington, D.C. Coverage will be available throughout the week on NACDS.org.

The ad is available here:

http://www.nacds.org/pdfs/government/Access_Agenda/NACDS_Access_Agenda_Print_Ad.pdf

# # #

NACDS represents traditional drug stores and supermarkets and mass merchants with pharmacies. Chains operate 40,000 pharmacies, and NACDS more than 100 chain member companies include regional chains, with a minimum of four stores, and national companies. Chains employ more than 3.2 million individuals, including 178,000 pharmacists. They fill over 3 billion prescriptions yearly, and help patients use medicines correctly and safely, while offering innovative services that improve patient health and healthcare affordability. NACDS members also include more than 850 supplier partners and over 60 international members representing 21 countries. For more information, visit http://www.NACDS.org.

Pharmacies. The face of neighborhood healthcare.
Established as an organic, artisan-quality pure maple syrup brand, Crown Maple continues to demonstrate the versatility of maple through its new product partnership with Angry Orchard to create the specialty, limited release Maple Wooden Sleeper, launching this weekend.

Together, the two brands are bringing an exciting -- or should we say ex-cider-ing -- new product to the beverage category by blending Crown Maples estate grown syrup with Angry Orchards barrel aged Wooden Sleeper cider. The result is a deep, complex beverage layered with notes of oak, bourbon, and of course, New York maple syrup.

The Maple Wooden Sleeper is just one of many collaborations Crown Maple is working on in 2017 to leverage the power of maple and elevate its presence across multiple industry categories, said Mike Cobb, CEO of Crown Maple. We are dedicated to bringing new and innovative food and beverage pairings to the table to capitalize on flavor trends and highlight maple syrups natural and pure flavoring.

To celebrate the launch of the Maple Wooden Sleeper, Angry Orchard, Crown Maple, and other local, New York-based artisans are hosting interactive tasting events from March 10-12, 2017. Festivities kick off this Friday, March 10 at Newburgh Brewery from 4pm-midnight, continue at Crown Maple Estate on Saturday, March 11 from 11am-5pm, and wrapping up at Angry Orchard on Sunday, March 12 from 11am-5pm. Bottles of Maple Wooden Sleeper will be available for purchase for $25 at the Crown Maple Estate and Angry Orchard Innovation Cider House starting this weekend.

For more information about the cider and upcoming launch events, visit: https://www.crownmaple.com/visit-madava-farms/events/angry-orchard-maple-wooden-sleeper-release.

###

About Crown Maple

Crown Maple is Quite Possibly the Purest Maple Syrup on Earth and sets a new standard of excellence for maple. Established in 2010, Crown Maple has been carefully crafted from the ground up to become the preeminent maple syrup brand. By pairing the best from nature with artisan craftsmanship and breakthrough state of the art proprietary production technology, Crown Maple creates an exceptional maple experience. Crown Maple syrup and sugar products are estate-produced, certified-organic and provide a superior and distinctive taste and performance that elevates Crown Maple beyond a sweetener and into a defining ingredient.

The Crown Maple Estate is based in New Yorks Hudson Valley and has quickly become New Yorks No. 1 maple syrup producer. Open to the public on weekends, Crown Maple invites guests to visit the estate, experience the sustainable maple grove firsthand, and learn about the maple production process. The on-site maple-infused cafe also offers a variety of innovative maple foods and craft beverages to further inspire guests.

In an effort to continually push industry boundaries, Crown Maple regularly collaborates with an array of nationally-known brands to incorporate maple syrup into a variety of sweet and savory foods and beverages that go well beyond the pancake platter, and the brand is the syrup of choice served at top restaurants, resorts, and culinary institutions nationwide. Crown Maple products are available for purchase from coast-to-coast at select grocery stores, natural retailers, specialty stores, and foodservice distributors. Crown Crown Maple products can also be purchased online at http://www.CrownMaple.com.

About Angry Orchard Cider Company

The cider makers at Angry Orchard have been experimenting with apple varieties, ingredients and processes to develop hard cider recipes for more than 20 years. The cider makers have travelled the world to find the best apples for cider making and chose specific varieties  like French bittersweet apples from Normandy, culinary apples from Italy and the Pacific Northwest U.S. based on each cider's desired flavor profile.

In fall 2015, Angry Orchard opened a new home for research and development on a historic 60-acre apple orchard in the Walden, NY. There, the cider makers will continue to drive experimentation at the Innovation Cider House, and drinkers are welcome to visit for samples of exclusive ciders made on-site. Despite the recent growth of hard cider in the US, the category is still small and relatively unknown. Angry Orchard is committed to drinker education and awareness-building to help grow the category for all craft cider makers.

Angry Orchard makes a variety of year-round craft cider styles, including Angry Orchard Crisp Apple, a crisp and refreshing fruit-forward cider that blends the sweetness of culinary apples with dryness and bright acidity from bittersweet apples for a balanced flavor profile. Angry Orchard also makes The Cider House Collection specialty ciders, as well as a variety of seasonal ciders. Learn more at http://www.angryorchard.com
Patricia A. (Patti) Husic, CEO of Centric Financial Corporation and Centric Bank, has been honored with PA Bankers inaugural Woman of Influence Award. Patti Husic is an innovative and driven leader with an unwavering commitment to the betterment of the financial industry, her colleagues, and her community. Past News Releases RSS Centric Bank Recognized as a Top...

Centric Bank Market Leader Michele...

Centric Financial Corporation...

Patricia A. (Patti) Husic, president and CEO of Centric Financial Corporation and Centric Bank, has been honored with PA Bankers inaugural Woman of Influence Award for her groundbreaking initiatives in the banking industry in Pennsylvania and across the country. The award was presented by the PA Bankers Association at their fourth annual Women in Banking Conference on March 6 at The Hotel Hershey. A record attendance of more than 300 women representing multi-billion dollar institutions as well as community banks met for a day of professional development, career advancement, mentoring, and networking.

Patti is an innovative and driven leader with an unwavering commitment to the betterment of the financial industry, her colleagues, and her community, says Duncan Campbell, president & CEO of PA Bankers. In honor of her contagious passion and dynamic leadership, the PA Bankers Woman of Influence Award will be renamed the Patricia A. Husic Woman of Influence Award beginning in 2018.

I am humbled and honored to receive the 2017 Woman of Influence Award and touched that the award will be carried forward in my name. At every career level, we are encouraging women to expand their networks, set challenging goals, and open doors for all women to advance. Thank you to PA Bankers for this incredible honor, which is a testament to the bright future and impact of the Women in Banking program, says Husic, past chair of PA Bankers and founder of the Women in Banking Conference and Committee.

As this program grew from a singular idea to a sold-out conference, we have tapped into a rich pool of talented and aspiring women. We are energizing and educating hundreds of future leaders and becoming the face of inclusion in banking. And a special thank you to our board of directors for their support of our vision and help in championing diversity at our own institution and statewide.

The Woman of Influence Award is part of PA Bankers new Women in Banking Recognition of Excellence Program to celebrate men and women in the banking industry who promote and inspire women in the workplace to reach their full potential.

Additional Recognition of Excellence winners included two Champion for Women Award recipients: Rebecca Stapleton, chief banking officer, S&T Bank, Indiana, Pa., and Charles Ferry, partner and attorney, Rhoads & Sinon, Harrisburg, Pa. The Tomorrows Promise Award was given to LeeAnn Gephart, chief marketing & culture officer, Woodlands Bank, Williamsport, Pa.

The year 2016 was a milestone for Patti Husic and Centric Bank. In October, Centric Bank was named a Top Team in American Bankers 25 Most Powerful Women in Banking, an exclamation point to Husics intentional advancement of high-achieving women. Husic herself ascended to #17 in the Most Powerful Women in Banking list, a recognition that has brought national attention to the banks organic lending successes and Husics commitment to Be the Difference Maker for the men and women on Main Street.

Im so proud that the fourth annual Women in Banking Conference saw a record number of attendees, 25 percent of whom had never been to a PA Banker event before. One of our goals is to provide women with a clear path to advancement and leadership in banking and to make sure there will be more women finding their voice and seats at bankings decision-making tables. By every measure, our program is a difference maker for Pennsylvania women in banking. The future is full of possibilities for the next generation, says Husic.

ABOUT CENTRIC FINANCIAL CORPORATION AND CENTRIC BANK

A three-time Best Places to Work and Top 50 Fastest-Growing Companies for four years, Centric Bank is headquartered in south central Pennsylvania with assets of $498 million and remains the leader in organic loan growth in central Pennsylvania. A locally owned, locally loaned community bank, Centric Bank provides highly competitive and pro-growth financial services to businesses, professionals, individuals, families, and the health care and agricultural industries. With a Five-Star Bauer Financial Rating, Centric Bank, named a Top 100 SBA Lender in the United States, also ranked #1 in approved SBA 7(a) loans in the Eastern District as of December 31, 2016. The bank is also a Top 20 Lender for SBA Loans in the Philadelphia Region.

Founded in 2007, Pennsylvania-based Centric Bank has financial centers located in Harrisburg, Hershey, Mechanicsburg, and Camp Hill, and loan production offices in Lancaster and suburban Philadelphia. To learn more about Centric Bank, call 717.657.7727 or visit CentricBank.com. Connect with them on Twitter at @CentricBank and Facebook at Centric Bank.

Centric Financial Corporation is traded over the counter (OTC-Pink) with the ticker symbol CFCX.

ABOUT PA BANKERS

PA Bankers, located in Harrisburg, is the states leading banking trade association representing an expansive and diverse membership. The association offers extensive continuing education programs, government relations representation on behalf of the industry and provides numerous products and services for banks and their employees. Follow the Pennsylvania Bankers Association on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter (@PABankers).
RFRC Doctor Patient Interpreter Session

AUSTIN, Texas  March 11, 2017  On March 12 at 12:30 p.m. CST, the Refugee First Response Center (RFRC) will be the focus of the SXSW Interactive panel Tech for Good: Solutions for the Refugee Crisis, hosted by its co-creator Harald Neidhardt. Ten of these new tech-based container-clinics in Hamburg, Germany have demonstrated how live video translation can be utilized at refugee shelters worldwide to revolutionize medical treatment. The RFRC-prototype was co-created by CISCO and Neidhardts MLOVE team with local partners in Hamburg. The goal is to install 100 container clinics at relevant hot spot locations in the near future.

Language is a key factor for medical aid. Thats why the team of the RFRC has upgraded shipping containers with medical equipment, a network and HD-video conferencing facilities. These allow doctors and medical staff to interact through a highly flexible interpreter service, helping process the refugees' entry and give them medical assistance more efficiently. Interpreters in about 50 languages are available quickly via live video broadcast, helping doctors and patients communicate with each other better and faster.

Tech is awesome and fun, but it can also become truly meaningful. When a large number of refugees arrived in Germany, we wondered how we could help. Then we developed the prototype of the Refugee First Response Center in cooperation with CISCO, explained Neidhardt. The container-clinic connects with video-live-stream interpreters for medical examinations in 50 languages. Ten of these smart containers have already been dispensed throughout Hamburg and have been very well-received. Our concept shows how we can establish innovation to help more people using equitable resources.

The initial idea, helped on its way by Mirko Bass of CISCO Systems, became a reality in Germanys second largest city Hamburg within just six weeks. During the height of the refugee crisis, the first 10 of these medical emergency stations was installed in Hamburg, based on a donation of $1,000,000 by the Dorit & Alexander Otto Foundation. An impressive 5,000 medical examinations were completed in the first pilot clinic container in just five months in cooperation with the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) and the health department of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. Additional facilities are now being installed in Greece and Lebanon, with the ultimate goal being the installation of 100 (or more) of the kitted-out containers along the critical migration routes.

The panel entitled Tech for Good: Solutions for the Refugee Crisis will be moderated by Harald Neidhardt and also feature Bernhard Kowatsch, Director of the UN World Food Program Accelerator; Mike Butcher, founder of the initiative TechFugees; and Paula Schwarz, founder of the Startupboat.

Tech for Good: Solutions for the Refugee Crisis

March 12, 2017 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. CST

Venue: JW Marriot, Room 201-202, 110 E 2nd St, Austin, TX

http://schedule.sxsw.com/2017/events/PP61382 (SXSW registration required)

Further information about Refugee First Response Center: http://www.refugeefirstresponsecenter.com

More Hamburg social business from tech and creative industries attending SXSW:

Three other so-called 'social businesses' from Hamburg will be attending SXSW this year. Lemonaid and Viva Con Agua are innovative social initiatives on a mission to help crowdfund projects that fight the problems making mass migration so necessary, such as famine and water shortage. Each social company could raise more than $1 million US with various activities on an active community and their successful social beverage brands.

Start-up Nuwiel is aiming for environmental friendliness. Its product is an electric-run bicycle trailer that can travel uphill, designed for inner-city traffic and primarily to assist in transporting food. Founded by Fahad Khan, Natalia Tomiyama and Sandro Rabbiosi, the trailer can easily transport loads of up to 120 kg. The founders have won the EXIST, InnorampUp and Climate-KIC funding programs.

SXSW is a great chance to get inspired by innovative business concepts, festivals and digital conferences coming from Hamburg  one of the most creative business locations in Europe. Prior and during SXSW 2017, the following website will provide media with information, text material and photos aimed at supporting editorial work: http://www.marketing.hamburg.de/sxsw.html.

###

Media Contact:

Hamburg Marketing

Matthias Beer

Tel.: +49 (0)40 300 51 582

Mobile: +49 (0)152 5486 4536

Email: Matthias.beer@marketing.hamburg.de

Leverage PR

Christopher Ruth

Tel.: 512.502.5833

Mobile: 630.536.9139

Email: chris@leverage-pr.com
Cambridge House of Maryville, a Gardant affordable assisted living community, is partnering with the Lion's Club to offer free vision screenings from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on March 23.

The community, which is located at 6960 State Rte. 162 in Maryville, Illinois, serves older adults of all incomes, including those on Medicaid, who need some help to maintain their independence.

The Lion's Club will bring its mobile unit to Cambridge House.

Screenings will be available at no cost, and are open to the general public.

Cambridge House is also a drop-off location for used eye glasses.

For more information about the vision screenings or the glasses donations, call 618-288-2211.

Cambridge House of Maryville is one of three Cambridge House affordable assisted living communities in the St. Louis Metro East area. The other communities are located in O'Fallon and Swansea.

All three communities operate through the Illinois Supportive Living program and are managed by Gardant Management Solutions, the largest provider of assisted living in Illinois.

The communities combine residential apartment-home living with the availability of personal assistance, help with medications, and a variety of convenience and support services.

Residents live in private apartments that they furnish and decorate to their taste. Each of the one-bedroom and two-bedroom floor plans include a kitchenette, spacious bathroom with shower and grab bars, individually-controlled heating and air conditioning, and emergency alert system.

Certified nursing assistants, working under the direction of a licensed nurse, are on-duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Meals, housekeeping and laundry are among the included services.

"Residents also benefit from all of the opportunities that are available to socialize with friends and neighbors and to participate in activities and special programs," says Cambridge House Administrator Kendra Garnto.

Gardant Management Solutions, the company that manages all three Cambridge House affordable assisted living communities, is based in Bradley, Illinois.

"Our focus," says Rod Burkett, President and CEO of Gardant, "is to provide Cambridge House residents with the love, compassion and dignity they deserve and the help and assistance they need. Our emphasis is on helping residents achieve and maintain as much independence as possible for as long as possible."

Communities managed by Gardant include the Prairie Living affordable assisted living community in Carbondale and the Heritage Woods affordable assisted living communities in Benton, Centralia, Flora, McLeansboro and Mt. Vernon, Illinois.

For more information about Gardant Management Solutions, the assisted living, senior living and memory care communities that Gardant operates; and the company's management, development and consulting services, visit http://www.gardant.com or call 1-877-882-1495 toll-free.
Pennsylvania Ballet set sail its handsome new production of Le Corsaire last night at Philadelphias Academy of Music and, oh, what a voyage it was. Stylish swagger among the men, shimmering beauty among the women, pyrotechnical wizardry among everyone  it was all on full glorious display in this Corella-staged Petipa-based classic which is loosely tethered to Lord Byrons poem of the same name. For all intents and purposes, Le Corsaire is the balletomanes high glycemic, high calorie carbohydrate that reignites all those cravings for the gazillion revolution pirouettes, the split-switch leaps, the fouettes, the maneges with every variety of sauce imaginable. Guilty pleasures, for sure. Enjoy, but dont weigh yourself in the morning.

No living artist is more identified with this ballet than Angel Corella who for more than a decade and a half generated pandemonium in the Metropolitan Opera House whenever he set foot on stage in the role of Ali, the slave, in Le Corsaire. Now as artistic director of Pennsylvania Ballet, he is handing down not only his famous role of Ali but also his roles of Conrad and Birbanto for which he is fondly remembered. Step by step, the ballet is handed down from generation to generation like a cherished family recipe for Grandmas bourbon cake  except, as weve learned, no one will ever be able to make it taste just like Grandma's. That wont keep everyone from gobbling down the new cakes, however.

Praises to the chef for Sterling Bacas Ali, Arian Molina Socas Conrad, Lillian DiPiazzas Medora, Jermel Johnsons Lankendem, Mayara Pineiros Gulnare, and Etienne Diazs Birbanto in last evenings premiere.

The pressure of Corellas past brilliance turned into inspiration for young Sterling Baca who was making his debut as Ali. He charged through his Act II solos like we have never seen him dance before. Ever. Baca has had impressive technique and power for a while now. But this sudden authority, fearlessness, and leadership on display was unexpected and nearly overwhelming to watch. Only in the end was he unprepared  for the ovation that the audience dealt him. His face registered a slight shock at the wave of cheers.

The glamour composite score of Arian Molina Soca and Lillian DiPiazza is simply off the charts. They could stand there twiddling their thumbs while gazing into each others eyes, and Haglund would be fascinated. Their bedroom PdD and the PdT with Bacas Ali were heavenly. Socas maneges of aerial turning arabesques and arrow-like coupes jetes displayed an uncommon clarity and ease. What can we say about the beauty of his leg lines Theyre Cuban made  enough said. The effortless partnering, especially the spinning of DiPiazzas pirouettes, brought gasps from the audience. Lillian, a beautiful dancer under the previous artistic director, is now in full bloom. She, too, exhibited a new authority in her dancing. Her lovely arabesque line has added height and length. Where before there was a sense of caution when approaching fancy technical matters, now there is confidence.

Jermel Johnsons high-spirited Lankendem gave us those crazy elastic assembles that went right into grand plie. (Dont try that at home.) There was a shade of Oberons over-confidence and conniving in his Lankendem. Youll recall that Oberon sprinkled special flower powder on Titania that would cause her to fall in love with an ass. Here, Lankendem sprinkled insta-sleeping powder in a flower which he arranged to have couriered to Conrad via Medora. Were not suggesting that Lord Byron got his idea from Shakespeare, but it is an interesting coincidence.

Mayara Pineiro danced a stunningly beautiful Gulnare. Delicate, warm, steely, plumbed and square as can be. She may turn out to be Corellas greatest find. Also Cuban educated, her own harrowing story of defection is a testament to her will to survive and her love of the art form. Tomorrow afternoon Mayara debuts as Medora. Those lucky enough to have tickets will surely be in for a treat.

Etienne Diaz, a young corpsman who arrived at PA Ballet with Pineiro, is also Cuban born but was trained in the U.S. He possesses many qualities that remind us of Corella including a fiery intensity and urgency. Hes quite short, but his lines have lengthened and straightened over the brief time that he has been with the company. As Birbanto  and like a very young Corella would  he sometimes applied more force than his placement would sustain. But he was exciting to watch and is definitely a name to look for in future castings.

The three-act production runs just over two hours with two intermissions. The production designs utilized a palette of burnished plum/rust with lots of gold and aptly conveyed an ancient Turkish time. Especially beautiful was one of Medoras tutus that had a spectacular gold top layer.

In addition to PA Ballets sharp Corps de Ballet, elite students from The School of Pennsylvania Ballet danced in the production. In the Jardin Animee section of Act III, the small children nearly stole the show for a time. They ran out and dove into their choreography like one sees from students of NYC Ballets School of American Ballet  little stage animals, completely aware that everyone was looking at them instead of the grownup professionals behind them. The student dancers who were mixed in with the corps de ballet were excellent and indistinguishable from the professionals.

If there was a weakness observed in this production, it might have been the orchestration which sometimes killed the momentum of the action on the stage or did nothing to spur it on. Several different pieces of music with less engaging and less energetic melodies were used in Act I than is customarily heard in the ever-popular staging by Anna-Marie Holmes which is performed by ABT and Boston Ballet. We observed an ongoing problem of the ends of variations not meeting ends of music which weve noted before. Sometimes it appeared that the dancers fizzled while waiting around for the end of the music. Other times it was just the opposite problem  the music lagged or paused while waiting for the dancer. It really took the punch out of the moment, more so than if an outright mismatch of finish with music had occurred.

Le Corsaire has four three more performances this weekend (two on Saturday, one on Sunday) and then its final four performances begin next Friday. This is a "dont miss event if you are in or close to Philly.

The H.H. Pump Bump Award is bestowed upon Sterling Baca for his excellent debut as Ali. What joy it brought us to see him shine and to see the remarkable results of his past year of hard work.








A British detective in Colonial India must solve a sensitive murder in Abir Mukherjees A Rising Man (Pegasus Crime, May).

What are the biggest misconceptions about the Raj?

I suppose theres the idea that British rule in India was somehow benevolent, or if not completely altruistic, then that it had redeeming features. This is the at least we gave them the railways argument. The truth is, British rule in India was oppression, and as in all cases where one people oppresses another, I believe it was evil. This is a very hard idea for a lot of British people to accept, brought up as we are to believe that we are a moral nation which tends to be on the side of the angels.

What themes did you want to examine?

The question I wanted to ask in the book was: how does a moral, Christian people justify the oppression of another race, both to outsiders, and more importantly to itself? I wanted to explore the impact of colonialism, not just on the subjugated peoples but on the psyche of those doing the subjugating, especially the moral and psychological pressures placed on those tasked with administering the colonial system. And what I found was that a lot of them were thoroughly disillusioned by what they were doing in the name of empire.

How did that lead you to write a mystery novel?

Ive read quite a few detectives who operated in and for totalitarian systems. I wanted to see what would happen when a British detective, coming from a background of democracy and liberty, was placed in a situation in which he had to uphold a system that trampled on those values.

In what way did your own family history affect your take on the Raj?

The first thing to say is that the Raj period isnt really taught in British schools. I think that, in itself, says a lot. I learned more about German history in the 1920s and 1930s than I did about British history in the period. As such, I only really learned about the Raj from romanticized period pieces like The Jewel in the Crown and A Passage to India. I found it difficult to square those accounts with what my parents would tell me. Growing up as the child of immigrants, I think you develop a natural skepticism for what you learn at school. From an early age, you learn to keep an open mind, to question everything youre told. You learn that there are two sides to every story and that, quite often, neither side is right and the truth is somewhere in the middle. My impetus to write this book was a desire to tell the story of a time and place which I felt neither British nor Indian sources did justice to.
Hannah Tinti joined the literary exodus from Manhattan to Brooklyn nine years ago, after being evicted from a rent-controlled East Village apartment. Now she can walk to work across the Gowanus Canal to postindustrial Third Street, where a can factory has been transformed into an artsy commercial complex whose curated tenants include One Story magazine, founded by Tinti and Maribeth Batcha in 2002.

We talk in the Old American Can Factorys communal dining room, although Tinti is currently on sabbatical from One Story as she prepares for the April publication of her second novel, The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley. Dial Press is sending her on her first-ever author tour, which seems appropriate for a book that roams across America with the titular character, who ends up with 12 bullet holes in his body.

Tintis dark tale of a career criminal (partly) redeemed by his love for his daughter Loo came from a dark place in her own life, she says. Several members of my family were going through cancer treatments. I was in debt, really scraping month to month to pay my rent and buy groceries. Id gone through a bad breakup, and my writing wasnt going well; I had 250 pages of a book that wasnt working.

Tinti was headed for a quiet cabin on Whidbey Island off the coast of Washington State when a driver ran a red light and slammed into the side of her rental car. I was fine, she says, but if there had been someone in the passenger seat they would have been killed. I feel like my unfinished novel was in that seat, because I brushed the broken glass from my hair, got another rental car, drove to the cabin, had a stiff drink, and threw everything Id been writing out the window. The next day I started The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley.

Whidbey Island became the setting for Bullet Number Three, a chapter that lays the groundwork for Hawleys past catching up with him later in the novel. Following a violent confrontation on the island, Hawley and an accomplice embark across Puget Sound and encounter a whale; the scenes unnervingly uncanny atmosphere will be familiar to readers of Tintis story collection, Animal Crackers, and her first novel, The Good Thief.

I was reading Moby-Dick at the time, Tinti says. For me, the whale coming to the surface is like those things that come up in your life out of left field, like being in a car accident, or someone dying, or Trump getting elected. Youre just going along with your life, dealing with daily stuff like paying your bills, and then suddenly a whale rises to the surface, this dark, crusted thing of doom, and now youre suddenly thinking about the giant things in the universe: Why am I here? What is my purpose? Why are we all living?

It takes guts to appropriate a metaphor so famously explored in one of the greatest American novels, and Tintis wide-ranging conversation displays a low-key yet solid artistic confidence. She says she needed to explore an image that had strong personal significance. When I was a kid I didnt want to be a writer, I wanted to be Jacques Cousteau. I was actually a marine biology major in college. Ive been on whale watches, and when you see a whale, theres a feeling of absolute wonder at nature and the world; you cant believe there are these huge creatures whose existence has nothing to do with you. That sense of magic, those moments that separate us from normal life, is what I was trying to touch on in this book.

A second whale appears in the novels climactic chapter, and cetacean imagery suffuses the narrative. There was what I call the serial killer wall in my apartment, with lots of strings and cards connecting everything Tinti says, laughing. My friends would say, You shouldnt bring your dates back here, because theyll think youre going to murder them! I was keeping track of the objects threaded throughout the book, because I was trying to have the chapters have conversations with each other: for example, when Lily [Loos mother] and Hawley fall in love, its right after the chapter where Loo starts to fall in love as a teenager.

Tinti tries to give each chapter in her novels a complete arc, something she attributes to her background as a short story writer and editor. She and Batcha, who both hold M.F.A.s in creative writing, founded One Story to fill the void left when Story magazine folded.

Story was where you could get your foot in the door, Tinti explains. There were top-tier places, like the New Yorker and the Atlantic, and then there were the university journals that came out maybe once a year and had very small circulations. There werent any in-between places thennow we have Tin House, Zoetrope, and McSweeneysand we wanted to occupy that spot.

We asked ourselves, why do literary magazines fail? Tinti continues. Partly its infrequency of publication. You notice when you dont get your New Yorker every week, but you might not notice when your Kenyon Review doesnt show up. So we decided to publish frequently, so we could create a relationship with our subscribers. Also, I love publications like Ploughshares and Granta, but theyre like books; they end up piling up, and you never get to them, or you flip through and just read the writers you know. We wanted to make reading easy, portable, fun.

Tinti gestures to a diminutive One Story issue on the table. That doesnt seem like a big commitment, does it? You can stick in your pocket and read it on the subway or while youre waiting on line. It takes the pressure off. And publishing one story per issue makes every writer equal. One week we have an Ann Patchett story, the next week its someone whos never been published before, and they get treated exactly the same.

Hannah Tinti the editor makes life difficult for Hannah Tinti the writer, she admits ruefully. One reason The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley took seven years to write is that its hard for me to turn off the editorial side. In order to write you have to open the floodgates and let your subconscious go crazy; you have to get the words down before you can start shaping them into something. But the editor in you can be really judgmental: you put down a sentence, and then youre tweaking that sentence and tweaking it again, and there goes your morning writing time and youve written one sentence. I always feel these two sides are struggling against each other.

Tinti adds: Because Im an editor, Im very focused in my revisions on what the readers experience is going to be like moving through a book. I want there to be forward motion, I want them to be pulled through it, and then at the same time there will always be an undercurrent, a gathering of things theyre not even noticing but that are building towards some more emotional placeand then the whale comes up!
Final Target, John Gilstraps 10th thriller about hostage rescue specialist Jonathan Grave, and the first to be published in both hardcover and mass market paperback, is a breakneck adventure. Grave and his partner must extract an imprisoned DEA agent from a Mexican drug cartels jungle HQ. They manage to rescue the hostage, but it turns out thats not the hard part.

Gilstrap, who won a 2016 Thriller Award for Against All Enemies, is an unusually qualified thriller writer: hes worked as a renowned safety engineer after spending 15 years in fire and rescue services. He speaks frequently at conferences, where he shares what he knows about explosives, hazardous materials, and how fire behaves, and also discusses how hes folded that knowledge into his writing. Its an intense, high-stakes profession that required me to always manage what-if scenarios, Gilstrap says, and what is a thriller writer if not a master of the what-if?

Gilstrap has clearly lived a lot of what he writes about. Ive investigated horrific accidents, Ive delivered babies, he says. Ive held people while they died, and Ive pulled them from imminent, grave danger. Those life experiences not only play into every novel I write, but every day that I live.

Gilstrap is not Jonathan Grave, but hes not too different, and thats got a lot to do with why the novels are unputdownable and beloved by readers. Jonathan Grave has become an enduring and popular character. Gilstrap believes thats because, basically, hes just a great guy. He adds: As a freelance hostage rescue specialist, he is a man of unshakable character who lives by a moral code that focuses like a laser on bringing aid to those who have been victimized. He is not a vigilante and hes not an assassin. He operates outside the law, but is always on the side of the angels. Jonathan Grave is the kind of hero people want to believe in, someone they can look up to, someone they can count on for nonstop excitement and intrigue.

Final Target is the first title in the Jonathan Grave series to be released simultaneously in mass market paperback and hardcover. Gilstrap is excited for the change: Will the hardcover bring a different crop of readers? I certainly hope so! He is also thankful his longtime fans can also still find a mass market copy. Im pleased that therell still be a paperback edition available so loyal readers who have gobbled up Jonathan Graves first nine adventures wont have to feel sticker shock at a big price increase.

Gilstrap feels incredible gratitude to the fans who have made the Jonathan Grave series hugely successful. Over the years, I think that readers have come to trust that Jonathan and his team will deliver a wild ride with characters who seem real and deliver emotion at a level that exceeds what they expect from a commercial thriller. I value that trust, he says.

Final Target opens with Grave in a Mexican jungle: hes outnumbered and outgunned, so his only advantage [is] surprise. Things get intense pretty quickly, and they stay that way for 380 rapid-fire pages filled with action, political intrigue, and raw heroism. Jonathan Grave has been thrilling readers since 2009, and Gilstrap has plenty in store for fans in the years to come.
Including his 2014 debut novel, When I Was the Greatest (Atheneum/Dlouhy), Jason Reynolds has published a total of five novels, which have been nominated for numerous awards, including multiple Coretta Scott King Awards and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. And his prolific pace shows no sign of slowing.

This year, Reynolds has another three books coming out. Two are due in August: Miles Morales (Marvel), a Spider-Man spin-off, and Patina (Atheneum/Dlouhy), the second installment in his middle grade series about an elite track and field team that began with Ghost, a finalist for the 2016 National Book Award.

Patina is Reynoldss first book written from the point of view of a girlin this case Patty, who runs to relieve the stress she feels from a litany of personal and family problems. I grew up around a whole bunch of girls, and one thing I realized is what they had on their plate was very different than what I had on mine, Reynolds says. The things girls are made to be responsible for is a heavy burdentake care of your younger siblings, do good in school, have some extracurriculars. The pressure is intense.

Reynolds will publish his first standalone YA novel, Long Way Down (Atheneum/Dlouhy), in October. Written in verse, it gives new meaning to the expression elevator pitch. Fifteen-year-old Will gets on the elevator of his apartment building with a gun, intent on revenge against the person who killed his brother. But as he descends, each new passenger who gets on is a ghost who tells him something that changes what he thought he knew about his brothers death.

The whole book takes place in the elevator over the course of a minute, Reynolds says. Thats all the time you need to stop and reflect before doing something that will change your life forever. Most of these young kids have no idea why theyre doing what theyre doing.

At the age of 33, Reynolds may seem like an overnight sensation, but he calls his recent success a second breath. After college at the University of Maryland, he and classmate Jason Griffin moved to Brooklyn and self-published My Name Is Jason. Mine, Too. The largely autobiographical account tells the story of two broke young men with the same first name and the same dream: becoming artists. Foolish children is what Reynolds says now about his decision to spend $30,000 on the self-publishing venture.

Though the book didnt find a wide audience, it caught the eye of then-HarperCollins-editor Joanna Cotler, who republished it for teens. The book still didnt sell well, but it convinced Reynolds to write for young people, specifically those who hate reading. Since his breakout three years ago, he has become a sought-after speaker in schools, doing as many as 100 visits a year. I have a hard time with people who say they write for children but they dont really like children, he says. I love children. I love talking with them. We have a good time. We talk about sneakers or Tupac, and the books I sneak in the back door.

All of the recognition Reynolds has gotten from award judgesespecially from the Coretta Scott King Awards committee, which gave him a John Steptoe New Talent Award for When I Was the Greatesthas made him want to live up to the potential others see. [The committees] watching me, Reynolds says. I cant make them look like fools. There is more work to do, and the work has to get even better.

Jason Reynolds will give a keynote address on Friday, April 7, 7:458:45 a.m, in Salon 1 & 4.

Return to the main feature.
After winning the Caldecott Medal for A Sick Day for Amos McGee (Roaring Brook/Porter, 2010), Philip and Erin Stead, the husband-and-wife writing-and-illustrating team, received a number of book requests, but none as mysterious as an offer from Doubleday via their agent. All they could tell us was that it involved Mark Twain, Philip recalls. We were intrigued enough to say yes, even though we didnt know what we were saying yes to.

Six months later the Steads received a 16-page typescript of handwritten notes for a childrens fairy tale by Twain. A scholar had found the notes, about a boy who can talk to animals, in Twains papers, which are archived at the University of California at Berkeley. Though Twain often told his daughters bedtime stories, this is believed to be the only one he ever started to record.

It was a bit terrifying when the notes arrived, and we realized it was actually happening, Philip says. I was completely overwhelmed. His reaction was to retreat by himself to a borrowed cabin on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan, a community first settled in the mid-19th century by Mormons, whose leader, James Jesse Strang, declared himself king of the island. Even today, there is no cell phone reception, so the only conversations Philip had were one-sided ones with Mark Twain. I told him all about James Jesse Strangabout his brief and unlikely kingdom, Philip wrote in an afterword to the book. Then I told him all about my Good Idea, which was: Make Beaver Island a part of the story.

In two weeks Philip had a draft of The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine, which will be released on September 26 to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the publication of Twains first book, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County (C.H. Webb).

Though Doubleday pitched the project as a picture book, that was not precisely what the Steads delivered. Philip spent four months revising it before handing the manuscript to Erin to illustrate. The text had grown to 10,000 words. (By way of comparison, A Sick Day for Amos McGee contains fewer than 450 words.)

Even before we negotiated the contract, we said we couldnt commit to a 32-page book, Erin says. It wasnt just that Twain wouldnt have written a picture book in the first placepicture books didnt exist when he wrote thisthe story had too much of an arc to condense it to 32 pages. But we never imagined it would be five times longer than a regular picture book.

The finished work is a story framed with as told to me by my friend Mark Twain, who comments on the narrative. It is 152 pages long. It couldve been a middle grade novel, but were picture book makers, Erin says. It was just natural for me to break up the text with a lot of page breaks and white space.

Erin used a limited palette of mostly earth tones, as is her style, creating the images with woodblocks, printed with oil inks and drawn over with pencil. Each of the 11 chapter headings was carved in wood using a laser. This was written more than 100 years ago, and I wanted the illustrations to reflect that, and to make it very American without hitting on any single period, she says. She also hid Twain Easter eggs throughout.

Philip and Erin Stead will appear with Frances Gilbert on Friday, April 7, 22:45 p.m., in Clackamas & Clark.

Return to the main feature.
The election of President Donald J. Trump has galvanized many in the book industry to a level of political activism not seen in generations. This week, we begin a series that shines a spotlight on some of the actions taken by those in publishing, bookselling, libraries, the nonprofit world, book-related media, and more.

Deandra Beard, the owner of Beyond Barcodes in Kokomo, Ind., recalls her shock the morning after the presidential election when she learned that more than 57% of voters in Indiana had cast their ballots for Donald Trumpincluding more than 50% of the voters in her county. She committed to using her multicultural bookstore as a safe space for aisle-crossing political conversations.

Since the election, Beard has organized two in-store community dialogues: the first was intended to let attendees blow off steam about the election, and the second was in a larger town hall format as part of the year-old stores ongoing We the People series of discussions about intersectional social issues in the U.S. During the town hall, people of various political persuasions discussed the election, why they voted the way they did, and how to work across the aisle to build relationships in the future, she explained.

Through that [town hall], Beard noted, I know that people for sure voted for Trump and are already regretting it. More town halls on current events will be held as necessary, she said.

On April 22, Beyond Barcodes will hold a day of education about immigration. The event will include a concert by a Chicago-based band, Bassel & the Supernaturals, whose lead vocalist, a Syrian immigrant to the U.S., will also facilitate a discussion about the issue from the perspective of an Arab-American.

Chicagos Women & Children First, one of the oldest womens bookstores in the country, has taken a strong and vocal stand against the Trump presidency and its ramifications. In early January the store owners, Lynn Mooney and Sarah Hollenbeck, announced that they were launching a feminist craft circle with the goal of using traditionally feminine crafts for political statements, art, and more. The Feminist Craft Circle members knitted 100 pink pussy hats for the Womens March in January, which were distributed before and during the marches in Chicago and Washington, D.C. The crafting group has decided to continue to meet as a regular crafting circle; most recently, they knitted hats and scarves to provide to a local nonprofit, Care for Real, that helps people in need with food and clothing.

Women and Children First has also launched two monthly events in response to the current political climate. The first, called Activism, showcases local activist organizations. Each month, representatives from a different Chicagoland social justice organization make a presentation about its mission, followed by a q&a and information session on how people can become involved with it.

The second monthly series is called the Conversation. In it, authors discuss issues of political, social, and cultural relevance. The inaugural panel was subtitled Art + Resistance and featured Aleksandar Hemon, Eula Biss, and Roger Reeves, among others.

In Houston last month, Tony Diaz, the proprietor of Nuestra Palabra Arts & Books, took to the streets to voice his opposition to some of the new policies of the Trump administration that have filtered down to the state level. Under protest was SB4: a law making its way through the Texas legislature that would empower police on university campuses to act as de facto immigration officers. We have to work together to make this stop, he said to the nearly 50 people whod gathered in the 80-degree heat outside the administrative building of the University of Houston Downtown to hold placards with slogans such as Immigrants Welcome Here and Stop Racism for the television cameras. This city behind us hums with industry, with trains and construction, he announced, and we know who built this city, this countryimmigrants.

Diaz opened Nuestra Palabra late last year. By his own account, it is just the fifth Latino-focused bookstore in the nation. It is housed inside Talento Bilingue de Houston, a cultural center that also includes a 270-seat theater, which the store will use for special events. Currently, the shop has 500 titles on offer, with plans to expand to some 2,000.

A vocal advocate for Latino literary life, Diaz is also the founder of Nuestra Palabra: Latino Writers Having Our Sayan organization that was responsible for the Latino Book and Family Show, which ran from 2002 to 2007and a self-described librotraficante (book smuggler). In 2012, he organized a caravan to smuggle wet books into Arizona after the state outlawed Latino and ethnic studies at universities. In keeping with the spirit of that project, one of the first events at the store was a seminar for high school teachers on how to use Latino literature, which was free to attend with the purchase of Hecho in Tejasi, the anthology of Mexican-American literature edited by Dagoberto Gilb.

Asked why he started a bookstore, Diaz explained that downtown Houston is a book desert and, save for the headquarters of the Houston public library, there is nowhere to get a book in the district. (A Books-A-Million closed several years ago.) His mission is to give the Latino community a literary place to chill and to help the curious discover books that can help share the Latino experience.

At KitaabWorld, an online childrens bookstore focused on offering hard-to-find books from South Asian countriesincluding India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Burma, Afghanistan, and Nepalthe focus has also been on educating readers, parents, and teachers. An ongoing campaign dubbed 45+ Books to Counter Islamophobia, which has promoted books on topics from Muhammad Ali to the Grand Mosque in Paris, has garnered international attention.

Our roles are not purely as booksellers, said site cofounder Sadaf Saddique, a Silicon Valley consultant. We see ourselves as taking bookselling to the next step by trying to facilitate representation for South Asian culture and childrens books. In this regard we are activists and advocates in addition to being booksellers.

The site, which operates out of the San Francisco Bay area and has an office in Menlo Park, Calif., was born last year when Saddique and cofounder Gauri Manglik, an attorney, recognized a gap in the market for books that featured South Asian children in various cultures and countries, not only in the context of an immigrant or assimilation experience in America. We wanted books that authentically depicted life back in India, for example, and for that reason we had to import the books ourselves.

KitaabWorld currently offers approximately 1,000 titles, and it is working with a dozen publishers in India. The site also handles its own warehousing and distribution.

The biggest challenge is discovery, educating people to let them know that these books do existthere are books that depict little girls in hijabs doing everyday things, Saddique said.

Educators are as much a target audience of KitaabWorld as are general readers. Sometimes, Saddique said, teachers can sometimes be reticent to order books about, say, Islam, because they fear that they dont know enough about the topic to make a good decision as to what to buy. He added, That is why we put out our list to counter Islamophobiait was more to make people comfortable with the topic. However, he continued, we want to emphasize that we are not just a site for Islamic books. We have done campaigns to educate people about Diwali, for example.

Among the sites bestselling titles are Big Red Lollipop by Rukhsana Khan and illustrated by Sophie Blackall (Viking) and Four Feet, Two Sandals by Karen Lynn Williams (Eerdmans). But perhaps dearest to the cofounders heart is Dear Mrs. Naidu by Mathangi Subramanian (Young Zuuban), a story about an Indian girl living in a slum who battles the government to get education and becomes pen pals with Mrs. Naidu, a long-dead freedom fighter. The book won the 2016 South Asian Book Award, Saddique said, and we were so eager to sell it here. Part of our mission is to help expand the audience for these books in the United States, but also to simply prove that the audience exists here so more of these types of books get published.
With assets of $23 million at the close of its most recent fiscal year (on Mar. 31, 2016) and a smooth transition to a new CEO, Robert Walton, in July, it might seem as if the National Association of College Stores is in a strong position. But like publishers and other players in the college market, NACS has been roiled by dramatic changes in higher education. Behind its solid financials are signs of weakening in the face of changes in the collegiate book market, including a decline in the number of independent campus stores.

Though independent trade bookstores have been growing since 2010, the picture for campus stores has been less rosy. Last year alone 92 independent stores signed with lease operators, including the store at the University of Connecticutwhich ditched the UConn Co-op, founded in the 1970sand the 100-year-old bookstore at UNC Chapel Hill, both of which signed with Barnes & Noble Education. The number of private college stores has dropped too, from 447 in 2012 to 367 in 2016. Many schools have turned to leasing to relieve the headaches of operating a physical store, particularly at a time when more and more students are shopping online, as well as in the hopes of getting a better financial return.

We get an F, if our goal is to retain independent stores, said Walton at the associations annual business meeting and town hall, which took place at Camex (Campus Market Expo) in Salt Lake City from March 3 to 7. Were losing a store every four days. Currently there are about 2,000 indie stores. If the association doesnt take action, Walton predicted, the situation could reach a tipping point in less than a decade. By his calculations, leased stores may significantly outnumber indies as early as 2025.

Already NACS is starting to feel a financial pinch from the drop in indies, 360 over the past five years. With the loss of independent campus stores, the Camex trade show, one of its largest moneymakers, has seen a corresponding decline in attendance and exhibits. This year, the number of attendees dropped from 1,916 in 2016 to 1,641; the number of booths from 1,476 to 1,152. These dropscoupled with a softening at its shipping subsidiary PartnerShip, a dip in membership dues by more than $100,000 last fiscal year, and a forced 17% staff reduction in September because of a $30 million loss in revenue at its NACSCorp distribution subsidiaryhave further strengthened NACSs resolve to fight, a word used frequently throughout the show.

We shouldnt hand over the industry to Follett and Barnes & Noble [Education] without competing, Walton said. He and NACS members are concerned about affordability and reports that students who shop lease-operated stores pay more for textbooks than other students. Were going to start fighting back, and were going to make clear the value of independents, he said. At a megasession the following day, he elaborated on how the organization intends to do that by announcing that it is redefining the mission of its four-year-old IndiCo subsidiary, which will become a collaborative. Previously IndiCo had served primarily as a consultant for indies, and it will now play an active role in assisting school stores, including taking on the tasks of a lease operation while keeping the campus store under the institutions control. As part of the transition, the functions of NACS subsidiaries Connect2One, which enables stores to buy merchandise collectively, and NACSCorp will be absorbed by IndiCo.

NACS also announced several key partnerships that will enable it to help institutions, including one with Amazon (which Walton does not regard as the enemy) and Amazons newly launched textbook wholesale service. Among others partnering with IndiCo are Akademos, Ingram VitalSource, RedShelf, and Sidewalk. In an interview at the show, Walton stressed that IndiCo plans to be promiscuous when it comes to recommending vendors to institutions. They will be able to choose the services they want and partners that will deliver them, unlike many lease operators, who prefer to lock up vendors even if theyre more expensive.

Even before the announcement was made publicly, IndiCo had begun responding to requests for proposals put out by institutions. This year NACS hopes to have eight stores using IndiCos services, Walton said. Although most of the planning around the relaunched IndiCo has been to help small- to medium-size stores, he noted that hes been surprised by how much big stores would like to participate. In early conversations, large stores have been particularly interested in a global supply chain program that NACS is looking to launch in the fall, which will enable members to source products globally. The association has already opened an office in Shanghai.

So far the response to the relaunched IndiCo has been positive, although admittedly Walton was speaking to the converted at Camex. I was very excited to hear NACSs timely announcement about IndiCo, said Debbie Harvey, managing director of university community services at the University of British Columbia. Our industry is changing rapidly. We need to support the independent bookstores contributions to students academic success and the vitality of their campuses. The new IndiCo will provide tools and services to help all stores remain viable and continue to contribute to their campuses.

Janet Huebner, store manager and textbook services director at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa, noted that the announcement provided a lot of fodder for conversation at the show. It is exactly this type of leadership that is needed to stem the loss of independent stores, she said. IndiCos ability to evaluate need store by store will provide a professional and updated model of what a college store should be. In addition, IndiCo will be a crucial consultant to educate college administrators on the negatives of going lease.

Speaking for the Harvard Coop at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., which has a business relationship with Barnes & Noble Education, president Jerry Murphy called the IndiCo initiative a terrific option and resource, particularly for small and medium stores. It gives administrators another option which should be more efficient [and] localized and keep the resources within the independent bookstore ecosystem.

A Time of Change

The ideas that college retail is changing and innovation is required were woven into many of the presentations during Camex. Incoming NACS board of trustees president Loreen Maxfield, director of retail operations at the University of Illinois at Chicago, made change the theme of her talkand linked it to Barbie. We too need to remain relevant in a changing environment, Maxfield said, noting that Barbie has gone through 150 different professions and run for president six times. Like Barbie, she added, collegiate retailers need to make change work. NACS cannot do this alone. What needs to be done is not easy. We are fighting to survive.

Change, particularly consolidation, was also apparent on the show floor. At the MBS booth, staff fielded questions about what its recent purchase by Barnes & Noble Education will mean for campus retailers. Verba, a pioneer in price-comparison software, was near the Ingram VitalSource. The two will merge at the end of the quarter as part of VitalSources drive to enter the independent market. VitalSource supplies the technology for Follett and B&N Education and is about to begin powering Cheggs digital platform.

Follett Higher Education used the show to unveil its integrated textbook marketplace tailored to the college bookstore industry. As executive v-p of sales operations for Follett Clay Wahl noted, it offers sourcing, rental, management, buyback, and liquidations solutions and is based on the companys 2016 acquisitions of BookVolume and ValoreBooks.

The week of Camex, Sidewalk, which has transformed into a tech company in recent years, marked its exit from supplying physical textbooks through its separation from CampusBookRentals.com. [Providing physical books] is not fundamentally what were doing right now, said Sidewalk founder and CEO Alan Martin. He was excited that IndiCo has moved from the role of an observer to an advocate and will be making some of the companys tools available through their partnership, including Sidewalks price comparison software Hero. By the end of the year, Martin anticipates having 200 schools live on Hero.

With so many mergers and acquisitions dominating the show, RedShelf cofounder and CEO Greg Fenton noted that his company has no intentions of seeking a buyer. It is flush with cash after raising $4 million from investors, including NACS, last fall. RedShelf, which competes with VitalSource, currently dominates the indie market in digital, serving 540 stores, and has begun to enter the for-profit market, long dominated by VitalSource.

Correction: VitalSource will acquire Verba at the end of the quarter. At Camex, the merger hadn't yet taken place. The two companies had booths near each other, but not together.
BUFFALO GROVE  The many area students taking part in the production of "Lion King Jr." at Special Gifts Theatre eagerly waited to act as Mufasa, Simba, Scar and the other notable characters from the Disney classic.

Working with 50 peer mentors, 50 student actors coming from schools throughout the northwest Illinois suburbs ultimately took the stage recently for the first performances of the organization's annual musical.

The performances touched on issues of diversity, justice and family values, reflecting the mission of the Northbrook-based Special Gifts Theatre, said Executive Director Jenni Von Tobel. The theater works with students with developmental disabilities to provide them with a creative outlet while working to break stereotypes within the community, she said.

"Lion King is all about family and believing in yourself, and being part of a pride," Von Tobel said. "And that's exactly what we are here at Special Gifts Theatre. Our students, our mentors, we're part of a family and we're part of a pride together. We're just excited to show our community members the abilities of all of our kids on stage.

Students from schools in Barrington, Buffalo Grove, Chicago, Kenilworth, Long Grove and other areas in the northwest suburbs worked with peer mentors to perform the play. Mentors at Special Gifts Theatre range from grade-school children to teenagers, Van Tobel said.

During the recent performance, the student actors appeared on stage with their mentors for audience members.

Long Grove resident Jordyn LeVay, 16, who attends Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire as a junior, worked as a peer mentor to Mark Shaw, a New Trier Township High School student from Wilmette.

"Being a peer mentor at SGT is my favorite part of my week," LeVay said. "Everyone respects each other and their differences. We're all friends no matter what."

Working as a peer mentor for the past three years, Hailey Kleinstein, 18, of Buffalo Grove and a senior, at Stevenson, this year worked with Glenview resident Robyn Gray, who played the character Zazu in the play.

"I have definitely become more confident and outgoing because of my buddy," Kleinstein said. "I'm definitely helping her come more out of her shell (Robyn Gray) and so with that, she's also helped me. Helping others is definitely a life-changing experience."
ANNAWAN  Two Annawan High School students were among 16 participants March 11 in the state poetry recitation contest.

The students competed for a slot in the 2016 Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest in Washington, D. C., in May.

The Springfield Area Arts Council hosted students from eight regions spanning Illinois. Samantha DePauw and Hanna Jacobsen, both from Annawan, represented the Western Illinois region.

Students study, memorize and recite renowned classic and contemporary poetry and a panel of writers, teachers and performers judges the recitations. The state champion receives a trip to the nation's capital to join 53 students vying for a $20,000 scholarship.

"Listening to and watching these talented students as they convey their understanding of poems and poets makes me, well, hopeful," said organizer Sheila Walk. "Their ability to articulate important themes is impressive. It's a great program."

More than 7,460 students and 164 teachers from 48 public and private high schools participated in the Illinois program this year.
A Henry County jury on Friday found Matthew Crane, 29, of Front Royal, Va., guilty of possession of cannabis with intent to deliver.

A surreal field of scattered cash helped net Mr. Crane and his co-defendant Ranzy Weston, 28, of Chantilly, Va., who pleaded guilty last fall.

The two were charged April 9, 2015, after the manager of the Best Western Inn in Geneseo called police to do a welfare check at their room. The men were late checking out in part because they found money in a grassy area next to the parking lot.

I found $485, and Im not sure how much Mr. Crane found, said Mr. Weston.

There was no explanation as to the origin of the cash.

Police checked the mens motel room, finding an overwhelming odor of raw cannabis and an empty food saver bag of the type to vacuum-seal cannabis. After talking to the two, they had a state trooper conduct a K-9 free-air sniff that resulted in an alert on both mens vehicles. They found six pounds of suspected cannabis in Mr. Westons rented Ford Focus and five marijuana cigarettes in Mr. Cranes Jeep.

Assistant states attorney Catherine Runty argued Mr. Cranes Jeep was a decoy car intended to divert law enforcement attention from Mr. Westons Ford which held the six pounds of pot.

Mr. Crane denied any joint enterprise with Mr. Weston, maintaining the only portion of their trip from Colorado that was shared was the cost of the hotel room. He said he repeatedly told officers if they wanted to know Mr. Westons account of the trip, they would have to ask Mr. Weston.

He did say hed washed the food saver bag in the motel room out with soap in order for it to be more appropriate.

I didnt think Id be offending anyone by throwing away plastic with soap in it, he said.

The Class 1 felony carries a possible penalty of four to 15 years in prison, but it is also probationable. A sentencing hearing was set for May 23.
DAVENPORT -- The U.S. Army Sustainment Command-Army Reserve Element held a Military Ball and dinner attended by about 200 people March 4 at the Hotel Blackhawk in Davenport.

The event focused on resiliency and leadership.

In my mind, resiliency is about being able to take a punch and then being able to get back up, said guest speaker Brig. Gen. Susan Henderson, deputy commanding general, 79th Theater Sustainment Command, Los Alamitos, Calif.

Resiliency takes work, she continued. It doesnt come naturally when the punches come fast.

Brig. Gen. Henderson discussed three types of resiliency: personal, career and mission. She said all three types of resiliency are about adaptability and willingness to change.

While talking about leadership, she discussed her own experiences growing up through the Army. She said that, as a cadet in the Reserve Officer Training Corps, she began to learn that leadership is about supporting others and helping them to achieve the Army standard.

Brig. Gen. Henderson was commander of the ASC-ARE from March 2014 to September 2015.

Col. Timothy Fenlason, commander, ASC-ARE, said the purpose of the ball was to bring the unit together and to have a good time.

We certainly dont have the opportunity to come together as a unit as often as wed like, he said. I want us to take this opportunity to make some new friends and to reignite old friendships.

ASC-ARE has three detachments co-located with the 404th Army Field Support Brigade at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., the 406th AFSB at Fort Bragg, N.C., and the 407th AFSB at Fort Hood, Texas.

As an Army Reserve brigade aligned under the Army Reserve Sustainment Command, the mission of the ASC-ARE is to provide trained Soldiers in support of ASCs goals. The mission of ASC is to integrate and synchronize the delivery of U.S. Army Materiel Command capabilities and resources to ensure Army readiness.

The unit officially was designated as ASC-ARE in April 2009.

The night began with a receiving line comprised of the brigades leadership and their guests.

ASC provided the color guard, which included Sgt. 1st Class Cornelius Goodwin, Sgt. 1st Class Chrystal Yazzie, Sgt. 1st Class Joycelyn Clinton, Sgt. 1st Class Sefo Laufalemana, Sgt. Kenneth Hargrove and Spc. Seth Barnes.

Jereen Phillips, human resources assistant, ASC, sang the national anthem. Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Jeffery Bush provided the invocation and benediction.

Key leaders presented the traditional toasts, which included toasts to the nation, to the president, to the Army, to the brigade, to honored guests, to the deployed, to fallen soldiers and to the ladies.

During the toast for the fallen soldiers, Maj. Peter Holloway, the master of ceremonies, narrated the Fallen Soldier Tribute.

Distinguished guests included Rock Island Mayor Dennis Pauley, Bettendorf Ald. Scott Nuamann, 2nd Ward; Davenport Ald. Michael Matson, 7th Ward; and Command Sgt. Maj. Michael Hovis, ASC-ARE senior enlisted adviser.

Brig. Gen. Henderson presented Mr. Pauley, Mr. Nuamann and Mr. Matson with community appreciation plaques.

A number of ASC-ARE soldiers also received their retirement certificates during the ball:

-- Col. Jerome Heath, 30 years

-- Col. John Small, 30 years

-- Col. Diana Torres, 30 years

-- Lt. Col. Richard Christensen, 28 years

-- Lt. Col. Edward Dawson, 28 years

-- Lt. Col. Peter Dubravec, 30 years

-- Lt Col. Ezinwa Nwankpa, 28 years.
ROCK ISLAND  An informational meeting about a floodplain obstruction at the former River Oaks Trailer Court near Barstow is planned for 5:30 p.m. April 5 in the county board chambers of the Rock Island County Building, 1504 3rd Ave., Rock Island.

"We realize there are questions and concerns about this obstruction, and we would like to answer those questions," said Rock Island County administrator Dave Ross.

Mr. Ross said the meeting is for public information only. Rock Island County's floodplain manager Greg Thorpe will be joined by representatives from the Army Corps of Engineers and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources at the meeting.

The barrier runs along the edge of the former mobile home park, fronting a channel of the Rock River just south of Barstow. Rock Island County employees have cut into the barrier to fill holes at the former mobile home park, now owned by the county.

Doug Riel, president of the Carbon Cliff-Barstow Fire Protection District board, wants the barrier rebuilt. Mr. Thorpe has said the barrier provides no flood protection and should be removed.

Using a $1.4 million federal hazard mitigation grant, the county bought the former trailer park and is remediating the site by clearing the remaining mobile homes and the barrier. Because the grant expires in November, county officials want to finish the work this year.

Last year, the Illinois DNR told the county the barrier never received state or county authorization. Because it cannot be rebuilt without a state permit, the DNR said removing it would be the best and cheapest option.
The Rock Island County Democratic Party is planning its first "Join the Revolution" event 4:30-7 p.m. Tuesday at the Stern Center, 1713 3rd Ave., Rock Island.

Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs will headline the event. Tickets are $10 per person and include pulled pork sandwiches, refreshments, a cash bar, raffles and music by Jay Saxon.

The event is intended to bring new, activist-minded people into the party, inspired by resistance to the presidency of Donald Trump, said Rock Island County Democratic Party chairman Dough House.

For more information, call 309-786-8337.

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Two Black Hawk College Board of Trustees candidates are planning a meet-and-greet 9:30-11 a.m. March 18 in the Dedrick Room at the Geneseo Community Center, 541 E. North St.

Jon Looney, of Kewanee, and Steve Spivey, of New Windsor, are seeking seats on the board in the April 4 election.

Todd Sieben, one of the March 18 event's hosts, said Mr. Looney and Mr. Spivey have longtime connections to Black Hawk College and want to bring vision and a stable future to the college's campuses in Moline and Kewanee.

Absentee ballot information also will be available at the event.

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U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Moline, is co-sponsoring a bill that would let students use Pell Grant awards year-round.

In a news release, Rep. Bustos said she was joined in introducing the bipartisan legislation on Thursday by co-sponsors Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., and Rep. Carlos Curbelo, R-Fla.

Rep. Bustos said she has been pushing for more flexibility for students with Pell Grants, especially those attending community colleges, and has previously introduced similar legislation.

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A bill co-sponsored by state Rep. Mike Halpin, D-Rock Island, that would freeze lawmaker reimbursement rates and block a scheduled pay raise was approved in the Illinois House of Representatives Thursday.

House Bill 643 would remove the automatic cost-of-living increase that state legislators are due in July. Additionally, it freezes reimbursement rates for travel, food and lodging on days lawmakers are in session in Springfield.

The bill passed 98-3, with Rep. Halpin joined by Reps. Dan Swanson, R-Alpha, and Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, backing the bill. It now moves to the Senate for consideration.

For legislators to receive any increase to their pay is unacceptable at this time, and I will stand against any legislation that aims to increase incentives for politicians," Rep. Halpin said. "I hope this can signal a new direction forward, one that prioritizes our states residents over political games and works to end the destructive budget impasse.
SPRINGFIELD  Absentee ballot applications need to be changed, Rock Island County State's Attorney John McGehee told the House Elections and Campaign Finance Committee in Springfield Thursday.

Weeks before the Nov. 8, 2016, elections, Rock Island County Clerk Karen Kinney reported 1,500 absentee ballot requests had been discovered in a Rock Island post office. At the time, Ms. Kinney expressed concerns that absentee ballot requests not directly made by voters were not being sent to her office in a timely manner.

On Thursday, Mr. McGehee said state law should require all absentee ballot requests to only go to a county clerk. He said he thought his testimony in Springfield was worthwhile.

"I want to help to try and get the law changed, so we don't have this problem in the future," Mr. McGehee.

Mr. McGehee said he doesn't have a problem with third party groups trying to get out voters and providing absentee ballot applications.

"That's fine," he said. "But those applications need to go back to the clerk. She processes them, verifies the signatures and sends out the actual ballot to individuals who want to vote by absentee vote."

Ms. Kinney said the absentee ballot applications in question were mailed back to a post office box under the name of "Rock Island County Vote By Mail Center." Ms. Kinney feared the applications might not have been picked up if she hadn't learned of them.

The postal box was rented by the Illinois Opportunity Project, a nonprofit co-founded by conservative Chicago radio talk show host Dan Proft. Pat Hughes, co-founder of the group, said his organization did nothing wrong.

Mr. McGehee, the Rock Island County Sheriff's Office and the Illinois Attorney General's Office all investigated the matter. No charges were ever filed.

The attorney general's office also looked at similar problems in Will and Kankakee counties.

Mr. McGehee said the question of where absentee ballot applications are sent has become a hot button topic. He suggested the state extend the cut-off date for absentee ballot requests from the current period of five days to 10 days.

"It's very difficult for the clerk to process all of these applications," Mr. McGehee said.

Rep. Silvana Tabares, D-Chicago, who chairs the House Elections and Campaign Finance Committee, is sponsoring a bill requiring absentee ballot requests returned to any individual or organization other than an election authority be submitted to the appropriate election authority within 14 days of receipt of the request.

On Friday, her bill was moved to a Ballot Access subcommittee.
GENESEO -- Stay Strong is a message Geneseo High School senior Maya Esparza shares to help raise money for children hospitalized at St. Jude Research Hospital.

She was selected one of seven Illinois finalists in the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program. As a finalist, she will receive a certificate and bronze medal.

Her work helping others began when, as a fourth-grader, she won $1,000 in a raffle at a fundraiser for St. Baldricks. Rather than keep the money, she gave it back to St. Baldricks, which raises funds for research into childhood cancers.

"I gave it all away, and it made me feel so good to see the impact that money would have," she said.

As a Geneseo sophomore, Ms. Esparza was airlifted to St. Francis Childrens Hospital in Peoria after an allergic attack. While in the hospital, she received an antique key bearing the words, "Stay Strong," from her grandfather, Bob Southwick, of East Moline.

"It was such a simple thing, but it helped keep me going, she said. Thats when I first thought of how I might do something similar to help others.

"I have always had a passion for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital that helps provide care for children battling serious illnesses, she said.

Last year, she founded Keys for Kids after buying old keys and a stamping kit. With her grandfather's help, she stamped the keys with Bible verses and motivational phrases, such as Stay Strong. She sells the Keys for Kids for $15-$18 each through her Facebook page, Keys for Kids.

In the beginning, it took me almost an hour to line everything up and do each key," she said. "But now Im able to make them much faster."

She hoped to raise $1,000 for St. Judes last year, but came up $200 short. Members of the Geneseo High School Key Club, a service club under the umbrella of the Geneseo Kiwanis Club, stepped up to help her reach her goal.

Ms. Esparza said, since she was 8, she has taken part in portions of the annual St. Judes Chicago to Peoria run.

"I was never old enough to do the entire run, but I have been able to participate in the last leg of the race, she said. That leg consists of 30 to 40 miles; Miss Esparza ran 13 of them.

We end up at the Peoria Civic Center, where there is like a telethon going on to raise money for the children and a spaghetti dinner also to help raise money," she said. "That is where I was able to meet some of the St. Jude children.

Linda VanDerLeest, Ms. Esparzas guidance counselor at Geneseo High School, encouraged her to apply for the Prudential Spirit of Community Award given to a U.S. student involved in volunteer work. Ms. Esparza said she thought there was no way she would win, "but at least Ill try.

Being named a finalist has spurred her volunteer efforts. Now 18, she is old enough to participate in the entire Chicago-to-Peoria St. Jude Run, with hopes of donating $2,000 to St. Judes.

"You participate as part of a team and each team has a recreational vehicle and then you choose the miles you want to run, as many or as few as you want," she said. "In order to be on a team, you have to raise a certain amount of money. I am trying to raise the money with Keys for Kids.

Ms. Esparza said meeting with St. Jude children in Peoria lets her see the research work in action and reminds her of her own hospitalization, off and on since she was born.

"I struggle with severe asthma attacks and other allergic reactions," she said. "I can relate to how much it means when someone goes out of their way to help.

"Every little bit makes a huge difference. The children are going through such horrible experiences, but when they see people helping them out, their eyes light up.

"Being part of that support and care is really cool.

Ms. Esparza is the daughter of Jennifer and Daniel Erickson and Michael Esparza. After high school, she plans to attend Columbia College in Chicago and major in fashion merchandising, with a minor in fashion design.

I hope to eventually create my own clothing line -- with the idea that I will help give back to others, she said.
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BERLIN  Who is president of the United States: the Republican Donald Trump or the anti-European populist Donald Trump? To Germany, this is an essential question. The Republican Trump is expected to stick to the close trans-Atlantic relationship that is key to Germany's prosperity and security. The populist Trump has the potential to pull the rug right out from under us.
If US President Donald Trump follows through on his protectionist threats against China, the short-run consequences  including a trade war  could be serious. But, in the longer term, US protectionism could be a blessing in disguise for all emerging economies as they seek to boost their international clout.
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Our EDC gear tends to be as compact and discreet as possible. But every once in a while, we like to get our gigantism on. Whether its an iPhone 7 Plus in your pants or a Ford Super Duty in the garage, having big powerful tools is indispensable.

So, were taking a stab at large folding knives. We dont always carry them daily, but in certain circumstances they offer benefits that other knives cant.

First is range. The longer the weapon the more reach and the less distance to cover in a self-defense situation. Second, longer blade means more cutting surface  whether thats for harvesting game, batoning firewood, or intercepting a bad guys attack. And for those with big hands (insert joke here), a bigger overall length (insert second joke here) means theres more leverage.

Of course, there are drawbacks. Bigger folders are heavier and take up more pocket real estate. And there may be legal ramifications for carrying them in nanny states and regions with tight knife restrictions.

As always, do your research and figure out which giant knife is right for your loadout. After all, its practically un-American not to have Supersize Me options.

Make:

Black Label

Model:

Wihongi Signature Folder

OAL:

8.6 inches

Blade Length:

3.6 inches

Blade Material:

7Cr17MoV stainless steel

Weight:

7 ounces

MSRP:

$40

URL:

www.browning.com

Make:

Emerson Knives

Model:

Big Bulldog

OAL:

8.9 inches

Blade Length:

3.7 inches

Blade Material:

154CM stainless steel

Weight:

6.5 ounces

MSRP:

$260

URL:

www.emersonknives.com

Make:

Camillus Cutlery

Model:

9 Cuda

OAL:

9 inches

Blade Length:

3.75 inches

Blade Material:

AUS-8 stainless steel

Weight:

5.1 ounces

MSRP:

$58

URL:

www.camillusknives.com

Make:

Coast Products

Model:

TX399

OAL:

9 inches

Blade Length:

3.9 inches

Blade Material:

9Cr18MoV stainless steel

Weight:

3.7 ounces

MSRP:

$50

URL:

www.coastportland.com

Make:

Steel Will Knives

Model:

Bruiser 500

OAL:

9.53 inches

Blade Length:

4.02 inches

Blade Material:

K110 tool steel

Weight:

9.13 ounces

MSRP:

$300

URL:

www.steelwillknives.com

Make:

Ruger Knives

Model:

All-Cylinders +P

OAL:

11.25 inches

Blade Length:

5 inches

Blade Material:

8Cr13MoV stainless steel

Weight:

11.6 ounces

MSRP:

$75

URL:

www.ruger.com/crkt

Make:

Spyderco

Model:

Tatanka G-10 Black

OAL:

11.55 inches

Blade Length:

5.05 inches

Blade Material:

VG-10 stainless steel

Weight:

9.2 ounces

MSRP:

$330

URL:

www.spyderco.com

Browning Wihongi Signature Folder

411:

As the eponymous co-designer, Jared Wihongi teamed up with award-winning knifemaker Russ Kommer to create a whole lineup of tactical blades that combines his Maori warrior heritage, Filipino kali mastery, and hands-on SWAT experience. The results are eye-catching. Though its the smallest in this buyers guide, his folder is by no means the runt of the litter and can more than hold its own as an EDC or fighting knife.

Pros:

>From the large thumb-studs and comfortable G-10 scales to the ergonomic finger groves and excellent grip (both forward or reverse), theres a lot of little details that equal big benefits.

>The modified Wharncliffe blade slices and punctures cardboard like its loose-leaf.

>Surprisingly, it retails for only 40 bucks.

Cons:

>Unfortunately, to keep those costs down, the blades made from Chinese stainless steel.

>Tip-up-only pocket clip means youll have to re-grip the handle before opening the blade, slowing deployment slightly.

Emerson Big Bulldog

411:

Emerson Knives has built its reputation by arming first-responders and the military (notably Navy SEALs) with hard-core knives that can thrive anywhere  this models no exception. Anyone whos ever owned any breed of bulldog knows what to expect from this knife: strength, toughness, dependability, and a fierce bite should the need arise. Blade available with stonewash or black-coat finish. Made in the USA.

Pros:

>The blades chisel grind and 154CM stainless steel translates into insane cutting and stabbing power.

>Top-of-the-line craftsmanship and durability  and made stateside

>Lightening fast deployment, thanks to Emersons patented wave-shaped feature that opens the blade as you draw from your pocket

Cons:

>With a chopped tanto profile, the blade doesnt have a belly, lowering its versatility a bit.

>Lefties will have to pay an extra $25 for wrong-handed carry

Camillus 9 Cuda

411:

Camillus has been around since 1876, so it knows a thing or two about knife-making. But it doesnt churn out the same old same old. Case in point: Theres no thumb-stud on the side of the Cudas blade or a flipper tab on its spine. Instead, it has a thumb-button that you push along a curved track in the bolster, which in turn drives the blade out. Unfortunately, its awkwardly slow, but Camillus gets kudos for taking design risks.

Pros:

>With a carbonitride titanium coating and a hollow grind, the AUS-8 blade slashes and penetrates cleanly.

>Simple G-10 handle feels secure and comfy in hand.

>Wont break the bank.

>Lightweight for its length

Cons:

>Marketed as having a quick-action blade release, but quick compared to what? A geriatric Scottish knight unsheathing his claymore sword?

>Carried only with the tip up on the right side.

Coast TX399

411:

While Coast is known for its lights, it does make solid yet affordable knives. The TX399 is the biggest entry in its most recent tactical knives lineup. This ones based on parameters from former special-operations members and features Coasts Double Lock technology, which prevents the blade from accidentally closing by jamming the liner locker open (and reminds us a bit of CRKTs Automated Liner Safety system).

Pros:

>Pocket clip can be switched for righties or lefties.

>A budget buy that you wont be afraid to beat up or lose in the field.

>At 3.7 ounces, this is the lightest knife of the bunch.

Cons:

>The weight savings comes mostly from the fiberglass-reinforced nylon handle, which is strong but gets slick when wet.

>The Chinese construction is questionable; we can wiggle the blade laterally by a couple of millimeters with our thumb and index finger.

Steel Will Bruiser 500

411:

With its distinct lines, aggressive texturing, and thick components, it looks like the kind of knife an assassin droid would use. Conversely, this beefy Bruiser is the kind of knife youd need to shank said assassin droid should you drop your lightsaber (tsk, tsk). The PVD-coated blade is 0.16-inch thick while the G-10 handle (not counting the pocket clip) is almost -inch thick. Beefy like marbled wagyu. Made in Italy.

Pros:

>Comes with Cordura sheath if you dont want to pocket carry

>Integrated glass-breaker at the bottom of the handle

>Pocket clip can be positioned for tip up or tip down and for both right-handed and left-handed users.

Cons:

>Not the smoothest of openings; requires a wrist flick to generate enough momentum to open via flipper tab.

>Takes up a lot of space and tips the scales at more than a  pound.

Ruger All-Cylinders +P

411:

At first glance, we thought this was comically huge, a novelty at best and a clunky space-waster at worst. But after fondling it for some time, we quickly realized that it feels and operates much like its more compact brethren with suitable craftsmanship and good ergonomics. No surprise, though, since it was designed by iconic knife-smith Bill Harsey and manufactured by CRKT.

Pros:

>Despite its Chinese origins, the blade cuts, slices, stabs, and hacks with authority.

>Smooth deployment and tight lockup

>Feels good in hand, thanks to well-shaped G-10 scales

>Inexpensive for the amount of knife youre getting, and thats without searching for cheaper online prices.

Cons:

>Big and heavy; unless youre Brock Lesnar or Steve Yeti Fisher, carrying this would be like EDCing a machete.

>Though adjustable for righties and lefties, there are only tip-down pocket clip positions.

Spyderco Tatanka G-10 Black

411:

Tatanka isnt just the name of a pro wrestler or the Lakota word for bull buffalo. Its also the moniker for this big honking knife. It features Spydercos PowerLock, a souped-up lock-back that applies additional wedging to prevent any accidental closing when its open. It has a saber profile, but the blade geometry and the handles finger groove allow for everything from slashing to fine detail work.

Pros:

>Though no longer the flavor of the month, the blades VG-10 steel still cuts like a laser sword.

>Gargantuan handle with G-10 scales feels surprisingly comfortable in our medium-sized hands.

>Adjustable four-way pocket clip

Cons:

>At nearly a foot long overall, this is getting close to pocket wakizashi territory here. Great for a samurai, not so much for the grayman.
Put Together Your Own Western Elk Hunt. It's Way Less Expensive Than You Might Think.

Photos by Kenda Lenseigne

If, like many, you've daydreamed about hunting in the vast, wild spaces of the American West in pursuit of her largest deer species, then you've probably spent an idle moment or two imagining yourself high above an expansive valley, surrounded by aspens. Maybe you've done a little online research and discovered firing up Google can be dispiriting, as the first few pages of search results are filled with expensive outfitters hawking their wares. Not all of us can afford seven grand to be chaperoned around for the chance to whack a trophy bull and for many, commercialization of the experience detracts from its innate challenge.

There are a lot of reasons why I hunt. There's the opportunity to be a full and active participant in nature, rather than just a passive observer. Then there's the chance to spend time with my tribe around a campfire after the chase, just like my forefathers did. And there's the possibility of providing my family with the very finest free-range, organic meat. None of these require obsessing over a set of antlers.If you're willing to look beyond the horn porn played out nightly on various cable outdoor shows, then hunting cow elk becomes your ticket to adventure. I put a trip together for way less than $1,000, and you can too. Here's how.

Tags

To hunt bull elk as an out-of-state resident you're usually required to apply for a lottery with limited chances of successfully drawing a tag. How limited? Think 4 percent. This is decidedly not the case for cows, with several states offering over-the-counter tags for females, usually after the main drawing has played out. Managing the cow population is vital to the health of the herd, and in many places there's way more elk than the habitat can support in hard times. In the event of a severe winter, any excess population slowly starves to death, with individuals becoming so weak that they're eaten alive by predators. To avoid this, conservation departments try to keep elk numbers at a level that can be supported by the environment in a worst-case scenario. This is where you come in.

In my case, Wyoming Game and Fish department was the recipient of $300, and the paperwork to harvest a cow arrived in the mail a couple of weeks after filling out the online application. While one elk is probably sufficient for most people, you're entitled to purchase up to two tags if they're available  fill both and you're looking at about 400 pounds of meat, more succulent and delicious than beef that is currently retailing at $7 and up per pound. Do the math.

Idaho and Montana have similar programs, so a little research pays dividends. Once you've figured out the state in which you're going to hunt, you'll then need to narrow down the area to a particular game management unit. Ask around on online forums  while no one is going to give you turn-by-turn directions to their favorite honey hole, some are willing to steer you toward a general area. It's also very worthwhile calling local game wardens and picking their brains. My hunting partner spent days researching GIS maps to figure out public land boundaries and comparing them to Google Earth images in order to come up with a starting point that contained a good elk habitat. We got lucky right out the gate, but as with most things in life, there are no guarantees. If you strike out the first year, use the opportunity to network on the ground to improve your chances for later.

Amateurs Talk Tactics, Professionals Talk Logistics

Just getting into the boonies can be a big-ticket item, so it pays to enlist the help of friends. Let's say you're looking at a 1,000-mile, one-way trip to the area you've selected. Assuming you'll take a truck or SUV, then at 15 miles per gallon you're looking at around $400 in gas to get there and back. Split amongst three friends, this starts to look like an economical option. Don't feel like spending three days cooped up in a tin box sharing fart jokes? Start planning now and you've got nine months to accumulate air miles. Check which airlines are offering bonus deals on a new credit card, then use this for mundane purchases throughout the year and pay it off every month  before too long you'll have racked up enough credits for a complimentary flight.

If you're a regular reader of RECOIL, you probably have all the accommodation you'll need. Your tent and sleeping bag are going to seem like a room at the Hilton, and MREs will taste like nectar of the gods after running up and down hills all day. We camped on BLM land loaded with elk sign, and had spectacular views and all the firewood we could gather. For free.

Although we all love to obsess about choosing the best rifle for the job, chances are you already have the right boomstick sitting in the safe. Let's not forget what we're trying to achieve here, which should be the humane harvest of a 400-pound animal. Some states have minimum caliber restrictions, but you don't need a super magnum. Any .308 will punch a cow's ticket at 300 yards. Keep the range under 200 and 6.8 SPC with premium bullets would do just fine  as with anything, shot placement is key. Of course, you could use the trip to justify a new rifle, just don't count it toward the overall cost  after all, we're trying to economize here

Local Knowledge

If you want to increase your odds of putting meat in the freezer after traveling a long distance, you could always enlist the help of a local expert. Myles Bush is a fourth-generation cattle rancher who guides in the fall, once his cows have shipped to market. His operation is based out of the family homestead where guests sleep in the ranch bunkhouse, eat around the kitchen table (mom cooks), and have access to many thousands of acres of privately owned land.

Located near Ten Sleep, Wyoming, he doesn't advertise, won't use a broker or agency, and has no website. We didn't use his services on this trip, but we cracked open a beer at his place, shot the breeze, and can vouch that he's the real deal. His services will run you $1,500 for three days of chasing elk with a 100-percent success rate.

Boxelder Ranch: (307) 388- 6060

Sauteed Elk Steaks in Cherry Gravy

We asked the proprietor of one of the best guest ranches in the USA for his favorite elk recipe. According to Bob Kaplan of the Red Reflet Ranch, this is always a winner.

Saute steaks can come from tenderloins, back straps, sirloin, or round steak cuts, as elk as a meat is more like veal than beef. Steaks should be at least -inch thick, trimmed of silverskin. For four adults, use approximately 1 pound of meat  more for big appetites.

Marinade

Garlic salt and seasoned pepper sprinkled liberally on side of each piece of meat

1 cup good soy sauce

2 ounces balsamic vinegar

 cup good red wine

Turn each piece of meat to assure marinade is well distributed and covers all the meat, then after four hours dredge each steak in flour, shaking off excess.

Use olive oil liberally to cover the bottom of a saute pan, cooking over medium high heat. Don't crowd the pan. Sear, but don't burn the steaks. When the top surface bleeds up red juices, turn the steaks. Do not overcook  serve rare to medium rare. Thicker pieces may need a few minutes in a 375-degree oven to bring to medium rare.

Gravy

Put the leftover marinade into a saucepan over a low heat and add a heaping tablespoon of soup base to it. Veal stock is preferred, but beef base will do. Add 4 ounces of water to dilute the soup base, stirring well so the powder or paste is dissolved in the marinade. Add two tablespoons of flour, whisk until smooth. Add one tablespoon of cherry jam and continue to stir while the mixture comes to a low boil. To serve, pour a small amount of gravy over the meat and put the rest of it into a terrine for your guests to mop up with their mashed potatoes.

Gear Essentials

Make

Nemo Equipment

Model

Astro Insulated Lite 20R Sleeping Pad

MSRP

$130

URL

www.nemoequipment.com

A good night's sleep is critical and the Astro Insulated Lite 20R Sleeping Pad from Nemo Equipment helps you achieve it. About the size of two beer cans laid end to end, it takes up little room in

your pack and weighs just over a pound.

Make

Kelty

Model

Ignite 40F

MSRP

$250 (Ignite 20)

URL

www.kelty.com

Early season elk hunting at 8,500 feet is a pleasantly temperate affair, with the nighttime mercury in the low 50s. We used Kelty's Ignite 40F lightweight sleeping bag as our horizontal time accelerator and sawed logs for seven hours. Unfortunately, it's no longer in production, but the 20-degree version is available.

Make

MSR

Model

Hubba Hubba

MSRP

$400

URL

www.cascadedesigns.com

We've been using MSR's Hubba Hubba tent for almost a decade now, and it's still going strong after trips to Canada's boreal forest, numerous Adirondack canoe journeys, and horse packing in the Arizona desert. The fly on this version is starting to show signs of age, with the polyurethane coating getting stickier with every time it's pulled out of the bag, but apart from that it's stood up well.

Make

Jetboil

Model

Flash

MSRP

$100

URL

www.jetboil.com

Meal heating duties were taken care of courtesy of Jetboil's super-efficient Flash cooking system. If you're using propane to boil water and you're not using this, you're doing it wrong.\

Make

Barnes

Model

VOR-TX 150-grain TTSX

MSRP

$40 (box of 20)

URL

www.barnesbullets.com

Elk are huge and our .308 carbine's stubby 16-inch barrel didn't develop much velocity  with terminal ballistics at a premium, it pays to use a high-quality bullet. We're partial to Nosler Accubonds, or the Barnes VOR-TX 150-grain TTSX here, which blew through two ribs, a pair of lungs and an aorta at 164 yards and kept on truckin' into the hillside, never to be seen again.

Make

CRKT

Model

Hunt'n Fisch

MSRP

$100

URL

www.crkt.com

Once the animal is down, the hard work begins. Field dressing, skinning, and quartering was performed with CRKT's Hunt'n Fisch  its 3-inch blade made short work of our yearling elk and only once needed touching up with a diamond hone.

Make

Mystery Ranch

Model

3 Day Assault Pack

MSRP

$325

URL

www.mysteryranch.com

We could have gotten away with a smaller bag, but Mystery Ranch's 3 Day Assault Pack is so comfortable that you forget you're wearing it. It swallowed everything we needed for long days on the hill and could have humped most of our camping gear, too.
Writing on January 18, 2017, Nazarwala had this to say: 'The Modi wave may help the BJP score a triple century; its vanvaas in UP shall end before Holi.'

Of course, this is the not first time he has been bang-on in predicting the electoral outcome in Uttar Pradesh.

In 2007, he had called Mayawati's unexpected win way before the votes were counted.

And in 2012, he forecast her rout at the hustings and the return of Mulayam Singh (who chose to anoint his son Akhilesh as the CM).

Read on to know what Nazarwala had to say about the coming BJP tsunami in UP.

Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah has strategised patiently for the Uttar Pradesh polls. He has spent sleepless nights in meticulously planning and imaginatively implementing the plans down to the booth level.

More importantly, he has put in place a sincere team which is slogging round the clock in the interiors of UP.

Although initially Shah condoned admitting 'outsiders' like Rita Bahuguna Joshi, Swami Prasad Maurya and Brijesh Pathak and the initial hiccups post demonetisation also caused concern, the nervousness has now disappeared.

A fresh vigour has galvanised the BJP in UP.

An alert Shah has deftly used the Samajwadi Party's infighting to his party's advantage. His designs are deliberate and deadly in impact.

The 'Kamal Mela' magical show is one such example.

The BJP organises 'Kamal Mela' in the rural areas of UP. It sets up stalls to make the people aware of the schemes and achievements of the Modi government.

The 'Kamal Melas' comprise a magic show, a puppet show, a fun zone, a food zone, a laser show, a 'UP ke Mann ki Baat' zone, a virtual reality booth, and an extensive exhibition zone.

The 'selfie with Modi' zone, where visitors post with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cut-out, is very popular.

In addition, an RJ is present all the time to interact with the people, functioning as an amiable facilitator-cum-propagandist.

Shah has given a strong and effective message: Make the BJP's kamal, or lotus, symbol not only visible, but popular.

The BJP and its kamal are making their presence felt in the interiors of UP.

One 'Kamal Mela' attracted a 60,000-strong 'impressed' crowd of villagers in Banda.

'Honest' Modi brought along his own simple food, and shared it with the pracharaks in Kashi (Varanasi). In a spirit of bonhomie, their leader motivated and encouraged the field workers.

The message of honestly working without sponging on the poor villagers of the area was subtly passed down the line.

It energised the pracharaks as well as the 'vote-mobilisers' sitting on the fence.

Successful 'Parivatan Rallies' also drew huge crowds, against those of the SP and the Bahujan Samaj Party, with the slogan 'Na goondaraj, na bhrashtachar, abki baar BJP sarkar' ('No lawlessness, no corruption, a BJP government this time').

'Shabdon ka jadugar' Modi mesmerises voters with his amazing oratory. His sensitivity and ingenuity are superb.

His 'BHIM' card, honouring Dr B R Ambedkar, is another masterstroke. The Dalits need only small cash dealings, and the process has been over-simplified for them.

And the fact that the app has been named after Babasaheb fills them with pride. This is having the desired ripple effect.

Nowadays, the Dalits entertain second thoughts on blindly supporting their behenji (Mayawati).

Modi has caught the imagination of the poor. He has pitched forcefully for the 'poor caste' card, as opposed to the hackneyed Yadav, Muslim, Brahmin, or Dalit cards.

'Sabka saath'-wala Modi, through the Rashtriya Muslim Manch, is trying to reach out to Muslims also.

The BJP's condemnation of the concept of triple talaq has touched an empathetic chord among thousands of Muslim women.

The 'note-jhatka' given by Modi is transforming fast into a 'vote-jhatka' for his rivals.

It is to be seen how the poor voter, the 'garvi garib' (proud poor), queues up to turn the tide in the BJP's favour.

The Modi wave may help the BJP score a triple century; its vanvaas in UP shall end before Holi.

Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
Tarun Vijay on why the victory in Uttar Pradesh belongs to Narendra Modi and the road ahead.

IMAGE: A BJP supporter celebrates the party's electoral victories, March 11, 2017. Photograph: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters

Accept the truth. The victory in Uttar Pradesh belongs to the chosen disciple of Kashi Viswanath -- Narendra Bhai.

The rest of us were simply trying to follow the indefatigable bundle of immense energy who never showed a moment of tiredness or left anything to tomorrow.

He wants everything done with finesse, commitment and now. Actually, preferably yesterday.

He is the hero of our times, who has dwarfed all the leaders of the past seven decades with his focussed attention on the war on the corrupt and the Sabka-Saath-Sabka Vikas mantra of development.

A new anthem of togetherness has been created.

Modi's campaign is a matter of research for the best minds in the Western world.

He represents all that was trying to find a voice in the past many centuries.

He represents the pains and the dreams of a common kisaan, the housewife, the student and the honest, hardworking Indian who wants to live as a proud Indian and see his India as the greatest.

He wants to see that the wrong doer is treated harshly and punished, and that the Indian tricolour and its saviours -- the soldiers -- respected.

The secular media did just the opposite, shielding the family fiefdoms and helping the Tricolour burners.

The sickening sights of people living and dying on the footpaths, the corrupt flourishing as if no law can ever touch them, black-marketeers happily funding politics and buying safety, Dalits being taken for a ride by their branded leaders who trade election tickets in open auctions, and turning the Dalit-Mulsim-Yadav politics into a family business empire and calling it a democracy -- people saw it but had no alternative.

Modi represents the persecuted and the mocked-at nationalists.

Nationalism was never a bad word in India till the Communists became guardians of the intellectual centres.

The nationalists are Hindus and Muslims alike -- they want to live in harmony and peace and in a spirit of togetherness, which was intermittently disturbed by the Communists, the secular media -- which earned the title of 'Hate-Hindus to become a certified secular.'

Hindus saw themselves being killed by the Marxists in Chhattisgarh and in Kerala for just being what they are -- proud nationalists.

In the nine months of the CPI-M rule in Kerala, 11 Hindu workers were hacked to death and nothing happened to the media sensitivities; it was as if they deserved to be killed.

Hindus are being made to leave their home and hearth from Kashmir to Kairana. They see contempt for their culture and the civilisation, which remains the best guarantee to safeguard the rights of the every single minority.

Make Hindus a minority and all you get is a Pakistan.

It has become fashionable to hit at Hindus the hardest way and then laugh it away.

See how they sarcastically commented on Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe performing aarti at the Ganga Ghats in Varanasi. Why? Why are Hindus treated with such contempt?

Modi changed it all.

Speak of development: Garibi has no religion. A poor Muslim has the same concerns for his daughter and son as a poor Hindu.

Deliver honestly: The Ganga waters don't ask the religion of the thirsty.

The Muslims are as sick of corrupt politicians as the Hindus and others are.

So, the language of the ruler should be humble, polite and he must win the trust of the people.

He must also be ruthless and merciless to the corrupt and the black-marketers.

He must provide security and punish the wrong doer whether he is from across the border or from within.

Don't ever make Muslims feel that you are trying to get their votes by being lenient to terrorists. They have no sympathy for those who are traitors to the nation.

Muslims are as much Indian as Hindus and others are.

Modi became an icon of all that is right, all that is honest, all that is transparent and all that requires to be unpardonably harsh to the wrongdoer.

The surgical strike was mocked at by the media and the leaders who had become habituated to living with terror and had remained silent on the corrupt. People saw them.

With demonetisation too, it was the same story.

The common person, the poor, were happy to see that at least here is a leader who has shown the guts to take on the corrupt rich, the ugly moneybag, the arrogant and dishonest political-player.

The common people faced hardship, but became supporters of Modi seeing an honest motive in his eyes.

They read him. They understood his heart's feeling and shared their dreams.

UP had everything at stake.

Corruption.

Humiliation of Hindus.

Dividing the political scene on communal lines.

A buffalo becoming more important for the khaki-donning soldiers than the lives of the common people.

Showing extra affection for the dreaded don of Benaras -- the notorious Ansari.

Announcing not the list of the candidates, but the number of Muslims as candidates.

The family feud of 'uncle, aunty, and the outsider interventionists ' was a cruel joke on the polity we hastily describe as democracy.

The media became a political opposition to Modi, reviving the bitter, coloured reporting of the time when Gujarat faced the tirade of the secular Taliban.

Anything, everything, whatever could come their way was used as a missile, a continuous barrage of offence was launched to 'save the nation' -- read their last crumbling empire of hate and ideological apartheid.

Many of them declared that Punjab was going the Aam Aadmi Party way and coined names like 'Arvind Singh Kejriwal' proving their loyalties in a brazen way.

Good that their paid journalism fell flat.

The road ahead is and will always remain challenging.

Modi has set the new time for India.

All the residual garbage and the burden of the colonial past must give way to a new vibrant India where no one is illiterate and no one poor.

We never were like that. That's why foreigners attacked us; no one attacks a poor, hapless land.

The most savage of them being the British who eradicated the entire Indian education system -- we were 90 per cent literate before they subjugated us (read The Beautiful Tree by Dharam Pal), created a famine that saw 3 million of our ancestors die, looted our wealth and raised a mechanism to have the most de-Indianised people created to work against the ethos of their own nation.

For them, the patriotic Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is a threat and the divisive Muslim League and Geelani's Hurriyat represent voices of freedom. They can't have a place here.

Modi's march ahead is to create a nation that has a place of pride in the world, is feared by the wrongdoer and trusted by friends, sees no Indian through the prism of religion or caste or parochialism or any vote bank, but gives supreme importance to being an Indian.

He wants to create a nation where no Indian farmer is forced to take his life and votes are not bound to the politics of caste, religion and money-booze play.

That's the India Modi is set to create.

After the saffron Holi, the next step, very soon, will be to be a saffron Pongal and a saffron Onam.

All we can do is do our bit, do whatever we are doing with a sense of nationalism and patriotism, with a sense of love for all Indians and a powered punch to the traitors.

Their days are ending soon, and a new India is on the rise.

Tarun Vijay is a former Bharatiya Janata Party member of the Rajya Sabha and a member of the BJP national executive.

Please scroll down for more exclusive analysis of the UP election results.
'We are in the presence of a truly great politician,' says Aakar Patel.

IMAGE: BJP workers and supporters celebrate the party's victory in the assembly elections at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi, March 11, 2017. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo

What will be the impact of Saturday's election results?

It is possible to see a few things unfolding because of the enormity of what happened in Uttar Pradesh.

First, and most important, is what it means for the prime minister.

A charismatic leader has got his popularity validated through an election in which he made himself and his actions the main issue.

His victory in Uttar Pradesh will mean Narendra Modi will have no restraint from inside his party.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has become like the Congress of yore. Local leaders are irrelevant.

There is a high command that wins elections and then picks someone to be chief minister.

In New Delhi there is one supreme leader and then there are subordinates.

It is like Bollywood of 30 years ago when Amitabh Bachchan was said to hold ranks 1 to 10 and the others started at 11.

The ability of Modi to deliver landslide results like UP consolidate his stature.

This in turn means that more actions like demonetisation, which was conceived without wide political consultation inside the party, must be anticipated.

This is so because Modi genuinely believes he can deliver the genius solution to our many problems.

There are two aspects to demonetisation. The first is its actual effect on individuals and the economy.

The second is how the act is sold to citizens.

We must not confuse success in the latter as the success of the former.

Charismatic, decisive and aggressive leaders can and will make mistakes.

The lack of restraint from inside the party will also result in Modi having a free hand to decide who becomes India's next President.

The total absence of dissent in the BJP, unusual for a ruling party in India, is because everyone has submitted to authority.

There is no real complaint from inside the party that the Gujaratis have monopolised power, and this is because the Gujaratis have delivered for the party.

For the Congress, the win in Punjab will keep the illusion going that it remains relevant. But a putrid stench is in the air.

The fact is that the longer the BJP dominates national politics, the more space will be created for a competing ideology.

It is clear the Congress cannot fill this space. Its brand has become toxic.

It won one state on Saturday but it surrendered its majority in two, Uttarakhand and Manipur. And these will not be easy to win back.

States across northern India that the BJP picks up, like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, it has shown the capacity to retain for decades.

The more pressing problem for the Congress will be its loss of dominance in the Rajya Sabha.

The BJP will send two dozen members there from UP and these are guaranteed to be the sort of people who will not be bullied in the Upper House.

The Congress strategy of stalling and disruption will no longer work because of unfavourable numbers. It will need to do proper legislative work but its leadership isn't capable of this.

Akhilesh Yadav will be criticised for tying up with Rahul Gandhi, but it was not a bad move. He had anticipated that the election would be very difficult and he tried something different.

His family will turn on him, but to the neutral observer he did his best.

Nothing could have survived the sort of wave that swept UP again on Saturday.

Vote share figures are not yet in fully, but it is likely the BJP is on or around the 40% mark that it clocked in 2014.

We can attribute at the most about 30% of this to factors like caste arithmetic and other traditional explanations.

The other 10%, which is the difference between 200 seats and 300 can be chalked down to Modi's popularity. This is the non-Hindutva vote he picks up because of his credibility.

We are in the presence of a truly great politician, a master of his craft who is on top of his game.

Even for those who are repelled by the BJP's ideology, as I am, it should be easy to accept that.

Aakar Patel is Executive Director, Amnesty International India. The views expressed here are his own.

You can read Aakar's earlier columns here.

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'I don't see political alliances working against the BJP until an alternative political agenda is created.'

'In the next two years, we might see a new kind of realignment across India.'



Professor Prashant Trivedi, a political expert at the Giri Institute of Development Studies in Lucknow, analyses the UP election verdict with Rediff.com's Archana Masih.

What is taking Mr Modi from strength to strength?

One good thing about Narendra Modi and the BJP is that in each election they are setting the agenda.

Every other political party in every state is responding to that agenda.

Once you play on the BJP's agenda, no matter what you say, it is going to help the BJP.

The only exception was Bihar -- where Lalu Yadav had overturned that agenda. He went back to his basic agenda of Mandal politics -- because the reservation issue had come up and had dented the BJP's appeal considerably.

That did not happen in UP.

Akhilesh Yadav got caught in the same trap as what the BJP had been playing for so many years.

Akhilesh did not talk about the basic politics of the Samajwadi Party.

He did not talk about Mandal, but of the roads and bridges he had built.

If communal politics has to be countered, the issue of social justice has to be forcefully put on the social agenda, the way it was done in Bihar.

If you play on the BJP's agenda election on election, there is no hope for other parties coming back.

Did you expect the BJP would achieve such a landslide win?

One expected the BJP to be the number one party, but was not sure that it would get such a large mandate.

The BJP was doing well in every round -- probably because of two things:

1. Narendra Modi has maintained his influence over the people.

2: The over the surface talk about development was being complimented by a communal polarisation campaign beneath the surface, via social media. This was aiding the BJP in a big way.

What do you see as the reason behind the enormity of the mandate?

We will know better when the vote percentages come. In a three-cornered fight, the anti-BJP vote got divided.

We are seeing roughly that the BJP is getting 40% of the vote; they got 42% of the vote in the parliamentary election and will maintain the same kind of vote percentage.

This means that close to 60% of the people were for parties other than the BJP.

The BJP was able to consolidate its own vote among the upper castes and major OBC castes.

At the same time, it was also able to reach the core votes of other parties through a campaign of communal polarisation.

Obviously, Narendra Modi remains the face of hope for the people -- that was the major contributing factor.

Has the Modi tsunami destroyed caste and communal calculations in UP?

The BJP is able to better micro-manage caste politics. They were able to successfully manage the castes that had a feeling of being left behind by other parties.

Among the Dalits, Jatavs are 56%, the rest -- 45% Pasis etc -- are other castes.

These (45%) feel that whatever comes as affirmative action is being cornered by the Jatavs.

The BJP encashed on that sentiment, similarly for the OBCs.

I don't think all these communities have gone with the BJP, but, of course, a major section of OBCs have voted for them.

Apart from the shamshan, Diwali references some felt the BJP had toned down its shrill communal tone in this election.

The BJP was campaigning at various levels. Since 2014, the penetration of social media is phenomenal.

The BJP doesn't need to campaign on communal issues openly like in 2014.

2014 was also post-Muzaffarnagar, so it was a communally charged atmosphere.

This time the BJP was projecting Modi's work of development and good governance at one level, and at another level through social media and door-to-door campaigns, they were vehemently raising communal issues.

That has worked. Communal polarisation has drawn some votes from other communities also for the BJP, apart from consolidating the upper caste vote.

Like the RLD (Rashtriya Lok Dal) does not seem to have won back its voters that it lost to the BJP in 2014?

It was projected that the Jats have gone back to their old party -- the RLD -- but that doesn't seem to have happened.

The BJP managed to contain the Jat resentment about reservation that stemmed from Haryana.

If you remember Amit Shah had a meeting with over 200 Jat leaders in UP, perhaps this helped bring them on board.

For years, the BJP was thought of as a party of upper castes -- has it now established itself as a party of all castes in UP?

Post-1992, the BJP had already transformed itself.

Kalyan Singh was UP chief minister long back. Leaders like Uma Bharti, Sakshi Maharaj, Vinay Katiyar -- backward and OBC leaders -- have been with the BJP since the 1990s.

(Former BJP ideologue and then party general secretary) Govindacharya had started this debate that the BJP should change its social face. It had happened in the 1990s itself.

Under Narendra Modi, they are renergising that situation.

Voters vote for Narendra Modi rather than BJP. He has become to represent the BJP entirely, isn't it?

In 2014 we saw that Modi had replaced the BJP. Some say he represents the BJP.

Not many people talk of the BJP, they talk about Modi.

Longstanding BJP members must be worried about it because their party has been taken over by one person and the BJP was known as a cadre-based party.

But it is a win-win situation for the party because leaders in other parties are unable to match up to their leader.

It's true that there is no other leader that can match up to Narendra Modi.

Akhilesh Yadav is also a popular leader in UP.

Going by vote percentage, Mayawati still has 22% of the vote. She has also not lost her charisma.

At the peak of her power in 2007, the BSP had 29% to 30% of the vote. In 2014, she got around 20% of the vote -- so she is maintaining her rank and file somehow.

But what is important is whose politics clicks with the people.

Presently, the BJP's politics is resonating with the people, which is why Narendra Modi is larger than life.

But you cannot write off other leaders on the basis of that.

Why did Akhilesh do so badly when he topped almost every CM poll?

Akhilesh fell into a trap of his own creation. He moved away from his basic politics.

People were praising him for his development, but those urban middle class people were not going to vote for him. They were going to vote for the BJP.

He left behind the politics of Mulayam Singh like managing the local caste arithmetic and broadly presenting the SP as a party of backwards.

Akhilesh is trying to transform the Samajwadi Party as a party that appeals to all sections.

It does appeal to them, but it is not converting into votes.

His own appeal is beyond his own caste of Yadavs and Muslims.

Along with development, he should have also come out with the kind of politics that the SP is known for and also carried forward the politics of social justice.

So, he should have pursued the politics of development and social justice simultaneously?

Yes. In the Bihar election, there were two faces: Nitish Kumar and Lalu Yadav.

Lalu was re-energising social justice politics, while Nitish Kumar was focusing on development.

Akhilesh focused on one aspect and left the other behind.

Why did Akhilesh fail to impress UP's youth who seem to have greater faith in Modi than in him?

Youth is not a homogenous construct. The charisma that Modi has on a large section of UP would have influenced the youth too.

Youth goes with aspiration and at present Narendra Modi has somehow projected himself as the hope of the people.

He is generating new aspirations among the people.

Akhilesh was trying the same kind of politics like Modi and Modi comes out a taller leader.

Modi would have easily beaten Akhilesh on the plank f development.

How has the SP-Congress alliance been perceived by the people?

For the anti-BJP voter, it was an alliance of hope.

The anti-BJP vote was focused on this alliance in UP.

The Congress does not have a consolidated vote. It doesn't bring any vote for any alliance.

For the upper caste supporters of the Congress, their second choice would have been the BJP. The Congress' local leaders draw their votes.

We will have to see in the 300 odd seats where the Congress withdrew its candidates, if an upper class candidate of the Congress has withdrawn, then it would have helped the BJP more than the SP.

What is the road ahead for the Congress nationally?

In the short term I don't see the Congress reviving itself from this crisis.

The Congress is a party that does not depend on its own efforts than the efforts of its opponents.

In the 2004 election when the BJP crashed under its own weight, the Congress was revived.

Only that kind of situation can revive Congress in the short run.

Otherwise, I don't see the Congress making any kind of effort to revive itself.

Has the Congress lost its pro-poor space to the BJP?

Right wing populism is a global phenomenon. Europe to Trump's victory. The right wing is projecting the cause of the poor, at least in the short term.

Is it time that the Congress dropped Rahul Gandhi?

Whatever good intention he may have, the truth is that he is not clicking.

He has been there for 15 years. He is a burden, actually.

He is a liability for the Congress party.

What about Mayawati? You say she still holds onto her base, but what happens to the BSP now? Will it become another Dalit party like the RPI, will it lose influence in UP and nationally?

The BSP cannot be written off only on the basis of seats.

They still hold onto 20% to 22% of the vote of the state.

Because of the re-emergence of the BJP, the section of the upper castes that voted for the BSP in 2007 has gone back to the BJP.

The BSP will also have to go back to the politics of bahujans.

The kind of space the BJP is reaching out to actually belongs to the BSP.

They (the BSP) have to reach out to other Dalit communities and MBCs.

They were with the BSP initially, and only consolidated into a Jatav party later.

Earlier, the BSP was an umbrella party of all Dalits and MBCs.

There is no quick fix formula. The way they came out with a Muslim-Dalit formula before the election, then in another election they aligned with the upper castes -- this is not going to work.

The BSP has to reinvent itself into a party that has some kind of transformatory agenda. They are capable of reinventing themselves and coming back as a major political party in the state.

With this defeat, won't the knives be out for Akhilesh in the SP?

His control is complete in the SP.

Mulayam Singh Yadav is a symbolic leader of the party. This result will not write off his political future.

He has emerged as an independent political leader on his own, he is no more known as Mulayam Singh Yadav's son.

These parties could not withstand the BJP onslaught. They were helpless in front of Modi's mighty leadership.

Does the BJP victory make the size of the Muslim vote irrelevant?

When the BJP has 40% of the vote, everybody else is irrelevant.

40% votes translate into huge seats.

Has this paved the way for Modi in 2019?

It is a big shot in the arm of the BJP.

At the same time, a new kind of realisation will start taking place.

The possibility of an SP-BSP alliance is not as unlikely in 2019.

In the next two years, we might see a new kind of realignment across India.

I don't see political alliances working against the BJP until an alternative political agenda is created.

An anti-Modi rhetoric is not going to work unless Opposition parties present an alternative political narrative.

The agenda of development has to be complimented with some alternative to the BJP's social imagery.

Parties have to come up with a different social imagination than the BJP.

Congress leader Ashwini Kumar was speaking about how the secular conscience of a section of people hasn't been able to translate into votes for the Congress.

Transformatory politics that transforms the caste hierarchy and transforms the agenda of social justice has a space and provides a major plank to challenge communal politics than on the basis of secularism.

In Bihar the debate was not between communalism and secularism. It was based on the social imagery that the BJP was presenting which was countered by Lalu Yadav's plank of social justice.

If political parties want to challenge the BJP they have to emulate the Bihar model.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses an election campaign rally in Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh. Photograph: PTI Photo
'The UP election results show that people voted not on caste and religion lines; they went above that and voted for development, honesty, pride in the country, etc.'

'If UP can show the way, the rest of the country also can follow.'

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com

Alphons Kannanthanam, a former IAS officer, was known as the 'Demolition man' when he was the Delhi Development Authority commissioner. He was also instrumental in making Kottayam the first 100% literate state in India.

After winning election to the Kerala assembly as an Independent with the Left's support, Alphons joined the BJP in 2011.

A member of the BJP national executive, he discusses his party's biggest win after the 2014 Lok Sabha election with Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier.

The BJP had not projected a chief ministerial candidate and it was Narendra Modi all the way. Do you feel it is Modi's victory that we see in UP?

It is the victory for the BJP, and the party is led by the prime minister, who is the most charismatic leader today, and also party chief Amit Shah.

Though the victory is for the party, it is a vote for Modi and the great organisational capacity of Amit Shah.

You mean the architect of the victory is Amit Shah and the face is that of Narendra Modi?

What has played a major role is the charisma of Modi and what he has done in the past two-and-a-half years for the poor as prime minister, and the economic direction he has given to the country.

One thing we can proudly say: We could wipe off corruption which no country could hope to achieve in such a short span.

What not even the US or any other country could achieve, Modi was able to do.

So, this is an endorsement on what he has been doing as prime minister of the country.

Demonetisation was described as anti-people by the media and this election was described as a referendum on Modi's move.

But from the election results, it appears the people, especially the poor, support what Modi has done.

At the party level, do you feel demonetisation has touched a chord with the people?

Absolutely. Modi said what he was doing was for the poor.

It was a hugely daring decision by the prime minister as we were hitting out against our own constituency.

But he said this country had to be cleaned up, and he had the courage to do so.

People understood what he said, that this country is not only for the rich and the corrupt, but also for the honest man.

So, this vote is for the honest face of the prime minister.

I would go on to say it is a huge victory for democracy.

Do you feel caste and religion are slowly disappearing from Indian politics, or it will take a long time for it to happen?

The UP election results show that people voted not on caste and religion lines; they went above that and voted for development, honesty, pride in the country, etc.

If UP can show the way, the rest of the country also can follow.

It will still take some more time for caste and religion to disappear from Indian politics.

It's just the beginning.

How long will it take for the BJP to shed the communal tag?

If you look at the-two-and-a-half years of the Modi government, has anything been done on a communal basis?

He has made it very clear in Parliament that the country belongs to everybody and he will look after everybody's welfare.

This is the end of communal politics. Just look at what we have been doing and then, talk.

The BJP is perceived as a Hindu party by many and you are a Christian. Do you feel comfortable in the party?

I am fine and what do I look for when I am in politics?

A corruption-free government which is ready to deliver what people wants. That is exactly what the prime minister is doing.

I would say it is a fantastic administration for all. He has been very, very, fair.

All my life as an IAS officer, I fought against corruption and tried to deliver things to the people.

That is what Modi and the BJP are doing now. That is why I am happy with him and the party.

It is expected that if Modi won UP, he would go into top gear to implement most of the economic decisions. Will that happen now that he has won a huge victory in UP?

It is a big win and obviously, he will have more confidence in what he wants to do.

UP is the biggest state in India and without UP, nobody can say that the whole country is with you.

Now that we won the Parliament elections and assembly elections in a big way, this shows the faith people have in the party and the prime minister.

Therefore, the government will go ahead much more aggressively against corruption and for development.
'When the campaign started the Congress said it had been miserable for the last 27 years for UP and that people should get rid of those who made it miserable, and that they should bring back the glorious years of the Congress.'

'Then they joined hands with those who ruled for the last 26 years. Some called it a shrewd strategy, but to the people this was not shrewdness.'

'Where is the credibility in your actions when you change direction of the campaign?'

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

Before Muralidhar Rao was appointed as the Bharatiya Janata Party's national general secretary, he was an organising secretary of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch.

One of the BJP's young stars in a party known for articulate voices, Rao discusses the UP triumph witb Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier.

The BJP's huge victory in UP has been described as a Modi tsunami.

Modiji is like a captain, a good leader who leads from the front. He campaigned very vigorously and aggressively.

We, the workers pf the party, were also reaching out to the people and telling them what Modiji's government has done to them, both the programmes and the substance.

We were spreading Modiji's message to the people. This worked very well and the people have endorsed what we have been telling them.

Do you feel demonetisation helped the BJP win more than 300 seats?

The issue that worked in favour of the BJP is not just demonetisation, there were various programmes and schemes starting from the Jan Dhan Yojana, the Mudra Yojana, the Ujwala Yojana, Swach Bharat and finally demonetisation.

It is not just demonetisation. The philosophy of the government and all the schemes worked in a comprehensive way for the party.

Many thought that the difficulties faced by the common people due to demonetisation would go against the BJP and Modi.

Did the party feel at any point that demonetisation would work against the BJP? Was the party nervous about its impact?

Never. We were working on the ground and it was very clear to us that the people appreciated it.

We understood that people were looking for a bold leader whom they can trust.

They had no doubt about the integrity of not just Modiji, but the entire machinery.

On the other hand, the machinery of Akhilesh Yadav was riddled with goondaism.

So, we never had any doubts, the message was coherent and clear.

During the Bihar elections there was a maha ghadbandhan against the BJP like the SP-Congress alliance. Narendra Modi also campaigned extensively in the state.

Why are the UP results so different from the Bihar verdict?

Each state is different and the timing also is important.

When he faced the electorate of UP, Modiji could show the people what he has done in the last two-and-a-half years.

He could tell the people of UP with confidence that we were able to deliver what we had promised.

When the Bihar elections happened, we could not tell them about Ujwala or Jan Dhan and the people had not experienced Swach Bharat.

So, what worked in favour of Modiji was what we have done in the last two-and-a-half years.

Political analysts talk about a particular caste or religion voting in favour of a particular party, but the results do not show such a pattern.

These people do not understand the psyche of people. They articulate issues through a tinted glass.

When they say India is a country that has many castes, it is correct.

When they say India is a country where people believe in many religions, it is correct.

But that Indian society works always under caste compulsions is not correct.

The same society has delivered judgments at different times differently.

They were able to transcend caste and religion when there is a different agenda or leadership.

There are many instances when they over-ruled caste influences.

You say when Modi spoke of Vikas, it transcended caste and religion and that was why he could connect with all people.

It also depends on who is talking about the agenda.

Unless the person who speaks has credibility, it will not become a potential agenda.

The leader who spoke of Vikas could motivate people and had credibility.

Modiji had it and that worked for the BJP.

The Congress said it was only because Narendra Modi could market his idea better that he won.

The problem is they don't want to understand their weaknesses. The Opposition is bankrupt today.

Intellectual bankruptcy is the most dangerous thing to happen.

When the campaign started the Congress said it had been miserable for the last 27 years for UP and that people should get rid of those who made it miserable, and that they should bring back the glorious years of the Congress.

Then they joined hands with those who ruled for the last 26 years. Some called it a shrewd strategy, but to the people this was not shrewdness.

Where is the credibility in your actions when you change direction of the campaign?

Do you think people will accept this? Rahul Gandhi is not capable of leading the party and reviving it.

His leadership has not been working in UP for the last 15 years.

The BJP is talking about a Congress mukt Bharat. If there is no good Opposition, won't you become complacent? Is it good for a democracy?

Don't take it literally; it is a context.

We are talking about the corrupt Congress and the dynastic Congress. We are not saying there shouldn't be an Opposition.

And there are many other parties that can be Opposition parties against the BJP.

We are not saying the BJP should rule always and no other parties should exist.

Ours is a democracy.

Another criticism against the BJP is that it has created intolerance in society...

You see, intolerant people are abusing tolerant society.

Indian society has seen many ups and downs in the last thousands of years and it has withstood all.

If it had not become intolerant in the last 6,000 years, how can it become intolerant now?

The Opposition parties call the BJP a communal party...

The tag communal is slowly becoming out of place.

When we started, we were called an urban party, a Dilli party.

Then we were called a Brahmin-Bania party.

After that, we were the North Indian party, then a non-Dalit party.

We have overcome all these things in our journey of growth.

These names have no relevance today.

We have now established ourselves as a true national party representing the total diversity of Indian society.

After the win in UP, do you think Narendra Modi will be more confident and have more strength to go ahead with the economic plans he was talking about?

He is always confident and it doesn't depend on any election win.

Yes, he will have more strength today to implement and deliver the programmes.

This win will have consequences and implications in the Rajya Sabha and also in the functioning of Parliament.

Definitely, his acceptability will be much more.

From the results in Punjab and Goa, it is quite evident that people are quite unforgiving to those politicians who do not perform...

Technology has created a challenge for politicians.

Today, people have become more aware because of the technological tools that help people to judge and scrutinise the politicians more.

Only performing parties and performing politicians will be able to survive in today's times.

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Mission team to present Cuban dinner, program

On Feb. 8-21, a team of 12 people from Montana traveled to Cuba on a construction mission. The Helena members of the team will describe their experiences in Cuba during free a dinner of Cuban arroz con pollo (rice with chicken), salad and dessert prepared by members of the team. Dinner will begin at 5:30 p.m. with a program following. The group will share highlights of travel in Cuba, the project site at Camp Canaan, their work building sidewalks and painting dormitories, vibrant worship services and more. The team will share personal stories and photos of the colorful life in Cuba. All persons interested in Cuba are invited.

Prayer breakfast set

Join us Saturday, March 18, at First Lutheran Church, 2231 Broadway, at 10 a.m. for our Christian state leadership prayer breakfast for our state of Montana government leaders. Our guest speaker will be Justice Jim Rice of the Montana Supreme Court. A free will offering will be gathered to defray costs. Please RSVP to firstlutheranchurch@bresnan.net with the number of people who will be attending.

Burn 24-7 upcoming

Join us on Friday, March 24, at Fortress of Joy Church as we celebrate through prayer, live music, movement, art and worship, Jesus the son of God. Worship begins at 6 p.m. through midnight. There will be a team from the Helena healing and prayer room available to meet with you from 7-9 p.m.

All are invited. Burn 24-7 is not affiliated with any particular denomination but seeks unity in the body through corporate worship.

For more information contact joannem@theburn247.com, visit us on Facebook, or go to helenaburn24-7.wix.com/helena-burn-24-7.
'My God, what do I say? It's shocking!'

'They had 27 MLAs in 2012. And now they have just seven.'

'My party (the Apna Dal-S) contested 11 seats and won in nine.'

IMAGE: The Congress party is in a very bad position and needs to work very hard, says Anupriya Patel. Photograph: Reuters

Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Anupriya Patel represents the Mirzapur Lok Sabha constituency in Uttar Pradesh.

Her tiny party, the Apna Dal (S), a BJP ally, caused an upset by winning more assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh than the Congress.

Patel discusses the election with Rediff.com's Savera R Someshwar.

What would you say are the five reasons behind the BJP's landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh?

The immense faith that the people have expressed in Prime Minister Modiji's leadership and the popularity of his schemes that were aimed at giving benefits to the poor and the most neglected sections of the society.

Of course, Amit Shahji's role as a master strategist.

There was a lot of disenchantment within the electorate in UP because of one-and-a-half decades of misrule that the state was subjected to.

The state was steeped in corruption, looting and goonda raj.

Another factor is the way Amit Shahji beautifully forged the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) alliance, which brought people from all sections of society together.

I think all these factors contributed to the result.

You referred to the prime minister's schemes. Which of these specifically worked in UP?

For example, people spoke about nationalisation of banks, but were the poor people really connected to the banking system?

The Jan Dhan Yojna is the biggest financial inclusion scheme that has come up in the country. Every poor person has a bank account now.

The Ujwala Yojna and the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bhima Yojna are also very popular in UP.

These schemes gave the poor a feeling this government thinks about the person who is on struggling to hold onto the last rung of the ladder. That this government thinks about the people who are needy and deprived.

Many of the Opposition parties said the elections in these five states would be a referendum on demonetisation. They have got a befitting reply.

India has supported demonetisation. The people across these five states have supported demonetisation and supported the BJP and its alliance partners.

Why did demonetisation not make an impact in UP?

(Anupriya Patel, left) The election result clearly shows that the public at large is happy with the decision that has been taken by the NDA government.

That means the hue and cry was being made only by these political leaders.

The general public has understood that the government has taken this very bold step for their benefit.

While I was campaigning, I have spoken to the poor and the marginalised people and they said they had no problem with notebandi.

It was the rich people, they told me, who were having a problem. 'Modiji jo kiye achcha kiye (Modi has taken a good decision),' they told me.

It was the political leadership of the country that stood against it and howled in Parliament and did not let it function.

At the grassroots level, people felt Modiji is doing something nobody ever thought of.

They like the fact that he dares to do things; they like the fact that the country has a strong prime minister.

Do you feel the people voted for Modi or the BJP?

I told you the factors that have played a role.

Right now Modiji has become a brand which is most trusted, which is popular...

So it is Brand Modi, not Brand BJP?

Brand Modi has become very important (laughs). The other factors have, I think, been undermined (laughs again).

Since Independence, have you seen who is so popular and is ruling the hearts of people? I don't think so.

This means the prime minister has now become bigger than his party. It has become a one man show.

I wouldn't say that technically.

I would just say that Brand Modi is the infallible and most popular brand of leadership in India, which symbolises a lot of concern for the poor, the oppressed, the deprived and the neglected sections of society.

Do you have any thoughts about who the next chief minister should be?

I can't really comment on a name. I am a small ally in the NDA.

We are all going to sit together and deliberate and one name will be finalised.

Obviously, the decision of the CM will be taken under the leadership of Narendra Modiji only.

Whoever it is, this decision will be taken in the best interest of the state.

Let us talk about the Congress -- what does the party need to do now?

My God, what do I say? It's shocking!

They had 27 MLAs in 2012. And now they have just seven.

My party (the Apna Dal-S) contested 11 seats and won in nine. We have become bigger than the Congress in UP.

The Congress need to introspect.

Do you think they now need to let go of Rahul Gandhi?

I won't comment on another party's leadership; it's not appropriate.

But they are in a very bad position. They have to understand why this happened and work very, very hard to remove the loopholes.

See, this is politics and this is democracy.

People and parties keep going up and down, so let us not comment on the leaders individually.

But yes, the Congress definitely needs to introspect.

What about Akhilesh Yadav and the Samajwadi Party? They got just 47 seats and a little under 22 per cent of the vote share.

Honestly speaking, people had a lot of faith in Akhileshji.

They were very optimistic and had a lot of expectations because they thought he was a young CM and had studied in Australia. They thought he had a new vision.

But in the last five years, there was nothing that the young chief minister contributed to the state.

The same kind of looting that went on. The same goons and mafia controlled the system...

The people were frustrated with the fact that, despite having a new and young chief minister, they still had to face the goons and the mafia and the thana-chowki ka bhrashtachar (the corruption in the police force), the looting that went on in the state.

IMAGE: People were frustrated with Akhilesh Yadav and the corruption in Uttar Pradesh, says Anupriya Patel. Photograph: Pawan Kumar/Reuters

Do you feel his hands were tied because of parental pressure?

Look, he completed five years. He allowed everyone to do what they wanted to and then, when it was time for the election, you start all this drama and take over the party and say, 'Oh, I am a clean guy and I have thrown out all the goons and mafia and criminals from my party.'

If he felt that he was not being allowed to work, he could have acted in the same manner at the beginning of his tenure. Or in the middle of his tenure. He didn't do that.

What he did just before the elections is not really convincing.

You feel it is too little, too late?

Yes.

It means you supported all this and when, after five years, you realise that it didn't work, you changed your stand.

This kind of hypocrisy does not work here. People in UP are politically very mature.

You must remember this is a very exceptional state. It has given the maximum number of prime ministers to the country.

IMAGE: BJP supporters celebrate in Delhi after the initial poll results. Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters

What about Mayawati's claim that the electronic voting machines were tampered with? She has a marginally higher percent of the vote share as compared to the Samajwadi Party, but just 19 votes.

Look, what she is saying about going back to using ballot papers and discarding the EVMs is very foolish.

The problem is that she has been the chief minister of a state like Uttar Pradesh for a very long time; her party has earlier had huge mandates and what she has got today is unbelievable. It has come as a huge shock to her.

We have to understand what she going through mentally. She is quite perturbed; her party has performed really badly and it is a huge shock for her.

When people are in such a state, they say stupid, illogical things.

If she is claiming the EVMs were not accepting votes for any party other than the BJP, logically speaking, the BSP should not have got even 19 seats.

The Samajwadi Party and Congress should not have got 54 seats (SP 47; Congress 7).

For that matter, even the Apna Dal should not have got nine seats.

How is this result going to impact India's political future?

This kind of mandate comes with a huge responsibility.

A big mandate means big aspirations and bigger expectations. Obviously, this means even bigger responsibilities.

We have to work more hard to satisfy the aspirations of the electorate in UP.

It is said that UP governs the direction of national politics.

So, definitely, for 2019, I think this a good semi-final that we have played.

What are the three things that urgently need to be tackled in the state by the new government?

There is a crying need for basic infrastructure -- roads, electricity, water -- which is non-existent in UP at the moment.

We need employment for the youth. There is no employment in the state at all.

The third is agriculture; there is a lot that needs to be done.

Anupriya Patel's photograph: Kind courtesy Anupriya Patel/Facebook

DON'T MISS the ELECTION FEATURES in the RELATED LINKS below...
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday suffered acute reverses in Goa where it won only 13 seats in the 40-member house as the poll results threw a hung assembly with the opposition Congress emerging as the single largest party with 17 seats.

The Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, the Goa Forward Party and the independents won three each while the Nationalist Congress Party bagged one seat. The majority mark is 21.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, who bit the dust in Mandrem, submitted his resignation to Governor Mridula Sinha after his party finished way behind the simple majority needed to form the government.

The Congress, which had nine seats in the outgoing House, steeply increased its tally to 17, besides ensuring the victory of a party-backed independent candidate.

Four former Congress chief ministers -- Digambar Kamat, Pratapsinh Rane, Ravi Naik and Luiznho Falerio -- emerged victorious in the polls.

Besides the humiliating defeat of Parsekar, who lost by over 7,000 votes, six BJP ministers too fell by the wayside.

The verdict would give smaller parties like the newly formed Goa Forward Party and the MGP a role in the government formation.

The poor show of the BJP, which had won 21 seats last time, is also seen as a setback for Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who had led the campaign from the front, fuelling speculations that he may return to his home state as chief minister.

The Aam Aadmi Party, which had hit the state with fanfare, too drew a blank.

The MGP, which had pulled out of the BJP-led coalition just before the February 4 polls, formed an alliance with the Shiv Sena and the Goa Suraksha Manch, floated by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh rebel Subhash Velingkar.

The other two parties, however, failed to open their accounts.

The Congress sources said as the single largest party, it would stake claim to form the next government and was confident of getting the support from independents and others.

Shortly after the results were out, Parrikar said the BJP remains in the race for forming the government.

In the situation of a fractured mandate, everyone is in the run to form the government. We are also there. If the BJP acts like a core group and brings together smaller parties, we can still give a stable government, he said.

Apart from the anti-incumbency mood, it is believed that floating of GSM by Velingkar and pulling out of the MGP from the ruling alliance contributed to the BJPs defeat.

Meanwhile, after submitting his resignation, Parsekar said the people of Goa will repent for the next five years for giving a fractured mandate.

I dont know why there was such a result. People have given a fractured mandate and I feel they have committed a mistake. They will rue it for the next five years, Parsekar told reporters.

All India Congress Committee general secretary in-charge of Goa Digvijay Singh said the Congress will seek support of like-minded parties to form the next government.

We will not mind approaching like-minded parties such as Goa Forward Party to form the next government, he told reporters.

Out of the 13 BJP winners, seven are from the Catholic community which has a large presence in the coastal state.

Photograph: PTI Photo
Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah on Saturday credited Prime Minister Narendra Modis pro-poor policies with the unprecedented mandate the party has received in state polls, including in Uttar Pradesh, and said it has catapulted him as the tallest leader since independence.

He told a packed press conference, soon after the poll results showed a landslide win for the BJP in UP where it was out of power for 15 years, that the outcome will change the course of countrys politics and will mark the end of the politics of caste, nepotism and appeasement.

Expressing confidence that the BJP will form government in Goa and Manipur, where no party has got a clear majority, Shah said the partys Parliamentary Board will meet on Sunday where the names of chief ministerial nominees will be finalised.

The only factor for the win is the performance of the Modi government. The outcome has shown the faith the poor have reposed in Modi.... Even his political rivals will have to admit that he has emerged as the tallest leader in the country since independence, he said.

He described the victory in UP and Uttarakhand as the biggest since independence and claimed that it will herald the politics of performance.

Despite defeat in Punjab, the Akali Dal-BJP alliance has got over 30 per cent votes, he said.

He also made light of Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati's allegations that the electronic voting machines were tampered with in UP, saying he can understand her state of mind.

IMAGE: Giant cut-outs of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah installed at the party headquarters after the party's victory in assembly elections, in New Delhi on Saturday. Photograph: Atul Yadav/ PTI Photo
The two parties, however, are in a neck-and-neck race in Manipur and Goa.

IMAGE: Women smear colour on the poster of Narendra Modi as they celebrate the party's unprecedented victory in Uttar Pradesh. Photograph: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday stormed back to power in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand securing landslide wins while the Congress achieved a similar feat in Punjab and emerged as the single largest party in Goa and Manipur which threw up a hung assembly.

Anchored by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah, the BJP juggernaut rolled on in UP and in the neighbouring state of Uttarakhand, bagging three-fourth majority. The popular Congress Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost both seats that he contested in the hill state.

The BJP is returning to power in the politically crucial state of UP after a gap of 15 years during which regional parties such as the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party held sway.

As the assembly elections in the five states turned into a virtual referendum on Modi's popularity and demonetisation, the BJP decimated the ruling SP, its alliance partner Congress and Mayawati's BSP in UP.

After a hiatus of 10 years, the Congress led by former chief minister Capt. Amarinder Singh stormed to power in Punjab getting 77 seats, falling just one seat short of two-third majority.

It was a birthday present for Amarinder who turned 75 on Saturday as the Congress routed the SAD-BJP combine and dashed hopes of Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which was confident of sweeping the assembly polls on its debut.

BJP leaders hailed the spectacular victories of the BJP as a vindication of Modi's popularity and his pro-poor policies with some calling it a "tsunami".

Shah, who crafted and conducted the election strategy in UP, said that the results have catapulted Modi to the stature of the "tallest leader" since independence.

"The only factor for the win is the performance of the Modi government," Shah told a press conference in Delhi. "The outcome has shown the faith the poor have reposed in Modi. Even his political rivals will have to admit that he has emerged as the tallest leader in the country since independence," he said.

"This is the victory of the corruption-free rule and pro-poor policies under the leadership" of Modi, he tweeted earlier.

At the end of vote counting, the BJP bagged 312 seats on its own with a nearly 40 per cent vote share and with allies Apna Dal (Soneylal Patel) and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party their strength goes up to 324 in a House of 403. The BJP had just 47 seats in the outgoing House.

IMAGE: It's time to dance! BJP supporters are in a joyous mood as the results of their victory in UP pour in. Photograph: Pawan Kumar/Reuters

The previous best showing by the BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of Ram Janam Bhoomi movement, when it got majority on its own winning 221 seats out of 425 in an undivided state.

The highest number of seats bagged by a single party in the UP assembly polls was in 1977 when Janata Party got 352 seats when Uttarakhand was part of the state.

The BJP had not put forward any chief ministerial candidate in UP where it also did not put up any muslim candidate.

The UP chief minister will be selected tomorrow by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party in the state.

The ruling SP whose campaign was steered by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on development agenda received a severe drubbing getting only 47 seats as against its previous tally of 224 while alliance partner Congress was reduced to single digits (7), down by 21 seats.

The SP received a major jolt in Lucknow Cantt seat where its patron Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav lost to BJP's Rita Bahujuna Joshi, who left Congress ahead of the elections.

The BSP could garner only 19 seats in a huge slump from the previous tally of 80.

The results in UP and Uttarakhand set off celebrations in BJP offices and party strongholds. Party members danced and distributed sweets on streets and BJP offices.

Women gathered in groups to watch results on TV and danced as the results came in. One party leader said Holi, which will be celebrated on Sunday and Monday, has come a day early.

Battle for 5 states: Big winners and losers

Winning 77 of the 117 assembly seats, the Congress stormed back to power in Punjab riding a strong anti-incumbency wave against the ruling SAD-BJP combine and warding off a spirited challenge by newcomer AAP.

The party put up its second best performance in the state. In the 1992 state elections, it had won 87 seats. With 77 MLAs it just one seat short of a two-third majority. The Congress had 46 seats in the outgoing House.

In addition, the Congress also won the bypoll to the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat.

The SAD-BJP alliance finished at number three spot in the state polls, behind AAP, which emerged as the largest opposition party with 20 seats.

However, the number fell way short of Arvind Kejriwal's claim that AAP will win 100 seats.

The Prakash Singh Badal-led SAD won 15 seats, down from its earlier tally of 56 seats while ally BJP bagged three seats against the 12 it had won in 2012.

At a packed press conference in Chandigarh, a beaming Amarinder Singh, who was the Congress' chief ministerial face, hit out at the SAD claiming it had brought the state "down to its knees" and mocked Kejriwal, saying he was like a "summer storm that had come and gone".

In Uttarakhand, the BJP bagged 56 out of 70 seats at stake in the state to storm to power reducing Congress to just 11 seats.

It is for the first time in the 16-year history of Uttarakhand that a party has emerged with an impressive tally like that recorded by the BJP.

The BJP suffered reverses in Goa where its tally was reduced to 13 from 21 in the 40-member house as the poll results threw up a hung assembly where opposition Congress emerged the single largest party with 17 seats.

Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, Goa Forward and Independents won three each and the Nationalist Congress Party bagged one seat. The majority mark is 21 seats.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar bit the dust in Mandrem.

Four former Congress chief ministers - Digambar Kamat, Pratapsinh Rane, Ravi Naik and Luiznho Falerio - emerged victorious.

Apart from humiliating defeat of Parsekar, who lost by over 7,000 votes, six ministers of the BJP also fell by the wayside.

The verdict would give smaller parties like newly formed Goa Forward and MGP with a role in ministry formation.

The poor showing of the BJP, which had won 21 seats last time, is also seen as a setback for Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who had led the campaign from the front, fuelling speculation he may return to his home state as chief minister.

5 state assembly elections

Aam Aadmi Party, which hit the state with a big fanfare, drew a blank.

Congress sources said that as the single largest party, it would stake claim to form the next government and was confident of getting support from independents and others.

Shortly after the results were out, Parrikar said that the BJP remains in the race for forming the government.

"It is a fractured mandate. We are awaiting the response of smaller parties," he told reporters in Panaji.

Like in Goa, it was a hung House in Manipur with ruling Congress bagging 28 out of the total 60 seats and the BJP getting 21.

The Congress, which had won 42 seats in the 2012 assembly poll, suffered a jolt as it managed to capture only 28 seats this time but is in the race for government formation as it emerged as a single largest party.

The BJP, on the other hand, took a giant leap forward capturing 21 seats as the party had none in the outgoing House.

The BJP's vote share of 36 per cent is higher than 34.7 per cent secured by the Congress.

Three-time Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh romped home from Thoubal constituency defeating his nearest BJP rival L Basanta Singh by 10,400 votes.

Human rights activist Irom Sharmila who had contested against Ibobi Singh, secured only 90 votes and was relegated to the fourth position.

Manipur PCC President T N Haokip said that his party would form the next government with the help of "like-minded secular and regional parties."
As the results pour in from the five states which have gone to polls, scenes of celebrations can be seen across the nation.

Here are glimpses of the revelry.

-- Five-State Assembly Election 2017

BJP workers coloured the town red after their party's performance in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. In New Delhi too, BJP workers played Holi, putting colour on the cut-out of a Modi poster to celebrate the party's victory. Photograph: Manvender Vashist/PTI Photo

Bharatiya Janata Party supporters and workers celebrate the partys victory in the assembly elections with colours, at party headquarters in New Delhi. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo

The results from Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand show that the country is MODI-fied! Photograph: Sandeep Pal

Congress party workers celebrate after learning of the results of Punjab assembly elections in Chandigarh. Photograph: Ajay Verma/Reuters

Modi! Modi! BJP workers wear mask of Prime Minister Narendra Modi whose magic swept opposition in UP. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo

And the Holi comes early for the BJP supporters with a big win in the Hindi heartland, Uttar Pradesh. Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters

Muslim BJP supporters celebrate the party's victory in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. Photograph: PTI Photo

Uttar Pradesh BJP President Keshav Prasad Maurya joins in the celebrations at BJP office in Lucknow as the Modi wave sweeps the state. Photograph: PTI Photo

In Uttar Pradesh, BJP workers have come out to celebrate the party's victory. Trends show that the saffron party is sweeping the state. Photograph: Jitendra Prakash/Reuters

Congress workers have a reason to smile as the Grand Old Party seems set to win Punjab. Photograph: Reuters

Captain Amarinder Singh's daughter Jai Inder Kaur and granddaughter along with Congress supporters flash victory sign as they celebrate the counting trend showing the party's thumping victory in Punjab. Photograph: PTI Photo

Navjot Singh Sidhu, Congress candidate from Amritsar East assembly constituency, with his wife Navjot Singh Kaur after his win. Photograph: PTI Photo

It's time for band, baaja as the Congress has been able to wrest power from the SAD-BJP alliance in Punjab. Photograph: PTI Photo

And in UP, workers can't control their happiness as the party edges to victory. Photograph: Sandeep Pal

Workers prepare laddoos to celebrate the good news post the results. Photograph: PTI Photo

Supporters of Manipur CM Ibobi celebrate after he wins from Thoubal and the Congress also looks to retain power in the state. Photograph: ANI/Twitter

BJP's lotus blossom in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarkahand with party is heading for a landslide victory. Photograph: Sandeep Pal
Fighting what he called was the "father of all battles", Amarinder Singh led the Congress to a stunning victory in Punjab decimating the Shiromani Akali Dal and crushing the Aam Aadmi Party's dream of expanding its footprint beyond Delhi.

Belonging to a very rare breed of politicians who have seen action in the Indo-Pak war, Singh finally tasted success after Akali Dal supremo Parkash Singh Badal foiled his previous attempts to become chief minister -- in 2007 and 2012.

The Congress stalwart could not have asked for a better gift on his 75th birthday.

Once a leader of the Akali Dal, the 'scion of Patiala' fought in the 1965 war after he rejoined the army a few months after his resignation. He again resigned from the Services as a decorated soldier at the conclusion of the war.

The Punjab Congress chief and husband of Patiala MP Parneet Kaur was born to late Maharaja Yadavindra Singh of Patiala.

After his initial schooling at Lawrence School, Sanawar and Doon School in Dehradun, he joined the National Defence Academy, Kharagwasla July 1959 and graduated from there in December 1963.

Commissioned in the Indian Army in 1963, he was posted in 2nd Bn. Sikh Regiment (both his father and grandfather had served this battalion), served in Field Area - Indo Tibetan border for two years with this battalion, appointed Aide-de-Camp to Lt Gen Harbaksh Singh, GOC-in-C Western Command.

His army career was for a brief period as he resigned in early 1965 after his father was appointed Ambassador to Italy and his services were required at home.

But he joined the army again immediately after hostilities broke out with Pakistan and took part in operations in the war only to resign again in early 1966 after the war was over.

His political career began in January 1980 when he was elected MP. But he resigned from the Congress and the Lok Sabha in protest against the entry of the army into the Golden Temple during "Operation Blue Star" in 1984.

After joining the Akali Dal in August 1985, Singh got elected to the Punjab assembly on an Akali Dal (Longowal) ticket in the 1995 elections. He was agriculture minister in the Surjit Singh Barnala government.

However, Singh resigned from the cabinet in protest against the entry of paramilitary forces ordered by the Barnala government into the Golden Temple on May 5, 1986. He then floated the Panthic Akali Dal, which later merged with the Congress in 1997.

Singh unsuccessfully fought the parliamentary elections on a Congress ticket from Patiala in 1998.

He then served as Punjab Congress chief from 1999-2002 before becoming the chief minister in 2002 and continuing till 2007.

In September 2008, he was expelled by a state assembly panel on allegations of irregularities in a land transfer case. In 2010, Singh got relief from the Supreme Court while held his expulsion unconstitutional.

He then went on to head the state Congress again till 2013.

Singh, a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee since 2013, fought the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Amritsar and defeated senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley by a margin of more than one lakh votes.

He then resigned in November as MP after the Supreme Court termed Punjab's 2004 Act terminating the Satluj-Yamuna Link canal agreement as unconstitutional.

A few days later, he was appointed president of the Punjab Congress again in the run-up to the polls.

A widely travelled person, Singh has penned several books including his memoirs of the 1965 Indo-Pak war.
What does someone from Uttar Pradesh on the streets of Mumbai think of the results back home?

Savera R Someshwar/Rediff.com listens in.

Kamaljit Yadav has been driving a black-and-yellow taxi in Mumbai for over 30 years. He returns home to Azamgarh district in Uttar Pradesh at least twice a year.

Today, when a sleepy Mumbai wakes up to the Bharatiya Janata Party's sweep of UP, Yadav is for once pleased that business is slow.

His ears are tuned in to the news flowing in from his home state and he is very pleased that Narendra Modi's party has posted such a spectacular result.

"After so many decades, we are seeing this kind of a result in UP, that one party is winning with over 300 seats. People have faith in Modi because of the work he has done for the last three years. He wants to change this country for the better and it shows," te taxi driver says.

"The rich are not happy with Modi, especially after the notebandi (demonetisation). But the poor people, who have actually suffered, who have stood in the lines to withdraw money, know that Modi only has the good of this country in his mind," Yadav adds.

"He has truly taken the cleanliness drive ahead in every aspect."

"Corruption has become difficult. Everyone is being forced to do their work. Why, even the babus have to come on time to office," Yadav points out.

"And India has definitely become cleaner after Modi's safai abhiyaan. Take a look at Mumbai itself and you'll know what I mean."

"This is Modi's victory. And he has worked hard for it. Modi's contribution to changing India for the better will be recorded by history in shining letters," the cabbie declares.

He proceeds to analyse the defeat of his fellow Yadavs. "The fight between the father and the son did not work in their favour. Akhilesh, who has actually done a lot of good work in UP, did not want his father's coterie, especially Amar Singh. And his father did not want his. That fight became public and it was not good for both of them."

Looking at another former chief minister, he says, "Mayawati too did some good work. She cleaned quite a bit of the goodagardi that plagued UP. You must have heard about that notorious criminal called Raja Bhaiyya. She even got rid of him."

"But when she spent crores of rupees to build all those statues in Lucknow, the people went against her. What was the need for all those elephants?"

"She should have spent all the money on doing something that would help the people; then people would have remembered her when the time to vote came and been grateful to her."

"Though one should not actually say this, she gave too much importance to the nichli jaat (lower castes) and to the Muslims. And she tried to please too many people. All this went against her."

The Congress is dismissed with a sad shake of the head. "Congress ka aisa tha, woh khate toh the lekin khane bhi dete the. Lekin ab unka zamana gaya (Well, the Congress used to take money, but it allowed other people to make money as well. Now, their days of glory are long gone)."

When asked about the next chief minister of the state, he says "Pata chal jayega kuch dino mein (We will know in a few days). There's Rajnath Singh, but he has an even more important post as Union home minister. There is Amit Shah, but he too has an important post."

"You can be sure about one thing. The next chief minister will be someone who will work for the good of the state. Modi won't accept anything else."

Photograph: Savera R Someshwar/Rediff.com
Driven by the Modi wave, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday stormed to power in Uttar Pradesh after 14 years, securing three-fourths majority and demolishing rivals Samajwadi Party-Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party in a keenly-contested assembly election.

Showing astonishing performance, the BJP got 312 seats in the 403-member assembly.

Its allies Apna Dal (S) and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party bagged nine seats and four seats, respectively, taking the total tally of the combine to 325.

On the other hand, the SP won 47 seats while its ally the Congress got seven seats. The BSP won just 19 seats, finishing a dismal third.

Significantly, the Congress lost all the four assembly seats in Amethi district, the pocket borough of the Gandhi family, with the BJP bagging three of them.

The BJP-led alliance swept all the eight assembly segments falling under Prime Minister Narendra Modis Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi.

Saturdays results showed many prominent faces failing. The prominent among them were Aparna Yadav, younger daughter-in-law of SP patron Mulayam Singh Yadav, from Lucknow Cantt, ministers Arvind Singh Gope from Ramnagar and Pawan Pandey from Ayodhya.

Accepting defeat, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said, I hope the next government will work better than SP government.

Akhilesh, who is also the president of the Samajwadi Party, added at a press conference, I accept the verdict of the people. I will do analysis at booth level.

He, however, said SPs alliance with the Congress will continue, claiming that we have been benefited by it.

Asked to comment on BSP chief Mayawatis allegation about tampering of EVMs, Akhilesh said, If questions have been raised on EVMs, the government should probe it.

Just before submitting his resignation, he suggested that the BJP had won by misleading the voters.

"I think in a democracy you get vote not by samjhana (convincing) but by behkana (misguiding)," he said.

"In the entire elections, there were massive crowds in my rallies. Did people come only to watch? ... I did not expect such a thing will happen," Akhilesh said.

The people might not have liked my expressway and they voted for the bullet train, the outgoing chief minister said.

On who will take the responsibility for the humiliating defeat of the SP, Akhilesh said since he himself is the party chief he will carry out an assessment to see who should be blamed.

A fuming Mayawati alleged that EVMs had been tampered with in such a way that whichever button was pressed, the vote went to the BJP.

Terming the results as shocking, she said the Election Commission should withhold the results and hold fresh polls using traditional paper ballots.

The EC, however, was quick to reject her claim of rigging and said her demand for a re-poll using ballot papers was legally untenable.

Notable among the winners are Pankaj Singh (Noida), who is son of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Suresh Rana (Thana Bhawan) and Sangeet Singh Som (Sardhana) -- both accused in Muzaffarnagar riots, Rita Bahuguna Joshi (Lucknow Cantt), Swati Singh (Sarojini Nagar), Swami Prasad Maurya (Padrauna), Srikant Sharma (Mathura) -- all BJP.

Besides, other important faces who won are Akhilesh Yadavs feuding uncle Shivpal Yadav (Jaswantnagar-SP), senior UP minister Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam from Rampur and Suar seats respectively as also gangster-turned-MLA Mukhtar Ansari (BSP) from Mau.

Mriganka Singh (BJP-Shamli), daughter of Kairana MP Hukum Singh, lost as did speaker of UP assembly Mata Prasad Pandey from his home turf of Itwa.

Sitting MLA Rakesh Pratap Singh from SP retained his Gauriganj seat, defeating Congress nominee Mohammad Naeem by more than 26,000 votes.

BJP nominee Garima Singh polled 63,912 in Amethi defeating her nearest rival and tainted minister Gayatri Prasad Prajapati of Samajwadi Party who received 58,941 votes.

Samajwadi Party and Congress had joined hands for the assembly election but their candidates had contested against each other in some of the seats.

IMAGE: Uttar Pradesh BJP President Keshav Prasad Maurya joins in the celebrations at BJP office in Lucknow as the Modi wave sweeps the state. Photograph: PTI Photo
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah are being showered with accolades for securing a historic victory in the Uttar Pradesh elections, the milestone's scriptwriter, Sunil Bansal is glad his hard work has finally paid off.

Bansal, a former Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad activist from Rajasthan, had been appointed joint general secretary (organisation) in the BJPs Uttar Pradesh unit by Shah during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections to be his eyes and ears in the state.

The core tasks of Bansal, today also referred to as Shah's right-hand man, included monitoring the prospects of the party in each constituency based on independent survey inputs, and planning the rest of the campaign.

In conversation with NDTV last month, Bansal said he noticed three key weaknesses that he sought to fix -- one, to remedy the party's poor rural outreach, the BJP fought panchayat elections in UP in 2015, with a far greater intensity than before, contesting around 3000 seats. It only won about 350, but the exercise impelled it to create a village-level talent pool that would prove invaluable.

Two, in 2014, the party had a presence in less than a fourth of Uttar Pradesh's 1.4 lakh booths, the basic unit of election management. By late 2016, an aggressive membership drive had helped the BJP extend its reach to close to 1.28 lakh booths.

Three, Bansal said, a call centre of 150 people, based out of Lucknow, constantly dialled workers to authenticate them; those that turn out to be "ghosts" were dropped. This allowed the BJP to remedy its image of a largely upper caste party.

"Bansal though stationed in Lucknow was in town hardly 3 to 4 days a month. He was constantly on the move visiting each district and created the bulwark for the campaign launch," a BJP leader in Delhi told News18.

The BJP reached out to non-Jatav Dalits and non-Yadav OBC castes. The party's leadership in the districts, and the distribution of party tickets, reflected this changed social character of the BJP.

In ticket distribution, BJP learnt its lesson from Bihar and gave tickets to just about a dozen Yadav candidates. The focus was on upper caste and non-Yadav OBC. Almost one third of the party candidates were Brahmins and Rajputs. BJP now baited more than 130 non Yadav OBCs and over 80 dalits in this election.

This was resented among its predominantly upper-caste leadership, but Bansal was unrelenting in pushing the state BJP unit in organising regional meetings of booth-level workers and increasing the partys engagements with Dalits, OBCs, women and youth.

Bansal said the BJP had given 15 tickets to Jat candidates in Phase 1, including on all five seats in Baghpat. That showed we are with the Jats. On the other hand, RLD gave a bulk of tickets to non-Jats. Jat voters won't get divided," Bansal said.

The response to the Dalit outreach was lukewarm, and the Yadav family feud increased Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's chances manifold. However, party sources said that Bansal, with his ears to the ground, reacted quickly to these emerging trends, including junking references to the prime minister's demonetisation drive in the partys election campaigning.
Here are some reactions by political leaders to the five-state election verdict.

The BJP won in Uttar Pradesh with two-thirds majority. Congratulations to all party workers, (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi, (BJP's UP chief) Keshav Prasad Maurya and people of Uttar Pradesh. This win is about BJP's ideology and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's welfare schemes for poor and people's trust in developmental governance.

-- Amit Shah (BJP president)

People have outrightly rejected the Congress-Samajwadi Party alliance. The people of Uttar Pradesh have voted for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's agenda of development. The Centre's 'vikas yojana' schemes for the people, BJP president Amit Shah's election strategy and the hard work of party members has paid off today.

-- Yogi Adityanath (BJP)

This is a big victory. BJP has reached new heights in Uttarkhand and Uttar Pradesh and changed the political picture of the country.

-- Rajnath Singh (BJP)

The belief of the people of Punjab has emerged victorious. This is the start of the Congress' revival. We will ensure that we live up to all expectations. Politics is not a business. The previous government considered Punjab's wealth as their own and looted our treasures. Our intentions are very clear. We have no hidden motives. We only want Punjab to progress as a state. We will not let down our party workers or the people of Punjab in this regard. Congress will spread from here. Punjab results a defeat of Akali Dal's arrogance.

-- Navjot Singh Sidhu (Congress)

In a nutshell there is no leader today with a pan India acceptability who can take on Modi and the BJP in 2019. At this rate we might as well forget 2019 and start planning/ hoping for 2024. How the hell did almost all the experts/analysts miss this wave in UP? It's a tsunami not a ripple in a small pond. Punjab, Goa and Manipur would certainly suggest that the BJP isn't unbeatable but strategy needs to shift from criticism to positive alternate. I have said this before and I will say it again the voter needs to be given an alternative agenda that is based on what we will do better. Criticising the prime minister 'will only take us so far' and that the voter needs to know there is an option available to them that has a clear positive roadmap.

-- Omar Abdullah, National Conference

Today nation is standing with PM Modi. This is the victory of people of UP and Uttarakhand.

-- Piyush Goyal (BJP)

People are showing confidence and trusting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. The people are voting for the development. They are voting for the good work not on the basis of caste and religion. We have received tremendous support from youth and women voters.

-- Prakash Javadekar (BJP)

UP is a bad loss, it hurts...I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring thinking for the Congress as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy.

-- Abhishek Manu Singhvi (Congress)

This clearly indicates that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's credibility, popularity, his work for poor, youth, women, backward class, farmers have reached among the people. People have faith on him. People are losing interest in politics of corruption and power.

-- Nalin Kohli (BJP)

One thing is very clear that Prime Minister has always worked for the empowerment of the poor. People have put a stamp on the efforts made by our Prime Minister. There is atmosphere of development and faith in the nation and soon we will form government in the state.

-- Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi (BJP)

This victory is a victory to change Uttar Pradesh, to strengthen the society and to join all the sections of the society. It's a victory to change the law and order state in Uttar Pradesh, which has been deteriorated in the last five years; against corruption and all the elements which are against the development of the state. Today, I am very proud of Prime Minister Modi. I thank all the people, who have put in their trust in him and the BJP. I want to thank and congratulate Amit Shah and all the party workers, who have worked day and night for this day.

-- Ravi Shankar Prasad (BJP)

A big change has to be brought in Uttar Pradesh. The grand old party (Congress) has indulged in corruption to such an extent that the people will completely reject them in future as well.

-- Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore (BJP)

"Akhilesh Yadav brought about development in the state. In order to strengthen that development, the Congress allied with the Samajwadi Party. The people of Uttar Pradesh today have kept votebank politics above development. Just like they did nothing at the Centre for three years, they are going to do nothing in UP as well. The people will realise their mistakes then.

-- Rajeev Shukla (Congress)

We accept people's mandate. All volunteers worked hard. Our struggle will continue

-- Arvind Kejriwal (Aam Aadmi Party)
Thomas Robert O'Sullivan, the greatest papa, dad, brother and son. He took his last breath with family, his dog and his favorite radio station, KGLT, at his side at 10:10pm Tuesday March 7th, 2017. He was 61 years young! He was diagnosed with cancer in October of 2014, he fought a long hard battle but really had a good quality of life through a majority of the fight. He was always there for his daughters and loved being a papa more than anything else. He had a nickname for everything. He loved to hunt and fish and ride his motorcycle. He had some lifelong friends, Tom Nelson and Teri Kramer, that he made a majority of his hunting and fishing (and drinking) adventures with. He loved his hunting dogs like another child. He always had a certain way of doing what he did. He loved drinking beer with the boys and trying various breweries across the nation. We had lots of fun times traveling and checking off his bucket list. Including seeing the Mayan ruins in Belize and Mexico, fishing in Honduras, in the ocean off the coast of northern California, as well as several trips to Northern Canada. We saw much of the western half of the USA with road trips to Utah and Arizona, New Mexico and Oregon and Northern California. He loved to see the back roads and the natural parks. He made 2 trips to Hawaii the last of which was just 2 weeks ago. He is survived by his grandsons Paxon and Holden Coulter, daughters, Cambryn Coulter and Marisa OSullivan, his son-in-laws Bart Coulter and Blaine Towles, his sister Kelly OSullivan, brother-in-law Jimmy Weg and mother, Dorothe OSullivan. He is preceded in death by his father Robert (Bob) OSullivan. He will be greatly missed by numerous friends and family that he has had from across the years and across the state. A celebration of life will be held on Sunday, March 12th, 2017 from 1-4 p.m. to drink a beer in his honor. The celebration of his well lived life will take place at 10 mile Creek Brewery.
The wife of an Indian-origin store owner, who was shot dead outside his home in the United States, has asked the people to continue demonstrating "selflessness" and "love" to honour her husband's memory.

Harnish Patel's wife issued a statement to The Lancaster News on Thursday and thanked the Lancaster community and the sheriff's office for their support and for celebrating her husband's life.

"To honour the memory of Harnish, please continue to demonstrate selflessness and love to one another each and every day," Sonal Patel wrote.

"We appreciate all of the love you have shown us. It is with your support along with time that will help us to move forward," she wrote.

Sonal also sent "a special thank you" to Lancaster County sheriff's deputies and detectives for "their relentless professional efforts and their equal human spirits."

Patel's brother, Nirav Patel, said the family had been encouraged by news accounts showing how much people in the community respected and loved him and grieved the family's loss.

He said that Sonal was "strong" and was staying focused, with the help of family, on getting her and her son's lives back to as normal as possible.

Nirav said that the family was aware of the allegations being made by some about the motive for Harnish's murder, but he declined to discuss the family's thoughts on the matter.

"We just don't know. Nobody knows yet," he said.

"They were very good friends with the law enforcement community, and they trust them completely. Right now, we're just letting them do their job," Nirav said.

Patel, 43, the owner of a convenience store in Lancaster County, South Carolina, was found dead of gunshot wounds in the front yard of his home on March 2.

The Lancaster County Sheriff's Office said on Wednesday it has no evidence that Patel's murder was ethnically motivated, but it is not taking that possibility off the table.

The sheriff's office issued its statement after "much speculation about the motive for this homicide," sheriffs spokesman Doug Barfield said in the release.

"At this time, investigators have not developed facts indicating the shooting was ethnically motivated," Barfield said.

He said that sheriff's investigators are processing evidence and pursuing leads from many different sources, though they have so far produced "nothing definitive."

Many people were interviewed but no arrests have been made so far, Barfield said.

IMAGE: Bouquets placed outside Harnish Patel's store in Lancaster, South Carolina. Photograph: @GSuskinWSOC9/Twitter
Admitting that the loss in Uttar Pradesh was hurting, the Congress on Saturday said some fundamental restructuring and tough decisions on strategy were required besides introspection.

The opposition party congratulated the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the victory in UP and Uttarakhand, highlighted its own gains in Punjab and Goa and said it will introspect on its performance.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi said the party stands resolute and committed to its values of a united India and will continue its fight to win peoples hearts.

He thanked the people of Punjab for giving the Congress a mandate for ensuring a bright future for the state and its youth.

The UP is a bad loss, it hurts...I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring thinking for the Congress as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.

Party chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said it will introspect on the reasons for the loss in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and will re-dedicate itself to strengthening the party and being the watchdog of people.

We congratulate the BJP and PM Narendra Modi on the victory in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. We bow before the verdict of people of the two states. The Congress never arrogates in victory and is not discouraged in defeat, he said.

Gandhi, in a message to all party workers, said, We stand resolute and committed to our values and our belief in an India united in strength and purpose.

Our fight continues and will not end till we win the hearts and minds of people, he also said.

Taking a dig at the BJP, Surjewala said these election results are also a lesson to those who are never tired of speaking about Congress-mukt Bharat (Congress-free India).

We hope that BJP will shift the narrative from Shamshan-Kabristan to the politics of development and brotherhood that is intrinsic to the Ganga-Jamuni culture of

UP and will provide the much-needed relief by waiving farmers loans, market driven MSP for crops, jobs for youth and ushering in a new era of industrialisation, he said.

To a question on Shah hailing Modi as the tallest leader in the country since independence, Surjewala said it could be the BJPs prerogative to say so but no one is above democracy.

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad sought to defend Rahul for the poll debacle in UP, saying the results are not a referendum on him.

If you hold him responsible for defeat, you should credit him for winning Punjab also, he said.

On questions being raised over Rahul's leadership, Azad said he was neither the chief minister of the state nor was the Congress the ruling party.

We were a small minor partner in the state, he said, adding it was not just the Congress that lost but also the regional parties the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party which had higher stakes.

He dismissed that the people of UP voted for Modi, saying people voted for the BJP.

None is bigger than democracy. When an individual considers himself or herself bigger than democracy, nation, then it is natural he or she will commit mistakes and lose track, Surjewala said.

We hope that along with their victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, they will learn lessons from defeats in three states of Punjab, Manipur and Goa. They will not portray a person bigger than country, democracy, we hope, he said.

He said the Congress recognises its historical responsibility in UP and Uttarakhand and will stand committed to rebuilding the party organisation and will win peoples hearts and minds.

Surjewala said the Congress has won elections in three of the five states.

We will form government in one state (Punjab) and are in a position to form governments in two other states (Manipur and Goa). Elections in these states were also contested under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi.

The Congress vice president is known for his plain speak. When Congress lost 2014 polls after serving in the Centre for 10 years, Rahul Gandhi was not even a minister then, but he came forward and took upon the responsibility.

The Congress leadership will take responsibility and take corrective steps in two states where we could not win. This is how Congress works. Congress leadership never shies away from responsibility. When Congress wins, it is because of the Congress workers. When it doesnt, the Congress leader takes upon itself the responsibility for making course correction, he said.

Surjewala claimed that the people of Manipur and Goa have given mandate to the Congress to form the government.

He said if the BJP is planning to hatch one more conspiracy, like it did in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh in the past, to rewrite history by decimating democracy is a question that needs to be addressed by the BJP.

We sincerely hope that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah will not engage in such misadventure to decimate the will of people.

Congress will form government in Punjab, Manipur and Goa. We feel Modi ji and Shah ji, will not dare insult the democracy, he said.

Another Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad attributed the partys poor show in the politically crucial UP to public mood and said its performance will be scrutinised.

To another question on whether the UP poll result was a referendum on demonetisation, he said before proceeding to claim credit, it is time Arun Jaitley also looked at the defeat of the BJP in the three out of five states.

Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel also congratulated Rahul and Amarinder Singh and other leaders who worked tirelessly in Punjab for a spectacular victory.

I congratulate the BJP leadership for its extraordinary performance in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

It is surprising that the same performance was not reflected in Punjab, Goa and Manipur, he tweeted.

IMAGE: Supporters of Congress celebrate their candidate win assembly elections in Imphal on Saturday. Photograph: PTI Photo
BILLINGS  Six months after their leader died on the campaign trail, Montana Libertarians are struggling to fill the void of Mike Fellows, their chairman said as the party prepares to pick a U.S. House candidate Saturday.

We miss Mike Fellows. The amount of work that he did. He put in 45 hours a week, said Ron Vandevender, Libertarian chairman. We had to get organized. There was no one, not one person who could pick up everything that he did.

Fellows died in a car wreck near Potomac last September while driving home to Missoula from a campaign event. He was 59. Weeks earlier, he had been hospitalized by kidney failure. He was widely credited for securing major political party status for Libertarians, meaning that for 20 years, they havent had to gather signatures to qualify candidates for Montana elections.

Montanas May 25 special election to fill the states only U.S. House seat marks the first time the Libertarians will kick off a campaign without Fellows.

Libertarian convention

The party is off to a shaky start. Whereas the states Republican and Democrat parties selected House candidates six days ago, Libertarians are meeting in Helena on Saturday to pick their candidate. The Saturday date is worth noting, because initially parties only had until Friday at 5 p.m. to register their nominees with Montanas secretary of state.

Libertarians fought the deadline, threatening to bring in legal help from their national party if necessary, Vandevender said. They argued that by law they had until 75 days before the election to register their candidate with the state, while Secretary of State Cory Stapleton was setting the deadline early because government employees dont work Saturdays.

With the average blue collar makeup of the Libertarian Party in Montana, our members could not jump at a moments notice to hold a nomination convention, Vandevender said.

The clock started ticking on selecting a candidate March 1, when Republican Ryan Zinke was confirmed as secretary of the Department of the Interior and resigned his post as Montanas only congressman. Gov. Steve Bullock, a Democrat, had to call for a special election within 85 to 100 days of Zinkes resignation. Bullock chose the minimum 85 days, which put the election on a Thursday, May 25.

The Libertarians argued that it wasnt their fault that the 75th day before the election fell on a Saturday. They called foul on the secretary of state for suggesting that Saturday wasnt a working day, since every day the Legislature meets the offices of the governor and secretary of state are to be open.

Stapletons office decided to stretch the deadline to Monday.

It would appear that Gov. Bullock essentially did not anticipate the challenges that would be associated with picking a Thursday for an election, the Thursday before a three-day weekend, said Morgan Williams, spokeswoman for the secretary of state. Montanas special election will take place the Thursday before Memorial Day. Its certainly not ideal. That being said, the deadline did fall on a Saturday, and because the office is not open on Saturday, we decided to set the deadline for Friday.

'Squeezed out'

The Libertarians saw the potential for gamesmanship in the day-early deadline set by the secretary of state, who is Republican.

Libertarians are often regarded as spoilers in statewide elections by Republicans. In 2006, U.S. Sen. Jon Tester unseated Republican incumbent Conrad Burns with just 49.2 percent of the vote. Republican Burns claimed 48.3 percent of the vote, and the remainder  2.6 percent of the vote  went to Libertarian candidate Stan Jones.

Tester won re-election again under similar circumstances in 2012 with 48.5 percent of the vote. Bullock won election in 2012 with 49 percent of the vote and re-election with 50 percent.

Did we feel it was a way for us to be squeezed out of the election because of the thought we could not get a candidate filed under the circumstances handed us? Yes, that is a possibility, Vendevender said.

The fact though was that the government needed to follow the rules of election and not cut the deadline short for registering major party candidates, he said.

The special election puts the Libertarians in an unusual position. To keep major party status, a party must have at least one candidate in a statewide race who wins at least 5 percent of the vote. A party can miss the 5 percent mark in one cycle, but it has to hit it in the next. If it doesnt get 5 percent for two statewide elections in a row, it no longer automatically qualifies for the ballot, meaning it must gather the signatures of several thousand registered voters for candidates in future races.

Because of the special election this spring and a general election in 2018, its possible Libertarians could be pushed from automatic ballot qualification by 2020, the year that Montanas governor, U.S. House and one of its U.S. Senate races are in play.

Who votes Libertarian?

But dont read too much into a sea change of election outcomes if Libertarians exited, said Craig Wilson, Montana State University political science professor emeritus.

I think the honest answer is we really dont know, Wilson said. You really dont know where the Libertarian votes come from. Did they come from the Republican Party? Did they come from the Democratic Party? Some of the people voting Libertarian are Libertarians. Some of the people are probably making a protest vote.

Libertarians vote liberally on issues like marijuana legalization, which would appeal to people who might otherwise vote for Democrats. They also favor small government, which appeals to Republicans, Wilson said.

Libertarian candidates do seem to draw more from Republican-leaning voters in Montana than those who lean Democrat, said Robert Saldin, University of Montana political science professor.

"Democrats, I think, have been thrilled to have the Libertarian Party around because it's been shown that a few percentage points can make a difference," Saldin said.

It's also possible that more libertarian Republicans will gravitate to a third party if they're dissatisfied with Trump, Saldin said.

Interest in the Libertarian Party looks good, Vandevender said, as people shop around for a non-establishment candidate.

Libertarians will meet at the Eagles Lodge in Helena on Saturday to select a House candidate from six hopefuls: Rufus Peace, of Livingston; Mark Wicks, of Inverness; James White, of Helena; and Chris Colvin and Evan Gardner, both of Kalispell.

The other candidates in the race are Democrat Rob Quist and Republican Greg Gianforte.
MISSOULA -- The second-largest segment of recent refugees to Missoula comes from one of the worlds fastest-emptying nations.

That those attempting to flee Eritrea have to dodge troops at the border with shoot to kill orders only underlines the desperate, despotic conditions in the northeast African nation on the Red Sea.

A one-party government jealously guards the independence it gained from Ethiopia in 1991, two experts from the Horn of Africas war-torn region told a crowd of 200 Wednesday evening at the University of Montanas University Center Theater.

Eritrea has a program of national service whereby the Eritrean population less than 50 years of age are obliged to serve in the military, said Solomon Gofie, a visiting adjunct at UM from Addis Ababa University.

Though intended to last just 18 months, national service can extend for decades, at the discretion of the government.

Theres no way they get out, Gofie said. After doing the (military) services, the government orders them to construct boats, to engage in projects like mining or manufacturing. It means the chance of a young Eritrean man or woman going freely after the service is almost nil. Authorities have to decide when one has to be set free. The family and the community dont have any say on that.

Often, way into their 50s, theyre still being paid $10 a month for their service in the military, said Kimberly Maynard, a UM Mansfield Fellow in International Affairs who spent 20 years in conflict zones in northeastern Africa and works part time for the United States Agency for International Development.

Since winter arrived in November, Missoula has become home to seven Eritrean families who found refuge first in Ethiopia or the Mediterranean island of Malta after sneaking out of their home country. Theyre outnumbered only by those from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, who began arriving in August.

Gofie said hopes were high for a progressive future when Eritrea, the former northern province of Ethiopia, earned its independence in 1991. Its status as a nation was officially recognized by the United Nations in 1993.

But Isaias Afwerki, the enigmatic guerrilla leader who became the nations first president, remains in power. Eritrea, a small nation with between five and six million people, has lost half a million of those people prohibited outmigration, Maynard said.

The country has never held an election nor ratified a constitution. A United Nations commission has said the system of forced labor and other alleged human rights violations may constitute crimes against humanity.

One of the challenges is the ability to get information out of Eritrea, Maynard said. There is no foreign aid organization, no humanitarian organization, and the media is very, very controlled. Its only internal media, theres no foreign media. So its hard to get numbers.

What knowledge the outside world acquires of conditions in Eritrea comes mostly from those whove fled, she said. But even that avenue is unreliable as their access to in-country information is limited. Many fear reprisals against family and friends back in Eritrea who helped fund their escape.

War with Ethiopia in 1998-2000 resulted in nearly 100,000 deaths on both sides and devastated the Eritrean economy. Although there was a peace accord at the end, that didnt solve the hostilities between the two countries, Gofie said.

Eritrean officials accuse the United States of siding with Ethiopia, and while theres a chief of mission in the U.S. embassy in the capital of Asmara, a position Natalie E. Brown assumed last fall, an ambassador is not allowed.

Just two weeks ago, and last week also, the Ethiopian government is accusing Eritrea of sending armored people across the border, Gofie said.

All this, he added, makes outmigration one of very few options for the hopeless.

Maynard traced the common routes those fleeing Eritrea take, to Ethiopia and Sudan initially, and later on to Malta, Israel, Italy and other European nations. The journey involves dangerous and costly sea travel. In October 2013, a reported 366 Eritrean migrants drowned off the coast of the Italian island of Lampedusa. Most who survive end up in refugee camps, often separated from family and still facing uncertain futures.

A few navigate the vetting process and gain acceptance to the United States. Those whove landed in Missoula are by and large Christian Orthodox, and they're already sharing vestiges of a rich culture developed over thousands of years, which Maynard emphasized in her talk.

Its adding diversity and interest to our community, and most are heroes for having gone through what they went through, she said. But theyre also bringing so much, and the culture itself just offers so much.

By sharing such things as traditional foods, art and music in a sort of cross-pollination, the dignity of both cultures is realized, said Maynard.

I think thats when its a full welcome and theyre really now at home and living in Missoula.

Wednesday nights program, sponsored by UMs African-American Studies Program and Political Science Department, as well as Montana Model UN, was the third presented by Soft Landing Missoula in a series intended to foster understanding of the families arriving in Missoula through the auspices of international and United States refugee resettlement programs.
A look back on all of our reporting of the Delphi murders since 2017
DECATUR  Lanay D. Walls, a former employee of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, was convicted Tuesday by a jury of criminal trespass to a residence for entering the home of a woman who is planning to testify against her son in an attempted murder case.

Walls, 57, will be sentenced at a hearing scheduled for May 1. The sentencing guidelines for the Class 4 felony are one to three years in prison or probation.

The jury deliberated for less than one hour before returning the verdict in the courtroom of Associate Macon County Judge Phoebe Bowers.

Walls was arrested after she allegedly entered the eastside home of a woman on May 5 and stayed inside when the woman ordered her to leave. Walls told the woman I'm here because I'm going to take your kids and You deserve to die, according to a police affidavit.

Walls was a DCFS case worker at that time. She is no longer employed by the state child welfare agency.

The victim told police she believed Walls was at her home as a tactic to try and persuade her not to testify against her son, Nirin Walls, the affidavit said.

Assistant State's Attorney Caleb Brown was the prosecutor in the Lanay Walls case. Gary Geisler represented the defendant.

Nirin Walls, 33, is facing charges of attempted first-degree murder and possession of weapons by a felon for allegedly shooting at the woman July 1, 2015, as she was a passenger in a vehicle, along with her 5-year-old son, while the vehicle backed out from the driveway in front of her home.

Nirin Walls was on parole at the time for a 2012 conviction of aggravated battery. He is currently in the Illinois Department of Corrections for a conviction of aggravated DUI in a 2015 case.

Nirin Walls is due in court April 24 for a jury trial in his attempted murder case.
Cambodias electoral body said Friday it is weighing whether the opposition must modify a campaign slogan the ruling party has characterized as incitement and threatened legal action over, as the country gears up for local commune elections in June.



In a press conference detailing the preliminary list of candidates who will stand for commune chief this summer, Mean Satik of the National Election Committee (NEC) told reporters that officials are reviewing whether the slogan runs afoul of campaign laws.



For now, the NEC has already received this information [on the CNRPs slogan] and is considering how to resolve the issue in question when political campaigning begins on May 20, he said.



In a statement earlier this week, the ruling Cambodia Peoples Party (CPP) accused the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) of sowing incitement and troublemaking with its campaign slogan, adopted during an extraordinary congress session at the end of February.



The ruling party had said it would file a lawsuit against the CNRP if it does not modify the slogan, which reads, Replace the commune chiefs who serve the party with commune chiefs who serve the people.



At Fridays press conference, CPP representative Chan Sok San reiterated the ruling partys demand that the slogan be changed, but seemed to walk back from the stronger position taken by the CPP earlier this week.



The ruling party must do whatever is necessary to protect security and social order, whether such a slogan affects it or not, he said.



In the name of the ruling party, a statement must be issued to protect against or prevent disorder ... This does not mean we are accusing the CNRP [of deliberately causing problems].



Meng Sotheary, the CNRPs director of legislation and electoral affairs, told RFAs Khmer Service Friday that her party had no immediate plans to change the slogan or to defend its use in court against the CPP.



Any decision regarding the slogan, which has nothing to do with incitement because it does not name a party, would be made by the CNRPs standing committee, she said.



As of Friday, some 300 CPP commune chiefs across Cambodia had signed letters accusing the opposition of using the inciting campaign slogan to fan disunity, according to a report by the Cambodia Daily, noting the similarity in language to recently approved legislation that could see whole parties dissolved for such behavior.



CNRP officials have warned that the CPP seeks to prevent the opposition from standing in the countrys June 4 elections through a variety of different measures, including the passage of the political party law approved by the National Assembly on Feb. 20, despite an opposition boycott of parliament in protest.



The new law bars anyone convicted of a crime from holding the top offices in a political party and forced former CNRP president Sam Rainsyin exile since late 2015 after his conviction on defamation charges supporters say were politically motivatedto resign last month to preserve the party.



While the CPP denies orchestrating the letter campaign by ruling party commune chiefs, the complaints are nearly identical to one another, different only in the details of each chiefs list of achievements, the Cambodia Daily said.



It quoted CNRP lawmaker Son Chhay as saying he found it hard to believe that so many CPP commune chiefs would simultaneously and spontaneously make such public complaints without approval from the party leadership.



The way the CPP operates, they would not do this kind of thing without permission from their leaders. So we assume it could be activity reflecting the original complaint by the ruling party, he said.



The CPP won more than 70 percent of the vote and secured 1,592 of 1,633 communes in Cambodias 2012 local elections, held before the CNRP was formed. The opposition party won nearly half of the vote in the general election the following year.



Observers say the CNRP could give the CPP, which has ruled Cambodia for more than 35 years, a run for its money in the June pollsa race that many believe could foreshadow the general election in 2018.



Political analyst



Also on Friday, jailed Cambodian political analyst and social commentator Kim Sok told reporters that authorities had offered to release him if he pledged to support the CPP.



Kim Sok was arrested on Feb. 17 and charged with inciting social chaos and defamation because of comments made during a radio interview with RFAs Khmer Service that Prime Minister Hun Sen believed implied his government was behind last years murder of popular political pundit Kem Ley.



On Friday, Kim Sok was summoned to Phnom Penh Municipal Court for a further inquiry into the charges against him, but the political analyst said the court did not ask him about his case because his lawyer had asked that the proceedings be postponed.



The court did not inquire about anythingthey wanted me to be a focal point to implement the political plan of the CPP for the next generation if I want to be released, he said while speaking with reporters at the courthouse.



Kim Sok was unable to explain who had placed such a condition on his release or why he had been asked to represent the ruling party before he was loaded onto a van and returned to Prey Sar Prison, where he is awaiting his trial.



When asked about Kim Soks comments, CPP spokesperson Sok Ey San told RFA that the ruling party has plenty of supporters and did not require the political analysts services.



This is simply personal pridehow important does he think he is, he said.



As for the CPP, I am of the opinion that we already have enough human resources, so we dont need to request assistance from Kim Sok. Since the beginning in 1979 up to the present, Kim Sok has never shown up to work for the party.



Wan-Hea Lee, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) representative in Cambodia, has called for a fair trial conducted by an independent court to determine Kim Soks guilt or innocence.



In 2015, the U.N. Human Rights Committee recommended that Cambodia refrain from prosecuting representatives from civil society for expressing their opinions and consider decriminalizing defamation.



Reported by Vuthy Tha and Sonorng Khe for RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sovannarith Keo. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
Despite a decades-old North Korean law asserting equal rights, women serving in the countrys military and construction brigades are routinely abused by their supervisors, with some pressured to provide sexual favors and others forced into prostitution, sources in the country say.



Official guarantees of equal rights for men and women have no real impact in North Korean life, a source in Yanggang province told RFAs Korean Service.



Although all North Korean residents are the victims of human rights violations by the [ruling] Party and leadership, the violation of womens rights is particularly serious, RFAs source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.



Beginning in 2013, North Korea has promised promotions within the ruling Korean Workers Party to women who graduate from college and serve in the countrys military, the source said, adding that women who join the army are expected to serve from the age of 17 to 23.



A report prepared by the General Political Bureau of the North Korean Peoples Army (NKPA) and presented in 2015 at a meeting of female officers has revealed the miserable realities of army life, though, RFAs source said.



In one case, a female company commander in Regiment 316 joined the Korean Workers Party in September 2014 in exchange for sexual favors granted to a superior officer, the source said, citing information presented in the report.



Even after she joined, though, she was unable to reject the advances of political officials who had promised her continued membership in the Party, and as a result, her family was destroyed, the source said.



Constant abuse



In another incident, military forces raided the Yeokjeon district of Pyongson, the capital city of South Pyongan province, and took into custody 22 women working as prostitutes, he said.



All of them were soldiers except for four college students and another civilian, he said.



Female soldiers suffer constant sexual abuse from their male commanders, and they often leave their barracks at night to earn money through prostitution, the source said.



This is because of an inadequate supply system in which the General Rear Services Department of the NKPA cannot even solve a shortage of sanitary napkins, he said.



Meanwhile, women conscripted into the quasi-military construction brigades called storm troopers suffer further horrors, a source in North Hamgyong province told RFA.



Everyone knows that storm trooper commanders above the company level bring women around called the Pleasure Group, and women who reject their commanders demands are assigned to the most difficult workplaces, the source said.



Women assigned to clean up after floods last year in North Hamgyongs Yonsa county were left unable to bathe at night in spite of being covered each day with mire caused by mudslides, the source said.



They couldnt wash during the day because so many men were around, and they couldnt bathe at night because a garrison of border guards prevented them from approaching the Tumen River, he said.



Failure to provide



North Korean authorities are failing to provide adequate facilities and supplies for women assigned to service in collective organizations, the source said.



Although equal rights for both sexes have been guaranteed in North Korea for more than 70 years, it is hard to find another country in which womens rights are trampled this badly, he said.



In order to protect womens rights, compulsory service in the army and the storm troopers should be immediately abolished, he said.



Reported by Jieun Kim for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Soo Min Jo. Written in English by Richard Finney.




The South Korean Constitutional Court's decision Friday to uphold parliament's impeachment vote against President Park Geun-hye removes her from office and introduces fresh uncertainty at a time of rising regional tensions sparked by Seoul's rival North Korea missile and nuclear programs.



The removal of Park, 65, over corruption related to the country's big business conglomerates means South Korea must hold a presidential election within 60 days, with a bitterly divided population and highly fraught ties with North Korea and with the North's patron, China.



Her ouster capped a week that saw North Korea fire a barrage of four missiles into waters between the Korean peninsula and Japan -- action some analysts said were a practice attack on U.S. military bases in Japan, facilities that would play a key role in defending South Korea from any attack from the North.



At the same time, China deepened its war of words over Seoul's deployment of a U.S. antimissile defense system to counter the nuclear and missile threat from the North and intensified a boycott of South Korean goods and services.



South Korea's relations with China, which Park had done a lot to cultivate, have frayed over Seoul's decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) antimissile system. Beijing says the THAAD system represents a threat to its security and is pressuring Seoul to scrap it.



Liberal politician Moon Jae-in appears to have a strong lead in the race to succeed Park. He has called for the missile defense system to be "reconsidered" and was photographed at a March 8 International Women's Day event with fist-pumping activists behind a banner calling for the impeachment of Park and the immediate cancellation of the THAAD deployment.



A prominent defector from North Korea told RFA's Korean Service in Seoul expressed concern that Park's successor could soften policies against Pyongyang.



The Republic of Korea needs to know exactly what the North Korean regime is doing, whether it is progressive or conservative, and to judge exactly how to foster reasonable change in North Korea," said Kang Chol-hwan, president of the North Korea Strategy Center and former prisoner in the North's gulag-style prison camp system.



"Without good judgement, there is a serious problem of repeating the policies that save the regime of North Korea through a vast supply of food and cash," he said.



U.S.-based analysts, however, said that North Korea's threat was so obvious and so clearly increasing that a Seoul government of any stripe would have to act to meet its duty to protect South Koreans.



"The reality is that what we've seen from North Korea over the last year or so, in particularly most recently the missile test demonstrates very clearly that the threat is growing," James Przystup, an Asia expert at the Center for Strategic Research at National Defense University outside Washington.



"I don't think they can move away from THAAD, frankly, and I think that their secret hope is that it gets installed very quickly so that it can be a legacy system for them," he told RFA, referring to a successor government.



Reuters news agency quoted the Pentagon as saying Friday that it would continue delivering THAAD components, as a matter separate from South Korea's domestic political crisis.



Other analysts suggested that the election period could see North Korea refrain from missile tests or other types of provocative actions to avoid overplaying its hand and helping conservatives.



"North Korea benefits from political weakness and uncertainty in South Korea," said James Schoff, a senior fellow in the Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.



He added, however, "if they are too aggressive with the South in terms of more missile tests and other types of provocations ... that would actually backfire."



Reported and translated by Kyung Ha Rhee and Sungwon Yang for RFA's Korean Service. Written in English by Paul Eckert.
Activist Elena Urlaeva has spent years fighting against forced labor and child labor in Uzbekistan's cotton industry. On March 1, she was arrested and sent to a psychiatric facility. Urlaeva believes she was detained to keep her from meeting with international labor activists. (RFE/RL, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Anti-Slavery International)
Several hundred people staged a protest on March 11 in the southwestern Belarusian city of Pinsk, calling for the scrapping of a law, Decree No. 3, which imposes a tax on jobless people. The Pinsk protest, dubbed "The March of the Non-Parasites," brought together people of various ages, including pensioners, who gathered in the main square of Pinsk. (RFE/RL's Belarus Service)
At least eight members of the Afghan security forces were killed by two of their colleagues in the southern Zabul province late on March 10, Afghan officials say.

Gul Islam Seyal, spokesman for the provincial governor, said on March 11 that both attackers fled the area in a police vehicle after killing their colleagues in the Shinkai district.

He said the two attackers also took all the weapons and ammunition from the checkpoint.

Seyal said an investigation is under way to find out if the two have links to insurgent groups.

Haji Asadullah Kakar, a Zabul provincial council member, said the attackers had joined the Taliban. Kakar said that it appeared the attackers already had connections with the militant group.

Insider attacks are not unusual in Afghanistan.

In a similar incident last month, 11 police officers were shot and killed by another policeman from the same checkpoint in neighboring Helmand province.

Separately on March 11, in eastern Khost province, a suspected suicide bomber was shot and killed by security guards near the entrance to an airport, said General Faizullah Ghyrat, provincial police chief in Khost.

Based on reporting by AP and dpa


Officials in Afghanistan southeastern province of Khost say three gunmen have attacked a military base.



Khosts provincial police spokesman, Faizullah Ghairat, said on March 11 that the attack was on a base close to the border with Pakistan.



Ghairat said one militant was killed, while the other two were still holding out late on March 11.



There was no immediate comment about the attack from the headquarters of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission in Kabul.



The attack came at the start of Afghanistans spring fighting season, when warmer weather brings increased operations by both militants and government forces.



Afghanistans Interior Ministry said on March 11 that security forces had killed 51 armed militants in operations across Afghanistan during the previous 24 hours.

With reporting by Reuters
PINSK, Belarus -- Several hundred people have staged a protest in the southwestern Belarusian city of Pinsk, calling for the scrapping of a law imposing a tax on jobless people.

The March 11 protest was the latest in series of demonstrations against the law, despite authoritarian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka announcing that he was suspending its application for one year in order to "correct" it and carry it out next year.

Lukashenka said the law, which is reminiscent of Soviet-era legislation, was needed to fight what he has called "social parasitism." The legislation has sparked protests across the nation of 10 million. It imposes a special tax on Belarusians who work less than half of a calendar year and do not register at the country's labor bureaus.

The law, however, exempts registered job-seekers, homemakers, subsistence farmers, and Belarusians working in Russia.

The Pinsk protest, dubbed "The March of the Non-Parasites," brought together people of various ages, including pensioners, who gathered in the main square of Pinsk.

Some participants were carrying both the current red-green flag of Belarus and the historical white-red-white banner used by the short-lived Belarusian Republic in 1918, before Belarus became a Soviet Republic.

'Time To Take Up Pitchforks'

Some demonstrators chanted slogans calling for the replacement of the current government and for fair elections.

"It's time to take up our pitchforks," one old man told RFE/RL.

"This is a terrible thing that's happening in Belarus. We have reached the limit. Even under [Soviet leader Leonid] Brezhnev, we lived a hundred times better," he said.

RFE/RL correspondents reported that three men in civilian clothes attempted to detain popular video-blogger Maksim Povich, but gave up and ran away when demonstrators shouted at them to leave Povich alone.



Similar rallies are scheduled for March 12 in three more cities -- Babruysk, Vorsha, and Rahachou. Activists in the capital, Minsk, told RFE/RL that city authorities had given them permission to stage a demonstration as well.

Although Lukashenka announced a suspension of the tax, he also instructed his interior minister to ensure that "perfect order" is established in the country, the BelaPAN news agency reported.

Lukashenka, who the United States has dubbed "Europe's last dictator," has ruled Belarus for more than two decades, quashing political opposition, civil society groups, independent media, and other forms of dissent.


Bosnian prosecutors said on March 10 that they are investigating an attorney who made a failed bid before the UN top court to reverse a 2007 ruling that cleared Serbia of genocide.

The International Court of Justice on March 9 rejected a request filed by lawyer Sakib Softic to reverse the court's 2007 exoneration of Serbia of direct responsibility for "ethnic cleansing" by Bosnian Serb forces it armed during the war.

The court said it could not act on the request because it was not made by a legitimate agent acting on behalf of Bosnia's tripartite presidency.

The court said that in May 2016, it had informed Softic, who was Bosnia's former lawyer before the court, that he was no longer authorized to represent Bosnia's presidency.

The court's rejection of the case prompted Bosnia's prosecutor to "open a case and investigate allegations" about Softic's role in bringing the appeal before the court, the prosecutors' spokesman Boris Grubesic told the Reuters news agency.

Bakir Izetbegovic, the Bosniak presidency's Muslim member, had pushed for an appeal of the 2007 ruling while his Serb and Croat counterparts did not support it.

Izetbegovic repeatedly said that Softic was a legitimate agent to bring the case before the court, based on the presidency's approval of him as counsel in 2002.

But his Serb counterpart and current presidency chairman Mladen Ivanic disputed the lawyer's legitimacy and sent letters to the court saying that the appeal did not reflect a consensus among the three presidency members.

The court case has caused political turmoil in Bosnia and roiled relations with neighboring Serbia.

Bosnian Serb lawmakers abstained from voting in the national parliament when the case was appealed before the UN in the past week, and after the court rejected the appeal, many lawmakers called for Izetbegovic's resignation.

The original court ruling in 2007 concluded that genocide had occurred only at Srebrenica, where about 8,000 Muslims were slaughtered by nationalist Serb forces, and not in other parts of Bosnia.

However, it found that Serbia was indirectly responsible because it failed to prevent the genocide.

With reporting by Reuters, BH-index.com, and the Independent Balkan News Agency


DECATUR  Millikin University is teaming up with several community partners to bring in J.D. Vance, author of the bestseller Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, as the centerpiece of a Civic Discourse Week March 31 to April 6.

The book is described as an honest look at the dysfunction afflicting many white working-class Americans.

Raphaella Prange, Millikin's dean of student development, said the idea grew out of a conversation she had about the book last fall with people she knows from Decatur public schools, the Decatur Public Library and the Community Foundation of Macon County.

Other sponsors include Friends of the Decatur Public Library, Richland Community College, Caring Black Men and Millikin organizations including the Student Senate, Human Service Connection, Provost's Office and Institute for Science Entrepreneurship.

In the midst of an increasing array of perspectives, Prange said, civic discourse helps demonstrate our shared responsibility to one another, our commitment to our systems and our willingness to choose to elevate the conversation.

Here is the lineup:

March 31: Community Engagement Fair to showcase nonprofits, their services and volunteer needs, noon to 5 p.m., Decatur Public Library, 130 N. Franklin St.

April 2: Parent Leadership Movement, discussion about making parents equal partners in their children's education, 6 p.m., Decatur Area Arts Council, 125 N Water St. Food will be provided.

April 3: J.D. Vance, best-selling author of Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, will speak at 7 p.m., Kirkland Fine Arts Center.

April 4: Circuit Court Judge Thomas Little will discuss Macon County's Hybrid Court at 6 p.m. Decatur Public Library.

April 5: Vance's book, Hillbilly Elegy, will be discussed by Books Between Bites from noon to 1 p.m. at the Decatur Public Library and by Millikin Freedom Readers from 7 to 8 p.m. in Shilling Hall, Room 317.

April 6: Ninth annual Conversation on Race, 6 p.m., MacArthur High School, 1499 W. Grand Ave.
On March 12, voters in Georgia's breakaway Republic of Abkhazia go to the polls to elect a new parliament. The election campaign has been overshadowed by an acrimonious dispute over the participation of former de facto president, Aleksandr Ankvab, who was forced to resign in early summer of 2014 under pressure from the then opposition Coordinating Council.

Supporters of Raul Khajimba, who masterminded that campaign to oust Ankvab and was subsequently elected as his successor, argue that Ankvab's candidacy risks destabilizing the region and jeopardizing the agreement reached in December between Khajimba and the Bloc of Opposition Forces that for two years had lobbied for his forced resignation.

One of the various organizations representing veterans of the 1992-1993 war that ended with the region's de facto separation from Georgia even asked Prosecutor-General Georgy Arshba to launch a probe into Ankvab's alleged handover, in his capacity as Interior Minister, of weaponry to Georgian forces during the early days of that conflict, the news portal Caucasian Knot reported.

The Bloc of Opposition Forces, which endorsed Ankvab's candidacy, responded by stressing that, like any other citizen, Ankvab has the constitutional right to seek election.

Ankvab outlined his rationale for doing so in a televised address on February 28. He said he believes the legislature is invested with sufficient powers to exert a positive influence on the "urgent problems" that hinder the region's development, and that the main objectives of both the parliament and the government are to strengthen state sovereignty (Abkhazia is recognized as an independent state only by the Russian Federation and a handful of other countries) and to effect tangible economic and social development.

Economic Malaise

The Black Sea region has a population of slightly under 250,000, and is struggling with economic stagnation and infrastructure decay compounded by a lack of investment, high unemployment, rising crime, and drug addiction.

Ankvab's professed confidence in the potential influence of the Abkhaz parliament is open to question, however. Abkhazia uses a presidential political system, in which many, if not all, key decisions, including how to spend the colossal financial subsidies from Russia that keep its economy afloat, are made by a small group of officials close to the president. That group in effect functions as an alternative cabinet, according to former Prime Minister Beslan Butba, who stepped down in March 2015 because its members routinely ignored him.

The parliament's duties are circumscribed: it adopts laws; approves the annual budget; and endorses the candidates proposed by the president for the post of prosecutor-general and National Bank chairman. It is empowered to vote no confidence in individual ministers, but not in the entire cabinet, but has no say in selecting and approving the government.

Khajimba called last year for a redistribution of powers that would strengthen the legislature, specifically by granting it input into the formation of the government. He also proposed amending election legislation to raise to 45 the number of lawmakers and switch from a majoritarian to a mixed majoritarian-proportional system. But those proposals remain on paper.

The formal role of political parties in Abkhazia is therefore limited: indeed, parliament speaker Valery Bganba has gone so far as to affirm that Abkhazia does not yet have a genuine party system, according to Apsny.ru. Consequently, political parties are constrained to act outside parliament to tap into public dissatisfaction with, and bring pressure to bear on, leaders whose policies they consider ineffective or counterproductive, or both, as the Coordinating Council did in 2014 and the Bloc of Opposition Forces in 2016.

Reported Death Threats

In light of those limitations, only four of the eight political parties qualified to do so -- Khajimba's Forum of National Unity of Abkhazia and the opposition parties Aynar, Amtsakhara (Keep the Home Fires Burning), and the National Front for Justice and Development -- have nominated parliamentary candidates.

The region's legislature comprises 35 deputies elected in single-mandate constituencies. The Central Election Commission has registered a total of 142 candidates, just 25 of them representing the four parties listed above. The remaining 117 were proposed by so-called initiative groups. In addition to Ankvab, they include former State Security Service Chairman Aslan Bzhania, who placed a close second to Khajimba in the August 2014 ballot to elect Ankvab's successor; former Prime Minister Sergei Shamba, currently chairman of the United Abkhazia party; former Interior Minister Raul Lolua; and former Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Chirikba.

Four candidates who registered have since withdrawn. Twenty-seven members of the outgoing parliament are seeking reelection, according to the news portal Apsny.ru.



Given the peripheral role played by the parliament in Abkhaz political life, it is not immediately clear why the Abkhaz leadership is seemingly so concerned by Ankvab's election bid, even though it is anticipated he will defeat his two rivals.

Russian analyst Sergei Markedonov raised the possibility -- which he himself characterized as purely hypothetical -- that, given the strong opposition representation in the new legislature, Ankvab could be elected its deputy speaker, or even speaker.

The fact that there have reportedly been threats to Ankvab's life suggests that this is a scenario some supporters of the present leadership are intent on averting at all cost.

The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect those of RFE/RL
Thousands of supporters of Georgia's Rustavi 2 TV have gathered in central Tbilisi to celebrate a recent ruling in favor of the broadcaster by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

The Strasbourg-based court on March 7 indefinitely prolonged its suspension of a Georgian Supreme Court decision to place Rustavi 2 under the control of a close supporter of the ruling Georgian Dream party.

Critics allege that the Georgian court's ruling is an attempt to stifle the only strong Georgian media organization that airs critical views of the government.

Rustavi 2 Director-General Nika Gvaramia said on March 11 that there is "reason to celebrate for now, but we have the feeling we have just won a battle -- not the whole war.

An attorney for Rustavi 2, Tamata Muradashvili, says the ECHR's prolonged "interim measure" allows her legal team to prepare a case they will file at the European court to challenge the Georgian court decision.

With reporting by AP


Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti says he is in constant contact with international security authorities to ensure stability in Kosovo as more ethnic Serb police officers in the north of country resigned.



Kurti said on November 6 after a rally by ethnic Serbs in the streets of North Mitrovica that the security situation in Kosovo was threatened by various criminalized individuals and groups, but said that during his time in office, we have made great progress in the fight against crime and corruption."



He added that the rule of law goes hand in hand with peace and security and cannot be threatened, adding that authorities do not distinguish criminals on the basis of ethnicity, but only on the basis of their criminal acts."



When asked about the decision on November 5 by the Serbian List party to leave Kosovo's institutions, Kurti repeated his call that Kosovo Serbs refrain from doing so.



"I once again I invite all Serb citizens of our country to not abandon institutions, not to resign, not to leave their jobs, because there would be less service for the people," he said.



Kurti has blamed Belgrade for seeking to destabilize Kosovo by supporting the ethnic Serbs in their boycott of state institutions.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement on November 5 that the withdrawal of Kosovo Serbs from the country's institutions "is not a solution to the current disputes" and it has the potential to further escalate tensions.



A statement from the U.S. Embassy in Kosovo released to RFE/RL's Balkan Service late on November 6 said the United States agreed with the European Union that the recent developments around relations between Kosovo and Serbia "are of great concern and put important progress achieved in the EU-facilitated Dialogue at risk."



"The Kosovan Serbs' withdrawal from Kosovan institutions is not a solution to the current disputes and has the potential to further escalate the tensions on the ground," the statement added. "All involved must take steps to reduce tensions and ensure peace and stability on the ground."



The Serb officers who resigned on November 6 submitted written resignations to the police station in North Mitrovica. One of the policemen told RFE/RL that the officers only submitted their resignations in writing but had not yet turned in their uniforms and weapons. However, he said this will follow in the coming days.



Numerous media outlets reported that the police officers took off their uniforms as part of the wider Serb movement to withdraw from institutions in Kosovo touched off by a move to implement a mandate on the conversion of vehicle license plates.



A statement from the Kosovar police force said it was aware that Serb police officers had abandoned their posts and that some have handed over police equipment.



The rally by ethnic Serbs in North Mitrovica on November 6 came a day after Serbs there said they would quit their posts in state institutions to protest against the use of license plates issued by Pristina.

Following a meeting of Serb political representatives in the north of Kosovo on November 5, the minister of communities and returns, Goran Rakic, said he was resigning from his post in the Pristina government.



He told reporters that fellow representatives of the Serb minority in the north had also quit their jobs in municipal administrations, the courts, police, and the parliament and government in Pristina.



Rakic said they would not consider returning unless Pristina abolishes the order for them to switch their old car license plates, which date to the 1990s when Kosovo was a part of Serbia, to Kosovo state plates.



Addressing the rally on November 6, Rakic accused Kosovo government authorities of not respecting international law and agreements negotiated in Brussels.



Rakic has called on the protesters "not to fall for provocations and to continue the fight with peaceful and democratic means."



The license-plate measure took effect on November 1, and Kosovo authorities said enforcement would be gradual.

The U.S. Embassy statement reiterated Washington's position that the Kosovar authorities should extend the process of converting vehicle license plates and suspend any punitive actions until the license plates issue can be resolved through dialogue.

Many ethnic Serbs in Kosovo refuse to recognize the countrys independence from Serbia, which it declared in 2008.



The European Union has told Kosovo and Serbia that they must normalize ties if they want to advance toward membership in the 27-nation bloc.

With reporting by dpa, AP, and AFP
Kosovo's president said he will resign and force a parliamentary election if lawmakers do not approve his proposal to create a national army over the objections of Kosovo's Western allies and minority ethnic Serbs.

"If [members of parliament] will not vote in favor, I will resign as president that second," President Hashim Thaci, whose former political party is the biggest in parliament, told state television channel RTK in an evening interview on March 10.

"A legislature that will not vote for the army of its own country should go home," he said, adding that he will overcome objections from NATO allies by coordinating the plan "100 percent" with them.

The plan to replace Kosovo's lightly armed security forces with a regular army has drawn strong objections from the country's ethnic Serb minority, whose delegates in parliament have vowed to block it, and as well as the United States and NATO.

Serbian lawmakers have insisted that such a change would require amending the country's constitution.

But Thaci claims as supreme commander of the Kosovo Security Forces he has legal authority to make the change. And the parliament earlier this week moved to bypass the Serbian opposition by preparing amendments to an existing law that would allow the existing security forces to buy heavy weapons and recruit more soldiers, in effect transforming it into an army.

The row over the army has left Kosovo at odds with its Western backers over a major issue for the first time, and it remains unclear what prompted Thaci to shift policy.

When he first offered the plan earlier this week, it drew immediate criticism from NATO, which still has some 4,500 troops in the country in a peacekeeping mission begun nearly two decades after the regional war.

NATO said it would prefer that Kosovo change its constitution to create a regular army, a move that would require the support of the 120-seat parliament's 11 Serb deputies. Those Serb lawmakers, however, backed by Belgrade, have said they will never accept his plan to double the nation's forces to 5,000 active soldiers and 3,000 reservists.

NATO and the United States said they would re-evaluate the assistance they have long provided to the existing security forces if Thaci's plan is approved.

"The U.S. believes Kosovo's security depends on the quality of its partnerships. We don't want to see Kosovo out of step with key partners," The U.S. ambassador to Kosovo, Greg Delawie, tweeted late on March 10.

While NATO has said it has no plans to leave Kosovo, the dispute with longtime allies has alarmed some.

"The United States is very important for Kosovo and its people," Arben Gashi, a lawmaker from Prime Minister Isa Mustafa's Democratic League of Kosovo party said on March 10. "As for Hashim Thaci, he can easily be replaced."

With reporting by AP, Reuters, RTK, and Top-channel.tv


Turning Point

U.S. Army Major Martin Manhoff had been in Moscow for more than a year when on March 5, 1953, after several days of ominous reports in the Communist Party mouthpiece Pravda, it was announced that Josef Stalin had died.

There is no written record in Manhoff's files of his reaction to the Soviet dictator's death. What the assistant army attache did leave to history, however, was the only known independent footage of Stalin's funeral procession.

Manhoff's films, shot in full color, show hundreds of soldiers dressed in long trench coats forming a lengthy cordon for Stalin's body to be brought to Red Square. A procession of dozens of dignitaries  members of the Politburo and other high officials  is seen carrying massive funeral wreaths.
Belarusian Alyaksandr Usovsky* describes himself as a historian and publicist. His works include titles such as Who Set Hitler Against The U.S.S.R?, Churchill's Cannon Fodder, and God Save Stalin! Tsar Of The U.S.S.R. Josef The Great.

And according to a cache of documents hacked from Usovsky's e-mail and social-media accounts, which were subsequently published by the Ukrainian website InformNapalm at the end of February, he is also "a Russian curator" of a loose network of nationalists, radicals, and neofascists across Eastern Europe.

Among other projects, he has specialized in trying to spoil relations between Poland and Ukraine.

In written correspondence with RFE/RL, Usovsky confirmed the authenticity of the hacked documents.

"I have specific political views and I act in accordance with them," Usovsky wrote. "As a private person, I sometimes help my comrades who have similar political convictions -- but always in strict accordance with Russian, Belarusian, and Eastern European laws. If you read the documents that the Ukrainian hackers took from my accounts carefully, you will see that my projects are profoundly and exclusively lawful and legal. These are normal political operations. By definition, they are not public, but that doesn't make them a conspiracy of enemies of Ukraine."

"I don't consider myself an enemy of Ukraine," he added. "I am an enemy of all the lying, base, dishonest bastards who have turned Ukrainians into idiots. And I will fight against those bastards to the end, no matter what they think about it."

Russia has been locked in a conflict with Ukraine since pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych fled Kyiv amid unrest in February 2014. Shortly thereafter, Moscow occupied and annexed the Ukrainian region of Crimea and allegedly began providing active military and political support to separatist movements in eastern Ukraine. Moscow also launched an aggressive informational campaign aimed at labeling new Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and his government a "fascist junta."

Poland has been one of Ukraine's most vocal and active supporters within the European Union, pushing hard for the bloc to impose sanctions against Russia for its interference in Ukraine and generally keeping the perceived threat from Moscow on the bloc's agenda.

Informnapalm describes itself as a group of volunteer cyberwarriors that monitors open-source information and uses hacking tactics to "show the true face of the Kremlin's fascism and activities of its followers."

Extensive Contacts

The hacked documents show Usovsky's extensive contacts with the right-wing Kukiz'15 political movement, which has the third-largest faction in Poland's legislature, the Sejm; the rightist KORWiN party; and the nationalist Great Poland Camp (Oboz Wielkiej Polski, or OWP).

He also maintains contact with Polish politician Mateusz Piskorski, founder of the pro-Russian Change (Zmiana) party. Piskorski made headlines in 2015 when he invited representatives of the Russia-backed separatist movements in eastern Ukraine to address the Change founding congress.

Piskorski is a founder of the pro-Kremlin European Center of Geopolitical Analysis (ECGA), which among other things organized a group of "international observers" to monitor the illegal March 2014 "referendum" in Crimea that has been repeatedly cited by Moscow as justification for its annexation of the Black Sea peninsula. Poland's security service believes Change is a Moscow-inspired project.

Pisorski has long-standing ties to Russian thinker Aleksandr Dugin, a right-wing organizer who advocates a Russian-dominated cultural space extending from Central Europe to the Far East and has spent decades cultivating ties with like-minded activists across the region.



According to e-mails from the fall of 2014, Usovsky funneled 100,000 euros ($106,000) to activists from Great Poland Camp and other groups to organize rallies in Eastern Europe to denounce the Ukrainian government and support the Russia-backed separatists. One of the activists involved in that project reported back to Usovsky that "the bulk of the funds were spent on organizing rallies against [Ukrainian President Petro] Poroshenko and the Ukrainian Army, for Novorossia and the Russian World; some of the money also went to fight against the monuments to the UPA [the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, a paramilitary group that fought against both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union during World War II] troops in Poland."

On the Russian side, Usovsky was reporting on his activities and appealing for funding from Ukrainian oligarch Konstantin Malofeyev -- known for his financial support for pro-Russian and pro-Orthodox projects in Ukraine, the Balkans, and elsewhere -- and Russian State Duma Deputy Konstantin Zatulin.

Russian Imperialist

Zatulin is a self-proclaimed Russian imperialist who has supported pro-Russian movements in many countries of the former Soviet Union and the former Soviet bloc. He is the director of the Institute of the Diaspora and Integration at the Russian Academy of Science's Institute of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and has been declared persona non grata in both Azerbaijan and Ukraine.

Zatulin has a long record of involvement with Russia-backed breakaway movements in conflict zones in the former Soviet Union, including the Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and the Moldovan region of Transdniester.

In his exchange with RFE/RL, Usovsky said only that his activities are funded by "private donations." He claimed he had received no money from Zatulin's institute but confirmed that he regularly sent project ideas there for "expert" analysis. Among the projects analyzed were ones titled Ukraine Is Not The European Union, Montenegro Vs. Poland, and Moldova Is Not Romania, as well as a project to campaign for an anti-NATO referendum in Slovakia.

RFE/RL contacted all the Polish organizations that figured in the Usovsky e-mails and only KORWiN responded, saying in one word that the documents were "lies," despite Usovsky's acknowledgement that they are from his accounts.

InformNapalm's report asserts that Usovsky's contacts with Malofeyev seem to have dried up in recent months, perhaps because the oligarch has turned his attention to pro-Orthodox and pro-Russian projects in Montenegro and other Balkans countries.

Russia has recently stepped up its efforts to prevent Montenegro from completing its bid to join NATO. The government in Montenegro has accused Russia of backing a foiled October 2016 coup plot, saying it was orchestrated by "Russian nationalist structures" backed by "the Russian state."

Intriguing Exchange

In one intriguing exchange, an assistant to Malofeyev contacted Usovsky in October 2014 with a request that Usovsky insert into the Polish media sphere a paparazzi-style photograph of Malofeyev meeting in Bosnia-Herzegovina with Milorad Dodik, the head of the ethnic-Serb component of the Bosnian federation, together with a text that vaguely hinted that Russia was ready to carry out a Crimea-style operation in Bosnia if Dodik failed to be reelected. Usovsky complied with the request, but the purpose of this controlled leak remains a mystery.

Usovsky has also registered an organization called the Eastern European Cultural Initiative in the Slovak capital, Bratislava, although it is unclear what that organization does.

"We have received information about this group, but not from Slovakia -- only from abroad," said Jaroslav Nad, an analyst with the Slovak Security Policy Institute in Bratislava. "We can't name any serious activities or events connected with this structure in this country. Some speculate that since it is relatively easy to register such nongovernmental organizations in Slovakia, it was done here but with the intention of carrying out activities in other countries."

Jaroslaw Guzy, a political analyst and politician, said it is difficult, given the history of Poland's relations with Russia, for "openly pro-Russian" groups to get a foothold there.

"But there are groups that are using openly anti-Western slogans, who play on resentment toward the West which also has deep historical roots," Guzy said.

They also act in national politics using slogans of "political realism," Guzy added.

"Of course, Russia is constantly trying to boost its influence with all sorts of political forces [in Poland]," Guzy said. "Paradoxically, it has the biggest effect with radical nationalists. Nationalists often turn out to be pro-Russia, but indirectly -- they promote anti-Western slogans and keep Russia in the background. Polish nationalists also exploit anti-Ukrainian sentiments, which have their own historical roots connected with bloodshed during World War II. They use these emotions to build something that is tactically in line with the goals of Russian policies."

'A Gift To The Kremlin'

In recent months, there has been a wave of desecrations of monuments and cemeteries in Ukraine that Polish and Ukrainian officials suspect is part of a Russia-backed effort to sow enmity between the two countries.

"Polish officials support us all the time in crucial areas," Vasyl Zvarych, an official at the Ukrainian Embassy in Warsaw, told the website Codastory. "So Russia is trying to stir up anger and make us blame each other."



"Conflict between Poland and Ukraine is a gift [to] the Kremlin," Olgierd Syczewski of the Warsaw branch of the Center for European Policy Analysis was quoted as saying in the same story. "And Russia heats it up, and mainstream media spread it without realizing they are helping Moscow."



Slovak security analyst Nad told RFE/RL he doesn't believe the number of pro-Kremlin activists in the region has increased.

"However, in recent years these people have become more active and are expressing increasingly radical views and are getting better at using social media and 'alternative' mass media," Nad said.

This activity in Eastern and Central Europe mirrors accusations of Russian efforts to influence political processes in Western European democracies by supporting radical right- and left-wing groups through financial backing, such as a widely reported loan to Marine Le Pen's right-wing National Front party in France, and social-media disinformation campaigns such as the notorious "Lisa case" in Germany.



Speaking in February to U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in Bonn, Germany, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, "You should know we do not interfere in the domestic matters of other countries."

*CORRECTION: This article has been amended from its original English-language version to correct the name of the Belarusian "curator" and publicist to Alyaksandr Usovsky. The error arose during adaptation of this article from its original Russian.

RFE/RL senior correspondent Robert Coalson contributed to this report


Russia's TASS news agency announced on March 10 that it has signed a cooperation agreement with the Turkish news agency Anadolu.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during Erdogan's visit to Moscow on March 10, TASS said.

The agreement provides for exchanges of information and photos, and will make it possible for the two news agencies to expand cooperation, it said.

Anadolu, Turkey's biggest news agency, was founded in 1920 under Turkey's first President Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

TASS was formed in 1925 as the Soviet Union's news agency with exclusive rights to gather and distribute news both inside and outside the country. It continues to be owned and operated by the Russian government today.

Based on reporting by TASS


Dutch riot police in Rotterdam moved in on horseback to break up a gathering of hundreds of supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan near the Turkish consulate.

AFP correspondents on March 12 reported that mounted Dutch police, some backed by water cannon, began to forcefully disperse the protesters after several hours of peaceful but nervous demonstrations around the consulate.

The early morning charge capped a day of escalating tensions between Ankara and the Netherlands after Dutch authorities prevented two Turkish government ministers from attending rallies in support of a referendum planned next month that would give Erdogan increased presidential powers.

In Ankara, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on March 12 that Turkey will retaliate in the "harshest ways."

"This situation has been protested in the strongest manner by our side, and it has been conveyed to Dutch authorities that there will be retaliation in the harshest ways ... We will respond in kind to this unacceptable behavior," Yildirim said in a statement.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said he was forced to prevent the two Turkish ministers from campaigning in the Netherlands because Ankara had threatened sanctions against his government.

"We can never do business under this kind of blackmail," Rutte said on March 12.

Officials in the Netherlands, along with several other major European cities, have banned rallies by senior Turkish politicians to promote the referendum among members of Turkey's European diaspora.

Late on March 11, authorities in Rotterdam blocked Turkish Family Affairs Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya from reaching the consulate to speak before the pro-Turkey demonstrators.

The mayor or Rotterdam said the minister was being escorted back to Germany, from where she had arrived by car.

Kaya said early March 12 on Twitter that she was being taken to the town of Nijmegen, near the Germany border.

"The whole world must take action against this fascist practice! Such a treatment against a woman minister cannot be accepted," she wrote.

Hours earlier, the Dutch government barred the aircraft of Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu from landing, saying it had withdrawn permission because of "risks to public order and security" caused by Cavusoglu's proposed visit to Rotterdam.

Erdogan Attacks 'Nazi Remants,' 'Fascists'

Erdogan reacted angrily to the blocking of the foreign minister's plane, threatening to respond in kind against Dutch diplomats and describing the Dutch as "Nazi remnants" and "fascists."

It is the second time in a week that Erdogan has used the word "Nazi" in criticism about one of Turkey's NATO allies, having accused Germany on March 5 of "Nazi practices" for withdrawing authorizations for Turkish campaign rallies.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told reporters on March 11 that Erdogan had made "a crazy remark" that was "way out of line."

Rutte said he understood that Turkish officials are angry, and that the Dutch government "will do everything to keep the relations with Turkey as good as possible, as strong as possible."

"But, of course, today was not a good day in the Turkish-Dutch relations," Rutte said.

By late evening on March 11, officials from both Turkey and the Netherlands were being blocked from entering their own diplomatic buildings in each other's countries.

Later on March 11, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said it does not want the Dutch ambassador to return to Ankara from his current leave "for some time."

Ministry officials said the Dutch Embassy and consulate in Ankara were closed off "due to security reasons" -- along with the Ankara residences of the Dutch ambassador, charge daffaires, and consul general.

In a statement, the ministry said: "It has been explained to our counterparts that this grave decision taken against Turkey and the Dutch Turkish community will cause serious problems diplomatically, politically, economically, and in other areas."

Turkish Minister Plans To Address March 12 Paris Rally

Cavusoglu's plane arrived late on March 11 in Paris, where he plans to speak at a March 12 rally.

Through the rallies, Turkish politicians want to attract the votes of the Turkish community in Europe ahead of the April 16 vote on whether to boost Erdogan's powers.

Relations between Turkey and the European Union have deteriorated in recent months, with Erdogan angry at criticism from EU members for waging a mass crackdown on opponents since he saw off a coup attempt last July.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, AP, and dpa
DECATUR  As Republican leaders continue to move toward repealing the Affordable Care Act and replacing it with the new American Health Care Act, local health care professionals await the fallout.

The new law passed through the House Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means committees this week. Republican leaders are aiming for passage by the full House in the next couple of weeks, and from there the legislation would go to the Senate.

Crossing Healthcare director Tanya Andricks said she knows Republicans are trying to push the new law through as fast as they can but hopes lawmakers take the time to consider the nonpartisan Central Budget Offices (CBO) report before voting.

The CBO hasnt put a price tag to this yet, Andricks said. My concern is that the house will rush to vote with no price tag. Im hoping they at least wait until the CBO weighs in.

Andricks said shes looked through the House Republicans proposed bill and there are items that concern her. While it would increase funding to Federally Qualified Health Centers like Crossing, it would come at the expense of Planned Parenthood.

The bill would prohibit for a year any funding to Planned Parenthood, a major provider of women's health services, restrict abortion access in covered plans on the health exchange and scale back Medicaid services used by many low-income women, among other changes.

Planned Parenthood is the largest single provider of reproductive health services, including abortion, in the U.S. In 2016, Planned Parenthood reported seeing 2.47 million patients. In 2014, Planned Parenthood provided 324,000 abortions, almost half the U.S. abortions.

In Illinois, 60,000 patients made 110,000 office visits in 2015. Last year at the Planned Parenthood Decatur office, there were 2,262 patients and 4,823 office visits.

Planned Parenthood in Decatur does not perform surgical abortions, but it does offer the abortion pill (medication abortion), pre- and post-abortion patient education, post-abortion follow-up exams and referrals for other abortion services, as needed.

Julie Lynn, manager of external affairs at Planned Parenthood Illinois, said currently all 16 of its locations are open and providing services. She said "defunding" is a misnomer: "There is no blank check that Planned Parenthood gets from the federal government," she said. "It's not a line item in the federal budget."

Planned Parenthood is reimbursed from the federal government through its patients who use Medicaid. And because Medicaid already can't be used for abortions, the only services that would be blocked are health care services.

For some people, Planned Parenthood is their only health provider, and it will be devastating if this happens and people couldnt go where they wanted to for health care, Lynn said. A lot of people simply wont be able to get that care.

There will be a place those in Decatur can go  Crossing  though Crossing wont perform abortions, and it remains to be seen if it will be able to handle the patient load caused if Planned Parenthood should close.

Under the Hyde amendment, federal funding isnt available to provide abortions. Planned Parenthood doesnt use the federal funding it currently receives under Title X to perform abortions, but the new bill proposes a one-year freeze on funding to any medical facility providing abortions.

Federally Qualified Health Centers such as Crossing dont provide abortion, which is why, Andricks said, the Republicans want to shift the funding the federal government gives to Planned Parenthood to FQHCs.

Though Crossing already offers some of the services Planned Parenthood provides, matching everything wouldnt be easy. In addition to abortion services and referrals, Planned Parenthood offers a wide variety of birth control methods, HIV and other sexually transmitted disease testing, mens, womens and transgender reproductive health services, cervical cancer screening, breast exams, colonoscopies, pregnancy tests and rape crisis counseling.

There are a lot of people who rely on Planned Parenthood  its a place they know they can go and that they trust, Lynn said. It would be unfortunate if that option was taken away from. If that meant someone didnt receive a cancer screening and they didnt find out they had cervical cancer until much later, that would be terrible.

Andricks said Crossing would do its best to pick up the slack.

If this happens, well provide services for the people who need them, Andricks said. We already provide family planning and womens health. If Planned Parenthood was defunded, we would do a community needs assessment to see if Macon County had an increased need and we would increase our level of service if necessary.

But, Andricks said, shes yet to hear how the increase of federal dollars to FQHCs would be administered, so she doesnt know how much Crossing will be able to expand its services.

U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine have both said that a prohibition on Planned Parenthood funding shouldn't be part of the bill. Last month, before the legislation was released, Murkowski told the Alaska state legislature that she doesn't believe that taxpayer money should go toward abortions but added, "I will not vote to deny Alaskans access to the health services that Planned Parenthood provides."

Support from Collins and Murkowski will be crucial if the bill moves to the Senate, since there are 52 Republicans and the GOP will need 50 votes to pass it, with Vice President Mike Pence providing the tie-breaking vote.

Republicans are hoping to move quickly to pass it. Republican leaders want to vote on the legislation March 23, despite unified opposition from Democrats, criticism from some conservatives who don't think it goes far enough and several health groups who fear millions of Americans would lose coverage and benefits.

Under the new bill, the ACA Medicaid expansion, which was adopted in 31 states and Washington, D.C., would end on Dec. 31, 2019. At that point, expansion beneficiaries would remain enrolled but would become ineligible if they drop out of the program for 30 days.

If you have insurance through Medicaid expansion, youre grandfathered in; theyre not going to take it away, Andricks said. But the devil is in the details. Some low-income people see changes in their income levels from year to year because their job situation is transient. They might move around and the state loses track of them and they fall off. Then when they come back, theyre no longer eligible.

It happens all the time where the state doesnt have the correct address and someone has to reapply. Normally, we fill out the paperwork and get them back active. But, with the new law, if you go dormant, you might not get it back.

Ultimately, this will reduce the number of people with Medicaid coverage. Then youre going to have people presenting who cant pay, and the rate of uncompensated care increases and thats a big problem for hospitals. In the end, we all pay for health care.

The new bill would also put more responsibility for Medicaid in the individual states hands by capping the amount the federal government funds states for Medicaid.

Andricks said there are states that plan might work well in, but Illinois isnt one of them.

For states that are competent and do a good job, this could be a good thing, Andricks said. At the state level, local needs are better understood and with more freedom with how the money is administered, it can get to the places it needs to go better.

But in Illinois, where we havent had a budget in how long, the level of ownership at the state level scares me, quite honestly. If this goes into effect, we absolutely have to raise the bar in what we expect from our legislators in the state government.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
The United Nations has raised the alarm over the threat of a possible chemical disaster due to the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine.

A UN human rights expert said in a statement issued on March 10 that fighting has been under way in areas where large chemical and industrial facilities are located.

"Battles are now being fought in cities, close to industrial centers, with factories increasingly becoming at risk of being hit: the consequences for anyone living close-by would be severe," said Baskut Tuncak, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances and wastes.

Tuncak said that a storage building containing more than 7,000 kilograms of chlorine gas was hit by shelling on February 24.

No storage container was damaged in the shelling, Tuncak said. But he warned that if one single 900-kilogram container had been broken, it could have killed everyone within a 200-meter radius and could have resulted in severe health damage for those living as far as 2.4 kilometers around the damaged facility.

"In case of extensive damage, people living within 7.4 kilometers downwind of the facility would need to be moved away within 24 hours," the statement said.

The UN statement did not specify the location or the name of the chlorine storage facility.

But in a statement on February 25, the monitoring mission for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) reported having noticed damage caused by shelling at the Donetsk Water Filtration Station, in an area controlled by Russia-backed separatists.

The OSCE statement said a drone in the area had established the damage was caused by 82 mm mortar rounds, but did not say who had fired them.

Most of Ukraines industrial facilities are located in the eastern part of the country, where fighting between government forces and Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 9,750 people since April 2014.
Antiques shop owner Sara Garza is accustomed to coexisting with street festivals, even if the events can sometimes cause inconveniences for her staff and customers.

For years, she operated Sheppard Street Antiques near where the annual Carytown Watermelon Festival is held. Her shop is now located at 1126 N. Boulevard, smack in the middle of todays Shamrock the Block street festival.

But Garza has decided to close her store today despite Saturday being one of her busiest days of the week.

We were just told the crowds were unbelievable and that most people were not there for retail, Garza said Friday.

A sign posted on the door of Sheppard Street Antiques alerted customers to todays closing.

Shamrock the Block is one of the regions biggest St. Patricks Day block parties  or biggest headaches if you ask some businesses along North Boulevard who feel like doing anything but dancing a jig at the thought of thousands of partiers descending on the main thoroughfare people use to get to their places of business.

The festival is held on North Boulevard between Leigh and Broad streets, and that section of the Boulevard and some nearby streets will be closed from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. today.

Not everyone has gripes with the festival, which can mean exposure for the up-and-coming Scotts Addition neighborhood  where construction projects are underway that will bring more residents and businesses to the area.

But business owners such as Steve Papoulakos, co-owner of Vogue Flowers & Gifts at 1114 N. Boulevard, and Howard Coplan, owner of Discount Medical at 1220 N. Boulevard, want to know why they have to suffer the inconvenience.

It shuts us down, Papoulakos said of the street festival.

My concern is I will get two tractor-trailers with flowers on Saturday. They usually come down the back alley to unload in our warehouse.

Sometimes the side streets are so crowded with parked cars that the trucks cant make turns around corners, he said.

This has been a big issue. Last year, they had to wait until someone had moved their cars. Then they had to take the forklift and unload the truck two blocks down and transport the products to our warehouse, Papoulakos said.

He said the deliveries cannot be made on another day or to another location.

The truck has to arrive Saturday afternoon. We deliver throughout the state of Virginia. They come Saturday afternoon. We pack everything on Sunday for delivery Monday morning, said Papoulakos, whose business provides floral products to retailers, including other florist shops and grocery stores.

Howard Coplan, owner of Discount Medical, also was not feeling the love for the festival. His business has been on the Boulevard for years.

Saturday is a big day for his store, Coplan said. Many of his customers travel 30 or more miles to get to the store because the prices are competitive. He picked the location for his business because it is close to an interstate ramp.

How can the city in their right mind give somebody a permit to block a major artery in the city? Coplan said.

Shamrock the Block is presented by Three One One LLC, which also handles the Carytown Watermelon Festival in August and the Scotts Addition Pumpkin Festival in October.

Shamrock the Block was held in Shockoe Bottom until 2014, when the festival was moved to the Boulevard after complaints about the large crowds and numbers of inebriated attendees.

Mike Cline, president of the Scotts Addition Boulevard Association, said representatives of Three One One have been to their meetings.

We have a membership meeting every other month of the Scotts Addition Boulevard Association, and anyone that wants to do an event here we have them bring up the event in the meeting, said Cline, who is a business development executive for Cort, a home and office furniture rental business at 1207 N. Boulevard.

Papoulakos and Coplan both want to know why the event cant be held at The Diamond or at the Bon Secours Washington Redskins Training Facility so that a main stretch of the Boulevard would not have to close.
After retiring from her environmental law career, Mary Jo Sheeley spent much of her newfound free time volunteering for the Hillary Clinton campaign. Upset by President Donald Trumps victory and shaken by the feeling that the things she believes in could no longer be taken for granted, she vowed to stay active.

She marched with hundreds of thousands of other women in D.C., then got together with small groups of other activists to talk about what to do next.

Its so clear what we need to do, Sheeley said. We need to look at what is going on locally. And we need to change the balance of power in the General Assembly.

Instead of making calls and knocking on doors for someone else, Sheeley, 61, is running for office herself, part of an unprecedented rush of candidates for the Virginia House of Delegates this year fueled largely by opposition to Trump.

Republicans hold a dominant 66-34 majority in the House, but Democrats hope the swell of anti-Trump activism in Virginia, the only Southern state Trump did not win, could lead to a 2017 wave in down-ticket House races as Virginians elect a governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general.

As of late last week, Democrats said they had candidates running in 43 of the 66 House districts that Republicans currently represent, more than double the 21 GOP districts Democrats contested in 2015. So far, Republicans have five challengers among the 34 Democratic-held districts.

Hoping to channel the energy of womens marches and Indivisible groups into an anti-Trump wave, Democrats have challengers in all 17 GOP-held districts that went for Clinton.

I have not seen this before, said Del. Charniele L. Herring, an Alexandria Democrat and chairwoman of the House Democratic Caucus, of the phenomenon she described as a huge organic surge.

Sheeley, a former environmental lawyer for the state who retired from Dominion Energy, is hoping to go up against Del. G. Manoli Loupassi, a Richmond Republican whose 68th District is among the 17 that favored Clinton. First, Sheeley has to get past two other Democrats, Ben Pearson-Nelson and Dawn Adams, who want the same chance.

Theyre awakening parts of people that have always existed but they forgot, said Adams, a 52-year-old state health official who said she wants to start bringing some compassion to a political environment marked by extremism.

Roughly a dozen Republican districts have multiple Democratic candidates who will have to earn the right to try to flip a seat by winning their partys nomination. That is a previously rare scenario, occurring in just one or two districts per cycle, according to data compiled by the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project.

With major filing deadlines still weeks away, the candidate lineup remains fluid. Democratic nominating contests this spring and summer will help to reveal whether the huge field of candidates will produce quality, well-funded candidates who can credibly compete.

In for a rude awakening

Republicans do not dispute the swell of activism on the other side, but they doubt it will easily translate to GOP incumbents being dislodged en masse.

They have no clear message or clear reason for taking their frustrations out on Virginia Republicans, said Republican Party of Virginia Chairman John Whitbeck. It seems to be all driven by the national political scene. But I think theyre in for a rude awakening when they see that Virginia voters care about Virginia issues.

Even if the political playing field has shifted in response to Trump, General Assembly incumbents are notoriously difficult to beat. During the 2015 legislative races, 122 lawmakers sought re-election and not a single incumbent from either party lost, a statistic anti-gerrymandering advocates have used to argue that legislative lines are drawn to protect those already in power.

Republicans have pushed back on the notion that their majority rests on a rigged map. House Majority Leader M. Kirkland Cox, a Colonial Heights Republican poised to become the next House speaker in 2018, said Republicans win because they know their districts.

They know their folks, and they serve them well. A lot of times in state-level and local-level elections, thats how people vote, Cox said in an interview last month after being named the successor-in-waiting to retiring House Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford. Despite Coxs status as the soon-to-be top Republican in the House, hes facing a Democratic challenge for the first time in decades from Katie Sponsler, a former park ranger turned stay-at-home mom.

With two redistricting lawsuits pending in federal and state courts that could reshape the House map in Democrats favor, even small gains for the minority could precede bigger political shifts in the years ahead. Against the backdrop of Virginias closely watched governors race, both parties will be looking to energize voters wherever they can.

Democratic targets mostly in N.Va.

Though Democrats have said they are prioritizing the 17 GOP-held districts Clinton won, many observers feel that picking up five to six seats is a more attainable goal.

The prime targets are mostly in the Northern Virginia suburbs, including the 2nd District seat coming open after Del. L. Mark Dudenhefer, R-Stafford, who won narrowly in 2015, announced he will not seek re-election this year. Another seat could open in the nearby 50th District if Del. Jackson H. Miller, R-Manassas, wins his bid for Prince William County clerk of court in an April 18 special election.

Virginia political analyst Bob Holsworth said Democratic challengers will face an uphill climb, but the mobilized opposition to Trump could lift their chances in low-turnout races that normally favor Republicans.

Democrats really believe that Trump will enable them not to have the kind of dropoff that normally occurs in participation in off-years, especially in Northern Virginia, Holsworth said.

Progressive groups working outside the traditional party/caucus structure are trying to focus attention on the House races and assist candidates who would not typically draw much party support.

Activate Virginia, an organization founded by a former Bernie Sanders delegate, has worked on its own to recruit candidates and provide basic guidance, connect Indivisible groups  the lefts emerging version of the grass-roots tea party movement  and offer basic guidance and logistical support.

Josh Stanfield, the 30-year-old Yorktown-based activist behind Activate Virginia, said hes essentially building a counter-caucus.

I saw that there was a real opening for normal people that were not connected, Stanfield said.

Richmond-area contests

Three of the 17 Clinton-friendly Republican House districts lie in the Richmond regions western suburbs.

I think November obviously shocked a lot of people, said Schuyler VanValkenburg, a 34-year-old government teacher at Glen Allen High School running against Del. Jimmie Massie, a Republican businessman who has represented western Henrico Countys 72nd District for nearly a decade.

In Henricos 73rd District, four Democrats are lining up for the chance to take on Del. John M. OBannon III, a Republican neurologist who has faced Democratic opposition just once since taking office in 2001.

I think this movement of people, especially women like me, is not just about resisting. Its about advancing, said Debra H. Rodman, a 44-year-old Randolph-Macon College professor running in OBannons district.

OBannons would-be challengers also include Chelsea Savage, a 46-year-old nurse; Sarah Smith, a 30-year-old state health worker; and Bill Coleman, a 38-year-old IT project manager.

Farther west of Richmond, another Republican seat has opened after Del. Peter F. Farrell, R-Henrico, announced that he will not seek re-election. Farrells 56th District is solidly Republican, but Democrat Lizzie Drucker-Basch is contesting the district for the first time since 2009.

Graven W. Craig, a Louisa County trial attorney and the county Republican chairman, announced for the GOP nomination several hours after Farrell disclosed Friday that he plans to retire.

Two Democrats have filed to challenge Del. Riley E. Ingram, R-Hopewell, in the 62nd District. Businesswoman Sheila Bynum-Coleman, who lost to Ingram in 2015, is seeking a rematch, but she will compete with Tavorise K. Marks, a police captain at Central State Hospital, for the Democratic nomination.

The burst of Democratic interest also may bring complications for some Democratic incumbents.

Alex Mejias, a 38-year-old business strategist at a Richmond web development firm, is mounting a primary challenge against Del. Delores L. McQuinn, a Richmond Democrat who has represented the East End-centered 70th District since 2009. He declined to comment on McQuinns representation of the district, but said the unusually energetic atmosphere of the Trump era is part of what inspired him to run.

I see competition as something that fuels creativity and innovation and is an essential part of our government working well, Mejias said. This campaign is meant to really engage the district.

Though the strength of the Democrat field is difficult to measure early in the cycle, party leaders say they feel good about what they are seeing.

We feel that were on the right track to run a record number of candidates, said Democratic Party of Virginia Chairwoman Susan Swecker.

Whitbeck, the Republican Party chairman, said his party is taking the surge in enthusiasm by hard-core progressives seriously. But Virginia voters, he said, will expect more than a message that he said boils down to We hate Donald Trump.
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At the Governors School, students are charged each year with carrying out a science fair project, and this year Hidden Valley High School junior Christine Flora elected to work in the microbiology field. Her project titled Assessing Rice Brans Protective Efficacy Against Porcine Rotavirus Infection in IPEC-J2 Cells has already won three blue ribbons.

Even more impressive, she was one of two grand winners at the Western Virginia Regional Science and Engineering Fair, earning her a trip to the International Science and Engineering Fair in Los Angeles in may.

Flora is enrolled in the Governors Schools biotechnology elective, and through a Governors School partnership with Virginia Tech Carilion, Flora found an opening with mentor Dr. Lijuan Yuan at Techs Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine. Flora has worked in the Tech lab  40 miles away  two or three times each week for the past six months investigating rice brans potential to be used as a protective agent against rotavirus infection.

Rotavirus is a highly contagious infection that causes diarrhea, said Flora, and complications from rotavirus kill nearly 500,000 children worldwide under the age of five every year. Its a leading cause of death in children in developing countries, and it can decimate farm animals, as well, especially pigs. Rice is an abundant, staple food in many of these countries, and being able to use the grains outer layer  the bran  to treat or prevent rotavirus infections could revolutionize the populations access to better health.

To evaluate rice brans efficacy as a stimulant for the production of mucin, which acts as a barrier, said Flora, a first layer of defense against rotavirus, Floras scientific procedure consisted of dozens of complex steps and trials.

Simply stated, the procedure can be summed up into three major components: (1) determining the optimal concentration of rice bran, which she completed by conducting a Calcein AM cell viability assay to test toxicity; (2) monitoring the viral infection after treatment, which she completed by conducting cell culture immunofluorescence in order to count viral colonies; and (3) observing the ability of rice bran extract to promote mucin production after infection, which she completed by conducting periodic acid-Schiff staining, and collecting, analyzing, and comparing data to measure the mucin.

My results strongly suggest that rice bran extract increases mucin production, said Flora, which protects against rotavirus and decreases the prevalence of infection. The bran component of rice is usually discarded during the milling process, but if we could devise a plan of integration and convince developing countries to leave the bran intact while the rice is being processed for consumption, it could be a game changer for these populations.

Christine Flora is just one of the 264 gifted and talented young scientists who attend the Roanoke Valley Governors School for Science and Technology. To learn more about the Governors School, a half-day regional public STEM school for motivated students in grades nine through 12, please visit the schools website at www.rvgs.k12.va.us or contact the schools director, Mark Levy, or the schools guidance counselor, Kathy Sebolt, at 853-2116.

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Light rain early. Breaks of sun in the afternoon. Thunder possible. High 84F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

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3 things to think about for Kansas mens basketballs opener

The No. 5 Jayhawks are opening their season Monday. Its the start of their run to try to defend their national championship this past season.
Twenty-two San Diego County companies are interested in vying for the chance to build some part of the proposed border wall.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it plans to start awarding contracts by mid-April for a wall, one of President Donald Trumps campaign promises.

Ahead of funds even being authorized, the federal agency began asking for bids on the project this week and more than 600 companies from across the country had indicated their interest as of Friday afternoon.

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Most companies conclude they will only be responsible for a small portion of the massive construction along the 2,000-mile border.

Ricardo Diaz, of Halbert Construction in El Cajon, said his 40-year-old company with 38 employees is much like many across the United States with differing opinions on the policies of the Trump administration and the wall. That wont stop them from bidding on the project.

Somebodys got to build it, said Diaz, a corporate safety officer with Halbert. At the end of the day, were all trying to feed our families. Political affiliations aside, work is work.

Halbert mostly works as a general contractor on federal projects, including the pedestrian bridge at San Ysidro and repairs to the border fence.

The companies have a very quick turnaround with proposals. Formal solicitations must be posted online by Monday and concept papers at the end of the week. Cost estimates will likely need to be in by the end of the month.

The quick response may be a bit too fast for J.T. Wimsatt Contracting Co. said its business development manager, Christina Pack. The concrete company has signed up as an interested business but is not sure yet if it will apply despite a desire to do the work .

Weve just been made aware of the project, Pack said. Its a very quick turnaround. Its going to be hard to get all the work done in time.

The 25-year-old company has roughly 400 employees and has worked on several projects in downtown San Diego, including the Vantage Pointe Apartments.

R.E. Staite Engineering in Barrio Logan, in operation for 78 years, is one of the more enthusiastic companies bidding on the project.

It has done big projects in the past, including cleanup of the ocean after the Exxon Valdez oil spill. It has about 50 employees, but can expand if needed, said Ralph Hicks, vice president of governmental affairs.

Depending on the job, we can either gear up or gear down, he said.

Hicks said his company isnt worried about political blow back for working on the wall.

Those are policy decisions made 3,000 miles away from us and we are focused on the work, he said.

Staites plans involve advanced electronics for tunnel detection, cement with low greenhouse gas emissions and a wall that is aesthetically pleasing with natural surroundings.

The other companies from San Diego County that signed up on a government website to make a possible bid were AC Lopez Construction (San Diego), Single Eagle (Poway), Greenfield Fence (Oceanside), Transtar Pipeline (San Diego), Byrom-Davey (San Diego), Coffman Specialties (San Diego), Construction Testing & Engineering (Escondido), I.E. Pacific (Escondido), James Fletcher Construction (Chula Vista), Hadrian Construction (Carlsbad), Tridpanel (Carlsbad), Herman Construction Group (Escondido), Vscenario (San Diego), 3rdWall Consulting (San Diego), SCST (San Diego), LB Civil Construction (Escondido), Ponciano Construction (Santee), Ebert Composites (Chula Vista) and RQ Construction (Carslbad).

At the end of the day, were all trying to feed our families.  Ricardo Diaz, of Halbert Construction in El Cajon

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phillip.molnar@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1891 Twitter: @phillipmolnar

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The hotel industry is stepping up its campaign against home-sharing giant Airbnb with the release of a study this week documenting what it says is the rapid rise of commercial hosts actively listing multiple rentals on the home-sharing platform.

The study, funded by a foundation arm of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, reports that hosts who rent out two or more whole-home units have become the fastest-growing segment of Airbnbs business in the U.S.

Last year, such rentals accounted for 40 percent of the companys national revenue from whole-home listings, or nearly $2 billion, according to the study, prepared by CBRE Hotels Americas Research.

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In Los Angeles, one of 13 cities specifically studied, the share was even greater  47 percent  with multi-unit hosts generating nearly $163 million in annual revenues.That represents a year-over-year increase of 87 percent. The study examined a two-year period between October 2014 and September 2016.

The rise of commercial operators, as the trade group calls them, is evidence of Airbnb straying from its roots as a home-sharing platform that allows homeowners a way to earn extra income from renting out a spare bedroom, AHLA said.

Once upon a time Airbnb might have simply been a home sharing company, but this analysis shows thats just a fairy tale now, said Katherine Lugar, CEO of the lodging association. This report provides a stark contrast to the picture that Airbnb presents to policymakers and the public and sheds light on why the company has largely refused to take even basic steps to stop illegal hotel operators, because these actors drive the overwhelming  and growing - portion of its revenue.

Lugar said she hopes the industry study will persuade local officials to crack down even more on what she characterizes as illegal hotels and enact regulations to more strictly regulate home-sharing operations.

Airbnb officials quickly dismissed the study, noting that the lodging associations member inns, motels and hotels also list rooms on the home-sharing platform, which means they would be represented in the data collected by CBRE.

This misleading, inaccurate report was bought and paid for by the big hotels and is the latest example of the industrys willingness to say and do anything to protect their record profits, preserve their ability to price gouge consumers and squash their competition, Jasmine Mora, an Airbnb spokeswoman, said Friday.

CBRE included a disclaimer in its study, which relied on data provided by Airdna, a company that tracks Airbnb host listings and revenues.

While CBRE said it believes the data is reliable, it cautions that it has not verified the numbers, saying it is your responsibility to confirm independently its accuracy and completeness.

According to Airbnb, 65 percent of its listings in California are for whole-home rentals. In San Diego, its 67 percent, and nationwide, the figure is 69 percent, but the company was unable to provide data on the share of hosts operating multiple short-term rentals.

Figures the company provided The San Diego Union-Tribune earlier this month showed that the median earnings of Airbnb hosts in California last year were $9,900.

Increasingly, Airbnb has been battling with cities in the U.S. and globally over local efforts to more strictly regulate short-term rentals, which homeowners claim have disrupted peaceful residential neighborhoods and taken long-term housing off the market. Both San Diego and Los Angeles are expected to act this year on new rules governing home-sharing.

Other key findings noted in the hotel industry study:

All 13 cities studied saw an increase in the total number of listings by multi-unit hosts.

The markets with the highest share of total revenue coming from multi-unit hosts were Miami, Oahu and New Orleans.

In almost every market, the percentage of revenue from hosts operating two or more rentals increased from 2015 to 2016. The exceptions were New York and San Francisco, where tougher regulations have been enacted.

Revenue growth for whole-home rentals increased on average 76 percent in the 13 cities.

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A few renters here have put their apartments up for rent on the popular vacation rental website, Airbnb.

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lori.weisberg@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-2251

Twitter: @loriweisberg
Sometimes ladies want to bar-hop across rooftops, or hang in a scene-y spot with cinnamon-flavored whiskey shots. And these are the places the Superdiners suggest for your girls night out (GNO).

Places and activities for Ladies Night really depend on the group dynamic, and what neighborhood youre in. When it comes to my own GNO, I might turn to a Brian Malarkey restaurant. Whether its Searsucker in the Gaslamp (611 Fifth Ave. 619-233-7327 or searsucker.com), Gingham in La Mesa (8384 La Mesa Blvd. 619-797-1922 or ginghameats.com), Burlap near Del Mar (12995 El Camino Real, Suite 21. 858-369-5700 or burlapeats.com) or Herringbone in La Jolla (7837 Herschel Ave. 858-459-0221 or herringboneeats.com). And while the vibe is very different at each location, I cant recall a time me or my girls walked away unhappy. The cocktails are deluxe, the food is good for sharing, and the energy is always on!  Tina Luu, pastry chef, food lecturer at the Art Institute of California San Diego

The communal tables and inviting atmosphere of Little Italys PrepKitchen (1660 India St. 619-398-8383 or wnlhosp.com) makes it ideal for a GNO. Go with a group of your besties or meet new people while youre there!  Susan Russo, food writer, cookbook author (Twitter @Susan_Russo)

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I am lovin meeting my girlfriends at the new Pony Room at the Rancho Valencia Resort (5921 Valencia Circle Rancho Santa Fe. 858-756-1123 or ranchovalencia.com/dining/pony-room). Its fun and festive!  Randee Stratton, real estate broker, avid diner

Any good girls night out typically starts with a fun dinner before the debauchery ensues. Typically I send the women I know to Katsuya by Starck at the Andaz Hotel (600 F St. downtown. 619-814-2000 or sbe.com/katsuya/san-diego) for sushi and martinis, followed by a night out in the Gaslamp Quarter  hitting Searsucker for Champagne or cocktails and wrapping up the night at Bootlegger (804 Market St. East Village. 619-794-2668 or bootleggersd.com) with $5 Fireball cinnamon whiskey shots as the trucks from Fire Department Station Number 4 drive by.  David Salisbury, a law firms director of business development, avid diner

I have been the one guy on girls night out who is sipping something, watching purses and keeping creepy dudes at bay while the ladies are on the dance floor. Altitude Sky Lounge (660 K St. downtown. 619-446-6086 or altitudeskylounge.com) is a good place to start the night. Then over to LoungeSix (Hotel Solamar 616 J St. downtown. 619-531-8744 or jsixsandiego.com), and a couple shots at La Puerta (560 Fourth Ave. Gaslamp Quarter. 619-696-3466 or lapuertasd.com) before shaking it at Whiskey Girl (702 Fifth Ave. Gaslamp. 619-236-1616 or whiskeygirl.com). Then finish the night at Taste & Thirst (715 Fourth Ave. Gaslamp Quarter. 619-955-5995 or tasteandthirst.com). Wow, thats a lot of drinking...maybe I am hanging out with the wrong ladies?  Ricardo Heredia, executive chef at Alchemy Restaurant

Wine bars are always a good choice, too. Ive heard especially good feedback about 100 Wines in Hillcrest, and its finger food and shareable dishes prepared by chef Katherine Humphus.  William Bradley, executive chef at Addison

Ill preface this by stating I have absolutely no business telling women where to hang. Craft beer bar...sure. Brewery tasting room...absolutely. Spot for gourmet cuisine...you betcha. But as much as Ive tried, Im constantly reminded by the females in my life that I, as a man, have zero understanding of the fairer sex. That said, were I looking for someplace to uncork some chard and gossip, gab and laugh the evening away over quality edibles, Id suggest spots that Ive been called metrosexual for liking (seems like a decent indicator for this query). Among those are Brooklyn Girl, Counterpoint, Cucina Urbana, LOUNGEsix, Saltbox, Searsucker and The Wine Vault.  Brandon Hernandez, food writer (Twitter @offdutyfoodie)

I recently got engaged, but we still go out now and then to visit our industry friends at Fluxx and Side Bar. You see plenty of single ladies (and guys) flocking to both venues for a little meet-&-greet action. Depending on what the GNO group would like, I can suggest someplace as wild as Lips in or simply bar hop in downtown and hit up hot spots like Block 16, the Hard Rock Hotel, Hotel Andaz and Stingaree.  Joanne Arellano, human resources professional, avid Yelper, avid diner

I definitely think the Grant Grill Lounge is an excellent pre-club, post-dinner spot for ladies who are dressed up to have a night on the town. We have class but no how to keep it fun and exciting too!  Jeff Josenhans, director of beverage outlets and sommelier at U.S. Grant Hotel

Spa night! My house. Seriously, I cook, my wife Heidi and all the ladies have foot baths, facials, do their nails, hair, all kinds of other stuff. Copious amounts of Champagne and they all tell tall tales (me too). Why the hell do you think I learned to cook in the first place?! Bonaparte said An army marches on its stomach. Sorry, Boney, I say, a girls gotta eat.  Andrew Spurgin, consulting chef and event architect, andrewspurgin.com

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The Naked Warrior Navy SEAL figure in Coronado will soon get another brother as Virginia Beach, Virginia, has approved the installation of a mirroring statue along its boardwalk.

The Virginia Beach city council this week approved the project by the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum. The same Fort Pierce, Florida-based museum donated the statue that was installed at Coronados Glorietta Bay Park in November.

The Virginia piece is the fourth, and possibly last, in a series that includes Oahu, Hawaii, and the museum in Fort Pierce.

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Organizers say that the Virginia art installation will differ from the others because it will include a wall with scenes and summaries of SEAL history from 1942 on.

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It will also carry 292 stars to honor SEALs and sailors from precursor units who were killed in action. There will be eight paw prints to commemorate SEAL military dogs killed in action, as well.

Perhaps the most unique part of the Virginia Beach installation will be the sand displayed around the statue.

It comes from 100 different places around the world where SEALs or their forefather units, called Underwater Demolition Teams, have fought: Tarawa, Normandy, Vietnam.

People are scouring beaches from the ends of the earth and sending it to me, said Rick Woolard, the retired Navy SEAL captain and Virginia Beach resident who is spearheading the drive. He is also a board member of the Florida museum.

Woolard stresses that the Virginia Beach effort is not just a statue, but a monument the houses a statue.

While youre not going to find anybody on the planet who doesnt know something about SEALs at the moment, the organizer noted, he said he hopes visitors take away something new.

This will be a visually arresting and beautiful monument  and hopefully visitors will understand all the layers of significance that go into it, Woolard said in a phone interview.

Virginia Beach is considered one of the Navy SEAL communitys heritage sites. Nearby Little Creek, Virginia, is home to a large number of SEAL teams.

Coronado, headquarters of the Naval Special Warfare command, is another of the sites because it houses several teams plus the training program known as Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL, or BUD/S, that is required for all SEALs.

The Coronado statue has its six-foot bronze warrior standing atop a two-foot pedestal thats reminiscent of a horned scully, a type of boat obstacle that was placed on beaches in World War II to prevent Allied amphibious landings.

The words First Ashore are carved on the front.

Both the Coronado and Virginia warriors were created by Texas sculptor J. Seward Johnson Jr.

Johnson dubbed the bare-chested figures Naked Warriors to acknowledge that, with little clothing or equipment, the early frogmen would swim into enemy waters from far offshore to reconnoiter heavily defended beaches without weapons or support.

The Virginia Beach monument is expected to be dedicated on Memorial Day.

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jen.steele@sduniontribune.com

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Frustration over conditions in the countys jails spilled over Friday morning as protesters temporarily shut down part of a street leading to the main jail complex near downtown Los Angeles, prompting a brief confrontation with police.

Fueling the demonstrators concerns were the deaths of four inmates in nine days this month, all stemming from incidents at jails run by the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department.

A 48-year-old inmate at Twin Towers Correctional Facility died of suicide by hanging, strangulation late Thursday, according to a document obtained by The Times. The man had been on life support at a hospital since Feb. 24, when he was found lying face-down on a bunk with a shirt around his head, according to the document written by Deputy G. Matthews.

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Department spokeswoman Nicole Nishida confirmed that there were four deaths including a suicide this month, but she declined to provide specific information, citing ongoing investigations.

She said seven inmates have died this year in the countys jail system, the nations largest. Last year there were 20 inmate deaths, and in 2015, there were 21, she said.

But demonstrators on Friday demanded more answers.

Any death in the jails should raise a lot of questions, but because of the lack of transparency, its hard to know what happened to these people, said Esther Lim, jails project director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California.

About 50 protesters  many affiliated with Dignity and Power Now, a group that advocates for accountability in the jails and better conditions for inmates, said they wanted the newly created Sheriffs Civilian Oversight Commission to be granted subpoena power to obtain documents and call witnesses to testify about jail conditions. Currently, the commission is only able to make recommendations  but cant enforce changes  on how the Sheriffs Department should operate.

Some protesters carried signs reading Expose the 300 Problematic Deputies, a reference to a secret list of officers found by internal investigators to have committed misconduct. Sheriff Jim McDonnell has been fighting in court with the union representing deputies over his attempt to hand the list to prosecutors so the names can be added to an internal database that tracks officers whose testimony could become problematic.

There were no arrests at Fridays protest.

According to the documents obtained by The Times, a 72-year-old inmate awaiting trial at Mens Central Jail died Sunday after suffering a head injury. Hours after he was treated for the a head wound, his body was found in a wheelchair, where he apparently died while he was waiting to be taken to a hospital, according to the report by Deputy Sheriff Generalist J. Talmadge.

Lt. David Smith, of the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner, said no cause of death had been determined. He said the inmates family had not been notified as of Friday afternoon.

Another document detailed the death of a 64-year-old man who was found unresponsive in his cell at Twin Towers Correctional Facility on March 1. His autopsy results are still in deferred status, said Lt. Kelly Yagerlener of the coroners office. And a 43-year-old inmate at the North County Correctional Facility died on March 3, also of unknown causes, according to another document.

In a statement, the Sheriffs Department said that inmate suicides are tragic and unacceptable and that the agency has made improvements in recent years to keep its more than 16,000 inmates safe. Those include safety checks to high-risk inmates every 15 minutes, de-escalation training for jail staff and a more thorough review process to identify and fix problems stemming from suicides and other incidents.

Standing with protesters on Friday, Helen Jones, 51, held up what she said were the strips of fabric found with her sons body when he died at Mens Central Jail in 2009.

I had to do my own investigation, said the mother of 22-year-old John Thomas Horton III. She said officials suggested that her son killed himself, but she showed photos of his bloodied corpse, concluding he was bludgeoned to death while awaiting trial on what she said was a bogus charge.

He didnt do anything wrong, she said.

Smith, of the coroners office, said Friday that eight years after Hortons death, the incident is listed as a hanging, but a mode of death  such as suicide or homicide  has not yet been determined.

To read the article in Spanish, click here

maya.lau@latimes.com

Twitter: @mayalau
Things dont stay the same for very long in Los Angeles.

The Lakers soar and then sink, neighborhoods rise and fall, tacos get reinvented, stars are hot and then not.

Marjorie Romer holds steady through it all, fixed in her ways, with roots that run deep.

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She was born in 1923 and grew up in Los Feliz. For almost 50 years, she has lived in a Westlake house built in 1910, a couple of miles west of downtown Los Angeles.

This is the story of how that house was burglarized three times in five days, with Mrs. Romer at home each time, and how she shooed away the burglar a fourth time.

At 94, she is a spunky one.

Twice now Ive sat with Romer in her wonderful Craftsman-style house, which in 2010 was cited as L.A.s 980th historic-cultural monument. A relief over the fireplace depicts an Asian woodwind player in a grove. A spring-lever hatch in the hallway releases a cross-current through the house on warm days. The inglenook, as Mrs. Romer describes a sweet little cove with a hearth, was designed as a cozy parlor for the coldest winter days.

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Mrs. Romer likes to tell stories and I like to listen, so we hit it off. In her childhood, she said, she used to roller skate all over the city with her friends. In 1937, they skated all the way to the Carthay Circle Theater to see Dorothy Lamour in The Hurricane.

Id never seen a hurricane, says Romer, who was 14 at the time and remembers that a nickel got you a bag of candy.

On her refrigerator is a photo of Romer at the age of 8 or 9, seated with 10 other kids on what she called a hootenanny. Its a long plank, with roller skates nailed onto it, and the kids rolled through Los Feliz on that thing like it was a trolley.

It was the greatest time in Los Angeles, she said.

Romer went to UCLA during the war and found clerical work at a publishing company. There, she met a divorced man with kids and they married, moving into the home where she still lives, 28 years after his death.

Its a wonderful house, and Id never want to leave here, she said.

Late on the afternoon of Jan. 7, Mrs. Romer was reading the L.A. Times in her living room when suddenly, she heard a man calling out from the rear of her house.

So I got up and I thought, Who could that be? 

A young man in his 20s was coming toward her.

I kept saying, Who are you? says Mrs. Romer.

The intruder insisted she must know his father, who used to do yard work for houses on the block. Romer told him his father certainly didnt work for her, and she demanded to know how he got into her house.

He said, Well, you left the door open. 

Come to think of it, she had forgotten to lock the garage after returning from an errand. The man asked why she hadnt heard him calling out to her, and Romer would later regret her answer.

She told him shes hard of hearing.

After the man left, Romer checked her bedroom and realized the contents of her purse  including several hundred dollars for the weeks bills  had been cleaned out.

You are working with the people who robbed me. Now go!  Marjorie Romer

Romer chose not to call the police.

I thought, its my mistake, she said, somewhat regretfully, and a good lesson for me to always close the door.

Two days later, she was targeted again after returning from the bank and setting her purse down in the bedroom before her afternoon reading. Later, when she wandered back to the bedroom, her closets and drawers had been ransacked, her jewelry stolen.

A hole had been punched through a screen door. Romer assumed the same burglar, or perhaps a cohort of his, had taken advantage of her hearing impairment to rob her, brazenly, again, while she was present under the same roof. This time, she called police.

I was so shaken, Romer says.

She told me she felt so sickened she could barely bring herself to clean the mess and inventory the loss. She didnt want to touch anything the thief had touched.

Shes a sweet lady and they took advantage of her, said Isidro Chavez, 41, a neighbor, friend and handyman who brought over a sleeping bag and spent the night at Romers to help calm her.

Two days later, the doorbell rang. Romer didnt open the door, but a woman stated her business from the front porch.

She said recent buyers were having problems with hearing aids and she had been sent to check on them, said Romer.

Romer had indeed recently bought new hearing aids, and was having trouble adjusting them. She was suspicious, so she cracked the door open an inch to have a look. The woman on her porch said she was pregnant and asked to use the bathroom.

I guess that softened me, said Romer,who eyeballed the womans belly and believed she was honestly pregnant.

The woman helped her set the hearing aid and then backed slowly down the hall, asking if Romer could still hear her. This took quite a while. After the woman left, Romer went into the two bedrooms and realized the woman had been distracting her while someone stole what hadnt been heisted the first two times.

It was the third burglary in five days.

I was so upset, says Romer, whose loss included artifacts she and her husband had collected while indulging their interest in the archaeology of the Southern Hemisphere. There were beautiful necklaces and bracelets that had been custom made for me. They were treasures to me.

Two days later, a knock at the door. It was the pregnant woman, back, ostensibly, to check on the hearing aids.

You are working with the people who robbed me, Romer told her. Now go!

The woman disappeared, but then a man knocked on the door. Romer shined a flashlight on him through the door, and he left. She then called her neighbor, Chavez, who confronted the man on the street. The man claimed his truck had just been broken into and he was looking for help.

Chavez didnt buy it. He coaxed the man back to Romers house, saying shed been a victim of theft, too. Chavez slipped into the bathroom to call the police, but the man fled.

Its horrible, LAPD Officer Diana Riddle, of the Rampart Detective Bureau, said of the thieves targeting Romer.

Riddle took a liking to Mrs. Romer and has been driving by her house to see if anyone looks suspicious or anything looks out of place. She said shes juggling 15-20 open burglary cases and hoping for a break in this one.

Romer described the first thief as white and in his 20s. The pregnant woman was roughly the same age, perhaps mixed race, with dark shoulder-length hair and olive skin. If she wasnt faking, Romer said, shes either extremely pregnant now or gave birth recently. The man Chavez tried to detain appeared to be in his 20s, possibly Latino. The stolen goods include a jade letter opener and antique Asian and Iranian jewelry.

If you have any information, call Officer Riddle at (213) 484-3487.

Romer said a good-size dog would surely help prevent burglaries, but she cant take care of one at her age. Shes wiser for her experience and feels safer now that Chavez has installed closed circuit monitors around her house. She wanted me to tell readers to consider similar measures, including good outdoor lighting.

Romer said her neighborhood was once the first western suburb of downtown L.A. Its far more urban now, its mansions divided into apartments. In the six months ending Jan. 22, there were 1,191 property crimes and 544 violent crimes.

Romer, too determined a survivor to surrender to cynicism, still finds much to appreciate about her neighborhood and neighbors. She plans to stay put, for now, in the house that is her home.

Get more of Steve Lopezs work and follow him on Twitter @LATstevelopez

MORE LOCAL NEWS

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Eduardo Jose Torres appears for his arraignment June 15, 2016. (Misael Virgen/U-T)

A 21-year-old man accused of breaking into a Del Cerro home and holding two women hostage is headed to trial on charges that include murder, assault during a burglary and torture, a judge ruled Friday.

San Diego Superior Court Judge David Rubin made his finding after hearing three days of testimony in the preliminary trial.

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The District Attorneys Office has not yet decided if it will pursue the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole if Eduardo Jose Torres is convicted. He also faces several special circumstance allegations related to the murder.

Ut Nguyen, 74, was stabbed in the neck as SWAT officers stormed the bedroom, according to testimony. She later died. Another woman, 50, who was visiting the victims son from out of town, was also in the room and forced to commit a sex act on the intruder, she testified.

The night of June 12, the son, who is the homeowner, and his companion were in bed when they heard a loud noise, likely the sound of a glass sliding door being broken, the surviving victim testified.

About the same time, neighbors on Mill Peak Road were knocking on the homeowners front door, reporting they had just chased away an intruder. The homeowner opened the door to his neighbors and became locked out of the house.

His companion then went into a bedroom and locked the door.

Once inside the home, Torres was able to enter the bedroom and gather the women into the room, and he sexually assaulted the younger woman, she testified.

SWAT officers entered the home to rescue those inside. Their response was captured on an officers body camera. One officer yelled repeatedly from the living room for the assailant to come out, and a voice responded, I will hurt them. I have a knife and a gun. The intruder also shouted for the officers to get out and threatened to kill the women, according to the footage.

San Diego police Sgt. Eric Seiter kicked the bedroom door open, he testified. He saw Torres between the women lying back on the bed, with Torres arms across them as if holding them down, he said.

It appeared Torres was gripping something small and making a circular motion, near Nguyens neck, then blood quickly began to gush, Seiter said. The sergeant grabbed Torres hand and had him hauled out of the room. Then he placed pressure on the womans wound to try to stem the bleeding, which appeared to come from an artery, he said.

At the conclusion of the hearing, Rubin described the evidence presented as the stuff of a horror movie.

kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @kristinadavis
Rising pension costs and declining enrollment present a budget challenge for Ramona Unified School District, despite receiving more money from the state, Assistant Superintendent David Ostermann said.

Projected health benefit increases of 7 percent and lower than projected state income add to the challenge, noted Ostermann, who oversees administrative services for the district.

In his review of Gov. Jerry Browns 2017-18 budget proposal, Ostermann compared projected new dollars with increased expenses, saying, For every dollar of new expense you get  youre going to get about 75 cents to cover it.

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The district anticipates a $1 million increase in pension and health benefit costs for the 2017-18 fiscal year that will start July 1. Thats 1.6 percent of the districts budget, Ostermann told trustees at a recent meeting. Projected increase in income is $917,995, or 1.5 percent of the budget, he said.

This is not unique to Ramona  its statewide, said Ostermann.

Browns theme for the 2017-18 budget is fiscal prudence, noted Ostermann.

The governor tends to be conservative when it comes to revenue, but the states Legislative Analysts Office believes theres going to be more revenue out there, he said, adding, Well see.

Brown sees more uncertainty and unpredictability in what he calls the states volatile revenue system, said Ostermann. In his budget press conference, the governor said, were in very uncertain times, calling it riding the tiger  his words, not mine, commented Ostermann.

Ostermanns report to trustees also included other remarks from Brown. Among them: This years budget is the most difficult that we have faced since 2012, and uncertainty about the future makes acting responsibly now even more important.

The governors initial proposal for the coming school year includes a cost of living adjustment of 1.48 percent, which would be about $667,995 for Ramona, and $250,000 in one-time dollars for the total of $917,995, said Ostermann.

School district contributions to the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) will increase from 12.58 percent of salaries this budget year to 14.43 percent in 2017-18 for a projected increase of $430,809 for Ramona Unified. California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) costs for support staff are projected to increase from 13.88 percent this year to 15.8 percent in 2017-18, or another $184,929 for Ramona.

School district superintendents throughout the state and some legislative advisers are concerned, said Supt. Anne Staffieri, Ed.D., reporting on the state superintendents conference she attended.

We know that all public school districts in our state are soon going to be facing very serious challenges with respect to meeting increased financial obligations for STRS and PERS, which are not optional, and not having additional funds that are allocated for that, she said.

The public hears that education is receiving more money, but the reality is as its currently being presented by our governor, the money that districts were slated to receive in next years budget is not enough to cover the increases in pension costs alone, she said.

For an average district, 75 cents on every total dollar is going to be going straight to employee pensions, which really does not impact our students, she said.

A solution would be either changing the state funding model to keep pensions and other unrelated educational expenditures out of the money districts receive for students, or changing the misleading message thats going out to the public that more and more money is coming to educate students, because  the mandated obligations we have for unrelated educational expenditures are increasing, said Staffieri.

This means the amount of money that we have to impact a students education is shrinking  and I think thats an important message for all of us to consider, she said.

The only way to change the predicament districts face is to put pressure on the state to change the funding model, she said.

Enrollment Projections

Also at the meeting, Ostermann projected the district will have 44 fewer students than this years enrollment of 5,535. His projection of 5,491 students for 2017-18 will be the 16th year of declining enrollment. Since 2001-02, when 7,271 students attended Ramona schools, the district has seen a drop of 1.780 students, more than any of our schools, he said.

The decline has slowed the past few years, Ostermann added. He, school principals, and other district officials will re-evaluate the projections this spring and summer. Actual enrollment will not be known until the start of school.

During his report, Ostermann shared information from DecisionInsite, a firm that analyzes enrollment and its effect on everything from a districts budget and staffing to facility needs and special programs. Using information from the Census Bureau and other sources, DecisionInsite looked at two age groups in Ramona: ages 5-17 and ages 65 and older.

In 2010, the younger group represented 19.33 percent of Ramonas population; in 2016, 15.91 percent; and projected for 2026, 14.7 percent.

Those 65 and older were 10.7 percent of Ramonas population; in 2016, 18.63 percent; and projected for 2016, 22.63 percent.

This kind of helps back up that Ramonas a great place to live, said Ostermann.

People raise their families here, their children go through the Ramona schools, and when their children are grown and they are empty nesters, they stay, he said.

Ramonas population has not grown much since 2010 and it hasnt had major housing developments that bring in new families, he added.

In other business at the meeting:

Trustees approved four courses of study for Ramona Highs Project Lead the Way program that offers STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) courses. Students would take the courses in sequence: first, Introduction to Design; second, Principles of Engineering; third, Aerospace Engineering; and fourth, Engineering Design and Development. Included are prerequisites for the second-, third-, and fourth-year courses.

Assistant Superintendent of Education Services Theresa Grace called the Engineering Design and Development the capstone course for engineering and said it involves a great deal of work-based learning, working with engineers, and student-driven projects.

Students will work in teams to research, design, and construct a solution to an open-ended engineering problem, she said in her report to trustees. Students apply principles developed in the preceding engineering course(s) and are guided by the teacher and community mentors/professional engineers.

I think its great that were bringing in the very last course, which is the capstone, said trustee Rodger Dohm, board president. This allows students a road to college that is not the typical road but having a full pathway within a high school specifically for engineering.

Trustees received an indepth report on the ArtReach to the Arts Program at Ramona Elementary School. Judy Berman Silbert, ArtReach executive director and co-founder, and fifth-grade teacher Diane Dechaine led the presentation.

Grace presented Spring Open House and Award-Scholarship dates. Spring open houses started at Montecito High School on March 8 at 6 p.m. Other open house dates are: April 25, 6:30 p.m., at Ramona Elementary; May 4, 6 p.m., Olive Peirce Middle Schools Camp Peirce for parents of incoming seventh-graders; May 11, 5:30 p.m., James Dukes Elementary; May 11, 6 p.m., Barnett Elementary; May 11, 6:45 p.m., at Hanson Elementary; May 17, 6 p.m., Mt. Woodson Elementary; May 23, 6 p.m., Olive Peirce Middle School Awards Night; May 24, 6 p.m., Ramona High Scholarship Night; May 25, 6 p.m., Ramona Community Montessori (K-6); May 30, 6 p.m., Mountain Valley Academy Award-Scholarship Night; May 31, 5:30 p.m., Montecito High School Award-Scholarship Night; and June 1, 6 p.m., Ramona High Award Night.

Among consent items trustees approved in one vote were:

Retirement and/or resignation requests from 13 teachers, a Ramona High assistant principal, and a speech, language, and hearing pathologist. They also approved 29 Ramona High extra-curricular assignments for spring sports coaches, nine after-school program assignments at Montecito High School, six Teens After School Program assignments at Olive Peirce Middle School, and three Ramona High band assignments. Grants pay for the after-school programs at Montecito High and the middle school, states the report to trustees.

A request from district administration to use piggyback bidding for new playground equipment for Ramona Elementary School.

By attaching to the competitive bidding contract of another public agency, waste is prevented and efficient use of public funds is ensured, reads the report to trustees.
As school choice becomes a hot topic in the national debate on education, the head of an international organization of Montessori educators says more families in the country already are making a making a choice for the system she has worked in for about 40 years.

Its one of the largest growing philosophies and methodologies in education, said Mary Ellen Kordas, a San Marcos resident and president-elect of the American Montessori Society. Its really come into the public and charter school arena in the last 15 years.

On Monday, Kordas begins a two-year term as president of the AMS, which accredits schools that follow the teaching style of Italian physician and educator Maria Montessori, who opened her first classroom in 1907 in Rome.

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Kordas said as new president of the organization, she hopes to make Montessori schools more accessible to low-income families and continue the schools growth in public school districts.

Theyre opening all over the place, she said, noting that 290 Montessori schools have opened in the nation in the last 15 years. Of about 5,000 Montessori schools in the U.S., 500 have opened in public school districts.

Also helping the growth, the National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector opened about five years ago to help bring more Montessori schools to public districts.

The American Montessori Society itself has seen a 25 percent growth since 2005 and now has a membership of 15,000, she said.

In another sign of the population of Montessori schools, the annual AMS convention is in San Diego this weekend and is expected to draw 3,800 educators from 20 countries, with 110 teachers coming from China.

The convention at the Town and Country Resort in Mission Valley kicked off Thursday and runs through Sunday. Among the speakers: New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, best-selling education author Jessica Lahey and actress and author Sonia Manzano.

As Kordas explained, a key component of Montessori education is a focus on classroom communities of mixed-aged children, which she said helps develop positive personality traits.

The philosophy sees children developing in key age groups, such as the infant to toddler span and the 3- to 6-year-old range, Kordas said. Following that belief, elementary classrooms usually have groups of 6- to 9-year-olds and 9- to 12-year olds,

Most Montessori schools are preschool, but more are opening for infant and toddler programs and, as the charter school movement has grown in the past 15 years, in elementary and secondary levels, Kordas said. Students at all levels learn at their own pace and are not graded.

Kordas was the head of the states first accredited Montessori school, which she opened in 1976 in Northern California with six students. By the time she left in 2012, the school had grown to 500 students and a 50,000-square-foot campus.

In Milwaukee, which has the second most public Montessori schools in the nation, a study of high school graduates found students who were in Montessori programs from preschool through fifth grade showed significantly higher test scores in math and science.

A 2005 study published in the Journal of Research in Childhood Education, however, found no evidence that students from Montessori schools had higher academic achievement or a detectable difference in personalities. That study has been criticized for having a small sample and poor methodology.

Kordas said a growing body of research indicates children from Montessori schools do perform better in reading, math, vocabulary and problem-solving.

The mixed-aged classes also give students role models and help develop soft skills, meaning the ability to cooperate, collaborate, be independent and be self-directed.

Theyre not called executive functioning skills, Kordas said. Those are real hallmarks of a Montessori classroom. And certainly, we produce children who are independent thinkers. I jokingly say, If you dont want a child to think for himself, dont send him to a Montessori school.

gary.warth@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @GaryWarthUT

760-529-4939
People held in immigration detention facilities in Southern California sometimes wait four months before seeing a judge for the first time, according to a new lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union in San Diego.

That violates the detainees constitutional rights, the lawsuit claims.

In the criminal justice system, people can only be held in jail for 48 hours before a judge reviews the charges with them and determines whether they should be held until their trials.

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The immigration system is a civil court system, not a criminal one. The ACLU lawsuit filed Thursday says that, regardless of the differences between the two court systems, people should not be held for weeks or months without knowing why.

The Department of Homeland Security defaults to detention. Thats not what the Constitution requires, said Bardis Vakili, an attorney at the ACLU, by telephone. The Constitution defaults to liberty, and deprivation of liberty is a narrow exception to that rule.

This has been going on for a long time, Vakili said, but President Donald Trumps promise to ramp up immigration enforcement and, with that, hold higher numbers of people in immigration detention, makes the case especially important now.

There are two immigration detention facilities in the San Diego area, one in Otay Mesa and one in Calexico.

Lauren Mack, spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency in charge of immigration detention facilities, said the agency does not comment on pending litigation.

The Executive Office for Immigration Review, which employs immigration judges and is in charge of scheduling hearings, declined to comment on the case but said the average wait time between when the office receives information about a detainees charges until the first hearing is about three weeks.

One plaintiff in the case, Michael Gonzalez, has been waiting more than three months to see a judge. He was detained in mid-November. He says he is a citizen of the United States, but the government disagrees, according to the lawsuit. His first hearing is scheduled for early April.

They dont have authority to hold U.S. citizens, Vakili said. Whats someone like that supposed to do if they dont see a judge for three months?

Gonzalez was detained at the San Ysidro port of entry and is now being held at Otay Mesa. He said he was afraid to return to Mexico and is being processed for asylum. He passed a credible fear interview, a test for an asylum seekers credibility, according to the lawsuit, but has not yet seen a judge.

Those stuck waiting to know what their case is about tell him they feel powerless, Vakili said.

All they know is now theyre being put in a jail, and no one tells them why until they see a judge months later, Vakili said.

There are two other named plaintiffs in the case, which has been filed as a class action lawsuit. Both are being held at the Otay Mesa facility along with Gonzalez.

Ana Maria Hernandez Aguas was taken into custody on Feb. 7, according to the lawsuit. She has not yet been given a form that details the charges against her and begins the court processing her a hearing. She does not yet have a hearing scheduled. She has two U.S. citizen children.

Jose Orando Cancino Castellar has been in the U.S. for most of his life, Vakili said, and is a senior in high school. He has been in detention since Feb. 17. He has asked to see an immigration judge but has not yet been given a hearing date, according to the lawsuit.

He is missing school while the government drags its feet, Vakili said. They just sit there in detention on the American dime.

Ideally, those who are placed in detention should get to see a judge quickly, Vakili said, to determine whether they need to stay in detention while their case is processed.

The Department of Homeland Security should work to strike a balance so that those who are dangerous or not likely to show up to court can be identified and held while other people go free for the duration of their cases, Vakili said.

Its just unconscionable that you an lock someone up and throw away the key without giving them judicial oversight for that long, Vakili said.

RELATED

Video interview Norma Chavez-Peterson of the ACLU about the meeting that happened on Sunday regarding resistance to Trumps deportation force.

Immigration Videos On Now New developments in family separation case 9:53 On Now A San Diego woman volunteered as a medic in Texas helping migrant families 2:35 On Now Immigration policy protests in Carlsbad nearly cancelled after permit issue 1:38 On Now When children are separated from their parents at the border, here is where they go next On Now Prospects of a deal for 'Dreamers' may hinge on separating Trump from hard-liners on his staff On Now What is DACA? On Now Border wall prototype contractors selected On Now Video: Ukrainian boxer wins asylum in U.S. On Now 30 apprehended after Border Patrol agents discover tunnel On Now Video: Kurdish diaspora prepare to vote on independence

kate.morrissey@sduniontribune.com, @bgirledukate
President Donald Trumps promise to crack down on illegal immigration includes not only a wall, but more people behind the wall  an additional 5,000 Border Patrol agents and 10,000 immigration officers.

Those lofty goals come with a set of unknowns  how soon, where will the money come from  and a recent history that provides some cautionary tales.

Like the story of Oscar Ortiz Martinez.

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For years, Martinez had one goal in mind: become a federal law enforcement officer.

After a four-year stint in the Marine Corps he returned to his El Centro home in 2002, but it would take a while to achieve his dream. He worked as a security guard at a privately run immigration jail for years, before he was hired by Customs and Border Protection in 2006.

At first, Ortiz had a problem joining up. He was terminated in 2007 when a background check turned up a restraining order taken out by his ex-wife. Undeterred, he reapplied in 2008 and was hired.

It was a good time to join. CBP along with its sister agency, U.S. Border Patrol, was in the midst of an unprecedented hiring spree that would lead to both agencies doubling in size between 2003 and 2009.

That rapid increase in staffing came with some problems. Hiring standards were lowered, training at the Border Patrol Academy truncated, and background checks  a crucial step  were delayed or not performed at all.

Just months after being hired, a girlfriend accused Ortiz of stalking. And shortly after that, he became the target of a sting operation orchestrated by a federal task force focusing on border corruption. Ortiz was investigated for teaming up with a former colleague at the immigration jail to allow loads of drugs to be smuggled in to the U.S. through the inspection lane he staffed at the Calexico port of entry.

In 2013, he was convicted in federal court of bribery and sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Ortiz took his place in an ignominious lineup of about 170 border law enforcement agents and officers who have been arrested, indicted or convicted in corruption cases since 2002.

Officials would later acknowledge the pressure to meet the hiring goals allowed less qualified candidates onto the force, and fueled in part a surge in the cases.

Trumps ambitious hiring goals have raised concern among some experts that it could lead to a repeat of the 2000s, when the push to hire set aside longstanding agency practices designed to screen out unqualified and unfit candidates.

It also raised other concerns about how quickly a ramp-up can be achieved and the capacity of the agencies to absorb extra workers.

Well have to see if theyve learned the lessons from the last time, said Doris Meisner of the Migration Policy Institute, a former commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, since reconstituted as Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.

The core lesson is this is law enforcement, and these are agencies that have had rigorous standards over the years, she said. You have to be in a position to be able to push back and not cut corners.

Thats not easy to do when there are pressures to build up quickly.

Trumps executive order

Customs and Border Protection, which includes the Border Patrol, is the largest law enforcement agency in the nation with about 43,000 officers and agents.

A January executive order issued by Trump would bring a 25 percent increase in staffing for the Border Patrol, and would triple the number of ICE officers, from 5,000 now to eventually 15,000.

In October, long before Trumps plans were announced, the Inspector General for Homeland Security released a report saying that the Department of Homeland Security was slow to hire law enforcement positions.

The report showed that it took 282 days, about nine months, to hire a single Border Patrol agent. That was an improvement from 2013, when it took 420 days to hire an agent.

At ICE, it took 212 days to hire a single officer in 2015. That, too, was better than 2012 when it took 1,161 days to hire a single deportation officer.

The report pointed to insufficient staffing to support the hiring surge. In 2015, ICE had three people to process 3,000 applications for entry-level deportation officer jobs  and this was during a previous hiring surge.

In February, after the executive orders were issued calling for more Border Patrol and ICE staff, Inspector General John Roth testified to a congressional committee that DHS will face a number of challenges in executing the orders.

After referring to the long hiring times, he said his office would work with the agencies to help avoid previously identified poor management practices and their negative impacts, a reference to the corruption and misconduct problems.

While only a small faction of the total workforce has been implicated, the slew of misconduct cases cast a pall over the agency and led to scrutiny from watchdogs, media and congress.

Even one is too much, said David Aguilar, the Border Patrol chief during the George W. Bush administration when the hiring surge was launched.

DHS has been trying to get a handle on corruption problems in its border security forces for several years. In 2014, then-Secretary Jeh Johnson convened a high-level Integrity Advisory Panel and ordered it to examine several issues, including preventing corruption.

Among the panels early recommendations was that CBP urgently needed to add hundreds of criminal investigators to its Internal Affairs division to investigate allegations.

In its final report issued in March 2016, the panel said CBP needed 550 full-time investigators to do the job and recommended that 350 be added over the next three years.

According to the report, the agency had added only 57, with plans to add just 30 more the next fiscal year. At that pace, the panel said it would take almost a decade to get Internal Affairs to the staffing levels it said were needed to root out corruption.

This leaves CBP vulnerable to a corruption scandal that could potentially threaten the security of our nation, the panel wrote last year.

Hiring logjam

At the time of the report  months before Trump called for the increases in staffing in his executive order  CBP was already having problems hiring new agents and officers. One problem appears to be an anti-corruption measure requested by Congress.

In 2012, in response to the corruption cases, Congress ordered CBP to administer pre-employment polygraphs to all new applicants. In January, the Associated Press reported that two of three applicants fail the polygraph exam  twice that of other law enforcement agencies.

The former head of CBP said the results showed the polygraphs were working, but others said it showed the tests were being applied too stringently, with examiners trying to trip up otherwise qualified candidates.

An internal memo last month from CBP Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said the agency wanted to take some steps to meet the hiring goals, including waiving the polygraph exam for some applicants, and giving itself the power to determine the type and level of background investigation needed for CBP positions.

On Friday three senators formally introduced a bill that would waive the polygraph tests for applicants in law enforcement and veterans.

Shawn Moran, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, the labor union that represents agents, said the polygraph process had to be examined because many qualified candidates were being put through excessively long questioning  often lasting four to eight hours or longer. But Moran said the agency cant let its guard down elsewhere when it comes to relaxing hiring standards.

The union warned in 2004, as the last hiring surge began, that a sudden increase in staffing to meet hiring goals was unwise, he said.

We were chastised then because we sounded the alarm, he said. We dont want to cut corners because I think we will live to regret it again. Every agency that has had a mass hiring push has ended up at some time cutting corners, and they live to regret it. It takes an entire generation to recover from that. We are really going to do ourselves a disservice if we cut corners.

A year earlier, McAleenan gave a slightly different gloss on the CBP hiring bottleneck in testimony in front of a Senate Appropriations Committee subcommittee. He said that the attrition rate for Border Patrol agents had shot up over the past year. Historically, attrition in the force was about 3 percent annually, but now was at 5.5 percent. Agents were leaving for better pay at other agencies, and better assignments that were not in the often remote locations the patrol operates in across the southwest border.

McAleenan also mentioned the polygraphs, but indicated they were important. We have low polygraph clear rates and a lack of full polygraph capacity  not enough federally certified polygraphers to keep pace with the requirement, which we think is very valuable in ensuring integrity of our front line personnel, he said.

At the Migration Policy Institute, Meisner said any move to relax hiring standards would be troubling.

That was the lesson learned from the 2000s, she said. You cannot, you must not, take short cuts.

DHS did not respond to a request for comment for this story on the expanded hiring issues.

While CBP and Border Patrol applicants have to take the polygraph test, there is no such requirement for ICE officers. Even without that step, Meisner said that given the time it takes to recruit, train and deploy an ICE officer, the agency can absorb slightly more than 1,000 new hires a year.

That makes this an 8- to 10-year plan, and not a two- to four-year plan, she said.

In the memo from February, McAleenan estimated it would take five years and cost $2.2 billion to meet the Trump hiring goals for Border Patrol.

Some experts are more upbeat about how the projected hiring increases can work out. Aguilar, from the Bush administration, noted the Border Patrol doubled in size during the surge  and said that the agency has learned from that experience and understands what it means to grow so fast.

We should be very focused on the who, what, where and when of hiring, said Aguilar, who is retired from government and a principal in the consulting firm GSIS. When we were growing the Border Patrol, it was doubling in size in a very compressed time frame.

But now we are taking the lessons learned from that and applying it to a force of 20,000 that is growing 25 percent.

McAleenans memo said the Border Patrol force would grow to 26,730 after hiring new agents  and recruiting for 1,700 currently unfilled spots. The memo showed there are currently 2,470 agents in the San Diego sector, and that could grow to 2,900 or 3,000.

The memos said that the agency expects to be able to nearly double its annual hiring rate from a baseline of 485 to 917. And he said not to expect the impact of the hiring plan in this fiscal year.

Twitter: @gregmoran

greg.moran@sduniontribune.com
Under Armour (NYSE: UA) is one of many retailers today executing an omnichannel business, selling products in retail stores and online. Under Armour's direct-to-consumer (DTC) business has been growing at a healthy 31% per year for the last five years, and in Q4 was 40% of the company's overall revenue.

In the company's most recent earnings call, CEO Kevin Plank talked candidly about what customers are demanding, how traditional retail is not meeting the mark, and how just investing in e-commerce is not enough.

The customer demands more

But retail is being disrupted...The fact of the matter though is that the consumer, they expect more today. They expect speed and convenience and best price and value, and they expect it the next day.

Plank's comment about retail being disrupted seems to be "code" for losing sales and relevance. He clearly recognizes the "Amazon effect" and how the e-commerce giant has raised customer's expectations, but what is Under Armour's answer to the Amazon threat?

So that choice of newness and customization is something that we need to react to and do a better job of. This idea though is we think that the cycle that we're living in from retail and inventing the next big thing, it's going to come from much closer to the concentric circle...

Plank's quote is not easily decoded unless you understand that he wants to disrupt the apparel manufacturing process, which has been done the same way for the last 100 years.

Plank has a grand vision of personalized products that are made in a local-for-local, high-tech manufacturing facility like the Lighthouse project in Baltimore. The idea is that you could get your foot scanned and have a performance shoe made with the options, color, and fit that is perfect for you. But that's not enough, this product needs to be made locally so that the delivery time is minimal.

While Plank's vision of the factory of the future is a number of years away, the company is investing heavily in the near term trend of e-commerce. But for Under Armour there's more to e-commerce than a cool website and fast delivery.

Investing in digital business, not just e-commerce

As DTC relates to e-commerce, I don't know if anyone can imagine that they can put enough money toward their digital businesses today.

Plank chose his words very carefully here. At first glance, it seems that he is saying "put all your chips on the e-commerce trend," but he clearly said "digital business." Plank has said "data is the new oil," meaning that, like oil, data can be "refined" to create other valuable products. This is where Under Armour's investment in connected fitness comes in.

Connected Fitness...is an investment in our digital business, in our own direct-to-consumer and e-commerce. And so we feel very bullish, and we feel like we have really unique positioning unlike anyone else in our industry. And frankly I can't think of any companies that have sort of that amount of data flow to understand their consumer better. But as we think about the experiences first and foremost, it's about having a great consumer experience.

Under Armour's four fitness applications have 200 million users logging fitness, food, and health data across the globe, which gives the company its "unique positioning."

As this data is distilled through partnerships with IBM's Watson and SAP, it will provide Under Armour with valuable insights into its customer, more than any other fitness company. In the end, Under Armour wants to sell shirts and shoes with a great consumer experience that can't be duplicated.

Despite all this there's a short-term problem that impacted Under Armour's most recent quarterly results -- soft retail sales -- but Plank has an answer for that too.

E-commerce rollout is ahead of schedule

When Under Armour had its analyst day in September 2015, the company revealed its goal for global e-commerce. Plank wanted to have 30 e-commerce sites, offering localized experiences, by 2018.

Under Armour beat that goal, announcing the 30th e-commerce site in its third quarter 2016 earnings release. I can't help but think this was accelerated due to the company's heavy dependence on wholesale partners -- which results in the company having less pricing and inventory control. To understand Plank's perspective, we need to go back to the rest of the "retail is being disrupted" quote.

But retail is being disrupted, and so whether it was what we saw in 2016 and frankly some of the indications we've seen with some of the filings going into 2017, so we need to be proactive with that and be thoughtful about that...

In 2016, wholesale partners accounted for 65% of Under Armour's revenue, which is why Plank wants to reduce dependence on this sales channel. The acceleration of this initiative could be hedging against retail softness in the future, but it could suggest more. Plank discusses the role of e-commerce to facilitate sales, whether it's online or not.

It's about when people show up [online], exciting them and helping them choose to transact, and doing it in a way which either; a, forces them to get up and go to brick and mortar; or b, it help them choose to transact on a phone. And so when I describe our DTC business, I think about e-commerce, full price, and outlet. And probably as recently as a year to two years ago, I'd probably give those in full price, out, and then e-commerce.

Plank has reordered the priorities for DTC to put e-commerce first. This is a smart move given the continued growth of the online sales channel. Under Armour doesn't split out DTC revenue into e-commerce versus brick-and-mortar, so investors (and competitors) are left wondering how much each is contributing. Time will tell whether Plank is putting his money where is mouth is, but I am confident he is.

Bottom line

Under Armour is investing heavily in its digital business and e-commerce capabilities, collecting more data on its customers than anyone else in the industry. While retail as a whole is being disrupted, Under Armour is attempting a disruption of the apparel manufacturing industry. Plank founded Under Armour with an innovative t-shirt over 20 years ago and continues to innovate to this day. Investors should be excited to watch what Under Armour will do in the next 20 years.

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A judge has ruled against Rep. Darrell Issa in a lawsuit where he accused his opponent in last years election of airing libelous attack commercials.

On Friday, San Diego Superior Court Judge Richard Strauss struck down the congressmans $10 million lawsuit on an anti-SLAPP motion, a provision designed to stop lawsuits filed to dissuade people from speaking critically on public issues.

Now Issa might have to pay Doug Applegate, the defendant and his Democratic opponent in the 2016 House race, for his attorney fees.

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This is a victory for free speech. It upheld not only other court decisions but the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, said Applegates campaign manager and co-defendant Robert Dempsey. The Applegate campaign committee was also sued.

Issas campaign referred a request for comment to his lawyer, who did not return a message.

On the day before the Nov. 8 election, Issa sued Applegate for statements in two campaign commercial that aired in Orange and San Diego counties that he said were libelous. In one of the commercials, text, narration, and references to a 2011 New York Times article gave the impression that Issa used his position in office to further enrich himself. Issa has long disputed the accuracy of the newspapers report, and his public dispute with the reporter and an editor made headlines.

In his tentative judgement Thursday, which was affirmed Friday, Strauss wrote that Issa did not prove it was false.

He noted that Issa did not sue the Times for defamation or that the paper ever fully retracted the article. The Times published three corrections but they did not alter the main point of the article.

...there is no substantial evidence that this article is not reliable, Strauss wrote.

He added that, The evidence shows that Plaintiffs net worth has increased since he became a member of Congress.

Issas lawsuit said the other commercial made misleading statements about the congressmans voting record, and had doctored a newspaper quote to make it appear that the representative did not support providing healthcare to victims, first responders and others involved in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The lawsuit said that the commercials unfairly made Issa appear as a deceitful, uncaring person and corrupt lawmaker.

The judge said quotes used in the 9/11 advertisement was substantially true. Issa and a bipartisan group of lawmakers had voted down a bill seeking further benefits for the victims.

Strauss also found that Issa failed to show that Applegate made the statements with actual malice, a tougher standard that must be met to prove a defamation claim involving public figures like politicians.

Issa defeated Applegate by 1,621 votes in the 2016 election, the closest congressional race in the country. Applegate immediately announced that he will run again, and Democrat Mike Levin, an Orange County environmental lawyer, joined the race earlier this week.
San Diegos marijuana industry is bracing for a potential crackdown by the Trump administration that could roll back years of steady expansion and prevent the citys medical dispensaries from adding recreational sales next year.

The crackdown fears are fueled by recent comments from administration officials that enforcement of the federal marijuana ban could resume nearly five years after the Obama administration stopped interfering with states that have legalized the drug.

While dispensaries and pot farms in the city arent shutting down or abandoning expansion plans, they are anxiously waiting to see how aggressive any revived federal enforcement might be and what form it could take.

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Previous crackdowns have included raids on dispensaries in 2011 and 2012, prosecution of individual business owners and attempts to freeze or seize the assets of business owners and their landlords.

Such efforts have been based on the federal governments continued classification of marijuana as a Schedule I drug, making it as illegal as heroin and cocaine.

A coalition of legal dispensaries in San Diego, the only city in the region to allow marijuana sales, said any type of federal crackdown would be a mistake.

The local cannabis industry is obviously deeply concerned about the statements coming out of the White House indicating plans to reverse years of cautious progress on both medicinal cannabis legalization and recreational decriminalization, the group, the United Medical Marijuana Coalition, said in a statement.

We are watching it closely, recognizing that policy changes could be swift and harmful not just to our future business prospects, but also to our patients and their ability to treat their illnesses.

Opponents of legalization said they would welcome a crackdown.

This Trump administration has said many times weve got to follow the law and enforce federal laws, said Scott Chipman, leader of the anti-legalization group San Diegans for Safe Neighborhoods. Were not expecting them to come in and start arresting people standing on the boardwalk smoking a joint. But we are encouraging them to go after the commercial operations  the grow sites, the commercial sales, the edible producers and the landlords who are knowingly renting their properties to drug dealers.

The federal threats come just as the San Diego industry was gaining momentum from the approval of recreational pot by state voters in November, and the San Diego City Councils decision last month to consider allowing cultivation and manufacturing of the drug within the city limits.

The council also agreed to allow the sale of recreational marijuana at 15 dispensaries approved by the city to sell medical marijuana  once the state finalizes legalization rules later this year.

RELATED: San Diego legalizes recreational pot dispensaries

While fear of a crackdown hasnt yet prompted dramatic shifts in strategy by local marijuana entrepreneurs, it has made it harder to find enthusiastic investors needed for some ventures.

Clients have reported to me that before the election a lot of people were excited about investing money and getting into this, said Jessica McElfresh, an attorney representing several San Diego dispensaries. Since then, the money and conversations have dampened  havent gone completely away, but dampened.

McElfresh said the threats have also likely discouraged new people from entering the industry.

Im sure for some people who were thinking about getting involved in this, it has had a chilling effect on them proceeding down that road, she said.

McElfresh said conflicting statements from administration officials and President Donald Trump have created confusion, but also some reasons for hope.

Trump said on the campaign trail that hed respect state laws that permit recreational pot, but Attorney General Jeff Sessions said last month to expect more enforcement, and White House spokesman Sean Spicer said recreational pot would be more vulnerable than medical marijuana.

Its been tough to read where theyre going, McElfresh said.

Congress has drawn a distinction between medical and recreational since 2014, when it approved a budget amendment prohibiting the Justice Department from using any resources to pursue medical marijuana businesses. And that change has since been upheld by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal.

That move dovetailed with a 2013 Justice Department memo that said the Obama administration would leave marijuana businesses alone in states where voters had legalized the drug and there werent problems with usage by minors or drug cartels.

McElfresh said she expected Sessions to revise that memo, possibly in significant ways.

I expect them, at a minimum, to tweak the priorities, she said.

If they opt for enforcement, she said its unclear what that would look like.

We dont know what form enforcement would take, McElfresh said. Thats another moving part in all of this.

She said the federal crackdown five years ago didnt go well.

I dont think a lot of people involved in the 2011/2012 crackdown look back and think that was a really great idea, she said, noting that people went to jail, lost their jobs and had their assets frozen. The crackdown was devastating and inflicted massive pain on people.

But Chipman, the legalization opponent, said the Justice Department could get results with less aggressive action. He said they could send letters to landlords warning them and then crack down on a few.

A letter like that and actions on maybe one or two pieces of property would certainly send a shock wave through the entire industry, Chipman said.

McElfresh said strong support across the nation for legalization would make such an approach risky for Trump, possibly prompting a backlash.

The industry has also become more profitable in recent years, increasing its lobbying leverage.

Some have suggested an attempt to recriminalize the drug could backfire, prompting long sought action by Congress to remove it from the list of Schedule I drugs.

The local dispensary coalition said such a backlash is likely.

We would hope the administration considers that voters have approved medical marijuana in over half of the U.S. states, and to allow recreational in eight states plus the District of Columbia, the group said. They are very clearly swimming against the tide of public sentiment in America, and are courting blowback at the ballot box.

Gina Austin, another local marijuana attorney, said people in the industry have become accustomed to flux.

When you look at how much has changed in the last four months, you can imagine how much can change in the next nine months, she said.

She said her clients are ready to shift gears if necessary.

All my clients are in wait-and-see mode, she said. Well continue down our path on medicinal, well continue to proceed on entitlements for recreational, and if theres some action taken at the federal level we will adjust our policies accordingly.

david.garrick@sduniontribune.com (619) 269-8906 Twitter:@UTDavidGarrick
A 19-year-old man was shot during a fight with five males in a Kearny Mesa business district early Saturday, San Diego police said.

The fight occurred about 2:10 a.m. in a courtyard between businesses on Vickers Street near Convoy Street and moved into a parking lot where an argument broke out, police said. A few minutes later at least two gunshots were heard.

The victim was shot in the right shoulder and taken to a hospital. He is expected to survive.

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Detailed descriptions of the assailants, who were in their late teens and early 20s, were not provided.

kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @kristinadavis
George Champion III is no slouch when it comes to finance.

His grandfather, George Sr., was the chairman of Chase Manhattan Bank during the 1960s, and he has spent his own career heading real estate and investment businesses in La Jolla.

Nevertheless, he recently fell into a trap that has led to default and foreclosure for the less fortunate. Even though he survived largely unscathed, it was enough to make him launch a lawsuit against J.P. Morgan Chase, the successor to his grandfathers bank.

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The issue is force-placed insurance, one of the many hidden practices that produce profits for mortgage-servicers and disaster for homeowners.

Unbeknown to most homeowners, if a home insurance policy lapses, the lender can impose its own that is typically priced far above the market price  sometimes so high that it can force homeowners into default or foreclosure.

It is a widespread practice. In 2010, lenders imposed $5.5 billion worth of such insurance on borrowers nationwide, up from $1.5 billion five years ago. Chase alone imposed 163,564 policies nationwide, including 20,650 in California.

The business can be profitable for the lenders, who often get fees or commissions from the insurers. It also protects them from loss.

Balboa Insurance, a specialist in forced-place insurance, says it provides valuable protection and peace of mind to financial institutions large and small.

Ron Wiser, a managing partner of Ohios Loan Protector Insurance Services, has written that when used correctly, a lender-placed insurance program is a powerful and necessary tool to achieve borrower compliance with insurance requirements.

In a congressional probe of banking practices this month, financial industry lobbyist Robert Couch said force-placed insurance is not necessarily a conflict of interest. In fact, it may make it easier for the consumer to have services that are provided in-house versus going outside.

Last year, the Dodd-Frank financial reform act contained a requirement that force-placed insurance should be reasonably priced. The Mortgage Bankers Association  which has long defended the insurers  successful lobbied to have that portion of the law removed.

The consumer agreed to lender placement when he or she signed the mortgage, John Courson, who heads the association, wrote at the time.

Champions lawyer, John Donboli of the Del Mar Law Group, countered, Its just one more mechanism to transfer money from the borrower to the lender.

Champions troubles began in November 2009, when he inadvertently failed to renew his insurance policy. In late February 2010, he got a letter from his lender, Chase, noting that he needed to maintain insurance to meet the terms of his mortgage. By March 7, he got a new policy and sent proof to Chase.

The next month, Chase obtained a forced policy from American Security Insurance Co. and added it to Champions mortgage payments. The policy, which Champion says was five times more expensive than the industry norm, was backdated to Nov. 12, 2009  the date that Champion failed to renew.

When Champion complained, Chase said that its policy covered the risk it had incurred when he was uninsured. Champion was so upset that he sued, complaining that the price of Chases insurance bears no fair or reasonable correlation to Chases expenses, but instead generated kickbacks and undisclosed profits to Chase.

Champion ended up withdrawing his suit last month after deciding it would cost more time and money than it was worth. Similar lawsuits are popping up throughout the country.

 In West Virginia, Matthew and Denise Ash had been keeping current on their $91,000 mortgage. When their insurance lapsed, Chase tacked on a policy that upped their monthly payments to $1,180 from $680. Their loan went into default, allowing Chase the right to foreclose. The Ashes are fighting the foreclosure in court.

 In Illinois, when Christopher Gustafsons home insurance lapsed in December 2009, Bank of America imposed a policy through its then-subsidiary Balboa Insurance, increasing his cost by 62 percent. Balboa did not cover liability or personal property, but only insured BofA against damage to the structure. It provided BofA with $76,300 worth of coverage, even though the balance due on the loan was $47,946.

 In Florida, after Margery Golents hurricane insurance lapsed due to an error by her insurer, Zions Bancorp imposed an insurance policy and backdated it by a year. The Zions policy not only gave Golent retroactive hurricane coverage for a year in which there had been no hurricanes, but also covered wind and flood damage even though her insurance for those hazards never lapsed.

In the congressional hearing this month, Ohio State law professor Peter Swire  a former White House economic adviser  told of his own encounter.

In early 2006, Swires lender, Washington Mutual, asked for proof of flood insurance. His State Farm agent immediately faxed WaMu proof of insurance, but unbeknown to either Swire or his agent, the bank had a policy of not processing such documents unless they contained a WaMu account number.

Without telling Swire, WaMu ignored the State Farm fax and imposed a force-placed insurance policy, which was supposed to be paid through his monthly mortgage bill.

Swire paid his mortgage automatically every month, never missing a payment. After WaMu added the insurance costs to the mortgage, the automatic payments no longer covered the entire bill, so WaMu began tacking on late fees of more than $170 per month. After Swire discovered what the bank was doing, it took him nearly two years to convince it to rescind its flood insurance and cancel the late fees, which then totaled more than $4,000.

I actually feel fortunate, he said. Most homeowners are not banking law professors. All of those hours sitting on hold waiting for customer service gave me plenty of time to think about the flaws in our mortgage servicing system.

In response to mounting complaints about force-backed insurance, a coalition of the attorneys general of the 50 states is working on a regulation that would ban lenders from imposing force-placed coverage written by one of their subsidiaries or from accepting commissions, referral fees or other incentives when obtaining the coverage from independent insurers. In addition, it would require servicers to work harder to maintain the borrowers existing policies instead of replacing them with more expensive ones.
In 2013, the California Legislature passed The TRUST Act, which prohibits state and local law enforcement from complying with requests from federal immigration enforcement to detain prisoners so they may be transferred for deportation proceedings. The TRUST Act does not apply, however, to people convicted of serious felonies and certain crimes that, depending on the severity, can be charged as felonies.

Like every other California city and county under the TRUST Act, if San Diegos law enforcement officers encounter everyday people in schools, hospitals or our neighborhoods, they are not arrested for suspected immigration violations. However, they do provide ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) with access to felons incarcerated in their jails such as rapists, child molesters and arsonists so they can be deported.

Supporters of Senate Bill 54 say it protects Dreamers  undocumented individuals who were brought to the United States as young children  and others who came to the U.S. to improve their station in life. But the TRUST Act already provides protections for Dreamers. Who it does not protect is serious felons who are eligible for deportation.

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Related: Fearmongering could hurt families, deplete workforce

Until the introduction of SB 54, there was strong bipartisan consensus that eligible felons should be deported. In fact, in just the last month, several prominent Democrats made that very case including Attorney General Xavier Becerra and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who said, lets work together to make sure that were securing our borders, that were certainly deporting serious criminals who commit violent crimes but not people who have done very little except to break our laws, except to cross the border.

SB 54 abandons that position by shielding rapists, child molesters and arsonists from ICE and guaranteeing their return to our neighborhoods.

Over 11,600 felons in our prisons alone (8 percent of prison population) have been identified by ICE as eligible for deportation. That number doesnt include those incarcerated in county and city jails. If SB 54 becomes law, ICE will have no way to find out the release dates, addresses or any other information that can help the agency identify a serious felon it is seeking. To be clear, these are not Dreamers who were pulled over for a broken taillight or expired registration tags. These are felons  rapists and child molesters among them  who would complete their sentences and return to our neighborhoods.

Expanding Californias sanctuary policies to include serious felons will not put an end to federal immigration enforcement. Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly made it clear in recent memos that felons are still ICEs priority. If SB 54 becomes law, ICE will have no choice but to go door to door looking for convicted felons in California, instead of our current policy of assisting them, and accepting the federal grant money that is tied to that assistance, to locate these criminals already within our jails and prisons. Without an information exchange from local law enforcement, ICE will be obligated to carry out their duty to apprehend those identified as the greatest threat to our public safety by combing through our neighborhoods.

This undermines the authors goal of protecting those who are residing in our country illegally but are not felons. As we saw with the ICE enforcement actions in Los Angeles last month, the agencys priority is serious criminals but it will arrest others if encountered in the process.

Supporters of SB 54 argue that the bills provision to require ICE to get a warrant to assume custody of a prisoner will ensure due process for the felon. But thats a near-impossible standard to meet because a federal warrant can only be issued for federal crimes, not state crimes. Rapists and child molesters were convicted under state laws in the majority of cases. Most of the incarcerated that ICE would be looking to deport do not have any federal charges. They rely on immigration hold and notification requests in order to pick up the serious criminals that SB 54 would return to our neighborhoods.

I understand my colleagues arguments for protecting Dream Act children and others who came to the United States to pursue the American Dream. Sadly, SB 54 draws no distinction between those who came here for that purpose and those who are here to prey on everyone, regardless of their immigration status.

As part of our efforts to stop SB 54, we have made information available at my state website including a petition that has collected over 24,000 signatures. For more information, please visit www.sen.ca.gov/anderson.

Anderson, R-Alpine, represents the 38th Senate District in the California Legislature.
Bishop was calling for more than disruption

Recently, a letter to the editor criticized San Diegos Catholic Bishop Robert McElroy (Views on coverage of San Diegos bishop, March 8) for encouraging people to disrupt.

However a complete reading of his speech says Americans cannot merely be disruptors, we also have to be rebuilders. He continues by saying we have to rebuild so that we place at its heart service to the dignity of the human being. In no way is Bishop McElroy encouraging violence and division. His presentation calls to my mind the words of Elie Wiesel, holocaust survivor, Silence can become acquiescence.

We are all called to become involved as all of humanity is sacred.

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Kathleen Spreen Christenson

Coronado

Letters and commentary policy

The U-T welcomes and encourages community dialogue on important public matters. Please visit this page for more details on our letters and commentaries policy. You can email letters@sduniontribune.com or leave a comment below.

Think differently about how to reduce violence

Regarding Bill Newsomes letter Fear has trumped the Constitution before (Feb. 24): I felt that this was a most insightful commentary. Liberals and conservatives are equally afraid of violent crime and terrorism to which we clearly have no conventional answer.

Since fear preempts the Constitution, these are the most dangerous fears of all. The longer inner-city violence and the War on Terror last, the more freedoms we will trade for false security.

Therefore, I recommend that we look at unconventional approaches. I direct everyones attention to the scientific research noted by the Global Union of Scientists for Peace. This organization recommends using evidence-based meditation techniques to reduce violence. There are 50 highly statistically significant studies suggesting that we could both reduce gun violence in our cities and reduce terrorist attacks around the world. Try something new or lose our constitutional rights. Its our choice.

William Harpur

North Park

Dont let our politics diminish compassion

We are in the midst of a troubling and uncertain time that has created a lot of fear, especially about refugees. One side expresses fear that refugees are not only bringing their scant belongings but a penchant for terrorism. The other side calls for a more humane response to those fleeing persecution.

I have noticed in common usage lately, that the word refugee, whether used by those who equate it to terrorism or by those who are hopeful to help the disenfranchised, is distant from the actual people behind the word.

The refugees I serve are incredibly resilient, but they are people, just like you and me. They are a part of the community: neighbors, parents, and we can learn a great deal from them. So please continue to offer compassion. And also, understand that refugee families simply want safety and a chance to build a normal life again.

Dawn Stary

Clairemont

Democrats need to get out of presidents way

Ive been around a long time and Ive never seen this country in such chaos. The blame, absolutely, falls on the Democratic Party. No matter what President Trump does its met with protests, riots or any possible way to derail him.

President Trump is simply fulfilling promises that he made to millions of us during his campaign. Sure, hes different than all the other professional politicians and he may not be politically correct all the time. So what, as long as he gets the job done and America is better for it?

Why dont those who wont support him just go away for four years, come back in 2020 and try again? But next time run a better campaign and for sure select a better candidate.

Steve Aldridge

San Diego

Our elected leaders must serve as examples

The United States of America is the original interfaith team, founded by leaders who fled religious intolerance and persecution to establish a free, pluralistic nation.

For the U.S. to officially ban, effectively shun and complacently remain silent about the widespread persecution of people based on their religious beliefs is antithetical to the goals of our countrys founders.

Therefore, on behalf of our interfaith nation, we expect the following from American leaders whom we have entrusted as valued public servants: 1) they must uphold and exemplify the values of open-mindedness, acceptance and respect by supporting those who share those values and seek religious freedom; 2) they must publicly disavow and define as hate crimes any actions or disseminations of propaganda that threaten the rights of others to peacefully practice their faith; and 3) they must actively prohibit and punish as a criminal act the religious persecution of people and the desecration of their hallowed places.

Abigail Albert

Poway Interfaith Team

President needs to be honest with the nation

We are told by Donald Trumps horse-holders not to take his hip-shot tweets too literally. How, exactly, should we take them?

As an officer aboard nuclear submarines, I was trained to say what I mean and mean what I say. Anything less could court disaster in an unforgiving undersea environment. Should we not expect the same from our president?

James Ransom

San Diego

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Six Rotary clubs from across North County banded together for their first Its in the Bags! food drive to benefit the San Diego/North County Food Bank.

The project, spearheaded by Carlsbad Hi-Noon Rotary Club Gina McBride, collected 2,800 pounds of donated food from North County communities and a cash contribution of $500 from the Carlsbad Hi-Noon Rotary Club.

The effort included two Rotary Clubs from Carlsbad along with Rotaries of Encinitas, Oceanside, San Marcos and Vista Hi-Noon plus the Mission Vista and Rancho Buena Vista High School Interact Clubs.

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JIMBOS Naturally Grocers provided bags.

The theme of the drive was Love Your Neighbor, McBride said.
It was not an early April Fools joke. For Arya Shamuilian, it was worse.

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The high school senior from Rancho Cucamonga was among nearly 30,000 people who received an e-mail this week congratulating them on admission to the University of California San Diego  only to learn that campus officials had sent the e-mails in error.

This was just a catastrophe, Arya, 17, said yesterday. UCSD was my first-choice university.

The campus e-mail, sent about 5 p.m. Monday, invited students to an orientation and began with these warm words: Were thrilled that youve been admitted to UC San Diego . . . 

Admissions director Mae Brown said the invitations were supposed to be sent to about 18,000 students admitted by the university. Instead, they went to all 47,000 who applied, including those who had already been rejected.

Brown said officials quickly realized their mistake.

The minute the e-mails were sent out, we noted that it was sent to a much larger pool than was admitted, she said.

Within two hours, the university sent out another blanket e-mail, this one an apology. In that note, Brown said she understood the level of distress the mistake may have caused students.

In all humility, I ask that you please accept my apologies and those of the University of California, San Diego . . . and know that we continue to wish you success in your educational pursuits, Brown wrote.

Janet Robinson said her daughter, Katie McCray, a senior at La Costa Canyon High School, received a rejection from UCSD two weeks ago and was confused by the e-mail welcoming her.

Her daughter has since been accepted by several other universities, including UC Berkeley. But the process has been a roller coaster.

It is adding insult to injury for kids who have already been through the wringer. Thats the sad part of it, Robinson said.

Arya said the mistake hit him especially hard.

It was one of the greatest moments in my life and then, boom, it was one of the lowest, he said.

Brown said every admissions officer on campus was staffing phones yesterday to take calls from applicants and their parents. She said she stayed at her office until midnight Monday replying to e-mails and phone messages.

When asked if anyone has been disciplined for the mistake, Brown said the university was reviewing what happened.

At least two major universities  Cornell University and the University of North Carolina  have reported similar blunders in recent years. In 2007, UNC sent an e-mail to 2,703 applicants that wrongly gave the impression the recipients had been admitted.

Karen Kucher: (619) 293-1350; karen.kucher@uniontrib.com
SPANISH FORK, Utah (AP)  A fugitive suspected of killing one Utah deputy and wounding another has died from injuries suffered this week when he was shot by law enforcement officers during a gunfight that ended a 2 -hour crime spree.

The death of Jose Angel Garcia-Juaregui, 27, Friday afternoon means authorities might never know the motive for his actions Thursday when he fired at deputies and bystanders, rammed into cars and carjacked a vehicle with a mother and toddler inside before four officers gunned him down 50 miles south of where it started.

This individual clearly was not going to be taken without a fight, Utah County Jim Tracy said. He shot at anything and everything that moved.

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Garcia-Juaregui never regained consciousness before dying, denying detectives a chance to ask him questions. Tracy can only speculate that Garcia-Juareguis decision to go on a shooting spree might have had to do with the fact that an arrest warrant was issued for him on Wednesday for alleged violations of his parole conditions.

Garcia-Juaregui served 4 1/2 years in prison for attempted homicide. He was paroled from Utah state prison in December 2012.

Were pretty sure he became increasingly nervous that he was going to be found out, said Tracy, in reference to his contact with a deputy he shot. At some point, he must have made a determination that he was going to be caught, and he knew the consequences would be a return to prison.

The crime spree began when Utah County Sheriffs Sgt. Cory Wride, 44, pulled over on a rural two-lane highway about 35 miles south of Salt Lake City to check on a truck with its emergency lights on.

Wride spoke with Garcia-Juaregui and a teenage girl who was with him in the truck before returning to his patrol car. The deputy was sitting behind the wheel doing background checks on the two when Garcia-Juaregui slipped open the trucks back window and opened fire with a handgun, hitting the deputy twice, Tracy said.

As Garcia-Juaregui took off from the scene, an urgent alert went out instructing officers to head to strategic spots around the county in hopes of spotting the suspects truck.

About an hour later, a Utah County deputy spotted it near Santaquin, more than 30 miles south of the first shooting. Garcia-Juaregui fired at that deputy from the same back window, hitting him in the head, authorities said. That deputy is in critical condition, but he is expected to recover.

The gunman took off again, driving south on Interstate 15 and into Juab County. There, he smashed into a car and semi-trailer, shooting at both as well. He also fired at bystanders and tried to carjack two vehicles, Juab County Sheriff Alden Orme said. One attempt failed, but the other worked when he forced a mother and her 4-year-old child out of their car at gunpoint.

After he sped through the main street in Nephi, four Juab County Sheriffs deputies caught up to him south of the city. A gunbattle ensued, with Garcia-Juaregui getting hit and arrested. None of these deputies were injured.

I cannot express enough how dangerous a situation that was, Orme said. Were just thankful citizens and additional officers werent injured.

Authorities said they dont know how many times Garcia-Juaregui was shot. His body is being sent for an autopsy.

The teenage girl was with Garcia-Juaregui the entire chase, but she was not injured, Tracy said. Officials also have her in custody, but they dont yet know if she was a willing participant. Her name was withheld because she is a minor.

Garcia-Juaregui was in Utah prison from April 2008 until he was paroled in December 2012, Utah Department of Corrections spokesman Stephen Gehrke said. He was convicted of felony attempted murder after stabbing a friend multiple times with a screwdriver in 2007 following a night of drinking and partying, Utah Board of Pardons spokesman Jim Hatch said. Garcia-Juaregui, who had no other criminal history, said it was self-defense.

The warrant was issued this week when Garcia-Juareguis parole office couldnt find him, Hatch said.

Tracy said investigators have searched a house in the Salt Lake City suburb of Draper where Garcia-Juaregui was living, but he declined to say what they found. The sheriff said authorities dont know where Garcia-Juaregui is from originally.

The harrowing chase and accompanying bloodshed have left usually quiet communities in the area shaken.

Krista Black, manager of the Maverick convenience store and gas station on the rural highway where Wride was killed, said her husband slowed to check on a disabled vehicle he believes was the suspects about 10 minutes before the shooting.

Her husband moved on without getting out of his car to help because no one appeared to be in the other vehicle.

It makes you nervous about who is out there, Black told The Associated Press. My husband always stops to help people.

The sheriff said Wride was a 19-year veteran of the Utah County Sheriffs Office. He leaves behind a wife, five children and eight grandchildren.

Wrides uncle was a longtime police officer in the community, inspiring him to take the same career path, his brother-in-law Johnny Revill said. Revill said the family is struggling to understand why Wilde was shot.

As it has been reported, an evil swept through this community yesterday afternoon, Revill said, leaving behind a path of unimaginable sorrow for our family.

Revill said the family is taking comfort in knowing they will be joined again in the afterlife. Wilde was active in his local congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the small town of Benjamin. Mormons believe families are joined eternally.

People lined the street Friday afternoon holding American flags as Wrides body was driven to a funeral home in in Spanish Fork.

House Speaker Becky Lockhart, a Provo Republican, said she knew Wride, who was a resident in her district for 10 years.

She noted that in addition to being an officer, Wride was involved in the community and served as a local Republican Party delegate.

That is a public servant of the highest level, Lockhart said Friday afternoon. Its a real tragedy.

Funeral arrangements have not been made yet.

The circumstances of Wrides death are similar to those in the last police killing in Utah. In September, Draper Police Sgt. Derek Johnson arrived to help with a vehicle he thought had broken down. He was shot before he left his police vehicle.
You'd struggle to find an industry with a faster and more consistent long-term growth rate than the legal marijuana industry.

According to cannabis research firm ArcView, sales of legal weed in North America rose by 34% to $6.9 billion in 2016, and based on estimates from investment firm Cowen & Co., U.S. legal sales could reach $50 billion by 2026. For added context, ArcView estimates that North American black market sales totaled $46.4 billion last year.

Marijuana's phenomenal growth rate comes on the heels of rapidly changing consumer opinions toward the substance, as well as an influx of investing dollars and government interest that wants a piece of the "pot pie," so to speak.

In the year before California became the first state to legalize medical cannabis for compassionate use, only 25% of respondents in Gallup's marijuana poll wanted to see it legalized nationally. In 2016, the same survey yielded an all-time high of 60% of respondents that would like to see it legalized.

Likewise, rapid growth in the industry is attracting venture capitalists, as well as state governments that envision marijuana opening up new revenue channels. For instance, the passage of Prop 64 (recreational marijuana initiative) in California is expected to add, at minimum, $1 billion in extra tax and licensing revenue per year. Considering California's penchant for running a budget deficit, this added revenue should be a welcome sight for state legislators.

Pot's schedule 1 status is holding the industry back

But at the end of the day, pot remains a schedule 1 drug at the federal level, meaning it's deemed to have no medically beneficial qualities, and is therefore illegal. This scheduling means a mountain of obstacles for medical and recreational weed companies alike.

As an example, marijuana companies are often unable to open a checking account or obtain a line of credit with financial institutions because they're selling a federally illegal substance. It's not that banks don't want to deal with pot companies, as there would be a presumed massive growth opportunity available to the currently underbanked industry. It's that banks ultimately answer to the federal government, and at the federal level marijuana is still illegal. Thus, allowing cannabis companies to open a checking account or borrow money could be construed as money laundering and expose any and all financial institutions participating to be fined. Plus, it also means marijuana businesses have to deal in cash, which can be a major security concern.

Another good example is corporate income tax. Marijuana businesses are severely hampered by U.S. Tax Code 280E, which disallows businesses that sell a federal illicit substance from taking normal business deductions. This essentially means pot businesses are paying tax on their gross profits instead of net profits, which leaves less money left over for hiring and business expansion.

Congressional lawmakers have repeatedly opined that they'd need more conclusive benefit and risk data from clinical studies to merit any sort of scheduling change on marijuana, but the Catch-22 is that its restrictive schedule 1 status makes running these needed studies practically impossible.

Surprise! A Republican lawmakers want to reschedule marijuana

However, this Catch-22 may soon come to an end if Republican Tom Garret of Virginia gets his way. On Feb. 27, Garrett introduced the "Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2017," which would take marijuana off the federally controlled substances list, placing it on par with the alcohol and tobacco industries.

Here's what Garrett had to say:

I have long believed justice that isn't blind, isn't justice. Statistics indicate that minor narcotics crime disproportionately hurt areas of lower socio-economic status and what I find most troubling is that we continue to keep laws on the books that we do not enforce. Virginia is more than capable of handling its own marijuana policy, as are states such as Colorado or California. This step allows states to determine appropriate medicinal use and allows for industrial hemp growth, something that will provide a major economic boost to agricultural development in Southside Virginia. In the coming weeks, I anticipate introducing legislation aimed at growing the hemp industry in Virginia, something that is long overdue.

There are, in particular, two unique aspects about this bill.

First, it was introduced by a Republican! Polling has shown that only two groups oppose the nationwide legalization of marijuana: 1) Seniors by a narrow margin, and 2) Republicans! In fact, of the 22 states that haven't legalized medical marijuana yet, a good number of them are led by Republicans. The fact that a Republican lawmaker is suggesting that marijuana be federally decriminalized and rescheduled should tell you just how far things have come for the industry over the past two decades.

Secondly, unlike the similar legislation that Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced in 2015, Garrett's bill already has co-sponsors. Considering how strong the public's support for marijuana is, Garrett's bill may actually have a shot at working its way through Congress and at least being voted upon.

Don't get your hopes up just yet

While Garrett's bill would seem to be a step in the right direction based on the desires of the public, it's still far too early to pop the champagne and celebrate.

Donald Trump, who during his campaign suggested that he would support state's rights once in office, has apparently backed off that approach. White House press secretary Sean Spicer recently noted that the federal government could be looking to step up enforcement of recreational marijuana in the months and years to come. No details were given as to how extensive this increase in federal enforcement would be, nor when exactly it might begin.

Also, Trump's Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, is clearly no fan of marijuana. While in the Senate, Sessions could arguably have been described as the most ardent opponent of pot. Though Sessions commented that he would follow the president's policies on marijuana during his confirmation hearings, it's pretty evident based on his past views that he doesn't support the expansion of marijuana in any form.

This essentially means that cannabis is continuing to fight an uphill battle, which isn't good news for businesses or investors who want to invest in these businesses. The industry's growth is clearly undeniable, but until there's a clearer path forward to decriminalization, investors would be wise to keep their distance.

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Academe-backed Aboriginal Heritage Project revealed a staggering conclusion - aboriginal communities exist and continually thrives for 50,000 years in the Australian continent. Scientists analyzed hair DNA samples and discovered that the Aboriginal family's genetic map traced far back more than everybody thinks.

Since 1928 to 1970s, several expeditions led to the discovery of anthropological specimens. Most remarkable among them are 111 hair samples that are housed in South Australian Museum. Scientists compared the mitochondrial DNA from those samples into the modern Aboriginal Australians.

Though there is a common notion that Aboriginals are connected to Papua New Guinea, it appears that they came from a single foundation that lived in Australia 50,000 years ago. However, New Guinea's land mass separated from the mainland. This results to island-concentrated population boom within a span of 1,500 to 2,000 years, according to Nature Journal.

According to Professor Alan Cooper, University of Adelaide's ACAD Director, there are patterns that suggest Aboriginals lived in scattered geographical locations within the Australian continent at that time. These results contradict what is being taught in history books regarding the length of Aboriginal occupancy by at least 10 times.

One Kaurna elder who donated DNA sample, Lewis O'Brien, said that they always have known Australia as home since the start of time. But with the conclusion of Aboriginal Heritage Project, they gained scientific backing to their claims. O'Brien calls the study as "Stolen Generation" that can reunite Aboriginals with their Australian identity, The Guardian reported.

Meanwhile, the South Australian Museum also has other cultural, genealogical and even geographical data of Aboriginal people. These collections are important in reconstructing the genetic history of Aboriginals who were affected by enforced relocation and child removal of the early Australian government. Museum director Brian Oldman stressed that rewriting history is not easy, but Aboriginal Heritage Project is a great steppingstone.

Currently, scientists plan to expand the DNA testing to study nuclear genome. This approach can lead to traces of paternal lineages and specifically connect them to their modern descendants.
Commercialism, human settlement, and even climate change are all coming into play for the past 200 years, gradually causing the Great Lakes' decline. Lakes Erie, Huron, Michigan, Ontario, and Superior accounts for 20 percent of earth's freshwater but dreaded natural and human activities are threatening it.

Journalist Dan Egan published a book The Death and Life of Great Lakes to provide a glimpse of how extensive the damage is being done. There are details of how global trade and urbanization fast-tracked the already significant impact of climate change as well.

Scientists believe that the Great Lakes were formed as an aftermath of failed continental drift when the glaciers retreated. These phenomena caused the Great Lakes to be isolated from the ocean, thus becoming freshwater. But not until canals and seaways were made to allow ships around the globe to navigate.

Egan blamed this human intervention as the reason behind an estimated 200 non-native species that are thriving in the Great Lakes. These alewives, sea lampreys and mussels are invading and efforts to contain them are failing. To make the problems worse, these aliens are ruining the natural food webs. On the natural side of problems, Egan said that climate change is causing an extreme loss of water level.

If there is a glimmer of hope for the Great Lakes, it could be another human intervention - this time to correct the mistakes. While ignorance of how nature works led to disaster, what humans learned over the century could save the Great Lakes. Trout and whitefish are reclaiming their home, thanks to environmental projects. There is also a gene drive being done to stop the Asian carp to multiply, Global News reported.

Lastly, Egan argued that the hardest battle is yet to come. While canals and seaways are giving the US its fortune, they are also leaving a hole for alien species to invade. Egan concluded that when it comes to global trade's impact, only the future generations can genuinely save the Great Lakes.
FLORENCE, S.C.  A group set of Boston College students spent their spring break assisting with the Boys and Girls Club of the Pee Dee area.

The 13 students from Boston College have been in Florence since Sunday doing construction work at different Boys and Girls Clubs in the area. The students are part of a Boston College group called Appalachia Volunteers, which has about 500 students who travel on their spring break to volunteer in areas where they are needed.

Sarah Wolf, a Boston College junior, talked about it.

Weve done construction work at the different clubs like putting down tiles. We put down new carpet and spend time with the kids, and it has been fun, Wolf said.

Sean Sullivan, a Boston College junior, added on.

The mission is to go where we are needed, Sullivan said. We had a list of places to choose from, and we felt as if we were needed here. They have been very welcoming here and this has brought me back for my second trip.

For most of the students, this is their first time in South Carolina.

Ive never been to the South before Im from Maine, said sophomore Curran Clere. Each region of the U.S. has an expectation of each. We thought Florence was a rural community where we would be doing farm work, but it is actually more of an urban city.

The three all mentioned how they hope the kids at the different clubs realize that people care about them.

I hope the kids know that the ones here they come into contact with daily want the best for them, but others from the outside as well, Wolf said.
Logan is the X-Mens answer to Creed.

Like the reboot of Rocky, Logan gives Hugh Jackmans Wolverine a chance to regroup, reassess and shine. Thanks to James Mangolds smart R-rated script, the concept is razor-sharp.

In the latest X-Men installment, the year is 2029 and mutants are all but extinct. Wolverine (or Logan, as hes known) drives a limousine and takes care of Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart), whos a bit addled but still worried about the fate of his former students.

A mutant named Caliban (Stephen Merchant) keeps watch over their dusty compound (shades of Mad Max: Fury Road) and waits in fear that his sensitive skin will be exposed. (Yup, you can guess what happens.)

A woman approaches Logan and asks him to drive a young girl to a compound in North Dakota. Before long, we learn shes another brand of mutant who has become the target of Transigen, a bioengineering company that created her. Naturally, theyre on his tail before he even gets to leave.

The girl  either unable or unwilling to talk  is just as feisty as Wolverine. She possesses the same mad fighting skills and isnt afraid to cut anyone in the process.

Xavier, Logan and the young Laura (Dafne Keen) head out from their Texas home, wind up in a casino and begin the road trip.

Mangold, who also directs, fills plenty of the very long film with action sequences. He doesnt skimp on contemporary parallels and hints that this could be the very way to breathe life into the franchise. That Lord of the Flies compound seems ripe for examination.

The focus, though, is really on Xavier and Wolverine. The two have a feisty relationship that gives both a chance for reflection regret.

At a farm, both get a chance to glimpse what they passed up. Stewart has some moving moments of introspection and a paternal look at Jackman that cant be ignored.

Although the little girl can best be described as feral, she helps prod the story and has a mean set of gymnastics skills. When she does speak (spoiler alert!) she gets the tears to fall, too.

Clocking in at nearly two-and-a-half hours, Logan could have lost some of the fistfights and been just as effective.

Boyd Holbrook and Richard E. Grant play the bad guys and, frankly, the former is given too much time to twirl his mustache.

The latter has that calm demeanor most find unsettling in politicians and a team that looks like it went to the Bane School of Persuasion.

If Jackman is correct  and this is his last outing as Wolverine  its a great farewell. He gets a clip real of character highlights and a softening that suggests hes not just another blades runner.

Logan shows what can be done with a comic book hero if the director isnt held to the mythology. It's definitely a cut above.
Press Release

March 10, 2017 De Lima bats for transfer of courthouses outside LGU-owned facility Sen. Leila M. de Lima has filed a measure seeking to transfer the courthouses from buildings or facilities owned and maintained by local government units (LGUs) to prevent any possible conflict and insulate court officials from partisan politics. In filing Senate Bill (SB) No. 1346, De Lima said the three co-equal branches of the government must equally be capable to exercise their respective mandates without sacrificing their independence. "Now, more than ever, when the temptation of corruption abounds, and politicians exert more and more pressure to our court officials, we need to affirm our commitment to provide for a strong and independent judicial system," she said. "Ours is a rule of law and we enforce it by strengthening our judicial institutions," she added, stressing that the lack of independence would result in the inability of one branch of government to check the arbitrary or self-interest assertions of another. Under SB 1346, to be known as "Judicial System Independence Protection Act," the Supreme Court and the Department of Justice are mandated to prepare a comprehensive plan to transfer their offices out of any building or facility owned by LGUs. It also seeks to remove the LGUs' authority to provide for discretionary allowance and other benefits to judges and public prosecutors, amending Sections 447, 458 and 468 of Republic Act No. 7160, also known as the 1991 Local Government Code. "The discretionary allowance to national government officials stationed in LGUs has been, in many situations, used by local governments to exercise political patronage over such officials," De Lima explained. "This is especially dangerous to judges and public prosecutors because they may be placed in a position in which they have to rule on or prosecute a case against the said LGUs or their officials," she added. According to SB 1346, one of the unintended effect of the discretionary allowance to judges and public prosecutors is that qualified candidates tend to prioritize more affluent LGUs who provide more allowances. During her stint at the Department of Justice (DOJ), De Lima began the practice of prohibiting public prosecutors from receiving allowances and other benefits from LGUs as means to strengthen the integrity of the prosecution services. The Senator from Bicol also said the existing set-up for allowances of local courts and public prosecutors compromises the integrity of justice sector workers. To offset the lost income, she proposed that judges and public prosecutors stationed in LGUs would be entitled to an allowance equivalent to 10 percent of their basic monthly salary under her proposed Justice System Independence Allowance.
Press Release

March 10, 2017 Koko stumps for Federalism before Philippine Councilors League Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III on Thursday advocated Federalism before the 10th National Congress of the Philippine Councilors League at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Pimentel, who was the guest of honor for the event, spoke at length before the assembled councilors on the merits of the Federal system of government for the Philippines. "We see a correlation between distance from the center of power, which is Metro Manila, and the poverty incidence rate of a province. The closer a place is to the center of power, which is Metro Manila, the better the chance of that place to economically progress", Pimentel said. Pimentel conceded that the Philippines, even under the current unitary system, is progressing. However, he warned that the impressive economic growth rate would only increase the gap between rich and poor regions if the current system does not change. Pimentel said, "...to erase the two faces of Philippine society by allowing the neglected areas to catch up with the more affluent ones, we need to change. We cannot allow the two poles to be too far apart, otherwise, Philippine society will break up and the Philippines will become a failed state. We cannot and should not allow that to happen." Pimentel described how the Philippines would look like under the Federal system, with executive power shared between a President and a Prime Minister, and the powers that would be delegated to regions and those that would remain with the national government. Pimentel told the councilors of his "insurance policy" - the Bigger Pie, Bigger Slice" bill, which would increase the funds available to LGUs for the sharing of revenues and increase the share of LGUs in these funds. This change would increase the capacity of LGUs to meet their obligations under the Local Government Code, according to Pimentel.
Press Release

March 10, 2017 BURNOUT FATAL: POE SEEKS PROBE AS MORE PINOYS OVERWORKED "Too much work will kill you." Sen. Grace Poe issued this stern warning as more Filipinos may be working their way into an early grave. Poe filed Senate Resolution 316 seeking a legislative inquiry into the dramatic rise in the number of overworked Filipinos--employed persons who worked for more than 48 hours a week--in the past 20 years. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), based on the report on Decent Work in the Philippines, indicated that there were some 8.105 million overworked Filipinos in 2015 in primary jobs, which represented an increase of 41.2 percent or an additional 2.363 million from 5.742 million overworked Filipinos recorded in 1995. Employed persons with excessive hours of work per week in all jobs were around 8.845 million in 2015, higher by 4.5 percent or 378,000 from the 8.467 million in 2005. "Several studies have shown that excessive work hours could trigger serious health problems and even cause death. Chronic overworking, as various research suggest, can lead to threatening levels of stress," said Poe. Poe said a comprehensive review of company policies requiring employees to work excessively long hours should be undertaken. Further, plans to overhaul labor laws and propose legislative measures are necessary to ensure the constitutionally guaranteed "just and humane work conditions." "Napakaimportanteng bigyang halaga ang work-life balance dahil hindi lamang sa trabaho umiikot ang mundo ng ating mga manggagawa. Bagama't kailangang kumita, walang lugar ang pang-aabuso sa kanilang karapatan. Sa ganitong paraan, mas mapagtutuunan nila ng pansin ang kanilang sarili, kalusugan at pamilya," said Poe. More than half of the total workers with excessive hours of work were wage earners and salaried workers, according to the PSA study. "Excessive hours of work is one of the primary indicators of decent working time. Having more than the usual hours of work may interfere with the balance between personal life and work, may increase injury hazard risks, may signal an inadequate pay, and in the long term, pose a threat to workers' physical and mental capacity to work. It may also be connected to the reduction of the productivity of workers," the PSA report noted. An article from the British Medical Journal conclusively stated that "overwork can kill" based on several empirical and follow-up studies on workers from different sectors. Also, a book by sociologist Randy Hodson titled Dignity at Work said overwork is one of the major obstacles to human dignity in the workplace.
MESA, Ariz.  Sonny Gray spoke to the media Friday for the first time since being diagnosed with a lat strain that is expected to keep him out until late April.

Sometimes you get tested, and theres not a reason for it, the As right-hander said, adding that hes thought 100 times about what might have led to the lat strain with no answer. But theres no doubt in my mind that when this gets knocked out, Im going to be back to being the guy Ive been.

Gray, 27, has been focused on being fully healthy and getting back on track after a rough 2016 season, his worst in the majors. He said hed been feeling fantastic and didnt even think there was an issue when he felt some tightness during and after his start Tuesday. But he mentioned it to team trainers, who scheduled an MRI exam.

I told (manager) Bob (Melvin) Im not worried about it, it will be fine, and then next day I find out that theres a little strain there that will take a little while to heal  which was kind of shocking to me, Gray said.

There are a few positives, however. First, its not an arm injury. Second, it happened with three weeks left in the spring, so instead of missing 5-6 weeks of the regular season, he might just miss three weeks. And getting an MRI exam prevented the possibility of a worse strain, one that might have cost Gray months.

Ive heard this is the best of a worst-case scenario, he said. Im in great shape, my arm feels amazing, my body feels amazing and then this little thing kind of limits you a little bit, that is whats most frustrating.

Briefly: Melvin returned to the Bay Area on Friday to attend to a personal matter, and bench coach Mark Kotsay will handle managerial duties in his absence. Bob is meticulous in preparation, so everything is status quo, Kotsay said. We have our work day planned, the lineup was already set. Im just filling in until he gets back. Angela Sun has been hired as CSN Californias As in-game reporter.

Susan Slusser is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.

As 11, Royals 7

Notable: Jharel Cotton worked 31/3 hitless innings, but he walked Alex Gordon to open the fourth and Gordon scored when Lorenzo Cain tripled off Simon Castro, the first hit the reliever has allowed in five outings.  Non-roster outfielder Jaff Decker exited after a collision at first; acting manager Mark Kotsay said he is fine. Kansas Citys Raul Mondesi, flattened on the play, left with a possible concussion.  Matt Olson homered in the second off ex-As starter Jason Hammel.  Chad Pinder hit a three-run homer in the seventh and Andrew Lambo a two-run shot in the eighth. ... Paul Blackburn gave up five runs in one inning, likely taking him out of the running for the fifth-starter job. ... The As have scored 44 runs in their past three games.

Quotable: I think Im trending upward now as I get more starts under me.

 As starter Cotton.

Saturdays game: As vs. Rangers, 12:05 p.m. Radio: 95.7 FM.

 Susan Slusser
Lars Stenman/Getty Image

A 14-year-old boy was arrested in Santa Rosa on Friday morning after threatening to bring a gun to his middle school and shoot classmates, officials said.

The boy, who had been a target of bullying, told classmates at Willowside Middle School that he would bring a gun to school and shoot them, according to the Sonoma County Sheriffs Office.
A judge ruled Thursday that prosecutors had sufficient evidence to charge a West Baraboo man with attempting to murder a Sauk County deputy with a shotgun last fall.

After a preliminary hearing that included testimony from the deputy, Sauk County Circuit Court Judge Guy Reynolds allowed prosecutors to move forward with the attempted homicide case against 56-year-old William S. Abate.

Sauk County Sheriffs Department Deputy Mark Rabata took the witness stand to answer questions about the Oct. 10 incident, in which prosecutors allege his hand was struck by a pellet from Abates shotgun.

Rabata testified that county dispatchers received a phone call that afternoon from an individual who said he wanted officers to shoot him. The deputy and three other officers arrived on scene, equipped with non-lethal weapons typically used in such circumstances.

Once inside the apartment hallway, Rabata took the lead in approaching Abates apartment door. He said he heard loud music blaring.

Rabata testified that Abate opened the door holding a handgun, and then closed it after the two noticed each other. About a minute later, the deputy said, Abate again opened the door briefly.

By this time, Rabata testified, he had taken cover about 10 feet from the door and called for Abate to come out with his hands up. After abate closed the door a second time, the deputy said, he heard a locking sound.

Shortly after I heard that locking sound I heard kind of what I describe as a loud explosion, and the hallway was filled with debris at that time, Rabata said.

Rabata testified that a shotgun blast went through Abates apartment door, and was angled in his direction. He said he fled the building and later discovered a pellet wound on his hand.

Abate later gave himself up following negotiations with another officer, Rabata testified, and was interviewed by a detective. During that interview, Abate allegedly said it was his day to die and that he believed he had killed an officer, although not intentionally.

Reynolds found probable cause to believe Abate committed a felony and bound him over for arraignment. He faces up to 60 years in prison if convicted.

Abate wore a black suit and glasses as he sat next to his attorney during Thursdays court hearing. Yes I do, Abate said softly when Reynolds asked if he understood the possible penalty.

Abate stood mute to the charges and Reynolds entered a not guilty plea on his behalf. The case is set for a scheduling conference April 3.
It was the kind of a day kids used to dream of when our horizons did not include cyberspace. I was aboard the Queen Elizabeth, a big cruise ship far out on the blue Pacific, hundreds of miles from the nearest land. The newspaper office was 5,000 miles away. We had crossed the international dateline and the equator. The night before the clouds had cleared and I could see the Southern Cross, five bright stars not visible in our part of the planet.

But there was trouble a couple of decks down, in a room full of computer terminals. I overheard one of the passengers, an Englishman, sum it up. Blast, he said, Ive been trying all day and cant get on the Internet. So suddenly it was a mid-20th century day: no cell phone, no Instagram, no Twitter, no Skype. Sometimes even the stateroom television would flicker off. We really were on the far side of the world.

It all was sorted out in a day or so, of course. Some kind of satellite muddle, we supposed. But it was fun while it lasted, like being at sea in the old days, 40 years ago. We always say the world is getting smaller, but it really is large beyond imagining. You realize it on a ship, where it takes a day to travel the same distance an airliner can do in an hour.

We sailed more than 2,000 miles from San Francisco to Honolulu without seeing another ship or a living thing, not even a bird. It was the same for 2,265 miles between Maui and Apia in Samoa.

Carl Nolte / The Chronicle

We arrived in Apia just about sunrise. Its a small city ringed by green hills. We were there only for a day, just a glimpse of the South Seas  a warm place, palm trees, men wearing skirts, schoolgirls in bright uniforms. Apia is the capital of an independent nation of two big islands and eight smaller ones, just over 1,000 square miles of land with a population of about 183,000  fewer people than Yolo County in California.

Some of us took the standard tour  to an open market where coconuts, pineapples and flimsy shoes made in China were sold, to the big new Catholic cathedral, past some upscale hotels and somewhat more modest houses, and up a winding road to Valima, where Robert Louis Stevenson lived his last years in a beautiful big white house.

We sailed by the kingdom of Tonga without stopping  the wind and currents were said to be unfavorable  and four days later the ship dropped anchor in the harbor of Auckland, the metropolis of New Zealand.

Ryan Pierse / Ryan Pierse / Getty Images

We went on from there to the Bay of Islands, at the northern tip of New Zealand, then 1,189 more sea miles to Sydney.

New Zealand and Australia are exotic in their own way, especially if you come there after a long voyage by sea. They are English-speaking Pacific islands, with the empty ocean on one horizon and Asia on the other.

The papers and the television news shows are full of their own concerns, as if the rest of the world barely existed.

The two nations seem to be hotbeds of urban quiet. We did not see a single police officer or hear a siren in three days in New Zealand. Sydney was a bit different  it is a sprawling city of 4 million people  but it did not have the edgy feel of an American city.

My faithful companion, the Sailor Girl, noticed it right away. When you walk down the street in San Francisco, you get the idea that something  maybe something unpleasant  is about to happen, she said on an evening stroll in Sydney. You dont get that here.

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.

One other comparison is obvious: You see more street beggars in five minutes in San Francisco than you do in five days in Sydney. There is said to be a homeless problem in Melbourne, but we didnt go there. If there is one in Sydney, it is invisible.

We liked the famous Sydney Opera House, the ferryboats that run all over the bay from the heart of the city, the fish market that makes San Franciscos Fishermans Wharf look like a pale imitation. The fish were fresh, and the crabs were bigger, though they tasted a bit mushy. Even the seagulls seemed to have better manners.

On the other hand, Sydneys skyline is packed with mostly new glass-fronted buildings, making the city look musclebound, like an athlete who lifted too many weights. Though Sydney has a beautiful harbor, the city lacks the grace of the San Francisco skyline.

It was wonderful to sail away over the far horizon, but its good to be back. No place like home.

Carl Nolte is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. His column appears every Sunday. Email: cnolte@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @carlnoltesf
Should the Republicans succeed in scrapping the Affordable Care Act, the countrys health care system will suffer a big setback.

No, Im not referring to the individual mandate, Medicaid expansion and insurance exchanges, the issues that have dominated the public debate so far. Buried in the enormous law are lesser-known provisions that are perhaps far more crucial to the long-term vitality of our health care system than merely expanding coverage.

Since 2010, the law has provided more than $1 billion for evidence-based medicine research, in which doctors and scientists collect and analyze patient data to determine whether treatments actually work. For example, UCSF is conducting a clinical trial of 100,000 women to determine if annual breast cancer screenings can better detect the disease than screenings that factor in a patients genetics and breast density.

But shouldnt we already know which treatments work best, especially when we spend the most per capita on health care in the world? In the United States, doctors often prescribe medicines and procedures based on individual beliefs rather than any gold standard of treatment, because no such standards exist. The result is that patients with the same disease can receive wildly different treatments with wildly different outcomes.

For all of its flaws, the Affordable Care Act was the first serious attempt by the federal government to start to fix this defect. Since Medicare and Medicaid subsidize most health care in the country, the law signaled to the industry that taxpayer dollars are finite, that doctors, hospitals and companies that want to get paid must start to seriously think about which treatments offer the best results for patients.

If the feds dont make this a priority, its hard to imagine that we can seriously reform health care.

Repealing the law will be a setback, said Harry Nelson, a health care consultant and managing partner of Los Angeles law firm Nelson Hardiman. He is also the author of From Obamacare to TrumpCare: Why You Should Care. Until now, the government has been leading the way.

Congress has only recently begun to debate repealing and replacing the law, so anything can still happen. But both House Speaker Paul Ryan and Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price have expressed opposition to the feds getting involved with the research.

This is, obviously, still an evolving situation, Christine Stencel, a spokeswoman for the federal Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, wrote in an email. Many more steps and actions are still to come. Still unknown, she said, are Congress final actions, their timing or how they might affect the agency, which is in charge of administering the money that goes toward evidence-based research.

Despite the nations wealth (or perhaps because of it, as I will later explain), the U.S. health care system is a mess. In 2014, the country spent $9,403 per person on health care, by far the most of any nation, according to the World Bank. By contrast, Canada spent $5,292.

Yet Canadians seem to get more value. In 2015, the average life expectancy of a Canadian man was 80 years, according to the World Health Organization. For women, it was even better: 84 years.

In the United States, the comparable numbers were 77 for men and 82 for women.

The U.S. health care system is the most expensive in the world, but gets really mediocre outcomes, Nelson said.

There are two big reasons for this dysfunction. First, U.S. health care is based on a fee-for-service system; in other words, doctors get paid not for outcomes but for the services they perform. That kind of financial incentive can motivate doctors to offer patients more treatment, not better ones.

If I get paid for doing stuff, then Im going to do more stuff, said Dr. Jeffrey Lobosky, an associate clinical professor at UCSF and director of neurosurgery at Enloe Medical Centers intensive care unit in Chico. He was not referring to himself but rather how the system can produce such a mentality.

The second is a cultural reason. In the United States, we often tend to assume that things that are new, quicker or more expensive are superior to those older, slower or cheaper.

For example, a doctor offers a patient with a bad back two options: surgery to install a next-generation device developed by Medtronic, or taking ibuprofen and going to physical therapy twice a week. Without knowing which works best, many patients may opt for the more radical, costly option.

Thats why the Affordable Care Act established the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, which is funded by taxpayers and a fee on private insurance and self-insured health plans.

Since its inception, the group has spent more than $1 billion on studies that try to determine best practices for treating diseases, according to the institutes most recent annual report. Researchers essentially analyze large pools of data to see if one treatment produces a better result than others.

In 2015, six researchers from UCSF received money to conduct such studies. Dr. Laura Esserman, a professor of surgery and director of the Carol Franc Buck Breast Care Center at UCSF, is one of the recipients.

The institute set up an infrastructure to do vital research, Esserman said. It has put us in a position to really improve our services.

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Esserman is focusing on breast cancer screening. Until recently, doctors normally recommended that women start getting annual mammograms by age 40. But screenings can lead to inaccurate results that often do more damage than good, she said.

For example, a screening might detect a lump, but a follow-up biopsy, which can be invasive and painful, shows the lump is not cancerous. Or doctors might choose to aggressively treat a lump that might not have developed into full-blown cancer.

Not everyone has the same risk, Esserman said.

People dont understand that people are still going to get sick, whether theyre covered or not, she said. Were going to spend the resources to treat them one way or the other, so we might as well spend the resources the right way.

Top Republicans, however, are suspicious of federal management of health care programs. Price, who is a doctor himself, has argued that the government should not interfere with the relationship between doctor and patient. He also fears that the feds will use data from evidence-based studies to deny reimbursements for treatments that might work for some patients.

As a congressman, Price repeatedly introduced legislation to bar the federal government from making payment decisions based on comparative effectiveness research. His bill, the Empowering Patients First Act, also seeks to prevent the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute from releasing any data until after consultation with and approved by relevant physician specialty organizations.

Dr. Robert Pearl, CEO of the Permanente Medical Group, agrees with Price that physicians, not the government, should lead the drive to adopt evidence-based medicine. But Pearl also acknowledges that doctors can be the obstacle to such reform.

Physicians often suffer from availability bias, in which they assume the treatment that immediately comes to mind is the best option, without doing further research, said Pearl, author of Mistreated: Why We Think Were Getting Good Healthcare  And Why Were Usually Wrong.

Thats just how our brains are wired, Pearl said. We rely on anecdotal information from a single patient versus large groups of data.

So far, the debate over replacing the Affordable Care Act has centered on health insurance. But any law that focuses solely on coverage ignores the underlying flaw in the U.S. health care system: that we pay too much for too little.

Its called evidence-based medicine, Pearl said. Whats the alternative? Nonscientific medicine?

Thomas Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: tlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByTomLee
The driver of the car targeted in a shooting on Interstate 80 in Richmond on Thursday remained in critical condition Friday after three suspects, including two juveniles, were arrested, police said.

The shooting was the latest of at least 80 mostly unsolved freeway shootings under investigation across Bay Area highways since late 2015, said Lt. Jason Reardon of the California Highway Patrols Golden Gate Division.

Obviously, its a high number, Reardon said. Its higher than anyone would want.

More for you Shooting wounds 2, closes eastbound I-80 for hours in Richmond

The driver, a 24-year-old man from Pinole, and his passenger, a 24-year-old woman from San Pablo who was in stable condition Friday, were shot multiple times in their Honda Odyssey minivan near San Pablo Avenue as they headed east at a creeping 10 to 15 mph in thick traffic around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, police said.

The victims names were not released, and the shooting was believed to be a targeted, gang-related incident, Reardon said. An off-duty police officer witnessed the shooting, he said.

The driver still may pass away, Reardon said.

Shortly after, Richmond resident Elliot Johnhenry Johnson, 24, and two 17-year-old boys were arrested in connection with the shooting nearby in Richmond, police said.

Prosecutors are reviewing the case and plan to issue charges Monday, Reardon said, adding that Johnson, who was the driver, had a lengthy criminal history and was out of jail on parole at the time of the shooting.

CHP officers closed the eastbound lanes of Interstate 80 in the Richmond area for about five hours as they investigated the shooting.

In May, during a high point in the rash of highway shootings, five East Bay mayors wrote to Gov. Jerry Brown requesting state funding to install cameras throughout the highway system to end the use of our freeways as a battle ground.

In the letter, the mayors of Richmond, Hercules, Pinole, San Pablo and El Cerrito said that shootings along Interstate 80 and Highway 4 in Contra Costa County had reached crisis proportions, referring to the deaths and injuries of innocent drivers caught in the crossfire.

Police say that criminals follow their targets onto the Bay Areas freeways in part because of the lack of cameras there.

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Pittsburg and San Pablo have installed cameras and some license plate readers, CHP Officer John Fransen said. He said Caltrans has been expediting permits.

The state continues to work cooperatively with local police chiefs and mayors, law enforcement, the FBI, the district attorney and others to come up with potential solutions, he said.

In an interview Friday, Richmond Mayor Tom Butt said that while theres no downside to installing cameras, he was not sure they would serve as the most effective deterrent.

Butt said that the highways, patrolled by the CHP and kept up by Caltrans, are under the jurisdiction of the state  and any shootings on them are the states responsibility.

I would like to see those cameras out there, and Id like to see the governor pay for it, Butt said. It is his freeway, not ours.

Sarah Ravani and Michael Bodley are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com, mbodley@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @michael_bodley, @sarravani
Attorneys for high-profile political consultant Enrique Pearce delayed his sentencing Friday on child pornography charges hes pleaded guilty to after San Francisco Sheriff Vicki Hennessy put the kibosh on a deal to allow him to serve his punishment at home.

Pearce, once a successful consultant for Mayor Ed Lee and a number of San Francisco politicians, pleaded guilty in December to two counts of distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography, among other charges.

He had hoped to avoid jail time through a plea deal requiring six months of home detention, but Judge Rene Navarro said in court Friday the Sheriffs Department  which has sole authority over where inmates serve sentences  would not allow it.

The court has indicated to you that the alternative home detention is not acceptable, Navarro told Pearce and his attorneys during Fridays court hearing at the Hall of Justice. The sheriff determined Mr. Pearce did not qualify.

A column Friday by The Chronicles Phil Matier and Andy Ross had indicated Navarro may sentence Pearce to home detention, but the ultimate decision hinged on Hennessy, who has the authority to reject or accept such recommendations.

Eileen Hirst, spokeswoman for the Sheriffs Department, said registered sex offenders do not qualify for the program. In addition, crimes based on computer use pose an administrative challenge.

The charges present a supervision issue, Hirst said. With charges of this nature, it is impossible for us to provide the sort of supervision required to make sure he is not accessing his computer to repeat the offense.

Given the new information, Pearces defense attorney Douglas Horngrad called off Fridays scheduled sentencing, saying in court, Back to the drawing board.

Pearce is now left with two options: withdraw his guilty plea and possibly go to trial, or serve jail time.

Prosecutors initially sought state prison time for Pearce, which had since been reduced to six months in county jail, five years of probation and lifetime status as a registered sex offender.

Police raided Pearces Tenderloin apartment in May 2015, where they seized computers that held sadomasochistic images of young boys being held down and raped, according to a court hearing. Lees office quickly ended its $5,000-a-month consulting contract with Pearces Left Coast Communications firm after his arrest.

Deputy District Attorney Alexis Fasteau said Pearce, a 41-year-old attorney at the time, had more than 600 images of minors engaged in sexual conduct, with more than 10 featuring prepubescent minors under 12 years old, and several showing men injuring children.

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Court records revealed additional details, including allegations that a man police identified as Pearce had a sexually oriented online chat where he told a Walnut Creek man that sharing a boy with another man is really hot to me.

Investigators looking through Pearces phone found more than 100 images of children unaware they were being photographed at spots throughout the city. They were in his preferred age range of 8 to 12, according to Fasteau.

Pearce, whom S.F. Weekly had named as the citys Most Effective Political Consultant in 2012, had also worked for San Francisco Supervisors Jane Kim and Norman Yee.

His next hearing is set for April 7.

Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno
Sam Salfiti, owner of Save-More Market in the Western Addition, is accustomed to the double take.

People wander into the convenience store and pause for a few seconds, letting their vision adjust to its dim gray light. Some head to the refrigerated drinks case that spans the left wall. Some ask about the ATM  currently broken  and leave. Others dive into a forest of boxes and wire shelves to forage for Oreos.

First-time visitors who know anything about bourbon, though, notice the bottles of brown spirits behind the register and freeze.

Labels like High West Double Rye and George Dickel 17 Year, which dont often appear amid Flamin Hot Cheetos and packs of Winstons, tend to have that effect on whiskey drinkers. Then they tilt their head to get the measure of Save-Mores whiskey selection, spy floor-to-ceiling shelves of bottles extending all the way to the back of the store. Thats when the double take happens.

Sometimes it encompasses the stores owner, a genial, soft-spoken man in his 50s with slightly askew wire-rimmed glasses. Salfiti has assembled one of the largest bourbon collections in the city. He also knows most San Franciscans have no idea.

Salfiti has spent most of his life in the Bay Area, and most of his Bay Area life working in his familys convenience stores. He began helping out his father at Pearl Market on Divisadero and Eddy, located on the northern end of Divisaderos long strand of bodegas run by Palestinian Americans. A decade ago, Salfiti and his father, who has since died, took over Save-More Market on Divisadero and McAllister.

Green Earth Natural Foods is located across the street, the Transfer is kitty-corner, and Salfiti figured that a busy corner could support three corner markets only if each specialized. I figured we were going to do it different, he says. A little more high end, a bigger selection. Ten years ago was the beginning of bourbon booming in San Francisco, so specialized.

Salfiti started doing research on wine, beer and whiskey, studying ratings and upgrading the bottles in his case. His distributors took notice, introducing him to new craft distillers and inviting him to attend San Franciscos annual Whiskey Fest to discover new producers.

About seven years ago, he learned that many bourbon distillers will sell a vendor a single barrel or private blend, bottling it exclusively for the store or restaurant. The notion appealed to Salfiti, who likes to buy a good thing in bulk and stash it in his cavernous basement so he can pass the savings on to customers.

We started with Buffalo Trace, and it took off, he says. The first day, people were buying two, three bottles a day. It became very successful.

Liz Hafalia/The Chronicle

That was the origin of the sign that really piques the already surprised customers attention: Sams Private Whiskey Collection. Right now, his private collection numbers about 10 exclusive bottlings: It includes a 12-year George Dickel, several Four Roses single-barrel batches, a 10-year Henry McKenna, and a High West Double Rye aged in a Manhattan barrel. All have labels pasted on them: BOTTLED FOR SAVE-MORE SAM SALFITI.

Usually, distillers will send him samples from six barrels, and hell invite his whiskey friends over to help him pick one; this nets him about 10 to 15 cases, not to mention an empty barrel. (My house is full of them, he says.) In October 2016, though, Woodford Reserve flew Salfiti and his wife out to Kentucky to tour the major distilleries. The Salfitis drove to Heaven Hill and Dickel and Four Roses, all the labels hed carried on his shelves for years, where he learned about mash bills and yeast strains. At Woodford, he picked out two of the oldest samples he was proffered, and the company blended them for him.

International demand for bourbon these past few years, however, is so feverish that the distilleries are halting or slowing their barrel programs. That doesnt mean private bottlings are impossible to find: K&L Wines and D&M both carry a few. Nate Breed, who runs Healthy Spirts legendary American whiskey buyers club, secures plenty of rarities to pass along to club members.

Save-Mores selection, though, is unknown even to pros. For an off-the-radar store to have 10-plus selections is really remarkable, writes Erik Adkins, bar director at the Slanted Door Group, who currently has 11 exclusive bottlings at Hard Water, the groups nationally known bourbon bar.

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Salfiti doesnt talk about his selection with the same erudite connoisseur-speak as the citys best-known bourbon experts do. Its not clear whether Save-Mores selection is curated quite as thoroughly as the ones at Healthy Spirits or Hard Water. But the bottles at Save-More move more slowly, too, advertised only in rare Facebook posts, and Salfiti has a big stash squirreled away in that basement.

Save-More doesnt shy from stocking spiced rum and $10 bottles of Evan Williams. Its a neighborhood store, not a temple to craft spirits. Salfiti likes to point out his low prices. He also secrets anejo mezcals worth hundreds of dollars amid the Tequilas and a few $300 bottles of Opus One on his wine shelf.

Liz Hafalia/The Chronicle

The whiskey fan who does a double take at first sight of Salfitis collection (ahem) may ask him if he ever gets his hands on Pappy Van Winkle, the Pliny the Younger of Kentucky bourbons. He admits a few bottles come his way each year. But they go to regular customers, ones who know the good thing theyve finally found.

Jonathan Kauffman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jkauffman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jonkauffman

Save-More Market, 598 McAllister St. (at Divisadero), San Francisco; (415) 567-8580.
Over the past year, the Instant Pot has skyrocketed to cult-like status. In July, during Amazons second annual Prime Day sales event, it was the biggest seller among Amazon Prime members, who in one day bought more than 215,000 Instant Pot 7-in-1 Multi-Functional Pressure Cookers ($99 on Amazon). The thrill hasnt faded  it remains the online shopping sites best seller in the Home & Kitchen category.

Touted as practically foolproof, fans of the multi-use programmable pressure cooker  which can, in theory, make everything from beef stew to rice pudding in record time  have hailed it as the be-all and end-all of kitchen appliances.

Yet despite these glowing online reviews, and that my own home-cook friends cant stop singing the gadgets praises, Ive been hesitant to try out the Instant Pot. (Pressure cooker horror stories Ive heard over the years of hapless home cooks suffering second-degree burns or exploded strawberry jam dripping down kitchen cabinets  were enough to instill in me a lifelong aversion.)

But for St. Patricks Day, I decided to succumb to the pressure (sorry) and finally give the Instant Pot a crack by cooking the holidays most symbolic dish, corned beef. For good measure, and a bit of competitive fun, I also tested two Chronicle archive recipes for corned beef that used two different cooking methods for the dish  classic stove-top (boiled) and oven-roasted  to compare and contrast flavor, texture and cooking time.

Classic stove-top

For the stove-top version (see recipe), I tracked down a Chronicle archive recipe from 1995. Of the three methods, this was by far the most straightforward. At roughly three-plus hours from start to finish, it also took the most time to cook.

Its also the closest to how I  and probably most folks  grew up eating corned beef each St. Patricks Day. Essentially, its just throw the meat in a pot and cook in simmering water for several hours until tender. My mom (who will admit shes not the worlds best cook) would throw in the carrots, potatoes and cabbage at the same same as the meat, resulting in mushy-beyond-recognition vegetables; this version, thankfully, adds the vegetables during the final 15 minutes of cooking.

As far as no-frills preparation goes, the results were pretty much as you would expect. While indeed tender, the simmered meat was the palest and least attractive of the three versions. It also yielded the saltiest and most basic flavor. The vegetables were very, very tender  a hairs breadth from overcooked  and tasted rather flat. The recipes suggestion of drizzling the vegetables with melted butter and chopped parsley would certainly help spruce it up. While theres nothing wrong with the overall dish per se, this was our least favorite version.

Sarah Fritsche/Sarah Fritsche/The Chronicle

Oven roasted

Here, the meat was low-roasted at 350 degrees for roughly two hours, then finished with a quick blast of heat from the broiler until deep golden and gorgeous; not surprisingly, this preparation yielded the most elegant presentation. (See recipe.)

Blanching the brined meat twice before roasting, which removes some of the meats saltiness, also resulted in a more mellow corned beef flavor. Tasters said it had a well-seasoned prime rib-like flavor. This recipe also calls for slathering the fat cap with Dijon thats been mixed with ground-up spices from the corned beefs spice packet  perhaps unfair to compare against the other more humble variations  which added a delightful depth and complexity. That said, the meat was the chewiest of the trio, though still delicious. The vegetables were al dente, with a slightly caramelized flavor that was accented by the mustard rub. The roasted vegetables were our favorite of the three methods.

Russell Yip/The Chronicle

Instant Pot: The winner

While I was skeptical, Ive got to hand it to Instant Pot. This corned beef was our team of tasters favorite by far. (See recipe.)

Though not a rich, deep brown like the roasted version, the meat and fat cap had a pleasant golden color that was still appealing. The texture was similar in some respects to slow-cooked pork belly  with a silken, almost melty layer of fat to contrast the rich, succulent, almost spoon-tender meat. Flavor-wise, our group thought the corned beef flavor was more rich and concentrated. In terms of the vegetables, these were by far the softest. While the cabbage and potatoes were fairly plain, the carrots took on a beautifully sweet and creamy quality that reminded one of the tasters of carrots made in his sous-vide machine. Both the meat and vegetables were cooked in a mixture of equal parts water and chicken stock.

Though the Instant Pot was the clear winner, I will say that the time-saving aspects so many have raved about are a bit misleading  at least in this preparation. While the actual cook time for the meat was 55 minutes, it took the machine about 20 minutes to come up to pressure before the cooking countdown even began, and another 25 minutes to depressurize using the natural release method. For the vegetables, I used the suggested quick release method to depressurize the Instant Pot, which cut down on time, but I still had to wait roughly 20 minutes for the whole thing to come up to pressure before the three minutes of cooking started. Although it may take less time than the stove-top and roasted versions, it doesnt necessarily make it ideal for a weeknight meal.

Ultimately, cooking with the Instant Pot was fun, and I am curious to experiment with its other functions, like browning meat and making congee. When it comes to corned beef, in the future, I think Ill take a mix-and-match approach, cooking the meat and carrots in the Instant Pot and oven-roasting the potatoes and cabbage. As with all cooking, when it comes to the Instant Pot, its all really about experimentation and learning what works best for you.

Do you have favorite Instant Pot recipes you make at home? Let us know.

Recipe: Stovetop Corned Beef & Cabbage Dinner

Recipe: Roast Corned Beef With Cabbage, Onions & Carrots

Recipe: Instant Pot Corned Beef & Cabbage

Sarah Fritsche is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sfritsche@sfchronicle.com Twitter/Instagram: @foodcentric
As a candidate and now as president, Donald Trump has displayed an authoritarian streak unrivaled in American history. His dystopian description of the state of the nation and his declaration that I, alone, can fix it at the Republican convention in July evoked the fearmongering and narcissism of many strongmen before him. The lock her up chants he savored and stoked at campaign rallies raised unsettling reminders of regimes where jailing a vanquished opponent is step one in a transition of power.

Any hope that the assumption of the presidency would somehow temper Trump, and heighten his appreciation of its covenant with our democracy, vanished soon after his taking the oath of office.

His most insidious tirade to date  and there is no shortage of contenders for that distinction  was his March 4 series of early morning tweets that accused his predecessor, Barack Obama, of ordering the wiretapping of Trump Tower while Trump was a candidate. The seriousness of this allegation cannot be overstated. If true, Obama would have been guilty of a clearly impeachable offense. If its not true  and no credible supporting evidence has been presented to date  the president has falsely accused a political adversary of a criminal act, the type of rough justice seen in countries with no regard for the rule of law.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said on CNN last Sunday, You make up something and then you have the press write about it, and then you say everybodys writing about this charge ... its the tool of an authoritarian.

Even Republicans have been keeping their distance from an unsubstantiated charge that the Obama team has emphatically denied. Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., has demanded that the White House provide more information to Congress to assess the constitutionality and legality of charges with serious implications. Said Sasse: We are in the midst of a civilization-warping crisis of public trust, and the presidents allegations ... demand the thorough and dispassionate attention of serious patriots.

This episode cannot be separated from the larger context of Trumps continuing attacks that undermine public confidence in the pillars of our democracy. He has challenged the notion that this nation has fair elections (warning beforehand that they would be rigged for Hillary Clinton, then complaining afterward that illegal voting gave her the popular vote), an impartial judiciary (once questioning whether an American-born judge of Mexican descent could fairly hear the lawsuit against Trump University, then disparaging a Republican-appointed judge who rejected his administrations travel ban from seven Muslim-majority nations), an independent media (trashing respected organizations as fake news, belittling protesters of his inauguration and disparaging the U.S. intelligence apparatus (and then suggesting the media cooked up the controversy he clearly initiated).

Trumps serial untruths, sowing fear and confusion, and attempts to delegitimize critical oversight  whether from the judiciary or the media  are right out of an autocrats starter kit. Trump is hardly the first leader to attach the words enemy of the people to real or perceived adversaries (Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin invoked the phrase) or refer to the press as the opposition (Argentinas Nestor Kirchner and Uruguays Tabare Ramon Vazquez beat the White House to the punch on that one).

Trumps allies are quick to excuse his provably false declarations and caustic disparagement of those who are dedicated to exposing or restraining executive overreach as Donald being Donald, the new norm of an unorthodox presidency. But this recklessness comes at a cost. No democracy is invincible; self-governance depends on the citizenrys faith in the probity of the systems that support it.

Donald Trumps whole narrative has been to foster distrust of government institutions, said Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor who specializes in election law and governance issues. His message, she said, is you cant trust anyone but him. When that happens, she said, it leads to a feeling of helplessness among the citizenry.

Levinson would add a president who tries to lose public confidence in truthful reporting and government institutions to gerrymandering and the outsize role of money in politics as causes of voter disenchantment. It was little wonder that half of Americans who were registered to vote in November failed to do so, even with the prospect that the next president could choose up to four seats on the U.S. Supreme Court and define its direction for generations.

When voters feel helpless, they become disengaged. Its apparent among the Americans who may not have strong ideological views or partisan loyalties who have become alienated by what they regard as the negativity in politics.

The truth is, (Trump) wins if we become disengaged, Levinson said. The bright side, she added, has been that the Trump presidency has led to an uptick in civic engagement.

To paraphrase revolutionary philosopher Thomas Paine, these are the times that try Americans resolve.

John Diaz is The San Francisco Chronicles editorial page editor. Email: jdiaz@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JohnDiazChron

President Trumps dismissiveness of some of the defining elements of a democracy

On the electoral process

On the judiciary

On the news media

On the presidency

On dissent

On U.S. intelligence
Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

Amid the deluge of public outrage that has justifiably followed last months flooding in San Jose, city officials have taken the blame for failing to give thousands of residents timely warning  sort of.

Even as Mayor Sam Liccardo, City Manager Norberto Duenas and other San Jose officials have publicly accepted responsibility in the wake of the disaster, they have been noticeably quick to deflect it, particularly toward the Santa Clara Valley Water District.
With the most drivers and the dirtiest air, California needs stringent rules to curb tailpipe emissions, a goal that does double duty in also limiting climate change. But the Trump administration is close to shredding those ambitions both here and across the nation.

The looming decision from Washington is a bow to the auto industry, which often resists directives on its business, and a reflection of President Trumps general disdain for overly prescriptive government regulation. But if Californias emission and mileage goals are junked, it would be huge loss that harms health, increases pollution and undercuts this states leading-edge climate change policies.

The showdown is about to get noisy. By cutting off a waiver that California has had for decades to craft its own mileage standards for cars and pickups, the White House is certain to inflame a brewing war with Sacramentos Democratic leaders. Gov. Jerry Brown, legislators and Attorney General Xavier Becerra are spoiling for fights with the Trump team.

Spiking fuel standards that touch on climate change would definitely ignite the political wars. A move by the Trump administration to undo Californias progress will bring on legal action, too.

Since the federal Clean Air Act was passed in 1970, California has morphed into a testing lab when it comes to its near 30 million vehicles. Electric cars, hybrids and high-mileage rolling stock are in wider use here than anywhere else. Any carmaker who wants to do business in California needs to offer an alternative vehicle to the conventional gas-burning kind.

The battle against smog, dating back to the 1950s, has widened in recent years as the state has moved on the emissions that clog the atmosphere and heat up temperatures. California is headed toward cutting greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2030, a 40 percent drop. If the state could pull off that feat, it would be a powerful example for the rest of the nation  and world.

Other states are tiptoeing along by copying the tailpipe rules and pressuring automakers to improve their showroom offerings. As California goes, so goes the nation. That trend isnt lost on manufacturers or the Trump team, dotted with climate change doubters.

Under President Obama this progress toward high-mileage vehicles and clean energy ramped up. His administration set standards that require cars and small trucks to average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025, up from about 36 miles per gallon today.

Detroit went along with the goal but now it wants out, saying the engineering is too hard for popular sport utility vehicles, gas prices have dropped and car buyers arent sold on fuel-sipping models.

In a letter to Scott Pruitt, the new head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, a coalition of car companies said canceling the Obama mileage rules may be the single most important decision the EPA has made in recent history. Foreign auto firms sent a similar message.

These companies arent worried just about California, big as it may be. As other states adopt similar mileage rules, the acceptance of high-mileage rules is growing. By one estimate, the Sacramento regulations affect some 130 million people in other states borrowing the goals.

These stakes are why California legislators are alarmed at what the Trump team may do. At Pruitts confirmation hearing, he avoided tipping his hand on whether he favored letting California go its own way via a federal waiver. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., said his refusal to be pinned down was unacceptable and one reason for her vote against his appointment.

A federal waiver, tailpipe figures and mileage stickers on new-car windows may sound wonky. But the transportation sector, dominated by everyday drivers, contributes a third of this nations emissions of the heat-trapping greenhouse gases blamed for climate change.

California should be allowed to experiment and invoke its own rules. Taking away that right would be a mistake that will punish drivers, the environment and a healthy future.

if needed
If you often feel tempted to spout, or even just subscribe to, liberal pieties about gender dynamics in developing countries, Danai Guriras Eclipsed offers a salutary reality check.

Thats not to say that seeing the drama, set in a rebel camp during the Second Liberian Civil War, feels like an act of duty. Whats most striking about this play, which opened Thursday, March 9, as the second full production in the newly renovated Curran, is that it doesnt single out any of its five female characters as its mainspring, the focal point around which everyone else orbits.

All five women, four of them the wives of a single unseen commanding officer, get to make life-and-death decisions that drive the play, that fall in that elusive dramatic sweet spot: No choice feels like a foregone conclusion. You cant predict who will try to escape her degradation, and when and why, nor who will respond to violence with violence of her own. Yet in retrospect, each decision reveals itself as the inevitable next step of artfully constructed character and circumstance. Strung together, those choices have the pared-down but inexorable forward motion of Greek tragedy.

Eclipsed has already made history as the first play to premiere on Broadway whose cast and creative team were all women of color. Additionally, its director, Liesl Tommy, who reprises her role at the Curran, was the first woman of color to garner a Tony nomination for direction of a play.

Just as noteworthy as those milestones is the agency Gurira grants her female characters  still too rare a quality in contemporary theater  and the shades of nuance Tommys ensemble of five bring to their interpretations, even as the wives call themselves only Number One, Number Two, etc., referring to the order in which the commanding officer took them.

Watch as the latest captive wife, Number Four, also known as the Girl, returns from being raped for the first time, communicating the horror of the act all the more forcefully in showing only its aftermath. As played by Ayesha Jordan, she stands unsteadily, hesitatingly scratching a thigh, less because of an itch than as part of a doomed effort to locate whats changed in her. Her vacant stare is that of a mortally wounded animal; she is a being sapped of the spirit that had hitherto animated her.

Equally superb is Akosua Busia as Rita, a member of the Liberian Women Initiative for Peace who visits the wives, exhorting them to name themselves, to say aloud the name your mother and father gave you, in an effort to restore their sense of worth, to help them remember a time before war. But her motives are just as selfish as they are humanitarian, and Busia manifests Ritas crisis of conscience with a little girls diffident physicality. Especially before the indomitable Number One (Stacey Sargeant), who sees herself as her own sort of commanding officer, and the snippy Number Two (Adeola Role), whos abandoned her role as wife for what she argues is a more liberating life as a soldier, Rita, who apparently has more status, education and freedom, is like a guilty child apologizing, begging for mercy, for a crime only she knows about.

To these complex characterizations Tommy adds lighting (by Jen Schriever) and sound (by Broken Chord) that make more explicit and potent the ghastliness of war that the script itself keeps understated. Red light will flash through an already smoldering backdrop palette, or a subwoofer-fueled chord will herald the horrors to come in the second act.

Tommys Eclipsed assaults the senses, and thats part of the point: No longer is the world of this play one Western audiences can look away from or make stereotypes about.

Lily Janiak is The San Francisco Chronicles theater critic. Email: ljaniak@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LilyJaniak

Eclipsed: Written by Danai Gurira. Directed by Liesl Tommy. Through March 19. $29-$140. Curran Theatre, 445 Geary St., S.F. Two hours 10 minutes. (415) 358-1220. www.sfcurran.com

To see an interview between producer Wally Hays and director Liesl Tommy: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRIMlop6uHk

To see a tour of the newly renovated Curran: www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSBImzizsuo

To see an interview with playwright Danai Gurira: www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY0mE5jX6rM
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Jeri and Doak Gintert are the first to acknowledge being the luckiest people in the Bay Area on Friday night.

Not only did they win the SHN ticket lottery for the first showing of Hamilton, the $10 tickets were closer to the shows climactic duel than some cast members get.

I bought the tickets  thinking that we might have obstructed views, or that we might be separated. We have center stage, Row 2, Jeri Gintert said. I screamed. I thought my daughter was playing a trick, and he thought it was a hoax. Until we got tickets here, we had no idea it was real.

Front row or back, the 2,200 or so people with the first San Francisco Hamilton tickets were feeling more than satisfied. Friday nights performance at the Orpheum Theatre was the first of two weeks of shows before the official press opening on March 23. Hamilton has a run through Aug. 5.

Renee Jossen and 11-year-old daughter Avery were so enthusiastic about their Hamilton tickets, their response came out in stereo.

Im excited! they exclaimed simultaneously, just minutes after learning their tickets were in the eighth row.

The mood outside the first showing of Hamilton was its own kind of theater, filled with broadcast media trucks, curious onlookers and ticket-holders who still couldnt believe their fortune  even though most got their tickets in December.

The musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda, about the life of founding father Alexander Hamilton, premiered in New York in 2015. It won 11 Tony Awards in 2016, plus a Pulitzer Prize for drama. A very tough ticket in New York, it has been no easier in San Francisco  arguably exceeding the hype surrounding the SHN-hosted run of The Book of Mormon and, further back in the day, The Phantom of the Opera, which sat down here for five years.

There was a festival atmosphere as fans gathered in front of the theater before the doors opened at 7:20 p.m. for the 8 p.m. showing, taking photos in front of the murals on the side of the 91-year-old Market Street theater.

Hamilton superfan Grace McNally, 17, showed up in period clothing including a blue George Washington-style coat that she wore for Halloween. McNally said she has been obsessively listening to the album for about a year.

Im freaking out, she said. My legs are shaking. Im so excited. This whole thing doesnt feel real yet.

A few feet away, brothers Jordan and Justin Corley, ages 16 and 14, had differing levels of enthusiasm.

Honestly, Ive been hyped since we got the tickets, Jordan Corley said. The soundtrack was amazing.

Justin, less of a fan but still having a good time, confirmed that the tickets, a Valentines Day gift from their parents, made an impact with his brother.He freaked out, Justin Corley said. He went crazy. He was like jumping over the walls.

Off to the side, Janae Corley may have been having the best time of all.

Its hard to make teenagers happy, but if you can do that with theater tickets, thats a family win, she said. My kids want to spend the night with me on a Friday night, and be in the city and just be a part of all of this. I cant think of anything better.

Peter Hartlaub is The San Francisco Chronicles pop culture critic. Email: phartlaub@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @PeterHartlaub

Hamilton: Scheduled SHN run through Aug. 5. Ticket information and more: www.hamilton.shnsf.com
Wildlife biologists are searching the craggy wilderness and rolling pastures of Northern California for seven missing gray wolves that thrilled environmentalists and frightened ranchers after becoming the first wolf pack to make the state home in nearly a century.

The family, known as the Shasta Pack, disappeared from southeastern Siskiyou County over the past year, mystifying state biologists who said it is unusual for the canine pack hunters, also known as timber wolves, to abandon established territory.

None of the gray wolves  who despite their name sport distinctive black coats  have been seen since May 2016 when researchers confirmed the presence of a lone juvenile in the rural region, which is a mix of public and private property.

Were reasonably confident that last year they did not use the same area as a pack as they did the year before, and we dont know why, said Pete Figura, a senior environmental scientist for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Why they were not detected anywhere else this past summer we dont have a clear explanation for.

Figura said there are a number of possible explanations  including migration to a new region with more prey  but research has shown that most wolf packs cling to and protect their breeding grounds, especially during the summer. He acknowledged, though, that this behavior has generally occurred in areas with multiple packs, which is not the case in mostly wolf-free California.

The state has genetic samples of each member of the Shasta Pack, so members can be identified by testing fur or scat, Figura said.

Black wolves were spotted in the late spring and summer of 2016 in southern Oregon, Figura said, but no evidence was found that would help biologists determine their identity. Fresh wolf tracks were also spotted in late January about 10 miles from the packs Siskiyou County stomping grounds.

We detected some tracks and collected some scat and are awaiting DNA analysis, he said. It could have been a member of the Shasta Pack or a completely different animal. We dont know at this time.

Then again, it is no secret that the muscular predators were not exactly received with open arms in Siskiyou County, where some ranchers have threatened to employ the three Ss  shoot, shovel and shut up  if any of the sharp-toothed meat-eaters got near their livestock.

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The Shasta Pack is believed to have killed and eaten a calf in November 2015, the first reported case of livestock predation by wolves since their return to California, further raising tensions. That was also the last time the entire pack was known to be together.

Figura said he has no evidence to suggest the wolves were killed in retaliation. Unfortunately, none of the animals was wearing a radio collar, so movements can only be followed by relying on sightings and trail cameras, following tracks or collecting scat.

The presence of Canis lupus in California comes decades after the last known native California wolf was trapped and killed in Lassen County in 1924. The first wolf to enter the state since then was OR-7, a radio-collared animal from Oregon that dispersed from the Imnaha Pack and crossed the border in late 2011.

OR-7 created a sensation when he traveled 2,500 miles through seven counties. Then, in 2013, OR-7 returned to southwestern Oregon, where he found a mate. Now almost 8, he has had litters of pups for three consecutive years and is the leader of the Rogue Pack. They are among 110 wolves in 15 packs in Oregon, many of which are dispersing into the southwestern part of the state, near the border.

Wolves were listed as endangered in California in 2014 just as the federal government was removing protections in the Northern Rockies and Western Great Lakes. Oregon delisted their wolves in 2015. California regulators, anticipating the further dismantling of federal laws, have since developed a comprehensive wolf conservation plan emphasizing the use of nonlethal methods of control.

Besides the Shasta Pack, two wolves were confirmed in Lassen County last summer. The male was identified as the son of OR-7, but so far there is no evidence of any pups.

As the first confirmed wild wolf family in California in nearly a century, the significance of (the Shasta) pack cannot be emphasized strongly enough, said Amaroq Weiss, the West Coast wolf organizer for the Center for Biological Diversity. The fact of no sightings of this wolf family  despite being an all-black pack and thus highly notable when spotted  is extremely troubling.

Weiss fears the animals will suffer the same fate as an Oregon wolf that was killed by poison laid out for coyotes Feb. 26 in northeastern Oregon. The spring-activated trap, called an M-44, killed the wolf known as OR-48 with cyanide powder after it was set by trappers with the U.S. Department of Agricultures Wildlife Services, prompting an investigation.

Poisoned traps like the M-44 are illegal in California, but Weiss said it is legal for licensed hunters to kill coyotes  or for property owners to shoot or trap them when they prey on or threaten livestock.

The point is it is really, really common for people who encounter wolves to think they are coyotes and shoot them, Weiss said.

Weiss said accidental killing and poaching of wolves are disturbingly common in Wisconsin and throughout the Northern Rockies. In Washington state, she said, one of the first wolf families confirmed there in decades was almost entirely wiped out by poachers.

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.

It is my great fear this may have happened to the Shasta Pack, and my deep hope that this is not the case, she said.

Figura said the Shasta Pack may yet turn up.

Were looking for them, he said. Part of our job and our hope is to keep track of Californias wolves, and we are certainly trying to do that.

Peter Fimrite is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: pfimrite@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @pfimrite

History of wolves

in the west

Up to 2 million gray wolves once lived in North America, including a healthy population in California.

Europeans, fed by big, bad wolf myths, began killing them when they arrived on the continent. By 1900, the creatures synonymous with the wild frontier had been driven to near-extinction in the lower 48 states.

The last known native California wolf was trapped and killed in Lassen County in 1924.

In the mid-1990s, 66 Canadian wolves were released in Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho in an attempt to bring the apex predator back.

Wolves have since spread across the Rocky Mountains, into Idaho, Washington, Oregon and California.

Roughly 5,500 wolves now live in the United States.
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Roy Yamaguchis career-defining personality trait showed up early in life. Just-for-fun potato sack races, for instance, revealed a level of grit not normally seen in grade-schoolers. Growing up on a military base outside of Tokyo, the future chef would also go AWOL, so to speak, in search of a more authentic ramen experience. When he left home at 17, it was to earn money moving military supplies  in those days, lunch was as much mayonnaise as possible on white bread because it was cheaper than rice.

Ive always had a lot of determination, says Yamaguchi, who has stratospherically exceeded the mayo-sandwich era. Although most of his namesake Hawaiian fusion restaurants on the mainland are separately owned and operated, his culinary empire in the Pacific currently numbers 10 restaurants across four Hawaiian islands. Coming later this year are a yet-to-be-determined concept in Kailua on Oahus Windward Coast and separate fine-dining and sushi establishments on the 4,140-passenger MSC Seaside cruise ship.

His latest venture, Humble Market Kitchin, debuted at Marriotts Wailea Beach Resort on Maui in late December. Part of the oceanfront propertys $100 million renovation, the restaurant takes over the space formerly occupied by Sheldon Simeons Migrant Lounge. In a completely refurbished open-air dining room with elegant elements of wood and stone, Yamaguchi dishes up food inspired by his grandfather, who owned a general store and tavern in Wailuku, a blue-collar town in central Maui.

There, a young Yamaguchi spent his summers working in the shop, observing his grandfather and unwittingly collecting inspiration for his future restaurant in a luxury resort on one of the poshest parts of the island.

A lot of my cooking is based on childhood memories, says Yamaguchi of such Humble Market Kitchin menu items as claypot black cod with Chinese sausage and Yamaguchi-style ramen with pork belly, shrimp dumplings and a thick sesame broth. Hearty, rich and intensely flavorful, these internationally inflected dishes epitomize Hawaiian comfort food.

Its also easy to spot working-class origins in such plates as the crispy whole fish served with garlic rice and the Szechuan-spiced baby back ribs, though perhaps more difficult to recognize in the spoon-tender Bourguignon short rib. The Honolulu chef claims it can be traced back to a family recipe for beef stew, though the stylings of his French culinary idols Paul Bocuse and Roger Verge are more evident.

Yamaguchis culinary trajectory started picking up speed when he famously signed up for a home-economics class in high school just to meet girls, but instead discovered a love of cooking. He graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in New York in 1976 before training in French cuisine at such prestigious (and long-shuttered) Beverly Hills restaurants as LEscoffier and LErmitage. While at the latter, he cooked a lobster cassoulet with a life-changing sherry-cream sauce. There is no better source of knowledge for cooking than the understanding of stocks and sauces, he says.

In 1988, Yamaguchi combined his French gastronomy with his island roots to open his first signature restaurant, Roys, in Honolulus Hawaii Kai neighborhood. There are now 26 of these upscale spots across the nation, including one in SoMa in San Francisco.

To varying degrees, all of Yamaguchis restaurants authentically honor the rich culinary traditions of Hawaiis population of immigrants  the sugarcane and pineapple plantation workers of yore who hailed from Portugal, the Philippines, China, Korea and Japan. His Eating House 1849 concept, which debuted on Kauai in 2015 and recently added Oahu branches in Waikiki and Kapolei, features the likes of pork-and-tofu lumpia and a kalbi-style rib-eye.

Yamaguchis reverence for the people who work the land extends to Hawaiis farmers, ranchers and fishermen, particularly Dean Okimoto of Nalo Farms and Brooks Takenaka at the Honolulu Fish Auction. Theyre the ones who are up early, who get their hands really dirty and worry about how they can provide us with great ingredients, says Yamaguchi, who also opened the open-air Roys Beach House at Oahus Turtle Bay Resort last August.

His desire to show off the islands native bounty  which includes taro, breadfruit, opakapaka (Hawaiian pink snapper) and local grass-fed beef  has further inspired him to write three cookbooks, compete on Top Chef Masters and, along with his wife, Denise, establish the Hawaii Food and Wine Festival.

(The festival) showcases the wonderful products that Hawaii has to offer as well as tells a story about the people of Hawaii, said Michelle Karr-Ueoka, pastry chef at MW in Honolulu and previous participant with husband and chef Wade Ueoka.

Now in its seventh year, the autumn event, which takes place across multiple islands, has hosted such culinary headliners as Nancy Silverton, Josiah Citrin and Charles Phan of San Franciscos Slanted Door. They come here, cook with our ingredients, and then they go home and spread the gospel about our food and culture, says Yamaguchi. The festival is really just a ploy to get more good ambassadors for Hawaii.

Leilani Marie Labong writes frequently about Hawaii for The Chronicles Island Style section.

Dining a la Roy

Heres a sampling of where to taste Roy Yamaguchis latest approaches to island-inspired cuisine:

Humble Market Kitchin Marriotts Wailea Beach Resort, Maui. (808) 8799-4655, http://hmkmaui.com.

Eating House 1849, International Market Place Waikiki, Oahu; (808) 924-1849. The Shops at Kukuiula, Koloa, Kauai; (808) 742-5000, www.eatinghouse1849.com.

Hawaii Food & Wine Festival Oct. 20-Nov. 5. Events on the Big Island, Maui and Oahu. www.hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com.

For classic Roys, see www.royshawaii.com
Old wine: Why does it move me?

Everyone has heard that wine improves with age, but Im not so sure that everyone, if presented with it, would like aged wine. A little bit of age, sure  most red wines need about two years in barrel and bottle before theyre palatable. That wine continues to taste better after five more years, after 10 more years, is uncontroversial. But beyond that? At 20 years beyond the vintage date, at 50 years, red wines can convey aromas and flavors that put off a lot of people, even many expert wine tasters.

In fact, its a wonder that anyone, including me, likes the stuff. What begins as bright, juicy and plump  fully of primary flavors, like ripe berries  weathers, over time, into something duller, browner, dried-out, full of tertiary aspects like tobacco and leather. It gets better, arguably, only to get worse, indisputably.

Thats a bad trade. If young wine is like frolicking in a sunny orchard, old wine is like crawling into a dank basement.

Just ask my friends. Recently I brought them a half-full bottle of 1996 Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. To me it was beautiful, a fulfillment of a great 20-year-old Cabernets promise: still firm, with a vibrant core of fruit, but mellowed into a more delicate, fragrant version of its former self  pardon the metaphor  like a potpourri sachet. I was hoping that my friends, who enjoy drinking wine but who definitely dont post on online wine forums or stay up late stalking bottle auctions, would experience an aged-wine epiphany. This is what wine can taste like? theyd say. Ive been missing this all along?

But it tasted weird to them. Like it had gone bad somehow.

If that is the instinctive reaction, then what exactly are the rest of us tasting when we taste a mature wine and feel so weak in the knees that we could keel over at any second from sheer animal pleasure?

Some of it has to be superficial. Maybe we project the aura of an aged wines rarity, and its often-accompanying expense, onto our sensory perception of it. Precious things taste better than ordinary things. The liking-it stakes are higher.

On the other hand, some of the pleasure may be chemical. As it ages, wine can reveal more umami flavor, that nebulously delicious taste sensation. As Master of Wine Tim Hanni has shown, umami contains the amino acid glutamate, which recently has been found to regulate dopamine in the brain. So maybe aged wine  like other glutamate-rich fermented and aged foods like cheese and meat  works on us like a drug.

That doesnt satisfy me, though. The joy of aged wine cant be merely chemical, because I know that it rewards knowledge. This joy began to reveal itself to me only once I began to speak wines language of aroma, flavor and structure. In a cruel paradox, the more old wine disappoints me  and boy, does it love to disappoint  the more Im drawn to it.

Why? This was on my mind a lot last week during several Cabernet tastings in Napa Valley.

First, a tasting of 1986 Bordeaux wines, organized by Larkmead winemaker Dan Petroski, including chateaux La Mission Haut-Brion, Cos dEstournel and Ducru-Beaucaillou. None of them delivered pleasure exactly. Maybe they did a few years ago, but for the most part these wines were now wan, hollow, faded. Four of them seemed to me potentially corked, but this was a matter of debate: Were they corked, or were they just musty? In other words, had they been infected by bacteria that overpowered the wine with the impression of moldy wet cardboard, or did they just taste like moldy wet cardboard on their own?

If youre even having that debate, isnt it game over?

A lot of things can go wrong during 31 years in a glass bottle under a piece of tree bark. A 1986 Ornellaia, a Cabernet-based Super Tuscan that Petroski snuck into the flight, had surrendered to the elements, brutally defeated by volatile acidity. It smelled like ketchup.

Coming off that flight, I found myself impressed the next day by a 1974 Charles Krug Cabernet  granted, probably a better vintage for Napa than 1986 was for Bordeaux  which, though frail and thin, its deep purple color recessed to brick, was still alive. If you squinted, you could still make out some fruit on the middle of your palate. A 1986 Beringer Private Reserve Cabernet was still kicking, too, its fruit evolved into savory flavors of miso and beef jerky, but it couldnt quite make it to the finish line  it seemed clipped, out of breath. (I tasted both of these wines while sitting on a panel led by Kevin Zraly at the Symposium for Professional Wine Writers.)

The Krug and the Beringer wouldnt have passed the test, though. My friends, presented with these bottles, would have thought the wines were spoiled.

The following day (this is not a normal week for me, I swear), I and other writers attended vertical tastings at Inglenook (back to 1978) and Chappellet (back to 1969). The oldest Cabernets at both wineries tasted considerably more youthful than the Charles Krug, the Beringer or any of the Bordeauxs: still dark in color, still dense, tannins still sturdy. Inglenooks 1979 Rubicon had the cool freshness of eucalyptus and the sweetness of fragrant dried herbs. Its 1986 had turned bitter, its fruit receding, but had not let go of its core  olives, soy sauce, pencil lead.

Theres a thing that happens at these sorts of tastings in Napa where everyone waxes nostalgic about how elegant the valleys wines were back in the day, fetishizing a Golden Age that was subsequently destroyed by a new generations preference for higher alcohol levels and richer, riper flavor profiles.

At both Inglenook and Chappellet, it was clear that there had been such a shift in the aughts, when both wineries were producing considerably bigger wines than they did before or since. We felt it was important to modernize, is how Scott McLeod, Inglenooks winemaker from 1992 to 2010, candidly put it. The 1978 Inglenook Rubicon was 13.8%; its 2010 rose to 15%. The 1969 Chappellet clocked in at 12%; the 2004, the ripest-tasting of its flight, 14.9%.

Its tempting to form imperatives from these numbers. Especially since that 12%-by-volume 1969 Chappellet was the best wine of my week  maybe of my life. Napa has never been better than that. The wine was unshakable in its power, yet lacked the brawny tannin structure that seemed to have protected the Inglenooks. Somehow, the 1969 Chappellet felt delicate. Instead of brash blackberries and eucalyptus, it was softer cranberries and violets. Its tannins were leathery, almost sweet. It was quiet, but it wasnt even close to beginning to dim.

The 69 Chappellet was one of those rare old wines that did not disappoint at all, even a little bit, and tasting it was one of those moments that makes all the other old-wine disappointments worth it.

What had preserved it? Acidity helped. The Chappellet wines that seemed to have aged the most gracefully were certainly not the most tannic ones. It must have been a triumph of restraint, the group concluded, of modest alcohol  of elegance.

If only it were that simple. Cyril Chappellet immediately called the theory into question: The alcohol level, though listed as 12%, may have in fact been closer to 14%, according to some recent interviews given by then-winemaker Philip Togni.

So much for the Golden Age.

I left Pritchard Hill no closer to understanding why the wines had lasted, or why they were beautiful. And though we all felt lucky to have gotten the opportunity to taste the 1969 Chappellet, I felt even luckier to have encountered it at this particular moment: a convergence that money or access could not have bought.

Ill never taste the 69 Chappellet again. Had the wine just peaked, or would it endure another 50 years? Maybe its the impossibility of knowing, in the end, that moves us.

John Storey/Special to the Chronicle

Where to drink old Napa Cabernet

Press: Old California is the reason to dine at this St. Helena steak house, where sommeliers Scott Brenner and Kelli White (his fiancee, no longer at the restaurant) assembled a treasure trove of a list. Curiosities like 1986 Stony Hill Gewurztraminer, 1960 Louis Martini Private Reserve Barbera, 1971 Freemark Abbey Petite Sirah and 1977 Schramsberg Reserve from magnum round out the superb Cabernet selection: Chappellet back to 1972, Charles Krug to 1960, Philip Togni to 1983 (his first vintage).

Spruce: Aged Cabernet is just one of the many highlights from wine director Andrew Greens spectacular list in S.F. Look for Dunn Vineyards back to 1982, Shafer Hillside Select to 1986, Spottswoode to 1987 and a 1968 Souverain.

Plumed Horse: The Saratoga restaurant offers Diamond Creek wines as far back as 1983, Dominus from 1985 and Andersons Conn Valley from 1992.

Harris Restaurant: The old-school S.F. steak house has wines to match, including Heitz Marthas Vineyard back to 1978 and Opus One to 1985.

 E.M.
We first spotted Finn Town Chef Ryan Scott's determined positivity on the Bravo TV cooking show, "Top Chef," and later grew to know his food through his former San Francisco restaurants Market & Rye, Mason, and his current food truck, 3 Sum Eats. When Scott's not busy whipping up his ultra-popular burgers at Finn Town, he popping up on The Today Show, The Rachel Ray Show, the Emmy-winning Food Rush, and his own radio show on KGO. Oh, and he sells pots and pans on the Home Shopping Network. (Hey, we've all got bills to pay. Get it, Ryan.)

If his on-screen (and on-air) persona is at all true to life, Scott has the non-stop, energetic positivity of Cory Booker and Lin-Manuel Miranda combined. We simply can't picture this chef in a foul mood. And based on Scott liberal use of exclamation points in this week's "10 Questions with a Local," we're betting he really is this happy all the time. Scott tackles cooking tips, an aversion to calling the cops on his customers, and details a hair routine that rivals a certain former Mayor.
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Madison police are searching for a hit-and-run driver who caused another vehicle to flip over and skid on its roof Friday morning.

A dark or olive green sedan hit another vehicle while making a sudden lane change on the Beltline near Todd Drive around 7:45 a.m., spokesman Joel DeSpain said.

Witnesses told police the sedan may have been a Chevrolet, Buick or Saturn, DeSpain said, and the sedan should have significant front-end damage.

Police closed the center and right eastbound lanes on the Beltline for half an hour after the crash, DeSpain said.

Anyone with information should call Madison Area Crime Stoppers at 608-266-6014.
The massive snowpack in the mountains above Oroville Dam is beginning to melt as temperatures rise and could soon test the troubled reservoir with its biggest inflows since last months crisis.

Managers of the state-run dam say theyll be forced to rely on the lakes damaged main spillway to discharge water down the Feather River as soon as next Friday. The concrete chute, which partially collapsed last month amid heavy outflows, has been offline for repairs for nearly two weeks while reservoir levels have been down.

Officials with the state Department of Water Resources are confident the mangled spillway and the eroded hillside below it can handle the releases as they wait for drier months to make permanent fixes.

But the wild card remains the weather  how much water pours into the lake and how quickly.

Its going to start to get a lot of snowmelt coming in, said Roger Bales, a professor of engineering at UC Merced and director of the Sierra Nevada Research Institute. Depending on the flow rate that you put through there, theres the potential for more damage and more deterioration.

Yes, Im concerned, he said. Everyone has concerns.

Problems at the nations tallest dam began Feb. 7 when a gaping hole emerged on the main spillway. Without the chute fully functional, lake water rose and days later poured over an emergency spillway, eroding the hillside beneath it. Fear that the hill would give way, sending water uncontrollably downstream, prompted the temporary evacuation of nearly 200,000 people.

The worst never came, but questions about why and how both spillways failed remain unresolved.

About 170 state employees alongside as many as 500 contractors have been working 24 hours a day to strengthen the lakes crippled water outlets. Crews have reinforced the concrete main spillway and bolted it to the ground to prevent further collapse, while pouring concrete and laying heavy boulders beneath the emergency spillway to stabilize the scarred hillside.

Repairs have so far cost $100 million, through February, or about $4.7 million a day, according to the state. A long-term fix could be twice as much.

Public safety is paramount, and well be managing the reservoir through the spring runoff season to ensure public safety while we work towards (permanent) repairs, said Department of Water Resources spokeswoman Lauren Bisnett in an email to The Chronicle.

Since the main spillway was taken offline Feb. 27, a move made possible when cool and dry weather limited runoff to the lake, workers have cleared out much of the broken-off concrete that washed from the main chute into the Feather River below  about 803,000 cubic yards of it, officials said.

Removing the concrete allowed operations to resume at the dams hydroelectric plant, which not only produces power but offers another outlet for water releases. The power station was shut down after the debris caused water to pool near the plant and threaten its turbines.

As lake levels begin to rise next week, state officials said, the powerhouse will release as much as 13,500 cubic feet of water per second, while the main spillway will release as much as 40,000 cubic feet of water per second.

While the reservoir can discharge as much as 150,000 cubic feet per second when everythings working properly, the state anticipates that the lower outflow will be sufficient to accommodate the inflow from the mountains  at least in the short-term.

The lake level is expected to rise to 865 feet above sea level by late next week, but no higher. State officials are trying to keep the lake below 901 feet, the point at which water would begin pouring over the emergency spillway again.

Managing the lake level would be tricky this year even without the hobbled spillways. The mountains that feed the Feather River have the most snow theyve accumulated in years, if not decades, promising near-record runoff in coming months.

In fact, Mount Lassen, to the north, has the states biggest snowpack in terms of water content, records show. The snow, which was 238.5 inches deep in the latest snow survey, contains about 118.5 inches of water.

Everybodys hope is that theyll be able to keep up with the snowmelt without putting high flows over the (main) spillway, said Bales, at UC Merced. The big concern would be getting more rain during the snowmelt, because then you would have both coming in.

Kurtis Alexander is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kalexander@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kurtisalexander

What happened at Lake Oroville?

View The Chronicles step-by-step, multimedia look at the crisis at projects.sfchronicle.com/2017/oroville-explainer.
Karin Hibma, 65, is co-founder and principal of brand-strategy consulting firm Cronan in Berkeley, and is best known for coming up with the names for TiVo and Amazons Kindle. Cronan has done work for Apple, Levi Strauss, Estee Lauder and many others. Hibma and her team plumb a clients history and values to home in on a strategic identity for a new product, a new company or to help focus a major change in corporate direction.

An art student in the early 70s at the school now known as Cal State Sacramento, she picked three postings on a job wall for part-time work. The one she chose  a researcher for a commercial art studio  changed my life. There was heavy competition for the position. She figures she was chosen because for other people, it was just a job. For me, it was an adventure. Ive always been enthusiastic about things. I probably communicate that enthusiasm.

She soon moved to the Bay Area, following a young man shed met in Sacramento who was designing rock n roll posters: Michael Cronan, whom she would marry. She introduced him to the graphic design community in San Francisco, which she found very collaborative compared with the cutthroat business surrounding the fine arts.

Hibma began her own business, Design Resource. She pulled together props, sets and research for advertisers, documentary filmmakers and others, raising eyebrows when she showed up at one shoot with a flatbed truck piled with wooden lanes taken from a bowling alley.

She was working for the producer of a Del Monte Foods commercial directed at sports moms. He needed a bowling lane. She knew that the Berkeley Bowl bowling center was being gutted to make room for the now-famous grocery store that still bears its name. She saved the bowling lanes from the junk pile. I made my name with that can-do approach, she said. Design Resources mission was poorly defined, she said, but that meant I could adjust to what anybody needed.

That can-do reputation led to a project researching and writing a Chevron-funded traveling museum exhibit to showcase the creative process of American luminaries in the arts and sciences. She found herself interviewing the likes of Jonas Salk, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Linus Pauling and Judy Chicago.

Collectively, they shared a trait she has consciously applied to her businesses ever since. These people were so curious, so open about learning, so open to their process, she said. When she interviewed Margaret Mead for the project, the groundbreaking anthropologist was intrigued, Hibma recalled, telling her, I want to find out what youre learning from those other people.

Hibma gave birth to the first of two sons in 1980 and closed Design Resource, while her husband opened Cronan Design, a graphic design studio in San Francisco. Some clients werent paying their bills; Hibma came in to collect. She ended up running the business side of the firm. If any guy came in to run the business, everybody would say they were partners, she said. Instead, she was Michaels wife. She didnt think much about it, but on reflection, she said, it illustrates the sexism of the times.

She made sure the company always had cash to grow. While the firm accepted a bit of equity from some startup customers, hard cash was the main form of currency. San Francisco and Silicon Valley are littered with small companies that took equity in lieu of cash and didnt survive.

Around 1985, Estee Lauder was working on plans for a retail chain for its Origin beauty products. Cronan spent two years on creative work for the project  color schemes, designs, packaging. Estee Lauder canceled the project, but the contract Hibma had written prevented Cronan from using its work anywhere else, a hard lesson.

For future jobs, Hibma insisted that intellectual property stay with the firm. I still believe contracts are a litany of the hurts each party has experienced, she said. Sussing out whats really at issue in defensive contract language, she said, usually results in a better deal for all parties.

After her second son arrived, Hibma started a catalog company with contemporary modern apparel for larger men under the brand Walking Man. Michael Cronan, who stood 6-foot-5, had trouble finding high-quality clothing. Enough others did too, and Walking Man become a small but profitable success. Along with Banana Republic, among others, Walking Man helped start the now-prolific business of niche clothing retailing by catalog and eventually online.

At Hibmas suggestion, and with some resistance from her husband, the design firm shifted into corporate branding and identity. Eventually the word Design was dropped from the company name. Customers came from many sectors, from the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art to the U.S. Postal Service to technology companies and banks. Signature work for the firm included not just the names but also the brand identities for TiVo and Amazons Kindle.

After her husband died from cancer in 2013, Hibma was left to run Cronan herself. She had learned a lot from Michael and had contributed plenty of original ideas. Still, she regrets that she hadnt taken the lead more often in client meetings, even as her husband grew more ill. I had been the navigator in the front seat while he drove the car, she said. Now, shes driver and navigator both. She maintains a rotating roster of three to five clients, serves on two boards and as an adviser to five others, and is writing a book, Elegant Questions, Design Answers.

She remains, she said, insatiably curious and enthusiastic.

Russ Mitchell is a Los Angeles Times writer.
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A self-driving car company founded by Google is presenting new evidence to support allegations that a former manager stole technology that was sold to Uber to help the ride-hailing service build its own robot-powered vehicles.

Waymo, a project hatched by Google eight years ago, wove its tale of alleged deceit in sworn statements filed Friday in federal court in San Francisco.

The documents try to make a case that former Waymo manager Anthony Levandowski conceived a scheme to heist key trade secrets before leaving the company early last year to form an autonomous vehicle startup that he had been discussing with Uber.

Its the latest salvo in a battle that started last month when Waymo sued Levandowski and Uber for alleged theft of the technology for lidar, sensors that enable self-driving cars to see whats around them so they can safely navigate roads. Experts say an effective lidar system typically takes years to develop.

After leaving Waymo, Levandowski started a self-driving truck company called Otto that Uber bought for $680 million to accelerate an expansion into autonomous vehicles.

Uber brushed off Waymos claims as a baseless attempt to slow down a competitor.

Waymo is mounting its attack with the help of one of Levandowskis former colleagues, Pierre-Yves Droz, the leader of Waymos lidar project.

In a sworn statement, Droz said Levandowski confided in January 2016 that he planned to replicate Waymos technology at Otto. A Google forensics expert said he determined that Levandowski began downloading thousands of files containing Waymos trade secrets in December 2015, according to another sworn statement.

More for you Waymo sues Uber for allegedly stealing self-driving secrets

Levandowski had previously acknowledged to Droz that he began discussing self-driving cars with Uber in 2015, according to the filing. Levandowski, told me that it would be nice to create a new self-driving car startup and that Uber would be interested in buying the team responsible for the lidar we were developing at Google, Droz said in his declaration.

In January 2016, Levandowski again said that he had been at Ubers San Francisco headquarters seeking an investment in his startup, Droz said.

Waymo also filed papers seeking a court order to block Uber from using any of the technology that it believes Levandowski stole.

If a judge grants that request, it could force Uber to halt its tests of self-driving cars in Pittsburgh and Phoenix. Its unclear how much of the technology identified in Waymos lawsuit is being used in the Uber self-driving cars that are picking up passengers in those cities.

Levandowski wasnt alone in his alleged betrayal, according to Waymo.

Other sworn statements filed Friday identified two other former Waymo employees accused of stealing technology in July 2016, shortly before they joined Uber. They are Sameer Kshirsagar, Waymos former global supply manager, and Radu Radutu, an engineer in Waymos lidar department.

The dispute between Waymo and Uber highlights the high stakes in the race to build self-driving cars that promise not only to revolutionize the way people get around but also the automobile industry. Waymo and Uber are two of the early leaders, while long-established car companies such as Ford, Toyota and General Motors are scrambling to catch up.

Waymo now is a subsidiary of Googles parent, Alphabet.

Michael Liedtke is an Associated Press writer.
WikiLeaks has offered to help the likes of Google and Apple identify the software holes used by purported CIA hacking tools  and that puts the tech industry in something of a bind.

While companies have both a responsibility and financial incentive to fix problems in their software, accepting help from WikiLeaks raises legal and ethical questions. And its not even clear at this point exactly what kind of assistance WikiLeaks can offer.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said last week that the antisecrecy site will help technology companies find and fix software vulnerabilities in everyday gadgets such as phones and TVs. In an online news conference, Assange said some companies had asked for more details about the purported CIA cyberespionage toolkit that he revealed in a document release on Tuesday.

We have decided to work with them, to give them some exclusive access to the additional technical details we have, so that fixes can be developed and pushed out, Assange said. The digital blueprints for what he described as cyberweapons would be published to the world once this material is effectively disarmed by us.

Any conditions WikiLeaks might set for its cooperation werent immediately known. Nor was it clear whether WikiLeaks holds additional details on specific vulnerabilities, or merely the tools designed to exploit them.

Apple declined to comment on the WikiLeaks offer, and Google didnt respond to requests for comment. Microsoft said it hopes that anyone with knowledge of software vulnerabilities would report them through the companys usual channels.

Tech companies could run into legal difficulties in accepting the offer, especially if they have government contracts or employees with security clearances.

The unauthorized release of classified documents does not mean its unclassified, said Stewart Baker, a former official at the Department of Homeland Security and former legal counsel for the National Security Agency. Doing business with WikiLeaks and reviewing classified documents poses a real risk for at least their government contracting arms and their cleared employees.

Other lawyers, however, are convinced that much of the information in the documents is so widely known that it is now part of the public domain. That means tech companies would be unlikely to face any legal liability for digging deeper with WikiLeaks.

Alternatively, suppose tech companies dont accept WikiLeaks offer to help fix any security flaws  and are subsequently hacked. At that point, they could face charges of negligence, particularly in Europe, where privacy laws are much stricter than in the U.S., said Michael Zweiback, a former assistant U.S. attorney and cybercrime adviser now in private practice.

Public perception might be a bigger problem. They dont want to be seen as endorsing or supporting an organization with a tainted reputation and an unclear agenda, said Robert Cattanach, a former Department of Justice attorney.

During the 2016 election, WikiLeaks published thousands of emails, some embarrassing, from breached Democratic Party computers and the account of a top aide to Hillary Clinton. U.S. intelligence agencies concluded those emails were stolen by hackers connected to the Russian government in an attempt to help Donald Trump win the presidency.

The CIA did not respond directly to Assanges offer, but it appeared to take a dim view of it.

Julian Assange is not exactly a bastion of truth and integrity, CIA spokeswoman Heather Fritz Horniak said.

But most tech companies already have digital hotlines to receive tips about security weaknesses, even if they come from unsavory characters. So it wouldnt break new ground for them to consult with a shadowy organization such as WikiLeaks.

Ideally, the CIA would have shared such vulnerabilities directly with companies, as other government agencies have long done. In that case, companies would not only be dealing with a known entity in an aboveboard fashion, they might also obtain a more nuanced understanding of the problems than their engineers could glean from documents or lines of computer code.

And if companies could learn details about how the CIA found these vulnerabilities, they might also find additional holes using the same technique, said Johannes Ullrich, director of the Internet Storm Center at the Sans Institute.

And there are risks obtaining actual hacking tools from WikiLeaks. Some might have unadvertised features that could, for instance, start extracting data as soon as they launch. Ullrich said the CIA also might have left some traps to attack people running its exploits. If these arent detailed in the documents, only the CIA would be able to help tech companies avoid setting them off.

If all goes well, WikiLeaks could emerge looking better than some parts of the U.S. government.

I am not a fan of WikiLeaks, but I dont think it is fair to throw rocks at everything they do, said Cindy Cohn, executive director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a group specializing in online privacy and other digital rights. What WikiLeaks is demonstrating is that the CIA does not have the best interests of these companies at heart.

Theres one more unknown, which is just how much help WikiLeaks can actually provide. Apple, Google and Microsoft say theyve already rendered many of the alleged CIA cyberespionage tools obsolete with earlier updates that patched related software holes.

Still, the companies will probably want to check out what WikiLeaks has, assuming that the organization hasnt set unreasonable conditions on its cooperation. Some privacy and security experts believe the CIAs own refusal to contact the affected companies about the vulnerabilities gives them little choice.

We all should have better security, and certainly at this point, not trying to fixing them makes no sense, Cohn said.

Anick Jesdanun and Michael Liedtke are Associated Press writers.
Ray Waletzko was born and raised in Grand Forks, N.D. He moved to California in 1983 after graduating from the University of North Dakota. He met his wife in San Francisco, and now has two daughters in college. His family has lived in Walnut Creek for 21 years. Rays 1970 Chevy Caprice originally belonged to his parents. It just came out of the body shop about a month ago.

My Ride is a 1970 Chevrolet Caprice 2-door custom coupe. When I was growing up in Grand Forks, my dad drove a pickup truck, but he wanted a weekend car as well. He purchased the Caprice from Rydell Chevrolet in Grand Forks. My folks would take it on summer vacations, mainly to the lakes in Minnesota and to church on Sunday.

After graduating from the University o,f North Dakota, I moved to California in 1983. Unfortunately, my dad passed away in 1986, and the Caprice stayed in my moms garage for the next 27 years. I would start the car periodically when visiting her, but all that inactivity created a few mechanical issues over the years.

On one summer visit, I took my wife, my two daughters, my sister and my sister-in- law for a drive in the Caprice around Grand Forks. After about six blocks the car died, and I had to have five women push me back to my moms garage. Needless to say, Im repeatedly reminded of that short journey at family gatherings.

CHECK CAR PRICES:

As my mom had very little means, one of the wedding gifts she gave my wife and I in 1992 was the title to the Caprice. My wife, as good-natured as she is, loved it. The Caprice and my mom were still in their original home until 2013, but my moms health was failing and I knew I would have to make a decision about what to do with the car.

I found an auto body repairman in Grand Forks who did restorations on the side. After checking references on previous restorations, I gave him the car and a deposit.

Over the next few months, my entire family was preoccupied with my moms health. After she passed away in 2014, I began to leave messages for the repairman asking for progress reports, but he never replied. Several months later, I found out he was in jail for drug possession.

We assumed the worst, that the Caprice was gone forever. After his release from jail, I had the sheriff in Grand Forks serve him with small claims paperwork. Working through the court system by phone and with no assurance that my Caprice was still in one piece, the car was eventually turned over to my brother and my deposit was returned.

My wife and I were in shock as we had assumed the Caprice was long gone. Within weeks, I had the car in our driveway in Walnut Creek for a restoration I could more easily supervise.

The 1970 Caprice is much like the Impala, but has several upgrades such as tufted upholstery, wood grain interior accents and a general emphasis on luxury. The exterior difference is that the Caprice has additional metal chrome on the side moldings and rocker panels.

In 1970, Chevrolet made over 500,000 Impalas but only 92,000 Caprices. My car was recently repainted in the original Autumn Gold, and we replaced the white vinyl top. We also had the carpet replaced, the chrome straightened, the engine compartment detailed and new white wall tires added.

The car has 71,000 original miles on it, with a 350 engine, two-barrel carburetor and an automatic transmission. Although it doesnt have the power of a traditional 70s muscle car, it does run great.

My ride has sentimental significance to me, as my parents are now gone, but my wife and daughters are enjoying the car now as well. They never got to meet my dad, so for me this is the next best thing.

The finishing touch on this very personal restoration was replacing the original North Dakota plates with new California vanity plates that read MY DADS.

Attention Bay Area drivers

Were looking for submissions to the bi-weekly My Ride feature. We want to know what you drive and why. Send story ideas to cars@sfchronicle.com with the subject line My Ride.
Just after 5:30 a.m. on Saturday, Latasha Marie Dora of Rancho Cordova in Sacramento County drove her SUV through the Sacramento County Main Jail lobby doors, according to authorities.

No one was injured in the crash, said the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department in a press release.
Getting a drink at a good bar. It's one of life's great pleasures.

But there are right and wrong ways to go about it. Jim Meehan, co-founder of PDT (Please Don't Tell), the Manhattan hideaway that crystalized the modern speakeasy trend and won World's Best Bar in the process, has strong feelings about how to behave when you're getting a cocktail-at least at those places that don't specialize in body shots or florescent drinks. Following are Meehan's rules on being a bar pro.

1. Asking the bartender what's good.

Did you come to the bar to have a shot of Fernet and a can of High Life? Well then, asking bartenders what they like to drink does not help. At any reputable bar their job is to fix a drink based on your preference, not theirs. Most will answer by asking a variation of the question: "What do you like to drink?" This is your chance to give them something to work with: "I like tequila," or "Something tropical." If there are spirits or cocktails you don't like, tell them up front-just don't make it a five-minute debate.

2. Adhering to your no-added-sugar diet.

Here's the way it works when a professional mixes a drink: Any cocktail that includes citrus or some kind of acidic ingredient needs a sweetener for balance. It's what every bartender strives for, a balance among strong, sweet, and sour, and to completely cut out one of the pillars will create something you will not want to drink. Trust me. In the event that you are especially sensitive to sweetness or don't want any sugar in your cocktail, say, "I take my drinks very dry" or order a highball, such as whisky soda or a gin rickey. Or a shot.

3. Substituting your favorite spirit.

If you prefer a Beefeater Martini or a Wild Turkey Manhattan, you're more than welcome to request one-and I recommend it-in a classic cocktail. But "house" cocktails created by the bar staff are a different matter. That bartender specifically chose the gin, rum, mezcal, etc., for their creation. Asking the bartender to substitute your favorite bottle is the equivalent of a hasty move in a game of Jenga: It has the potential to topple the stack and ruin the drink. The one exception: If your last name is Beam or Daniels.

4. Sending back half-empty drinks.

You have every right to enjoy your $15 (and maybe $15+) cocktail. If it's flawed in a way that will diminish your experience, you should ask for a replacement. Any good bar will respect your choice.

But there's a right time and way to do this-as soon as you've tasted the drink, and by making eye contact with your server or bartender when they're in your vicinity. It's never fun to have a drink you mixed sent back, so be nice when you ask for something else, and don't yell across any distance to get someone's attention. If you take this route, order something you know you like, so there's no repeat performance. No one wants to hear you didn't like your cocktail twice in a row, or after you've finished half of it, which is the universal sign that it was satisfactory.

5. Dissing the server.

Nothing is more demeaning to people who take pride in their work than assuming they don't know the product they're working with. If you have a technical question about a spirit, cocktail, or anything related, first ask the person who's taking care of you. Many top cocktail bars, including mine, rotate their bar staff on and off the floor. If you're at PDT, chances are you're being served by a bartender. Remember the hashtag #respect.

6. Tipping $1 tip per drink.

Tipping is personal, so I'm not going to tell you how much-or even if-you should tip. But I will say that the amount of elbow grease that goes into the juices, syrups, infusions, and preparation of your $15 Gin Gin Mule is significantly more than the bottle of Stella someone opened at your local. Most guests tip 20 percent for fancy cocktails. You don't have to, but you should know what's standard.

7. Guilt ordering a cocktail.

I stock four delicious craft beers and three local wines at PDT, and I take pride in making nonalcoholic cocktails. I even stock a German nonalcoholic beer that I'll happily drink. More and more cocktail bars are upping their wine and beer games; if they aren't, feel free to hold it against them. If you do want to drink booze but don't see anything to your liking on the cocktail menu, don't feel bad about requesting a classic that's not on the menu, such as a Negroni or an Old-Fashioned, Daiquiri, or Manahttan. The bartender is there to give you what you want. Just remember Rule No. 1.

8. Overstaying your welcome.

Especially in high-rent cities such as New York and London, your seat at a popular bar or restaurant is a commodity with high overhead costs. Operators will be grateful if you treat it that way, which is best demonstrated by eating and drinking (i.e. spending money) while you're occupying it and vacating within 20 minutes of finishing your drinks. If you'd like more time, you can always ask. Keep track: Three drinks per person, 30 minutes apart, is a good rule of thumb for a good night out.

9. Being that guy.

If you're wondering whether you've had too much to drink, you probably have. Many states hold bars and bartenders legally responsible for the safety of their guests after they leave the bar. If you sense you're about to be cut off, avoid a fight you're not going to win.
A fire in a Southwest Side apartment displaced six people Friday, the Madison Fire Department said.

A mattress caught fire in a second-floor unit at 2118 Allied Drive around 4 p.m., spokeswoman Cynthia Schuster said.

Four adults and two children were displaced from two affected units, Schuster said, and the American Red Cross assisted the residents with accommodations.

No one was injured, Schuster said, and investigators were still assessing the total cost of the damage.

Schuster said firefighters arrived at the scene at 4:07 p.m. and extinguished the fire within three minutes.
Michael Howerton, editor in chief of the San Francisco Examiner and SF Weekly and vice president of editorial for the San Francisco Media Company, is stepping down, according to a statement on the Examiner's site.

On March 20, Howerton will begin his new role as chief of staff for Board of Supervisors President London Breed. He will replace Conor Johnston, who is leaving to work in small business consulting.
MADISON - The world lost one of the finest, most passionate souls on March 6, 2017, with the passing of Zachary James Clark, M.D., who died after a brief, sudden illness. Zach (aka Clark) was a loving husband, brother, son and friend.

Zach was born on Jan. 25, 1986, to his loving parents, Jim and Mary, and grew up in Oconomowoc, Wis. His life was a gift, realized early on when he beat leukemia as a child. He loved life and was driven to make life better for others. Zach had a special bond with his sister, Mackenzie, always protective of her and a proud big brother.

Zach took pride in his studies, beginning in his first school at St. Jerome's Catholic School, followed by Oconomowoc High School, where he excelled in sports, as well as academics. Zach attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, studying Neurobiology. It was here that he met so many of his life-long friends and "had the best time of his life." After graduation, it was not uncommon for him to walk around campus and the student housing reminiscing about all of the incredible memories forged during those four years, especially Badgers game days. He would frequently wish that he could go back and live it all over again. During his freshman year living on Witte 4B, he would meet his best friend and future wife, Megan Gussick. His infectious laugh led to numerous friendships and memorable gatherings including the infamous "Clark-a-palooza." In his sophomore year, he moved with four of his best friends into "the Mills House," a typical boys' college apartment littered with empty cans, half eaten frozen pizzas and posters of Brittany Spears. For the next two years, these best of friends would work hard and play hard, ensuring that no passerby fell into the infamous "badger hole" out front.

After graduating from UW-Madison with Distinctive Scholastic Achievement and undecided about pursuing a Ph.D. to continue his neuroscience research or a M.D., he pursued and obtained a Master's degree in Neurobiology and Physiology at Northwestern. His caring spirit led him to medicine and he decided to become a physician and split his time between patient care and research. He joined Megan at the UW Medical School, graduating in 2013.

After seven years together, Megan and Zach were married on May 4, 2013, in the church with the red door on the square. Their wedding day was representative of their relationship together and with their friends and family; a day filled with love, laughter, dancing and culminating with the singing of Varsity. Their love for one another was recognized by everyone who knew them.

Throughout his many years of medical training, Clark always gravitated towards his true passion, research. With this love of research in mind, Zach pursued a career in radiology focusing his research on neuroradiology and vascular imaging. Even though he was not directly caring for patients, Clark never lost sight of the patients behind the imaging and the benefits his research could have to patients in the future.

In his far too short life, Zach lived a life full of lasting memories, laughter and love. He was an incredible best friend and dedicated husband to Megan and would have been an amazing father. Our lasting memories forged with Zach will never be forgotten and his infectious, staccato laugh will be ingrained in our memories forever.

"Wherever a beautiful soul has been, there is a trail of beautiful memories." Thank you, Zach, for the blessings you brought into our lives.

Zach is survived by his wife, Megan Gussick, M.D.; parents, Jim and Mary Clark; his sister, Mackenzie Clark; grandparents, Bernette O'Connor and Jim and Mary Ann Clark; and in-laws, Sharyn and Ron Gussick; Sean Gussick and Vasantha Aaron, and their daughters, Neela and Asha; and Scott and Angie Gussick. He is further survived by many aunts, uncles and cousins. Zach was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Harold O'Connor.

A Celebration of Zach's life was held on Friday, March 10, 2017, at Grace Episcopal Church in Madison, Wis. Please share your memories at www.CressFuneralService.com.
Ethical standards for lawyers in California allow them to have sex with their clients, but probably not for much longer.

State Bar trustees voted Thursday to adopt a rule, in effect in most other states, making lawyer-client sex a disciplinary violation unless the couples personal relationship preceded their professional relationship. It was part of an overhaul of ethical regulations for Californias 247,000 lawyers that now goes to the state Supreme Court for approval.

Lawyers have bargaining power over their clients, James Fox, the State Bar president and former San Mateo County district attorney, said Friday. A client may feel subtle pressure, or perhaps not-so-subtle pressure, to acquiesce to sexual conduct.

The trustees heard from lawyers who opposed the change as an invasion of privacy. But the bars Office of General Counsel said a dismal record under the current rule showed the need for a prohibition: Out of 205 complaints filed with the office involving lawyer-client sex since the rule took effect in 1992, only one resulted in disciplinary action.

Under the current California standard, a lawyer can have consensual sexual relations with a client as long as the lawyer does not make the sexual relationship a prerequisite for legal representation.

The new rule would prohibit lawyer-client sex except between spouses or a couple who had been in a sexual relationship before becoming lawyer and client. The rule is based on American Bar Association guidelines that most states have adopted.

Lawyers who violate ethical rules can be reprimanded, suspended or disbarred.

The trustees also approved a rule that would broaden the bars power to discipline a lawyer for harassing or discriminating against an employee or anyone else in the legal profession. The current rule allows discipline only after a government agency or a court has found that the lawyer acted wrongfully. The new rule would allow the bar to act on its own.

Fox said the other trustees were equally divided on the change, and he cast the tie-breaking vote to approve it.

With an increase of the bars authority to punish lawyers who mistreat others in the profession, he said, law firms may take even more seriously the prohibition on unethical behavior.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko
Youve lost your job, and now your head is spinning. Youre wondering why it happened or what to tell your loved ones. Anger, sadness and frustration are jockeying for the drivers seat. Or perhaps youre too worried to feel much else.

Phyllis Pleuss, a professional who used to attend a job-search group at UW-Madisons Division of Continuing Studies, remembers this disorienting anxiety.

My career meant so much to me, she says. What would I be without it? I was afraid Id melt into a puddle of nothingness.

Dont let these feelings take control. Instead, take a deep breath, compose yourself and gather any materials you might need later. Speak with the human resources department if you have questions about a severance package, health insurance or other benefits. Then exit the scene without making a scene.

This isnt to say you should bottle up your emotions following a layoff or firing. Whether you didnt see it coming or saw the writing on the wall long ago, accept the situation for what it is: a loss. Grieve and then grow. Here are six tips on how to do it:

Find your bearings: Take time to mourn and reflect. Even if you need a new job immediately, consider a short vacation to help put your old job behind you.

Identify opportunities: Why not find a job or workplace thats a better fit? You could even take your career in a different direction. Ask yourself what you liked and disliked about past jobs. List your strengths and accomplishments. Do you see any themes?

Craft an elevator speech: Devise some phrases to share that reframe the loss. Something like I see it as an opportunity to try something different can show others youre turning lemons into lemonade.

Vent with care: Venting may be part of your grieving process, but do it outside work to avoid burning bridges with colleagues. See a therapist if anger or sadness persist.

Connect: Contact people in your network to let them know about your situation. See if they can help you connect with job opportunities and other professionals who might assist. Volunteer work is a great way to build relationships while instilling a sense of purpose and gaining new skills.

Explore resources: Employee assistance programs can help you manage difficult emotions and locate resources. The Dane County Job Center and UW-Madisons Adult Career and Special Student Services office can also connect you with resources such as job-search groups.

Finally, take heart. Many layoffs are business decisions, not personal attacks. Some of the worlds most successful people  Walt Disney, for example  have been fired. Believe in yourself, keep your goals in sight and dont be afraid to ask for help. Take it from Pleuss: I realized I could put my skills to use in new ways and that all work has value and dignity. I also discovered there is more to me than my job.
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SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)

Ecologists Friday afternoon continued their re-introduction of the Variable Checkerspot butterfly to the Presidio in San Francisco, a city known for the number of butterflies that have gone extinct there, an ecologist said.

At noon, about 300 butterfly larvae were released at El Polin Spring near MacArthur Avenue following a collection this morning on San Bruno Mountain in San Mateo County.

The goal of officials of the trust is to release 1,500 larvae by Monday and wildlife ecologist Jonathan Young said he thinks they'll easily meet that goal.

Scientists have released 1,000 since Monday.

"It's a new era in the Presidio," Young said because so many opportunities exist for re-introducing extinct species.

San Francisco is known for the number of butterflies that have gone extinct in the city. The city is famous for being the last place where the Xerces Blue butterfly was seen before it went extinct, according to Young.

Xerces Blue disappeared in 1941, according to the University of California at Davis.

The last Variable Checkerspot seen in the Presidio was in 1978, Young said.

It's functionally extinct in San Francisco because even though it exists in the Laguna Honda area, the genetic diversity is so small that "it's just a matter of time" before the population disappears, according to Young.

In the Presidio, the Variable Checkerspot is also being reintroduced behind The Presidio Landmark apartments, on the western end of the park.

Ecologists are releasing 750 larvae in both locations. Young said the hope is that the butterflies that emerge from around the apartments will fly into and populate the Lobos Creek area.

"We're hoping they will spread throughout the park in suitable habitat," Young said.

The Variable Checkerspots start emerging from their cocoons in mid-April but may start earlier this year, Young said. The lifespan of the butterfly is only about 15 days.

Young is hoping that a couple hundred will be flying around each Presidio location when they all finally emerge.

The habitat for the Variable Checkerspot was wiped out when the Presidio was a U.S. Army post from 1846 to 1994, when it became a national park.

Now there is plenty of habitat to sustain a long-term healthy population, Young said.

Some previously extinct animals have been reintroduced recently to the Presidio.

Several hundred three-spine stickleback fish were introduced to Mountain Lake in April 2015 and Western pond turtles were released into Mountain Lake in September 2015.

"There's a whole suite of species that no longer exist," Young said.

Ecologist plan to release Variable Checkerspot larvae each year for the next two to three years until the population can sustain itself.
StartingBlock Madison is still more than a year from opening, but already the planned entrepreneurial hub has joined a network of startups around the world.

StartingBlock says it is one of more than 20 programs on five continents to become part of 1776's Union Network, which the Washington, D.C.-based 1776 describes as a "global incubator and seed fund that believes startups can change the world. Were building a global community to provide the intellectual, social and financial capital these startups need to succeed."

Other participants range from Capital Factory, Austin, Texas to Venture Hall in Portland, Maine, and as far as Found.Ation in Athens, Greece and iHub, Nairobi, Kenya.

"It's a way for StartingBlock -- both the startup companies that we work with and the mentors and larger community -- to connect with the same types of colleagues," said Chandra Miller Fienen, StartingBlock's director of operations and programming. "It allows us to expand our resources."

StartingBlock will be a major part of The Spark, an eight-story building that American Family Insurance will build in the 800 block of East Washington Avenue. It's not scheduled to be completed until spring 2018, and no decisions have been made yet as to which young companies will occupy StartingBlock.

But Miller Fienen said there's no reason to wait before affiliating with 1776's Union Network. "This sort of platform doesn't require a building," she said.

Madison startups that may not be housed within StartingBlock may also participate. Entrepreneurs can set up an account and access a mentor across the U.S. or around the world who may have the skills needed, Miller Fienen said.

"It is networking, connections and resources on a grand scale," she said.

The 1776 nonprofit says the Union Network will include more than 4,000 startups and 1,000 mentors.

The organization, 1776, founded in 2013, also sponsors the annual Challenge Cup competition to identify the most promising startups and give them guidance, and its Seed Fund Portfolio makes investments in some of them.
A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trumps administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape their war-torn homeland by fleeing to Dane County.

The ruling likely is the first by a judge since Trump issued a revised travel ban on Monday, according to a spokesman for the Washington state attorney general, who has led states challenging the ban.

A Syrian Muslim man who was granted asylum and settled in Dane County has been working since last year to win U.S. government approval for his wife and 3-year-old daughter to leave the devastated city of Aleppo and join him here.

The man, who is not identified because of fears for his familys safety, filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trumps first travel ban had wrongly stopped the visa process for his family. U.S. District Judge William Conley set that challenge aside after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the entire Trump travel order.

Trump signed a new executive order on Monday. The Syrian man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon, alleging the new order is still an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion and right to due process. He asked Conley to block its enforcement against his family.

Judge Conley granted that request, saying there were daily threats to the Syrian mans wife and child that could cause irreparable harm. He issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family. The order doesnt block the entire travel ban. It simply prevents Trumps administration from enforcing it against this family pending a March 21 hearing.

After the Trump ban was blocked the first time, the approval process restarted for the Syrian family and theyre now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the U.S. embassy, the last step before U.S. customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesnt have dates for the interviews yet and Trumps new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian mans attorneys.

Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley on Friday that the new ban may not apply to this family anyway, although they did not go into details. There are various exemptions and waivers in the new ban including some that give consular officers flexibility to decide cases. Conley acknowledged that the familys situation is murky but still issued the order, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case.

U.S. Justice Department spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the complaint.

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States. U.S. District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the entire order on Feb. 3.

The revised order issued Monday removed Iraq from the list of countries and would temporarily shuts down the refugee program. Unlike the first order, the new ban would not affect current visa holders and removes language that would give priority to religious minorities. Hawaii filed a lawsuit challenging the new ban Wednesday; other states plan to sue next week.

According to the Syrian mans lawsuit, he fled his country to avoid near-certain death at the hands of two military factions, one a Sunni-aligned group fighting against President Bashar al-Assads regime and another group fighting in support of Assad. The pro-Assad forces thought he was sympathetic to the other side and the anti-Assad army targeted him because he was a Sunni and traveled to pro-Assad areas to manage his familys business.

Both sides tortured him and threatened to kill him, the lawsuit said. The pro-Assad forces also threatened to rape his wife. He came to the United States in 2014 and was granted asylum last year. He then began filing petitions seeking asylum for his wife and daughter.
John Vaudreuil, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin based in Madison, will submit his resignation Monday after Attorney General Jeff Sessions called for him and 45 other U.S. attorneys to leave their jobs.

Vaudreuil, 62, said first assistant Jeffrey Anderson will lead the districts office until the U.S. Senate confirms a nominee.

The Justice Department announced Friday that Sessions asked for the attorneys immediate resignations, saying it is a right of any presidential administration in order to ensure a uniform transition.

Vaudreuil said Saturday that he expected to resign during President Donald Trumps administration, since it isnt uncommon for all 93 U.S. attorneys to leave their positions under a new president. He didnt foresee the sudden call from the Justice Department, though.

I did not expect any call (Friday), thats for sure, Vaudreuil said. But while I didnt expect it, as I told the deputy U.S. attorney, I understood that its the presidents right.

A native of Rice Lake, Vaudreuil was appointed in 2010 by former President Barack Obama. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1979, Vaudreuil became an assistant U.S. attorney in Wisconsins Western District. It was his first and only job as a lawyer before his appointment as U.S. attorney for the district.

As U.S. attorney, it was Vaudreuils role to prosecute federal offenders in the 44 counties of Wisconsins Western District based on the priorities of the federal government. The attorney general creates priorities for the country, but Vaudreuil said it was his job to use those priorities to determine which charges should be brought against alleged offenders in his district.

Im the person who signs all the indictments when theyre brought to the grand jury, Vaudreuil said. While he made the final decision, he added, he relied on recommendations from attorneys in his office.

Under Obama, former Attorneys General Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch prioritized broad subjects, Vaudreuil said, including terrorism against Americans, financial crimes and human trafficking. Vaudreuil focused those priorities on protecting residents from hate crimes and prosecuting people who exploit children, including for child pornography.

In addition to his prosecutions, Vaudreuil said a point of pride is the community outreach achieved through his time at the helm.

What Im most proud of is the strengthening of our bond with, first, our law enforcement officers, and second, what Im going to call the communities that are most likely to be targets of hate crimes, he said.

Vaudreuil said the district office, which encompasses the western two-thirds of the state, spent time engaging Muslim, Native American and Latino communities throughout the region.

To me it was very important to build a relationship with those communities before any (hate crimes) happened, so when we come in, they could put a face on it and build trust, Vaudreuil said.

Madison Police Chief Mike Koval said Vaudreuil will be missed in the city and throughout Dane County, where he was committed to working with law enforcement agencies to address crime involving gun violence and drugs.

Those are the things, quite frankly, that put the community at greatest risk, Koval said. It has helped to have a swift and unequivocal response in the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Vaudreuil also worked with the Madison Police Department on deterrence and re-entry efforts for repeat violent offenders, partnering in a program that combines support in areas such as housing, education and employment with zero tolerance for the commission of new crimes.

Wisconsin isnt the only place that has benefited from Vaudreuils expertise. Vaudreuil has also been a part of an outreach program to nations around the world. Since 2001, he has gone on teaching trips to Albania, Uganda, Indonesia and many other countries to educate prosecutors, defense attorneys and judges.

Hes been an incredible asset to not only this community but criminal justice around the world, said Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne, who has worked with Vaudreuil on criminal cases that overlap their jurisdictions since also taking office in 2010.

As for what hell do next, Vaudreuil said he has some ideas but nothing was set in stone yet.

Ive been at this (almost) 40 years, so Im in no rush out the door to get a job, he said, adding that he hopes to continue his outreach efforts.

Ive put in a lot of time to get out and tell people what its like to be a prosecutor in a free country, Vaudreuil said.
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BEIRUT  Two blasts Saturday near holy shrines frequented by Shiites in the Syrian capital of Damascus killed at least 40 people and wounded over a hundred, most of them Iraqis, according to Syrian and Iraqi officials.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. Islamic State militants have carried out similar assaults against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere. Extremist Sunni groups, such as the Islamic State, view Shiites as apostates and consider shrines a form of idolatry.

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot where the explosions detonated near Bab al-Saghir cemetery. The cemetery is one of Damascus most ancient and is where several prominent religious figures are buried.

Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar visited the wounded in local hospitals. He said 40 were killed and 120 were wounded. He said the attacks targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were touring the areas shrines.

Iraqs Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 Iraqis were killed and 120 wounded. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims to the shrines were targeted. He said a crisis response team has been formed to expedite the identification and transport of the dead and wounded.

The ministry calls on the international community to condemn this heinous terrorist crime that targeted civilian Iraqi visitors to the holy shrines. It also urges a firm and decisive stand against the takfiri groups responsible for them, Jamal said in a statement. Takfiri is an Arabic derogatory term referring to extremist Sunni Muslims  such as members of the Islamic State group  who accuse other Muslims of being infidels.

U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Ali al-Zatari condemned the attacks, saying targeting civilians is a terrorist act, condemned and rejected by anyone who has a conscience in this world.

Lebanons Hezbollah group also condemned the attacks, saying they stem from a Takfiri ideology that uses religion as a cover to stab religion and believers everywhere.

There were conflicting reports about what caused the explosions. State news agency SANA said the blasts were caused by bombs placed near the cemetery, while other reports said suicide bombers blew themselves up.

Sarah El Deeb is an Associated Press writer.
GUATEMALA CITY  The death toll has risen to 39 girls in a fire that began when mattresses were set ablaze during a protest by residents at a youth shelter, hospital officials said Saturday.

As the number of dead slowly rose, the search continued over the weekend for answers in the disaster that has put a spotlight on possible failings in Guatemalas child protective services.

Authorities at the Roosevelt Hospital where many of the girls were taken for treatment of their burns said Saturday that another girl had died. Nineteen of the adolescents perished at the scene of the Wednesday inferno, and 20 died later in hospitals.

Various groups planned gatherings over the weekend to protest the deaths and demand the resignation of Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales.

The president has blamed the governments rigid and insensitive system for dealing with troubled youths and has promised to reform protective services for some 1,500 minors currently living in youth shelters around the country.

Morales blamed the Guatemalan state during a Friday news conference for the tragedy and said all of the government institutions in charge of minors played a role.

Officials say the fire began when mattresses were ignited during a protest by residents at the shelter housing hundreds of boys and girls. Questions remained over why someone among the girls set the blaze and whether doors remained locked as the girls pleaded for their lives.

Parents and relatives said many of the young people at the shelter had been sent there because of abuse, poverty or family problems. Others were ordered there by judges after run-ins with police, officials said.

Sonia Perez D. is an Associated Press writer.
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands  The escalating dispute between NATO allies Turkey and the Netherlands hit a new low Sunday, with a Turkish minister escorted out of the country less than a day after Turkeys foreign minister was denied entry, prompting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call the Dutch Nazi remnants.

The diplomatic clash was sparked by Turkish government plans for officials to campaign in the Netherlands for a referendum back home. Turkish leaders have been campaigning in various European cities before the April 16 vote to rally the support of expatriate Turkish voters.

Family and Social Policies Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya had arrived in the Netherlands from Germany but was prevented from entering Turkeys diplomatic compound in Rotterdam, setting up a standoff with armed police. She was later sent under escort back to Germany.

The Dutch were also angry and Prime Minister Mark Rutte called Erdogans Nazi comment a crazy remark, while Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb said the Turkish consul general was guilty of a scandalous deception after he allegedly denied that the minister was coming despite government warnings to stay away.

Hundreds of pro-Turkey protesters scuffled with police into the night in Rotterdam.

The diplomatic clash with Kaya came after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was barred from landing in the Netherlands on Saturday and Turkish officials closed off the Dutch Embassy and called its ambassador no longer welcome.

The Dutch barred Cavusoglu from entering because of objections to his intention to attend a rally in Rotterdam for a referendum on constitutional reforms to expand Erdogans powers, which the Dutch see as a step backward from democracy.

Erdogan told a rally in Istanbul that the Dutch do not know politics or international diplomacy. He compared them to Nazi remnants, they are fascists.

In the evening, a Turkish foreign ministry official who spoke on customary anonymity said the Dutch Embassy in Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul were closed off because of security reasons.

Mike Corder, Raf Casert and Zeynep Bilginsoy are Associated Press writers.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia  Malaysias foreign minister said Saturday that the government hopes to begin formal talks with North Korea in the next few days on solving a diplomatic dispute that has seen the two countries bar each others citizens from leaving.

The dispute stems from the mysterious poisoning death of the estranged half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Feb. 13 at Kuala Lumpurs airport. Malaysia says Kim Jong Nam died after two women smeared his face with the banned VX nerve agent, but North Korea  which is widely suspected to be behind the attack  rejects the findings.

Relations have steadily deteriorated, with each country expelling the others ambassador. On Tuesday, North Korea blocked all Malaysians from leaving the country until a fair settlement of the case is reached. Malaysia then barred North Koreans from exiting its soil.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said Saturday that communication is ongoing with the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur and that both sides are ready for formal talks. He said many countries offered to help, but we dont need a third partys help for the time being, and hopefully will never need them.

We are ready ... they (also) want to start talking. We hope (to begin) in the next few days, Anifah said after meeting with the families of the nine Malaysians still stranded in North Korea. The safety of our people is our paramount concern, and we are doing everything possible.

He said the nine Malaysians were safe and allowed to move freely. About 1,000 North Koreans are believed to be in Malaysia.

Anifah said the return of Kims body would be part of the talks. We dont want to keep the body more than what is necessary, he said. Eventually we have to surrender the body to someone, whether to the government or next of kin.

North Korea has demanded the body back and objected to Malaysias autopsy. Pyongyang also has refused to acknowledge that Kim Jong Nam was the victim and has referred to him as Kim Chol, the name on the passport Kim was carrying when he was attacked in a crowded airport terminal.

On Friday, Malaysian police confirmed that Kim Chol and Kim Jong Nam was the same person but refused to say how they identified Kim. Malaysian authorities have asked for Kims immediate family to provide DNA samples to identify the body, but nobody has come forward.

Although Malaysia has never directly accused North Korea of being behind the attack, many speculate that Pyongyang must have orchestrated it. Experts say the VX nerve agent used to kill Kim was almost certainly produced in a sophisticated state weapons laboratory, and North Korea is widely believed to possess large quantities of chemical weapons.

Eileen Ng is an Associated Press writer.
MOGADISHU, Somalia  The head of the African Union mission in Somalia is seeking a surge in troops to help the countrys military control areas won back from extremist group al-Shabab, saying the Somali National Army has been unable to take charge as expected.

Francisco Caetano Madeiras request for an unspecified number of extra AU troops comes amid widespread concern that Somalias military wont be ready to take over the countrys security as the 22,000-strong AU force prepares to withdraw by the end of 2020.

Its time we made it known that (the AU force) is not going to stay forever, Madeira told a high-level AU meeting last week.

Al-Shabab continues to carry out deadly attacks in Somalias capital, Mogadishu, and elsewhere. Its attacks on military bases in the past two years have slowed joint AU-Somali offensives against the group.

Madeiras comments came at the same time the head of the U.S. Africa Command made a similar warning to the Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington.

The AU force known as AMISOM will begin withdrawing in 2018, and if this departure begins prior to Somalia having capable security forces, large portions of Somalia are at risk of returning to al-Shabab control or potentially allowing (Islamic State) to gain a stronger foothold in the country, Commander General Thomas Waldhauser said.

After a decade in Somalia, the regional countries contributing troops to the AU force are fatigued, Waldhauser said.

Fighters pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group are the latest terror threat in the Horn of Africa nation after breaking away from al-Shabab in 2015.

The U.S. military is said to be seeking a larger role in Somalia for counterterror operations, but that would consist of more air strikes, including drone strikes, and expanded special forces assistance to local troops.

Somalias new president, the Somali-American Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, took power last month as the fragile central government tries to expand its authority into more parts of the country.

Abdi Guled is an Associated Press writer.
1 Resort violence: Prosecutors in the Mexican resort of Los Cabos say a total of six bodies have been found between Thursday and Friday in the area around the twin resorts of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. The resorts at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula have been the scene of increasing violence in recent months.

2 Somalia conflict: The head of the African Union mission in Somalia is seeking a surge in troops to help the countrys military control areas won back from extremist group al-Shabab, saying the Somali National Army has been unable to take charge as expected. Francisco Caetano Madeiras request for an unspecified number of extra AU troops comes amid widespread concern that Somalias military wont be ready to take over the countrys security as the 22,000-strong AU force prepares to withdraw by the end of 2020. Al-Shabab continues to carry out deadly attacks in the capital, Mogadishu, and elsewhere.
ABUJA, Nigeria  Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari returned to the country Friday after a medical leave of a month and a half that raised questions about his health and some calls for his replacement, but he made clear that whatever was ailing him was not yet over.

Buhari said Vice President Yemi Osinbajo would remain in charge of Africas most populous nation over the weekend as he rested, and he revealed the first details of his health condition, including blood transfusions. He hadnt been so sick in decades, he said.

Photos of his arrival in the capital, Abuja, showed the lanky president smiling and walking without assistance. I feel much better now, Buhari said. I have rested as much as humanly possible.

He said he would have follow-up in the coming weeks. Sahara Reporters, a Nigerian news agency in New York, reported that Buhari indicated he would return to London for more treatments.

Few details had been released about Buharis medical leave in London. When he left Nigeria on Jan. 19, the government said it was for routine medical checkups and that he would return in early February.

Instead, the 74-year-old remained out of sight for weeks while anxiety rose in Nigeria, which is grappling with crises including Boko Haram extremist attacks and an economy that last year contracted for the first time in a quarter-century.

Some expressed anger at taxpayer-funded treatment for top officials overseas while people at home cope with poorly funded health care. I have received, I think, the best of treatment I could receive, Buhari said Friday.

Others in Nigeria suggested that Osinbajo, a 59-year-old lawyer and pastor who handled matters in Buharis absence, should stay on and lead the country, one of Africas largest economies and top oil producers

A statement Thursday from special adviser Femi Adesina said Buharis holiday had been extended on doctors recommendations for further testing and rest.

During his long absence, Buhari spoke once by phone with President Trump as the new U.S. leader reached out to a couple of Africas largest economies.

Bashir Adigun is an Associated Press writer.
UNITED NATIONS  The world faces the largest humanitarian crisis since the United Nations was founded in 1945 with more than 20 million people in four countries facing starvation and famine, the U.N. humanitarian chief said Friday.

Stephen OBrien told the U.N. Security Council that without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death and many more will suffer and die from disease.

He urged an immediate injection of funds for Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and northeast Nigeria plus safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian aid to avert a catastrophe.

To be precise, OBrien said, we need $4.4 billion by July.

Without a major infusion of money, he said, children will be stunted by severe malnutrition and wont be able to go to school, gains in economic development will be reversed and livelihoods, futures and hope will be lost.

Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the United Nations, OBrien said. Now, more than 20 million people across four countries face starvation and famine.

OBrien said the largest humanitarian crisis is in Yemen where two-thirds of the population  18.8 million people  need aid and more than seven million people are hungry and dont know where their next meal will come from.

The Arab worlds poorest nation is engulfed in conflict and OBrien said more than 48,000 people fled fighting just in the past two months.

The U.N. humanitarian chief also visited South Sudan, the worlds newest nation which has been ravaged by a three-year civil war, and said the situation is worse than it has ever been.

In Somalia, which OBrien also visited, more than half the population  6.2 million people  need humanitarian assistance and protection, including 2.9 million who are at risk of famine and require immediate help to save or sustain their lives.

In northeast Nigeria, a seven-year uprising by the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 people and driven 2.6 million from their homes. A U.N. humanitarian coordinator said last month that malnutrition in the northeast is so pronounced that some adults are too weak to walk and some communities have lost all their toddlers.

Edith M. Lederer is an Associated Press writer
SEOUL  The historic ouster of President Park Geun-hye on Friday means that South Korea will hold elections within 60 days to elect a new leader. That will come as a relief for South Koreans, exhausted by months of scandal and impeachment proceedings, but it should also assuage U.S. policymakers.

In the three months since Park was suspended over corruption allegations, plunging the country into limbo, the government in North Korea has launched five ballistic missiles and a volley of threats, and is accused of ordering the assassination of the leaders half brother.

Add to that Chinas anger over the deployment of a U.S. missile defense system to South Korea and uncertainty about the change in administration in Washington, and the lack of leadership in South Korea could hardly have come at a more sensitive time.

A political vacuum like this in a key ally that borders a major nuclear threat is not good for the U.S., said John Delury, an American political scientist in Seoul. I think its been underestimated as a danger and as a destabilizing factor.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will encounter this problem firsthand when he arrives in Seoul next week.

The Trump administration is now conducting a policy review to decide how to deal with North Koreas threats, and there is plenty of talk in Washington about kinetic options  a euphemism for some kind of military action. Meanwhile, in Tokyo, some ruling party lawmakers are now openly pushing for Japan to develop the capacity to preemptively strike North Korea.

Thats the kind of talk that South Korea should be shutting down, Delury said. In addition to its nuclear and missile programs, North Korea has conventional artillery lined up along the demilitarized zone and aimed at Seoul, a city of 25 million people.

The role of a South Korean president, whether liberal or conservative, is to be the person who gently takes that option off the table, Delury said, referring to a preemptive strike. The South Korean president has to be saying, If you take out their missile pad, they take out our capital. But that hasnt been happening.

Park was immediately dismissed from office Friday after South Koreas Constitutional Court upheld a legislative impeachment motion, ruling unanimously that she had continuously broken the law.

Elections will now be held in early May, and the latest opinion polls show Moon Jae-in, a progressive who unsuccessfully challenged Park for the presidency in 2012, holding a strong lead.

Moon is a proponent of the sunshine policy of engagement with North Korea  the liberal idea from the late 1990s that engagement can help open up the closed state and narrow the gap between the two Koreas.

This sunshine policy came to an end in 2008 with the election of a conservative president who took a tough approach toward North Korea, a stance maintained by Park.

Anna Fifield is a Washington Post writer.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Fire marshals have determined the fatal house fire in Great Kills on Monday was accidental, caused by a "space heater in close proximity to combustibles" in the home, according to the FDNY Twitter feed.

Carolyn B. Samuel, 82, the resident of the home, located at 68 Driggs St., was killed in the three-alarm blaze early Monday morning.

Authorities responded to the raging inferno at 4:01 a.m., and got the fire under control at about 7 a.m. Multiple special units responded to the scene.

Firefighters only could enter the house through the front door and the entryway was blocked with three to five feet of debris and clutter, a Fire Department official told reporters at the scene.

An FDNY spokesman on Friday described combustibles as "any material that burned."

Samuel was recalled by neighbors as an independent and sweet woman.

"She was amazing," Andrea Moskie, who lives across street, said after the fire. "Even though she was a very independent woman, we always tried to help her as much as we could."

The retired U.S. Army civilian lived by herself and had four grandchildren that she was very close to.

"We, her family, would like to greatly commend the FDNY's selfless efforts in their attempts to rescue her by requesting in lieu of flowers a donation be made to New York Firefighters Burn Center Foundation," said her relatives in her obituary on SILive.com.
nws snake

A pair of baby eyelash vipers are entwined on a perch at the Staten Island Zoo in this June 26, 2006 file photo. A Staten Island man on Friday was issued a summons after, police allege, he was bit by his pet Sub-Saharan Gaboon viper and cut off the reptile's head.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Graniteville man is in stable condition after he was bit by his poisonous pet snake Friday night, police said.

Michael Larneard, 27, was cleaning the tank when the Gaboon viper bit him on the arm at around 10:47 p.m., according to an NYPD spokesman.

Larneard then chopped the serpent's head off with a fishing knife when the snake did not release his arm, police said.

The spokesman said the victim was conscious and responsive when authorities responded to the scene, and was then transported to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx.

Larneard did not have venom in his system, police said.

During the incident, authorities recovered another snake, a boa constrictor, from Larneard's Richmond Avenue home. That reptile was taken to Animal Control, the spokesman said.

Police said he was given a summons for the Gaboon viper, which is a Sub-Saharan snake whose fangs may be up to two inches long and can grow to over six feet in length, according to Advance records.

It is illegal to have vipers as pets in New York City.
Trump

President Donald Trump, right, and U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos close their eyes in prayer during their visit to St. Andrew Catholic School n Orlando, Fla., Friday, March 3, 2017. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel via AP) ORG XMIT: FLORL907

(Joe Burbank)

A House committee this week advanced a bill to renew Washington, D.C.'s federally funded vouchers program - the only one like it in the country - raising larger questions about whether the federal government should promote the use of tax dollars for private schools.

The Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Reauthorization Act, known as SOAR, gives federal dollars to low-income D.C. students who want to transfer from struggling public schools to a private school. The program, created by Congress in 2004, also provides additional federal dollars to traditional public schools and public charter schools in the District.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform debated the bill Wednesday and voted Friday to extend the program for five more years. The legislation will next go to the full House for a vote.

The bill represents the first fight over vouchers to play out on a national stage since President Trump, a proponent of education alternatives he calls "school choice," won the election.

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is a champion of private school vouchers, and Trump has said he wants to spend $20 billion to help states expand such programs.

The American Federation for Children, an advocacy group founded by DeVos, called the bill "an educational lifeline" for low-income D.C. families and said Friday's vote sends a message that lawmakers consider the program a success.

The Oversight Committee took up the bill, sponsored by Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, after debating another Chaffetz proposal that would encourage federal agencies to move out of the nation's capital.

Chaffetz said vouchers allow low-income students to "attend private schools that might otherwise be beyond their parents' financial means."

"The District of Columbia school system has consistently had a host of challenges and certainly rankings near the bottom in terms of its performance," he said.

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District's nonvoting representative, argued that parents in the city already have "robust" choices, pointing out that half of public school students attend charter schools that are independent from D.C. Public Schools, while 75 percent of DCPS students attend schools that are outside their neighborhoods and chosen by their parents through a city lottery.

Norton said she opposes vouchers, noting there was no evidence that the program resulted in better academic outcomes for students.

"The D.C. voucher program has failed its central purpose: It has not improved academic achievement, as measured by math and reading tests and that ought to be the test. The program is therefore patently unnecessary," she said.

But she said the 1,154 students in the program should be allowed to continue until they graduate from high school.

Democrats offered amendments to require private school voucher programs to obey civil rights laws that protect LGBT students and those with disabilities. The proposed changes failed along party lines in the GOP-controlled committee.

D.C. officials have struggled with how to respond to the bill; while they generally oppose using federal dollars for private schools, they do not want to lose the public and charter school funding tied to the voucher program.

A majority of the D.C. Council urged House Republicans to phase out the federal school voucher program, even though Mayor Muriel E. Bowser supports it.

"Once the money is appropriated for this program, then we'll see what kind of beer muscles the City Council has because they don't have to accept the money," Chaffetz said.

Norton explained that federal dollars for the program are distributed by the U.S. Department of Education via a local nonprofit group, so "the Council could not reject the money."

Unions representing teachers said vouchers hurt public schools because they funnel scarce tax dollars to private institutions that are unaccountable.

"They may discriminate against a student based on his or her gender, disability, religion, economic background, national origin, academic record, English language ability, or disciplinary history," Marc Egan, director of government relations at the National Education Association, said in a letter.

A Washington Post review found that most students enrolled in the voucher program attend Catholic schools but hundreds use their voucher dollars to attend schools that are in unconventional settings, such as a family-run K-12 school operating out of a storefront and a Nation of Islam school based in a converted Deanwood residence.

Rep. Gerald E. Connolly, D-Va., who represents parts of Fairfax County, and Rep. Jamie B. Raskin, D-Md., a freshman from Montgomery County, defended the District. Connolly offered an amendment to impose stricter evaluation standards, which was defeated by Republicans.

Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., said that although Democrats perceive the bill's nondiscrimination clause as inadequate, students would be safeguarded by the civil rights protections granted by D.C. law.

That prompted Norton to interject: "These are private schools. So the District law does not cover private schools."

The program was a priority for former House speaker John A. Boehner and continues to be important to his successor, Speaker Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis. Both Boehner and Ryan are products of Catholic schools, although Ryan attended a public high school. Ryan sends his three children to Catholic school.
Mira Wassef | mwassef@siadvance.com

Police investigating robberies at 2 Great Kills delis; recover screwdriver from scene

Police are investigating robberies at two Great Kills delis which occurred just minutes apart early Wednesday morning.

At approximately 1 a.m., a suspect walked into Elverton Bagels and Deli at 496 Arthur Kill Road with a note demanding cash, an NYPD spokesman said.

The suspect -- described as a 5-foot-6 male, either black or Hispanic -- fled when a customer walked in, according to police.

During the incident, the suspect reportedly dropped a screwdriver from his pocket then picked it up and took off, said a worker at the Elverton deli.

Police confirmed they recovered a screwdriver from the scene.

Then, at around 1:15 a.m., a suspect walked into Richmond Bagels, located at 4244 Hylan Blvd., and passed a note on the counter that said, "This is a robbery. Give me the money or I'll shoot," according to police.

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Mira Wassef | mwassef@siadvance.com

Officers from the 120th Precinct bust Stapleton teen with loaded gun

A Stapleton teen was caught with a loaded gun after threatening a man at a West Brighton bodega Friday morning, police said.

At around 9:45 a.m., Derrick Boone, 17, and another male suspect were in front of the Family Deli Grocery at 1138 Castleton Ave. when Boone simulated a firearm in his front hoodie pocket toward the 19-year-old victim in the store, according to an NYPD spokesman.

The other male suspect, who has not been apprehended, displayed a knife and told the victim, "come outside," police said.

Police then canvassed the scene and the victim picked out Boone, who tried to flee on foot, the spokesman said.

Police then arrested Boone and removed a loaded firearm from his waistband, police said.

Upon further investigation, the .22 caliber firearm was loaded with seven rounds of ammunition, had a defaced serial number, three attachments and a high capacity magazine, police said.

Boone, of Broad Street, was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of a firearm and resisting arrest, police said.

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Mira Wassef | mwassef@siadvance.com

Lawsuit: 'Rubber room' teacher claims he was falsely arrested, detained

Francesco Portelos, the "rubber room" teacher from Rosebank who lost his civil case against the city Department of Education last summer, claims he was falsely arrested and detained for 33 hours after the DOE lodged a complaint that he posted information about how to hack its payroll system, a new lawsuit alleges.

While in police custody, Portelos said he was chained to other detainees in a van and forced to sleep on the floor next to a toilet before the Brooklyn district attorney's office dropped the charges, according to a civil suit filed in Brooklyn federal court last month.

"It was a crazy ordeal over nothing," he wrote on his blog after the incident. "Very stressful and unnecessary. They made a lot of mistakes. To scare me? It didn't work."

Portelos is suing the NYPD; Detective William Connor; the DOE; Desmond White, a DOE department of technology employee, and Courtenaye Jackson-Chase, general counsel of the DOE.

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Activist is handcuffed after refusing Staten Island Ferry bag check

A religious and political activist on Staten Island claims he was placed in handcuffs, frisked and issued two summonses by NYPD officers based on the way he looks.

Hesham El-Meligy, a Muslim who was born in Egypt, was temporarily detained and searched by police at about 8 a.m. Wednesday at the Staten Island Ferry terminal in St. George, after he refused a random bag check.

After a search of his backpack, he was issued summonses for trespassing and disorderly conduct and allowed on to the ferry, police said Thursday.

El-Meligy, founder of the Islamic Civic Association on Staten Island and chairman of the Staten Island Libertarian Party, said he believes the bag check wasn't so random.

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Mira Wassef | mwassef@siadvance.com

Report: Mom provoked dogs that mauled her to death, says daughter

In a final effort to save her dogs, a Staten Island woman is blaming her mother for an incident in which the dogs mauled her mother to death inside their shared Mariners Harbor home, according to a DNAinfo report.

Dawn Schoentube, 47, testified Friday that her mother, Daisie Bradshaw, 65, had provoked the dogs by entering Schoentube's basement apartment Oct. 24 and startling the dogs, according to the report.

Her husband, Ray Schoentube Jr., represented her Friday at the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings in Lower Manhattan. He speculated in his closing arguments that Bradshaw may have had an epileptic seizure that confused the dogs and prompted them to attack, DNAinfo reported.

The kennel manager at Animal Care Centers of NYC testified Friday that the dogs, both German Shephard mixes are extremely aggressive and should be put down.

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Steve Zaffarano

NYPD: Tottenville man charged with kicking pregnant woman on subway

A Tottenville man was arrested in Manhattan for allegedly kicking a pregnant woman twice in her abdomen during the Thursday morning commute on the subway, police said.

Michael Lee, 40, allegedly became involved in a verbal altercation with the 28-year-old woman at approximately 8:37 a.m. on the northbound number four train, police said.

The altercation became physical, and police responded to the Bowling Green station, and arrested Lee.

The woman was transported to New York Presbyterian Hospital and was listed in stable condition, the spokesman said.

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Mom of fatal hit-and-run victim wishes for 'Just One More Dance'; driver gets 1 to 3 years

Robert Messina, 23, pleaded guilty state Supreme Court, to second-degree manslaughter for recklessly causing the death of Robert Kunz, 24, of Rossville, on July 20, 2015.

He was sentenced Tuesday to one to three years in prison and his driver's license was revoked.

The dark-haired Messina, who was garbed in a black hooded sweatshirt and charcoal-colored sweatpants expressed remorse before Justice William E. Garnett imposed sentence.

"I am truly and deeply sorry," he said. "There is nothing I can say or do to rectify this."

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Mira Wassef | mwassef@siadvance.com

Senior citizen, 80, accused of drunk driving

An 80-year-old senior citizen is not your typical drunk-driving defendant.

But Raymond Piazza of Stanwich Street, Grasmere, found himself in police custody Sunday night after he hit two other cars in Dongan Hills while intoxicated, allege authorities.

The incident occurred around 6:35 p.m. on Hylan Boulevard and Reid Avenue, a criminal complaint said.

Piazza was driving a 2006 Ford sedan which collided with two other vehicles, said the complaint.

Piazza had a "strong odor" of alcohol on his breath, his eyes were watery and bloodshot, his speech was slurred and he staggered out of his car, according to the complaint and cops.

"I had three or four beers in Brooklyn. I was driving home," the complaint quotes him as telling officers.

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Mira Wassef | mwassef@siadvance.com

Man who stole SUV with baby inside takes felony plea

The New Jersey man who authorities said swiped an SUV with a baby in the back seat from a New Springville parking lot four months ago pleaded guilty Thursday to grand larceny.

Kenneth Byrnes, then 46, hopped off a bicycle and stole a black 2008 Ford Edge SUV, whose engine was running, at about 10 a.m. on Nov. 19, said police.

The SUV was in the parking lot of a Dunkin' Donuts on Richmond Hill Road near Richmond Avenue, and a 3-month-old baby was inside the vehicle, police said.

The child's mother was inside the Dunkin' Donuts when the car was reported stolen, a source with knowledge of the investigation told the Advance.

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Manslaughter plea in domestic-violence slaying

A Sea View resident accused of fatally stabbing her domestic partner last year pleaded guilty Tuesday to manslaughter.

But Antonio Bohanna, a transgender woman, won't spend another day in jail.

Bohanna, 36, who will be sentenced April 18 to six months behind bars and five years' probation, has already served the jail time awaiting the case's disposition.

The defense has maintained Bohanna had "strong" grounds for self-defense in the case in which Bohanna is accused of killing Kamel Milhouse, 26, in their Manor Road home on March 4, 2016.

At Bohanna's arraignment in state Supreme Court, St. George, in April, her lawyer, Manuel Ortega, said she was the victim of domestic violence at the victim's hands.

Prosecutors said then there were open domestic violence cases in which Bohanna was the alleged victim. They have declined further comment on them

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Military helicopters will be conducting training exercises over New York City on Saturday and Tuesday, according to an NYPD spokesman.

The military flyover will include 10 military helicopters flying at an altitude of 500 to 1,000 feet over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, the Hudson River, the Harlem River, the East River and the Statue of Liberty.

The training exercises will occur between 1 and 3 p.m. on Saturday, and between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Tuesday.
bowlinggreen.jpg

Michael Lee allegedly kicked a pregnant woman in the stomach on a Number 4 train stopped at the Bowling Green station in Manhattan. (Steve Zaffarano/Staten Island Advance)

(Steve Zaffarano)

Michael Lee was charged with a felony count of attempted assault for allegedly kicking a pregnant woman on a train and remains free on $7,500 bail.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The lawyer for the Tottenville man accused of kicking a pregnant woman in the abdomen on the subway Thursday cautioned against rushing to judgment on the case.

"I urge you to keep an open mind,'' attorney Lance Fletcher said in a brief phone conversation Friday after his client, Michael Lee, was arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on a felony charge of attempted assault. "It's still very early in the process."

Lee remains free on $7,500 bail and must return to court on April 26.

Prosecutors had requested $20,000 bail.

Authorities allege Lee, 40, became embroiled in a verbal altercation with the 28-year-old woman shortly after 8:30 a.m. on the northbound Number 4 train. The train was stopped at the Bowling Green station in Lower Manhattan.

According to published reports, Lee fell to the floor after the woman pushed him and allegedly responded by kicking her twice in the abdomen.

The woman is nine months pregnant, authorities said.

Afterward, she complained of abdominal pain and was taken to the hospital for observation, where she was listed Thursday in stable condition, said police.

Lee is charged with one count of attempted second-degree assault. A criminal complaint accuses him of attempting to cause physical injury by means of a dangerous instrument; namely, a "shod foot."

"I definitely think it's overcharged," said Fletcher.

The lawyer said his client has no prior arrests.

While Fletcher said Lee is holding up "as well as anybody could be under the circumstances," the defendant appeared to be emotional as he left court, according to a report on pix11.com.

Lee brushed back tears and asked Fletcher for a hug as they waited for a ride outside court, the report said.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Travis power plant operates like a "good ol' boys club" to the point where sexually explicit posters, signs and drawings are littered throughout, a masturbation bumper sticker is plastered in a breakroom, and women workers are denigrated as "b------" and treated like second-class citizens, alleges a lawsuit filed by a female supervisor.

Carolyn Rauffer has also endured unwanted sexual advances and remarks from co-workers and received poor performance evaluations when she complained about conditions at NRG Energy, contends a civil complaint.

"The plant has been operated in a misogynistic, derogatory, and male-dominated manner wherein plaintiff and other female employees have been openly subjected to a hostile work environment, sexual harassment, gender discrimination and disparate treatment," says the complaint.

The suit, recently filed in state Supreme Court, St. George, alleges violations of city and state Human Rights Laws, including gender discrimination and retaliation, by the company and a number of employees.

"That's just the tip of the iceberg of what's going on," said Alan Serrins, Rauffer's lawyer. "You'd think that a company would be more aware of regulating a workplace in regard to a woman in a non-traditional work environment."

A NRG corporate spokesman said the company is aware of the suit but doesn't comment on pending litigation.

Rauffer, a New Jersey resident who public records indicate is 36, seeks unspecified monetary damages.

Rauffer was hired in August 2015 as a maintenance planning supervisor at the plant at 4401 Victory Blvd., said the complaint. She continues to be employed there.

Women workers are in the vast minority at the plant - there are about five compared to around 55 men - and a locker-room atmosphere persists, she alleges.

For example, a bumper sticking reading "I masturbate" is posted on the refrigerator in a breakroom where employees regularly eat lunch, and there's a large drawing of a penis behind insulation on a boiler which is "prominently displayed during periodic maintenance," alleges the complaint.

In addition, photos of scantily-clad women are "brazenly" posted in the plant, said the complaint.

One worker has tried to kiss Rauffer and pursue a romantic or sexual relationship, despite her rejecting his repeated advances, the complaint contends.

Another worker told her in a "sexualized manner" he could imagine her in a dress and cowboy boots, said the complaint.

Male workers refer to woman as "b------" in the presence of supervisors and are not disciplined, Rauffer's suit papers say.

And bosses are "dismissive and disrespectful" toward her, mock her and ignore her suggestions, she contends.

In addition, the dress code favors men, alleges Rauffer.

Men receive full uniforms and are allowed to wear tank tops to work on hot days before changing into their uniforms.

Women only get shirts. Moreover, Rauffer alleges she was reprimanded for wearing a sleeveless shirt to work prior to changing.

Rauffer said she griped about the double standards, but it only got her in hot water.

"Specifically, plaintiff complained that the plant was operated like 'the good ol' boys club,' and since plaintiff was not one of the 'good ol' boys,' she was treated differently," contends her complaint.

In retaliation, she received a poor performance review, and the approval for her to attend a work-related conference in Texas was rescinded, she contends.

Rauffer was refused when she asked to see the documentation to support the negative review, alleges her complaint.

Meanwhile, she was told her complaints of retaliation couldn't be corroborated, her court filing said.

However, Rauffer maintains that's not the case.

"The culture at the plant remains rife with misogyny, disparate treatment and sexual harassment," alleges the complaint.
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Gunshots were fired at a house in Isabella Plains on Friday night, ACT police say, having made the discovery when investigating a suspicious car fire.

ACT Policing have set up an investigation into the targeted attack, which they believe to be linked to an outlaw motorcycle gang.

The remains of the car after it was set on fire during a targeted attack on an Isabella Plains home. Credit:Andrew Brown

Officers were called to a house on Ellerston Avenue in the Tuggeranong suburb, after reports of a vehicle fire on the street just after 11pm.
"Blessed:" A recent post on Instagram by Ms White, whose company Shakuhachi is under liquidation. Credit:therealjessiewhite, Instagram Mr Spring's report says Ms White's solicitor has previously disputed the debt, but has failed to provide him with a statement of her personal assets. "I have been advised that [she] has moved to Bali, Indonesia, and I anticipate there may be an issue with serving a statement of claim on her. My investigations in this regard are ongoing." Jessica White and friends in Bali. Credit:therealjessiewhite, Instagram Mr Spring has estimated any insolvent trading claim against Ms White would be at least $476,397.

He is conducting traces on $58,000 in money transfers listed in the company's bank statements as "Bali transfers," but remain otherwise unexplained. A recent Instagram photo posted by Ms White, advertising new Shakuhachi "resort wear ... dropping in store and soon to be online." Credit:therealjessiewhite, Instagram In order to continue the investigation, Mr Spring requires funding from creditors of $20,000 to $40,000. In the interim, he said he has identified any potential breaches of director duties in a confidential report to the Australian Securities and Investment Commission. Shakuhachi was listed on the NSW Fair Trading Complaints Register in January, for complaints largely related to late and undelivered orders.

Ms White declined to answer Fairfax Media's questions, citing "ongoing legal matters," however in a statement she said her personal finances were "not a concern for Shakuhachi". "I can confirm and assure your readers that I am taking any allegations made against me (which are not admitted) very seriously." Ms White said foreign investment in the brand had allowed for overseas design and manufacturing opportunities, confirming her ongoing association with the brand. "Shakuhachi is currently working to attract new international designers ... I am excited by the prospect of working with [them]." While the former business under Ms White is undergoing liquidation, assets such as the brand and the online store were purchased by Loft HK Limited in 2015.

Ms White also appears to be connected to the brand through Emporium Clothing Pty Ltd, an additional company of which she is the director. All of the consumers Fairfax Media spoke with presented refund and purchase receipts that listed Emporium Clothing as the merchant. "If they are utilising the online environment of Shakuhachi ... and invoicing out of Emporium, that goes a fair way to showing the Loft HK company and Emporium are in some way doing business together," Mr Spring told Fairfax Media. "Certainly it doesn't sound good, when you say there is potentially $1 million of personal claims against her ... and the same business operation continues. I know a lot of creditors are aggrieved when that occurs."

Three weeks ago Ms White posted an Instagram photo, advertising new Shakuhachi "resort wear ... dropping in store and soon to be online." Shakuhachi's store on Glenmore Road, Paddington closed in February, leaving one store in Melbourne and three in Bali. Currently the online store (under Loft HK Limited) offers sale prices of up to 50 per cent off. A Shakuhachi spokeswoman told Fairfax Media that an "unexpected" response to the new online store had contributed to operational difficulties and subsequent complaints. One creditor to the former business, Mince Fashion (a Hong Kong garment manufacturer), is owed more than $24,000 by the former Shakuhachi Limited.
Often turbulent, the oil market had become almost boring the past few months, with prices moving little and hovering around $US51 to $US56 a barrel.

No one is yawning anymore.

The US oil benchmark price has swooned by 9 per cent since Tuesday, falling below $US50 a barrel for the first time since the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries decided to cut production in November to support the market.

The immediate impetus for the drop in prices was a report by the Energy Department that US oil stockpiles had bulged by 8.2 million barrels over the past week.
The state government has selected Richmond developer Ben Genser from a shortlist which also included Rino Grollo, to develop what was marketed as "the most significant site ever offered in the Australian alps".

The Mount Hotham Alpine Resort Management Board office occupies a 1905 square metre plot acknowledged by the government in its tender last year as "universally regarded as the best location in Mount Hotham".

With a speculated end value of more than $100 million, the proposed new complex is allowed to cover 1600 square metres.

Elevated, and abutting the Corall car park on its eastern boundary, the block at 28 Great Alpine Road is opposite Hotham Central, White Crystal Apartments and a short distance to the helipad and Road Runner chairlift.

Mr Genser's Belgrave Group is now expected to develop a five-level mixed use building including a new MHARMB headquarters, offices for ski patrol services, a medical centre, retail, residential apartments and a hotel component.
Cameras are already pointed at Arts West, a new building for the faculty of the arts at the University of Melbourne.

Designed by ARM Architecture in Association with Architectus, this extraordinary new seven-storey building literally shows how architecture can deliver joy as well as functionality to both students' and academics' lives.

The Arts West building at the University of Melbourne.

"Students often use these spaces from 7 in the morning until 7 at night.

There's no reason why their learning spaces shouldn't be engaging and uplifting," says architect Ian McDougall, a director of ARM Architecture.
The Ivanka Trump Eau de Parfum spray is the top-selling item in Amazon's perfumes category. Credit:Amazon Abigail Klem, president of the Ivanka Trump brand, said in a statement that "the beginning of February" shows "the best performing weeks in the history of the brand." "For several different retailers, Ivanka Trump was a top performer online, and in some of the categories it was the best performance ever," Klem said. Sarah Tanner, Lyst's spokeswoman, said increases in sales are usually tied to current events. For instance, interest in pantsuits went up by 460 per cent last year because of Hillary Clinton's affinity for the style, she said. Sales of the first daughter's products went up by 86 per cent in November, when her father won the presidential election, according to the company.

But the brand was "largely featured" in the news in February, Tanner said. Nordstrom drops the brand Conway gave her on-air endorsement of Ivanka Trump's brand after President Trump had complained on Twitter that his daughter had "been treated so unfairly" by the department store Nordstrom, which dropped her clothing line over slow sales. "It would not be a surprise to us if it resulted in the increase in sales," Tanner said of Conway's Fox interview. "I think that's one of the reasons the brand was largely in the news and could have attributed to this increase."

Conway did not respond to an email requesting comment. Her promotion of the fashion line appeared to violate an ethics rule barring federal employees from using their public office to endorse products and immediately drew criticism from both Democrats and Republicans. Utah Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said Conway's comments were "absolutely wrong, wrong, wrong" and "clearly over the line," The Washington Post reported. The White House later said that Conway had been "counseled." But concerns about her comments remain. Top ethics officials lashes out at White House On Thursday, the government's top ethics official criticised the White House for not disciplining Conway. Walter Shaub, director of the Office of Government Ethics, had urged officials last month to reprimand the White House counsel but was rebuffed.

On Thursday he wrote to Stefan C. Passantino, who handles White House ethics issues as the president's deputy counsel. "When an employee's conduct violates, disciplinary action serves to deter future misconduct," Shaub wrote. "Not taking disciplinary action against a senior official under such circumstances risks undermining the ethics program." Last month, a group of law professors filed a professional misconduct complaint against Conway - a law school graduate and member of the District of Columbia Bar - partly because of her on-air endorsement of Trump's products. According to Lyst, February drew unusually large numbers of orders across many Ivanka Trump-branded products, including dresses, shoes, pants, coats, knitwear and tops. Heels were the bestsellers, followed by dresses.

"We've never seen such a large uptick," Tanner said. "Typically, she's not in our top 100 sellers." Grab Your Wallet Comparing February's numbers with last year's average number of orders of Ivanka Trump products shows a difference of 557 per cent. (Tanner said company policy prohibits her from sharing the actual numbers of online sales.) The excitement on the brand, however, may be slumping. The company's numbers show sales were gradually tapering off toward the end of February. March does not appear to be as remarkable, but sales are still on track to be about eight per cent better than they were in January, according to Lyst.

The Ivanka Trump brand also appears to have weathered an aggressive boycott campaign called Grab Your Wallet, which began in October and encouraged shoppers to avoid retailers that stock Trump-branded products. Some retailers have partially or completely distanced themselves from the Trump brand. Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Belk have stopped selling Trump's branded line of clothing, shoes and jewellery. Smell of success T.J. Maxx and Marshalls have instructed employees to stop promoting Trump products in stores and to move Trump clothing into general merchandise racks. Sears Holdings and subsidiary Kmart discontinued online sales of 31 items from the Trump Home collection last month, though their websites still contain items sold by third-party sellers. The collection includes living room and bedroom furniture, lamps and chandeliers.
As President Donald Trump rounds up the "bad hombres", he needs somewhere to put them. Credit:AP Business of incarceration's new boom Investor expectations that the actual business of incarceration and detention will expand under Trump have fuelled their levitating share prices. "It looks as though Geo and CoreCivic have several years of sharp growth ahead of them," said Michael Kodesch, an analyst with Canaccord Genuity. "Based on that, they still look undervalued." For one thing, Jeff Sessions, Trump's new attorney general, announced last month that the federal Bureau of Prisons would continue to rely on private prison companies.

That reversed an August decision announced by Sally Yates, then the deputy attorney general. (Yates stayed on as acting attorney general in the Trump administration's first days, but the new president fired her on January 30 when she refused to defend his executive order closing the nation's borders to refugees and people from certain predominantly Muslim countries.) In her memo in August, Yates said the private prisons "compare poorly to our own bureau facilities" on financial grounds, adding that they lagged in rehabilitative services like educational programs and job training. Yates also pointed out that the federal prison population had begun to decline, thanks to revised sentencing guidelines and other reforms. But in a terse repudiation of the Obama administration, Sessions said the Yates memo had "impaired the bureau's ability to meet the future needs of the federal correctional system. "Therefore," he said, "I direct the Bureau to return to its previous approach." That reversal helped bolster the prison stocks.

'Business is business'? Even more important over the short term is the administration's declared policy of cracking down on unauthorised immigrants with waves of deportations, detentions and incarcerations, a program that will require a vast expansion of federal resources. Financial analysts say this could mean that newly detained immigrants will flow into underused buildings owned by the two companies, filling "idle" space and significantly bolstering profits. "The deportation crackdown is doing very good things for these companies," said Terry Dwyer, an analyst with KDP Investment Advisors. "On a personal level, it leaves a sour taste in my mouth, but I guess business is business." When the companies' executives reported earnings in February, it was too early for hard numbers on how the shifts in US policy were affecting their companies' bottom lines, but their excitement was evident.

In a conference call with Wall Street analysts on February 22, for example, Geo's CEO George C. Zoley said that when it came to protecting the southern border of the United States, his company was "the largest provider of detention services to the three federal agencies" involved: Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection and the Marshals Service. What the country is seeing, he said, is "really an escalation of capacity need for all three federal agencies as a result of the president's new executive orders." Geo, he said, is prepared to help meet those needs. Zoley spoke in detail about the probable impact of one change ordered by Trump, the end of the so-called catch-and-release program. Under that effort, as Zoley put it, "As people were caught illegally crossing the border, they were held very temporarily and just let go instead of being detained." Thousands of beds required Now that Trump has ordered that many of those people will no longer be released immediately, Zoley said, the government needs "detention and informal processing," a service that will require "several thousands of beds" more.

Zoley said the federal government had been conducting "a national canvassing of the available capacity of the entire country to help assist ICE in this new, expanded, more aggressive border security program." The beauty of this, for Geo, is that it could expand its business in three ways. Initially, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement will need more places to detain immigrants "because the border patrol will catch the individuals and then send them to an ICE facility," Zoley said. But that's only part of the picture. "Subsequently, there will be a need by the US Marshal Services for those people that have committed criminal acts and need to be detained for adjudication," he added. And further down the line, Zoley said, the federal prisons will need to incarcerate "those people who have been sentenced and need to serve their time." Wall Street has been calculating how many additional detainees and prisoners are likely to be generated for the two companies by the Trump crackdown. From a purely financial standpoint, the numbers are encouraging, even though detentions of immigrants on the southern border dropped in February.

Geo has room to detain roughly 5000 additional people, said Kodesch, the Canaccord Genuity analyst. And if the company is able to fill that capacity, it will mean a hefty increase in its earnings. Both Geo and CoreCivic are real estate investment trusts, and Kodesch estimated that the detention surge could result in an increase in operating earnings of $US50 million, or more than 12 per cent. CoreCivic has about 8700 "idle beds," he said, and if it manages to fill them, it would mean an earnings increase of $US76 million, a gain of about 20 per cent. Eventually, the companies could build new prisons and detention centres, Kodesch said. Tied to Trump's fortunes
For those following this rant closely, you'll question why I've been throwing money down the rental tube for so many years. Your point is duly noted, thank you. 2. I thought I was helping by opening my options "Where are you thinking to build/buy?" agents will ask. "Where do you think I should build/buy?" I ask.

It's not a rude response. I really don't care exactly where I live. If my family and I are living in the house of our dreams, we're flexible  and willing to commute. Surely that's an accommodating attitude? Nope. Building agents want you to have a piece of land. Sales agents want you to be committed to their area. It's a catch 22. So, I've changed my tune and it's proving a lot simpler: "I have pre-finance approval. I want to buy in this suburb, ideally this street, and if you can help me find a nice bargain, preferably on the high side of the road." For builders: "I have pre-finance approval, and a piece of land. How can you help me spend my money with you?"

3. I thought real estate agents were supposed to sell stuff One of the good agents said: "Well, I'm not here to eat sandwiches." A conversation with one of the others went something like this: Me: "Hey mate, can you send me a disclosure plan on that piece of land you've got for sale?" Agent: "Nope, owners haven't provided one."

Me: "Can you ask them for one?" Agent: "Sure, but why don't you have a look at it first and give me another call?" Me: "Done that. Can you ask the owners for a disclosure plan?" Agent: "I can send you what I have." Me: "Does that include a disclosure plan?"

Agent: "Nope." Face palm! 4. Real estate agents (not all of them) are dodgy I haven't recorded how many phone calls I've made to ask about a listed property, only to find it's "under contract", or "sorry mate, forgot to take that down  it's sold." The next line's a beauty: "But I have X, Y or Z, which might be of interest."

So, agents are leaving their properties on advertising sites, regardless of their status, in an effort to attract interest from potential buyers. In Sydney, the trick is to advertise a property "from" a price $50,000 lower than what the owner will actually accept, again a con to get people in the door. My message to agents: I'm looking for the best house I can find. I want your calls. I want your emails. But I also want a little bit of honesty. 5. Investors are killing first-home buyers It's known that first-home buyers are usually looking in the price band of between $400,000 and $600,000 in Brisbane. It would also seem investors also like the $400,000-$600,000 price band.
The Herald accepts that a small minority of people try to rort the welfare system. Taxpayers who finance the welfare safety net quite reasonably expect governments and the public service to have efficient and fair safeguards in place.

What we have seen of late, however, is an automated process of issuing debt notices that fails on both efficiency and fairness grounds.

Human Services Minister Alan Tudge has accused critics of having a philosophical objection to welfare compliance. Credit:Andrew Meares

We also have a minister and head of department who seem more interested in spinning their way out of responsibility than finding solutions.

Federal Human Services Minister Alan Tudge said this week that the current process of robo-debt recovery "is a critical part of our overall system to ensure there is integrity in the welfare payments. We are doing more compliance checks ... we are uncovering egregious examples and we are recouping money for the taxpayer."
The official portrait of former speaker of the House of Representatives, Peter Slipper, will be revealed later this month after sitting in a Parliament House basement for a year.

Mr Slipper's immortalisation on the parliamentary walls will occur almost half a decade after he vacated the role amid sexual harassment claims and an expenses scandal.

The painting - completed by accomplished artist Paul Newton for the standard fee of $30,000 plus other framing and travel expenses - was finished in 2015. Early last year, the Parliament's art collection committee and National Portrait Gallery advisers approved its addition to the taxpayer-funded series covering prime ministers, speakers and other dignitaries from Australia's history.

Set to be hung in the Members' Hall at the centre of Capital Hill on March 29, the portrait will be a reminder of the tumultuous 43rd parliament, remembered by many in Canberra as a time of toxic and hostile politics.
What if Dauriac files to have the case decided in Paris? Then there would be a bi-national jurisdiction conflict to be resolved, decided based on the six-months rule. But so far Dauriac hasn't filed elsewhere. Mayerson says his client wants to remain in New York as long as he and his ex share physical custody equally.

Case remains in New York; next move: The case is assigned to a New York family judge who then has to confirm his jurisdiction, again based on the six-months rule.

Then the judge could appoint someone to help evaluate the child. "In all New York custody disputes, a psychiatrist or psychologist is appointed to do a forensic evaluation of what is in the best interests of the child, to help the judge decide who gets primary custody and where they would live," says Mayerson.

But celebs are different, says Berg, and not just because Johansson owns multiple homes around the world. Often, celebrities "don't have what we traditionally know as a 'residence' even though the law assumes they do," Berg says. "It would have to be a fact-intensive inquiry into where people intended to live and where they actually live."

Is the child too young to be properly evaluated? It's possible, says Berg. "That process (of evaluation) doesn't work very well when the child is so young," she says. "The evaluator is looking to see if the disruption (of divorce) will have an adverse effect on children who need consistency, and many celebrity kids are being raised by nannies anyway."
I don't know if I can agree. The boring choice isn't always the best choice. Of course, if you only live for today, you could wind up broke and miserable tomorrow. But if you only focus on maximising tomorrow, what happens if tomorrow never comes? Surely, it's a trade-off. Being a responsible adult and achieving a good life is about balancing immediate gratification with deferred pleasure. It's a highly personal decision whether retiring earlier is worth sacrificing a bit of comfort in old age, or whether you can stick at it and satisfy your itch to leave work with proper holidays and weekend hobbies. Generally I'm a believer in carpe diem, or seize the day. The 1989 film Dead Poets Society was a formative movie of my early teen years, and not just because I thought Robert Sean Leonard was cute.

This is why I was intrigued when I saw a different perspective on retirement from financial planning firm Tribeca Financial. Tribeca chief executive Ryan Watson emphasises life goals rather than maximising financial outcomes, and believes retirement could be the best option for many people. The rule of thumb is usually that people should aim to save enough superannuation to retire on 70 per cent of their working life income. But Tribeca's analysis suggest most people live comfortably on half their income, if you consider that's what's left after tax and the cost of full-time work. As an example, an $80,000 per year income would realistically be about $61,000 after tax. Minus a further 25 per cent, or $15,000, on work-related, non-tax deductible expenses, and there would be about $46,000 to live on.

You could further reduce the sum required if you were paying a mortgage as a working person, but retire debt free. A recent ING Direct study revealed that Australians spend about $39 billion a year on work-related expenses. Non-tax deductible work expenses might include the cost of commuting, maintaining a work wardrobe, and work lunches. Watson says for some, retirement may well a better option than going to work full-time, but they simply didn't realise it. "I always encourage people to consider what makes them happy, and what they actually need for wellbeing," Watson says. "For many people it's a lot closer than they think. Going to work is actually really expensive, but we don't tend to look at it that way  it's ingrained in us that we need to work to build a future and then retire." Tribeca's model for full retirement still relies on a pool of assets such as property, shares and cash to generate the replacement income. But Watson says it can be achieved with as little as $250,000 in savings, depending on circumstances. Downsizing the family home can be one strategy.

I know in my own life I could live a lot more simply if I were not working. It's not just the work expenses, but also the mentality of spending money to relieve stress or to reward myself for effort. It's the "because I'm worth it" mindset. I also love my job so retirement would be a long way off for me even if I owned my home outright and had anywhere near the quarter of a million in savings, which would have to be outside the super system given my age. Yet it's a good reminder to remember to enjoy the simple things. And to try to build a kitty outside super in case at some point in the future I want to or need to work less. You might want to take time out to write a novel or travel around Australia, or less happily to care for a sick relative or because you lost your job and cannot find another. Anything could happen. There are differing views about how much is needed in retirement.
The phone call came out of the blue. Lyndie Dawson-Clarke was at home on a Sunday afternoon, Father's Day. A strange woman's voice came through the phone line, with a heavy accent. "I'm so sorry for your loss," said the voice.

It was at that point that Lyndie Dawson-Clarke ran screaming out of the house into the driveway. Her 24-year-old son, who had been travelling overseas, had been dead for three days. This was the first she'd heard of it.

New Zealander Matthew Dawson-Clarke died in Peru after drinking a powerful brew of tobacco tea, in preparation for an ayahuasca ceremony. Credit:Foreign Correspondent/ABC

Matthew had left New Zealand to travel to Peru, on a break from his job crewing on a super-cruiser in the Mediterranean and the Caribbean. He'd told his mother he planned to try ayahuasca, an ancient Amazonian drug known locally as "the medicine".

Ayahuasca is a vine that grows only in the Amazon region. When brewed with other natural jungle ingredients it produces one of the world's most powerful hallucinogens. Users are promised spiritual, physical and mental healing and growth.
In the 1970s, parents across Australia forbade children from watching the racy television soap opera Number 96.

Producers of the show, about the residents of an inner-Sydney apartment block, loved to shock our staid society with bed-hopping and shower scenes.

Nigel Giles, author of a new book about Number 96, says it was the first Australian series to feature on-screen nudity. Buxom blonde actor Abigail was famously blase about signing the show's nudity clause.

"It was accepted that sooner or later there'd be a bed scene or a shower scene or blokes running around in their jocks, or a nude bum  male or female," Giles says.
A rare waistcoat belonging to Captain James Cook will go to auction later this month with a price expectation of up to $1.1 million.

The 250-year-old embroidered silk waistcoat has attracted plenty of interest from local and foreign potential buyers, according to Julian Aalders of Aalders Auctions which is handling the item.

George Carter's painting, Death of Captain Cook. Credit:AAP

Mr Aalders said it was difficult to place a price on the waistcoat due to its rarity but estimates it will sell for between $800,000-$1.1 million when it goes up for auction on March 26.

"We have had a lot of interest from both overseas and local collectors," he said.
Israeli police have reportedly contacted Australian authorities in an effort to question businessman James Packer about his relationship with Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli media outlets reported on Friday that police had contacted unnamed Australian authorities as part of their investigation into the Prime Minister.

Producer Arnon Milchan is a business associate of Mr Packer. Credit:AP

The anti-corruption investigation relates to allegations Mr Netanyahu accepted lavish gifts from wealthy businessmen, including Mr Packer.

Under Israeli law, state employees and elected officials are not supposed to accept gifts. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing on Mr Packer's part.
Renewable energy made its biggest contribution in history to the NSW electricity mix last year, but the state barely reduced its dependency on coal and will have to make significant headway to meet the 2020 national target for renewables.

Critics warn that renewable sources of energy will have to be significantly boosted or households will face more blackouts and higher electricity prices, as early generation coal-fired electricity plants are gradually decommissioned.

Williamsdale solar farm in the ACT. Credit:Lannon Harley/ACT government

The Renewable Energy Action Plan annual report for 2016 shows that NSW drew 14 per cent of its energy from renewable sources, 7 per cent from gas and 79 per cent from coal in 2015.

This compared to 10.8 per cent of energy sourced from renewables and 82.3 per cent from coal in 2014, and 12.9 per cent from renewables and 79.5 per cent from coal in 2013.
A man was assaulted and left unconscious in a carjacking in Melbourne's eastern suburbs.

Police say the victim, aged 32, was getting into his car in Massey Street, Box Hill South around 6pm on Saturday when he was set upon.

At least two men attacked the Box Hill South man and left him unconscious before stealing his black 2013 Honda CRV, registration ZRK-896, police say.

Witnesses say another car was driven from the scene by one of the attackers.
A fourth Nando's has been convicted of offences under the Food Act following an investigation by the Department of Health.

The franchise on Lake Street, Northbridge, has been ordered to pay a fine of $20,000 and costs of $1745 for its offences on July 12, last year.

Nando's has been 'disappointed' with the multiple breaches. Credit:Google

The court found that the business failed to keep the premises and equipment clean and was harbouring 'pests'.

The news follows the Nando's restaurant located inside the Belmont Forum Shopping Centre receiving similar fines in February for offences last September.
John has had enough of the Barnett government. Credit:Brendan Foster "And I think Mark McGowan is going to be the best leader there is. "And the budget, really - how can you get to a $36 billion debt?". Colin Barnett cooking up a storm. Credit:Brendan Foster John said he was also voting for Labor because he was worried WA was drowning in debt.

"I don't think Colin Barnett is doing the right thing by WA," he said. "He put us into debt after wasting the mining boom and I pretty much decided I wasn't going to vote for him after the whole shark baiting scandal. And I just don't like him as a person." If the mood at the booths is anything to go by, the Barnett government is going to be firmly booted out of office come Saturday night. And a number of political experts told WAtoday on Friday the Liberals could get smashed at the polls and lose as many as 15-20 seats. "Yes, I think 15-20 seats is plausible  perhaps even probable," University of WA political analysts Bowe said.

"I'm on guard against the conservative instinct that people usually have in these situations. The swing will be unprecedented, and it will convert into Labor winning seats that many are reluctant to credit them with based on the size of what are actually artificially inflated margins from 2013. "My best guess is that Labor will get everything on the pendulum up to Wanneroo, which is 12 seats right there, plus about three roughies beyond that range." Not everyone WAtoday 'vox-popped' was voting for Labor, with Brett sticking with the Liberals. "I just think they have done a good job over the last few years and I just don't know what Labor stands for, so I'm going to stick with the Liberals," he said. "I just want to see more jobs for everyone."

Premier Colin Barnett was upbeat about the Liberal's chances prior to voting at the Cottlesloe Civic Centre. "I think one of the great things about Australia, despite the tension of the campaign and a few incidents that happened on voting day...everyone comes out and exercises their democratic right and there is a lot of goodwill after," he said. "There are plenty of hot dogs for sale and the schools are making a fortune." Mr Barnett was clinging to the fact one in five voters were still yet to make up their minds before they headed to the polls on Saturday. "I think the message is the same - I think this is a very good government," he said.

"It's been a very strong economic development government... it's been caring and compassionate for people in need and we have been strong on the environment. "The protection of the Kimberley is one of the greatest environment achievements in history and it probably underestimated." The Premier was quick to shut down any questions about the government's preference deal with One Nation. Barely a day has gone by on the campaign trail when Mr Barnett hasn't been grilled about the Liberals jumping into bed with One Nation. Loading
With the WA Liberals seemingly heading to a heavy electoral defeat the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has been conspicuous by his absence in the west.

But he was busy.

Busy having a couple of cold ones with the editors of The Betoota Advocate, a satirical online news website run by its larrikin founders Clancy Overell and Errol Parker.

And unfortunately for the PM his pub run came just as federal Labor leader Bill Shorten was talking up the chances of state leader Mark McGowan at a press conference at Yokine Primary just north of the Perth CBD.
An apparent attempt to stir up racial tension on WA's state election day was identified as a dirty trick when the City of Stirling confirmed its letterhead was faked on a notice about a mosque being built on Beaufort Street, Inglewood.

ABC presenter Nadia Mitsopoulos Tweeted the letter after seeing it in her letterbox on Saturday as WA went to the polls.

The letter, which misspells Osborne Park in the City's address, requests public comment about a proposal for a mosque and Islamic community centre on the corner of Eighth Avenue and Beaufort Street, Inglewood.

It also features a line drawing of a mosque.
Jerusalem: US President Donald Trump on Friday invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the White House, in a first phone call between the two leaders since Trump took office.

"President Trump has extended an official invitation to President Abbas to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the political process, stressing his commitment to a peace process that will lead to a real peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis," said Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer in Washington later confirmed Trump had invited Abbas to a meeting at the White House soon.

Palestinians are concerned at the more favourable approach shown by Washington towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since Trump came to power.
Half a century after United States B-52 bombers dropped more than 500,000 tonnes of explosives on Cambodia's countryside Washington wants the country to repay a $US500 million ($662 million) war debt.

The demand has prompted expressions of indignation and outrage from Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh.

Over 200 nights in 1973 alone, 257,456 tons of explosives fell in secret carpet-bombing sweeps  half as many as were dropped on Japan during the Second World War.

The pilots flew at such great heights they were incapable of discriminating between a Cambodian village and their targets, North Vietnamese supply lines  nicknamed the "Ho Chi Minh Trail."
A 1943 leak by a US congressman cost 800 submariners their lives.

USS Agerholm (DD-826) launched an ASROC anti-submarine rocket armed with a nuclear depth bomb during the Swordfish Test of 1962

There has been a lot of talk about leaks in Congress and in the White house, so we were wondering just how damaging a leak can be. Both President Donald Trump and Congressional Democrats have accused each other of leaking classified information.

Turns out, loose lips really can sink ships, as one congressman proved in 1943.

In June 1943, the deficiencies of Japanese depth-charge tactics were stupidly revealed in a press conference held by U.S. Congressman Andrew J. May, a member of the House Military Affairs Committee, who had visited the Pacific theater and received many intelligence and operational briefings.

May mentioned the highly sensitive fact that American submarines had a high survivability rate because Japanese depth charges were fuzed to explode at too shallow a depth.

Various press associations reported the depth issue over their wires and many newspapers (including one in Honolulu, Hawaii) published it. Soon, Japanese forces were setting their depth charges to explode at a more effective average depth of 75 meters (250 ft), to the detriment of American submariners.

Vice Admiral Charles A. Lockwood, commander of the U.S. submarine fleet in the Pacific, later estimated that May's revelation cost the United States Navy as many as ten submarines and 800 seamen killed in action. The leak became known as The May Incident.

A depth charge explodes after being dropped from HMS Ceylon

In the Pacific Theater of World War II, Japanese depth charge attacks initially proved fairly unsuccessful against U.S. and British submarines. Unless caught in shallow water, a submarine would just dive below the Japanese depth charge attack. The Japanese were unaware that the submarines could dive so deep. The old United States S-class submarines (19181925) had a test depth of 200 ft (61 m); the more modern fleet-boat Salmon-class submarines (1937) had a test depth of 250 ft (76 m); the Gato-class submarines (1940) were 300 feet (91 m), and Balao-class submarines (1943) were 400 ft (120 m).

Depth charges, which had to be pre-set to the presumed depth of the enemy submarine, were replaced by the world's navies with anti-submarine missles around 1990. These are often heat seeking, and do not have to be pre-set.
Wyckoff Stock Trading System Market Investment Software Launched

MBoxWave, a California stock trading company based in Moreno Valley, launched the MBoxWave Wyckoff Trading System, an online trading analysis solution enabling investors to assess optimal investment opportunities.

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In the 1930s, Richard Wyckoff, a technical trader, created the Wyckoff method of stock analysis. Based on the cyclical nature of stock markets, the Wyckoff method aimed to provide a way to assess the potential of different stocks at different times, as well as to identify potential market trends.

MBoxWave designed a digital version of Wyckoffs method, called the MBoxWave Wyckoff Trading System. The new solution can be used with most trading platforms, including NinjaTrader, MetaTrader and Sierra Chart, and enables the user to visualize in an accessible graphic format potential stock, futures and forex developments that might yield future profits.

The Wyckoff method is based on the idea that stocks, forex and futures typically go through four different stage: accumulation, markup, distribution and markdown. By taking into account these four stages and identifying past patterns, the Wyckoff method can be used as a way to predict future stock developments and identify stocks with high profit potential.

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Powerball numbers for Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022

Here are the winning Powerball numbers and results for the lottery jackpot drawing on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022.
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WASHINGTON  North Korea and other rogue states pose unique challenges and threats to the space environment, defense experts said March 8.

U.S. near-peer adversaries such as China and Russia have incentives to remain peaceful in orbit. They may not want to create debris for fear of damaging their own satellites, or disrupt position, navigation, and timing services that they also use.

But the same logic doesn't apply to non-state actors or rogue nations that don't "have anything at stake in the global economy," said Todd Harrison, director of Defense Budget Analysis and the Aerospace Security Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.

He noted that North Korea is "jamming GPS signals in certain areas along their border. It's disrupting shipping, mainly."

"That's going to happen. You can't necessarily deter that because they don't have a lot to lose from it," said Harrison, speaking Wednesday night at an event hosted by Defense One.

North Korea has never accepted many of the norms used by other nations for space operations, said John Hill, the principal director for space policy at the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.

"North Korea has never committed not to test nuclear weapons in space," he said. "And North Korea has demonstrated they'll do all sorts of strange things. I don't think I just put an idea in anybody's headThat is not a good thing and that is something that we have to think about. How do you deal with that larger problem of North Korea?"

One of the key space capabilities to counter that nation is missile warning, both men said, perhaps no more apparent than March 6 when North Korea launched four ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan, apparently in a test of its ability to hit Japanese or U.S. targets in the region..

"[T]alk to anyone at [the Missile Defense Agency] and they'll tell you that the No. 1 thing you can do to improve the effectiveness of missile defense systems we already have is to improve tracking and discrimination," Harrison said. "The best way to do that over long distances is in space. We need more of this capability."

But missile warning is an area where the U.S. needs to start thinking ahead on what's next, he added.

"In space it typically takes about 10 years from the time you initiate a program to when you can actually get something on orbit. Ten years is if everything goes well," Harrison said.

He said the very first satellites in the Air Force's Space Based Infrared System of missile-warning satellites will likely start to die in about 10 years.

"When do you need to start the follow-on program? Oh, yesterday," Harrison said. "So we already need a follow-on program for SBIRS, even though we're not quite finished launching them yet."

The lack of a follow-on program of record is true for other military space programs, he said, including protected communications.

"We've got a number of these programs that are already at the point where we need to be initiating a follow-on and we haven't yet," Harrison said. "I'm going to be anxiously looking at the FY 18 budget request when it comes out to see if there's anything in there to start these follow-on programs, or if we're going to continue launching the things that we have been launching."

Hill said that developing the next generation of military satellites must include working closely with  and even buying services from  private industry.

"There are pieces of it where the commercial demand, the commercial market, starts driving the innovation," he said. "The trick for DoD is to say 'how does our acquisition system, how does our requirement system, recognize where are those points where we have ceased to be the innovator and driver?' The commercial side is now driving it and how do we capture that and bring it in?"

Harrison said he believes space has reached an "inflection point."

"I think it is being primarily driven by the private sector," he said. "We are seeing a real revolution in space launch, we're seeing it in satellite communications, we're seeing it in remote sensing, Earth imaging, and it's really being driven by the commercial sector. The challenge for DoD now, it's not about catching up; It's about leveraging it. It's about 'how do we tap into it, how do we use it for the military purposes?'"

This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry.
In 2016, two astronauts finished nearly a year of work on the International Space Station. NASA's Scott Kelly and Russia's Mikhail Kornienko were studied closely for changes in their physical and psychological health.

NASA touts the mission as part of its "Journey to Mars", in which it hopes to send humans to the Red Planet by the 2030s. But a recent paper published in the journal Space Policy argues that there are so many aspects to a Martian colony that it is all but impossible to simulate the parameters on Earth.

"We can not simulate the same physical and environmental conditions to reconstruct the Martian environment, I mean such traits like Martian microgravitation or radiation exposure," Konrad Szocik, a cognitive scientist at the University of Information Technology and Management in Rzeszow, Poland and lead author of the paper, said in an e-mail. "Consequently, we cannot predict physical and biological effects of humans living on Mars."

He argues that "an awareness of the one-way journey and all possible dangers" cannot be simulated on the ISS, or even in Antarctica, one of the most remote places on Earth and a frequently cited zone in space analog studies. Szocik argues that people in Antarctica are not reliant on artificial life support to the degree that astronauts are.

RELATED: Martian Meteorites Could Reveal Wetter Past on the Red Planet Than Thought

Szocik suggest individuals acclimatized to living in harsh conditions would be best suited for exploration of Mars. So that's not to say that the space station or Antarctica wouldn't be useful locations for training. But, he argues, it may be necessary to go a step further  modify people's bodies and minds ahead of journeying to Mars.

He suggests possibly electronically enhancing the human senses or prescribing medication that might help diminish emotional reactions in a moment a crisis. Of course, how exactly to do this still lies mostly in science fiction.

Szocik says he is greatly concerned with how a Martian colony would function. While most discussions of colonies focus on the technological or financial challenges of constructing and maintaining it, there has been less study of the social aspects of putting people within a Martian colony.

"A human being is a social animal and he lives in a group," he said. "Group problems affect many challenges and troubles, and we should consider now how we can prevent such typical human problems like conflicts, wars, cheating, etc."

Szocik is also concerned about reproduction on Mars, which not only needs a technological and medical support system, but a large enough colony to avoid the risk of inbreeding. He suggests a population of at least 500 adults on the surface. Not only that, but medical officials would should consider how to reduce the likely mortality rate from disease, possible technological failures, and radiation from the Martian environment, among other factors, he said.

Szocik's previously written about how religion would function on Mars and how the human psyche might be impacted. first foray into predicting human behavior on Mars.

WATCH: Pluto Could Be Made A Planet Again, Along With 102 Other Celestial Bodies

Originally published on Seeker.
NASA's Mars 2020 rover mission will use the "sky crane" system that landed the agency's Curiosity rover on the Red Planet in August 2012.

Come July 2020, a half-dozen rockets from around the world will be preparing to launch an armada of rovers, landers, and orbiters to Mars in a multi-pronged attempt to learn if Earth's neighbor has or ever had life, and to test technologies for eventual human visits.

The flurry of launches is meant to seize on a optimal 20-day launch window that opens about every 26 months when Earth and Mars are favorably aligned.

The Mars party includes longtime planetary explorers NASA and the European Space Agency, both of which are sending sophisticated rovers to investigate life on the Red Planet. NASA's Mars 2020 rover will continue work currently being undertaken by the Curiosity rover, which has been looking for habitable environments in Mars' Gale Crater since its arrival in August 2012.

Like Curiosity, the as-yet unnamed Mars 2020 rover will be about the size of small car. It will search for evidence of life and collect samples for an eventual return to Earth for analysis. The rover is due to launch in July 2020 and is expected to reach Mars in February 2021.

RELATED: Curiosity 2.0: This Is NASA's Next Mars Rover

"Missing the 2020 launch window would result in significant additional costs related to overhead, stand-by work force, replacement of degraded parts and components, and storage while waiting for the next launch opportunity," says a NASA report on the Mars 2020 project that was released in January.

Europe's ExoMars rover is taking a more direct approach to look for life. The ExoMars rover will be able to drill up to about 6.5 feet, or two meters, beneath the planet's surface and look for microbial activity. The rover is expected to launch aboard a Russian Proton rocket in August 2020 and arrive at Mars eight months later.

The NASA and European Space Agency missions to Mars will be joined by a spacecraft from India as a follow-on to its ongoing Mars Orbiter Mission technology demonstration. France is partnering with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) for the mission, which may include a rover as well.

Also hitting the interplanetary highway in 2020 are a trio of first-time Mars explorers, including an unprecedented venture by a private company to reach the Red Planet.

Elon Musk's SpaceX, which already has shaken up the aerospace industry with low-cost pricing and rockets that fly back to Earth for reuse, had planned to launch an unmanned capsule to Mars during the 2018 launch window. However, having just resumed flights in January following an accident, and with much work ahead on a space taxi for NASA, an upgraded rocket motor and the debut flight of a heavy-lift booster, company president Gwynne Shotwell said last month that the Mars mission is being retargeted for the 2020 opening.

SpaceX's Red Dragon mission will join Mars newcomers China, which is developing an orbiter, lander and small rover, and the United Arab Emirates, which is developing a Mars weather satellite called Hope.

RELATED: Risks on Mars Mean Humans Might Want to Follow Opportunity Rover's Tracks

NASA hopes to parlay the simultaneous targeting of Mars by various players into a productive scientific partnerships, but the clock is ticking.

The current network of US rovers and orbiters working at Mars is aging. By the time the new spacecraft arrive in 2021 Curiosity won't have enough power to roam, and NASA's two imaging and communications orbiters will likely "not be capable," said NASA's Mars exploration program director Jim Watzin.

"Sometimes the great success that we've had at Mars  has obscured the fact that these assets have a finite life," Watzin said at a recent Mars science planning meeting. "It becomes pretty apparent that the era we've all known  comes to an end at the end of the decade."

Or maybe a new beginning.

Photo: A Proton-M rocket carrying ExoMars 2016 spacecraft blasts off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

WATCH: The Air on Mars Has a Mysterious Glow. Here's Why...

Originally published on Seeker.
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DANBURY - Hunger among college students is a growing national challenge with serious classroom consequences that experts say should be better researched at the campus level.

That appears to be the case at Western Connecticut State University, a 4,200-student institution with two campuses in Danbury, where a food pantry has been serving 40 students weekly for the last year.

We have not seen this as a burgeoning crisis; if we did, we would react to it, spokesman Paul Steinmetz said in an interview last week at the Newman Center, a campus ministry where the pantry is operated. We start gathering data when we sense there is a problem ... and our sense right now is this is not something we have to mount a new program to address, because students are not being left behind or suffering because of it.

But WestConn social work major Marilyn Hart has called on the University to conduct a student survey similar to one at Central Connecticut State University that found 37 percent of students were hungry at least once in the last month.

Students themselves might think going hungry is a necessary part of college life, she said, without realizing the negative affects nutritional deficits have on academic motivation and concentration.

The idea of the starving or struggling college student has been totally normalized, especially among students, said Hart, 30, of New Milford, who left a career as a chef to pursue a college degree. There is a belief that the college experience includes struggle, desperation and skipping meals, and this just isnt true.

Experts agree.

In the broadest national survey to date, released in October by a coalition of campus groups, 48 percent of college students reported having food insecurity - a term the federal Department of Agriculture uses to measure the health impacts of different degrees of meal deprivation.

The survey of 3,800 students at 34 community colleges and universities found that 22 percent of students had very low levels of food insecurity that qualify them as hungry.

When a student can receive financial aid and earn a part-time salary and still not be able to afford adequate, nutritious food, our educational system is failing to provide that student with a viable path to success in their higher education, concludes the report by the National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness and three other organizations.

The campus hunger challenge was addressed again in late February at a conference of deans and students from Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Connecticut Food Bank CEO Bernie Beaudreau, who moderated the conference, said students and university staff may recognize the problem only after a students financial aid has been discontinued owing to poor academic performance.

I heard stories about students reaching desperation points, being hungry and becoming unstable, missing classes and grades failing, Beaudreau wrote.

That is not the story at WestConn, said the Rev. Jeff Couture, the campus chaplain and director of the Danbury chapter of the Newman Center.

They have more of a quality-of-life issue than a hunger issue, said Couture, whose pantry gives out bags of dorm-friendly food such as macaroni and cheese, instant oatmeal, and canned chili. This helps the kids save money.

Steinmetz added that the university has a team of faculty, administrators and student welfare workers that intervenes to keep at-risk students in class.

He added that the university is always interested in data about its students, but does not believe there is a need to survey them about hunger on campus.

We have not gone and surveyed our kids, but my impression is that many of them are not coming to the pantry because it is the only food they have to eat; they are taking it to the dorms and sharing it with their friends, Steinmetz said.

But Hart said the only way to know how hungry students are is to ask them.

If a student has missed meals their whole life, how would they know they are an outlier? said Hart, who grew up in a poor home. A lot of students have a stigma about it. I do believe we have a large population of students who are food-insecure.

What is hunger?

One of the keys to addressing student hunger on campus is getting colleges to take it seriously, say advocates such as Sara Goldrick-Rab, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin whose 2015 report Hungry to Learn found that 20 percent of college students had food insecurity.

The first step is getting past stereotypes that students who have meal plans and part-time jobs and financial aid have all their living expenses met, she said. Another misconception is that hunger is somehow part of the college experience, she said.

Hart, who is working on a senior project to raise money for a Danbury shelter, said hunger on campus today is a function of higher costs for tuition, housing and health care as well as food.

There are dormitory students who are having a hard time eating even though they are on a meal plan, said Hart, whose family depended on food stamps when she was young. We definitely have work to do. We need to do a survey.

The 2016 national survey asked students if they could make any of the following statements:

I worried whether food would run out before I could buy more.

The food I bought didnt last, and I had no money.

I couldnt afford to eat balanced meals.

I cut the size of a meal because I didnt have enough money.

I was hungry but I didnt eat because I didnt have money.

I did not eat for a whole day.

The result, the survey shows, is that students who answered yes to some of these questions also identified adverse academic consequences, including missing class and dropping classes altogether.

Whether due to nutritional deficits or the stress and distraction of dealing with financial hardship, food insecurity can compromise students ability to perform well in their classes, the study reads.

Couture said WestConn does not have the same issue with student hunger as another urban institutions such as Norwalk Community College, where 380 students get food each week at the campus pantry, because WestConn has a proactive approach to student welfare,

We have so many resources on campus and in the Danbury area that we dont let problems get to that point, Couture said. We are ahead of the curve so that every student need is met.

Couture went a step further, suggesting that for some low-income students, campus life may be a more stable experience than home life.

Even so, he said, he was interested in doing more outreach to hungry students.

If the question is Can we do more? The answer is always yes, he said.

rryser@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342
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STAMFORD  Assistant Fire Marshal Charles Spaulding entered the trauma room at Stamford Hospital at 7:30 a.m. on Christmas 2011 and found Madonna Badger sitting on a gurney with bandages on her burned hands.

He introduced himself to Badger, whose house in Shippan Avenue was still in flames.

I said  that I was there to assist with the investigation of the fire in her home, Spaulding testified in a recently released deposition, which sheds new light on the hours immediately after the fire that killed her three daughters and her parents.

Spaulding had just come from the house on Shippan Avenue, but he had no answers for Badgers repeated questions.

Where are my children? Did they find my children?

He told her firefighters were doing everything to find them. But he had to take out his notebook and attempt to do his job.

I asked her how did she become aware of the fire, Spaulding testified in lawsuits that charge city officials with botching the investigation.

Badger told him she heard a commotion, maybe a knock, that made her get out of bed about 5 a.m. and open the door, where she faced a wall of hot smoke that blocked the hallway. So she crawled out the window, ran across the porch roof and climbed a scaffold to where her 9-year-old, Lily, and 7-year-old twins, Grace and Sarah, slept.

But she could not break through their bedroom windows.

Spaulding said Badger interrupted his questions with her own.

She asked again  and again  if I could find out about her children, he testified.

Spaulding first tried to call his colleague, Assistant Fire Marshal Robert Sollitto, at the scene but he couldnt get through. So he left word at the fire dispatch center for someone to call the hospital nurses station.

They are in there

Back in the trauma room, Badger continued to express just feelings of dismay, Spaulding testified. She was (saying)  that there is this fire  that her children are not with her  she wasnt able to get to her children  that she would rather it would have been her  that she somehow felt  that they are in there.

Spaulding told the lawyers that For us, Spaulding testified, its as if they were our children.

Still, Badger agonized. Why couldnt I get to my children? I should have been able to get to them. Spaulding said Badger wanted to be in there and not come out without her children.

Spaulding was still in the room with Badger when a doctor entered with news from the fire dispatcher that Badgers daughters had not survived, and neither had her parents, who were visiting for Christmas.

Spaulding testified that he was not sure that Badger had absorbed the doctors words, so he repeated them.

How did she respond? a lawyer asked.

She stood up on the gurney, Spaulding said.

He took Badgers arm so she would not fall, and nurses on the other side of the gurney did the same. Badger was wailing  moaning, Spaulding said.

All are gone

After a time, she said she had to make a call, and Spaulding walked her to a telephone in the room.

She said to the person on the other end, Grace is gone. Sarah is gone. Lily is gone. All of them, Spaulding testified.

Badger asked the person to come to the hospital then hung up, saying she couldnt return to the gurney. So Spaulding again took her arm.

We went out of the trauma room and we walked around, he testified. It was Christmas Day. It was empty, practically, and we walked.

Lawyer: Just the two of you?

Spaulding: Yes.

Lawyer: Were you holding her while you walked?

Spaulding: Yes.

Lawyer: Did you talk to one another while you were walking?

Spaulding: Yes.

Lawyer: And what did you say to one another?

Spaulding: She asked me, How could God do this to me?  and I communicated that I dont think God did this to you. I dont think this is God inflicting upon you. This is not Gods doing.  She said, Youre right. God would not do this to me. God is good.

They returned to the room and Badger lay on her side on the gurney, Spaulding said. He sat with her for a while.

Brave men

About 10:30 a.m., he tried once more to return to his investigation.

How did you secure your home last night? he asked Badger.

She told him how the contractor whod been renovating her house, a friend shed just begun dating, cleaned ashes from the hearth after a Christmas Eve fire and placed them in a bag in the mudroom.

After that, Spaulding testified, he returned to the fire scene and told Sollitto about the ashes. Sollitto has testified that hed already ascertained that the fire originated in the mudroom, and Spauldings information had reinforced his findings.

Badgers lawsuit and another filed by her former husband, the late Matthew Badger, allege that city officials quickly tore down her house and carted it away without her permission to cover up their inadequate inspection of the renovation, including possible faulty wiring.

Spauldings testimony was revealed more than four years after Badger told The Advocate her lawsuit is not about anything that has to do with the brave men who showed up to fight the fire and try to save my family.

In that 2012 interview, Badger shared her memory of what happened after the doctor told her that her entire family was gone.

I remember curling up into a little ball and looking at the nurse, Badger said. I wanted to crawl out of my body. Fire Marshal Spaulding came in and walked me around the nurses station. I held onto him.

angela.carella@scni.com; 203-964-2296; stamfordadvocate.com/angelacarella.
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Going to the movies evokes memories of popcorn topped with questionable self-pump liquid butter and soda- fountain drinks. But its a new era as movie theaters promising a trendy eating experience pop up around New York City.

Since its opening in 2011, Nitehawk in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, has been a favorite for New Yorkers looking for a special movie experience. The small neighborhood theater plays a mix of current popular and indie films, foreign films and cult classics. What makes it special is the in-theater waiter service and a full menu, as well as cocktails, beer and wine.

For a while that was the spot, but over the past year, new theaters have embraced the trend. Similar to Nitehawk, Metrograph, a two-screen theater with a restaurant, book store and lounge playing classics and independent films, opened on the Lower East Side.

Large luxury theater chains have been opening up, making Nitehawk seem all the more charming in a mom-and-pop way, yet also highlighting its shortcomings: limited tickets and showtimes and tiny seats that dont recline.

One of the most recent additions in the city is the Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn, which opened in October. The Austin, Texas, chain boasts a viewing experience that includes food and drinks and a zero cellphone or talking policy. Downtown Brooklyn is an up-and-coming neighborhood that is home to the Barclays Center and the new residential and retail center called City Point.

Mike Sampson, senior marketing and promotions manager at the Alamo Drafthouse Brooklyn says the chain originally wanted to open on the Upper West Side in Manhattan about five years ago, but when Hurricane Sandy hit, the cost of construction skyrocketed. Eventually the company looked to Brooklyn, where it could find more space for its seven-screen theater. Sampson says downtown Brooklyn was a good fit because its a transportation hub easily accessible by many subway lines.

The quirkiest thing about Alamo Drafthouse is the House of Wax bar. Guests are welcome to sip cocktails before or after movies in a dark, salon-type bar surrounded by wax curiosities. The anatomical wax figures come from an exhibition known as Castans Panopticum, founded in Berlin in 1869 and lasting until 1922. The figures are not for the faint of heart: There are a number of women giving birth to babies coming out hands and feet first, waxes showing the effects of facial syphilis and monkey skeletons.

Every Alamo Drafthouse has a unique bar. When the Brooklyn location was planning for its bar, the CEO, a collector of random items and the macabre, came across the collection at an auction, and it was decided it would go in the bar. Until the opening, the collection was lent out to the Museum of Morbid Anatomy in New York City. Its still somewhat in a museum setting; the bar has a curator.

Its not just a sideshow, but also these are pretty important historical artifacts, Sampson says. We get a lot of people who dont necessarily want a drink, but they come in as if it were a museum.

I decided to check it out one Friday night. Once I got over the shock of the decor, I ordered one of the theaters signature cocktails. The Lolita Nymph is a refreshing concoction of gin, orange and basil shrub and orange blossom. The waitress at the House of Wax was attentive, making sure we did not miss our showtime and letting us know we could send back any drinks we didnt like.

When we made our way to our theater seats, we found tables with menus and pieces of paper to write down orders (the same method as Nitehawk). The theater menu was designed specifically for this market, based on types of food that new Yorkers eat, Sampson says. We wanted it to feel like part of the community.

Dishes include Ropa Vieja beef tacos inspired by tacos the chefs mother would make in Harlem. The jerk chicken sandwich was created by staff with a Jamaican background.

We ordered popcorn with three seasonings, Thai chicken wings, fried pickles and a large format bottle of red wine to split for two.

But if its comfort you seek, head to South Street Seaport and iPic, a theater chain offering the ultimate movie experience. If ultimate means the most comfortable chair you have ever sat in, they are not lying.

But luxury doesnt come cheap, premium plus seats are $28 to $32 a pop. Premium seats are $16 to $20, but they dont recline or have waiter service.
President Trumps protectionist rhetoric may have some real benefits -- especially if youre a shipping and logistics company.

Our revenue doubled as soon as he won the election, says Matt Tillman, founder and CEO of Haven, a hi-tech logistics platform for shippers.

With everyone worried about the threat of tariffs, taxes and quotas on imports, companies are shipping as much as they can right now. Natural resource traders like Louis Dreyfus and Glencore, in particular, are stocking up on metals to make sure they are on the right side of the trade.

And Haven is benefitting. The company has created a private marketplace where shippers can compare and purchase shipment capacity without a middle man, all thanks to its online booking platform.

As a result, Haven surpassed $3.4 billion a year in cargo value last year, says Tillman.

More importantly, Tillman is keenly aware that the benefits of efficient shipping help more than his bottom line. Keeping shipping costs down in turn keeps the price of goods down.

Related: Damage Control: Getting Your Shipping Claims Paid

Keep On Truckin

While Tillman grew up in a trucking family, he certainly didnt expect to end up in the transportation business. He started at art school, but soon fell in love with programming and dropped out to become a serial tech entrepreneur. And, when he personally tried to ship a container to Singapore, he realized how arcane the industry was.

Then, he set out to make global shipping more efficient.

Haven was born in 2014 after receiving venture capital funds from the likes of Spark, AITV, DataCollective, First Round and OATV. As a result, the company now offers commodity traders, food producers and shippers lower prices through Havens logistics platform, which uses some 1,500 ports, and by collaborating with the best in the business -- Haven works with 20 of the 25 top ocean carriers, every major freight forwarder and tons of service providers.

When trade is transparent, deals close faster, ships sail at capacity and the entire supply chain benefits, says Tillman. This is very progressive concept for the logistics industry, which in general, has been slow to react to technological trends.

Related: Shipping 101

Shipping Is Sexy

Or, at least, it's certainly necessary.

My father is still so proud that I made it on the cover of a logistics magazine, says Tillman, referring to his American Shipper magazine cover shot. (Thats pretty sexy, though.)

Thanks to our president, business is booming. The president reiterated his stance on protectionism in his first address to Congress and even quoted President Abraham Lincoln, referring to a tariff discussion from the 1800s.

Around the world, the threat of tariffs and quotas abound, making commodity firms who trade metals nervous.

We have seen a huge spike in the shipping of metal, nickel and aluminum coming from Korea and going to China, says Tillman, whose company is based both in Singapore and San Francisco.

Related: 5 Shipping Secrets of Zappos

But, while Tillman and Haven are benefitting from the rhetoric right now, the company founder clearly is worried about the future. All trade is mutually beneficial or they wouldnt have engaged in the transaction in the first place, he says, pointing to a protectionism piece written in 1986 by Murray Rothbard of the Mises Institute, a libertarian organization of Austrian economics.

Protectionist policies hurt countries that cant afford to produce their own goods, he says. In a world where nearly everything we eat, wear, or use daily comes from somewhere else (and probably arrives on a shipping container), the cost of freight matters.

"Freight is the largest variable cost for many shippers, and technology has the power to smooth that volatility, says Tillman, who wants to ensure that products can be delivered faster, cheaper and free from corruption leading to his long-term goal: One-click technology to do an honest trade anywhere in the world, so you can open up new markets at moments notice.

Related:

How Technology is Infiltrating the Old-School Shipping Industry

6 Best Tips for Building a Successful Shipping Business

Amazon Flexes Muscle in Air Cargo Space in its Bid for Rapid Delivery



Copyright 2017 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
D iary of a Hounslow Girl is a comedic coming-of-age story that mixes teenage emotional dramas with a clash of cultures.

Centred around 16-year-old west Londoner Shaheen, played by Nyla Levy, the play analyses how one teenage girl muddles her way through balancing the culture of her conservative Pakistani parents with the liberality of her London friends and life.

The writer, Ambreen Razia, said: I always wanted to put a young British Muslim girl at the forefront of a story. Someone whos young and has a really strong voice.

As a writer, it's exciting to see Nyla take on the role of Shaheeda with a fresh energy.

Star of the show: Nyla Levy

"I can't wait to see the show with Nyla performing and finally be able to sit back and watch the magic which I'm sure is going to be an overwhelming and very exciting moment."

Diary of a Hounslow Girl begins its UK-wide tour in the Bernie Grant Arts Centre in Tottenham between Thursday 9th March and Saturday 11th March. Itll then move on to Bedford before returning to The Tramshed in Woolwich on 16th March.

More details of the UK-tour and other dates can be found here.
P hotographer James Popsys says his passion in life is to make people smile.

The conceptual artist has gained a cult following on Instagram for his playful photographs of London and other destination cities, using Photoshop to transform everyday scenes into playful optical illusions.

Included within his witty pictures are familiar scenes that many Londoners will recognise, each with an unexpected twist that will make you take a second and third look.

Theres a London Underground station entrance in the middle of the countryside, Big Ben wearing a sleep mask and headphones and a District Line carriage flying through the clouds.

When I first got myself a good camera, I would do my best to get out and find pictures that hadn't been taken before, Popsys told The Evening Standard.

Invariably though I would notice that several other people were aiming for the same shots as me.

After that happened a couple of times I knew I needed to find another way to create original stuff. That's about the time I found Photoshop.

The series started as a hobby for the London-based photographer, when he would spend his weekends walking around the streets of the capital and filling up memory card after memory card of pictures. Its since become a full-time career.

Normally the 27-year-old photographer uses a Nikon full-frame DSLR, but he says that some of his most popular images were created on his iPhone.

If you can match the perspective and light in all the photos you want to stitch together there's no reason why any camera can't do the job, he says.

Popsys says that Japan and China are next on his list of destinations to shoot, but admits that there are many places in London he's yet to aim his lens at.

Follow James Popsys on Instagram: @jamespopsys
A foster carer who raped and sexually abused vulnerable children in his care - some as young as two - has been jailed for 16 years.

Pensioner Roy Darvill, 79, preyed on five children he was responsible for looking after at his home in Walthamstow - repeatedly abusing them over a 20-year period.

His son 49-year-old Darren Darvill also sexually assaulted one of the victims in the same family home on The Crescent.

Police began investigating Darvill senior after a woman reported at an east London police station that she had sexually abused by Roy and Darren Darvill when she was a child.

Son: Darren Darvill also abused one of the victims / Metropolitan police

Following her disclosure, four more women were traced by the police and they too made allegations against him.

The victims had been placed Darvilles care throughout a period spanning from 1975 to 1995.

And from ages ranging from two to 16-years-old they were systematically sexually abused by the foster carer.

Working on the case DC Colleen Ryan said: Roy Darvill preyed on the most vulnerable of children and abused his position of trust in the most horrific way imaginable.

Walthamstow: The victims were abused at his home on The Crescent / Google Maps

The victims had been placed into his care where they should have been afforded the security and love every child deserves.

Instead they were subjected to systematic sexual abuse. One of those victims was also abused by Roys son, Darren. The effect this abuse has had on the victims adult lives should not be underestimated.

Darvill pleaded guilty at Snaresbrook Crown Court to rape and a further 29 counts of indecent assault.

On March 10 he was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment for the rape and various sentences for the indecent assault which will run concurrently.

His son Darren was found guilty of two counts of indecent assault which took place between 1984 and 1988.

He was handed a two year sentence - suspended for two years - for indecently assaulting one of the victims.

Hopefully this conviction will send out a strong message that no matter the passage of time, police will conduct a thorough investigation and make every effort to bring perpetrators to justice.


A private maths tutor has been jailed after admitting a string of sexual offences against young boys he was teaching at his north London home.

Nicholas Fay, 72, was sentenced to two years at Harrow Crown Court after pleading guilty to four counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

The court heard how he persuaded four boys  aged nine to ten  to engage in sexual activity with him and each other at his Wembley home in July 2015.

One of the boys admitted what had happened to his parents and Fay was arrested a day later.

Upon sentencing, Judge Greenwood said: "What you did was serious. You were a maths tutor and were entrusted by the children and their parents - you abused their trust.

You incited them to take part in activity with each other. You told them not to tell their parents, but fortunately they did."

Four other boys made similar accusations against Fay dating back to 1999 and 2006 which were referenced by the Judge as bad character evidence.

As well as the jail term, Fay was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and handed a Sexual harm Prevention Order preventing him from unsupervised contact with people under 16.

Police fear that there may be more victims of Fay  who taught privately for 18 years  and have urged any to come forward.

Detective Constable Janine Stevenson of the Sexual Offences Exploitation and Child Abuse Command said: "The victims' parents put their trust in Fay to teach their children whilst they were under his supervision - he breached that trust in the most abhorrent way.

"I would like to thank all of the families involved in this investigation - without their assistance the outcome would not have been possible.

"Fay initially refused to accept the charges which meant that the children were faced with the fear of having to attend court to give evidence. Thankfully, he eventually changed his plea on the first day of trial, avoiding them additional distress.

"Fay has caused immense distress and trauma for the victims and their families and I hope his sentence will go towards providing some closure for them.

"Fay has been teaching children privately for at least 18 years and we fear there may be more victims.

I would urge any other potential victims to come forward and contact me as soon as possible."

Anyone with information of a potential victim is asked to contact DC Janine Stevenson on 101. Alternatively contact Crimestoppers anonymously via 0800 555 111.
F oreign Secretary Boris Johnson has been asked by the Chancellor to defend the Budget in the face of a Tory backlash when it is debated by MPs on Monday.

Critics claimed Philip Hammond's financial statement was left in "disarray" after Conservatives called for reforms to National Insurance to be dropped.

Mr Johnson will appear at the despatch box when discussions continue in the House of Commons, despite little crossover between his international diplomacy brief and the Government's tax and spending plans.

Sources said the Cabinet minister was one of the Government's best communicators and a solid parliamentary performer.

Speech: Philip Hammond making his Budget statement on Thursday / PA

The request was made before Mr Hammond delivered the Budget.

Prime Minister Theresa May promised to listen to concerns raised by Conservative MPs over the 2 billion hike in National Insurance contributions (NICs) for the self-employed and said there would be no vote until the autumn.

Labour claimed the promise amounted to a "partial U-turn" on the proposals set out by Mr Hammond.

But the Prime Minister insisted the planned 2% hike in Class 4 NICs was "fair" as benefits for self-employed workers have improved.

A review of modern employment practices by RSA chief executive Matthew Taylor, due to report over the summer, will be followed by a Government paper that is expected to include proposals to extend benefits such as parental leave to the self-employed.

Around 20 Tories have raised concerns about the changes, including Wales Minister Guto Bebb who said the Government should apologise for breaking an election manifesto commitment not to increase National Insurance.

Mrs May acknowledged on Thursday that the Budget had meant "difficult decisions", but insisted it was vital to close the gap between the amount of tax paid by the self-employed and those in "traditional" employment.

Mr Johnson will be responding to MPs during a section in the Budget debate on "Britain's place in the world".

Treasury minister David Gauke will sum up for the government.
M ore than 5,000 has been donated to a spoof campaign pretending to raise money for Katie Hopkins court costs but the funds will instead be given to food banks.

Hundreds of people have donated money to the parody online cause, which claims to be trying to help the controversial columnist pay her legal fees.

On Friday public personality Ms Hopkins was ordered to pay 24,000 in damages to food blogger Jack Monroe for a tweet the judge ruled was defamatory.

The Twitter message suggested food poverty campaigner Monroe had taken part in or condoned the defacement of a war memorial.

Trial: Food blogger Jack Monroe arriving at the High Court in central London / PA

Now nearly 500 people have donated thousands of pounds to the online fundraising page, which says it aims to help the amazing and beautiful newspaper columnist.

The page, on JustGiving, calls the judges decision outrageous and cites fears the payout could jeapardise Katies career in journalism.

But continue reading and the charity page reveals its true agenda.

Were actually going to give the money to The Trussell Trust, the page reads. A FANTASTIC cause who help to provide food banks all over the UK.

The page was set up by satirical news site the Southend News Network, who told the Standard: We didnt think it would take off.

Weve raised 5,000 in the space of about seven hours.

The majority of people donating get the joke. When you read through the comments the people donating get it and are sarcastically supporting the cause.

The Trussell Trust is a UK-wide network of food banks which provide emergency food to people living in poverty. Last year the trust gave more than 1.1 million food packages to people in crisis.
A Torrington man has been charged in a crash that killed a 22-year-old Casper, Wyoming, man.

Tyler Lane has been arrested and booked in at the Albany County Detention Center in Laramie, Wyoming, on charges in a March 10 crash in Laramie. Nathan Pieper, 22, of Casper, Wyoming, died in the crash.

According to information released by Lt. David Wagener of the Wyoming State Patrol, the crash occurred at 3:10 a.m. on the Interstate 80 westbound on-ramp from Grand Avenue near the east end of the Laramie city limits.

Prior to the crash, a Laramie police officer had attempted to stop Lane, driving a 2002 Ford Mustang for no headlights on. Lane allegedly eluded the officer and the officer discontinued the brief pursuit before the crash occurred due to the extreme speeds within city limits.

While Lane attempted to negotiate the on-ramp onto I-80 westbound from Grand Avenue at a high rate of speed, the car briefly left the roadway and struck a piece of wood. The car entered a slide, left the roadway to the north, tripped and rolled.

Pieper was not wearing his seat belt, was ejected, and was taken by ground ambulance to Ivinson Memorial Hospital in Laramie where he died.

Lane and a second passenger, 21-year-old Zachariah Pieper of Mitchell, were both unrestrained but were not ejected. They were both taken by ground ambulance to Ivinson Memorial Hospital and were treated and released.

Lane has been arrested and booked in at the Albany County Detention Center in Laramie. Lane has been charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, driving while impaired, driving without a valid driver's license, failure to maintain a single lane of travel, unsafe tires, and no seat belt. Additional charges may be pending from the Laramie Police Department.
Daylight saving time begins on Sunday, March 12 at 2 a.m. when residents set their clocks forward one hour. The Scottsbluff Fire Department would like to remind citizens to check their smoke and carbon monoxide detectors at this time and change the batteries. If your smoke detector is 10 years old, it needs to be replaced. Carbon monoxide detectors generally need to be replaced every 5-7 years.

Batteries in detectors need to be changed at least twice a year, even if they are hardwired into the homes electrical system. Scottsbluff Fire Department recommends doing this when daylight saving time begins and ends as an easy reminder.

Roughly two-thirds of home fire deaths occurred in homes without working smoke detectors. Since most fatal fires occur at night, it is essential that every home have working smoke detectors to provide an early warning. Working smoke detectors increase the chance of surviving a home fire by 50 percent.

If any residents do not currently have a working smoke or carbon monoxide detector, the fire department will provide them for free and install them in the home. Residents may also contact the fire department if they need assistance with changing the batteries in their detectors.

The fire department can be contacted by calling 630-6231, or residents can visit our website at www.scottsblufffire.org and click on the Detector Program link.
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The Erker familys eyewear business, founded in 1879, has a long legacy in St. Louis, predating the Gateway Arch and 45 city mayors. It was established just 19 years after the Anheuser-Busch brewery.

Now, Tony and Jack III, the fifth generation of Erkers, are launching a new eyewear venture, Copper Hinge, that has set its sights on competing online against innovative startups such as Warby Parker. But most important, the brothers say, is returning the family-owned eyewear business to its roots by manufacturing lenses and frames here, from a storefront in the Delmar Loop.

By the 1980s, imported frames had become the norm in the industry, because they could be made for less overseas. Not much has changed since. Today, the brothers said, there are only a handful of smaller manufacturers in the U.S.

Its a lost craft from the U.S. that is no longer here, said Tony Erker, 36, whos hoping to change that with Copper Hinge.

Years ago, the brothers began turning their hip, made-in-America concept into a reality. They were looking to cut out the middlemen overseas to sell directly to consumers online.

I wanted to be able to control our own destiny, said Jack Erker III, 37.

In April, the men will open the door to Copper Hinge, a Delmar Loop retail store and factory where shoppers can watch their glasses being made  a nod to nearby Fitzs where diners watch the bottling of Fitzs root beer, said Jack Erker, a University City native.

Shoppers will be able to get an eye exam and be fitted for glasses at the Delmar store, or they can have their prescription and measurements sent in from their optometrist.

The retail store offers a window into the brand, but most of the sales will be conducted online.

Shoppers who go to the website will be able to browse the frame selection online and can have frames sent to them to try on at home for free. If they find a pair they like, they can have their prescription sent in. Measurements are done online using interactive technology via the website.

It takes about a week to make the lenses and frames, which will start at $100.

So far the brothers have invested $1 million and have hauled in many high-tech machines to whittle long sheets of plastic into colorful and wearable frames. Their special mark is a copper hinge, a rarity in eyewear, they say.

The brothers secured multiple patents to protect their frames, including the copper hinge design, which is also the inspiration for the company name.

The factory will also take over some of the manufacturing for Erkers wholesale business.

But even though the machines make the process look easy, its been a long road. An improvement in technology helped make the concept a reality. Just five years ago, five machines were required to make the nose bump. Now, one does it, Jack Erker said.

Its unique to have so much automation, the men said. Many of the overseas factories still rely heavily on workers.

In California, near Silicon Valley, Daniel Lau relies on his 10 workers to make frames by hand instead of using automation.

Were one of the survivors, said Lau, 44, who took over the business from his father.

Its a tough business, he said, but being American-made is a big draw for consumers. He sells about 50,000 to 60,000 eyeglasses each year under his own brand, Kala Eyewear.

Copper Hinge will have the ability to make at most 2,500 frames per employee per month, Jack Erker said. He and his brother hope to have 14 employees.

There are highs and lows in the business, and you always have to prepare for a downturn, Lau said.

Before Jack Erker Jr.s sons took over the business, he was familiar with tough times in the eyewear industry. But the ability to adapt and change with the times is why the company has survived as long as it has, he said.

He was hesitant about Copper Hinge at first, but after he traveled with his sons overseas and saw the new manufacturing technology and their energy for the idea, he knew it could work.

I think made in America is something people are willing to buy into today, Jack Erker Jr., 63, said. I think timing is really good for us.
WASHINGTON  Caterpillar, a week after its headquarters and other facilities were raided by a number of federal agencies including the Internal Revenue Service, denied that it had broken any federal tax laws.

The IRS has challenged Caterpillars taxes for years 2007-2012, the company said Friday. We disagree with the IRS position, have cooperated for requests for information, and believe that we are compliant with tax laws and stand by our financial reporting.

Caterpillar has been challenged for some time by federal agencies in regard to its accounting practices and last week the company said that the raids may have been related to a Swiss business, called CSARL.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission last month, Caterpillar said that the IRS had informed the company that it owed $2 billion in additional taxes for the years 2010 to 2012 because of profits from that Swiss unit.

Caterpillar takes very seriously its obligation to follow tax law and pay what it owes, the company said Friday.

The raids came two days after the New York Times cited a report by Dartmouth College accounting professor Leslie A. Robinson, which stated that Caterpillar did not comply with either U.S. tax law or U.S. financial reporting rules.

The Times said the report was commissioned by the government but its not clear which agency wanted it, and the report has not been made public.

Caterpillar had not been furnished with a copy of the report until Thursday morning, it said, a week after the raids and more than a week after the New York Times story was published.

Officials at Dartmouth would not discuss the report or release it officially to the Associated Press.

Other than the IRS, the agencies involved in raids on three properties where Caterpillar operates included the U.S. Department of Commerce Office of Export Enforcement and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.s office of inspector general.

Caterpillar is one of the worlds largest makers of construction and other heavy equipment and had revenue of $38.54 billion last year.
With the return of spring, you can be sure that a fresh crop of visual arts events will be sprouting. Here are some of the most promising.

The Imagery of Chess

An exhibition at the World Chess Hall of Fame features work celebrating chess (of course) by 20 local artists, writers, designers, musicians and composers. This year marks the fifth anniversary for the WCHOF.

When Reception 6-8 p.m. March 23; on view through Sept. 24  Where World Chess Hall of Fame, 4652 Maryland Avenue  How much Free  More info worldchesshof.org

Art Fair at Queeny Park

Artworks by about 135 artists  along with wine tastings, live music and activities for the kids  will all be part of the Art Fair at Queeny Park. Presented by the Greater St. Louis Art Association, the indoor, climate-controlled event is in its 40th year.

When March 31-April 2  Where Greensfelder Recreation Center, 550 Weidman Road, Ballwin  How much $5  More info artfairatqueenypark.com

40 Years at Laumeier

Drawing from the Collection: 40 Years at Laumeier will be an anniversary celebration featuring drawings, prints, works on paper, collages and photographs by notable artists including Vito Acconci, Donald Judd and Meg Webster. Its all happening in the Whitman Foundation Gallery in the Adam Aronson Fine Arts Center.

When April 1-July 16  Where Laumeier Sculpture Park, 12580 Rott Road  How much Free  More info laumeiersculpturepark.org

Shimon Attie

Two works by esteemed artist Shimon Attie are coming to the St. Louis Art Museum. Lost in Space (After Huck), a multimedia installation, starts April 1 and will be part of the museums Currents series. The Crossing, a video, starts March 24 and will be presented in the New Media series. Both exhibitions are curated by Hannah Klemm with research assistant Molly Moog.

When April 1 through June 25  Where St. Louis Art Museum, 1 Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park  How much Free  More info slam.org

Taking It to the Streets: Grand Center

University of Missouri-St. Louis art students are contributors to Taking It to the Streets: Grand Center. The group show encompasses photographs, multimedia drawings and three-dimensional fiber wall pieces. Its an extension of an exhibition at Gallery 210 on the UMSL campus.

When April 7-May 20  Where Gallery at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand Boulevard  How much Free  More info kranzbergartscenter.org

Laumeiers Annual Art Fair

Celebrate Mothers Day at this giant art fair, which marks its 30th anniversary this year and will feature 150 juried artists from across the country. Enjoy food and beverage vendors, hands-on activities for kids and live music. Proceeds benefit temporary exhibitions, education programs and public events at the park.

When May 12-14  Where Laumeier Sculpture Park, 12580 Rott Road  How much $10, free for children 10 and under  More info laumeiersculpturepark.org

Schlafly Art Outside

This family-friendly, all-ages event draws about 15,000 visitors each year. It features quality, affordable art, along with music, and food and drinks by Schlafly.
TIGRE, Argentina  The Polish pope, St. John Paul II, made nine visits to his country of birth, the first in 1979, less than a year after his election.

His successor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, went to his native Germany three times, including on his first international trip.

And the first Argentine pontiff? Francis hasnt been back once since he became pope four years ago.

Its not as though there havent been good reasons to come. Last year was the bicentennial of Argentine independence from Spain. There was also the beatification of Blessed Maria Antonia de Paz y Figueroa, an Argentine nun affectionately known as Mama Antula, and the canonization of the Gaucho Priest, Saint Jose Gabriel Brochero.

You dont know how much I want to come back and see you, the pope said in a video addressed to the Argentine people last September, adding that he had hoped to return to preside over those events.

But he surprised many by saying he also wouldnt be able to return this year either because there are already commitments for trips to Asia and Africa.

The world is bigger than Argentina, he reminded them.

Although the pope felt compelled to apologize for his no-show, its also no exaggeration to say theres no clamor for a visit. In fact, many people attending a Mass last Ash Wednesday at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Tigre, a suburb of Buenos Aires, appreciated his absence.

I dont mind, and in fact I am grateful to him (for staying away) because it would be used politically, said Leonor, a 73-year-old retiree who wouldnt give her last name.

Some expected a stop in Argentina when he traveled to Paraguay and Bolivia in 2015. But at the time, the campaign for who would succeed former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was in full swing. And this year, the nation is caught up in campaigning for Octobers legislative elections.

Clearly the political situation in our country is not conducive to a papal visit, said 78-year-old retiree Juan Parmaggiani on his way into the church.

Last year, Francis was careful not to take sides in the general election and the center-right mayor of Buenos Aires, Mauricio Macri, defeated Daniel Scioli, who belonged to Kirchners Justicialist party.

However, the popes progressive views, and especially his support for social movements, are seen by many as putting him at odds with the president.
What has happened to our powers of discernment and our ability to see these people for what they are, which is that they care nothing for us?
Nafees Zakria Says India is involved in terror financing to sabotage peace in Pakistan.

Foreign Office Spokesman Nafees Zakria has urged international community to play role for stopping Indian human rights violations in Occupied Jammu Kashmir.

In an interview, he said we condemned the brutal activities committed by India against the innocent people living in Occupied Kashmir.

He said that Kashmir was an internationally recognized dispute between the two states and should be resolved according to United Nations Resolutions.

Nafees Zakria said there were reports that India is involved in terror financing and supporting the elements holding hideouts in Afghanistan to sabotage peace in Pakistan.

He said that India had failed to isolate Pakistan in the comity of nations and Islamabad policies is focused on peaceful relations with neighboring countries.

The spokesman said that Pakistan had apprised the world about the Indian terrorist activities in this country.

To a question regarding border fencing, he said that border fencing from Afghan side would help stop terrorist elements.

He said that a special interest was given to strengthen relations with Central Asian States.

The spokesperson urged the Afghan Government to take action against the elements who want to destabilize Pakistan.
Russia says the recent deployment of a US missile system in South Korea threatens regional stability and provokes an arms race.

The Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday warned that the installment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea would have the most serious negative consequences.

Such a development is fraught with the most serious negative consequences for international and regional strategic stability, the ministry said in a statement.

In the Asia-Pacific region, where an uneasy security situation already exists, a new, destructive factor has emerged that can further complicate the nuclear question and other problems on the Korean Peninsula and provoke a regional arms race involving missiles, it said.

The first pieces of the missile system arrived in the Osan Air Base in South Korea on Tuesday. A military official said last month that the deployment could be completed by August. Seoul intends to bring the system online by the end of this year.

China, another regional power, has also voiced opposition to the installment of the American system in South Korea.

The US and South Korea claim that the purpose of the deployment is to protect the two countries from North Korean missile threats.

The deployment of THAAD has also been opposed inside South Korea itself.
Cold Stores gearing for ice cream, launches two exotic fruit drinks By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s):

John Keells Holdings subsidiary, Ceylon Cold Stores (CCS) has a lot going for it.

The company launched two exotic fruit flavoured drink this year amidst plans to launch ice creams through its Rs.270 million subsidiary  Colombo Ice Company (Pvt) Ltd (CICL) incorporated in May last year.

CICL entered into an agreement with the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka (BOI) on July 18, 2016 to lease a land extent of 9 acres for a period of 50 years to set up an ice cream factory.

In January CCS through Elephant House launched Fito, flavoured fruit drink and in March (a hot month) it introduced Lemoki drink which is a Lemon and kiwi flavoured.

Founded as the Colombo Ice Company, which imported and used the countrys first ice making machine, the CCS moved on to build cold storage for frozen products of all kinds and introduced Aerated Water with the distinctive Elephant trademark on the bottles, which remained a popular household name for the brand. For over 150 years, CCS has expanded and refined a range of popular soft drinks and ice cream products that are sold across the island today.

Some CCS carbonated soft drinks now contain steviol glycoside marketed as a natural or novel sweetener from the stevia plant. In labels of CCS Orange Crush, Necto and Cream Soda beverages, an inclusion of orange tables (i.e. medium sugar)was shown. Analysts say that this inclusion probably helped avoid red label high-sugar classification.

New products launched by CCS in recent years include four major flavours reducing the sugar calories significantly with the introduction of a sweetener extract from the Stevia plant which has a zero calorie-count.

The company has said that although the 2016 Budget had proposed a revised tax rate (15.7 per cent) effective from April 1, 2016, the CCS has used the existing tax rate of 28 per cent for its tax expense computation, as the proposed rate has still not been legally enacted as at the reporting date.
From Grass to Glass: Achieving success in the dairy industry By Gamini Weerasinghe Focus View(s): View(s):

I was intrigued by a recent dialogue on collaboration in the dairy industry where what I found missing was the lack of focus on grass. Let me explain why grass is the key element in improving the dairy industry.

The process of milk production begins with the cow. When a cow gives birth to a calf she will be able to produce milk. Because milk is made up of the nutrients in the food a cow eats and the water she drinks, eating is an essential step in the milk producing process.

The amount of milk a cow can produce is directly related to the quality and quantity of food which she eats. If quality and or quantity is lacking, the cow will respond by producing less milk. In the short term (say less than one week) the cow may mobilise her own body reserves in order to maintain her production of milk. If she is not fed sufficiently over a longer period both daily production and the length of lactation will be reduced, also the cow will be in a poor (thin) physical state.

According to available data released by the Department of Census and Statistics, the national herd has dwindled by 6.75 per cent during the 10-year period from 11,66905 in 2004 to 10,88110 in 2015. However the total number of milking cows recorded an increase by 4.75 per cent to 301,140 in 2015 from 217,168 in 2004.

If the calves had been looked after, today, we would have had over 500,000 milking cows or over 150 per cent increase from the present level. This assumption was made by a simple calculation following the criteria that 20 per cent of the cows will be annually culled or would die, 50 per cent of the calves born will be heifers, 10 per cent of deaths of heifers have been accounted for and 20 per cent of the heifers would be culled.

Lack of feed

It has been reported that the countrys national herd had been static around 1million heads for the last 40 years. According to the same calculation, if the heifers were looked after for the last 40 years we would today have over 100,000 milking cows and enough milk to export.

The main reason for this situation is lack of feed where cows and even heifers have prematurely died. The birth weight of the heifers is poor and they do not gain the required weight which is also due to lack of feed.

There is no dispute that the main feed for cattle is grass. The data released by the Ministry of Livestock Development revealed that the total extend of land available for dry matter is 8,82,500 and total dry matter 17,71,500MT/YR. According to statistics in the Ministry Livestock Development Master Plan 2011 and the Department of Census and Statistics, the total amount of dry matter required for all ruminants including cattle is 1771 million/kg and shortage per annum is 2,306 million/kg According to available statistics, in Sri Lanka there is sufficient forage only for 43 per cent of the stock in the country and as a result of the lack of forage the country has lost 151 per cent of the heifers born during the last decade. (2004 -2014). Sri Lanka needs only about 600,000 cows at the present level of production to be self sufficient in milk. Within the last decade itself, we have lost around 350,000 cows due to lack of forage.

The lack of forage is not confined to the death of animals due to lack of nutrition. A Wellard report on dairy of Sri Lanka revealed that inconsistency of the supply of feed could adversely affect the milk curve.

The project report of Wellard Sri Lanka dated September 18, 2008 revealed, In many ways, maintenance of quality over quantity is more important because a sudden precipitous decline in forage quality will result in a dramatic decline in daily milk production per cow. These temporary setbacks can quickly become permanent losses. Once cows are past peak yield, any decline in milk production can quickly become permanent. If for any reason for example attending a funeral, the farmer is unable to cut grass, the milk yield drops and it will never come up to the previous level in the curve.

A study conducted by taking into consideration 131 calves revealed that they have not attained the required weight and lack of weight gain makes these calves either poor or useless cows.

Heifers do not come into heat or cows do not become pregnant. Ideally a cow should be in calf a minimum of two months after calving, but again due to lack of feed there are many unproductive cows. On checking 808 lactation cycles, it was found that more than half the cows were dry for over 80 days. Only a small fraction of 11 per cent has the calving interval correct.

Urgency for more forage

Therefore it is evidently clear that lack of forage is the main reason for failure or lack of progress of the dairy industry. Limited land ownership by many dairy farmers constrains their ability to grow quality fodder for their cattle. Access to land for production of livestock forage and fodder is a critical issue if productivity gains in the sector are to be achieved.

Land-growing grass is generally considered to be a waste of land because there is little appreciation of the potential value of quality grass or fodder for dairy stock feed. However Sri Lanka could make use of the available land for the planting of grass and harness maximum benefits as it has sunshine and other resources

Tea and rubber industries are currently facing a crisis and 1/3 of the tea is said to be unproductive or underproductive when the fields are classified into A, B and C categories. There are about 100,000 Ha which could carry 500,000 heads of cattle. Good quality hay mixed with legumes could be planted in these lands.

Cost of planting a hectare of grass on the same basis as planting grass for rehabilitation of the land is Rs.500,000 and according to the Tea Research Institute, tea bushes need not be uprooted but cut at ground level for this project. Thereafter, upkeep including fertiliser would be about Rs.85,000 per hectare. The harvest will be 70  80,000 kg of dry matter or 320,000 kg of grass. Cost per kg after the year of planting will be 20 cents to 30 cents. There is at present in Hatton an offer to purchase at Rs. 4 per kg.

By planting and selling grass a profit of more than Rs. 1 million per hectare could be made. With the abundant sunshine available hay could be made so as to make it available to the farmers to feed the cattle in case there is a break in the supply of grass. According to experts Prof Sujatha Premaratne and G.C.C.Premalal, with a good mix of legumes and grass 8 litres of milk could be harvested per day. Even if half that amount is harvested there will be a large saving on cost of poonac and imports of same to the country and a great economic benefit to the dairy farmer.

Financial assistance even over Rs. 100 million is available as a soft loan from the Central Bank for dairy development which includes planting of fodder. There are also tax concessions. Grass harvesting and hay baling machines are available in Sri Lanka. Irrigation could be done with animal driven water pumps as there are so many bulls idling.

Land is available with regional plantation companies who are willing to release the land for a project of this nature and land is also available with JEDB, SLSPC and capita and market know-how are available and only what is needed for a successful project is an entrepreneur, be it public or private. The collaboration to develop the grass will in turn have a tremendous impact in developing the dairy industry.

(The writer, who has decades of experience in the dairy industry, has worked at Whittall Bousted Ltd, Sri Lanka State Plantations Corporation and has been a consultant at the Ministry of Plantation Industries and the National Livestock Development Board (NLDB). He can be reached on 071 8387895 or e-mail gamiweera@gmail.com)
MAS links with UNFPA to ensure gender-mainstreamed corporate policies View(s):

MAS Group, the

Sri Lankan entity which is the largest private-sector employer of women, has joined hands with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Sri Lanka to ensure strengthened corporate policies and programmes that focus on identifying gaps and gender inequalities in the working environment.

In a media release, UNFPA said Sri Lankas female labour force participation is declining. In 2006, females constituted 39.5 per cent of the working force, whereas in 2014, this number has come down to 36.3 per cent. In response to this socio-economic issue, it is imperative that organisations continuously review corporate policies to instill an organisational culture that is conducive towards its female employees.

Shifting corporate culture is a long-term process that involves addressing day-to-day biases, stigma and stereotypes among employees. It includes ensuring staff benefits such as maternity and paternity leave, and flexible working hours are provided by organisations. In delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every child birth is safe, and that every young persons potential is fulfilled, UNFPA understands the importance of engaging closely with the private-sector to deliver this mandate, the release said.

Through the MAS-UNPFA partnership, UNFPA will conduct perception surveys and focus-group discussions to understand the current corporate culture at MAS, after which trainings will be conducted to address inequalities and gaps that may be identified.

Speaking of the importance of this partnership, Group Human Resources Director, Shakthi Ranatunga said, At MAS, we undertake a holistic, integrated and strategic approach to womens empowerment as it is at the very foundation of the corporate-action framework. We are happy to enter a strategic partnership with UNFPA as it would enable us to maximise the impact of our initiatives and investments towards womens empowerment.

Director of Women Go Beyond, MAS, Ms. Shaanaz Preena added, Womens empowerment is a key element of the MAS Culture. With 70 per cent of our 87,000 associates in Sri Lanka and overseas being women, we are indeed privileged to be able to work with UNFPA in a manner that would benefit our majority female associates and the communities we reach, ensuring an enabling environment in their place of employment, homes and communities.

UNFPA Representative-designate in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Ms. Ritsu Nacken, said, As the lead UN agency addressing gender-based violence issues in Sri Lanka and the world, we are pleased to directly work with the leading private-sector employer of women in the country. Through this programme, we are focusing our efforts to mainstream gender within MAS existing corporate structures and systems, thereby ensuring that no one is left behind.

This initiative will be piloted with MAS Active and MAS Intimates factories, with the potential for scaling up the programme to the wider organisation.
Next 3 years critical for CEOs across the world By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s):

Accountants need to adapt to the great changes in the macro and micro environments in order to meet the challenges that their clients are facing. They need to integrate technology into their day-to-day work and need to be innovative in attending to clients demands whilst keeping an open mind to different cultures and professions.

In this respect five risks that the accounting profession will face were identified by a top international expert.

Lawson Carmichael, Executive Vice President  Strategy, and Innovation, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, addressing the audience at the CIMA Corporate Partners Summit in Colombo this week on what the association is, what it plans, what the future of the profession looks like and benefits to the corporate said that geopolitical instability, technology and cyber issues, work force changes, regulatory complexes and financial challenges are what accountants need to be mindful of.

Brexit, President-elect Donald Trumps victory and the rise of populism are geopolitical risks, he said noting that drastic change in technology was said to have accelerated problems in geopolitical stability. All these are delivering instability in a different way.

The financial sector is particularly vulnerable to both known international cyber criminal groups and emerging home-grown hackers and Mr. Carmichael added that technology and cyber issues are real challenges.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution (FIR) has created a record amount of new global risks as well as worsen existing problems, according to analysts. Artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics were found to pose the greatest danger over the coming decade, Mr. Carmichael said.

Increased reliance on AI will dramatically exacerbate existing risks, such as cyber, making the development of mitigation measures just as crucial, he added noting that AI will enable workforce changes as well. In 20 years, 65 per cent of the children will be doing jobs that we dont even know. Accountants, he said must cope with different regulatory approaches concerning digitalisation.

The financial challenges will be the slow economic recovery, Mr. Carmichael added. The next three years will be more critical for CEOs than the past five decades, and that four out of 10 CEOs will transform their companies into significantly different entities in the next three years. CIMA is trying to enhance the audit quality of finance around the world by embracing technology, redefining learning and expending our platforms.

Arul Ramanan, MESANA Regional Board Member, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants and Managing Director of Hayleys Power and Energy Sector and Hayleys BOP and Venkkat Ramanan, Regional Vice President, Asia Pacific  Management Accounting, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants spoke on objectives, collaborative areas and opportunities for value creation through corporate partnership.

With its inception in 2007, the CIMA Corporate Partners Programme has facilitated greater employment opportunities for students and members, mentoring future leaders, supporting innovation in the accounting profession and the fostering of greater insights and dialogue amongst the countrys business community, they said noting that this year is of particular importance as together with their joint venture partner the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), CIMA formed the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants earlier in 2017. The association represents 650,000 members and students in public and management accounting, advancing the reputation of CIMA students and members worldwide.
SLPA afloat on SAGT, CICT royalties By Sunimalee Dias View(s): View(s):

The Colombo port this week announced massive gains in operational profits in 2016 however without discounting the fact that 100 per cent of this came from royalties collected from the two privately-owned terminals.

The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA)-run Jaya Container Terminal (JCT) and the Unity Container Terminal (UCT) last year had made a net loss if not for the royalties obtained from the South Asia Gateway Terminal (SAGT) amounting to Rs.4.4 billion and the Colombo International Container Terminal (CICT) at Rs.5.7 billion, a Business Times analysis based on the SLPAs own figures shows. At a news conference on Thursday, the SLPA said it had recorded a net profit of Rs.11 billion last year.

Also revealing is that since Ports and Shipping Minister Arjuna Ranatunga had disclosed only the operational profit (profit before deducting taxes and interest) other market analysts note that when the interest payable and depreciation is taken then it would amount to a net loss.

Authorities detailed that 2016 revenue recorded by the Colombo Port amounted to Rs.44 billion with a majority of the ships calling at the CICT and as a result the total amounted to an increase of 5 per cent with transshipment volumes up by 11.8 per cent compared to the 2015. Transshipment accounts for over 70 per cent of the business generated at the Colombo Port. The minister told reporters that the SLPA had incurred a total cost of Rs.16.7 billion in loans and interest payments last year, including Rs.7.1 billion for the Hambantota Port.

The two private sector driven terminals at the Port of Colombo had contributed Rs.4.4 billion (SAGT) and Rs.5.7 billion (CICT) inclusive of royalty fees.

Meanwhile, Minister Ranatunga said that there was about a 70 per cent change in the draft agreement with the Chinese company selected to run the Hambantota Port.

He pointed out that they had sent their concerns to the Attorney General and explained that they were likely to finalise the agreement in a week or 10 days.

But he noted that due to a court case filed regarding the issue they were unable to have official level discussions with the relevant party as it was not ethical.

We are working very hard to get what we want, Minister Ranatunga said adding that currently they were awaiting the AGs decision regarding the legislation that was subject to being changed as per the new agreement.

However, he noted that amending legislation could not be brought overnight and that this could take some time.
Steadying the tourism ship View(s):

This week Sri Lanka, it appears, sent its largest private-public sector delegation for the ITB Berlin tourism fair, one of the biggest in the world. While this is a lot to crow about, the islands tiny neighbour, the Maldives had in fact sent an equal number or even more representatives, mostly from private companies and resorts. This week Sri Lanka, it appears, sent its largest private-public sector delegation for the ITB Berlin tourism fair, one of the biggest in the world. While this is a lot to crow about, the islands tiny neighbour, the Maldives had in fact sent an equal number or even more representatives, mostly from private companies and resorts.

Having more representatives at key trade fairs doesnt mean anything. Policies, ground realities and dressing up the product to match market needs are what, eventually, matters. Furthermore in todays context, B2C, that is business-to-consumer relationships, matters more than B2B (business-to-business, meaning trade fairs and road-shows). Reaching directly to consumers and travellers is todays mantra.

This, however, is not the focus of todays discussion on tourism and its future and thankfully eternal busybody Kussi Amma Sera (KAS) was busy in the kitchen working her magic and not butting into the conversation.

Like most government agencies with piles of cash, Sri Lanka Tourism (SLT) has been an attractive draw not only for free overseas trips and runaway spending but also to occasionally fund political projects.

Senior travel industry officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that while interference in the effective running of the state tourism agency reflects deep-rooted political realities in Sri Lanka over several decades, the politicization of the SLT worsened during the previous 2010-January 2015 government.

In one instance, the push in China with a mega campaign including road-shows, trade fairs and advertising was driven by political realities rather than rational and marketing-related decisions. While for some reason it worked, thankfully, it was still a political decision.

The straw that broke the camels back was when private sector officials, serving as directors at SLT, were arrested last year, remanded and later released on bail in connection with alleged misuse of funds. While the court case is ongoing, it turns out that while the directors had sanctioned state funds for tourism-related activities, the money was used by the bureau for a political project.

Now it appears that private sector officials on the SLT director-boards are reluctant to sign any board paper, fearing repercussions in a change of government. Even high-up officials at the ministry are extremely cautious about signing papers. TV clips and newspaper stories of private sector tourism officials being escorted to court sent shivers down the spine of several officials, many of whom backed out from serving as directors at SLT. It was the first time private sector officials were being hauled before court amidst embarrassing media coverage.

For years, the development of tourism  like in many other countries  has been a public-private partnership. While the government develops the facilities and infrastructure and also engages in tourism promotion, the private sector efficiently runs hotels and travel agents and entices visitors to the country.

Spending for infrastructure development and country promotion largely comes from airport taxes and other levies on tourists. Some years ago, the Government sought the assistance of the private sector in decisions pertaining to the disbursement of funds, particularly for promotion purposes. However, when the Sri Lankan Tourism Act was amended in 2005, all those powers were vested with the government, drawing howls of protests from the industry. Changes were then made in 2008, paving the way for private sector representation on 2-3 government agencies involved in tourism promotion, marketing and development. A proper framework for spending the money, particularly on promotion, was then brought into the law. The private sector is represented on the boards by officials of associations representing hotels and travel agents.

The Chairman and the Managing Director of the SLT, for example, are political appointees and often without tourism-related experience, except in the latest case. However, two to three other private sector directors help to provide rational decision-making that benefits the industry. This, however, doesnt entirely prevent the minister (through the Chairman or MD) from using funds for a political purpose since some private sector directors are also reluctant to raise objections, fearing victimisation of their businesses or if they need special favours.

We have no problem if people are charged with fraud or corruption in the disbursement of these funds. But a new government should not penalise an official or even a former minister on political grounds, said one private sector official.

The current stand-off between the government and the private sector is over political rather than industry-related decisions taken during the previous regime. In one instance, when the former government decided to target 2.5 million arrivals annually, the number of approvals for rooms was haphazardly decided, while at the same time enforcing minimum room rates in Colombo, an issue that some hoteliers have been opposing. High room rates after 2009 resulted in lower occupancies in city 5-star properties.

While most tourism ministers over the years, none with a tourism industry or private sector background, have used their position to boost political campaigns by authorising liquor licences for tourist restaurants (a cumbersome process) to friends and relatives, and free trips to trade fairs for political catchers, the issues were exacerbated under the last government. When the new government took over in January 2015 with public demands to sue corrupt politicians and public officials across the board, the SLT was one institution where a wide-ranging police probe began.

Recently officials of industry associations met and decided to work out a strategy where their role in tourism agency directorates would be more in an advisory capacity while state officials would be held responsible for approval and proper disbursement of funds. Guidelines on how private sector board members would function are being prepared or already done.

It is well known in the industry that there is a tendency for ministers and officials (over the years) to cross the line when it comes to funds being earmarked for tourism. In most cases and these are small amounts, we turn a blind eye as there are also political realities that cannot be changed overnight. However large sums are vigorously challenged, a former SLT private sector official said.

These political realities and the need for private sector representation on SLT boards, necessitates the formulation of a clear structure defining roles and responsibilities governed by law or amendments to the present Act. Then, it doesnt matter who comes in, as structures enshrined by law are in place and cannot be tampered with.

As I put down my pen, sweaty KAS somehow pops into the conversation, saying Mahattaya  Neva gilunath ban choone. This time, however, her sarcastic comment is out of sync with the issue and diametrically opposite to the reality that whatever issues and problems, it is strong laws and regulation that would steady the lucrative tourism ship.
Union Bank records significant growth in the year 2016 View(s):

Union Bank of Colombo PLC, together with its subsidiaries (group) has reported a post-tax profit (PAT) of Rs. 553 million in 2016, sharply up by 117 per cent compared to the previous year.

Also in a milestone achievement, the group surpassed the Rs.100 billion mark in total assets, recording Rs.100.5 billion as at the year end. The impressive performance of the group despite a challenging macro environment that prevailed, signifies its strong strategic focus towards accelerated growth, the bank said in a media release.

The strong performance of the bank resulted in Rs. 451.1 million PAT, highlighting the banks successful transition to a fully-fledged commercial bank with a wider focus on retail, corporate and SME sectors while ensuring productive deployment of capital, following the significant capital infusion that strengthened the bank in the latter part of 2014.

The banks fund-based operations, its principal source of income, recorded Rs. 2,507 million in 2016. Loans and advances rose to Rs. 55,438 million, up by 38 per cent in comparison to the previous year.

Customer deposit portfolio stood at Rs. 51,841 million.

Operating expenses of the bank were Rs. 3,009 million which is a 30 per cent increase YoY as the bank continued to invest in strategic initiatives such as the expansion of footfall and reach, investments in technology and processes as well as human capital development during the year, the release added.

The group, consisting of the bank and its two subsidiaries  UB Finance Company Ltd and National Asset Management Ltd reported robust results in 2016, recording PAT of Rs. 553 million compared to Rs. 255 million reported in 2015.

Commenting on the performance of the Bank, Director/CEO Indrajit Wickramasinghe stated 2016 was a year of continued progress and broad basing of the growth plans grounded in the previous two years, in which we were able to set a strong footing for an accelerated take-off in the coming years. While consolidating the multiple gains made last year in the form of revenue growth, portfolio expansion, process improvements, network development etc. our journey in the year 2017 will

be etched with greater emphasis on innovation, technology and an enhanced outlook. As we aim to take a bold leap towards further success, we invite our stakeholders to reap the maximum

benefits of this phase of growth and evolution of Union Bank.
Going beyond empty speeches for gender justice View(s):

The Concluding Observations of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW Committee) issued in regard to Sri Lanka on March 3rd this year is illuminating in several respects.

It was significant that the Observations were released just a few days before the world marked the International Day of Women. In Sri Lanka, this customarily signifies an empty parade of speeches and social events with no actual impact on gender rights.

Direct focus on the Witness Protection Authority

In recent years, it has also come to mean that the countrys politicians pontificate on the achievements of women in sublimely ridiculous outpourings. And to be frank if not brutal, we have not seen any discernible difference in such absurdities when female Heads of State and Government have been in office either.

But as enormously tempting as it may be to dwell on that at satirical length, there are important and substantive issues that need to be discussed. CEDAWs recommendations this month hone in on some of these most vital steps that need to be taken by the Sri Lankan state in that regard.

The Committee has stated that the integrity and independence of the accountability processes for women war victims be secured and that the judiciary and the legal system need to be fundamentally reformed. One crucial recommendation is that the Government expedites the review and amendment of the Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crimes and Witnesses Act.

Women persisting in their struggles for justice

Stressing their profound concern, the Committee has asked Sri Lanka to incorporate better safeguards for the independence and effectiveness of the judiciary and witness protection programmes, in line with international standards. As discussed in these column spaces last week, the holding out of this Witness Protection Authority as a major achievement of the Governments progress since 2015 was a farce in the worst sense of the word.

This body has not demonstrated any capacity, commitment or willingness to practically address the extremely dire situation of victims and witnesses who are being threatened as a continuous facet of life in the legal process.

Certainly women rape victims are at the frontlines of these threats. This is seen very well even in cases that have come to some successful conclusions in courts of law. For example, the Jaffna High Courts October 2015 decision in the Vishwamadu rape case exemplifies this.

Intimidation not limited to women of the North

True, the prosecution ultimately resulted in the conviction of four soldiers for raping one woman and sexually assaulting another in 2010. But this was due to the extraordinary bravery and persistence of the women at the centre of the trial who persisted in the face of direct threats and intimidation. This ranged from being asked to destroy evidence of the rape very early on to being offered bribes to stay quiet to being subjected to a second ordeal in court when they were asked the most searching questions in relation to their trauma.

All this was moreover in the context of continued threats by both the police and the military in the region. In many similar cases, the women have fled the country, unable to bear the vicious retaliation meted out to them and their family members for daring to invoke the sri Lankan legal system in their aid.

And to be very clear, this is not a pattern limited to the North and East or to victims of one ethnicity. Under the Rajapaksa Presidency, the women of Kahawatta and Deraniyagala stand symbol to the destructive link between local-level thug-politicians and state systems that prevent effective investigation of appalling incidents of rape.

A complex failure of justice

Ideally a Witness Protection Authority should be the primary source of relief to which these women, whose bravery exceeds their male counterparts, should be able to appeal to without a doubt. Yet can any one of us, with a conscience, declare that such victims even in the future can actually look for succor to this state institution? That is the ultimate question.

The Authority counts in its ranks, individuals who have been best known (as documented in detail) for using the authority of the State to threaten witnesses themselves during the past decades when ordinary Sri Lankans were compelled to undergo gross human rights abuses. Its so-called Protection Division is situated within the command structure of the police itself. If this is how the Government proves the credibility of these institutions, one can only rest ones profoundly skeptical case. This exemplifies certain truths.

As observed in the book (co-edited by this columnist, The Search for Justice, the Sri Lanka Papers, Sage India 2016), the framing of sexual violence in Sri Lanka should not be seen as a pure by-product of war. The over simplification of what remains a pervasive and complex failure of justice directly linked to the complete breakdown of the Rule of Law indeed makes dealing with the issue far more difficult as it obscures the real power dynamic at play. The crisis is informed and enabled by fiendishly clever minds at play, intent on entrenching impunity where it matters most; the law and the legal system.

Reform of customary laws

Meanwhile, the CEDAW also observes that though a Cabinet Sub-Committee was appointed in 2016 to amend the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act and a Committee was appointed by the Minister of Justice in 2009 to consider and propose reforms to Muslim Personal law and the Quazi courts, no substantive recommendations have been forthcoming.

Particular concerns of the Committee included the fact that though the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act does not specify a minimum age of marriage. Consequently girls under 12 years of age are permitted to marry. Further legal and judicial officers (Quazis et al) are restricted to male Muslims only. Moreover, the law on statutory rape is not applicable to girls under 16 years of age legally married under Muslim law. All in all, these are valid concerns that need to be addressed.

Innumerable committees and forums on women and for women which this Government apparently delights in bringing into being really do not address the heart of the matter where all these failures of justice are concerned. Let us hear less of lofty speeches and see more of actual structural reforms in that regard. Surely it is high time and more for this?
Thats the stuff to give the troops View(s):

Rounds of applause emanated from a school in Polonnaruwa that bears the same name as another in Colombo 7. But lets leave names out of this lest those with more brittle backbones or none at all, go crying to mummy or the closest primary dealer in Treasury bonds.

President Sirisena had told some of the inner circle of SLFP faithfuls (that is those who are on the more lucrative side of the current split) that he was sorry to disappoint certain sceptics who thought he had no backbone. He damned well had one and is evidence of it too.

As proof President Sirisena, stiffening his backbone as he would have done his upper lip had he belonged to that class of so-called elitists from the other school, said his peremptory dismissal of UN Human Rights Chief Zeid Al-Husseins call for a hybrid court to hold accountability trials should teach those who doubted the presence of vertebra, including some in his own party, a lesson in anatomy.

What Prince Al Hussein had to say about President Sirisenas anatomical structures and condition is not known. But if a few expletives in choice Arabic spat out of his Royal (there we go again with that word) lips known to the physiologically inclined as orbicularis oris muscles or some such thing, it would come as no surprise to some of us who have had to associate with high flying international civil servants in our professional life.

I recall, with much amusement even now, Ambassador Shirley Ameresinghes remarks to some Egyptian diplomats in Cairo when a sandstorm grounded our flight and the Egyptian Foreign Ministry did not know whether it could provide us with 1st class seats until the night train that was to bring us back to Cairo arrived at Luxor Station.

But that is another story and to continue with some of Shirley Ameresinghes other escapades would only distract attention from the most important story of this year, nay for the last two years  the one about the condition of presidential vertebrae.

As soon as I read the headline making the crucial announcement, involuntarily I broke into merriment and said to myself atta boy thats the stuff to tell the cannon fodder behind you, and then go charging into the valley with sabre in hand and the Sirisena Chintanaya in the other. That was really telling Ranil and his loyalists and that Mangala chap to stop blowing his trumpet and try tuning up Trump.

President Sirisenas umbrage at the heavy fire from front and the sniping from behind seems understandable enough. After he had successfully steered the 19th Amendment no doubt to the great joy of the fellow coalition partner who was eager to see power flowing from president to prime minister, Sirisena appeared to lose control of his party (except for those who had done what has come to be known as the largesse jump) and the Government some of whose ministers were behaving as though this was part of their boodelay. That was particularly true of those from the You En Pee which had partly converted itself to the Buzzing Cousins (of two or more genders) Party with foreign postings available as necessary in this age of globalisation.

It must have dawned  at last some would say  on those Socratic thinkers in what is called the presidential secretariat that their boss seemed to be receiving invitations for state and other visits from numerous countries which no other president of Sri Lanka ever received in such a short time.

Perhaps under the mistaken notion that President Sirisena had won the international award for the Worlds Most Popular Leader or perhaps to show his progeny the global village outside Polonnaruwa  travel, after all, broadens the mind among other things  the president started to travel the planet.

But little did he and his minders suspect, though some were puzzled at the cascade of invitations, that there were Cascas and Cassiuses and even a Brutus or two who promoted foreign travel so that those left back home could be up to all the devilry, particularly of the financial kind, so to say.

It seems that finally the truth appears to have dawned and so the president rounded up his faithful flock and read the riot act to those clever bozos in Colombo who are trying to take him for a right royal ride.

I must admit I was misled when I first read the news stories about President Sirisenas tough warning to his detractors. Almost every one of them had the same or similar headline about Sirisenas insistence about his spinal column.

Most readers would have concluded that it had to do with an anatomical certificate about the state of his spine. My only concern was that if his assessment was based on medical opinion offered by some of those doctors who are constantly on strike demanding one thing or another to feather their own nests, then it is best not to place too much faith in the opinions of such medical mudalalis.

They dont seem to have any qualms about spending the time they should be attending to the public at state institutions and spending those hours at private institutions raking in money while condemning others who did not attain medical qualifications at state expense like the striking stethoscope carriers do.

Anyway, thank heaven, the situation became clearer when reading further. Fortunately, for Sirisena that is, not for the vast majority of the people who must seek medical treatment at state institutions which suddenly become empty of these so-called medical men who have at least a moral obligation to the public, the president was spared of consulting them.

It became clear enough that Sirisena was speaking of his backbone in a political rather than a medical sense. So when he literally reacted to the UN Human Rights chief, he was telling Al-Husseins recommendation for a hybrid court which is really the UN officials coinage, what he could do with his court and its implied accoutrement.

Later, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe told a law conference in Colombo a hybrid court which was to include foreign judges was not politically feasible probably meaning that it might not pass muster if it was raised before the Supreme Court.

All that might be true and Sirisenas backbone might be intact and toughened and Wickremesinghe wants a way out of the contretemps they jointly created along with Sri Lankas chief diplomatic juggler.

But what sticks in the craw of those who have followed this sad saga with some attention to the chronological unfolding of this episode in our recent history is why these Three Wise Men got together and co-sponsored a resolution that called for the foreign presence in the mechanism that was to provide transitional justice.

This is what operative paragraph 6 of the Resolution of October 1st 2015 said.

Welcomes the governments recognition that accountability is essential to uphold the rule of law and build confidence in the people of all communities of Sri Lanka in the justice system, takes note with appreciation of the Government of Sri Lankas proposal to establish a Judicial Mechanism with a Special Counsel to investigate allegations of violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law, as applicable; and affirms that a credible justice process should include independent judicial and prosecutorial institutions led by individuals known for integrity and impartiality; and further affirms in this regard the importance of participation in a Sri Lankan judicial mechanism, including the Special Counsels office, of Commonwealth and other foreign judges, defence lawyers, and authorized prosecutors and investigators.

It should be clear enough except to those who wish to prevaricate and practise obfuscation, the intention of those who supported that resolution. It was to indicate that a purely Sri Lankan mechanism will not suffice in providing justice for the victims of the conflict whichever side they belonged to and that accountability demands the mechanism should be fair.

It is not to denigrate the Sri Lankan judiciary though its fairness and the whole judicial process had at times being called in to question and at the time the resolution was debated it was not considered impartial enough with regard to criminal investigations involving both local and foreign persons who had become victims.

So if that was clear enough and the involvement of foreign judges and others was mentioned in the resolution and Sri Lanka would have no part in such a system of accountability hearings why did Sri Lanka co-sponsor this resolution which some Sri Lankan diplomats and some of our foreign friends had serious concerns about?

Did Sri Lankan leaders consider this carefully enough and scrutinise its implications before it threw its hat into the ring. Was the resolution carefully explained to the president or did he go along with what he was told?

Therein lies the rub. Was he a willing party to it or was he simply going along with the advice given to him? This is the crucial question. If he endorsed it too, then this backbone business is a belated attempt to free himself from a serious diplomatic faux pas.
The good and bad of the son of Philip View(s):

My dear Dinesh,

I thought of writing to you when I heard that you had been booted out of Parliament for one week just because you were arguing on behalf of your colleague Wimal sahodaraya, raising your voice when you were not supposed to do so and disobeying the orders of the boss in the House, good old Karu.

To be honest, Dinesh, I was quite surprised that matters had to go this far. Why, the next thing I heard was that on the very next day, the Greens had walked out, protesting that Karu was being too lenient on the ekabadhdha vipakshaya and giving them more time to speak than they were entitled to.

I really do not know what to make of your expulsion from Parliament, Dinesh. You must be wearing it like a badge of honour but I am sure some will wonder why you got into this mess  especially when it was all about defending someone like Wimal sahodaraya who can fight his own battles very well.

Those with long memories say that you may have been following in the footsteps of your late great father, Philip. Apparently he too was once expelled from Parliament for not following the orders of the Speaker but surely, this weeks events had nothing to do with following family traditions, did it?

I think we can all agree that Philip was a giant of his era who made an enormous contribution to the country. As a minister, he presided over several important pieces of legislation and was quite a force to be reckoned with. That was probably why people still refer to him as the Lion of Boralugoda!

With all due respect to you, Dinesh, I think it is only fair to say that you have not quite reached the dizzy heights your late father attained effortlessly  not yet anyway. Even though the late Indika and Geethanjana made their own contributions, the cubs of Boralugoda dont quite match up to Philip.

What made your expulsion this week all the more regrettable was that you are now one of the most senior members in the House, having entered it almost thirty five years ago. Only a few such as Vasu, Mahinda maama, the Green Man, Sampanthan seeya, Jayawickrema and Long John are more senior.

Since then, you have been in an out of Parliament. We have seen you both in government and in the Opposition benches, becoming a minister in the process too. In the meantime, we have also seen lesser people than you enter Parliament and receive greater prominence, through no fault of your own.

You werent given any really important portfolios by both Satellite and Mahinda maama and asked to supervise water supply, even though you served both of them loyally. The most important ministry you were allocated was Transport, probably because the symbol of your party was a cartwheel!

However, we do appreciate the fact that, despite thirty five years in Parliament and after a decade of holding ministerial portfolios, no one has accused you of corruption, ever. Now that is something in which you do match Philip and Kusuma  and something I am sure they would be very proud of.

Pardon me if I am wrong, but for me, we saw you at your best not when you were a minister. Instead, your finest hour was when, in an opposition reduced to eight seats, you took on the might of JRs government day in and day out in Parliament, with the equally brilliant late Sarath seated next to you.

That Parliament was a far cry from what it is now. Your classmate at Royal, Anura was the Leader of the Opposition and your other classmate, the Green Man was with the Greens along with the likes of Lalith, Gamini and Ronnie. Compared to those days, what we see today is a kindergarten in disarray.

That is why this weeks antics in the House and your expulsion are disappointing, Dinesh. We respect your decision to defend your colleague but surely, dont we all know that Wimal sahodaraya quitting your alliance is a publicity stunt  just as much as his fast unto death opposite the UN office was?

Your actions may have something to do with the fact that both you and Wimal stand little hope of making it to Parliament on your own steam unless you team up with Mahinda maamas group but honestly, people respect you for who you are and teaming up with Wimal will only diminish that.

Dinesh, we wish you the best of luck. Nearing the seventh decade of life, time is surely running out, as it is for your leader Mahinda maama. Your best bet is to hope that Mahinda maama gets his old job back and that he will nominate you as his deputy  after all, you are certainly better than Di Moo!

Yours truly,

Punchi Putha

PS- Your late father Philip, the firebrand leftist that he was, ultimately became a minister in Dudleys Green party government probably because he realised that he could do more for the people by being in government than outside it. Someday, do you think we will be saying, like father, like son?
Welikade riot: Committee calls for criminal probe View(s):

An official committee that probed the deaths of 27 inmates at the Welikade Prison four years ago has declared that a fresh criminal investigation is necessary to ascertain the truth and institute criminal proceedings.

The Committees report runs into more than 327 pages and copies of it were circulated amongst ministers last month. The Committees task was to investigate the incident and recommend action.

The Committee also recommended that compensation be paid to 16 of those killed whilst the others, it was pointed out, were ineligible since they died whilst trying to flee.

The Committee was headed by former High Court Judge Wimal Nambuwasam and included Asoka Wijetilleke, a retired Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) and S.K. Liyanage, a retired state service officer and Attorney at Law.

They were appointed by Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe on June 9, 2015. However, after the parliamentary elections of August 2015, the subject of prisons went to D.M. Swaminathan, Minister of Prison Reforms, Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Hindu Religious Affairs. Hence, the report was forwarded by Mr. Rajapakshe to Mr. Swaminathan for circulation.

Besides the 27 prisoners killed, the incident on November 9, 2012 at the Welikade Prison left 20 prisoners injured. Also injured was a Prison Officer.

The Committee has said that the criminal investigation it has recommended should be carried out under the direct supervision of the Inspector General of Police. Among the reports highlights:

The Colombo Crimes Division and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) had not taken charge of the weapons that were used by the STF (the Police Special Task Force) including weapons used to fire tear gas and the weapons used by the Army. It transpired that these weapons were subsequently cleaned after firing. However, the CID had made several positive efforts, including a written request to the then Army Commander to take charge of these weapons in the custody of the Army, but without success.

The Committee was unable to trace the Medico-legal reports of the injured from the Police, and none of the Officers of the Police agencies was able to explain.

The Committee notes with great disappointment that the two versions emerged from the (then) Inspector General of Police (N.K. Illangakoon) and DIG Nimal Wakista (who was head of the State Intelligence Service). According to Mr Wakista, he had continuously briefed the IGP over developments and arrangements regarding search operations in the Welikada Prisons. He has said that he received verbal instructions. The IGP has categorically denied this. The version of the IGP had to be accepted as the true position, as it is well corroborated by the then STF (Commandant) Mr Ranawana. The Committee notes that the version of DIG Wakista is a deliberate misrepresentation of facts to get himself exculpated from being held responsible.

n Evidence placed before the Committee discloses the alleged involvement of a Police Inspector attached to the Narcotics Bureau (he has been named) and a Prisons Official (also named) for the selective killings, as enumerated under observations. It is also recommended that this aspect of their complicity be gone into fully during the proposed fresh criminal investigation.

Compensation of Rs. 500,000 for the deceased and Rs. 100,000 for those injured is to be paid. The total cost to the Government for this purpose will be Rs 10.1 million.

Krrish deal: Indictments to be filed, but projects go ahead

The Attorney Generals Department is to file indictments next week against a young politician and a businessman over alleged corrupt activity in the envisaged near US$ 400 million Krrish mixed development project in the Transworks Square land in Fort.

The move follows investigations concluded by the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID).

However, following initiatives by Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrema, work on the project has got under way, as our picture reveals today. He has told his ministerial colleagues that the project company has submitted a new proposal redesigning its original one. The company is to carry it out in two phases  the construction of two residential towers and a Commercial Tower. This is in addition to the refurbishment of Transworks House which is a heritage building.

Minister Samarawickrema claims that the company will spend US$ 191 million and US$ 208 million for the two phases respectively totalling US$ 399 million. The proposal has been approved by the Cabinet of Ministers.

The Krrish Group of India signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Board of Investment (BOI) on July 30, 2012 and the project was given strategic development project status. Thereafter, the Urban Development Authority received Rs. 4355.5 million for the lease of 3.7 acres of land from a total extent of 4.3 acres.

Waidyaratne as Defence Sec.

Presidents Counsel Kapila Waidyaratne is to be appointed Secretary to the Ministry of Defence.

He is currently the Senior Additional Solicitor General in the Attorney Generals Department and is due to go on retirement.

A source closed to the presidency said yesterday that President Maithripala Sirisena had sounded him out and already obtained his consent for the new appointment.

The SP with the longest name

Its perhaps the longest name of an officer in the Police Department and it transpired during a routine transfer order.

Gampolas Superintendent of Police (SP) has been transferred to the Ratnapura Division to be in charge of Embilipitiya.

His full name: Hakmana Dissanayake Wasala Bandara Amunugama Wijeratne Gunatilleke Rajanayake Bandaralaage Hakmana Wallawey Anuruddha Bandara Hakmana.

Bigger role for young members in UNP

Though brief, the meeting of the United National Partys Working Committee on Wednesday morning was significant.

Prime Minister and party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe announced that the party would undergo reorganisation to provide its younger members a bigger role. He said he would undertake the task soon.

He also noted that party members like Sarath Fonseka and Ranjith Madduma Bandara should also be given positions so that they could play a bigger role.

The Working Committee is the UNPs main policy making body. Members complained at this weeks meeting about the problems their supporters encountered when they had to get work done at the Provincial Councils.

Premier Wickremesinghe noted that the party was in alliance with the SLFP and nothing should be done to disturb that arrangement.

Laws to protect rights of disabled people

The Government will introduce laws to protect the rights of persons with disabilities.

The move follows a recommendation by the Social Empowerment and Welfare Minister S.B. Dissanayake.

The Cabinet of Ministers has directed the Legal Draftsman to formulate the draft laws for this purpose.

Better transport for school children

The Government wants to introduce new measures to ensure that a better service is provided by three-wheeler scooter taxis and vans in transporting schoolchildren.

The move follows a recommendation made to the Cabinet of Ministers by Transport Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva.

The ministers have decided that the Transport Ministry Secretary should head a committee to study the matter. The Committee is to be called upon to submit its report within two months, so that immediate measures could be adopted.

Its fake news, says Ravi

This is what I call fake news, exclaimed Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake while talking to an opposition parliamentarian. The subject was a report on a website hosted from Hong Kong that the IMF had castigated Mr. Karunanayake in a report to the Government on the state of Sri Lankas economy.

They dont blame individuals in their reports. This is a distraction since an IMF team is holding talks in Colombo this week, he said. Ow ow, ova venava or yes, yes, they happened, replied the opposition politico adding that he had also been a victim in the past years.
The Portuguese delegates who went to the king View(s):

This article is part of a continuing series on Sri Lankan history

The Dutch always tried to please the officers who were serving under them. They were settled in close proximity to the forts and were given all comforts. In most places where the Portuguese clergy had opened up connections, the Dutch started schools.



Most of the Catholic priests visited this area stealthily. Meanwhile the Portuguese were sandwiched between blows from both sides. As a result they were inactive. In 1645, Don Philip Mascarenhas left the island. In his place, came Manuel Mascarenhas Homem.



Ten such schools were opened. The people in these areas had a special preference for the Portuguese religion and even their rule. The Dutch realized this situation. Hence they prohibited any Catholic priest access to that area. Rules were laid down to keep them away.



This new Captain General had to face a serious problem. That was to preserve the peace between the Portuguese and King Rajasinghe. Manuel Homem was not happy that the king had got angry with the Portuguese.



He thought of making friends with the king once again. For this purpose, he sent delegates to Kandy. At this time, the kings idea was that one European nation should be made to go against another European nation. With this in mind, he wanted to make the Dutch more and more jealous. So he welcomed the Portuguese delegates very warmly.

By Halaliye Karunathilake

Edited and translated by Kamala Silva

Illustrated by Saman Kalubowila
A diva in the making By Sound Gimmicks View(s): View(s):

Dinukshi Hettige is no stranger to the local music scene following the recognition she gained as a performer at the third season of YES Superstar Season where she was placed Runner-up. Her recent single Liberation has drawn positive reviews from all across the country, making her the next local pop diva to watch out for.

Her introduction into music was when she first started playing the Melodica by ear. Her childhood days were filled with art and music. As much as singing and playing music interested her so did drawing and creating artistic things which were also part of her childhood portfolio. Starting primary school at Sirimavo Bandaranayake Vidyalaya, Colombo 7 she then left to Scotland and studied there for a year. Whilst studying there she became even more literate in music by practicing to sing and play. Singing in the choir began for her at 10.

Entering school competitions, concerts every year throughout primary to secondary her third phase of music started as she left to Gateway College for her Advanced levels. There she was involved with a school band where she sang for several concerts. Her entire foundation for singing was founded at school. Her first original single Liberation was released in July last year. Her next song which she is currently working on is going to be called Anything which will be released in the next few days. She is also a lyricist. She wrote the theme song for Pentathlon which airs on TV1. In addition she wrote an original Lets Rock n Roll for Isuri the winner of TNL onstage solo category in 2016.

Dinukshi is a Fashion & Lingerie Designer by profession. She hopes to create music that will leave its mark on Sri Lanka and on the map of international music.

She believes, as a country, in order to uphold the English music scene artists needs to unite as one team of musicians, helping each other, recommending each other for shows, concerts or gigs, shadow new comers and show them a path. She feels the public should open their eyes and ears to local artists. Promote them, back them, and encourage them by showing their support. We hold so much of music talentshe says. And for those aspiring artists she says to keep doing what they do.
Bringing a classic to stage By Tarini Pilapitiya View(s): View(s):

H.C.N deLanerolle, a household name in the local theatre scene established himself with his works of political satire.Fifty-Fifty being the first of a series of plays was the directorial debut of Jaliya Wijewardene back in September 2016. The Senator the second installment of the series will be performed by the cast of Amphitheatre on March 18 and 19 at the Lionel Wendt Theatre.

Jaliya Wijewardene has taken on the role of Dionysius Sumanasekara, the affluent village gentleman and member of the State Council, a role brought to life by dramatist E.C.B. Wijesinghe. The humbled director/actor proclaims his desire to do justice to the veterans that established the play and notes that the Amphitheatre cast and crew are ready to match up to standardof this daunting task.

Dionysius breaks stereotypes of the men of his position in the narrow minded society of pre-Independent Ceylon. He is depicted by Jaliya as a liberal, broad minded guy. Although the play focuses on political satire, the principal character has, Jaliya chuckles, no political standpoint. Kavinda Gunasekara describes his character of William Babbington-Buckhamas as a jovial Englishman who is looking for respite in Ceylon.

However, Kavinda laughs Hes on vacation with the wrong family. Kavinda previously played Thambypillai, a Tamil childhood friend of Dionysius, in Fifty-Fifty, a role which demanded much from his vocal impressions and cultural appropriation as an actor. Yasal Ruhunage plays the feather-ruffling Somapala Sumanasekara. This volatile character is Dionysiuss nephew and office bearer in a left-wing party. Somapala points out the social potholes of pre-independent Ceylon and sticks to his beliefs in the principles of Socialism.

We last saw Chelvam Devarajan, enacted by Barana Waidyatilake, the campaign lawyer from Fifty-Fifty chasing the hand of Dionysius daughter.

Chelvam returns to The Senator,victoriousl ywedded with a baby on the way. The complexity of this role, Barana states is Chelvams inability to lose his cool amidst the changes surrounding him. Coming from an upper bourgeois social class. Sahan Wijewardenes character Hadjiar Abdul Hameedisa man of very few words. A Muslim community leader, Hadjiar busies himself with election work and tending office for childhood friend Dionysius.

Behind every successful man there is Charlotte Sumanasekara, played by Shenilka Perera. She describes Charlotte, Dionysiuss second, younger wife as classy social climber. She is the living image of a woman of her time, an aristocratic Kandyan wife to a Senator she is believed to have married for status.

Leyanvi Mirando,takes on the role of journalist Kamala Weerawardene. Headstrong Kamala enters the play as a member of The Womens Association for Social Action. Being an early supporter of womens rights, she much unlike Charlotte isnt ready to accept the labels cast on her gender by society.

Tickets for The Senator priced at Rs. 2000/-, Rs. 1500/-, Rs. 1000/- and Rs. 750/- (Balcony). Box plan and tickets are available at the Lionel Wendt Theatre and online at www.lionelwendt.org.
Encouraging home grown sounds View(s):

By Joshua Surendraraj

In an age where music is freely accessible at the fingertips, it is easy to get caught up in all the international mainstream music. Sometimes, one does tend to forget, to appreciate music that is purely home grown. Decibel.lk, a website dedicated to contemporary home music, has been around the local scene; constantly promoting Sri Lankas finest. Today it is one of the biggest social media platforms for local artists.

We met up with YazminYousuf, one of its founding members. She gave us an insight into the website and its humble beginnings.

We started off with a little peek into Yazmins personal life.

I used to always look for music, because I used to love listening to it. I was kind of like a loner kid, so to me, music was my everything, she begins. Growing up in Dubai, Yazmin would always try to look for a place, where she could listen to music in peace. When she came to Sri Lanka, seventeen years ago, her search continued.

Sooner,Yazmin started meeting people, who were into music and eventually ran into local bands like Stigmata, who awed her. I remember the first time I saw Stigmata play Andura, I was amazed, she tells us, this was back in 2001. She adds that she would never forget that night, because it was the same night she saw Dylan Jayakody,who performed an acoustic set.

She got into radio back in 2001, first joining E fm. For some reason, time, I kept bumping into Iraj and all these other musicians, she recalls. Yazmin started checking out their music and realised, it was amazing.

In 2010, she started working at Yes Fm and in 2011,had the opportunity to take over the channelsHome Grown show.

We sip on some coffee, before moving on to Decibel.lk. At one point in her life, Yazmin felt internally insulted that there was only so much that she could do. She felt, she wasnt doing much for the music scene, by just being the host of one show.

My friends, they made good music and they needed to be known by the rest of the world. During this time, she met Housni Yakoob and they started talking. Over a cup of plain tea and some paratas, at Plaza, Colombo, and the idea for a website was born. A month later they set up a demo site and on May 11, 2012, yazminyousuf.lk, took off.

Years went by and changes were made to the site, because the team felt, they could always do better. We were always excited and enthusiastic about what was going on in the scene. We loved the progression that came along with the times.It was not only the genres but the artists, the gigs etc, she recalls. However, on May 11, 2015, Decibel.lk was born.



Today any local concert goer would see Yazmin, at the very back of the show, a huge backpack on her and a tripod in her hand. Her passion pushes her on and she always strives to make the best use of the little, she has. This is the reason, one would notice an iPhone set firmly locked on to a stand, instead of a fancy camera.

Back home the same could be said about the team behind Decibel. The designers and writers, work tediously behind the scenes, just to promote their passion and appreciate local music.The site is run by Yazmin, Housni and Anuradha Jayathilaka.Other writers and contributors for Decibel include, Dan Othnapitiya, Eshantha Perera, Aseka Wickramarachi, Dan Van Dort and Lakshan Tenuwara.

It takes equipment, family and most importantly, my friends. If they hear someone new, they point it out, she says.

Decibel.lk has always just been about the music. Over theyears, theyve had a few people asking about web banners etc. But the team realizedtheyd rather have their fans and people who are genuine about the music, to keep coming.

We dont want it to be about the money, so we encourage donations if people are cool and we would also love to barter up and work in tandem with any brand, Yazmin explains.

Aside from local music, they also look at South Asian artists, who visit Sri Lanka,specifically because its kind of nice to thank them for their music.

Decibel.lk has no division in its music. It covers a range of genres, from black metal to even Sinhala rap.

There so much talent in Sri Lanka and I really hope that someday we can go out there and do more for the scene.

Yazmin, finishes her coffee, yet her thirst for new local music, is still very much alive.
Evening with Classic Clapton Eric Clapton Tribute Band at Park Street Mews View(s): View(s):

An evening with CLASSIC CLAPTON, the worlds No1 Eric Clapton Tribute Band ,featuring front-man Mike Hall will be performing at the Stables , Park Street Mews, Colombo on Saturday March 18 from 7.30 pm onwards. This will be Classic Claptons first visit to Sri Lanka. The opening act for the event will be the well-known band Flame with DJ Naushad and the team . An evening with CLASSIC CLAPTON, the worlds No1 Eric Clapton Tribute Band ,featuring front-man Mike Hall will be performing at the Stables , Park Street Mews, Colombo on Saturday March 18 from 7.30 pm onwards. This will be Classic Claptons first visit to Sri Lanka. The opening act for the event will be the well-known band Flame with DJ Naushad and the team .

They will perform all of Eric Claptons classic songs including Wonderful Tonight, Tears in Heaven, Crossroads, I Shot The Sheriff, Cocaine, Lay Down Sally and of course Layla! Along with an UNPLUGGED segment. The proceeds from this event is towards Trail project.

The band was formed in 1985 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, the home-town of The Animals, Mark Knopfler and Sting. This was long before the term tribute band was invented. Their ability to re-create Claptons electrifying stage performances has been a tremendous success. In guitar/vocalist Mike Hall, the band possesses a front man who not only looks like Eric, he sings and plays guitar like him too!

In February 2001 the band was honoured to perform at Eric Claptons Fan Club Convention in London. Also TV programme COVER THEIR TRACKSin 2000 on Classic Clapton received rave reviews leading to national recognition.

The band has toured UK and Europe and performed at The Royal Festival Hall, London and a triumphant appearance at Glastonbury Festival, England. They have performed numerous concerts in Europe including Spain, Estonia, Holland and France. In 2009 they appeared for the first time in Mumbai and invited back for 3 more concerts in India in January 2016..

In the past 32 years CLASSIC CLAPTON has become something of a rock institution.

The band comprises 4 excellent musicians:- Mike Hall (lead vocals/guitar), Derek Wilson (keyboards/ backing vocals), Danny Davison (drums) and Dave Robson (bass guitar /backing vocals),and have released three albums THE MUSIC OF ERIC CLAPTON the second is a live double CD CLASSIC CLAPTON Unplugged and the 3rd CLASSIC CREAM  featuring 20 songs made famous by the sixties supergroup.

Eric is now in his 70s. If Sri Lankan fans want to hear all of his hits performed authentically, we hope to see them at this special evening, as whole of Claptons illustrious career will be covered. Mike Hall  Band leader

Evening with Classic Clapton  is organised by Park Street Mews, Harpos Pizza and Pasta, Cinnamon hotel and Resorts as event Partners along with Commercial bank and Com Banka Max Loyalty, and radio partner TNL and Lite FM with proceeds towards Trail project.
India felicitates 40 year journey of Sekkuwa View(s):

The playwright, the cast and the crew of Sekkuwa play which was produced 40 years ago were recently felicitated in India and Sri Lanka.

The play and its director Parakrama Niriella were felicitated at the Bahuroopi Annual International Drama Festival conducted by Rangayana Theatre Arts Institute of Karnataka, India at the city of Mysore. Niriella was honoured as the chief guest at the opening ceremony of the festival and was invited to deliver the opening address.

A special felicitation was given to Parakrama Niriella and his contributions to the field of theatre art and his munificent service for social and cultural development were quoted in the citation.

Sekkuwa drama, written and directed by Niriella was performed by Janakaraliya drama group as the curtain raiser or inaugural performance of the ceremony at the main theatre KalaMandeer of Rangayana Institute.Following this Janakaraliya drama group celebrated this milestone drama in the Sri Lankan theatre at Dr.Panibharatha Hall of the University of Visual and Performing Arts, Colombo recently. Orations were done by literary and drama critic Sugath Watagedara and veteran journalist Mr.Kusal Perera.

All artistes connected to the creation of Sekkuwa from 1976 were felicitated at this special ceremony.

The premier of the first creation by Parakrama Niriella, Sekkuwa was held on December 31, 1976 at the Lumbini Theatre. Sekkuwa is made based on a short fable written by S. G. Punchihewa under the title Ahethuwata Hethuwa (Cause for Causeless).
Birth control implant on sexually abused minor; probe ordered View(s):

Wellawaya District Judge and Magistrate Kesara Samaradiwakara has ordered the Uva Province Deputy Inspector General (DIG), the Health Superintendent and the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) to hold an inquiry into an incident where a minor, who was a victim of sexual abuse, was allegedly subjected to a birth control procedure at the Hambantota Hospital.

The order was given after the District Judge learned that a birth control implant had allegedly been inserted into the victims arm by a doctor at the hospital. When the Judge had queried about the incident from the victim, she had shown her bandaged left arm.

The judge had stated that, if a minor who underwent sexual abuse is subjected to a long term birth control device, there is a serious issue at the hospital. He had noted that, it is questionable why such a surgery had been performed on the girl.

He had further ordered the police to not allow any unknown person to speak to the victim, until investigations are over.

Police were earlier informed over the 119 emergency hotline, that an underage girl had been sexually abused. The incident is being investigated by the Thanamalvila police. Investigations revealed that the girl was abused while her mother was abroad. The suspects have been identified.

The judge also ordered a report on the progress of the Thanamalvila police investigations and ordered the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) to conduct a separate probe and report to court.
CIDA alleges forceful eviction by Tower Hall Foundation View(s):

By Chrishanthi Christopher

The Construction Industry Development Authority (CIDA), the apex regulatory organisation in the Construction industry said the Tower Hall Theatre Foundation (THTF) is trying to forcefully move its (CIDA) head office to Sausiripaya, Battaramulla, by refusing to extend its lease.

CIDA Engineer S. Amarasekera said that, despite several requests made to the THTF, it has not agreed to extend the lease.

The CIDA office at Wijerama Mawatha, Colombo 7, is situated on THTF land for the last 30 years, and the agreement expired on May 14, 2016.

THTF in response said they are short of space and need the building for their activities. THTF Director Administration, Lal Ratnaweera said they have got only 4,500 sq.ft. of office space, whereas the CIDA occupies 34,000 sq.ft. He said the THTF has no grudge with CIDA but, needs the building to accommodate its growing staff and for its other welfare activities. We need space to fulfil the objectives of the THTF Act No. 01 of 1978.

We have around 70 staff and a drama school with around 70 members, he said. The building housing CIDA was built with World Bank assistance when President Ranasinghe Premadasa was the Minister of Housing and Construction, and also overlooking the THTF. He had then allowed both the CIDA and the THTF to be housed in the same premises.

Mr Ratnaweera said a nominal sum had been charged as rent and set off from the cost spent on constructing the building. He said with the lease expiring, all dues have been settled. CIDA, however, said it had attended to all repairs, renovations and maintenance of the building during its 30-year occupancy.

Mr Amarasekera argues that, CIDA, as the apex regulatory organisation in the Construction industry that regulates and standardises the industry, contributes 10% of the GDP. He conceded that moving its office to Pellawatta in Battaramulla, will inconvenience its some 5,000 registered members.

It is learnt that subject Minister Sajith Premadasa has presented a Cabinet memo seeking an extension of another 30 years, which is under discussion.
Consumers boiling over reckless utility billing View(s):

By Akash Widanapathirana

A shortage of meter readers at the National Water Supply and Drainage Board and the Ceylon Electricity Board is disrupting billing services, officials and trade union representatives said.

CEB believes that in some cases charges have been estimated and consumers have complained that actual use had been lower.

Semakumara Bandara, secretary of Consumer Coordinators Union, charged that meter readers were not recruited regularly although consumers have been increasing.

Billing services have been severely affected in North Central Province, Central Province and North Western Province, he said. Some meter readers are working from 7.30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for 24 days to calculate 2,000 bills a month. This is unbearable, Semakumara claimed.

He said that a CEB meter reader also has to check and report illegal electrical connections and disconnections. Billing errors have been reported due to this heavy workload. This has caused much inconvenience to the public.

Reports from the North Central Province say estimated charges have been mailed to consumers.

A meter reader in the area said bills had not been sent on time.

For the poor in rural areas like Kahatagasdigiliya, Padaviya this is a severe problem. They cannot even afford charges of even Rs 250. So it is unfair to issue estimated charges, he said. He called for overtime issues to be solved, saying meter readers are prepared to handle the work load.

Meanwhile, the Water Board Meter Readers Union said there were more than 600 vacancies.

There are nearly 210,000 consumers and the existing number of meter readers is not enough, said Senerath Arthajeewa the secretary of union. He noted that a shortage of meter readers was seen in urban areas including Dehiwala, Kadawatha, Kelaniya and Biyagama.

A company director living in Dehiwala said that although unions cannot be blamed for their actions, victimizing the public was not acceptable either.

Our company water consumption exceeds 100 units per month. When the meter readers do not come on the scheduled date, the charges increase, he said. Apart from the staff shortage, a work-to-rule campaign by NWSB meter readers from February 17 to March 8 also affected the processing of bills. Chairman of National Water Supply and Drainage Board, K A Ansar denied the allegations, adding that enough staff had been recruited.

At the time we recruited them, demand was low and there was not much work for them. But they should understand that the situation has changed now. They should change their attitudes too, he said. The meter readers generally can deal with 2,100 bills per month. He added that new technology will be introduced in the future to improve the efficiency and the productivity of the billing system. He said that by introducing smart meters, the readers would be able to calculate consumption easily.

A CEB senior official said there had not been any reports of a shortage of meter readers.

However, Ceylon Electricity Board Minneriya Area Office confirmed that there was a shortage of meter-readers in the Polonnaruwa District. The office has received 25-30 phone calls from consumers complaining about estimated charges. The office controls a vast area in the Polonnaruwa district including Habarana, Hingurakgoda, Manampitiya and Polonnaruwa.

A senior official in the office said the shortage of meter-readers was highlighted in February because some unqualified temporary workers had been dismissed. He aded that some staff had been recruited since.
Indian experts blame Tamil Nadu fishermen for Bristos death View(s):

Dateline Chennai

By Kumar Chellappan

The death of Bristo, a 21-year-old fisherman from Thankachimadom, a fishing hamlet in southern Tamil Nadu, has once again brought to surface some stark realities. Fishermen who were engaged in fishing with Bristo at Palk Bay alleged he was shot at by Sri Lanka Navy, while they were inside the territorial waters of India. Sri Lanka Navy, however, denied the allegation.

As the dispute rages over the location where the Indian fisherman was shot at, a senior Indian Coast Guard official said the Tamil Nadu government official who alerted them over the incident could not provide any information about the exact location. He had informed us about the incident after 10 pm and we were helpless in locating the boat, the ICG official said.

Captain Hariharan Balakrishnan, a war veteran, who knows the Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean like the back of his hand, was blunt in pointing out that the Tamil Nadu fishermen had been poaching in the Sri Lankan waters for decades.

There is no fish in the Indian side of the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) as the fishermen from Tamil Nadu has fully exploited the marine wealth in the region by bottom trawling. The Tamil Nadu fisheries department deputy director himself has accepted it publicly. It is for the government of Tamil Nadu to restrain fishermen from violating the IMBL and poaching in the territorial waters of another sovereign country, Capt Balakrishnan said.

It took nearly three hours for the mechanised trawler in which Bristo and others were fishing to reach the fishing jetty at Rameshwaram. This also proves that the Tamil Nadu fishermen had trespassed into the Sri Lankan territory, said the former captain. He said Tamil Nadu political leaders were reluctant to admit that it fishermen poached in Sri Lankan water for fear of losing fisher community votes.

But a leading authority on the Law of the Sea has warned New Delhi about the consequences if Sri Lanka took up the poaching issue at any of the international fora like the United Nations. If Sri Lanka complains to the UN or the World Trade Organisation, there is a strong possibility of India getting blacklisted by the countries which import marine products from us, said Yugraj Singh Yadava, director of the Bay of Bengal Programme, an inter-governmental organisation promoting regional cooperation on fishing.

He warned that India may have to pay a big price for the Tamil Nadu fishermens poaching in Sri Lankan waters. What they are doing is Illegal, Unauthorised and Unregulated fishing, which is a cardinal sin as per global standards. The countries with which India has marine trade will not differentiate between fishermen from Kerala or Tamil Nadu or Karnataka or Andhra Pradesh or any other States in the union. They will put a blanket ban on fisheries imports from India as a result, the entire Indian economy would suffer, Mr. Yadava said.

Captain Balakrishnan who served the Indian Navy for more than three decades said the Sri Lankan Navy would never resort to firing at the fishermen from Tamil Nadu or any other Indian states. But the truth is that Tamil Nadu fishermen do not respect international treaties entered into by two sovereign countries. Fish do not have territorial boundaries but nations have and one has to respect it, he said.

It may be noted that the Indian Coast Guard has told the highest courts in the country that Tamil Nadu fishermen are notorious for violating and trespassing the IMBL. The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Service, a state-run research establishment specialising in oceanic research, has the technology to help the fishermen to identify the IMBL and track their movements. But Tamil Nadu fishermen have not accepted the system because they fear that they may be caught red handed if they trespass into Lankan waters.
I have learned the hard way not to put my personal life on the Internet. But suffice it to say that, God willing, things should be pretty much back to norm...

3 weeks ago
Kandy gets digital parking meters View(s):

Digital meters to charge parking fees from vehicles in Kandy were launched yesterday. Central Province Chief Minister Sarath Ekanayake inaugurated the system by parking his vehicle and obtaining a ticket.

From the moment a motorist is issued a ticket, the meter begins to record the time. When he or she returns, the ticket is inserted into the meter which will then issue another ticket indicating how much to be paid. Traffic wardens have been deployed to operate the meters.
NPPD raises red flag over Ruwanpura and Central Expressways View(s):

The National Physical Planning Department (NPPD) of the Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development has voiced strong concerns about the proposed Ruwanpura Expressway of the Ministry of Highways. The trace cuts through the central fragile areas that are identified as crucial to conservation of the countrys water sources, the NPPD warns in letters to the Road Development Authority (RDA), Central Environmental Authority (CEA) and others. Therefore, large scale industries, major service sector developments and densely populated residential areas are discouraged in the region under the National Physical Plan (NPP) which is currently being updated.

The Ruwanpura Expressway is expected to run 73.9km from Kahathuduwa to Pelmadulla via Horana. The RDAs official project sites states that a feasibility study is in its final stages, the environment impact assessment (EIA) is 70 percent finished and that survey and preliminary work is ongoing.

The feasibility study is being done by Maga Neguma Consultancy and Project Management Services Company (Pvt) Ltd. The company falls under the RDA which will implement the Ruwanpura Expressway. Its report does not provide a rationale for an expressway to Opanayake via Ratnapura, Kiriella and Ingiriya, authoritative sources said.

The NPPD has pointed out that four urban metro regions  other than the Western Megapolis  are proposed to be developed in Trincomalee-Polonnaruwa-Dambulla; Jaffna-Kilinochchi; Hambantota; and Batticaloa-Ampara. This will attract a major share of the countrys future population.

Such attraction will result in depopulation trends in the study region within the next 30 years, and thereby cause a decrease in travel demand within the study area, it states, referring to the regions the Ruwanpura Expressway will cut across. The growth factors used in the feasibility study to forecast travel demand could have considered such trends.

Pointing to the sensitivity of the region, the NPPD states that, even though the proposed expressway could be constructed with adequate mitigatory measures to minimise impact on the fragile environment, the accessibility and mobility increased by the expressway will have negative impact in the entire region by means of promoting urbanisation and industrial developments and, thus, leading to land use changes, land fragmentation, green cover depletion, etc, which are highly detrimental to the conservation policy of the central fragile area.

The NPPD has proposed the large-scale extension and modernisation of rail transport as an alternative. This would be less capital intensive and more beneficial than expressways in terms of economic gains and environmental impact. On preliminary analysis, the Department says, the proposed expressway is not an immediate need as the available infrastructure could serve travel and accessibility in the region for the next 10-15 years.

The Department has also expressed concerns about the third section of the Central Expressway (CE III) from Pothuhera to Galagedara. It states that a large share of the area affected by the proposed 32.5km road is within the fragile zone and central water catchment identified in the NPP.

It is necessary, therefore, to select lands that are not within risk areas and to avoid catchments of the tributaries of Maha Oya and Deduru Oya both in the project and in the process of resettling communities that will be displaced. The NPPD also calls for a detailed study regarding the traffic impact on Galagedara town as CE III is likely to discharge all Kandy-bound traffic in that area.
Plenty of paddy in stores, but Govt. goes for foreign donations and imports View(s):

By Kasun Warakapitiya

Sri Lanka continues to receive donations of rice from the international community while the government and private traders are holding on to millions of kilos of paddy and rice in their stores, a Sunday Times investigation has revealed.

In the main paddy production areas of the Eastern, North-central and Northern provinces, Government officials confirmed that despite the adverse weather conditions, paddy stocks were available in the Paddy Marketing Board (PMB) stores and with private traders.

Private paddy millers confirmed they were in possession of stocks and were buying fresh stocks with the harvest beginning in some of the paddy cultivation areas.

The Department of Information, however in a statement this week said there would be a sharp drop in the paddy yield due to the drought. It said Sri Lanka was receiving 10,000 metric tonnes of rice from Pakistan and another 5,000 metric tonnes from Indonesia as donations. In addition, the Government has also approved the import of 250,000 metric tonnes of rice.

In paddy cultivating areas, farmers expressed serious concern over moves to import rice as the purchase price of local paddy would be affected.
Police swoop on 1246 suspects in island-wide special op View(s):

More than 1000 suspects were rounded up in an island-wide special police operation that began at 11 p.m. on Friday and ended at 4 a.m. on Saturday. The five-hour op with 11,792 officers deployed resulted in the arrest of 1246 suspects, Police headquarters said.

So far it has been revealed that 110 Island Reconvicted Criminals, four Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) deserters and three Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) deserters were among the suspects. Police said the process of checking the fingerprints of these suspects was ongoing.

In addition those apprehended included 87 suspects engaged in various crimes, 45 suspects for the possession of cannabis and 26 for the possession of heroin. Police were also successful in arresting 567 suspects who had warrants issued for their arrest and 109 wanted by police.

Police also nabbed 307 motorists responsible for serious traffic violations 76 of them for driving under the influence of liquor, a police statement added.

The operation was launched under the direction of Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundara, and supervised by Senior Deputy Inspector Generals (SDIG) of Police in charge of the provinces. Police Headquarters said similar island-wide operations would be carried out in the future.
Protesting Indian fishermen stop Kachchativu pilgrims View(s):

By Chris Kamalendran

Indian devotees planning to attend the festive mass at the Kachchativu island off Jaffna today were obstructed by Indian fishing societies which declined to provide boats for them to travel.

This was in protest against a shooting incident which claimed the life of an Indian fisherman earlier in the week.

The Kachchativu Church parish priest, Rev. Fr. A. Jeyaranjan told the Sunday Times he was informed yesterday morning by a Rameshwaran priest that thousands of Tamil Nadu pilgrims were stranded without transport.

He said that until 5 p.m. yesterday none of the Indian boats had arrived.Usually most of the boats from India carrying pilgrims to Kachchativu arrive by 4 p.m.

Tamil Nadu fishermen societies earlier this week protested over a shooting incident claiming that the Sri Lankan Navy was involved in it. However the Navy denied any involvement, but said it would investigate the reported incident.

Despite the call for the boycott more than 5,000 Indian nationals had registered to attend the annual St Anthonys feast in the Kachchativu Island.

Lieutenant Commander Chaminda Walakuluge said the Navy was expecting about 9,000 Sri Lankan and Indian devotees by this morning and that it was providing facilities for them. Despite the call to boycott the feast, we believe a number of them will arrive for their traditional pilgrimage, he said.

Sri Lankan pilgirms had started arriving in the island last afternoon.
Remembering First US Consul to Ceylon, John Black View(s):



US Ambassador Atul Keshap on Friday paid tribute to the first US Consul to the then Ceylon, John Black whose remains are buried at the All Saints cemetery in Galle. John Black was the first American Commercial Agent and Consul to Ceylon in 1860. His tombstone says he died on February 17, 1869 and, his wife died on September 13 1905.

Pic by Sirangika Lokukarawita
Special guards unit to protect travelling inmates By Sandun Jayawardana View(s): View(s):

The Prisons Dept (PD) intends to form a special Unit dedicated to guarding prison inmates while being transported to courts and back.

According to a proposal made to the Minister of Prison Reforms, Resettlement and Hindu Religious Affairs, D.M. Swaminathan, this Unit will comprise of about 100 officers, who will receive specialised training from agencies including the Police Special Task Force (STF), PD sources told the Sunday Times.

The PD intends to recruit the new guards from a batch of 350 who are due to be appointed to the Dept. These appointments, however, were suspended in November last year by Minister Swaminathan, following allegations of bribery and corruption. The Minister had noted that a second interview with regard to the recruitment of jail guards, as per due procedure, would be held to fill the vacancies. Accordingly, the PD would have to wait for these interviews to be conducted and appointments finalised before moving forward with the Units formation.

The proposal comes after heavily armed gunmen ambushed a prison bus at Ethanamadala in Kalutara, on February 27. The bus was on its way to the Kaduwela Magistrates Court at the time. Five prisoners, including underworld leader Aruna Damith Udayanga Pathirana alias Samayan and two Prison officers died in the attack. Several Prison officers were also wounded. The attack has compelled authorities to rethink their approach to transporting prisoners.

A lengthy discussion was held earlier this week between Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundara and Commissioner General of Prisons H.M.N.C. Dhanasinghe, regarding new measures aimed at ensuring protection of prisoners. Senior officers from both Depts also took part. Police Spokesman- Deputy Inspector General (DIG) (Crimes) Priyantha Jayakody said the discussions were fruitful and that police are in the process of drawing up a strategic plan to provide security for Prison buses. A group of Prison officers would also receive advanced training with the assistance of the STF to strengthen security. Extra police protection would be provided to prisoners, based on threat assessments, he added. Police and Prisons Depts would be coordinating on these issues.

Nearly two weeks into the deadly Kalutara ambush, suspects in the attack remain at large. DIG Jayakody, however, insisted investigators were on the right track. Five police teams, two from Kalutara and three from Colombo, under the direction of Senior DIG Nandana Munasinghe, are on the case and we are confident of apprehending the suspects, he stated.

On Friday, police also announced that Inspector J.P. Ananda Silva, Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of Kalutara North Police, has been transferred to Colombo on disciplinary grounds. The responsibility for providing police protection for prison buses from the Kalutara Prison falls to the Kalutara North police station. While the prison made a request on February 25 for police protection for the bus transporting Samayan to court on February 27, the former OIC had informed them that such protection could not be provided due to a shortage of personnel. He, however, had not followed protocol and informed senior officers of the matter.
The most venerated mountain by generations past and generations to come View(s):

Sri Pada  Holy Footprint to Buddhists and Adams Peak to others is perhaps the most venerated mountain in the world. The annual pilgrim season which began on Unduwap Full Moon Poya December 13, reaches its climax with Medin Poya today.

As mentioned in the Mahvamsa, during the third visit of the Buddha to Sri Lanka when he visited Kelaniya (519/520 BC) he was invited by God Sumanasaman to visit Samantakuta. He obliged and during his visit placed an imprint of his left footprint on a slab of rock. Sumanasaman  referred to as Saman Deviyo  is the guardian deity of Samanala Kanda venerated by the pilgrims who seek his protection during the pilgrimage.

I remember climbing Sri Pada as a boy. We took the route through Hatton which is considered the shortest. The trail started from Nallathanni on an estate road. The climb starts gradually and there are spots to rest on the way.Reaching Seetha Gangula most pilgrims take a dip in the ice cold water in the stream flowing by while others prefer to wash their faces and change into white clothes.

The climb becomes steep but with the crowds chanting Karunavai, karunavai  Vandinta yana me nadeta Sumana Saman devi pihitai blessing those going up and the others responding Karunavai, karunavai  Negala bahina me nadeta Sumana Saman devi pihitai, the mood is relaxing. You also begin to admire the greenery around you.

Reaching Indikatu pahana you see reams of white thread with pins thrown by the pilgrims following tradition, hanging among the bushes. The steepest climb referred to as Mahagiri dambe as you near the peak begins thereafter. Braving the cold and the winds you reach the peak where pilgrims all around are heard chanting Sadhu, Sadhu. You kneel down and worship the slab of rock with the Holy Footprint and ring the bell indicating the number of times you have visited Sri Pada. If you are a kodu-karaya  first timer you ring just once.

In the Footprint of the Buddha, Professor E.F.C. Ludowyk writes: On the slab of rock is the rough indentation of the outline of a foot, somewhat sunk on the stone and regularized by a cemented rim giving it the conventional shape of the mango in Indian design. Its length has been computed at five feet seven inches, and its breadth at two feet seven inches at the ball of the foot.

After worshipping, you begin to look round and enjoy the scenery. As Sir Emerson Tennent has written, No other mountain presents the same unobstructed view over land and sea. Around it to the north and east the traveller looks down on the zone of lofty hills that encircle the Kandyan kingdom, whilst to the westward the eye is carried far over undulated plains, threaded by rivers like cords of silver, till in the purple distance the glitter of the sunbeams on the sea marks the line of the Indian Ocean.

Most pilgrims climb in the night to reach the summit by dawn to watch the Ira Sevaya as the sun begins to appear through the clouds and the shadow of the peak presents a marvellous sight. The first faint beams reveal the fleecy shroud of mist covering the world below and as the welling light grows clearer up rises the mighty shadow. Like a distant pyramid it stands for many seconds; then nearer and nearer, never increasing in size and distinctness as the rays of light broaden over the horizon, it advances towards us like a veil, through which the distant mountain forests and plains are distinctly visible, till at length it seems to merge its mighty parent, and instantly vanish, writes Henry W Cave in Ceylon along the Rail Track.

A holy peak which has attracted pilgrims of several faiths as far back as 11th century continues to be one of the most venerated places of worship.

- D. C. Ranatunga
With a new lease of life it will truly be a happy bday for this 15-year-old Struck down by acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) in 2014 Shenon is the very first in Sri Lanka to undergo an allogeneic (haplo) stem cell transplant, with only a 50% match with the donor, his father, at the state-of-the-art Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) Unit at the Nawaloka Hospital in Colombo. Kumudini Hettiarachchi reports View(s): View(s):

A lads life on the brink of being snuffed out by cancer..hopes shattered into smithereens, swirling in the very depths of despair and then with the dawn of this year, a fresh lease of life.

A tryst with tragic destiny preempted and K.M. Shenon Praminda Kumara from Kumbukgahamulla in Kuliyapitiya becomes a flag-bearer in the New Year. Smiles wreathing his face, with only a hint of a shadow behind his eyes, he is set to celebrate his 15th birthday today.

Shenon struck down by acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is the very first in Sri Lanka to undergo an allogeneic (haplo) stem cell transplant, with only a 50% match with the donor, his father, at the state-of-the-art Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) Unit at the Nawaloka Hospital in Colombo 2.

Having battled ALL for nearly three years, starting at the tender age of 12, and facing along with his family the highs and lows of this disease, Shenon is all smiles on Tuesday.

This pioneering transplant procedure in Sri Lanka reported to be unavailable in many other South Asian countries will not only pave the way to save numerous lives but also provide a viable option to hundreds of desperate men, women and children, who have had to seek treatment in strange foreign lands at a huge cost.

The heartbreak and agony of Shenons family earlier and the immense joy now, the meticulous detail with which this procedure was performed by a highly-skilled multidisciplinary medical and well-trained nursing team under the guidance of Nawaloka Hospitals Director-General Prof. Lal Chandrasena, we glimpse in an exclusive interview on Tuesday.

The medical team comprises Consultant Oncologist Dr. Wasantha Rathnayake; Consultant Haematologists Dr. Senani Williams & Dr. Sasikala Suresh; Consultant Physician Dr. K.D. Duminda (Coordinator of the Programme); Consultant Transfusion Physician Dr. Lakmali Morawaka; Consultant Paediatrician Dr. Deepal Perera; Consultant Microbiologist Dr. Samanmali Gunasekera; BMT Unit Coordinator Dr. Ganeshanathen Kethiswaran; and Medical Officer-in-Charge of the BMT Unit Dr. Pradeep Fernandopulle.

Before the distress of those years are put into words, the expression of Shenons mother, Kumudu Herath, says it all. Fevers began wracking her sons body in 2014, says Kumudu, through the mask she is wearing to protect Shenon as she is having a cold and does not want him to catch it from her.

When he complained of severe pain in the groin area, the visits to hospitals, both private and government, and also tests and more tests began. It was at the Ragama Teaching Hospital that a bone marrow test confirmed that Shenon was afflicted with leukaemia (a cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow), she says, the day, August 20, seared into her memory.

That very evening, Kumudu carried her beloved son as he could not walk through the doors of the National Cancer Institute at Maharagama, a place unfamiliar to her. Her husband, K.M. Sarath Premasiri who had served in the army was far away from home, having taken up a driving job in Saudi Arabia to keep the home fires burning.

Shenon just couldnt walk, relives Kumudu, shuddering at the trauma she faced all alone that day..Hariyata baya hithuna, she says, explaining that she was terrified.

Her clever sons achievements flashed before her eyes. Always 1st in class at the Nattandiya Dhammissara National School where he was then in Grade 7, the class monitor and engrossed in books when not with his study texts.

Jeevithe kada vatuna (life collapsed), she sighs, adding how both she and Shenon didnt touch a morsel of food for three days or even wash their faces.

Torn she was between her two sons when the news of the leukaemia hit her. She just could not leave Shenon alone at Maharagama for his need was greater and had to depend on the kindness of her close friend, Renuka Malkanthi Herath to look after her second son, Nirmal Shehan Nayanajith who was facing the Grade 5 Scholarship Examination.

Although she had been told not to tell Shenon about his condition, inadvertently she had left the report on his bed at Ragama while weeping over the phone to her husband. So Shenon knew what had hit him so suddenly.

Later at Maharagama it was Dr. Wasantha Rathnayake who kept on speaking to Shenon to give him the courage and uplift his flagging spirits to come to grips with the leukaemia, she says.

Shenons past agony is tangible even now as his mother recounts his illness and also his wistfulness whenever he spotted from the first-floor Ward 15A, school vans packed with laughing children whizzing past.

Her husbands trauma was equally deep, for he needed to work to collect some money and could not be with Kumudu and Shenon facing daunting sessions of chemotherapy till April 2015. They were, however, back home for Avurudu to cook a little kiribath but the inexorable weekly clinic visits to Maharagama had become a part of their routine.

Two days he attended classes in Grade 8, she says, but there were fears of his vulnerability to catching any passing germ.

The next warning sign came with an excruciating headache in November 2015 and the heart-rending news after a bone marrow test that the leukaemia was back. Shenons remission (the cancers dormancy) was over and it was then that Sarath decided that he had to be with his beleaguered family come what may  money or no money.

By their side was Dr. Rathnayake, thaththek wage, deciding to change the medications as the cancer seemed to have affected the brain too. The new treatment, sent Shenon into severe, body-wracking bouts of vomiting.

On March 1, 2016, reluctantly while Sarath had to fly out in search of money, mother and son, headed back to Maharagama as Shenon was having fever once again, after dropping him at the airport. This time into the Intensive Care Unit he was rushed as the leukaemia was coursing through his body again.

Dr. Rathnayakes team at Maharagama had fought hard to keep the disease

at bay.

If, however, a relapse recurred, there would be no hope. Not willing to concede defeat, Dr. Rath-nayake then offered Shenon the winning trump  Lets do a stem cell transplant, by that time available at Nawaloka Hospital.

As he longs to get back to his lessons, Shenon who had sat the year-end exam of Grade 8, even though absent the whole year before that had secured above 80 marks for all subjects and a high 93 for English.

While he sets his sights on becoming a doctor, not just any doctor, but one who helps battle cancer, his parents murmur that the team members who saved their son are simply Bodhi-satvas.

The procedure and jubilation Before delving into the medical technicalities of the allogeneic (haplo) stem cell transplant procedure, a first performed in Sri Lanka, Consultant Oncologist Dr. Wasantha Rathnayake says that Shenon came under his care for the treatment of leukaemia about three years ago. He was a very high-risk patient as along with leukaemia Shenon also had Philadelphia chromosome-positive (Ph+, a genetic abnormality). Even though all the standard protocols were carried out to fight Shenons leukaemia, as in the case of some with Ph+, he kept relapsing, it is learnt. With a stem cell transplant being the only option, the Nawaloka medical and nursing team, then set upon this course of treatment. When the testing was done to get stem cells from either the father, mother or brother, there was no 100% match, which would have been the ideal, says Dr. Rathnayake, pointing out that they also checked out the international bone-marrow donor registries. However, the father was a 50% match with Shenons human leukocyte antigen (HLA) tissue type and it was then that the team decided on an allogeneic (haplo) stem cell transplant. Pointing out that if the HLA match is not close enough, the donors immune system, which accompanies the donated stem cells, identifies the HLA mismatch and attacks the recipients tissues, causing graft versus host disease (GVHD), Consultant Haematologist Dr. Senani Williams says this was a major danger the team had to overcome. For those patients such as Shenon, who simply could not find an HLA-matched donor, the team seized on the fact that his father was a partial match or haplo-identical donor. While Dr. Rathnayake points out that up to the time of Shenons treatment using this procedure, it had only been carried out in Sri Lanka for those with thalassaemia and not leukaemia, Dr. Williams said that the harvesting of stem cells from Shenons father was set for December 30, last year. It is Consultant Transfusion Physician Dr. Lakmali Morawaka who then explains the details  how Shenons father underwent five days of treatment by injection as an outpatient to get some of his stem cells (basic or most primitive cells which have the potential to develop into many other different types of cells) from their original location of the bone marrow to the peripheral blood circulation. On the fifth day, a blood sample was drawn from the father to ascertain the actual number of stem-cells present to confirm whether he could be linked to the apheresis machine for the collection of his stem cells, says Dr. Morawaka, adding that informed consent was taken from him, his health parameters checked and a central venous line fixed to his chest. Thereafter, he was connected to the apheresis machine for six hours, so that his blood flowed through the centrifuge, depositing stem cells there, while flowing back into his body. Once again, a sample of the stem cells collected in the machine was sent for testing. There were stem cells galore, she smiles, adding that they had collected what was required and more. Shenon, meanwhile, had been admitted to the BMT Unit 10 days before December 30, a Hickman line fixed to his chest to enable easy administration of the chemotherapy doses needed to kill off his diseased bone marrow. Then on December 30, the stem cells harvested from his father were infused to Shenon. The team waited with baited breath  for the test came 13 days later, to check whether the peripheral engraftment had taken place as well as whether the stem cells had homed into Shenons bones. In two clinics miles apart, there were shouts of joy, while onlookers exchanged puzzled glances. It was Dr. Williams on the phone to Dr. Rathnayake one morning at their two different work stations  the Ragama Hospital and the Cancer Hospital.Laughter mingled with tears of joy. Later Shenon would also exhibit 100% chimerism, his own genetic cells and those of his fathers, proof that the transplant had worked. It was not just one young life saved but a vista of opportunity opened through haploidentical transplants for lots of others who are on a desperate search for donors. There will be at least one relative who will be a 50% match for these patients. Now their stem cells can be used, says Dr. Rathnayake holding out hope to all of them.
A Lankan woman in the White House: Krishanti Vignarajah View(s):

The website birchbox.com, as part of its series on powerful and influential women, has featured a Sri Lankan-born woman who held a key post in the White House during the presidency of Barack Obama. The article written by Kate Bartick says:

This month, and every month, we celebrate powerful and influential women. We remember and reflect on what women all over the world have done in pursuit of equality, and celebrate those who have broken the glass ceiling (or part of it, at least). One of these incredible women is Krishanti Vignarajah, the powerhouse behind initiatives like Michelle Obamas Let Girls Learn, and her firm, Generation Impact. Krishanti Vignarajahs work is fuelled by the belief that if given adequate support and opportunities, girls can change the world.

As a young girl, Vignarajah escaped the growing violence in Sri Lanka to came to America with her parents and brother. The daughter of two teachers, her parents instilled the importance of education. For me, like for so many women and girls around the world, education was the springboard  the eye-opening, world  expanding fairy dust that gave me a chance to realise my potential, says Vignarajah.

With the help of amazing teachers and mentors, Vignarajah earned a Masters degree in Political Science and a B.S. in Molecular Biology from Yale College, where she later returned for Law School. As if thats not impressive enough, Vignarajah also became a Marshall Scholar at Oxford University. Ive been blessed to learn from inspiring teachers and work with amazing people every day of my life, from Yale to Oxford, she said.

Throughout her incredible educational journey, Vignarajah began to feel a personal responsibility to help girls around the world fulfill theirs. Enter: Michelle Obama and the Let Girls Learn initiative, which helps girls around the world to receive a quality education that empowers them to reach their full potential. Serving as Policy Director to Michelle Obama, Vignarajah worked alongside the First Lady to lead this influential initiative.

But Vignarajahs work didnt stop when the Obamas left the White House. She started her own firm, Generation Impact, which partners with nonprofits and social enterprises to create strategic partnerships and execute innovative strategies to positively impact on the world. She works to tackle issues like education, entrepreneurship and women and girls empowerment, allowing Vignarajah to continue the work she is so passionate about.

In our opinion, Krishanti truly defines Pretty Mighty and we honour the way she has forged a path for so many women who are facing similar challenges that she did early in her life. She is a reminder that while weve made incredible progress, we still have a long way to go and that every effort helps. What makes you feel Pretty Mighty?
Hyderabad Mar 10 : Governor ESL Narasimhan observed that Telangana State has witnessed a significant improvement in the growth of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP). Addressing the joint session of the State Legislative Assembly and council marking the commencement of budget session on Friday he said the GSDP is estimated to 6.54 lakh crore in 2016-17.

Quoting the advance estimates for the next fiscal he said the GSDP is likely to grow at an impressive rate of 13.7 per cent at the current prices as against the all India growth rate of 11.5 per cent.He said the formation of new State heralded the dawn of a new phase in energy sector. The most significant achievement in the last 33 months on this front has been putting an end to the power cuts and ensuring uninterrupted supply of power to all sections of consumer. The last two and half years the government would create an additional generation capacity of 4,190 MW and by the end of the current year further generation capacity of 4,130 MW would be added. With in next three years the total availability of power would be in the range of 16,306 MW.

Addressing the session he said that the pension and assistance schemes introduced by the government has benifitted over 36 lakh persons now as against 29 lakh, before the formation of the State. As compared to the previous annual expenditure of Rs 835 crore in undivided State, the present government is spending Rs 4,729 crores for this purpose. Mitigating the plot of the single women the government has decided to extend assistance of Rs 1,000 per month enabling each of them to live in dignity.

The State government is committed to fill up 1 lakh vacancies in the public sector in a period of five years as assured at the time of State formation. Adding to which the Governor said that so far recruitment on 5,936 posts has been completed through the State public service commission. Apart from that recruitment on 2681 posts were completed in the power sector, 4500 in singareni collieries and 10,422 posts in police department.

The Governor noted that its important to give new thrust to the community-based traditional occupations to revive the rural economy. The government has prepared a blue print to revamp the activities of shepherded, fishermen, weavers, barbers and other artisans.
Freedom for Education: Free Education and SAITM View(s):

By Prof. Chandrika Jayasinghe

After basic needs such as air, food, water, clothes and shelter, education is the most important thing that a living being, particularly human beings need. Education is a life skill: At baseline level, it provides the person with basic life skills necessary for survival. Education is essential for virtually all types of occupations, and it makes the difference between being able to perform a job safely and accurately and being unable to perform a job well. Education makes a good citizen and enables people to contribute to their community, country and the world. Education will broaden the thinking pattern, communication ability, and also will teach the people about the rest of the world. Education is a fundamental human right and a prerequisite for the exercise of all other human rights. Education will change the persons ideology which will help to make a better world for all.

Freedom for education:

Freedom for education is the right for parents to have their children educated in accordance with their views and also allowing groups to be able to educate children without being hindered by the state. It is the right of every child to receive the education that he or she wishes to have, provided that the said person has the appropriate level of intelligence, aptitude and the attitude needed for the selected study programme. Diversity of the peoples choices, their characters, opinions and the ways they conduct themselves will enhance the freedom and diversity in education. Any stereotyped pattern of education will only produce people into the same mould and shape. The more efficient and successful the state education was, the greater the dictatorship that the state could establish over the minds and bodies of the people.

Free education: Is what is funded through taxation or charity rather than through tuition fee funding. In most countries, primary education is free. Some countries, especially in Europe, total education, including the postgraduate education, is free.

Knowledge is power- Francis Bacon

When knowledge can bestow power, why should it be restricted to a few who have the advantage of wealth? Knowledge needs to be free for all those who deserve it. What a person deserves should be decided by an individuals capability and intelligence and not by wealth. The best and simplest way to disseminate knowledge to all those who deserve it, is through free education. Free education would lead to more educated people. More educated people in society leads to overall improvement in the quality of life in the society.

Can we afford free education for all?

We have stepped into the band of middle income countries after stagnating for many decades in the lower income group. Even with the meager allocation for education we have reached a higher level of literacy and education status today. With the present economic status we are not in a position to extend the free higher education to all who wish it and deserve it. Better employment which is achieved through education only will eliminate the struggle for basic needs. Then people would concentrate on the higher aspects of life, such as improving administration and management of issues that impact society in general. Therefore, free education would have a positive impact on the overall quality and thinking in society. More educated people would mean improved governance. Educated people would make better choices in electing their representatives and are better fortified to question corruption and misuse of power which are the main causes of downfall in countries like ours. Therefore, education is not only the way-out of ills of disproportionate wealth, but also the treatment for the troubles that plague our administration and governments. By making education free, we push our society towards the path of better governance.

Free education in Sri Lanka

Free Education in Sri Lanka grants opportunities for more than 350,000 children annually to enter schools for free and continue their education. Of these 350,000 students, only a small percentage will get the chance to proceed to tertiary education which is provided free by the government. Does this mean all the other children should be deprived of higher education? Is it not important to let them receive higher education through whatever the available means?

My opinion is that the Government should give priority to education and provide all children with the education that they seek to follow. But due to financial constraints, if the country is unable to provide free higher education to all, the students and their parents should have liberty to pursue higher education in the fields that they like, provided they have the aptitude and the attitude to follow the selected programme. There are countries which have realised the necessity to educate all their people and gone to the extent of providing higher education even through mass media.

As a country, we have failed in developing or taking national policy decisions on education or other crucial issues. Our government leaders are to be blamed for this stagnant state of affairs, while many poorer countries have overtaken us because they have national policies and successive governments are committed to implementing the national policies rather than bending and changing policies to suit their political agendas with the intention of discrediting the previous regime.

Now what do we have to do?

Instead of cursing the darkness, light a candle.  Benjamin Franklin

Even if we like the Government to provide opportunities for all students who qualify for higher education to have the opportunities to enter a free higher education programme, we all are aware that the country is not in a position to do so. This country has unacceptably higher number of ministers and according to a recently published article, the Government is spending about Rs. 8.5 million a month to look after one minister. You might wonder how many higher education careers can be sponsored by just one month expenditure spent on a minister in this country. But rulers of this country appear to be not concerned of the wellbeing of the people or their education. They are largely worried about how to increase their power, how to have a greater impact on the masses through their power and how to stay on in power.

To fight any battle we need to be properly armed. I believe that the only way of becoming armed is to educate ourselves, so that we can select good politicians to rule the country, and take this country forward.

During this window period I believe we need to stop infighting and strengthen the ways of educating our masses. Let it be in any form either through free education or through paid education. Let all be educated in the chosen paths according to their attitudes and aptitudes. If we concentrate in educating all it will not be that far that we get rid of these corrupt politicians and select our rulers who would take measures with the intention of developing this country in a moral backdrop, but not with the intention of regaining power in a corrupt society.

SAITM and private medical education

Given this situation, I believe that during this window period of financial instability, well established, quality maintained private educational institutions are an asset to the country. At the same time I need to highlight that there are many bogus institutions where money hungry monsters manipulate students and parents thirst for education. Worldwide, private education is widely prevalent, but with the main intention of educating the masses but not with the sole intention of generating money.

The University Grants Commission which is taking ardent steps to maintain quality in universities, I believe, is trespassing to a great extent on the autonomy of independent universities, but turning a blind eye on these rapidly proliferating private educational institutions. Rather than exerting undue pressure through many quality assurance programmes on independent universities, which can clearly and ably maintain their own qualities and standards, the University Grants Commission should pay more attention and exert bigger controlling impact on these mushrooming private educational institutions.

Private medical education

To pursue in any academic career, the student should have the capacity and the correct attitude, especially in a difficult academic programme like medicine. In countries like ours, most of the parents and young students are attracted to medicine after seeing the seemingly luxurious life styles of doctors. Without realising the difficulties and at times very frustrating life style of a medical student or a doctor, parents press their children to do medicine.

Studying medicine is a life time commitment and a life time education process. If those who are attracted to this field are truly aware of this situation, I am sure, like in most developed countries, the students will opt out for different and versatile study programmes in biological sciences other than medicine.

Though I totally agree with private education, I do not believe that we can offer education in all academic programmes in the private sector. The main reason why I do not think that total private medical education is sustainable at this juncture in Sri Lanka is the lack of patient numbers and the patient mix  the most important components in moulding a doctor. New medical curricula are problem-based and promote self inquisitiveness and self learning. For this type of training, students need to be exposed to a large number of diverse clinical problems which are only available in a state hospital.

After considering all the facts and the documents available, no one could disagree that SAITM is a questionable institution, established not with the intention of producing more doctors for the country but with the intention of making money.

The problems

While old medical faculties with fully fledged staff, facilities and with extremely heavy patient populations to cater to the educational needs, take closer to 200 students a year, SAITM with mostly visiting staff with handful of patients in one ward in a 1100 bed strength hospital, with no community health care training facility or forensic medicine training facility has enrolled about double that amount per year. No right thinking person will approve this. With due respect to all the good teachers who have served many medical faculties in the past before they entered SAITM, I believe they have failed to educate the SAITM administration regarding student-patient and staff-student ratios in a medical faculty before finding ways to reduce the doctor-patient discrepancy of this country.

Many parents who have enrolled their children in the SAITM programme have only done injustice to their children, knowing well that this kind of an institution will not be able to provide proper training in medicine. Many parents who are consultants in the medical field or teachers in the Government medical faculties have failed to raise their concerns and make the University Grants Commission aware of the non conformity of the institution to the required standards. The University Grants Commission which is keen on maintaining standards of government medical faculties has failed in its duty to recognise this blatant lack of standards.

As far as I am aware, only the Sri Lanka Medical Council, the Government Medical Officers Association and the university student bodies have voiced their concerns before the court ruling given on the SAITM issue. When students were admitted to SAITM, it was expected that after some years they would graduate and that there would arise this problem regarding practicals.

What did the teachers of eight Government medical faculties do all these years as this problem was looming? When the problem started, we were silent, when it was growing, we were silent. Now it is ripe and all of a sudden we have woken up from our deep slumber and demand to abolish SAITM. Is our stance any different from that of politicians of this country? Is this the behaviour that we expect from academics? Should we not file a no-confidence motion against ourselves?

I am despondent about the whole state of affairs.

(The writer is a Professor in Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, Univeristy of Peradeniya)
Hallowed halls of academia occupied by the hounds of hell View(s):

By Y. Fernando

Many Sri Lankan graduates of bygone eras reminisce about the best years of their lives and the many wonderful memories within the hallowed halls of their universities. With dignity and honour they served the country subsequent to receiving their degrees, proving gratitude for the free education they received. Humbly they retired in due time with their self-respect intact. Some of the best in Science, Arts and Commerce shaped this nation and what it holds dear for all of us, (our families, homes, a sense of security, opportunities to prosperity and freedom). They were moulded by these institutions.

Unfortunately, notoriety now stalks the higher institutions of education in the country and the hounds of hell lurk in the maledict corridors. Only if walls could talk, the atrocities spewed would no doubt be hair raising. The best way to mould todays student is apparently by ragging in the most uncouth and inhuman forms. Ragging in verbal, physical, mental, psychological and sexual in context, apparently encourages social equality between classes. With the blessings of a few sadistic academics, administrators and politicians, the lawlessness of students is encouraged not only on campus, but outside.

Those against this kind of uncivilised and vulgar behaviour, both students and faculty, are undermined, humiliated and harassed. The students are overlooked for recognition and awards in academic and other achievements, marginalised and even penalised. They were not allowed to utilise the facilities of the university such as gym, pool, common rooms and cafeteria and participate in social activities. The anti-ragging faculty and administrators are shunned.

In the latter part of 2016, Peradeniya University anti-raggers decided to protect the freshmen and women against the usual impending torture. These anti-raggers were dealt a severe blow with the arrest of the senior students and an inquiry against the academic staff, ironically, based on the allegations of the raggers (first year students). It empowered the sadistic raggers to be more aggressive in their tactics. The raggers were mysteriously funded to maintain houses off the premises. These houses were utilised for more serious ragging. Surprisingly, a senior administrator when approached with the problem continued to claim and took the stance that ragging does not exist at Peradeniya. It is safe to assume that such senior administrators, too, were, therefore, pro-ragging.

In February 2017, the raggers were caught red-handed. While in a house thus mysteriously funded, the Police snared the culprits. The Police who were not willing to intervene usually, possibly on the advice of the pro-ragging senior administrators, had no choice but to act this time. The arrest of the felons was done covertly and the raggers were caught unawares. Fifteen raggers of the Peradeniya Universitys Agriculture Faculty were remanded, pending further investigations. The Vice Chancellor, when confronted with the glaring evidence, declared that the perpetrators would be punished after a thorough investigation, finally acknowledging that ragging does exist at Peradeniya.

We, the taxpayers pay our dues to ensure that this nation gets the best out of our efforts. All the infrastructure and facilities we reap were sown by our very own hard work. One such facility is free education. University education should enable students to reach their true potential as professional, duty-bound, civic-minded people  and contributing meaningfully towards the betterment of society should be their goal, regardless of the subjects of their choice.

If a few deranged academics, administrators and politicians promote unspeakable filth, describing the male and female genitalia, various physical tortures and lessons on anti-democratic ideologies as a method to moulding the young students and enabling them to conform to one social class, they should be weeded out first and foremost. They should not be allowed anywhere near young people but prescribed to seek psychological counselling and treatment.

All student union funding should be transparent and audited. It will be interesting to note the outcome of inquiries into where the funds actually come from, especially at the Peradeniya University, considering the most recent incident.

A temporary ragging deterring system could be to send the senior students for outbound training, for inter-university exchange programmes or internships at public institutes or the corporate sector. The next generation of students can then participate in an orientation programme at the relevant university, peacefully. Surveillance and security can be upgraded with CCTV and RFIDs/fingerprint attendance marking. It can track students, academics, administrators, staff and even visitors.

Not completing the free education during a stipulated timeframe should be at a high cost for the extra time on campus. Not participating in lectures should have penalties ensuring that the focus will be on education and not on someones political agenda or sadistic ulterior motives.

If the vicious cycle of ragging continues, graduates thus qualified with such traumatic beginnings of university education, entering employment in either the state or private sector, do so bearing an axe to grind. They take it out on the poor unsuspecting public, family members and colleagues, at crucial times, while hampering the path of progress of this nation.

The law needs to be strictly upheld within the university premises and outside and all supportive of such vile behaviour, made known to the public who after all, fund FREE EDUCATION and punished severely, without mercy. Strict guidelines on how to manage ragging in universities should not be a difficult task.
Launch an all-out effort to rid universities of ragging View(s):

By Dr Jeyaraman Devarajan

This week, I read some news about ragging in the Sri Lankan newspapers. At the beginning of every academic year, news surfaces about ragging. This is often unpleasant to read. It is important to understand that we need to eradicate this ugly activity in our higher educational institutions for good.

We live in a civilised world and should not tolerate this barbaric activity. The failure to do so poses a threat to higher educational systems. The university is a place to not only obtain a degree, but also refine our behavior and attitudes.

The word ragging is mainly used in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka (Wikipedia). The concept of ragging does not exist in Western countries. According to Ayesha Wajahat (2014), ragging is known by different names in different parts of the world  hazing, fagging, bullying, pledging, and horse-playing.

In the name of ragging, several students undergo mental and physical torture and sexual harassment; this is forced upon the victims without their consent. Ragging causes tremendous hardship and losses to undergraduates who are genuinely interested in studies and mental suffering to their parents. It also affects society and the country at large. Some students discontinue their studies, experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and severe depression, lose track of their careers and do not get the opportunity to pursue higher education. In severe cases, ragging has taken the lives of students. Here are some distressing examples:

The first ragging related death occurred in 1975. A 22-year-old female student from the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Peradeniya, became paralysed after she jumped from the second floor of the hostel (Ramanathan Hall) to escape physical ragging from senior students. She later committed suicide.

In 1997, a 21-year-old engineering student died from a kidney failure suffered due to severe ragging by senior students. In the same year, another student from the Hardy Institute died from kidney failure, because he was forced to do tough exercise and drink excessive quantities of liquor.

In 2002, a third-year management student from the University of Sri Jayawardenepura was killed in a meeting while discussing anti-ragging campaigns. These are only a few reported cases. There are several unreported or less severe cases.

Ragging is a psychological problem. False values and attitudes influence ragging. In Sri Lanka, obtaining admission to a university is highly competitive, and students believe that it is a great privilege to obtain admission to universities. This type of attitude gives rise to a superiority complex in senior students. They tend to expect that junior students (freshers) should respect them highly and follow orders blindly.

Someone can argue ragging helps junior students to know senior students, enable to develop a friendly environment, and overcome their shyness. According to Ayesha Wajahat , there is a common fallacy that ragging will create a friendly environment between seniors and juniors.

It is common for new students to experience a high level of stress when entering university, especially due to the change of environment. It takes a reasonable amount of time for new students to adjust to their new life. Senior students need to welcome the new students and provide moral support to them to cope with the challenges of university life. Rather than doing this, in the name of ragging, they increase their levels of stress and make their lives miserable for freshers.

Jealousy and an inferiority complex are also causes for ragging. Generally, students who come from affluent families and attended leading schools and girls seen as more attractive are subject to more severe ragging.

We all have a social responsibility to work together to eradicate ragging from our university culture. If we adopt a joint effort, this is not a difficult task. The academic community, student associations, the University Grants Commission and the media should work jointly to eliminate ragging in our universities. Here are some suggestions:

Treat ragging as a criminal offence and impose severe punishment such as suspension or expulsion from the university. For example, in 1974 it was reported that some trainee mathematics teachers at the Vidyalankara University (now known as University of Kelaniya) were ragged. Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaikes government appointed a commission (V.W. Kularatne Commission) to inquire into the incident. As a result, 12 undergraduates were expelled and four officials were penalised for their failure to take prompt action.

Counselling senior students to change their attitudes and behaviour towards ragging. The media, student associations, and the university administration should provide adequate information to senior students to make them understand the physical and emotional consequences of ragging.

Organise anti-ragging campaigns.

Discuss ragging, reporting procedures, and channels for seeking assistance during university orientation programmes.

Provide facilities to freshers to anonymously report ragging incidents.

Provide a helpline for students to seek advice, obtain information and report incidents.

Provide counselling to those who have been affected by ragging.

Student counsellors, student associations and senior students should form teams to monitor ragging and deny opportunities for senior students to perform ragging.

These efforts could help to eradicate ragging in our universities, and make them a safer place for promoting a high standard of education and cultivating good human values. The aim of universities is to produce not only talented scholars but model citizens.

(The writer was a senior lecturer at the Department of Management Studies, University of Jaffna.)
Hyderabad, March 10 (IANS) The Telangana government on Friday reiterated its commitment to fill one lakh vacancies in the government sector in five years as promised at the time of formation of the new state in 2014.



Addressing a joint session of both the houses of the state legislature on the first day of the Budget session, Governor E. S. L. Narasimhan said during the last two-and-a-half years the government had recruited 27,481 people in various departments.



He announced that a notification will be issued soon for filling up 12,000 new posts. He also assured that services of 20,000 contract employees and 24,000 outsourced employees will be regularised.



The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government reiterated its commitment in the wake of the recent protest by the Telangana Joint Action Committee and students' organisations over what they called the government's failure to fulfill the promise.



Narasimhan said that Telangana as the youngest and most happening state in the country had embarked on taking innovative steps to give a much needed boost to the state economy.



He claimed that uninterrupted power supply, revamping of minor irrigation tanks, drinking water supply to every household and obtaining number one rank in ease of doing business are a few of the state's many achievements in the last 33 months.



The government last year carved out 21 new districts as part of people friendly and administrative reforms. "The aim is to take administration and governance to every doorstep to ensure that benefits of development and welfare schemes reach the last man," he said.



The governor said the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) had showed significant improvement since the formation of the new state. As per advance estimates of 2016-17, GSDP is likely to grow at an impressive 13.7 per cent at current prices compared to the estimated all India growth of 11.5 per cent.



The primary sector, which includes agriculture and allied activities, is likely to register 17.2 per cent growth due to the good monsoon and proactive measures to revamp the rural economy.



Narasimhan said the government was ensuring uninterrupted electricity supply and power cuts had become a thing of the past.



While the state's installed capacity at its formation was 6,574 megawatts, in the last two-and-a-half years it created additional generation capacity of 4,190 MW.



A further generation capacity of 4,130 MW will be added by 2017 end. By the end of the next three years, total availability of power will be 16,306 MW.



He said the investor friendly industrial policy and transparent and graft-free system of industrial clearance had resulted in the state attracting investments of Rs. 54,000 crore by 3,451 units with a potential to employ 2.20 lakh persons.



Stating that the services sector has become a major growth engine, he said there had been a spurt in IT and ITES companies in the state.



Telangana contributes 12 per cent to the total IT exports from the country. Hyderabad ranks second in terms of revenues from the IT sector.



The IT exports during 2015-16 were Rs.75,070 crore and the IT sector is providing direct employment to 4 lakh people.



The governor said the poor and the backward remained the focus of the government, which believes that real development is possible only when the fruits of progress reach the poorest families in the remotest hamlet. To ensure this, the government has launched several welfare initiatives.



The state is allocating Rs. 35,000 crore in the budget to implement over 30 welfare schemes. "Telangana has become a leading state in implementing welfare schemes," he said referring to pensions for different sections of people and other measures.
The New Zealand Defence Force has sent 10 soldiers and two trucks to help evacuate at least 500 people stranded by floodwaters near Waihi.

Major General Tim Gall, the Commander Joint Forces New Zealand, says the soldiers were dispatched from Hamilton and Tauranga at noon to rescue the remaining concertgoers attending the Sundaise Festival who were caught out by rising floodwaters.

The campers are stranded at Dickey Flat Road and the campsite in the Karangahake Gorge.

Our immediate priority is to bring the people and their vehicles to safer ground as heavy rain and flooding continues to be forecaste for the Coromandel. We are ready to provide further assistance to communities in all the affected regions if required, says Major General Gall.

Amphibious sealift vessel HMNZS Canterbury has a scheduled port visit to Tauranga this weekend and crew members have been placed on standby in case local authorities request further assistance.

On Wednesday, the NZDF sent several trucks and about 20 personnel to evacuate schoolchildren trapped by torrential rains whilst camping in the Hunua Ranges.
The Thames-Coromandel Council have approved a new Easter Trading Policy which allows shops to trade on Easter Sunday.

In total, 40 submissions were received during the consultation period which ran from December 16 of last year up until January 27.

Significant support was shown for the policy with 28 submissions in favour of Easter Sunday trading, of which four submitters made submissions on behalf of multiple businesses, and only 12 against it.

Reasons provided by those in favour of the policy including giving business owners and operators greater financial security, providing services to tourists and visitors, plus the benefits to locals and visiting customers.

Submitters in favour of the policy also noted their support for employees to not work on Easter Sunday, in line with the exemptions provided for in the Shop Trading Hours Act.

A TCDC spokesperson says the issues raised in opposition to the policy, such as it being a day for family, religious observance and protection of worker rights, are adequately protected by the Act or by the exercise of personal choice.

This policy will not force any retailers to open, but provides for those who do want to trade on Easter Sunday to be able to do so and is at the discretion of the individual business owners.

Our council cannot define specific opening hours, or determine what types of retailers may open. It is important to note that this policy does not control or override shop trading provisions in other legislation, such as restrictions made under the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012.

Employees have the ability to refuse to work on Easter Sunday without providing a reason to their employer.

This year Easter Sunday falls on April 16.

More information for employers and employees on Easter trading is available at www.employment.govt.nz

For more information or to read the Easter Trading Policy in full visit the Thames-Coromandel District Council website at: www.tcdc.govt.nz/eastertrading
The 29th Division Band, Virginia Army National Guard, will perform a free concert as part of Marion's 11th annual Memorial Day Weekend program. Known as "The Governor's Own," the 29th Division Band will perform a variety of tunes -- from Broadway show hits to timeless patriotic numbers.

This is the first appearance of the band in Marion, and the free tickets are expected to go fast. "We are honored and delighted to have the Governor's Own coming to Marion," said Marion Mayor David Helms. "It's another great part of a huge weekend, one of my personal favorites, when we honor our veterans, service members, and their families all weekend long."

The 29th Division Band, formed in 1922, originated in Roanoke as a section of the 116th Infantry Brigades Service Company. But in October 1943, it was inducted into federal service as part of the Blue and Gray 29th Infantry Division (so called because it included National Guard units from Maryland (Union Blue) and Virginia (Confederate Gray). Band members joined in the assault on Omaha Beach, an action for which they received the French Croix de Guerre with Palm. In all, they saw action in four European campaigns: Normandy, Northern France, the Rhineland and Central Europe.

In 1946, the 29th Infantry Division Band was inactivated. Its Virginia segment became the 90th Army Band, the Governors Own, a title that it retained until October 1985. That year, it once again put on the Blue and Gray patch, this time as the band for the only Light Infantry Division in the U.S. Army National Guard.

Present-day missions take band members all over (and sometimes outside) of Virginia. They perform in concert, marching band, and small ensembles for military and civilian functions alike. The bands most recent foreign assignments were in Bosnia-Herzegovina in support of Stabilization Force 10 in 2002, and the 60th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy, France, in 2004. In 2014, a brass group was sent to Normandy again for the 70th anniversary of D-Day landings. That group performed on 22 missions in six days. The band performs between 30 and 40 musical missions each year for over 300,000 people.

The town of Marion partners with Marion VFW Post 4667 to provide a weekend full of activities for Memorial Day. Volunteers begin by placing white crosses and American flags on the Smyth County Courthouse lawn on the Tuesday before Memorial Day. The tradition started in 2007 as the local VFW post began commemorating veterans who had passed with the temporary monument. This year, the program is anticipated to feature more than 1,000 flags and crosses. The flag and cross memorial draws visitors from across the region, including the East Tennessee Chapter of Rolling Thunder. The motorcycle group visits Marion on the Thursday prior to Memorial Day for a somber "Missing Man" ceremony.

The Governor's Own will perform Saturday, May 27, at 7 p.m. at Marion's Lincoln Theatre. Tickets are free, and available from any VFW member or at Marion's Town Hall.

On Sunday, May 28, the Marion VFW Post 4667 will present Letters From Home, a World War II USO-themed show at the Lincoln. Tickets are $10, and all proceeds benefit the Marion VFW. Showtime is 3 p.m.

Memorial Day Monday kicks off the grand parade along Main Street at 10 a.m., followed by a special program at Marion VFW Post 4667 on Goolsby Street at noon. The veterans provide a free community lunch following the program.

For additional information, call Ken Heath at 276-378-5026.
A Carroll County man is accused of driving his vehicle through several yards, hitting a Barren Springs man with a metal pipe and leading deputies on a two-county chase Tuesday that forced a lockdown at Jackson Memorial Middle School.

Eric Donald Edwards, 39, was eventually arrested Tuesday evening at his home in Woodlawn and charged with multiple offenses in Wythe and Carroll counties.

According to Chief Deputy Charles Foster of the Wythe County Sheriffs Office, events began to unfold about 2:15 p.m. when deputies received calls about a maroon Ford Ranger spinning through yards on Vineland Drive in Barren Springs. While deputies were en route, more calls came in concerning the same vehicle tearing up lots and traveling at a high rate of speed in the area.

Then, a caller reported that someone in the vehicle struck a man  later identified as Timmy Wayne Willard of Edenberry Lane -- on the head with a metal pipe on Vineland Drive, Foster said. The chief deputy said Edwards arrived in Barren Springs looking for Willard.

Deputies located the Ranger speeding from Vineland onto Route 100, Foster added. From there, deputies chased Edwards, who illegally passed vehicles and nearly collided head-on with several vehicles, Foster said.

Edwards eventually led deputies onto Fort Chiswell Road near the Carroll County line, where deputies there were waiting for him. As he sped past the deputies, Foster said, they recognized Edwards, who stands at 6-feet-5-inches tall and weighs 285 pounds.

The deputies recognized him from previous encounters, plus, earlier in the day, he had an altercation with his wife in Carroll County, Foster said.

Edwards wound up in a private driveway at the bottom of Stoots Mountain, where he abandoned his truck and cell phone.

Deputies from Wythe and Carroll County launched a search for Edwards that also included the Virginia State Police and the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

At nearby Jackson Memorial Elementary School, where school was about to let out, a lock-down was initiated. School dismissed as usual, but one bus that carries students to the Stoots Mountain area was delayed. A school resource officer accompanied the bus on its rounds to ensure the safety of students, Foster said.

Law enforcement officers, hampered by rain, searched for Edwards until approximately 8 p.m. About 9:30 p.m., they received a report that he had returned to his home at 2322 Oak Grove Road in Woodlawn. Carroll County deputies arrested him there, Foster said.

Wythe County officials charged Edwards with attempted malicious wounding, assault and battery, reckless driving, felony eluding, driving on a suspended license and failure to stop at a stop sign.

In Carroll County, Edwards was charged with felony eluding, reckless driving, driving while suspended, failure to give a signal, littering and probation violation for a 2016 assault and battery charge.

After Edwards arrest in Carroll County, he was transported to Twin Cities Community Hospital for self-inflicted injuries that occurred prior to deputies arriving at his house, Carroll County Chief Deputy Gary Bourne said. Edwards was released from the hospital Thursday and booked into the New River Valley Jail.

To reach Millie Rothrock, call 228-6611, ext. 35, or email mrothrock@wythenews.com.
This ADC mainshow sees the transposition of the 1590s Renaissance drama Arden of Faversham into a stripped back, raw nerve of 1920s Britain. This is not an arbitrary stylization: the 1920s house backdrop creates an insular sense of luxurious claustrophobia. The set design from Ciaran Walsh should be applauded in its attention to detail and its fearsome aura of entrapment. This played into the hands of Anna Jennings gender-conscious play, which promised an exploratory exhibition of coercion, classism and patriarchy.

Isobel Laidlers Alice was off the chain: full of dark energy and subtlety, Laidler should be lauded for her excitingly nuanced performance, and she seemed to have a finger on the pulse of her character from the start. Ardens darkly humorous death scene was expertly executed by Tom Chamberlain, who exhibited a strong performance throughout.

Joe Spences on-edge neuroticism destabilised the play to its unending advantage: his Mosbie was, at his best, pretty electric. While scenes were occasionally jarred by an inability to work the set (a pull door was repeatedly pushed), Seth Krugers Clarke was consistently strong. Though sometimes a little inert in silent approval  his character could perhaps have been directed to do more on occasion  Henry Eaton-Mercers Franklin was exceptionally good. Black Wills misadventures were at times rather funny  however, the humour was relied upon little, and so added little.

Despite a series of largely rather wonderful performances, there were moments when the set looked vaguely precarious. The gauze screen and smoke indicating the movement of the action outside was brilliantly effective. The house, just visible through the screen, became an ominously spectral reminder of the impending return to the claustrophobic domesticity that Jennings and Bruce-Jones seem to point to as the root of the drama. The occasional failure of the gauze screen to descend fully after being caught on a table was another instance of slight prop malfunction which one hopes will be ironed out after the first night.

Other than some rather unconvincing and clumsy bullet wounds, which are admittedly difficult to pull off, there was little to complain of in costuming and make up. The glamour of the 1920s was effectively tempered so as not to be gimmicky, and while I was unsure if the time setting actually contributed much to the movements of the drama or the exploration of gender and domesticity, it was considerately and sincerely done.

Overall, this excellent productions moments of true brilliance more than made up for the few hiccups, part of which must be attributed to opening night. The strength of the acting is a draw alone, and the aesthetics of this performance deserve commendation.

8/10
The intersectionality of homelessness is often forgotten when we discuss the issue. Perhaps this is a symptom of its misrepresentation as being purely a product of alcoholism and addiction, such that homelessness is often misconstrued as being the fault of those of who have been made homeless. It is obvious, however, that homelessness is often a consequence of increasingly exorbitant housing and healthcare prices, and a fragile economy where many do not feel secure in their employment. Another possible reason for our unrepresentative idea is that a lot of homelessness is hidden, and what we do see masks its true demographic.

More often than not, the people we see on the streets of Cambridge are white males, between the ages of 25 and 50. This is a far-cry from reality. Where are the women, children, elderly, minorities, and families? With the difference in rates at which homelessness rises between different ages, genders, and social backgrounds, we need to remember that despite what we see, homelessness is a highly varied experience, and therefore cannot be addressed with one-size-fits-all strategies.

A study published by Homeless Link, the national membership charity for organisations working directly with people who become homeless in England, found that over half of those approaching councils for help are under the age of 25. Additionally, the main cause of homelessness amongst young people is that their parents are no longer willing to house them, with the main driver being the irretrievable breakdown in that relationship. Nearly half of young homeless people become homeless for this reason.

Homeless youth are more likely to remain homeless in the long term. This fact is a product of both the psychological effects of the experience, and a range of other factors. These include the fact that nearly 6 in 10 are not in education, employment or training, and lack the skills to live independently. Measures need to be put in place that ensure that they are in a good position to get the physical and mental stability that they specifically require.

This can come in the form of caseworkers who act as a pillar of support, not only in the quantity of time spent with them, but also the quality. It is not enough to check up on youth in need regularly. We can also try to help them find support, whether that involves therapy, or reaching out to their family if they have any. Obviously this applies to all branches of social work, yet this needs to be emphasised particularly when it comes to homeless youth.

Yet Homeless Link reports that only 19% of cases receive government aid, and this figure is dropping with increasing benefit sanctions. The most common move-on option, for example, is emergency accommodation provided by No Second Night Out (NSNO), an organisation dedicated to helping the homeless population across England, due to its wide availability. Others seek hostels and foyers; however, these options have become increasingly inaccessible due to welfare reforms.

Women are the minority in the homeless population, with only 26% of clients of single homeless services being female. Crisis, the national charity for single homeless people, reports that there are high levels of vulnerability to mental ill-health, drug and alcohol addiction, and experiences of sexual abuse amongst homeless women. In particular, homeless women are more likely than men to have mental illness as a result of physical and sexual abuse.

A report, based on research conducted amongst 160 homeless women across England, revealed that approximately 20% of homeless women were made homeless after escaping from violence. 70% of this was from their partners. If schemes to reduce homelessness do not recognise these different levels and natures of risks, it will result in women not getting the treatment that they need. In particular, post-traumatic treatments and increased security against ones abuser are essential to some womens process of recovery. Some may inevitably face triggers when finding a job, which can in turn hinder the process of getting back on ones feet.

The needs of homeless women are far from being acceptably met. Crisis research showed that the majority of homeless women have negative experiences of approaching local authorities, with many being turned away at the door or deterred by front-line staff from making a homelessness application. A woman I encountered on the street in Cambridge tells me that she was turned away by local shelters, which seemed only to be taking in men. While the claim goes unverified, it is a reminder that we must question the assumption that there is equality within the Cambridge homeless shelter community. The problem escalates still: female rough sleepers are at incredibly high risks of sexual and verbal abuse. Plus, the need to make themselves invisible to avoid such encounters leaves them at greater risk of remaining unfound and thereby prolonging the problem.

Underpinning the neglect of these subjective issues is the governments fallacious cost-cutting strategy to weed out measures which target issues that do not affect the largest population group. This leads to insufficient measures for minorities of gender, age, and ethnicity. We need to realise that this is counter-productive, in that allocating misdirected manpower for the sake of the majority is a sure-fire way to ensure that we make the best use of our resources. Why should we distribute manpower in a way that does not fully harness our resources, in order to combat limited resources?

On 4 March this year, the Government announced that it would scrap housing support payments for under-21s, a cut first put forth under David Camerons administration and only implemented recently. A study by Shelter, a housing charity with over 85,000 volunteers, showed that five households are now being made homeless every hour, and perhaps with no savings for taxpayers. Plus, with its abandonment of homeless youth in particular, LGBT youth or those who face difficult family situations are disproportionately at risk of being made homeless.

Research by Heriot-Watt University showed that the study would save just 3.3 million, a figure that is easily trumped by the knock-on costs if just 140 young people become homeless, meaning that taxpayers will have to pay more money overall, the Independent reports.

This is precisely the mentality described above which results in the neglect of certain population groups. The problems mentioned above extend to various other groups, including the elderly, amongst which rates of homelessness are on the rise. This can be attributed to rising healthcare and housing costs, with a report published by the Homelessness Research Institute in 2010 predicting that homelessness amongst people age 65 and older will more than double by 2050.

Imagine an elderly couple, put out of work through no fault of their own, and having to give up a house they have lived in for longer than some of us have been alive. When they are forced onto the streets, and unable to receive the help that they need to get a house under policies designed based on inaccurate homelessness statistics, and which end up costing taxpayers more, it forces us to ask whether people have a right to have a house, and how to change the way we approach the issue.

Homelessness is more subjective and complex than is often realised. However, even to recognise that fact is the first step towards granting people their right to a home in a way that actually works.
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This week Congress passed a huge funding bill that gives NASA $19.5 billion for space exploration and presented it to the president. The NASA Authorization Act of 2017 is focused on transforming NASA back into the great scientific organization it was during the Apollo Program. The bill authorizes NASA programs like the Space Station, deep space exploration, and asteroid redirect missions for 2017. Also included in the bill is a mandate for human space travel to Mars in 2033.

As part of the mission, Congress has asked NASA to create an "initial human exploration roadmap" by December 2017. The roadmap, which NASA has been working on for a while, is a step by step guide on how to get to Mars. It includes ever expanding stages of space travel starting with low-Earth orbit, then cislunar space, and culminating in the mission to Mars. NASA calls these stages "Earth Reliant", "Proving Ground", and "Earth Independent."

The full report is as follows:

SEC. 435. MARS 2033 REPORT. (a) In General.---Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall contract with an independent, non-governmental systems engineering and technical assistance organization to study a Mars human space flight mission to be launched in 2033. (b) Contents.---The study shall include--- (1) a technical development, test, fielding, and operations plan using the Space Launch System, Orion, and other systems to successfully launch such a Mars human space flight mission by 2033; (2) an annual budget profile, including cost estimates, for the technical development, test, fielding, and operations plan to carry out a Mars human space flight mission by 2033; and (3) a comparison of the annual budget profile to the 5-year budget profile contained in the President's budget request for fiscal year 2017 under section 1105 of title 31, United States Code. (c) Report.---Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on the study, including findings and recommendations regarding the Mars 2033 human space flight mission described in subsection (a). (d) Assessment.---Not later than 60 days after the date the report is submitted under subsection (c), the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress an assessment by the NASA Advisory Council of whether the proposal for a Mars human space flight mission to be launched in 2033 is in the strategic interests of the United States in space exploration.

NASA has often been criticized for being slow to adapt to change and advancements in technology. They have their old ways of doing things and are traditionally very hesitant to explore new options. This has given rise to the private space industry and companies like SpaceX.

Elon Musk, SpaceX's CEO, has a vision of launching a probe to Mars in 2018, a reusable rocket by 2022, and finally sending humans to Mars by 2025. Musk believes that "there is a strong humanitarian argument for making life multiplanetary in order to safeguard the existence of humanity."

Ever since Apollo 11, NASA has had its sights set on Mars as the new final frontier. The Curiosity and 2020 rovers are key tools in discovering what resources Mars has to offer. This funding bill and Mars mandate has the space community rejoicing; and for good reason. We're one step closer to what will arguably be the greatest event in human exploration, ever.
The greenhouse gas carbon dioxide has long been considered as a primary contributor to global warming but Environmental Protection Agency administrator Scott Pruitt does not think so.

Pruitt's View On Carbon Emissions And Global Warming

On Thursday, March 9 Pruitt issued a statement on CNBC's Squawk Box that appears to contradict the public stance of the agency that he leads.

While the EPA says that carbon dioxide is the primary greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change, Pruitt expressed his doubts about the impact of carbon emissions on global warming.

"I think that measuring with precision human activity on the climate is something very challenging to do and there's tremendous disagreement about the degree of impact, so no, I would not agree that it's a primary contributor to the global warming that we see," Pruitt said.

EPA is a crucial agency when it comes to issues and actions linked to climate change. In 2007, the Supreme Court ruled that EPA has authority to regulate the heat-trapping gases produced by vehicles. Seven years after that, it determined that the agency may also regulate some sources of greenhouse gases such as power plants.

Not Fit To Lead ESA

In response to Pruitt's statement, Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, who is co-chair of the Senate Climate Action Task Force, described the EPA chief's statement as extreme and irresponsible, saying that anyone who denies basic facts and a century's worth of established science is not fit to be the EPA's administrator.

Democrats and environmentalists were not in favor of Pruitt leading the EPA because of his close association with fossil fuel companies and history of casting doubt on man-made climate change.

Scientists' Stand On Man-Made Climate Change

A study published in PNAS has shown that majority of scientists who have published papers on climate science are convinced of man-made climate change.

"We use an extensive dataset of 1,372 climate researchers and their publication and citation data to show that (i) 97-98 percent of the climate researchers most actively publishing in the field surveyed here support the tenets of anthropogenic climate change (ACC) outlined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change," researchers wrote in the study.

Other U.S. agencies, notably the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and NASA, also support the idea of carbon dioxide being a primary contributor to global warming.

In January this year, the U.S. space agency and NOAA said that the average surface temperature of the planet has increased by about 2.0 degrees Fahrenheit since the late 19th century, which they attribute largely to increased levels of carbon dioxide and other man-made emissions.

Impacts Of A Warming World

Scientists have been raising alarm on the rising temperatures and attribute potentially damaging phenomena such as massive coral bleaching, extinction of animals, and evolution of species to a warming planet.

In 2015, the United States was among more than 190 nations that approved the landmark climate agreement that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere is a particular concern for many nations. Minimizing the release of the greenhouse gas is considered key to the enforcement of the Paris treaty.

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Buoyed by the preliminary results of growing potatoes in extreme climate similar to Mars, the International Potato Center or CIP has expressed optimism that potatoes can be grown in Mars.

The farming trials of CIP used simulated Martian conditions and the experiment kicked off in February 2016 at Lima in Peru. The results show that it is possible to grow potatoes in salty and dry soils.

In the experiment, fertilized earth soil was also used for augmenting nutrition. The Mars-like soil was brought from the Pampas de La Joya desert in Peru to La Molina, the CIP station, in Lima.

Tuber Grown In CubeSat

In the experiment, a tuber was planted in a custom-made CubeSat developed by the engineers at University of Engineering and Technology guided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in Ames Research Center, California.

"Growing crops under Mars-like conditions is an important phase of this experiment," said Julio Valdivia-Silva, a research associate with the SETI Institute working with UTEC in Lima.

He noted that if the crops can sustain the extreme conditions in CubeSat, they can very well grow on Mars as well and further studies will confirm the minimum conditions required.

Walter Amoros, potato breeder of CIP, noted that potatoes display great genetic capacity for adaptation to extreme environments.

A variant of the Martian experiment was tried in Bangladesh and there the potatoes survived in salty environments.

"The results indicate that our efforts to breed varieties with high potential for strengthening food security in areas that are affected, or will be affected by climate change, are working," Amoros said.

How Does It Work?

The CubeSat where potatoes are grown was equipped with an array of sensors and cameras for monitoring the tuber's progress. Nutrient-rich water, temperature, atmosphere and air pressure were simulated to match the Martian conditions.

"The question we want to know is, can you grow food on Mars," said Chris McKay of NASA's Ames Research Center.

More experiments will follow in finalizing the type of potatoes that will have optimum productivity and in understanding the ideal conditions for survival in terms of pressure and temperatures.

The CIP experiment is also a boon to potato farmers as the tests are exploring the adaptability of the crop to extreme conditions that might unfold once climate change starts hitting Earth. Potatoes are generally grown under warm conditions.

However, in the case of Mars, the temperatures and pressure are much lower compared with Earth. If potatoes can grow sustainably braving Mars-like conditions, it will be an incentive for future astronauts to Mars who can avoid building warm conditions to simulate Earth-like conditions.

"Maybe it could be a tenth of Earth-like conditions," McKay said.

McKay asserted NASA will take the potato experiment to Mars and grow them on the red soil.

"We'd do that experiment way before people go to Mars," McKay added.

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The awe-inspiring spiders in the Avicularia genus have long been the subject of fascination. After years of dedicated labor, scientists finally finished cataloging all the species pertaining to this type of enormous tarantulas, only to discover three additional ones that had been previously overlooked.

Avicularia spiders got their fame as "bird eaters" - and subsequently their genus name - from a famous 1705 illustration by naturalist Maria Sibylla Merian, depicting a hairy tarantula of colossal proportions as it gorged on a bird. At the time the notion seemed to border on fantasy, but since then it has been widely proven.

First described in 1818, the Avicularia genus grew to comprise at least 50 species, but data concerning their individual characteristics remained relatively vague. All that was known about these fascinating giants narrowed down to their imposing size, their tree-dwelling habits, and their preferred prey.

These majestic spiders have been documented to feast on a large assortment of tiny creatures, ranging from insects to small mammals - particularly bats - and birds. Most Avicularia species reach sizes of 5 to 6 inches, and are distinguished by their fuzzy, hair-covered body.

'Bird Eaters' Untangled

Brazilian researcher Caroline Sayuri Fukushima, from the Instituto Butantan in Sao Paulo, took on the daunting task of sorting out the genus, and published her observations in the journal ZooKeys. Her time-consuming study eventually led to restricting the number of Avicularia species to only 12, but made her stumble upon three extra ones that no one had noted before.

To complete their mission, Fukushima and her team tracked down ancient specimens from museums around the world and proceeded to decipher original descriptions in Latin, French, Dutch, Portuguese, and German, so they could compare old observations with the anatomical characteristics of spiders from modern zoos and museums.

"The reasons to do this work were the necessity of solving the many problems of the genus (which were causing confusion to other genera, too), but also the chance to do something hard, big, important and new regarding tarantula taxonomy," explained Fukushima.

3 New Names On The 'Catwalk'

To straighten out the tangled Avicularia genus, researchers ended up creating three new ones: Ybyrapora, to describe specific spiders living in the Brazilian rainforest; Caribena, specifically designed for two species of Caribbean spider that were initially identified as Avicularia; and Antillena, which describes a species of tarantula discovered in 2013 and cataloged as Avicularia rickwesti.

This last genus encompasses large tarantulas found in the Dominican Republic, which can be easily spotted by the red pattern on their black back, shaped like an oak leaf.

Names were also chosen for the three new spider species that found their way into the Avicularia genus: A. caei, native only to Brazil; A. lynnae, seen in Ecuador and Peru; and A. merianae, indigenous exclusively to Peru, and which was named after the naturalist Merian.

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It's a tale as old as time, and now the story of Belle and the Beast can be explored in some of Disney's popular mobile games.

In celebration of the upcoming theatrical release of the live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast, Disney announced that it is adding brand-new content related to the classic film across its library of apps.

The new Beauty and the Beast-themed content will be available as updates that will roll out all month long.

Previously Color by Disney, the subscription-based app that allows users to color on their mobile phones, released Beauty and the Beast pages last month.

Now joining that app comes updates for Disney Story Central and Disney Crossy Road, providing other ways users can experience the enchanted tale.

After just adding comics and graphic novels to its reading app Story Central, users can now read new tales from the adventures of Belle and her cursed prince as part of an update for Disney Story Central that was released on Thursday, March 9. These include The Enchantment, World of Reading: Beauty and the Beast, and more.

The mobile game Disney Crossy Roads will also get an update next Thursday to featurs figurines and worlds inspired by the live-action film.

New themed content is also coming to Disney's match-3 game that unlocks character emojis that can be sent in text messages. An update to Disney Emoji Blitz on March 17 will bring with it new Beauty and the Beast emojis that include Belle, Lumiere, Cogswoth and Mrs. Potts.

Items cards will also be added that feature Belle's Cottage, The Beast's Magic Mirror, Belle's Fountain, and much more as part of a special items event that will available until March 24. Gamers just have to play in this mode to unlock new items and prizes.

Lastly, Disney Jigsaw will add a new Beauty and the Beast puzzle pack on March 17.

While this means there is plenty of content based on the animated classic to go around, Disney is also releasing brand new mobile game.

Currently in development, the Beauty and the Beast new standalone mobile game is expected to launch this summer.

For now, users can now download a new sticker pack that launched on Thursday in the App Store for iMessage. Titled Disney Stickers: Beauty and the Beast, this pack includes themed options with a modern twist like one for "Beast Mode" and "It's Lit."

Disney Stickers: Beauty and the Beast is available to download now for iMessage for $1.99.

Beauty and the Beast starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens hits theaters March 17.

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Short-term renting service Airbnb  like Uber but with houses  has closed a $1 billion round of founding, the company noted on Thursday, March 9, in a SEC filing. Airbnb is now approximately worth $31 billion.

The company raised an additional $450 million from its Series F round, which stands twice as tall as last fall. According to the filing, the total amount raised was $1,003,312,065. The investors were not named.

The company also became profitable in the second quarter of 2016, according to CNBC, citing a person close to the outlet, who also states that Airbnb expects to be further profitable this year. Founded in 2008, the San Francisco-based company has raised more than $3 billion over the years, according to the New York Times. It is currently the second most valuable private U.S. company, according to CB Insights, just behind ride-hailing service Uber.

Airbnb Has No Plans To Go Public

The $1 billion funding round follows the IPO of Snap this month, the parent company of Snapchat, a wildly popular photo messaging service featuring disappearing content. Snapchat was also a highly valuable company pre-IPO, and its decision to go public has brought up questions with regard to which companies are inching toward an IPO next.

Airbnb has long been suspected of planning to go public. But while Airbnb is profitable, Brian Chesky, the company's chief executive, said in an interview back in November that, although he wasn't opposed to the notion of the company making an IPO, Airbnb had no plans to do so. It still doesn't, according to CNBC.

Expanding To Other Ventures

Airbnb, which matches lodge-seekers and travelers with short-term home rentals, says it has over 3 million listings across 100 countries, and the company is expanding by looking into other ventures, including payments, property management, and even restaurant reservations.

Airbnb has also begun priding itself not just a simple booking app for home rentals, but one which can allow its users to immerse in the local milieu, letting them infuse their travels with experiences the specific location can offer. Launched back in November, it helps users "experience a city like a local."

The company also picked up key acquisitions that will help spell its commercial appeal wider. The acquisitions include Tilt, a group-focused funding platform, and Luxury Retreats, which Airbnb shopped to presumably appeal to upmarket-inclined users. Airbnb also announced investment in Resy, a restaurant reservations platform.

The company's success, however, threatens the general hotel industry. According to notes from the American Hotel & Lodging Association's January board meeting as reported by the New York Times, it plans to counter Airbnb's middle-class appeal with testimonials suggesting that the company's home rental platform brings harm. Airbnb, by comparison, can offer lower rates than traditional hotels, which seriously undercuts their appeal. Airbnb fished the help of Jeff Bezos, Amazon's chief executive, and actor-cum-investor Ashton Kutcher, among others, as it grew and expanded into more and more cities.

At its current valuation, no information pertaining to how it's going to use its funds has been released, but CNBC speculates that it will likely use to expand its global operations.

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Six years after a devastating earthquake and tsunami ravaged Fukushima's power plant and caused nuclear contamination, its residents are slowly coming back. However, they find themselves with new and radioactive neighbors: wild boars.

Like a scene from Japanese animation Spirited Away, wild boars have run over the deserted towns in Fukushima after it was abandoned by residents in the aftermath of the devastating 2011 earthquake.

These wild boars of Fukushima have made themselves at home, much to the chagrin of local residents who plan to return but can't out of fear of the radioactive swine. The government has given residents the go signal to return, despite warnings about still-high radiation levels.

Nuclear Meltdown Spelled Disaster For The Boars, Local Fauna

In 2011, a 9.1-magnitude earthquake rocked the northeastern part of Japan, the fourth most powerful earthquake in history.

The event, which became known as the Great East Japan Earthquake, caused tsunamis to form on the Pacific side of Japan. Giant waves about 30 feet high swept through the coastal town of Fukushima and damaged the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, resulting in one of recent history's most alarming nuclear disasters since the Chernobyl meltdown in 1986.

Although the reactors automatically shut down during the quake, the tsunami destroyed the emergency generators that would power the coolers to the reactors. This loss of power led to reactors getting insufficiently cooled, which ultimately caused three nuclear meltdowns. Subsequent hydrogen-air explosions spewed radioactive materials into the surroundings, irradiating everything within the 20-kilometer (12.4-mile) exclusion zone: the water, air, soil, vegetation, and even the stuff people left behind.

This nuclear meltdown forced the Japanese government to evacuate the residents. During the hasty evacuation process, many pets and livestock were left behind. The level of contamination affected them, as well as the local flora and fauna within the power plant's vicinity. These unlucky creatures that got bathed in nuclear windfall included the wild boars living in the area. These wild boars forage for food, which could have added to their exposure to radioactive material.

The Hunt For Radioactive Pigs

Groups of local hunters have been tasked to hunt down the radioactive boars to make way for the return of Fukushima's original residents. In the town of Tamioka, a group of 13 hunters hunted down these wild boars using rifles, 30 cage traps, and rice flour baits.

"After people left, they began coming down from the mountains and now they are not going back," said hunter Shoichiro Sakamoto, whose squad has captured about 300 irradiated pigs. "They found a place that was comfortable. There was plenty of food and no one to come after them."

"It is not really clear now which is the master of the town, people or wild boars," said Tamotsu Baba, the mayor of the seaside town of Namie. "If we don't get rid of them and turn this into a human-led town, the situation will get even wilder and uninhabitable."

Tests on these wild boars showed that the animals have high levels of the radioactive cesium isotope cesium-137 - 300 times higher than what was considered safe. The meat of these feral pigs are considered a delicacy in Northern Japan, but because of the dangerous levels of contamination, they are unsafe to eat as cesium-137 can cause radiation sickness and increase cancer risk.

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That's a scenario a bill scheduled to be heard next week in Illinois' Senate Judiciary Committee would set up, Sons of Liberty Media is reporting.

SPRINGFIELD - "Imagine if a family member or a police officer had it in for you. In the blink of an eye, you could be stripped of your rights without any due process, simply because someone accused you of something with absolutely no evidence to validate the claim..."

"Illinois State Senator Julie Morrison (D-29) has proposed a bill that would allow the government to confiscate firearms from gun owners without any due process," the website says. The proposal is SB 1291.

While the Illinois State Rifle Association doesn't sound an alert about SB 1291 on their website, the National Rifle Association called on Illinois members to contact their state lawmakers about the bill before the hearing was postponed to heard March 14th.

"SB 1291 would allow an individuals family members or law enforcement to petition the court for an ex parte restraining order if they consider the individual to be a danger to themselves or others simply because the individual owns, possesses or purchases a firearm," the NRA's website explains. "According to the summary of the bill, an ex parte order would be issued by a judge based solely on a brief, unsubstantiated affidavit made by a petitioner and absent any input made by the individual on which the order is targeted."

If enacted, the NRA says, this SB 1291 would require the surrender of FOID cards, concealed carry licenses as well as the seizure of all firearms by law enforcement.

"This legislation is ripe for abuse by individuals that disagree with the Second Amendment, and the mere insinuation that gun ownership makes you a danger to yourself or others is offensive and insulting," the NRA says.

The sponsor and co-sponsors of the measure are Democrat Senators Julie A. Morrison - Jacqueline Y. Collins - Ira I. Silverstein, Toi W. Hutchinson, Kwame Raoul, Daniel Biss, Heather A. Steans, Cristina Castro, Iris Y. Martinez, Terry Link, Antonio Munoz and Patricia Van Pelt .
House Republicans have announced the long-awaited health care bill  the American Health Care Act (AHCA)  on Monday, March 6.

Developed through a joint effort between the White House and Senate Republicans, the GOP believes the latest legislation is a better version of the previous administration's Affordable Care Act, which is more popularly known as the ObamaCare.

But as early as now, influential personalities and conservative activists groups have already expressed their displeasure against it.

ObamaCare Lite

"This is ObamaCare Lite. It will not pass. Conservatives are not going to take it," said Sen. Rand Paul, a top conservative in the U.S. Senate.

The American Health Care Act has kept a number of old provisions from the Affordable Care Act, such as being able to stay on parental insurance until 26, the ban on discriminating people with pre-existing conditions, and Medicaid coverage for low-income Americans until 2020.

"In many ways, the House Republican proposal released last night not only accepts the flawed progressive premises of ObamaCare but expands upon them," Michael A. Needham, CEO of Heritage Action, said in an official statement.

"Many Americans seeking health care insurance on the individual market will notice no significant difference between the Affordable Care Act (i.e., ObamaCare) and the American Health Care Act. That is bad politics, and more importantly, bad policy," Needham continued. Other high-profile conservative groups against the Republican's AHCA include the Club for Growth, FreedomWorks, Americans for Prosperity, and Freedom Partners.

Doctors And Hospital Associations Oppose AHCA

Doctors and major hospital associations have reportedly sent letters to Capitol Hill criticizing the legislation and appealing to its members to reject it. These include major groups, such as the American Hospital Association, the American Cancer Society to the March of Dimes, and the American Medical Association (AMA), who even went further as to calling the GOP bill "critically flawed."

"Although no one believes the current healthcare system is perfect, this harmful legislation would make healthcare less secure and less affordable," stated Nancy LeaMond, executive vice president of seniors advocacy group AARP, formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons.

It is still unknown whether these groups can have an impact on President Donald Trump's personal opinion on the American Health Care Act. Nevertheless, House Speaker Paul Ryan, seem unfazed of the controversy surrounding the bill.

"We'll have 218 when this thing comes to the floor, I guarantee it," the Ryan said confidently, speaking of the number of votes needed for a legislation to pass through the House.

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Smartphone buffs can look forward to the unveiling of some top-notch devices this year, which include the flagships from Samsung and Apple.

The Galaxy S8 and iPhone 8 are among the much-speculated and hotly anticipated smartphones of this year and are undoubtedly the blue-eyed boys of the rumor mill.

Here's a look at the expected specs of the Galaxy S7 and iPhone 7 successors to help you decide which one suits your needs better.

Design

The iPhone 8 is expected to ditch the physical home button for the first time in the smartphone's history. This decision was taken by Apple as a way of reducing the bezels on the top and bottom of the screen. Therefore, the iPhone 8 may feature a lot less bezel than its predecessors. If reports are to be believed, then it may be true that the device would feature an all-glass design.

Samsung's flagship will likely sport a dual-curved edge display design along with a low bezel-to-screen ratio.

Both devices seem to focus on a sleeker design with more screen space and less bezel, which has become the norm for companies currently. It would be the first time that Apple would incorporate this kind of design in its smartphone.

Display

Leaked specs have revealed that the Galaxy S8 will feature a 5.8-inch Quad HD+ Super AMOLED display. The bigger Galaxy S8+ is anticipated to sport a 6.2-inch screen size.

The iPhone 8, on the other hand will likely come in three variants, featuring 4.7-inch, 5-inch and 5.5 inch displays. However, more importantly, industry sources surmise that this may be the company's first-ever iPhone to feature a curved OLED screen.

The Galaxy S8 will easily edge out the iPhone 8's basic version, which is the one said to have a 4.7-inch screen. The 5.5-inch display will likely be on the iPhone 8 Plus, which suggests that the Galaxy S8+ has the upper hand on this parameter.

Processor

Apple will likely bolster the internals of the upcoming flagship with the brand-new and state-of-the-art 10-nanometer A11 SoC, which is said to be much faster and more efficient than the previous version of the processor.

The Galaxy S8 will reportedly house the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset in the U.S. models and the Exynos 8895 chipset in other variants. Both these processors also use the 10 nm technology, which is said to improve efficiency.

The chipsets on both the flagships seem to be of equal capacity, and one would need to use both devices to gauge which one of them performs better.

RAM And Storage

Fans were left disappointed when it was revealed through the leaked specs sheet that the Galaxy S8 will likely feature 4 GB of RAM and not 6 GB of RAM as was expected by many. The internal storage was suggested to be 64 GB and the device will probably support expandable memory through microSD card.

Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 8 with 3 GB of RAM which is the most for any iPhone from the company. As for the memory capacity, the company is expected to launch two variants of the device  one with 64 GB and the other with 256 GB of internal storage. However, as is the case with all previous iPhones, this memory will not be expandable.

iPhones are not known for its RAM and memory which would indicate that users who would want a device with a larger storage capacity would perhaps go for the Samsung flagship.

Camera And Battery

The iPhone 8 is expected to come with a dual 3D lens, which Apple is said to be developing with the help of LG. If this rumor is true, then the next iPhone may be able to capture 3D images. The cameras will also likely boast facial recognition and iris scanning technology.

The battery of the device has also been overhauled to provide longer life. According to a report by KGI Securities analyst, Ming-Chi Kuo, the flagship device may come with a 2,700 mAh battery.

The Galaxy S8, on the other hand, will come with a 12MP rear facing and an 8MP selfie snapper which will also house iris scanner functionality. The device will reportedly house a 3,000 mAh battery.

The 3D functionality is something which may interest fans and entice them to pick up the iPhone 8, while the higher battery and camera quality may encourage others to go with the Samsung flagship.

Other Features

The Samsung Galaxy S8 has received IP68 certification which means that the device will be water and dust resistant. The company is also said to be working on the new AI, dubbed Bixby, which would be housed in the Galaxy S8 to provide users a more efficient experience while using the device. The device may also support wireless charging.

Apple, on the other hand, will support wireless charging with the latest flagship. However, it is unknown whether the company would sell the wireless charging equipment separately or if it would include it in the box along with the phone. Rumors also suggested that Apple is working on ways to improve Siri's functionality to match the other AI assistants out in the markets. The iPhone 8 will likely be IP68 certified as well.

Latest rumors point to Samsung including facial recognition technology on the Galaxy S8, which may give the company an edge over Apple.

Price And Availability

The Galaxy S8 is expected to be priced at around $970 upon its launch. Samsung has revealed that it would launch the device in its "Unpacked Event" slated to be held on March 29 in New York City. More news on when to expect the device would also probably be disclosed during the event. The smartphone is expected to hit the shelves on April 28.

The Apple flagship is expected to be a little pricier and is rumored to carry a price tag of around $1,000. Although no announcement has been made regarding the date of its launch, the smartphone will likely debut in September as usual and hit the shelves soon after the unveiling.

Photo: Karlis Dambrans | Flickr

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The outbreak of yellow fever in Brazil, which moves from the less populated rural areas to the cities, may pose another Zika-like health threat to the Americas, including the United States.

U.S. health officials have urged a close surveillance after the advancement of the outbreak in the most populous country in South America.

"Although it is highly unlikely that we will see yellow fever in the continental United States ... it is possible that travel-related cases of yellow fever could occur," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Dr. Catharine Paules, in an essay published in the New England Journal of Medicine on March 8, said.

Zika-Like

The team said dengue, chikungunya, and Zika had demonstrated how Aedes aegypti mosquitos can infect populations and spread rapidly due to human travel.

The outbreak of the fever in the United States is considered unlikely, but with Zika, the infections acquired through travel could easily get into the Aedes aegypti population, especially in warmer regions.

"In an era of frequent international travel, any marked increase in domestic cases in Brazil raises the possibility of travel-related cases and local transmission in regions where yellow fever is not endemic," the team wrote.

The Gulf Coast states with warmer temperature are most vulnerable. It is in these areas where Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are rampant.

Dangerous Among The Five

As the yellow fever advances, it is feared that it will be the fifth insect-related virus to hit the country since the 1990s. The other four were dengue, West Nile fever, chikungunya, and Zika virus.

Among the five, the yellow fever is considered the most deadly, Fauci and Paules said.

In the Brazilian outbreak, 80 people have died from the 234 documented cases.

Vaccine Not Enough

Health authorities are no strangers to the dangers the yellow fever outbreak can bring. The vaccine against the epidemic has been formulated way back in 1937.

What made its outbreak alarming is that the current supply of the vaccine is limited.

During the 2015 outbreak in Angola and Congo, health officials were constrained to administer to each infected person only a fifth of the normal dose.

Fauci noted that it takes a long time to produce additional doses of the vaccine. Only a handful of companies manufactured it.

Given the limited stockpile of the vaccine, Fauci and Paules said public health management and prevention programs are important to prevent the spread of the virus.

These preventive measures include early identification of cases, mosquito control, and vaccination.

Not Yet Critical

At present, only 371 cases were confirmed out of more than 1,000 persons suspected to have been infected with the virus.

"It's not critical yet in Brazil," Fauci said.

Fauci warned, however, it would be worrisome if the fever will reach the cities of Sao Paolo, Rio de Janeiro, or places far from the less populated areas there is an outbreak.

It is important, he said, to put yellow fever on the "radar screens" of all public health officials and physicians.

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It has taken some time for all major U.S. carriers to roll out the Android Nougat update for the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge. The situation has been worse in Canada as none of the carriers supported the latest version of Android on both the devices, but all that is set to change.

Rogers Update

There is reason to rejoice on this front for Canadians as Rogers has announced that it will exclusively release the Android 7.0 Nougat update for both the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge soon in the country.

According to the OS upgrade schedule shared by the carrier, the two devices are expected to get upgraded to Android 7.0 Nougat, from the current Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, on March 20.

In February, it was reported that Rogers was testing the Android Nougat update for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge and seems like the carrier has been quick to give it final touches.

With this update, expected to be an OTA one, the users of the two smartphones will benefit from many new feature and enhancements. Post the update, they will be able to run two applications on the same screen, benefit from an improved battery life, and access to new collection of emojis. The users will be informed with a notification once the update arrives.

However, users can also perform a manual check for the update by going to the Settings, then About Phone > Check for Updates > Software Update to see if the Android 7.0 Nougat software update has hit their Samsung Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge after March 20.

How The Updates Rolled Out In The United States

T-Mobile and AT&T became the first carriers in the United States to release the update for the owners of the two devices in February.

In end February, the Android 7.0 Nougat update was rolled out for the Sprint subscribers in the said country who participated in the beta testing program for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge. The Android 7.0 Nougat update for Sprint subscribers is a 167 MB file.

In March, Verizon users in the United States received the Android Nougat 7.0 update on their Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge.

Features Of The Nougat 7.0 Update

Canadians can now look forward to a host of improvements and fixes which the newer version of Android brings with it.

The Android Nougat update allows users to experience a new set of enhanced and exciting features like, the multitasking mode, which allows the users to use two application on the same screen.

The update also brings along a better and improved battery life, all new Effects preview screen for pictures, secured access to websites to name few. With the update, the users will also get an enhanced camera setting, and keyboards may also be upgraded.

Since Rogers has announced the update, other major Canadian carriers would not want to be left behind and may decide to make the update available as well.

Photo: Razvan Baltaretu | Flickr

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
CHICAGO - Governor Rauner's efforts to reform workers' comp in Illinois would result in more injured workers, trial attorney Christopher Hurley said in a recent interview.

"Be careful what you wish for," Hurley says.
The president emphasized that people are voting for Nicaragua and by doing so they are also voting for peace. | Read More
Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls

So, out of all that, why

? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At

45

52, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)








LSU history professor Jonathan Earle knows that most students take a course and soon forget it. But if they're lucky, he says, they'll attend a class so thought-provoking it continues to resonate with them through adulthood.

Hes teaching one such course for an honors class this semester, focused on a piece of local history that attracted national headlines last year  Georgetown University's 1838 sale of 272 enslaved people to save the prestigious university from mounting debts.

"There was a conference we were at last summer where we talked a lot about universities and slavery. The Georgetown story was big," said Earle, who also serves as the dean of the Roger Hadfield Ogden Honors College at LSU. "I started thinking in my head about a class I'd be able to teach here."

Earle's idea showed up in the university's course offerings for the spring semester as "272 Slaves: Discovering Louisiana's (And Georgetown's) Past."

With the honors course, Earle is challenging students to confront topics of slavery, racism and race in America with a special focus on the descendants of the Georgetown slaves, most of whom were sold to plantations in Iberville and Ascension parishes.

Zoe Williamson, a freshman political communications major from St. Francisville, took an immediate interest in the course. Her prior knowledge of the Georgetown sale came from reading a few headlines.

And before taking Earle's class, she had views of the antebellum South that were shaped by the culture she grew up in, where stately plantation homes are tourist attractions.

"They really didn't teach it in my school  they didn't want to offend people," Williamson, who is white, said of the reality of slave life on the plantations. "I grew up really surrounded by the white side of slavery. So when I saw this class was being offered, I jumped at the opportunity."

Sophomore RaeDiance Fuller, a biological engineering major from Baton Rouge, saw Earle's class as an opportunity to educate herself as well but for entirely different reasons.

"I was really antagonistic about race in high school because I felt my high school really tried to cover up race," said Fuller, who is black. "We're learning about the systems of oppression that are in place  something everyone should have as common knowledge."

Fuller said people at her school didnt understand where she was coming from when they had discussions about race and, "I didn't have the formal background to educate them on why that was an issue."

Earle designed the curriculum of LSU's Georgetown course around weekly readings and scholarly pieces offering keen, and often uncomfortable, perspectives into the topic of slavery.

The Georgetown sale gained national prominence after The New York Times tracked down and interviewed scores of descendants in a series of articles published last spring. Those articles sparked national debates about the ripple effects slavery had on black families and the nation's economy. The media attention also revealed the unexpected roles religious and educational institutions had in the slave trade.

"I guess I never really just put two and two together  that slavery and these old universities existed and that's the reason they're so prestigious and great," said Shaya Khorsandi, a freshman biology and business major from Lafayette.

Khorsandi added that learning how universities used slavery to maintain or achieve their wealth and prestige gives him insight into some of the racial inequalities that still exist today.

Taylor Stirling, a freshman business management major and a Catholic, said the church's moral debate over slavery appealed most to him with respect to what hes learning in Earles class.

"It's interesting that the Catholics of that time were having similar discussions as we are having now," said Stirling, who is a white.

The students said many of their in-class discussions have led to tense debates with their friends and family outside the classroom. But, they said, the historical perspective theyve gained from taking the class has helped them to better argue their point of view.

Earle's students have even been a part of Skype meetings with a parallel class from Georgetown University. And theyve heard lectures from occasional guest speakers, like Maxine Crump, one of the first descendants The New York Times interviewed for its pieces. Crump's ancestors were sold to a plantation in Maringouin, the quaint Iberville Parish town where she grew up.

Last week, Earle's students got the chance to meet with several students and faculty members from Georgetown who spent their spring break in Louisiana. Together with the LSU students, the group toured a few local plantations and attended a panel discussion at Southern University on cultural heritage from the perspective of Jessica Tilson, another descendant who was featured in one of several articles The Advocate published about the Georgetown sale.

Students aren't required to take standard tests in the class. Earle has instead mandated they write four papers and maintain journals they must update on a weekly basis.

The class instruction is leading up to comprehensive oral projects the students must submit for class credit. The oral project involves intense research and interviews with descendants of the Georgetown slave sale.

"We're creating a primary resource with oral history," said Jennifer Cramer, director of the T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History with the LSU library.

Cramer is co-teaching the class with Earle.

"We're trying to get them to create a primary resource that will stand the test of time, be credible, be valid; so that takes a lot of hands on," Cramer said. "These oral histories will be processed and available to researchers everywhere throughout LSU libraries."

The students recently began work on their oral projects and are still in the process of searching for descendants willing to share their stories.

Georgetown University is making similar efforts to digitally memorialize the stories of descendants in oral projects.
The ink is barely dry on a draft slate of recommendations to overhaul Louisiana's criminal justice system and already battle lines appear to be forming for a fight in the Legislature over the proposals.

The toughest battle appears likely to be over whether to shorten the lengthy prison sentences for those convicted of the worst crimes, including murder, or offer those inmates a shot at parole in the effort to cut the states nation-leading incarceration rate.

The Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force  a panel of prison officials, state lawmakers, advocates and attorneys convened by the governor and the Legislature to draw up proposals for a sweeping reform of the states sentencing laws and prison regulations  will release a final version of their recommendations at a press conference Thursday.

The draft report, copies of which were provided to The Advocate by members of the task force, may be revised in the coming days before its release. State lawmakers are expected to consider bills to enact the reports recommendations this spring.

Analysts at the Pew Charitable Trusts estimate in the draft report that the reports consensus recommendations would cut the states prison population by 13 percent  or 4,817 inmates  by 2027 while saving the state roughly $305 million.

The estimates dont include a handful of controversial proposals from the report that would allow those serving life sentences or lengthy prison terms for violent crimes the chance to be considered for parole under certain circumstances.

Pew Charitable Trusts, a nonpartisan public policy group, provided research and support for the task force after helping similar efforts in several other states.

The 26 separate policy proposals contained in the draft report cover everything from how felonies are classified to the rules governing parole eligibility for those sentenced to prison. The bulk of the proposals tackle sentences for nonviolent crimes, seeking to place more defendants accused of drug and property crimes on probation or in alternative treatment programs.

The proposed changes to the criminal justice system recommended by the draft report include:

 Create a classification system for felonies which would place crimes in tiers from A to F based on their severity

 Simplify the states criminal code by consolidating a wide range of similar offenses into a standardized set of offenses. For example, one recommendation would merge the state's 32 different statutes that address property theft  with separate laws addressing everything from "cheating and swindling" and "theft of anhydrous ammonia" to "theft of oilfield geological survey equipment"  into a single crime.

 Iron out discrepancies in prison terms between escalating offenses, such as adjusting state laws that make the unauthorized use of a car punishable by a stiffer sentence than outright stealing the same vehicle.

 Ease financial burdens heaped on former inmates trying to re-establish lives outside of prison and lessen sanctions on former inmates who are unable to afford to pay fines, fees and court-ordered restitution. Under current law, people who fall behind on payments can see their driver's licenses suspended and face jail time. One proposal would reserve such penalties only for those who willfully refuse to pay.

View the full 74-page draft report here.

A handful of proposals addressing the lengthy sentences being served by those convicted of violent crimes  including armed robbers, murderers and rapists  have stirred up considerable opposition, including among members of the task force.

Although 21 of the recommendations are listed a consensus recommendations in the report, those proposals, along with a recommendation to restrict the use of the states stiff repeat offender statue, are instead listed at the end of the report as majority recommendations.

Task force on reducing incarceration to adopt final recommendations March 16 A special task force will reveal on March 16 recommendations for how Louisiana should overha

Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force aims to cut state's prison population After decades of locking 'em up on the way to Louisiana's tops-in-the-nation incarceration r

Laurie White, chief judge of the Orleans Parish criminal court and a member of the task force, said the bid to allow parole eligibility for the states longest-serving prisoners offered a needed break from the tough-on-crime legislation that led to the states massive prison population.

We cannot afford to keep people locked up for these lengths of time and pay the medical expenses for the aging population in the prisons, White said. We're recommending eligibility to apply for parole, not automatically granted parole. You're not letting the worst of the worst out, you're letting the best of the best out," she said. "We're just giving them a right.

White said the task force was in lockstep before the most recent meeting at which the Louisiana District Attorney's Association balked at a handful of proposals involving violent crime.

"I think the district attorneys are not going to be interested in anything that reduces jail terms," White said. "That's how we got into these extensively long mandatory minimum sentences  basically feel-good, tough-on-crime legislation. Everybody's for it until you start looking at the price tag and the age of the population. Those people are past their criminal menopause."

District Attorney Bo Duhe, of the 16th Judicial District, said the state's district attorneys support some of the recommendations, including the implementation of a class system for felonies. That measure, he said, would help to simplify the state's sentencing scheme.

But Duhe, the sole prosecutor on the task force, said prosecutors opposed all of the "majority recommendations" listed in the draft report, especially one that would afford the possibility of parole, under certain circumstances, to prisoners serving life sentences for offenses as serious as murder. Those proposals could jeopardize public safety, he said, and are akin to moving the goal posts "in the middle of the ball game."

"This shouldn't even be in consideration at this point," added Duhe, whose jurisdiction includes Iberia, St. Martin and St. Mary parishes. "There are things we can do dealing with nonviolent offenders. Let's work on those and make sure we're still respecting the victims, their families and the sentences that were imposed."

Catalene Theriot, who works with crime victims in Iberia Parish and is president of the statewide crime victims group VOICE, also expressed deep opposition to offering those serving life sentences a shot at parole.

Theriot, whose son was murdered in 1994, said shed be outraged if his killer  whos currently serving a life sentence  was given the chance to appear before the parole board.

It's all a money thing to them  they're not thinking about the victims' lives, Theriot said of those championing cuts to the states prison population. If you have a life sentence, you should serve that life sentence.

Public asks for more rehabilitation, education programs for jailed youth at hearing by task force examining Louisiana's high incarceration rate Terione Williams was out of jail for only 11 days when, police say, he was shot and killed w

Our Views: Find consensus on prison issues A public hearing on Louisiana's high rate of locking people up did not lack for suggestions 

Pete Adams, executive director of the influential Louisiana District Attorneys Association, characterized the proposals to reduce sentences for violent offenders and grant parole eligibility to lifers as a "bait and switch."

He said proponents sold the reform effort as a bid to address non-violent criminals who pack the state's prisons. The task force, he said, added measures to shorten sentences for violent criminals late in the process.

"If there are truly non-violent and non-dangerous people being locked up, we need to do something to avoid that. We're all in on that idea, said Adams. But when you start having 'mission creep,' you're endangering the entire deal."

The draft report drew praise, meanwhile, from several advocacy groups.

Lisa Graybill, legal director of the Southern Poverty Law Center, said the recommendations "envision a bold new future for Louisianas criminal justice system, based on carefully reviewed, evidence-based, and data-driven best practices."

"If enacted by the Legislature, the recommendations will be a significant step forward in realizing the reforms that Louisiana  with the highest incarceration rate in the U.S. and the world  needs to have a safer and more cost-effective criminal justice system."

Will Harrell, Southern Regional Director of the American Civil Liberties Union Campaign for Smart Justice, called the draft report "the best news regarding Louisiana criminal justice I've seen in my entire life."

Harrell described the draft report as a welcome, if late-coming attempt to follow other states that have undertaken similar measures aimed at reducing incarceration.

"Better late than never, Harrell said. All of our neighbors  Texas, Mississippi, Alabama  have been looking for ways to be smart on crime for years and have successfully reduced their prison populations while increasing public safety and saving hundreds of millions of tax dollars.
A Lakeland man died after crossing the centerline of U.S. 190 and crashing head on into another vehicle early Saturday in Pointe Coupee Parish, according to a Louisiana State Police report.

Landon Giordano, 21, of Lakeland was driving on U.S. 190 west of La. 413 around 4:30 a.m. when he crashed into the other vehicle, driven by 24-year-old Laten Seymour of Pride, according to the report.

Police said Giordano died of injuries from the crash and Seymour was taken to the hospital with moderate injuries. Giordano was not wearing a seatbelt and Seymour was wearing one, police said.

Investigators are still looking into the cause of the crash and it is unclear if impairment was a factor, but toxicology samples were taken from both drivers.

Police say this was the second of two fatal crashes overnight in the same Louisiana State Police district involving a driver who was not wearing a seat belt.
Gov. John Bel Edwards described Louisiana's worst-in-the-nation pay gap as an embarrassment, as he renewed his push for an equal pay law Friday at a summit held to draw attention to the wage disparity.

The Democratic governor and his wife headlined the event, seeking to bolster support for a law that would require private businesses in Louisiana to pay the same wages to men and women with the same jobs.

Edwards told the majority-female audience that women in Louisiana earn 66 cents on average for every dollar a man earns, and he said the disparity worsens for women of color. He and first lady Donna Edwards framed a wage equality law as a way to improve economic conditions for Louisiana's families and children.

"When a woman goes to the grocery store, it's not 34 cents less because she's there, or the gasoline's not 34 cents less because she's buying it," Donna Edwards said. "Just think, if women were paid equally, we could possibly cut poverty substantially."

Lawmakers will consider the proposal, sponsored by state Sen. J.P. Morrell, D-New Orleans, in the legislative session that begins next month.

Similar legislation won backing from the Senate last year, but was rejected by the House labor committee amid opposition from business groups and Republicans who say it would encourage unnecessary litigation.

+2 Equal Pay shot down in Louisiana House Labor committee A day after a Louisiana House member proposed a weight limit for strippers, a House committe

The measure again will face difficulty in the majority-GOP Legislature.

Critics say the proposal is unnecessary because current law provides employee protections. Some opponents say data showing pay gaps don't account for differences in education and experience, or choices women make in the hours worked and time away for family obligations.

Rep. Chris Broadwater, R-Hammond, vice chairman of the House labor committee, said equal pay legislation remains difficult to pass in the House. Broadwater said he's willing to consider a bill, but he's cautious about what language could win his backing.

"We have a remedy in state law" for handling wage discrimination complaints, he said. "If we can improve that process without making it harder, as well as not placing unreasonable burdens on employers, then I'm willing to consider that."

The governor said wage disparities put unnecessary strain on families and cause more reliance on government-financed assistance programs. He said if current laws were working, the wage gap wouldn't exist.

Morrell's bill would extend an equal pay law governing state workers to cover private industry. It would only apply to businesses that employ 50 workers or more in Louisiana, and only to full-time employees. The measure lays out a process for filing a complaint, and later possibly a lawsuit, by employees who believe they have been paid unequally.

Equal pay proponents also are pushing other legislation, to end what they call "wage secrecy" by requiring private companies to provide details about salaries they pay, so women can learn if they are being paid less than their male counterparts.
A Virginia-based political action committee that has set out on taking down Gov. John Bel Edwards has launched a new "micro website" targeting Louisiana's Democratic governor.

The Advocate recently reported that the Republican-backing America Rising PAC is focusing opposition research efforts on Edwards, the lone Democratic governor in the Deep South and Louisiana's only state-wide elected Democrat.

On Friday, the group announced that it had created the "Accidental Governor" website to outline its attacks on Edwards. It features reports on Edwards' handling of the state budget, education issues and appointments, among other issues.

"Governor Edwards is one of the last Democrats standing in the South, and our mission is to highlight his broken campaign promises and liberal record, PAC spokesman Scott Sloofman said in a news release announcing the launch of the website.

Edwards, who took office in January 2016 after defeating Republican David Vitter, who was a U.S. senator, is up for re-election in 2019. About six months after taking office he announced that he would seek a second term.

Through a spokesman, Edwards previously said he was unbothered by the attention from the national Republicans hoping to unseat him.
In this Jan. 17, 2017 file photo, Education Secretary-designate Betsy DeVos testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. The Senate was poised on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, to confirm Devos by the narrowest possible margin, with Vice President Mike Pence expected to break a 50-50 tie, despite a last-ditch effort by Democrats to sink the nomination. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)
How goes that line of yours, Arthur Sinodinos, that One Nation has "evolved "and is "a lot more sophisticated now"? You used it, as you will recall, to justify the Libs rejection of the John Howard policy  to always put One Nation last on preferences  and, in WA, steer Lib preferences to them above Nationals in Saturday's elections. Let's see. Sophisticated?

Just in this last week, we have had Pauline Hanson endorsing the anti-vaccine nutters, accusing the government of a dictatorship, and directly putting the lives of Australian children at risk. We've had her telling porky pies, when denying that she had ever told Perth radio that she would be happy to steer GST payments from Queensland to WA, when in fact she did exactly that in January.

And we've had the usual noise from the rabble she runs with one of her own candidates Ray Gould resigning on Tuesday, saying it "It's just power and money, [for Pauline.] She wants to be the watchdog of Australia politics, but it's all for money, no consideration for people. She threw us away like a dirty rag. It's a scam. The public are getting smashed."

Where is the sophistication, Mr Sinodinos? Where is the single well-thought-out policy that is more than a brain-fart of empty sloganeering?
Two colleagues debating marriage equality over a couple of beers is not unusual. Throw in a Bible, TV camera and a parliamentary lawn, and things start getting a little, well, strange.

Federal Liberal MPs Tim Wilson and Andrew Hastie are the unlikely stars of a debate sponsored by the Bible Society of Australia and Coopers Brewery.

The moderated debate was shot in the grounds of Canberra's Parliament House, and shows Mr Wilson, an openly gay agnostic, and Mr Hastie, a Christian conservative, debating marriage equality while drinking Coopers Premium Light beer.

Titled "Keeping it Light", the video is part of a joint campaign between the Adelaide brewer and Bible Society Australia "to reach even more Australians with God's word".
It was a fairytale romance - the Australian actress, Grey's Anatomy and The Good Wife star Melissa George, and her dashing French lover. But it has ended in "hell", with convictions for assault, a bitter custody battle, and an alleged kidnap plot to spirit the couple's two small children out of France on a borrowed private jet.

And George claims that her career is on the rocks because her former partner refuses to let her leave the country with the children to film abroad.

Jean-David Blanc and Melissa George prior to their split. Credit:Getty Images

The 40-year-old actress met entrepreneur Jean-David Blanc at a Bafta awards party in London in 2012 and the pair quickly became a couple, producing two sons, Raphael, 3, and Solal, 1.

But the relationship came to an abrupt end on September 7 last year when George turned up at a Paris police station with injuries to her face and pressed assault charges against her partner.
Former Australian of the Year finalist and women's rights activist Eman Sharobeem is not registered with the national health practitioner regulator, despite having publicly claimed to be a psychologist.

A Sun-Herald investigation last month revealed Ms Sharobeem has had her assets frozen and she faces the possibility of up to five years' jail as part of a fraud investigation into her unexplained wealth by the NSW Crime Commission and the ICAC.

Now a review of other aspects of Ms Sharobeem's life has left unanswered questions around her professional qualifications and academic record.

Her claim to hold multiple PhDs is in doubt  neither her lawyer nor her son will provide evidence supporting the claim  and a government department that confirmed details from a CV she submitted claiming to have two PhDs suddenly said it would be a breach of privacy to disclose further information from the same CV when asked which institutions she claimed to have attended.
Campbell Newman burst on to the political scene in 2002 with tunnel vision  a "TransApex" of toll roads the then-lord mayoral candidate promised would transform Brisbane.

But it will be at least a decade, if ever, before the TransApex proposal comes close to being completed.

Lord mayor Graham Quirk and then-deputy PM Warren Truss at the Legacy Way construction site in 2013. Credit:Harrison Saragossi

Fifteen years on, that vision has mostly been realised, with the completion of the Clem7, Legacy Way and the state-funded Airport Link tunnels.

The proposed tunnel between Hale Street and Merivale and Cordelia streets in South Brisbane was eventually substituted with the Go Between Bridge.
A 38-year-old Browns Plains man has handed himself into police following a fatal two-car crash early on Saturday morning.

Police said earlier they believed a Holden Commodore had run a red light at speed just before 1am on Browns Plains Road at Browns Plains and hit a Mitsubishi Lancer, which was crossing the intersection with Parkland Avenue.

A woman has died and a driver on-the-run, after a two-car crash in Browns Plains. Credit:Nine News Brisbane - Twitter

One of the passengers in the Lancer, a 28-year-old local woman, died at the scene. The driver of the Lancer and two passengers from the Commodore were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Police were urging the Commodore driver, who allegedly fled the scene on foot, to contact them and he is believed to have presented himself before noon on Saturday.
About 600 protesters demanding the closure of Australian slaughterhouses have shut down a major intersection in the CBD.

The rally, organised by Animal Liberation Victoria, began on the steps of Parliament House about midday on Saturday, before hundreds marched down Bourke Street to occupy the intersection at Swanston Street.

About 600 people walked through the city demanding the closure of Australian abattoirs.

Trams along Bourke Street were diverted while the march was underway.

ALV founder Patty Mark said she was thrilled with the rally's turnout, considering just 30 people attended the same event held four years ago.
Marylou Orton, who was killed in an unsolved double murder 25 years ago in Fitzroy. And Karakas was already a killer. In December, 1989, he shot dead Geoffrey Engers, an Endeavour Hills father-of-three, in cold blood. But he was still walking free when he left the parlour, on Alexandra Parade, on March 13, 1992. He almost got away with murder  until 2008, when Karakas met Gary Butcher. Murder victim: Kim Wa Li. Almost 19 years after he killed Engers, Karakas became involved in a sophisticated crime gang, involved in blackmail, firearm and cigarette trafficking, money laundering, and payments to corrupt police and judges. It had even used a plane to import a large amount of hashish. Or so it seemed.

To become a fully-fledged member of the gang, Karakas had to admit his entire criminal history: the hierarchy of the organisation needed to trust him, and had to ensure no undue police attention was brought upon them. So Karakas confessed to the head of the gang, Butcher, that he had gunned down Engers. Engers was the ex-partner of Karakas' Thai girlfriend, Sukanya Darbtip, and they had a property dispute, Karakas told Butcher. But Butcher was an undercover cop. And the confession was used to convict Karakas of murder. The method is known as the "Mr Big" technique.

Butcher tried to press Karakas about the Fitzroy double murder  before he confessed to killing Engers, and after. "Once the accused had given details of his role in the killing of Geoffrey Engers, he was again asked about 'the one in Fitzroy'," Justice Lex Lasry said during a Supreme Court hearing in 2009. "He said, 'Honestly, I got nothing to do with it'." Days after his confession, Karakas was arrested and charged. But what did that mean for the investigation into the deaths of Orton and Li? Had Karakas forever cleared himself of being charged with two murders, while damning himself to being charged with another?

Karakas' presence at the Fitzroy murder scene was not the only reason he was a suspect. Police zeroed in on his sexual relationship with Orton which began after the two met at the Hilton hotel in August 1991. The pair saw each other several times a week, despite Karakas being in a defacto relationship with Darbtip. At one point, Orton had an abortion when she became pregnant with his child. Orton was also seeing other men. Friends said she used to party a lot, including all-night sessions on board Filipino cargo ships in Melbourne, Portland and Sydney. She had told friends she wanted to marry a crewman she met on board one ship, the Wani Lake, in Sydney. She was also visiting gambling dens, and in debt by as much as $20,000, after becoming hooked on the tile game mahjong.

Karakas heard about his girlfriend's taste for nightlife. Orton's son Jomar, one of two she had with different men, told Karakas she had visited the Melbourne Star the night and day before she was murdered. US currency, probably paid to her by a sailor, was found in the purse next to her body by police. And Orton also knew about her boyfriend's defacto wife. Two days before the killing, Orton made an angry phone call to the Toyota car dealership where Karakas worked and left a message with a receptionist. "You tell him I've got a lot on him and I can put him away for a long, long time," she said, according to the receptionist. "He must ring me this afternoon  if he doesn't, tell him he's dead." Police never discovered what that information was, but it could have been knowledge of Karakas' involvement in Engers' death.

During the investigation, detectives ruled out robbery, extortion, and business rivalry as a motive for the murders. Asian crime gangs and crew from the ships Orton visited were also discounted. Jomar Orton, who was 14 when his mother died, says her life was more complex than it was portrayed. She had been popular and fun-loving, an activist for Filipina women, and a hard-working single mother who wanted a better life for herself and her family. "When I was growing up, I remember everyone saying they wanted a mum like her," he said this week. "She was smart, she was beautiful, she was sophisticated. So on one side, she was a very cool mum.

"But on the other, knowing how little I'd see her and everything else, she wasn't." The homicide squad declined to comment on the case, other than to confirm it remained open. Karakas is 65 now. He has served almost half his minimum sentence, and will be eligible for parole in 2025. Before his sentencing in 2009, his lawyer said Karakas was gullible, easily led, and of low intelligence. Despite this, it is unlikely Karakas will fall for the same trick again. If he has something to hide, it will stay hidden.
For six torturous years she blamed only herself.

Jessica Castree had known her unborn baby girl was not OK. She'd known it, despite the assurances of the doctors and midwives she had placed her trust in.

Jessica Castree was only 22 when she lost her baby. Credit:Chris Hopkins

She rarely felt her move in the womb and there had been two weeks when the baby failed to show signs of growth.

But Ms Castree was only 22 years old and they were medical professionals.
Beirut: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says US forces in Syria are "invaders" and he has yet to see anything concrete emerge from US President Donald Trump's vow to prioritise the fight against Islamic State.

Asked during an interview with Chinese TV station Phoenix on Saturday about a deployment of US forces near the northern city of Manbij, Mr Assad said: "Any foreign troops coming to Syria without our invitation ... are invaders."

"We don't think this is going to help," he said.

The United States is leading a coalition against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
Washington: White House press secretary Sean Spicer showed up to his Friday press briefing wearing an upside-down American flag pin on his lapel.

The White House press corps, with whom Spicer has locked horns, immediately brought it to his attention.

"Your pin's upside-down," Fox News's John Roberts said.

"John Roberts, always helping with the fashion tips," Spicer quipped.
Washington: US Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked the remaining 46 chief federal prosecutors left over from the Obama administration to resign "in order to ensure a uniform transition," the Justice Department said on Friday.

The New York Times reported that the request from Sessions included Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara, who had been expected to stay on. The report cited a person familiar with the matter, and Bharara's office had no comment on it. The Manhattan office handles some of the most critical business and criminal cases passing through the federal judicial system.

Sessions himself has been called on by Democrats to resign after he made false statements under oath during his confirmation hearings about conversations he had with Russia's ambassador.

US attorneys are political appointees, and the request from the Justice Department under President Donald Trump is part of a routine process, although not every new administration replaces all US attorneys at once.
Honda Invests Nearly $150 Million to Begin U.S. Production of New 10-Speed Transmission

Investment supports new production operations in Georgia and Ohio

TALLAPOOSA, Ga. Mar 6, 2017; Honda today launched global production of a new, state-of-the-art 10-speed automatic transmission at Honda Precision Parts of Georgia, LLC (HPPG) in Tallapoosa, Georgia.

Honda also announced that it has invested nearly $150 million in two U.S. manufacturing plants for production of the industry's first 10-speed automatic transmission (10AT) for front-wheel-drive vehicles.

The new investment includes $100 million for a new assembly line and production modifications at HPPG and an additional $49 million to provide new equipment and increased production capacity at Honda Transmission Mfg. of America, Inc. (HTM) in Russells Point, Ohio. The amount adds to the more than $3 billion that Honda has invested in its U.S. plants over the past four years.

Developed by Honda R&D, the new 10AT features a low-friction design, which will deliver outstanding drivability in new Honda and Acura vehicles. It will appear first in upper grades of the all-new 2018 Honda Odyssey minivan, launching this spring, and will be applied to additional light-truck and car models in the future.

"This new 10-speed automatic transmission represents Honda's commitment to provide our customers with products of outstanding performance, and we are honored to be the global lead plant for production of the 10AT," said Masahiko Kayama, president of Honda Precision Parts of Georgia. "Manufacturing the new transmission in Georgia is a huge responsibility and a great opportunity for Honda associates to demonstrate their manufacturing capabilities and commitment."

HPPG was established in 2006 and annually produces more than 375,000 transmissions for Honda and Acura automobiles. HTM began production in 1996 and now produces more than one million transmissions per year for Honda and Acura vehicles built in North America.

Honda in America Honda began its North America operations in Los Angeles, California, in 1959. Today, Honda companies in North America represent a cumulative investment of more than $22 billion and employ more than 40,000 associates in the design, development, manufacture, marketing, financing and servicing of Honda and Acura automobiles, Honda powersports products and Honda power equipment products.

Honda has been producing products in America for more than 37 years using domestic and globally sourced parts and currently operates 19 major manufacturing facilities in North America. Honda also operates 16 major research and development centers in the U.S. with the capacity to fully design, develop and engineer many of the products Honda produces in North America. In 2016, more than 95 percent of all Honda and Acura automobiles sold in the U.S. were made in North America.
Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi...
Mark Renders/Getty Images

Our celebration of Marchs birthstone, the aquamarine, continues with a tiara that comes to us courtesy of the Belgian noble house of Ligne. The Ligne family have held their titles for centuries, but this tiara is a thoroughly modern addition to the extended familys jewel collection.

The Chateau de Belil, home to the Prince of Ligne (Wikimedia Commons)

As far as European aristocratic families go, the Ligne family is particularly well connected. Theyve married into numerous royal and imperial families, forging alliances with the Habsburgs of Austria and the Nassaus of Luxembourg. Hereditary Grand Duchess Stephanie of Luxembourg is a great-granddaughter of the 10th Prince of Ligne. One Ligne princess, Yolande, even married the son of Group Captain Peter Townsend (who famously almost married Princess Margaret in the 1950s). The main branch of the family lives at the Chateau de Belil, a grand castle in Hainaut.

Mark Renders/Getty Images

The groom at this wedding, Prince Edouard de Ligne de La Tremoille, is from a junior line of the family. When he married Italian actress Isabella Orsini in 2009, this diamond and aquamarine tiara was made for the occasion.

Mark Renders/Getty Images

The sparkler, which was created by Holemans, features a large central aquamarine bookended by smaller aquamarines. And, because this is a Ligne tiara after all, the piece also incorporates diamond script Ls as a major feature of the design. Isabella also wore aquamarine earrings to coordinate with the diadem.

Mark Renders/Getty Images

Although were focusing on the tiara in this post, its worth mentioning that the Ligne-Orsini wedding has garnered more attention in recent years for the bridal gown than the tiara. Isabellas gown shares remarkable similarities with the wedding dress worn two years later by the Duchess of Cambridge. Both dresses were apparently inspired by Grace Kellys famous wedding gown.
UPDATED: Hours after refusing to hand in his resignation, as first reported by The Daily Beast, Preet Bharara, the crusading U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced on Twitter that he had been fired. Bharara was asked to submit his resignation letter Friday, along with the 45 other U.S. Attorneys held over from the Obama administration.

"I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life," he wrote.

Bhararawhose office is in the end stages of an investigation of New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, about to begin the trials of two close allies of Governor Andrew Cuomo, and also appears to be investigating how Fox News structured settlements of sexual harassment and other claims brought by its employeesmet with Donald Trump shortly after the election and was told that he would stay. Just this week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions assured him in a phone conversation that hed remain atop the Southern District, according to a federal law enforcement official.

Friday evening, that official had told The Daily Beast, Bharara told his section chiefs that hed yet to submit the requested letter and might instead challenge Sessions to fire him. Evidently, the White House did not back down.

The request for Bhararas resignation came a week to the day after hed started a personal Twitter feed where hed Tweeted Monday: This Senate hearing on political interference @ DOJ was 10 yrs ago today. Is that me in background? Boy I've aged.

Bharara, then the chief counselor to Sen. Charles Schumer, helped lead the Senates probe into the midterm dismissals of eight U.S. Attorneys that in turn led to the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

Of the 46 U.S. Attorneys asked to resign, Trump personally called twoDana Boente in Alexandria, Va., the acting deputy attorney general, and Rod Rosenstein in Maryland, Trumps nominee to serve as deputy attorney general, which would place him in charge of the Russia probe from which Jeff Sessions has recused himselfto tell them they would be staying on. We were always planning for it on around day 50, a senior administration official told Politico.

But the Trump administrations call for resignations seemed less remarkable for what it asked for than how it asked. While new presidents often sweep out U.S. Attorneys to put in their own picks, they rarely do so until replacements are ready. Trump, though, has not yet formally nominated anyone to a U.S. Attorney post.

Most of the 46 U.S. Attorneys had no heads up at all that they were fired before Justice put out its statement Friday afternoon, with a law enforcement source telling CNN that Boente had just begun placing calls. And it came less than 24 hours after Trumps friend and adviser Sean Hannity called on his Fox News show for a purge of Obama loyalists at the Justice Department.

In Brooklyn, Robert Caperswho just weeks ago had sent his attorneys to court to offer a remarkably feeble defense of Trumps first travel ban executive ordercalled an all-hands meeting to give the news that he was out, and then walked out of the room, bag in hand, directly from the lectern, according to one person present.

In New Jersey, Paul Fishman was on a plane back from the American Bar Associations white-collar conference in Miami when he got the word.

In a statement late Friday, Schumer, the Senate minority leader, said he was "troubled to learn of reports of requests for resignations from the remaining U.S. attorneys, particularly that of Bharara.

"While it's true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for U.S. Attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesn't put ongoing investigations at risk.

The sweeping and immediate move, though, has become a pattern for an administration that, after winning the election by ignoring conventional wisdom and manners, seems confident that disruption plays to its benefit, with limited downside since they expect to be criticized by the press in any case.

Everything these people do is a Saturday night massacre. Remember the ambassadors? the law enforcement source said, referring to Trumps early January decision as president-elect to boot all politically appointed diplomats from their posts by Inauguration Day, even before most of their replacements were lined up.

Its such a lack of basic fucking decency and civility. They dont see anyone as human beings; its horrifying.

NOTE: This piece has been updated to reflect the news that U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara was fired on Saturday.
The American Civil Liberties Union is unveiling a plan to make the United States a little bit safer for immigrantsand the Trump administration might be powerless to stop it.

And thats because the president might never really hear about it.

What Ive learned is a lot of our political power base against Trump is in cities and towns, the ACLUs National Political Director, Faiz Shakir, told The Daily Beast. Thats why we want to build up these freedom cities.

The ACLU is gathering 3,000 people at an event in Miami along with viewers in 2,300 other house party meet-ups in all 50 states Saturday night to talk about their quiet, methodical mission to aid immigrants rights through Americas city halls and sheriffs offices.

About 150,000 people signed up to watch, Shakir said. Were going to show those people how to go meet with your sheriff, your police commissioner, your local government. Well teach them how to get a meeting with them, and then guide that meeting with nine draft ordinances.

Shakir provided those nine ordinances to The Daily Beast, which hell share with attendees on Saturday night. They list several ways to ensure city, county and state officials wont extralegally aid federal ICE or Customs and Border Patrol officials without valid documentation. See No. 2, for example, which touches on a refusal to lend out city, county, or state facilities to conduct investigations or interrogations of immigrants without the necessary paperwork.

Saturdays meet-up is going to give them a step-by-step process on how to ACLU members can make sure those ordinances get passed or observed at the local level.

We want them to ask (public officials), How do you feel about these nine draft ordinances? Where are we as a town on that? said Shakir. From there, were building upon the theory that towns and cities are going to be the power base.

Basically, Shakir said, he wants constituents to let their local governments know that if theyre spending local taxpayer money and time on this, theyre doing the federal governments work.

The ACLU has arguably become the nations staunchest legal opponent to the Trump administrations immigration policies since the president took office in January. In the weekend Trump initially attempted to push through his failed travel banwhich the ACLU immediately challenged in court and won upon appealthe nonprofit raised $24 million online. Thats about seven times what the nonprofit made online in all of 2015.

That new leadership role led Shakir to wonder what the 2.0 version of the wonderful political rallies Ive seen across the country.

This is going to be more difficult, but more meaningful. Its for people who want to roll up our sleeves and fat this head-on, he said. If were able to mobilize hundreds of people in a town or a city, just imagine what the upscale effect of that will be. At that point, were impacting everything in how people perceive and want to fight Donald Trump.

Plus, if it works, Shakir said he has other plans cooking at an even further drilled down, hyperlocal level.

We have ideas about going to school boards to ensure that Muslims in our schools are protected. I can imagine LGBT ordinances, as well, he said.

Its an interesting test example of if this kind of activism can be helpful or not. We can test the theory a little bit, and maybe do something very meaningful.
This week, news broke that men in the Marine Corps used online forums to swap thousands of photos of nude female service members without the womens knowledge or consent. As the scandal radiates outward to other branches of the military, it now appears that the grey market for nude photos of servicewomen could be an epidemic-level problem in the military.

To the public, a story of this magnitudeone photo-sharing forum called Marines United boasted 30,000 membersis shocking. To many women who have recently served in the American armed forces, its anything but.

This scandal doesnt surprise me at all, retired Marine Corps Sergeant Tanya Sciorilli tells The Daily Beast. She adds that shed heard rumors that Google Drive had been circulating for nearly a year, and that people had been working to have it taken down and reported. It also doesnt surprise me that no legal action was taken until the information was given to the general public, she adds. It seems like theyre trying to save face. A day late and a dollar short.

The photo-sharing rings, uncovered by Reveal, Business Insider, and the BBC, now involve tens of thousands of soldiers across multiple branches of the military. Participants in the rings would post clothed photos of women, often lifted from their social media accounts, and request more provocative ones from members of the forum that may have had intimate contact with them. A nude photo was called a win. One woman in Business Insiders account tried unsuccessfully to shake her harassers by changing the privacy settings of her social media.

Cant lie, its no surprise, an Army vet were calling Jenny tells The Daily Beast. Whats happening now is simply the next step in the evolution of a practice thats been widespread among service members shes known in recent years.

During Jennys time on active duty, she says she witnessed similar behavior from fellow soldiers, only instead of organizing their photo sharing on internet forums, theyd pass along nudes via group texts. Or theyd simply show other soldiers their cache of private photos directly from their computers. She recalls walking into rooms to find soldiers gathered around a computer watching videos of sexual encounters, sometimes of group sex, sometimes videos that seemed to be filmed without the awareness of the films female subjects. Some of the women were fellow service members, Jenny says, but others were not. Supervisors, she says, would be aware of the non-consensual photo and video-sharing but turn a blind eye to avoid stirring up trouble.

In some situations, different groups on a post would have a rating system and compare notes on potential fucks, Jenny says. Rating on looks, how easy to fuck. Does she play games? Possible downfalls like: Does she work directly for a powerful person who could affect your career? Is she married?

Jenny says some servicewomen willingly shared their photos with the expectation that theyd be passed around. But many did not. The sad part is the ones who really like someone and dont realize that a whole group of men are reading everything she texts to a dude and or looking at her photos. Kinda like having a relationship with a whole unit.

A Navy veteran were calling Leah says that there was an expectation that sexy photos would be shared. Its baked into her understanding of how communication works in the modern American military. From personal experience, and this definitely doesnt need to be specifically related to me, but back in the day if you were going to do stupid shit like [share nude photos], you made sure your head wasnt in the pic, so it couldnt come back and bite you, she says.

None of the women who spoke to The Daily Beast blamed the women for what happened, but they did note that because the practice of sharing images with other men was so common, theyd avoided sending intimate photos themselves. Amanda Burrill, another Navy veteran, adds, Its abhorrent, but women need to not make nude photos available to these animals. This probably happens at every single command.

I would never send a pic to a dude, says Jenny.  A dude can use it as backlash or blackmail if you dont keep him happy.

Capt. Justine Elena, a Marine who served in Afghanistan and is currently serving in the reserves, says just dont take nudes isnt as simple a prescription to this problem as it may seem. Service members who are deployed are often separated from their boyfriends and girlfriends for long periods of time, and swap photos as a way to maintain a feeling of intimacy. Further, among women in the service, sometimes part of fitting in means being complacent or silent when you see your male colleagues carry out behaviors you feel are wrong, like sharing photos or using explicit or harmful language toward another female servicemember.

Its like being a little sister, Elena says. You want to hang out with your big brother and all of his friends. You cant forget who you are, but you want so badly to be in line with them on a social level. You know you have what it takes to be a Marine. But do you have what it takes to hang?

Its not like the problem begins and ends with photo sharing. Truth is, its not much of a logical leap to tie the cesspool of Marines United and similar message boards to other problems the American military has faced in recent years. Even after a troubling 2011 report found that women in the military were more likely to be raped by a fellow service member than killed in combat, even after another report found that 80 percent of women in the military experienced sexual harassment, even after all the Senate panels and photo ops and tribunals and very serious discussions about the seriousness of this very serious issue, it seems some male members of the military still arent taking sexual harassment seriously.

I remember being called in and showed some porn and someone asked me if it was me! recalls Amanda Burrill. I was on an all-male ship. It was very uncomfortable. I mean, it got much worse than that!

Burrill says she was kissed against her will, and that unwanted sexual advances were common. She used to run on the ships old treadmill every day. (That was the best way to avoid unwanted approaches.) Once, her fellow sailors broke into her room and ejaculated all over her belongings, including her running shoes.

In some professions, say, accounting or sales or journalism, fostering loyalty among team members serves to make work more fun or at least tolerable. But in the military, nurturing a sense of community among members of a unit can be a matter of life and death.

One might think, given the importance of solidarity, that the military would want to expel troublemakers. But, as many female service members know all too well, whistleblowers often receive most of the ire.

A female soldier were calling Jenny tells The Daily Beast that after she was raped by another soldier in her unit, she was told that if she reported the crime, shed be charged with underage drinking. Prior to the assault, shed been drinking alcohol supplied to her by her commanding officer.

Women who actually file a complaint then become troublemakers and not someone you want to associate with, says Jenny. In many cases their career is pretty much over.

I cant even count the number of times I was sexually harassed, Sciorilli adds. She says she was sexually assaulted more than once during her time in the service and had her concerns dismissed.

A few months ago I went to lunch with two other veteran female Marines, she says. During lunch, we got to talking and it turns out that all three of us had been victims of sexual assault.

While sexual assault and sharing a photo without permission arent equally dire, theyre both symptoms of something deeper and sicker. After everything the military has tried to do to integrate them, female soldiers are still treated more as fodder for male bonding than human beings.

Elena, like the other female service members and vets who spoke to The Daily Beast, was so disturbed by the photo-swapping scandal and its relation to other problems in military culture that she decided to take action. She started a GoFundMe called Female Marines United. The campaigns proceeds will go to HeadStrong, an organization that provides free mental health care to veterans of post-9/11 wars. So far, shes raised a little over $5,500.

Bottom line on it is, I want women to know that there is more people out there who stand by them than people who do these kind of behaviors online.

We are not in the wrong because these photos exist, she adds. They are in the wrong because this is how theyre using them.

But even a firestorm of public outrage and bad press cant keep dogged male Marines from swapping nudes. According to CNN, replacement groups for Marines United have already sprung up in its place.
ROMEWhat started out as a silly dare among adolescent boys ended in unthinkable tragedy. In the southern Italian city of Reggio Calabria, three 13-year-olds walking home from school along the train tracks this week dared each other to stay still as long as they could to take the perfect selfie while a speeding locomotive barreling up behind them. Two of the boys jumped to safety in time, but a third waited too long and, despite the train engineers desperate attempt to screech to a stop, was catapulted in the air to his death. The surviving boys ran away, to be found later in shock and tears as they recounted to investigators the tales of their deadly dare.

The Italian death is hardly the first time someone has died for the perfect picture. According to a study conducted by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University late last year, at least 127 people have been killed taking selfies since 2014. The studys authors define the deaths, known as killfies, as the death of an individual or a group of people that could have been avoided had the individual(s) not been taking a selfie. The study found that the majority of recent selfie deaths have taken place in India, Pakistan, and the United States. More than 75 percent of those killed taking selfies are men, most often under the age of 24.

Carnegie Mellon identified eight types of selfie deaths. The most prevalent way to die for a photo is height related, falling from buildings or mountains, whereas most group selfie deaths happen in water-related accidents. Combining height and water is also a deadly combination for many, accounting for the third most common way people die taking selfies.

Last month, three women in their twenties watched a fourth friend get swept away to her death as they were taking a group selfie on a fast-flowing river in New Zealand.

Another common selfie cause of death for individualsand couples! involves trains in stunts like the one that killed the young Italian boy. We found that taking selfies on train tracks is a trend, the authors of the study write. This trend caters to the belief that posting on or next to train tracks with their best friend is regarded as romantic and a sign of never-ending friendship.

Other train-related selfie deaths include factors like electricity. Last week a 19-year-old university student named Mohammad Ayyub was electrocuted in New Dehli while trying to take a selfie on a parked train. As he stood up after taking his fateful photo, he came into contact with live wires that killed him instantly.

Vehicles are also among the most common categories in selfie deaths, mostly when people take selfies while driving. Not surprisingly, weapons often are involved, especially in the United States and Russia, according to the study.

In Washington state last year, a 43-year-old man died during a selfie session with his pistol which, according to his girlfriend, he apparently did not know was loaded when he pulled the trigger while snapping the fatal photo.

Animal related selfie deaths are relatively rare, but they do happen. In February, Moses Ndlovu from Zimbabwe died after he was trampled by the very elephants he was trying to take a selfie in front of at a popular game park. Weeks earlier, a woman was attacked by a lion she was trying to pose in front of in the same game park.

For all the selfie deaths recorded, there are countless other near misses. In February, an 18-year-old Israeli tourist was arrested in New York City after climbing the Brooklyn Bridge to get the perfect shot.

The most popular place to display death-defying (or not) selfies is on Instagram, where people post under the hashtags #ssgkilleverygram #chasingrooftops and #extreme. Some of the most daring are photos taken by Ivan and Angela, a couple whose extreme selfies posted on Instagram as @_elevation are dizzying just to look at. They even have a YouTube channel showing behind-the-scenes shots of their stunts.

Death by selfie may seem like an extremely careless way to go. But for all those daredevils who survive their near-misses, the attention in the number of likes, shares and retweets keeps them snapping. Until, of course, they take that final photothe one to die for.
The Panamanian government announced on Monday night that the imprisoned former strongman Manuel Noriega had died at the age of 83. This profile was published on March 11 this year after he went into a coma following surgery.

When Manuel Noriega was the most powerful and most feared man in Panama some 35 years agothe all-knowing spy chief positioned at the violent and lucrative nexus of local corruption, CIA covert ops, and Colombias cocaine tradehe gave few interviews and said little when he did. But the setting for these encounters was extraordinary. One had the sense of looking inside his head.

Typically, he would send a couple of his men to the reporters hotel. In my case, they arrived in a late-model BMW and asked me to sit in the back, which I did, of course. But I wasnt sure where to put my feet since their submachine guns were on the floor, making the ride to the headquarters of the Panamanian National Guard awkward and uncomfortable.
Former National Security Advisor Michael Flynns possibly criminal failure to register last year as a foreign agent is but the latest of many White House ethics lapses in the first seven weeks of the Trump presidency. Responsibility for this problemlike so many others in the young Trump presidencylies at the feet of White House Counsel Donald McGahn.

This weeks imbroglio began with Flynns registration on Tuesday with the Justice Department as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The statute requires anyone who acts as an agent of a foreign principal to disclose that fact to the Justice Department so that the government and the public can evaluate his or her statements and actions in that light. On Tuesday Flynn registered his consulting firm, Flynn Intel Group, for the $530,000 of work it did last year for a Dutch firm owned by a Turkish businessman with ties to Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The registration acknowledged that the firms work could be construed to have principally benefitted the Republic of Turkey.

One question now is whether Flynns failure to register last year violated the disclosure law, which could result in a $10,000 fine or up to five years in prison. But another important question is how Flynn could become Trumps National Security Advisor without the disclosure and resolution of such an obvious conflict of interest.

Which brings us to McGahn. According to the Washington Post, Flynns attorneys informed the incoming White House legal counsel during the transition that Flynn might need to register with the government as a foreign agent. The White House said yesterday that McGahn was not aware of the details of Flynn's work but did advise Flynn that his personal lawyer should determine whether registration was appropriate. The AP and the Washington Post reported that Flynn's attorneys spoke a second time with an unnamed White House attorney about the matter after the inauguration.

These events represent extraordinary lapses by McGahn in the vetting Flynn for the National Security Advisor position. The White House Counsel has special responsibility for legal and ethics compliance within the West Wing, notes Barack Obamas White House Counsel, Bob Bauer. She may have to advise on a wide range of areas, Bauer added, but a bedrock responsibility is ensuring the adherence to law and ethics standards by the President and the staff.

McGahns office thus would have been in charge of screening the incoming National Security Advisor for conflicts of interest and related ethics issues. It was incumbent on McGahn, who knew about Flynns foreign agent issue, to raise the issue with Flynn, to uncover all of the facts, and to counsel Flynn on whether and how he might resolve the issue before he assumed his very important White House post on January 20. McGahn failed in all of these duties.

The alarm bells should have gone off long before Trump became President, when McGahna senior transition advisor to the President-elect and soon to be named White House Counsellearned about the foreign agent issue for the first time in early November. A wise attorney in that vital position would have immediately taken affirmative steps to determine how Flynns possible involvement with a foreign government might affect his role as an advisor to the President-elect during the 10-week transition period. Indeed, normal vetting processes should have made Flynns failure to disclose his possible relationship with the Turkish government during the months before the election, while serving in an advisory role to candidate Trump, as disqualifying for the position as National Security Advisor.

It remains possible, though hard to imagine, that McGahn had a good reasons for leaving it to Flynn to resolve the registration issue and for not pursuing the conflict-of-interest matter during the transition when Flynn was about to be named National Security Adviser. If so, the White House should make clear those reasons immediately.

But this would not be the first time that McGahn has acted questionably related to Flynns tenure as National Security Advisor. He also did so in advising President Trump that Flynns misleading representations to administration officials about his phone conversation with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak raised no legal issues but only issues of trust.

Nor is this the first ethics compliance failure on McGahns watch. The Director of the Office of Government Ethics warned McGahn soon after the election that he was not following standard ethics protocols in the vetting of cabinet officials. And the many subsequent ethics failures in the White Housethe latest of which was the poor counseling and mere slap on the wrist concerning Kellyanne Conways pitch to buy Ivanka Trumps clothing and accessoriesare McGahns responsibility.

McGahn also bears some responsibility for other White House cockups ranging from the first Immigration Executive Order fiasco to President Trumps inadequate briefing on the details of the Executive Order concerning the organization of the National Security Council.

McGahns many failures help one appreciate the vital role that the White House Counsel normally plays. Ensuring compliance with the ethical and legal rules, and insisting on strict adherence on processes designed to flesh out potential problems related to these rules, are crucial to protecting the President and the White House from politically damaging controversies that detract from the Presidents ability to accomplish his goals.

Many are surprised that McGahn has so poorly served the President in such a short period of time. His government experience on the Federal Election Commission and his selection of a truly impressive cadre of A Team attorneys for the White House Counsels Office led me and others to conclude that the problem might be with the client, President Trump, rather than with his attorney.

But the failure to vet Flynn properly in the face of many bright flashing warning signs lies with McGahn and no one else. Don has a brilliant legal mind, excellent character and a deep understanding of constitutional law, said President Trump in announcing his appointment as White House Counsel last year. Perhaps so, but he is not yet using these talents to serve the President well.

Jack Goldsmith is a professor at Harvard Law School, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, and a co-founder of Lawfare. He served as an Assistant Attorney General from 2003-2004. @jacklgoldsmith.
Three people died on Friday and many more were injured as crowds supporting Park Geun-hye clashed with police on the streets of Seoul following her dismissal as president.

Hours earlier, South Koreas Constitutional Court, in a unanimous decision, removed her from office after finding evidence of corruption and violations of the constitution. She is the first South Korean president to be ousted after a vote of impeachment, which occurred last December by a lopsided margin in the National Assembly.

The election for Parks replacement must now be held by May 9, which is also considered the most probable day for the contest.

Progressives, who are supportive of Sunshine or engagement policies toward North Korea, are leading in the polls and could dramatically change the balance of power in North Asia.

Park, even before murky allegations of criminal conduct surfaced, was deeply unpopular. She went missing for seven hours on the day of the sinking of the Sewol, a ferry, which resulted in the deaths of 295 passengers and two rescue divers in April 2014. She has never publicly explained her absence. Her approval ratings, which plunged after the tragedy, never recovered. And South Koreans have not forgotten. In fact, the Constitutional Court considered charges stemming from the Sewol incident.

Her unpopularity came back to haunt her. The courts decision reads like a political verdict more than a legal one. At the end, she was alone. Even members of her Liberty Korea Party deserted her.

Yet for all the miscues, mistakes, and disasters marking her governance at home, her external policies were resolute, even courageous. For instance, in early 2016 she closed the Kaesong Industrial Complex, where about 125 South Korean companies engaged in light manufacturing just north of the Demilitarized Zoneand shoveled about $120 million a year into the hands of the regime of Kim Jong Un.

Moreover, she agreed, in the face of sustained criticism at home and fierce opposition from Beijing, to base on South Korean soil the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile-defense system.

Her departure puts at risk the deployment of THAAD, as the Lockheed Martin system is known, because a progressive successor may not stick with her decision. The frontrunner in the polls, Moon Jae-in of the Minjoo Party, has been cagey, insisting on a public review of Parks controversial decision to go with the American missile defense plan. In the public review Moon proposesa decision by the next government with ratification by the National Assemblythe decision to deploy the system would almost surely be reversed if a progressive wins.

Yet now theres a race. Monday evening, the first elements of the THAAD system arrived at Osan Air Base, south of Seoul, and deployment should be completed next month, just ahead of the election of Parks successor.

A decision to reverse THAAD deployment or even limit the placement of further batteries would be a victory for an angry China that has been trying, through boycotts and other economic means, to intimidate South Korea into not cooperating with the United States. And a victory for this coercion would almost surely embolden the more belligerent elements in Beijing and Pyongyang.

So more than THAAD is at stake. In a larger sense, the election of a progressive will mean the end of a long period of strategic agreement between South Korea and the only nation pledged to defend it, the United States. Washington, since the failed Leap Day Deal of 2012, has given up on engaging the Kim regime. So had Park, the result of the apparent failure in her first years in office of her soft trustpolitik approach to Pyongyang.

Moon or another progressive is bound to try to reach out to Kim Jong Un, however. President Kim Dae-jung, another progressive figure, immediately adopted the Sunshine Policy, named after the Aesop fable in which the Sun, not the North Wind, is able to persuade a man to take off his coat. In his inaugural address in 1998, Kim set a new tone for relations with the otherand darkerKorea. We will actively push reconciliation and cooperation between the South and North beginning with those areas which can be most easily agreed upon, he promised.

There was, however, very little agreement with the North during the Sunshine years, which lasted during the administrations of Kim and his successor, Roh Moo-hyun. Furthermore, the new South Korean approach did not cool down military tensions. On the contrary, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea even increased infiltrations and incursions. Pyongyang just took Seouls cashKim Dae-jung effectively purchased the June 2000 summit with Kim Jong Il for at least $150 millionand continued developing nuclear weapons and the missiles to deliver them.

The Sunshine Policy also weakened Seouls ties with America. That is what Washington policy analysts are now worrying about.

There are, however, at least three reasons why Seoul, even under a progressive like Moon, may not move too far from Washingtons orbit.

First, North Koreas regime always saw the Sunshine Policy as especially threatening. As Korea watcher Selig Harrison has noted, Kim Dae-jungs strategy, in the eyes of the Kim regime, was more dangerous than Seouls previous policies precisely because it was more subtle. By making the North dependent on the Souths aid, the South Korean Kim, as Pyongyang saw it then, was enticing the North Koreans Kims into a trap, making them beholden to Seoul.

So the North, despite taking Seouls aid during the Sunshine years, did not respond positively. And there is another reason North Korea is unlikely to act in good faith now. Kim Jong Un, in short, is apparently unsure of his grip on power and so is in no position to work cooperatively with archenemy Seoul. And if he does not work cooperatively, he will delegitimize South Koreas progressive president.

Second, the South Korean public may vote for a progressive, but it may be in no mood to embrace an obviously hostile North, especially after the Kim regimes killing of 50 South Koreans in 2010 in two incidents: the sinking of a South Korean naval vessel and the shelling of a South Korean island. Polls show even young South Koreans, traditionally progressive in their outlook, are now particularly hawkish after the 2010 killings.

I dont think there is much support for major engagement anymore, Robert Kelly of Pusan National University told The Washington Post. I think Moon would have to fight hard to get that kind of engagement off the groundhed be pushing against the Americans and against his own people.

And, third, maybe South Korea will stick with the conservatives. That seems unlikely now, but Kim Jong Un and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are perfectly capable of overplaying their hand and creating a backlash in South Korea. Kims serial missile tests are the best advertisement for missile defense, and Xis vociferous campaign against THAAD has already stirred up anger in Seoul.

The South Korean electorate is extremely volatile, and Moon Jae-in, once a senior aide to Roh Moo-hyun, should know. All Moon has to do is remember the 2002 presidential election. In the days preceding the voting, Roh looked like a sure loser. The human rights lawyer was thought to be behind by the middle of election day and won only because young supporters mounted a noontime Internet campaign. The last-minute effort resulted in a late-day surge of voting that put Roh over the top.

Moon has already lost one race for the top spot, to Park in 2012. And he could lose another. Hes riding high now, but South Korean politics changes by the hour, and there are still two months to go.
Bushmills extends range with Red Bush blend

Bushmills, the Jose Cuervo owned Irish whiskey brand, has announced the launch of Bushmills Red Bush blended whiskey.

The new release has matured in a bourbon cask and the company believes it will appeal to both bourbon enthusiasts and those new to Irish whiskey.

Red Bush launches first in the US as a result of the growth the Irish whiskey category has experienced in America in recent years. The release will coincide with St Patrick's Day celebrations.

Colum Egan, master distiller at The Old Bushmills Distillery says: While weve been innovating with our aged whiskeys for centuries, were excited to embark on a journey with the millennial drinker. Maturing the whiskey exclusively in first fill bourbon barrels creates an extremely smooth spirit that will resonate with frequent bourbon fans and first time Irish whiskey drinkers.

Red Bush is a blend of triple distilled Irish single malt and Irish grain whiskey.

Egan adds: Bushmills Red Bush personifies the gritty Irish character and adds a sense of adventure and fun to our portfolio, further defining the confident, courageous and independent spirit weve seen for generations at Bushmills.

11 March 2017 - Sam Coyne The Drinks Report, news editor
Making a return to our two favourite summer locations, Mount Maunganui and Nelson in early January 2023, we've got whiff of the first release lineup and me oh my, yes boy
Plan your week ahead in SE Iowa with these local events

Your guide to getting off the couch and out the door this week in Southeast Iowa.
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Painters and novelists tend to go their separate ways these days, but in 19th century France they hung out together in museums and cafes and sparked each other to take bigger chances in their work.

As Theophile Gautier wrote in one of his novels, Poets make friends with musicians, musicians with painters, painters with sculptors ... the one replies in madrigals to what the other gave him in vignettes.

In a new book, The Pen and the Brush, the literary historian and biographer Anka Muhlstein looks at the unique connection of diverse artists in France that spanned the 19th and early 20th centuries.

It was a lecture for the Frick (Collection) that gave me the idea, Muhlstein says of her assignment several years ago to speak at the New York City museum about literary society in the time of Renoir. I saw that painting was at the center of French novels of that century and you dont find that in other European literature.

(The author will be visiting the Greenwich Library on Thursday, March 23, at 7 p.m. for a talk about her book, co-sponsored by the Alliance Francaise of Greenwich.)

Muhlstein shows us how a new way of seeing and writing was triggered by the introduction of museums in Paris after the French Revolution. The public art institutions we take for granted in towns and cities all over the world didnt exist before the Louvre opened its doors in 1793.

Before the revolution only birthright or unusual personal success opened the door to masterpieces closeted in palaces and mansions, or to (private) galleries of fine paintings acquired by wealthy Parisian collectors, Muhlstein writes.

The Louvre became a democratic place, with sophisticated writers and painters in the same crowd as fishwives, soldiers and peasants in their clogs (as one d isgusted visitor from Prussia put it).

Muhlstein focuses on five great writers  Balzac, Zola, Huysmans, Maupassant and Proust  whose work was enriched by the considerable time they spent in museums and with painter friends.

Opening a Balzac novel is like walking into a museum, but a museum where the artists (and sometimes even their models) often step out of their frames to come into the story. Balzac would not be the powerful novelist he is had he settled for describing paintings and not created his own huge gallery of painters, she writes.

All of these writers were (art) critics, too, Muhlstein says. The great poets were all doing art criticism and they did it beautifully, with a lot of energy, helping the public discover these young painters. ... Now, criticism is something different  a separate profession.

The author, whose other work includes Balzacs Omelette and Monsieur Prousts Library, says the new book, like most of her projects, started with an idea that puzzled her: Why was art suddenly so important in France and why did writers make it so central to their novels?

I wondered why nobody else was talking about this, she says from her home in New York City. Im not an academic, so I can jump around a subject a little bit more.

The 228-page book is focused on answering her questions through the work of the five writers, but the project also left her wondering why we dont have many art-fueled novels today.

Literature and painting seem to have taken divergent roads, (so) the common conversation isnt there. ... (In 19th century Paris) they were all young revolutionaries and they were not that numerous, Muhlstein says.

The author did find a surprising contemporary example of the great French writers obsession with describing light and color in a painterly fashion.

I talked about this subject with Robert Caro, who is very interested in light, Muhlstein says of the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian who has been working on a multivolume biography of Lyndon Johnson since the 1970s. He writes about Johnson walking toward the Capitol when the sun is rising. Describing (the quality of) the light during that moment was an extraordinarily important element for him.

The way 19th century French writers explored the art world and the lives of artists impressed many later literary figures, including Virginia Woolf, who was particularly impressed by Prousts take on the subject: Were all modern paintings to be destroyed, a critic of the 25th century would be able to deduce from the works of Proust alone the existence of Matisse, Cezanne, Derain and Picasso.

I think she exaggerated a little bit, Muhlstein says, laughing. But she thought a lot about painting and literature and was always interesting (on those subjects).

jmeyers@hearstmediact.com; Twitter: @joesview
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NORWALK  Despite freezing winds and a snowy backdrop, hundreds of Norwalkers gathered along the streets of SoNo to take in the sights of the Norwalk Police Emerald Societys second annual St. Patricks Day Parade.

People crowded all along the .3-mile stretch from the corner of Washington and North Water streets all the way down to the ONeills Pub and Restaurant on North Main Street on Saturday morning to celebrate the Irish holiday.

The effect of the cold weather was evident before the parade even began, as many paraders flocked into the ice rinks at Veterans Park to escape the freezing temperatures.

When we first built the rink I never wouldve thought that people would be running in here to keep warm, said Dale Derosa, one of the managers at the rink.

Among the masses, lifelong Norwalk resident Melissa Dobbins stood with her husband, Chris, and their two children as they soaked in the parade.

Dobbins and her children were so excited for the parade that she and the two children, aged 4 and 5 years old, had been talking about it for the entire week preceding the event. Their excitement was such that no amount of cold weather or snow could deter them from attending.

I brought the kids last year and they talked about it for weeks, so I wasnt going to miss it this year. My daughter is a dancer herself so she was excited to see the step dancers, and my son just loves fire engines so we werent going to miss this. Besides, theyre Irish twins so we basically needed to come to the holiday, Dobbins laughed.

Rocking a pair of garland green pants emblazoned with shamrocks, Ollie ONeill led a parade procession composed of Norwalks police and fire departments, Norwalk veterans, antique cars, 95.9 The Fox and others through South Norwalk as this years grand marshal.

Mayor Harry W. Rilling, Norwalks former police chief, served as the grand marshal in the inaugural parade last year.

Following the parade, ONeills Pub and Restaurant on North Main Street hosted its annual St. Baldricks fundraising event to raise money for childhood cancer research.

Norwalk police Lt. Terry Blake, who helped to organize the parade, noted that the event had almost doubled in size since last year, adding the Greenwich and Fairfield Gaelic Pipe bands and two groups of Irish dancers to the mix this year.

The parade procession wasnt the only part of the event that had grown since the inaugural parade, as those who have attended both parades were quick to note that the crowds were much larger this time around as well.

What are parades about, if not the communities, said Blake. Were celebrating a fun day and Irish heritage at the same time, so its great to see the amount of people that came out here, especially given how cold it is.

The Emerald Society, a nonprofit charitable organization, launched the parade last year.

Formed more than 60 years ago in New York City, the Emerald Society serves as a nationwide organization of American police officers or firefighters of Irish descent.

ptomlinson@hearstmediact.com; 203-354-1046; Twitter: @Tomlinson_PE
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Growing up in Fairfield County, advocates for a drug-free society say its important to bring children and parents together to talk openly and honestly about the dangers of drugs.

That is why West Rocks Middle School host its 13th Annual Courage to Speak Empowering Youth to be Drug Free Family Night on March 13 at 5:30 pm.

This event will spotlight the outstanding work and words of students who participate in the Courage to Speak Foundation's programs taught by their health class teachers, as well as a Courage to Speak Presentation by Ginger Katz.

Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling, Chief of Police Thomas Kulhawik and Chief of Operations for Norwalk Public Schools Dr. Frank Costanzo will introduce the students who take the microphone and speak out with their vows not to use drugs.

State Sen. Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, will serve as master of ceremonies. On display will be the artwork created by the students during their drug prevention classes.

Attend and enjoy the evening, be proud of what the children have accomplished, listen to them read their vow not to use drugs and learn everything you can about the danger of drugs and how they can affect your child.

The event will kick off with a complimentary dinner and networking program at 5:30 pm, with the presentation following at 6:30 pm.

After a number of white supremacist fliers were distributed throughout Cranbury neighborhood and in surrounding, Sharon Baanante banded together with fellow Norwalkers to create the Love All Project.

After a productive first meeting, Baanante and others will host a second meeting at 7 p.m. on Sunday, March 19 at the Cornerstone Community Church on 718 West Ave., located across the street from the Norwalk Public Library.

The meeting will focus on announcing Love ALLs first collaborative program and discussing business and school kits along with how volunteers and organizations can get involved. To further promote the project, attendees will also be gifted free Love ALL Project car magnets.

By spreading these magnets, Love ALL hopes to spread their mission of coming together as a community to embrace Norwalk's diversity.

To learn more, log on to Facebook and check out the Love ALL Projects page.

EAST NORWALK

Its that time of the year where bands from all around New England go head-to-head to see who is supreme, as Brien McMahon High School hosts the 90th annual New England Music Festival at Norwalk City Hall on Saturday, March 18.

Over 400 gifted student musicians from all over New England will perform two concerts from 2-5 p.m.

Band enthusiasts, interested residents and music junkies in general can purchase their orchestra and band concert tickets at http://bmhs.tix.com/Event.aspx?EventCode=939369.

Those more inclined to harmonies, can purchase choir concert tickets at bmhs.tix.com/Event.aspx?EventCode=939370.

The Brien McMahon Marching Band urges you to buy tickets now to see the musical experience of a lifetime.

STRAWBERRY HILL

Nothing is quite as therapeutic as hurling a red rubber ball into the bodies of your opponents.

Transport yourself back to the old gym class days when Norwalk High School hosts its Eighth Annual Charity Dodgeball Tournament on Wednesday, March 15.

All proceeds from the tournament will go towards the nonprofit organization, More Than Me, and Helping Hands of Norwalk High School.

More Than Me is a nonprofit that provides access to education for girls in Liberia by building schools, establishing health care services and offering tuition assistance for secondary education. Helping Hands is a program at Norwalk High School that benefits students in need of financial assistance.

A committee of students and teachers will organize the tournament with the help of several local business sponsors within the greater Norwalk community. The event is anticipated to see another successful year, as last years tournament saw 22 teams compete and raised over $14,000 for charity.

For more information, email event organizers at nhsdodgeball2017@gmail.com.

Share your neighborhood news

To share your community and neighborhood news with The Hour, contact Pat Tomlinson at 203-354-1046, or at ptomlinson@hearstmediact.com.
WESTPORT  A Norwalk man allegedly stole from a Westport bakery while working as the stores manager, police said

The Cake Boxs store manager, Gregory Neil, allegedly over-charged customers paying cash and charged customers for items without entering them into the register and putting in the money, police said.

The 32-year-old resident of Quaker Road in Norwalk was caught on surveillance video entering less than he charged customers into the register at the Bay Street bakery, according to police.

Westport police arrested Neil at the Ridgefield Police Department March 8. A warrant had been out for his arrest on three charges of sixth-degree larceny, reported Feb. 13. Neil was released on a $500 bond ahead of a March 17 court date.
WILTON  Since late February, Swami Balgopal has added wood to a small bonfire outside of the Wilton Hindu Temple at 68 Westport Road, with several others whove also fasted from meat and eggs.

After piling the logs, they pray to Lord Vishnu, the preserver of life  asking for peace on earth and for evil spirits to flee from every person and living creature.

Its a sacred ritual theyve been doing in preparation for the Holi Festival, also known as the festival of colors. The two-day celebration is one of the biggest Hindu festivals, Balgopal said, starting on the first full moon day in March.

This year, the festival begins on Sunday, March 13. The temple will have a bonfire on Saturday night, the Holika Dahan, from 7-8 p.m., and a Holi celebration on Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., to celebrate the triumph of good over evil.

The festival alludes to the victory of Prahlad, a devotee of Lord Vishnu, and his escape from a blazing fire, Balgopal said.

People think (to) themselves, We give up the bad forces and we have the good force now because of the victory, Balgopal said, and they hug each other and they put the sweets to each other mouth(s).

The festival also celebrates the end of winter and the arrival of spring, in anticipation of a bountiful harvest.

While the first night has a more religious aspect to it, the Holi celebration has become known to many as a festive day that involves social gathering and dousing each other with colored powder. The temple will have seven different colors.

Other people can come, whether they are believers or not, Balgopal said, if they dont mind the color.

Artie Rokkam, a member of the temple, said the festival is an important way for her children to understand their Hindu roots but also for the broader community to join in on the celebration and fun.

There will be a fundraiser, too, so people will bring food in and itll be a carnival-like atmosphere, she said. Last year, a DJ from Arya Dance Academy played music until the afternoon and the kids had a performance.

Balgopal expects several hundred people to come, traveling from around the state, New York and other nearby areas since the temple is one of Connecticuts few. He founded the temple in 2014, growing its membership to more than 500 strong and up to 7,000 visitors every year.

Before the temple, Bupil Jha and her friends gathered at one of their homes for the Holi Festival, she said.

Its because of Swamiji that we are able to celebrate this so openly at a nice, sacred place like a temple, Jha said. We are so, so, so lucky and Wilton Indians are very happy. Swamiji is always willing to have gatherings.

The Holi Festival is one of many events that the temple offers to ensure devotees and visitors have access to enriched experiences with the Hindu religion and culture  which Balgopal sees as his duty.

That is our karma: to serve the public, Balgopal said. That is why we are here on earth.

For more information about the festival, call 305-766-8340 or email balgopal108@gmail.com.

SKim@hearstmediact.com; 203-354-1044; @stephaniehnkim
WILTON  A hometown hero from the Wilton Fire Department received statewide recognition last Wednesday for his achievements as in emergency management.

Wilton Deputy Chief and Emergency Management Director Mark Amatrudo was recognized as the Emergency Manager of the Year for 2016 by the Northeast States Emergency Consortium at a ceremony held at Connecticut State Police Troop G Headquarters.

Each year, the eight-state consortium, which stretches from New Jersey to Maine, selects an individual from each participating state who has made outstanding contributions in the field of emergency management.

Its an honor, theres no question about it. Frankly, I dont feel as though Ive done anything above and beyond the call of duty during 2016, although it obviously is good to be recognized, said Amatrudo, who has spent a quarter of his 40-year-plus firefighting career with Wilton.

Since joining the Wilton department, Amatrudo has worked with Wilton CERT, Wilton schools (public and private), the Connecticut Statewide Citizen Corps Advisory Council and in many other capacities to earn the prestigious award, wrote the consortium in a news release.

His hard-charging, dedicated approach to the work of an Emergency Management Director is admirable. He has gone to great lengths to train town officials, hold drills, ensure the EOC is well equipped and constantly and consistently leads the charge with both the town department heads and elected officials on the urgency and importance of the principals and practices of emergency management, Fire Chief Ronald Kanterman said.

Outside of his everyday responsibilities, Amatrudo has been instrumental in the development and implementation of a comprehensive training program for town educators, Kanterman said.

As the co-chair of the advisory council, Amatrudo played a pivotal role in the implementation of statewide strategic planning for the citizen corps program, as well as in the development of the councils handbook, which is distributed around Connecticut.

Amatrudos work with Wilton CERT has been defined by the same dedication that hes displayed with his other work roles, Kanterman pointed out.

He gives them many hours on and off the clock to assist them with the procurement of equipment, the development of rules and regulations and the training, certification, and other activities that come along with the role, said Kanterman. Through his efforts and the efforts of team leadership, the Wilton CERT has become the premier team in the State, setting the example for many.

This isnt the first distinction that Amatrudo has earned for his efforts around town and outside of it. In 2006, Amatrudo was recognized as the Connecticut Fire Instructor of the Year. He was also presented the Exchange Club of Connecticuts Hometown Hero award in 2016.

ptomlinson@hearstmediact.com; 203-354-1046; Twitter: @Tomlinson_PE
PLAINVIEW  Robotic dairy operations may seem like a thing of the future. And, in fact, they were in Nebraska until last month.

Thats when the Demerath Farms dairy made state history when it began using four robotic milking systems on its expanding dairy operation. At maximum capacity, the dairy will milk 240 cows, three times a day.

Bill Demerath said the day-to-day work on the farm has, indeed, changed since the robots were installed Feb. 21.

Well be able to come in and do our chores, but we can do them whenever we want, Demerath said.

In the old (milking) barn, we wouldve walked in at 5:30 in the morning. Four hours in the morning, four hours in the afternoon we had to be milking cows, so we couldnt get anything else done, he said.

For Demerath, the switch to robotic milking was a long process.

Ive been working with Norfolk Dairy Systems, and weve kind of been through five years of this to get to this point, he said. We wanted to increase the herd without increasing labor. We needed a new barn. Our other free-stall barn was 40-plus years old. So we decided to go with this.

With the robots, cows are able to essentially milk themselves.

In this barn, theyll milk 24 hours a day, he said. Theres just more flexibility, better flexibility.

As part of the expansion of the operation, a new barn was built housing four robots, two on each side of the barn.

Each robot can handle about 60 head. So we can do about 120 on each side, Demerath said.

The cows wear an electronic collar that can track their activities and record information regarding milking. The collar identifies which cows are being milked, and information is sent to Demeraths smartphone.

The cows had to be trained to use the robots, just as their human handlers did. They are fed a pelleted feed while being milked by the robot. Its used as an incentive for them. If they come to the robot to be milked, they receive their pelleted feed.

The robot works by attaching to each of the four quarters of the cows udder and then detaching when the cow is milked all on its own.

The milk is then transported to a bulk tank a large storage tank that keeps the milk cool until it can be put on a truck and hauled away. But the milk must go through a cooling process to take it from the cows temperature, 104 degrees, to the temperature of milk in the bulk tank, 38 degrees. A plate cooler is used to cool the milk.

Were dropping that to 55 degrees before it hits the bulk tank, and thats just with ground water. All youre doing is just running milk by water to cool it. Thats what a plate cooler is, Demerath said.

The milk is sold to Associated Milk Producers Inc., which picks it up every other day.

Demerath said training the cows is going better than expected.

Things are going very well. Even the guys who put the robots in said our cows are taking to it extremely well compared to some other barns. So I was amazed, he said.

The cows also are offered every comfort when they are not being milked. They have access to large brushes that they can utilize as back scratchers.

Its just for comfort. It gives them something to do, helps to keep themselves clean, Demerath said. It stimulates blood flow in the cow. Its relaxing to them.

Demerath said time that used to be spent milking can now be devoted to other tasks, such as cleaning stalls more frequently.

Happy cows, comfortable cows. Thats the whole thing. Thats why we have sand bedding, he said.

The sand is placed in single-cow stalls in the center of the four pens where cows can lay down when they are not eating or being milked.

Then, when they are hungry or are ready to be milked again they are able to leave the bedded stalls, and the process starts over again.
The Grand Island school board on Monday night will consider awarding the construction bid for the new Stolley Park Elementary to Kingery Construction for $12.07 million.

That includes a base bid of nearly $11.94 million and alternates of paving the staff parking lot, $69,785; installing sod instead of planting seed in designated areas, $15,175; and adding Barrier One admixture to concrete in the parts of the building with rubberized flooring, $48,785.

Kingery is a Lincoln-based company that has done projects in southeastern Nebraska communities, as well as Grand Island and Norfolk.

The new Stolley Park Elementary is being financed by the $69.9 million bond issue approved by voters in 2014. The only project left to bid is the new Jefferson Elementary.

While the new Stolley Park Elementary is being built, Stolley Park students will attend classes along with Starr Elementary students in the new Starr just west of Barr Middle School. While the new Jefferson Elementary is being built, Jefferson students will attend classes in the old Starr.

The new Stolley Park Elementary will have three classrooms per grade and room for preschool students.

During the meeting, Finance Director Virgil Harden and Paul Grieger of D.A. Davidson will report on the sale of the final $18.69 million in bonds from the $69.9 million bond issue.

The board will consider a bid for $35,359 from Yellow Dog Networks to install two new routers to boost redundancy into the schools computer network to reduce any interruption in access to the internet for students, whose curriculum is increasingly coming from online instead of textbooks.

Board members also will consider approving the 2016-17 maintenance and new construction project list.

Other action items on the agenda include formal policies related to investment decisions and use of debt for school projects.

The board also will consider approving operating principles for Grand Island police officers who act as school resource officers.

Board members also will hear several information items including a proposal to use Amplify Science with student notebooks as the new K-8 science curriculum. Board members also will hear a proposal to adopt subscriptions to McGraw-Hill Spotlight on Music, Music Express and Music K-8.

Those proposals likely will come back to the board during its April meeting for final action.

Associate Superintendent Robin Dexter will update the board on the Grand Island Senior High Vision, which includes adopting goals and an action plan. Chief Academic Officer Josh McDowell will review the 2017-18 staggered start of the school day for elementary schools, middle schools and Grand Island Senior High

One of the biggest changes is a longer school day for elementary students.

Traci Skalberg, Grand Island Public Schools Foundation executive director, will give an update on the foundation and also ask board members to participate in the staff, foundation board and school board fund drive.

The board also will recognize Matthew Novinski, who competes for the Grand Island Senior High cooperative swimming team for being the Class A state champion in the 200 freestyle, with a personal best and school record, and the Class A state champion in the 100 backstroke, where he set a new state record by breaking his old state record. Novinski is a student at Grand Island Central Catholic.

The board will recognize Selena Rowe, Daniel Chavez and Viangri Sontay Lopez for having their ceramic pieces accepted into the National K-12 Ceramic Exhibition in Portland, Ore.

In addition, 42 GISH art students had 68 pieces accepted into the Nebraska Scholastics Art Awards Juried Art Show, with 19 pieces earning Gold Key awards, meaning they will be entered in the National Scholastics Art Show.

If You Go

What: Grand Island school board

When: 6:30 p.m. Monday

Where: Kneale Administration Building, 123 S. Webb Road

On the agenda: bid for new Stolley Park Elementary; report on sale of bonds; bids for routers; maintenance project list; policy on investments and use of debt; operating principles for school resource officers; proposed science and music curriculum resources; Grand Island Senior High Vision process; Grand Island Public Schools Foundation; and recognition of Class A swimming champion Matt Novinski and art students Selena Rowe, Daniel Chavez and Viangri Sontay Lopez
HASTINGS  One Hastings coffee shop is enlightening people about the story behind java jackets its selling.

Baristas of Hastings has begun selling reusable java jackets for $1 to raise money for women in India through Freeset USA. The organization helps Indian women who were trapped in Kolkatas sex trade and teaches them skills and trades to become independent. The coffee shop is helping the women in two ways, as the Indian women make the coffee sleeves that Baristas purchases and sells.

Susan Overmiller, owner of Baristas of Hastings, said she didnt initially intend to sell the sleeves to raise money for the organization. It just sort of happened.

Overmiller ordered 500 coffee sleeves, the minimum order, through Freeset as Christmas gifts for her regular customers. She found out about the java jackets through a missionary she and her husband support. Overmiller said she put the sleeves over a coffee cup and stuffed a note inside to her customers.

Some years its hard to come up with a unique idea, and this seemed unique, Overmiller said.

Once she gave out the gifts, Overmiller tried to think of what she could do with the remaining 300 sleeves. She decided to sell them for $1 each and donate the money back to the women in India who made them. The missionary woman Overmiller supports, who went to Adams Central Public Schools with Overmillers sons, didnt know Overmiller was going to do this. Overmiller said the woman was delighted.

It wasnt that I was looking for something in another country to support necessarily, because I know plenty of people need help here, but it just kind of happened, Overmiller said. This community has really supported my business, so we try to do things locally, as well. But this just presented itself through another way.

Baristas has since sold nearly all of the sleeves and raised more than $300 for the women through Freeset. But not all of the money came from coffee sleeve sales. Some customers just wanted to donate and didnt want the sleeves. Others, Overmiller said, bought more than a dozen java jackets, presumably to give to co-workers.

According to Freesets website, the organization is located in Sonagachi, which is a large sex district in Kolkata, India. Many women are trafficked from surrounding countries, including Bangladesh and Nepal, and from rural India. Women are nearly forced into sex trafficking due to poverty.

Freeset aims to give the women skills so they can financially support themselves and not revert to sex trafficking. The organization was started in 2001 by Kerry and Annie Hilton of New Zealand. Freeset teaches women how to sew to export products such as the java jackets. According to the website, women involved with Freeset produce about 1,000 bags each day and are paid about twice the going rate for an equivalent job elsewhere. The women, who are full-time employees, also receive a health insurance and pension plan.

It seemed very worthwhile, Overmiller said of the decision to donate to Freeset USA.

When Overmiller decided to sell the extra java jackets to raise money to donate, her employees began sharing the important story behind the jackets. Employees posted to Facebook and put signs in the window telling customers about the women who made the java jackets.

Overmiller said shes received so much positive feedback from the community that shes soon placing an order for red java jackets. She said the red color could be fun and versatile, as they could be associated with the Huskers, Valentines Day and Christmas.

My intention was not to order more, because I really thought Id have trouble getting rid of what I had, Overmiller said. But well see how long it takes to get rid of the red ones.

A dollar is nothing to most people. Overmiller said seeing how people, how her customers, are responding is very fulfilling.

It really warms my heart, Overmiller said. People in general are very giving, but a lot of my customers are very thoughtful and giving.

Overmiller said she doesnt plan to keep selling the jackets and donating the money year after year. As long as people want them, she said, shed consider ordering more.
Police/Sheriff

Anyone with information about any crime in the state may call the Grand Island-Hall County Crime Stoppers, (308) 381-8822. Callers will remain anonymous.

A reward of up to $1,000 will be paid after law enforcement agencies have determined the seriousness of the crime and the usefulness of the information.

Inmate custody status can be obtained by calling the VINE hotline at (877) NE 4 VINE or by visiting www.vinelink.com. Information is available 24 hours a day.

If you see a crime happening, call the Grand Island-Hall County Emergency Center  911.

Grand Island Police

The following felonies were reported:

- Justin Lindberg was arrested for third-degree domestic assault with prior offenses Thursday at 3720 W. State.

- Rolando Nieves Mendez reported an attempted burglary Thursday night at 209 S. Pine.

Hall County Sheriff

Law enforcement arrested five people on warrants in seven cases. There were 19 calls for service.

For more information visit www.hallcountyne.gov and click on the sheriff link.

- Brad Klingman reported the theft of a trailer and miscellaneous property inside Thursday afternoon at 1016 S. Shadybend Road.

- A male was arrested for possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia and willful reckless driving Thursday night at Bosselman Truck Stop, 3335 W. Wood River Road.

Court report

Hall County Court

- Justin J. Lindberg, 32, 3720 W. State St., Apt. D7, was charged with committing domestic assault-third degree/prior, on Thursday. Preliminary hearing set for 9:30 a.m. April 25.

- Megan N. Leydig, 19, Kearney, was charged with possessing a controlled substance Thursday. Preliminary hearing set for 10 a.m. April 24.

- Wesley C. Paulson, 39, 8951 N. Engleman Road, was charged with possessing a controlled substance, possession or use of drug paraphernalia and willful reckless driving, first offense, all on Friday. Preliminary hearing set for 10 a.m. March 17.

- Brian Daniel Sanchez, 29, 535 E. Capital Ave., had his probation revoked (original offense enhanced DUI or refusal to be tested with one prior conviction), license revoked five years, 90 days in jail, with 302 days suspended credit.

Driving Under the Influence  Yuridia Mejia De Bstandig, 33, 4139 Iowa Ave., $500 fine, six months probation, drivers license revoked 60 days; Nicolle B. Nellson, 21, 4056 Lillie Drive, $500 fine, six months probation, drivers license revoked 60 days; Nathaniel Kosmicki, 23, 829 A North Hastings Ave., Hastings, $500 fine, six months probation, drivers license revoked 60 days; Reece M. Rivera, 24, 2831 Wortman Drive, No. 12, $500 fine, six months probation, drivers license revoked 60 days; Yohanis Larosa-Hernandez, 35, 2323 Bellwood Drive, No. 8, $500 fine, six months probation, drivers license revoked 60 days.
The Edwardsville City Council approved a resolution authorizing an application for Park Enhancement Project (PEP) Grant funds in the amount of $133,000 at Tuesdays meeting.

If approved by Madison County Community Development, the funds would be used to provide an additional pavilion at Leon Corlew Park near the dry playground and a new dog park in the city of Edwardsville.

Alderman Barb Stamer said this will be the second dog park in the area.

We currently have one now; its in Glen Carbon. So if we receive this grant  it wont cover all of the cost but it will cover a large portion of it  then we would have a second one in the older part of Edwardsville, Stamer said.

The dog park will be an off-leash area located on Schwarz Street, west of Grandview Drive.

In other business, a Class F Special Use Liquor License for Global Brew, Inc. for the Earth Day Beer Fest to be held Saturday, April 22, was approved. None were opposed.

Next was the approval of an ordinance designating stop intersections in the city of Edwardsville, recommended by the Administrative and Community Services Committee.

Stamer said this ordinance will update stop sign locations and put them under city ordinance, not just state statute.

Basically what this did was just cleaning up the ordinance, making sure that all of the stop locations that we have are listed within the ordinance and also listed alphabetically, Stamer said.

With none opposed, the motion carried unanimously.

Last was an ordinance recommended by ACS requiring Beverage Alcohol Sellers/Servers Education and Training (BASSET) training for area liquor license holders.

If approved, it would amend the Edwardsville Liquor Code to comply with Illinois state law regarding BASSET training for on-premise alcohol sales establishments and live training for managers of Class A (grocery and convenience store) liquor license holders.

Stamer said the EPD did an exceptional job of organizing the proposal and moving forward with the trainings.

This was first presented to ACS and this is part of what is currently being done and is required as BASSET training by state of Illinois. What this ordinance does is it specifies what training needs to be done within the city of Edwardsville by those that hold liquor licenses and those people that are employed by those businesses," she said.

"As I said, this was presented by the police departmentthey did a very fine job of putting this all together. Theyve already had some trainings and theyre setting more dates, Stamer said.

Alderman Janet Stack said the trainings will be beneficial to both the city of Edwardsville and its citizens.

This helps give the community access that they may not have, which it is a state law that they have the training, Stack said.

The BASSET training certificate is good for three years following completion and will be free if the trainings are taken at the Edwardsville Police Department.

The motion was approved unanimously.

The next Edwardsville City Council meeting will take place at 7 p.m., Tuesday, March 21, at City Hall in the Council Chambers. All meetings are open to the public.
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Linkedin EDITORIAL (The Jakarta Post)  Sat, March 11, 2017

For decades Bekasi in West Java has played a pivotal role as a buffer city for Jakarta, the epicenter of Indonesias political and economic dynamics. The skyrocketing number of new housing complexes in Bekasi to the east, Depok and Bogor, also in West Java, to the south, and Tangerang and South Tangerang, both in Banten, to the west of Jakarta, only shows how development in the capital has spilled over into surrounding regions.

With more than 2 million people commuting from neighboring cities like Bekasi to Jakarta daily for work, and therefore contributing to the capitals gross domestic product (GDP), the interconnection and interdependence between Jakarta and its neighbors is apparent.

But what is so special about Bekasi, which celebrated its 20th anniversary on Friday? Like Jakarta, Bekasi is facing a development trap characterized by poor planning, recurring floods, traffic gridlock and a widening income divide.

Apart from their proximity, both Bekasi and Jakarta have much in common, and the two can learn from each others successes and mistakes.

Last year Bekasi followed in the footsteps of Jakarta by facilitating direct communication between local leaders and the people through mobile phone applications, in a bid to improve public services. After Jakarta introduced Qlue, Bekasi launched the Integrated Online Reporting (POT) and Smart Online Reporting and Observation Tools (SOROT), which enable residents to report flaws in public services or post their aspirations to the mayor.

The Bekasi administration under Mayor Rahmat Effendi has taken full advantage of information technology to accelerate the delivery of public services, solve day-today urban problems and help the local economy grow as envisioned in its smart city concept. Such a commitment, if fulfilled, will transform Bekasi into a promising alternative for those still clinging to Jakarta as their dream city.

Many may feel that today Bekasi trails Jakarta, albeit closely, in many fields. But in promoting tolerance, Jakarta may have a lot to learn from Bekasi, or to be precise Mayor Rahmat.

Heading into his fourth year in office, Rahmat has built his credentials as being in the vanguard of religious tolerance, while in many other West Java regions leaders deliberately play the religious card as a cheap and easy way to cling to power.

Departing from the general view, portrayed in surveys, of West Java being an intolerant region, Bekasi raises new hope that diversity can survive and even prosper in the country. Rahmat, a Muslim, rose to prominence for his defense of the Santa Clara Catholic church in North Bekasi against Muslim hardliners who opposed its construction.

It comes as no surprise that none less than Pope Francis himself has invited Rahmat, along with progressive female Muslim figure Yenny Wahid, to the Vatican in May to share his experience and the challenges he has faced in upholding religious tolerance.

Bekasis contribution is not limited to Jakarta, but to Indonesia as a whole. Bekasi is by no means the least among Indonesian cities. Who knows? It may yet produce the countrys future leader.
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Linkedin Michael Liedtke (Associated Press) San Francisco, United States  Sat, March 11, 2017 11:04 2067 a291276806121264c0bd211cde430983 2 Science & Tech Google,#Google,self-driving-car,Uber Free

A self-driving car company founded by Google is presenting new evidence to support allegations that a former manager stole technology sold to Uber to help the ride-hailing service build its own robot-powered vehicles.

Waymo, a project hatched by Google eight years ago, wove its tale of deceit in sworn statements filed Friday in a San Francisco federal court.

The documents try to make a case that former Waymo manager Anthony Levandowski conceived a scheme to heist key trade secrets before leaving the company early last year to launch an autonomous vehicle startup that he had been discussing with Uber.

It's the latest salvo in a battle that started last month when Waymo sued Levandowski and Uber for alleged theft of the technology for "LiDAR," an array of sensors that enable self-driving cars to see what's around them so they can safely navigate roads. Experts say an effective LiDAR system typically takes years to develop.

After leaving Waymo, Levandowski started a self-driving truck company called Otto that Uber bought for $680 million to accelerate an expansion into autonomous vehicles.

Uber brushed off Waymo's claims as "a baseless attempt to slow down a competitor."

Waymo is mounting its attack with the help of one of Levandowski's former colleagues, Pierre-Yves Droz, the leader of Waymo's LiDAR project.

In a sworn statement, Droz said Levandowski confided in January 2016 that he planned to "replicate" Waymo's technology at Otto. A Google forensics expert said he determined that Levandowski began downloading thousands of files containing Waymo's trade secrets in December 2015, according to another sworn statement.

Read also: Google-bred company accuses Uber of self-driving car theft

Levandowski had previously acknowledged to Droz that he began discussing self-driving cars with Uber in 2015, according to the documents. Levandowski, "told me that it would be nice to create a new self-driving car startup and that Uber would be interested in buying the team responsible for the LiDAR we were developing at Google," Droz said in his declaration.

Then, again in January 2016, Levandowski said that he had been at Uber's San Francisco headquarters seeking an investment in his startup, Droz said.

Waymo also filed papers seeking a court order to block Uber from using any of the technology that it believes Levandowski stole.

If a judge grants that request, it could force Uber to halt its current tests of self-driving cars in Pittsburgh and Phoenix. It's unclear how much of the technology targeted in Waymo's lawsuit is being used in the Uber self-driving cars that are currently picking up passengers in those cities.

Levandowski wasn't alone in his alleged betrayal, according to Waymo.

Other sworn statements filed Friday identified two other former Waymo employees accused of stealing technology in July 2016 shortly before they joined Uber. They are: Sameer Kshirsagar, Waymo's former global supply manager, and Radu Radutu, an engineer in Waymo's LiDAR department.

The dispute between Waymo and Uber highlights the high stakes in the race to build self-driving cars that promise not only to revolutionize the way people get around but also the automobile industry. Waymo and Uber are two of the early leaders, while long-established car companies such as Ford, Toyota and General Motors are scrambling to catch up.

Waymo now operates as a subsidiary of Google's corporate parent, Alphabet Inc.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11, 2017 14:04 2067 a291276806121264c0bd211cde437280 1 Health research,sneezes,health,#health,#research,Sneezing Free

Next time you sneeze, dont forget to think of your co-workers and quickly cover your mouth and nose as studies show that your sneeze can travel up to 8 meters if you arent careful.

For a while, scientists thought peoples sneezes didnt stray too far, figuring that droplets only landed a foot or so away from you. But a slow-motion video of a sneeze filmed recently by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) quickly debunked that hypothesis, finding that sneeze particles can go much farther than originally thought.

The largest droplets rapidly settle within one to 1.8 meters away from the person, lead researcher Dr. Lydia Bourouiba of MITs Fluid Dynamics and Disease Transmission Laboratory told Star Tribune.

The smaller and evaporating droplets are trapped in the turbulent puff cloud, remain suspended, and over the course of seconds to a few minutes, can travel the dimensions of a room and land up to 5.8 to eight meters away.

Read also: Simple homemade flu and cough remedies

While nearly anything can trigger a sneeze, like allergies or smoke, its those that happen when youre sick that you need to be most cautious about.

But if someone at work is sick, what might be your best defense against contamination? You cant scamper. Its over before you can move, said Dr. Scott Davies, a physician at Hennepin County Medical Center. Its up to the person whos sneezing to prevent this.

University of Minnesota School of Nursing associate professor Jeanne Pfeiffer recommends widening your personal bubble. We say distance is a barrier. When someone isnt feeling well, but theyre not staying home, we like to keep one meter of distance. (sul/kes)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11, 2017

State-owned air navigation firm Flight Navigation Service, also known as AirNav, has earmarked Rp 800 billion ((US$59.9 million) to improve its flight security system for the western part of the country this year.

The funds, which represent 33.3 percent of its total capital expenditure of Rp 2.4 trillion for this year, will be used to buy new devices, including radars, for Jakarta Air Traffic Service Center (JATSC), according to president director Novie Riyanto.

This year we will allocate the biggest part of our investment to upgrade the system that manages the western part of Indonesia and is based in JATSC, he told reporters Friday.

(Read also: AirNav to spend Rp 2.2t in 2017)

The move followed its previous step last year to enhance a similar air traffic control system in Makassar, which covers the eastern part of the archipelago.

The upgrading of both air traffic service centers is part of AirNavs attempt to modernize the countrys flight navigation system until 2018.

Apart from improving its Jakarta-based service center, AirNav would also disburse its spending to activate commercial flight routes in southern Java, Novie said.

These routes are currently flown for military purposes.

Furthermore, the firm would also boost air security systems in Papua and take over monitoring of Upper Natuna from Singapore, Novie added.

Upper Natuna refers to areas bordering Indonesia and neighbors, Singapore and Malaysia.

AirNav, which manages 275 airports nationwide, aims to increase its revenue by 11.1 percent this year to Rp 2.8 trillion from last year. (lnd)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11, 2017

In the heat of the campaign period ahead of the Jakarta gubernatorial runoff election, a family claimed on Friday that local mosque authorities in Setiabudi, South Jakarta, had denied their request to hold prayers for their deceased mother because she had voted for the incumbent.

However, a cleric at the mosque said the deceased had not been taken to the mosque the day she died, on March 7, because of impending rain.

The first campaign period saw religious figures warning Muslims not to vote for non-Muslims, particularly Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, who is standing trial over blasphemy allegations.

(Read also: Police, election supervisor partner to investigate hate banners)

The small mosque, like a number of other mosques in the district, had earlier displayed posters saying that those who voted for blasphemers would not be entitled to prayers and Islamic rituals when they died. Police had said such posters would be taken down. Acting Jakarta governor Sumarsono had also appealed against such posters.

A caretaker of another mosque in Setiabudi told The Jakarta Post earlier that a nearby mosque had rejected a request to hold prayers for a deceased person after the Feb. 15 election, as the deceased was known as an Ahok supporter.

Sunengsih, 46, a resident of Setiabudi, said there may have been objections to hold prayers for her mother, Hindun, because the deceased voted for the incumbent in the first round of the election. Despite regulations that all votes must be discreet, Sunengsih said several people may have known her mother voted for Ahok because she required voting assistance on account of her illness. My mother did not publicly declare that she supported Ahok. Because she didnt know anything [about the candidates] she just randomly voted for him and many people saw her vote, Sunengsih said.

However, a local ustadz (Islamic teacher) later said he denied the familys request to hold prayers in the mosque because it was about to rain. Ahmad Syafei, the ustadz, said he and other residents bathed the corpse and conducted special prayers in the familys home instead.

The weather did not allow us to take the corpse to the mosque, Ahmad said, adding that he helped the family bury the deceased in the nearby Menteng Pulo Cemetery in South Jakarta.

Sunengsih added that her neighborhood chief (RT) did not help arrange necessary documents, including her mothers death certificate, while she had to split her time between work and obtaining such documents.

Although many residents have made similar complaints, Sunengsih said her family suspected that the service she received had something to do with the election. Abdurrahman, the RT, denied the allegations.

Sunengsih told the Post that a family member had been intimidated by messages sent by the neighborhood unit secretary that said all ulema refuse to attend Islamic celebrations in areas where Ahok won.

The messages reportedly also said ulema would refuse to bathe and pray for deceased Muslims suspected as supporters of Ahok.

They also received a meme depicting a corpse that did not receive its last rites for not adhering to the Quranic verse Al Maidah.

Ahmad Ishomuddin from Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) said previously that denials of requests to hold prayers for deceased persons suspected of supporting Ahok were acts of intimidation
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Linkedin Farida Susanty and Djemi Amnifu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta/Kupang  Sat, March 11 2017

Domestic tourism may breathe in more fresh air this year thanks to peoples desire to travel, as they enthusiastically flocked to a travel fair that kicked off on Friday.

Fransiska Tiara, 26, had been waiting in line since 6 a.m. at the entrance of the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), where the annual Garuda Indonesia Travel Fair (GATF) was taking place, for a ticket to her dream destination Japan.

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Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Surakarta  Sat, March 11, 2017

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo is keeping calm despite mounting public pressure following the inclusion of his name in indictment documents related to electronic identity card (e-ID) procurement.

The indictment documents were for Irman and Sugiharto, two high-ranking Home Ministry officials who have been named suspects in a graft case related to the e-ID procurement project.

The documents claim that Ganjar accepted US$25,000 from the e-ID project. Ganjar was a member of the House of Representatives Commission II, which oversees regional affairs, when the case occurred. The documents state that three Commission II leaders, Chaeruman Harahap, Teguh Juwarno and Taufik Effendi, each received the same amount of money.

Ganjar has denied accepting money in relation to the e-ID project. Ive seen photos of the documents. It was said I received $25,000. Its not true, Ganjar asserted.

The governor refused to comment on their authenticity and instead questioned how photos of the documents could spread publically before the two suspects underwent their first hearing on Thursday.

(Read also: Indonesia's House speaker allegedly involved in e-KTP mega corruption scandal)

Ganjar said during questioning as a witness in the case at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) that he had been confronted by Miryam S. Haryani, alias Yani, a Hanura Party politician who is also implicated in the graft case. In front of two KPK investigators, Yani said she never gave Ganjar money.

Im not thinking about steps I will take in relation to the e-ID case. Since the very beginning, Ive asserted Im not involved in the case. (ebf)
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Linkedin Fedina S. Sundaryani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11 2017

In the toughest battle against a foreign investor, the central government has sought out and found a much-needed ally in the shape of the Papua administration in its negotiations with United States mining giant Freeport-McMoran Inc.

On Thursday, the governments negotiation team, led by the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministrys secretary general Teguh Pamudji, met up with Papuan Governor Lukas Enembe in Jayapura.

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Linkedin Farida Susanty (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11 2017

Touted as revolutionary transportation technology, the government is considering a proposal to construct a Hyperloop network, which has the capability to run at speeds faster than an airliner.

Hyperloop is a futuristic transportation system through which people travel in a pod shot through a tube dozens of feet above the ground at more than the speed of sound.

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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11 2017

The Jakarta Police detective unit raided a two-story house in Kapuk Muara subdistrict, North Jakarta, arresting numerous Taiwanese nationals for alleged fraud and online gambling in the upscale housing complex.

There is a strong indication that they have committed online fraud, Penjaringan Police criminal investigation unit head Comr. Rahmad Sujatmiko said as quoted by tribunnews.com, adding that police were carrying out further investigations.

Rahmad said police found some electronic devices, bank accounts and passports on the site. Dozens of reportedly Taiwanese nationals, male and female, were seen with heads bowed as the police carried out the operation.

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Linkedin Nury Vittachi (The Jakarta Post) Bangkok  Sat, March 11 2017

My journalist colleague was horrified after his spouse accused him of always speaking like newspaper headlines. Wife slams shocked scribe, he told me. Turn to page 5.

Headlines have been on my mind lately. It all started in February when there was a rash of headlines saying Smoking Good For Health after scientists revealed one tiny possible benefit of cigarettes (they prevented a case of anemia).

The same week, this headline appeared in Time magazine: Americas Top Fortune Cookie Writer Is Quitting Because of Writers Block.

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11, 2017

The Tourism Ministry, in cooperation with Chinese provincial tourism administrations, aims to raise the number of tourist arrivals from China by 50 percent to 2.1 million in 2017 from 1.4 million last year.

The ministrys director for Asia-Pacific tourism promotion, Vinsensius Jemadu, said that this years increase would be part of Indonesias target to attract 10 million Chinese visitors by 2019.

China is our strategic partner and main market for tourism. [Therefore] in the Tourism Ministry, China gets more than 50 percent of its budget for promotion, he said in a meeting with Hubei tourism administration in Jakarta on Friday.

Vinsensius further said that aside from cooperation with the Hubei tourism administration, the ministry had also established cooperation with Chinas Hainan tourism administration.

Next month, Hainan Airlines and Capital Airlines can fly to Jakarta three times a week, he said.

(Read also: Action needed to lure 10 million Chinese tourists to Indonesia)

Citilink, a subsidiary of national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia, was expected to fly to 17 cities in China from Tanjung Pinang in Riau Islands and Manado in North Sulawesi, based on the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by the Indonesian tourism minister in Beijing last year, Vincensius said.

The ministry offers an incentive of US$15 (Rp200,895) or $20 per passenger to airlines and wholesalers bringing visitors to Indonesian destinations outside of Bali and Jakarta. In addition, the Transportation Ministry will provide licenses of direct flights and offer free parking and landing to aircraft from Chinese airlines. (yon/lnd)
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Linkedin Marguerite Afra Sapiie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11, 2017

As the deadline for the government to respond to the House of Representatives second attempt to deliberate the controversial tobacco bill approaches, President Joko Jokowi Widodos administration has finally moved to assess whether discussing the bill would be worth it or not.

The President has appointed Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto to lead the talk on deciding the official governments stance of the deliberation of the tobacco bill.

Speaking at the Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Ministrys office on Thursday, Presidential Chief of Staff Teten Masduki said Wiranto had been tasked with gathering and coordinating input from related ministries to decide the bills fate, which was hanging in the balance because of disagreements among ministries, particularly the Health Ministry and the Industry Ministry.

The tobacco industry is a huge deal for us. There are still many aspects that we have to consider, so the governments position should be objective in this case, Teten said.

(Read also: Indonesia to decide stance on tobacco bill)

Studies from ministries related to the tobacco issue, including from the Health Ministry, the Industry Ministry, the Finance Ministry, the Home Ministry and the Agriculture Ministry, would be gathered and assessed by a team at Wirantos office to ensure that all aspects were considered before any decision was made, Teten said.

We just began the coordination since March 18 is the deadline to issue the presidential letter [...] Whether the letter would be sent or not, it is up to the results of the assessment by the coordinating ministers office, Teten added.

Previously on Tuesday, State Secretary Pratikno said the bill was being discussed by the Industry Ministry, the Manpower Ministry, the Health Ministry and the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister, leaving out Wirantos office.

The tobacco bill, which seeks to triple cigarette production to 524 billion by 2020, was initially rejected from the 2016 National Legislation Program (Prolegnas) by the Health Ministry, which was appointed by Jokowi to lead the discussion at the House.

However, the comeback of Golkar politician Setya Novanto as House Speaker paved the way for the inclusion of the bill in the 2017 national legislative program.

The Health Ministry has long campaigned for stronger tobacco control, which is crucial to saving around 200,000 Indonesians who die every year due to tobacco-related illnesses and to save Rp 378 trillion (US$28 billion) in economic losses caused by smoking.

The Jokowi administration, however, has been seeking to boost tobacco production to improve the welfare of tobacco farmers, an argument used by lawmakers in their efforts to pass the tobacco bill, which would require tobacco companies to use 80 percent local tobacco in their products.

In 2015, former industry minister Saleh Husin issued a 2020 tobacco road map that had targeted to triple current cigarette production. However, the ministerial regulation was annulled by the Supreme Court last year, on the grounds that increasing cigarette production was incompatible with child protection and public health, among other reasons.

Anti-tobacco activists have repeatedly made calls for Jokowi to kill the tobacco bill by not sending a presidential letter to the House as the bill was deemed to protect only the interests of the tobacco industry and has neglected health considerations.

Womens activist organization Womens Network for Tobacco Products Control (JP3T) added their voice to the growing calls from activists to reject the controversial bill.

I believe anyone who loves their children should reject this [bill], because we, as parents, want our children to be better than our generation, said Henny Supolo Sitepu, chairperson of the Yayasan Cahaya Guru teachers foundation.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Palu  Sat, March 11 2017

Members of the National Polices Densus 88 counterterrorism squad have arrested nine alleged terrorists in simultaneous operations in the regencies of Tolitoli and Parigi Moutong in Central Sulawesi, a hotbed of terrorism.

The first seven arrests were conducted on Friday morning following information received by police of an alleged plot to attack the Parigi Moutong Police office, Central Sulawesi Police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Hari Suprapto confirmed on Friday. Two more arrests followed at midday in Parigi Moutong.

The first seven alleged terrorists were identified only as SS, KF, SO, DW, Jef and IR, arrested in Tolitoli, and I, arrested in Parigi Moutong. The authorities had received information on their hideouts beforehand. No data was immediately provided on the two suspected terrorists arrested at noon.

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Linkedin Winda A. Charmila (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11, 2017

By holding a public discussion to assess the Jakarta Bay land reclamation project, the city administration has put a stake in the ground to restart the controversial project.

The administration on Friday summoned stakeholders, including those from ministries, agencies, universities and communities, to provide input to the strategic environmental assessment (KLHS), which forms the basis for developers to revise their Environmental Impact Analysis (Amdal).

The result of the discussion will be submitted to the Environment and Forestry Ministry next week at the soonest and later to the Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry.

Fajar Kurniawan of the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry called on the administration to guarantee the livelihood of fishermen living in the area and to pay compensation to residents affected by the project.

Our suggestions include the development of a fishing port on one of the reclamation islets and new settlements for the fishermen nearby, Fajar said.

(Read also: Ministry extends developers reclamation administrative sanction)

In addition, both the administration and developers should explain their plans to fishermen to avoid misunderstandings, Fajar added.

A report released in January by pressure group Peoples Coalition for Fisheries Justice (KIARA) suggested the project would double costs incurred by fishermen and drastically decrease their catches, thereby taking a serious toll on their income.

Jakarta Development Planning Board (Bappeda) head Tuty Kusumawati admitted that many fishermen near the Jakarta Bay did not know the administrations detailed plans to improve their livelihood.

We will provide big vessels and equipment for the fishermen to catch fish to allow them to sail longer, Tuty said, adding that the fishermen would be trained on skills and know-how about modern fishing methods.

According to Tuty, the administration will also provide low-cost apartments for the fishermen. Data from the Maritime Affairs, Fisheries and Food Security Agency show that around 2,100 fishermen live in North Jakarta.

Tuty said the administration was also considering to provide shelter for fishermen from outside Jakarta, most of whom lived on their boats.

Meanwhile, Denny Siahaan from the Transportation Ministry underlined that regular dredging would be necessary to maintain sea depth for big boats.

The [sea] transportation system must be taken into account, Denny said.

Even though many suggestions and concerns were voiced during the discussion, no stakeholder raised objections to the project. However, some parties that are opposed to the project, such as the Indonesian Traditional Fishermens Association (KNTI) and the Legal Aid Institute (LBH), were not invited.

The LBH did not receive the invitation, said LBH lawyer Tigor Hutapea, who is a member of a coalition opposed to the reclamation of land for a total of 17 islets.

The reclamation projects for Islets C, D and N were evaluated in June last year, while the Islet G project was halted. Many activists opposed to the project say it adversely affects the livelihood of fishermen, causes flooding and disrupts operations of the coal-fired power plant in Muara Karang.

Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar previously said the relevant parties should fulfill certain requirements prior to proceeding with the project. The requirements include a revision of the Amdal taking into account technical designs for power plant pipes, sedimentation mitigation and sailing routes for traditional fishermen.

Recently, the City Council added two draft bylaws  the zoning of Jakartas coastal areas and small islands bylaw and the Jakarta north coast strategic area spatial planning bylaw, to its list for deliberation this year.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Bali  Sat, March 11, 2017

Ngurah Rai International Airport will close flights to and from Bali for 45 minutes on Sunday to make way for Saudi Arabias Monarch Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who will be leaving the resort island after a week-long vacation.

King Salman and his entourage are scheduled to take off at 10.30 a.m for Haneda, Japan, using three of the Saudi Kingdoms jets. One of the planes will transport the king and medical staff while the other two will carry his entourage and cargo, PT Jasa Angkasa Semesta (JAS), a company that handles the kings ground handling, said Saturday.

Flight activities will stop from 10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m., Ngurah Rai Airport spokesman Arie Ahsanurrohim told Kompas.com.

The clearing of the airport was the same protocol when the king arrived on the island last Saturday. Saudi Arabias embassy in Jakarta previously said the king decided to have vacation in Bali because he loved the sea. He initially planned to leave last Thursday before eventually deciding to stay for three more days.

(Read also: Bali welcomes King Salman)

The kings entourage, reportedly 1,500 in total, had gradually started to leave the resort island on Saturday. PT JAS said there were two flights carrying 230 people of the kings retinue, which left on Saturday.

The visit to Indonesia is part of the kings wider agenda to tour Asian countries in an effort to rekindle Saudi Arabias relation with Asian countries. (saf/ary)
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Linkedin Hans David Tampubolon (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11 2017

Kong: Skull Island, the latest film take on the modern legendary monster ape King Kong, is a set of beautifully rendered computer graphic imagery (CGI), special effects and breathtaking sceneries covering what seems to be a hollow script.

Since the first King Kong movie in 1933, which was followed up by two remakes in 1976, and 2005, the monster ape has become a modern cult icon because of its unique characteristics. It is both ferocious and gentle; it is fearsome and yet we root for him because he represents the monster inside each of us.

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Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan  Sat, March 11, 2017

Thousands of hectares of forests in Mount Leuser National Park in North Sumatra and Aceh are reported to have been illegally encroached upon and converted into widespread plantations of oil palms, rubber trees, cacao trees and coffee plants.

To restore the natural functions of the protected forests, the park management office is planning to curb the rampant spread of the illegal plantations.

A joint team of the parks officials and security apparatus had reconverted some 75 hectares of plantation in Sei Lepan district, Langkat regency, North Sumatra last month, cutting down the commercial vegetation and replanting indigenous flora. In the near future, the same measure would also be taken on another 80 hectares that had been turned into plantations in Southeast Aceh regency, said Joko Iswanto, the spokesman of the Mount Leuser National Park office.

The reconversions are aimed at restoring the natural functions of the whole area within the national park where the officials would clear the plantations and replant them with forests trees.

Joko expressed regret that the conversions had been going on in the area for years, but so far no measures had been taken to restore its function as a protected forest. More than 2,000 hectares within the National Park had been converted into plantations, which were mostly spread throughout Langkat, North Sumatra and Southeast Aceh.

The forest conversions were mostly committed by local people who were supported by payments from outside investors.

Most of the investors come from Medan, Joko said.

(Read also: Protection sought for Leuser ecosystem, Sumatran orangutans)

Joko also said that the national park had been intensively conducting preventive measures using persuasion to stop local people from destroying the protected forests. Thanks to the measures, 18 encroachers had voluntarily handed over their illegal plantations to be restored back into protected forest.

He said various kinds of vegetation had been replanted in the area after hundreds of two- to five-year-old palm trees were all cut down.

Very recently, seven non-governmental organizations grouped under the Mount Leuser National Park rescue coalition asked President Joko Jokowi Widodo to save the park from rampant encroachments.

Panut Hadisiswoyo of the coalition said the encroachments were massive in the national park, illegally converting the forests into plantations and housing for local people.

He said the total area of the park was 838,872 hectares, but it continued to decrease because of the encroachments, especially in Langkat regency, North Sumatra.

The area in Langkat is the worst encroached, Panut said.

The most massive conversions occurred in the Barak Induk area in Sei Lepan and in Lapangan Tembak in Besitang district in Langkat. He claimed that some oil palm plantations in these areas were under the control of some companies.

Some palm oil companies have been operating in the national park area for years. Surprisingly, no one has the guts to get rid of them, he said.

The park had been listed in UNESCOs World Heritage in Danger list in 2011 following rampant encroachments along with two other national parks in Sumatra: Kerinci Seblat National Park in West Sumatra, Jambi, Bengkulu and South Sumatra, and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park in Lampung and Bengkulu provinces. The three national parks were declared by UNESCO to be World Heritage Sites in 2004.

According to UNESCO, Sumatran tropical rainforests are home to 10,000 plant, 201 mammal and 580 bird species. They also serve as a habitat for mammals that needed a large range for roaming, such as Sumatran tigers, orangutans, elephants and rhinos.

Punut said that if by 2018 the encroachments could not be settled, the Mount Leuser National Park most likely could be excluded from UNESCOs list of worlds heritage sites.

If that is the case it will be a bad record for Indonesia as it is not capable of preserving the area already declared as a part of the worlds heritage, he added.
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Linkedin News Desk (Associated Press) Ramallah  Sat, March 11, 2017

President Donald Trump invited Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to the White House to discuss resuming peace talks in their first contact since Trump took office in January.

Abbas' spokesman Nabil Abu Rdeneh said that Abbas would travel "very soon."

The White House said in a statement that the two leaders on Friday discussed ways to advance peace throughout the Middle East, including a comprehensive agreement that would end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"The president emphasized his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal," the White House said. "The president noted that such a deal would not only give Israelis and Palestinians the peace and security they deserve, but that it would reverberate positively throughout the region and the world."

Trump underscored that such a peace agreement must be negotiated directly between the two parties, and that the United States will work closely with Palestinian and Israeli leadership to make progress toward that goal, the statement said.

"We are ready to deal with President Trump and the Israeli government to resume the negotiations," Abu Rdeneh said. "If the Israelis are ready, President Abbas has committed himself to a peaceful deal with President Trump."

Abu Rdeneh added that "President Trump is a very honest man, very courageous man, looking for a deal, a just deal."

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government.

The last round of U.S.-mediated peace talks collapsed in 2014.

Friday's call was the first between Trump and Abbas since Trump took office.

In his efforts to secure Palestinian statehood, Abbas has spent many hours on the phone and in meetings with U.S. presidents and secretaries of state over the past decade, but has been unsuccessful when reaching out to Trump  until now.

Trump is unpopular among Palestinians because he appeared to break from his predecessor and adopt friendlier positions toward the Israeli government; ambivalence has marked his position toward a two-state solution to the conflict, he's considering to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, which the Palestinians seek as the capital of their future state, and has adopted a more lenient approach to Israel building settlements in territory claimed by the Palestinians.

However, Trump's administration last week warned Israel against annexing parts of the occupied West Bank, saying it would trigger an "immediate crisis" between the two allies.

The move suggested Trump may be returning to more traditional U.S. policy and will not give Israel free rein to expand its control over the West Bank and sideline the Palestinians, as Israeli nationalists had hoped. (dan)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, March 11 2017

Kanti Sumarni, a 58-year-old housewife who resides at the Penjaringan low-cost rental apartment building (rusunawa) in North Jakarta, used to stress out when one of her neighbors died, as nobody in her neighborhood understood how to handle the matter.

We used to call a resident from another apartment block to take care of the deceased, because no one in my neighborhood could take care of the body according to Islamic teachings, Kanti said.

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Linkedin Markus Makur (The Jakarta Post) Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara  Sat, March 11, 2017 09:46 2067 a291276806121264c0bd211cde429d3a 1 News komodo,KomodoNationalPark,Komodo-National-Park,cruise,cruise-ships,travel,tourism,labuan-bajo,Flores,West-Manggarai,#travel,#tourism Free

The number of cruise ships visiting Komodo National Park in West Manggarai regency, Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, has reportedly increased.

Labuan Bajo Port administration unit office head Usman Husin told The Jakarta Post that from January until March they had welcomed up to 13 cruise ships carrying hundreds of foreign visitors.

Throughout last year, the park was visited by a total of 24 cruise ships.

"Today we welcomed the Australian cruise ship Coral Discovery to Rinca Island with 47 foreign tourists and several crew onboard, " said Usman on Friday, adding that two other cruise ships carrying hundreds of foreign visitors were also scheduled to visit the location on March 11 and 14.

(Read also: 16 fun facts about Komodo National Park you probably don't know)

Meanwhile, Le Pirate Labuan Bajo Hotel manager Servasius Irwan Budisetiawan said that the tourism industry in West Manggarai had improved as the number of tourists in the area continues to increase.

West Manggarai's tourism industry continues to improve and provide benefits to local residents. The investments [in the area] have also increased. I'm [currently] training locals to improve their tourism-related skills, he added.

The endangered Komodo dragons and natural beauty are among the park's two main attractions. It began to welcome more foreign tourists since the giant lizard was recognized as one of the world's seven wonders. (jes/kes)
(lead article, editorial)

Debate politics at Middlebury, dont attack

political rights!

The Socialist Workers Party urges all supporters of free speech and the rights of working people to unequivocally condemn the March 2 actions by over 400 students and professors, middle-class leftists and a group of thugs at Middlebury College in Vermont to prevent conservative author Charles Murray, who wrote, from giving a lecture on his most recent book,

Socialist Workers Party members from Albany and New York City, along with Alyson Kennedy, the SWP candidate for president in 2016, are on their way to Middlebury to debate a working-class course toward revolutionary change and the importance of expanding political rights today. They will go on campus and to workers doorsteps in Middlebury and surrounding working-class neighborhoods.

In the course of the event, campus officials and the meetings organizers were forced to cancel the public meeting and move the talk to a private room, where it was broadcast by video. Murray had to be protected from physical assault, and the professor who moderated the talk was attacked and injured, requiring emergency medical treatment.

Working people need the political space to organize and debate out the road forward, and advance the fight against the effects on us of todays slow-burning capitalist economic crisis. This is the road to unite our class, win allies and chart a course to take political power.

In these conditions, the propertied rulers are coming to fear our class and are looking for ways to close down political space. Many now argue that workers are too stupid to be allowed to vote.

The organized goon tactics of those who slandered Murray as a white nationalist and racist and chanted racist, sexist, anti-gay, Charles Murray go away, helped the rulers.

A golden opportunity was missed to publicly debate and expose The Bell Curves class biases and the anti-working class fears of the capitalist rulers and their meritocratic backers like Murray.

The Bell Curve is taken up and taken apart in the 2016 Pathfinder Book Are They Rich Because Theyre Smart? Class, Privilege and Learning Under Capitalism by Jack Barnes, National Secretary of the Socialist Workers Party.

The book is a retread of discredited views, but not primarily scientific or pseudoscientific ones about IQ, genetics, and so on. It has some of that too, but thats not the main point. The book is subtitled Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life. That is what it is about. Its about social class above all, even more than it is about race. Its about the fear that the majority cannot be conned  and cannot be lightly policed  forever.

Whats at issue is the attempt to defend the wealth and class privilege of a so-called meritocratic layer  the cognitive elite is the euphemism chosen by Murray and Herrnstein.

Murray goes on to describe what they fear. An increasingly isolated cognitive elite. A merging of the cognitive elite with the affluent. A deteriorating quality of life for people at the bottom of the cognitive ability distribution.

They fear the conditions that are breeding what Hillary Clinton called the deplorables, who today are searching for a way to fight their deteriorating quality of life.

The next issue of the Militant will report from Vermont on how this political debate is unfolding, a debate with high stakes for working people everywhere.





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(front page)

New govt order bars people from 6 majority

Muslim nations

President Donald Trumps March 6 revised executive order, which the administration titles Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry, is aimed at withstanding federal court challenges like those that blocked implementation of his earlier anti-Muslim, anti-working-class order.

The new order still places a temporary moratorium on travel to the U.S. from a number of predominantly Muslim nations, but it explicitly states that the ban does not apply to permanent residents or anyone who already has a visa, one of the parts of the earlier order that helped fuel large protests across the country.

It imposes a 90-day moratorium on the entry of citizens of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen  the same countries that the Barack Obama administration had previously singled out for closer scrutiny. Iraq is no longer on the list, because the White House says the Iraqi government is already implementing improved vetting. The ban begins March 16.

The order no longer imposes an indefinite ban on refugees from Syria. Instead, it includes Syria in a 120-day moratorium on refugees from anywhere in the world and lowers the annual limit of refugees legally entering the U.S. to 50,000  less than half what it has been.

Meanwhile, deportations of undocumented immigrants continue, with the threat of implementation of broader moves allowed for in Trumps Jan. 25 executive orders. These actions against the immigrant section of the U.S. working class are being widely discussed by working people of all nationalities.

For decades workers born here have been working and living alongside workers without papers, and theyve got to know and trust each other. Deportations and immigration raids are less popular than ever in the working class.

This is a union household and a Trump household, Karen Tranchina told Candace Wagner, who had knocked on her door to introduce the Socialist Workers Party in Brooklyns Sunset Park neighborhood March 5. I dont like a lot of what Trump says and does, but I really hate Hillary Clinton.

Tranchina said she knows a lot of people who are undocumented, Italian, Mexican, from everywhere. I have friends who say, deport them all. I dont agree with that.

What the bosses want is a superexploited section of the working class that they can use to push down wages. The unions need to fight for amnesty as part of unifying working people, Wagner told her. That makes sense, Tranchina said.

Osborne Hart, Socialist Workers Party candidate for mayor of New York, met with a group of West Africans in Orange, New Jersey, March 5. The SWP demands amnesty  everyone whos here is here  and says no more raids or deportations, he said. And were against any immigration tests based on religion, nationality or political views.

Every country has its own borders and immigration laws, Shermelle Colemen Grant told Roger Calero and this correspondent, who were campaigning for the Socialist Workers Party door to door in the Bronxs Hunts Point neighborhood. I think that immigrants who commit crimes should be kicked out. But many of my neighbors in this building are immigrants. And they havent done anything wrong. They just want to work. Theyre worried about whats going to happen.

I dont want my neighbors deported

Some people say that Blacks and Latinos dont get along, but thats not true, Grant said. We share each others food. Our kids play together. I dont want to see them deported.

We have to build a revolutionary workers movement and not let them divide us, Calero said.

Along with his anti-immigrant rhetoric and threats to accelerate these anti-worker measures, Trump has echoed calls made earlier under former presidents Obama and George W. Bush calling for immigration reform, telling the New York Times Feb. 28 that Democrats and Republicans need to compromise. In his speech to Congress later that day Trump said that the U.S. should switch away from lower-skilled immigration and instead adopt a merit-based system.

Most immigrant workers  their confidence strengthened by the successful March 16 Day Without Immigrants nationwide strikes and protests  are not panicking, but are waiting to see what develops. We are understanding the power that we have, Mario Ramirez, an organizer with Voces de La Frontera, said by phone from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, March 8. The group organized a march of 20,000 March 13 to protest the raids and deportations and is helping to initiate nationwide actions on May 1. In 2006 millions went on strike to protest a bill in Congress that would criminalize undocumented workers.

In fact under Trump, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement cops continue the same policies on the ground as the Obama administration. The widely publicized Feb. 6-10 sweeps that picked up more than 680 immigrants were smaller than many similar actions under Obama. Like those raids, Immigration and Customs Enforcement claimed they were targeting individuals who had previously done time for serious crimes or had been accused of major offenses. And as they picked up people at home, on the street or at other locations, other undocumented workers who were not accused of serious offenses were also picked up.

There have also been some cases where people who had been reporting to ICE on a regular basis while awaiting hearings on their appeals of deportation orders, who expected to be granted an extension like they had other times over the last several years, instead were deported.

The Department of Homeland Security, CNN reported March 4, is considering a proposal to separate children from adults when they are trying to enter the country illegally. Under current policy, families are kept together in detention or released while awaiting an immigration hearing. Homeland Security has also threatened to prosecute parents who are undocumented immigrants as smugglers if they pay someone to bring their children to the U.S.

But so far these proposals are just on paper.

U.S. District Court Judge Derrick Watson set March 15 for a Hawaii legal challenge to Trumps revised orders on refugees and visitors from the six majority-Muslim countries. Thats one day before they are set to go into effect.





Related articles:

LA: SWP demands amnesty for undocumented workers!

Hundreds demand ICE release Daniel Medina







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(special feature article)

Living example of the Cuban Revolution helps explain what socialism really means

Below are the remarks by Mary-Alice Waters at a Feb. 15 presentation on Cuba and Angola: The War for Freedom at the Havana International Book Fair (see accompanying article ). Waters is a member of the National Committee of the Socialist Workers Party and president of Pathfinder Press. Copyright  2017 by Pathfinder Press. Reprinted by permission.



First, a thank-you to Gen. Tete Puebla and the Association of Combatants of the Cuban Revolution, including all of you who are here with us today. Its an honor to be able to present this book to a gathering so representative of Cubas history of proletarian internationalism.

On behalf of Pathfinder Press, I also want to extend a warm welcome to the distinguished ambassadors from Congo-Brazzaville, Namibia, South Africa, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Equatorial Guinea who are with us today, as well as other members of the diplomatic corps from Angola and Mali.

Among those with us today are four other companeros without whose contributions this book might not have appeared, at least not with all the qualities it has. They are our chairperson and coeditor of the book, Martin Koppel; Roger Calero, a member of Pathfinders staff; Lt. Col. Jose Garciga, whose own service in Angola and research helped verify many details; and especially Iraida Aguirrechu of Editora Politica, whose diligence and editorial skills were indispensable.

Above all, of course, a very special thank-you to General Harry Villegas  for giving Pathfinder the privilege of working with you to publish Cuba and Angola: The War for Freedom. For us and many others around the world, you will always be Pombo.

I think we tried Pombos patience more than once with our interminable questions, as we worked together to bring this book to fruition. Now that the product of his labor is in hand, we hope he will forgive us.

Ill share with you the one criticism Pombo has voiced so far, however. He didnt get to express an opinion about which color we used for the Spanish cover, and which for the English. But after seeing both, he told us he likes the red one better. The combatants of the FAR are known to be watermelons, he said: You may be green on the outside, but on the inside youre red.

To speak the truth

A few days after the death of Fidel last November, supporters of the Cuban Revolution in New York organized an activity across the street from the Cuban mission to the United Nations to express our respect and solidarity. The de Blasio administrations police confined us to a small area on a sidewalk, but we made our presence known to passers-by with banners and chants of Cuba si, bloqueo no! among others.

We took special measures to keep business entrances along the sidewalk clear, but inevitably some customers were annoyed and wondered what was going on. So an employee at a small cafe came out to ask  at first with quite an edge to his attitude. Chef Obadiah, he said his name was; he was African American.

We explained why we were there, to honor Fidel and his leadership of the Cuban Revolution. We told him about Cubas internationalism in Africa, its aid to Angola, and support for the independence struggle in Namibia. And we showed him a copy of How Far We Slaves Have Come! with Nelson Mandelas tribute to the Cuban people for their role in the historic defeat of the South African apartheid regime.

His response?

In a very different tone of voice, he said, I never knew that Cubans helped free southern Africa! Why didnt I learn that in school?

I cite this to convey why for us in the United States it is so important that this new book by Pombo is now circulating in both English and Spanish  and before long in other languages too.

As a special note, Ill add that within a few months, one of those languages will be Farsi, a language widely spoken across the Mideast and Central Asia  not only in Iran, but also Afghanistan, Kurdish areas of northern Iraq, Tajikistan, the Caucasus, and elsewhere. Its a region where we know from firsthand experience theres a real thirst for more and truthful information about the Cuban Revolution. A few weeks from now Pathfinder will be taking this book by Pombo, and many others available at this meeting today, to a large book fair in Erbil, in northern Iraq, only some 80 kilometers [50 miles] from the front line of battle in Mosul.

The story of the chef in New York, with one or another variant, occurs over and over again in our political activity among workers and youth in the US. And it is not only those who are African and African American who react as he did.

I hope Gerardo [Hernandez] will say a few words about similar experiences he had during his long years in prison as part of the US working class behind bars, including the respect the Cuban Five won among fellow prisoners as a result of their service in Angola. In the pages of Its the Poor Who Face the Savagery of the US Justice System, an interview with the Five published by Pathfinder last year, they describe how the record of Cubas internationalism in Africa is one of the things that helped protect them.

What does socialism mean?

Cubas example in Africa is also one of the clearest ways we have to explain what the oft-abused word socialism really means. Its not the socialism that supposedly exists in Sweden according to Bernie Sanders, nor does it have anything to do with his timid calls for regulating the banking system of global financial capital  or to be more precise, regulating the money capitalists worldwide in whose interests and by whom that globalist system has been constructed.

A socialist revolution is something very different. As Fidel and Che and Raul  and those of you here today  have always demonstrated in action, socialism is about working people broadening their scope, to borrow the phrase of the great US revolutionary leader Malcolm X. It is about learning who we are capable of becoming  how we transform ourselves, as we fight to transform our economic and social relations. Transform how we live and work together, as we break the chains of capitalist exploitation and compulsion.

The multiple generations of Cubans who served in Angola received an indelible education in capitalism, and not only the enormous historical brutality of its colonial version.

That is what was captured so well by Rauls words in May 1991, when he welcomed home the last Cuban combatants returning from Angola. The Angolan mission was not a sacrifice for the Cuban people, he emphasized. It strengthened and steeled them for the challenges to come  above all, as history turned out, the challenges of the Special Period.

If our people know themselves better, if all of us know much better what we are capable of achieving, said Raul, that too is thanks to Angola.

Fidels political, military leadership

I want to make only one more point.

Pombos words are addressed to youth everywhere. That includes youth here in Cuba, both inside and outside the FAR. It is, above all, a book about Fidels political leadership of the Cuban Revolution and how those political capacities are the foundation of Fidels military leadership. It is a class question. A revolutionary army is always anchored in the irreconcilable difference between the values of the dog-eat-dog world of capitalism and the moral values  proletarian moral values, I would say  that Fidel has instilled in us all from the very first days of the revolutionary struggle.

For me, that above all is what comes through in Pombos account. The dignity and respect with which every human being is treated  Cuban, Angolan, Namibian, whether friend or enemy combatant.

The determination to win every battle with the least possible sacrifice of human lives.

The concern for the education and care of the children of Cassinga  survivors of the horrendous massacre in May 1978 carried out by South African forces at the Namibian refugee camp there in southern Angola.

The respect for women everywhere and insistence that Cuban womens participation in the war was, as Fidel put it, a moral necessity, a revolutionary necessity.

The insistence that any Cuban who committed a crime in Angola be tried under Angolan law.

The insistence that those not willing to fight for the freedom of others will never be able to fight for their own.

All this, and much more you will find in these pages.

How Rebel Army learned to fight

As most of you here today know firsthand, Fidel will go down in history as one of the greatest military commanders of the toilers, of the humble.

In reading Pombos account, I keep being reminded of a story I first heard from General Nestor Lopez Cuba or General Enrique Carreras some twenty years ago, I dont remember which of them it was. It was while we were conducting the interviews published in Making History: Interviews with Four Generals of Cubas Revolutionary Armed Forces, a wonderful book that contains interviews with Generals Jose Ramon Fernandez and Harry Villegas in addition to Carreras and Lopez Cuba.

One of them had been part of a Cuban leadership delegation to a congress or other event in the Soviet Union. During a reception, he and other officers of the FAR were talking with a group of their counterparts in the Soviet military, who expressed admiration for Fidels military leadership in Angola.

Where did your commander acquire that knowledge? one of the Russian officers asked. At what military academy did he study?

Our Cuban companeros could hardly contain their amusement as they replied, Fidel didnt learn to fight by reading a textbook or taking a class. He learned, as we all did, by fighting.

That is the story of any genuine revolution.
(special feature article)

Cuba & Angola: the war for freedom in

southern Africa

Havana event on book by Pombo highlights Cuban Revolutions proletarian internationalism and moral values

HAVANA  I was asked to say a few words about my experiences in prison and as an internationalist combatant, said Gerardo Hernandez. But frankly, I feel a little uncomfortable talking about that here, surrounded by so many combatants with so much history.

Hernandez was speaking at a Feb. 15 presentation of Cuba and Angola: The War for Freedom by Harry Villegas, known around the world by his nom de guerre, Pombo. The launching of the Pathfinder Press title, published in both Spanish and English, was part of the Havana International Book Fair.

Hernandezs description was not an overstatement. The overflow audience of 120 included dozens of revolutionary combatants  veterans of Cubas internationalist missions abroad, especially in Angola and other African nations, and of Cubas own revolutionary battles. Hernandez himself is one of the five Cubans who spent more than a decade and a half in U.S. prisons for their actions in defense of the Cuban Revolution. He and two others of the Five also served in Angola.

Attending the event were diplomatic representatives of eight African countries. They included the ambassadors from Congo-Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo), South Africa, Namibia, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo (previously Zaire), and Equatorial Guinea, as well as the cultural attaches of Angola and Mali.

Cuba and Angola: The War for Freedom is a book-length interview with Harry Villegas, a brigadier general in Cubas Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR), now retired. Its a firsthand account of Cubas volunteer military mission in Angola, which between 1975 and 1991 helped defend the newly independent country against multiple invasions by the South African apartheid regime and its backers in Washington and other imperialist governments.

The 1988 defeat of the South African army at what is known as the battle of Cuito Cuanavale assured Angolan sovereignty. It also led to the independence of Namibia and hastened the end of white-supremacist rule in South Africa.

In addition to Villegas, the speakers presenting the new book were Victor Dreke, Gerardo Hernandez, and Mary-Alice Waters. Dreke is the head of the Association of Combatants of the Cuban Revolution in Havana Province and president of the Cuba-Africa Friendship Association. Hernandez is today vice rector of Cubas Higher Institute of International Relations. Waters is president of Pathfinder Press, co-editor of Cuba and Angola: The War for Freedom, and a member of the National Committee of the Socialist Workers Party in the United States.

Joining them on the platform were Brig. Gen. Delsa Esther Tete Puebla, vice president of the Combatants Association, and Col. Leonardo Tamayo, better known as Urbano, who in 196667, together with Villegas, was part of a revolutionary column that fought in Bolivia under Che Guevaras command. Urbano and Pombo were two of the five combatants who eluded capture by the Bolivian army and its U.S. advisers after Che and others were killed.

Also joining the platform were Aleida Guevara March, daughter of Che Guevara, and Iraida Aguirrechu of the Editora Politica publishing house, who assisted in preparing the new book.

The War for Freedom, Dreke told the audience, tells the story of Cubas participation in the liberation of Angola and other countries in Africa, responding to the requests of African governments and liberation movements.

Dreke himself was part of a unit of Cuban volunteers, led by Che Guevara, who in 1965 fought in the Congo alongside Congolese anti-imperialist fighters. In 1966-68, Dreke also headed Cubas mission aiding forces in Guinea-Bissau fighting for independence from Portugal.

Fidels decisive leadership

This account of the Angola mission, Dreke said, is told from a unique vantage point. Villegas served there in 197779, commanding a Motorized Infantry Regiment in Angolas northern region. He then returned in 1981, serving for some seven years as liaison between the Cuban command in Angola and the Revolutionary Armed Forces special command post in Cuba, headed by Fidel Castro.

A liaisons assignment in a war, in addition to the military dangers, carries great political responsibilities, Dreke noted. Providing accurate information is crucial to those making decisions. And Fidel, as commander in chief, would ask about even the smallest details. Youll read in the book how our commander would ask Pombo, Tell me what youve seen, not what anyone else has told you. Give me your opinion.

Hernandez said The War for Freedom offers an accurate account of Cubas role in the liberation of southern Africa. Young Cubans need to know this history, he insisted. And that becomes increasingly important as the events become more distant for new generations.

Its no secret that in many places in the world today, when there is talk about the independence of Angola, or the end of apartheid and the release of Nelson Mandela from prison, Cuba is often not even mentioned, Hernandez said. Revolutionaries around the world are in constant battle against imperialisms propaganda machine, which seeks to distort and rewrite history to their liking.

Cuban combatants set example

Hernandez paid tribute to the members of the Association of Combatants of the Cuban Revolution present in the meeting, not only for their support to the worldwide campaign to free the Cuban Five from U.S. prisons, but above all for their own example. It was the heroes and heroines who came before the Five, he said, who with their example charted a course of struggle and resistance that inspired us in prison.

Mary-Alice Waters noted how communist workers in the United States and other countries are using Cuba and Angola in their political activity among workers and youth. Through the living example of the Cuban Revolution, she said, the record Villegas presents helps us explain what socialism really means. A socialist revolution is about learning who we are capable of becoming  how we transform ourselves, as we fight to transform our economic and social relations.

What comes through in Pombos account, said Waters, is the proletarian moral values instilled by Cubas revolutionary leadership, especially Fidel Castro: The dignity and respect with which every human being is treated  Cuban, Angolan, Namibian, whether friend or enemy combatant. The determination to win every battle with the least possible sacrifice of human lives.

And Why, in Fidels words, those not willing to fight for the freedom of others will never be able to fight for their own. (See Waters remarks on this page.)

Needed for new generations

Villegas described how Cuba and Angola came about over several years of collaboration with the books editors, while he was the executive vice president of the Combatants Association, working under the leadership of its president, Commander Juan Almeida. The book was aimed especially at young people in the United States and other countries, he said. But the Combatants leadership also found it valuable as a way to promote revolutionary values among the young generations of Cubans.

Collaboration between Pathfinder and the Combatants Association, Villegas added, has also led to books based on interviews with several other general officers of the Revolutionary Armed Forces. He cited Marianas in Combat by Tete Puebla, a firsthand account of the Mariana Grajales Womens Platoon in the Rebel Army during the Cuban revolutionary war; From the Escambray to the Congo by Victor Dreke; and Our History Is Still Being Written: The Story of Three Chinese-Cuban Generals in the Cuban Revolution, one of whose authors, Brig. Gen. Gustavo Chui, was in the audience.

Tete Puebla pointed out that Cubas internationalist solidarity extends far beyond Africa to lesser-known experiences, such as its support to the Vietnamese liberation war.

Fidel always reminded us that everywhere where Cubans fought, the only thing we brought back was the bodies of our fallen combatants, she said.

We learned about colonialism

Leonardo Tamayo spoke about his participation in Angola in a battalion of special troops of Cubas Ministry of the Interior. The battalion landed literally hours before the countrys formal independence ceremony on Nov. 11, 1975, and was pivotal in the initial battles that repelled the invasion by Zairean and South African troops.

We had the opportunity to learn about the hardships imposed by colonialism on the Angolan people, Tamayo said. And we were respectful toward the people of that country in every way.

Aleida Guevara spoke about her participation in the Angola mission as a young pediatric doctor. For Cubans of her generation who served in Angola, it was an experience that marked us for life, she said. She contrasted the brutal realities she witnessed, faced by millions across the semicolonial world, with the gains won by Cuban working people through a socialist revolution.`

Speaking from the audience, Gen. Gustavo Chui, who was severely wounded in the Angolan war, mentioned his own experience organizing the staff of the special command post in Havana at the beginning of the war in 1975. He underscored Villegass description of Fidel Castros decisive political and military leadership in winning the victory.

Today, Chui said, when people talk about the war in Angola, they often think only of the victorious battle of Cuito Cuanavale in 1987-88. But Angola was a long struggle. It extended over 15 years.

Pascal Onguemby, ambassador of Congo-Brazzaville and dean of the diplomatic corps in Havana, commented that in talking about the war in Angola, people often forget to mention the Republic of the Congo. He emphasized the crucial act of the Congo-Brazzaville government in November 1975 in allowing the initial Cuban forces to land there on their way to Angola to defeat the Zairean and South African invasion.

Over the decades, no country in the world has done for Africa what Cuba has done, Onguemby explained.

Cuba went to Africa to fight the Ebola epidemic, while others sent guns, he said. How can you fight Ebola with guns? Onguemby was referring to the Cuban medical volunteers who went to Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone in 2014 to fight the deadly epidemic, in contrast to Washington, which sent a few medical professionals along with hundreds of troops.

Ambassadors and diplomatic representatives of the other African countries present also took the floor, thanking Cuba for its decades-long internationalist solidarity.

At the end of the meeting, those in attendance bought all 180 copies available of Cuba and Angola: The War for Freedom, along with several dozen other books at the Pathfinder table.





Related articles:

Join May Day International Brigade to Cuba

Conference on solidarity with Cuba set for NY

Living example of the Cuban Revolution helps explain what socialism really means







Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home




New Delhi, March 11 (IBNS): Del Monte, known for its branded processed food and beverage products in India, participated in Aahar 2017, an annual International Food and Hospitality fair held in New Delhi.

The Del Monte stall was designed to look like an European high street where different cuisines such as Oriental, Italian, desserts, continental, mocktails etc. were showcased and sampled using Del Monte products.

The eclectic range on display by Del Monte included Packaged Fruits & Vegetables, Fruit Fillings, Fruit Drinks, Ketchup & Sauces, Mayonnaise and variants, Chinese Sauces, Pasta, Pasta Sauces, Table Olives and Olive oil.

The US-based global brand Del Monte was brought to India in 2007 by a joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and Del Monte Pacific Ltd. The JV is called FieldFresh Foods Pvt Ltd.



Yogesh Bellani, CEO, FieldFresh Foods Pvt. Ltd. said, Globalization has exposed Indian consumers to a variety of international cuisines, spurring a demand for authentic international flavors. Del Monte constantly endeavors to provide the best quality ingredients and food products, and bring authentic and delectable tastes from across the world to our patrons. Our participation at Aahar 2017 is a move towards positioning Del Monte as a World Food Solution Provider offering the visitors an extraordinary culinary experience.



Bharti Enterprises, has interests in telecom, agri-business, and retail. With over 228 million customers, Bhartis flagship unit, Airtel Ltd., is Indias leading private sector provider of telecommunication services.



Del Monte Pacific Limited is listed in the Singapore Stock Exchange.
When police in Arkansas pulled over a man late on a Friday night, they perhaps expected protests that he wasnt driving under the influence.

But what they probably didnt expect was for the driver to prove he was sober by juggling.

Weve gotta admit were impressed with some of those skills on show. That spin at the end?! Damn

The man behind the juggling was Blayk Puckett, a junior at the University of Central Arkansas. He told Arkansas Matters that he was driving really carefully home from the library because he knew his brake light was out.

Sergeant Keith McKay, from UCA police, pulled him over. A lot of times, especially around a college campus, the later in the night it gets, the slower they go, and especially if they almost hit a kerb once, its a typical indication they might be impaired, McKay told the paper.

(Blayk Puckett/Facebook)

When Puckett explained he was a magician, the police reportedly asked if he wanted to show them some magic. So the student got out his juggling clubs from the back seat of his car and, yep, the police even filmed it for him.

In the video, posted on Facebook, you can hear McKay say: This guy is definitely not intoxicated.

What did the police think of all this? Well, they didnt give Puckett a ticket  and we reckon it was surely a pretty fun traffic stop to make.

And, just to show the crazy juggling wasnt a fluke, heres another picture of Puckett in action
Easter is one of the best times of the year to visit Central America: from the 20th-27th of March the region comes alive with all sorts of festivities, from exotic processions to street parties, as part of the Semana Santa celebrations.

The Easter festivities in Central America draw similarities with historic religious festivals in Spain, but each countrys celebrations are strongly linked to their indigenous heritage, making a visit to Central America at this time of the year a unique and exciting experience.

Here are some of the most exciting events in Central America during Semana Santa.

Semana Santa in Antigua Guatemala:

If you are looking for vibrant Semana Santa Celebrations then Antigua Guatemala the place to be. The city begins the first day of Lent with mile-long processions of floats and religious statues carried by locals donned in purple robes, winding through cobble stoned streets. The tradition of making Alfombras (colourful carpets of saw-dust, flowers, fruit and other materials that adorn the streets) brings locals and visitors together.

Whilst the traditions reflect the religious influence from Spain 500 years ago, the carpets have a strong Mayan influence with distinctive Mayan symbols and nature scenes.

www.audleytravel.com/guatemala/itineraryideas/ultimateguatemala Audley Travel offers a 13 day 'Grand tour of Guatemala' holiday which travels from Antigua, Lake Atitlan, Quetzaltenango, Lanquin and El Peten with departure dates during Easter week. The tour is priced from 4,425 per person including international flights.

Via Crucis Acuatico on Lake Nicaragua

Every year on April 10th Nicaraguans celebrate Via Crucis Acuatico, a festival that is only found in the country. The Viacrucis Acuatico event is made up of a procession of 40 boats which sail around the islands of Granada on Lake Nicaragua, the largest lake in Central America. The boats are decorated with flowers and religious images of Jesus and travel to each island to receive offerings. Tourists and locals alike flock to the lake to celebrate Easter and admire the historic and beautiful procession.

www.exodus.co.uk/nicaraguaholidays Travel to Nicaragua with Exodus on its Highlights of Nicaragua'tour. The 13-day tour during Easter week from 20th  27th March is priced from 2,059 per person including flights from the UK, accommodation, local transport, listed activities and some meals.

The Arbol Granadillo in Panama

In the province of Veraguas there is a unique pilgrimage every year during Easter Week. Locals and tourists travel to La Trinidad on the west coast of Panama to visit the Arbol Granadillo, which is a flowering tree native to Central America. The tree only blooms once a year during Easter Week, so locals believe it is sacred and has powers to heal. Visitors place flowers and candles at the tree and pray for their health.

www.kuoni.co.uk/northandcentralamerica/centralamerica/tours/centralamericapanorama Kuoni has launched a 16 night Central America Panorama escorted small group tour that visits the highlights of Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama, with a departure on 25th March coinciding with Semana Santa. Prices of the tour are available upon request.

The Holy Saturday Cross Country Race in Belize

Belize has celebrated the Holy Saturday Cross Country Race over Easter Weekend for over 80 years. Over 100 cyclists take part in the 140-mile race, which goes from Belize City to San Ignacio-Santa Elena in the west, and back to Belize City. The race started in 1928 to encourage people to cycle from village to village (and overcome the bumpy roads). The best way to experience the race is to get there early and stake out the best spots, which are at the start and finishing lines where the race is at its most exciting.

www.imaginetravel.com/holidayideas/theultimatebelizeadventure Imagine Latin America runs a variety of holidays in Belize with departures during Easter week including a 13-night 'ltimate Belize Adventure tour which travels from the culture-rich Mayan villages and Mayan ruins, to jungle wilderness and white sandy beaches. The holiday is priced from 3,900 per person excluding international flights.
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New Delhi, Mar 11 (IBNS): Sri Lankan government has released 77 Indian fishermen and others are expected to be released soon, according to Gopal Baglay, the official spokesperson of India's External Affairs Ministry.

On Saturday, Baglay tweeted, "77 out of 85 Indian fishermen released by Sri Lanka govt. Put up in Jaffna, await repatriation. Release of remaining expected soon."

On Tuesday, the Indian government had communicated its concern to the Sri Lankan government regarding the death of an Indian fisherman, allegedly killed by the Sri Lankan Navy.

The Sri Lankan Navy promised a full investigation in the matter, the MEA said, according to a tweet by Baglay.

On Wednesday, India and Sri Lanka agreed to release fishermen held in each others custody after a high-level discussion between the two countries in Colombo, media reported
Amritsar, Mar 11 (IBNS): Leading his party to victory in Punjab, Congress state chief Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday said that the party high command and Vice President Rahul Gandhi will decide on Chief Ministership in the state.

Addressing a press conference, Capt. Singh gave full credit to the party workers for the win.

While speaking on the reasons for the party's comprehensive victory, he said, "I think people of Punjab want development, industries, education and heath care so they voted for us."

He even urged the Centre to cooperate for widespread development in the state.

"I hope the Union government will help people of Punjab towards development and good governance," Singh said.

Poll strategist Prashant Kishore, who had helped Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2014 general election, assisted Congress in Punjab.

About Kishore, Singh said: "Our workers did everything. Kishore made strategies and our workers implemented them."

Singh, who turned 75 on Saturday refrained from making any comment on the poor results of Congress in Uttar Pradesh.
Lucknow, Mar 11 (IBNS): Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati accused Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of tampering with voting machines in Uttar Pradesh polls after BSP's crushing defeat in the Assembly election.

BJP had a landslide victory in UP bagging over 300 seats while BSP was reduced to18.

While interacting with the media on Saturday, Mayawati said: "EVM machines were tampered with. I would urge the Election Commission of India to hold the results in UP as well as Uttarakhand and investigate the matter."

BJP also had a comprehensive victory in Uttarakhand.

Questioning the authenticity of the poll result in UP, BSP chief said: "We cannot understand how BJP won maximum seats in Muslim populated areas with no Muslim candidate."

BSP had given tickets to 97 Muslim candidates in the UP election 2017.

Mayawati, who said once a reporter in her press conference too pointed it out, said that she wants fresh election in UP with ballot papers.

BSP came third in UP election following Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance who secured the second spot.

During the campaigning in the Muslim dominated areas of UP, Mayawati had urged tthe people to vote in favour of BSP to prevent BJP from winning.

However, Samajwadi Party refused to make any comment on Mayawati's allegation but said that EC must look into her complaints.

Union minister Babul Supriyo in an interview to NDTV opposed such allegations hurled by BSP chief.

"She must take a chill pill. Her statement today is her last statement," Supriyo said hinting that her political career is nearing its end.

Image: Facebook
Clean up Phuket! Mayor launches campaign to clear garbage from Patong streets

PHUKET: Tired of huge bags of rubbish on the streets of Phukets busiest tourist town, Patong Mayor Chalermluck Kebsup is having a smartphone app developed that will allow the public to report with photos and GPS co-ordinates unsightly piles to be collected by a roaming garbage truck dedicated to responding to the complaints.

patongpollutionhealthenvironmentnatural-resources

By Tanyaluk Sakoot

Saturday 11 March 2017, 09:00AM

Patong Mayor Chalermluck Kebsup directs the cleanup in the dirty Pakbang Canal, which runs through the heart of Patong. Photo: Patong Municipality

Workers clear the filthy Pakbang Canal, which runs through the heart of Patong. Photo: Patong Municipality

Council workers do the rounds clearing bags of garbage from the streets of Patong. Photo: Patong Municipality

Council workers do the rounds clearing bags of garbage from the streets of Patong. Photo: Patong Municipality

There is too much garbage on our streets. Even with our teams out every night collecting rubbish, its still there. The garbage situation in Patong is worrying, Mayor Chalermluck told The Phuket News this week.

In some areas, the garbage bins are overflowing and the rubbish spills onto the ground. We try to keep these areas clean, but there is too much rubbish and the problem remains. It does not look good at all.

A key contributing factor to the sheer volume of garbage dumped on the streets of Patong are residents and businesses placing their rubbish on the footpaths for collection outside the indicated collection hours, Mayor Chalermluck explained.

We keep telling people to place their rubbish on the street for collection only between 6pm and 2am, but they keep dumping it beside the road at all hours.

Regular garbage collection hours do not work when people only do what suits themselves, she added.

The app, developed under the Smart City policy, will be operational  in English and Thai  by April, Mayor Chalermluck confirmed.

The app is being developed as a part of creating Patongs future. The Phuket committee responsible for the Smart City projects gave Patong the chance to benefit from this, so I asked for this application, she said.

However, Mayor Chalermluck declined to reveal how much is being spent on developing the app.

Chalermrat Dilokpat, Managing Director of D-Kids, the contracted garbage collector in Patong, said the app is already being used to analyse which hot spots produce more garbage for collection than others.

Phuket Vice Governor Teera Anantaseriwidhya, who chairs the Provincial Garbage and Wastewater Committee, suggested the app may be used elsewhere for cleaning up other areas on the island.

The committee must solve these issues. It must take more effective action about all forms of waste disposal on the island, V/Gov Teera said.

The Patong Report app is a good idea. If this (app) helps to make Phuket cleaner, it could be worth presenting to the committee as another way to help solve waste issues. I certainly would support it, he added.

Meanwhile, the provincial garbage and wastewater committee is currently developing a campaign to appeal to peoples hearts in a bid to prevent roadside dumping.

The project is Phuket is beautiful by our hand, which will call for people and officials to have the heart to clean up garbage and be more effective in resolving our islands waste issues, he said.

* Click here for the app on Google Play.
Dept plans Uber meeting over legality

BANGKOK: Deputy Transport Minister Pichit Akrathit plans to hold talks with the operator of a mobile application used for hailing taxis over its call for legal amendments to enable its services to operate legally in Thailand.

crimepolicetransport

By Bangkok Post

Saturday 11 March 2017, 08:50AM

The company claims it is not a taxi service, but a ride-sharing service provided by smartphone applications and there are currently no regulations that recognise the ride-sharing service. Photo: via Bangkok Post

Mr Pichit said he expects to meet representatives from California-based Uber within a week or two to discuss the firms claim that the Thai law governing public transportation is obsolete and its service cannot be registered as public transportation.

In a recently released statement, Uber called for legal amendments to better enable its service to operate in Thailand in the wake of a crackdown on the ride-hailing taxis especially in Chiang Mai and Bangkok.

The company claims it is not a taxi service, but a ride-sharing service provided by smartphone applications and there are currently no regulations that recognise the ride-sharing service.

Simultaneously, an online campaign is under way calling on the Transport Ministry to legalise the ride-sharing service that operates through contacts made via smartphone applications.

Mr Pichit said the service provided by Uber is illegal and the company is required to follow the law and related regulations.

He insisted that legal amendments, if any, will not be carried out to accommodate a specific group of operators.

Currently, the Department of Land Transport (DLT) is amending ministerial regulations to improve the quality of taxi services and passenger safety so more people decide to use the taxis, he added.

DLT Director-General Sanit Phromwong said yesterday (Mar 10) that the use of smart phone applications to hail taxis is not illegal and the problem is with the use of private cars to pick up passengers for a fee.

He said personal cars are not allowed to be used as paid public transport and the service is illegal under Sections 21 and 60 of the Vehicle Act. Moreover, the drivers do not have a public transport driving licence.

Mr Sanit said the department already held talks with the operators to inform them their cars must be registered as taxis, noting that the regulations exist to ensure the safety of passengers and the public.

Experts said the ride-sharing service has gained tremendous popularity as more and more people are drawn to the convenience it provides. Also, many preferred the service over the taxis after a run of bad experiences.

The complainants said some taxis refused to pick them up, abandoned them half way through the ride, cheated them on fares or were downright rude. The experts warned the recent crackdown on the ride-sharing service might pit regular customers of the service against the authorities.

On Monday (Mar 6), decoys were deployed posing as customers to catch owners of the ride-sharing vehicles in a joint operation conducted by the DLT, the military and the police in Bangkok. The operation netted 18 offenders, including the owner of a brand-new car.

Meanwhile, five Uber drivers were reportedly fined HK$10,000 (B45,600) each yesterday after being found guilty of driving without a permit and third-party insurance in Hong Kong.

Read original story here.
German child murderer confessed to second killing: police

GERMANY: A 19-year-old man who stabbed a nine-year-old boy to death and bragged about the murder in an online video has confessed to a second killing, German police said yesterday (Mar 10).

crimedeathmurderviolence

By AFP

Saturday 11 March 2017, 11:50AM

Marcel Hesse, after three days on the run, was arrested late Thursday (Mar 9). Photo: AFP

Marcel Hesse, after three days on the run, was arrested late Thursday (Mar 9) after he went into a restaurant in the northern town of Herne and shouted Call the police, Im wanted, Bild newspaper reported.

Authorities had been hunting for Hesse since Monday night (Mar 6) after the video clip had appeared on the darknet, a hidden online arena notoriously used by criminals to trade weapons, drugs and child pornography.

Police discovered the childs corpse on Monday when they searched the cellar of the suspect, who has been described as an unemployed and socially withdrawn man not previously known to authorities.

After his arrest, police said Hesse led them to the remains of the second victim, a 22-year-old man, whom he knew from a job training college, and whose flat he set on fire after the murder.

After killing the child, Hesse had gone to the mans apartment, had a meal, played computer games with him and spent the night there, said the lead investigator into the killings, Klaus-Peter Lipphaus.

The victim confronted Hesse the next morning after seeing that he was being hunted by police.

That was his death sentence, said Lipphaus.

The 19-year-old allegedly turned on him, stabbing him 68 times.

Prosecutor Danyal Maibaum said Hesse acted out of a lust to kill, while Lipphaus described him as extremely ice-cold, emotionless.

Hesse also confessed to setting his friends apartment on fire before leaving the scene, police said.

He told police he had not given any thought to whether the fire could put other peoples lives in danger, added Lipphaus.
Rassada marks National Municipality Day in Phuket

PHUKET: More than 300 volunteers and officials from Rassada Municipality united at the Srisuchat Grand View 3 village yesterday morning to take part in cleanup event to mark National Municipality Day.

environmentanimalspollution

By The Phuket News

Saturday 11 March 2017, 11:11AM

Rassada Mayor Mr Phudit Raksarat leads the group on the activity to mark National Municipality Day. Photo: PR Dept

The group, led by Rassada Mayor Mr Phudit Raksarat, took part in the Big Cleaning Day as municipalities around the country marked National Municipality Day which falls on March 10 each and every year. Mayor Phudit said, This activity was originally created to honour King Rama V who created National Municipality Day in 1905. Our group has today taken part in a cleaning activity at Srisuchat Grand View 3 village, which has also seen repairs carried out to the areas lighting. In addition, local residents dogs and cats have also been provided free rabies shots, he said.
Thai actress Patt to face money-laundering charges

BANGKOK: Police will charge actress Napapa Patt Tantrakul with money laundering and laundering conspiracy, allegedly for B30 million unaccounted for in her bank accounts after her husband faced same charges in connection with a Lao drug cartel.

corruptioncrimedrugspolicetransport

By Bangkok Post

Saturday 11 March 2017, 04:15PM

Napapa Patt Tantrakul at an event held by TV Channel 3 in June 2015. Photo: Post Today

Lt Gen Sommai Kongwisaisul, commissioner of the Narcotics Suppression Bureau, said today (Mar 11) that Ms Napapa would be among the relatives of Akarakit Benz Racing Worarojcharoendet summoned for questioning because police found about B100 million suspiciously connected to many groups of people. Of the sum, about B30 million was with the 30-year-old actresss accounts.

After being questioning on Monday (Mar 13), police would inform the actress of the charges and would seek the Criminal Courts approval for her detention right away. Police interrogators would object her temporary release, the commissioner said.

Ms Napapa married her husband of the same age last November and had a child in mid-February.

Early this month, Mr Akarakit was charged with money laundering and laundering conspiracy in connection with a recent crackdown of the major drug network run by Lao drug kingpin Xaysana Keopimpha, now in police custody.

Lt Gen Sommai said earlier that police had established a link between Mr Akarakits financial transactions and those of the illicit drug network.

Mr Akarakit was released on bail for B500,000.

According to the police investigators accusations submitted to the court against Mr Akarakit, he colluded to launder money with Natthaphol Boy Nakkham, who was arrested on Feb 1 in connection with the Xaysana drug network.

Mr Natthaphol had allegedly supplied Mr Akarakit with drug money and the latter had used it to buy properties and run businesses, said the investigators in the charges submitted to the court.

Read original story here.
Tiny Benin looks to tourism to boost economy

BENIN: With its palm tree-lined beaches, unique heritage and wildlife parks, Benin can hold its own against the best African holiday destinations.

transporttourismculture

By AFP

Saturday 11 March 2017, 04:00PM

The museum at the small Beninese coastal town of Ouidah. Photo: Stefan Heunis/AFP

But tourism revenue accounts for just 0.7% of gross domestic product and there were only 240,000 visitors in 2014, according to World Bank figures.

That compares to an average of one million visitors a year in Senegal, which is one of the most popular destinations in West Africa.

Now Benins government wants to change the situation.

Weve got 200,000 people without doing anything. Imagine what we could do with a bit of effort? We could double that, said the head of the national tourism agency, Jose Pliya.

The agency, which was set up several months ago, is the focus of President Patrice Talons new drive to boost tourist numbers and as a result the wider economy.

Our aim between now and the end of (Talons) five-year term is to reach 700,000 tourists, Pliya said.

Some 600 billion CFA francs (B33.95 billion) will be pumped into the sector over five years, notably through a World Bank loan.

In his small office in the former Portuguese fort of Ouidah, the head of the towns museum, Bertin-Calixte Biah says it is an unprecedented effort and is happy that the state is finally putting in the money.

Weve got to take stock of our heritage, train guides, put in place a policy of cultural promotion... It costs a fortune, he said.

Nevertheless, he said he was waiting to see the pledges become a reality.

Ouidah is a small town on the Atlantic coast and a former West African slave port to the New World. Under the governments new plan, it will be the countrys tourist hub.

The town has the same Portuguese colonial architecture as Salvador de Bahia in Brazil, but it is more worn.

Ouidahs beaches, however, stretch for miles and there are villages dotted around the lagoon, colonial-era forts as well as a strong culture of the voodoo tradition.

It is also the home of sub-Saharan Africas first museum dedicated exclusively to contemporary African art.

Groups of Germans, Belgians, Italians and French come to Ouidah to take photos of themselves with pythons wrapped around their necks, unclear whether they should be terrified or enjoying it.

Dont worry, says the guide. Theyre sacred. They wont do you any harm!

The head of the towns tourist office, Modeste Zinsou, described the town as a living museum.

Tourism has a direct economic impact on the population. It pays for hoteliers, but also villagers, canoe drivers and fishermen. The problem is that Benin is not very well known.

One of the main problems facing Benin is getting there in the first place.

The government has in response lifted visa restrictions for citizens of 30 African countries to encourage business travel from across the continent.

As a general rule Africans dont do leisure tourism, which is a lot more Western, said Pliya.

Now our aim is change the situation, so those who are business travellers will spend a day or two at leisure. We want to create new tourists.
Lucknow, Mar 11 (IBNS) : Riding a wave called Narendra Modi, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday hit right at heart of India, sweeping with aplomb the Uttar Pradesh election and far surpassing even the exit poll results in an indication that the juggernaut it has set rolling may refuse to stop in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Making a mincemeat of the Samajwadi Party-Congress combine, that many thought would put up a grim battle, the BJP has either won or led in 317 of the state's 403 seats, recording a feat for any party in the last 37 years to have gained the 300 plus majority in Uttar Pradesh.

To form a Government in Uttar Pradesh a party requires to bag 202 seats.

The SP-Cong alliance won only 64 seats and Mayawati's Bahujan Party 18.

All the BJP top guns attribute the astounding v ictory to Narnedra Modi's charisma as party workers have started celebrating holi all over.

In UP, the BJP's lead is a big gain of 269 over what it achieved in the 2012 Assembly election.

The BJP is also poised for another sweep to capture power in the adjoining Uttarakhand, as it took comprehensive lead in 57 of the state's 70 seats, while the Congress is ahead in only eleven.

Goa appears to be heading for a hung Assembly as the Congress and BJP are going neck and neck, respectively winning or leading in 16 and 13 of the 38 seats, results or trend for which have been declared so far. The state has 40 seats with 21 being the magic figure for capturing power..

The only consolation for Congress comes in Punjab, where it is leading in 77 of the 117 seats, surging much ahead of the halfway figure of 59 and making sure its ascent to powers.

In Punjab the Aam Aadmi Party takes the second spot and the ruling Akali Dal- BJP combine third, respectively leading in 22 and 18 seats.

Elections of all states were held in phases and the last phase of election ended on March 8.

BJP president Amit Shah thanked voters and BJP workers and said the Prime Minister will be felicitated on Sunday evening.

Summing up the position that Modi now commands within the BJP by dint of his leading the party to successive victories, especially the one in UP, Union Minister Smriti Irani commented : "This is a win of Modiji's leadership and Amit Shahji's hard work. It has broken all barriers of religion, caste and creed."

Another Minister Piyush Goyal said, " Today, the nation is standing with PM Modi. This is the victory of the people of UP."

Union Minister and senior BJP leader Ravishankar Prasad :"Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seen as a messiah of the poor now with his measures and the UP poll results are a tectonic shift in Indian politics," said senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad

"You cannot explain this result in a simple way. It is a tectonic shift in politics of India. I think young Muslims also voted for us," said Prasad, speaking to a TV channel.

"I would say whole UP went for change. Modi is seen as a leader of the poor, messiah of the poor. The limitation of Bihar perhaps we overcame here in UP," he said.



Another BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi said the results even surpassed her own estimation of seat tally in UP and in this election the result was not owing to polarisation but constructive politics.

Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh on Saturday said a mandate for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh is what the Opposition has to accept as he emphasised on building young and regional leadership for Congress but ruled out Rahul Gandhi quitting as the Congress vice-president since the Gandhi family is the binding factor in the party.

"This is the mandate of the people and we have to accept that. Time has come for national parties and this is also somewhat a downslide for the regional parties," he told a national TV channel.

"Congress has to build up regional leadership. We have to build up new leaderships in the state," he said.

To a question on Rahul Gandhi stepping down, Singh said that is not possible. He said the Nehru Gandhi factor is the biggest binding factor for the Congress party.

"We have to take decisive action on what we have to do in regional levels to have new leaders," he said.



A senior Congress leader earlier said the parties should now move beyond Modi phobia and campaign.



PARTY POSITIONS AT 3 pm



UTTAR PRADESH: BJP+317, SP-CONG 64, BSP 18, OTH 4

PUNJAB: INC 77, SAD+ 22, AAP+18, OTH 0

UTTARAKHAND: BJP 57, INC 11, OTH 2

GOA: INC 16, BJP 13, OTH 9

MANIPUR: BJP 13, INC 11, OTH 9, PRJA 0
New Delhi, Mar 11 (IBNS): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National President Amit Shah said that India will be free from casteism and appeasement from now onwards, after the victory of his party in UP and Uttarakhand.

BJP has won comprehensively in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and is having a close fight in Manipur with Congress.

Shah has attributed the victories of these two states to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party workers.

He even claimed their victory in UP and Uttarakhand to be greatest victory since Independence.

He said, "Results of all five states that went to polls will give a new direction to politics of India."

"This victory will end casteism, rule of a single family and appeasement. People will vote for politics of performance now," the BJP President added.

Uttar Pradesh is known for its caste politics.

Speaking about the reason behind his party's success in recent polls, Shah said, "Demonetisation, electricity in village, sanitation and various schemes earned support from people."

Shah added that double digit growth rate (GDP) would be impossible without the growth of the most populous state in India.

However, in Punjab, the BJP-Akali Dal had to settle for the third place as Congress took top stand.

Regarding the defeat in Punjab, Shah said that his party will introspect and analysed the result.

"We will introspect and analyse where we lagged behind," he said.

Though Goa is heading towards a hung assemble, Shah claimed that BJP would form its government there.

Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, a BJP candidate, lost his seat.

The party president also refrained from making a comment on Mayawati's allegation against BJP, where the BSP leader accused the Narendra Modi led party of tampering with voting machines.

"I can understand her state of mind," he said.

Amit Shah informed that the Prime Minister will be present in the BJP parliamentary meeting on Sunday, where the Chief Ministers of the winning states will be decided.



Image: Official twitter handle of Amit Shah




Lucknow, Mar 11 (IBNS): Samajwadi Party chief and outgoing UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said that perhaps people of UP want more development than SP did during its tenure as he addressed the media in a post defeat press conference accepting defeat in the hands of the saffron party.

Referring to the expressways constructed during his tenure, Akhilesh said: "May be people want bullet trains over expressways."

Samajwadi Party received a crushing defeat in UP where the SP-Congress alliance could only manage to get slightly higher than 50 seats.

Congratulating the winning party BJP, the SP President said: "I hope the new government will perform better than us."

Samajwadi Party had contested in 298 seats leaving 105 seats to its alliance partner Congress.

Though the alliance failed miserably, Akhilesh said that forming alliance was a good decision.

"Alliance between two young people was absolutely right and it will continue further," he added.

In a tone of sarcasm, Akhilesh said the poor people and farmers are unaware about their needs and wants.

He even attacked the demonetisation and said: "I am eager to see how much black money of rich people will be transfered to poor people."

Indirectly referring to Modi's campaign, Akhilesh said: "Votes can be gained by instigating and not by making people understand."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was criticised by the alliance for referring to equal distribution of electricity during both Hindu and Muslim festivals in one of his speech.

Speaking about Mayawati's allegations against BJP tampering voting machines, former CM of UP said: "The new government must investigate the matter when there is a complaint. I am also eager to see where votes have gone."

Earlier at a press conference, Mayawati alleged that the BJP indulged in tampering of vote machines and urged EC to repoll in both UP and Uttarakhand with ballot papers.

Image: Official twitter handle of Akhilesh Yadav

(Writing by Souvik Ghosh)
New York, Mar 11 (Just Earth News): With tens of thousands of civilians forced to flee their homes following a spike in fighting across western and central Yemen, the United Nations refugee agency on Friday appealed for more international support, as well as unrestricted access within the country so that it can reach those now facing aabysmal conditions.a



According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 62,000 Yemenis have been displaced over the last six weeks.

A number of those displaced, including many children, have been reported as suffering from malnutrition, while others are distressed and in need of psycho-social assistance, William Spindler, a spokesperson for the UN agency, told journalists at a media briefing at the UN Office at Geneva (UNOG) on Friday.

Many of those displaced are in urgent need of food, shelter and medicine and lack adequate water and sanitation facilities. A number of women also reported psychological distress and malnutrition.

Facing danger from both the sky and the land

A 28-year-old mother of three who fled her home in Al Mokha (western Yemen) with her husband and children, and another family, crammed into a vehicle for a 150-kilometre, eight hour journey.

UN response

Together with its partners, UNHCR has stepped up their efforts to help those newly displaced. The response, however, has been hampered by ongoing fighting and restricted access such as in Taiz governorate, which has the highest number of recent displaced.

Whilst [our] assistance has previously reached Taiz, intensified hostilities at present are hampering access, Spindler added, noting similar problems in Dhamar governorate, bordering capital Sanaa.

[We] continue to advocate for unfettered access and [are] trying to mobilize a response with all national actors on the ground, he stressed.

At the same time, local host communities are also stretched to capacity and are buckling under the strain of hosting additional, newly displaced populations.

Not including the tens of thousands newly displaced, the governorates of Taiz, Hudaydah and Ibb between them host 25 per cent of Yemens total displaced population  more than half a million individuals.

Budget shortfall by 93 per cent

UNHCR too is struggling to cope with the crisis and calling for international support to help its efforts.

Its 2017 budget for Yemen, so far, is only seven per cent funded, leaving it with resources only sufficient to deal with urgent emergency needs and restricted to new waves of displacement.

We are no longer able to support regular distributions including to internally displaced Yemenis living in collective centres and informal settlements, said Spindler.

Before the latest surge, Yemen already had more than two million internally displaced people and one million who provisionally returned to their places of origin but still needing humanitarian assistance.

Photo: UNHCR/Shabia Mantoo

Source: www.justearthnews.com
New York, Mar 11 (Just Earth News): Although a decline in cases of Zika virus infection has been reported in some countries, there is still a need for heightened vigilance, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Friday, issuing fresh guidance on the virus that has been linked to birth defects and neurological complications.

The new WHO data also lists countries where the Aedes aegypti mosquito is present, but where there is no sign of the Zika virus.

The insect is considered to be the main transmitter of the disease, which has been identified in more than 80 countries to date.

As such, WHO says that overall, the global risk assessment has not changed and the [Zika virus] continues to spread geographically to areas where competent vectors are present.

The current data adds some 70 countries to the list of those considered to be at-risk. These are countries where theres no sign of the virus, but where the Aedes aegypti mosquito is present; it is considered to be the main carrier of the virus.

Speaking to UN News in Geneva, WHO technical Officer Monika Gehner said: [The new guidance] helps us because now we can assess risks more precisely. Now, even if you do not have Zika virus transmission, but if you have the Aedes aegypti mosquito, you are at risk of Zika virus transmission.

She went on to stress that amid surging global travel, a traveller who is infected with Zika virus may go to an area in a country and in fact mosquitos that are established there, and a mosquito can then transmit to other people and so on, so you have a cycle of transmission.

The aim of this new WHO guidance is not to spread alarm. Instead, its a call to governments to do more to prevent the spread of Zika.

This requires greater surveillance of mosquito populations and research into suspected Zika infections, as well as better diagnostic techniques and updated health advice to at-risk communities and travellers.

Photo: UNICEF/Ueslei Marcelino

Source: www.justearthnews.com
New York, Mar 11 (Just Earth News): Noting growing prevalence of afake newsa and propaganda in both legacy and social media, United Nations and key regional human rights experts have called on State actors to ensure that they disseminate reliable and trustworthy information, including about matters of public interest, such as the economy, public health, security and the environment.

State actors should not make, sponsor, encourage or further disseminate statements which they know or reasonably should know to be false (disinformation) or which demonstrate a reckless disregard for verifiable information (propaganda), read a Joint Declaration issued last week by the experts.

The Declaration was made by the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye, along with his counterparts from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Organization of American States (OAS), and the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR).

Fake news has emerged as a global topic of concern and there is a risk that efforts to counter it could lead to censorship, the suppression of critical thinking and other approaches contrary to human rights law. In this Joint Declaration, we identify general principles that should apply to any efforts to deal with these issues, explained Kaye in a news release issued by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

The Declaration also identifies applicable human rights standards, encourages promotion of diversity and plurality in the media and emphasizes the particular roles played by digital intermediaries, as well as journalists and media outlets, and notes that they should consider including critical coverage of disinformation and propaganda as part of their news services in line with their watchdog role in society, particularly during elections and regarding debates on matters of public interest.

It also notes that States have a positive obligation to promote a free, independent and diverse communications environment, including media diversity, which is a key means of addressing disinformation and propaganda.

Further, the Declaration notes that all stakeholders  including intermediaries, media outlets, civil society and academia  should be supported in developing participatory and transparent initiatives for creating a better understanding of the impact of disinformation and propaganda on democracy, freedom of expression, journalism and civic space, as well as appropriate responses to these phenomena.

UN Special Rapporteurs and independent experts are appointed by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council to examine and report back on a specific human rights theme or a country situation. The positions are honorary and the experts are not UN staff, nor are they paid for their work.

File Photo: World Bank

Source: www.justearthnews.com
Eleven Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were killed on Saturday when Naxals ambushed a road opening party of the security forces in Maoist-hit Sukma district of Chhattisgarh, police said.

Five jawans were also injured in the attack that took place in the dense forests of Bhejji police station limits at 9:15 am when a patrol party of CRPF's 219 battalion was out for a road opening task near Kotacheru village.

112 security personnel were part of the patrol party.

The Naxals also looted ten weapons and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.

A senior official said that the road opening party (ROP) of CRPF's 219th battalion was on an operation to ensure security to a patch on the under-construction Injram-Bhejji road, around 450 kms away from the state capital.

While the ROP was passing through the forests between Bhejji and Kottacheru villages, Naxals opened indiscriminate fire on them, he said.

Officials said the security personnel were first trapped in multiple Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blasts followed by ambush with heavy gunfire.

Additional forces have been rushed to the spot and the bodies of the deceased are being retrieved, he added.

The injured have been air lifted and brought to the CRPF field hospital in Bheji.

A special CoBRA team has been rushed in as a reinforcement.
After the Congress party swept Punjab with nearly two-third majority, the party's chief ministerial candidate Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday termed the massive victory as a collective feat of the people of the state, as well as the party high command and its workers.

Thanking electorates for giving a clear mandate, the Punjab Congress Pradesh Committee (PPPC) chief described the poll outcome as a mandate for stability and progress, as well as good governance. Congress is committed to the nine-point agenda contained in the party's poll manifesto and would initiate its execution without delay, the former chief minister added.

When asked about the factors contributing to the failure of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab, Captain said that the voters of Punjab are sensible and had seen through the AAP farce. The AAP bubble had burst with their outright rejection by the Punjab voters.

Captain announced that he would be meeting the Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi soon to submit his recommendations on cabinet formation. The issue of deputy chief minister would also be decided by the party vice president, he added.

He hoped that their government in Punjab would get the support from the BJP led government at Centre in taking forward the development agenda for the state.

Trailing at third position by getting merely 15 seats, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) said that it accepts the mandate given by the people of Punjab and will extend support to the new government for the welfare of the state.

The SAD chief patron and CM Parkash Singh Badal said that his party was ready to extend full cooperation to Captain Amarinder Singh to work for the rights of Punjab. He also announced to meet the Punjab Governor tomorrow submitting his resignation.

SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal also congratulated Capt Amarinder for the victory and said that their party would co-operate with the new government on all pro-Punjab issues.

The party would take stock of the polls performance soon, he added while stating that the SAD-BJP has got an impressive 30.4 per cent of the vote share.

Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi too called up him to congratulate on his partys landslide victory in the state assembly elections. Modi spoke to Capt Amarinder on telephone to convey his regards and extend his governments full support for the development of Punjab.
Spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP stormed to power in Uttar Pradesh in an unprecedented fashion, sweeping the assembly elections by winning 312 of the total 403 seats in the crucial Hindi heartland state, which is likely to have a significant bearing on Mr Modi's second prime ministerial bid in 2019 general elections.

The Modi juggernaut also rolled on through the adjoining state of Uttarakhand, powering the BJP to a staggering win there as well. Fuelled by Mr Modi's electioneering, the BJP defeated the incumbent Congress comprehensively and won 57 of the total 70 seats in the Himalayan state.

For the struggling principal Opposition Congress, the silver lining in its overarching cloud of gloom and doom was the result of assembly polls in Punjab where the party, led by a spirited Capt Amarinder Singh, pulled off a landslide victory, ousting the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP combine from power while snuffing the emerging challenge from the debutant Aam Aadmi Party. The Congress bagged 77 of the total 117 seats in Punjab.

Hung assemblies were thrown up in BJP-ruled Goa and Congress-ruled Manipur, with the Congress emerging as the single largest party, within striking distance from a simple majority mark in both the states where it would still need the support of a couple of smaller parties or Independents for the required three seats each in this regard. The BJP is, however, expected to make fierce attempts to muster the numbers to form its own alliance governments in these two states.

In the elections to the 40-member Goa assembly, the Congress got 17 seats compared to the BJP's 13. In the 60-member Manipur House, the incumbent Congress's individual tally stood at 28 as against the BJP's 21.

However, the most politicallysignificant results decisively came from the sprawling state of UP where riding on a Modi wave ~ for the second time since 2014 Lok Sabha elections ~ the BJP clinched a stunning triumph, even as the SP-Congress alliance forged by the SP's chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi was routed and the Mayawati-led BSP was virtually wiped out.

Backed by the BJP president Amit Shah's protracted ground work, thorough planning and astute poll management, PM Modi's aggressive campaign through the length and breadth of UP in the course of its seven-phase February-March elections ensured the BJPs spectacular return to power in the state after a gap of 15 years.

The elections in these five states, especially UP, were considered to be the first major electoral test on a mass scale for the PM Modi's demonetisation move. Given the intensity and sustained pitch with which all the rival leaders ~ including PM Modi, Mr Shah, Rahul, Akhilesh and Mayawati among others ~ raked up this issue to project their conflicting rhetoric among the people, today's poll results were perceived as "public endorsement" for the controversial note ban measure.

The BJP's rich electoral dividends in UP will also have significant ramifications for the party on several fronts ~ ranging from boosting its numbers in the Rajya Sabha where it still does not enjoy majority status, to further strengthening its role vis-a-vis the upcoming election of the new President of India, to boosting its prospects in coming elections in states like Gujarat and Karnataka.

Its most striking implication might however be felt in the 2019 general elections when thanks to the BJP's performance in Uttar Pradesh, Mr Modi could be in pole position while taking his second shot at his office.

The Uttar Pradesh election result further reinforced Mr Modi's place in the BJP's pantheon, with a legion of its leaders, Union ministers and chief ministers giving credit to his "popularity" and his "pro-poor and pro-development policies" for the party's triumph in UP and Uttarakhand.

The Opposition camp, on the other hand, blamed their polarising campaign among other factors for its debacle.

Rahul Gandhi's leadership within the Congress might have been further undermined in the wake of these results. He had invested a lot into his UP campaign, even as the party leaders and workers have been getting restive in the face of one crushing electoral defeat after another. With his mother, the Congress president Sonia Gandhi, increasingly withdrawing herself from active political work apparently due to health reasons, Rahul would also have to assume the party presidentship soon against such a grim backdrop, even as the 131-year-old party has still not been able to figure out any alternative other than its instinctive dependence on the Nehru-Gandhi family for its leadership.

Today's results have clearly dealt a severe blow to the regional players like Akhilesh and Mayawati ~ and even the AAP leader and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal ~ who will be forced to now recalibrate their politics and strategies. Despite the hype, the AAP could not achieve much in the Punjab and Goa polls.

As regards Akhilesh, who quit as Uttar Pradesh chief minister in the evening, the poll catastrophe could spark another round of bitter intra-family power struggle within the Samajwadi Party, pitting him against his father, SP founder and UP satrap Mulayam Singh, and uncle Shivpal Yadav, who might go all out to dislodge him from the party presidentship.

Victory of development, good governance: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh for the BJP's historic victory in the just concluded Assembly polls to the state and termed it a win for development and good governance ~ Vikas aur sushasan ki jeet.

I thank the people of Uttar Pradesh from the bottom my heart. This is a historic victory of the BJP and a victory of development and good governance, Modi said in a series of tweets on the outcome of elections in the five states. He termed the party's victory in Uttarakhand as a special one and assured the people of the party's commitment to work for their well-being.
Manipur on Saturday threw up a hung Assembly with the ruling Congress bagging 28 of the 60 seats and the BJP making giant strides to muster 21.

The Congress had won 42 seats in the 2012 Assembly. The BJP, on the other hand, had no members in the outgoing House.

Human rights activist Irom Sharmila, who contested against chief minister Ibobi Singh, could secure only 90 votes and was relegated to the fourth position.

After her dismal showing, Sharmila announced that she would quit politics but continue her fight against the controversial AFSPA in the state. I am fed up with this political system. I have decided to quit active politics. I will move to south India as I need to calm my mind. But I will will continue my fight against AFSPA until and unless it is repealed, Sharmila said.

The Naga Peoples Front (NPF) and the National People's Party (NPP) bagged four seats each. The Lok Janshakti Party and an Independent candidate won one seat each. The Trinamul Congress bagged one seat. The party had won seven seats in the previous assembly polls.

Altogether 29 sitting MLAs including four Cabinet ministers of the Congress Party lost in the husting.

Ibobi Singh romped home comfortably from Thoubal constituency. So also his son and nephew, making three from the same family finding a berth in the Assembly.

The Congress and the BJP each claimed that they would form the government with the support of like-minded parties. State Congress chief T N Haokip told a news agency, We are confident that we will form the next government in Manipur. We are already in talks with like-minded secular and regional parties. State BJP president K Bhabananda Singh also exuded confidence of forming the government in the state. The NPP with four seats is expected to hold the key, as neither the Congress nor the BJP are expected to seek help from the Naga People's Front as it is seen as a party that is seeking to break up Manipur.

Prominent Congress candidates who won included Md Abdul Naser and K Jaikishen Singh. BJP leader N Biren Singh won from Heingang seat. Other prominent winners of the party included Sapam R Singh and Heikham Dingo Singh. But former state BJP chief Th Chaoba lost.
Katha Angika was a festival of dance and theatre, which celebrated five genres of Indian classical dance. The festival was rounded off with Kalaripayattu  an Indian martial art from the hoary past. In fact it finds mention in Sangam literature much of which has been lost. But lets take a look at the four classical dance styles that were presented.

Kerala was culturally enriched by the great Chera monarch Kulasekhara Perumal, who was also one of the 12 Alwar saints of the south. The state has a rich tradition of dance drama on mythological themes, especially those depicting Vishnu taking the form of Mohini with enticing abhinaya. Thus was born Mohiniattam. The devadasis who settled down in Kerala naturally accepted the concept of Mohini. A few pieces of the style established Priyadarshini Ghosh and Mohana Iyer, of the Natyanova Dance Company, as innovative choreographers. The duo joined by their troupe members Ranu, Sreeradha, Sushmita, Saheli and Srijaini commenced with the genuflection to Ganapati, the remover of obstacles. His various attributes were described in a slow-paced way. The piece was in ragam Hamsadhwani and talam chempata while the music was by Leela Omcherry. Mukhachalam, a piece showcasing the pure nritta of Mohiniattam in in raga Malika and tala malika  a composition of Kavalam Narayana Panikkar  captured the circular and semi-circular movements the genres uniqueness. Mangala Shloka, in ragam Bageshri and talam marma, in praise of Lord Nataraja, was replete with the typical Kerala style of rhythm reaching a crescendo.

Moving on, Sreyashi Dey presented Shiva-Shakti in the Odissi style. The style is known for its grace, sculpture-like stances and intense lyricism in its movements. She showcased two opposites  one with form and the other formless, energy and consciousness in the cosmos as a whole as well as in every individual.

The first hymn from Shiva Panchaka, described Lord Shiva who is the most mercurial God of the Hindu Trinity. The power and energy of Shiva as portrayed by Dey in the rich style of her mentor Guru Gangadhar Pradhan was commendable. Her huge chaukas and pronounced bhangas were pleasing to behold. The piece vividly and reverentially described the physical attributes of Lord Shiva. Choreography was by Guru Gangadhar Pradhan.

On the other hand, Mahakali Stuti was in praise Mahakali or the Dark Mother. She liberates, and along with her counterpart Lord Shiva, grants moksha and is famed as the destroyer of ego. Dey evocatively described her outer appearance and beautifully etched the Goddess multiple forms. Literature, stories of mythology and the great Indian epics are generally the traditional source grounds of classical dance and therefore its value will never to be lost as long as they are performed on stage. The choreography of Mahakali was by Guru Bichitrananda Swain.

Odissi dancer Arpita Venkateshs Navagraha paid respects to Navagraha (the nine planets) with the Navagraha Stotra of Rishi Vyasa in a neat choreographic work with her students. Venkatesh shone like a jewel with the impeccable form acquired from her guru Alok Kanungo, who has been recently awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award. With the help of a well-reherased work, Venkatesh was cynosure of all eyes.

Next up, Poushali Chatterjee, carefully nurtured in the Guru Bipin Singh style of Manipuri dance, delivered Vasanta Raas with her group. Chatterjee got the audience involved by playing with colours in Khilata Radha Gopi Sangh. The playful Krishna tackled the whole lot of gopis alone with sprinklers filled with colours. It was a good idea to use shredded yellow marigold rather than actual gulal. It made cleaning the stage for the next performer a lot easier. The rendition of Tanuum, which is a pure dance piece, gave the audience a glimpse of Manipuri. However, to be at her best, Chatterjee should catch up on her practice.

Thereafter, one found their way to Kathak. Sanjay Bhattacharya started his repertoire with Rambhajan, which was rather unusual. Tulsi Das Sri Ramchandra Bhajman sung in Yaman Kalyan raga and teora tala was soothing and appealed to the listening pleasure of the audience. In the nrityang taal, Rudra was used to show the students taalim. Teen taal, which is the most sought after taal of all Kathakas and which spells either success or doom, was presented in a pleasing manner. Toras, tukras, tehais, amad, padahant and chakradhars were executed with as much ease and elan as young aspiring dancers are capable of. The last piece was by Bhattacharya himself. A good performer and teacher, he would do better as a performer with a well-tuned physique.

Sutradhar Arko Mukhopadhyay is a theatre person to whom launching an evening of dance was childs play. He was a natural stage actor as was aptly clear when he spoke. He is presently a Kalaripayattu trainee in Kerala under the mentorship of Assan Ajith Kumar. A group of Kalaripayattu artists, Ajith Kumar, Maruthi Mama Chikilsa and Kalari Sangham came all the way from Kerala to present their art at Gyan Manch. Their wielding of the weapons and close contact technique were commendable.

Sreyashi Dey with her admirable academic record of teaching at Michigan University is the founder-president of Akshara, which is a platform to create, perform and promote the arts from India both in their traditional forms and in more dynamic and contemporary expressions. She is also the president and artistic director of Shristi, which specialises in performance and preservation of Indian classical dance. Katha Angika was her presentation in Kolkata to fulfill her pledge to the arts.
The name Desmond T Doss may not be familiar  even among World War II buffs, his story is lesser known  but the subject of the film Hacksaw Ridge undoubtedly had a story worth telling.

The bare facts are these  on 1 April 1943, Doss, a skinny shipyard worker, vegetarian and devout Seventh-day Adventist, arrived at Camp Lee in his home state of Virginia and voluntarily enlisted in the United States Army. Dosss religious conviction made him an unlikely recruit. He refused to hold a weapon, much less engage in active fighting, and he would not participate in training or manoeuvres on Saturdays  the day his church keeps as the Sabbath. Yet these same beliefs were also what compelled Doss to join the war effort as a combat medic.

As the war in the Pacific reached its deadliest phase in the spring of 1945, Doss and the rest of his unit were on the Japanese island of Okinawa, about to take part in the capture of the heavily fortified Maeda Escarpment, nicknamed Hacksaw Ridge due to the shape of its 400ft cliff edge. Amid fierce fighting and heavy bombardment (all captured with visceral power in the film), Dosss unit was ordered to retreat. However, Doss chose to stay behind, returning to the battlefield again and again to find wounded soldiers and bring them to safety.

In October 1945, when Doss was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Harry Truman, the citation credited him with saving the lives of 75 men. Thus, Doss became the first non-combatant in US military history to receive such a commendation and one of only three since.

Given such extraordinary circumstances, the story of Dosss training, struggles with the military machine and eventual acceptance from his fellow soldiers, would have made for a compelling movie in itself. In the Mel Gibson directed Hacksaw Ridge, however, all this is only a first act.

With a story so vivid  and true  why has the life of Desmond Doss taken so long to reach the screen? Partly the delay is down to Doss himself. As Bill Mechanic, producer of Hacksaw Ridge, explains, Desmond never wanted to sell his life rights, he didnt want to popularise himself, feeling that would be a contradiction to who he was. This humility certainly wasnt based on a lack of interest from Hollywood, as Dosss only child, Desmond Jr, told People magazine. I grew up in a house where there was an endless stream of people coming through the door wanting to make a movie, write a book, etc, he said. The reason he declined is that none of them adhered to his one requirement  that it be accurate.

According to the accounts of both World War II veterans and current military personnel, Hacksaw Ridge admirably meets this requirement for accuracy and in the end Doss did give permission. A few years before he passed away in 2006, he gave his blessing to documentary maker Terry Benedict, who set in motion the project which would eventually become a feature film. In it, he is brilliantly essayed by Andrew Garfield  a part for which he received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor.

Yet Dosss years of relative obscurity have had a further, unexpected benefit. Though the Battle of Okinawa was fought more than 70 years ago, perhaps this story has never been as relevant as it is right now. With the devastating war in Syria in its sixth year, global powers are attempting a new kind of international intervention.

Can it ever be possible to oppose violence without perpetuating it? Desmond Dosss model of conscientious cooperation  his phrase  provides one strikingly poignant answer.

the independent
With the Bharatiya Janata Party performing well beyond its expectations in the Assembly elections, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to become much more assertive as far as Indias foreign policy vis-a-vis China and Pakistan is concerned.

Now that the poll process is over, New Delhi is expected to wait and watch how Pakistan behaves in the coming days on the issue of terrorism and whether it addresses Indias concerns, especially about JUD chief Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind of the Mumbai terror attack. It is understood that India would be more than receptive to peace talks with Pakistan if it gives a firm undertaking that it would not allow its territory to be misused for terrorist activities in India and sticks to its commitment in letter and spirit.

There are clear indications that India has softened its attitude towards Pakistan slightly by agreeing to the appointment of a Pakistani diplomat as the Secretary General of SAARC and attend Indus Water Treaty (IWT) talks in Lahore later this month. Significance is being attached to the decision to participate in the talks on the IWT since PM Modi had in September last year clearly stated that blood and water could not flow together in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack.

Officials here said India was committed to the SAARC process moving ahead and expected Pakistan to create a terror-free environment in the region so that the next SAARC Summit could be held in Islamabad.

Pakistan has sent right signals to New Delhi in the past few months which have been noted positively in Indian circles. New Pakistan Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has so far avoided making any statement that would annoy India. Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit, who has time and again demonstrated a hawkish approach towards India, was ignored by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif recently while choosing the next Foreign Secretary of Pakistan despite being the senior-most diplomat. The two countries also released each others fishermen, bringing down the level of heightened tension between them in the wake of surgical strikes conducted by India to destroy terror camps in POK after the Uri attack.

As far as China is concerned, even though PM Modi has established a good working relationship with President Xi Jinping, he is likely to convey in no uncertain manner to the top Chinese leadership Indias disappointment with Beijing over its continued attempt to stonewall Indias entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and get JEM chief Masood Azhar declared as a global terrorist by the UN Security Council. Modi has also publicly declared Indias opposition to the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) since it passes through Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK). He will reiterate this position whenever he meets top Chinese leaders in the coming days. With China paying little heed to Indias concerns, New Delhi has also already started ignoring Beijings sensitivities, particularly on the Dalai Lama issue.

Foreign policy observers are speculating on how Indo-US relations will evolve since both PM Modi and President Donald Trump have emerged as strong personalities after the electoral battles they fought. Officials on the two sides are trying to arrange an early meeting between them to review the entire gamut of bilateral ties.
In the wake of Samajwadi Party's election debacle, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday submitted his resignation to governor Ram Naik and said he accepts the people's mandate.

The governor has accepted his resignation and asked him to continue till the next government takes over.

Earlier in the evening during a media briefing, Akhilesh said that he hopes the coming government works better than his government in Uttar Pradesh. He said that no one can predict what happens in politics.

Speaking on Mayawati's allegations of rigged elections, he said that he will use his own sources to know more about the issue.

Appearing a little humbled but jovial, Akhilesh maintained his poise he took quite a few questions in jest.

The Bharatiya Janata Party swept the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, defeating the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday decimated all opposition in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand while the Congress emerged as a clear winner in Punjab.

With early trends indicating the BJP is likely to cross the 300 mark in the 403 member Assembly, party president Amit Shahs prophecy that what was to be seen in the results was whether the party would get two-third or three-fourth majority. The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance trailing way behind at 70 and the Bahujan Samaj Party with 22 feature among the also ran.

Trends from Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand suggest that there has been no erosion of support for the saffron party in the Hindi heartland state since its phenomenal show in 2014 Lok Sabha elections when the party led by Narendra Modi swept 73 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats and all the five seats in the hill state.

The Congress has been badly bruised in Uttarakhand, where the BJP seems like winning close to 50 of 70 seats.

Reports of celebrations at offices in New Delhi and Lucknow started coming in even when counting was in early stages.

However, amidst the saffron wave, the Congress has consolation of putting up a stellar show in Punjab, where the Aam Aadmi party trailing a distant second and the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine biting the dust.

The Congress seemed to be holding onto Manipur from where trends were coming slowly. The BJP looks like opening its account in the state in an impressive manner.

Goa, again where the trends are coming too slowly, can be cause for another minor celebration in the Congress camp, with the party having its head ahead over the ruling BJP, whose high profile campaign was led by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. If the trend continues, smaller parties may have a stake in the next state government.

Meanwhile, many leaders came out with brave faces to comment on the likely outcome of the state elections.

Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha said, it is a monumental setback. We are disappointed with Uttar Pradesh."

The mood was described more vividly by another Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit: "Our party is looking confused."

Meanwhile, BJP leaders were not found wanting in heaping praise on the hard work done by their star campaigners, Prime Minister Modi and President Shah. Yogi Adityanath remarked: "Good work done by the Modi government and (BJP President) Amit Shah's stragegy has paid dividends."

UP, the largest of the states that went to polls, has 403 Assembly seats, followed by Punjab (117), Uttarakhand (70), Manipur (60) and Goa (40)
New York, Mar 11 (Just Earth News): Looking forward to the early resumption of the United Nations-facilitated intra-Syrian negotiations, the Security Council on Friday encouraged the Syrian parties to return to talks in good faith aand to engage constructively and without preconditionsa on the agenda set out by UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura when they resume.

In a press statement that follows a briefing earlier this week from de Mistura, the Council welcomed the conclusion of a further round of intra-Syrian negotiations in Geneva on 3 March 2017. It further welcomed the Special Envoys announcement that the talks had yielded a clear agenda for future negotiations as indicated by resolution 2254 (2015), focusing on governance; constitutional issues; elections; and counter terrorism, security and confidence building measures.

The members of the Security Council reiterated their commitment to ensuring the inclusion of Syrian women in the political process through sustained consultation and dialogue and promoting their full and effective participation.

Recognizing that the continuation of political negotiations was made possible by the ceasefire developed through the Astana process, the Council called on the Syrian parties to fully implement the ceasefire, established pursuant to the arrangements of 29 December 2016, including ending ceasefire violations and ensuring humanitarian access.

The Council also encouraged the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) members to use their influence over the parties to help end violations, reduce violence, build confidence and ensure safe, sustained and unhindered humanitarian access in line with its resolution 2165 (2014).

The ISSG established respective taskforces on humanitarian aid delivery and a wider ceasefire. They have been meeting separately since early 2016 on a way forward in the crisis. Russia and the United States are the co-chairs of the taskforces and the ISSG, which also comprises the UN, the Arab League, the European Union and 16 other countries.

In his briefing to the Council, de Mistura had expressed his intention to bring the invitees back to Geneva for a fifth round with a target date of 23 March.

Photo: OCHA/Josephine Guerrero (file)

Source: www.justearthnews.com
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday created history with a thumping two-third majority in Uttar Pradesh and bagged Uttarakhand too while being neck and neck in competition with Congress in Goa and Manipur in the country's biggest mandate since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. And, the grand old party-Congress returned to power in Punjab after a 10-year gap with a clear majority.

An ecstatic BJP termed the poll results a "historic" verdict that will leave a huge impact on the Indian political scenario even as the Congress party's top leaders, including former Finance Minister P Chidambaram, admitted they were stunned by the scale of the verdict in favour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

From being the third largest group in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly, the BJP, powered by an aggressive campaign mostly spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself, catapulted to winning a whopping 324 seats  a never-before show by any party in UP.

"The historic mandate given to the BJP will give a new direction to Indian politics. It will end the politics of caste, dynasty (Parivarvaad) and appeasement," BJP President Amit Shah said in his victory speech. The BJP, he added, would form governments in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.

BJP's victory left the ruling Samajwadi Party and its ally Congress with just 55 seats while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) was left with a mere 19 seats. While Samajwadi Party Chief, the outgoing Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav promptly resigned, BSP leader Mayawati attributed the rout to the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) which she alleged were tampered with.

The Congress suffered an equally humiliating defeat in neighbouring Uttarakhand too. The BJP ousted it from power, winning 57 of the 70 seats, some of the winners being disgruntled Congress veterans who had joined the saffron outfit before the elections.

The Congress was left with just 11 legislators, with outgoing Chief Minister Harish Rawat losing both the seats he contested from, one narrowly, to his BJP opponents.

"It is a monumental setback. We are disappointed with Uttar Pradesh," Congress spokesman Sanjay Jha said. Added Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit, "Our party is looking confused."

But other party leaders rushed to defend Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, saying he alone should not be blamed for the party's defeat in Uttar Pradesh.

BJP-ruled Goa, however, appeared headed for a hung assembly, with both the Congress and the BJP claiming they will form the government in the coastal state.

The Congress inched towards becoming the single largest party in the 40-member house winning 18 seats while the BJP had netted 14. The balance of power now lay in the hands of smaller parties including Goa Forward and the MGP. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was unable to win even a single seat.

With 26 winners, the Congress also led the BJP (22 winners) in the troubled northeastern state of Manipur that it rules. But with both groups falling short of a majority in the 60-member house, smaller parties will play a key role in government formation.

The Congress had plenty to celebrate in Punjab where it returned to power comfortably after a decade in the opposition, crushing both the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine as well as the AAP that was confident of winning in the border state.

Led by former Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh, who turned 75 on Saturday, the Congress won as many as 77 of the 117 seats, leaving the AAP with just 22 seats but as the main opposition in the assembly. The Akalis and BJP won just 18 seats, with as many as 10 ministers defeated in the battle of votes.

Prime Minister Modi telephoned Capt Amarinder Singh to congratulate him on the huge victory. The AAP, which had invested heavily in Punjab, licked its wounds, its leaders saying they would introspect to know what went wrong.

In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP's success rate enveloped both urban and rural areas and appeared to demolish traditional caste equations. BJP candidates won in all major cities including Lucknow, Allahabad, Kanpur and Varanasi, Modi's Lok Sabha constituency.

While the Congress fared not so badly in Rae Bareli, it took a drubbing in Amethi, Rahul Gandhi's Lok Sabha seat.

BJP leader Yogi Adityanath told IANS: "Good work done by the Modi government and (BJP President) Amit Shah's strategy has paid dividends."

(With inputs from agencies)
Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the UP and Uttarakhand assembly election results and said this is the victory of people of UP and Uttarakhand.

"Today nation is standing with PM Modi. This is the victory of people of UP and Uttarakhand," the Union minister said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has led the BJP to what seems like a stunning victory for the saffron party, with the party taking a massive lead early on in vote counting today morning.

BJP is well above the 250 mark and looks set to emerge as the single largest party with possible majority to form the government in Lucknow.

A saffron sweep is visible across the length and breadth of Uttar Pradesh, except some pockets where Samajwadi Party has done well. If the trends are right, it will be the most remarkable victory for the BJP in UP.
Often credited with turning Narendra Modi into a political brand and bringing arch-foes Lalu Prasad Yadav and Nitish Kumar together for the Grand Alliance in Bihar, the magic of master poll strategist Prashant Kishor appears to have faded for the Congress, which suffered a drubbing in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

While his being roped in by the Congress created much buzz in political circles, it hasn't been smooth sailing for Kishor in Uttar Pradesh where many of the party leaders, particularly from the state, had expressed their reservation over his strategies.

Be it the choice to name Sheila Dikshit, 78, as the chief ministerial candidate for the state, or tying up with the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party, his ideas met with resistance within the Congress.

In fact, Kishor  the brain behind the Congress-Samajwadi tie up  was dubbed a "sound recordist" by actor-turned-politician Raj Babbar.

"He is there to take the party's ideology to the people in an effective manner using modern technology in the polls," a miffed Babbar had said, after Kishor met Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav last year.

Besides salvaging the tie-up with the SP when it looked like both the parties would part ways, Kishor planned joint roadshows of Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and coined the slogan "UP Ko Yeh Saath Pasand Hai".

But the campaign blitz failed to take off as the BJP, riding on the Modi wave, swept Uttar Pradesh and wrested Uttarakhand from the Congress.

Both political analysts and Congress leaders admitted Kishor's strategies were a failure, but refused to squarely blame him.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior Congress leader refused to put the entire blame on Kishor's shoulders.

"In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, BJP won in 328 assembly segments in UP. It is obvious that our strategies failed to counter that. The BJP was far more meticulous in its planning and execution.

"But can a single person be blamed. Who is to be blamed for the failed strategies is a question that requires a collective answer from the party leadership," the veteran leader said.

"The UP polls have proved that even somebody like Prashant Kishor can go wrong. It is obvious his strategies failed," Praveen Rai, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) said.

"But can he be solely blamed for the debacle? The responsibility lies with the leadership," added Rai.

The win in Punjab has been a saving grace for the Congress, but experts credit the victory to Amarinder Singh rather than Kishor who designed the campaign for the Congress chief ministerial candidate, including the "Coffee With Captain" campaign on the lines of Modi's 'Chai Pe Charcha'.

As the BJP's landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh became evident, Kishor found himself at the receiving end on Twitter with people mocking his strategies.

If actor-turned-BJP MP Paresh Rawal tweeted "Can anyone find out where is Prashant Kishor" other users wondered sarcastically  "Has Prashant Kishor uploaded his resume on LinkedIn?".

But for psephologist Yashwant Deshmukh, Kishor was fighting an already lost battle.

"You can sell only when you have a product. You cannot sell vacuum. Congress' condition was already pathetic in UP. So it will be wrong to blame Kishor for the debacle," Cvoter chief editor Yashwant Deshmukh said.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for the BJP's "historic victory" in the two states.

Rajnath Singh attributed the victory to "Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment to the public, his efficient leadership and our commitment to good governance.

"We thank all the people of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand for this historic victory and express gratitude towards them."

This, he said, was not a victory but a "mega victory".

"The BJP has changed the political picture of the country by touching the new era of success in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand," he tweeted.


The trends of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections 2017 are a clear indicator of the Bhartiya Janata Party landslides victory in the state. It will mark the end of the partys 14 year vanvaas in the countrys most important state in terms of electoral politics and also pave the way for the BJPs likely return to power at the Centre in 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The BJPs decisive lead has also ensured the complete decimation of the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance and the Bahujan Samaj Party. Trends indicate that none of these parties and political combinations would be able to touch the 100 figure mark as the SP-Congress alliance was leading in about 70 seats and the BSP in only about 20 seats.

According to the latest trends the BJP was leading in over 300 seats in a House of 403 members and may end up with a overall tally which can touch the 300 figure mark.The party is leading in 304 seats and is way ahead of its nearest rival the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance.

It is for the first time in the history of UP that the BJP is expected to cross the 300 seat mark. Even at the height of the Ram Janambhoomi movement the party could notch up 200 plus seats, which paved the way for the Kalayan Singh government . This movement was however the first indicator of the BJP having established its presence in UP. Elections 2017 will see it firmly in the saddle. The saffron wave or one can say the Modi wave swept aside all talks of a reverse impact of demonetisation, intolerant India, caste and religious politics in addition to the `Pheku tag attached to prime minister Narendra Modi by his opponents.

fact, the BJP leadership in the state has attributed the expected landslide win to the Modi wave, which surfaced in the 2014 Lok Sabha election and continues to resonate even now, perhaps with a more decisive impact. The UP president of the BJP, Keshav Prasad Maurya said the momentum gathered in the 2017 assembly elections will help the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha poll.

More importantly, the BJP has gained from the aggressive campaigning by the Prime Minister and the party president Amit Shah even as there are enough indications to suggest that polarization factor could also have contributed to the partys expected thumping victory.

Important individual trends suggest that Amita Singh of the Congress is trailing in Amethi while Garima Singh of the BJP is leading. Azam Khan of the SP is leading in Rampur while his son, Abdullah Azam is trailing in Swar. Jitin Prasada of the Congress is leading in Tilhar and Imran Masood of the Congress is also leading.
The BJP Parliamentary Board is set to take a decision on who will be the next chief minister of Uttar Pradesh on Sunday as per party president Amit Shah. However, political analysts believe that there are two front runners for the post  UP BJP Chief Keshav Prasad Maurya and Yogi Adityanath. Home Minister Rajnath Singh's name had also come up during the course of the campaign but it is unlikely that he would be relieved by the Centre from his current post of Home Minister.

One of the common factors between both the front runners which also strengthens their claim is the fact that both hail from Eastern part of the state. BJP President Amit Shah in his victory speech especially emphasised on the performance of the party in Eastern UP.

Observers believe that it would be no surprise if the BJP goes for a young face to head the nation's most populous state.

Taking a cue from national president Amit Shah, top BJP leaders were unanimous in stating that BJP provided hope to the poor while others relied on caste based politics.

Keshav Prasad Maurya, 47, who is member of Parliament and president of the state unit of the BJP, has a humble origin. Like Prime Minister Modi, he too sold tea at his father's stall in a village. Maurya is also a member of the RSS and had participated in the Ram Janambhoomi movement. He happens to be the OBC face of the party who was elected from Phulpur Lok Sabha constituency after garnering over 52 per cent votes. Some, however, point out that Maurya is not too popular outside the eastern belt of Allahabad and Varanasi regions.

The name of another MP, Yogi Adityanath, 45, also popped up in the race for the chief minister's post. Born Ajay Singh, he took over as the head priest of Gorakhnath Mutt in Gorakhpur after the death of his father in 2014.

However, Adityanath at one point of time had strained relationship with the saffron party. In December 2006 he organised Virat Hindu Mahasammelan in Gorakhpur to coincide with the BJP's national executive meeting in Lucknow. The reason for his action was understood to be his demand to get hundred party tickets for his nominees for 2007 elections. A compromise was however, reached but a few years later in 2010 Adityanath defied party's stand on Women's Reservation Bill.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh for the BJPs historic victory in the just concluded Assembly polls to the state and termed it a win for development and good governance ~ Vikas aur sushasan ki jeet.

I thank the people of Uttar Pradesh from the bottom my heart. This is a historic victory of the BJP and a victory of development and good governance, Modi said in a series of tweets on the outcome of elections in the five states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa and Manipur. He termed the partys victory in Uttarakhand as a special one and assured the people of the partys commitment to work for their well-being.

Modi thanked the people of Goa and Manipur, where the party claims that it would be able to form government. I thank the people of Goa & Manipur for their support to BJP. We will always work for the wellbeing of these states, he tweeted

The Prime Minister attributed the BJPs victories to party president Amit Shah and party state units and BJP workers exemplary work. Amit Shah, party office bearers & state units for their exemplary work in taking the party to new heights, Modi tweeted.

"I salute the hardwork of BJP Karyakartas. They have tirelessly worked hard at the grassroots level & won the confidence of the peopleAm overjoyed that BJP has received unprecedented support from all sections of society. Huge support from the youth is gladdening," he said.

Modi also thanked Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his congratulatory tweet on the partys victory. He congratulated Congress leader Captain Amrinder Singh for his partys victory in Punjab even as he thanked the people of the state for allowing the party and its alliance to govern the state for ten years.

Making a special mention about the people of Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency, Modi said as a MP from the area he is overwhelmed by the affection bestowed on him by the people of Varanasi.

Later addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, Amit Shah claimed the partys victory in Uttar Pradesh was unprecedented and biggest ever victory after Independence since the formation of Uttarakhand, carved out of UP.

He said it is a victory of PM Narendra Modis development initiative and showed peoples rock solid support for his demonetisation policy. He said people have given a karara jawab (befitting reply) to the Opposition attack against Modi and the BJP.

Shah said his party would be able to form the government in Goa and Manipur by virtue of the partys showing. He thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh for giving the BJP and its allies a historic mandate which he claimed would give a new direction to the Indian polity.

The BJP will organise a function at the party headquarters on Sunday to felicitate Modi over BJPs victory. Thereafter, the BJP parliamentary board would meet to decide on the partys chief ministerial candidates. Amit Shah said the victory in UP would give the party an edge in the Rajya Sabha.
EVEN to the best informed in India, Burma (now known as Myanmar) still appears to be an enigma. Though an immediate eastern neighbour with 1624 km (1015 miles) of shared international border with four of Indias north-eastern states (Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, Arunachal) and despite cordial bilateral relations between Naypyidaw and New Delhi, it is the ticklish issues that get highlighted. In the context of reports that Myanmar is in advanced negotiations to license-build JF-17 fighters, there is understandable concern in New Delhi. This is not because Myanmar is negotiating on fighter aircraft, but owing to the origin of the proposed aircraft acquisition programme. Why should India be concerned about Myanmars plan for license-building JF-17 fighters, and how does it affect Myanmar? Why should India rack its brain as to whether Myanmars action denotes a proposal to import technology and build the flying machine on its soil or whether it means direct import of the aircraft from the manufacturers (China or Pakistan) plant?

Indeed, these are all pertinent points. Nevertheless, the possibility of the latter scenario (i.e. import), appears unlikely at this point in time because though Myanmar does not figure in the global list of aircraft manufacturing countries of Janes all the worlds aircraft 2016-2017, it is now in advanced negotiations with Pakistan to license-build the third generation fighter. This in itself is a matter of concern for India. The position is clear. Myanmar is to start from scratch, despite the possibility of a long gestation period.

The full story, therefore, is that Myanmar is going to license-build Pakistani JF-17 fighters after having decided earlier to purchase 16 craft of the same type in 2015. The Myanmar initiative has two aspects ~ first, direct import of 16 (readymade) aircraft from Pakistan. Second, indigenised manufacture of Sino-Pak (origin) imported aircraft through collaboration/joint venture. No doubt Myanmar, as a sovereign country, has every right to exercise its discretion and choose its defence hardware; nevertheless there does seem something more than what prima facie meets the eye.

Could India have been of some use to its friendly eastern neighbour, following New Delhis professed Look East policy of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee era? Has India been a tad slow to assess the possible emerging (future) fighter scenario in the East? Can something be done even now? There is little doubt that India can still revisit its Myanmar policy to recalibrate the eastern bilateral. The reason is simple, yet complicated. Both Naypyidaw and New Delhi face severe turbulence in multiple points of their respective territorial jurisdiction. The 5 crore 70 lakh populace of Myanmar (with 68 per cent Burmese; nine per cent Shan; seven per cent Karen; four per cent Rakhine; three per cent Chinese; and another nine per cent Chin, Kachin, Kavan, Lahu, Mon, Palaung, Pao and Wa) continues to be in the grip of the worlds longest running insurgencies which are essentially conducted by Karen, Kachin, Mon, Shan and a few other ethnic-minority groups. The Myanmar army held absolute political sway from 1988 to 2015, and things have changed only to an extent after the advent of the democratically elected government in November 2015.

The main feature of Myanmars long standing security scenario is that it continues to face more problems from within than from across its border. Owing to its counter-insurgency focus, the army of Myanmar (which is the largest among its three defence wings, with a strength of 375000 personnel) is essentially a light infantry force. Myanmars 15000-strong Air Force with 167 combat capable aircraft and 16000-man Navy are no match to the numerical strength and fire power of its Army. However, it is the fleet of obsolete air force fighters (Chinese made F-7M Airguard and A-5C Fantan) of 1990s vintage which compelled Myanmar to first import, and now initiate indigenous production.

The picture is stark. Myanmar needs air-fleet modernisation. Things are in the public domain. Myanmar is a steady, stable and friendly neighbour which does not sermonise on asymmetry as is being done by China; or send Lashkar, mujahideen and ghazis, to Indian soil, like the Pakistanis. Hence Myanmars needs should have been favourably appreciated and assessed at least a decade ago. There is a lot in common between Naypyidaw and New Delhi pertaining to mutual safety, security, terror and sovereignty.

Indeed, even a cursory glance at the map would convince a layman of the geostrategic and geopolitical importance of Myanmar in South Asia in general, and for Indias eastern flank in particular. Moreover, like Myanmar, India too has its own overlapping-situations in the area surrounding its north-east frontier region. Indias north-east has been a favourite fishing ground of China and Pakistans ISI since the 1970s, and there is no reason to believe that the situation would be any better owing to the deeply entrenched Sino-Pak agenda of terror-promotion to checkmate India in its own terrain, notwithstanding the glib talk of OBOR (one belt one road) and mutual development and prosperity.

Coming back to Myanmars eye on the Sino-Pakistan fighter aircraft, one is convinced that it is bound to make the country more vulnerable as setting up an aircraft manufacturing plant would give Islamabad a perfect, justifiable alibi to expand its wings for direct connectivity with its Chinese mentor through third party terrain. Myanmar, instead of becoming safer, is likely to be more unsafe. The countrys geography comes as a bonus for any power with a long view on Indias north-east. And it must be admitted that when it comes to spreading terror and fanning religious hatred, no nation can either match or substitute the strategic depth psyche of Pakistans ISI-army duo.

A few words on the JF-17 aircraft may be in order. Launched in 1991 at Chengdu, collaboration with Pakistan was initiated in 1992 and the formal Pakistani production line was launched in January 2008 at Kamra. Pakistani pilots were reportedly very critical of Chinese avionics and sought western alternatives for an updated batch of the craft. As on date, however, the production agreement assigns 58 per cent work-share to Pakistan and the balance to China thereby making Myanmar a deep penetration strike target by a joint Sino-Pak venture. The short point of the long story is clear. India is bound to see graver threat to its security in its friendly neighbourhood, followed by a deeper one on its own north-east frontier.

(The writer is an alumnus of National Defence College of India. The views expressed are personal)
My revulsion to being considered a member of the media is growing. I am part of one medium  the newspaper. My responsibilities, my role and my accountability are restricted to this medium. I will answer for my sins and foibles but not for those of others.

Fellow editors in India and Asia  dear friends all  tell me of the inevitability of media convergence and chide me for being antediluvian.

They say the modern newsroom requires people skilled not just in fact-gathering and writing; headlining and editing, but also in podcasting, broadcasting, tweeting and heavens know what else. That to me sounds like Indian restaurants of yesteryears  they offered Chinese, Continental, Thai and Mughlai cuisines from a single wok and made a hash of them all.

I am entitled to my view but you will ask why I am unburdening myself now. The reason is that something very sad happened a few days ago. This event, coming on the back of a string of others, forced me to organise my thoughts on why I ought to remain a plain and simple journalist, and not allow membership of the much-hyped club called the media to be thrust upon me.

A 20-year-old girl, student of a prestigious college in Delhi and daughter of a man who lost his life in an India-Pakistan border conflict when she was two, said in a video posted on social media, Pakistan did not kill my dad, war did.

That is a profound thought, one that every sensible person ought to reflect upon. It is a thought that deserves introspection and informed articulation, especially in these ultra-nationalistic times. It should open minds, not close them further. It does not deserve derision or hate or the threat of violence. But that is what it got.

For her poignant appeal to good sense, Gurmehar Kaur was trolled, hounded, threatened with rape, labelled a Maoist and a separatist, and suffered the mortification of being told by a junior minister that her fathers soul must be weeping because she was being misguided by those who celebrate on the bodies of martyrs.

Rattled by the rabidity of responses, Gurmehar withdrew from the public space in tears. A brave and spirited girl I would be proud to call my daughter was forced to cower. All that I and many like me could do was watch helplessly as the deluge of hate swamped our world. The media was at work, and to think they call it social.

Convergence would make me a part of this horror.

Gurmehar Kaurs case was special but by no means unique from the perspective of labelling. A few days earlier, at a media conclave, I was questioned by members of the audience. They asked me why the media was so irresponsible; why it sensationalised events; why it found little or no space for the other side of the story and why it conducted trials and played the role of judge, jury and executioner. I was shaken by the degree of antipathy. Partly to gain time and gather my thoughts, I asked my interrogators to provide examples.

The examples came thick and fast. They supported each of the charges, sometimes conclusively. Culpa, maxima culpa! But it had nothing to do with me. Each charge was exemplified by an excess of a television anchor or a Twitter user, members of that grandly-titled media of which I was alleged to be a part. I pleaded not guilty and cited my watertight alibi. For my pains, one person accused me of chickening out on a technicality.

This is the reason the narrative must be rewritten and the lines redrawn so that members of the Press can extricate themselves from this oversized cloak called the media into which they are being squeezed.

We are inheritors of a glorious legacy and bound by the rigours of a demanding craft. We are not hoodlums who threaten to rape or maim those we dont like or shout out those we disagree with. The best of us err, sometimes grievously, but have learnt that making amends can be uplifting.

Those on social and other media  be they presidents, prime ministers, ministers, television anchors or citizens of the world  who are prepared to subject themselves to the standards we aim for should join us. They too must strive for the truth, aim to keep the discourse even-tempered, find space for all sides of a story and have the ability to admit mistakes. But if they cannot do so, let them be members of the media and leave us journalists in peace, even if it is to be the peace of an ethereal grave that Twitter and Facebook dig for us.

The writer is Editor, The Statesman. He cannot be found on social media. This is a series of columns on

global affairs written by top editors and columnists from members of the Asia News Network and published in newspapers and web sites across the region.
With a most bitter election campaign approaching boiling point, it was inevitable that there was limited scope for discussing other matters ~ and, of course, there is some truth to the charge that only the negative makes news. So, therefore, lost in the political thunderstorm was a rare instance of the fierce differences between the Central and Delhi governments being set aside and their functioning in what might even be hailed as harmony. Adhering to the Centres request for reducing the Value-Added Tax on aviation turbine fuel, the budget just presented by the Aam Aadmi Party government announced a VAT reduction from 25 per cent to one per cent on fuel being used by air services operating under the Regional Connectivity Scheme. True that Delhi airport is not included in the RCS, but there is every possibility of flights to and from the North-east availing of the lower fuel price ~ which would certainly be appreciated by the large number of people from that part of the country who study or find employment in the national Capital. People who it must be confessed have not found life in Delhi very comfortable. Whether the AAP governments gesture will impact the larger situation is a matter to be watched. Anyway, it is a welcome first.

The reality will be known when the lower tax finds expression in terms of rupees and paise via the revised fares the airlines will offer. It is estimated that around 40 per cent of operating costs aref uel-related, and one travel expert has calculated that the new tax structure would result in a ten per cent reduction in fares. The civil aviation ministry has welcomed the Delhi move, now it must ensure the necessary follow-up action. There is need for immediate clarification on how a non-RCS airport like Delhi will benefit from the revised tax, and whether fares are to be calculated taking into account the ultimate destination of the passenger or if the normal rates will apply from Delhi to the hub from which an onward RCS flight is taken. In these days of dynamic pricing the passengers interests are not necessarily paramount.

The ministry must also persuade other states to follow the Delhi move so that regional connectivity becomes a reality, not a scheme only on paper. The links between the Capital and smaller towns in the region might not be as complex a matter as facilitating air travel to and from the North-east. There may be no immediate political advantage to be gained from the reduction in VAT on ATF, but it would help project the AAP as having national ambitions ~ and not in the somewhat divisive sense in which the BJP uses nationalism.
New York, Mar 11 (Just Earth News): Just back from Kenya, Yemen, South Sudan and Somalia a countries that are facing or are at risk of famine a the top United Nations humanitarian official on Friday urged the international community for comprehensive action to save people from simply astarving to death.a

We stand at a critical point in history. Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the UN, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen OBrien told the Security Council on Friday.

Without collective and coordinated global efforts, he warned, people risk starving to death and succumbing to disease, stunted children and lost futures, and mass displacements and reversed development gains.

The appeal for action by the Secretary-General can thus not be understated. It was right to sound the alarm early, not wait for the pictures of emaciated dying children [] to mobilize a reaction and the funds, OBrien underscored, calling for accelerated global efforts to support UN humanitarian action on the ground.

Turning to the countries he visited, the senior UN official said that, about two-thirds of the population (more than 18 million people) in Yemen needed assistance, including more than seven million severely food insecure, and the fighting continued to worsen the crisis.

I continue to reiterate the same message to all: only a political solution will ultimately end human suffering and bring stability to the region, he said, noting that with access and funding, humanitarians will do more, but cautioned that relief-workers were not the long-term solution to the growing crisis.

In South Sudan, where a famine was recently declared, more than 7.5 million people are in need of assistance, including some 3.4 million displaced. The figure rose by 1.4 million since last year.

The famine in the country is man-made. Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine  as are those not intervening to make the violence stop, stressed OBrien, calling on the South Sudanese authorities to translate their assurances of unconditional access into action on the ground.

Similarly, more than half the population of Somalia (6.2 million people) is need aid, 2.9 million of whom require immediate assistance. Extremely worrying is that more than one million children under the age of five are at the risk of acute malnourishment.

The current indicators mirror the tragic picture of 2011, when Somalia last suffered a famine, recalled the UN official, but expressed hope that a famine can be averted with strong national leadership and immediate and concerted support by the international community.

Concerning Kenya, he mentioned that more than 2.7 million people were food insecure, and that this number could reach four million by April.

In collaboration with the Government [of Kenya], the UN will soon launch an appeal of $200 million to provide timely life-saving assistance and protection, he informed.

Further in his briefing, OBrien informed the Council of the outcomes of the Oslo Conference on the Lake Chad Basin where 14 donors pledged a total of $672 million, of which $458 million is for humanitarian action in 2017.

This is very good news, and I commend those who made such generous pledges, he said but noted that more was needed to fully fund the $1.5 billion required to provide the assistance needed across the region.

On the UN response in these locations, OBrien highlighted that strategic, coordinated and prioritized plans are in place and dedicated teams on the ground are closely working with partners to ensure that immediate life-saving support reaches those in need.

Now we need the international community and this Council to act, he highlighted, urging prompt action to tackle the factors causing famine; committing sufficient and timely financial support; and ensuring that fighting stops.

In particular, he underscored the need to ensure that humanitarians have safe, full and unimpeded access and that parties to the conflict in the affected countries respect humanitarian law and called on those with influence over the parties to the conflict to exert that influence now.

It is possible to avert this crisis, to avert these famines, to avert these looming human catastrophes, he concluded. It is all preventable.

Photo: OCHA/Gemma Connell

Source: www.justearthnews.com
In the wake of the Bhartiya Janata Party emerging stronger, efforts for a realignment of forces are very much on the cards after the Assembly poll results. The non-BJP parties may have to think of unity if they plan to contain the saffron party, which is becoming a pan-national outfit overtaking the once dominant Congress. After all there are elections to eight more states in 2018 before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and logic suggests that the opposition parties might put up a stiff fight.

In 2018 elections to Gujarat, Karnataka, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Himachal Pradesh and Tripura are scheduled. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a personal stake in his home state, Gujarat. The BJP is keen to win Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh where the Congress and the BJP have alternated in power.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has already set the ball rolling at a recent book release function in Delhi by asking the opposition to not be merely reactive, but set and follow its own agenda. Significantly, he asked why shouldnt Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi take the lead in setting the agenda pointing out, "Why should they [BJP] set the agenda?

Kumar's remarks on opposition unity were shared by CPI-M General Secretary Sitaram Yechury, who said such unity should be on the basis of a common programme and not personalities. Nitish probably took this forward when he met Biju Janata Dal chief and Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik this week when he went to Odisha for the funeral of former Speaker Rabi Ray.

Nitish is keen to revive the Janata Dal which has split into many smaller parties including the BJD. Former Prime Minister Deve Gowda has also lent his support hinting that the regional satraps should come together to fight the BJP. The question is will Naveen Patnaik go along? He did not do so before the 2014 polls when such a move was made. He may be having second thoughts as the BJP has performed well defeating the BJD in Panchayat polls and becoming the major opponent in the state.

But before they make the much attempted efforts for a grand alliance at the national level to challenge the BJP, the first acid test comes during the presidential and vice-presidential elections scheduled for June-July. President Pranab Mukherjee and Vice President Hamid Ansari will be ending their terms then. The BJP wants to put up its own candidates for both the posts despite a gap between its strength and the required number of votes.

In the present atmosphere, a belligerent opposition is bound to put up a fight and perhaps nominate a joint candidate for both posts. This is not the first time the opposition has adopted such a strategy. On earlier occasions it had done so but it was the Congress-led UPA that was in power and the BJP that was in opposition. For instance in 2012, the BJP-led opposition had put up former Speaker P.A. Sangma against UPA candidate Pranab Mukherjee but the latter won with a handsome majority. The UPA had repeated Hamid Ansari for the vice presidential post while the NDA supported former Finance Minister Jaswant Singh. As expected Ansari won.

This time also Prime Minister Modi has not revealed his cards about who the NDA candidate will be but the consultations would begin soon. There are already several names like those of Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and Union miister M.Venkaiah Naidu doing the rounds. One thing is certain  the Prime Minsiter will zero in on a name acceptable or proposed by the RSS.

With a good performance in the recent Assembly polls, the BJP would have reduced the gap of 80,000 votes considerably. The BJP can get the votes from smaller parties like the TRS, AIADMK, BJD, YSR Congress and some north-eastern regional parties and others and get its candidates elected.

The million dollar question is if the opposition can come together to take on the BJP? There are inherent contradictions. If they are looking to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the first thiing is to have a common minimum programme acceptable to all the partners. The second thing is to have leadership. Who will lead the opposition? Can it be Rahul Gandhi? Can it be Mamata Banerjee? Can it be Naveen Patnaik? Can it be somebody else like Arvind Kejriwal? While all these leaders are providing lip service for opposition unity, none of them will accept the others as they are themselves aspiring for the top post. This could be a big drawback for opposition unity.

However, all these does not mean that the opposition will not go through the motions. In what form it will come, whether it will be fractured or full-fledged unity will be known by July. In fact Mamata had mobilised the opposition on the demonetisation issue but it was Nitish who backed out from a joint attack by supporting the move.

Prime Minister Modi and the BJP will be safe as long as the opposition remains fractured and there is no challenger. This is known to the opposition also but something makes them remain fractured. The jury is out on whether they can come together.
US President Donald Trumps revised travel executive order suffered its first legal setback as a federal judge blocked the directive's potential impact on the family of a Syrian refugee living in Wisconsin.

Madison city-based US District Court Judge William Conley on Friday issued a temporary retraining order at the request of the Syrian man, Politico news reported.

The judge, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, said Trump's new executive order cannot be used to delay the man's effort to bring his wife and three-year-old daughter from Syria to the US.

"Given the daily threat to the lives to plaintiff's wife and child remaining in Aleppo, Syria, the court further finds a significant risk of irreparable harm," Conley said in the order.

Trump signed the new executive order on Monday banning foreign nationals from six Muslim-majority countries from entering the US for 90 days and banning all refugees for 120 days, but excluded green card holders and those with existing valid visas from the order.

The original ban included Iraq, but the new order does not.

The Wisconsin order was just one of at least five expected to play out in the coming days as various states, organisations and individuals are trying to block some or all of Trump's redrafted travel ban, reports Politico.

In Maryland, a federal judge set a hearing for March 15 on a lawsuit brought by refugee aid groups.

Another hearing is set to take place in front of a federal judge in Honolulu on a travel ban lawsuit brought by the state of Hawaii.

In addition, the states of Washington and Minnesota asked Seattle-based US District Court Judge James Robart to confirm that his existing injunction against key parts of Trump's original travel ban executive order blocks similar portions of the revised directive.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at the Netherlands on Saturday for stopping his Foreign Minister's plane from landing in the country.

"The Netherlands should now think about how their planes will land in Turkey," the President said at an event in Istanbul, Xinhua news agency reported.

"They are the Nazi remnants, fascists," Erdogan said.

A Dutch Foreign Ministry official earlier confirmed to Efe news that after failing to find an alternative solution with the Turkish authorities, the Dutch stopped Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's plane from landing.

The Netherlands revoked permission for the plane carrying Cavusoglu as he was scheduled to address the Turkish diaspora in the city of Rotterdam, which involved security concerns.

Cavusoglu was set to garner votes in the April 16 referendum on Turkey switching to a presidential system.

On Thursday, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte had said "no" to Cavusoglu's plan to hold rallies in his country.

Speaking to CNNTurk before his departure to the Netherlands, the top Turkish envoy threatened the northern European country with harsh economic and political sanctions in case he was not allowed in.

Ankara is already embroiled in a row with Germany over a similar ban on rallies, which has chilled their bilateral ties to a new low.
FBI Director James Comey is expected to testify on Russian interference in the US Presidential election, a senior official said.

Comey will testify before the House Intelligence Committee on March 20, Greg Brower, assistant director for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Office of Congressional Affairs, told The Hill magazine.

However, it remains unclear whether Comey will appear during the public component or in a closed-door session.

Brower cautioned that the director would be unable to provide many new details about the bureau's assessment of Russian interference on the 2016 Presidential election.

The intelligence community in December released a declassified version of its assessment that Russia attempted to intervene in the US election specifically for the purpose of helping President Donald Trump win the White House.

Democrats, who have seen the classified version, have long hinted that if the public could see what they saw, there would be little doubt as to the level of Russia's involvement.

The March 20 hearing comes as the top Democrat on the committee, Representative Adam Schiff, accused Comey of withholding information from lawmakers.
Pakistan on Saturday summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner to express concern over the acquittal of RSS leader Swami Aseemanand in the 2007 Ajmer Sharif blast case.

JP Singh was summoned on Friday night, Dawn news reported.

On Wednesday, a special court acquitted Swami Aseemanand and six others in the 2007 Ajmer Dargah blast case, giving them the "benefit of doubt". The bombing killed three people and left at least 15 others injured.

Aseemanand is also accused of masterminding the deadly 2007 Samjhota Express bombing that killed 68 people, most of them Pakistanis.

"Swami Aseemanand had publicly confessed that he was the 'mastermind' of Samjhota Express terrorist attack of February 2007," the statement released by the Foreign Office said on Friday.

The statement added that Pakistan "expects India to take steps to bring to justice all those involved in the heinous act of Samjhota Express terrorist attack".
Donald Trump has invited Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas to visit the White House sometime soon, both sides said after the first phone call between the pair since the US president took office in January.

Trump invited Abbas "to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the (Palestinian-Israeli) political process," the official Palestinian news agency Wafa quoted Abbas's spokesman as saying.

The spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeina, said that Trump stressed his "commitment to a peace process that would lead to a real peace between Palestinians and Israelis", Wafa reported.

Abbas told Trump that peace was a "strategic choice" for the Palestinian people that should lead to the "establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel".

In Washington, the White House said Trump "emphasised his personal belief that peace is possible and that the time has come to make a deal."

"The president noted that the United States cannot impose a solution on the Israelis and Palestinians, nor can one side impose an agreement on the other," said a statement from Trump's spokesman Sean Spicer.

"The president invited president Abbas to a meeting at the White House in the near future."

Trump received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in mid-February.

At that meeting, Trump broke with decades of US policy by saying he was not bound to the two-state solution for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The peace process has been deadlocked since April 2014 following the collapse of indirect negotiations led by then US secretary of state John Kerry.

Since Trump came to power, having pledged to lead the most pro-Israel US administration in history, Palestinian officials have been quietly alarmed by their lack of access to senior figures in the White House.

On Tuesday, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, met for the first time with the Palestinian envoy to the world body, Riyad Mansour.

After the talks, Haley tweeted that the Palestinians should "meet with Israel in direct negotiations rather than looking to the UN to deliver results that can only be achieved through the two parties".

Israel has long favoured direct bilateral talks, while the Palestinians argue they need the international community to ensure Israel follows through on its pledges.

Trump has previously suggested he would move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Israeli right- wingers have encouraged Netanyahu to use Trump's election as an opportunity to formally annex parts of the West Bank into Israel.
Volunteer lawyers wait at the international arrival area for travelers detained at OHare International Airport in Chicago on Friday.
I awoke from a brief nap in my recliner and leaned over to tell my wife that I was going to bed. I glanced to the clock on the television, it was 8:30 pm. As I walked down the hallway to the master bedroom, I noticed the bedroom window was open. The weather was most pleasant this March 13 evening, temp. 75 degrees, clear and no wind.(Jim Schnebelt Fox 10 weather) Typical Arizona spring evening.



As I pulled the window closed, my eyes were attracted to the three huge, bright white lights angled down and very low to the ground. "Plane crash!" I thought. These lights were way too low and angled in a way nothing I know of could pull out of.

By Mike Fortson

The UFO Chronicles

March 1997

 1997-2017









I ran down the hallway, grabbed my glasses off the bar and yelled to my wife, of 25 years, "get outside right now!" Without hesitation she followed me out the back arcadia door to the edge of our patio. (I have timed this since and it took app. 8-10 sec)Standing at the edge of our patio, facing west, and looking north, confussion struck me. For there was no plane crash, but coming from the north and heading south was one, single structure that looked like a giant boomerang. (the description of boomerang, chevron (best), and V shaped object all apply). This object stuck out like a sore thumb in the evening sky due to the fact we were looking north towards the Phoenix metro area, and the city lights gave us a grey background in which to view this huge black V shaped object. It was so low to the surface we could not believe it. I remember saying, "what the hell is that?"The huge V shaped craft was moving slowly to the south. At this point, still northwest of us, we both saw a 737 in landing approach pass over the object. The plane was coming in from the west heading east. The V shaped craft was heading south from the north. As the 737 passed over the V shaped object, I said, "did you see that! Why didn't the plane get the hell out of there?" But it didn't. The pilot nor the planes computers saw nothing. (Just like the radars at Sky Harbor and Luke AFB. Nothing was detected.)I would like to explain more on this incident. We live app. 23 miles ESE of Sky Harbor in Phoenix. Planes coming in to land (most of the time) will come out by us, bank to the north (left), proceed for app. 10-12 miles, bank left again (west) and land at Sky Harbor. This is normal landing pattern. I have talked to airline pilots, tower operators, and investigators about the altitude of planes coming in to land at Sky Harbor, at the point of the first bank north where we live. The altitude..1200'. The massive V shaped craft we saw was under 1200' altitude!As the huge V shaped craft proceeded south, it was almost in front of us, when my eyes followed the left wing to it's end. We live 1/2 mile south of Chandler Blvd. The end of the wing was well past that and at least half way to Ray Rd. (1 1/2 miles north!) I remember saying to my wife, "that son-of-a-bitch is a mile long! As it passed in front of us all we could see is the left wing. That's how low it was. At arm's length the object was at least 30"+ long. I reported it was app. 1 1/2 mile west of us, going down Alma School Rd. But the closest part of the huge V, the end of the left wing was much closer. Maybe within a 1/2 mile. One thing that I remember the most is how this craft "floated" app. 30-40 mph. There was no visual means of propulsion and absolutely no noise. The altitude and speed of the craft never changed.On March 13, 1997, at app.8:31 pm mst., there was a bright bottom quarter moon setting in the western horizon. I said to the wife, "we're gonna get more detail, look, it's going right into the light of the moon." But instead of greater detail of this huge V shaped craft, what we saw still amazes us. As the front of the V shaped craft entered the light of the moon, this black chevron shaped object became translucent in bright light! We could still see the bottom quarter moon thru the object, but instead of bright white, it (moon) was a dingy yellow. As the V shaped craft exited the bright moon, it became a solid black object again. We watched as the entire craft passed thru this. Seeing a solid object going into and coming out of, was black. But as the craft passed between us and the bright, white moon, it was translucent.(Something about bright objects...witnesses who had this pass over their heads claim that as the craft passed between bright stars, it was like looking thru...water)By the time the end (left wing still) was passing thru the light of the moon, the front of the craft was disappearing into the night sky to our south. It never changed course, speed, or altitude. Just faded off into the night sky to the south of us.During the whole sighting we never moved our feet. We never considered getting a camera. We never thought of yelling for a neighbor. There was no question in our minds that what we saw was not of this Earth. Our total sighting was app. 1 minute and 45 seconds.
Ibobi Singh has won from Thoubal constituency while activist-turned-politician Irom Sharmila disappointed by bagging just a handful of 90 votes.

By India Today Web Desk: Manipur's Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh is facing a tough fight from BJP which can stop him from coming to power for a record consecutive fourth term by beating the anti-incumbency wave.

Singh has won from Thoubal constituency while activist turned politician Irom Sharmila disappointed by bagging just a handful of 90 votes. She even announced a hasty decision to quit politics.

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BJP is hoping that after it snatched away Assam from Congress last year, another northeastern state of Manipur will come in its kitty.

In the outgoing Assembly, Congress had an absolute majority.

The India Today-Axis My India exit poll had predicted that the Congress's bastion guarded by Singh is still unassailable. The Congress is in power in Manipur since 2002, when Singh became the Chief Minister of the state for the first time.HERE ARE ALL THE LATEST UPDATES

Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan announced the support of the lone Lok Janshakti Party MLA in Manipur to the BJP.

Congress ahead with 25 seats but still short of a clear majority. BJP comes close with 21 seats.

Irom Sharmila to quit politics but says her party should carry on.

Former Congress minister and BJP candidate from Heingang Assembly seat N Biren Singh wins by a margin of 1206

As per the latest trends Congress is ahead in 20 seats while BJP is ahead in 22 seats of Manipur.

Manipur election results are taking time as counting is yet to begin for few seats.

Trends indicate BJP is ahead in 20 seats and Congress in 16. Naga People's Front has already won three seats.

Congress has won 11 seats, leading in 6 while BJP has bagged 7 seats and is leading in another nine.

Naga People's Front has won three seats so far in Manipur

Congress wins 8 seats and leading in another 8 in Manipur Vidhan Sabha. While BJP has 3 seats and is leading in 9 seats.

Congress wins six seats in Manipur, leading in another eight. BJP bags two so far and leading in eight.

BJP wins 2 seats, Congress 3, Naga People's Front gets one. BJP is leading in 8 seats and Congress in 9

Manipur: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has won two seats while Congress has won three.

Irom Sharmila polled just 90 votes in Thoubal seat, less than NOTA.

Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh leading in Thoubal with 10419 votes

Irom Sharmila gets only only 51 votes which is even less than the NOTA figure at Thoubal seat so far.

Manipur Election: Congress 10, BJP 11

BJP's Dr Sapam Ranjan Singh wins Konthoujam seat in Manipur

BJP wins one seat in Manipur.

Congress and BJP fighting neck to neck in Manipur. Both leading in 9 seats.

Manipur Assembly Election Results 2017: Irom Sharmila loses to CM Okram Ibobi Singh

Manipur trends update: Congress leading in 8 seats and BJP in 7.

Manipur trends update: Congress leading in 6 seats and BJP in 5

Congress leading in four seats, BJP in 2, NPF in 2 and others in 1 seat of Manipur

Congress leading in three seats, BJP, NPF and others leading in one each seats of Manipur.

Central para-military forces are guarding EVMs as prohibitory orders under Section 144 CrPC were imposed by drict magrates near the perimeter of all counting halls.

Result in Manipur's Thoubal constituency, where Chief Miner O Ibobi Singh is pitted against rights activ Irom Sharmila, is likely to take time.

Congress leading in two seats while other parties also leading in two seats of Manipur

Irom Sharmila trailing behind Manipur Chief Miner O Ibobi Singh

Congress leading in one seat of Manipur

Assembly results of Chandel, Jiribam, Senapati and Kangpokpi constituencies in Manipur is expected to come out fast.

BJP had no seats in the outgoing Manipur Assembly.

Postal ballot counting begins in Manipur

Irom Sharmila says if she is defeated in Manipur Assembly election this year then she will try in the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Counting of votes in Manipur Assembly will begin at eight AM at 11 counting centres.

Muscle, money power openly used by parties, alleges Irom Sharmila

Congress had an absolute majority in the outgoing Assembly

The India Today-Axis My India exit poll had predicted that the Congress's bastion guarded by Singh is still unassailable

The current Legislative Assembly expires on March 18.

Manipur Legislative Assembly election were held on March 4 and March 8

Watch: Assembly Election results 2017: Shiv Aroor decodes BJP's unprecedented victory and impact of election

--- ENDS ---
Banking on the Naga unity and resentment of middle class over the economic blockade for three months, the Bharatiya Janata Party is dreaming of forming its first coalition government in Manipur.

The saffron party is leading in 14 seats while Naga Peoples Front and Naga Peoples Party together are ahead in 12 seats. Congress is leading in 21 seats.

We will form the next government in Manipur, said Robin Blackie, treasurer of BJP state unit.

In ten seats, the trend has yet to be clear. In case Manipur is heading for a hung assembly, chances are high that BJP would team up with the NPF and the NPP to form the government.

BJP did a strategic decision not to ally with Naga parties as it knew that it would get the benefit of the Naga votes over the Naga treaties it is carrying out with NSCN (IM). It helped BJP gain massive votes in the Naga valley, which is around 15 percent of the total votes. Nagas are scattered all over Manipur but dominated in districts like Ukhrul, Chandel, Senapati, Tamenglong, Senapati and Churchandpur.

However, Congress still feels the war has not ended.

Wait for more time. We will have comfortable majority, said president of Congress in Manipur, T.N. Haokip, who is leading in a Naga dominated seat in Saikot.
Not withstanding the " Captain wave" that remained cloaked in low visibility, to unfold with the results on Saturday noon, the big leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal retained their seats even as the party faced its worst ever defeat.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal retained Lambi, which became the key constituency when PPCC president threw his hat into the ring from there as a matter of challenge. Hard put to field a candidate against the duo, AAP selected Delhi MLA Jarnail Singh who shot into limelight for hurling a shoe at then finance minister P. Chidambaram.

Badal has won the seat by 22,770 votes polling 66,375 votes while Singh secured 43,605 votes. Jarnail Singh was at the third spot, securing 21,254 votes.

Badal' s right eye was hurt when an AAP supporter hurled a shoe at him, resulting in the chief minister staying away from the campaign for the next few days.

Sukhbir Badal and Bikram Majithia also retained their seats by convincing margins.

The anti-Badal wave, that was palpable, was on account of corruption charges against Sukhbir and alleged support to the drug mafia by Majithia. But they bucked the trend.
Dreaded Maoist leader Hidma, the commander of the second battalion of the People's Liberation Gureilla Army (PLGA ), the armed wing of the CPI(Maoist),is being suspected to be behind Saturday's attack at Sukma district of Chattisgarh in which 12 CRPF personnel were martyred.

Hidma was allegedly behind the 2013 Jeeram Valley attack in Bastar district of Chattisgarh in which 31 people including some senior state Congress leaders were killed. He was also behind the Chintalnar ambush in 2010 in which 76 CRPF troopers were killed.

"As of now, Hidma is being suspected to be behind the attack as per our intelligence inputs," a top intelligence official in the CRPF based in Chattisgarh told THE WEEK.

The potent threat by the banned CPI(Maoist) became alive once again after a platoon of 60 armed members of the PLGA unleashed violencethe worst in the recent pastkilling 12 CRPF personnel in an encounter that took place in the forest area of Bankupura, south east of Bheji towards Kottacheru in Sukma district on Satueday morning .

The attack took place notwithstanding multiple intelligence inputs that the PLGA was active and planning strikes ahead of the monsoon season .

The period after the winter season and before the monsoon is the time when the Maoists are the most active, targeting security forces by laying ambushes and carrying out IED attacks, taking benefit of the conducive weather and knowledge of the terrain, said Dinakaran, DIG in CRPF in Sukma told THE WEEK.

During the monsoons , they again lie low as movements in the dense forests and uneasy terrains become difficult.

The anti-naxal forces, consisting of the state and central forces, had intelligence inputs warning about Saturday's strike. The armed Maoists struck terror when a company of 112 CRPF personnel was going for a road opening exercise (ROP).

"They fired at the central force party which fired back. However, as the encounter was going on with the Maoists carrying heavy weaponry, an IED blast was set off by the Maoists. Two three Maoists were also killed in the encounter, but as the naxals usually do, they took away their bodies," Dinakaran said .

During the IED blast ,the CRPF personnel suffered the maximum injuries with as many as eleven losing their lives. One officer breathed his last while he was being evacuated in a chopper.

The Maoists snatched ten weapons and two wireless sets from the security forces.

Though the encounter is over, the search operations are going on and all escape routes of the naxals are being sealed in the state. Additional forces are deployed on the group even as Union home minister Rajnath Singh and the CRPF top brass have landed in Raipur where they laid wreaths to the martyrs and are monitoring the anti-naxal operations.
Get Punjab election results news and updates: The Congress has won the Punjab Assembly election, beating rivals AAP and SAD-BJP by a margin of more than 2:1. Amarinder Singh is set to become the next chief minister of Punjab.

By India Today Web Desk: For the first time in recent history, Punjab witnessed a three-cornered fight for its 117-seat Assembly. Counting began at 8 am at 54 centres in 27 locations where the state election commission had deployed more than 14,000 officials.

The Congress took a lead since the very first trend, and continued the momentum to outrun its competition. The party has come close to winning a two-thirds majority in the Punjab Assembly and with at least 69 seats in its bag, Congress is far ahead of the likely second-placed Aam Aadmi Party.

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The ruling Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party, which exit polls had predicted wouldn't even reach double digits, put a better showing than expected. While it took leads in more than 20 seats in the morning, its lead was cut back once the results started becoming clearer.

Incumbent Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has conceded defeated and has said he will offer his resignation to the governor tomorrow. Meanwhile, Congress's Captain Amarinder Singh will have a very memorable 75th birthday today as the veteran leader prepares to head the new government in what is going to be his last political innings.

Singh, who has said this is the last time he is contesting an election, lost to Badal in Lambi, but comfortably won from his home seat of Patliala (Urban).

Here is all that happened:

Rana KP and Trupt Rajinder Bajwa are leading in the race for the Speaker's position.

Sources said that Captain Amarinder Singh, who will be the Punjab chief minister, is most likely to pick Manpreet Singh Badal, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Brahm Mahindra, Rana Gurjit, Charanjit Channi, Vijay Inder Singla, Amarinder Singh Warring (Youth Congress President), Kuljit Nagar, Rakesh Pandey, Aruna Chaudhary, Razia Sultan, Rana KP and Trupt Rajinder Bajwa in his cabinet.

Rahul Gandhi congratulated Captain Amarinder Singh on Twitter. "I thank everyone in Punjab for their immense faith and support. This is a mandate for a brighter future for Punjab and it's youth," the Congress vice-president said.

It seems that the Congress is likely to win 77 seats (the party already has won 69 according to the results so far). The AAP's final tally will likely be 20 Assembly seats while the ruling SAD-BJP combine will win 18 seats.

The Congress has officially sealed its victory in Punjab. The party has won 66 seats and is leading in another 10. The APP meanwhile has won 21 seats, while the SAD-BJP alliance has won 17 seats and is leading in another one.

Speaking at the BJP office in New Delhi, BJP chief Amit Shah said, "We accept our defeat in Punjab and we will introspect."

The Congress is not only winning the state of Punjab, but is also set to conquer the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat, the by-polls for which were held during this Assembly election. Congress's Gurjeet Singh Aujla is leading BJP's Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina by nearly 1.55 lakh votes in the seat.

Latest result update: Congress has won 43 seats, is leading in 33 (Total: 76). AAP has won 15 seats, is leading in 6 (Total: 21). SAD-BJP alliance has won 7 seats, is leading in 11 (Total: 18).

Regardless of the magnitude of Congress's win in Punjab, the story of the day, undoubtedly, is the Bharatiya Janata Party's spectacular win in Uttar Pradesh.

Watch | Assembly Election results 2017: Shiv Aroor decodes BJP's unprecedented victory and impact of election

As the Congress looks set to form the next government, all eyes will be on whom the party appoints as the deputy chief minister. Captain Amarinder Singh has said party vice-president Rahul Gandhi will make the decision.

Punjab election result update: Congress has won 34 seats, is leading in 40 (total: 74). Aam Aadmi Party has won 13 seats and is leading in 10 (Total: 23). SAD-BJP alliance has won 4 seats is leading in 15 (Total: 19).

Aam Aadmi Party's controversial leader Bhagwant Mann lost to SAD's Sukbhir Singh Badal in Jalalabad.

Congress's Navjot Singh Sidhu has won the Amritsar East seat.

Click here to Enlarge

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he spoke to Captain Amarinder Singh and congratulated him on the Congress's performance in Punjab.

Spoke to @capt_amarinder & congratulated him on the win in Punjab. Also wished him a happy birthday & prayed for his long & healthy life.- Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017

Latest result update: Congress has won 21 seats and is leading in 59; AAP has won 9 and is leading in 12. SAD-BJP alliance has won 1 seat and is leading in 14.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, who has said he will submit his resignation tomorrow, has beaten Captain Amarinder Singh in Lambi. Amarinder, however, is also contesting from Patiala (Urban), which he comfortable won by 52,407 votes, defeating his Aam Aadmi Party rival, Balbir Singh.

If the election result trends continue the Congress will win an absolute majority in the Punjab Assembly.

Click here to Enlarge Punjab's CM-to-be Captain Amarinder Singh (Photo: India Today/Supriya Bharadwaj)

Congress is now leading in 78 seats, the AAP in 20 seats and the SAD-BJP alliance in 17 seats.

Congress has officially won Ludhiana (Central) and Ludhiana (North).

Now leading in 76 seats, the Congress could go on to win a two-thirds majority in the Punjab Assembly.

Incumbent chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has conceded defeat. He says he will meet the governor tomorrow and submit his resignation. "I thank Lambi people for supporting me," Badal, who is likely to win in Lambi, added.

We will discuss the reasons in the core committee meeting & analyse each aspect of our performance in the elections: Prakash Singh Badal pic.twitter.com/jnSI6VEvn1- ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017 During his media briefing, Amarinder Singh said that the first priority of the Congress government will be addressing Punjab's drug menace.

Current trends in Punjab's election results: Congress leads in 72 seats, AAP in 25 and SAD-BJP in 18.

Captain Amarinder Singh win the Patiala (Urban) seat by a margin of over 51,000 votes.

Issue of who will be deputy CM is up to Rahul Gandhi to decide, Captain Amarinder says.

"I am very happy," Singh adds.

Click here to Enlarge Congress's Navjot Singh Sidhu cleberating victory with wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu (Photo: India Today/Prabhjot Singh Gill)

Addressing the media, Captain Amarinder Singh confirms that a meeting of the victorious Congress MLAs has been called for tomorrow.

Captain Amarinder Singh's grandson Nirvan and his wife Mriganka Singh, Dr Karan Singh's granddaughter, have commented on the Congress's showing in the Punjab Assembly election. "It is an emotional moment for him (Amarinder Singh) and the family...It is his last election campaign we are really emotional," they said.

Winning 78 seats would give the Congress a two-thirds majority in the Punjab assembly.

Current result trends: Congress leading in 74 Assembly seats, AAP in 24 and SAD-BJP in 18.

"This is the revival of the Congress," Navjot Singh Sidhu, who looks set to win the Amritsar East seat, tells media persons.

Trends in Punjab's election result now stand at Congress leading in 73 seats, AAP in 24, and SAD-BJP in 18.

The meeting has been called by Congress's Amarinder Singh, who looks all set to become the next chief minister of Punjab.

Click here to Enlarge

While the results remain to become official, Congress MLAs who have won in the Punjab Assembly election, plan to hold a meeting tomorrow at 2 pm in Chandigarh. The victorious MLAs will then meet Governor Vijayendrapal Singh.

The other question is, who will be the main opposition in the Punjab Assembly? Currently, the Aam Aadmi Party seems ahead, leading in 24 seats while the ruling SAD-BJP leads in 19 seats.

The big questions now are can the Congress win a two-thirds majority? The party, leading in 72 seats according to the latest result trends, would need to win 78 seats to do so.

The Congress is now leading in 70 seats. However, more interestingly, the SAD-BJP's early leads have cut back to just 19 seats. Will the alliance lose more seats as the Assembly election results become clearer? We will know soon.

Celebrations outside Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu's residence in Amritsar #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/FuItRZbhM0- ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017 Captain Amarinder Singh will address the media at noon today, four hours after counting began in Punjab. After the interaction, Singh will leave for Patiala, an aide announced.

Celebrations, meanwhile, have begun at the Congress's office in Punjab as the party celebrates coming back to power in the state.

Amarinder Singh's Congress is now leading in 68 seats, ten short of winning a two-thirds majority in the Punjab Assembly.

Latest leads in the results: Congress in 65 seats, AAM in 25, SAD-BJP 23.

Arvind Kejriwal's AAP is currently in the third place, leading in 24 seats, while the SAD-BJP coalition leads in 28 seats.

As the Congress gallops ahead in the Punjab poll results, the competition now seems to be for the state's primary opposition.

As the Punjab election results keep coming in, the ruling coalition is performing better than what was expected. Several exit polls had predicted that the alliance would not even achieve double digit seats in these elections.

AAP leads in 25 seats while SAD-BJP leads in 27 seats.

The Aam Aadmi Party and the Shiromani Akali Dal and Bharatiya Janata Party alliance continue the battle to be the second largest party in Punjab Vidhan Sabha.

Congress looks set to return in Punjab as the Assembly election results show the party now leading in 63 seats.

SAD's Sukhbir Singh Badal is leading in Jalalabad. The Punjab deputy CM is facing off against AAP's Bhagwant Mann.

Click here to Enlarge

Congress's lead drops to 56 seats, but the party is still quite ahead of its rivals. Will the Punjab Assembly election results be the perfect birthday gift for Congress's Amarinder Singh, who celebrates his 75th birthday today? We will know soon.

Congress now leading in 57 seats. AAP and SAD-BJP continue their neck and neck race for the second position in Punjab's Assembly.

Congress's Navjot Singh Sidhu leads in the Amaritsar East constituency.

The Punjab Assembly election results are showing the SAD-BJP combine performing better than what exit polls predicted. Most polls didn't even give the ruling alliance double digits in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha.

If Congress wins the Punjab election, it is likely to be considered Captain Amarinder Singh's victory. Singh was announced as the Congress' chief minister face just two weeks before Punjab Assembly elections began.

Based on how the results look so far, Congress seems likely to achieve a majority in the Punjab Assembly. AAP and SAD-BJP meanwhile continue to the tussle for the number second position as election results keep coming in.

The Congress, leading in 55 seats, is close to the halfway mark of 59 seats in Punjab's 117-seat Assembly.

The Congress has extended its lead in 51 seats now. The AAP is leading in 20 seats while the SAD-BJP, performing better than exit polls predicted, leads in 22 seats.

The AAP is facing a tough fight for the second position in the Punjab Assembly. But, earlier today, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal seemed all ready to celebrate before the results were announced:

Congress is ahead of its competition by a 2:1 margin. The party is leading in 43 Assembly seats in Punjab. The AAP and the SAD-BJP both lead in 20 seats each.

Parkash Singh Badal leads over Amarinder Singh in Lambi as results keep pouring in. The Captain, meanwhile, is leading in Patiala, where he is also competing from.

Congress seems to be heading towards becoming the single largest party in the Punjab assembly.

Congress now leading in 31 seats, the AAP in 16, SAD-BJP in 13.

Congress leads in 24 seats, Shiromani Akali Dal in 11, Aam Aadmi Party in 13 and the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2.

Congress keeps pulling ahead in early leads. The party is now leading in 16 seats, while the AAP leads in 11 seats. SAD-BJP, meanwhile, leads in six seats.

Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party and Mamata Banarjee's Trinamool Congress, who have also fielded candidates for the Punjab Assembly, have so far no registered leads in any seats.

Congress now leading in 15 Punjab Vidhan Sabha seats, the Aam Aadmi Party in seven seats, while the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition leads in four seats.

Today's results will also determine who becomes the MP of the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat. The seat was vacated by Congress's Amarinder Singh in November 2016 and by-election for the seat along with the Punjab Assembly election.

Congress now leads in nine seats in the Punjab Assembly. The Aam Aadmi Party is currently second, leading in five seats. The ruling SAD-BJP alliance leads in three seats.

Congress now leads in nine seats in the Punjab Assembly. The Aam Aadmi Party is currently second, leading in five seats. The ruling SAD-BJP alliance leads in three seats.

CM Parkash Singh Badal, AAP's Bhagwant Mann, Congress's Navjot Singh Sidhu lead in their respective seats.

Congress now leading in five seats in Punjab. Arvind Kerjriwal's Aam Aadmi Party leads in two seats, while the SAD-BJP combine leads in two seats.

AAP and Congress both lead in three seats each in Punjab. SAD-BJP alliance leading in one seat.

--- ENDS ---

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Bharatiya Janata Party is all set to form government in the hill state with majority of 55 seats.

By India Today Web Desk: Congress-ruled Uttarakhand is set to go into the BJP's kitty with the saffron party leading in a comfortable 55 of 70 seats. India Today TV has already called the election in favour of the BJP.

A total of 637 candidates including 56 contested for 70 seats in the Uttarakhand Assembly.

Both India Today-Axis and Chanakya exit polls had projected a clean sweep for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with nearly 53 seats.

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Also read: BJP landslide in Uttarakhand, all eyes on who will be the next CM

In 2012 Uttarakhand Assembly election, Congress won 32, BJP won 31, BSP got 3 and 4 seats to others. Uttarakhand has a population of 10.1 million with Thakurs and Brahmins making up 60 per cent.

Incumbent Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat of Congress and former chief minister and BJP leader BC Khanduri are the key players in the electoral battle.

HERE ARE THE LIVE UPDATES:

Uttarakhand BJP president Ajay Bhatt loses to Karan Mahara of Congress by 4981 votes from Ranikhet assembly constituency.

I accept the defeat of Congress. My leadership may not have been up to the mark and resulted in the party's failure, says Harish Rawat.

Congress ki jo haar hui hai, mein usko swikaar karta hun. Meri leadership mein kuch kami reh gayi ki Congress haar gayi: Harish Rawat, Cong pic.twitter.com/oXhWOIifj0- ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

I express my gratitude to the people of India for their continued faith, support and affection for BJP. This is very humbling and overwhelming, said PM Modi in a tweet

We will form government in 4 states (UP, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa), even in Punjab we got a good vote share, says Amit Shah on election result.

I have resigned after the results of the Assembly election, Governor received the resignation: Harish Rawat

Governor receives CM Harish Rawat's resignation

Celebrations begin at BJP headquarters in Delhi

- ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017 Several Congress leaders in Uttarakhand have shifted to BJP in the recent times: Political analyst

For the first time people are rising above cast & religion and voting for development: Jitender Singh, MoS, PMO #ITVideo #TsuNaMo pic.twitter.com/4Ht6uHrmsD- India Today (@IndiaToday) March 11, 2017 Ritu Khanduri, daughter of former CM BC Khanduri, is a strong contender for the chief post

Congress ahead in third round of counting with 3,008 votes, BJP at 2,838 and BSP 868 in Bhagwanpur.

BJP leads with 11,456 votes in the fifth round of counting in Haridwar. Congress gets 9,400 and BSP 10,146

In #Uttarakhand, @BJP4India has a reason to rejoice!Watch #Verdict2017 : https://t.co/TFg6M7I5XD pic.twitter.com/IynMMYsI7R- India Today (@IndiaToday) March 11, 2017 Congress leader K Bhuvan leads in Khatima of Uttarakhan

Saurabh Bahuguna leads in Sitarganj with 4,973 votes

BJP candidate leads in Kotdwar of Uttarakhand with over 6,267 votes

Kedarnath witnesses tough competition between Congress and independent candidates

BJP candidate ahead in Rudraprayag with over 3,000 votes, Congress trails

Harish Rawat trailing in Kiccha Assembly contituency of Uttarakhand

People have lost faith in CM Harish Rawat, BJP will form govt: Munna Singh | #Verdict2017 Uttarakhand results live https://t.co/dcVdV2xuOa pic.twitter.com/TQEfe5azXm- India Today (@IndiaToday) March 11, 2017 Congress leader Harish Rawat and BJP's BC Khanduri the two key players in the Uttarakhand Assembly election 2017

BC Khanduri instrumental in obtaining staggering numbers for BJP in Uttarakhand

BJP at historic 52, Congress at 10, BSP 03 and others get 01

BJP wins 47 seats, Congress 10, BSP 3 and 1 seat for others.

BJP set to form government

Massive lead for BJP in Uttarakhand with 44 out of 70 seats

Numbers start pouring in for Uttar Pradesh, watch #Verdict2017 on #ITFBLive with @anjanaomkashyap Update on UP: https://t.co/oIU1FugPVb pic.twitter.com/EF3rM65A8X- India Today (@IndiaToday) March 11, 2017 BJP 42, Congress 7 and others at 2 in Uttarakhand

BJP leads 17, Congress 3 and others at 1 in Uttarakhand Assembly election

As per latest trends show BJP at 14, Congress at 5

BJP leads in Uttarakhand with 12 seats, Congress 4

BJP continues it lead run with 11 seats, Congress 5

.@BJP4India looking strong as of now in #Uttarakhand#Verdict2017 pic.twitter.com/M64AhIyTcA- India Today (@IndiaToday) March 11, 2017 BJP leads with 9 seats, Congress at 2 in Uttarakhand

Latest trends in Uttarakhand show Congress leading with 3 seats, BJP - 2

Latest trends show Congress, BJP leading one seat each in Uttarakhand

BJP campaigned for the Uttarakhand Assembly election as if PM Modi was their chief ministerial candidate: State Congress president, Kishore Upadhyay

We give our party 46 seats, says State Congress president, Kishore Upadhyay

Our agenda is clear and known to all. Congress camp has no dissent or doubt: State Congress president, Kishore Upadhyay

Uttarakhand people will not forget what BJP did last year in trying to bring down our govt: State Congress president, Kishore Upadhyay

Uttarakhand Assembly election, counting will start from 8:30 am

Counting of votes for 70 Assembly seats in Uttarakhand begins.

People have lost faith in Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat, he is taking every measures to reclaim the govt: Munna Singh

People have voted for the work done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi: Munna Singh

BJP's Munna Singh is also contesting from Vikasnagar Vidhansabha of Uttarakhand.

BJP will form the government in Uttarakhand, says BJP state spokesperson Munna Singh

Uttarakhand has 70.7 per cent female literacy rate.

Uttarakhand has a 88.3 per cent of male literacy rate

The hill state boasts of 79.6 per cent literacy rate. Crime rate in the state is at 97.2 per cent.

Uttarakhand has a population of 10.1 million with Thakurs and Brahmins making up 60 per cent.

In 2012 Uttarakhand Assembly polls, Congress won 32, BJP won 31, BSP got 3 and 4 seats to others.

Amid the much-awaited Assembly election counting, a high alert has been sounded in the hill state for next 72 hours due to heavy snowfall and rain.

"We will win again and with full majority," said Uttarakhand CM and Congress leader Harish Rawat on Friday

Also read:

LIVE: Exit polls say BJP leading UP, Uttarakhand and Goa, AAP-Congress in tight fight in Punjab, BJP makes it difficult for Congress in Manipur

India Today-Axis Opinion Poll on Uttarakhand: BJP ahead in direct fight with Congress

Uttarakhand election 2017 result: Can the Congress stop lotus from blooming in the hill state?

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A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the U.S. president on Friday invited him to visit the White House to discuss resuming peace talks, the first contact between the two leaders since Donald Trump took office in January.

Spokesman Nabil Abu Rdeneh said Abbas received a very important call from Trump in which he was invited to the White House, and that he would attend very soon.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer confirmed the invitation to Abbas.

We are ready to deal with President Trump and the Israeli government to resume the negotiations, Abu Rdeneh said. If the Israelis are ready, President Abbas has committed himself to a peaceful deal with President Trump.

Abu Rdeneh added that President Trump is a very honest man, very courageous man, looking for a deal, a just deal.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government.

The last round of U.S.-mediated peace talks collapsed in 2014.

Fridays call was the first between Trump and Abbas since Trump took office.

In his efforts to secure Palestinian statehood, Abbas has spent many hours on the phone and in meetings with U.S. presidents and secretaries of state over the past decade, but has been unsuccessful when reaching out to Trump  until now.

Trump is unpopular among Palestinians because he appeared to break from his predecessor and adopt friendlier positions toward the Israeli government; ambivalence has marked his position toward a two-state solution to the conflict, hes considering to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, and has adopted a more lenient approach to Israel building settlements.

However, Trumps administration last week warned Israel against annexing parts of the occupied West Bank, saying it would trigger an immediate crisis between the two allies.

The move suggested Trump may be returning to more traditional U.S. policy and will not give Israel free rein to expand its control over the West Bank and sideline the Palestinians, as Israeli nationalists had hoped.

(AP)
The New York City medical examiners office, citing diplomatic protocol, will not release the cause and manner of death for Russias ambassador to the United Nations, who died suddenly last month after collapsing in his office.

An autopsy was performed on Ambassador Vitaly Churkin last month, but the death required further study. The additional tests were completed, but Julie Bolcer, spokeswoman for the citys medical examiner, said Friday that the citys law department told the office not to release any further information, in order to comply with international law and protocol.

The U.S. Department of State asked the city in writing on Feb. 24 to not reveal the autopsy results, because Churkins diplomatic immunity survives his death.

The United States insists on the dignified handling of the remains of our diplomatic personnel who pass away abroad (including in Russia) and works to prevent unnecessary disclosures regarding the circumstances of their deaths, wrote James Donovan, minister counselor for host country affairs for the U.S. mission to the United Nations.

In a follow-up letter on March 1, the State Department noted that the Russian Federation raised concerns after the autopsy had been conducted, and voluntary statements reported in the media about Ambassador Churkins medical history prompted complaints from Russian diplomats.

The information reported was very private in nature and included information about which even they had no knowledge, Donovan wrote in the follow-up letter to Mayor Bill de Blasios international affairs office.

Messages left by The Associated Press for Russian officials at the U.N. were not immediately returned.

The medical examiner is responsible for investigating deaths that occur by criminal violence, accident, suicide, suddenly or when the person seemed healthy, or if someone died in any unusual or suspicious manner. Most of the deaths investigated by the office are not suspicious. City policy is to release the cause of death.

Donovan argued that state policies could be overruled by federal authority where it creates an obstacle to the achievement of the Presidents foreign policy as reflected in an international agreement.

Churkin, who died Feb. 20 at a hospital at age 64, had been Russias envoy at the U.N. since 2006. He was the longest-serving ambassador on the Security Council, the U.N.s most powerful body.

He was buried in Moscow, where he was praised by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov praised as an exceptional professional and peoples diplomat. The Order of Courage, a medal awarded posthumously to Churkin by President Vladimir Putin, was displayed at his coffin.

(AP)
Lawyers for retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn told President Donald Trumps transition team that Flynn might need to register with the Justice Department as a foreign agent, according to a White House official and a person with direct knowledge of the discussions.

A White House official said Flynns personal lawyer contacted Trump transition attorneys before the inauguration about the possible filing as he was being considered for appointment as Trumps national security adviser. The official said the transition team was not made aware of the filings details and Flynns related business dealings, and advised Flynns lawyer that it was a personal matter they would need to handle. The official was not authorized to discuss private conversations and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Among those told of Flynns lobbying work that may have benefited the government of Turkey was Don McGahn, Trumps campaign lawyer who served in the transition and later became White House counsel, said the person, who was not authorized to describe confidential conversations and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The White House has been unclear about when it was told of Flynns lobbying.

The new details follow remarks Thursday by Vice President Mike Pence, who said he was unaware of Flynns foreign agent work until this week. Asked whether the president knew about Flynns work when he was appointed, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said Thursday that he did not believe that was known.

The disclosure of the contacts between Flynns team and the transition does not directly contradict the remarks from Pence and Spicer, but it shows that some key Trump administration officials were aware prior to Flynns appointment that it was likely he would be registering as a foreign agent.

The person with knowledge of the discussions said that the White House counsels office was told after the inauguration that Flynn was moving forward with the filing. The White House official said the White House counsels office has no recollection of a second discussion with Flynns lawyers.

Flynn and his firm, Flynn Intel Group Inc., filed paperwork this week with the Justice Department formally identifying him as a foreign agent and acknowledging that his work for a company owned by a Turkish businessman could be construed to have principally benefited the Republic of Turkey.

Flynns company was paid $530,000 for work for a Turkish company, according to the filings.

Trump asked Flynn to step down last month for misleading Vice President Mike Pence and other administration officials about his contacts with Russias ambassador to the U.S., Sergey Kislyak.

(AP)
By Press Trust of India: off: Gadkari

Jaipur, Mar 10 (PTI) The Centre is planning to develop three roads in the border areas of Rajasthan that could double as airstrips, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said here today.

"Three roads will be developed in border areas in Rajasthan under the Bharatmala project which could be used as airstrips," he said at the foundation stone-laying ceremony for two road projects in Churu districts Salasar area.

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The ambitious Bharatmala project, announced in 2015, involves connecting eastern and western India (from Mizoram to Gujarat) covering 10 other states through 7,000 km of national highways.

The Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping also said the government has decided to extend the length of national highways in the country from existing 96,000 km to 2 lakh km.

He said the expansion of highways would not only decongest the roads but also help reduce accidents.

"1.5 lakh people die in nearly 5 lakh road accidents in the country. The number of vehicles are increasing and traffic congestion is also on the rise," the Minister said.

In Rajasthan, a length of 7,000 km will be added to the national highways, he said.

Gadkari also said the Centre is working on developing 111 rivers across the country as national waterways and the work in the Ganga river has already begun.

Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who was also present at the programme, said the state government is working on resolving issue of water scarcity with Jal Swavalamban Abhiyan, which aims to improve the water table.

Besides, she said, the state government is also contemplating a project to bring sea water to the state so that the water demand could be met. PTI SDA ADS TIR

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MEAL DEAL The Competition and Markets Authority is considering whether to investigate Just Eats deal to buy German rival Hungryhouse for 200million from Delivery Hero.

SALES TRIMMED The High Street had its worst February since 2009 as the economy and Storm Doris hit spending.

Like-for-like sales fell 2.2 per cent, after they were down by 1.7 per cent in the same month last year, the BDO High Street Sales Tracker showed.

FLYING START Heathrow has had its best February after carrying a record 5.3m passengers, up 5.5 per cent on February 2016.

MOTOR MOVE VW and Tata Motors are teaming up to push into India. The partnership could lead to new vehicles for the region.

SHELL PAYOFF Shells outgoing finance chief Simon Henry is getting a 2m payoff, equivalent to a years pay and bonus. He is set to join the board of mining giant Rio Tinto as a non-executive director in July.

WOMEN WANTED Rolls-Royce is trying to recruit more women to its board, which is three-quarters male. It said it would prioritise female candidates, but will make appointments on merit.

FORECOURT FIRST BP has opened its first petrol station in Mexico. The forecourt in Mexico City is the only global oil company-branded site in the country, which deregulated fuel retailing in 2013.

BP said it could open 1,500 others in Mexico over the next five years.

PROFIT BOOST Retirement finance firm JRP Group has announced a 58 per cent rise in profit to 164million.

The firm said it had cut 30million in costs since its creation through a merger between Just Retirement and Partnership Assurance last year, with a target of 45million by the end of next year.

Shares rose 0.1 per cent, or 0.1p, to 150.2p.
British car-makers were flying the flag with pride as they vowed it was 'business as usual' despite Brexit at this week's Geneva Motor Show.

Among the stars shining brightest was Honda's hottest hatchback  the final production version of its 30,000 Civic Type-R people's supercar, which is built in Britain and will be exported to Japan and, for the first time, the U.S.

The 170 mph-plus hatchback is made in Swindon alongside the more mainstream tenth-generation Civic.

Hottest hatch: The 170mph Civic Type-R is built in Britain and will be exported to Japan and, for the first time, the U.S

Powered by a revised two-litre VTEC turbo petrol engine with an output of 320 bhp  accelerating from rest to 62 mph in 5.7 seconds  it has a six-speed manual transmission and beats the performance of the outgoing model by at least 3 mph.

It is also being made more user-friendly, with a new 'comfort' setting alongside agile 'sport' and track-focused '+R' modes.

Swindon plant director Justin Smith says 1,000 Type-Rs are being exported to Honda's home country, Japan.

The Type R takes the lighter and more rigid body shell of the new Civic hatchback

New model: Type R 'people's supercar' was unveiled today at the Geneva Motor Show

Altogether, 13,000 will be built over the next year and sold to 25 countries  3,500 will be for Britain and Europe.

And on March 27, the first shipment goes to the U.S.

They count as part of the 70,000 Civics built this year by the 3,700-strong Swindon workforce to be sold to 89 countries.

The Type-R shares the same 'fundamentals' as the new Swindon-built Civic hatchback, but Honda says it has been engineered 'from the ground up to deliver the most rewarding drive

'It's ramping up nicely. There's a really good spirit at the factory,' says Mr Smith.

'In Japan, our British-built Type R is four times over-subscribed. They go mad for it.'

The 212mph supercar will cost 208,000 when it goes on sale last this year

McLaren 720S revealed

McLaren took the wraps off its new 208,000 212 mph 720S supercar  marking the start of the Woking car-maker's second generation of vehicles.

Chief executive Mike Flewitt said it was 'a revolutionary leap forwards'.

The 3008 was picked ahead of Alfa Romeo's new Giulia

Car of the Year announced

Peugeot's 3008 crossover has been named European Car of the Year, pipping Alfa Romeo's Giulia and the Mercedes-Benz E-Class to the top spot.

Electric bubble car is show's cutest The cutest car in Geneva was this electric bubble car. The styling is based on the three-wheeled, egg-shaped, cheap and fuel-frugal Isetta of the Fifties. The front of the tiny 2.4m-long vehicle is also the door to the two-seater bench inside. Production versions of this new Microlino prototype, with its top speed of 56 mph and range of 74 miles, go on sale next year priced at about 10,000. Coming soon: Production versions of the Microlino electric biubblecar, with its top speed of 56 mph and range of 74 miles, go on sale next year priced at about 10,000 Looker: The styling is based on the, egg-shaped, cheap and fuel-frugal BMW Isetta of the Fifties It comes from the same Swiss firm that brought us the Micro Scooter in 1999 and Italian car-maker Tazzari. Imagine how easy it will be to find a parking space!

This is the latest concept car from Bentley - as you might have guessed, it's a looker

Electric Bentley concept also shown

Bentley also dipped a toe in the electric car market, showing off a svelte two-seater baby cabriolet designed to take on Aston Martin.

Clunkily codenamed EXP12 Speed 6e, it is the soft-top version of a sharp coupe shown in Geneva two years ago.

Driverless cars to become ownerless too

Get set for a generation who may never own a driving licence.

BMW's global sales and marketing director Ian Robertson warned at the annual conference of the Institute of the Motor Industry this week about the challenges presented by driverless cars.
The London Stock Exchange is competing with its New York rival to host what could be the biggest flotation ever.

Plans by Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil firm, to sell a 5 per cent stake have sparked a fierce contest to woo the business.

Officials from the New York and London stock exchanges have reportedly held talks with officials from the Saudi Arabian state-owned firm.

Fight: The London Stock Exchange is competing with its New York rival to host the flotation of Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil firm

It plans to list late next year as part of the Saudi government's plans to move the economy away from oil, valuing the shares at 70billion.

The listing would be a huge prize for either exchange, but it is possible both could win.

Saudi Aramco chief executive Amin Nasser has said it would take place on Saudi Arabia's exchange, the Tadawul, and also internationally on 'one or perhaps two bourses'.

'We are evaluating different stock exchanges globally and we will present this to our board and shareholder,' he added.

The LSE declined to comment last night, while the NYSE and Saudi Aramco did not respond to requests for comment.
Electric boost: Victoria Pendleton with her new e-bike

Cyclist Victoria Pendleton encouraged thousands of Britons to start pedalling when she won gold at the London Olympics in 2012.

But for those who find riding a normal bike too strenuous, the gold medalist has launched a range of electric bikes.

She has designed the Pendleton Somerby, a power-assisted bike on sale at Halfords.

The 750 'e-bike' is powered by a lithium-ion battery, which is stowed under the rack and takes five hours to charge.

It has a range of 50 miles and gives a boost up hill or pulling away from traffic lights.

Pendleton, 36, said: 'They're great for giving you more zip when you've run out of breath.'

Halfords is extending its range of electric bikes and expects sales to grow significantly.
President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee and His Majesty the King at the presidential palace before a luncheon hosted in honour of the Kings visit to India yesterday. (Pics: Len Mohale - State Photographer)

NEW DELHI, INDIA The president of India yesterday hosted His Majesty the King to a luncheon at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in honour of his visit to the country for an investment conference.



The Rashtrapati Bhavan is the official home of the president of India located on the western end of Rajpath in New Delhi, India.

It is described by Wikipedia as one of the largest residences of a head of state in the world, boasting 340 rooms on a 130 hectare estate.



Swaziland and India enjoy a bilateral relationship that has seen the latter, through extending line of credit; fund the construction of the Science and Technology Park as well as various agricultural activities and mechanisation of agriculture.



The country is also benefitting from skills development through scholarships offered by India in various sectors.

The president extended his countrys appreciation to the king for honouring the invitation and indicated that India is committed to supporting Swaziland achieve her development objectives.



The president urged the country to work closely with Exim Bank, which has already made a mark in the ICT and agriculture sectors in Swaziland.

India has pledged a US$10 billion line of credit to African countries over the next five years plus 50 000 scholarships for human resource development in Africa.



The engagement between the two leaders took place on the sidelines of the 12th CII  Exim Bank Conclave on India Africa Project Partnership held at the Taj Palace Hotel which officially ended yesterday.



His Majesty was accompanied to the luncheon by Chief Lembelele Dlamini, Prince Mguciso, Minister of Economic Planning and Development Prince Hlangusempi, Chief Officer in the Kings Office Dr Vincent Mhlanga, Kings Private Secretary Mbongeni Simelane and Indonesian Consular Kareem Ashraaff, among others.



The conclave, aimed at reinvigorating partnerships and strengthening ties, identified numerous areas of possible partnerships, particularly in infrastructure development, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, energy, mining, skills development, information communication technology (ICT) and health.
MBABANE  Leaving Swaziland to study Matric in South Africa is not advisable if you have not obtained the necessary documents.



This is the sad lesson a Swazi pupil together with two Mozambican nationals discovered just before they could sit for their Matric examinations last year.



The pupils were kicked out because they did not have a South African Identity Document (ID).

This was revealed by a Mail & Guardian investigation and highlighted in a report released last week Friday. A number of Swazis are said to be use informal crossing to register in South African schools because of the affordable fees.



Sibusiso Mthombo (21), who was in grade 12 at Mahlatsi High last year was kicked out of the school together with Mozambican-origin, twins Philisiwe and Philile Thole (19), before the trio could sit for their Matric examination.

The twins were also chucked out of the school for not having South African IDs.



Mthombo, who attended Mahlatsi High since grade 10, dropped out in February last year after he was told by a member of the schools management that he would not be allowed to write the Matric exam because he only had a Swazi ID.



The pupil had been living and studying in South Africa for six years. It has crippled my future because right now I have nothing to do. I am just sitting at home, he said.



It has been established, as highlighted by the report that schools close to the Mozambique and Swaziland borders in Mpumalanga are refusing to admit hundreds, and possibly thousands of learners because they do not have South African birth certificates and IDs.
LOBAMBA  The high rate of domestic violence cases would decrease if women were to stop demanding airtime, drinks then disappear when its time to go to bed.



This is an assertion that was made by Member of Parliament Mjuluko Dlamini during the portfolio committee of the Deputy Prime Ministers Office yesterday.

According to Dlamini, many men resort to being violent on their spouses after spending money to spoil them rotten and not being rewarded in the end.



He mentioned that there was a need for the country to work on determining the causes of the many violent cases some of which led to women being killed by their lovers.

Uyinatse lani lemali yami nangabe ngeke ungiphakele, Dlamini asked in vernacular.



He emphasised that there was a need for women to be taught how to handle men and not just chow their money and then leave them.

They want us to buy them airtime and drinks and after we have spent so much they then leave us for other men. This is one of the reasons why they end up being assaulted or murdered by their spouses, he said.



During the debate, almost all the members of the portfolio committee spent some time calling for interventions regarding domestic violence.

MP Saladin Magagula suggested that government needed to conduct a study to determine the causes of the many violent cases between lovers.



Violence



According to Magagula, the high rate of domestic violence cases was a sign that most Swazis were angry.
By Press Trust of India: From Yoshita Singh

United Nations, Mar 11 (PTI) Afghanistan has warned Pakistan to desist from using radical terrorists as a "foreign policy accessory", saying peace talks cannot progress if it pretends to be a "selective victim".

"Let me be very clear. The conflict in our country is not homegrown, as some desperately and deceptively try to portray. On the contrary, it is the nexus of illicit narcotics, violent extremism, and state sponsorship of terrorism with regional dimensions and global consequences," Afghanistans Permanent Representative to the UN Mahmoud Saikal said at a Security Council debate yesterday on the situation in Afghanistan.

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Listing the series of recent terror attacks that have wrecked havoc in his country, Saikal said while the Taliban claimed responsibility for most of these attacks, "our own investigations have clearly established that they were generally plotted beyond our frontiers, on the other side of the Durand Line".

He said this is the fundamental factor which needs to be addressed.

Quoting UN Security Council statements that condemn these attacks and call for their bring perpetrators and sponsors to be brought to justice, the Afghan envoy questioned why, after countless terrorist atrocities and specific Security Council statements condemning them, "we are still witness to impunity for perpetrators and orchestrators of endless violence".

"Tragically, it has morphed into an undeclared war by a neighbouring state that has for many years, and still continues to coordinate, facilitate, and orchestrate violence through proxy forces and more than 20 terrorist networks. These groups benefit from a full-fledged external infrastructure to keep Afghanistan off-balance for motives that are inconsistent with our desire to live in a peaceful and prospering region," he said.

Alluding to the terrorist attacks in Pakistan itself, Saikal said they are the "blowback effects" of using violent proxies as instruments of foreign policy.

"In other words, the chickens are coming home to roost! We have reminded our Pakistani counterparts on many occasions that you reap what you sow. We say once again, it is time to change that failed policy for your own sake, desist from using radical terrorists as a foreign policy accessory, and genuinely join the international fight against all forms and shades of terrorism," he said.

Saikal warned that by "bleeding" Afghanistan, Pakistan is not only trying to create a stalemate on the battlefield, but is also hindering the political track.

"Hoping to gain legitimacy for groups such as the Taliban, Pakistani decision-makers continue to use plausible deniability and shifting blame, as part of their defensive tactics while manipulating geo-political fault lines to their advantage," he said.

"Talks leading to a peace process can only succeed when policy is revised, the use of sanctuaries is prohibited, terrorist financing is curbed, and violence is renounced. Peace cannot be achieved by paying lip service and pretending to be a selective victim," he added. PTI YAS UZM

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MBABANE  It was a well thought out plan to ensure that their daughter would not be stranded outside each day when she returned from school.



With nobody to welcome her when she returned from school, the plan was that keys to house would be placed in a secure place where the six-year old Hlelelwe Dlamini would be able to access them so that she could gain entry into the house.



However, this plan ended tragically yesterday after as the Hlelelwe was discovered dead in the house, hanging by her tunic from a window.

She is believed to have died a painful death as it is suspected that she suffocated after hanging by her school tunics collar, which was hooked by a window knob.



The incident that left residents of the area extremely shocked took place at Nkhanini, near kaNdlela.

Hlelelwe lived with her parents and siblings and attended school at Lobamba National Primary School. She was the fourth child and the second youngest.



Hlelelwe was a daughter to Makhosonkhe Dlamini who works for His Majestys Correctional Services and Thulile Simelane.

A sense of grief and sorrow engulfed the family compound when the Swazi News reporters visited the family yesterday afternoon.

The sorrowful Hlelelwes mother, in the company of other family elders narrated how her daughters life ended tragically.

Simelane said it was common practice that all members of the family would leave the homestead during week days as others would go to school and others to work.



Hlelelwe, being the youngest among the children who attend school, always left with her two elder sisters who are in high school but she would return earlier as a result of being in lower grades.



She normally got back around 2pm while the rest of family would get back after 4pm.

Simelane said the family had a designated area within the homestead known only to family members, which they use to hide the house keys.

Hlelelwe, according to her mother, knew this and would at times take the keys from the place at which it was usually put and gained entry into the house, where she would remain until the rest of the family returned.
From Akshay Kumar to Shah Rukh Khan and Katrina Kaif to Tiger Shroff, Bollywood is skipping the Holi festivities this year. Why?

By India Today Web Desk: In the first quarter of the year, undoubtedly the biggest Indian festival is Holi. Holi, the festival of colours is embedded in the DNA of every Indian. Countless Indian films and songs have featured the celebrations of Holi intimately in their narrative.

But turns out that this year, some major Bollywood celebrities won't be celebrating Holi. Why exactly?

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Well, Shah Rukh Khan is currently in London with his wife Gauri and children, Aryan, Suhana and AbRam. As such, they won't be celebrating Holi.

Akshay Kumar, meanwhile, is shooting for a film in Madhya Pradesh. So no Holi plans there as well.

According to a report by DNA, this is what the younger Bollywood stars had to say:

Tiger Shroff: I will be working on Holi, shooting for my film Munna Michael. In any case, I don't play Holi as I don't like playing it as it leads to wastage of water.

Katrina Kaif: Shooting for Tiger Zinda Hai in Austria

Arjun Kapoor: I am in London shooting for Mubarakan, but I anyway don't play Holi. I used to play till I was 17-18 and then stopped as I became allergic to colours.

Ayushmann Khurrana: Shooting for Shubh Mangal Saavdhan in Delhi.

Jacqueline Fernandez: Shooting for Drive.

Well, there you have it. You might be getting an off from work on Holi but not your favourite Bollywood stars.

ALSO READ: Anushka's Phillauri happened when a 'manglik' guy married a tree

ALSO SEE: Leaked MMS of Rakhi Sawant goes viral, she alleges 'chitting'

WATCH: A simple gujiya recipe to sweeten your Holi

--- ENDS ---
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By Patrick Donachie

LAURELTON  A postal worker in the midst of mail delivery was slashed Monday afternoon by a man who then fled inside his own Laurelton apartment, police said.

Police said the incident occurred in the early afternoon. The postal worker was allegedly slashed by Robert Powell, 32, outside of his residence at 137-37 220th Place, according to the NYPD. Powell retreated into the house but was later apprehended by police without incident. Police said Powell could potentially be charged with assault, obstruction of government administration and harassment, according to the New York Post.

The postal worker was removed to North Shore Manhasset Hospital to treat injuries, police said.
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By Naeisha Rose

The Guardians Association held its 43rd annual awards and dinner dance at Antuns in Queens Village last Friday to honor students as well as officers and civilians who have made a great impact on their communities.

The Guardians Association is a black fellowship that encourages its members to participate in community service and neighborhood outreach while being mentors to youth.

Police Commissioner James ONeill and New York City Public Advocate Letitia James attended the event.

Ive been coming to their dinner dances for some time, James said. Its really critically important that we support the Guardians because they are the guardians of our community and guardians of our safety, and particularly now when we are experiencing record low levels of crime. Youve got to take time out of your busy schedule to give them recognition and to give them praise.

The Guardian Scholarships went to student awardees Evan Miller, Micah Green-Culp, Imani Cobb and Alexis Stewart, who lost her father in the line of duty.

I am the surviving child of Detective Dillon Stewart, killed in the line of duty on Nov. 28, 2005, Stewart said. I stand in front of you proud to receive this award. As Maya Angelou once said  I come as one, but I stand as 10,000.

After the students gave their speeches, ONeill also thanked the organization for its public service.

Thank you for everything you do for the NYPD, he said. Thank you for everything you do for the Guardians, and most of all thank you for everything your organization does for this great city, specifically as it relates to recruiting, because I do not think we would be doing as well as we do.

When you take a look at where the city was 20-25 years ago and where it is now, that does not happen by accident, he said. That is a direct result of the hard work that you do and the people that have come before you, and what theyve done and that comes with great sacrifice.

Expanding on the importance of the Guardians Association in terms of diversity within the Police Department was Felicia Richards, the vice president of the organization.

The NYPD Guardians is one of the oldest ethnic fraternities in the Police Department, Richards said. Before us there werent any other ethnic organizations in 1943. We didnt have the flexibility that we have now. One of my mentors, Bob Mirro, made sure I was up to date financially and understood networking. There were a lot of us, but our power wasnt as big as it is now.

Before the 80s, Richards explained that women were not allowed to become police officers if they were shorter than 5 feet, but she met the requirement by 3 inches. Black officers were not allowed to arrest white criminals unless they had a white partner.

Black officers and other minority officers also struggled to advance career-wise in the past, including those in community service jobs like the Person of the Year recipient Detective Tanya Duhaney of the 113th Precinct, who works with the Community Affairs Unit.

Person of the Year is decided based on overall [accomplishments], Richards said. She helped an elderly man with no family, no heat in his house. Turned out he is a retired detective, 95 years old. Tanya took it upon herself to help him. She would bring him meals, take him to the doctor, come to work and she took care of him until he died. She arranged his funeral.

The other awards recipients were Chief Rodney Harrison (Achievement Award), Guardians member Inez Cofield (Community Service Award), Tressa Campbell-Moody (Civilian of the Year), and the organization Agape Food Rescue received the Humanitarian Award for providing catering services for low-income families and the families of fallen officers.
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By Bill Parry

After President Donald Trump signed the new executive order on immigration Monday, Camille Mackler headed back to Terminal 4 at JFK International Airport to do a dry run with her group of 20 volunteer attorneys.

Mackler, the legal initiatives director at the New York Immigration Coalition, became the coordinator of dozens of lawyers who raced to JFK to volunteer their services to travelers who were detained in late January during the chaotic weekend that followed the first executive order.

The new version exempts Iraq from the travel ban reducing the number of Muslim-majority countries affected to six from which travel is temporarily blocked. It also halts all refugee admission to the United States for four months. The new policy does not affect legal permanent residents or people holding a valid visa when it was signed.

To avoid the chaos that occurred in January, the order does not go into effect until Thursday, March 16.

I dont think it will be as chaotic as the last time, Mackler said. Based on how it is written, I think most of the chaos will be abroad at the embassies, but well be ready to ramp up our advocacy operations. Ten days is better that two hours notice, but it still takes time to develop the necessary protocols here on the ground.

The Trump administration moved Tuesday to dismiss the 9th Circuit appeal of the original travel ban while Senate Democrats introduced a bill to block the revised order by withholding funding to enforce it.

The state of Hawaii filed the first legal challenge Wednesday to the revised executive order calling it unconstitutional. A federal judge scheduled arguments for March 15.

Meanwhile, Queens Democrats reacted to Trumps newest iteration of his Muslim and refugee ban.

The new executive order is anything but. This repackaging of the original executive order is still clearly an unconstitutional and hateful action meant to ban Muslims and refugees from coming to our shores, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Astoria) said. Such hateful acts not only undermine our values and democracy but also threaten American security at home and abroad. I will continue to fight this ban. Our country is one of immigrants, and that diversity makes our nation strong. We cannot be silent when American values are under assault.

State Sen. Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria), who introduced legislation to prohibit the Port Authority from using any resources in support of Trumps original executive order in January, repeated his opposition.

Donald Trumps new travel ban is just as un-American and illegal as his first and the issuance of his divisive Executive Order does significant damage to our democracy and the values we hold dear, Gianaris said. As I first proposed weeks ago, the Port Authority should not participate in enforcing this ban nor lend Port Authority resources for its implementation. The enactment of my legislation prohibiting such involvement is crucial to preserving our way of life and keeping immigrant families together.

State Assemblyman Francisco Moya (D-Jackson Heights) called the tweaked travel ban fundamentally flawed, xenophobic and misguided premised on ghost stories of incoming refugees and immigrants committing atrocities, despite all evidence to the contrary. He said the multi-agency vetting process is clearly working already.

There will be fallout for Trumps actions, and seeing it unfold is like watching a train wreck in slow motion, Moya said. Regardless of whether you agree that this executive order is against the very values that have defined our great nation, you cannot deny that it does endanger Americans by fueling a narrative ISIS feeds on. Instead of providing the content ISIS will use to recruit for years to come, instead of hurting our own economy by stemming the flow of travelers, the president should have just cut his political losses and abandoned this crusade. Unfortunately, that is not the temperament Donald Trump is known for.
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.
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HUDSON  The daughter of a retired school cook and Elvis fan who was strangled and robbed last winter in her Columbia County home said there will be no forgiveness for the killer in this life or the next.

She was one of the relatives of Lois Decker, 73, who read victim impact statements before Shafiqul Islam, 22, was sentenced Tuesday to 20 years to life in prison.

Islam, a level 2 sex offender from a previous conviction, was sentenced by Columbia County Judge Jonathan Nichols for the Nov. 20 murder of Decker, who was called Foofie by her family.

"Murdering my innocent and kind mother is unforgivable," said Diane Demarest of Oregon. "There is a black mark on his soul that will follow him all of his days in this life and beyond. My mother's light cannot be extinguished by her death, not even the senseless death caused by this coward."

Islam's apology had a strange twist for the many family members and friends in attendance, they later said.

"He said something like, 'She loved all of us,'" said family friend Ron Morales, whose son was cared for by Decker. "I don't know how he knew that, but his apologies all rang hollow."

Demarest said the violent attack on her mother, who lived alone in a neat Hillsdale home, has forever changed her and her family.

"The tragic and violent aspect of her death threatens to overwhelm the memories of our wonderful mother," Demarest said. "For myself, I have become cautious to the point of paranoia in my own home. I have hid in another room until the person at the door went away. I feel fear every day in my house. Mr. Islam is the only person who can tell me the end of my mother's story, but he refused to give a statement to the police."

Authorities believe Islam followed Decker home from her regular walking trip to a nearby market.

He lived in a social services-provided apartment not far from the home in which Decker lived alone.

In May, Islam pleaded guilty to all charges in his indictment  second-degree murder and three counts of fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property.

Islam, who is from Bangladesh, is in this country illegally. He served time in prison for abusing a child in 2008 and was declared a level 2 sex offender.

After he killed Decker, Islam stole her 2006 Hyundai Accent and crashed it in Claverack. He then tried to steal a vehicle owned by one of two people who stopped at the accident scene to help.

Bystanders kept Islam from taking the second vehicle, but he ran from the scene and took a Ford pickup truck.

"I just can't get over why he didn't just take the car and leave her alone," Morales said.

Decker, who always wore red lipstick, was head cook at the Roe Jan School for 20 years and was active in the community, especially with children, and attended many kids' sporting events.

The family said Decker supported veterans organizations, taught Sunday school and volunteered at the North Hillsdale United Methodist Church nursery school.

She was a huge Elvis fan.

"She loved Elvis  I mean loved Elvis," Demarest said during an interview after her mother's death. "She had a mini Elvis museum in her house."

bgardinier@timesunion.com  518-454-5696  @BobGardinier
By India Today Web Desk: Former Bigg Boss contestants and lovers Upen Patel and Karishma Tanna might be thinking of getting back together, as the celebrities were recently spotted coming out of a restaurant together, according to a report in Mid-day.

But after the actors spotted cameras, they quickly parted ways and drove off in their cars.

So, does this mean that the two are dating again?

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At least their fans hope so.

Former Bigg Boss 8 couple Karishma Tanna and Upen Patel had given a rude shock to their fans last year when they had parted ways. But looks like the two might be giving their relationship another chance, according to recent reports.

The two had met on the sets of the show Bigg Boss, and had fallen for each other. But things were not meant to be for the celebs.

A few months ago the actors had crossed paths with each other when they had met during a film screening, and things had turned quite ugly after that meeting.

Also read: Naamkarann's new lead Aditi Rathore is dating this hot guy; see pics

But looks like all love is not lost between these two.

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Washington

Conservative Republicans demanded tougher changes Friday in insurance requirements and Medicaid than the House GOP health care bill proposes and warned they'd oppose the legislation if it isn't reshaped. The White House signaled an openness to negotiate, but there was resistance from House leaders.

The discord underscored the challenge facing top Republicans trying to garner votes for legislation scrapping former President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. It also raised questions about whether congressional leaders reluctant to make changes were lagging behind a White House more willing to cut deals. And it illustrated the strained relationship between GOP leaders and some conservatives, even as the party tries to deliver on one of its profile goals.

One conservative priority is quickly halting the extra money Obama's law gives states to expand the federal-state Medicaid program for 70 million low-income people. The GOP bill would end that additional funding in 2020 except for recipients already in the program, but conservatives want to accelerate that date to 2018 to save money.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer suggested Friday that President Donald Trump was showing flexibility. Spicer said Trump is "willing to listen to different individuals" about the Medicaid date but added, "Right now the date that's in the bill is what the president supports."

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., told reporters earlier that moving up that date would be "very difficult to do." Moderates from the 31 states that expanded Medicaid don't want the extra money to end sooner.
Narendra Modi recreated the magic of 2014 General Elections in the State Assembly Elections this year in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. As of now, the Bharatiya Janata Party is leading in Uttar Pradesh with 320 plus seats, beating the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance by a huge margin. In Uttarakhand, the BJP is having a strong lead with over 55 plus seats. Even thought the party couldn't lead in Goa and Manipur, BJP did give a tough competition to the Congress and the Aam Aadmi party. In Punjab, Singh is King. Scroll down for latest updates.STATE-WISE LIVE BLOGS: Uttar Pradesh | Punjab | Uttarakhand | Manipur | Goa
Although it was Modi's popularity which carried the party past the winning post in UP and Uttarakhand and gave the Congress a tough fight in Manipur, it wasn't enough of an attraction for the electorate in Punjab and Goa, where the Congress showed that there was still life in the old warhorse.

By Indo-Asian News Service: The sweeping victory of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh has shown that Narendra Modi has recovered much of his popularity of 2014.

However, since this recovery is largely confined to UP and Uttarakhand, and is not reflected in Punjab and Goa, it is obvious that the magic of the last general election with its much wider ambit has eluded him.

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Even then, considering that UP carries much greater political weight than any of the other four states which went to the polls, the BJP's success will go a long way to eradicate the memories of the series of defeats which it suffered in 2015 and 2016 when it lost in six states, winning only in Assam.

The party will also be relieved that the outcome has belied the dire prognosis of a number of eminent economists about demonetisation. Instead, the dramatic measure of last November has shown that the people, by and large, haven't lost faith in Modi's ability to take the country in the right direction where the economy is concerned.

Their quiet acceptance of the inconveniences of the cash crunch has now been reflected in the UP and Uttarakhand results.

That is not to say that the inadequacies of the BJP's opponents did not play their part in ensuring the party's win. Foremost among them in UP was the young Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's inability to match the Prime Minister's development dreams.

Given the choice between the two in this respect, it is not surprising that the electorate chose the Prime Minister.

AKHILESH UNDERMINED BY FAMILY

There is little doubt that Akhilesh was undermined by his own family not only in the last few months, but virtually right from the time he became Chief Minister as his father and uncles gave him little leeway, which is why he was known as half a Chief Minister through much of his tenure.

Although Akhilesh managed to wriggle out of Mulayam Singh's stranglehold just before the elections and promised to rid the Samajwadi Party (SP) of its taint of being a backward-looking caste-based party of anti-socials, it wasn't enough to convince the voters.

The SP's alliance with the Congress also did not work. It is difficult to say who pulled down whom. But it is clear that the 132-year-old Grand Old Party of yore hardly has any committed supporters in a state which once gave the country four Prime Ministers -- Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi -- from the Congress as also V.P. Singh of the Janata Party.

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In contrast, the party's present-day leader, Rahul Gandhi, has shown himself to be incapable of providing inspirational leadership because of his immaturity, as former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dixit has said.

As a result, although the BJP did not have a credible local leader in UP and is believed to be toying with the idea of asking Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to fill the vacuum, it did not have any difficulty in winning.

MODI'S POPULARITY

Although it was Modi's popularity which carried the party past the winning post in UP and Uttarakhand and gave the Congress a tough fight in Manipur, it wasn't enough of an attraction for the electorate in Punjab and Goa, where the Congress showed that there was still life in the old warhorse.

The Punjab outcome in the Congress's favour was not surprising in view of the Akali Dal-BJP combine's manifold failures in the fields of the state's financial travails and the drug problem among the youth.

The Congress was also fortunate in having in former Chief Minister Amrinder Singh a formidable figure who could secure the trust of the voters. In this context, the Aam Admi Party (AAP) did not have anyone even remotely comparable.

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The AAP's failures in Punjab and Goa will, therefore, puncture its pretensions of being able to fill the vacancies created by the Congress's decline in large parts of the country.

Like the AAP, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), too, has failed to live up to the expectations of it feisty czarina, Mayawati.

Although she also started chanting the development mantra, which is apparently being seen by politicians of all hues as the winning formula ever since Modi's 2014 success, the continuing perception of the BSP as a Dalits-only party cannot but have let her down.

Seeing the writing on the wall after the exit polls, Akhilesh had spoken of repairing the SP's ties with the BSP to prop up a "secular" front. But such a fragile opportunistic ploy could hardly succeed at a time when governments are expected to deliver.

The vote for the BJP in UP is based almost solely on this expectation of the new administration curbing lawlessness apart from initiating development projects. It is in this respect that U.P. is different from Bihar where the BJP could not make any headway in 2015 because Nitish Kumar was seen to be more capable in the matter of restoring law and order than Akhilesh.

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Also read: Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Watch live coverage on India Today TV here

Also read: Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Where Akhilesh got his cycle punctured

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Weve known for a long time now that Elton John casts a wide net when it comes to the music he either listens to, or is involved in. Heck, we only need to look at 2Pacs Ghetto Gospel, which samples Johns Indian Sunset, to know that hes a fan of hip-hop, but a recent trip to a Canadian record store just goes on to prove his love for the genre.

As CTV News Vancouver reports, Elton, who is due to kick off a Canadian tour in the next few days, walked into Beat Street Records in downtown Vancouver and did a little bit of record shopping, just like he did in Sydney in 2015.

The stores manager took to Facebook to share his account of Johns trip into his store. Reportedly, the first thing that Elton was looking for was anything by US rapper Tech N9ne, a musician known for his hardcore rap style. After being told they didnt in fact have anything by Tech N9ne in store, John then turned his attention to albums by Devine Brown, Jane Siberry, Little Feet, Linda Ronstadt, Morris Day, and, as the stores manager puts it, all the Scritti Poliiti we had.

While weve known for years that Elton John has always had a penchant for large amounts of differing styles of music, even including a fondness for our own Sarah Blasko, its an absolutely glorious thing to still see a musician as famous as Elton John rub shoulders with the general public in the most communal of all music settings, the local record store.
Earlier this month, we reported on the fact that a clause in the official paperwork sent to artists performing at the South By Southwest music festival meant that they could face deportation for performing shows that were not sanctioned by the festival or its organisers. Understandably, Aussies were shaken, and with increased attention being put on the US in regards to recent changes in travel restrictions to incoming visitors, it looked like it could spell disaster for many bands. However it seems that one band, Italys Soviet Soviet have indeed been deported for reasons relating to their SXSW tour plans.

As Stereogum reports, Italian three-piece Soviet Soviet flew into Seattle, Washington on Wednesday, all set to kick off their US tour with a performance at famous radio station KEXP, and a small number of SXSW appearances, but were ultimately deported after what the band calls a humiliating ordeal at the hands of border control officials.

The band took to Facebook to offer their account of what happened, with the basic gist of it being that they were deported for being suspected of coming to America to work illegally, despite paperwork stating that the shows they were coming to perform were for promotional purposes only, and that they would receive no payment for said shows. The main issue seemed to stem from the fact that they did not hold valid working vias, something the group would not need for shows which are entirely promotional.

The group stated they were subjected to interrogation, before being told by agents that they were due to be sent back to Italy. The group then were detained overnight, after having been escorted there as though we were three criminals. The group also stated that they were relieved to fly back home and distance ourselves from that violent, stressful and humiliating situation.

You can check out the groups Facebook post below, but lets also take a moment to recognise the ridiculousness of this situation for these poor musicians as well.
The verdict 2017 is going to write the electoral landscape of India for the next parliamentary polls in 2019, settling down the most important question of the representational camps in the state level and national politics.

By Santosh Chaubey: Counting day trends of the five state assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur are now in. The way the electoral wind has blown has become clear in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Uttarakhand while it is still neck to neck contest in Goa and Manipur. As per the trends available so far, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), along with its allies, has won 325 seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly, an overwhelming majority in the state's electoral history, ending the party's 15 year old political exile in the state. Home Minister Rajnath Singh was the BJP's last chief minister in Uttar Pradesh in 2002. The party has repeated its emphatic show in Uttarakhand, winning 56 of the 70 assembly seats on offer. The Congress has taken Punjab with 76 seats in the 117-member Punjab assembly.

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The verdict 2017 is going to write the electoral landscape of India for the next parliamentary polls in 2019, settling down the most important question of the representational camps in the state level and national politics.

And the message is loud clear.

It is going to be the coalitions Vs the BJP in the upcoming assembly polls that may finally culminate in a grand alliance taking on the ruling party in the Centre in the 2019 general elections. In 2018, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura are going to polls while ten states including Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Rajasthan have their state polls slated for 2019.

It is to be seen whether these coalitions will learn from the lessons of the experiments done in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. In spite of all the big projections, the BJP had to bite the dust in the 2015 Bihar assembly polls as it was a clear two way fight between the BJP led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the grand political alliance of the Janata Dal United (JDU), the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress party that ensured that the anti-BJP votes did not split.

That could not happen in Uttar Pradesh.

While the BJP targeted non-Yadav OBC and non-Jatav Dalit votes, in addition to its traditional vote bank of upper castes and middle class, the triangular contest between the Samajwadi Party (SP)-Congress coalition, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the BJP led NDA saw the anti-BJP votes split between the SP-Congress coalition and the BSP. At the same time, the BJP was able to consolidate its pie riding high on the factors like the Modi wave and polarisation along religious and community lines.

In Bihar, two arch rivals, the JDU and the RJD, could bury their past differences to prevent the BJP juggernaut. Uttar Pradesh would have been a different story had it been for a grand alliance of parties say the SP-BSP-Congress and even Ajit Singh's Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD). Crisis of political survival may push these parties to come under one umbrella in future as we saw in the overtures of Akhilesh Yadav who offered to go along with the BSP to prevent the BJP's sail in UP after the exit polls predicted a BJP victory or a hung assembly with the BJP as the largest party in the UP assembly.

The Congress party has effectively lost the electoral space to act as a national alternative to the BJP. The BJP and its allies were already ruling over 60per cent of India's geographical area with 43per cent of its population before today's verdict and the today's sweep has taken it to around 70per cent of the land and 58per cent of the population. Even if we don't count Goa and Manipur in BJP's stable along with today's results, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand makes BJP the ruling party of 14 Indian states while the Congress, that has ruled India for almost 55 years in its 70 years of independent, sovereign history, has shrunk to just five states with Karnataka as the only big state in its fold. The Congress has an alliance government in Puducherry while it is the junior-most alliance partner in Bihar's ruling coalition. And we should not forget that the states of Goa and Manipur are wide open till majority governments are formed there. When it comes to that, the state may well end up with the BJP.

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Though the huge anti-incumbency against the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP combine has given Congress an emphatic victory in Punjab, the party has seen a humiliating loss in Uttarakhand where even its chief minister Harish Rawat could not save his assembly constituencies. To make Congress' plight more visible, we have examples of Goa and Manipur. Congress claimed to win both of these states but the trends so far belie such claims. The north-eastern state of Manipur has been a traditional stronghold of the Congress party while it was expecting the anti-BJP incumbency to deliver Goa for it.

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Manipur and Goa are small states, with 60 and 40 assembly seats respectively and the trends available so far say that it is a neck to neck fight between the BJP and the Congress in both of these states and the smaller parties and the independents will play the kingmaker in deciding who is going to form the government next. If the BJP has been able to form its government in Manipur, it will give the ruling party of India its second direct opening in the north-eastern region of India after Assam win in 2016.

If it happens so, the BJP will have presence in four of the eight north-eastern states, i.e., Assam, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. After a series of dramatic upheavals, the BJP has its government in Arunachal Pradesh while Nagaland's ruling Naga People's Front (NPF) is its alliance partner. So another BJP advance in the region at the cost of the Congress will limit the Congress' influence like the one of regional parties while will add one more, and necessary, feather in the BJP's drive to become a true pan-India political party.

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This BJP spread is a crisis moment for the Congress, the SP, the BSP and many other state and regional parties and it will write the way further for the electoral politics in India. The crisis will eventually force them to come together to take on the BJP might. The future electoral landscape of India is thus expected to be dotted by coalitions and more coalitions against the BJP, in the upcoming assembly polls and in the mega electoral show in 2019 when we will chose our next set of parliamentarians. And Congress will have no choice but to become part of such coalitions, accepting junior roles, like it did in Bihar, and like it has done in Uttar Pradesh.

Also Read

Rahul Gandhi to Narendra Modi: Congratulations. PM's reply: Thank you. Long live democracy!

Assembly Election Results 2017: Potential chief ministerial candidates in 5 states

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- Toni Anderson was a stripper. Media attempted to obscure her occupation and then FAKED NEWS that she was a waitress. But, in fact, her career path had led her to perform in various states of undress throughout Kansas City.





- Without judgement or prejudice, it's sad to report that Toni Anderson was a party girl accustomed to many late night hookups. Her lifestyle was fast and dangerous - This fact of life DOES NOT mean that she deserved to be killed but it helps to shed light on the circumstances of her demise.





- Worst of all, frustrated authorities tell TKC that Toni Anderson had a great many worthless, despicable and disgusting hooker friends who led her down a path to destruction and have not been forthright in conversations with police.

TONI ANDERSON WAS BRUTALLY MURDERED AND HER KILLER REMAINS ON THE LOOSE!!!

This is a killer who targeted a beautiful young woman who was beloved by friends and family.





The killer stalked Toni Anderson and descended upon her in the early morning hours at her most vulnerable.





The killer worked diligently to hide a crime scene for weeks from Kansas City authorities.

LIKE IT OR NOT, THE "KANSAS CITY JACK THE RIPPER KILLER" WHO MURDERED TONI ANDERSON AND DITCHED HER CAR NEAR ENGLISH LANDING PARK REVEALS A SAVAGE LEVEL OF LAWLESSNESS ON LOCAL STREETS!!!

News outlets across the Kansas City metro are slowly coming to grips with the reality that Toni Anderson was brutally murdered and dumped in the river along with her car.Building on news aggregation, the work of KC Crime Fighter, social media chatter and a few recent conversations from our blog community . . . Here are a few insights worth sharing as this investigation continues . . .But here's what is most important as we consider public safety before "Kansas City Nice" pleasantries or political correctness . . .Facts . . .Moreover . . .Now . . .We are reporting theseand putting the info on blast in order to help raise awareness about this tragic death in the midst of so much Kansas City violence that has escalated more than 33% this year over last.Yes, the beautiful Toni Anderson is getting more media attention than so many other people gunned down this year but rather than express envy or reveal low self-worth amid this circumstance . . . Let's realize that her unfortunate story fits in the sorrowful mosaic of rising local homicide that can touch so many lives despite demographic trends.As the investigation continues, police and mainstream media have conspired to keep the public in the dark while online free speech serves to protect Kansas City residents with a glimpse of the violent circumstances involved in a horrific demise.Developing . . .
A marble paved square from the Byzantine times was discovered because of the work done for the creation of Thessaloniki's Metropolitan Subway

The new impressive archaeological discovery in the the Greek city of Thessaloniki is a marble paved square from the Byzantine times which was discovered because of the work done for the creation of the citys Metropolitan Subway.

It is the first time that such a finding comes to light; a similar shaped square paved with marble is found only in the city of Jerash in Jordan. The square goes back to the 6th century AD and is just a few blocks from the Venizelos Station where the Byzantine avenue of Thessaloniki, the famous Decumanus Maximus has been revealed.

According to the opinion of Greece's Central Archaeological Council signed by Minister of Culture Ms. Lydia Koniordou, the Byzantine avenue will remain as is while, taking into account the importance of the finding, the issue is expected to come up for discussion at the CAC.

Thessaloniki archaeologists against Attiko Metro company

Tensions between Thessaloniki archaeologists and Attiko Metro, the company which is overseeing work to build the Thessaloniki subway system, have marked the near-decade since construction began in 2006. Recently, the two sides reached a compromise that calls for the temporary removal of ruins in order to allow construction to proceed unimpeded. If the deal holds, it will enable the preservation of 80 percent of discovered artifacts.

The ruins unearthed in Greeces second city have led some to hail it as a second Pompeii. Current excavations are focused on the so-called intra muros stations  those that sit within the limits of the citys Theodosian walls  and the extra muros stations  those located outside these late antique fortifications.

According to BBC, "rather than joy and excitement, the unearthing of what an academic called "a Byzantine Pompeii" at the heart of modern day Thessaloniki, Greece's second city, has caused bitter controversy in a country clutching at economic straws."

Kathimerini reports that works on two intra muros stations, Aghia Sofia and Venizelou, have unearthed sections of the citys Decomanus Maximus, the east-west boulevard that ran through Thessaloniki and most other cities of the Roman Empire. Excavations of this avenue  the medieval Boulevard of the Byzantines  have focused on a vast complex of fountains and colonnaded walkways. The late antique road was initially of marble construction; by the 6th century CE it had been repaved with rectangular stone slabs. Digging at the site of the adjacent Venizelou station has revealed a square of marble construction flanked by workshops and bazaar-style stalls. These ruins are nestled quietly beneath the historical Odos Egnatia, a street that takes its name from the famous legionnaire highway that ran through northern Greece in antiquity.

Metro construction extra muros  beyond the formal limits of the ancient city  have provided rare glimpses of early Christian building practice. In the east, at the construction site for Sintrivani station, a late antique church has been uncovered that stands atop a pre-Christian religious structure; its mosaic flooring depicts the mythical bird Phoenix. In the western part of the city, at the site of the future Plateia Dimokratias station, archaeologists have revealed an arched, rectangular late antique church flanked by scattered graves. Burial practice suggests that the cemetery was in use until the 15th-century Ottoman sack of the city; following that conquest, these suburbs developed into commercial neighborhoods.

Meeting modern commuter needs while tending to historical finds

Thessalonikis difficulties are similar to those that confronted Athens during the construction of its metro system: meeting modern commuter needs while responsibly tending to historical finds. Engineers in Athens anticipated the discovery of entire ancient neighborhoods; they were equipped to excavate them efficiently and to incorporate ruins into their respective station designs. But much of whats been unearthed in Thessaloniki has come as a surprise to engineer and archaeologist alike. The discoveries speak to the citys emergence in late antiquity as a cultural hub and  like Constantinople  a strategic bloodline between the Eastern and Western halves of the Roman Empire.

The president of Athens Attiko Metro Yannis Mylopoulos estimated that the first metro line in Thessaloniki will be operational by 2020 and that the whole project will be finished by 2026.He was confident that these deadlines can be met, provided that the main lines are included in the Juncker investment package. This, he explained, is necessary in order to ensure that the necessary funding to complete the project will be secured. Moreover, the Attiko Metro chief also stressed that the Thessaloniki project was temporarily halted due to problems of the past being resolved and thanked the District governor of Central Macedonia Apostolos Tzitzikostas for his support. On his part, Tzitzikostas commented that all entities need to meet their commitments and stressed the importance of constant financing.

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 raised the matter of Turkeys increasing aggression in the Aegean Sea at the EU Summit meeting in Brussels. During his speech to the EU26 leaders Mr. Tsipras said the Greece aimed to continue defending its sovereignty while maintaining an open channel of communication with Turkey. He stressed that the constant aggression was undermining the necessary trust between the two countries to move forward.

The Greek PM also commented on the refugee crisis and the full implementation of the EU-Turkish agreement, expressing his disappointment about the delay in the setting up of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) and the incomplete implementation of the refugee relocation plan. The Greek PM affirmed his support for the expansion of the EU into the western Balkans, noting that Greece expected the neighbouring countries to respect the principles of neighbourly relations and international law.

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 Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias accused Turkey of adopting a dilatory strategy on the Cypriot issue during an official visit to Armenia. After his meeting with his Armenian counterpart Edward Nalbandian, Mr. Kotzias said Turkey was intentionally procrastinating avoiding entering into the substance of the talks which was the illegal invasion and occupation of the northern part of Cyprus. The Cypriot problem is an issue of occupation by Turkey, which has been occupying 40% of the island for 43 years, he underlined. He continued by stating that Turkey must accept that it could not remain on the territory of a UN and EU member state and accept that problems could not be resolved through force.

Mr. Katzias accused his Turkish counterpart Melvut Cavusoglu of bringing matters irrelevant to the Cypriot issue after leaving the Geneva talks. My impression is that they [Turkey] are increasing pressure by any means because they do not want to discuss the essence of the Cypriot problem. Because the Cypriot problem is one of occupation, he said. The Greek Foreign Minister said Turkey had become even more nervous with increased religious, political, ethnic, economic and cultural contradictions after the failed military coup. Mr. Kotzias and Mr. Nalbandian agreed to upgrade the strategic relations between the two countries militarily, economically, culturally and politically.

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 Permanent Representative of Cyprus to the United Nations Kornelios Korneliou has strongly protested the infringements of international air traffic regulations and violations of the national airspace of the Republic of Cyprus by Turkey and the illegal use of closed ports by Turkish warships during the month of January 2017.

In a letter dated February 23, 2017, addressed to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, he also protested the systematic use of the illegal airport in Turkish occupied Tymbou village by Turkish commercial aircraft.

The letter- which includes two annexes that report analytically all Turkish violations - has been circulated as an official document of the UN Security Council and UN General Assembly under agenda item 41.

In addition, Ambassador Korneliou informed the Secretary General that the Turkish Cypriot occupation regime has illegally issued three notices to airmen, on January 4, 10 and 26, relating to exercises conducted by the Turkish Air Force.

"More recently, the occupation regime has started interfering with radio frequencies, including distress and emergency frequencies, of the Republic of Cyprus, thus obstructing the smooth operation of the NAVTEX service that delivers navigational and meteorological warnings and forecasts, as well as urgent maritime safety information, to ships," the letter read.

Undermining the sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus

The Cypriot Permanent Representative underlines that "Turkeys actions clearly aim at undermining the sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus, bolstering the continuing de facto division and upgrading the secessionist entitys status by claiming a purported airspace over the occupied territory of the Republic. Additionally, Turkey continues to systematically harass civilian and military aircraft within the Nicosia flight information region (FIR) via radio calls."

He added that Nicosia FIR infringements and violations of the national airspace of the Republic of Cyprus continue unabated.

"Turkeys policy of persistently breaching international law and defying international rules and regulations puts the safety of international civil aviation at risk, has a negative impact on the stability of the region and causes difficulties for air traffic over Cyprus," he pointed out.

Ambassador Korneliou underlines in his letter to the Secretary General that the continuation of Turkeys illegal actions creates tension during a critical period for the successful outcome of the ongoing negotiation process for a peaceful comprehensive solution to the Cyprus problem.

"On behalf of my Government, I strongly protest against the continuing infringements of international air traffic regulations and the violations of the national airspace and the territorial waters of the Republic of Cyprus by Turkey and appeal for their immediate cessation. The Republic of Cyprus reiterates, in this respect, its call for adherence to the principle of sovereignty and non-interference enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations", the letter 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
A number of leading US business delegations and high ranking government officials will be attending the annual forum of American Chamber of Commerce Bahrain (AmCham Bahrain) which opens this week in capital Manama.



AmCham Mena regional councils forum aims to promote the expansion of trade and investment between the markets of the Mena region and the US, said the organisers



This year it will focus on SMEs: Unlocking Economic Potential in the MENA Region, and will be significantly enhanced by the presence of major US business leaders across key sectors to include financial services, industry, technology, retail, hospitality, F&B, real estate and many others. Among the major US companies to be represented include Mondelez, Olayan Kimberly-Clark, General Electric, Microsoft, TransCentury, USG Boral, Citi.



To be held from March 15 to 16, the Amcham forum will see more than 300 business leaders and experts taking part at this year's forum.



In addition to representatives from the US and Mena governments, there will be a host of leaders from multilateral financing institutions supporting SME development in the region, as well as key players from the regional SME and entrepreneurship scene, said the organisers.



From the private sector, the event will feature representation from Mena Council member AmChams of Abu Dhabi-UAE, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine and Tunisia, in addition to representatives from other regional US Business Councils and a broad range of international and regional business associations.



Also in attendance will be high ranking US government officials including the Americas top representative for the region Ambassador Stuart E. Jones, Acting US Assistant Secretary at the Bureau for Near Eastern Affairs at the State Department in Washington DC, who will be a keynote speaker.



Also present will be the US Ambassador to Bahrain, William Roebuck, high-ranking US Chamber of Commerce executives and other US government representatives based across the region.



With key decision makers and business leaders on hand, the forum aims to prioritize the delivery of tangible results for attending companies including helping them to connect directly with potential partners, investors and clients and more swiftly scale up for international investment, trade and business engagement through a series of focused strategy discussions, B2B matchmaking and workshops.



Supporting the forum from Bahrain, whose economy will also be in the spotlight, is strategic forum partner, the Bahrain Economic Development (EDB), in addition to Tamkeen, the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) and the Ministry of Industry, Commerce & Tourism.



Also central to the planning and success of the event is the cooperation being received from the US Chamber of Commerce and the Mena Council Secretariat at AmCham Egypt.



Commenting, Qays H. Zu'bi, President of AmCham Bahrain, said: "We are delighted to announce the strong interest and participation from US business and government officials in the AmCham Mena Regional Forum taking place in Bahrain."



"Their interest and intended participation underscores the importance of the Mena region and the many opportunities for the expansion of trade and business that exist between our Middle East markets and the US," stated Zubi.



"For more than 12 years, the forum has excelled at bringing together business leaders, associations and government representatives to create new partnerships and we look forward to welcoming delegates to Bahrain this year where we are confident the quality of participants coupled with our focus on helping attending companies accelerate and achieve tangible business growth will deliver strong results."



The key topics to be discussed and highlighted at the forum are:



*SMEs as key drivers of economic development in the MENA region

*The Regional SME Ecosystem: A Fresh look at Thriving Techniques

*SME Financing Opportunities and Export Support Programs

*The integration of regional SMEs into the supply chain of U.S. and multinational companies in the region



Among the senior speakers at the event will be Khush Choksy, senior VP (Middle East and Turkey Affairs), US Chamber of Commerce, Ahmed El Alfy, the co-founder, Flat6Labs & Chairman, Sawari Ventures, and Walaa Maher, Supply Chain Director Middle East Africa, Olayan Kimberly-Clark.



Another important feature of this years Forum is an SME pitch session. In cooperation with CH9, a company helping startups and SMEs, and with technical and knowledge support provided by Microsoft, a half-day event is being organized.



This session aims to provide AmCham member companies with the opportunity to present their business case to groups of potential partners, investors and clients in support of accelerating international business growth.-TradeArabia News Service
The Saudi Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology has signed an agreement with information technology giant IBM to promote co-operative programmes at an advanced level, said a report.

As per the deal, IBM will train and qualify more than 38,000 people over the next four years through 30 new educational institutions in various communication and information technology programmes, reported Arab News.

By 2020, about 19,000 trainees are expected to acquire certification for the field, stated the report citing a ministry statement.

This step will help develop the telecommunication and information technology sector, build national capabilities and talents, and hold partnerships with numerous agencies, it said.

The ministry will put in place five initiatives under its supervision. Of these three involve training, qualifying, and employing professionals and experts in the communication and information technology sector, it added.
Houseboat, an Asian restaurant serving cuisines from India, China, Thailand and Japan, has been signed up by Bahrain-based Serene Hospital to supply a warm 3-course meal to patients, and its guests.



This partnership reiterates Houseboats mandate to serve the community at large with quality food using only the freshest ingredients.



The menu will take into consideration the patients needs and wants, and will serve to bring a touch of home during their recovery at Serene Hospital, said a statement from Houseboat.



The three course meal will be a set menu, carefully formed with the food pyramid in mind, and in line with the hospitals strict guidelines on food quality, ingredients and presentation.



The meals will consist of a healthy starter, a hearty main course, and a sweet dessert, accompanied by a drink of the patients choosing. The meals will also be extended to the patients guests upon request, it stated.



Khulood Malallah, the managing director of Houseboat Restaurant, said: "We are proud to have been selected by Serene Hospital as their exclusive provider for patient meals, this partnership stands testament to our successful approach in providing high quality foods and service to all our customers."



Houseboat, she stated, brings to the Kingdom the true essence of Asia, taking diners on a gastronomic journey across India, China, Japan and Thailand.



"From traditional curries to tandooris, makis, sashimis, stir-fries and chow meins, Houseboats menu reflects the true spirit of the Asian cuisine and is extensive enough to satisfy even the most demanding of taste palates," she added.-TradeArabia News Service
Samena Telecommunications Council is South Asia - Middle East - North Africa (Samena) Telecommunications Council has announced that it will host a regional regulatory conference at Riyadh in collaboration with Saudi Arabia's Communication & Information Technology Commission (CITC) next month.



Both Samena Council and CITC have centered the agenda of the regulatory conference, to be held on April 12, on regional digital transformation and on fostering the understanding of evolving dynamics of the ICT environment.



Following close communication with the CITC on holding this important regional event, Bocar BA, chief executive of Samena Council, said: "Samena Council, as an industry body and a sector development partner, feels privileged to closely work with the CITC on unearthing practical ways for the Private sector and Government sector to work together; undertake both physical and intellectual forms of collaboration; and align future work to realize digital transformation for the benefits of the citizens and of the business."



"Saudi Arabia's socio-economics is undergoing a major change, which will have an impact all around the region. By conducting this regional activity in Riyadh, Samena Council looks forward to supporting the Saudi Vision 2030 in all ways possible," he added.



The Governor of CITC, after welcoming such regional regulatory conference, stated that "The Commission is fully supportive of dialogue, means and ways that will contribute in the development of the ICT sector. Saudi Arabia recognized the importance of the ICT sector at an early stage in the industrys development."



The regulatory conference will discuss the best practices related to digital transformation and the challenges and opportunities in Digital Switchover.



It will also bring insight into many aspects of the future of mobile market competition, technologies and services. Such areas have to be looked into with depth and should accommodate the imperatives to also address underlying industry needs that revolve around digital services.



Together with the Ministry, CITC said it has actively pursued the development of an environment aimed at encouraging investment and increasing the efficiency of the national economy. Saudi Arabias Vision 2030 enhances this through the identification of long-term goals, reflecting the strengths and capabilities of the Kingdoms ICT sector.



By holding this regulatory conference, which has importance for the entire GCC region, the Commission aims to encourage regulators to seek development of synergies across the regulatory frameworks. This can accelerate the introduction of new technologies and services, and can help us all meet successes in digital transformation, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
Etihad Etisalat (Mobily), a leading telecom services operator in Saudi Arabia, said it business unit has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Machines Talk Company, a pioneer national IoT company.



As per the agreement, Mobily Business will provide several smart and innovative products like fleet and asset management to satisfy the needs of government and private sectors, stated Ismail Alghamdi, the chief business officer, after signing the agreement with Nawaf Alshalani, Machines Talk managing director.



"This agreement reflects Mobilys efforts in developing and improving business sector services in the Kingdom by collaborating with national companies to provide the latest digital and technological solutions and continue its Internet of Things innovations," he noted.



Al Alghamdi said Mobily's investments towards expansion in IoT solutions comply with Mobily Business strategy and ongoing quest to support digital transformation and develop Telecommunication & IT market to achieve 2030 Kingdom Vision.



This agreement will open the door for many services and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions that will be provided to government and private sectors which use technology to achieve operational efficiency and cost reduction with additional added values to organizations, he added.-TraderArabia News Service


In all there are 93 US attorneys. Many of them have already left their positions, but 46 attorneys who stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration have been asked by US Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign.

By Press Trust of India: The Trump administration has sought the resignations of 46 attorneys, including that of the high-profile Indian-American attorney Preet Bharara, who were appointed by former President Barack Obama.

In all there are 93 US attorneys. Many of them have already left their positions, but 46 attorneys who stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration have been asked by US Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign "in order to ensure a uniform transition," Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said yesterday.

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Defending the move, Flores in a statement said that both the George W Bush and Bill Clinton administrations made similar requests at the beginning of their term.

Among those asked to resign included Bharara, the US Attorney General for Southern District of New York, who was appointed by Obama in 2009.

Bharara, who has earned the reputation of a "crusader" prosecutor, had met Trump in November after his electoral victory. Following the meeting, media reports said that Trump had asked Bharara to stay.

Neither the White House, nor the Department of Justice responded to the questions on Bharara.

48-year-old Bharara has made a national and international mark for himself with many high-profile cases and investigations including foreign countries, insider trading and those involving US politicians. It was under his prosecution that India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta was convicted for insider trading in 2012.

New York Senator Charles Schumer said he is "troubled" to learn the reports of requests for resignations from the remaining US Attorneys, particularly that of Bharara.

"The President initiated a call to me in November and assured me he wanted Bharara to continue to serve as US Attorney for the Southern District," he said.

"By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining US Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the President is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice," Schumer said.

"Until the new US Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US Attorneys Offices will continue the great work of the Department in investigating, prosecuting and deterring the most violent offenders," the Justice Department said.

Senator Dianne Feinstein, Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee Dianne Feinstein, said she is surprised to hear that Trump and Sessions have abruptly fired all 46 remaining US attorneys.

"At a time when Attorney General Sessions has recused himself from major investigations into the Trump campaign, the independence of federal prosecutors could not be more important. Thats why many of us have called for the appointment of a special prosecutor," she said.

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"Under previous administrations, orderly transitions allowed US attorneys to leave gradually as their replacements were chosen. This was done to protect the independence of our prosecutors and avoid disrupting ongoing federal cases," Feinstein said.

Also read:

US Attorney General Jeff Sessions asks 46 Obama-era US attorneys to resign

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Oman Air, the sultanate's national carrier, is set to suspend its flights to Lebanese capital Beirut from its hub in Muscat starting from March 26 onwards.



In a statement on Twitter, Oman Air said the measures were being taken due to 'commercial reasons.'

However, the airline did not clarify when normal operations would begin on this sector.

The airline called upon customers in need of further information or assistance to contact its call centre on 24531111 or report to its nearest office.


Citizens of a certain country are not the only beneficiaries of good healthcare. The industry itself is an invite to other nations to use their superior and possibly affordable medical practices and technologies especially for retirees. For 2017, here are five of the best countries with amazing healthcare.

Costa Rica is a country more known for its amazing summer spots and great people but is lesser known for its budding medical tourism industry. According to CNBC, Costa Rica enjoys the visit of 40,000 American patients for all kinds of treatment, specifically high-risk operations including surgeries. Expats are allowed access to the two healthcare systems available once they are qualified for Costa Rican residency.

Malaysia's costs are going down for American and European patients looking for cheaper healthcare due to their stronger currency and Malaysia's competitive medical market. Malaysian hospitals employ only professional and top-notch medical professionals trained in other countries. As an English-speaking country, Malaysia is accessible for Western patients in need of quality healthcare.

Australia is a bit far away to receive healthcare but time and money invested in Australian medical professionals do not go to waste. In the world, their health system ranks seven and it is sixth in the overall ranking for best healthcare among US News' top 10 healthcare systems in the world. Though a bit expensive, it is superior overall to most competitors worldwide.

Germany's medical tourism is second to Australia but its inferiority is solely metrics. The strong European nation boasts superior medical technologies used for delicate procedures -- most of them manufactured in the country itself. While Russian clients have gone down in recent years, most European nations still consider Germany as top -- even making number one in US News' Best Countries Overall Rank.

Dubai had recently made strides in its medical tourism field, topping competitors and attracting more customers. According to Khaleej Times, Dubai attributes its bariatric surgeries -- which deals with weight loss medical methods -- as a huge selling point for its medical services worldwide. Dubai's medical technologies and facilities are reportedly improving, with the Dubai Health Authority focused on providing world-class medical services.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
While BJP spokesperson for Uttarakhand was quick to say that Rawat's defeat was the rejection his leadership, Rawat on the other hand conceded defeat.

By India Today Web Desk: Uttarakhand Assembly election saw BJP achieve a landslide victory, while leaving the incumbent Congress government completely decimated. India Today Axis poll and surveys by several media predicted an unprecedented victory for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). BJP has won 56 seats in the 70-seat assembly.

Analysts view the party's victory as an outcome of the anti-incumbency wave against the Congress government. Voter sentiment towards incumbent Chief Minister Harish Rawat has been negative. While BJP spokesperson for Uttarakhand was quick to say that Rawat's defeat was the rejection his leadership, Rawat on the other hand conceded defeat.

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"I accept the defeat of Congress. My leadership may not have been up to the mark and resulted in the party's failure," said Chief Minister Harish Rawat.

After the announcement of the outcome, Rawat met the Uttarakhand Governor KK Paul and submitted his resignation. Both Congress and BJP were pinning hopes to make inroad into the Uttarakhand Assembly. However, the staggering numbers following the vote count on Saturday declared BJP the undisputed winner in the electoral race.

ALL EYES ON BJP'S CM CANDIDATE

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP party, just as in Uttar Pradesh, is yet to announce its chief ministerial candidate. Many political analysts see this as a key strategy to win the election on the popularity and mass appeal of PM Modi. PM Modi's demonetisation could not dent the image of the party among voters in the hill state.

Top contenders for the chief post include prominent BJP leaders like BC Khanduri, Vijay Bahuguna, Ramesh Pokhriyal, Bhagat Singh Koshyari and Ajay Bhatt.

BC Khanduri and Ajay Bhatt were believed to be the frontrunners in the race to become chief minister of Uttarakhand. While Ajay Bhatt failed to secure a seat, it is still not clear who will be BJP's chief ministerial candidate.

NO TRACE OF BSP

Mayawati-led Bahujan Samajwadi Party proved the axis poll predictions right as they were entirely decimated in the Uttarakhand Assembly election.

The Assembly election has been a crucial event with two key players BJP and Congress taking out strenuous campaigns in bid to make inroads into the Uttarakhand Assembly.

637 candidates including 56 women contested in 70 seats of the Uttarakhand Assembly.Watch | Assembly Election results 2017: Shiv Aroor decodes BJP's unprecedented victory and impact of election

Also read:

BJP landslide in Uttarakhand, all eyes on who will be the next CM

Uttarakhand election 2017: Harish Rawat's defeat is the rejection of his leadership, says BJP

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: New Delhi, Mar 11 (PTI) The BJP secured today a stunning victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand assembly elections, trampling a fragmented opposition, as party leaders hailed it as a vindication of Prime Minister Narendra Modis popularity and his pro-poor policies.

With vote counting nearly over, the BJP remained locked in a close contest in Goa and Manipur with the Congress, which won the consolation prize of Punjab where it will form the government.

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Modis party returns to power in Uttar Pradesh _ possibly with a three-quarter majority _ after a 14-year gap during which regional parties such as the SP and BSP had held sway. By 5.30 p.m. BJP had won 248 seats in the 403-member Legislative Assembly, and was leading in 63 more -- the biggest mandate any party has ever received in Uttar Pradesh.

Party leaders attributed the success to Modi, who along with BJP president Amit Shah had also marshalled the cadres for a landslide victory in the 2014 parliamentary elections.

Kashmiri leader Omar Abdullah called todays results a "tsunami," and predicted that the BJP is not only in a position to win the parliamentary elections in 2019 but also in 2024.

Shah, who crafted and conducted the election strategy in UP, said the results have capauluted Modi to the stature of the "tallest leader" since independence.

"The only factor for the win is the performance of the Modi government," Shah told a press conference. "The outcome has shown the faith the poor have reposed in Modi... Even his political rivals will have to admit that he has emerged as the tallest leader in the country since independence," he said.

"This is the victory of the corruption-free rule and pro-poor polices under the leadership" of Modi, he tweeted earlier.

In Uttarakhand, the BJP had grabbed 50 seats and was leading in seven in the house of 70. Congress was trailing in second position with 11. The popular Congress Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost both seats that he contested

Congress was the clear winner in Punjab with 73 seats in the bag and leading in four in the 113-member assembly. BJP was in fourth position with three seats. AAP was second with 20 seats and Akali Dal took 15.

The results in Manipur and Goa remained a cliffhanger with counting still going on. In Manipur, BJP won 19 and Congress had 23 in the 60-member house. In the 40-seat Goa assembly, Congress had a slight edge, winning 14 seats and leading in three. BJP got 12 seats and was leading in one.

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The results set off celebrations in BJP offices and strongholds. Party members danced and distributed sweets on streets and BJP offices. Women, gathered in groups to watch results on TV, danced as the results came in. One party leader said Holi, which will be celebrated on Sunday and Monday, has come a day early.

"BJP has reached new heights in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh and changed the political picture of the country," Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said amid scenes of jubilation at party offices in UP.

Terming the BJP victory as "shocking" and "difficult to swallow", BSP leader Mayawati hinted at vote fraud in the elections that were spread over seven phases during the last two months in the five states.

She provided no evidence for her allegation, and it is unlikely to be taken seriously. Her party finished a distant third in UP. BJP had not put forward any chief ministerial candidate. The chief minister will be selected tomorrow by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party in the state. The BJP, which had just 47 seats in the outgoing Assembly, garnered 40 per cent of votes in the most riveting contest seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Modis popularity and demonetisation.

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The party also went to the elections without fielding any Muslim candidate. Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi acknowledged that the partys defeat was massive.

"Yes, UP is a bad loss, it hurts...I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring thinking for the Congress as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy," Singhvi said.

Another Congress leader, Shakeel Ahmad, attributed the partys poor show in UP to "public mood" and said its performance will be "scrutinised". The previous best showing by BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of Ram Janam Bhoomi movement, when it got majority on its own winning 221 seats out of 425 in an undivided state. SP leader and a state minister, Gayatri Prajapati, who is wanted in an alleged gangrape case and attempt to rape a minor, was trailing in Amethi, where Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Sinh, was leading. Kailash Vijaywargia, a BJP general secretary, said that the perception that the BJP was a party of the upper castes has been demolished as all sections of the society including Dalits and Muslims voted for it.

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"The central government schemes have benefitted everyone. Muslim women have also benefitted from the schemes. Modi has created confidence in every section," he said.

In Punjab, the ruling SAD was demolished. Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh, who is the partys chief ministerial face and who celebrated his 75th birthday today, thanked the people of the state for their overwhelming support. The Congress legislature party will meet tomorrow to elect its leader, he said. In Goa, the BJP suffered a big reverse when Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar lost to his Congress rival from Mandrem. Former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat (Congress) won from Margao constituency. In Manipur, Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh won from Thoubal Assembly seat by a margin of 10,400 votes. Rights activist Irom Sharmila, making her poll debut, was relegated to the fourth position, winning only 90 votes. PTI TEAM GSN VJ RT 03111512 VJ

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Elaborate security arrangements will be made by the Chandigarh Police for the celebrations in the city. Around 1,100 police perssonel will be deployed. Six DSPs, 23 Inspectors, 741 police personnel, along with 200 traffic cops and 150 cops of the PCR staff , will be deployed around the city. Nakas will be laid in Sectors 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 17, 22, 34, 35, 36 and near educational institutes to check hooliganism. PCR staff will also patrol around the city.

Judges, students celebrate Holi with elderly

District Legal Services Authority, Panchkula, and students of Swami Devi Lal Law College celebrated Holi with inmates of Old-Age Home in Sector 15 today. Nidhi Bansal, Chief Judicial Magistrate-cum-Secretary, DLSA, Panchkula, and Dr Richa Ranjan, Principal of the College were present.
TPS Sidhu wishes luck to Balbir Sidhu

SAD-BJP combine candidate Captain TPS Sidhu, who remained at the third spot with 30,031 votes, wished good luck to Balbir Singh Sidhu.

I welcome the peoples mandate and wish good luck to Balbir Sidhu, said Captain Sidhu.

Captain Sidhu, who fought the elections after resigning from the IAS post, said he was satisfied even though he had lost. I want development of Mohali and hope it will be done by the Congress leader. I used to tell voters during my election campaign that I would always be available for the people of my area, he said.

Captain Sidhu added that he would soon organise a thanks-giving meeting in the area for the voters.

I should have got ticket from Kharar: Shergill

Had I got ticket from Kharar, things would have been different today, said Narinder Singh Shergill, the Aam Aadmi Party candidate from Mohali after his defeat here.

Shergill, who remained second in his constituency, fetched 38,971 votes while the SAD-BJP combine candidate got 30,031 votes.

Talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Shergill said, Actually, I had worked in the Kharar area and people know me well there, said Shergill.

However, he added that he welcomed the peoples mandate and had no grudge. I am a soldier of my party and I am ready to go anywhere and do anything on the direction given to me by the high command, said Shergill.

I dont want to comment on Punjab poll

I want to congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and the karyakartas of the BJP for the big win in UP and Uttarakhand. For Punjab results, I dont want to comment as I was not involved in the Punjab elections and there will be an introspection by the party high command. But it is good that fraud party  AAP  didnt win in Punjab  Kirron Kher, MP, Chandigarh

Its good that AAP lost

The results of UP and Uttarakhand have proved that leadership qualities of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah have gone down well with the masses. In Punjab, we accept the defeat with humility. But defeat of AAP is also good for Punjab as its victory in the border state could have proved dangerous.  Satya Pal Jain, BJP MP

Congs win in Punjab was never in doubt

The Congress decisive victory in Punjab was never in doubt. An experienced analyst had put the figure to me at 77. It is the result of the good work done by the party leadership. The people of Punjab have also given their verdict on the BJP, which got only three seats in the state. Pawan Kumar Bansal, former Union Minister
Akash Ghai

Tribune News Service

Mohali, March 11

Congress candidate Balbir Singh Sidhu won the Mohali seat for the third time on the trot. Sidhu defeated his nearest rival Narinder Singh Shergill of the Aam Aadmi Party by a margin of 27,873 votes. SAD-BJP combine candidate Capt Tejinder Pal Singh Sidhu claimed the third slot with 30,031 votes.

Of the total 15 candidates in the fray from the constituency, 12 candidates saw forfeiture of their security amount, said Anuprita Johal, returning officer.

As many as 1,139 voters opted for NOTA. Interestingly, the number of persons, who pressed NOTA button, was more than the number of those voting for the 12 candidates, whose security amount has been forfeited.

Apart from the three main candidates, only BSP candidate Sarbjit Singh managed to touch the four-figure by fetching 1,027 votes.

Earlier, a total of 1,40,843 votes, including 299 postal votes, were polled here. As many as 40 postal votes were rejected.

In 2012, Sidhu had defeated BS Ramoowalia (SAD-BJP) by 16,752 votes while in 2007, he had got the better of his nearest rival Jasjit Singh Bunny by 13,615 votes to be the MLA of the area.

Sidhu said it was the love of the people that had made him win. They have faith in me. I will do anything for the development of the area, said Sidhu before leaving for a gurdwara to offer prayers.
Nitin Jain

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11

The first-timer Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), reckoned by many as a rank outsider, has scripted history by winning the Kharar Assembly seat, which had been bagged either by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) or the Congress for the past five decades, barring once when in 1972 CPIs Shamsher Singh Josh made it to the state Assembly.

However, the other two Vidhan Sabha segments in Mohali district  Mohali and Dera Bassi  opted for retaining their sitting legislators  Balbir Singh Sidhu of the Congress and NK Sharma of the SAD. Sidhu made a hat-trick of sorts, having won the seat in 2012 from Mohali and 2007 from Kharar. Earlier, in 2002 and 1997, Sidhu had finished third as the Congress and Independent candidate from Kharar. Sharma had won his maiden election in 2012. With all three main political parties  the Congress, the SAD and AAP  winning one seat each in Mohali district, the newly elected MLAs are a liquor baron from Mohali, a journalist from Kharar, and a realtor from Dera Bassi.

In Kharar, both the winning party as well as its candidate Kanwar Sandhu, are newcomers. Sandhu is a 61-year-old veteran journalist, who had served as editor of a couple of leading English dailies in Chandigarh before he decided to throw his hat into the political ring. He defeated his nearest rival and sitting Congress MLA Jagmohan Singh Kang by a margin of 2,012 votes. Kang was a three-time legislator. Before winning from Kharar in 2012, Kang had represented Morinda in 2002 and 1992. He faced a drubbing in 1997 and 2007. Sandhu polled 54,171 votes while Kang got 52,159 votes.

SADs newcomer leading realtor Ranjit Singh Gill finished third by getting 46,807 votes. The remaining seven candidates, including that of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), lost their security deposits by failing to poll 10 per cent of the total votes polled. Interestingly, 1,059 voters opted for NOTA, which was higher than the vote count of six candidates.

In Mohali, Sidhu recorded a winning margin of 27,873 votes by polling 66,844 votes. AAPs first-timer agriculturist Narinder Singh Shergill remained the runner-up with 38,971 votes while former Mohali Deputy Commissioner Capt (retd) Tejinder Pal Singh Sidhu, who is the son-in-law of veteran Akali Rajya Sabha member Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, finished third with 30,031 votes. An IAS officer, Capt Sidhu had left the civil service to contest the elections. As in Kharar, Mohalis other 12 candidates also lost their security deposits and remained way behind NOTA, which was opted for by 1,139 electors.

In Dera Bassi, Sharma, who was a Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPS) in the outgoing Badal regime and considered close to SAD president and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, defeated his nearest rival Deepinder Singh Dhillon of the Congress by a margin of 1,921 votes.

Sharma polled 70,792 votes while Dhillon got 68,871 votes. AAPs first-timer Sarabjit Kaur, widow of former Punjab minister and veteran Akali leader Capt Kanwaljit Singh, polled only 33,150 votes to finish third. Capt Kanwaljit had represented Banur (which was replaced by Dera Bassi in 2012) for a maximum of four times, including a hat-trick. He was first elected from Banur in 1985 and lost in 1992 but thereafter he scored a hat-trick of victories in 1997, 2002 and 2007 before he died in a road mishap in Kharar in March 2009. His son Jasjit Singh Bunny won the 2009 byelection from Banur caused by Capts death.

In Dera Bassi, NOTA count of 1,345 was way ahead of the votes polled by the rest of the six candidates, whose security deposits were forfeited.

My victory is a tribute to my son Dr Karan, who left us recently. Karan had specially come from Canada to participate in the election campaign. He had really worked very hard.  Kanwar Sandhu (AAP), winner from kharar

My victory shows Mohali peoples love for me. They have again put their faith in me, for the third time. Now, we are going to form the government and its time to give back in a big way.  Balbir Singh Sidhu (Cong), winner from mohali

I am happy to have won the seat for the second consecutive time. My win proves that people pinned their hopes on development and not political gimmicks.  NK Sharma (SAD), winner from dera bassi

KHARAR

Kanwar Sandhu

Party: AAP

Age: 61

Qualification: Postgraduate in English, Bachelor in Journalism

Profession: Journalist

MOHALI

Balbir Singh Sidhu

Party: Congress

Age: 57

Qualification: BA II

Profession: Liquor baron

DERA BASSI

NK Sharma
Ananya Panda

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 10

Dubbing the Aam Aadmi Party governments third Budget 2017-18 before it was passed unanimously by the Delhi Assembly on Friday an empowering one, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia went on to slam Leader of Opposition (LoP) Vijender Gupta for misleading the House over the national Capital's fiscal deficit statistics in connection with outcome measured in health, education and social security sectors, among others.

Sisodia also came down heavily on the BJP-led Centre and the Prime Minister when in a veiled reference the AAP minister in response to Guptas attacks, said for the government development doesnt lie in creating crematoriums and infrastructure alone but in making difference in peoples lives by ensuring them access to basic amenities.

Little short of being self-idolatry Sisodia said the AAP government with this budget intends to empower the common people helping them to take charge of their lives.

Now people in Delhi no longer have to be scared of increased taxes and this budget sows the seed towards making them fearless, said the Deputy Chief Minister who claimed that he has received appreciation calls from several state ministers as well as officials of Centre since yesterday.

Money we save through timely delivery and execution of projects will be put in the piggy bank, he said.

In a swipe at the Opposition over its claims well described in so-called outcome budget, Finance and Education Minister Sisodia retorted, Dont look for outcome of the budget in papers but see the difference in people's lives. If you want to see the work visits the mohalla clinics and schools.

Noting that the BJP leader should refrain from quoting convenience-based figures under bifurcations of plan and non-plan heads, Sisodia claimed The fiscal deficit of Delhi is .8 per cent while that of Centre is 3.24 per cent and the same for many other states is way below.

Earlier, Gupta had claimed that the government is presenting deficit Budget year after year with 80 per cent of it being spent on salary, wages and other administrative responsibilities while capital head share was just 20 per cent of the budget.

Vijender Gupta you question about the status of mohalla sabhas and that our government has not been able to deliver on many other areas we promised but you need to know that this government has not been allowed to function by your party-led Centre, Sisodia said while noting that the budgets on health and education during Congress and your one year time was far from being satisfactory.

Many criticised our government for not keeping WiFi in this budget but the fact is that funds have been allocated to it as well as CCTV cameras in DTC buses, underlined Sisodia.

The government will consider a proposal, also appreciated by Culture Minister Kapil Mishra, by ruling party MLA Madan Lal for establishment of regional language academies, he added.
New York, March 11

The widow of Harnish Patel, an Indian-origin businessman who was shot dead outside his home in South Carolina, has made a plea for "selflessness and love" to honour his memory.

"To honour the memory of Harnish, please continue to demonstrate selflessness and love to one another each and every day," Sonal Patel said in a statement on Thursday to the local daily, Lancaster News.

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Harnish Patel's brother, Nirav said that Sonal was staying strong and focused getting her and her son's lives back to as normal as possible, the daily reported.

Harnish Patel, who immigrated to the US in 2003, ran a convenience store. He was shot on March 2 when he reached his house in Lancaster, South Carolina, after closing the store.

As for the motive behind his killing, Nirav Patel told the Lancaster News: "We just don't know. Nobody knows yet." The family was "very good friends with the law enforcement community, and they trust them completely. Right now, we're just letting them do their job," he added.

Meanwhile, Doug Barfield, a lawyer for the sheriff's office, told the daily that a full team of investigators were working on the case with the help of state law enforcement agents.

Many people were interviewed but no arrests so far.

IANS
By Press Trust of India: Ahmedabad, Mar 11 (PTI) Terming the BJPs victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as an "end of politics of caste and creed", Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani today said the results proved that people have accepted Modi governments policies, including the note ban move.

"The victory is an endorsement of (Narendra Modis) demonetisation decision. BJP has emerged as the party of the poor," Rupani told reporters after trends suggested BJPs win in the two states.

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"Its end of politics of caste and creed. People have accepted and endorsed policies and good governance philosophy of Narendra Modi-led BJP government," Rupani said on micro-blogging site Twitter.

State unit president of BJP, Jitu Vaghani, said the partys victory in the state assembly elections indicates that the BJP will get a huge majority in the upcomin Assembly elections in Gujarat.

"Congress leaders come out only during the elections, while BJP leaders go out and serve the people. BJP is always among people and people are getting attracted towards the BJP more and more. It will win with huge majority during 2017 state elections," Vaghani told reporters.

Elections are scheduled to be held in Gujarat later this year.

Meanwhile, Gujarat Congress said that out of the five states that went to polls, the party (Congress) has got peoples support in three states. It claimed that similar trend will be seen in the Gujarat assembly polls.

"In a way people have shown faith in Congress in three states of Punjab, Goa and Manipur. The changes seen in these three states will also be witnessed in Gujarat. People in Gujarat are fed up with BJPs anti-Dalit, anti-poor and anti-women policies. We are confident of getting peoples support in defeating BJP in Gujarat," Congress state spokesperson Manish Doshi said.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Kanubhai Kalsaria said the results offer an opportunity to the party to learn and rectify its mistakes in the Gujarat elections.

"We will introspect on what went wrong in Punjab and Goa. Elections in five states show anti-incumbency. In Gujarat, BJP has ruled for the last two decades and people are fed up with corruption and are looking for change. Hence, we are poised to get benefit of anti-incumbency. Will learn from our performances in Punjab and Goa and will implement it there," Kalsaria told PTI. PTI KA PD NP BAS

--- ENDS ---
Gurgaon, March 10

After five years, a Gurgaon court today convicted 31 employees of Maruti-Suzuki India Ltd, 13 of them for the murder of human resource manager Awanish Kumar Dev, and the rest on charges of rioting, trespassing, causing hurt and related offences during the July 18, 2012, unrest at the automobile giants Manesar plant in Haryana.

The quantum of punishment will be pronounced on March 18. Defence counsel Rajendra Pathak said they would approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Additional District and Sessions Judge RK Goyal acquitted 117 of the 148 employees chargesheeted in the case for want of evidence.

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The court divided the convicts into two categories, as per the charges proved against them, placing 24 in one group and the remaining seven in the other. Booked by the police and sacked by the carmaker, only two of the 148 jailed workers could get bail in February 2015.

Violence had erupted at the Manesar facility over disciplinary action against an employee during which agitated workers went on a rampage, torching a part of the factory, setting senior officer Dev on fire, and bludgeoning with rods 100 others. Among the wounded were foreigners and policemen.

The massive plant, which rolled out over five lakh cars a year, was shut down for a month, resulting in heavy losses.

Today, a large police contingent was deployed at the court as a precautionary measure. The local administration had clamped prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC to prevent any untoward incident. Workers of various industrial units held a meeting at Gurugrams Kamla Nehru Park later in the evening to chalk out their future strategy. Among them were leaders of workers unions and those working in Maruti Suzukis plants in Gurugram, Manesar and Kherki Daula.

 TNS & Agencies
Tribune Reporters

Shimla, March 11

Celebrating the sweeping victory of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, BJP workers today distributed sweets, burnt crackers and took out a victory procession from Central Telegraph Office to Naaz. The enthused workers greeted each other with saffron colours two days before Holi. The BJP activists, led by BJP MLA, Shimla (Urban), Suresh Bhardwaj raised slogans like UP, Uttarakhand hamari, ab Himachal ki bari hai.

BJP leader PK Dhumal said the victory was the testimony that the people of the nation believed in the policies of Modi and support the agenda of development and good governance.

Its HPs turn: Jamwal

Sundernagar: It was the day of celebrations for BJP workers in Sundernagar. They assembled in the town and celebrated the victory in UP and Uttarakhand. A large number of BJP workers seen distributing sweets and bursting crackers. According to Rakesh Jamwal, president, district unit, now it was the turn of Himachal.

Mandate for work: Shanta

Palampur: Shanta Kumar, MP and senior BJP leader, today hailed the victory of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. He said this was a mandate for the best performance of the Narendra Modi government. He said these elections had proved that people had voted for development, stability, corruption-free governments and in support of the demonetisation exercise in November last year.

He said with the victory in UP, the NDA government would get a majority in the Rajya Sabha that would help party manage to pass a number of Bills for the welfare of common man.

People want change: MP

Mandi: BJP workers celebrated the BJPs win in the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Assembly elections today by bursting crackers here today and distributed sweets among the workers.

BJP workers gathered in the town and started bursting crackers to celebrate the triumph of the party. Mandi MP Ramswaroop Sharma said the win of the BJP in major states indicated that the people of the nation wanted change.

Celebrations in Kangra

Kangra: Party activists celebrated party victory by bursting crackers and distributing sweets. The BJP party activists led by Sanjay Choudhary, former MLA, gathered at the Nehru Chowk of the town and raised pro-BJP slogans.
Tribune News Service

Shimla, March 11

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has congratulated Captain Amarinder Singh and the Congress for well-deserved win in the Punjab Assembly elections.

He said the Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiromani Akali Dal (BJP-SAD) alliance was not able to fulfil the aspirations of the people in the last 10 years and the development had come to a standstill due to the authoritative rule of the Badal government.

Virbhadra Singh said there could have been no better gift for Captain Amarinder Singh on his 75th birthday.

Punjab would witness a new era of development in the Congress regime, he added.
Tribune News Service

Jammu, March 11

A Holi Milan function was organised at Raj Bhawan here today in which Governor NN Vohra and First Lady Usha Vohra celebrated the festival of colours with the officers and staff of the Governors Secretariat, and their families. The event was organised on the lawn of Raj Bhawan.

The Governor and the First Lady extended Holi greetings and offered sweets to all those assembled on the occasion. They interacted with children, families and staff of the Governors Secretariat and had pictures taken with them. They wished them good health and happiness.

The Governor presented a cheque of Rs 1,100 to Muskan Choudhary, daughter of Mohinder Lal Choudhary, driver-constable, Raj Bhawan security, for securing the first position in the 7th SOF International English Olympiad. Congratulatinh Muskan, the Governor and the First Lady wished success to her in all her future endeavours.

The Governor on the occasion, prayed for peace, harmony, progress and prosperity in the state.

Vohra extends Holi greetings

Jammu: Governor NN Vohra has greeted the people on Holi and hoped the festival of colours would be a harbinger of peace, progress and prosperity in the state. In his message of felicitations, the Governor observed that the celebration of festivals, an important part of our rich cultural heritage, strengthened the bonds of brotherhood and amity. He expressed the hope that the festival would spread happiness and joy all around and promote harmony. Wishing a happy Holi to the people, the Governor prayed for their well-being and prosperity. TNS
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, March 11

A court in north Kashmir today extended the judicial remand of Hurriyat leader and Muslim League head Masarat Alam till March 16.

The Court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Bandipora, today extended the judicial remand by five days in a case registered at the Sumbal police station with directions to the prosecution to produce him before the court on March 16.

Masarat, who is currently lodged at District Jail, Baramulla, was earlier granted bail by the CJM in the case on February 21. However, he was not released, and a day later the Bandipora Sessions Court suspended Masarats bail after the government filed a revision petition to oppose it and remanded him to judicial custody.

Meanwhile, a lawyer connected with the case said the governments revision petition was scheduled to come up for hearing before the Sessions Court on March 14.

Masarat was booked under the Public Safety Act following the 2010 unrest that left over 100 people dead in the Kashmir valley. He was released in early 2016 for a brief period and then rearrested. On December 27, 2016, the J&K High Court had ordered his release. The separatist was not released but shifted from Jammu to Srinagar and taken into custody in the case filed in 2010 in which he was granted bail by the court on January 19.
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, March 11

District Election Officer (Deputy Commissioner), Srinagar, Farooq Ahmad Lone today convened a meeting with the representatives of various political parties to brief them about the guidelines of the forthcoming Lok Sabha byelections.

During the meeting implementation of the model code of conduct, scrutinisation of ads by political parties, media monitoring, expenditure monitoring, maintenance of shadow observation register and permission for conduct of public rallies were discussed.

The District Election Officer urged the representatives of the National Conference, Congress, BJP and others to cooperate with the administration in ensuring smooth, free and fair elections and advised them not to indulge in any defamatory personal remarks or issue any provocative statements which could vitiate the atmosphere.

He asked them to ensure that contesting candidates open separate bank accounts for election expenditure and stressed on strict implantation of ECI guidelines.

The meeting also discussed the feasibility of designating polling stations and participants were asked to file objections, if any, by March 13.
New Delhi, March 11

India on Saturday successfully test-fired the BrahMos missile with an extended range of 450 km, with officials calling it a text book launch.

The enhanced version of the supersonic cruise missile was test-fired from the Integrated Test Range off the Odisha coast at 11.30 am on Saturday, a statement said.

In a historical first, the formidable missile system once again proved its mettle to precisely hit enemy targets at much higher range than the current range of 290 km, with supersonic speed of 2.8 Mach," said the statement from BrahMos Aerospace.

During the launch, the land-attack version of the supersonic cruise missile system met its mission parameters fully, officials said.

"It was a textbook launch achieving 100 per cent results, executed with high precision from the Mobile Autonomous Launcher (MAL) deployed in full configuration," the statement said.

"With the successful test firing of BrahMos Extended Range missile - BrahMos-ER, the Indian Armed Forces will be empowered to knock down enemy targets far beyond 400 km. BrahMos has thus proved its prowess once again as the best supersonic cruise missile system in the world," BrahMos Aerospace CEO Sudhir Mishra said from the launch site.

An announcement regarding extending the range of the cruise missile, a joint venture of India's DRDO and Russia's NPOM, was first made by DRDO chief S. Christopher on February 14.

The range of the BrahMos missile, was 290 km  even as it was capable of going beyond it  due to India not being part of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), an informal and voluntary global partnership to prevent proliferation of missile and unmanned aerial vehicle technology capable of carrying over 500 kg payload for more than 300 km.

India joined the MTCR in June 2016, making extension of the missile's range possible.

Christopher had said that only a software change was required for this purpose.

The Indian Army has already inducted three regiments of BrahMos in its arsenal. All are equipped with Block-III version of missile, which was recently tested on May 8 and 9.

The land-attack version of BrahMos has been operationalised in the Indian Army since 2007.

The fire-and-forget missile, which can be fired from all three media, has the capability to take on surface targets by flying a combined hi-lo trajectory, thus evading enemy air defence systems.

Inclusion of the powerful weapon system in Indian Army has given it a distinct operational advantage to hit an enemy target even in the most difficult and hidden terrains.  IANS
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 11

An elated BJP chief Amit Shah today credited the partys spectacular run in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand to PM Narendra Modi.

Accepting the defeat in Punjab with ally Akali Dal, Shah announced to set up a committee to ascertain the reasons for the rout. He also pointed to the vote share earned by the coalition to assert that all was not lost. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister described BJPs poll victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as very humbling and overwhelming and thanked people for their continued faith and support. Gratitude to the people of India for the continued faith, support and affection for the BJP. This is very humbling & overwhelming, he said in a series of tweets.

Also as per Shah, the results proved that the Prime Minister was the most popular leader India had since Independence. He thanked voters in all five states and claimed the overwhelming response in UP was an apt reply to those who questioned the Prime Ministers policies and used derogatory words against him.

The UP elections mark a new chapter in the Indian politics wherein performance will be the only criteria in elections, he said. The overwhelming results, Shah said, increased the partys responsibilities and promised to deliver on each and every promise made in the manifesto. He also made a special mention of the BJPs performance in Gandhi bastions of Amethi and Raebareli to stress his point of the beginning of a new era in politics.

Dismissing the BSP supremo Mayawatis allegations on the EVM rigging, Shah said: I can understand her state of mind. UP poll outcome will change the course of countrys politics. It will leave behind politics of caste, religion and nepotism. The mother-of-all-wins in UP will make life easier for the BJP in the Rajya Sabha and help it in getting the President and Vice-President of its choice and set the mood for 2019.
At 11:30 am on Saturday, the Indo-Russian venture test-fired the extended range version termed BrahMos Extended Range from the Integrated Test Range Chandipur at the coast of Odisha, BrahMos Aerospace.

By Jugal R Purohit: Attaining a 'major milestone', BrahMos, India's and arguably the world's fastest supersonic cruise missile, demonstrated that it could extend its capability to hit targets from 290km up to 450km. The missile did not have to undergo major modifications to acquire this capability, sources informed.

At 11:30 am on Saturday, the Indo-Russian venture test-fired the extended range version termed BrahMos Extended Range from the Integrated Test Range Chandipur at the coast of Odisha, BrahMos Aerospace. Fired from a Mobile Autonomous Launcher (MAL) - a land attack version - the 'text book launch' achieved '100 per cent results', said a release.

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What will make matters worse for India's adversaries is this - BrahMos Aerospace will work retrospectively to extend the range of all the missile systems already in service with the Indian Army and Indian Navy from 290km to 450km. Newer supplies, it was revealed, will be provided in the extended configuration only.

"In terms of accuracy, the missile fared very well. We fired much more accurately than what a rifle would fire at a distance of 400m. Our accuracy count was 99.943 per cent," declared Dr Sudhir Mishra Chief Executive Officer, BrahMos Aerospace. "This is a historical occasion as it comes after India joined the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) last year," he added.

A Ministry of Defence (MoD) official familiar with the programme said no more tests would be required. The new missile would directly enter the production process. "Today's test comes after validation in the laboratory. We don't need any more validation," he said.

MISSILE MODIFICATIONS

Explaining the modifications, the official said, "Changes in the missile for it to achieve this range pertained to software and internal dynamics which were always doable but we held ourselves back as earlier we were not a part of MTCR and could not go beyond 290km. Now the cap has been removed."

During the recently concluded AERO INDIA 2017, the Chairman of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Dr S Christopher had set March 10 as the deadline for this test which ultimately happened a day later.

The BrahMos flies at 2.8 times the speed of sound to cover a kilometer every second. Originally designed as an anti-ship missile for the Navy, based on the Army's request, it was modified to perform land attack role as well.

Before the team BrahMos now lies the challenge of extending the BrahMos speed to 800km - a task which will take about two and a half years. In addition, the team is also gearing up for an air-launched version, the test which is likely to take place later this month. Going ahead, miniaturisation of the missile for it to be launched from submarines and fighter jets will be carried out as well.

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BrahMos is an 8.4m long, two-stage missile which can carry a 300kg conventional warhead. It emerged out of an inter-governmental agreement signed in 1998 between India and Russia.

Also read: Navy successfully launches anti-ship missile from indigenously built Kalvari class submarine

Also read: India prepares Israeli SPYDER air defence missile system for Pakistan border

Also watch: Defenders Of India : Story Of India's Brahmos Missile

--- ENDS ---
Tribune news service

Lucknow, March 11

Conceding the defeat to BJP, outgoing Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said people perhaps wanted better work and more development. He suggested that the BJP had won by misleading voters and sided with BSP chief Mayawati who raised questions over EVMs.

Wishing the BJP to do more for people of UP than he had managed to do, Yadav made a tongue-in-cheek remark that he had built expressways but people wanted bullet trains.

Yadav appeared relaxed in his first interaction with the media after his party was reduced to 47 from 224 seats won in 2012 which had propelled him to the top seat.

A perceptible hint of despair became apparent when he mocked that he was happy for the farmers of UP whose loans would be now written off in the very first Cabinet meeting of the new BJP government.

Samjhane se nahi, behkaney se vote mile (votes were won not by convincing people but by misleading), was his repeated refrain during the brief interaction. He said the BJP never spelt out which were the states topping in loot and crimes against women. Yadav also tendered his resignation to Governor Ram Naik who accepted it and has asked him to continue till further arrangements.

Addressing mediapersons in Lucknow, Akhilesh said the poor often did not know what they really wanted. Illustrating his point, he said recently a disabled woman had come seeking his help from Kushinagar. When I asked him how I could help all, she asked for was Rs 20,000. Thats all, he observed. Responding to a question about Mayawati's charges of BJP tampering EVM machines, Yadav said if a major party was feeling this way the Election Commission should investigate the matter.

Defending the Congress-SP alliance, he said it was the coming together of two young leaders which would continue in the future.

He also refused to react to his uncle Shivpal Yadavs charge that people had paid for netajis (Mulayam Singh Yadav) humiliation.
Sarbjit Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11

Winning 77 of the 117 Assembly seats, just one short of a two-third majority, the Capt Amarinder Singh-led Congress today stormed to power in Punjab, riding a strong anti-incumbency wave against the SAD-BJP and warding off a fiery challenge by AAP.

The PPCC chief, who turned 75 today, said he could not have got a better birthday gift.

Capt Amarinder Singh has convened a meeting of party MLAs tomorrow to elect the leader of the Congress legislature party in the presence of party observers. After meeting the Governor to stake claim to form the government, he is likely to leave for Delhi to meet Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi. With all three regions  Malwa, Majha and Doaba - having sent Congress candidates to the Assembly, he would have to strike a fine balance while forming his Cabinet.

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The Congress put up its second-best performance in the state  it had won 87 seats in 1992. The party also won the byelection to the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat with GS Aujla defeating RS Chhina of the BJP by 1,99,189 votes.

The SAD-BJP alliance was relegated to the third spot (18 seats) behind AAP in the state polls, which emerged as the largest Opposition party with 20 seats. AAPs ally Lok Insaaf Party, that contested five seats, won two.

The BJP bagged three of the 23 seats it contested. The party tally in 2012 was 12.

A beaming CM-designate Capt Amarinder Singh, said tackling the drug menace would be his governments top priority. He announced that various promises made in the party manifesto would be implemented right away.

Hitting out at SAD, Capt Amarinder blamed the party for bringing the state down to its knees and mocked AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, likening him to a summer storm that had come and gone. Capt Amarinder lost the Lambi seat to CM Parkash Singh Badal but won from Patiala, trouncing SAD's Gen (retd) JJ Singh whose deposit was forfeited.

AAP had pinned high hopes on the Punjab polls, a state where it won four seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. It expected major gains in Malwa but was disappointed.
Tribune News Service

Lucknow, March 11

Suffering a humiliating defeat, BSP national president Mayawati today accused the BJP of tampering with the Electronic Voting Machines in a way that whichever button was pressed the vote was cast in favour of the lotus.

In Delhi, the Election Commission in Delhi promptly rejected Mayawatis claim, saying her demand for a repoll using ballot papers was legally untenable. The Commission also listed a series of mechanical and electronic measures it takes to prevent tampering of EVMs.

Speaking to reporters at the BSP headquarters, Mayawati said she had already written to the Election Commission in this regard, demanding to stall the election results till the matter was investigated.

She said it was shocking to see that even in Muslim-dominated areas, the votes had gone to the BJP. Muslims constitute 20 per cent votes in Uttar Pradesh and the BJP did not give a single ticket to them. It is difficult to digest that still results went in favour of BJP even in Muslim-dominated areas, she said.

Demanding fresh polls with traditional ballot papers, Mayawati said even western countries, including the US, were reverting to the old ballot system after complaints of malpractices.

According to her, even after the 2014 Lok Sabha elections her workers had expressed apprehensions about EVMs being tampering with, but she ignored it. A few days ago, a journalist also mentioned this at a press conference to which I did not pay any heed, she said.

She asked PM Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah to accept her challenge if they were honest and confident of their victory. She threatened to go to court and even launch an agitation if her demand for fresh elections was not accepted.
Imphal, March 11

After her dismal performance in the Manipur assembly elections, human rights activist Irom Sharmila on Saturday announced that she would quit politics but continue her fight against the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in the state.

"I am fed up with this political system. I have decided to quit active politics. I will move to south India as I need to calm my mind," Sharmila said.

"But I will continue my fight against AFSPA until it is repealed. I will fight as a social activist," she said.

Sharmila ended her 16-year-long hunger strike against the AFSPA in August 2016 to contest elections.

Sharmila, who contested from Thoubal constituency against Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh was relegated to fourth position. She secured just 90 votes.

The two other candidates of her newly floated party Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) lost their deposits.  PTI
Shiv Kumar

Tribune News Service

Mumbai, March 11

Political uncertainty that threw up several revolving door governments in the 1990s seems to be returning to Goa with the assembly elections resulting in a hung House where smaller parties and Independents hold the key in the 40-member assembly.



While the Congress is set to emerge as the single largest party with 17 seats, followed by the BJP which won 13, neither is close to the half-way mark, which gives plenty of bargaining power to the newly-formed Goa Forward Party and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, each of which have 3 MLAs each. The NCP's lone representative is the

colourful Churchill Alemao while three Independents add to the medley.

As results and trends shwed a resounding safrron victory in the state, she called a press conference and dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah to ask the poll panel to hold fresh elections in the state "if they have an iota of morality and honesty left in them".

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Reeling under the loss of its former Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar who moved to New Delhi to take over the post of Defence Minister, the BJP's lacklustre performance under Laxmikant Parsekar and rebellion in the ranks of the RSS badly dented the fortunes of the saffron party. Parsekar lost his own seat (Mandrem,) as did his cabinet colleagues

Dayanand Mandrekar (Siolim) and Dilip Parulekar (Saligao). The BJP also barely managed to retain Panjim, a seat vacated by Parrikar.



The BJP has been under fire from the powerful Catholic Church and citizens' groups for fielding defectors from the Congress party, whom it had previously accused of corruption. Three of the imports  Mauvin Godinho (Dabolim), Pandurang Madkaikar (Cumbarjua) and Pravin Zantye (Mayem)  won on the lotus symbol.



The 2017 assembly elections also saw the return of veterans such Luizinho Faleiro, Subash Shirodkar and Churchill Alemao returning to the state assembly.



The biggest non-performer in Goa was the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which, despite an innovative campaign featuring musicians at street corner meetings, failed to make an impact. The Goa Suraksha Manch floated by rebel RSS leader Subash Velingkar, which contested the polls on the sole platform of denying government grants to English medium schools, also scored a dud. Velingkar has since returned to the RSS.



GSM had contested the elections in alliance with the MGP and the Shiv Sena, both of which also didn't cause much ripples.

With all the results already in, the process of horse-trading has begun in Goa with the Congress and the BJP wooing the smaller parties. However, sources in Goa say the former has a slight advantage since the regional Goa Forward Party comprises former Congressmen. The MGP, which ruled Goa for years since its liberation from the Portuguese in 1961, has also allied with the Congress in the past.



Final tally

CONG: 17

BJP: 13

MGP: 3

Goa Forward: 3

NCP: 1

Ind: 3

Total: 40 seats
KV Prasad

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 11

The BJP today walked away with top honours in assembly elections with a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, claiming it remains close to form governments in Manipur and Goa but in Punjab, where Congress stole its thunder.

Uttar Pradesh, one the most politically conscious states, once again chose to hand over a decisive mandate to a single party for the third time since the 2007 elections and in the process ended the 14-year vanvas of the BJP that last rode to power in the 1990s riding on the Ram Lehar.

The thumping majority BJP secured bewildered calculations of hard-nosed political pundits as it surpassed previous best record by any party in the state. BJP leaders lost little time in apportioning credit of this show in UP to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his governments pro-poor policies. The mandate dealt a huge blow to those who expected demonetisation anger play out differently.

Gratitude to the people of India for the continued faith, support and affection for the BJP. This is very humbling and overwhelming. I thank the people of UP from here. This historic win for BJP is a victory for development and good governance, Modi said in a series of tweets. He thanked the people of Punjab for having allowed the SAD-BJP to serve them for a decade and also the BJP workers for the hard work in these elections.

More than the setback to new-found Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance, the BSP came in for a shock as it won just 19 seats leading to party chief Mayawati casting doubts on the fairness of the poll process and seeking re-poll through old ballot system.

The Election Commission was quick in stating there is no merit in her allegations of tampering with the Electronic Voting Machines.

Uttarakhand, like UP, gave a clear mandate to the BJP. The party went into elections after the turmoil in the state led to installation of a BJP government through some who defected from the Congress. The sordid drama ended after court intervention but sympathy factor along with work by CM Harish Rawat did not materialise into votes the Congress hoped.

Having faced dissension in Goa, what with an influential faction of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh distancing itself from Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, the key to formation of the next government remains with Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, part of an alliance of Shiv Sena and Goa Suraksha Manch, that broke away from the BJP, Goa Forward Party and three independents. The Aam Aadmi Partys foray in this western state did not result even in a single seat.

In Manipur, the BJP can take pride for having opened its account winning 20 seats in a House of 60 from zero presence while Congress under Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh too came out with honours by emerging as the single largest party for a possible fourth term on the trot.

Goa tops in nota vote preference

Goa has come out on the top when it comes to voters pressing the NOTA button in the latest round of assembly polls, closely followed by Uttarakhand. In Goa, 1.2% of the people voted for NOTA (None of the Above), followed by 1% in Uttarakhand, data available with the EC showed. In UP, the percentage of voters who opted for NOTA was 0.9%.

Muzaffarnagar riot accused win

BJP candidates Sangeet Som and Suresh Rana, who are Muzaffarnagar riot accused, won from Sardhana and Thana Bhawan seats, respectively. Som secured 97,921 votes while his nearest rival SPs Atul Pradhan got 76,296. Rana got 90,995 votes while BSPs Abdul Waris Khan secured 74,178 votes.

Cong loses all 4 seats in Amethi

Congress lost all four Assembly seats in Amethi district, the pocket borough of Nehru-Gandhi family, with BJP bagging three of them. BJPs Garima Singh polled 63,912 in Amethi defeating her nearest rival and tainted minister Gayatri Prasad Prajapati of SP. In Tiloi, BJPs Mayankeshwar Sharan Singh defeated BSPs Md Saud, son of sitting MLA Dr Mohd Muslim.

Mulayams bahu loses

SP received a major jolt from Lucknow Cantt seat, where its patron Mulayam Singh Yadavs daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav lost to BJPs Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who won by 33,796 votes. While Rita secured 95,402 votes, Aparna got only 61,606.

Satpal leads Ukhand race

Sources in the Uttarakhand unit of the BJP say Satpal Maharaj is the top contender for the CMs post among a host of MLAs, including Dhan Singh Rawat, Trivender Singh Rawat and Prakash Pant. Senior leaders will meet in Delhi on Sunday to take stock of the situation.

Jailed Aman Mani wins

Independent candidate Aman Mani Tripathi won Nautanwa seat in Mahrajganj by defeating SPs Kunwar Kaushal Kishore Singh. After being denied SP ticket, Aman Mani, accused of killing wife Sara Singh, contested from jail.
Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 11

Promising to introspect over its electoral losses in UP and Uttarakhand, the Congress today hailed face-saver Punjab as a "majestic win" saying it would form governments in Manipur and Goa also. The party's assertion would be tested hard given hung Houses in Manipur and Goa where the numbers game is wide open.

"The Congress is humbled by its shining victory in Punjab and is confident of forming governments in Goa and Manipur," Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said today while party vice-president Rahul Gandhi stayed away from AICC headquarters. Congress President Sonia Gandhi is also out of India for medical reasons.

Her son, and Congress heir apparent Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, sufficed to tweet his congratulations to PM Narendra Modi for the BJP wins in UP and Uttarakhand. For his workers, too, he had this Twitter message: "We stand resolute and committed to our values and our belief in an India united in strength and purpose. Our fight continues and will not end till we win the hearts and minds of people." Gandhi's message did not speak of owning up the loss or course correction.

The party as usual rushed to insulate him from the blame of defeat with party's general secretary (UP) Ghulam Nabi Azad saying, "If you hold him responsible for defeat, hold him responsible for victory too."

Azad underplayed the Congress' decimation in UP, saying it was only a small player there and even bigger players the SP and BSP had lost. The party won just seven seats out of 105 it contested in alliance with SP this time. It had alone won 28 in 2012 polls. Congress' vote share in UP also fell by nearly half from 11.65 per cent in 2012 to 6.3 per cent today.

The party's Uttarakhand loss has been equally embarrassing with CM Harish Rawat losing himself. The Congress is down 21 seats here from 32 in 2012 to 11 with the vote share slipping from 33.79 per cent to 33.50 per cent.

With grave losses in the heartland, Surjewala promised "introspection on reasons for the UP and Uttarakhand defeats" saying, "Congress will re-dedicate itself to strengthening the party and being the watchdog of people of the two states."

The party, however, took heart from emerging as the single largest in Manipur and Goa, saying the results were a reply to those dreaming of Congress-free India. Needling PM Modi again today, Surjewala said the Congress hoped he would abandon his "shamshaan-kabrastan" narrative and get down to governance in UP.

Though the single largest in Goa and Manipur, Congress has lost some part of its vote share in both. In Manipur, it is down from 42.42 per cent to 34.6 per cent primarily due to a three-term anti-incumbency against the Ibobi Singh government in the state. In Goa, where the Congress was hoping to get a clear win, vote share is now 28.3 per cent as against 30.78 per cent in 2012.

"We recognize our historical responsibility and will work to rebuild our cadres mainly in UP and Uttarakhand," Surjewala said post results today.

There was no word though on the schedule of the promised introspection meeting. Azad said, "The meeting is obviously not today."

The Congress would have questions to answer in UP where Gandhi campaigned solo and changed party's strategy from going alone to allying with SP. The role of strategist Prashant Kishor in UP would also come up for debate though he can always show the Punjab win and escape saying UP Congress seniors asked to be left alone.
New Delhi, March 11

The BJP headed for a stunning victory on Saturday in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, trampling a fragmented opposition that had hoped the demonetisation exercise would have chipped away at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity.

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Modi's party was now set to return to power in Uttar Pradesh after a 15-year gap during which regional parties such as the SP and BSP had held sway.

"The Prime Minister has clearly established himself as the predominant leader in India," said Aarti Jerath, a political analyst, on NDTV.

BJP president Amit Shah, who crafted and conducted the election strategy in UP, credited Modi and his policies for the victory.

"This is the victory of the corruption-free rule and pro-poor polices under the leadership" of Modi, he tweeted.

"BJP has reached new heights in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh and changed the political picture of the country," Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said amid scenes of jubilation at party offices in UP.

Party members danced and distributed sweets on streets and BJP offices. Women gathered in groups to watch results on TV danced as the results came in. One party leader said Holi, which will be celebrated on Sunday and Monday, has come a day early.

Terming the BJP victory as "shocking" and "difficult to swallow", BSP leader Mayawati hinted at vote fraud in the elections that were spread over seven phases during the last two months in the five states.

She provided no evidence for her allegation, and it is unlikely to be taken seriously. Her party is expected to finish third.

Along with its allies Apna Dal (Soneylal Patel)and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP), the BJP will have a comfortable two-thirds majority in the 403-member UP legislative assembly.

The party had, however, not put forward any chief ministerial candidate. BJP leaders said the decision will be taken by the BJP parliamentary board and the legislature party in the state soon.

The BJP, which had just 47 seats in the outgoing Assembly, garnered 40 per cent vote share in the most riveting contest seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Modi's popularity and demonetisation.

The party also went to the elections without fielding any Muslim candidate.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi acknowledged that the party's defeat was massive.

"Yes, UP is a bad loss, it hurts...I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring thinking for the Congress as a whole. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy," Singhvi said.

The previous best showing by BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of Ram Janam Bhoomi movement, when it got majority on its own winning 221 seats out of 425 in an undivided state.

SP leader and a state minister, Gayatri Prajapati, who is wanted in an alleged gangrape case and attempt to rape a minor, lost in Amethi, to Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Sinh.

Kailash Vijaywargia, a BJP general secretary, said the perception that the BJP was a party of the upper castes has been demolished as all sections of the society, including Dalits and Muslims voted for it.

"The central government schemes have benefitted everyone.

Muslim women have also benefitted from the schemes. Modi has created confidence in every section," he said.

In Uttarakhand, the BJP put up a splendid show and bagged clear majority. Congress Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost Haridwar (Rural) and Kichcha seats to BJP.

Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad attributed the party's poor show in the politically crucial UP to "public mood" and said its performance will be "scrutinised".

He, however, stressed that Congress' gains in Punjab and likeliness of the party forming government in Goa, ruled by the BJP until before the elections, should not be ignored.

In Punjab, the Congress got clear majority while the AAP, making a debut in Punjab Assembly polls, was in second position.

The ruling SAD-BJP combine was relegated to third position.

Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh, who is the party's chief ministerial face, thanked people of the state for their overwhelming support.

The Congress legislature party will meet tomorrow to elect its leader, he said.

In Goa, while the Congress is set to emerge as the single largest party followed by the BJP, neither are close to the half-way mark which gives plenty of bargaining power to the newly-formed smaller parties.

The BJP suffered a big reverse when Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar lost to his Congress rival from Mandrem.

Former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat (Congress) won from Margao constituency.

In Manipur, BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) is set to form the next government in Manipur with a wafer-thin majority as no party has gained simple majority in the 60-member Manipur Assembly.

Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh won from Thoubal Assembly seat by a margin of 10,400 votes. Rights activist Irom Sharmila, making her poll debut, was relegated to the fourth position.  PTI

Final tally for five states

Uttar Pradesh

Total seats: 403

BJP+ SP+Cong BSP Others 325 56 19 3

Punjab

Total seats: 117

Congress AAP+

SAD+BJP Others 77 22 18

Uttarakhand

Total seats: 70

BJP Congress Others 57 11 2

Manipur

Total seats: 60

Congress

BJP Others 28 21 11

Goa

Total seats: 40
Vibha Sharma



Tribune News Service



New Delhi, March 11

After his partys resounding victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and a close battle in Manipur, Bharatiya Janata Party national president Amit Shah claimed on Saturday that the elections proved that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the most popular leader India had since independence.

Addressing a press briefing on Saturday as results indicated a clean sweep in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Shah thanked voters in all five states and claimed that his victory was an apt reply to those questioning the Prime Ministers policies.

The UP elections mark as a new chapter in the Indian politics wherein performance becomes the only criteria in election, he claimed, adding that the results increased the partys responsibilities but promised to deliver on their promises.

He made a special mention of BJPs performance in Gandhi bastions of Amethi  where Samajwadi Party leader Gayatri Prajapati, who faces rape charges, and Congress partys Ameeta Singh lost to Garima Singh (BJP), the first wife of Congress leader Sanjay Sinh  and Rae Bareli, he claimed the results were the beginning of a new era in politics.

BJPs parliamentary board is scheduled to meet on Sunday to decide the partys chief ministers in the four states.

Shah also promised that the central government would waive farmer loans in the first Cabinet meeting.

Shah said that the BJP would set up a committee to strengthen the party in Punjab.

He however refused to respond to Mayawatis allegations of the elections being rigged.
Shahira Naim

Tribune News Service

Lucknow, March 11

Caretaker Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav conceded defeat to the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday, even as he wondered what happened to the large crowd of voters that attended his public meetings.

Yadav said at the press conference after his party in alliance with the Congress lost to the BJP that he hoped the next government would do better work, but he accused the saffron party of winning the elections by misleading the public.

People not happy with Expressway want Bullet trains, Yadav said. He wondered the large crowds that attended his public meetings wanted to hear something else.

As results and trends showed a resounding victory for the saffron party in the state, BSP supremo Mayawati called a press conference and dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah to ask the poll panel to hold fresh elections in the state "if they have an iota of morality and honesty left in them".

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Akhilesh also demanded that the Election Commission of India should investigate rival Bahujan Samaj Party national president Mayawatis allegations of election fraud.

He indicated that the partys alliance with the Congress may continue.

Yadav later met Governor Ram Naik and submitted his resignation.
Combing operations were launched in the area following the ambush and police claims two Naxals were killed in retaliatory action.

By Rahul Noronha: At least 11 Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed and four others were injured following an ambush by suspected Naxals Chhattisgarh's Sukma district.

The injured personnel have been evacuated to Raipur for treatment. An emergency meeting of top police officials has been called in Raipur to assess the situation.

IG, Bastar, Sunder Raj P told India Today confirmed that 11 CRPF personnel were killed in an ambush laid by Naxals in Bhejji, around 20 kilometers from the district headquarters of Sukma.

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Small arms fire and IED explosions were part of the ambush, the top cop added. Sources also said that the weapons belonging to the deceased CRPF personnel are also missing.

Combing operations were launched in the area following the ambush and police claims that two Naxals were killed in retaliatory firing but none of the bodies have been recovered.

RAJNATH, MODI CONDEMN ATTACK

Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Prime Minister Narendra Modi both expressed sorrow over the incident. Singh tweeted, "Deeply pained to learn of the killing of CRPF personnel in Sukma. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased."

PM Modi meanwhile posted a message on Twitter saying he has spoken to Rajnath Singh and that Singh is heading to Sukma to take stock of the situation.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi too condemned the deadly ambush, calling it a dastardly and cowardly act. "India stands united in fight against the terrorism and the government should give a befitting reply to the forces spreading terror in India", she said.

The ambush took place when CRPF personnel of the 219 battalion were taking part in a road opening operation.

In terms of casualties among security personnel, the ambush is the deadliest incident of 2017. The ambush comes amidst claims by the Chhattisgarh government that Naxals have their backs against the walls.

ALSO READ | CRPF to use 'Make in India' body protectors to counter stone pelting

--- ENDS ---
Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11

Punjab Congress president Capt Amarinder Singh on Saturday thanked the people of the state for their overwhelming support, terming the victory in the Assembly election as a gift by the people on his 75th birthday.

Thanking Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi for reposing faith in him, Amarinder said he hoped the Centre would recognise Punjabs demands and help them meet those.

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He said the Punjab Congress Legislature Party would meet at 2 pm on Sunday to decide the future course of action.

Talking about the AAP, he said Kejriwal is like a summer storm which came and went.

He told the media, It is a gift by the people of Punjab on my 75th birthday. The sensible voters of Punjab have voted for a definite change. My priority would be to first take up the governance issues that do not have monetary implications.

Without commenting on the future of Navjot Sidhu, Amarinder said the issue of deputy CM would be decided by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

Commenting on the partys performance, he said he was expecting around 65 seats, but the tally showed that people had reposed faith in the Congress.

He reiterated his resolve to act against those selling drugs, within four weeks and implement the nine points in the agenda mentioned in the manifesto.

I am thankful to Prashant Kishor and his team for devising a winning strategy. Our rank and file have worked hard on the IPAC strategy, he said.

He said he was going to New Delhi to meet Rahul Gandhi to discuss the formation of government.

Modi congratulates Amarinder

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called up Capt Amarinder Singh to congratulate him on his partys landslide victory in the state assembly elections.

Modi spoke to Amarinder on phone to convey his regards and extend his governments full support for the development of Punjab.

The PM told Amarinder that the Centre would do its best to ensure that Punjabs development agenda was on track.

Badal accepts defeat, to resign on Sunday

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal will submit his resignation to the Governor on Sunday following his partys defeat in the assembly election.

The Shiromani Akali Dal, which ruled Punjab for 10 years in alliance with the BJP, trailed at the number three slot in the results as officials counted the votes polled in the 117 seats on Saturday.

I will go to Chandigarh tomorrow and submit my resignation to the Governor, Badal told the media at his village Badal in Muktsar district.

I am grateful to the people of Punjab for giving me an opportunity to serve them. I am fully satisfied with all the things I was able to do. I will seek forgiveness from people for any mistakes, Badal said.

He said the reasons behind the Akali Dals defeat would be assessed. IANS
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH

The following is the full list of the candidates of all three major parties/alliances in Punjab  SAD-BJP, Congress and Aam Aadmi Party+LIP.

Total seats: 117

Total SAD+BJP Congress AAP+LIP 117 18 77 22



Click on page thumbnails below to see the print version of the detailed Punjab election results, including pictures of the winners:





The list below has the names of constituencies and candidates of the main parties in Punjab. The winners are marked in red:
Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11

Fighting a do-or-die battle, PPCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh saved the Congress from sinking into oblivion in Punjab, where it had lost back-to-back Assembly elections.

Learning a lesson from the 2012 shocker, Amarinder went all out to ensure that his choice of party candidates got the ticket. He was able to rein in the rebels amid major differences with senior leaders over ticket allotment and also kept at bay his detractors within the state Congress and at the central level.

The strategy to reach out to a wide range of voters, including students, farmers and traders, clicked. Since he had served a term as the CM (2002-07), the electorate preferred him over the inexperienced but hyperactive Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The tough stand taken by Amarinder on various issues, such as the SYL canal, corruption, the plunder of the states resources, the drug menace and the worsening economy, won him the confidence of voters.

Political observers said AAPs association with hardliners and the Maur blast a few days ahead of polling were key factors that made the urban and semi-urban voters drift towards the Congress. The entry of Manpreet Badal, Pargat Singh and Navjot Singh Sidhu into the party fold gave a big boost to its campaign.

Pramod Kumar, Director of the Chandigarh-based Institute for Development and Communication (IDC), said the Congress was able to regionalise its agenda and promises, while AAP harped on vendetta politics.

The partys think tank made the campaign Amarinder-centric, coming up with Coffee with Captain, Punjab da Captain, farmer loan waiver and smart phone campaigns to woo voters.

Potential ministers

With the Congress coming to power, the names of potential ministers have started doing the rounds. Though a senior leader said a formal discussion would be held tomorrow, party insiders said those in the reckoning included Manpreet Badal, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Aruna Chaudhary, Rana Gurjit Singh Sodhi, Balbir Singh Sidhu, Brahm Mohindra, Tripat Rajinder Bajwa, Rana Gurmeet Sodhi, Sukhjinder Randhawa, Vijay Inder Singla, Charanjit Singh Channi, Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Razia Sultana and Pargat Singh.
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Saturday won from Lambi constituency, whereas Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal defeated Bhagwant Mann from Jalalabad and Capt Amarinder Singh won on the Patiala Urban seat.

Earlier, elaborate security arrangements were in place at all counting centres in Punjab on Saturday morning as counting got underway at 8.

As many as 54 counting centres were set up at 27 locations. Around 14,000 officials were deployed for the smooth conduct of counting.

Barricades were put near Sangrur town and only cars and government vehicles were allowed on the Sangrur- Malerkotla road as counting started at Bardwal College located on this road.

Heavy police deployed near the counting centres in Ludhiana. Mobile phones and cameras were not allowed inside the counting centres. In Ludhiana, people had to take long routes because of elaborate security.

In Patiala, not even officers without the mandatory Election Commission ID cards were allowed inside the counting centres. Two such officers were seen exchanging words with cops at Government Polytechnic, the counting centre for Patiala urban.

AAP leader HS Phoolka was one of the first to arrive at the counting station. Phoolka told the media that the AAP would form government with majority.

When told about the news reports that the Congress and SAD could come together to form the government, Phoolka said the two were already hand in glove.

The counting of postal ballot was taken up first of all.




Beijing, March 11

Dinosaur tracks have been found in China's Jilin province, scientists said.

The tracks were found on a rural mountain road in Longjing city in August 2015, Xinhua news agency quoted the scientists from China, South Korea and the US as saying.

"The tracks include footprints of 55 cm long hadrosaurs. The trackmaker's body could have reached seven metres long," Xing Lida, associate professor from China University of Geosciences, said.

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Several tracks of carnivorous dinosaurs were also discovered with various footprint sizes ranging from 43 to 21 centimetres, Xing said.

The discovery will help with research to understand the region's landscape during the Cretaceous period, Xing said.

IANS
B.N.Goswamy

saturday, 1 January, 1870. At 11 oclock photographed the Duke of Edinburgh (and) then returned home.Wednesday, 16 February. Went into the photography room. Printed photographs. Tuesday, 29 March: Jaipur; took photographs from the corner of the palace. Tuesday, 12 April: Jaipur; Did some photography related work. The (photography) chemical compound mixture (which had got) spoiled had to be fixed. Friday, 3 June: Jaipur; Took some pictures in the aatish (stables) some of which did not turn out; then in the photography department, took 3 photos of the zenana out of which one was spoilt.

If one did not know any better, the above scattered notes one would have thought came from a professional photographers carefully kept diary. They are, in fact, excerpts from a kind of roznamcha  journal that a Maharaja kept: Sawai Ram Singh II of Jaipur (ruled 1835 to 1880). If one were to relate this to the figures that Mrinalini Venkateswaran, who has been documenting the royal collection of photographs at Jaipur, gives  6,050 individual photographs, contained in 105 albums and some loose prints, and 1,941 glass plate negatives containing 2,008 images  one knows that photography was a royal passion at the Jaipur court. And, deservedly, Sawai Ram Singh, apart from being a reformist and forward-looking ruler, carries the reputation of having been a Photographer Prince. He ruled with as much flair over his princely state as over the small retreat that came to be called his photukhana at Jaipur.

No one knows exactly when the Maharaja first got to know the exciting new device called the camera: there is a suggestion that it was in 1864 when the photographer T. Murray came to Jaipur; at the same time there are surmises that it was as early as the 1850s. But whatever the date, the Maharaja embraced photography from the heart. He acquainted himself with the best available equipment and acquired it, learnt how to photograph, took his camera/s with him on his journeys  whether to Calcutta or Benares or Agra  and began to create what one could term an archive of whatever was around him in Jaipur itself: portraits of people, whether local nobility or distinguished visitors; views of the city taken from carefully chosen angles; landscapes; photographs of himself; also, intriguingly, a record of the women of the royal household. When western visitors came to Jaipur, the Maharaja was keen to learn from them all that they knew about photography; whenever he travelled himself, he wanted to record people and places: the Maan Mandir at Benares, the Taj, of course, at Agra, the Garh Palace of Bundi, the ruins of the Residency at Lucknow, and so on. Well-established photographers or photographic firms  among them T. Murray, Bourne & Shepherd, Sache, Lala Deen Dayal  came to visit Jaipur and take photographs. When the French writer and traveller, Louis Rousselet  that prince of the darkroom  came visiting in 1866, he sat down with the Maharaja and, as he notes, The conversation then turned on photography (he is not only an admirer of this art, but is himself a skilful photographer), and afterwards on France, of which we talked a long time. One does not know whether Rousse let got to see the impressive array of cameras and processing equipment that the Maharaja had acquired, but clearly, as can be seen in the royal collection at Jaipur, the most technologically advanced pieces were there: a chemical sensitising box that came from G. Knight & Sons, a big portrait lens by Voigtlander & Sohn, a wet-plate sliding box camera made by J. Spencer, a stereo box camera from J.H. Dallmeyer. The Maharaja evidently took pride in his collection, whether of equipment or photographs, and when he mounted his photographs on cards, he would put his personal seal on the card using a specially made embossing tool.

There are myriad aspects to photography and the Maharajas passion for it that Mrinalini, to whose efforts at researching the Jaipur archives one owes a lot, draws attention to in her studies. But among the more absorbing of these is the manner in which the Maharaja documented the women of the royal household  the zenana as it was called  mostly pardayats or concubines, some others who were house-maids and performers. It is a whole series of photographs, some of them of outstanding quality, unlike any that one sees from other courts of those times. The Maharaja seems to have been obsessively drawn to them. Of great interest in this context is a passage that the English artist Val Prinsep, who kept visiting Jaipur, wrote.

We (the Rajah and I) became great friends .Among the curiosities of Rajput Courts are the nautch girls, who are a kind of privileged people, and wander through the palaces unveiled and unmolested. I had noticed a number of them here, and, presuming on my intimacy, got the Rajah to order one of the girls, whose photograph (taken by the Rajah?) I saw, to sit. On Tuesday, then, I had a sitting from her. She is not young, but has a remarkably fine head She wears a long flowing robe and winds her drapery around her with the air of a queen Ram Sukee, this nautch girl, is a great friend of the Rajah, and soon he came to see how I was getting on, and pottered around me, arranging drapery and fancying he was of great assistance.

Here we have it, once again: an intimate look at the private world of Sawai Ram Singh II, at the centre of which seems to have stood the photukhana of that Photographer Prince.
Pushpa Girimaji

The recent reports of fake notes of Rs 2,000 coming out of some bank ATMs have really got me worried. What I want to know is (a) Do banks not take adequate steps to prevent such notes getting into the ATMs? (b) Will the bank compensate the customer in such cases?

To answer your first question, I will quote the Reserve Bank of Indias directive to all banks, wherein it says that banks should re-align their cash management in such a manner so as to ensure that cash receipts in the denominations of Rs 100 and above are not put into re-circulation without the notes being machine processed for authenticity. The said instructions shall be applicable to all bank branches, irrespective of the volume of daily cash receipt. Any non-compliance will be construed as violation of the Directive No. 3158/09.39.00 (Policy)/2009-10 dated November 19, 2009 issued by the Reserve Bank. (Master Circular on Detection and Impounding of Counterfeit notes , dated July 1, 2015)

The regulator also warns banks that Dispensation of counterfeit notes through the ATMs would be construed as an attempt to circulate the counterfeit notes by the bank concerned. The banks are also required to maintain a daily record of the notes processed through the note sorting machines, including the number of counterfeits detected.

However, from the recent reports on the counterfeit notes coming out of ATMs, it is obvious that banks need to do much more than check and eliminate counterfeits at their level, before the notes are loaded into ATMs. Following a complaint of fake notes of Rs 2,000 denomination coming out of an ATM in South Delhi in February, for example, the police arrested an employee of the outsourced company for loading the notes. So, the banks also need to improve the security systems at the ATMs so that the loaders from the outsourced logistic companies that refurbish the ATMs with currency notes do not play mischief and load fake notes. For example, banks have to ensure that the loaders have just one-time access to the ATMs through one-time passwords that expire once the job is done (like the OTP or the one-time pin that we get while transacting online). They also have to have closed circuit cameras for better security. The outsourced agencies too need to check the antecedents of those whom they wish to employ and constantly monitor them. In the absence of all these measures, there could be some breaches.

So in such cases, banks have to take responsibility for their lapses and compensate the customer, but they always try not to and argue that the note did not come from their ATM. And that would mean a loss to the consumer, particularly if the fake note happens to be of Rs 2000 denomination.

How can a consumer prove that the note came out of a particular banks ATM?

This is not easy. A consumer could hold the fake note in front of the CCTV camera to prove that it came from the ATM, but then in order to do that, first and foremost, the consumer should know that it is fake. Except in very obvious cases (like the note that said Childrens Bank of India), it is not easy for consumers to detect a fake. Besides, there is no guarantee that the CCTV in the ATM is in working condition. Similarly, these days, many ATMs do not even give a receipt.

So the best option is to lodge a complaint not only with the bank and the RBI, but also the police. Investigation by the police is absolutely necessary not only to stop such anti-national elements, but also nail the bank for not taking adequate precautions. The next step is to demand that the bank compensate you for allowing a fake note in the ATM.

If the bank does not respond positively, it would be good to seek information, using the Right to Information Act, on the measures put in place by the bank to prevent such notes from getting into the ATMs. If the bank is not following the RBI directive or is not doing enough to prevent fake notes from entering the ATM, then it is guilty of deficient service and can be hauled up under the Consumer Protection Act.

Meanwhile, since this problem is not likely to go away quickly, it might to be better to equip ATMs with the ability to detect imitations. That would ensure that no ATM dispenses fake notes.
Sanjam Preet Singh

In the 1940s, an event in Punjabi publishing went unnoticed. For the first time, a set of 10 books was published. The books were a compilation of articles of Gurbaksh Singh Preetlari. And the idea to publish 10 books in one go was of Bhapa Pritam Singh.

Born in 1914 in Sialkot (now in Pakistan), this visionary in the publishing world was fondly known as Bhapaji and was the son of a halwai. As his father could not afford his education, he made him a granthi which could ensure him food and shelter.

However, nothing could stop Pritam Singhs love for books. Even as a granthi, he sang Heer in a village gurdwara. Though he got a scolding by his father, his ishq for books remained undiminished.

This love made him flee home in 1932 and go to Amritsar. He got a job as a compositor in a Gurmukhi printing press at a monthly salary of Rs 8. His journey from a printing press in Amritsar to Lahore to Preet Nagar on the India-Pak border ended in Delhi eventually, where he started his own printing press, the Navyug Press.

In her profile of Bhapaji, Takiye da Peer, writer Ajeet Cour observes: He is not a publisher, he is the living, walking, breathing embodiment of Punjabi literature. His name evokes respect among writers and publishers alike. His Navyug Press was a major breakthrough in Punjabi publishing.

He had an eye for beauty; he won the best All-India Book Production Award 21 times from judges, none of whom could read a single letter of the Gurmukhi alphabet, author Khushwant Singh wrote in one of his columns. In the 1980s and 90s, he was at the centre of literary activities in Delhi.

Many Punjabi writers, including Jaswant Singh Kanwal, Balwant Gargi, Devendra Satyarthi, Kulwant Singh Virk, Sant Singh Sekhon and Avtar Jandialwi, used to visit the office of Navyug Press and Aarsee (Punjabi magazine) in Chandni Chowk.

What all do you discuss? Ajeet Cour once asked Bhapaji during an interview.

Everything related to literature. Sometimes we crack literary and political jokes. Some people plead to me to get their works published and I do not consider their writings. And there are some people, to whom I plead, assuring them of publishing their work, he replied.

The mehfils that started at the Chandni Chowk office became a regular feature at Navyug Farms, Mehrauli, in 1990. Thats when Dhupp di Mehfil started. Since then, it has been an annual feature. It marked its silver jubilee a couple of years back.

Bhapaji was enthusiastic about the mehfil. He used to say that Navyug Farms should become synonymous with writers. This gathering proves just that, Punjabi writer Balbir Madhopuri recalled at this years event a few weeks back.

Dhupp di Mehfil is a meeting ground that every writer looks forward to every year, says Punjabi writer Gurbachan Singh Bhullar. Till 1995, Bhapaji bore the expenses for holding the event. Since then, Punjabi Sahit Sabha has been bearing the cost.

Over the years, Devendra Satyarthi, Dr Karamjit Singh, Gurbachan Singh Bhullar, Jaswant Singh Kanwal, Dalip Kaur Tiwana, Surjit Patar, Imroz and many other illustrious writers have been honoured and given fellowships. This year, Kirpal Kazak of Patiala and Ninder Ghughianvi of Faridkot were honoured.

Patar lauds the efforts of Punjabi Sahit Sabha in organising Dhupp di Mehfil in times when people are not bothered about others.

Bhapajis daughter Renuka Singh, a professor of sociology at JNU, says that the event has grown quite popular, with the number of participants increasing every year. This time, around 300 people gathered for the mehfil.

No doubt, the continuous effort for more than 25 years deserves commendation. But after attending the event, one feels that the event is merely a felicitation programme. Has it been like this all this while? Delhi-based Prof Inde, who translates English poems and short stories into Punjabi, says, In earlier years, writers were not honoured. The focus was on discussion. But those were different times. Today, it is more of pomp and show and less about content. Gulzar Singh Sandhu, president Punjabi Sahit Sabha, differs. Dhupp di Mehfil is a platform for writers to meet and socialise. It is not a literary event. It's a mehfil of writers  nothing more and nothing less, he adds.

However, an event with a rich legacy deserves to be much more. How about a Punjabi literature festival on the lines of Jaipur Literature Festival! Are the organisers of Dhupp di Mehfil listening? They should.
Harish Khare

EARLIER it was the 20-year-old Gurmehar Kaur from our own backyard of Ludhiana who showed us how to resist the lure of manufactured bigotry. Then this week it was the turn of Mohammed Sartaj of Lucknow to redeem us all collectively. For the record, Sartaj is the father of 23-year-old Saiffulah who was killed in an encounter with the anti-terror security forces in Lucknow. The family had the modern days cruel luxury  of watching live the police conduct an operation in which their son would choose to die a misguided death rather than heed their entreaties to surrender.

There was excitement over the first IS module. The over-eager Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh did not lose any time in locating and pronouncing an Islamic State connection; even though, his own professional police officers as well as those in Uttar Pradesh were circumspect. Only painstaking and professional investigation would be able to establish whether it was a discovery of the first IS module or just a case of self-motivated recruit(s) to a cause. Still, it was a perfect setting for the usual minority-bashing.

But before someone could see that individual culpability got converted into a collective guilt, in stepped Sartaj. He not only refused to accept his slain sons body, but also spoke with a stunning clarity. He declaimed that since his son could not be faithful to his own country, he was not entitled to make a claim on the familys affection and affiliation.

It was a wonderful refutation of all those voices which like us to make an automatic connection between the Muslims and the use of terror. The Muslims have been made to carry a disproportionate burden of our preferred and (politically rewarding) antagonism with Pakistan. A certain kind of vote bank politics has thrived on this connection. What Sartaj and the family did was to pre-empt the traditional busybodies among the Muslim community, who often ill-advisedly provide the necessary provocation. Simply put, Mr Sartaj refused to be pigeonholed in the stereotypical boxes we have created for the Muslims. His denunciation of his misguided son becomes all too poignant after the UP assembly results.

What is perhaps remarkable is that in that moment of grief and pain, Sartaj was not oblivious to the larger subtext: every Muslims loyalty to this country has come to be suspect. Every Indian Muslim has been made to feel the lash of the medias condemnatory habits. Sartaj said he did not want the dead body at his house because he did not want demonstrations, and leaders coming and making speeches outside his house. A commentary on the demeaning rituals we follow when we produce news and manufacture prejudices.

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THIS week began on a very depressing note. A valuable colleague, Santosh Tewari, editor of the Dainik Tribune, passed away after losing a two-month-old battle between life and death.

Along with the editor of the Punjabi Tribune, Surinder Singh Tej, Santosh-ji used to have coffee with me every morning, when we would discuss and plan for the news and views line-up for the day. His understanding of the Hindi heartland politics was both superb and sophisticated. I depended upon him to educate me about the subtleties of Haryana politics.

In many ways, he personified the changing India. With great pride, he used to tell me that he was the first in his extended family to dream of a life beyond Kanpur. He cut his teeth in an era when there was a certain romance to Hindi journalism. There was this indefinable urge to right the wrongs of this imperfect India that is Bharat. He daringly migrated out of Kanpur, moved to Delhi, found patrons and seniors who spotted his potential and talent. He held his own against some of the sharpest practitioners in Hindi journalism and, in the process, he grew and evolved into a professional journalist and editor.

What came to me as a pleasant surprise was that though he belonged to the world of Hindi journalism (and ipso facto presumed to be a backward breed of journalism), he was a technology buff. He taught me many things that can be done with a smart-phone and then he persuaded me to get myself an i-pad.

It was in those daily interactions that I discovered Santosh-ji to be a professional who could also be called an honourable man  a salutation that not many journalists would deserve these days. What saddens me is that he should have taken his leave from us just about the time he was coming into his own as an editor and as a team leader. He had reached that stage when a man does not feel burdened with the obligation of having to provide for the family; he was very proud of his wifes creative energy as an interior designer, just as he took great pride in his two childrens professional accomplishments. There was a certain karmic satisfaction about him.

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THE cover jacket of the book, Age of Anger  A History of the Present, carries a quote from The Economist, describing the author, Pankaj Mishra, as the heir to Edward Said. The salutation is more than justified; and, even though it is not an easy book to read, do make an effort and you would feel well rewarded for your labours.

Pankaj Mishra arrived on the scene with his first book, Butter Chicken in Ludhiana. That book was a kind of a travelogue, but it established his reputation for a penetrating eye and a vigorous penmanship. The Age of Anger establishes him as an intellectual of international repute.

There is a certain freshness about this book and the author. He does not pretend to pay any obeisance to scholarly objectivity, primarily a fashionable conceit, but a conceit nonetheless. Instead, he spells out his liberal bias at the very beginning in a half-page preface. He says that he began thinking about the book in 2014 after Indian voters, including my own friends and relatives, elected Hindu supremacists to power. Clear enough. Islamic State, Brexit, Donald Trump were the other earthquakes.

The principal merit of this book is that Pankaj Mishra refuses to give in to the contemporary preoccupation in the West with Islam; he announces that he is not interested in shouldering the preposterously heavy burden of explanation from Islam and religious extremism. With calm authority, Pankaj Mishra reminds us, for example, that German and Italian nationalists called for a holy war more than a century before the word jihad entered common parlance.

With considerable insight, Pankaj Mishra delineates the pervasive panic that has gripped the communities and nations across the globe. The panic is all the more panicky because nobody seems to be in control of events and forces, and in this age of social media anything can happen anywhere to anybody at any time. The climate change and its ravages, for example, add to the sense of a world spinning out of control.

On the other hand, we have the new rampant plague, the world-wide pursuit of wealth, power, status and sterile excitation mandate by global capitalism. Each country is probably more unequal than it was fifty years ago. Consequently, there is a widening circle of resentment and anger in each country, which the demagogues are only too happy to exploit, in the European tradition of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Angry nationalism is all too consuming and all too satisfying.

He offers neither a solution nor any salvation. But Mishras grand historical narrative is intended to rescue us from the creeping Islam-phobia. That in itself seems like a worthwhile project.

Punjab has many winners and losers after the assembly results. The winners will carry on the steam of their own victory, but the losers should discover the curative power of a cup of coffee. Welcome to join me.

kaffeeklatsch@tribuneindia.com
By Press Trust of India: Beijing, Mar 11 (PTI) Chinas first big data research centre for children, which has already collected information on over 200,000 children, has been set up in the central Hubei Province to improve their health.

The centre, established by Wuhan University and a Beijing-based paediatric technology firm in Wuhan, capital of Hubei, aims to develop a more complete medical care system for children in disease prevention, diagnosis and personalised treatment, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

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It has collected information on more than 200,000 children in 70 hospitals across the seven provinces of Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Anhui and Sichuan.

The collection will expand to 300 hospitals by 2017 and 1,000 by 2020.

The research centre said it will develop into a national cloud platform for childrens health information, offering standards on personalised medical care and clinical treatment. PTI KJV MRJ

--- ENDS ---
Neena Sharma

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, March 11

The Uttarakhand BJP has begun the hunt for a suitable candidate to don the mantle of the Chief Minister. The senior leaders will meet in New Delhi tomorrow to take stock of the situation.

The BJP will have a smooth sailing in government formation. But as it went into the elections without declaring the chief ministerial candidate, it will have to make a choice in the next couple of days as the government is likely to be sworn in by March 24.

Party sources said among the contenders were a host of MLAs, including Dhan Singh Rawat, Trivender Singh Rawat and Prakash Pant, but the top contender continues to be Satpal Maharaj. In fact, he was projected as the undeclared chief ministerial candidate in these elections.

He has an excellent equation with BJP national president Amit Shah and the RSS leadership too is comfortable with the spiritual leader. During the election rallies, he did not shy away from sharing the stage with the RSS leaders. Above all, there is no taint on him, said a senior BJP leader.

There is another section in the party which is keen to promote Ajay Tamta, Minister of State for Textiles, as the Chief Minister as he is also non-controversial. But it is not certain if the party would broaden its search beyond the elected MLAs.

However, the party watchers said though the three former Chief MinistersBhagat Singh Koshiyari, BC Khanduri and Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank are not in the race by virtue of their marginal role in the Assembly elections, their views too would play a big role in the selection of the candidate.

It is sure that the three former Chief Ministers can no longer create hurdles. They had no role in these elections. The credit for scripting the victory for the BJP goes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. Their decision will be final in the party, said Manohar Kant Dhyani, a senior BJP leader.
BD Kasniyal

Our Correspondent

Pithoragarh, March 11

The BJP has bagged 23 of the 29 Assembly seats in Kumaon, courtesy the Narendra Modi wave that swept Uttarakhand as well as neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.

However, five Congress stalwarts Dr Indira Hridayesh from Haldwani, Govind Singh Kunjwal Jageswar, Karan Mahra Ranikhet, Harish Dhami Dharchula and Aadesh Chauhan from Jaspur along with Independent candidate Ram Singh Kaira from the Bhimtal constituency managed to win in Kumoan  the native place of Chief Minister Harish Rawat.

The BJP sitting MLAs from Kumaon not only managed to retain their seats but also snatched Nainital, Sitarganj, Lalkuan, Kiccha and Nanak Matta seats from the Congress. The only surprise was Harish Dhami from Dharchula and Govind Singh Kunjwal from Jageshwar, who survived the Modi wave and retained their seats.

Harish Dhamis efforts in connection with empowering poor voters of non-tribal population in Dharchula by initiating developmental works in villages and giving them OBC status to get government jobs benefited him, said Krishna Singh Dhami, a resident of Khela village in Dharchula.

The defeat of Congress candidates in Someshwar, Bageshwar, Salt, Dwarahat and Almora constituencies gave a big blow to the party in the region.

The victory of Prakash Pant by a margin of over 2,500 votes in the Pithoragarh Assembly constituency is fully attributed to the Modi wave as the Prime Minister had addressed a public meeting in Pithoragarh.

The most surprising results came from the Gangolihat constituency where an unknown woman Meena Gangola, who fought the election on the BJP ticket, defeated senior Congress leader and two-time MLA Narayan Ram by a narrow margin of over 1,500 votes.

The narrow win of senior BJP leader Bishan Singh Chufal over BJP rebel Kishan Singh Bhandari in the Didihat constituency is the result of the Modi factor as well as his appeal among the voters.

BJPs celebrations in Dehradun

Dehradun: BJP activists started celebrating as soon as the electoral trends started showing the party leading on most seats. The BJP headquarters were choc-a-block with party workers breaking into celebrations, dancing and chanting Prime Minister Narendra Modis name. The party workers played with colours and distributed sweets as they rejoiced in the partys victory. Inside the BJP office, workers and leaders remained glued to television screens, awaiting results. With each pronouncement of the BJPs victory, there was more dancing and singing. We are very happy with the performance of our party. It is indeed our hard work, said Sanjay Kumar, organisational secretary, BJP.  TNS
Damascus, March 11

Twin bombs targeting Shiite pilgrims on Saturday killed 46 people in Damascus, most of them Iraqis, a monitoring group said, in one of the bloodiest attacks in the Syrian capital.

There have been periodic bomb attacks in Damascus, but the stronghold of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad has been largely spared the destruction faced by other major cities in six years of civil war.

A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shiite mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"There are also dozens of people wounded, some of them in a serious condition," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.

State television said there were 40 dead and 120 wounded after "terrorists detonated two bombs."

It broadcast footage of several white buses with their windows shattered, some of them heavily charred.

Shoes, glasses and wheelchairs lay scattered on the ground covered in blood.

Syrian Interior Minister Mohammad Shaar said the attack targeted "pilgrims of various Arab nationalities."

"The sole aim was to kill," he said.

The Iraqi foreign ministry said around 40 of its nationals were among the dead and 120 among the wounded.

There was no immediate claim for the attack.

Shiite shrines are a frequent target of attack for Sunni extremists of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group (IS), not only in Syria but also in neighbouring Iraq.

The Sayeda Zeinab mausoleum to the south of Damascus, Syria's most visited Shiite pilgrimage site, has been hit by several deadly bombings during the six-year-old civil war.

Twin suicide bombings in the high-security Kafr Sousa district of the capital in January killed 10 people, eight of them soldiers.

That attack was claimed by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front that said that it had targeted Russian military advisers working with the Syrian army.

It was widely seen as an attempt to disrupt UN-brokered peace talks that took place the following month which to the anger of Fateh al-Sham were supported by its former Islamist rebel ally Ahrar al-Sham.

UN envoy Staffan de Mistura has called a new round of talks for March 23.

Fateh al-Sham has been repeatedly bombed in its northwestern stronghold this year, not only by the Syrian army and its Russian ally but also by a US-led coalition battling IS in both Syria and Iraq.  AFP
Baghdad, March 11

Iraqi paramilitary forces announced on Saturday that they had discovered a mass grave at Badush prison near Mosul containing the remains of hundreds of people executed by the Islamic State group.

Islamic State reportedly killed up to 600 people after seizing the jail in 2014, and was also said to have held hundreds of kidnapped women from Iraq's Yazidi minority at the facility.

The Iraqi military said that forces from the Hashed al-Shaabi  an umbrella group of pro-government forces that are dominated by Iran-backed Shiite militias  were among the units that recaptured the prison from the jihadists.

Hashed forces found "a large mass grave containing the remains of around 500 civilian prisoners in (Badush) prison who were executed by (IS) gangs after they controlled the prison during their occupation of Mosul", they said.

The Hashed did not say how they reached that figure, which could not be independently confirmed, but it is in keeping with a Human Rights Watch report of IS killings at Badush.

According to HRW, Islamic State gunmen executed up to 600 inmates from Badush prison on June 10, 2014, forcing them to kneel along a nearby ravine and then shooting them with assault rifles.

Iraqi lawmaker Vian Dakhil also said that year that the jihadists were holding more than 500 Yazidi women at Badush.

Islamic State targeted the Yazidi religious minority in a brutal campaign of executions, kidnapping and rape, killing men and holding women and girls as sex slaves.

The insurgents overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained most of the territory they lost.

Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake Mosul  the last IS-held city in Iraq  in October, recapturing its eastern side before setting their sights on its smaller but more densely populated west.  AFP
Madison (US), March 11

A federal judge has blocked President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing his new travel ban against a Syrian family looking to escape fighting in their native land by fleeing to Wisconsin.

A Syrian Muslim who fled to Wisconsin has been working since last year to win asylum for his wife and 3-year-old daughter so they can leave Aleppo and join him here.

He filed a federal lawsuit in Madison in February alleging Trumps first travel ban had stopped the visa process for them.

US District Judge Michael Conley on Friday ruled that challenge moot after a federal judge in Washington state blocked the travel order.

The process restarted for the family and theyre now preparing to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the US embassy, the last step before US customs officials decide whether to issue them visas. But the family doesnt have dates for the interviews yet and Trumps new travel ban goes into effect March 16, stirring fears that the process could halt again before visas are issued, according to the Syrian mans attorneys.

The man filed a new complaint on Friday afternoon alleging the new ban is just as problematic as the first, calling it anti-Muslim and alleging it violates his right to due process, equal protection and freedom of religion. He asked Conley to declare the ban unconstitutional on its face and block enforcement against his family.

Its unclear whether the new ban applies to asylum seekers like the Syrian family. Government attorneys argued during a teleconference with Conley yesterday that it doesn't; the man's attorneys maintain it does.

Conley acknowledged its murky but still issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement against the family, saying the man seems to have a good chance of winning the case. The judge set a hearing for March 21.

The restraining order doesnt block the entire travel ban; it simply prevents Trump's administration from enforcing it against this specific family.

The US Justice Department is defending the ban.

Spokeswoman Nicole Navas said agency attorneys were reviewing the Syrian man's complaint and declined further comment on it and Conley's order.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Trump issued an executive order in January banning travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, from entering the United States.

The order sparked numerous lawsuits, including the Syrian refugees initial federal complaint in Wisconsin.

US District Judge James Robart in Washington state blocked the ban on February 3.

Trump issued a new order Monday that removed Iraq from the list of countries and temporarily shuts down the refugee program. AP
Islamabad, March 11

Pakistan today summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner to express concern over the acquittal of former RSS activist Swami Aseemanand in the 2007 Ajmer blast case.

Indian Deputy High Commissioner JP Singh was summoned on Friday night, Dawn news reported.

A special court on Wednesday acquitted Swami Aseemanand in the 2007 Ajmer Dargah blast case. The bombing had killed three people.

Aseemanand is also accused of masterminding the 2007 Samjhauta Express bombing that had killed 68 people, most of whom were Pakistanis. Swami Aseemanand had publicly confessed that he was the mastermind of the Samjhauta Express terrorist attack of February 2007, the statement released by the Foreign Office said on Friday.

It said that Pakistan expects India to take steps to bring to justice all those involved in the heinous act.  IANS

Haqqanis, LeT must be treated as terror groups

United Nations: India has said that outfits like the Haqqani network, Lashkar-e-Toiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammed should be treated like terrorist groups and said that terrorisms resurgent forces should not get sanctuaries and safe havens in any form. The unimpeded and increasingly brutal terrorist attacks, the territorial gains by terrorist groups with support from outside Afghanistan and the emerging grave humanitarian crisis are all portents of the dreadful times, Indias Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin said on Friday during a Security Council session on the situation in Afghanistan. It is our first and foremost duty to ensure that the resurgent forces of terrorism and extremism do not find sanctuaries and safe havens in any name, form or manifestation, he said, adding that experience has shown that when foreign assistance is available to insurgents, situations tend to fester and take a greater toll. PTI
New York, March 11

Preet Bharara, a high-profile Indian-American federal prosecutor, who had an Indian diplomat arrested, has been asked to quit by US President Donald Trumps administration in a sweeping ouster of holdovers from the previous administration.

Bharara and 45 other federal prosecutors, appointed by former President Barack Obama, were told on Friday by Attorney General Jeff Sessions to submit their resignations.

Nicknamed the Sheriff of Wall Street, Bhararas jurisdiction covered New Yorks financial district, putting him in the limelight as he prosecuted more than 100 finance executives for criminal activities such as stock trading irregularities using insider information.

They included several Indians like Rajat Gupta, the former head of the consulting company McKinsey and a Goldman Sachs director, who served two years in jail for colluding with the Sri Lankan-American hedge fund operator Raj Rajaratnam in a stock market scam using insider information.

Even though Bharara could be reappointed, his inclusion in the list of all other Obama appointees has come as a surprise because after a meeting with Trump in November last year, he had told reporters that he had been asked to stay on as the federal prosecutor or the US district attorney.

Meanwhile, it was not clear if his resignation would be accepted immediately or he would be asked to stay on to complete some pending prosecutions. Chuck Schumer, a senior Democratic Party Senator, who had reportedly recommended to Trump to keep on Bharara, said in a statement that his ouster could jeopardise ongoing cases.

The Senate has to approve the appointment of the federal prosecutors, who are political appointees. Their deputies, who are usually career government lawyers, will temporarily hold the fort, according to Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores. Bharara has also prosecuted several New York politicians for corruption. The seniormost among them is State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Democrat, who was given a 12-year sentence for corruption.

Investigations involving New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio and close aides of Governor Andrew Cuomo by the Bhararas office were in progress. Bharara, whose full name is Preetinder Singh Bharara, was born in Firozpur, Punjab, in 1968 and immigrated to the US when he was a child.

He sparked a diplomatic standoff between India and the US in 2013 when he had Devyani Khobragade, a Dalit Indian diplomat, arrested over allegations that she had made a false statement in the visa application for her maid.

Among his high-profile cases against banks, Citibank paid a $158 million fine to settle a case Bharara brought against it for misleading the government about loans.  IANS
Jerusalem, March 10

US President Donald Trump on Saturday invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the White House, in a first phone call between the two leaders since Trump took office.

President Trump has extended an official invitation to President Abbas to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the political process, stressing his commitment to a peace process that will lead to a real peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis, said Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer in Washington later confirmed Trump had invited Abbas to a meeting at the White House very soon.

Palestinians are concerned at the more favourable approach shown by Washington towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since Trump came to power.

Netanyahu and Trump have spoken on the phone at least twice since the January 20 inauguration, and Netanyahu visited Washington last month.

Palestinian officials indicated Abbas would emphasise his concern about Israeli settlement-building on occupied land and the need for a two-state solution to the conflict.

President Abbas stressed the commitment to peace as a strategic choice to establish a Palestinian State alongside the state of Israel, Abu Rdainah said, according to the official Palestinian WAFA news agency.

Trump told Abbas that a peace deal must be negotiated directly between Israel and the Palestinians and that the United States would work closely with both sides toward that goal, the White House said in a statement. Reuters
Washington, March 11

The Trump administration has sought the resignations of 46 attorneys, including that of the high-profile Indian-American attorney Preet Bharara, who were appointed by former President Barack Obama.

In all there are 93 US attorneys. Many of them have already left their positions, but 46 attorneys who stayed on in the first weeks of the Trump administration have been asked by US Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign "in order to ensure a uniform transition," Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said yesterday.

Defending the move, Flores in a statement said that both the George W Bush and Bill Clinton administrations made similar requests at the beginning of their term.

Among those asked to resign included Bharara, the US Attorney General for Southern District of New York, who was appointed by Obama in 2009.

Bharara, who has earned the reputation of a "crusader" prosecutor, had met Trump in November after his electoral victory. Following the meeting, media reports said that Trump had asked Bharara to stay.

Neither the White House, nor the Department of Justice responded to the questions on Bharara.

Bharara, 48, has made a national and international mark for himself with many high-profile cases and investigations including foreign countries, insider trading and those involving US politicians. It was under his prosecution that India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta was convicted for insider trading in 2012.

New York Senator Charles Schumer said he is "troubled" to learn the reports of requests for resignations from the remaining US Attorneys, particularly that of Bharara.

"The President initiated a call to me in November and assured me he wanted Bharara to continue to serve as US Attorney for the Southern District," he said.

"By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining US Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the President is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice," Schumer said.

"Until the new US Attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our US Attorney's Offices will continue the great work of the Department in investigating, prosecuting and deterring the most violent offenders," the Justice Department said.

Senator Dianne Feinstein, Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee Dianne Feinstein, said she is surprised to hear that Trump and Sessions have abruptly fired all 46 remaining US attorneys.

"At a time when Attorney General Sessions has recused himself from major investigations into the Trump campaign, the independence of federal prosecutors could not be more important. That's why many of us have called for the appointment of a special prosecutor," she said.

"Under previous administrations, orderly transitions allowed US attorneys to leave gradually as their replacements were chosen. This was done to protect the independence of our prosecutors and avoid disrupting ongoing federal cases," Feinstein said.  PTI
Washington, March 11

US President Donald Trumps revised travel executive order suffered its first legal setback as a federal judge blocked the directives potential impact on the family of a Syrian refugee living in Wisconsin.

Madison city-based US District Court Judge William Conley on Friday issued a temporary restraining order at the request of the Syrian man, Politico news reported.

The judge, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, said Trumps new executive order could not be used to delay the mans effort to bring his wife and three-year-old daughter from Syria to the US. Given the daily threat to the lives of the plaintiffs wife and child in Aleppo, Syria, the court further finds a significant risk of irreparable harm, Conley said in the order.

Trump signed the new executive order on Monday, banning foreign nationals from six Muslim-majority countries from entering the US for 90 days and banning all refugees for 120 days, but excluded green card holders and those with existing valid visas.  IANS

Lift premium processing stay of doctors visas

Washington: Three influential American Senators  Amy Klobuchar, Susan Collins and Heidi Heitkamp  have sought lifting of the suspension of premium processing of the work visas of the foreign doctors, including from India, who commit to work in rural areas in the US. The little-known Conrad 30 J-11 visa waiver programme attracts a large number of Indian doctors to the US every year. The recently announced suspension of premium processing for H-1B visa petitions by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services will exacerbate physician shortages, particularly in rural areas, the Senators said. PTI
By Press Trust of India: From K J M Varma

Beijing, Mar 11 (PTI) China-backed Panchen Lama today lashed out at the "commercialisation" of Buddhism in the country and said "phony monks" were turning Buddhist temples into money-making machines.

The image of Buddhism was tainted, the otherwise pure and divine religious sanctuaries blasphemed, said the 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, who is also the vice president of the Buddhist Association of China.

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"Some temples are treated as money-making machines, or shopping malls; some phony monks or fake living Buddhas tout ambiguous Buddhist preaching to cheat money from believers," he said while speaking at the plenary meeting of the CPPCC.

The 27-year-old Panchen Lama, regarded in Tibetan Buddhist hierarchy as the second most important after the Dalai Lama, has been making efforts to establish his control over the deeply religious Tibetan population which reveres the Dalai Lama.

Groomed by China to be the top monk of Tibet, he is a member of the Standing Committee of the advisory body, the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee.

With the commercialisation, some monks went after money and power instead of guarding Buddhist ethics or concentrating on Buddhist pursuits, he was quoted as saying by state-run Xinhua news agency in his biggest speech so far after he was nominated to the body in 2010.

Though such incidents and people were not the mainstream, they had left an "extremely bad" influence, he said.

China, before the advent of Communist rule in 1949, was predominantly influenced by Buddhism which was brought to the country from India by eminent Chinese monks like Xuan Zang during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

In recent years, Buddhism witnessed a big revival in China with the encouragement of the government.

The Panchen Lama said he was also concerned about insufficient efforts in nurturing talent as some temples had monks but no instructors, Buddhist scripts but no teaching.

"Some temples are busy erecting Buddha statutes, building splendid temple halls but they forget about nurturing real Buddhas," he said, adding that preaching is impossible without a good team of Buddhist instructors.

The Panchen Lama said the interpretation of Buddhist doctrines struggles to keep pace with the need of the hour. PTI KJV CPS AKJ CPS

--- ENDS ---
Traffic in New York City Photo: U.S. DOT

For its first hearing of the 115th Congress, the House Subcommittee on Highways and Transit will delve into how the most recent highway bill  the Fixing Americas Surface Transportation (FAST) Act  is being implemented on the state and local level.

The committee said that during the hearing, to be held March 15 at 10 am EST, it intends to examine the perspectives of the states and local entities that have been integral to the legislations success, and who must put into practice the various policies set forth in the law. The committee is chaired by Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO).

Slated to present testimony at the hearing will be representatives of the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), and the National League of Cities (NLC).

Those witnesses will be:

John Schroer, c ommissioner of the Tennessee Department of Transportation, on behalf of the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials

ommissioner of the Tennessee Department of Transportation, on behalf of the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials Gary Thomas, president and executive director of Dallas Area Rapid Transit on behalf of the American Public Transportation Association

Karen Freeman-Wilson, mayor of Gary, Indiana, on behalf of the National League of Cities

The FAST Act is an example of how Congress can work together to develop multi-year legislation to build a 21st century infrastructure, the committee said in a statement. Input from stakeholders will be critical to monitor the implementation of the FAST Act and help inform the development of future infrastructure bills."

The FAST Act, signed into law by Presdient Obama in December 2015, is a fully funded $305 billion, five-year reauthorization of federal highway and transit programs. The landmark legislation remains the first highway-funding bill to run longer than two years to become law since 2005.

The hearing, entitled: FAST Act Implementation: State and Local Perspectives, is scheduled to begin at 10:00 am EST on Wednesday, March 15, in 2167 Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, DC.

More information about the hearing, as well as a live webcast, will be posted as it becomes available.

Originally posted on Automotive Fleet
BJP is hoping that after it snatched away Assam from Congress last year, another northeastern state of Manipur will come in its kitty.

By India Today Web Desk: Facing a tough fight from BJP, Manipur's Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh needs to find alliance in smaller parties to come to power for a record consecutive fourth term or face a hung Assembly. According to latest Manipur election results Congress is short of majority in the 60-membered Assembly as they have won 28 seats.

Singh will need at least three more MLAs on his side to stake claim for forming government as voters were divided enough to give a clear verdict.

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The Modi magic showed its influence in Manipur election result as BJP made strong inroads by getting 21 seats.

Singh has won from Thoubal constituency while activist-turned-politician Irom Sharmila disappointed by bagging just a handful of 90 votes. She even announced a hasty decision to quit politics but said her party will not be dissolved after Manipur election result came out.

BJP is hoping that after it snatched away Assam from Congress last year, another northeastern state of Manipur will come in its kitty.

In the outgoing Assembly, Congress had an absolute majority. Singh is in power in Manipur since 2002 and to stay afloat now he will need support from other parties. Congress has already emerged as the largest party in Manipur.

BOTH BJP AND CONGRESS SEARCH ALLIES

State Congress chief TN Haokip has said they are looking to form the next government with the help of like-minded secular and regional parties.

The National People's Party has won four seats including two by Y Jaikumar Singh and Langpoklakpam J Singh who won from Uripok and Keishamthong seats by a margin of 345 and 3261 votes respectively.

The Naga People's Front, which is a BJP ally, has won four seats from Mao, Tamei and Phungyar segments in Manipur election result.

Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan has already announced the support of the lone Lok Janshakti Party MLA in Manipur to the BJP. Karam Shyam won from Langthabal Assembly constituency by defeating his nearest contender O Joy Singh of the BJP. Trinamool Congress has also bagged one seat.

Former Congress minister and BJP candidate from Heingang Assembly seat N Biren Singh has won by a margin of 1206 votes. Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh won by a whopping margin of 10470 votes in Thoubal seat where he was pitted against BJP's Leitanthem Basanta Singh in Manipur election result.

BJP chief Amit Shah has refused to give up by announcing that they will form government in Manipur.

BJP's L Rameshwor Meitei won by 538 votes in Keirao constituency but former BJP state president T H Chaoba had to bite the dust in Nambol where a Congress candidate won.

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Congress also bagged important constituencies like Bishnupur, Karong, Khundrakpam, Nambol and Tipaimukh, Patsoi and Wangoi and Tengnoupal.

Manipur Vidhan Sabha election were held in two phases on March 4 and March 8 and results started coming out since Saturday morning.

The Bharatiya Janata Party got 36.2 per cent votes while the Congress was behind by getting 35 per cent votes.

Also read:

Manipur Election Results shocker: 90 votes for Irom Sharmila's 16 years of fast

Manipur exit poll predictions: Is Okram Ibobi Singh India's most popular Chief Minister?

Watch:

Assembly Election Results 2017: Shiv Aroor decodes BJP's unprecedented victory and impacts of election

--- ENDS ---
Contributed by Sharon Butler / Last year I visited JayanthiMoorthysstudioand suggested she getin touch with Kathryn Myers, a UConn colleague of mine who has facilitated cultural exchanges with Indian artists, curated numerous shows of their work, andparticipated in many exhibitions in India.The two artists connected, and this year they curated Cooperative Consciousness, a groupexhibition at theKochi-Muziris Biennale featuring artists from theA.I.R. Gallery in Brooklyn. Heres the story of their exchange.



Sharon Butler:What precipitated the collaboration on theKochi-Muziris Biennale ?

Kathryn Myers: After you suggested Jayanthi contact me, sheinvited meto see hersoloexhibition at Brown University. After I saw theshow, she mentioned that she and the A.I.R. members were looking for a curator for the Kochi exhibition. I had been to two previous Kochi-Muziris Biennales,so I was familiar with the exhibition and very interested in participating in the project. I had a friend who had organized a collateral exhibition, so I knew something about what wasrequired and how these collateral exhibitions were a part of the Biennale. Partnering with Jayanthi worked well. I worked on the selection of works and the curatorial statement, and she did the installation. We met in person only once and communicated mainly via email and a dropbox folder.

Jayanthi Moorthy:I had proposedthe project to fellow A.I.R. members, and I was looking for a collaborator. After a couple of email exchanges with Kathryn, I realizedhow deeply invested she was in the east-west dialogue, and I knew that we could work together. She said yes, and there wasno looking back. The one meeting we had in New York was very important in enabling us to understand each others temperaments, be aware of our respective availabilities, and chart out a basic project timeline. What kept the collaboration strong was how we understood each others roles, were committed to the project, and communicated with ease  hundreds of emails and a few text messages.

SB: How did the process unfold? What were the challenges organizing a show in another country?

KM:Jay had sixteen A.I.R. member artists who were interested in submitting works. I came up with three themes connected to Sudarshan Shettys curatorial statement and started writing the text for a printed brochure.Once Jayanthi secured the gallery,and we knew how much space we had, I selected works accordingly. Jay, who knows how things operate in India and has plenty of local contacts, handled all of the logistical details flawlessly, which was key since neither of us could be there for the entire duration of the exhibition.

JM: Spearheading the Off-Site Committee at A.I.R, I was looking at international exhibit opportunities for the gallery. When I was exhibiting in Kochi in February 2016, I was looking at opportunities for the gallery there. My gallerist friend gave me couple of space options in June 2016 and I chose one with less square footage but greater security. The challenges included:deciding on a space, ensuring it was ready on time, contracting with a local shipping company in Kochi, factoring all overhead expenses into a budget, finding a local design production company to arrange the print publications required for the exhibition, and coordinating with the Biennale organizers to ensure our visibility. Kathryns connections with artists in India who had set-up collaterals during the last Biennale were very helpful. The next task was to get a substantial number of A.I.R. members to participate. This involved canvassing our New York, national, and alumni members about the opportunity. It was the first time many were exhibiting in Asia and there was a lot of skepticism among members about works arrivingsafely and on time, dealing with customs, and figuring out best packaging practices for works to travel across the globe. The only way I could offset this fear was by assuring them that I would work closely with a shipping company personallytake care of shipping all their works. The other major challenge was in not having a dedicated team to help me work through this massive project. I had to assume various roles myself. These included graphic designer and media coordinator as well as overall program manager. I planned weekly events, generated audiences, did publicity, and procured materials for workshops. Our event series was called Cafe Consciousness, and it always had a tea stall set-up with freshly brewed tea and snacks that flavored the local culture. And since Indian merchants understandably wanted to be paid in cash, some financial improvisation was required.

SB: Is there any overlap in your own art making practices or are they quite different? Where is the common ground?

KM:Our styles and methods of working are quite different but we both connect to Indian art and culture through our work. Jays work has a relationship to Indian craft and ritual traditions such as the creation of rice flour kolams  abstract diagrams made on the thresholds of houses every morning. My work responds to Indian architecture and space.

JM:The common ground comes from the deep interest Kathryn and I share in making the east-west connection in our lives and through our work. Part of my work derives inspiration from ancient Indian cultural and ritual practice of drawing on the floor with impermanent materials like spices and rice flour, and in the process exploring various aspects of personal and cultural identity. Kathryns paintings, photographs, and video works are about architectural spaces in rural India. And I got an education about some of well-known Indian artists through Kathryns extensive documentaries.

SB: Do you think you mightcontinue to collaborate in the future?

KM: This was a very special project through which it was great to get to know and work with Jay. Both of us clearly have thick ties to India, so Im sure we will keep sharing resources and our love of the country, and I hope we work together again.

JM: Yes I do! We both seem to have the same pace in our work styles  heavily multi-tasking yet responsive and committed to a common project. We both have a good understanding of the Indian mentality, which crucially enables us to be patient with processes and expected outcomes that are different from those in the United States. Also, Kathryns energy is infectious and inspiring.

SB: Is there anything else you would like to add?

KM: It was great to get to know the history of A.I.R much better through this project. It was a gallery I always knew about, but didnt know its history thoroughly. To prepare for my curatorial statement I did a lot of research, reading prior articles and trying to understand the legacy of feminist or women-run galleries that were such a major part of the artistic climate while I was coming of age as an art student and artist. The Kochi-Muziris Biennale is a truly fascinating international art exhibition. Artists respond wonderfully to its setting (old buildings and warehouses throughout the city), and to the citys history (global trade ties with the Dutch, Portuguese, and British, which are extremely evocative). Because of the biennale, Keralas reputation as a location of artistic activity has increased, and now the government, not just private individuals, is providing substantial support. Its been a great boon to tourism as well.As Ive been an observer for two past biennales, it was great to be a participant and Im grateful to you, Sharon, for introducing me to Jayanthi.

JM: This project was much more than just setting up an exhibit in another country. It was a way of not only enhancing A.I.R.s international visibility as a successfully running womens collective for last 40 years, but also of learning what the gallery is in its home country  an active space that opens up dialogues in art, feminism, and society through exhibits, discussions, and other community activities. During my four-week stay in Kochi, I organized seven artist talks whereby A.I.R. artists had cross-cultural dialogues with the local community on aspects of feminism related to gender, race, and identity. There were two panel discussions  one about the challenges of starting and maintaining a cooperative gallery (organized by Kathryn), and one on Keralas matriarchal society and what we could learn from it. There were three art educational workshops for college students that revolved around finding ones personal and cultural identity, as well as one art-spiritual workshop for women. All in all, it was a remarkably rich experience that fully rewarded the effort.

The Kochi-Muziris Biennale is a peoples biennale where the local community  students, native artists, local businesses, etc.  is involved in running the show, and where the director, curator and organizers of the Biennale are easily accessible for a chat (there is no air about them being in those positions!). The Biennale must also be appreciated for using sustainable approaches towards exhibit spaces. The chosen venues are in historical buildings that are integrated with the neighborhood and the community and the spaces go through minimal changes to exhibit world class art ranging from hi-tech multimedia installations to traditional wall paintings.

Cooperative Consciousness: A.I.R. Artists at Kochi, With Alisa Henriquez, Daria Dorosh, dAnn de Simone, Jane Swavely, Jane Gilmor, Jayanthi Moorthy, Joan Snitzer, Jody Joldersma, Julia Kim Smith, Louise McCagg, Maxine Henryson, Melissa Furness, Mimi Oritsky, Nancy Morrow, Shannon Forrester, Yvette Drury Dubinsky. Curated by Kathryn Myers and Jayanthi Moorthy. A.I.R. Artists at Kochi, Gallery OED Cochin compound, Mattancherry, Kochi, Kerala 682002, India. Through March 28, 2017.

Related posts:

Indian studies: Kathryn Myers

Part I: Adira Thekkuveettil and the defaced murals in India

Part II: Adira Thekkuveettil and the defaced murals in India

Grounded in India
| By Mary T. Phelan

It was nearly 20 years ago when Rebecca Bowman-Rivas, MSW 99, LCSW-C, then a second-year intern at Patuxent Institution, met a young man in a therapy group. He had been sentenced to adult prison for life at the age of 17. Before Bowman-Rivas completed her internship, he made a request.

The man said, Please tell the people out there that its not like they think. Were not animals in here. Were real people. I never forgot him and what he said to me and ever since then Ive been trying very hard to do just as he asked.

From left, Veronica Cruz, Rebecca Bowman-Rivas, Becky Kling Feldman, Lori James-Townes, Wendy Shaia, and Terri Collins.

Bowman-Rivas, now a professor at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law and manager of the law schools Law & Social Work Services Program, recounted her meeting with her first lifer, as the keynote speaker at the University of Maryland School of Social Works 11th Annual Homecoming March 3.

More than 100 alumni filled the schools auditorium to hear Bowman-Rivas talk entitled, Forensic Social Work: Adding the Human Connection to Conflict. She discussed her career as a forensic social worker and her involvement as social work supervisor of the law schools Unger Project, which provides release planning and post-conviction case management for individuals who served 30 to 50plus years in prison.

A forensic social worker throughout her carreer, Bowman-Rivas worked primarily with the homeless before attending graduate school.

I had to meet my clients where they were, whether it was in court, in jail or under a bridge, she said, noting many of these same clients ended up in the criminal justice system. Lucky me, my path led me to prison.

The morning also included a panel discussing disparities in incarceration and challenges facing forensic social workers, public defenders and attorneys in private practice who represent inmates in post-release.

Members of the panel included: Terri Collins, LCSW-C, social work manager, Office of the Public Defender; Veronica Cruz, MSW 06, LCSW-C, chief executive officer of Cruz and Associates; Becky Kling Feldman, JD, acting deputy public defender, Office of the Public Defender; and Lori James-Townes, MSW 91, LCSW-C, director of social work, leadership and program development, Office of the Public Defender. Wendy Shaia, EdD, MSW '01, clinical assistant professor and executive director of the Social Work Community Outreach Service, a School of Social Work program that implements the Community Schools Initiative, served as moderator.

The event also included a luncheon followed by an alumni awards ceremony. The following were named 2017 Alumni Award Winners:

Katrina L. Balovienkov, MSW, 07, Alumni of the Year;

Alumni of the Year; Eloise A. Bridges, PhD 83, Emeritus Award;

Emeritus Award; Pam J. Canova, MSW 01, Field Instructor of the Year;

Field Instructor of the Year; Eliseba Osore, MSW 12, Outstanding Recent Graduate; and

Outstanding Recent Graduate; and Bethany A. Yates, Outstanding Student of the Year

Afternoon breakout sessions included discussions led by Nadine Finigan-Car, PhD, research assistant professor, and director of the Prevention of Adolescent Risk Initiative in the Ruth Young Center for Families and Children at the School of Social Work, speaking on human trafficking; Adam Schneider, MSW 09, program director at The Institute for Innovation & Implementation at the School of Social Work, and Lauren Siegel, MSW 84, adjunct faculty member, speaking on homelessness and mental health; Kendra Van de Water, MSW 16, program associate at the National Prison Rape Elimination Act Resource Center, speaking on racial injustice and the school-to-prison pipeline; and UMB Forensic Social Work Fellow Angela Aloi, MSW 15, LGSW, Bowman-Rivas, Walter Lomax, director of the Maryland Restorative Justice Initiative, Joanie Shreve, MSW 13, LGSW, social worker, Office of the Public Defender, and UMB Forensic Social Work Fellow Elizabeth Smith, MSW 13, LGSW, speaking on Smart Decarceration- Highlights from the Unger Project.
Young refugees from El Salvador head off to play street football in their adopted city of Tapachula, southwest Mexico, close to the border with Guatemala, in this September 2016 file photo.  UNHCR/Daniele Volpe

MEXICO CITY  The impact of insecurity and violence uprooting tens of thousands of people from the Northern Triangle of Central America is becoming increasingly evident in Mexico, UNHCRs international protection chief said today, urging greater regional efforts to provide effective refugee protection.

In his opening statement at the Protection Dialogue with the Mexican Government, held in Mexico City, Assistant High Commissioner for Protection Volker Turk described the Central America situation as approaching crisis levels. He spoke shortly visiting the border region with Guatemala, where he had the opportunity to speak with many refugees and asylum seekers.

For decades, Mexico has served as a place of transit for Central American migrants heading north. But in the last few years the reality has changed with an increasing number of people from the so-called Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, seeking asylum in Mexico. "This is a bit of a wake-up call so we are all better prepared to respond to a new, changing dynamic in the region," Turk said.

In the various conversations I had with men, women and children, who fled mainly from the Northern Triangle, it is evident that they are escaping from horrific situations of violence. They mentioned extortion, forced recruitment and human rights abuses mainly perpetrated by transnational organized crime groups and local criminal gangs, he told an audience made up of government officials and institutions working on refugee issues.

Displacement is a huge challenge but also an opportunity for social transformation."

Turk said that among those now fleeing the Northern Triangle there are entire families and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people  collectively known as LGBTI - who risk double discrimination because of their sexual orientation.

Displacement is a huge challenge but also an opportunity for social transformation. Despite the horrors they have endured, refugees discover strength and resilience while in displacement. We need to empower them to contribute to their future and becoming agents of change, he said.

With violence and persecution expected to continue in Northern Triangle countries, both Mexico and UNHCR agreed on the need for greater regional cooperation and support to provide effective protection for those driven from their homes.

Last year, Mexico received almost 9,000 new asylum applications, a 156 per cent increase in comparison to 2015. Since January 2015, the number of asylum applications filed has increased by more than eight per cent per month.

Based on this trend, the UN Refugee Agency projects at least 20,000 additional asylum claims in Mexico in 2017. These figures reflect the reality on the ground and it is a clear indication that Mexico is no longer only a country of transit but also of destination for refugees, said Mark Manly, UNHCR's representative in Mexico.

"These programs should be a win-win situation where the reception community can also benefit."

In the protection response, emphasis needs to be given to local integration programmes, including access to the labour market and basic services. "These programmes could be a win-win situation where also host communities can benefit. Embracing diversity is an added value to any society," Turk said.

The parties also concluded that there should be greater efforts to improve the quality of asylum, access to a fair and efficient process in the recognition of refugee status, and alternatives to detention for asylum-seekers with special provision made for children.

Both UNHCR and the Government of Mexico will continue working with the local and regional authorities as well as to strengthening the partnership with civil society groups and shelters which host refugees and migrants in Mexico.

UNHCR welcomed the commitments announced by President Enrique Pena Nieto during the UN Leaders Summit held in New York in September 2016, as well as Mexico's commitments under the San Jose Declaration, adopted in July last year.

"These are important steps also ahead of crafting a Global Compact on Refugees in 2018," Turk concluded.
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EVMs became popular because they were easier to carry and later count the votes on. They have been a part of India's election process for the last 15 years.

By Shruti Dixit: Following her crushing defeat in Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, a belligerent Mayawati alleged that the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were managed in favour of the BJP and called for a paper ballot election, a demand also backed by Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav.

"The reports I got have raised the suspicion that the voting machines have been managed... It appears that voting machines have not registered votes cast in favour of other parties, or all the votes have been polled for the BJP. Even Muslim votes have gone to the BJP," she said.

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Asked about Mayawati's allegation, Akhilesh Yadav said, "If a question has been raised on the EVMs, the government should probe. I will also look at it on my level."

The social media, on the other hand, is always full of jokes and rumours whenever an election is held in India that any button pressed on the EVMs ensures the vote goes to the BJP (or whoever is in power).

But the fact that EVMs can be easily tampered with is no rocket science.

HOW DO THE EVMs WORK?

Every EVM machine has a control unit, a ballot unit and a 5-metre cable. The machine can be operated with a 5 volt battery.

The way it works is that a voter is supposed to press a button against the name or photo of the candidate she wishes to vote for. The moment a button is pressed, the machine locks itself. It opens now only with a new ballot number. An EVM registers only five votes in a minute.

EVMs became popular because they were easier to carry and later count the votes on. They have been a part of India's election process for the last 15 years. While all this sounds alright, there is enough evidence to suggest EVMs are also unsafe and unreliable.

WHAT ARE THE THREATS?

1. EVMs can easily be hacked.

2. The complete profile of a voter can be accessed through EVMs.

3. EVMs can be used to manage the results of an election.

4. The EVMs can easily be tampered by an election official.

5. Even the election software of an EVM can be changed.

That EVMs can be hacked is a threat that has been given not only in India, but in many other countries, which is why a number of them have banned the voting machines.

1. Netherlands banned it for lack of transparency.

2. Ireland, after three years of research worth 51 million pounds, decided to junk EVMs.

3. Germany declared EVMs unconstitutional and banned it.

4. Italy also dropped e-voting since its results could be easily managed.

5. In the United States, California and many other states banned EVMs if they did not have a paper trail.

6. According to a CIA security expert, Venezuela, Macedonia and Ukraine stopped using EVMs after massive rigging was found.

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7. England and France have never used EVMs.

Senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, along with a professor from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, had also once said that the EVMs could be easily tampered with and their results manipulated. Which is perhaps why Mayawati has questioned their use in Uttar Pradesh and other states this year. But will we ever know if they at all were?

Also read | Mayawati lost UP because of wrong policies, not rigged EVMs, Arun Jaitley says

Watch video | Electronic voting machines tampered to favour BJP: Mayawati

Also read: UP election results: BJP tampered with EVMs, couldn't have won otherwise in Muslim bastions, says Mayawati

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When it comes to the ultra-rich, you cannot find their kids in regular universities or colleges. They are in very expensive and exclusive boarding schools, where most can be found in Switzerland. Why not when the country ranks second to Finland for having the best education system in the world. Plus, it has one of the cleanest and most scenic countries.

Institut Le Rosey

Often called Le Rosey, this is the most expensive boarding school in the world with Prince Rainier of Monaco and Prince Albert II of Belgium as two of its most notable alumni. Founded in 1880, the school has two campuses - Chateau de Rosey in the summer and the Gsdaat campus in the winter.

How much will it cost you to study there? The annual fee is around $108,000. Aside from having access to the best education, you have access to the school's well-equipped equestrian center with 30 horses, a spa, and a private nautical center.

Aiglon International Boarding School

Want to be in a school where the outdoors is your classroom? Then Aiglon is the school for you provided you are willing to shell out between $65,600 - $100,000 a year.

Located in the Alpine village of Chesieres, Aiglon is modeled on British-style boarding schools with a strong emphasis on outdoor learning. It can be seen in their curriculum where students can participate in expeditions, sports, and morning meditation among others. One of their famous alumni include Princess Tatiana of Denmark and Greece.

College Alpin International Beau Soleil

Beau Soleil has only a total of 210 students from more than 40 nationalities who have access to the best educational instruction and activities. Since it is located in the Swiss Alps, students can ski two to three times a week in winter. There is also an annual expedition to different parts of the world.

The program is of university level and is offered in two parallel systems - French and International sections. Some European royalties are its notable alumni, namely Prince Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg and Princess Marie of Denmark. Annual tuition is around $97,000.

College du Leman International School

College du Leman is part of an international community of premium international schools called Nord Anglia education. The school is an 8-hectare campus located outside Geneva. The school integrates multilingualism and bilingualism in their programs. Going to College du Leman cost around $34,000 every semester in tuition alone.

Leysin American School in Switzerland

This co-educational boarding school was established in 1961 with around 345 students enrolled at present. Their program includes a good mix of the academics, sports, and other extra-curricular activities. Total cost of going to this school is around $84,000 per year. The Rockefellers and the royal family of Saudi Arabia went to this school.
Here's good news for the soon-to-be freshman students in San Jose, California. The officials have just launched a new San Jose Promise program which will make higher education more affordable for everyone and free for the students who come from low income families.

Mayor Sam Liccardo and community college leaders launched the said program which will take care of the first two years of a student's costs at a community college which include the tuition, fees, materials, books and transportation, The Mercury News reported.

This is somewhat similar to the one of San Francisco's which also offers free tuition to all San Francisco students. Both programs give money to the qualified students and will be eligible for free college for two years, and the funding will be coming from the state and the city, according to ABC7 News.

Licardo cited the statistics from the Department of Education which states that out of 100 high school students, only 84 graduate, and out of the 84 graduates, only 60 students are able to attend college. He said that families and parents are wondering about where to get the money to pay for the college costs.

The program will be able to accommodate about 800 students and the ones who are attending San Jose City College, Evergreen Valley College and West Valley College. The students' eligibility for the scholarship will be based on their family's income and they can start applying for the grants this June when they visit their school's financial aid office.

The funding for the said program will come from the California College Promise Innovation Grant Program. Each campus was awarded a total amount of $750,000 and aside from this, San Jose will also be sharing some taxpayer dollars to launch the program but there is no definite amount just yet.
Donald Trump's Head of the Environmental Protection Agency denied the basic scientific understanding that carbon dioxide emissions are the major cause of global warming. This is a big opposition to claims by scientists on climate change. This is something totally at odds with his own agency.

EPA head Scott Pruitt said in an interview that it is difficult to precisely measure the effects of human activity on climate change, The Guardian reported. Since there is significant disagreement in the factors, he didn't agree that carbon dioxide is the main contributor to global warming.

When Pruitt was attorney general of Oklahoma he frequently sued EPA, CNN reported. He was also constantly questioned on his unorthodox stand on environmental issues, especially on climate change. During a hearing, Pruitt said science reveals that human activity somehow impacts climate change.

The EPA even claimed that greenhouse gas emissions from human activities went up by 35 percent for 20 years from 1990 to 2010. Meanwhile, carbon dioxide, which is three fourths of the greenhouse gas emissions, also went up 42 percent during the same period.

The EPA's website states that carbon dioxide is the major greenhouse gas that contributes to the present climate change. This is even backed by NASA. It makes Pruitt's denial totally opposite to his own agency's stand.

CO2 traps heat and this is a fact that scientists know for so long. According to proven studies, atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide has spiked by more than 75 percent since the industrial revolution due to deforestation and burning of fossil fuels.

Another study that proves how CO2 has contributed greatly to climate change is from the International Panel on Climate Change, which summarized the findings of 2,000 scientists in their report back in 2014. Scientist condemned Pruitt and his denial that CO2 is the major reason of global warming. Even former EPA head Gina McCarthy condemned him for his statements.
Higher education these days also mean higher tuition fees and the possibility of accumulating huge student loan debts. However, Purdue University has created an innovative yet controversial way for students to finance their college without getting into debt. The solution: selling a share of their future income to a backer.

Purdue University the income the income-share agreement or ISA as an alternative form to pay for college. Instead of taking on a loan, a backer pays for the student's tuition. In return, the student signs an agreement to sell a percentage of his income in the future to the backer.

Only launched last year, there are other universities who are interested in starting their own ISA programs. Mitch Daniels, Purdue University's president, said that they are partnering with Vemo Education, a tech company, in helping spread this alternative form to other schools. Those schools who want to adopt the ISA program are going to use Purdue as a model and Vemo's technology to make the program more accessible to students who are interested.

Daniels admit that ISA is not the complete solution to the student loan debt problem but it is a helpful alternative to students. Jason Delisle, a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said that ISA has a small market at the moment but it is already catching on.

Despite the promise it holds, there are also concerns surrounding it. One of those concerns include the possibility of the student paying more than they paid in school. For example, the ISA term is basically 10 years and if a student gets in a job that pays well, the percentage deducted from his income over the course of 10 years might be more than what he paid for college.
Chicago State University has agreed to pay $4.3 million to a former school attorney on Thursday. This marks the end of a whistleblower lawsuit.

The agreement came after the public university told a Cook County judge that it would immediately pay James Crowley. Crowley said that he was fired in 2010 after he reported about misconduct by top university officials, Chicago Tribune reported.

In 2014, a jury ordered Chicago State University to pay Crowley over $3 million. This included $1 million in back pay and $2 million in punitive damages, along with attorney fees.

The school refused to pay while it challenged the jury verdict. This led to an increase in interest in the amount it owed.

The decision was upheld by the Illinois Appellate last year. The judgment amount increased with 6 percent interest, which was earned since the verdict and Crowley's "front pay." This is the money that he would have earned if he worked between the time of the jury decision and the final order.

According to Chicago Sun Times, the former school attorney has only been able to find part-time work ever since he lost his job at the university. His lawyer, Anthony Pinelli, said that Crowley has been living off his retirement savings.

Crowley's case is said to be the first that stemmed from a whistleblower claim filed under the state ethics act. This act became law back in 2003 and included protection for employees who disclose unethical behavior.

Crowley expressed his relief that the lawsuit has finally reached an end. He also said that he hopes for the future success of Chicago State University, which has a noble mission and deserves the support.

The university's spokesperson Sabrina Land confirmed that the institution will pay $1.5 million. The rest is said to be covered by the school's insurance company. This is still unsure though since the insurance carrier, Illinois National Insurance, contested that it was not obligated to cover the order.
Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and the company donated a total of $50 million to the University of Washington. The gift is expected to be used for a new computer science and engineering school.

Allen is said to be giving $40 million, which will be set to fund an endowment. Microsoft Corp. will provide the rest, $10 million, Bloomberg reported.

The University of Washington's board of regents approved the changes to its computer science program on Thursday. It will become its own school instead of just being a department and will be called the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering.

Allen said that he hopes the school will strengthen UW's ability to rise in the field of computer science and would give the institution flexibility to do several things. He believes that the donation can help the department expand into various areas such as biological modeling to aerodynamics and to recruit top professors.

In the University of Washington's official website, UW president Ana Mari Cauce said that they will continue their commitment on both access and excellence. She expressed her gratitude to Paul Allen for his gift.

It was noted that the UW CSE has already generated innovations with global impact in the fields of mobile health, neural engineering, artificial intelligence, next-generation data storage and data science. The endowment is expected to generate $2 million a year in funds which the school can use for recruiting faculty as well as helping fund new ideas for research.

The gift comes after the University of Washington tries to raise $110 million for a second computer science and engineering building. It will be located across the street from the Paul G. Allen Center. The institution has broken ground on that project in January.

Paul Allen has a net worth of about $20 billion, which makes him the 34th richest person in the world. He left Microsoft in 1983 and co-founded Vulcan Inc., which houses his various investments and interests.
By Press Trust of India: Kochi,Mar 11 (PTI): A Centre For High-precision radiation therapy at city based Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences was inaugurated today by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who said this was the first time that such a facility for non-invasive cancer treatment has been set up in Kerala. "This is for the first time that such a facility for non-invasive treatment of cancer is established in Kerala though it has been available in other parts of the country for many years," he said. The Chief Minister said it was a much needed addition to Kerala?s healthcare system, more so because the incidence of cancer in the state had been going up steadily. The facility at the private hospital, equipped with the latest, high-output models of CyberKnife (M6 version) and Tomotherapy, will offer quick and painless treatment of cancerous tumors with very high precision of radiation delivery. The hospital said this will be a huge relief to cancer patients from Kerala,who till now had to travel to other parts of India or even abroad at a great cost for high-end cancer treatment, as this capability did not exist in the state.

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Vijayan said the new Centre would be of tremendous benefit to the people. The Government recognizes the need for quality health care and appreciates the important role that non-Government hospitals are playing in the state, he said. CyberKnife is used for treating small-size cancerous tumours like brain tumours, moving targets (tumours which move during treatment) such as lung, liver and prostate cancer, and metastatic diseases.

The treatment, which is completely painless with minimal toxicity, lasts only a few minutes, and patients can go home immediately. PTI TGB APR APR MVV

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Soldiers in new cyber teams are now bringing offensive and defensive virtual effects against Islamic militants in northern Iraq and Syria, according to senior leaders.



"We have Army Soldiers who are in the fight and they are engaged [with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria]," said Brig. Gen. J.P. McGee, the Army Cyber Command's deputy commander for operations.



Once the cyber mission force teams stand up, McGee said they're going straight into operational use.

January 24, 2017 - Soldiers with the 780th Military Intelligence Brigade conduct cyberspace operations during a training rotation for the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California. The Fort Meade, Maryland based 780th was one of several cyber organizations that took part in the rotation as part of an pilot program to designed to help the Army develop how it will build and employ cyber in its tactical formations. (U.S. Army courtesy photo) "As we build these teams, we are  putting them right into the fight in contact in cyberspace," he said at a media roundtable last week.



The general declined to discuss specific details, but said the majority of the effort involves offensive cyberspace effects being delivered from locations in the United States and downrange.



The Army is responsible for creating 41 of the 133 teams in the Defense Department's cyber mission force. Of the Army's teams, 11 are currently at initial operating capability, with the rest at full operational capability, according to Brig. Gen. Patricia Frost, director of cyber for the Army's G-3/5/7.



She expects all of the Army teams will be ready to go before the October 2018 deadline, she said.



The teams have three main missions: protect networks, particularly the Department of Defense Information Network; defend the U.S. and its national interests against cyberattacks; and provide cyber support to military operations and contingency plans.



This spring, Army Cyber also plans to continue the cyber electromagnetic activities (CEMA) support to a Corps and Below pilot that is testing the concept of expeditionary CEMA cells within training brigades.



The 1st Infantry Division's 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team is slated to take part in the pilot's sixth iteration, which is being held at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California. In the training, Soldiers will map out cyber and electromagnetic terrain in a simulated battlefield in order to defeat the enemy.



"Where are the wireless points, cell phone towers? What does that look like? How do you figure out how to gain access to them to be able to deliver effects?" McGee said, detailing the challenges Soldiers will face.



In one example McGee described, a CEMA cell could shut down an enemy's internet access for a period of time to allow a patrol pass safely through a contested area. The CEMA cell could then turn internet access back on to collect information on enemy activities.



"We're innovating and trying to figure this out," he said.



McGee also envisions cyber Soldiers working alongside a battlefield commander inside a tactical operations center, similar to how field artillery or aviation planners give input.



"A maneuver commander can look at a team on his staff that can advise him on how to deliver cyber and electromagnetic effects and activities in support of his maneuver plan," he said.



Until then, the Army has created a cyber first line of defense program, which trains two-person teams to actively defend the tactical networks of brigades, Frost said. Each team consists of a warrant officer and an NCO who are not specifically in the cyber career field, but who can still help brigades operate semi-autonomously in combat.



"[We] look at putting two individuals that will come with cyber education and tools to be that first line of defense," Frost said. "It allows a brigade commander to be able to execute mission command." By U.S. Army Sean Kimmons

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Copyright 2017 Comment on this article
It's only March and forests minister K. Raju says 440 fires have already destroyed some 2,100 hectares of forests this year.

Chembra Peak, a popular, picture-perfect nature trail in Wayanad district, looks like the devastated aftermath of a bomb attack.

On February 25, a raging forest fire reduced 100 hectares of grassland and nearly half the verdant forest to ashes. And the bad news is that this was just one of hundreds of forest fires, triggered by severe drought conditions, a crisis that now threatens the state's rich biodiversity.

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It's only March and forests minister K. Raju says 440 fires have already destroyed some 2,100 hectares of forests this year.

"The situation is very serious," the minister said on March 3 in Thiruvananthapuram. The state had even sought helicopters from the defence ministry to help fight the fires in Parambikulam national park, a designated tiger reserve. But they came after the inferno had already raged for a day.

"Some 75 hectares of forest area was destroyed by then," the minister says.

Struggling to contain the situation, principal chief conservator of forests K.J. Varghese says they have sought community participation to prevent the fires from spreading to tribal villages fringing the national parks.

He says reserve forests like Parambikulam haven't witnessed fires such as these in over a decade. Drought, exacerbated by the delayed summer rains, have turned the hitherto luxuriant forests into a virtual tinderbox. Foresters have now identified fire-prone areas in Wayanad, Idukki, Palakkad, Ernakulam and Pathanamthitta districts. With temperatures soaring, it looks like the rain gods are the only hope left for the state.

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Goa Forward Party bagged three crucial seats -- Jayesh Salgaonkar won Saligaon by defeating tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar, Vijai Sardesai won the Fatorda seat and Vinod Paliencar won the Siolim seat.

By Mayuresh Ganapatye: It is a dream come true for the debutante Goa Forward Party (GFP), which came in existence last year with the vision to work for Goa and Goans, to provide an alternative to Congress and BJP.

In it's first ever election, Goa Forward Party bagged three crucial seats -- Jayesh Salgaonkar won Saligaon by defeating tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar, Vijai Sardesai won the Fatorda seat and Vinod Paliencar won the Siolim seat.

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With the election ending in a hung assembly, all eyes are on the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party and GFP, as to who they will lend support.

GFP initially had an adjustment with the Congress, but then the latter fielded its candidate against Vijai Sairdesai in Fatorda and Vinod Palyekar in Siolim.

"We will support those who will work for Goans. But let me tell you that we have not forgotten how Congress backstabbed us," Said Vijai Sardesai.

This small party can be a kingmaker in Goa politics as both Congress and BJP soon will be looking for a partner to stake claim.

ALSO READ| Goa Election results 2017: Congress wins majority after a neck-and-neck battle with BJP

ALSO READ| Goa election results: Mauritian Election Commissioner in state to witness vote counting

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Arrested Development kicked up the treble tone at LAX Nightclub inside Luxor Hotel and Casino Thursday, March 9 as returning headliners in the venues acclaimed Throwback Thursday series (Photo credit: Powers Imagery).

Photo credit: Powers Imagery.

The GRAMMY Award-winning and platinum-selling hip-hop group performed the best of the Afro-centric, progressive hits that propelled them to stardom in the 90s including Tennessee and People Everyday.

Photo credit: Powers Imagery.

Arrested Development released their debut album 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days in the Life Of in 1992 to popular and critical praise.

Photo credit: Powers Imagery.

In 1993, the alternative hip-hop group won two GRAMMYs for Best New Artist and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group and was named Band of the Year by Rolling Stone magazine.

Photo credit: Powers Imagery.

The community-conscious performers remain well known for their timeless tracks that advocate social progress.

Photo credit: Powers Imagery.


Dancing with the Stars professionals Maksim Chmerkovskiy, Valentin Chmerkovskiy and Tony Dovolani, along with their business partners, celebrated the grand opening of their Dance With Me dance studio located in Tivoli Village on Thursday, March 9, 2017 (Pictured: Val Chmerkovskiy, Maks Chmerkovskiy and Tony Dovolani  Photo credit: Edison Graff / Stardust Fallout Media).

Hundreds of fans turned out to meet the pros, take photos, watch performances by the studios skilled instructors and dance the night away. Maks, Val and Tony, along with Maks and Vals father, Sasha Chmerkovskiy, and other studio partners, also held a ribbon cutting ceremony with Las Vegas City Councilman Bob Beers.

Dance With Me brings a world-class dance experience to residents and tourists alike and provides a warm and friendly atmosphere for all types of dance lessons, group classes, showcases and competitions in an elegant setting covering various dance styles including ballroom/smooth, Latin/Rhythm, Hip Hop, Contemporary, Dance Fitness and correctional movement.


Multiple GRAMMY Award-winning global superstar Ed Sheeran has announced details for his North American arena tour. The tour will stop at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Friday, Aug. 4 (Photo:  Erik Kabik / www.erikkabik.com).

The pre-sale for the T-Mobile Arena tour stop is scheduled to begin Monday, March 13 at 10 a.m. PST and will run through Thursday, March 16 at 10 p.m. PST (supplies are limited). All remaining tickets will then be released to the general public for purchase Friday, March 17 at 10 a.m. PST. For ticket information, visit axs.com or t-mobilearena.com.

The tour celebrates Sheerans landmark third studio album, . The album  pronounced divide  includes the universal hit singles, Shape of You and Castle On The Hill, both of which made incredible chart entries after their simultaneous January release. Shape of You debuted at #1 on Billboards Hot 100  Sheerans first time atop the overall chart  and has remained there for six weeks total thus far. Meanwhile, Castle On The Hill entered the Hot 100 at #6, establishing Sheeran as the first artist to ever have two singles make simultaneous top 10 debuts in the charts 58-year history. Shape of You was quickly certified 2x-platinum by the RIAA, while Castle on the Hill earned gold  the first two songs released in 2017 to achieve RIAA certifications this year.

Shape of You is currently #1 at both CHR/Top 40 and Hot AC radio outlets nationwide while also continuing to rule the top spot on iTunes Top Songs chart and Spotifys Top 50 (both Global and U.S.). The songs official companion video  directed by MTV Video Music Award winner Jason Koenig is further achieving record-shattering numbers of its own, with individual views in excess of 300 million at Sheerans official YouTube alone.

 has fast proven an even greater phenomenon than Sheerans 4x RIAA platinum certified second album, 2014s x. Released March 3rd, the album immediately rocketed to #1 on iTunes charts in 96 countries around the world, including the United States and the United Kingdom.  has also achieved historic levels of steaming success including the best-ever one day streams for a single artist (68,695,172), best one day streams for an individual album (56,727,861), and best first day streams for an individual album (56,727,861), the latter two statistics almost doubling the previous record-holders success.
The BJP pulled the plug late this night by bringing into its fold nine MLAs - three from MGP, three from Goa Forward and three Independents (Rohan Khaunte, Prasad Gaonkar and Govind Gawade).

By Rohini Swamy: It looked like the day was dim for the Saffron Party, the BJP, as the Congress clinched 17 seats of the 40 seats to emerge as the single largest party in Goa. Yet, the BJP pulled the plug late this night by bringing into its fold nine MLAs - three from MGP, three from Goa Forward and three Independents (Rohan Khaunte, Prasad Gaonkar and Govind Gawade). The ruling BJP was restricted to 13 seats which was way below the expectations of the state leaders.

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After a neck-and-neck fight, the Congress was all set to stake claim to form the government. The Congress is presently trying to woo the smaller non-BJP parties to cross the magic number of 21 seats, but the BJP may upset the apple cart of the Congress.

Addressing a press conference, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said, "If we manage to get enough numbers, we will stake claim."

It now seems that Parrikar's mantra to attract the smaller parties towards the BJP seems to be working. The Game of Thrones has just begun.

Though, the Aam Aadmi Party which hoped to open its account in this coastal state stood third in most constituencies which cut into the votes of the two national parties. The Goa Forward Party, Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party and the Nationalist Congress Party not only retained their seats, but will also play a crucial role in the government formation.

After the results were declared, the wounded BJP-led by the former Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar admitted: "It is a fractured mandate. People wanted change and so their votes went to the Congress."

Sources in the BJP say that despite Manohar Parrikar leading the campaign from the front, the anti-incumbency factor damaged the prospects of the Party. The Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar was quick to bandage the wound suffered by the party saying, "In Goa for the last five years, BJP has given a stable government and we have done very well. Even if our number of seats have been less, the vote share is higher than the Congress. BJP has 33 per cent and the Congress 28 per cent."

However, the Congress is in no mood to concede and have aggressively begun parleys with the smaller parties to come to power. The national general secretary of the Congress, Digvijaya Singh said that after electing the leader of the Legislative Party and receiving the letters of support from other parties, they will stake claim.

And so the political game in Goa sums up as the US President Donald Trump said, "Sometimes by losing a battle, you find a new way to win a war."

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ALSO READ| Election Result: Know the winners and losers in five states in 10 points

ALSO READ| Assembly Election Results 2017: Potential chief ministerial candidates in 5 states

ALSO WATCH | Assembly election results 2017: How counting day unfolded in Goa

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In celebration of college hoops, Chateau Nightclub & Rooftop at Paris Las Vegas will host an action-packed takeover by DJ Drama on Saturday, March 18 (Pictured: DJ Drama  Photo credit: Joey Olvera).

A Chateau favorite, DJ Drama is best known for his collaborations with major artists including Lil Wayne and T.I. DJ Drama will perform a mix of his hit songs, including My Moment and So Many Girls. He will party with fans under the Eiffel Tower, featuring panoramic views of the Las Vegas Strip.

Photo credit: Anthony Mair.

Admission to the party is priced at $40.
illustration photo

At the beginning of March 2017, ACV proposed the government to pick plan LT-07 highlighting coconut leaf design for the passenger terminal of Long Thanh International Airport in Dong Nai.

Plan LT-07 will be applied to the construction of the roof. It demonstrates characteristics of local culture and the space inside the station was designed as a boat travelling in a rural river in Vietnam. The project also features modern architecture harmoniously combined with green zones and the furniture to break the usual monotony.

According to ACVs leaders, construction as per plan LT-07 would be simple and economical. The furniture inside and outside the terminal catches up with the trends of other airports in the world.

In 2016, ACV held a contest for the design of Long Thanh International Airports terminal. The contest attracted nine architectural plans from many countries. Of all nine architectural plans in the contest, the Ministry of Transport has discussed and chosen plans LT-03, LT-04, and LT-07 to submit to the government. These are the three most voted for options during the consultation period by citizens, professional associations, and specialised organisations.

Besides the plan LT-07 that was preferred by ACV, the other two designs were also worth considering. Plan LT-03 was inspired by a stylized lotus, and plan LT-04 uses all bamboo material in the public spaces of the airport. All has their own advantages and demonstrate specified local cultures in Vietnam.

Long Thanh International Airport will be constructed in Long Thanh district (Dong Nai). The construction comprises of three phases, the first one will begin in 2019, and each phase costs nearly VND165 trillion (over $7 billion). The 5,000-hectare project is expected to become a big and important international gateway to Vietnam and even Southeast Asia in the future.
The drop in import tax on cars from ASEAN countries has led a hike in car imports to Viet Nam in the first two months of this year, especially from Thailand.-Photo kienthuc.net.vn

The tax was reduced from 40 per cent to 30 per cent under the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (FTA) early this year. It will be zero per cent by 2018.

According to statistics from Viet Nam Customs, the country imported 8,027 completely built-up units worth US$158.4 million in February, increasing by 627 units but reducing by $5.3 million in value.

Of the figure, nearly 3,160 cars came from Thailand, or 43.2 per cent of the countrys total imports, 21 per cent higher than the previous month.

It was followed by the Republic of Korea with 1,444 units and Indonesia with 1,285 units.

India, which was for many months the leader in exporting cars to Viet Nam, however, witnessed a decline in February with 718 units. Cars from the South Asian country had the lowest value with an average price of $4,255 each.
This time they accuse the company of putting their name on a project that they do not own, confusing customers.

TNV, a customer from Ho Chi Minh City, saw that the voucher given to customers attending the conference to introduce the Alma project mentioned Alma Villa Dalat-Sacom Resort Tuyen Lam. He said this was the reason he signed the contract to own vacations, thinking that he will have a chance at a holiday at Alma Villa Dalat.

However, after reading the articles on VIR raising suspicion about the project, he set out to check the information the company provided and found a lot of opacity.

The voucher offers two adults (with no accompanying children) one night at Alma Villa Dalat-Sacom Resort Tuyen.

V thought that this villaAlma Villa Dalat at no. 49 in section A of Sacom Resort in Ward 3, Da Lat city, Lam Dong provinceis owned by Alma. However, after a more thorough look, V discovered that the company has headquarters in Hat Giang, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa, and a branch in Dalat (the above mentioned address). The Sacom Tuyen Lam resort is developed by Sacom Tuyen Lam JSC. It is unclear whether Paradise Bay Resort Co., Ltd. owns the villa.

The Alma brand on the vouchers and gift cards that Paradise Bay Resort Co., Ltd. handed out causes confusion among customers.

V then asked Paradise Bay Resort Co., Ltd. for his deposit back and to nullify the contract but the company refused.

Lawyer Tran Duc Phuong from the Ho Chi Minh City Lawyers Association said that with these vouchers, Paradise Bay Resort Co., Ltd. intentionally confused customers into thinking that it owns the Dalat villa. This made the scale of the project and the mechanism of exchanging vacations between these two locations even more obscure.

Being unable to exchange their vacations for other domestic locations poses a disadvantage to customers, because few people choose to go on vacation in the same week every year at the same location for 45 years. If they want to sell their vacation rights, they will have to spend a lot of time looking for people to sell them to. Moreover, renting for the purpose of re-renting is risky in Vietnam at the moment because it is not legalised.

The vouchers do not specify till when the vacations at Alma Villa Dalat are valid. The villa is part of the Sacom Tuyen Lam Resort and customers will have to comply with the rules set forth by Sacom Tuyen Lam JSC, not Paradise Bay.

The 2010 Law on Consumer Protection stipulates that businesses are not allowed to cheat or confuse customers through false advertising, hiding information or providing inaccurate information about (1) the goods and services that they provide and (2) the prestige and the ability to provide these goods and services.

Phuong said that people who signed the contract can sue, asking for the contract to be nullified and for the company to return their deposit.
The brooding face of the titular character in Kong: Skull Island. (Photo source: Warner Bros)

This is an unadulterated monster film where Kong will forever be King and the makers want everyone to know it.

Like a sweaty and intense Jurassic Park wrapped up in hints of Apocalypse Now, Kong: Skull Island is an adrenaline-rush movie adventure with an all-star cast of Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L Jackson, John Goodman, Brie Larson and John C Reilly. The film sets itself apart from its predecessors not only through its stunning locations, but also by getting the audience acquainted with the beast from the get-go.

Our first meeting with Kong comes unexpectedly quickly. And it is also ferocious, vicious and violent, which is what most monster movie fans want when meeting the terrifying beast for the first time.

Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts shows a remarkable confidence when it comes to staging and delivering ostentatious set pieces. He is fearless with big moments like executing a single shot that passes through numerous helicopters while Kong attacks. This and all his subsequent action sequences are done with flourish and a little bit of glee.

Visually, the redesign of King Kong works. The filmmakers have managed to make a more fully formed beast with character and purpose by stepping even further away from previous incarnations and making him more of a monster and less of an animal.

Sure, this Kong may look less realistic as a pumped up CGI character on steroids. But he somehow ends up feeling inherently more real, and certainly more three-dimensional than any of the human characters, especially when the film covers both his villain and vulnerable side.

FRANCHISE SEQUELS?

Pop cultures mythology of King Kong has always been a study on the human condition, mans contentious relationship with nature and our sense of superiority. Examining the flaws and conscience of mankind is an apt theme, given how Skull Island is set in the waning days of the Vietnam War.

Throw in all the other mythical creatures as expected in King Kong stories (some of which are obvious nods to the expected franchise sequels) and we come to the understanding that perhaps it is us humans and not the creatures that are the true monsters.

And in the current political environment, it is fascinating how timely the movie feels. When Goodmans character says: Mark my word, therell never be a more screwed up time in Washington, it feels highly relevant.

Indeed, it is a shame that the film only scratched the surface of that theme. But when all is said and done, this is still a monster movie that aims to please the popcorn crowd. And Skull Island works purely as an intense thrill ride action aimed at the 10-year-old kid in all of us wanting more monsters and mayhem rather than character and plot.

Skull Island delivers. And with just the right amount of kitsch, action and eye-candy, it roars into the Kong oeuvre and earns its rightful place in the series.

Genevieve Lohs rating: 4 / 5
The prices of many types of cars were adjusted in the market in recent months. - Photo vietnamnet.vn

This is the second month this year that the association has witnessed a drop in sales, although its members continuously reduced prices of their products.

At the end of last month, prices of seven types of cars were adjusted, including imported and locally-assembled ones.

Honda Vietnam decreased its price by VND80 million for Accord, which was imported from Thailand. Meanwhile, Toyota Motor Vietnam (TMV) announced new prices for Yaris models G and E, with a drop of VND47 million (US$2,057) and VND44 million, respectively. The imported Land Cruiser Prado TX-L and Land Cruiser VX also saw a revision in prices at nearly VND2.17 billion and VND3.65 billion, down VND264 million and VND70 million each.

Honda Vietnam and TMV were followed by other automakers.

Domestic automaker Thaco reduced the prices of Kia and Mazda models by between VND20 million and VND140 million each.

A report from the Peoples Committee in central Quang Nam Province showed that vehicles witnessed the highest inventory volume in the province, which was nearly 49 per cent higher than the previous month and almost triple compared with the same period last year.

This was partly due to the increase in demand for vehicles before the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday, which declined after the holiday. In addition, people were still waiting for prices to reduce further, especially once the import tax on vehicles from ASEAN countries dropped to zero per cent by January 1, 2018, according to the committee.

While the consumption of locally-assembled cars was showing a declining trend, the volume of imported cars had sharply increased.

According to the estimate of the General Statistics Office (GSO), Viet Nam imported some 9,000 complete built up units in February, worth $153 million, up 29 per cent in volume in comparison with the previous month but sticking to the same value.

On average, each imported car in February was $17,000, $4,850 lower than January, which meant almost all imported cars were less expensive.

During the Governments February meeting session, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc reminded relevant ministries about the rapid increase of imported vehicles in the first two months of this year, which was due to the impact of the expected import tax decline in 2018.

He said this was a warning to relevant ministries and sectors to strengthen management to create harmony between import and local auto manufacturing.
Today, AEON MALL Vietnam Co., Ltd. signed a memorandum of understanding with Hanoi City on commercial environmental development in the city. AEON MALL Ha Dong is the companys second project in Hanoi, after AEON MALL Long Bien.

Under the agreement, AEON MALL Ha Dong is expected to bring out modern and diverse ideas to daily living to locals, while aiming to become the number one shopping centre in the region. It will fulfil multiple purposes by delivering the most advanced products, services, and information.

This project covers an area of 9.5 hectares and is expected to open in 2019.

The companys first project in Hanoi, called AEON MALL Long Bien, is located in Long Bien district, about 15 minutes from Hanois centre. This project covers an area of 9.6ha, 75,500 square meters of which are for lease.
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with US House Committee Chairmen about healthcare reform in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, Mar 10, 2017. (Photo: AFP/Saul Loeb)

With Democrats united against the new health care plan, Trump can ill afford defections from within as he seeks to drive home the top legislative priority of his new administration.

While the bill winds its way through Congress this month, Trump is using his bully pulpit, powers of persuasion, and deal-making savvy in a bid to salvage the controversial plan. He met Friday with senior congressional Republicans to discuss the way forward on the repeal and replacement of Barack Obama's signature health care law.

"We must act now to save Americans from the imploding Obamacare disaster," Trump said as he sat down with the lawmakers. "This is the time we're going to get it done."

The president has spent much of the week huddling with key health care players, including Republicans who support and oppose the bill, known as the American Health Care Act.

On Wednesday, he hosted several conservative groups that have expressed concerns about how the plan to use tax credits for people to buy insurance on the free market is too similar to the subsidies in Obamacare.

Trump will send Vice President Mike Pence to talk up the bill Saturday in Kentucky -- an arm-twisting gesture of sorts as Kentucky's Senator Rand Paul is one of the plan's chief Republican critics.

With some conservatives like Paul warning that the bill will not pass Congress without significant changes, the president has signalled his openness to "negotiation."

At the heart of the debate, Trump wants to repeal Obama's landmark reforms and remove the federal government from its role as health care architect, while maintaining the high levels of coverage for Americans entitled to Obamacare.

Trump has stated he ultimately wants a plan in place that allows for "insurance for everybody."

'BINARY CHOICE'

The chief champion of the plan in Congress, House Speaker Paul Ryan, claimed that millions of US taxpayers would benefit from a rollback of Obamacare's subsidy system.

In a rolled-up-sleeves presentation on Thursday, Ryan also sounded a clear warning to Republicans who are considering defying the president.

"This is the closest we will ever get to repealing and replacing Obamacare," the charismatic 47-year-old said, describing the path forward as "a binary choice" between reform and the status quo.

House Republican Steve Scalise reiterated the us-versus-them approach Friday on CNN. "Members are going to have to pick a side: (House Democratic leader) Nancy Pelosi or President Trump," Scalise said.

Polls show that Obama's Affordable Care Act, which helped 20 million Americans gain coverage, remains popular. About half of those people are covered through Obamacare's expansion of Medicaid, the insurance program for the poor.

Under the new plan, that expansion will be phased out by 2020. Some conservatives have said they want a quicker rollback of the expansion, which they view as an unnecessary government entitlement.

The administration is treading carefully on the delicate issue, given that 31 of the 50 states, including several with Republican governors, accepted federal funds to expand Medicaid.

Trump is "willing to listen" to different options, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said.

Several health-related interest groups, including the American Medical Association, are opposed to the Republican substitute, fearing millions could lose their coverage.

According to The Washington Post, citing figures from New York University research, the plan would strip away vital drug addiction or mental health treatment benefits from up to 1.3 million people.

HOW MUCH WILL IT COST?

The new legislation's cost remains a major unknown. Next week the Congressional Budget Office is expected to release its "score" on the bill's costs and the estimate on how many people who could lose or gain coverage.

A preliminary analysis by Standard & Poor's estimated that between six million and 10 million people could lose coverage under the Republican plan.

With Ryan urging his foot soldiers in Congress to gird for battle, some Republicans are warning against taking a page out of Obama's playbook to ram health policy through with no bipartisan support.

Ohio Governor John Kasich, who challenged Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, said it was time to end the "partisan warfare" on health care.

"True and lasting reform of the health insurance system must be accomplished by bringing the two sides together, not by replacing one divisive wedge with another," Kasich wrote in Friday's New York Times.
Exxon Mobil sought US$12 billion in compensation from Venezuela in compensation for nationalising a company project. (Photo: AFP/Scott Olson)

In an 85-page ruling, the Washington-based International Centre For Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) agreed with Venezuela's argument appealing the amount of compensation to the US oil giant, and overturned that part of its 2014 decision.

The ICSID ruling was dated Thursday, but released on Friday.

ExxonMobil originally had sought US$12 billion in compensation over the loss of what it said it had already invested and what it expected to reap from the Cerro Negro project, which was nationalised in 2007.

In October 2015, the three-member ICSID arbitration panel rejected ExxonMobil's arguments that Venezuela's action represented an illegal expropriation, but awarded the company payment as "just compensation" under an international investment treaty.

The ruling released on Friday cancels the portion of the original award that dealt with compensation for the Cerro Negro project.

"As far as we know, this is the largest annulment in ICSID history," said George Kahale III, who represented Venezuela. "We were always confident in our legal position and are very pleased that the annulment committee agreed."

ExxonMobil did not immediately respond to AFP requests for comment.

Venezuela's oil ministry celebrated what it said was "an incontrovertible legal triumph."

A founding member of OPEC, Venezuela has the world's largest oil reserves, but its leftist government has been mired in a deepening political and economic crisis.

"We reaffirm to ExxonMobil and other international companies our willingness to continue working together on energy projects ... within the framework of national and international law," the ministry said.

Venezuela, which withdrew from ICSID in 2012, still faces a slew of unresolved demands for compensation stemming from a wave of nationalisations during the government of the late president Hugo Chavez.
Goa election results will be announced today. Goa went to polls on February 4 for 40 Assembly seats.

By India Today Web Desk: Goa Assembly Election results 2017 LIVE BLOG: Will debutante Aam Aadmi Party fail to make an impact?

Goa Assembly election results will be declared today. Goa went to polls on February 4 for its 40 Assembly seats. Goa Assembly election was held in one phase.

Goa Assembly election saw a triangular fight among the ruling BJP, the Congress and debutante Aam Aadmi Party.

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While the Congress is aiming a comeback in Goa, the AAP is hoping to do a Delhi there. However, the exit poll results predicted that the BJP would be able to retain power in Goa.

The counting of votes is taking place today. Goa election results are expected to clear the scene for the next government. All Goa election results are likely to be announced by this afternoon.

Here is the entire list of constituencies:

1 Mandrem

2 Pernem

3 Bicholim

4 Tivim

5 Mapusa

6 Siolim

7 Saligao

8 Calangute

9 Porvorim

10 Aldona

11 Panaji

12 Taleigao

13 Santa Cruz

14 St. Andre

15 Cumbarjua

16 Mayem

17 Sanquelim

18 Poriem

19 Valpoi

20 Priol

21 Ponda

22 Siroda

23 Marcaim

24 Mormugao

25 Vasco Da Gama

26 Dabolim

27 Cortalim

28 Nuvem

29 Curtorim

30 Fatorda

31 Margao

32 Benaulim

33 Navelim

34 Cuncolim

35 Velim

36 Quepem

37 Curchorem

38 Sanvordem

39 Sanguem

40 Canacona

--- ENDS ---
Notorious B.I.G.s slaying on March 9, 1997, came just six months after rap rival Tupac Shakur was gunned down in Las Vegas.
Trump's second try at travel ban does a little better
It is neck-and-neck fight in Goa between the Congress and ruling BJP. You can watch live coverage of election results on AajTak.

By India Today Web Desk: The battle of ballots in Goa is in very tantalising state as the Congress and ruling BJP are engaged in a neck and neck fight.

The BJP, which was considered weak after Manohar Parrikar shifted to Delhi as Defence Minister, is holding on in several constituencies while the Congress is giving it a tough fight.

Watch Live Coverage

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According to the latest trend, the BJP is leading in 12 constituencies while the Congress maintained its lead on 10 seats.

READ| Goa Election results 2017: Congress, BJP going neck-and-neck in Goa

Debutante AAP was expected to do well but has drawn a naught. The party is not leading in a single constituency.

An experienced team of journalists are doing a threadbare analysis of Goa election results and trends on AajTak and India Today with eminent political observers, top leaders and noted psephologists.

UPDATES FROM GOA:

Five hours on, Goa Assembly Election 2017 continues to be a close tug of war between Congress and the BJP.

Former Goa CM Digambar Kamat brings another win for Congress in Margao constituency, beats BJP's Sharmad Raiturkar.

Babu Azgaonkar of MGP wins in Pernem.

It's BJP for Sakhali constituency. Candidate Pramod Sawant decimates Congress' Dharmesh Saglani by 2131 votes.

Luck takes a u-turn for Babush Monserrate in Panaji in Round three of counting, as BJP's Siddharth Kunkolienkar takes the lead with just under 300 votes.

Watch Online Streaming and Live Telecast

ALSO WATCH|

Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal

|Assembly Election Results 2017 Full Coverage

--- ENDS ---
Tradition and Spirit Behind the Day of the Dead

Remembering the deceased has been at the core of many traditional rituals and celebrations. This especially rings true in Mexico, where family and friends gather annually to pray and tell anecdotes about the departed, build altars to encourage their souls to visit the human realm, and even dress up as
President Donald Trump has asked former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Russia. It's a job likely to come with heavy scrutiny amid questions about the Trump campaign's possible ties with Russia. Huntsman would bring extensive diplomatic and bipartisan experience to the high-profile ambassador post. VOA's Elizabeth Cherneff reports.
Relations between Turkey and Europe took a nosedive this week after many EU countries objected to visits by Turkish ministers campaigning ahead of a Turkish referendum on constitutional change. Ankara wants to drum up support among the millions of Turks living in Europe to give President Recep Tayyip Erdogan more powers, which could see him remain in office until 2029. Henry Ridgwell reports from London.
John Sopkos message to the Afghan people is simple: Corruption kills.

It kills soldiers and citizens alike. And if its not brought under control, it could kill the countrys fragile future.

People have to understand that corruption isnt about just money, said Sopko, who heads corruption watchdog Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), the watchdog for the $113 billion that the U.S. has given the country. Its about lives."

The main threat to the success of the war [on terrorism] is corruption. Corruption steals from the Afghan government. Corruption actually steals salaries, steals weapons, steals fuel from the Afghan government, Sopko said.

He recalled a contract that was designed to protect Afghanistans hazardous roads from terrorist bombs. It went to an American company, with Afghans doing the work. The money was stolen, and the right work wasnt done.

As a result, soldiers died, Sopko told VOAs Afghan Service in an interview. There have been many examples ... where corruption has meant that the Afghan soldiers dont have enough bullets or guns, or they dont have enough fuel, or enough food, or enough medical equipment because it was stolen.

The Afghan people should be as outraged as I am and U.S. taxpayers are about corruption, he said.

Cash infusion

In a rush to fill the vacuum created when the U.S. invaded Afghanistan to oust the terrorists responsible for plotting the 9/11 attacks, Washington and aid agencies pumped money into the poverty-wracked nation to help install a new government and start a development plan to overcome the poverty that breeds extremism.

While there were successes, the strategy also fed corruption in a country where it already was endemic.

The U.S. did contribute to the problem, unintentionally, Sopko said. The U.S. and its allies probably gave too much money too fast to too small a country, such as Afghanistan, with too little oversight.

When that happens, corrupt Afghans, corrupt Americans and corrupt contractors will steal money and then bribe officials. The blame is two-sided; it takes two to tango. The United States could have done a better job in overseeing the billions of dollars that were sent to Afghanistan, he said.

SIGAR was created in 2010. Sopko, a former Justice Department prosecutor who fought organized crime at home, was brought aboard two years later. He discovered that while some money was lost to sheer waste, corruption ate up a large chunk of what was left. And not all of it went to line Afghan officials pockets.

Weve arrested over 100 contractors, U.S. government employees, U.S. military employees, and they are serving time, Sopko said. Weve recovered about $1 billion in fines and restitution.

Confidential hotline

SIGAR also is working with the Afghan government to turn around a long tradition of corruption in its ministries.

Many of the generals have paid to get their jobs, many of the police have paid to do their jobs, Sopko said. Many of the former ministers have put their friends and cronies in these agencies.

This is the difficulty that the Afghan government has. They have to ferret out those corrupt elements. Collaborating together, we can fight corruption better that we can do alone or the Afghan government can do it alone. We may have helped create the problem. Now we have to help the Afghan government stop the corruption and basically take a knife and cut out the cancer that is corruption.

While he wishes the current Afghan government would do more, he has found them a more willing partner than the previous administration.

They have to have a willing partner. Up to now they have, and we hope that continues, Sopko said.

Still, mistrust of the government is pervasive. SIGAR has set up a confidential hotline for citizens to report corruption.

Many of our best cases come from brave Afghans who have contacted this hotline, said Sopko.

Getting rid of corruption is also key to fighting Afghanistans drug problems. And both are critical to fighting terrorism.

The drug trade supports the insurgents and the extremists, Sopko said, quoting Gen. John Nicholson, the head of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, as saying insurgents get about 60 percent of their funding from the drug trade. The corruption supports the insurgents. We have evidence of that.

Sopko said President Ashraf Ghani warned, years before he became the countrys leader, that Afghanistan had the potential to become a narco-terrorist state.

And its trending that way because no one is seriously addressing the narcotics problem, Sopko said. We hope the Afghan people and the new American administration will be more aggressive.
Tucked deep inside two of President Donald Trumps immigration-related executive orders are plans to gather data on the perceived threats posed by foreign-born nationals in the United States.

The new information will influence policies the president says are meant to protect national security, according to the orders.

The data collection appears part of a sustained effort by the president and members of his team, going back to the beginning of Trump's run for the White House, to associate the foreign-born population with criminality despite evidence to the contrary. It also comes amid increasing concerns since Trumps election about rising levels of hatred and prejudice in the country.

Earlier this week, a revised travel order temporarily suspended the U.S. refugee program and barred visas to nationals from six majority-Muslim countries. Replacing an earlier order, the new order also includes more far-reaching requirements to collect data on foreign nationals in the country, some of whom may not have been charged with or convicted of crimes.

The first reports using this data will not be published for months, but some immigration policy analysts fear how the data will be gathered and presented, following what they view as selective and occasionally erroneous use of data by administration officials.

Critics of the administration say they already see signs that similar data is being misused to justify controversial policy proposals.

For example, as the travel order was made public Monday morning, multiple administration officials cited newly revealed information that the FBI is currently conducting terrorism-related investigations into 300 refugees admitted to the United States.

Citing the ongoing nature of the cases, the officials refused requests by VOA journalists and other reporters to provide additional information and context for the figure, which was immediately questioned by researchers.

We dont even know what that means exactly. What type of investigation? What stage are the investigations in? I mean, they just threw out a random number to scare people, says Alex Nowrasteh, an immigration policy analyst at the Cato Institute.

They comment enough to make a political point but they dont comment enough to give the public the information they need to actually evaluate the claims.

Nowrasteh cross-referenced nine databases and documents to produce a report on immigration and terrorism last year, broken down by visa categories. He found that from September 12, 2001, until December 31, 2015, five foreign-born terrorists killed 24 people on U.S. soil, while attacks by native-born Americans and those with unknown nationalities killed 80 people.

Transparency?

The call for new data on foreign nationals is in Section 11 of the travel order and is wide-ranging.

It calls for reports every six months on the number of foreign nationals charged with or convicted of terrorism-related offenses, a slippery term as Nowrasteh pointed out in his report. The order also requires Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Justice (DOJ) to report on behavior like radicalization, without defining what the phrase means.

DOJ did not answer a VOA request for clarification on the definitions of the above terms.

The executive order also orders statistics on those who provided material support for terrorist groups  a broad category that could include even those who provided support under duress or who were the victims of terrorists, like Syrians living in Islamic State-controlled areas  and singles out violence against women by foreign nationals, including so-called honor killings.

That paragraph really tells you where hes coming from, Lavinia Limon, president of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI), says of Trump. He thinks these people are not OK. Its very stereotypical and very sad.

Trumps critics see calls for such reporting as part of a wider pattern of anti-immigrant behavior. But supporters of Trumps immigration policies disagree, saying the White House is simply trying to provide enough information for Americans to decide on policies that will help keep them safe.

It appears to me that the goal of this is transparency,  says Rosemary Jenks with Numbers USA, an organization that wants fewer immigrants. More information is always better, in my view. Thats what America is all about  more information, more debate.

Jenks advocates for the data to go even beyond what Trump has called for, suggesting that terrorism and crime committed by the children of immigrants counts differently than that of families who have been in the country longer.

If we have fifth- or sixth-generation immigrants becoming terrorists, thats a different problem to address than if we have immigrants or children of immigrants becoming terrorists, she says.

Negative context

If Trump were merely calling for improved data gathering, policy wonks might rejoice, whatever their political preference; statistics related to certain parts of the immigration system are notoriously difficult to obtain.

But Trumps early focus on the foreign-born in the first days of his administration follow a campaign in which immigrants and refugees were consistently and repeatedly discussed in negative terms.

The context makes his critics exceedingly skeptical of why he wants new data and how it will be used.

Enforce a ban, then create the mechanism to create the facts necessary to justify it, echoes Hassan Ahmad, an immigration lawyer in the Washington area and former head of the Capital Area Muslim Bar Association. How? By publishing regular immigration statistics, and coupling it with reporting on foreign-born terror-related crime focused on Muslim perpetrators.

Over time, this will build up an alternative factual narrative the administration hopes will defeat legal challenge.

The travel order followed another executive order in January that revised guidelines on deportation and also calls for data on crimes committed by immigrants in sanctuary cities", as well as the effects of the victimization by criminal aliens present in the United States, and the immigration status of detained or convicted foreign nationals.

That order, too, received broad criticism.

We need balanced policy analysis about better interior enforcement, not the inflaming of passions through selective presentation of data or anecdote, David A. Martin, a former Homeland Security official and immigration analyst, highlights in a review of the order.

The association of immigration and criminality is not exclusive to Trump; a 1931 government report by the U.S. National Commission on Law Observance and Enforcement highlighted how a century of efforts and assumptions connecting the foreign-born population  whether Italians, Jews, Germans or Japanese  to societal problems were not based on facts.

Statistics have never justified their assumptions, and ... the most recent official statistics fail to substantiate their charges, it said.

The bulk of academic research still does not support the correlation between increased immigration and elevated crime.

According to Scientific American, although some individual studies found a correlation between immigration and crime rates, 2 times as many studies showed that with more immigration, there was less crime.

The most common finding was that immigration had no impact on crime, several criminologists told the magazine in February, citing multiple reports. The upshot? We find no evidence to indicate that immigration leads to more crime and it may, in fact, suppress it.
Several hundred people have staged a protest in the southwestern Belarusian city of Pinsk, calling for the scrapping of a law imposing a tax on jobless people.

The protest Saturday was the latest in series of demonstrations against the law, despite authoritarian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka announcing that he was suspending its application for one year in order to "correct" it and carry it out next year.

Lukashenka said the law, which is reminiscent of Soviet-era legislation, was needed to fight what he has called "social parasitism." The legislation has sparked protests across the nation of 10 million. It imposes a special tax on Belarusians who work less than half of a calendar year and do not register at the country's labor bureaus.

WATCH: Protesters speak out

The law, however, exempts registered job-seekers, homemakers, subsistence farmers and Belarusians working in Russia.

The Pinsk protest, dubbed "The March of the Non-Parasites," brought together people of various ages, including pensioners, who gathered in the main square of Pinsk.

Some participants were carrying both the current red-green flag of Belarus and the historical white-red-white banner used by the short-lived Belarusian Republic in 1918, before Belarus became a Soviet Republic.

'Time to take up pitchforks'

Some demonstrators chanted slogans calling for the replacement of the current government and for fair elections.

"It's time to take up our pitchforks," one old man told RFE/RL.

"This is a terrible thing that's happening in Belarus. We have reached the limit. Even under [Soviet leader Leonid] Brezhnev, we lived a hundred times better," he said.

RFE/RL correspondents reported that three men in civilian clothes attempted to detain popular video-blogger Maksim Povich, but gave up and ran away when demonstrators shouted at them to leave Povich alone.

Similar rallies are scheduled for Sunday in three more cities -- Babruysk, Vorsha and Rahachou. Activists in the capital, Minsk, told RFE/RL that city authorities had given them permission to stage a demonstration as well.

Although Lukashenka announced a suspension of the tax, he also instructed his interior minister to ensure that "perfect order" is established in the country, the BelaPAN news agency reported.

Lukashenka, who the United States has dubbed "Europe's last dictator," has ruled Belarus for more than two decades, quashing political opposition, civil society groups, independent media, and other forms of dissent.
Most of the people crossing the U.S. border into Canada to claim asylum had been in the United States legally, and Canada is sharing their information with U.S. authorities to help understand the phenomenon, a top official said Friday.

Several hundred asylum-seekers, mainly from Africa but also the Middle East, have entered Canada. The refugees and migrant agencies blame the exodus on moves by U.S. President Donald Trump to clamp down on immigration.

We have provided information about the specific documents that were presented at the border because those are American documents, Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale told reporters.

Goodale spoke after meeting U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly in Ottawa for talks on the influx, which is putting domestic pressure on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Manitoba asks for help

Emergency responders and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are struggling to respond to people defying wintry conditions to cross the undefended border near Emerson, Manitoba.

Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister is demanding Trudeau's Liberal government provide money and resources. Ottawa says there is a chance the flow of people will increase as the weather improves.

We obviously have safety concerns on both sides of the border, Goodale said, adding that he had seen no evidence yet of any profiteering or human trafficking.

Kelly told CTV that he and his Canadian counterparts were perplexed as to why people who generally, as a group, have come to the United States legally would make their way north.

Leaving US for Canada

Canadian officials caution against the idea that Trump's policies are solely to blame. Goodale said some of the asylum-seekers had been planning their move in early 2016, months before the November election that brought Trump to power.

Goodale said there was little Canada could do, since the vast majority of those crossing the border had been in the United States legally and enjoyed freedom of movement.

No one is suggesting the construction of a wall along the Canadian border, no one is saying the RCMP should line up along the border and join arms and shoo people away, he said.

Goodale said he and Kelly had agreed officials needed to gather more information to work out what was happening. Factors to look at, he said, included who are the people involved in this migration, where did their journey begin ... [and] how is the migration being accomplished.
Foreign ministers and other officials from 25 Caribbean countries met in Havana on Friday to discuss a joint response in the face of Trump administration threats to migrants and trade.

Opening remarks at the closed-door event, attended by representatives from Colombia, Mexico, Cuba and other countries in Central America and the Caribbean islands, made clear the new U.S. administration and key economic partner was uppermost on the agenda, though the name "Trump" was never uttered.

"We are meeting at an exceptional historic moment when there are geographic changes on the global scene and we have to be prepared," said June Soomer, from Saint Lucia and secretary general of the Association of Caribbean States.

"We are not going to resign ourselves to what others in the world dictate. We are not a mediocre region, we are one of excellence and peace," Sooner added.

Cuban President Raul Castro also attended the meeting.

His foreign minister, Bruno Rodriguez, lit into U.S. President Donald Trump's policies in his opening remarks and said the organization should come up with a joint response, as they threaten the development models of local economies.

"The excluding and repressive migration policies announced by countries of destination... as well as the implementation of extremely protectionist trade measures, are real challenges for our sub region," he said.

"In the face of the walls intended to be built, our choice should continue to be unity, solidarity and cooperation to defend the most legitimate interests of our peoples," he said.
At least 22 civilians were killed Friday and dozens wounded when a Saudi-led coalition airstrike hit a market in western Yemen causing a fire to break out, a local official said.

Missiles launched by fighter jets of the Arab alliance hit a market selling the mild narcotic leaf qat, which is popular among Yemenis, near the Red Sea fishing town of Khoukha.

Rescue workers Friday night were battling a blaze in the market caused by the attack and pulling bodies out of the rubble some of which were burned beyond recognition, according to Hashim Azazi, deputy governor of Hodeida province.

"All of those killed were civilians, none were holding weapons," Azazi said.

A coalition spokesperson was not immediately available to comment.

Port city a target

Khoukha and the nearby city of Hodeida are controlled by Iran-allied Houthi fighters who in 2014 overran Yemen's capital Sanaa and forced the Saudi-backed government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee into exile.

Yemeni government forces backed by Gulf Arab troops recaptured control of the southern Red Sea city of al-Mokha last month in a push that paved the way for an advance on Hodeida, the country's main port city.

The fighting on Yemens west coast has displaced nearly 50,000 people in the last six weeks among them children suffering from malnutrition forced to live in schools and in tents on streets, a United Nations refugee agency spokesman tolda news briefing in Geneva on Friday.

The blocking of main roads by warring parties is hampering humanitarian access to those in need.

The incident at Khawkhah resulted in a number of civilian deaths and injuries. Were deeply saddened by this tragic loss of life, UNHCR spokeswoman for Yemen Shabia Mantoo told Reuters.

Fridays attacks were the latest in a series of coalition-led strikes that have hit schools, hospitals, markets and private homes.

Coast Guard hits mine

Also Friday, the Associated Press reported, a Yemeni coast guard vessel hit a naval mine suspected of being planted in the Red Sea by rebels and the explosion killed two sailors and wounded eight, including the ship's captain, security officials said.
As congressional investigations into Russia's interference in the 2016 election are ramping up, so is the political division, raising questions about whether lawmakers' work will be viewed as credible.

The House this week scheduled its first public hearing, which some swiftly dismissed as political theater. Even as lawmakers began to review classified information at the CIA's headquarters, Democrats continued to call for an independent panel and special prosecutor.

The dynamic underscored the escalating concerns about whether the Republican-led investigations will have the funding, focus and, perhaps most important, bipartisan buy-in to produce findings that are broadly accepted and definitive.

To be honest, we don't know yet, said Representative Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat on the House intelligence committee, which is conducting a probe in the House. I can't say for certain whether that will be possible. I can only say it is very much in the national interest that we do so. Because we cannot allow this to become another Benghazi committee.

Investigations haunt both parties

Both Republicans and Democrats have their examples of misguided or failed investigations. For Democrats, the cautionary tale is the years-long probe into the 2012 attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya. Congress spent millions on the effort and the Benghazi committee held four public hearings. But Democrats consistently dismissed it as a political witch hunt aimed at Hillary Clinton.

In the end, the committee issued an 800-page report and found no new evidence of wrongdoing by Clinton, but it did reveal that she used a private email server for government business, which dogged her presidential campaign.

Other efforts  Watergate, Iran-Contra and the probe into Wall Street's role in the financial crisis as examples  are generally viewed as having risen above the partisan fray.

The only investigations which have credibility are the ones which are truly bipartisan,'' said former Senator Carl Levin, a Democrat from Michigan, who ran many congressional investigations during his decades in the Senate.

The leaders of the investigation  the chairman and the ranking member  must trust each other. That's No. 1, Levin said of how to run a bipartisan investigation.

Not a good start to proceedings

On the House and Senate intelligence committees, that trust was shaken when the White House enlisted the Republican chairs to help push back on reports about Trump campaign officials' contacts with Russia, one of the elements lawmakers are tasked with investigating. Both Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina and Representative Devin Nunes of California said they did not do anything improper.

Nunes, who was a member of Trump's transition team, declared he had seen no evidence of improper contacts between Trump associates and the Russians as the investigation was just getting underway.

Successful congressional investigations also need to be funded. The Senate has approved $1.2 million for the intelligence committee for the Russia investigation, according to a person familiar with budget details who requested anonymity to discuss figures that are not typically disclosed. The House intelligence committee has requested additional money, as well, but that has yet to be approved.

By comparison, the Benghazi investigation ultimately cost that committee more than $7 million.

Must work together

The second key to a successful investigation, Levin said, is that the committee staffers  a mix of Republicans and Democrats  work seamlessly together.

Levin said the staff needs to operate openly. They have to review documents together. They have to prepare witness lists together, interview people together and do joint memos for the lawmakers together.

They've got to work together, Levin said.

And that work comes with some serious homework, said Dan Berkovitz, a former Senate investigator. There needs to be a thorough understanding of the facts surrounding the investigation, he said, which requires getting all of the appropriate documentation and interviewing all people with relevant knowledge. And good investigations take time, he said. Announcing the start of an investigation and scheduling a hearing on it weeks later raises eyebrows.

House probe to begin March 20

The House intelligence committee announced it would hold its first hearing on the matter on March 20. The FBI and National Security Agency directors have been invited, as well as former top Obama administration officials. The House intelligence hearing is scheduled on the same day the Senate holds its high-profile hearing for Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Neal Gorsuch.

Nunes said he wants most of these hearings to be held in public.

That has already proven difficult as senior intelligence officials have been unable to answer some questions about the Russia probe publicly because of the highly classified details and the risk of revealing the secret ways the U.S. obtained the information.

Transparent hearing favored

Open testimony creates a lot of distractions and other considerations and doesn't facilitate candor, Berkovitz said.

Often a good investigation, he said, involves doing it behind the scenes without a lot of fanfare and then presenting the findings in public.

Nunes' spokesman, Jack Langer, doesn't think that's true.



I don't think we can be rightly criticized for trying to be transparent and holding a public hearing for an investigation that has received an extraordinary amount of public attention, he said, adding that the hearing is in addition to the investigative work behind the scenes.

The nature of what's being investigated here, however, makes it unlikely the fanfare will disappear.

Trump recently demanded that the congressional investigations broaden the scope of their inquiries to include former President Barack Obama's potential abuse of executive powers to tap Trump's phones, a claim Trump made earlier this month without offering any evidence that it happened.

Open doors versus closed doors

The Senate intelligence committee has said most of its investigation will be done behind closed doors. Democrats on the committee have said they want to make public as much of the findings as possible.

The top Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee, Mark Warner of Virginia, has said this investigation might be the most important thing he ever does.

There is nothing I have done in my life in public that is as important as trying to get this investigation done right and bipartisan and get the facts out to the American people, Warner said.
The Haj quota for the states was released on March 9 and the process for selection of pilgrims through draw of lots will start from March 14. Saudi Arabia has increased the annual Haj quota of India by 34,005 this January.

By Mail Today Bureau: The increase in India's annual Haj quota by Saudi Arabia has benefitted all states as their quota for this year has also increased significantly. The Haj quota for the states was released on March 9 and the process for selection of pilgrims through draw of lots will start from March 14.

"The Haj quota for Gujarat, which was 7,044 in 2016, has increased to 10,877. Uttar Pradesh's quota has increased from 21,828 to 29,017; Haryana 1,011 to 1,343; Jammu and Kashmir 6,359 to 7,960; Karnataka 4,477 to 5,951," Union Minority Affairs minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said.

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Also read: Government panel to examine Haj subsidy

A total of 9,780 pilgrims will be able to go to Haj from Maharashtra compared to 7,357 last year. Tamil Nadu's quota has increased from 2,399 to 3,189; West Bengal 8,905 to 9,940; Telangana 2,532 to 3,367; Rajasthan 3,525 to 4,686; Madhya Pradesh 2,708 to 3,599; Delhi 1,224 to 1,628; Andhra Pradesh 2,052 to 2,728; and Jharkhand 2,719 to 3,306.

Most applications were received from Kerala, followed by Maharashtra, Gujarat, UP, J&K, MP, Karnataka and Telangana. Saudi Arabia has increased the annual Haj quota of India by 34,005 this January.

--- ENDS ---
The White House confirmed Friday that President Donald Trump's transition team was aware before January's inauguration that Michael Flynn, Trump's choice to be national security adviser, might be required to inform authorities he was acting as an agent on behalf of a foreign government.

Trump's spokesman, Sean Spicer, said the president had not been told earlier of Flynn's ties to the government of Turkey, which paid Flynn's firm $530,000 last year.

Flynn, a retired U.S. general, advised the Department of Justice this week that he represented Turkey last year. Flynn had previously informed Congress that he was lobbying on behalf of a Dutch firm, but did not mention his work for the Turkish government, as required by U.S. law. Flynn's filing was done on a retroactive basis.

Flynn took over as U.S. national security adviser when Trump took office on January 20, but was dismissed less than a month later; White House officials said Flynn failed to tell Vice President Mike Pence about meetings he had last year with Russia's ambassador to Washington, when former President Barack Obama was still in office. Flynn and the envoy, Sergey Kislyak, discussed sanctions that the Obama administration had imposed on Russia, it was later revealed.

'Trump was not informed'

Reporters peppered Spicer with questions Friday about Flynn, Trump, Pence and the Turkish lobbying incident. The president's spokesman said an attorney for Flynn contacted an attorney for Trump's transition team to ask whether the national security adviser-designate was obligated to report his activities involving Turkey to the appropriate U.S. authorities.

Attorneys on Trump's team told Flynn's lawyer it was up to him to decide whether Flynn must take further action, and that Flynn did seek further counsel, Spicer said.

WATCH: Spicer Discusses Transition Team, Flynn

However, Flynns attorneys said they twice told Trumps legal counsel team of his possible plans to register as a foreign agent, according to The Washington Post.

The first time was in a conversation with Don McGahn, Trumps counsel, before the inauguration and then in a conversation with another member of the White House legal team in the early days of the new administrations early days, the newspaper reported Friday, attributing the information to "someone with knowledge of the situation speaking anonymously to discuss private conversations."



The Associated Press also reported Saturday that Flynn's representatives had a second conversation with the White House counsel's office after the inauguration, and they made clear the national security adviser would indeed be registering as a foreign agent with the Justice Department, according to a person with knowledge of the discussions.

Asked specifically whether "the president was informed at all about this arrangement" that Flynn had with the Turkish government, Spicer said, "No, he was not."

A questioner asked Spicer about U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings of Maryland, a Democrat, who "sent a letter to Mike Pence during the transition informing him [about Flynn's ties to Turkey]." Cummings is said to have advised Trump's running mate that this was a controversial, "red flag" issue. Pence was reported to have said this week that he had no knowledge of the letter, but Spicer, saying "just so we're clear," interjected: "Now what [Pence] said was that he was not aware of the filing" in which Flynn declared he was a foreign agent.

Flynn's firm was hired three weeks after the Republican National Convention last July to investigate Fethullah Gulen, who lives in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A former imam in Turkey, Gulen is blamed by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for conspiring to topple him in a military coup that failed last year.

Exiled imam or radical Islamist?

Flynn was listed as the author of a lengthy story published on Election Day last year by The Hill, a Washington newspaper that is widely read in U.S. political circles. Flynn's article, headlined "Our ally Turkey is in crisis and needs our support," extolled Turkey's status as a vital U.S. ally and denounced Gulen as a "shady" cleric who "portrays himself as a moderate, but ... is in fact a radical Islamist."

The Hill has appended a note to Flynn's article on its website, saying that it was unaware of Flynn's lobbying activities before this week.

"Four months after this article was published," the newspaper advised its readers, "General Flynn filed documents with the federal government indicating that he earned $530,000 last fall for consulting work that might have aided the government of Turkey. In the filings, Flynn disclosed that he had received payments from Inovo BV, a Dutch company owned by a Turkish businessman with ties to Turkey's president, and that Inovo reviewed the draft before it was submitted to The Hill. Neither General Flynn nor his representatives disclosed this information when the essay was submitted."

Flynn's lawyer, Robert Kelner, writing to the Justice Department this week, explained that his client decided to register retroactively as a foreign agent "to eliminate any potential doubt," and pointed out that Flynn was not directly hired by a foreign government. The owner of the Dutch company Inovo, which signed a contract with the Flynn Intel Group last August, is Kamil Ekim Alptekin, chairman of the Turkish-American Business Council.

Differing accounts about Flynn's role

Alptekin tweeted this week: "For the record: nobody remotely linked to the Gov. of Turkey knew about Gen. Flynn's article in advance and I wasn't consulted either." The previous day, however, the Flynn Group acknowledged that Inovo had seen the article in advance, and that some technical changes were made based on feedback from the Turkish-linked entity.

Flynn did file a separate legal document with Congress last November disclosing his role as a lobbyist for Inovo, saying he was helping the Dutch company understand Pentagon budgets.

Spicer told White House reporters that filing as a lobbyist was distinct from registering as a foreign agent with the Department of Justice.

"It is not up to, nor is it appropriate, nor is it legal for the government to start going into private citizens, seeking advice and telling them whether they have to register or not," Spicer said. "That would be the equivalent of walking through someone's tax return and saying, 'That's not a deduction that you should take.' "

Spicer cut off several reporters who tried to ask follow-up questions, telling them, "It's one-question Friday"  meaning he wanted to take only one question per person. The press secretary had said at the conclusion of Thursday's briefing that he would institute the informal one-question rule.

Journalists persisted, however, and Spicer did take some further questions about the controversy over Flynn's actions on behalf of Turkey. Asked whether the general had disclosed his work on behalf of the Turks in applying for the security clearance he needed to work as the head of the National Security Council at the White House, Spicer said: "I don't know the answer to that question. You should follow up with General Flynn."

Spicer echoed comments by Trump when he announced the general's appointment, repeating that Flynn was "unbelievably qualified, 40 years in the military, with impeccable credentials."

The press secretary said Trump insists on the highest ethical standards "for everyone who works in this administration," and that is why Flynn had to resign: "At the end of the day when [the president] found out that General Flynn had betrayed the trust of the vice president, he let him go."
Three families who helped shelter former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden in Hong Kong in 2013 after his mass leak of information about surveillance programs have asked Canada for asylum, their lawyer said Friday.

The families  three Sri Lankan adults, a Filipina, and three stateless children  have long-pending asylum claims in Hong Kong that they fear may soon be rejected, lawyer Marc-Andre Seguin said in a phone interview from Hong Kong.

Seguin said the families had been thrust into the spotlight after the September release of the Oliver Stone film Snowden, which referred to their role in Snowdens flight from the United States in 2013 and, eventually, to Russia.

Seguin said the families and Hong Kong-based lawyer Robert Tibbo, who introduced his clients to Snowden, now face increasingly adverse circumstances in Hong Kong.

They said that they have been actively sought by Sri Lankan operatives in recent months and fear for their safety in Hong Kong, Seguin said. Reuters could not independently verify their stories.

A spokeswoman for Canadas immigration minister said his office does not comment on current or possible cases and could not confirm or deny having received the applications.

Hong Kong authorities have yet to confirm that they are investigating claims Sri Lankan operatives were working in the territory, but a Security Bureau spokesman said it was illegal for foreign agencies to carry out law enforcement action within Hong Kong.

Snowdens leaks of classified information about government surveillance programs caused an international furor over the reach of U.S. spy operations. His defenders see him as a whistleblower who exposed the extent of government snooping on citizens. He has been allowed to remain in Russia for another three years and will next year qualify to apply for Russian citizenship, his Russian lawyer was quoted as saying in January.
A boyish 30-year-old who looks like Justin Trudeau and sounds like Barack Obama has emerged as a potential kingmaker in Dutch politics, riding a rare message of tolerance ahead of an election dominated by anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Jesse Klaver, son of a Moroccan father and part Indonesian mother, is expected to turn his tiny Green Left party into one of the main groups in the Dutch parliament in a vote next week that has mostly made headlines because of a far-right surge.

The election is mainly billed as a challenge by flamboyant anti-Islam nationalist Geert Wilders to conservative Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who has responded by campaigning on proposals for measures to curb immigration.

It is the first big vote in Europe in a year that will also see elections in France and Germany, where the far right is forecast to win its best showings since World War II.

But with half of Dutch voters still undecided and no party expected to come close to a majority, Klaver has filled a void by speaking for those who yearn for a more inclusive message.

He has built up a strong following on social media and through small "meet up" events that began when he took over the party leadership in May of 2015.

Gatherings in living rooms grew to fill 100-seat theaters.

This week he held the largest political rally of the entire Dutch election campaign, drawing a paying crowd of more than 5,000 to a packed Amsterdam concert hall. Five-thousand more watched live on Facebook.

The youngest party leader in Dutch history, his dark curls and boyish looks give him an unmistakable resemblance to Trudeau, the Canadian premier known for welcoming refugees.

Supporters have co-opted a slogan from former U.S. President Obama, helped by the fact that Klaver's first name is pronounced in Dutch almost exactly like the English word "yes."

"Jesse we can!" supporters posted during the live online feed of the rally as a tie-less and confident Klaver told a cheering crowd that Dutch voters have a chance to stop Europe's drift towards the far-right.

"This year is not only about the election in the Netherlands, but elections in the whole of Europe," he said. "In the Netherlands, we have to show that populism can be stopped and there is an alternative. That alternative is us."

Dutch politics are fractious - there are 11 political groups in the 150-seat parliament now, most of them tiny.

But Klaver's success could turn the Left Greens into one of the handful of parties big enough to win a place in the ruling coalition, especially if mainstream parties link up to keep out Wilders, convicted last year of fomenting racial hatred.

Polls show Klaver's Left Greens on course to quadruple their representation to 16 seats, while Rutte's center-right liberals shrink from 41 to somewhere around 25, not far ahead of Wilders' nationalists.

For most Dutch, openness and tolerance are fundamental national traits of their small seafaring country.

Holland has been a European haven for refugees since the 16th Century, when the mainly Protestant Dutch broke away from Catholic Spain, committed their new state to religious freedom and offered protection to persecuted minorities such as Spanish Jews.

Wilders argues that precisely that tolerance is threatened by Muslims, who he says practice a "totalitarian" faith. Muslims make up 5 percent of the Dutch population.

In a live television debate watched by 1.6 million viewers, Klaver shot back that right-wing populism, not immigration, is undercutting Dutch traditions.

"The values the Netherlands stands for, for many, many decades, centuries actually, its freedom, its tolerance, its empathy. ..they are destroying it," he told Reuters in an interview.

Klaver said that if elected, he would increase spending on renewable energy and address social problems that have led 40 percent of Moroccan and Turkish immigrants to feel unwelcome.

"It's terrible when people are born in the Netherlands have the feeling they are not part of this society and it is not something to be proud of, but something to be ashamed of. And I want to change that.

"This is a change of hope, not of fear," he said.
Hungary's prime minister on Friday defended a new refugee law that was criticized by the United Nations and human rights groups.



The new rules allow for the detention of all asylum-seekers, including unaccompanied minors older than 14, in shipping container camps on the Serbian border.



UNHCR said the detention of asylum-seekers "will have a terrible physical and psychological impact on women, children and men who have already greatly suffered.''



But Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that the law was in line with European Union legal standards.



Orban disputed the idea that asylum-seekers in the border transit zones, which he compared to those at airports, were being locked up against their will.



"No one is under arrest, so anyone who believes they don't want to wait in the transit zone for the closure of their case can leave toward Serbia,'' Orban said in Brussels after an EU summit. "We are not locking anyone up anywhere.''



Orban, an early supporter of President Donald Trump, also said that while no national leaders attending the EU summit objected to the new Hungarian rules, he expected a debate on the matter with the European Commission.



The new asylum rules, including the automatic deportation to Serbia of any migrant who cannot prove his legal right to be in Hungary, can be applied during a state of emergency because of migration, which was recently extended until Sept. 7.



Regarding repeated reports, including this week from humanitarian aid group Doctors Without Borders, of dozens of migrants claiming to have been beaten or attacked with dogs by Hungarian border guards, Orban said Hungarian authorities had no evidence of such cases.



"The aim of these press attacks is to discourage the police and soldiers,'' Orban said.



Hungary built fences protected with razor wire on the borders of Serbia and Croatia in 2015 to stop the migrant flow and expects to complete a second, sturdier fence along the Serbian border by May 1.
An intruder with a backpack who scaled the outer perimeter fence around the White House was arrested shortly before midnight Friday on the grounds of the president's official residence in Washington.

Uniformed U.S. Secret Service officers arrested the person without incident and identified him Saturday as Jonathan Tran, 26, of Milpitas, California. President Donald Trump, who was not involved in the incident in any way, said the young man was "a troubled person." He had no criminal record.

In a written statement, Secret Service spokesman Martin Mulholland said Saturday that Tran's backpack contained no hazardous materials, and that nothing of concern was found during a full search of the White House grounds.

"I am a friend of the President. I have an appointment," the young man was quoted as telling the guards who arrested him. "I jumped the fence."

President Trump was in the White House at the time but was never in any danger, White House officials said. Trump told reporters Saturday he had been informed of the incident promptly, and tweeted his thanks to his security team: "Secret Service did a fantastic job last night. I appreciate it."

The Secret Service tightened security around the White House after three intrusion incidents in September 2014, during former President Barack Obama's second term.

(( REST OPTIONAL ))

The most serious intrusion occurred when an Iraq War veteran said to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder jumped the fence on September 19, ran through the North Portico entrance and into the East Room of the residence, where he was apprehended. He was carrying a small knife in his pocket. President Obama and his family were not at the White House at the time.

Less than 24 hours later, a 19-year-old man from New Jersey was arrested and charged with unlawful entry after he tried to enter a White House gate on foot, then returned later in a vehicle, which he refused to step out of at a security checkpoint.

On September 11, 2014, a man who scaled the White House fence and ran across the north lawn of the residence was apprehended quickly.

Last year, a uniformed Secret Service officer shot and wounded a man who approached a White House entrance and refused orders to put down a pistol he was carrying.

Several members of Congress have previously called for a congressional investigation into White House security breaches. After the 2014 incidents, Representative Peter King, a New York Republican, told Fox News: "This is the most basic, the most simple type of procedure. How anyone  especially in these days of ISIS [the Islamic State terrorist group], and we're concerned about terrorist attacks  someone could actually get into the White House without being stopped is inexcusable."

Attempts to reach King on Saturday were unsuccessful.


Iraq is assessing what help it might need to collect and preserve evidence of Islamic State crimes, but has not yet decided whether it needs United Nations assistance, the countrys U.N. Ambassador, Mohamed Ali Alhakim, said Friday.

Britain is drafting a U.N. Security Council resolution to establish a U.N. investigation to collect and preserve evidence for future prosecution, but would like Iraq to approve such a move by sending a letter formally requesting council action.

International human rights lawyer Amal Clooney and Nadia Murad, a young Yazidi woman who was enslaved and raped by Islamic State fighters in Mosul, pushed Iraq Thursday to allow a U.N. inquiry.

'We will tell them what we need'

We dont want people to tell us what we need, we will tell them what we need and thats really the bottom line, Alhakim told reporters, acknowledging that Iraq does need technical forensic support.

Lets get it from the EU [European Union], lets get it from the UK, lets get it from the U.S., he said. Technical assistance you can get from anywhere, you dont need a Security Council resolution to get technical assistance.

Alhakim said Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi would decide whether to ask for United Nations help.

We want the government of Iraq to send [the letter] as soon as possible, Britains U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said Friday. The best route would be with the full consent and at the request of the government of Iraq.

There are other ways of doing this if that route does not prove to be possible, he added.

The Security Council could establish an inquiry without Iraqs consent. The 193-member U.N. General Assembly could establish a special team to preserve evidence and prepare cases, as it did for Syria in December, or the Security Council could refer the case to the International Criminal Court.

Yazidi victims

Murad and Clooney, who represents Murad and other Yazidi victims of Islamic State, on Friday met with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Islamic State is committing genocide against the Yazidis in Syria and Iraq to destroy the minority religious community through killings, sexual slavery and other crimes, U.N. experts said last June.

Nadia knows where her mother is buried. There are mass graves whose locations are known and for all of this time, theyre just laying there unprotected and evidence is being damaged, Clooney told Reuters on Thursday.

If we dont act now, we may lose the opportunity to have trials anywhere, ever, she said.
Iraqi federal police are weaponizing commercial models of drones to attack Islamic State (IS) positions in western Mosul, Iraqi military sources told VOA.

This is a new strategy in the struggle to liberate western Mosul from IS thugs, said Faris Radhi, a commander of Iraqi Federal Police operations. The federal police use these drones to attack IS terrorists inside neighborhoods and alleys of Mosul.

Major General Raid Shakir Jawdat, the top commander of Iraqi Federal Police, told VOA that a group of military engineers from his division in Mosul modified the drones to carry up to six small grenades and tested them in southern Mosul before they were sent to a battlefield.

The drones have become an effective weapon, taking IS by surprise, Jawdat told VOA. They conduct dozens of air operations against IS every day.

WATCH: Iraqi Federal Police Use Drones in Western Mosul

Drone destruction

The drones destroyed three positions of the enemy, five car bombs, and killed 11 terrorists in al-Dawasah neighborhood, Jawdat said.

Jawdat has posted a video on his Facebook page showing drones dropping three bombs against IS in western Mosul. VOA could not confirm the authenticity of the video.

The design of the Iraqi drone offensive comes from IS, which in January established a drone unit called Unmanned Aircraft of the Mujahideen. IS claimed its drones killed or wounded 39 Iraqi soldiers in a single week.

A new source of horror for the apostates! IS's official al-Naba newsletter declared.

To counter the IS drones, the U.S. special forces stationed near Mosul have reportedly set up interference machines that would jam IS signals or take down the drones.

Their drones are not effective in the battlefield anymore, Vera Mironova, an international security fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, told VOA.

Islamic State mission

Mironova is embedded with Iraqi troops in western Mosul. She recovered a batch of alleged IS documents in January outlining the IS drone mission.

The coalition knows how to blow them up now, she said. Their radars were not able to locate them in the past because they could only detect metal and drones were made out of plastic. But they have learned how to catch plastic now.

Mironova said it's likely Iraqi forces, too, will learn of the minimal success of weaponized drones. She said the commercial drones lack the precision and effectiveness that unmanned combat aerial vehicles have.

I have a problem imagining how they will make them work, she said. It's physically very crowded in Mosul's air.

Protecting civilians a priority

The Iraqi use of drones has raised concerns among humanitarian organizations, who fear drones could indiscriminately strike civilian homes.

The concern is the same as with any other strikes  whether the targets are legit military targets or civilians, or whether the attacks are indiscriminate or disproportionate, Donatella Rovera, an adviser to Amnesty International, said.

We are certainly concerned about the plight of civilians in combat areas  their exposure to extreme risk from ongoing fighting and attacks and the deteriorating humanitarian conditions, Rovera said.

Iraqi Federal Police commanders say the drones are aimed at targets that are confirmed to be IS positions by Iraqi forces' Nineveh Operations Command.

These drones will play a major role in the struggle for west Mosul, said Radhi, adding that the aim is to avoid harming the civilians during combat against IS.
A group of Afghan women who were held captive by Islamic State in eastern Afghanistan finally broke their silence and spoke about IS torture and mistreatment. They said the terror group kept them in confined quarters for days at a time.



We were kept in dark places, not allowed to pray and our children could not cry or make noise, one of the women told VOAs Afghanistan Service last week.



The women were captured by IS fighters in Nangarhar province in early 2016 and were held captive for more than four months before they were released as part of a prisoner-swap deal negotiated by tribal elders in the region.



Fearing retribution from IS fighters, the women did not disclose the atrocities of the terror group for almost a year, and they finally revealed their ordeal at an event in the provincial capital Jalalabad last week, where provincial officials and citizens celebrated International Womens Day.



For security reasons, all women requested anonymity while speaking to VOAs reporter in eastern Afghanistan.



The prisoner swap reportedly had been approved by the Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, according to the head of the local uprising forces in Nangarhar.



Afghan security forces reportedly had captured families of local fighters loyal to Islamic State when they conducted a military operation against the group in the region in 2016. Government took them into custody for investigation.



In response, IS fighters attacked a village in the restive Kot district that supported the government and abducted several women and children after executing the men of the families.



We were starved



The women told VOA that IS starved them in dark cells operated by the terror group in eastern Afghanistan. The group accused villagers of becoming infidels by supporting the Afghan government and living in government-controlled areas.



They kept beating us and telling us that they would kill us because we became Kaafir [non-Muslim], one of the women said.



She added that militants were fearful of airstrikes and used relocation as a tactic to circumvent the potential threat.



They kept us moving from one place to another and at last they relocated us to Momand Dara in the Achin district, another woman said, adding that their captors showed them videos of how their husbands were executed.



One woman from the group, who was captured along with two of her young daughters, said the vast majority of IS members were foreigners because they spoke in different languages.



The militants had long hair, and wore masks on their faces and spoke different languages, she said.



The womens accounts of their captivity were confirmed to VOA by the head of the Afghan Human Right Commission in Nangarhar.



These women whose husbands were killed by the IS lived in the groups captivity, Sabrina Hamidi, head of the human rights commission in Nangarhar told VOA.



After losing their husbands, these women are on their own now and have to provide for their children. Traditionally, men are the primary breadwinners in Afghanistan, particularly in rural areas. When they die, in many cases women are not allowed to remarry or go back to their parents.

They urged the Afghan government to assist them and their children.



IS expansion



IS fighters have made inroads into Afghanistans eastern Nangarhar province in recent years and are active in several districts, particularly the Kot district, which has a border with Pakistan.



Last summer, the group launched a massive surprise attack against the district, killing dozens and displacing thousands of civilians from the area.



Over the years, the terror group has attacked several government installations and villages in several other districts of the province, as well. In some areas, they closed public schools and replaced them their own religious seminaries.



Recently, IS seems to have expanded it activities from its stronghold in eastern Afghanistan to other parts of country.



The group has taken responsibility for several deadly attacks in capital Kabul in recent months, including last weeks deadly attack on a military hospital that killed 31 people and wounded more than 80 others.



They set on fire two shrines in northern Jowzjan province last week, calling them heretic and blasphemous.



But U.S. forces in Afghanistan say the Afghan government has had recent victories against the group, and the number of IS fighters has been reduced substantially  from nearly 3,000 fighters to several hundred  because of joint U.S.-Afghan operations over the past year.



We believe that there are approximately 700 members of ISIS, perhaps even less now based on the operations, that are still contained to less than three districts down in [eastern] Nangarhar, U.S. Brigadier General Charles Cleveland, a spokesman for NATOs Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan, told reporters in Kabul last week.
A federal judge in Orlando on Friday revoked bond for the wife of the gunman responsible for the Pulse nightclub massacre, the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

U.S. District Judge Paul Byron reversed the decision of a magistrate judge in Oakland, California, last week to release Noor Salman on $500,000 bond and ordered her jailed pending trial on charges of aiding and abetting and obstruction. Acting upon a request from prosecutors, Byron said Salman hadnt overcome a legal presumption that she was a flight risk or a danger to the community.

Salman was never released from jail while Byron considered the prosecutors request.

Her attorney, Charles Swift in Texas, said in a statement that she maintains her innocence.

We are currently exploring all available legal remedies on her behalf, Swift said. Until all the facts come out in trial, we urge the community to withhold judgment.

With family in California

Salman moved to California to be with family after last Junes massacre at the gay Orlando nightclub, and she had her first court appearance there even though charges were filed in Orlando.

At the last of several Oakland hearings, U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna Ryu said it was debatable whether the government has enough evidence to convict Salman and ordered her released from jail until trial.

Salman has pleaded not guilty to charges of aiding and abetting, and obstruction of justice.

Prosecutors have said Salman accompanied her husband when he cased locations for potential terrorist attacks, knew ahead of time that he was planning the attack and misled FBI agents about what she knew about her husbands plans.

Salmans husband, Omar Mateen, pledged allegiance to the Islamic State during the attack at the Pulse nightclub last June 12. The deadliest mass shooting in recent U.S. history left 49 people dead and dozens more wounded.

Mateen was killed by police during a shootout at the end of a three-hour standoff.

Psychiatric test results

The judges order offered new details about psychiatric tests given to Salman by a doctor that were ordered by the federal magistrate.

The doctor concluded that Salman had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and also had a high probability of intellectual impairment, although the results werent definitive, according to the order.

The judges order also said that Salman wasnt given her Miranda warnings, which tell suspects they have a right to remain silent and have an attorney, when she was interviewed for 16 hours by FBI agents after the massacre.

A spokesman for the U.S. Attorneys Office late Friday didnt respond to an email asking how that would affect the case.
Kosovo's president said on Friday he would resign and force a parliamentary election if lawmakers do not approve changes that would effectively create a national army under a plan opposed by the country's ethnic Serb minority and its NATO and U.S. allies.

The Kosovo government ordered the creation of a national army three years ago, but Serbian deputies said they would block the required changes to the constitution.

On Wednesday, parliament indicated it would bypass that opposition by preparing amendments to an existing law that would allow the Kosovo Security Forces (KSF) to buy heavy weapons and recruit more soldiers, in effect transforming it into an army.

The plan drew immediate criticism from NATO, which still has some 4,500 troops in the country nearly two decades after it intervened in a war fought while Kosovo was part of Serbia, and the territory's biggest foreign supporter, the United States.

"If MPs will not vote in favor, I will resign as president that second," President Hashim Thaci, whose former political party is the biggest in parliament, said in an interview on Friday evening with state television channel RTK. "A legislature that will not vote for the army of its own country should go home."

Kosovo declared independence in 2008 but relations between Belgrade and Pristina remain strained and Serbia continues to regard Europe's newest country as a renegade province.

The row over the army has left the small Balkan country at odds with its western backers over a big issue for the first time and it remains unclear what prompted Thaci to suddenly shift his policy.

NATO and the United States said on Wednesday they would re-evaluate the assistance they have long provided to the KSF if the changes are approved.

In 1999 NATO bombed Serbia for weeks to halt the killing and expulsion from Kosovo of ethnic Albanian civilians by Serbian forces fighting a two-year counter-insurgency. Pristina declared independence almost a decade later with the backing of the United States and Western European countries.

The U.S. ambassador to Kosovo, Greg Delawie, tweeted late on Friday: "The U.S. believes Kosovo's security depends on the quality of its partnerships. We don't want to see Kosovo out of step with key partners."

NATO, whose troops help maintain the fragile peace, said it would prefer that the new republic changes its constitution to create an army.

That would require the support of the 120-seat parliament's 11 Serb deputies, who - backed by Belgrade - have said they will never accept the plan to create a force of 5,000 active soldiers and 3,000 reservists.

The KSF is a lightly armed, 2,500-strong force trained by NATO and tasked with crisis response, civil protection and ordinance disposal.

NATO has said it has no plans to leave Kosovo - a landlocked country of 1.8 million people that borders Serbia, Albania, Montenegro and Macedonia - but the dispute with key allies over the army has alarmed some.

"The United States is very important for Kosovo and its people," Arben Gashi, a lawmaker from Prime Minister Isa Mustafa's Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) party said on Friday. "As for Hashim Thaci, he can easily be replaced."
Uttar Pradesh anti-terror squad (ATS) say more than 100 youngsters are being tracked, about 20 being deradicalised in the state.

Three accused in Ujjain train blast (above); arms recovered from a terrorist during ATS operation in Lucknow (left).

By Shashank Shekhar, Arvind Ojha: India's most populous state is emerging as a breeding ground for Islamic State with the jihadi group's heartland in Iraq and Syria imploding.

About 15-20 youths are being deradicalised by the Uttar Pradesh anti-terror squad (ATS), while over 100 sympathisers are under surveillance of several security agencies.

The reports come days after state police gunned down a suspected ISIS-inspired homegrown terrorist in Lucknow during an operation that lasted about 13 hours. According to central security agencies, after southern states such as Kerala,Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh is turning into the biggest hub of youths with linkages to the West Asian group.

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The reasons behind this surge in numbers of Islamic State sympathisers are high Muslim population, unemployment and a rash of communal violence in the state, all used to indoctrinate youngsters from afar ISIS headhunters hide within an oceanof 2.3 billion live social media accounts, flooding the internet with romanticised videos of life inside the caliphate, as well as brutal execution clips, using them as clickbait to lure potential recruits.

According to senior ATS officers, efforts were started long back to identify and deradicalise youth in the state. "So far, 16 men are undergoing deradicalisation, who were identified at a very nascent stage," inspector general of ATS Aseem Arun told Mail Today.

"Four of the deradicalised youths have also been admitted to a skill development course. After completing the course in three months, they will be encouraged to work." Cops say most of the indoctrinated youths were unemployed and got influenced by the terrorist organisation's ideology through social media. "Of all those under the scanner, four youths were arrested and are in jail but their deradicalisation process has started so that they mix well with society once they are out," Arun said.

Central security agencies say over 20 youth in Uttar Pradesh have come in contact with the terrorist organisation through the internet, but could not leave the country to join the fight.

UP police's revelation about a terror module in Lucknow and the killing of Saifullah is a testimony to the fact that ISIS recruiters have managed to radicalise numerous individuals from the country.

Officials say it has been established that the seven people - including the slain terrorist - who were identified as active members of an ISIS-inspired terror unit carried out a blast on the Ujjain-Bhopal express train this week, injuring about 10 people.

Cops said that the four wanted to identify themselves as the ISIS module and they learned to make bombs using online resources.

Top sources say youths in UP are instigated by showing doctored videos of violence and riots in the state. "Videos of Babri Masjid demolition, Muzaffarnagar riots and other sensitive religious issues are being used to propagate terrorism in the name of religion," said an officer.

Also watch:

Uttar Pradesh in past few years has witnessed sporadic incidents of communal violence, which were also used by political parties for polarisation ahead of the state elections.

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The matter of grave concern is the fact that some educated youths - doctors, engineers and software professionals- are being attracted to the ideology of terror. "Besides anger, in some cases, personal anguish in the neighbourhood or work place has influenced the youth and not necessarily the ideology of the Islamic State. This needs to be addressed very sensitively," the officer added.

The police and intelligence agencies are keeping a close watch on cyber space and also communication through WhatsApp, Viber and other chat rooms to keep abreast with the activities of those trying to radicalise the youth.

Various programmes are being undertaken by the central and state governments to deal with the issues of counter-radicalisation and deradicalisation.

Muslim clerics, intelligentsia and leading members of the community are at the forefront of the interventionist programs. Different ministries and government departments both at the Centre and states, including IT, social welfare, home and minority affairs, are also being roped in.

The Centre has pinpointed five states where ISIS activists could surface, including Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. Intelligence operations have already commenced in these states for monitoring any kind of terrorist activity.

Apart from these, ISIS-links have also been established in conflict-ridden Jammu and Kashmir, but latest information suggests that terror groups are now mobilising and setting up camps in various pockets of the country.

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Also read: ISIS chief Baghdadi flees Mosul, leaves local commanders to fight battle against Iraqi troopsAlso read: Lucknow encounter ends, ISIS terror suspect killed: What we know so far

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Activists and members of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe marched to the White House on Friday to protest the building of the Dakota Access Pipeline, which will run directly through land set aside for Native Americans.

"We're from Standing Rock, so we came on charter buses yesterday, Juliana Takenalive told VOA while sitting in Lafayette Park across from the White House at a rally.

It's about 30 hours, she said of the road trip nearly 140 people made from North Dakota to protest in the nation's capital.

Dede Banerjee, who was born and raised in North Dakota on a reservation by her Sioux stepfather, also showed up to march.

I drove from Toronto yesterday, Banerjee said.

March passes Trump Hotel

The march, which began at the Army Corps of Engineers headquarters, passed by the Trump Hotel, in front of which organizers set up a tepee before ending at the White House.

In a blow to activists, a federal judge this week declined to stop construction of the final section of the $3.8 billion pipeline.

That section of the 1,885-kilometer (1,171-mile) pipeline, owned by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners LP, would run under Lake Oahe, a reservoir in North Dakota formed by a dam on the Missouri River. The pipeline is designed to transport up to 570,000 barrels of crude oil daily from North Dakota to Illinois.

'Symbolic' camp set up

Members of reservation, other Native Americans and so-called water protectors brought their fight to the U.S. capital after months of protest at the site of the planned construction ended when their camp was evacuated.

The Sacred Stone camp, which expanded to a number of other camps that at times housed a thousand water protectors, put up its first tepee in April last year. The number of residents fell to a couple hundred as the winter months set in and the battle moved to the courts. On February 22, the camp was evacuated.

We were out there since the beginning, said Ron Martel of the Standing Rock tribe. We're here again. Standing with Standing Rock, he said. It's not over.

Tribe members set up traditional Sioux tepees on the National Mall near the Washington Monument earlier this week, calling them a symbolic camp as overnight sleeping is not permitted.

Former neighbors together again

During the day, however, the camp organized multiple events, including speakers, workshops and Native talent open-mic nights.

The people from Standing Rock ... it's like family, Banerjee said. And they called out come,  she said between hugging and joking with her former neighbors from the camp whom she hadn't seen since December.

Native Americans and environmental activists say the proposed pipeline route threatens the Standing Rock Sioux tribe's water resources and disregards the land's sacred status.
A World Bank arbitration panel has determined that Venezuela will not have to pay $1.4 billion to ExxonMobil for confiscating company assets during a wave of nationalizations.



ExxonMobil asked the bank's investment dispute panel for $12 billion for the seizure of its Cerro Negro facilities in the Orinoco Basin under then-President Hugo Chavez. The panel awarded $1.4 billion, a decision that was appealed by Venezuela.



The Washington-based panel issued a ruling Friday that annulled most of a $1.6 million judgment against Venezuela. The decision was celebrated in Caracas, where the socialist government is facing a cash shortfall triggered by collapsing oil production in recent years.



A lawyer for Venezuela said the decision as "correct and courageous."

ExxonMobil did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Russia has hinted at involving the United States in a newly-launched regional dialogue Moscow says is aimed at seeking a negotiated settlement to the conflict in Afghanistan. The move comes as Afghanistans national security adviser is due to visit Moscow to discuss the prospects for promoting reconciliation with armed opposition in his country.

Moscows stepped up Afghan diplomacy stems from its concerns that a protracted conflict is encouraging Islamic State militants to establish a foothold in the war-torn country and export terrorism to neighboring Central Asian states that ultimately could threaten Russian security.

In December, the Russian government hosted senior foreign ministry officials from China and Pakistan for the first time to discuss ways to encourage direct talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban. The participants also exchanged views on how to collectively work to contain spillover effects of terrorism.

Kabul strongly objected being left out of the trilateral meeting, however, while U.S. officials also questioned Russias intentions for organizing the talks.

The criticism and skepticism prompted Moscow to expand the format of the dialogue to include Afghanistan, along with Iran and India, in the next meeting it hosted last month.

Involving more partners

At its next stage we think it will be important to, in a timely fashion, involve in that same process our Central Asian partners as well as the United States, said Vladimir Safronkov, the Russian deputy ambassador to the United Nations, on Friday. He was addressing a U.N. Security Council meeting on the situation in Afghanistan.

Safronkov reiterated that the consultations are working out a single regional approach to reinvigorate the Afghan reconciliation process.

He made the remarks on a day when the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that Afghan National Security Adviser Haneef Atmar will visit Moscow March 17 for talks with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

The officials will discuss the security situation and prospects for promoting national reconciliation in Afghanistan, as well as ways to develop multilateral cooperation within the Moscow format of regional consultations on Afghanistan, the ministry said.

Russia-Taliban contacts not welcome

While Afghan officials and the U.S. military welcome Russian peace efforts, they are critical of Moscows overt contacts with the Taliban.

Russia maintains that the limited contacts with the Taliban are meant to encourage the group to join Kabul-led peace efforts and to ensure security of Russian citizens in the country.

But General John Nicholson, U.S. commander of foreign forces in Afghanistan, told a congressional hearing last month that Russian attempts to overtly legitimize the Taliban are based on arguments that the insurgents, and not Afghan forces, are effectively fighting IS militants. He dismissed those assertions as misleading and said Moscow is only trying to undermine U.S.-led counterterrorism efforts in the region.

Speaking in India earlier this week, National Security Adviser Atmar said his government continues to warn Moscow that any assistance to the Taliban will not be seen as a gesture of friendship" toward Afghanistan.

They [Russia] are assuring us that this is not the case. All they want to do is to facilitate peace in Afghanistan and second a counter-response to Daesh. There we disagree. We say the best response to Daesh is state-to-state relations and cooperation, you cannot get it from non-state actors. Dont expect a terrorist to be taking on another terrorist, explained Atmar, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

Afghan officials in the countrys northern border provinces have also lately alleged that Russia is helping the Taliban establish training camps in their areas.

Russia says allegations absurd

The Russian Foreign Ministry on Friday responded to what it dismissed as baseless allegations and U.S. criticism.

"The distribution of such absurd inventions revealed a staged campaign to discredit our country, during which the Afghan and world community is thrown the thesis of Russia 'undermining' international anti-terrorist efforts in Afghanistan, according to a statement published on the ministrys website.

It went on to assert that the campaign is to divert attention from accountability for the numerous mistakes in more than 16 years of foreign military presence in Afghanistan.

Moscow blames the U.S.-led international efforts for the worsening Afghan security conditions that it says allowed IS to find space in the country.

Afghan security forces backed by American airpower have conducted successful major operations against IS over the last year and confined the terrorist group to less than three districts in the eastern Nangarhar province, according to a latest U.S. military assessment. It says the number of IS fighters also has been reduced to about 700 from an estimated 3,000 a year ago.

Speaking on Friday at the U.N. Security Council meeting, though, Russias Safronkov challenged those assessments.

We think that there are some three-and-a-half-thousand active members of [Islamic State] operating in the country. The realistic figure given all the cells operating could be much higher, he said. The Russian ambassador contradicted U.S. assessments and asserted that IS is active in more than one Afghan province.

Their main regions of action are Helmand, Kandahar, Faryab, Bagram, Kunduz. So we would call everyone to devote to that problem heightened attention and not to try and somehow gloss it over to ignore it, Safronkov said..

IS has stepped up attacks in Afghanistan and took credit for Wednesday's suicide attack on the country's largest military hospital in Kabul. The assault left more than 50 people dead and scores of others wounded.

Russian envoy Safronkov asserted that the Kabul attack is more proof of the expanding and strengthening structure of IS in Afghanistan.
Kosovo's leaders must continue European Union-facilitated talks aimed at normalizing ties with Serbia, a European security official said Friday amid rising tensions between the two countries.



The head of the 57-nation Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe met with senior officials and political leaders in Pristina to express concern about the situation.



"Restoring a positive trend of normalization of relations is key to progress and stability,'' Lamberto Zannier said in a statement emailed to The Associated Press. "Leaders must remain committed to the implementation of the Brussels agreements and to the EU-facilitated dialogue process with renewed energy and assurance.''



Earlier this week, Kosovo's president said it planned to transform its lightly-armed security force into an army. Relations between Kosovo and Serbia have been tense recently and the move is likely to make things worse. Kosovo declared independence in 2008, and it has been recognized by 114 countries but not Serbia.

President Hashim Thaci, who prepared the draft law, on Friday urged the government and the parliament to speed up steps to vote on the draft law, adding that "the international community is obliged to convince Belgrade not to interfere in Kosovo's internal issues.''



NATO and the U.S. have warned they could scale back cooperation with Kosovo's security services if the government goes ahead with plans to transform its security force into an army without the required constitutional changes.



Constitutional amendments would also need the approval of the ethnic Serb minority in the country, which has long boycotted all institutions following Belgrade's advice, according to Thaci.



The president assured his citizens "that this process will conclude in 100 percent coordination" with the United States and NATO.

"If the lawmakers do not vote in favor [of the draft law], at that second I would resign," he warned in an interview to the public broadcaster RTK.







On Thursday, Kosovo's parliament called on the government to cancel negotiations with Serbia until former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj's case in France is thrown out. He is awaiting a court decision on whether he will be extradited to Serbia on war crime charges.



Edi Tahiri, Kosovo's chief negotiator with Serbia, told Radio Free Europe that "the government and me as chief negotiator respect the resolution of Kosovo's Assembly [parliament]. Since the start of dialogue in 2011 we, the government, have respected all of the Assembly's resolutions and we remain committed to that direction,'' she said, without clarifying what damages Kosovo could suffer from the suspension of dialogue.



"I met with the government and opposition leaders, and I encouraged them to maintain a constructive approach in order to avoid a spillover of tensions,'' Zannier said.



Though Western Balkan countries are at different stages of integration within the European Union, tensions exist within and outside their borders.



Serbia, who votes for a new president next month, is deeply split between those seeking pro-Western integration and those wanting a close alliance with traditional Slavic partner Russia.



Relations between Serbia and its former war foes Bosnia and EU member Croatia have soured in recent months, while political instability threatens Macedonia to the south.
South Africas parliament could soon consider a new law to allow for limited trade and export of rhino horn for personal purposes. The government proposed the draft legislation earlier this year and an initial 30-day period for public comment wraps up today. The bill has support but has angered animal rights groups.

In the proposed law, the government seeks to allow domestic trade in rhino horn as well as individual exports of two rhino horns at a time, only for personal use and under strict control.

South Africas Department of Environmental Affairs proposes that any sale will include the full details of the buyer and seller, a permit and the genetic profile information of each horn sold.

Domestic trade in rhino horn was banned in South Africa in 2009.

In 2015, two independent rhino breeders won a court case challenging the domestic ban. The government tried to overturn that ruling on appeal but failed. The Department of Environmental Affairs proposed this new legislation to comply with the courts 2015 verdict.

The draft law has excited independent rhino breeders who have fought hard to get the ban lifted. Pelham Jones, chairman of the Private Rhino Owners Association, points to upsides of the law.

The benefit of domestic trade is that it will allow now a partial supply of rhino horn from existing stock piles, no injury to existing live animals whatsoever, to be traded in South Africa, to be exported with a CITES [Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species] permit, Jones said.

Critics fearful of laws exploitation

But opponents say there should be no exceptions when it comes to trade in rhino horn. Animal rights groups believe even limited legalization will open a loophole for criminal syndicates. Jo Shaw is manager of the World Wildlife Funds South Africa Rhino Program.

We dont believe that the necessary control mechanisms are currently in place at an international, national or provincial level to enable law enforcement and permitting staff to be able to regulate this legal domestic trade alongside the existing levels of illegal trade in horn, Shaw said.

International trade in rhino horn has been banned since 1977.

Jones of the Rhino Owners Association says there is currently no proof that the international ban has protected the rhino. He argues that some legal trade will help fund conservation efforts.

Due to those severe security costs, many reserves have in fact given up and have sold all their rhino populations, so this revenue will at least help to mitigate certain of our operational expenses.

A rhino horn can sell for up to $23,000. Every year, according to government statistics, South Africa loses about one thousand rhinos to poachers eager to traffic the horns to Asian countries where they are believed to be able to treat various ailments, despite lack of scientific backing.
Hawaii has 5,000 or so Muslims - less than 1 percent of the state's population - who are finding themselves thrust into an international spotlight after the state's top lawyer launched a challenge to President Donald Trump's revised travel ban, saying it contradicts the islands' welcoming culture that values diversity.



Named as a plaintiff in the federal lawsuit fighting the ban is Ismail Elshikh, the imam of the island of Oahu's only mosque - a converted plantation-style house in a hilly Honolulu neighborhood a few miles from Waikiki beach where Muslims who gather in the prayer room know they're facing Mecca when the view of iconic Diamond Head is at their backs.



Elshikh's mother-in-law is a Syrian living in Syria who won't be able to visit her relatives in Hawaii because of the ban, and that will deprive the rights of Elshikh, his wife and their children as U.S. citizens, said Hawaii Attorney General Doug Chin.



It was difficult for the shy and reserved Elshikh to make the decision to join the lawsuit and he is not speaking publicly because of legal reasons and fears for his security in a state that has seen a rise in threats to Muslims that started just before Trump was elected, said Hakim Ouansafi, who is the president of the Muslim Association of Hawaii.



"It took some thinking. It took some convincing," Ouansafi said.



Chin said the small size of Hawaii's Muslim community had no bearing on his decision to challenge the travel ban because "they are part of our community. They should not be labeled presumptively as terrorists."



Also, the lawsuit is a way to protect a minority community in state familiar with the wrongs committed when Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps during World War II, Chin said.

"And we should speak for them in ways that people did not speak for the Japanese back in the 1940s when everything was happening," he said.





The first Muslims in Hawaii can be traced back to the 1800s, Ouansafi said. Today, Hawaii's Muslims have ties to 46 countries, including Asian and Arab countries. About 30 percent are American-born who converted to Islam, he said. And about 80 of Hawaii's Muslim families are originally from the six countries named in the revised travel ban.



"It's beautiful mix,'' Ouansafi said. "It's the melting pot. It's the true definition of Hawaii - except it's a smaller community.''



Youssef Dakroub, born and raised in Lebanon, met his wife who is from Hawaii in Dubai. They moved to Oahu in 2006, where he now owns a Moroccan and Lebanese food restaurant in downtown Honolulu.



Dakroub, who describes himself as Muslim but not religious, said the lawsuit challenging the travel ban reinforced his belief that Hawaii is the right place for him to live.



"Hawaii is home,'' he said.



Ouansafi, who is from Morocco and is the executive director of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, said he considers Hawaii the most inclusive and safest place for minorities to live in the U.S. But he is troubled by the recent spate of hate threats directed at Muslims.



The threats started before the election and increased when Trump became president, prompting the association to install security cameras, he said.



On Jan. 27, a man followed two Muslim children getting off a city bus and harassed them, Ouansafi said. A spokeswoman for the Honolulu Police Department said a harassment case was opened and an investigation is ongoing.



About two weeks ago, the mosque recorded an anonymous caller yelling: "Killing Muslims is God's will."



Hawaii's lawsuit also argues that the travel ban will hurt the economy of a state that depends on a constant stream of visitors from all corners of the world.



The Honolulu mosque is already seeing the impact, Ouansafi said.



Before Trump's election, the popular Friday afternoon prayer service used to see many Muslim tourists show to join local residents in prayer.



The numbers of praying tourists have since declined and some Muslims who are not from countries covered by the ban don't want to travel to Hawaii anymore, Ouansafi said.



"They can take their money and take it elsewhere," he said. "We have princes and we have rulers from Muslim countries that do come. They don't want to be stuck at the airport. They don't want to be insulted in the street.''
A federal judge in the northern U.S. state of Wisconsin has blocked the enforcement of U.S. President Donald Trumps revised travel ban that would prevent a Syrian mother and her surviving child from entering the country.

The woman and her daughter reside in war-torn Aleppo. The husband has already been granted asylum in Wisconsin.

U.S. District Judge William Conley on Friday issued the temporary restraining order that applies only to the woman and child.

Trumps new ban goes into effect March 16. The mother, however, is scheduled to travel to Jordan for visa interviews at the U.S. embassy and the process could extend beyond the March date.

Conley said the husband had presented some likelihood of success on the merits of his case and his family faces significant risk of irreparable harm if forced to stay in Syria.

Earlier this year, Trump issued a temporary travel ban barring admission to the U.S. to citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries  Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

The ban was halted after the state of Washington won a nationwide federal court order blocking its enforcement.

The revised ban drops Iraq from the list of countries and makes other changes.
Armed groups have forced thousands of Colombians from their homes in the Pacific jungle this year despite a peace accord ending half a century of civil war, the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) said Friday.

The Colombian government signed a peace deal in December with the left-wing rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to end a war that has killed around 200,000 people.

But other powerful armed groups, many involved in drugs trafficking, illegal mining of gold and silver, and extortion rackets, continue to uproot people, including women and children, with dozens of families fleeing together in fear of their lives.

So far this year nearly 3,600 people have been displaced from Colombias Pacific western jungle region alone, and last year more than 11,000 people were forced to flee their homes to escape violence in the area, the UNHCR said.

We are deeply concerned at the increasing levels of internal displacement, William Spindler, UNHCR spokesman, told a news briefing in Geneva Friday.

Since the signing of the peace agreement, increased violence by new armed groups has resulted in killings, forced recruitment, including of children, gender-based violence ... as well as movement restrictions and forced displacement of the civilian population, Spindler said in remarks published online.

Colombias resource-rich Pacific coast, a poor and underdeveloped rainforest area, has long been a hotspot of violence as armed groups fight for territorial control.

Much of the violence is attributed to criminal gangs, many linked to former right-wing paramilitary groups, who officially demobilized more than a decade ago but have continued to participate in violence and drug trafficking.

Afro-Colombian communities and indigenous people have been particularly affected by the violence, which is endangering their survival, Spindler said.

According to government figures, Colombias 52-year-old conflict has uprooted 7 million Colombians, one of the highest displaced populations in the world.
Not many would have thought 'Bollywood' when Chief Minister Raghubar Das rolled out the red carpet in 2016 for any industry willing to 'make in Jharkhand'.

But the CM's offer is all set for a fittingly filmi muhurat with Begum Jaan, filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt's newest production, shot entirely in Raghubar's backyard, and directed by Srijit Mukherjee, with Naseeruddin Shah and Vidya Balan in lead roles.

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Slated for an April 14 release, the movie is eligible for a Rs 2 crore subsidy as per Jharkhand's revamped 2015 state film policy. The state information and public relations department now offers single-window approvals, clear-cut timelines for filming permissions on location, a slew of subsidies including on hotel accommodations, and state security for film units.

It's a major turnaround, for Jharkhand has been mostly shunned by filmmakers since 2005 when a Bengali TV film unit was attacked and looted in McCluskieganj, just 65 km from state capital Ranchi. Actor Rupa Ganguly, currently a BJP MP, was part of the unit, but escaped without injury.

Before the spurt in Naxal violence pushed the state off the filmmakers' radar, Jharkhand's rugged landscape had been a favourite of film legends like Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak.

The state did intermittently see the return of Bollywood-Vikramaditya Motwane's Udaan (2010) and M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story, more recently-but it is inarguably the new film policy that has created the latest buzz. Since it was implemented, over a dozen features have been shot in the state.

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Ask any Dutch designlover about Artifort and they immediately will give you some names of world famous furniture pieces like the Orange slice and The Mushroom by Pierre Paulin, both models from 1960. While finding famous Danish design pieces in almost every Danish household, in Holland we grew up with Artifort. Artifort is best known for producing timeless design of good quality that stays in families for decades, gets reupholstered ten or twenty years later and can be found in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and the Centre Pompidou.



Artifort has a rich history dating back to 1890 when Jules Wagemans started a business as an upholsterer in Maastricht. The next generation expanded the company into a furniture factory, which had a showroom in Amsterdam by the end of the nineteen twenties, they were already well known nationally by then. Artiforts breakthrough came at the beginning of the nineteen-thirties when the company started to use Epeda interior springing, woven from a single steel wire adding an even higher level of comfort while saving in production time.



With the arriving of interior and furniture designer Kho Liang le in the sixties who recruited top designers such as the French designer Pierre Paulin who introduced new techniques and constructions, Geoffrey Harcourt, Rene Holten and Patrick Norguet the company gained international fame. Many of the models made in these years are still in production alongside newer design by Khodi Feiz with an almost Scandinavian feel and the industrial stools with leather upholstery by Studio Ilse.



Artifort factory visit

The Artifort collection is bold and colourful and after being invited to work with the brand and visit their factory in Schijndel, and their upholstery department just across the Belgium border, I first thought it would be to colourful for my taste. Was I wrong, as almost every chair and couch can be customized choosing from a large collection of fabric and different colours and finishes from wood to stainless steel or powder coated in different colours.



Welcomed in the showroom and after a tour through the factory in Schijndel we went to Lanaken where we met the many craftsmen and women responsible for the upholstery of every single piece. I have visited different factories in many countries and feeling the passion of people creating a piece of furniture together that will find its way to a happy new owner is one of the things I really like. Every single person has its own task and you can see the experience and love for the product.



After a day of getting to know Artifort together with Anki and Casper, Suus, Theo Bert and Marloes I discovered Artifort is not just the orange chair I remember seeing all my life. In a few weeks I will receive a real Artifort design piece, can you guess my choice? Stay tuned for more including a giveaway on the blog in collaboration with Artifort. Thanks Zilverblauw and Artifort for the fun day!

pictures vosgesparis | first picture by Artifort




Irom Sharmila's party the Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) has failed to win a single seat in the 60 member Manipur assembly election.

By Indrajit Kundu: Facing a massive electoral jolt soon after her debut, Manipur's "Iron Lady" Irom Sharmila on Saturday said she had decided to quit politics. Her decision comes seven months after she announced her entry into politics after ending her 16 year long hungerstrike against AFSPA in August last year.

"I want to quit?," she said adding that she felt let down. Her party the Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) has failed to win a single seat in the 60 member Manipur assembly election.

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"Right now I want to take a break for a month in an ashram for self realisation and solitary enlightenment," the iconic anti-AFSPA crusder said adding that she does not regret joining politics.

Sharmila said that her party PRJA should continue working for change in the state.

"I want PRJA party to survive because the youth in society are so impressed by it. We need to have a strong original party with inclusive participation of both hill and valley and which is based on ideology rather than money and muscle power," she said.

In the elections, while all three PRJA candidates have lost, what has come as a surprise is the absolute indifference shown by the electorate to Sharmila. While Najima Bibi, PRJA's candidate from Wabagai secured just 33 votes, Sharmila got only 90 votes in Thoubal.

But even as she is plans her sabbatical for the time being, she says she will continue to lobby for the repeal of AFSPA from Manipur.

Also Read

Manipur cliffhanger: Advantage BJP despite Congress emerging as single largest party

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About 150 potential jurors filled out questionnaires Friday for the capital murder trial of a former McLennan County juvenile detention officer charged with killing his 2-month-old son and injuring his daughter.

The four-page questionnaires will assist prosecutors and defense attorneys in selecting a jury in Anton Juel Henrys capital murder trial, which starts March 20.

Henry, 30, is charged in the June 2014 death of his son, Jaden, and in injuries suffered by his sons twin sister, Jaliyah.

Prosecutors are not seeking the death penalty. If the jury convicts Henry of capital murder, 19th State District Judge Ralph Strother will sentence Henry to an automatic life sentence with no possibility for parole.

We are appreciative of the people who came up to court today and are willing to serve, said attorney Michelle Tuegel, who is representing Henry with her law partner, Russ Hunt. We are looking forward to putting on our case.

According to records filed in the case, Waco police were called to an apartment in the 2500 block of East Lake Shore Drive to investigate a report of an infant who was not breathing.

The child had multiple injuries, and hospital officials removed him from life support the next day.

Skull, rib fractures

According to court records, a Child Protective Services caseworker told police the baby had multiple skull and rib fractures and brain hemorrhaging.

A police affidavit says patrol officers, witnesses and the childs mother told a detective that the baby was alone with his twin sister and their father at their apartment when the baby reportedly was found unresponsive and not breathing.

Henry initially told police he checked on his son after taking a shower and found that the boys face was blue and he wasnt breathing. In a subsequent interview with officers, Henry said he injured the baby that night, records state.

Henry, who had worked at the Bill Logue Juvenile Justice Center as a detention officer since September 2013, told police he was frustrated and overwhelmed by Jadens constant crying and that he grabbed the baby by his torso, squeezing him really hard, according to the affidavit.

He said he swaddled Jaden roughly, grabbing the childs arms and forcing them inside the blanket, which he thought might have caused injuries to his arms.

He said he then pulled hard on the ends of the blanket, which caused another squeezing effect. He forcibly placed Jaden on the bed at least once, the affidavit states.

Reports indicate Henry was not able to explain the fractures to the babys head.

A medical examiner at the Southwestern Institute of Forensic Sciences confirmed initial medical reports of skull and rib fractures and told police the fractures were not a result of a continuous fracture but separate fractures. The examiner ruled the cause of death as blunt-force injury and the manner of death as a homicide, records show.

According to the indictment, Henry is charged with injury to a child in his daughters case by causing injuries to her ankle and by striking or squeezing her torso with his hand or fist.

Besides personal information and whether potential jurors know anything about the case, the questionnaire asks if they have had any education, training or work in the occupations or fields of medicine, law enforcement, probation officer, legal, health-related, EMT, counseling, psychology, child protective services or childrens or womens advocacy groups.
Fox News Chief White House correspondent John Roberts appeared at a journalism symposium Thursday at the National Press Club with a stern message: Weve got to stop whining, he said in a panel of journalists discussing coverage of the Trump White House.

Weve got to just do our jobs and its . . . almost like working in a war zone. The hours are long, its difficult to get information, youve got to beat people over the head, youve got to work your sources to the best of your abilities to get information, said Roberts, who emphasized President Donald Trump was nontraditional in politics.

Just work hard, he said. People will say, Oh, Fox News, youve got an in. Not the case: Our programming department has had a relationship with the president but the news division of Fox News  we still have to struggle as hard as anybody else to dig up information.

It was unclear just what Roberts was referencing with his whining remark, though the panel  convened by the Missouri-Hurley Symposium under the banner Fact-Checking, Fake News and the Future of Political Reporting  had been discussing the move by White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer on Feb. 24 to block several outlets, including CNN and the New York Times, from a briefing. Jeff Mason, a Reuters reporter and president of the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA), blasted the move by the White House press operation. Not an appropriate use of the pool, Mason said.

April D. Ryan, White House correspondent and Washington bureau chief for American Urban Radio Networks, felt compelled to take issue with Robertss formulation. Im not going to look at this as whining . . . and I do not consider it war, even though we are considered the opposition party by some in the administration, the president has called us the enemy of the American people. Citing former press secretary Michael McCurry, Ryan said that the White House press corps and the administration should carry on a friendly adversarial relationship.

Roberts responded, I was not suggesting that going to the administration to ask questions was whining. . . . Weve got to stop whining about, Were being excluded from this, or were not getting that or whatever.  When he spoke of whining, Roberts said, Its just a sense that, Oh, we should be treated better than this because were the White House press corps. . . . The people who supported Donald Trump dont give a damn what the White House press corps thinks. They really dont. So we need to get past that.

Panelist Margaret Sullivan, media columnist at The Washington Post, denounced whining on general principle but noted that the practices opposed by the WHCA are a big deal. She cited remarks by renowned media attorney Floyd Abrams, who said that excluding media organizations based on their coverage posed a First Amendment problem.

Im with you that we dont want to whine about it, she said. Im trying to draw a distinction between not whining  thats good  and not ignoring the fact that there are some important First Amendment issues here.

Just in terms of what I say is whining, its just a general kind of noise that maybe has diminished somewhat in the last couple of weeks, Roberts said. But its sort of this idea that were not being treated fairly, woe is us, were the White House press corps, we have a right to be doing what were doing, which we certainly do.

He then talked about his days covering Israel in 2006 for CNN. You want to feel like youre not liked? (Try) covering a war in Israel when your organization has correspondents in Lebanon covering the other side. The Israeli government wasnt particularly happy about that. His response was to report, report, report  to the point that our journalism was something that they needed to pay attention to.

Asked how much time he spends explaining the difference between his job at Fox News and Sean Hannitys job at Fox News, Roberts joked Every waking moment of every day, before noting that he does the same stuff now as he did when he worked at CNN and CBS News.

My goal as a journalist is to get the facts, get them right and to be fair in my coverage. Fair doesnt necessarily mean that every story is balanced because it may tilt one way or another in terms of participation of an individual or an organization in that story, said Roberts.

Other moments from the discussion:

On the topic of whether news organizations should use the term lie in covering Trumps frequent falsehoods, CNN Washington Bureau Chief Sam Feist said his organization had perhaps used the word once. The word lie is a very powerful word and should be used almost never, he said.

Elisabeth Bumiller, the New York Times Washington bureau chief, said the decision to charge Trump with a lie in a headline regarding his claims about voter fraud was above my pay grade. The New York Times came to that decision simply because Trumps counterfactual claims in this regard were so sustained over a long period of time.

Reuters Mason said if the Trump White House again tried perpetrating another gaggle shutout, more media would walk away in protest.

Erik Wemple writes the Erik Wemple blog, where he reports and opines on media organizations of all sorts.
Manipur Assembly election saw a tough fight between the Congress and the BJP as the latter is trying to storm another bastion of the grand old party. Activist Irom Sharmila made the electoral contest more fascinating by standing from the constituency of Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh.

By India Today Web Desk: Manipur went to polls in two phases on March 4 and March 8 for 60 Assembly segments. Exit polls suggested a tough fight between the ruling Congress and the BJP, which has been trying hard to make inroads in yet another northeast state.

The Congress has been ruling the state since 2002, when Okram Ibobi Singh first became the Chief Minister of Manipur. Ibobi Singh is seeking reelection for the fourth time in a row.

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Activist Irom Sharmila has generated a fresh interest in Manipur politics as she stood against Ibobi Singh from his constituency.

The BJP made entry in the Manipur Assembly in 2015 through by-polls. Now, it is aiming for an electoral victory. Whether the BJP does it in yet another northeast state or not will become clear by this afternoon as the counting of votes begin at 8 am today.

Here is the list of all the constituencies:

Khundrakpam

Heingang

Khurai

Kshetrigao

Thongju

Keirao

Andro

Lamlai

Thangmeiband

Uripok

Sagolband

Keishamthong

Singjamei

Yaiskul

Wangkhei

Sekmai

Lamsang

Konthoujam

Patsoi

Langthabal

Naoriya Pakhanglakpa

Wangoi

Mayang Imphal

Nambol

Oinam

Bishnupur

Moirang

Thanga

Kumbi

Lilong

Thoubal

Wangkhem

Heirok

Wangjing Tentha

Khangabok

Wabgai

Kakching

Hiyanglam

Sugnu

Jiribam

Chandel

Tengnoupal

Phungyar

Ukhrul

Chingai

Saikul

Karong

Mao

Tadubi

Kangpokpi

Saitu

Tamei

Tamenglong

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Domino's worker Azrael Yin blew the whistle on Pamir Dehsabzi's practices to Domino's head office but never heard back. "Domino's will provide full assistance to the Ombudsman with any investigation they undertake," the statement said. Speaking from China, former store manager Xiao Yang Tang said he worked in five stores between 2014 and 2016 and was told he had to keep labour costs below 27 per cent of sales by any means. Domino's said it has "zero tolerance" for worker exploitation. Credit:Louise Kennerley "Everyone had to do it or our money would be rejected," he said.

Tang said he worked up to 60 hours a week but was paid for only 40 hours. "I was told the money would be made up when we get a good day, but that didn't happen. Once I was told I 'would be put in the oven' he was so mad. Xiao Yang Tang, Former Domino's worker "I was very nervous and afraid working in the stores. If the sales weren't good or the [audit score] wasn't a pass I would be shouted at," he says. "Once I was told I 'would be put in the oven' he was so mad," he said. Fairfax has obtained payslips and sales reports from when Tang was working as a store manager in North Strathfield, which shows he was paid for pizza deliveries he never made. This had the effect of denying him overtime payments for extra hours he worked. During one week in July last year he was credited with making 80 deliveries and working 38 hours. But according to internal sales reports for the same week he made no deliveries and worked 56 hours.

Dehsabzi admitted to being investigated by Fair Work but otherwise did not respond to questions from Fairfax. He previously told Fairfax Media he had asked managers to keep labour costs at 27 per cent, but denied underpaying employees, saying any discrepancies were due to staff not signing out properly. "My staff does not following the sign In/Out accurately. They often finish their rostered work and then are having fun, staying and talking with their friends or eating food, but they haven't signed out. They know we pay based on the roster," he said in February. Dehsabzi joined the Domino's network 15 years ago as a delivery driver. He was put forward to Fairfax Media by Domino's chief executive Don Meij as a satisfied franchisee (Meij forwarded an unsolicited email Dehsabzi had written to him in January that outlined his passion for Domino's and how the company had achieved what franchisees could never have dreamed about.) In an article in the Parramatta Advertiser he said "hard slog" set him up for success.

But former managers link his success to putting a ceiling of 27 per cent on labour costs, irrespective of how many hours his workers have actually worked. Azrael Yin worked in Dehsabzi's Gladesville store in Sydney between 2014 and 2016. Sales reports seen by Fairfax show Yin worked between 50 hours and 60 hours a week but his payslips often showed he worked 35 hours. Like Tang he was credited with payments for deliveries he never made. Yin blew the whistle on Dehsabzi's practices to Domino's head office but never heard back. On January 19, 2017, another worker in another store wrote to Dehsabzi asking him to "please pay them [staff] on time and correctly".

He said: "Last week our labour is 27 per cent but you deduct lots of our staff salary ... today is my day off ... "But after I know you hold our pay, I have to come back to the store and spend more than an hour to write this email." Another manager, Alan Chiu, told Fairfax he worked for Dehsabzi for more than five years as a store manager in four stores, including Gladesville, West Ryde, North Strathfield. He left in November 2015. "It is the same, I try to maintain the labour percentage to 27 percentage or pay was cut," he said. He said if the labour wasn't 27 per cent he was told to "redo" it.
On the morning of the election, the WA head of One Nation, Colin Tincknell, has accused Labor of "playing dirty" and "buying off" Scarborough candidate Margaret Dodd.

The mother of missing WA teenager Hayley Dodd quit One Nation on the eve of the WA state election, accusing Pauline Hanson of running a "dictatorship".

Pauline Hanson and WA One Nation leader Colin Tincknell are still confident of picking up seats in the WA election. Credit:Trevor Collens

But Mr Tincknell, out and about in Perth as voters head to the polls, hit back at Mrs Dodd and her allegations.

"It's disappointing. Margaret came to us begging for an opportunity to run with us. I think the problem is the Labor movement decided to buy her off. That is all that has happened," he said.
Polling booths have opened in Western Australia with two opinion polls showing Premier Colin Barnett is heading for defeat.

Labor's Mark McGowan is on track to be the state's new premier, according to results from Newspoll and ReachTEL.

WA's state election is underway.

Labor needs a swing of 10 per cent to win the extra 10 seats required to end Mr Barnett's eight-year reign as WA Premier.

A ReachTEL poll of 2500 voters has Labor's primary vote at 40.3 per cent, compared to the Liberal-National primary vote at 32.7 per cent.
86 wines reviewed in March for Wine Enthusiast (Note: Monthly totals will now be lower than they were previously as reviews are being published every month as opposed to every other).The reviews include a strong set of wines from).continues to impress with its Vaucluse Red Blend (). They also have a rare single vineyard, dry style Riesling that is well worth a look ().Meanwhilecontinues to hit home runs ().One of the best quality-to-price ratio wines of the year comes fromwith their Latta Latta GSM ().produces its strongest wines to date ().offers a terrific Rocks District Syrah (). Meanwhile its Une Vallee Red Blend continues to be a high QPR standout ().continues to show a knack for Rhone varieties with a delicious Mourvedre ().In terms of value wines, youre hard pressed to do better than the recent offerings from, a side project from Andrew Latta (Latta Wines). Try the);and).The wines from Balancing Act also impress ().Enjoy!The aromas suggest notes of herb, vanilla, wood spice, plum and dark fruit. The palate is restrained in style, full of dark-fruit and barrel flavors and lightly grainy tannins.Merlot (73%) takes the lead on this wine, which is rounded out by Malbec (12%), Cabernet Sauvignon (7%), Petit Verdot (4%) and Cabernet Franc. Aromas of herb, barrel spice, pencil lead and red and black fruit are followed by plump yet elegant fruit flavors backed by chalky tannins. It shows a lot of restraint.Raspberry, plum and light herb aromas are followed by a flavorful palate, speckled with vanilla and other spices. Grainy tannins provide support.Pinot Noir is a relative rarity in Washington, especially coming from this appellation. This one charms with abundant aromas of strawberry and sarsaparilla followed by an elegantly styled yet flavorful palate. One of the better examples coming from the state.High-toned aromas of cocoa, barrel spice, vanilla and dark fruit lead to plentiful, focused fruit and barrel flavors. The flavors linger on the finish.The aromas are quite light, while the purple-fruit flavors are sappy and generous. If the aromas start to express themselves it could move up a notch.Cantaloupe and spice aromas are followed by light tart fruit flavors that linger. The flavors are quite elegant but it shows a lovely sense of balance.Deep blue and black-fruit and spice aromas lead to a soft silky palate loaded with fruit flavors. Its a perfect example of the approachability of this vintage.Baked apple and baking spice aromas lead to a lightly creamy palate capped off by a tart, lemony finish. It provides a lot of appeal.Blue and red-fruit aromas lead to lightly styled cherry flavors. Herb accents run throughout.Aromas of red fruit and herb are followed by light but pure cherry flavors. It provides a lot of easy-drinking appeal.Dark berry, huckleberry, wood spice and cocoa aromas are followed by palate-coating blue and purple-fruit flavors.This wine brings aromas and flavors of pear along with light tropical accents. The concentration dips toward the finish.Aromas of freshly cut apple and pear are followed by dry fleshy fruit flavors with Granny Smith apple notes on the finish. Its an accessible and enjoyable wine.This 70-30 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah brings fruit-filled aromas of plum, herb and cherry. It packs a mouthful of fruit flavors, with firm lightly astringent tannins providing support. It needs some time to stretch its legs.Cabernet Sauvignon makes up just over two-thirds of this blend with the balance Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Aromas of vanilla, cocoa, dill and cherry lead to restrained fruit and barrel flavors, with the tannins showing some grit.The variety is unmistakable on this wine, with its aromas of black currant, black cherry, dried herb and spice. The palate is fruit filled but well structured, with tart acids and a firm squeeze of tannin. Dark chocolate notes linger on the finish.A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Malbec, this wine is fresh and fruit filled, with aromas and flavors of plum and black currant, sprinkled with light barrel spices and mocha tones. It shows a lovely sense of balance and poise that kicks it up a notch.Most of this wine comes from esteemed Evergreen Vineyard in the Ancient Lakes appellation. It charms with aromas of green apple, Bosc pear and mineral. The flavors are medium bodied and pure, with a lightly creamy feel and a zing of acidity stitching it all together. The balance is spot-on.The aromas are pitch black, with notes of blackberry and black cherry along with high-toned spices. The flavors are full and ripe, with blackberry notes lingering on the finish.Aromas of vanilla, baking spice, wood spice and pitch-black fruit are followed by power-packed fruit and barrel flavors. The oak is primary at present. Give it time to integrate. Best after 2021.The aromas are bright, with notes of huckleberry, blueberry, dried violets, orange peel, olive and moist earth. The palate brings an elegant styling, full of fruit and savory flavors with light meaty streaks running throughout.A blend of Syrah (62%), Petite Sirah (25%) and Mourvedre, this no-holds-barred wine offers aromas of potpourri, orange peel, peppery spices and dark fruit. Its ripe and full bodied with a finish that lingers.This wine is a blend of Mourvedre (63%), Grenache (27%) and Syrah. The aromas pop, with notes of freshly ground black pepper, black fruit and herb. The palate is action packed with juicy dark-fruit flavors that stretch out on the finish.Coming from the winerys estate vineyard in The Rocks District, this aromatic brooder shows notes of crushed flowers, wet stone, orange peel, brown stems and dark fruit, along with lightly smoked meat accents. The palate boasts generous fruit and savory flavors that linger on the finish.This wine lives up to its name with generous aromas of lychee, jasmine, apricot, and honeysuckle. It drinks off dry, with mouthful of stone-fruit flavors that are easygoing and immensely enjoyable.Electric pink in color, this wine brings pungent notes of flowers, green herbs, peach and lychee. It drinks off dry, with grapefruit, lychee and stone-fruit flavors that linger on the finish.This wine is just under half Syrah with the balance near equally split between Mourvedre and Grenache. Peppery spices and sappy dark-fruit aromas are followed by juicy dark-fruit flavors that persist. It shows a very pretty styling.Winemaker Marie-Eve Gilla has a knack for making quality Chardonnay. This one brings aromas of creme fraiche along with pineapple and other tropical fruits. The palate shows restraint.This wine is a blend of 33% Roussanne, 30% Grenache Blanc, 22% Viognier and 15% Marsanne. Aromas of corn husk, pear and flowers are followed by light elegantly styled stone-fruit flavors. It shows a sense of grace.This wine starts out lightly reduced, with aromas of apple and baking spice followed by a full weighty just-off-dry palate, with a touch of warmth on the finish that adds some bitterness.Perfumed aromas of lime rind, white flowers, thyme and baking spice are followed by bone-dry flavors that lead to a tart finish. It possesses an almost creamy feel, showing light oak influence.Barrel notes are prominent, with aromas of Creamsicle and baking spice. The palate is broad and dry with stone-fruit and barrel flavors. It provides intrigue but the wood seems to get in the way at times.A blend of Syrah (68%), Grenache (29%) and Viognier, this wine brings pungent, directly appealing aromas of smoked meat, blue fruit, black olive, orange peel and high-toned flowers. The blue and black-fruit and smoked-meat flavors are silky and well constructed with a finish that lingers.The aromas are light, with notes of baking spice and black and blue fruit. Tart cherry flavors linger on the finish.The flower and peach aromas are quite subdued for the variety. The stone-fruit flavors provide more generosity while still displaying elegance.A blend of Stillwater Creek and Conner Lee Vineyard fruit, this wine brings aromas of dried cherry and cranberry. The flavors are restrained but still show depth, seeming a bit dried out.This wine is 60% Grenache, 35% Syrah and 5% Mourvedre. Vanilla aromas are prominent along with prune and other dried fruit. Fruit and barrel flavors intermingle on the palate, with the fruit seeming dried out.This wine all comes Chandler Reach Vineyards. The aromas seem to lack clarity while the cranberry, prune and cherry flavors want for midpalate concentration.Fermented with 100% stems and aged in neutral French oak, this textbook example of this top Syrah site brings aromas of smoked meat, purple fruit, crushed violets and fresh parsley along with other green herbs. The palates uber-fresh fruit and savory flavors are supported by tart bright acids. This one will only get better with some bottle age and will truly shine at the dinner table. Best from 2022 through 2030.This wine mostly hails from Les Collines, with a splash of fruit from Upland Vineyard (12%) rounding it out. Aged in neutral oak, it displays brooding aromas of black pepper, plum, smoked meat, parsley and fresh violets. The plum and savory flavors bring a rich textured feel all the while displaying exquisite freshness.All aged in neutral hogsheads and puncheons, this wine displays mesmerizingly pure laser-focused aromas of raspberry, kirsch, white pepper, lemon zest, fresh flowers and dried herb. The palate brings a dazzling sense of freshness and puritylike drinking a bowl of fresh fruit. A velvety texture only adds to the intrigue. Its a sensational effort.Fermented and aged in neutral French oak with full malolactic fermentation, the aromas are light, with notes of green apple and mineral. The freshly squeezed lemon acids are tart and racy, capped off by a lightly creamy finish. Pair it with food to see it at its best.A new offering from this winery, this wine is a blend of 58% Grenache, 23% Syrah and 19% Mourvedre hailing from Upland and Freewater Rocks vineyards. It brings mesmerizingly pure aromas of kirsch, white pepper, boysenberry, black plum and raspberry, along with a hint of barrel spice. The flavors show depth and texture, with coffee notes lingering on the finish. Its a stunner, especially at this price.Aromas of cocoa, dark cherry, bakers chocolate and graphite rise up from the glass. The flavors are dense and full, with firm chewy tannins backing them up. It should only improve with additional time in bottle. Best after 2020.Principally Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon along with smidges of Malbec and Petit Verdot, this wine offers subdued aromas of dark coffee, herb, blackberry and graphite. The coffee and cherry flavors are lighter in style, tapering slightly toward the finish.Merlot (64%) takes the lead on this blend followed by Cabernet Sauvignon (27%) and Petit Verdot. Light aromas of red and black fruit and herb are followed by sweet cherry flavors. It shows a lot of elegance.Cabernet Sauvignon makes up over 70% of this blend with the balance Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec. It shows aromas of dark cherries, licorice and brooding black fruit that at times seems slightly dried out. The palate shows elegantly styled dark-fruit flavors that linger on the finish.Aromas of dried fruit and barrel spice lead to tart, slightly dilute seeming fruit flavors backed by lightly gritty tannins. It seems a bit evolved for its age.Barrel aromas are out front with notes of wood spice, vanilla and cocoa followed by dark cherries and herb, starting to show a bit of age. The palate is fruit filled but shows the restraint of the vintage. The oak seems a bit overweighted.This variety is an extreme rarity in this appellation. This one offers aromas of wet penny, spice and red fruit. The palate is medium bodied, with the tannins bringing some grit.The aromas are subdued, with notes of spice, mineral and black fruit. The palate is reserved in style, supported by a frame of firm somewhat gruff tannins.Closed-up aromas are followed by lightly creamy pear flavors. It finishes tart.Spice, lees and custard aromas are followed by creamy-feeling fruit flavors that taper slightly toward the finish.Aromas of mineral, dried herb and plum are followed by fruit flavors that display depth and purity. It shows a lovely sense of elegance.Syrah makes up three-quarters of this wine, with the balance Mourvedre (20%) and Petit Sirah. Lightly volatile aromas of cherry and black pepper are followed by elegantly styled plum and spice flavors. It provides a lot of intrigue.Intriguing aromas of fresh herb, potpourri and red fruit are followed by juicy but restrained raspberry flavors. It shows a lovely sense of balance, tapering slightly toward the finish.Aromas of blue fruit, smoke and herb are followed by plump rounded plum flavors. It delivers a lot of enjoyment.The aromas are light, with notes of spice, apricot and lime zest. The peach flavors feel broad while still retaining a sense of balance.Aromas of white peach and apple lead to bone-dry fruit flavors. It provides a lot of appeal.Brooding aromas of moist soil and dark cherry are followed by big bold cherry flavors that coat the palate. The varietys often burly tannins are kept well in check.Grenache makes up 60% of this wine with Syrah (30%) and Mourvedre rounding it out. Light aromas of exotic barrel spice, herb and dark fruit are followed by rich lusciously textured cherry flavors that coat the palate from end to end. One wants a bit more aromatically but the palate more than makes up the difference.The aromas bring notes of dark cherries and exotic spice. The palate is big and bold, with a mixture of fruit and barrel flavors backed by firm slightly dry tannins. It needs some time to settle in, with the wood currently a bit primary.Light aromas of raspberry, coriander, vanilla and barrel spice are followed by ripe rich red-fruit flavors that glide on the finish. A pillowy mouthfeel only heightens the interest.Somewhat pale in color, this wine offers subdued aromas of herb, cherry, cigar box and peppery spices. The palate shows exquisite freshness and purity along with a lovely sense of texture and richness. Its an elegant expression of the variety.Alluring aromas of blackberry and barrel spice lead to ripe, full-bodied black-fruit flavors, showing beautiful depth and a long finish. It packs a hefty punch while never losing its sense of balance.Bright aromas of raspberry, cherry and orange peel are followed by full-throttle flavors that still display a sense of elegance. It shows some warmth on the finish.This pale strawberry colored wine is half Mourvedre and half Grenache. It shows a fair amount of volatility that distracts from its aromas. It drinks dry with full seeming flavors.This wine is made in a ripe forward style, with lightly volatile aromas of apple, plum and dark raspberries. Its full bodied and pulls no punches as generous red and black-fruit flavors with cocoa accents show some warmth on the finish.Vibrant aromas of pear and apple lead to a creamy, full-feeling palate. Its a strong example of the variety and style.Lime, slate and floral aromas lead to an off-dry palate, with generous amounts of stone-fruit flavors. Floral notes persist on the finish.Aroma of freshly cut red apple, raspberry and cherry are followed by sweet jammy red and black-fruit flavors. It goes down easily.Aromas of baked apple, spice and pear are followed by full-bodied almost unctuous fruit and barrel flavors. Baking spice flavors linger on the finish.A blend of Funk (60%) and Watermill vineyardsboth in The Rocks, this wine opens with brooding aromas of crushed flowers, plum, coffee, funk and tapenade, along with meaty undertones. The palate is soft and silky but full in feel, providing a lot of texture that keeps the interest high. The finish lingers.This wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (56%), Merlot (33%) and Cabernet Franc. Aromas of milk chocolate, cherry, herb and moist earth give way to soft supple palate-coating fruit and barrel flavors. It shows a lot of elegance and refinement.This variety is still a rarity in the state, with vineyard-designated offerings even more so. Aromas of cherry, mortared herb and mineral are followed by focused tightly wound black-fruit flavors that persist on the finish. It appears to show a bit more oak influence than the winery is typically known for but still delivers the goods.Aromas of cocoa, milk chocolate, spice and red berries are followed by tart luscious red-cherry and chocolate flavors. It shows a pleasing sense of balance.Aromas of clove, blackberry and dried fig lead to palate-staining cherry flavors. Lightly grainy tannins provide support, with the fruit seeming a bit dried out.Brooding aromas of herbs, dark cherries and flowers are followed by supple, polished dark-fruit flavors. Its a promising wine from this young growing region.The aromas are enticing, with notes of dark plum, clove and vanilla, with the latter becoming more prominent over time. The fruit and barrel flavors show a sense of poise and polish. The oak seems a bit heavy handed at times but theres plenty of delicious fruit underneath.Examples of this variety from this young growing region are quite rare. This one provides aromas of pencil lead, herb, vanilla and prune that are followed by a flavorful palate with the black-fruit flavors seeming slightly dried out.Fermented in stainless steel, this fresh vibrant wine brings aromas of green pepper, gooseberry and citrus. The just off-dry tropical-fruit flavors are light in style but show depth, lingering on the finish.Herb, baking spice and exotic spice aromas are followed by tart luscious cranberry and cherry flavors. It comes off as a bit oaky but it still brings a lot of appeal.The aromas are quite light for the variety, while the palate brings plush plump velvety cherry and cranberry flavors that linger and provide a lot of appeal. If the aromas open up it could go up a notch or two.Very varietal aromas of sour cherry and cranberry lead to a fruit-filled flavorful palate. Light oak accents linger on the finish. Its a very pleasing example of the variety.This is an aromatic wine, with scents of green melon candy, lime zest, white flowers and white peach. It drinks off dry, with stone-fruit flavors brightened by zippy acidity leading to a mouthwatering finish.
The BJP, which has been the biggest gainer (the party could not open its account in 2012 assembly polls) in these election has won 21. But what gives them a clear advantage is the fact that like-minded parties on which it depends for support.

By Indrajit Kundu: Despite coming out as the single largest party in Manipur, the odds are stacked heavily against the incumbent Congress in the state. With 28 seats, it is three short of the magic figure to get a simple majority.

The BJP, which has been the biggest gainer (the party could not open its account in 2012 assembly polls) in these election has won 21. But what gives them a clear advantage is the fact that like-minded parties on whom it is depending for support to form its maiden government in Manipur have done well too.

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Another factor that could weigh in its favour is the fact that it is in power at the Centre. Regional Naga Peoples Front (NPF) which is a constituent of the North East Democratic Alliance or NEDA (the north-east offshoot of the NDA) has won 4 seats.

Conrad Sagma's National Peoples Party too has 4. To add to the NDA basket, Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party too has won a seat in the Manipur assembly.

Thus, even though the BJP has 21, it hopes to get NPF(4), NPP(4) and LJP(1) onboard to close-in to the magic figure but falls short by a single seat.

"My calculation is that we will be able to have an understanding with other local parties," BJP's chief architect in the northeast Ram Madhav told India Today on Saturday.

"NPP and NPF have been with us in different states. Here the vote is primarily against the Congress and therefore they (smaller parties) must keep that in mind," he added. Madhav and Himanta Biswa Sarma, both of the BJP strategists for the borth-east are camping in Imphal at present.

On Saturday afternoon, even when the numbers were pouring in, they held a crucial meeting with NPP leader Conrad Sangma.

THE ROLE OF OTHERS

Given the circumstances, the role of "others", which include an Independent legislator from Jiribam and the lone Trinamool Congress MLA become extremely crucial.

Both BJP and Congress will have to woo these two MLA's to get the calculation right. Sources close to Congress suggest that the Independent legislator from Jiribam, a Muslim candidate is almost certain to support it.

In that case, the lone Trinamool Congress MLA from Thanga, T Robindro Singh may emerge to be the kingmaker. Singh is also the president of the Trinamool's Manipur unit currently.

BJP sources claim they have already opened channels with Singh for his support. Given the circumstances, the party clearly has an edge over Congress to form the next government in Manipur, its third in the region after Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. For now, all eyes will be on BJP veteran Najma Heptulla, who has recently been appointed the Governor of Manipur.

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Also Read | Manipur Election Results shocker: 90 votes for Irom Sharmila's 16 years of fast forces her to quit politics

Also watch | Assembly election results 2017: How counting day unfolded in Manipur

--- ENDS ---
Out of the 60 Assembly seats in Manipur, with 28 seats Congress has emerged as the leading party while BJP got 21 seats.

By India Today Web Desk: The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are both claiming victory in the Manipur Assembly election.

Out of the 60 Assembly seats, with 28 seats Congress has emerged as the leading party while BJP managed 21 seats.

The National People's Party and the Naga People's Front -- both got 4 seats each while All India Trinamool Congress and Lok Janshakti Party won one seat each.

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An Independent candidate too got lucky registering a win.

BJP spokesperson Nongthombam Biren was confident that despite the numerical superiority of the Congress, his party will form the next ministry and are "already working on it".

"People had voted against corruption and atrocities on civil population. We are thankful to the people for voting us so," he said.

After the defeat of the BJP chief ministerial candidate T. Chaoba, he said that the national leaders will select the leader.

Chief Minister Okram Ibobi said: "People have appreciated the developmental works of the last 15 years. They want peace, stability, progress and protection of territorial integrity".

Nimaichand Luwang of the BJP, who lost to T. Shyamkumar of the Congress, said: "Money power played a decisive role. Besides some cases, there were instances of criminalisation of politics."

The results of the assembly elections for five states, Manipur, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa and Uttarakhand, came out on Saturday.

With inputs from IANS

Also read:

Manipur Election Results shocker: 90 votes for Irom Sharmila's 16 years of fast forces her to quit politics

Manipur Election Results 2017: All you need to know

WATCH THE VIDEO:

--- ENDS ---
A History of Education in The Bahamas Between the Pre-Emancipation Period 1734-1834

The Post-Emancipation and Modern Periods 1835-1947

Dr. Donald M McCartney, DM

Part II

Education in the Pre-Emancipation Period  1734 -1834

The period 1734-1834 was seen as the earliest attempts at establishing an educational system.

The Bahamas became a Crown Colony in 1717. Before The Bahamas became a Crown Colony, there was no (real) interest in education. It was during the period 1734-1834 that some interest in education had its genesis. During this period, education was left, for the most part, to the philanthropic bodies.

Those who took up teaching did so because they were not suited to do anything else. (In some instances, this is still the case today in the field of education.) Education of the young was spasmodic at best. Governments responsibility was relegated to the provision of teachers salaries and even this was fraught with uncertainty.

The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (S.P.G.) opened the first organized school in 1739, twenty-two years after The Bahamas became a Crown Colony and seven years before the passage of the first Education Act in 1746. The SPG was a Church of England sponsored missionary organization active in the British Atlantic world during the 18th and 19th centuries. The SPG was founded in 1701 by Reverend Thomas Bray and a small group of lay and clerical associates; it sent Anglican clergymen and religious literature to Britains colonies; supported schoolmasters and the establishment of new churches; and lobbied for a more expansive role for the Church of England in Britains burgeoning empire.

The SPG focused its attention on those British colonies that were without strong Anglican legal establishments. As a result, while its role in the Chesapeake and most Caribbean colonies was minimal, the S.P.G. was continuously active in the lower South, the mid-Atlantic, New England, Bermuda, Barbados, and The Bahamas. Although the S.P.G. established the school, the non-payment of teachers salaries prevented the continuity of the operation of the school. There were three jurisdictions (islands) that made up The Bahamas during this period: New Providence, Eleuthera, and Harbour Island.

However, the focus of the limited provision of education was the island of New Providence. Boys were the only ones who initially attended school. Shortly after the establishment of a school for boys, two schools for girls were soon established.

As alluded to earlier, the first Education Act of The Bahamas was passed in 1746. In order to fund education (to build a house presumably for the headmaster and the payment of the headmasters salary), the Education Act of 1746 mandated that taxes be levied at the rate of one shilling and sixpence (equivalent to 50 cents) for White men, Mustees, Mulattoes, Indian, Negro (black) men, or women between the ages of 16 and 60 of years (Pegg, 1947).

The headmaster was mandated to instruct and teach reading, writing (riting), and Arithmetic (rithmethic). If it became necessary, the headmaster would be required to teach Latin and Navigation. Despite the passage of the Education Act of 1746, there were no attempts made to organize the education system. Schooling was seen as a luxury because the provision of the necessities of life was deemed to be more important.

The poor children were to receive a free education; all others were made to pay a fee, of nine pence per week for attending the school. The schoolmaster was to be licensed by the Governor. The first appointee as schoolmaster and pastor of the church was the Reverend Robert

Carter of the S.P.G. He served in these posts between 1749 and 1765.

The school was known as the Free School and was located in New Guinea (now known as Fox Hill), a settlement that was five miles from the City of Nassau. The school population, under Reverend Carters administration, consisted of 36 boys, two of whom were black boys. The inclusion of the black boys, at this time, was integration at its finest given the fact that slavery was not yet abolished. Both of the (black) boys were baptized.

Perhaps, the fact that they were baptized was their redeeming grace that allowed them to be included among those who were allowed to receive an education.

The state of education in Harbour Island was so appalling that Reverend Carter dispatched his mother to keep school. Reverend Carters mother contracted a fever and died.

Between 1749 and 1765, the population of New Providence consisted of 178 families. Harbour Island numbered 203 white men, women, and children, and that of Eleuthera was 315 white persons. It must be noted that people of colour were not included in the population count.

The school population on the islands of New Providence, Eleuthera, and Harbour Island was increasing. For example, the number of families on New Providence had almost doubled in fifteen years. A new Education Act was introduced by way of A Bill in the House Assembly in 1770 to establish schools in what was then known as the Out Islands (Eleuthera and Harbour Island) and in New Providence. By the year 1770, there were two mens schools and five womens schools in New Providence.

Before the Act of 1770 became law, a disagreement ensued between the Governor in Council and the House of Assembly over the provision of funding for the establishment of the new schools (The Senate, in the modern Bahamas, has replaced the Governor in Council.). The provisions of Education Act of 1746 had occasioned the dissension.

The Act (1746) had made provisions for the payment of a Poll Tax of one shilling and sixpence (50 cents) to assist with the operation of the schools. The Council and the House of Assembly could not agree on the implementation of the Poll Tax. As a consequence of this dissension, the Governor dissolved the House of Assembly.

The same House was re-elected, and the dissension continued for a further period of two years. It was not until 1772 that the dissension was resolved and the Bill was assented to by the Governor This Bill became the Education Act of 1772, which, in addition to providing for the opening of a school in the Eastern District of New Providence (Nassau) and one each on the islands of Eleuthera and Harbour Island. The schools in Eleuthera (Wreck Sound now Rock Sound and Savannah Sound) and Harbour Island were operated and managed by governors or School Commissioners, who were provided for by the Act of 1772.

The Act of 1772 continued to be the basis of education for the next seventeen years without any substantial amendment. Ministers of religion were appointed as commissioners of schools within their churches. Schoolmasters were under the supervision of the S.P.G. to whom they were required to submit yearly reports. The curriculum was simple; it provided for the teaching of reading, (w)riting, and (a)rithmetic (known as the three Rs). As noted earlier, where necessary, students were taught navigation and merchant accounts was added to the subjects offered.

Provisions were made for 10-15 poor children to be admitted to the schools free of charge and received their books, pens, ink, and slates. There were no attempts made to regulate teachers qualifications. However, each teacher was required to be licensed by the Governor. The schools in Eleuthera and Harbour Island did not open until 1790, when legislation authorizing their establishment, was passed in the House of Assembly.

Presumably, the only other school or schools, before the Act of 1772, were in the Western District of New Providence. Young people (presumably white) could not hold down jobs in the Public Service because of the inability of the education system to provide schools. Therefore, the additional schools were established to give the young people an opportunity to receive an education. The fee for attending the school was nine pence per week.

The achievement of Majority Rule, like other events in The Bahamas, had its roots in occurrences and events outside The Bahamas. These external events and occurrences have impacted the history of The Bahamas negatively and positively.

The American War of Independence had an impact on the development of education in The Bahamas. The Peace of Paris of 1783 was the set of treaties which ended the American Revolutionary War. On 3 September 1783, representatives of King George III of Great Britain signed a treaty in Paris with representatives of the United States of Americacommonly known as the Treaty of Paris (1783)and two treaties at Versailles with representatives of King Louis XVI of France and King Charles III of Spaincommonly known as the Treaties of Versailles (1783).

At the Treaty of Versailles in 1783, Britain exchanged Florida for the Bahamas. Britain offered approximately eight thousand displaced American Loyalists (who also had few other options) vacant land grants throughout the Bahamas. Later another sixteen hundred followed them there after they had tasted anarchy in the new USA. The Loyalists settled in Abaco at New Plymouth on Green Turtle Cay, Man-o-War Cay and Hope Town on Elbow Cay. The Loyalists also settled on Harbour Island, Spanish Wells, Eleuthera, and George Town Exuma.

I invite you to read the novel The Wind from the Carolinas. The book is fictionally based but it is historically correct. It follows several generations of a British Loyalist family from Charleston, SC, immediately following the American Revolution. England offered land in the Bahamas so they packed up the plantation and shipped it to the islands where it failed spectacularly.

Bear in mind that The Bahamas was considered a Crown Colony from the year 1717. However, Britain needed a place of refuge for those persons who were in the country (USA).

The coming of the Loyalists influenced the attention paid to the establishment of schools and the development of education in The Bahamas. As a result, the government paid more attention to schools and how they were operated. Among the many influences that were brought to bear on the operation of schools in The Bahamas with the advent of the Loyalists were (1) the central supervision of schools and (2) the creation of standards for teachers qualifications.

The Education Act of 1804 made provisions for the establishment of a high school (though it was short lived). When the Loyalists came to The Bahamas, they were accompanied by their slaves. These slaves along with the slaves that were already in The Bahamas, except for a selected few children of free blacks who were allowed to attend school, received no educational benefit from the educational developments.

In 1821, by an Act of Parliament, the Central School concept was introduced. The school became known as the Central School of The Bahamas. The school was conducted using the Madras or the Dr. Bells system of education (Pegg, 1947, p. 143).

In the Madras, or monitorial system as it later came to be known, a schoolmaster would teach a small group of brighter or older pupils basic lessons, and each of them would then relate the lesson to another group of children

The Act of 1821 gave full authority to the Anglican Church to operate the Central School and all government schools in the colony. The Central School replaced three schools that were maintained by law before 1821. The control of the schools, exercised by the Anglican Church, included all matters relating to the curriculum, conduct, assessment, payment of salaries, the examination of accounts, the appointment and suspension of teachers, the appointment of Visitors for out island schools, the selection importation and distribution of books, and the selection of poor children for admission as free scholars (Pegg, 1947, p. 143).

According to Pegg (1947), it was the intervention of the Baptist, Methodists, a few forward thinking slave masters, and enlightened citizens that a few converted slaves were given the opportunity to receive an elementary education (pp. 133-135). It must be understood that slavery had not yet been abolished in the colonies of Great Britain. Therefore, the future of the Blacks, insofar as educational and social inclusion, was not yet fully considered. In Britain, the cause of the abolitionist movement was taken up by William Wilberforce, who started the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade in 1787.

The Anglican Churchs control of schools was based on the notion of one school in each of the islands. The islands of note were New Providence, Eleuthera, and Harbour Island (Pegg, 1947). Two additional schools were provided for the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The Turks and Caicos Islands were annexed to The Bahamas in 1804, and the annexation continued until 1848 (McCartney, 2004). There was already a school in the Turks and Caicos Islands. The second school was on the island of Abaco.

Following the Act of 1821, the Act of 1822 was enacted because it was felt that the previous act was insufficient to meet the needs of education in The Bahamas. The new Act gave authority to the Commissioners to expand the school system by establishing more schools without restriction on numbers. Under the Act of 1822, the salaries of teachers were increased from one hundred pounds to four hundred pounds per annum. Despite the involvement of the Anglican Church, Blacks were not included fully in the educational system such as it was at the time.

Before the emancipation period, there were groups of missionaries who were known as nonconformists. These nonconformists offered elementary instructions to the slaves. However, the efforts at educating the slaves were relegated to the instruction given at Sunday School.

The instruction given at day schools was reserved for the children of slaves who served at the behest of their owners. These children were referred to as free Negroes. The Methodist established Day schools, but they were primarily for white children and freed black people. By 1834, a day school was established in Eleuthera.

In 1829, Sir James Carmichael Smyth, after whom Carmichael Village is named, was appointed governor. Governor Carmichael Smyth served until 1833. His appointment was significant if no other reason than his persistent efforts on behalf of the slaves in the colony. As a consequence of his interest, on behalf of the slaves, he earned the opposition of the House of Assembly. In the feud between Governor Smith and the House of Assembly, there was blame on both sides. Governor Smyth, subsequently, dissolved the House of Assembly and governed The Bahamas by fiat.

During his term, the Governor established schools in Adelaide and Carmichael. Adelaide and Carmichael were experimental settlements where liberated Africans lived. The expenses for the establishment of the two schools and the provision of supplies came from Crown Funds and a contribution from the Bishop of Jamaica. These funds were under the control of the School Commissioners who refused to release the funds. Since Governor Smith was the Chancellor of The Bahamas, he was able to force the Commissioners to release the funds. Interestingly enough, the Commissioners were the rectors and wardens of Christchurch, now Christ Church Cathedral, and St. Matthews Parishes (Peggs, 1947).

Governor Smyths efforts did not progress beyond the two schools at Adelaide and Carmichael. However, Governor Smyths success, if there were any, lies in the fact that his efforts were of historical importance because he attempted to educate an enslaved people before emancipation (Pegg, 1947). The House of Assemblys response to Westminster, regarding the education of the freed slaves, was not pleasing to Governor Smyth.

Unfortunately, Governor Smith success, the establishment of schools, was never achieved because of his failure to establish as working relationship with the House of Assembly. His failure to have a working relationship with the House of Assembly did not allow funds, for the operation of the schools, to be made available.

It was not until The Slave Trade Act was passed by the British Parliament on 25 March 1807, making the slave trade illegal throughout the British Empire. After the 1807 Act, slaves could still be held, though not sold, within the British Empire. The Reform Act of 1832, along with the efforts of William Wilberforce gave rise to the strengthening of efforts to abolish slavery.

The passage of the Reform Act of 1833 gave impetus to the passage of the Slavery Abolition Act, which received Royal Assent and paved the way for the abolition of slavery in the British Empire and its colonies. In1834 (1 August), all slaves in the British Empire were emancipated, but they were indentured to their former owners in an apprenticeship system that meant gradual abolition. The first set of apprenticeships, in The Bahamas, came to an end on 1 August 1838, while the final apprenticeships, in the other British jurisdictions, were scheduled to cease on 1 August 1840, two years later.

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By Sen. Danny Carroll

Mar. 10, 2017 | PADUCAH, KY

By Sen. Danny Carroll Mar. 10, 2017 | 11:53 PM | PADUCAH, KY

A flurry of activity stemming from committee meetings and the passage of bills marked a short but intense Week 6 of the Kentucky General Assembly. Although the Senate was only in session from Monday to Wednesday of this week, committee meetings still met during the later part of the week to give final hearings to a few select bills. I am also happy to report that Senate Bill 11, also known as "The Leeper Act," passed through committee and will now go before the full House.



Quite a few pieces of legislation have already made it to Governor Bevin's desk to await his signature. Senate Bill 17, relating to student rights to political and religious speech, was given final passage by the House this week. Senate Bill 101 would allow pharmacists to administer any immunization to children, and Senate Bill 117, allowing veterans who meet certain criteria to obtain special teaching certificates, were also finally passed by the House. Senate Bill 50 also passed the House and would give schools more flexibility in choosing their start date to allow for longer summer breaks.



The Senate also enrolled House bills to be sent to the Governor's desk for his signature, including: House Bill 14, which makes committing an offense against a first responder a hate crime; House Bill 93, strengthening penalties for assaulting a law enforcement animal, also known as "Ernie's Law"; and House Bill 189, increasing transparency within area development districts.



We also passed several bills that are now one step closer to becoming law. Senate Bill 215 establishes the Kentucky Coal Fields Endowment Fund to be used for the purpose of supporting efforts to diversify the economy of the coal fields within Kentucky and allocates $7.5 million a year toward those efforts. House Bill 222 prohibits shock probation if a person is convicted of second-degree manslaughter or reckless homicide stemming from driving under the influence. House Bill 67 limits lawful distribution of autopsy photographs, images, video, or audio recordings to specified persons and agencies to help protect families' privacy. House Bill 100, removing regulatory overreach on our growing bourbon industry, allows distillers to sell "vintage distilled spirits," as defined in statute, at fairs, festivals, and similar events.



The General Assembly is now quickly approaching the end of the 2017 Session. We adjourned on March 8, marking day 26 of 30 of the session, and we will reconvene again on March 14 and 15 before going into the veto period. During that period the Governor has the power to veto bills, but the General Assembly can override vetoes on the last two days of session, March 29 and 30. If you have questions about the status of bills, please feel free to contact my office or review the Legislative Record online which can be found at www.lrc.ky.gov/record/17RS/record.htm.



If you have any questions or comments about these issues or any other public policy issue, please call me toll-free at 1-800-372-7181 or email me at danny.carroll@lrc.ky.gov. You can also review the Legislature's work online at www.lrc.ky.gov.





Senator Danny Carroll (R-Paducah) represents the 2nd District encompassing Ballard, Carlisle, Marshall and McCracken counties. Senator Carroll serves as the chairman of the Budget Review Subcommittee on General Government, as well as the co-chair of the Program Review and Investigations Committee. He also serves as a member of the Appropriations and Revenue Committee, the Education Committee, the Budget Review Subcommittee on Education, the Health and Welfare Committee, the Judiciary Committee, and the Government Nonprofit Contracting Task Force.
By West Kentucky Star Staff Mar. 10, 2017 | 11:20 PM | ULLIN, IL





Shawnee Community College officially released the names of four candidates to be interviewed for the college president position.The Presidential Search Committee, with approval of Shawnee Community Colleges Board of Trustees, selected Brian Chapman, Brian Van Horn, Peggy Bradford, and Deborah Garrett as the candidates to be interviewed for the college president position.Interviews begin on Monday, March 13th with candidate Brian Chapman. An open forum for SCC students, alumni, and residents of the college district will be held on March 13th at 1:00pm in the River Room at Shawnee Community Colleges Main Campus in Ullin. The public is welcome to attend.The interview dates for all presidential search candidates are listed below:March 13th, 2017: Brian ChapmanMarch 15th, 2017: Brian Van HornApril 17th, 2017: Peggy BradfordApril 19th, 2017: Deborah GarrettSimilar to the first candidate's schedule, an open forum for students, alumni, and residents of the college district will be held the same day as each candidates interview at 1:00 pm in the River Room at SSC's Campus in Ullin.Brian Chapman currently serves as the Executive Director for Regional and Intergovernmental Affairs at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. He earned his Ph.D. in Political Science, Master of Public Administration, and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science all from SIU in Carbondale. With over two decades of experience at SIU, Chapmans previous positions include, Special Assistant to the President/Director of Special Projects (2006 to 2014), Assistant Vice Chancellor (1999-2006), and Director of Development (1995-1999). He currently serves on the Center for Rural Health and Social Services Development Advisory Board (Chair), Carbondale Business Development Committee, and the Carnegie Campus/Community Engagement Committee.Brian Van Horn currently serves as Associate Provost and Dean of Regional Academic Outreach at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky. Van Horn helped establish public partnerships with local leaders for Murray State Universitys Paducah Regional Campus. He earned his Ed.D. in Education from the University of Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee, and his Master of Public Administration and Bachelor of Science from Murray State University. His previous positions at Murray State University include: Director of MSU Paducah Regional Campus (1998-2008) and Assistant Dean of Regional Academic Outreach (2001-2008). Van Horn currently serves on the Association for Continuing Higher Education (ACHE) Administration Advisory Council to the International Headquarters, Paducah Economic Development Council Board, Paducah Area Chamber of Commerce Board, and West Kentucky Workforce Investment Board of Directors.Additional information for the remaining presidential candidates will be forthcoming.
Astros take World Series title over Phillies in six games
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Mar. 11, 2017 | WESTERN KENTUCKY

By West Kentucky Star Staff Mar. 11, 2017 | 09:22 AM | WESTERN KENTUCKY

Yes, it's technically still winter, and some snow plows have gone to work in western Kentucky.



A line of sometimes heavy snow showers moved across the lower and western counties of Kentucky Saturday morning.



According to Keith Todd with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, road surface temperatures are still pretty warm because of sunshine and warm temperatures over the last couple of days, so most snow has melted. However, some elevated surfaces like bridges and overpasses have had more significant temperature drops. In fact, snow volume has been significant enough in some areas to allow plowing.



Crews in Hickman, Fulton, and Graves counties have trucks out plowing and paroling. Calloway County has 2 trucks out spot treading and plowing, and Trigg County has workers checking conditions and prepared to respond if needed.



While weather radar indicates the most significant bands of snow are moving out of the district, crews plan to continue plowing and treating as necessary while doing continuing evaluations on an hourly basis.
A disheartened Sharmila was quick to announce her decision to quit politics but said she will continue her fight against AFSPA. She said she is fed up of the political system and will never fight elections again in life.

By India Today Web Desk: Famous civil rights activist Irom Sharmila, who plunged into politics last year after ending her world's longest hunger strike which ran for 16 years, proved to be a disaster in Manipur elections after the results were announced on Saturday.

Shockingly only a handful of 90 people voted in her favour from Thoubal constituency while her main opponent and Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh got 18,649 votes.

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Even the NOTA (None of the Above) option got 143 votes, much more than what the iconic activist who made international headlines last year got on her debut.

The real threat to Singh was BJP whose candidate Leitanthem Basanta Singh polled 8179 votes. Sharmila, on the other hand, had openly announced last year that she wants to become the chief minister of Manipur to achieve her goal of repealing AFSPA.

END OF ROAD FOR SHARMILA?

A disheartened Sharmila was quick to announce her decision to quit politics but said she will continue her fight against AFSPA. She said she is fed up of the political system and will never fight elections again in life.

"But I will continue my fight against AFSPA until and unless it is repealed. I will fight as a social activist," she said.

Her party PRJA (Peoples' Resurgence and Justice Alliance) had put up candidates for three seats and had got support from the Left Democratic Front (LDF) comprising six parties including CPI, CPIM, JDU and AAP. The other two candidates also lost badly and even lost their deposit.

"We have lost a battle in the long war, but we have started the fire, initiated a movement which will continue. Thanks all for the support," PRJA said on Twitter.

WHAT WENT WRONG?

The Meira Paibis (women activists) who had been Sharmila's backbone during her agitation against the 'draconian' Armed Forces Special Powers Act went against her once she announced entry into politics.

Even during campaigning, Sharmila looked alone with a bicycle and a whistle (party's symbol).

Her dharna against AFSPA had made her famous throughout the state as an activist even before she got into politics.

In the recent years her romantic relationship with Desmond Coutinho, a Goa-born British citizen, had not got down well with her supporters.

Recently she had to even apologise for her boyfriend's misbehaviour with her supporters but also announced to get married once the elections are over.

Also read:

Can Irom Sharmila do in Manipur what Arvind Kejriwal did in Delhi? 8 traits the two leaders share

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LIVE Manipur Election Results 2017: CM Ibobi Singh wins, Irom Sharmila out with 90 votes

Watch:

Assembly Election Results 2017: Shiv Aroor decodes BJP's unprecedented victory and impacts of election

--- ENDS ---
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By West Kentucky Star Staff/The Associated Press

Mar. 10, 2017 | HICKMAN, KY

By West Kentucky Star Staff/The Associated Press Mar. 10, 2017 | 06:17 PM | HICKMAN, KY

The National Weather Service says two tornadoes apparently hit Hickman Thursday night, causing significant damage there.



Meteorologist Jim Packett in Paducah says officials surveyed damage in Fulton County on Friday. The preliminary findings are that the area had an EF-1 tornado and an EF-2 tornado, as well as straight line winds Thursday night.



The EF1 with wind speeds up to 110 mph began around Levee Road and traveled about 6 miles southeast to the area of Highway 94/Joe Parker Road. The EF2 with wind speeds up to 125 mph began around Cedar Street/Park Street and traveled about 9 miles southeast to the area of Mount Zion/Armstrong Road, east of Union Mills, Tennessee.



National Weather Service officials were set to continue surveying damage to the northwest and into Tennessee on Saturday.



Kentucky State Police say the Kentucky Office of Emergency Management is continuing their assessment. So far it has discovered damage to approximately 25 homes and 5 businesses. They have also noted damage to 30-40 headstones in the city cemetery. Damage along the EF1 tornado path was mainly to farm buildings and crops and is described as widespread. Damage along the EF2 tornado path was significant with at least one residence completely destroyed.



Hickman Electric is still in the process of restoring electricity to customers, with the majority completed.



Police say the number of displaced residents of Hickman City/Fulton County has been minimal, due to the close-knit community helping each other.



The American Red Cross Shelter was closed Friday night due to lack of need. An assessment will be made by Fulton County Emergency Management tonight, with regard to the weather and if people are still without power.



All roads have been reopened and are expected to remain open. There are no gas stations open in the City of Hickman, and may not be open until the latter part of the week, so people entering the area should plan accordingly.



State Police say Hickman Citys Waste Lift Station has returned to full function, and contractors are currently in the process of returning the Fulton County Jail/Dispatch Center to full functional status.



Donation and Volunteer Services are being coordinated by West Hickman Baptist Church on South 7th Street.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Mar. 10, 2017 | SAINT PAUL, MN

By West Kentucky Star Staff Mar. 10, 2017 | 05:53 PM | SAINT PAUL, MN

A national retail outdoor chain with a location in Paducah has filed for bankruptcy.



Gander Mountain Company announced Friday that it has filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Code. The decision to file was reportedly made to maximize the opportunity to achieve a sale of its business, according to a company news release.



Company officials said the action is the result of an in-depth review of the companys strategic options. The company cited a shift in retail traffic patterns and changes in consumer demand resulting from increased growth of e-commerce as a driving factor behind the move.



"Despite aggressive actions to improve the efficiency of the companys retail operations and support functions, the underlying financial impact from underperforming stores and unproductive, excess inventory hampered efforts to create a sustainable path forward." said Ewald Consulting Director of Media and Public Relations Jess Myers.



The company says it is in active discussions with several parties interested in a going-concern sale, and expects to solicit bids prior to an auction to be held in late April 2017. The company expects to submit the winning bid to the Court for approval in early May and anticipates a closing of the sale by May 15.



As part of a restructuring plan, 32 underperforming retail locations will begin a shutdown process in the next several weeks. A company representative told West Kentucky Star that Paducah's location is not one of the stores being closed.



Gander Mountain is the nations largest outdoor retail network, with stores across 26 states.
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Rufus Norris has been quite explicit that he would be failing in his responsibility as artistic director of the National Theatre if he did not attempt to deal with the biggest change in Britain in a generation  the vote to leave the European Union. He has also been quite clear that the play he commissioned had to start by listening to the people of Britain  and had to end up being an effective piece of theatre. It sounded like a circle that could not be squared but in the end My Country is a far better work than we had any reason to expect.

It may not offer much in the way of revelation, but it is compassionate, funny and insightful. For that much of the credit most go to Norris's collaborator, the poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, who has shaped random interviews gathered from around the country into a coherent and highly effective whole.

Her conceit is that Britannia has convened a meeting of some of her constituent parts - Caledonia, Cymru, South-West, North-East, Northern Ireland, East Midlands  in order to discuss the significance of the Brexit vote. Her plea is that the representatives of the "spirits and hearts" of the land, will listen to what is being said; the audience are involved as witnesses to the words.

If it all sounds a bit grave, the flair of Norris's deft and fleet-footed production is revealed from the moment that Britannia marches in, her plumed helmet poking out of the top of her shopping bag, and starts rearranging a bland conference room while switching the sound system through a selection of the national airs.

Each area is represented by a single actor, who in turn provides the many, varied voices of the region, speaking them verbatim, with all their natural hesitations and emphasis. Britannia herself mimics the politicians and leaders, including an uncanny blustering Boris and a splayed-legged Farage.

As the evening unfolds, familiar themes emerge, grouped by Duffy into clearly delineated sections; the EU, patriotism, hardship. Over and over again the sense that Britain has changed irreversibly for the worse is heard: in the voice of a shepherd who can no longer care properly for her flock as well as the woman who doesn't see anyone like her among her neighbours. The sense of injustice  of the Somali refugee who is given luxurious accommodation while the hard-working Midlander is not afforded any help  runs alongside other voices that are ashamed of our new attitude to refugees. The text is even-handed.

Duffy herself intervenes to reveal Britannia's weariness, and to carve a central section of celebration of difference  a feast where each constituent part of the land offers its own produce, its own dances, celebrates itself as part of a whole.

The play is often very funny, always very warm. The voices are gently treated, allowing the multiplicity of Britishness to fill the stage, encouraging empathy and a willingness to understand. By the close, when Katrina Lindsay's set fills with yellow light as a new, different Britain dawns after the vote, there is a plea for good leadership, but not much more. This is a night for reflection rather than a call to arms.

The journey is interesting, however, and it is a pleasure to take it in the company of actors as good as Seema Bowri, Cavan Clarke, Laura Elphinstone, Adam Ewan, Penny Layden, Stuart McQuarrie and Christian Patterson who fill a small space with the whole of the disunited kingdom.

My Country: A Work in Progress runs at the National Theatre until 22 March before touring the UK.
By Press Trust of India: Hyderabad, Mar 11 (PTI) A bill aimed at providing reservation to backward sections among Muslims would be passed in the ongoing Budget session of Telangana Legislative Assembly, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said here today.

"The bill would be passed in the Budget session, which would conclude this month end, after which the government would urge the Centre to take steps for its implementation as happened in the case of Tamil Nadu," Rao said in the Legislative Assembly.

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Rao, who did not announce the details of the proposed bill, said the state government would urge the Centre to include it in the 9th Schedule of the Constitution (as in the case of Tamil Nadu).

This inclusion is required in view of the 50 per cent cap on the percentage of reservations.

The bill would be made in the light of reports of commissions, appointed by the state government on Muslims, backward classes and others, Rao said.

The TRS governments proposal had evoked a sharp response from the BJP, which took exception to provision of reservation on communal basis.

The state government, however, had clarified that the reservation is proposed not on the basis of religion, but for the upliftment of backward sections among Muslims.

Rao was speaking on the Motion on Address by the Governor.

He hit out at Congress, BJP and other Opposition parties, who staged a walkout in the House earlier in the day in protest against the suspension of two TDP members for allegedly interrupting the Governors address to the joint sitting of the legislature yesterday.

The CM said he would quit "in five minutes" if any exaggerations or untruths were found in the Governors address.

Charging that the Opposition parties were making baseless allegations against the TRS government and also stalling development, he said the government would take steps, including legal, to take tough action against those who will fail to prove their allegations.

In his comprehensive reply, he spoke on a number of schemes and initiatives of the government, including the resolve to provide one lakh government jobs by 2019. PTI SJR ARS NP BAS

--- ENDS ---
Fujifilm has announced that during the course of 2016, an unprecedented number of European printers from the UK to Poland, and from Spain to Croatia, transformed their businesses by investing in the ultimate industrial flatbed, the Onset X.



drupa 2016 contributed to the number of companies investing in the platform, as it took pride of place in the wide format section of the Fujifilm stand. On-stand sales to German screen printer Bachmann GmBH and to leading UK POS and POP printers, Kolorcraft Group and Augustus Martin, were among those announced at the show. Footfall across the stand was heavy throughout the exhibition, and the Onset X was a major draw for media and customers alike.

Bachmanns CEO, Pascal Bachmann, is clear on the benefits he sees this platform providing: "With the Onset X3, we feel that the Fujifilm-Inca Digital partnership has taken both productivity and quality to another level altogether, he says. Aside from the increase in quality weve seen since the installation, the biggest difference we (and our customers) have noticed is just how quickly we can turn jobs around. I would go so far as to say that I think the Onset X3 is unmatched as a large format machine with the ability to handle both flexible and rigid substrates.

The Onset X1

Modern print companies need to revolutionise to survive, Bachmann continues. There can be no complacency. No one can say for sure what the future holds, but what is certain is that those with the most flexibility, adaptability and creativity will thrive. With the Onset X3 and our growing partnership with Fujifilm, we think we have given ourselves the best possible platform to deliver on all of these essential requirements.

Augustus Martin made its decision to invest in two Onset X2 machines and an X3 as a result of its extensive experience with Inca platforms over many years and across a range of models. Weve found the quality and reliability of the Inca platform and the Fujifilm Dimatix inkjet system to be exceptional says founder and Joint Managing Director, Lascelle Barrow. The new Onset X series has preserved all the rich hallmarks of its well-earned reputation, while dramatically increasing production capacity  making this investment a relatively easy decision in the end.

At either end of the year, two European corrugated packaging specialists  Grupondunova in Spain and ProDigital in Croatia  invested in Onset X1 machines, citing the quality, productivity and scalability of the platform as their reasons for investing.

We wanted to be sure we had the fastest machine on the market, but we were not prepared to compromise on quality to get there, says ProDigital CEO Denis Cigir. Having spent more than a year exploring options, including upgrading the companys existing digital press, Cigir came to the conclusion that the production speed and capabilities of the Onset X platform could not be matched by anything else currently on the market. He concludes: We know that when we do reach a stage at which we need to increase our production speed, we can do so very easily and cost-effectively by scaling up our existing platform to achieve speeds of up to 900m2/hr.

Grupondunovas Director General Jordi Carrio also had the long-term future in mind when making the investment: The digital packaging world is still in its infancy, he explains. So it was very important for us to find a supplier with the ability and willingness to evolve with us. We were looking for a long-term partner rather than just a supplier and we felt that Fujifilm was ideally suited to that role. Having identified a trend towards customisation and specialised low-volume packaging, we had recently established a new digital packaging business called

The Onset X3

Wondu, which we had tasked with taking advantage of the increased opportunities in this exciting market. A lengthy period of trials and testing convinced us that the Onset X printer should sit at the heart of this new business proposition, as it has the performance, quality and speed to ensure we deliver on our promise to our customers."

The Onset X platform opens the door for short run package printing, sampling and prototyping at high levels of quality that are proving hugely attractive to the corrugated packaging sector. But whether for packaging, or large format displays, the Onset X series prints onto a wide variety of rigid and flexible materials and produces stunning images for everything from everyday signage to the highest quality backlit displays for demanding markets such as cosmetics and luxury consumer goods. The platforms Scalable Architecture design gives customers a future-proof investment, built to allow printhead configurations to change and grow without having to change other parts of the machine. At the upper end, the Onset X3 prints at a blistering 900m2 per hour.

Tudor Morgan, Sign & Display Segment Manager, Fujifilm Europe concludes: The evidence we have seen over the past year is that printers are thinking carefully about their long-term future and investing accordingly. In addition to the scalability benefits, Onset X platforms are extremely robust and retain their residual value remarkably well, even years down the line. So in addition to the immediate benefits customers are seeing in increased productivity and quality, the Onset X is an investment that is setting them up for the future.

Fujifilm Australia

www.fujifilm.com.au
By Press Trust of India: Mumbai, Mar 11 (PTI) Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis today ruled out the possibility of any mid-term poll in the state, putting to rest the speculations that the BJP may go for it to part ways with its "troublesome" ally Shiv Sena.

Fadnavis asserted that BJPs massive win in Uttar Pradesh reflected the mood of the nation, but, at the same time, he ruled out the possibility of a mid-term poll in Maharashtra.

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"There is no denying the fact that the Uttar Pradesh results reflect the mood of the nation. There is, however, no possibility of a mid-term poll in Maharashtra," Fadnavis told reporters.

Asked about Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Rauts comment regarding the Ram temple construction, Fadnavis said, "Ram mandir construction will not start just because Raut says so."

"Ram Mandir was always on the BJP agenda. A huge Ram Mandir is on cards," Fadnavis said.

On the deadlock in assembly over the demand for loan waiver to farmers, Fadnavis said his government was never against it but wanted that the waiver should benefit farmers and not the banks.

"The 2008 loan waiver helped only the banks. Farmer suicides continued unabated in 2008, 2009 and 2012. We want to ensure that farmers stand to benefit and they get good price for their produce.

"My government is not opposed to the farm loan waiver. Our priority is to ensure that they are benefitted," Fadnavis said.

He said the todays poll results make it clear that people of India have accepted Prime Minister Narendra Modis pro-poor agenda.

"The win is a reflection of peoples trust in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah who strategised the entire campaign in Uttar Pradesh," Fadnavis said.

"This is the mandate for corruption-free and transparent India which is the dream of the Prime Minister. Those who criticised demonetisation should understand that people of this country supported the move because they feel the Prime Minister is constantly fighting corruption," he said. PTI MR RMT RAX

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: London, Mar 11 (PTI) Actress Pamela Anderson says she is "flattered" by rumours that she is dating Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

The pair has been romantically linked after the actress, 49, and the activist were seen visiting the Ecuadorian Embassy in London on multiple occasions.

"I met Julian through Vivienne Westwood. We mixed up our dates - I ended up at the embassy on the wrong day but was able to meet with Julian privately. I asked him how he thought I could be more effective as an activist.

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"We came up with tenure to support relentless activism - giving activists tenure and cover basic needs so that they continue their great work while being able to provide for themselves and their families wherever they may be in the world," Anderson wrote on her official website.

The "Baywatch" star says she feels a "genuine closeness" to Assange.

"I have had more stimulating conversation with this man than all my ex-husbands and lovers combined. Our intentions were not to become romantic, but to join forces. The rumours are flattering. If I had to choose a World Leader to stand beside and support whole heartedly it would be Julian Assange." PTI SSN BK

--- ENDS ---
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 10/03/2017 (2068 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitobas highest court has slammed unacceptable delays in child-protection cases, ordering speedier hearings for children who have been taken into foster care even though their parents want them back.

In a written decision released this week, Manitobas Court of Appeal ruled child-protection hearings should be expedited after two parents had to wait more than a year to challenge a six-month temporary guardianship order from Child and Family Services (CFS). Their child was apprehended at birth on Dec. 18, 2015, on a six-month guardianship order.

The trial date for the parents to dispute the order was set for Jan. 30, 2017  half a year after the temporary guardianship would have expired. The inherent absurdity in that timeline was pointed out by a family court judge, and the Court of Appeal agreed.

PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Chief Justice Glenn Joyal

Delay in child-protection proceedings is a very important public issue with significant implications beyond this case, the decision said. The court upheld a family court decision that said the parents charter rights had been violated by the long delay.

Court of Queens Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal said Friday the decision means Manitoba courts must put the needs of children in care above other family law cases.

He said the appeal courts decision has the same implications for family court as a recent Supreme Court decision  known as R. vs. Jordan  had for criminal courts: long delays wont be tolerated.

This really is a welcome pronouncement, Joyal said. It validates the need for the very model that were now putting in place. Its going to be tinkered with and its going to be improved with input and consultation, but this is the very reason we have this model in place.

The new scheduling system in family court, which began last week, has stricter deadlines for each stage of the process. The goal is to have all cases completed within three to six months of a child being apprehended, Joyal said, and clear the backlog of cases.

In the past, the court had been willing to wait for parents to undergo treatment before reaching decisions about a childs care, causing much of the delay and leaving the child in limbo in temporary placements, including hotels, Joyal said.

The Court of Appeal ruled that shouldnt happen.

Given the potential implications of delay for any child under apprehension, the readiness (or not) of a parent to proceed does not affect the obligation of the court under the act to move forward to a speedy trial or resolution, it said.

The scheduling system and tighter timelines are a work in progress, Joyal said.

Were still going to be trying to fine-tune it. I dont want to get too presumptuous here, but I do think this will be a useful reference point going forward for people looking to meet their obligations under the various provincial acts that are designed to protect children in need of protection, Joyal said.

Legal Aid lawyer Michael Paluk, who represented the childs father in this case and has practised child-protection law for more than 30 years, said the court has made a valiant effort to combat delays. Even with the new schedule, he said it still takes too long for parents to have a chance to argue against guardianship orders that last a few months. He suggested the process should be similar to bail court in criminal cases, where hearings are often held within 24 hours of the person being taken into custody.

We want to see hearings take place within weeks, not months, after an apprehension. In many cases, we want to be able to see parents challenge apprehensions where agencies are only asking for short-term temporary guardianship orders, Paluk said. I think if were able to do that, then over time we will see fewer children being apprehended in the first place and children going home a lot sooner and staying in care a lot less.

The parents in this case  who cant be identified under a publication ban  were reunited with their now-15-month-old daughter.

She was returned to them on the condition that CFS supervise the family for one year.

The girl was apprehended because the couples older child had been put into foster care due to concerns about their mental health.

The court found the parents had shown no signs of mental-health issues since spring 2015, months before their daughter was born.

They had completed treatment and said they wanted to work with CFS so they could keep their baby.

The decision to return the girl to her parents was made after the scheduled trial at the end of January. As the parents tried to speed up the process, a judge ordered an interim hearing to find out whether the child could be returned to her parents while they awaited trial. The judge decided the child was not in need of protection and could be returned to her parents pending trial, but that decision was put on hold until the Court of Appeal heard the case.

The appeal court decided the interim hearing, which took almost as long as the trial would have, shouldnt have happened. It ruled the judge should have taken steps to hold the trial sooner.

katie.may@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @thatkatiemay
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/03/2017 (2067 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A large number of asylum seekers entering Manitoba have either abandoned or had their cases denied in the United States, a Minneapolis immigration lawyer says.

The asylum process is stricter and takes much longer in the U.S., causing some people to look to Canada, Kara Lynum said.

It sounds like a fair number of these folks did have asylum cases here, and they were either denied or decided to abandon the process and go to Canada, she said.

JOHN WOODS / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES

Only 18 per cent of all asylum cases are approved in the U.S. and the rate is as low as 10 per cent in many parts of the country.

There are really high denial rates in large parts of our country, Lynum said.

In Minnesota and North Dakota, a little more than 25 per cent of asylum applicants were approved from 2011 to 2016. Lynum described that rate as terrible.

In Canada, about 65 per cent of asylum claims are approved.

Lynum said that shouldnt be interpreted in a way that suggests asylum seekers pose a threat to Canada. Applicants are rarely denied for criminal reasons, she said.

More often, its something technical  including that they didnt apply quickly enough after arrival, or their case didnt meet the U.S. definition of persecution, Lynum said. A key factor in granting asylum is reasonable fear of persecution if the person is returned home.

The Trump administration has created new guidelines to deny asylum claims earlier in the process, Reuters reported this week.

Applicants losing their court hearing can still remain in the U.S. on appeal, but that can take another two to three years, Lynum said. Failing that, they are deported to their home country.

With only two judges handling asylum cases in Minnesota and North Dakota, there is also a backlog and lengthy waits to have cases heard.

There has been steady stream of asylum seekers entering Canada near the Emerson port, most of whom are coming from Minneapolis.

The migrants have been predominantly from the home country of Somalia, as well as from Djibouti, Eritrea, Ghana and Ethiopia.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed a revised executive order this week blocking entry to the U.S. for citizens from Iran, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Syria and Libya for a period of 90 days.

The renewed travel ban exacerbates the pessimism among immigrants to obtain legal status in the U.S., even if their homeland isnt on the list of banned countries, Lynum said.

The travel ban wouldnt be a legal factor but Im going to say its a factor in creating fear, she said. Even though its limited to six countries, it doesnt feel that way to immigrants.

Lynum said the uncertainty created by the travel ban has made migrants so desperate as to try to cross the border in the worst weather conditions imaginable.

These are people who are scared and theyre really fighting for their lives. This culture of immigration enforcement and all this rhetoric about immigration in the U.S. is just ratcheting up pressure on them, she said.

In some cases, the asylum seeker may be waiting three to four years just for their case to be heard and they cant bring family over until their case is decided. So some of these people might have given up and said, you know what? I can figure something else out because my familys not safe where they are and I need to get them out of there, Lynum said.

The migrants, some of whom arrived during a severe winter storm this past week, dont check the weather before they try to cross. They just go. It really speaks to how seriously they take the threat of returning to their country, she said. Theyre already in a really tenuous situation as far as being concerned about their safety and not being deported back to their countries.

However, Lynum advises her clients against irregular entry into Canada.

Its unsafe  particularly in these conditions  and it could create roadblocks if they want to return to the U.S. to visit family, she said.

bill.redekop@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/03/2017 (2067 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In the lead-up to every federal election, hundreds of candidates are nominated to represent their parties in the subsequent campaign. Some candidates are acclaimed, whereas others face steep competition. But party members in the constituencies, who come together at nomination meetings to choose a local candidate, will select the vast majority of these party standard-bearers.

Living in Canada, its easy to neglect what a remarkable democratic spectacle this is. Everyday local party members in their communities are the ones who are, in most cases, empowered to choose who will run for them. As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently noted, open nominations mean that local communities, local Liberals, get to have the final say on who is actually going to be their candidate.

Its also easy to forget there are many other, notably less democratic, ways for parties to select candidates.

GRAHAM HUGES / THE CANADIAN PRESS Emmanuella Lambropoulos (centre) wins the Liberal nomination in Saint-Laurent. The party refused to let Alan DeSousa, the longtime borough mayor, enter the race.

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, for example, either personally selected candidates or let his cronies do it for him. Famously, Berlusconi developed a nomination process that was designed for the TV age: he placed potential candidates in front of a video camera and had them read a few lines. If the candidate spoke well and Berlusconi approved, she made the party list.

Berlusconi used his candidate selection power to impose his own tastes on the party. In 2009, for example, he appointed a team of starlets with virtually no political qualifications to run for his party in European-level elections. Berlusconis wife denounced the appointments as trashy and shameful and threatened to divorce her husband. A year later, a newly minted, self-proclaimed single man, Berlusconi rounded out his party list for regional elections with several former models.

In Canada, there are exceptions to the rosy democratic picture I painted earlier. Party leaders have the power to disallow locally selected candidates or appoint candidates against local wishes. Party leaders exercise these powers sparingly so as to not anger local party members. Former prime minister Paul Martin openly parachuted candidates into ridings, bragging about his dream team of high-profile cabinet-worthy candidates. And both the Liberal and Conservative parties have tried to protect incumbent MPs from potentially bruising renomination contests.

In these situations, the power to select candidates is seized from local party members.

If leaders do not wish to antagonize members by openly parachuting, disallowing or protecting candidates, there are several other tools at their disposal to sneakily influence the outcome of local races.

One such seemingly underhanded tactic was on full display in 2005, when Liberal star candidate (and future leader) Michael Ignatieff made a bid for the party nomination in the riding of Etobicoke-Lakeshore. When a local challenger to Ignatieff arrived at party headquarters to file his nomination papers before the 5 p.m. deadline, the doors were locked and, despite the fact staff members could seen milling about inside, no one responded to his pounding on the door. Having missed the deadline for submitting his nomination papers, the potential candidate was disallowed and Ignatieff was acclaimed.

Now, the Liberal party appears to be using the same type of tactics to give preferred candidates a leg up in nomination contests held in advance of byelections. In Markham-Thornhill, for example, Trudeaus scheduling secretary, Mary Ng, is running to become the Liberal candidate.

While two other candidates hoped to challenge Ng, the party announced a retrospective deadline for signing up new members to vote in the race  all members who joined the party after the deadline were ineligible to vote. One candidate, Juanita Nathan, claimed the retrospective deadline was set for the day before she began recruiting more than 2,000 new members to support her candidacy. With those supporters unable to vote, Nathan dropped out of the race.

Such an approach is about as subtle as a shovel to the back of the head, and Ngs challengers suspected she had known about the deadline ahead of time. Sure enough, Ng went on to win the nomination in part because her challengers could not marshal the supporters they had signed up after the deadline.

Meanwhile in the riding of Saint-Laurent, the party declined to approve a candidate who was perceived to be the primary competitor to the Trudeau favourite and then refused to provide any reasons whatsoever for its decision.

The partys constitutional and legal adviser, Craig Munroe, argued the partys green-light committee has no obligation to provide reasons for its refusal to allow other candidates to run.

Now, if the Liberal party wants to have sketchy nomination processes, I suppose thats none of my business, since Im not a member. If I care about how parties conduct their nomination races and other internal business, I can keep this mind when I cast my ballot in the next election.

Theres just one problem with that, however: while he was running to become both leader of the Liberal party and then prime minister, Trudeau promised fair and open nomination processes. As opposition MPs such as the NDPs Nathan Cullen have pointed out, the partys actions in both Markham-Thornhill and Saint-Laurent are the furthest thing from fair and open. So while Canadians may not necessarily care about the internal machinations of the Liberal party in two ridings, they might about a promise the prime minister seems to have tossed aside.

Royce Koop is an associate professor and head of the department of political studies at the University of Manitoba.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/03/2017 (2067 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In the clearest of Bahamian waters, my son slows the boat and trims up the motor. The bow meets the white sand with the slightest resistance and we come to a gentle stop. Our eyes scan the perfect crescent of beach, the adjacent glistening sandbar and we congratulate ourselves on navigating our way to paradise.

Weve triumphantly arrived at Sampson Cay in the Exuma chain of islands in the middle of the Bahamas.

But, wait a second. Wheres the marina? The map indicated Sampson had a marina. So, I ask the guy under the blue umbrella on the beach where the marina might be. No marina here, he replies. This is Sandy Cay. The marina is over there on Sampson Cay, he adds, pointing to the east.

Steve MacNaull / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The accommodations at Staniel Cay Yacht Club consists of pastel-coloured oceanfront cottages.

What?

Evidently, even armed with a map, our sense of direction is pathetic. When we departed Staniel Cay Yacht Club that morning in the 22-foot Boston Whaler, the plan was to cruise in the sunshine and soak up the sights passing Thunderball Grotto, Little Major Cay, Big Major Cay and Fowl Cay before heading due north to Sampson and its marina for a snack.

Obviously, somewhere around Fowl Cay our sketchy map reading caught up with us and we ended up motoring straight west to Sandy Cay.

No problem.

Our mistaken destination proves to be the ultimate consolidation prize. The cooler containing the Kalik beers comes off the boat and we lounge on the beach sipping and laughing at our navigational incompetence.

You can swim with menacing-looking, but harmless, nurse sharks at Compass Cay.

We splash along the sandbar and take a dip in water the colour of a melted light-green gemstone.

This happy mishap could only occur in the Exumas.

Staniel Cay Yacht Club, where were staying in one of the pastel-coloured cottages, can include the use of a Boston Whaler daily in the room rate. You receive instructions on how to operate the boat, a map and recommendations on what to see and do.

The water is shallow, the islands close together and Staniel Cay has the landmark of a cellphone tower in case you lose your bearings. Staniel Cay Yacht Club is also an awesome base for our father-son adventure trip.

Besides the oceanfront accommodations, the club has a marina, atmospheric Caribbean dive bar and fine-dining restaurant.

Alex and Steve MacNaull ham it up for this selfie in the crystalline waters at Sandy Cay.

Plus, its incredibly close to all of Exumas greatest hits.

During a half-day tour with Sandy Gray in his skiff, we again find ourselves gliding through translucent waters to Bitter Guana Cay to feed the iguanas and hike to a limestone clifftop to take in a vista of ocean in graduated shades of blue, dotted with green islands backed by a cobalt sky.

Then its on to Big Major Cay, home of Exumas hottest and most surreal attraction, the swimming pigs. Yes, oinkers in the ocean, porkers who float, snorting for your attention and food.

Our guide has wisely brought a loaf of bread and we feed slices to the swine, first from the boat as they swim out to greet us and then as we wade in the shallows and finally up on the beach. The three giant mottled brown sows are the hungriest and bossiest, the two dozen piglets the cutest.

You cant get a straight answer on how this pigs-in-paradise scenario came to be. Are they the descendants of porkers who survived a shipwreck and swam to shore? Did they break out of a farmers pen on the far side of the island and find their way to the beach? Or, did some canny tour guide place them there to start the tide of tourists?

The Exumas have become famous worldwide for the swimming pigs at Big Major Cay.

With our bread gobbled up and a steady stream of tourists with more pig snacks constantly arriving, we take our leave to snorkel into the underwater cave at Thunderball Grotto. We even climb to the top of the island and jump through an opening in the top of the cave to the water 20 feet below.

The grotto gets its name from the 1965 James Bond movie Thunderball, which featured the unique cave in an action sequence. The bar at Staniel Cay Yacht Club was a favourite hangout of the movies crew.

While the Exumas are part of Bahamas out islands, they are well connected to Canada with Air Canada flying twice a week between Toronto and George Town, Great Exuma, where theres also a luxurious Sandals Resort.

Check out Bahamas.com, StanielCay.com and AirCanada.com.

steve.macnaull@ok.bc.ca
By Press Trust of India: London, Mar 11 (PTI) An amusing picture of seven nuns waiting for a train on the platform at Seven Sisters station in London has become an internet hit.

Ben Patey, 33, was on a train when he saw the seven Carmelite sisters waiting on the platform. He was quick to react and took the photo.

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"I had to do a double-take. It was one of those strange but amusing moments," Patey said.

The Seven Sisters Tube and overground station, near Tottenham, is thought to be named after a circle of Elm trees, the BBC reported.

People have been sharing the photo on social media, with one person saying it had made them "irrationally happy".

The nuns, which actually numbered eight from Ware Carmelite Monastery, had been to a meeting for enclosed religious orders where they were addressed by Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westmister.

It was the first time such a meeting had ever been held, The Telegraph quoted a spokesman for the Diocese of Westminster as saying.

The nuns were returning from the Notting Hill Carmelite Monastery here to their own in Hertfordshire, in a journey that would have taken them around an hour, when they were spotted.

Sister Fiona, who belongs to the Ware Monastery, said: "They had simply been to an important meeting in London. They are not often out, we go out for medical appointments and that sort of thing, but we do make the exception for an important meetings."

When asked how the nuns felt about their newfound fame, Sister Fiona said: "I dont tend myself to look for publicity, we tend to lead more of a hidden life."

Founded by hermits in the 13th Century, the Carmelite nuns still live by a set of principles set out over 500 years ago in a "small community of friends entirely dedicated to prayer, silence and solitude".

There are 15 Carmelite Monasteries in the UK made up of 200 nuns, the paper said. PTI AKJ AKJ

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Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/03/2017 (2067 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

SESTOKAI, Lithuania  A vermilion-coloured locomotive slowed to a halt, its freight cars obscured in the blinding snow. A German captain ordered his troops to unload the trains cargo. Jawohl!  Yes, sir!  a soldier said before directing out the first of 20 tanks bearing the Iron Cross of the Bundeswehr, Germanys army.

Evocative of old war films, the scene is nevertheless a sign of new times. Seven and a half decades after the Nazis invaded this Baltic nation, the Germans are back in Lithuania  this time as one of the allies.

As the Trump administration ratchets up the pressure on allied nations to shoulder more of their own defence, no country is more in the crosshairs than Germany. If it meets the goals Washington is pushing for, Germany  the regions economic powerhouse  would be on the fast track to again become western Europes biggest military power.

MINDAUGAS KULBIS / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES German military vehicles are unloaded at a railway station about 175 kilometres west of Vilnius, Lithuania, late last month.

Any renaissance of German might has long been resisted first and foremost by the Germans  a nation that largely rejected militarism in the aftermath of the Nazi horror. Yet a rethinking of German power is quickly emerging as one of the most significant twists of U.S. President Donald Trumps transatlantic policy.

Since the November election in the United States, the Germans  caught between Trumps America and Vladimir Putins Russia  are feeling less and less secure. Coupled with Trumps push to have allies step up, the Germans are debating a military buildup in a manner rarely witnessed since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Perhaps nowhere is the prospect of a new future playing out more than here in Lithuania  where nearly 500 German troops, including a Bavarian combat battalion, arrived in recent weeks for an open-ended deployment near the Russian frontier. The NATO deployment marks what analysts describe as Germanys most ambitious military operation near the Russian border since the end of the Cold War. It arrived with a formidable show of German force  including 20 Marder armoured infantry fighting vehicles, six Leopard battle tanks and 12 Fuchs and Boxer armoured personnel carriers.

Maybe, with respect to the United States, you need to be careful what you wish for, said Lt.-Col. Torsten Stephan, military spokesman for the German troops in Lithuania. Mr. Trump says that NATO may be obsolete, and that we need to be more independent. Well, maybe we will.

The German-led deployment  also involving a smaller number of troops from Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway  is designed to send a muscular message from Europe to Putin: back off.

Yet on a continent facing the prospect of a new Cold War, the deployment is also offering a window into the risks of renewed German strength  as well as the Russian strategy for repelling it by dwelling on Germanys dark past. In the 21st-century world of hybrid warfare, the first proverbial salvos have been fired.

Pro-Russian websites, meanwhile, are preying on old stereotypes, harking back to Adolf Hitler and portraying the NATO deployment in Lithuania as a second invasion by Germany.

As Germany grows bolder, outdated imagery is roaring back to life through Russian propaganda. Last week, the Russian Defense Ministry announced the building of a reproduction of the old German Reichstag at a military theme park near Moscow, offering young Russians a chance to reenact the 1945 storming of the structure during the fall of Berlin.

In Lithuania, a former Soviet republic living in the shadow of Russias maw, the Nazi legacy is seen as ancient history. To many, modern Germany is a bastion of democratic principles and one of the strongest advocates of human rights, free determination and measured diplomacy. Facing a Russian threat in times of uncertain NATO allegiances, the Lithuanians are clamouring for a more powerful Germany by its side.

I think U.S. leadership should be maintained, but also, we need leadership in Europe, Karoblis said. Noting Britain is in the process of breaking away from the European Union, he called Germany the most likely new guarantor of regional stability. Why not Germany? Why not?.

For many Germans, however, there are many reasons  including overspending and fears of sparking a new arms race. According to a poll commissioned by Stern magazine and published this year, 55 per cent of Germans are against increasing defence spending in the coming years, while 42 per cent are in favour.

The German military has staged several military exercises in Poland and other parts of eastern Europe, and its pilots form part of the air police deterring Russian planes buzzing the EUs eastern borders. It has also begun to take on more dangerous missions  deploying troops to the Balkans, Afghanistan and, last year, to Mali. The military also has taken on a logistical support role in the allied fight against Islamic State.

The Germans are slated to do much more. In 2014, German officials agreed with other NATO nations to spend at least two per cent of its gross domestic product on defence within 10 years  up from about 1.2 per cent in 2016. Until recently, however, many German officials privately acknowledged such a goal  which would see Germany leapfrog Britain and France in military spending  was politically untenable.

Since Trumps victory, however, German politicians, pundits and the media have agonized over the issue, with more and louder voices calling for a stronger military. Last month, the Defence Ministry announced plans to increase Germanys standing military to nearly 200,000 troops by 2024, up from a historical low of 166,500 in June. After 26 years of cuts, defence spending is going up by eight per cent this year.

MINDAUGAS KULBIS / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES German Bundeswehr soldiers arrive at an airport in Kaunas, Lithuania, Feb. 1, 2017. The German military said Tuesday that 36 vehicles, including Boxer armored fighting vehicles, were being loaded on a train in Bavaria for the trip to Rukla.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has called for cool heads, but also for increased military spending. Her defence minister, Ursula von der Leyen, has been more forceful, saying Germany cannot duck away from its military responsibility. Although considered a distant possibility, some outlier voices are mentioning the once-inconceivable: the advent of a German nuclear missile.

Germany, along with its regional allies, has begun exploring an increase of military activity through joint European operations  and experts see that, and NATO, as the most likely funnels for German military power. Germanys deployment in Lithuania, for example, is part of a broader allied deterrent in eastern Europe, with the Americans, Canadians and British leading other contingents in Poland, Latvia and Estonia.

In some of Germanys neighbours  particularly Poland  there remain pockets of opposition to renewed German military might, positions based at least in part on war memories. But old prejudices are dying fast.

Take, for example, tiny Lithuania  a nation the Nazis overran in 1941, kicking out the occupying Soviets. The Third Reich held on there through 1945, exterminating more than 200,000 Jews. After the Second World War, Lithuania reverted to Soviet domination before winning independence at the end of the Cold War. Over the past decade, Lithuania hitched its star to the West  joining the EU and NATO in 2004, much to the chagrin of the Russians.

Now, Lithuanians fear of the bear on their doorstep is surging. Since the de facto invasion of Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea, Russian politicians have begun speaking ominously about a key warm-water port they say was wrongly gifted to Lithuania after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Hackers thought to be linked to the Russians have targeted government servers and national television channels.

In the city of Jonava, about 10 kilometres from the barrack housing the new NATO troops, the Nazis killed more than 2,000 Jews in the 1940s. Yet in the oral histories, the German occupation is portrayed in a far better light than the Soviet era that followed.

Nadiezda Grickovaite, 86, the towns only living resident with vivid memories of the Second World War era, said she recalled her mother taking her into the woods so we didnt see the shooting of the Jews. But she said the Soviets were comparatively worse  a history she has passed down in speeches and talks at local schools.

I dont feel any bad feelings against the Germans because of the past, she said. This was history. We cant blame them now.

The new German troops, meanwhile, have received special sensitivity training about the Nazi legacy in Lithuania and to insist on gentle interactions with locals.

I dont feel part of that history  the history of Germans who were here before, said Sebastian, a 27-year-old German private stationed in Lithuania who only gave his first name per the German armys rules for the interview. What I know is that we are in a kind of new Cold War, and now we are here to help.

 Washington Post
Witness statements in a Baraboo arson investigation have prompted police to begin looking at previous fires in the same area.

Prosecutors charged Timothy A. Larsen, 42, of Baraboo, this week with felony arson in relation to a Sept. 2 fire at his neighbors home on the 500 block of 6th Avenue.

While investigating the blaze, police heard from multiple witnesses who said they were suspicious about the number of fires that have occurred along that street in prior years, according to the criminal complaint.

Baraboo Police Department Capt. Rob Sinden said a detective is looking into any past fires in that vicinity, and wed certainly like anyone who did have a suspicious fire to come in and talk to us about it.

In the recent case, investigators say, Larsen was one of the people who called to report the blaze. The occupants of the home had recently moved out.

An officer who responded to the fire reported that she saw flames coming from the lower portion of the house. At the scene, Larsen allegedly told the officer that he was walking his dog nearby when he heard a loud bang.

Another officer reported finding a tea light style candle burning near the exterior of the vacant home. And investigators could not find any evidence that the fire was caused by an electrical or heating source, the complaint states.

Two girls allegedly told police they were at a nearby school playground when they saw someone who matched Larsens description open the homes storm door, flick something lit inside, and then look back at them.

Police used surveillance video to confirm that the girls were at the school playground at the time in question, the complaint states. But in an interview with a detective, Larsen allegedly denied the two girls accounts.

Officers obtained a sample of Larsens DNA and the Wisconsin State Crime Lab later determined that it matched DNA found on the candle. The odds that it was someone elses DNA were one in 7 trillion, according to the criminal complaint.

If convicted, Larsen could face up to 40 years in prison and $100,000 in fines. He has been jailed on a $2,500 cash bond and is due to appear in court April 11.

Sinden said a detective is looking at how many prior fires have occurred in the same area and what type of evidence is still available from those cases. He said the availability of DNA testing could help investigators, but he was not sure testable evidence from past fires still is available.

Larsens own Sixth Avenue home was claimed by a July 2011 fire, according to a newspaper account. After the fire, Larsen told the Baraboo News Republic that he was walking his two dogs when he rounded the corner to see police and fire personnel in front of his home.

I started running to the house, but the police had blocked off the area, Larsen said after the 2011 blaze. They (the Baraboo Fire Department) were here in about three or four minutes. I couldnt believe seeing my house on fire.

Larsens significant other said she was sleeping inside the home when the fire started. She was treated at St. Clare Hospital in Baraboo for smoke inhalation and later released. The couples cat died in the fire, and a guinea pig was revived with oxygen.

In 1996, Larson was convicted of setting fire to a car in a fast food parking lot after he drove the vehicle without the owners consent. He was sentenced to four years in state prison, according to court records.
JUNEAU  Adam Raney, a 38-year-old former Beaver Dam man, was found guilty Friday of eight of the 25 counts that were charged against him for crimes including robbing banks in Beaver Dam and Watertown over the summer.

Raney entered a no contest plea in Dodge County Circuit Court. Judge Joseph Sciascia accepted Raneys plea and found him guilty of felony counts of armed robbery with a threat of force, making terrorist threats, armed robbery with threat of force, burglary while arming self with a dangerous weapon, theft of movable property valued at over $10,000, possession of a firearm by a felon, identity theft and unauthorized use of an entitys identifying information. Seventeen additional charges were dismissed and were read into the court record.

If Sciascia agrees with the plea agreement that Raney signed, Raney will serve 12 and a half years in prison and a 20-year extended sentence. Restitution has yet to be determined.

On the afternoon of July 11, officers were dispatched to the State Bank of Reeseville in Watertown for a report of a bank alarm. Employees said the suspect, identified as Raney, had left a bomb in a bag at the bank.

Tellers told officers that they had been watching Raney as he had been frequently attempting to cash forged checks. The employees said that Raney brandished a handgun, pointed it at a teller and demanded all the money in the drawer. He then put down the bag, telling the employees that a motion activated bomb was inside. The teller said Raney escaped with $3,000.

The bomb squad blew up the bag and the contents were taken into evidence.

On July 1 an armed robbery was committed at Bank Mutual in Beaver Dam. According to bank employees the suspect brandished a weapon and demanded money from the drawer. The suspect allegedly received $1,700.

Raney was taken into custody July 12 by Milwaukee police. He allegeldy admitted to committing both robberies.

During his interview with officers Raney also allegedly admitted to stealing and cashing fraudulent checks from his boss. He estimated he stole 10 checks and wrote them to himself in various amounts.

The complaint says Raney also admitted to burglarizing a home on Highway G in the town of Beaver Dam, stealing electronics, prescription medication (including 50 Oxycodone pills and 100 Hyrdocodone pills), multiple handguns and a rifle.

Raney was previously convicted of taking and driving a vehicle without the owners consent in Dodge County in 2013. He was also convicted of burglary in Dodge County in 2011.

Raneys sentencing is scheduled on May 5.
By Press Trust of India: Washington, Mar 9 (PTI) Potatoes can be grown even in the extreme environment of Mars, according to a new study that has implications for future manned missions to the red planet as well as helping people survive in harsh climates on Earth.

The International Potato Centre (CIP) in Peru launched a series of experiments to discover if potatoes can grow under Mars atmospheric conditions and thereby prove they are also able to grow in extreme climates on Earth.

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The Phase Two effort of CIPs proof of concept experiment to grow potatoes in simulated Martian conditions began in February last year when a tuber was planted in a specially constructed CubeSat by researchers from University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) in Peru.

The Potatoes on Mars project was conceived by CIP to both understand how potatoes might grow in Mars conditions and also see how they survive in the extreme conditions similar to what parts of the world already suffering from climate change and weather shocks are already experiencing.

"Growing crops under Mars-like conditions is an important phase of this experiment," said Julio Valdivia-Silva, research associate at the SETI Institute, a US based research organisation.

"If the crops can tolerate the extreme conditions that we are exposing them to in our CubeSat, they have a good chance to grow on Mars," said Valdivia-Silva.

"We will do several rounds of experiments to find out which potato varieties do best. We want to know what the minimum conditions are that a potato needs to survive," he said.

The CubeSat houses a container holding soil and the tuber. Inside this hermetically sealed environment the CubeSat delivers nutrient rich water, controls the temperature for Mars day and night conditions and mimics Mars air pressure, oxygen and carbon dioxide levels.

Sensors constantly monitor these conditions and live streaming cameras record the soil in anticipation of the potato sprouting.

One advantage potato great genetic capacity for adaptation to extreme environments, researchers said.

CIP has tapped into that capacity by breeding potato clones that tolerate conditions such as soil salinity and drought, in order to help smallholder farmers grow food in marginal areas that could grow harsher under climate change.

"This research could have a direct technological benefit on Earth and a direct biological benefit on Earth," said Chris McKay from NASA.

From the initial experiment, CIP scientists concluded that future Mars missions that hope to grow potatoes will have to prepare soil with a loose structure and nutrients to allow the tubers to obtain enough air and water to allow it to tuberize.

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"It was a pleasant surprise to see that potatoes weve bred to tolerate abiotic stress were able to produce tubers in this soil," said CIP potato breeder Walter Amoros.

The experiments have already provided good news about potatos potential for helping people survive in extreme environments on Earth, he said. PTI MHN SAR MHN

--- ENDS ---
MAYVILLE  Did you play with action figures?

Prepare to meet bad guys who do good while dressed as action figures.

Members of the Wisconsin Garrison of the 501st Legion will appear at the Beaver Dam Community Library Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m.

The 501st Legion is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization made up of Star Wars fans who own and wear film-quality costumes of the villains from the Star Wars universe. The Wisconsin Garrison, with 94 active members, includes Brady Relihan of Mayville and Jenny Harris of Horicon.

We build all our own costumes, Relihan said. It takes a lot of time and money to get it done. The costumes are top-notch.

Relihan wanted to have a Stormtrooper costume since he was a child and enjoyed being crafty while building his own. He built his blaster from resin, a process that took months.

Relihan will celebrate his first anniversary as a member of the 501st Legion Wisconsin Garrison March 22. Known in the Wisconsin Garrison as TK-41715, he is a member of the Devastator Squad, and also goes by the nickname SuperTroopa for the active role hes played.

I think I did 30 troop events so far, Relihan said. I enjoy it.

He likes going out and spreading smiles, and seeing the looks on the faces of children.

Many members get help from a handler during appearances at libraries, sporting events, weddings, charitable events and film premieres.

You cant see very well in the costume, Relihan said. You dont want to run someone over.

The Wisconsin Garrison includes at least three members with a Darth Vader costume.

Vader is a hard costume to wear, Relihan said. Hes the star.

Senior members help those interested in joining the 501st Legion, which has high standards to meet before a costume is approved. The Wisconsin Garrison includes armor parties where existing members help new ones build costumes.

Its a lot of fun, Relihan said. They are a very welcoming group of people. Every one is a huge Star Wars fan. Were always out to help each other.

Jenny Harris joined the 501st Legion Wisconsin Garrison in October 2015.

I was on a wait list for a kit, Harris wrote. And I could join sooner with an easier soft costume. It was Imperial Bridge Crew. When my kit came in I had to trim, glue and fit pieces together. I finished it June 5, 2016.

She said she has been trooping for nearly a year as TK-22152, a FemTrooper.

Harris will serve as the trooper in charge of the March 18 appearance at Beaver Dam Community Library.

Relihan said the BDCL event probably will include someone appearing as Vader, another as Kylo Ren and another as Jawas, in addition to those in Stormtrooper costumes.
Democrats should be respectful





Im writing this letter to Martha Laning and other Wisconsin Democrats to suggest that you encourage the leaders and others in your party to control or shut their mouths.

I noticed, chairperson Martha Laning, that you were elected on June 5, 2015. That was three weeks before the Supreme Court delivered the Obergefell vs. Hodges decision sanctioning homosexual marriage for the entire country.

You probably do not remember it  most Americans dismissed that court decision by the following weekend. You probably also do not remember that Justices Kagan and Ginsburg had been marrying homosexuals before the Obergefell hearing; and neither had the integrity to recuse themselves. They sat through that farce of a hearing, posing as objective participants who would spend many hours pondering the arguments before deciding whether the entire country should sanction homosexual marriages like the ones they had been performing.

I do not remember one Democrat hypocrite squealing about the need for either Justice to recuse herself, in what I think will prove to be the first or second most consequential Supreme Court decision in my lifetime. But there was recently plenty of squealing about the need for Attorney General Sessions to recuse himself when he had done absolutely nothing of consequence.

As an aside, the enforcement as law of the opinion of five unelected lawyers on the court in Obergefell will prove consequential in forcing anyone who does not believe that homosexual marriage is right, to sanction it. But the new constitutional right defined in Obergefell will be enforced by requiring women who use any public facilities  including bathrooms, locker rooms and showers  to share them with men who want to play women, men who believe they would be happier if they were women, or men who want to see women without their clothes on. This right will be enforced by requiring girls in government schools to be violated in the same manner by boys.

I remember some of the hearings for Judge Robert Bork. Bork was an intellectual giant who would have served our county very well as a SCOTUS justice. But he came under such abuse from some of the Democrats in the Congress at that time that his treatment led to adding the term bork to our lexicon.

So Im simply going to warn Democrats that you had better be civil at the Gorsuch hearings, and you had better treat that man with some respect.

Democrats seem to think everyone in this country is going to tolerate your squealing and behavior for the next eight years while you do everything you can to obstruct Trump. Im not, and Im not alone in that.

Trump was elected president. The behavior of some Democrats is approaching sedition. While you have the First Amendment right to free speech, you make every effort to deny that to anyone who wants to say something you disagree with. Democrats may soon find that free speech can be costly sometimes.

I have had enough of some of the Democrats treatment of the First Lady. I think Mrs. Trump is married to a man who can be boorish and clownish at times. But she is the First Lady, and therefore is entitled to some respect.

The women around Trump are beautiful, and they are mothers. That is why they are hated by many of the feral feminists in the Democrat party.

Celebrity Chelsea Handler, one of the more foul-mouthed Democrat Clinton supporters, described Mrs. Trump as barely able to speak English the other day. I understand Mrs. Trump speaks five languages.

I think the previous Democrat First Lady only spoke English. Moreover, nearly every time I heard that woman speak for eight long years, her English was mean and angry, condescending, arrogant and snide.

If Trump was a Democrat, there would not be enough paper in this country for all the stories and articles the progressive media would write comparing the new First Lady to Jacqueline Kennedy. Mrs. Kennedy was known for her beauty in those days, and the behavior of some of the men around her was also troubling. It was said her husband cheated on her repeatedly; and her drunk, lecherous, brother-in-law (another Democrat icon) was said to have driven his car into a river where he left it to sink with a poor young woman in it.

I remember things like that.

Im also going to remember how you people behaved, and the things you said during and after the Trump election; and Im not the only one who will.
Nick Raatz and Josh Miller were awarded Scoutings highest honor, Eagle Scout, on Sunday, March 5. Only 4 percent of those who enter Scouting achieve this honor.

Nick and Josh were members of Troop 99, chartered by the Columbus/Fall River Rotary Club.

To attain the rank of Eagle, a Scout must earn a minimum of 21 merit badges and design/complete a service project that includes leadership on the project.

Nicks project culminated in the purchase and installation of a self-repair bicycle station in Washington Park . Joshs project was the external upgrade to the grounds and exterior of the Reeseville Public Library.

Both young men started in Scouting in the second grade and participated in multiple camping adventures including trekking over 100 miles, including five mountain peaks, in 11 days in the Sangre de Cristo portion of the Rocky Mountains in New Mexico.

Nick and Josh thanked the numerous volunteers and donors who assisted in the completion of their project.
Waterloo pool to hold lifeguard certification class March 20-23

The Waterloo Community Pool will hold an American Red Cross lifeguard certification course March 20-23. Participants must be at least 15 years old.

The fee for the course is $150 for residents of the Waterloo School District and $187.50 for non-residents.

Individuals must pass a swimming pretest including:

300-yard swim: 100 yards front crawl, 100 yards breaststroke, 100 yards of either front crawl or breaststroke.

Swim 20-yard approach, retrieve 10-pound brick from bottom of pool and return back 20 yards to starting point.

Tread water for 2 minutes.

Classes will meet March 20, 21 and 22 from 9 to 11 a.m. and noon to 4:30 p.m.; and March 23 from 9 to 11 a.m.

Questions? Contact Pat Schellin via email at pool@waterloo.k12.wi.us or by phone at 920-478-3511.
The message Steve Sobiek shared with Portage Area Chamber of Commerce members went beyond business growth and new jobs.

Portage, the citys director of business development and planning said, is seeing more ridership on Amtrak, its home to an island that might soon attract campers and hikers, its appeared recently on shows like Great American Railroad Journeys and Hawaii Five-0. It even has a shoe named after it.

There is so much neat and different stuff happening that people dont even know about, Sobiek told the group Tuesday. Portage is turning a new leaf, a new page. Were looking into the future, and I think tomorrows Portage will be vastly improved, a very different Portage than we even see today.

The Portage Amtrak station on its Empire Builder line saw a 27 percent increase in ridership from 2015 to 2016, far exceeding the states average increase of 1 percent ridership. A lot of that is due to geography, Sobiek said, but more people are coming to Portage, the impetus for discussions between the city and Amtrak about possibly expanding or moving the depot to better accommodate more users.

Such talks are related to the fact Wisconsin and Minnesota are seriously looking at adding another train in each direction to the Empire Builder line, Sobiek said, one which would drastically increase people coming to Portage.

Thats huge. That could be a game changer, Sobiek said of Empire Builder, which runs between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest.

(People) can see Portage is on the move.

City and Chamber officials have also been meeting with the Bureau of Land Management regarding development of campsites and a trail system on the 188-acre island visible from Riverside Park to West Edgewater Street. The island, he added, is a bird sanctuary, a wilderness island that contains one of the last vestiges of old Wisconsin savannah. Nature lovers could journey there by canoe or boat to hike trails through the entire length of the island.

Discussions between city leaders and BLM about the islands development remain active. Its very cool  its very exciting.

Marianne Hanson, the Chambers executive director, said that at a recent meeting about the island, people were seeing its potential for tourism as comparable to the Horicon Marsh, a site visited by people from all over the world. Chamber leaders will tour the island this spring, she added.

Accomplishments Sobiek noted for the group assembled at Dinos Restaurant demonstrate the momentum the city is gaining since being named one of Americas Best Communities by Frontier Communications. The Weinbrenner Shoe Company, known for its Thorogood work boots, is releasing boots named after Portage in its 1892 Wisconsin Collection. The city last month found national and international audiences, appearing on Great American Railroad Journeys, a show that airs on BBC Two, as well as on CBSs Hawaii Five-0.

According to episode summaries found online, the BBC travel documentary, which aired Feb. 9, details the history of the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin rivers, while the Hawaii Five-0 episode that aired Feb. 17 brought the shows main characters to Columbia Correctional Institute to interrogate a serial killer.

Were creating jobs and were filling them, Sobiek said. New businesses or business expansions in Portage constitutes a list that goes on and on. Some of those include the new Aldis grocery store, Saint-Gobains $11.5 million expansion, Culvers $1 million expansion, the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, BonBon and Bordeaux, ShipRec Logistics, Lifekeepers and the incredible addition of Divine Savior Healthcares La Vita wellness center.

Were growing, and our new job-creation numbers far surpass any of the other cities in the entire region, Sobiek said. Within the past year, Sobiek said, according to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation website, Portage has seen a 1.5 percent for new jobs, surpassing neighboring cities like Baraboo, Beaver Dam and Reedsburg  all of the other cities in the region, this occurring at a time when the state, overall, has a huge worker shortage.

City officials are working hard to keep workers in the area, he said, but we have to do a better job. Sobiek commended local worker training programs, like that of the Portage Enterprise Center, as well as efforts of the Chamber and school district in targeting young workers with facility tours and job fairs.

The city is working with several developers and interested businesses for future opportunities, Sobiek said. If I had a crystal ball Id say well have more developments like Aldis, Sobiek said. He reminded attendees that projects like Aldis typically take three years from the early conversations to the store opening.

Thats how things happen. Unfortunately we cant wave a magic wand, like some of the larger communities can.
By Press Trust of India: Bengaluru, Mar 11 (PTI) An Assistant Professor of a reputed college here has claimed that he has been sacked over his sexual orientation.

In a Facebook post, Ashley Tellis, who is also a gay rights activist, wrote that he was asked to leave St Josephs College of Arts and Sciences because "students are disturbed by my personal opinions." "Students are very much disturbed by your opinions (sic). You were hired to teach English Literature. Not to give your personal opinions. Please sign these letters. Leave the college with immediate effect," the English Assistant Professor said quoting theprincipal.

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This is not the first instance wherein Tellis had been removed. In 2010, he was removed by the management of the Indian Institute of Technology (Hyderabad) allegedly over his sexual orientation.

Meanwhile, the college management said in astatement that the decision was taken after many parents and students complained about Tellis "sexual orientation."

They said the professor did not pay any heed to the "sensitivities" of undergraduate students from heterogeneous backgrounds.

Defending himself on the social media platform, Tellis said he talked about sexuality because it was a part of English textbooks. "In the classroom, I used to discuss everything with students. Sometimes, it also included issues related to different sexual orientations. "This is the sort of homophobia and unbelievable violence that we LGBT people have to face every day of our lives in institutions," he said. However, a few people have come out in support of the professor. "I am extremely proud of you and I feel privileged that I have been taught by you. This is the story of most educational institutions in India and it is so unfortunate that academic liberty is juxtaposed with extremely problematic personal ideologies," said one in reply to Tellis post. PTI BDN RA APR SRY

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The following companies are subsidiares of Marsh & McLennan Companies: 8WORKS INC., 8WORKS LTD, A. Constantinidi & CIA. S.C., A.C.N. 000 951 146 Pty Limited, A.C.N. 001 572 961 Pty Limited, A.C.N. 076 935 683 Pty Limited, A.C.N. 102 322 574 Pty Limited, ACE Insurance Agents Limited, ACE Insurance Consultants Limited, ACE Insurance and Reinsurance Brokers Limited, AD Corretora de Seguros, AFCO Premium Acceptance Inc., AFCO Premium Credit LLC, Access Equity Enhanced Fund GP LLC, Admiral Holdings Limited, Agnew Higgins Pickering & Co. (Bermuda) Ltd, Aldgate Investments Limited, Aldgate Trustees Ltd, Alexander Forbes Group Holdings Limited, Alpha Consultants Limited, Alta SA, Altius Real Assets (GP) LLC, Amal Insurance Brokers Limited (in liquidation), Anda Insurance Agencies Pte Ltd, AssetVal Pty Ltd, Assur Conseils Marsh S.A., Assurance Capital Corporation, Assurance Services Corporation, Australian Insurance Brokers Pty Ltd, Australian World Underwriters Pty Ltd., BBPS Limited, Barney & Barney Orange County LLC, Beaumonts (Leeds) Limited (in liquidation), Beaumonts Insurance Brokers Limited (in liquidation), Beaumonts Insurance Services Limited, Beneficios Integrales Oportunos SA, Benefitfocus Inc., Blue Marble Micro Limited, Blue Marble Microinsurance Inc., Bluefin, Bluefin Insurance Group Limited, Bluefin Insurance Services Limited, Boulder Claims LLC, Bowring (Bermuda) Investments Ltd., Bowring Marine Limited, Bowring Marsh (Bermuda) Ltd., Bowring Marsh (Hong Kong) Limited, Bowring Marsh Asia Pte. Ltd., Bowring Marsh Corretora de Resseguros Ltda., Bowring Marsh Limited, Broderick Piller Pty Ltd, Broker 2 Broker Limited, BuildPay LLC, Burke Ford Trustees (Leicester) Limited, C.T. Bowring Limited, CMC-Belgibo NV, CPRM Limited, CPSG Partners LLC, Carpenter Marsh Fac Chile Corredores de Reaseguros Limitada, Carpenter Marsh Fac Colombia Corredores de Reaseguros S.A., Carpenter Marsh Fac Peru Corredores de Reaseguros S.A.C., Carpenter Marsh Fac Re LLC, Carpenter Turner Cyprus Ltd, Carpenter Turner S.A., Cascade International Holdings C.V., Cascade Regional Holdings Limited, Central Insurance Services Limited, Charter Risk Management Services LLC, Chartwell Healthcare Limited, Chronos Insurance Brokers Pty Limited, Claims and Recovery Management (Australia) Pty Limited, Clark Thomson Insurance Brokers Limited, Client Provide Limited, Colombian Insurance Broking Wholesale Limited, Consultores 2020 C.A., Cronin & Co Insurance Services Limited, DVA - Deutsche Verkehrs-Assekuranz-Vermittlungs GmbH, Dawson Insurance, DeLima Marsh S.A. - Los Corredores de Seguros S.A., Dovetail Insurance Corp., Dovetail Insurance Corp., Dovetail Managing General Agency Corporation, Dovetail Technology Service India Private Limited, Draw Connect Limited, Draw Create Limited, Draw Group London Limited, Eagle & Crown Limited, Echelon Australia Pty Limited, Echelon Claims Consultants Sdn Bhd, Echelon New Zealand Limited, EnBW Versicherungs Vermittlung GmbH, Encompass Insurance Agency Pty Ltd., English Pension Trustees Limited, Epsilon (US) Insurance Company, Epsilon Insurance Company Ltd., Eustis Insurance & Benefits, Evolution Management Ltd, Exchange Insurance Services Limited (in liquidation), Exmoor Management Company Limited, Faulkner & Flynn LLC, Freedom Trust Services Limited, GC Genesis LLC, GCube Insurance Services Inc, GCube Underwriting Limited, Gama Consultores Associados Ltda., Gem Insurance Company Limited, Global Premium Finance Company, GrECo International Holding AG, Gracechurch Trustees Limited, Gresham Pension Trustees Limited, Group Promoters Pty Limited, Guy Carpenter & Cia (Mexico) S.A. de C.V., Guy Carpenter & Cia. S.A., Guy Carpenter & Co. Labuan Ltd., Guy Carpenter & Company AB, Guy Carpenter & Company Corredores de Reaseguros Limitada, Guy Carpenter & Company Corretora de Resseguros Ltda., Guy Carpenter & Company GmbH, Guy Carpenter & Company LLC, Guy Carpenter & Company Limited, Guy Carpenter & Company Limited, Guy Carpenter & Company Ltd./Guy Carpenter & Compagnie Ltee, Guy Carpenter & Company Participacoes Ltda., Guy Carpenter & Company Peru Corredores de Reaseguros S.A., Guy Carpenter & Company Private Limited, Guy Carpenter & Company Proprietary Limited, Guy Carpenter & Company Pty. Ltd., Guy Carpenter & Company S.A., Guy Carpenter & Company S.A. (Uruguay), Guy Carpenter & Company S.A.S., Guy Carpenter & Company S.r.l., Guy Carpenter (Middle East) Limited, Guy Carpenter Bermuda Ltd., Guy Carpenter Broking Inc., Guy Carpenter Colombia Corredores de Reaseguros Ltda., Guy Carpenter Insurance Brokers (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Guy Carpenter Japan Inc., Guy Carpenter Mexico Intermediario de Reaseguro S.A. de C.V., Guy Carpenter Reasurans Brokerligi Anonim Sirketi, HAPIP GP 2009 LLC, HAPIP GP LLC, HSBC Insurance Brokers International (Abu Dhabi) LLC (in liquidation), Hamilton Bond Limited, Hansen International Limited, Hayward Aviation Limited, INSIA Europe SE, INSIA SK s.r.o., INSIA a.s., INSURANCE BROKERS OF NIGERIA LIMITED, IRC Asia Insurance Brokers Limited, InSolutions Limited, Industrial Risks Protection Consultants, Ingeseg S. A., Ingeseg S.A., Insbrokers Ltda., InsurTech Alliance LLC, Insure Direct (Brokers) LLC, Insure Direct (Brokers) LLC [BAHRAIN BRANCH], Insure Direct - Jardine Lloyd Thompson Limited, International Catastrophe Insurance Managers LLC, International Loss Control Services Limited, International Risk Consultants (Asia) Limited, Invercol Limited, Irish Pensions Trust Limited, Isosceles Insurance (Barbados) Limited, Isosceles Insurance Company Limited, Isosceles Insurance Ltd, Isosceles PCC Limited, J&H Marsh & McLennan Limited, J.W. Terrill Benefit Administrators Inc., JI Holdings Limited, JIB Group Holdings Limited, JIB Group Limited, JIB Holdings (Pacific) Limited, JIB Overseas Holdings Limited, JIB UK Holdings Limited, JL Marine Insurance-Brokers GmbH & Co. KG, JLM Verwaltungs GmbH, JLT (Insurance Brokers) Limited, JLT Actuaries and Consultants Limited, JLT Advisory Limited, JLT Affinity Colombia Solutions SAS, JLT Agencies Limited, JLT Asesorias Ltda, JLT Asia Holdings BV, JLT Asia Shared Services Sdn Bhd, JLT Belgibo, JLT Benefit Consultants Limited, JLT Benefit Solutions Limited, JLT Benefit Solutions SA (Pty) Ltd, JLT Bermuda Ltd, JLT Brasil Holdings Participacoes Ltd, JLT Chile Holdings SpA, JLT Colombia Retail Limited, JLT Colombia Wholesale Limited, JLT Consultants & Actuaries Limited, JLT EB Holdings Limited, JLT EB Services Limited, JLT Employee Benefits Holding Company (PTY) LTD, JLT Employee Benefits SA (Pty) Ltd, JLT Financial Planning Limited, JLT France Holdings, JLT Group Services Pty Limited, JLT Holdings (Barbados) Ltd, JLT Holdings (NZ) Limited, JLT Independent Insurance Brokers Private Limited, JLT Insurance Agencies Limited, JLT Insurance Brokers Co. Limited, JLT Insurance Brokers Co. Limited ( Shanghai Branch), JLT Insurance Brokers Co. Limited (Beijing Branch), JLT Insurance Brokers Co. Limited (Guangzhou Branch), JLT Insurance Brokers Ireland Limited, JLT Insurance Brokers SA, JLT Insurance Group Holdings Ltd, JLT Insurance Management Malta Limited, JLT Intellectual Property Limited, JLT Intellectual Property [UK Branch], JLT Interactive Pte. Ltd., JLT Investment Management Limited, JLT LATAM (Southern Cone) Wholesale Limited, JLT Latin American Holdings Limited, JLT Life Assurance Brokers Limited, JLT Management Services Limited, JLT Marine (Pty) Ltd, JLT Mexico Holdings Limited, JLT Mexico Intermediario de Reaseguro S.A. de C.V., JLT Netherlands BV, JLT Norway AS, JLT PLA, JLT Pension Trustees Limited, JLT Pensions Administration Holdings Limited, JLT Pensions Administration Limited, JLT Peru Reinsurance Solutions Limited, JLT Peru Retail Limited, JLT Peru Wholesale Limited, JLT QFM Services Limited, JLT RE Brasil Administracao e Corretagem de Resseguros Ltda, JLT Re (French Branch), JLT Re (Northern Europe) AB, JLT Re Argentina Corredores de Reaseguros S.A.U., JLT Re Labuan Limited, JLT Re Limited, JLT Re Pty Ltd, JLT Reinsurance Brokers GmbH, JLT Reinsurance Brokers Limited, JLT Reinsurance Brokers Limited [French Branch], JLT Risk Management Limited, JLT Risk Solutions AB, JLT Risk Solutions AB Branch - Germany, JLT SA IB Holdings Company (Pty) Limited, JLT SCK Affinity Administracao e Corretora de Seguros Ltda., JLT SCK Corretora e Administradora de Seguros, JLT Secretaries Limited, JLT Sigorta ve Reasurans Brokerlii A.., JLT Singapore Holdings Pte. 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Ltd., JMIB Holdings BV, JSL Securities Inc., Japan Affinity Marketing Inc., Jardine IBR Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson (Proprietary) Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Asia Pte Ltd, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Australia Pty Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Canada Inc, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group Ltd, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc, Jardine Lloyd Thompson India Private Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson India Private Limited (UK Branch Office), Jardine Lloyd Thompson Insurance Consultants Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Insurance and Reinsurance Brokers Inc., Jardine Lloyd Thompson Ireland Holdings Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Ireland Unlimited Company, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Korea Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Limited [Macao Branch], Jardine Lloyd Thompson PCS (Dubai) Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson PCS Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson PCS Pte Ltd, Jardine Lloyd Thompson PCS SA, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Private Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Pty Limited, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Sdn Bhd, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Valencia y Iragorri Corredores de Seguros SA, Jardine Pension Trustees Ireland Limited, Jardine Risk Consulting Co. Limited, Jardine ShunTak Insurance Brokers Limited, Jardine ShunTak Insurance Brokers Limited [Macao Branch], Jardines PF- Consultoria Em Gestao De Risco Limitada, Jelf, Jelf Commercial Finance Limited, Jelf Financial Planning Limited, Jelf Insurance Brokers Limited, Jelf Limited, Jelf Risk Management Limited, Jelf Wellbeing Limited, John Lampier & Son Ltd, Johnson & Higgins (Bermuda) Limited, Johnson & Higgins Limited, KESSLER & CO AG, Kepler Associates Limited, Kessler & Co Inc., Kessler Consulting Inc., Kessler Prevoyance Inc., Key Underwriting Pty Limited, Kroll, Lambert Brothers Holdings Limited, Lambert Brothers Insurance Brokers (Employee Benefits) Limited, Lambert Brothers Insurance Brokers (Hong Kong) Ltd, Laterlife.com Limited (in liquidation), Lavaretus Underwriting AB, Lavaretus Underwriting AB (BRANCH - Denmark), Libra Insurance Services Limited (in liquidation), Lloyd & Partners Limited, Local Government Insurance Brokers Pty Limited, Lomond Macdonald Limited, Lynch Insurance Brokers Limited, M&M Vehicle L.P., M.P. Bolshaw and Company Limited, MAG JLT SpA, MERCER ALTERNATIVES LIMITED, MM Risk Services Pty Ltd (for dissolution), MMA Mid-Atlantic Employee LLC, MMA Securities LLC, MMB Consultores S.A., MMC (Singapore) Holdings Pte. Ltd., MMC 28 State Street Holdings Inc., MMC Borrower LLC, MMC Brazilian Holdings B.V., MMC Capital Inc., MMC Cascade Regional Holdings LLC, MMC FINANCE (EUROPE) LIMITED, MMC FINANCE HOLDINGS LTD, MMC Finance (Australia) Limited, MMC Finance (Singapore) Limited, MMC France Holdings (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l., MMC GP III Inc., MMC Group Services sp. z o.o., MMC Holdings (Australia) Pty Ltd, MMC Holdings (New Zealand) ULC, MMC Holdings (UK) Limited, MMC International Finance (Barbados) SRL, MMC International Holdings LLC, MMC International Limited, MMC International Treasury Centre Limited, MMC Middle East Holdings Limited, MMC Poland Holdings B.V., MMC Realty Inc., MMC Regional Asia Holdings B.V., MMC Regional Caribbean Holdings Ltd., MMC Regional Europe Holdings B.V., MMC Regional LATAM Holdings B.V., MMC Securities (Europe) Limited, MMC Securities LLC, MMC Treasury Holdings (UK) Limited, MMC UK Group Limited, MMC UK Pension Fund Trustee Limited, MMOW Limited, MMRC LLC, MOW Holding LLC, MPIP III GP LLC, MPIP IV GP LLC, MPIP V GP LLC, MPIP VI GP LLC, Mangrove Insurance Europe PCC Limited, Mangrove Insurance Solutions PCC, Mangrove Insurance Solutions PCC Limited, Manoel Management Services Ltd, Marchant McKechnie Insurance Brokers Limited, Marine Aviation & General (London) Limited, Marsh & McLennan (PNG) Limited, Marsh & McLennan Agencies AS, Marsh & McLennan Agencies Limited, Marsh & McLennan Agency A/S, Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC, Marsh & McLennan Agency Limited, Marsh & McLennan Agency Pty Ltd., Marsh & McLennan Argentina SA Corredores de Reaseguros, Marsh & McLennan Colombia S.A., Marsh & McLennan Companies Acquisition Funding Limited, Marsh & McLennan Companies Acquisition Limited, Marsh & McLennan Companies Asia Pacific Treasury Center Limited, Marsh & McLennan Companies BVBA/SPRL, Marsh & McLennan Companies Finance Center (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l., Marsh & McLennan Companies France S.A.S., Marsh & McLennan Companies Holdings (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l., Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc., Marsh & McLennan Companies Regional Holdings S.a.r.l., Marsh & McLennan Companies Services B.V., Marsh & McLennan Companies UK Limited, Marsh & McLennan Europe S.a.r.l., Marsh & McLennan GP I Inc., Marsh & McLennan Global Broking (Bermuda) Ltd., Marsh & McLennan Holding GmbH, Marsh & McLennan Holdings (Canada) ULC, Marsh & McLennan Holdings Inc., Marsh & McLennan Incorporated (for dissolution), Marsh & McLennan Innovation Centre Holdings II, Marsh & McLennan Innovation Centre Holdings S.a.r.l., Marsh & McLennan Innovation Centre Limited, Marsh & McLennan Insurance Services Limited, Marsh & McLennan Ireland Limited, Marsh & McLennan Management Services (Bermuda) Limited, Marsh & McLennan Risk Capital Holdings Ltd., Marsh & McLennan Servicios S.A. 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Ltd., Marsh A/S, Marsh AB, Marsh AG, Marsh AS, Marsh Advantage Insurance Holdings Pty Ltd, Marsh Advantage Insurance Pty Ltd., Marsh Africa (Pty) Ltd, Marsh Argentina S.R.L., Marsh Associates (Pty) Ltd, Marsh Austria G.m.b.H., Marsh Aviation Insurance Broking Pty Ltd (for dissolution), Marsh B.V., Marsh Botswana (Proprietary) Limited, Marsh Brockman y Schuh Agente de Seguros y de Fianzas S.A. de C.V., Marsh Broker Japan Inc., Marsh Broker de Asigurare-Reasigurare S.R.L., Marsh Brokers (Hong Kong) Limited, Marsh Brokers Limited, Marsh Canada Limited/Marsh Canada Limitee, Marsh Company Management Services Cayman Ltd., Marsh Compensation Technologies Administration (Pty) Ltd, Marsh Corporate Services (Barbados) Limited, Marsh Corporate Services Isle of Man Ltd, Marsh Corporate Services Limited, Marsh Corporate Services Malta Limited, Marsh Corretora de Seguros Ltda., Marsh EOOD, Marsh Egypt LLC, Marsh Emirates Consultancy LLC, Marsh Emirates Insurance Brokerage LLC, Marsh Employee Benefits Limited, Marsh Employee Benefits Zimbabwe (Private) Ltd, Marsh Eurofinance B.V., Marsh Europe S.A., Marsh FJC International Insurance Brokers Limited, Marsh For Insurance Services S.A.E., Marsh Franco Acra S.A., Marsh GSC Servicos e Administracao de Seguros Ltda., Marsh GmbH, Marsh Holding AB, Marsh Holdings (Pty) Ltd, Marsh India Insurance Brokers Private Limited, Marsh Insurance & Investments LLC, Marsh Insurance Brokers, Marsh Insurance Brokers (Macao) Limited, Marsh Insurance Brokers (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Marsh Insurance Brokers (Private) Limited, Marsh Insurance Brokers AO, Marsh Insurance Brokers Limited, Marsh Insurance Consulting Saudi Arabia (in liquidation), Marsh Insurance and Reinsurance Brokers LLC, Marsh Intermediaries Inc., Marsh International Broking Holdings Limited, Marsh International Holdings II Inc., Marsh International Holdings Inc., Marsh Investment B.V., Marsh Ireland Brokers Limited, Marsh Ireland Brokers Limited (UK Branch), Marsh Ireland Holdings Limited, Marsh Israel (1999) Ltd., Marsh Israel (Holdings) Ltd., Marsh Israel Consultants Ltd., Marsh Israel Insurance Agency Ltd., Marsh Israel International Brokers Ltd. (in liquidation), Marsh JCS Inc., Marsh Japan Inc., Marsh Kft., Marsh Kindlustusmaakler AS, Marsh Korea Inc., Marsh LLC, Marsh LLC Insurance Brokers, Marsh LLC [Ukraine], Marsh Lda., Marsh Limited, Marsh Limited [Fiji], Marsh Limited [New Zealand], Marsh Limited [PNG], Marsh Ltd. [Wisconsin], Marsh Management Services (Bahamas) Ltd., Marsh Management Services (Barbados) Limited, Marsh Management Services (Bermuda) Ltd., Marsh Management Services (Dublin) Limited, Marsh Management Services (Labuan) Limited, Marsh Management Services (MENA) Limited, Marsh Management Services (USVI) Ltd., Marsh Management Services Cayman Ltd., Marsh Management Services Guernsey Limited, Marsh Management Services Inc., Marsh Management Services Isle of Man Limited, Marsh Management Services Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Marsh Management Services Malta Limited, Marsh Management Services Singapore Pte. Ltd., Marsh Management Services Sweden AB, Marsh Marine & Energy AB, Marsh Marine Nederland B.V., Marsh Medical Consulting GmbH, Marsh Mercer Holdings (Australia) Pty Ltd, Marsh Nest Inc., Marsh Oman LLC, Marsh Oy, Marsh PB Co. Ltd., Marsh Philippines Inc., Marsh Privat A.I.E., Marsh Private Client Life Insurance Services, Marsh Pty. Ltd., Marsh Qatar LLC, Marsh RE S.A.C. Corredores de Reaseguros, Marsh Rehder Consultoria S.A. (MRC), Marsh Rehder S.A. Corredores de Seguros, Marsh Resolutions Pty Limited, Marsh Risk Consulting B.V., Marsh Risk Consulting Limitada, Marsh Risk Consulting Ltda., Marsh Risk Consulting S.L., Marsh Risk Consulting Services S.r.L., Marsh Risk and Consulting Services (Pty) Ltd, Marsh S.A. Corredores De Seguros, Marsh S.A. Mediadores de Seguros, Marsh S.A.S., Marsh S.p.A., Marsh SA [Argentina], Marsh SA [Belgium], Marsh SA [Luxembourg], Marsh SA [Uruguay], Marsh SIA, Marsh Saldana Inc., Marsh Saudi Arabia Insurance & Reinsurance Brokers, Marsh Secretarial Services Limited, Marsh Semusa S.A., Marsh Services Limited, Marsh Services Spolka z.o.o., Marsh Sigorta ve Reasurans Brokerligi Anonim Sirketi, Marsh Spolka z.o.o., Marsh Szolgaltato Kft., Marsh Takaful Brokers (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Marsh Treasury Services (Dublin) Limited (in liquidation), Marsh Treasury Services Limited, Marsh Tunisia S.a.r.l., Marsh UK Limited, Marsh USA (India) Inc., Marsh USA Borrower LLC, Marsh USA Inc., Marsh Uganda Limited, Marsh Venezuela C.A. Sociedad de Corretaje de Seguros, Marsh Vietnam Insurance Broking Company Ltd, Marsh Zambia Limited, Marsh Zimbabwe Holdings (Private) Limited, Marsh d.o.o. Beograd, Marsh d.o.o. za posredovanje u osiguranju, Marsh for Insurance Services - Jordan, Marsh i-Connect (Pty) Ltd, Marsh s.r.o., Matthiessen Assurans AB, Mercer (Argentina) S.A., Mercer (Australia) Pty Ltd, Mercer (Austria) GmbH, Mercer (Belgium) SA-NV, Mercer (Canada) Limited/Mercer (Canada) Limitee, Mercer (China) Limited, Mercer (Colombia) Ltda., Mercer (Danmark) A/S, Mercer (Finland) OY, Mercer (France) SAS, Mercer (Hong Kong) Limited, Mercer (Ireland) Limited, Mercer (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Mercer (N.Z.) Limited, Mercer (Nederland) B.V., Mercer (Norge) AS, Mercer (Polska) Sp.z o.o., Mercer (Portugal) Lda, Mercer (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Mercer (Sweden) AB, Mercer (Taiwan) Ltd., Mercer (Thailand) Ltd., Mercer (US) Inc., Mercer Administration Services (Australia) Pty Limited, Mercer Africa Limited, Mercer Agente de Seguros S.A. de C.V., Mercer Asesores de Seguros S.A., Mercer Asesores es Inversion Independientes S.A. de C.V., Mercer Broking Ltd., Mercer Career Unipessoal Lda, Mercer Consultation (Quebec) Ltee., Mercer Consulting (Australia) Pty Ltd, Mercer Consulting (Chile) Limitada, Mercer Consulting (France) SAS, Mercer Consulting (India) Private Limited, Mercer Consulting B.V., Mercer Consulting Group Inc., Mercer Consulting Holdings Sdn. Bhd., Mercer Consulting Limited, Mercer Consulting Middle East Limited, Mercer Consulting S.L.U., Mercer Consulting Venezuela C.A., Mercer Corredores de Seguros Limitada, Mercer Corretora de Seguros Ltda, Mercer Danismanlik Anonim Sirketi, Mercer Deutschland GmbH, Mercer Employee Benefits - Medicacao de Seguros Unipessoal Lda., Mercer Employee Benefits Limited, Mercer Financial Advice (Australia) Pty Ltd, Mercer Financial Services Limited, Mercer Financial Services Limited liability company, Mercer Financial Services Middle East Limited, Mercer Global Investments Europe Limited, Mercer Global Investments Management Limited, Mercer HR Consulting Borrower LLC, Mercer HR Services LLC, Mercer Health & Benefits (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Mercer Health & Benefits Administration LLC, Mercer Health & Benefits LLC, Mercer Holdings Inc., Mercer Holdings Inc. [Philippines], Mercer Human Resource Consulting Ltda, Mercer Human Resource Consulting S.A. de C.V., Mercer ICC Limited, Mercer Investment Consulting Limited, Mercer Investment Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Mercer Investment Solutions (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Mercer Investments (Australia) Limited, Mercer Investments (Hong Kong) Limited, Mercer Investments (Japan) Ltd, Mercer Investments (New Zealand) Limited, Mercer Investments LLC, Mercer Ireland Holdings Limited, Mercer Italia Srl Socio Unico, Mercer Japan Ltd., Mercer Korea Co. Ltd., Mercer LLC, Mercer Limited, Mercer MC Consulting Borrower LLC, Mercer Master Trustees Limited, Mercer Mauritius Ltd., Mercer Oliver Wyman Holding B.V., Mercer Outsourcing (Australia) Pty Ltd, Mercer Outsourcing S.L.U., Mercer Pensionsfonds AG, Mercer Pensionsraadgivning A/S, Mercer Philippines Inc., Mercer Private Investment Partners IV General Partner S.a.r.l., Mercer Private Markets AG, Mercer Private Markets Advisers (US) AG, Mercer Services Poland Sp. z.o.o., Mercer Sigorta Brokerligi Anonim Sirketi, Mercer South Africa (Pty) Limited, Mercer Superannuation (Australia) Limited, Mercer Switzerland Inc., Mercer System Services LLC, Mercer Technology Acquisitions Limited, Mercer Treuhand GmbH, Mercer Trust Company LLC, Mercer Trustees Limited, Mercer WorkforcePro LLC, Mercury Insurance Services Pty Ltd, Moola Systems Limited, Mountlodge Limited, Muir Beddal (Zimbabwe) Limited, NERA Australia Pty. Ltd., NERA Economic Consulting GmbH, NERA Economic Consulting Limited, NERA S.R.L., NERA SAS, NERA UK Limited, NERA do Brasil Ltda. (for dissolution), National Economic Research Associates Inc., NetComp Insurance Corp., Neuburger Noble Lowndes GmbH, Normandy Reinsurance Company Limited, Northern Alliance Brokers Limited (in liquidation), OWL Marine Insurance-Brokers GmbH & Co.KG, OWL Marine Verwaltungs GmbH, Oliver Wyman (Bermuda) Limited, Oliver Wyman (Hong Kong) Limited, Oliver Wyman AB, Oliver Wyman AG, Oliver Wyman Actuarial Consulting Inc., Oliver Wyman B.V., Oliver Wyman Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd, Oliver Wyman Consultoria em Estrategia de Negocios Ltda., Oliver Wyman Energy Consulting Limited, Oliver Wyman FZ-LLC, Oliver Wyman Group KK, Oliver Wyman Inc., Oliver Wyman LLC, Oliver Wyman Limited, Oliver Wyman Limited Liability Company, Oliver Wyman Limited/Oliver Wyman limitee, Oliver Wyman Ltd., Oliver Wyman Pte. Ltd., Oliver Wyman Pty. Ltd., Oliver Wyman S. de R.L. de C.V., Oliver Wyman S.A.S., Oliver Wyman S.L., Oliver Wyman S.r.l., Oliver Wyman SNC, Oliver Wyman SPRL/BVBA, Oliver Wyman Sdn. Bhd., Oliver Wyman Services Limited, Oliver Wyman Servicios S. de R.L. de C.V., Oliver Wyman sp. z o.o., Omega Indemnity (Bermuda) Limited, Organizacion Brockman y Schuh S.A. de C.V., Osbornes Insurances Oxford Limited (in liquidation), PFT Limited, PI Indemnity Company Designated Activity Company, PT JLT Reinsurance Brokers, PT Jardine Lloyd Thompson, PT Marsh Indonesia, PT Marsh Reinsurance Brokers Indonesia, PT Mercer Indonesia, PT Nexus Asia Pacific, PT Oliver Wyman Indonesia, PT Quantum Computing Services, PT Quantum Investments, PT Quantum Support Services, Pallas Marsh Servicos Ltda., Pavilion Alternatives Group (Singapore) PTE. Ltd, Pavilion Financial Corporation Holdings UK Limited, Pavilion U.S. Investments Holdco LLC, Pension Trustees Limited, Pensionsservice Benefit Network Sverige AB, Perils AG, Personal Pension Trustees Limited, Pet Animal Welfare Scheme Limited, Portsoken Trustees (No. 2) Limited, Portsoken Trustees Limited, Potomac Insurance Managers Inc., Premier Pension Trustees Limited, Premium Services Australia Pty Limited, Professional Claims Handling Limited (in liquidation), Profund Solutions Limited, Promerit AG, Promerit Hungary Kft, Promerit Schweiz AG, Pymetrics Inc., R G Ford Brokers Limited, R R B Beratungsgesellschaft fuer Altersversorgung mbh, R. Mees & Zoonen Holdings B.V., Renewable Energy Loss Adjusters LLC, Renewable Energy Loss Adjusters Limited, Resource Benefit Associates, Rightpath Reinsurance SPC Ltd., Risk Management Australia Pty Limited, Rivers Group Limited, Rockefeller Risk Advisors Inc., Rutherfoord International Inc., SAFCAR-Marsh, SBJ Holdings Limited, SCIB (Bermuda) Limited, SCM Global Real Estate Select GP LLC, SCM Infrastructure General Partner S.a r.l., SCM International Private Equity Select III GP LLC, SCM LT General Partner S.a.r.l., SCM PE General Partner S.a.r.l., SCM PE II GP Ltd., SCM PE II Scotland GP Ltd, SCM Strategic Capital Management (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l., SICAR Marsh S.a.r.l., SME Insurance Services Limited, Sail Insurance Company Limited, Scalene Re Ltd, Seabury & Smith Borrower LLC, Seabury & Smith LLC, Secure Limited, Sedgwick (Holdings) Pty. 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Ltd., Sirota Consulting UK Limited, Smith Long Term Disability Management Group Inc., Societe d'Assurances et de Participation Guian SA, Software Underwriting Systems Limited (in liquidation), Southern Marine & Aviation Inc., Southern Marine & Aviation Underwriters Inc., Sudzucker Versicherungs-Vermittlungs GmbH, Sumitomo Life Insurance Agency America Inc., Sylvite Financial Services, TBX Solutions Limited, Talent Tech Labs LLC, The Benefit Express Holdings Limited, The Benefit Express Limited, The Carpenter Management Corporation, The Insurance Partnership Holdings Limited, The Insurance Partnership Services Limited, The Positive Ageing Company Limited, The Purple Partnership Limited, The Recovre Group Pty Ltd, Thomsons Online Benefits (HK) Ltd., Thomsons Online Benefits Inc., Thomsons Online Benefits Limited, Thomsons Online Benefits Pte Ltd., Thomsons Online Benefits S.R.L, Torrent Government Contracting Services LLC, Torrent Insurance Services LLC, Torrent Technologies, Torrent Technologies Inc., Tower Hill Limited, Tower Place Developments (West) Limited, Tower Place Developments Limited, U.T.E. 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There could not have been a better birthday gift for Captain Amarinder Singh in Punjab. He has brought the Congress back to power in Punjab after 10 years.

By India Today Web Desk: Punjab Election Results LIVE: Birthday boy Captain Amarinder Singh wins the state for Congress in style

Finally some good news for the Congress in elections as it returns to power in Punjab. Captain Amarinder Singh has delivered it for the Congress party.

There could not have been a better birthday gift for Captain Amarinder Singh, who turned 75 today.

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The Congress has crossed the half-way mark in the Punjab Assembly election. As per the leads, the Congress is set to win more than 65 seats in 117-member Punjab Assembly.

Proving wrong exit polls which had projected a close outcome, the Congress was way ahead of the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine and the new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Contrary to surveys that the Akali Dal will be routed, the party was firmly entrenched at the number two slot in counting trends, leading at a respectable 25 seats despite 10 years of being in power.

ALSO WATCH:

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which was confident of taking power in the border state, led in just 24 Seats.

In Chandigarh, security was enhanced outside the private bungalow of Amarinder Singh in the upscale Sector 10 as it became clear that the Congress was comfortably placed to win the assembly polls.

A metal detector and more security personnel were stationed at his residence as the number of visitors increased.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal led in his Lambi seat over his rivals Amarinder Singh (Congress) and Jarnail Singh (AAP).

The Chief Minister's son Sukhbir Singh Badal, who is the Akali Dal President, also led in Jalalabad -- after initially trailing to the AAP's Bhagwant Mann.

Amarinder Singh, who led the Congress campaign, led in his traditional seat Patiala-Urban over his Akali Dal rival JJ Singh, a former Army chief and a former Governor of Arunachal Pradesh.

The Congress was also leading on the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat where a by-election was held along with the assembly polls.

(With IANS inputs) Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal

|Assembly Election Results 2017 Full Coverage

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VeriFone Systems, Inc. provides payments and commerce solutions at the point of sale (POS) worldwide. It offers countertop solutions that accept payment options, including contactless, NFC, mobile wallets, and EMV; PIN pads that support credit and debit card, EBT, EMV, and other PIN-based transactions; and multilane consumer facing commerce devices. It also provides portable payment devices, including small, portable, and handheld devices that enable merchants to accept electronic payments wherever wireless connectivity is available; and mobile solutions that attach to and interface with iOS or Android based smartphones and tablets. In addition, it offers integrated electronic payment systems that combine electronic payment processing, fuel dispensing, and ECR functions, as well as secure payment systems for integration with petroleum pump controllers; unattended and self-service payment solutions designed to enable payment transactions in self-service, high-transaction volume, and public transportation environments; and network access solutions. Further, it provides installation, deployment, training, and application development and delivery solutions; project management, client education program, and consulting services; helpdesk support, equipment repair and maintenance, and software post-contract support services; and application libraries and development tools. Additionally, it offers omnichannel commerce, terminal management, and security solutions; and cloud-based managed, transaction payment, and other value added services. It sells its products directly; and through third party and channel partners. It serves financial institutions, payment processors, government organizations, and retailers; petroleum, transportation, and healthcare companies; and quick service restaurants. The company was formerly known as VeriFone Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to VeriFone Systems, Inc. in May 2010. VeriFone Systems, Inc. is headquartered in San Jose, California.
"I am a small worker of Rahul Gandhi. I promise that we will present Punjab as an example. My role in the government will be decided by Rahul Gandhi," Navjot Singh Sidhu said.

By Manjeet Sehgal: Even after winning the Assembly election with a fat margin, Navjot Singh Sidhu is heading for a new gambit. His next challenge will be to get a suitable Cabinet berth as after leaving BJP he will not settle for less.

So what is the Sidhu couple expecting now after the party's norm of 'one man one post' was applied on them and his wife was denied a Congress ticket.

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A deputy chief minister's post or a top Cabinet berth - Sidhus have now pinned their hope on Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

"I am a small worker of Rahul Gandhi. I promise that we will present Punjab as an example. My role in the government will be decided by Rahul Gandhi," Navjot Singh Sidhu said.

Though, Sidhus have not publically demanded a berth, but sources say Sidhu is eyeing a top berth which could be a Deputy Chief Minister's post.

However, his proximity to Gandhis may not auger well for Captain Amarinder Singh who had earlier expressed his reservations about Sidhu meeting Gandhis.

Another expected roadblock could be the Congress strategy to strike a balance between the communities. As Captain and Sidhu both are Jats, the party may not be in favour of showering a top post to the leader of same community. If Captain Amarinder Singh is made a CM, Sidhu will have to settle for less.

What remains to be seen is how the Congress creates equations between the communities as any imbalance may lead to a conflict.

The party MLAs will now resort to intense lobbying in Delhi to grab the plum posts. However, Captain Amarinder Singh has now assured the MLAs and other leaders, including those who were denied tickets, that they will be suitably rewarded with plum posts in boards and corporations.

Also read:

Punjab election 2017 results: Navjot Singh Sidhu wins Amritsar East by 42,000 votes

Birthday boy Amarinder Singh decimates rivals

Punjab election 2017 result: Captain steering Congress ship to victory, SAD days for Badals likely

WATCH THE VIDEO

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The official language of the small Caribbean country of Guadeloupe is French, although Creole is also commonly spoken. English is also spoken although the numbers are low compared to French and Creole.

Location & Geography

Guadeloupe is the southernmost of the Leeward Islands in the Eastern Caribbean Sea. The total area of the islands is about 1,600 square kilometers with a population of over 400,000 residents. It is a popular tourist destination. The most widely spoken languages are of course French and Creole but English, Carib and other languages are also spoken in some areas but in relatively much lower numbers. The climate is tropical with temperatures ranging around 25 C throughout the year.

History

The island was discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1493. The French set foot in the island following that and by 1635 Guadeloupe was chosen as a preferable place for settlement. The island was annexed to the Kingdom of France in 1674. Over the next few centuries, the island changed many hands between the British, French and Sweden eventually ending up in French possession again. It is now a French Overseas Region and therefore French is the official and most widely spoken language in the islands.

French

Almost all inhabitants of Guadeloupe speak French as it is the official language. Tourists are generally advised to brush up on their French or learn basic conversation and signs so it is easier to interact with the locals. An extension of the French language is the French sign language. Several gestures which may be normal in other languages and cultures are considered insulting or outright derogatory in French. For example, joining your index finger and thumb to form a circle and raising all the other fingers is generally meant to portray approval but in French, this means worthless and counts as an insult. Attempts to speak French are usually appreciated on all the French islands and mini-phrase books or dictionaries may prove invaluable.

Creole

Guadeloupean Creole or Guadeloupean Creole French is spoken by about 430,000 people on the island. It is mainly French-Based, but also has some vocabulary from English, Bantu languages and American Indian languages. The language is also known as Patwa, Patois or Kreyol. Guadeloupean Creole is more or less mutually intelligible with the creoles of Martinique and Haiti. Creole was historically the language of the local community throughout the times of colonialism. It has retained its status as a symbol of the local cultural pride and unity. It is also taught in schools now which shows more acceptance by the ruling nation of France.

English

English is spoken and understood more by the local population now as it is the common language of the tourists. However, tourists should expect to communicate in English with tourism industry workers and those catering to tourists only and not general local populace. Communication in English should not be expected and, if necessary, only by employees of larger establishment and workers in tourist hotspots.

Conclusion

Though not a lot in number, the languages in Guadeloupe are stable with both French and Creole widely spoken and understood. Bookstores often carry simple cassette learning tapes that can assist in the proper pronunciation of a few basic phrases. However, a visitor should not forget that a smile is the easiest and most universal form of communication throughout the world and Guadeloupe is no different.
Arvind Kejriwal started his political journey offering hope for new brand of politics in the country. In four years, he seems to have turned it into a negative brand of politics. In Punjab his party fell short of expectations while Goa has rejected AAP out-rightly.

By Prabhash K Dutta: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal emerged on the national scene during the anti-graft movement of India Against Corruption in 2011.

The movement for Lokpal continued for another two years before he parted ways with activist Anna Hazare, whom Kejriwal referred to as his mentor. A political party was formed, which contested Delhi Assembly election in 2013.

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Aam Aadmi Party surprised many in the Assembly election as Kejriwal beat veteran Congress leader and three-time Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. But, AAP fell was second largest party after the BJP, which refused to stake claim to form government.

READ| Punjab Assembly election results: Congress wins 77 as Amarinder Singh turns 75

AAP formed a government, ironically with outside support from the Congress. It lasted only 49 days.

Two years later after the Lok Sabha elections were over, Narendra Modi's government formed at Centre and the BJP having won all the seven parliamentary seats in Delhi.

Arvind Kejriwal had arrived on the political landscape of the country.

PUNJAB OFFERED HOPE

After 2013 Delhi Assembly election, AAP saw support pouring in from various quarters including Punjab. Next year in the whirlwind of Narendra Modi, Punjab sent four AAP members to the Lok Sabha.

AAP's success in Punjab was quite unexpected. But, it nourished Kejriwal's ambition of spreading his party's wings outside Delhi. Kejriwal's planning for Punjab had started soon after the Lok Sabha polls.

Kejriwal's trusted aide Sanjay Singh, AAP in-charge of Punjab, had been almost camping in Punjab for past two years.

ALSO WATCH|

Kejriwal himself devoted his entire energy towards Punjab election. He even ignored Goa for Punjab to certain extent. A time came when none of the AAP ministers were in Delhi when the city was battling with Chikungunya and Dengue.

Kejriwal gave preference to campaigning in Punjab and also Goa. Kejriwal was said to be aiming for the office which Captain Amarinder Singh of the Congress, in all probability, would occupy.

AAP came a distant second in Punjab with about 24 per cent vote-share. The party won only 22 seats- nowhere near the majority mark that Kejriwal had claimed before counting of votes.

In Goa, Kejriwal's campaign served no purpose except generating headlines with scathing attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

JOLT FOR GUJARAT?

A win in Punjab would have added a few wings to Kejriwal's national ambition.

But, a performance, which is otherwise very impressive for a debutante, which performed much below its own claim of securing a Delhi-like victory in Punjab does no good to Kejriwal.

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Kejriwal was hoping to gain some popularity in Manipur when he extended financial support to activist turned politician and PRJA chief Irom Sharmila. But, even Sharmila lost miserably.

READ| Kejriwal's AAP no match for birthday boy Amarinder Singh

Had these results gone in Kejriwal's favour, AAP would have been aggressive in Gujarat, which goes to polls later this year. Now, Kejriwal's credibility is at stake.

Many observers find Kejriwal doing negative politics. His utter criticism and finding fault with everything that is not associated with AAP have not gone down well with the voters in Punjab and Goa.

If Kejriwal has to take AAP outside the political cocoons of Delhi, he needs to reinvent himself and his party politically.Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal

|Assembly Election Results 2017 Full Coverage

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Kris Meeke edged further ahead of Sebastien Ogier at Rally Guanajuato Mexico on Saturday morning.

Stage info: SS10 / 11 SS10: Lajas de Oro 1, 38.31km

The longest stage of Saturdays leg contains a bit of everything. It climbs initially on a wide road before turning onto a tricky narrow section on regraded tracks which have not been used before. The rest of the test mixes fast open sections with tighter parts. There are many surface changes that blend smooth gravel with bumps and compressions. SS11: El Brinco 1, 10.09km

El Brinco is famous for its big jump which this year is 1.2km from the finish. Its nature has changed, with a much bigger compression and a ledge cut into it so it ressembles a step. The test is wide open and fast from start to finish.

The Citroen C3 pilot was second in both Lajas de Oro and El Brinco to increase his lead to 23.5sec as the rally returned to the Leon service park after more than 75km of action in the mountains above the city.

The Northern Irishman was glad to see the back of El Brinco. This is my bogey stage. Ive made a few mistakes on these roads in the past and never felt comfortable. Today it felt good but we have a tough afternoon ahead, he said.

Ogier was third in both tests after a clean loop, although his Ford Fiesta showed cosmetic damage at the rear after clipping some bushes in Lajas de Oro.

Thierry Neuville was fastest in El Brinco but the Belgian was a lonely third, 43.6sec adrift of Ogier and almost a minute ahead of Ott Tanak. Im not really pushing, I cant catch the guys in front unless they do any mistakes, said the Hyundai i20 driver.

Lack of confidence was Tanaks concern, the Estonian unhappy with his Fiestas set-up. He was 49.2sec ahead of Hayden Paddon, the Kiwi climbing to fifth as he displaced Juho Hanninen, whose illness showed no signs of improvement.

Jari-Matti Latvala was seventh, despite brake problems in his Toyota Yaris. The pedal was working correctly but there was little stopping power available to the Finn. Both he and Paddon punctured their left rear tyre after swiping the same rock in El Brinco.

Eric Camilli was eighth, having snatched the WRC 2 lead from Pontus Tidemand, with Elfyn Evans tenth.

Dani Sordo continued to shine in his i20. He took a second consecutive stage win in Lajas de Oro and was only 0.9sec away from completing a hat-trick in El Brinco. He put that down to a chunk of aero missing from the rear wing.

Stephane Lefebvre was the mornings main casualty. The Frenchman slid his C3 off the road and remained there, while Lorenzo Bertelli rolled his Fiesta at a hairpin.

Head to WRC+ to see the latest onboard and video reports from Rally Guanajuato Mexico.

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Missing Teenager Located Safe By Cheshire Police

This article is old - Published: Saturday, Mar 11th, 2017

Update: Cheshire Police say the missing 14 year old has been located.

Original information:

North Wales Police are becoming concerned for the safety of a young girl.

Police are trying to locate a 14-year-old girl who is missing and are calling on the help of the public.

Kelsey Bodman is from the Brymbo, Wrexham area.

She is described as having an average build with long brown hair.

She was last seen wearing a dark blue / black jacket with fur on the hood and a pair of leggings when she left her home address this morning.

Police are appealing to anyone who has seen Kelsey, or who may know of her whereabouts, to contact officers immediately on 101 reference i-trace 17594.
By Press Trust of India: Badal courted arrest during the Dharamyudh Morcha and "Operation Bluestar" in June 1984 when the army had entered the Golden Temple complex at Amritsar to flush out militants.

He was again elected to the state assembly in June 1980 and September 1985 elections. He refused to become the Deputy Chief Minister under Surjit Singh Barnala after the 1985 elections and later quit the party following widening rift.

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In 1986, he formed Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) and courted arrest on December 2, 1985 with former SGPC President Gurcharan Singh Tohra and other leaders and was jailed at Dehradun.

He was again elected in the 1997 assembly elections from Lambi and became Chief Minister on February 12, 1997 heading the SAD-BJP alliance government.

During his third tenure, he took the decision of providing free electricity, water and waiving the land revenue to the farmers. The completion of the Thein Dam near Pathankot was another hallmark of his tenure.

Badal was re-elected from Lambi in the February 13, 2002 general elections but the SAD-BJP alliance failed to get majority leading to installation of a Congress government with PPCC President Amarinder Singh as chief minister.

The Akali patriarch has been re-elected this time from the Lambi assembly constituency, which is now in Muktsar district.

Though he has groomed son Sukhbir Singh Badal, who is a former Union minister and also the outgoing deputy chief minister, Badal Junior had ruled out becoming chief minister saying his father had the experience and the vision to take Punjab forward. PTI AKA ZMN

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By Press Trust of India: Imphal, Mar 10 (PTI) Repolling in 28 polling stations across four districts of Manipur began today amidst tight security.

Voters were seen standing in queues before the polling stations to exercise their franchise which has been peaceful so far, an election commission official said.

Polling in Ukul, Tengnoupal, Kangpokpi and Senapati districts was held during the second phase of the assembly elections on March 8.

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The repoll was ordered on Tuesday following electoral malpractices in these polling stations, the official said.

Repolling started at 7 am. PTI CORR AYP SNP

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British Airways (BA) cabin crew at Heathrow airport completed a seven-day strike Thursday. The workers are employed in the airlines mixed fleet crew and are in dispute against poverty pay levels and inferior working conditions. With the latest strikes, the 2,900 members of the Unite trade union have taken 26 days of strike action.

Mixed fleet crew currently earn 11,000-12,000 a year, plus a paltry 3-per-working-hour allowance for expenses and maintenance between two flightsusually abroad. This amounts in practice to earnings of 16,000-17,000 a year.

A member of BAs flight deck crew, in reply to a recent article in the Independent, said cabin crew had effectively gone from 36,000 pay, to 18,000 in the last 5 years. He added, Im flight deck so only know and see a small part of their day, but youre right its not just about safety. Do you go to work at 3 am, and then finally get to a foreign bed at 1 am the next day, when its actually 11 am in the morning local?

He continued, The massively long days, filthy working environment and reduced life expectancy demands a reasonable wage. ... For years both flight deck and cabin crew have been told the reductions in t&cs [terms and conditions] were there to keep the business profitable, whilst at the same time the companies have made huge profits, that have seen CEOs and billionaire shareholders bank accounts bloat.

These conditions were imposed following the defeat of the national BA strike in 2010, with Unite playing a critical role. The imposition and continuation of low pay rates for the mixed fleet is part of the strategy by the International Airlines Group (IAG), which incorporates BA, Irelands Air Lingus, and Spanish airline Iberia to restructure its global pay levels downwards to be more competitive.

The strikes by the Heathrow cabin crew demonstrate workers determination to resist BAs attacks. However, this struggle is being systematically isolated by the Unite union.

Prior to the latest strikes, BA management boasted that only 0.4 percent of flights would be affected over the seven days. This was even less disruption than the last strikes, during which 1 percent of flights were disrupted.

Unite has done nothing to mobilise the support of other cabin crew in defence of the Heathrow crew, either at that airport or at any other in the UK. Unite has more than 9,000 BA cabin crew members organised in another branch, but these workers have been kept rigidly isolated from the struggle at Heathrow. Nor has Unite made any attempt to enlist the solidarity of the 60,000 employees in three countries where the IAG operates.

On this basis, the BA has been able to push through a separate deal with other cabin crew staff. A BA representative said last month, Our pay offer for mixed fleet cabin crew is consistent with deals agreed with more than 90 percent of British Airways colleagues, including many Unite members.

The creation of a tiered pay system and a divided workforce was the outcome of the defeat of a bitter struggle fought in 2010-11. Following strikes held over a 20-month period, Unite accepted all of BAs demands, including the slashing of jobs and introduction of inferior pay for new entrants. On top of this it signed up to a scabs charter, agreeing to BAs right to train and use a special pool of replacement cabin crew in the event of any future strike.

This was the culmination of years of class collaboration by the union with BA management. In the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crash, Unite proposed a package of negotiated efficiencies to BA, with National Secretary for Aviation Steve Turner pledging that until an upturn in the global economy the union will work with the company on the introduction of temporary measures aimed at ensuring stability and security of employment for our members and their families.

The proposals included a company-wide deferral of the pay award due for 2009/2010 and headcount efficiencies.

Opposed to mobilising its membership and workers throughout the airline industry against these attacks, Unite has instead called on workers to put their faith in an appeal to Members of Parliament. Last month, Unite held what it described as a photo opportunity outside the Houses of Parliament to seek MPs support in their on-going battle against poverty pay at the airline.

A few days later, on February 9, Labour MPs Lisa Nandy, Dennis Skinner, Christopher Stephens, Rachael Maskell and Dawn Butler tabled an Early Day Motion to Parliament. The motionas with the vast majority of EDMswas not the subject of a subsequent debate, and read, This House supports BA workers in mixed fleet cabin crew in their current industrial dispute over pay.

The support offered was tokencommitting no one to anythingas it then called for Unite and BA to reach a negotiated settlement.

Unite were calling on MPs to support striking workers under conditions in which all the main parties agree with austerity and oppose industrial action by workers. On March 1, the governments anti-strike Trades Union Act became lawenacted by a Parliament that recently initiated debates aimed at making strikes illegal in key sectors, including transport.

Just 35 out of more than 300 opposition party MPs supported the EDM, with a tiny handful of these (19 out of 229) Labour MPs. John McDonnell, the left shadow chancellor who is the main ally of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, refused to put his name to this timid motion. This was despite McDonnell, who is the local constituency MP for the borough of Hayes and Harlington, telling striking cabin crew in January, We will be winning this.

Corbyn did not sign either.

The attacks facing BA Heathrow cabin crew are part of an offensive being carried out against airline workers internationally by companies seeking competitive advantage over their rivals at all costs. Cabin and flight crews have seen their workload increase while their real term pay remains either stagnant or declines drastically.

Last month, the German pilots union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) accepted an arbitration ruling on compensation for 5,400 Lufthansa pilots. This struggle, involving many strikes, dated back to 2012 as pilots fought proposed cuts in salaries and pensions and attacks on working conditions. The arbitration works out at an average salary increase of just 1.2 percent per year. Lufthansas shares climbed by almost 3 percent on the news, reaching the top position on the DAX stock index and its highest position since last May.

As with Unite, the unions involved in the strikeVerdi, UFO and Vereinigung Cockpitnever attempted to coordinate industrial action among their membership throughout the Lufthansa Group. This week, air traffic controllers and other workers at Air France held strikes to protest conditions imposed as a result of contracts signed by the unions.

Airline workers in Britain, Germany, France and internationally must oppose the dead-end nationalist and class collaborationist perspective of the trade unions, which has resulted in defeat after defeat. The prerequisite for a successful struggle is the creation of class struggle organization, independent of the unions and based on an internationalist, socialist programme.
The number of asylum seekers entering Canada from the United States has continued to rise in recent weeks. Fearing the Trump administrations anti-immigrant witch-hunt, men and women, often travelling with children and babies, are crossing the border in hazardous conditions and cold temperatures, risking their health and even their lives.

Early Wednesday, 19 refugees had to be rescued as they crossed into Manitoba during a winter storm.

Just in Quebec, 635 people claimed asylum in February, up six times from the same month in 2016.

In January and February, about 450 asylum seekers crossed into Canada overland without going through an official checkpoint. Although this is a tiny numbereven when compared with Ottawas 2017 refugee target of 40,000, let alone the scope and scale of the global refugee crisisit has provoked an outcry in the Canadian press and political establishment.

Last Saturday, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale went to Emerson, a small city in Manitoba that has reportedly seen some 200 border crossings so far this year. While he announced funding for the Emerson Fire Department, which deals with new arrivals, Goodale failed to promise any financial help for asylum seekers. He did, however, reiterate that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Canada Border Services Agency are fully enforcing the law and that Canada has no intention of suspending the Safe Third Country Agreement with the United States.

The Liberals refusal to scrap the Safe Third Country Agreementbrushing aside warnings from legal scholars and refugee advocacy groups about Trumps anti-democratic policiesis putting the lie to the Trudeau governments fraudulent refugee-friendly posturing. Under the agreement, most asylum-seekers who enter Canada from the US at a land-crossing are denied the right to make a claim for refugee status in Canada and are immediately returned to the US.

On the other hand, those who cross into Canada without going through a regulated border checkpoint are allowed to seek refugee status. This is why growing numbers of migrants are being forced to enter Canada illegallythat is, passing through snow-covered fields and ditches instead of showing up at an official border crossing.

Most of the asylum seekers come from the Middle East or Africa, but there are also many who hail from Latin America. These regions have been the target of brutal US-led wars of aggression and/or subjected to bloody US-backed dictatorshipscrimes in which Canadian imperialism has been complicit.

The Trump administration is mounting a draconian witch-hunt against immigrants and refugees. This includes suspending the entire refugee assessment process, banning travelers from six predominantly Muslim countries, broadening the arbitrary powers of immigration authorities to expel people, and initiating plans for the arrest and deportation of millions of immigrants.

A key reason Trudeau and his Liberals are so emphatic about upholding the Safe Third Country Agreement is that they are keen to avoid causing the Trump administration, with which they are determined to forge a close working relationship, any embarrassment. As was made clear in a joint statement Trudeau and Trump issued last month, the basis of a reinvigorated Canada-US alliance is to be Canadas further integration into US-led military violence abroad and the creation of a US-led North American trade war bloc, either through the refurbishing of NAFTA or a new bilateral trade deal.

Speaking in Calgary last week, Justin Trudeau demonstrated his contempt for asylum seekers and the willingness of his government to step up repression against migrants. We can reassure Canadians, said Trudeau, that we have a strong and robust system for processing these new arrivals, but at the same time, we are working with all levels of government and indeed talking with our counterparts in the United States to ensure that we are addressing the situation properly.

The Liberal government has responded to the inflow of desperate asylum seekers by increasing border surveillance and deepening Ottawas already very close cooperation with the US Department of Homeland Security and the US Customs and Border Protection Agencythe very bodies overseeing the mass round-up of immigrants south of the border.

On Friday, Trumps Homeland Security chief, John Kelly, traveled to Ottawa to meet with Canadian officials.

Big business fully supports the Liberals indifference and hostility to those fleeing Trumps anti-immigrant witch-hunt and, if anything, is pressing the government to take a harder line. John Manley, the CEO of Canadas most important corporate lobby group, the Business Council of Canada, has urged the government to take measures to dissuade people from seeking safety in Canada. The world is literally swimming in refugees, Manley told the CBC. We figure we can take in and manage about 40,000 a year. Do we really need to take people from the United States?

Manley, who as Liberal deputy prime minster in 2002 signed the Canada-US Smart Border Declaration, which helped bring the Safe Third Country agreement into effect, was at pains to minimize the Trump administrations attack on democratic rights and its anti-immigrant witch-hunt. People have misgivings about Donald Trump  OK, said Manley. But its still the United States. Its not Homs, Syria, or Mosul in Iraq.

Despite the fact that the Trump administration is stepping up an already brutal crackdown on immigrants (Obama deported some 3 million people during his presidency) the Liberal government has repeatedly vowed that it will not raise Canadas miserably low 2017 refugee quota of 40,000down 15,000 from its 2016 quota.

While the media in Canada and internationally have presented Trudeau as a champion of liberalism for accepting 25,000 Syrian refugees in his governments first months in office, the reality is that the government is providing them virtually no support. Many have been forced to rely on charity just to feed, clothe, and house themselves.

The reactionary character of Canadas immigration system was underscored by the praise it received from Donald Trump in his recent speech to Congress. The US president hailed Canadas merit-based immigration, which uses a point system to select immigrants according to the needs of big business, saying that it should serve as a model for the US.

The Conservative Party, meanwhile, is seeking to whip up xenophobia, with most of the 14 candidates to succeed Stephen Harper as party leader denouncing Trudeau for failing to halt the illegal influx of refugee-claimants from the US. Trump wannabee Kellie Leith has vowed that if she were prime minister she would cut funding for so-called sanctuary cities, and has produced a video to promote her call for all immigrants, refugees and visitors to Canada to undergo a face-to-face interview with an immigration officer to determine whether they adhere to Canadian values.

Jason Kenney, former Minister for Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism under Harper and front-runner in the Alberta Progressive Conservative leadership race, told CTV that Canada should eliminate the exemptions in the Safe Third Country Agreement that allow people to enter Canada because it is incentivizing people coming in illegally and dangerously.

The Conservatives have also denounced a Liberal parliamentary motion condemning Islamophobia. On the Liberals part the motion is a hypocritical manoeuvre: an attempt to distance themselves from a rise in anti-Muslim incidents in the wake of the January 29 Quebec mosque massacre and to give them political cover for their eager pursuit of close ties with Trump. But the Conservatives opposition is a crude appeal to anti-Muslim sentiment, including ludicrous claims that the Liberal-backed motion is an attack on free speech and that the government is privileging Islam over other faiths.

The whipping up of such foul xenophobia is emboldening racist and outright fascist forces. Last weekend, the newly-created Canadian Coalition of Concerned Citizens held demonstrations in several Canadian cities, including Montreal, Toronto, Hamilton, Calgary and Edmonton, to protest the anti-Islamophobia motion and the purported Islamization of Canada. Georges Hallack, the groups founder, urged Canadian patriots to participate in the protests, which attracted a few hundred, to prevent the introduction of sharia law in Canada and oppose globalization.

The Trudeau government, on behalf of Canadian imperialism, is determined to join Washington in its bloody military interventions in the Middle East and Africa, as well as in its war preparations against Iran, Russia and China. Such conflicts will only create more destruction, deaths and refugees. But the Canadian ruling class, like its US counterpart, is determined to close the borders and send back the desperate asylum seekers to their war-torn countries.
The European Union is responding to the deepest crisis since its founding by further militarizing the continent and preparing for an economic showdown with the United States.

In a statement issued Friday at the end of the two-day EU summit in Brussels, the 27 remaining member states declared their intention to press ahead with greater determination and speed with the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). The European Council welcomed the holding of a high-level conference on security and defence in Prague on 9 June. Just days prior to the conference, the EU foreign and defence ministers agreed on Monday to the creation of a joint headquarters for military interventions.

The EU referred to the need to implement the common set of proposals for enhanced cooperation with NATO. But it is clear that the offensive rearmament is increasingly directed against the United States. The statement does not mention US President Donald Trump by name, but spoke out explicitly against protectionist tendencies in world trade and called for the development of tools to tackle unfair trade practices and market distortions.

Brussels, and above all Berlin, are using the threats of the new US President to position the EU economy in opposition to that of the United States.

The EU will continue to engage actively with international trading partners, the statement says. This will include resolutely advancing on all ongoing negotiations for ambitious and balanced free trade agreements, including with Mercosur and Mexico. Negotiations with Japan are closest to an early conclusion and relations with China should be strengthened on the basis of a shared understanding of reciprocal and mutual benefits.

The EU is thereby seeking an expansion of its economic relations with countries that are in the crosshairs of American imperialism. Trump is threatening Mexico with trade war and the abandonment of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). And Washington is ever more openly adopting a course towards war with China. As a result, transatlantic tensions will only deepen.

A guest comment in Fridays Suddeutsche Zeitung warned of the enormous potential for destruction of the Trumpian America first policy. The countermeasures proposed by economics professor and former Finance Minister of the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Karl-Heinz Paque, in a piece entitled Cool heads and a firm hand are just as aggressive. Europe must if necessary be ready to wage trade war against Trumps America.

Paque writes, If Trump goes against WTO regulations and imposes tariffs or quotas on cars from Europe, Europe could do the same with microprocessors and information technology from the US. And should all else fail, Europe would have to be ready with a firm hand for a controlled trade war and its economic victims. The answer to America first is global trade first.

This theme was taken up by German Chancellor Angela Merkel (Christian Democrats, CDU) in her government statement prior to the beginning of the EU summit. Europe must determinedly defend its interests [] whenever and wherever necessary. Precisely because the character of transatlantic relations was changing, Europe had decided to assume more responsibility in the future than it has in the past, and in our own neighbourhood as well as beyond. Germany was reliant not only on having access to the single market, but also to global markets.

Berlin is striving for a core Europe under German leadership to enforce its geostrategic and economic interests by military means in opposition to the United States if necessary, and maintain control over the growing conflicts within the EU. The tasks before us are too great, Merkel said, for us to continue working at the lowest common denominator. It therefore must be increasingly possible for some member states to move forward, while others do not wish to participate yet in certain steps.

Merkels call for a two-speed Europe is reproduced almost word-for-word in the statement that the EU intends to adopt on 25 March to mark the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome, which founded the European Economic Community, the EUs predecessor. An undivided and indivisible EU acts together wherever that is possible, and in different steps and intensities where that is necessary, a draft cited by Handelsblatt stated.

Germanys desire to rise to the position of Europes hegemon, and the mounting conflict with the United States, are intensifying the sharp tensions within the EU and the ruling class of each country.

We will never accept a two-speed Europe, stated Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydo after the conference. In Brussels, the right-wing Polish PiS (Law and Justice Party) government vehemently opposed the reelection of EU Council President Donald Tusk, a former Polish Prime Minister. Tusk was Germanys candidate and his reelection would intensify the unions crisis, warned PiS chairman Jaroslaw Kaczynski prior to the beginning of the summit.

Due to the reelection of Tusk, a member of Polands largest opposition party PO (Citizens Platform), which is engaged in a major dispute with the government, above all due to its pro-EU stance, the Polish delegation blocked all of the summits decisions.

The ruling class in Germany is particularly concerned about the erosion of the EU as Handelsblatt put it. In the lead article of Saturdays edition of the Suddeutsche Zeitung, Stefan Kornelius bemoans the existential crisis of the EU. After Brexit and the election of Trump last year, two events this year [could] accelerate this dynamic, if in the Netherlands or more importantly France fate is on the side of the EU destroyers Wilders and Le Pen.

The European working class confronts two scenarios, both of which would mean a relapse into barbarism and war: the transformation of the EU into a military union dominated by Germany and preparing for trade war against its international rivals, and Europes division into hostile nation states. The only way to successfully fight war and nationalism is to unite Europe on a socialist basis.
A fire killing dozens at an overcrowded residential facility for youth on the outskirts of Guatemala City has provoked broad outrage. Health authorities have reported 35 girls dead and 23 hospitalized as a result of the blaze in the female section of the facility. Nine of the survivors are reportedly connected to respirators and can die at any moment.

A survivor at one of the hospitals reported that some of the at-risk youth being supposedly sheltered from domestic violence, homelessness, and abandonment were seeking to escape due to widespread abuse and poor conditions within the facility itself.

On Tuesday, about 60 of them managed to flee but were detained by the National Police, returned to the Virgen de la Asuncion shelter and locked inside of a 4-meter by 4-meter room. Some of the 52 girls inside reportedly set mattresses on fire, which quickly consumed the room with flames and smoke.

This calamity was not only the result of the immediate abuse and conditions at the shelter, but more fundamentally of the desperate situations that youth face after decades of imperialist exploitation and right-wing measures that have ruined social conditions and fueled violence in Guatemala.

Thousands of youth and young workers have taken the dangerous journey to the United States to escape these same conditions that await them once again if they are deported under the mass roundup and deportation of immigrants begun by the Trump administration.

The Guatemalan fire department and police authorities who responded to the incident referred to the youth as rebelling inmates and blamed each other for a 40-minute delay in attending to the fire. The attorney general blamed the entire incident on the staff, the director and the secretary of Social Welfare, while the Guatemalan president, Jimmy Morales, cynically claimed that all Guatemalans bear part of the responsibility, which is that of the nation, the republic we have built.

At a press conference on Thursday, Morales announced that the shelter will be closed and the youth sent to other facilities. Then, he scorned those protesting, including the families of the victims, while confessing that not much will be done to prevent future disasters. We can do a lot, from protesting to even proposing and acting; this last word is the hardest, he concluded, not staying for questions.

That evening, hundreds gathered outside of the National Palace to protest the fire. Millions in Guatemala are disgusted by the hypocrisy of the Morales government, which has continued to cut spending on youth and social programs while militarizing the country to terrorize poor communities. The people are present, and have no president, chanted the protesters on Thursday.

The Guatemalan daily La Hora reported last November that the conditions at the Virgen de la Asuncion center were truly horrendous. The 748 internees, crowded into a facility built for 400, lacked hygiene products like toothbrushes and toilet paper, while several children were sleeping on the floor.

The Public Ministry was reportedly investigating one murder case and several lawsuits regarding beatings, psychological and sexual abuse against girls and boys, and reports of sexual slavery administered by the guards at the facility. La Hora writes that there had been 73 disappearances since the beginning of 2016 until October, when a state prosecutor recommended shutting down the center.

Surrounded by tall prison-like walls with barbed wire and security cameras, the safe houses, like many other overcrowded shelters, prisons, schools and even hospitals, with one or few gates, are deadly disasters waiting to happen from fires, landslides and earthquakes.

In its 2016 operative program, the Social Welfare Secretariat (SBS) writes that the state serves, though in mostly inadequate ways, 8 percent of the 300,000 children and adolescents suffering from discrimination, marginalization, mistreatment. They also write that 6.25 million or two-thirds of all children and adolescents live in total poverty, making them vulnerable to such abuses.

The social conditions for a majority of youth and workers in Guatemala and the region are disastrous. Eighty percent of chronically undernourished children in Latin America live in Central America and Mexico, a condition that affects 45 percent of children under five in Guatemala, according to UNICEF figures.

The SBS requested about $33 million for yearly operations, but the Guatemalan Congress has approved only about two-thirds of this for several years. On the other hand, the military budget has increased almost 40 percent since 2011 to $280 million, mainly for the creation of a Mountain Operations Brigade, Marine Infantry Brigade, Jungle Operations Special Brigade and a Central Regional Command.

Moreover, according to the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Guatemalan government has one of the lowest overall rates of social spending, and spends the least in the region as a percentage of GDP in the provision of education (0.51 percent) and health care (0.49 percent) for its youth.

The agency also reports that the government has the highest level of uncollected income taxes in the region, amounting to 70 percent of its potential tax revenue. Social polarization has been the overriding factor behind the social conditions for workers and youth. Oxfam calculates that the wealth of 260 multimillionaires in Guatemala is equivalent to 60 percent of the countrys GDP.

While the City of Guatemala sees 65 percent of violent crimes and most gang activity that threaten to ensnare youth, the rural areas are affected by 86 percent poverty and rampant drug trafficking and production. At the root of these desperate conditions, like those that produced the disastrous events in the Virgen de la Asuncion home, is an economic system based on the pursuit of profit and personal wealth by capitalist corporations.

The current levels of inequality and violence are the result of a long history of US and European imperialist exploitation in collusion with a rent-seeking and corrupt national bourgeoisie. The polarization of wealth was greatly accelerated with the implementation of IMF austerity diktats, like regressive taxes in 1983, social cuts, and widespread privatizations starting in 1986 under the civilian government of Vinicio Cerezo, after a decade of brutal military dictatorships.

These right-wing measures were intensified after the formulation of the Washington Consensus in 1989 and amid mounting interest payments to the international credit agencies. Throughout the previous decade, the ruling class enforced social cuts to finance an escalation of the counterrevolutionary civil war against left nationalist guerrillas that had raged since the 1950s as a result of the US-orchestrated military overthrow of the bourgeois reformist government of Jacobo Arbenz in 1954.

Between 1970 and 1975, there were about 15,000 political assassinations against radicalized youth, workers and peasants. Entire Mayan villages were destroyed during the 1980s, resulting in the genocidal killing of 200,000 people by the US-backed armed forces as part of counterinsurgency military operations.

The protracted state violence since the Civil War and the expansion of gang activity, along with the growing social inequality, have set the stage for the mass migrations of families and unaccompanied children into the United States.

The fire in Guatemala City underscores the criminality and disastrous consequences of the White House drive to detain and deport millions of immigrant workers and youth back to these social conditions that they escaped by fleeing from in Guatemala and the region.
Hungary plans to intern all refugees in the country in camps adjoining its borders. The camps will consist of large-scale ship containers for between 200 to 300 refugees and recall the barracks set up by the Nazis in their own concentration camps. The camps will be secured with high barbed wire fences and watchtowers. Armed border police with dogs backed by gangs of right-wing thugs will patrol the camp perimeter.

Beginning now, it is impossible for refugees and asylum seekers to move freely in Hungary or leave the country as long as their legal proceedings are in progress. The parliament in Budapest passed a bill on Tuesday with the votes of the right-wing conservative governing party Fidesz and the opposition far-right Jobbik party. The parliamentary vote restores a practice that Hungary had suspended in 2013 following pressure from the EU, the UN and the European Court of Human Rights.

Hungarys ultra-right government under Prime Minister Viktor Orban is thereby intensifying its policy of walling off the country against refugees. Already in January it introduced custodial measures for all asylum seekers in the country, arguing the measure was justified by security risks.

Although Hungarys borders are already hermetically sealed off, Orban warned of a wave of refugees threatening to overrun the country. Hungary was under siege, he declared, with hundreds of thousands of migrants threatening to make their way to Europe. One could not ignore the danger, Orban continued, but was obliged to protect borders in the strictest and most effective way.

Migration is the Trojan horse of terrorism, he stormed in his xenophobic hate speech on Tuesday morning in a Budapest exhibition hall to several hundred newly sworn-in border guards. According to Orban, migrants come to Europe to live according to their own culture and habits, but at a European level and at Europes cost.

The human rights organization Pro Asyl protested sharply against the Hungarian parliaments decision to intern asylum seekers in camps. Its European speaker Karl Kopp told the Neue Osnabruck newspaper: The imprisonment of asylum seekers in Hungary violates EU law and international law.

Kopp called for the EU to initiate proceedings against Hungary for treaty violations. The EU also had to ask itself whether Hungarys right to vote in the EU Council should be suspended, because the internment of refugees is a clear violation of European basic values.

This appeal to European basic values is worthless and runs in the face of reality. The racist policy of the Orban government is a direct consequence of EU refugee policy.

The EU has been working for years to seal off Europes external borders and build the walls of Fortress Europe in such a way that they are insurmountable. The declared objective of the European refugee policy is to prevent asylum seekers from entering Europe in the first place. If they do get in, the EU objective is to confine them in border camps and limit their freedom of movement within Europe as much as possible.

In line with this policy the EU favours mass internment for refugees in countries outside Europe. In order to ensure that refugees do not leave the inhuman and overcrowded camps in Jordan, Lebanon and other countries neighbouring Syria, the EU donated 1 billion last year to the World Food Program and the United Nations Refugee Fund. African countries have also given financial support to detain refugees.

Most of the money allocated to deterring refugees, however, goes to the Frontex border protection agency, which is being constantly expanded. Originally, the task of the European agency was to coordinate the protection of the EUs external borders between the member states, but it has increasingly developed into an independent European border police with a military infrastructure and its own monitoring apparatus.

In the meantime, Frontex is responsible not only for the coordination of border control, but also for risk and hazard analysis at the EUs external borders, the training of border guards, support for member states regarding personnel and technology, the deportation of refugees and cooperation with the European police authority Europol and the security agencies of non-EU countries. The agency also plays an important role in military surveillance and deterrence of refugees in the Mediterranean.

The persecution of refugees is not a Hungarian peculiarity, but is based on the EUs own brutal refugee policy and is supported by leading EU politicians, despite some occasional criticism. Viktor Orban is a close friend of the head of the German Christian Social Union (CSU), Horst Seehofer. Orbans national conservative party Fidesz is a member of the European Peoples Party (EPP), which also includes the German ruling parties, the CSU and the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Orban also receives support for his racist policies from the media. In Die Welt this week, Jacques Schuster wrote: Hungary is more honest in the refugee question than we are. The former speechwriter for the former mayor of Berlin, Eberhard Diepgen (CDU), wrote: It is the task of every state to protect its borders. Anyone who wants to integrate refugees must deter masses of immigrants. Hungary is merely taking on board what some would call the EUs dirty work.

Even if Angela Merkel would never admit it, Schuster continues, she has long since realised that her policy and some of her statements were well intended but not thought through, and disastrous: If it were otherwise, the refugee policy today would not consist of deportation, deterrence, rejection. But the chancellor and her party dont like to talk about it.

Orbans racist refugee policy is a direct result of the EUs refugee defence and cannot be combated by appeals to the European institutions. Rather, the construction of internment camps, recalling the concentration camps of the Nazis, must be seen in the context of the fundamental changes taking place in Europe and the rest of the world.

The many thousands of asylum seekers are fleeing the catastrophic consequences of the imperialist wars that have been waged for decades in the Middle East, the Balkans and other regions by the US and NATO states. The first Gulf War and the Yugoslav wars, the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, the bombing of Libya, and the devastation of Syria and Yemen have killed hundreds of thousands. Cities and entire countries have been laid waste and millions forced to flee.

The many desperate asylum seekers and their families, who are now being interned and terrorized, are part of the world working class threatened by imperialist war policy.

The assumption of power by Donald Trump in the US has acutely increased the danger of new war. With his slogan of America First Trumps government of generals and billionaires threatens the whole world with economic and military confrontation.

The German government has responded to this development with a crazed program of military rearmament. Demands were raised at the Munich Security Conference three weeks ago to triple the countrys military budget. This is only possible through enforcing a drastic savings program with massive reductions in all spheres of social welfare.

As was the case on the eve of the Second World War, this war policy can only be implemented with the establishment of a police state and dictatorial methods.

Today it is refugees from war who are being herded into internment camps. Tomorrow opponents of war and political dissidents will have their turn. The return of concentration camps in Europe is a warning. It shows how urgent it is to make the defence of refugees the starting point for an international struggle against war and capitalism.
Asia

China: Volkswagen contract workers demand equal pay

More than 500 agency workers from the FAW-Volkswagen factory in the northeast city of Changchun demonstrated outside the local labour arbitration committee office on February 23 chanting equal pay for equal work. Protesters claimed that agency workers are paid significantly less than full employees despite years of service at the factory. Some workers complained that they receive just half the salary of permanent employees. The factory employs over 1,500 agency workers.

Workers decided to protest at the labour office after it failed to respond to their application for labour arbitration on February 13. In December workers met with the labour agency and the Changchun municipal trade union in a failed attempt to settle the dispute. In January workers rallied at the provincial Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security office, where they were only given hollow promises they would follow their case.

Volkswagen Changchun is a joint venture involving both Audi and Volkswagen, with state-owned firm FAW group having a majority stake. The plant produces Audi and Volkswagen-branded models.

Cambodia: Disabled garment workers protest

Twenty sacked disabled women workers from the Shimano (Cambodia) garment factory in Kampong Speu province demonstrated at the Cambodian Disabled Peoples Organization (CDPO) headquarters in Phnom Penh on Monday. The women, 14 of whom use wheelchairs, said they were among nearly 90 disabled workers at the factory until they were dismissed without notice or reason on February 23.

The workers said they had been employed at the plant for between four and ten years and received severance pay between $US1,278 and $2,730. CDPO is representing their case to the government claiming discrimination and that they were illegally dismissed.

Cambodian garment workers get unpaid wages after equipment sale

Following months of protests, 500 workers from the bankrupt Kbal Koah Garment Company in Phnom Penhs Chbar Ampov district received part of their December salaries after the factorys property was sold for $130,000. The workers were owed up to $180 each but only received $100.

Kbal Koah Garment is owned by the shuttered Top World Garment Cambodia factory. Phnom Penh Municipal Court has issued a warrant for the temporary seizure of Top Worlds equipment in order to force the owner to pay 200 workers outstanding salaries. Both factories were suddenly closed and the owner disappeared in January without paying December salaries.

Burmese wood factory workers maintain protest

Sixty striking workers at the Kan Kaung Chin Yadanar wood products factory in the Mandalay region are maintaining a sit-in protest that began on March 1 to demand reinstatement of piece-job rates and benefits. Workers claim that factory management cut the rates and benefits after the introduction of the 3,600 kyat ($US6.25) daily minimum wage law in 2015. The factory has over 2,000 employees.

Other demands include working hours limited to 44 per week, entitlement to welfare and employment benefits as per existing labour laws, access to a company doctor, rest areas for workers at the factory, and the right to protest without fear of being fired.

A representative from Singaing township said they had successfully negotiated eight out of the workers ten demands, but the employer refused to negotiate on lunch breaks and restoration of the previous pay rate.

Indonesian copper smelter workers on strike

Around 390 workers at copper smelter PT Smelting in Gresik, Java are maintaining strike action begun on January 19, despite threats from the company that they will be replaced and the smelter reopened by mid-March. PT Smelting is jointly owned by Mitsubishi Materials Corporation and Freeport Indonesia.

Members of the Indonesian Metal Workers Union are striking over wage disparity. A union spokesman said that workers were angry that the company only provided a 5 percent raise to their salary, while managerial employees received a 170 percent increase.

Indonesian fast food workers protest

Sacked workers from the fast food chain Champ Resto have been holding weekly demonstrations outside its restaurants in cities across Java since August demanding reinstatement. Over 80 workers were sacked in 2015 when they held demonstrations outside Champ Resto restaurants at different locations over non-payment into the mandatory government health insurance program for employees and their families.

Workers only became aware that the company had failed to register them in the health scheme in November 2015 when a Champ Resto workers new-born baby died after the child was refused essential hospital care. Workers said the company has refused to comply with recommendations made last September to reinstate them by three provincial labour departments.

Nepalese dam construction workers strike

Locally hired workers on the Bheri-Babai Multipurpose Diversion (dam) Project downed tools on March 1, after a Nepali worker was assaulted by his foreman, a Chinese national, for not washing the companys vehicle. All construction work stopped due to the strike. Workers demanded action against the foreman and called for an increase in wages and allowances.

A senior project engineer from the China Overseas Engineering Group Limited said the foreman was fired after the incident and requested that workers enter negotiations on their other demands.

Pakistan: Karachi trainee doctors protest

Postgraduate trainee doctors at the Dow International Medical College of the Dow University Hospital in Karachi stopped work on March 2 demanding three months of unpaid wages and that university authorities stop assigning them duties outside their contract.

When the doctors turned up at the vice chancellors office for a scheduled meeting he called in paramilitary rangers who turned them away and threatened to throw them off the hospital premises. As a result, the Young Doctors Association warned that the boycott of duties would continue, except in emergency departments, until the issues were resolved.

Hyderabad doctors intensify industrial action

Doctors and trainee doctors from the Liaquat University Hospital appointed to Hyderabad and Jamshoro hospital branches have expanded their daily rolling stoppages begun on February 27, from two to three hours, taking effect on Tuesday. The limited stoppages have impacted on the functioning of the outpatient departments. A sit-in protest was held outside the Hyderabad hospital in Liberty Chowk affecting traffic flow in the city.

The doctors want a pay increase for more than 250 postgraduates and the implementation of higher paid positions in the hospital as announced by the government last year, increasing such positions from 276 to 500. Another key demand is for authorities to immediately pay 14 months outstanding salaries to more than 200 trainee doctors.

India: Jammu and Kashmir national health workers maintain strike

Contract workers from the National Health Mission (NHM) have been on a state-wide strike since March 1 demanding jobs as full-time government employees and equal pay for equal work. The 13,000 workers involved in the strike include doctors, paramedical staff, technicians, lab assistants and nurses who were recruited into the NHM scheme in 2007. Hospital medical services were severely affected.

A march by several hundred strikers in Srinagar on Monday was violently dispersed by police using water-canon, teargas and batons. Dozens of workers were taken into custody. The workers are organised by the All J&K National Health Mission Employees Association and the Health and Family Welfare Employees Confederation.

Orissa school teachers threaten state-wide strike

Teachers at block grant colleges in Odisha have threatened to hold a state wide strike on March 15 and demonstrate at the state assembly on March 18 as part of a long running dispute for salary increases as per the Seventh Pay Commission and for job permanency. This will give them pay parity and the same entitlements as full-time government employees.

According to the School Teachers Federation of Odisha (STFO), over 40,000 contracted teachers at 4,000 block grant colleges have been demanding the abolition of the block grant system for over two years. The teachers ended a 40-day strike over the issues in September 2015 after the government at a high level said it would address their demands.

A 50-day strike in February/March last year over the same issues was shut down by the STFO after the high court ordered the Odisha government to submit an affidavit on what it had done to resolve the issues. The STFO leaders told teachers to wait until after the hearing to decide on further action. The government made several commitments to increase teachers salaries and entitlements that were never fully implemented.

Karnataka rural health workers protest

Rural healthcare workers and assistants (anganwadi workers) demonstrated outside the Women and Child Welfare Department deputy directors office in Kalaburagi on Monday. They were demanding the government reinstate 12 anganwadi workers and assistants who were abruptly dismissed from service two years ago. The workers said the government has refused to release the findings of an official investigation into the dismissals, which was finalised three months ago. The protest was called by the Karnataka State Anganwadi Workers Association.

Sri Lankan university teachers strike

Teachers from most universities across Sri Lanka walked out for the day on Wednesday to demand the withdrawal of a salary circular issued by the University Grants Commission, which they claimed erroneously provided for deductions from their salaries.

A Federation of University Teachers Associations (FUTA) spokesman said the government circular affected university teachers badly because their allowances are higher than their basic salaries. He added that an indefinite strike would be called if the government continued to ignore their demand.

Australia and the Pacific

New South Wales: Sydney bus drivers hold more strikes

Following over two years of failed negotiations for a new work agreement, 200 bus drivers of private operator Transit Systems walked off the job on Tuesday between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Commuters on 50 routes in Parramatta, Liverpool, Merrylands and Blacktown were affected. Their action followed a two-hour stoppage on February 27. The drivers have not had a pay increase for two and a half years.

The dispute began in August 2015, when drivers rejected the companys first enterprise agreement offer, which included a 3 percent pay increase but was not back dated. At that time Transport Workers Union (TWU) members blockaded buses entering or leaving the western Sydney, Smithfield depot of Transit Systems. Drivers said they want wages on par with other bus drivers in the industry.

TWU members rejected the companys last pay offer in February, claiming it meant they would remain the lowest paid drivers in NSW. The TWU claim that Transit Systems is withholding over $1,136 million of government funding earmarked for increasing drivers wages.

NSW: Central Coast garbage collectors strike over pay cut

Garbage collection workers on New South Wales Central Coast, north of Sydney, are threatened with a $300 a week pay cut after their employer Remondis received permission from the Fair Work Commission (FWC) to cancel the current enterprise agreement if a negotiated agreement cannot be reached by 2018. The workers would then come under the inferior industry award.

The Transport Workers Union (TWU) members walked out for 24 hours on Wednesday stopping garbage collection in several suburbs of the Central Coast Council jurisdiction. Their action followed limited stoppages this year and a five-day strike last June over failed negotiations for a new enterprise agreement. Remondis proposed that workers accept a 25 percent pay cut to secure its contract with the Central Coast Council.

The workers want a clause inserted into the councils tender for waste services that protect local jobs, existing workers and their conditions. They also want clauses protecting current conditions if the council renews its contract in 2018 and for temporary outsourced employees to be paid the same as other depot workers. The garbage collection workers fear that future contracts will force them onto general award conditions that pay nearly 30 percent below their current rate.

The TWU has dragged out the dispute for over eight months claiming that limited strike action would force Remondis and the Central Coast Council to maintain their current wages and conditions.

NSW: Pacific Highway construction workers on strike

Over 100 construction workers on the Lendlease project on the Port Macquarie to Kundabung Pacific Highway upgrade walked off the job on Thursday in a dispute over a new work agreement with Telum labour hire. The Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) claim that Telum wants workers to accept an effective wage cut but workers want 4.5 percent annual wage increases over the life of the agreement.

A CFMEU representative said that despite the union making some concessions the company has refused to enter talks following the January 13 vote to take strike action.

Australian childcare workers strike on international womens day

More than 1,000 childcare centre workers walked off the job nationally on Wednesday afternoon and rallied in capital cities to demand higher wages in the childhood education sector. The United Voice union said the walkout was a protest over gross underpayment of what is a predominantly female workforce. The union appealed to the Turnbull Liberal government for additional funding for pay increases.

The action had been planned to coincide with International Womens Day to draw commentary over the large pay gap between male- and female-dominated professions. An educator on the base rate for certificate III only receives $20 an hour, slightly above the minimum wage, while workers who have diploma-level training receive between $23 and $25 an hour.

While the union attempts to blame the low wages in the sector on the fact that over 80 percent of educators are female, this perception ignores the broader trend across all industries towards falling or stagnant wages, as part of a general assault over several decades on workers pay and conditions. The Fair Work Commission (FWC) ruled last month that penalty rates for work on Sunday and public holidays will be reduced for full-time and part-time workers in the hospitality, retail and fast-food industries, reducing the annual wage in the sectors by up to $6,000.

Locked out Parmalat workers reject latest wage proposal

In a ballot held on March 3, locked out workers at the Parmalat dairy processing plant at Echuca in northern Victoria voted 67 to 1 to reject the companys latest proposed enterprise agreement (EA). Parmalat decided to hold the ballot after it was unable to make a deal with union representatives during conciliation talks in the FWC.

Over 60 maintenance and production workers at the plant have been locked out since January 18. The workers, who are members of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) and Electrical Trades Union (ETU), are maintaining a 24-hour picket outside the plant.

Parmalat has tried to pressure the workers into accepting its proposed EA by applying to the FWC to have the existing agreement terminated and then forcing them onto the inferior industry award.

Negotiations for a new work agreement began in August. Parmalat offered a 9 percent pay rise over three years for permanent workers in exchange for major cuts in the hourly pay of all new employees. The unions claim the company wants to reduce new employees wages by $8 an hour or 20 to 30 percent less than the existing hourly rate. Production workers are paid around $30 an hour.

Papua New Guinea communications workers on strike

Around 500 workers from Telikom PNG in Port Moresby have been on strike since March 2 to oppose the governments telecommunication restructure plan. The ONeill government passed legislation in December that allowed for the merging of Telikom PNG, bmobile and DataCo into a new entity Kumul Telikom Holdings Limited.

Some 150 members of the PNG Communication Workers Union, and non-union workers, are concerned over job security. Telikom has over 500 employees who would lose their jobs under the merger legislation. They would be offered employment in the new communications entity on a six-month probation period.

The union said workers would remain on strike until the governments National Executive Council (NEC) decision 360/2017 was rescinded in its entirety and that Telikom PNG, bmobile and DataCo not be merged.
The announcement this week of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) by the House Republicans marks an intensification of the assault on health care that was initiated by President Barack Obama and the Democrats in 2010 with the enactment of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), popularly known as Obamacare.

The legislation now making its way through various committees is expected to come up for a full vote by the House sometime this spring. The bill includes massive cuts and the de facto ending of Medicaid as an entitlement program. Medicaid, launched in 1965, is a health program jointly administered by the federal government and the states that provides insurance for the poor as well as for disabled and elderly people and pregnant women.

Under the AHCA, federal funding for Medicaid based on need would be replaced with a per capita cap, forcing states to cut benefits and deny coverage to qualified recipients.

Other measures in the bill would cut government assistance to those purchasing insurance, a key component of Obamacare, by ending government subsidies and replacing them with a minimal tax-write off based on age. It would remove requirements for large employers to provide coverage for their workers. It would also provide massive tax breaks for medical device firms and other companies and repeal the payroll tax increase on high-income earners.

The bill would prohibit federal funding for Planned Parenthood clinics for one year, limiting access to abortion and other health services to millions of women. It is estimated that as many as 15 million Americans would lose health insurance coverage in the first several years of the AHCA.

President Donald Trump repeatedly promised on the campaign trail that he would repeal and replace Obamacare with something better. Obamacare was demagogically presented as a left or even socialist program by Trump and the Republicans and upheld as a great social reform by the Democrats, when in fact there is nothing remotely progressive about the program.

Obamacare was designed by and for the insurance giants, hospital chains and pharmaceutical corporations, with a focus on driving down health care costs for big business and the government, rationing care, and increasing corporate profits. It is aimed at undermining the system of employer-provided health insurance established in the aftermath of World War II, forcing workers onto the private market to purchase insurance on an individual basis.

It directs billions of dollars to the insurance companies by mandating, with the threat of a tax penalty, that individuals who do not receive health insurance from their employer or through a government program buy insurance from private companies. The most affordable plans available provide substandard coverage, with narrow networks of providers, skyrocketing premiums and high deductibles and co-pays.

Even with the mandate and other provisions, Obamacare has left at least 20 million Americans completely uninsured. It has been used to phase out the principle of fee for service in favor of so-called cost-benefit, a euphemism for denying more expensive procedures, drugs and treatments to ordinary working people. The ultimate aim was to cut costs by reducing life expectancy for workers and their families.

As the World Socialist Web Site has insisted from the start, Obamacare is a counterrevolution in health care and has nothing in common with providing the near universal and affordable health care promised by Obama. As is now clear, its main function was to create the framework for an even more ferocious assault under the auspices of the Republicans.

Under the Trump administration, the Democrats have made the defense of Obamacare their main domestic issue, second only to their anti-Russian campaign against Trump and the defense of the CIA.

The differences between the Democrats and Republicans on health care are essentially tactical. The two reactionary camps are seeking to work out the best way to implement attacks on health care for working people and retirees in order to funnel ever larger sums of money into the pockets of the rich.

Both parties uphold the principle of private ownership and control of the health care system and its subordination to the greed of the corporations and Wall Street.

Economist Paul Krugman, a leading apologist for the Democrats and Obamacare, highlighted this fact in his New York Times op-ed column Friday, acknowledging that the House Republicans plan accepts the logic and broad outline of the Affordable Care Act.

The current debate in Congress and the media raises the urgent need for a socialist policy of universal health care to meet the needs of the entire population, not just those wealthy few at the top who dominate American society.

Obamacare has proven that there is no longer any progressive reform possible within the framework of the American capitalist system. But the attack is not limited to the United States. Health care is being relentlessly slashed in all major capitalist countries, including the UK and Canada, where government-run programs are being starved of funds and increasingly privatized.

The only viable basis for providing quality health care for all is one that rejects capitalist private ownership and control of the banks and major corporations and the subordination of social needs to private profit. The capitalist principle of for-profit health care must be ended.

Working people must take the position that health care is a social rightalong with education, housing, employment, retirement and access to culturenot a privilege reserved for the wealthy, and must be provided to all free of charge.

The only way to ensure this right is through the nationalization of the health care industry and its transformation into a publicly owned institution under the democratic control of the working class. On this basis, conscientious health care professionals, scientists and administrators will be empowered to marshal the resources created by the labor of the working class to meet the needs of the entire population.

The fight for universal, quality health care is a political fight against the ruling elite and all of its political representatives, beginning with the Democrats and Republicans. It requires a complete break with the two-party system and the establishment of a mass independent political movement of the working class based on a socialist program.
Thousands of workers joined protests across Australia on Thursday, opposing cuts to weekend penalty wages and the reintroduction of the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) by the Turnbull Liberal-National government.

Up to 15,000 construction workers, nurses, electricians and other workers, participated in the Melbourne rally. Around 10,000 attended in Sydney. Several thousand took part in Brisbane, and smaller events were held in other cities.

Workers denounced the ABCC, which is tasked with slashing working conditions and suppressing industrial action in the construction industry, and the Fair Work Commissions ruling last month cutting Sunday and public holiday penalty wage rates for retail, hospitality, pharmacy and fast food workers.

However, the rally organisers, including the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), called the events to launch a campaign for the return of a federal Labor government, which would be committed to the dictates of the corporate elite.

Union officials invoked the campaign they conducted in 200607 to channel intense working class opposition to the Howard governments so-called WorkChoices laws behind the election of a Labor government. Labor then introduced no less repressive Fair Work laws that the unions supported and used to suppress industrial action.

In Sydney, union officials read a message from New South Wales Labor leader Luke Foley, which whitewashed the record of state and federal Labor governments. He declared that the assault on workers wages and conditions was merely a product of the bizarre and primitive way that Liberal-National politicians view the world.

Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) president Ged Kearney followed suit, denouncing laws that allow the Fair Work Commission (FWC) to cut the pay of the lowest-paid people in this country. She declared: We have laws that have allowed this government to come after hard-working people.

Kearney did not mention that it was the Labor government of Kevin Rudd, backed by the unions, which established the FWC and gave it powers to ban strikes, and enforce cuts to wages and conditions.

Kearney claimed that the unions would fight to increase the number of decent jobs. She declared: No more casualisation. For decades, the ACTU has overseen countless union-company deals slashing full-time jobs, with the result that casual and contract employees make up almost half the workforce.

Likewise, CFMEU national secretary Dave Noonan denounced the ABCC, but was silent on the fact that the last Labor government maintained it until 2012 and then replaced it with the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate, which retained virtually all of the ABCCs punitive powers.

Noonan warned that the ABCCs construction code would intimidate workers out of the unions and having collective rights. The union is primarily worried that the Turnbull governments legislation threatens its role in bargaining away workers conditions.

The CFMEU did not campaign against Labors Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate because it protected negotiating rights for the union, which enable it to function as an industrial police force for the employers. This role was graphically demonstrated the week before the protests, when the CFMEU pushed through a 5 percent pay cut for up to 900 workers at the Maryvale paper mill in Victoria (see: Australian union pushes through pay cut at paper mill).

Noonan and other speakers invoked the tragic death of Tim Macpherson, a worker killed in an industrial accident at Sydneys Barangaroo Ferry Hub site on March 1.

The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) claimed it had warned last year that the site did not comply with safety standards. However, the union did nothing to prevent work from going ahead, and did not publicly expose the breaches. In reality, the unions enforce productivity speed-ups and oversee lax health and safety that contribute to accidents in construction and related industries.

Noonan concluded by making it plain that the unions are trying to restore a Labor government. This movement will continue until we see the back of [Prime Minister] Malcolm Turnbull, or whoever they put in to replace him, he said.

This perspective was on full display at the Melbourne rally. Labors federal assistant shadow minister for workplace relations, Lisa Chesters, was the keynote speaker, posturing as an opponent of the penalty rates cut. All the speakers covered-up the fact that current Labor leader Bill Shorten, a key minister in the 200713 Labor government, included penalty rates in a list of award entitlements to be reviewed, i.e., cut by the FWC.

While union officials feigned outrage at the slashing of penalty rates, the unions have already established a host of agreements with employers, including in the hospitality, retail and fast food sectors, which reduced or eliminated penalty rates for low-paid workers.

Shorten, as national secretary of the Australian Workers Union, was involved in deals cutting wages for cleaners, and other low-paid workers, saving employers hundreds of millions of dollars.

WSWS reporters spoke to some protesters at the rallies.

In Melbourne, construction worker Ben said he was attending his first protest. The Fair Work Commission just keeps screwing us, he said. Ive got a sister who works in hospitality, she has to work two jobs. She is going to lose the penalty rates from both her jobs$90 and $130 will make a big difference to her wages.

Taokotai, a steel fixer in Sydney, said he was directly affected by a drive by major corporations to eliminate enterprise bargaining agreements, in order to drastically reduce wages. I have worked at my current company for so long, and now theyre trying to cut our pay, he said.

Im so angry I can hardly speak about it. Our main concern is that theyre trying to cut our overtime and our hourly flat rate. Theyre doing it all over New South Wales and Victoria, and in Brisbane as well. I calculated that I could lose a quarter of my wages if this happened.

Eric said he had been a construction worker for five years. In that time its changed a lot, it has declined. Conditions are being stripped back. We work hard enough, we do long hours and weve got families to feed and look after. They shouldnt be cutting our pay or conditions. Were working in an industry where its hard work, weve got tight time-lines.

John, who recently became a nurse, after working as a chef for a decade, commented: Part of the reason I left the hospitality industry was to get a job where we have decent working conditions, and I dont have to see them go.

John said company-union wage-cutting deals were appalling, adding the companies arent paying penalty rates anyhow. He explained: I worked for ten years in hospitality and not once was I paid the penalty rates that are due on a Sunday.

You either take what the employers choose to pay you or you dont get the job. You work hours and hours of overtime and if you demand penalty rates, theyll just bring in someone else who will do the job for half the price cash in hand.
Snow leopard products are traded from India and sold in Pakistan, China, Tajikistan, Kabul, Darwaz and Chitral. They are popular as plush and royal-looking wall hangings, seats and other home decorations.

Snow leopards prey on cows & goats, resulting in retaliatory killing by farmers. But 60% killings are with an intent to sell their body parts in the black market.

By Baishali Adak: The snow leopard, native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia, and listed as endangered on the IUCN red list of threatened species, is being hunted at the rate of up to 45 a year in India.

This, when its estimated population scattered over 90,000 sq km in Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, varies between 200 and 600. At this rate, it won't be long before the enigmatic cat is lost forever.

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The revelation was made in a report compiled by TRAFFIC, an arm of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The report says, "Snow leopards inhabit alpine and sub-alpine zones at elevations of 9,800-14,800 ft.

Also read: Paws the moment: Muma leopard found her life back after reuniting with lost cubs

They prefer rocky, broken terrain, and can travel without difficulty in snow up to 85 cm deep, although they prefer to use existing trails made by other animals."

"Its remote habitat also becomes a challenge in detecting its killing and law enforcement," the report highlights.

A chunk of their prey base is livestock such as cows, goats, etc., which results in farmers in Uttarakhand and Himachal resorting to retaliatory killing. "But 60 per cent of nontargeted poaching incidents result in an attempt to sell their body parts in the black market," the reports says.

"One respondent in a 2016 survey identified some parts as traded from India through the Shipkila Pass into the Tibet Autonomous Region. India and Pakistan are suspected to be source countries for snow leopard products across the world," it adds.

The most popular snow leopard products are their skin and claws. They are sold in fur markets of Kabul, Darwaz and Chitral. Otherwise, they are popular as plush and royal-looking wall hangings, seats and other home decorations. Bones are used like those of the tiger for traditional medicine though the skull is generally treated as an object for display in ceremonies.

In the Northeast, the report identifies Arunachal and Guwahati in Assam as transit routes or smuggling hubs for snow leopard products. Cross-border trade into Myanmar and Nepal are conducted from these places.

In the northwest, Bhaba and Pin valleys, Shipkila, Sumdo, Demchok and Darchula are hubs of snow leopard products. Cross-border trade into Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and even Tajikistan are conducted.

Also read: Leopard spotted at Udaipur airport, leaves CISF officials in tizzy

The use of poison appears to be more prevalent in South Asia, and was the top-ranked method in India and Nepal to kill the cats. The report lists out other modes of killing as snares, steel traps, shooting and clubbing.

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Many animals have been observed by camera traps to be limping painfully with a wire snare or steel trap around their necks or legs.

Living animals are also sold illegally, as almost 80 per cent living snow leopards were detected in the trade chain in China, central Asian republics and Russia.

The known destinations for living wild animals include zoos, circuses, homes of influential citizens and illegal trophy hunts. Claws were found to be the most common item advertised in a 2016 TRAFFIC online market survey in China.

They were described as having superstitious value 'for the exorcism of evil spirits' according to one website advertiser. Another website advertised a tooth as 'for medicine, to cure angiocardiopathy'.

Globally, claw prices range from Rs 2,400-4,000 each, whereas each tooth is priced at Rs 5,000. One is paid anything from Rs 33,000-10,00,000 for the skin and Rs 33,000-6,50,000 for the carcass.

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Australian workers, retirees, single parents and young people face mounting job insecurity, poverty and financial stress, as well as a growing social divide. This is the picture painted by the Household Financial Comfort Report, released last month by industry superfund ME Bank, based on a survey of 1,500 households.

Participants rated their financial situation, expectations and confidence across 11 different fields from 0 to 10 (worst to best). The report recorded the lowest rate of financial comfort and stability since the survey was first conducted in October 2011.

The report provided a glimpse into the divergence of the incomes of the wealthiest and poorest layers in society. Last year, 46 percent of households earning over $100,000 per year reported income gains and only 13 percent reported a decrease. By contrast, 41 percent of households earning under $40,000 a year experienced a fall in income and just 17 percent registered an increase.

ME consulting economist and report co-author Jeff Oughton told Fairfax Media: The rich appear to be getting richer, while the rest of Australia is strugglingtheres a divide across households.

Oughton noted that with the collapse of the mining boom and the crisis of manufacturing, many workers were being pushed into part-time employment. He commented: ABS data shows wage growth at historical lows over the past two years to the September quarter. MEs report highlights low wage growth continued in the whole of 2016 and is causing financial discomfort for many households, exacerbated by job insecurity and underemployment.

Underlining the precarious jobs situation, 56 percent of households were concerned they would struggle to find a new job within two months if they became unemployed. Around one in three felt insecure in their current job, up 9 percentage points from the previous years survey.

Some 70 percent of casual workers indicated they wanted to find full-time work and 60 percent of part-time employees said they would like to increase the hours they work.

Official figures are a pale reflection of the fall in full-time jobs. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, full-time employment has fallen by around 40,100 jobs over the past year. Over that time, the number of workers in part-time employment has increased by 129,800.

Roy Morgan Research reported that as of January 2017, real unemployment stood at 9.7 percent, with another 8.2 percent underemployed. That means 2.4 million people were either looking for a job or more hours.

As a result, millions are living on a knife-edge. Nearly two-thirds of survey respondents said they could not easily raise $3,000 in an emergency. In other words, any unexpected expense, from a car breakdown to a medical emergency, could push many into economic ruin.

Numbers of those surveyed had far less than $3,000 at hand27 percent of households registered cash savings of less than $1,000. A further 27 percent reported cash savings of between $1,000 and $10,000.

During 2016, debt increased faster than income, with 28 percent of households reporting an increase in debt. In June, approximately 10 percent of survey participants said they could not meet minimum required payments on debt.

Although the report does not spell it out, broad layers of the population have negative wealth, with working-class families drowning in debt.

In another indication that many are struggling just to get by, 43 percent of households said the cost of necessities (groceries, utilities, rent, transport, medical costs plus additional costs) was their biggest concern. Nearly half (49 percent), indicated they were either unable to afford essentials or had no money left over after payments.

At the other end of society, 2 percent, comprising the wealthiest layers of society, reported cash holdings of more than half a million dollars. The cash holdings did not include other forms of wealth such as shares and property.

This disparity is in line with other indications of a sharp rise in social polarisation. A Wealth of the Nation report last year found that the richest 10 percent of society own more than half of Australias household wealth, with the top 1 percent holding up to 20 percent. The poorest 40 percent own virtually nothing.

The most vulnerable layers of the working class have been hit hardest by the redistribution of wealth up the income scale, and the assault on healthcare, education and social spending prosecuted by successive governments, Labor and Liberal-National alike.

Some 40 percent of single parents reported declining incomes, up 3 percent in six months. Over recent years governments have targeted sole parent households.

In 2006 the Liberal-National government of John Howard axed the single parenting payment when the youngest child turned eight, for all new applicants. The Labor government of Julia Gillard extended the policy to all recipients in 2012, pushing 130,000 parents straight onto the below poverty-level Newstart Allowance. Households lost up to $140 a week.

Those close to retirement confront significant financial uncertainty, as a result of the small returns yielded on the compulsory superannuation payments workers make throughout their working life, and the inadequacy of the poverty-line government aged pension.

Around 43 percent of households feared that their superannuation would not be enough to support them in retirement, forcing them to rely on private savings and the government pension. Some 19 percent said they would have to rely on the government pension because they would have inadequate private savings.

Amid ever more strident demands from the corporate and financial elite for the imposition of sweeping austerity cuts to social spending, the social crisis afflicting layers of the working class will only deepen.
Directed by Shimon Dotan; written by Dotan and Oron Adar

This June marks the 50th anniversary of the Six-Day Arab-Israeli War, in which the rapid victory of the Zionist state led to a tripling of the territory under its control. The war spawned a settlement movement in the Occupied Territories, particularly in the West Bank. The Settlers, a documentary film being screened this month in New York, Los Angeles and London, explores the explosive growth of this movement in recent decades.

Israeli settlements in the occupied territories, spearheaded by a relative handful of religious fanatics beginning in the late 1960s, have now grown to encompass a population of about 400,000 in the West Bank, amid 2.7 million Palestinians who live under Israeli military rule and are denied the most elementary rights in their own land. Nearly another 400,000 live in east Jerusalem and in the Golan Heights.

The enormous growth of the settlements, illegal under international law, has more and more exposed the hypocrisy behind the pretense of the Zionist authorities and their imperialist backers to support a two state solution to the Mideast conflict. Inside Israel itself, right wing elements are openly advocating the annexation of wide sections of the West Bank, an outcome that would amount to an official acknowledgment that Israel had become, to all intents and purposes, an apartheid state.

Dotans documentary combines archived video and photography, contemporary interviews with various academic and political observers and, most importantly, conversations with some of the leading figures of the ultra-right settler movement. The resulting film gives an overview of the five decades of the occupation of the West Bank that is useful, although it seriously minimizes the responsibility of the Labor Zionist founders and leaders of the state of Israel for the first three decades of its existence for the growth of the settler movement. The end result amounts in that sense to a political cover-up.

The award-winning Israeli filmmaker and screenwriter has explained the settlers willingly spoke to him even though he made it clear that he did not share their views. Perhaps they thought that I was a conduit through which they could tell their side of the story, he has said. Whatever the motivation, the resulting discussions shed some light on the decades-long process through which the most extreme chauvinist and messianic religious elements have expanded their influence within the Zionist state and its ruling establishment. The Settlers in some respects complements another recent Israeli film, Censored Voices . In that documentary, released in 2015, Israeli veterans of the Six-Day War listened to their own tape-recorded testimony from nearly five decades ago, pondering the history of the past 50 years with concern and anxiety.

While Censored Voices examined the earlier testimony in the context of the relentless entrenchment of the occupation over the recent decades, The Settlers looks in some detail at the history of the settlement movement itself, including present-day interviews with some of those who have played a leading role.

Rabbi Yehuda Kook was one of the first religious extremists demanding a Greater Israel. Kook, who died 35 years ago, spoke in May 1967 of the pain of Partition, voicing his bitter opposition to the acceptance by the Zionist establishment of the UN Partition Plan of November 1947. When Israel overran the West Bank in the war in June 1967, the Rabbis followers, basing themselves on his words of less than a month earlier, attributed the outcome to divine providence. In April 1968, Rabbi Moshe Levinger led a group of settlers into Hebron, the first time that settlers had moved into an urban center. This and other settlements later became official policy. Hebron became a magnet for extremists, the film explains, with 1,000 Israeli soldiers protecting 600 settlers among a Palestinian population of 200,000.

How can one say no? became the answer of mainstream Zionist leaders when confronted by the settlers demands. The ultra-right pursued the strategy of becoming a bone in the governments throat, as one of its leaders declares. The authorities refused to move against the settlers, and the settlements expanded into areas that the government itself acknowledges are illegal under Israeli, and not only international law.

On this crucial issue, The Settlers covers up the role of the Zionist political establishment. Figures such as then-Prime Minister Levi Eshkol in 1967, Labour Party minister and former general Yigal Allon, and Prime Minister Golda Meir were not in some way misled by the settlers. They encouraged the ultra-right, and not the other way around.

The national unity government after the 1967 war, headed by Eshkol, established settlements in the newly conquered territories. Golda Meir was chosen to succeed Eshkol precisely because she embraced the nationalist perspective of the Labour Zionists, and a new wave of religious immigrants came from Europe and the United States to settle in the Occupied Territories. Moshe Levinger based himself in part on these elements, as did Meir Kahane and his fascistic Kach party. Kahane, assassinated more than 25 years ago, remains a hero to and is considered the spiritual founder of the most extreme settler outfits today.

The victory of the right-wing Likud under Menachem Begin in 1977 was another turning point in settlement expansion. Begin, hailed by his supporters as the king of Israel, promised many more settlements, and appointed Ariel Sharon as settlement czar. Sharon, who was later to become infamous for his role in the Sabra and Shatila massacre of the Palestinians in the Lebanese civil war in 1982, also launched a massive infrastructure campaign in the West Bank during this period. The secular right allied itself increasingly with the ultra-religious elements. The settler population grew from only 4,400 in 1977 to about 100,000 at the end of the 1980s.

The last two decades have seen an even more explosive growth of the settlements. The Oslo Accords of 1993 between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization included a commitment to freeze settlement activities, a commitment that quickly evaporated.

Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated in November 1995, and over the next decade, according to a report released in 2005, millions of dollars in government funds were diverted into settlements deemed illegal by the Zionist authorities themselves, with one former government official putting the figure of illegal settlements established during this period at 105. Palestinian anger in the face of indefinite occupation erupted twice in mass resistance in the past 30 years, in the first and second Intifadas from 1987-1991 and 2000-2005, respectively.

Dotan interviews Sarah Nachshon, who played a major role in entrenching the settlement in Hebron by insisting that her infant child, after he died of sudden infant death syndrome, be buried in the citys old Jewish cemetery. Also interviewed is Daniella Weiss, an early settler who later broke with the established movement because she did not consider it aggressive enough in seizing Palestinian land. Weiss is known as the Grandmother of the Hilltop Youth, a new and even more openly racist and anti-Arab trend, which seeks to establish a Jewish kingdom between the Nile and the Euphrates Rivers. One of the younger settlers is quoted on camera as proudly declaring, I am a racist.

Others who put forward the extreme ideological and political vision of this movement in The Settlers include Benny Katzover, a founder of the Gush Emunim movement and among the founders of the Kiryat Arba settlement in Hebron, and Yehuda Etzion, another founder of Gush Emunim who was imprisoned for attempting to blow up the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

Although the ultra-religious elements remain the dominant spokespersons, more than 80 percent of the current settler population consists of economic migrants, including many from the former Soviet Union who have settled in the West Bank because of affordable housing, numerous economic subsidies and the protection of the Israeli army. It was the issue of affordable housing, in fact, that triggered the mass protest movement, involving largely middle class layers, in August 2011.

This points to the increasingly conscious policy of the Israeli establishment. Added to the messianism of the ultra-religious is the usefulness of the West Bank as an outlet for the growing class tensions and inequality inside Israel itself. Israeli capitalism is unable to satisfy the basic social, economic and democratic rights of its citizens, let alone those living under Israeli occupation. The Zionist state, based upon the dispossession and repression of a people already living there, increasingly requires the cultivation of and reliance upon a fascist layer which is used in violent provocations against the Palestinian people. The conditions of fear and intimidation from which the Jewish people were forced to flee for their lives in the years leading up to the Holocaust are increasingly echoed in the repression meted out against the Palestinians. The Settlers ignores these issues. Dotan, as a member of the Israeli liberal intelligentsia, is horrified by the trajectory of the settlement movement, but can neither explain it nor propose any alternative. The film essentially takes off from 1967, but the root of the conflict goes back to 1948 and earlier, with the movement to establish a Zionist state in the heart of the Arab world, and then, in the shadow of the Nazi horror, the actual establishment of this state of Israel.

As for the present day, Dotan has nothing to say about the Netanyahu government. Netanyahu served as Prime Minister for several years after the assassination of Rabin and again for much of the past decade. He now faces possible corruption charges, presides over a fractious coalition and is increasingly challenged by Naftali Bennetts Jewish Home party, with its support for even more aggressive expansion of the settlements. All of these developments reflect the weakness of the Zionist state, and not its strength. A garrison state maintained by an unending flow of military and economic support from world Zionism and US imperialism has only temporarily masked the explosive class tensions within Israel, which are bound to explode in the not too distant future.
US Attorney General Jeff Sessions Thursday indicated that he will recommend to President Donald Trump that new enemy combatants be sent to the infamous detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for incarceration and trial by so-called military commissions.

Responding to questions from right-wing radio host Hugh Hewitt, Sessions described Guantanamo as just a very fine place for holding these kind of dangerous criminals. He added that the US government had spent a lot of money fixing it up and insisted that a lot of the criticisms have just been totally exaggerated.

Fifteen years after the first prisoners were brought to the island detention camp after being drugged, hooded and shackled, 41 remain imprisoned there. All but ten of them have never been charged with any crime, much less brought to trial. A number of them have been classified as forever prisoners, who the government does not want to be release but cannot try because of the criminal torture to which they were subjected by US interrogators.

Since it was opened in January 2002, the Guantanamo detention center has stood as an international symbol of US imperialist aggression and criminality. Those detained there have provided chilling testimony of a regime of physical and psychological torture, sexual assaults and humiliation meted out by US military and CIA personnel under the orders and supervision of the Bush White House.

Torture continued under the Obama administration with the brutal forced feeding of detainees on hunger strike.

Sessions had declared his support for keeping the Guantanamo detention center in operation during his Senate confirmation hearings in January, while leaving open the possibility that American citizens alleged to be tied to terrorism could be brought before military commissions.

Asked in the Thursday interview whether he would recommend to Trump to send new enemy combatants to Guantanamo, Sessions replied: Yes. Oh, theres plenty of space. We are well equipped for it. Its a perfect place for it. Eventually, this will be decided by the military rather than the Justice Department. But I see no legal problem whatsoever with doing that.

While a total of 780 prisoners have been held at Guantanamo since the detention camps opening, the last time that a new prisoner was brought there was in 2008.

Sessions interviewer pressed him on the failure of the military commissions at Guantanamo to successfully try more than a handful of detainees, asking whether he expected to accelerate that process and was in favor of expediting it.

The attorney general responded in the affirmative, declaring, Weve got to get the military on board in order to get this thing figured out and start using it in an effective way. He reiterated his belief that those deemed enemy combatants should be tried by the military at Guantanamo rather than bringing these people to federal court in New York and trying them in federal court where they get discovery rights to find out our intelligence and get court-appointed lawyers and things of that nature.

The drumhead tribunals at Guantanamo violate virtually every right a genuine court affords to a defendant under the US Constitution, allowing the introduction of evidence extracted through torture as well as secret evidence concealed from the accused. Defense attorneys are placed under what amounts to military discipline, while the juries deciding the fate of the accused are composed of military officers, who need only a two-thirds majority to convict.

These kangaroo courts were codified into law under President Barack Obama, who vowed on his first full day in office to close down Guantanamo, but over the course of eight years in the White House signed one Pentagon funding bill after another that mandated that the detention camp remain open.

Now this barbaric legacy has been handed by the Obama administration to Trump, whose attorney general wants to streamline and expedite a wholly illegitimate and makeshift system of military justice.

A draft of an executive order circulated within the administration last month calls for the US to continue detention operations at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay" for "enemy combatants" captured in armed conflict with Al Qaeda, the Taliban and associated forces, including individuals and networks associated with the Islamic State.

With the Trump administration steadily escalating US military interventions in Iraq and Syria, and the Pentagon calling for stepped up operations in Afghanistan, the number of prisoners sent to the concentration camp in Cuba could grow rapidly.

While justified, along with mass domestic spying, the crackdown against immigrants, drone-missile assassinations and military aggression abroad, in the name of an unending war on terror, the defense of Guantanamo and military tribunals is also directed at preparing domestic repression.

During his election campaign, Trump crudely vowed that he would keep Guantanamo open and load it up with some bad dudes. He added that he would have no problem with sending American citizens to Guantanamo and trying them before military commissions.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer was asked at a press conference last month whether Trump intended to send US citizens to Guantanamo. Spicer replied: He believes Guantanamo Bay does serve a very healthy purpose in our national security in making sure we dont bring terrorists to our seas, but Im not gonna get into what we may or may not do in the future.
South Koreas Constitutional Court removed President Park Geun-hye from office in a unanimous 8 to 0 decision late Friday morning. The National Assembly had impeached her on December 9 on thirteen charges, including bribery allegations and dereliction of duty. A new presidential election will likely be held in early May, with Prime Minister and acting President Hwang Gyo-an continuing to serve as the countrys leader until then.

Led by acting-Chief Justice Lee Jeong-mi, the court implicated Park in the scandal involving Choi Soon-sil, Parks close confidante, who set up nonprofit organizations to demand bribes from South Koreas powerful chaebol conglomerates. The court further charged that Park had violated the law by leaking state secrets and allowing Choi to take part in government affairs despite holding no formal office. However, it rejected the other charges, including neglect of duty in regards to the Sewol ferry sinking in 2014 and violation of freedom of the press.

Judging from the series of words and actions [Park has made], there is no will to defend the Constitution, Lee said, in giving her ruling. The presidents violations of the Constitution and the law amount to a betrayal of the peoples trust and are grave actions that cannot be tolerated from the perspective of defending the Constitution.

South Koreas political parties, including Parks ruling Liberty Korea Party (formerly Saenuri), all accepted the court decision. The Liberty Korea Party gave birth to the Park Geun-hye government. It was a ruling party and the partner of state affairs, said party leader In Myeong-jin. But we failed to fulfill our duty as the ruling party and failed to protect the dignity and pride of South Korea, which has been built by the people.

The Trump government in Washington said that it look(s) forward to a productive relationship with whomever the people of South Korea elect to be their next president. Since the scandal broke in September, neither Obama nor Trump offered Park any public support.

However, Park is reportedly not resigning herself to the decision. One of her aides told Yonhap News Agency that her office is in talks over the future course of action. Seo Seok-ku, a lawyer for Park, questioned the legitimacy of the ruling, saying: Our suspicions about the courts secret communications with the parliament turned out to be correct. I dont think the trial was purely based on law and conscience.

For millions of people who had taken part in demonstrations around the country since October demanding Parks removal, the court ruling was a cause for celebration. These protests reflected the enormous anger that masses of South Koreans feel not only against the presidents personal conduct and relations to the chaebol, but very broadly against a discredited economic and political system.

While the Korean peninsula faces the imminent danger of a war launched by Washington and Seoul against North Korea and China, South Korean workers conditions continue to deteriorate. They face mass job cuts in the shipping and shipbuilding industries, high unemployment for students and recent university graduates, and an overall drive by the government and big business to slash wages and job protections.

Popular relief at Parks removal is understandable, but the removal of Park by itself will address none of the aspirations of the population that underlay the broad opposition to her government. Power is set to be handed to other political forcesparticularly the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and its presumptive presidential candidate, Moon Jae-inwhich are tools of the same reactionary ruling class.

Moon has at times attempted to adapt to anti-war and anti-chaebol sentiment in the population, notably by proposing to delay the installation of US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile bases aimed at China, North Korea and Russia. However, he does not call for a suspension of the THAAD program, with which the Trump administration is driving military tensions in the region rapidly in the direction of a direct military clash.

Moon and the DPK still fundamentally support the US alliance. Moon expressed support in a recently published book, for example, for the deployment of a THAAD battery to South Korea, saying, As the agreement has already been reached between the allies, it is very complicated to discuss the issue again.

The DPK also regularly whips up anti-Japanese chauvinism to divide workers and block the development of a united struggle against war among workers of the entire region, and it has a long record of backing US imperialisms predatory wars in the Middle East. The Democratic governments of both Kim Dae-jung and Noh Moo-hyun backed Washingtons wars against Afghanistan and Iraq. Moon served as chief of staff in Nohs government.

Moon currently leads other presidential contenders in the polls, with 34 percent support compared to 15 percent for the next closest rival, An Hui-jeong, also of the DPK. Acting President Hwang Gyo-an of the Liberty Korea Party is polling at 8 percent, Ahn Cheol-soo of the Peoples Party at 9 percent, and Yu Seung-min of the Bareun Party at 1 percent.

The fall of Park illustrates how ferocious international political and geo-strategic tensions are destabilizing bourgeois politics. As she came to office in 2013, Parks overtures to Beijing cut across the Obama administrations pivot to Asia. While all the South Korean political parties supported the US alliance, they argued over how to balance between their political and military relations with the United States and their economic relations with China.

While in office, Park attacked opponents democratic rights, including by dissolving the Unified Progressive Party, a minor party allied with the Democrats, in 2014. The move was an attempt to head off growing discontent in the population with her overall agenda, which included stoking tensions with North Korea and trying to force through so-called labor reform, further casualizing the workforce, in response to demands from big business.

She proved unable to achieve this goal and a split developed within her own party, leading one faction to support Parks removal and create the right-wing Bareun (Righteous) Party in January. Leaders in the new formation, including Yu Seung-min, chastised Parks administration in the past for not making Seouls orientation to Washington stronger.

None of these reactionary forces have anything to offer to working people. Characterizations of Parks government as simply incompetent and corrupt are being used by her opponents and critics to cover up the fact that they have no answer to declining living conditions and the threat of war in the region. The next government, regardless of party, will be just as crisis-ridden and fundamentally in conflict with the demands and aspirations of the working class as the last.
The civil liberties lawyer Lynne Stewart, jailed by the government on fraudulent charges of assisting terrorism, died at her home in Brooklyn on March 7 at the age of 77. A longtime member of the National Lawyers Guild, she is survived by her husband, Ralph Poynter, three children and several grandchildren.

Stewart, a self-described left-wing radical, was born in Queens. After working as a teacher and librarian, she was radicalized in the late 1960s and early 1970s and turned to the law as a means of fighting social injustice. Obtaining a law degree from Rutgers University, she embarked on a three-decade career in which she represented Black Panthers and members of the Weather Underground, among other defendants.

Stewart was convicted in 2005 after a seven-month trial arising out of her representation of the blind Egyptian cleric Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, found guilty in 1995 of a plot to blow up US landmarks. Stewart, who continued to represent Rahman, visited him in jail where he was serving a life sentence. She was charged, in connection with visits in 1999 and 2000, with helping him communicate with his Egyptian followers.

The charge involved a violation of administrative rules that had rarely led to serious punishment in the past. Stewart made it clear that she had no political agreement with the fundamentalist Islamist cleric and his call for holy war. She passionately insisted, however, on his right to a lawyer and to the defense of free speech and other democratic rights, and she also continued to point out that it was American imperialism that was the main guilty party in imposing dictatorship and mass repression around the world.

In the political climate stoked by both major parties of American capitalism after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Stewart was victimized to set an example for other lawyers defending the Bill of Rights and representing those accused of terrorism, including the hundreds of innocent men at Guantanamo Bay who had been seized following those attacks.

Stewarts conviction came after 13 days of deliberations and under conditions of immense political pressure during the most violent stage of the US occupation of Iraq following the 2003 invasion. There was apparent reluctance among at least some of the jurors to go along with the governments case. The conviction led to her automatic disbarment, preventing her from practicing law again.

Stewarts sentencing was put off for more than a year while she was treated for breast cancer. In late 2006 she was sentenced to 28 months in prison, a relatively light punishment that enraged the prosecution.

District Judge John G. Koeltl was forced to acknowledge that Stewart had acted over many years as a defender of democratic rights, including the right to legal counsel for the poor, the disadvantaged and the unpopular. It is no exaggeration to say that Ms. Stewart performed a public service not only to her clients but to the nation, the judge added, an unusual rebuke to the prosecution, which had called her a terrorist accomplice.

Both the government and the defense appealed, the defense against the conviction and the prosecution against the sentence. Stewart remained free until November 2009, when a panel of the 2nd Circuit of the US Court of Appeals upheld the conviction and sent an unmistakable message to Judge Koeltl. Without any specific order or recommendation, the higher court said the sentence must be reconsidered. Stewart was sent to prison in late 2009. Koeltl took his cue from the appellate ruling, lengthening Stewarts term behind bars to 10 years when he issued his new decision in July 2010.

Stewart entered prison at the age of 70. While there, her cancer recurred. She received little consideration, her family even reporting that on several occasions her chemotherapy treatment was scheduled for the same day as a family visit. Stewart remained in prison for a total of four years, finally winning compassionate release on New Years Day 2014, only after the cancer that would eventually claim her life had spread.

Lynne Stewart was part of a layer of workers and the middle class that sought to fight social injustice. She was victimized by the ruling class because of her persistent and courageous fight for basic democratic rights, especially in the recent period of endless war.
On Wednesday, the Trump administration filed a brief invoking the "state secrets" privilege in an attempt to block current and former Central Intelligence Agency officials from testifying in a civil suit brought by former detainees who were subjected to torture at a secret CIA interrogation center, or "black site," in Afghanistan.

The motion, filed by the Trump Justice Department based on an affidavit by CIA Director Mike Pompeo, also seeks to quash the release of portions of 172 internal CIA documents.

Among the CIA officials the government is seeking to shield from being forced to testify is Gina Haspel, named by President Trump to the post of deputy CIA director and confirmed by the US Senate. Haspel, a 32-year veteran of the agency, ran a CIA torture site in Thailand in 2002, during the Bush administration, where she oversaw the torture of Abu Zubaydah and Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, both of whom were repeatedly waterboarded.

She also gave the order in 2005 to destroy videotapes of the interrogation sessions at the Thai site.

The administration, headed by a man who boasts of his enthusiasm for torture, including waterboarding, intervened in the case of Salim v. Mitchell, which is underway in Federal District Court in Spokane, Washington under the purview of Judge Justin Quackenbush. The suit was filed in 2015 by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of Suleiman Abdullah Salim and Mohamed Ahmed Ben Soud, who survived a savage regime of CIA torture, and the family of Gul Rahman, who died at the Afghan site in 2002 after being left naked and shackled to a wall in the freezing cold.

The plaintiffs are suing two military psychologists, James E. Mitchell and John "Bruce" Nessen, who were contracted by the CIA to devise the torture program and help administer it. The two men made millions of dollars for their efforts.

Salim, a Tanzanian who was apparently a victim of mistaken identity, and Soud, a Libyan, claim they suffered lasting psychological and physical damage as a result of their treatment at the hands of the CIA.

In an article posted on its website Thursday, the ACLU wrote: In accordance with detailed protocols that two CIA-contracted psychologists based on experiments on dogs, the men [Salim and Soud] were confined in dungeons, hung by their arms from the ceiling for days, stuffed into coffin-like boxes, and kept naked, degraded and starved. The ACLU adds that the two men were subjected to waterboarding and prolonged sleep deprivation.

An article published last month by the Dissenter gives a graphic illustration of the types of techniques developed and implemented by Mitchell and Nessen, including what they called learned helplessness. Describing the treatment of Salim after he was abducted, the publication writes:

The lawsuit alleges the CIA immediately established conditions for learned helplessness by cutting off all of Salims clothes and then forcibly inserting an object into his anus, causing Salim excruciating pain. They took photos, put Salim in a diaper, pants, and a short-sleeved shirt. He then had earplugs stuffed in his ears, a hood placed over his head, and a pair of goggles and headphones placed over his hood and earplugs. Then, he was cuffed and shackled. He was disoriented and terrified and brought on board an aircraft, where he was chained to the floor and flown for at least eight hours.

Up to now, no case filed by CIA torture victims has survived in the US courts, largely as a result of state secrets motions filed by the Bush and Obama administrations to get the lawsuits tossed out.

The Obama administration, which intervened repeatedly to shut down anti-torture suits and shield Bush administration officials who oversaw and carried out the program, decided against filing a state secrets motion in the current case, in part because the information on which the plaintiffs have based their case is already in the public domain.

The ACLU lawyers are not asking for access to classified information, basing themselves instead on the declassified (and highly redacted) executive summary of the Senate Intelligence Committee report on CIA torture published in December of 2014. That report discusses both the torture of Salim and Soud and the key role played by Mitchell and Nessen in the enhanced interrogation program.

It is the defendants, Mitchell and Nessen, who are seeking the testimony of Haspel and former CIA officials implicated in the torture program, including the agencys former top lawyer, John Rizzo, the former head of its Counterterrorism Center, Jose Rodriguez Jr., James Cotsana, a former CIA officer who the defendants claim oversaw their activities, and Cotsanas successor as chief of special missions of the CIAs counterterrorism center and chief of the agencys renditions group, who has not been identified.

The judge previously approved requests for oral depositions by Rizzo and Rodriguez, but the CIA refused to allow Cotsana to testify.

The defense has also asked for dozens of documents from the CIA and the Justice Department. Its contention is that Mitchell and Nessen worked under the authority and supervision of the CIA and they should therefore be protected, as government officials, from civil liability.

In invoking state secrets, the administration has not demanded that the case be shut down, limiting itself instead to seeking to block testimony from CIA officials and prevent the release of internal documents. However, the defense has indicated that it might move for dismissal of the case on the grounds that it is being prevented by the governments intervention from mounting an effective case.

The case of Salim v. Mitchell is currently set for trial beginning June 26.
By Press Trust of India: Guwahati, Mar 11 (PTI) Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today hailed BJPs victory in assembly polls and credited it to Prime Minister Narendra Modis "honesty, hardwork and commitment" for the development of the country.

"The BJPs victory in assembly election is the result of the Prime Ministers honesty, hardwork, commitment, dedication and vision for the development of the country," he told PTI here.

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Sonowal said people of the country have witnessed all these qualities in Modis leadership.

"People have reposed faith in the Prime Ministers leadership through this massive mandate," he said.

The Chief Minister also complemented BJP president Amit Shah and said under his leadership the party formulated a formidable election strategy which was properly implemented through the hardwork of dedicated party workers. PTI ACB RT

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Students from all around the Sunshine State head to the capital city every year to learn more about the history, while helping boost the economy at the same time.

Business owners say field trips to Tallahassee contribute millions of dollars to developing the community.

Fourth graders from Santa Rosa County stop by the Tallahassee Museum every year on their field trip to the state capital.

President and CEO of the museum, Russell Daws, says the economic impact from schools that visit is significant, from the gas it takes for them to get there, to the food they eat while visiting.

While the students visited, they were able to go to a program at Tallahassee Museum where they learned about the care of keeping animals.

A new "Junior zoo keeper" program offers close encounters with native wildlife, focusing on animal enrichment.

The "Junior zoo-keeper" experience was designed for children-- ranging from 6th graders to seniors in high school. From 10 till noon today, homeschoolers were invited to participate, taking a guided tour of the museum's "Florida Wildlife Trail."
BJP MP Subramanian Swamy launched a scathing attack at former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and said that his contribution to the Indian Constitution was only Article 370.

By Mail Today Bureau: Launching a scathing attack on Jawaharlal Nehru, BJP MP Subramanian Swamy told a packed house at the Faculty of Law at DU's north campus on Friday that the former Prime Minister's sole contribution to the Indian Constitution was the controversial Article 370. Swamy said Nehru was in London when the Constitution was being framed.

Speaking in the context of the simmering Freedom of Expression debate that gripped DU, JNU and Jamia Millia Islamia recently, Swamy came down heavily on certain JNU students for 'inciting' trouble.

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The BJP MP took potshots at both Nehru and the Left dominated JNU campus, saying "Jawaharlal Nehru has left students of JNU as his political successors."

"Incitement is an offence. Gathering people and asking them to incite riots is spiteful. They (JNU students) encourage people who throw stones at our soldiers in Kashmir. They incited people against the state because Afzal Guru was hanged," Swamy said.

He also said India is a land of Hindus. "People who live in Hindustan are either Hindus or had Hindus as ancestors, a fact attested to DNA and genetic studies," he said, adding that while a mosque at Ayodhya could be shifted 'respectfully', Lord Ram's place of birth could not be.

Also read: Delhi Police files FIR against a dozen JNU students for misbehaving with vice-chancellor

Also read: JNU, DU continue to be hubs of Naxal activities where indoctrination of students continues: IG state CID

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The Kittitas County Board of Commissioners will meet in July to discuss a moratorium on large renewable energy facilities.
The incident occurred in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 kms away from the state capital, at 9:15 amwhen 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task.

By Press Trust of India: Twelve CRPF personnel were on Saturday killed and their arms looted when Naxals ambushed their patrol party in the Maoist hotbed of Sukma in Chhattisgarh.

Four personnel were also injured in the Naxal attack and two of them were stated to be critical.

The incident occurred in the dense forests near Kottacheru village under Bhejji police station, around 450 kms away from the state capital, at 9:15 amwhen 112 personnel of CRPF's 219th battalion were out for a road opening task.

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The Bhejji area in south Bastar region of the state is notorious for Naxal attacks and many security personnel have been killed here in the past.

The Naxals also looted ten weapons like INSAS and AK series assault rifles and two radio sets from the killed men, officials said.

"The troops were part of the road clearing party that has been securing an under-construction road between Bhejji and Kottacheru. They were ambushed by Naxals who set off multiple hidden IEDs on the ground and opened fire. The squad effectively retaliated before twelve made the supreme sacrifice," acting CRPF DG Sudeep Lakhtakia said.

He added that Maoists are trying to disrupt normal life and activities in this area as the Central Reserve Police Force has increased its presence here and got re-opened a local 'haat' (market) last year here after it was forcibly shut by the red ultras.

FACTS YOU NEED TO KNOW

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh who will be travelling to Sukma.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh has strongly condemned the Maoist attack and described it as a "cowardly act".

Security personnel have laid down their lives to free Bastar from violence and Maoist terror. Their sacrifice will not go in vain. "I salute their sacrifice," the CM said, adding ultras were frustrated with development of road network in the region.

He also extended condolences to the bereaved families.

The CRPF chief and senior officials are also rushing to Raipur.

A senior Chhattisgarh official said that the road opening party was passing through the forests between Bhejji and Kottacheru villages when Naxals opened indiscriminate fire on them.

According to a CRPF official, summer season is regarded as an offensive period by rebels as they observe annual 'tactical counter offensive campaign' (TCOC).

The dry weather is a favourable period for carrying out ambushes in the vast jungle terrain and this attack would have been planned by Maoists led by hardcore naxal cadre Hidma who is active in southern part of Bastar, the paramilitary official added.

However, further investigation would reveal the details, he added.

The injured have been air lifted and brought to the CRPF field hospital in Bheji and few others have been transferred to Raipur.

A special counter-Naxal teamof CoBRA has been rushed to the ambush spot as reinforcement to sanitise the area and launch a search.

Another senior CRPF officer said the ambush site has very weak mobile phone connectivity and communication is being done through satellite phones.

"It is estimated that a hundred plus Maoist squad was present in the area when the ambush was launched. These are preliminary inputs. More details are awaited," the officer said.

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Also read

Modi's cash revamp rattles Maoist finances

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The National Weather Service is predicting up to two inches of rain for the eastern Cascades through Wednesday, which could increase flooding 
Local Washington Education Association members at the state Supreme Court after a McCleary case hearing in September. The state highest court has ruled that Washington is violating its constitution by failing to cover the full cost of providing a basic education at public schools. (Erika Schultz/The Seattle Times)
YAKIMA, Wash. -- Singers and dancers and lions and hippos and monkeys and antelope filled the Garfield Elementary gym in one great big circle 
Sensational news: IDF soldiers in the Gaza Envelope refused to eat vegetables made in Gaza that were served to them by the army. I assume that they would have gladly accepted a proposal to replace quiet, they are shooting us with quiet, they are selling us tomatoes, but they were protesting the policy of quiet, we are being hit with mortar shells and, in return, buying cucumbers from them.

The vegetable story is just one example in a pattern of behavior bordering on a mental disorder. Take, for example, the hospital affair. We still have the old woman in the corridor and long queues, yet in 2015 Israeli hospitals treated more than 97,000 Arab patients from Judea and Samaria and 31,787 from the Gaza Strip, including relatives of terror leaderslike Ismail Haniyeh, for example.

Instead of being grateful for the electricity it is receiving for free, the Palestinian Authority pays salaries to murderers and undermines Israel at the UN (Photo: AP)

A normal country that repays its enemies that way would have demanded a diplomatic return, or at least public gratitude. Thats not how Palestinian logic works. In return, it denounces the Israelis as the new Nazis and their countrywhere Palestinian patients and Jewish citizens lie side-by-side, bed-by-bed, receiving equal, loyal and devoted treatment from Jewish and Arab doctorsas an apartheid state. Biting the hand that feeds you is evil, but how would you call those who willingly extend their hand to be bitten?

Yiftah Ron-Tal, the director of the Israel Electric Corporation, shared the following complaint about the Palestinians: An entire public is enjoying electricity in its home without paying for it If these were Israeli citizens, we would have cut off their power. The Palestinian Authority owes us NIS 1 billionthe value of the free electricity it has consumedyet its unclear why Ron-Tal is complaining about the Palestinian consumer and has not said a single word of criticism against his own government, which is responsible for this scandal. And the financial aspect is not the main point here, but rather the political and diplomatic insanity.

After all, this is the same Palestinian Authority that instead of being grateful for the help and aid it receives from Israel in every area, pays salaries and pensions to terrorist murderers, spreads anti-Semitic propaganda around the world, undermines us at the United Nations and preaches jihad. This anomaly is something Ron-Tal isnt dealing with.

Heres a recent headline: After the PA dragged us to the UNit is now receiving 97 new projects in Area C. In addition, a reinforced autonomy in the areas of electricity, telecommunications and postal services, and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman (Yisrael Beytenu) has added another approval of 11 construction projects in Area C (while the construction for Jews is frozen). If Dostoyevsky were alive right now, he would name his famous novel Crime and Salary.

This syndrome, of crime and salary, also characterizes the new toy our prime minister wont stop talking about with misty eyes: The regional summit. What makes the Saudis, the Gulf emirates, the Egyptians and the Jordanians exchange secrets with Israel and receive discreet help from us in the fields of security and high-tech? The details are unknown, but the reason is: All these regimes are shaky on the inside and need Israel as a shield against the threat of Iran and ISIS.

The familiar pattern repeats itself here: They desperately need our help and receive it, and in return for our helpwe pay them! A normative country would only help Saudi Arabia defend its capital against Iranian missiles under the condition that, for example, it supports Jerusalems unity. And it would present similar demands to the rest of its new partners, like refraining from undermining Israel at the UN.

But Israel is doing the opposite: In return for the services it gives them, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is delaying the American Embassys move to Jerusalem, abandoning Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria and in Jerusalem to an American veto, adopting the Saudi initiative (with rectifications) and reciting a formula of two states minus."

And all this so as not to ruin, God forbid, the chances of the regional summit, in which we will be stripped of our assets.

Whats the conclusion? Politicians wont help this country. It needs a shrink.
US President Donald Trump announced Friday that has chosen a conservative doctor-turned-pundit with deep ties to Wall Street and the pharmaceutical industry to lead the powerful Food and Drug Administration.

Dr. Scott Gottlieb would be tasked with Trump's goal of cutting red tape at the FDA, which regulates everything from pharmaceuticals to seafood to electronic cigarettes. Trump has called the FDA's drug approval process "slow and burdensome" despite changes to speed reviews, particularly of cutting-edge products.

Gottlieb, 44, is no stranger to the FDA as he served as a deputy commissioner under President George W. Bush. While he has frequently criticized the FDA for unnecessary regulations and urged changes to get safe and effective drugs onto the market faster, he generally has supported its overall mission.
Police say a Seattle synagogue in the Capitol Hill neighborhood was vandalized with anti-Semitic Holocaust-denying graffiti on Friday.

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The Seattle Times reported a police officer discovered the spray-painted message Friday morning on an exterior wall of Temple De Hirsch Sinai.

An exterior wall of the synagogue, spray-painted with a Holocaust denying message

Rabbi Daniel Weiner says the message reads The Holocaust is fake history. The s characters in the graffiti are dollar signs.

Weiner says it really is a toxic mix of Holocaust denial, the stereotypical charge that Jews are obsessed with money, and the notion coming from the (President Trump) administration that all facts are fungible. fake facts, fake history.

Weiner says for a time Friday a bed sheet saying Love Wins was hung over the graffiti, but that while it was a touching gesture, he thinks its important for people to see what was done.

Seattle police are investigating the incident as a hate crime.

Gov. Jay Inslee said in a statement Friday that he that he continues to stand with the Jewish community as he has stood with all Washingtonians.

Toppled headstones at the vandalized Jewish cemetary in St. Louis (Photo: Reuters)

Pence helps claen up vandalized Jewish cemetary

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The vandalized Seattle synagogue is the latest in a growing line of anti-Semitic attacks and threats targetting US Jewish institutions. It was preceded by, among others, toppling headstones at a Jewish cemetary in St. Louis, US Vice President Mike Pence helped with the cleanup work, desecrated headstones at a Philadelphia Jewish cemertary and bomb threats received at several Jewish centers across the nations. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly disavowed these attacks.
The Dutch government has withdrawn landing permission for the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's aircraft, escalating a diplomatic dispute between the two NATO allies over campaigning for a Turkish referendum on constitutional reform. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan responded by calling the Dutch "Nazi remnants" and "fascists."

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In a statement, the Dutch government said Saturday it had withdrawn the permission because of "risks to public order and security" caused by the proposed visit of Minister Cavusoglu to Rotterdam.

Mevlut Cavusoglu (Photo: Reuters)

Prior to revoking his permission to land, the Netherlands banned him from taking part in a political rally for local Turks. Cavusoglu said he would visit the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday despite the official ban on him addressing participants in the rally, who back granting new powers to Turkish President Erdogan.

Turkish President Erdogan (Photo: Reuters)

"You can stop our foreign minister's plane all you want, let's see how your planes will come to Turkey from now on," Erdogan said at a rally in Istanbul," said Erdogan at a rally in Istanbul after Cavusoglu was denied landing.

Cavusoglu said the Dutch government was effectively taking Turkish citizens hostage by banning the rally. It was the latest of a series of bans on campaigning in Europe, largely Germany, by Turkish leaders in preparation for an April referendum looking to increase Erdogan's powers.

"These people are not your captives," he said in an interview with CNN Turk television.

Cavusoglu said if the Netherlands refused him permission to fly to Rotterdam, Turkey would respond with harsh economic and political sanctions.

But Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb, announcing the ban on a public appearance late on Friday, said there was no question of him being excluded from the Netherlands.

Earlier this week, Cavusoglu reflected growing tensions between Turkey and European allies by saying that deals between Turkey and the European Union, including an agreement on stemming a flow of migrants, would be jeopardized if the bloc failed to implement promised visa liberalization for Turks.

One prominent EU member to be singled out and attacked by Turkey has been Germany. On Friday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Turkey to stop invoking Berlin's Nazi past when criticizing cancellations of Turkish ministers' rallies in Germany, and said she would do everything possible to keep Turkish domestic conflicts from spilling onto German soil. Her rebuke was to no avail, and several hours after giving her warning, Cavusoglu once again made the comparison, saying on television, "We are not calling the government Nazi. Its practices recall that era."

Cavusoglu additionally said that Turkey would present a final text to the bloc on progress of the deal between and Turkey, "and either it will all be canceled, including the visa liberalization and migrant deal, or it will all be implemented."

Turkey and the EU last year agreed a deal to stem a record flow of migrants to Europe in exchange for billions of euros in aid to Turkey and the lifting of short-term visa requirements on Turkish citizens.
"Troops of A/E 219 battalion were on a road opening duty and providing security for road construction in the area when they were ambushed. The ambush was followed up by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack. Though the area was plain, it was surrounded by thick vegetation. The force took casualties but retaliated,?? a CRPF official said in New Delhi.

By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu, Jugal R Purohit: In one of the worst blood baths of recent times, 12 CRPF officials were killed during an ambush in the naxal ingested Sukma district in Chattisgarh.

The attack took place at around 9.00 am today morning near Kotacheru in Sukma, one of the worst-Maoist affected districts in the country.By the time it ended at 10am, the insurgents had killed eleven personnel, injured five more (one of which succumbed taking the death toll to 12) and walked away with ten rifles, a Light Machine Gun (LMG), a 51mm mortar, an Under Barrel Grenade Launcher, over 1000 rounds of ammunition, two wireless sets and as many para bombs. The 219th battalion of the CRPF from which the troops were did not have a single dead body of a Maoist insurgent to show how the 100 odd members who survived the attack fought back.

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"Troops of A/E 219 battalion were on a road opening duty and providing security for road construction in the area when they were ambushed. The ambush was followed up by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack. Though the area was plain, it was surrounded by thick vegetation. The force took casualties but retaliated,?? a CRPF official said in New Delhi.

"They had a Mine Protected Vehicle (MPV) but chose to walk as MPVs can be targeted," he added.

Since 2009, the CRPF has dragged its foot on procuring modern MPVs for its troops. Despite being authorized to procure 352 MPVs, the force is making its troops work with 120 old, poorly maintained vehicles.

THE SOLDIERS WHO LOST THEIR LIVES

Among the 12 martyred were one inspector and two assistant sub-inspectors. Five troopers were injured in the attack while two were stated to be critical.

The injured were airlifted to Raipur and admitted to a government hospital, the official added.

Two Maoists were also killed in the counter attack by the security forces, said a CRPF officer.

Besides weapons, the Maoists also looted two VHF radio sets that the CRPF team was carrying. The CRPF party consisted of 112 personnel.

Since the attack site is an interior area, the only way of communication is through a satellite phone,?? said the CRPF official.

While a reinforcement of 208 Cobra Battalion was rushed in, a massive operation underway to hunt the maoists. However, the soldiers could only make minor recoveries of what was left behind at scene of ambush including explosives.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Chief Minister Dr Raman Singh and others paid their tributes to the departed troops and visited the injured in the hospital, but there were many who felt this was a manifestation of the larger issue.

We lack a strategy and coordination. If you look at the meticulousness it definitely points to the involvement of Hidma the dreaded Maoist commander,?? said an officer.

Another one noted, Aiding road construction is a duty which can get monotonous and predictable. Was there laxity is something an inquiry can establish??. With the government not having appointing a full-time Director General (DG) for the CRPF since K Durga Prasad retired at the end of last month, Sudeep Lakhtakia, the acting DG will be visiting the site of the ambush on March 12.

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March 11 has been a bloody date for the CRPF. In 2014, the force lost 11 men in Tahakwada in Sukma district to a Maoist ambush. In 2016, on the same day, the force suffered a double blow when Deputy Commandant BK Shyam Nivas was fatally wounded and Head Constable S Ranga Raghavan was martyred in an IED explosion the Maoist triggered in the same district.

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Just in time for the holiday of Purim, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot visited the Aleh Negev rehabilitation village in the southern Merhavim Regional Council on Friday. Eisenkot arrived with the village's founder Maj. Gen. (res.) Doron Almog, and a group of people who had served in the Golani Brigade. These included Defense Ministry Director-General Maj. Gen. Udi Adam and former Director of Policy and Political-Military Affairs at the Defense Ministry Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Gilad.

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Local children are incorporated into the village's activities as a way to teach them shared responsibility and accepting those who are different from themselves. "This place shows you the best of Israeli society," said Eisenkot. "I was touched to see the many volunteers who come to the village, including soldiers who do a year of volunteer work here and many young volunteers who give their all."

Eisenkot (C) visits the children of Aleh Negev

Almog also spoke during the occasion, saying that "The fact that the IDF chief of staff and director-general of the Defense Ministry came to the village, were exposed to the remarkable work done and visited the village's residents is immeasurably important and brings us one step closer to fixing the world and causing real change in Israeli society."
After the Netherlands barred Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu earlier Saturday from landing, due to his plans to speak at political rallies angling to grant President Recep Tayyip Erdogan more power, and mere hours after Erdogan called the Dutch "Nazi remnants" in response, it is time for Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to come out against Erdogan's comments.

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Erdogan denounced the Netherlands as "Nazi remnants, fascists" after the Dutch government withdrew permission for his foreign minister to land there.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte (Photo: AFP)

"It's a crazy remark of course," Rutte told journalists during campaigning for the March 15 election. "I understand they're angry, but this of course was way out of line."

The Dutch are due to vote in a national election on Wednesday, in which anti-immigration sentiment has played a prominent role with nationalist candidate Geert Wilders calling Erdogan a dictator.

Dutch nationalist leader Geert Wilders (Photo: Reuters)

Cavusoglu had stated on Saturday morning that he would fly to Rotterdam anyway and accused the Dutch of treating Turkish citizens in the country like "hostages".

Cavusoglu (C) during a rally in Germany (Photo: EPA)

"I sent them so they could contribute to your economy ... They're not your captives," he told CNN Turk television.

"If my going will increase tensions, let it be. What damage will my going have on them? I am a foreign minister and I can go wherever I want," he said before the Dutch barred his flight.

Cavusoglu had threatened harsh economic and political sanctions if the Dutch refused him entry, a threat that proved decisive for the Netherlands government.

It cited public order and security concerns in withdrawing landing rights for Cavusoglu's flight. But it said the sanctions threat made the search for a reasonable solution impossible.

Dutch Prime Minister Rutte said that while the Netherlands and Turkey could search for "an acceptable solution", Turkey was not respecting the rules relating to public gatherings.

"Many Dutch people with a Turkish background are authorized to vote in the referendum over the Turkish constitution. The Dutch government does not have any protest against gatherings in our country to inform them about it," he wrote on Facebook.

"But these gatherings may not contribute to tensions in our society and everyone who wants to hold a gathering is obliged to follow instructions of those in authority so that public order and safety can be guaranteed," Rutte added.

Spillover fear

Four planned Turkish rallies in Austria and one in Switzerland have also been canceled in the dispute.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she will do everything possible to prevent any spillover of Turkish political tensions onto German soil. She also bluntly called on Erdogan to stop comparing modern-day Germany to the Nazis , a call that remained unheeded, as Cavusoglu repeated this sentiment several hours after Merkel's demand. Cavusoglu added that Turks in Germany were under systematic pressure from police and intelligence services.

He has cited domestic threats from Kurdish and Islamist militants and a July coup bid as cause to vote "yes" to his new powers. But he has also drawn on the emotionally charged row with Europe to portray Turkey as betrayed by allies, facing wars on its southern borders and in need of strong leadership.

"Listen Netherlands, you'll jump once, you'll jump twice, but my people will thwart your game," Erdogan said. "You can cancel our foreign minister's flight as much as you want, but let's see how your flights come to Turkey now.

Erdogan chafed at Western criticism of his mass arrests and dismissals of people authorities believe were linked to a failed July attempt by the military to topple him. He also made a veiled threat of possible realignment of Turkey in the world in a reference to Russia.

"The Netherlands should stop this faulty understanding and approach ... If they think Turkey will take whatever they do, that Turkey is gone. I told them this, stop this boss-like attitude. If Europe keeps this up, they will lose many places, including Russia."
THE HAGUE -- Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim criticized Netherlands' decision, calling on Europe to cease meddling in Turkey's affairs.

Speaking at a rally in western Turkey, Yildirim said: "They are banning our ministers and lawmakers who were going there to meet our citizens living abroad, they are creating obstacles."

The prime minister added: "Hey Europe, please don't meddle in Turkey's internal affairs and politics and don't take a side."
Tunisian authorities announced that they prevented a 15th-century Torah scroll from being smuggled out of the country. The scroll was written on bovine skin.

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According to Tunisian authorities, a group of suspects were arrested following a tip that the Torah scroll was being transferred to a European country as part of an antiquities smuggling operation.

Tunisian Torah press conference

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During a press conference, Tunisian National Guard spokesman Khalifa al-Shibani presented the rare Torah scroll, which measures 37m long and 47cm wide.

According to al-Shibani, unidentified foreign elements attempted to buy the scroll, which he described as "a unique historical item for the world."

Tunisian press conference of ancient Torah

Later in the press conference, al-Shibani said, "Experts at the National Heritage Institute have confirmed that the Torah scroll is an extremely rare, historical and invaluable item that is from the 15th century."

The scroll seems to contain all parts of the Torah, yet Hebrew language experts argue that this scroll was written before the various books of the Torah were organized into their present order.

Tunisia's Jewish community has shrunk dramatically since the establishment of the State of Israel, yet there is still a Jewish presence on the island of Djerba, which attracts Jewish tourists every year for the holiday of Lag BaOmer.
Approximately 1,500 protestors marched on Saturday in the Galilee in opposition to the "Muezzin Bill."

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Congregating in the village of Kabul, the protestors carried signs reading, "The law won't pass," and "We'll keep fighting until it's cancelled." Some residents installed loudspeakers on the roves of their homes to play recordings of muezzins' call to prayer.

Saturday protests

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The demonstration was in part organized by the Committee to Monitor the Arab Sector, which is headed by former MK Mohammad Barakeh.

Protestors in Kabul, Israel

Residents of Qalansawe protested before an Israel Police station in Tayibe, both protesting the Muezzin Bill and the destruction of houses in the Arab sector . Some protestors brought megaphones and enacted muezzin calls. One of the protestors, Naama Gazawi, said, "It's time that all of us unite and lead a fight that will cause the cancellation of all the racist laws. Our silence will allow the government of Israel to continue its steps against Arab society."

Abed al-Rahim Odeh, a resident of Qalansawe, said, "Our fight is the most righteous. The racist laws will only cause a tense environment. It's enough what happens to us with home demolitions and the humiliating treatment."

Ashraf Abu Ali, also from Qalansawe, bought a loudspeaker that he installed on his rooftop. "The voice of the muezzin will not be silenced," he said. "At every prayer, I play a recording of the muezzin so that everybody will hear. The law is racist, and we won't respect it.

Loudspeaker atop city hall in Baqa al-Gharbiyye

"This government destroys our homes, humiliates us, and how it harms (our) religion. This government must know that harming the muezzin and religion is a red line that could lead to war. We'll sacrifice our lives for the muezzin."

The mayor of the city of Baqa al-Gharbiyye in the Haifa District, Morsi Abu Mokh, decided on Thursday to install loudspeakers atop the City Hall to broadcast the muezzin's call in protest
A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer assigned to the 9th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Dyess Air Force Base (AFB), Texas, takes off March 10, 2017, at Andersen AFB, Guam. The B-1B's are deployed to Andersen as part of U.S. Pacific Command's (USPACOM) Continuous Bomber Presence operations. This forward deployed presence demonstrates continuing U.S. commitment to stability and security in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. Most importantly, these bomber rotations provide Pacific Air Forces and USPACOM commanders an extended deterrence capability. The U.S. military has maintained a deployed strategic bomber presence in the Pacific since March 2004, which has contributed significantly to regional security and stability.
MONDAY 3/13

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Monday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

>> OB Enrollment is Monday, March 13 at 8 a.m. in the Lower Level of the Medical Office Building. Please attend class as soon as possible after your positive pregnancy test. For more information or to enroll in the online Childbirth Preparation class, contact OB Director Nancy Hengelfelt, RNC, at 402.362.04573.

TUESDAY 3/14

>> Sexaholics Anonymous, a 12 Step recovery group for those dealing with addiction to pornography, sex, and other forms of lust, meets Tuesday nights at 5:45 p.m. For more information please call our toll free number 1-877-889-8071 or visit sanebraska.org.

>> Alzheimers/Dementia Support Group will meet on Tuesday, March 14 at 4 p.m. in the Hearthstone Great Room. For more information call the Hearthstone Social Work Department at 402.363.0239.

>> Cancer Support Group will meet Tuesday, March 14 at 6:30 p.m. at Willow Brook Assisted Living. For more information call 402.362.4662.

WEDNESDAY 3/15

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Wednesday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

THURSDAY 3/16

>> Weight Watchers meets in the basement of the York Towne House, 5th & Grant Ave., each Thursday. Weigh in 5:15 - 5:45 p.m.; Member meeting 5:45 - 6:15 p.m.

>> AL-ANON meets Thursday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

>> Narcotics Anonymous meets Thursday at 8 p.m. at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in the Annex building.

>> A Baby Care class will be held on Thursday, March 9 at 7 p.m. in the Medical Office Building Lower Level, contact OB Director Nancy Hengelfelt, RNC, at 402.362.0457 for more information.

FRIDAY 3/17

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Friday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - AWOL Group meets Friday at 8 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

SATURDAY 3/18

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Saturday at 11 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.
The following questions were asked recently on the Wonderline:

Q: With the wind blowing so hard these days I had to ask this question: Why is the water level lower in the toilet bowl on a windy day?

A: Apparently, there is something to this.

Local plumber Josh Stenger confirms that raging wind such as the York area experienced Monday and Tuesday can, indeed, make toilet bowl water rise, fall and noticeably move. This happens, he explained, when strong winds are able to blow into the piping that vents the sewer system to the outside. The back-and-forth rush of wind alternately pushes water from the gooseneck trap into the toilet bowl, then siphons it out again when the gust stops.

Q: I am 86 years old, I retired last year and now all my income is Social Security. Do I need to file income tax for 2017?

A: Because we are not tax experts or accountants or even remotely qualified to counsel anyone on tax matters, we are suggesting that the person who asked this question contact the Aging Services office in York County where they can be put in touch with someone who definitively knows the answer.

Their office is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. The phone number is 402-362-7626.

Q: How can we contact our president? By telephone? By email? Letter? We need to have him realize the danger of putting a shale oil pipeline into our aquifer or the Missouri River. We are the middle of our country. We helped put him in office, we need to have him save our state from disaster now.

A: According to www.whitehouse.gov, you can call and leave comments at 202-456-1111.

They suggest that if writing a letter to the president of the United States, that you email it. There is a link on this website (www.whitehouse.gov) to do so. They say this is the fastest mode of communication.

They also suggest that if you write a letter, consider typing it on an 8 1/2-x11 inch sheet of paper. And if it is hand-written that it is done with a pen and as neatly as possible. Letter writers are also encouraged to include their return addresses on the letter as well as the envelope, as well as an email address if possible. Physical letters can be sent to: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington DC, 20500.

Q: When was the Mackey Center built?

A: The Mackey Center, on the York College campus, was built in 1998.

Q: How many water wells are in the city of York and how old are they?

A: According to the annual water report, there are 19 water wells in the city. Of those, three are not being used.

The years the different wells were drilled are as follows: 1962, 1968, 1976, 1977, 1977, 1977, 1982, 1982, 1988, 1997, 1997, 1997, 2004, 2009, 2009, 2009, 2009, 2009 and 2009.

Q: How many of the local schools offer breakfast options for their students?

A: All of them do, according to the information submitted to us on a weekly and monthly basis. The YNT only prints the lunch menus . . . but we do see that all of the schools also offer breakfast on a daily basis.

Q: There was a tornado watch issued this week. How common is that, to have tornado watches in Nebraska in early March?

A: Its not necessarily common, but it should be noted that Severe Weather Awareness Week is observed the last week of March each year as this time signifies the typical beginning of tornado season.

The National Weather Service does note that tornadoes can happen at any time of the year, although they are most common in Nebraska in the spring and summer months.

Q: What are the days and hours for getting a drivers license in York County?

A: York County has examiners present every Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. until noon and 1-4:30 p.m. (except on holidays). It should also be noted that individuals can visit an examiner in any county, they do not have to go to their home counties to do so.

Q: I heard that the Obamas are going to make tens of millions of dollars on book deals for both of them. Im just curious if that is true.

A: This is true.

According to the Associated Press, their book deals  one for Barack and one for Michelle  will be through Crown Publishing. Crown has still not revealed the titles, release dates or subject matters. Last week, the Associated Press reported that Barack Obamas book would focus on his years in the White House, while Michelle Obamas book will be an inspirational work for young people.

And the AP says, the book deal is widely believed to be worth tens of millions of dollars.

Q: With more troubles in the news about the penitentiary at Tecumseh, I was wondering how many penitentiary/prison facilities exist in Nebraska?

A: State correctional facilities in Nebraska include the Community Corrections Center in Lincoln, the Community Corrections Center in Omaha, the Lincoln Correctional Center in Lincoln, the Nebraska Center for Women in York, the Nebraska State Penitentiary in Lincoln, the Nebraska Correctional Youth Facility in Omaha, the Omaha Correctional Center in Omaha and the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution in Tecumseh.

Q: I guess I missed it but Dana College closed several years ago? I heard there are new plans for the campus  can you tell us what those are?

A: Officials say that Grace University plans to move from its Omaha campus to the former Dana College campus in Blair.

The move is part of a proposed $92 million redevelopment project announced this week in Blair. The project would include a Lutheran Church, a nursing facility, a film studio and a multi-generational housing development.

The campus has otherwise been closed since 2010 after an accreditation body refused to approve its sale to for-profit investors.

Meanwhile, Grace University officials say the Omaha school district plants to buy the Grace campus.

Q: I have been reading stories of interest related to the birthday of our state. My question is what is the oldest town in Nebraska?

A: The Nebraska State Legislature has credited Nebraska City as being the oldest incorporated city in the state, as it was the first approved by a special act of the Nebraska Territorial Legislature in 1855.

Q: If I want to apply for general assistance, do I have to fill out an application and if so, how do I get an application form?

A: A formal application is required. You may pick up an application at the general assistance office (which is located at the York County District Court office) or you can call them and they can email or mail one to you.
By Press Trust of India: Chennai, Mar 11 (PTI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami today greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the big wins of his party in the assembly elections in states including Uttar Pradesh.

"I would like to convey my congratulations to you on the resounding victory of your party in the recently concluded Assembly Elections. This victory is the testimony of your able leadership and hard work," he said in his congratulatory letter to him.

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He also spoke to Modi over phone and extended his "hearty congratulations," an official release here said. PTI VGN BN IKA

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By India Today Web Desk: Model Jiratchaya Sirimongkolnawin has been crowned Miss International Queen 2016 at what is considered the largest and the most popular transgender pageant of the world.

Launched about a decade ago to help mainstream the transgender women of the world, the pageant recently concluded its 12th edition in Pattaya, Thailand. The show was postponed from November as part of a national mourning of the death of Thailand's king.

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Interestingly, the winner herself hails from Thailand, a country that still remains quite a conservative society with no prominent laws recognising the LGBTQ community.

Also Read:Meet Anjali Lama, Lakme Fashion Week's first transgender model

"It's like a new category, but the gender already existed a long time ago," Jiratchaya was quoted saying by Reuters.

Photo: Reuters

Donning a white glittering and black side rim evening gown, the 25-year old Jiratchaya beat 24 other contestants for the crown. The second and the third position were awarded to contestants from Brazil and Venezuela, respectively.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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By Press Trust of India: Shillong, Mar 11 (PTI) Two security personnel were today suspended for allegedly firing at three traders and seriously injuring them in Meghalayas North Garo hills.

"Sub-inspector W D Sangma and a commando of the states special force have been suspended and are back to their parent units," superintendent of police Dalton Marak said today adding they were suspended after a probe.

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Earlier, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma had assured the state assembly of a judicial probe into the March 6 incident following which an angry mob had set afire a police station and five government vehicles.

The traders, who were returning from a weekly market, were fired at after the vehicle they were travelling in did not stop at a police check point. The security personnel present on the spot apparently suspected the occupants to be armed militants and fired at them, state Home Minister H D R Lyngdoh had said.

The injured persons were rushed to a local hospital and later shifted to a hospital in Guwahati. Their condition has improved, the officials added. PTI JOP AYP KK KK

--- ENDS ---
Apna Dal (Soneylal) headed by Anupriya Patel, who is a minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi cabinet, contested on 11 seats and won nine of them. The Congress, which fielded candidates from 105 seats, won just seven seats.

By Shashank Shantanu: In a more shocking revelation for beleaguered Congress, the Uttar Pradesh verdict has thrown up yet another disturbing fact: that it is now an even smaller player than BJP ally Apna Dal.

ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS 2017: FULL COVERAGE

Apna Dal (Soneylal) headed by Anupriya Patel, who is a minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi cabinet, contested on 11 seats and won nine of them. On the other hand, the Congress, which contested the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election as junior ally to the ruling Samajwadi Party, fielded candidates on 105 seats. The party won a meagre seven seats.

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What was more humiliating for the Congress is that it lost all the four Assembly seats in Amethi, a region considered to be the grand old party's pocket borough. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi represents Amethi in Lok Sabha and despite the party using its 'star campaigner' Priyanka Gandhi to campaign for it in the region, voters rejected it.

THE INSULT

When Congress decided to contest Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh in association with the Samajwadi Party, the Opposition mocked it for playing a junior partner to the ruling party.

The Congress has long been a spent force in Uttar Pradesh and Rahul Gandhi's aim of resurrecting it in one of the most populous states of the country seems to have hit a dead end.

Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal

Rahul Gandhi must realise that relentless attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi would not win him elections rather the party should work on grassroot level to win back the confidence of its loyal votebank.

Despite the embarrassment in UP, veteran party leader Digvijaya Singh asserted that there was no question of Rahul Gandhi stepping down.

"There is no question of Rahul Gandhi stepping down," said Singh in response to media queries about a change of guard in the Congress top brass.

"The Nehru-Gandhi family is the greatest binding factor for the Congress and the leadership has to come to Rahul," he said.

Singh, however, conceded that the Congress party needed to build regional leaders.

"I have said this even earlier that we need to build up new leadership in states. We have to take decisive action to build up the party where we do not have strong regional leaders," added Singh.

Congress is returning to power in Punjab after a gap of 10 years but it was more due to the massive anti-incumbency against SAD-BJP combine and efforts of veteran party leader Captain Amarinder Singh than Rahul Gandhi. He hardly campaigned in the state.

In 2014, the Congress was decimated by a massive BJP wave. The saffron tsunami has hit it again in 2017. The party must put on its thinking cap so as to prevent the BJP from realising its dream of a 'Congress-mukt Bharat' in 2019.

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WATCH: How UP turned 'gerua' on election day

ALSO READ:

Election results: Congress still says there is no question of Rahul Gandhi stepping down

Amit Shah vs Prashant Kishor: Mapping the careers of India's master election strategists

UP Assembly election 2017: Saffron surge sweeps Uttar Pradesh. Who could be BJP's Chief Minister pick?

--- ENDS ---
YEREVAN, MARCH 10, ARMENPRESS. Armenian President Serzh Sargsyans visit to France once again proved that the Armenian-French relations are at the high level, political scientists Sergey Minasyan and Hrant Melik-Shahnazaryan told Armenpress.

There is hardly a country with which Armenias relations are so positive and friendly. I think this visit, as well as the former mutual visits of the Armenian and French officials passed in a positive and friendly atmosphere. During the visit a special emphasis was put on economic and investment programs in order the involvement of French business further increase in the Armenian market, Sergey Minasyan said.

Hrant Melik-Shahnazaryan said the level and number of the Presidents meetings show that a developed cooperation exists between the two countries that includes all spheres.

The visit showed that the Armenian-French relations are at the highest level. And, in fact, there is no issue which creates controversies or certain problems in the bilateral relations. France provides full support to the most important issues of Armenia, Melik-Shahnazaryan said.

The diplomatic relations between Armenia and France were established on February 24, 1992.

On October, 2, 2009 Vigen Chitechyan was appointed Armenias Ambassador to France.

On November 11, 2014 Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of France to Armenia Jean-Francois Charpentier presented his credentials to President Serzh Sargsyan.
Uttar Pradesh election results have established that Modi wave is still sweeping the landscape of the most populous state of the country. The Akhilesh-Rahul alliance did not work in Uttar Pradesh, where majority of the voters are below 35 years of age.

By Prabhash K Dutta: The India Today-Axis My India exit poll was right on money as the BJP has repeated its performance of 2014 general elections. The BJP is well on the course to win close to 300 seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

Uttar Pradesh election results have shown that Modi wave still persists in the state. The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance has suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the BJP.

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Joining of hands by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi could not pose any serious challenge to the BJP in terms of the number seats.

The Samajwadi Party had won majority on its own by winning 224 seats in 2012 but this time SP-Congress alliance are not looking to win even 75 seats.

READ| UP Election Results 2017 LIVE: BJP eyes landslide three-fourth majority; SP-Cong, BSP decimated

But, the question is what went wrong for Akhilesh-Rahul combine or how the duo was undone by Modi-powered BJP despite relentless campaign by the two leaders.

AKHILESH'S 'KAAM BOLTA HAI' REJECTED

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's claim of bringing unprecedented development in Uttar Pradesh could not win favour from the voters in the Assembly election.

Akhilesh Yadav fought this election on the slogan of 'Kaam Bolta Hai'. But, it seems that the voters of Uttar Pradesh believed more in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's counter- Karnaama Bolta Hai.

Uttar Pradesh witnessed a series of communal clashes under Akhilesh Yadav government. Ministers were sacked on charges of corruption but were re-inducted under pressure from Mulayam Singh Yadav and Shivpal Yadav. Such incidents damaged Akhilesh's image of an upright leader.

FAMILY FEUD PROVED COSTLY

Akhilesh Yadav was embroiled in a long-drawn squabble for power with his father Mulayam Singh Yadav and uncle Shivpal Yadav within the Samajwadi Party.Akhilesh emerged victorious with the Election Commission recognising his faction as the true Samajwadi Party assigning him the poll symbol.

Mulayam and Shivpal Yadav openly expressed their opposition to Akhilesh Yadav's style of functioning. Akhilesh responded by allying with Congress hoping that his association with Rahul Gandhi will woo the youths of Uttar Pradesh.

The Samajwadi Party had got 29.29 per cent votes in 2012 while the Congress secured 13.26 per cent votes. The combined vote-share stood at over 42.5 per cent.

Akhilesh expected to check the BJP with this figure. The BJP had got over 42 per cent vote share in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. But, Uttar Pradesh election results have proved his calculation and aspirations too ambitious.

ALSO WATCH: Live Election Results Update

YADAV-MUSLIM FORMULA

Samajwadi Party dislodged the BSP from power in 2012 with its brand of social engineering by stitching MY-Muslim-Yadav formula. But, as Akhilesh Yadav objected to entry of Quami Ekta Dal's Mukhtar Ansari and his brother, this unity seems to have taken a hit.

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Further, the BJP revised its strategy by focusing on non-Yadav OBCs and non-Jatav Dalits. This move not only countered the Yadav vote-bank of the Samajwadi Party but gave the BJP a definite edge in the elections.

IMPRESSIVE CAMPAIGN BY BJP

While Akhilesh Yadav failed to convince his father Mulayam Singh Yadav and perhaps the only mass leader in the party, to canvass for the SP-Congress alliance, the BJP put up a very impressive election campaign.

Mulayam Singh openly decried the SP-Congress alliance. Shivpal Yadav said it many times that his supporters would make sure that the SP candidates are challenged in their respective constituencies.

Just ahead of the last phase of election Mulayam Singh's second wife Sadhna Gupta spoke out against Akhilesh Yadav.

Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi gave a slogan for alliance during election campaign - UP Ko Ye Saath Pasand Hai, but the election results prove that voters in Uttar Pradesh had other ideas about their tie-up.

MODI WAVE STILL PERSISTS

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Going into the polls, many observers said that demonetisation would be the biggest challenge for Modi in Uttar Pradesh election.The Opposition leaders slammed demonetisation by Modi government at every public meeting.

But, the amount of energy that PM Modi showed during election campaign defending demonetisation countered the Opposition's allegations. Modi's camping at Varanasi for three days for the last two phases paid rich dividends for the BJP.

Akhilesh-Rahul alliance simply did not stand a chance. Also watch: Assembly Election results 2017: Shiv Aroor decodes BJP's unprecedented victory and impact of election

--- ENDS ---
YEREVAN, MARCH 10, ARMENPRESS. Russia will continue its mediation mission in the Nagorno Karabakh conflict with the remaining OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairing countries, the United States and France, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing, reports Armenpress.

She said Russia will continue its mediation mission based on five joint statements that were adopted by the Presidents of Russia, US and France.

These documents emphasize the impermissibility to settle the Nagorno Karabakh conflict with the use of force. They include a call addressed to the leaderships of Armenia and Azerbaijan to settle the disputable issues based on the non-use of force and threat of force, the territorial integrity of states, equal rights and the peoples right to self-determination, Zakharova said.

The Russian MFA spokeswoman stated that the Russian side will make efforts for the settlement process of the NK conflict within the frames of the agreed approaches, taking into account Russias close relations with Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Zakharova recalled Russias role in the previously signed agreements, stating that they till now are important points for the conflict settlement.

Following all previous agreements is an important step on reaching sustainable peace over the Karabakh conflict, Maria Zakharova said.
YEREVAN, MARCH 10, ARMENPRESS. Jon Huntsman Jr. has accepted US President Donald Trumps offer to be ambassador to Russia, New York Times reported.

Huntsman Jr. was the US ambassador to China in 2009-2011.

His father, Jon Huntsman Sr., is famous for his pro-Armenian activity. He significantly assisted Armenia after the 1988 earthquake in Spitak. He and his family members visited Armenia 46 times during these 25 years.

Within the framework of charity programs, he provided at least 50 million USD to Armenia for the construction of hospitals and schools. Many students studied in the University of Utah thanks to the scholarships provided by him.

Jon Huntsman Sr. was granted Armenias citizenship and was awarded with two Honorary Medals.
YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. On March 10 and overnight March 11 Azerbaijani forces made over 30 ceasefire violations in the Artsakh-Azerbaijan line of contact, firing 100 shots at Artsakh positions from various caliber firearms, the defense ministry of Artsakh told ARMENPRESS.

In the eastern direction of the line of contact Azerbaijani forces fired automatic anti-tank grenade launchers (3 projectiles), and in the northern direction  82mm mortar (1 projectile).

The Defense Army of Artsakh mainly refrained from taking countermeasures and carried on their service.
YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. Armenia is one of the founding members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and always takes very seriously this integration union, defense minister Vigen Sargsyan said during the visiting session of the Valdai international dialogue club on March 11.

In the regional context, the fundamental component of our foreign policy is the strategic alliance with Russia, which is stipulated by several bilateral and regional cooperation documents. Armenia is one of the CSTO founding members and always takes very seriously that integration union. We really believe that this organization can have a worthy place in the international relations system, he said.

The minster mentioned that nevertheless there are still issues in the CSTO.

What do we find to be not so efficient in that organization? The combination of priorities in foreign policies of CSTO member states. We see that in third organizations, in other platforms, nevertheless, there is still temptation to ignore a bit the interests of CSTO colleagues by some members. But I think that it will pass with time, he said.

He mentioned that at the same time Armenia is rather actively cooperating with NATO, which is very transparent for all partners of Armenia.

We, namely, highlight the peacekeeping mission which we carry out within the NATO units in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Lebanon. Armenian peacekeepers carry out their responsibilities with high efficiency, contributing to providing security, Sargsyan said.
YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. Russia is a supplier of security for Armenia and will never allow anyone to harm or attack Armenia, Vitaly Naumkin, scientific director of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences said during the Valdai international dialogue clubs visiting session in Yerevan, speaking on Russias armament supply to Azerbaijan.

Today, no one can deny that Russia is a security supplier for Armenia, Russia will never allow Armenia to be harmed or attacked. If anyone attacks Armenia, Russia will take part in defending Armenia, this is absolutely obvious, he said.

In response to an observation that Armenia is the strategic partner of Russia, however Russia is selling weapons to Azerbaijan, which in its turn is using those weapons to shoot Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia, Naumkin said: This is a very serious matter, which our Armenian colleagues dont accept. Lets just say that we live in the post-Soviet territory, where the strategic line of Russia is having friendly relations with all states in the area. Its not about that Russia is carrying out some actions which can harm Armenia, I think this is completely ruled out. Russia and Azerbaijan have military-technical cooperation, nobody denies it, however, I think, it is a constraining factor.
YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. Fyodor Lukyanov, Editor-in-Chief of Russia in Global Affairs magazine and political analyst, highlights Eurasian economic cooperation with Iran with Armenias mediation.

During the visiting session of Valdai international dialogue club in Yerevan, Lukyanov told reporters Iran is an important partner for Armenia, and expressed opinion that Iran will look towards the Eurasian Economic Union through Armenia.

It seemed a year ago the situation over Iran was going for improvement, but now, it seems everything is changing back. The US is again speaking about sanctions against Iran. Im not saying this will lead to war, but the fact that uncertainty is being created over Iran again is obvious. Iran is an important partner for Armenia, and I think Iran will look towards the EEU through Armenia, he said.

Lukyanov also added Russias idea on Eurasian integration of the 2000s transformed as result of the EU crisis, Ukrainian crisis, the situation in the Middle East, change of US administration and several other factors.

Now its about the creation of a Eurasian universal economic union. This opens wider opportunities, greater prospects. The EEU now has links with Chinese programs for example, whereas his is another scale. At the same time, each country must work themselves, they shouldnt rely on others, in order to find its place in this big new palette. In this context Armenia has issues, but I think it will find its place, he said.
YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian Youth Federation of the Western United States is encouraging its members to boycott The Ottoman Lieutenant because the film perpetuates the denial of the Armenian genocide, FresnoBee reports.



The movie stars Michael Huisman and Hera Hilmar as a couple in Ottoman Turkey on the brink of World War I.

The Armenian Youth Federation of the Western United States said in its statement that the film depicts this time period through feel-good historical revisionism that turns the genocide into a two-sided conflict.



The Armenian Youth Federation also acknowledged that the films writers appeared to take a neutral stance by including different perspectives on the genocide in the dialogue. But, the statement said, it is not possible to be neutral on the issue of genocide, and attempting to do so merely supports the modern propaganda of the Turkish government.






YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. The Syrian Army has entered the al-Khafsa water supply center in southern Aleppo, which was recently liberated from the Islamic State.

The repair of the water pumps is scheduled to be completed within the next 48 hours, and Aleppos water supply will be restored, Aleppos Gandzasar daily reported on its Facebook page, citing local sources.

Aleppo didnt have water supply for a few months, since terrorist groups had captured the water pumping station 60km from the city.
SAN FRANCISCOTo celebrate its founding 40 years ago this month by sex educator and activist Joani Blank, Good Vibrations is hosting the first of many #40YearsOfPleasure events.

Bling My Vibe! is an arty, crafty contest that brings sex community luminaries and Good Vibrations customers together to make art, have fun and celebrate the item that makes Good Vibrations tick: the vibrator.

Bling My Vibe! invites sex and art celebrities as well as members of the public to make an art piece using a simple Smoothie vibrator. The vibrator base will be available at all GV stores for $5 now through April 30, while supplies last. (For every Smoothie vibrator sold, $1 will be donated directly to Good Vibes GiVe program to support community sexual health initiatives; this seasons recipients are Planned Parenthood of Northern California and the Transgender Law Center.)

Once the artist has their vibe, they can paint it, decoupage it, bejewel it, sew it an outfit, or otherwise get creative. These arted- and tarted-up vibes will be displayed at the Good Vibrations Polk Street store during the months of April and May. Winners will be announced during the May Masturbation Month celebration. The top three winners will receive a Good Vibrations gift basket/gift card combo valued at $300, $200, and $100 respectively.

For those wanting encouragement, inspiration, or simply a fun and artsy social outing, Good Vibrations is hosting two special Bling My Vibe Workshops at the Polk Street Good Vibrations for those who want to make vibrator creations together. Participants can bring their own supplies, but hot glue, jewels and more will be provided. Hosted by Staff Sexologist (and arty collagist) Dr. Carol Queen, the March workshop will be co-hosted by textile artist Jack Davis and the April event by Dottie Lux of Red Hots Burlesque. The events are 4-6 p.m. Saturday, March 25, and Sunday, April 30, at Good Vibations, 1620 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109. A $10 fee covers the cost of vibe and materials. Advance tickets are available at Brown Paper Tickets for the March event and the April event.

Rules and Regs:

You must use a Good Vibes Smoothie or comparable hard plastic Smoothie-style vibrator as the basis of the art project.

You may add any element/s to the vibrator you choose.

The finished vibrator will be displayed at Good Vibrations, and photo/s of it become the property of Good Vibrations to be displayed on its website and any other contexts it deems appropriate.

Deadline is May 10, 2017. Just drop your creation off at any GV retail location, or mail it to:



Good Vibrations Bling My Vibe

1800 Sutter St., Ste. 700

Concord, CA 94520



Winners will be selected by online vote.

If you dont live near a Good Vibrations store and wish to bling a vibe, please call our Customer Service Center at 1-800-289-8423 to order your Smoothie base.

The artist will retain ownership of the vibrator itself, and the artwork may be claimed after the GV show is over.

18 and over only.

Follow along as Good Vibrations posts Bling My Vibe! vibrator art submissions on Good Vibrations Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter via @GoodVibesToys and with the hashtag #blingmyvibe, and our other social networks.
The Congress is not comfortable with Akhilesh Yadav's idea of a post-poll alliance with the BSP. Election results will be declared today for all the five states that went to polls.

By India Today Web Desk: While Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav may have floated the idea of forging an alliance with the BSP after the election results are declared, but Congress does not seem keen on a post-poll grand alliance.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, "We have no doubts about the victory of the SP-Congress alliance in UP. But if such a situation arises where there is a deadlock in the state and no party is able to form the government, then nature and politics, we all know, abhors a vacuum. And nobody in the state wants another election. But whatever alliance is possible will be explored if such a situation arises."

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READ| Election results 2017 are upon us: Full recap of the 5-state, 36-day polls

The idea of a Bihar-like grand alliance was floated by politicians from Bihar including Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav.

But, the Samajwadi Party and the BSP could not agree to even negotiate such a grand alliance in Uttar Pradesh.

BSP chief Mayawati had out-rightly rejected the idea of a grand-alliance, which could not have been possible with SP and BSP coming together.

Now that the exit polls have indicated that the BJP would be the single largest party in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, the SP seems to be nervous. The day exit poll results were shown on television, Akhilesh Yadav hinted that he was ready to stitch a Bihar-like alliance with the BSP.

But, the Congress has shown its reluctance. The party also refused to comment on a query if it would support a coalition with Mayawati as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.

Earlier, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had rebuffed the exit poll results saying, "Our alliance is winning. We saw such exit polls in Bihar too."

Uttar Pradesh went to polls between February 11 and March 8 in seven phases for 403 Assembly seats. The counting of votes will take place today.

--- ENDS ---
An international credit rating agency says Manitoba's economy is growing, diverse and poised to be one of the strongest in Canada over the next two years, but that's not enough to satisfy Finance Minister Cameron Friesen, who says Manitoba isn't out of the woods just yet.

At the request of the provincial government, Moody's Investors Service quietly released a short-term credit rating for Manitoba on Feb. 21, giving the province a Prime-1 rating  the highest short-term designation from the bond-rating agency.

Moody's touted Manitoba's strong fiscal framework and the presence of sizeable liquidity sources as reasons for the top rating.

However, Friesen said Manitoba is staring down a $1-billion deficit and the province's fiscal state is still cause for alarm.

"I think that the alarm we are sounding is the one we have heard over the last few weeks: that increased debt and deficits are a real threat to provinces," Friesen told CBC News.

"Remember, we are doing better than other provinces because of significant downturns in other other provinces. We are not exactly the belle of the ball."

PCs wanted bad news, NDP suggests

Moody's typically offers a long-term rating every summer, but Friesen said the government asked for a short-term rating  which looks at a province's ability within the next 12 months to repay its debts  to "get another opinion."

The Opposition NDP doesn't think that is the case.

Finance Critic James Allum suggests the request was a failed ploy by the government to pile on more bad news for Manitobans ahead of the April 11 release of an austerity budget.

"I think they were quite clearly hoping the news from Moody's was going to be bad to justify this austerity program they have in mind," Allum said.

"But I am glad they did [get the rating] in the sense that it demonstrates quite clearly the province is in a stable economic situation, not in some kind of economic crisis that results in the kind of cuts the finance minister has in store for Manitoba."

Story continues

Moody's famously downgraded the province's credit rating in 2015, citing the NDP government's struggle to contain the provincial deficit.

Downgrades typically lead to increased borrowing costs. Premier Brian Pallister is quick to remind Manitobans payments to lenders because of those downgrades are equivalent to "sending a hospital to Toronto every year."

S&P Global Ratings downgraded Manitoba's credit rating last July, citing its growing debt burden.

Long-term rating remains stable

Following the release of the short-term rating, Moody's offered an updated credit opinion on the province's long-term rating. The rating remained stable, citing Manitoba's strong economic performance and outlook.

"Manitoba's Aa2 rating is supported by the strength and diversity of its economy, which produces low unemployment rates and real GDP [gross domestic product] growth rates above the Canadian average. Manitoba continues to benefit from strong debt affordability," states the credit opinion released Feb. 24.

The rating  Moody's third-highest long-term rating, but lower than the Aa1 rating the province had before the 2015 downgrade  is a sign the province is on the "road to recovery," Friesen said.

"It suggests to me they are seeing the evidence of fiscal discipline."

Allum argues the former NDP government should get some credit for the current economic performance, which the Tories inherited less than a year ago.

"If the finance minister, as the premier does, always wants to blame us for everything, then they have to give us credit for the performance of the economy under difficult circumstances," said Allum.

Adam Hardi, an assistant vice-president and analyst at Moody's, said while Manitoba's deficit is concerning, that is countered by the province's ability to raise taxes or liquify assets if needed, coupled with a strong economy.

"[The deficit] will be supported by a fairly robust economy within the Canadian/provincial landscape," he said, adding Manitoba is forecast to be a growth leader in Canada.

"We do expect that revenues will be stable and improving given it is expected to have a robust GDP."

Hardi said it would take years for Moody's to downgrade the province any further. Only one province, Newfoundland and Labrador, is in the lower Aa3 category.

"There is still breathing room within the double-a2 category  the progression we typically like is to go gradually," he said, noting there would be a negative outlook first before a downgrade.
The top of the 65-storey Trump International Hotel & Tower is seen in Toronto August 31, 2015. REUTERS/Chris Helgren

TORONTO (Reuters) - A class-action lawsuit seeking the return of deposits has been launched against the developer of a downtown Toronto hotel bearing the name of U.S. President Donald Trump, the lawyer who won an earlier test case for disgruntled investors said on Friday.

The lawsuit filed against Talon International Inc (TALN.PK) in the name of Ashleka Persaud can be joined by as many as 210 other purchasers who paid deposits to buy hotel units in the tower but did not close their transactions, the filing said.

A lawyer for Talon was not immediately available to comment.

The Trump International Hotel & Tower has been beset by troubles since opening its doors in 2012, and ownership of the tower itself looks set to fall to its main debt holder after a court-run sale process received no bids last month.

Talon, which licensed the Trump brand and hired a Trump-owned company to manage it, was ordered in October to pay damages to one buyer for "negligent misrepresentation" and for another sale to be rescinded. Those buyers were represented by Mitchell Wine, the same lawyer handling the new case.

The Supreme Court of Canada earlier this week dismissed Talon's request for it to hear an appeal of the lower court ruling.

The expansion of similar payouts to all buyers of the tower's hotel units, which were placed into a pool of rooms to be rented out at luxury rates, could amount to a total of C$25 million, the filing said.

The case is: Persaud v Talon; Ontario Superior Court of Justice file no: CV-17-569023-00CP

(Reporting by Alastair Sharp; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Why you should visit a book exchange on your next trip

Going on a trip is a great time to send a book out on its own journey.

We all have books that we move from home to home because we love them, and read them over and over. And then there are other books  interesting enough to keep, but maybe theyre halfway read, or never opened up because you just never get around to them.

Take one of them along with you on your next trip. Read it on planes, trains, and automobiles, and then trade it in for a new one at a book exchange at your destination.

Book exchanges exist at certain bookstores or libraries, and you can trade in one of your books to get another book for free. Why should you visit a book exchange while traveling?

#randysbookxchange #Hoian #Vietnam #Travel #Travelgram #Instatravel #Booklove #Bookworm #Bibliophile A post shared by Brit Living Down Under (@dannihayne) on Sep 28, 2016 at 12:17am PDT

You will finally get around to reading that book that has been sitting on your shelf all this time.

Maybe you will end up loving that book and even bring it back home. Maybe you will get six pages in and realize it just doesnt speak to you. Either way, now you know, and you have the opportunity to take it off your shelf permanently.

It is socially- and environmentally-conscious.

You are clearing some space in your home without leaving the book out in a box on the sidewalk, where they can get rained/snowed/peed on. And you are helping somebody else get access to literature for free.

It can be used as currency, thus stretching your vacation dollars further.

The book exchange will give you store credit for the book, and you can pick up something new (to you) and heavily discounted. Airport newsstands just dont do that.

hoi an book exchange

You can discover a new author who has a following in a nation that is not your own.

Or pick up a favorite in a language you want to learn or practice. Book exchanges often have sections for different languages, reflecting the variety of visitors they have.

Story continues

The new book can double as a souvenir of your trip.

The book often has the unique stamp from the book exchange on it somewhere.

You get a unique experience in the exchange.

Not all book exchanges are at stores or libraries. You may find it after crossing a bridge onto a little island, as I did in Hoi An, Vietnam. It could be in a common room of the hostel/hotel where you are staying, with a table for travelers to leave and/or take a book. You might find books in a repurposed phone booth run by local villagers, as the residents of Kington Magna near Dorset, England decided to do. The book exchange could be absolutely anywhere at all.

It is the opportunity to disconnect and live like its 1993 again, for at least a little while.

I just returned from two weeks in Vietnam, where I spent a total of 10 minutes on the Internet, to send emails to my family to let them know I am safe and which city I was in. My cell phone was on for emergencies only.

Reading a hard copy book instead of a digital download helped me refrain from using technology. It was also enormously entertaining, and I had plenty of battery life leftover when the power was out at my homestay in Hoi An for 24 hours.

my last empress

In 2010, I got East of the Sun by Julia Gregson from the Spitting Llama Book Exchange in La Paz, Bolivia (I also got a collection of stories that appeared in Seventeen magazine, published in 1951). Julia Gregson was a new author for me, and I loved the book. I always meant to read it again, so I took it to Vietnam to finally reread it. It is enormously satisfying to know that this book has been in at least three nations, and had already gone on a journey before I ever met it in Bolivia.

I also took my copy of My Last Empress by Da Chen to Vietnam, which I rescued from a freebie pile outside a publishing house in New York. I read it on the way to the Mekong Delta and traded it in Hoi An for Going Gently by David Nobbs, a new-to-me author whose writing I enjoyed greatly.

Here is a list of a few book exchanges around the world to get you started on your next journey.

I recommend checking the website for when book buying hours are, as some are part of a larger retail shop:

1. New York City

The Strand

A post shared by Strand Book Store, NYC (@strandbookstore) on Feb 25, 2017 at 2:35pm PST

Book Culture

A post shared by Book Culture on Columbus (@bookculturecolumbus) on Mar 2, 2017 at 6:12pm PST

2. Boston

Harvard Book Store

A post shared by Harvard Book Store (@harvardbookstore) on Mar 1, 2017 at 7:43pm PST

3. London

Book Mongers

A post shared by CLJ (@lioncakee) on Feb 24, 2017 at 8:48am PST

4. Hoi An, Vietnam

Randys Book Xchange

A post shared by Brit Living Down Under (@dannihayne) on Sep 28, 2016 at 4:14am PDT

5. La Paz, Bolivia

Spitting Llama Book Exchange

Happy trails to you and your books!

Saima Huq, MPH is a public health researcher who has lived concurrent lives as a personal trainer, print model, zoo tour guide, and the founder and producer of Always Love Lucy Theatre, which stages classic plays featuring people previously marginalized on stage. She has been to 30 countries, most recently traveling alone across Vietnam. She lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
With numbers from Interior Health showing 20 per cent of illicit drug overdoses occurring in people who identify as First Nations, Secwepmc elders and chiefs in B.C.'s Interior have declared a state of emergency over the fentanyl crisis.

The health authority's numbers include fatal and non fatal overdoses.

The Shuswap Nation Tribal Council (SNTC) chiefs are calling on the First Nations Health Council, RCMP and Interior Health to work with them to battle drug overdoses in their communities.

"I'm actually going to take it up a little further and investigate ... get some letters to the [federal] ministers responsible and get them to do something," said Chief Wayne Christian of the Splatsin Nation near Enderby in B.C.'s Interior.

In a statement, the SNTC says "immediate action needs to be taken to inform citizens on the presence of fentanyl in street drugs, the symptoms and probability of overdoses and the treatment options available."

Christian says Interior Health has done a great job of getting information about fentanyl to the public, but he wants to make sure more people are aware if it.

"I think people need to step up and start educating themselves," he said. "It has a real impact on our people," Christian said.

He says he personally has lost a co-worker to a fentanyl overdose and knew a young man from his community who was living in Vancouver when he died from an overdose.

"You can see that it sort of hits us in many different ways," Christian said.

"[Fentanyl] doesn't discriminate, it impacts everybody."

With files from Daybreak Kamloops
U.S. President Richard Nixon's former White House counsel John W. Dean says he can already hear "echoes of Watergate," barely two months into Donald Trump's presidency.

"I've heard echoes of Watergate in these first months  of the Trump presidency and I see it in the personalities of the two men," said Dean in an interview with CBC News Network's Power & Politics.

Nixon was "an authoritarian personality. Donald Trump is very out front  you don't have to go behind closed doors to catch his authoritarianism.

"So you have this very similar personality in these two men. They see themselves as strong leaders. They take revenge on their enemies and give no quarter in their negotiations," Dean told host Rosemary Barton.

Dean said he definitely thinks there is some potential for scandal in the alleged ties between the Trump administration and Russia.

"If there was not, the Trump people are not so foolish that they would let it go on so long," Dean told Rosemary Barton. "They're acting like there's something there, which makes more people think there is something there."

Trump's presidency has been dogged by questions over his campaign's contacts with Russian officials and calls for a formal investigation have been mounting. The president's National Security Adviser Michael Flynn was forced to resign in mid-February when secret meetings between him and Sergey Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to the U.S., came to light.

'He's winging it in there'

"One of the things that is most striking  is his remarkable ignorance about the office he holds. I don't think he has a good newspaper knowledge. You can tell by some of the comments he makes, he doesn't understand the process. I don't think he's ever read a biography or autobiography of any of his predecessors. So, he's winging it in there," said Dean

Story continues

"He's had beliefs on all sides of all issues down here, so we don't really know what he believes. In fact, I think he's pretty much an empty vessel that a number of his Conservative admirers and supporters are filling up for him," added Dean.

Dean served as White House counsel to President Richard Nixon from July 1970 to April 1973, playing a key role in exposing the Watergate scandal and testifying against his former boss in Senate hearings in 1973.

"How's it all going to end? I can't believe it's going to end well, given the way it's started," Dean told Barton.
By Alastair Sharp TORONTO (Reuters) - Three families who helped shelter former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden in Hong Kong in 2013 after his mass leak of information about surveillance programs have asked Canada for asylum, their lawyer said on Friday. The families - three Sri Lankan adults, a Filipina, and three stateless children - have had long-pending asylum claims in Hong Kong that they fear may soon be rejected, lawyer Marc-Andre Seguin said in a phone interview from Hong Kong. Seguin said the families had been thrust into the spotlight after the September release of the Oliver Stone film "Snowden" which referred to their role in Snowden's flight from the United States in 2013 and, eventually, to Russia. Seguin said the families and Hong Kong-based lawyer Robert Tibbo, who introduced his clients to Snowden, now face increasingly adverse circumstances in Hong Kong. They said that they have been "actively sought by Sri Lankan operatives" in recent months and fear for their safety in Hong Kong, Seguin said. Reuters could not independently verify their stories. A spokeswoman for Canada's immigration minister said his office does not comment on current or possible cases and could not confirm or deny having received the applications. Hong Kong authorities have yet to confirm that they are investigating claims Sri Lankan operatives were working in the territory, but a Security Bureau spokesman said it was illegal for foreign agencies to carry out law enforcement action within Hong Kong. "Everyone in Hong Kong is protected by Hong Kong laws regardless of his or her identity and background," the bureau spokesman said. Snowden's leaks of classified information about government surveillance programs caused an international furor over the reach of U.S. spy operations. His defenders see him as a whistleblower who exposed the extent of government snooping on citizens. He has been allowed to remain in Russia for another three years and will next year qualify to apply for Russian citizenship, his Russian lawyer was quoted as saying in January. (Additional reporting by Andrea Hopkins and Greg Torode; Editing by Frances Kerry and Sam Holmes)
FRIDAY, March 10, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- People who are depressed due to chronic sinus infections are less productive, according to a new study.

They're more likely to miss work or school than those with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) who aren't depressed, researchers found. Scientists said their findings could lead to targeted therapy to help improve patients' overall quality of life.

"We found that of all symptoms related to CRS -- sinus, nasal or otherwise -- the severity of depressed mood and depression symptomatology was the predominant factor associated with how often our CRS patients missed work or school due to their CRS," said senior author Dr. Ahmad Sedaghat. He is a sinus surgeon at Massachusetts Eye and Ear and assistant professor of otolaryngology at Harvard Medical School.

CRS is a common illness that interferes with breathing and sleeping. The study authors identified three other issues that lower the quality of life for people with CRS: nasal blockages, ear and facial pain, and emotional function.

The researchers asked 107 people with CRS to complete surveys about their symptoms and their attendance at school and on the job.

On average, the participants said they missed three days of work or school over three months, or 12 in one year. Emotional issues -- particularly depression symptoms -- were the main reason for missed days, the study found.

The researchers said they were surprised to find that poor sleep and nasal congestion did not lead to missed days.

"These findings really point to the fact that specific elements [in this case, symptoms] of CRS may be driving specific disease manifestations or consequences of the disease," Sedaghat said in a hospital news release.

He said the findings "open the door to exploring interventions directed at depressed mood for reducing productivity losses due to CRS."

The study was published online March 10 in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides more information on chronic sinusitis.
Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: We have Rajdeep Sardesai leading a panel of experts to break down the news for you.

By India Today Web Desk: The battle for the 403-seats in Uttar Pradesh is getting intense every minute, and the noise around the elections is getting shriller.

While pollsters are predicting a clean sweep for the BJP in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance and Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party are claiming that victory will be theirs this time around in the UP elections.

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WATCH THE LIVE TV COVERAGE

Yet some others are predicting a hung Assembly in Uttar Pradesh. To sift news from the mad clutter, we have some of the best minds and experts on Uttar Pradesh breaking it down for you.

During the course of the entire seven-phase Assembly, we have trailed the big names, the not-so-big names and most importantly the voters. From Narendra Modi's roadshows in Uttar Pradesh to Rahul Gandhi-Akhilesh Yadav's newfound bonhomie and Mayawati's outreach to Muslim-Dalit voters, our ground reports on UP have provided a 360-degree view of the Uttar Pradesh election

On D-Day, we have Rajdeep Sardesai leading a panel of experts to provide you insights on what to make of this election and how it is going to affect you and the country.

Be it minute-by-minute coverage, ground reports or in-depth analysis, India Today will keep you updated on every bit of action in Uttar Pradesh. Follow the India Today Live TV to stay ahead of the curve.

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Tampa, Fla. (Mar. 10, 2017) - When universities engage in technology transfer, the process of commercializing the innovations and inventions of academic faculty members, "seed capital" to fund start-up companies often comes from entrepreneurs and venture capitalists from outside of the university system. These necessary funds have far-reaching effects and benefits; however, additional benefits, both for the community and the institution, can be realized when the seed capital comes from the innovation and invention-founding academic institutions. "University Seed Capital Programs: Benefits Beyond the Loan," a paper outlining these benefits, has been published in the current issue of Technology and Innovation, Journal of the National Academy of Inventors (full text).

Benefits to be derived from university-based funding for start-up companies include "expanded funding opportunities, hiring and retention of top entrepreneurial faculty, goal setting, entrepreneur development, economic development, and university engagement," said paper lead author Donna L. Herber, University of South Florida (USF) Research and Innovation.

University-based startups are at greater risk for failure than other start-up ventures because their products and technologies are typically in earlier stages of development than those not university-based, the authors write. The level of risk can be offset with funding originating from the university by utilizing the university foundation and office of research and technology transfer. Because the university is part of the community, the effects of this bridge funding extend beyond the campus and into the community, said the authors.

"Getting that first dollar is a huge challenge," explained Herber. "Seed loans--along with founder money and sweat equity--can provide those crucial first dollars....Where no matching [funds] programs exist, the university program can be used as a catalyst to bring partners to the table with matching money."

University seed cap programs can also be useful in developing entrepreneurship among faculty members and students and helping the start-up founder remove his or her 'academic cap' and take on the mantle of the business person, wrote the authors.

Included in the paper are several case studies that demonstrate the benefits of university seed funding for start-ups that blossomed with the help of university offices of technology transfer.

Case studies

The USF Research Foundation's Seed Capital Accelerator Program for companies affiliated with the Tampa Bay Technology Incubator (TBTI) supports and provides funding for existing start-ups that formed based on licensing USF technologies. To help better the odds toward successful commercialization, the program provides up to $50,000 for these start-ups.

"The objective," said Herber, "is to help companies reach specific goals in one year or less, allowing start-ups to reach critical development milestones and get to market more quickly. TBTI and USF Patents & Licensing provide support and training along the way."

Among the startups in Florida that received the $50,000 funding were ClearSpec LLC, founded in 2011 to develop a medical device; Moterum Inc., founded in 2014 to commercialize a walking assistive device for stroke patients; and Scientific League LLC, founded in 2011 to create STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) educational materials for K-12 students.

The paper also outlines similar success stories coming out of Purdue University, the University of Texas, the University of Chicago, Georgia Institute of Technology, and Washington State University.

Measuring the success of university funding programs

"How do we measure the success of university funding programs?" is a question the authors also tackled, a question that is complicated by the variety of ways in which success can be measured.

Direct measurements of success can include loan repayment or equity payout rates, which demonstrate positive return on investment. Indirect measurements may include numbers of license agreements executed, companies formed, jobs created, sponsored research generated, and products launched. "There are direct and indirect measures of success," wrote the authors. "Ultimately, success depends on the goals of the program."

"Programs based at the university are uniquely poised to bridge the gap between academic research and commercialization, as they are housed at the very institution that spawned the technology," concluded the authors. As co-author Paul Sanberg, senior vice president for research, innovation, and economic development at USF, notes, "In essence, there is a sense of ownership that strives for, and drives toward, a company's success. The company's success is then the university's success."

###

Co-authors on the paper include: Joelle Mendez-Hinds and Paul Sanberg, USF Research & Innovation; Jack Miner, Office of Technology Transfer, University of Michigan; Marc C. Sedam, The Office of Research, University of New Hampshire; and Kevin Wozniak, Office of Industry Engagement, Georgia Tech Research Corporation.

The National Academy of Inventors is a 501(c)(3) non-profit member organization comprising U.S. and international universities, and governmental and non-profit research institutes, with over 3,000 individual inventor members and Fellows spanning more than 200 institutions, and growing rapidly. It was founded in 2010 to recognize and encourage inventors with patents issued from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, enhance the visibility of academic technology and innovation, encourage the disclosure of intellectual property, educate and mentor innovative students, and translate the inventions of its members to benefit society. The NAI offices are located in the USF Research Park in Tampa. The NAI publishes the multidisciplinary journal, Technology and Innovation. http://www.academyofinventors.org
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After reaching new heights in 2007, Mawayati and her BSP find themselves on the margins in Uttar Pradesh politics only ten years later. The BSP's vote-share may not have been impacted drastically, but as political force, Mayawati is on a slide.

By Prabhash K Dutta: Uttar Pradesh election results have not brought good news for the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). BSP chief Mayawati can boast to have been the first Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, who completed her full tenure.

When Mayawati's BSP went into Uttar Pradesh Assembly election in 2012, its claim to have provided a riot-free five years in the state was lauded even by her detractors.

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This was appreciated over the next five years during the Akhilesh Yadav's tenure, when Uttar Pradesh witnessed tens of the incidents of communal clashes across the state.

READ| UP Election Results 2017: BJP eyes two-third majority; SP-Congress, BSP decimated

But, the Uttar Pradesh election results 2017 indicate that there are serious problems with the BSP and its leader Mayawati as she seems to have failed to establish a connect with the voters of the state.

EROSION IN CASTE BASE

The BSP has always staked claim on the Dalits of Uttar Pradesh. Dalits constitute over 21 per cent of the population of Uttar Pradesh.

Jatavs have formed the core support base for the BSP. Mayawati belongs to this caste. Jatavs comprise about 56.3 per cent of total Dalit population of Uttar Pradesh.

The other Dalit subcastes like Pasis, who constitute about 16 per cent of Dalit population, Dhobis, Balmikis, Dhanuks and Khatiks have been traditional supporters of the BSP.

In 2012, Mayawati's social engineering with Brahmin-Dalit-Muslims won majority for the BSP. But, since then the formula has not worked for the BSP.

The general elections in 2014 showed that Modi wave wiped out support base for Mayawati. The BSP got about 20 per cent votes in the parliamentary elections but the vote share did not translate into even a single seat.

MODE OF ELECTION CAMPAIGN

Since the Lok Sabha polls, electioneering has undergone a sea change in the country. Huge rallies, use of technology and pompous canvassing are the norms of election campaign.

Mayawati has stuck to the old style of election rallies. She still comes to the election rallies and reads out a speech. All other parties and leaders have become interactive in their election speeches by asking questions, seeking loud responses and throwing catchy jibes at the opponents.

Mayawati has failed to establish a lively connect with the voters- a large chunk of those are young below 35 years of age.

'CASH FOR TICKET' IMAGE

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On numerous occasions in the past, Mayawati has been accused by her own party leaders of demanding cash for giving party tickets to prospective candidates.

After the BSP drew a naught in the Lok Sabha elections, three senior leaders Jugal Kishore, Swamy Prasad Maurya and RK Chaudhary leveled serious allegations against Mayawati saying that she demanded money from candidates.

A little later, her trusted aid Swami Prasad Maurya was quoted in media reports as saying that Mayawati had devised a general formula for giving tickets. The most backward caste candidates would be asked to pay Rs 2 crore to Rs 2.5 crore for securing party ticket.

The image of taking bribe for fielding party candidate has eroded Mayawati's credibility as a leader of Dalit, suppressed class in Uttar Pradesh.

DEMONETISATION

Demonetisation was another factor that is said to have damaged Mayawati's poll prospects in Uttar Pradesh elections.

The BSP is accused to have accumulated huge amount of unaccounted cash by means of donations lacking transparency. After demonetisation of old currency notes, the BSP was left with little resources to fund its campaign.

When Mayawati raised her pitch against demonetisation, many took it as confirmation of the allegations leveled by her opponents about her party keeping unaccounted money.

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ALSO WATCH: Assembly Election Results 2017 Live

RELUCTANCE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Narendra Modi's rise as a leader with national appeal is credited to his clever use of social media. The Lok Sabha elections of 2014 saw social media transforming as potent medium of election campaign.

Mayawati has largely avoided social media believing that her core voters don't have access to social media tools. But, in an India, where there are more mobile phones than toilets, her assumption seems to be misplaced.

Earlier, her absence from social media was considered a strength for Mayawati as her appeal was believed to be an emphatic undercurrent. But, the Uttar Pradesh election results confirm that Mayawati's strategy has outlived its electoral utility.

LACKS STAR POWER

Different parties have tried different tricks to cash in on their star power. Before rise of Akhilesh Yadav, Samajwadi Party used to rope in bollywood stars for their election rallies.

During the last five years, Akhilesh Yadav tried to build a brand for himself. For Samajwadi supporters, Akhilesh Yadav is a star. But, that cannot be said about Mayawati, who is thought to be lacking star power.

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The BJP has Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who galvanises supporters and cadres alike with his election speeches. Even the Congress has used Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as its trump card.

The BSP clearly lacks in star power. Combine this with the allegations of corruption, the BSP lags further behind in electoral race.

RIVAL'S STRATEGY

While Mayawati has not given out signs of reaching out to all communities and classes of voters, her rivals in the SP and the BJP have called for support of all.

Despite raking up the issue like Kabristan and Shamshaan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always sought votes on the plank of development. He gave slogans like Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas.

Akhilesh Yadav of Samajwadi Party also sought support from all the communities and castes accusing the BJP of playing communal card.

But, Mayawati kept harping on the old tunes of Dalit politics. Many Dalit youths, attending her rallies, said that if their elders supported Mayawati in the past, it did not mean that they would blindly follow.

The Dalit youths want better jobs. They are aspiring. Modi cashed in on their aspiration with the promise of providing jobs and giving better opportunities for entrepreneurship at small scale. Mayawati seems to have simply failed on this count.

This reflected in voting pattern in Uttar Pradesh. Before 2014, about 53 per cent of non-Jatav Dalits voted for the BSP. But, in the Lok Sabha elections 45 per cent non-Jatavs voted for Modi.

Uttar Pradesh Assembly election results seem to be a repeat of 2014 general elections.Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal

|Assembly Election Results 2017 Full Coverage

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If these elections were a referendum on the Narendra Modi government over the demonetisation initiative, the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre has won it.

By Kumar Shakti Shekhar: As BJP wins Uttar Pradesh Election 2017 by a three-fourths majority, it is time to do a reality check of demonetisation -- one of the most popular initiatives of Prime Minister Narendra Modi so far. UP is the most populous state in the country with largely rural background. The impact of demonetisation is supposed to have adversely affected UP the most. The other four states -- Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab -- which went to polls in February and March also felt the impact of note ban.

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If these elections were a referendum on the Narendra Modi government over the demonetisation initiative, the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre has won it.

The demonetisation initiative would have been listed as one of the most important reasons behind BJP's failure, had the party fared poorly in the just-concluded Assembly elections, particularly in Uttar Pradesh.

When PM Modi had announced the demonetisation initiative at 8 pm on November 8, it was viewed with skepticism by the Opposition, particularly West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati. Calling it a scam, they demanded its roll back. They also sought to whip up passions against the notes ban with Mamata and Kejriwal going to the extent of saying that it could lead to revolt.

Kejriwal went to the extreme step of demanding "Change PM, not notes". The Delhi CM's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) even quipped that if those standing in queues were allowed to also exercise their franchise, they will vote against the BJP governments at the Centre and in the states.

However, the situation on the ground was totally different. Instead of feeling angry, the people, even though they faced inconvenience, seem to have supported Narendra Modi over demonetisation. The PM took a major risk by launching note ban just a few months before the UP elections, results of which were announced today.

A number of elections have taken place since the demonetisation drive was launched. And the BJP either won or grew in strength in all of them. This has given a fair idea of the way the crucial Assembly elections in five states would go. What more proof one wanted to know the manner in which demonetisation would have impacted the Assembly elections?

MAHARASHTRA URBAN MUNICIPAL POLLS

BJP registered a historic win in Maharashtra municipal elections held in February. It won eight of the ten municipal corporations that went to polls. In Brihanmumbai Mumbai Corporation (BMC), the richest and most prestigious corporation in the country, BJP improved its tally from 31 last time to 82 this year in a corporation of 227 seats. It was short of Shiv Sena by just two seats.

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ODISHA PANCHAYAT POLLS

In the panchayat elections held in February in Odisha, BJP made unprecedented gains. Of the total 853 seats, BJP bagged 306 seats - an increase of 8.5 times as compared with its tally of just 36 seats in 2012. It added 270 seats to its previous tally. On the other hand, ruling BJD won 460 seats as against its victory on 651 seats in 2012, losing 191. Congress bagged just 66 seats against the 126 in the previous elections, losing 60.

CHANDIGARH MUNICIPAL POLLS

In the elections held on 26 seats for the Union Territory, BJP won 20 while its alliance partner Akali Dal was victorious on just one seat. The BJP-Akali Dal combine was in power in Punjab for almost ten years. Though SAD-BJP combine lost the Assembly elections, double anti-incumbency and other issues are to blame rather than demonetisation.

MAHARASHTRA RURAL CIVIC POLLS

BJP's performance in the president council elections held on November 27, just 19 days after PM Narendra Modi had announced the demonetisation initiative, was impressive. BJP emerged as the single largest party. It won more number of posts than it did the last time. Its tally rose from 25 corporator seats in the previous election to 119 now. Congress, which had won 150 corporator seats last time, managed to take a lead on 126 seats, thus ceding ground to rival BJP.

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GUJARAT MUNICIPAL POLLS

BJP captured two municipalities and one taluka panchayat in local bodies elections, the results of which were declared on November 29. BJP also maintained its lead on 23 out of 31 other seats of various municipalities, taluka and district panchayats, where by-polls were held.

RAJASTHAN PANCHAYAT POLLS

Out of the 37 seats on which local bodies by-elections were held in Rajasthan on November 29, ruling BJP won 19 seats while Congress was victorious on 14 seats. In fact, the two parties gained one seat each in the by-polls held for Panchayat and municipal seats in the state.

LOK SABHA AND ASSEMBLY BYPOLLS

By-elections to four Lok Sabha and eight Assembly constituencies in six states and one Union Territory were held on November 19, 11 days after PM Narendra Modi announced the demonetisation move. In the results which were announced on November 22, BJP and Trinamool Congress won two Lok Sabha seats each. In the Assembly by-polls, BJP and AIADMK won three seats each, CPI(M) got two while Congress and Trinamool bagged one seat each.

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Also read:

Uttar Pradesh Election Results: Narendra Modi leads BJP's landslide win after 14 years

Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Modi tsunami rocks Akhilesh-Rahul boat, BJP gets close to 325 mark

WATCH THE VIDEO:

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On 3-5 October 2017 Kyiv is going to host the Space and Future Forum to network international experts and youth, many of whom will also participate at the first CosmoHack in the world. Joinfo provides media coverage of the Forum, and some of its topics were already discussed ...
According to India Today Axis-My India exit poll, the BJP is expected to win 251 to 279 seats while the ruling Samajwadi Party, which fought the election in alliance with the Congress may come a distant second winning 88-112 seats in the 403-seat Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

By India Today Web Desk: Bharatiya Janata Party's Uttar Pradesh unit chief Keshav Prasad Maurya has expressed confidence of his party's win in Uttar Pradesh. Maurya said that the BJP will be winning two-third majority in the crucial state.

"We will win two-third majority in Uttar Pradesh. Both the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party will be wiped out," said Maurya who is said to be the frontrunner for CM's post if BJP wins.

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ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS 2017: FULL COVERAGE

According to India Today Axis-My India exit poll, the BJP is expected to win 251 to 279 seats while the ruling Samajwadi Party, which fought the election in alliance with the Congress may come a distant second winning 88-112 seats in the 403-seat Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

MAURYA FRONTRUNNER FOR CM POST

The state party unit chief, who represents Phulpur in the Lok Sabha, is said to be one of the top contenders for the CM post.

The 47-year-old leader was not seen much in the public sharing stage with 'star campaigners' PM Narendra Modi or Home Minister Rajnath Singh. Sources say Maurya worked tirelessly to galvanise support for the BJP on the ground.

There are several factors which may work in favour of Maurya. With him the BJP may want to consolidate more support from the non-Yadav OBCs which the party has been missing since Kalyan Singh was sidelined.

However, ruling a huge state like Uttar Pradesh could prove to be a daunting task for Maurya, who lacks administrative experience.

WATCH: Keshav Prasad Maurya exclusive interview with India Today

ALSO READ:

UP Assembly election 2017: Exit polls predict massive BJP win. Who could be the chief minister?

UP election results 2017: Move over exit polls, Artificial Intelligence gives Modi's BJP 220 seats

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This week Mozilla released a version of the Firefox web browser with support for WebAssembly. Now Google has released a stable version of its Chrome browser that also supports the new web standard.

WebAssembly is a set of tools that lets developers create web apps that run at near-native speeds. That means they can create 3D games and other applications that run almost as well in a web browser as they would if you downloaded and installed an app on your computer.

There arent a lot of web apps that actually use the technology yet, but if youre using the latest version of Chrome or Firefox you can check out a Tanks Demo game or a first person shooter called Cube 2.

Google released a beta version of the Chrome browser with WebAssembly support earlier this year. But now that the standard is finalized, Google has released Chrome 57 stable with the WebAssembly API enabled by default.

Other changes in Chrome 57 include CSS Grid Layout and a number of improvements to Chrome for Android, including the ability to add progressive web apps to your home screen and app drawer so they look like native apps, and a new Media Session API that lets you view and interact with media information on your lock screen and notification tray when watching a web video.
The 21st session of the Algeria-Tunisia High Joint Commission ended in Tunis with the signing of eight agreements and Memoranda of Understanding in diverse areas, covering, among others, security, social and cultural cooperation.

The session was co-chaired by Prime Minister Yousef Chahed of Tunisia and his Algerian counterpart Abdelmalek Sellal. One of the major highlights of this edition was the exchange of instruments of the ratification of Algeria-Tunisia offshore boundary delimitation.

Improving trade relations between the two countries is currently under consideration according to Chahed as he hinted that they held consultations on the reactivation of the preferential trade agreement leading to a free trade zone between the two countries.

Prime Minister Sellal hailed the signing of the security cooperation as a boost to ensuring stronger collaboration between their security forces considering the effects that the Libyan crisis can have on the two countries. He reiterated Algerias stance for a peaceful solution to the turmoil while stressing that the UN must assume its responsibilities in the implementation of the decision taken by the Security Council to safeguard the unity, sovereignty and stability of Libya far from any foreign interference.

Observers opined that security concerns helped reaching the security cooperation accord as fears increase that the Libyan crisis could empower extremist groups in the region, endangering the security and stability of neighboring countries. Both Tunisia and Algeria have repelled attacks by extremist groups that tried to have foothold in their territories.
After Saudi Arabia rejected, through the voice of its ambassador to Beijing, Chinas proposal to mediate between Riyadh and Tehran in overcoming their differences, Iran welcomed the goodwill gesture from China.

A statement issued by the Iranian Embassy in China underlined that Tehran welcomes all constructive efforts, like the most recent proposal made by Kuwaits Emir to establish dialogue in the region, and for the same reason, welcomes the constructive role played by China in the region.

Saudi Arabia and Iran have been at odds over several issues in the past couple of years that have transpired in other countries in the region. Analysts say the two countries are engaged in a regional proxy war for dominance in the sub-region.

Diplomatic ties between the two countries were paralyzed at the beginning of last year when protesters against the execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent Shia cleric in Saudi Arabia, breached the walls of Riyadhs embassy in Tehran. Saudi Arabia reacted by severing diplomatic ties.

The statement issued by the Iranian embassy in china acknowledged that there is discord with Saudi Arabia due to basic disagreements over approaches, actions, and stated and practiced policies.

It went on to accuse Riyadh of destabilizing the region and the world through sectarian policies, fueling ethnic and religious discrepancies, and offering material and non-material support to terrorists and Takfirists.

Saudi Arabia has also leveled similar allegations against Tehran.

Both countries are being held responsible for playing a part in the armed conflict in the Middle East especially in Syria and Yemen. Efforts to warm up relations between the two countries widened due to their military activities, which are often considered as provocative acts against each other.
Since 2009, U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents have been allowed to search electronic devices carried by citizens or noncitizens as they cross the border into the United States from other countries.

More recently, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly suggested this digital vetting should also include harvesting social media passwords. Kellys proposal prompted legal and technology experts to respond with an open letter expressing deep concern about any policy that demands that individuals violate the first rule of online security: Do not share your passwords.

Travelers themselves responded, too, looking for ways to avoid surrendering their device passwords to federal agents.

One approach  what we might call the Nothing To See Here method  tries to make a device unsearchable by erasing the hard drive before travel, uninstalling social media apps, letting the devices battery charge run out or even wiping the device if an emergency or duress password was entered.

The Id Love To Comply, But I Cant approach involves exotic solutions like installing two-factor authentication on the device or social media account, and then making the second factor (such as a passcode or digital key) available only in a remote location.

Retrieving the second factor would require a warrant and travel outside the border crossing.

These methods are dangerous because they put an already stressed traveler in the position of defying law enforcement at the border, a legal environment that is designed to support the government and not the traveler.

Following this advice properly also requires careful execution of technical skills that most travelers dont have. And the degree of advance planning and preparation required might itself be considered a sign of suspicious activity requiring deeper scrutiny by border officials.

But its tempting to wonder: Could computer scientists and software designers like me create a better password system?

Can we make Id Love To Comply, But I Cant the only possible answer for every traveler? In short, can we create passwords even their owners dont know?

The search for the unknowable password

Developing unknowable passwords is an active area of security research.

In 2012, a team from Stanford University, Northwestern University and the SRI research center developed a scheme for using a computer game similar to Guitar Hero to train the subconscious brain to learn a series of keystrokes.

When a musician memorizes how to play a piece of music, she doesnt need to think about each note or sequence.

It becomes an ingrained, trained reaction usable as a password but nearly impossible even for the musician to spell out note by note, or for the user to disclose letter by letter.

In addition, the system is designed so that even if the password is discovered, the attacker is unable to enter the keystrokes with the same fluidity as the trained user.

The combination of keystrokes and ease of performance uniquely ties the password to the user, while freeing the user from having to remember anything consciously.

Unfortunately, in our border travel scenario, the agent could demand that the traveler unlock the device or application using the subconscious password.

A team at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, proposed a different solution in 2016. Their solution, called Chill-Pass, measures an individuals unique brain chemistry response while listening to her choice of relaxing music.

This biometric reaction becomes part of the users log-in process. If a user is under duress, she will be unable to relax enough to match her previously measured chill state, and the login will fail.

It is unclear whether CBP agents would be able to defeat a system like Chill-Pass by providing travelers with, say, massage chairs and spa treatments. Even so, the stresses of daily life would make it impractical to use this kind of password regularly.

A relaxation-based system would be most useful for people undertaking high-stakes missions where they fear coercion.

And just like with other plans to make CBP scrutiny impossible, this might end up attracting more attention to a traveler, rather than encouraging officers to give up and move on to the next person.

Can you score security?

In 2015, Google announced Project Abacus, another solution to the Id Love To Comply, But I Cant problem. It replaces the traditional password with a Trust Score, a proprietary cocktail of characteristics that Google has determined can identify you.

The score includes biometric factors like your typing patterns, walking speed, voice patterns and facial expressions. And it can include your location and other unspecified elements.

The Trust Score calculator constantly runs in the background of a smartphone or other device, updating itself with new information and recalculating the score throughout the day.

If the Trust Score falls below a certain threshold, say by observing a strange typing pattern or an unfamiliar location, the system will require the user to enter additional authentication credentials.

Its unclear how a Trust Score authentication might affect a border search. A CBP agent could still demand that a traveler unlock the device and its apps.

But if the agency couldnt disable the Trust Score system, the phones owner would have to be allowed to hold the device and use it throughout the agents inspection. If someone else tried to use it, the constantly recalculated Trust Score could fall, locking out an investigator.

That process would at least ensure a phones owner knew what information federal agents were collecting from the phone. That hasnt been possible for some arriving travelers, including U.S. citizens and even government employees.

But the Trust Score system puts a lot of control in the hands of Google, a for-profit corporation that could decide  or could be compelled  to provide government with a way around it.

So now what?

None of these technological solutions to the password problem is perfect, and none of them is commercially available today. Until research, industry and innovation come up with better ones, whats a digital age traveler to do?

First, do not lie to a federal agent. Thats a felony and will definitely attract more unwanted attention from investigators.

Next, determine how much inconvenience you are willing to tolerate in order to remain silent or to refuse to comply. Noncompliance will have a cost: Your devices could be seized and your travel could be seriously disrupted.

Either way, if and when you are asked for your social media handles or passwords, or to unlock your devices, pay attention and remember as many details as you can. Then, if you wish, alert a digital civil liberties group that this happened.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a web page with instructions for how to report a device search at the border.

If you think that sensitive materials might have been compromised in the search, notify family, friends and colleagues who might be affected. And  until we figure out a better way  change your passwords.

Megan Squire, Professor of Computing Sciences, Elon University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Now read: WikiLeaks to share CIA hacking tools with tech firms
Google South Africa has revealed the top trending searches for the week, which include How to lose weight fast, How to make meatballs, and How to create an app.

Trending searches on Google SA this past week included Manchester United with 20,000+ searches on Thursday, as well as Robert Mugabe, and FC Barcelona with 10,000+ searches each.

International Women S Day (sic) trended on Wednesday with 200,000+ searches, as did Barcelona with 50,000+ searches.

Arsenal trended Tuesday with 50,000+ searches, as did Orlando Pirates with 10,000+. On Monday, WWE Fastlane and Bathabile Dlamini were trending with 10,000+ searches each.

Google processes more than 40,000 search queries worldwide every second. This translates to more than a billion searches per day.

The top trending questions on Google South Africa this past week were:

How to lose weight fast How to make meatballs How to create an app How to delete a Facebook account What is learnership? What is public relations? How many days are there in a year? What is the weather today? What is meningitis? What is marriage?

This article first appeared on MyBroadband and is republished with permission.

Now read: Google unveils new Hangouts
More than 470,000 people are still without power across Michigan after the windstorm, RIA Novosti reported quoting Associated Press.

As Michigan Governor Rick Snyder noted, at one point close to a third of the state's land area had no access to electricity after high winds knocked out power this week to more than a million utility customers.

According to him, about 472,000 customers are still without power after Wednesday's storm. It is expected that the problem will be resolved by Sunday.

Snyder called the storm "unprecedented in terms of the number of power lines, poles broken."

Dozens of warming centers are open across Michigan. Temperatures were around 30 degrees Friday morning in the Detroit area and expected to remain cold throughout the weekend.
STEPANAKERT.  The adversary violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between the Karabakh and Azerbaijani opposing forces 30 times, from late Friday night to early Saturday morning.

During this time the Azerbaijani armed forces fired 100 shots toward the Armenian position-holders, and with different-caliber shooting weapons, the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic/NKR) Defense Army informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

In particular, the adversary fired 3 grenades from an anti-tank rocket-propelled grenade launcher, in the eastern direction, and one mortar shell, in the northern direction of the line of contact.

But the Artsakh defense army vanguard units mostly refrained from taking actions in response, and they continued to reliably maintain their military positions.
Azerbaijan has drawn an appropriate conclusion from the statement by French President Francois Hollande.

After his meeting with President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, Hollande proposed to develop a mechanism that will enable to carry out monitoring and prevention. Sanctions are also possible in case of actions against peace, wrote Haqqin.az news agency of Azerbaijan, and concluded: Given that the Armenian media are disseminating this statement, also the fact that it is Yerevan which insists that a mechanism be introduced for the investigations of ceasefire violations, there is little doubt that they mean Azerbaijan, when speaking of sanctions.
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The Congress had pinned its hopes on an alliance with the Samajwadi Party, led by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, only to find that the partnership had not even managed to win 70 of the 403 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh.

By India Today Web Desk: With the Uttar Pradesh Assembly results swinging hugely in favour of the BJP, the grand old party of the country, the Congress, today found itself completely humbled by the verdict handed to it by the electorate.

The Congress had pinned its hopes on an alliance with the Samajwadi Party, led by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, only to find that the partnership had not even managed to win 70 of the 403 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh. The Congress is even on the verge of losing one of the two Gandhi seats, Amethi, to the BJP. The constituency is represented by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi in Parliament.

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Follow the LIVE BLOG on Uttar Pradesh election results

With the loss of the Hindi heartland, the Congress campaign, led by Rahul Gandhi, failed to make much of a dent in the party's fortunes. The BJP is romping home with a clear majority with more than 300 seats under its belt and is all set to form a government in the state after 15 years.

The party leadership said that the defeat would be analysed and steps would be taken to improve its standing in the next election. Yet, the Congress has remained silent on whether the defeat in Uttar Pradesh is a loss of face for the party's central leadership .

"Yes, UP is a bad loss, it hurts. I agree that, in UP, we need fundamental restructuring. These have to be hard, tough decisions about strategy," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.

However, the leadership appears quite upbeat about its victory in Punjab. While Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad attributed the party's defeat in Uttar Pradesh to "public mood", he said that the party's gains in Punjab and Goa should not be ignored. Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal

|Assembly Election Results 2017 Full Coverage

ALSO READ:

UP election results: BJP tampered with EVMs, couldn't have won otherwise in Muslim bastions, says Mayawati

Kaam, KaSaB, Kabristan and Caste: What worked for BJP in Uttar Pradesh

ALSO WATCH

--- ENDS ---
YEREVAN.  By clearly assessing the financial and economic aspects of accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), Armenia had decided that this was economically more expedient than signing an agreement with the European Union (EU).

Defense Minister of Armenia Vigen Sargsyan on Saturday noted the above-said speaking at a session, entitled Time of Change: World in the Era of Global Unpredictability, in capital city Yerevan.

But both then and now, we [i.e. the Armenian authorities] believe that this doesnt obstruct the establishment of deep relations with EU, stressed the minister.

Reflecting on Armenias cooperation with the countries in the region, Sargsyan noted that Armenia enjoys intensive discourse with Iran, which has recurrently offered mediation efforts in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

[But] Turkey shows a position that drastically differs from the position of Iran, noted the minister, and stressed that Turkeys blockade of Armenia is an anachronism.

Such is the position [of Ankara] also in the Karabakh issue, the Armenian minister added. A policy, which is openly called: one nation, two states.

As per Vigen Sargsyan, it is due to such demeanor that Turkey has been isolated in the region, despite its good relations with Georgia and Azerbaijan.
YEREVAN.  Russias cooperation with Azerbaijan is a deterrent, and not a factor that provokes Azerbaijan toward undue actions.

Russian analyst Vitaliy Naumkin on Saturday told the above-said to reporters, within the framework of the Moscow-based international Valdai Discussion Clubs outdoor session, entitled Time of Change: World in the Era of Global Unpredictability, in Armenias capital city of Yerevan.

In his words, Russias arms sale to Azerbaijan is a very sharp question.

I know that this matter sometimes leads to disagreements among our Armenian friends, stressed Naumkin. But lets say it straightforwardly. We live in the post-Soviet expanse, and it is Russias policy to have friendly relations with the countries in the area. And its not that Russia is doing some actions that can cause harm to Armenia; I believe this is ruled out.

There is technico-military cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan; () but this is a deterrent that helps so that this weapon is used neither against Karabakh nor against Armenia.

To the remark that, nonetheless, this weapon is used against Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), he responded as follows: Sadly, we cannot stop all that. (). Today, no one can deny that Russia is a supplier, first of all for the sake of Armenias security. (). Whoever attacks Armenia, Russia will always participate in the defense of Armenia. (). And second, Russia is a provider of energy resources. These two important things, which Russia is doing as Armenias strategic ally, automatically make everything else inessential.
YEREVAN  Russia is the main external player, the power that can resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Political scientist Alexander Rahr, who is Research Director at the German-Russian Forum, on Saturday told the aforementioned to reporters, within the framework of the Moscow-based international Valdai Discussion Clubs outdoor session, entitled Time of Change: World in the Era of Global Unpredictability, in Armenias capital city of Yerevan.

He said it is very sad that the Karabakh conflict still continues and grows, and Europe does not find the strength to have any impact on it.

In my view, today, nonetheless, Moscow is the main player that can resolve the conflict, since Armenia and Azerbaijan were USSR countries for some time, since their interests are similar to each other, said Rahr. In my view, this region is quite far for the US and the EU. Of course, Western countries should do everything to understand this conflict and resolve it somehow. [But,] in my view, we have missed a lot of chances.

He added, however, that more certitude and less [OSCE] Minsk Groups, friends of these or those parties is needed.
YEREVAN. - Parties to the Karabakh conflict now realize that fighting is not a solution.

Research director of the German-Russian Forum, Alexander Rahr, told the aforementioned to journalists at the session of the Valdai International Discussion Club on Saturday.

To the question as to whether the active stage of military actions in the Karabakh conflict zone may resume this year like it did last April, the expert noted: I think after the international community nonetheless interfered with this conflict, both sides came to understand that fighting is not a solution and that common compromises should be sought.
Newly-appointed Ambassador of Armenia to Russia, Vardan Toghanyan, on Saturday handed the copies of his credentials to Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia, Grigory Karasin.

Congratulating Toghanyan on the appointment, Karasin wished him productive work, expressing hope that thanks to the effective work of the Armenian Government the Armenian-Russian relations will continue developing and strengthening, the press-service of the Armenian MFA reports.

During the meeting issues on the current agenda of Russian-Armenian ally relations were discussed. The sides also touched on the upcoming official visit of the Armenian President to Russia.
The co-chair countries [i.e. Russia, the US, and France] of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group (OSCE MG) are confident that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has no military solution.

The OSCE MG Minsk Group US Co-Chair, Ambassador Richard Hoagland, informed the aforementioned at a press conference, according to TASS news agency of Russia. He added that the Karabakh peace talks need to resume at the highest level. Hoagland noted that, now, they are concentrating their efforts on organizing a high-level meeting.

The OSCE MG Minsk Group French Co-Chair, Ambassador Stephane Visconti, for his part, said the US, Russia, and France will continue their joint efforts toward settling the Karabakh conflict. The diplomat noted that even though this certainly is a complicated matteras there is tension at the Line of Contact, the process continues, it has moved off dead center and the parties want to achieve progress, and he noted that he believes this is important.

And the OSCE MG Minsk Group Russian Co-Chair, Ambassador Igor Popov, in turn, urged the parties to the conflict to carry out the arrangements that were made during Armenias and Azerbaijans meetings in the Austrian capital city of Vienna, and in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Minister of Emergency Situations of Armenia Davit Tonoyan, Japanese Ambassador to Armenia Eiji Taguchi, and Governor of Lori province, Artur Nalbandyan, on Saturday honored the memory of the earthquakes which hit Japan and Armenias town of Spitak in 2011 and 1988 respectively. They laid flowers at the cross-stones installed in the central square of Spitak.

Ambassador Taguchi thanked the Armenian Government and people for providing invaluable support to Japan after the earthquake in 2011, noting that the Japanese people are indeed touched by the friendly treatment of Armenia and highly appreciate the installment of the cross-stone.

I thank the Governor of Spitak and the town residents for attending the annual ceremony of paying tribute [to the victims]. Since the Spitak earthquake in 1988, Japan has been cooperating within the framework of disaster prevention events. On this occasion I would like to thank Armenian Ministry of Emergency Situations Davit Tonoyan and his staff for the support and cooperation, the Ambassador said.

Mr Tonoyan, for his part, told journalists: Paying tribute to the memory of the Japanese earthquake victims is another opportunity for us to welcome and stress the efficiency and significance of our cooperation with the Japanese Government. It is highly appreciated and will certainly continue.

Lori governor Artur Nalbandyan noted that having experienced the consequences of Spitak earthquake, Armenia perceived the pain of the Japanese people in a unique way, providing support to them. He also underscored the active cooperation formed between the governments of the two states, which is apparent and tangible also in the provincial and community life.

In March 2011, a powerful earthquake and tsunami hit, claiming about 20,000 lives across the swathes of the countrys eastern coast.
While BJP won about 40 per cent of the votes, its closest contender, the ruling SP and Mayawati-led BSP got about 22 per cent votes each. Congress, which contested in alliance with the SP, bagged only six per cent of the votes.

By Kumar Shakti Shekhar: Riding on 'TsuNamo', Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today won with a three-fourth majority in the country's most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, garnering about 40 per cent of the total votes polled.

Its closest contender, the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP), and Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) have got about 22 per cent votes each. Congress, which fought the UP election in alliance with the Samajwadi Party, bagged only six per cent of the votes.

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On the other hand, BJP polled about 40 per cent of votes. Even though this is two per cent lower than the 42 per cent votes BJP had got in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the party has swept the Uttar Pradesh election.

However, in retrospect, it is clear that Samajwadi Party, BSP and Congress could have together pipped BJP in UP. On March 9, the day exit polls were declared, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav indicated that his party was ready to join hands with BSP. He had exhorted all "secular forces" to come together to keep the "communal" BJP away from power in case there was a hung Assembly.

It goes to the credit of Akhilesh Yadav and election strategist Prashant Kishor for SP and Congress forming an alliance. However, the story today would have been different had BSP too joined the SP-Congress bandwagon. RJD supremo had even floated the idea of BSP joining the two parties but it did not materialise.

SP, BSP and Congress should have learned from the Bihar experiment where the ruling Janata Dal (U), RJD and Congress joined hands to convincingly defeat BJP in the 2015 Assembly election.

As in the case of RJD in Bihar, Yadavs and Muslims are SP's votebanks in UP. It had come back to power in 2012 with their solid backing. While the Yadavs constitute 15 per cent of the state's total votes, Muslims form 18 per cent.

2012 UP ELECTION RESULTS

In the 2012 elections, SP had registered its highest vote share of 29.15 per cent of the total votes polled, winning 224 of the total 403 seats.

SP's traditional rival BSP had polled 25.91 per cent of the total votes cast, winning 80 seats. The Congress, which had fought elections under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, won 28 seats, polling 11.63 per cent of votes.

On the other hand, BJP managed to win just 47 seats, polling only 15 per cent of total votes cast.

Hence, together SP, BSP and Congress could have given BJP a run for its money.

SP's anti-incumbency would have been offset by the presence of BSP. The Muslim votes would not have got split. They would have gone to the grand alliance in Bihar. Brahmins and a large section of Dalits would also have chosen this mahagathbandhan over BJP.

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BIHAR EXPERIMENT

The template had already been cast in Bihar where the Yadavs and Muslims - RJD's votebanks - polled aggressively in favour of the mahagathbandhan. In Bihar, while Yadavs constitute 14 per cent the voters, Muslims are 17 per cent. Kurmis, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's castemen who comprise 4 per cent of the voters, too voted for the grand alliance.

The experiment was successful. The RJD and JD(U), which had fielded 101 candidates each on the total 243 constituencies, won 80 and 71 seats respectively. Congress, which fielded 41 candidates on 41 seats, won 27. Total, they won a whopping 178 of the 243 seats.

While RJD polled 18.4 per cent of the votes cast, JD(U) polled 16.8 and Congress 6.7 per cent.

On the other hand, BJP failed to match the grand alliance's combined strength. It won just 53 of the 157 seats it contested. Strike rate-wise, its performance was poorest than all the three parties of the mahagathbandhan. However, on individual level, it polled the highest percentage of votes - 24.4 per cent.

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UP SCENARIO

Had SP, BSP, Congress and Ajit Singh-led RLD (winning 2 per cent of votes) come together, they could have garnered 52 per cent of votes - a whopping 12 per cent more than what BJP got. This could have translated into votes, edging out BJP as the winner.

But Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP got the advantage of a divided Opposition house. In the absence of an Opposition unity, Modi was successful in consolidating votes in BJP's favour.

United, the Opposition could have stood, divided they fell.

Also read | Election results: Congress still says there is no question of Rahul Gandhi stepping down

Also read | BJP's tsuNaMo in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand; Congress set to win Punjab: 10 big takeaways

WATCH VIDEO

--- ENDS ---
The agreements, which were reached in Vienna and in Saint Petersburg between the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, need to be implemented.

The Russian co-chair of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group (OSCE MG), Ambassador Igor Popov, stated the aforementioned at a press conference in Azerbaijans capital city of Baku, according to Azeri Press news agency of the country.

The diplomat noted that during their meeting with the president of Azerbaijan, the OSCE MG Co-Chairs discussed the talks toward resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Popov stressed that the present-day situation at the Line of Contact also was conferred on during this meeting.
Time will come when we will all understand that a strong system of security in Europe can be created only jointly with Russia and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

Research director of the German-Russian Forum, Alexander Rahr, told the aforementioned to journalists at the session of the Valdai International Discussion Club on Saturday.

According to him, unfortunately there is an opinion that there is no need to talk to the EAEU, since only Russia dominates there. They think that there is no need to speak with the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) either. This is wrong, Mr Rahr stressed.

In his words, Armenias voice on that there needs to be a tie between the EU and EAEU should sound louder. We all need this in order to build a strong, stable, prosperous space from Lisbon to Vladivostok, Alexander Rahr added.
We assure you that looking into your eyes after 5 years, we will be able to say that we have kept the promises which we are giving to you today.

Armenian Defense Minister Vigen Sargsyan, who tops the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) candidate list, said the aforementioned on Saturday at the meeting with the citizens of Kapan town of Syunik province.

Army is in the center of the RPA attention. We realize that our progress is possible only in the conditions of strong security. Although we have an adversary today, whose activities it is hard to predict, we should have armed forces, which are ready to respond to those challenges, he said.

According to Sargsyan, the RPA is presenting a program, which doesnt promise to solve all the issues on the next day. We dont promise that it will be possible to solve all the social issues in case we get elected. But I would like to assure that the program which we are presenting to you is very realistic and promising, although it seems very ambitious. Our teamthe list of the candidateswith whom we are going to the elections, is the pledge which will bring victory to us.

Referring to the concept nation-army, he said: When we are talking about the nation-army, we mean the heroism, which our people demonstrate in the defense of our country. We will continue so that the service of our guys at the frontline is secure.

The Defense Minister also quoted Armenian military strategist Garegin Nzhdeh, according to whom it is not enough to set bright goals: it is necessary to make a wise choice on the path to those objectives. Sargsyan proposed to make a wise choice and give their vote to experienced RPA team, which stands on strong bases.
The quality of life in provinces shouldnt be inferior to that in the capital.

Justice Minister of Armenia, Arpine Hovhannisyan, who ranks third on the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) candidate list, announced the aforementioned on Saturday at the meeting with voters of Kapan town in Syunik province.

According to her, only a few days ago the public services office opened in HayPost office of Kapan, facilitating the possibility of receiving a number of services. You will no longer have to reach Yerevan, queue, as well as spend time and resources, Hovhannisyan added.

The Minister is confident that Kapan can become one of the most important towns in the IT sphere. Here the Mobile Solutions Center already operates, and in a few months a two-year IT education center will open. This is a very good basis, which will mean both [opening of new] jobs and development of the sphere, he said.

The province has also issues with the quality of healthcare services. In this context, Hovhannisyan said that this year they will implement an evaluation program of the workers of that sphere.

I can continue the list of the programs but I would like to assure that we have clear ideas and succession of steps in each part of that list. It is no coincidence that in Syunik I frequently think that not much is needed to achieve dreams. Let us move forward together towards the country we dream ofprogressive, secure and, of course, just Armenia, Hovhannisyan said.
If we dont create a situation, which rules out resumption of war, the victory of Karabakh is not yet in our hand.

MP of the Armenian National Assembly, Levon Zurabyan, who ranks third on the Congress-PPA [i.e. Peoples Party of Armenia] alliance candidate list, announced the aforementioned at the meeting with Armavir city voters on Saturday.

The April war was in reality a warning to us that the issue is not only not resolved, but also that it makes our security more vulnerable. The fact that the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) has chosen Security and Progress as its motto already implies much, since the RPA had been long trying to convince that the Karabakh issue is not resolved.

They always said that the Karabakh issue is resolved, that the security issue is resolved and that we can develop for another 100 years without the resolution of the confrontation.

This was the key motto. And now it turns out that all these were empty words, a lie and that the 18 years following the resignation of [former Armenian President Levon] Ter-Petrosyan became years of robbery and exploitation, our security not only not improving, but the other way round: we have appeared in a worse situation than we have ever been in, Zurabyan stressed.

In his words, if Armenia cannot create such a situation today to rule out the resumption of war, then the Karabakh victory is not yet in our hand.

Today we ask for your help. Today the rescue of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh is in the settlement of that issue, which has remained unresolved since 1997. The victory on the battlefield in a peace treaty should be finally enshrined. In 1994, we in some sense forced peace on Azerbaijan, but this was in reality a ceasefire based on the will of the conflicting parties. It was a temporary agreement to halt the military actions, since the sides needed time to make repositions and prepare to resume attainment of their goal through force, Zurabyan said.

According to him, this means that what was achieved in 1994 was actually not enshrined anywhere, since Azerbaijan uses all this time to prepare for a new war.
How come the BJP managed to win in Muslim bastions across the state. Did the EVMs not accept votes cast for other parties, Mayawati wondered.

By India Today Web Desk: Expressing shock and disbelief over the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election results, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati today accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of tampering with electronic voting machines (EVMs).

"How come the BJP managed to win in Muslim bastions in the state. The poll results are very surprising", Mayawati said.

Alleging that there was massive rigging of voting machines in the state to favour the BJP, the BSP chief said, "Most votes in Muslim majority constituencies have gone to the BJP. This makes it clear that the voting machines were manipulated."

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Is is that the EVMs did not accept the votes cast for other parties, Mayawati wondered. "Muslims constitute 20 per cent votes in the state and the BJP did not give a single ticket to Muslims. But in Muslim-dominated seats also, the results went in the BJP's favour and this is unpalatable to the BSP," Mayawati said.

BSP COMPLAINS TO POLL PANEL

In a letter to the Election Commission, the BSP said that it had been informed by several people that there had been grave manipulation in voting machines by software and technology experts hired by the BJP. Mayawati claimed that a similar complaint was made by her partymen in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls but she had preferred to stay silent, thinking it was Modi wave and anti-Congress sentiment.

"They were nowhere close to winning at the ground level during elections. The BJP could not have got so many votes without tampering with EVMs", a statement released by the BSP said.

BSP writes to Election Commission, alleging manipulation in voting machines.

Mayawati appealed to the Election Commission to stop counting votes, withhold results and hold fresh polls using traditional paper ballots.

The BSP supremo dared PM Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah to ask the poll panel to hold fresh elections in the state "if they have an iota of morality and honesty left in them".

Issuing an open warning to the BJP, Mayawati said they need not be happy that they got a majority as they have "killed democracy and this is betrayal of democracy".

(WITH INPUTS FROM PTI)

Also read | UP election results 2017: How a divided Opposition crumbled before PM Modi

WATCH VIDEO

--- ENDS ---
Every Armenian citizen is confidentthat the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) will neverat least in the Artsakh issue allow the future of our entire nation, which is currently decided at the Artsakh frontline, to be faulty.

Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the RPA, stated the aforementioned on Saturday at the meeting with voters in the town of Kapan in Armenias Syunik province.

According to him, the RPA has decisive and consistent position on this issue. The RPA has also great experience in governance, both positive and negative. We learn through errors not to appear in the same trap again. The RPA stated that there is a need to change and get changed, Karapetyan said.

The PM also added that significant steps have been taken in this direction: the RPA team was replenished with new and patriotic members, who have sufficient force and enthusiasm for doing good things for our country.
It is planned to make a $55 million investment in Syunik province of Armenia.

Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), stated the aforementioned on Saturday at the meeting with voters in the town of Kapan in Armenias Syunik province

In his words, $830-840 million will be invested in 2017. We already know who will do this and how many jobs will be opened, Karapetyan said.

According to Karapetyan, the RPA has presented an economic program, which clearly diagnoses all the issues and shortcomings, also presenting the vision of progress. The key issue is the efficiency. It is necessary to raise the efficiency of all the spheresstate administration, agriculture, healthcare, etc. The RPA program is built on all this, Karapetyan stressed.

The PM sees three driving forces in Syunik province: mining industry, cattlebreeding and agriculture. Currently, the [province] governor is also holding talks on re-launching the operation of Kapan airport. We are sure that we will do everything that we state, he said.
The circumstance that Syunik neighbors with Iran should be used for the provinces development.

Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), stated the aforementioned on Saturday at the meeting with voters in the town of Kapan in Armenias Syunik province

Currently, the talks on the free trade zone on the border with Iran are held in Meghri. The talks will conclude in the second half of April, when the Armenian delegation visits Iran, the PM said.

Karapetyan also added that together with at least four of his counterparts from Russia, Georgia, Belarus and Kazakhstan he has discussed the possibility of using that platform and making investments. Minister of Economic Development and Investments of Armenia has recently signed a treaty also on introducing the Halal institute of Iranian qualification in Armenia. Our manufacturers can henceforth be issued relevant certificates in Armenia, he noted.

However, Karapetyan is dissatisfied with the volumes of commodity turnover with the neighboring country, which has a multi million population. It is very lowAMD 50-70 million without energy. But it is possible to bring this number to one billion, and this is not a pompous announcement, he said.
The main thesis of our government will be to end up in a situation, where lots of people in our republic wont know who the prime minister is.

Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), stated the aforementioned on Saturday at the meeting with voters in the town of Kapan in Armenias Syunik province.

In his words, if a man lives well, he wont look for a guilty one. We will turn the world upside down by smart governance. The sphere of information technologies will have a great role here. I had various meetings with the businessmen of the sphere. IT is the sector from which I need great help and support, and from which I have expectations. We have no other formula than being smart and educated. Not only we should change, but all of us should change.

Karapetyan also noted that the RPA comes up before the public with obligations and concerns about tomorrow. I took up this job with great determination so that all of us can build a state, which our children and grandchildren wont want to leave, he added.
President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan on Saturday visited a number of authoritative participants of the Yerevan session of Valdai International Discussion Club.

The topic of the session was Time of Change: The World in an Era of Global Unpredictability. Within the framework of the event, the club experts, the representatives of Armenias scientific circles and public officials invited to the discussions shared their opinions.

President Sargsyan welcomed and underscored the importance of such meetings between the leading expert and specialist circles, as well as the fact that the session was held in Yerevan, the press-service of the Armenian Presidents Office informed Armenian News  NEWS.am.

Stressing that in the fast-changing world many challenges and threats are of a global nature and know no limits, the Armenian leader noted that in those conditions the significance of the specialist community grows, considering that the objective analysis of contemporary realias and correct expert work greatly contribute to the adoption of effective decisions by political figures.

The President considered the decisions backed by the society as correct and productive.

During the conversation at a tea table, President Sargsyan and members of Valdai club exchanged views on the priorities of Armenias foreign policy, developments in the Middle East region, process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement, a number of pressing international issues, current level of Armenias cooperation and relations with foreign and international organizations, as well as the prospects thereof.

The President also responded to the question of interest to the participants.
YEREVAN.  Electoral fraud will not help Armenia-European Union (EU) relations, and it can lead to various consequences, including restricting Armenias participation in, lets say, several EU programs; but I dont think that everything will lead to this.

Ryszard Czarnecki, a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), told the aforesaid to 168 Zham (Hour) newspaper of Armenia, reflecting on the parliamentary election to be held in the country on April 2.

Czarnecki informed that he previously conducted an observation mission in Armenias elections, and though not perfect, they were organized. So, the MEP is full of hope that the forthcoming election in Armenia will further raise the standards.

He said this was a very important milestone for the country, when the constitutional arrangements will start functioning once the new Armenian parliament is formed.

He noted, however, that the ball will primarily be in the court of the new Armenian government, in terms of the signing of the Armenia-EU framework agreement. But, in his words, it seems no matter who wins the election, it will want to ratify the new agreement that was negotiated with the EU.
"Bar Month" at OnMilwaukee is brought to you by Miller Brewing Company, calling Milwaukee home since 1855. For the entire month of March, we're serving up fun articles on bars, clubs and beverages  including guides, the latest trends, bar reviews, the results of our Best of Bars poll and more. Grab a designated driver and dive in!

Once again Camp Bar, which has locations in Shorewood, the Third Ward and Wauwatosa, has topped the charts in the Best Atmosphere category, nabbing the title for the fourth straight year.

And it's no wonder. Despite their differences, each Camp Bar location possesses an unmistakable up north lodge feel, showcasing warm wood accents, tasteful (and fun) taxidermy, cozy lounge spaces and plenty of nooks in which to cozy up, even during the coldest of winter months. Outdoor patios, including a particularly tricked out version in Wauwatosa, make Camp the perfect spot to grab a drink with friends all summer long.

OnMilwaukee editors' pick: Barnacle Bud's

Runners up:

2. The Outsider (at the Kimpton Journeyman)

3. Barnacle Bud's

4. Foundation Tiki Bar

5. Bryant's Cocktail Lounge

This year we also asked a variety of prominent Milwaukeeans to weigh in on their pick for specific categories. For this category, we consulted Ian Abston, president of Millenian LLC.

Abston's pick: Foundation Tiki Bar

Surfboard tables, punch drinks and pufferfish hanging from the ceiling, with lights shoved in their blow holes. Where else would you want to share an extra stiff punchbowl drink with that special someone?
The latest

CD battles childhood cancer ... Milwaukee take note

"Give Listen Help" is a double-disc set of CDs featuring rare tracks by the likes of The Decemberists, Radiohead, Oasis and more. It helps the Pablove Foundation and Childrens Hospital Los Angeles cure children's cancer. And, sadly, there's a Milwaukee connection.
"There is no question of Rahul Gandhi stepping down", said Singh in response to media queries about a change of guard in the Congress top brass.

By India Today Web Desk: Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh has said there is no question of party vice-president Rahul Gandhi stepping down, following its drubbing in the Uttar Pradesh assembly election.

"There is no question of Rahul Gandhi stepping down", said Singh in response to media queries about a change of guard in the Congress top brass.

"The Nehru-Gandhi family is the greatest binding factor for the Congress and the leadership has to come to Rahul", he said.

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With the BJP surging towards a decisive victory both in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Singh, however, conceded that the Congress party needed to build regional leaders.

"I have said this even earlier that we need to build up new leadership in states. We have to take decisive action to build up the party where we do not have strong regional leaders," added Singh.

The party is, however, poised to win in Punjab, and is ahead in Manipur and Goa.

(WITH INPUTS FROM IANS)

Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal

Assembly Election Results 2017 Full Coverage

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- A good number of the citizens are blaming President Muhammadu Buhari for the current economic downturns the country is facing

- Nigerian youths should know nobody is ready to spoon-feed them anymore in the present day Nigeria

- It is high time people thought outside the box and stopped to angelise or demonise others

One of the things Nigerian youths love doing is to pass the blame for whatever challenges they are facing onto other people. Although, a few people are involved in epicaricacy of these youths, however, one will not shun away from the the fact that these young able-bodied men and women need to look inwards.

President Muhammadu Buhari is seen as the cause of some youths' problems

According to a Chinese Proverb, he who blames others has a long way to go on his journey. He who blames himself is halfway there. He who blames no one has arrived.

The above saying is apt for the Nigerian youths. It is highly instructive. This is because you often hear excuses like, I turned to crime because I don't have anyone to sponsor my education beyond secondary school level, or There is no hope for the youths in this country called Nigeria, and so many other unwarranted statements.

READ ALSO: 20,000 youths to celebrate President Buharis return

The economic state of any society or country will always be favourable to some people, while others will be discontented. But the main thing for anyone to do is to know how to use his critical thinking and intuition to remove himself from the web of the day-to-day complaints.

Some of the reasons why Nigerian youths have a role to play in their state of unfavourable situation is stated briefly below:

1. Lack of innovative ideas

There is a saying that a person will continue to get the same result over and over several times if he continues to do what he does in the same manner. In today's world, everyone should be IT-complainant. There is hardly any task performed without an input with the use of the computer.

In this 21st century, some youths still do not know how to operate the computer. They can not do basic tasks with the computer. They therefore lag behind. These kind of individuals continue to grumble that President Muhammadu Buhari has done nothing since he was sworn in May, last year. While some of their peers dig deep to remove themselves from poverty and do away with complaints, on their own side, they bring no new thing to the table.

2. Unending passion for alcoholic drinks

The future of Nigerian youths is really at stake. All sorts of alcoholic drinks have taken over their lives. Some of these alcoholic beverages come with very high alcoholic content which could damage the liver. These youths believe when they take these drinks, they relieve them of all their worries. In the real sense, this is not the case. These drinks add more to their problems, as they think less of how to remove themselves from the pangs of abject poverty.

3. Engaging in different types of unholy activities

It is in only in Nigeria an unemployed youth is actively involved in unholy activities with their money. For instance, a young man who ought to find means to save money in order to start a petty trade will not do so. He will rather prefer to use the money to bet. At the end of the day, he has no money. He continues to ask for pocket-money from his parents or guardians despite being over 30 years of age.

4. Extravagant lifestyle

Some youths live above their means of livelihood. Some of them inherit their father's or mother's properties but squander them on women of virtue and bad mates. They lack basic money management tips. This habit of theirs continue until all the money is wasted without any tangible investment. They make a U-turn when they are dead broke and blame their family members and relations for their lack of money. Some of them even say their problems are spiritual in nature.

5. Females sell their bodies

It is disheartening to see the rate at which young females are involved in the trade of making themselves cheap to men. They are called commercial brothel workers.

READ ALSO: 2019: Group urges Nigerian Youths to take their destiny into their hands

When these ladies are sent to school to better their status in the society, they turn to body-exchange-money business in order to make ends meet. Some of them may become infected with all sorts of transmitted infections and venereal diseases like HIV/AIDS, syphilis and staphylococcus. They later become object of ridicule to the men who used to patronise them before.

6. Political gangsterism

Nigeria is one of the countries that has the highest number of political thugs. No statistics is needed to justify this. This is glaring during election periods in the country. Every politician who is influential has his own groups of thugs, he can unleash on his feeble opponent at anytime he desires.

An angry Nigerian youth during a protest

There are always campaign targeted at the youths informing and dissuading them against this heinous act. These youths never listen due to the peanuts these politicians give them to hack down an opponent. Some of these youths most times are killed. With all these, some Nigerian youths still do not heed to the warning that political gangsterism ruins their lives.

7. Choosing bad societal influencers as role models

Who do the youths pick as role models? None, but the musicians who sing music which instigate hatred. They follow criminals and other sorts of vicious people, who made names through dubious means. The number of youths who see the likes of Professor Wole Soyinka and the late Chief MKO Abiola as role model is few, compared to those who see the likes of 50-cent and the late Notorious BIG as role models.

8. Living a life of illusion and fantasy

There has never been a time in the history of the world where all great men and women who everyone adores achieve greatness on a platter of gold. All these important figures achieved greatness by paying different prices. No pain, no gain. But the youths think life is a bed of roses. It is when they find themselves in a difficult situation either in their career or academics or marital life, that they start blaming others. They do not want to make the hay while the sun is shining

9. Detest for academic brilliancy

In some states in Nigeria, the youths there believe it is easier and faster to make money out of school than being in school. Some of them will even cite world's richest man and Africa's richest man, Bill Gates and Aliko Dangote respectively as examples. They use both men as excuses for dropping out of school. One thing such youths fail to realise is that these two men had some sort of education and knowledge about what they do, before they became financially successful and renowned globally.

10. Dumping local culture for habits alien to the Nigerian society

Someone might get amused when you see a Nigerian youth pull down his trousers below his waist in the name of sagging. It is not part of Nigerian culture for any young man or woman to imitate the bad things from the West. The offensive ways in which the youths speak and dress show that something urgent must be done by the youths themselves in order to save the coming generation.

Watch how an angry youth talked about President Buhari and the situation of the Nigerian youths

Source: Legit.ng
Twin bombs targeting Shiite pilgrims killed 59 people in Damascus on Saturday, most of them Iraqis, a monitoring group said of one of the bloodiest attacks in the Syrian capital. There have been periodic bombings in Damascus, but the stronghold of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad has been largely spared the destruction faced by other major cities in six years of civil war. A roadside bomb detonated as a bus passed by and a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Bab al-Saghir area, which houses several Shiite mausoleums that draw pilgrims from around the world, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The explosions killed 47 pilgrims, most of them Iraqi Shiites, and 12 Syrian pro-government fighters, Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said. "There are also dozens of people wounded, some of them in a serious condition," he told AFP. Syrian state television said 40 people were killed and 120 wounded after "terrorists detonated two bombs". It broadcast footage of several white buses with their windows shattered, some charred and peppered with shrapnel. Shoes, glasses and wheelchairs lay scattered on ground covered in blood. Syrian Interior Minister Mohammad Shaar said the attack targeted "pilgrims of various Arab nationalities". "The sole aim was to kill," he said. The Iraqi foreign ministry said around 40 of its nationals were among the dead and 120 among the wounded. A witness told AFP that the second bomb exploded as passers-by gathered at the scene of the first attack, and state television said a booby-trapped motorcycle was defused nearby. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. - Frequent target - Shiite shrines are a frequent target of attack for Sunni extremists of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group (IS), not only in Syria but also in neighbouring Iraq. The foreign ministry in Damascus condemned "the cowardly terrorist attack which comes in response to victories of the Syrian Arab Army" against jihadists. The Sayyida Zeinab mausoleum to the south of Damascus, Syria's most visited Shiite pilgrimage site, has been hit by several deadly bombings during the war. Twin suicide bombings in the high-security Kafr Sousa district of the capital in January killed 10 people, eight of them soldiers. That attack was claimed by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front, which said that it had targeted Russian military advisers working with the Syrian army. It was widely seen as an attempt to disrupt UN-brokered peace talks that took place the following month and which to Fateh al-Sham's anger were supported by its former Islamist rebel ally Ahrar al-Sham. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura has called a new round of talks for March 23. Fateh al-Sham has been repeatedly bombed in its northwestern stronghold this year, not only by the Syrian army and its Russian ally but also by a US-led coalition battling IS in both Syria and Iraq. The rift over the UN-brokered talks between the rebels and the government has also seen deadly clashes between jihadists and their former Islamist rebel allies. The two groups had together seized virtually all of the northwestern province of Idlib but are now vying for territorial control. - Mass grave - In Baghdad, the foreign ministry blamed the Damascus attack on "takfiri groups", referring to Sunni extremists. The bombings could provide the impetus for increased Iraqi strikes against IS in Syria, which Baghdad has already carried out near the border. Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake Mosul -- the last IS-held city in Iraq -- in October. They recaptured its eastern side and now have their sights set on its more densely populated west. Iraqi paramilitary forces said Saturday they had discovered a mass grave at Badush prison near Mosul containing the remains of hundreds of people executed by IS. The jihadists reportedly killed up to 600 people after seizing Badush in 2014. In northern Syria, Raqa, the de facto IS capital, is under threat from advancing Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, a US-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab forces as well as Syrian government troops supported by Russia. Three hundred families of foreign IS fighters have fled the city in 24 hours on boats across the Euphrates River to the south, the Observatory said Saturday. Assad said in an interview broadcast Saturday that recapturing Raqa was a "priority" for his forces. While bomb attacks are rare in Damascus, the capital has been the target of shelling by rebels who hold areas on the outskirts. The deadliest bombing around Damascus targeted the Sayyida Zeinab shrine in February 2016, costing 134 lives, in an attack claimed by IS.
Oil explorer Bowleven is braced to lose its fight for survival in the face of an onslaught from a rebel shareholder intent on overthrowing the board.

The feud has been brewing between the two for months and will come to a head on Tuesday as shareholders vote on the calls from Bowlevens largest backer to replace the board and turn the oil explorer into a holding company.

Informed city sources say that based on the proxy votes cast before Fridays deadline the board is unlikely to be able to fight off the challenge.

Crown Ocean Capital, a Monaco-based investment fund, has accused the board of being overpaid while bungling the management of its African oil assets and driving the share price down from over 350p in 2011 to 35p today.

Bowleven share price

The bitter boardroom battle echoes the hostile takeover of Irish oil company Petroceltic last year in which its majority shareholder, Worldview Capital, successfully ousted the board after wresting control of its debt.

This situation is being watched very carefully, said a city source active in the oil industry.

The overthrow of the Petroceltic board has proved to the industry that these investors are not to be taken lightly. Crown Ocean has continued to take their stake higher and has taken the time to craft a logical argument against a poor history, he added.

The board had hoped to see off the rebellion with a new deal to team up with its Aim-listed peer Victoria Oil and Gas to accelerate cash flow from its Bonomo project in Cameroon made public last week.

Under the terms Bowleven will give up 80pc of the project in exchange for quicker route to the domestic market which would pay as much as five times the price originally expected.

The fund responded by saying the deal "makes little or no sense for Bowleven shareholders" but nonetheless retaliated by paying a rich price, relative to the rest of its stake, to buy a further 4pc in the company from long-time investor Artemis.
Briton Kyle Edmund cruised into an Indian Wells ATP Masters meeting with three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Portugal's Gastao Elias. Edmund, ranked 46th in the world, needed just 65 minutes to get past the 95th-ranked Elias and line up a third career meeting with Djokovic, a five-time winner at Indian Wells who is seeded second this year behind world number one Andy Murray of Britain. "The things (Djokovic) does well are making a lot of balls and being quick around the court. It's tough to get the ball by him and break him down," said Edmund, who lost to the Serb star at the Miami Masters and US Open last year. "These are things that I've experienced the last two times I've played him. I'll try and use that on Sunday." Djokovic is hoping a return to the hard courts of California -- where has enjoyed such success -- will signal a revival. After a lackluster end to 2016 that saw him surrender the world number one ranking to Murray, things appeared to be looking up with his victory in Qatar in January. But a shock second-round exit at the Australian Open followed by a quarter-final loss in Acapulco have him back in rebuilding mode. With 32 seeded players enjoying first-round byes, it was unseeded players jockeying for position on Friday. US 19-year-old Taylor Fritz dispatched France's Benoit Paire 6-3, 6-2 to line up a meeting with third-seeded Croatian Marin Cilic. - 'Strange match' - Fritz, a Southern California native, kept his focus as injury contributed to some erratic play from Paire. "My focus was just to serve, serve well, kind of just manage my service games, because I felt like I would get chances on his serve and I would just have to take them," said Fritz, who saved the only break point he faced in the 65-minute match. "It was just a weird match, because the ankle or foot injury or issue he had in the beginning -- sometimes he'd move really well, sometimes he wouldn't. Sometimes he would just double fault, sometimes he'd hit an ace." A whirlwind 2016 saw Fritz climb as high as 53rd in the world last August, but he was slowed by a late season knee injury and arrived at Indian Wells ranked 136th in the world. In addition to adjusting to full-time life on the tour, Fritz has been through momentous personal changes. He's a married father of an infant son, still trying to map his burgeoning career. While he finds time spent with his son "amazing," Fritz is the first to admit that his wife, Raquel, is doing the heavy lifting when it comes to childcare. "I'm not very hands-on at all, to be honest," he said. Fritz, who broke a 13-match losing streak against top-50 opponents with his win over 40th-ranked Paire, was already turning his attention to former US Open champion Cilic. "We're both pretty serve dependent," he said. "So I will be focusing on the key parts of my game, which is the serve and just staying aggressive, attacking, but not giving him too many free points." In other matches, France's Stephane Robert defeated Israeli Dudi Sela 6-4, 6-4 to book a meeting with ninth-seeded Roger Federer, a four-time Indian Wells winner who is riding high after capturing his 18th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. Britain's Daniel Evans cruised past German Dustin Brown 6-1, 6-1 to secure a meeting with fourth-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan.
A measles outbreak in Romania has killed 17 children and infected thousands more since September due to poverty and an anti-vaccination movement, local media reported Saturday. Romanian health minister Florian Bodog said that none of the children who died from the highly contagious virus had been vaccinated, adding that the last victim was a one-year-old girl from the northern city of Satu Mare. More than 3,400 people have been infected since February 2016 compared with the year before when the country registered seven cases but no deaths, Bodog said, according to the Hotnews.ro site. He urged people to get vaccinated, saying it "is the only effective way to prevent the disease". Measles is a contagious respiratory illness characterised by high fever and the eruption of small red spots. The World Health Organisation recommends two doses of vaccination, the first by a child's first birthday, to ensure immunity and prevent outbreaks. Such vaccinations should cover 95 percent of the population. But Bodog said only 80 percent of Romanians receive the first vaccination dose and just 50 percent receive the second. In Romania, poverty, the lack of access to health services, and the percentage of parents who refuse to vaccinate their children are at the heart of the recent epidemic. Religious organisations and public figures have led recent anti-vaccination campaigns. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, while Europe as a whole has made progress against the virus, Romania is still considered high-risk for transmission, along with Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Poland. In poor countries, many people simply do not have access to the $1 vaccine (94 euro cents), but the WHO has pointed out that children in affluent countries have a greater risk of infection because of scepticism about immunisation.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday said a Dutch ban on his foreign minister's visit was like Nazism, as tensions rocketed over rallies abroad to help Ankara gain backing for a key vote. His comments came after the Netherlands said it would refuse Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu permission to land for a rally to gather support for a referendum on boosting Erdogan's powers. The Dutch decision to ban Cavusoglu from visiting and holding a rally in the port city of Rotterdam came after Germany and other European nations also blocked similar campaign events. Unlike in Germany, where a string of planned rallies were barred by local authorities, in the Netherlands it was the government that stepped in to block Cavusoglu's visit. "They are the vestiges of the Nazis, they are fascists," Erdogan told an Istanbul rally Saturday, days after he angrily compared moves to block rallies in Germany to "Nazi practices". "Ban our foreign minister from flying however much you like, but from now on let's see how your flights will land in Turkey," Erdogan said. Around 1,000 people waving Turkish flags protested outside the consulate in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam on Saturday evening, watched by a large police presence. Turkey's Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya appeared at the scene after reportedly travelling overland from Germany, but Turkish TV said she was stopped by Dutch police some 30 metres (yards) short of the consulate. "We've been here for about four hours. We were not even offered water," she told the NTV television channel. "(Dutch) police are not allowing me to enter the consulate. " "I was told to leave the country and return to Germany as soon as possible," she added. "I will not leave unless I am allowed to meet even for five minutes with our citizens." The Dutch public broadcaster NOS said police were planning to escort Kaya back to the border with Germany. Police would not confirm anything to AFP. - Cavusoglu flies to France - Cavusoglu flew to France where he is expected to address a rally Sunday in the eastern city of Metz. A French official said the visit had been cleared by the foreign ministry in Paris. As the row raged, Turkish foreign ministry sources said the Dutch embassy in Ankara and consulate in Istanbul had both been sealed off for "security reasons". Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said Erdogan's criticism was "crazy." "I understand that they are angry but this is way out of line," he said. "I really think we made the right decision here." Cavusoglu, speaking in Istanbul, said the ban was "unacceptable". "Why are you taking sides in the referendum?" he said, adding: "Is the foreign minister of Turkey a terrorist?" The Turkish foreign ministry said the Dutch charge d'affaires in Ankara was summoned and told that Turkey did not want the Dutch ambassador -- currently on holiday -- to return "for a while". The Netherlands is home to some 400,000 people of Turkish origin, and Ankara is keen to harness votes of the diaspora in Europe ahead of the April 16 referendum on creating an executive presidency. The Turkish government argues the changes would ensure stability and create more efficient governance but opponents say it would lead to one-man rule and further inflame tensions in its diverse society. - Backlash threat - Erdogan accused the Netherlands of working against the "Yes" campaign and said: "Pressure however much you like. Abet terrorists in your country however much you like. "It will backlash, and there's no doubt that we'll start retaliating after April 16... We are patient. Whoever is patient will reach victory." Dutch far-right anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders celebrated the government's ban, attributing it to "heavy PVV pressure", in a reference to his party, which appears set to emerge as one of the largest in elections to the Dutch parliament on Wednesday. The latest row came after NATO allies Turkey and Germany sparred over the cancellation of a series of referendum campaign events there. Germany is home to 1.4 million people eligible to vote in Turkey -- the fourth-largest electoral base after Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir. Although Berlin insisted that the string of cancellations by local authorities were down to logistical reasons, Turkish officials repeatedly hit back, leading to Erdogan's angry "Nazi" remark. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said such rhetoric was "depressing", belittled Holocaust victims and was "so out of place as to be unworthy of serious comment". Berlin has emerged as a strident critic of Ankara's crackdown after an attempted coup last July, which has seen more than 100,000 people arrested, suspended from their jobs or sacked for alleged links to the plotters or to Kurdish militants.
Modi's charisma just like it was during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, infighting in the ruling Samajwadi Party and the inability of the opposition to put up a united front were some of the factors instrumental in BJP's win.

By Kumar Shakti Shekhar: As counting for Uttar Pradesh election results 2017 takes place, it is amply clear that BJP will not only emerge the winner, but will also bag three-fourth of the total 403 seats. It is for the first time that BJP will be in a position to form a majority government in UP on its own.

It is said "nothing succeeds like success". But still there are at least seven reasons behind the BJP's stupendous success.

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1. MODI'S CHARISMA

The Modi wave has clearly swept UP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's charisma seems to have worked wonders. Modi was instrumental in BJP's victory in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Despite the lapse of 33 months, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's charisma more or less remains intact.

His speeches clicked with the voters, his jam-packed rallies appeared to be seas of humanity at almost all the places and his roadshows in his Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi proved to be unstoppable juggernauts.

BJP had garnered 42 per cent of votes and won 71 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in 2014. In the just-concluded state Assembly elections, the party got 40 per votes and has won two-third of the seats. A "TsuNamo" is clearly at work.

2. CASTE MANAGEMENT

Mayawati-led BSP banked on Dalit and Muslim votes while Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party focused on garnering the votes of Yadavs and Muslims. In a smart strategy, BJP wooed non-Jatavs, non-Yadav OBCs and upper castes. This has clearly paid off.

3. REVERSE POLARISATION OF VOTES

While BSP and SP focused on wooing the Muslim voters, BJP went for consolidation of the Hindu voters. In the first two phases comprising 140 seats, BJP strategically lied low because Muslims dominate a large number of seats. Muslims comprise even about 60 per cent of the total population in some constituencies.

Any attempt by BJP to consolidate the Hindu votes in the first two phases would have proved counter-productive. It could have consolidated the Muslim votes. Instead of splitting their votes between SP and BSP by resorting to tactical voting, the Muslims would have gone for en bloc voting in favour of either of the two parties. This would have been against BJP's interests.

BJP waited for the first two phases (on February 11 and 15) to get over. Prime Minister Narendra Modi started polarisation of votes from the third phase onwards. He made the "kabristan vs shamshan" remark at an election rally in Bahraich on February 19, the day third phase of voting was in progress.

This helped the Hindu votes to get consolidated. Even though Muslims polarised, they could not harm BJP much.

4. SOCIAL MEDIA AGGRESSION

BJP was ahead of all the other parties in the fray as far as its presence on social media is concerned. The party adopted all modern tools, be it campaigning, disseminating information or even making surveys. This kept them ahead of its rivals SP, BSP and Congress.

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5. INFIGHTING IN SAMAJWADI PARTY

Akhilesh Yadav, who will step down from the chief minister's chair in a few days, emerged as the winner of the Yadav 'PariWar' by usurping his father Mulayam Singh Yadav's post of SP chief and defeating his uncle Shivpal Yadav. It, perhaps, gave a false sense of triumph and a faade of victory for Akhilesh. However, on the ground and outside the ruling Yadav family, it did not click. The internal fight in the Yadav family only tarnished Akhilesh and SP's images.

6. DEMONETISATION

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the demonetisation initiative at 8 pm on November 8, it was viewed with scepticism by the Opposition. Soon, they, particularly West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Mayawati sought to whip up passions against the note ban. Mamata and Kejriwal went to the extent of saying that it could lead to violence.

However, the situation on the ground was totally different. Instead of feeling angry, even though the people faced inconvenience, they supported demonetisation. BJP won or performed impressively in all the Assembly and Lok Sabha bye-elections and several civic and panchayat elections which were held after the demonetisation move, the latest being the municipal elections in Maharashtra and panchayat polls in Odisha.

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While the Opposition, including Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi kept gloating over the note ban, the voters seem to have supported it, or at least they just did not care about it.

7. DIVIDED OPPOSITION

SP and Congress stitched a pre-poll alliance to take on BJP which had proved invincible in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. However, in the absence of BSP and Ajit Singh-led RLD, this alliance was not a formidable one. It lacked the strength of the mahagathbandhan of JD (U), RJD and Congress in Bihar.

With BSP and SP as rivals, the Muslim votes got divided. Had these four parties come together, they could have stopped the division of not only the Muslim votes but also those of Jats, Dalits and upper castes.

WATCH VIDEO

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AFP News

The UN's COP27 climate summit kicked off Sunday in Egypt with warnings against backsliding on efforts to cut emissions and calls for rich nations to compensate poor countries after a year of extreme weather disasters. Just in the past few months, climate-induced catastrophes have killed thousands, displaced millions and cost billions in damages across the world. Massive floods devastated swaths of Pakistan and Nigeria, droughts worsened in Africa and the western United States, cyclones whipped the Caribbean, and unprecedented heatwaves seared three continents. The conference in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh comes in a fraught year marked by Russia's war on Ukraine, an energy crunch, soaring inflation and the lingering effects from the Covid pandemic. But Simon Stiell, the UN's climate change executive secretary, said he would not be a "custodian of backsliding" on the goal of slashing greenhouse emissions 45 percent by 2030 to cap global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius above late-19th-century levels. "We will be holding people to account, be they presidents, prime ministers, CEOs," Stiell said as the 13-day summit opened. "The heart of implementation is everybody everywhere in the world every single day doing everything they possibly can to address the climate crisis," he said. Current trends would see carbon pollution increase 10 percent by the end of the decade and Earth's surface heat up 2.8C, according to findings unveiled last week. Promises made under the 2015 Paris Agreement would, if kept, only shave off a few tenths of a degree. "Whilst I do understand that leaders around the world have faced competing priorities this year, we must be clear: as challenging as our current moment is, inaction is myopic and can only defer climate catastrophe," said Alok Sharma, British president of the previous COP26 as he handed over the chairmanship to Egypt. "How many more wake-up calls does the world -- and world leaders -- actually need?", he said. In a dire warning, the UN's World Meteorological Organization said the past eight years are on track to be the eight warmest on record, with an acceleration in sea level rise, glacier melt and heatwaves. "As COP27 gets underway, our planet is sending a distress signal," UN chief Antonio Guterres said in a statement. - 'Loss and damage' - The COP27 summit will focus like never before on money -- a major sticking point that has soured relations between countries that got rich burning fossil fuels and the poorer ones suffering from the worst consequences of climate change. The United States and the European Union -- fearful of creating an open-ended reparations framework -- have dragged their feet and challenged the need for a separate funding stream. Delegates agreed on Sunday to put the "loss and damage" issue on the COP27 agenda, a first step toward what are sure to be fraught discussions. Inclusion of the agenda item "reflects a sense of solidarity and empathy for the suffering of the victims of climate induced disasters," said COP27 president Sameh Shoukry of Egypt. "We all owe a debt of gratitude to activists and civil society organisations who have persistently demanded the space to discuss funding for loss and damage," he said to applause. Shoukry also noted that rich nations have not fulfilled a separate pledge to deliver $100 billion per year to help developing countries green their economies and build resilience against future climate change. He also lamented that most climate financing is based on loans. "We do not have the luxury to continue this way. We have to change our approaches to this existential threat," he said, calling for solutions that "prove we are serious about not leaving anyone behind". - US-China tensions - After the first day of talks, more than 120 world leaders will join the summit on Monday and Tuesday. The most conspicuous no-show will be China's Xi Jinping, whose leadership was renewed last month at a Communist Party Congress. US President Joe Biden has said he will come, but only after legislative elections on Tuesday that could see either or both houses of Congress fall into the hands of Republicans hostile to international action on climate change. Cooperation between the United States and China -- the world's two largest economies and carbon polluters -- has been crucial to rare breakthroughs in the nearly 30-year saga of UN climate talks, including the 2015 Paris Agreement. But Sino-US relations have sunk to a 40-year low after a visit to Taiwan by House leader Nancy Pelosi and a US ban on the sale of high-level chip technology to China, leaving the outcome of COP27 in doubt. A meeting between Xi and Biden at the G20 summit in Bali days before the UN climate meeting ends, if it happens, could be decisive. One bright spot at COP27 will be the arrival of Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, whose campaign vowed to protect the Amazon and reverse the extractive policies of outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro. bur-lth/fz
The booming market conditions that 2012 and 2013 saw in regard to the smartphones in India is difficult to replicate now owing to the fact that the incremental growth in the features, as well as the corresponding price of the phone, doesnt find as many takers as the smartphone makers would want.

To tide over this phase, the dual strategy team of Motorola-Lenovo has been focusing on rolling out a series of devices that can be used as accompanying enhancement devices to the present smartphone owners. The company, which calls such devices as mods, plans on bifurcating its attention to woo existing smartphone users to purchase these enhancements in the form of high-end cameras and lenses, projectors, speakers, etc. for their smartphones.

So far Motorola-Lenovo has launched Camera by Hasselblad and speakers by JBL for its smartphones. The current strategy being followed by the company aims at the fact that not many premium smartphone users look for up gradation to the next latest version and tend to stick it out with the same device for a couple of years. Sudhin Mathur, Executive Director of Lenovo Indian and managing director of Motorola India reiterates this fact by saying, The replacement market is about 100 million smartphones, where buyers are constantly upgrading. According to the latest reports, Motorola-Lenovo is the second largest player in India.

As per the industry reports, there are about 50 million internet users in India who still use a feature phone. And as predicted by the market trend analysers at Motorola-Lenovo, the switch from feature phone to a smartphone for these users wont be happening anytime soon. That leaves just 300 million users who already have access to the internet. The assumption that has been made here is that the customers who already have ready access to the internet technology are at a far more likelihood of using the smartphone as compared to those who dont.
Language Arts

Shmoop Releases Side-by-Side Translations of Shakespeare Online

Time hath, my lord, a wallet at his back,

Wherein he puts alms for oblivion. William Shakespeare, Troilus and Cresseda

Every year, legions of K12 students read through Shakespeares plays and sonnets in their English and language arts classes, but do they really understand what theyre reading?

One website aims to make sense of the Bards poetic yet perplexing lines in modern English for contemporary young readers.

Shmoops site, Shakespeare in Modern English, is designed to give students the best of both worlds: Reading the original text online right alongside a modern English translation and summary.

Shmoop is known for its all-inclusive guide to Shakespeare, called Shmooping Shakespeare, which includes everything students could ever want to know about the Bard of Avon: in-depth summary and analysis of every single one of his plays and many of his poems; an extensive biography; an entire section devoted to his most famous quotes and another devoted to the words he coined; and Shmoops well-known Shakespeare Translator, which lets users turn their everyday language into eloquent Shakespearese.

Shakespeare in Modern English gives users the ability to read his plays in their entirety, while getting side-by-side insight into whats actually happening in each scene.

If students arent quite grasping whats going on, we Shmoop the next day after a long nights reading, said Jade Clukey, teacher at Carrabassett Valley Academy in Maine, in a statement. It has been especially helpful while reading Shakespeare!

Students and teachers looking for more structured lessons on the Bard can subscribe to Shmoop and get access to courses like Shakespeare in Context and Shakespeares Plays, even earning college credit. Schools and districts can get bulk discounts on already below-market-rate materials by contacting [email protected].

And if you didnt understand the first line of this story, the translation in modern English is essentially: Time passes, and people dont remember what you did or said.

Based in Mountain View, CA, Shmoop offers hundreds of thousands of pages of original content for study and assessment. For more information, visit Shmoops website.
LUANDA, March 6 (Reuters) - Angola's Sonangol is in talks with oil majors about deploying two new oil rigs it commissioned from South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering in 2013, the state firm said on Monday.

Sonangol said it was in talks with Exxon Mobil (Swiss: XOM-USD.SW - news) , Chevron (Euronext: CHTEX.NX - news) , BP, Eni (LSE: 0N9S.L - news) and Total (LSE: 524773.L - news) about leasing the rigs to help boost exploration and production off the coast of the southwest African nation.

The two rigs, the first to be owned by Sonangol, will enter service soon, the company said. Angola is an OPEC member and vies with Nigeria as Africa's biggest oil producer. (Reporting by Herculano Coroado; Writing by Joe Brock)
DGAP-News: Mars One Ventures AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous





The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



Amersfoort, March 10, 2017 -- Mars One Ventures AG announced that the share capital increased by 478,887,500 shares for the takeover. The Swiss Commercial Register has approved the capital increase based on an independent valuation report by a Swiss auditor, valuing Mars One at US$ 389,300,000 (which is the equivalent to EUR 368,742,600 at the current EUR/USD exchange rate of 1.06). "We're pleased that the capital increase of Mars One Ventures AG was carried out, completing the transaction for the takeover and actually thrilled with the valuation of our company" Bas Lansdorp, CEO and co-founder of Mars One, said today. "The valuation is based on an independent review of our revenue projections, based on previous results, and results in a value per share of about EUR0.74, which is well above the current share price at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange." Over the last years, the whole space industry has benefited from the increased interest in Mars exploration and because of that Mars One, has experienced a significant increase in interest for its mission to Mars. An important factor in the increase of public interest are the efforts of upcoming space countries, including India's successful orbit insertion in 2014 at a fraction of the costs of previous Mars mission, and UAE's plans to launch a Mars spacecraft in 2020. Other important factors include the significant technical achievements of several private space companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin, the successes of movies and TV series, such as 'The Martian', and National Geographic's 'Mars' Series. Finally, there is the continued interest in existing Mars missions like ESA's ExoMars mission and NASA's active orbiters and rover missions. "The increased interest in Mars programs has a major positive impact on the business potential of Mars One Ventures, as it is based on the public interest for and therefore commercial value of Mars One's mission to Mars," explains Lansdorp. About Mars One

Mars One aims to establish a permanent human settlement on Mars. Before carefully selected and trained crews will depart to Mars, several unmanned missions will be completed, establishing a habitable settlement waiting for the first astronauts to arrive.



Mars One consists of two entities: the not-for-profit Mars One Foundation and the publicly trading Mars One Ventures AG [FRA: KCC], ISIN: CH0132106482. The Mars One Foundation implements, and manages the mission and owns the mission hardware. It also selects and trains the crews, and is building an ever growing community of experts and supporters that follow the progress of the mission and contribute to it.



Mars One Ventures holds the exclusive monetization rights around the Mars One mission. There are many revenue possibilities around the mission to Mars: merchandise, ads on video content, broadcasting rights, partnerships, Intellectual Property, events, games, apps, and many more.



For more information about Mars One, please visit www.mars-one.com.

10.03.2017 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.dgap.de


By Gopal Sharma KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Indian border guards killed a Nepali citizen over a local dispute in a rare shooting at the border, Nepal's government said, prompting anti-India protests in the area and in the national capital on Friday. India and Nepal share a 1,751-km (1,094 miles) long and open border and thousands of people cross over each day to work and trade, but Nepali politicians have often accused India of meddling in its affairs. Dozens of people were protesting over a damaged culvert in Nepal's Anandabazaar near the border with India on Thursday when Indian border guards opened fire, killing a 25-year-old man, a government statement said. An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said India's border guards had opened an inquiry and had asked Nepal to provide a forensic and post mortem report on the victim. It said officials from the two countries had met and agreed to take steps to maintain calm. But on Friday, fresh protests erupted in Anandabazaar, which is 477 km (298 miles) southwest of Kathmandu, with an even bigger group of Nepalis attacking a local government office, Home Ministry spokesman Bal Krishna Panthi said. "The area is tense," a police official in the region said. Another group of demonstrators tried to march on the Indian embassy in Kathmandu in protest over the shooting, but were stopped by police, leading to scuffles, police official Chhabi Lal said. Nepal's ties with India were strained towards the end of 2015 and into last year after it blamed India for tacitly supporting a months-long blockade on fuel and goods by Indian-origin plainspeople who are opposed to Nepal's constitution. (Reporting by Gopal Sharma; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
"This victory will change the course of Indian politics in the coming days. It will end the politics of casteism, parivaarvaad and appeasement," said party chief Amit Shah.

By India Today Web Desk: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will form government in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa, party chief Amit Shah said on Saturday, terming the Assembly election results a victory of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.

"Even the opposition will have to accept Narendra Modi who has emerged as the most popular leader post independence", Shah said.

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"In four states we are going to form the government. We have lost Punjab, but we have got more than 30 percent votes. Even in Punjab, we got a good vote share", the BJP chief said.

"The historic mandate given to the BJP in all five states will give a new direction to Indian polity," Shah said.

RESULTS WILL END POLITICS OF CASTE

He said the results will end the politics of "caste, dynasty politics and appeasement".

"This victory will change the course of Indian politics in the coming days. It will end the politics of casteism, parivaarvaad and appeasement," the Bharatiya Janata Party leader told the media in New Delhi.

Move past Hindu-Muslim, a voter is a voter; politics of development should take place: Amit Shah #ElectionResults pic.twitter.com/rk9Uh20qch- ANI (@ANI_news) March 11, 2017

"Voters of Uttar Pradesh have rejected the politcs of casteism, of family one-upmanship and appeasement. They have voted for performance-based politics and governance", Shah added.

When asked who would the party's chief ministerial candidate be, the BJP chief said that the party would decide on who the most capable person for the top post is.

He said he was glad that people gave such a massive mandate to the BJP to the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after independence.

(WITH INPUTS FROM IANS)

Also read | UP election results: BJP tampered with EVMs, couldn't have won otherwise in Muslim bastions, says Mayawati

WATCH VIDEO

--- ENDS ---
Bill Gates has stated in an interview that robots who take human jobs should pay taxes. This has some obvious attractions. Not only, as Gates says, will we be able to spend the money to finance jobs for which humans are particularly suited, such as caring for children or the elderly, but robots are also unlikely to complain about tax levels, they dont use services financed by tax revenue such as education or the health services and they are most unlikely to salt away income and assets in a tax haven. Whats not to like?

Well, actually, you cant tax robots any more than you can tax any other inanimate object  but Bill Gatess suggestion does address some of todays most important tax issues. What proportion of its tax revenue should a state raise from each of the three main tax bases; capital, labour and expenditure? And how can a state counteract tax avoidance by large companies and wealthy individuals?

Taxing robots would, in reality, be a tax on the capital employed by businesses in using them and might help to redress the long-term shift away from taxing capital. In 1981, the rate of corporation tax was 52%, although generous relief meant that the tax base was relatively narrow. This has now fallen to 20% and further reductions to 17% are planned by 2020.

By contrast, the principal expenditure tax, VAT, was originally set at 8% in 1973, but rose to 15% in 1979 and is now 20%. This means that individuals are contributing a larger proportion of tax revenue than previously through taxes on salaries and expenditure and businesses are contributing less through taxes on their profits  even though they make use of the UKs transport, financial and legal infrastructure and benefit from the education and healthcare provided to their employees.

Fairer taxation

One of the justifications for not taxing capital is that companies do not bear the economic cost of taxation through lower returns to their shareholders, but pass it on to labour and consumers through lower wages and/or higher prices. This argument is contentious.

Story continues

Edward Kleinbard, Professor of Law and Business at the University of Southern California, observes that unseemly scuffles can ensue when this topic is discussed at academic conferences. But whereas academics can have a good punch-up, agree to differ and then retire to the bar for drinks, Kleinbard cites several US government departments and committees, who must make policy based on their assumptions, estimate that capital bears between 75% and 95% of the economic cost of corporation tax, meaning that they can only shift a small part of it onto labour and consumers.

Furthermore, when US Uncut in April 2011 issued a hoax press release purporting to be from GE, stating that it would hand back a US$$3.2 billion tax refund as contrition for past abuses, the companys market capitalisation very briefly fell by around US$3.5 billion.

On this evidence, shareholders behave as though they believe that capital bears the economic cost of corporation tax through reduced dividends. If they did not believe this, why would they have cared? On the evidence of Kleinbard and the hoax, the theory that capital does not bear the economic cost of tax would therefore appear to be a rationalising discourse put forward by those who benefit from lower taxes on capital.

Taxing robots might also help to counteract tax avoidance, because the tax would be calculated by taxing a notional salary paid to the robot, and the company would be allowed to deduct this notional payment for the purpose of corporation tax.

Tax avoidance by large multinationals typically operates by transferring taxable profits from where they economically arise to tax havens, where their presence is often no more than a brass plate on a wall and a mailbox, or even, in the case of Apple, to a company located in some mid-Atlantic limbo, whose profits were therefore not taxable in any tax jurisdiction. These companies pay the same rate of corporation tax as all other companies on their profits remaining in the UK or Ireland, but ensure that these are only a small fraction of their total profits.

In contrast, the robot tax, just like salaries, would be calculated on an amount notionally payable out of revenue and would be payable in the tax jurisdiction in which the robot was located. This would be where the revenue was economically generated and this location would be determined by economics rather than tax considerations.

Is it even possible?

Finally, Bill Gates puts forward the currently unfashionable view that governments have an important role to play in combating inequality. For the past 35 or 40 years the dominant view has been that this would be achieved through economic growth and should therefore be left to the private sector and the markets.

But Gates says that combating inequality will require large amounts of excess labour to be used to help those on lower incomes, that robots will free up this labour and that the impetus for the necessary changes must come from governments because business cannot or will not do this of their own accord.

Furthermore, he says that taxing robots will not discourage innovation. People are naturally anxious about the effects of such technology, but taxation is a better way of allaying these fears than the alternative of banning aspects of it.

Could taxation of robots ever happen? Certainly it could, but the $64,000 question is whether there is the political will to do it. It would take a major paradigm shift in our attitude towards taxation to see it as a possible force for good, rather than simply a dead weight and burden. However, in the 1960s and 1970s todays attitude towards taxation would have been equally inconceivable. Never say never.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

The Conversation

Malcolm James is affiliated with Liberal Democrats.
Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, left, and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci leave their meeting for the press conference in the Turkish Cypriot breakaway northern part of the divided capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Thursday, March 9, 2017. Yildirim is in the breakaway north part of the island for a one-day visit for talks. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias) Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, left, and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci leave their meeting for the press conference in the Turkish Cypriot breakaway northern part of the divided capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Thursday, March 9, 2017. Yildirim is in the breakaway north part of the island for a one-day visit for talks. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP)  European Union member states have rejected Turkey's demand that its citizens be granted the freedom to relocate and transfer money, services and goods to EU member Cyprus under any deal reunifying the ethnically divided island, the Cypriot president said Saturday.

Nicos Anastasiades said all EU leaders consider it a "bad precedent" for Cyprus or any other country to breach bloc rules and grant such key freedoms to third-country citizens.

"This matter concerns the whole of the European Union, not just Cyprus," Anastasiades said.

Turkey said in January that any Cyprus peace deal should incorporate such a condition. But Greek Cypriot officials fear such a development would enable Turkey to overwhelm the small island of 1.1 million people economically, demographically or otherwise.

Cyprus was split along ethnic lines in 1974 when Turkey invaded following a coup by supporters of uniting Cyprus with Greece. Although the island joined the EU in 2004, only the internationally recognized south enjoys full membership benefits. A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is recognized only by Turkey, which maintains 35,000 troops in the breakaway north.

Turkey's demand further complicated difficult negotiations that stalled last month amid Turkish Cypriot anger over legislation to commemorate in Greek Cypriot schools a 1950 referendum calling for Cyprus' union with Greece.

Turkish Cypriots see a drive by the majority Greek Cypriots for union with Greece that began before Cyprus gained independence from British colonial rule in 1960 as the root of all the island's problems. Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci and top Turkish officials have said that Greek Cypriots needed to fix this "mistake" if talks are to move forward.

Anastasiades said the "aimless" legislation in no way suggested any policy shift away from reunifying Cyprus as a federation. He criticized Akinci for using the matter as an "excuse" to walk out of the 22 months-long peace talks because Turkish demands to keep troops and military intervention rights in place even after reunification weren't gaining any traction.

Anastasiades attributed Akinci's actions to the Turkish government's hardening stance to appease right-wing voters before the country's April 16 referendum on expanding presidential powers.

Cyprus government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said that EU leaders have conveyed the belief that any movement in Cyprus peace talks won't happen before the Turkish referendum is completed.
Thousands of air passengers were stranded on Friday as hundreds of flights were cancelled at Berlins two airports due to a strike by ground staff. The one-day stoppage comes as the worlds biggest tourism trade fair, the ITB, has been gearing up for its busiest period. The ground staff want a 10 percent pay rise, to 12 euros per hour. Five rounds of talks have failed, as EU rules bringing more competition have squeezed wages. Passenger numbers are rising, every year. Again and again. We read that. And we see it as well. The working conditions get worse and worse. But wages are not only static, theyre actually declining. Weve had to concede a lot over the years, and now the ratio is no longer acceptable. I think our performance here needs to be properly paid, said Marcel Hoffman of the trade union Verdi. Last year the Tegel and Schoenefeld airports in Berlin saw a rise in passenger numbers of over 10 percent. Berlin Airport, which operates them, said almost all flights from the German capital had been grounded on Friday. Several major airlines have been affected. Air Berlin said it had cancelled over 200 flights, with only long-haul routes and flights to and from Dusseldorf still operating. It offered passengers vouchers for train tickets to their German destinations or flights from Hanover. Irish budget carrier Ryanair cancelled 77 flights to or from Berlin and said was offering customers a full refund, or free transfers. Lufthansa said it had had to cancel 68 flights between Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich. Some 10,000 passengers affected could rebook or cancel for free. It is bad but bearable. It is ok, here at the airport. The people are very nice, they want to help, said Paulus Sakalas, a passenger from Lithuania. We can understand that they go on strike. But for us as tourists it is pretty unpleasant, added another passenger, Simone Krapf. The strike was due to last until the early hours of Saturday morning. The union has already held warning strikes and is negotiating for ground staff at several other German airports  at Frankfurt, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Leipzig, Dresden and Stuttgart. This week has been Europes worst this year for travel disruption, with separate strikes in France and Finland. Italian employees are set to walk out on March 20.
By Tom Perry BEIRUT (Reuters) - U.S.-backed Syrian forces said on Thursday they were closing in on Islamic State-held Raqqa and expected to reach the city outskirts in a few weeks, as a U.S. Marines artillery unit deployed to help the campaign. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a militia alliance including the Kurdish YPG, is the main U.S. partner in the war against Islamic State in Syria. Since November it has been working with the U.S.-led coalition to encircle Raqqa. SDF spokesman Talal Silo said: "We expect that within a few weeks there will be a siege of the city." Coalition spokesman U.S. Air Force Colonel John Dorrian said the additional U.S. forces would be working with local partners in Syria - the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Syrian Arab Coalition - and would not have a front line role. Some 500 U.S. personnel are already in Syria to help the fight against IS. A 400-strong additional deployment which arrived in recent days comprised both Marines and Army Rangers, Dorrian said, adding they were there temporarily. Coalition airstrikes killed 23 civilians, including eight children, in the countryside north of Raqqa on Thursday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor said. The coalition said it was investigating the incident. Islamic State is also being fought in Syria by the Russian-backed Syrian military, and by Syrian rebel groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army banner with Turkish backing in northern Syria and Jordanian backing in southern Syria. On the other major flank of the assault on IS, Iraqi forces aim to dislodge the militant group from west Mosul within a month. This week, the SDF cut the road between Raqqa and the jihadists' stronghold of Deir al-Zor province - the last main road out of the city which is bordered to the south by the Euphrates River. Dorrian said the effort to isolate Raqqa was "going very very well" and could be completed in a few weeks. "Then the decision to move in can be made," he told Reuters by telephone. The artillery will help "expedite the defeat of ISIS in Raqqa", he said, using another acronym for Islamic State. The Marines were armed with 155-millimetre artillery guns. Asked if they had been used yet, Dorrian said he did not believe so. "We have had what I would describe as a pretty relentless air campaign to destroy enemy capabilities and to kill enemy fighters in that area already. That is something that we are going to continue and intensify with this new capability." A Kurdish military source told Reuters that further U.S. reinforcements were expected to arrive in the coming days. SDF RULED OUT TURKEY ROLE The U.S. military alliance with the SDF and YPG has strained relations with U.S. ally Turkey, which views the YPG as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has waged a three-decade insurgency in Turkey. Fearing deepening Kurdish influence in northern Syria, Turkey has been pressing Washington for a role in the final assault on Raqqa. SDF spokesman Silo said the SDF had ruled out that idea during a meeting with U.S. officials last month. "The Turkish side is an occupation force and it cannot be allowed to occupy more Syrian land," he told Reuters. The meeting in northern Syria was attended by U.S. Senator John McCain and U.S. military officials, he said. Dorrian said the Army Rangers were on a different mission to the Marines in a previously announced deployment near the city of Manbij to "create some reassurance" for Turkey and U.S. partners in Syria - a reference to the SDF. Turkey says the Kurdish militia maintains a presence in Manbij. The YPG denies this. Dorrian said a possible role for Turkey "remains a point of discussion at military leadership and diplomatic levels". He added that a new shipment of armoured personnel carriers had been supplied to the Syrian Arab Coalition, part of the SDF which has been vetted by the U.S.-led coalition, since an earlier delivery was announced in late January. (Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Toby Chopra)
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebel groups called for the postponement of Russian-backed peace talks in Kazakhstan this month and said further meetings would depend on whether the government and its allies adhered to a newly declared March 7-20 ceasefire. The third round of talks is due to take place in Astana on March 14-15. The previous meetings aimed to shore up a widely violated ceasefire between the sides that was brokered in December by Russia and Turkey, which backs the rebels. Russia backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the conflict, and launched recent diplomatic efforts after its air force helped the Syrian government to defeat rebels in Aleppo in December - Assad's biggest victory of the war. In a statement, the rebels said they had received an invitation to a third round of talks in the Kazakh capital Astana but this should be delayed until after the end of the ceasefire. "The continuation of the meetings is linked to an assessment of the results of the ceasefire and commitment to it," the rebel groups said. The rebels said the government and its Iranian-backed militia allies were continuing to bombard opposition-held areas near Damascus, Homs, Deraa and Idlib, and preparing to storm two districts on the outskirts of the Syrian capital. This was going on "before the eyes and ears of the Russian guarantor", the statement said. Russian warplanes had also bombed civilians, it said. The March 7-20 ceasefire was declared by Russia's defence ministry and applies specifically to the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta region near Damascus - one of the areas the rebels said remained under attack. The ceasefires do not include the jihadist group Islamic State or the group formerly known as the Nusra Front, which was al Qaeda's official affiliate in the war until it formally broke off ties last year. (Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Dominic Evans)
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  A $6.1 billion spending plan and a $350 million-plus grab bag of tax increases to help pay for it are headed to the Senate floor, after being approved Friday by the Senate Finance Committee.

Both bills have already been approved by the House but were revised by the Senate committee over several days of behind-the-scenes negotiations before committee members voted unanimously to approve them in a debate that took less than 15 minutes.

Sen. Carlos Cisneros, D-Questa, the committees vice chairman, described the spending and tax bills as a fair package, saying the goal was to avoid additional cuts to public schools that could have led to furloughs and layoffs.

That, to me, would be far greater of a pain than any tax increases that are in here, Cisernos told the Journal after Fridays vote.

However, Gov. Susana Martinez has already expressed opposition to at least some of the proposed tax measures  including an increase of 10 cents a gallon in the states gasoline tax rate and a two-year delay in a corporate income tax rate cut thats being phased in over several years.

If Martinez were to veto the entire tax increase bill, the entire budget bill would likely also have to be vetoed. Like most states, New Mexico is required to end each fiscal year with a balanced budget, under the state Constitution.

The governor can use her line-item veto authority to ax certain provisions, but the question is whether enough revenue-generating pieces would be left in the bill to cover spending levels in the budget.

A Martinez statement indicated the governor was still cool on the tax hike package.

As the governor has said repeatedly, she opposes raising taxes, Martinez spokesman Michael Lonergan said. She has presented various options to the Legislature that total up to $300 million in savings and is encouraged by recent conversations with lawmakers.

One bill thats been mentioned as part of a potential budget compromise, a House-approved bill aiming to overhaul the states gross receipts tax structure, was not acted on Friday.

However, House Bill 412, sponsored by Rep. Jason Harper, R-Rio Rancho, is still expected to be in the budget mix, either as another piece to the budget puzzle or a potential fallback option were the other tax bill to be vetoed.

Changes

The spending bill approved Friday by the Senate Finance Committee would not significantly change overall spending levels from the plan approved last month by the House.

It would still cut spending for New Mexico universities, but would increase funding for the cash-strapped judicial branch. And Medicaid spending would remain largely flat.

There are some significant alterations from the House plan, however, including adding roughly $15.9 million for teacher stipends, early reading intervention and other education initiatives backed by the Martinez administration.

To keep spending largely neutral, funding that flows directly to school districts through a state funding formula was then pared back, though it would still be up from current levels.

In all, the revised plan would only slightly increase state spending over this years levels, which were pared back during a special session last fall. Overall spending for public schools, which already makes up about 43 percent of the state budget, would increase by roughly $13.3 million  or 0.5 percent.

Education leaders say that would be welcome news after several rounds of K-12 spending reductions, but likely not enough to offset the cuts.

The small overall increase is encouraging, but were discouraged that overall state education spending remains way too low to provide all the services students need, said Charles Goodmacher, the government and media relations director for National Education Association-New Mexico, a teachers union.

New revenue

In addition to gasoline and corporate income tax, other provisions of the tax bill include taxing online sales, increasing the permit fee for commercial trucks and raising the tax rate on new and used vehicle sales from 3 percent to 4 percent.

In all, the tax package would generate an estimated $363 million in the coming year, with some of those dollars being earmarked for cash reserves and road repairs statewide. The rest would flow into the states general fund.

Two consecutive years of lower-than-expected revenue collections, caused primarily by plummeting oil and natural gas prices, have led to New Mexicos cash reserves being largely depleted and a downgrade of the states top bond rating.

While leaders in the Democratic-controlled Legislature opposed to additional cuts, Martinez, the states two-term Republican governor, has vowed to oppose any tax hike approved by lawmakers and has insisted other budget-balancing options are available.

Meanwhile, both the budget and tax bills, which are House Bill 2 and House Bill 202, respectively, could be voted on today on the Senate floor.

The chambers top Republican said Friday that voting on tax increase bills isnt easy, but lawmakers are trying to keep the states best interests in mind.

Weve got to have enough money to operate, said Senate Minority Leader Stuart Ingle, R-Portales.

Highlights

A roughly $363 million tax package approved Friday by a Senate committee has multiple provisions, some of which are opposed by Gov. Susana Martinez.

The measure would:

 Increase the excise tax rate on sales of new and used vehicles to 4 percent from 3 percent.

 Raise the gasoline tax rate by 10 cents a gallon  cents to 27 cents from 17  and the diesel tax rate by 5 cents a gallon.

 Require out-of-state online retailers to collect gross receipts tax from New Mexico consumers.

 Impose a two-year freeze on a corporate income tax rate cut thats being gradually implemented.

 Raise the annual permit fee on commercial trucks from $5.50 to $55 per vehicle.
As a Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Akhilesh Yadav ignored critical areas of public service. Indiatoday.in had reported the findings of a survey, in which only 3 per cent respondents felt safe in Uttar Pradesh while 91 per cent felt there were no jobs for youth under Akhilesh government.

By India Today Web Desk: In 2012, the people of Uttar Pradesh had given a vote for youthful governance as word had spread during the elections that a vote for Samajwadi Party would see young foreign educated Akhilesh Yadav as the Chief Minister of the state.

Akhilesh Yadav did become the Chief Minister succeeding BSP chief Mayawati. He went on to become only the second UP Chief Minister to complete full tenure. But, like his predecessor Akhilesh has been voted out by people of Uttar Pradesh.

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READ| UP Election Results 2017 LIVE: Modi recreates 2014 wave, blows away SP-Congress, BSP

Akhilesh's government did not live up to the expectations generated during the 2012 election campaign. An online survey, conducted towards the end of Akhilesh's tenure as Chief Minister, had shown that only three percent people were felt that Uttar Pradesh was safe.

Indiatoday.in did an analysis of the survey on February 2 this year. The report is reproduced here for the readers to understand where did Akhilesh get it wrong.

An online survey, conducted by social engagement platform LocalCircles, indicates that despite Akhilesh's claims, the 14.12 crore voters of Uttar Pradesh may be looking for an alternative in the assembly polls.

READ| Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Why Akhilesh, Rahul did not stand a chance

SAFETY WORRIES

Only three per cent of the participants said that they felt safe in Uttar Pradesh. An overwhelming 82 per cent were concerned about their safety while 15 per cent said the police were responsive.

The response of the UP voters corroborates the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figures. UP tops the list of states in overall crime.

POLICE, PROPERTY OFFICES MOST CORRUPT

In the online survey, carried out ahead of the assembly elections, about 37 per cent respondents said that in Uttar Pradesh, police department is the most corrupt. Another 37 per cent put the property registration office as equally corrupt.

Real estate is one of the booming businesses in Uttar Pradesh. With this horizontal expansion and change in the skyline, people's hope also inflated in Uttar Pradesh and so did corruption.

AKHILESH IGNORED HEALTHCARE

Another key area for Uttar Pradesh is healthcare. Private hospital and nursing homes have mushroomed in the state and with this the cost of treatment has also shot northwards.

READ| How BJP found winning formula with non-Yadav OBCs, non-Jatav SCs

On the other hand, of all the poll-bound states, Uttar Pradesh's per capita public expenditure on health is the lowest. Akhilesh Yadav government spends 30 per cent less than the national average while Goa with a fraction of UP's population spends five times more.

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It is no surprise that about 89 per cent of respondents in the survey termed Akhilesh government's healthcare services as poor. About 79 per cent found healthcare infrastructure as bad.

In terms of per capita income, Uttar Pradesh is just above Bihar in the country and one-sixth of Goa, which tops the list among the Indian states.

UTTAR PRADESH: A NO-JOB STATE

About 91 per cent of the participants of the survey felt that Akhilesh government has not done enough to create jobs.

Respondents from far off places in UP lamented that there were no or very limited job opportunities for the youth forcing them to migrate for better livelihood.

ALSO WATCH

CORRUPTION HOLDS UTTAR PRADESH BACK

Akhilesh Yadav has claimed a number of times that he has zero-tolerance for corruption. Amid his tussle with all-powerful uncle and former UP SP chief Shivpal Yadav, Akhilesh sacked two ministers from his cabinet on corruption charges. But that has not salvaged his government's image.

About 73 per cent people echoed the need to fight corruption and improve ease of doing business for creation of jobs and achieve growth in Uttar Pradesh.

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CONSOLATION FOR AKHILESH

The only consolation for Akhilesh Yadav seems to be coming from the field of infrastructure. Akhilesh himself claimed while releasing Samajwadi Party's manifesto that Lucknow-Agra Expressway was enough for people to vote for him.

About 58 per cent people agree with Akhilesh Yadav that his government has done some 'Kaam' in building infrastructure.

But 43 per cent people wish the new government to focus on building roads as top priority. Another 34 per cent said that the new government should improve availability of power in Uttar Pradesh.

Akhilesh Yadav seems to have got the sense of public mood, which perhaps forced him to ally with the Congress by parting 105 seats.

In 2012, when the Samajwadi Party was in the opposition, had contested all 403 seats but after five years of rule, it agreed to contest in only 298 constituencies. What a climb down by Samajwadi Party under Akhilesh Yadav!

ALSO WATCH | Assembly election results 2017: Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav submits resignation

--- ENDS ---
The Statue of Liberty went dark Tuesday, the day after President Donald Trump signed his revised executive order, dubbed the Muslim ban 2.0, excluding all refugees and people from six majority-Muslim countries. The darkening also foreshadowed the next day, Wednesday, International Womens Day, which was organized as a strike this year: A Day Without a Woman.

International Womens Day has been celebrated on March 8 for more than a century, but this years global day of action was marked with an added sense of urgency. A man who was caught on tape bragging about committing sexual assault is now the president of the United States.

The day after Trumps inauguration, more than 4 million people protested from coast to coast, perhaps the largest political protest in U.S. history. The Womens March on Washington alone was three times the size of his inauguration crowd the day before, a fact that clearly enraged the president.

Two days later, Trump would sign an executive order imposing a global gag rule, which bans U.S. foreign aid to any nongovernmental organization that provides abortion or even talks about it as an option. Trump also is pressuring lawmakers to pass the Republican bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act. The law would strip funding for Planned Parenthood, which provides a broad array of health-care services to more than 2.5 million Americans annually. Only 3 percent of its services are abortion-related, and no federal funding goes to provide abortions.

With events in over 50 countries, this years womens strike is the largest in recent history. March 8th will be the beginning of a new international feminist movement that organizes resistance not just against Trump and his misogynist policies, the organizers website states, but also against the conditions that produced Trump, namely the decades-long economic inequality, racial and sexual violence, and imperial wars abroad.

Just this week, a leaked document revealed that the Department of Homeland Security is considering a proposal to separate refugee mothers from their children if they are apprehended crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.

In a video promoting the global action, people declare their reasons for participating:

Im striking on March 8th because I believe women should be free to make the decisions regarding their own bodies  Im striking on March 8th for equal pay and equal opportunity, because womens work makes all other work possible and because its about time we start valuing womens labor  Im striking on March 8th because when I go out, I want to feel free, not brave  because women matter.

As dawn broke over Washington, D.C., on International Womens Day, Donald Trump tweeted: I have tremendous respect for women and the many roles they serve that are vital to the fabric of our society and our economy. This from the man who has been accused of sexual assault and sexual harassment by at least 15 women, half of them just during his recent campaign.

The women of the world and their male allies are judging Trump not on his words but on his deeds. They are engaged, they are enraged, and they are organizing across issues. Trump is doing damage, daily, to pillars of progressive achievement for which people have fought, gone to prison, even died for, for over a century. But the resistance is growing, offering hope in a time of darkness.
It was among the oddest email requests I ever got. Please visit: MyShipwreck.com. The blog will either interest you or not. I was instantly fascinated with the postings from someone calling himself Captain Shipwreck.

The man behind the blog is Mark B. and hes currently serving a 17-year sentence at the Federal Correctional Institute at Loretto, Pa., on charges of possessing and distributing child pornography. He fully admits he is guilty of consuming and stockpiling porn  a lot of it  but Mark denies he ever distributed porn and says he pleaded guilty only because his lawyer convinced him he could get life in prison if he didnt take a plea agreement.

Mark types out his thoughts in a small room off the prison library and mails the pages to his brother, who posts Marks thoughts online. The original email I received came from his worried sister. My brother is a good man, she wrote.

He made a huge mistake, and his world will never be the same. I cant sanitize what he did, but I can tell you this. He never touched a child, never bought (child pornography) and never sold it. (It is) all online  for free.

His addiction, as Mark calls it, started with readily available adult porn, and as he clicked on more and more tantalizing pop-up ads, he became ensnared in photos and videos of sex partners clearly not old enough to consent. Mark had no idea the FBI was watching him.

His backstory: Mark, a white man raised along Floridas southeastern beaches, was 52 when arrested. He had no police record and was, by all accounts, a hardworking, married man with two young children. Mark loved the water and boats and earned his captains license in 1979. When arrested, he was captain of a yacht called A Loan At Last, which the FBI said was the scene of his crimes and where Mark was taken into custody in October 2010. Not only did Mark use his down time on the yacht to view internet porn, he also stole Wi-Fi signals from nearby luxury condos to disguise his IP address and avoid detection.

How does a family man with a good job and a clean record wind up convicted of possession and distribution of the vilest type of pornography? What was the attraction to something that repulses the rest of us? After considerable planning I was able to talk to Mark in a series of strictly enforced 15-minute prison phone calls over several days.

Why consume and save such revolting images?

Too much free time, boredom and curiosity, he said during one of our calls. Im a fisherman by trade. It was like cast your net out there and see what you can find. Might it have been a by-product of the molestation he suffered as an 8- and 9-year-old at the hands of the family priest, as his sister suggests? Mark doesnt think so because, as he said, I always just tried to forget that and get on with my life.

You just go click-click-click and you dont realize what it is, Mark explained. Adult, teen, child, you get it all because its all mixed together. Its like all thrown out in the sea. He consistently used nautical terms to describe his internet experience, You put your hook down and dont know what youll pull up  and with porn you cant throw it back. But Mark did more than just look. He saved thousands of appalling photos and videos on his laptop.

Mark told me he was actually relieved when FBI agents took him into custody. It wasnt because he feared he might harm a child someday  his two children both told various therapists nothing happened with Daddy, ever  rather, he said, it had become too big a burden in his life. As Mark put it, I think I was more addicted than a heroin addict.

When the judge announced what many saw as a particularly harsh sentence, Mark remembers, One statement that the judge (said)  sticks out in my head as being true and to the point. I put myself here. Now, Mark says, hes concentrating on rehabilitation and forgiving himself for spending so much time doing what he knew was morally wrong.

It is a bittersweet exercise because he has lost everything. His marriage dissolved, and his wife does not allow him to communicate with the children, which causes Mark immense pain. His daughter turns 17 this month, his son is 10. His savings were wiped out and his extended family has fractured because of his crimes. If Mark serves his entire sentence, he will be close to 70 upon release and will forever be a registered sex offender. He will always wonder why the feds dont crack down harder on those who produce and profit from child pornography.

Next week: Marks description of what prison is like for someone convicted of the sexual exploitation of children, and his heartfelt warning to others who find themselves tempted by online pornography.

www.DianeDimond.com; e-mail to Diane@DianeDimond.com.
WASHINGTON  When he was Ronald Reagans secretary of state, George Shultz was once asked about the CIAs disavowal of involvement in a mysterious recent bombing in Lebanon. Replied Shultz: If the CIA denies something, its denied.

Has there ever been a more dry, more wry, more ironic verdict on the world of espionage? Within it, there is admission and denial, smoke and mirrors, impenetrable fog and deliberate obfuscation. Truth? Ask the next guy.

Which is why my default view of espionage is to never believe anyone because everyone is trained in deception. This is not a value judgment; its a job description.

We learn, for example, from Tuesdays spectacular WikiLeaks dump that among the CIAs various and nefarious cybertools is the capacity to simulate intrusion by a foreign power, the equivalent of planting prints on a smoking gun.

Who are you going to believe now? I can assure you that some enterprising Trumpite will use this revelation to claim that the whole storyline pointing to Russian interference in the U.S. election was a fabrication. And who was behind that? There is no end to this hall of mirrors. My rule, therefore, is: Stay away.

Hard to do with Washington caught up in one of its periodic conspiracy frenzies. Actually, two. One, anti-Donald Trump, is that he and his campaign colluded with Russian intelligence. The other, anti-Barack Obama-CIA-deep state, is that Obama wiretapped Trump Tower to ensnare candidate Trump.

The odd thing is that, as of today, there is no evidence for either charge. That wont, of course, stop the launch of all-consuming investigations.

(1) Collusion: James Clapper, Obamas director of national intelligence, deeply and publicly at odds with Trump, unequivocally states he has seen zero evidence of Trump campaign collusion with Russia. Nor has anyone else.

The contrary suspicion arises because its hard to explain why Michael Flynn falsely denied discussing sanctions with the Russian ambassador and why Jeff Sessions falsely denied having any contacts at all. That suggests concealment. But there was nothing inherently inappropriate with either behavior. So why conceal?

Suspicion, nonetheless, is far short of assertion  and a fairly thin basis for a major investigation, let alone for a special prosecutor. To prosecute what exactly?

(2) Wiretap: The other storyline is simply fantastical. Congressional Republicans have uniformly run away from Trumps Obama-wiretap accusation. Clapper denies it. FBI Director James Comey denies it. Not a single member of Trumps administration will say its true.

Loopier still is to demand Congress find the truth when the president could just pick up the phone and instruct the FBI, CIA and DNI to declare on the record whether this ever occurred. And if there really was an October 2016 FISA court order to wiretap Trump, the president could unilaterally declassify the information yesterday.

One could spin a milder  and more plausible  scenario of executive abuse. It goes like this:

The intelligence agencies are allowed to listen in on foreigners. But if any Americans are swept up in the conversation, their part of it is supposed to be redacted or concealed to protect their identity. According to The New York Times, however, the Obama administration appears to have worked to make sure information picked up about Trump associates contacts with Russians was as widely disseminated as possible.

Under Obama, did the agencies deliberately abuse the right to listen in on foreigners as a way to listen in, improperly, on Americans?

If they did, we will find out. But for now, all of this is mere conjuring. There is no evidence for either the collusion or the wiretap charge. We are headed down a rabbit hole.

Its unquiet out there. North Korea keeps testing missiles as practice for attacking U.S. bases in Japan. We are scrambling to install an antimissile shield in South Korea as early as next month. Fuses are burning. When the detonations begin, wed better not be in the rabbit hole.
Hiring at PCM and Safelite AutoGlass has exceeded expectations, business representatives said this week.

Randy Randolph, Safelites vice president of real estate and market development; PCM senior sales manager Mark Alexander; and PCM senior talent acquisition manager Charles Walters discussed job recruitment and business in Rio Rancho during Thursdays NAIOP Rio Rancho Roundtable meeting at Presbyterian Rust Medical Center and hosted by New Mexico Economic Development Department Cabinet Secretary Matt Geisel.

Last June, PCM announced plans to open a call and sales center in a portion of the HP center in City Center. The California-based company projected it would create 224 jobs by 2020, with annual salaries ranging between $45,000 and $65,000.

Two weeks later, Safelite announced it would open a customer contact center in the former Sprint building in Enchanted Hills. The auto glass repair company expected to create 893 jobs by 2019, with wages for full-time employees ranging between $11 and $13 an hour.

According to Randolph and Walters, both companies will meet and exceed their hiring goals by the end of the year. PCM is expected to reach 220 employees by May, Walters said, with plans to have 317 employees by Dec. 31. Similarly, Safelite has hired 696 full- and part-time employees, Randolph said, with expectations of reaching more than 1,000 by the end of the year.

Walters said he was happy with PCMs decision to expand to Rio Rancho, saying 96 percent of the sites employees were from New Mexico. Before PCM decided to expand to New Mexico, Walters said the company initially had plans to grow at established sites elsewhere.

We were evaluating: Can we grow in Montreal, can we grow in Chicago? We were basically looking at which center could house more people and then suddenly we get this phone call from some people in Rio Rancho, Walters said. The (state) incentives were a big driving factor, but one thing I like to touch on is that we saw through the process, and we continue to see now, is the community.

PCM and Safelite received funds from the states local economic development act and job training incentive program funds. Geisel, who spoke to both companies last summer about Rio Rancho as the citys economic development and business relations manager, said discussions about state incentives came late in the process.

We educated about the tools and talked about the tools, but dollars came at the very, very end which is very common in this business, Geisel said. A lot of people think that we lead with incentives, that we talk about dollars on day one and were signing blank checks.

Geisel said the existing real estate for PCM and Safelite helped seal the deals.

One of the great things about having ready real estate is it provides predictability to the process, he said. Being able to articulate how quickly you could move their process from A to Z, whether thats through rock and dirt to a certificate of occupancy, being able to articulate that timeline.
Growing Rio Ranchos economy and improving neighborhood road conditions were near the top of a list of priorities created during this weeks public city strategic planning meeting.

Between 20 and 30 residents participated during Tuesdays strategic planning meeting, held at Loma Colorado Main Library. The evening event was created by the city and hosted by Patrick Ibarra of the Mejorando Group. Residents at the event responded to three questions: what do you most enjoy about Rio Rancho, what are Rio Ranchos biggest challenges, and what do residents want from the citys strategic plan. All responses were written on a large notepad by Ibarra, before being placed alongside the walls of the conference room.

Ibarra said the public event was like a tool for city elected officials to narrow in on what constituents want, comparing officials to cooks creating a recipe book.

The strategic plan will help clarify what that recipe is, he said. Theyre going into the kitchen of their community and trying to figure out what it is that people want to eat?

On the long list of things residents enjoyed about the city were: the citys school system, nearby hospitals and health care, the areas low crime rate and residential housing values.

I feel our community is good for raising families, Aaron Fleming said, praising the citys schools and Parks and Recreation department.

Tom Carter said he moved from Chicago to Rio Rancho more than 30 years ago for the areas climate and clean air, saying the citys thin air helped his sons asthma. Carter, a school bus attendant, said he was concerned about the school districts lack of state funds.

School funding is a real big problem right now, Carter said. The budget for transportation is inadequate and I dont know what theyre doing in Santa Fe about it because were $800,000 short and that $800,000 has to come out of the school budget rather than transportation (budget).

Fixing the citys road conditions was near the top of the residents list of city challenges, with paving residential dirt roads considered as a priority.

Several residents said the city should continue to grow its economy and offer residents more job opportunities. To do so, Ibarra said, residents should consider how Rio Rancho could attract more businesses to the area.

Ive worked in cities in every time zone of the United States and we were all centrally located, thats what we said. We all had great schools, we all had great parks, we all had wonderful festivals  in other words, we were like everybody else, Ibarra said. How do you make yourself as a community distinctive to be a place to invest, both residentially and economically?

City residents who could not attend the event can still comment on the citys planning online at rrnm.gov/2017sp. Online questions include: what are Rio Ranchos biggest challenges; what are the citys greatest strengths; what city services would residents like to see more of; what issues are important to the citys future; and whats the citys potential in the next five years.
Sandoval County has agreed to a $1.8 million settlement that will resolve a lawsuit alleging that the time Raynbow Gignilliat spent in solitary confinement at the county jail led to her suicide.

Sidney Hill, spokesman for Sandoval County, said the countys out of pocket cost for the case is a $15,000 deductible paid to its insurance company.

Gignilliat, 39, a mother of three, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and had managed her mental health for years without medication. But her mental health declined amid a divorce and custody dispute, according to the lawsuit her family filed in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque. She was living with her mother in Sandoval County. In late October 2013, she was arrested on a domestic battery charge.

After about two weeks in custody, Gignilliat was moved into segregation, though it is not clear why, which meant she was kept alone in a cell for 24 hours per day.

Jails know that every day a significant portion of their population has mental illness, said Jack Jacks, the attorney representing Gignilliats family. The easy choice is to merely lock them in a small cell and leave them there, because at least they arent creating problems.

Her mental health deteriorated rapidly.

After just six days, correctional officers noted that Gignilliat was throwing feces around her cell, according to the lawsuit.

She pounded on the window, punched herself, splashed herself with water from the toilet, hallucinated and screamed.

The suit alleged that employees were aware of her mental health deterioration, but made no effort to find treatment for her.

After watching her health decline for six weeks, according to the lawsuit, Gignilliat was taken to a hospital emergency room. A doctor recommended that Gignilliat be moved to a facility offering psychiatric care and that she receive psychiatric medication, or she will die, the lawsuit argues. She was released from the hospital and returned to segregation, according to the lawsuit.

In January 2014, she was moved to the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute, and with treatment was able to do normal activities, according to the lawsuit.

She was released from the institute in the spring, Jacks said, and the charges against her were dropped, but in June 2014, she committed suicide.

She just was never the same after being released from the jail, Jacks said.

The county agreed to a $1.8 million settlement, Jacks said. The money will be distributed into separate trust funds for each of Gignilliats three young sons.
U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., deserves kudos for hosting last weeks town hall meeting, his first since the general election.

A raucous crowd of about 300 constituents from his far-flung southern New Mexico district gathered on Saturday at the Ruidoso Convention Center to quiz Pearce about a range of topics, many dealing with the halting start of President Donald Trumps administration.

During the first town halls following the election, many Republicans in Congress faced fired-up crowds, many of them Democrats angry over Trumps plans for health care, education, public lands, the environment, immigration and the border. Some got out of hand, and there have been claims outsiders were brought to agitate the crowds.

Pearce had drawn criticism  including from the Journal  for not holding a town hall sooner, although he did hold a telephonic town hall on Feb. 15 that his office said involved about 10,000 callers.

Pearce spent part of the congressional recess traveling abroad, according to his press secretary. As part of his duties as chairman of the new House Financial Services Subcommittee on Terrorism and Illicit Finance, Pearce visited Urkaine, the Czech Republic, Afghanistan, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Uganda, Benin, Togo, Ghana and Algeria at the invitation of Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla.

But theres no education like meeting your constituents face to face, and that people from Las Cruces, Artesia, Roswell, Carlsbad and elsewhere traveled to the mountain retreat of Ruidoso to see Pearce shows the importance they place on seeing their elected representatives up close, live and in person. Its noteworthy Pearce started the meeting by requesting questions from people who disagreed with him. The most important thing that happened is that we, with very different viewpoints, sat down and had a civil discussion, he told the Journal after the two-hour town hall. Yes, it was rowdy. I dont mind that at all. People do have strong opinions, and this is how the process works.

Pearce has another town hall scheduled for 9 a.m. today in Hobbs. He is showing New Mexico and Washington how grass-roots democracy works, and his colleagues in D.C. should take note.

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.
For an up close and powerful way to learn use your words, join seven high school students at 1 p.m. on Sundayin the St. Francis Auditorium of the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe as they compete to become state champion in the Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Contest.

This year marks the 12th annual New Mexico Poetry Out Loud event, organizers said in a news release.

Santa Fe radio DJ Michelle Laflamme-Childs, who manages New Mexico Arts public art program, will serve as master of ceremonies. Special guest artists include Hakim Bellamy, Albuquerques first poet laureate, and state Sen. Bill ONeill of Albuquerque, a published poet, who will perform original works. Admission to the event is free and open to the public.

More than 10,500 New Mexico high school students have participated in the program. Some 1,202 students and 19 teachers took part at the classroom level in preliminary events across New Mexico.

Poetry Out Loud, at its core, is about the power of poetry, said Jane Chu, chair of the National Endowment for the Arts, in a statement.

The state winner will receive $200, plus $500 for their school library for the purchase of poetry books. In addition, the state champion will receive an all-expense-paid trip, with an adult chaperone, to Washington, D.C., to compete at the National Finals in May. The national champion receives $20,000 in prizes.

Schools winners participating in the 2017 state finals include: Lizzy Enos, 15, Bosque School, Albuquerque; DNessa McDaniel, 17, Highland High School, Albuquerque; Michelle Zhou, 17, La Cueva High School, Albuquerque; Daimon Sisneros, 18, Maxwell Municipal Schools; Juan Andres Rodriguez, 18, Public Academy for Performing Arts, Albuquerque; Verona Gomez, 18, Onate High School, Las Cruces; and Julia Johnson-Jaramillo, 17, Taos High School.

The New Mexico Museum of Art is located at 107 West Palace Avenue in downtown Santa Fe. For more information, contact Phyllis Kennedy, New Mexico Arts, at (505) 476-0520 or (800) 879-4278 (statewide), or email phyllis.kennedy@state.nm.us.

We welcome suggestions for the daily Bright Spot. Send to newsroom@abqjournal.com.
LOUISVILLE, Ky.  Vice President Mike Pence appealed for total GOP congressional support for a White House-backed health overhaul during a brief visit Saturday to Kentucky, where the Republican governor and junior senator are among the plans skeptics.

This is going to be a battle in Washington, D.C. And for us to seize this opportunity to repeal and replace Obamacare once and for all, we need every Republican in Congress, and were counting on Kentucky, Pence said at an energy company where business leaders had gathered.

He said President Donald Trump would lean on House Republicans  including two Kentucky lawmakers in the audience, Reps. Andy Barr and Brett Guthrie  to vote to replace former President Barack Obamas law.

Pences trip was part of an effort to reassure conservatives who have raised objections to the House plan. In a sign of the high stakes, Pences motorcade passed a long line of demonstrators who chanted, Save our care.

Almost at the time Pence landed in Louisville, Trump tweeted: We are making great progress with health care. ObamaCare is imploding and will only get worse. Republicans coming together to get job done!

The former Indiana governor has been the chief salesman for Trumps push to jettison the Affordable Care Act. The House is expected to vote on the bill in less than two weeks, but faces resistance from critics within the GOP, including Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who has called the initial draft Obamacare Lite.

Even before the legislation was released, Paul placed a copy machine outside the room where House Republicans were drafting the bill and asked for a copy  all to draw attention to the secrecy of the plan.

GOP Gov. Matt Bevin has said his state cannot afford to pay for a growing Medicaid program, which has cost Kentucky millions more than initially expected and now covers more than 25 percent of the states population. He has dismantled Kentuckys state-based exchange but indicated he would not favor eliminating the federal health insurance exchange.

Bevin told reporters Friday that, like Paul, he was not impressed with the initial proposal in the House.

But on Saturday he said that while there were different views on how to change the law, ultimately these differences of opinion will be rectified. He said all could agree that change has to come  the system is broken.

Now I know that not every politician in Kentucky supports our plan, Pence said, mentioning former Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear but neither Paul nor Bevin.

After greeting Pence at the airport, Bevin and his children and their friend got an impromptu tour of Air Force Two, and Pence later told business leaders: I was for Matt Bevin before it was cool.

Democrats have praised Beshears use of the health care law to drive down the states uninsured rate and his smooth rollout of kynect, the state-run exchange, even while Obama struggled with the national release of healthcare.gov.

The event at the Harshaw Trane facility was in the hometown of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., whom Pence praised as a true friend to me, to our president, and to the people of America.

McConnell, however, did not attend due to a scheduling conflict.

___

On Twitter follow Ken Thomas at https://twitter.com/KThomasDC
NEW YORK  A defiant Manhattan federal prosecutor who says absolute independence was his touchstone for over seven years as he battled public corruption announced he was fired Saturday after he refused to resign.

Preet Bharara, 48, revealed his firing on his personal Twitter account. Several hours later, it was learned President Donald Trump had reached out through a secretary on his staff to Bharara on Thursday but the two men never spoke.

The attempted contact  described by a person told about the conversations who requested anonymity  continued the unusual dynamic between Trump and the high profile prosecutor that stretched to Nov. 30, when Bharara emerged from a Trump Tower meeting with Trump to say the then-president-elect had asked him to stay on the job.

The person who requested anonymity because of the talks private nature said the secretary late Thursday left a voicemail asking Bharara to call back. Bharara reported the call to Sessions chief of staff, Joseph Jody Hunt, who agreed it was best that Bharara not speak directly with Trump, the person said. Bharara then called the White House, telling the secretary he had spoken to the Justice Department and it was agreed he and Trump should not speak.

Bharara was informed he was fired by Dana Boente, the acting deputy attorney general, shortly after it became widely known that he did not intend to step down in response to Attorney General Jeff Sessions request that leftover appointees of former President Barack Obama quit.

I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired, Bharara said in a tweet.

In a statement later, he said: Serving my country as U.S. Attorney here for the past seven years will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life, no matter what else I do or how long I live. One hallmark of justice is absolute independence, and that was my touchstone every day that I served.

He said current Deputy U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim will serve as acting U.S. attorney.

The Justice Department late Saturday confirmed Bharara was no longer U.S. attorney but declined to expound.

Meanwhile, Michigan Rep. John Conyers, the House Judiciary Committees top Democrat, requested Saturday that the committee receive a summary of probes linked to Trump, whether they touch on his administration, transition, campaign and organization, so that we can understand the full implications of this weekends firings.

He said he suspected Bharara could be reviewing a range of potential improper activity emanating from Trump Tower and the Trump campaign, as well as entities with financial ties to the president or the Trump organization.

Bharara was appointed by former President Barack Obama in 2009. In frequent public appearances, Bharara has decried public corruption after successfully prosecuting over a dozen state lawmakers, Democrats and Republicans alike.

Sessions decision to include Bhararas name on the list of 46 resignations of holdovers from the Obama administration surprised Manhattan prosecutors.

While it is customary for a new president to replace virtually all of the 93 U.S. attorneys, it often occurs at a slower pace. Sessions lost his position as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Alabama in a similar sweep by then-Attorney General Janet Reno in 1993.

Robert Morgenthau, a Democratic U.S. attorney in Manhattan, famously held out for nearly a year after Republican President Richard Nixons 1969 inauguration, saying he needed to see some important cases through. He ultimately left in January 1970, after the White House declared he was being replaced and announced a nominee.

New York Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat, said in a statement Friday that he was troubled to learn of the resignation demands, particularly of Bharara, since Trump called him in November and assured him he wanted Bharara to remain in place.

Bharara met Trump Nov. 30, saying afterward hed been asked to remain in the job. Bharara, once lauded on the cover of Time magazine as the man who is busting Wall Street after successfully prosecuting dozens of insider traders, has in recent years gone after over a dozen state officeholders,  including New Yorks two most powerful lawmakers.

It also recently was revealed that his office is investigating the financial terms of settlements of sexual-harassment claims against Fox News by its employees.

The request from Sessions came as Bhararas office is prosecuting former associates of Democratic Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in a bribery case. Also, prosecutors recently interviewed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as part of a probe into his fundraising. The mayors press secretary has said the mayor is cooperating and that he and his staff had acted appropriately.

The request for resignations came after Trump last weekend claimed Obama tapped his telephones during last years election. FBI Director James Comey privately asked the Justice Department to dispute the claim because he believed the allegations were false. Bharara worked for Comey when he was U.S. attorney in Manhattan under President George W. Bush.

Annemarie McAvoy, a former Brooklyn federal prosecutor, said it was not surprising Trump might want Bharara gone since theres a good chance any subpoena seeking information about Trump campaign links to Russians would go through his office. She said it was also possible Trump wanted to take out as many people as they can in the prior administration given the leaks and problems that theyre having.

Last week, the quick-witted Bharara initiated a new personal Twitter feed and sent an ominous message in which he linked an AP video of a Senate hearing focusing on whether federal prosecutors were fired for political reasons.

This Senate hearing on political interference @DOJ was 10 yrs ago today, Bharara wrote. Is that me in the background? Boy Ive aged.

___

Associated Press writers Sadie Gurman and Julie Pace in Washington and Jennifer Peltz in New York contributed to this report.
The BJP returned to power in Uttar Pradesh - possibly with a three-quarter majority - after 14 years, during which regional players including the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, held sway.

By India Today Web Desk: The BJP secured today a stunning victory in Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, trampling a fragmented Opposition to secure the biggest mandate any party has ever received in the state, as party leaders hailed it as a vindication of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity and his "pro-poor" policies.

The BJP returned to power in Uttar Pradesh - possibly with a three-quarter majority - after 14 years, during which regional players including the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, held sway.

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According to the results, the BJP-plus won 325 seats in the 403-member Assembly while SP-Congress alliance got 54 seats.

Also read: Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Modi tsunami rocks Akhilesh-Rahul boat, BJP gets close to 325 mark

Here's all you need to know: The previous best showing by the BJP in UP was in 1991, at the height of Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid movement, when it got majority on its own, winning 221 of 425 seats in an undivided state. The BJP, which had just 47 seats in the outgoing Assembly, garnered 40 per cent of the votes in the most riveting contest seen as a gamechanger and a virtual referendum on Modi's demonetisation move. The saffron party also went to the Uttar Pradesh election without fielding any Muslim candidate. The campaign in its advanced stage had also seen the BJP trying to communalise the contest. The BJP had not announced a chief ministerial candidate in Uttar Pradesh. At a press conference today, Amit Shah said the name will be selected tomorrow by the BJP Parliamentary Board and the legislature party in the state. BJP president Amit Shah attributed the historic success to Modi, calling him the tallest Indian leader since independence. In the three-cornered contest in Uttar Pradesh, the Samajwadi Party-Congress combine was reduced to a lead in 55 seats. In Rahul Gandhi's Lok Sabha constituency Amethi, the Congress lost all four seats, with the BJP winning three of them. Three-term Chief Minister Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) finished a dismal third at 19 seats. She has accused the government of tampering with the EVMs and has challenged the holding of a paper ballot election. The scale of the BJP's victory suggests Modi's appeal cut across caste and community in a state where most people traditionally vote along religious and social lines. Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah called the BJP victory in UP a "tsunami" and predicted that the party is not only in a position to win 2019 general election, but also 2024.

WATCH VIDEO | Assembly Election Results 2017: Full video of BJP President Amit Shah's press conference

Also watch | Assembly election results 2017: Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav submits resignation

Also watch | How Uttar Pradesh turned 'gerua' on election day

Also read: Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Where Akhilesh got his cycle punctured

Also read: Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Modi tsunami rocks Akhilesh-Rahul boat, BJP gets close to 325 mark

--- ENDS ---
A Republican senators vow to push for an override of a vetoed teacher attendance bill was tempered Friday.

Sen. Craig Brandt, R-Rio Rancho, said he still might launch the veto override early next week but will first try to reach a compromise with Gov. Susana Martinezs office.

The governor on Thursday had vetoed a bill, sponsored by Brandt and others, that would have allowed teachers to take more than three sick days per year without risking losing points on their annual evaluations.

That prompted Brandt to criticize the governor for being unreasonable and say hed move quickly to override the veto. Overriding a veto requires a two-thirds vote in each legislative chamber.

The Senate has not voted to override a veto since 2010, during the last year of then-Gov. Bill Richardsons tenure in office.

DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME: Sen. Cliff Pirtle must have been feeling good Friday afternoon as a House committee was set to consider his proposal to keep New Mexico on daylight saving time all year long.

He was softly singing the chorus to the Rolling Stones Time Is on My Side outside the committee room.

His proposal, Senate Bill 239, cleared the committee on a 6-2 vote and is continuing its push toward the House floor.

The bill calls for New Mexico to petition the federal government for permission to switch to Mountain Daylight Time all year. The state is already on daylight time for eight months out of the year, from mid-March to early November.

Pirtle, a Roswell Republican with a bushy beard, said daylight saving time would give people an extra hour of sunshine later in the day.

This is good for New Mexico families, he said.

His proposal has already cleared the Senate. It has one more committee stop before it can hit the House floor.

Perhaps Sunday will be the last time New Mexicans have to spring forward.

WEBCAST OUTAGE: For much of Friday, the legislative website was down and webcasting was unavailable to the public for floor sessions and committee meetings.

Legislative officials said the issue was related to off-site equipment that serves the state Capitol.

The technical issues were eventually fixed, and the Legislative Council Service said archived webcasts would still be available despite the internet outage.

This is the first year both the House and Senate are archiving webcasts of both committee hearings and floor sessions.

Most state government agencies did not experience the outage, as the legislative website is run independently by legislative branch agencies, according to the state Department of Information Technology.

Fridays outage occurred with just 8 days remaining in the 60-day session, and frustrated viewers hoping to tune in to morning committee meetings on lobbying restrictions, marijuana penalties and dozens of other bills.
SANTA FE  A renewed attempt to establish an independent New Mexico ethics commission passed the House of Representatives on Thursday without a single no vote and on a wave of bipartisan goodwill.

However, old concerns in the Senate, where the proposal is now pending, appear to suggest turbulence ahead on what has been a long-debated issue.

Two members of the Senate Rules Committee expressed reservations Friday about the ethics commission measure, though they said they havent made up their minds to vote against it.

Sen. Linda Lopez, D-Albuquerque, the committees chairwoman, said she intends to hold a hearing on the measure before the Legislature adjourns March 18, but said it would not happen until Monday at the earliest.

She also said she and other committee members are not fully on board with the idea of enshrining the ethics commission in the state Constitution, which the House-approved plan would do.

The comments made last year by the committee were it doesnt really need to be in the Constitution, Lopez told the Journal .

Rep. Jim Dines, R-Albuquerque, the primary sponsor of House Joint Resolution 8, has insisted the ethics commission should be put into the Constitution, just like the state Judicial Standards Commission.

Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Stuart Ingle, R-Portales, said he hasnt discussed the measure with Dines, but he expressed concern about false ethics allegations being made public.

I think we have handled our ethics in a really good way, Ingle said in an interview.

He also said that he believes its already difficult to get qualified candidates to run for elected office in New Mexico and that establishing an ethics commission could make it even harder.

New Mexico is one of only eight states without an independent ethics commission, but its also the only state that does not pay salaries to legislators.

The ethics commission proposal that passed the House on a 66-0 vote this week calls for a seven-member board empowered to investigate allegations of misconduct against elected officials, candidates, state employees, lobbyists, contractors and others. It could also issue advisory opinions on how to handle ethical questions.

The commission would also have power to issue subpoenas to obtain documents and require witnesses to attend hearings. Its members would be appointed by the governor and legislative leaders.

If approved by a majority of those elected to the full Senate, it would go before voters statewide in November 2018.
The LG G6 was announced last month in Barcelona at Mobile World Congress. The company announced their brand new flagship smartphone but would not comment on when the device would be made available. However, it appears that the LG G6 may be launching in the US on April 7th, if a leak out of Evleaks is anything to go by. Evleaks shared a render over the weekend of the LG G6, thats not necessarily the news here though, the news is the April 7th date on the phone. As smartphone makers do typically put the release date on their press renders. He also mentions that the LG G6 is coming in just two colors, and that the white color wont be coming to the US.

Now, when it comes to different regions, the LG G6 is a pretty different smartphone. In the US, users will get wireless charging in the form of PMA and Qi. Meanwhile in other regions, you may get the LG G6 with the Quad DAC that was found in the V20, and in even more regions (rumored to be in Asia) youll find a LG G6 with 64GB of storage, instead of 32GB that youll find everywhere else. And now it appears that the LG G6 will be available in the US in either black or titanium. Neither of which are bad colors, but many were excited to get their hands on the white model instead.

Currently, we do know that all four major carriers  AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon  will be carrying the LG G6 when it does launch. Whether that is April 7th or not is to be determined still. Remember that this is just a leak at this point, and while Evleaks is typically correct when it comes to these things, its still not 100% confirmed. Of course, April 7th isnt that far out right now, so we should have the LG G6 available in stores fairly soon. And for those that have been looking to get their hands on the LG G6, this is exciting news. Pricing still has not been confirmed yet either, but itll likely be close to what the LG G5 was priced at last year.
"While Rawat has lost by over 12,000 votes in Haridwar (rural) already, he is heading for a loss in Kiccha as well, though with a narrower margin. This is a complete rejection of his leadership," said Pradesh BJP spokesman Munna Singh Chauhan.

By India Today Web Desk: Chief Minister Harish Rawat lost two seats in Haridwar rural and Kichha constituency in the Uttarakhand Assembly elections this year. BJP leadership in the state was quick to slam Rawat's government. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Munna Singh from the state said that Rawat's defeat was a rejection of his leadership in the state.

"While Rawat has lost by over 12,000 votes in Haridwar (rural) already, he is heading for a loss in Kiccha as well, though with a narrower margin. This is a complete rejection of his leadership," said Pradesh BJP spokesman Munna Singh Chauhan.

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Attributing Rawat's defeat to thriving corruption and a strong anti-incumbency, Chauhan said the massive surge of support for the BJP reflected in the trends and results available so far were due to a clear "Modi wave which has only gathered steam over the two-and-half years of his extra- ordinary performance at the Centre".

"People were totally disillusioned with Rawat government under whom corruption flourished like never before and they were desperately looking for change.

"Narendra Modi's style of leadership, his head-on approach towards dealing with corruption inspired confidence among the masses who voted overwhelmingly in favour of the BJP for a clean and accountable government," he said.

STATE-WISE LIVE BLOGS: Uttar Pradesh | Punjab | Uttarakhand | Manipur | Goa

It was a vote against the Rawat government's non- performance, his arrogance and undemocratic approach, Chauhan said.

Claiming that the BJP was heading for a massive victory in Uttarakhand, Chauhan said the party was all set to cross the 50 mark in the 70-seat assembly.

"It is going to be a historic triumph for the BJP which will win with a four-fifth majority," Chauhan said.

With inputs from PTI

Watch | Assembly Election Results 2017: BJP crosses halfway mark in Uttarakhand

Also read:

Assembly election results: BJP takes unassailable leads in UP, Uttarakhand; Congress set to win Punjab

Uttar Pradesh election results 2017: Where Akhilesh got his cycle punctured

Uttar Pradesh Assembly election results: Full list of Vidhan Sabha constituencies

--- ENDS ---
In Kia's case, the company wanted a part of the Toyota Prius market. But when asked, its loyal customers said they wanted something that looked different, like a crossover.Meanwhile, the Toyota C-HR was originally supposed to be Euro-only, since North America was never too keen on small crossovers. But even people in Japan liked the design, so it's now a global car.In Europe, the C-HR is offered either with a 1.2-liter engine or a hybrid system similar to the one in the Prius, with which it shares a platform. But the US-spec model was designed for the defunct Scion brand and is equipped only with a 2-liter making 144-hp. Think of it as a modern substitute for the boxy Scion xB. Consumer Reports is very impressed with the level of standard safety systems, which is class-leading on even the base model. Handling is good, and the ride is even better. You can thank the Prius platform for that. An engine that "won't win drag races" isn't a problem, but the oversized blind spots are. Prices start at about $22,500.By contrast, the Niro's styling is as conventional as that of a Volkswagen. With a starting price of about $23,800, it's reasonable for a hybrid crossover.The Niro too is built on a brand new platform, one which was designed especially for green cars. Expect plug-in hybrid and fully electric models to come shortly. For now, though, you can only have it with a 1.6-liter gas engine matched to a dual-clutch transmission and a small electric motor. Total system output is 139-hp, so just shy of that of the Toyota C-HR.Neither the ride nor the handling is that good. Several safety systems can be outfitted on the Niro, but Consumer Reports says they should have been standard, and we couldn't agree more. So with that being said, we'd declare Toyota the winner, even though it would have been nice to have a hybrid system as well.
The project just made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show. And even though we didn't know very much about it, the fact that somebody took the time to make such a purple beauty means we need to take a closer look.Even though it looks British, with that Morgan-like front end, the Cuillin was reportedly inspired by the 1930's Alfa Romeo 8C 2900. After Googling it... yeah, I can see that happening. But the back seems much more tapered, suggesting the designers took a look at the Bugatti Type 57 SC Atlantic as well. Everybody knows one of those is as expensive as they come.Seeing it in the company of the Subaru WRX STI and other more modern cars in Geneva is weird. However, there are things about the Black Cuillin that are modern. Apparently, the powertrain consists of a 6.0-liter V12 engine that revs to 7,000rpm and will allow it to reach 270 km/h. But that could mean anything from a BMW 760i mill to something borrowed from an Aston.Looking around the cabin, we think we've spotted a few BMW parts suggesting the powertrain is of that origin. Didn't the Morgan Aeromax have a German engine too, the 4.4 or 4.8-liter V8? It seems every time somebody makes a sleek 30's car, a big BMW engine is used."The BLACK CUILLIN, or project FE57 as it started out, was to explore the idea of a romantic Grand Tourer of 1930s style in a collection of 2D sketches and visuals, considering the interior and exterior themes as well as the type of car it should be. I was originally inspired by an Alfa 8C 2900 convertible, but my main passion has always been the Coupe, so a Coupe body was decided upon," the official website describes.
A U.S. District Judge in Madison, Wisconsin, Michael Conley, blocked the enforcement of Trump's revised travel ban from affecting a Syrian man and his family on the grounds that it is an anti-Muslim ban that violates his freedom of religion rights and right to due process, per an AP report. This is the first ruling on Trump's travel ban 2.0.

This does not block the entire ban, but applies a temporary restraining order that blocks its enforcement for this family.

The same Syrian man filed in February, but on the grounds that Trump's first travel ban had wrongly interfered with the visa process for his family. The judge did not grant that request then.
Per the AP, GOP Rep. Mike Kelly told supporters at an event in his district north of Pittsburgh on Saturday that President Obama's decision to remain in D.C. was not to allow his daughter, Sasha, to graduate from her high school, but "for one purpose  and one purpose only  and that is to run a shadow government."
Marine commandant Gen. Robert Neller encouraged the women who were targeted in nude photos shared amongst 30,000 Marines and other members of the military online to come forward, "trust" the Marine Corps, and help:

"I'm going to ask them to trust us. I understand why that might be a bit of a reach for them right now. But I can't fix this ... The only way there is going to be accountability in this is somebody comes forward and tells us what happened to them."

Fewer than 10 women victims have come forward so far in the investigation into the Facebook group "Marines United" and the web site where service members encouraged sexual assault and photo-sharing of nude body parts.
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Palo Alto Networks, Inc. provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; Panorama, a security management solution for the control of firewall appliances and software deployed on a customer's network, as well as their instances in public or private cloud environments, as a virtual or a physical appliance; and virtual system upgrades, which are available as extensions to the virtual system capacity that ships with physical appliances. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, and firewall; and DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention. In addition, the company offers cloud security, secure access, security operations, and threat intelligence and cyber security consulting; professional services, including architecture design and planning, implementation, configuration, and firewall migration; education services, such as certifications, as well as online and in-classroom training; and support services. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. sells its products and services through its channel partners, as well as directly to medium to large enterprises, service providers, and government entities operating in various industries, including education, energy, financial services, government entities, healthcare, Internet and media, manufacturing, public sector, and telecommunications. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.
Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. designs, engineers, manufactures, and markets commercial aerostructures worldwide. It operates through three segments: Commercial, Defense & Space, and Aftermarket. The Commercial segment offers forward, mid, and rear fuselage sections and systems, struts/pylons, nacelles, and related engine structural components; and wings and wing components, including flight control surfaces, as well as other structural parts. This segment primarily serves the aircraft original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) or engine OEMs of large commercial aircraft and/or business/regional jet programs. The Defense & Space segment provides fuselage, strut, nacelle, and wing aerostructures primarily for U.S. Government defense programs, including Boeing P-8, C40, and KC-46 Tanker. This segment also engages in the fabrication, bonding, assembly, testing, tooling, processing, engineering analysis, and training on fixed wing aircraft aerostructures, missiles, and hypersonics works, such as solid rocket motor throats, nozzles, re-entry vehicle thermal protections systems, forward cockpit and cabin, and fuselage work on rotorcraft aerostructures. The Aftermarket segment offers spare parts and MRO services, repairs for flight control surfaces and nacelles, radome repairs, rotable assets, engineering services, advanced composite repairs, and other repair and overhaul services. Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. has a strategic partnership with Sierra Space to enhance access to commercial space economy of the future. The company was formerly known as Mid-Western Aircraft Systems Holdings, Inc. Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Wichita, Kansas.
A credible chief ministerial face will ensure the BJP enjoys a smooth sailing in Uttarakhand for the next five years.

By India Today Web Desk: With the BJP set to claim victory in Uttarakhand, the hunt for the chief minister begins. While it's a tsunaMo in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP is eyeing a landslide victory in the hill state.

The BJP, which stuck to its tradition of not naming a chief ministerial candidate ahead of the Assembly election, is facing a problem of plenty.

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While anti-incumbency against the Harish Rawat-led Congress government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's massive rallies may have tipped the scales in the BJP's favour, a credible CM face will ensure the party has a smooth run for the next five years in Uttarakhand.

Follow the live coverage on Uttarakhand election

WHO ARE THE CANDIDATES IN FRAY FOR CHIEF MINISTER'S POST:

#B C Khanduri: The former chief minister of Uttarakhand is a senior BJP leader and is known for his clean image. However, Khanduri was largely blamed for the BJP's defeat in the previous Assembly election in 2012. At 82, Khanduri does not have age on his side. Yet, being one of the best-known faces of the BJP in Uttarakhand, Khanduri stands a chance to be picked for the top job.

#Vijay Bahuguna: Long-time Congress leader who swtiched to the BJP just before the Assembly election, Vijay Bahuguna is a strong contender for the chief minister's post. With Bahuhuna joining the BJP, several other Congress leaders followed suit giving the party enough heft before it goes to polls.

If elected to the top post, Bahuguna will have the last laugh as the BJP had launched fierce attacks on him in the wake of the 2013 landslide and flash floods in the state. The BJP, then in Opposition, had hit out Bahuguna's inability to manage the situation effectively. Nearly four years later, the table seems to have turned with Bahuguna now weilding significant influence in the BJP.

#Ramesh Pokhriyal: Pokhriyal was the chief minister of Uttarakhand from 2009-2011, a period the BJP would rather not remember given the numerous scam charges levelled against his government. Pokhriyal (57) enjoys support in his constituency but his scam-tainted past may come back to haunt him.

#Bhagat Singh Koshyari: An RSS veteran, Bhagat Singh Koshyari was the BJP's first state president in Uttarakhand. He served as the chief minister of Uttarakhand for a brief period between October 2001 and March 2002. Koshyari is a credible face for the BJP in the state but at 74, like Khanduri, he does not have age on his side.

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#Ajay Bhatt: The BJP's state president and the Leader of Opposition in Uttarakhand Assembly, Ajay Bhatt is the party's young face in the state. A popular leader who is known for his strategic bent of mind, Bhatt kept the "egos" of all senior leaders in place and ensured that the BJP's prospects don't take a hit. Despite reports of party workers not happy with Congress turncoats getting tickets to contest election, a win for the BJP's shows that Bhatt managed to convince them to work for the party.

Web Exclusive Result TV With Rahul Kanwal | Assembly Election Results 2017 Full Coverage

Also read | BJP's tsuNaMo in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand; Congress set to win Punjab: 10 big takeaways

WATCH VIDEO

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The Manhattan Institute has been magnificently blessed in the Wall Street tycoons who have served as its chairmen, and perhaps the most magnificent of them all was Charles H. Brunie, Jr., chairman from 1980 to 1990, who died at age 86 on February 23. A securities analyst whose research department at the Oppenheimer brokerage firm ranked first in the league during the four years he ran it, he went on to found the investment-advisory firm Oppenheimer Capital in 1969 and served as its chairman for more than a quarter of a century. There, he made many clients rich, including his cherished friends, Milton and Rose Friedman, who welcomed him to their grand new apartment overlooking San Francisco in 1988 by singing a patter song, Welcome to the House that Chuck Built.

There are as many kinds of investors as there are ice cream flavors. Chuck was the highest and rarest kind of all: the intellectual investor. Thats why he so revered Milton Friedman, who could explain economic and financial cycles not as some occult magic but as the rational outcomes of describable forces, which Chuck analyzed subtly in a fascinating 2007 City Journal article celebrating Friedman but also displaying dazzlingly Chucks own deep understanding of economics, history, and politics. You knew that Chuck was about to utter some proposition that would brook no disagreement when he began a sentence with, Milton says . . . . But those Delphic utterances explain no small part of the Manhattan Institutes success. Milton says that a think tank should not draw up a list of policies it wants to advance and then find scholars to expound them, Chuck pronounced. Instead, find very smart people who share your worldview, and let them choose their own issues. Then youll come up with new and creative ideas, not dogma. Or: Milton says that the information revolution allows organizations to be flatter and leaner, with fewer layers of costly and change-inhibiting bureaucrats. We should be like that. Well, it worked.

As a youth, Chuck had sat with Alan Greenspan at the feet of guru Ayn Rand and had imbibed some of her views, not all of them equally salubrious. But what was certainly correct, as Chuck knew, was her view that entrepreneurialism allowed the greatest development both of the human potentialities of the entrepreneur and the benefits to society. He championed a creative capitalism, not a bureaucratic one. When he said the Manhattan Institute stood for free markets, he meant that it stood for human freedom. We were driving into Manhattan from the airport one evening, and, as the skyscrapers came into view, he remarked, Ayn Rand once said how remarkable it was that this island, without any natural resources, had produced so much wealth. I looked at him with a certain challenging skepticism, and he grasped my thought immediately. Ah, he said, the mind of man: the greatest natural resource of them all.

Only his modesty exceeded his generosity. Back in the late 1980s, the institutes then-president hired me to write a book, at a substantial salary (for a writer). Not a nickel was in the young institutes kitty to pay it. When the board of directors heard of this commitment, its members clamored that it was impossible to keep. Chuck mildly declared that he thought he could raise the necessary fundssecretly admiring the presidents entrepreneurial audacity, I expect. But he never told me how he had saved my career until at least a decade later, and then in the most self-effacing terms.

For that was Chuck: one of the last of the great American gentlemen, proud of having been an Eagle Scout and the soul of truth and honor all his life; proud of his father, broader-chested than tall, handsome, and impeccably tailored Chuck, and whose eminence as a banker and a man Chuck strove to live up to; proud of his country, whose freedoms Chuck felt it his responsibility to defend and advance. I loved and admired him, as did so many others.
Smart & Final Stores, Inc. operates as a food retailer in the United States. It operates in two segments, Smart & Final and Smart Foodservice. The company's stores offer fresh perishables and everyday grocery items, such as produce, meat and deli, dairy and cheese, grocery, and beverage products, as well as paper and packaging, and restaurant equipment and janitorial supplies. It also provides various private label products under the First Street, Sun Harvest, Simply Value, La Romanella, Montecito, Iris, and Ambiance brands. The company sells its products to household and business customers; restaurants; caterers; and various other foodservice businesses, such as food trucks and coffee houses through vendors and suppliers. As of December 30, 2018, it operated 326 grocery and foodservice stores, including 59 Smart & Final stores, 201 Smart & Final Extra! stores, and 66 Smart Foodservice Warehouse stores located in California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, and Utah, as well as 15 stores in Northwestern Mexico operated through a joint venture. Smart & Final Stores, Inc. was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Commerce, California.
California is the first U.S. state to require Monsanto to label its blockbuster weed killer, Roundup, as a possible carcinogen, according to a ruling issued today by a California judge.

Fresno County Superior Court Judge Kristi Kapetan previously issued a tentative ruling on January 27 in Monsanto Company v. Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, et al.

Today, Judge Kapetan formalized her ruling against Monsanto, which will allow California to proceed with the process of listing glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, as a chemical "known to the state to cause cancer" in accordance with the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, better known as Proposition 65.

In response to the ruling, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. stated, "Democracy is alive and well in California where judges are still willing to stand up for science, even against the most powerful corporate polluters. This decision gives Californians the right to protect themselves and their families from chemical trespass." Mr. Kennedy and the law firm of Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman represent people from California and across the U.S. who have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma after Roundup (glyphosate) use.

In January of 2016, Monsanto filed a lawsuit against the State of California Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) over the agency's notice of intent to list glyphosate as a Prop 65 chemical.

OEHHA issued the notice after the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) issued a report on glyphosate, which classified the chemical as a "probable human carcinogen." The IARC report compelled OEHHA to list glyphosate as a Prop 65 chemical and warn consumers about the possible danger associated with glyphosate exposure.

Why Did Monsanto Sue the State of California?

In 1986, California voters approved Proposition 65 to address concerns about exposure to toxic chemicals. Prop 65 requires California to publish a list of chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.

OEHHA is the administrator for the Proposition 65 program and determines in many cases whether chemicals or other substances meet the scientific and legal requirements to be placed on the Proposition 65 list. The agency uses a "Labor Code" listing mechanism, which directs the OEHHA to add chemicals or substances to the Prop 65 list of chemicals known to the state to cause cancer if they meet certain classifications by the IARC.

Monsanto's lawsuit against OEHHA argued that the statutory basis underlying the agency's action to list glyphosate as a Prop 65 chemical violates both the California and U.S. Constitutions. According to the complaint, listing glyphosate as chemical known to the state to cause cancer cedes regulatory authority to an "unelected, undemocratic, unaccountable, and foreign body" that isn't subject to oversight by California or the United States.

According to the ruling, "the Labor Code listing mechanism does not constitute an unconstitutional delegation of authority to an outside agency, since the voters and the legislature have established the basic legislative scheme and made the fundamental policy decision with regard to listing possible carcinogens under Proposition 65, and then allowed the IARC to make the highly technical fact-finding decisions with regard to which specific chemicals would be added to the list."

"As Monsanto admits, the IARC's list is not created in response to the Labor Code listing mechanism or Proposition 65, and in fact IARC has stated that it disavows any policy or rulemaking role, and that it does not intend its determinations to carry the force of law," Judge Kapetan wrote in her ruling.

In the months that followed, a number of interested nonparties joined the lawsuit as "intervenors," either on behalf of Monsanto or on behalf of the State of California. When a case has the potential to affect the rights of interested nonparties (individuals or organizations not named in the lawsuit), they can become intervenors, effectively joining the litigation either as a matter of right or at the court's discretion without the permission of the original litigants. Intervention simply gives nonparties that could be affected by a case's outcome a chance to be heard.

Below are the intervenors in Monsanto Company v. Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, et al.

Monsanto Intervenors:

California Citrus Mutual

Western Agricultural Processors Association (WAPA)

California Cotton Ginners and Growers Associations

California Grain & Feed Association

Almond Alliance of California

Western Plant Health Association

OEHHA Intervenors:

Center for Food Safety

Sierra Club

United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union (AFL-CIO, CLC)

Natural Resources Defense Council

Environmental Law Foundation

Canadian Labor Congress

Ruling Against Monsanto

In her ruling, Judge Kapetan wrote that California's voters and legislature "have established the basic legislative scheme and made the fundamental policy decision with regard to listing possible carcinogens under Proposition 65, and then allowed IARC to make the highly technical fact-finding decisions with regard to which specific chemicals would be added to the list."

Teri McCall is one of many California residents to cheer the ruling against Monsanto. Her husband, Jack, sprayed Roundup on the family's Cambia, California farm for nearly 30 years. In September 2015, Jack went to see a doctor to treat swollen lymph nodes in his neck. That day in the hospital, he learned that the swelling was caused by anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), a rare and aggressive version of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Three months later, Jack suffered a severe stroke due to complications with his cancer treatment. He died on Dec. 26, 2015.

In the wake of her husband's death, Teri McCall filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Monsanto, alleging the company knew about the link between Roundup and cancer, but failed to warn the public about the risk.

"My husband Jack was very conscious of the dangers of chemicals and his misfortune was taking Monsanto's word that Roundup was safe," said McCall at a press conference held on January 27 in Fresno following Judge Kapetan's tentative ruling.

"I don't want to see any more unsuspecting people die from cancer because they didn't know of the danger to their health from exposure to Roundup. Glyphosate in Roundup needs to be on the list of Prop 65 chemicals that are dangerous to our health so that people can make informed decisions for themselves about the risks they are willing to take. I don't believe my husband would have been willing to take that risk," McCall said.

McCall is represented in her Roundup cancer lawsuit by Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman and environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Related Story

Baum Hedlund and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Hold Press Conference to Support California in Fight Against Monsanto
A West Sussex egg farm has not taken any chances with its chickens and the current scare of bird flu, so it is taking advantage of the latest laser technology to protect its birds.

This week, the British government has extended the avian influenza (bird flu) prevention zone to April 2017.

The requirements of the zone have changed, meaning keepers may let their birds out provided that they have enhanced biosecurity measures in place.

The automated laser is an innovative method of repelling unwanted birds

These restrictions have caused havoc for free-range and organic poultry farms across the UK.

Orchard Eggs in West Sussex is not taking any chances with its chickens and it is taking advantage of the latest laser technology to protect its birds.

As Daniel Hoeberichts, the owner of Orchard Eggs, explains: Our birds are housed across 50 acres of orchard and we want to do everything to keep them safe from infection. Once we heard about the Agrilaser Autonomic it seemed like an ideal solution to complement all of our other biosecurity measure.

Enhancing biosecurity

The automated laser is an innovative method of repelling unwanted birds without causing harm to the wild birds, the chickens and the surrounding environment.

The system has been developed by the Dutch company Bird Control Group in cooperation with the Technical University of Delft, The Netherlands.

The laser is silent and shows effectiveness of 90 to 100% in bird dispersal at farms. This makes it a viable alternative to the expensive method of installing nets at the entire poultry farm.

The prevention zone was first declared from 6th December 2016 that all poultry and captive bird keepers had to apply heightened biosecurity including keeping their birds indoors if possible, or otherwise separated from wild birds.

This was renewed on 4th January 2017 to last until 28th February. This further zone will remain in force until at least the end of April 2017.
If you're wary of the risks associated with owning individual stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) can be an excellent substitute, especially for income investors. High-yield ETFs provide exposure to a diverse basket of dividend stocks, allowing you to earn fat dividend checks without having to spend time researching individual stocks.

However, not all high-yield ETFs are safe or give you value for your money. So to help you make sound investing decisions, our contributors have picked three high-yield ETFs that they believe could power up your portfolio: Global X SuperDividend ETF (SDIV 3.82%), iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF (PFF -0.23%), and PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility Portfolio (SPHD 1.97%). All three ETFs are unique, so read on to learn which one suits you best.

U.S. familiarity with a dose of international exposure

Rich Smith (Global X SuperDividend ETF): Last month, I made the case for seeking out ETFs focused on international dividends, arguing that if the U.S. dollar is strong now, then it must eventually weaken, making foreign dividend-paying stocks a smarter investment play for the long term. I still think that way today.

But what if I'm wrong?

Nobody's perfect, and I think it's a fine strategy to hedge one's bets against the possibility that one is wrong. In that vein, today I'm going to suggest you take a look at a more balanced ETF -- one primarily weighted toward U.S. stocks but with a healthy leavening of international dividend exposure as well: the Global X SuperDividend ETF.

ETF.com describes the fund as a "high-yielding basket" that "favors small firms," mostly in the financials and energy sectors. But while Global X SuperDividend leans toward small companies, it's not a small fund.

In fact, the Global X SuperDividend ETF boasts nearly $850 million in assets under management. It pays a whopping 6.6% dividend yield, which, after deducting an expense ratio of 0.58%, leaves you with roughly 6% in dividend profits annually -- an even bigger profit than was offered by my SPDR S&P International Dividend ETF pick last month.

Thus the "net dividend" you receive from owning SDIV is worth nearly three times the current 2.14% yield on the S&P 500. Valuationwise, this ETF's stocks carry an average P/E ratio of 13 -- which is also well below the S&P's average P/E of 20.

It may not give you all the international exposure of the SPDR S&P International Dividend ETF. But I think that with a better return and more diversification, the Global X SuperDividend ETF is a fine bet to pay off.

Safety here, risk elsewhere

Reuben Gregg Brewer (iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF): When you build a portfolio, you're balancing one investment against the others you own. Your holdings interact, and if you aren't careful, you might end up with more risk than you think. This is why the iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF should be on your radar screen.

I'm not going to lie -- it's kind of boring. But that's the point. The iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF owns exactly what its name implies. A preferred stock is an odd animal that sits above equity in the capital structure, but below debt. Generally speaking, preferreds are sold with a par value and a set dividend that has priority over common stock dividends. These securities tend to trade pretty close to par value (often $25) most of the time.

iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF has a heavy weighting in financials, an area that sees more preferreds issued than other sectors. Its trailing annualized returns over the three- and five-year periods through February, meanwhile, are both basically 6%. Its trailing yield is around 5.7%. Do the quick math and you'll see that most of your return is going to come from dividends. Which is pretty much what you'd expect of this asset class.

But here's the fun part, iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF's standard deviation, a measure of volatility, over both those periods was a little over 4. Comparatively, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY 1.44%) had a standard deviation of 10 in those periods. So the iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF provides a relatively large yield, price stability, and the opportunity to take on more risk elsewhere in your portfolio. It's a great option for the diversification balancing act.

Delectable combination of low risks and high dividends

Neha Chamaria (PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility Portfolio): When I'm looking for high-yield stocks or ETFs, I prefer ones that offer an extra layer of security to those with sky-high yields that may carry substantial risk. Invesco's PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility Portfolio is one such ETF I'd urge you to consider today.

As the name suggests, this ETF offers you nice dividends without the volatility that could give you sleepless nights. It does so by tracking the S&P 500 Low Volatility High Dividend Index, which comprises the 50 "least-volatile high-dividend yielding" stocks in the S&P 500 that are chosen based on the standard deviation of their daily prices over the trailing 252 trading days. So the highest-yielding stocks that were also the least volatile make it to the final 50. For an income investor, I think such an ETF is an excellent tool to earn secure income. In fact, if you compare PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility Portfolio's performance since inception with that of an ETF that simply tracks the S&P 500, such as the SPDR S&P 500 ETF, you can see how focus on low volatility helps.

SPHD Total Return Price data by YCharts

As you may have guessed, the PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility Portfolio has the greatest exposure to defensive sectors: Utilities constitute nearly 22% of the portfolio as of March 6, 2017. That aside, I also love the fact that this ETF has substantial exposure to REITs. While core real estate stocks can be volatile, REITs leverage investors to the growth potential in real estate while offering hefty dividends that aren't too risky because of the business structure. Not surprisingly, the Iron Mountain and Welltower Inc. REITs are currently the top two holdings of the ETF.

Then again, no single stock makes up more than 3% of the ETF's funds, which is also one reason it isn't too volatile. Given its low volatility and current SEC-defined yield of 3.74%, I think the PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility Portfolio is a great pick to power up your income portfolio.
By India Today Web Desk: The Manipur Assembly election results have thrown up a surprise: the Iron Lady of the state, Irom Sharmila, with only 51 votes polled in her favour, has lost out to her closest contestant INC's Okram Ibobi Singh.WATCH THE LIVE TV COVERAGE

With little or no news coming in from most districts of the state regarding the Assembly election results, we have brought in several senior journalists to break down the news for you and to give you, the viewer, a clearer picture of what is in store for Manipur and its people.

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The Aaj Tak team has toured the state extensively during the election season and has understood what are the issues that matter to the voters.

Be it employment for youth, putting an end to the drug menace or helping the farmers, team Aaj Tak tracked constituencies, trailed key leaders and spoke to voters to bring to you a clear picture of the post-poll Uttarakhand.

Be with the Aaj Tak team to get insights on the election results and beyond.

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Haiti - Justice : Gustavo Gallon harshly judge the Haitian prison system





Thursday, Gustavo Gallon, the Independent Expert of the UN Human Rights Council, on the situation of human rights in Haiti ended his 8th mission in Haiti. At a press conference he presented a summary of his annual report that he will present on 21 March at the United Nations. During his mission. He pointed out, among other things, the markedly insufficient progress made in the case of prolonged detention and has made a harsh judgment in general on the inhuman conditions of detention in most Haitian prisons.



"[...] On average, more than 70 per cent of those detained in Haiti continue to be held in prolonged detention. The situation in the Port-au-Prince National Penitentiary has worsened dramatically : the average length of pre-trial detention increased from 624 days to 1,100 days (or 3 years), according to a study by the Minustah in December 2016. If we count inmates for more than two years and those who, although detained for less than two years, have not seen a magistrate in the last six months, it can be said that 91% of all persons detained in the National Penitentiary awaiting trial are deprived of their liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily, an increase of 23% since 2014.



If the situation of prolonged detainees were resolved, there would be no overcrowding in Haitian prisons. At present, it reaches 358%, as in the 7,359 m2 of total detention area, in the 19 prisons of the Directorate of Prison Administration (DAP), there should not be more than 2,944 detainees to meet the DAP's target of 2.5m2 per person [...] Taking into account the UN-acceptable area of 4.5m2 per prisoner, the overcrowding rate reached 644%. In other words, the capacity of Haiti's prisons only accommodates 1,635 inmates instead of the current 10,538 [As at 31 December 2016]



This excessive level of overpopulation also explains the high degree of death in prison, which is even more evident in 2016 due to the strike of public hospitals; While previously for the same number of severe cases of illness or malnutrition, aggravated by overcrowding, some patients were transferred to the hospital. Such a transfer has not been possible in recent months, and the number of deaths recorded in prisons has increased enormously, making it possible to discover the magnitude of the problem of the death of prisoners in the prison environment.



At the current rate, the projections for the whole of 2017 give a total of 229 prisoners who have died in prison, an annual mortality rate of 21.8 per 1,000.



It is clear that the issue of prolonged detention deserves to be resolved as soon as possible, as has been persistently recommended. The Provisional Government had appointed a presidential commission in September 2016 to deal with the problem. Unfortunately, the Government has not allocated the necessary budgetary resources to do its work. However, the activities of this Commission with the Government Commissioners and the prisons of Croix-de-Bouquet, Petit Goave and Port-au-Prince, resulted in the release of about one hundred detainees temporarily and prolonged detained. The Ministry for the Status of Women has also been concerned with the situation and has acted with the Ministry of Justice to release some 184 women prisoners in 2016, plus one woman sentenced with terminal cancer [...]



Another Commission on the situation of prisons has recently been appointed by the new President. It is hoped that it will continue the efforts of the previous Commission so that there is a real solution in the short term. It is a situation that creates a state of daily violations of the rights of most detainees: both those in prolonged detention and those suffering the negative consequences of prison overcrowding, including health. These are inhuman and degrading conditions. All judges and judicial officials, as well as the entire population, should visit the prisons to observe closely the disgrace to which the persons deprived of liberty are subjected in this country.



This time I visited Hinche prison. It is a new building, inaugurated on January 30, 2017, which replaced the former prison where there were 279 prisoners in 120 square meters, a rate of overpopulation of 1.045% compared to a parameter of 4.5 m2 per individual. The new building, which has a capacity of about 400 people, has housed 292 prisoners (Including 143 convicted prisoners including one woman and 149 prisoners, including five women and seven male minors). The authorities informed that there was no one in prolonged detention. Each cell has 8 beds made of concrete, which would be enough to provide a bed for each detainee, but I found cells with 14 people where prisoners are forced to share their bed, while next to it there are cells. Of the 40 cells there were 10 that were empty. This demonstrates that some civil servants have a mindset of space reduction for detainees that goes beyond the physical capacity of the existing infrastructure, a mentality that makes no sense and that it would be appropriate to correct that as soon as possible."



HL/ HaitiLibre


















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Business Business Roundup (March 11)

Employees work at Burmas Central Bank headquarters in Naypyidaw in 2012. / Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters

Thailands Ex-Im Bank to Open Office in Rangoon

Thailands Export-Import bank is expected to open an office in Rangoon shortly in a move designed to boost bilateral investment and trade between Burma and the neighbor country.

The banks Rangoon office will work with the Thai Board of Investment and others to support start-up and expansion endeavors of Thai entrepreneurs in Burma, according to a report in The Nation.

Opportunities for Thai companies were seen in construction, infrastructure, consumer goods, franchising, agriculture and tourism, according to the report, which also said that Thai companies should benefit greatly from the demand for electricity in Burma.

Push to Modernize Financial System

The government is working with the World Bank on the first audit of state-owned banks in decades, as part of a drive to modernize Burmas financial system and tackle risks to economic growth, according to a report in Bloomberg.

Burmas four state banks have assets equivalent to about a fifth of the countrys US$63 billion gross domestic product, according to the report.

These banks are under-capitalized, Washington, D.C.-based Nagavalli Annamalai of the World Bank said in an interview with Bloomberg. So we need to come up with a realistic plan for restructuring, which may include recapitalization that doesnt put too much strain on the fiscal side of the government.

Without reforms, the government lenders could spiral into a dire state as rapidly growing private-sector banks snare a bigger share of deposits and lending, the World Bank said in a recent report.

The largest government-run lender in Burma is the Myanma Agriculture and Development Bank, which provides credit to more than 2 million farmers. The other three are the Myanma Economic Bank, the Myanma Foreign Trade Bank and the Myanma Investment and Commercial Bank.

Assets at private-sector banks climbed 27 percent to 23.3 trillion kyats ($17.2 billion) at the end of June 2016 from the same month a year earlier, according to data collated by the World Bank. Assets of state-owned lenders slid 14 percent to 16.5 trillion kyats in the same period.

One challenge for analyzing the nations banking sector is the quality of government figures, the report said. Other challenges at state-owned banks include poor information-technology infrastructure, outdated accounting practices, and a lack of clarity in classification of assets and provisioning for bad loans, according to Annamalai. Non-existent risk-management systems and weak boards were additional difficulties, she said.

Tour Plan for Coffee Lovers

Genius Coffee has started tours of coffee plantations at the village of Ywangan near Taunggyi in southern Shan State with the goal of promoting tourism and creating jobs, according to a report in The Global New Light of Myanmar.

The tour is part of a plan to boost agriculture-based tourism in Burma and the project will extend to other townships in the future, the report said.

Visitors on a tour observe the manufacturing and development process for specialty coffee and are introduced to other information on agriculture in the region.

The coffee grown in Ywangan is a Costa Rican bean variety that was introduced as a substitution crop for opium in 1985. The township has 6,600 acres of coffee plantations over 120 villages, with the capacity to produce more than 700 tons of beans annually, the paper said.

Thai, Singaporean Plants to Operate at Thilawa

Two new foreign firms have announced plans to operate manufacturing operations at the Thilawa SEZ.

Thai metal packaging firm Sahadharawat is set to invest $5.1 million in a plant making mainly packaging for food and chemical products, according to DealStreet Asia.

Singapore property group Soilbuild will operate a $13.9 million plant producing pre-fabricated steel bars and other steel products. The firm is associated with the luxury housing project Rosehill Residences in Bahan Township, which is still under construction, according to the report.

New Cruise Operation on The Irrawaddy

US-based Rainforest Cruises has announced plans to operate new sailing holidays on the Irrawaddy and Chindwin rivers, in another sign of Burmas growing presence as a global tourism destination.

The cruises spanning from six to 11 days include visits to a royal palace, silk, gold and lacquer workshops, archeological sites, and pagodas and monasteries, according to a statement from the company.

The new tours take place on one of four vessels built specifically to navigate Burmas rivers, The Irrawaddy Explorer Cruise boat. The boat features 28 cabins, hardwood floors, sun deck, spa and a writers lounge.

Rainforest Cruises is a leading expedition cruise specialist in the Amazon and Galapagos. Our dedicated team has been successfully building magical memories for our clients throughout South America, and is excited to begin offering unique, comfortable, and enchanting trips to Myanmar, according to a statement.

Service Offers Improved Money Transfers Between Burma and US

KBZ bank and its partner Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation are opening a one-day service facilitating money transfers to the United States, according to Eleven Media.

Customers with a Settlement Account at the bank will experience a more streamlined and speedy service, according to the report.

We are delighted to launch the USD Settlement Account service [so that we] can accelerate the financial flow between Myanmar and the US. KBZ is the first Myanmar banking group allowed to open a USD Settlement Account, said U Win Lwin, managing director of KBZs international banking department.

Thai-Burma-India Trade Delegation Looks at Potential

A group of government officials and business representatives from Thailand traveled by road from Burma to Nagaland in India recently on a study tour to explore the trade potential for a potential improved 3,200 kilometer road linking India, Burma and Thailand.

The delegation met local entrepreneurs and state officials in Kohima, the Nagaland capital, a local media outlet reported. A keynote address was given by an official from the Thai embassy at New Delhi, according to the report.
By Press Trust of India: From K J M Varma

Beijing, Mar 11 (PTI) Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for building a "great wall of iron" to protect national unity and solidarity in the troubled Xinjiang province hit frequently by ethnic strife between Uyghur Muslims and Hans.

He said safeguarding ethnic unity, and reinforcing solidarity between the military, government, soldiers civilians, police and the public, as well as between the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and local communities should be fortified.

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Taking part in a panel discussion at the ongoing annual session of the National Peoples Congress (NPC) yesterday on Xinjiang, which is hit frequently by terrorist violence, Xi said the province was an important "security barrier" in northwest China which holds a special strategic position and faces special issue.

Hans are Chinas ethnic majority while Uyghur are Turkic-speaking group culturally and ethnically close to Central Asian nations.

Xi, who is also the general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and chairman of the Central Military Commission, said governing the region well was of great significance.

He underlined the need to build a "great wall of iron" to safeguard national unity and solidarity in the region.

Bordering Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Afghanistan, Xinjiang is battling violence which China blames on separatist East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM).

Recent reports said a large number of ETIM members are fighting along with Islamic State, (IS) in Syria China which has deployed large number of security forces in the province apprehends that the ETIM members will return to cause more violence.

A graphic video by purportedly by IS had denounced "evil Chinese Communist infidel lackeys."

"In retaliation for the tears that flow from the eyesof the oppressed we will make yourbloodflow inrivers, by the willofGod," one fighter featured in the video said speaking in native Uyghur language.

The video release was timed with the massive counter terrorism drills by Chinese security forces in Xinjiangs capital Urumqi.

Since Xinjiang is also the starting point for the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), China wants to restore peace and stability in the province.

In his meeting with legislators from Xinjiang, Xi stressed that maintaining stability in the province was a political responsibility, and that stability-related issues must be handled in a thorough, timely and proper manner.

He called for efforts to make long-term strategies, strengthen the foundation, and achieve lasting peace and stability in Xinjiang.

"Let people of all ethnic groups feel the Partys care and the warmth of the motherland," he said.

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Xi called for comprehensively implementing targeted poverty alleviation policies and taking the poor areas in southern Xinjiang as the main battlefield in poverty relief. PTI KJV MRJ AKJ MRJ

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Burma Govt Bans U Wirathu from Preaching Sermons

U Wirathu stands outside of Tamwe Township court in Rangoon in 2014. / Reuters

Burmas infamous nationalist Buddhist monk U Wirathu was banned from delivering sermons across the country for one year, starting from March 10, due to his religious hate speeches.

The decision was made at a special meeting of the countrys 47 senior Buddhist monks who run the the state Buddhist authority State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee in Naypyidaw on Thursday, according to U Myint Zaw Win, a director of the Ministry for Religious Affairs and Culture.

The statement from the meeting released on Friday warned U Wirathu that any breach of the order will lead to legal action. The ban will be in effect until March 9 next year.

The State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee said in the statement that the nationalist monk was repeatedly delivering hate speeches against religions to cause communal strife, hinder rule of law, and that he took sides with political parties to inflame tensions.
Guest Column Unrecognized and Forgotten: Refugee Youth in Burmas Transition

Mae La Oon refugee camp in Thailand. / Leena Zieger

The changes in Burmas political landscape have affected the countrys population in varying ways.

Among the less fortunate citizens are tens of thousands of young refugees whose concerns and qualifications continue to be sidelined in the countrys reform process.

Thousands of youth live in limbo along the Thailand-Burma border, where decline in donor funding has adversely impacted the refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) whose lives depend on international assistance and services provided by local ethnic organizations.

Most of the displaced populations are ethnic Karen who fled armed conflict and human rights abuses committed by the Burma Army over several decades.

In addition to declining support, another major blow for around 100,000 refugees who remain in the Thai camps has been the growing expectation that refugees will soon return to their homeland, reinforced by developments such as the US government wrapping up their group resettlement program in 2014.

Despite conditions on the ground indicating that timing is not right for a safe and dignified return, repatriation plans are in full swing.

For many youth, the refugee camp is the only home they have ever known. As life in the camps and future prospects for camp residents have become grim during the past few years, local organizations have documented a sharp increase in camp suicide rates especially among youth.

Stress, drugs, and alcohol have been blamed for the troubling trend. Other concerning social trends on the rise among the youth include growing school dropout rates and teenage marriages.

With growing pressures to return, refugees seek information about the situation on the ground in southeast Burma. While there has been less fighting and direct attacks on civilians since the Karen National Union (KNU) signed a bilateral ceasefire in 2012, land grabbing has increased and the Burma Army has fortified its position next to Karen villages.

Add the uncertain peace process and full-blown war in Burmas north coupled with sporadic conflict and lands riddled with landmines and one can begin to understand the tip of the massive iceberg constituting refugees concerns about returning.

Over the years that refugees have kept fleeing across the border to Thailand, the area has become a vibrant hub for capacity building initiatives including higher education programs.

To this day, these programs bring together a mix of young ethnic refugees who live together and learn about their countrys multi-ethnic history alongside subjects such as human rights, peace building, and community development.

Unlike within the state education system, teaching is student centered with an emphasis on developing the skills for lifelong learning and independent and critical analysis of information.

For refugee youth, an additional impediment to any meaningful definition of the voluntary return is the lack of accreditation for refugee education certificates. Despite the high quality of education along the border, refugee education is still by and large unrecognized in Burma and almost everywhere in the world.

Although there are a few important exceptions providing refugee students the channels they need to access universities in third countries, and some advances are being made toward student recognition in Burma, these initiatives currently reach only a fraction of the students.

Most refugee youth aspiring to continue their education see their dreams blocked by requirements such as having a 10th standard certificate from a government school, while certificates from the camps and the border area, including post-ten level (12th standard) certificates and even post-post-ten level certificates are usually not accepted.

Meanwhile, certificates from Burmawhere the education system desperately needs a complete reformreceives international recognition.

As well as being blocked by the requirements of most international institutions, recognizing refugee education was not on the agenda for the recently launched national education plan setting strategic directions for Burmas educational reform over the next five years.

This means that refugee youth could remain excluded from the educational reform process for at least half of the next decade, a critical time as no one knows when the camps will ultimately close down.

The youth along the border not only deserve accreditation for their high-quality education and years of work, but if the Burmese government does not recognize and appreciate the vast human resources on the borderline, they risk sidelining a pool of dedicated and competent future leaders and peace builders.

Many youth on the border come from villages that have been burned to the ground and from families that have endured persecution for generations. With their first-hand experiences of the conflict and personal motivations for achieving sustainable peace, the youth would undoubtedly have much to offer to Burmas peace process and the ongoing reform process.

Currently the displaced populations along the Thailand-Burma border, including highly educated youth, continue to be sidelined if not outright excluded from the countrys transition.

For genuine national reconciliation, it is imperative that youth from conflict-affected communities are included in the process by consistently having refugee-led youth organizations participating in stakeholder meetings, including the Union Peace Conferences, and having refugee education recognized by the Ministry of Education and national higher education institutions.

While most refugee youth feel the time is not right to return for numerous reasons, refugee youth should have a chance to participate in the processes that directly impact their future.

Until a meaningful voluntary return of refugees and other displaced populations is possible, and refugee education is recognized by national and international institutions, it is vital that international community continues to support refugees and education along the border.

Leena Zieger is the Founder and International Coordinator of Burma Link, a non-profit organization advocating for the rights of Burmas ethnic nationalities and conflict-affected communities.

Burma Link launched a joint documentary film Unrecognized Leaders, Tomorrows Hope: Raising the Voices of Forgotten Youth with the Karen Student Network Group and Karen Youth Organization online on March 10, 2017 The film was originally launched at a press conference in Rangoon on Feb. 22.
Parliament This Week in Parliament (March 6-10)

U Htin Kyaw attends Union Parliament for the first time on March 18, 2016. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

Monday (March 6)

In the Union Parliament, ministers of labor, immigration and population, construction, defense, transportation and communications, and the Chin State divisional government explained the spending of more than 18 billion kyats from reserve funds of the 2016 Union Budget for natural disasters.

The Joint Bill Committee and Joint Public Accounts Committee submitted their legal assessment report and financial assessment report on the 2017 Union budget draft law.

Tuesday (March 7)

The Lower House voted on a proposal to fix what lawmaker U Tin Htwe described as a corrupt judicial system, in spite of objection from of Burmas Supreme Court judge U Soe Nyunt. Lawmakers who discussed the proposal suggested adopting a jury system to improve the judiciary.

In the Upper House, lawmakers asked questions about development works in their respective constituencies. Deputy Minister for Electricity and Energy Dr Tun Naing, in response to a question by lawmaker U Kyaw Kyaw of Arakan State (4) Constituency, said 519 million kyats would be spent from the Arakan State governments 2017-18 budget to connect all the villages in Mrauk-U Township to the national grid.

Wednesday (March 8)

In the Lower House, lawmakers discussed a proposal by U Kyaw Min of Letpadaung Township urging the Union government to adopt a clear land reclamation policy on pastures nationwide. Parliament did not approve the proposal, but Speaker U Win Myint promised that Parliament would monitor the works of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation in that regard.

In the Upper House, lawmakers asked questions related to electricity supply in their respective constituencies.

Thursday (March 9)

In the Lower House, U Tin Ko Ko Oo of Bilin Township asked who would take responsibility for buildings and structures built by tender winners if they do not meet the quality agreed to in the contracts. Union minister for construction U Win Khaing replied that tender winners of state-funded projects had to repair the structures if they sustained damage because of poor workmanship during a warranty period. The governments quality control team who assesses the quality of the construction would also be held responsible, he said.

In the Upper House, lawmaker U Htay Oo of Rangoon Division (2) asked if the courts would hear the professional testaments of DNA experts at trials, noting that the Burma Police Force had established a department specializing in DNA in Naypyidaw. The chief justice of the Supreme Court replied that courts accepted chemical and medical reports as evidence.

Friday (March 10)

In the Union Parliament, lawmakers discussed the presidents proposal to spend 400 million kyats (US$292,188) from the 2016 Union Budgets reserve funds on works for the sustainable development of Shan States Inle Lake.

Parliament approved the presidents proposal to establish diplomatic ties with Liberia, Vatican City, Guinea, Malta, The Seychelles, and Ecuador.
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By Brian Martin | ( Waging Nonviolence ) |  

The Trump administrations policies have already triggered public outrage and massive opposition. To understand the techniques that make opposition effective, it is useful to look at regular patterns of injustice and outrage.

When powerful groups do things that might trigger resistance, they regularly use five methods to reduce public outrage: cover-up, devaluation, reinterpretation, official channels and intimidation/rewards. Take torture for example. Cover-up is exemplified by the fact that torture is nearly always done in secret. Devaluation is the labeling of victims as terrorists or criminals. Reinterpretation is the justification of torture by the need to obtain crucial information. Official channels come into play when torture is challenged and governments set up inquiries or charge low-level functionaries, thereby giving the appearance  but not the substance  of justice. The method of intimidation/rewards is seen when victims are threatened with further reprisals if they speak out or senior officials are rewarded with promotions.

All of these techniques were used in the case of torture by U.S. guards at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, as revealed in 2004. They can also be found in all sorts of injustices, including censorship, sexual harassment, economic inequality and genocide. The Nazis under Hitler, despite dictatorial powers, used the same methods to reduce outrage.

It is, therefore, predictable that the Trump administration will seek to reduce outrage over its policies. To illustrate this, and to show how the five usual methods can be countered, lets look at the governments attempted ban on entry to the United States by citizens of seven countries.

Exposure

The first thing to note is that the government openly announced the ban on January 27. It didnt try to hide or cover it up, which enabled massive opposition to emerge rapidly. This runs very much counter to some of Barack Obamas repressive policies  the prosecution of whistleblowers using the Espionage Act and the murder of thousands of people using drones  which were carried out with little publicity on the administrations part.

Not all of Trumps damaging policies will be so highly visible  for example, the planned repeal of the Dodd-Frank financial oversight law may pass under the radar. Therefore, the important lesson for opponents is that exposure of injustice is crucial. Whistleblowers, investigative journalists, courageous editors and social media networks all help convey information to receptive audiences. Publicity is vital for mobilizing opposition.

Validation

In an effort to devalue the target of the ban  which was obviously Muslims  the Trump administration claimed its aim was to stop terrorists.

The counter to such devaluation is validation, namely asserting and raising the status of those targeted. One effective counter was to tell stories about particular individuals adversely affected by the ban, especially ones with notable accomplishments or whose plight was especially unfair. For example, the story of a young software engineer working for Facebook, with photos and personal details, can cause readers to empathize with the individual, undermining rhetoric about terrorism.

Another technique of validation is endorsement by and affiliation with valued members of the community. When dozens of leaders of major technology companies protested against the ban and expressed solidarity with their foreign-born employees, this undermined the credibility of the ban.

Interpretation

To counter the technique of reinterpretation, it is necessary to explain why the action is unjust. Critics of the ban were quick to point out that the ban might actually foster more terrorism by giving credence to extremist claims that the U.S. government is anti-Muslim. Critics also pointed out that countries where Trump has investments were not affected.

Trump framed the ban in the language of anti-terrorism. Critics countered by framing it as a violation of the principles underlying U.S. freedoms.

Mobilization

When a powerful group does something that others see as unfair, one of the ways to reduce outrage is to refer the issue to a formal process or agency, such as an expert panel or court, that is supposed to deliver justice. However, when the perpetrators are powerful, official channels often serve to reduce outrage while giving only an appearance of justice. Because people believe that official channels are addressing the problem, they are less likely to protest. Furthermore, official channels are slow, depend heavily on experts (such as lawyers), and are highly procedural, so outsiders cannot easily understand how decisions are reached. In general, to increase the effectiveness of campaigns against injustice, it is usually better to avoid official channels and instead focus on mobilizing support.

In response to Trumps entry ban, some opponents turned to the courts, having initial success in blocking implementation of the ban. The court process soon upstaged other forms of resistance. Another problem is that relying on the courts sets a precedent for other campaigns: It will seem that if a Trump order is judged legal by the courts, then it is acceptable.

Turning to the courts to oppose Trump actions thus has both positive and negative aspects. It may be successful in the short term or on a particular issue. However, it can also help legitimize measures that are unfair but legal. Whats more, it can disempower grassroots campaigning, thereby inhibiting the development of more creative and participatory methods of resistance.

Resistance

The final method for reducing outrage has two sides: intimidation and rewards. Undoubtedly many of those affected by the travel ban have been reluctant to speak out because they fear reprisals. On the other hand, those justifying and implementing the bans can expect support from the administration. For opposition to be effective, it is vital that some individuals and organizations resist despite the possibility of reprisals and that some players within the system refuse to participate despite rewards.

In the case of the travel ban, opponents have been highly successful in mobilizing support, to such an extent that it can be said that the ban backfired on the administration by empowering opponents and discrediting Trump.

The techniques of exposure, validation, interpretation, mobilization and resistance have been crucial in challenging the ban. The implication for future campaigns is to be aware of the methods commonly used by perpetrators of injustice to reduce outrage and be ready to counter each one of them.

Brian Martin is professor of social sciences at the University of Wollongong, Australia and vice president of Whistleblowers Australia. He is the author of 14 books and hundreds of articles on dissent, nonviolence, scientific controversies, democracy and other topics.

Via Waging Nonviolence

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Related video added by Juan Cole:

CCTV: Chicago Residents Stage Protest Against Trumps Revised Travel Ban
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Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 10, 2017

Groups Challenge Revised Muslim Ban

BALTIMORE - Civil rights and refugee groups today asked a federal court in Maryland to block the Trump administrations revised executive order, arguing that it would cause irreparable harm for their plaintiffs. The order, which still maintains the suspension of refugee resettlement along with banning entry of nationals from six Muslim-majority countries, was issued on March 6.

The groups that brought the case include the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Maryland, and the National Immigration Law Center on behalf of the International Refugee Assistance Project at the Urban Justice Center, HIAS, and the Middle East Studies Association, along with individuals, including U.S. citizens, affected by the ban.

Representatives from each group gave the following statements:

Beth Baron, President, Middle East Studies Association

The Middle East Studies Association joined this case because the new executive order cuts at the very core of our mission as a scholarly association  to facilitate the free exchange of ideas. The order directly harms our student and faculty members by preventing travel, disrupting research, and impeding careers. The order hurts us as an association intellectually and financially. It is incumbent upon us to support the interests of our members and stand up for the peoples of the region we study and our colleagues.

Becca Heller, Director of the International Refugee Assistance Project at the Urban Justice Center

"The exemption of Iraq from the (Muslim and refugee) ban is nothing but a weak attempt at righting one of the many egregious wrongs of the original order. The majority of Iraqis who have worked with the U.S. in Iraq arrive via the refugee resettlement program, which the new order attacks just as viciously. By suspending the program for 120 days and slashing the resettlement slots by 60,000, more than 50,000 Iraqis will still be affected, many of whom have worked for the U.S. or have family in the U.S."

Karen Tumlin, Legal Director of the National Immigration Law Center

A repackaged Muslim and refugee ban is still a Muslim and refugee ban. This version may be tweaked to work its way around the courts, but the intent remains the same. Trump has a clear and well-documented record of animus and discrimination directed at immigrants, refugees and Muslims, either from his tweets, stump speeches, or statements made to the media. Theres just no way to work around that fact. The courts have overwhelmingly rebuked the administrations attempt to legalize bigotry and religious discrimination, and we are confident they will do so again."

Mark Hetfield, CEO and President of HIAS

As with the first executive order, President Trump has once again ignored the Constitution in order to fulfill his campaign promise of a Muslim ban. We are asking the court to intervene in order to protect thousands of refugees lives. HIAS is a Jewish organization that has worked since 1881 to protect and resettle refugees based on the Torahs command to welcome the stranger. We cannot be bystanders as our own government turns away and discriminates against tens of thousands of refugees who have played by our rules and already subjected themselves to extreme vetting.

Omar Jadwat, Director of the ACLUs Immigrants Rights Project

Putting a new coat of paint on the Muslim ban doesnt solve its fundamental problem, which is that the Constitution and our laws prohibit religious discrimination. The further President Trump goes down this path, the clearer it is that he is violating that basic rule.

Todays filing is available here.

CONTACT

Juan Gastelum, NILC, 213-375-3149, media@nilc.org

Inga Sarda-Sorensen, ACLU, 212-284-7347, isarda-sorensen@aclu.org

Henrike Dessaules, IRAP, 646-459-3081, hdessaules@refugeerights.org

Gabe Cahn, HIAS, 212-613-1312, gabe.cahn@hias.org

Geoffrey Knox, MESA, 917-414-1749, gknox@geoffreyknox.com
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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |  

Having Scott Pruitt as head of the Environmental Protection Agency is sort of like the plot of that Showtime thriller Dexter, where the police forensic technician trying to catch criminals is in his spare time a vigilante serial killer. Pruitt is Koch and ALEC.

Pruitt actually expressed public doubt this week about whether human-generated carbon dioxide emissions cause climate change. Since even a student in eighth grade chemistry can actually do an experiment demonstrating that CO2 is a greenhouse gas, we can only assume that Pruitt is a student of Goebbels and is practicing the Big Lie. The comparison to Goebbels is apt, since denying that human-caused CO2 and methane emissions cause global warming will cause further future genocides, mowing down human beings not because they are Jewish but because they live near a coast or in the pathway of a megastorm. Yes, friends. The proper term for denialists is Climate Fascists.

There is no point in arguing the facts with Pruitt and anyone who supports him. The facts were clear a long time ago. So how to respond?

The response must be practical. So imagine you had a robot designed to vacuum the rugs in your house. And then imagine that a virus infected its software and it started dumping dust and dirt on your rug here and there instead of vacuuming it up. The robot is the EPA and Pruitt is the virus. Obviously you have to try repair the virus at some point. But in the meantime all you can do is go get a broom and sweep up the dirt.

The broom is social action.

There are about 600 coal plants in the United States. Many are scheduled for early retirement, but others might go on belching pollution for another 20 years. Since coal is the dirtiest source of electricity, we have to close the coal plants if we are to ameliorate the worst effects of climate change.

If Pruitt angers you, swing into action. Find out if there is a coal plant near you and devote some energy to organizing to close it. Here are some things we can do:

1. Pressure your state representatives to outlaw coal plants in your state. Oregons legislature has mandated that all coal use in the state cease by 2040. The parliament of Finland is considering legislation to ban coal use by 2030, only 13 years from now. Coal is already more expensive than other electricity generating technologies except nuclear, and consumers will save money if coal plants are closed in favor of solar and wind.

2. Pressure your utility to close its coal plants on an accelerated schedule. Buy stock and attend the stockholders meeting. Be loud. Call them and complain as a consumer. Where you meet resistance, use social media to shame the perpetrator. In Indiana, stakeholders in NIPSCO succeeded in getting the company to close Chestertons Bailly Generating Station by mid-2018 and a good portion of Wheatfields Schahfer Generating Station in 2023. So the obvious next step is to see if the Schahfer Generating Station cant be closed completely before 2023. On the other hand, the shameless I&M/ American Electric Power utility at Fort Wayne Indiana wants to extend the life of its Rockport coal-fired plant, to the dismay of locals. Shame I&M.

Remember, there are only 600 such plants in the country. Each closure brings us closer to our goal of limiting the worst effects of climate change.

3. Lets make entire states coal-free. Connecticut, e.g., only has one coal-fired plant left. It should be closed as soon as possible. Unfortunately it is being replaced by a natural gas plant. Natural gas is half as dirty as coal, so that is better than nothing. But natural gas will be our next target.

4. Sue the bastards. Environmentalists are suing a Colorado Springs coal plant, on the grounds that it is violating existing environmental law by spewing noxious chemicals into the air we breathe. A similar lawsuit has been launched in Jefferson County Alabama. Recent research shows that breathing polluted air is associated with heightened risk of Alzheimers. Coal plants are inherently vulnerable to suits that require them actually to obey clean air laws and regulations.

5. Peaceful, permitted demonstrations and rallies against coal plants have been found to be effective around the world, including in Kenya. It is only right that we emulate Kenya, given that Trump insists our last president was born there. Even villagers in Myanmar/ Burma know that having a coal plant as their neighbor would be dangerous for them, and they are valiantly protesting. Why are Americans so timid, browbeaten and cowardly that they let coal plants spew mercury and sulfuric acid into their childrens lungs? Or that they let them heat up the earth to dangerous levels for our childrens children? Greening the earth is inherently a peaceful endeavor, and peaceful action gains hearts and minds. Peaceful movements are twice as likely to succeed.

So dont argue with Pruitt or his Koch Brother-funded cousins. Close down the coal plants. End coal.

There are 600 coal plants. We should try to close them all in 8 years. That is how to reply to Trump and Pruitt and the other genocidal climate fascists.



Related video:

CBS News: EPA chief Scott Pruitt disputes carbons impact on climate
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By Clemens Hoffmann and Can Cemgil | (The Conversation) |  

The Trump administrations plans for the war against the so-called Islamic State (IS) are at last becoming clear. And it seems his still-young government has chosen which ally to put first: the Syrian Kurds.

On February 24, the USs top commander in the Middle East, General Joseph Votel, visited Syrias Kurdish city of Kobane and pledged increased military support for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), including the USs own direct involvement. After his visit, the Pentagon released its revised strategy to defeat IS in Syria, commissioned by the Trump administration. It sets out a plan to seize the de facto IS capital city of Raqqa, hingeing on strategic and material US support for Syrian and Kurdish forces on the ground.

The plan puts an end to speculation over which ally the US would choose, and implies that the Kurds might yet enjoy long-term American support for their Syrian battles. It also signals that a new, previously inconceivable geopolitical alignment is taking shape. So what made the US take the Kurdish side?

Compared to its predecessor regime, the Trump administration has highly ambiguous relationships with the State Department and the CIA, which were always relatively responsive to Turkish worries about the Syrian Kurds. Trump himself clearly prefers military men and their opinions. The US military is increasingly distrustful of Turkeys leadership, especially purges in Turkey, which have left many pro-American senior Turkish officers in jail, unemployed or on the run.

This distrust has been reinforced by Turkeys on-off relationship with Russia and Ankaras repeated suggestion that it might pivot eastward should Washington back the Syrian Kurds or fail to extradite Fethullah Gulen, a cleric Turkey accuses of orchestrating 2016s failed coup from exile in the US. Turkey views this as a game of sides, and the Trump administration now seems to have picked one.

More surprisingly still, Washingtons increasingly pro-Kurdish stance puts it on side with two of its own and Turkeys major rivals: Russia and Iran.

Uneasy bedfellows

Turkey, Russia and Iran are formally co-operating in the Syrian peace talks known as the Astana process, but Turkey has frequently been described as the weakest link in this triangular relationship. It has officially struck a detente with Russia, but tensions with Iran have worsened of late. For all that their interests might occasionally overlap, the two countries are still competing for regional supremacy. Both know that only one of them can have it.

The Kurdish question is in play here, too. Iran is clearly not entirely opposed to some form of Kurdish autonomy in Syria  and that could be a significant barrier to Turkeys regional ambitions, offsetting any power given to the more pro-Turkey Kurdish factions in Iraq.

Russia, meanwhile, is trying to contain Turkey with flexible but principled support for Syrian Kurds, openly supporting their aspirations to self-administration and their idea of turning Syria into a federal state. Moscows pro-Kurdish policy may also help it force the Assad regime to toe its line if necessary, as it recently had to do at a thorny moment in east Aleppo.

Ultimately, Russia wants to showcase Syrian Kurds to the world as an alternative non-Islamist Syrian opposition to the world: a secular force, willing to negotiate and co-operate with the wider world against IS and other extremists. If this can be done, it could help delegitimise not only Syrias Sunni opposition groups, but also the purportedly moderate opposition forces allied against Bashar al-Assad within the Free Syrian Army (FSA).

Moscow also intends to install a buffer zone in Kurdish-led areas of Syria to separate Turkish/Syrian rebel forces from the SDF and Syrian government ones. Turkey has tentatively welcomed this approach, but there are signs the situation is even more complex than it appears: while US special forces publicly deny that they know about this deal or are collaborating in it, there are reports that they are in fact patrolling the area.

However contingent and fragile it might be, this convergence between Russia, Syria and Iran puts Turkey in a strategic and practical bind. This comes just as President Erdogan is ramping up for a constitutional referendum that could grant him an executive presidency with sweeping powers. If he wants to win that vote, he must keep the forces of Turkish nationalism on his side, and that in turn significantly raises the stakes of the anti-Kurdish intervention in Syria.

But while Turkey may be an unpredictable player with bad options, it is nonetheless still projecting serious power and making its determination clear. The Turkish-backed FSA is mounting sporadic attacks from Turkish-controlled zones around the flashpoint city of al-Bab, raising the possibility of a wider conflict between Turkey and the SDF. With the US now apparently taking the Kurdish side, that could be a highly explosive situation.

As for the future of the wider Middle East, things increasingly seem to revolve around the geopolitical behaviour of the Syrian Kurds. Whether through skillful realpolitik or by sheer happenstance, they are becoming kingmakers. With four major powers hovering over them, they have the leverage to decisively reshape the geopolitical contours not only of Syria, but of the whole Middle Eastern order.

Clemens Hoffmann, Lecturer in International Politics, University of Stirling; Can Cemgil, Assistant Professor of International Relations, Istanbul Bilgi University, and Kamran Matin, Senior Lecturer in International Relations, University of Sussex

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.



Related video added by Juan Cole:

AFP: Fight IS, start revolution: Why foreigners join Syria Kurds
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By Joel Schalit | EURACTIV |  

Normally, the accusation is reversed. Erdogan undoubtedly knew that when he accused Germany on Sunday of fascist actions typical of the Nazi era, for cancelling rallies to drive support for an April referendum granting himself broad new powers.

Yet, the significance of reversing the hackneyed War on Terror reference, Islamofascism, got lost in the media frenzy, as Germanys political echelon recoiled in horror at being tarred with such a deliberately offensive jibe.

Few slurs have been more misused of late in German politics, in reference to Merkel and her coalitions diversity-friendly politics and response to the refugee crisis, coming, more often than not, from right-wing extremists.

But here was one of the worlds most powerful Muslim leaders, dishing out the same dirt. The Turkish president might as well have been repping for the populist Alternative fur Deutschland party. The rhetoric was the same.

Though Merkel and her lieutenants did their best to appear conciliatory, there was an uncharacteristic amount of condescension in their responses, which could not help but highlight the sense of superiority the Turkish president was targeting.

One unnamed CDU official went so far as to call Erdogan childish, while a CSU leader predictably went for the jugular, calling him the despot of the Bosporus, as though to confirm the Turkish leaders point that the Germans are disrespectful.

Yet, the affair did what it was supposed to do. Germanys political echelon walked right into Erdogans trap and helped legitimate the sense of siege and victimisation the AKP chief continually appeals to in his efforts to scale back Turkish democracy.

Its impossible to have imagined the Germans responding differently. This was a deliberately crass manoeuvre, meant for domestic political consumption, with a very limited scope for enlightened responses. Particularly during an election season, in which immigration, and Islam, are enormously charged topics.

Predictably, little, if any deference was paid to how it would help tarnish the image of Turkish Germans and reinforce resentment of Muslims. Inevitably, Erdogans insouciance would be a boon to German populists, and those members of Merkels governing CDU party who remain uncomfortable with her pro-refugee agenda.

But you get what you pay for. To have assumed that the Turkish president would not impact or harm this German governments efforts to promote tolerance and the right to asylum remains a terrible mistake, in keeping with the EUs head-scratching reliance on Erdogan to help manage the refugee crisis.

How could Germany not expect such rhetoric from the man who deliberately reignited Turkeys civil war with its Kurdish population? Aside from being its own obvious refugee driver, the nationalist ideology behind it smacks entirely of fascism. The exact kind that Erdogan reproaches Germany for remaining guilty of.

This ought to be the biggest takeaway from Erdogans charge. The fascism tag remains relevant, not just because he is using it as cover for his own politics, but because many of the crises associated with it have returned and are being contributed to, in different ways, by everybody.

Via Euractiv

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Related video added by Juan Cole:

Euronews: Erdogan compares German officials to Nazis over rally ban
Delta, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - March 10, 2017) - Desert Gold Ventures Inc. (TSXV: DAU) (FSE: QXR2) (OTC Pink: DAUGF) ("Desert Gold" or "the Company") Further to the press release dated November 22, 2016, the Company is pleased to announce that it has closed its private placement. The Company has sold 1,200,000 units at a price of $0.25 per unit, raising gross proceeds of $300,000.

Each unit consists of one common share in the equity of the Company and one common share purchase warrant (the "Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.30 per share for a period of five (5) years from closing, subject to a thirty (30) day accelerated expiry period, upon announcement by the Company that its shares have traded on a weighted average of $1.00 per common share, or more, for ten (10) consecutive trading days.

The proceeds of the Financing will be used for general working capital and development purposes at the Company's projects in Western Mali and Rwanda. There are no finder's fees or commissions related to this private placement. Securities issued resulting from this private placement will be subject to a statutory hold period. This private placement is subject to approval by TSX Venture Exchange.
LIMA, PERU--(Marketwired - March 10, 2017) - Minera IRL Limited ("Minera IRL" or the "Company") (BVLAC:MIRL)(CSE:MIRL)(CSE:MIRL.CN) announces that Corporacion Financiera de Desarrollo of Peru ("COFIDE") has advised that it has revoked the mandate to exclusively structure the senior debt to a maximum of US$240 million for the development of the Ollachea gold project in Puno, Peru.

COFIDE has changed its strategy to focus on financing small and medium industry ("Mypes").

The Peruvian Government announced on March 9, 2017 an Economic Impulse Plan that will prioritize the credit for the Mypes through COFIDE, among other measures to boost the Peruvian economy.

The Company is assessing its options to finance the development of the Ollachea Project and has been developing an optimized plan to enhance shareholder value.

Diego Benavides, CEO and Director, of Minera IRL said, "We are confident of being able to obtain the necessary investment to develop Ollachea on shareholder-friendly terms. We anticipate being able to bring news of further developments to the market in the near future."
By Press Trust of India: Washington, Mar 11 (PTI) Zika virus, which is known to cause severe birth defects in babies and a paralysing neurological condition, may also have serious effects on the heart, new research has warned.

The study is the first to report cardiovascular complications related to this virus, researchers said.

In the study of nine adult patients with Zika and no previous history of cardiovascular disease, all but one developed a heart rhythm problem and two-thirds had evidence of heart failure.

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It is known that Zika can cause microcephaly, a severe birth defect in babies born to women infected with the virus, and Guillain-Barre syndrome, a neurological condition that can lead to muscle weakness and, in severe cases, paralysis.

"We know that other mosquito-borne diseases, such as dengue fever and chikungunya virus, can affect the heart, so we thought we might see the same with Zika. But we were surprised by the severity, even in this small number of patients," said Karina Gonzalez Carta, cardiologist at Mayo Clinic in the US.

The patients, six females, with mean age of 47, were seen at the Department of Tropical Medicine in Venezuela within two weeks of having Zika-type symptoms.

They reported symptoms of heart problems, most commonly palpitations followed by shortness of breath and fatigue.

Only one patient had any previous cardiovascular problems (high blood pressure), and tests confirmed that all of the patients had active Zika infection.

Patients underwent an initial electrocardiogram (EKG), a test that shows the electrical activity of the heart, and in eight of the patients, the EKG suggested heartbeat rate or rhythm concerns.

These findings prompted a full cardiovascular workup using an echocardiogram, (24-hour) Holter monitor and a cardiac MRI study.

Serious arrhythmias were detected in eight patients: three cases of atrial fibrillation, two cases of nonsustained atrial tachycardia and two cases of ventricular arrhythmias. Heart failure was present in six cases.

Of these, five patients had heart failure with low ejection fraction, when the heart muscle does not pump blood as well as it should, and one had heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, when the heart becomes stiff and cannot relax or fill properly.

The study appears in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. PTI SAR SAR

--- ENDS ---
FREE NEVADA WORKERS' COMPENSATION LAWSUIT EVALUATION Send your Nevada Workers' Compensation claim to a lawyer who will review your claim at NO COST or obligation.

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Medical treatment;

Lost time;

Permanent partial disability;

Vocational rehabilitation;

Dependent payments in the event of death; and

Other related benefits or expenses.

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Mar-14-17

Workers' Compensation is insurance coverage purchased by the employer/business that provides workers' benefits for job-related employee injuries. Nevada law requires all employers to purchase Nevada workers' compensation coverage (with a few exceptions). Some workers may have unreasonably been denied their Nevada workers' compensation benefits or may find they have long waits for their benefits to kick in. In such cases, Nevada workers compensation lawsuits can be filed to ensure the employee's rights are protected.Nevada Workers Compensation is a no-fault insurance program that provides benefits to working individuals who are injured while on the job. In Nevada, the Division of Workers' Compensation within the Department of Financial Services ensures that employees receive proper compensation, which includes:If you are uncertain that your employer has workers' compensation coverage, it is important that your medical care professional providing you treatment be advised. Depending on the circumstances of your case, you may be entitled to receive benefits from the Nevada Uninsured Employer Account.It is important to have an experienced Nevada workers comp attorney advising and protecting you against unfair or questionable practices. Further, if the insurance company proves that you can work at any job, even at a reduced salary, you may be forced to return to work and put your health at risk.You have 90 days from the date of your injury or the date you first learned of your occupational disease to file a workers' compensation claim.All workers' compensation claims must have a Form C-4, Employee's Claim for Compensation/Report of Initial Treatment, completed.Next, your medical provider has three days from the date of your treatment to forward the C-4 to both your employer and your employer's insurance provider.Your employer's insurance provider has 30 days from the receipt of the C-4 to accept or deny your claim. If your claim has been denied, you may request a hearing within 70 days from the date of the insurer's determination or to an appeal's officer within thirty 30 days.It is your right to request a copy of a Physician Progress Report (PPR) from your doctor. It gives a brief diagnosis, treatment plan, any work restrictions or off-work instructions by the doctor, and the date of the next office visit.It is important to obtain a copy of a dictated report given to your insurer by your doctor after each visit. You can get the dictated report from your insurer: again, it is your right. This report could have errors that may hinder or deny your claim. For instance, your doctor may have misunderstood how your injury happened and writes the wrong information. Perhaps your doctor writes that you declined certain treatment or that you have pre-existing problems in the same body part. You might also discover that your doctor is telling you one thing, but writing something else. Doctors are busy and often fill out paperwork reluctantly and hurriedly.Lost wage compensation amounts are based on a percentage of your average weekly wage at the time of the injury and all benefits are subject to the minimum and maximum amounts set by Nevada law. If you are off work 20 days or less, there is no lost wage compensation paid for the first five days after your date of injury. If you are unable to work 20 or more days, lost wage compensation begins the day after your injury. All compensation benefits are subject to minimums and maximums.TTD is paid when you are temporarily unable to work at all. Lost wage compensation for temporary partial disability is calculated at 67% of lost wages.TPD is paid when you are temporarily working reduced hours or at a reduced rate of pay because of your injury or illness. Lost wage compensation for temporary partial disability is calculated at 67% of lost wages, never to exceed the TTD rate. TPD is paid for a maximum of 24 months.PPD is paid when your accident or illness causes a permanent impairment, generally a loss of physical function. Your treating physician should determine the percentage of impairment after you have reached maximum medical improvement or medical stability. PPD is paid every two weeks until the award is paid in full.PTD is paid if you are permanently disabled from performing any type of gainful employment. If it is determined that you are totally and permanently disabled as the result of a job-related injury or disease, income benefits are available for an extended period of time. The benefit amount is based on 66-2/3rds of the employees average monthly wage. The amount of the PTD benefit may be reduced for a previously paid PPD award.If an employee dies because of a work-related injury or disease, workers compensation insurance will pay burial expenses up to $10,000.00, plus the cost of transporting the remains of the deceased employee. Survivor benefits are apportioned between a surviving spouse and all dependent children. Funeral expenses may also be available for dependents if the death of a dependent occurs within the time that benefits are payable.A young man was killed at a school construction site when a Bobcat he was operating went through a second floor window opening out of which debris was being dumped. He left a 7-year-old son for whom he was paying $50.00 per week to support. More than $350,000.00 was recovered for the son in the workers' compensation case. In the wrongful death case against the general contractor and others, a $900,000 settlement was reached. Portions of both the workers' compensation and wrongful death recovery were put into structured settlements for the son who will receive annuity payments for life. The total benefits received will total more than $1.7 million.A 30-year-old man was working in maintenance for a Massachusetts packaging company. He was struck on the head by a tire rim while changing a trucks tires on the premises. The employer was cited by OSHA for its failure to comply with regulations regarding risks associated with servicing multi-piece tire rims. All workers' compensation claims were resolved at the mediation for $750,000.00 with liability. In addition, the parties agreed to a future lien recovery of approximately $1.5 million.If you or a loved one has suffered a loss as a result of Denied Workers' Compensation, please click the link below and your complaint will be sent to a lawyer who may evaluate your Nevada Workers' Compensation claim at no cost or obligation.
Ken Rosenthal looks at the durability of Nationals ace Max Scherzer, who has had just one arm-related DL stint in his career (shoulder soreness in 2009) and leads all Major League pitchers in innings pitched across the past three seasons. Rosenthal spoke to Scherzer himself, former D-backs GM Josh Byrnes, former Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski (now in Boston) and Nationals GM Mike Rizzo (Arizonas scouting director when the D-backs drafted Scherzer) about the two-time Cy Young winner. Byrnes said Scherzer deserves credit for being very developmentally minded as a prospect. He wanted to find out what he needed to do to be the best version of himself, not take what was the quickest path to the big leagues, said Byrnes. Rizzo noted that many perceived it as an overdraft when the Diamondbacks plucked him out of Missouri at No. 11 overall in 2006 and lauded Scherzers arm action, pitching IQ and demeanor on the mound. Scherzer offered some interesting insight on the toll that increasing workloads can take on a developing arm as well, making for a very interesting read.

Elsewhere in the NL East
The Ghanaian President, Nana Akufo-Addo has commended the Miss Ghana organization, the oldest pageant in the country.

According to the President, he was impressed with the organization's various social interventions which has been spearheaded by various winners of the pageant. He said the Miss Ghana pageant "is of real value to Ghana." The President was speaking at the Flagstaff House on Tuesday, March 7, 2017 when Exclusive Events Ghana, Organisers of the Miss Ghana pageant paid a courtesy call on him. The organization congratulated the President on his victory in the December 2016 elections and on Ghana's 60th independence anniversary.

The visit was to afford the organisers the opportunity to inform the President of the plans for this year's pageant (in line with the Country's 60th independence anniversary) and the future hosting of the Miss World pageant in Ghana.

Inna Mariam Patty, CEO of Exclusive Events, who led the delegation which included three former pageant winners, told the president that the Miss Ghana pageant, over the years, had succeeded in promoting Ghana onto the world stage. The former queens present were Sheila Azuntaba Miss Ghana 1996, Afia Marfo Miss Ghana 1998, Selasie Kwawu Miss Ghanan 2001. He also commended the past award winners for their commitment to the Miss Ghana projects.

The Chief Executive Officer of EEGL said winners of the pageant, also concentrated their efforts on the aged, educational, health and environmental sectors of the Ghanaian economy, stating that one of the flagship projects undertaken by the Miss Ghana organisation is the Don Bosco Street Child Project.

"We helped acquired a 10-acre land and built a hostel, where a lot of street children and those who cannot afford to pay their fees are given technical and vocational education. In the last 10 years, we have trained a lot of youth who can also contribute their quota to society," she said.

With regards to healthcare projects, Inna Patty mentioned that several previous Miss Ghana winners had contributed immensely to minimise infant and maternal mortality rates, especially in the three northern regions. On the environmental front, she revealed that pageant Organisers have partnered with the Forestry Commission to carry out various tree planting exercises across the country.

To this end, she indicated that "we are hopeful that the proposal of having national support to host the world event (Miss World pageant) will be given a favourable consideration. Countries lobby to host this prestigious event annually, as it generates millions of dollars in revenue and investment for the successful country. We are hopeful that in the nearest future Ghana, will be ready to host such an event." President Akufo-Addo, who thanked the delegation for the courtesy call, further described the Miss Ghana beauty pageant as "an event that promotes and sells the country." It is for this reason that the President added that the Miss Ghana pageant

"Is something that should be of concern to all " since it promotes Ghana as a viable investment and tourism destination.

The 'Miss Ghana 60 Years On' beauty pageant is expected to be organised in August this year, as part of the yearlong celebration of the 60th independence anniversary celebration.

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11.03.2017 LISTEN

Popular Ghanaian actress,Mavis Yeboah known in the long running comedy TV series,Cow & Chicken as Maame Gyanwaa has lost her only son Derrick Okyere

style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Maame Gyanwaa who usually plays the role of a gossip in the Cow & Chicken TV series which also features ace comedians;Funny Face and Bismark The Joke



confirmed the loss of her son to razzonline.com via telephone:

My son Derrick is deadhe died this dawn after under going a series of unsuccessful chemotherapy treatments at the ridge hospitalmy son battled cancer.but doctors are yet to undergo post mortem to ascertain what really killed him,Maame Gyanwaah opined to razzonline.com in tears.

It would be recalled that the late Derrick ,who happens to be the third child and the only son of the veteran actress Maame Gyanwaa,had battled cancer since February 2016.The deteriorating nature of the cancer led to the amputation of Derricks left leg and needed an urgent chemotherapy treatment at the Korle Bu Teaching hospital.

The popular actress who couldnt raise an amount of Ghc6000 for Derrick to undergo the chemotherapy treatment made a passionate appeal on Hot 93.9fm to the President of Ghana; Nana Addo who was then the flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party(NPP) in the 2016 general elections.

President Akufo-Addo responded to the call of Maame Gyanwaa by donating an amount of GHC5000 .The cash was given to Maame Gyanwaa by movie producer Socrate Safo and Minister of Foreign Affairs Shirley Ayorkor-Botwe in the studios of Pluzz FM in Accra.

Popular radio station, Vision One Fm also raised over GHC10,000.00 in other for Derrick to have a successful Chemotherapy treatment.

Late Derrick Okyere died at the age of 24yrs and completed Asesewa Secondary School in the Eastern Region in 2009 .

Razzonline.com brings you excerpts of how Maame Gyanwaa together with her late son Derrick appealed to Nana Addo in the video below.
10.03.2017 LISTEN

It used to be luxury, then it became a privilege. Now its a necessity. Smartphones! The new wonder of the world. In many parts of the world , people use this device for many purposes. One may argue that the use of it depends on ones need at that particular time. In Ghana however, many people use it daily. Some even use their phones the same number of times they breathe.

It has become a part of the Ghanaian lifestyle but there are more functional uses of smartphones than many people know hence they underutilize these devices that they pay so much to acquire. Jumia Travel, Africas leading online travel agency ponders below a few functional things Ghanaians use smartphones for.

Social Media - Have you seen her status ?, Nice Dp, Please like my page, kindly follow back, @1Mr_wazza liked your photo. These are very common statements we see and say frequently these days. All made possible by the overwhelming takeover of the technological magic called SOCIAL MEDIA. All over the world, people use social media for various reasons and on many different platforms. Ghana is no exception to this. Basically, social media can be used via certain devices either by a computer, tablet or a smartphone. The smartphone has gradually become the most popular with at least 6 out of every 10 Ghanaians owning a smartphone these days. Keeping memories by uploading videos and pictures on Facebook or instagram, tweeting about what you thinking or chatting with your friends while getting to see them live are just a few of the many fun things Ghanaians do with a smartphone. The world has become a global village indeed and those who have families abroad that they havent seen in awhile make use of video calling and live chats which make them feel more close than they actually are by distance. On the business end, platforms such as LinkedIn connect you to millions of businessmen and companies worldwide. A great way to network and make some money while having fun. Facebook, twitter and instagram also provides avenues for marketing with social media proving a very important marketing tool these days.

Online Marketing - Online marketing has grown more popular in recent times and although it hasnt entirely replaced offline marketing, many more people utilize the simplicity and speed of marketing online. Its tendency to reach millions of people in seconds makes it a very vital tool in todays marketing world. Here again, apart from computers and tablets, smartphones are the main tools for undertaking such campaigns. In Ghana, this amazing exposition has made many businesses thrive in an era of earnest competition. Even the smallest retail shop now has an online presence and markets online. Some even have apps that make it easy and fast for their clients and customers. Another feature of the smartphone that aids marketing in Ghana these days is also the ability to compare prices of competitors, research and make great decisions about pricing and marketing. Day in day out, lots of Ghanaians are utilizing this technological blessing to be successful. Go to A gbogbloshie market today and you will find the yam sellers taking pictures of their produce and sending them to their customers to have a view of it before getting them delivered to their doorstep. Other services such as Uber, Jumia Travel, and Jumia Food have apps which are easily accessible via the use of smartphones and many Ghanaians use this to their advantage.

Storage Device - Gone are the days of diskettes, compact disks or even pen drives. Now the more advanced external hard drives are also under extreme pressure from smartphone manufacturers in terms of storage. In the past, many Ghanaians found it difficult to save files and keep them for a long time. The most serious of all the challenges was the means to view and access these files or transfer them at any given time. Along came the smartphone with some of the more advanced one boasting of storage space of up to 256 gigabytes. This is more than enough to house several videos pictures, audios and documents. If you are a social person into music and videos, you have enough on your phone to keep all your favourite tracks and videos while you view them or transfer them at any time. If you are a more corporate person who often uses documents, the smartphone allows you to save as many documents as you wish and send them to business partners and colleagues by the click of just a few buttons or just the touch of your screen.

Electronic Devices Remote Control - Ever had a terrible experience of not being able to control your electronic device because you cant find your remote or because the batteries in the remote went bad? Maybe it happened at a very crucial time which may be very embarrassing. All these are in the past now. Did you know that smartphones allow you to control certain electronic devices? Some major electronic companies like LG, Samsung etc. have built amazing technologies that allows you to change the channel on your TV, increase the volume or even reduce the temperature of your air-condition by the use of your smartphone. This has become very popular in Ghana now and many people do not really care where the remote is. All they have to do is sync their phone with the electronic device and BAM!.

Navigation - Probably the most annoying thing when you dont have time or money is not easily finding your destination . Many a times, we get confused with directions that people give us and may end up being late to events, interviews, business meetings or church. If by any means we end up there after a long while, it wont be without unexpected costs. One very important feature of smartphones that Ghanaians benefit from these days is navigation. Now Ghanaians travel freely from one region, city or town to the other without having to fear being late or incurring extra costs. The use of various navigational apps such as Google maps allows you to input your current location and destination to get a route and directions easily. Why get lost when you have a smartphone? Even if you dont know where you are going, get on your smartphone and find it.

It is quite amazing that many people underutilize smartphones in Ghana . This device is so functional and has millions of uses that will leave you in awe. Each and every day, Ghanaians discover better uses of their smartphones making life easier for not only them, but everyone else around them. If you dont own a smartphone, go get one now.
10.03.2017 LISTEN

By Benjamin Mensah, GNA

Accra, March 8, GNA - Goldstar Air, a privately owned Ghanaian airline would offer seed money of GHE5,000.00 for travel agencies that have registered with the Ghana Tourist Authority for over a year.

The agencies must also be willing to apply for Goldstar Air's local billing system and pay the same amount or more to sell its tickets.

Mr Eric Bannerman, Chief Executive Officer of Goldstar Air, announced the package in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, after the opening a new head office building of the airline, at Ashalley Botwe, in Accra.

The interview sought to know what the airline, which also runs a travel and tour agency, would do to bring back travel agencies, which were fading gradually due to competition from operating airlines.

Mr Bannerman answered: 'Instead of Goldstar Air directly competing with the travel agencies, we intend to establish good working relationships in the form of strategic alliances.

'As a matter of fact, about 90 per cent of the travel agencies in Ghana do not have the international billing system because of the $50, 000 bank guarantee, so this will come as a relief to them and we will also offer Ghana tour operators competitive air tickets to their clients, ensuring customer satisfaction at all times.'

He expressed appreciation to the Air Service Department and Strategic Analysis of Baltimore Washington International Airport, Air Service Development of Providence International Airport both in the United States of America for accepting to give Goldstar Air two years of free landing, parking and office space at the airport.

Mr Bannerman said the objective of Goldstar Air was to focus, promote and protect the interests of Ghanaians.

' In view of this, Goldstar Air will roll out special programmes tailored to suit the needs of the Ghanaian and the aviation and tourism sectors as well.

'Our cabin crew will market our country to the numerous passengers in terms of bringing our rich cultural heritage of mother Ghana when the aircraft is in flight. Passengers will also feel at home with our Ghanaian dishes, listen to announcements, tit-bits in our local dialects and also enjoy Ghanaian movies and music when on board.'

The company has acquired the Air Carrier License (ACL) and awaiting to receive the Air Operators Certificate (AOC) after which it would be operating scheduled and non-scheduled flights from Accra to 11 destinations across the world namely; London, Dubai, Guangzhou, Lagos, Monrovia, Dakar, Banjul, Conakry, Freetown, Abidjan, Baltimore and Washington.

Other destinations would be the Providence International Airport in Rhode Island in the United State of America, which would serve customers in and around Rhode Islands, Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York.

Mr Bannerman said Ghanaian dishes would be served on the flight, thus creating more jobs for Ghanaians.

GNA
By Afedzi Abdullah, GNA

Mankessim (C/R), March 10, GNA - Mr Kofi Annan, Former United Nations (UN) Secretary-General has said agriculture could be a powerful bait in the process of economic development in Africa.

He therefore urged private investors and governments to consider agriculture as a business and invest in it to achieve the desired socio-economic development and reduce poverty in Africa.

Mr Annan said this when he visited the Rural Technology Facility (RTF) at Mankessim in the Mfantseman Municipality of the Central Region to access progress of work under the Rural Enterprise Programme (REP).

The REP is a poverty alleviation scheme funded under a loan agreement between the Government of Ghana (GoG) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) through capacity building and entrepreneurship drive for beneficiaries.

According to the Former UN Secretary General, agriculture should further be explored as it could create reliable jobs in every chain of production and advised the youth to see it as a life-long occupation.

Mr Annan said in developed countries, real jobs were created by the small and medium scale enterprises and admonished governments to assist individuals to set up their own businesses.

Mr Kwasi Attah-Antwi, National Director of REP, said the main focus of REP was to establish an institutional framework that ensured the sustainable delivery of services aimed at transforming and improving the livelihood of people in the rural areas.

He said the REP emphasised on skills training and provision of facilities for business enterprise development.

The REP operated on four main components of ensuring business development services, technology promotion in agribusiness activities to enhance access to finance through financial institutions and strengthening support system within the public and private sector.

Mr Attah-Antwi said REP had created 34,402 new jobs, established 27,702 new businesses and had positively affected the lives of about 140,000 people since 2012.

He said REP was targeting tertiary unemployed graduates interested in agribusiness in selected agricultural value chains and supported them through the Empowering Novel Agribusiness-Led Employment for Youth (ENABLE YOUTH) Programme.

The European Union(EU) Ambassador to Ghana, Mr William Hanna said the EU would continue to support the training of the youth in entrepreneurship.

He indicated that the EU was in discussion with the new Government for an increased support to small and medium scale enterprises in agribusiness.

Mrs Esther Kasalu-Coffin, IFAD country Director, admonished the facilitators of REP to educate the beneficiaries on how they could access funds to expand their businesses to employ more people.

She said the success of the REP was a clear demonstration of transforming and improving the livelihoods of people in the rural communities.

GNA
NDC Member of Parliament for Keta, Richard Quarshigah, has said the Akufo-Addo government has not put forward any original ideas to create jobs, and also how it intends to implement other initiatives.

Speaking to Citi News' Duke Mensah Opoku, he further suggested that, the New Patriotic Party government copied ideas from the opposition National Democratic Congress, but didnt copy well given the apparent lack of detail.

With respect to the NPP's one district one factory plan, Mr. on how private entities would partner the district assemblies to come up with local factories.

He said that document also outlined criteria for the disqualification of various private businesses, and stated clear modalities to be followed under the supervision of the Ministry of Trade and the National Board for Small Scale industries.

Clearly, you realize that all the NPP has said is captured in a more detailed and concise manner [in our document], but theirs is convoluted. They are not telling us how many factories will be built or constructed in a particular year. They only said they are going to devote an amount for one factory one district, and one village one dam They didnt copy well. They just picked the document and didnt read through.

NDC peddling lies

However, the NPP MP for Efutu, Alex Afenyo-Markin, watered down Mr. Quashigah's assertions saying the NDC was only gaining notoriety for spreading falsehoods.

According to him, a blueprint for government's initiative were in existence, but the first step was to commit to the implementation as done by the governments maiden budget.

Speaking on Eyewitness News, he said, the first step to be taken is to commit to its implementation. That is why the government in its financial statement has given a clear indication. Don't forget that there are ministers responsible for all these initiatives, The MP noted.

If somebody has already committed funds to doing something, why then jump the gun to say that there is no blueprint. If I commit GHc 433 million into realizing the vision of creating one district, one factory, why don't you give me the opportunity to begin the implementation. The implementation goes with the supposed blue print.



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


From the tale of female suicides which baffled us last week and earlier comes the unnecessary assault on very young girls. The dying week has been worrying. It comes at the heels of the celebration of the International Women's Day.

As parents and concerned citizens brooded over the rising spate of female suicides, the story of an eight-year-old Rebecca Dogah also made the headlines.

The KG girl had been assaulted by her father who allegedly used a machete on her, leaving her seriously injured. The innocent girl is recovering from the brutish attack and expectedly, the purported act is attracting widespread condemnation.

Besides the physical pain that she is suffering, the abused victim would contain, perhaps for the rest of her life, the thought of her own father showing such magnitude of wickedness to her.

Even after the brutish act, her father reportedly locked her up in a room and fled with his wife, perhaps expecting her to die. The couple is, without a fear of contradiction, mentally unsound and should lose custody of the child.

We are glad though that the police are on the trail of the defaulters whose conduct defies understanding. When a father and mother conspire to mete out such a barbaric act on their child, their case can best be handled initially by a psychiatrist.

We recall when a top psychiatrist said that there are many persons suffering mental challenges in town than we can imagine. This certainly is a case of one of the many mentally challenged persons in town who even though look normal, need attention and should in no instance be allowed to father children.

We had reason to, sometime ago, call on people sharing same neighbourhoods to be observant of developments in their areas. The little girl under review should have suffered many abuses before this last one but for fear of being labeled busybodies, nobody bothered to interfere in what was not their business.

The kid could have been killed by the couple. They would have fled thereafter as they have done now after the machete attack.

Let all those who can support the police to track the couple down do so now because they have committed a criminality for which they must face the law.

Parents must learn to be patient with their children, the extent of provocation notwithstanding. They must avoid causing injuries to them because the psychological impact of such treatment is near indelible; can lead to the feeling of rejection and even depression.

Children as gifts of God belong to society and so it behooves all to come to their aid when they are being abused by not only their parents, but anybody, including teachers.

It is not for nothing that a special unit was established in the Police Service to take care of such weird cases.

The Gender Ministry is also mandated to ensure that our children are protected from such extreme treatments.

We know that in the developed world such as the United States, parents would lose custody of their children when they show propensity to harm them, and lack the capacity to offer adequate parental care.

It is clear that the parents under review are unable to take care of Rebecca and so she must be transferred to an appropriate state agency otherwise she could lose her life at the hands of her crazy father and mother.
Government has increased the Peace Keeping allowance for personnel of the Ghana Army from $31 to $35 effective January 1 this year.

Government is also amending the Armed Forces regulation of 1986 LI 1332 to review the service years of personnel of the forces from 25 to 30 years.

President Akufo-Addo who made the statement in Accra at the annual WASSA of the Ghana Armed Forces asked Ghanaians to see him as a man of his words.

The Annual WASSA of the Ghana Armed Forces is an event to appreciate the work of the various ranks and also take stock of activities of the forces and plan for the years ahead.

Ghana's Army is considered one of the best in terms of peace keeping. This feat, the President wants to maintain.

He acknowledged challenges facing the country's security agencies and was grateful to the Armed Forces for putting their lives on the line to safeguard Ghana's territorial integrity.

President Akufo-Addo announced increases in the peacekeeping allowance of personnel from $31 to $35. This received a thunderous ovation from the officers and men of the forces.

One of the challenges facing the men in uniform is accommodation. This did not escape their Commander-In-Chief who promised them decent accommodation.

The President cited the budget presented by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta which made provision for renovation of all military barracks.

President Akufo-Addo committed his government to retooling the three services that make up the Ghana Armed Forces.

He said his government is in the process of amending the Armed Forces law to increase the number of service years from 25 to 30 years.

President Akufo-Addo announced the renovation of the 37 Military Hospital and the construction of a new military hospital in Tamale.

Personnel who distinguished themselves in their line of duty were honoured.

The Chief of the Defence Staff, Major General Obed Akwa called for constant upgrade of equipment and training of the men in uniform to catch up with modern trend in crime and insurgency.

Speaking at the Annual WASSA of the Ghana Armed Forces, Major General Akwa says the Armed Forces are ready to ensure Peace and Security across the country.
11.03.2017 LISTEN

Accra, March 10, GNA - The Strategic Media Monitoring and Advocacy Institute (SMMAI), an independent media tracking agency, has said President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo received high print media exposure in the month of February, 2017.

According to the Institute, through its scientific news content analysis, 35 newspapers, comprising state and privately owned, published 364 news stories between February 1 and 28.

However, it said the high media coverage was characterised by mixed sentiments; thus positive, negative and neutral ratings.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by Mr Tommy O'Dell, the President of SMMAI, and copied to the Ghana News Agency.

The institute, which is also into advocacy, training and consultancy services, said the 364 news stories analysed were thematically grouped under 13 headlines.

They were; Security, Campaign Promises Fulfilled, International Relations, Governance, Appointments, Economy, Energy, Health, Citizen Support, Religion, Agriculture, Development and the President's State of the Nation Address (SONA).

However, among the top five thematic headlines, the SONA received the highest print media coverage of 68 news stories, followed closely by Security with 63, Campaign Promises Fulfilled; 49, International Relations; 37, Governance; 36 and Appointments; 33 news stories.

According to the sentiment ratings of the president's print media visibility during the month under study, he received 185 positive, 130 negative and 49 neutral sentiments.

However, the statement said, the institute's Presidential Image Score Card ratings, despite the high positive sentiments, also recorded excessively high negative ratings, bearing in mind the fact that it was all within his first month in office.

'The relevance of such a study is in the fact that how a president is portrayed in the media indelibly helps to construct and literally create the president's public image or perceived character narrative among citizens and such impressions measured, over a longer period of time, determines the general public confidence in our key institutions of governance,' it said.

The statement said those then equally had far reaching consequences on the president's likely performance in any subsequent elections, the country's image internationally and the nation's accruing ability to even attract or retain foreign direct investments.

'Clearly, the President had made optimum relevance out of the few international travels and diplomatic interactions with foreign dignitaries within the first two months of his tenure in which he scored 27 positive ratings out of 37 news stories, with just a single negative sentiment rating,' it said.

The SMMAI, however, commended the Presidency for the strong showing in relation to international relations within the period under review.

GNA
11.03.2017 LISTEN

By Ken Sackey, GNA

Accra, March 10, GNA- President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Friday reiterated his government's determination to give the required support to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) to become the best in the region and globally.

'Ghanaians want an Armed Forces that is disciplined, well-motivated and respectful of the rights and liberties of the people... we have to work together to achieve this goal,' he said when addressing officers, men, women and civilian employees of the General Headquarters of the GAF at Burma Camp in Accra.

The President, who is the Commander-in-Chief of the GAF, had joined to mark the armed forces' 2016 annual West African Soldiers Social Activity (WASSA), where troops unwind after a hard year's service, take stock of its activities in the past year and re-strategise for the new year.

President Akufo-Addo told the troops that his vision for the GAF is that of well-resourced and motivated armed forces, adding, 'This will be the focus of my government for the Ghana Armed Forces,' and that 'government will take your welfare seriously.'

Further boosting the morale of troops, President Akufo-Addo announced an increment of the current peacekeeping allowance from 31 dollars to 35 dollars, to wild applauds and jubilation by personnel who were at the event.

He assured troops that henceforth, those serving in peacekeeping missions would be paid their allowance in the theatres of operations and not when they returned from those missions to Ghana.

'Decision has been taken to ensure all military personnel embarking on peacekeeping mission received their allowances in their areas of operations.

'No matter what part of the world you find yourself in peacekeeping, you will be paid your allowances there. That is the principle and we are not going back on it. Peacekeeping money is for peacekeepers,' he said

President Akufo-Addo noted that with the traditional challenges to security being compounded by contemporary threats like drug and human trafficking, proliferation of small and light weapons, armed robberies cyber-crime and activities of Nomadic herdsmen, government would actively support modern training methods, to keep the armed forces abreast with international military trends and ensure that they remained the beacon of armed forces across the continent.

'We are committed to providing you with modern military equipment, which will complement the training you would receive. Government is also committed to enriching the human resource base of the armed forces, by supporting initiatives that would provide further education for soldiers and airmen to enhance their skills in protection our territorial integrity.'

The President said with the advent of oil and gas resources, the Ghana Navy's role had become even more critical, as they now had the added responsibility of protecting Ghana's waters and oil fields from new threats, adding that the service arm would be adequately resourced to make it effective in their role.

He said Government would 'allocate the necessary resources to protect Ghana's ciders of communication', especially in the wake of current activities in the Gulf of Guinea, such as piracy, disruptions and destruction of oil and gas operations, bunkering, drug trafficking.

'Today the challenges to Ghana's security are numerous, complex and sometimes unpredictable. Nevertheless, in the face of all these threats you continue to discharge duties effectively and professionally.

'All of us owe a debt of gratitude to men and women of the armed forces for being prepared to put their lives on the line to keep Ghana safe, safeguard the country's sovereignty and protect its territorial integrity.'

The Commander-in-Chief of the GAF also reassured troops that all barracks across the country would be refurbished and renovated and that more residential accommodation facilities would be provided to reduce the acute accommodation problem facing troops.

He also announced that action on the third phase of the 37 Military hospital had began, to ensure the hospital continued to provide first class health care for members of the armed forces and their families, civilians and to meet its function as a national emergency hospital.

'Government is also committed to constructing a new military hospital in Tamale to service health needs of military personnel in the northern sector of Ghana.'

The President wished the current brass of the armed forces well in their duties, confident that they would establish a military tradition that would stand the test of time.

He commended personnel of the GAF for the effective role they played in last December's elections saying that this had won the admiration of the world and enhanced the image of Ghana and its democracy.

The Chief of the Defence Staff, Major General. Obed Akwa expressed gratitude for the time the President spent with the forces, pledging the loyalty of the officers, men and women of the GAF to the President.

He assured the President that the GAF would use its resources and skill to protect the integrity of Ghana's territory and ensure that there is peace, harmony and security in the country.

Some service and civilian personnel received awards for distinguishing themselves in the past year.

GNA
Auditing firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers(PwC) has advised government to take advantage of the Tax Administrative Law as it comes into force this year to broaden the tax base.

According to the firm, government can use the law to encourage the private sector to fulfill their tax obligation to recover the 5.4 billion cedis that was captured as tax cuts in the budget.

Per the new law, business owners and individuals are required to have Tax Identification Numbers before they can acquire land and even open bank accounts, among others.

Speaking to Citi Business News at post-analysis forum of the 2017 budget, a Partner, and Tax Leader at PricewaterhouseCoopers, George Kwatia stated that the euphoria surrounding the tax abolishment presents a perfect opportunity for government to implement the new tax law.

Spare parts dealers are not supposed to pay duties they are excited about it, but obviously there should be some way of dealing with this, not everybody, probably should walk to the ports and say I am a spare parts dealer I am clearing my goods and therefore I will not pay taxes, he counseled.

He stated that the excitement among the private sector now provides a perfect opportunity for government to engage small business owners to file their taxes.

If you want to broaden the tax base out of this excitement that the spare parts dealers have, if you tell them all of you, before you can get your duties exempted on the goods you are importing, you need the tax identification number because we want to identify you as an Abossey Okai spare parts dealer before we give it to you or you are at Kumasi Suame or any other market, he explained.

He maintained that, If you need to be identified through this means before you are given the exemption why wouldn't they do so.

Emphasizing on the need to get the tax net broadened now, Mr. Kwatia stated that it will be a prudent archive for government to plan in the future.

Of course it may be in this regime that the spare parts are being exempted. Another government may come and probably they may not exempt it or they may impose a little bit of duty. But you have already being captured in the system as having a tax identification number, and when it comes to crunch that you may now have to pay tax in respect of something, you cannot withdraw from the system because you have already caught in the system.



By: Lawrence Segbefia/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
A faction calling itself the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) Northern Patriotic group has congratulated Iddrisu Musah Superior on his nomination as the Tamale Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE).

Ahead of the official announcement, his name had been widely speculated in Tamale Township as the preferred MCE nominee.

Shortly after the announcement on Friday, March 10, 2017, the group's Chairman, Mohammed Saani thanked President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo for the honour done the chiefs and people of the Tamale Metropolis.

He said the announcement did not come as a surprise saying, It has been our wish or expectation that you were going to be nominated by His Excellency President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo.

We of the Northern Patriotic group are extremely happy and promise you all the support you will need to enable you distinguish yourself and to justify our inclusion in H.E Nana Addo's wining team.

The group expressed confidence in Musah Superior's ability to transform the Tamale Metropolis into the business hub of the Sahel.

Mohammed Saani however pinpointed the Tamale Metropolis insanitary condition.

We will want to inform you as a matter of urgency that poor sanitation is not befitting the area's status as a metropolis. The recent survey on open defecation in the region brought to light that Tamale Metropolis topped the list as the dirtiest.

We will humbly request you to address that issue immediately you are sworn into office.

The Northern Patriots group adopted and sponsored six constituencies in the Northern Region and won three at the 2016 elections.

The group's members comprise contractors, business men, technocrats and teachers.



By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
The Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, has asked the President to quickly release the list of Deputy Ministerial nominees for the various ministries.

He said when the list is presented to Parliament on time, it will enable the House carry out the vetting and subsequent approval as early as possible, so that a delay wouldnt affect the activities of the chamber.

The President has so far named his Ministers, Regional Ministers and Deputy Regional Ministers.

Last week, the list of Deputy Regional Ministers was presented to Parliament for approval. He is however yet to name his Deputy Ministers for the various ministries.

Speaking on the floor of Parliament, Haruna said the anxiety surrounding the naming of Deputy Ministers will end if the President releases the list.

The Appointments Committee will continue public hearing on Tuesday, even though it does not lie with us to anticipate, but we are expecting that the full set of the President's deputy Ministerial list will come so that the anxiety that you are subjected to will end and probably the accusations that you are removing certain names can end.

Mr. Speaker, we say we are expecting the full set of the Deputy Ministerial list. If it does not even come with additional Ministers of State, and therefore if it is not done within time, I will not be available to sit during research for consideration, and I am sure it is same with my other colleagues because it will be an exercise in futility You will bring a list of Deputy Ministers here, but bring it on time so that Mr. Speaker and his Appointments Committee can look at it early so that before we rise, we have the full set of government.



By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

Follow @EfeAnsah
11.03.2017 LISTEN

Recently, I was in San Diego, California to attend the HIAS Network National Conference as director of the U.S-based Jewish Family Services (JFS) refugee resettlement and immigrants integration service. In this capacity and as a Liberian, I find myself fortunate to be in an international public policy position to help refugees, asylum seekers, migrant workers and victims of trafficking from around the world, and especially blessed over the past decade and the half to have and continue to help Africans including my fellow Liberians.

There are approximately 2,160 plus current Liberia TPS beneficiaries (This number excludes Liberians who are not eligible and are out of status) in the United States. These persons were urged to use the time before termination of their TPS to prepare for and arrange their departure from the United States or, in the alternative, to apply for other immigration benefits for which they are eligible.

Unfortunately and sadly, not many Liberians were or have been fortunate to change their immigration status from a TPS beneficiary to permanent residency. As such, these Liberian families and individuals face the toughest of time. These Liberian heads of families and individuals will be out of work, and will not be able to have access to many other things including certain social, security and economic benefits. Moreover, they face mental torture and imminent deportation at any time. The downsize is that most of these Liberian families and individuals facing the current immigration crisis in the U.S. financially/economically contribute to the lives of hundreds of poverty-stricken family members and friends back home in Liberia. They also contribute to the maintenance of the perpetual sluggish Liberian economy which is largely subjugated by widespread corruption, gruesome mismanagement and massive unemployment.

With the Executive Order of U.S. President Donald J. Trump and the effective expiration (May 20, 2017) of the Temporary Protective Status (TPS) of thousands of Liberian, Guinean and Sierra Leonean nationals, this is the time that I have ever faced the most heartbreaking moment in my international public policy career and in my diplomatic skills in addressing such a huge humanitarian problem, because after my initial discussions with concerned authorities regarding a possible Liberian TPS extension, I realized I have no reasonable or convincing justifications to provide as to why the TPS designation for Liberians should be renewed after I was asked to provide any compelling and convincing reasons.

Consequently, I am therefore asking for help from all Liberians to help me with ideas and talking/written points to be included in my next formal communication to the current Secretary of Homeland Security, General John Kelly, for the TPS extension of Liberians in the United States. Please indicate your justifications in various Liberian chat rooms on Facebook and we will get them. More importantly, I want to thank all Liberians who have shown concern regarding the plight of Liberians in the United States that are undergoing this immigration nightmare. Special thanks and appreciation to Counsellor Charles Walter Brumskine who, as a prominent Liberian citizen and leader, has been supportive to the point of voicing his concern and pleading for an extension of the TPS for Liberians during his recent Congressional visit in the U.S. capital, Washington, DC. We ask other prominent Liberians to follow his lead and do the same.

Background Information

On September 22, 2016, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the decision to extend TPS benefits for Liberia under the current designation for 6 months for the purpose of an orderly transition before the previous TPS designation of Liberia was terminated. The current termination for the existing TPS will become effective May 21, 2017.

During the renewal process in 2016, a statement from then DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson read: After reviewing country conditions and consulting with the appropriate U.S. government agencies, Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson has determined that conditions in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone no longer support their designations for TPS. The widespread transmission of Ebola virus in the three countries that led to the designations has ended, no longer preventing nationals from returning in safety.

To provide for an orderly transition, nationals of Liberia (and individuals having no nationality who last habitually resided in Liberia) who have been granted TPS under the Liberia designation will automatically retain their TPS and have their current Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) extended through May 20, 2017. Beneficiaries do not need to pay a fee or file any application, including for work authorization, in order to retain their TPS benefits through May 20, 2017.

Although TPS benefits will no longer be in effect starting May 21, 2017, TPS beneficiaries will continue to hold any other immigration status that they have maintained or acquired while registered for TPS. DHS urges individuals who do not have another immigration status to use the time before the termination becomes effective in May 2017 to prepare for and arrange their departure from the United States or to apply for other immigration benefits for which they may be eligible.

Temporary Protected Status: Origins, Criteria, and Current Use

Congress created TPS in 1990 to establish a uniform system for granting temporary protection to people unable to return to their home countries because of a political or environmental catastrophe. Before 1990, the U.S. executive branch dealt with this scenario by designating certain countries for Extended Voluntary Departure (EVD), an administrative status that amounted to an exercise of prosecutorial discretion by the Attorney General not to pursue nationals of certain countries for removal if found to be living in the United States without authorization. However, there were no established criteria explaining how a country might qualify for EVD, and critics alleged that decisions regarding the grant of EVD to nationals of a particular country were often politically motivated. This argument became especially prominent in the late 1980s, when the Reagan administration decided not to designate El Salvador for EVD despite the countrys ongoing civil war at the time.

To resolve the controversy, Congress created TPS, a statutory mechanism for granting protection against deportation to nationals of designated countries. Under current law, the Homeland Security Secretary may designate a country for TPS when one of three circumstances occurs:

there is ongoing armed conflict that creates unsafe conditions for returning nationals;

there has been an earthquake, flood, drought, epidemic, or other environmental disaster that makes the state temporarily unable to accept the return of its nationals, and the state has requested TPS designation; or

extraordinary and temporary conditions in a state prevent its nationals from returning safely.

Once a country has been designated for TPS, its nationals who are residing in the United States at the time of the designation may be granted protection if they meet certain criteria. These include having been continuously present in the United States as of a date specified by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and having a relatively clean criminal record. The statute bars from receiving TPS those who have committed a felony offense, two or more misdemeanors, or engaged in the persecution of others. Similarly, individuals who have committed a controlled substance offense, a national security offense, or multiple criminal offenses are generally ineligible.

Individuals who are granted TPS receive two main benefits: a reprieve from deportation and authorization to work. TPS holders may also apply for special permission to travel internationally and return to the United States. TPS does not confer permanent residency, citizenship, or any right to ongoing immigration status. Once the U.S. government has ended a countrys TPS designation, TPS holders revert to their prior immigration status.

The government may grant TPS to individuals who initially entered the United States with a temporary visa and then remained once their visa expired, as well as those who entered without authorization. Individuals present in the United States on a valid nonimmigrant visa may also apply for TPS. However, only individuals who are within the United States at the time that a TPS designation is initially made are eligible to apply for protection (though the cutoff date has been extended in some cases). This provision was created in part to address concerns that a grant of TPS would lead to a surge in new immigration.

Beyond TPS, the executive branch retains discretion to designate countries for administratively based protection against removal, including EVD and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED). Like TPS holders, individuals with EVD or DED protection may not be deported and may apply for work authorization. In the past, the executive branch has sometimes used grants of EVD or DED to continue to protect nationals of a designated country after that countrys TPS designation has ended. For example, the George H.W. Bush administration granted TPS to Liberia in 1991, and the designation was extended through 1999. When Liberians TPS expired on September 28, 1999, the Clinton administration granted DED to those whose TPS had expired. Liberia was subsequently re-designated for TPS in September 2002. In 2006, the George W. Bush administration announced that it would end TPS for Liberians but would grant them DED. President Obama has since extended DED for Liberians until September 30, 2014.

Currently, there are approximately 340,000 plus TPS holders. This figure does not include an estimated 9,000 plus Syrians who became eligible to apply when DHS advanced the date to demonstrate continuous presence in the United States. It also does not include the additional 4,000 plus Sudanese or South Sudanese nationals DHS estimates may be eligible for TPS based on the advancement of the designation dates in those two countries.

Why is the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Secretary terminating the designation of Liberia for TPS as of May 21, 2017, after a 6-month extension of TPS benefits for the purpose of orderly transition?

DHS and the Department of State (DOS) have reviewed conditions in Liberia. Based on the reviews and after consulting with DOS, the Secretary has determined that the termination of the TPS designation of Liberia, after a 6-month extension of TPS benefits for orderly transition, is required because the extraordinary and temporary conditions that prompted Liberia's designation for TPS have substantially resolved and no longer prevent nationals of Liberia from returning in safety.

Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone were designated for TPS in the midst of the largest EVD outbreak in history. From March 2014 through November 2015, these three countries suffered over 11,000 deaths among their more than 28,500 cases of EVD. At the height of the outbreak in late 2014, Ebola was spreading rapidly, with hundreds of new cases being reported each week, the health care systems overwhelmed, and containment measures causing significant disruptions to individuals' ability to access food and earn a livelihood. While the impacts of the epidemic pose a lasting challenge to Liberia's economy and the capacity of its health system to provide treatment for preventable or treatable conditions, at this time, the EVD epidemic has subsided, and conditions have improved since the Secretary initially designated Liberia for TPS.

A robust response by the international community and the governments of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone has brought the EVD epidemic in West Africa under control and begun the long-term work of rebuilding regional economies and health systems. As of June 2016, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone are all free of EVD. A country is considered free of EVD transmission after 42 days have passed since the last known person in the country with Ebola receives a second consecutive negative blood test for the virus. While the risk of flare-ups of EVD remains, efforts are underway to promote, over time, robust prevention, surveillance, and response capacity across all three countries.

In Liberia, the government and citizens partnered in a successful effort to control the epidemic and rapidly respond to any new cases. Commerce and imports have begun to rebound, and basic services have returned to pre-EVD outbreak levels. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has no Ebola-related Travel Health Notice in place for Liberia as of the date of this Notice.

While health systems and facilities remain fragile, medical centers are no longer overwhelmed by patients with EVD. High rates of child mortality both before and since the EVD epidemic are indicative of the overall fragility of the health system. Although this is comparable to other countries in the region, systems in Liberia must also be able to address ongoing issues of trust between healthcare facilities and communities, as well as continue to care for Ebola survivors who have a series of ongoing and previously unforeseen health conditions, both of which will continue to exacerbate and underscore the fragility of these systems. Normal business activity and national life have largely resumed, although work is ongoing to rebuild Liberia's economy and health care system.

On March 29, 2016, the WHO Director-General declared the end of the Public Health Emergency of International Concern regarding the EVD outbreak in West Africa. In conjunction with ending the public health emergency, the WHO emphasized that there should be no restrictions on travel and trade with Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

Based upon this review and after consultation with appropriate Government agencies, the Secretary has determined that Liberia no longer continues to meet the statutorily required conditions for a TPS designation on the basis of extraordinary and temporary conditions, because the extraordinary and temporary conditions that prompted Liberia's TPS designation have substantially resolved and no longer prevent nationals of Liberia from returning to Liberia in safety. Therefore, after a 6-month extension of TPS benefits for orderly transition, the Secretary is terminating the TPS designation of Liberia effective at 12:01 a.m., local time, on May 21, 2017, 6 months following the end of the current designation. See INA section 244(b) (3) (B), 8 U.S.C. 1254 a (b) (3) (B).

Sources: Department of Homeland Security

Note:

J. Nhinson Williams is a Liberian international public policy and strategic workforce development professional who works as director of the U.S.-based Jewish Family Services refugee resettlement and immigrants integration service.
The first edition of Life Walk, an initiative by the Edybentil Maternal Health Foundation in partnership with Airport Women Hospital and other partners formed to raise funds to support five major conditions that haunt pregnant women during the nine month period, was done in collaboration with The Airport women's hospital.

It brought together pregnant women, their partners, staff of the Airport women's hospital, medical student and the general public. In all a total number of 50 people participated in the walk.

The Life Walk started at 8am from the Airport women's Hospital through Ghana home loans, through Association International, through Koala and back to Airport women's hospital amidst singing approximately 3km.

The walk was accompanied by 2 policemen, an ambulance with nurses from the Airport Women's Hospital.

There was a 30min aerobics session at the car park of the Hospital followed by medical screening The participants were refreshed with Wild Cherry Yogurt and Kubae.

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Atlanta, Georgia  The Ghana Council of Georgia collaborated with Georgia State Representative, Able Mable Thomas of District 56, to celebrate the sixty anniversary of Ghana Independence. [email protected] was recognized as part of Representative Thomas' Global Initiative on the floor of the Georgia House of Representatives during the March 6th session.

Dr. Paa kwesi Nduom, founder and presidential candidate of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) is the Ghana Council of Georgia's special guest of honor this year. Dr. Nduom is a former member of parliament and served as a minister of state during the Kufour administration. His resume includes success as an entrepreneur with holdings in banking and finance. In addition, the group was joined by Dr. Thomas Mensah, celebrated Ghanaian inventor and Mr. Jack Ellis, former Mayor of Macon, Georgia.

The morning started with drumming and dancing in honor of the day. The commemoration continued as attendees gathered inside the Capitol where they were welcomed by a succession of State legislators. The outgoing president of the Ghana Council of Georgia, Mr. Kwaku Appiah gave the opening address and underscored the importance of Ghanas independence, which subsequently opened doors for the independence of other African countries. Mr. Appiah praised Ghanas sustainable democracy and successful transfer of political power between different political parties in seven successive elections peacefully. A fete that has won Ghana the title, the beacon of hope and democracy in Africa.

Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom was the keynote speaker for the day. He explained the successes and challenges of Ghanas budding democracy. He also enlightened those assembled by giving a recap of Ghana's recent elections. Dr. Nduom is an advocate of Ghanas push for compulsory free primary and secondary education which was stipulated in the 1992 constitution. According to Dr. Nduom, the goal of compulsory education was not completed by previous administrations. Dr. Nduom spent most of his adult life in the United States and completed his undergraduate, graduate and doctorate degrees at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. He appealed to Ghanaians in the diaspora to take interest in Ghanas economic and political affairs, and not underestimate their influence.

The group was ushered into the state senate chambers where Georgia State Senator Donzella James, District 35 took the floor and proclaimed Ghana Day in the State of Georgia, with a brief synopsis on the significance of Ghanas independence. The group then proceeded to the chambers of the Georgia House of Representatives where Representative Able Mable Thomas gave an additional Ghana Day proclamation. Chief Bin of the Northern Association represented the Georgia Traditional Rulers and executive members of the Ghana Council of Georgia were a part of the Ghana Council delegation. The Ghana Day official proclamation was presented to Dr. Ndoum as a memento to take back to Ghana with him. Because of the historic nature of the event, the House Representatives photographed the group. The photograph will be stored in the archives of these state legislators.

At the day's end, the Georgia Congressional Black Caucus invited the Ghana Council delegation to attend their general meeting at the Legislative Office Building. Mr. Kwaku Appiah expressed the need for greater cooperation between Ghana and Georgia and urged the lawmakers to establish an economic office in Ghana. Mr. Appiah invited all of the Caucus members to visit Ghana soon. The lawmakers adopted a resolution to create a committee that will look into visiting Ghana soon with the hope that the visit will be reciprocated by an invitation of Ghanaian leaders to visit and partner with Georgia. The focus will be on the port of Savannah, which has historical transnational importance as a receiver of enslaved West Africans during the late eighteenth century. The aim of both the legislators and the Ghana Council is to foster bilateral and close relationships between the citizens of the country of Ghana and Georgia.

Contributors:

Mr. Shani Mohammed, General Secretary, Association of Northern Ghanaians of Georgia. [email protected]

Dr. Ali Yallah, General Secretary, Ghana Council of Ghana. [email protected]

Ms. Shahara M. Ruth, CEO Celebrating The Ancestors Live Here Project Hip Hop Meets History: It's more than a movie, it's a movement! Goldfire Productions LLC/New Nation Films, Ltd. 404-957-4591
11.03.2017 LISTEN

The strength, the passion, and the Magnitude of dedication exhibited by students in our various tertiary institutions in Ghana during elections is something no individual can downplay. How students abandon their lectures, forego their GPA saving midtrims/Quizzes, and follow their colleagues through the thick and thin of campaigns is simply magnificent. This basically establish the fact that, the struggle for power in contemporary times in our various tertiary institutions is just a prototype of national election.

But after all these struggles to attain power, do student leaders leave up to expectations?. This is definitely an answer UDS, KNUST, UG, UCC UEW and students from other institutions can easily provide without hesitation. This is exactly how bad student leadership has gotten to.

The NUGS and USAG, an embodiment of all tertiary institutions in Ghana, can't even shelve their parochial interest and stay united. At every level of student governance, there is either corruption, mismanagement, misappropriation of hard earned student funds and many other bad practices you can think of. We've all lost the path to deliver our mandate, which is to serve in the interest of students, and we rather futuristically save students funds for our future benefit.

If you see how some student leaders metamorphose from absolutely nothing to millionaires in a very short time, is simply pathetic. UDS as an institution and Wa and Navrongo campus to be precise has so many examples of bad leaders to talk of. The nature of student leadership across most institutions in the country is really getting worse.

So as I reflect on all these bad precedents some student leaders are setting in our various tertiary institutions, I ask myself, Is there any hope in student leadership? and Is it even relevant anymore?.

Undoubtedly, any society without a leader is prone to anarchy, but societies with bad leaders are worse than the former. We don't need soothsayers to tell us how irrelevant some leaders have made student leadership to be. But we can't also abandon such an embodiment. We can't just base on the selfishness and greedy mindset of some people and abandon our rights and responsibilities.

The way forward in shaping student leadership in this country is for students to identify their rights and constitutionally deal with such leaders. Our inability to familiarize ourselves with our respective constitutions, coupled with our exhibition of fear and favor in the eyes of our own colleagues (Student leaders) is definitely what has worsen the situation. If we can insist on our rights and act as "Citizens " and not "spectators", if we can abstain from begging our own leaders for money, if we can let them know their worth, We will trim and produce student leaders that will have our interest at heart and serve us diligently and honestly.

As irrelevant as I see the institution of student leadership to be. All hope is not lost. And we have a responsibility as noble students to make things better. Administration can't offer us this, it is our right and responsibility, let's stand by it, and save such an embodiment of leadership for our own Good.

May God help us all.

BIOH DANIEL

UDS Wa campus

[email protected]

+2330240124031
11.03.2017 LISTEN

The ambassadors of Italy and the Netherlands in Ghana have said that they support efforts to get justice for victims of international crimes in Africa and commended organizations, including the Africa Center for International Law and Accountability (ACILA), for their efforts in focusing attention on victims and not perpetrators who commit international crimes against innocent and powerless victims.

The two ambassadors, Mr. Giovanni Favilli, Italian Ambassador to Ghana and Mr. Ron Strikker, Netherlands Ambassador to Ghana, made separate statements at a roundtable discussion organized by ACILA in Accra on Wednesday.

The roundtable discussion was on the theme: Africa and the International Criminal Court: African Leaders Strategy for Collective Withdrawal from the ICC and Implications for Victims of International Crimes. Discussants and panelists discussed the non-binding decision that was adopted by African leaders on 31st January, 2017, for mass withdrawal from the ICC; analyzed the legal and political effects of the decision; previewed the likely effect of the mass withdrawal for victims of international crimes and proposed solutions for bringing perpetrators of international crimes to justice in different forums in domestic and regional courts in Africa and at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Panelists included Justice Emile Short, Former Judge, United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda; Mr. Henry Kwasi Prempeh, Legal and Governance Consultant; Dr. Franklin Oduro, Transitional Justice Expert & Head of Research and Programs/Deputy Director, CDD-Ghana; and Mr. William Nyarko, Executive Director, ACILA. Representatives from government, political parties, Diplomatic Community, international criminal justice practitioners and advocates, academia, civil society, and the media attended the roundtable discussion.

Ambassador Favilli said that the Rome Statute, which established the International Criminal Court, was signed in Rome, Italy, adding that Italy remained very committed to ensuring that the purpose for which the law was signed  to provide justice for victims, was met.

He observed that it was a matter of concern that recent discussions on the ICCs role in fostering justice for victims especially in many countries in Africa had shifted from the objects and purpose of the Rome Statute to offering protections for alleged perpetrators, adding that it was refreshing to find an organization such as ACILA focusing attention on justice for victims in line with the objects and purpose of the Rome Statute.

On his part, Ambassador Strikker noted that, like Italy, issues of international criminal justice are dear to the heart of the Netherlands, adding that it was a practical demonstration of its support for international criminal justice that Netherlands hosts the permanent international criminal court  the ICC, in the Hague, Netherlands.

He commended ACILA for focusing attention on victims of international crimes and urged ACILA to deploy more of such programs that provide public education and understanding of the need to focus attention on providing justice for victims of international crimes while, at the same time, advocating reforms of the ICC.

Panelists and discussants were unanimous in their view that African states should not withdraw from the ICC and that more public education is needed to enable the public to better appreciate the role of the ICC in fostering justice for victims of international crimes especially in Africa while engendering demand for responsiveness and accountability from African leaders.
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The United Nations is warning that the world is facing its worst humanitarian crisis since the end of World War II, with more than 20 million people facing starvation and famine in four countries.

The world body's humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien called Friday for an urgent mobilization of funds -- $4.4 billion by July -- for northeastern Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen to "avert a catastrophe."

"Otherwise, many people will predictably die from hunger, livelihoods will be lost and political gains that have been hardwon over the last few years will be reversed," O'Brien said in his stark warning to the UN Security Council.

"Without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death. Many more will suffer and die from disease. Children stunted and out of school. Livelihoods, futures and hope will be lost."

He called war-wracked Yemen "the largest humanitarian crisis in the world," with two thirds of the population, or 18.8 million people -- three million more than in January -- in need of assistance and more than seven million with no regular access to food.

South Sudanese refugees at a "Refugee Waiting Centre" in Al-Eligat area along the border in Sudan's White Nile state

The conflict in Yemen has left more than 7,400 people dead and 40,000 wounded since an Arab-state coalition intervened on the government's side against rebels in March 2015, according to UN figures.

In just the past two months alone, more than 48,000 people have fled fighting in the Arab world's poorest country, according to O'Brien, as it grapples with a proxy war fought by archrivals Iran and Saudi Arabia.

'Arbitrarily denying' access

During recent meetings, O'Brien said senior leaders in both parties agreed to provide continuous humanitarian access and respect international humanitarian law.

He noted that 4.9 million people received food assistance last month alone.

"Yet all parties to the conflict are arbitrarily denying sustained humanitarian access and politicize aid," he added.

A woman collects grains left on the ground after food distribution in Ganyiel

"Already, the humanitarian suffering that we see in Yemen today is caused by the parties and proxies and if they don't change their behavior now, they must be held accountable for the inevitable famine, unnecessary deaths and associated amplification in suffering that will follow."

He noted that despite assurances from all parties that he would obtain safe passage to the flashpoint city of Taiz, he was in fact denied access and came under gunfire after retreating to a short distance away.

A total of $2.1 billion are needed to reach 12 million people with life-saving assistance and protection in Yemen this year, according to O'Brien, who noted that just six percent of those funds have been received so far.

He announced that a ministerial-level pledging event for Yemen will take place in Geneva on April 25, to be chaired by UN chief Antonio Guterres.

Politics behind 'man-made famine'

During his visit last week to South Sudan, the world's youngest nation, O'Brien said he found a situation that is "worse than it has ever been."

"The famine in South Sudan is man-made," he added.

"Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine -- as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."

South Sudanese refugees at the "Refugee Waiting Centre" in Al-Eligat

He said more than 7.5 million people need assistance, an increase of 1.4 million fro last year. And some 3.4 million people are displaced, including nearly 200,000 who have fled South Sudan since January alone.

More than half the population of Somalia -- 6.2 million people -- need humanitarian assistance and protection, including 2.9 million at risk of famine.

Nearly one million children under the age of five will be "acutely malnourished" this year, according to the humanitarian chief, who also visited the country.

"What I saw and heard during my visit to Somalia was distressing -- women and children walk for weeks in search of food and water," O'Brien said.

Agop Manut (11 months), at the clinic run by Doctors without Borders (MSF) in Aweil, Northern Bahr al Ghazal, South Sudan, last October

"They have lost their livestock, water sources have dried up and they have nothing left to survive on. With everything lost, women, boys, girls and men now move to urban centers."

In northeastern Nigeria, O'Brien said 10.7 million people need humanitarian aid, including 7.1 million people who are "severely food insecure."

The humanitarian emergency afflicting the area was triggered by the Boko Haram insurgency, which erupted in Nigeria in 2009. Poor governance and climate change have also been powerful contributors to the crisis.

The conflict, which has left around 20,000 people dead and forced more than 2.6 million others to flee their homes, has aggravated an already difficult humanitarian situation in one of the poorest regions of the world.
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A Historian at the University of Cape Coast says President Akufo-Addo did not misrepresent Ghanas history with his independence day speech following accusations from the independence-wining party, the Convention Peoples Party (CPP).

Prof. Kwame Osei Kwarteng said history is written based on perspectives, so it cannot be said that the president erred with his speech.

Speaking on Joy News News Analysis programme Newsfile on Saturday he said  I have had time to listen to the tape and read the speech itself in its form and a careful perusal of the write-up tells me right away that he never distorted any history of Ghana.

Histories are written from perspectives, so the president sought to  on this occasion, write his speech from nationalist perspective and those people who put up resistance, either cultural, political, social or economic against foreign dominationand that was what he sought to do,

President Akufo-Addo has come under stern criticism over what has been described as the distortion of the countrys history when he delivered a speech at the 60th Anniversary celebrations earlier this week.

He said the UGCC, forebears of his current party, NPP, met to demand independence from the British and 70 years after that event, one still marvels at the clarity of thought and the passion that they displayed.

Some of the names of that momentous day have survived in our written history and folk memory. Five of them are on our Ghanaian currency: Joseph Boakye Danquah; Emmanuel Obetsebi-Lamptey; William Ofori-Atta; Ebenezer Ako-Adjei; and Edward Akufo-Addo. Kwame Nkrumah, the sixth of the Big Six on the currency, was to join them later, the President narrated.

The Convention Peoples Party (CPP), whose founding father was Kwame Nkrumah took serious exceptions presented by the president.

The partys cadre Abdul Rauf says the president tweaked Ghanas history to please his ancestry.

Related: CPP laments Akufo-Addos distorted history of independence struggle

He said we as a party can see a deliberate attempt by the president not only to minimize the role of Kwame Nkrumah in the independence struggle of the country, but also to take up arms against the history of our country because, for example, as a party, we have argued that it does not take one single individual to win independence for people it must take the effort and sacrifice of people.

But in line with principles of history, it took one persons effort to climax several years of the peoples struggle and in the case of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah assumed that role and any attempt to minimize or deny Kwame Nkrumah this role is most regrettable, he added.

Prof.Kwame Osei Kwarteng

But contributing to a discussion on Joy News analysis show News File, Prof. Kwarteng said, as a big believer in Kwame Nkrumah and his ideals, he does not see how the speech distorted Nkrumah's role.

He described, for instance, the presidents claim that the Bond of 1844 marked the beginning of colonization of Ghana as a Eurocentric view.

He said the Europeans who wrote about colonialism and African history say that Ghanas colonisation started from that time but Afrocentric historians point to 1874 when the British turned their business headquarters at the forts and castles into political headquarters to establish colonies and protectorates.

Related: Full text: Akufo-Addo's [email protected] independence speech

At that time Ashanti was independent, the northern territories  Gonja and the Dagombas  were even under Ashanti dominion and other parts and it was in 1869 that Ashantis made a thrust into what became known as the Klepe or the Evedome area in the Volta region, he said.

It was in 1874after the Segrenty War when the British sent an expedition to Ashanti and crashed Ashanti and joined Kumasi that the Gonjas and Dagombas and those in the northern parts of Ghana accepted their independence including those in the Volta region that Ashanti had held over a period of time.

But we African historians interpret the colonization of Ghana from 1874 that was when the British turned the forts and castles and its immediate hinterlands of her Majestys castles into crown colonies and protectorates.

But even with that it cannot be said that it was deliberate to minimise the role of Kwame Nrkumah, as far as he is concerned,  it is a Eurocentric point of view, and he is allowed to go that way.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Naa Sakwaba Akwa | [email protected]
Accra, March 11, GNA - The Ghana Code Club and its partners iSpace Foundation, a technology innovation hub, have organised a first ever digital skills competition for school pupils from eight to 12 years at Labone in Accra.

It was dubbed: 'phoenixkids Hackathon 2017,' and was supported by Tigo Ghana, a telecommunication firm, the Ghana Education Service and EPP Books Services.

The children were drawn from 22 schools in Ga East, Accra Metropolitan and the La-Dadekotopon Districts in the Greater Accra.

The Hackathon competition was intended to give opportunity to Ghanaian kids to showcase their coding and computational thinking abilities.

The major goals are to create awareness of digital literacy and its importance with the hope of getting more schools, churches and community centres to start exposing the children to computer science related activities at an early age.

Most schools in 2016 established Code Clubs and training programmes were held for teachers to teach kids in the use of technological tools to express their creativity.

Mrs Ernestina Appiah, the Founder of the Ghana Code Club in address at the close of the event said the programme would promote digital activities in the schools.

'This is necessary because we live in a digital world and the future success of the next generation depends on their digital skills,' she said.

Mrs Appiah said in order for children to thrive in a technology driven society, they needed an opportunity to learn to express themselves through digital creativity instead of passively consuming other people's creations all the time.

She commended the Ghana Education Service for their support for the event by providing logistics such as laptops and transportation for teachers and the school children.

Mrs Appiah advised the pupils to avail themselves of the opportunity, adding that the move would expose them to teamwork in their training at an early age to become tomorrow's designers and programmers to solve challenges in society.

Mr Josiah Eyison, a Co-founder of iSpace Foundation in an interview with the Ghana News Agency said the Hackathon programme was very relevant due to the modern digital age to transform lives and careers of young people.

He said: 'This will enable them to become problem solvers in our socio-economic world.'

He said Ghana was among the largest users of mobile technology in Africa and that could be translated into the positive development of the country.

The school children developed programmes such as games, animation and brainstormed on test-run, trouble-shooting and debugging to demonstrate their creativity.

The overall winners of the competition are pupils from the Nii Boi Town SDA Basic School. They were presented with a projector; however, they did not have an Information Communication Technology laboratory at their school.

The Gbegbeyise Basic School came second and received a laptop for being the best presenters.

GNA
By Caesar Abagali, GNA

Tamale, March 11, GNA - The Christian Children's Fund of Canada (CCFC) an NGO ha celebrated the International Women's Day in Tamale, with a call on all to work harder to address maternal and infant mortality.

The NGO said: 'Society recognises that women are an essential and critical power house development and growth of society but throughout history humankind has neglected this essential element for development.'

Mr George Baiden, Country Director of the CCFC addressing some stakeholders and school children in Tamale to mark the Day, observed that society continued to rely on weakened and flawed arrangement that had downplayed the important role women played, leading to the continual degradation of the human race.

He said: 'You can see in the painfully high maternal deaths and the unacceptable levels of child morbidity and mortality as well as the increasing lawlessness and poverty in our midst,' which could be attributed to the less attention given to women issues.

Mr Baiden said it was necessary for the world to recognise the importance of women in nation building.

'Beyond the recognition and the rhetoric there must be some concrete words and deeds to remove the barriers and help women to move the world forward,' he said.

He said CCFC believed that gaining parity and giving voice to women would help children to develop to attain their full potential to make the world a better place.

He said CCFC over the years had worked to address some of the challenges facing women and children.

Mr Baiden said other area of concern was the gender imbalance, adding: 'I am certain that working together can bring a change to our world for the benefit of society particularly children.'

GNA
Defence Counsel for Bishop Daniel Obinim, the Founder of God's Way International Church and two of his pastors on Friday noted that the complainant in the assault case against them wanted to gain popularity in the legal profession.

The two other accused pastors are Kingsley Baah and Solomon Abraham.

Answering questions under cross-examination, Madam Irene Abotchie-Nyahe, a private legal practitioner, told an Accra Circuit Court that her mission in court was to seek justice and nothing more.

She denied that she was in the matter only to make herself relevant in the legal profession.

The witness who is also the Director of Legal Assistance Network, a Human Rights organization, said she had been championing issues concerning the vulnerable in the society for a long time.

She said she has not set up any television station to seek attention or for money.

Lawyer Ralph Poku-Adusei represented Obinim and his pastors.

Bishop Obinim has been dragged before the Court for allegedly assaulting two adopted children  a 14-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy who lived with him in the presence of his congregation.

He is said to have conducted that act with two of his pastors namely Kingsley Baah and Solomon Abraham. The two have been charged with abetment.

They have pleaded not guilty to the charges and have been granted bail in the sum of GHC10,000 with one surety each.

The Prosecution narrated that the complainant, Irene Abochie-Nyahe, was a legal practitioner residing at Community 17, Lashibi.

That on August 17, last year, at about 1700 hours, the Accra Branch of the Church held a service, at which Bishop Obinim claimed he had a revelation from God that the two alleged victims were engaged in pre-marital sex and the 14-year old girl was pregnant.

The prosecution said Obinim said the victim was in the process of aborting the pregnancy, therefore, the Holy Spirit had directed him (Obinim) to chastise the (teenagers) in the presence of the congregation.

According to the prosecution in the full glare of the church, Obinim allegedly removed his belt and assaulted them.

The prosecution said in the process, his two pastors, Baah and Abraham, prevented the female victim from running away from the said punishment.

The prosecution said the victim could not bear the pain, hence she sought refuge with Mrs. Florence Obinim, but her husband asked her to stay away.

He said the assault only stopped after Obinim became content with the alleged punishment.


Many more firms in the United Kingdom (UK) are now willing to do business in Ghana to take advantage of the new governments pro-business policies, a senior UK government official has disclosed.

Adam Afriyie MP, Trade Envoy for UK Prime Minister Theresa May, made the disclosure when he led a delegation from the UK - Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC) to pay a working visit on the Vice-President of the Republic of Ghana, Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.

The visit, aimed at strengthening the existing trade relations between the two countries, was also an opportunity for the UK government and business to discuss how they could support Ghana to achieve her infrastructure development goals. Ghana is the UKs fourth largest export market in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The policies and budget of the Akufo-Addo government have a positive, private sector-driven agenda and the UK is ready to help the government achieve its aims and targets, Hon. Adam Afriyie indicated.

The environment is very refreshing. In the past it has been difficult for me to recommend that UK firms invest in Ghana. But so far its been good, and long may it continue.

Vice President Dr Bawumia reiterated the governments determination to make Ghana the investment destination of choice on the African continent.

Governments focus is on encouraging the private sector to help in making Ghana Africas most business friendly country.

Our agenda is to remove the bottlenecks in doing business, reduce the cost of doing business, create a low tax environment for businesses in Ghana, increase the standard of living of Ghanaians, and the budget statement presented by the Finance Minister to Parliament attests to these he stated.

We have to manage the economy in a fiscally responsible manner, the Vice President added.

The Nana Akufo-Addo government, Dr Bawumia continued, would strengthen the fight against corruption, especially in the award of contracts.

There will be transparency in the award of contracts. We will make sure we move away from era of sole sourcing contracts; we will be guided by the law. Rule of law will be at the center of this government, corruption will not be tolerated. As President Akufo-Addo has earlier indicated, the Right To Information bill will soon be passed by Parliament.

Mr. Jon Benjamin, UK High Commissioner to Ghana, bemoaned the fact that trade between the two countries had dropped by a third in the last three years, and hoped the renewed commitment would boost bilateral relations.

Ghana is very important to us, and we hope we can grow our trade again, H.E. Benjamin indicated.
11.03.2017 LISTEN

Many Ghanaians consider lateness as GMT meaning Ghana Mans Time. For that matter, many of them would definitely be an hour or two late to work and functions....... not bothered when they turn up late to personal and official appointments. The time has come for us to move away from this culture of lateness to work and functions. just as most of us go to our churches on time in obedience to God and even for fear of our deities, let us resole to throw away behind us lateness to work and functions and be punctual. Authorities in our schools, work places must enforce rules attendance rules by punishing late comers.

Efforts by governments the world over have been to promote rapid economic development and increase in productivity. However, one sure means of recording success in this direction is the observance of punctuality by all heads and employees at work places. Currently absenteeism, malingering and poor time management are experienced in many establishments high and low in Ghana leading to the outfits and by extension the nation sliding backwards economically.

FUNDING

Important requirements for all establishments are startup capitals budgetary allocations and workforces for government and private establishments. Most of the organizations dont lack adequate support but most of them are wobbling due to the behavior of their workforces who have no regard for time.

Many Ghanaians consider lateness as GMT meaning Ghana Mans Time. For that matter, many of them would definitely be an hour or two late to work and functions. most people are not bothered when they turn up late to personal and official appointments. However, the time has come for us to move away from this culture of lateness to work and functions. just as most of us go to our churches on time in obedience to God and even for fear of our deities, let us resole to throw away behind us lateness to work and functions and be punctual. Authorities in our schools, work places must enforce rules attendance rules by punishing late comers.

Nevertheless, the establishments can reverse the negative trend and make adequate progress only when time management is observed by them to make good use of all available worker.

TIME MANAGEMENT

According to Wikipedia, Time management is the act or process of planning and exercising conscious control over when to report for work and to leave for home and when to go on leave and the amount of time spent on specific activities, especially to increased effectiveness, efficiency or productivity.

Personal time management skills are essential for professional success in any workplace. Those able to successfully implement time management strategies are able to control their workload rather than spend each day in a frenzy of activity reacting to crisis after crisis. These highly effective individuals are able to focus on the tasks with the greatest impact to them and their organization.

Poor time management does not occur only in work places but experienced during functions by politicians and head of institutions turning up late to appointments. Some students also do not observe their time table due to lateness to schools sometimes due to demands by their parents on them to engage in domestic chores and their own failure to get to school early.

In order to turn the tide in favor of Ghana there is the need to embark on a program to encourage time management in all establishment making use of Attendance book, clocking system and web-based application to track an employees work hours.

Time management is so important that it must be strictly enforced in schools especially the vocational schools, nursing training schools and teacher training schools. It is important for all school going children and adults to be made to appreciate the importance of time management and the danger in them adopting the negative behaviors such as lateness, absenteeism and malingering.

SENSITIZATION PROGRAMS

In view of the importance of time management to the entire nation, there is the need for the authorities concerned to embark on a nationwide sensitization program to drum it home to workers heads of government organizations schools.

It should take the form of educational forums with senior staff and workers unions school heads and traditional rulers and heads of religious bodies to be addressed by lecturers the staff of National Commission for Civic Education {NCCE}.

Every educational institution would have to be roped into the time management program. Clubs must be established in all schools for pupils and students to learn more about the importance of punctuality and the adherence of school time table and other important events at schools.

Apart from workers and students there is the need for the traditional rulers, religious, heads, to be sensitized to appreciate the importance of punctuality and time management at schools work places and at functions.

AWARDS

After the sensitization program, there would be the need to follow up the time management program in schools, work places and at functions. At the end of every year the best schools, work places should be selected to be awarded certificates and other awards for excelling in time management.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

eanfoworld for sustainable development

[email protected]/[email protected]

0244370345/0208844792/0274853710
Mr. President, Nigerians warmly welcome you back home from London after your medical vacation. You shall live long for our dear country. You shall live to see part of your elaborate, long-term, prosperous plans and solid foundation for national growth. Welcome Baba Development, even though slow and steady win the race. Our hearts are gladdened, our hopes are heightened, our fears are smoothened, our thoughts are sharpened, our beliefs are strengthened and our future is brightened. Nigeria has a destiny which is success and development. The time is ripe. All are because our dear President Muhammadu Buhari has been straightened, lightened, tightened and proven. We thank God that our President is back to our motherland and that we did not wait for godot.

Nigerians are overwhelmingly happy. There were wild jubilations across Nigeria. Crowds shouted Baba Oyoyo locally meaning Baba welcome in cities and some villages across the country. Certainly, many are frightened. Some are traumatized. Many have been shamed. Others will surely but secretly apportion blames. Some will overtly trade blames. Ultimately, the country will be redirected, refocused and revived. The return of Mr. President from London on Friday 10th March, 2017 has not only triggered the ever lively love for him by compatriots, but has also charted a renewed course in the administration of the nation. The challenge for the delivery of dividends of democracy has been reactivated, the expectations from the citizenry have been rekindled and the political will to deliver has been pricked and repackaged.

The President touched down at about 7.40 am at the Air Force Base in Kaduna on board the Nigerian Air Force 001 before he was airlifted by Air Force chopper to arrive at about 8.37 am at Presidential Villa where he was received by the members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), all heads of security agencies and Governors Yahaya Bello of Kogi, Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano and Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara. He later met with them at the First Ladys Wing of the Presidential Villa in Abuja at a 30-minute reception for him.

Though we have been with our leader spiritually, among prominent Nigerians who physically welcomed the President were the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, the presidential chief of staff, Abba Kyari, deputy governor of Kaduna state, Barnabas Bala, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Muhammad Musa Bello, Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, Director General of the Department of State Security, Lawal Daura, the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, Senator Abdulaziz Nyako, all service chiefs, presidential spokesperson, Femi Adesina who tweeted that the president will formally resume his duties on Monday. PMB will Monday transmit letter to National Assembly on his return to the country. That makes his return to work formal and constitutional, he said.

The President had been nostalgic indeed. He said while away. Notwithstanding the whole stress, he met the Federal Executive Council where he thanked Nigerians for their patience and prayers and appealed for more support, promising a rededicated life to service. He admitted that he had never been so ill even during his long stressful military career, noting that he feels much better and would resume duty with renewed energy. He has, however, kicked against sending of delegations to Abuja to welcome him.

I have rested as much as humanly possible, I have received, I think, the best of treatment I could receive. I couldnt recall being so sick since I was a young man, including the military with its ups and downs. The best way to pay back Nigerians is to rededicate myself to serve the country and protect the nations interest in order to keep the trust.



On the powers of his vice to whom he constitutionally handed over, he said I am pleased that the Vice President enjoyed this break and he has to do much more. Youth and intellect is squarely behind him, age and purely military experience is behind me. And for the vice president, Nigerians and the Federal Executive Council were happy to receive the President back in the country in a hail and hearty condition. Osinbajo proclaimed: It is a day of joy not only for us but for the whole country, Africa and the world. Mr. President, I must say that personally, this has been a very interesting few days for me. First I must say that I want to thank you very much for the confidence reposed in me by handing over the realm of government to me in the capacity of acting president.

I think more important is that you demonstrated the belief in our system which is even more important than anything else. I want to say not only am I, but I am sure the entire nation is grateful to you. For me I must say that it has been an interesting period going around the nation maybe in borrowed robes. I must say I had a very interesting and challenging time but above all, the president gave us the good support, he said.



The wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari who received her husband amidst cheers from families, friends and well wishers, at about 9am thanked Nigerians for their support and prayers for the President. She was joined by the wife of the Vice-President, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, wives of State Governors, Ministers, family members and her close associates.

The governors expressed happiness too. Chairman of Nigerias Governors Forum, Abdulaziz Yari, welcomed the president on behalf of the 36 governors of Nigeria. Information Minister, Lai Mohammed described the presidents return as a vindication of their position, thanking Nigerians for their prayers and VP Osinbajo who gave cabinet members a sense of belonging. The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Abayomi Gabriel Olonishakin gave assurance of the militarys renewed commitment to achieve the presidents desire on national security.The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Winifred Oyo-Ita, expressed happiness and urged Nigerians to continue to pray for their leaders to enable them deliver good governance to the people.

Millions of Nigerian jubilated on hearing about his return. Brief contacts with several citizens across the country showed the ecstasy with which he was received by countrymen in their respective states and the unalloyed support they have for him. Some exchanged beautiful messages congratulating themselves and also praising God for the life of the president and his safety return back to Nigeria. Others thanked God and prayed for steady good health for the president which they believed has been a kind of disruption to his focused strategies to reclaim Nigeria for Nigerians. One of my friends when I released the news to him was short of words. He simply replied saying: If God be with our President, who can stand against him?

In Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Ebonyi, Rivers, Bayelsa, Oyo, Imo, Enugu, Cross River, Lagos and Ondo, amongst others, the general retort was Thank God, our president is back. Madam Eberechi Okoh shouted: Halleluiah, Jesus is Lord. Luke Bonmene and Rosemary Okiri exploded in corroboration: We are glad that President Buhari returned to Nigeria alive! We pray and hope for his quick recovery. Adebayo Adeniyi said: I pray for the president and wish that his first action will be building medical centers, hospitals all over the country that will provide the type of care he received in overseas hospitals. Having such hospitals in every state, he said, will be a major accomplishment. Such will save millions of Nigerian lives. Such will allow future presidents and other officials to stay within the country when sick. A nation gains nothing when their leaders do not provide them with adequate healthcare. Nigerians love money but they do not know how to use the money. Thus they die needlessly amidst the very wealth they spend so much time acquiring. For majority of friends from the north, sai baba and Alhamdulilaahi baba is back were their words.

The Abuja-Nasarawa road was shut down as Nigerians celebrated the Presidents return. They chanted sai baba in vehicles and on bikes and caused serious holdup on the way. Some poured sachet-water commonly called pure-water on themselves or on one another as some chanted baba is back, mai sugudu sugudu meaning those who want to run should run. That is for those who wished otherwise for the president or have skeletons in their cupboards. Police and soldiers were, however, standing by to forestall any breakdown of law and order, though they scared them at times with gun sounds.

Moreover, the All Progressives Congress (APC) joined compatriots in welcoming him back. In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party commended the President for following due process by properly handing over power to Vice President Osinbajo, which naturally saved the country the needless controversies and crisis that Nigeria experienced in the past. We can recall the controversies and tension the Umaru Musa YarAduas saga caused the nation. Therefore, the ruling party lauded Osinbajo for competently holding forte on behalf of his principal and for his loyalty and commitment to the partys Change Agenda.

At the National Mosque Abuja, the area usually reserved for top government dignitaries was virtually vacant which was an indication that all were at the Aso Rock Mosque to have a physical glimpse or touch of Mr. President. The President, however, did not attend the Jumat prayer at the Aso Rock Mosque. So the government officials were left in disappointment.

Though the president may not be willing to utilize precious times in receiving delegations from states and organizations which may soon begin to troop into Abuja to show solidarity, the APC leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu is said to have assembled all the Yoruba Obas to go in his delegation to welcome Buhari. It is reported that they will depart to Abuja after consulting with the Emirs. Some states might be closed in coming days to show allegiance and to welcome Mr. President. Some may declare public holidays. Some state may employ other means. The crux of solidarity in this regard is total support to the President in fighting treasury looters, recovery of national assets and funds and rebuilding the national economy. Corrupt politicians should sincerely return stolen commonwealth to show solidarity and support to President Buharis leadership. Hypocritical interfaces, eco-political manipulations and parochial tinges must be limited. As Nigerians stood behind, are happy for the presidents health and safe home return, let justice and fairness in governance prevail.

Muhammad Ajah is an advocate of humanity, peace and good governance in Abuja. E-mail [email protected]
The convoy of Borno state governor Kashim Shettima was involved in a road crash on Friday, March 10.

Reports say Governor Shettima has lost a close aide in a fatal accident his convoy was involved in on Friday, March 10

According to the report, the crash led to the death of Shettimas senior special assistant on intergovernmental affairs Farouk Farouk.

READ ALSO: PDP welcomes Buhari, demands to know his health status

The accident occurred along the Abuja Kaduna expressway, a source told The Cable.

A driver, who sustained injuries in the accident, has reportedly been taken to the hospital.

It could be immediately confirmed the governor was on his way to welcome the president who returned to the country after around 49 days on vacation in London, United Kingdom.

But an aide said Shettima arrived in Kaduna at about 4pm aboard a Medview airline flight to head to Abuja when the ugly incident occurred.

Farouk Farouk, Shettima's aide who reportedly died in the fatal accident on Friday, March 10. Photo: The Cable

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Shettima was not among the governors who were with Buhari at the presidential villa in Abuja.

Only the Hilux carrying the deceased was involved in the accident. Three persons survived the accident, the governors aide said.

The Prado was said to be coming from the opposite lane (from Abuja) and decided to make a fast U-turn onto the road leading to Abuja from Kaduna.

The pilot leading the governors convoy was said to have avoided the Prado while the ill-fated vehicle next to him tried dodging towards the right, but the vehicle skidded off the road and the driver lost control resulting in the Hilux turning upside down as a result of which occupants sustained various degrees of injuries.

The deceased, aged 45 years, was said to have been thrown out the vehicle following which he sustained internal injuries.

Governor Shettima led the convoy back to Kaduna and the victims were first taken to St Gerald hospital where the governors aide was pronounced dead on arrival in the presence of Mr. Shettima, he added

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Police Force has beefed up security on the Kaduna-Abuja highway to protect lives and properties of road users and residents.

News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Inspector-General of Police on Friday, March 10 announced the deployment of 350 armed personnel to provide security along Kaduna-Abuja Highway.

Source: Legit.ng
- Operators say passengers are not willing to use Kaduna airport even after the government closed the Abuja Airport for repairs

- Most local airlines have reduced their flights by 50 per cent and out of the eight international airlines, only Ethiopian Airlines is using the Kaduna airport

Operators say airlines and passengers are refusing to use the Kaduna Airport that is receiving diverted traffic from closed Abuja Airport.

The Punch is reporting that about 4, 300 out of the 8,694 flights to and from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja in the next six weeks may have been cancelled.

READ ALSO: Group calls for investigation into President Buharis health status

This, the report said, follows the diversion of flights to the Kaduna International Airport which the airlines have a grouse with.

It is said that seven out of the eight international airlines plying the Abuja airport have suspended flights to the Kaduna airport while investigations also revealed that most local airlines have reduced their flights by 50 per cent.

About 14,300 passengers used the Abuja airport daily, while an average of about 207 flights landed or left the facility every day and for the six-week period that the Abuja airport will be shut for repairs, operators said about 605,000 passengers would have been airlifted but noted that this number would definitely be reduced by 50 per cent as many airlines are going to cut down the number of flights to Kaduna.

They said that passengers were not showing enough willingness to use the Kaduna airport yet.

For instance, Chairman, Movement Committee from Abuja to Kaduna, who doubles as the Chairman, Skypower Express, Capt. Mohammed Joji, said, According to our statistics, we are supposed to have about 14,520 passengers, about 207 flights with eight foreign airlines and eight domestic airlines. These are the numbers that went to Abuja.

But out of the eight international airlines, only Ethiopian Airlines is using the Kaduna airport.

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Abuja Airport Manager for Azman Air, Abdullahi Saroke, told our correspondent that local carriers would definitely cut down their flight services to the Kaduna airport.

He said: Definitely what you are getting out of Abuja cannot be got out of Kaduna. For instance, in Abuja we operate two flights from the NAIA to Lagos. For airlines that have the highest frequency like Dana, Medview, and Air Peace, who carry out about six to seven flights daily, I dont foresee such kind of flight services happening in Kaduna.

They have to cut down those schedules except they want to be flying empty aircraft up and down. I think for a start, the cut down is going to be by about 50 per cent for airlines to see how the traffic situation will pan out. And Im sure that that is what is going to happen for now.

One thing you should know is that the highest traffic days out of or into Abuja have always been Thursdays/Fridays and Sundays/Mondays. These are days when all airlines operate all their schedules out of Abuja to Lagos or from Lagos to Abuja because you have high movement of passengers moving during these days. However, by next week we should be able to considerably understand what the actual situation will look like.

Meanwhile, Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari, who arrived in Nigeria on Friday, March 10 at around 8am after about 49 days of vacation in the United Kingdom used the Kaduna Airport where all Abuja Airport flights have been diverted to.

Source: Legit.ng
- Concerned Nigerian Youth Development Organisation (CNYDO) says its 300,000 youths are behind Abubakar Atiku to take over as Nigeria's president in 2019

- The group says it is confident that Nigeria will do well in the safe hands of former vice president Atiku, who lost to Buhari in the All Progressives Congress' presidential primaries in 2014

Atiku has received the backing of 300 Nigerian youths to take over from President Buhari.

Not fewer than 300,000 youths have pledged support for the presidential bid of former vice president of Nigeria Abubakar Atiku.

READ ALSO: Reno Omokri accuses Lai Mohammed of lying about President Buhari's health

Vanguard reports that the huge support comes from a group called Concerned Nigerian Youth Development Organisation (CNYDO) which has endorsed Atiku as the right man to take over the job of ruling Nigeria from incumbent president Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.

CNYDO made its decision known in a statement released on Friday, March 10 and signed by the national coordinator of the group Joel Edegba.

The statement read in part: We in Concerned Nigerian Youth Development Organisation, CNYDO, with over 300, 000 membership in 30 states have deemed it necessary to support and endorse former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, (Turakin Adamawa), as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, come 2019 by the grace of God.

We have carefully assessed the political ideology, track record, achievement and competence of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, as former Vice President and seen that he is the man that can bring the expected change in Nigeria.

We are endeared to his commitment demonstrated towards the welfare and well-being of Nigerians that are down trodden and forgotten. We are assuring His Excellency our maximal support for his ambition and as part of his move to liberate Nigerians, the youths in particular from the shackles of unemployment, poverty, social vices and stagnated progress by ensuring that he is elected as Nigerias next President in 2019.

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Based on his political achievements, prudent manager of human and material resources, a detribalised Nigerian, non-religious and non-region biased nature and understanding in approaching issues that affects the different ethnic and tribal groups in the country we declare that Nigeria will be in safe hands of Atiku.

It added: We fell in love with his passion for the ordinary Nigerians by extending his hand of love and compassion to them as he has given lifeline and hope to many Nigerians both known and unknown.

We also discovered that Turkin has been a man who has thrown his weight behind the voice of the minority ethnic groups in Nigeria, and recently, passionately supported the call for restructuring of Nigeria and true federalism, which majority of Nigerians have been agitating for long time.

The CNYDOs declaration comes just hours after the Independent National Electoral Commission, on Thursday, March 9, released time table for 2019 general elections.

Source: Legit.ng
- A south east group, the SouthEast Renewal Group (SERG) has accused Ohanaeze Ndigbo, a pan-Igbo socio-cultural group acting a selfish script from politicians.

- SERG condemned the group's comments over activities of the Nigerian Army in the South-East region

- The group further accused Ohanaeze Ndigbo of being afraid of the exposure that would be made by the Nigerian Army board of inquiry

The group accused Ohanaeze Ndigbo of being afraid of the exposure that would be made by the Nigerian Army board of inquiry

A south east group, the SouthEast Renewal Group (SERG) has accused Ohanaeze Ndigbo, a pan-Igbo socio-cultural group acting a selfish script from politicians.

SERG condemned the group's comments over activities of the Nigerian Army in the South-East region.

Speaking in Enugu on Friday, March 10, SERG's president Charles Mbani said the Nigerian army has done well in restoring peace in the region.

Mbani said he is surprised the the Ohanaeze Ndigbo is scared of the special board of inquiry set up by the Nigerian army on allegations of human rights abuse against the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualization of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB).

READ ALSO: FINALLY! Enugu Governor Ugwuanyi abolishes 'Osu' practice, says it is satanic

Mbani said: "After several bad outings during which our youths are encouraged to confront and in some instances even kill military and security personnel, the Nigerian Army has set up a 7-Man Special Board of Inquiry to investigate if personnel of the Nigerian Army committed human right abuses in dealing with such violent outings and other areas where they have operated in Nigeria."

He further accused Ohanaeze Ndigbo of being afraid of the exposure that would be made by the board of inquiry.

He said: "To us in SERG this is something that should have shed ample light on what happened in those many unfortunate instances. But perhaps fearing the imminent exposure of Ohaneze as the hand pulling the strings of the IPOB and MASSOB puppet, Chief John Nnia Nwodo rushed to issue a statement to preempt the board and not minding exposing himself in ridiculous manner.

His argument is that one cannot be a judge in his own case as reported in a two page statement titled, "BURATAI, WITH RESPECT, YOU CANNOT BE A JUDGE IN YOUR OWN COURT. Not only did he take this position but he went on to declare that the inquiry cannot stand the test of objectivity and therefore it's outcome would not be acceptable to Ohaneze," Mbani said.

READ ALSO: Let us not be ashamed of it, we are all Biafrans in spirit, Obi of Onitsha tells Igbo leaders

He added that SERG is opposed to the use of violence or threat of violence against other Nigerians in pursuit of a better deal for the South-East.

"Instead of charting a new course that relies more on building alliances with other blocs for the purpose of advancing the Igbo interest he has rather lined the group he has been elected to lead behind insurrectionists, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualization of a Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB).

READ ALSO: Soludo opens up on why he and other Igbo leaders visited Nnamdi Kanu

"It is clear as no one was in doubt about the position of Ohaneze Ndi Igbo knowing well that it was this group that started IPOB and MASSOB as their militant wing in the first place using miserable people like Nnamdi Kanu and Ralph Nwazurike to pursue their fraudulent agenda. In the past, groups like these are what they use to court federal attention and they will go to the Presidency to negotiate bribes and contracts for themselves.

Unfortunately for them, President Muhammadu Buhari has not invited them to the Villa since the end of the groups has been seen by the Nigerian State," he said.

Source: Legit.ng
- Abike Dabiri-Erewa blamed xenophobic attacks in South Africa on inciting statements made by South African political leaders

- Dabiri-Erewa called on big South African establishments like MTN and DStv to speak out against xenophobic attacks

Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has accused South African politicians of telling their people that foreigners, including Nigerians are taking their women, and jobs and this led to the attacks.

Dabiri-Erewa made this statement on a television programme while admitting that foreigners who commit crimes in South Africa can be dealt with without the citizens attacking Nigerian citizens.

Punch reports that Dabiri-Erewa said xenophobic attacks in South Africa was driven by hate speech and misinformation.

If South Africa is fighting crime; let it fight crime, not fight brothers and sisters - Dabiri-Erewa

READ ALSO: Xenophobic attacks: Delta, police prevail on NANS to halt planned attack of South African firms

She said: There are people who commit crime in South Africa, such people are in any country. If South Africa is fighting crime; let it fight crime, not fight brothers and sisters, who are legitimately working in South Africa,

Dont forget that these attacks happened in the past. This is the seventh attack. The last one was in 2015 the king of Zulu made some remarks that were inciting, that led to the last attack.

This particular one, lets look at the circumstances. Fine, there are economic issues everywhere in the world. Politicians are campaigning and telling their people, you know what, drive these criminals away, they are taking your jobs, and they are taking your women too'."

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Dabiri said MTN, DStv and other South African companies should initiate a campaign against xenophobia by educating citizens in the former apartheid enclave.

She said: Imagine MTN sending text messages to everyone in South Africa, saying Xenophobia is bad, dont do this and that.

They should embark on some corporate social responsibility. Those multinationals should get up and do something. DStv should be doing various jingles on why xenophobia is bad, they should take over the awareness campaign.

Meanwhile, eminent Nigerian lawyer Femi Falana has written to South African President Jacob Zuma and urged him to urgently identify and prosecute persons and groups behind the xenophobic attacks against Nigerians in that country.

Falana also wants the victims of the attacks to be compensated by the South African government.

Source: Legit.ng
A massive defection on Saturday hit the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Delta state as over one thousand people defected from the APC to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ughelli North and Aniocha North council areas of the state.

The defection may not be unconnected with the arrival of Chief James Ibori, former governor of the state, who is going round strengthening the party and reconciling members especially in the Urhobo axis of the state.

In Delta state, it is believed that Ibori is the political godfather of the state and whichever party he joins, the greater number of the people of Delta will move along with him.

Delta state PDP chairman, Kingsley Esiso, receiving Baxim Chinye in Aniocha area of the state

A week after Iboris arrival, a staunch propagandist of the APC in the state who dealt with Governor Ifeanyi Okowa in the days of the campaign and court cases, Fred Latimore, defected to the PDP, giving flimsy excuses for his defection.

READ ALSO: PDP crisis worsens as Sheriff tears Fayose, Dickson apart

Spokesman of the defectors in Ughelli North, David Ughelliyovwe, told the crowd that they were poised to move to the PDP because they had seen light in the PDP, giving credit to the house of assembly member in the area, Eric Oharisi.

He described the PDP and Oharisi as a good commodity, a development which led to the members of the APC in the local government joining the PDP massively and pledging to remain faithful to the party and working with the state government.

Defectors from Ughelli North

Oharisi who received the defectors, admonished them to be consistent in their belief in the PDP that they will always be carried along in the government of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa and they would forever be grateful to God for their wise decision.

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He also told them to talk to more of their colleagues to join them

Dancing and jubilation in Aniocha North

Also, in Aniocha North are of the state, a staunch member of the APC with his followers, Emmanuel Baxim Chinye, defected to the PDP and were received by the state PDP chairman, Kingsley Esiso.

The reception was witnessed by large crowd of PDP leaders and followers in the state. It was also followed with wide jubilation in the affected areas.

Source: Legit.ng
- The family of IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu has petitioned the United States government, European Union (EU) over alleged maltreatment of Kanu by the Nigerian government

- The family alleged that there are plans to kill Kanu and visitors are being restricted from meeting him

The family of Nnamdi Kanu, in a statement signed by his brother, Emmanuel Kanu, on behalf of the family alleged that Kanu and other IPOB members detained at Kuje prison are being humiliated and dehumanized by prison officials.

The family said the IPOB leader with his fellow IPOB detainees were being stopped from receiving visitors, Punch reports.

Nnamdi Kanu and a prison warden in a court premises

READ ALSO: Pro-Buhari group defies Biafra secessionists threats, march for president in south-east

The petition reads in part: We observed with great dismay the conspiracy by the DSS and the Prison authorities through their prison wardens to stop Mazi Nnamdi Kanu from receiving visitors in Kuje prison Abuja.

The leader of the indigenous people of Biafra Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and others detained illegally alongside with him were only allowed to receive visitors for one hour a day from Monday to Friday in a week while other inmates were always allowed to receive visitors five hours in a day from Monday to Sunday, seven days a week.

It is a huge embarrassment on the side of the British government who have been denied access to visit Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in Kuje prison by the security agents and prison authorities through the prison wardens.

The security agents and prison wardens stopped the British people who intended to visit Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in the prison to see the leader of the indigenous people of Biafra IPOB.

The family also petitioned Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

Nevertheless, we observed that the security agents and prison authorities through the prison wardens are planning to eliminate Mazi Nnamdi Kanu without anybody knowing when it will happen, that is why they are making sure nobody visits him again."

In line with this, we are calling on international community, USA, EU, Amnesty International, Human right Watch, Men and Women of good conscience and other relevant Human right organisations around the globe to caution the federal government of Nigeria and her security agents to stop their barbaric attitude towards my brother, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu."

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Meanwhile, a South East group, the South East Renewal Group (SERG) has accused Ohanaeze Ndigbo, a pan-Igbo socio-cultural group acting a selfish script from politicians.

SERG condemned the group's comments over activities of the Nigerian Army in the South-East region.

Speaking in Enugu on Friday, March 10, SERG's president Charles Mbani said the Nigerian army has done well in restoring peace in the region.

Source: Legit.ng
A recent survey conducted by the organizers of Vitafoods Europe suggested despite political and economic uncertainties, the nutrition industry shows an optimistic outlook for the future of business. However, nutrition companies view stricter regulations as greatest challenge.

Vitafoods Europe, a global nutraceutical event, will kick off this year from May 9-11 in Palexpo, Geneva, and attendees of the event were asked how they felt about the future of their businesses in terms of sales performance and profitability. The survey asked 143 people who have visited Vitafoods Europe in the past, and/or will visit the 2017 event. Of those 143 people, 88 percent said they felt either very positive, or quite positive. Interestingly, last year when respondents were asked the same question, 87 percent answered they were either very or quite positive, suggesting optimism about the industry remains regardless of political shocks.

Its a sign of the resilience and resourcefulness of our industry that even in a period of political uncertainty, companies are focusing on opportunities rather than problems," said Chris Lee, managing director of the global health and nutrition network, Europe, Informa Exhibitions.

When asked to name the three biggest opportunities for their companies, 53 percent of the respondents identified increased consumer awareness of nutritionup from 50 percent last year33 percent chose growth in developing marketsup from 24 percent the previous yearand 41 percent cited innovation through new ingredients.

Nutrition Industry Shows Greater Concern About Regulation

The survey also explored challenges within the industry, and foremost among these was stricter regulation, which was identified as a challenge by 44 percent of survey respondents. Visitors with any questions about regulation, certification, market research or product development will be able to have a one-on-one consultation with experts at the event.

In addition, Vitafoods Centre Stage will host a keynote panel discussion about the impact of EU regulation on innovation in the ingredient sector. Speakers will include Petr Mensik, EU affairs manager at EU Specialty Food Ingredients, and Beate Kettlitz, director of food policy, science and research and development (R&D) at Food Drink Europe.

Vitafoods Europe helps visitors understand those opportunities and make the most of them. But there will always be challenges too, and part of our role is to support the industry in meeting them," Lee said.

This year, there are expected to be over 1,000 exhibitors and over 18,500 visitors at the event.
I cant afford empathy, Eltahawy said, because Im Egyptian. Im Muslim. Im a woman. I dont have time to try to persuade or to negotiate for my humanity. Of Trump voters and supporters, she said: I owe them nothing. And I will not exhaust myself trying to persuade them.

The novelist Daniel Alarcon, seated just next to Ms. Eltahawy onstage, said with sincerity: Im glad Mona brought her flamethrower. But he went on to describe what he called the valuable exercise of attempting to see differing perspectives, difficult as that can be.

The novelist Dinaw Mengestu said, I dont think how you voted is the totality of who you are.

Andrew Solomon, the author of Far From the Tree and other books, as well as the current president of PEN America, outlined two pragmatic objectives for the left  to win back those who voted for Barack Obama in 2012 and then Mr. Trump in 2016, and to energize the people who are on our side.

He emphasized that the rhetoric for each of those tasks is not always the same, and that winning converts is a delicate mission. Most people dont tend to vote for you because you made them feel like they lost the argument, he said, though he also noted that politics at this particular moment can feel like something out of Paradise Lost, in which some people on one side do seem to represent evil.

Mr. Solomon argued that individual stories are better than statistics about injustice and inequality in getting people to change their perspectives. Ms. Eltahawy responded: Im becoming the resident angry person on this panel, and Im glad to play that role. She said focus on individual stories often means identifying a good Muslim as someone with an extraordinary back story that permits them to then be granted their humanity.
Saudi Aramco is in danger of undermining its own cash call.

The state-owned oil giant is preparing the worlds biggest initial public offering, targeting a valuation of $2 trillion  almost six times the value of the worlds largest publicly traded oil company, Exxon Mobil. Yet concurrent plans to pump cash into what could prove to be a series of white elephants should have investors arguing for a discount.

Aramco is sometimes described as a state within a state. To understand why, consider its planned $4.4 billion investment in a new energy-focused industrial area in the countrys Eastern Province, reported by Reuters on Tuesday. Such attempts to create more jobs for young Saudis are one of two main pillars holding up the economic plan laid out by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman last year. Similar schemes, which aim to bolster local manufacturing and attract foreign investment, are scattered across the desert kingdom.

There are two problems. First, they have so far failed to tackle joblessness: Youth unemployment is high and comparable to rates in poor sub-Saharan African countries at 30 percent of the work force, according to World Bank figures. Spending on imports fell by just 2 percent in 2015 despite decades of investment in domestic industrial capacity.

Second, the employment drive potentially makes the other pillar  raising as much as possible from the sale in Aramco shares  trickier. The company already lacks publicly accessible detail on its finances. If it also plans to periodically write off billions of dollars on city-building experiments, investors should be factoring that into the valuation.
Two of the biggest tax cuts in Republican proposals to repeal the Affordable Care Act would deliver roughly $144 billion over the coming decade to those with incomes of $1 million or more, according to a congressional analysis.

The assessment was made by the Joint Committee on Taxation, a nonpartisan panel that provides research on tax issues.

It is not unusual for tax cuts to benefit mostly the wealthiest, but still save some money for a majority of Americans. But the benefits of these reductions would be aimed squarely at the top.

The provisions would repeal two tax increases on high earners enacted in 2010 to help pay for the Affordable Care Act: an increase in capital gains taxes and other investment-related income, and a surcharge on Medicare taxes.
Carol Field, an authority on Italian cuisine whose classic cookbook The Italian Baker, published in 1985, introduced Americans to regional breads like ciabatta and focaccia, as well as to desserts, died on Friday in San Francisco. She was 76.

The cause was complications of a stroke, her family said.

Ms. Field fell in love with Italy and its food while helping her husband, John, an architect, film a PBS documentary in Liguria in 1972. Persistent fog forced the couple and their small crew to suspend the project, and by the time they returned the next summer, the budget could no longer support an interpreter. Ms. Field taught herself Italian and, on repeat visits to Italy, developed a deep appreciation and understanding of Italian food.

The Italian Baker, her first cookbook, immediately became a treasured guide. It was named the best book in its category by the International Association of Culinary Professionals in 1986, and in 2010 the James Beard Foundation included it in its Bakers Dozen, a list of 13 indispensable baking books.

When the book was republished in 2011, Russ Parsons, writing in The Los Angeles Times, called it still the definitive book on Italian breads.
The Republican proposal to replace the Affordable Care Act would bar people from using federal tax credits to buy health insurance plans that cover abortion.

If the measure is passed, abortion rights advocates fear it could compel insurers to stop offering abortion coverage at all.

Theres no reason insurers would sell any plans that cover abortion because everyone would be wanting to use these tax credits, said Adam Sonfield, a senior policy manager for the Guttmacher Institute, a research center that works to promote access to abortion.

For now, the proposal would create a big problem for two of the largest and most liberal states: California, where state law requires insurers to cover abortion, and New York, which has long encouraged coverage by including it in its model plan of what insurers have to cover. Massachusetts, too, has long indicated that insurers should cover abortion as medically necessary.
[March 10, 2017] Cedexis #1 China Performance For Dynamic Web Acceleration

CAMPBELL, Calif., March 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In mid January, CDNetworks detected a drop in our long-standing Cedexis ranking for the Dynamic Web Application (DWA) measurement section in China. It came to our attention through an internal Performance Portal, a tool we developed that pulls data from Cedexis so that we can monitor our performance against some of our competitors over time. CEDEXIS METHODOLOGY In order to be able to measure performance and availability of content distribution networks (CDNs), private data centers, and cloud services against one another, Cedexis created "Radar". Radar collects more than 6 billion real user measurements each day, which it then analyzes in real time using a JavaScript tag inserted in Cedexis customer pages. The data pulled by Radar provides comparisons by availabilty, latency, throughput performance for static object delivery, whole site acceleration, TLS content deliver, IaaS compute, and storage amongst others. To measure Dynamic Object Delivery, Cedexis measures how long the provider takes to serve an un-cacheable, 15KB object pulled from Origin servers located in the North America (Washington, DC), Europe (France) and Asia (Hong Kong).



EXTENDING YOUR WEB BUSINESS TO INTERNET USERS IN CHINA After a new collaborative benchmark with Cedexis to understand the drop in rank, we confirmed that none of our competitors were able to outperform our dynamic web acceleration offering. Corrections were made on the website, and we received a return to China Performance No.1 (Cedexis DSA) title.

It's not surprising that we find ourselves at the top of the list, considering that we are one of the only companies that can truly accelerate dynamic content, especially with our strengths in China. With our global network of specialized server clusters, CDNetworks' Dynamic Web Acceleration product enables you to eliminate the inherent latencies of the Internet that exist in its infrastructure from it's nascence 30 years ago. This boosts web application performance, improves user experience, and increases revenue. CDNetworks is continuing to grow its competitiveness for CDN Services with performance management by continuously analyzing and improving regions and countries for its customers to maximize performance. Want to learn more about our offerings? Contact us for more information about Dynamic Web Acceleration in China! Contact:

Briana Lassig

1-408-228-3376

[email protected] To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cedexis-1-china-performance-for-dynamic-web-acceleration-300422098.html SOURCE CDNetworks

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We strongly oppose any legislation that would allow employers to inquire about employees private genetic information or medical information unrelated to their ability to do their jobs, and to impose draconian penalties on employees who choose to keep that information private, a group of advocates, including AARP, the American Diabetes Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Epilepsy Foundation, the March of Dimes and others wrote in a letter this week to Ms. Foxx.

As wellness programs proliferate across the corporate landscape, workers are increasingly being asked by their companies to undergo health screenings and medical assessments. Employees can opt out of these programs, and personal information specific to a worker is not supposed to be shared directly with the company. The prohibition is aimed at preventing someone from being fired or otherwise discriminated against because of a serious medical condition.

The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has vigorously pursued legal action against some employers it claimed went too far and used these programs inappropriately, but the courts have largely been sympathetic to the employers arguments. Companies also complained that the regulations were confusing, and the commission issued final rules in May aimed at addressing some of their concerns.

Companies defend the wellness programs, saying they keep workers healthier and help reduce insurance costs. But some studies have questioned the effectiveness of these initiatives.

Critics argue that workers are essentially being coerced into giving up private medical information, such as their weight, their blood pressure and whether they are at particular risk for cancer. Under the Affordable Care Act, employers can entice a worker by offering as much as a 30 percent reduction in insurance payments. Although the financial incentives offered have typically been lower, an employee who refused to participate could lose as much as thousands of dollars in savings.
For more than seven years, Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, made a name for himself as one of the nations most aggressive and outspoken prosecutors of public corruption and Wall Street crime.

With Mr. Bharara, 48, being told on Friday to step down from his post, it was unclear what effect his expected departure might have on the offices current investigations.

In past presidential transitions, the storied office, long known to be so independent of Washington that some people referred to it as the Sovereign District of New York, has in large measure moved forward unaffected by politics. Under Mr. Bharara, the office prosecuted Democratic and Republican officials with equal ardor, most notably Sheldon Silver, the former Democratic speaker of New Yorks Assembly, and Dean G. Skelos, the former Republican majority leader of the State Senate.

His office is preparing to try a group of former aides and associates of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in a wide-ranging bribery and bid-rigging case and has been investigating Mayor Bill de Blasios campaign fund-raising as part of an inquiry into whether he or other officials exchanged official acts for political donations.
The first corpse was found near the tip of City Hall Park in January  the body of a red-tailed hawk that had dropped dead from some high spot onto the sidewalk. On Friday, a second corpse appeared: Another red-tailed hawk was spotted dead in a tree behind City Hall, not far from Mayor Bill de Blasios second-floor office window.

What is killing the hawks of City Hall?

Theories abounded.

Some of the police officers who guard City Hall, cops being cops, suspected fowl play. They speculated that the birds of prey might have gobbled up rats that had ingested poison, and had been poisoned themselves.

Other possibilities were disease, accident, or injury from flying into a window.

Then there was the unthinkable: Could it be the mayors curse?

Mr. de Blasio has a decidedly star-crossed record when it comes to wildlife.

Last December, he caught part of the blame when a one-horned deer nicknamed Lefty died in city custody, after City Hall and the office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo got into a tug of war over what to do with the animal, which had become a local sensation after it wandered into a Harlem park.
Donald J. Trump told the American people during his presidential campaign, This country is being drained of its jobs and its money because we have stupid people making bad deals. He promised to make better deals, ones in which we would win so much we may even get tired of winning.

Now his administration, through the Army, is on the brink of making a bad deal, giving a French pharmaceutical company, Sanofi, the exclusive license to patents and thus a monopoly to sell a vaccine against the Zika virus. If Mr. Trump allows this deal, Sanofi will be able to charge whatever astronomical price it wants for its vaccine. Millions of people in the United States and around the world will not be able to afford it even though American taxpayers have already spent more than $1 billion on Zika research and prevention efforts, including millions to develop this vaccine.

The Department of Health and Human Services gave Sanofi $43 million to develop the Zika vaccine with the United States Army. And the company is expected to receive at least $130 million more in federal funding.

Sanofi is not a nonprofit or a tiny start-up struggling to bring medicine to market. Its chief executive, Olivier Brandicourt, earns about $4.5 million a year. Even the government of France criticized this salary, calling it incomprehensible, yet the American government is perfectly happy to enrich Mr. Brandicourt even more.
Good news: the president seems pretty enthusiastic about bringing down drug prices. This is important both because drug prices are way too high and because positive reports out of Washington are so very, very rare.

Every day we get up and stagger forward through the great, barren desert that is the Trump administration, yearning for happy tidings. (Did you know the A.S.P.C.A. says pet adoptions are up?) If we never find an oasis, maybe at least therell be a shiny little rock.

So. This week the president took time out from the Trumpcare battles to meet with two Democratic lawmakers and talk about lowering the cost of drugs. I want to get some things done.  I keep telling myself, four years is a long time. I could be dead in four years, said one of the conferees, Representative Elijah Cummings of Maryland.

Cummings wants to give the government power to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies on the price of drugs for Medicare patients. I know, it seems insane that they dont do that already. But theres actually a rule against it. Inserted at the behest of Big Pharma during the Bush administration.
With 11,000 men killed and little to show for it, 1967, in retrospect, is remembered as a year of concern for the United States in the Vietnam War. But at the time, optimism reigned. The offensive operations by American military forces throughout 1966 had halted the gains of the Peoples Army of Vietnam and the Peoples Liberation Armed Forces (known to its enemies as the Viet Cong). Those gains, combined with mounting efforts to pacify the civilian population, seemed to point the way toward victory  if not in 1967, then soon after.

Pacification involved various strategies to remove Communist influence from rural South Vietnam. And in some ways this was the real heart of the American efforts in Vietnam: For all the emphasis that popular memory places on combat, the fighting was often in service of making room for pacification teams to do their work.

General William C. Westmorelands big unit war placed considerable attention on pacification. Search and destroy, the method by which American Army units located and engaged enemy forces, functioned as a form of pacification. Indeed, pacification required improved security  a task search and destroy achieved.

The added military strength and expanded area of operation is creating a climate which will allow expansion of such programs into areas which were not formally considered secure enough for satisfactory progress, according to a report by advisors from the Army and the Agency for International Development working in Phu Yen Province, on the Vietnamese coast, in 1966. And at least on paper, extensive operations in Phu Yen  with code names like Van Buren, Fillmore and John Paul Jones  produced a security situation markedly better than the one Saigon faced before the deployment of American combat forces.
Ms. Parks ascent to power was ominous. Just days before the 2012 presidential election that she won, claims surfaced that the National Intelligence Service, South Koreas main spy agency, was trying to influence the outcome. People working for the opposition party found an intelligence agent holed up in a studio apartment in Seoul, from where she had been spreading conservative propaganda on the internet. Law enforcement officers covered up the crime, and Ms. Park coasted to victory. Only later was it revealed that the National Intelligence Service had sent out more than 1.2 million tweets to support her and her Saenuri Party.

Once in power, Ms. Park mounted fierce attacks on the labor movement, long a thorn in the conservatives side. In October 2013, the government began an effort to deregister the left-wing Korean Teachers and Educational Workers Union. Two months later, the police ransacked the offices of the Korea Confederation of Trade Unions under the pretext of finding railway union leaders who had been protesting privatization. The Justice Ministry eventually succeeded in sending a leader of the union, Han Sang-gyun, to prison for staging what it called an illegal antigovernment demonstration.

In April 2014, the nation witnessed the Sewol ferry sinking, which claimed more than 300 victims, 250 of them high school students. When families of the victims called for an independent inquiry into the disaster, the presidential office and the ruling party agreed to their demands, but rendered the special commission toothless. Conservatives, including lawmakers from her party, took to demonizing the families as pro-North Korea commies, as they often do to smear critics.

Ms. Park was determined to unite the country not through reason or dialogue but by brainwashing young minds. In 2015, her officials announced that middle school and high school history textbooks produced by private publishers would be replaced with government-issued ones by 2017. Many scholars condemned the plan, and international media reported the news with incredulity. When the Education Ministry finally revealed the new books this year, they were riddled with errors and right-wing bias. At least they will not be compulsory any longer.

But South Korea will suffer for a long time from a choice Ms. Park made last July to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or Thaad, a United States-made missile defense system. Impeachment froze her powers, but the prime minister and acting president, Hwang Kyo-ahn, her ally, pushed ahead with the plan, finalizing the land deal for the site and beginning the deployment this week.
On March 8, 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 vanished with 239 passengers and crew aboard as it crossed the Indian Ocean, triggering a large-scale search for its remains that lasted nearly three years. As a byproduct of the tragedy, scientists have gained access to more than 100,000 square miles of seafloor mapped at a level of detail that provides a rare look at the oceans geological processes.

Its an incredible trove of data, said Millard F. Coffin, a marine geophysicist from the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania in Australia. Ive been working in this part of the Indian Ocean for 30-plus years and over many voyages in the eastern Indian Ocean Ive never seen this level of resolution.

Dr. Coffin worked with a group of about 10 scientists from Geoscience Australia, the national geosciences agency in Australia, to analyze data from the search. They were given access to high-resolution sonar information collected on ships, and data obtained by remotely operated vehicles and autonomous underwater drones. The information was provided by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, which led the search.
First-year doctors in training will now be permitted to work shifts lasting as long as 24 hours, eight hours longer than the current limit, according to a professional organization that sets work rules for graduates from medical schools in the United States.

In setting the new standard, which goes into effect on July 1, officials at the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education said on Friday that they hoped to avoid confusion and disruptions in care that can result when a patient is handed off to one doctor from another whose shift is ending.

The rules do not change for residents after the first year, who have been permitted to work 24-hour shifts if necessary. The new rules also leave in place a requirement that all residents work no more than 80 hours a week.

But the new guidelines roused the ire of critics who say that exhausted and inexperienced residents will be working too many hours to remain alert and focus on the critical decisions they make. The issue has been a focus of controversy for at least 30 years, after a patient named Libby Zion died under the care of residents in a New York hospital.
One day after Muhammad Ali Jr. spoke with members of Congress about being detained at a Florida airport last month, he was briefly stopped again before boarding a flight on Friday afternoon, his lawyer said.

When Mr. Ali, whose father died last year, arrived at Reagan National Airport in Washington on Friday for a flight to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., he gave his Illinois identification card to a JetBlue agent to get his boarding pass, said his lawyer, Chris Mancini, who was traveling with him and witnessed the episode. Almost immediately, Mr. Ali was told that there was a problem and that the agent needed to call the Department of Homeland Security, Mr. Mancini said.

Mr. Ali, 44, was asked his date of birth, where he was born and his Social Security number, Mr. Mancini said. After answering the questions, he was told that his Illinois-issued identification card, which expires in 2019 but is not a drivers license, was invalid for flying.

The same state ID from Illinois that he traveled to Washington on was rejected, Mr. Mancini said in an interview on Friday night. Mr. Ali then produced his United States passport, which was accepted, and went through security and boarded the flight with his mother, Khalilah Camacho-Ali, the second wife of Muhammad Ali, and Mr. Mancini.
WASHINGTON  President Trump spoke with President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority on Friday for the first time since taking office and invited him to visit the White House, opening a new avenue of diplomacy as he develops his own peace initiative for the Middle East.

Mr. Trump, who presented himself last year as Israels greatest champion, had refused to deal directly with Palestinian officials until now. But after a White House meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, and multiple conversations with Arab leaders from the region, Mr. Trump has embarked on what he promises to be a sustained effort to break a generations-old impasse and resolve the conflict.

The president has assigned Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and senior adviser, and Jason Greenblatt, his top negotiator, to explore ways of bringing the two sides together in tandem with other players in the region. Mr. Greenblatt plans to follow up Fridays telephone call between Mr. Trump and Mr. Abbas with a visit next week to the region. He will meet with Israeli officials in Jerusalem and Mr. Abbas in Ramallah, the headquarters for the Palestinian Authority that operates in the occupied West Bank.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, an adviser and spokesman for Mr. Abbas, said the two presidents spoke for about 20 minutes in English and called it a very good conversation.
During an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Mr. Kelly said that both countries were still trying to get our arms around the situation and its causes. When asked by the interviewer if it was the product of the executive orders as well as the perception that Muslims were no longer welcome in the United States, Mr. Kelly said: It could be, I think you could draw that conclusion. Im undecided.

He added: Its something I dont quite understand, but it could be.

But speaking earlier in the day with reporters, Ralph Goodale, Canadas public safety minister, who hosted Mr. Kellys visit, suggested that the crossings were not related to any actions by Mr. Trump.

One thing that is clear from at least some of the data is that the migration began  or at least the planning for the migration  began many months ago, Mr. Goodale said, without offering any details and suggesting that the situation started almost a year ago.

When asked what Canada wanted the United States to do about the crossings, Mr. Goodale suggested that American officials were largely powerless. Noting that most of the migrants apparently had legal status in the United States, Mr. Goodale said there was no way to track or restrain their travel within the country.

Like Mr. Kelly, Mr. Goodale said the main priority on the issue for both countries was to develop a better understanding of it.
The New York Times had already covered the surge in migrants, many of them going to great lengths to cross the border. I was interested in doing something much narrower: one country road, how it was playing a role in this and how nearby residents were responding to it.

The first time I traveled this far north, to the uppermost parts of upstate New York, two convicted murderers had broken out of a maximum-security prison and fled into the dense and brutal wilderness just below the Canadian border. To look at the migrants escape to Canada from the United States, I went to Champlain, N.Y., and, specifically Roxham Road. It dead-ends at the border and had become a popular point of exit.

I reached out to local officials in Champlain and called the number for the taxi service listed on the side of the car that appeared in a local television news clip about the illegal crossings. Based on that, I decided that I should drive to Roxham Road, park and watch life unfold. While waiting, I walked up and down the quiet rural street and talked to its residents. When cabs pulled up, I tried to talk to the migrants, largely to no avail. But I cannot blame them for not wanting to stop and unload their thoughts and fears to a reporter in that moment. And I talked to the cabdrivers before they drove off.

The answers I got back were thoughtful and nuanced and, I think, said a lot about the conflicting ideas surrounding politics and American identity that some people on this side of the border are grappling with. Despite its proximity to the border, Roxham Road is a remote place, where, I think, people appreciate having a little distance from the rest of the world. But the current situation has brought the issues of the world right to their doors.
WASHINGTON  When President Trump welcomes Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to the Oval Office on Tuesday, their meeting will take on a symbolism unlike any he has held so far: The great disrupter confronts the last defender of the liberal world order.

Mr. Trump and Ms. Merkel are poles apart on issues like immigration and trade; they have circled each other warily since the American presidential election. But both sides, officials said, are determined not to let this first meeting devolve into a clash of competing worldviews.

Ms. Merkel has been studying Mr. Trumps speeches to get an insight into the new presidents thinking. American officials said Mr. Trump would ask the chancellor for advice on how to deal with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, whom, after dozens of meetings over her 11 years in power, she knows better than any other leader in the West.

The threat posed by Russia to Europe could give Ms. Merkel and Mr. Trump a sliver of common ground. The Trump administration is demanding that Germany and its other NATO allies increase their military budgets, a message the Germans appear to be taking to heart, even if their spending still falls well short of what the United States would like.
AMSTERDAM  In the final days before next weeks parliamentary elections in the Netherlands, the far-right leaders support appeared to be softening and a previously minor party, the Greens, led by a charismatic young politician, was poised to become one of the two top parties on the left.

But there is little consensus among Dutch voters about what sort of government they want, and multiple polls show that at least five parties could be within a few seats of each other once the results are in.

Currently, we have a not-so-normal situation, said Maurice de Hond, a pollster who has been tracking Dutch politics for 40 years and who, like everyone interviewed, described the electorate as fragmented.

Sarah de Lange, a political scientist at the University of Amsterdam, described the picture as extremely fragmented, to an extent that we have not seen before in the Netherlands.
Pope Francis this week signaled receptiveness to appeals from bishops in the remote and overwhelmed corners of the Roman Catholic Church to combat a deepening shortage of priests by ordaining married men who are already committed to the church.

In an interview with a German newspaper, the pope made clear that he was not advocating an end to celibacy for current priests or those aspiring to join the clergy. But his seeming openness about the prospect of ordaining married men in places hardest hit by a dearth of priests was unusually explicit and brought the issue to the forefront.

We need to think about whether viri probati could be a possibility, Francis, using the Latin phrase for such tested men, said in an interview with the newspaper, Die Zeit. If so, we would need to determine what duties they could undertake, for example, in remote communities.

For years, the pope has noted that an element of married clergy already exists in the church. Eastern Rite priests in union with Rome have married for centuries. In 1980, John Paul II created a provision by which some married Protestant ministers who converted to Catholicism could maintain their ministry. And historically, priests in the first centuries of the church were free to marry
Louvre Abu Dhabi is sure to attract global attention this year when it becomes the first international outpost of the Louvre to open its doors. But its by no means the Persian Gulfs maiden museum project.

Since the turn of the millennium, emirates of the Gulf have been in a museum-building campaign, recruiting Pritzker-winning architects to design elaborate structures, and partnering with major Western cultural institutions. Qatar has opened one big museum and has two others in the works. Abu Dhabi is planning two new museums next to its Louvre offshoot.

Why all the museum building?

Any time a country experiences a period of great economic prosperity, it becomes reflected in its culture, in its cities, in its capital, and translates into architecture, big buildings, big museums, said Jean Nouvel, the architect of Louvre Abu Dhabi and the National Museum of Qatar, which is nearing completion.

After the very rich period that the emirates have lived through, both culturally and economically, and the complete mutation of their cities, its normal that there should be buildings symbolizing this golden age, he said.
ACCRA, Ghana  Nana Oforiatta-Ayim, a Ghanaian writer, art historian and filmmaker, drove around trying to find a place for brunch one recent Monday. Many places were slow to open, and navigating in Accra is an exercise in calm, patience and practice as directions often rely on landmarks instead of street names.

Ms. Oforiatta-Ayim has perfected those qualities, not only in driving around the capital, but also with her Cultural Encyclopedia project, which will map and archive both historical and contemporary arts and culture across Africa. After finally finding an air-conditioned cafe, she explained that although she started the venture three years ago, she had been thinking about it since 2009, when she began her Ph.D. research into African languages and cultures at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

I would go to the underground library vaults, Ms. Oforiatta-Ayim said, and I would find theses that were so brilliant and interesting, and yet no one was looking at it and it is so valuable. I would get completely sidetracked reading about things like the technology of kente cloth. And at the same time I was also thinking that the narrative that is told about Africa is still the backward narrative: no innovation, its ahistorical and stuck. Yet with everything I was reading, it was stories of innovation, of knowledge, of technology.

The encyclopedia will consist of an open-source internet platform for documenting past, present and future African arts and culture (starting with Ghana) and eventually will be published in 54 volumes, one for each country. An ambitious undertaking, the Cultural Encyclopedia aims to change perceptions of the continent and help alleviate the frustration of African cultural producers concerned that their rich histories have been lost or forgotten over the decades because they lack good archives.
Within her own institution, for example, the Stedelijks marketing department was mulling ways to increase the number of international visitors, who account for around 35 percent of the museums admissions, with the remaining 65 percent Dutch locals.

We always want as many people to see our exhibitions as possible, she said in a telephone interview, but when we think specifically in terms of ticket buyers, that might have an impact on the decisions we make about quality.

Dakis Joannou, the Greek Cypriot industrialist and art collector, who founded the DESTE nonprofit contemporary art foundation in 1983, moved it into its first public space in a former paper factory near Athens in 1998, and then moved it into an even larger space, a former sock factory, in 2006. In recent years, Mr. Joannou has collaborated with other institutions, like the Museum of Cycladic Art and the Benaki Museum in Athens, to create exhibitions rather than to continue to grow his own space. He has decided that it is better for him to downsize to no museum at all, he said.

My model is 100 percent flexibility, not to be tied down, and do a show whenever you have a good plan, he said in a telephone interview. You find the space and you do the show. You have a program to do two to four shows a year, but you do them wherever you find the right space.

He added that the size of a museum is not as important as its scale, or rather its size in relation to its contents, or context. A museum that is no bigger than a shoe box can have more impact than a sprawling museum, Mr. Joannou said, if what is on show has resonance.

Art has become very popular now, and most museums need more space, he said. De-growth only happens in the private museums, and thats for a very specific reason: the lack of enough funds to endow a museum to last forever. You may do very well, but at some point you just stop out of a lack of will to go on with it.
LOS ANGELES  The courage and morality of a society is always on trial, and in crisis it is tested to the limits, said Liebe Geft, the director of the Museum of Tolerance.

These words have a particular resonance in todays political culture, a climate for which the museum has been preprogrammed, Ms. Geft said.

The museum, which is decidedly apolitical and nonpartisan, uses animated walk-through exhibits, question-focused interactive media and docents trained to lead difficult conversations to bring attention to oppression and injustice worldwide.

The entire approach here, in the way we train our guides and docents, in the way we introduce skilled and professional facilitators to all of our programs, is to be able to have those difficult discussions, Ms. Geft said. To look at those challenges to society, the fears that we have, to acknowledge the struggles  and theyre always there  they are intensified in this climate.
AUSTIN, Tex.  Some doctors are so inundated with the business of medicine that good bedside manner has become a lost art. As a preventive measure, the new Dell Medical School, part of the University of Texas at Austin, is challenging students in its inaugural class to embrace their feelings by examining the fine arts.

In late January, about 20 first-year Dell Medical students met in a gallery at the universitys Blanton Museum of Art for a two-hour lesson on empathetic communication, the final session in a three-part program. In addition to focusing on ways that doctors treat their patients through empathy, the program aimed to develop observation skills and address how doctors treat themselves, through a session on mindfulness and self-care.

One of the things that were struggling with in medicine right now is the immense level of burnout, said Dr. Jonathan MacClements, an assistant dean at Dell and a student mentor. The reason why we go into medicine is forgotten. Weve just become so focused on the day-to-day activities that the human side is sometimes lost. Im hoping this will help us refind and re-identify within ourselves what made medicine such a special profession.

The students principal guide for the program was Ray Williams, the museums director of education and a veteran of the emerging practice of using art as medicine of sorts for medical professionals, pioneered by Columbia and Yale. Before coming to the Blanton in 2012, Mr. Williams worked at the Harvard Art Museums, where he partnered with Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston to foster teamwork. Mr. Williams, who developed the curriculum for Dell, likens interpreting art to interpreting a patient.
PARIS  Construction is scheduled to start this fall on a new building for the Louvre.

Costing an estimated 60 million euros ($63 million) and designed by the British architecture firm Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners, the building in Lievin, about 210 kilometers (about 130 miles) north of Paris, will be a storehouse and conservation base for 250,000 objects from the Louvres permanent collection.

It has also been offered by the French government as a haven for artifacts at risk of looting and destruction in conflict zones of the Middle East.

Saving that regions heritage has become a high international priority, Western culture officials say. The Afghan Taliban destroyed the Bamian Buddhas in 2001, the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad was looted in 2003, and Islamic fundamentalists and other fighters have ransacked historic Syrian and Iraqi sites since 2011.

The idea of a French sanctuary originated from a report by the Louvres president-director, Jean-Luc Martinez, commissioned by President Francois Hollande in June 2015 after Islamic fundamentalist fighters ravaged the Mosul Museum and the ancient sites of Nineveh and Nimrud in northern Iraq.
But my mentor in the district  this old-school, 87-year-old restaurateur  I was terrified that Id let him down, but he managed to coalesce the community around me. The only thing worse than being an addict, I guess, is a rat who outs an addict. So I survived the next campaign.

PG Later, in 2006, you were in a car crash at the Capitol, and you came clean about being intoxicated when you had a chance to skate away. But you did so against the advice of your dad. He wanted you to play it off as a fender bender. Is that our generational edge: that we can admit our problems and not be destroyed by them?

GC Was your dad circling the wagons? Did he think that coming out would hurt you or the family?

PK That was his generational M.O. To shut down, not talk about it. But I knew that the accident was not a one-day story. The media was tracking my whereabouts for the previous week. I wanted to make it all public at once. I knew that would be better than the drip, drip, drip of slow reveals.

PG Is that when you came out as bipolar?

PK No, I only came out about my addiction to opiates and that Id been to the Mayo Clinic a few months before. But I refused to go to the mental health ward there. I thought: Thats where the crazy people go. I cant afford to have people find out that Im suffering from the same illnesses that Im advocating for in Congress. Thats how deranged my thinking was.
Mr. Kanaris workplace is the result of an arrangement that goes back to 1928, when Adolph S. Ochs, the publisher of The Times, agreed to lease office space to The Asahi in the headquarters at 229 West 43rd Street. The Times charged The Asahi $50 a month in rent (roughly $700 today) and $250 monthly for the use of its news wires. Telephones and typewriters were furnished at no charge.

Relations between the companies were quite amicable. The first nonstop flight between the two countries, in 1931, carried a letter from Ryuhei Murayama, a founder of The Asahi Shimbun, addressed to Mr. Ochs. In his friendly greeting, Mr. Murayama wrote that the flight must greatly contribute toward promoting friendly relations between our countries.

Unfortunately, darker forces were at work. Ten years later, the two nations were at war.

Kyozo Mori, who was then the New York correspondent for The Asahi, was among the Japanese journalists rounded up by American authorities after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He was detained in Virginia until the next year. In Tokyo, The Timess correspondent, Otto D. Tolischus, was arrested at his home in the Akasaka district, which doubled as the bureau. He was accused of spying and was imprisoned but was released in 1942.

Though it is unclear when The Asahi reclaimed its New York office, it may have been as late as 1952. Bureau lore has it that the Japanese journalists discovered that their old keys still worked. They opened the door to find the place undisturbed  exactly as they had left it in December 1941, except for a thick layer of dust, Daisuke Nakai, a correspondent in the New York bureau, said last month.

In 2007, The Asahi joined The Times in moving to 620 Eighth Avenue. Todays Manhattan-side outfit includes four correspondents, three assistant reporters and an office manager.
Ms. Abramson led the bureau from 2001 to 2003, during the presidency of George W. Bush. He lied to the country when he said, in 2002, that there was no war plan on his desk for going to war against Saddam Hussein, she said. Eric Schmitt broke the story that there was, indeed, a secret war plan that had been given to Bush. Eric and I spent all of July 4th, 2002, inside the Pentagon, which was requesting that The Times not run the story, not because it was wrong but because allies in the Middle East might be unwilling to join the U.S. coalition if the plan was exposed. We published the story on July 5th, omitting some details at the Pentagons request that were not essential to the story.

Howell Raines, the Washington editor from 1988 to 1992, cited the work of Jeff Gerth and Stephen Engelberg on the Whitewater scandal. Clinton spin over the years has been that the Times journalism was flawed because a special prosecutor later decided there was not sufficient evidence to prosecute Bill and Hillary Clinton for criminal conduct, Mr. Raines said. That ruling did not mean we were wrong to try to get at what really happened in the financing of this real estate venture by Clinton and his banker friends. There were many unanswered questions and squishy denials.

If there is a first runner-up to Mr. Trump in adversarial relations with the press, it was almost surely Richard M. Nixon. During Max Frankels years as chief, from 1968 to 1973, his bureau was busily competing with The Washington Post for details of President Nixons abuses of power. The Times, Mr. Frankel recalled, was looking closely into the sources of the Watergate burglars money and into the question of who had erased critical conversations taped at the White House.

The Iran-contra affair jumped to the mind of Craig R. Whitney, whose term as bureau chief, 1987-88, coincided with the last years of President Ronald Reagans administration. High officials in the administration were found to have been selling arms to the Iranians and using the money to buy arms for the Contras fighting the leftist Sandinistas in Nicaragua, violating both an international arms embargo against Iran and a congressional order forbidding the administration from supplying the Contras, Mr. Whitney said.

All the digging in the world may not yield results, as Dean Baquet, the bureau chief from 2007 to 2011 and now The Timess executive editor, noted. We do not have the full, 6,000-page report by the Senate Intelligence Committee, which describes the C.I.A. program that used torture and the White Houses role in creating it, he said. And we have tried repeatedly over the years to get it.
After the United States withdrew troops from Iraq in 2011, thousands of combat troops were expelled from the force with less than honorable discharges as the military came under pressure to downsize quickly. This left a large number of veterans  including many kicked out for minor infractions  without access to health care and other benefits that are granted to service members who leave the armed forces with honorable discharges.

After being cut off from care and benefits, many turned to drugs and painkillers, often to relieve physical pain and mental distress that resulted from combat. Some wound up homeless. Others killed themselves.

Last week, the Department of Veterans Affairs took an important, belated step to protect tens of thousands of former service members who risked their lives in war zones. Starting this summer, the agency decided, it will provide emergency mental health care to some veterans who received less than honorable discharges.

Our goal is simple: to save lives, David Shulkin, the secretary of veterans affairs, said on Tuesday as he announced the change in policy during testimony before the House Veterans Affairs Committee. Veterans who are in crisis should receive help immediately.
Lets begin with sex.

As a couple finishes its business, millions of sperm begin theirs: rushing toward an egg to fertilize it. But these days, scientists say, an increasing proportion of sperm  now about 90 percent in a typical young man  are misshapen, sometimes with two heads or two tails.

Even when properly shaped, todays sperm are often pathetic swimmers, veering like drunks or paddling crazily in circles. Sperm counts also appear to have dropped sharply in the last 75 years, in ways that affect our ability to reproduce.

Theres been a decrease not only in sperm numbers, but also in their quality and swimming capacity, their ability to deliver the goods, said Shanna Swan, an epidemiologist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, who notes that researchers have also linked semen problems to shorter life expectancy.

Perhaps you were expecting another column about political missteps in Washington, and instead youve been walloped with talk of bad swimmers. Yet this isnt just a puzzling curiosity, but is rather an urgent concern that affects reproduction, possibly even our species future.
After reading your article focusing on this issue with regard to Kellyanne Conway, I realized that despite my efforts to assess our female leaders based on the performance of their duties, I was guilty of maligning Ms. Conway for her looks.

Many thanks to Susan Chira for making me aware that I was as guilty as the meanspirited critics who undermined Mrs. Clinton with their comments about her pantsuits.

SUSAN SCHAALMAN YOUDOVIN

CHICAGO

To the Editor:

Im no fan of Kellyanne Conways politics, but in the aftermath of the hoopla surrounding the photo of her kneeling on the Oval Office couch, I have to wonder: Would Steve Bannon, also an adviser to the president, have been asked to step back and take a snapshot of a roomful of distinguished men?

VIRGINIA HUTCH

SANDY HOOK, CONN.

To the Editor:

Most people probably tuck their feet under their bodies on their sofas at home. But as Emily Post advises houseguests, Dont put your feet on furniture.

The White House is not Kellyanne Conways home. It is the Peoples House, and she is a guest/employee in it. She should understand that it was inappropriate for any adult, male or female, to strike such an informal pose at an Oval Office reception.

GAIL MINTHORN, WILTON, CONN.

To the Editor:

I agree with Susan Chira in her derision of over-the-top misogynistic jabs aimed at powerful women in politics that appear in tweets, Facebook and on comedy programs such as Saturday Night Live. However, it may be worth noting that the three tweets used as examples in the article were written by women.

The term misogynist usually connotes a male bias against women. So when the mocking or hateful missiles are thrown by women against women, do we call this misogyny? No, perhaps not. Perhaps it just comes with the territory.
I dont want you to be safe, ideologically, he told them. I dont want you to be safe, emotionally. I want you to be strong. Thats different. Im not going to pave the jungle for you. Put on some boots, and learn how to deal with adversity.

You are creating a kind of liberalism that the minute it crosses the street into the real world is not just useless, but obnoxious and dangerous, he added. I want you to be offended every single day on this campus. I want you to be deeply aggrieved and offended and upset, and then to learn how to speak back. Because that is what we need from you.

The liberalism that Jones was bemoaning is really illiberalism, inasmuch as it issues repressive rules about what people should be able to say and hear. Its part of what some angry voters in 2016 were reacting to and rebelling against. And colleges promote it by failing to summon a rich spectrum of voices.

Certain things are not to be discussed, said John McWhorter, a Columbia University professor who teaches linguistics and philosophy, speaking of a rigid political correctness that transcends college campuses but that he is especially disturbed to see there. Campuses are supposed to be realms of bold inquiry and fearless debate.

Reflecting on Middlebury, he told me, Anybody whose approach to ideas that they dont like is just to scream bloody murder has been failed in their education. It hasnt taught them that history is messy, society complicated and truth elusive.

Protests arent the problem, not in and of themselves. Theyre vital, and so is work to end racism, sexism, homophobia and other bigotry. But much of the policing of imperfect language, silencing of dissent and shaming of dissenters runs counter to that goal, alienating the very onlookers who need illumination.
In the 1992 Supreme Court case Riggins v. Nevada, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy acknowledged  perhaps unwittingly  that our legal system relies on a particular theory of the emotions. The court had ruled that a criminal defendant could not forcibly be medicated to stand trial, and Justice Kennedy concurred, stressing that medication might impair a defendants ability to exhibit his feelings. This, he warned, would interfere with the critical task, during the sentencing phase, of trying to know the heart and mind of the offender, including his contrition or its absence.

But can a judge or jurors infer a defendants emotions reliably, as Justice Kennedy implied? Is it possible, as this theory holds, to detect remorse  or any other emotion  just by looking and listening?

Some scientists believe so. A famous experimental paradigm called mind in the eyes purports to demonstrate this ability. You are shown a photograph of a pair of eyes, accompanied by a short list of words that describe a mental state or attitude, such as irritated, sarcastic, worried and friendly. Then you are asked to pick the word that best matches the emotions the eyes express. My lab has confirmed that test subjects perform marvelously at this task, selecting the expected word more than 70 percent of the time on average, based on a study we conducted using over 100 test subjects.

My lab, however, has also discovered a hitch in this paradigm: If you remove the list of words and ask test subjects to read the eyes alone, their performance plummets to about 7 percent on average. The word list, it seems, acts as a cheat sheet that helps test subjects unconsciously narrow down the possibilities. People turn out to be quite bad at inferring emotions without context. This includes judges and juries.
The world faces the prospect of more tension with China over trade, security and human rights after Xi Jinping awarded himself another five-year term as leader of the ruling Communist Party and called for self-reliance in technology, a stronger military and protection of core interests abroad. At a party congress, Xi gave no sign of plans to change the "zero-COVID strategy that has frustrated Chinas public and disrupted business and trade. He called for faster military development and announced no change in policies that strain relations with Washington and Asian neighbors. Xi is tightening control at home and trying to use Chinas economic heft to increase its influence abroad.
Cecilia: Excited to talk about tech policy? Music to my ears.

So much is happening, and in a normal news cycle, the rollback of Obama-era tech policies would get a lot more attention. But make no mistake, the changes coming in privacy, net neutrality and potentially many more tech regulations will be profound. Trumps chief strategist, Steve Bannon, promised the deconstruction of the administrative state, and right away weve begun to see that happen.

Farhad: So well get to all that in a second. But first, lets go over the news of the week.

WikiLeaks released a huge cache of documents that purport to show the tools that the C.I.A. uses to break into smartphones, computers and even smart TVs. Other than embarrassing the United States government, the leak has fed into more conspiracy theories about Russia (Sean Hannity was having a ball this week), and theyve given people some tips for how to protect themselves from governmental spying. If you want to safeguard your own devices, read our colleague Brian Chens handy guide.

But the best take I read on the leak came from the social media scholar Zeynep Tufecki, who pointed out that WikiLeaks overhyped this cache. The documents actually show that the C.I.A. finds encrypted communications apps like Signal and WhatsApp very difficult to break into.

Cecilia: And it was amazing to see the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange offer help to tech companies like Apple and Google by sharing the leaked computer code so they could fix the flaws described in the C.I.A. documents. How awkward would that be? Remember, relations are still pretty tense between tech and law enforcement on the issue of encryption, which is certainly going to come up again.

Farhad: This week, there was also another attempt by Facebook to copy Snapchat. This time it was Messengers turn. Facebooks messaging app rolled out a new feature that allows people to create Snapchat-like slide shows  known in the Snapchat world as Stories  on the service. Facebook calls it Messenger Day.
OAKLAND, Calif.  Since she was 14, Tiffany says, she has been sold for sex, offered via hundreds of advertisements on Backpage.com, a website that grew rich on classified ads for services like escorts, body rubs and exotic dancers. Far from being a marketplace for consensual exchanges, Backpage, the authorities said, often used teasers like Amber Alert and Lolita to signal that children were for sale.

In the midst of a Senate investigation, a federal grand jury inquiry in Arizona, two federal lawsuits and criminal charges in California accusing Backpages operators of pimping children, the website abruptly bowed to pressure in January and replaced its sex ads with the word Censored in red.

Even so, Tiffany  a street name  did not stop using the site, she said. Instead, her ads moved to Backpages dating section. New in town, read a recent one, using words that have become code for selling sex. Looking for someone to hang out with. Other recent dating ads listed one female as 100% young and suggested that oh daddy can i be your candy.

In the fight against child sex trafficking, shutting down an epicenter like Backpage was a major victory, but one against a relentless foe that quickly unfurled new tentacles. The demise of Backpages adult ads undermined the trade, but it also illustrated how difficult it is to stamp out the practice of selling children for sex. The crime is rarely punished with the full force of the law  charges like rape or statutory rape  officials say; in many places it leads to just a citation, instead of an arrest.
A group of gay and transgender military veterans barred from marching in the St. Patricks Day Parade in South Boston will now be allowed to participate in the March 19 event.

The parade organizers, the Allied War Veterans Council of South Boston, voted unanimously late Friday to reverse their decision made on Tuesday to exclude the group, OutVets, which had marched in the event the past two years. OutVets had been given two reasons for being excluded  its application was late and the rainbow in the groups logo, worn on jackets, was in violation of the parades code of conduct.

But after the organizers voted 9 to 4 to exclude OutVets, council members came under increasing pressure to reconsider. Top politicians in the state, including the governor, Charlie Baker, and the mayor of Boston, Martin J. Walsh, announced they would skip the parade.

The reversal came during a meeting arranged by Representative Stephen F. Lynch, Democrat of Massachusetts, and other elected officials at the V.F.W. Post 561 in South Boston. After the meeting, members of the Allied War Veterans Council said the change was the right decision.
The Hunters have thought plenty about trying to cut out the $100 they spend on cellphone service every month. Yes, they said, its a lot, especially when they dont have health insurance and they stretch the last dollars from their $1,800 monthly income to buy diapers and gasoline.

But the cellphone tethers the couple together when Mr. Hunter leaves for his nearly $13-an-hour job at a call center and Ms. Hunter stays home with their three children  9, 4 and 3 years old  here in the Utah Valley. They chat on his 15-minute breaks. It pains Mr. Hunter to be away from the children, so Ms. Hunter texts him photos of them making a snowman or playing on the backyard swing set. He sends her inspirational quotes from elders in the Mormon Church, to which they are both devoted.

The Hunters said they voted for Mr. Chaffetz in November, but Mr. Hunter said his comment sounded like something a well-off person would say  not a parent receiving food stamps, whose children are covered by Medicaid and who usually has $86 left over after paying the months mortgage and other bills.

Here in the heavily Mormon cities that run along the snow-glazed Wasatch Range, several of Mr. Chaffetzs uninsured constituents said that, of course, they would love to be rid of the cellphone bills that cost their families $30, $50, $100 every month. But they said the savings would hardly be enough to afford monthly health plans for their families.

And how would they get by without their phones?

A cellphone is a lifeline, said Myla Dutton, executive director of Community Action Provo, a food bank and social-service nonprofit.
A federal judge in Florida has revoked the bail and a release order granted to the widow of the gunman who killed 49 people last year at an Orlando nightclub, ruling that she must remain jailed for the duration of criminal proceedings against her.

Judge Paul G. Byron of Federal District Court in Orlando overruled a federal magistrate judge in Northern California who found this month that the woman, Noor Salman, 30, posed no danger to the community nor was a serious flight risk.

In his order on Friday canceling Ms. Salmans release, Judge Byron said that her mother and an uncle own an apartment in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, governed by the Palestinian Authority, where Ms. Salman had previously stayed.

Ms. Salman, who was living with her mother in the San Francisco Bay area after the Orlando massacre, was arrested in California on charges of obstructing justice and aiding her husband, Omar Mateen, in his attempt to provide material support to a terrorist organization.
If we get to the point at any time where I feel we cant do that, where there are legitimate lines of investigation that are being walled off, then I will say so, Mr. Schiff told reporters this week.

Democrats expect the first major test of the investigation  and Mr. Nuness stewardship  to come on March 20, when the committee holds its first public hearing. An initial list of invited witnesses included James B. Comey, the F.B.I. director; James R. Clapper Jr., the director of national intelligence under Mr. Obama; and Sally Q. Yates, the former acting attorney general who was fired by the Trump administration after refusing to defend the presidents first travel ban.

Absent from the witness list was Michael T. Flynn, Mr. Trumps first national security adviser, who resigned after it was revealed that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence and other White House officials about his conversations with the Russian ambassador. Though Mr. Nunes emphasized it was only an early list, he referred to Mr. Flynn as a tangent, portraying him as more of a victim of the intelligence leaks Mr. Nunes is seeking to investigate than a target of the inquiry.

From everything that I can see, his conversations with the Russian ambassador, he was doing this country a favor, and he should be thanked for it, Mr. Nunes said.

Mr. Nunes may need to tread cautiously to avoid the perception of crossing the line from impartial moderator to advocate. He has said the issue of whether Trump Tower was under surveillance during the campaign was well within the scope of the inquiry, and has denied that he added it after the president demanded that Congress investigate.

With a tight smile, Mr. Schiff said he welcomed the opportunity to disprove Mr. Trumps accusation. But some Democrats fumed at the idea that the panels work could give credence to it. Should the issue not be put to rest quickly, Ms. Speier said, it would call into question the entire investigation.
While Ms. Trump has been a frequent presence in the Trump White House  she has had a place at the table as President Trump has met with diplomats, chief executives and government officials  she is now taking an active role in the fight to reduce the crippling costs of child care. During the campaign, she persuaded her father to make a vow to do just that.

She has gone to Capitol Hill to meet with female lawmakers to discuss child care issues and invited two Republican senators, Deb Fischer of Nebraska and Susan Collins of Maine, to sit at her table at the White House for a lunch this past week to honor women. She recently met with Senator Bob Corker, Republican of Tennessee, to talk about modern-day slavery.

She has the ear of the president, said Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Republican of West Virginia, who attended the White House meeting with other Republican women. Shes a young mother, she wants to help young mothers in the work force, and I think she can be a good voice here.

Ms. Trump, 35, faces a difficult challenge as she tries to use that voice to span the deep divides between Republicans and Democrats on these issues. Republican women in Congress, who often work at the fringe of their party on federal child care matters, have still found themselves shunned by Democrats who dismiss their child care and income equality proposals as insufficient.

In the past, Ms. Trump was aligned with people like Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, who currently has a bill that would provide workers with up to 12 weeks of partial income when they take time off to have babies or take care of sick members of their family. That proposal, rejected by most Republicans, would be paid for through employer payroll contribution increases.
Democrats, eyeing potential turmoil in the run-up to the 2018 midterm elections, have little political reason to cooperate. One thing is clear, said the House Democratic whip, Representative Steny Hoyer of Maryland. House Republicans are going to have to find the votes on their own to dismantle the protections incorporated in the Affordable Care Act that the American people now have.

A growing chorus of Republican policy experts and senators are pleading to slow the process down or risk a political blood bath.

But Republican leaders and Mr. Trump appear to be laying the groundwork for blaming the law they are annulling for the fallout likely to come in the repeals wake.

Mr. Trump asserted on Friday that 2017 would be a disaster for the health law. Thats the year it was meant to explode, because Obama wont be here, he said, adding that as bad as it is now, itll get even worse. On Saturday, he took to Twitter: ObamaCare is imploding and will only get worse. Republicans coming together to get job done! And Vice President Mike Pence traveled to Louisville, Ky., on Saturday to assure residents that the Obamacare nightmare is about to end.

What is clear is that 2018  a year that Republicans say will be messy  will loom large for them as they move toward a vote on the measure. But Republicans say that gives them nearly a year of time, since people will experience few changes with their health care in 2017.

Under the proposed House legislation, individuals would no longer be subject to a penalty if they go without health insurance, a politically popular change that would be retroactive to 2016. But they would still enjoy the protections of the Affordable Care Act: Insurers would have to offer a suite of essential health benefits, could not deny them coverage because of pre-existing conditions and could not impose annual or lifetime caps on coverage.

Insurers would be free to raise their premiums to meet these requirements, but because current policies are locked in for the year, voters would not see the effects until 2018. If young, healthy Americans flee the market, freed from the mandate, premiums could soar next year.
WASHINGTON  Roger J. Stone Jr., an off-and-on adviser to President Trump for decades, has acknowledged that he had contact on Twitter with Guccifer 2.0, the mysterious online figure that is believed to be a front for Russian intelligence officials.

It is the first time that someone associated with Mr. Trump has confirmed any type of contact with Guccifer 2.0, which claimed to be a Romanian hacker and took credit for the hacking of the Democratic National Committee.

But Mr. Stone insisted in an interview that the contact had been brief and involved nothing more than the exchange of a few direct messages, well after the party committee had been hacked. Even if he is a Russian agent, my cursory exchange with him happens after he releases the D.N.C. stuff, Mr. Stone said on Saturday. Theres only one exchange with him. I had no further exchanges.

Mr. Stone said the exchange took place after he had published an article on Aug. 5 on the Breitbart News site about the hacking, which the American government has tied to a Russian effort to meddle in the election. After Guccifer 2.0 had been suspended by Twitter, Mr. Stone posted a message against censorship, and he later had what he called an innocuous exchange over direct message.
But the vast majority of those who signed the letter  including Madeleine Albright and John Kerry, the former secretaries of state; Michele A. Flournoy, the former under secretary of defense; and Susan E. Rice, the former national security adviser  rose to senior security jobs in government under Democratic presidents.

Their argument mirrors one also being made by states that claim the revised travel ban discriminates against Muslims and will hurt businesses and universities.

A week after taking office, Mr. Trump issued an executive order to suspend the nations refugee program as well as travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries to give the government time to install rigid security vetting of immigrants. The order created chaos at American airports nationwide and was blocked by a federal appeals court.

This week, the Trump administration issued a new order that slightly scaled back the original ban but is still considered a significant hardening of American immigration policy.
In the March 5 edition of the Race/Related newsletter, we asked you to share explorations of your family history, after Monica Drake, travel editor at The Times, wrote about hers.

A selection of the responses follows.



About 20 years ago I visited Laurens, S.C. to get a feel for the place where two sets of great-great-grandparents were born. I also wanted to understand why they left. I attended Sunday service in the small church they helped found. I stood next to their headstones right outside the churchs side door. I met another descendant whose parents elected not to move north or west as mine had.

Laurens is physically beautiful. It has shades of green we never see in Southern California. The people, both black and white, were friendly and helpful. In contrast, the city also boasted the only working KKK museum in the country. The robes and hoods were proudly displayed in the front windows. A cousin told me the Klan still marches through the city from time to time.

I remembered what Id read about advances blacks made after slavery in South Carolina, both politically and financially, and the brutal backlash during Reconstruction. I know why they left and when I think about who I might have been, Im glad they did.
AUSTIN, Tex.  A panel of federal judges in San Antonio has ruled that a handful of Texas congressional districts drawn by the Republican-dominated state Legislature in 2011 discriminated against black and Hispanic voters and violated the Voting Rights Act and the Constitution.

The ruling striking down the maps was made late Friday. It is the latest development in a long-running and racially charged redistricting case that locked Democratic lawmakers, minority groups, the Obama administration and the Texas Republican leadership in a legal battle for nearly six years. Democrats and civil-rights lawyers accused the majority-white Texas Republican leadership of drawing district maps in ways that diluted the voting power of Democratic-leaning minority voters, accusations that Republicans denied.

The courts decision exposes the Texas Legislatures illegal effort to dilute the vote of Texas Latinos, said Nina Perales, the vice president of litigation for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, which represented a coalition of Latino organizations that sued Texas over the redistricting maps. Moving forward, the ruling will help protect Latinos from manipulation of district lines in order to reduce their political clout.

The next steps in the case were unclear. Texas is likely to appeal the decision, and because of the legal dynamics, any appeal would go directly to the Supreme Court. The process of redrawing the maps may be delayed not only by an appeal but also because the San Antonio panel has yet to rule on another aspect of the case, the district maps drawn for the states House of Representatives.
Maimta Modu, 62, had come to a displaced-persons camp with other residents of his tiny village, and now they have to pay soldiers a fee to be escorted back periodically to check on their crops. If he returns on his own, he said in a reference to Boko Haram, those boys will slaughter me.

President Muhammadu Buhari has repeatedly declared the war with Boko Haram over. The military has chased the insurgents from hiding places in the forest. But the radical Islamist terrorist group is still waging deadly attacks across the countryside. And in some camps for displaced people, new arrivals fleeing the militants are moving in even as others are moving back home.

Caught in the middle are people like Idi Hassan and his wife, who were in the convoy with six of their young children in his truck bed. The Hassans had been living for two years in the squalid camp in Maiduguri, relying on food handouts and eager to get back to their farm north of here, where they hoped to make a living.

The area has been liberated, and were going home, Mr. Hassan said, sitting behind the wheel as his wife breast-fed their infant in the passengers seat.

Yet insurgents still roam the northeast and frequently crisscross roads like the one that was taking Mr. Hassan and his family home. Just weeks ago, Boko Haram ambushed soldiers along this very highway, killing seven of them.
CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION, Galapagos  Of all the giant tortoises on these islands, where the theory of evolution was born, only a few have received names that stuck.

There was Popeye, adopted by sailors at an Ecuadorean naval base. There was Lonesome George, last of his line, who spent years shunning the females with whom he shared a pen.

And there is Diego, an ancient male who is quite the opposite of George.

Diego has fathered hundreds of progeny  350 by conservative counts, some 800 by more imaginative estimates. Whatever the figure, it is welcome news for his species, Chelonoidis hoodensis, which was stumbling toward extinction in the 1970s. Barely more than a dozen of his kin were left then, most of them female.
NEW DELHI  Prime Minister Narendra Modi led his party to a landslide victory in Indias largest state on Saturday, consolidating his power and putting him in a strong position to win re-election in 2019.

The scale of the victory in Uttar Pradeshs legislative elections was all the more stunning because it followed Mr. Modis politically risky decision to eliminate most of Indias cash. The vote was seen as a referendum on the prime minister, who campaigned vigorously in recent days in Uttar Pradesh, which, with a population of more than 200 million, would be the worlds sixth largest country if it were independent.

This is a stupendous achievement, said Ashok Malik, a fellow with the Observer Research Foundation, based in New Delhi. Here you had a prime minister making himself the face of the election in the absence of a local leader and stitching together a coalition across the state.

The margin of victory in Uttar Pradesh was the largest seen by any party in more than 30 years. It gives Mr. Modi a significant advantage in the national elections in 2019, which in turn would bring him closer to his long-term goal of becoming a leader of historic significance, steering India away from its more socialist, secular past.
BEIJING  Mao Zedong famously dismissed the atomic bomb as a paper tiger, able to kill and terrify, but not decisive in war. Even so, China built a nuclear arsenal of its own, and now concerns about the effectiveness of that arsenal as a deterrent are driving it into confrontation with the United States over an antimissile system being built in South Korea. Heres an explanation of why.

How big is Chinas nuclear arsenal?

China conducted its first nuclear test in 1964, and has developed a stable of nuclear missiles. But it is not a big stable, compared with the thousands of warheads held by the United States and Russia.

China does not reveal the size of its nuclear forces. It has about 260 nuclear warheads that could be put on missiles, and by the Pentagons latest estimate, China has between 75 and 100 intercontinental ballistic missiles. Some estimates are lower, and one recent assessment said 40 to 50 of Chinas ballistic missiles could reach the continental United States.

The United States has deployed about 1,370 nuclear warheads and has stockpiled more than 6,500, and has submarines and aircraft able to launch nuclear weapons.
BRUSSELS  Belgiums Parliament has quietly passed legislation giving the government extraordinary powers to deport legal residents on the mere suspicion of engagement in terrorist activities, or for presenting a risk to public order or national security, without a criminal conviction or the involvement of a judge.

The law applies only to foreign residents, not to Belgian nationals or refugees, part of a toughening of domestic security laws that has begun to worry human rights groups and ordinary citizens as a threat to civil liberties. Besides counterterrorism concerns, supporters of this law have been motivated by anti-immigrant sentiments, which they feel are widely shared not only in their country but across the European Union and even in the United States.

Amid fears of terrorism, some other European countries have also introduced stricter immigration policies, and Hungary, Austria and the Netherlands have lowered their threshold for deportation in recent years.

But the Belgian legislation stands out for its vague language, which grants unprecedented powers to the government to interpret and enforce the law as it sees fit, critics said.
PARIS  The Dutch government on Saturday intensified a diplomatic dispute between Turkey and its NATO allies in Europe by refusing to let the Turkish foreign minister fly into the Netherlands to campaign on behalf of a referendum that would augment the power of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey.

In response, Mr. Erdogan compared the Dutch to fascists and said they were Nazi remnants, echoing the description he used for the Germans last Sunday, after two Turkish politicians campaigning for Mr. Erdogan scrapped rallies when the German government told them it could not guarantee their safety.

Mr. Erdogan accused Germany of using Nazi practices to block him from campaigning, drawing a rebuke from the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, who called the comparison completely unacceptable and said the remarks trivialized the suffering of the Nazis victims.

French officials, however, allowed the Turkish minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, to attend and speak at a gathering of Turks in Metz, a city in the northeast, on Sunday. Germany and Switzerland have banned similar gatherings where Turkish officials were to speak.
BEIRUT, Lebanon  A double bombing near Shiite shrines often visited by foreign pilgrims in Damascus, Syria, killed at least 40 people on Saturday, shattering the capitals efforts to isolate itself from the war raging elsewhere in the country. Many of the dead were from neighboring Iraq.

The Syrian state news service, SANA, said militants set off two explosive charges near the Bab al-Saghir cemetery, just south of the Old City.

Syrias interior minister, Mohammed al-Shaar, who visited the site after the blasts, said they had killed 40 people and wounded 120.

Other reports cited a higher death toll. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which opposes the Syrian government and monitors the conflict from Britain with the help of contacts in Syria, said that one of the blasts was from a suicide bomber and that the nature of the second was unclear. It put the death toll at 46.
SANA, Yemen  An airstrike by a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia on an open market in western Yemen killed at least 16 people, United Nations and local officials said Saturday.

The attack late Friday hit a market selling khat, a mild stimulant common in Yemen, setting off a fire and leaving the dead and wounded scattered in the wreckage.
NEOGA -- The Neoga school board voted Thursday evening to hire a new teacher, Michaela Smith, for the district's reinstated agriculture program.

"Neoga is focused upon building a dynamic, full-time agriculture program, and finding the right person to lead this new venture was critical," said interim Superintendent Beth Pressler.

Smith will serve as the new, full-time agriculture teacher at Neoga Junior-Senior High School this fall after graduating in May from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Pressler said Smith grew up on her family's farm near Wayne City in Southern Illinois, remains active in FFA at the college level, and plans for an active FFA chapter in Neoga.

"Quite simply, she brings a wealth of varied experiences and accomplishments that will benefit our students and this program," Pressler said.

The Neoga school board had voted in May 2015 to eliminate the agriculture program as part of several actions taken to deal with the district's budget deficit at the time. Thursday evening, the board approved recommendations for the new coursework for the reinstated agriculture program.

Pressler said the courses will cover introduction to the agricultural industry, agricultural science, agricultural business and management, agricultural construction, two levels of agricultural mechanics, and a supervised agricultural experience, all for the high school; plus a junior high agriculture course.

In addition, Pressler said the agriculture program is slated to offer a horticulture course starting in 2018-19. She said they will need to seek funding for a new greenhouse for this course.

Pressler said Smith has already "hit the ground running." She said the lab classroom will undergo some minor remodeling and be fully equipped with new computers and an interactive white board to support the agriculture program.

"We are excited about the new program with its heavy emphasis upon STEM and preparing our students for the future in farming," Pressler said. She added that Smith is planning a "get to know you" event in the near future so that she can meet students, parents and community leaders.
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"In this book, Rob Kall is fueling a discussion that is long overdue, one that can perhaps shake us out of our current herd mentality, back to true community and intertwined purpose. His bottom-up discourse may serve to turn us all upside down just long enough to view our current politic from a different perspective."



Dr. Mari K. Swingle, author of i-Minds: How Cell Phones, Computers, Gaming, and Social Media are Changing Our Brains, Our Behavior, and the Evolution of Our Species
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By *Reed Richardson

If the public rollout of the Trump administration's new EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt, is any indication, the Earth's climate will suffer even greater, irreversible damage during the next four years. And the corporate media's coverage of it may only make it worse.

For example, in one of his first public appearances, on CNBC's morning show (Squawk Box, 3/9/17), Pruitt set an ominous precedent for the Trump administration's climate change policy by outright lying. In response to host Joe Kernan's question about the role of human-generated carbon dioxide in warming the planet, Pruitt responded:

"I think that measuring with precision human activity on the climate is something very challenging to do and there's tremendous disagreement about the degree of impact, so no, I would not agree that it's a primary contributor to the global warming that we see."

Pruitt added: "We need to continue the debate and continue the review and the analysis."

Pruitt's comments are, by now, recognized as among the standard rhetorical tools of climate deniers (Guardian, 9/15/13). He boldly mischaracterizes as "tremendous disagreement" what is, in fact, an overwhelming scientific consensus about the link between humanity's greenhouse gases and global warming. Then he disingenuously calls for more "debate" and "analysis" of the topic, while at the same time the Trump administration is proposing massive budget cuts of the federal agencies that would conduct this research and analysis.

That this White House would embrace climate change denial, of course, comes as no surprise. The current president has a well-documented history of promoting right-wing conspiracy theories about climate change, calling it on numerous occasions an "expensive hoax" that was "created by the Chinese." During the 2016 campaign, Trump told a right-wing radio host, "I'm not a big believer in man-made climate change," promising to abandon the landmark Paris Agreement on climate action President Obama signed in 2016. During the first presidential debate, Trump did deny having ever called climate change a hoax, but the public record obviously proves otherwise.

Pruitt, a dogged opponent of the EPA while Oklahoma attorney general, is cut from the same climate denial cloth, minus the outrageous tweets. A trove of 6,000 emails released via court order by an Oklahoma judge last month (New York Times, 2/22/17) revealed that Pruitt had colluded for years with oil and gas companies, as well as the Koch brothers' political arm, to lobby against EPA greenhouse gas regulations. He even secretly used drafts of oil company talking points in his correspondence to the federal government.

Nevertheless, the selection in December of a hard-right climate denier like Pruitt to run the agency upset a phony media narrative that had begun just a few weeks after the election. Thanks to a few casual comments by Trump to the Times editorial staff in November, much of the pundit class had convinced itself that the new president was pivoting to a more moderate position. The prospect of four more years of this same media credulity and deference to power does not bode well for future climate change coverage.

CNBC's Kernan, in his interview with Pruitt, provided a sneak preview of what this next four years of media obsequiousness may look like. Not satisfied with merely letting Pruitt lie unchallenged, Kernan felt compelled to back him up. "That's the whole point of science, is to keep asking questions," Kernan disingenuously added in his wrap-up. "I don't want to be called a denier, it scares me. It's a terrible thing. Administrator Pruitt, I know you don't want to be called it either." Before throwing the segment back to a studio host, Kernan didn't give time for Pruitt to agree. Then again, why even bother?

To be fair, CNBC is not a cable TV network known for its trenchant climate change reporting. And one can safely assume that Pruitt's climate change denials on Fox News will be met with a "fair and balanced" tongue bath likely to put Kernan's to shame. But subtle changes in so-called straight reporting and coverage matter too. That's why the online story (3/9/17) accompanying Kernan's interview is a better, more ominous barometer of how the corporate media might respond to the Trump administration's climate policy.

Overall, the CNBC article, by energy reporter Tom DiChristopher, sanded off almost all of Kernan's overt sycophancy. However, the story still trafficked in classic false equivalence. When comparing Pruitt's evidence-free claims to the vast amount of climate data and overwhelming scientific consensus supporting anthropogenic climate change, CNBC notably chose to characterize the latter as merely "the opinion" of NASA and NOAA: "Pruitt's view is also at odds with the opinion of NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration."

Recent history offers numerous examples of the corporate media succumbing to the temptation of parroting White House talking points, no matter how disconnected from reality. Recall that, for years, major news organizations, including the New York Times, felt compelled to echo the Bush administration's "enhanced interrogation" euphemisms for what had previously been recognized as acts of torture (Extra!, 5--6/08). Now that climate denialism has become de facto US policy, it will become almost impossible for journalists to both maintain traditional "objectivity" while also reporting scientific reality to the public. They have a clear choice to make.

As the long indictment of flawed climate change coverage by Robert Eshelman (CJR, 5/1/14) can attest, corporate media have not always chosen wisely. Time and again, it has demonstrated that it can be successfully gamed by denialists operating little more than a propaganda campaign. Asks Eshelman in his insightful essay:

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"Just as The Tipping Point provides an explanation for big changes, Rob Kall offers a unified explanation for the magic behind the success of the biggest tech companies, the Arab Spring, Occupy and the social media revolution An important, big picture, visionary approach weaving together technology, economics, evolution, science and personal relationships -- even happiness -- to describe a wave of change as significant as the invention of the printing press that is well under way -- a wave that could rescue the planet from the top-down system that afflicts the planet."



Thom Hartmann, host of nationally syndicated radio show, The Thom Hartmann Program, since 2003 and a nightly television show, The Big Picture, since 2008
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Family 1953

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Employer-provided health insurance in the USA began in WWII when wages were frozen due to the war. Health insurance was one fringe benefit employers could offer to compete for workers without raising wages.

After the wage freeze was lifted, employers not providing health insurance benefits did not raised the pay of employees without employer-provided health insurance so that their employees could buy their own individual policies. Employers not providing health insurance still don't include the cost of employees' individual health insurance policies in their assumptions about how much employees need for their costs of living.

For much of the 20th century, the health insurance model was based on a male breadwinner supporting his wife and minor children, none of whom worked, but were insured by an employer-provided policy. Workers' pay is also based on this presumed family structure. Equal-pay laws covering women have not remedied the pay inequities.

Employers who don't pay a true living wage, or provide health insurance and other benefits, are externalizing their employees' cost of living shortfall, and externalizing their employees' cost of health insurance and healthcare. Because of the significant proportion of employees who are not in that aforementioned insured male-breadwinner family, much of these costs are now externalized to government aid programs.

The fact that wages have increasingly not kept pace with the rising cost of housing since the early 1970s is a big part of the problem for lower-paid employees who have trouble paying for health insurance and healthcare. I think a lot of the rise in housing prices is caused by owners and sellers "charging what the traffic will bear" instead of using a cost-plus method of pricing. A fuller discussion of housing costs is part of a different subject, but should be mentioned here, because for most Americans it's the biggest cost of living.

Typical private health insurance policies have had inverse relationships between the premium and the deductible & co-pays. A person who wants a lower deductible and lower co-pays has to pay a higher premium. This is to reduce the insurance company's exposure to costs. For Americans with insufficient incomes, this kind of choice among policies makes adequate health insurance unaffordable.

For Americans with incomes too low to buy adequate private health insurance and pay out-of-pocket healthcare costs, and not covered by someone else's insurance policy, government must be the party to make up the shortfall. If a person's income is below a certain level, he should get 100% coverage. If his income is above a certain level, his health insurance and health care costs can left to any employer, and to the person himself.

Between these income levels, there must be a sliding scale of government coverage for these Americans, regardless of how a new system is structured. For every unit rise in a person's income the reduction of government aid could be less than one unit of increased income. This system also would take into account the fact that some expenses whose cost responsibility will switch from government aid to the person's own wallet, are priced in amounts greater than "one unit."

For example, suppose an individual health insurance policy for a person costs $500/month. If all government health insurance and health care aid to this person is cut off when income goes up by $50 above the cutoff, he's $450 worse off than before. He should still get some help paying for this policy. He should get enough help so that he can keep some of his increased income. For example, if the government help in paying the premium is reduced to $490, he has to pay $10 out of his $50 raise, and gets to keep $40 of it. People with increased incomes have to have an incentive to keep earning these incomes. It's good for them, good for the economy, and good for government coffers providing help to people with health insurance & health care costs.

The term "poverty cliff" is used for government aid systems which do not use a a correct sliding scale, or take into account the actual costs of privately-purchased goods and services, when reducing and eliminating aid to people whose incomes rise to the cut-off level.Charts have been made of this.

Another thing that must be taken into account for government aid to health insurance and health care costs is the fact that while the cost of the health insurance premium stays fixed for the duration of the policy as described by the insurer, and is something a person can easily put into his monthly budget, any deductibles and co-pays are often not regular and can come with medical events which are surprises.

A 30% co-pay for an expensive, unexpected treatment could exceed the ability to pay of a person with low income. It might not exceed the annual deductible, but it could blow his monthly budget. This needs to be remedied. How? Either let the insured spread out the payments with no penalty (e.g. high interest charges), or include co-pays and deductibles in government aid, somehow.

Government aid can't be just for insurance premiums. It has to cover all the person's out-of-pocket costs, until that person's income is high enough to disqualify for the aforementioned sliding scale.

(Article changed on March 12, 2017 at 02:22)

(Article changed on March 12, 2017 at 03:14)
From Consortium News

Beyond the specific language of President Trump's revised travel ban aimed at six predominantly Muslim countries, the executive order creates a climate of hostility toward a much larger number of immigrants, says Indian historian Vijay Prashad.

Following the roll-out of Trump's executive order, I spoke with Professor Prashad, author of more than 15 books and nine anthologies, including most recently The Death of the Nation and the Future of the Arab Revolution and Arab Spring, Libyan Winter.

We also spoke about allegations of Russian interference in the U.S. elections, and what a Trump presidency might mean for US-Israeli-Palestinian policies.

Dennis Bernstein: Let's talk about some of Trump's opening salvos and let's come in through the travel door. You've been doing a lot of traveling lately.

Vijay Prashad: Well, you know, the new travel ban is out and I suppose narrower in its scope than the January 27th order. But it's nonetheless quite significant, in that he has, President Trump has, decided that six countries, not seven -- he's removed Iraq from the list -- must have its citizens be under further scrutiny if they want to come to the United States. And I think what people need to understand is that the actual letter of the travel ban, of the executive order, is less important than the atmosphere that such executive orders create.

The atmosphere of this executive order, for instance, has already created a great deal of sensitivity...shall I put it like that? Sensitivity among people who work for the Customs and Border service, at the border. And we've had, already, dozens of stories of people who come from none of these countries, none of these six named countries, people who are in fact nationals of countries such as Canada, being not only stopped at the border, but turned away.

So, I think it's important to see the language of this particular executive order, not for itself -- it shouldn't be studied just for itself -- but also the kind of atmosphere created. It's almost anti... not only immigrant but xenophobic atmosphere. Hatred of strangers, hatred of different people, that seems to have entered quite publicly into American political discussion.

DB: And, we are, of course, now seeing some of the things that many of us feared in terms of the expanding sweeps, by the Department of Homeland Security, what's taking place at the border. This is something that has changed, if you will, the character, the intensity, of life now at a certain point, in a certain way.

VP: Yes, and you are in California, where there is a preponderance of people who will easily be mistaken, let us say, by federal officials for being immigrants. An attitude has returned to the United States that there is something called "an American." Somebody who is white, somebody who is perhaps, let's even put it in a more narrow way, Dennis, somebody who is Anglo-Saxon, somebody who is, perhaps even narrower, Protestant. And this person has once again emerged as the actual, kind of, muscle of what it means to be an American. And everybody else is, in a sense, has to be considered outside that definition. I think this is very disturbing.

This is after a generation and a half of what was known as multiculturalism, an attempt to expand the concept of "American," to be more inclusive. To allow, for instance, one's imagination to accept that people who migrate to this country have title to it, they're likely to feel comfortable in it. And, I think that the Trump movement, the very cruel populism of the Trump movement, has once more suffocated the idea of "American."

It's taken the idea of "American" by the throat and it has garroted it. And it's said that only a very narrow interpretation should be allowed. So, when one sees pictures of ICE agents at the jet-way as people are getting off domestic planes, asking to check out identification. This smells like this suffocated idea of "American."

And I'm afraid the price for this is on the one side going to be paid, of course, by those who don't look like "Americans," but really the price for this is going to be paid by the United States in general, as people from around the world decide that they are not really looking forward to a holiday in the United States, and as people outside the country think, "I don't want to go study there."

And it's almost as if Donald Trump has had kind of a syllable error. And rather than conduct a war against terrorism, he has decided to conduct a war against tourism. And the effects of that are going to be quite catastrophic.

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From The Nation

Few entities have been more discombobulated by our madcap president than the bipartisan foreign policy establishment, which former Obama foreign-policy adviser Ben Rhodes once dubbed "the blob."

Donald Trump assaulted the blob with his "America First" posture and his explicit indictment of the "corrupt establishment." In the campaign, he scorned NATO as "obsolete," praised Putin, indicted the waste of $6 trillion in the Middle East, and denounced our failed trade deals.

As president, he's continued the assault. He has indicated no preference for a two-state or one-state "solution" for Israel and the Palestinians. He undermined our "One China policy" before re-affirming it. He pulled the plug on the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal. He alienated allies across the Middle East with his two Muslim bans. His secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, is literally home alone at the State Department, as top posts remain unfilled across the national-security bureaucracy.

And it hasn't even been two months. From the upholstered libraries and plush dining rooms of the foreign-policy establishment, Trump's antics elicit gasps of alarm, murmurs of disbelief, complaints of indigestion and dyspepsia.

The blob struck back last month. The Brookings Institution released a report called "Building Situations of Strength: A National Security Strategy for the United States," written by a bipartisan committee of the impeccably credentialed -- eight men, two women, all white. They include George Bush's former security adviser, Stephen Hadley; neoconservative guru Robert Kagan; Jake Sullivan, Hillary Clinton's deputy chief of staff; and counter-insurgency enthusiast Michele Flournoy. The report offers a concise summary of the conventional wisdom of the beleaguered foreign policy elites -- and it doesn't appear they learned anything.

Trump's shocking electoral victory over the establishment's candidate, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, demonstrated the public's disapproval of our current course. So what fundamental strategic adjustments do the foreign-policy nabobs recommend? In a word: nada.

Iraq has made them more timorous about another major land war, but otherwise the report's authors want to stay the course because the United States is the indispensable nation: "No other nation or actor is capable of replacing the United States as the leader of the international order."

Abandoning "traditional US support for the international order" would "encourage revisionist states to destabilize Europe, East Asia and the Middle East," "reduce economic growth," "leave us vulnerable to a new financial crisis," and damage efforts to deal with "terrorism, nuclear proliferation and climate change."

Strikingly absent is any glimmer of recognition that the United States under their watch has itself been the "revisionist state" that destabilized the Middle East and Europe. We've already been devastated by financial crisis. Economic growth is already paltry, and the majority of Americans doesn't share its rewards. And, despite the good Iran deal and Paris climate accord, efforts to deal with nuclear proliferation and climate change haven't achieved enough.

The national-security managers dismiss the possibility of a more restrained posture. Should the United States choose to deemphasize Europe or the Middle East in order to focus on the Pacific, as Obama suggested? No, the report tells us, the regions are inextricably linked. We have no choice but to police them all.

Should the United States "distinguish between core and peripheral interests as other nations do?" No; while the United States "does not have to commit to responding to every act of aggression" across the world, "our historical experience suggests that some ambiguity that preserves the right to respond is necessary to bolster the international order." From tribal villages in Yemen to islets in the South China Sea, nothing is beneath our concern.

Should the United States distinguish between those threats that "pose a systemic risk to the international order and those that do not?" No, we shouldn't see a "monster under every bed," but we must be prepared to "take appropriate action" even where others might see a mere 'peripheral' interest," they write. And so our military maintains nearly 800 bases in 70 countries and dispatched Special Operations forces to 138 countries in 2016.

We must understand, the managers tell us, that "there is a relationship between levels of US engagement and the health of the international order." Even after the trillions and lives squandered in the Middle East, they worry not about the staggering costs of misbegotten intervention but that "if the United States does less, the levels of order in the global system are likely to deteriorate."

The nabobs recommend a measured course, a posture more muscular than "the detachment" of Barack Obama and less reckless than the "over-commitment" of George W. Bush. They detail the elements. We will police the seas and the heavens. We will allow no rival power to claim even a regional sphere of influence. We will be dominant militarily in every theater from the Russian border to the South China Sea to cyberspace.

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From Media Matters



Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

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"We want to ensure at all times, if confirmed, that the secretary of state and the State Department is fully transparent with the public." -- Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at his January 11, 2017, confirmation hearing.

On Tuesday, bureau chiefs for major news organizations held a conference call to discuss the fact that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is not going to allow the press to travel with him on his plane during an upcoming trip to Asia. According to Poynter.org, which reported on the call, not allowing reporters on Tillerson's government plane would be would be "very unusual, if not unprecedented, certainly in recent annals, with substantial access given by recent Secretaries of State, including John Kerry, Hillary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice."

As Poynter explained, "[T]he logistics of keeping up with [Tillerson] by assembling stringers or hopscotching about on commercial flights makes coverage exceedingly difficult, if not impossible." According to CNN, a senior official "told reporters Tuesday Tillerson prefers to travel on a smaller plane and 'carries a much smaller footprint.'"

Tillerson's plan to exclude the press from traveling with him overseas represents a stunning State Department policy reversal, while further cementing his image as a secretive cabinet figure who has had virtually no contact with journalists since being sworn in. "The secretary of state has given only a handful of prepared statements to the press and has not taken any questions," CNN noted.

That veil of secrecy has quickly emerged as the hallmark for this shadowy administration.

It's important to note that while President Trump's ongoing war on the press has received most of the attention this year as he threatens journalists and restricts their access, there are plenty of indications that the rampant secrecy and disdain for transparency is widespread. "The retreat from the press has taken place administration-wide," Politico noted.

There seems to be a collective closing of the gates now underway in terms of the federal government separating itself from journalists.

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From Gush Shalom



Working for peace in Palestine-Israel

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IF SOMEONE had told me 50 years ago that the rulers of Israel, Jordan and Egypt had met in secret to make peace, I would have thought that I was dreaming.

If I had been told that the leaders of Egypt and Jordan had offered Israel complete peace in return for leaving the occupied territories, with some exchanges of territory and a token return of refugees, I would have thought that the Messiah had come. I would have started to believe in God or Allah or whoever there is up there.

Yet a few weeks ago it was disclosed that the rulers of Egypt and Jordan had indeed met in secret last year with the Prime Minister of Israel in Aqaba, the pleasant sea resort where the three states touch each other. The two Arab leaders, acting de facto for the entire Arab world, had made this offer. Benyamin Netanyahu gave no answer and went home.

So did the Messiah.

DONALD TRUMP, the comedian-in-chief of the US, some time ago gave his answer to the question about the solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Two-states, one-state, whatever the two sides agree on, he answered.

He could just as well have answered: "Two-states, one-state, three-states, four-states, take your pick!"

And indeed, if you live in la-la-land, there is no limit to the number of states. Ten states is as good as one state. The more the merrier.

Perhaps it needed a total innocent like Trump to illustrate how much nonsense can be talked about that choice.

ON THE fifth day of the Six-day war, I published an open letter to the Prime Minister, Levy Eshkol, urging him to offer the Palestinians the opportunity to set up a state of their own in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Immediately after the war, Eshkol invited me for a private conversation. He listened patiently while I explained to him the idea. At the end he said, with a benevolent smile: "Uri, what kind of a merchant are you? A good merchant starts by demanding the maximum and offering the minimum. Then one haggles, and in the end a compromise is reached somewhere in the middle."

"True," I answered, "if one wants to sell a used car. But here we want to change history!"

The fact is that at the time, nobody believed that Israel would be allowed to keep the territories. It is said that generals always fight the last war. The same is true for statesmen. On the day after the six-day war, Israeli leaders called to mind the day after the 1956 war, when the US President Dwight D. Eisenhower and the Soviet President Nikolai Bulganin compelled David Ben-Gurion to give back all the occupied territory ignominiously.

So there seemed to be only one choice: to give the territories back to King Hussein of Jordan, as the great majority advocated, or to give them to the Palestinian people, as my friends and I, a tiny minority, suggested.

I remember another conversation. The Minister of Trade and Industry, Haim Zadok, a very clever lawyer, made a fiery speech in the Knesset. When he came out of the plenum, I admonished him: "But you don't believe a single world you just said!" To which he replied, laughingly, "Anybody can make a good speech about things he believes in. The art is to make a good speech about things you don't believe in!"

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Kimberly Roberson, speaking as a parent and an activist/organizer does not mince her words. They are heart, mind and soul piercing. She is in our faces about the horrific dangers of nuclear power - especially for our babies and children. Her purpose is to inform and rouse to action all those not already involved and aware. "Startling clear to me: radioactive fallout from nuclear power and food do not mix, and children are especially at risk".But as parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents and caregivers we have a responsibility to our children. And remember, radiation from nuclear fallout is transgenerational, meaning that it has been proven to damage DNA for generations to come. The bigger picture after all is really about food safety and human health.



2020 Fukushima Olympics with Gas masks needed

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I marked every page in the book as I was reading. I am focusing on food in this review because that is a major issue for both Roberson and me. What are we doing to our babies and children when we give them milk? Alarmed, I read from Roberson that "strontium 90 has been detected in the U.S. milk supply, as well as other radioisotopes linked directly to Fukushima".Radioactive strontium is attracted to the body, much like calcium, only rather than nourishing bones it causes cancer. Children's cells divide and multiply at an accelerated pace which makes the youngest especially vulnerable to radiation."

Roberson tells us, "The late Dr. Rosalie Bertell, PhD and Gray Nun of the Sacred Heart was an accomplished scientist who warned in No Immediate Danger; Prognosis for a Radioactive Earth not only of the damage to the person coming in contact with radioactive fallout in their food and water, but also to their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren suffering mutations in their DNA as well."

Roberson continues, again alarmingly, "Probably the one question that perplexed so many of the people I was working with was how could the biggest industrial and nuclear accident in world history be allowed to continue to affect our food supply unchecked ." [emphasis mine]. That continues to this day.

Roberson puts it this way, "One thing I've realized in the past two years is to always consider the source"The list goes on and on. Grass fed beef, free range poultry, miso [see the paper I wrote about miso "Fukushima, Miso Soup and Me" ], nori, strawberries"pesky questions, but we all need to be asking them." Begin today, now, all the time, to ask this question about everything you eat and drink. This is urgent: what is the country of origin?

From my experience working on the many issues about food and drink safety since Fukushima, here are some questions we must understand and work to change since Fukushima: What food and drink does the USA import from Japan? How was and is our food here in the USA contaminated from Fukushima? Who tests the food in each country, including the USA? How do they test it? Is how the food is tested adequate? Who decides? How honest are our labelling laws? [Not honest at all; but that requires a whole other paper.] Thank goodness the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has been defeated by the actions of we the people and as immoral and misleading as our food labeling laws are here in the USA, at least it willl still be mandatory to put counrty of origin on our food. What Trump will do, who is now talking about "binary arrangements" instead of the TTP, remains to be seen.

Be wary also, Roberson warns us, of "fish oil, carrageenan, and sea salt [which] all come from ocean waters." I say, please read all labels. Use pink salt from the Himalayas, not sea salt. This pink salt from the Himalayas sometimes is called sea salt - but from oceans millions of years ago. I eat nothing from the ocean. There is really only one ocean. Look at any map. You might want to read a paper I have written called "The Pacific Ocean Does Not Belong to Japan: It Belongs to All of Us."

Also pay attention to iodine and where it comes from, continues Roberson. Iodine often comes from kelp "but where is the kelp sourced? Much of the kelp spanning the California coastline has shown significantly increased levels of Iodine-131 since Fukushima began. Not exactly the kind of iodine I want in children's gummy vitamins."

While we are here talking about food and drink, note also that most non-mercury fillings that your dentist puts in your mouth come from Japan!!! As does most bonding material at your dentist's office. Instead, there is a company in Germany - Grandio - where dentists, not you, can get non-mercury fillings. Please ask your dentist to do so for you.

Since Fukushima, I myself do not knowingly eat or drink any food or beverages that come from Japan. My first question about anything that goes into my mouth always is - what is the country or countries of origin? I am an organic vegan now, since Fukushima, and before that was an organic vegetarian for 40 years. For those who eat organic, Roberson notes, "And trust me, radioactive fallout does not distinguish if it lands on conventional or organic items. You may be asking why is radioactive fallout alllowed in organic food but irradiation is not? The answer is because the regulations are not yet in place to test from nuclear accidents and nuclear power production. That clearly needs to change." She wrote Silence Deafening; Fukushima Fallout, A Mother's Response in 2013. It is now 2016. Nothing has changedI love this from Roberson, "Perhaps Dr. Seuss said it best in The Lorax, 'Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, Nothing is going to get better. It's not."

On my birthday two years ago, before I read Roberson's book, I went to the Dr. Zeuss museum in Springfield, MA and read that quote there for the first time and bought myself a Lorax then. Consider buying a Lorax for a constant reminder and keep her with you = in mind, heart, body, soul. You can buy a Lorax through The Manhattan Toy Store.

A final truth telling from prophet Roberson, "Another lesson learned. Much of what happens to protect our food and water or anything else for that matter starts with us."



FUKUSHIMA IS EVERYWHERE

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PLEASE SIGN FFAN'S [FUKUSHIMA FALLOUT AWARENESS NETWORK] URGENT PETITION No Olympics or Paralympics in Radioactive Fukushima "Children are our most beloved and cherished gift and they are also the most vulnerable to the generational damage of man-made radiation in air, food, soil and water. Around the world children who are currently adolescent and possibly younger are in training to compete at the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics in Japan. Their parents most likely have no idea that some of the venues are near the most devastating and ongoing nuclear and industrial disaster in world history, Fukushima Daiichi.

(Article changed on March 11, 2017 at 01:00)
In 2015, Congress temporarily did away with the US government's fictional "debt limit." I call that limit fictional because it's not really a limit. Every time the government gets close to it, Congress raises it. It's as if signs on the highway changed to display a number five miles higher every time you got within a mile of the existing "speed limit." So anyway, Congress decided to stop pretending the limit actually exists, through March 15 of this year.

After that? The Congressional Budget Office forecasts that the government can continue to operate until this fall without busting the new debt limit, but US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin is already asking Congress to raise it ASAP.

I've got a better idea: This time, Congress should refuse to increase the debt limit, and in fact should provide for that limit to automatically decrease as the existing debt (now closing in on $20 trillion) is paid down.

As of 2014, government spending came to more than 40% of the country's Gross Domestic Product annually. Yes, you read that right: American politicians spend 40 cents from every dollar of wealth created in our economy.

About 25% of that looting is overt taxation. The other 15% is borrowed. Borrowing is just deferred taxation. Those who loan American politicians money are told -- and believe -- that for every dollar it borrows, the US government will find a way to take a dollar, plus interest, out of your hide at some point in the future.

The politicians are spending all of the money they directly pick out of our pockets. Then they're borrowing more and pretending we're their co-signers.

If a regular person ends up in deep debt, he knows that the very first step to getting out of the hole is to cut up the credit cards and stop borrowing money.

Supporters of continuously growing government debt try to make the matter seem more complicated for Congress than it is for you or me. In reality, it is exactly as simple. The first step is to stop the borrowing.

And after the borrowing stops? Well, there's always bankruptcy -- repudiation of the debt in its entirety -- or, as president Donald Trump suggested during his campaign, at least negotiating with creditors to settle for less than the government owes.

Sooner or later, the borrowing IS going to end. It can end with fiscal discipline or it can end with political and economic disaster. Your call, Congress.
Some of my best travel memories have come not from plans going perfectly or the grandeur of a destination itself, but from the adventures along the way.

Visiting Machu Picchu was certainly no exception, and Im glad I decided to spend four days trekking to the sacred site instead of opting for the train into townno matter how much more relaxing it sounded.

While I adored the bookendsCusco and the ruins themselvesseeing the country and its kind people in the up-close and intimate sort of way that only hiking allows enhanced the experience.

If visiting Machu Picchu is on your bucket list, consider trekking your way there. After doing the Lares Valley trek to Machu Picchu, I cant imagine the experience any other way.

With boots on the groundliterallytrekkers are rewarded with kindhearted locals, life changing challenges and unparalleled views. If youre not an experienced hiker, there are plenty of tour companies ready to escort you to the ruins. There are almost as many companies as there are tourists, and they will plan all the logistics from hotel pickup to ruins tours. If youre already in Peru and plan on taking the train to Aguas Calientes, you can still change your mind: you can book some treks as late as a night or two before (and tours tend to be much cheaper that way, too).

Still not convinced? This gallery will change that (or it will just allow you to do the trek without actually doing it  but you should still do it).

Morgan is a Wyoming-based freelance writer and photographer with a lot of love for mountains, environmental literature, horses and pour overs.

1 of 10 With the trek's starting elevation of roughly 13,500 feet, plus a hefty climb, it's wise to arrive in Cusco a few days before beginning your trek to allow for some altitude adjustment. Between the history and the nightlife, there's plenty to do and see in the city, so you'll be glad you gave yourself extra time. Our four-day/three-night Lares Valley Trek begins in the town of Lares, a 2.5-hour drive outside Peru, and takes trekkers through small, rural villages on the way to Machu Picchu. The route offers a glimpse into local cultures that you won't see in the big cities. Photo by Morgan Beavers

2 of 10 "Slow down and drink your water!" Guides insist that we hike slowly enough to make it all the way through successfully and drink enough water at each rest stop to quench a racehorse's thirst. Peru is hot, and the elevation takes a toll on the body. But keep well hydrated and pace yourself, and the trek will be a breeze (or, breezier). Photo by Morgan Beavers

3 of 10 The Lares Valley trek takes hikers through the beautiful countryside of Peru. It's just one of many route options available. Itineraries range from easy one-nighters with a comfortable hotel stay all the way to the five-day Salkantay Trek for the more adventurous travelers seeking glacial views and low temps. From herds of llamas and horses to glaciers and alpine lakes, every trek offers stunning scenery. Evaluate the options, and pick the one that's right for you. Photo by Morgan Beavers

4 of 10 Small, sturdy horses are a lifestyle necessity for Peruvian farmers and villagers. Following suit, trekking companies employ them to transport gear, food and, in emergencies, sick or exhausted hikers. Bresaida, our porter's daughter who tagged along, leads a spare horse to carry my sister after she woke up with severe altitude sickness on the second day. Photo by Morgan Beavers

5 of 10 Two young girls sit along the outskirts of their village and sell handmade crafts to trekkers passing by. From talking with local villagers (if you speak some Spanish), as well as the guides themselves, you learn just how large a role tourism plays in the Peruvian economy. Bring cash along on your trek so you can buy sodas, snacks and crafts in the villages you'll pass through--you'll appreciate the refreshment after a long day's exertion, and the locals will appreciate the fiscal support. Photo by Morgan Beavers

6 of 10 Trekking feels more like "glamping" in Peru. If you avoid camping for lack of comfort, don't be deterred. Guests are pampered from the moment they wake up to the moment they go to bed. Porters carry trekkers' gear and packs, and they break down and set up camp every day, which comes complete with a dinner tent and private sleeping tents (and you can rent sleeping bags and pads from your trekking company for about $20). They even wake trekkers each morning with hot water for washing up and trays with tea and coffee. Photo by Morgan Beavers

7 of 10 The camp cooks rival those in some of Peru's best restaurants. They'll whip up from-scratch pumpkin soup; crispy bread, cakes and quiches; and vegetable- and queso-stuffed bell peppers (a vegetarian menu item upon my requestalmost all tour companies offer vegetarian, gluten-free and vegan options). And, they prepare it all over a gas grill or open flame with food bought fresh from village markets at the trek's start. So, if quality food is a consideration in your choice to trek, fear not. Photo by Morgan Beavers

8 of 10 After walking roughly 25 miles to reach Machu Picchu, standing in the ancient city and looking out over the rainforest just as its inhabitants once did feels surreal. If you're keen to get the ultimate historic experience, check out the 26-mile Inca Trail trekit leads visitors along the exact path the Incas used to reach Machu Picchu, supposedly home to the Incan emperor. Photo by Morgan Beavers

9 of 10 Resting high above the Sacred Valley in the Urubamba Province of Peru, the entire area surrounding the photo-famous Machu Picchu feels still. Rivers cut through steep, jungle-covered mountains rising in every direction, and the sacred site feels just thatsacred. Machu Picchu (which means "old mountain" in the indigenous language Quechua) is the instantly recognizable peak that graces famous photographs of the site. The mountain's name has come to identify both the peak itself and the 15th century city where some Incas and their emperor once thrived. Photo by Morgan Beavers

10 of 10 The reason for the trek (and the classic picture to prove it). As with any of the world's greatest wonders, pictures don't do Machu Picchu justice. This was shot as soon as the sun shed enough lightaround 7 a.m.and right before people started flooding the site. To beat the crowds, catch the earliest bus up the mountain, or hike the trail up if you're ready for a steep ascent and lots of slippery stairs. Whichever way you go, get there as early as you can to get you best view (the gates open at 6 a.m. and close at 5 p.m.). Photo by Morgan Beavers
Wade Simmons

The Godfather of freeride

Thomas Vanderham

Geoff Gulevich

Carson Storch

Brett Tippie

Photos by Margus Riga, Paris Gore, and Ale Di Lullo.

We're excited to announce that Wade Simmons, Thomas Vanderham, and Geoff Gulevich have all renewed ties with Rocky Mountain for 2017. They join the returning Carson Storch to round out our freeride program. The team will ride the Slayer Maiden , and Altitude Carson will also get a custom slopestyle bike cooked up in our North Vancouver prototype shop., said Ive been with Rocky Mountain over 20 years now, and Im stoked to be continuing on the program. Weve got some fun adventures planned and Im looking forward to sending it into the coming years. I need to show these young punks a thing or two!Vanderham continues to push the boundaries of big mountain riding, with appearances at select FEST events and in several film projects on the horizon. His precision and focus have also made him invaluable to the Rocky Mountain engineering team, and he works closely with them to develop and refine our bikes.Gully maintains his globetrotting ways, with plans to log a ton of air miles in 2017both on and off the bike. His Gullyver's travels series will take him off the beaten path, and hopefully not feature too much male nudity.Returning this year is Carson Storch. The young American athlete had a breakout year in 2016, with a podium spot and best trick at Rampage, and were fired up to see what he has in store in 2017.After a long and storied career at Rocky Mountain, Tippie is moving on in 2017. The Director of Good Times has been an iconic member of our family, and his signature laugh and unparalleled stoke will be sorely missed. We wish you all the best in your future endeavours Tippie, and well see you (or at least hear you) out on the trails!Rocky Mountain helped usher in the birth of freeride, and were proud to have every generation of freeride represented on our team. They continue to push the sport and inspire people to get out on their bikeswe couldnt ask for better ambassadors for our brand.Love the Ride,Rocky Mountain Bicycles
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Armoza Formats reality competition Curvy Supermodel has been commissioned in Brazil by the free-to-air (FTA) broadcaster, SBT.





The agreement, announced as a second season is licensed by Germanys RTLII, will see ten local episodes of the series in Brazil.The modelling competition, produced by Tresor TV, had a successful first season in Germany last September and was also recently licensed in Spain by Mediaset . The show has also been picked up in France, Poland and the Netherlands.Curvy Supermodel has a strong and inherent truth that is relatable across the globe in todays society, said Avi Armoza, CEO of Armoza Formats . Were thrilled at the positive responses, both from the viewers and the industry, and look forward to seeing the second season and working with SBT on the Brazilian adaptation.
Reality/docu-series Exotic Wishes has been acquired for production and worldwide distribution by US-based Global Genesis Group.

The series is centred around a shop in Los Angeles selling exotic artefacts, whose clientele are the rich and famous who place orders to buy rare items from the farthest places on the planet. The show follows three buyers as they are sent out around the world to attempt to find those rare items, following their adventures to such places as Bedouin camps in the Sahara Desert, the Temple of Rats in Rajasthan, India and to the Kingdom of Women at Lugo Lake in China.Global Genesis Group says that with the programme it will bring its acumen in production and worldwide distribution to maximise the brand recognition. Commented VP of development of acquisitions Charles Morris; This is one of the most exciting TV series that Global Genesis Group has signed to produce and distribute. We met Maciej [Paweczyk of Inbornmedia ], the creator, in Cannes last October, and we were so enthusiastic about his experience in television and his passion to take the audience on a trip around the world. It's great to imagine that we will be showcasing obscure locations that 99% of the people in the world will never visit themselves.Maciej added: Inbornmedia is devoted to producing original TV series. For the past few years we have travelled to Africa, Asia, the Balkans, Eastern Europe and the Russian Far East to produce 50 episodes of a successful travel series. However, we have been missing the adrenaline and adventure of our productions. That's how we discovered the innovative idea of Exotic Wishes [which] we premiered at MIPCOM we received very good feedback from various companies but we especially liked the energy coming from Global Genesis Group , because they are filmmakers themselves, and they were extremely passionate about the TV series. We are planning to start the adventures soon, and are very ready to take the audience to inaccessible places in the world where the most unique art is made by real craftsmen.
Despite its best efforts, Arsat-2s revenue in 2016 was less than half the targeted amount.

Argentinas public telco saw revenue of almost $11 million last year, while the goal was to exceed $22.3 million. This amount was set as the annual total necessary to get the return on the initial investment within Arsat-2s lifespan.The figures have been made public just as Arsat attends the Satellite Road Show 2017 in the US, aiming to close commercial deals to reverse the trend.Despite 2016s figures, Arsat president Rodrigo de Loredo is optimistic about 2017, especially regarding the US market, in which the telco has lately carried an important commercial effort. This effort adds value to Arsat, enlarging its clients portfolio and rising awareness of the brand within the satellite industry, said de Loredo.According to the executive, incomes are low because the commercial negotiations should have been started prior to launching Arsat-2. However, we found the previous management launched the satellite without pre-selling capacity and without having initiated the necessary processes for commercialisation. This has cost Argentina at least $10 million so far, added Rodrigo de Loredo.Right now, following some agreements inked in 2016 , almost 40% of Arsat-2s broadcasting capacity is being used. During 2017, the company aims to reach almost full capacity.
The third edition of the 4K-UHD Summit - Spain's flagship 4K industry event - is to be held this year in Malaga instead of Seville.

The move is the result of an agreement between Medina Media and ProMalaga to have the capital of the Costa del Sol as host of the summit, which will be held in November.This follows the commitment by ProMalaga to turn the city into a leading technological hub. The 4K-UHD Summit will also extend its duration to three days (8, 9 and 10 November) and offer more conferences and roundtables, as well as more networking opportunities and practical workshops.
Researchers have been able to demonstrate the hereditary nature of certain forms of tinnitus. Bilateral tinnitus -- that is, tinnitus in both ears -- has been shown to depend on genetic factors, particularly in men. The twin study, which is published in the journal Genetics in Medicine, was conducted by researchers at Karolinska Institutet together with colleagues from the European research network TINNET.

Ringing in the ears, a condition called tinnitus, is experienced by 15 per cent of people in Sweden as well as in Europe. For one or two per cent of the population, the symptoms are extremely distressing and impact adversely on daily activities, work and sleep. Tinnitus thus has negative social consequences for the sufferers, while being an important economic burden to society.

Tinnitus prevalence increases with age and is thought to be related to a number of environmental factors but little research has been done on the subject. There are also no effective cures for the condition, due possibly to the heterogeneity of the condition.

Using data from the Swedish Twin Registry, researchers at Karolinska Institutet have found evidence that in some cases tinnitus has genetic causes.

"We've been able to show that different forms of tinnitus have a significant heritability and thus a dominant genetic influence over environmental factors," says Christopher R. Cederroth at Karolinska Institutet's Department of Physiology and Pharmacology.

When the researchers first examined all forms of tinnitus they made the same conclusions on heritability as others have reported. It was only after grouping the subjects by sex and unilateral/bilateral tinnitus that they uncovered the genetic correlation.

"This result is surprising and unexpected as it shows that, unlike the conventional view of tinnitus being driven by environmental factors, there is a genetic influence for bilateral tinnitus which is more pronounced in men" says Dr Cederroth.

Their discovery also shows that bilateral and unilateral tinnitus constitute two separate sub-groups, only one of which is influenced by genetic factors. This, claims Dr Cederroth, not only has considerable clinical relevance but is also important from a public health perspective:

"Tinnitus sufferers need better care and treatment than they're currently getting. We need more genetic studies and a better molecular understanding of its generation, which could open unforeseen avenues to drug development."
Surgery patients often go home from the hospital with a prescription for painkillers to take as they recover.

But a new study suggests that doctors should also focus on patients who were taking such medicines before their operations.

People who received prescriptions for opioid painkillers in the months before elective abdominal operations had longer hospital stays, and a higher chance of needing follow-up care in a hospital or rehabilitation facility, than patients who weren't taking such medications before they had the same operations, the study finds.

The extra care translated into higher costs for their post-surgery care -- double or triple the amount, with higher opioid doses associated with higher costs. The results are published in Annals of Surgery by a team from the University of Michigan Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation.

The new findings, and past research on the association between opioids and outcomes for other types of surgery, are enough to prompt the researchers to suggest that pre-operation opioid use should be considered a preoperative risk factor.

"We often pause when we are considering elective surgery with a patient, based on known risk factors such as smoking, anticoagulant use, and overall medical conditions. These findings suggest that perhaps preoperative opioid use warrants the same awareness," says Jennifer Waljee, M.D., M.S., lead author of the study and a plastic surgeon at Michigan Medicine, U-M's academic medical center.

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Options such as tapering down opioid doses and alternative pain relief approaches could be options prior to surgery, she explains. But also, she says, "Physicians should make a plan to manage the patient's pain during the perioperative period that takes into account their past opioid use." Past research has suggested that chronic opioid use may lead to tolerance and can increase sensitivity to pain -- leaving patients more vulnerable after an operation.

Waljee and her U-M colleagues have launched a massive effort to help surgeons across Michigan prescribe opioids wisely -- and understand the special needs of patients who come to them already taking opioids. Called Michigan-OPEN, it has funding from IHPI and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

About the new study

Before doing the new national study, the authors identified similar trends in Michigan hospitals using data from the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative, led by medical student David Cron and published in July 2016. In that study, 21 percent of patients used opioids prior to surgery, according to their medical records. They had a substantially higher risk of complications, readmissions, and higher costs.

For the new study, the authors used national claims data drawn from private insurance companies, through IHPI's repository from Truven Health MarketScan. They studied more than 200,000 middle-class Americans who had common operations -- hysterectomies, bariatric surgery, hernia repair and reflux surgery -- over a 42-month period, and who spent at least one night in the hospital.

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About nine percent of the patients had filled at least two opioid prescriptions within the 90 days before their operation -- including at least one within a month before the operation. They tended to have more medical and psychological conditions than non-opioid patients.

The patients who had been prescribed opioids before surgery spent an average of an extra half a day in the hospital after their operations, the researchers found -- even after they adjusted for a wide range of co-existing factors such as medical conditions and demographic characteristics.

They also were more likely to end up back in the hospital or to go to a rehabilitation facility within 30 days of the operation -- except for those taking the lowest-possible doses. These difference weren't huge -- 4.5 percent of opioid users had a hospital readmission, compared with 3.6 percent of those who hadn't taken opioids. But they were enough to make a difference in cost.

In the first 90 days after surgery, those who had been taking opioids had medical costs three times higher than those who hadn't. The gap narrowed as time went on, but even at a year post-surgery, the pre-surgery opioid users had twice the medical costs -- at about $25,000 -- as those who hadn't been taking the drugs, who came in at an average of $12,113.

These data add to a growing body of evidence that in general shows that patients who take opioid painkillers on an ongoing basis use more medical care, and have higher medical costs, than those who don't.

"The bottom line is that preoperative opioid use is an important and potentially modifiable risk factor prior to surgery, and should be on surgeons' radar as well as the minds of primary care providers," says Waljee. "Coordinating care throughout the surgical period could improve clinical outcomes and the patient experience."
The problem in American parenting is the 1960s. Among other things that defined that very interesting (ref. ancient Chinese curse) decade was the replacement of rationality by emotionality. It was during the 1960s that the media, various self-appointed spiritual gurus, and the mental health professional community urged people to get in touch with their feelings. And it was during the 1960s that parents were told by mental health professionals that children had a right to express their feelings freely.

I was in graduate school at the time. My professors taught that (a) feelings  especially childrens feelings  held deep meaning, (b) therapy was all about helping people recover the feelings their parents had made them repress, and (c) getting in touch with ones feelings was the key to happiness. To be polite about it, a crock if there ever was one.

I now know  and beyond a shadow of doubt  that with rare exception, ones feelings are more apt to deceive than promote good decisions. I also know that pre-psychological (pre-1960s) parents insisted that their children control the expression of emotion for the good of those children (as well as the good of everyone who was ever in contact with those children). I also know that people who are ruled by their emotions  people who cannot think straight, in other words  are not happy people. In their own enslaved minds, they are perpetual victims. Furthermore, the undisciplined nature of their emotions is destructive both to themselves and others. Undisciplined emotions destroy relationships, property, and spiritual health.

Fifty years later, America is paying a terrible price for having ever believed that when it came to children (and most other things), mental health professionals knew what they were talking about. They claimed, without evidence, that insisting upon emotional control was repressive and authoritarian (and therefore harmful). They claimed, without evidence, that enforcing shame upon a child who had behaved anti-socially  they named it shame-based parenting  would result in psychological problems (when the opposite is true).

Granted, shame can be taken to extremes, but shame is essential to the formation of a conscience, which is essential to responsible self-government. Children are not naturally disposed to shame. It must be trained into them by loving parents who are not supposed to enjoy what they must do. A child so trained is destined to become a compassionate, responsible human being, not an emotional basket case.

Happiness is not a matter of letting it all hang out. Quite the contrary, it is all about holding most of it in. It is about self-control, respect for others, and responsibility. It is about a value system that places others before self. A certain amount of repression is a good thing.

America needs a Make American Parenting Great Again! movement. When all is said and done concerning the many political concerns of the day, one indisputable fact remains: a cultures strength ultimately depends on the strength of its child-rearing practices.
On occasion, a virus may jump from one host species to another and adapt to the new host. Such cross-species transmission happens more often than expected, according to new research published in PLOS Pathogens, and it may play a much bigger role in virus evolution than previously thought.

Understanding how viruses evolve and how often they jump to new hosts is important for studying emerging viral diseases. Scientists have hypothesized that viruses usually co-diverge with their hosts, forming new viral species as their hosts evolve into new species. It has been assumed that cross-species jumps are relatively rare and contribute less to virus evolution.

To better understand how viruses evolve, Jemma Geoghegan of the University of Sydney, Australia, and colleagues compared the evolutionary histories of viruses and host species. Previous studies had focused on narrow groups of viruses; for a broader picture, Geoghegan's team studied 19 virus families that infect a variety of hosts, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, plants, and insects.

The researchers began with branching "tree" diagrams that illustrated the evolutionary history of each virus family and its host species. Like family trees, these evolutionary trees trace the lineage of species back through common ancestors that later evolved into new species.

The scientists then used a previously developed method to compare the evolutionary trees of viruses and hosts. The method measures similarity between trees; co-divergence results in host and virus trees with similar branching patterns, as the virus evolves alongside the host. Meanwhile, cross-species jumps result in dissimilar host and virus trees, as new viruses evolve and jump from host to host.

The scientists found that cross-species transmission has played a central role in evolution for all 19 virus families, while co-divergence is relatively rare. Cross-species jumps were especially frequent in virus families whose genetic material is encoded in RNA rather than DNA. The findings also revealed which virus families may be more likely to jump hosts and evolve to infect new species.

'An important implication from our work is that the more new viruses we discover, then the more examples of species jumping we are likely to see' said project leader Professor Edward Holmes from the University of Sydney. 'Jumping hosts is the way many RNA viruses live their life' he continued.

This research was performed at the level of virus families, and not for individual viral species. Further studies with larger datasets could help confirm the findings and provide further insight into virus evolution.
Among women of childbearing age in the U.S., fish consumption has increased in recent years while blood mercury concentrations have decreased, suggesting improved health for women and their babies, a new study shows.

The research at Oregon State University also indicates fish consumption advisories tailored to specific regions and ethnic groups would help women of childbearing age to eat in even more healthy ways, including better monitoring of mercury intake.

Food from the ocean has a unique and valuable nutritional profile. Among seafood's many benefits are the omega-3 fatty acids that promote neurodevelopment, and the nutrients in seafood are especially important for pregnant women to pass on to developing fetuses.

But the main way people are exposed to toxic methylmercury -- a mercury atom with a methyl group, CH3, attached to it -- is through eating seafood. Thus the need for precise, nuanced fish consumption advisories, said Leanne Cusack of Oregon State University, the corresponding author on the study.

Comparatively less-toxic elemental mercury enters the ocean from natural sources such as volcanic eruptions and also from human activities like the burning of fossil fuels, which accounts for about two-thirds of the mercury that goes into the water.

Once in the ocean, the mercury is methylated, diffuses into phytoplankton and passes up the food chain, accumulating along the way.

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A scallop or a shrimp, for example, can have a mercury concentration of less than 0.003 parts per million. A large predator like a tuna, on the other hand, can contain roughly 10 million times as much methylmercury as the water that surrounds it and have a concentration of many parts per million.

Exactly how the mercury in the ocean becomes methylated, scientists don't know.

Fish advisories are usually aimed at women of childbearing age because a developing fetus has greater sensitivity to the neurotoxic effects of methylmercury. Jointly, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration recommend women in that group eat two meals of low-mercury fish per week.

Using data from the ongoing National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Cusack's research group looked at fish consumption patterns with regard to blood mercury levels in U.S. women of childbearing age from 1999 to 2010.

Findings were recently published in the journal Environmental Health.

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Women in the coastal regions, particularly the Northeast, were found to have the highest blood mercury concentrations; women living away from the sea, especially in the inland Midwest, had the lowest.

Coastal residents also ate fish the most frequently, with the species consumed varying by region. The type of fish most often consumed was shellfish in every part of the U.S. except for the inland West and inland Midwest.

As women's age and household income increased, so did their fish consumption frequency and blood mercury concentrations. Among ethnic groups, Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, Alaska Natives and Native Americans ate fish the most often and showed the most mercury, and Mexican Americans consumed fish the least often and showed the smallest concentration of mercury.

"We also found total monthly fish consumption by women of reproductive age was higher than it had been in recent years, with women consuming more marine fish and shellfish but with no appreciable difference in the mean consumption of freshwater fish, tuna, swordfish and shark," said Cusack, a postdoctoral scholar in OSU's College of Public Health and Human Sciences.

"That's encouraging because marine and shellfish are associated with smaller increases in blood mercury. And also encouragingly, an average women who'd eaten fish nine or more times in the previous month had lower blood mercury levels than women who'd had fish at the same rate in 1999-2000."

The differences in consumption and mercury levels by race and region illustrate the need for tailored fish advisories, she said.

"They need to have information about fish types and quantities you can safely eat," Cusack said. "The more detailed they can be, the better.

"The main thing is we do need to increase fish consumption in this demographic," Cusack added. "It has been increasing since 1999, but it's still not at the level where we want to see it. People need to start consuming fish, and advisories need to focus on the benefits of consumption and not just the risks by providing a broad range of fish that are low in methylmercury and high in omega-3's."
A profusion of biotechnology products is expected over the next five to 10 years, and the number and diversity of new products has the potential to overwhelm the U.S. regulatory system, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and other agencies involved in regulating biotechnology products should increase their scientific capabilities, tools, and expertise in key areas of expected growth, said the committee that conducted the study and wrote the report.

"The rate at which biotechnology products are introduced -- and the types of products -- are expected to significantly increase in the next five to 10 years, and federal agencies need to prepare for this growth," said committee chair Richard Murray, Thomas E. and Doris Everhart Professor of Control and Dynamical Systems and Bioengineering, California Institute of Technology. "We hope this report will support agency efforts to effectively evaluate these future products in ways that ensure public safety, protect the environment, build public confidence, and support innovation."

The U.S. biotechnology economy is growing rapidly, with the scale, scope, and complexity of products increasing. More types of organisms will likely be engineered, the report notes, and the kinds of traits introduced with biotechnology will also increase. Some future biotechnology products are likely to use genome-editing techniques such as CRISPR for familiar applications, such as modifying agricultural crops. Other future products are expected to be entirely new -- plants that can serve as sentinels of environmental contamination, for example, and collections of microorganisms that can produce chemical compounds efficiently. Engineered microbes, plants, and insects designed to live in the environment with little or no human management are likely to be more common. With few exceptions, products such as these have not yet been evaluated by the current regulatory system.

Current staffing levels, expertise, and resources available at EPA, FDA, USDA and other agencies may not be sufficient to address the expected scope and scale of future biotechnology products, the report says. It is critical that the agencies involved in regulation develop and maintain scientific capabilities, tools, and expertise in key evolving areas. Examples of such areas include understanding relationships between intended genetic changes and an organism's observable traits, the unintended effects of genetic changes on target and non-target organisms, predicting and monitoring ecosystem responses, and quantifying the economic and social costs and benefits of biotechnologies.

To respond to the expected increase and diversity of products, the agencies should develop risk-analysis approaches tailored to the familiarity of products and the complexity of their uses, the report says. For biotechnology products that are similar to products already in use, established risk-analysis methods can be applied or modified, and a more expedited process could be used. For products that have less-familiar characteristics or more complex risk pathways, new risk-analysis methods may need to be developed. Regulatory agencies should build their capacity to rapidly determine the type of risk-analysis approaches most appropriate for new products entering the regulatory system.

EPA, FDA, and USDA should identify products that could serve as pilot projects to develop new approaches to assess risks and benefits and to inform regulatory decisions, the report says. Pilot projects could also be used by the agencies to evaluate future products as they move from laboratory scale, to field- or prototype-scale, to full-scale operation.

One challenge regulators will face is finding jurisdiction under existing statutes to regulate the diverse range of anticipated biotech products, the report says. The current collection of statutes and regulations that provide the basis for agencies' oversight, known as the Coordinated Framework for Regulation of Biotechnology, appears to have considerable flexibility to cover a wide range of biotechnology products, but in some cases the agencies' jurisdiction has been defined in ways that could leave gaps or overlaps in regulatory oversight. At times, FDA, EPA, and USDA may need to make use of the flexibility under their statutes to minimize gaps in jurisdiction.

Even when statutes do allow agencies to regulate products, the current statutes may not adequately equip regulators with the tools to regulate the products effectively, the committee said. For example, the statutes may not empower regulators to require product sponsors to share in the burden of generating information about product safety, and may place the burden of proof on regulators to demonstrate that a product is unsafe before they can take action to protect the public. This implies that adequate federal support for research will be crucial to protect consumer and occupational safety and the environment.

Biotechnology products on the horizon are likely to generate substantial public debate, the report notes. Many members of society have concerns over the safety and ethics of various biotechnologies, while others see prospects for biotechnology addressing social or environmental problems. The U.S. regulatory system will need to achieve a balance among competing interests, risks, and benefits when considering how to manage development and use of new biotech products.

In addition, more research may be needed to develop methods for governance systems that integrate ethical, cultural, and social implications into risk assessments in ways that are meaningful. This may not be feasible or even justified for all new biotechnology products -- such as products with which there is already familiarity or products that will not be released into the environment. For example, genetically engineered organisms used in the research laboratory to develop new chemical synthesis methods are not likely to require the same level of public dialogue as products that have more uncertainty associated with them, such as organisms with gene drives, which enhance organisms' ability to pass certain genetic traits on to their offspring.

Overall, the federal government should develop a strategy that scans the horizon for new biotechnology products, identifying and prioritizing those products that are less familiar or that present a need for more complex risk analysis, the report says. The federal government should also work to establish appropriate federal funding levels for sustained, multiyear research to develop the necessary advances in regulatory science. To this end, the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Institutes of Standards and Technology, and other agencies that fund biotechnology research should increase their investments in regulatory science.
How close to reality are brain organoids, and which molecular mechanisms underlie the remarkable self-organizing capacities of tissues? Researchers already have succeeded in growing so-called "cerebral organoids" in a dish -- clusters of cells that self-organize into small brain-like structures. Juergen Knoblich and colleagues have now further characterized these organoids and publish their results today in The EMBO Journal. They demonstrate that, like in the human brain, so-called forebrain organizing centers orchestrate developmental processes in the organoid, and that organoids recapitulate the timing of neuronal differentiation events found in human brains.

The development of the human brain from just a few cells to a thinking organ is one of the great mysteries of biology. In the past decade, Knoblich and his team at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences have pioneered brain organoid technology to investigate this intriguing process. Understanding normal organoid development is a prerequisite to using this powerful system to explore the possibility of modeling human developmental diseases.

The neocortex is the part of the mammalian brain involved in higher-order cognitive functions. It has expanded substantially in the course of the mammalian evolution and is highly complex in humans. Building such an intricate system relies on a precise orchestration of different developmental processes -- the division of progenitor cells, and the generation of distinct cell types at the right time and the right place. So-called forebrain organizing centers play a key role in orchestrating the development of the neocortex. Organizing centers secrete factors that work long-distance to induce neighboring tissue to give rise to specific cell types. In normal brain development, an organizing center called the cortical hem lies just under the crown of the head, while the antihem marks the opposite side of the cortex and is located at the right and left side of the brain. The researchers found that both these organizing centers are present in organoids.

When the brain grows, new cells are added in a precise order. Cells formed earlier will differentiate into neurons of the inner layers of the cortex, while cells born later migrate further outwards, and glial cells -- non-neural cells of the brain -- are added towards the end. Finally, nerve cells grow long protrusions and connect with each other to form a complex network. These processes are also mimicked in brain organoids, stressing the value of organoids in investigating a broad array of brain developmental processes.

In the past years, Knoblich and his team have already expanded their research on organoids towards growing them from patient cells to investigate the cellular basis of developmental disorders. However, a thorough knowledge of normal organoid development is required to be able to interpret the aberrations in an organoid model of a developmental disease. The detailed description of organoid development in the current study of Knoblich's laboratory is an important step in this direction.
Discover Israel

Israel

In the heart of the Middle East lies a small country with a long-standing religious history. Bordered by Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and the Gaza Strip, Israel was founded as a Jewish state, and belongs to the Holy Land. Millions of people visit its capital city of Jerusalem each year.

Despite the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Israel is a wonderful place to visit, and not just for its religious background. The country has a strong economy and an even stronger urban core, which is why the bulk of its tourist market can be found in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Safed, Akko, and Haifa.

Flights to Israel

Israel has a diverse set of local and international airports. The largest of these are Ben Gurion, Eilat, Sde Dov, Ovda, Haifa, and Bek Yaakov. Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv had passenger traffic clear the 14 million mark in 2013, making it the busiest in the country. It is a central flight hub for El Al, Arkia Israel Airlines, and Israir Airline, and is consistently ranked as one of the Middle Easts top airports with respect to passenger satisfaction and security scrutiny measures.

Direct flights to Israel from the United States can be boarded via United, Delta, US Airways, and El Al, while international passengers have their pick from British Airway, Lufthansa, Air France, Alitalia, Aeroflot, Korean Air, SAS, and Finnair.

What to Do in Israel

Spring is probably the best time to visit Israel due to beautiful foliage that sprouts after the winter rainstorms. Hiking is a prime attraction during this season. The countrys landscape is geographically disperse and diverse, with the regions of Galilee, the North Coast, the Coastal Plain, Shephelah, and Negev containing a vast array of natural beauty.

Take a tour to the Dead Sea and see what it is like to float (this body of water has the highest concentration of salt). Jerusalem is the oldest city in the world, so that in itself makes a day trip worthwhile! Other popular attractions include the mountain fortress of Masada, the Ramon Crater, and the nightlife scene in Tel Aviv!

Smart traveling in Israel

The Sabbath is fully observed in Israel, and that means all public transportation is shutdown from Friday evening to Saturday night. The countrys bus system is quick, reliable, and affordable, but the minivan (monit sherut) network is even faster. If you are not afraid of talking to random strangers, know that hitchhiking is well received in Israel! The countrys official languages are Hebrew and Arabic, but English is a very popular language known conversationally by most of the locals, especially residents of Tel Aviv. The New Israeli Shekel is the principal currency, so consult an exchange bank to get the best rates. Affordable hotel accommodations in Israel are just within reach! Use our online hotel price comparison tool to find the best rate on a hotel. We strive to offer the lowest rates on the web, thanks to up-to-date price checks.
After nearly a decade of development, testing and feedback from the troops the U.S. Army is installing its high-speed version of its "Blue Force Tracker" (of vehicles on the battlefield) device in nearly all of its armored and unarmored combat vehicles. The new BFT2 version is ten times faster, more reliable and has better security (encryption). Yet it all began by taking a chance.

During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Blue Force Tracker (BFT, GPS/satellite telephone devices) were hastily placed in thousands of combat vehicles. Anyone with a laptop, satellite data receiver, the right software and access codes could then see where everyone was (via a map showing blips for each BFT user). This hasty (all the stuff was still in development) experiment was a huge success, and the United States has proceeded to add more of this capability by producing and distributing 50,000 additional tracker devices. There were some problems, however. The biggest hassle was the delay (often up to 300 seconds/5 minutes) between getting updated data from the satellite. Another big problem was that stationary icons, placed on BFT user screens to indicate enemy troops or dangers (like minefields or roadside bombs), didn't get updated accurately, or in a timely fashion. Once the troops began to encounter a lot of roadside bombs that don't exist (although Blue Force Tracker shows them), they begin to lose faith in the system. Fixing this was not easy, although several different solutions were tried often in parallel because BFT had become very popular with battlefield commanders.

The army believes it has fixes for the major complaints. For example, BFT2 has a ten second (or less) delay between satellite updates. New software will help clear away inaccurate icons indicating where the enemy is, or may be. The BTF2 network will also allow users to send more information to each other, including attachments. This will enable BFT2 to be used in automated command and control systems that work more effectively because they can pass more information, more quickly, between the headquarters and the troops.

While the existing BFT laptop (which includes the satellite communications hardware) costs $1,500. BTF2 will cost $4,000 each. In 2010 the army and marines had about 55,000 BFT1 tracking devices (and far fewer laptops equipped to display BFT data for commanders) and plans to get at least as many of the BFT2 units, and perhaps as many as 120,000. BFT2 is was supposed to start shipping to the troops by 2012. But the BFT2 prototypes and pre-production models used for testing kept revealing new glitches or situations where performance was seriously degraded. This was especially true in Afghanistan, where the many hills and mountains can disrupt satellite communications.

Another thing that slowed down delivery of BFT2 was the accessory items, which largely consisted of new software. This consisted of JBC-P (Joint-Battle Command Platform) which needed the new BFT2 features to work at all. Especially important was the faster (almost instantaneous) updates of information. The satellite signals are now encrypted and work no matter the weather, temperature of distance. While every vehicle is equipped with one of these devices, Individual troops on the ground now have a smartphone type device that allows them to chat and quickly shows on the display the location of nearby JBC-P users and has a zoom capability similar to Google Earth. Troops can quickly update enemy locations, bombs or otherwise dangerous areas. These smartphones are typically worn on the forearm for easy use in combat. The purpose of all these improvements is to enable troops arriving (by land or air) in an area where contact with the enemy is expected to immediately go into action knowing where everyone (on foot or in vehicles) is and where they are moving to.

These location devices and their subsequent improvements have changed the way American troops fight. The location devices allow brigade, battalion and company commanders to see, in real time where there troops are and what they are doing. The latest JBC-P version gives squad and platoon level operations instant awareness of their situation whenever there is a clash with the enemy or a patrol or raiding party looking for the enemy. This makes a big difference in the effectiveness of the operation, reduces friendly casualties as well as accidental injuries to nearby civilians. Another popular new feature was TIGR (Tactical Ground Reporting), which allows troops to report intelligence data digitally (including photos or video) and quickly send to headquarters and nearby units.

There have been regular upgrades BFT and associated software and devices since the first combat test of BFT in 2003. In early 2013 one of the new upgrades, JCR (Joint Capabilities Release), was sent to Afghanistan for use in combat. JCR was part of an effort to link everyone in a combat brigade electronically while in the combat zone and, most importantly, while in combat. The 2013 JCR equipped individual troops as well as vehicles. Commanders could use a handheld device or laptop to view BFT locations. The commanders app could also be used to take data from troops about enemy locations or where minefields or other obstacles are and post it, so that everyone else with JCR equipment can see and share it. JCR also included better encryption and improved reliability. Further tweaking and bug fixes finally got BFT2 into service.
Core Laboratories N.V. provides reservoir description and production enhancement services and products to the oil and gas industry in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement segments. The Reservoir Description segment includes the characterization of petroleum reservoir rock, reservoir fluid, and gas samples to enhance production and improve recovery of oil and gas from its clients' reservoirs. It offers laboratory-based analytical and field services to characterize properties of crude oil and oil delivered products; and proprietary and joint industry studies. The Production Enhancement segment provides services and products relating to reservoir well completions, perforations, stimulations, and production. It offers integrated diagnostic services to evaluate and monitor the effectiveness of well completions and to develop solutions to improve the effectiveness of enhanced oil recovery projects. In addition, the company markets and sells its products through a combination of sales representatives, technical seminars, trade shows, and print advertising, as well as through distributors. It operates approximately in 50 countries. The company was founded in 1936 and is based in Amstelveen, the Netherlands.
In an upsetting video, a monkey scrambles up the bars of a tiny, metal cage as dance music blares. A man jabs the top end of a water bottle through the bars. When the monkey tries to grab it, the man yanks it away. Next the man flicks his hand through the bars, laughing as the monkey tries - and fails - to swipe at him. The monkey in the video is Lulu, a 4-year-old macaque who spent years living in a tiny cage at a tourist bar in Bali, Indonesia. The team at the Bali Animal Welfare Association (BAWA) learned about Lulu when the group received some troubling messages last year.

"Hello there, I am an Australian tourist," an anonymous person wrote to BAWA in an email in August. "I love Bali and I come here all the time. I have walked several times past a bar called The Twisted Monkey. They have a monkey in a cage who is kept in there day and night and it is so distressing to watch. He has nothing in the metal cage. I am worried about his welfare and wondered if there was something that could be done."

BAWA

BAWA also got messages through its Facebook page about the bar staff at the Twisted Monkey giving the monkey drugs, although the team was not able to confirm whether these reports were true. Elsewhere, the Twisted Monkey has been referred to a "drug den" that would sell tourists hallucinogenic mushrooms. An investigation team from BAWA immediately went to the bar to try and help the monkey. When the team asked the bar staffers if Lulu ever received drugs, they denied it.

BAWA

But drugs or no drugs, it was clear Lulu didn't belong there.

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BAWA

"A bar is no place for wildlife," Irawan added. "This bar sometimes had loud music and noisy crowds. We believe he was well fed and watered, though he had no toys or ropes." Since BAWA had no legal claim to Lulu, the team couldn't just seize the monkey. Macaques are considered a "common species" In Indonesia, so people can legally buy, sell and keep them without any consequences.

BAWA

Each year, people steal several thousand monkeys from their natural habitat and their families. Pharmaceutical companies and universities will often buy the monkeys to use as test subjects - others are sold at wildlife markets as pets, or "trained" to become dancing monkeys. In Lulu's case, he'd been sold as a pet. "We are told that Lulu was purchased for IDR 500,000 [about $37] from the infamous Satria 'pet market' in Denpasar," Irawan said.

BAWA

BAWA tried to convince the bar staffers to surrender Lulu, but they refused. Even so, BAWA continued to negotiate for Lulu's release over the next several months, and the team did its best to make sure Lulu had what he needed.

BAWA

"We established that he was properly fed and watered and tried to get more amusements for him such as ropes and toys," Irawan said. "The staff said he destroyed these - probably in frustration." Then, earlier this month, Lulu's life took a drastic turn. BAWA heard that the police had shut down the Twisted Monkey, and Lulu had been left at the location, still locked in his cage, with no food or water, according to Irawan.

BAWA

"We negotiated with the police and the owner to rescue Lulu," Irawan said. "They finally agreed we should take him, in view of our history and knowledge of the case and the monkey." When BAWA got hold of Lulu, the team found that he wasn't just caged - he also had a tight metal shackle around his neck, which was then attached to the cage.

A BAWA team member holding the shackle that used to be around Lulu's neck | BAWA

"He was afraid and agitated," Irawan said. "We immediately removed the shackle. Of course it is hard to be certain but we think in the end, after trusting us, he was relieved to be rescued."

Lulu during transport to BAWA facility | BAWA

Lulu now lives at the BAWA facility where he'll be cared for until rescuers figure out the best thing for his future. When Lulu first arrived, he craved attention, Irawan explained.

BAWA

"Lulu needed a lot of comfort and reassurance," Irawan said. "We provided ropes and toys, nutritious food and lots of attention."

BAWA

Despite everything Lulu's been through, he's doing remarkably well.

BAWA

"Lulu appears to be far less afraid and agitated," Irawan said. "He is a sweet and friendly monkey, though he was understandably very cautious at first. He has come to love many of BAWA's staff but is still cautious of new people."

Lulu at the BAWA rescue facility | BAWA

"Lulu loves to receive treats, such as peanuts, fruit or biscuits," Irawan added. "He likes to touch and hold fingers and hands and to groom us. He truly loves toys."

BAWA

Since Lulu was removed from his mom at a young age, he doesn't have the skills and knowledge to survive in the wild, so releasing him isn't an option. But the BAWA staff hopes he'll eventually be able to live in a monkey sanctuary, which will provide a large natural space for him, and give him the opportunity to interact with other monkeys.

BAWA
Few animals are as under appreciated - or outright maligned - as the countless pigeons with whom we share our cities and suburbs. But fortunately there are people who believe that, no matter how common, every one of those humble birds is still very much worth saving. Here's a pigeon who's alive today because of them.

WildCare/Melanie Piazza

This fledgling baby pigeon was rescued last month by two pedestrians who found her injured on a sidewalk in Oakland, California. Seeing her twisted neck, they weren't sure at first if she was even alive - until she began to peep. Rather than leave her there to suffer all alone, the Good Samaritans rushed her to WildCare, a clinic that specializes in treating injured wildlife. And it's a good thing that they did. "We're one of the only wildlife hospitals in the Bay Area that will actually treat pigeons," Melanie Piazza, director of animal care, told The Dodo. "Most euthanize them as 'pest' animals. We treat everybody, so she came here." Soon after, an X-ray revealed that pigeon had suffered a broken neck, perhaps by crashing on her maiden flight, or at the hands of a cruel person who'd discovered her vulnerable on the ground.

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WildCare/Melanie Piazza

"We weren't sure if she was going to make it," said Piazza. "She was a long shot. Any living being with a broken neck is in trouble. But with the fact that she could still use her legs and her wings, we thought she had a chance. Her spinal cord wasn't severed, so we thought we'd try to help her." That part would take some improvising. The pigeon's caretakers devised a neck brace out of padding used for casts and pink medical wrap, light enough so she could still walk around as she healed. "We wrapped it behind her back and behind her wings - like suspenders, to hold her head up," said Piazza.

WildCare/Melanie Piazza

Given the seriousness of the injury, WildCare staff expected her recovery to take weeks, if not months. But the pigeon proved them wrong. Four days later, while refitting the neck brace, it was discovered that the bird was now able to hold her head up nearly all the way. "We were really excited to see her progress," Piazza said. "It's shocking because we're used to things taking longer with something that severe."

WildCare/Melanie Piazza

In the days that followed, the injured pigeon continued to wear a sleeker, yellow neck brace until she healed more completely. But by the tenth day, she was already strong enough to join two other young pigeons and to feed on her own. And her health just kept on improving.

WildCare/Melanie Piazza

It's been just over two weeks now since the little pigeon was first rescued from the verge of death, and her recovery is virtually complete. She no longer even needs a neck brace, or any medication.

WildCare/Melanie Piazza
As part of Directions '17, the Journal Star invited readers to share honors businesses or employees received in 2016 as best in the state, region or nation. Also included is a recap of the major awards presented by business organizations locally.

Eakes Office Solutions, an office products leader for more than 70 years, was named a 2016 Elite Dealer by ENX Magazine. Elite dealers are recognized for innovative printing and technology solutions, company culture and community involvement. Eakes, a Steelcase Platinum Partner, is one of five organizations in North America to receive this designation for the past five consecutive years. Sharp Imaging recognized Eakes as a Hyakuman Kai Elite Dealer in 2016, a national award given to select dealers that market Sharps advanced business products and solutions.

Angie Muhleisen, president and CEO of Union Bank and Trust Co., received the Burnham Yates Citizenship Award from the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce. The award acknowledges a local corporate leader for their business and charitable contributions to the city.

Former Lincoln postmaster and former City Council member Doug Emery received the group's Roger T. Larson Community Builder Award.

Other Celebrate Business Awards winners in 2016 included Nelnet (Cornerstone Award), Benchmark Biolabs & Antelope Valley Bios (Manufacturer of the Year), Quantified Ag (Entrepreneurial Spirit Award), Bosch (Green Business of the Year), Pink Gorilla Events (Tourism Development Award) and Abe's Burgers & Freedom (Small Business of the Year).

Blush Bridal Boutique was selected as a winner in The Knot Best of Weddings and Wedding Wire Couples Choice Awards. Both are nationally recognized awards representing the top 2 percent highest-rated wedding professionals as reviewed by couples.

Lancaster County Farm Bureau was recognized by the American Farm Bureau Federation for innovative program ideas in this years County Activities of Excellence Awards at the federation's annual convention. Lancaster County Farm Bureau was honored in the membership category for its work on the Antique Tractor and Car Show in the Haymarket.

The Downtown Lincoln Association honored Swanson Russell for the expansion of its downtown headquarters at 12th and P streets with its Significant Private Development Award.

Other Impact Awards presented by the downtown business group went to President and Ambassador Apartments (Residential Development Award), Eagle Printing & Sign (Business Leadership), restaurant owner Nader Sepahpur (Downtown Champion) and David Chait, co-founcer and CEO of Travefy (Young Entrepreneur).

In 2016, Inc. Magazine selected Firespring as one of 50 honorees nationwide for its inaugural Best Workplaces Award. The program recognizes successful small- and mid-sized businesses that value company culture, offer standout worker benefits and prioritize employee well-being. Experts in employee engagement and culture, Inc. and Quantum Workplace audited more than 500 independent and privately owned U.S.-based companies that have between five and 500 employees and 2015 revenue of at least $2 million.

Firespring was also named to the 2016 Best for the World Honorees list for achieving a community impact score in the top 10 percent of all certified B corporations.

Gary L. Novotny, owner of Gary Michaels Clothiers in Lincoln, was awarded the Nebraska Retail Champion Award in 2016 by the Nebraska Retail Federation, and was also recognized among America's Top Five Retailers by the National Retail Federation.

Speedway Properties, the real estate division of Speedway Motors, was recognized with the Lincoln Independent Business Association's top award, Business Owner of the Year.

Other annual awards presented by LIBA went to Adam Kroft, founder of Red Thread (Lincoln Young Professional Award), Leadbelly (Enterprising Gambler Award), Richard Meginnis (Community Impact Award), Lincoln Laminating Inc. (Champion Award) and Roy Christensen (Free Enterprise Award).
Lucky was clearly sick and in distress when police officers found him. They'd been called to arrest two men who were switching price tags at a store in Texas, and when they arrived at the scene, they also went over to check the suspects' car. That's where they discovered heroin - and a tiny puppy, around 3 months old. The officers suspected that Lucky may have ingested and overdosed on the heroin. "He was extremely lethargic - almost comatose - and was basically limp," Jolene DeVito, police media specialist with the Carrollton Police Department, told The Dodo.

Stacie Fowler

The police quickly contacted Carrollton Animal Services, who rushed over to retrieve Lucky and take him to get the medical attention he needed at the North Texas Emergency Pet Clinic. They knew if they didn't act fast, the poor little guy might not make it. Once he arrived at the vet clinic, Lucky was tested for possible opioid exposure, and the test came back positive. He had a low heart rate, low body temperature, was extremely close to respiratory arrest and could barely even lift his head. The vets at the clinic see overdose cases like Lucky's at least once a shift, and luckily, they knew exactly how to handle it.

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Stacie Fowler

"We administered a dose of a medication called Narcan that is a reversal for opioid overdose," Dr. Stacie Fowler of the North Texas Emergency Pet Clinic told The Dodo. "He responded very positively with improved mentation (more alert) and improved breathing and heart rate. After about 24 hours, Lucky had returned to normal. He had a few fleas but otherwise seemed healthy." Everyone who worked with Lucky was shocked and overjoyed at his speedy recovery, and he was soon transferred back into the care of the Carrollton Animal Services.

Stacie Fowler

Once Lucky was no longer drugged and suffering, he turned into the happiest, most upbeat little puppy you could ever hope to meet. He loved playing with the shelter staff, and was so overjoyed to greet everyone he met. "Lucky is a typical Chihuahua puppy," Angela Shaw of Carrollton Animal Services told The Dodo. "A little dog who thinks he is the size of a German shepherd. He is happy to meet new people and nip their noses."

Angela Shaw

Once Lucky was ready to be adopted, the adoption center got such a huge response from people wanting to take him home that they decided to hold a lottery for potential adopters. On the day of Lucky's lottery, tons of families showed up for their chance to take the special little dog home. Everyone got a chance to meet and bond with Lucky - but one little girl immediately stole his heart.

Angela Shaw

The little girl came with her grandparents for their chance to adopt Lucky, not really expecting to win. She and Lucky quickly fell in love with each other, and when she and her family didn't win the lottery, the person who did knew what he had to do. "There was a gentleman who actually won the lottery drawing but didn't want to take the puppy from the little girl," Shaw said. "So he quietly gave the ticket back and slipped out the door. She was very excited about her new puppy."

Angela Shaw
ST. GEORGE, UTAH-As I was sitting, a week ago Friday, strapped tightly into the shotgun seat of a luxury SUV pointed downward at a 45-degree-plus angle on the edge of a sand dune, I thought that maybe I should start shooting a video with my phone.

The guy at the wheel, an American radio and TV personality named Alan Taylor, was about to take his foot off the brake, and I was expecting the worst. The video, which I told him should go to my grandchildren if he survived and I didnt, would be of the last things I saw on this Earth before meeting my end.

I thought they might get a kick out of that.

But then, the most wondrous thing happened. The brand new 2017 Land Rover Discovery we were in was on automatic pilot and just inched its way down the side of that dune. It didnt lose traction and slide to the bottom. Nope, it just moseyed on down there.

Then, as we got near the bottom, Taylor goosed the throttle and we blasted our way up through tons of sand several metres thick to arrive safely atop the dune next door  mission accomplished.

Alan Taylor and I and about 20 other automotive journalists were in southern Utah and Northern Arizona last week for the global launch of the 2017 Discovery, a seven-seat SUV with a connected cockpit that enables the vehicle to do just about everything except drive itself.

And it even comes pretty close to doing that at times.

When you take it out on the freeway, the ride is magic carpet smooth. Unless you have the cruise control on, youll be flying before you know it. The big windows let you look out at the Big Sky, and the scenery is so grand, you swear youve died and gone to Heaven.

When you leave the pavement and follow washboard ranchers roads that are similar to deserted logging trails in central and northern Ontario, the exercise is like a piece of cake for this car. It goes with the flow of the twists and the turns; the steering is precise and the brakes are faultless. For this car, navigating this stuff is No Big Deal.

Inside, Discovery is a technological marvel, in which you can chair a meeting of your board of directors while youre on vacation by connecting up to eight smartphones to the 3G Wi-Fi, activate the USB ports at each and every seat and keep just about everything fully charged by plugging into six 12-volt sockets.

If youre not sitting on a board these days, everything will still come in handy, and you can keep all your children happy, and the neighbours kids, too, when you pile everybody into the car for a weekend drive to Kingston.

You can do just about anything with apps. You can rearrange the seating in Rows 2 and 3  about 21 configurations in all  with one on your smartphone or watch. You can lock or unlock the doors from outside. If the cars been sitting parked in the sun, you can cool it off inside before getting in. In winter, you can increase the inside temperature before firing it up.

I really like this bit: if you want to go snowshoeing or swimming and dont want to take a chance of losing the keys, lock them in the car and use the Activity Key wristband to unlock the car by simply holding it up against the D in the Discovery nameplate at the back of the car.

Heres something else I really like: you should never get a speeding ticket again because the vehicle can read the signs beside the road and float the speed limit on the windshield at eye level in front of you. After doing that, if you should be tardy lifting your foot off the accelerator, the technology will even slow Discovery down to the legal limit for you.

And then theres the show-off stuff. Although it is highly unlikely that anyone who buys this car when it comes available in Canada in late spring/early summer would even think about doing some of the stuff we did next, the automaker wanted to illustrate that Discovery is capable of doing just about anything and everything. Everywhere, too.

Like crawling up the sides, and over the tops, of huge, mountainous boulders.

Youve heard of rock climbing? Its hard enough to do with your hands and feet; try doing it in a car. Land Rover has a computer setting for it, and so you turn the knob and slip it into gear and take your foot off the brake and, just like going down the side of that sand dune, Discovery does the rest. All you have to do is steer as you go up, up, up. And yes, steering can be very important. On more than one occasion, an instructor was forced to holler STOP! before SUV and cargo went over the side of a cliff.

Not us, though. As Taylor said, This car could crawl over a glacier. Its amazing; theres no flex.

And then there was the sand. Let me tell you about the sand.

Called Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, the dunes are where people usually take dune buggies  not Land Rovers  out to play. There is so much sand that at one time, before Hollywood discovered that computers could create special effects and special locations, the 4,000 acres of dunes doubled as deserts in the black-and-white movie days.

But really old movies werent the only motion pictures either made or inspired by this incredibly beautiful region of the southwestern United States. In fact, the idea for one of the most popular movies of the last decade was conceived here. But before we get to that, let me tell you more about this Land Rover.

Land Rover says it went above and beyond to create this ultimate family SUV. Leaving aside the fact that theyre already working on the next one (and you have to wonder what theyll call it), this truly is a magnificent car.

In fact, Alex Heslop, the chief product engineer who bears a remarkable resemblance to retired Formula One driver Alexander Wurz, said it didnt matter if the car was driven on-road or off. You can take it anywhere in confidence.

They say seven full-size adults can fit into the vehicle. I know all about that trick  the further back you go, the smaller the people get. They all have big heads (think Vanna White) but little bodies so that when the photos for the brochures are taken, everybody looks like theyre six feet.

But in this case, seven full-size adults means just that. I am a plus-size person, and when Taylor was off buying coffee, I tried out the third row of seats (No. 6 and No. 7) and fit right in. And, by the way, to make entry and exit easier, particularly for older Canadians, the ride height lowers 40 mm automatically when the car is in park.

Now, speaking of those rows and those seats  if you want to turn this SUV into a cargo van, you can  in 14 seconds flat. Actually, the seats will fold flat in those 14 seconds, but all you need to make that happen is a smartphone app called inControl Remote. Poke to fold, and 14 seconds later, you have enough room to load up that bookcase from Ikea.

When all the seats are down, you have 2,500 litres of storage space, but if you only fold down the third (and last) row, that number shrinks to 1,230 L, which is still plenty of room to hold a weeks supply of groceries.

Oh, and you can install a child seat in seconds, literally.

Now, when they talk about connectivity, they are not kidding. Once you get past the large, high-resolution touchscreen where you have everything at your fingertips, there are six 12-volt charging points inside this vehicle. Take out your cord and plug it in, and your smartphone can go from 62 per cent power to 100 per cent in no time at all, which is a good thing if you are busy with email (as Taylor was when I was driving) or shooting video (as Taylor was when I was driving) or filming philosophical messages to post on ones Facebook page (as Taylor did while I was driving).

In between, by the way, because it was so quiet and comfortable inside (we loved the leather upholstery), we discussed the pros (many) and cons (seriously?) of the automobile and told each other our life stories. You can cover a lot of territory when youre in a car for two days with somebody.

This is  as are most new automobiles these days  a very safe vehicle. It has many Advanced Driver Assistance Systems, such as Traffic Sign Recognition (remember what I said about speeding tickets earlier?), Intelligent Speed Monitor (if you wont slow down, the car will slow itself for you), Driver Condition Monitor (it replaces your spouse by nagging you to take a 10-minute break every couple of hours  Norris  Norris  NORRIS!!), Surround Camera System (for those times when you need eyes in the back of your head), Lane Keep Assist (nudges you back in line when you start to drift, and I think this should be standard on all cars now that weve lost the war against texting and driving), Autonomous Emergency Braking (it can stop a car faster than a human being, and Ive seen it in real-world action, and it works) and a bunch of parking assist functions.

It has two engines  Diesel and gasoline  and has 3,500-kilogram towing capability. That is not enough for a house trailer but certainly sufficient to pull a boat and motor to the public ramp at Lake Scugog or two snowmobiles to the trails north of Barrie.

And before I forget: its new tow-assist feature lets you use a knob in the centre console to steer properly while backing up to those ramps. With a little practice, youll soon look to be as comfortable and confident as any long-distance transport-truck driver backing into a terminal to drop off his or her load.

And now that everybodys taken its cue from Ford (the nearly all-aluminum 2015 F-150, remember?) Discovery has 480 kg of weight savings due to what it calls aluminum intensive architecture, which includes magnesium and steel subframes.

Now, because it was part of the launch, I have to go into this here. Its only fair. But remember  neither you, or anybody else you know, is going to do any of this stuff with this car. This is a luxury SUV with a focus on family. What went on here looks good on the TV commercials and on the web or in the newspapers but I cant see anybody paying $61,500-plus for a car and then driving it over rocks.

Having said that, however, this car can be driven over rocks. And up and over sand dunes and through raging rivers. Not too deep, those raging rivers, but deep enough.

The trick is its all-terrain technology, which can monitor conditions and adjust the car accordingly (raise or lower it ever so slightly) so that it can comfortably travel over sand, snow, mud, and ruts. And crawl over rocks.

Its ATPC (All-Terrain Progress Control) makes off-highway driving easy because the driver can set a crawl speed and then only have to focus on the steering. When you put the automatic selector into low gear, it locks the differential and uses a much lower gear so that the axle goes around really slowly, thus making rock climbs and sand-dune descents much more manageable.

Discoverys power plants  there are two six-cylinder motors, one a Diesel (7.2L/100 km) and the other gasoline (10.9L/100 km)  are driven by an eight-speed automatic gearbox and the car has a fully independent suspension.

OK. As Don Cherry would say, thats all Im going to say about that.

FAST FACTS

Engine: 3.0-litre V6 (gasoline and diesel)

Output: gas  340 hp, 332 lb-ft torque; diesel  254 hp, 442 lb-ft torque

Transmission: 8-speed automatic

Curb weight: 2,223 kilograms

Acceleration (0-100 km/h) 6.9 seconds

Price: starts at $61,500

Love it:

 Can do anything  just about

 Smoother than smooth ride

 Tech centre

 Safety plus

Leave it:

 Are you kidding? Is anybody?

Rating:

10 (out of 10)

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Jaci Tischler applies her Mary Kay lipstick in her Mary Kay T-shirt behind the wheel of her pink Mary Kay Chevy Cruze.

Shes come a long way from her freshman year at Texas Tech University, when shed mark the days she was free to give her classmates facials on a dry-erase calendar on her dorm-room door.

Thats really how I started my business, she says. We sell the most product and make the most income whenever we are at a party or a facial.

That was three years ago. Today, the 21-year-old who graduated in December leads a group of 50 women as a sales director for Mary Kay Inc. Her business funded her tuition and living expenses.

If you look at our successful millennials, they arent having in-home events. Theyre having online events. They have VIP groups. They have Instagram followers.

Tischler is one of 3.5 million sales representatives worldwide who sell cosmetics for the company Mary Kay Ash founded in Dallas 54 years ago. Those reps get paid when they sell products; they earn an additional commission when each rep theyve recruited sells something. Some reps have large groups of recruits working under them and earn commissions from them all.

That system, known as multi-level marketing, is the backbone of a $36-billion (U.S.) American industry, from cosmetics purveyors Avon, Arbonne, and Rodan + Fields to nutrition-supplement companies like Herbalife Ltd. and such relative newcomers as charm-jewelry company Origami Owl LLC. And, increasingly, such companies aim to use it to recruit millennials, the better to sell to them.

Thats meant ditching door-to-door sales in favour of parties like Tischlers  often in the form of online gatherings, hosted on Facebook Live  where reps friends can try, buy and maybe even sign up to sell products. In this new world, Avon ladies no longer must ring doorbells and, with a model dubbed social selling, the industry hopes to adapt to the harsh reality of how millennials buy things.

The effort makes sense: Millennials are used to the gig economy, and selling jewelry and makeup on the side isnt really so different from driving an Uber. But even as more millennials sign up as sales reps, that doesnt mean others arent skeptical.

In 2015, more than 20 million Americans worked as direct sales reps, according to estimates from the Direct Selling Association, the industrys lobby. Such companies made less than 1 per cent of all American retail sales that year  but more than 8 per cent of American adults were involved in the industry, a Bloomberg analysis of industry and retail sales data shows.

Millennials have an annual spending power of $600 billion, a number expected to grow to $1.4 trillion by 2020, according to market research by Accenture. But theyre also indebted and underemployed, and 62 per cent have considered launching their own business  although 42 per cent say they dont have the financial means, a survey found last year.

Their entrepreneurial dreams and shallow pockets make them perfect sales-rep recruits.

At that particular point in life, you get a little impatient about what youd like to see happen next, says Bill Keep, the dean of The College of New Jersey School of Business and one of the few independent academics who studies multi-level marketing companies. He suspects most millennial recruits were targeted by age. More bluntly: You fish where the fish are.

Becoming a sales rep can cost as little as a few dollars, but the commitment quickly grows. And few are anywhere near as successful as Tischler.

Marian Bull tried selling Rodan & Fields LLC skin-care products last winter and chronicled her experience. The 28-year-old New York writer invested about $300 in a starter kit and set about messaging Facebook friends to hawk her wares. Young people can be very skeptical buyers, she says. That sort of compounds the difficulty of trying to sell things to your friends.

In order to sell to millennials, you need millennial sellers, says Bank of America Merrill Lynch research analyst Olivia Tong.

In 2015, millennials accounted for more than 40 per cent of the sales reps who joined Mary Kay, bringing their share of the companys entire sales force to a quarter.

Millennials make up a third of sales reps for Arbonne International LLC, where theyre the fastest-growing chunk of its sales force, the company says. Theyre also a third of the roughly 40,000 sales reps for Origami Owl.

New Avon LLC  formerly the North American unit of Avon, spun off from its struggling parent company last year amid falling sales  declined to say what share of its reps are millennials.

Even as the industry aggressively courts millennials as sales reps, it faces challenges in trying to win them over as customers. Most purchases online and are more likely to be influenced by product reviews. A quarter of them go straight to Amazon, while just 7 per cent seek friends advice, according to a recent ComScore shopping report.

Youre dealing with a generation that is exposed to so many brands, says retail analyst Candace Corlett, president of WSL Strategic Retail. Avon and Mary Kay would have to do some very viral magic in order to catch up.

I wanted to prove to college girls that you could be in school and sell Mary Kay.

That, she says, requires a focus on social media  rather than parties and in-person sales, which still account for most sales  and an online shopping platform with a seamless user experience. But that can be a tricky proposition for multi-level marketing companies, which risk undercutting their own sales reps with online sales.

If you look at our successful millennials, they arent having in-home events, says Brett Blake, Origami Owls chief executive officer. Theyre having online events. They have VIP groups. They have Instagram followers.

To become an Origami Owl rep, the typical buy-in starts at $159, depending on the size of the starter kit; the cheapest is most popular.

In October, the company tested a discount sign-up program: For $2, a rep could sign up, create a webpage and sell jewelry to friends without keeping any physical inventory  an attractive option for millennials with little money to invest. About 5,500 people signed up.

For those sales reps in the industry who do have to keep an inventory, however, doing business is considerably more expensive  and should they choose to close up shop, they can be saddled with dead stock.

Mary Kay says keeping inventory isnt necessary and its buy-in is currently just $100. But many reps have far more invested. Tischler keeps about $6,000 worth of inventory on hand. Rachel Gildea, another Mary Kay rep, bought $1,600 worth to get started.

Arbonne, whose buy-in is $79, and Avon also say they dont require reps to keep inventory on hand  but Andrew Sussman, a 24-year-old Arbonne rep, spent about $1,000 on inventory to start.

Arbonne offers 100-per-cent buy-back, meaning it gives any sales reps who want out a total refund for any inventory they bought in the past year.

The Direct Selling Association requires that all its members offer at least 90-per-cent buy-back. Both Mary Kay and Avon offer that 90 per cent, which Mary Kay considers one of the strongest selling points we have for new and tenured reps. Avon also accepts returns within 120 days of purchase.

Keep argues that reps might be loath to use such programs, though.

Its usually a friend or family member that involves you, he says. If you return the product, you really take money from your friend or family member, because their commissions will be adjusted accordingly.

(Mary Kay disagrees with his assessment. We dont see it that way at all, spokesperson Pio DelCastillo said, adding that more than 7,000 reps used the buy-back guarantee in each of the past three years.)

Its unclear how much money reps earn, on average. Most of the companies are privately held and dont share that information.

Active Arbonne reps earn, on average, about $674 a year, according to a compensation summary the company shared.

There are estimates that active Herbalife reps make $627.55 a year on average, based on data from the publicly traded company  roughly equivalent to working two hours a week at the federal minimum wage of $7.25.

Its also unclear how much of reps earnings come from hawking their products themselves, vs. from commissions earned on sales made by other reps theyve recruited.

Blake, the Origami CEO, said, With so much of the Origami Owl business streaming through reps websites, the vast majority of the commissions the company pays out are for retail sales, not recruitment.

Still, the rare success stories of reps such as Tischler convince others to join.

After racking up thousands in sales and a sizable team, Tischler considered dropping out of college to pursue a full-time direct-sales career. She ultimately decided against it.

I wanted to prove to college girls that you could be in school and sell Mary Kay, she says. Be successful and make good grades.

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The Snuggie  the fluffy blanket with sleeves that is designed not to slip off no matter how aggressively you reach for the potato chips  received a big win recently.

A U.S. trade court ruled that the product, a breakaway star of TV shopping that has appeared on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, The Today Show and Oprah, should be classified as a blanket, rather than clothing, as government lawyers had been trying to claim.

The case might seem strange  why does the government care about classifying Snuggies anyway? But due to variations in tariffs  the taxes that governments place on imports to make foreign products more expensive, and help make domestic manufacturers more competitive  the decision is likely to end up costing the government big and saving the company a bundle.

Every item that moves across the border has a set tariff. That includes the Snuggie, which is made in China.

These tariffs have been hammered out through decades of negotiation between governments and industry lobbies, and often vary for each product category. In the United States, the tariff on imported blankets is 8.5 per cent, whereas the tariff on imported pullover apparel is significantly higher at 14.9 per cent.

That was enough to convince the Hawthorne, N.Y.-based Allstar Marketing Group, which makes the Snuggie, to take the U.S. government to the United States Court of International Trade for categorizing the Snuggie as apparel, similar to a priestly garment.

The judge sided with Snuggie last month, saying that the product was a blanket, not clothing, in part due to its lack of closures in the back. Allstar Marketing declined to comment on the case.

The Snuggie case and others like it show how companies may go to great lengths to avoid the barriers governments impose on imported products.

President Donald Trump has argued for even stiffer tariffs on products from countries that refuse to negotiate better terms of trade with the United States, like Mexico and China. He has also backed away from free trade deals that would slash tariffs among many countries, and expressed a desire for negotiating deals with countries one-on-one.

Americas current system for taxing imported goods is complicated. There are tariffs, which vary by each product category, often for reasons which may be lost to history, says Lawrence Friedman, a trade lawyer at Barnes Richardson. In addition, the Commerce Department sometimes imposes temporary duties on products as punishment when companies or countries do something that violates international trade laws.

Republicans are also weighing something called a border adjustment tax, which would tax imports and subsidize exports. This is not the same as a tariff  its a different way of taxing companies that could replace the corporate income tax.

Companies have to grapple with this patchwork of tariff and tax systems as they ship their products around the world. Typically, they try everything in their power to avoid them. If the Trump administration chooses to introduce more tariffs and duties on imported products, it might give U.S. companies an edge in their domestic market. But as other examples show, its also likely to encourage firms around the world to engage in wasteful spending that doesnt end up helping consumers or the economy.

Bryan Riley, a senior policy analyst and advocate for free trade at the Heritage Foundation, says that trade barriers have a few less-obvious costs. They make Americans pay more for imported goods, and they encourage companies to invest in lobbying the government for special protection from competition. They can encourage companies to revamp their supply chains to, for example, buy a part from Vietnam rather than from China.

Sometimes, the potential savings from avoiding a tariff can encourage companies to redesign their products to get around them  a practice that is known as tariff engineering.

Companies will employ tariff engineers to make sure products come in at a lower tariff rate, and you cant tell me there is not a better use for their talent, Riley said. It would be a lot easier if companies could just focus on producing what American consumers want, instead of trying to design products to get around the most harmful aspects of U.S. trade barriers.

For example, Americas high tariffs on sugar have encouraged companies to shift to importing cake mixes and other sugar-rich products instead, says Doug Irwin, an economist at Dartmouth. And when the U.S. imposed a tariff on motorcycles with 700-cc engines and larger in the early 1980s in a bid to protect motorcycle company Harley Davidson, Japanese competitors simply started making a 699-cc version instead, Irwin says.

Halloween costumes walk a similarly thin line, as NPRs Planet Money has reported. By using a Velcro closure instead of a zipper or button, some products are more likely to be counted as festive articles than clothing, which is subject to much higher tariffs.

Firms are very clever at doing this, Irwin says. If you put a tariff on a particular product category, they can with a small adjustment get classified as a different product and get around the tariff.

Friedman says he has tracked the practice of tariff engineering as far back as 1882, when the Supreme Court ruled on a case involving a sugar importer. Duties on sugar were based on the products colour, so an enterprising company coloured its sugar with molasses to get around the tax.

The Supreme Court ruled that the company had the right to do so, as long as it was properly disclosing to customs what its merchandise was and not trying to deceive border agents, Friedman says. Yet the line between redesigning your product and fraudulently misrepresenting it has sometimes proved to be a tricky one, for both companies and courts.

In one 1991 case, a court ruled against a company that had circumvented high duties on feathers by importing them as feather dusters instead. After the dusters arrived in the country, the company took them apart to make them into boas or put them on hats. Because the articles werent sold in the condition they were imported, the court decided this was artifice.

Another controversial case involving Ford is working its way through the Court of International Trade.

For years, Ford has imported its Transit Connect van as a passenger van  imports which the U.S. taxes at a rate of only 2.5 per cent. But once the vehicles enter the United States, Ford sends some of the vehicles to a nearby facility, where workers rip out the rear bench seats and replace the rear windows with solid panels to make the vehicle into a cargo van. In the process, Ford circumvents a hefty tariff of 25 per cent on imported cargo vans.

The court is still deciding whether this constitutes artifice. But Ford is hardly the first carmaker to employ these kinds of tactics. In the late 1970s, Subaru tried to get around high tariffs on imported pickup trucks by installing plastic seats in truck beds. Other companies have gone so far as to assemble cars abroad, disassemble them into parts to be shipped across the U.S. border, and then reassemble them again once theyre inside the country.

Even when these policies are legal, for economists they can still be troubling. They mean that companies are spending valuable time and money on circumventing trade policy that they could be spending on more useful activities, like innovating or improving customer service.

Trade barriers definitely force companies to think about undertaking actions that they wouldnt have otherwise done, says Chad Bown, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute of International Economics. And the question is, well, is that beneficial for the country in some way? I suppose there are instances where its possible, but in most instances, no.

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The plain truth is this: without journalists, there is no news.

True or false?

For generations, news has been something delivered by journalists  people working for organizations whose role was to decide what should be reported and how. The audience received the information.

But the digital news space is a crazy and chaotic place. Its home not only to professionally produced and edited reporting but also to solid material from non-journalists, well-intended but misleading information, unprocessed data, unsubstantiated opinion, marketing spin and deliberately fake news.

The digital revolution makes us all reporters of a kind, chroniclers of small moments and big events, whether were capturing a slice of city life on Instagram or live streaming a protest on our Facebook account.

Does that make us journalists? Are we producing news?

Read more:Museums project has a familiar look for journalists

Defining what we mean by these terms is more than a pedantic exercise. As the number of professional journalists declines in Canada, as some news outlets shut their doors and the flow of solid, fact-checked, explanatory information about our society and governments diminishes, we find ourselves relying more on the output of other organizations and individuals for whom reporting is not a main function but a sideline. And that leads to questions like: Who do they represent? What standards do they follow? How much can I trust them? Are they providing the information I need, or the information they want me to have?

The opening quote in this story is from Julia Cage, a French economist, in her book Saving the Media: Capitalism, Crowdfunding, and Democracy. She believes the primary purpose of news companies is the free, unbiased, high-quality information that is indispensable to democratic debate, and like many other people shes trying to find new models to replace the falling revenues that have affected the news media throughout the world.

Her aim is to protect professional journalism. There is much reporting that can be done only by trained, experienced journalists working for news organizations that give them the security, time and resources to cover a topic day in and day out, or probe deeply into an issue, without fear of the consequences.

But whatever the business models of the future look like, journalists will continue to work within an information ecosystem where non-journalists reports and images are prevalent  and needed. Where in the community will we find or create these other sources of reliable civic information?

In museums?

That isnt a joke. Consider a display on the anti-gay bullying of a teenager, part of a permanent exhibit at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg. It outlines a real Supreme Court case, giving different perspectives on the issue and pausing occasionally to ask visitors their take on the questions before the court. At the end, visitors find out how their responses compare to those of others viewing the material  and to the courts decision in the case.

When Ryerson University journalism professor and former department chair Ivor Shapiro saw the exhibit, he came away thinking it could be seen as a form of alternative journalism.

Shapiro has given a lot of thought to how to define journalism in a way that fits todays world, where the boundaries between professionals and the audience have blurred. A clear definition of journalism will help us open up our eyes to journalism that isnt provided by news organizations, he said in an interview in November.

His proposal focuses on what constitutes journalistic activity, rather than who is a journalist, and he breaks it down into five elements.

Other academics have studied definitions over the years and come up with some common characteristics, he noted in Why democracies need a functional definition of journalism now more than ever, published in Journalism Studies in 2014.

Gathering and disseminating news is one, of course, though news itself is difficult to define. (News is something someone somewhere doesnt want printed. Everything else is advertising, is the famous quote from British newspaper magnate Lord Northcliffe in the early 20th century, still heard today.) Among other characteristics: independence. Accuracy and verification. Objectivity. Public service. Writing in a plain or narrative style.

Shapiro condenses the academic thinking into these elements:

1. Subject matter: Journalistic activity focuses on current or recent events, although exemplary models of journalism include attempts to contextualize, analyze, and interpret events rather than merely conveying the latest emerging facts. Journalism, he says, is not history.

2. Audience: It is aimed at a broader public. The word journalism is not used for insider-to-insider communication within organizations and closed communities; rather, journalism seeks, by definition, to broaden the boundaries within which information is known and understood.

3. Accuracy: Journalism always involves some attempt at ensuring that factual statements are accurate. Shapiro does note that the achievement of accuracy is a matter of evaluation.

4. Independence: There is no direct benefit to publishing the material  no financial or other gain from a particular piece of reporting. (Earning revenues and an audience from publication is not considered a direct benefit.)

5. Original creation: Journalism is not merely copying, republishing, or referencing existing works.

By this definition, journalism is surprising, Shapiro said  and could include a museum exhibit. A lot of curation is actually journalism.

Jodi Giesbrecht, manager of research and curation at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, where Shapiro saw the exhibit on bullying, sees the parallels.

Were keenly aware that were not necessarily a news source, she said, but the museum includes a number of timely exhibits, and uses digital technology that enables constant updating if necessary. For example, new material was quickly added to an exhibit on Indian residential schools after the release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commissions report in June 2015.

The museum reviews its research, as a Crown corporation its independent, and some of its material is original  including its oral-history collection. And it is aimed at a broad audience it wants to engage in timely issues.

Our mandate is to inspire reflection and dialogue on human rights, Giesbrecht said in an interview. Thats really the purpose of why we address different issues and tell different stories, to prompt that awareness, reflection and dialogue.

What are those burning issues of the day, what are people talking about and how can we enhance that conversation or provide a bit of education function to the public?

Aside from its obvious support of human rights, Giesbrecht said, the museum aims to present a range of views. The presentation on bullying was part of an exhibit looking at a series of court cases, from assisted dying to abortion. And sometimes well get the question of, What is the museums position on some of those issues? And through the exhibits we dont take a position or tell visitors what they should think.

We often see ourselves as a platform for debate, for presenting different perspectives, competing perspectives at times, but we generally try to avoid advocating one way or another.

So: only museum curation, or also a form of journalism?

Can university profs be journalists?

Research carried out in universities  like museums, a community institution  meet many of the criteria of journalistic activity proposed by Shapiro.

It doesnt always focus on current or recent events, but it can.

Accuracy and verification are a bedrock of scholarly research, often through the process of peer review  scrutiny by others in the same field.

The work produced in universities is often independent. Some research is sponsored by industry or government, but researchers must make conflicts and sources of financing known.

And while research often builds on the work of others, it generally includes original thinking or new proofs.

What universities have not been known for is writing for the public. Their more natural audience is other academics, sometimes in very narrow slices of a specialty, and the resulting jargon and scholarly norms can make research almost indecipherable to a general readership  in fact, to anyone outside that particular field.

But there is an increasing emphasis on reaching a wider audience. Anyone applying for research money now to the body that oversees a large chunk of scholarly grants in Canada, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), must include a plan to share the research beyond academia.

The idea is to demonstrate the value and contribution of social sciences and humanities research to society, SSHRC media relations adviser Julia Gualtieri explained in an email.

This could be the general public, policy makers or practitioners in the field such as teachers or social workers. It depends on the particular focus of the research project. However, the audience is always intended to be a non-academic one.

SSHRC asks grant recipients to consider different ways of reaching people, including social media, blogs, videos, and op-eds. It provides them with some training  for example, in writing opinion pieces for media outlets  and sponsors a Storytellers competition.

We believe it is crucial for the next generation of researchers to hone their skills as communicators, Gualtieri said.

What about your neighbour?

How journalistic are some of the contributions to the news ecosystem from citizens, as individuals or in interest groups?

This can be a real hit-and-miss source of information. One citizen may be a true expert on an issue, who writes clearly and fact-checks everything before posting it. Another may happily pass on information without knowing whether its reliable or not. How would we know?

Despite a continuing decline of faith in the media  only 45 per cent of Canadians in late 2016 said they trust the media as an institution, with 58 per cent saying they trust traditional media, according to the Edelman Trust Barometer  and despite the focus south of the border on fake news, professional news outlets generally follow standards of accountability. Depending on the organization, readers and viewers can request corrections, they can appeal to a public editor, they can take the organization to a press council, they can even take it to court. The understanding behind these measures is that the news outlets will be accurate and fair, and will be open to challenge if they are not.

Museums and universities arent news outlets but they too have regulations to uphold, and reputations and revenues to protect.

No such understanding exists with non-professionals. Many will hold themselves to high standards, but not everyone will; and some deliberately will not.

Buzzfeed media editor Craig Silverman has written extensively about the fake-news phenomenon and created a checklist to help people judge the reliability of what theyre reading. Among the common-sense tips: Is the author identified by name? Does the online site have an About page or say clearly whos behind it? Is the headline backed up in the story? Have you found any other stories with the same information or claim? When you search for information about the site on Google, what do you find?

Given the ease with which someone can disseminate misinformation or unproven rumour, knowingly or not, can we increase the possibilities of creating reliable sites run by citizens?

To go back to Shapiros five elements of journalistic activity, citizens would likely be focused on current or recent events, and their information would be aimed at a public audience, though clear presentation would not be a given.

The larger difficulties may be in:

Conveying accurate and verified information: knowing where to go for information and how to check it.

Ensuring independence: establishing that no business or personal benefit arises from the information thats reported and shared.

Offering original work: even more of a difficulty now that the Internet makes it so easy to reproduce and share words and images; its easy to blur the concept of originality and adaptation.

This checklist shows why, even after we all had the ability to publish our own words online, past efforts in citizen journalism usually focused on people in a community providing stories to the local news organization, which would pass the work through its own editors for verification, balance and writing standards.

But newsrooms no longer have the staff to devote to time-consuming edits of outside work.

And training non-journalists and managing partnerships is beyond the resources of many news organizations without outside funding, says Jan Schaffer, who has been involved in discussions of many experimental projects over the years as executive director of J-Lab: The Institute for Interactive Journalism.

She has found that projects involving citizens often simmer out. One big issue, she said in an email exchange, is that citizens dont really want to do journalism. Frankly, its too hard.

The most promising efforts, she has found, are by journalists who have left news organizations and started investigative news sites; or by civic catalysts who run hyperlocal sites in their communities. And increasingly mainstream and public media are partnering with these startups to amplify each others journalism, she said.

What kind of partnerships might give each side something it needs? Interested citizens need some training and ongoing mentorship. Short-staffed newsrooms need to help inform their community without having to be directly responsible for the quality of information produced by others. Universities and other institutions need to reach the world outside their specialties. We all need more and better information about the places where we live and the people we live among.

This is the kind of thinking that is going into the effort to talk through, and hopefully launch, two or three experiments as part of the Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy. More to come.

wallace.mtl@gmail.com

About the series

The Atkinson Fellowship awards a seasoned Canadian journalist with the opportunity to pursue a yearlong investigation into a current policy issue. This award is a project funded by the Atkinson Foundation, the Honderich family and the Toronto Star.

Catherine Wallace is exploring the future of journalism at a time when the news industry is in a financial crisis. Canada has lost a third of its journalists in the last six years. What role can the community play in helping to fill the gap in information and storytelling? Wallace is a former Montreal Gazette managing editor who has also worked at the Toronto Star and the Globe and Mail. Her stories will run periodically.

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Sen. Don Meredith tried to keep secret the lurid details of his affair with a teenage girl, Senate ethics documents reveal.

The publication of the report would put all parties at risk of serious emotional and other harm, Meredith wrote in a letter to the Senate investigator one week ago. Publication would also harm the institution of the Senate.

Lyse Ricard, the Senate ethics officer, refused his request and the report was published late Thursday. A few days before sending the letter, Meredith had also attempted through his lawyer to censor the damning report, saying it would breach his privacy and that of the woman with whom he had the relationship.

A Pentecostal minister who was appointed to the Senate in 2010, Meredith was the focus of a Star investigation in 2015 over a two-year sexual relationship with a young woman that began in 2013, when she was 16 and he was 48. Ricards investigation found that Meredith violated the highest standards of dignity of the Canadian Senate when he lured the girl into a sexual relationship, despite how vulnerable she was due to her age.

The report as published first takes the reader through the challenges Ricard faced. Meredith objected to the probe, questioning whether Senate ethics rules covered the allegations, and saying whatever he did with the teen was on personal time. But Ricard determined that the code of conduct applies broadly and that a senator must uphold the highest standards in both public and private life.

Read more:

Pressure mounts on Meredith to resign his seat

Merediths relationship with teenager breached Senate rules, ethics office says

Meredith wont face criminal charges over relationship with woman

Then came the police. After Ricard first interviewed the complainant (called Ms. M in the report), she determined that the case might be criminal and passed the file to the Ottawa police in September 2015. The police later closed the file because the woman was concerned that her identity would be released through a court proceeding and decided not to give a statement to police.

Ricard took up the case again. She promised Ms. M confidentiality and interviewed her twice, and Meredith twice. Meredith had no texts or emails, saying he had deleted them all. Ms. M provided a series of texts, emails and electronic correspondence from Skype and Viber. Merediths government cellphone records also showed multiple calls to her number.

Ricard concluded that Ms. M was more credible.

The report describes how a meeting at a church function in 2013 led to a full-blown sexual relationship. At first, there were flirtatious chats. Then Meredith asked the teen to send naked or partially naked photos of herself. At times, they used Skype or Viber to have video sex. Meredith was either in his taxpayer-paid suite at the Chateau Laurier in Ottawa, in his church office at the GTA Faith Alliance north of Toronto, or in his home office in the Toronto area.

The report goes into great detail about the intimate relationship, stating that Meredith would masturbate while looking at the girl on a screen. As for their sexual play, the report says Meredith told her this is what adults do. During their two-year liason, she called him uncle or daddy. He called her daughter, which Meredith, when interviewed, told Ricard was a running joke between them. On one occasion, Meredith introduced her to his wife and daughter.

Early on in their relationship, he invited the teen to his hotel room and promised he would only take off his socks, the report says. That encounter ended up as just dinner at a restaurant. Later, she did visit his room. There, he would fondle her. His pants would be down, her top would be off. They had intercourse once before she turned 18 and twice after, the report states. She was a virgin when she met Meredith, and the report notes that Meredith, in a Viber message exchange, told her no rush baby, no rush.

Their liasons typically involved dinner, with intimate times at either his hotel room or her apartment. On one occasion, the report says, she returned to his Chateau Laurier room to collect some takeout food after a sexual encounter and Meredith flew into a rage  angry, he said, because somebody might see her. I am a student and food means a great deal to me, she told Meredith in a text.

The report notes that Meredith wanted Ricard to prepare two reports, private and public, leaving out most of the detail from the public report. Ricard determined that her report had to tell the full story because the details are essential to understanding the narrative and because of the need to promote public confidence in the fact-finding process.

While questioning him, the Senate officer told Meredith that Ms. M alleged the senator said he could introduce (her) to people in the future. Meredith said he did not recall this, but told Ricard he is always looking out for how we can help to promote our young people.

Kevin Donovan can be reached at 416-312-3503 or kdonovan@thestar.ca .

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Not only should the general public be prevented from learning the identities of Ontarios top-billing doctors, but so should a three-judge panel that has been asked to overturn an order for the names to be publicly disclosed, a lawyer representing some of the physicians has argued.

Im not opposed to having the court have a sealed envelope with the identities of the clients, lawyer Chris Dockrill told Ontario Divisional Court Justice Ian Nordheimer on Friday.

If we are successful in the applications, the document presumably gets destroyed or gets returned or forever stays in that morass out there where the court stores and loses things, he continued.

Dockrill, who is acting for several affected physicians, and lawyers for two other groups of doctors are seeking a judicial review of an order made last June by the office of the Ontario privacy commissioner to release the names of Ontarios 160 top-billing doctors.

The privacy commissioners office ruled in favour of an appeal by the Toronto Star in ordering the release of names.

The Star requested physician-identified billing data from Ontarios Health Ministry in April 2014. For most of the doctors in question, data were provided on annual fee-for-service payments from the Ontario Health Insurance Plan and medical specialties. But names were withheld because the ministry deemed their release would be an unjustified invasion of privacy.

John Higgins, an adjudicator with the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, wrote in his decision that public disclosure is in the best interest of transparency and accountability.

Departing from previous rulings, Higgins said physician-identified billings are not personal information and, therefore, not exempt from disclosure under the province's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

Such data is made public in other provinces such as Manitoba and B.C. Physician-identified billing data is also publicly disclosed in the U.S.

The judicial review will be argued before a panel of three judges on June 19 and 20.

On Friday, Nordheimer dealt with procedural motions, mostly related to how much information about the case should be made public and how much should remain private. There is agreement among all parties that the names of the 160 doctors in question should be kept from the public, pending the outcome of the judicial review.

Dockrill said the identities should also be kept from the court, otherwise there is a significant possibility a judge would recognize a doctors name and then be compromised.

He said his clients are concerned about being named and shamed.

This is a contentious time for the medical profession, not just because of this case, but also because it has been without a fee contract with the province for three years, he said.

Star lawyer Paul Schabas said the anonymity request from the doctors is unusual, but an understandable one in this context.

However, he went on to argue that a decision should be made as narrowly as possible.

Withholding physician names from the court and from counsel such as himself is an astonishing proposition, Schabas said.

He argued that the public should be given some information about the doctors, for example, the number Dockrill represents, their specialties, what part of the province they are from and their gender. The last three pieces of information could be found on the website of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario if the names of the doctors were known.

(The anonymity motion) is still an extraordinary request. Its still asking you to limit the publics right to know and I submit you must do that in a way that limits the publics right to know as little as possible and enhances the publics ability, as much as possible, to understand what is going on in these proceedings, Schabas said.

Nordheimer said that a person who commences a court proceeding must do so publicly and that if a restriction is sought, it must be justified.

Why should the medical specialties of your clients  not their names, not their addresses, but their medical specialties  be kept secret? he asked Dockrill.

Dockrill responded that such information is not relevant in determining whether the identities of the doctors should be made public. He would only say he represents a broad range of specialists from across the province.

Nordheimer reserved his decision.

The Star reported last December that the 12 top-billing doctors in Ontario received an average of $4 million each in fee-for-service claims in 2014-15, according to an audit obtained through a separate freedom-of-information request. The top biller, an ophthalmologist, received $7 million.

The Health Ministry audit uncovered significant concerns about their claims to the taxpayer-funded plan. Among them: six doctors allegedly charged for services not rendered, five upcoded or billed OHIP using fee codes for more expensive procedures, and three charged for medically unnecessary services, which the plan is not designed to fund.

Payments are not the same as income as they do not take into account expenses for office rent, staff salaries and supplies.

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OTTAWAJustin Trudeaus praise of Fidel Castro after the Cuban leaders death left bureaucrats scrambling to counter the criticism sparked by the prime ministers comments, documents show.

The foreign affairs department, the privy council office and the prime ministers office were all involved in drafting public statements to dampen the reaction stirred by Trudeaus warm tribute of the polarizing world figureand the critique he had turned a blind eye to Castros human rights record.

In a telling sign, several of Canadas diplomatic missions were discouraged from reposting Trudeaus statement on social media, according to the documents obtained under Access to Information.

The controversy broke last November when Castro died, ending his decades-long reign ruling of Cuba with an iron grip. In his Nov. 26 statement, Trudeau expressed deep sorrow at Castros passing, who he called a larger than life leader.

A legendary revolutionary and orator, Mr. Castro made significant improvements to the education and healthcare of his island nation, Trudeau said in his statement

Both Mr. Castros supporters and detractors recognized his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for el Comandante, the prime minister said.

But the prime ministers statement was silent on the many human rights violations of the Castro regime, saying only that he was a controversial figure.

Trudeaus statement, issued in English, French and Spanish quickly sparked anger and ridicule.

Is this a real statement or a parody? Because if this is a real statement from the PM of Canada it is shameful & embarrassing, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio said on Twitter.

Other critics on social media mocked how Trudeau may have eulogized other notorious world figures, from Genghis Khan to Osama bin Laden.

Behind the scenes, bureaucrats worked to counter the fall-out of Trudeaus statement as Canadian diplomats pressed foreign affairs for direction in how to respond.

U.S. missions are looking for media lines on Fidel Castro, said one Nov. 28 email as the controversy hit.

Officials in foreign affairs and communications staff in the prime ministers office worked on lines that were given to the Canadian embassy in Washington. Those were for use by the ambassador in responding to criticisms of PM Trudeaus press release, according to an email from a foreign affairs official dated Nov. 28.

The speaking note said that Castro was loved and hated.

The PM acknowledged Castro was a controversial figure; he offered an obituary to recognize the passing of a former head of state, a state with which Canada has a deep and long lasting relationship, the note said.

But make no mistake, the PM has never shied away from raising the issue of human rights in Cuba and abroad, it said.

Yet that statement, provided for David MacNaughton, Canadas ambassador in Washington, went further than Trudeau did himself, citing what it called Castros irredeemable failings in human rights.

Similar responses were prepared and distributed to Canadas other diplomatic missions in the United States to help staff field media inquiries about the tone of Trudeaus statement.

Topping the list of anticipated questions was, why did the PM statement not address any of the controversial aspects of Fidel Castros leadership?

In response, Canadian officials were advised to note that Trudeau had recognized that Fidel Castro was an influential and controversial figure.

And those notes highlighted the steps that Canada is taking to promote human rights in Cuba, saying that the issue is regularly raised at high-level bilateral consultations.

Acknowledging the controversy stirred by Trudeaus statement, some Canadian missions asked whether there were instructions about sharing the statement as we would normally do with all other statements.

Regarding the PMs press release, we are consulting . . . but I would recommend not re-posting it at the moment, a foreign affairs official responded.

Marianick Tremblay, Canadas ambassador to Ecuador, asked for direction on how diplomats should sign books of condolences set up in Cuban embassies.

Considering Castros high profile and the context, it would also be useful if you could provide us with a short approved short text . . . signing to take place this week. We could avoid more controversy by writing all the same approved text, Tremblay wrote.

An unidentified journalist from the Washington Post even questioned Trudeaus claims that Castro had made significant improvements to Cubas education and health systems.

I check the accuracy of statements made by politicians. What is the basis for this claim, the journalist wrote the foreign affairs department in an email.

In other words, what data can you point to that shows significant improvements in education and healthcare in Cuba now versus pre-revolutionary Cuba. The data I can find is that while the country was once in the top ranks of Latin America, it has fallen steadily behind, the email stated.

That set off a scramble as officials reached out to officials at the Canadian embassy in Havana for help with a response.

That response, if there was one, was not included in the package of documents provided to the Star.

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A national council responsible for monitoring animal welfare in research laboratories is investigating hidden camera footage obtained by W5 that appears to show mistreatment of dogs, pigs and monkeys used for testing at a Montreal-based facility.

Portions of the footage  shot by the Los Angeles-based rights group Last Chance for Animals, which embedded a technician at ITR Laboratories Canada for four months  were shown to the executive director of the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC), Louise Desjardins.

She would not comment directly on what she had seen, but told W5 that the association was in discussions with ITR about the footage.

I do not want to pre-empt or preclude the work of the panel, Desjardins told W5 in an interview. I really think that they need the time to do that work and gather all the facts.

The video shows dogs aggressively thrown into cages, pigs restrained as they squeal, and technicians slamming animals onto stainless steel operating tables.

Hours of video have also been filed with the Quebec government, along with 17 pages of an official complaint alleging abuse and inhumane practices at the Montreal lab.

The company disputes the claim.

ITR operates in compliance with industry standards and federal and provincial guidelines for animal care in a laboratory testing environment, the company wrote in a statement to W5. We take our responsibility to treat the animals in our care with the utmost respect very seriously.

CCAC, a not-for-profit association based in Ottawa that was established to develop and monitor the guidelines, has responsibility for industry oversight. Not all private labs are required to join, but those who receive federal funding grants are, as well as all university research labs. ITR Canada pays a fee to be certified by the association.

CCAC can investigate complaints, but only with the co-operation of the research labs. Last year, the association found reasons to place three facilities from among its 201 certified institutions on temporary probation.

Those fact-finding missions can take months to reach their conclusion, and rely on the co-operation of the testing facility. Canada is the only G8 country that does not have federal government inspectors with the power to enforce rules governing animal treatment in research labs.

In between her paid job as a lab technician, the undercover agent was also recording some of what she saw happening around her.

Dogs (were) howling, crying all day long, recalled the investigator, who asked not to be identified so she could conduct other undercover operations. Up and down the halls youd go, and thats all you would hear is the dogs howling and crying.

Last Chance for Animals undercover footage provides what is believed to be the first inside look at a Canadian testing facility and focuses attention on an industry, largely unregulated, that makes animals sick so humans wont be. The public rarely gets to see what the animals endure. While animal testing is legal, it is nevertheless very upsetting to watch.

Every year in Canada, an estimated three and a half million animals are used by science, some of them exposed to experimental drugs, household products and even cosmetics to test their tolerance to them.

The vast majority are mice, fish and birds, but 12,000 dogs and 5,000 monkeys are also involved in more advanced testing. The animals are bred for the purpose, sold to the labs, and live very short and often painful lives.

There are certain cases that we documented that certainly rise to the level of abuse, said Adam Wilson, who leads investigations for Last Chance for Animals.

Specifically, Wilson cites video evidence of a technician striking a pair of beagles 16 times because they wouldnt look forward in preparation for exposure to chemicals through a mask.

Industry guidelines are supposed to prevent harsh treatment of animals in science. They clearly state only the minimal force necessary should be employed against lab animals.

W5 also offered to screen the video for ITR Canada. The companys senior vice-president, Ginette Bain, did not accept repeated offers to watch it. She said she will rely on the CCAC panels findings on whether there are any concerns.

ITR has zero tolerance for the mistreatment of any animals under our care and maintains procedures to ensure staff may report and discuss concerns openly, the company wrote in a statement.

Approached for an interview by W5, Bain pointed to the benefits of live animal testing in the development of new medicines and drugs.

When questioned about a technician who appears to be hitting dogs in the video, she maintained that such treatment is not acceptable and not part of ITR standards, but said she still believes that animals have not been mistreated at the lab.

We will take the measures necessary, said Bain. And I can tell you that I am convinced that that does not happen.

Our business is saving lives, OK? We are committed to find treatment for a very wide varieties of ailments, like cancer or Alzheimers or diabetes. Thats what we do, Bain said.

Hundreds of staff work at the ITR facility on Montreals West Island. Thousands are employed in the industry nationwide.

A private members bill is slowly working its way through the Senate that would ban cosmetic testing on animals in Canada. But that is a small part of the testing industry.

The vast majority of the clients of ITR, according to documents obtained by the undercover animal rights agent, are large pharmaceutical companies hoping to prove with animal testing what the safe dose for humans will be for a new generation of drugs.

The W5 investigative documentary In the Name of Science airs Saturday at 7 p.m. on CTV.

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Yes, justice delayed is justice denied.

But a legal system that remains unaffordable is no less unjust.

And if rising costs keep bogging down our courts, we will all pay the price  not just needy people, but middle-class people in need of basic legal help. And everyone who counts on a functioning judicial system.

Lawyers lubricate our legal system, smoothing the way for litigants and judges alike. But they can also gum things up by charging so much that they price themselves out of the market.

The result is a family court system in which lawyers are mostly missing in action: A majority of people in divorce, separation and child custody cases represent themselves  for better or for worse, but for a lot less money.

If high-priced lawyers are part of the problem, part of the solution is paralegals.

As the name implies, they are licensed, trained facilitators who can help people navigate a confusing court process by filling in forms and explaining procedures that would otherwise leave them at sea.

Its not a new idea  other jurisdictions have experimented with them, including Ontario itself. But when a previous reform-minded attorney general, Michael Bryant, opened the door to paralegals a decade ago, the hide-bound Law Society of Upper Canada undermined and undid his efforts  banning them from family law courtrooms.

Now the problem has reached crisis proportions. A new report by the former chief justice of the Ontario court, Annemarie Bonkalo, tells us what we have long known:

Our family courts can barely cope.

Given todays high divorce rates, more people than ever find themselves grappling with an unfathomable, unaffordable system as they struggle to defend their personal, financial and familial interests. With many lawyers charging $500 an hour, bills can quickly escalate into tens of thousands of dollars.

If you are a young, suddenly single parent lacking a financial buffer, but too middle class to qualify for legal aid, hiring a lawyer seems a long shot. Thats why self-represented litigants are now in the majority in family court, with little more than the internet to rely on for free advice  and Google only gets you so far.

We need major reforms to a legal system that now amounts to rough justice. As long as lawyers charge extortionary rates  compounded by high overhead and outdated hourly billing practices  they will continue to price themselves out of the market, just as stock brokers did long ago.

A system increasingly in disrepute needs the disruptive innovation of paralegals. They are trained, regulated, and ready to help self-represented people navigate the legal system at more affordable rates.

Justice may be blind, but even the law society  the self-regulating body of the legal profession  is slowly opening its eyes to the damage inflicted by its own self-interest and inertia. So are judges.

In a report commissioned by both the provincial government and the law society, the former chief justice recommends paralegals be specially trained and licensed for straightforward family court matters.

Within hours of the reports release this week, the association representing family lawyers pounced on the prospect of new (or renewed) competition, claiming most cases are too complex for paralegals who havent been to law school. But as Bonkalos report points out, leaving self-represented litigants entirely to their own (internet) devices is no solution at all.

If anything, her recommendations seem too timid, requiring special certification for family law and restricting paralegals in cases involving property. Paralegals can already assist in criminal cases, so why would family law have higher stakes?

The law society has handcuffed paralegals in the past, and one wonders about keeping the legal foxes in charge of the paralegals hen house, given that they are potential competitors undercutting high-priced lawyers. Pharmacists and nurse practitioners, for example, arent regulated by the College of Physicians and Surgeons, but by their own professional bodies.

The law societys head, Paul Schabas (who still goes by the antiquated title of treasurer in this tradition-bound, self-regulating organization) tells me it welcomes the report. He agreed the regulators mandate is to act in the public interest, whereas the Family Lawyers Association comes at it as an interest group.

(Full disclosure: Schabas does legal work for the Toronto Star in libel and defamation actions, and he has in the past vetted my columns to keep me safely out of court.)

The current attorney general, Yasir Naqvi, says he wants to hear from the public before responding to the report. If the law society falls back on its old instinct for inertia, we need to hold our politicians accountable for a system that lets people down.

After all, the law societys statutory authority is delegated by the province itself. If lawyers continue to be part of the problem, resisting the recommended solution, the government can render its own verdict using its own residual authority.

Martin Regg Cohns political column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. mcohn@thestar.ca , Twitter: @reggcohn

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A Lancaster County jury Friday found a Texas woman guilty of theft by deception for cashing nearly $40,000 of her father-in-law's retirement checks after he died in 2012.

Sarah Kelley, 59, of Moody, Texas, is set for sentencing in April.

At a trial that started Monday in Lincoln, the state alleged that between July 2012 and May 2014 Kelley cashed and deposited into her account 23 checks issued to Thomas P. White from his Nebraska Public Employees Retirement System annuity.

The office later learned White died on May 21, 2012.

Kelley was married to White's son, Bradley White, from November 2011 to September 2013.

At trial, she alleged it was her then-husband who told her to sign her father-in-law's name on the checks and deposit them.

Early Friday afternoon, the jury returned a guilty verdict and determined the property Kelley stole was worth $39,803.17.
CINCINNATIThe Cincinnati Zoo has called again on a canine to play the role of nanny for other animals babies.

The latest assignment for Blakely the Australian shepherd is to be a companion for three Malayan tiger cubs. Their mothers maternal instincts didnt kick in after their Feb. 3 birth, and zoo staffers have been caring for them.

The 6-year-old male dog provides snuggling, warmth and a climbable body.

Dawn Strasser, head of the Cincinnati Zoos nursery staff, says Blakely serves as the adult in the room, teaching them behaviours such as checking them when they get too rough or aggressive.

The cubs are expected to move into the zoos Cat Canyon this summer.

Blakely has helped raise baby cheetahs, wallabies, bat-eared foxes, and an ocelot, among other young animals.

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When Jonathan Mango pulled out of the Taco Bell parking lot Wednesday afternoon in Saddle Brook, New Jersey, he didnt know his next move would save a life.

The 28-year-old, listening to his radio in his idling car, was watching across the dashboard as an 89-year-old woman - a cane in each hand - hobbled slowly across the train tracks that stretch along the edge of town.

Then Mango watched as the red light before the tracks began to flash, warning those who could see it that a train was fast approaching. But the elderly woman had long passed it.

It was when the safety gates on either side of her began to descend that Mango sprang into action.

No! he can be heard saying on dashboard camera footage recorded from inside his vehicle.

The video shows him darting out of the car, ducking beneath the lowered gate and running onto the train tracks, where he urges the woman along. Another man rushes to help, and the three manage to reach safety just as the New Jersey Transit commuter train barrels past, horn blasting.

Saddle Brook Police Chief Robert Kugler called the good Samaritan rescue the miracle on Market Street, reported News 12 New Jersey.

It proves to me that our society is full of good people, Kugler told the TV station, and for whatever reason yesterday, God put Jonathan on Market Street in Saddle Brook to witness this and save this woman from death.

The other man left before authorities arrived on the scene and remains unidentified, the chief told the Daily Voice. Medics came to treat the woman, who Kugler said was startled but uninjured. Mango told News 12 the woman, who didnt speak English, resisted his help at first as if she feared he was trying to harm her.

The woman is always walking through our community and in all types of weather conditions, attracting many to gaze and many others to offer assistance, Kugler said in a statement, reported CBS News. She certainly had the angels watching over her today. These two individuals, angels themselves without a doubt, saved her from a near disaster.

Authorities also credited the train conductor, who saw the rescue effort as he approached and applied the emergency brake and slowed the train, providing the extra seconds Mango and the other good Samaritan needed to bring the woman to safety, News 12 reported.

Authorities called Mangos employer, reported CBS, to praise his actions, but the 28-year-old said they werent heroic.

Just an ordinary Wednesday, he said.

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If you hate daylight saving time and all the confusion and sleep deprivation it brings, you now have solid data on your side.

A wave of new research is bolstering arguments against changing our clocks twice a year  including this weekend, when daylight saving time begins. (Clocks go ahead one hour at 2 a.m. Sunday.)

The case for daylight saving time has been shaky for a while. The biannual time change was first widely implemented to save energy during the First World War. Yet dozens of studies around the world have found that changing the clocks has either minuscule or non-existent effects on energy use. After the U.S. state of Indiana finally adopted daylight saving  that didnt happen until 2006  residents actually used more electricity.

Daylight saving time isnt just a benign relic of wartime rationing. The latest research suggests the time change can be harmful to our health and cost us money. The effects are most disruptive in the spring and fall, right after the time changes occur. Clocks in North America will spring forward Sunday. Most of Europe moves to daylight saving time two weeks later.

The suffering of the spring time change begins with the loss of an hour of sleep. That might not seem like a big deal, but researchers have found it can be dangerous to mess with sleep schedules. Car accidents, strokes and heart attacks spike in the days after the March time change. It turns out that judges, sleep deprived by daylight saving, impose harsher sentences.

Even mild changes to sleep patterns can affect human capital in significant ways, two Cornell University researchers, Lawrence Jin and Nicolas Ziebarth, wrote last year.

Some of the last defenders of daylight saving time have been a cluster of business groups who assume the change helps stimulate consumer spending. Thats not true either, according to recent analysis of 380 million bank and credit-card transactions by the JPMorgan Chase Institute.

The study compared Los Angeles with Phoenix in the 30 days after the March and November time changes. Arizona is a natural test case since its one of the two U.S. states, along with Hawaii, that doesnt do daylight saving. In the spring, according to the consumer transaction data, the additional hour of evening daylight in Los Angeles managed to slightly boost card spending per person, compared with that in Phoenix, although by less than 1 per cent. But that spending uptick is swamped by the negative impact, which sees the darkened population of Los Angeles spend 3.5 per cent less at local retailers following the November time change.

After the autumn time change, shoppers made far fewer trips to the store, especially during the week. Grocery stores, discount stores and other retailers bore the brunt, while restaurants and service businesses were mostly unaffected.

In other words, daylight turns out to be a surprisingly large factor in how often workers stop at stores on their way home from their jobs in the evening. At the end of the day, its either dark or light, and (people are) going to make an impulse decision at that point, Diana Farrell, president and chief executive of the JPMorgan Chase Institute.

One possible explanation for the sharp spending decline, Farrell said, is that the extra hour of darkness could push more people to shop online rather than in-person. The study looked only at transactions via local retailers.

Daylight saving time may threaten our health, hurt local retailers and otherwise disrupt our lives. But can anything be done about it?

As Hawaii, Arizona and Saskatchewan  the only province which doesnt follow the biannual time change  show, governments can decide whether they adopt daylight saving time. But opting out of the ritual has proven difficult.

Daylight saving is an example of how sticky policy can be, Farrell said.

Last year, 19 bills were pending in U.S. state legislatures to end the practice, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. None passed.

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Ivanka Trumps products werent always the hottest items online.

In January, for instance, the first daughters fashion line ranked No. 550 based on the number of orders from Lyst, the biggest fashion e-commerce website in the world, according to Forbes.

That changed dramatically the following month.

Sales of Trumps products skyrocketed in early February, making her Lysts 11th most popular brand. The biggest spike, according to Lyst, came on Feb. 9, when sales jumped by 219 per cent from the day before.

Yes, Feb. 9 - the same day that White House counselor Kellyanne Conway promoted Trumps clothing and jewelry line on Fox & Friends.

Go buy Ivankas stuff is what I would tell you, Conway said. Im going to give a free commercial here. Go buy it today, everybody.

And viewers did, apparently.

Abigail Klem, president of the Ivanka Trump brand, said in a statement that the beginning of February shows the best performing weeks in the history of the brand.

For several different retailers, Ivanka Trump was a top performer online, and in some of the categories it was the best performance ever, Klem said.

Read more:

Ethics watchdog condemns Conways public endorsement of Ivanka Trump products

Trump aide counselled after Ivanka pitch on Fox News, White House says

Photos: A look at Ivanka Trumps fashion line

Sarah Tanner, Lysts spokeswoman, said increases in sales are usually tied to current events. For instance, interest in pantsuits went up by 460 percent last year because of Hillary Clintons affinity for the style, she said. Sales of the first daughters products went up by 86 percent in November, when her father won the presidential election, according to the company.

But the brand was largely featured in the news in February, Tanner said. Conway gave her on-air endorsement of Ivanka Trumps brand after President Trump had complained on Twitter that his daughter had been treated so unfairly by the department store Nordstrom, which dropped her clothing line over slow sales.

It would not be a surprise to us if it resulted in the increase in sales, Tanner said of Conways Fox interview. I think thats one of the reasons the brand was largely in the news and could have attributed to this increase.

Conway did not respond to an email requesting comment. Her promotion of the fashion line appeared to violate an ethics rule barring federal employees from using their public office to endorse products and immediately drew criticism from both Democrats and Republicans.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said Conways comments were absolutely wrong, wrong, wrong and clearly over the line, The Washington Post reported.

The White House later said that Conway had been counseled. But concerns about her comments remain.

On Thursday, the governments top ethics official criticized the White House for not disciplining Conway, The Post reported. Walter Shaub, director of the Office of Government Ethics, had urged officials last month to reprimand the White House counsel but was rebuffed. On Thursday he wrote to Stefan C. Passantino, who handles White House ethics issues as the presidents deputy counsel.

When an employees conduct violates, disciplinary action serves to deter future misconduct, Shaub wrote. Not taking disciplinary action against a senior official under such circumstances risks undermining the ethics program.

Last month, a group of law professors filed a professional misconduct complaint against Conway - a law school graduate and member of the District of Columbia Bar - partly because of her on-air endorsement of Trumps products.

According to Lyst, February drew unusually large numbers of orders across many Ivanka Trump-branded products, including dresses, shoes, pants, coats, knitwear and tops. Heels were the bestsellers, followed by dresses.

Weve never seen such a large uptick, Tanner said. Typically, shes not in our top 100 sellers.

Comparing Februarys numbers with last years average number of orders of Ivanka Trump products shows a difference of 557 per cent. (Tanner said company policy prohibits her from sharing the actual numbers of online sales.)

The excitement on the brand, however, may be slumping. The companys numbers show sales were gradually tapering off toward the end of February. March does not appear to be as remarkable, but sales are still on track to be about eight per cent better than they were in January, according to Lyst.

The Ivanka Trump brand also appears to have weathered an aggressive boycott campaign called Grab Your Wallet, which began in October and encouraged shoppers to avoid retailers that stock Trump-branded products.

Some retailers have partially or completely distanced themselves from the Trump brand. Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Belk have stopped selling Trumps branded line of clothing, shoes and jewelry. T.J. Maxx and Marshalls have instructed employees to stop promoting Trump products in stores and to move Trump clothing into general merchandise racks. Sears Holdings and subsidiary Kmart discontinued online sales of 31 items from the Trump Home collection last month, though their websites still contain items sold by third-party sellers. The collection includes living room and bedroom furniture, lamps and chandeliers.

The companies attributed their decisions to product performance. Nordstrom, for instance, said sales of the brand have steadily declined, particularly in the last half of 2016.

Still, despite the boycott, Trumps line of fragrances enjoyed top spots in Amazons best-selling list last month, The Post reported. The Ivanka Trump Eau de Parfum spray was the top-selling item in the Perfumes & Fragrances category.

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For Melinda Gates, the key to unlocking the cycle of poverty can be found inside a condom wrapper  or birth control pill, IUD, diaphragm or any other contraceptive that gives a woman control over her reproductive fate.

But around the world, an estimated 225 million women still lack access to contraceptives, a troubling reality that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has spent more than $1 billion (U.S.) trying to change. On International Womens Day, the Star chatted with Melinda Gates, one half of the worlds wealthiest couple, about why she has gone all in on family planning  and what she would say to U.S. President Donald Trump if given the chance.

There are so many issues you could have chosen to devote your time and money to. Why did you settle on family planning as your signature cause?

Because I just see over and over around the world, as I would be out traveling and talking to women, this issue came up again and again and again. Women will tell you that they need to be able to space their births. Theyre very vociferous about it in the developing world.

It just became this rallying cry and if you look at the data, we know that one of the places youve got to start  if youre going to lift women out of poverty  is youve got to have access to contraceptives.

How do we know theres a link between contraceptives and reducing poverty?

One of the long-standing global health studies was back in Bangladesh, in the 1970s. It was a fantastic study, a long-term longitudinal study. They took a set of villages in Bangladesh and offered them the same sets of services as other villages  but those other villages had family planning and contraceptives offered to women.

In those villages that had access to contraceptives, the families were healthier at the end of the study, the families were wealthier  not just the kids but the family overall  and the kids were better educated. And so its like this gold-standard proof that you can have that contraceptives make a difference.

In 2012, you embarked on a campaign to provide 120 million women with access to contraceptives by 2020  but meeting that target now looks unlikely. What have been some of the surprising challenges that have come up that you didnt anticipate?

Ill just give you a couple examples of what we underestimated. We knew going into this (that) we had terrible, terrible data about women and access to contraceptives  and without data, you dont know how and where to act. So we actually had to go and build a measurement system.

In addition, we have supply chain issues all over the world. We knew we had those issues; we didnt know the depth of the problem to be quite frank, country to country.

And you know, lets be honest, there are cultural issues and theyre different in different places. We knew about them in general; were learning about them in depth now.

Can you tell me about a surprising cultural issue that came up?

Well, its interesting. I knew, for instance, that in India its quite often the mother-in-law who has resistance to her daughter-in-law using contraceptives  she wants a lot of grandkids. I knew there were places in Africa, particularly West Africa, where the men want lots of children, and they decide and determine access.

What I didnt understand was how the solutions would come about. So Niger is a perfect example. (Nigerois) themselves came up with their own solutions  They came up with a husband school, where they first taught the husbands why their children would be healthier  and why their wives would be healthier  if they allowed the women to use contraceptives.

I would never have thought that that was the how to go about that, even though we knew what the problem was. And its that kind of solution that has to be done in the right cultural context  and guess what? It works.

Its year one of a new presidency in the United States and theres been a lot of talk around (the reinstatement of) the global gag rule, which we know will dramatically hurt family planning efforts globally. (Also known as the Mexico City Policy, the rule prohibits foreign NGOs from receiving U.S. funds if they perform, counsel or refer women for abortions. Past analyses have shown that the policy not only fails to reduce abortions, but it restricts free speech and access to contraceptives). What impact do you think this will have?

The Mexico City Policy is something Im very concerned about. I dont think we even know yet the impact on women and girls because as this administration has put it on, it looks like it will be put on more broadly than in the past. And so were still all waiting to see exactly what the specificity of that is.

But I would say this: If youre a woman and youre getting HIV services, and this policy is now applied to an HIV clinic, it could have serious ramifications. So I think its a concern, for certain.

What about in your own country? The American Health Care Act (introduced this month to replace Obamacare) wants to defund Planned Parenthood, for instance. How do you think this new direction will impact American womens access to family planning and abortions?

Anything that affects womens health is a concern to me. And again, were all waiting to see exactly how these various policies are going to be applied in that. But anytime you restrict womens health, thats just not a good thing. Thats not a forward-looking policy  and we are a forward-looking country.

I know that your husband, Bill Gates. has had some opportunities to speak with the new president, but Im wondering if youve had any chances to meet with President Trump or to speak with him about your goals?

I have not yet. I havent chosen yet to do that. Bill has been engaged; Bills talking with them, with President Trump. Im talking to many, many people inside the administration  we both are  also on Capitol Hill, as you can imagine. But when Bill goes into a meeting like that, hes talking about all the foundations issues, including family planning.

Im wondering if theres anything you would say to the new president if he were here right now?

I would say womens access to a full range of health services is always important. If you want to improve society, if you want peace and stability around the world, we have to lift up women. You have to empower women. And empowering women starts with empowering them around health. That I know and I believe from all my travels around the world for over 15 years on behalf of the foundation.

What about in your own life? How has family planning and access to contraceptives impacted your own life and trajectory?

We wanted to have three children and its not actually serendipitous that theyre spaced three years apart. For me, I graduated with a degree in computer science; I went to business school; I came to work at Microsoft. I couldnt have done those things if I had started my family earlier than that.

I think for a woman to be able to plan and space her family has profound implications for her, no matter what country she lives in. And for me, thank goodness, it wasnt about lifting myself out of poverty. But the women I meet around the world  its about lifting themselves out of poverty.

The Canadian government just announced $650 million to promote sexual and reproductive health over the next three years. Is there anything you want to say about what Canada is doing on this front?

Canada has been a real leader on the maternal and child health work now for a number of years  For them to come in now at the mid-point (of the 2020 campaign) with this funding just shows a lot of very progressive thinking, you know, very forward-looking and saying, This is whats right for women. And I actually think its going to help re-energize some of the global health community around this. I couldnt be more excited about it.

Final question. Were talking on International Womens Day. Im wondering what being a feminist means to you?

It means having your voice in the world and doing whatever you want to do. Being fully empowered. To me, thats being a feminist.

And the thing that Im excited about on International Womens Day is seeing both men and women stand together. Its going to take all of us  were not done in my country, were not done in your country, were certainly not done in Senegal or Kenya or Bangladesh. Its going to take all of us standing up for whats right.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDSTurkey and the Netherlands sharply escalated a dispute between the two NATO allies on Saturday as the Dutch blocked a campaign visit by the Turkish foreign minister, prompting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call them fascists.

From blocking Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to land in the Netherlands in the morning to Turkish officials closing off the Dutch Embassy in the evening, relations between the two sank ever deeper in the diplomatic standoff over the right of Turkish government officials to speak about their political plans at rallies in Europe.

The Dutch first withdrew the landing rights of the foreign minister because of objections to his intention to rally in Rotterdam for a Turkish referendum on constitutional reforms to expand presidential powers, which the Dutch see as a step backward from democracy.

Read more: Turkeys Erdogan accuses Germany of Nazi practices, amid widening diplomatic rift

And later, the Minister of Family and Social Policies Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya said she was kept out of the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam after travelling from Germany, insisting that the Netherlands is violating all international laws, conventions and human rights by not letting me enter.

Betul Sayan Kaya said through her Twitter account early Sunday that she was being taken to the town of Nijmegen, near the border with Germany, adding that she condemned the Dutch authorities' action in the name of all of our citizens.

She said Dutch authorities are escorting her to the border with Germany in a manner that tramples on all democratic and human values.

Erdogan told a rally in Istanbul that the Dutch do not know politics or international diplomacy. He compared them to Nazi remnants, they are fascists.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte called it a crazy remark, of course. But I understand they are angry but this is of course way out of line.

Erdogan told a rally in Istanbul: You can stop our foreign ministers plane all you want, lets see how your (diplomatic) planes will come to Turkey from now on. Cavusoglu also referred to possible sanctions, and Rutte said consultations under such threats were impossible, forcing him to bar the visit.

The government said it withdrew the permission because of risks to public order and security, causing Cavusoglu to say: so is the foreign minister of the Turkish republic a terrorist?

He added that we will give them the response they deserve.

In the evening, a Turkish foreign ministry official who spoke on customary anonymity said the Dutch Embassy in Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul were closed off because of security reasons.

The official said entries and exits were closed to the two locations. Similar precautions were taken at the Dutch charge daffaires house and the ambassadors residence.

The Turkish foreign ministry also said that it doesnt want to see the Dutch ambassador, who is out of the country, return to his post for some time because of the increasingly divisive dispute with the Netherlands.

Cavusoglu, who was speaking at Istanbuls airport, didnt say where his next European destination was. French authorities say hes scheduled to travel to the northern city of Metz on Sunday. Turkish officials have been campaigning in various European cities before the April 16 referendum.

Around 100 people marched in Istanbul to protest the Dutch decision, with demonstrators placing a black wreath in front of the Dutch Consulate amid a heavy police presence.

At dusk in Rotterdam, about 100 pro-Turkish demonstrators had gathered outside the Turkish Consulate with flags in a peaceful protest following the acrimonious words between both governments.

The state-run Anadolu news agency said the family and social policies Minister decided to go to Rotterdam via road from Germany, but police closed off the road in front of the Turkish consul-generals residency. Dutch authorities couldnt immediately confirm the information.

The diplomatic row comes at a time when relations between Turkey and the European Union, of which the Netherlands is a member, have been steadily worsening, especially in the wake of Erdogans actions since last years failed coup. More than 41,000 people have been arrested and 100,000 civil servants fired from their jobs.

Cavusoglu said that unfortunately Europe and several countries in Europe, the Netherlands being in the first place, they are reminiscent of the Europe of World War II. The same racism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, we see all the crimes against humanity in todays politics.

The dispute also comes just days before the Netherlands goes to the polls in a Wednesday election for the lower house of Parliament. The campaign has been dominated by issues of identity, with anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders set to make strong gains.

After Wilders accused the government of a weak response to Turkish plans to send ministers to the Netherlands to campaign, he insisted it was his pressure which made the difference.

Great! Thanks to heavy PVV- pressure a few days before the Dutch elections our government did NOT allow the Turkish minister to land here!!, he said in a Twitter message, referring to his Party for Freedom. He later added I am tell all Turks in the Netherlands that agree with Erdogan: GO to Turkey and NEVER come back!!.

Earlier Saturday, Cavusoglu said Wilders is racist, fascist, Nazi, like a Nazi. Citing comments that Wilders wanted action against Muslims, Cavusoglu said: What are you going to do? Are you going to kill them, burn them or what?

The Dutch government said it does not object to meetings in the Netherlands to give information about the Turkish referendum, but these meetings should not add to tensions in our society and everybody who wants to organize a meeting must adhere to instructions from authorities so that public order and security can be guaranteed.

It said the Turkish government does not want to respect the rules in this matter.

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DUBAITo any American president, the Middle East is an overwhelmingly difficult nut to crack  or control. It took Barack Obama eight turbulent years to discover that. In the end, his ambitious hopes and dreams for the region were not realized during his presidency.

Remarkably, it has taken barely eight weeks for us to learn the same thing about Donald Trump. All signs now point to the likelihood that his simple-minded agenda for the Middle East will also crash and burn.

Trumps problem is self-inflicted. His chaotic presidency is running into its own internal ideological contradictions. How can the United States project persuasive 21st-century influence and power in the world when its own government seems committed to an isolationist America First policy that calls for U.S. resources and interests to retreat to within its borders?

If you were a national leader, would you buy a used car from this guy, let alone entrust the fate of your country to him? Of course you wouldnt, and were already seeing the consequences of that.

To get a preview of what is beginning to happen in the Middle East, look at what is already at play in Asia.

China is aggressively filling the vacuum being left by Trumps America. The U.S. decision under Trump to abandon the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement was a blow to the many Asian allies of the United States that had supported the deal.

The TPP notably excluded China in what was supposed to be the largest trade treaty ever signed. It was an effort by the Obama administration to curtail Chinas power in the region. The agreements collapse delighted China. Americas Asian allies, for their part, now have reason to doubt Washingtons staying power.

A similar transformation seems to be taking place in the Middle East. For decades, the United States was the superpower that dominated the region, but that role is being gradually superseded by Vladimir Putins Russia.

Like China, Putin can see an opening. It is significant that this week he is hosting the leaders of Turkey and Israel at the Kremlin. The Russian president is trying to consolidate his countrys role as the power broker in Syria and, perhaps eventually, throughout the region.

Putin is benefiting from American stumbles. Trumps erratic Mideast moves in these first weeks of his presidency, coming so soon after Obamas reluctance to intervene in the Syrian civil war, have rattled the region. Even traditional U.S. allies, such as the Gulf states, are beginning to hedge their bets.

On three of his key Middle East issues  Iran, Islamic terror and Israel  Trump is already running into trouble.

On Iran, Trump was bellicose and outspoken during the campaign. He promised to scrap the recent international nuclear agreement with Iran, which it now appears he will not do. Its other signatories  Americas European allies, Russia and China  have indicated they intend to stick with the deal.

Prodded by Israel, Trump also vowed to isolate and ostracize Iran, but there are signs from the Gulf states that the reverse is happening. In spite of their rivalry, there appears to be a genuine rapprochement beginning to take shape between Tehran and its neighbours.

On the issue of what Trump calls radical Islamic terrorism, he persists in using an expression that provides a boost to the very terrorist groups Trump condemns. It is as if he wants to be their agent. They will continue to be a threat.

As for Israel, the right-wing government of Benjamin Netanyahu seems to be embarking on a national suicide mission with Trump as the official cheerleader. During Netanyahus visit to Washington last month, Trump scrapped the international consensus on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the most casual way: I am looking at two-state and one-state (solutions) and I like the one that both parties like.

The U.S. president failed to mention what Obama warned of on several occasions: that a one-state solution for Israel would mean the end either of a Jewish state or a democratic one.

That omission pretty well sums up Trumps entire approach to the Middle East.

Who would have thought that, in 2017, the most dangerous threat to Middle East peace would come from Washington?

Tony Burman is former head of Al Jazeera English and CBC News. Reach him @TonyBurman or at tony.burman@gmail.com .

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BEIRUTTwin blasts Saturday near holy shrines frequented by Shiites in the Syrian capital Damascus killed at least 40 people and wounded over a hundred, most of them Iraqis, according to Syrian and Iraqi officials.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. Daesh, also known as ISIS, militants have carried out similar attacks before against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere. Extremist Sunni groups, such as Daesh, view Shiites as apostates and consider shrines a form of idolatry.

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot, apparently where the explosions went off near Bab al-Saghir cemetery. The cemetery is one of Damascus most ancient and is where several prominent religious figures are buried.

Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar visited the wounded in local hospitals. He said 40 were killed and 120 were wounded. He said the attacks targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were touring areas shrines.

Iraqs Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 Iraqis were killed and 120 wounded. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims to the shrines were targeted. He said a crisis response team has been formed to expedite the identification and transport of the killed and wounded.

The ministry calls on the international community to condemn this heinous terrorist crime that targeted civilian Iraqi visitors to the holy shrines. It also urges a firm and decisive stand against the takfiri groups responsible for them, Jamal said in a statement. Takfiri is an Arabic derogatory term referring to extremist Sunni Muslims  such as members of the Daesh  who accuse other Muslims of being infidels.

Iraqi, Iranian and other Asian Shiites often visit shrines in Syria.

Read more:

U.S. Marines in Syria to help anti-Daesh fighters with firepower in Raqqa assault

Daesh in Mosul and Raqqa will be defeated within the next six months, says U.S. official

Daesh strategies ordered by Trump could deepen U.S. involvement in Syria

U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Ali al-Zatari condemned the attacks, saying targeting civilians is a terrorist act, condemned and rejected by anyone who has a conscience in this world.

Lebanons Hezbollah group also condemned the attacks, saying they stem from a Takfiri ideology that uses religion as a cover to stab religion and believers everywhere.

There were conflicting reports about what caused the explosions. State news agency SANA said the blasts were caused by bombs placed near the cemetery and that at least 33 were killed and more than a hundred wounded.

Lebanons Al-Manar TV quoted Syrian officials saying twin suicide attacks killed 40. The military media arm of Hezbollah, Lebanons militant group close to Damascus, said two suicide bombers blew themselves up 15 minutes apart near the shrines, leading to the large number of casualties. Arab TV Al-Mayadeen, airing the conflicting reports, also said at least 40 were killed. The area was sealed after the explosions.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group with activists on the ground, said at least 46 were killed in the twin explosions. The group said the first blast came after a suicide bomber blew himself up among the pilgrims near the shrines. It was not clear what caused the second explosion, the group said, adding that the death toll is likely higher because dozens were wounded.

Mohammed Haytham al-Hosseini, head of the National Hospital in Damascus, told pro-government Sama TV that 41 killed arrived to his facility. He said at least three wounded were in critical condition.

A similar attack in Damascus last year targeted one of the most revered Shiite shrines and was claimed by Daesh militants.

Bab al-Saghir is one of the seven gates of the old city of Damascus and houses a cemetery where a number of early Islam religious figures, including family members of Prophet Muhammad and figures revered by Shiites, are buried.

Also Saturday, Syrias President Bashar Assad said in an interview that his militarys priority is to reach the Daeshs de-facto capital of Raqqa  toward which U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces are also advancing.

The interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV was aired Saturday and shared by the Syrian Presidency website. Assad said another Daesh stronghold, Deir el-Zour, may be targeted in parallel.

Syrias battlefields have become increasingly crowded. U.S-led coalition forces in collaboration with Syrian Kurdish fighters as well as Turkish troops and Syrian allies and Syrian government troops, backed by Russia and Iran, are all converging to clear northern Syria of the remnants of Daesh militants. In some incidents, the teeming battlefield has caused friction between rival groups, as well as several civilian casualties.

Assad said that in theory he shares the same priority with U.S. President Donald Trump of fighting terrorism but that they have had no formal contact yet. He said Russia, a major ally, hopes it can urge the U.S. and Turkey to co-operate with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. Assads government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups.

Assad said all foreign troops on Syrian soil without invitation or consultation with the Syrian government are considered invaders.

Meanwhile, Syrias armed opposition groups called for postponing a meeting planned and sponsored by Russia and Turkey, scheduled to take place in the Kazakh capital Astana next week. In a statement, the rebel groups said violations of a Russia-backed cease-fire have persisted, and called for the meeting to be rescheduled for after March 20, when a limited cease-fire expires.

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In many a GTA household featuring children and working parents, weekday mornings require the precision of a highwire act.

There are only so many minutes to get kids up and fed, cram lunches and homework into backpacks, walk dogs, ensure everyone gets to school on time and still make the commute to work.

Mess with one of the pieces, and the whole thing threatens to come tumbling down.

So its not surprising that some parents in Durham Region are balking at a proposed plan that will change start times at 38 schools beginning in September by anywhere from 10 to 45 minutes.

In four elementary schools, bell times would be delayed by 30 to 45 minutes as a result of the proposal, which is aimed at cutting costs and streamlining student bus service.

Peoples schedules and lives revolve around the school schedule, says Andy Lubczynski, whose three children attend Eagle Ridge Public School in Ajax, which would see its start time change to 9 a.m. from 8:30.

Moving bell times has a rippling effect, adds Lubczynski, who argues the change isnt necessary and leaves a handful of schools bearing the brunt.

The proposed move, to be voted on by Durham District School Board trustees at a March 20 meeting, will affect 28 public schools and 10 in the Catholic board.

Eagle Ridge parent Sheri McCleary says if it was only a matter of 10 or 15 minutes, no one would fuss.

But 30 minutes is a big deal  thats a huge impact on families.

She and Lubczynski made that case to Durham trustees at a board meeting this week. Parents and students are also speaking out on a Facebook page and online petition against the proposal.

A total of 26 schools in the two boards face adjustments of 10 minutes or less and eight will see their days shift by between 15 and 25 minutes.

Eagle Ridge is one of four elementary schools facing changes of between half and hour and 45 minutes, along with others in Uxbridge, Port Perry and Whitby.

Durham Student Transportation Services, which manages busing for the two boards, says the move will save $1.9 million a year and relieve congestion by taking 48 buses off the road. It will also mean an additional 1,562 students who currently walk are eligible for busing.

But some of the families most affected by the changes say they are paying the price  through extra costs for before-school child care and disrupted extra-curriculars at the other end of the day.

We are very concerned about the negative outcome and the financial burden it will be placing on our family and many others in our community, says Melodie Langhorst, a parent of three young children who attend Joseph Gould Public School in Uxbridge. The schools current morning bell at 8:30 a.m. would start 40 minutes later.

Both she and her husband are teachers and have no flexibility when it comes to commuting to work. She estimates the move could end up costing the family $1,200 a month in extra child care, not to mention it turns the whole routine and schedule for the family upside down.

In north Ajax, its also a safety concern, says Sheri McCleary. Under the plan, Pickering High School and Lincoln Alexander Public School across the road, which are walking distance from Eagle Ridge, would both start at 8:15 a.m., which means 2,400 students arriving and leaving school at the same time.

That gridlock is going to be crazy, says McCleary, who has a daughter at Eagle Ridge and a son who will be attending the high school next year.

But the student transportation group has examined the plan and we dont see a risk to student safety in the changes, said Terry Simzer, communications manager for the Durham District School Board. He said in some neighbourhoods the plan will improve safety.

Simzer said after the proposal was posted on its website in January, the board invited feedback from parents until March 1 through emails, phone calls or comment sheets filled out at one of the three open houses it held to provide information.

About 3 per cent of parents affected by the changes have contacted the board to complain in emails, phone calls, or comment sheets filled out at the forums, while 97 per cent have not commented, he added.

Tamara McKenney of Uxbridge is among those who have attended the public meetings and is happy with the new bell times at Joseph Gould.

Its good to think they could save (almost) $2 million by doing this, she says. Our schools need that money desperately.

McKenney says she understands the worry about child care, but for her the later dismissal time will relieve that pressure. It means shell be able to finish work and get to school on time, no longer having to rely on others to pick up her two kids.

But she says these kinds of scheduling changes for busy families cause problems. Its a huge amount to manage and any time its shuffled, its a big deal.

Lubczynski, an elementary school principal in Toronto, says delaying the bell for younger children also amounts to a loss of prime learning time because younger kids tend to wake up early and learn better in the morning. He also cites research showing teens often perform better with later start times, an idea that a growing number of high schools are embracing.

His idea: flip the changes so that Pickering Secondary starts later and Eagle Ridge starts earlier.

Asked whether thats up for discussion, Simzer said we are reviewing the options.

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Elon Musk offered to end an energy crisis Down Under Friday by installing a 100 megawatt battery park in South Australia, and promised to deliver the project within 100 days or give it away for free.

Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla (TSLA) , made the proposal in a Tweet a day after Lyndon Rive, Tesla's vice-president for energy products and Musk's cousin, told The Australian Financial Review (AFR) that his company could take the pressure of the state's creaking power grid by installing 100MW to 300MW of batteries within 100 days.

That article caught the eye of a second billionaire, Michael Cannon-Brookes, the Australian co-founder of Silicon Valley software group Atlassian (TEAM) , who tweeted Musk: "How serious are you about this bet? If I can make the $ happen (& politics) can you guarantee the 100MW in 100 days?"

He's how he replied:

South Australia has suffered through six months of intermittent black outs, most recently in early February, as its power system has struggled to deal with peaks in usage. The failures have become a major political issue in Australia, where the centre-right Federal government has been accused of wrongly blaming the outages on the opposition-party State government's drive to install renewable energy production.

South Australia's state leader Jay Weatherill said Friday that he was already talking to Cannon-Brookes and Telsa about the proposed battery park.

Meanwhile, the twitter-based negotiations between Cannon-Brookes and Musk continued Friday.

"Your on mate," wrote Cannon-Brookes. "Give me 7 days to try to sort out politics & funding. DM (direct message) me a quote for approx. 100MW cost - mate rates!"

Musk responded. "$250/kWh at the pack level for 100MWh+ systems. Tesla is moving to fixed and open pricing and terms for all products." That price will come as a shock to some as it is about half the $400 to $600 range previously quoted by Tesla.

Tesla's ability to deliver cheap batteries for electricity storage has massively increased since the opening of its $5 billion factory near Sparks, Nevada in 2016. The factory is expected to produce, each year from 2020, enough lithium ion batteries to store 35 gigawatt-hours of power, equivalent to all the lithium ion batteries produced globally in 2013.

Despite Musk's very public deal making Tesla may not have the Australian contract in the bag.

The head of the federal government's Clean Energy Finance Corp., Oliver Yates said Friday that he was already exploring the possibility of installing battery storage to augment Australia's power grid. "To the extent Tesla is interested, we'll also talk with them," he told the AFR.

Tesla stock traded early Friday at $244.98, marginally higher than its Thursday close.
FLEETCOR Technologies, Inc. provides digital payment solutions for businesses to control purchases and make payments. It offers corporate payments solutions, such as accounts payable automation; Virtual Card, which provides a single-use card number for a specific amount usable within a defined timeframe; Cross-Border that is used by its customers to pay international vendors, foreign office and personnel expenses, capital expenditures, and profit repatriation and dividends; and purchasing cards and travel and entertainment cards for its customers to analyze and manage their corporate spending. The company also provides employee expense management solutions, including fuel solutions to businesses and government entities that operate vehicle fleets, as well as to oil and leasing companies, and fuel marketers; lodging solutions to businesses that have employees who travel overnight for work purposes, as well as to airlines and cruise lines to accommodate traveling crews and stranded passengers; and electronic toll payments solutions to businesses and consumers in the form of radio frequency identification tags affixed to vehicles' windshields. In addition, it offers gift card program management and processing services in plastic and digital forms that include card design, production and packaging, delivery and fulfillment, card and account management, transaction processing, promotion development and management, website design and hosting, program analytics, and card distribution channel management. Further, it provides other products consisting of payroll cards, vehicle maintenance service solution, long-haul transportation solution, prepaid food vouchers or cards, and prepaid transportation cards and vouchers. The company serves business, merchant, consumer, and payment network customers in North America, Brazil, and Internationally. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
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.

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UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances and wastes has warned that the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine could lead to a catastrophic chemical disaster unless the fighting is stopped and precautions are taken to secure industrial facilities in the area.

This is reported by the UN News Center.

Battles are now being fought in cities, close to industrial centres, with factories increasingly becoming at risk of being hit: the consequences for anyone living close-by would be severe, said Baskut Tuncak, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances and wastes.

According to him, on 24 February, a shell hit a building housing more than 7,000 kg of chlorine gas. While no damage was reported damage to just one fraction of the containers would have killed anyone within 200 meters and severely impact the health of anyone within 2.4 km, according to experts cited by OHCHR.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and humanitarian partners have called for demilitarizing the areas adjacent to civilian infrastructure.

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Ukraine expects the agreement on cooperation between the defense ministries of Canada and Ukraine to be signed in the near future.

This was announced by Ukrainian Ambassador to Canada Andriy Shevchenko, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"The UNIFIER military training mission is just one direction of defense cooperation... Canada supports us in reforming the defense sector and also trains Ukrainian soldiers on its territory. In addition, we look forward to signing an agreement on cooperation between our defense ministries in the near future," Shevchenko said.

According to the Ambassador, Canada and Ukraine come to the realization of "a very clear and pragmatic joint interest in the field of defense and security."

ol
Two Ukrainian soldiers were killed, another sixteen servicepersons were wounded and injured in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) area in eastern Ukraine over the past day.

Ukrainian Defense Ministry's Spokesperson for ATO Andriy Lysenko said this at a press briefing, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. Two Ukrainian soldiers were killed, another sixteen servicepersons were wounded and injured as a result of the armed hostilities in eastern Ukraine in last day, Lysenko said. ol
Ukraine will not benefit from posing itself as the victim of Russian aggression. Ukraine should become a country of economic success to take up a strong position in the West.

Co-chairman of the Strategic Advisory Group for Reform Support, Advisor to the President of Ukraine, well-known economist and politician Leszek Balcerowicz said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

"If Ukraine wants to take up a stronger position in the West, it should be a country of success. Posing itself as the victim will not help, this is simply not enough. Ukraine should present itself as a country of economic and institutional success," Balcerowicz said.

According to him, Kyiv must demonstrate political stability, reformist work of the ruling coalition and effective struggle against corruption.

As reported, the Strategic Advisory Group to support reforms in Ukraine under the leadership of Leszek Balcerowicz and Ivan Miklos prepared the package of key reforms. It is based on the government's action plan and other policy documents of the Ukrainian authorities and is made up of the most important steps to be taken to strengthen fiscal and financial stability in Ukraine, reduce corruption, accelerate development of the medium-sized businesses, and improve the structure and activities of the state apparatus.

ol
There is no "betrayal" or "defeat" in the fact that the lower house of the US Congress endorsed only $150 million in security assistance for Ukraine from the previously stipulated $350 million.

Valery Chaly, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United States, posted detailed explanations on his official Facebook page.

"March 8, the House of Representatives of the U.S. Congress approved the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2017. According to the document, $150 million is allocated to Ukraine in the security and defense field within the fiscal year 2017," Chaly reminded.

He explained that the fiscal year in the USA ended on September 30, and allocated $150 million would become available after the law was approved by the Senate and signed by the U.S. President.

"That is, the funds allocated for Ukraine are designed for use not within a year, but, in fact, six months. These are absolutely SPECIFIC funds for absolutely REAL contracts," the Ambassador wrote.

Chaly noted that the funds would be spent to finance assistance projects for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including training of servicepersons, provision of military equipment, deliveries of lethal defensive weapons (in case of a corresponding decision). The list of types of assistance also includes the intelligence support for Ukrainian security agencies.

At the same time, the Ambassador stressed that $150 million was only part of the funds from the total assistance worth $350 million, which was provided for Ukraine in the US defense budget for 2017.

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A kludge is defined as a software or hardware configuration that, while inelegant, inefficient, clumsy or patched together, succeeds in solving a specific problem or performing a particular task.

A kludge is what we need to settle the Israeli-Palestinian land dispute. To patch together a solution, we have to first recognize one formidable given, and it is the biggest possible, that God gave the Israeli people all the land from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. If so, it would be sacrilegious to give up title to any part. How does anybody work around that? If the land known as the West Bank cannot be permanently sold (Leviticus 25:23), what about a lease?

A lease for the West Bank? Heres the outline of a business plan. First, there are no impossible preconditions because there are no negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians. Both negotiate only with the United States. The U.S. reaches an agreed price with Israel. The U.S. then sub-leases the West Bank to the Palestinians.

But wait -- the Palestinians are going to have less than zero interest in paying rent for land they believe is already theirs, along with the rest of Israel. But going forward the United States can offer the Palestinians a sub-lease for less than zero dollars. The Palestinians could be paid as much to take a lease-hold on the West Bank as we pay the Israelis for the development rights.

Such a plan is only possible to think about because of the size of the West Bank compared to the United States. The U.S. spans a continent and contains 3,797,000 square miles of land. The West Bank is 2,173 square, miles, a bit smaller than Custer County in Nebraska. Like the West Bank, Custer is hilly and semi-arid. But it sits on one of the worlds greatest aquifers and has good irrigation. It is valued for taxation at $3.5 billion. Custer County offers a perspective on what dirt is worth aside from location and great historical value. The actual market value of the West Bank can only be established by comparison of values in the neighborhood.

We can still look at some trial numbers. With 640 acres comprising a square mile, 2,173 square miles adds up to 1,390,720 acres. An annual lease rate of, say, $1,000 per acre comes to about $1.4 billion. Thats a lot of money, but less than we provide in military assistance to Israel each year; currently $3.1 billion, increasing next year to $3.8 billion. Some agreement on the West Bank might slow down the growth of future military needs. And God himself should be pleased with $1,000 an acre for nonirrigated land.

This workaround lease enables both sides to agree to disagree, and get on with their lives. It could be a useful substitute for peace. There are, of course, practical problems with implementation: What about the settlements? That is something for the Israelis to decide. All the U.S. can say is the property is worth more if it is not all chopped up. What about security? Internal security for the West Bank could be the responsibility of the United States, but normally delegated to the Palestinian government. Any U.S. out-of-pocket costs could be subtracted from the annual sub-lease payment. But this cannot simply be one occupation replacing another.

The U.S. and Israel have a deeply symbiotic relationship. The Holy Land is the birthplace of our prevailing religions. Their history provides us with meaning. We provide them weapons in an attempt to guarantee survival. But we also thereby have a responsibility to those uprooted by the rebirth and incredible success of Israel -- a responsibility to seek if not simple peace and justice, at least stability and legality.

Our new President will try to find his own way to a deal. He may indeed put together an anti-Iranian coalition of Israel and Sunni Arabs who will then somehow get the Palestinians to agree to something. But if not, consider this kludge for peace. It may be clumsy, inefficient, even ludicrous, and the most practical idea out there.
Bruce Klingner, Senior Research Fellow at The Heritage Foundation, and Harry Kazianis, Senior Fellow for Defense Policy and Senior Editor for The National Interest, discuss with host Carol Castiel the ramifications of North Koreas provocative missile launches and the controversy over the deployment of a US missile defense system or THAAD in South Korea, in the face of Chinas objections.
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.
Many Americans have become unable to adequately support their families. Many people without college degrees are economically oppressed. They must work more hours than they should for less financial reward than they deserve and they still fail to really make ends meet.

This unjust financial oppression is occurring at a time when America's infrastructure is aging and in poor condition. Bridges are crumbling. Roads and dams are in disrepair.

One solution to these problems might be to hire some of these workers to maintain, repair and improve our infrastructure. Many of these jobs are much harder to automate. Enough jobs might be created to drive up the wages of the rest of our hard-working labor force, given the law of supply and demand.

Yes, this building and employment project would require increased taxation but putting off necessary investment seldom saves money in the long run. The resulting better maintained America with better employed Americans would be more resilient in the face of future wars or natural catastrophes.

Glen Christensen, Lincoln


Leading Italian wine critic Daniele Cernilli, author of The Ultimate Guide to Italian Wine 2017, at a recent tasting in Washington. (Dave McIntyre)

Searching for value, variety and excitement in wine? Look to Italy  or so says Daniele Cernilli.

He is the author of The Ultimate Guide to Italian Wine 2017, and a longtime champion of the wines of his native country. The Roman was one of the founding editors of Gambero Rosso, the leading Italian food and wine magazine that grew out of the Slow Food movement in the 1980s. Wine lovers around the world know Gambero Rossos tre bicchieri, or three glasses, as the highest rating an Italian wine can receive (at least in Italy).

Italian wines are the new wave for high-quality wines for Americans, because there are many with high quality for the price, Cernilli told me during a recent industry and consumer tasting at the Mayflower Hotel sponsored by the Wine Scholars Guild. The tasting included about 50 wines that were top scorers in his new guide.

Quality is higher than Spain, but in price we are lower than France, Cernilli said, explaining Italys appeal to value-conscious consumers.

Those consumers should look for wines from Campania, he said. The wines there are improving in a tremendous way. Its the Tuscany of the south, he said.

He praised Campania for its local grape varieties such as fiano and greco di tufo, as well as wines made with international varieties.

At 62, Cernilli looks every bit the rumpled oenophile, with a wine-softened smile lifting his double chin, and a paunch coaxing out his shirttail. (Believe me, I know the look.) He is congenial, but he bristles at the mention of Gambero Rosso, which he left in 2011 to create his own website, DoctorWine.it.

When a winery representative offered a taste of a Vino Nobile di Montepulciano during the event, saying, It got tre bicchieri, Cernilli waved it off and pointed to another wine.

I created tre bicchieri, he said. I know what it has become. Its all politics.

I am too romantic to be in Gambero Rosso today, he continued. It is more modern and commercial. They gave 450 tre bicchieri last year. Thats too many high awards. They also do more than 50 events worldwide each year. In my day, we did three.

I want to be a publisher, not a promoter, he said.

So in addition to his website, Cernilli has self-published his third annual guide in Italian (and second translated in English) as a counterpart to Gambero Rossos annual Guide to Italian Wines, which he edited for more than two decades. In that respect, he is not unlike other prominent writers, such as Wine Spectators James Suckling or Wine Advocates Antonio Galloni, who have tried to leverage their own reputations independent of the publications that made them famous. It is available for $20 at Eataly in New York and will soon be on Amazon. (Amazon chief executive Jeffery P. Bezos is the owner of The Washington Post.)

This might be a good time for this book. Americans are buying more Italian wine than ever, according to the business news website Il Sole 24 Ore. Italian wine exports to the U.S. market last year topped 1.8 billion euros (about $1.9 billion), up 6 percent over 2015. That was a volume increase of 4 percent.

Prosecco, the inexpensive and charming  if rarely compelling  sparkling wine, led the charge, with 2016 sales up 28.5 percent over the previous year.

With more than 500 grape varieties, Italy offers a lifetime of wine adventure and exploration. Cernillis book guides us, region by region, through the top producers as rated by him and his contributors. Wineries are evaluated from 0 to 3 stars, with their top wines scored on a 100-point scale. Wines that score 95 or higher receive an additional stamp of approval: Cernillis visage, dubbed a DoctorWine Face  his personal guarantee of the wines quality. Inexpensive wines that show extraordinary value are denoted by a thumbs-up symbol, the universal social media positive review. Cernilli and his team also named their best red and white wines of the year, as well as winery and winemaker of the year.

Cernilli may have written the ultimate guide to Italian wine, but it isnt an exhaustive one. The book includes nearly 1,000 wineries and about 2,500 wines. Some wineries familiar to U.S. wine lovers are conspicuous by their absence, such as Alois Lageder in Alto Adige, the cult winery Radikon in Friuli and Tenuta delle Terre Nere on Sicilys Mount Etna.

We choose wineries by the quality of their wines year by year, Cernilli told me. When wineries dont perform as expected, he leaves them out rather than writing a bad review, out of respect to their history and international image.

The Ultimate Guide to Italian Wine 2017 is a valuable reference, engagingly written in an Italian accent. Let Italys foremost wine critic introduce you to the exciting variety Italy has to offer.
Dear Heloise: Our guest bedroom smells a little stale. I vacuum often and try to open the windows once in a while, but it just does not smell, well, fresh.

No Name, Jacksonville, Fla.

No Name, Jacksonville, Fla.: Dont worry, Heloise help is here! Generally, a room that is not used often can get that stale aroma from lack of air circulation. If you have carpeting in there, use my secret (not anymore!) trick: Mix about a cup of baking soda with a dash of cinnamon, sprinkle on the carpet and let sit an hour or overnight. Vacuum using slow and overlapping passes.

Do keep the door open, if you can, and yes, fresh air is good. However, if you live in a humid area such as Jacksonville, then the fresh air is bringing in moisture, too. If there is a ceiling fan, turn it on a few times a week to move the air around.

Dear Readers: Spring is almost here, and in many parts of the country its time to think lawn. That means its time to check your lawn mower (if you have one) to be sure its ready to cut grass. When the mower was stowed for the winter, it should have been cleaned and the gasoline drained. However, here are a few hints if you didnt:

 Look underneath. Caked and gunked with grass? Scrape off what you can, then clean with a brush.

 Check the air filter. Its probably dirty and clogged. Replace it  its usually cheap!

 Dull blades mean a dull mowing job! Unless you are the handy type and can sharpen the blades yourself, let a pro do it.

 A good lawn mower (and they are not cheap!) can last a decade or longer with good maintenance. Yes, there are a zillion choices  push, electric and high-end, big riding mowers. Just remember, the more you spend, the longer you want it to last!

Dear Readers: Ginny in Spring Branch, Texas, sent a funny picture of her goat Billy, standing in her wheelbarrow! Maybe Billy wants to help with the yardwork. To see Billy Goat and our other Pet Pals, visit Heloise.com and click on Pet of the Week.

Dear Heloise: My husband and I are interviewing new babysitters for our two young children. Here are a couple of questions Ive asked:

 Tell me your experience, and how many children and what ages did you babysit?

 Have you taken a babysitting course and a CPR class?

 Have you ever had an emergency, and how did you handle it?

 Please give me the names and contact information of three people I can check with.

Nally Rae, Bentonville, Ark.

Dear Heloise: When my nephew visits, I give him a set of blue towels, and he knows which ones are his.

Uncle Bill, Fort Worth

Heloises column appears six days a week at washingtonpost.com/advice. Send a hint to Heloise , P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Tex. 78279-5000, or email it to Heloise@Heloise.com.


Artist Jay Coleman signs his mural of former D.C. mayor Marion Barry last year. It hangs on a building in Southeast Washington, where the four-term mayor is still revered. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post)

In the digital age, will a statue outlast a search engine?

Thats the question facing the guardians of the uniquely complicated legacy of former D.C. mayor Marion Barry, who veered between dominance and disgrace in a remarkable half-century political career.

Two years after Barrys death at 78, his partisans in the nations capital just unveiled a proposed design for a life-size statue to be erected outside city hall, one of the public totems  from street art to street names  they hope will cement his place in the Washington pantheon for generations to come. They want to steer the memory of a fast-changing city toward the brighter chapters of the Barry Chronicles, his years as a civil rights hero and champion of the poor.

But when the citys many newcomers type Marion Barry into their phones, they get the dark part. Googles second hit is a newspaper headline: Barry Arrested on Cocaine Charges. The first is his Wikipedia entry, where the 1990 arrest comes in the second paragraph.

Merrick Malone, a developer who was Barrys deputy mayor for economic development, rejects the caricature of Barry as a late-night punchline.

I know there are people who want to dwell on his misdeeds and his flaws, but he was frankly a brilliant person who gave up a lot of his career on behalf of others, Malone said. We do need a dedicated effort to remind people that there is reason we should remember him positively.

That effort began in earnest last week with a ceremony at the Wilson Building, where the proposed statue was unveiled. Cora Masters Barry, the mayors fourth wife and the chief keeper of his reputation, nodded approvingly at the portrayal of Barry as boldly astride a map of the District, one arm raised, a snappy fedora on his head.

She liked the likeness. But the hat? No so much.

He was really known for his hairline, Barry said as city officials, including Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) and many council members, crowded in for a look at her husbands bronzed image. The hat will go.



A rendering of the planned statue of Marion Barry was unveiled at a birthday celebration for the former D.C. mayor. (Steve Hendrix/The Washington Post)

The design is the result of a two-year effort by the 13-member D.C. Commission to Commemorate and Recognize the Honorable Marion S. Barry Jr., which was formed by Bowser a few months after her predecessors death. That committee, which included Cora Masters Barry and former mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly, has recommended the striding figure of Barry and an accompanying bas-relief panel depicting scenes from his early career.

Thats him, thats Marion, murmured one of the crowd of supporters packed into the Wilson Building atrium when the African ceremonial cloth was pulled off the statue.

While the mayors hat and other details may still be tweaked, the effort now shifts to finding a final site in or around city hall for the life-size version of the work. The final cost of the project is expected to be between $350,000 and $400,000, according to D.C. Commission on the Arts Director Arthur Espinoza, who is overseeing the work. Bowser and the council will have the final say on the location, along with what mix of public and private funding will pay for it, he said.

Bowser hasnt taken a position on other efforts to stamp Barrys moniker on the city, including renaming a high school or a stretch of Good Hope Road in Southeast after him.

Barry remains a hero to many residents east of the Anacostia River. They remember his youth jobs program, his appearances at countless block parties and graduations, the face-to-face relationships with thousands of constituents of a self-described night owl prowling the city in his decrepit old Jaguar.

[Marion Barrys Washington: Snapshots of the city he left behind]

In the months before his death, he was viewed favorably by 81 percent of black Washingtonians, and just 7 percent of whites. This week, at a community meeting in Barrys home turf of Ward 8, attendees broke into raucous applause when a speaker noted that the day would have been the mayors 81st birthday. Many of them also knew his son, Marion Christopher Barry, who died last year of a drug overdose at 36.

In these neighborhoods, Google or not, Barrys legacy lives on in part because people too young to remember Barry hear about the man still known as the mayor from those who do.

Its part of an oral tradition now, people talk to their kids at the dinner table, said Jeneba Jalloh Ghatt, a lawyer and blogger who grew up in the Shaw neighborhood. She mounted a spirited online defense of Barry after she felt many of his obituaries reduced his history to his worst failures. (Crack Mayor Dead at 78 read a TMZ headline.)

We longtime D.C. residents of old will not and cannot let the mainstream media and outsiders dictate what Marion Barrys legacy was and will be, Ghatt wrote. They dont know our story.

That story includes Barrys early history as a civil rights activist, his dogged commitment to employing teenagers each summer, his opening up of government jobs to African American professionals and government contracts to African American business.

A lot of people believe he was the creator of a robust black middle class in this region, former mayor and current Council member Vincent C. Gray (D-Ward 7) said after viewing the statue he hopes will be erected in front of the Wilson Building on Pennsylvania Avenue. He certainly deserves a monument. The things he did for this city were monumental.

Elaine McCrary got her first job  working at recreation center  thanks to Barrys summer program in the 1970s.

They should name a park after him like they did with Marvin Gaye, McCrary said.



Elaine McCrary got her first job through Marion Barrys youth employment program in the 1970s. (Steve Hendrix/The Washington Post)

Matt Gherity, 25, has lived in the District for almost two years. He had never heard of Marion Barry. (Steve Hendrix/The Washington Post)

But other District residents say it will take more than a memorial to replace their abiding impression of Barry as the mayor who served prison time after being caught smoking crack on camera in a 1990 FBI sting at the Vista Hotel.

I know he did things for Washington, but how much damage did he do by doing drugs like that? said Ann Johnson, who moved to D.C. soon after Barrys conviction. She would have an easier time forgiving him, she said, if he hadnt come back for a star-crossed fourth term as mayor and then another 10 years on the city council. People are just going to make jokes if they put his name on everything.

Johnson was shopping at the gleaming new Giant in Shaw, one of the neighborhoods transformed by the influx of new residents in recent years. The grocery store now full of organic produce and chai teas is located inside the old O Street Market, where gangbangers shot eight shoppers and killed one of them in 1994. That was a year that saw 399 homicides in Washington, and the year that Barry, out of prison, ran successfully again for mayor.

[O Street Market: Symbol of violence becomes a marker for D.C.s resurgence]

Its a different Washington, one younger and whiter than the Chocolate City of Barrys heyday, that will remember him in years to come. Or not.

Ive never heard of him, Matt Gherity said on being asked about Barry as he shopped for bananas at the Giant. The 25-year-old moved here from Minnesota almost two years ago.

Barry frequently railed against the gentrification that has made the District a magnet for young newcomers, worried that they were displacing older and poorer residents. But the recent boom is also part of the Barry legacy, according to Malone.

He cites the example of 14th Street, now a playground of ritzy restaurants and high-end condominiums. When Barry took power, the street was an urban disaster zone, still trying to recover from the 1968 riots and lined with liquor stores and prostitutes. Barry pushed for the Franklin D. Reeves Center, a major city office complex, to be constructed amid the bleakness.

It had to start somewhere, and that ugly building was a source of jobs when private investment wouldnt touch that area, Malone said. What finally happened on 14th Street is what Marion Barry intended to happen.

The citys vibrancy is part of what makes Washington so appealing to Gherity, even if he hasnt learned much yet about its local political history. After acknowledging he hadnt heard of Barry, he knew what he would do to educate himself about the seminal D.C. figure: Ill look him up when I get home.
THE DISTRICT

No charges in shooting involving Md. police

Four Maryland police officers who fatally shot an armed carjacking suspect in 2015 in the District will not face criminal charges, prosecutors said Friday.

[Carjacking suspect shot by police had been out of prison for 2 months]

On Nov. 2, 2015, 62-year-old James W. Covington Jr. was shot in Southeast Washington by officers from Prince Georges County and Forest Heights, Md., after he was pursued into the District following a carjacking and assault in Fort Washington, the U.S. attorneys office for the District of Columbia said in a statement.

Covington failed to stop after an officer activated his lights and siren, and led police vehicles and a helicopter on a 10-mile chase at speeds up to 95 mph, the statement said. The chase continued after Covington, who allegedly carjacked a 2011 Toyota Camry, hit a curb and got a flat tire, and ended when he abandoned the vehicle and fled in the area of the 2800 block of Gainesville Street SE, according to the statement.

Prosecutors said Covington did not respond to orders to stop and was armed with a gun that he pointed at police. Four officers opened fire, and two later said Covington fired as well, though prosecutors said there was insufficient evidence to determine whether that was correct.

 Justin Wm. Moyer

MARYLAND

Firetruck in a Beltway crash

Two crashes at the same location early Saturday on the inner loop of the Washington Beltway in Maryland  one involving a firetruck  left six people injured and shut down the highway for several hours, according to police and fire officials.

None of the injuries was life threatening, the Prince Georges County Fire Department said. Four of the injured were firefighters whose firetruck was rear-ended on Interstate 495 near Allentown Road.

Traffic was diverted onto Pennsylvania Avenue after the accidents at 3:30 a.m. Two lanes of the inner loop were reopened about 6:30 a.m.

Maryland State Police at the Forestville Barrack said that shortly before 3:30, a driver fell asleep and struck an unattended car on the side of the highway near Allentown Road. Firefighters and paramedics from Prince Georges County responded and used one firetruck to set up a barrier so emergency workers could help the injured and remove the damaged vehicles.

Police said another motorist, later determined to have been under the influence of alcohol, crashed into the firetruck. Police said the driver, who was hurt, could be charged after the investigation is complete.

 Peter Hermann

VIRGINIA

THE REGION
Firefighters responded to the fire shortly before 11 p.m. Friday in the first block of New York Avenue NW. (D.C. Fire Dept)

At least 17 residents of a three-story rooming house on New York Avenue in Northwest Washington were displaced after a Friday night fire ripped through the building near North Capitol Street.

D.C. fire officials said on the departments Twitter account that no injuries were reported. Firefighters rescued an elderly man from the second floor.

The fire was reported shortly before 11 p.m. in the first block of New York Avenue NW, on the border of the Truxton Circle neighborhood. It is along one of the main routes in and out of Washington.

Fire department spokesman Vito Maggiolo said the cause of the fire is under investigation. Aggressive firefighting efforts prevented the blaze from spreading to the attached homes on either side, Maggiolo said.

The American Red Cross and the D.C. mayors office were assisting the residents.

Firefighters brought the fire under control in about an hour, though they were still putting out flares well into Saturday morning. Fire officials said the flames moved up the building and into a void in the attic, making it difficult to extinguish.
D.C. firefighters rescued a man Friday night from a fire at a row house that forced the evacuation of nearby homes, officials said.

The man, who was described as elderly, was pulled from a three-story house in the unit block of New York Avenue NW about 11 p.m., officials said. The man did not immediately appear to be injured.

Firefighters were called for the report of a basement fire, but when they arrived, found a fire that extended into the attic area, authorities said.
Keyonna McDuffie, right, speaks at a Thursday vigil for Delonta Alexander, the father of her 5-year-old son. Next to her, Delontas mother, Latese Alexander (center), and Tamara Coln (left) comfort two of Delonta Alexanders children. (Clarence Williams/The Washington Post)

Latese Alexander stood in disbelief as she held a plastic LED candle in the Emmanuel Baptist Church parking lot in the District one recent night, still puzzled and in shock as she awaited the start of a vigil for her 34-year-old son, Delonta.

There under the parking lots bright floodlights, 100 yards from the scene of her sons murder, she waited for her grandchildren  Delonta Alexanders 10-year-old daughter and two sons, ages 5 and 4  to arrive. All the while, she had no idea how to proceed, how to say goodbye to the respectful son who died in the Woodland community he often visited.

Im not supposed to be here, she muttered to herself. Hes not supposed to be in the morgue.

Delonta Alexander was found gravely wounded after a 911 caller dialed authorities just after 1 a.m. on March 4 and reported that a gunshot victim was in the hallway of a building in the 2700 block of Langston Place SE. Responding D.C. police officers found Alexander, of Southwest Washington, unconscious on his back and bleeding from a head wound, according to a police report.

Authorities took him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 7:42 that morning.

Delonta Alexander, 34, was found shot in Southeast Washington on March 4. He died in a hospital that morning. (Family Photo)

Police have not announced an arrest in the case or explained a motive, although they said the Toyota Camry Solara he was driving was stolen following the shooting.

On Thursday night, more than 100 people gathered to mourn Alexander, who lived with his mother and went to school in Prince Georges County, where he graduated from Suitland High School in 2000. He also spent much of his time with his fathers family in the Woodland area, where he was known as Dewey or Lil Dewey.

His family remembered a man who worked two jobs to help provide for his children. Outside of his family, Alexanders passion was sports, especially the Dallas Cowboys. And he was a true, laid-back North Carolina Tar Heels fan, his mother said.

He loved go-go music and spending time around family and friends, especially in Southeast. Alexander did construction work for a window company and was an AutoZone cashier.

He really, really loved this community. I think what he saw was the good in his community, from the people that he loved, Latese Alexander said. It just saddens me he got killed in a community he really, really loved.

Before his killing, Delonta Alexander mourned the death of his 10-year-old brother, the loss of his closest grandmother and also a stepfather, his mother said.

He was carrying around a heavy heart, but you would never know it, she said.

At the vigil, family and friends held blue balloons in the shades of his favorite teams. His mother and the mothers of his children said they seek answers and justice.

If you find something out, if you know something, man, say something. You know, be for real, said Tamara Coln, the mother of Alexanders daughter, Tianna, and 4-year-old son, Brenden.

The women closest to him were also left wondering how to fill the void brought by the death of a man they considered an awesome dad, and how to raise three children in deep mourning.

Keyonna McDuffie, the mother of 5-year-old Delonta Jr., called Alexander a very lovable person who was drawn to kids and quality time with his family, she said.

Now she is trying to figure out how to help his namesake cope.

We are going to be missing a father. Right now my son is asking what is the number to heaven, so he can call his daddy, McDuffie said.

As the vigil concluded, mourners released dozens of balloons into the dark sky, and his children all cried, Daddy.

His daughter put her teary face into her grandmothers arms, crying, They took my daddy, they took my daddy!

Latese Alexander hugged her deeply, with the only answer she could muster, I know, baby girl, I know. But its okay. Hes with God.
Nebraska leaders should not fall for the latest Washington, D.C. deregulation mantra. Deregulating Nebraskas public power system would be as backward as Nebraska farmers eating crop seeds instead of planting next years crop ("Private-power bill under fire," Feb. 17).

Deregulation of the seed industry provides a clear and stark warning to Nebraskans. The public sector role in seed research and development was reduced. Deregulated patenting gave private-sector seed companies monopoly control. Seed corn prices doubled or tripled. Those companies also dominate the farm chemical industry. Iowa State University showed the non-land cost of planting corn per acre jumped from $3.40 per bushel in 2006 to $4.94 per bushel in 2012. On Jan. 24, Nebraska cash corn prices were less than $3.20 per bushel.

As with seed corn, a deregulated, privately-owned electric system in Nebraska will likely drive up electric rates. Public power is always there when Nebraskans need it. Its an economic treasure, making our state more competitive with some of the nations lowest electric rates. It is a conservative structure, owned and controlled by Nebraskans. Public power can and should be more forward-looking by encouraging and installing additional wind and solar generation, thereby increasing a countys property tax base which can then lower tax rates for everyone, while generating annual landowner lease payments.

Privatizing public power would be akin to handing over seed corn costs to monopolies. We know how that turned out. The Nebraska Legislature should instead address an urgent problem by lowering property taxes, especially on rural, farm land. Deregulating Nebraskas public power structure is a very bad idea.

Dan McGuire, Lincoln
Coordinator Andrea Padilla, left, explains taxes to Eladia, right, of Bladensburg, Md., at CASA de Maryland in Langley Park. Eladia, 50, is from Guatemala and has been living undocumented in the United States since 1998. (Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post)

The undocumented immigrants handed photo IDs and wrinkled tax records to volunteers in the windowless office, who tapped their earnings into calculators and delivered the news:

The day laborer owed $600 in state and federal taxes. The maid, $1,130. And the house painter, a whopping $6,000.

Thats rough, Salvador, a 44-year-old house painter from Guatemala, said in Spanish, blinking in shock at his hefty tax bill. But we have to pay.

For immigrants from Guatemala, El Salvador and other nations who are in this country illegally, filing tax returns is an act of faith they hope will benefit them if Congress lets them apply for legal residency in the United States. But in the first tax season under President Trump  who has vowed to crack down on illegal immigrants in part, he says, because of a belief that they drain government resources  the ritual is unfolding in an atmosphere of increased urgency and fear.

Its a myth that people who are undocumented dont pay taxes, said Cathryn Ann Paul, as she helped immigrants fill out tax forms at CASA de Maryland, a nonprofit group in Langley Park. Every time I see that on the news, it makes me cringe.

Tax site coordinator Andrea Padilla talks to Maria, 30, of Silver Spring. Maria is from El Salvador and is an undocumented immigrant. (Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post)

Federal law requires all workers to file income tax returns, even immigrants in the United States illegally. Since 1996, those who do not have a Social Security number can get a nine-digit Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) from the Internal Revenue Service.

More than 4 million people a year file using ITINs, according to federal records. The figure nearly doubled in the past decade, as Congress mulled legislation that would have created a path to citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants, as long as they paid back taxes. Maryland, one of 12 states that issues limited drivers licenses to undocumented immigrants, will not do so unless those immigrants show proof that they have filed tax returns.

Some taxpayers who file this way are legal immigrants and foreign investors who do not have Social Security numbers. But most are undocumented immigrants eager to secure a foothold in a nation that does not otherwise embrace them, establishing proof of residency and documenting their incomes. Like legal residents and U.S. citizens, they also want to know whether they qualify for a refund.

This tax season, advocates say, immigrants are so rattled by Trumps pledge to accelerate deportations that some are afraid to file returns, worried that addresses and other personal information on their returns could end up with federal agencies administering the crackdown. Adding to their stress is a law that took effect this year that is forcing hundreds of thousands of people to reapply for their ITINs.

Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot has visited CASA workshops to reassure undocumented immigrants that his office, which processes state returns, will not share their private tax information with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Good God, no, and I never will, Franchot (D) said in a telephone interview. If I have to get my law enforcement division to stand outside the door in Annapolis, I will.

The IRS echoed that sentiment this week, saying tax information cannot be shared with another government agency unless authorized by law. The IRS has strong processes in place to protect the confidentiality of taxpayer information, and this includes information related to tax returns filed using ITINs, a statement from the agency said. There is no authorization under this provision to share tax data with ICE.

About half of undocumented immigrants file personal tax returns, channeling $1.1 billion to state coffers, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. The IRS could not say how much ITIN filers paid in income taxes last year, but past federal reports have estimated that they pay billions of dollars in federal taxes over the past decade.

Critics of illegal immigration worry that undocumented immigrants are increasingly filing returns to take advantage of tax credits and other benefits that, they say, should be reserved for low-income families here legally. Some states, voicing concerns about fraud, have refused to issue refunds to people who file with taxpayer-identification numbers unless they provide additional proof of identity.

The reason that theyre filing is to not pay income tax, but to get a cash welfare program benefit out of the government, said Robert Rector, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Washington. They do pay taxes, but theyre getting much more in benefits than they pay out in taxes.

Advocates for undocumented immigrants counter that they are generally ineligible for most tax breaks. Many support relatives back home, for example, whom they cannot claim as dependents. Meanwhile, undocumented immigrants pay into programs such as Social Security, even though they cannot collect that money.

Immigrants paying taxes shouldnt be a controversial issue, said Jackie Vimo, policy analyst at the National Immigration Law Center, a nonprofit organization that advocates for low-income immigrants and their families. It brings money into the economy.

Federal records show that most taxpayers receive refunds, whether they are here legally or not. But on Wednesday, the half-dozen undocumented immigrants who crammed into a small basement office at CASA had to pay.

Some were self-employed and some were paid in cash and had not withheld enough in taxes, leaving them owing Uncle Sam at the end of the year. Most earned less than $11,000 annually. None had health insurance. And although they said they themselves did not fear the IRS, some declined to give their last names because they worry about deportation.

Hermenegildo Alvizurez, a graying day laborer who came here from Guatemala in 2008, was stunned that he had to pay $600 in taxes. He does odd jobs two or three days a week and sends money home to his five children.

Where am I going to get that kind of money? Alvizurez, 56, said in Spanish.

Maria, a 30-year-old maid from El Salvador, said she would have to set up a payment plan to settle her $1,130 state and federal tax debt. I came here to help my family, the Silver Spring resident said. I dont have a lot of money.

Eladia, a 50-year-old mother of four from Guatemala, said she has filed taxes every year since she crossed the border illegally in 1998. For 19 years, she said, she has lived in the same Bladensburg apartment, worked for the same cleaning company and never otherwise broken the law. She owes the state and federal government more than $1,200.

How strange, not even the state is going to give me anything? she asked, as volunteer Philip Webre, a retired analyst for the Congressional Budget Office, pored over her records. Webre shook his head, and she sighed.

Im not going to receive anything, she said, But Im happy because I declared my taxes.
The 19th-century brick vent shaft stands in Judiciary Square. The shaft once drew air into a nearby courthouse. It was removed during a 2006 renovation of the D.C. Court of Appeals and then put back next to the stone and glass entrance to a new underground parking garage. (John Kelly/The Washington Post)

A strange brick tower sits near the D.C. Court of Appeals. It looks real old. Can you find out what it is and why it is still there?

 Mary Frances Ronan, Alexandria, Va.

Imagine, if you will, a Mission: Impossible-type movie set in the early 20th century. The Impossible Missions team must thwart an attempt to kidnap President Theodore Roosevelt that they know will take place at the District Courthouse at Fifth and Indiana NW.

Actually, what the team wants is to spirit Roosevelt away and replace him with a body double  one of their operatives wearing a lifelike gutta-percha mask (fashioned by sculptor Daniel Chester French, as it happens). Once kidnapped, the fake Teddy will be able to infiltrate the criminal ring, which is working at the behest of wealthy railroad magnates opposed to Roosevelts trust-busting.

With Answer Man so far?

But how to slip in and out of the building unseen? Well, how does any commando get into a building? Through a ventilation shaft, of course. And that is what that tower is.

The building that is today the D.C. Court of Appeals was designed by architect George Hadfield and built in 1820, originally to serve as Washingtons City Hall. The brick tower itself was not erected until the 1880s, when the building housed various courts as well as the Civil Service Commission. (And who served on that commission and had an office there? Thats right: Teddy Roosevelt.)

The tower was part of a system that sucked in fresh air and pumped it through the building.

Beneath it was a horizontal tunnel big enough for a person to walk through, said Chris Wiley, project manager at Beyer Blinder Belle, the architectural firm responsible for the courthouses 2005 renovation. It entered the lower level of the courthouse through the foundation walls and went to the mechanical equipment room.

It was not air conditioning, per se, but it did allow air to move around, providing some relief from Washingtons sultry summers.

In the recent renovation, Beyer Blinder Belle architect Hany Hassan moved the courthouse entrance from the south side to the north side and placed a handsome glass box facing E Street NW.

An underground parking garage was also added as part of the renovation. That required temporarily moving the brick vent shaft and the nearby Darlington Memorial Fountain.

The shaft, Hassan said, was completely covered with ivy to the point that it almost looked like a shrub of sorts. You couldnt even see the structure.

Some people involved with the project thought that the tower  about eight feet wide and 14 feet tall  should have been taken apart and then reassembled.

I said absolutely not, said Hassan, who was impressed by the circular perfection of the tower, its fine brickwork, thin bands of mortar and slate capstone. I knew if they dismantled it, it would never come back together again.

Instead, workers were able to dig around the shafts foundation, make a couple of holes and insert steel beams to support the structure. (Theyre called needle beams.) The tower was welded inside a steel frame, then lifted up with a crane by United Rigging and set down nearby.

There it sat for a couple of years as the parking garage was completed. The tower was put back in almost the same place, just a few feet over. It sits next to a small glass and stone building that serves as the elevator and stair enclosure for the parking garage. (The Darlington Memorial Fountain was also restored.)

[The naked lady and the lawyers  a tale of a controversial D.C. work of art]

Hassan said he never considered demolishing the shaft and carting away its remains. One reason: It was a reminder that the exterior of the nearby courthouse was originally brick covered in stucco. It didnt receive its Indiana limestone skin until a renovation in 1917.

Fittingly, Hassan was able to figure out a way to use the tower. Although the courthouses modern HVAC system doesnt need the shaft to draw in fresh air, it does need it to vent air out.

We have to exchange warm air, Wiley said. All we did was change the air flow. It used to suck it in. Now it blows it out.

On a cold day, you can see what looks like steam rising from the tower. Its vapor from the air thats being exhausted. And its a reminder of the craftsmen who nearly 140 years ago painstakingly created something that possesses the beauty that can come with utility.

The tower, said Hassan, was not viewed as being an element of importance. I viewed it as being very precious.

What is your function? To pose questions about the Washington area. Email answerman@washpost.com

Twitter: @johnkelly

For previous columns, visit washingtonpost.com/johnkelly.
Commuters walk through a wintry mix of snow and sleet during the morning rush hour Friday in New York City. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

FLORIDA

Judge revokes bond for shooters wife

A federal judge in Orlando on Friday revoked bond for the wife of the gunman responsible for the Pulse nightclub massacre, the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

U.S. District Judge Paul Byron reversed the decision of a magistrate judge in Oakland, Calif., last week to release Noor Salman on $500,000 bond. Acting upon a request from prosecutors, Byron said Salman hadnt overcome a legal presumption that she was a flight risk or a danger to the community.

Salman was never let go from jail while Byron considered the prosecutors request. Her attorney was out of the office and didnt immediately return a phone call for comment.

Salman moved to California to be with family after last Junes massacre at the gay Orlando nightclub, and she had her first court appearance there even though charges were filed in Orlando. Salman has pleaded not guilty to charges of aiding and abetting, and obstruction of justice.

Prosecutors have said Salman accompanied her husband when he cased locations for potential terrorist attacks, knew ahead of time that he was planning the attack and misled FBI agents about what she knew about her husbands plans.

Salmans husband, Omar Mateen, was killed by police during a shootout at the end of a three-hour standoff at the Pulse nightclub last June. The mass shooting left 49 people dead and dozens more wounded.

 Associated Press

Prosecution proceeds for theater gunman

A Florida judge on Friday denied a stand your ground defense for a retired police officer who fatally shot a man in a movie theater over texting, which means the 74-year-old could stand trial on second-degree murder charges.

Judge Susan Barthle ruled that Curtis Reeves is not immune from prosecution in the death of 43-year-old Chad Oulson. The shooting happened in a movie theater in a suburb north of Tampa in January 2014 after the two men got into an argument because Oulson was texting his daughters day care during the movie previews.

During a two-week hearing to determine whether Reeves would have to stand trial, Reeves testified he shot Oulson after he was either punched or hit in the face with a cellphone.

The judge said a videotape of the events captured that afternoon by a movie theater surveillance camera didnt support Reeves testimony that he felt physically threatened. The video did show Oulson throwing popcorn at Reeves. An instant later, Reeves pulled a gun from his pocket and fired. Oulson was shot in the chest.

 Associated Press

OREGON

Jury convicts 2 men in armed occupation case

A jury on Friday convicted two men of conspiracy to impede federal officers during last years high-profile armed occupation of a wildlife refuge in Oregon in a protest over control of federal lands.

The verdict handed prosecutors some measure of redemption after they failed to convict occupation leaders Ammon and Ryan Bundy and five other occupiers in a trial last fall involving the takeover of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, a federally owned remote bird sanctuary about 290 miles southeast of Portland.

Dozens of people, including some government informants, occupied the refuge from Jan. 2 to Feb. 11, 2016.

The Bundys and other key figures were arrested in a Jan. 26 traffic stop outside the refuge that ended with police fatally shooting occupation spokesman Robert LaVoy Finicum.

In the current trial, Jason Patrick and Darryl Thorn were found guilty of conspiracy and face up to six years in prison. Defendants Duane Ehmer and Jake Ryan were found not guilty of conspiracy but guilty of deprivation of government property.

 Associated Press


In the Mission Valley neighborhood of San Diego, Rodney Hubscher of PaleoServices excavates a fossil from river deposits laid down at least 120,000 years ago. The rib he found came from a relative of the elephant. (Patrick Sena/San Diego Natural History Museum)

At first, the bones are hard to see in the chunk of fused pebbles that Patrick Sena is holding. But in a minute they appear: a piece of jaw with a yellowing tooth, and a bleached femur whose round end could hide under the head of a pin. Theyre 28.5 million years old.

Sena, a paleontologist with the San Diego Natural History Museum, looks up and squints at a hillside in the distance where scrapers and front-end loaders are noisily working. In a few years, these 250 acres will be Otay Ranch Village 3, with 1,200 dwelling units, an elementary school, a park, a swim club, and industrial and commercial spaces. Whatever Oligocene treasures the land may hold  other than the inconsequential ones in Senas hand  will be beyond reach.

For the next few weeks, however, the hunting will be good. Sena hopes to bag fossil tortoises, camels and rhinos, along with numberless small carnivores like the one whose bones hes holding. They will be cutting down through the richest part of the Otay Formation. Thats why I need to be out here.

Its the law. Its also a terrific deal for the San Diego Natural History Museum, which gets to keep whatever is found.

[This Smithsonian scientists death was a mystery; 150 years later, his skeleton helped solve it]

In California, when governmental agencies, developers and even private landowners dig in fossil-rich soil, a paleontologist must keep an eye on the work. Since 1995, Senas museum has provided this service for a fee, competing with private scientific contractors. Any significant fossils that are found must be curated, catalogued and transferred to a museum or university, although in certain circumstances landowners can retain ownership.

This arrangement has filled the San Diego museums display cases as well as its coffers. In fiscal 2016, the museums PaleoServices business provided $1.35 million, roughly 12 percent of the institutions operating revenue, and salvaged specimens now make up 75 percent of the institutions fossils. This win-win arrangement may be unique among American natural history museums.

I dont know of any other museum doing it the way San Diego is, said Scott Foss, senior paleontologist at the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Washington.

They have the perfect combination of lots of construction, the need to mitigate, expertise and the ability to display, said Kirk Johnson, director of the Smithsonians National Museum of Natural History.

Other museums have occasionally struck arrangements of the sort that San Diego has institutionalized. For example, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science made about a half-million dollars from survey-and-salvage contracts for interstate road projects in the 1990s, said Johnson, who worked there at the time. More often, the museum did consulting work for free. When construction at a resort uncovered skeletons of mammoths and mastodons in 2010, the museum hustled to raise $1 million to recover them.



At a Chula Vista, Calif., construction site in 2000, workers from the San Diego Natural History Meseums PaleoServices unit excavate the fossilized skull and vertebral column of a whale that lived about 3.5 million years ago. (Courtesy of Thomas Demere)

A long history

Theres a long history of salvaging fossils from construction sites.

In 1673, a London apothecary and amateur archaeologist, John Conyers, found a tusk of an extinct elephant-like animal during work to divert the River Fleet into an underground culvert. The specimen was eventually acquired by Hans Sloane, whose collection started the British Museum. In the United States, a mastodon skeleton was found in New York in a pit dug to extract limestone fertilizer. The discovery is depicted in Charles Willson Peales Exhumation of the Mastodon (1806-1808).

Only in the past century, however, have laws governed this activity.

[Smashed skulls suggest large European battle 3,200 years ago - and a more advanced society]

The act creating the National Park Service in 1916 stipulated that a parks scientific resources  including fossils  had to be protected. This requirement and similar ones for other federal holdings were rolled into the Paleontological Resources Preservation Act in 2009, one of the first laws signed by President Barack Obama. (Indian land and property owned by the Defense and Energy departments were exempted.) Some states and localities, especially in the West, have laws protecting fossils on non-federal public land and even on private construction sites under some circumstances.

As a consequence, theres now a profession called mitigation and salvage paleontology, practiced by scientists who specialize in finding fossils moments before theyre about to be destroyed by large machines.



Thomas Demere, a founder of the field called mitigation and salvage paleontology, holds a piece of siltstone containing mollusk shells from 75 million years ago. (David Brown for The Washington Post)

Everything was a big secret

Thomas A. Demere, the 68-year-old head of PaleoServices, is one of the founders of the field. He has a doctorate from UCLA and originally worked in the oil industry. (Fossils help identify geological formations that may hold oil.) He found a lot of great specimens but couldnt publish anything about them because that might reveal petroleum formations to competitors. Everything was a big secret, he said. It was kind of nonscientific.

When local governments in Southern California started requiring protection of fossils in the 1980s, Demere created PaleoServices while also working part time at the museum. In 1995, the museum took over the company and hired him full time.

The arrangement has proved unusually fruitful for the 142-year-old museum, whose focus is the natural history of Southern California and Baja California.

In San Diego County, the geologic record is most complete for the past 75 million years, with the Pliocene (the past 4 million years) and the Eocene (40 million to 50 million years ago) especially well represented. A building boom that has lasted half a century guarantees theres always lots of excavation to monitor.

[The bones in the Smithsonians whale warehouse are relics of a lost world]

Before the 1980s, the museums fossils came from around the world  a stamp collection, in Demeres words. The arrival of salvage paleontology, ironically, has made the holdings more scientific, allowing scientists to fill in many blanks in the regions prehistory. The museums collection has 154 holotypes  the specimen from which a new species is described  and 50 of them were found in construction sites.

Mitigation paleontologists dont gather up all the fossils that a road project or housing development uncovers. Instead, they collect samples while keeping their eyes out for marquee items, such as the 3-million-year-old whale skull found during the construction of a bike trail last fall.

The collection strategy is often driven by a research question, said Shelley L. Donohue, PaleoServices report writer. As an example, she cites the Sycamore Landfill, a giant hole that will be filled with trash. Seven years of digging has allowed scientists to answer hard questions such as how ecological niches were filled (or left empty) over the eons. At the moment, theres a particular interest in insectivorous mammals.

PaleoServices field workers normally haul a ton or two of material away from a site in pickup trucks and sift it for fossils. Occasionally, dump trucks are used. The museum collected 25,000 pounds from one place in the 1990s, looking for prosimian primates, which it found.

This moveable feast of fossils means theres plenty of leftovers. Surplus specimens are given to schools and even to visitors. A construction site in Chula Vista yielded a load of sand dollars, shells and bird bones. Children were allowed to screen the material and keep what they found.

About a dozen researchers visit the museum each year to use the collection. About 50 papers, from both in-house and outside scientists, have been written based on the museums holdings in the past 30 years.

There is a downside, however, to collecting fossils with construction equipment.

The paleontological monitor noticed an explosion of white when the road scraper tagged that, Demere says, pointing to the upper foreleg  the humerus  of a Columbian mammoth now awaiting curation back at the museums lab. Theres an unnatural flatness to the end of the bone. The missing piece  a bulge called a condyle  was the price of discovery.

In an exhibit of marine mammal fossils, the top of the skull of an extinct gray whale is prosthetic. Another whale skull is missing part of its underside. The chances of a big, display-worthy piece of skeleton being recovered undamaged are pretty small.

The people at the museum call it the scraper tax.



Collections manager Kesler Randall and curator Thomas Demere work together with staff at the Naval Medical Center San Diego to place the partial skull of a Columbian Mammoth (Mammuthus columbi) into a CT scanner. (Robert Rutherford/San Diego Natural History Museum)

An eye for small objects

In San Diego County, a paleontologist must be present if construction at a fossil-bearing site will move more than 2,500 cubic yards of soil. At Otay Ranch Village 3, 7 million cubic yards will be moved. Pat Sena, who is 48, is going to be there awhile.

Bulldozers and road scrapers  four and eight of them, respectively  were shaving the top off a ridge on this particular day. Their target was a layer of volcanic ash called bentonite, which is a poor material to build houses on. Dump trucks deposited 28,000 cubic yards of the material down in swales at the bottom of the hill each day.

This was once a coastal marsh, with braided streams flowing into a sea. Deluges scoured deep channels. Heavy material from uphill and inland  including the bodies and bones of living things  were deposited there. Most of the skeletons in the museums collection are incomplete because the animals werent buried where they died. The few terrestrial dinosaurs in the collection bear evidence of having been washed into the ocean. An ankylosaur (armored dinosaur) and a hadrosaur (duck-billed dinosaur) each have oyster shells stuck to their fossil bones.

The excavated ground at Otay Ranch is a mixture of clays and cobbles in gray, white and tan. Its hard to make out the walls of the ancient channels unless you know what to look for. Sena does. He started young, accompanying his geologist father on outings to search for uranium deposits, work that involved well-logging  recording characteristics of geological formations.

While he would be well-logging, Id be collecting fossils. I used to carry a geology book around with me in first grade, he said. Nothings changed. A former corpsman in the Marines, he joined PaleoServices 20 years ago. He doesnt have a college degree. What he does have is an eye for small objects, up close and at a distance.

He can find fossils where nobody else does. He sees patterns. He just has a feeling for the earth, Demere said.

The law requires that grading be suspended upon discovery of fossils greater than twelve inches in any dimension. There are few discoveries that big. When there are, theyre removed en bloc, field-jacketed in plaster and taken back to the museum for definitive uncovering.

Such rules sound like a recipe for endless delay, but apparently they arent. Very rarely do we have to move out of an area for any length of time, said Lance Dougherty, the jobsite foreman for the company shaping the land at Otay Ranch. Sometimes its an hour, sometimes its half a day. It doesnt slow us down because we can work in another area. He acknowledged, however, that its sometimes inconvenient.

For his part, Demere knows that keeping fossils safe isnt a high priority for government.

Obviously, theres a cost associated with regulations. Theres a cumulative effect when you stack them all up. But Id hate to see us take a big step backward.

As a way to thank property owners, builders, excavation contractors, bulldozer drivers, environmental planners and city staff, the museum holds an annual party to display what has been collected in the previous year.

The idea is that, without mitigation work, all this would be lost  everything from bison heads and whale jaws to mice teeth and tiny shells, Demere said.

One of the showstoppers last year was fossilized foraminifera, said Donohue, the report writer. You have to see them through a microscope, she said of the tiny calcificed organisms.

Some property owners dont need thanking. During the construction of a high-rise at Thomas Jefferson School of Law in downtown San Diego, equipment operators found a mammoth, a gray whale and a shell bed in sequential strata. The dean was thrilled. He is a history buff. And Jefferson collected fossils, Demere said. The parking levels under the building are named for the discoveries at each depth.



PaleoServices monitors discovered this skeleton of a 3 million-year-old fish during trenching excavations for a sewer line. (Antonio Cusumano/San Diego Natural History Museum)

The next generation

Paleontological digs are famously slow operations. Scientists sprawl on the ground, uncovering objects with dental picks and sable brushes as if they had all the time in the world.

Salvage paleontology is different. Its more closely related to chain-saw sculpture and speed chess. And birthday mornings.

In the trailer at Otay Ranch, the project superintendent, Robert Greninger, sat at a desk beneath a map of the development. The house lots on its not-yet-built curving streets look like the vertebral bodies of long-necked, long-buried lizards.

When Demere greeted him, Greninger mentioned the 10-year-old son of his boss.The boy loves visiting the site. But it isnt to see the machines with eight-foot tires. Its to see what Mr. Pat has found.

Of such encounters are paleontologists born.

Read more:

This adventurer found the trip worth it  despite the flesh-eating disease

Paleontologist Jack Horner is hard at work trying to turn a chicken into a dinosaur

A wolf-sized otters prowled prehistoric China

Why paleontologists love the noisy, featherless, inaccurate dinosaurs in movies
The Maha-ThaKyarYanThi Buddhist temple is framed by the setting sun in Nyaypyitaw, Burma. Almost 90 percent of Burmese practice Theravada Buddhism, drawn from the religions oldest texts. (Hein Htet/EPA)

MIDDLE EAST

Trump invites Abbas to visit White House

President Trump on Friday invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the White House, an Abbas spokesman said, after the two leaders spoke by phone for the first time since Trump took office.

President Trump has extended an official invitation to President Abbas to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the political process, said Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer later confirmed that Trump had invited Abbas to a meeting very soon.

Palestinians are concerned by the more favorable approach Washington has shown toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since Trump came to power. Netanyahu and Trump have spoken on the phone at least twice since the Jan. 20 inauguration, and Netanyahu visited Washington last month.

Palestinian officials indicated that Abbas would emphasize his concern about Israeli settlement-building on occupied land and the need for a two-state solution to the conflict. At a Feb. 15 news conference during Netanyahus visit, Trump was ambivalent about a two-state solution, the mainstay of U.S. policy in the region for the past two decades.

 Reuters

FRANCE

Fillon lays foundation for a comeback

Francois Fillon began the week battling party rebels trying to force him out of Frances presidential campaign. He ended it firmly back in control.

After riding out the storm of dissent to confirm his place in next months first round of voting, the 63-year-old former prime minister picked up an endorsement Friday from Alain Juppe, the man many in Frances Republican party had wanted to replace him. Two of Frances main news magazines put Fillon on their covers this week, asking whether he could still, after all, be the next president.

While Fillon remains firmly in third place in the polls and heading for elimination April 23, his support held up close to 20 percent even as allies were deserting him over a criminal probe into his finances. That gives him the foundation for a comeback in the final weeks of the campaign.

 Bloomberg News

IRAQ

No evidence in Mosul of chemical weapons

Iraqi U.N. Ambassador Mohamed Ali Alhakim said Friday that there was no evidence the Islamic State had used chemical weapons in Mosul, where the militants are fighting off an offensive by U.S.-backed Iraqi forces.

Alhakim said that he spoke with officials in Baghdad at midday Friday and that there was really no evidence that Daesh has used this chemical weapon. Daesh is another name for the Islamic State.

The United Nations said last Saturday that 12 people had been treated for possible exposure to chemical weapons agents in Mosul since March 1.

 Reuters

Six bodies found near resorts in Mexico: Prosecutors in the Mexican resort area of Los Cabos said six bodies were found between Thursday and Friday near the twin resorts of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. The resorts at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula have been the scene of increasing violence in recent months.

German police relieved at capture of brutal suspect: German police expressed relief Friday after the arrest of a 19-year-old suspected of killing his 9-year-old neighbor and bragging about it on the dark Web, a hidden zone of the internet often used for criminal activity. A large manhunt was launched Monday, and police arrested the suspect Thursday. I cannot tell you how relieved we all are that in Herne yesterday night, what many regard as an unusual, dangerous, brutal perpetrator was successfully arrested, said Gregor Lange, police president for the nearby city of Dortmund.

Former Yazidi sex slave fears plea for help being ignored: An Iraqi Yazidi woman held as a sex slave by Islamic State militants said her advocacy for other victims has left her exhausted and frustrated that her captors have not faced justice. Nadia Murad appeared at a U.N. event Thursday to ask that the crimes of Islamic State militants be investigated and prosecuted, and criticized the international body for its inaction. Murad was among thousands of women and girls abducted, tortured and sexually abused by militant fighters in Iraq in 2014.

 From news services
People protest the treatment of Falun Gong practitioners in China during a march in Washington in 2015. (Brendan Smialowski/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images)

The Post regularly features a paid supplement from the Chinese Communist Party-run China Daily. Though disclaimers make clear that The Post does not espouse the published views, there are reasons to think it and other American media should do more to limit such content.

For instance, the Jan. 25 supplement took aim at Shen Yun Performing Arts, a Chinese cultural performance show, solely because its creators and performers include members of the Falun Gong faith community. As documented by the State Department, Amnesty International and U.N. monitors, members of this faith are targeted for severe persecution by China, as are independent Christian groups, Tibetan Buddhists and others.

You would not learn that from China Daily, though. The article says readers would do well to heed calls to boycott a show based solely on the religion of those involved with it. Should U.S. media profit from such hate speech?

At the moment, we allow foreign states to dress up propaganda in a news-like package, simply because they can afford the advertising space. A more restrictive policy, limiting such access in egregious cases, might be wiser  and more humane.

Terri E. Marsh, Washington

The writer is a lawyer with the

Human Rights Law Foundation.
The March 5 Washington Post Magazine article By the book described a painful issue in home schooling that has a root cause beyond the implied suspects. Its helpful to understand why families home-school. The unschooling approach of John Holt cited doesnt adequately represent the roots of home schooling or the motivations of most home-schoolers.

I helped promote the home schooling movement in the 1970s and rarely heard his name. Look instead to the work of Paul Lindstrom, Raymond and Dorothy Moore, Gregg Harris, and R.J. Rushdoony. These writers understood the power of deeply committed parents teaching their children to see all things through the coherent lens of the biblical worldview. There is nothing intrinsic there to make families overly restrictive or anarchical.

Home schooling took off with a positive sense of purpose, not out of escapism. But some start from a different point, with painful results. Monitoring cannot be the solution. The control-freak mentality that plays badly in some families would play worse if given the leverage of public policy. The issue is not with home schooling or Christianity. Both produce positive outcomes. The issue is the unprecedented weakness of churches today in setting a framework for the worldview of their members. Moralism then takes root, with its different set of objectives in child rearing.

Pete Kelly, Catlett, Va.
CHADRON  Its taken longer than expected, but the Chadron Area Aquatics and Wellness Center is open for business.

The nearly $7 million facility opened last week with a soft opening and limited hours. Twelve lap swimmers hit the water early in the morning, and by afternoon's open swim, 85 swimmers had checked in, said Janet Johnson, the citys building and zoning administrator.

The giggles and the hysterical laughing of those children were just priceless, Johnson said.

The Chadron Area Aquatics and Wellness Center is the result of a years-long process that included a feasibility study, a council decision not to put a proposal on the ballot, and a petition drive that ended with voters approving a sales-tax increase to pay for the project by a 2-to-1 margin. In addition to an estimated $4 million in sales-tax revenue, the facility has received more than $1.5 million in grants and donations.

The project enclosed Chadrons existing outdoor swimming pool and added several features. The 25-meter pool includes six lanes, a diving board and a 75-foot slide, with a zero-depth entry at one end. The facility also includes a therapy pool, locker rooms, a walking track and a space for meetings and parties. A sundeck is still under construction.

City Councilman Keith Crofutt praised the addition, saying his young son was among the dozens of kids to enjoy opening day.

Its just going to be an incredible asset for the community, said City Manager Wayne Anderson.

Daily passes and memberships are available for the facility.
In its zeal to repeal, the U.S. House of Representatives recently voted to overturn a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rule forbidding the baiting, trapping and denning of bears and wolves in Alaskas national wildlife refuges.

The Senate is poised to consider the resolution as soon as next week.

Distilled to its essence, Alaskas politicians want to reduce bear and wolf populations so hunters will have more moose and caribou to kill. Alaskas full congressional delegation  Rep. Don Young and Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan (all Republicans)  is behind the push.

Arguing for passage of House Joint Resolution 69, Young told of entering wolf dens and killing mothers and pups back when he worked as a bounty hunter of predators. Presumably, this was intended to impress his fellow legislators, as are his office walls, which are bedecked with animal trophies. One eye-catching exhibit consists of a gargantuan grizzly-bear hide tacked to a wall, the beasts hind legs framing a piece of the Alaskan pipeline.

Witty.

This isnt an anti-hunting column, I should say upfront. Im on record supporting humane hunting for food (but not for trophies), and I recognize that without hunters, many of whom are ardent conservationists, many wetlands would have been drained for commercial development.

This is a plea for common sense, compassion and conservation. What are wildlife refuges, after all, if not refuges for wildlife?

The underlying so-called principle behind the resolution is the GOPs promise to reduce job-killing regulations. While zealous regulation has led to some corporate outsourcing  and responsible tweaks can be made here and there  not one job is protected nor one dime saved by overturning the wildlife agencys rule.

One could even argue that Youngs move is anti-business. Tourism is second only to oil as Alaskas greatest resource and industry. People go to Alaska to hunt but also to visit the parks and see the animals. Animal watching, in fact, brings Alaska more tourism dollars than hunting does, according to Alaskas Department of Fish and Game.

The sheer savagery of what would become lawful if the Senate falls prey to its companion resolution ( Senate Joint Resolution 18) should give pause to anyone with a heartbeat.

Hunters could scout grizzlies from the air and then be deposited on the ground to kill them. (Aerial shooting is still forbidden.) They could hunt wolves during denning season, either shooting a mother wolf, thus dooming her babies, or entering the den and killing all, frequently with gas. Hunters could also bait, trap or snare, causing an agonizing death usually exacerbated by freezing temperatures. The traps are steel-jawed. A snare is a wire that wraps around an animals neck, then tightens as it tries to pull away.

These enhanced methods would target animals at their most vulnerable, in other words, and cause maximum suffering for no tenable reason. Moreover, artificially reducing the number of predators winnows down diversity essential to a healthy ecosystem, which can lead to unintended and disastrous consequences.

One potentially lethal consequence for humans is that baiting bears with food such as doughnuts habituates them to the human scent, thus increasing the risk of attacks on people. Remember Dont feed the bears?

Of hunters, one must ask: Where is the sportsmanship in all of this?

To Young and his like-minded colleagues, such a query is beside the point. Ultimately, they say, this is a states rights issue. There it is, the love Republicans cant quit. In fact, no law grants state land managers authority to overrule federal land managers decisions related to federal land  for good reason.

Without the National Park Service, we might have had mining in the Grand Canyon, noted Wayne Pacelle, president and chief executive of the Humane Society of the United States (where my son works), in a telephone interview. Without federal protections, whats to stop Wyoming from authorizing hunting grizzlies in Yellowstone?

States rights simply dont apply when you have a federal category of lands authorized by Congress, he said. This is really our Serengeti.

As a humane matter, theres no defending H.J. Res. 69. As a regulatory issue, it defies logic. As an economic concern, protecting wildlife from cruel hunting practices makes sense.

Senators should vote to leave the protective rule in place  not only to protect our wildlife from politicians predatory practices but also to reassure Americans that the chamber still has a conscience.

Read more from Kathleen Parkers archive, follow her on Twitter or find her on Facebook.
The Post had two excellent commentaries about national security adviser H.R. McMaster in the Feb. 26 Outlook section. Both call for comment.

Phillip Carters essay, McMaster knows what can go wrong. Can he stop it this time? , contained a somewhat misleading statement that McMasters book Dereliction of Duty demolished the myth among the military of a  stabbed in the back narrative: If not for meddling politicians, intrusive journalists and a spineless public, the military would have won the war. But there was no such myth among the military. In my 1981 class at the National War College, there was widespread bitterness among the military members that they had been betrayed by their military leaders. I was a civilian member of that class and wrote a final paper based on interviews with my classmates (colonels and lieutenant colonels of the Vietnam generation), and this was a commonly held opinion.

McMaster broke the subject open and obviously deserves the credit, especially given that he was a serving officer when he did so, but the view he expressed was in fact widely shared among the Vietnam generation of military officers, especially those in the Army and Marine Corps.

Jon Finers essay, The noble tragedy of H.R. McMasters strategy in Iraq, was a fine review of then-Col. McMasters tactical role in Iraq. But in the end the only sober judgment is that while the operation was a success, the patient died. It was not the surgeons fault that someone else got the diagnosis wrong.

Edward Marks, Washington

In his Feb. 26 Outlook essay about H.R. McMaster, Phillip Carter in one paragraph got the oath of a U.S. military officer right (obey civilian authority, consistent with their oath to support and defend the Constitution) but got it wrong at the end of the same paragraph (follow orders from the president; thats what they swear to do).

During World War II, German military officers swore their oath to a person, the Fuhrer. At the Nuremberg Trials, the United States and the other Allied nations did not accept that officers were simply obeying orders of an individual and sentenced some of them to death. After the American Civil War, the U.S. military officer oath was changed to ensure that officers have an obligation of judgment as they swear their oath to the Constitution and not any individual, Fuhrer or president. The enlisted oath still calls for obedience to the orders of the president of the United States and the officers appointed over those who take that oath.

Morton E. Toole, Washington

The writer is a retired Navy r ear admiral.
Dartmouth surgeon Richard J. Barth and colleagues are to be commended for their effort to reduce the number of narcotic pills prescribed by surgeons after surgery, as reported in the March 8 news article Surgeons were told to stop prescribing so many painkillers. They cut the number in half. For a group of 224 surgical patients, there was a reduction of narcotic pills prescribed from 6,170 before surgeon-education intervention to 2,932 after, with no observed decrease in quality of postoperative pain control.

In Maryland in 2015, 1,259 people died of overdose  mostly narcotics. For the first three quarters of 2016, the number was 1,468. The majority of heroin addicts today transition to heroin from legally prescribed narcotics. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) recently declared Marylands opioid crisis a state of emergency.

All physicians who prescribe narcotics from time to time for non-chronic pain patients, surgeons in particular, should be mindful of the number of narcotic pills we write for. Minimizing the number of dispensed pills will put downward pressure on community narcotic addiction and overdose death without sacrificing the quality of our patient care.

Mark Edney, Salisbury, Md.
ON THE last day of 2016, the Catholic Church announced a remarkable political breakthrough in Congo, a sprawling country nearly the size of Western Europe that for decades has been a fount of war and instability in Africa. Joseph Kabila, the countrys president since 2001, had refused to leave office after the expiration of his second term in December, bringing Congo to the brink of another violent upheaval. The accord brokered by the church called for new elections in 2017 in which Mr. Kabila, who is constitutionally barred from seeking another term, would not take part; in the meantime, a new prime minister would be chosen by the opposition coalition.

More than two months later, the deal seems to have unraveled  and Congo is again on the edge. Mr. Kabila, who never signed or publicly endorsed the accord, has retreated into his customary seclusion even as his security forces conduct a violent crackdown. As the Wall Street Journal reported, government forces have killed some 180 people since Dec. 31, including scores in the Kasai-Central province, the stronghold of the opposition Union for Democracy and Social Progress. A video circulated by human rights groups last month appeared to show a massacre by government soldiers of at least 13 people, including several women; a U.N. official said as many as 101 people, including 39 women, may have been killed in Kasai.

Last month the U.N. Security Council condemned the new violence, which it said may constitute war crimes. It called on the government to revive talks on implementing the Dec. 31 agreement, including the nomination of a new prime minister. On Monday, a draft European Union document warned of new sanctions against those responsible for grave human rights violations, for inciting violence or obstructing a peaceful resolution of the crisis.

The international response is salutary but it is unlikely to be successful unless it is fully joined by the United States. After some hesitation, the Obama administration played a significant role in bringing pressure on the Kabila regime, punishing some of its top leaders for involvement in human rights abuses. The Trump administration, however, has shown little interest in promoting democracy and human rights or, for that matter, Africa; the State Departments reaction to the alleged massacre in Kasai was a perfunctory statement. The White Houses only Congo-related action has been a reported draft executive order lifting controls on the trade of minerals that have been used to fund armed groups.

Mr. Kabila may be betting that Mr. Trump will shrug if he scraps the political accord and uses force to remain in power. So the administration should move swiftly to signal its readiness to join new E.U. sanctions. Mr. Kabilas intransigence risks touching off another explosion of bloodshed in Central Africa  something that even an America First president should want to stop.
President Trump, during the campaign, famously said that he gets his military advice from the shows.

He wasnt kidding. Now, as leader of the free world, he gets up in the morning and, long before receiving his intelligence briefing (if he receives one at all), he flips on cable news and starts tweeting. His comments are in the style of a guy in a La-Z-Boy shouting at the television, except the guy in the La-Z-Boy has 26 million Twitter followers and controls a nuclear arsenal that could destroy the world many times over.

Fox Newss morning show flashes a graphic alleging that 122 released Gitmo prisoners reengaged in terrorism. Within an hour, Trump tweets from the White House: 122 vicious prisoners, released by the Obama administration from Gitmo, have returned to the battlefield. Just another terrible decision! (As The Posts Jenna Johnson pointed out, 113 of the 122 were released during the George W. Bush administration.)

A Fox & Friends host calls for Trump to block federal funding to universities that try to silence conservative voices, after violent protests at the University of California at Berkeley over a speech by conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos. Half an hour later, Trump tweets: If U.C. Berkeley does not allow free speech and practices violence on innocent people with a different point of view  NO FEDERAL FUNDS?

Fox Newss OReilly Factor cites statistics about crime in Chicago. An hour later, Trump tweets the same statistics: If Chicago doesnt fix the horrible carnage going on, 228 shootings in 2017 with 42 killings (up 24% from 2016), I will send in the Feds!

Fox News labels Chelsea Manning an ungrateful traitor who had called President Barack Obama a weak leader. Fourteen minutes later, CNNs Brian Stelter notes, Trump tweets: Ungrateful TRAITOR Chelsea Manning, who should never have been released from prison, is now calling President Obama a weak leader. Terrible!

Fox Newss Tucker Carlson airs a report alleging that Sweden has been trying to cover up an outburst of violence caused by Muslim immigrants. The next day, Trump tells a crowd in Florida: You look at whats happening last night in Sweden. Sweden? Who would believe this?

Swedes have no idea what Trump is talking about; an international incident ensues.

Trumps virtual shouts at the television arent limited to Fox News (NBC, MSNBC and CNN have fired him up, too), and they have been about everything from Russia to Obamacare to flag burning.

Clearly we are not going to get Trump to turn off the idiot box and do his homework. But perhaps somebody could change the channel in the residence? This way Trump could still get his frustrations out, La-Z-Boy-style  and the Republic would not have to fear that the commander in chief might at any moment start World War III because of something he just heard on Fox News.

With some guidance from Hank Stuever, The Posts TV critic, I searched the proverbial dial for shows that might prove useful distractions for Trump. Following, with the necessary SPOILER ALERT, are examples of how Trump could be occupied with fictional drama to prevent him from creating real crises.

Instead of dire warnings of terrorist threats, he could tweet about Showtimes Homeland: Ungrateful TRAITOR Carrie Mathison, whose law firm helps Radical Islamic Terrorists, has daughter taken away. We are already winning again, America!

Instead of threatening to tear up NAFTA and the Iran nuclear deal, he could critique HGTVs Fixer Upper: Do you believe it? Jordan & Rachel should not have bought the house. I could renovate for 1/2 Chip & Jo price. A terrible deal!

He could channel personal animosity not at Democrats but at the contestants of Discoverys Naked and Afraid: CHOKER Jason, highly overrated with 6.8 PSR, drops out on Day 11 because of parasites. Weak! Too much pixelation covering Lacey. Sad.

His unnerving rants about crime and violence could find an outlet in recent actions on CMTs Nashville: Rayna escapes knife attack but then killed after car crash. Carnage stops right now!

He might direct his conspiracy theories about rigged elections into demanding an investigation into how crooked Blake Shelton won five of 11 seasons on The Voice. His curious fondness for Russia could find a healthy outlet by watching FXs The Americans; everybody roots for Russian spies Philip and Elizabeth. And he could work through his issues with women and minorities by focusing them on HBOs Girls: Shocker! Total zero Lena Dunham gets pregnant by the foreign Muslim, Riz Ahmed.

And  who knows?  maybe watching the Weather Channel now and then might get him to reconsider climate change: Winter Storm Reggie coming followed by 2 more storms  and 49 Midwest tornadoes. I INHERITED A MESS!

Who wouldnt retweet that?

Twitter: @Milbank

Read more from Dana Milbanks archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Robin Utz writes at DefendingGrace.org. Her Twitter handle is @defending_grace.

My husband and I desperately wanted to have a baby. We looked extensively into adoption and tried to get pregnant for four years with the help of fertility specialists  enduring two in-vitro procedures and multiple failed embryo transfers. We were thrilled when our most recent in-vitro fertilization proved successful.

Unfortunately, we discovered after my 21-week anatomy scan that our daughter  Grace Pearl  had bilateral multicystic dysplastic kidney disease. Her kidneys were not functioning, she had no amniotic fluid and her lungs would never develop properly. Three doctors told us our daughters condition was 100 percent fatal due to the early onset of her disease. She would either be stillborn or would not survive long after birth. My own risk would increase sevenfold if I continued to carry her.

We made the excruciating decision to terminate the pregnancy at 21 weeks and five days  nearly six months. We did this out of love: Terminating was the least painful and most humane thing we could do for her. We did all we could to take on the physical and emotional suffering ourselves, instead of allowing her to feel it. The physician cut her umbilical cord prior to the termination to ensure that her heart would stop beating and that shed have as peaceful of an experience as possible. Her pathology report confirmed the doctors fatal diagnosis.

But the process to get that abortion in Missouri  the state where we live  was one of the most callous and insulting experiences we have ever endured.

My husband and I had to wait 72 hours after consenting to the abortion so we could consider what we were doing. I had to sign a statement affirming that I heard my babys heartbeat (a sound that brought tears of joy to my eyes when I first heard it) and that I saw an ultrasound (I had asked for more than what is routinely provided to reassure myself, having experienced a miscarriage in the past). We were given a packet explaining that we were terminating the life of a separate, unique, living human being. There are no exceptions to these protocols, even for people terminating for fetal anomaly.

Missouri doesnt allow private insurance to provide coverage for abortions except in cases of life endangerment  patients have to purchase riders for abortion coverage at an additional cost. That can make it extremely expensive to obtain one even at Planned Parenthood, which is not able to use federal funds for abortions. There are exceptions for this rule in the case of rape, incest or the health of the mother, but the health of the fetus is not considered.

In fact, had we done the procedure a mere two days later, we would have had to leave the state to have the termination due to Missouris late-term abortion law. In that sense we were lucky, but what would happen to a single parent who couldnt get off work, save the needed money or find someone to watch her children before the deadline? What if she didnt live in a metropolitan area with such excellent doctors and facilities?

Im sharing this so you know who is affected if we further defund Planned Parenthood, totally outlaw abortions or prohibit late-term procedures. Indeed, Missouri is considering a 20-week abortion ban with no exceptions for cases of fetal anomalies.

If you believe you wouldnt make the same choice we did, be grateful that you will probably never have to. But no one should force such a decision on anyone. This should be between you, your partner, your medical professionals and your higher power, if you believe in one. It felt utterly terrible to realize that politicians  who knew nothing about our circumstances, or worse, wouldnt care if they did because their supporters are so dogmatically pro-life  have such control over our options.

Imagine for a moment that the political situation was reversed. Imagine how you would feel if churches and people in government thought the most humane route for a fatal diagnosis was to immediately terminate the fetus against your wishes. Imagine that multiple doctors advised you to continue with the pregnancy, but that you couldnt take their advice or follow your own instincts because a law prohibited you from doing so.

I know I wont change every mind with our story, but I beg everyone to consider the full impact of outlawing abortion or making it more difficult to obtain one. Know that people like us would be hurt and that babies like Grace would suffer. Thankfully, we were able to do what we believed was best for our beloved baby girl. Please dont make it so others cant do so in the future.
Regarding the March 9 Metro article GOP floats relocating D.C. agencies:

I am a retired Environmental Protection Agency lawyer who worked for a member of Congress for a year as part of the Brookings Institutions legislative fellowship program. I was surprised at how little members knew about the workings of the federal government, such as that a proposed regulation was not a law and that agencies submit proposals for review under the Congressional Review Act but rarely get congressional input.

Now Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) puts forth Divest D.C. to relocate federal jobs outside the District. This just demonstrates ignorance of how federal agencies operate. There are regional and local offices for every federal agency. At the EPA, our 10 regional offices are each led by a Senate-confirmed administrator. The bulk of EPA resources go out to the regions and states via grant programs. If members of Congress researched the agencies they oversee, they would see how ludicrous and pandering such a proposal is.

Phyllis Anderson, Chevy Chase

Congress has enough to work on without fighting over whose district would host a federal agency to boost local economies and employment per Rep. Jason Chaffetzs (R-Utah) suggestion to move federal agencies out of the District.

Lets keep agencies where they are and let Congress focus on real problems. If anything, maybe return more of the District to Maryland and Virginia, where a more viable tax base could serve more constituent needs.

Glenn Easton, Chevy Chase
The Feb. 26 editorial Logic wins out on a Maryland gun law misrepresented the Supreme Courts opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller to say,  weapons that are most useful in military service  M-16 rifles and the like  may be banned.  Heres the quote in full context: It may be objected that if weapons that are most useful in military service  M-16 rifles and the like  may be banned, then the Second Amendment right is completely detached from the prefatory clause. . . . But the fact that modern developments have limited the degree of fit between the prefatory clause and the protected right cannot change our interpretation of the right.

Heller may have excluded unusual military weapons from Second Amendment protection, but the court explicitly included weapons in common use  such as the semiautomatic AR-15 civilian take on the M-16 rifle.

Robert A. Levy, Naples, Fla.

The writer is chairman of the Cato Institute.
THE REMOVAL of President Park Geun-hye must be seen as a testament to South Koreas young democracy. For all the disruption and difficulty, the nation has managed to perform one of the most tricky maneuvers in a democratic system: undertaking the transfer of power under the rule of law at a time of extreme duress. The agility to make the hard decisions and hand off the baton without a bloody coup is a sign of strength that distinguishes democracy from dictatorship. Much credit goes to the spirit of nonviolent protest that filled the months-long street demonstrations.

At the same time, the whole affair further exposed the seamy collusion between the chaebol conglomerates and political power. Ms. Park was removed from office when the Constitutional Court upheld a parliamentary vote to impeach her for corruption. The Posts Anna Fifield reports that the court found she had helped her friend Choi Soon-sil extract bribes from South Korean conglomerates, including Samsung; personally asked big business for donations; leaked confidential documents to Choi; tried to cover up her wrongdoing; and lied about it. South Korea must clean up this corruption to reestablish trust in government.

But much sooner, the country faces serious external challenges. Ms. Park took an unflinching stand toward Kim Jong Uns dangerous and unpredictable regime in North Korea. The arrival last week in South Korea of the first wave of equipment to install a U.S. missile defense system known as Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, and ongoing Foal Eagle joint military exercises with the United States are products of this determined and sound approach. Now, Seoul faces a moment of vulnerability and must not be intimidated. The North has attempted to crudely exploit the political turmoil, including the launch last week of a volley of four missiles toward Japan.

China has also behaved thuggishly, encouraging boycotts of South Korean businesses to protest the missile defense deployment. Beijings latest diplomatic proposal, that North Korea freeze its nuclear and missile programs in exchange for a U.S. halt to joint exercises with the South, was a risible nonstarter that once again called into question whether China can ever be a serious brake on the reckless and dangerous Mr. Kim.

In the upcoming South Korean elections, polls show a leading candidate is Moon Jae-in, a progressive proponent of the sunshine policy of engagement with North Korea. The strategy is meant to ease tension and open up the closed state, but this hardly seems like the right time for it. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who travels to Japan, South Korea and China this week, should use his trip to drive home to South Korea the wisdom of standing firm against pressure from the North and from China, while strongly reassuring Seoul of the U.S. commitment to its security. Mr. Tillerson has made his task that much harder with a foolish decision to exclude the media from his traveling party, breaking with decades of precedent. This is no time for muffled voices.
Robert E. Rubin, U.S. treasury secretary from 1995 to 1999, is co-chairman of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Not long after I became treasury secretary in 1995, a senior U.S. senator summoned me to Capitol Hill for a meeting. He demanded to know why our department had just opened a community development office, tasked with focusing on poverty, inner-cities and distressed rural areas.

Treasurys purview is economic policy, the senator said. What exactly do poverty and social issues have to do with your job?

The answer to that question has never been more important than it is today: Anti-poverty programs such as Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, often called food stamps) and other safety-net programs designed to assist low-income Americans are not only social and moral imperatives  they serve critically important economic purposes.

To start, these are vital public investments with high rates of return. They improve productivity and reduce social costs caused by crime, malnutrition and poor health. For adults, Medicaid and SNAP better enable effective participation in the workforce.

Roughly 20 percent of U.S. children live in poverty. In the wealthiest country in the world, thats not just a moral outrage  its a serious detriment to our economic future. For low-income children, Medicaid and SNAP are investments that significantly improve outcomes later in life. For example, one study found that children who received SNAP were less likely to experience stunted growth, heart disease and obesity as adults  and had graduation rates that were 18 percentage points higher. We need to do more, not less, to help these children  by providing early family intervention, better schools and housing, safer neighborhoods and much else.

Whats more, these programs serve as automatic stabilizers during an economic downturn: In a weak economy, as more people lose income and become eligible for federal benefits, the programs expand, putting more money in more peoples pockets. People then spend that money, increasing demand and helping the economy recover.

All this adds up to a clear but underappreciated reality: Anti-poverty programs are an economic imperative. And yet their future is in jeopardy.

The majorities in Congress have advocated capping or block granting federal spending on Medicaid and SNAP  and the Trump administration is also expected to pursue a budget that restructures them. Over time, the effect would be major cuts to these programs. The more immediate effect would be to eliminate the programs ability to automatically adjust to meet increased need, whether from a weakened economy, natural disaster or public-health crises such as the opioid epidemic. Low-income programs that depend on annual appropriations are also at risk if the president and Congress follow through on plans to bring domestic spending to historically low levels.

The threat to these programs is particularly grave this year because of the desire to lower corporate and individual income taxes. Corporate tax cuts and certain structural reforms could increase U.S. competitiveness globally and business investment, economic activity and labor demand, which could, in turn, boost jobs and wages.

But significant cuts to top personal income-tax rates or to capital gains taxes, or the elimination of the estate tax, would disproportionately benefit those at the top, while providing little or no gains for workers or the broader economy. Such rate reductions, on both the personal and corporate side, would also increase fiscal deficits, even after reasonable adjustments for projected economic growth, if unpaid for. There will be tremendous pressure to offset those deficits by cutting anti-poverty programs.

Moreover, the most likely path forward for a tax bill is through reconciliation, the filibuster-proof legislative process for passing budgetary bills in the Senate. Reconciliation bills must adhere to certain rules, including a requirement that they not add to the deficit in years beyond the next decade. In 2001, Congress circumvented this problem by sunsetting the Bush rate cuts. But the majority party in Congress is unlikely to want a major structural overhaul of the tax system to be temporary. Thats because such structural reforms require businesses to make long-term organizational and financial changes. All this suggests there will be even greater pressure to make major cuts to programs for the poor.

Even if certain tax changes are economically beneficial on their own, funding them with cuts to anti-poverty programs would be counterproductive. The constructive alternative would be to finance rate cuts by removing or limiting deductions and other tax breaks. But these provisions have strong special-interest support and are unlikely to change much. The threat to anti-poverty programs, which unfortunately have fewer powerful backers, is very real.

In todays political environment, we should be aware of these threats and keep our focus on protecting programs that combat poverty. And, in the years and decades ahead, we need to fight for our nations economic interests by substantially increasing investments in these programs, especially for children.

Just think of how our economy would benefit if we finally marshaled the will and resources to effectively combat poverty. It would increase the size and productivity of our workforce, including by equipping children for success, and make our economy more resilient through stronger automatic stabilizers.
The Millard brothers were not twins -- three years separated them -- but their lives so paralleled each other it is often difficult to keep them separate and straight. Both were bankers, real estate brokers, town builders, public servants, businessmen and Omaha mayors.

Ezra and Joseph Hopkins Millard were born in 1833 and 1836, respectively, in Hamilton, Ontario, where their parents, Americans by birth, had taken temporary residence from their home in New Jersey. When Ezra was 14 and Joseph 11, the family returned to the U.S. settling in Sabula, Iowa, where they attended school.

In the mid-1850s Ezra moved to Sioux City, Iowa, but in October 1856 relocated to Omaha, joining Joseph and their uncle Willard Barrows, who had come from Davenport, Iowa. In Omaha the trio established Barrows & Millard Land Agents in a small frame building at 10th and Farnam streets.

By 1860 the firm had moved to the Western Exchange Building at 12th and Farnam while drifting from real estate into banking. At one early point, as the banking brokers Barrows, Millard & Co., their safe was considered so insecure that each night cash and gold bullion was secreted to a nearby vault disguised as dirty laundry or in old newspapers.

Ultimately, the bank morphed into Omaha National Bank in July 1866. Ezra also was elected to the territorial legislatures council and converted the old one-story frame City Hotel into his residence. Joseph left Omaha in spring 1864 and headed for Montana where gold had been found in the wake of the discovery of gold in Colorado.

After establishing banks in Virginia City and Helena, Montana, Joseph returned to Omaha in 1866. There he joined Ezra in the Omaha National Bank becoming its president in 1867 and was appointed to the board of directors of the State Institute for the Deaf the same year.

Ezra was one of the 1867 incorporators of the Omaha Horse Railway Co., which was granted a 50-year franchise by the legislature with its original line running about a mile from Ninth and Farnam to 18th and Cass streets. Both brothers became incorporators and directors of the Omaha Northwestern Railroad in 1869. Ezra was elected mayor the same year and became one of the incorporators of the Omaha Library Association in 1871.

In 1855, George and Cyrus Stevens settled a large tract of land west of Omaha which was purchased by the Millard brothers in 1870. The land, which was on the Union Pacific Railroads 1865 route, was described as being 21 miles from Omaha by rail, but 11 miles as the swallow flies. In 1871, the land was platted by the Union Pacifics surveyors, with the brothers filing it as the city of Millard in 1873. The village of Millard grew slowly over the next decade. Omaha elected Joseph as mayor in 1872.

After the Grand Central Hotel was consumed by fire and Omaha was left without a first-class hotel, the Millard brothers and several other area businessmen formed a syndicate in 1881 to build a new hotel as a replacement. The new Millard Hotel opened in 1882 on the northeast corner of 13th and Douglas streets. The four-story, $200,000, 170-room hotel occupied nearly a quarter-block footprint and was so successful that a fifth story was added a year later.

On May 1, 1884, Ezra left his previous bank and, as president, opened the Commercial National Bank. In September, Ezra purchased a tract of land from Alfred Gates for $2,800 after Gates plans for a city failed to develop with Ezra then filing the plat for Cortland, Nebraska. He immediately began selling lots for an average of $125. As lots sold, a subsequent parcel was platted as an addition.

In 1886, Ezra died at Sarasota, New York, and his body was returned to Omaha to be buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery. Joseph soldiered on in Omaha, organizing the Omaha & Council Bluffs Railway & Bridge Co. in 1887, which opened its street railway bridge across the Missouri River connecting Iowa and Nebraska in 1888. In 1901, Joseph was elected to the U.S. Senate, serving as chairman of the Panama Canal Committee.

The city of Millard meantime slowly developed with its 1882 population reaching about 300 and supporting several small businesses as well as three hotels and two saloons. In 1956, Western Electric began a major building project there resulting in its 1960 population of 1,014 jumping to 7,460 in 1970.

Omaha reacted quickly with annexation plans because if Millards population reached 10,000, Nebraska law forbid annexation. Millard opposed the annexation vigorously but when the question reached Nebraskas Supreme Court, Millard was on the losing side and was annexed in 1971. Interestingly, Millards schools did not become part of Omahas district and continue as a separate entity today.

Joseph died in 1922 at age 85.

Though the Millard name lives on, it is now primarily thought of in connection with the city, now a suburb, 21 miles west of Omaha.
Encouraging developments are as welcome as they are rare in colleges and universities that cultivate diversity in everything but thought. Fortunately, state legislatures, alumni and philanthropists are planting little academic platoons that will make campuses less intellectually monochromatic. One such, just launched, is Arizona State Universitys School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership.

A primary mission of institutions of higher education should be the transmission of civilizations intellectual patrimony. With the permeation of academia by progressivism, however, the mission increasingly is liberation from this patrimony in order to further progress, understood as movement away from the principles of the American founding. One notable progressive knew better. Something Woodrow Wilson actually got right was that a university should be an organ of recollection and a seat of vital memory, lest we become infantile in every generation.

During the national fragmentation of 1861, Abraham Lincoln said that the better angels of our nature would be summoned by the mystic chords of memory. But democratic nations, which rest on the shiftable sands of opinion, are forgetful, so memory needs to be nurtured. In his novel Mr. Sammlers Planet, Saul Bellow wrote:

It is sometimes necessary to repeat what all know. All mapmakers should place the Mississippi in the same location, and avoid originality. It may be boring, but one has to know where he is. We cannot have the Mississippi flowing toward the Rockies for a change.

[Why Middleburys violent response to Charles Murray reminded me of the Little Rock Nine]

One thing we know is that what Americas Founders considered self-evident truths should be studied by future leaders because, as historian Daniel Boorstin said, Trying to plan for the future without knowing the past is like trying to plant cut flowers. It is not necessary that everyone read the Federalist Papers and The Wealth of Nations (published in 1776) but someone should, and students in ASUs new school will.

Schools like this can counter what worried Ronald Knox, the English priest and author who said that in the modern age you do not believe what your grandfathers believed, and have no reason to hope that your grandsons will believe what you do. If so, the U.S. national identity will become attenuated. Students in ASUs new school will understand what the nations Founders believed and why they did.

John Adams believed that education makes a greater difference between man and man than nature has made between man and brute. Because education increasingly stratifies society, so it should diligently transmit commonalities conducive to social cohesion. Arizona, like the United States, faces a continuing challenge  a welcome challenge  of assimilating newcomers. And Americans are increasingly living in social silos and susceptible to confirmation bias  receptive only to information and ideas that confirm what they already think. Hence the nations foundational precepts need to be carefully studied, robustly debated and thoughtfully celebrated.

Because America is, as Lincoln said, dedicated to a proposition with far-radiating implications, U.S. citizenship is uniquely demanding. Ideally, it involves familiarity with the Founders doctrine of natural rights  rights that preexist government, which exists to secure them. These rights are discoverable by something natural, reason, but the enjoyment of these rights depends on something not natural, a well-wrought government. It should sustain a market economy, in which earned success serves individual dignity.

The United States began as an errand into the wilderness and for many generations had a longing for dispersal, for living beyond the sound of a neighbors ax. James Fenimore Cooper in the forest, Henry Thoreau by the pond, Herman Melville at sea, Mark Twain on the river, Teddy Roosevelt experiencing the iron desolation of the high plains, and Willa Cather experiencing that vast silence of Nebraskas plains, all enriched the American experience. Now, however, attention must be paid to demonstrating the continuing pertinence of the Founders premises to places with the crackling energy of booming Arizona.

[Instead of 1984, read this]

Some academics who relish progressivisms hegemony on campuses, and who equate critical thinking with disparagement, will regret and resist things like ASUs new school. Hence it was appropriate that the political philosopher Harvey Mansfield, a.k.a. Harvard Universitys conservative, participated in the schools launch. He argues that one of higher educations highest purposes is to counter democracys leveling ethos by teaching the young how to praise  how to recognize and honor hierarchies of character and achievement.

Here and around the country this purpose is being advanced by entities such as ASUs new school, teaching the history of ideas and statesmanship. This growing archipelago of excellence will leaven academia with the diversity that matters most.

Read more from George F. Wills archive or follow him on Facebook.
What President Trump has done and said in his short time in office is bad enough. But Democrats may find that it is what Trump has failed to do  and is likely to continue to fail to deliver  during his tenure that provides the most powerful case against him.

The importance of this line of attack is underscored by the one pro-Trump finding that stands out among the presidents dismal poll numbers: a solid plurality believe Trump is being effective and getting things done. For Democrats, debunking this misperception is vital.

Most of the country is divided between those who love Trump for the cultural war he is waging, no matter what else he does, and those who loathe him for his divisiveness, even if he somehow produces results on other issues. As a consequence, the future of Trumps coalition  and the success of his presidency  turns on voters caught between the two groups, voters who were troubled by Trumps outrageous behavior and statements, but held their noses to support him out of a belief that he would produce change on health care, jobs, trade and incomes.

These in spite of the outrages voters are looking for results on bread-and-butter issues. Trump is not delivering for them, his claims to the contrary notwithstanding. Democrats need to point this out  relentlessly.

Take health care. During the campaign, Trump promised immediate action to repeal and replace Obamacare. In the world according to Trump, everyone was going to end up with great health care for a fraction of the price that would take place immediately after we go in.

Now, 122 days after the election, Trumps laughable promise to call a special session of Congress to repeal Obamacare has evaporated. The plan circulated this week by House Republicans is under fire from conservatives and liberals. And Trump has still failed to put forward any approach of his own. About that great health care for a fraction of the price? Dont hold your breath.

Or take trade. Trump promised in the first 90 days he would immediately start renegotiating our trade deals with Mexico, China, Japan. Not a single one of these negotiations has begun. He also said hed fight for . . . passage within the first 100 days of my administration for legislation to end U.S. companies ability to manufacture goods overseas and import them without tariffs. Again, Trump hasnt written any plan to do that, let alone asked Congress to pass it.

Trump promised to stop the loss of jobs going overseas starting on day one. It's so easy. But major manufacturers continue to move jobs overseas in far larger numbers than the jobs supposedly saved at Trumps December photo-op at Carrier, even including jobs at Caterpillar and Nucor, companies represented on Trumps own job-creation task force.

And then theres infrastructure. Here, too, Trump promised to fight for passage of a $1 trillion public-private infrastructure plan within his first 100 days. Many  myself included  were skeptical that the plan Trump put forward during the campaign would create jobs or fund needed projects. But even the harshest critics thought he would at least try. Instead, the White House has told allies that Trump likely wont even send an infrastructure plan to Congress until 2018  meaning shovels wont be moving until 2019 at the earliest.

The list of kitchen table concerns on which Trump promised focus and action  immediately  in his first 100 days as president goes on: affordable child care, middle-class tax relief, simpler tax forms, savings accounts for elder care and more. But Trump has not offered plans to do any of these things thus far  not one.

Not only is Trump failing to deliver on the economic promises he made during the campaign, but also he is breaking new ones he made as president. On Feb. 23, Trump said hed create jobs by insisting that the newly approved Keystone XL pipeline buy steel made in this country and promising that all pipe used in the project would be coming from this country. It took just days for the White House to repudiate Trumps promise, saying that Keystone would be exempt from any Buy American rule.

To be fair, most presidents tend to overpromise and underdeliver in the early days of their terms; few achieve the kind of blockbuster legislative achievements that Franklin D. Roosevelt or Barack Obama did in their first 100 days. And Trumps sound and fury presidency has persuaded a plurality of voters, at least for now, that he is getting things done.

But most voters still dont like Trump, and other than a single good performance before Congress, hes done little to assuage their anxieties and much to exacerbate them. This puts the burden on Trump  even more than most new presidents  to deliver on his audacious campaign promises or risk being viewed as just another all talk, no action politician.
Mitchel Malkus is a rabbi and head of the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville.

What happens when someone calls a school to say he plans to blow up the building while spouting a vile and sadistic anti-Semitic tirade? On Monday, the school I lead received such a call. One moment smiling, high-fiving students were entering the campus to begin their week; the next that sense of joy and welcome was shattered and became dread and danger.

My school was not the first to receive such a threat, and it was not the only school or community center affected that morning. In fact, since Jan. 1 more than 100 Jewish day schools and other Jewish institutions across the country have been forced to react to bomb threats. Other faith traditions, including Muslim organizations and mosques, have also received threats.

What occurred because of that phone call? Two very different things.

The first result was a major disruption and violation of our right to safety and security. Students who had just sat down to study the ancient texts of our tradition, or gene therapy, or trigonometry, received the emotional shock that someone wanted to destroy their school simply because it was a Jewish institution. Parents who had just begun their workdays felt their hearts skip a beat as they received the news that their children were in danger. Faculty and staff were thrust instantly into positions challenging them to show their students care and calmness while, at the same time, they held the very real feeling that an explosion might take place at any moment. The staff and administration spent countless hours responding to parents, community members and the media. What should have been the beginning of a normal week of learning instead brought feelings of fear and anxiety accompanied by physical threat  exactly what the perpetrator sought to accomplish.

But something else  something wonderful and amazing  happened, too. Later that day, and throughout the rest of the week, I received countless emails, phone calls and letters from concerned citizens and local and religious leaders expressing their support for our students and our community. Then, a news conference was held where both U.S. senators from Maryland, three U.S. representatives and virtually all of the major elected officials of our county condemned the bomb threats and the hatred they represent in clear and strong language. The climax of this outpouring came when more than 40 religious leaders filled our stage to announce their condemnation and support. Thus, the second outcome of the bomb threat was an unexpected bolstering of my faith in what it means to be an American and in the American experiment that I believe in so deeply.

Seeing those religious leaders, representing Anglicans, Catholics, Episcopalians, Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs, among others, was one of my proudest moments as an American. The leaders stood tall to proclaim that when one religious groups constitutional right to worship and congregate freely is threatened, all religious groups are threatened. This is what Americans do in difficult times: We stand up for each other.

At that moment, it was abundantly clear to me  and to the hundreds of others in the auditorium  that those responsible for threats made in hatred had unleashed an outpouring of love and support. As the United States experienced a precipitous rise in hate speech over the past year, I expected that it would be the Jewish community that would need to stand up for the rights of Muslims, Hispanics and other groups being targeted. Seeing those religious and elected leaders stand up for my own community reassured me that the American values that have enabled American Jews to flourish in this country will continue to be a source of strength for all Americans.

Rather than darkness and hate, a bomb threat brought light and hope for our future as a country.
I agree with the point in the March 9 editorial A strong pick for Justice that deputy attorney general nominee Rod J. Rosenstein is a career prosecutor with impressive qualifications. But his confirmation is not a question of legal pedigree; it is a question of independence. The need for a special prosecutor is already a matter of public record. Mr. Rosenstein has claimed that he needs to be in office to familiarize himself with the facts before appointing a special prosecutor.

But we already know that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. We know Attorney General Jeff Sessions met with officials of Russias government yet said under oath that he did not meet with the Russians.

Mr. Rosenstein was hired by President Trump and can be fired by him. We need an independent investigation into what happened, who knew about it and when. The deputy attorney general cannot investigate his own bosses.

Like any good lawyer, Mr. Rosenstein should consult precedent. In the Watergate era, Elliot Richardson agreed to appoint a special prosecutor before his confirmation to be attorney general under President Richard Nixon. Mr. Richardson knew then  and Mr. Rosenstein should know now  that independence is vital to any investigation of lawlessness at the highest levels of our government. The American people deserve nothing less.

Richard Blumenthal, Washington

The writer, a Democrat, represents

Connecticut in the Senate.
Michael Flynn talks to reporters as he arrives at Trump Tower in New York in November, after the presidential election. (Carolyn Kaster/AP)

Attorneys for Michael Flynn, President Trumps former national security adviser, informed the incoming White House legal counsel during the transition that Flynn might need to register with the government as a foreign agent  a phone call that raised no alarms within Trumps team, despite the unusual circumstance of having a top national security post filled by someone whose work may have benefited a foreign government.

The firm Flynn headed, Flynn Intel Group, was hired last year when Flynn was an adviser to the Trump campaign by the Netherlands-based firm Inovo BV, which is owned by Turkish businessman Ekim Alptekin. Alptekin has close ties to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Although the contract ended after the election, new details about the work Flynn did for Inovo resurrect the controversy over his short tenure as Trumps top national security aide.

The national security adviser is supposed to be an honest broker within the executive branch, pulling together military and diplomatic options for the president so he can decide what policy to pursue. But Flynns work potentially benefiting Turkey meant he was representing the interests of a country other than the United States at the same time he was advising Trump on foreign policy during the election.

Flynns firm was paid more than $500,000 by Inovo for public relations and research work, including looking into exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, who resides in Pennsylvania. His extradition is being sought by Turkey, which has accused him of fomenting a coup attempt last year.

Flynn wrote an op-ed on Nov. 8 for the Hill newspaper in which he called for Gulens extradition  a controversial diplomatic issue for the United States.

The primary bone of contention between the U.S. and Turkey is Fethullah Gulen, a shady Islamic mullah residing in Pennsylvania whom former president Clinton once called his friend in a well circulated video, Flynn wrote.

Gulen portrays himself as a moderate, but he is in fact a radical Islamist, he wrote.

Flynn resigned from his White House post last month after just 24 days on the job amid reports he misled Vice President Pence about his contacts with the Russian ambassador.

But the disclosures this week about Flynns ties to Turkey underscore how the specter of the controversial retired lieutenant general still hangs over the White House.

On Tuesday, Flynn filed paperwork with the Justice Department identifying himself as a foreign agent who was paid last year to do work that could benefit the Turkish government.

Then on Friday it was revealed that Flynns attorneys twice told Trumps legal counsel team of his possible plans to register as a foreign agent  once in a conversation with Don McGahn, Trumps counsel, before the inauguration and then in a conversation with another member of the White House legal team during the administrations early days, someone with knowledge of the situation told The Washington Post, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.

(Daron Taylor,Jhaan Elker/The Washington Post)

A White House official confirmed both calls, the first of which was reported by the Associated Press, but said that Flynns attorneys had simply been seeking guidance, which Trumps legal team said it was unable to provide.

Trump was never informed that his top national security pick felt he might need to register as a foreign agent, the White House said Friday.

Dan Pickard, a partner at Wiley Rein and an expert in the Foreign Agents Registration Act, under which Flynn registered, said it is unusual but not unheard of for a senior campaign official to also be registered as an agent of a foreign government.

Ive been aware of people who are registered under FARA being involved at relatively senior levels of a campaign, but in my experience thats more the exception than the rule, said Pickard, adding that the legal burden of complying with FARA is relatively modest.

FARA was passed in the run-up to World War II as a means of making pro-Germany activists acknowledge whether they were receiving financial support from that country.

For some in Washington, the political appearance of being a paid agent of a foreign government can be more problematic than the actual legal issues, according to others well versed in the law.

Some political campaigns have asked FARA registrants in the past to notify them of their status if they attend a fundraiser, and some operatives are wary of being publicly associated with a foreign government.

The controversy over Flynns ties to Turkey illustrate why.

Nearly four weeks after his departure, the White House still cant seem to escape Flynn.

In a week when the administration is making its biggest legislative push yet, White House press secretary Sean Spicers Friday afternoon news conference was yet again overshadowed by unflattering reports about Flynn  with Spicer devoting precious time to defending a staffer who no longer even works for the administration.

The burden is on the individual to seek the legal advice or professional expertise to decide what they have to file and not, Spicer said, parsing his explanation as to how someone who might have had to register as a foreign agent was hired as national security adviser.

Its not up to the transition attorney to go through someones livelihood and determine what they need to seek, Spicer said. They were given the proper legal advice at the time, which was to seek expertise in that matter.

On Thursday evening, in an interview with Pence, Fox Newss Bret Baier pressed the vice president on reports that Flynn had registered as a foreign agent lobbying, essentially, on behalf of the Turkish government.

Well, let me say, hearing that story today was the first I heard of it, and I fully support the decision that President Trump made to ask for General Flynn's resignation, Pence said. The first I heard of it, and I think it is an affirmation of the Presidents decision to ask General Flynn to resign.

However, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), the ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, sent Pence a letter in November asking for more information on Flynns apparent conflicts of interest because of his and his firms lobbying work, specifically mentioning Flynns work in Turkey.

Asked why the letter did not pique Pences interest or why the vice president never alerted Trump, Spicer said, Its not a question of raising flags.

Its not for us to adjudicate whether or not someone needs to file under, you know, the Lobbying Disclosure Act, the FARA registration act, thats not the job of a transition attorney, he said. Its to tell them to seek additional counsel or to explain to them where to find that information, not to tell them what to do or not to do.

When Flynn resigned last month, Trump defended his national security adviser as a wonderful man who had been treated very, very unfairly by the media. On Friday, it remained unclear whether Trump had changed his assessment of Flynn in light of the latest disclosures.

But, Spicer said, the White House expects every employee to follow the law.

I can tell you the president has made clear to every person in this administration, you are expected to live up to the high standards that he has set for them and that if you dont you will be dismissed, the press secretary said.

Devlin Barrett contributed to this report.
In one of the worlds hungriest cities, the new head of the United Nations was trudging past makeshift tents made of bedsheets and mosquito nets. The displacement camp had ballooned in recent weeks as Somalis fled a devastating drought and conflict. Just 15 miles away, al-Qaeda-linked militants controlled villages, blocking aid.

Are you receiving assistance? Antonio Guterres, 67, asked a skinny man with a graying goatee, standing outside one tent.

Abdullahi Mohammed Abdi, 48, looked at the man in the white button-down shirt and bulletproof vest, sweating in the 100-degree heat. Abdis family was sharing one small bucket of cornmeal per day.

Weve received very little, he said flatly.

Guterres has become secretary general of the United Nations at perhaps the most challenging moment in its history. More than 65 million people have been displaced by conflict and crisis, more than at any time since World War II. For the first time in recent memory, the world may suffer four famines in a single year.

There is a yawning gap between humanitarian needs and U.N. funds. And the world bodys biggest donor, the United States, has a new government that is much more skeptical of foreign aid. Donald Trump declared before his inauguration that the United Nations was just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time.

Guterres is a rare combination, supporters say  a negotiator skilled at working the halls of foreign ministries and a devoted humanitarian who spends as much time as possible on the front lines of crises such as Somalias. He will now have to tread a fine line between speaking against U.S. policies that he sees as inhumane (he issued an implicit criticism of President Trumps travel ban targeting several Muslim-majority countries) and not alienating a critical source of funding.

One member of Guterress staff half-joked that his goal was to stay off Trumps Twitter feed.

Among Guterress biggest concerns is that the increasing curbs on immigration and refugee resettlement in the United States and Europe will be replicated across the world. Guterres noted that the majority of the worlds refugees live in developing countries, including millions in sub-Saharan Africa.

It is difficult to explain to a country like Kenya that has more than 500,000 refugees that they should go on accepting this large number of refugees, seeing the kind of measures that the United States or that several European countries are taking, Guterres said Wednesday in a wide-ranging interview with The Washington Post the day after his Somalia visit.

[The growing U.N. scandal over sex abuse and peacekeeper babies]

Guterress background reflects a mix of pragmatism and idealism. As a young man, he opposed the dictatorship then in place in Portugal and eventually became prime minister after democracy was established. He is a Catholic who had a leading role in a staunchly secular socialist party and a big-thinking intellectual who is such an exacting planner that he arranged the classical-music playlists his staff listened to between meetings.

From 2005 to 2015, Guterres led the U.N. refugee agency. He was known for his frequent visits to war zones and refugee camps, where he was moved by the suffering he witnessed, gathering stories he would repeat to donors, journalists and colleagues.

There was the woman who had been raped by 17 armed men in war-torn Congo. The Syrian woman in a Lebanese refugee camp whose tent burned down, killing her children and leaving her badly burned. The two disabled Syrian refugee children who were unable to leave their tent.

His first field visit since he was named to his five-year term in December was to southwestern Somalia. The country has been in near-chaos since its government collapsed in 1991 and is suffering in the face of an Islamist insurgency and a prolonged drought that has left millions hungry.

Seeing these people, what I feel above all is an enormous sense of duty to minimize as much as possible this kind of suffering and to fight to create the conditions for this suffering not to happen, Guterres said.

On the trip to Baidoa, the new U.N. chief expressed frustration that Trumps latest activities had consumed the news cycle just as four countries are on the brink of famine or already experiencing it. Last month, Guterres had warned the world that 20 million people were facing possible famine conditions in Yemen, Nigeria, South Sudan and Somalia and asked for $4.4 billion in aid. The money is only trickling in.

[Trumps plan to slash foreign aid comes as famine threat is surging]

The Trump administration plans to propose massive cuts to foreign assistance, which would probably include U.N. funding.

Americas relationship with the United Nations has never been more challenging, and part of the reason for that is ideological and part is budgetary, said Peter Yeo, a vice president at the United Nations Foundation, which advocates for U.N. causes.

Many people inside and outside the United Nations saw Guterress predecessor, Ban Ki-moon, as reluctant to raise issues that might lead to tensions with world powers or implicate the United Nations. They cite a lack of attention to atrocities committed during the early months of Syrias war and the delay in acknowledging the role played by U.N. peacekeepers in a major cholera outbreak in Haiti.

Akshaya Kumar, the deputy U.N. director at Human Rights Watch, said that Guterres has a responsibility to push the council to talk about things they are not ready to talk about, including human rights violations in Burma and the conflict in Yemen, where a U.S.-backed coalition led by Saudi Arabia is battling rebels.

Guterres has come in for some criticism for his handling of the European refugee crisis that erupted in 2015, with aid groups and former U.N. officials saying his agency did not do enough to push for the resettlement of people fleeing war. Guterres has rejected that claim, saying he had been lobbying European leaders for years to accept more refugees.

The new U.N. leader has announced ambitious goals  streamlining the organizations bureaucracy, improving peacekeeping operations and focusing more on preventing conflict before it occurs. The United Nations spends about 70 percent of its overall budget on peacekeeping and has been rocked in recent years by a scandal involving sexual abuse by its soldiers.

In the interview, Guterres said some peacekeeping missions were poorly funded or were dispatched to countries where there is no peace to keep.

He gave several examples of needed changes. In South Sudan, where a civil war has killed thousands, the operation would need a much more robust mandate to protect civilians, he said. And in Mali, where peacekeepers are frequently targeted by well-armed Islamist extremists, troops lack the capacity to be able to be more mobile, agile and effective, he said. On Thursday, Guterres announced new measures to crack down on sexual abuse by peacekeepers.

Guterres had always been drawn to places on the periphery, beginning as a young activist in Lisbon, where he did volunteer work in the citys slums. He had grown up wanting to be a physicist, but his opposition to the military dictatorship drove him into politics.

In 1994, campaigning for prime minister, he described himself as a man of compassion, but his sharp debating skills earned him the nickname of the talking pickax. He led the country from 1995 to 2002, pushing through the financial measures necessary for Portugal to adopt the euro. When he left office, Guterres sneaked back into the slums by himself once a week to teach math classes.

Some of his students had no idea that their teacher was the former prime minister, said Antonio Vitorino, his former deputy prime minister.

When Guterres took over the U.N. refugee agency in 2005, he decided it was too centralized. He closed several offices in Geneva, at the headquarters, and relocated employees to field offices near refugee populations.

He at times chafed at the institutions red tape and the security precautions that limited his movement.

Once, in northern Iraq, he told his team that he wanted to visit the ancient citadel in Irbil. When they told him it was too dangerous, Guterres declared, If I cant go with you, Im taking a taxi, he recalled.

His security team eventually relented.

Guterres can be near-obsessive when he wants answers. Not long after he was elected secretary general, preparing for a meeting on South Sudan, he called the top U.N. peacekeeping official, Herve Ladsous, six times on a Saturday.

He has a remarkable desire to move, to make decisions, Ladsous said, recalling the calls.

But Guterres also takes the long view. He is a voracious reader and recently has become particularly interested in the period leading up to World War I  when a multipolar continent tore itself apart without common institutions. Now he fears that disorder is returning.

You have seen nationalism coming back, he said. You have seen different forms of irrationality coming back.

Despite his constant travels, Guterres remains close to his 94-year-old mother in Portugal, whom he said he calls every day. He is married and has two children.

In Baidoa, Somalias foreign minister, Abdusalam Omer, looked on admiringly as Guterres wandered through the camp, peppering its residents with questions.

This guy is committed, Omer whispered.

But the most heartfelt reaction to the new U.N. chief may have come from Abdi, who had spent two months in the displacement camp, his familys food supplies gradually dwindling.

Now we see that the humanitarians are coming, he told Guterres. We are thinking that today is the best day. Tonight is a different night.

Read more:

U.N. discovers that some peacekeepers have disturbing pasts

U.N. says some of its peacekeepers were paying 13-year-olds for sex

South Sudanese civilians fear U.N. peacekeepers cant protect them

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news


A woman lays flowers last month at a portrait of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov at the place where he was gunned down in Moscow in 2015. (Ivan Sekretarev/AP)

It takes about 700 steps at a leisurely pace to stroll from the lavish mall along Red Square to the bridge over the Moscow River where, more than 740 days ago , Russias most prominent opposition leader was gunned down as he made that walk with his girlfriend.

There, in the shadow of the red brick Kremlin walls, an informal shrine marks the spot and the memory of Boris Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister and President Vladimir Putins loudest critic.

A neat row of flowers, candles and portraits is guarded in shifts around the clock by pro-democracy activists, who frequently find themselves targeted by police. Its truly a makeshift memorial: When its guardians are hauled away, city workers remove the flowers and portraits, and its up to the next shift to remake it.

Against this tense backdrop, something remarkable is happening in a small, luxurious movie theater inside that opulent mall. A film is showing that recounts, in unflinching detail, the rise and fall of Russian democracy through the story of Nemtsovs political career, from a whiz-kid regional governor considered presidential material to the political margins of an illiberal society dominated by Putin.

That the film The Man Who Was Too Free, was allowed to be made, much less shown across Red Square from the Kremlin, came as a shock to its creators, Mikhail Fishman and Vera Krichevskaya.

Told entirely through monologues by Nemtsovs associates, interviews with him and video footage of his public speeches, the documentary focuses on the missed chances and miscalculations that led to Putins unchallenged rule. The Russian leader, whose intolerance of criticism is legendary, does not come off in a flattering light.

I have to say, when I was working on it, . . . I couldnt imagine it would be showing in movie theaters across Moscow and other cities, Fishman told The Washington Post before departing for a premiere of the film in a Siberian regional capital. Since it opened on Feb. 27, the second anniversary of Nemtsovs death, The Man Who Was Too Free has been shown in several Moscow theaters, as well as St. Petersburg and a handful of other Russian cities.

[Putin critic, Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov gunned down in Moscow]

Fishman speculates that allowing the film to be shown may be evidence of a slight thaw in Putins icy grip, perhaps tied to next years presidential election, sort of a little present to those who are so tired of him staying in power for decades.

There are other hints, as well. On Tuesday, Putin pardoned Oksana Sevastidi, convicted of treason last year for sending an innocuous text message to an acquaintance about the movement of a train carrying Russian military equipment.

Russias Supreme Court also released Ildar Dadin, a human rights activist convicted in 2015 of breaking a law that regulates public demonstrations. (Dadin was again detained Friday, but quickly released  Moscow police might not have gotten the memo about the thaw.)

Some have speculated that someone in high places approved The Man Who Was Too Free, although Fishman doubts it. A Kremlin spokesman said that Putin had not seen the film.

In scenes sewn together by an animated electrocardiogram that forms the towers of the Kremlin to the thump of a beating heart, the documentary places snippets of the charismatic Nemtsov amid the regrets of a generation that believed a free, market-oriented society could be built on the ruins of the monolithic Communist state.

Nemtsov  a physicist with a boyish grin and a natural ability to connect with voters  personified their optimism as much as anyone. At 32 in 1991, he became Russias youngest regional governor, in charge of the formerly closed city of Nizhny Novgorod.

As the film shows, Nemtsov soon makes what his associates later rue as his first great mistake, accepting President Boris Yeltsins cabinet appointment in Moscow to help oversee the immense task of ripping apart the Communist planned economy, a task Nemtsov calls the job of a kamikaze.



Nemtsov, center, the young governor of Nizhny Novgorod, strides through a car factory in 1995. (AP)

Boris Nemtsov waves to demonstrators in 2012 at an antigovernment rally as a riot police officer prepares to escort him from the stage. (Courtesy of Tvindie Film Production)

Thats when I knew the country was finished, he recalls in a later interview, one of several moments of foreboding.

Shock therapy changes punished ordinary Russians as prices soared, factories stalled and the welfare state disintegrated. Having declared for free markets over corruption, Nemtsov ran into the powerful business owners who thrived in the chaos and gobbled up valuable assets. Under attack by the media controlled by these oligarchs, Nemtsov fell out of favor.

As the film plays out, some of Nemtsovs associates almost casually confess how they abandoned him to maintain their influence.

I realized that my relationship with him would be toxic for my business, my partners and my colleagues, Mikhail Fridman, one of Russias richest men, says, adding that this decision remains one of my great regrets.

Others second-guess the decision by Yeltsins supporters to fix the 1996 election so that the ailing president could defeat Communist Gennady Zyuganov; Fridman, with 20-20 hindsight, suggests that a Communist victory could have saved Russian democracy.

The downfall of Nemtsov and his allies unfolds as a tragic series of mistakes, after which they find themselves out of power and the focus of blame for the hardships of the 1990s. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who came to prominence in 2011, recalls asking Nemtsov not to support him publicly.

I saw him as a man of the 1990s, a good man but one who brought political problems, Navalny says.



Ever upbeat, Nemtsov carries the fight to the street; when demonstrations are broken up, he hands out leaflets. Harassed in Moscow and unable to win election to Russias parliament, he campaigns for a provincial seat. Pushed out of the political process, he prepares reports on corruption within Putins administration.

[In Moscow, peaceful protest turns violent]

The only time Nemtsov is shown alone is at the end of the film, walking down a Moscow street. Moments later, in the final scene, that beating heart flatlines and the screen goes dark.

Five men went on trial for Nemtsovs murder in a Moscow military court last year, but no verdicts have been returned and the case is ongoing. Nemtsovs family and friends say his killing was a political hit; pro-Putin officials have dismissed the shooting as a cynical attempt by the Kremlins fragmented and unpopular opposition to attract attention.

For some believers in Russian democracy, The Man Who Was Too Free is heartbreaking to watch. Sobs broke out during a recent showing in a packed Moscow theater, becoming a chorus at the end.

But a trio who stood vigil Wednesday at the unofficial shrine on the spot where Nemtsov was killed saw cause for optimism in his life and in their own persistence.

The Russian people are still alive, said a man with a Russian flag draped over his shoulders who gave only his first name, Mikhail.

Weve been here for 741 days, he said. And we will always be here.



At least until the May 9 Victory Day holiday, they will.

After that, city officials say, theyre going to close the bridge for much-needed repairs.

Natalya Abbakumova contributed to this report.

Read more

How to understand Putins jaw-droppingly high approval rating

Russia has a museum dedicated to freedom, and people want to shut it down

Russia, once almost a democracy

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
Sergio Ruiz, professor of music and chair of the Georgia College Department of Music, has been named the new director of the University of Nebraska-Lincolns Glenn Korff School of Music. Ruiz will begin his new position July 1.

He replaces John W. Richmond, who left UNL last year to become dean of the College of Music at the University of North Texas in Denton. Peter Lefferts has been interim director of the Korff School since July.

We are pleased that Dr. Sergio Ruiz has accepted our invitation to be the new director of the Glenn Korff School of Music, said Chuck OConnor, endowed dean of the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts. He has the vision and experience to build upon the successes of the school and continue their trajectory to become one of the finest music schools in the nation. I look forward to working with Dr. Ruiz in the years to come.

Ruiz, a Steinway artist, has been chair of the Georgia College Department of Music since 2013. Prior to that, he was director of keyboard studies from 2004-13 and director of the Institute of Latin American Music Studies from 2007-2013 at Sam Houston State University School of Music in Huntsville, Texas.

He earned a doctorate of musical arts in piano performance from Rice University, his masters degree in music from Cleveland Institute of Music and his bachelor of arts from Santa Clara University.

It is a great honor to be named director of the Glenn Korff School of Music, Ruiz said. Id like to thank the remarkable faculty, staff, administration and students for placing their trust in me. Im thrilled to join a great team of world-class artists and scholars and look forward to a very bright future together.

His performances on Spanish-speaking radio broadcasts have aired throughout South and Central America. Most recently, he performed concerts in the Czech Republic, Belgium, Germany, Bolivia, Ecuador and Mexico. Ruiz studied piano in Barcelona under the tutelage of the late pianist Alicia de Larrocha. He has prepared an edition of the piano chamber music of Spanish composer Enrique Granados (1867-1916). He recently completed a recording project of the chamber music of South American composer Gustavo Navarre (1931-2006).

Ruiz has judged several piano competitions and festivals in the United States and South America, where he was invited back to judge the National Piano competition of Ecuador. He has also participated in many state and international competitions, including the Gina Bachauer and Concert Artist Guild competitions.

In 2009, he won the Texas Music Teachers Association Collegiate Teacher of the Year Award. In 2011, he won the Faculty Excellence in Service Award. He also served as artistic director of a youth symphony and music program in Leon, Mexico, and has been on the summer faculty at Interlochen Academy for the Arts since 2008. Ruiz was the creator and artistic director of a Latin American Arts and Humanities Festival  Festival (de) Inspiracion.
Protesters hold up placards during a rally in Seoul calling for impeached President Park Geun-hyes arrest. South Korean police braced for more violence between opponents and supporters of the ousted president, who was stripped of her powers by the Constitutional Court over a corruption scandal that has plunged the country into a political turmoil.

March 11, 2017 Protesters hold up placards during a rally in Seoul calling for impeached President Park Geun-hyes arrest. South Korean police braced for more violence between opponents and supporters of the ousted president, who was stripped of her powers by the Constitutional Court over a corruption scandal that has plunged the country into a political turmoil. Ahn Young-Joon/AP

Park Geun-hye has been removed from office, and the nation will need to hold a presidential election within 60 days.

Park Geun-hye has been removed from office, and the nation will need to hold a presidential election within 60 days.

Park Geun-hye has been removed from office, and the nation will need to hold a presidential election within 60 days.

A crowd of South Koreans, jubilant at the impeachment of their president, Park Geun-hye, over a corruption scandal, took to the streets of Seoul on Saturday night to call for her arrest and imprisonment.

The crowds were much smaller than the huge candlelight rallies that contributed to her ouster, but the sense that this was a historic moment was clear. Thirty years after they protested to bring democracy to their country, South Koreans had protested to bring about the peaceful removal of a president.

The Republic of Korea is a democratic nation, people sang in the central Gwanghwamun Plaza, waving signs that said Arrest Park Geun-hye and Go to prison.

Some people took selfies in front of a replica jail cell containing cardboard cutouts of Park and the others implicated in the scandal, while others snacked on specially packaged prison bread.

The power of the candle! Justice has triumphed, yelled John Shin, a 29-year-old translator at the rally. A band played the Queen hit We Are the Champions.

But there was also anger that, about 30 hours after her dismissal and three months after she was suspended from duties, Park remained in the presidential Blue House, which is within earshot of the rallies.

Its not good that shes still in the Blue House, said Lee Ha-na, a 24-year-old Web designer. I want her dragged out, because thats what is right.

[ South Korean president removed from office over corruption scandal ]

Shin Tae-soo, a 37-year-old law school student, went further, carrying a sign that said: Unemployed civilian Park Geun-hye is illegally occupying the Blue House. Park Geun-hye must immediately move out. The place she belongs is prison.

Television footage from outside Parks house in southern Seoul showed Internet servicemen and handymen going in and out, with a heavy police guard. But Park remained in the Blue House, and a spokesman said no date had been set for her departure.

The former president has not commented on her impeachment, with an aide telling Yonhap News Agency she was in a state of shock and needs time to come to terms with what has happened to her.

She must have assumed she wasnt going to be impeached, said Cho Eun-ji, a homemaker at the rally with her 12-year-old son. How could she have thought that?

The Constitutional Court dismissed Park on Friday after finding that she had continuously violated the law and had tried to cover it up. She was implicated in a corruption and influence-

peddling scandal that centered on her lifelong friend Choi Soon-sil, extracting bribes from big businesses with the presidents knowledge. Now that Park has been impeached, she has lost her immunity from prosecution. Prosecutors had recommended 13 charges against her, including abuse of power and leaking confidential information.

[After impeachment, South Korea may reset relations with China and North Korea]

The moment could mark the opening of a new chapter for the country.

Park was South Koreas first female president and also its first president to be impeached. But many South Koreans see her departure as bringing to an end the top-down leadership style epitomized by her father, military strongman Park Chung-hee, who ruled with an iron fist but presided over an economic boom in the 1960s and 1970s.

Park Geun-hye became the president because she benefited from her fathers popularity; people were reminiscing about the economic growth of that time, said Ji Sang-wook, an entrepreneur.

I would like to call this the end of the Park Chung-hee era or fantasy. Now people can open their mind to a new era, he said. I think South Korea has become a real democratic society through this process.

Older South Koreans in particular felt sorry for Park, whose mother was killed by a bullet meant for her father, effectively making her first lady at 22. Then her father was killed by his spy chief about five years later.

Some former supporters of Park said their nostalgia was misplaced. I used to like Park Geun-hye, but I think I was mistaken, said Yang Mi Hye-ja, who is 73 and was out at the rally with her anti-Park son and daughter-in-law. Young people know whats happening now, but we old people were living in the past.

There was visible support for the impeached president, however. Supporters calling themselves Parksamo, or people who love Park, held a rally at the other end of the main drag  separated by a large police wall constructed to keep the factions apart.

[Presidential scandal shows that Korean disease of corruption is far from cured]

Those people remained defiant after the verdict.

My heart is broken. There are so many parts of this that I cant accept, said Cho Cheol-hwan, a 56-year-old entrepreneur who was waving South Korean and U.S. flags, and one showing Park Chung-hee.

Park Geun-hye did something wrong, but her wrongdoing is not serious enough to be impeached, Cho said. If your kid makes a mistake, you teach them what is right.

With Park gone from office, legally if not physically, attention is turning to the next phase in the democratic process. Elections will be held in early May, and progressive candidates are already out campaigning.

But it wont be enough to choose a new leader, said Park Jin-gyo, a middle school teacher. South Korea also had to stamp out the endemic corruption that had been so starkly revealed by this scandal, he said.

Without reform, we will just have a different leader with a different face, not a different system, he said. We have to use this momentum and change the system.

Yoonjung Seo contributed to this report.

Read more:

[Little-known governor runs as the hope and change candidate in South Korea]

[South Korean prosecutors say president colluded in corruption scandal]

[Samsung scion to be indicted on bribery charges]

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news


North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervises the launching of four ballistic missiles during a recent military drill in North Korea. (AFP/Getty Images)

On the day of North Koreas first atomic test in 2006, aides to President George W. Bush began phoning foreign capitals to reassure allies startled by Pyongyangs surprising feat. The test, aides said, had been mostly a failure: a botched, 1-kiloton cry for attention from a regime that had no warheads or reliable delivery systems and would never be allowed to obtain them.

The current course that they are on is unacceptable, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said publicly at the time, and the international community is going to act.

A decade later, that confidence has all but evaporated. After a week in which Pyongyang successfully lobbed four intermediate-range missiles into the Sea of Japan, U.S. officials are no longer seeing North Koreas weapons tests as amateurish, attention-grabbing provocations. Instead, they are viewed as evidence of a rapidly growing threat  and one that increasingly defies solution.

Over the past year, technological advances in North Koreas nuclear and missile programs have dramatically raised the stakes in the years-long standoff between the United States and the reclusive communist regime, according to current and former U.S. officials and Korea experts. Pyongyangs growing arsenal has rattled key U.S. allies and spurred efforts by all sides to develop new first-strike capabilities, increasing the risk that a simple mistake could trigger a devastating regional war, the analysts said.

The military developments are coming at a time of unusual political ferment, with a new and largely untested administration in Washington and with South Koreas government coping with an impeachment crisis. Longtime observers say the risk of conflict is higher than it has been in years, and it is likely to rise further as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un seeks to fulfill his pledge to field long-range missiles capable of striking U.S. cities.





This is no longer about a lonely dictator crying for attention or demanding negotiations, said Victor Cha, a former adviser on North Korea to the Bush administration and the Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. This is now a military testing program to acquire a proven capability.

[How China tried to get the U.S. to negotiate with North Korea]

Pyongyangs ambition to become an advanced nuclear-armed state is not new. North Korea began building its first reactor for making plutonium more than three decades ago. Over the years, it has shown ingenuity in increasing the range and power of a stockpile of homemade short- and medium-range missiles, all based on Soviet-era designs.

Often, in the past, the new innovations have been accompanied by demands: a clamoring for security guarantees and international respect by a paranoid and nearly friendless government that perceives its democratic neighbors as plotting its destruction. After the first atomic test in 2006, then-leader Kim Jong Il threatened to launch nuclear missiles unless Washington agreed to face-to-face talks.

North Korea has been slammed instead with ever-tighter United Nations sanctions meant to cut off access to technology and foreign cash flows. Yet, despite the trade restrictions, diplomatic isolation, threats and occasional sabotage, the countrys weapons programs have continued their upward march, goaded forward by dictators willing to sacrifice their citizens well-being to grow the countrys military might.

And now, in the fifth year of Kim Jong Uns rule, progress is coming in leaps.

A living, breathing thing

Pyongyangs fifth and latest nuclear weapons test occurred on Sept. 9 on the 68th anniversary of North Koreas founding. Seismic monitoring stations picked up vibrations from the underground blast and quickly determined that this one was exceptional.

Scientific analyses of the test determined that the new bombs explosive yield approached 30 kilotons, two times the force of the Little Boy bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. The device was twice as powerful as the bomb North Korea tested just nine months earlier, and it was 30 times stronger than one detonated in 2006 in a remote mountain tunnel. More ominously, North Korea last March displayed a new compact bomb, one that appears small enough to fit inside the nose cone of one of its indigenously produced missiles.





Regardless of whether the miniature bomb is real or a clever prop, North Korea does finally appear to be on the verge of a nuclear breakout, said Robert Litwak, an expert on nuclear proliferation and director of International Security Studies at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He said Pyongyangs arsenal is believed to now contain as many as 20 nuclear bombs, along with enough plutonium and highly enriched uranium to make dozens more.

When I got into this field, Litwak said at a symposium on North Korea this month, I couldnt have conceived of North Korea acquiring a nuclear arsenal approaching half the size of Great Britains.

The countrys missiles also have grown more sophisticated. Last year, North Koreas military conducted the first test of a two-stage ballistic missile that uses solid fuel  a significant advance over the countrys existing liquid-fueled rockets because they can be moved easily and launched quickly. Also in 2016, North Korea broadcast images of engineers testing engines for a new class of advanced missiles with true intercontinental range, potentially putting cities on the U.S. mainland within reach.





The provocations have continued in the weeks since the inauguration of President Trump, who, just before taking office, appeared to taunt Pyongyang in a Twitter post, saying that North Koreas plan for building intercontinental ballistic missiles wont happen.

A month later, Kim launched one of the countrys new solid-

fuel missiles, interrupting Trumps Mar-a-Lago dinner with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Last weeks coordinated launch of four intermediate-range missiles appeared intended to showcase the countrys ability to fire multiple rockets simultaneously at U.S. military bases in Japan, increasing the likelihood that some will penetrate antimissile shields.

North Koreas state-run media has occasionally shown propaganda footage of Kim huddling with his generals over what some analysts have jokingly called the map of death: a chart that portrays Japanese and U.S. mainland cities as potential targets.

The laughter has now stopped, said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert on North Korean weapons systems. This idea that these things were just bargaining chips  something that was true years ago  is superseded by the fact that there is now a rocket force . . . with a commander and a headquarters and subordinate bases, all with missiles, said Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. This is now a living, breathing thing.

There have been notable failures as well. Numerous test rockets have drifted far off course, and others never made it off the launchpad. Many analysts say it could still be several years before Kim can construct a true ICBM that could reliably reach the U.S. mainland, and perhaps longer before he can demonstrate an ability to incorporate a nuclear payload into his rocket design. Yet, already, the basic components for a future arsenal of long-range, nuclear-tipped missiles are in place, Lewis said.

The ICBM program is real, Lewis said. Theyve showed us their static engine test. They showed us the mock-up of the nuclear warhead. They have done everything short of actually testing the ICBM. When they do test it, the first time it will probably fail. But eventually it will work. And when it works, people are going to freak out.

Danger of miscalculation

For decades, the United States and its East Asian allies have tried an array of strategies to blunt North Koreas progress, ranging from diplomacy to covert operations to defensive antimissile shields. Lately, the search for solutions has taken on an intensity not seen in years.

As diplomatic initiatives have stalled, U.S., Japanese and South Korean officials have broadened the search for measures to ensure that Pyongyangs missiles remain grounded, or  in the event of a launch  can be brought down before they reach their target. The efforts have proved to be partly successful at best.

Three years ago, alarmed by North Koreas advances on missile systems, the Obama administration ordered the Pentagon and intelligence agencies to deploy highly classified cyber and electronic measures against North Korea, largely aimed at undermining the countrys nuclear and missile programs, two former senior administration officials said. Aspects of the initiatives were described in a recent report by the New York Times. The effort was further intensified last year, the officials said, in response to new intelligence assessments showing North Korea inching closer to its goal of fielding long-range ballistic missiles.

[China fuming about U.S. deployment of anti-missile shield]

The clandestine effort begun under President Barack Obama appears to have borne fruit, judging from a rash of missile failures in the past year, said one former official familiar with the program. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the secret operations.

Were stopping shipments. Were making sure things dont work the way theyre supposed to, one former official said. Weve been able to delay things, in some cases probably by a lot. Its a cat-and-mouse game.

But the second official, familiar with the Pentagons cyberwarfare efforts, acknowledged that North Korea remains an exceptionally difficult target because of its isolation and limited digital infrastructure. The official suggested that at least some of the recent missile failures were probably caused by North Korean errors. I would be wary of claiming too much, he said.

We were trying to use all the tools that were available to us in order to degrade as much of their capabilities as possible, a second former official said. But we just did not have nearly as much game as we should have.

In handoff meetings with Trump, Obama described the gathering threat in stark terms, calling it the most serious proliferation challenge facing the new administration, according to aides familiar with the discussions. The Trump White House has since convened three deputies committee meetings on North Korea and ordered a new, top-to-bottom threat assessment. White House officials say that Trump is weighing all options, from a new diplomatic initiative to enhanced military capabilities, possibly including a highly controversial return of tactical nuclear weapons to South Korea for the first time since the early 1990s.

The administration is dispatching Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to East Asia this week to confer with counterparts in Beijing, Tokyo and Seoul. And the White House is defending its decision last week to send antimissile batteries to South Korea despite vehement opposition from China.

The initiatives have failed to calm tensions in the region. As more missiles streak across North Koreas eastern coast, Japanese and South Korean officials are pledging increased investments in defensive shields and highly accurate, conventionally armed missiles designed to preemptively destroy North Korean launch sites and command centers if an attack seems imminent. North Korea has responded with similar threats, describing its recent missile launches as a dry run for a preemptive attack on U.S. bases in Japan, the presumed staging ground for forces preparing to come to South Koreas aid if war breaks out.

In the past, such a strike would be seen as suicidal, as it would certainly result in a devastating counterattack against North Korea that would probably destroy the regime itself. But Kim is betting that an arsenal of long-range, nuclear-tipped missiles would serve as an effective deterrent, said Cha, the former Bush administration adviser.

Thats why they want to be able to reach the continental United States, so they can effectively hold us hostage, Cha said. Do we really want to trade Los Angeles for whatever city in North Korea?

Such an attack on the U.S. mainland is not yet within North Koreas grasp, and U.S. officials hope they can eventually neutralize the threat with improvements in antimissile systems. But in the meantime, each new advance increases the chance that a small mishap could rapidly escalate into all-out war, Cha said. In a crisis, everyone is put in a use-it-or-lose-it situation, in which everyone feels he has to go first, he said.

The growing danger now, he said, is miscalculation.

Ellen Nakashima contributed to this report.

Read more:

[Defying skeptics, Kim Jong Un marks five years at the helm of North Korea]

[Chinas awkward position after North Koreas missile test]

[Graphic: Eight countries. 2,056 nuclear tests. 71 years.]
Preet Bharara, one of the most high-profile federal prosecutors in the country, said he was fired Saturday after refusing to submit a letter of resignation as part of an ouster of the remaining U.S. attorneys who were holdovers from the Obama administration, according to people familiar with the matter.

Bhararas dismissal was an about-face from President Trumps assurances to the Manhattan-based prosecutor in November, weeks after the election, that he wanted him to stay on the job following a meeting at Trump Tower, according to Bharara.

Two people close to Trump said the presidents chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions wanted a clean slate of federal prosecutors and were unconcerned about any perception that the White House changed its mind about Bharara. The removal of former president Barack Obamas federal prosecutors is about asserting whos in power, the two said.

The departure of Bharara, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, capped a confusing sequence of events, beginning Friday, when acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente began making calls to 46 prosecutors asking for their resignations by the end of the day. Requests for resignation are a normal part of a transition of power from one administration to another, although both the Bush and Obama administrations let their U.S. attorneys leave gradually.

[The brash New York prosecutor whos indicting left and right ]

(C-SPAN)

During Fridays call with Bharara, the New York prosecutor asked for clarity about whether the requests for resignations applied to him, given his previous conversation with Trump, and did not immediately get a definitive answer, according to a person familiar with the exchange.

When asked Friday whether Bharara was also being asked for a resignation letter, one White House official not authorized to speak publicly said, Everybodys gone, and would not engage further on the issue.

On Saturday morning, when the administration had still not received Bhararas resignation, Boente attempted to call the U.S. attorney to find out why, but the two men did not immediately connect, according to people familiar with the discussions.

When they finally did speak shortly before 2:30 p.m., Boente informed Bharara that the order to submit his resignation indeed applied to him because he was a presidentially appointed U.S. attorney, according to a Justice Department official with knowledge of the conversation.

Bharara asked Boente if he was firing him and Boente replied that he was asking him to submit his resignation, the official said.

Minutes later, Bharara announced on Twitter that he was out. I did not resign, Bharara said. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life.

Bharara sent an email to his staff, asserting again that Boente had removed him from his job.

Needless to say it is personally very sad for me, the note said. This is the greatest place on Earth and I love you all. Even on a day when your U.S. Attorney gets fired it is still Thanksgiving because you all still get to do the most honorable work there is to do.

Bharara added that the office could not be in better hands than with the deputy U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, Joon H. Kim, whom he called a tremendous leader and public servant and who loves the office just as much as I do.

Within the Justice Department, some are questioning whether a recent phone call from Trump to Bharara may have contributed to the decision to remove the Obama holdovers, according to a person familiar with the matter.

On Thursday, a White House aide called and left a message for Bharara, saying the president wanted to speak with him, though the prospective topic of discussion was unclear. Bharara consulted his staff and determined that it would probably be a violation of Justice Department protocols for him to speak directly to the president, this person said. That protocol exists in order to prevent political interference  or the appearance of political interference  with Justice Department work.

Bharara then contacted the chief of staff for the attorney general, Jody Hunt, told him of his own determination, and the two agreed that it would be a violation of the Justice Department protocol for Bharara to call the president back. Bharara then called the White House staffer who had left the message and said he wouldnt be talking to the president, and explained why, this person said.

Its unclear whether the Trump call and its aftermath had anything to do with Fridays decision.

Bharara, who was born in India and came to the United States as a child, had a particularly powerful perch in the criminal justice system. The Southern District of New York has 220 assistant U.S. attorneys, making it one of the largest federal prosecutors offices in the country.

During his tenure, Bharara indicted 17 prominent New York politicians for malfeasance  10 of them Democrats. Along with his bipartisan prosecutions, Bharara developed a reputation for being tough on insider trading, although he was criticized for the lack of prosecutions that followed the financial crisis.

Bharara was an outspoken man in a job that has been held by vocal and politically aspirant predecessors, including former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani and FBI Director James B. Comey.

There is no indication that the ouster of Bharara stems from a disagreement about a particular case or investigation. While the FBI has been conducting a counterintelligence inquiry looking for evidence of contacts between agents of the Russian government and Trump campaign advisers, and a former campaign adviser to Trump has been part of an investigation into possible overseas corruption, there have been no signs that Bhararas office has been involved in either of those probes or any other inquiries that might touch on the president or people close to him.

[Preet Bharara said he wanted to be a U.S. attorney forever. Well, he was just fired.]

On Wednesday, watchdog groups asked Bharara to probe whether Trump has received payments or other benefits from foreign governments through his business interests in violation of the Constitutions emoluments clause, which prohibits top officials from receiving favors or payments from foreign governments.

The president complained on Twitter earlier this month that Obama had ordered wiretapping of Trump Tower during the election season  an accusation that multiple federal law enforcement officials have said is untrue  partly because presidents cannot order the FBI to wiretap Americans, and also because no such surveillance was undertaken. But Bharara was not drawn into that debate, which principally revolved around the Justice Department and FBI headquarters.

Initially after Trump won the presidency, it looked as if Bhararas position was safe. Trump brought up Bhararas name in November during a phone conversation with Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), whom the president-elect was calling to congratulate on becoming the leader of the Senate Democrats, according to people familiar with the matter. In that conversation, Trump said he was thinking of keeping Bharara in his job, these people said. Schumer praised Bharara and Trump then arranged a meeting with Bharara at Trump Tower.

During the conversation, Trump told Bharara to call Sessions, his nominee for attorney general, who also asked Bharara to stay, people familiar with the conversation said.

When Bharara was leaving, according to one person, he asked the president-elect what he should tell the reporters in the lobby. Trump told Bharara to tell them he was staying on, this person said.

Bharara told reporters afterward that the president-elect, presumably because hes a New Yorker and is aware of the great work that our office has done over the past seven years, asked to meet with him and discuss whether he would remain in his position.

We had a good meeting, Bharara said. I agreed to stay on.

Matt Zapotosky, Rosalind S. Helderman, Cleve R. Wootson Jr., Amy B Wang and Ellen Nakashima contributed to this report.
The Dutch government on Saturday prevented Turkeys foreign minister from visiting the Netherlands to address Turkish voters there, in a breach of diplomatic protocol that reflected sharply worsening tensions between Turkey and Europe.

The Dutch government said in a statement it had decided to withdraw landing rights for the foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, because of the risks to public order and security that a visit by him would pose. Earlier Saturday, Cavusoglu had warned that Turkey would impose sanctions on the Netherlands if his flight was canceled, according to local Turkish media.

Reacting later in the day to the cancellation, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the Dutch Nazi remnants and fascists and suggested that Dutch diplomats would be prevented from traveling to Turkey.

The intense diplomatic arguments highlighted the extraordinary heat generated by an upcoming referendum in Turkey on a number of constitutional amendments that could transform its system of government and vastly expand Erdogans powers. In the run-up to the referendum, set for April 16, several European nations, including the Netherlands and Germany, have canceled appearances by Turkish ministers supporting Erdogan as the ministers try to sway Turkish voters in the diaspora.

The Turkish campaign is coinciding with a fraught election season in Europe that has seen a surge in popularity for right-wing, anti-immigration candidates. Nationalist or anti-Muslim politicians such as Geert Wilders in the Netherlands have called for Turkish politicians to be barred from campaigning in their countries  adding to the pressure on European leaders to accommodate such sentiments.

[Anti-immigrant anger threatens to remake the liberal Netherlands]

Wilders, whose Freedom Party is expected to be a leading vote-getter in the Dutch election set for Wednesday, appeared to relish the spat Saturday between his government and Turkeys. On Twitter, he demanded the expulsion of the Turkish ambassador and the recall of the Dutch ambassador in Ankara.

Oh yes, he added in another tweet. I say it to all Turks in the Netherlands who agree with Erdogan: GO back to Turkey and NEVER come back.

The breach in relations with the Netherlands comes as Turkey and Germany are engaged in a similarly bitter dispute that could threaten a European Union deal with Ankara to stem the flow of migrants  a critical issue in Germany, where more than 1 million asylum seekers have arrived over the past two years.

As the arguments grow more bad-tempered, Erdogan could stand to benefit from a perception that European countries have been trying to interfere in Turkeys election. On Saturday, as news of the foreign ministers canceled visit reached Turkey, a hashtag in Turkish caught fire: NazipracticeinHolland.

Amar Nadhir in Bucharest, Romania, contributed to this report.

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Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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Speaking at a cybersecurity conference at Boston College Wednesday, FBI Director James Comey said, there is no such thing as absolute privacy in America. Every activity that Americans engage in, including conversations between spouses and with members of the clergy and attorneys, is within judicial reach. He declared, In appropriate circumstances, a judge can compel any one of us to testify in court about those very private communications.

The FBI director did not add, although he could well have, that a judicial order is completely irrelevant to the US military-intelligence apparatus. The US government has far more direct methods than court orders to learn what its citizens are thinking and talking about, through the use of sophisticated cyberweapons. These include the thousands of hacking tools whose existence was made public Tuesday by WikiLeaks, in a data release exposing efforts by the CIA to turn millions of ordinary electronic devices, from cellphones and smart TVs to the computer systems running most cars, into spy weapons.

The FBI directors declaration that there is no right to privacy was greeted with a yawn by the corporate media, which barely reported his comments, and by Democratic and Republican party politicians. This is in keeping with the overall treatment of the WikiLeaks revelations, which has been one of indifference to the threat to democratic rights exposed in the CIA cyberweapons cache.

As far as the media is concerned, anyone who raises concerns about the right to privacy, or other democratic rights, being threatened by the national-security apparatus is an agent of Russia. This position was put most bluntly by the Washington Post, in its lead editorial Thursday, headlined, WikiLeaks does Americas enemies a big favor.

The editorial begins with a flat-out, 100 percent defense of the CIA, declaring, The first thing to say about the archive of cyberhacking tools stolen from the CIA and released by WikiLeaks is that they are not instruments of mass surveillance, but means for spying on individual phones, computers and televisions. There is no evidence they have been used against Americans or otherwise improperly 

The editorial continues, It follows that the targets of the hacking methods, and the prime beneficiaries of their release, will be Islamic State terrorists, North Korean bombmakers, Iranian, Chinese and Russian spies, and other U.S. adversaries. The editorial goes on to smear WikiLeaks as a tool of Russia, and denounces privacy zealots who are, in effect, advocating unilateral U.S. disarmament in cyberspace.

In response to such a brazen defense of the CIA, one is tempted to ask, why doesnt the Washington Post simply announce that it is a propaganda arm of the U.S. government, tasked with the ideological and political defense of the military-intelligence apparatus? There is not a shred of an independent, critical attitude in this editorial. The newspaper swallows whole the CIAs assurances that its agents are legally prohibited from spying on Americans. And it denounces WikiLeaks for acting as real journalists do, collecting information about government misconduct and making it public.

This from a newspaper that, 46 years ago, in conjunction with the New York Times, published the Pentagon Papers, over the vehement objections of the Nixon White House and the CIA and military leaders of the day, who raised the same cry of national security. One can only conclude that if someone brought the equivalent of the Pentagon Papers to the Post (or the Times ) today, the editors would immediately call up the FBI and have the leaker arrested.

The line of the Post has been repeated in innumerable forms in newspapers and on television. Former director of the CIA and the NSA Michael Hayden has been brought forward on nearly every news program to deliver the official government line. None of the major broadcasters adopt a critical line or seek to interview anyone who supports WikiLeaks and its exposure of CIA crimes.

A concrete demonstration of the relationship between the media and the military-intelligence apparatus is provided by a report posted on the web site of the New York Times earlier this week by David Sanger, the newspapers principal conduit for information that the CIA and Pentagon wish to make public.

Sanger wrote about how he and another Times reporter, William Broad, prepared last Sundays front-page report on US efforts to counter North Korean missile launches, headlined, Trump Inherits a Secret Cyberwar Against North Korean Missiles, which suggested that the US military had developed methods for causing North Korean missile launches to fail. The main thrust of this article, splashed across the newspapers front page, was that the countermeasures were insufficient, and more drastic actions were required against the supposed threat of a North Korean nuclear strike against US targets.

In a remarkable paragraph, Sanger describes the sensitive part of these investigations: telling the government what we had, trying to get official comment (there has been none) and assessing whether any of our revelations could affect continuing operations. He explains, In the last weeks of the Obama administration, we traveled out to the director of national intelligences offices, where, Sanger says, it was important to listen to any concerns they might have about the details we are planning to publish so that we can weigh them with our editors.

In plain English, the New York Times front-page exclusive was nothing more than a press release from the military-intelligence apparatus, aimed at spreading fear of North Korean nuclear capabilities in the upper-middle-class readership of the Times, and setting the tone for national media coverage of the issue. The political goal was to shape public opinion to support a preemptive US military attack on North Korea, an impoverished country the size of the state of Mississippi.

The main significance of the media response to the WikiLeaks revelations is that it demonstrates the complete erosion of democratic consciousness in all the institutions of the American ruling elite. In any serious accounting of the threats to American democracy, the CIA would be in first place: Americas own Gestapo, what even President Lyndon Johnson described as a damned Murder Incorporated for its brutal methods of assassination and provocation across the Caribbean and Latin America.

There is no greater danger to the democratic rights of the American people than the military-intelligence apparatus of the American government itself, the last line of defense for a crisis-stricken and historically doomed ruling elite.
Hundreds of thousands of Michigan residents remain without power in bitter cold after a windstorm Wednesday ripped through the state downing thousands of trees and wrecking power lines.

Full power is not expected to be restored until Sunday, as residents face temperatures expected to drop to as low as 12 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 17 Celsius). The winds contributed to five deaths in Detroit on Wednesday when a fire destroyed a building housing elderly and handicapped residents on the citys impoverished east side. Wind-whipped flames forced survivors to jump from windows. Due to cutbacks in the city budget, firefighters took a reported 17 minutes to arrive on the scene.

The storm initially knocked out power to some 1 million people across the state. By Friday evening only slightly more than half had power restored. DTE Energy, the utility monopoly that supplies electrical power to a large portion of the state, reported that more than 4,000 wires were downed by falling trees. DTE has deployed some 3,500 workers, including 750 linemen and 250 tree trimmers from other states, to repair the damage. Consumers Energy, the states other large supplier of electrical power, reported 7,900 downed wires and 1,000 broken poles.

Events such as floods, blizzards and high winds hit hardest at the most vulnerable layers of society, laying bare festering social contradictions. On Friday, many neighborhoods in the greater Detroit area remained darkened. Traffic lights still did not function at some major intersections. Many residents reported live, downed wires near their homes, but have been informed it may be days until repair crews arrive.

The availability of electrical power is vital to most aspects of modern life, including the operation of respirators and other medical equipment. Hypothermia is a serious danger, especially for the young and elderly. The use of candles or kerosene heaters dramatically increases the danger of fires. Meanwhile, workers prevented from getting to their jobs or small businesses forced to cease operations will not get any significant compensation, except for perhaps a token credit on their electric bill.

According to DTE, the storm Wednesday was the most damaging weather event in the companys 100-year history. High wind gusts were sustained throughout the day and in some instances reached 60 miles per hour. The winds were caused by a strong low pressure system north of the Great Lakes that brought a cold front to Lower Michigan, a not unusual weather phenomenon. Many trees fell due to rain-softened ground and unusually warm weather that had thawed the soil.

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder activated the State Emergency Operations Center on Wednesday in response to the storm. However, apart from political posturing, the action had little practical benefit, aside from the opening of a few warming centers. As always, millions of people are effectively being left to fend for themselves, huddling under covers or doubling up with neighbors.

As for the states electrical monopolies, they made the usual claim of being overwhelmed by the supposedly totally unexpected ferocity of nature. At a news conference, DTE president and COO Trevor Lauer said, Weve been preparing for a significant weather event in southeast Michigan, but the severity of the storm exceeded all our forecasts.

Anyone familiar with life in the Detroit-area of Michigan knows that widespread power outages are a frequent occurrence as is violent weather. Indeed, even an average-strength thunderstorm generally results in tens of thousands being left without power. Events involving hundreds of thousands of customers are fairly frequent. For example, 375,000 lost power as recently as July 2014.

According to one meteorologist cited by the Detroit Free Press, the high winds Wednesday did not set a record. He noted that he had seen higher wind gusts during his 22 years of weather service.

What the weather disaster in Michigan once again lays bare is the decrepit state of infrastructure in the US, which has been systematically starved of funds in the chase for short-term profits. The same day the storms hit Michigan, some 171,000 electrical customers in western New York State lost power due to the effects of a related weather phenomenon. Many were without power for more than 24 hours, with damage concentrated in areas north and east of Buffalo.

The effects of the storm were entirely predictable. For years DTE and Consumers have neglected basic maintenance, such as tree trimming and the upgrade of power lines, knowing they face no consequences for their lack of action. In fact, the Michigan Public Service Commission awarded DTE a 4 percent rate increase in January, under conditions where DTE recorded 2016 earnings of $868 million.

Some of the older power cables in Detroit date back nearly 100 years. Like utilities across the United States, DTE maintains the archaic practice of placing power lines on above ground poles instead of putting them underground. In urban areas, tree branches overgrow the wires and have to be constantly trimmed to keep them from becoming entangled. However, DTE has cut back even this minimal service.

The result of the neglect of infrastructure by Michigans energy monopolies has been catastrophic, particularly in poorer areas such as the city of Detroit. In September 2010, fires ignited by downed power lines destroyed 85 structures, including 71 homes, on the east side of Detroit. In a hearing held shortly after the fire, area residents testified that they had complained of problems with their power lines since 2000, but gotten little response.

In 2013, 14-year old Malik Shelton died after touching a downed power line on his way home from school in Detroit. Residents in the neighborhood had previously called DTE about the line, which had fallen during a windstorm.

By contrast, the utilities act with brutal efficiency when customers fall behind in their bills. The company regularly cuts off power to residents who cannot pay its inflated charges. In February 2015, 69-year-old John Skelley, a retired factory worker, died of hypothermia after Consumers Energy shut off electricity to his home in Hazel Park, Michigan, a working class suburb of Detroit, for a $760 bill.
Mexicos Chamber of Deputies is preparing to pass a law that provides the legal framework for the military to intervene in matters that endanger stability, safety or public peace. The proposed law would also grant the armed forces the authority to make use of any method of data collection and would force non-governmental institutions, as well as private entities, to hand over users private information. The Mexican Chamber of Deputies is expected to vote on the proposed law by April 20.

The Internal Security Law ( Ley de Seguridad Interior ), proposed in Congress last November, marks a milestone in the ruling classs efforts to defend its rule against mass mobilization of the Mexican working class. Widely discredited and deeply unpopular, the Pena Nieto administration is taking steps to ensure that any future social unrest is met with police state measures.

Under the proposed law, the Mexican Army, Marines and Air Force can be formally deployed for wide-reaching operations that include fighting organized crime, investigating corruption, combatting terrorism and restoring order after national disasters. In addition, the armed forces will be permanently tasked with internal security, vaguely characterized as preventive actions fundamental to anticipating the States actions against phenomena that seek to violate internal order.

While the military has already been informally carrying out these operations without a legal framework under the guise of the decade-long war on drugs, the Internal Security Law aims to legalize and make permanent the use of the military in conducting anti-drug operations, a move that is sure to produce further human rights violations from a force already notorious for its acts of torture and abuse.

The Internal Security Law also lays the foundation for mass spying on the Mexican population. Telecommunications service providers will be forced to deliver private communications, real-time geographical location or delivery of retained data on mobile communication equipment without any form of judicial overview or accountability. According to the Digital Rights Defense Network, a Mexican privacy rights organization, the laws broad language leaves open the possibility for the government to ask application and content providers to establish vulnerabilities, deliver encryption keys or establish another type of back door to facilitate surveillance.

The military, as stated in the proposed legislation, can be mobilized by the president at any time, as well as by Congressional actions. Last year, Mexico amended its constitution to grant the president the authority to establish a state of emergency and declare martial law in instances that place society in grave danger or conflict. As with the Constitutional amendment, the Internal Security Law is a carte blanche for the State to suspend civil rights and suspend basic democratic rights under the pretext of fighting organized crime and preventing terrorist attacks.

The law is being sponsored by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and the National Action Party (PAN). Both parties have been in power during and have played a role in escalating the bloody war on drugs, which has killed over 166,000 and disappeared 28,000 over the last decade.

The National Regeneration Movement (Morena) and the Party for Democratic Revolution (PRD), the nominal left Mexican bourgeois parties, have opposed the legislation from the standpoint of Mexican nationalism. The drafting of the law does not express clearly that the Mexican Army is the only one that can perform interior security functions, stated PRD congressman Alejandro Ojelda. Similarly, Morena congressman Paulo Cesar Martinez Lopez has noted the proposed law opens the door to military operations by foreign armies. In other words, the PRD and Morena want to ensure that the Mexican state will have the exclusive power to crack down on social opposition from the working class using military force.

Human rights groups and academics have widely denounced the proposed law, warning its adoption would gravely endanger human rights in the country. Over the past decade, the armed forces have been repeatedly found guilty of torture, extrajudicial executions and forced disappearances. The Mexican Federal Police and the armed forces have been implicated in the disappearance of the 43 Ayotzinapa students, while in Tlatlaya, 22 civilians were executed by the 102nd Infantry Battalion of the Mexican Army.

The Interior Security Law is being proposed in the context of an outbreak of social opposition against the policies of the Trump administration and the inability of the Mexican government to provide any defense for workers, youth and peasants on either side of the border.

Since the election of Trump, the Mexican government has been in crisis over how to balance its role as a junior partner of American imperialism and subdue mounting social anger at home over Trumps bullying threats to deport millions of immigrants to Mexico, renegotiate NAFTA, build a border wall with Mexico, halt remittances to the country and send US troops to Mexico to take over the war on drugs.

The law also comes in the wake of mass demonstrations against the policies of the Pena Nieto administration, including the gazolinazo protests at the beginning of the year, when thousands of workers mobilized across the country to block roads and highways, taking over processing and distribution centers, and shutting down transit services in many parts of the country.

In July of last year, teachers went on strike in Oaxaca against the regressive education policies of Pena Nietos Pact for Mexico in defense of public education. After 13 were killed and dozens wounded when the Mexican federal police fired at striking teachers, 200,000 doctors and nurses struck in solidarity with the protesting teachers, and students at major universities boycotted classes to show their support.

In response, the Mexican ruling elite is building up the military to prepare for open class conflict. Mexicos weapons imports have more than tripled in the last five years, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Mexico is now the regions second largest importer of weapons, buying $7.9 billion in military equipment in 2015 alone.

Through the governments military sales program, the Obama administration sold over $2.5 billion in military equipment to Mexico from 2008 to 2016. Weapons purchased directly from US companiesanother way the Mexican government can acquire US weaponstripled to $2 billion from 2011 to 2012.

Aude Felurant, an SIPRI analyst specializing in Latin American affairs, characterized the weaponry being brought into Mexico, including thousands of Humvees, dozens of Blackhawks, and millions of rounds of ammunition, as the type of equipment that is imported to carry out counterinsurgency measures.

Desperate to cling to its privileges and wealth, the Mexican ruling class will act quickly and violently to institute martial law and prevent social revolt from threatening its rule. In response, the working class must arm itself with revolutionary politics in a struggle for socialism and the unity of the international working class.
On March 8, Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke, Jr. sent a letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director Thomas Homan requesting the effective assignment of his officers to enforce ICE immigration and deportation regulations.

Clarke, an ardent supporter of President Donald Trumps immigration and domestic policies attacking working people, oversees the notorious Milwaukee County Jail and Correction Facility, known for a spate of prisoner deaths at the hands of police.

The Immigration and Nationality Act Section 287 (g), enacted September 30, 1996 with bipartisan support and signed into law by Democrat Bill Clinton, authorizes the federal government to enter into agreements with local and state law enforcement entities. This allows police officers and sheriff's deputies to act as ICE agents and to arrest persons if they cannot demonstrate legal citizenship status at the time of a request to show papers. Sheriff Clarke has requested his deputies receive the legally required 4 weeks of training at a designated school in Charleston, South Carolina.

The ICE website identifies 37 law enforcement agencies in 16 states that thus far have requested the training and authorization to round up illegal aliens for deportation. More departments are considering joining the program in the coming weeks and months.

In effect, police departments are signing up to serve as the Trump administrations modern-day slave catchers, working on behalf of federal agents to tear immigrants away from their families. The impact of the Section 287(g) program will be to terrorize immigrants and their families, discouraging them from leaving their homes, sending their children to school, or going to the hospital in case of medical emergency. Now, even a broken tail light or jaywalking ticket can trigger Milwaukee sheriffs to ask the Gestapo question, Papers, please.

On February 23, Clarke spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland and called for local government officials to be jailed for preventing their police from cooperating with ICE agents. Some police departments, especially in cities with large immigrant populations, are well aware that if they begin deporting immigrants they will be prevented from solving crimes in immigrant neighborhoods since residents will no longer speak to them.

Clarke said, Im telling you right now folks, you charge one mayor, one governor, one council president that adopts these lawsthis stuff is going to end right away.

These fascistic threats to jail those who fail to collaborate with the deportation program expose the deep decay of democratic norms in the United States. Clarke is not a backwoods Keystone cop. He has been elevated as a leading police official nationwide. He was given a prominent speaking role at the 2016 Republican National Convention and was reportedly one of Trumps finalists to lead the Department of Homeland Security, a position currently occupied by General John Kelly.

Milwaukees Democratic mayor, Tom Barrett, has responded to Clarkes threats by pathetically denying that Milwaukee is a sanctuary city and stating that he opposes Trumps executive order as one of the weakest on-crime measures that you can imagine a president of the United States doing because it will encourage the police to use their resources not to combat violent crimes.

The police force Clarke leads is one of the most depraved and reactionary in the country. Four people died in Clarkes custody in 2016 alone. All four Milwaukee County Jail deaths from 2016 remain open investigations. Three of the four deaths were preliminarily investigated by Clarkes in-house group.

Attorneys and the family of Terrill Thomas, who died at the age of 38 from dehydration while in solitary confinement at Milwaukee County Jail last April 29, after having had his access to water shut off for 6 days, held a press conference at 1pm Friday at the Iron Horse Hotel in Milwaukee.

Last spring, the Milwaukee County Medical Examiners Office ruled the death a homicide, but no charges were brought against anyone overseeing his detention. The Milwaukee County District Attorneys office filed notice last month for the convening of an inquest to be held in June this year. Reports show that officers ordered subordinates to ignore Thomas pleas for water for almost a week.

Kristina A. Fiebrink, age 38, was found unresponsive in her cell at Milwaukee County Jail on August 28th last year. Ms. Fiebrink was a known heroin addict. She had been arrested four days earlier.

In November last year, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporters talked with Ms. Fiebrinks cell mate Elisha Johnson, who said that Fiebrink was screaming and hallucinating overnight due to detoxification, claiming the devil was in her cell and trying to choke her. According to the Sheriffs Office, she was pronounced dead at about 7:30 am. Fiebrinks brother, Leon Limon, has called for an independent investigation into the cause of his sisters death. Limon told the Milwaukee press, I just dont feel like it (the investigation) is going to be fair. Theyre not going to say, My co-worker let this girl die.

Michael Madden died in the Milwaukee County Jail at age 29 on October 28, 2016. Mr. Maddens mother, Gail Stockton, has also insisted on the necessity of an outside investigation of her sons death. Jail mates Robert Ellis and Ulysses Washington told Milwaukee reporters in November that Madden called to the jailers for help, stating that he could not breathe and that his heart hurt. Mr. Madden had pre-existing and known valvular heart disease. Madden became un-responsive when medical and jail personnel arrived and was wheeled away.

Mrs. Stockton told reporters, I think something went very wrong in there.

Ms. Shade Swayzer, age 30, was nine months pregnant last July when her water broke while incarcerated at the county jail. She reportedly told the jailers that she was going into labor at midnight and the officers laughed and ignored her. She alleges that she gave birth at about 4am, and that she first received attention from the jailers at 6am. Her newborn son was pronounced dead later that day. Swayzer has filed a notice of claim against the Milwaukee County Sheriffs Office in the amount of $8.5 million for damages.

After the babys death, the Milwaukee County Sheriffs Office reported that Swayzer never asked for help or informed personnel that she was in labor. The private company contracted to perform medical care for inmates said publicly that the baby was stillborn. Ms. Swayzer reports that her child was born alive, cried profusely and was breastfed.

A mass movement must be built to prevent hundreds of thousands or millions of immigrants from enduring the type of conditions set by Trump and his Gestapo goons like Clarke in prisons, jails and detention centers across America.
Photo: Getty Images

A bizarre case in New York culminated into what might be the first such case of a man, woman, and mother of a child being awarded a so-called tri-custody ruling. Michael Marano, the father in this case, and his ex-wife, Dawn Marano, entered into an open relationship with a neighbor, who bore Maranos son in 2007.

According to the New York Posts examination of the case, Mr. Marano and his wife were unable to bear children, so they agreed to enter an arrangement with neighbor Audria Garcia, all living in Long Island. The Maranos, who married in 1994, entered into their partnership with Garcia in 2001 while she lived below them.

Suffolk County Supreme Court Judge H. Patrick Leis III ruled in this case, stating to the court that No one told these three people to create this unique relationship. Judge Leiss ruling went into the history of the relationship, which took place after Garcia left a boyfriend, who lived in the same complex when the intimate relations with the couple began.

Judge Leiss ruling revealed that the couple and Garcia agreed to have the boy, born Jan. 25, 2007, and would raise him together. At first, the relationship seemed to be in sync, with everyone caring for the child, but things took a turn when Mrs. Marano left her husband to be with Garcia exclusively around the time their son turned 18 months. The new couple picked up and moved to Central Islip, N.Y., in 2008.

Mr. Marano sued Garcia for custody of their son. Mrs. Marano sued her husband for divorce. Joint custody was granted between Mr. Marano and Garcia, but Mrs. Marano, who developed a relationship with the son, didnt have a legal right to custody.

The court reports that Mrs. Marano, who shares a home with Garcia, filed a suit for custody rights to the son. The case went to trial, which ended on March 8 with Judge Leis slamming Mr. Marano for having a child with his wifes best friend.

Judge Leis says the son recognizing both Garcia and Mrs. Marano as mothers swayed him to deliver the ruling. There have been other tri-parenting cases but none to the level of the Maranos and Garcia.



Story continues

Similar cases in recent past

In 2016, a high-profile matter involving a gay married couple in New Jersey and their friend made headlines. One of the husbands donated sperm and the other gave their daughter his last name. For a while, the partnership was harmonious until the mother got into a relationship with a man who wanted to move the woman and her daughter to California.

The couple protested the move and the nonbiological father took the case to New Jersey courts. While the court agreed that the man (named Shawn in the court documents) had a true bond with their daughter, the New Jersey Parentage Act would only view the proper parent as biological or adoptive. However, as a psychological parent, the nonbiological father could still fight for custody. The court sided with the couple and barred the move to California.

A few states do allow children to have more than two parents. California passed a bill in 2013 allowing the parenting arrangement to stand if a child has two mothers and a father. Alaska, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington all recognize third-parent adoptions in special cases.



In Washington, D.C., and Delaware, sperm or egg donors can be recognized as parents legally. The exact number of three-parent adoptions allowed isnt known because of privacy concerns.

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Mama Junes personal trainer reveals the secrets behind her weight loss. (Photo: Getty)

Everybody is talking about Mama Junes new show, Mama June: From Not to Hot, and since before its premiere, the show was under fire. The new reality series stars June Shannon, 37, of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, who promises to undergo a complete physical and emotional transformation over the course of the series.

Starting at 350 pounds and a size 18, Shannon vows to look completely different after her transformation, promising to shrink to a size 4 in time for the wedding of her ex, Sugar Bear, all in the name of revenge for infidelity.

@10PM EST TONIGHT JOIN US ON WE TV FOR MAMA JUNE: FROM NOT TO HOT! A post shared by Kenya Crooks (@thekenyacrooks) on Mar 10, 2017 at 8:22am PST

The inherent body shame in the shows title, as well as the unhealthy mindset surrounding the concept of a revenge body has sent critics into a frenzy over the potentially harmful approaches to weight loss that the show presents for Shannon, her children, and viewers alike.

There's a smokin' hot mama waiting to bust out! Stay tuned for #MamaJune's BIG reveal #FromNotToHot! A post shared by wetv (@wetv) on Mar 5, 2017 at 8:21am PST

The series debuted on Feb. 24 with Shannons gastric bypass surgery, but after finding that she had hit a weight-loss plateau post-surgery, the personal trainer Kenya Crooks was called in to help. Crooks, the self-proclaimed worlds greatest weight-loss expert, started his process with Shannon by raiding her kitchen, then berating her for the amount of ice cream she had in her freezer. Crookss intense approach elicited further criticism.

And while the show started on a note that many called negative and harmful, a new clip from an unreleased episode reveals a shift in mindset.

Crooks speaks to Shannon about her motivation for weight loss. The reason why Im pushing you so hard is I know you can do better, Crooks says. Question: Why are you doing this? Shannon says: Im trying to lose weight for Sugar Bears wedding, because my ex is getting married. Im trying to rebrand myself as, like, the skinnier Mama June. Crooks expresses concern that Shannons reasons dont have to do with her. At some point, you have to make a conscientious decision to start putting yourself first, he says.

Story continues

HERE'S A SNEAK PEEK OF TONIGHT'S EPISODE #MAMAJUNEFROMNOTTOHOT ON WETV AT 10PM EST A post shared by Kenya Crooks (@thekenyacrooks) on Mar 10, 2017 at 12:24pm PST

Shannon insists that she wants to be the hottest thing at this wedding, and maintains that she wants to shrink to a size 4, which Crooks believes is attainable.

Despite the extreme weight-loss goals, Crooks says that this shift in mindset has been his goal all along. Everybody is kind of inspired by something. A lot of times its that person who, really, you shouldnt even be worried about anymore, Crooks tells Yahoo Beauty of Shannons weight loss motivation. I told her, I need for you to understand that this is about you. This isnt about somebody whos moved on, this is about you. So I really tried to shift the thinking from, I want to look good for Sugar Bears wedding, to, OK, lets really focus on June.

Crooks claims that one of his gifts is the ability to shift his clients mindsets. When I see a person, I dont see who they are, I see who they could be. So my job is to bridge the gap between who they are currently and what they could be, Crooks says of the emotional weight-loss process. Once they start losing 5 pounds at a time, they start becoming believers, and they start beating you to the park and having a great attitude.

He continues, It was a struggle in the very beginning. But once I got her to buy into what her body could look like if we keep working, and she kept losing in increments at a time, then she started buying it a little bit. Each time we got together, she got excited. It changed her whole attitude and outlook, because she realized, I can get this done.

LET THE CRAZY BEGIN.. A post shared by Kenya Crooks (@thekenyacrooks) on Mar 10, 2017 at 8:24am PST

Crooks says that people who dont focus on themselves throughout a weight-loss journey are more likely to gain the weight back, and that shame is one of the worst motivation tools. Even if you are satisfied with who you are, understand that there is a better version. So go after your better [version], continue to improve, because if youre not getting better, youre getting worse, he says.

Crooks recommends celebrating milestones, particularly when losing large amounts of weight. It could be the 5 pounds, it could be a dress that youre trying to get into, it could be a particular size that you want to pop back into, he says, but you have to make sure you celebrate them, because it keeps the momentum going.

Of the kitchen-raiding scene, Crooks thinks of it as tough love. Once I commit to you, Im involved in just about every part of your life. So I was involved in everything from how she ate to how she worked out, to family stuff, he says. You have to understand the person that youre dealing with. Thats where the psychology comes in, because you have to understand how to get the best out of that person that youre trying to help. So if I need to be hard, Ill be hard. If I need to be that person who sits down and just listens to you and helps you solve problems, Im that guy, too. But I just base it off of the persons personality.

I love to win, and this is a win, Crooks says of Mama Junes transformation, which has not yet been revealed on the show. This is an awesome win, and Im so happy to be a part of the show and just so happy just to be able to help her become who I know she can be.

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Jiratchaya Sirimongkolnawin, winner of the Miss International Queen 2016 transgender/transsexual beauty pageant. (Photo: Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha)

The largest beauty pageant for transgender women has a winner: Thailands Jiratchaya Sirimongkolnawin was crowned Miss International Queen on Friday.

The pageant, held at Tiffanys nightclub in Pattaya City in Thailand, was originally scheduled for November, but it was postponed until March to allow the country to mourn the countrys king, who died in October. The contest is in its 12th year, and in order to compete, contestants must be between the ages of 18 and 35 and born male  although theyre not required to have undergone gender reassignment surgery. The event includes eveningwear and swimsuit competitions, and the winner receives a tiara, flowers, a cash prize, and a car.

Sirimongkolnawin upon learning that shed won Miss International Queen 2016. (Photo: Reuters)

Sirimongkolnawin, 25, a former fine-arts student-turned-fashion-designer, beat 24 other contestants for the crown, including Brazils Nathalie Oliveira, who came in second place, and Venezuelas Andrea Collazo, who finished third, according to the Daily Mail.

Its like a new category, Jiratchaya, who wore a white strapless gown with black trim and sparkly hoop earrings, told Reuters of the pageant for the third gender. But the gender already existed a long time ago.

Sirimongkolnawin was a fine-arts student and is now a fashion designer. (Photo: Reuters)

Many of the contestants have had trouble being accepted by their families, Alisa Phanthusak, chair of Miss International Queens pageant committee, told CNN on Thursday. So were trying to bring up their self-esteem. Its not just beauty we are looking for. Its confidence.

Despite being known as the gay capital of Asia, Thailand isnt exactly progressive when it comes to LGBT rights. According to a story published by the Huffington Post, boys between the ages of 11 and 18 are trained to shed their girlishness by Buddhist monks and banned from using makeup.

According to People, American entertainer Mimi Marks was crowned Miss International Queen in 2005.

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 From Grace Kelly to Gigi Hadid, Intimate Portraits of Beautiful Stars

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Meghan Markle has left the warm temperatures behind her!

The actress was spotted back in Toronto where her showSuitsis filmed for the first time Saturday since her return from Montego Bay, Jamaica. She wore a fur-lined parka, black leggings and matching boots, and was likely on her way to or from a yoga class judging from the mat she carried.

Meanwhile, Markles boyfriendPrince Harrywas busy with work of his own in London on Saturday as he attended a rugby match between England and Scotland alongside his aunt, Princess Anne.

Markle, 35, was in the Caribbean last weekendwith Harryto attend the wedding ofhischildhood friend Tom Skippy Inskip and literary agent Lara Hughes-Young.

FROM COINAGE: Tips for Planning a Wedding on a Budget

A source who was also in attendance at the nuptials told PEOPLE that Harry, 32, and Markle didnt shy away from expressing their affection for each other.

Harry and Meghan seem very much in love, the onlooker said, adding that Harry took a lot of time to introduce Markle to his pals during the joyful affair.

RELATED VIDEO: Will Meghan Markle Go For Royal Lessons If She Becomes A Princess?

According to an earlier source, the relationship between Markle and Harry, who spent a good deal of time together in London during the first two months of the year, is something that just makes sense.

It just feels very natural for them both, the source told PEOPLE. It feels easy like theyve known each other for a long time.

Suitsis expected to resume filming for season 7, which is set to premiere thissummer, sometime in April.

This article was originally published on PEOPLE.com
Beirut (AFP) - Three hundred families of Islamic State group fighters have fled the jihadists' self-proclaimed Syrian capital of Raqa in 24 hours, as rival forces advance on the city, a monitor said Saturday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said "300 families of foreign fighters of IS have left the city of Raqa since dawn Friday to take refuge in the province of Deir Ezzor to the east and Hama to the west".

The northern city of Raqa is the target of advancing Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, a US-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab forces as well as Syrian government troops supported by Russia.

The Observatory's head, Rami Abdel Rahman, said that IS families were using the only remaining escape route, on boats across the Euphrates River to the south.

President Bashar al-Assad stressed in a television interview broadcast on Saturday that the recapture of Raqa was a "priority" for his forces.

"We have come very close to Raqa now... Our forces have reached the banks of the Euphrates, very close to the city of Raqa," he told the Chinese channel Phoenix.

"It will therefore be a priority for us," he said, in comments carried by Syria's state news agency SANA.

The United States on Thursday also turned up the heat on the jihadists, sending an additional 400 American troops into Syria to support operations to retake Raqa.
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP)  At least eight members of the security forces were killed by two of their colleagues in southern Zabul province late Friday night, An Afghan official said.

Gul Islam Seyal, spokesman for the provincial governor, said Saturday that both attackers fled the area after killing their colleagues in Shinkia district.

He said the two policemen also took all the weapons and ammunition from the checkpoint.

Seyal said an investigation is underway to find out what caused the incident or if the two have links to insurgent groups.

Insider attacks are not unusual in Afghanistan. In a similar incident in late February, 11 police were shot and killed by another policeman from the same checkpoint in neighboring Helmand province and the attacker managed to flee in a police vehicle.

Separately on Saturday, in eastern Khost province a possible suicide bomber was shot and killed by security guards near the entrance to an airport, said Gen. Faizullah Ghyrat, provincial police chief in Khost.

"There were three suspects who wanted to get closer to the eastern gate of the airport, one was killed by the guards and two others disappeared after the first one was killed," said Ghyrat.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack in Khost.
The Daily Beast

GettyIt only took a few hours after Russias Vladimir Putin hailed his mobilization as a sparkling success Friday for a torrent of humiliating reports to emerge that suggest the war effort has been more successful in turning the country against him than defeating mythical Nazis in Ukraine.The most staggering contradiction to the Russian presidents boastful claims came perhaps in Kazan, where dozens of drafted troops were captured on video late Friday berating military leadership outside a colle
Kabul (Israel) (AFP) - Thousands of Arabs staged a protest march Saturday in northern Israel against legislation aimed at silencing mosque loudspeakers, an AFP reporter said.

Some three thousand men and women marched through the town of Kabul, holding Palestinian flags and signs saying "The muezzin law won't pass" or "Don't silence the muezzin", chanting against the legislation and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel's parliament on Wednesday gave preliminary approval to two controversial bills that would limit the calls to prayer from mosques in Israel and occupied east Jerusalem, including one prohibiting the use of loudspeakers at all hours.

The bills were approved after a heated discussion that turned into shouting matches between ruling coalition members and Arab lawmakers, some of whom tore copies of the legislation and were ejected from the chamber.

While the bills in theory would apply to any religious place of worship, Muslims say they are clearly meant to silence Islam's traditional call to prayer.

The measures have become commonly known as the "muezzin law" after the official charged with making the call to the faithful, often through powerful speakers mounted on minarets.

The notion of Israeli legislation silencing mosques has sparked outrage around the Arab and wider Muslim world.

Supporters of the move say it is needed to prevent daily disturbances to the lives of hundreds of thousands of Israelis.

Members of the Arab Joint List and the Islamic Movement took part in Saturday's march.

Arab Israelis are descendants of Palestinians who remained after Israel's creation in 1948, and account for about 17.5 percent of the country's eight million population, with many identifying as Palestinian.
BAKU (Reuters) - Oil-rich Azerbaijan has left the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) after a prominent international coalition suspended the ex-Soviet country's membership, the executive director of the Azeri state oil fund SOFAZ said. EITI is backed by governments, corporations and financial institutions and aims to promote open and accountable management of natural resources. The coalition suspended Azerbaijan's membership in the coalition at a board meeting on Thursday because of its concern about limits on civic freedoms in the South Caucasus country of about 9 million. Azerbaijan considered that decision as "unfair" and left the coalition. "We consider the board's decision on suspension of Azerbaijan as an unfair one," Shahmar Movsumov said in a statement. "It is with a deep regret I have to officially announce that Azerbaijan is leaving EITI." In 2015, EITI downgraded Azerbaijan to "candidate" from "compliant" country. In October last year, the EITI board said Azerbaijan had made meaningful progress, and retained its candidate status, but added that the country needed to do more to improve transparency, a key international benchmark that makes the country more attractive to foreign investors. Movsumov said the EITI's mandate had been "significantly shifted far from transparency and accountability in extractive sectors" and the organization "failed to stick to its original mission and objectives." He added that Azerbaijan would continue to disclose all the information related to revenues received from extractive industries to the full extent. Azerbaijan's presence in the EITI was important for international investors and banks attracted to its oil and gas sector. Oil and gas account for about 75 percent of Azerbaijan's state revenues and 45 percent of gross domestic product, so the slump in crude prices since mid-2014 has hit the country particularly hard. (Reporting and writing by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Bill Rigby)
Brussels (AFP) - A Belgian zoo said Saturday it will shorten its rhinos' horns as an anti-poaching measure following the grisly killing of a white rhino in France this week.

A four-year-old southern white male was shot three times in the head at a French zoo in Thoiry outside Paris on Monday and had its horns cut off probably "with a chainsaw" police said.

The perpetrators, who have still not been found, stole only the main horn, which is estimated to be worth 30,000-40,000 euros ($32,000-$42,690).

The Pairi Daiza zoo, about 60 kilometres (40 miles) southwest of Brussels, has three adult rhinos and a baby white rhino born in March 2016 as part of its 5,000-animal complex.

Director Eric Domb wrote on the zoo's Facebook page that the French killing had prompted him to ask "our veterinarian to proceed on a temporary basis and as an additional measure to security procedures already in place at Pairi Daiza" to shorten their rhinos' horns.

"This heinous act is the first in Europe but it is part of a long line of rhino horn thefts from many European museums," Domb wrote.

With this measure, he said, he also wanted to not only protect the zoo's animals but its security personnel as well.

In the Thoiry incident, intruders forced the main gate of the zoo and broke through at least two other security barriers before shooting dead the rhino, called Vince.

The killing marked the first time a European zoo had been breached in that way.

Investigators believe the murder was part of an organised trafficking ring.

Black market rhino horn sells for up to $60,000 per kilo -- more than gold or cocaine -- with demand principally coming from China and Vietnam where it is coveted as a traditional medicine and supposed aphrodisiac.

One horn can weigh four kilos -- comprised exclusively of keratin, the same substance in human hair and fingernails.

"Depending on circumstances, this measure could be renewed," Domb wrote. "Frequently used in many national African parks, it is considered today as one of the only effective deterrents."

Wild rhino numbers are plummeting. About 1,400 are killed every year, out of an estimated population of 25,000 -- mainly in South Africa but also in Asia and India.
GaneshaSpeaks

The BJP Shiv Sena Alliance is in danger of breaking up between August and October 2017



The Shiv Sena party took birth in Mumbai in the mid-1960s, fathered by the then political cartoonist Bal Thackeray with the agenda of fighting for preferential treatment for Maharashtra in the face of the growing population of migrants, particularly from South India. The party is currently headed by Thackerays son, Uddhav Thackeray. Members of Shiv Sena are referred to as Shivsainiks.



The party has been in an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for Lok Sabha as well as Maharashtra Assembly since 1989. Together they formed a government in Maharashtra during 1995-1999. The Shiv Sena was the opposition party in the state along with the BJP from 1999 to 2014. However, the Shiv Sena-BJP Alliance was broken in 2014 over seat sharing issues for the Maharashtra Assembly elections and both parties fought the elections independently.



BJP emerged the largest party in the polls, and after initially deciding to sit in the opposition, the Shiv Sena agreed to join the government. But things have not been hunky dory between the two parties for a long time, and Ganesha predicts that the BJP-Shiv Sena Alliance is in danger of breaking up during the period from August to October this year.



Shiv Sena May Change Political Tactics

As per the foundation chart of Shiv Sena, the Party is currently under the influence of Mercury Mahadasha and Sun Bhukti. The Lord of the 10th house, Sun is placed in the 8th house (house of adversities) with the strong 8th house Lord Mercury. It indicates that the Party is undergoing a decisive phase of its political journey. It also indicates a surprising change of tactics from the party leadership.



BJP-Shiv Sena Alliance: Shiv Sena Will Not Cave In To BJP Pressure

The transiting Rahu in Leo indicates that the Shiv Sena leadership is in no mood to give in to the pressure mounted by the BJP. Rather the leadership will continue to target the Alliance partner. However, its path could be rather difficult as the transiting Saturn is aspecting the natal Sun in the 8th house.



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BJP Will Not Allow Shiv Sena To Become A Hurdle To Its Growth In Maharashtra

On the other hand, BJP is passing through the Sun Mahadasha and Ketu Bhukti. Also, the transiting Rahu is moving over the cluster of planets in the 3rd house of BJPs foundation chart. So, BJP is in no mood to allow the strong Shiv Sena to become an obstacle to its growth in Maharashtra. The transiting Rahu in both the parties charts indicates change of equations between them. Hostility and attacks between the long time partners will increase during the year 2017.



Shiv Sena-BJP Alliance In Danger Of Breaking Up

As per the Oath Chart, Saturns transit through Sagittarius and Rahus transit through the Zodiac Sign Cancer may bring major challenges for CM Devendra Fadanvis. It may even be one of the most critical periods for him as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. The Shiv Sena-BJP Alliance will be under threat till 18th April 2017 and even if it survives, the period between August 2017 and October 2017 will remain very difficult for their unity.



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We had already predicted problems for Devendra Fadnavis way back in November 2014. You can check out the Article Here.



Both the periods are very sensitive and there are high chances of breaking of the Shiv Sena-BJP Alliance in Maharashtra.



With Ganeshas Grace,

Tanmay K. Thakar

The GaneshaSpeaks.com Team
By Scott Malone

BOSTON (Reuters) - A group of gay veterans of the U.S. military can march in this year's Boston's St. Patrick's Day Parade, parade organizers said on Friday after an earlier move to exclude them sparked outrage and boycott threats in the liberal city.

The parade, one of the United States' largest honoring Irish-American heritage, had long excluded openly gay participants, saying that admitting them would conflict with organizers' Roman Catholic beliefs. In 2015 organizers agreed to allow the gay veterans' group, OUTVETS, to march in the face of pressure from city officials and sponsors who pulled their financing.

The decades-long fight over inclusion in the celebration of the patron saint of Ireland was rekindled this week when OUTVETS said that organizers of the 116-year-old parade told them they would not be invited back to the March 19 event.

Parade organizers said the group's participation had conflicted with the event's Roman Catholic heritage and caused some church groups to pull out of the march. But the Allied War Council, which runs the parade, held what local media said was an emergency meeting and agreed to allow the OUTVETS to march this year.

"We are honored and humbled by all the outpouring of support that has been displayed for our LGBTQ veterans," OUTVETS said in a statement. "We look forward to marching proudly on March 19th and honoring the service and sacrifice of those brave men and women who have sacrificed for our country."

A day earlier, parade organizers said they had objected to the group's late application and its plans to march under the rainbow flag of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights movement.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 1995 ruled that parade organizers had the right to exclude gay marchers.

But a shift in American attitudes toward gay rights since then--particularly in Massachusetts, the first state to legalize gay marriage--has prompted local politicians and sponsors of the event to call for gay groups' inclusion in the parade.

The Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade and city have had thorny relations in recent years. A federal judge in 2016 blocked an effort by Mayor Marty Walsh to cut the three-mile (5 km) parade's length by half, a move to lower the cost of policing an event that draws tens of thousands of sometimes rowdy revelers.

(Reporting by Scott Malone; Editing by Leslie Adler and Sam Holmes)
The defending Super Bowl champions could be parting ways with one of their most prominent defensive backs. New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler, who intercepted Russell Wilson's pass attempt to Ricardo Lockette near the end zone to defeat the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX, is reportedly the subject of trade rumors.

The speculation surrounding Butler comes after ESPN reported Thursday that the Patriots agreed to a deal with Buffalo Bills cornerback Stephon Gilmore on a five-year, $65 million contract with $40 million in guarantees. It was an overall busy time for the Patriots, who also re-signed defensive tackle Alan Branch, safety Duron Harmon and blocking tight end Mike Williams.

The addition of Gilmore may mean Butler's best fit might be at slot cornerback or New England can swap him for a wide receiver.

There are reports that the New Orleans Saints may deal star wide receiver Brandin Cooks, and the Patriots and Tennessee Titans are potential landing spots. The Saints need help at cornerback and would likely welcome a Pro Bowl defensive back like Butler, while the Patriots would be adding a 23-year-old wide out who had 78 receptions for 1,173 yards in 2016. There were reports that Cook could be dealt as early as Friday.

New England has not held contract talks with Butler, who is seeking a new contract, according to his agent Derek Simpson. Butler, 27, has until April 21 to sign a deal with another team and the Patriots can match the deal within five days.

"The Patriots haven't approached [Butler] about his contract since last year, and anything that says he keeps asking for the moon is completely false," Simpson said, according to ESPN.
By Nelson Acosta HAVANA (Reuters) - Foreign ministers and other officials from 25 Caribbean countries met in Havana on Friday to discuss a joint response in the face of Trump administration threats to migrants and trade. Opening remarks at the closed-door event, attended by representatives from Colombia, Mexico, Cuba and other countries in Central America and the Caribbean islands, made clear the new U.S. administration was uppermost on the agenda, though the name of President Donald Trump was never uttered. The United States is a key economic partner for the region. "We are meeting at an exceptional historic moment when there are geographic changes on the global scene and we have to be prepared," said June Soomer, who is from Saint Lucia and is secretary general of the Association of Caribbean States. "We are not going to resign ourselves to what others in the world dictate. We are not a mediocre region, we are one of excellence and peace," Sooner said. Cuban President Raul Castro attended the opening ceremony. His foreign minister, Bruno Rodriguez, lit into Trump's policies in his opening remarks, and said the organization should come up with a joint response, as the policies threaten the development models of local economies. "The excluding and repressive migration policies announced by countries of destination, ... as well as the implementation of extremely protectionist trade measures, are real challenges for our sub-region," he said. "In the face of the walls intended to be built, our choice should continue to be unity, solidarity and cooperation to defend the most legitimate interests of our peoples," he said. The meeting in Cuba comes just four days after Trump signed a revised executive order that bans the entry into the United States for 90 days for citizens of six Muslim-majority nations - Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The order revised Trump's original travel ban issued in January, removing Iraq from the list and applying the ban only to new visa applicants. Trump has also promised to build a wall along the Mexican border and threatened to impose tariffs on Mexican-made products. Rodriguez met separately at the event with Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray. "Mexico is a sovereign nation. It is a strong nation and greatly strengthened by support from the nations of Latin America, the Caribbean and the fraternal Cuban people," Videgaray told the press, refusing further comment. (Writing by Marc Frank; Editing by Dan Grebler and Leslie Adler)
The festival of Purim celebrates the Jewish communitys survival over an ancient Persian extermination plot. Told through the Book of Esther, or the Megillah in Hebrew, the story involves a young woman named Esther who becomes a Persian kings wife to thwart a plan against the Jewish people. Hailed as a hero of the community, Esther and her story are celebrated each year during Purim.

Saturday evening marks the beginning of this years Purim festival, complete with good food, wine, festivals and costumes. The day is intended for celebration, so grab a hamantaschen and share these thoughtful words with your loved ones!

Read: Honor Holocaust Memorial Day With These Moving Words For Victims And Survivors

Jews survived all the defeats, expulsions, persecutions and pograms, the centuries in which they were regarded as a pariah people, even the Holocaust itself, because they never gave up the faith that one day they would be free to live as Jews without fear. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

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Photo: Getty Images

Who has inflicted this upon us? Who has made Jews different from all other people? Who has allowed us to suffer so terribly up till now? It is God that has made us as we are, but it will be God, too, who will raise us up again. Anne Frank

For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your fathers house will perish. And you know whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this? Esther 4:14

If you dont know what youre living for, you havent lived yet. Rabbi Noah Weinberg

In them the king granted the Jews who were in each and every city the right to assemble and to defend their lives, to destroy, to kill and to annihilate the entire army of any people or province which might attack them, including children and women, and to plunder their spoil. Esther 8:11

I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Psalm 16:8

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In Jewish history there are no coincidences. Elie Wiesel

It is the mystery of the hidden miracle of survival in the face of overwhelming destruction. Our refusal to surrender has turned our story into one long, unending Purim tale. Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo

Related Articles
 By Natalia Otero

Almost 700 million women worldwide got married before turning 18, some as young as 10 or 11, and 15 million more join them each year. Some are coerced; others enter into marriage voluntarily for reasons of tradition, culture or economic necessity. But the outcomes are similar: Dropping out of school, social isolation, early pregnancy, maternal mortality and limited future opportunities are common consequences.

Abaynesh, Ramgani and Nayane are three girls whose stories illustrate the causes and effects of early unions across different cultures. Their stories, their lives, are only three of many.

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Abaynesh

Once married, I tried to continue my studies, but my family and my in-laws decided I shouldnt study anymore, says Abaynesh, 14, as she paces the hut of wood, sun-dried brick and straw that she shares with her husband and two mules in Gindero, which is in the Amhara region of Ethiopia.

Abaynesh and Tadesse pose in the back of their home after collecting lentils in Gindero, Amhara, Ethiopia in October 2016. The state where they come from, Amhara, has the lowest median age for a first marriage (14.7 years). (Photo: Jose Colon/MeMo)

Surrounded by fields, with high green mountains in the distance and a night lit only by the stars, this is a lonely, timeless place. There are no neighbors, running water, electricity or clocks.

The sun has not yet risen, and Abaynesh is ready to go to the river to get water. She carries a 20-liter drum on her back, and neither its weight nor her advanced pregnancy slows her.

Her in-laws changed her name to Jemata when she married three years ago. She wasnt happy with the change but accepted it as in keeping with tradition. When I was little, I had very good grades. I wanted to be a doctor, she says, looking back on her abbreviated childhood with nostalgia.

Ethiopia has about 1.9 million women aged 20 to 24 who were married before 18, placing it fifth in the world. It also ranks second in the number of women who have undergone genital mutilation, which has affected 23.8 million women, or 74 percent of the female population between 15 and 49 years old, according to UNICEF.

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Abaynesh contributes to both statistics. Her inner labia, or labia minora, were cut a few days after she was born, a practice common in more than 20 countries, mostly in Africa.

Mesel Nigusie, a 48 years old women that has been circumcising girls for the last 28 years, poses in a house in Gindero, Amhara, Ethiopia. Since the Government prohibited it, female ablation is practiced in secret. I am still asked to do it, but it is not worth the risk when I dont make money out of it, she declares. Families prefer girls cut to marry their sons, she says. In Ethiopia, three of every four women between 15 and 49 have undergone (female genital mutilation) FGM in some form. (Photo: Jose Colon/MeMo)

Genital mutilation and child marriage are related and stem from some of the same social conditions: gender inequality, a patriarchal culture and the desire to control the sexual freedom of women. Genital mutilation is presented as a way to give women characteristics valued by their society.

Abaynesh was not mutilated to guarantee her purity, nor to make intercourse less pleasurable, but to facilitate male penetration once married, explains Mesel Nigusie, who has done female circumcision for the last 28 years. It must be done before girls reach 15 days old because the body is stronger and heals faster, she says, adding that the wound heals and stops hurting within eight to 10 days.

Abayneshs father-in-law says that families prefer circumcised women for cultural reasons. He believes that girls who have undergone the procedure adapt better to their husbands family, are less rebellious and become better wives.

Abaynesh (on the left) with her sister-in-law and father-in-law in Gindero in Amhara, Ethiopia, in October 2016. (Photo: Jose Colon/MeMo)

The diversity of cultures and ethnic groups in Ethiopia makes it difficult to generalize about sexual and marriage patterns. Ethiopian girls often are married off young as part of an agreement between the two families. But sometimes, if the brides family refuses the proposal, the man kidnaps his would-be bride, and by tradition the girls family must accept the union.

Abayneshs eyes reflect the exhaustion that her body hides. She prepares coffee after dinner, crouching in the middle of her in-laws room. She speaks hardly a word and takes no part in the familys conversation around her. This will be her routine for the foreseeable future as her dream of becoming a doctor fades away.

Ramgani

I want to finish my studies, says Ramgani, 18, with the conviction of someone who is planning on changing her luck and maybe the luck of other girls and women like her.

Ramgani Jat (18) stands in the middle of the main room of her parents house in Khankla, Bilwara district, Rajasthan, India in July 2016. She was secretly married when she was very young and her marriage became effective when she was 14. She fights with her father almost on daily basis because she wants to remain home and keep studying. She walks two hours a day to get to school. (Photo: Rafael Fabres)

She is late to school because her chores have kept her busy longer than usual. She bursts into the playground with energy and raises a cloud of dust when she runs toward the fountain. Ramgani is not wearing the female uniform of her school; she wears the same white trousers as the boys. Her body language conveys a certainty and strength that are at odds with her delicate and shy speech.

Ramgani was married as a young girl, but the marriage became effective when she was 14 and her husbands family made her come live with them. Her story is one of a continuing struggle to escape her destiny as a woman in a rural village in Bhilwara District, in the state of Rajasthan, India.

According to figures from UNICEF, 27 million Indian women between 20 and 24 were married before they turned 18. In Rajasthan, among women in the same age bracket, 65 percent were married as children.

But Kailash Brijwasi, director of the NGO Jatan Sansthan, which has worked in India for the past 15 years to end this practice, says, These statistics only gather registered data by the government, and the official number is lower than reality.

Three-quarters of the women in Rajasthan live outside of cities, and 55 percent of those are illiterate.

A wedding in a small village near Udaipur, Rajasthan, India in July 2016. The groom says to be 18 years old and the bride 22. A relative says later that she is younger than he. Some families lie about the age of the girls because they are afraid of the governments actions. Some of these girls dont have a birth certificate, so it is easier for the families to get away with it. (Photo: Rafael Fabres)

Ramgani fights not to become one of them. She bears the weight of being a woman in a society that is deeply patriarchal and is also subject to rules of caste. Ramgani is part of the Jat caste. Married Jat women in the countryside do not sit at the same level as their husbands or male relatives. If a man sits on a chair, a woman must sit on the ground. If a man is standing, a woman must do the same until he leaves the room.

The gender roles and caste system are deeply rooted in society, abetted by weak legal protections, an overwhelmingly male power structure, and the precarious economic conditions of a large part of the population. Those factors also conspire to make child marriages common.

Ramgani is the fifth of nine sisters, all of whom were married in ceremonies on consecutive days. In India, the brides family provides the dowry and hosts the ceremony. To save money, it is common to marry several daughters at the same time to men from the same family, which results in younger brides.

Arti and her sisters play with her son at Artis family home in Changedi, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India in July 2016. Her sister, on the right (15) got married some years ago, but started spending time with her family-in-law and her husband around seven months ago. The other sister remains unwed for now. (Photo: Rafael Fabres)

Although the girls are paired with their husbands when they are very young, they usually do not leave their parents house until they reach puberty. Therefore, the wedding for most is a distant memory by the time they are claimed by the in-laws. One of Ramganis younger sisters, who is 11 years old, already spends time at her in-laws.

Once they leave the family home, girls take over the house chores in their new home, and few are allowed to continue their education. Chandra Ramesh, a teacher at the GGSS Kahla School in Bhilwara, Rajasthan, says that only 30 percent of these girls go back to their studies.

Ramgani had to leave school when she moved in with her husbands family, but eventually, with the help of Jatan Sansthan, she persuaded her father to bring her home so that she could continue in school. She now divides her time between her family home and her in-laws, but she is pressured by both families to return to her husband. She frequently fights with her father about her insistence on continuing her studies. Nevertheless, she has managed to stay in school.

Arti Khatik, 16, has not had the same luck. The mother of a 10-month-old, she was married when she was around 7, and six or seven years later she moved to her husbands house. She explains how she was forced to lose her virginity at 14. Now she dreams of a life away from a husband who drinks and doesnt provide for their child, except when he forces her to have sex, saying, Shut up, Ill give you money for the baby.

Arti Khatik sits on the floor of her mother-in-laws house near Changedi, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India, where she has lived since moving in with her husband at age 14. July 2016. (Photo: Rafael Fabres)

Indian legislation is strict on paper. Any union in which the woman is under 18 or the man is under 21 is considered illegal. However, the government lacks the resources to enforce the law, according to Paresh Ram Bhali, one of the government representatives in Bhilwara District, and so the practice of child marriage continues.

Back home, Ramgani straddles the motorbike that a family member lent her and smiles shyly. If they make me go back to my husband, I will escape, she says, almost whispering.

Nayane

Nayane, 15, and her twin sister, Nayara, have their eyes glued to their phones, which vibrate with each incoming message. Nayara hasnt left the house in three months. The drug-trafficking gang controlling her community imposed this punishment, along with a beating that landed her in the hospital, for having a forbidden relationship with a man from a rival group. Nayane keeps her company during her confinement.

Nayane and her twin Nayara (in the back) send messages on their phones in their mothers house in Parque Uniao, a shantytown in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in August 2016. A 30-year old single woman with no children is not normal- A man is?- Yes, it is normal in man, says Nayara. For her, a woman, regardless of her schooling , must marry and become a mother, because the opposite is not natural. (Photo: Rafael Fabres)

They are on the bed in a small faded room in a house in Parque Uniao, in the Mare favela complex, north of Rio de Janeiro. In Nayanes lap is Ana Sophia, her 10-month-old daughter.

Neither of the twins goes to school. Nayane is getting ready to go to a funk-music party like the one where she met the father of her daughter. The young mother has his photo on her T-shirt. He died six months ago. He was involved in drug trafficking and was shot in a police raid. Nayane was never married to him.

Brazil ranks fourth worldwide in the number of child marriages. Almost 1 million women between ages 20 and 24 were married before 15, and 3 million were married before 18. The minimum age to get married is 16, with parental consent. But in certain circumstances, including pregnancy, this rule can be suspended.

Brazil differs from other countries in that the young women involved are often already pregnant and consent to marriage rather than being forced into it  and the unions may be unofficial and unrecorded.

Girls get married or initiate a stable cohabitation with family encouragement after an unplanned pregnancy because of social pressure, as described in a study by the NGO Promundo.

A Baile Funk party, in the Shantytown of Complexo Mare, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in August 2016. (Photo: Rafael Fabres)

Vanessa Fonseca, project coordinator of Promundo, highlights two main reasons why girls enter into an early marriage in Brazil: financial stability and freedom in a society where girls living at home are often subject to very strict family control. And many of Nayanes friends decided to live with their partners, leaving their families and their rules.

Unlike brides in some other countries, such as India or Ethiopia, these young girls are not forced into unions. They get married and separated when they think they have to, says Fonseca. However, they can suffer the same consequences: domestic violence, dropping out of school, diminished job prospects and maternal health problems.

It is a problem often overlooked by the government. Some time ago, Christiane Pereira, who lives in the same favela as Nayane, began a relationship and married very young after getting pregnant with her first daughter, born when she was 16. Now, divorced from that man and the mother of two other girls, she sees this pattern repeating among other girls in her neighborhood who seek to escape abuse and lack of affection at home.

A girl dances to the music at Baile Funk party tin Parque Uniao, a shantytown in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in August 2016. Nayane says that, in this party, very young girls and boys drink and take drugs. She says she knows a girl, age 11, that already goes to these parties and has sexual intercourse with men. Most of the unions of very young girls with boys she knows are formed during this ball. (Photo: Rafael Fabres)

Nayanes friends have come to pick her up for the dance. With braces on their teeth and too much makeup on their faces, they play at being grownups, a game that for many will end with a pregnancy and a life of drudgery.

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I Dont Project was funded by the European Journalism Centre.

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Read more from Yahoo News:
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's two-child policy is showing "notable results" with the fertility rate expected to rise through to 2020, a senior health official said on Saturday. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of China's annual meeting of parliament, Wang Peian, vice-minister of the National Health and Family Planning Commission said there were "notable results" in 2016, with the largest annual number of newborn babies since 2000. Wang said 18.46 million live births were recorded last year, two million more than the average of the previous five years. The total fertility rate also rose to 1.7 children per woman, compared to 1.5-1.6 between 2000 and 2015, he added. China introduced its controversial "one-child policy" in the 1970s to limit population growth, but authorities are now concerned the country's dwindling workforce will not be able to support an increasingly ageing population. In 2015, China said it would allow all married couples to have two children, to address those concerns. Wang said the rising trend will continue through to 2020, during which the annual number of newborns is expected to range between 17 million and 19 million. "We are very optimistic," he added. China's birth rate, one of the world's lowest, was considered an achievement by the government, which was concerned about over-population, but has since become a source of anxiety for authorities worried about an ageing workforce. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Sam Holmes)
Beijing (AFP) - China on Saturday warned the US against launching a trade war, saying that both countries would suffer if US President Donald Trump follows through on his threats.

The billionaire politician has repeatedly accused China of using unfair trade policies to steal jobs from the US, threatening to retaliate with massive tariffs unless Beijing changes tack.

"A trade war is not in the interest of the two countries and the two peoples," China's Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan told reporters on the sidelines of the country's annual political gathering in Beijing.

"It's fair to say trade war will only cause pain without gains."

He said that US exports to China have increased by an average of about 11 percent per year over the last decade, while Chinese exports have only increased by 6.6 percent over the same period, noting that the Asian giant is also a major importer of American goods like soybeans, cars and Boeing airplanes.

"This clearly shows that China and America are very important to each other," he added.

On Thursday, Zhong's American counterpart Wilbur Ross said that the trade conflict with China and other countries has already been on for decades, but the US is just now beginning to fight back.

China is the world's biggest trader in goods. It accounts for about $350 billion of the US trade deficit, about half the total.

The warning was the second time this week that China has railed against a possible trade war, amid growing indications that the Trump administration is serious about pursuing a protectionist agenda.

Last week the United States Trade Representative sent a letter to Congress saying that Americans are not directly subject to rulings by the World Trade Organization, which Washington joined when it was founded in 1995.

The assertion provoked a warning from China's commerce ministry that attempts to ignore the organisations rules could lead to "a repetition of the trade war of the 1930s."
Over the past several months, we have been busy preparing for a special training opportunity that we will have in May.

Last fall, we found out that Racine County was one of handful of communities from across the country selected to attend the Community Specific: Integrated Emergency Management Course (IEMC) at the Emergency Management Institute in Emmitsburg, Md.

An IEMC provides an in-depth exercise experience for participants from a single jurisdiction, in our case Racine County, and are written to reflect the hazards that we face and the resources that we have. The training will involve both lecture and a hands-on disaster exercise.

The last time Racine County participated in this training was in 1998 when former Racine County Executive Jean Jacobson led a delegation of 78 participants. This years delegation will include elected and appointed officials, as well as representatives from both nonprofit agencies and the private sector.

Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act

Im often asked how I ended up in emergency management and the simple answer is SARA Title III and the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA). In 1988, I was hired by Wisconsin Emergency Management to help implement this new federal program in the southeast and east central regions of the state.

So, what is the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA)? Due to a release of methyl isocyanate in Bhopal, India, which killed more than 3,000 people and a near miss in Institute, West Va., Congress passed the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know-Act (EPCRA) of 1986.

It was created to help communities plan for chemical emergencies and required industry to report on the storage, use and releases of hazardous substances to federal, state and local governments. Those reports are due each March 1 and in Racine County, there are 156 reporting facilities and 68 planning facilities. That information is then used to develop hazardous material response plans including off-site facility plans for facilities that use, store or produce extremely hazardous substances like chlorine, anhydrous ammonia, sulfuric acid and nitric acid to name just a few of the common chemicals found in Racine County.

Preparing for severe weather

As spring approaches, there are several things that we can do to prepare for severe weather besides our Top 3  Make a Plan, Build an Emergency Supplies Kit and Be Informed. They include:

Keep trees and branches trimmed near your house. If you have time before severe weather hits, secure loose objects, close windows and doors, and move any valuable objects inside or under a sturdy structure.

Have a professional install check-valves in plumbing to prevent floodwaters from backing up into the drains of your home. Make sure your sump pump is working and consider having a backup. Make sure your electric circuit breakers, or fuses, are clearly marked for each area of your home.

Since standard homeowners insurance doesnt cover flooding, ensure coverage by contacting your insurance company or agent to purchase flood insurance.

Listen, act and live

The severe weather season is approaching. Please get a NOAA Weather Radio, sign up for text alerts and pay attention to watches and warnings. During a tornado warning, seek shelter immediately. Advanced warning can save lives if you act on that warning.

Get a weather radio

Are you having a hard time finding that perfect gift? Look no more. Get your loved one a NOAA Weather Radio. I did. Whats better than a gift that may save a life? Thats right  advanced warning saves lives, and a weather radio alerts you when severe weather is near.

Weather radios broadcast official National Weather Service warnings, watches, forecasts and other hazard information 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Therefore, every home should have a NOAA Weather Radio; in fact, they should be as common as a smoke detector.

Storm Spotter Workshop





Spring is in the air and we are preparing for seasonal weather like thunderstorms, flooding and tornadoes. Yes, the severe weather season is right around the corner and we have scheduled our annual Severe Weather and Tornado Spotter Seminar for Tuesday, April 25, from 6 to 8 p.m. at iMET Center (formerly CATI), 2320 Renaissance Blvd, Sturtevant.

In this seminar, you will learn more about severe weather safety and how you can be a weather spotter for the National Weather Service. There is no cost to attend, however, registration is required. For reservations, go to www.racinestormspotter.eventbrite.com.

Speakers bureau





If you need a speaker for an upcoming event, contact us. We can speak on a variety of topics from Emergency Management 101 to Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse. Wed enjoy meeting you and sharing about emergency preparedness. For more information, contact us at 262-636-3515.

Until next time, stay safe.
BEIJING (Reuters) - A trade war between China and the United States would only cause pain, China's commerce minister said on Saturday, as analysts say the spectre of deteriorating U.S.-China ties is likely to weigh on confidence of exporters and investors worldwide. "A trade war would not benefit either country or either country's people, you could say it would have no advantage whatsoever," Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan told reporters on the sidelines of the annual parliament session in Beijing. "Many American and western friends think that China can't live without the United States but that's only half true." "At the same time, the United States can't live without China," Zhong said, adding that in the past ten years, the growth of U.S. exports to China has outpaced the growth of Chinese exports to the United States. Zhong said that he looked forward to meeting his U.S. counterpart Wilbur Ross. Billionaire investor Ross was sworn in as U.S. commerce secretary in February after helping shape President Donald Trump's opposition to multilateral trade deals. He is expected to start work on renegotiating trade relationships with China and Mexico. "I am aware that Mr. Ross is an outstanding businessman and an experienced negotiator, an excellent person" Zhong told reporters on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the country's parliament. "I am willing to deal with excellent people because excellent people play the long game and think strategically." China's foreign trade outlook faces lots of risk and uncertainty, Zhong added. China's exports for January and February combined rose 4.0 percent from the same period last year, while imports surged 26.4 percent, suggesting solid improvement in demand domestically and abroad. But the export outlook for China and other trade-reliant economists is being clouded by fears of growing U.S. protectionism. Zhong also spoke about China's growing outbound investment, noting that a small number of Chinese companies had invested overseas "blindly and irrationally" in ways China did not encourage. He said the government would step up regulation around such investments. (Reporting by Sue-Lin Wong; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Sam Holmes and Toby Chopra)
By Jeongeun Lee SEOUL (Reuters) - Opponents of South Korea's ousted leader, Park Geun-hye rallied in the capital, Seoul, on Saturday to demand that she be arrested, a day after she was thrown out of office over a corruption scandal involving the country's conglomerates. The Constitutional Court ruling on Friday to uphold a parliamentary vote to impeach Park infuriated hundreds of her supporters, two of whom were killed as they tried to break through police lines outside the court. A third man, aged 74, had a heart attack and died on Saturday, a hospital said. Park's critics were out in central Seoul on Saturday, where they have been gathering every weekend for months, while the former president's conservative supporters also took to the streets not far away, though fewer in number. Police were out in force with riot shields but there were no reports of trouble. "Impeachment is not the end. We've not dispersed, we're still going forward, united," said one anti-Park protester who gave his name as T.H. Kim. "She's a citizen now. If she's done something wrong, she has to be arrested." Park, 65, is South Korea's first democratically elected leader to be forced from office. Her ouster followed months of political paralysis and turmoil over a corruption scandal that also landed the head of the Samsung conglomerate in jail and facing trial. The court ruling marked a dramatic fall from grace of South Korea's first woman president and daughter of Cold War military dictator Park Chung-hee. She served as his first lady after the 1974 assassination of her mother. At times, Park and her supporters have bridled at associating her with her father, who seized power in a 1961 coup and ruled for 18 years until he was gunned down by his security chief in 1979. Though she has spent years in the public eye, she has remained an enigma. Now, having lost presidential immunity, she could face criminal charges over bribery, extortion and abuse of power in connection with allegations of conspiring with her friend, Choi Soon-sil. Both women denied wrongdoing. Park did not appear in court on Friday and did not make any comment after the ruling. She spent the night in the presidential Blue House though would leave at some time and return to her Seoul residence, a spokesman said. Choi In-sook, a spokeswoman for protesters opposed to Park, told Reuters they were also demanding the resignation of acting president Hwang Kyo-ahn. Prime Minister Hwang, a Park loyalist, became acting president when parliament voted to impeach her on Dec. 9. COMING ELECTION Hwang has called for calm and promised that a snap presidential election, which has to be held within 60 days, would be smooth. The chairman of the National Election Commission, Kim Yong-deok, said the vote would be free and fair and held by May 9 at the latest. He said he was concerned differences could lead to an "overheated" atmosphere and called on the public to overcome conflict. Park's supporters want her to stay in power. Some want the court decision overturned and her case heard again by new judges. "We strongly request the trial is held again," said Chung Kwang Yong, a spokesman for organizers of rallies backing Park. Leading in opinion polls to succeed her is prominent liberal politician, Moon Jae-in, who advocates reconciliation with North Korea. Relations with China and the United States could dominate the presidential campaign, after South Korea this month began deployment of the U.S. THAAD missile defense system in response to North Korea's stepped up missile and nuclear tests. Beijing has vigorously protested against the deployment, fearing its radar could see into its missile deployments. China has curbed travel to South Korea and targeted Korean companies in the mainland, prompting retaliatory measures from Seoul. Reform of the country's giant conglomerates, known as "chaebol", will also be an election issue. Park was accused of soliciting bribes from the head of the Samsung Group, the country's largest conglomerate, for government favors. Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee has been accused of bribery and embezzlement in connection with the scandal and is in detention. His trial began on Thursday. He and Samsung have denied wrongdoing. (Additional reporting by Suyeong Lee; Writing by Robert Birsel; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
The dreamy beauty of a coral reef in Southeast Asia has been partially damaged by a massive, 4,290-ton cruise ship called the Caledonian Sky.

On Saturday, the ship crashed into a popular diving site called Crossover Reef, which holds some of the most biodiverse coral reefs in the world, located in West Papua province, environmental news outlet Mongabay reports.

SEE ALSO: Royal Caribbean takes cruise passengers into rough seas forecast days before

It reportedly managed to smash some 17,000 square feet of coral in an area previously pristine enough to be considered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it's expected it'll take nearly 10 years for a full recovery from the incident. Now local officials want the British-owned cruise ship company to pay for the damage.

The Caledonian Sky  operated by British tourism company Noble Caledonia  found itself caught in a low tide before plowing into the reefs located along the Indonesian island chain of Raja Ampat.

Raja Ampat is filled with colorful coral reefs like this.

Image: Michael Rubenstein via flickr

From there, a boat was brought in to help refloat the cruise ship, which actually just made things worse, according to Ricardo Tapilatu, head of the Research Center for Pacific Marine Resources at the University of Papua. Tapilatu helped investigate the incident to estimate damages.

"A tugboat from Sorong city was deployed to help refloat the cruise ship, which is something that shouldnt have happened because it damaged the reef even worse, Tapilatu told Mongabay. "They shouldve waited for high tide."

Other locals were also critical of the ship's inability to avoid damaging the reefs. Tourism group Stay Raja Ampat wrote a post on Facebook asking if there was a 12-year-old at the wheel, saying, "How can this happen?"

The environmental damage affected eight different coral groups in an area that's known to have some of the richest biodiversity in the world, with 10 times as many coral species as in the Caribbean. And coral reefs in general are often thought to be the most biodiverse of any ecosystems on earth.

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After local authorities sent in a team to investigate, it was estimated the total damage runs anywhere from $1.28 million to $1.92 million, according to Tapilatu.

Despite wreaking havoc on those precious reefs, the 102-passenger ship saw very minimal damage and was able to sail away with all its passengers and 79 crew members safe. Noble Caledonia expressed regret over the incident, saying in a statement the whole thing was "unfortunate."

"Noble Caledonia is firmly committed to protection of the environment, which is why it is imperative that the reasons for it are fully investigated, understood and any lessons learned incorporated in operating procedures," the company wrote.

Related Video: Rising Temps Threaten Existence of Worlds Coral Reefs and Their Underwater Beauty (2015)

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NEW YORK (AP)  Authorities say a drug smuggler flew into New York's Kennedy Airport with 10 pounds of cocaine taped to his legs.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Friday that officers arrested Juan Carlos Galan Luperon on March 4 after they noticed he was "busting out of his pants."

Luperon, a U.S. citizen, had arrived in New York from the Dominican Republic.

Customs officials say officers noticed Luperon's pants were snug. The officers searched Luperon in a private room.

According to the agency, the officers found packages of white powder taped to Luperon's legs. The agency says the powder tested positive for cocaine.

Luperon was arrested on federal narcotics smuggling charges. It's not clear if he has an attorney who can speak for him.

Authorities say the cocaine was worth about $164,000.
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP)  European Union member states have rejected Turkey's demand that its citizens be granted the freedom to relocate and transfer money, services and goods to EU member Cyprus under any deal reunifying the ethnically divided island, the Cypriot president said Saturday.

Nicos Anastasiades said all EU leaders consider it a "bad precedent" for Cyprus or any other country to breach bloc rules and grant such key freedoms to third-country citizens.

"This matter concerns the whole of the European Union, not just Cyprus," Anastasiades said.

Turkey said in January that any Cyprus peace deal should incorporate such a condition. But Greek Cypriot officials fear such a development would enable Turkey to overwhelm the small island of 1.1 million people economically, demographically or otherwise.

Cyprus was split along ethnic lines in 1974 when Turkey invaded following a coup by supporters of uniting Cyprus with Greece. Although the island joined the EU in 2004, only the internationally recognized south enjoys full membership benefits. A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is recognized only by Turkey, which maintains 35,000 troops in the breakaway north.

Turkey's demand further complicated difficult negotiations that stalled last month amid Turkish Cypriot anger over legislation to commemorate in Greek Cypriot schools a 1950 referendum calling for Cyprus' union with Greece.

Turkish Cypriots see a drive by the majority Greek Cypriots for union with Greece that began before Cyprus gained independence from British colonial rule in 1960 as the root of all the island's problems. Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci and top Turkish officials have said that Greek Cypriots needed to fix this "mistake" if talks are to move forward.

Anastasiades said the "aimless" legislation in no way suggested any policy shift away from reunifying Cyprus as a federation. He criticized Akinci for using the matter as an "excuse" to walk out of the 22 months-long peace talks because Turkish demands to keep troops and military intervention rights in place even after reunification weren't gaining any traction.

Anastasiades attributed Akinci's actions to the Turkish government's hardening stance to appease right-wing voters before the country's April 16 referendum on expanding presidential powers.

Cyprus government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said that EU leaders have conveyed the belief that any movement in Cyprus peace talks won't happen before the Turkish referendum is completed.
Two dead sharks were found in a parking lot and on a driveway in St. Augustine, Florida, in the last week.

Workers at a Walmart found a 5-foot dead shark in a shopping cart in the store's driveway Friday, the St. Augustine Record reported Wednesday. Sheriff's deputies responded to a call from one of the store's assistant managers and found the shark near an RV parked in the lot. The RV's owner told deputies he heard noises outside his vehicle early in the morning, but assumed they came from Walmart employees moving carts. When he woke up, he found the shark on the hood of his RV. Not sure what to do with the dead animal, he moved it to a cart.

Read: Shark Fins Transported Into Hong Kong Illegally By Hundreds Of Thousands, Investigation Finds

The deputies then called the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which sent officers to remove the shark for disposal.

Then on Wednesday, the St. John's County Sheriff's office took another dead shark call. This time deputies found a dead shark in a driveway in Vilano Beach, across the Tolomato River from St. Augustine.

Florida has a long history with residents struggling to dispose of exotic animals. In 2004, the New York Times noted that "more imported animals are flown to Miami than any other American city but New York and Los Angeles." Many of those animals are then abandoned, and in tropical Florida, they often survive.

For example, thousands of Burmese pythons, which are native to Southeast Asia, are now believed to populate the Everglades. The pythons, which can grow to 26 feet, are causing havoc on the ecosystem and have spread to the Florida Keys. The invasive predators are breeding so far from their native habitat because exotic animal collectors began abandoning them in the Everglades in the 1980s.

Related Articles
By Gabriel Stargardter

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Last month's 40 percent decline in migrant detentions along the southern U.S. border represents a victory for U.S. President Donald Trump, but may prove short-lived unless he follows through with his hard-line vows, past experience shows.

Trump's administration on Wednesday trumpeted the February decline as evidence its executive orders on immigration were working, fulfilling his promise to crush illegal migration.

But an analysis of recent U.S. apprehension data, along with interviews with migrants, diplomats and activists, suggests peoples' fears will subside if Trump fails to realize his tough policies, causing the flow to rise.

"Right now, nobody wants to go" to the United States, said Victoria Cordova, who along with her daughter Genesis, was part of the first group of mothers and children deported by plane from the United States to Honduras in 2014.

"If in the future the situation looks better, well, I imagine then people will be more willing to travel."

The number of apprehensions rose drastically in March 2014, in what mushroomed into a major crisis of unaccompanied minors for the Obama administration.

Finding the border infrastructure overwhelmed by the flow, the Obama administration funded advertisements in Central America urging people to stay at home, leaned on Mexico to intercept more migrants, and deported mothers and children in a handful of high-profile flights.

The move worked: There were 68,804 apprehensions in May 2014 and only 34,003 in September, the last month of that fiscal year.

For most of 2015, the numbers of apprehensions remained low. However, there were only ever a sprinkling of flights with mothers and children, and smugglers and migrants soon realized the United States was only acting tough.

An immigration backlog meant many people could remain for months before their case was heard, while a 2015 federal court decision limiting the time mothers and children could be detained created the impression they could stay.

Story continues

Throughout the latter half of 2015, apprehensions rose.

In January 2016, the Obama administration carried out multiple deportation raids, which led to a fresh drop in apprehensions.

By March, though, the effects had worn off, as people smugglers urged migrants to migrate before Trump's border wall went up.

In November 2016, when Trump won the election, 63,367 people were apprehended, before the numbers fell off as many fretted about the repercussions of his victory.

During his confirmation hearings, and on a trip last month to Guatemala, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly focused on deterrence, emphasizing the point this week by saying he might separate mothers and children on the southern border.

"I believe that perceptions of a lack of enforcement can increase the flow of people attempting to enter the United States illegally," he said in January, responding to a Senate committee's pre-hearing questions.

So far, his message seems to be resonating in Central America, but it is unclear for how long.

"People may be pausing for a month or two and waiting to see how much of what's being said in rhetoric actually starts to happen," said migration expert Maureen Meyer.

Click http://bit.ly/2mcibSX for graphic on Central American migration to the U.S.

(Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Leslie Adler)
In a matter of weeks, all of China's fears have come to a head on the Korean Peninsula. At an airport in Malaysia in mid-February, the exiled half-brother of North Korea's ruler was assassinated with a nerve agent, reminding the world that the Hermit Kingdom is run by a paranoid and violent regime. Closer to home, North Korea conducted two rounds of ballistic missile tests in stark violation of UN Security Council resolutions. In response, the United States, South Korea, and Japan all vowed to tighten military ties and step up pressure on Pyongyang, underscored by the initial deployment, much to China's dismay, of a new U.S. missile defense system in South Korea.

Leaders in Beijing had reason to be nervous. An unpredictable ruler in North Korea was once again tempting war on the Peninsula, which would be disastrous for China in the form of refugees flooding across its border and loose nukes on its doorstep. In addition to the immediate crisis, a collapsing North Korea would likely result in a unified country led by a U.S.-friendly government in Seoul, removing China's strategic buffer that keeps the United States and its South Korean ally at a more comfortable distance. At the end of the day, Beijing isn't happy with Pyongyang's saber rattling, but trying to manage a nuclear North Korea remains preferable to rolling the dice with instability.

This is why China's foreign minister Wang Yi, at a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday, proposed a deal to lower tensions and get the parties back to the table. Under the rubric of a "double suspension," China recommended that North Korea halt its nuclear and missile programs in exchange for the United States and South Korea cancelling major military exercises.

At first glance, the proposal has its appeal. It's hard to argue, after all, that the current approach is working: North Korea conducted two nuclear weapon tests and 24 missile tests in 2016 alone, and is reportedly poised to launch its first trial of an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of hitting the United States. Returning to negotiations and freezing North Korea's programs, so the argument goes, may be less virtuous than outright denuclearization, but it's both a more realistic goal and better than the alternative of allowing North Korea to march toward a much larger nuclear arsenal with more sophisticated missiles to deliver them.

But senior U.S. and South Korean officials were right to stand shoulder-to-shoulder at the United Nations and turn down the offer. U.S. ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley reiterated the Obama administration's position of demanding that Pyongyang first demonstrate that it is interested in complying with UN Security Council Resolutions that require walking back its nuclear ambitions. Her South Korean counterpart added a point familiar to Korea watchers: that provocation and aggression should not be rewarded with dialogue and accommodation.

These arguments are good policy in the tactical sense, but three more fundamental issues led the Obama administration to shelve a similar "freeze-for-freeze" proposal.

First, particularly given North Korea's record of evasion and deceit, any reasonable suspension would require an extraordinarily invasive verification regime, well beyond what even the most sympathetic observers believe Pyongyang would stomach. If you can't verify, the deal isn't worth the paper it's written on.

Second, U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises are not just symbolic shows of force. They are necessary to ensure that the United States and its allies are prepared for what would assuredly be a nasty war. Pentagon officials are quick to warn against putting the reduction of military readiness on the table, much less as an opening gambit.

Finally, and this is the kicker, it's bad strategy to agree to a mutual suspension at this particular moment--even if you think negotiations are the only viable path to stabilizing the Peninsula. Instead, as the dust settles around S. Korea President Park Geun-hyes impeachment, the United States should continue working with allies and partners, as well as China, to implement fully the two UN Security Resolutions secured by the Obama administration last year.

These provide unprecedented sources of financial and diplomatic pressure on North Korea, including strict limits on the export of raw materials and access to global financial markets. If faithfully enforced, North Korea's hard currency could be cut by upwards of $800 million, slowing its ability to fund its weapons programs while creating potential antibodies to Kim Jung-un's rule. Several elements of the new sanctions package have never been tried and were only put into place in recent months, meaning skeptics will have to hold their breath before assessing the true effectiveness of the pressure campaign--it is simply not the case that this is old wine in new bottles.

All this is to say that diving into negotiations now would be throwing away a key source of leverage over North Korea. It would also take the pressure off of China prematurely, just when newfound U.S. resolve is driving Beijing to finally step up its game in constraining North Korea's economy. Why start bargaining when you're on the cusp of dramatically strengthening your hand? Instead, the United States can create more favorable conditions for successful negotiations by first demonstrating seriousness of purpose to Beijing and imposing novel costs on Pyongyang. Only after the new sanctions regime is fully implemented will the time be ripe to consider mutual concessions.

Ely Ratner is the Maurice R. Greenberg senior fellow in China studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. He most recently served as the deputy national security advisor to Vice President Joe Biden. Follow him @elyratner



See original article on Fortune.com

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The I Dont Project Abaynesh and Tadesse pose in the back of their home after collecting lentils in Gindero, Amhara, Ethiopia in October 2016. The state where they come from, Amhara, has the lowest median age for a first marriage (14.7 years). (Photo: Jose Colon/MeMo)

Almost 700 million women currently alive got married before turning 18, some as young as 10 or 11, and 15 million more join them each year. Some are coerced, others enter into marriage voluntarily for reasons of tradition, culture, or economic necessity. But the outcomes are similar: dropping out of school, social isolation, early pregnancy, maternal mortality and limited future opportunities are common consequences.

Abaynesh, Ramgani and Nayane are three girls whose stories illustrate the causes and effects of early unions across different cultures.

Their stories, their lives, are only three of many.

Read the story by Natalia Otero and watch the video here >>>

Photography by Rafael Fabres and Jose Colon/MeMo

I Dont Project was funded by the European Journalism Centre.

_____

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BURLINGTON  The city has begun its 12-week program to use border collies to force Canada geese out of Echo Park. The citys premiere outdoor spot is the focal point for festivals and outdoor activities, but also waterfowl.

Burlington Public Works Director Jim Bergles said hes pleased with the program that started March 6 and hopes it will help the messy situation in the park.

People have to walk through the goose fecal matter to get to any area of the park. We want to just move them up river. Their young come back every year so the problem is getting worse, Bergles said of Echo Park, 595 Milwaukee Ave., which is adjacent to the Veterans Terrace events center.

Bergles said mylar balloons, drones and other scarecrow type things are considered ineffective.

Eventually geese, after a couple of times, realize its not a threat and will go right by them, Bergles said. Geese recognize a dog as a predator.

For $375 a week, Brookfield-based Migratory Bird Management LLC is contracted to use Department of Natural Resources-trained border collies to force the geese out of the park safely.

Bergles said the program was chosen because the border collies will not harm or catch the geese; the collies natural instinct is to herd by giving them the eye.

It takes about two years to be effective because the young come back, Bergles said.

The city used a grape juice product, called Flight, in the past which is sprayed on the grass with mixed results.

Its a natural product. Geese do not like the taste of grape juice. So they can spray it right on the grass and it doesnt hurt anybody, Bergles said. We may try it again this fall.

Bergles said if the spring program for the dog is successful they will do it again in the fall and may expand it to other parks.

Resident reaction

Bergles said most of the feedback has been positive, although there has been some negative comments on social media, including one person who posted on the citys Facebook page that the program was unfair and sad because the geese had been coming for years and shouldnt be kicked out.

No matter what you do in government somebody doesnt like it, Bergles said. People are thankful that were doing it. Its a very high-use park.

Carol Martin said she thinks area residents dogs should get involved.

I love this idea. It has gotten way out of control, Martin said. Possibly let dogs to be allowed in parks to help control year around. People just need to keep them on a leash and pick up after them.

Ty Zemke, who use to live across from Riverside Park, 517 Congress St., just down the street from Echo Park, said he wants to volunteer his dog Rocco.

His favorite thing to do was chase geese. Hed swim in circles for 15 minutes after them and go 200 yards down river before we could get him to give up. Hed love another shot, Zemke said.

Currently the residents are barred from bringing a dog to Echo Park. It doesnt matter if the dog is on a leash  they are not allowed, according to the city. Violators face a fine up to $500. The Park Board is currently reviewing that policy.
WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Dean Elgar failed to join a select group of South Africa batsman while New Zealand took three late wickets to leave the first test at University Oval delicately poised at the end of the fourth day on Saturday. South Africa were 224 for six at the close of play in a chilly Dunedin with a lead of 191 runs entering the final day on a pitch that is turning but offering little assistance for the pace bowlers and is proving difficult to score from. Captain Faf du Plessis was on 56 at the close of play, with Vernon Philander on one after New Zealand had taken three wickets after tea, including Elgar, who was dropped twice and overturned a caught behind decision during his innings. The 29-year-old had been seeking to become the sixth South Africa batsman to score a century in both innings of a test but fell short when he was caught by Kane Williamson for 89 from offspinner Jeetan Patel. He scored 140 in the first innings. Temba Bavuma was then bowled by Mitchell Santner for six and Quinton de Kock also bowled by Patel for four in gloomy conditions, with players leaving the field with nine overs remaining. South Africa had begun the day with a five-run lead and nine wickets in hand and with rain forecast for the final day on Sunday, the hosts needed to make the most of their opportunities to try to dismiss the visitors cheaply. New Zealand, however, only had themselves to blame for not being in a better position having dropped Elgar twice and JP Duminy once. The hosts were also further hampered with opening bowler Trent Boult trudging off the field from midway through the middle session with a groin strain. It is also debatable whether batsman Ross Taylor would bat in the second innings after he suffered a torn calf muscle in the first. South Africa lost just two wickets in the first two sessions when Duminy was trapped in front by Neil Wagner for 39 after lunch, while Hashim Amla was dismissed for 24 early in a disrupted first session. Play had been due to begin 10 minutes earlier than the scheduled start of 1100 (2200 GMT) after a fire alarm in the main stand forced the evacuation of the entire venue and held up play for about 30 minutes on Friday. (Reporting by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Saturday barred a plane carrying Turkey's foreign minister from landing, saying his visit would be a threat to public order. The move comes after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he would travel to Rotterdam, despite a ban on him addressing a rally there. The Dutch are due to vote in a national election on Wednesday, in which anti-immigration sentiment has played a prominent role. Rutte said in a statement published on his official Facebook page that Turkey had upset discussions under which Cavusoglu would have been allowed to enter the country, by calling for a massive public rally. A Turkish threat of sanctions if Cavusoglu were denied entry "made a reasonable solution impossible", Rutte said. (Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Alexander Smith)
By Tuvan Gumrukcu and Thomas Escritt ANKARA/ROTTERDAM (Reuters) - The Netherlands barred Turkey's foreign minister from landing in Rotterdam on Saturday in a row over Ankara's political campaigning among Turkish emigres, leading President Tayyip Erdogan to brand the fellow NATO member a "Nazi remnant". The extraordinary incident came hours after Mevlut Cavusoglu said he would fly to Rotterdam despite being banned from a rally there to marshal support for sweeping new powers Erdogan seeks. Europe, he said, must be rid of its "boss-like attitude". Cavusoglu, who was barred from a similar meeting in Hamburg last week but spoke instead from the Turkish consulate, accused the Dutch of treating the many Turkish citizens in the country like "hostages", cutting them off from Ankara. "I sent them so they could contribute to your economy," he told CNN Turk TV, days ahead of Dutch polls where immigration may play a significant part. "They're not your captives." "If my going will increase tensions, let it be ... I am a foreign minister and I can go wherever I want," he added hours before his planned flight to Rotterdam was banned. Cavusoglu threatened harsh economic and political sanctions if the Dutch refused him entry, a threat that proved decisive for the Netherlands government. It cited public order and security concerns in withdrawing landing rights for Cavusoglu's flight. But it said the sanctions threat made the search for a reasonable solution impossible. "This decision is a scandal and unacceptable in every way. It does not abide by diplomatic practices," Cavusoglu told reporters in Istanbul on Saturday evening. Dutch anti-Muslim politician Geert Wilders, polling second ahead of Wednesday's elections, said in a tweet on Saturday: "To all Turks in the Netherlands who agree with Erdogan: Go to Turkey and NEVER come back!!" Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said: "This morning on TV (the Turkish minister) made clear he was threatening the Netherlands with sanctions and we can never negotiate with the Turks under such threats. So we decided ... in a conference call it was better for him not to come." "NAZI REMNANTS, FASCISTS" Addressing a rally of supporters, Erdogan retaliated. "Listen Netherlands, you'll jump once, you'll jump twice, but my people will thwart your game," he said. "You can cancel our foreign minister's flight as much as you want, but let's see how your flights will come to Turkey now." "They don't know diplomacy or politics. They are Nazi remnants. They are fascists," he added. Rutte called Erdogan's reference to Nazis and Fascists "a crazy remark". "I understand they're angry but this is of course way out of line," he said. Erdogan chafes at Western criticism of his mass arrests and dismissals of people authorities believe were linked to a failed July attempt by the military to topple him. He maintains it is clear the West begrudges him new powers and seeks to engineer a "no" vote in the referendum. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country Erdogan compared last week with Nazi Germany, has said she will do everything possible to prevent any spillover of Turkish political tensions onto German soil. Four planned Turkish rallies in Austria and one in Switzerland have also been cancelled due to the growing dispute. Cavusoglu is scheduled to speak in Metz, eastern France, on Sunday, an official at the Moselle regional prefecture told Reuters on Saturday, adding that there were currently no plans to prevent the meeting from going ahead. Following the ban on the foreign minister's visit, Turkish Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya will travel to Rotterdam by land, state-run Anadolu news agency said. She is currently in Germany. Erdogan is looking to the large number of emigre Turks living in Europe, especially Germany and the Netherlands, to help clinch victory in next month's referendum which will shape the future of a country whose position on the edge of the Middle East makes it of crucial strategic importance to NATO. He has cited domestic threats from Kurdish and Islamist militants and a July coup bid as cause to vote "yes" to his new powers. But he has also drawn on the emotionally charged row with Europe to portray Turkey as betrayed by allies while facing wars on its southern borders. (Additional reporting by Anthony Deutsch and Toby Sterling; Writing by Ralph Boulton; Editing by Alexander Smith and Helen Popper)
Rotterdam (Netherlands) (AFP) - Hundreds of Dutch citizens packed into a Rotterdam mosque Friday for an animated debate on the role of Muslims in the country, a central theme as key elections loom.

The Essalam mosque -- the biggest in The Netherlands -- hosted the evening, which comes as the Freedom Party (PVV) of far-right anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders appears set to emerge as one of the largest in parliament in Wednesday's vote.

Wilders has vowed to bar Muslim immigrants, close mosques and ban sales of the Koran, and new polls late Friday suggested he was consolidating his second place behind Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Liberal VVD and could be poised for his best polls showing ever.

Participants voiced their fears and anxieties as well as incomprehension at growing polarisation in The Netherlands, which has long prided itself on its culture of tolerance.

"I have become someone else in the eyes of others," said blogger Nourdeen Wildeman who has a large following on social media.

"Without doubt, the dangers posed by Islamic State group and other radical Muslim groups have pushed people to look at each other differently."

Some 12.9 million voters will head to the polls next Wednesday in a general election seen as a key litmus test of the rise of populist and far-right parties ahead of other national votes in Europe later this year.

Estimates put the country's Muslim population at between 840,000 to 960,000, or around 5.0 percent of some 17 million people. Most are of Turkish or Moroccan descent, according to the Dutch central statistics office.

While the blonde-haired Wilders, dubbed by some "the Dutch Trump," did not attend the debate, his presence loomed large even if few voiced his name.

"I see too many people who shut themselves away, who hide in their corner and think 'This will pass eventually'," said Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb.

"But it won't just pass if you are a spectator and take a back-row seat."

Story continues

The first immigrant Muslim mayor to be elected in the country, Aboutaleb remains popular in the port city which has a large immigrant population.

A member of the Labour party who was born in Morocco and came to the country as a boy, he has personally taken issue with some of Wilders's incendiary remarks.

- Not accepted -

But despite being convicted of discrimination last year, Wilders has not reined in his rhetoric. He officially launched his election campaign in mid-February by denouncing those he called "Moroccan scum" and vowing to return The Netherlands to the Dutch.

"We are seeing that people are less accepted," said Farid Azarkan, a leading member of the party called Denk, or "Think" in Dutch.

Some 40 percent of Turkish- and Moroccan-Dutch citizens say "I don't feel at home, because I am not accepted," he said.

Denk, created in 2015, is predicted to win two seats in the 150-seat parliament, according to the latest polls released Friday by respected pollster Maurice de Hond.

Rutte's Liberal VVD, the ruling partner in the outgoing coalition, is seen winning a narrow lead with 24 seats, while Wilders's PVV and a long-established Dutch party the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) are predicted to take 22 each.

In third place, the polls suggested the left-wing ecologists GroenLinks could complete a stunning rise by winning 20 seats.
Eindhoven (Netherlands) (AFP) - Dutch political leaders hit the campaign trail Saturday, criss-crossing the country to woo voters ahead of next week's elections now overshadowed by a bitter row with Turkey.

On the final weekend before Wednesday's elections, the leaders of six of the top political parties were converging on the southern city of Eindhoven for a key televised debate.

Notable by his absence was far-right MP Geert Wilders, whose Freedom Party (PVV) is within a whisker of topping the polls even though he has largely eschewed traditional campaign events.

The Dutch polls are being closely watched as a key litmus test of the rise of far-right and populist parties in Europe, with elections due in other countries later in the year.

But just four days ahead of the vote, The Netherlands found itself embroiled in a bitter row with Turkey after the Turkish foreign minister was banned from attending a rally in Rotterdam to drum up support for Ankara's high-stakes referendum next month.

Erdogan hit back angrily saying the decision to refuse to allow Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's plane to land showed that the Dutch were "the vestiges of the Nazis, they are fascists."

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who was attending the debate in Eindhoven, denounced Erdogan's comments as "crazy" and "way out line".

- Women's March -

The peroxide-haired Wilders, who was campaigning on the streets of the southern town of Valkenberg, welcomed the decision and credited the "heavy PVV pressure" on the government.

Dubbed the "debate of the South," Saturday's televised event was to hear from party leaders how they would tackle issues such as crime, the economy, the greying population and drugs.

But hundreds of kilometres away further north, thousands of people gathered to take part in a "Women's March" in Amsterdam to combat hatred and intolerance.

Modelled on the marches which took place across the globe after the inauguration of US President Donald Trump, participants donned pink and orange so-called "pussy hats" and demanded greater equality and inclusiveness in The Netherlands.

Story continues

Just before Saturday's debate, Jesse Klaver, the leader of the left-wing ecologists GroenLinks was going door-to-door on the streets of Eindhoven.

The 30-year-old drew some 5,000 people to a US-style debate in central Amsterdam earlier this week, said to be the largest political gathering ever held in th country, and is seen as a potential kingmaker for the next coalition government.

Rutte's Liberal VVD, the ruling partner in the outgoing coalition, is narrowly ahead and expected to win 24 seats on Wednesday, according to the latest polls.

Wilders and his PVV and the long-established Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA)party are predicted to take 22 each.

The polls also suggest that the left-wing ecologists GroenLinks could complete a stunning rise by winning 20 seats.
ANKARA (Reuters) - The Netherlands has withdrawn permission for Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to fly to Rotterdam on Saturday after he was barred from addressing a Turkish rally there, CNN Turk and NTV television stations said. Rotterdam city authorities had banned Cavusoglu from addressing a meeting there in support of President Tayyip Erdogan's campaign for extended powers to be put to a referendum in April. He had said he would fly to Rotterdam anyway. CNN Turk said he was denied a flight permit. NTV said he was denied a landing permit. (This version of the story removes reference in lead to Sunday reporting)
Madrid (AFP) - Eight Iraqis, including four children, were found crammed inside a refrigerated truck in a service area in eastern Spain, police said Saturday, adding that they had been trying to reach Britain.

The four adults and four children, aged two, five, eight, and 10, were all in good health, Spanish police told AFP on Saturday.

"After we received an anonymous call, yesterday (Friday), agents from the Spanish police opened the back of a refrigerated truck in a lay-by on the A23 motorway and found eight Iraqis inside, all in perfect health," police said.

None of the migrants carried identification, but police said they were able to determine that all were Iraqi nationals.

The occupants included one family of two adults and three children, another family of a woman with a two-year-old daughter, and a man travelling alone.

It wasn't immediately clear how long they had spent inside the truck, but police said they were on their way to Britain when their truck was intercepted in the eastern province of Teruel.

"We do not know yet how these Iraqi families came to be in Spain," police said.

The driver, a 37-year-old Romanian national, was arrested on charges of human trafficking.

According to Spanish media reports, a family coming from Iraq was found in a refrigerated truck on the same motorway and in the same province last month.

On August 27, the decomposing bodies of 71 people were found inside a truck at the side of an Austrian motorway in a discovery which sparked a horrified response across Europe as it struggles with its worst migration crisis since World War II.

Investigations revealed that the migrants -- mostly from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan -- had been picked up at Hungary's border with Serbia and transported to Austria via Budapest.
By Julia Fioretti BRUSSELS (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross gave no indication of any plans to change U.S. privacy protections underpinning a pact enabling billions of dollars of data flows during a meeting with the EU digital chief, a source said on Friday. U.S. President Trump's administration has stoked concerns in Brussels that it may undo some of the privacy protections put in place by the previous administration that were crucial to a transatlantic pact allowing companies to store EU citizens' data on U.S. servers. EU Commission Vice-President Andrus Ansip met Ross in Washington on Thursday, the first European to meet the new Commerce Secretary since he took office. Ross confirmed his support for the crucial pillars of the data transfer pact - the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, the source briefed on the meeting said on Friday. The source said there were no indications from Ross of any plans to change Obama's privacy directive issued in January 2014. On Twitter, Ansip said Ross and him had agreed "on the need for robust and predictable #PrivacyShield for safe and secure U.S.-EU data flows." The U.S. Department of Commerce did not respond to requests for comment. The Privacy Shield was agreed in 2016 following more than two years of difficult negotiations over how data transferred by companies to the United States would be protected in line with tough EU data protection. Obama's Presidential Policy Directive 28 (PPD28) gave foreign citizens some privacy protections from U.S. surveillance activities and was issued after revelations of mass U.S. spying in 2013. The EU's top court struck down Privacy Shield's predecessor in 2015 for allowing U.S. spies unfettered access to EU citizens' data. Cross-border data transfers are used in many industries for sharing employee information, when consumer data is shared to complete credit card, travel or e-commerce transactions, or to target advertising based on customer preferences. EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourova - whose team negotiated the Privacy Shield - will travel to Washington at the end of this month to prepare the annual review of the framework and discuss any concerns. (Additional reporting by Dustin Volz in Washington; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)
By Thomas Escritt and Shadia Nasralla ROTTERDAM/VIENNA (Reuters) - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will not be allowed to campaign for votes among expat Turks during a visit to Rotterdam on Saturday, the mayor of the Dutch port said, joining a growing list of European cities that have blocked such rallies. "He has diplomatic immunity and everything so we will treat him with respect, but we have other instruments to prohibit things happening in public spaces," Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb told reporters. Four planned Turkish political meetings in Austria and one in Switzerland were also cancelled, in the latest signs of unease across Europe over Turkey's efforts to rally support for President Tayyip Erdogan in the run-up to an April 16 referendum on granting him extensive new powers. Relations between Turkey and the European Union have deteriorated in recent months, with Erdogan bristling at criticism from EU members for waging a mass crackdown on opponents since he saw off a coup attempt last July. The row over campaigning among the large Turkish communities in Europe has exacerbated tensions. Erdogan has compared the cancellation of rallies in Germany with Nazi-era fascist tactics; Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday that such comments were 'unworthy' and must stop. Having survived the July coup, Erdogan says the referendum is needed to guarantee stability. European politicians accuse him of using the failed putsch as a pretext for mass arrests and dismissals that stifle dissent. The proposed constitutional changes to greatly strengthen his powers would be a "dangerous step backwards" for democracy, a panel of legal experts at the Council of Europe said on Friday. It said the amendments would give the president "the power to dissolve parliament on any grounds whatsoever, which is fundamentally alien to democratic presidential systems". The legal opinion has no binding power over Turkey, which joined the 47-nation Council of Europe in 1950. SECURITY RISKS Swiss police cited "significant security risks" for their decision to cancel a speech by a Turkish politician on Friday evening. Foreign Minister Cavusoglu is still looking for a new venue for an event on Sunday after one hotel near Zurich pulled out on security grounds and an alternative, in the city of Winterthur, was rejected as inappropriate. A call by Zurich's security chief for Cavusoglu to be barred from speaking there has been rejected by the Swiss government. The Austrian town of Hoerbranz cancelled an event with a former Turkish minister because the organisers had falsely labelled it as a book presentation. Other events were scrapped in Linz, Herzogenburg and Wiener Neustadt. Austria's interior minister said on Tuesday he wanted to change the law to permit a ban on foreign officials making speeches in the country if human rights or public order are threatened, but the bill has not reached parliament yet. (Additional reporting by John Miller in Zurich and Julia Fioretti in Brussels; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
Rome (AFP) - A fugitive Italian mobster who had been living in Mexico under a false identity was behind bars Saturday after being tracked down on Facebook, police said.

Giulio Perrone, who is in his mid-sixties, had been a fugitive since 1998, when his lawyers failed in a final appeal against a 22-year prison sentence for links to the Naples mafia, the Camorra, and international drug trafficking.

He was first charged in 1993 after he and his wife were arrested while trying to import 16 kilos (35 pounds) of cocaine.

Perrone disappeared the following year and had been unheard of until Italian police established, through Facebook, that he was living as Saverio Garcia Galiero, in Tampico, in the state of Tamaulipas in Mexico.

The police did not reveal details of how they traced him through the social media site.

Under the extensive powers Italian investigators enjoy when involved in anti-mafia cases, they could have been monitoring the online activity of associates of Perrone in Italy.

Or they may have come across a picture of him by using image-recognition software, which is an increasingly useful tool for detectives tracking fugitives.

Perrone, who had remarried and had Mexican children, was described by police as a prominent figure in Italy's drug trade in the 1980s and early 1990s, acting as a wholesale supplier to Camorra clans.

He was arrested earlier this month at his Mexican home and deported, arriving late Friday in Rome.

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RACINE  A Racine man, arrested in January for allegedly robbing a local credit union, was sentenced Friday to one year in Racine County Jail for a separate 2014 case in which he reportedly helped rob a man at gunpoint.

Renault Griffin Jr., 27, who remains at the jail on a $30,000 bond for the credit union robbery case, was charged with armed robbery, substantial battery, burglary while armed with a dangerous weapon and false imprisonment in connection to the April 7, 2014 incident.

Police said Griffin, of the 1900 block of Jay Eye See Avenue, struck the victim in the face with a gun during the robbery, inflicting a wound that required 15 stitches.

The incident occurred at the victims house in the 2300 block of Thor Avenue. The victim was reportedly entertaining a woman  whom he met on Facebook and believes organized the robbery  when he was reportedly confronted by three men in his garage as he was about to drive the woman home.

The men reportedly dragged the victim back into the house and ransacked it looking for money. The robbers allegedly threatened to kill the man if he did not reveal where he had money stashed, eventually prompting him to disclose that he had $2,000 hidden in his bathroom.

The armed-robbery charge was later amended to theft  movable property from a person. On Friday, Griffin pleaded no contest to that single charge, with the remaining charges dismissed but read into the court record.

Although Griffin will receive credit for time the time he has served in jail while being held on the credit union robbery case, Racine County Circuit Judge Faye Flancher ordered that the one year of jail time he was sentenced to on Friday must be served consecutively to any time he may be sentenced to for his pending cases.

Credit Union robbery case

Griffin is still facing up to 28 years in prison on allegations from this year that he robbed Landmark Credit Union, 3413 Rapids Drive, on Jan. 5.

According to the criminal complaint, Griffin allegedly entered the credit union at 9:40 a.m. that Thursday and told an employee he wanted to make a deposit. He then pulled out a firearm and pointed it at the employees face and demanded money.

Police investigating the incident reportedly received an anonymous tip that Griffin had robbed the credit union. An investigator discovered Griffin was on GPS monitoring and obtained information that confirmed he was at Landmark Credit Union at the time of the incident, the complaint states.

He was reportedly found the next day with $2,366, as well as multiple items of new merchandise and 0.3 grams of cocaine.

Griffin later admitted to committing the robbery and said he used a BB gun during the crime, the complaint states. Landmark is seeking $7,550 in restitution in the case, according to online court records.

Griffins next court appearance in the case is set for 8:30 a.m. on April 25.
SEATTLE (AP) -- A federal judge in Seattle who issued the order temporarily halting nationwide implementation of President Donald Trump's initial travel ban said Friday that because of procedural reasons he won't immediately rule on whether his restraining order applies to the new travel ban.

U.S. District Judge James Robart said in an order that motions or a complaint over the revised ban need to be filed before he can make a decision. The states of Washington and Minnesota, as well as the Justice Department, have only so far filed notices.

The U.S. Justice Department said in a filing this week that the original order had been revoked and that the court's restraining order does not limit the government's ability to immediately begin enforcing the new order.

The states of Washington and Minnesota in a response notice argue that sections of the new order have the same effect as the original one and that the federal government can't unilaterally decide to change a court's previous ruling.

Trump's revised ban blocks new visas for people from six predominantly Muslim countries including Somalia, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Libya and Yemen. It also temporarily shuts down the U.S. refugee program. Unlike the original order, the new one says current visa holders won't be affected, and it removes language that would give priority to religious minorities.

Washington was the first state to sue over the original ban, which resulted in Robart stopping its implementation around the country. The lawsuit says the initial travel ban was unconstitutional and hurt the state's businesses and universities.

Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said earlier this week that the revised travel ban has "the same illegal motivations as the original."

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said Thursday the administration believed the revised travel ban will stand up to legal scrutiny.

On Twitter Friday, the Washington state Attorney General's Office said Ferguson is reviewing Robart's Friday's order with his legal team to determine next steps.

The revised travel ban is scheduled to go into effect Thursday.
Essen (Germany) (AFP) - German police sealed off a major shopping centre in the central city of Essen on Saturday, citing the threat of a terror attack, with media reports suggesting a link to the Islamic State group.

The country is on high alert following scenes of carnage at a Christmas market in Berlin in December, when an IS jihadist rammed a truck into a crowd of pedestrians, killing 12 people.

The German domestic security agency BfV believes the IS group was "almost definitely" behind the threat, local media reported.

According to the Bild daily, IS called for an attack and got a message to Syrian supporters in the Essen region to attack a shopping centre on Saturday.

Security services quoted by Bild described the threat as a potential multiple suicide bombing at the mall, one of the biggest in the country.

"The shopping centre will be closed all Saturday due to security concerns. The police have concrete information regarding a possible attack," local police said in a statement published on social media.

Local car parks and the underground train station were also closed.

Though there was no announcement of arms or explosives being found, police said two men had been picked up for questioning.

Both men were arrested in the town of Oberhausen near Essen but later police said in a statement that the pair "are not suspects" in the case.

- 'Major operation' -

"Many agents are deployed onsite. This is a major operation," a local police spokesman told AFP, indicating the lockdown included the 200-store Limbecker Platz in downtown Essen, nearby parking garages and an underground rail station.

Sniffer dogs were also been deployed at the site.

Essen, which is in the industrial Ruhr region, has a population of approximately 500,000.

The police said they had been alerted to the threat by "another department" but no German agency has confirmed if it was involved.

Interior ministry spokesman Tobias Plate told AFP that the operation was being handled by the local police force but added that his ministry was in "constant touch" with the GTAZ, a joint counter-terrorism centre used by 40 internal security agencies.

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German authorities have been on alert since the deadly Christmas market attack in Berlin.

A Tunisian failed asylum seeker, Anis Amri, rammed a hijacked truck into the crowded market on December 19, before being shot dead four days later by police in Italy.

Last July, a German-Iranian teenager who police say was obsessed with mass murderers, shot dead nine people at a Munich shopping mall before turning the gun on himself.

Fears of another attack rose on Thursday when a 36-year-old paranoid-schizophrenic man from Kosovo rampaged through Duesseldorf railway station with an axe, wounding nine people. Police have ruled out a terrorist motive for that attack.

Domestic security officials estimate there are some 10,000 radical Islamists in Germany, with roughly 1,600 among them suspected of being capable of violence.

IS has claimed responsibility for attacks in Germany in the past year, including the murder of a teen in Hamburg, a suicide bombing in Ansbach and an axe rampage on a train in Wuerzberg that injured five.
BERLIN (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble rejected demands on Saturday from some fellow conservatives for large tax cuts after a September election, saying there was only scope for about 15 billion euros in reductions. Schaeuble, whose priority is maintaining a balanced budget in Europe's biggest economy, told Badische Neueste Nachrichten newspaper that deeper tax cuts would require new debt. Some members of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) want to see tax cuts of about 30 billion euros. But Schaeuble said Germany needed to ensure it had sufficient financial resources to spend on security, infrastructure, the integration of migrants and research. "Citizens always gain most from very good economic developments and job security," he told the paper. "Wages are rising, pensions, too. That benefits people. Polls ahead of the Sept. 24 election point to a tight race between Merkel's conservatives and her junior coalition partners, the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD). Schaeuble, gearing up for a G20 finance ministers meeting in Germany at the end of next week, also once again brushed off criticism from the U.S. government about Germany's trade surplus. "We invest a big part of our surpluses in other countries and contribute economic growth and job creation there, also in the United States," Schaeuble was quoted as saying. (Writing by Madeline Chambers; Editing by Helen Popper)
Refugees are the focus of the biggest installation of Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei which goes on display next week at the National Gallery in Prague.

Called "Law of the Journey", the 70-metre-long (230-foot-long) inflatable boat with 258 oversize refugee figures will be shown from March 16 through the rest of the year, the gallery said.

"The largest individual object by this Chinese artist reflects his intense interest in the fate of refugees, which led him to 40 refugee camps in different locations across the globe," it said.

Ai spent the last year visiting such migrant and refugee hotspots as the US-Mexican border badlands to the Turkish-Syrian frontier and crowded holding camps on Greek islands.

"When I first came to Lesbos, we found a half sunken boat there. I asked to be taken to it and sent the other people away. I wanted to experience what it was like to be there alone," Ai said, quoted in the gallery statement.

"I felt what it was like to be on a poorly equipped boat, all by myself, as an insect on a leaf in the middle of the lake," added the 59-year-old painter, sculpture and photographer.

"In the boat I found a baby bottle and a Bible soaked with seawater. That was when I decided to explore this, to go after all those thoughts that are in my head."

An outspoken critic of the Chinese government, Ai was detained in 2011 for 81 days and had his passport confiscated for four years. He later travelled to Berlin where his wife and son live.

Recently he has staged several high-profile exhibitions inspired by migrants, including decking out the columns of Berlin's Konzerthaus with 14,000 orange life jackets from Lesbos.

Last month, he said he has looked with dismay at the Trump presidency, the US entry ban on Syrian refugees, the attempt to deny visas to citizens of several mainly Muslim nations, the pledge to build a wall with Mexico and invoke mass deportations.
WASHINGTON (AP)  Judge Neil Gorsuch wasn't convinced that a teenager who made burping sounds in a classroom should be arrested, handcuffed and taken to juvenile detention in a police car.

Gorsuch said the 13-year-old student from Albuquerque, New Mexico, should have been able to sue the arresting officer for excessive force. His powerful dissent in the case last year offers a glimpse of how Gorsuch  a favorite among conservatives  might be hard to pigeonhole on criminal justice issues if he is confirmed to the Supreme Court.

"Arresting a now compliant class clown for burping was going a step too far," Gorsuch wrote, saying there is a difference "between childish pranks and more seriously disruptive behaviors."

During a decade on the federal appeals court in Denver, Gorsuch has raised concerns about intrusive government searches and seizures that he found to violate constitutional rights. He generally has ruled against defendants appealing their convictions and those who claim they received unfair trials. But he also has warned in writings and speeches about the danger of having too many criminal laws on the books.

"What happens to individual freedom and equality when the criminal law comes to cover so many facets of daily life that prosecutors can almost choose their targets with impunity?" he said in a 2013 speech.

That skepticism seems to align him with the late Justice Antonin Scalia, a strong believer in protecting people from overzealous police and prosecutors. Scalia at times sided with liberals in tossing out evidence that breached privacy rights and in strengthening the right to confront accusers in court.

Liberal groups are opposing Gorsuch's nomination, in part based on views that his overall record on criminal justice is too harsh.

"At a time when the abuses of our criminal justice system are becoming a national crisis, we cannot confirm a justice who does not understand the role of the Supreme Court to protect the most vulnerable among us," said a report from People for the American Way, a liberal advocacy group.

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When Gorsuch has said there are too many criminal laws, he has often focused on business regulations, such as requirements that mattress sellers preserve mattress tags or that lobster importers use cardboard instead of plastic.

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Adam Winkler, a law professor at UCLA School of Law, says such decisions could forecast that Gorsuch may be a vote to curtail criminal prosecution of Wall Street executives and financiers.

"He is likely to read federal criminal laws narrowly," Winkler said. "Gorsuch is also likely to favor industry against what he sees as excessive criminal laws regulating business."

Some of his opinions have faulted police for seizing evidence in violation of the Fourth Amendment, which bars unreasonable searches. In a case last year, Gorsuch parted from the two-judge majority in a ruling that said police had a right to walk onto a man's property to knock on the front door even though there were several "No Trespassing" signs in the yard.

Gorsuch mocked the majority's opinion, saying it gave government agents the right to "invade" a homeowner's property "whatever the homeowner may say or do about it."

The homeowner "might add a wall or a medieval-style moat, too," Gorsuch wrote. "Maybe razor wire and battlements and mantraps besides. Even that isn't enough to revoke the state's right to enter."

In a separate 2016 case, Gorsuch was on a panel that found the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children violated the Fourth Amendment when it searched a man's emails without a warrant and discovered child pornography. The emails had been forwarded by AOL, the man's internet service provider, after the images were flagged by an automatic filter.

Writing for the panel, Gorsuch said the center is a government-like entity "endowed with law enforcement powers beyond those enjoyed by private citizens." The case was sent back to a lower court to decide whether the search still might be reasonable on other grounds.

Paul Rothstein, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center, said Gorsuch appears to have a mixed record in criminal cases and "seems to call them as he sees them."

"I think his primary area of concern for the citizen is in the privacy of your home or your private belongings," Rothstein said. "He believes there is a private area and he's pretty strong about that."

Gorsuch has been less sympathetic to defendants in other rulings.

In a 2012 case, Gorsuch dissented from a majority opinion in which his colleagues sided with an Oklahoma man seeking to overturn his murder conviction due to an ineffective lawyer. The lawyer had advised his client to reject a plea agreement that called for a 10-year sentence. Instead, the man went to trial, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison.

The majority said the lawyer's decision to reject the plea had "disastrous results" for his client. But Gorsuch said the man's right to effective representation was not violated because he was later convicted in a fair trial.

In 2013, Gorsuch wrote a majority opinion ruling that a police officer did not use excessive force when he shot a man in the head with a stun gun during a chase. The man, who was suspected of growing marijuana plants and fleeing from police, later died. The officer said the suspect reached for his pocket despite warnings not to do so. A dissenting judge noted that the officer's training manual specifically warned against aiming a stun gun at the head unless necessary.

Gorsuch said the situation facing the officer at the time was "replete with uncertainty and a reasonable officer in his shoes could have worried he faced imminent danger from a lethal weapon."

___

Find AP's reporting on Neil Gorsuch at http://apne.ws/2mfXk4V

EDITOR'S NOTE _ One in a series of stories examining the judicial record of Neil Gorsuch, nominated to the Supreme Court by President Donald Trump
ATLANTIC CITY -- Never one to shy away from taking credit, Gov. Christie was eager to take a victory lap last week regarding the state's takeover of Atlantic City.

Just four months in, Christie was proudly showing off "the bump in Atlantic City's credit rating."

It was true. Standard & Poors boosted the beleaguered city's bond rating from a very junky CCC to a not-as-junky CC -- with a caveat that default was still possible.

That, Christie said, combined with the blockbuster sale of the Trump Taj Mahal to Hard Rock International and two Jersey developers, and a settlement with Borgata over a debilitating tax appeal, are "early signs our efforts are working, that we will successfully revitalize Atlantic City and restore the luster of this jewel on the Jersey Shore."

Well then. Maybe so. But is that credit deserved? Does it matter?

One thing is clear: Four months into the takeover, Christie's fingerprints -- or at least those of people who influence Christie, have his ear, and also his blessing for billable hours -- are all over this town.

"It's no different than any other money grab that has basically been a part of Chris Christie's legacy," said City Councilman Frank Gilliam, who is running for mayor, for a term that begins when Christie's ends. "Another way to pay off his friends, make sure his friends have gotten tax abatements."

But not all Christie connections are created equal. Some build, some bill. Here's a guide to Christie's Atlantic City, currently being run by a law firm in West Orange.

TEAM HANSON: Christie adviser Jon F. Hanson has been striking out with ideas to fix Atlantic City since 2010. First, the state's Tourism District, a mostly unrealized effort that saw five casinos close under its watch. Next, two emergency managers named Kevin and Kevyn (Lavin and Orr) were supposed to take control and fix things. They did not.

But Hanson's other big idea, to bring his New Brunswick-style nonprofit Development Corporation model to Atlantic City, has stuck.

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ACDevCo wrestled Stockton University from its Showboat purchase misstep, handed a no-bid contract to developer Joseph Jingoli, and amassed an impressively complex pastiche of public funding to jump-start a $206 million A.C. campus, with a South Jersey Industries headquarters thrown in as well.

Stockton also wants Bader Field for a Marine Science Center, and might make a move for a casino parking garage.

Who could argue with that?

Jingoli and developer Jack Morris then logged another win by partnering with Hard Rock to buy the Taj, a $300 million plan to buy and repurpose the mega-faded casino.

Jingoli likes to hire unskilled locals and apprentice them to unions. Morris is known to provide incentives for employees to live in the towns in which they're working.

Councilman Gilliam first proposed Jingoli and Morris as redevelopers of the inlet section around Revel, a plan shot down in part as being the bidding of outside influences the city was trying to keep from taking over the town.

But Gilliam says Jingoli's track record vindicates his philosophy of being open to developers, no matter which political bosses they may represent. "My hunch was right," he said. "The Jingolis of the world and any other developer of the world see the opportunity."

The blockbuster deal did not immediately trickle down. An auction Thursday saw beach block lots go begging. ("Anybody?" the auctioneer said. "Anybody want these on-the-beach blocks?")

Mayor Don Guardian says the bellwether will be the Boraie project: a 250-unit market rate millennial-aimed, amenity-filled complex being built near Revel by the Boraie group, also of New Brunswick. If those apartments rent, that could signal that the center can hold in a new Atlantic City.

TEAM CHIESA The other band of Christie allies making money in A.C. are not as universally hailed. Former U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Chiesa was appointed the "director's designee" as outlined in the takeover law, but cut a deal for his entire law firm ($400 an hour for himself, $350 for lawyer Ron Israel, associates at $250 an hour, paralegals at $90 an hour).

Factor in accountants Ernst & Young, which has billed millions for work done for the state (and also for Borgata) dating back to the Kevins. The city's recovery plan was rejected by the state, which hired away its financial adviser and business administrator.

"It's the plan that we submitted that they rejected that theyre now using," Guardian noted in an impromptu interview Thursday in his seventh-floor office. He noted that the city's $212 million budget all but closed last year's $100 million shortfall.

Chiesa and pit bull partner Israel work out of a fifth-floor office in City Hall formerly used by Risk Management.

The state has not responded to media Open Public Records Act requests for their billing, but Guardian noted requests for all kinds of documents for review. Boxes of worker's compensation files were reportedly shipped up to West Orange.

"They seem to be be billing a lot of hours there," said the mayor, who says he no longer gets emails returned from Chiesa. "Everything from the library to the shade tree commission to the arts commission, they are now getting a copy of the agenda, approving the agenda, getting a copy of the minutes, and approving the minutes, lots of billable hours."

WHITHER NORCROSS

Anticipating the takeover, talk centered on South Jersey power broker George Norcross. The law gives the state power to ride herd on public unions, which some believe was one of Christie's -- and Norcross' -- main objectives.

Would Norcross bring a Camden playbook to the beach? Would the A.C. Police and Fire Departments be reconstituted into a regional force that had mixed results in Camden?

Was it about the water? Would Norcross-connected water companies gain control of A.C.'s water authority?

So far, Norcross has been quieter than fellow Christie super power Hanson, possibly saving his moves for the political arena.

The state's attempt to slash 100 firefighters is hung up in court, where an unapologetic Israel told the judge, "We have to be able to go after everybody," and questioned the judge's role at all.

The law gave the city a year before the state can move on the water. That clock runs out in May, and citizens of Atlantic City, smarting from a tax hike by the state, with help from the ACLU and NAACP, are expected to go to court to make their move.

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Port-au-Prince (AFP) - Former Haitian President Rene Preval was buried Saturday after a state funeral in Port-au-Prince, a final tribute to a beloved champion of the rural poor.

Preval, who served two terms as president, died on March 3 at age 74. His sister told local media that he had suffered a heart attack.

In stands draped in Haitian flags, family and close colleagues of the former leader gathered at the funeral. Sitting in full sunlight, guests who had arrived early in the morning were given straw hats typical of rural areas beloved by the former president.

Later, as rain fell, a funeral procession took the body 200 kilometers (120 miles) north to Preval's father's native village of Marmelade. There, the late president was laid to rest at the edge of a lake located on a farm -- a fitting place for an agronomist by trade who was always deeply attached to the land and the people who worked it.

With a reputation as an honest and efficient administrator, Preval served as president of Haiti -- the poorest country in the Western hemisphere with a long history of political violence -- in 1996-2001 and again from 2006-2011.

He remains the only leader in Haiti's history to have completed his two terms -- the constitutional limit -- without suffering a coup d'etat or being forced into exile.

"During his two terms, Rene Preval managed to keep a degree of balance in Haitian political life," the current president, Jovenel Moise, said at the funeral ceremony.

"He is a man who gave so much of himself that it would be impossible to imagine the history of these last 30 years without him," he added.

Jocelerme Privert, who held office as interim president from 2016 to 2017 during the country's electoral crisis, was an adviser to Preval's cabinet and stressed the importance of maintaining the consensus promoted by the leader known to the population as "Ti Rene."

"For him, no price was too high when it came to finding a consensus," Privert told AFP.

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"I say that Rene is the father of this politically stable and socially calmed down Haiti."

Preval's youngest daughter, Patricia, told the congregation her father did not get into politics because he liked it but rather to serve his country's destitute people.

"Politics for him was nothing more than a way for him to contribute to development, she said.

- Six days of national mourning -

A moderate leftist, Preval first served as prime minister to ex-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide from February 1991 until the government was toppled in September that year.

Both politicians enjoyed huge support among millions of impoverished Haitians, many of them living in the capital's violent slums.

But in the early 2000's Preval distanced himself from Aristide.

While Moise and a number of Haiti's political leaders paid respects Friday to Preval on the eve of his state funeral, Aristide did not attend -- a notable absence.

Six days of national mourning were held before the funeral.

- Key political figure -

Born on January 17, 1943 to a former minister, Preval went into exile with his family in 1963. He waited tables in restaurants in the United States in the 1970s and returned a decade later to Haiti to open a bakery.

After the fall of the Duvalier dictatorship in 1986, Preval was active in working-class organizations and met Aristide, who after becoming president named Preval prime minister in 1991.

Preval led as president of Haiti from 1996 to 2001. He served a second term from 2006-2011.

During his second term Preval's popularity suffered after a massive earthquake struck in 2010, killing more than 220,000 people. Critics said he had shown a lack of leadership after the disaster.

He rarely ventured into the public eye in recent years but nevertheless remained a key political figure.

Divorced and remarried, Preval had two daughters and one son.
A Myanmar monk infamous for his bilious anti-Muslim tirades has been banned from giving sermons for a year by the country's top Buddhist body, an unprecedented slapdown to a man whose hate speech has galvanized religious tensions.

Wirathu, a monk once dubbed the "face of Buddhist terror", has led calls for restrictions on Myanmar's Muslim population, penning hyperbolic speeches warning of an Islamic takeover of the overwhelmingly Buddhist country.

Myanmar is gripped by deepening religious tensions that have repeatedly spilled into violence.

The unrest has been partially attributed to anti-Muslim rhetoric spread by Wirathu's radical wing Buddhist monks.

Aung San Suu Kyi's government is under strong international pressure to explain a bloody crackdown on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine State over recent months.

The February assassination of Ko Ni, a respected and high-profile Muslim lawyer and long-time Suu Kyi ally, also heightened tensions.

Wirathu, who draws large crowds to his stock-in-trade Islamophobic speeches or social media posts, had already been barred from speaking at an event shortly after Ko Ni's murder.

But a special meeting of the country's most senior monks -- the State Sangha Maha Nayaka -- on Friday decided to ban all of his sermons.

"As he has repeatedly delivered hate speech against religions to cause communal strife and hinder efforts to uphold the rule of law" the monk "was banned from delivering sermons across Myanmar for one year from March 10, 2017 to March 9, 2018," the council said in a statement that emerged on Saturday.

He will face "action under the rule of law" for any breach of the order, the Sangha added, without specifying the punishment.

Aung San Win, the director of the Ministry of Religion, confirmed the order to AFP, but did not elaborate on the actions that may be taken against him or say whether the order covered his vigorous social media profile.

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Muslims make up about five percent of Myanmar's population.

Religious riots have roiled the country in recent years, killing scores of people -- the majority of them Muslims.

The worst violence has been in Rakhine where tens of thousands of Rohingya fled a military crackdown after deadly raids on police border posts.
Five candidates, one of whom is an incumbent, are seeking three seats on the DeForest Village Board. A sixth candidate, Katherine Preston, has dropped out of the race although her name will still appear on the April 4 ballot. The terms are for two years.

Shirley Cunningham

Age: 69

Address: 215 N. Lexington Parkway

Family: Married to Doug Cunningham

Job: Retired

Political experience: None

Other public service: Ive been involved with many charitable services and events. I have experience working on political campaigns.

Education: Bachelors degree in business from Indiana University

Email or website: skurzhal@charter.net

Dick Josephson

Age: 82

Address: 649 Springbrook Circle

Family: Married to Myra for 41 years; adult children

Job: Retired as a captain after 32 years with the Dane County Sheriffs Department

Political experience: DeForest Village Board (five years), Library Board, Finance Committee, Public Safety Committee (13 years; two as chairman), DeForest Housing Authority (chairman)

Other Public Service: Volunteer St. Marys Hospital, past president, Wisconsin Highway Safety Coordinators Association, Dane County Triad Committee (RSVP), poll worker, honorable discharge sergeant U.S. Marine Corps Reserve

Education: Graduate FBI National Academy, Quantico, Virginia

Jason Kramar (I)

Age: 47

Address: 508 Woodvale Drive

Family: Married for 22 years; two daughters, ages 16 and 14; one son, age 11

Job: Financial representative

Political experience: Eight years as village trustee. In that capacity, serve as president of the DeForest Area Community and Senior Center, vice president of the DeForest Half Century Club and chairman for the DeForest Planning and Zoning Commission, and formerly served on the DeForest Housing Authority, the DeForest Parks and Natural Resources Committee, the DeForest Public Works Committee, the DeForest Windsor Area Tourism Commission, as treasurer of the Capital Area Region Plan Commission and as commissioner on the Madison Metropolitan Planning Organization.

Other public service: Served in a civilian capacity with the Department of Defense and also served in the United States Naval Reserves

Education: Bachelors degree in international relations, UW-Madison, 1993

Email or website: Jason.Kramar@live.com

Abigail Lowery

Age: 34

Address: 513 Yahara St.

Family: I am married with two little kids.

Job: Currently, I am a full-time stay-at-home parent. Previously, I was a special education teacher in a public school.

Political experience: None

Other public service: I have been involved for 13 years in the Be a Friend program, which involves spending time with an adult with a developmental disability. I deliver meals for the DeForest Community and Senior Center. I am currently chair of the DeForest Housing Authority. I have donated crocheted hats/scarves, done volunteer tutoring, and helped organize an Autism Society of Wisconsin fundraiser.

Education: Bachelors degrees in womens studies and special education, UW-Madison

Email or website: abigail.lowery15@gmail.com and facebook.com/abigaillowerycandidate

Thomas Sandow

Age: 46

Address: 7633 Autumn Blaze Trail

Family: Wife (Aaryn) and two boys, Braedon (10) and Cooper (9)

Job: Estimating and inside sales at Pro Metal Works

Political experience: None

Other public service: Current member on DeForest Planning and Zoning commission

Education: College

Email or website: likestogolf18@yahoo.com

Q&A

List three of your top priorities

Cunningham: 1.) Public Safety: I support our police department in their efforts to combat crime, keep our citizens safe, and place a heavy focus on the drug abuse (heroin) epidemic plaguing our neighborhoods and schools. 2.) Spending: I encourage prudent spending with the taxpayers dollars while getting the best bang for their buck. 3.) Development: Ensure balanced approach between commercial and residential development.

Josephson: 1.) Balanced growth (residential and commercial growth). Commercial growth brings a need for workers. Workers bring a need for residential growth. 2.) Maintain basic services to residents while enhancing amenities (e.g. parks and recreation). 3.) Explore more ways to work with our neighbors.

Kramar: 1.) Streamline our development process and continuing to attract builders and businesses. 2.) Revisit building our community park now that the trail network in Conservancy Place is complete. 3.) Promote DeForest as the best place to raise a family in Wisconsin. Based on our recent successes, including Bell Labs, American Packaging Corp. and The Little Potato Company, weve earned some bragging rights.

Lowery: 1.) Support family-friendly services in DeForest, such as the DeForest Area Public Library, the DeForest Community and Senior Center, the park system, and the Yahara River trail. 2.) Work toward the Police Department and Fire Department having the staffing/equipment that they need. 3.) Examine potential road projects and prioritizing what needs to be fixed.

Sandow: 1.) Work with law enforcement and invest in any needed resources to combat the opioid/heroin epidemic. 2.) Work with the School Board to quickly work on a plan for an imminent overcrowding issue. 3.) Improve infrastructure to keep pace with current residential and business development.

If you could reverse one Village action, what would that be?

Cunningham: I dont know, but I can tell you that I will work with the board to find solutions that result in the best outcomes for DeForest residents. I will carefully scrutinize land use and spending so that the taxpayers get the most value for their money. While campaigning and when elected, I will always listen to the voters.

Josephson: The huge amount of money spent for litigation between DeForest and the town of Windsor should have been spent improving village projects.

Kramar: I would reverse the village of Windsors incorporation from a township to a village. While I can absolutely appreciate the community spirit the DeForest-Windsor area enjoys, I struggle with the new hard boundaries between our communities. I have always been a proponent for exploring a merger of our communities but now see little interest in moving forward to better serve our common goals.

Lowery: I think it was a mistake to create streets near schools and parks without sidewalks added. This is a safety concern for anyone, but particularly children. Now, whenever old streets or roads are due to be fixed, the village and residents must decide whether to allocate extra funding to add sidewalks.

Sandow: I would have not built the new village hall and police department until the roads leading in and out of our community were in better shape.

How would you change the way the Village handles development?

Cunningham: I will work to ensure the village has a good balance of commercial and residential growth which allows the village to grow and prosper. Attracting new business is vital to our community. I will strongly support bringing in solid businesses that offer good-paying jobs and are environmentally healthy. I will hold developers to required standards.

Josephson: While I was on the board we streamlined the process so that developers would work only with the Planning and Zoning Committee. They make sure everything is in order and send a resolution to the board recommending approval of the development. What took several months now is approved within several weeks.

Kramar: I dont know that I would change anything with how the village handles development. Weve enjoyed some success recently and a large part of that success should be attributed to the efforts weve made to streamline our development process. As Ive said before, Grow baby, grow!

Lowery: I think there needs to be more dialogue around what a development proposal would mean for the community and making decisions based on those discussions. I think the board does discuss impact on jobs and making certain amenities available to the public, but more discussion could and should occur around potential impacts to the culture, values and historical legacy of DeForest.
Its no surprise that designer Zac Posen has said he is not interested in dressing the two most important women in President Donald Trump's life since many other designers have refused as well.

The 36-year-old multiaward-winning designer and advocate for runway diversity, told the Daily Beast he has no current plans to dress members of the first family, adding he is staying away from bringing my brand into politics.

Read: Is Melania Trump The New Jackie Kennedy? First Lady Channels Fashion Icon Again With Style Choices

He also noted everyone has the right to voice a political opinion. For instance, he said, there are many issues that are deeply upsetting to him including, LGBTQ rights, womens rights, immigration, arts funding and Planned Parenthood. He said these issues are very close to my heart.

And I use my own private voice and funds to fight for them and in support of them. I think its important to use your voice, he said.

Overall, Posen said he isnt too pleased with whats been happening under the Trump administration.

Im very upset with the state of affairs right now, Posen told the Daily Beast. I always try to be optimistic. I think that freedom will prevail. And I dont dictate who buys my clothing in a store.

Posen said the industry needs to be cautious in how it advocates for issues. You cant market or commercialize feminism as an entity. One has to be careful, he explained. Posen, who describes himself as very pro-woman," said his goal is to support the amazing women he works with, adding he is all about serving powerful women with his clothing line.

Its a message about creativity and process. And being able to self-create is the message I want to share [with] the generation of young people being born now, he said.

Posen has joined many high-profile designers, including Marc Jacobs and Tom Ford, who have also declined to dress the Trumps. In contrast, Tommy Hilfiger and Diane von Furstenberg have said they would be pleased to dress them.

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If you happen to be in a city with a large Indian population on Monday, dont be too alarmed if you see a mass of people coating each other with colored powder and shooting water guns. You will have just walked into a celebration of Holi, one of the largest and certainly most colorful events in the Hindu calendar. It is after all, the Festival of Colors.

When is it Celebrated?



Holi always occurs on the last full moon of the Hindu lunar month of Phalguna, which on the Gregorian calendar falls between late February and late March. This year, it begins Sunday evening, with celebrations continuing into Monday.

Read: Religious Holidays 2017: Complete Calendar For Christian, Jewish, Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist Religions

It coincides with the shift in India from winter to the summer or pre-monsoon season. Although there is no official spring season, Holi celebrates the arrival and vibrancy of spring as well the triumph of good over evil.

Why is it Celebrated?



While it may be attached to spring time, there are multiple legends connected to the origins of the festival. But the main legend surrounds Prahalad, the son of King Hiranyakashyap and a loyal devotee of the god Vishnu, and Holika.

Upon telling his father that it was not he but Vishnu who was the greatest, Prahalad was sentenced to death by the king. After the first few attempts on his life failed, Prahalads sister, Holika, who had been made impervious to fire by the gods, was given the task of burning him to death. But as Holika sat in the flames with her brother on his lap it was she and not Prahalad who burned as the gods stepped in to save the boy.

Holi celebration

Photo: Getty Images

How is it Celebrated?



The celebrations begin the night before Holi with a bonfire in which evil is symbolically burned. The main event will take place Monday with the festival of colors as millions pour onto the streets to throw colored powder and water at each other. It is this that creates the spectacle with which Holi is most richly associated.

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While primarily observed in India and Nepal, celebrations have spread all over the world, even among some non-Hindus.

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An ACLU legal observer with Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., during the protest against the administrations travel ban at Dulles International Airport in Virginia on Jan. 29. (Photo: Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

WASHINGTON  The American Civil Liberties Union wants to take over your town. On Saturday, the organization is launching a nationwide campaign to push local governments to become Freedom Cities by adopting a series of policies to make them safe havens for immigrants and refugees amid what the group has dubbed President Trumps mass deportation agenda.

Trumps administration is currently asking for cooperation from local law enforcement for the presidents crackdown on illegal immigration and on immigration from certain predominantly Muslim countries. The ACLUs new strategy is designed to pressure city officials to reject that request. According to an ACLU strategy memo, the group is pushing local authorities to force the federal agencies focused on immigration enforcement to jump through a set of legal hoops that will impede objectionable policies the president is pursuing.

These proposed requirements include making U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection officials obtain a judicial warrant before asking local officials to detain anyone, blocking those officials from accessing people in local custody for interviews or other investigative purposes, preventing federal agents from asking local officials about someones immigration status, and blocking surveillance or interrogations based on profiling. While the Trump administration has suggested local officials who do not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement may be breaking the law, the ACLU memo argues the specific Freedom Cities policies are on firm legal ground.

And along with the lobbying and legal work that is typically the ACLUs bread and butter, the organization is trying something new as it pushes the Freedom Cities agenda. The ACLU is providing supporters with a blueprint for activism to apply pressure on local authorities to adopt the plan. Its a clear departure for the organization. For nearly a century, the ACLU has been nonpartisan and focused on legal battles. The organizations foray into grassroots organizing and activism is the brainchild of Faiz Shakir, a 37-year-old former Senate aide who was hired in January as the groups national political director.

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People have known us for, See you in court, Shakir said in the Freedom Cities memo. I hope now theyll also know us for, See you in the streets.

The ACLUs Freedom Cities campaign will begin with a Resistance Training live-streamed from Miami, Fla., on Saturday afternoon. Supporters will be given materials instructing them on how to get meetings with local officials who are key pressure points. The ACLU is also advising activists on specific arguments to make in order to pressure them to adopt the policies. These initial meetings are just the beginning. The ACLU has also launched a website, People Power, which will feature maps highlighting future Freedom Cities meetings and other events. In addition to keeping people involved in the immigration policy effort, Shakir said the site will allow supporters to suggest ideas for future efforts.

In an extensive conversation with Yahoo News, Shakir described the genesis of his strategy to make the ACLU into the leader of the resistance against Trump.

Shakir recounted how he sat down with ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero a few weeks after Trump was elected last November to discuss the future of the organization. He pointed to a spike in donations and online signups the group received in the aftermath of Trumps win as evidence people were eager to see the ACLU take on the president.

People have voted again after the election. They voted with their pocketbooks and with their email addresses to tell the ACLU, Tag! Youre it! Youre the leader of the resistance whether you like it or not. Weve decided on our behalf. The people have voted and weve voted for you, the ACLU, to be the leader, Shakir said he told Romero.

Shakir also said he suggested the increased engagement with the ACLU was a sign people wanted the organization to expand beyond its traditional activities and provide supporters with an opportunity to participate. Romero agreed with this vision to bring activist organizing under the ACLU umbrella and brought Shakir on board. They felt emboldened by the spontaneous protests against the first draft of Trumps ban on travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries, and by the court rulings against it in suits brought by the ACLU and others. The Freedom Cities campaign is the first major official salvo in this fight.

Jumping into the anti-Trump resistance may seem like a departure from the ACLUs tradition of nonpartisanship. However, Shakir and his team frame the activist direction as an extension of the organizations longstanding efforts to defend individual liberties. They say the groups grassroots activism will be focused on protecting groups such as immigrants, refugees, religious minorities, and the gay community, whose rights they see as being endangered by Trumps policies.

And the ACLU isnt exclusively aligning with progressives. Trump and many right wing activists have made the case liberals have restricted freedom of speech in their push for political correctness. Shakir pointed to the ACLUs recent defense of conservative firebrand and Trump supporter Milo Yiannopoulos as proof the group isnt abandoning its roots as a nonpartisan defender of civil liberties.

The willingness to break from orthodoxy is definitely a marker of the ACLU, Shakir said.

Shakir also insisted the organizing efforts wont detract from the organizations core mission. In fact, with the recent deluge of donations, Shakir said the ACLU will actually be scaling up its legal activities.

Shakirs job with the ACLU is to lead the national and state legislative advocacy teams. However, he told Yahoo News hes spent seventy five percent of his time planning the ACLUs foray into grassroots organizing. On his first day, he handed Romero a budget for the operation and they quickly brought on a team that included several veterans from the presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.),

Its been a sprint from the day I got here, Shakir said.

Shakir came to the ACLU after spending nearly four years in the office of former Democratic Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. In a brief conversation with Yahoo News, Reid, who retired this year after three decades in Washington, praised Shakir as superb.

In the many years in Congress, Ive had almost 1,000 people work for me.  In the top five is Faiz, Reid said, later adding, I miss him almost every day.

Shakir has spent much of his time in recent weeks in a conference room at the ACLUs Washington office, where he and his team are planning the Freedom Cities launch. This makeshift war room features two large monitors, one playing cable news and another with a series of Twitter feeds. The tables were strewn with computer monitors, phones, and food cartons. On Thursday afternoon, Shakir, who wore a dark suit and a pronounced five-oclock shadow, sat at one of the tables twirling a pen as he fielded phone calls and talked with colleagues.

Trumps election has seen a surge in grassroots progressive activism with social-media-driven street protests and a deluge of phone calls to Washington. However. Shakir said the ACLU is organizing more detailed and complicated efforts.

Its not just like, hey, pick up your phone and call your member of Congress, Shakir said.

Shakir didnt entirely dismiss the value of the calls progressives have been placing to Congress in the wake of Trumps win.

Its training a generation of activists to get involved and do something. Thats good. Its also, the fact that theyre making calls and bringing down the congressional switchboard is causing senators to take note. Theyre aware that thats going on. Is that changing behavior maybe mildly? Well see, Shakir said.

However, Shakir predicted people would have only so much appetite for calling Capitol Hill.

At some point, you might get depressed or cynical about your efforts, or just simply, quite frankly  want something better to do with your time, he said.

In Shakirs mind, the ACLU and its experienced staff had an incumbent responsibility to present a road map for more effective activism. And he predicts the Freedom Cities campaign and its call for specific policies will have a much more dramatic impact than the protests against Trump weve seen thus far.

What Im going to be asking people to do is real work. Its real work, Shakir explained. Its like taking their time, hours out of their lives to do something that, if they do it together, will have a meaningful impact in resisting Trump.
NEW YORK (AP)  In state capitals, lawmakers attend workshops on how to avoid demonizing their opponents. On a college campus, students re-enact hard-fought debates that led to great compromises at the country's founding. Even a summer camp is aiming to give children the tools to show respect in the face of disagreement.

Americans alarmed and disheartened by a coarsened culture and incivility in politics  especially following a brutal presidential campaign season that bared new lows in both  are fighting back with a range of initiatives around the U.S. to restore some semblance of decorum.

"It's incumbent on us to be the adults who push back against what we're getting in the popular culture and the political rhetoric," said Mary Evins, who directs the American Democracy Project for Civil Learning at Middle Tennessee State University. That's where students have staged classroom role-plays of compromises from the 1787 Constitutional Convention, assuming the parts of the Founding Fathers to act out the give-and-take required to reach agreement on crucial but difficult decisions, such as how large and small states would share power.

"There's so many people with a difference of opinion," said Brendon Holloway, who participated in various Democracy Project initiatives at Middle Tennessee State, including voter registration drives. "It's really important to bridge the gap."

The school is training faculty to incorporate civic learning across disciplines, holding a lecture series on rhetoric, and hosting former members of Congress to talk about respectful dialogue. Evins says it's all part of addressing not just college and career, but citizenship.

"If we do not address that third C, then we have shamed ourselves," she said, "we have walked away."

Even as polls find Americans say a civil tone in candidates is an important factor in how they vote, surveys have also shown people more accepting of personal attacks in politics. A poll by Zogby commissioned by Allegheny College in October found in the six years since its previous survey, significantly more people viewed it as acceptable to interrupt, shout over, belittle, insult, personally attack, or question the patriotism of those with differing opinions. Respondents also have grown more accepting of commenting on another's sexual orientation, race or ethnicity.

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Fewer people even believe elected officials should pursue friendships with members of other parties: 56 percent in the more recent survey compared with 85 percent in 2010.

"If this incivility continues, we're going to lose a generation to politics," said Jim Mullen, president of Allegheny, in Meadville, Pennsylvania. "And that's a very dangerous thing for our democracy."

Allegheny created the Prize for Civility in Public Life in 2011 to highlight public figures who demonstrate respectful behavior and inspire students to consider elected service. Last year, it went to Sen. John McCain and Vice President Joe Biden, who hugged onstage as they received the honor.

Organized attempts to stir civil discourse have sprouted for at least a decade in response to the continuing degeneration of public debate and increased animosity between Democrats and Republicans. But they've gained new steam following the 2016 campaign and the ascension to the presidency of Donald Trump, with his unrestrained, often caustic commentary.

Interest has surged in programs offered by the National Institute for Civil Discourse, which was founded at the University of Arizona after the 2011 shooting that left six dead and then-Rep. Gabby Giffords and others badly injured. Its civility-boosting efforts around the country include sessions in state legislatures that bring lawmakers from opposing parties together in hopes they see one another as people and try to understand what has shaped their opinions.

"I don't think there's any question that this is a national crisis at this point," said Carolyn Lukensmeyer, the institute's executive director. "This is kind of a dangerous moment."

At Unity College in Maine, one of several civility initiatives aims to improve discourse at the person-to-person level. President Melik Khoury, who established a campus commission to ensure inclusivity and free expression, also made students a special offer: He'd pay for them to dine with someone they don't know in an effort to foster dialogue between people of different points of view, such as avid hunters and devoted environmentalists. A handful of students so far have taken up the offer.

"We cannot stop talking," Khoury said. "We cannot be disunited."

Civility efforts have even stretched outside of academia and government into less likely arenas. In Greencastle, Indiana, organizers are preparing for a new summer camp where children will be exposed to elementary philosophy, taught to talk about their values and to listen to competing outlooks.

Andrew Cullison, who is leading camp planning as director of the Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University, said the goal is to get the first- to fifth-grade participants talking respectfully about their opinions on a range of issues. If they can learn to be composed in, say, a discussion over whether vanilla or chocolate is better, they may be able to translate that skill when they later face disagreement on a weightier topic, like politics.

"They sort of realize, the way I was talking about ice cream is the way I can talk about Trump," Cullison said.

As these efforts spread, Evins at Middle Tennessee State acknowledges some frustration that despite so many attempts to improve discourse over the past decade, it has only worsened.

"We've been working at this for a long time. Are we making no progress whatsoever? Are we beating our heads against the wall?" she asked. "There is a sense that there must be renewed dedication to this."

___

Sedensky can be reached at msedensky@ap.org or https://twitter.com/sedensky
Baghdad (AFP) - Iraqi paramilitary forces announced Saturday that they had discovered a mass grave at Badush prison near Mosul containing the remains of hundreds of people executed by the Islamic State group.

Iraqi forces have found dozens of mass graves containing hundreds of bodies as they pushed IS back in more than two years of heavy fighting, including during the operation to retake Mosul.

IS reportedly killed up to 600 people after seizing Badush in 2014, and was also said to have held hundreds of kidnapped women from Iraq's Yazidi minority at the facility.

The Iraqi military said that forces from the Hashed al-Shaabi -- an umbrella group of pro-government forces that are dominated by Iran-backed Shiite militias -- were among the units that recaptured the prison from the jihadists.

Hashed forces found "a large mass grave containing the remains of around 500 civilian prisoners in (Badush) prison who were executed by (IS) gangs after they controlled the prison during their occupation of Mosul," the military said.

The Hashed did not say how they reached that figure, which could not be independently confirmed, but it is in keeping with accounts of IS killing hundreds of inmates from Badush.

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), IS gunmen executed up to 600 inmates from the prison on June 10, 2014, forcing them to kneel along a nearby ravine and then shooting them with assault rifles, an account also contained in a United Nations report.

Most of those executed were said to have been members of Iraq's Shiite Muslim majority, whom IS considers heretics.

IS abuses at the jail did not end with executing its inmates. Iraqi lawmaker Vian Dakhil said in 2014 that the jihadists were holding more than 500 Yazidi women at Badush.

- Series of mass graves -

IS targeted the Yazidi religious minority in a brutal campaign of executions, kidnapping and rape, killing men and holding women and girls as sex slaves.

The Badush site is not the first mass grave to be found during the Mosul campaign, in which Iraqi forces recaptured areas around the country's second city before battling IS inside it.

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Iraqi forces found one in the Hamam al-Alil area south of Mosul in November that an official said appeared to hold the remains of at least 25 bodies.

And earlier this year, Iraqi forces retook an area containing a sinkhole known as the Khasfah, which could be the largest mass grave of the war with IS.

Local residents said that IS used it as an execution site and a mass grave where they would dispose of victims.

HRW examined satellite imagery that suggested the sinkhole was filling up, and local residents told AFP that IS had piled rusted car parts and shipping containers into it, before bulldozing earth on top.

IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained most of the territory they lost.

Iraqi forces launched an operation to retake Mosul -- which was the last IS-held city in Iraq -- in October, recapturing its eastern side before setting their sights on its smaller but more densely populated west.
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamic State has released dozens of prisoners held in jails in the districts of the northern Iraqi city of Mosul that remain under its control, residents said on Saturday. The release of the prisoners on Friday is another sign that the militants are being overwhelmed by the U.S.-backed Iraqi offensive that started on Oct. 17 to dislodge them from Mosul, their last major city stronghold in Iraq. Islamic State has lost most cities it captured in Iraq in 2014 and 2015. It declared a caliphate that also spanned parts of Syria from Mosul in 2014. Among those released were people who had been caught selling cigarettes, violating a smoking ban, or in possession of a mobile phone and therefore suspected of communicating with the outside world, the residents said. Iraqi forces dislodged Islamic State from the eastern side of Mosul in January, and on Feb. 19 launched the offensive on the districts located west of the Tigris river. State-run TV on Friday said about half western Mosul has been taken back from the militants who are besieged in the old city center and districts to the north. One of the men released on Friday said two militants got him out of a basement where he was held captive with other people, blindfolded the group and drove them away in a bus. "After driving a distance, we stopped and they told us to remove the blindfolds and then they said 'go, you are free,'" he said by phone, adding that about 25 prisoners were on the bus. The man, who requested not to be identified, indicated that had spent two weeks in prison for selling cigarettes. One Mosul resident said his brother had suddenly reappeared at the house on Friday after spending a month in captivity for possessing a mobile phone. (Reporting by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Alexander Smith)
Rome (AFP) - An Italian restaurant owner who shot a burglar dead is being investigated for voluntary manslaughter, sparking calls Saturday for changes to the country's law covering self-defence killings.

Mario Cattaneo, 67, killed the burglar with a single shot from his hunting rifle early Friday after hearing intruders breaking into his restaurant.

They apparently had the intention of stealing cigarettes from the adjacent tobacconist, according to police cited by Italian media.

A magistrate has placed the owner of the "Osteria dei Amis" in Gugnano near Milan under formal investigation on suspicion of committing a crime which carries a minimum prison term of 21 years.

It sparked howls of outrage from right-wing politicians.

Maurizio Gasparri, a close ally of Silvio Berlusconi, launched an appeal for funds to pay the restaurateur's legal bills. Regional president Roberto Maroni said: "It's the world turned upside down."

Northern League leader Matteo Salvini called for a change in the law to ensure self-defence could automatically be invoked in such cases.

"A death is always terrible news but if this young man had gone to work instead of out robbing he would be alive today," Salvini wrote on his Facebook page.

Italian law does provide for homicide charges to be reduced if a killer is deemed to have acted in legitimate defence, which usually requires the accused to show they had reasonable grounds to fear for their own life.

The circumstances of the latest episode were unclear.

The victim had been shot in the back and his body was found some 100 metres (320 feet) from the property. The owner told police his gun had gone off in a scuffle after the dead man tried to grab it from him.

The dead man could not be identified immediately because there were no identity papers on him and police did not have his fingerprints on file.
A 41-year-old inmate at the Dane County Jail died last July from an overdose of heroin that he received behind bars from a fellow inmate, according to court documents.

Christopher L. Thorland, of Stoughton, died in his jail cell on July 5 after he received the heroin from Emmanuel O. Stephen, who was found with nearly 60 grams of heroin in his possession as well as cocaine following an inmate strip search later that day, court documents show. The documents did not say how the drugs were brought into the jail.

Thorland was in jail on a charge of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated as a seventh offense. His trial was scheduled to begin July 14. He also was scheduled to go to Dodge Correctional Institution after being held in Dane County Jail on a revoked probation, according to the Dane County Sheriffs Office.

Stephen, 27, of Madison, was originally charged July 27 with possession with the intent to deliver more than 50 grams of heroin, possession of cocaine and six counts of bail jumping, court documents show. A charge of first-degree reckless homicide was added on January 11.

Following a plea deal, Stephen was found guilty on Jan. 26 of the heroin possession with intent to deliver charge by Dane County Circuit Judge Josann Reynolds, according to court documents. The first-degree reckless homicide charge was dismissed as part of the plea deal, but Reynolds can consider the charge when deciding how to sentence Stephen on April 17. The felony cocaine possession and misdemeanor bail jumping charges were all dismissed.

Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne gave his blessing to the plea deal because he said prosecutors can use the reckless homicide charge as part of their argument for Stephen to receive a maximum prison sentence on the felony heroin possession with intent to deliver charge. Both charges carry maximum 40-year prison sentences. Since Stephen also has a previous conviction for drug possession/delivery, an additional six years can be tacked on.

Ozanne also said the Sheriffs Office makes a great effort to ensure the jail is safe and that the discussion about building a new jail or remodeling the existing one could lead to making it safer.

Sometimes things get through and we learn from every experience, Ozanne said. I dont know if there are any new techniques that they can use to help ferret out when contraband is brought in by an inmate, a visitor or someone else. But Im sure they are all looking at better ways to do that.

Thorland was found unresponsive in his bunk at about 5:25 a.m. in the jail in the Public Safety Building and deputies and jail medical staff responded and immediately began lifesaving efforts, according to the Dane County Sheriffs Office. Court documents show that the strip search began about 12:21 p.m.

According to a criminal complaint issued July 27:

Sheriffs deputies found contraband that looked like illegal drugs in baggies hidden in the pouch of Stephens underwear that he had removed during the strip search. Less than an hour later, deputies opened one of the baggies and found three more individually wrapped baggies containing tan powder that tested positive for heroin and weighed 45.9 grams outside of the packaging.

Deputies opened another baggie and found four individually wrapped baggies containing gray powder that tested positive for heroin and weighed 12.3 grams outside of the packaging.

Deputies also found three separately wrapped baggies containing a substance that tested positive for cocaine base in a third large baggie. The cocaine base weighed 2.5 grams.

After the strip search, Stephen told a deputy, I really aint got too much to say besides that I, I got caught with it.
Kate Middleton has further grown into her role as Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, since the beginning of 2017, taking on new royal duties while raising a young prince and princess of England.

Though Middleton was a regular citizen when she began dating Prince William, the second in line for the throne, her resemblance to royalty was almost immediately uncanny. The popular duchess seems to have had her fashion sense greatly influenced by Elizabeth since marrying William in 2011, and it's become even more evident in recent weeks.

Middleton matched with Elizabeth's blue, wide-brimmed hat during a memorial unveiling Thursday for fallen soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. The two wore nearly identical tweed outfits, albeit different color schemes, while attending charitable events last month.

Read: Will The Queen Step Down? Elizabeth Says She's More Engaged Then Ever In Older Years

There reportedly could be a method behind the duchess' familiar hairstyles, jewelry and high-fashion outfits worn for public and charity events, as it turns out. Middleton is both reflecting and honoring Queen Elizabeth, the longest-reigning living monarch in the world and the grandmother to her husband.

Each of Middleton's accessories were covered in sapphires during Thursdays memorial unveiling, from her earrings and necklace, to the sapphire engagement ring she wears each day. Her choice in gemstone is no coincidence: The duchess is continuing to publicly celebrate the Queen's Sapphire Anniversary, marking 65 years of Elizabeths reign.

Middleton will likely never be the queen, though. At 90 years old, Elizabeth shows no signs of wanting to abdicate from the throne, despite suffering a weeks-long cold that forced her and her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, to be absent from several royal functions and holiday celebrations.

When Elizabeth is no longer the queen, the duchess won't be taking over the crown. While her husband is set to eventually become the king of England during the couples lifetime, Middleton will likely maintain her title as a duchess, as her son, Prince George of Cambridge, becomes the next in line to the throne behind his father.

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Still, her fashion makes an important statement regardless: Middleton is a staunch supporter of the queens reign, and she wears it well.

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Indian Wells (United States) (AFP) - Venus Williams saved three match points as she roared back for a 1-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-1 victory over old foe Jelena Jankovic and a place in the third round at Indian Wells.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion, her right arm bandaged and her serve speed down, surrendered the first set in just 20 minutes and was quickly down a break at 3-1 in the second.

"I definitely wasn't able to do everything I wanted to," she said. "Took me some time to kind of get my head around that.

"You have to get disciplined and just try to deal with what's at hand and try to use the tools you have on this particular day," said Williams, who did so with a vengeance.

She broke Jankovic twice to take a 5-4 lead in the second set before the Serb veteran, like Williams a former world number one, broke in the 10th game to pull level at 5-5.

Serving to save the match, Williams was on the ropes in the 12th game but she saved three match points to force the decider.

Once she came through it, she ran away with the third, buoyed by an enthusiastic crowd.

"It ain't over til it's over," she told her ecstatic fans of her determination to stick with it until the end. "And I didn't see no fat lady singing."

Williams next faces Czech Lucie Safarova, a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 winner over American Coco Vandeweghe.

Safarova denied Vandeweghe a chance to avenge her semi-final loss to Williams at the Australian Open, where Williams fell in the championship match to her sister Serena.

Jankovic, meanwhile, could only regret her missed opportunities, especially her first match point that Williams saved with a volley winner.

"When she was at the net I was supposed to play that cross forehand but I played down the line and right to her and she made a winner," Jankovic said. "I had everything under control and I just let it slip away."

- Kerber in control -

There was no such drama for second-seeded Angelique Kerber, who raced into the third round with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over fellow German Andrea Petkovic.

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Kerber, who is assured of reclaiming the number one world ranking when the tournament ends thanks to Serena Williams' injury withdrawal, reversed a run of poor fortune in the California desert, where she hadn't made it out of her tournament opener since 2011.

"Of course, it was not so easy to play against her, we know each other very long," Kerber said.

"I was trying today just to focus more on my side of the tennis court. Just being focused on my game, because I think the last three years I lose here in the first round, so that was also something in my mind that I would like to change this year and just go through it."

Kerber next faces France's Pauline Parmentier, who ousted 27th-seeded Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-2, 6-3.

Women's fourth-seed Simona Halep of Romania cruised through her opener, downing Croatian wild card Donna Vekic 6-4, 6-1.

Sixth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska beat Spain's Sara Sorribes 6-3, 6-4 and ninth-seeded American Madison Keys made a successful return to competition with a 6-1, 7-5 victory over Colombian Mariana Duque.

Keys was playing in her first match of 2017 after missing two months in the wake of left wrist surgery.

"It felt really good," Keys said. "I really, really missed competing and being able to go out there and get a win on top of it was amazing."
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  The Latest on the fire blamed on a hoverboard that sent five people to the hospital, including three girls critically injured. (all times local)

5:25 p.m.

Authorities say a 3-year-old girl has died following a Pennsylvania fire that also critically injured two others and appears to have been sparked by a recharging hoverboard.

The Lehigh County coroner's office said Ashanti Hughes was pronounced dead at an area hospital just after 11:30 a.m. Saturday.

Harrisburg officials said one victim jumped from a second-floor roof to escape the blaze, which was reported shortly before 8 p.m. Friday. Three others were rescued by ladder. A man and another occupant of the home, a teenage boy, were treated and released.

Authorities said fire Lt. Dennis DeVoe was heading to the scene when his vehicle was hit in an intersection. He was reported in critical condition.

Officials say the hoverboard was plugged in and charging before it caught fire.

___

1:35 p.m.

Authorities say a fire that critically injured three girls and led to critical injuries to a responding fire official appears to have been sparked by a recharging hoverboard.

Harrisburg fire officials said one victim jumped from a second-floor porch roof to escape the blaze, which was reported shortly before 8 p.m. Friday.

Fire Chief Brian Enterline said two other victims were rescued by ladder, as was a man. The three girls were listed in critical condition. The man and another occupant of the home, a teenage male, were treated and released.

Police said Lt. Dennis DeVoe was heading to the scene when his vehicle was hit in an intersection. He was reported in critical condition.

Officials say the hoverboard was plugged in and charging before it caught fire.
MADRID (AP)  The 64-year-old leader of Spain's largest labor union has announced he is stepping down.

Ignacio Fernandez Toxo told a meeting of the Comisiones Obreras union on Saturday that he won't seek a third term as general secretary in elections set for June.

"These times call for younger leaders," Fernandez Toxo said. "I am well aware that if I held a third term I would be 68 years old when I finish it."

Fernandez Toxo said he was backing 44-year-old Unai Sordo to succeed him.

Fernandez Toxo has been the general secretary of Comisiones Obreras since 2008.

Comisiones Obreras and UGT are the two biggest unions in Spain with each counting over a million members.
On March 11, 1861, delegates from the newly formed Confederate States of America agreed on their own constitution. Here is a look at this little-known third constitution that controlled the lives of about 9 million people for a short period of time.

Much of the Confederate Constitution mirrored the Constitution of the United States as it existed at the time, with bigger differences in the matters of slavery and states rights.

In 1860, there were more than 9 million people, including 3 million slaves, living in the states and territories that would leave the Union, compared with 22 million people outside those areas.

The document was drawn up and approved just a week after Abraham Lincoln became president of the United States. There were seven southern states that had seceded at the time, and a total of 11 would secede and join the Confederacy officially. (Missouri and Kentucky were also considered members, but didnt officially secede from the Union.)

At first glance, much of the Confederate document was taken directly from the U.S. Constitution.

Link: Read Confederate Constitution

But there were several passages related to slavery that were much different. The Confederate version used the word slaves, unlike the U.S. Constitution. One article banned any Confederate state from making slavery illegal. Another ensured that slave owners could travel between Confederate states with their slaves.

The Confederate constitution also accounted for slaves as three-fifths of a states population (like the U.S. Constitution did at the time), and it required that any new territory acquired by the nation allow slavery.

In other ways, the Confederate constitution was closer to the Articles of Confederation, which preceded the U.S. Constitutionit was focused on states rights.

The Confederate preamble begins, We, the people of the Confederate States, each State acting in its sovereign and independent character

The U.S. Constitution starts with the more familiar, We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union

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Confederate states had the ability to impeach federal officials, collect more taxes, and make treaties with each other under certain circumstances. They could also create lines of credit.

When it came to elected officials, the Confederate constitution limited the president to one, six-year term in office in a persons lifetime. The vice president didnt have term limits.

The president also had use of the line-item veto in budget matters.

Senators and representatives served under circumstances that were very similar to rules in the U.S. Constitution.

It also had a Bill of Rights, lumped together with rules about Congress. (Most of the rights in the U.S. Constitutions original Bill of Rights were incorporated.)

One additional right stated that the government couldnt impair the right of property in negro slaves to owners.

The Confederate Congress operated in a similar fashion to the United States. But the Confederate Congress couldnt pass legislation about amendments. That role was reserved for the states.

Cabinet members could also answer questions on the floor of Congress.

The Supreme Court system was also very similar to the one used by the United States. But it was never formed during the Civil War because of the governments instability.

The Confederate Congress met for six sessions during the war. Political parties didnt form in the Confederacy, but there were political factions in the electorate.

Jefferson Davis, a former U.S. senator, served as the Confederate president.
If you've been to Los Angeles' gay pride parade before, chances are you've seen just as many glistening butts covered by glitter thongs as you have traditional protest signs.

That's a beautiful thing, but it's going to change a little bit this June. This year, pride prganizers have teamed up with LGBT Resist March planned for June 11th in major cities all across the country. The city will still hold parties and performances for returning attendees, but hold a protest march instead of a traditional parade.

SEE ALSO: How you can help protect trans kids right now

Logistical concerns as well as the political climate appears to have affected the organizers' decision to team up with LGBT resist march.

Construction at West Hollywood Park reduced the amount of space available for the parade and related activities, leaving them with 70% less space they had in previous years.

Image: Brian To/REX/Shutterstock

Los Angeles' pride festival is a ticketed event, with tickets expected to be around $20. The festival does include a free event for the transgender community.

Anywhere from 250,000 to 500,000 people are expected to attend Los Angeles pride. January's Women's March brought in close to 750,000.

For many, pride parades originated in protest and remain a form of protest (though ones with way better dancing and more thongs along the way). 2017's protest marches will just make the history more explicit for those too young to remember how far the community has come.
Malaysia hopes to open negotiations with North Korea in the "next few days" to secure the release of its citizens trapped in Pyongyang following a row over the murder of Kim Jong-Nam, the foreign minister said Saturday.

The killing of the half-brother of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un last month in Kuala Lumpur International Airport with VX nerve agent triggered a bitter standoff between the previously friendly Asian nations, which have expelled each other's ambassador and refused to let their citizens leave.

Three Malaysian embassy staff and six family members are stranded in Pyongyang after North Korea barred Malaysians from leaving the country on Tuesday, prompting a tit-for-tat move by Kuala Lumpur.

"Talks are set to begin... in next few days" with Pyongyang, Foreign Minister Anifah Aman told a news conference.

"They want to start talking but ... before we start talking we have to establish a lot of factors first," he said, without offering further details.

Anifah held the briefing after meeting with relatives of the stranded Malaysians and said he had spoken to embassy staff in Pyongyang who appeared to be safe.

"They said they are quite free to move around and this is very encouraging."

North Korea has never confirmed the identity of the dead man, but has denounced the Malaysian investigation as an attempt to smear the secretive regime, insisting that he most likely died of a heart attack.

Pyongyang has also demanded the return of his body but Malaysian authorities have refused to release it without a DNA sample from next-of-kin.

Anifah said the matter would be discussed with Pyongyang when talks begin, adding, "we don't want to keep the body more than what is necessary".

South Korea has blamed Pyongyang for the assassination and Malaysian police are seeking seven North Korean suspects, four of whom left Malaysia on the day of the murder.

The Malaysian police chief has said he believes the other three are hiding in North Korea's embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

Two women -- one Vietnamese and one Indonesian -- have been arrested and charged with the murder. Airport CCTV footage shows them approaching the victim and apparently smearing his face with a piece of cloth.
A bipartisan proposal making it a felony to defraud the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. was reintroduced Friday, almost two years after the Wisconsin State Journal reported on a failed $500,000 loan to a Milwaukee businessman who lied on his application.

The bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Samantha Kerkman, R-Salem Lakes, and Sen. Dave Hansen, D-Green Bay, would make defrauding the states flagship job-creation agency a Class E felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and five years of extended supervision and/or a $50,000 fine. Offenders and their companies would also be ineligible for WEDC benefits for seven years and could be liable for damages.

A similar bill passed the Assembly last session but never received a hearing in the Senate Committee on Economic Development, Commerce and Local Government. The previous chairman of that committee, former Sen. Rick Gudex, died last year. His successor, Sen. Dan Feyen, R-Fond du Lac, didnt respond to a request for comment.

The previous bill faced opposition from the Wisconsin Economic Development Association, which warned the bill could have a chilling effect on legitimate businesses seeking financial aid but worried inaccurate projections about job creation would be punished.

The bill includes a provision that was added as an amendment to the previous bill stating a person is not guilty of an offense under the bill if his or her predictive statements regarding future events are not realized, unless he or she knows that a statement is false when made.

It doesnt matter if its fraud against FoodShare or against unemployment compensation or WEDC, Kerkman said. Taxpayer dollars shouldnt be defrauded.

The State Journal reported in May 2015 that WEDC had given a $500,000 loan to a struggling Milwaukee construction company in 2011 without a thorough review and at the urging of Gov. Scott Walkers top aides, including then Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch.

The company had been sued three times in the previous five years, though owner William Minahan claimed in an application for $4.3 million in WEDC funds it faced no lawsuits. Minahan also misrepresented the extent of his partnership with a La Crosse company and UW-Milwaukee.

Minahan had stiffed creditors, including a luxury car dealership that leased him a Maserati, and told them he could pay them back with money he was getting from the state. The loan was supposed to fund a business venture to make energy efficiency upgrades to credit unions.

WEDC successfully sued Minahans now-defunct company Building Committee Inc., but the loan has not been repaid. Minahan has not been charged with a crime.

In another 2011 case, the state loaned $1.2 million to Green Box LLC owned by De Pere-area businessman Ron Van Den Heuvel to help the company create 116 jobs as part of a more than $13 million project to turn fast-food wrappers and other waste paper into synthetic fuel and paper products while producing zero waste.

Van Den Heuvel, who now faces unrelated bank fraud charges, falsely told WEDC he hadnt faced any lawsuits in the previous five years. A Brown County Sheriffs Office investigator testified Van Den Heuvel used the money to pay off personal and business debts, such as Green Bay Packers box seats, trips to Las Vegas and $2,000 weekly alimony payments to his ex-wife.

When Walker and the Republican Legislature created WEDC in 2011, they didnt create specific criminal penalties for defrauding WEDC similar to laws against bank fraud.

Walker voiced support for the previous bill in January last year, saying if people give out fraudulent information there should be consequences. His spokesman didnt respond to a request for comment Friday.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP)  Malaysia's foreign minister said Saturday that the government hopes to begin formal talks with North Korea in the "next few days" on solving a diplomatic dispute that has seen the two countries bar each other's citizens from leaving.

The dispute stems from the mysterious poisoning death of the estranged half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Feb. 13 at Kuala Lumpur's airport. Malaysia says Kim Jong Nam died after two women smeared his face with the banned VX nerve agent, but North Korea  which is widely suspected to be behind the attack  rejects the findings.

Relations have steadily deteriorated, with each country expelling the other's ambassador. On Tuesday, North Korea blocked all Malaysians from leaving the country until a "fair settlement" of the case was reached. Malaysia then barred North Koreans from exiting its soil.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said Saturday that communication was ongoing with the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur and that both sides were ready for formal talks. He said many countries offered to help, but "we don't need a third party's help for the time being and hopefully will never need them."

"We are ready ... they (also) want to start talking. We hope (to begin) in the next few days," Anifah told reporters after meeting with the families of the nine Malaysians still stranded in North Korea. "The safety of our people is our paramount concern and we are doing everything possible."

He said the nine Malaysians  three embassy workers and their family members  were safe and allowed to move freely.

About 1,000 North Koreans are believed to be in Malaysia.

Anifah said the return of Kim's body would be part of the talks' agenda. "We don't want to keep the body more than what is necessary," he said. "Eventually we have to surrender the body to someone, whether to the government or next-of-kin."

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North Korea has demanded the body back from Day One and objected to Malaysia's autopsy. Pyongyang also has refused to acknowledge that Kim Jong Nam was the victim and has referred to him as Kim Chol, the name on the passport Kim was carrying when he was attacked in a crowded airport terminal.

On Friday, Malaysian police confirmed that Kim Chol and Kim Jong Nam was the same person, but refused to say how they identified Kim. Malaysian authorities have asked for Kim's immediate family to provide DNA samples to identify the body, but nobody has come forward. Malaysia's prime minister has said they may be too scared.

Although Malaysia has never directly accused North Korea of being behind the attack, many speculate that Pyongyang must have orchestrated it. Experts say the VX nerve agent used to kill Kim was almost certainly produced in a sophisticated state weapons laboratory, and North Korea is widely believed to possess large quantities of chemical weapons.

Four of the seven North Korean suspects being sought by Malaysia are believed to have left the country the day Kim was killed. Police say the other three suspects, including a North Korean diplomat, are believed to be in hiding at the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

The attack was caught on surveillance video that shows two women going up to Kim and apparently smearing something on his face. He was dead within 20 minutes, authorities say. Two women  one Indonesian, one Vietnamese  have been charged with murder but say they were duped into thinking they were playing a harmless prank.
By Rozanna Latiff KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia will in the coming days begin formal talks with North Korea on the return of nine Malaysians stranded in Pyongyang, the Southeast Asian nation's foreign minister said on Saturday, after they were barred from leaving the country amid a diplomatic spat. The two countries have sparred over the Feb. 13 killing in Kuala Lumpur of Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, and this week the incident sparked a diplomatic standoff as both countries slapped travel bans on each other's citizens. But Malaysian officials have since diffused tensions, saying ties with the reclusive state will not be severed. Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said North Korea had indicated they were ready to start negotiations. "They want to start talking. We do not know what their demands are - we need to figure out what we can do to get the best result," he told reporters on Saturday. He said many countries had offered to mediate between the two but that "no countries will act as a third party" or mediator. He added no time or location had been set yet for the official negotiations. Two Malaysians - staffers at the United Nations - were able to fly out of Pyongyang earlier this week using UN passports, leaving nine behind, including three children. Malaysia has accused the nuclear-armed state of masterminding Kim Jong Nam's murder and identified eight North Koreans, including three still in Kuala Lumpur, in connection with the killing. North Korea has in turn criticised Malaysia's handling of the investigation. Kim Jong Nam, who had been living under Beijing's protection in Macau and had been known to criticise his family's regime, was killed using the highly toxic VX nerve agent. The chemical is classified by the UN as a weapon of mass destruction. Anifah said the government is in "constant communication" with the stranded Malaysians. He added that they had been offered support from other foreign missions in Pyongyang, including the provision of supplies from outside North Korea. Malaysia's police chief on Friday officially confirmed the victim was Kim Jong Nam, something Pyongyang has denied. Malaysia has so far refused to comply with North Korean demands to hand over the victim's body to the embassy. Foreign minister Anifah said on Saturday authorities were yet to discuss with their North Korean counterparts whether they would give the body over to the North Korean government or the family. (Writing by Kanupriya Kapoor; Editing by Sam Holmes)
By Rozanna Latiff KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia will in the coming days begin formal talks with North Korea on the return of nine Malaysians stranded in Pyongyang, the Southeast Asian nation's foreign minister said on Saturday, after they were barred from leaving the country amid a diplomatic spat. The two countries have sparred over the Feb. 13 killing in Kuala Lumpur of Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, and this week the incident sparked a diplomatic standoff as both countries slapped travel bans on each other's citizens. But Malaysian officials have since diffused tensions, saying ties with the reclusive state will not be severed. Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said North Korea had indicated they were ready to start negotiations. "They want to start talking. We do not know what their demands are - we need to figure out what we can do to get the best result," he told reporters on Saturday. He said many countries had offered to mediate between the two but that "no countries will act as a third party" or mediator. He added no time or location had been set yet for the official negotiations. Two Malaysians - staffers at the United Nations - were able to fly out of Pyongyang earlier this week using UN passports, leaving nine behind, including three children. Malaysia has accused the nuclear-armed state of masterminding Kim Jong Nam's murder and identified eight North Koreans, including three still in Kuala Lumpur, in connection with the killing. North Korea has in turn criticized Malaysia's handling of the investigation. Kim Jong Nam, who had been living under Beijing's protection in Macau and had been known to criticize his family's regime, was killed using the highly toxic VX nerve agent. The chemical is classified by the UN as a weapon of mass destruction. Anifah said the government is in "constant communication" with the stranded Malaysians. He added that they had been offered support from other foreign missions in Pyongyang, including the provision of supplies from outside North Korea. Malaysia's police chief on Friday officially confirmed the victim was Kim Jong Nam, something Pyongyang has denied. Malaysia has so far refused to comply with North Korean demands to hand over the victim's body to the embassy. Foreign minister Anifah said on Saturday authorities were yet to discuss with their North Korean counterparts whether they would give the body over to the North Korean government or the family. (Writing by Kanupriya Kapoor; Editing by Sam Holmes)
BAMAKO (Reuters) - Mali's government proposed a bill on Friday to establish a new Senate chamber as part of a shake up of its constitution designed to reinforce democracy in the West African country, according to a government statement. The body will be one of eight key institutions of state that include the president, government, national assembly and supreme court, the government said after an extraordinary meeting of the council of ministers headed by President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. "The draft law gives the president of the republic the responsibility to determine the policy of the nation and the right to appoint the prime minister and to terminate his functions without the need for him to resign," it said. "It creates a parliament consisting of two chambers: the national assembly and the Senate," it said. The bill must be passed by the national assembly before it becomes law. Security in Mali is bolstered by a deployment of French troops and a U.N. peacekeeping mission but despite this and years of peace talks, the country faces problems of banditry, unrest and Islamist militancy. Keita was sworn in to a five-year term as president after a multi-party election in 2013. (Reporting by Adama Diarra; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Sandra Maler)
PRINCETON, N.J. (AP)  Princeton University says a gender discrimination lawsuit filed against it by a former graduate student is meritless and contains a series of inaccurate accusations.

A student dubbed John Doe filed the lawsuit in federal court in New Jersey on Thursday. He alleges because he's a man the university didn't take seriously his reports that he was sexually assaulted twice by a man he was dating or that he had attempted suicide.

Princeton received notice of the lawsuit Friday. It says the lawsuit repeatedly mischaracterizes how it handled the student's case. It says it "responds seriously and compassionately to victims of sexual misconduct and to all students who need support."

The student's lawsuit seeks financial damages.

Princeton says it's confident it will prevail.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Maryland became the latest state to join in legal challenges against President Donald Trump's revised temporary travel ban on Friday, with its attorney general saying it would join a lawsuit brought by Washington and other states. Attorney General Brian Frosh said his office would formally join the suit on Monday. "The administration persists in an effort to implement a policy that is inhumane and unconstitutional, but also makes us less safe, not more safe," Frosh said in a statement. The new travel order, which is set to take effect on Wednesday, replaced a more sweeping ban issued on Jan. 27 that caused chaos and protests at airports. The first order, which temporarily halted the entry of refugees and travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries, was hit by more than two dozen lawsuits. Detractors claimed it discriminated against Muslims and violated the U.S. Constitution. The government has said the president has wide authority to implement immigration policy and that the travel rules are necessary to protect against terrorist attacks. "Trump's second executive order is still a Muslim ban," Frosh said in the statement. The state of Washington brought one of the suits against the original ban, and last month a federal judge in Seattle ordered an emergency halt to the policy. That ruling was upheld by an appeals court in San Francisco. Washington is now asking the court to apply the emergency halt to the new ban, arguing it is a veiled version of the old one. The new order keeps a 90-day ban on travel to the United States by citizens of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, but excludes Iraq. Refugees are still halted from entering the country for 120 days, but the new order removed an indefinite ban on all refugees from Syria. Oregon and Minnesota also are joining Washington's challenge. Hawaii has a separate case pending against the new ban. Frosh said the ban would make Maryland less competitive by deterring visits by academics, scientists and engineers from other countries and would hurt Maryland's universities and economy. The U.S. Department of Justice has declined to comment on the states' cases because the litigation is pending. (Reporting by David Alexander in Washington and Mica Rosenberg in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler)
MEXICO CITY (AP)  Mexicans are lining up at the first private gasoline station operated by a foreign firm.

Until last year, all Mexican gas stations operated under the brand of the state-owned petroleum company Pemex.

Now Pemex has competition from BP, whose first station opened this week on the outskirts of Mexico City.

Customers were drawn by what BP calls its "Active technology," apparently a gasoline additive.

The opening of the retail sector to competition was part of energy reforms passed in 2014.

Two private Mexican companies opened three gas stations under their own brands in June.

Mexico's oil industry was nationalized in 1938, but recent reforms aim to attract private investment to bolster the country's falling crude production.
Millennials attend the IMF/World Bank Groups Spring summit featuring young world leaders in Washington, D.C., in 2014. (Photo: Miguel Juarez Lugo/ZUMAPRESS.com)

A new report suggests that millennials care less about party loyalty than previous generations and increasingly feel that the terms liberal and conservative fail to capture the diversity of contemporary political affiliations.

The 2016 Millennial Impact Report, released Saturday, focuses on how millennials, broadly defined as those born between 1980 and 2000, engaged in the political process during the election year that led to Donald Trumps presidency.

For the last six years, the research and marketing agency Achieve, which has offices in Indianapolis and West Palm Beach, Fla., has researched how and why millennials engage in political causes. 2016 gave researchers a chance to see how this generation behaved during a contentious and often unpredictable election year.

We wanted to understand how the election influenced millennials attitudes toward cause engagement, and so this presented a prime opportunity. Never could we have imagined what the political season wouldve looked like this past year, Amy Thayer, director of research for Achieve, said during a webinar.

The researchers began their study with two hypotheses: that millennials would take up different social causes corresponding to the ideologies of the parties final nominees, and that their engagement with causes would increase on social media and offline during the political season. Both of these notions proved unfounded.

From March through November 2016, millennial interest in social causes did not change significantly (education remained the top issue throughout) and cause-related engagement did not increase. Thayer said that millennials as a cohort cannot be easily characterized as liberal or conservative, and that the vast majority of respondents ended up somewhere in the middle.

Millennials are quietly, yet powerfully, redefining terms such as cause engagement, liberal, conservative, activist, Thayer said. What the data reveal were that cause engagement, liberal, conservative  these are all definitions that traditionally people have an idea of what they mean. But what we found when we spoke to millennials  is that these definitions dont apply to them.

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Millennials, she continued, want to change, redefine or eradicate such political labels. They want the U.S. government, she said, to become less divisive and to embrace what they consider to be the increasing open-mindedness of Americans on social issues that were controversial in previous generations.

Many held both fiscally conservative and socially liberal views and would identify themselves based on which they valued more strongly.

Millennials arent loyal to political parties. But instead, they were more loyal to the issues and the causes they were passionate about, that they cared about, Thayer said. And then the candidates that they believed best spoke to those issues or causes, those are the people that they tended to align themselves with.

Protesters gather in Union Square Park in New York on Feb. 3, 2017, to express their displeasure with President Trumps executive orders relating to a ban on certain Muslims entering the country and his plans to build a wall between the United States and Mexico. (Photo: Richard B. Levine/Levine Roberts/Newscom via ZUMA Press)

Their top issues include education, employment, health care and the economy.

Slightly over half of respondents (52.5 percent) identified themselves as activists, but even those people did not relate strongly with the label. This raised the question of why only half the members of a generation often disparaged as do-gooders see themselves as activists.

I see an activist along the lines of a protester, so I cant say that I consider myself one of those, one millennial respondent said. In a small way, I have no problem voicing my opinion to my congressman or signing a petition, but I really wouldnt consider myself an activist.

For Thayer, this attitude was typical of people the researchers encountered throughout their study. Millennials tend to believe in their own ability to create social change and better their community, country and world. They generally believe that the power rests in their hands, and doubt the governments ability to promote change, so they quietly live what the researchers call a change-making lifestyle every day.

In aggregate, more than 70 percent of millennials said they believed they could have an impact on issues they care about  without relying on traditional institutions. Roughly 75 percent of respondents had a very low level of trust in government and few trusted government to do whats right and to work on their behalf, Thayer said.

So, according to the researchers, what causes millennials to engage in politics?

Its an intrinsic desire to help a cause that theyre interested in. Its not loyalty to an organization, its not belief in individual candidates or supporting a political party, Thayer said. It really is their intensive desire, their own personal desire, to support an organization or a cause of their choice.

Amy Lynch, a conference speaker and generations expert, told Yahoo News that she agrees that both major parties have lost touch with millennials and that she believes this generation is not drawn to the political system.

They have never seen it work well. At no time in their memory has government worked efficiently. They remember a lot of times when government couldnt even pass a budget, but they dont remember really effective government, so they dont believe in it very much, she said.

According to Lynch, millennials turn to businesses, not to government, to make the world a better place. As examples, she cited the shoe brand Toms and the prescription eyeglasses brand Warby Parker, whose business model is Buy a pair, give a pair.

She said that millennials turned out in great numbers to support Barack Obama during his first presidential campaign, but that they were disappointed and burned because they had wanted to see a lot of change and because they felt he was unable to achieve as much as they wanted.

The other burn was Bernie Sanders. Millennials were behind him, Lynch said. They did not vote in big numbers for Hillary [Clinton], because what they want is a real visionary leader who will make government work.

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By Rupam Jain and Tommy Wilkes NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Sensing his party's drive for votes in India's most politically prized state had stalled, Prime Minister Narendra Modi cleared his schedule and thrust himself into the heart of the battle. "Our election campaign has hit a roadblock," Modi told campaign managers and two federal ministers in Delhi last month, a week before the sixth of seven phases of voting was to begin in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. "I don't want to feel that I could have pushed myself a little more," Modi was quoted as saying by a close aide who attended the meeting. For three full days the leader of the world's largest democracy camped out in the holy city of Varanasi, his parliamentary constituency, walking the ancient streets and stopping at Hindu temples to seek blessings, despite warnings from aides about his security and the risk to his reputation had his party come up short. On Saturday the gamble paid off: Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) scored a thumping victory in Uttar Pradesh, home to one in six Indians, winning the biggest majority in the state for any party since 1977. The triumph vindicates Modi's decision to turn the campaign into a referendum on his own performance after his shock decision last November to abolish high-denomination banknotes, a move he framed as a fight for the poor against the corrupt rich. "We were always nervous that overexposing the prime minister in the final stages of the election could make us look desperate," said Keshav Prasad Maurya, the BJP's state leader in Uttar Pradesh. As it turned out, Modi's victory confounded even the most bullish voter surveys. The BJP won 312 of the 403 seats in the state assembly and, with 39.7 percent of the vote, almost matched its showing in Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 general election, when it claimed the biggest parliamentary majority in three decades. "Modi's magic has destroyed the opposition and silenced skeptics in the party," Maurya told Reuters on Saturday, as the scale of the victory became clear. TWO-TERM MODI The win clears a path to victory for Modi at a 2019 general election, and gives him a free hand to consolidate his grip over a state that sends the highest number of federal lawmakers to parliament. That has raised hopes among investors that the BJP will embark on a round of new reforms to boost growth in Asia's third-largest economy, and try to tackle the corruption and red tape that has long undermined India's potential. Economists now expect Modi to launch initiatives aimed at flushing out ill-gotten gains from real estate, gold and campaign finance. But they caution that his biggest task remains transforming India's economy into one that creates enough jobs for an emerging generation that is desperate to give up life on the farm for a more prosperous future. "Jobs is the biggest risk," said Rajiv Kumar, an economist at the Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research. "That's where he has to focus very hard and it could mean reforms as radical as demonetization." Modi's BJP now heads the government in states where more than half of Indians live, while the Congress party, which has ruled India for most of the 70 years since independence, leads in regions covering less than 8 percent of the population. Success will increase the pressure on Modi to provide for an increasingly aspirational nation of 1.3 billion people, half of whom are aged 25 or under. "He has to do a very delicate tightrope walk between being reformist and populist," said Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, a journalist and biographer of Modi. "The problem in India is that people think reforms are pro-rich." COMMUNAL TONE Modi relied on his own charisma to clinch crucial votes in poor and agrarian Uttar Pradesh, but his campaign manager Amit Shah also takes credit for fielding the right candidates in a region where many people vote along caste and religious lines. Critics accuse Shah and Modi of "social engineering" and of switching to a more communally divisive tone to fire up their Hindu base as voting, staggered over the course of a month, progressed. Shah vowed to construct a Hindu temple on a razed mosque site and ban the slaughter of cows, worshipped by millions of Hindus. On the campaign trail, too, Modi played up religious divisions by asking why the state government ensured there were no power cuts in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan but not during the Hindu festival of Diwali. Still, the BJP likely collected minority votes, including Muslim women whom he courted by questioning an Islamic practice that allows men to divorce their wives with three simple words. "The results prove that Muslims and backward caste groups voted for the BJP," said R.K. Mishra, a political analyst in Lucknow, the state capital of Uttar Pradesh. (Editing by Douglas Busvine and Alex Richardson)
The son of renowned boxer Muhammad Ali was detained by officials at a U.S. airport for the second time in little more than a month, according to a tweet posted Friday by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla. Wasserman Schultz, former chair of the Democratic National Committee, posted a photo of herself and Muhammad Ali Jr.

On way home on DOMESTIC FLIGHT Muhammad Ali Jr. detained AGAIN by @DHSgov. Religiously profiling son of The Greatest will not make us safe, she wrote.

Read: NASA Scientist And US Citizen Detained At Airport Amid Trump's Travel Ban

Its unclear exactly what happened, but Ali was detained previously by U.S. customs officials in February. He said he was held for almost two hours while traveling through Floridas Fort-Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport with his mother Feb. 7.

The officer said, What religion are you? And I said, Muslim. He said, Come with me. So he took me to another room, Ali told "CBS This Morning" in February. Its like he didnt believe me, or whatever. But he asked me again, What is your name? And what is your religion? And again I answered.

Ali, who was born in Philadelphia and is a U.S. citizen, said he was separated from his mother during the incident.

You see my state ID. You see my passport. I offered my Social Security card, he said. So why are you stopping me?

Alis lawyer, Chris Mancini, speculated the incident was a direct result of President Donald Trumps immigration ban although Jamaica, from where Ali and his mother had been traveling, were not mentioned in the travel order.

To the Ali family, its crystal clear that this is directly linked to Mr. Trumps efforts to ban Muslims from the United States, Mancini told the Louisville Courier-Journal following the incident.

Due to the restrictions of the Privacy Act, U.S. Customs and Border Protection cannot discuss individual travelers, Customs and Border Protection said in an email response to USA Todays request for comment. However, all international travelers arriving in the U.S. are subject CBP inspection.

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Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon) shows off his potato crop in The Martian ((20th Century Fox))

The 2015 film The Martian saw stranded astronaut Mark Watney growing his own potato crop on Mars in order to survive, and it turns out this might actually be possible.

And with Congress having just passed a bill that puts a Mars mission on the map by 2033, the ability to grow food on the Martian surface may be vital in the near future.

Just last week, NASA unveiled plans to use a magnetic shield to restore the atmosphere to Mars to a more Earth-like environment.

The experiment used sealed boxes and desert soil to replicate the harsh conditions of Mars (CIP)

The new NASA-backed research carried out by the International Potato Centre (CIP) in Lima, Peru has shown that it is possible to grow spuds on Mars, saying preliminary results are positive.

The research centre set out to recreate the extreme growing conditions of Mars by planting tubers in desert soil inside a hermetically sealed CubeSat  a rocket-launchable box.

Water hoses, LEDs, pumps and temperature gauges were used to replicate the harsh conditions of the Martian surface, including its air pressure, oxygen and carbon dioxide levels.

If the crops can tolerate the extreme conditions that we are exposing them to in our CubeSat, they have a good chance to grow on Mars, said Julio Valdivia-Silva, a research associate with the SETI Institute who has worked at NASAs Ames Research Center and now works at UTEC in Lima.

We will do several rounds of experiments to find out which potato varieties do best. We want to know what the minimum conditions are that a potato needs to survive.

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While the experiment does not categorically prove that potatoes will grow on Mars, it does strongly suggest that it is possible.

For future deep space missions and the journey to Mars, new methods of providing food for astronauts will be required, especially if there is any hope of setting up colonies on other worlds.

Not only could the findings of the potatoes on Mars experiment help with future space missions, they could also lead to new farming methods, helping people survive in extreme environments on Earth.
NASA found a mysterious, badass, lost spacecraft orbiting the moon

As it turns out, the moon isnt all alone up there quietly watching Earth spin on its axis. We arent referring to any type of alien presence, but NASA did find a lost spacecraft orbiting the moon, which is not as cool as the Lego figures orbiting Jupiter, but interesting nonetheless.

So, does that technically mean our lovely lunar neighbor has its own moon? Does a piece of space junk even count? These pressing questions need answers, but heres what we know for sure.

As Gizmodo reports, some majorly intense detective work led NASA to the Indian spacecraft Chandrayaan-1, which was used in Indias first lunar mission when it launched in 2008. The vehicle spent 10 months completing its missions and was never heard from again, until now.

Finding LRO was relatively easy, as we were working with the missions navigators and had precise orbit data where it was located, Californias Jet Propulsion Laboratory radar scientist Marina Brozovic said of the U.S.s still-active Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which launched in 2009. Finding Indias Chandrayaan-1 required a bit more detective work because the last contact with the spacecraft was in August of 2009.

Making the search even more challenging was the Chandrayaan-1s small size. It measures about five feet on each side, or as the JPL describes it, about half the size of a small car. Then there was the matter of the 237,000 distance between Earth and the moon. Since scientists knew the spacecraft was in lunar orbit, so they utilized NASAs 70-meter antenna at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California to send microwave beams toward the moon in order to narrow down a specific location.

Using the echoes that bounced back from those beams, scientists were able to confirm Chandrayaan-1s position after months of work. According to the JPL, this innovative use of interplanetary radar has not only proven useful for locating lost spacecraft, but may serve as a powerful tool for planning future moon missions.
Lagos (AFP) - Nigeria's southern oil-rich Rivers state on Saturday backed a government call for major oil companies to move their offices to the Niger delta region, as part of measures to stem unrest in the oil-rich area.

Attacks by rebels seeking a fairer share of Nigeria's multi-billion-dollar oil wealth for local residents have slashed output and hammered revenue at a time of falling global crude prices.

Last week, Nigeria's Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo ordered major oil companies including Anglo-Dutch Shell as well as US groups Mobil and Chevron to relocate their main offices to the troubled Niger delta region, where most people remain impoverished despite decades of oil extraction.

"We are in full support of the acting president," Rivers state information commissioner Austin Tam-George said in a statement Saturday, referring to Osinbajo.

The vice president has been in charge while President Muhammadu Buhari has been on medical leave in Britain.

"If the oil companies move their headquarters to the Niger delta, they will be more responsive to the grievances of the people with a view to addressing them," he added.

Tam-George called it "improper and unacceptable" for the companies to keep their main offices in Lagos and Abuja, well away from their oil operations.

"The Niger delta is where the oil companies carry out their exploration activities, with the resultant effects of spills and damage to the ecosystem. They need to have their administrative base there," he insisted.

The country depends on oil for 70 percent of government revenue and 90 percent of its foreign exchange earnings.

"I can say for sure that once the companies comply, the militancy and violence will end, because the people will see themselves as stakeholders in the business," Tam-George said.

A recent lull in oil attacks is due to peace efforts of the federal and Rivers state governments, with more than 22,000 ex-militants surrendering their weapons, he added.

"But unlike the federal government, we don't offer cash in exchange for weapons. We empower the youths through jobs, training and vocational skill, especially in ICT (information and communication technology), which is the oil of the future".
A United States nuclear weapons expert said this week that North Korea would likely soon have a reliable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of striking the U.S. with a nuclear warhead, reported South Korea's Yonhap News agency.

Gary Samore, who served for four years as President Barack Obama's White House Coordinator for Arms Control and Weapons of Mass Destruction, said during a Senate Armed Services Subcommittee hearing that North Korea could have that capability in five year's time. That's largely due to North Korea's dictatorial leader Kim Jong Un, who has aggressively pursued expanding the hermetic country's nuclear arsenal. Amid tough language toward the U.S. and its neighbors to the south, North Korea has carried recent tests that show marked improvement in its missile technology.

Read: North Korea May Be Preparing Next Missile Test

"It's difficult to calculate or predict when North Korea might achieve that capability, a reliable nuclear-armed ICBM, but certainly with the pace of testing they've been carrying out something in the next five to 10 years seems like a reasonable guess," Samore said, via Yonhap. "Unfortunately, our ability to prevent North Korea from achieving that capability with military or diplomatic tools is very limited. Although we might be able to delay the program. In the end, I think deterrence and missile defense is probably going to be our most effective response."

The White House appears to be taking the threat of North Korea quite seriously. President Donald Trump has reportedly been presented with military options for stopping Kim's progress toward developing a nuclear arsenal capable of striking the U.S. and his top aides have not ruled out any method of containing North Korea.

"We are considering every option that's on the table," Nikki Haley, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told reporters this week following a Security Council meeting at the U.N. headquarters in New York.

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Read: Is Trump Preparing For North Korea War?

North Korea has not been shy about lobbing threats at the West as well, especially after the U.S. and South Korea began large-scale military drills early this month.

"Should the U.S. imperialists and the South Korean puppet forces fire even a single shell into the waters where the sovereignty of our Republic is exercised, the KPA will immediately launch its merciless military counter-actions," a spokesman for the Korean People's Army said in a statement released by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

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North Korea may soon conduct a powerful nuclear test as the reclusive country is continuing to excavate a tunnel at its nuclear site, U.S. analysts said Saturday. The news comes just a day after a former CIA official raised concerns over Pyongyang's ability to attack the U.S. with a ballistic missile.

Kim Jong Un's latest nuclear explosion may be up to 14 times more powerful than its last test, which was conducted in September 2016, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported, citing the analysts. Satellite images released Thursday by 38 North, a website run by the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, shows substantial tunnel excavation at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site.

"The continued tunneling under Mt. Mantap via the North Portal has the potential for allowing North Korea to support additional underground nuclear tests of significantly higher explosive yields, perhaps up to 282 kilotons (282000 tons)," according to the article written by analysts Frank Pabian, a Los Alamos National Laboratory fellow, and David Coblentz, an environmental science expert at LANL.

Read: North Korea Will Destroy Los Angeles With A Nuclear Bomb, Defector Warns

North Korea's fifth nuclear test and its last so far is estimated at 15,000-20,000 tons yield. New tunneling activity has only been observed at the North Portal after the fifth nuclear test, the analysts revealed.

"This suggests that the North Portal will very likely continue to be used as the primary test location, possibly because it provides the greatest amount of overburden and would likely be the most capable of containing the largest possible explosive yields, potentially up to just above a quarter of a megaton," the report added.

North Korea continued its nuclear threats as it test-fired missiles earlier this month in retaliation to U.S.-South Korea military drills.

Bruce Klingner, a former CIA deputy division chief for Korea, told Fox News on Friday that Pyongyang is close to developing a nuclear missile that could hit Washington. While many speculate about North Korea attacking the U.S., analysts believe that the nuclear launch may come sooner than expected.

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We can expect an [intercontinental ballistic missile] test this year with full capability within the next few years, Klingner told Fox News.

North Korea has been criticized for its latest provocation, which came just days after Pyongyang warned of merciless military counter-actions if Washington and Seoul provoked the reclusive country. Concerns over North Korea's nuclear attack grew after Pyongyang on Feb. 12 tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile, which it said was capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.

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The federal judge in Seattle who last month blocked enforcement nationwide of President Trumps first order to limit immigration from Mideast nations refused on Friday  at least for now  to decide whether to block the revised version of those restrictions.

In a three-page order that contained implied criticism of lawyers on both sides of the case, U.S. District Judge James L. Robart noted the dispute among the lawyers over whether his prior ruling applied to the new version of the White House executive order, but declined to settle it. He said neither side had made a formal request that would set up such a decision.

Robarts refusal to act for the time being raised the possibility that he would not do so in advance of next Wednesday night, when the second Trump order is scheduled to go into effect. Robart said he would expect to call for new briefs if one side or the other made a formal motion seeking to resolve the new dispute. That could take several days. (It is possible that federal judges elsewhere could act on challenges to the revised order before Wednesday midnight.)

The Trump Administration has taken the view that Judge Robarts bar to enforcement applied only to the original immigration limits and not to the second one. The states of Washington and Minnesota have argued that the Rohart order remains in effect and does apply to block the new version.

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That disagreement arose this past week, after Trump Administration lawyers filed with the judge a copy of the revised order, and told him of the governments view that it is free to begin enforcing it just after midnight next Wednesday. But that filing made no mention of any request for the judge to act. Responding to that filing, lawyers for the two challenging states asked the judge to uphold their view that the prior order applies in full to the second one. But they filed no specific motion to achieve that result.

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Judge Robart on Friday recounted these developments, and commented that there is no pending motion concerning the foregoing issues. He then declined to make a decision.

First, he said that he would not do so until one side or the other filed a proper motion, supported by proper briefing. Second, he took note of the fact that lawyers for the two states had promised to file a formal new lawsuit against the revised order by next Wednesday. And, until that is filed, the judge said, he would not decide the applicability of his prior order blocking the initial order to the revised version.

Robart noted, pointedly, that his prior order had come in reaction to the initial White House order, because that was the one the two states had contested in their first challenge. That comment seemed to send a signal that the states lawyers will have to convince him explicitly that the revised order is as much a violation of the Constitution and federal laws as was the first version, rather than persuading him of the simpler view that he should simply extend the prior ban on enforcement.

The early days of next week thus may be crucial to the outcome of the dispute in the Washington/Minnesota case. That case has already been joined by the state of Oregon, and is also to be joined soon by the states of Massachusetts and New York.

Legendary journalist Lyle Denniston is Constitution Dailys Supreme Court correspondent. Denniston has written for us as a contributor since June 2011 and has covered the Supreme Court since 1958. His work also appears on lyldenlawnews.com, where this story first appeared.
Recently, new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt said that he does not agree that carbon dioxide emissions are a primary contributor to global warming.

This is, of course, simply not true. And he should realize that he is hurting the American people and our economy when he tries to inject doubt into proven science.

The reality of climate change should encourage Mr. Pruitt to be even more clear-eyed and pragmatic, and to recognize that taking action to reduce carbon pollution is necessary to put the nation's economy on a strong long-term path.

Businesses thrive when they make smart decisions based on the best available information. The reality is that climate change is happening now and is having wide-ranging ripple effects on businesses  both on their direct operations and global supply chains.

Making evidence-based calculations about the future is what companies call managing risks. Tackling risks creates enormous business opportunities  something we're already seeing as the clean energy economy is creating hundreds of thousands of jobs all across the country. Ignoring risks and long-term trends for short-term benefits is how to drive a company - and the economy - into the ground.

The American business community is strongly united in recognizing the need for climate action. Close to 900 companies and investors have called on President Trump and Congress to support the Paris Climate Agreement and low-carbon policies that will help the U.S. achieve its carbon-reducing commitments. Industry giants like DuPont, eBay, General Mills, Mars Inc., Nike, PG&E and VF Corporation are among those telling the Trump administration that the low-carbon future is coming, and businesses need to plan for it.

That's why even oil companies like ConocoPhillips recommend the U.S. stay in the Paris Agreement to fight climate change. It's also one of the reasons dozens of Fortune 500 companies are moving to meet all of their electricity needs with 100 percent renewable energy.

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This doesn't need to be a partisan political issue. Just look at the Climate Leadership Council, a group of prominent Republicans, including former U.S. secretaries of State and Treasury, who are pushing a proposal to put a price on carbon in exchange for reducing other regulations. While details of the proposal raise significant concerns, it nonetheless sends a powerful message about the seriousness of climate change. As James Baker, the former Secretary of State under President George H.W. Bush said last month, the risks of climate change are "too great to ignore."

Mr. Pruitt's denial of the obvious is strikingly out of step. A new Yale University study shows that a strong majority of Americans trust science experts on global warming and, most importantly, support regulating carbon emissions as a pollutant.

Many GOP governors across the country are also taking climate action because they see the huge economic and job-creation opportunities of supporting clean energy growth in their states. The wind power industry alone has attracted $140 billion into the U.S. economy over the past decade, with the biggest beneficiaries being Iowa, Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota and Mr. Pruitt's home state, Oklahoma, which all generated at least 20 percent of their energy with wind last year.

Governing is about debating differing approaches to solving the problems facing America. When the evidence is so overwhelming, the debate to be had is about the best way to enact climate solutions, not a know-nothing rejection of the problem itself and reckless disregard for the truth.

If Mr. Pruitt were a business executive who denied reality in this way, his tenure in that role would be short lived.

Commentary by Mindy Lubber, the president of Ceres, a nonprofit sustainability organization mobilizing the world's largest investors and companies to take stronger action on climate change, water scarcity and other global sustainability challenges. She previously served as the US EPA Regional Administrator for New England.

For the latest commentary on the markets in the U.S. and around the world, follow @cnbcopinion on Twitter.

Watch: The full Pruitt interview





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South Korea's Constitutional Court has formally removed President Park Geun-Hye from office over a corruption scandal, sparking clashes that have left two people dead.

The country's first female leader is accused of allowing a close friend to profit from her connections with the presidency, and was impeached in December after weeks of protests aimed at securing her resignation.

Acting chief justice Lee Jung-Mi said Ms Park's "acts of violating the constitution and law are a betrayal of the public trust".

"The benefits of protecting the constitution that can be earned by dismissing the defendant are overwhelmingly big," she said.

"Hereupon, in a unanimous decision by the court panel, we issue a verdict: We dismiss the defendant, President Park Geun-Hye."

Her lawyer, Seo Seok-Gu, who had previously compared Ms Park's impeachment to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, condemned the verdict as a "tragic decision" made under popular pressure.

Thousands of people celebrated the historic decision on the streets of the capital Seoul, with polls showing that between 70 and 80% of South Koreans had wanted the court to throw Ms Park out of office.

The celebrations turned ugly, however, as her supporters clashed with riot police and and a 72-year-old man was hurt and later died in hospital.

A South Korean hospital said he had suffered head injuries after falling from a police bus outside the courthouse.

Police confirmed a second person had also died while protesting against Ms Park's removal, but gave no further details.

Ms Park had maintained her innocence throughout the proceedings.

But the ruling means she is the first leader to be stripped of presidential powers since the country became a democracy in the late 1980s.

It also opens her up to criminal proceedings.

There has been no word from her since the ruling, and it is not yet known when she will leave the presidential Blue House.

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Under South Korean law a sitting president is immune from prosecution for most alleged crimes, but now that she is no longer in power prosecutors can summon, question and even arrest Ms Park.

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-Ahn remains in charge of the country, but an election will be held within two months to choose her successor.

A likely candidate is liberal Moon Jae-In, who lost to Ms Park in 2012 but now leads the polls.

Her removal also plunges the country into deep political and security uncertainty amid a growing nuclear threat from hostile neighbour and rival North Korea.

South Korea's defence minister has ordered the military to be on alert for possible Pyongyang provocations aimed at exploiting the "unstable situation at home".

There are also fears Ms Park's sacking could spark violence between her supporters and opponents.

One of her lawyers last month warned there would be "a rebellion and blood will drench the asphalt" if she was ousted.
Vatican City (AFP) - The Vatican is examining the possibility of Pope Francis visiting Egypt, but no dates have been set, his spokesman said Saturday after Italian reports suggested the trip would happen in May.

"A trip by the Holy Father to Egypt is under study but neither dates nor a programme have been finalised," the spokesman, Greg Burke, said in a statement.

Italy's national broadcaster RAI had claimed that Pope Francis would visit Cairo from May 20-21 and that his programme would include a stop at the Al-Azhar university and mosque complex.

The pope hosted the grand imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed al-Tayeb, at the Vatican last May, in a landmark meeting with one of Islam's top clerics.

That encounter was the culmination of a steady improvement in a relationship that had broken down because of a series of spats under Francis's predecessor Benedict XVI.

The current pope has made interfaith dialogue and reconciliation a leading theme of his pontificate and has also overseen an improvement in relations with the Orthodox and Protestant wings of Christianity.

The Argentine pope has a long-standing invitation to visit Egypt, issued by President President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi when he met Francis at the Vatican in 2014.

Avvenire, the newspaper of the Italian conference of bishops, reported last month that an invitation had also been received from the Coptic Patriarch in Alexandria.

Any trip would be fraught with security concerns but those did not prevent the 80-year-old pontiff from visiting Bangui, the conflict-scarred capital of the Central African Republic in November 2015.

Francis confirmed he was expecting to visit Egypt soon in an interview with German daily Die Zeit that was published on Thursday.

Jean-Louis Tauran, the Vatican cardinal who deals with interfaith dialogue, visited Al-Azhar in February in the latest of a series of meetings between the two institutions.

Presuming the visit goes ahead, Francis will become the second Roman Catholic pope to visit Egypt, following John Paul II's historic trip there in February 2000.

Relations were derailed under Benedict after rows over a 2006 speech in which he was seen as having linked Islam to violence and 2011 comments condemning an attack on a Coptic church in Alexandria which Al-Azhar denounced as meddling in Egypt's affairs.

As things stand, Francis has only two overseas trips scheduled this year, one to the Fatima shrine in Portugal in April and one in September to Colombia.
Istanbul (AFP) - Turkey's family minister flew home to Istanbul on Sunday after Dutch authorities expelled her for seeking to woo the vote of expatriate Turks for a key referendum at home.

A crowd waving Turkish flags greeted Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya at the airport, where she said she and her entourage were subjected to "rude and tough treatment".

Her expulsion came after Dutch authorities barred Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu from entering the Netherlands, where he, too, had planned to campaign for the April referendum that would boost the powers of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The move fuelled a fierce row that spilled over into violence in the port of Rotterdam where Cavusoglu was to speak.

After several hours of calm demonstrations, police moved in early Sunday to disperse over 1,000 people gathered near the Turkish consulate, charging the crowd on horseback and using dogs to regain control.

Protesters hit back, throwing rocks at riot police, while hundreds of cars jammed the streets blaring their horns and revving their engines.

The Netherlands, which holds general elections on Wednesday, had repeatedly said Cavusoglu was not welcome to campaign for the referendum in the country and refused his plane permission to land.

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Cavusoglu, meanwhile, has flown to France where he was set to address a rally in the eastern city of Metz on Sunday.

The French foreign ministry has cleared his visit, a French official said.

The Dutch decision to ban the event in Rotterdam came after Germany and other European nations saw similar campaign events blocked.

Erdogan, who was to address supporters on Sunday, reacted angrily, accusing the Dutch -- who were once under Nazi occupation -- of being "the vestiges of Nazis".

The Netherlands' Prime Minister Mark Rutte fired back, saying Erdogan's criticism was "crazy".

- 'Irresponsible' -

Kaya was stopped just outside the Turkish consulate by Dutch police, and after several hours of negotiations escorted back to the German border.

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The Dutch government said Kaya was "irresponsible" for attempting to visit after being told she was not welcome and said it told Turkey it could not compromise on public order and security.

In Istanbul on Sunday, a man climbed onto the roof of the Dutch consulate and replace the Dutch flag with a Turkish flag. The flag was later taken down.

The Netherlands is home to some 400,000 people of Turkish origin, and Ankara is keen to harness votes of the diaspora in Europe ahead of the April 16 constitutional referendum on creating an executive presidency.

The Turkish government argues the changes would ensure stability and create more efficient governance, but opponents say it would lead to one-man rule and further inflame tensions in its diverse society.

The latest row came after NATO allies Turkey and Germany sparred over the cancellation of a series of referendum campaign events there.

Germany is home to 1.4 million people eligible to vote in Turkey -- the fourth-largest electoral base after Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.

Turkish officials repeatedly questioned Berlin's insistence that the cancellations by local authorities were for logistical reasons.
Saturday evening marks the start of Purim, a holiday filled with food, fun and a celebration of Judaism. First celebrated in the first century before becoming more popular in the Middle Ages, the holiday is now enjoyed with dancing, festivals and costumes. Here are seven facts to know about Purim.

Read: History, Facts And Recipes To Celebrate Dominican Republican Independence Day 2017

1. Purim celebrates the story of Esther. Known as the Scroll, Megillah in Hebrew, the Book of Esther details the story that came to be celebrated during the festival of Purim. During the 4th century BC in ancient Persia, King Ahasuerus ruled over the region. An adviser to the king named Haman developed a plot to exterminate the Jewish community, unbeknownst to Ahasuerus. In an attempt to save her people, Esther became the kings wife and successfully thwarted the plan, going down in history as a hero of the Jewish people.

2. Its celebrated each year on the 14th day of the month of Adar on the Hebrew calendar. This year, Purim begins Saturday evening and ends Sunday evening.

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Photo: Getty Images

3. Tradition involves reading the Book of Esther. Retelling the story to children is a key part of Purim. The Megillah is typically read once on the eve of Purim and again the next day.

4. The most popular food eaten on Purim is the hamantaschen. Hamantaschens, also known as Haman pockets or oznay Haman, are triangular cookies or sweet rolls filled with poppy seeds, fruit marmalade or other sweets.

5. Celebrants are urged to give to others. Purim observances call for giving money to at least two less fortunate people and sending two kinds of food to at least one person.

6. Congregants use noisemakers at synagogue services to celebrate. Noisemakers, or groggers are shaken during synagogue services every time Hamans name is mentioned to drown it out, a bid to remove him from history.

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7. Other traditions include dressing up and feasting. Dressing in costume is encouraged to enjoy the day fully. Celebrants also often partake in a festive Purim feast including wine and other celebratory beverages.

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RadioShack has filed for bankruptcy protection for a second time and will begin closing down a portion, but not all, of its retail stores.

Parent company General Wireless filed a Chapter 11 reorganization petition in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware Wednesday. In the petition, the company said it will close an initial 187 stores by around March 13 and an additional 365 RadioShack locations will either be transferred to Sprint or closed by March 31.

Along with these stores, RadioShack plans to evaluate options for its remaining 1,000 locations throughout the bankruptcy process. RadioShack currently operates more than 1,500 retail locations and could not confirm the locations of stores that will be closed.

In a statement, RadioShack president Dene Rogers said the company had improved its services and numbers in several sales areas since its restructuring, but couldnt avoid larger strategic hurdles.

For a number of reasons, most notably the surprisingly poor performance of mobility sales, especially over recent months, we have concluded that the Chapter 11 process represents the best path forward for the Company, Rogers said. We will continue to work with our advisors and stakeholders to preserve as many jobs as possible while maximizing value for our creditors.

The electronics retailer avoided a complete shutdown after its first bankruptcy filing in 2015, as a bid from hedge fund Standard General kept around 1,700 RadioShack locations open. Originally founded in 1921, RadioShack is best known for being an outlet for enthusiast builders and provider for general and niche hardware.

But as with other retailers like Best Buy, RadioShack struggled to maintain relevancy as a local brick-and-mortar outlet. Along with pressure from online retailers like Amazon, other potential avenues for revenue failed to pay dividends. As USA Today notes, RadioShack partnered with Sprint to sell smartphones, but the program suffered from dipping sales numbers.

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Janet Reno (credit: Elvert Barnes)

From February 28 to April 19 of 1993, the Federal Bureau of Investigation besieged a compound in Waco, Texas, owned and occupied by the Branch Davidians.

Prior to the siege, the leader of the radical Christian sect, David Koresh, had been suspected of sexually abusing girls as young as 10 and of violating certain firearm restrictions. The latter of the accusations led to an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the FBI soon became involved as well. After an almost two-month standoff, the FBI attempted to evacuate the compound with force. In the ensuing violence, at least 74 members of the Davidians were killed in a deadly fire. The exact cause of the fire remains a matter of dispute.

When Janet Reno was confirmed by the Senate to be the first female U.S. Attorney General on March 11, 1993, the standoff in Waco had been going for two weeks and safety concerns were escalating for both the FBI and the Davidians. On April 19, after weeks of negotiations, the FBI began using an irritant gas around the barricaded building in an effort to clear the site. In a statement to several House committees in 1995, Reno explained, Yes, we had hoped the Davidians might not react violently if we used gas in a slow, incremental manner, but those hopes were dashed by the Davidians and their guns. She spoke of FBI agents who risked their lived to rescue several of them after the fire had engulfed the building. We will never know, said Reno, whether there was a better solution.

In a press conference immediately after the Waco siege, Reno responded pointedly about the decision to allow the use of gas: I approved the plan, and I am responsible. The buck stopped with her.

So it was that Janet Reno began her tenure as Attorney General under the cloud of what was seen as a national disaster. Despite public criticism, Reno also received admiration for her forthrightness and her ability to accept responsibility. Washington lawyer and author James Doyle wrote that Renos response and composure in the aftermath of Waco was a very characteristic performance. Reno had behaved much the same in the aftermath of the Liberty City riots in Miami. She took responsibility. She took her medicine. She did her public duty.

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Reno, born in Florida in 1938, was considered a bit of a Washington outsider. After graduating from Cornell University with a degree in chemistry, she went on study at Harvard Law School. At 61, she was a commanding presence and known to have a folksy charm about her. In 1978, she became Floridas Attorney General and was reelected five times. After President Bill Clintons two initial nominees for Attorney General withdrew, Reno was nominated and eventually confirmed by the Senate.

As the first female Attorney General  and the longest sitting in more than a century  Janet Reno served the country with an unshakeable sense of personal integrity and accountability. Indeed, it was these qualities that left her vulnerable to harsh criticism not only from the right but also from the left, especially from those within President Clintons inner circle. It was understood that her relationship with Clinton was at times contentious. In fact, The New York Times reported that their relationship became further strained by her decision to let an independent inquiry into a failed Clinton land deal in Arkansas expand to encompass Mr. Clintons sexual relationship with the White House intern Monica Lewinsky. This inquiry, of course, lead to the Presidents impeachment.

Despite this opposition, Janet Reno is considered a consequential Attorney General for numerous reasons. She oversaw the convictions of Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, the sheik who was the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, the men responsible for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. Despite mounting political pressure for punishment in both cases, Reno remained committed to the legal process. One observer noted, Janet Reno does not rush to judgment. She says she is as concerned with protecting the rights of the guilty as with punishing them. This has never been an especially popular decision.

Reno had a reputation for being adamant that her prosecutors and agents worked outside the influence of politics, media or popular opinion. Former U.S. Solicitor General Walter Dellinger proclaimed her to be a very powerful force for lawfulness. Time and time again throughout her career, Reno not only took personal responsibility for her decisions and the actions of the departments she oversaw, but also publicly reflected upon any missteps with a commitment to learn from them.

This was evident in one of her final tests as Attorney General: She personally flew to Florida to negotiate with the extended family members of the six-year-old Cuban refugee, Elian Gonzalez. Elian was found off the coast of Florida on a small metal raft and brought to the home of his great uncle in Miami. A bitter custody battle ensued as Elians father in Cuba fought to have his son returned to him. Reno stepped in and eventually ordered the FBI to remove the boy from the Miami home. While the move was controversial, the level of Renos personal involvement was characteristic of her time in office.

Reno retired as Attorney General in January 2001. After a failed bid in the 2002 Florida gubernatorial race, she left politics altogether. Her retirement plans included a road trip to Alaska in a new pickup truck, a 120-mile kayak trip to the Florida Everglades, and writing a memoir and a book on reducing violence. Almost a decade after Reno retired, Attorney General Eric Holder said of Reno, In a city where too many compromise their values for short term political gain, Janet Reno stood out as a person of integrity and of enduring values. After an almost 20-year battle, Reno died in 2016 of complications from Parkinsons disease.

Surely, Janet Reno was at the center of some of the biggest political stories of the 1990s. But she was also a notable figure in American pop culture. Reno was famously portrayed by Will Farrell on Saturday Night Live and even appeared alongside him after her retirement, a move that showed that, although she took her job seriously, she did not take herself too seriously.

Maggie Baldridge is an intern at the National Constitution Center. She is also a recent graduate of Dickinson College.

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El Cortezal (Nicaragua) (AFP) - In El Cortezal, a remote Nicaraguan village, the silence around an exorcism that left a young woman dead is as complete as the loyalty to the pastor who performed it.

The only evidence left of the macabre events that occurred February 21 are ashes from the pyre built by the religious leader and some of his followers.

The news of the death of Vilma Trujillo Garcia, a 25-year-old mother of two children, caught international headlines.

The pastor involved, Juan Rocha, 23, was arrested and taken to the capital Managua. He told police Trujillo had been "possessed by a demon" and he had tried for seven days to help her with prayers.

Witness accounts said she was stripped naked, and thrown tied up on a pile of wood that was set alight, in an exorcism ritual.

Rocha reportedly denied that version, saying the woman had herself leaped at the fire, but had been suspended aloft by the malign spirit in her.

A relative found her many hours later, covered in serious burns, and Trujillo was taken to Managua for hospital care, but she succumbed to her injuries days later, on February 28.

On Friday, Rocha was formally indicted in court for murder. He made a disjointed, incomprehensible statement about "the thing taken to hospital" and said "what was done was not easy." Three of his followers are being charged with the same crime.

- Pastor defended -

In El Cortezal, a village surrounded by forest in Nicaragua's northeast, a three-hour drive from the town of Rosita and reached only by mule and by foot, no one wanted to talk about the incident.

A few whispered about "that woman" and echoed Rocha's argument that she had thrown herself at the flames.

Their desire to protect the priest was evident.

Rafael Arista, the head of the Assemblies of God church Rocha said he represented, has denied any responsibility for the crime. He said Rocha was not a recognized pastor but a layperson who joined the congregation eight months ago.

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The church, an evangelical organization, has its headquarters in the United States and claims to have 155 million worshipers worldwide.

The Assemblies of God church in El Cortezal is a modest wooden structure now closed.

Neighbors appeared unmoved by the drama surrounding the church, which serves as an anchor for the community.

Instead, they expressed hopes that Rocha would be freed and return to them.

Members of the church "have not made an appearance" since the ritual, said one woman living nearby, Maria Hernandez, who told AFP she cleaned the building.

"Here they just leave me alone," she said, her voice low.

She added: "What they did was pray, and God frees those of that evil that grabs them."

- Reliance on religion -

That reliance on religion runs through much of Nicaragua's Caribbean coast and hinterland. Prayers are often the only form of succor available when illness strikes -- be it of the body or the spirit.

What happened with Trujillo "is not a daily occurrence," said Maria Lopez Vigil, a journalist and theologian in Managua.

"But priests and pastors preach that the world is divided into light and forces of darkness, and that people need to search for the light through religion to escape the power of the devil," she said.

Miurel Gutierrez, a legal activist for women's rights, had a more down-to-earth explanation for the events in El Cortezal.

"This was a case of misogyny, where there is an explosive mix of religious fundamentalism and abuse of power," she said.

Rosario Murillo, Nicaragua's vice president and first lady, told state media that the exorcism death reflected a "backwardness." She vowed justice would be brought to bear for Trujillo.

In Rosita, the town near El Cortezal, residents expressed abhorrence at what happened -- but there was little surprise.

Some time ago, one local woman said, a pastor in the region had kept a dead body in a house for five days, telling the family his prayers would bring the person back to life.
WASHINGTON  They came from across the United States, and from as far away as Mexico and Canada.

Comanche, Apache, Navajo, Pueblo, and Sioux; Cree, Ojibwe, Chippewa, Aztec and California tribal nations were all represented.

Miss Standing Rock H.S., in braces and pale blue beaded moccasins, led the march along with other Standing Rock Sioux youth who had been a critical part of the movement against the Dakota Access pipeline. They started outside the D.C. offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which announced on Feb. 8 that with President Trumps executive order smoothing the way, it will grant an easement to Energy Transfer Partners to build the final leg of the Dakota Access pipeline. The 1,172-mile crude oil pipeline will run underground half a mile from the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, passing under Army Corps-owned land around the narrowest part of Lake Oahe in North Dakota, a dam-created reservoir of the Missouri River.

Numbering thousands strong, many protesters had been part of the Oceti Sakowin Camp of water protectors at Standing Rock before the camp was forcibly disbanded in February. Some had been involved with the fight since last April; others were newer to the movement. There was a substantial Pueblo Indian presence, a reflection of the February declaration by all 23 registered tribes in New Mexico that they stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux in opposing the project. New Mexico has the second-highest percentage of Native American residents of any state after Alaska, and tribes in New Mexico are gearing up to fight the Bureau of Land Managements decision in January to allow fracking near Chaco Canyons fragile archeological sites and 1,000-year-old Pueblo ruins.

They chanted, We cant drink oil  Water is life! and Honor the treaties! Water is life! and Day by day, block by block, we will stand with Standing Rock! They ululated and drummed and sang. A group of men brought tepee poles and erected a structure with swift, sure movements outside the Trump Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue, where women in long skirts sewn at the encampment did a round dance about its circumference while a blond woman looked down from a hotel window. A cardboard cutout of Trump was tossed to the ground, and men and women thrust their beribboned poles onto it, smudging the cardboard surface. An Apache woman sported a giant, red Make America Great Again cap, with two mock arrows piercing it.

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Standing Rock, this monument, marks the turning point of history. Its not only for our tribe, but for all tribes, and for America as well. Because the heart of our movement is now the heart of the resistance, Dave Archambault II, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux, said at Lafayette Park after the marchers reached the White House.

The Native Nations Rise march began outside the Army Corps of Engineers offices in Washington, D.C., on March 10. (Garance Franke-Ruta/Yahoo News)

You know, we face a lot of obstacles and we face a lot of setbacks, Archambault said. But were not defeated. Were not defeated. And were not going to be the victims. An obstacle is also an opportunity. Together, all of us, we can confront these obstacles. And we can look at these opportunities and embrace them. So together we can rise.

Many communities are now experiencing what we have experienced for centuries, he added, tying the Standing Rock fight to the Trump administrations treatment of minorities and immigrants. Instead of striving for mutual beneficial outcomes through understanding, the new administration dictates. Instead of expanding human rights, the new administration limits human rights. Instead of inspiring, the new administration manipulates. Treaties are signed with Native American tribes, but when these treaties become inconvenient, these treaties are ignored and theyre broken. Laws that provide freedom and equal rights were also put in place for all Americans. Yet each week we see more basic human rights threatened by a distant and disengaged administration. For all American citizens today, both Native American and non-Native America, ask the question, Why? What can possibly justify the dismissal of basic human respect?

Yahoo News spoke with some of the attendees at the march about why they were there and what it meant for the indigenous rights movement that has gained strength through the fight over the Dakota Access pipeline.

Dakota Sky (L) and Jody Gaskin at the Native Nations Rise march in Washington, D.C. on March 10. (Garance Franke-Ruta/Yahoo News)

Its about more than [the Dakota Access pipeline]. Its about indigenous rights, said Jody Gaskin, an Ojibwe from Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., who was marching with his son, Dakota Sky. Its about protecting the earth for our grandkids. Pipelines are just one part of it. But its a big part of it, you know. But its the pipeline that brought us together. Its pretty cool, I think. Brought us all together like this. Its pretty awesome.

What happens next, then?

We go home. Be active, take this energy back to our families, he said. Keep talking about it. So theyll pick up the torch when we put it down or its time for us to move on. Just keeping it alive, keeping the movement alive. And its not even a Native thing, its a human thing. Its about all of our children. What are you going to do when your grandkids come and say why didnt you do something, you knew they were polluting the water? Why didnt you do something, you know. So today is a chance for us to do something.

Lorraine Shooter and Leann Eastman at the Native Nations Rise march in Washington, D.C., on March 10. (Garance Franke-Ruta/Yahoo News)

Lorraine Shooter, 39, from Standing Rock, S.D., and Leann Eastman, from Sisseton on the Lake Traverse Reservation in S.D., wore skirts with ribbons on them, a style also worn by many of the other marchers. They are Dakota water dresses, Eastman explained. For every ribbon, theres a prayer. The dresses, designed by her, were made at Standing Rock Camp.

Kristina Elote (Garance Franke-Ruta/Yahoo News)

Kristina Elote, 26, from Dulce, N.M., and the Jicarilla Apache Nation, wore a Trump-branded prop hat. She helped start the International Indigenous Youth Council at the Oceti Sakowin Camp at Standing Rock.

Marcos Aguilar at the Native Nations Rise march in Washington, D.C., on March 10. (Garance Franke-Ruta/Yahoo News)

When I asked Marcos Aguilar, with an Aztec dance group from Los Angeles by way of Mexico City, if the coming together of tribes seen in the march was unusual, he raised an important point about the relationship between indigenous peoples lack of control over land in the Americas and the current immigration issues in the United States.

Unusual? Yes, he said. Its not often that indigenous peoples have to suffer water cannons, 800 arrests, militarized evacuations, in order to call attention to basic human rights in the United States. Things that should have been taken for granted can no longer be taken for granted. So yes, its unusual for tens of thousands of native people to have to gather to call upon this country to live by its treaty rights, its treaty obligations, and also to respect the rights of indigenous people across the continent, which through its policies, economic and political, have been forced into patterns of migration or refugee status from Central America and South America now living in the United States.

And this is all connected. Everything that happened in Standing Rock has happened in Mexico. Over and over. Its happened in Guatemala. Over and over. Its happened in El Salvador. Over and over. Its happened in South America. The same moneyed interest, the same capital interests, behind those powers. So were calling for an end, but more than that were calling on ourselves for the self-recognition of our autonomy and our own sovereignty. We need to stand on our own two feet.

Michaela Alire at the Native Nations Rise march in Washington, D.C., on March 10. (Garance Franke-Ruta/Yahoo News)

Were out to support all the indigenous tribes. I didnt believe there was going to be this many people here, said Michaela Alire, 51, from Towaoc on the Ute Reservation in Southwest Colorado. Its good to see people come from all over, all different types of people. Not just indigenous people.

Leroy (L) and Eddie at the Native Nations Rise march in Washington, D.C., on March 10. (Garance Franke-Ruta/Yahoo News)

Not everyone wanted to be known. Its a representation of who I am, me and myself, wearing my colors. Proud to be red. Red Power. Its who I am, said Leroy, 33, from California, of the red bandana he wore. He and his friend Eddie, 45, both declined to give last names.
By Kawa Omar

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - After two and a half years under Islamic State control, all that is left in Mosul's museum are the traces of looting and destruction.

Inside the rubble-strewn building, where militants filmed themselves destroying ancient artifacts, the large stone wing of a statue of lamassu -- an Assyrian winged bull deity -- lies on the dusty floor among other broken remnants of the past.

A block engraved with Arabic Islamic calligraphy lies close by, and some Islamic manuscripts have been left undamaged. But almost everything else has gone.

"What they didn't loot they destroyed," said Lieutenant Colonel Abdel Amir al-Mohammedawi, of Iraq's elite Rapid Response units, who captured the museum building from Islamic State just days ago.

The battle against the militants still raged nearby on Saturday, however, as a Reuters cameraman visited the site with Iraqi troops.

Dozens of Assyrian, Akkadian, Babylonian, Persian and Roman artifacts that the ransacked museum held have all been stolen or damaged.

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For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS and Android.

"Some were smuggled out of Iraq," Mohammedawi said.

Islamic State militants filmed themselves smashing some of the building's contents including priceless statues with sledgehammers in 2015, as part of their highly publicized campaign to erase any cultural history that contravenes their extreme interpretation of Sunni Islam.

SOURCE OF INCOME

But they have also used the antiquities as a source of income. Excavations under an ancient mosque elsewhere in Mosul, recently discovered after the militants retreated, showed that they took care of artifacts for loot.

The efforts to avoid damaging some antiquities contrast with the destruction of ancient sites across Islamic State's self-declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq, from the desert city of Palmyra to the Assyrian capital of Nimrud, south of Mosul.

The United States has said the looting and smuggling of artifacts has been a significant source of income for the militants. In July 2015, U.S. authorities handed Iraq a hoard of antiquities it said it had seized from Islamic State in Syria.

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A U.S.-backed Iraqi campaign dislodged Islamic State from most Iraqi cities captured in 2014 and 2015. The militant group is now fighting in its last major urban stronghold, in the western part of Mosul, where the museum is located.

The outside of the building, which features Roman-style columns, is blackened from shell or rocket blasts and peppered with bullet holes.

A Chaldean Catholic church next to it has also been mostly gutted, its altar cracked down the middle.

The body of an Islamic State fighter lay just outside the church on Saturday, days after the fighting had moved further forward.

Iraqi troops dusted off some of the historical stone slabs lying on the floor in the museum, which lies just outside Mosul's old city -- one of the final Islamic State strongholds in Mosul.

(Writing by John Davison; Editing by Helen Popper)
By Joel Schechtman and Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked the remaining 46 chief federal prosecutors left over from the Obama administration to resign, including Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara who had been asked to stay on in November by then President-elect Donald Trump. A Justice Department spokeswoman confirmed the resignation requests applied to Bharara. However, it was not immediately clear if all resignations would ultimately be accepted. Bharara was unsure where he stood because he did not know if the person who contacted him was aware that Trump had asked him to remain in office, according a source familiar with the matter. Bharara's office handles some of the most critical business and criminal cases passing through the federal judicial system. U.S. attorneys are political appointees, and the request from Trump's Justice Department is part of a routine process. Not every new administration replaces all U.S. attorneys at once. Bharara met with Trump in Trump Tower on Nov. 30. Afterward, Bharara told reporters the two had a "good meeting" and he had agreed to stay on. The Justice Department statement said: "Until the new U.S. attorneys are confirmed, the dedicated career prosecutors in our U.S. attorneys offices will continue the great work of the department in investigating, prosecuting, and deterring the most violent offenders. Robert Capers, U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, issued a statement saying he had been asked to resign. He said Bridget Rohde, the chief assistant U.S. attorney in that office, would take over his role in an acting capacity. "It has been my greatest honour to serve my country, New York City and the people of this district for almost 14 years, with the last 17 months serving as United States Attorney," Capers said. (Reporting by Eric Walsh, Mark Hosenball and Joel Schechtman in Washington and Nate Raymond in Boston, Editing by Eric Beech and David Gregorio)
Audio streaming service SoundCloud is struggling to raise additional money and has actively looked to be acquired by another company, according to a report from Recode.

As Recode notes, SoundCloud has sought to raise around $100 million since last year but hasn't been able to hit its funding goals. As a result, the streaming service is now far more open to selling itself cheap to another company. In January 2014, the company had a valuation of more than $700 million, but Recode said SoundCloud could look for bids of at least $250 million, which is the amount of money the streaming service has raised via investment so far.

The report highlights SoundCloud's continuing struggles as it looks to maintain market share against bigger competitors in the music streaming space. SoundCloud, which posted a loss of $52 million in 2015, hinted at the possibility of larger financial issues in a filing earlier this year.

The occurrence of [financial] risks can seriously affect the ability of the group to generate sufficient cash to cover the planned expenditures and could require the Group to raise additional funds which have not yet been agreed. SoundCloud CEO Alexander Ljung said.

Whilst the directors believe that the Group will have sufficient funds to continue to meet its liabilities through 31 December 2017, the risks and uncertainties may cause the company to run out of cash earlier than that date, and would require the Group to raise additional funds which are not currently planned. These matters give rise to a material uncertainty about the Groups ability to continue as a going concern.

SoundCloud's premium streaming service SoundCloud Go provided a modest boost to the company's ledgers, but against competition from market leaders like Spotify and Apple Music, it hasn't been able to significantly turn around the company's fortunes.

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For smaller companies in the streaming space, acquisitions have already begun, as Sprint purchased a non-majority share of Tidal in January. SoundCloud has been tied to a list of rumored suitors that include Spotify, Google and Twitter, but with the company's unclear financial prospects, the possibility of a change in ownership only looks to increase for the streaming service.

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Seoul (AFP) - The front-runner to succeed South Korea's impeached president Park Geun-Hye after her dismissal over a corruption scandal is a former special forces soldier, pro-democracy activist and human rights lawyer.

The irony is that Moon Jae-In of the Democratic Party was once chief of staff to left-leaning president Roh Moo-Hyun, who committed suicide in 2009 after being questioned over graft allegations.

Even so, Roh invariably polls as South Korea's most beloved ex-president, with other former heads of state generally considered much more corrupt.

South Korea must hold a presidential election within 60 days and Moon, a former Democratic Party leader narrowly beaten by Park in 2012, has long been leading the polls.

A Realmeter survey this week put him on 36.1 percent, with his nearest rival, acting president Hwang Kyo-Ahn trailing far behind at 14.2 percent.

"He is a liberal champion with good chances of winning the next presidential election," Park Kie-Duck, former head of the private Sejong Institute told AFP.

The 64-year-old has promised to curb the concentration of economic power in the hands of the chaebols, the family-oriented business groups whose ties to government have been exposed in the wide-ranging scandal that saw Park impeached.

But the analyst sounded a warning: "He lacks political acumen," he said. "He is too soft to cope with the dirty games in realpolitik."

According to conservative critics, Moon is also too soft towards North Korea.

Nuclear-armed Pyongyang launched a flight of four missiles towards Japan this week in what it said was a drill for an attack on US bases in the country.

But in December Moon said that if elected, he was willing to visit North Korea ahead of the United States, the South's security guarantor.

Facing criticism, he said he meant defusing tensions with the North was an issue of utmost urgency.

A US missile defence system, THAAD, is being deployed to the South in the face of threats from the North, infuriating Beijing, which has imposed a series of measures seen as economic retaliation.

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Moon was ambivalent about the issue this week, saying it needed to be carefully handled as it would bring the South "both gains and losses".

But his military service as a paratrooper adds to his credentials.

- Arrested and expelled -

Moon was born in the southern island of Geoje in 1952 during the Korean War after his North Korean parents fled to the South.

His father was a menial worker at a prisoner-of-war camp in Geoje while his mother peddled eggs in the nearby port city of Busan, with the baby Moon strapped to her back, the politician wrote in his autobiography.

He entered law school in Seoul in 1972 but was arrested and expelled for leading a student protest against the authoritarian rule of dictator Park Chung-Hee -- the ousted president's father.

Moon returned to school in 1980 only to be arrested again.

His close friendship with future president Roh began in 1982 when they opened a law firm in Busan focusing on human and civil rights issues.

Both became leading figures in the pro-democracy protests that swept the country in 1987 and led to South Korea's first direct presidential elections the same year.

When Roh entered politics, Moon continued with his legal practice in Busan, defending students and workers arrested for leading protests and labour strikes.

"I was always happy due to the fact that I was able to help others with what I had been trained to do," he said in his autobiography.

But a year after Roh's unexpected election victory in 2002, Moon joined the administration as a presidential aide, tasked with weeding out official corruption and screening candidates for top government posts, before rising to become his chief of staff.

Despite the scandal that led to his mentor killing himself by jumping off a cliff, said Kang Won-Taek, a political science professor at Seoul National University, Moon "always remained untainted by corruption allegations and abuse of power".
Beggars or choosers

Over the years, there has been a growing body of literature on why Nepal has failed to developNepal kina banena.
Juba (AFP) - International aid agencies on Saturday slammed South Sudan's decision to raise foreign worker visa fees to as much as $10,000 (9,300 euros), warning it would worsen a humanitarian crisis in the famine-hit country.

"The government and the army have largely contributed to the humanitarian situation," said Elizabeth Deng of Amnesty International.

"And now, they want to create profit from the crisis they have created."

The government measure, announced on March 2, would increase work permit fees for foreign workers from the $100-$300 range to between $1,000 and $10,000 per year, depending on the qualifications of the worker.

The measure could generate a revenue stream for the crisis-wracked nation, where oil revenues account for the near-totality of government earnings, but aid agencies said it could backfire.

"If this measure is put into practice, it will be impossible for humanitarian workers to pay this kind of sum," said Julien Schopp, director of humanitarian practice at InterAction, which groups 180 NGOs working worldwide.

Deng said there were hundreds of aid workers operating in the country, and that the new visa costs "could further hinder their critical work on the ground."

South Sudan, formed in 2011 following a split from the north, declared famine in some regions in late February. The United Nations said Saturday more than 7.5 million people were in need of assistance there.

The UN and humanitarian organisations have described the crisis as having "man-made" origins, as a civil war begun in 2013 has forced people to flee, disrupted agriculture, sent prices soaring and cut off aid agencies from the worst-hit areas.

Aid agencies also say their workers have been subject to harassment and attacks, while the UN described the looting of "humanitarian assets".

Information Minister Michael Makuei said on Thursday the new fees for foreign workers were already in effect and confirmed they applied to aid workers.

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Schopp said NGOs were still pressing the government to provide details, notably on whether workers with current work permits would have to re-apply for new ones under the new fee structure.

On Saturday the UN's humanitarian chief, Stephen O'Brien, warned the world was facing its worst humanitarian crisis since the end of World War II in four countries -- South Sudan, Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen.

"The famine in South Sudan is man-made," he said. "Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine -- as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."

War broke out in South Sudan in 2013, just two years following its independence, after President Salva Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar of plotting a coup.
Rangana Herath grabbed six wickets in the second innings to become Test crickets most successful left-arm spinner as Sri Lanka defeated Bangladesh by 259 runs in their first Test at Galle on Saturday.

Herath finished with 6-59, his 23rd five or more wicket haul, which took his tally in Tests to 366 wickets, going past New Zealand's Daniel Vettori, who has 362 wickets to his name.

His exploits helped Sri Lanka dismiss Bangladesh for 197 runs in the second innings in less than two sessions on the fifth day after the visitors resumed play promisingly on 67-0.

"I would say kind of a big achievement, but I must thank every single person who has supported me - the support staff, my family - I want to say thank you to all of them," Herath said about his record.

"Everybody chipped in and I must congratulate everyone because it is a team effort," he said about the victory.

Herath claimed four of the last five wickets that fell in the post-lunch session as Bangladesh were folded in 60.2 overs to hand Sri Lanka a 1-0 lead in the two-Test series.

Off-spinner Dilruwan Perera claimed two wickets in the morning to trigger the collapse in Bangladesh innings before Herath took charge of Sri Lanka's bowling unit.

Bangladesh lost unbeaten-overnight batsman Soumya Sarkar in the second ball of the morning and failed to regroup as they lost wickets at regular intervals.

Soumya got a leading edge off the first ball, which somehow missed a fielder. However, the next ball of medium pace Asela Gunaratne clipped the bails of his off stump to dismiss the left-hander with his overnight score of 53.

Perera then struck in successive overs, trapping Mominul Haque leg-before for five before forcing a catch from Tamim Iqbal to Gunaratne at slip for 19.

Herath delivered further blows when he removed Shakib Al Hasan for eight and handed Mahmudullah a second-ball duck in a space of three balls in one over.

Shakib gloved a catch to Dimuth Karunaratne at leg slip while Mahmudullah was deceived by an arm ball, which hit his back foot, to be adjudged lbw.

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Skipper Mushfiqur Rahim and wicketkeeper-batsman Liton Das put 54 runs for the sixth wicket but Sri Lanka wrapped the innings quickly once left-arm spinner Lakshan Sandakan broke the stand.

Mushfiqur fell to Sandakan for 34 runs before Herath removed Liton for 35 runs to expedite the win.

Mushfiqur refused to blame the pitch for their defeat.

"I thought the wicket is still pretty good to bat, it does not look like a day five wicket," he said.

"It came down to how we batted on the final day and the first session was going to be crucial, but we unfortunately lost wickets."

Sri Lanka"s Kusal Mendis was named man of the match for his heroic 194 runs in the first innings.

"I am extremely happy about the achievement and thank Rangana Herath and rest of the team for the support," he said.

The second Test, Bangladesh's 100th, will be held in Colombo between March 15-19.
BEIRUT (AP)  Twin blasts Saturday near holy shrines frequented by Shiites in the Syrian capital Damascus killed at least 40 people and wounded over a hundred, most of them Iraqis, according to Syrian and Iraqi officials.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. Islamic State militants have carried out similar attacks before against Shiite shrines in the Syrian capital and elsewhere. Extremist Sunni groups, such as IS, view Shiites as apostates and consider shrines a form of idolatry.

Syrian State TV aired footage from the scene showing blood-soaked streets and several damaged buses in a parking lot, apparently where the explosions went off near Bab al-Saghir cemetery. The cemetery is one of Damascus' most ancient and is where several prominent religious figures are buried.

Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar visited the wounded in local hospitals. He said 40 were killed and 120 were wounded. He said the attacks targeted civilians, including Arab visitors, who were touring area's shrines.

Iraq's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 Iraqis were killed and 120 wounded. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims to the shrines were targeted. He said a crisis response team has been formed to expedite the identification and transport of the killed and wounded.

"The ministry calls on the international community to condemn this heinous terrorist crime that targeted civilian Iraqi visitors to the holy shrines. It also urges a firm and decisive stand against the takfiri groups responsible for them," Jamal said in a statement. Takfiri is an Arabic derogatory term referring to extremist Sunni Muslims  such as members of the Islamic State group  who accuse other Muslims of being infidels.

Iraqi, Iranian and other Asian Shiites often visit shrines in Syria.

U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Ali al-Za'tari condemned the attacks, saying "targeting civilians is a terrorist act, condemned and rejected by anyone who has a conscience in this world."

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Lebanon's Hezbollah group also condemned the attacks, saying they stem from a "Takfiri ideology that uses religion as a cover to stab religion and believers everywhere."

There were conflicting reports about what caused the explosions. State news agency SANA said the blasts were caused by bombs placed near the cemetery and that at least 33 were killed and more than a hundred wounded.

Lebanon's Al-Manar TV quoted Syrian officials saying twin suicide attacks killed 40. The military media arm of Hezbollah, Lebanon's militant group close to Damascus, said two suicide bombers blew themselves up 15 minutes apart near the shrines, leading to the large number of casualties. Arab TV Al-Mayadeen, airing the conflicting reports, also said at least 40 were killed. The area was sealed after the explosions.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group with activists on the ground, said at least 46 were killed in the twin explosions. The group said the first blast came after a suicide bomber blew himself up among the pilgrims near the shrines. It was not clear what caused the second explosion, the group said, adding that the death toll is likely higher because dozens were wounded.

Mohammed Haytham al-Hosseini, head of the National Hospital in Damascus, told pro-government Sama TV that 41 killed arrived to his facility. He said at least three wounded were in critical condition.

A similar attack in Damascus last year targeted one of the most revered Shiite shrines and was claimed by Islamic State militants.

Bab al-Saghir is one of the seven gates of the old city of Damascus and houses a cemetery where a number of early Islam religious figures, including family members of Prophet Muhammad and figures revered by Shiites, are buried.

Also Saturday, Syria's President Bashar Assad said in an interview that his military's priority is to reach the Islamic State group's de-facto capital of Raqqa  toward which U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces are also advancing.

The interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV was aired Saturday and shared by the Syrian Presidency website. Assad said another IS stronghold, Deir el-Zour, may be targeted in parallel.

Syria's battlefields have become increasingly crowded. U.S-led coalition forces in collaboration with Syrian Kurdish fighters as well as Turkish troops and Syrian allies and Syrian government troops, backed by Russia and Iran, are all converging to clear northern Syria of the remnants of Islamic State militants. In some incidents, the teeming battlefield has caused friction between rival groups, as well as several civilian casualties.

Assad said that "in theory" he shares the same priority with U.S. President Donald Trump of fighting terrorism but that they have had no formal contact yet. He said Russia, a major ally, hopes it can urge the U.S. and Turkey to cooperate with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. Assad's government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups.

Assad said all foreign troops on Syrian soil without invitation or consultation with the Syrian government are considered "invaders."

Meanwhile, Syria's armed opposition groups called for postponing a meeting planned and sponsored by Russia and Turkey, scheduled to take place in the Kazakh capital Astana next week. In a statement, the rebel groups said violations of a Russia-backed cease-fire have persisted, and called for the meeting to be rescheduled for after March 20, when a limited cease-fire expires.

________

Associated Press writers Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria and Sinan Salaheddin in Baghdad contributed to this report.
Terrence Malick apparently isn't making movies anymore, he's making elaborate excuses to put our hottest movie stars into extremely awkward sex-fetish scenarios that are about as titillating as invasive dentistry.

Only two reasons I can think for why he might be doing this: To thoroughly embarrass famous people without anyone realizing it, or to gratify his own bizarro, wildly inaccurate notions about how human beings sate their carnal desires. If it's the former, I admire his diabolical plan, but it must be stopped; if the latter, it's just weird and icky and also must be stopped. Either way, Terrence Malick must be stopped.

Because as movie-going experiences, these things are infuriating.

SEE ALSO: 5 reasons why SXSW still matters

Song to Song, which world premiered Friday night at the opening film of the South by Southwest Film Festival, is the third installment in this trilogy of faux-erotic flatulence (the first being the effortlessly boring "romance" To the Wonder, followed by the unintentionally silly and narcissistic Knight of Cups).

Set in the music scene of SXSW's own Austin, Texas, Song to Song follows a sleazy record executive (Michael Fassbender), a struggling musician (Ryan Gosling) and the three women they get mixed up with at various turns (Rooney Mara, Natalie Portman and Cate Blanchett).

The opening act is full of promise, as Gosling and Fassbender are both pursuing Mara, an aimless twentysomething existing on odd jobs and comely cold stares. She indulges their affections simultaneously, a love triangle that begins to feel like a "love mystery"  is she dating them both? Do they know about each other? And are these two alpha males, who are starting to work together on music, actually OK with this setup?

But the movie's only intriguing dynamic crumbles when Fassbender falls for a waitress/teacher (Portman, who talks like an Austin townie for her first scene, then abandons the accent altogether), while Gosling falls in with an extraordinarily wealthy society woman (Blanchett).

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Here's where it all devolves into a muddled pastiche of Malick cliches: gorgeous nature shots, hissy-whispering nonsensical voice-over, and his latest kick, which is two movie stars  pick a combination, any combination  in a room, or a field, or a puddle, doing incredibly weird things to each other's bodies.

Did we mention heel-biting

Image: Broad Green pictures

Those things include, but are not limited to: goofy hand-to-hand wrestling, rolling around on beds and berber carpets, chasing each other around staircases, stepping on each other's faces, pushing and pulling, hair-biting, playing "airplane," awkwardly holding one another's heads/faces, awkwardly holding one another's feet and calves, awkwardly pulling at one another's shirts and blouses, bare belly-kissing (OMG SO MUCH bare belly kissing), hip-bone clasping, lifting and carrying, finger biting, crotch grabbing, armpit caressing, holding each other upside-down, crotch-to-knee grinding, foot squeezing, throwing twigs and blades of grass at one another's faces, putting caterpillars in one another's hair ... good lord who does this crap?

More relevantly, who tells other people  famous people! Famous grown-ups!  to do this crap? When there are cameras rolling! And gets away with it!?

What's worse, Mara is doing it with Fassbender, Fassbender is doing it with Portman, Mara is doing it with Berenice Marlohe, Gosling is doing it with Blanchett, Gosling is doing it with Mara, Portman is doing it with the prostitute that Fassbender hired, Fassbender is doing it with the other two prostitutes he hired ... everyone is doing this crap with everyone, endlessly, for what feels like four straight hours. God, these people are horrible. And it's not even sexy-sex stuff, just this oddball grab-ass footsie nonsense stuff that is utterly ridiculous and thoroughly uncomfortable to watch.

And by the way, is this how the music industry works?

Speaking of the music industry  don't be fooled, SXSW fans. Song to Song says about as much about the Austin music scene as The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift says about the Austin music scene.

Sure, Gosling sings a bit, and we all know how that goes. Mara holds a guitar like she's holding a live gila monster. There are some outdoor concert scenes that remind you why you stopped going to outdoor concerts. Patti Smith and Iggy Pop and the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Val Kilmer manage to survive their cameos, but Gosling and Fassbender definitely do not survive their cursory dialogue about song copyrights and record deals. Little parts of their careers actually die from it.

The whole thing stinks more than the ooze running down Austin's 6th street on a SXSW Saturday morning.

What's particularly sad about Malick's disturbing spiral into gawky horn-dogging is that it directly follows his incandescent and much-beloved Tree of Life, an Oscar-nominated cinematic poem about life, creation and everything, one of the best and most moving movies of the millennium.

Knowing what we do about Malick's process, with hundreds of hours of footage shot by various teams and underlings that's then pored over and reconstructed in an edit room, maybe Tree of Life was just a fluke  a happy accident that may never be repeated.

Because fool us once, To the Wonder, fool us twice Knight of Cups ... and what the hell does that make Song to Song?
American progressives now face a nearly insurmountable task: Manage one of the largest social protest movements in history, while refusing to lapse into cheesiness.

Their latest challenge comes in the form of a "She Persisted" energy bar. Chef and blogger Lentine Alexis developed a recipe for Mother Jones that she hopes will sustain people for a long day of protesting. It's also known as the "Superseed Energy Bar," or the "bar for making change."

SEE ALSO: What to do when you're so overwhelmed by the Trump presidency you can barely move

When Mitch McConnell shunned Elizabeth Warren from the Senate floor, his reproach  "She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted"  quickly became a refrain for the resistance.

The "She Persisted" Bar Will Give You Energy to Protest https://t.co/20LiQjBdaG  Mother Jones (@MotherJones) March 10, 2017

Women confronted their own Senators with the phrase (check out this delightfully heated confrontation with Senator Mitch McConnell) and some have even gone so far to tattoo the phrase to their bodies.

The "She Persisted" energy bar includes ingredients you'll probably eat with resentment, including pumpkins seeds, sesame seeds, bee pollen, medjool dates, rolled oats and chia seeds. They're the kind of ingredients you buy when you decide to "go healthy" after a period of prolonged sadness, then immediately throw into the back of your cabinet, never to be seen again.

On the plus side, there's more vitamins in one single bar than I've probably consumed in my 33 years of life. If you're into bars and into "living a full life," I guess, this bar is probably for you.

It may even be delicious, if you can overcome your highly understandable resistance to dates smushed into a square.

Hold your whining. If people want to name an energy bar after a famous protest inspired by a civil rights hero, that's fine. It's all fine. Whether its pussy hats or energy bars or memes of sad Ted Cruz, whatever keeps people on their feet and yelling is always a beautiful thing.
By Andy Sullivan and Mark Hosenball

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A prominent U.S. prosecutor said he was fired by the Trump administration on Saturday after refusing to step down, adding a discordant note to what is normally a routine changing of top attorneys when a new president takes office.

New York U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's defiant exit, first announced on Twitter, raised questions about President Donald Trump's ability to fill top jobs throughout his government.

Trump has yet to put forward any candidates to serve as the nation's 93 district attorneys even as his Justice Department asked the 46 who have not yet quit to hand in their resignations on Friday. Key positions at agencies like the State Department and the Defense Department also remain unfilled.

As the federal prosecutor for Manhattan and surrounding areas since 2009, Bharara secured insider-trading settlements from Wall Street firms and won criminal convictions in high-profile corruption and terrorism cases.

He told reporters in November that Trump had asked him to stay in his post, and he refused to resign when asked to do so by the Justice Department on Friday. He said he was fired on Saturday afternoon.

"Serving my country as U.S. Attorney here for the past seven years will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life, no matter what else I do or how long I live," Bharara said in a press statement.

The Justice Department confirmed that Bharara was no longer serving in the position and declined further comment.

Like all U.S. attorneys, Bharara is a political appointee who can be replaced when a new president takes office. Previous presidents have often asked outgoing U.S. attorneys to stay on the job until their replacements win confirmation in the U.S. Senate.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions' decision to replace so many sitting attorneys at once has raised questions about whether the Trump administration's ability to enforce the nation's laws would be hindered.

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"President Trump's abrupt and unexplained decision to summarily remove over 40 U.S. attorneys has once again caused chaos in the federal government," New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said.

Career attorneys will carry on that work until new U.S. attorneys are put in place, the Justice Department said.

Bharara said his deputy, Joon Kim, will serve as his temporary replacement.

Marc Mukasey, a defense lawyer whose father served as attorney general under Republican President George W. Bush, has been mentioned as a possible replacement. He did not respond to a request for comment.

Bharara's office handles some of the most critical business and criminal cases passing through the federal judicial system. He has been overseeing a probe into New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's fundraising.

Bharara has successfully prosecuted state and local politicians for corruption, including former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. He won a lifetime sentence against the Times Square bomber, Faisal Shahzad, and a 25-year sentence for international arms dealer Viktor Bout.

He won a $1.8 billion insider-trading settlement against SAC Capital Advisors, the largest in history, which forced the hedge fund to shut down, and he forced JPMorgan Chase to pay $1.7 billion to settle charges related to its role in the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme.

"His firing so early in President Trump's tenure is somewhat unexpected, but if you had asked me a few months ago whether I expected Preet to still be in that job in March I would have said no," said Matthew Schwartz, a former prosecutor under Bharara.

Trump has asked two U.S. prosecutors to remain on the job, according to the Justice Department.

U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein of Maryland has been asked to stay on as the Senate considers his nomination to serve as the No. 2 Justice Department official, and U.S. Attorney Dana Boente of Virginia, who is temporarily serving in that position, has also been asked to remain.

(Additional reporting by Emily Stephenson in Washington, and Nathan Layne and Nate Raymond in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler and Diane Craft)
By Steve Holland and Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump will ask Chancellor Angela Merkel for advice on how to deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. officials said on Friday, as the U.S. and German leaders meet next week after sometimes pointed disagreements in recent months. Merkel will visit the White House on Tuesday for talks with Trump and a joint news conference in what will be their first face-to-face meeting since the new U.S. president took power on Jan. 20. They are expected to discuss Germany's level of defense spending for the NATO alliance, the Ukraine conflict, Syrian refugees, the European Union and a host of other issues, said three senior Trump administration officials who briefed reporters. During the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, Trump regularly criticized Merkel for her open-door refugee policy, contrasting it with what he promised would be tighter controls in the United States if he won office. Merkel has been a leading critic of Trump's effort to ban travelers temporarily from seven Muslim-majority nations, a list that has since been pared back to six. "My expectation is that they'll have a very positive, cordial meeting," said one of the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Trump has long expressed desire for warmer U.S. relations with Russia but some of his top Cabinet officials are skeptical. The president will be very interested in hearing the chancellors views on her experience interacting with Putin," said another official. "He's going to be very interested in hearing her insights on what its like to deal with the Russians." Trump will also ask for Merkel's advice on what role the United States can most helpfully play in ongoing diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine, which has pitted Ukrainian forces against Russian-backed separatists. The officials described Trump as impressed by Merkels leadership, particularly in Germany's role alongside France in seeking peace in Ukraine, and on Afghanistan. Trump has been critical of NATO allies who he says do not pay their fair share, and the officials said he would raise with Merkel the need for Germany to increase its defense spending as he tries to rally European allies to contribute more to NATO. Germany should be "leading by example" on increasing contributions to NATO, one official said. "We are heartened by the German governments determination to reach NATOs benchmark of committing 2 percent of GDP to defense by 2024, the official said. The president believes that all allies must shoulder their share of the defense burden, the official said. (Reporting by Steve Holland and Roberta Rampton; Editing by Frances Kerry)
Dahal flays attack on sovereignty

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has said foreign interference on Nepals sovereignty is unacceptable.
New York (AFP) - High-profile New York prosecutor Preet Bharara -- who was among the federal attorneys asked to resign by the White House -- said Saturday that he has been fired.

US President Donald Trump's administration on Friday demanded the resignations of dozens of US prosecutors -- including Bharara -- appointed during the two terms of his predecessor Barack Obama.

The federal attorney's firing capped a standoff with the Trump administration that started when Bharara refused the White House order to resign.

"I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired," Bharara tweeted Saturday using his recently created personal account.

"Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life."

The Southern District of New York, the prominent post to which Obama appointed Bharara in 2009, includes the Manhattan and Bronx boroughs as well as neighboring areas just north of the city.

Bharara began working there in the thick of the mortgage crisis, and rose to prominence after overseeing a number of insider trading and public corruption cases.

Time magazine famously lauded the prosecutor on its cover as the man who is "busting Wall Street."

Last year he announced charges against 120 people from rival New York street gangs who were snared in an operation Bharara had said was "believed to be the largest gang takedown in New York City history."

- 'Big mistake' -

Presidents often order political appointees from the previous administration to resign when they take office, but the abrupt nature of the move caught some by surprise -- especially given that so many were asked to leave at one time.

Trump's request that Bharara leave came as a particular jolt because the attorney had met with the US president shortly after his November election at Manhattan's Trump Tower. He told journalists then that Trump asked him to stay on.

"The president-elect asked," the New York attorney had said at the time. "Presumably because he's a New Yorker and is aware of the great work that our office has done over the past seven years," he said, adding that he had agreed to stay on.

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Several New York elected officials -- among them Republicans -- had jumped to Bharara's defense following the White House demand that he step down, praising him for refusing to do so.

"Good for Preet, he is doing the job he was appointed to do!" the New York State Assembly minority leader Brian Kolb wrote on Twitter.

Republican Assemblyman Steven McLaughlin tweeted that the White House request was a "big mistake," urging Trump to "#KeepPreetInTheSeat."

When he was asked to step down Bharara had been overseeing probes into associates of New York's governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, as well as the administration of the city's Democratic mayor, Bill de Blasio.

Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores had said Attorney General Jeff Sessions asked "all remaining 46 presidentially appointed US Attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition."

Later Friday, another Justice Department spokesman, Peter Carr, said Trump had asked two to stay on -- current acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente and the man he picked to take over that position, Rod Rosenstein.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, also of New York, had said he was "troubled" to learn of the mass request for resignations, especially that of Bharara, and said it had not been done in an "orderly fashion" as seen in the past.

"By asking for the immediate resignation of every remaining US Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or even nominated, the president is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice," Schumer said in a statement on Facebook.
By Luke Baker JERUSALEM (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the White House, in a first phone call between the two leaders since Trump took office. "President Trump has extended an official invitation to President Abbas to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the political process, stressing his commitment to a peace process that will lead to a real peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis," said Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah. White House spokesman Sean Spicer in Washington later confirmed Trump had invited Abbas to a meeting at the White House very soon. Palestinians are concerned at the more favorable approach shown by Washington toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since Trump came to power. Netanyahu and Trump have spoken on the phone at least twice since the Jan. 20 inauguration, and Netanyahu visited Washington last month. Palestinian officials indicated Abbas would emphasize his concern about Israeli settlement-building on occupied land and the need for a two-state solution to the conflict. "President Abbas stressed the commitment to peace as a strategic choice to establish a Palestinian State alongside the state of Israel," Abu Rdainah said, according to the official Palestinian WAFA news agency. Trump told Abbas that a peace deal must be negotiated directly between Israel and the Palestinians and that the United States would work closely with both sides toward that goal, the White House said in a statement. At a Feb. 15 news conference during Netanyahu's visit, Trump was ambivalent about a two-state solution, the mainstay of U.S. policy in the region for the past two decades. "I'm looking at two-state and one-state, and I like the one that both parties like ... I can live with either one," Trump said, causing consternation across the Arab world and in many European capitals. SETTLEMENTS The White House has since been more cautious on the issue, and there has been less talk of moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a promise Trump made during the campaign but a move that would provoke anger across the Muslim world. David Friedman, Trump's nominee for ambassador to Israel, who was approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday, has said he wants to see the embassy move to Jerusalem and expects to work from the city at least some of the time. While one of the first calls to a foreign leader made by Trump's Democratic predecessor Barack Obama was to Abbas, Trump has been cautious in his contacts with the Arab world. He has spoken to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and met Jordan's King Abdullah, who took the initiative and flew to Washington for an impromptu visit. One of the most heated issues between Israel and the Palestinians is Israel's building of settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, territory the Palestinians want for their own state along with Gaza. During the campaign, Trump said he did not necessarily see settlements as an obstacle to peace. Since his inauguration, Israel has announced plans to build at least 6,000 more settler homes, a substantial increase and an indication that Israel took Trump's softer language as a green light. But during Netanyahu's visit, Trump said he wanted the Israeli prime minister to "hold back on settlements for a little bit," a position that took Netanyahu by surprise. Israeli and U.S. officials are now discussing what the parameters are on settlements. (Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, and David Alexander and Eric Beech in Washington; Editing by Andrew Roche and Leslie Adler)
WASHINGTON (AP)  An attorney for former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn told President Donald Trump's transition team before the inauguration that Flynn might register with the government as a foreign agent, White House officials acknowledged.

According to a person with knowledge of the discussions, Flynn's representatives also had a second conversation with the White House counsel's office after the inauguration and made clear the national security adviser would indeed be registering with the Justice Department.

On Friday, the White House said it had no recollection of the second conversation. But on Saturday, a White House official said the post-inauguration conversation did occur.

Both the White House official and person with knowledge of the discussions insisted on anonymity in order to disclose the private conversations.

The disclosures Friday indicate that Trump transition lawyers did not view Flynn's lobbying work for a Turkish businessman as a liability for an official who serves as the president's closest adviser on security and international affairs. They also raise new questions about whether Trump's transition team, and later his White House lawyers, fully vetted Flynn.

Flynn's registration this week with the Justice Department disclosed lobbying by him and his firm that may have benefited the government of Turkey.

Trump fired Flynn last month on other grounds  that he misled Vice President Mike Pence and other White House officials about his conversations with Russia's ambassador to the U.S. Flynn's registration comes amid intense scrutiny over his and other Trump associates' potential contacts with Russia. The FBI is investigating, as are House and Senate intelligence committees.

Flynn registered with the Justice Department on Tuesday, citing $530,000 worth of lobbying. His work on behalf of a company owned by Turkish businessman Ekim Alptekin occurred at the same time he was advising Trump's presidential campaign.

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Among those told of Flynn's potential Justice Department registration during the transition was Don McGahn, a campaign lawyer who has gone on to become White House counsel, according to a person with direct knowledge of the conversations between Flynn's representatives and the transition team.

A White House official said McGahn and others were not aware of the details of Flynn's work. It's not clear why the Trump advisers did not seek additional information once Flynn's lawyers raised the issue.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said the president had not been aware Flynn might register as a foreign agent. He said that when Flynn's lawyer raised the possible filing with the transition team, Trump's attorneys responded that it was a personal matter and not something they would consult on.

"It's a business matter, it's not something that would be appropriate for a government entity to give someone guidance on when they should file as an individual," Spicer said. He dismissed questions about whether Flynn's work should have raised red flags for the new administration, saying the retired Army lieutenant general had "impeccable credentials."

In the filings with the Justice Department's Foreign Agent Registration Unit, Flynn and his firm, Flynn Intel Group Inc., acknowledged that his work for Alptekin's company "could be construed to have principally benefited the Republic of Turkey." The lobbying on behalf of Inovo BV, a Dutch-based company owned by Alptekin, occurred from August through November.

Flynn's filing said that he and his firm were not certain whether Turkey's government was involved in Inovo's hiring of them as lobbyists. The firm said it was aware, however, that Alptekin "consulted with officials of the Republic of Turkey regarding potential work by Flynn Intel Group."

The firm also acknowledged that Alptekin introduced Flynn to two senior Turkish government officials in September, but it identified them only by their titles. The officials included in the meeting were Turkey's minister of foreign affairs, Mevlut Cavusoglu, and Turkish Energy Minister Berat Albayrak, who is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's son-in-law.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Alptekin said Flynn and his firm filed the registration under pressure from Justice Department officials. Alptekin said he disagreed with the decision to register. He also said he had asked for some of his money back.

In an interview Thursday with Fox News, Pence said he was unaware of Flynn's foreign agent work until this week, but called the disclosure "an affirmation of the president's decision to ask Gen. Flynn to resign."

In November, Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, sent Pence a letter warning about conflicts created by Flynn's lobbying work.

"If the vice president had heeded my warnings, it's clear now he could have prevented the problems that occurred with Lt. Gen. Flynn," Cummings said Friday.

After Flynn joined the administration, he agreed not to lobby for five years after leaving government service and never to represent foreign governments. It appears that his work wouldn't violate the pledge because it occurred before he joined the administration. The pledge bars Flynn from ever doing the same type of work again in his lifetime.

Under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, U.S. citizens who lobby on behalf of foreign governments or political entities must disclose their work to the Justice Department. Willfully failing to register is a felony, though the department rarely files criminal charges in such cases. It routinely works with lobbying firms to help them get back in compliance by registering and disclosing their work.

According to Flynn's filings, his firm's work involved research, informational materials and a video on the cleric Fethullah Gulen. Turkish President Erdogan has accused Gulen, who lives in Pennsylvania, of orchestrating a botched coup last summer. Erdogan has called for Gulen's extradition, a request the Obama administration rebuffed.

Alptekin, the Turkish businessman, has denied having any ties to Erdogan's government. But he is a member of a Turkish economic relations board run by an Erdogan appointee.

___

Follow Chad Day at http://twitter.com/ChadSDay and Julie Pace at http://twitter.com/jpaceDC
Ottawa (AFP) - While other world leaders have been disparaged by Donald Trump or faced ire at home for trying to woo his White House, Canada's progressive Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has struck up an unlikely alliance with the US president.

Trudeau has been called the "anti-Trump" in a German newspaper, while at home, supporters on the left have bit their tongue as he renews neighborly ties with the Republican, for the sake of a key trade and security relationship.

Of course, Trudeau has not shelved his liberal values, which he touts every time he stands in front of a microphone.

But he also hasn't denigrated Trump to advance his agenda or to score cheap political points -- at least not overtly.

The result has been seemingly strong ties with the Trump administration, with no loss of political capital for Trudeau at home or abroad -- rather a deft maneuver by the Canadian leader.

"It's a fascinating relationship," said Ian Capstick, a political analyst and head of Media Style in Ottawa.

"I don't know if I would call it a close relationship," Capstick told AFP. "Rather I'd say it's an early successful relationship."

Trump commended Canada twice in his maiden address to Congress late last month, after heaping praise on Trudeau during his earlier visit to Washington.

"America is deeply fortunate to have a neighbor like Canada," Trump told a joint press conference with Trudeau at his side.

- How Trudeau won over Trump -

Canada and the United States share one of the world's longest borders, a highly integrated economy, and have common history and culture.

To ensure and bolster cooperation with Team Trump, Trudeau has quickly sent his top ministers to Washington to meet their new counterparts.

He has even gone as far as to recruit a former conservative prime minister and Trump friend, Brian Mulroney, to help build good relations.

"There are certainly some Liberals who aren't big fans of Mulroney but would acknowledge that he seems to have a skill for working with American politicians," former Liberal strategist Tim Powers told AFP, recalling Mulroney's camaraderie with Ronald Reagan.

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Powers said there are people, including in Trudeau's own party, "who would like Trudeau to go after Trump for some of his behavior and statements" -- for example, those demeaning to women and Muslims.

"But Trudeau helping Trump helps Canada," he said, adding that Trudeau was "smart not going after Trump, as other leaders did, during the American election campaign... I think it was noticed by the US."

"Wisely, he isn't letting ideological differences affect how he deals with Trump," echoed University of Toronto politics professor Ryan Hurl.

Trudeau has acknowledged the two leaders' vastly different worldviews.

"We won't always agree on everything," he said during his Washington visit.

But, he added, "the last thing Canadians expect is for me to come down and lecture another country on how they choose to govern themselves."

Rather, he suggested, it is better to "be a positive example in the world."

- Risky courtship -

Polls show Trudeau continues to be one of Canada's most popular leaders ever, both at home and abroad.

But experts say there are tremendous risks in courting Trump.

"We can't predict from moment to moment when something might offend Trump," said Robert Bothwell, a professor at the Munk School of Global Affairs in Toronto.

"There's no guarding against that and it could happen to anyone. I wouldn't say that Justin has any kind of magic immunity from that kind of situation."

Powers suggested that Trump "seems to recognize that our prime minister has political capital that can be helpful to him."

"Trudeau is well regarded in different parts of the world and for some of America's allies to see Trump and Trudeau get along helps Trump," he said.

On the flip side, according to Capstick, "if President Trump were to go after Canada too aggressively, the prime minister has the entire progressive world behind him and can rally a considerable amount of difficulty for Trump's politics."
By Denis Dyomkin and Tuvan Gumrukcu MOSCOW/ANKARA (Reuters) - President Tayyip Erdogan sought to build cooperation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Friday over military operations in Syria, as Turkey attempts to create a border "safe zone" free of Islamic State and the Kurdish YPG militia. Erdogan, referring to Islamic State's remaining stronghold, told a joint Moscow news conference with the Russian President "Of course, the real target now is Raqqa". Turkey is seeking a role for its military in the advance on Raqqa, but the United States is veering towards enlisting the Kurdish YPG militia - something contrary to Ankara's aim of banishing Kurdish fighters eastwards across the Euphrates river. Turkey considers the YPG the Syrian arm of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that has been fighting an insurrection on Turkish soil for 30 years. Washington, like Ankara, considers the PKK a terrorist group, but it backs the YPG. Russian-backed forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are also operating in the north of the country, close to Turkish borders. Washington and Moscow are concerned fast-moving military developments could lead to serious clashes between Turkish forces and the YPG. "It should now be accepted that a terrorist organization cannot be defeated with another one," Erdogan said, referring to the enlistment of YPG by the United States to fight Islamic State. "As a country that has been battling terror for 35 years, terrorist organizations like Daesh (Islamic State), the YPG, Nusra front and others are organizations we face at all times. TURKISH-KURDISH CLASHES INTENSIFY "We have kept all lines of communication open until now, and we will continue to do so from now on," Erdogan said. "Whether it is Turkey or Russia, we are working in full cooperation militarily in Syria. Our chiefs of staff, foreign ministers, and intelligence agencies cooperate intensely." The Turkish military said on Friday that 71 Kurdish militia fighters had been killed in Syria in the last week in what appeared to mark an escalation of clashes with the U.S.-backed YPG group vying for control of areas along Turkey's border. Including that 71, a total of 134 have been killed since Jan. 5. Syrian state media quoted a military source late on Thursday as saying Turkey's military had shelled Syrian government forces and their allies in northern Iraq, causing deaths and injuries. State-run SANA news agency quoted the military source as saying that the Turkish bombardment targeted Syrian border guard positions in the countryside near the northern city of Manbij. The area around Manbij has been controlled since last year by the Manbij Military Council, a local militia that is a part of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an umbrella organisation of armed groups of which the YPG is also a part. (Reporting by Ece Toksabay and Tuvan Gumrukcu; Writing by Ralph Boulton; Editing by Daren Butler, Larry King)
BEIRUT (AP)  Turkey achieved a milestone in its goals in Syria: It established a foothold in the heart of the country's north after driving Islamic State militants away from its borders and seizing al-Bab, one of the extremist group's major strongholds and a major supply route.

But Turkey's determination to also push back the Kurds is alienating the other big players in Syria  Russia and the United States  and threatens to undermine the fight against IS in the imminent assault on Raqqa.

Ankara's threats to attack the nearby town of Manbij, held by U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces, prompted Washington to deploy new troops in the area to prevent Turkish advances. Turkey's Syrian allies have been fighting the Kurds around the town, reportedly with Turkish cover, raising the possibility of frictions with the Americans.

At the same time, Turkish forces shelling Kurds hit Syrian government forces, whose patron Moscow reportedly has advisers in the area.

As a result, Ankara has effectively unified Russia and the U.S. in the goal of limiting Turkish expansion in the north. Syria experts say Ankara has lost influence to realize its aim of pushing the Kurdish forces back to the east of Manbij across the Euphrates. Moreover, Washington is pushing ahead with partnering with the Kurdish-led forces in the planned attack on Raqqa, despite Turkish opposition.

"Turkey's valuable leverage" to disrupt that alliance "has been tossed away as the Russian military and U.S. Special Forces moved last week in Syria's Manbij to prevent Turkish-backed Syrian opposition forces from attacking the city," wrote Ragip Soylu, a Washington-based Turkish columnist for the pro-government English language Daily Sabah newspaper.

From the start, Turkey's goal with its military incursion into Syria has been to push IS militants back from its border and prevent Kurdish forces from holding contiguous territory from east to west across the border. Turkey considers the main Syrian Kurdish force, the People's Protection Forces, or YPG, as terrorists since they are linked to Kurdish insurgents in Turkey.

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Capturing al-Bab last month met both those aims. Turkish forces and allied Syrian fighters marched into al-Bab after the militants withdrew following a grueling fight that lasted over two months and claimed dozens of Turkish soldiers. With al-Bab in its hands, Turkey blocked the Kurds from joining territory they hold to the east and the west.

But from the very start, a chief goal was Manbij, a small but crowded town 40 kilometers east of al-Bab that is the birthplace of one of the Arab world's most prominent classical poets. When the U.S-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces captured the town from IS in August, Turkey sent its troops into Syria, complaining to the Americans that the Kurdish forces must retreat east across the Euphrates.

"Turkey has always set the Euphrates as a red line," Noah Bonsey, an analyst with the International Crisis Group, said in a telephone interview. "The problem is it will be a huge gamble to really do that with US, Russia and YPG, who are a proficient fighting force."

In a new move, U.S. military moved in with small number of troops now positioned on the western outskirts of Manbij to prevent an escalation of violence between its two allies. Calling it a mission to "reassure and deter," U.S. officials say the troops, with light combat vehicles and visible American flags, are to keep a lid on the tensions brewing in the increasingly crowded battlefield.

U.S. Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, of the anti-IS coalition, said all the forces acting in Syria have converged "within hand-grenade range of one another."

"We encourage all forces to remain focused on the counter-ISIS fight and concentrate their efforts on defeating ISIS and not toward other objectives that may cause the coalition to divert energy and resources away from Raqqa," Townsend said last week. He suggested Turkey has no reason to be in the Manbij area. "With the liberation of al-Bab, Turkey has now secured its border from ISIS."

Meanwhile, as Turkish troops and their Syrian allies advanced east of al-Bab and threatened to move on Manbij, Russia brokered a deal that effectively created a buffer zone between them and Kurdish-led forces by handing over some villages to Syrian government troops.

On Thursday, Syrian government media said Turkish shelling killed a number of its troops. Kurdish officials said Turkish advances continued even despite the buffer zone.

Ilham Ahmed, a senior official with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, blamed Russia and the United States for emboldening the Turkish push toward Manbij: The U.S. coalition by providing the Turkish forces with air cover during the assault on al-Bab, and Moscow by agreeing to let Turkey take over al-Bab despite a Syrian government push to liberate the town.

Now with both U.S. forces and Russian advisers in the area, Turkey is not letting up, she said. "In all the wars the Americans took part in, their forces' presence has some prestige, status, and confrontations are avoided."

Turkey ultimate intention in pressuring Manbij may be to keep the SDF out of the Raqqa offensive. Ankara has repeatedly demanded to the U.S. that the Kurds not be involved in taking the city, which is the Islamic State group's de facto capital. Fighting at Manbij ties down SDF fighters that could go to the Raqqa campaign.

Ahmed said if the U.S. wants the Raqqa campaign to move ahead, "they must protect Manbij."

"All of this is a reminder of the risk in a rushed attempt to get to Raqqa If Turkish interests are not at least placated to some extent," said Bonsey of the International Crisis Group.

Turkey has a number of ways it could disrupt a Raqqa campaign, he said. "There is a lot that can go wrong."
Elderly woman killed in Jhapa pick-up van hit

An elderly woman died after being hit by a pick-up van at Lakhanpur in Jhapa district on Saturday.
By Tuvan Gumrukcu and Thomas Escritt ANKARA/ROTTERDAM (Reuters) - The Netherlands barred Turkey's foreign minister from landing in Rotterdam on Saturday in a row over Ankara's political campaigning among Turkish emigres, leading President Tayyip Erdogan to brand its fellow NATO member a "Nazi remnant". The dispute escalated in the evening as Turkey's family minister was prevented by police from entering the Turkish consulate in the Rotterdam while hundreds of protesters waving Turkish flags gathered outside demanding to see the minister. Turkey's foreign ministry said it did not want the Dutch ambassador to Ankara to return from leave "for some time". Turkish authorities sealed off the Dutch embassy in Ankara and consulate in Istanbul in apparent retaliation and hundreds gathered there for protests at the Dutch action. President Erdogan is looking to the large number of emigre Turks living in Europe, especially in Germany and the Netherlands, to help clinch victory next month in a referendum that would give the presidency sweeping new powers. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she will do everything possible to prevent Turkish political tensions spilling onto German soil and four rallies in Austria and one in Switzerland have been canceled due to the growing dispute. Erdogan has cited domestic threats from Kurdish and Islamist militants and a July coup bid as cause to vote "yes" to his new powers. But he has also drawn on the emotionally charged row with Europe to portray Turkey as betrayed by allies while facing wars on its southern borders. The Dutch government had banned Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu from attending a rally on Saturday in Rotterdam but he said he would fly there anyway, saying Europe must be rid of its "boss-like attitude". Cavusoglu, who was barred from a similar meeting in Hamburg last week but spoke instead from the Turkish consulate, accused the Dutch of treating the many Turkish citizens in the country like hostages, cutting them off from Ankara. "If my going will increase tensions, let it be ... I am a foreign minister and I can go wherever I want," he added hours before his planned flight to Rotterdam was banned. SANCTIONS THREAT Cavusoglu threatened harsh economic and political sanctions if the Dutch refused him entry, and those threats proved decisive for the Netherlands government. It cited public order and security concerns in withdrawing landing rights for Cavusoglu's flight and said the threat of sanctions made the search for a reasonable solution impossible. "This decision is a scandal and unacceptable in every way. It does not abide by diplomatic practices," Cavusoglu told reporters in Istanbul on Saturday evening. Dutch anti-Muslim politician Geert Wilders, polling second ahead of Wednesday's elections, said in a tweet on Saturday: "To all Turks in the Netherlands who agree with Erdogan: Go to Turkey and NEVER come back!!" Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said: "This morning on TV (the Turkish minister) made clear he was threatening the Netherlands with sanctions and we can never negotiate with the Turks under such threats. So we decided ... in a conference call it was better for him not to come." Once the foreign minister had been prevented from landing in Rotterdam, Turkey's family minister decided to travel to the city by road from neighboring Germany instead but was stopped by police in the Dutch city. "We have been stopped 30 meters from our Rotterdam consulate and we are not allowed to enter," Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya wrote on Twitter. "NAZI REMNANTS, FASCISTS" Addressing a rally of supporters, Erdogan retaliated to the decision to prevent the Turkish foreign minister from visiting Rotterdam. "Listen Netherlands, you'll jump once, you'll jump twice, but my people will thwart your game," he said. "You can cancel our foreign minister's flight as much as you want, but let's see how your flights will come to Turkey now." "They don't know diplomacy or politics. They are Nazi remnants. They are fascists," he said. Rutte called Erdogan's reference to Nazis and Fascists "a crazy remark". "I understand they're angry but this is of course way out of line," he said. Erdogan chafes at Western criticism of his mass arrests and dismissals of people authorities believe were linked to a failed July attempt by the military to topple him. He maintains it is clear the West begrudges him new powers and seeks to engineer a "no" vote in the referendum. Barred from the Netherlands Cavusoglu arrived in France on Saturday ahead of a planned speech to Turkish emigres in the northeastern city of Metz on Sunday, a Reuters witness said. Earlier, an official at the Moselle regional prefecture told Reuters there were currently no plans to prevent the meeting from going ahead. A member of the Union of European Turkish Democrats also said on Saturday via a Facebook post that the Turkish foreign minister would no longer come to Switzerland for a planned event on Sunday after failing to find a suitable venue. Zurich's security department, which had unsuccessfully lobbied the federal government in Bern to ban Cavusoglu's appearance, said in a statement on Saturday evening it was relieved the event had been canceled. (Additional reporting by Anthony Deutsch and Toby Sterling; writing by Ralph Boulton; editing by Helen Popper and David Clarke)
ROTTERDAM (Reuters) - Several hundred demonstrators waving Turkish flags gathered outside the Turkish consulate in the Dutch city of Rotterdam on Saturday, demanding to see the Turkish minister for family affairs as a dispute between the two countries escalated. Police erected metal barriers and patrolled on horseback to keep the demonstrators away from the consulate as the crowd grew with more pro-Turkish protesters arriving from Germany. Turkish Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya traveled by road to the Netherlands from neighboring Germany after the Dutch government revoked landing rights for a plane carrying Turkey's foreign minister earlier on Saturday. Dutch TV footage showed police stopping the minister's convoy near the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam and preventing her from entering the building. The Dutch government said it did not want Turkish politicians campaigning among Turkish emigres in the Netherlands, leading President Tayyip Erdogan to brand the fellow NATO member a "Nazi remnant". (Reporting By Thomas Escritt; Writing by Anthony Deutsch)
(Reuters) - Two teenage girls and a man were shot and killed and a woman was wounded on Friday during a domestic dispute in northeast Illinois, police said.

Police went to an apartment in St. Charles, Illinois at about 5:15 p.m. local time after receiving several calls from witnesses who heard shots, the St. Charles Police Department said in a statement.

"The preliminary investigation indicates that this is a domestic related incident. We do not believe there is any danger to the public at this time," the department said.

Police did not provide further details on the shooting and did not identify the four people involved.

St. Charles is a community of 33,000 about 35 miles west of Chicago. It had no homicides from 2012 to 2015, according to the police department's annual reports.

(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Alexander Smith)
Kiev (AFP) - Ukraine's army reported Saturday two soldiers killed in clashes with Russian-backed rebels, in a new uptick in violence across eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told reporters that two servicemen were killed and another 16 wounded in the past 24 hours, accusing insurgents of using heavy weapons against government troops.

A rebel spokesman in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic meanwhile said that one of its fighters had been killed, the rebels' news agency reported.

The latest casualties along eastern Ukraine's volatile frontline come despite the warring sides announcing a truce deal in February that has failed to stop the violence entirely.

International monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said Friday that they had "recorded double the number of ceasefire violations" compared to the previous week.

The deputy head of the OSCE's monitoring mission, Alexander Hug, said Friday that 16 civilians had been killed in the region since the start of the year.

The OSCE said Saturday that two mortar rounds had exploded near its monitors' cars in a rebel-controlled village northwest of the government-held city of Mariupol on Friday.

No monitors were injured in the incident, the OSCE said.

Nearly 10,000 people have been killed since the start of a pro-Russian insurgency in 2014 which Kiev and the West accuse Moscow of masterminding.

That conflict, and Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, have pushed ties between Moscow and the West to their lowest point since the Cold War.
Geneva (AFP) - Former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said Saturday that Brazil's crippled democracy needs her predecessor and mentor, Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva, to stand in next year's election.

Rousseff, who seven months ago was pushed from power following an impeachment trial, warned that Brazil's democracy was being "attacked by parasites" and insisted a democratic champion is needed.

"Ensuring Lula the possibility to be a candidate is vital at this time," she told reporters gathered at a film festival in Geneva focused on human rights.

A recent opinion poll indicated that Rousseff's old leftist ally and predecessor Lula could win the 2018 election if he runs, despite facing trial over alleged involvement in the Petrobras affair.

That giant corruption scandal over the Petrobas state oil firm has netted numerous top politicians.

"Lula has lived through a period when all the media was against him and there were attempts to arrest him and place him in prison," Rousseff said, pointing out that "despite all of that he continues to top of all the opinion polls."

The current president Michel Temer, Rousseff's successor and her ally-turned-rival, meanwhile received just over 10 percent support in a survey last month.

Temer served as vice president under Rousseff, but rose to take the top job when conservative rivals ousted her by securing an impeachment vote over allegations that she fiddled with state accounts.

Rousseff has flatly denied those allegations and branded the impeachment drive a politically motivated "coup."

"I never asked for money under the table, and I never received any," she insisted Saturday.

Rousseff says she herself aims to remain engaged with politics, but has ruled out taking another shot at becoming president, instead throwing her weight behind Lula.

"In 2018, we have a meeting scheduled with democracy in Brazil," she said.
Envoy meets Indian official over SSB firing incident

Nepal has formally drawn the attention of India over the killing of its citizen by the Sashastra Seema Bal in Kanchanpur district.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he will help tech companies fix flaws cited in the CIA documents leaked by the hacktivist organization, but Silicon Valley doesnt seem to be interested, according to a report by The Guardian.

WikiLeaks recently dumped a trove of CIA documents, dubbed Vault 7, revealing hacking tools used by the agency to spy via smart devices, such as TVs and mobile phones. Documents also revealed a special hacking division dedicated to developing and gathering flaws to manipulate iOS and Android devices.

On Thursday, Assange offered to help tech companies by handing over more information on the CIAs hacking tools.

"We have decided to work with them, to give them some exclusive access to some of the technical details we have, so that fixes can be pushed out," Assange said in a press conference at the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

However, Silicon Valley believes the leaks arent that much of a concern and are instead worried about Assanges alleged ties to Russia, the Guardian reported.

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The fact that Julian Assange is offering to selectively disclose vulnerability information to affected companies is better than revealing it to all and sundry, but it depends on the veracity, accuracy and currency of that information, BullGuard CEO Paul Lipman told the Guardian . I dont think WikiLeaks is the first stop for tech companies looking to solve vulnerabilities, he added.

Apple addressed the exploits mentioned in Vault 7 on Wednesday, stating the vulnerabilities had already been fixed. Meanwhile, Google said it had reviewed the documents and believed that its operating systems were secure and not at risk of an attack.

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Julian Assange and Russia

During the press conference, Assange tried to back away from accusations linking him to Russia and said the WikiLeaks operation was a neutral, digital Switzerland.

However, some experts question the organizations motives, pointing to alleged ties between WikiLeaks and Russia.

Everything they have done over the last few months suggests they are operating as a front for a different leaker [Russia], Ryan Kalember, SVP of Cybersecurity Strategy at Proofpoint, told the Guardian .

Kalember added the apparent ties to the Kremlin and WikiLeaks record of publishing identifying information about individuals has dwindled trust in the organization.

No one in the information security community really trusts him and his motives, he said. I think at this point Assange is effectively acting in the service of the Russian government, whether intentionally or not, said Kalember.

Assange has been viewed as favoring Trump after WikiLeaks released hacked emails from the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta last year. Top U.S. intel officials believe Russia hacked Democrats to help President Donald Trump win the election last November. A Russian state-backed group called Cozy Bear is believed to be behind the DNC hacks last year. The release of hacked documents had a major impact on Clintons presidency bid, leading her to lose the election to Trump.

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United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The United Nations is warning that the world is facing its worst humanitarian crisis since the end of World War II, with more than 20 million people facing starvation and famine in four countries.

The world body's humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien called Friday for an urgent mobilization of funds -- $4.4 billion by July -- for northeastern Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen to "avert a catastrophe."

"Otherwise, many people will predictably die from hunger, livelihoods will be lost and political gains that have been hardwon over the last few years will be reversed," O'Brien said in his stark warning to the UN Security Council.

"Without collective and coordinated global efforts, people will simply starve to death. Many more will suffer and die from disease. Children stunted and out of school. Livelihoods, futures and hope will be lost."

He called war-wracked Yemen "the largest humanitarian crisis in the world," with two thirds of the population, or 18.8 million people -- three million more than in January -- in need of assistance and more than seven million with no regular access to food.

The conflict in Yemen has left more than 7,400 people dead and 40,000 wounded since an Arab-state coalition intervened on the government's side against rebels in March 2015, according to UN figures.

In just the past two months alone, more than 48,000 people have fled fighting in the Arab world's poorest country, according to O'Brien, as it grapples with a proxy war fought by archrivals Iran and Saudi Arabia.

- 'Arbitrarily denying' access -

During recent meetings, O'Brien said senior leaders in both parties agreed to provide continuous humanitarian access and respect international humanitarian law.

He noted that 4.9 million people received food assistance last month alone.

"Yet all parties to the conflict are arbitrarily denying sustained humanitarian access and politicize aid," he added.

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"Already, the humanitarian suffering that we see in Yemen today is caused by the parties and proxies and if they don't change their behavior now, they must be held accountable for the inevitable famine, unnecessary deaths and associated amplification in suffering that will follow."

He noted that despite assurances from all parties that he would obtain safe passage to the flashpoint city of Taiz, he was in fact denied access and came under gunfire after retreating to a short distance away.

A total of $2.1 billion are needed to reach 12 million people with life-saving assistance and protection in Yemen this year, according to O'Brien, who noted that just six percent of those funds have been received so far.

He announced that a ministerial-level pledging event for Yemen will take place in Geneva on April 25, to be chaired by UN chief Antonio Guterres.

- Politics behind 'man-made famine' -

During his visit last week to South Sudan, the world's youngest nation, O'Brien said he found a situation that is "worse than it has ever been."

"The famine in South Sudan is man-made," he added.

"Parties to the conflict are parties to the famine -- as are those not intervening to make the violence stop."

He said more than 7.5 million people need assistance, an increase of 1.4 million fro last year. And some 3.4 million people are displaced, including nearly 200,000 who have fled South Sudan since January alone.

More than half the population of Somalia -- 6.2 million people -- need humanitarian assistance and protection, including 2.9 million at risk of famine.

Nearly one million children under the age of five will be "acutely malnourished" this year, according to the humanitarian chief, who also visited the country.

"What I saw and heard during my visit to Somalia was distressing -- women and children walk for weeks in search of food and water," O'Brien said.

"They have lost their livestock, water sources have dried up and they have nothing left to survive on. With everything lost, women, boys, girls and men now move to urban centers."

In northeastern Nigeria, O'Brien said 10.7 million people need humanitarian aid, including 7.1 million people who are "severely food insecure."

The humanitarian emergency afflicting the area was triggered by the Boko Haram insurgency, which erupted in Nigeria in 2009. Poor governance and climate change have also been powerful contributors to the crisis.

The conflict, which has left around 20,000 people dead and forced more than 2.6 million others to flee their homes, has aggravated an already difficult humanitarian situation in one of the poorest regions of the world.
- French sailor Sebastien Destremau finished the gruelling Vendee Globe round-the-world race on Saturday, the organisers said, the 18th and last person to do so. Destremau, sailing TechnoFirst-faceOcean, spent 124 days at sea, crossing the finish line at 0040 GMT. Destremau, 52, told AFP he was "extremely proud" to have made it. French sailor Armel Le Cleac'h, on board Banque Populaire VIII, claimed victory on January 19 in a time of 74 days 3 hours 35.46 minutes. The Vendee Globe, a non-stop, solo race around the world dubbed the 'Everest of the Seas,' covers 21,638 nautical miles (40,073 km) through the toughest seas and the three great capes -- Good Hope, Leeuwin and the Horn.

AFP
New Zealand has more than 3,000 glaciers -- and theyre retreating, new images released by NASA Friday show.The glaciers have been receding since 1890 with short periods of small advances, NASA said. Most of the glaciers are located in the Southern Alps on the South Island in New Zealand.

An image taken on Jan. 12, 1990 by the NASA and United States Geological Survey Landsat shows the area, measuring 39 by 46 kilometers, covered in white. That area includes the Mueller, Hooker and Tasman glaciers on New Zealand's South Island.

new zealand glaciers pia21509-1990b

Photo: NASA/METI/AIST/Japan Space Systems, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team

When you fast forward to 2017, the areas turn from white to gray, an image taken by NASAs Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on Jan. 29 shows. The most recent image shows less snow cover and larger terminal lakes.

Notice the larger terminal lakes, the retreat of the ice free of moraine cover, and the higher moraine walls due to ice thinning, NASA pointed out in a statement.

new zealand glaciers nasa

Photo: NASA/METI/AIST/Japan Space Systems, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team

There can be different causes for a glaciers retreat, ASTER Science Team Leader Michael Abrams told International Business Times .

The primary cause is that melting surpasses accumulation of snow, said Abrams. This change in the precipitation/melting budget can be a local weather condition, or a more regional weather change.

Read: NASA Mission To Mars: Congress Votes Yes On Bill Instructing Agency To Send Humans To Planet By 2033

He says the glaciers in New Zealand are retreating at a slower pace than others located in other parts of the world. As for the future of the glaciers, Abrams says its hard to predict what will happen, though the recent past behavior suggests we will see retreat for some unknown future time or glaciers could stop retreating.

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The recent image was taken by ASTER, which is one of five of Earth-observing instruments flying on Terra, a satellite launched in 1999. Via spatial resolution data in 14 bands, from the visible to the thermal infrared wavelengths, ASTER monitors our planets changing surface, such as glacial advances and retreats, volcanoes, coral reef degradation, surface heat balance and thermal pollution.

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Credit: Photographed by Simon Watson; The designer poses with models, all in Carolina Herrera throughout; Belperron ear clips (third from left) and bracelet (far right)

One thing an interviewer is obligated to ask a designer who is celebrating a significant company milestone, as Carolina Herrera did last year with 35th-anniversary tributes in Atlanta, Madrid, and New York City and a retrospective book from Rizzoli, is whether he or she is about to retire. Might as well get this over with. Mrs. Herrera, have you ever thought about stopping?

"No, I haven't, because I love what I am doing, and it's going so well," she says on a January morning, shortly after returning from a vacation in Punta Cana with all her daughters, their husbands, her great-grandchildren, and some friends--30 people all told. "Why do I have to stop?"

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It is a few days after Mrs. Herrera's 78th birthday, and although I have known her for 20 years, I would never presume to call her anything except Mrs. Herrera, for that is the kind of respect she expects and deserves. This is, for my money, the chicest woman in New York fashion, a person for whom unfailing elegance is as much a design philosophy as it is her lifeblood and legacy.

No one in his right mind would ever question her determination, and yet this has been happening since the beginning of her career, when her friend Halston told her she was mad for giving up a socialite's well-heeled life of leisure for the rag trade (even her husband, Reinaldo, said he thought her runway dreams were just a passing fancy). And yet it happened once again only a few months ago, in an especially bizarre episode when a lawsuit between the Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta companies revealed an internal plan to replace Mrs. Herrera, apparently without her knowledge. And yet look who's still here, as chic as the day she put on her first white blouse.

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Credit: Photographed by Simon Watson

"I don't care. I really don't. I can't," Mrs. Herrera says of her doubters, few as they may be. "You know what the fashion business is like. They're always underestimating you. I look back to 35 years ago, and this was so tiny. Now we are a $1.5 billion company. So did I do well or badly? Moneywise, I mean."

In fact, rarely has an American fashion designer done as well as Mrs. Herrera, who has outlasted and outperformed even the giants--Halston, who lost luxury credibility when he sold a line at J.C. Penney in the 1980s; Bill Blass, who helped her book the models for her very first show at the Metropolitan Club in 1981; and Oscar de la Renta, with whom she enjoyed a long professional rivalry.

Whenever we spoke during the numerous stops on her victory tour over the past year, she seemed entirely secure with her position in the world, remembering early doubts and fears almost with a sense of nostalgia. Just before a museum exhibition of her work opened last May at the Savannah College of Art and Design (at its campuses in Savannah and Atlanta), Mrs. Herrera told me that the secret to her longevity was this: "The thing I have tried to do is not to confuse the clients," she says. "They know what they get when they come to buy Herrera.

"I like simplicity, and I like uncomplicated looks," she continues. "Because in the end, when you go out in the evening, do you see a lot of costumes?"

RELATED: Actress Laura Dern on Fearlessness and Femininity



Credit: Photographed by Simon Watson; Belperron ear clips (far right)

While on an earlier visit to Atlanta, I watched curator Rafael Gomes unpack gowns from several decades and realized that every one of them--dresses worn by Sandra Bullock, Lady Gaga, Lupita Nyong'o, and Renee Zellweger (including her 2004 Oscars dress)--looked so timeless, they could have been designed today. Consistency and class have been Herrera's calling cards since the very beginning, to the frustration of some fashion critics, perhaps, but also to the delight of her clients. And that is because Mrs. Herrera has always known what looks right for a lady like her, a celebrated Venezuelan jet-set beauty from a prestigious family who captured the attention of Andy Warhol and Robert Mapplethorpe, Princess Margaret and Bianca Jagger. She appeared atop the International Best Dressed List long before she decided to start a fashion business, at the suggestion of her friend Diana Vreeland, when she was in her 40s. Recounting those early days while working with her youngest daughter, Patricia Herrera Lansing, on the Rizzoli book, called Carolina Herrera: 35 Years of Fashion, she became more aware of how daring her decision really was.

"I had forgotten so many things, even who was in the first show, so I loved looking back through the photographs," she says. (Among the models were Alva Chinn, Paola Domingu?n, and Iman.) "I remembered that after the show C.Z. Guest gave me a dinner at Doubles Club, which was just next door, so we all walked there in one big group. This was before the reviews came out, and I was so happy, because I thought the show was divine. And then the next day some of the reviews were good and some were bad, but I thought they were crazy because it was fabulous. It's the enthusiasm you have in the beginning of something that you don't know when or where you're going to arrive."

In November I accompanied Mrs. Herrera to Madrid, where a large party was being planned in the fantastic art-filled home of the then-United States ambassador to Spain and Andorra, James Costos, and his partner, Michael S. Smith, the interior decorator of the Obamas' White House. This was the week after the American election, so, naturally, there were many jokes about what the Trumps would do to Smith's designs, but the thing that struck me most was how humbled Mrs. Herrera, who became a naturalized American citizen in 2009, was to be celebrated at a U.S. embassy. Two of her daughters are married to Spaniards, and one of them, Carolina Herrera de B?ez, resides in Madrid as creative director of the company's fragrance business through its partners at Puig.

"I am Venezuelan-born, but I am very proud to be an American designer," Mrs. Herrera said. "I started my business in New York, which opened its doors to me, and I am here today because of that."



Credit: Photographed by Simon Watson; Belperron cuff

As a debate ensued among designers who oppose President Donald Trump and refused to dress Melania Trump as the new First Lady, Mrs. Herrera was one of the few in the fashion industry who came to her defense. For the inaugural ball, she designed a dazzlingly beaded champagne-colored gown for his daughter Ivanka, while Mrs. Trump was dressed by Herve Pierre Braillard, once a protege of Mrs. Herrera's.

"It's out of respect," Mrs. Herrera says. "You respect the country where you live."

Besides, she is competitive, and she wants to continue to be a vital part of the story. For as much as we talk about her embrace of tradition and her place in history, Mrs. Herrera remains forward-looking, and in her recent work she has developed modern fabrics and prints inspired by technology. "You have to have your eyes open, and you have to go into digital," she says (with 1.5 million followers on Instagram). "I have always been very curious, and the moment I finish with curiosity, I should stop and go someplace else. Perseverance, my dear friend, is what you have to have."

When we saw each other again in January for this photo shoot, Mrs. Herrera's company had just settled its lawsuit, which alleged that Laura Kim, a designer who worked there briefly, had violated a noncompete agreement by joining Oscar de la Renta as its new co-creative director with Fernando Garcia. According to the suit, Kim resigned from Herrera because she had been promised creative control of the house by its chief executive, Fran?ois Kress, only to discover that Mrs. Herrera had not been informed of this plan. Kim left in July after realizing Mrs. Herrera wasn't going anywhere.

RELATED: Joan Juliet Buck on Turning Fashion On and Off

Mrs. Herrera declined to comment on the case, citing the terms of the settlement, before raising a question of her own.

"Let me ask you something," she said. "If you have a fashion house, and everybody's talking about who designs for that house--the fashion team or whoever--but the designer is still alive, does the woman who goes to buy the clothes do so because of a certain designer in the house, or does she do so because of Carolina Herrera, the name on the door?"

Because of the name on the door.

"Right."

The next day she called to tell me that there had been a change in management. Kress was gone. In his stead, she had promoted chief marketing officer Emilie Rubinfeld, a longtime executive and loyal protector of her image, to president. I was reminded that Mrs. Herrera had told me several times in our conversations that it was important to promote from within and work with a team while also setting a certain standard of tone.

I have often wondered if Mrs. Herrera plans to someday hand over her company to her daughters, but she says she would never presume to tell her children what to do. In exchange, it is clear that no one should ever try to tell Mrs. Herrera what to do, and that includes when to say goodbye.

"The last word," she says, "is mine."

For more stories like this, pick up InStyle's April issue, on newsstands and available for digital download Mar. 17.


Credit: Walt Disney Co. / Courtesy Everett Collection

The first trailer for the live-action version of The Little Mermaid is here, and the film looks completely stunning.

But sorry to get your hopes up Disney fanatics, it isn't a remake of the classic you know and love--this movie is based on the famed fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen. The storyline follows a young girl and her older brother (a reporter) who travel to a small town in Mississippi to search for an enchanting woman that they believe is the real Little Mermaid. The sibling duo quickly becomes a part of the adventure to save her from her captors.

The project boasts a star-studded cast that includes Poppy Drayton (Downton Abbey) and William Moseley (The Chronicles of Narnia) alongside Shirley MacLaine, Loreto Peralta, and Gina Gershon. Blake Harris and Chris Bouchard direct the film, which features a screenplay written by Harris.

The Little Mermaid is set to be released later this year.

RELATED: Beauty Products That Will Make You Feel Like a Mermaid

Watch the full trailer above.
These Muslim women students are fighting back against Trumps travel ban in the most inspiring way

Donald Trump has made it clear that when it comes to foreign affairs, America comes first. But for a group of Muslim women students at colleges across the United States, helping those abroad is not only okay  its a responsibility.

The women are part of the Books Not Bombs campaign, an initiative organized by The Syria Consortium to help Syrian refugees access education. The campaign launched last year, before Trumps ban on travel from six Muslim-majority countries was introduced, but since the first version of that executive order took effect, Books Not Bombs organizers  who are primarily Muslim women  have been ramping up their efforts.

The final text of the EO against refugees has just been released. It's ugly. Take action here: https://t.co/XVp0jN6V5c pic.twitter.com/zM4K6DzZiQ  Books Not Bombs (@Books_Not_Bombs) January 28, 2017

Across the nation, more than 18,000 students have gotten involved with Books Not Bombs since its inception  signing petitions, holding protests, and staging silent demonstrations  and have helped launch programs expanding access to education for immigrants and refugees.

At Barnard College in New York, organizers set up a scholarship program for displaced women. University of Southern California students created an emergency fund for refugee students affected by the travel ban. And Books Not Bombs activists around the country have lobbied their administrations to speak out and defend immigrant student populations.

We are surrounded by powerful women: pictured below are the organizers who created a refugee womens scholarship at Barnard earlier this week pic.twitter.com/0gqnpF9JLy  Books Not Bombs (@Books_Not_Bombs) March 8, 2017

Education is a human right, said Reem Karmouta, a Books Not Bombs organizer at UCLA who got involved in the campaign after seeing a Facebook page for the group at another school. Here in the United States, we tend to take our education for granted. We are surrounded by amazing institutions and opportunities that many would die for.

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She told HelloGiggles, Books Not Bombs hopes to assist in providing equal opportunity for education for all, especially those, like Syrian refugees, who can no longer access institutes of higher education [in their home countries due to conflict].

Outrageous: Autaya primary school targeted today in Ghouta, wounding children. This is another reason why we need an end to bombings in Syria. Posted by Books Not Bombs on Tuesday, March 7, 2017

The irony of Muslim women leading this charge is not lost on Karmouta, who feels like a stranger in her own country.

[The travel ban] made me feel hated and unwelcome in the place I love most, the place I call home, she said. I understand the struggles that come with being different, with being a minority.

Last week, University of California, Irvine student Iman Siddiqi spoke at the UC Regents meeting about creating... Posted by Books Not Bombs on Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Still, she sees Books Not Bombs as a way to fight for a better future.

I want people to look ahead, decades into the future. When looking at the post-conflict situation in Syria, it is essential to think about higher education, she said. If we do not take action now, the country will have lost thousands of potential professionals who could have made the nation flourish into the state it once was.

Bringing the American dream to the rest of the world  it doesnt get any more patriotic than that.
Photo credit: (LEAH GOREN)

From LennyLetter

Twenty years ago, astronomers looking out into the corners of our galaxy first spied exoplanets, celestial bodies orbiting stars other than our own. That discovery suggested a tantalizing possibility: somewhere out there, other Earth-like planets could be spinning around other Sun-like stars. And if there were another place in the universe that resembled our home, wouldn't it make sense that it could also host ecosystems thrumming with action? In the search for life beyond our solar system, the most logical place to look is an environment that resembles the one we already know.

Until last summer, these assumptions were mostly hypothetical. But in August, researchers made the thrilling announcement that a rocky planet one-third larger than our Earth rotates around the small star Proxima Centauri at a safe enough distance for water to exist on its surface in liquid form. Just four and a half light-years away, Proxima B (as it's being called) is one of our closest neighbors in this vast galaxy. Last month, astronomers revealed that a large telescope in the Atacama Desert of Chile had spotted an entire solar system of planets that might be able to host life. Now we can focus our alien-hunting energy on these beguiling exoplanets.

Although scientists are still perfecting the technology that will tell us what exactly is happening on the surface of these planets, it's pretty damn exciting that we live in a time where we might be getting close to answering a question that we've been asking ourselves for millennia: Are we alone in the universe? So I called up Sara Seager, a MacArthur "genius" grantwinning professor of planetary science and physics at MIT who has dedicated her career to finding habitable exoplanets. We talked about what the discoveries mean for the future of exploration, what it's like to think about the heavens while managing the realities of life on Earth, and why she's going to keep looking to the stars.

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Rose Lichter-Marck: Why do you think it's important to look for exoplanets that could host life beyond Earth?

Sara Seager: As humans, we want to know what's out there. We want to know how we got here. How did our solar system come to be? How did our Earth form and evolve? How did life originate and evolve here? Most [of] what drives me to search for another Earth is a basic curiosity about who we are in the cosmos.

Some people believe that we're destroying our planet and that sometime in the future we'll have to find another planet to live on. Mars isn't too hospitable, so we better start looking around the very nearest stars.

RL-M: You've said that we're on this threshold of a new era, which you call "an awakening." Why do you see it that way? That sounds like a very hopeful thing to say.

SS: When you tell people that we have irrefutable evidence that there are planets around other stars, it changes the way they see the world. It forces people to go back and rethink their assumptions and the way they live. It's science fiction becoming science fact. And that changes everything.

RL-M: Have you ever seen the film called Another Earth? The fact that there's another planet out there that seems to be a mirror image of our own helps the characters believe in the possibility of a better life.

SS: I think the idea that we're not alone in an infinite universe helps give faith meaning.

When you tell people that we have irrefutable evidence that there are planets around other stars, it changes the way they see the world.

RL-M: You've written that you feel pretty certain that we're going to discover life beyond Earth within the next twenty years.

SS: Actually, let me rephrase that: I believe that we will have the capabilities to find signs of life beyond Earth in the next twenty years.

There's no guarantee life is out there. And we can't guarantee that if there is, we won't miss it. And we also can't guarantee we're going to know it if we find it. But we will definitely have the capabilities to find signs of life.

RL-M: It seems like such a daunting question: What will life on other planets look like? Will it look like it does on ours? I'm thinking of Carl Sagan's example of whale songs, which we think may contain more information than the Odyssey or the Iliad. And yet we can't translate a single chirp.

SS: We use the Earth as our benchmark. We are looking for a planet with oceans and continents and a good temperature for life. We are looking for an atmosphere that has gases that suggest this kind of planet. But we often accuse each other and ourselves of being terracentric. We see everything through the lens of what we know.

RL-M: We're looking for something that looks like us.

SS: Right. But it's a struggle to know what else to look for. We could be looking for the wrong thing completely. Or just looking in the wrong place. And then there's everything we can't see because our telescopes just aren't good enough yet.

RL-M: What are you looking for when you're searching for exoplanets?

SS: We are looking for solar systems, for planets orbiting stars. We are looking for water vapor in the atmospheres of those planets and other gases that connote life.

RL-M: Do you ever try to work backward and guess what kind of life might exist based on which gases might be present?

SS: We skip all of that because in astronomy, all we have access to are the gases that life produces. We're making this basic assumption that life elsewhere would be like life here, that we use chemistry to extract or release energy and there are by-products of gases involved.

But our observations are so limited. Think of it this way: if there are aliens on another planet looking back at our Earth, they'll see oxygen in our atmosphere, but if they have the same technology we do, they won't know if it was produced by intelligent life or single-celled organisms. It could just be a lot of plants.

Sometimes, for fun, we speculate what kind of life could exist based on the types of atmospheres we hope to observe. Imagine for a moment that our Earth had a much more massive atmosphere. Imagine that the air was as dense as water. You know how when you swim in water, you float? Air would be like that, too. So the types of life that would evolve in that kind of environment would probably be very different from what we have here. Remember those movies of people walking on the moon, where they're kind of bouncing around? There's basically no gravity there. But imagine the opposite, if there's a high surface gravity - then life would evolve to be very different. It would be like we were all walking around with giant lead weights on our legs.

RL-M: Do announcements like the discovery of Proxima B affect your work?

SS: It gives me a huge amount of motivation, but it doesn't change anything that I'm doing. We're still going to search for planets around the nearest stars; we're still going to carry on the plans that we have. With NASA, we're working on building a starshade, a giant screen that we're going to launch into space to block out the light of our sun so we can get a better look at the planets out there. And at MIT, we're leading a NASA mission called TESS: Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite. The goal is to find transiting planets around small stars like Proxima Centauri. When a planet crosses in front of its sun, we're able to see how that affects the amount of light that the star emits, which can tell us about the makeup of that planet's atmosphere. We have been working on this mission for over a decade. It's going to launch at the end of 2017.

RL-M: Do you think there is a risk to putting all the eggs in one basket?

SS: We don't want just one basket, but what if we have five baskets?

People have been reluctant to support our projects in the past. But now we can point to this and say, "Look, our nearest star has a planet." Actually, my colleague Natalie Batalha summed it up really well. Based on the Kepler results, you'd expect about one in seven stars to have a planet in the habitable zone. The fact that it's the closest one means we're pretty lucky. If you go out and buy a lottery ticket, it's like one chance in hundreds of millions, probably. So we're lucky, we're hugely lucky. But we're lucky to have found the one in seven, not the one in a trillion.

RL-M: Right. The odds are in our favor.

SS: That's the way to see it. And maybe more people will see it that way now. If there's one planet, there are more out there, too.

RL-M: When you won the MacArthur "genius" grant in 2013, you announced that you would put all of the money toward your home life and childcare. Could you tell me a little bit more about why you decided to do that?

SS: At the time I was recently widowed, a single mom. I had to figure out how to handle my job and take care of my kids. School gets out at three. I didn't know how to manage that. My job takes a lot of concentration, and I get wiped out by the end of the day. The mental exertion is exhausting. I get back home and I'm just wiped out. So all of a sudden I had to do everything myself. I wanted to work ambitiously and spend time with my kids, and I had to take care of everything else, too. Do you know how expensive 24-7 childcare is? It can cut your paycheck in half.

Some people said it wasn't OK for me to spend the "genius" grant on my kids. Others were excited I said it out loud because it was acknowledging the struggle. When I won the award, I was spending so much money and overextending myself. And the award made my life sane again.

I wanted to work ambitiously and spend time with my kids, and I had to take care of everything else, too

RL-M: When your first husband passed away and your life changed, did you discover new structural problems in the sciences for women and for single parents?

SS: Yes, but I think a lot of couples who are both working share similar problems. The nurse calls you from school, and what are you going to do? This summer, my air conditioner broke. And it was so hot. Someone was supposed to come today, but they haven't shown up yet, and I have to wait around. I should be at work, but I am here. I have to work, but I also have to clean, I have to nurture the kids, I have to worry about them.

RL-M: I feel like it's very rare, especially in the kind of work that you're doing or the kind of high-level work rewarded by the MacArthur award, that someone acknowledges the economic pressures that get in the way of your making those world-changing discoveries.

SS: Right. I wish more people would talk about it.

RL-M: How can you separate the challenges in your career from the challenges in your personal life? So much of what happens outside of work dictates what you're capable of accomplishing in it. I read an op-ed you wrote lambasting a conference that required people to travel a tremendous amount, effectively excluding scholars who are involved in any child-rearing. Did the changes in your life radicalize you?

SS: Yes. They gave me permission to be bold. Because I had nothing to lose.

This interview has been condensed and edited.

Rose Lichter-Marck is a writer living in Brooklyn. She also takes pictures, some of which are posted here. You can find her on Twitter.
Its been a lackluster few years for Apples Mac lineup. The iconic MacBook Air has been put out to pasture, the new MacBook Pro distinctly underwhelmed creative types, and I cant even remember the last time anyone said anything about the Mac Pro. In the meantime, Chromebooks are taking off, and even Microsoft has started to do interesting things again.

But hardware aside, theres still something that Apple does far better than competition: customer service. According to Laptop Mags Tech Support Showdown list, Apple headily beats the competition for the quickest and best customer service of any major manufacturer.

Don't Miss: Leak: Can the iPhone 8 compete with a Galaxy S8 that looks like this?

The rankings are produced by real-world testing, where Laptop Mag gets editors to try the phone and live chat support features of each manufacturer. They get a grade based on the speed of support and quality of information, which feeds into an overall score.

Apple won the test outright, with an overall 93/100 and an average call time of just six minutes. Laptop Mag said that Apple offers the best tech support in the business, year after year. The companys website and mobile app are loaded with helpful, step-by-step tutorials and, whether you reach them via phone or live chat, support reps are knowledgeable and friendly. Apple also answered Twitter messages quickly and accurately.

The only real complaint was an occasional lack of knowledge about new features. Thats to be expected, especially given that Apples reps are responsible for supporting more than just hardware.

Acer, a company thats long had a reputation for poor support, actually moved into second place in this years test, with a score of 88. Lenovo and Microsoft were next, while Asus, Samsung and MSI round out the bottom.

Its not as easy as blanket-comparing specs, but knowing how good a companys tech support is can make or break a product experience. Ive ended up contacting support for almost every laptop Ive ever owned, and the result can be the difference between your problem being fixed in an afternoon, or being without a laptop for weeks after sending it for service.

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Trending right now:

See the original version of this article on BGR.com
Anil Giri is a reporter covering diplomacy, international relations and national politics for The Kathmandu Post. Giri has been working as a journalist for a decade-and-a-half, contributing to numerous national and international media outlets.
Software billionaire Charles Simonyi chats with GeekWires Alan Boyle at a 50th-anniversary celebration for the University of Washingtons computer science and engineering program. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota)

Charles Simonyi, the billionaire software executive whos flown to space twice, says he doesnt know whos on SpaceXs passenger list for a flight beyond the moon and back. But he knows at least one potential customer whos not on it: himself.

Simonyi might seem to be in the sweet spot for the space adventure, which SpaceX billionaire founder Elon Musk says is in the works for as early as 2018.

The Hungarian-born computer scientist bought not just one, but two multimillion-dollar trips to the International Space Station, in 2007 and 2009. The Soyuz capsule he rode in 2009 is on display in the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery at Seattles Museum of Flight. And thanks in part to his role as the architect for Microsoft Word, his estimated net worth amounts to almost $2 billion.

Today hes the chairman and chief technology officer of Bellevue, Wash.-based Intentional Software, which has Eric Anderson as CEO. Anderson also serves as the chairman of Virginia-based Space Adventures, which arranged for Simonyis space trips and offers round-the-moon trips as well.

Simonyi says hes intrigued by the idea of putting two paying passengers on a round-the-moon trip. Musks plan calls for sending the travelers in an autonomously guided SpaceX Dragon capsule that ranges as far as 400,000 miles from Earth but takes advantage of the moons gravitational pull for the homeward journey.

It reminds me of Apollo 8, Simonyi told GeekWire, referring to NASAs risky round-the-moon mission in 1968. The first manned use is audacious.

He was curious about the details: Will a professional astronaut fly with the passengers? (SpaceX says no.) Whats the ticket price? (Musk declined to give a figure but said it would be comparable to a little more than what the cost of a crewed mission to the space station would be. That suggests an order-of-magnitude estimate of $100 million per person.)

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Investor-philanthropist Ben Slivka, Lisa Persdotter Simonyi and Charles Simonyi smile for the cameras at the University of Washingtons 50th-anniversary celebration for its computer science and engineering program. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota)

Simonyi said hes not buying a round-the-moon ticket anytime soon, mostly due to the cost. And besides, hes got a family to think about: In 2008 he married Lisa Persdotter, the daughter of a Swedish millionaire, and they now have two daughters of their own.

But dont be surprised if the 68-year-old Simonyi takes another trip to the final frontier someday.

Ive said before that if I could take the whole family  not around the moon, but to space  I would do it, he said.

More from GeekWire:
By Dustin Volz and Joseph Menn WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Wikileaks will provide technology companies with exclusive access to CIA hacking tools that it possesses so they can patch software flaws, founder Julian Assange said on Thursday, presenting Silicon Valley with a potential dilemma on how to deal with the anti-secrecy group. If the offer is legitimate, it would place technology companies in the unusual position of relying on Assange, a man believed by some U.S. officials and lawmakers to be an untrustworthy pawn of Russian President Vladimir Putin, to share cyber vulnerabilities stockpiled by a secretive U.S. spy agency. It was not clear how WikiLeaks intended to cooperate with the companies. The group published documents on Tuesday describing secret Central Intelligence Agency hacking tools and snippets of computer code. It did not publish the full programs that would be needed to actually conduct cyber exploits against phones, computers and Internet-connected televisions. "Considering what we think is the best way to proceed and hearing these calls from some of the manufacturers, we have decided to work with them to give them some exclusive access to the additional technical details that we have so that the fixes can be developed and pushed out, so people can be secure," Assange said during an online press conference from the Ecuadorean embassy in London. Assange took refuge at the embassy in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over allegations of rape, which he denies. Microsoft Corp and Cisco Systems Inc, whose wares are subject to attacks described in the documents, said in response to Assange that they welcomed submissions of any vulnerabilities through normal reporting channels. "We've seen Julian Assange's statement and have not yet been contacted," a Microsoft representative said. "Our preferred method for anyone with knowledge of security issues, including the CIA or Wikileaks, is to submit details to us at secure@microsoft.com so we can review information and take any necessary steps to protect customers." Representatives of Alphabet Inc's Google, Apple Inc, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and Huawei[HWT.UL], whose products were also featured in the CIA catalog, did not answer requests for comment. Responding to Assange, CIA spokesman Jonathan Liu, said in a statement: "As weve said previously, Julian Assange is not exactly a bastion of truth and integrity." "Despite the efforts of Assange and his ilk, CIA continues to aggressively collect foreign intelligence overseas to protect America from terrorists, hostile nation states and other adversaries." WikiLeaks' disclosures this week caused alarmed in the technology world and among consumers because of the potential privacy implications of the cyber espionage tactics that were described. One file described a program known as Weeping Angel that purportedly could take over a Samsung smart television, making it appear it was off when in fact it was recording conversations in the room. Other documents described ways to hack into Apple iPhones, devices running Google's Android software and other gadgets in a way that could observe communications before they are protected by end-to-end encryption offered by messaging apps like Signal or WhatsApp. Several companies have already said they are confident that their recent security updates have accounted for the purported flaws described in the CIA documents. Apple said in a statement on Tuesday that "many of the issues" leaked had already been patched in the latest version of its operating system. WikiLeaks' publication of the documents reignited a debate about whether U.S. intelligence agencies should hoard serious cyber security vulnerabilities rather than share them with the public. An interagency process created under former President Barack Obama called for erring on the side of disclosure. CIA SECURITY President Donald Trump believes changes are needed to safeguard secrets at the CIA, White House spokesman Sean Spicer told a news briefing on Thursday. "He believes that the systems at the CIA are outdated and need to be updated." Two U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials told Reuters on Wednesday that intelligence agencies have been aware since the end of last year of a breach at the CIA, which led to WikiLeaks releasing thousands of pages of information on its website. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said contractors likely breached security and handed over the documents to WikiLeaks. The CIA has declined to comment on the authenticity of the documents leaked, but the officials said they believed the pages about hacking techniques used between 2013 and 2016 were authentic. Contractors have been revealed as the source of sensitive government information leaks in recent years, most notably Edward Snowden and Harold Martin, both employed by consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton while working for the National Security Agency. Assange said he possessed "a lot more information" about the CIA's cyber arsenal that would be released soon. He criticized the CIA for "devastating incompetence" for not being able to control access to such sensitive material, and asked whether Obama or Trump were made aware of the breaches. Assange's group released Democratic emails during the 2016 presidential campaign that U.S. intelligence agencies say were hacked by Russia to try to tilt the election against Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. He is regarded with distaste by many in Washington, although Trump, then the Republican candidate, supported the group's email releases last year. Ben Sasse, a Republican senator, said in a statement on Thursday that Assange should "spend the rest of his life wearing an orange jumpsuit." He is "an enemy of the American people and an ally to Vladimir Putin" who has "has dedicated his lifes work to endangering innocent lives, abetting despots, and stoking a crisis of confidence in the West," Sasse said. (Reporting by Dustin Volz; Additional reporting by Eric Auchard in Frankfurt, Joseph Menn in San Francisco and Guy Falconbridge in London; Editing by Grant McCool and Frances Kerry)
Your Search Engine Optimisation Strategy Can Be Bettered, Heres How



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To achieve the top of the the major search engines results page, your web site must offer regular, fresh content. One great way to hold a stream newest content articles are by such as a blog on the site. When your blog is interesting, it is going to naturally generate more human traffic, this will likely show search engines like google that your internet site is active, and.



To assist site crawlers better understand your site, you need to use keywords when your anchor text for internal links. Non-descript links including, click here, do not help your blog since they offer no information to the search engines. This can also help your blog to look more cohesive to human visitors.



Starting your blog is a wonderful way to optimize a websites internet search engine performance. The structured, frequently-updated content of your blog is treated favorably by search engines, which drives up a websites position on the search engine results page. Investing in a very high-quality blog will likely draw an internet site into communication with its industry and visitors peers.



To ensure your search engine optimization is working, you ought to regularly look at the websites pagerank. Google updates their page rankings repeatedly per year and in case you dont see improvement, it can be an indication that what youre doing isnt working. For additional regularly updated pagerank information, you can examine Alexa.



Successful search engine marketing can be accomplished by integrating a website map in your website. This permits search engine listings to get other pages with your site apart from the homepage easily and, thus, enhances your presence on search engines like google. Make sure to link each page of your respective site to your site map.



Are you aware that the in which you position these keywords on your webpage is also essential, though when starting an internet search engine optimization campaign the keywords and keyphrases you end up picking are crucial? This can help lead searches the right path. http://dcseo897.shotblogs.com/website-marketing-is-lucrative-if-done-properly-1591387 Spend some time and do it properly and you will have lots of quality external links coming back to your webpage.



To make sure your website stays optimized as technology changes, work with search engine marketing for cellular devices. Popular keywords on smart phones often differ from those on home computers and make sure your site contains both. Some keyword tools will help you to find out how specific keywords rank on mobile devices.



Keywords are necessary for search engine marketing but you should utilize them inside an effective manner with regards to affiliate marketing. Overflowing your page with keywords is just not a great strategy, as search engines will grab with this and dock points. Utilize your keywords inside a relevant and understandable manner to optimize effectiveness.



Resubmitting it may be the ideal technique to have your page returned for the search ranking if you seek out your page on a search engine and cannot find it. In case your page remains to be valid, as search engine listings know that and just ignore your request, Resubmitting will not hurt your ranking even.



Be sure that people visiting your web site can get a hold of you. People dont trust websites where they already have simply a contact page form, so allow individuals to contact you directly by email, phone and even mail. The more people trust your website, the more likely they are to backlink to you, which is an important part of SEO.



Writing unique content is undoubtedly an overlooked SEO strategy. The Net is loaded with free information. The easiest way for the information to get attention is to utilize information that is certainly either very specific or not widely published. This may give your website a competitive edge over those using stale and widely published information.



Advisable for seo would be to create your URL name a simple someone to remember. Use keywords that happen to be related to the topic of your page and make certain not add any underscored. This way, whenever a person wants to return to the site, they are going to have zero problem remembering the URL.



You can optimize your blog for search engines by using SEO-friendly URLs for every article. If you use your blog site to earn money, most blogging services offer this option, which is a must-do. As an alternative to allowing the company to assign a generic URL, make your own post URL that features keywords.



Prior to deciding to design your website, plan your search engine optimisation techniques. Evaluate which topics you want to focus on, what you need to generate income away from, what your layout may be like and after that, move on to keyword selection. Move through all the items must be fully optimized, before you even type your first little bit of HTML code.



Be sure that you have some type of software in place that can measure web analytics. You have to set goals on your own, and that software will help you discover which methods are helping you and those will not be. This can save time and effort that would be wasted on a thing that is not showing results.



Ensure youre linking to other websites. Search engines tend to rank websites higher while they are associated with similar websites. So, try making a resources page that utilizes keywords strategically and links for some other sites that happen to be similar or connected to the topic of your website. This will assist to improve your ranking and build favor with your readers.



Each day that you simply dont implement sound search engine optimisation measures, can be another day your competitors are receiving business that you may have gotten otherwise. Therefore, you must immediately get started on implementing the information above, to greatly boost your business websites rank, relative to your competitors sites.

Raising Your Reputation: Guidelines



Possessing a solid business reputation is key to winning the trust of clients, and learning this skill is a very important key to achieving success. You want to check out the following article if you wish aid in discovering how to maintain a solid business reputation. Below there are actually tips about reputation management in the market world.



To further improve your small business reputation, stay in touch with customers. This really is a lot more important if your online business is large. Your potential customers need to find out they matter personally to you personally. See if you can use automated contact systems. Also, attempt asking for feedback on the latest purchases.



To keep a more careful eye in your business reputation, try setting up an alert system. This really is a daily email you will get that permits you to know as soon as your company has become mentioned online. They are doing cost some money and take a limited time to create, however they can give you a lot of useful information.



Do what you are able to create an unsatisfied customer happy. Turning a customers negative experience into a good one will demonstrate your customer which you care. Doing it over a public online forum is even better. Other customers and prospects can see that you actively address issues, so theyll be more apt to buy products from your company later.



Make certain that each social media account employed by your firm is operated in the professional manner. These pages certainly are a representation of your own company, and thats why its a smart idea to ensure people see things which will make an optimistic impact. Dont go crazy, while you need to get personal.



Try Googling yourself to see what kind of information pops up with regards to you. You can use this to improve yourself if there is lots of negative feedback. In case you find any discrepancies, you should do the best to fix them. You wouldnt want any misinformation to damage your reputation.



Once you speak to your audience, ensure that you do this in the conversational tone. People tend not to like the idea of business owners always talking to them with marketing within their minds. As you do want to make a sale, you ought to never make a customer seem like this is certainly your only concern.



Take notice of the reputation your business has offline. Your offline reputation can certainly make its way into the online world. You have to know why if negative content on your own company gets to be a trend. Treat all your customers and clients well and urge the happy ones to have positive reviews on sites like Yelp.



When you are responding to a negative comment or review about your company, make certain you utilize a professional tone in a respectful way. Your ultimate goal is usually to conquer people to your side. If you discover sounding disrespectful on the original poster, you could possibly risk making the issue worse for the company.



If your customer leaves you a bad review, usually do not leave a negative rebuttal. This may only make you locate to be arrogant and hard to get as well as. As you should address any elements of the review that have been untrue, you want to do it in the non-combative manner.



Offer a guarantee in your products or services. Here is where excellent customer support begins. Every time a customer will make a return, you could possibly be unable to resell it, and that means you will lose money. But, your reputation will stay positive.



Such as a breach of security in the customer database can really damage a companys reputation. In case your company experienced this problem, will not make an effort to hide it. Notify your clients without delay and assure them that measures will probably be delivered to boost security of your data. You are able to minimize problems for your companys reputation with this approach.



There are actually websites around to offer false reviews. Several of the competitors might be utilizing them. Will not go this route. Not only can they be harmful to your business, the practice is definitely now illegal in numerous states!



Take care of negativity inside a forthright manner. Address the situation and rectify it immediately. Customers appreciate real honesty, not just perfection,and thus you will need not concern yourself with occasionally admitting an error in judgment is made and is being addressed.



Conduct a survey to gauge the quantity of satisfaction that your people are feeling about your business. You need to figure out the main reason why it is not necessarily higher in the event the satisfaction is average or lower. Gain knowledge from this and make your organization better. This is how your enterprise could possibly get a much better reputation.



Internet users often look at the rating of a company before they do business with it. Since the business owner, you need to determine if you might have any one or two-star ratings. You might want to consider responding to those in that case. This can stabilize what the negative effects of the one-star rating.



When handling online disputes, be sure you stay calm and prevent sarcasm. Just adhere to the facts available. When there is some section of the problem that is actually your fault, you need to apologize for the part inside the problem. Suggest resolving the issue off-line via a phone call or e mails. This will help bolster your online reputation and let you work more intensively in the problem available.



Without having any reputation at all in operation may be as bad as using a negative reputation! Especially with so many people chatting up a storm on social media marketing, youve got to make certain somebody is talking about your organization. Post casual comments here and there. Alternatively, launch an important PR campaign to have a buzz going and develop your organization reputation.



Accept that men and women will have differing opinions and may unlike your brand. Its human nature to have opinions, likes, and dislikes. And what you have to offer will not be for everybody. Dont then reply to negative with negative. Thatll only lead to a worse situation. One which may be impossible to deal with alone.



Usually do not overlook cultivating your small business relationship along with your sub and suppliers-contractors. They can affect your small business reputation at the same time. Always take care of them with the very best level of fairness and professionalism. Always honor your commitments. You want a good reputation among your colleagues in the industry hence they would like to do business with you.



After you have read some about reputation management, you need to start putting a plan into action. Its only going to be more in-depth as the business grows, so you better obtain everything now. Otherwise, you can definitely find yourself treading water 1 day when you get some negative publicity. Internet marketing might be a lucrative way, straight to your customers doorstep, provided that you know how to accomplish it right. Since nearly most people are on the web, nearly everyone is available for targeted marketing and potential sales. Continue reading for very valuable information and advice which can help your internet marketing efforts, repay!



When designing your Internet affiliate marketing strategy, include a couple of long term goals. Your day-to-day to complete list was created to generate income but the long term success of your web based business will depend on developing a summary of tasks to function on, which will promote this income for a long time. Set a timeline for accomplishing specific tasks.



You can reach out to your audience on demand as a result of a message list. Create a message list regarding a specific topic and mail out newsletters with quality content. As soon as you develop your email list, you may distribute specifics of your product or service, in the context of the newsletter or usual format.



Take a look at affiliate marketing online from an outsiders perspective from time to time. Try to figure out what could be confusing to customers or what catches their eye immediately. Click through every one of the links on your own website to be certain everything still works correctly and try to spot any errors, to ensure the visitors could have a satisfying experience.



A significant portion of the profits generated by an online marketing program, needs to be reinvested within the website that made them. Seeing the profits come in can be immensely satisfying for your website owner. The webmasters mind must be on the longer game, resisting the temptation to consider those profits away from play and instead, make use of them to leverage this business.



Make sure that the title for every page is different. Use variations of your keyword combinations or phrases. Avoid using over 70 characters. If you use over 70 characters, your words will lose value. Each word can take weight from another word. In the title, the 1st words are the most important.



Sharing your understanding of Website marketing with folks fails to hurt you from the slightest. If youre willing to provide other newbies some tips and advice to assist them be successful in their campaigns, actually, it can only increase your profile. You are able to provide some basics, even though you wont desire to write down the complete blueprint.



Visibility on the site ought to be paramount, and upgraded if you will find issues. Your mobile web design should give attention to simplicity, simply because this might take from the viewing connection with your clients. Stay away from adding Flash on mobile web designs and stay with a single column layout for max functionality.



You likely have accessories or complementary products for many of your respective offerings should your website sells a variety of products. You must contact customers after their first purchase to exhibit them other goods that go with what they have purchased. This really is a useful but delicate website marketing technique. Avoid any hint of sales pressure to make your communication as informative as possible.



Find others as if you, and inform them you are searching. Linking to other websites that share similar types of intriguing and unique content articles are the best way to play off each other. Anyone in search of content from either site is probably going to find both of you in the event you link forth and back to one another.



Adding a phone number in your websites information can be quite a good marketing tactic. Some visitors enjoy a choice of speaking with a merchant vocally. A few of your less tech-savvy visitors might require assistance with your internet site. Ensure that the telephone number you add, is to establish professionally. In order to catch off-hours calls, whoever answers the calls, ought to do so within a businesslike way and there ought to be the right voice-mail system set up.



Your products or services reflects on your own website and also you. So, pick items you are proud to market. By taking pride in your work, it is going to show, and individuals is not going to only respect you, but additionally order from you. Ultimately, thats what you wish, right? Top quality products just about sell themselves.



Pre-sell products in your subscriber list, highlighting the huge benefits and reasons they would like to purchase. Increase excitement to the product so that customers are prepared to click your affiliate link and turn from readers into buyers. Take advantage of this strategy just with your lists of folks, whom you already have had connection with.



Add an opt-in box for your site so that visitors can opt to receive weekly or monthly newsletters through your site. http://dcseo243.tinyblogging.com/Expert-Tips-For-Your-Web-Marketing-Needs-3449486 It will give you the opportunity to keep in touch with them and permit you to offer more useful information. This will assist to build your own relationship using them whilst keeping them coming over to you for information.



Before you begin concentrating on search engine marketing, put a web-based analytics software in position. This software gives you a clear picture about what is working and what needs some adjustments. It can help you constantly evaluate your goals and let you stay a step in front of your competitors.



With regards to fully leveraging Website marketing techniques, the tenure of your site is important. Look at the contract length when selecting a domain name and focus on keeping the website name for for as long a time period of time because the website is viable. A tenured site has more credibility when compared to a new site, plus historical information posted gives visitors a sense of your own purpose.



You must reserve time and energy to thoroughly test every factor of your website weekly. Broken images, links to 404 pages and errors in ordering forms is only going to frustrate your customers and hurt your image. When a website is annoying to use, customers might be inclined to have a purchase order in progress.



Be sure to include the first name within the subject collection of your sales message should your primary e-mail list includes the first name and last initial of each and every recipient. This personal touch separates your brands marketing communications in the impersonal spam that most consumers find highly invasive and irritating.



Through the use of these simple tips, your organization will explode in popularity, as internet readers find your merchandise and pass the term along to others. Enjoy your boost in productivity and profits by utilizing these guidelines when putting together your personal website marketing plan. With this article, your company will be booming very quickly.


Get ready for your heart to pound again.

As you see in the exclusive sneak peek above from tonights Deserts episode of BBC Americas Planet Earth II, hungry lions forced to hunt giraffes, whose size and kick strength make them a dangerous meal, do not have it easy on the dunes of Namibia.

Ed Charles, the director and producer of the hour, says he was lucky to work with a husband-and-wife camera team, Will and Lianne Steenkamp, whod spent an incredible amount of time with this desert pride and had forged a relationship with the scientists who study them. They basically just lived out of their car for the best part of two years. I mean literally out of their car  they would sleep on the roof in the evening, and during the day they would just be driving around and filming out the side, Carpenter says. Because they spent so long with these lions, the access they had was just incredible. We were able to capitalize on that by using what theyd shot and going in and asking them to get additional footage for us.

He feels particularly privileged to have that footage in the episode because hes heard recently from the Steenkamps that the pride isnt doing well. Many of them have dispersed, some have even been killed. This pride, big for desert lion, was led by the nature of this female, who had learned to hunt giraffes in this way. Shes no longer with us, Im afraid, so it was a real snapshot in time, he says. Despite the fact that shes trying to jump 11 feet off the ground onto a charging giraffe, she was still very old at that point. They did tell me that they caught up with her some time later, but she was in a really bad way and she was limping around. I think shed taken a knock from another predation attempt. I think her age just caught up with her.

Here, Charles takes us inside five more of the episodes sequences.

Cameraman Rob Drewett puts himself inside a super swarm of a billion flying locusts in Madagascar (Credit: Ed Charles)

Locust Swarm

The story of the crews oft-foiled efforts to find a super swarm of a billion locusts plaguing Madagascar is a highlight of the making of episode airing March 25, and not just because we see researcher Toby Nowlan using his Monday morning locust-herding jazz hands to try to encourage juvenile hoppers that cant yet fly to cross the road in front of the cameras. I think that those jazz hands are going to make him famous, Charles says.

Story continues

But they needed to film a swarm in flight, which ultimately became the toughest sequence to shoot  and Charles favorite.

Wed heard Madagascar was experiencing these crazy widespread locust plagues, on a scale not seen for more than a decade. So we knew that we wanted to go out and film it. We worked very closely with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the UNFAO for short, who where out there trying to eradicate the plagues, because, of course, Madagascar is one of the poorest nations on the planet, and these plagues were absolutely ravaging the entire country, Charles says. Although they expected to film the swarm in the very, very arid area of the country, the locusts had already flown on. And this is where we just need to let him tell it.

So then ensued this massive road trip. We had to completely change all of our plans. We must have driven thousands of miles, and the locusts were always one step ahead. What was slightly frustrating, as you see in the making of, is that this was supposed to be for the Deserts episode, but as we were following the locusts, they were heading further north, where theyd actually had an unprecedented amount of rain. All the roads were flooded, the savanna was a lot lusher than youd normally expect. But we kept on following them into this incredibly remote part of the country, where very few Westerners ever go. But eventually, we got to a point where we ran out of road. So having forged all these swollen rivers and driving across these roads where the water was coming up over the bonnet, we got, as the making of says, defeated by a puddle in the end. The road just turned into this absolute quagmire we couldnt get across. We knew that they were just on the savanna further north, so we threw everything we had at trying to get access to one of only two helicopters in the entire country. We were very lucky; I think the helicopter we used had just finished flying the president around, so it was free. We managed to secure it for three days, and that was the way to do it. Because as soon as youre up in the air, you can see the swarms from a very long way away, and you can see which direction theyre traveling in. You can then fly round in front of them, turn off the engines, get out, set the cameras up, and then just wait for them to pass overhead. It was the most rewarding experience I wasnt freaked out by going out to film locusts, but lots of my friends and family were like, Oh, I couldnt imagine anything worse. But once youre actually in a swarm, it was almost serene. The swarm is miles across, and you just stood in the middle of it. Because theres so many billions of wings all beating in unison, you kind of lose the air around you and theres this amazing sound, which is so difficult to describe. Its like the whirl of a distant waterfall, but up-close. All the locusts fly at you but they part, like a stream going around a rock. It was an incredible experience.

For series executive producer Mike Gunton, its also one of the key ingredients you need in each episode of Planet Earth: spectacle. I think its a very powerful experience to just see sheer spectacular numbers of creatures. When you see locusts swarm with a billion locusts, it is just mindblowing. Its an overused phrase, but it is, he says. For the first time, using these gyroscopic cameras, youre really able to be in those swarms, to be able to run along and feel like youre flying and feel the sense of being enveloped in a flying swarm of locusts, which, a lot of people find that quite creepy. One of the things Ive learned over the years is people have a very strange reaction to insects. Personally, I find bugs absolutely extraordinarily fascinating. But some people absolutely just say, Nope. Im not watching it. Its about a bug.'

Sandgrouse (Credit: BBC)

The Daily Sandgrouse Water Run

Its another incredible story of what parents go through in the wild. Male sandgrouse in Namibia may fly up to 60 miles to reach the waterhole nearest the safety of their remote nesting site, where the females stay behind to shield the chicks from the sun. Once they drink their full, they soak up water in specially adapted breast feathers to take back to their families. Theyll do this every day for two months until the chicks can fly.

Every morning they come in like clockwork at the same time, and the noise that they make as they fly  its this beautiful calling, Charles says. But the soaking takes time, which makes the sandgrouse prey for hawks, which are the reason the chicks are kept at such a great distance.

Normally its very, very difficult to find the chicks, but I remember I was driving out with someone, and we spooked these sandgrouse from the side of the dirt track and they flew up. I thought, Well thats a bit weird, what are they doing out here in the middle of the desert? I looked down, and sure enough, there just right by the side of the road were these tiny little chicks ready to cross. Just beautiful, beautiful things. Its amazing where they nested, its literally right in the middle of the desert. Theres nothing there, miles from water. But their camouflage is so incredible that they just hunker down, he says. Had we not been driving past and spooked their parents, there is no way on earth I would have seen them. I literally could have stepped within two inches of them, and I wouldnt have seen them. Its amazing.

A darkling beetle (Credit: BBC)

The Darkling Beetles Epic Climb



On foggy mornings in Namibias Namib Desert, darkling beetles climb to the top of the dunes to collect water from the mist that blows in from the sea. Grooves in the beetles casing help channel the water that collects on their bodies toward their mouths. To make it even more interesting, that journey to the top of those dunes is the equivalent of a human climbing Mount Everest  twice.

You hear about the beetles, and it is an amazing story, but actually filming it is incredibly challenging for a couple of reasons, Charles says. The first is that the beetles will only do it when the fog is absolutely the right kind of fog. Now, we never quite figured out what the right kind of fog was, but the beetles have to do it when its been dry for a number of days, and then the fog rolls in. If its too high they wont do it, if its too damp they wont do it. We just had to wait. Every morning, youd go outside before sunrise, and youd look. On the days when it was right, we would quickly rush out to the dunes. Sure enough, the beetles would start popping out. But the other problem in filming it was that in sand, you leaves tracks. You generally only had one run up the dune face before you then had to move on and find the next slip face and hope the beetles are coming up there, as well. Thats why we got these handheld shots where were literally following the beetle up the dune face the entire way, because we really did only have one attempt before we put our own footprints in the sand.

A Golden mole (Credit: BBC)

The Golden Mole Sighting

Tracks did help the film crew at times, however. Golden moles in Namibia are rarely seen because they are nocturnal and, well, moles. They spend much of their time moving around under the sand, and then they pop up, and theyll scurry around on the top for a bit, then theyll duck down again, Charles says. At first, we started working with one who was a little bit shy, so we thought were not going to push this, because you dont want to cause stress to the animals. But then we found another one, and that is the joy about these animals: theyre really easy to find. Theyve got a very distinct track. You follow it to where it stops, and you know that underneath that sand, theres going to be a golden mole. We found one that was very amenable, very relaxed. It would come out before sunset and it would scurry around. Ive actually got a shot on my iPhone of me just walking through the desert with this tiny little golden mole scurrying around between my toes. It was a very charming little thing.

The desert long-eared bat (Credit: BBC)

The Desert Long-Eared Bat vs. Deathstalker Scorpions

Each episode of Planet Earth II also needs a first. (Thats the thing about wildlife filming, Charles says. These new stories are kind of the holy grail.) The crew had heard about a team of scientists who were studying the Otonycteris desert long-eared bat in Israel and had only recently discovered that it hunts deathstalker scorpions, whose venom is strong enough to kill a human. They just assumed this bat was like any other bat with long ears, it would hunt in the air. But Israel is filled with scorpions, he says. The way to discover scorpions in the desert is to take a UV light out with you, a torch. If you shine that on the floor, the scorpions literally glow in the dark, theyre these neon beacons that light up. The scientists were shining this light around so that they didnt step on a scorpion around one of the bat roosts. Underneath the opening to the bat roost, there were all these droppings, and as they shined the lights onto it, suddenly it all just glowed. They thought, Well, thats a bit odd. So they looked into it, and they thought, Okay, clearly the bats are eating the scorpions. But they didnt know how they were doing it.

So the Planet Earth II crew collaborated with them, putting their cameras at the same location. Whats lovely is that we rely heavily on scientists for our research, but we were able to give something back as well, because we took these super slow-motion cameras down, and we were able to show them the footage slowed down by 20 times, Charles says. That would reveal aspects of the behavior that they didnt realize. So it was a lovely partnership, and we were again very lucky to have these incredible scientists doing this incredible work that we were able to piggyback on.

Planet Earth IIs Deserts episode airs March 11 at 9 p.m. on BBC America.

Read more from Yahoo TVs Planet Earth II coverage:

Planet Earth II:Inside 7 Jungles Moments

Planet Earth II Producers Preview Must-Watch Mountains Moments

Planet Earth II Executive Producer Mike Gunton Previews Top Islands Moments
India appoints Puri ambassador

India on Friday announced the appointment of Manjeev Singh Puri as its new ambassador to Nepal.
India should apologise for Kanchanpur incident: Oli

CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli on Saturday has said Indian side should apologise for the Kanchanpur incident in which Nepali citizen was killed in a fatal shooting by Indian security force.
Morcha withdraws indefinite Saptari strike

Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha has withdrawn indefinite strike in Saptari from Saturday evening.
Musings at dawn

Of the sprinkle of temples situated on either side of the Bagmati River on the outskirts of the Kathmandu Valley, Pashupatinath is the holiest of them all.
Nepal to probe report that women selling skin for penis enlargements

Nepal said it will investigate a report claiming poor women are being trafficked and duped into selling their skin to be used for penis and breast enlargements in the global cosmetic surgery market.
New local level units come into existence

With the government publishing the report on local level restructuring in Nepal Gazette on Friday, the countrys village development committees and municipalities have been replaced by 744 local units.
Real estate business cools down in Birendranagar

Real estate transaction in the mid-western Nepali city of Birendranagar is taking a dip, as banks and financial institutions have tightened credit disbursement due to shortage of loanable funds.
Saptari and beyond

Following a year of tenuous peace, what happened this week in Maleth, Saptari threatens to stall the countrys already beleaguered political process.
Snowden shelterers in Hong Kong seek Canada asylum - lawyer

Three families who helped shelter former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden in Hong Kong in 2013 after his mass leak of information about surveillance programs have asked Canada for asylum, their lawyer said on Friday.
The days of our lives

The 21st century is a time when our many gadgets function more as extended appendages than just tools that make our daily lives easier.


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  ,        , -     28         .
Tibet Airlines seeks permission to fly to Ktm

Lhasa-based Tibet Airlines has sought permission from the Ministry of Tourism to operate flights between Kathmandu and Chengdu, the capital of southwestern Chinas Sichuan province. The carrier will be the fifth Chinese airline company to fly to Kathmandu if given permission to operate flights.
Unidentified persons torch Sajha Yatayat bus in Balaju

Unidentified persons torched a Sajha Yatayat bus in Balaju of Kathmandu on Saturday.
Truck vandalised in Chitwan

A group of three unidentified persons vandalised a truck at Bahraghare in Bharatpur-5 of Chitwan district on Saturday.
1. Yes. Taxpayers are funding its operation; they should have a voice in the naming process.

2. Yes. The city should operate with a spirit of inclusivity. Residents will be responsive.

3. No. Public input can be problematic; rejection of suggestions can be divisive for residents.

4. No. Residents elect council members to make decisions on their behalf. No input is needed.

5. Unsure. Its hard to say whether public input would be more of a benefit or a hindrance.

Vote

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By Moses Kyeyune

Dokolo South MP, Felix Okot Ogong has rejected a call by the African Union to have free movement of African nationals across the continent, arguing that it poses a threat to member countries.

Ogong was reacting to a call by the Director of Political Affairs in the African Union Commission, Khabele Matlosa during a workshop in Midrand-South Africa, who urged African parliaments to lobby their governments to support the adoption of the protocol on the free movement of persons.

He contends that Africa needs to promote economic integration before undertaking intra-Africa trade because of the growing refugee crisis in several parts of the continent.

A section of lawmakers attending the Pan African Parliament in South Africa also voiced similar concerns saying member states are already burdened with the problem of conflicts and unemployment.
Azerbaijan has drawn an appropriate conclusion from the statement by French President Francois Hollande.

March 11, 2017, 11:15 Azerbaijan concludes from Hollandes statement that sanctions are addressed to Baku

STEPANAKERT, MARCH 11, ARTSAKHPRESS: After his meeting with President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, Hollande proposed to develop a mechanism that will enable to carry out monitoring and prevention. Sanctions are also possible in case of actions against peace, wrote Haqqin.az news agency of Azerbaijan, and concluded: Given that the Armenian media are disseminating this statement, also the fact that it is Yerevan which insists that a mechanism be introduced for the investigations of ceasefire violations, there is little doubt that they mean Azerbaijan, when speaking of sanctions.
No

Yes, a light case

Yes, two or more light cases

One serious case

Two or more serious bouts

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As Samwise Gamgee said in Lord of the Rings, Po-tay-toes. Boil em, mash em, stick em in a stew. Or send them to a U.S. senator.

OK, he might not have said that last part, but that wont stop Wisconsins illustrious representative in the U.S. Senate from becoming the victim of the most delicious political protest ever.

After Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, was accused of sending a constituent a cease and desist letter for demanding he attend town hall meetings in person, the minds behind the popular party game Cards Against Humanity announced that he would be taken to task with taters. In response to the publication of Johnsons offices letter Wednesday by Citizen Action Wisconsin, Cards CEO Max Temkin created a website directing people to mail Johnson a potato.

Thats right. A card game headquartered in Chicago wants you to send a Wisconsin senator a potato of the Idaho russet variety with a postage sticker on one side and HOLD A TOWN HALL written in all caps on the other (of course its an Idaho potato. Those are the only ones big enough to put an address label on).

Welcome to 2017. It doesnt get any less weird.

The twice-baked move is motivated both by the recent trend in lawmakers avoiding public meetings with their constituents and Johnsons support for efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Temkins website, JohnsonPotato.com, pulls no punches in its request.

Legally, were not allowed to call Senator Johnson a cruel idiot who doesnt understand how health insurance works, the website read Friday. But we are allowed to mail thousands of potatoes to his office demanding that he listen to his constituents and hold a town hall meeting.

Citizen Action Wisconsin organized a series of town hall meetings and rallies in Wisconsin, inviting Johnson; however, Johnson declined the invitation.

JohnsonPotato.com also cites estimates that 431,000 Wisconsinites would lose their health insurance coverage if the ACA were repealed completely, which the websites creator is clearly boiling mad about.

Its not precisely clear whether Johnson is guilty of threatening a mild-mannered Vietnam veteran who just wanted him to talk in public with legal repercussions. We do know that his staff sent a Vietnam veteran a letter informing him that he would only be allowed to communicate with Johnsons office in writing, barring him from calling or visiting the office. Were not quite sure about the reasons behind it.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, a man named Earl Good of Milwaukee received the letter from Johnsons office. Good told the paper that he called Johnsons office 40 times in one day and 83 on another day in February, but maintained he was always polite over the phone.

Kevin Kane of Citizen Action Wisconsin backed up Goods story, saying while Good wasnt a member of the organization, he had participated in its efforts to contact elected officials. Kane described Good as respectful but insistent.

Johnsons spokesman on the other hand said the letter was sent after inappropriate behavior.

Constituents are always welcome and encouraged to contact our office with their concerns, regardless of political viewpoint. Unfortunately, very infrequently a pattern of inappropriate behavior emerges that crosses the bounds of decency and requires action to ensure the well being of visitors to the office and staff, a Johnson spokesman said Thursday.

Without further evidence, its impossible to know for sure whether the legal warning was justified.

But with a punishment like potatoes, its tough to stew over the results.

Frankly, a bushel of potatoes sounds like spud heaven to me, particularly if they come with a little butter and sour cream. If they wanted to punish Johnson, why didnt they just send him potato salad? (Yeah, I said potato salad is gross. Prove me wrong.)

Frankly, the only way this punishment could get better is if it included a deep fryer and fry-cutter.

I just hope the taters dont get mashed in the mail.
ARCADIA  Michael David Bagniewski, 28, of Arcadia died Tuesday, March 7, 2017, at his home.

Michael was born May 5, 1988, in Eau Claire, Wis., to David and Jeannette (Thibedeau) Bagniewski.

Mike graduated from Arcadia High School in 2007. He attended CVTC in Eau Claire, where he graduated with honors. Mike worked at Nelson Global Products in Arcadia as a welder. He had worked with his father at D&J Bagging. Mike had gone out west and worked as a combine/machine operator. When he moved back to Arcadia his knowledge and love of combining helped many friends with their combine operations. Mikes dream was to be a hunting guide, as his passion was hunting deer, coyotes, turkey, and other game, as well as fishing. Mike was also an avid grill master.

Michael is survived by his parents, David and Jeannette of Arcadia; sisters, Sarah (Joe) Matchey of Independence, and Michelle (fiancee, Mike Komperud) Bagniewski of Arcadia; niece and nephew, Olivia and Joseph Matchey; grandmothers, Veronica Bagniewski of Arcadia and Rita Thibedeau of Eau Claire; many cousins and friends.

He was preceded in death by his grandfathers, Joe Bagniewski and John Thibedeau.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, March 13, 2017, at Holy Family Parish with the Rev. Sebastian Kolodziejczyk officiating. Friends may call from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday at Wozney-Killian Funeral Home, where there will be 8 p.m. prayer service. They may also call from 10 a.m. until the time of services Monday at Holy Family Parish. Burial will be at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to family wishes.

Wozney-Killian Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences may be sent to www.wozneykillianfh.com.
MADISON  Its no bald-face lie that hair loss can be depressing. The challenge, as our friends in Japan have demonstrated, is to take pride and let your ever-expanding dome shine.

This writer started losing the fringes of his lettuce more than a decade ago, and at first was able to hide the few vacancies with long, curly locks. But within a few years, my hairline made so vigorous a charge north that I was forced to surrender. Now I wear it short, as if to pretend that I, and not genetics, have dictated that I shall display as little hair as possible.

Hair loss delivers one kick to the khakis after another. People stop guessing that youre younger than you actually are. You have to keep hats handy to avoid scalp sunburns. And everyone thinks its OK to tell jokes at your expense, even though you arent allowed to comment on any physical imperfections  nose hair, lip warts, third nipples  they may display.

My fellow follicle-challenged friends in Japan would advise me to laugh along with all the bald jokes. Let everyone see you have a sense of humor, just like you let everyone see the freckles on your skull.

I now take you, courtesy of the Reuters news service, to Tsuruta City, where last month more than 30 bald men gathered at a hot spring spa. Theyre members of the citys Bald Men Club, the polar opposite of the Hair Club for Men.

These slick-scalped sorts took turns competing in a unique game of tug-of-war. It involved sticking a suction cup, which was attached to a single red rope, to their heads. Each side then attempted to pull the cup off the opponents head. It was living proof that hair loss sucks.

But participants didnt feel that way. My head still hurts, Toshiyuki Ogasawara, 43, said with a smile. I think I need to ice it.

As a fellow 43-year-old, I should embrace Ogasawaras attitude. Rather than dread the day I go from balding to bald, I should look forward to an opportunity to stick a giant suction cup on my head. People who know me wont think a thing of it.

Members of the Bald Men Club take pride in their smooth appearance. Masatomo Sasaki, 64, a first-time participant at the tournament, said he used to feel insecure about his baldness but now feels differently. I feel proud. Or maybe I should say, I feel good about being a bald man, Sasaki said, adding that he started losing his hair when he was 40. And that is thanks to this bald mens club.

The club, which has attracted roughly 65 members from all over the country since its founding in 1989, encourages people to view baldness in a positive manner, to have fun, and to brighten the world with our shiny heads, according to its website.

Teijiro Sugo, 70, the clubs chairman, hopes the gathering will turn into something much larger. I want all the bald men all over the world to gather here so we can organize a bald mens Olympic tournament, Sugo said.

Thats the spirit. I shouldnt see myself as a future bald man, but rather as a future Olympian. I should slather sunscreen all over my scalp and let the world watch it shine.

My futures so bright, passersby will have to wear shades.

Ben Bromley was named Wisconsins top small-town daily newspaper columnist last year.
Nacho Escamilla has lived in the United States for more than 25 years after leaving Mexico in 1991 at age 16. He left behind his mother, father and two younger brothers.

He is one of the lucky immigrants. He has held U.S. citizenship for nearly seven years.

Today in Jackson County, Hispanic immigrants make up 2.5 percent of the county population, with most of the Hispanic population located in areas around Alma Center and Black River Falls.

Cowz-R-Us, a local dairy farm in Alma Center that milks about 1,000 cows, employs 36 people. Cody Heller, one of the owners of the farm, says it relies heavily on immigrant labor for several reasons.

That is a workforce that is willing and able to provide the labor needs of our industry (dairy farming). Non-immigrants arent knocking our door down for those jobs, Heller said. This isnt only an issue for dairy farmers. It goes across all of agriculture and other industries, such as the hospitality sector.

One of those employees is Escamilla, who has worked for Cowz-R-Us for more than 20 years. Escamilla is herdsman for the entire farm, working his way up from milking cows in the parlor when he started.

When Escamilla crossed the border, he lived and worked in Dallas.

I spent probably a couple of months there, but because I was under age, I had a hard time finding a job down there, said Escamilla, which is why he looked elsewhere for a job. I moved from Texas to Pennsylvania because I had an uncle that lived there and he said I could work on a big farm with horses.

Escamilla worked at that farm for about three years before his uncle convinced him to move to Florida to pick oranges and then to Indiana, which is where he met his wife Patty, a natural-born U.S. citizen.

They (his wifes family) used to come from Texas to Indiana every summer after school and they would work for three months in Indiana and then they would go back to school, Escamilla said.

From Indiana, he and his wife moved to Wisconsin in 1995  the year he became a legal resident with the help of his wife and Blake Heller, who is the original owner of Cowz-R-Us.

A lot of people dont believe me when I tell them I didnt hire a lawyer to get legal. My wife did all of the paperwork. She printed it off and we filled them out, Escamilla said. I went and paid a fine, back then I think it was $1,000, for coming into the U.S. illegally.

His fingerprints were run through police databases and he completed a physical. Once he had residency, he could get a Social Security card and start working. He had residency status for more than 10 years.

Residency did not mean he was a citizen of the U.S. He was still technically a citizen of Mexico and so couldnt vote in U.S. elections or enter and leave the country freely without the chance of losing residency. So Escamilla decided to apply for citizenship.

The most nerve-wracking part for Escamilla was the test, not only because you need to know the answers to the questions, but also because of the language barrier.

You have to get six of 10 at least, so they asked me seven and I was already 6-of-7 so they didnt ask me anymore, he said. I was a little nervous in the beginning because I know I can speak English enough to do it, but I was most concerned about the reading and writing part.

Heller says the language barrier is the hardest part about hiring Hispanic employees, When it comes to having a daily conversation, the language barrier is our biggest challenge.

Heller says some of the other challenges include learning the different cultural nuances such as the major importance of family in immigrants everyday lives.

Heller also says that the fear of deportation has become a bigger problem recently.

Hispanics have the inherent fear of deportation due to the new executive orders, even though 90 percent of them arent directly affected. One of the biggest challenges right now that dairyman are having is the lack of understanding about how our political structure works and the communication with Hispanics about what they as employers are doing to help with their immigration challenges, Heller said.

Hispanics in America illegally can be put on a deportation list several ways, but usually it is for committing a felony. That can include simple things like getting a citation for driving without a drivers license a third time.

President Donald Trump intends to deport all criminal immigrants, and this has escalated fear in Hispanic culture for those that are low-level offenders. While he may not agree with this, Heller contends that criminal felons should be deported.

I dont want to employ criminals. Neither does anyone in the industry, no matter what ethnicity, Heller said.

Ultimately, Heller believes that America needs immigrant labor because so many sectors, including agriculture, depend on it.

The cost of producing food would likely increase without immigrant laborers because non-immigrants would demand higher wages to do the work. And some of the jobs would go unfilled, period. That would result in more expensive food in the store, Heller said.

Heller also feels that if the Hispanic workforce wasnt available, his farm would move quickly to alternative forms of labor including technology.

The other thing it would do is push us very quickly to using more robots, said Heller. It would force us to look at different technologies and hiring fewer people, which is not good for the local and global economies primarily because the ripple effects that wage levels have on every sector of the economy is huge.

Trisha Wagner, the Jackson County University of Wisconsin Extension agriculture agent, also says immigrants have a huge effect on the dairy industry in Jackson County, whether small or large farms.

Even a lot of our 100 to 150 cow herds have or have used immigrant labor as a labor source, Wagner said. It definitely has helped to serve the labor gap in Jackson County.

In the end, Escamilla is happy that he took the chance to immigrate to America more than 25 years ago. Today, his pride and joy is seeing his six children grow up and be good U.S. citizens.

I took them onto the farm at a young age and showed them the hard work, so that way I know they want to go to school and finish college, he said. So far, for my oldest one, he said, I dont want to spend my life working with cows like you have.

It is this future that many immigrants chase when crossing the border.

A few like Escamilla see that dream come true.
The anthology contains the stories of women who are already creating a better and stronger PNG.

The theme for International Womens Day was Be Bold for Change. The launching of the anthology on this day is a bold step toward equality for woman in Papua New Guinea.

I went through different emotions in the course of reading this book. From anger to sadness to tears and just a choked up feeling, but I learnt a lot.

CONGRATULATIONS to all the women who brought 'My Walk to Equality' to fruition. All the women in the book are great story tellers.

As she read 'My Walk to Equality', the first collection of womens writing from Papua New Guinea for which she wrote a Foreword, Tanya Zeriga-Alone derived some key pointers to guide women on their complex societal journey. This is a lightly edited version of her talk at the launch of the book in Port Moresby on International Women's Day last Wednesday.....

The women, with brutal honesty tell their story, they give their solutions and ask the pertinent questions to probe further thinking that will require honesty and humility in addressing.

Rashmii Amoah Bell in her essay, Embracing the dark future to see PNG emerge into the light, is all about creating a better PNG through literature.

She advocates the use of writing as a tool, to explore new grounds - including taboo subjects - as a means for starting conversations and looking for solutions.

This is one way PNG women can create a better and stronger PNG, by just telling our stories. Our stories may be accepted or they may be rejected but the stories will exist as a beacon in our walk equality. Through our stories we walk into the dark future to emerge into light.

Be bold because courage is contagious

Being bold in the face of challenges is one way women can create a better and stronger PNG because courage is contagious.

Caroline Evari relocates with her family from Port Moresby to Oro and after a while, she moves back to Port Moresby by herself.

She goes through a lot of struggles but despite that she comes out a victor. She says, your mind is your greatest enemy, not the people around you. Reach for the stars and keep running until you have achieved your goal.

On the walk to equality, we have to be bold and courageous, because there are eyes watching.

As women, we ask for permission to do a lot of things, but the first thing we need to do is to give ourselves the permission to be great.

In Madlyn Baidas story, a village lass, she wanted to learn to read and write and get an education. She allowed herself to dream. Once she know her dream, she could see when opportunities came up. Her husband was her support and enabled to achieve her freedom.

Be good at what you do because that is the currency that will take womens voice onto the table for negotiations

To create a better and stronger PNG, we need to get more women into decision making positions so that they may show favourable consideration to the womens walk to equality.

There is an adage that says, if you are good at what you do, you will serve before Kings. Do something with your life.

Be good at something. It does not matter what you do or whether you are as young as Iriani Wanma, the author of the grasshopper story or middle aged or somewhere in between. If you are good you will be favoured. And when you are recognised, make use of your position to address the plight of the sisterhood.

We already have many role models who have done just that. Women can always match the stride of the society. Some of these prominent PNG women include Winifred Kamit, Finckewe Zurenuo, Jane Mogina, Betty Lovai and the late Judge Davani, whose tribute can be seen in the anthology.

I am as proud of the sisterhood at the Division of Education in Simbu as told by Roslyn Tony. Despite a lot of pushback from a paternalistic society, these women act with integrity and transparency and were eventually accepted as leaders in their communities.

We have to be responsible for the sisterhood

Even if women make up 50% of the population, we are still treated as a minority due to our positions in the community. We have a duty of care to stand up for our sisters.

If only I could save you, youd still have a heartbeat. This eerie phrase from Vanessa Gordons Drumbeat is haunting. It is full of regret. We have to take action to help a sister and the children and the helpless.

To help our sisters we have to know our rights. Dominica Are tells the story of how Pauline saved her life by walking away from a bad situation all because she know her rights. Not many women have that knowledge.

It is our duty to teach as well as mentor other woman to be the best. Alurigo does that with the XOX: We are Champions group. It does not have to be on the national stage but at our own little spheres of influence.

We have to support any form of education. The most inspiring story I read was by Alphonse Huvi from West New Britain. Her father was against her education and did not make resources available, but, through support from her auntie Oripa, she became a teacher and was eventually accepted by her father. We have a duty to support our girls to get an education.

Too big a work for women alone - Patriarchy can help

Patriarchy can play a big role to helping women build a better and stronger PNG.

In the anthology, there are six pieces that pay tribute to patriarchy for being the source of strength for these women. This shows the important role of the male gender in helping women in our walk to equality.

Helen Anderson in her essay Mixed race meri Markham pays tribute to her male relatives for helping her fit into her society. While Emma Wapki pays tribute to her male relatives for being fair, loving and supportive

The fine story by Alurigo on Sir Dawanicura is an example of leaders leading by example. He has brought a family friendly atmosphere to the PNG Olympics Committee. Family is the basic building block of society if we do not lead with wisdom and flexibility in this changing times, we can contribute to the breakdown in family, which will lead to breakdown in society, and eventually breakdown in the nation.

The society will not change until the family changes

Families are the cornerstone of societies. A stable family can be the base for creating a better and stronger PNG.

We learn how to be function as members of society by learning from within our family circles. We build from strength to strength when we have a stable roots.

Florence Jonduo on parenting children says that the children are innocent, they are brought up without their permission and that is why, adults we have moral and legal obligation to look after them. And whatever we teach them when they are young, sets them up for life.

But sometimes children turn out wrong. Whose fault is that when we observe generations of young people have no plans for life the lost men as Marlene Dee Gray Potoura says, asking a pertinent questions: Are the lost men the fault of women?

Rosyln Tony also asks some very hard questions about why things are falling apart in our society. If we honestly answer the questions, we may find that it will lead us to families and that is where we may find the solutions.

Conclusion

No women or group of women can fully address those pertinent questions singlehandedly. We need the help of society through policies and laws.

As we look at shaping policies for the future, I hope we all take those important decisions from the perspective of young mothers.

Lapieh Landu in her poem Fear Unbearable writes about her fears for her baby as she contemplates the future. If all policy people can make policy from the position of new mothers, looking at her helpless infant, then we may take all the necessary steps to secure a better future for the generation yet to come. For we are fighting a cause that is not for us but for the future generations.
Traveling around western Wisconsin with John Medinger is like being with a rock star, said his former boss. And shes a United States senator.

Everyone knows John, Sen. Tammy Baldwin said Friday, as she and dozens of community leaders celebrated Medingers four-decade career in public service, which included stints as a state lawmaker, mayor and a regional representative for three U.S. senators.

La Crosse Mayor Tim Kabat proclaimed March 10 a day in his honor, telling the gathering at Piggys Restaurant that because of Johns dedication, La Crosse is a better place.

With his typical reserve, Medinger, who retired Feb. 20 as Baldwins southwestern Wisconsin representative, said the retirement party was not his idea. And he insists hes not actually retiring.

This is not my funeral, he said.

But with his 69th birthday looming, Medinger said it was time to step away from a 40-plus-hour-a-week job.

When you work for a U.S. Senator, you work when its demanded, he said. Ive had a life outside of my job, but the job has been a big part of my life.

A La Crosse native, Medinger began his public service career in 1972 with Volunteers in Service to America, or VISTA. He was elected to the Wisconsin Assembly in 1976 and represented the 95th District for 16 years before stepping down because he was sick of hearing speeches.

Over the past 25 years  including an eight-year hiatus when he was mayor of La Crosse  Medinger worked as an aide to Russ Feingold, Herb Kohl and Baldwin. Like him, all were Democrats, and he addressed them each as Senator, he said, out of respect for the office.

Traditionally, senators did not keep field offices in La Crosse. That changed with Medinger.

While in the Legislature, he became friends with Feingold, then a state senator. Feingold was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992, and Medinger asked him for a job, with the stipulation he wasnt leaving La Crosse.

Medinger got the job, but his territory stretched from Grant County to Superior  the whole west coast of Wisconsin.

His duties included fielding calls from constituents, meeting with local officials and stakeholders, and representing his bosses at the hundreds of public hearings, award ceremonies and ribbon cuttings they cant personally attend.

Some days he listened to people angry with the government (and occasionally threatening to kill him). The best days, he said, were when he was with his boss.

Theres something about working for a U.S. senator, he said, noting there are only 100 of them. The fact that youre part of something special, and youre doing meaningful work.

Medinger left Feingolds staff in 1996 to run for mayor. A decade later, he joined Kohls staff.

Baldwin, who was elected to the state Legislature in 1992, said Medingers superlative relationship survived his tenure there. Later, while serving in the U.S. House, Baldwin bumped into Medinger occasionally with Kohl.

Everyone talked about John and his impact on behalf of La Crosse, she said. He so clearly cares about people.

When Baldwin was elected to the Senate in 2012, she offered Medinger a spot on her staff. She remains impressed with his persistence and care in handling constituent issues.

He wants to serve, she said. And he does.

While his run of government work has come to a close, Medinger said he is looking for a part-time job, something with meaning  and hopefully not with a computer.

When youve been going 100 mph for 40 years, he said, you dont want to go to zero too fast.
CHIPPEWA FALLS, Wis.  Gov. Scott Walker on Friday appointed Wade C. Newell as the new Chippewa County district attorney, filling the position left vacant when Steve Gibbs was appointed as a judge.

Newell has been an assistant district attorney in Chippewa County for 16 years. He hopes to take office in the not-too-distant future, but has to hear back from the state first.

Newell is an experienced leader with a strong commitment to justice. I am confident his tireless work ethic, integrity and professional excellence will serve the people of Chippewa County well and build on Steves success as district attorney, Walker said in a press release.

Gibbs wrote a letter in support of Newells appointment.

Over the past 20 years of working with Newell, he has a great record of taking difficult cases to trial and securing convictions. I am confident he will serve Chippewa County well, Gibbs wrote.

Cornell Police Chief Brian Hurt wrote Walker that Newell has been a great asset to Chippewa County while working with law enforcement and protecting the rights of crime victims in Wisconsin. He has always provided excellent legal assistance (and) has presented himself in a professional manner in and out of the courtroom.

Newell began working as a special prosecutor in the La Crosse County and serving as special prosecutor and assistant district attorney in the Jefferson County District Attorneys Office.

While in Chippewa County, he has specialized in the prosecution of domestic abuse, sexual assault, and child abuse cases.

My goal is to make the citizens of the county proud of the Chippewa County District Attorneys office, Newell said.

Newell said the most pressing need for the district attorneys office is addressing the methamphetamine epidemic in Chippewa County. He would like to get all of the justice system participants to address the problem, stressing prevention and holding those who are contributing to the epidemic responsible.

Newell received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School and a Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. He lives in Chippewa Falls with his wife and their daughter.

Two other assistant district attorneys, Roy LaBarton Gay and Chad Verbeten, also applied for the position.
A free, public premiere party for a TV episode featuring the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in La Crosse will take place at 2 p.m. March 25 at the shrine.

The episode, part of the Discover Wisconsin series, is titled Spiritual Wisconsin, Wisconsins Marian Shrines. It includes not only the Guadalupe shrine but also the National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in Champion and the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians, in Hubertus.

The Discover Wisconsin hosts will be there for a meet-and-greet. Complimentary hors d'oeuvres will be provided by the Shrines Culina Mariana Cafe. For more information, call Steve Doll at 608-782-5440, ext. 240.

The first TV airing will be on the weekend of April 1-2. For local times, visit the "Discover" website, discoverwisconsin.com.
It will take Pope Francis five years to reform the Catholic Church.

This was the prediction of Father Hans Kung, a leading Catholic theologian, shortly after Francis election.

On March 13, Francis will celebrate his fourth anniversary as pope. How is he doing?

Many would give him an A for the changes he has made in the College of Cardinals. He has appointed men for their pastoral sensitivity rather than their administrative skills. He has ignored the tradition of appointing cardinals of certain places, such as Venice and Philadelphia, and chosen men from Third World countries. Because cardinals younger than 80 will pick his successor, the longer Francis lives, the more the College of Cardinals will reflect his spirituality.

On financial reform, Jesuit Thomas Reese of the National Catholic Reporter gives Francis a C+ for not having finished the job. He adds, The Vatican Bank is in pretty good shape. APSA, the finance and investment office, has made some progress. But there are large pockets of money, especially that controlled by the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, that need to be looked at more closely.

Reese also thinks its remarkable that no prosecutions have resulted in any of the investigations into Vatican finances. He suspects Francis does not want to put a cardinal on trial.

A third action for Francis is to change the culture of the Curia, the administrative arm of the Vatican. Francis well understands that changing the structures and personnel in an organization  whether it be a school or a police force will have little effect unless the culture of the institution also is changed.

From the first days of his papacy  by both word and example  Francis has challenged the culture of clericalism and privilege. He wants bishops and priests to be servants, not princes over their flocks. He wants them to be so close to their people that they smell like their sheep. Rather than use words of a social scientist, he uses Christian language for change  namely, conversion. He calls for a deep spiritual conversion to identify more with Jesus, who came not to be served but to serve.

His biggest battle now with the Curia is its response to the clergy sexual abuse scandal. Personally, Francis has condemned what happened in the strongest language. He penned in the preface to a new book by a clergy sexual abuse survivor that this was an absolute monstrosity in the churchs history. He has met with abuse victims and asked for forgiveness, both privately and ritually. Since his election, he has promised a zero-tolerance policy against clerical sexual abuse.

However, on March 1, Marie Collins, the only active member of the popes new commission on clergy sexual abuse who is an abuse survivor, has resigned due to frustration with the reluctance of Vatican officials to cooperate with its work to protect children. Her decision was precipitated by the refusal of a Vatican office to comply with a request from the commission, an action approved by the pope. The request was simply that all letters sent to the Vatican by abuse victims receive a response.

In resigning, Collins gives the pope high marks for dealing forcefully with the problem at the top level of the church, but she says his efforts are consistently frustrated by the Curia. She asks for three changes by the pope:

Give the commission the responsibility and the power to oversee implementation of its recommendations when they are approved.

Give the commission an adequate budget to do its work without having each item of expenditure go through the internal Vatican approval process.

Remove the restriction on the recruitment of professional staff from outside the Vatican.

The National Catholic Reporter believes the popes final grade will depend on his response. Its March 3 editorial states: The resignation of Marie Collins from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors is a turning point in Pope Francis pontificate. It cannot be any other way. For all the hope and promise that we find in Francis and his vision for the church, we believe his pontificate teeters on the brink of failure on the issue of sexual abuse by the clergy.

For four years, Pope Francis has worked hard to change the clerical culture of the Catholic church. Many of the clergy agree with him and have prayed and acted to be more like Jesus. Some, most notably in the Curia, have not. This fifth year will not be an easy one for Francis.
TOKYO (TNS)  The impeachment of Park Geun-hye opens the door for a reset in ties with North Korea and China.

The leading candidates to replace Park, who was ousted as president by South Koreas constitutional court on Friday, favor a softer touch with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. Theyre also open to rethinking the deployment of the Thaad missile shield, which has spurred Chinese retaliation against South Korean companies.

The liberals believe that if you engage with North Korea, then they could get some kind of missile-test moratorium, said John Delury, an associate professor of Chinese studies at Yonsei University in Seoul. The Chinese strategy will be to push just hard enough so the South Korean public sees the cost of having Thaad, but not too hard that you unleash outrage.

The election campaign  a vote must be held within 60 days  will spur fresh debate on how to stop Kim from acquiring more powerful nuclear weapons and missiles. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to seek a new approach to dealing with North Korea in a trip to the region next week, though Chinas calls for talks have been rebuffed by the U.S., Japan and South Korea.

Earlier this week, the U.S. military unloaded two mobile missile launchers in South Korea to start deployment of Thaad. It came as North Korea launched four ballistic missiles that landed in waters near Japan.

The court upheld parliaments vote to impeach Park amid a corruption probe. Opinion polls show South Koreas liberals are favored to retake power after nine years of conservative rule.

That raises the prospect of a return to the so-called Sunshine Policy adopted from 1998 to 2008 that emphasized engagement with North Korea, an approach that Parks predecessor dropped because it failed to stop Pyongyangs weapons development.

Moon Jae-in, the frontrunner in opinion polls to replace Park, has said the next government should review the decision to deploy Thaad. He has proposed economic exchanges and a plan for unification, in which the two Koreas come together economically before moving toward political integration.

Ahn Cheol-soo, another contender, said hed back the deployment of Thaad but is also open to its withdrawal if China cooperates with sanctions on North Korea and ties with Pyongyang look like improving. Other candidates have called for dialogue, the resumption of tours north of the border and the reopening of a joint industrial complex that was closed in early 2016. Acting president Hwang Kyo-ahn has stuck to Parks line on North Korea.

Alertness and immediate readiness should be strengthened for any North Korea provocation as the security condition is very unstable, he said at a cabinet meeting after her ouster.

The U.S. moved to ensure no major policy shifts were coming on the heels of Parks removal. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the alliance will continue to be a linchpin of regional stability and security, the Associated Press reported. John McCain, chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, called for continued cooperation in defending against North Koreas escalating nuclear and missile threats.

U.S. troops are stationed in both South Korea and Japan, which rely on the U.S. for a nuclear umbrella for protection in the region. China, which provides North Korea with most of its food and fuel, doesnt want a unified Korea allied with the U.S. on its doorstep.

China sees Thaad as a threat that would upset the strategic equilibrium in the region and has used its economic clout to punish Korean companies. Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Friday that Parks decision to deploy Thaad hurt ties and reiterated the nations call for talks on North Korea.

Everyone is clear that the current difficulties are a result of Koreas insistence on deploying the Thaad system, Geng said. Regarding North Korea, he called for all sides to break free of old mindsets and think out of the box, think rationally and pragmatically.

Moon has a more sophisticated stance than Park on Thaad, according to Shen Shishun, a senior researcher at the China Institute of International Studies under Chinas Foreign Ministry.

The impeachment has brought about an opportunity to reset China-Korea relations, which have sunk to rock bottom, Shen said. Itll serve Chinese interests best if we step back a bit and give the South a little breathing space to settle their domestic politics.

The election campaign  a vote must be held within 60 days  will spur fresh debate on how to stop Kim from acquiring more powerful nuclear weapons and missiles.
Guatemala fire death toll rises to 36: GUATEMALA CITY  Families buried some of the 36 girls killed in a fire at an overcrowded government-run youth shelter as Guatemalan authorities worked Friday to determine exactly what happened. The death toll mounted as girls succumbed to gruesome burns from Wednesdays disaster, which officials said began when mattresses were set afire during a protest by the shelters residents. Questions remained over why someone among the girls set the blaze and whether doors remained locked as the girls pleaded for their lives.

6 killed around Mexico resort of Los Cabos: SAN JOSE DEL CABO, Mexico  Prosecutors said six bodies had been found dumped on Thursday and Friday around the twin resorts of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula, which has been the scene of increasing violence in recent months. Elsewhere in Mexico, prosecutors in the central state of Puebla said Friday that they had arrested 87 suspects linked to a kidnapping and fuel-theft gang.

Japan to end 5-year peacekeeping mission in South Sudan: TOKYO  Japan is ending its peacekeeping mission in troubled South Sudan after five years, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Friday. Abe said Japan would not renew the mission after the current rotation returns in May. The 350-person team has focused on road construction. The team, which arrived in South Sudan in November, was Japans first with an expanded mandate to use force if necessary to protect civilians and U.N. staff. The Japanese militarys use of force is limited by the post-World War II constitution.
Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul is taking aim at U.S. Rep. Chris Collins, a former political foe, for an amendment he offered to the Republicans' bill that would repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.

Collins, a western New York Republican, sponsored an amendment that would require states to cover the counties' share of Medicaid expenses. In New York, the state would pick up the tab for counties outside of New York City.

In a lengthy statement, Hochul said the federal government currently covers 51 percent of Medicaid expenses, the state's share is 36 percent and county governments pay 13 percent.

If Collins' amendment is adopted, Hochul said it would cost New York state approximately $2.3 billion. The state has previously said that the repeal of the Affordable Care Act would cost New York $2.4 billion.

"Translation: Rep. Collins is proposing a tax increase on New Yorkers to the tune of $4.7 billion," Hochul said. "This one-two punch would destroy all the hard work the governor and Legislature have accomplished in the last six years to lower taxes across the board and achieve the lowest spending increases in recorded history."

She added, "New Yorkers will be at risk of losing their health care, hospitals will be forced to lay off workers and our vulnerable elderly will find it much harder to afford nursing home care."

Michael McAdams, a spokesman for Collins, quickly fired back. He explained that the congressman's proposal would block federal reimbursements for state Medicaid funds that are raised from local governments. The amendment wouldn't apply to larger municipalities, such as New York City, or states that use county funds for administrative costs, according to McAdams.

Collins' office said New York raises $7 billion from county governments to fund $27 billion in Medicaid expenses. He's aiming to get the measure included the repeal measure to "give counties more funds to spend on infrastructure and local priorities, instead of sending all of their property taxes to Albany."

McAdams also took a swipe at Hochul for her comments about the plan.

"Kathy Hochul has sold out western New Yorkers to protect the Albany insiders she now serves," he said. "Instead of putting the taxpayer first, she sided with Albany's special interests and their wasteful spending. Hardworking families are tired of footing the bill for New York's out of control Medicaid system that is putting our counties on the brink of bankruptcy. The good news is taxpayers can count on Congressman Collins to fight for them by refusing to feed Albany's penchant for wasting our tax dollars."

Hochul's statement comes on the heels of a state Department of Health report released Thursday that found more than 1 million New Yorkers could lose health insurance coverage if the Republicans' bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act is adopted.

The Health Department analysis estimated that the legislation would shift more than $4.5 billion in costs over the next four years from the federal government to New York, local governments and hospitals.

Hochul's comments targeting Collins are also significant because of their past history. Both served in Erie County government  Collins was county executive, Hochul was county clerk  and they were opponents in a 2012 race for Congress.

Hochul, who was elected to Congress in 2011 following the resignation of then-U.S. Rep. Chris Lee, lost to Collins in 2012 in the redrawn 27th Congressional District.

Collins is serving his third term in Congress.

The western New York Republican has become one of the most influential members of Congress, especially with President Donald Trump in office. Collins was an early supporter of Trump's and has served as a liaison between the White House and Congress.

Collins also serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee  one of two panels that reviewed the Republicans' health care proposal, the American Health Care Act, this week.

Hochul concluded her statement by urging Collins to "stop prioritizing his wealthy friends and start helping his home state." She also borrowed a line from her mentor, the late U.S. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who regularly discussed New York's position as a "donor state"  that the state pays more in federal taxes than it receives back.

"Mr. Collins, try practicing good government rather than partisan politics," she said.

Here is Hochul's full statement:

Our Founding Fathers warned us this day would come. Partisan politics would overtake good government for the people. The Medicaid changes being proposed in Washington would cut taxes for wealthy special interests while devastating New York States finances and all but eliminating health care for the most vulnerable New Yorkers.

Whats worse, a New York Republican Congressman, Chris Collins is offering an amendment that would wreak havoc on the state. While I understand that the Democrats in Washington are attacking Collins on ethics issues and are having a heated political fight, they shouldnt be played out at the expense of everyday New Yorkers.

Here are the facts: The overall Medicaid plan would cost the state billions of dollars of lost federal funds and jeopardize hospital stability. As if that were not enough, Rep. Collins would have the state assume the counties share of Medicaid expenses outside of New York City. The current breakdown is 13 percent county, 36 percent state, and 51 percent federal. This ill-conceived plan would cost his home state approximately $2.3 billion. Unbelievably, thats on top of the cost of the Republican Affordable Care Act repeal plan  another $2.4 billion.

Translation: Rep. Collins is proposing a tax increase on New Yorkers to the tune of $4.7 billion. This one-two punch would destroy all the hard work the Governor and Legislature have accomplished in the last six years to lower taxes across the board and achieve the lowest spending increases in recorded history. New Yorkers will be at risk of losing their healthcare, hospitals will be forced to lay off workers, and our vulnerable elderly will find it much harder to afford nursing home care.

On the merits, the counties have no right to claim this is an undue burden. They paid a percentage of health care costs even before Medicaid  and in fact, currently have a more favorable agreement than in decades.

In 1960  well before New York State and most counties had any sales tax revenue to pay for it  Congress passed the Kerr-Mills Act, which created a national role in funding health care for the elderly. Under this program, the counties in New York paid approximately 44 percent of the cost of care, the state paid about 38 percent, and the federal government paid around 18 percent.

In 1965, Medicaid replaced that program and the counties paid 25 percent. That same year, the state began giving counties the option of collecting sales tax on their behalf. Every county in New York has subsequently agreed to this option. Many counties in the nation dont get sales tax, and most of those receive less than our counties. Moreover, the state recently agreed to give the counties additional help  after hearing the counties complaints of the growing Medicaid costs, the state has held them harmless for any increases since 2011.

As a result, the counties share for Medicaid is down from 25 percent to 13 percent, and the state assumed this cost while still living within the 2 percent spending cap, and all while cutting taxes. The state is not asking the counties to do anything more than we have done ourselves. In fact, the state has done far more. If the Collins amendment passed, the state would need to raise income taxes or the counties would have to forego their share of sales tax in exchange for the state picking up the additional Medicaid costs.

In short, Rep. Collins amendment and the Affordable Care Act repeal would transfer $4.7 billion in costs to the state which would translate into a new tax for New Yorkers. I know firsthand that the people of the 27th Congressional District face enough challenges in their lives  they dont need to worry about increasing health care costs or new taxes.

Rep. Collins should stop prioritizing his wealthy friends and start helping his home state by protecting the most vulnerable from losing their healthcare and putting the state budget at risk. Remember, as my mentor Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan used to always point out, New York is a donor state  we pay more in federal taxes than we receive back.

Mr. Collins, try practicing good government rather than partisan politics.
The Armys Installation Management Command, headquartered at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, announced March 7 that Fort McCoy earned the Bronze Award in the active-Army category in the Army Communities of Excellence competition.

Fort McCoy last earned Army Communities of Excellence honors in 2011 in the reserve-component category.

Army Communities of Excellence is an annual competition that uses the Baldrige Framework for Performance Excellence to evaluate Army installations, said Fort McCoy Plans, Analysis and Integration Office Chief Ken Musselwhite. That framework is based on seven criteria, including leadership, strategic planning, customers, knowledge management, workforce, operations and results.

This is the first time the installation was recognized in the active-Army category and is a great reflection upon the Fort McCoy team, Musselwhite said. Fort McCoys competitive strengths are its workforce, which is always willing to go the extra mile for the customer, and its ability to develop and follow five-year strategic business plans, as noted in the initial competition feedback report.

Working from these strengths, the U.S. Army Garrison Fort McCoy team has already begun developing its submission for the next competition.

In 2016, a team from the Fort McCoy garrison composed of members from each directorate who worked together to research, develop and write an Army Communities of Excellence submission, which was delivered to Installation Management Command in August 2016.

A group of examiners from across Installation Management Command graded all submissions for the competition, following up on the top seven applicants with site visits, Musselwhite said. Fort McCoy was one of the top seven applicants, and we received a site visit in late September (2016).

During the three-day site visit by the Installation Management Command team, the examiners met with the Fort McCoy team to validate the posts submission.

In January, one installation was eliminated from competition, leaving six to vie for one Gold Award, one Silver Award, two Bronze Awards, and two honorable mentions.

The Army community is the backbone of Army readiness, according to Installation Management Command. Army forces train at, deploy from, are sustained by, and return to the community. Army Communities of Excellence awards have been presented since 1989 by the command.

For the 2017 competition, the 88th Regional Support Command, a Fort McCoy tenant organization, earned the Gold Award in the reserve-component category.

A formal recognition ceremony will be held at the Pentagon later in 2017. Gold Award winners go on to compete for the Commander in Chiefs Annual Award for Installation Excellence, which includes the other military services.
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(6) Nov 22 (5) Nov 21 (4) Nov 20 (2) Nov 19 (5) Nov 18 (7) Nov 17 (5) Nov 16 (4) Nov 15 (6) Nov 14 (3) Nov 13 (3) Nov 12 (4) Nov 11 (3) Nov 10 (3) Nov 09 (4) Nov 08 (3) Nov 07 (2) Nov 06 (2) Nov 05 (2) Nov 04 (4) Nov 03 (4) Nov 02 (4) Nov 01 (2) Oct 31 (3) Oct 30 (4) Oct 29 (3) Oct 28 (2) Oct 27 (3) Oct 26 (3) Oct 25 (2) Oct 24 (2) Oct 23 (2) Oct 22 (3) Oct 21 (2) Oct 20 (3) Oct 19 (3) Oct 18 (2) Oct 17 (2) Oct 16 (2) Oct 15 (2) Oct 14 (4) Oct 13 (2) Oct 12 (3) Oct 11 (2) Oct 10 (2) Oct 09 (4) Oct 08 (4) Oct 07 (4) Oct 06 (3) Oct 05 (4) Oct 04 (5) Oct 03 (3) Oct 02 (6) Oct 01 (6) Sep 30 (5) Sep 29 (3) Sep 28 (3) Sep 27 (7) Sep 26 (4) Sep 25 (3) Sep 24 (5) Sep 23 (8) Sep 22 (3) Sep 21 (3) Sep 20 (6) Sep 19 (3) Sep 18 (3) Sep 17 (5) Sep 16 (7) Sep 15 (3) Sep 14 (4) Sep 13 (3) Sep 12 (5) Sep 11 (5) Sep 10 (5) Sep 09 (7) Sep 08 (5) Sep 07 (2) Sep 06 (7) Sep 05 (4) Sep 04 (4) Sep 03 (2) Sep 02 (2) Sep 01 (2) Aug 31 (3) Aug 30 (3) Aug 29 (3) Aug 28 (3) Aug 27 (3) Aug 26 (4) Aug 25 (3) Aug 24 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Moravia Central School District's proposed 2017-2018 budget includes a projected 1.84 property tax levy increase, according to Jeff Lawrence, the district's business administrator.

"I think it's a responsible number," Lawrence said. We're trying to maximize as much aid as possible and we have some salary breakage from retirements, which is also helpful."

Lawrence said there will be six retirements by the end of the year, which will save the district an estimated $100,000.

The district's state tax cap would allow for an increase of up to 3.14 percent.

"Most of the increase is because of our building aid," Lawrence said.

State aid would increase 5.5 percent to $693,019, Lawrence aid. The business administrator also noted faculty and staff levels are expected to be untouched. He said he's happy staffing isn't changing.

"It helps release a lot of angst this time of year (among staff)," Lawrence said.

The state budget will be finalized April 1, Lawrence said. A public hearing for the proposed budget will be May 2.

Lawrence said 70 of the budget accounts for salaries and increases. He noted the budget factors in what he calls "uncontrollables"  elements the school can't control, like the increase or decrease of health insurance, or social security.

"We get those numbers and you (calculate) them and you hope they're close to what you estimated them (to be)," Lawrence said.

A proposal voters will be able to decide upon is three new buses, totaling at around $340,000. Lawrence believes it is wiser to replace buses now while they are not that old.

"We want to have state of art to provide the safest transportation possible," Lawrence said.

No cuts or additions to programming are expected.
Friday, March 10, 2017

A lawyer with a prior history of discipline should be suspended for three years, according to the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board.

A review of Respondents disciplinary history is pertinent to the Boards review of this matter. On March 2, 2006, following a misdemeanor trial, Respondent was found guilty of unauthorized access to a public school and resisting arrest. Her sentence was suspended and she was placed on probation. One of the terms of her probation was to not enter any school grounds of the St. Tammany Parish School Board without specific authorization. In 2007, she violated this condition by entering school grounds on three occasions without authorization. Accordingly, her criminal probation was revoked. On July 2, 2010, the Court suspended Respondent for one year and one day, fully deferred, based upon her violation of the terms of her criminal probation. In re LaMartina, 2010-0093 (La. 7/2/10); 38 So.3d 266 (LaMartina I). As a condition of the deferred suspension, Respondent was placed on disciplinary probation for two years.

She violated probation and was subject to an active suspension.

Then

The ODC received information that on or about January 28, 2015, at approximately 5:20 p.m., Officers D. Dondeville and S. Winther responded to Rouses Supermarket 32, located at 4350 Highway 22, Mandeville, Louisiana, 70471, in reference to an alleged shoplifting incident. The perpetrator was identified as Elise MB LaMartina, date of birth September 12, 1968. The property taken was hair dye valued at $7.29.

The Board rejected disbarment

Here, Respondent intentionally violated duties to the public and the profession by engaging in criminal behavior. Her misconduct caused actual harm to the store from which she stole merchandise as well as to the legal system and the profession because she violated the very laws she is entrusted to uphold. Additionally, her failure to cooperate with ODCs investigation caused that office to expend additional resources.

A survey of the sanctions for shoplifting attorneys

Louisiana case law contains little precedent for disciplining attorneys that are guilty of shoplifting, let alone repeated instances of shoplifting. Other states have dealt with shoplifting by imposing sanctions ranging from a public reprimand to suspensions. On the lower extreme, an attorney was given a public reprimand and required to attend psychotherapy for one year in New York in light of his candor with the tribunal, attempt to deal with his compulsion problem, and otherwise unblemished record. In re Gallagher, No. M-472 (N.Y. 6/7/12); 97 A.D.3d 254, 256-67. In Oregon, an attorney was suspended for six months for a single instance of shoplifting, and the Supreme Court noted that because the case did not involve a violation of fiduciary duty, the sanction should be less for two years. In re Kimmell, No. 92-82 (Or. 8/30/01); 31 P.3d 414, 416, 420-21. The Indiana Supreme Court approved a one year suspension consented to by the parties for one instance of shoplifting. In re Cheslek, No. 64S00-9909-DI- 503 (Ind. 2/15/01); 701 N.E.2d 1244, 1245...

Taking the unique circumstances of this matter into consideration, in light of the Standards and case law discussed above, the Board finds that a three-year suspension is the appropriate sanction. The Board recognizes that disbarment is the baseline pursuant to ABA Standards 5.11 and 8.1. However, the Board is also cognizant of the Courts practice of looking beyond the title of a criminal offense to the facts underlying the conviction when determining the appropriate sanction. See In re Kirchberg, 2003-0957 (La. 9/26/03); 856 So.2d 1162. Here, Respondent pled guilty to shoplifting hair dye worth $7.29. The Board does not feel such an offense should result in disbarment. Rather, the Board agrees with the out-of-state case law that a lengthy period of suspension is warranted.

The earlier disciplinary order is linked here. (Mike Frisch)

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legal_profession/2017/03/a-lawyer-with-a-prior-history-of-discipline-should-be-suspended-for-three-years-according-to-the-louisiana-attorney-discipli.html
Bolivians have a new law that nearly doubles the amount of land where coca plants can be legally grown.

President Evo Morales signed the measure into law on Wednesday. We want to guarantee coca supplies for life, he said.

The measure raises the limit of coca crops Bolivian farmers can plant, from 12,000 hectares to 22,000 hectares.

Morales is a former coca farmer. He still leads a coalition of coca farmers in Bolivias Chapare area.

Coca is the main ingredient in the drug cocaine.

The leaves of the coca plant have been used for many years in South Americas Andes Mountains in other ways. Coca can act like a stimulant. People also use it to reduce feelings of hunger and to ease pain and tiredness.

When served as a drink, coca can prevent air sickness.

But it is best known as the main ingredient in a dangerous drug.

United States Drug Enforcement agents were working in Bolivia until Morales expelled them in 2008. He accused them of spying on him and helping the countrys opposition.

The United States just said that Bolivia and Venezuela failed in a demonstrable way in the war against drugs, Morales said during his speech Wednesday. But the only things that can be demonstrated is that neither Bolivia or Venezuela can submit.

Opposition lawmakers are denouncing the new coca law. They say it will increase cocaine production and increase groups of drug traffickers.

Some labor unions representing coca farmers also oppose the law. They say the crop grown in the Chapare area is not as good as that grown in what they call the traditional regions. They say it would instead be used in cocaine.

Im Jonathan Evans.

Kenneth Swartz reported on this story for VOANews.com. George Grow adapted this story for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

stimulant n. a substance that makes people feel more energetic

submit v. to do something without resisting

regions n. a part of a country that is different from other parts in some way

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Anyone who seeks a college education will face some challenges. These include difficult projects, busy schedules and complex social situations.

The new responsibilities of being an independent adult can be frightening. And for an international student, this experience can be even more intense.

Over one million international students studied at the many colleges and universities in the United States last year. Many of them came from countries where English is not the native language. But language was not the only barrier they faced.

ELS Educational Services is a company that operates several centers at colleges across the U.S. These centers help international students improve their English. In February, ELS researchers presented a study at the yearly conference of the Association of International Education Administrators.

This study collected the opinions of 662 international students at 23 different U.S. colleges and universities. Many expressed concerns about their relationships with professors. More than a third said they wished their professors would provide additional helpful criticism. Thirty-three percent wished professors would try harder to understand the international student experience. And 28 percent of the students wished professors would provide non-U.S. examples in class materials.

"Ultimately, to be successful in a classroom you have to understand what the expectations are, but also, the right way to express concerns and questions."

John Nicholson is the vice president of marketing and communications for ELS. Nicholson says the way students prepare to study in the U.S. affects their experience. He says many believe if they know enough English to pass a standardized test, they are ready for American higher education. But, he says, this level of language ability alone will not prepare them enough for their new learning environment.

"Ultimately, to be successful in a classroom you have to understand what the expectations are, but also, the right way to express concerns and questions."

Lisa Giragosian is the director of the international student office at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. She says the findings of the study are common among the students she meets. And, she says teachers share in the responsibility for the difficulties expressed by international students.

"For every faculty member whos very conscious  and globally-minded and seeking an international students opinion, theres somebody else whos not. And Im afraid sometimes were dealing with the mentality that youre studying in the United States and getting the knowledge from this particular professor or class, and that being totally inclusive is not taking priority."

Giragosian argues that international students add a great deal to the experiences of American students. As a result, she says, professors need to be equally open and accepting of all their students. That is why Duke offers training programs for professors to better understand how their international students think and learn.

But, Giragosian admits students from other countries will have to work especially hard for their U.S. education. The education systems in many countries do not put the same value on student involvement that the American system does. For example, American professors expect students to ask questions and lead discussions. Also, every nation has its own cultural history and rules for young people to learn and follow.

So, Giragosian suggests international student should try to find as many resources as they can to help them. This includes both before and during their studies in the U.S. She says students should try to meet with professors in their office hours outside of class. Also, she suggests they form groups with other international students. They can meet to discuss their shared concerns and practice things like speaking in class.

When I was in Ethiopia, I was taught to be more reserved, more quiet. Whereas here everyone tends to speak up, express their opinions all the time.

Kedest Mathewos is from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She began studying global health at Duke in August of 2016. The 19-year-old attended an international high school in her home country. So, she says, she knew some of what to expect when she came to the U.S. However, she admits she still struggled at first, even with extra preparation.

"When I was in Ethiopia, I was taught to be more reserved, more quiet. Whereas here everyone tends to speak up, express their opinions all the time. So, its kind of hard to get used to that."

Mathewos earned a MasterCard scholarship to help pay for her education. The program chooses several students from African nations and supports them as they seek college degrees. Mathewos says the program has helped her a lot by connecting her with past members. She has learned from their experiences.

Sharing experiences continues to be very important to Mathewos. She often meets with other international students to talk about the problems they are having, like those listed in the ELS study. Also, she recently created a program that gives letters to professors at the beginning of a study term. The letters ask professors to consider the special challenges international students face.

The first-year student hopes the program will help get professors and students to work together to find ways to solve these problems.

Im Pete Musto.

Pete Musto reported on this story for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. What problems do you have as an international student in the U.S. that this story did not discuss? How else do you think international students and professors can work together to deal with these challenges? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

_______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

challenge(s)  n. a difficult task or problem

schedule(s)  n. a plan of things that will be done and the times when they will be done

class  n. a series of meetings in which students are taught a particular subject or activity

marketing  n. the activities that are involved in making people aware of a company's products, making sure that the products are available to be bought

standardized test  n. a test where all test-takers take the same test under the same or reasonably equal conditions

ultimately  adv. at the most basic level

faculty  n. the group of teachers in a school or college

conscious  adj. knowing that something exists or is happening

globally  adv. involving the entire world

mentality  n. a particular way of thinking

particular  adj. used to indicate that one specific person or thing is being referred to and no others

priority  n. the condition of being more important than something or someone else and therefore coming or being dealt with first

reserved  adj. not openly expressing feelings or opinions

tend(s)  v. used to describe what often happens or what someone often does or is likely to do

scholarship  n. an amount of money that is given by a school, business or an organization to a student to help pay for their education
The Mexican government says it is spending $50 million to increase legal aid to migrants who fear the U.S. will send them back to Mexico. The new effort is a response to President Donald Trump's policies on illegal immigration, the Associated Press reported.

Last week, all 50 Mexican consulates in the U.S. launched legal assistance centers to form partnerships with nonprofit groups. The consulates will also find lawyers to help those who fear the president's policies.

The effort comes as the U.S. and Mexico continue their disagreement over Trump's plans for a border wall. Trump wants Mexico to pay for the wall. Mexico says it will not.

In February, the Trump Administration also released new rules for aggressively detaining and deporting immigrants. These policies include increasing the number of federal enforcement officers and strengthening cooperation with local law enforcement agencies.

Putting legal matters first

Jose Antonio Zabalgoitia is Miami's Mexican consul general. Last week, he said that these centers would provide real support for the rights of Mexican migrants.

He also said that the consulates will put legal matters first. He said the consulates did not need to seek so much legal support for Mexican people in the past. But now, we need to protect them against an eventual deportation, he said.

Mexican consulates are forming partnerships with law schools, immigration clinics and nonprofit groups that take legal action for immigrants. Mexican lawyers who can send legal cases to organizations or clinics work at the centers. The centers are also talking to private law offices interested in donating legal services.

Worried about their children

Consulates of Mexico and other Central American nations have received numerous requests from migrants. Migrants are concerned about many issues including what will happen to their children who were born in the U.S.

Zabalgoitia said there has been a sharp increase in requests for official documents and for assistance. He noted that many people are in need of birth records, Mexican passports and other documents. Zabalgoitia said he used to sign two birth records each week. Recently he signed 15 in one day.

The increasing demand comes from people like Gloria Portillo. She went to the Mexican consulate in Phoenix, Arizona last week to renew her passport. Her visa is no longer current. She is now starting the process of becoming a legal resident. Although she is married to a U.S. citizen, she fears something may stop her from legally staying in the country.

Speaking about her friends and family living in the U.S. illegally, she said, We've been here all of our lives, we have kids, and of course we're afraid to be deported.

Consular offices are becoming very busy.

The Philadelphia mission also covers Delaware and southern New Jersey. For that mission, daily appointments at the consulate have doubled to 400 people, Consul General Alicia Kerber-Palma said.

Near Boston, Mexican diplomats have been meeting with families at churches and community events to explain complex issues. For example, they explain that, without citizenship in both countries, it is difficult to claim U.S.-born children after deportation.

Fear of going back to Mexico

About 500,000 Mexican immigrants live in Houston, Texas. Mexican diplomats in Houston said requests for Mexican birth records have risen 50 percent since Trump announced new measures to limit illegal immigration.

Oscar Solis is a first secretary of the Mexican consulate in Houston. He said that feelings toward migrants have become less open and friendly. It's like in wars. They come for one person and many who are innocent  or not really involved  end up paying.

Divina Ciriaco is a 45-year-old woman who cleans houses. She lives in the Miami area. She is gathering all the Mexican documents she would need for her U.S.-born boy to go with her if she is deported.

We live in fear of going back to Mexico, to the violence, the poverty we suffered, said Ciriaco.

She migrated with her husband and two children 20 years ago from the Mexican state of Guerrero. She gave birth to her third child in Miami.

Now, it's just a matter of waiting for that day to come, she said.

Im Alice Bryant. And I'm Bryan Lynn.

Associated Press reported this story. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

migrant - n. a person who moves from one place to another, especially to find work

consulate - n. the building where a consul works and sometimes lives

consul - n. a government official whose job is to live in a foreign country and protect and help the citizens of his or her own country who are traveling, living, or doing business there

immigration clinic - n. a center at a university where law students legally represent immigration clients from all over the world; often the clients are low-income and undocumented

resident - n. someone who is permitted to live in a country
A study released this week shows corruption remains a big issue in East Asia.

The group Transparency International spoke with more than 20,000 people about their recent experiences with corruption in 16 Asian and Pacific countries.

The study finds that about 900 million people in 16 Asia-Pacific countries have made an illegal payment to a government official to receive services.

The group talked to 22,000 people between July 2015 and January 2017. About a third of those asked said they had paid a bribe in the last year.

The study found that police are the most likely officials to demand an illegal payment.

About 20 percent of those asked said they believed corruption had lessened. Forty percent said they believed it had worsened.

In China, almost three-quarters of those asked said corruption had worsened since the last Transparency International report on corruption in the Asia-Pacific was released in 2013.

Rukshana Nanayakkara works for the group in Singapore. He spoke to VOA this week about the report.

A lot of people still dont trust their government when it comes to fighting corruption.

Nanayakkara says people in seven countries pay the most bribes.

India, Vietnam, Pakistan, Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia and China as well have very high bribe-paying rates.

Of those seven countries, he says one is clearly the worst.

India and their government -- again, which came (into office) on an anti-corruption platform -- is doing very, very poorly in their fight against corruption. More than 65 percent of the people in India have to pay bribes in accessing public services. Anybody who lives in India wouldnt take it as a surprise -- its a day-to-day reality of a lot of people. This is the same problem in Vietnam.

Nanayakkara says the study found that some nations, including Australia, do not have a corruption problem.

Japan, South Korea and Thailand -- they all have (a) very low bribe-paying culture in the countries.

The group says corruption lessens the amount of food that people eat and prevents people from getting educated and receiving health care. It called on governments preparing their U.N. Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 to include anti-corruption targets along with a reduction in poverty and hunger and improvements in education and health care.

Im Anne Ball.

VOA Correspondent Victor Beattie reported this story from Washington. John Smith adapted the 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

bribe  n. something valuable (such as money) that is given in order to get someone to do something

platform  n. the official beliefs and goals of a political party or candidate

access  v. to be able to use, enter or get near (something)
On Nov. 1, Linn Benton Food Shares warehouse in Tangent received two truckloads of food and household supplies arranged by the local branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
NEW YORK  The U.S. attorney in Manhattan was not commenting Friday after he was included on a list of prosecutors asked to submit resignation letters as Attorney General Jeff Sessions clears space for prosecutors that can be appointed by President Donald Trump.

It was not immediately clear if Preet Bharara, the top prosecutor in Manhattan, must resign. He met in November with Trump and was asked to stay on after Trump called New York Sen. Charles Schumer and told him he wanted to keep Bharara in the post.

In a statement late Friday, Schumer said he was "troubled to learn of reports of requests for resignations from the remaining U.S. attorneys, particularly that of Preet Bharara."

"While it's true that presidents from both parties made their own choices for U.S. attorney positions across the country, they have always done so in an orderly fashion that doesn't put ongoing investigations at risk. They ask for letters of resignation but the attorneys are allowed to stay on the job until their successor is confirmed," the senator said.

Schumer said that by requesting immediate resignations, Trump was "interrupting ongoing cases and investigations and hindering the administration of justice."

The request for resignations came just days after Trump last weekend claimed that Obama tapped his telephones during last year's election. FBI Director James Comey privately asked the Justice Department to dispute the claim because he believed the allegations were false. Bharara worked for Comey when he was U.S. attorney in Manhattan under President George W. Bush.

Bharara has made public corruption and insider trading an emphasis since President Barack Obama appointed him midway through 2009.

With a quick wit and a steady stream of public appearances, Bharara has been one of the more charismatic prosecutors to lead one of the busiest offices of federal prosecutors in the country.

The prosecutor was once lauded on the cover of Time magazine as the man who is "busting Wall Street." More recently, he's successfully prosecuted over a dozen state officeholders from both political parties.
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What started with some alarming news about the tainted water supply for the City of Newburgh last year has inspired action at the local and state levels. Yet federal officials still are acting as if this is not something requiring quick and decisive remedies.

That has been the case for months now and it became even more apparent in the series of actions  or, in the case of the Air National Guard and Department of Defense, inactions  in recent days.

Many of those who have been using the city water most recently have received the news that the levels of perfluorooctane sulfonate in their blood are above the national average. Results from the first 370 people tested show a middle level of 16 parts per billion, three times higher than the national figure of 5.2. Half of those tested had results about the middle level and half below.

Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, D-Cold Spring, whose district includes Newburgh, is calling for legislation that would have the Centers for Disease Control start work to fill in the large gaps in the understanding of just what exposure to this chemical means for an individual.

That is necessary and will take time. Right now, the most important task is to stop the pollution at the source.

Newburgh has turned to an alternative water supply. The neighboring Town of New Windsor had stopped using a well found to contain small amounts of the chemical.

The chemicals in these streams and lakes, in these and many other wells and water supplies all point directly toward the Stewart Air National Guard Base. Last March, state investigators found alarmingly high levels of PFOS coming from Recreation Pond, the off-base retention pond used by Stewart from which water flowed into nearby streams, eventually ending up in the Newburgh water supply. Other testing found a variety of levels of contamination in nearby wells, showing that the chemicals had gone into the aquifer and were not contained in surface water.

 The Times Herald-Record, Middletown

The second iteration of President Trump's travel ban, subject to extreme vetting that eluded the carelessly drafted original, is likelier to pass legal and constitutional muster. It is less likely to cause chaos at the airports.

It is no better calibrated to prevent terrorist attacks on American soil  which was supposed to be the whole point.

Compare and contrast today's order to what it replaces. What was a pause on all immigration and travel from seven nations now applies to six nations; Iraq has fallen off a list that still includes Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

Give the Trump administration a shred of credit for not repeating the outrageous unforced error of preventing people who heroically assisted the U.S. military during years of war from migrating here, often after becoming targets of ISIS and other combatants.

But a better version of a bad idea is not a good idea. The fundamental flaw in the Trump administration's approach to banning entry to individuals on a nation-by-nation basis remains. Namely, it confuses individuals' country of origin with their likelihood of being violent radicals.

Not a single visitor or immigrant from one of the six countries in question has committed a fatal act of terrorism on American soil.

Besides, even if one were to believe that national origin correlates with propensity for terrorism, Saudi Arabia has sent more terrorists here.

Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan rank first through fourth on the 2016 Global Terrorism Index, an independent statistical effort to identify the world's top terror hotbeds.

As an internal analysis by the Department of Homeland Security released late last month revealed, more than half the 82 people who committed terrorist acts on U.S. soil since 2011 were American-born. The others were born in one of 26 countries the single most common of which happened to be Pakistan.

 The Daily News, New York

How to begin an editorial about a violent free-speech debacle at Middlebury College in Vermont? Maybe with some words from John Stuart Mill about the importance of giving despised dissenters a chance to speak. "Truth would lose something by their silence," Mill wrote, even if their views go against the entire world, and the entire world is right.

Persuasive words. But not last Thursday in an auditorium at Middlebury, where a student recited that very quotation in introducing the notorious social scientist Charles Murray. Moments later caterwauling erupted, and the event collapsed into a night of turned backs, shouted chants, pounding fists and one wrenched neck  belonging to a professor who was supposed to have provided a counterpoint to Murray's remarks, and to lead the Q. and A., but instead was attacked while leaving with him.

Middlebury may prove an "inflection point" where colleges yield the lectern to intolerant liberals, hastening a bastion of free thought toward its demise.

It's an outcome that many on the right seem to be aching for. Though speakers of all ideologies regularly appear at colleges without incident, a few widely publicized disruptions feed a narrative of leftist enclaves of millennial snowflakes refusing to abide ideas they disagree with.

Murray is an academic with an argument to make about class in America from his 2012 book "Coming Apart" and maybe it is flawed. But Middlebury students had no chance to challenge him on any of his views. Thought and persuasion, questions and answers, were eclipsed by intimidation.

 The New York Times
ROCK SPRINGS, Wyo. (AP)  The Bureau of Land Management is proposing to remove about 1,000 wild horses from three herd management areas, including Adobe Town, in southwest Wyoming in order to meet population level objectives.

Kimberlee Foster, field manager for the Rock Springs BLM field office, said there are too many horses on the land, and rules require them to remove horses when they are above management levels.

Foster said the gathered horses will go to the Rock Springs Holding Facility where they will be put up for adoption.

The BLM plans to remove 210 horses from Adobe Town, 584 from Salt Wells Creek and 235 from Great Divide Basin.

There are many reasons the BLM must carefully maintain certain population ranges for wild horses in Wyoming. For one, there are no natural predators for horses in the state and equines can be prodigious breeders.

Typically a herd management area can double in size every four or five years, Foster told the Rawlins Daily Times (http://bit.ly/2mayVKA ).

If wild horse populations become too large, the natural forage on the land wont be able to support them.

Herd management is based around the usage of the land, Foster said, as well as the amount of available forage for the animals. Additionally, the BLM has agreed to act to reduce herd sizes should population levels reach a certain point.

The BLM is accepting public comment until April 4 on its horse roundup plan.
FILER  A Buhl man shot at by a sheriffs deputy last month was in court Friday in a different case and accused of faking a doctors note to get out of a forgery trial.

Details of the deputy-involved shooting, meanwhile, are still being kept under wraps.

Dennis Leroy Barnes, II, 37, was accused of leading police on a chase Feb. 12 that ended with a crash and a deputy firing his weapon at Barnes, who was not hit by the gunfire but was injured in the crash.

Barnes was charged with a felony count of eluding police, but the case has since been dismissed, although prosecutors plan to refile the charge.

We had to dismiss the case because the judge wouldnt grant a continuance, but thats routine, Twin Falls County Prosecutor Grant Loebs told the Times-News this week. It was dismissed with the certain statement at the time it would be refiled. Because we needed a continuance, and the defendant wouldnt grant one, so the judge wouldnt give it. We dismissed to refile.

Loebs said he still couldnt release the name of the deputy who fired the shots or details of the shooting. He said a Critical Incident Task Force from an outside agency submitted a report to him, and he forwarded it to the Ada County prosecuting attorneys office.

(Theyll) look at it for a legal opinion because of the possible conflict given the way the case is working out, Loebs said.

The prosecutor expects Ada County prosecutors to make a decision in the coming weeks.

This is the same format we follow with every officer-involved shooting, Loebs said. This was a little different as I was waiting to see whether it looked like the sort of thing that needed to be handled that way, and I thought that it should be.

Loebs said by passing the case to Ada County, prosecutors there can make an unbiased, independent decision.

Its a process we developed  to make certain theres a fair and objective analysis without the knowledge of the personalities or people involved, Loebs explained. So if I knew the officer who did this, worked with him a bunch of times, Im probably not the best person to look at the information; so you send it to someone else.

Meanwhile, Barnes has remained in custody at the Twin Falls County Jail despite the dismissal of his eluding charge as he awaits trial on forgery and theft charges. And on Friday, Barnes was in court again, accused of forging a doctors note that he submitted to court in his forgery case.

Police say Barnes submitted a fake letter purporting to be from a St. Lukes doctor regarding a back surgery. The doctors note was an attempt to excuse Barnes for missing his first trial date.

But the doctor to whom the note was attributed to said he never wrote it and his signature was forged, court documents said.

Barnes is set for a March 17 preliminary hearing in his new case and June trial in his forgery case. Loebs did not give a timetable for when charges would be re-filed in the eluding case.
TWIN FALLS  A harsh winter has created a headache for Magic Valley schools, forcing cancellations.

But a bill is moving through the Idaho legislature that could provide relief.

Rep. Judy Boyle, R-Midvale, introduced a bill March 2 to allow school districts to seek a waiver of minimum instructional hour requirements  meaning students may not have to make up as much time. It passed the House Thursday and now heads to the Senate.

Some Magic Valley school districts, though, wouldnt benefit from it  even this winter. Thats because they built in enough extra instructional hours into the calendar beyond the minimum requirements.

Minidoka County School District has logged 12 days of school closures due to severe weather and flooding  the equivalent of more than two weeks of school.

And Acequia Elementary School in Rupert has been closed for 15 days and dealt with flooding on surrounding roads.

But the district wouldnt need to seek a waiver.

We were well over the minimum requirements, Superintendent Ken Cox said. So we lucked out.

He said he hasnt read the bill text, but thinks the legislation is a good idea.

To try to gain back classroom time, the district already switched two days slated for parent-teacher conferences  April 13-14  into regular school days. And schools made other minor schedule changes, such as no recess for kindergartners.

The bill has an emergency clause, so it would become effective immediately, instead of July 1, if its signed by the governor, said Blake Youde, spokesman for the Idaho Board of Education.

The goal is that we would be able to help districts out for this year, said Debbie Critchfield of Oakley, a member of the Idaho Board of Education. Shes also the the spokeswoman for the Cassia County School District.

Local school boards can waive up to 11 hours of instructional time themselves, she said, because of weather or facility issues.

The state superintendent of public instruction can waive additional hours for a school, Critchfield said. But an issue arose this year: Theres no mechanism to waive hours for an entire school district, she said.

Two districts approached the Idaho Board of Education with that concern.

We worked to put this bill together quickly for this session, Critchfield said.

In order to qualify, an entire school district would be impacted by unforeseen circumstances as a result of a natural occurrence.

Plus, it would have to be located in an area affected by a county or state emergency declaration.

School districts would have to provide a plan showing how theyd try to make up as many hours as possible.

Idaho requires students to be in class for a minimum of 450 hours for kindergarten, 810 for first through third grades, 900 for fourth through eighth grades and 990 for ninth through 12th grades.

In Buhl, the waiver wouldnt have done anything for us, Superintendent Ron Anthony said.

Buhl has logged 10 snow days. Thats more Anthony has seen in his entire 30-plus years as an educator.

The district isnt technically required to make up hours. But school officials want students to spend more time in class anyway.

To make that happen, five late-start Mondays were canceled, meaning students will arrive at school earlier. Students and teachers also came to school March 3, a Friday originally slated as a day off.

This winter has mostly been a challenge for classroom planning, Anthony said. That was the real difficulty we had. The timing was never good to keep the flow.

Twin Falls and Cassia County school district students wont have to make up hours either.

The Jerome School District has a plan to meet instructional hour requirements and ensure students spend more hours in class.

Weve made a good faith effort, I think, Superintendent Dale Layne said. Theres a plan in place to meet requirements as long we dont have another snow day in March or April.

In total, Jerome schools have had eight snow days. Plus, schools were dismissed early two other days because snow drifts led to road closures.

Students are going to school for an extra hour every Friday  a schedule that will continue until the end of the school year.

Previously, students got off early, and the time was used for teacher collaboration.
SKANEATELES  Community input will be "a critical piece" of the process to develop the former Stella Maris Retreat & Renewal Center property into the proposed Skaneateles Library & Learning Center, the project manager said Thursday.

At a special meeting of the Skaneateles Library Board of Trustees called to discuss the planning and design process for the project, Bruce King  of Holmes King Kallquist, the project's architecture team  noted that a series of four community workshops will serve as the first step of that process more than two months before its first scheduled village Planning Board meeting.

Those workshops, all with the same content and purpose, are slated to take place from 1 to 3 p.m. Thursday, March 23 at the Skaneateles fire station, 77 W. Genesee St., Skaneateles; from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Skaneateles High School cafeteria, 49 E. Elizabeth St., Skaneateles; from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday, March 25 at the Skaneateles Central School District office building, 45 E. Elizabeth St., Skaneateles; and from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 28 at the district office building.

There is also a webinar set from 1 to 2 p.m. Wednesday, March 29, an open house from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 26 at the fire station and another community event anticipated for June once conceptual architectural designs are released.

"That data gathering. That is what drives what we call the program," King said of the public involvement. "It's a list of functions, spaces, that a project needs to accommodate. It is not building specific. It is general."

He said the initial goal is to come up with a wish list of what people in the community want to see in the library and learning center and then devise a building size, arrangement and budget based on that feedback, rather than starting with a specific square footage and cost and trying to fit the public's desires into those dimensions.

"Our of our tasks is how do you mesh those into a coherent building," King said. "We don't ever set goals we think a building should be X number of square feet and X number of dollars."

Starting generally, he said, allows the community to voice all of its wishes and then see what makes the most sense space- and cost-wise, while starting specifically leaves the possibility that good ideas get squeezed out because they not fit or might cost too much.

"With a complete picture, you have the information you need to rank items by importance," King said. "Without the complete picture, you have no way to rank the pieces. ... That will ultimately a recommendation as to what a building might want to be."

According to a timeline King presented at the meeting, the library and learning center is slated to open in July 2019, but the architect noted that date is merely a goal meant to help the team determine when other steps in the process need to take place and how long they should take.

But, nothing in the timeline is set in stone, he said. If one step takes longer than expected, the team could look at shortening another step to keep the schedule or look at pushing back the opening date.

Still, a midsummer 2019 opening date allows for construction to take place in the spring of 2018 and 2019  the optimal building season for central New York  and the project to be bid over the winter of 2017-18, the most economical season for seeking contractors.

That means, King showed on the timeline, the proposal would go before the village planning and zoning board over this summer once the initial phase of community input has wrapped up and a conceptual design comes out.

"It will take what it takes, I guess, is the best way to put it," King said of the timeline. "As a result, the schedule will adjust. It has to adjust. This is just a framework."

Paul Mays, an architect with Butler Rowland Mays who previously led the library and the public through a series of community workshops about two years ago to develop a plan for expanding and renovating the current building, addressed how that plan turned into an idea for relocating the library.

In the process of looking at the physical structure and the program space, Mays said the workshops identified "a number of issues" that needed to be addressed in the current building. Some of those issues may be better address in a new location, he added, such as parking, the physical space to expand and the ability to meet future needs.

He said the workshops resulted in conceptual designs both for expanding and renovating the current library and constructing a new building on the former Stella Maris property.

"When we looked at the Stella Maris property, we did come up with a very conceptual design of what could be done with this property," Mays said. "We did a conceptual design on this potential site and made it fit on that site."
TWIN FALLS  The lineup of speakers for a nationwide broadcast next week  with viewings at the College of Southern Idaho  has changed.

Originally, Hoda Kotb  co-host of NBCs Today Show  was slated to participate in the broadcast, but shes taking time off after adopting a baby girl.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Charles Duhigg will take her place for the presentation at 5 p.m. Tuesday in CSIs Fine Arts Auditorium.

His book, The Power of Habit, was on the New York Times bestseller list for 165 weeks and is available in 40 languages.

His newest book, Smarter Faster Better, is about productivity and the science behind it.

The event is free and open to the public.
TWIN FALLS  A photograph of an elephant hangs on a wall in Petrena Thompsons apartment. A poignant lesson lies behind the old pachyderms eyes.

Hed been kicked out of the herd and was waiting to die, Thompson said. See how sad he looks?

Thompson and her daughter Sharon met the elephant two years ago on an African safari. The two had taken the trip for Thompsons 100th birthday.

Loneliness is one of the saddest things about growing old, said Thompsons 85-year-old friend and neighbor, Marty Mead. Friends make all the difference in our lives.

Mead and Thompson became fast friends about a year ago after meeting on their third-story balconies at Bridgeview Estates.

In the summertime, we can yell back and forth at each other, said Thompson, who turns 102 this month.

Thompson mowed her own lawn at her home in Hagerman until she moved to Bridgeview last year.

Shes an inspiration, Mead said. Shes everyones favorite person.

Neither Thompson nor Mead could say when or how they got old.

It just happened, Thompson said with a grin. Im too busy to think about getting old.

Her face and hair refuse to reveal her age.

I wasnt ever going to get old, said Mead, a beloved supporter of the arts in Twin Falls. She and her late husband, David Mead, founded the Magic Valley Dilettantes 58 years ago.

I can remember it like it was yesterday, she said.

Mead lost her husband less than a year ago, but you wont find her moping around.

Ive always been involved in things, she said. Her life now is no different. I started a choir after I moved here.

Thompson keeps her mind sharp by keeping busy. She walks two laps around the Bridgeview property everyday. She reads everything she can get her hands on and crochets booties. She recently wrote her autobiography.

Ive always been busy, she said. I had to be.

Thompson was born March 19, 1915, on a farm in Kansas. She worked with her father, driving a tractor and feeding animals.

During the Great Depression, Thompson taught 28 students in eight grades in a one-room school house in Hugoton, Kan.

Being a teacher meant I was also the cook and janitor, she said. I cleaned my school room with a shovel during the Dust Bowl years.

She taught school for 10 years, then worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 23 years.

She moved from Kansas to Hagerman in 1981 to be near her daughter Lolly. Since then she has traveled around the world.

Mead sat in awe listening to Thompson tell her stories about her life, her face beaming.

Youre not old until youve lost your enthusiasm, Mead said.
Cheer

Last week and with little warning, Speaker of the House Scott Bedke changed the way representatives vote in the House.

It was a subtle change, and one we absolutely agree with.

Under the old system, a large board on the floor lit up with each reps name in green or red as they cast their vote, allowing everyone to see how their peers were voting. That was especially convenient for lawmakers who hadnt read the bills  they could just vote the same as a political ally. Or, they could change their vote to match their allies depending on how others were voting.

It wasnt unusual to see a name flip from green to red to green until the speaker closed the vote.

Under the new system, the board no longer lights up until all the votes are cast. No more looking at your neighbors to see what to do  or changing your vote for political games.

Now, lawmakers actually have to read the bills, listen to the debate and vote with their hearts.

Jeer

Dont forget to set your clocks ahead this Sunday for daylight saving time. But what if we didnt have to?

The time changes were designed to cut down on energy use. But studies are increasingly showing that changing our clocks may be doing more harm than good.

Writing for Bloomberg, Ben Steverman points out studies that show changing our clocks doesnt have much of an effect on energy consumption. In fact, when Indiana finally adopted daylight saving time in 2006, energy consumption actually went up. And losing an hour of sleep each spring has some surprising consequences. Car accidents, strokes and heart attacks spike, Steverman writes, after the time change each spring. Sleep-deprived judges even hand down harsher sentences.

Nor does the time change spark consumer spending, according to recent analysis of 380 million bank and credit-card transactions by the JPMorgan Chase Institute.

Given the choice, wed take the extra hour of sleep.

Cheer

Hundreds of high school seniors across the Magic Valley are putting their final touches on their senior projects  a state requirement for graduation since 2013.

Students have to spend 40 hours of hands-on work in an interest related to academics, a future career or community service. And every student has to have a community mentor.

Thousands upon thousands of hours go into these projects. We highlighted some of the most ambitious projects in a story in Thursdays edition. One student created a lacrosse club. Another built first-aid kits for needy people in the Philippines and traveled to the country to hand them out. Another created a student film festival.

We strongly support the concept of senior projects. They prepare students for their next steps in life, and, perhaps most important, teach them about community service.

Congratulations to all the areas seniors on projects well done.
More domestic flights at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport have been canceled after aviation authorities extended the temporary shutdown of the Tagaytay air traffic radar until 12 midnight today (Saturday).

The temporary closure, which began at 6 a.m. of March 6, was supposed to end at 6 a.m. yesterday (March 11).

In its latest Notice to Airmen, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines explained that the cause of delay was due to strong winds as antenna pedestal can not be lifted on top of the tower.

As of 10 a.m. today [March 11], antenna pedestal was put in place on top of the tower and is up and running. Radar alignment procedure/calibration is now in progress, said CAAP spokesman Eric Apolonio.

The delay prompted the Cebu Pacific Air to cancel about 40 domestic flights scheduled Saturday.

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Canceled flights include those from and to Manila, Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Caticlan, Davao, General Santos, Iloilo, Legazpi, Puerto Princesa, Zamboanga, Tuguegarao, Naga, Kalibo and Cauayan.

The airline management advised the affected passengers to avail of the following options without penaltiesrebook their flights for travel within 30 days from the original departure date; or opt for full refund or travel fund.

Other passengers with flights to and from Manila tomorrow, March 11, whether or not affected by above cancellations, may still opt to avail the same options above without penalties, it added.

The management also apologized to the passengers for the cancellation of flights.

We sincerely hope for our passengers understanding, as this situation is beyond our control. The safety of everyone remains our utmost priority.

Last Tueday, CAAP officials, led by deputy director general for operations Capt. Manuel Antonio Tamayo, inspected the progress of the maintenance work being done at the facility located in Barangay Neogan, Tagaytay City.

The facility is one of the three radars being utilized by CAAP in guiding flights approaching airports at NAIA and Clark, while the other two are in Laoag and Mt. Majic in Cebu City.

Tamayo said the repair is necessary as it will be integrated with the soon-to-be-launched satellite-based Communications, Navigation, Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) systems. He added the repair covers the overhauling of antenna and replacement of its drive motor and rotary joint.

The CNS/ATM system enables aircraft operators to meet their planned times of departure and arrival and adhere to their preferred flight profiles with minimum constraints and without compromising agreed levels of safety.

The system improves the handling and transfer of information, extends surveillance and improve navigational accuracy that will lead to, reductions in separation between aircraft, allowing for increased airspace capacity and achieve reduced flight operating costs and delays.

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PHOENIX  The state's largest electric utility may have outmaneuvered a utility regulator in the fight over its records about its campaign spending.

Arizona Public Service and Pinnacle West Capital Corp., its parent, have quietly dropped their lawsuit seeking to quash the subpoena issued by Bob Burns for corporate records. APS spokesman John McDonald would not comment on the move.

In response, Burns late Friday filed his own legal action to compel the companies to comply with the subpoena he claims they have ignored.

But Burns could find himself without the legal help to pursue the case.

That's because the other members of the Arizona Corporation Commission voted only to allow Burns to hire outside counsel  but only to defend himself against the lawsuit filed against him by APS and Pinnacle West.

Burns told Capitol Media Services it is clear to him that the decision by the utility not to seek a court order declaring his subpoena invalid does not mean it will finally produce the documents he wants.

They are going to try and stop me by some other means in all probability, he said. I don't know what their game plan is.

But in dropping the lawsuit, the game plan could be to leave Burns without the funds he needs to pursue the issue.

Commission Chairman Tom Forese said late Friday he could not comment on the latest turn of events. It was Forese who helped approve the vote last year to give Burns the legal latitude  and the legal help  to go to court over the subpoenas. But that motion was specifically to let Burns defend himself.

And there are indications that the others on the five-member panel are unlikely to give Burns permission to use commission funds to proactively pursue the records.

Burns said he's not sure whether he was outmaneuvered by the utility.

We'll see, he said. If the commission is not going to support me doing my official duties, I think that's a problem.

At the heart of the fight are questions about what behind-the-scenes role Pinnacle West and APS played in the 2014 election.

It's already a matter of public record that the Free Enterprise Club and Save Our State Now put $3.2 million into getting Forese and fellow Republican Doug Little elected. What is not known is the source of those funds as the two organizations claim they are social welfare organizations which are exempt from Arizona laws compelling them to disclose their donors.

APS has repeatedly refused to confirm or deny its role in the 2014 race, first in spending money in the GOP primary against some candidates who were running on a pro-solar platform and then in the general election to help Forese and Little defeat the Democrats. A company spokesman would say only that the utility has a right to defend itself against what it saw as unfair charges.

Unable to get any records from the Free Enterprise Club and Save Our State Now, Burns instead subpoenaed the records of both APS and Pinnacle West, demanding disclosure of their spending on campaigns, lobbyists and charitable donations.

APS, as a regulated utility, did supply some information. But it left Burns unsatisfied.

All they gave us is some public records, he said, things the company already files either with the commission or that Pinnacle West must make available to the Securities and Exchange Commission as a publicly traded corporation. They didn't give us anywhere close to the number of records we ordered supplied.

APS and Pinnacle West then went on the offensive, filing suit and asking Maricopa County Superior Court Judge David Gass to quash the subpoena as illegal.

It was that lawsuit that was dropped this past week.

Burns said once APS dropped its lawsuit he had no choice but to go proactive.

We have to get compliance out of this thing at some time before we all pass away, he said.

There already are indications the other commissioners won't go along with spending more money to go after the records of what now has occurred more than two years ago.

While Forese was not commenting on Friday, he told Capitol Media Services in January he was anxious to put the whole issue to bed.

Frankly, elections are elections and now it's time to govern, he said at the time. Forese said having the commission spend time and effort figuring out what happened in 2014 is a tremendous distraction and a disservice to the people that we represent.

And Forese also suggested Burns is obsessed with not just the 2014 campaign but also his push to ban future anonymous donations to political committees that put money into future commission races.

That wasn't a problem in last year's race, with APS admitting it was the sole source of dollars for an independent campaign to elect Republicans Boyd Dunn, Andy Tobin  and Burns. Pinnacle West CEO Don Brandt publicly said while his company has had its disputes with Burns he thinks Burns would still be better for his corporation than Democrats Bill Mundell or Tom Chabin.

Burns, however, also benefited from the $2.5 million Solar City spent on the race on his behalf and also for Mundell.
By Bloomberg Editorial

Now that a court has ousted her from office, former South Korean President Park Geun-hyes troubles are only beginning: She could face indictment on charges of bribery and abuse of power. Koreans, however, need to move beyond this lurid scandal.

Months of uncertainty over Parks fate have paralyzed her nation at a critical moment. Koreans have been riveted by accusations that she conspired with a mysterious confidante to extract millions of dollars in bribes from Samsung Group and other major conglomerates, and prosecutors have levied charges against dozens of people in relation to the case, including Samsung heir Jay Y. Lee.

Meanwhile, China has launched a campaign to squeeze South Korean businesses in retaliation for the governments decision to deploy a powerful US-built missile defense system on its territory. Even as the new US administration has reaffirmed its commitment to South Koreas defense, it has criticized the bilateral free-trade agreement between them. And the risk of conflict with North Korea has grown as Kim Jong Uns regime races toward its goal of deploying a nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the US mainland.

Longstanding economic challenges are also becoming more difficult. At a time of slowing trade and rising protectionism, South Korea remains dangerously reliant on exports, which account for nearly half of GDP. Household debt has soared to more than $1 trillion, and there are fears of a housing bubble.

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Parks downfall has at least spurred efforts to dismantle the cozy ties between government and big business in South Korea. Lees arrest alone wont ensure change. But the legislature has begun to debate serious reforms to reduce the conglomerates stranglehold on the Korean economy. These should be passed quickly, along with measures to support small and medium-sized businesses, which have traditionally struggled for access to capital and talent.

Finally, South Korea would benefit from a serious, open debate about its policy toward North Korea. Theres nothing inherently wrong with contemplating a different approach, given that sanctions alone havent induced a change in Kims behavior; indeed, negotiations between the US and his regime are probably inevitable. But talks will be more likely to work if the next South Korean government coordinates policy, strengthens defenses and shares intelligence closely with the US and Japan, so that both China and North Korea realize the allies cannot be played off against one another.

New elections must be held within 60 days. While reforms to check South Koreas expansive presidential powers are necessary, the campaign shouldnt become a referendum on Park, whose alleged misdeeds should be addressed in the courts. Instead, Koreans need a real debate about not only their economy but also their place in the region and the world.

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INTERNATIONAL Womens Day is celebrated every March 8, and as part of this observance, the Philippines celebrates National Womens Month each March.

Reading books about women and by women will help you keep women and their struggles, concerns, and accomplishments in mind over 31 days. Most of these books I recommend are fiction, particularly short stories, which deliver important messages effectively because of the use of narrative to portray the arc of human lives.

Apart from the first on the list, these books are not your usual reading list entries. Enjoy discovering new authors and other tales:

1. The Handmaids Tale, by Margaret Atwood: I wrote about this book a couple of Sundays ago and how its dystopian setting and themes of female oppression are almost prescient given the rise of authoritarian mindsets in many parts of the world. Id call this required reading.

2. The Pillow Book, by Sei Shonagon: Written by a contemporary of Murasaki Shikibu (The Tale of Genji), this book gives the finer details about court life in 11th century Heian-era Japan. It is all about the arts, culture, and elaborate fashion of the time, and well as the relationships between men and women, and those in power and without.

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3. In The Country, by Mia Alvar: Alvar was born in the Philippines and grew up in Bahrain and the United States. Race, identity, immigration, the plight of overseas workers, and the Filipino as citizen of the world are among the themes of her absorbing and engaging tales.

4. The Middleman and Other Stories, by Bharati Mukherjee: Mukherjee, born and educated in India, lived in Canada and the US. Her experiences as an immigrant and traveler inform this collection of stories about women from India, Sri Lanka, Italy, the Philippines, and other nations, who have made the US their home, for better or worse.

5. Complete Stories, by Clarice Lispector: A Brazilian novelist and short story writer, Lispector was glamorous and innovative, and, during her active writing period from the 1940s to the 1970s, tackled the subjects of motherhood, femininity, marriage, romance and sex. Her prose, however, was surreal and lyrical, and her approach to topics was often shocking. Also an immigrant and traveler (she was from the Ukraine, moved with her family to Rio, and lived abroad for many years with her diplomat husband), her Jewish background may have bestowed upon her writing the distinctive lilt that is often remarked upon as its most interesting feature.

6. A Manual for Cleaning Women: Selected Stories, by Lucia Berlin: Often described as an overlooked genius, Berlin wrote sporadically from the 60s to the 80s, and died in 2004. She grew up in the Western mining towns of the US and spent years in Chile and Mexico. Her stories tell about the everyday lives of women, the moments spent at laundromats and in the homes of the Bay Area rich, of switchboard operators and housewives. Her writing is rich in detail and convincingly portrays emotion.

7. Slouching Towards Bethlehem, by Joan Didion: A collection of creative non-fiction published in 1968 about Didions experiences in California in the 1960s. The essays deal with the counterculture happenings in San Francisco, pointing out the disorder and tragedy lurking underneath the happy-dafty colorful image that comes to mind when we think hippies.

8. Something Ive Been Meaning to Tell You, by Alice Munro: This is just one of this Canadian writers many short story collections. Most of her stories are set in Ontario, about regular folk going about their ordinary lives, and the moments that make each life relatable to anothers in another place or time. Her almost plotless stories tell about women in various stages of life: young women coming of age, middle-aged women musing about their marriages, women living alone, and old women coming to terms with their age.

9. The Penguin Book of Modern Womens Short Stories, edited by Susan Hill: A mother tries to cope with unexpected grief; a woman substitutes food for her husbands love; a fashion model reconciles herself to a tedious job for survivals sake. These are characters from stories by eminent British writers including Muriel Spark, AS Byatt, Caroline Blackwood, Jean Rhys, Penelope Lively, and Fay Weldon.

10. The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty Are Used Against Women, by Naomi Wolf: Unrealistic images and portrayals of women in the mass media pressure women to conform to impractical and unhealthy standards of beauty. Preoccupied with their appearance, many women turn to cosmetic surgery or develop eating disorders to live up to unattainable beauty goals.

Women hold up half the sky is a saying apt not only for this month but everyday.

These stories show some of the many ways women live, love, and do their share of building the world. Happy Womens Month!

Dr. Ortuoste is a California-based writer. Follow her on Facebook: Jenny Ortuoste, Twitter: @jennyortuoste, Instagram: @jensdecember

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The government of China has announced the disbursement of $30 billion to assist African countries improve agriculture through large-scale farming.

Since the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation began in the early 2000s, China has pledged funding and commitment to build a win-win relationship with the continent.

Last year, the Chinese leaders have announced $60 billion for development projects in Africa over the next three years, calling for a lift in China-Africa relations to promote a mutually beneficial partnership.

According to the foreign minister, Wang Yi, China had already disbursed nearly half of the promised $60 billion.

He vowed that China would continue to strengthen its relations with Africa and support the continent, even under harsh conditions.

China and Africa are a closely knit community with a shared future. The cooperation is mutually beneficial between two brothers no matter how the international situation or world economy may evolve; there is no weakening in Chinas support for Africa. What distinguishes China-Africa cooperation is that China always keeps its words. Wang Yi said.

Steady progress is being made in the building of a number of industrial parks across Africa, he added.

He strongly believes that China will be Africas most reliable partner in speeding up agriculture modernization and industrial development.

We need to speed up work and undertake more cooperation work, he concluded.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari returned to Nigeria on Friday after he spent about seven weeks on sick leave in UK.

The 74-year president who was wearing a black kaftan, landed at an air force base in the northern city of Kaduna and walked unaided, before boarding a presidential chopper, local media reported.

The Presidents long absence triggered much speculation about his health while officials have refused to disclose the nature of his sickness.

President Buhari expresses appreciation to teeming Nigerians from across the country, and beyond, who had prayed fervently for him, and also sent their good wishes, the presidents office said in a statement on Thursday night.

Buhari who took power in the African most populous nation in 2015, left on Jan. 19 for a vacation and routine medical checkup in the U.K., before he extended his stay in the European country.
Mauritanian lawmakers on Tuesday voted to change the national flag component by adding stripes to it to better represent those who battled for the countrys independence from France.

The ruling party, Union pour la Republique (UPR), last year proposed to amend the national flag by adding thin red stripes at the top and bottom.

According to UPR leaders, the stripes symbolize the efforts and sacrifices that the people of Mauritania will keep consenting, to the price of their blood, to defend their territory.

The current green flag with a crescent and star symbolises the importance of Islam in the conservative republic.

The proposal to change the flag has not been received with unanimous support from Mauritanians.

However, lawmakers in the lower house passed the constitutional amendment package by 121 votes to 19.

The changes will now be considered by the Senate, where the government also has a majority.

The vast West African country, which won independence from France in 1960, has a relatively small population of about 4 million.

Half of all Mauritanians live in the capital of Nouakchott, one of the largest cities in the Sahara, located close to the Atlantic coast.
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U.S. Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin visited the Miami VA Healthcare System on Friday, less than a month after he was unanimously confirmed to lead the Veterans Affairs Department in February.

He is the only member of President Donald Trumps Cabinet to have served in the Obama administration, having previously spent 18 months as undersecretary for health in charge of the sprawling VA medical system, which serves 9 million veterans a year.

The 57-year-old internist and longtime healthcare executive is the first non-veteran to serve as VA secretary. Shulkin was president and CEO of New York City-based Beth Israel Medical Center from 2005 to 2009 and he supports integrating the VA system with private-sector healthcare.

With a $75.2 billion annual budget, the VA manages veterans benefit programs and operates the largest integrated healthcare system in the nation, including nearly 1,300 VA medical centers. The Miami VA Healthcare System is among Floridas busiest, serving about 58,000 patients a year, with an annual budget of $537 million and about 2,800 employees.

Among Shulkins first acts as secretary was to offer urgent mental-health care beginning this summer to thousands of veterans with less-than-honorable discharges, part of a broader effort to stem a high rate of suicide among former service members.

Following confirmation, Shulkin publicly outlined his priorities for the department. His goals include passing the new accountability legislation and extending the Choice Program that allows veterans to see doctors and hospitals outside of the federally run system.

Questions and Shulkins responses have been edited for context and length.

More here.

Photo credit: Roberto Koltun, el Nuevo Herald
Chief adviser Steve Bannon  the rumpled former executive of Breitbart News, revered as a brilliant strategist and reviled as a xenophobic champion of the extreme right  was shopping for a home in Sarasota last year before Trump enlisted him to fix the campaign.

Bannon, 63, surfaced in Sarasota more than a decade earlier for the most unlikeliest of reasons: nasal spray.

He was part of a team formed to guide a startup named SinoFresh. But the deal got bogged down in lawsuits, the inventor ejecting Bannon from the board. Years later, Bannon formed a film company in Sarasota that made an effusive documentary about Sarah Palin. He set up a research outfit in Tallahassee that churned out investigations on Hillary Clinton and along with Breitbart News, went after two of Floridas top Republicans, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio.

Bannon also rented a home in Miami and registered to vote there in 2014 before switching his registration to Sarasota last August. A former wife has lived in Florida and Bannon lent his support as she dealt with drug and alcohol issues.

Still, the Florida footprint of one of the most powerful men in the country, is sprinkled with mystery. When Bannons voter registration was discovered last year, the collective reaction was: Really?

Bannon has no visibility in Florida political circles, with much of the GOP regulars having little use for the Breitbart wing. The handful of people who could fill in key details refused to talk  underscoring how polarizing a figure he has become.

You are certainly aware of the well-publicized demonstrations and threats that are being made now daily by individuals and groups against Steve Bannon, wrote a lawyer for one of Bannons business associates, Andy Badalato, a venture capitalist in Sarasota County. Unlike Mr. Bannon, my client does not have access to Secret Service or other police protection should your article inevitably turn those protesters on him and his family.

More here.

Photo credit: Evan Vucci, Associated Press
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SANTA FE, N.M. (AP)  New Mexico's top oil and natural gas regulator said a giant cloud of the greenhouse gas methane hanging over the Southwestern United States comes in large part from natural seeps from underground formations and coal mining operations, contradicting recent scientific findings.

At a confirmation hearing Wednesday, acting New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Secretary Kenley McQueen said the methane hot spot over the Four Corners region of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah dates back millions of years.

"My personal opinion is that the methane hotspot in the San Juan-Four Corners area has existed for at least the last 10 million years," said McQueen, describing methane-infused coal outcroppings on the western edge of the San Juan Basin.

The former oil and natural gas company executive believes a NASA survey of the methane cloud and its sources missed the "larger contributions" of methane from coal-seam outcroppings and coal mining. Methane, a key component of natural gas, has potent heat-trapping properties in the short-term when released into the atmosphere.

Researchers with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the California Institute of Technology last year traced the methane hot spot to sources including natural gas wells, storage tanks, pipelines and processing plants. They said only a handful of 250 methane sources were natural seeps from underground formations, in findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Evidence of the Delaware-sized hot spot dates as far back as 2003, and a satellite image released in 2014 showed it in vivid color.

McQueen said those surveys of the methane hot spot have not been comprehensive.

"Had they flown the entire basin I think they would have found that the larger contributions of methane were coming from the outcrop as well as the coal mining operations that are being conducted on the western periphery of the outcrop in support of the two electrical generation stations that are there," McQueen said. "It's been exposed and in my opinion it's the largest component of the methane contamination that was identified by NASA."

Environmentalists vigorously disputed McQueen's take on the source of methane.

Ben Shelton, legislative and political director for Conservation Voters New Mexico, called the claims "patently false."

"The sound science says that industrial production is the foremost source," he said. "No less than 50 percent of methane in the hot spot is coming from industrial point sources."

McQueen previously served as vice president of Tulsa, Oklahoma-based natural gas and oil producer WPX Energy, and once managed the company's assets in the San Juan Basin of northwestern New Mexico and southern Colorado.

States are being left on their own to calculate methane emissions at oil and gas operations after the Environmental Protection Agency this month withdrew an Obama-era request that drillers provide emissions data.

At the same time, Republicans in Congress are seeking to overturn an Obama administration rule that sought to reduce harmful methane emissions into the environment. The Interior Department rule finalized in November had clamped down on oil companies that burn off natural gas during drilling operations on public lands.

Republican New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez warned that royalties paid to the state, which is struggling to solve a budget crisis, will decrease and development will stagnate thanks to the federal methane rule. Leading Democratic state lawmakers say the rule can increased royalties and create jobs through efforts to avoid leaks and flaring.

McQueen blamed the U.S. Bureau of Land Management for much of the flaring of natural gas on the other side of the state, in the Permian Basin of southeastern New Mexico. He said the "predominant reason" for flaring in the area is a backlog of right of way applications from natural gas companies who want to extend pipelines from drilling operations.

BLM Spokeswoman Donna Hummel said the agency's Carlsbad office has processed 1,000 right of way applications in the past year, but the number of applications is surging.

"We certainly understand how important pipelines and their rights of way are for transporting all oil and natural gas products to market," she said. "Despite the BLM's productivity, the demand for rights of way is still higher and increasing."
Last night ABC's 20/20 did a special on so-called conversion therapy which allegedly turns those that are LGBT into heterosexuals. The practice is condemned by EVERY legitimate medical and mental health association in America and amounts to nothing less than psychological - and sometimes physical - torture of those often placed in the fraudulent programs by parents desperate not to have a gay child due to religious brainwashing and self-absorption and embarrassment. A few states have banned the practice on those under the age of 18, but a huge loop hole exists for "religious" organizations and churches. Vice President Pence is a huge advocate of this form of torture, and Der Trumpenfuhrer sold his soul to the Christofascists who support these programs because (i) they are cash cows for organizations that run them, and (ii) they maintain the myth in the minds of many that sexual orientation is a choice regardless of what true experts say. To me, such programs are further proof that religion is one of the great evils in the world. Here are highlights from ABC New s on this foul practice and how Trump/Pence has excited its disgusting advocates (Peter Sprigg who is mentioned in the piece has ZERO credentials that qualify him to opine on the subject other than his extremist religious beliefs):
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Charles Peek is a Nebraska poet who lives near that section of the Platte River where early each year hundreds of thousands of sandhill cranes pause in their migration to nourish themselves for the long flight north. There have been many poems written about the cranes, but this one reaches a little further into our lives. Peek's recent collection of poems is Breezes on their Way to Being Winds, from Finishing Line Press.

***

Out along the last curve in the brick walk

the grass has begun to green,

with the freezing cold and coming snow

its certain fate.

***

The cranes make the same mistake,

fields of red capped heads attest their arrival

just before the worst blizzard of winter

makes it impossible to tell the field from the river.

***

And we, too, have known these mortal mishaps,

miscalculated our time, found ourselves out of step,

arriving too early, staying on too late,

misjudging the nearness, the vengeance of the storm.

***

The cranes, the grass, they tell us:

this can go on for millions of years.
POLSON  Paul Howard Fugleberg of Polson, 86, passed away Sunday, March 5, 2017, of natural causes. He was surrounded by his loving family.

Paul was born May 8, 1930, to Amelia and Paul Jonathan Fugleberg in Hollywood, California. Following the untimely death of his father, his mother remarried after which he was joined in the world by younger brother, Norman.

Paul graduated from Hollywood High School in 1948. After short stints at Los Angeles Community College and UCLA  and an off-putting first exposure to journalism in his coursework  he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. There, he served as Link Trainer Instructor and later became editor of the base newspaper. He met his loving wife, Mary Lou Erickson, while serving as associate editor of the Roundup Record Tribune. They married in 1956 in Lewistown.

Following his discharge from the Air Force, Paul made the trek from Canton and Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to Bishop, California, and eventually to his own personal Shangri-La, Polson. Honing his craft, raising his kids, strengthening his faith and forging lifelong connections  Paul made his mark every step of the way.

Above all, Paul loved God, his family and his community  which he showed in his daily actions even more than his prolific writing. In the words of his children, By any and all measures, Dad, you done good, a reference to Pauls ultimate sign of approval for a job well done.

Paul was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, Mary Lou and infant son, Jimmy. He is survived by his brother, Norman (Tess) Wright, his sister-in-law, Roberta Erickson, his kids Alan Fugleberg (Jacki Elam), Ruth (Lance) Hinther, Mark (Teresa) Fugleberg, Laurie (Pat) McHugh, Tom (Christine) Fugleberg, 12 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

A celebration of Pauls life will be held at The First Presbyterian Church in Polson on Sunday, March 19, at 3 p.m. He will be laid to rest in the Veterans section of the Lake View Cemetery in Polson.

In lieu of flowers, the family encourages donations be made to The First Presbyterian Church of Polson, Polson High School for the purpose of the Paul & Mary Lou Fugleberg Memorial Scholarship, or another charity of their choice.

Messages of condolence may be sent to the family online at lakefuneralhomeandcremation. Arrangements are under the care of The Lake Funeral Home and Crematory, Polson.
MISSOULA  Stephanie Rachel Clark, 29, passed away at her home on Tuesday, February 28, 2017. She was a bright and beautiful light. Her compassionate heart, brilliant mind, determined spirit and warming smile will be forever missed by her family and friends. During her life, her spirit of adventure and love of diverse places and people led her to Puerto Rico, Mexico, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. Her work during her travels often involved advocating on the behalf of others. Her desire to encourage, inspire and empower those without a voice was a lifelong passion.

Stephanie was born July 18, 1987, in Great Falls. She moved to Missoula in 2004 where she graduated from Willard High School in 2005 during which time she worked at the PEAS farm raising chickens and developed numerous connections to the community. She attended the University of Montana, graduating with a double major in anthropology and philosophy in 2009. She received her law degree from Vermont Law School in 2013 after which she worked as a public defender in Durango, Colorado, for two years before returning to Montana. Upon her return, she volunteered her legal services assisting low income families and worked as the Missoula coordinator for Marsys Law. At the time of her death she was working as recruitment manager for the Girl Scouts of America.

A loving daughter, sister and aunt, she enjoyed family hikes, camping trips and gathering around good food. We are grateful for the time we had with her and cherish her light that lives on through us.

Memorial contributions can be made in Stephanies honor to Missoula Youth Homes, P.O. Box 7616 or by calling 406-721-2704.
Brian Murphy has been through the kind of thing you see in movies and say to yourself, 'that is so ridiculous. No one could ever survive that in real life.'

By all accounts, Brian Murphy should be dead.

The scars on his face, neck, head, legs, arms and hands won't let him forget the day death seemed inevitable. It was sunny Sunday morning in 2012. Dozens of people were gathering to worship in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, at the Sikh Temple.

Murphy was the supervisor on duty that day, not expecting to be out in the field. He was a Lieutenant at the time at the Oak Creek Police Department.

"My radio goes off and I realize I am the closest one to the scene," Murphy said. "I got there in about 2 minutes."

Terror at the temple

The scene unfolding at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin can only be described as an act of terror.

The gunman was an Army veteran on a mission of hate chose that day to enter the temple and start slaughtering people, some as they worshiped.

The Sikh faithful -- highly visible for the colorful turbans some of the men wear -- had no warning that morning; they had no way to fight back. No chance.

"I was in the kitchen. We were making roti (unleavened Indian bread). We heard firing outside. I brought both kids in my hand and said let's go in the pantry," Satpal Kaleka said.

Kaleka was one of 15 women and children who huddled in that pantry together fearing death. The frantic calls to 9-1-1 were streaming in as people were being shot first outside then inside as they worshiped.

"The only woman who was killed actually went into the temple to pray saying 'God will protect me," Murphy learned later. 41-year-old Paramjit Kaur died as she prayed. Five others including Kaleka's husband, the President of the Temple, also were shot to death.

Surviving the impossible

As shots continued to ring out, Murphy arrived in his squad car.

"I get there and I get out. I see two people. It turned out to be two brothers lying across each other. They weren't moving, " he said.

But someone else was. 40-year-old Wade Michael Page had made a plan and was executing it. He was an Army veteran who had become a white supremacist.

Page and Murphy saw each other.

They both fired.

"I missed," Murphy said, clearly annoyed with himself.

Page did not miss.

A bullet pierced Murphy's face.

"It hit my jaw bone went down my throat, ripped apart my voice box and my Esophagus and uh bounced off my spine," He said, adding, "Didn't feel that bad just felt like getting a punch."

He took cover behind a car but then he lost sight of the gunman.

"Tactical mistake on my part," he said.

Page suddenly shot him from behind. Murphy's thumb exploded. His gun was blown out of his hand. And the shots just kept on coming.

"About half way through ... I'm thinking, 'When are you going to be done shooting me?'" Murphy said.

Suddenly Murphy was lying on his back looking eye to eye with the shooter who was standing over him.

The worst was the shot that pierced Murphy's skull.

"It was like the loudest explosion in my head," he said. "That's when I thought, well this isn't good."

As he was being shot another officer, Sam Lenda, arrived.

"He thought he saw someone waving at him but quickly realized it was the shooter," Murphy said. "He was pointing a gun at him."

What Lenda didn't know was, in between leveling the gun at him, Page was shooting at Murphy.

Lenda backed up. Police dash cam video shows a bullet piercing the squad car window. It hit the headrest, narrowly missing Lenda. Lenda got in position and fired six shots.

But Page shot and killed himself.

Murphy lay there, riddled with bullets, 15 to be exact. But he was still breathing.

'Divine intervention'

Of the 15 shots, three hit Murphy's bullet proof vest. Twelve entered his body. Two bullets are still inside him to this day.

A year later, Murphy was approached by a survivor who was inside the temple during the shooting.

"She said, 'How many times were you hit?' I said, 15. She said, 'Yes, don't you get it? One bullet for every one of us who was hiding inside.'"

It turned out there were exactly 15 people hiding in the pantry. Murphy had caught the shooter's eye before he could go back in and continue killing.

"That has to be divine intervention," he said.

"He is our hero. Not just because he took bullets intended for us but because of the work he has done to bring awareness about the Sikh community since then," Pardeep Kaleka said.

Kaleka sits next to his mother. He is the son of the Temple President who was murdered that day.

"I know this sounds strange but in some ways it changed our lives but for the better," Kaleka said. "I wouldn't have said that initially but the loss made us appreciate each other and bond more tightly and never again take our relationships or life for granted."

He also gained a friend. Brian Murphy. The two have formed a brotherhood.

"We can talk and be real with one another. Honest. We learn from each other," Murphy said.

While they love America, They say they are worried about the American they see emerging.

"We are scared. As Sikh people we are often targets," Kaleka said. The attack on the Temple was nearly five years ago, the attacks on Indians in America this monthhas heightened that fear once again.

'Go back to your country'

In Kent, Washington, police are still searching for a gunman who they say confronted and shot a Sikh man, originally from India's Punjab province last Friday.

Police say the suspect confronted the victim in his driveway telling him to "go back to your country" and shot him in the arm after a heated argument.

The victim, who is a US citizen, follows the Sikh faith and wears a turban and has a beard.

The victim sustained non life-threatening injuries. The Kent police department is investigating the incident as a possible hate crime, according to Chief Ken Thomas.

Last month, in a suburb of Kansas City, a gunman walked into Austin's Bar and Grill and targeted two men originally from India.

According to police, Adam Purinton, 51, shot and killed Srinivas Kuchibhotla and injured colleague Alok Madasani.

Both worked at Garmin, a GPS device company.

Patrons who witnessed the shooting told local media they heard the suspect yell, "get out of my country."

Purinton faces charges of one count of premeditated first-degree murder and two counts of attempted premeditated first- degree murder.

Sikh-American group members say they have faced discrimination and abuse,often in ways that are xenophobic or even Islamophobic, though Sikhs are not Muslims.

According to the FBI, anti-Muslim hate crimes in the US surged 67% from 2014 to 2015, to levels not seen since 2001.

The first victim of a so-called "revenge killing" after the September 11th terror attacks was a Sikh man who had nothing to do with the attack. Balbir Singh Sodhi was working at his gas station when he was gunned down by a man who said he wanted to kill "towel heads." The despicable act left the Sikh community reeling.

"I have learned that 99% of the men in the US that you see wearing a turban are Sikh, and not Muslim, but whether you are Sikh or Muslim, being persecuted for what you are wearing is ridiculous," Murphy said.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate crime, has found an uptick of incidents targeting Muslims and other religious minority groups since the election of President Donald Trump.

Murphy got a chance to speak directly to Trump during a CNN town hall held before his November election. Murphy asked Trump what he would do as president to protect all Americans.

"As President he's come out and he's assured us that it's not going to be tolerated. I appreciate that, but I think anyone who is caught in one of these hate crimes needs absolutely to be prosecuted to the fullest," Murphy said.

Murphy is now working for the company that makes the bulletproof vest that saved his life. His job involves talking to other officers who have been shot. When he is in front of a large group of law enforcement officers he does not fail to mention the Sikh religion.

"I use a variety of slides. One shows the Sikh beliefs.And I ask people how different is what they believe compared to what you believe?" Murphy said. "What we need to do right now is come together as a country."

President Obama awarded Brian Murphy and Sam Lenda the Medal of Valor in 2015.
WEST GLACIER  Nine days into his new job, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke told a roomful of Glacier National Park rangers he plans a major restructuring of the agency.

We can take a hit at headquarters and middle management, but not on the front line, Zinke said on Friday. Our responsibilities with new technology, land management and recreation will continue to expand. We need to figure out how do we do that in a meaningful way. Its going to require all of us to get out of the box. The goal is reorganizing the department for the next 100 years. I look forward to that.

On the same day the Department of the Interior reported its third consecutive broken record for national park visitation, Zinke said he had recently told President Donald Trump those parks are the public face of his agency. And he added Trump shares the same commitment to public lands.

We want to make the parks world-class, Zinke said. The Department of Interior is going to be the best department in the government  thats the standard.

He spotlighted a 2016 investigation into widespread sexual, physical and professional abuse of female employees within the National Park Service for particular attention.

I have zero tolerance for sexual harassment or discrimination, Zinke said. I will give no quarter. Harassment in any form will not be tolerated.

Zinke unexpectedly cut short his first trip back to Montana since his cabinet confirmation. He canceled a planned address to the Montana Legislature on Monday as well as field trips to the Lewistown Bureau of Land Management office and BLM regional headquarters in Billings on Tuesday. No reason for the schedule change was provided on Friday.

While he did not provide specific details of how the central Department of the Interior management might change, Zinke said he planned to push as much authority and resources as possible to the front lines of park supervisors and their local staffs.

If you dont know the difference between the Potomac and the Yellowstone and the Middle Fork (of the Flathead) rivers, you shouldnt be making decisions about them, Zinke said. That has come to an end. Im going to push a lot of authority to you on the front line.

Zinke also said he wanted to change the character of Interiors law enforcement personnel. While he considered the recent Interior actions clearing protesters from a camp near the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota a spectacular job of defusing what could be a really bad situation, he called for presenting a different face in the future.

We want to be the helpful friendly Yep guys, Zinke said. I dont want to see the image of Smoky Bear with a flak jacket. When people see one of our assets, they should look at land management, great people, professional staff, a clean truck and the happy ranger.

Zinke had just been re-elected to his second two-year term as Montanas lone congressman when he asked then President-elect Trump for the Interior post. Although he was one of Trumps first announced cabinet secretary picks, the Senate didnt confirm him until March 1.

On Friday, he got an extra boost through a blessing ceremony delivered by leaders of the Blackfeet Indian Tribe. Before the roomful of rangers, Blackfeet Tribal Secretary Tyson Running Wolf performed a sacred smudge and paint ritual with Zinke and his wife and son before presenting the cabinet member with a black stone pipe and wooden pipe shaft. Recalling Zinkes riding a horse to his first day of work in Washington, D.C., Running Wolf also gave Zinke a pair of beaded and fringed gloves.

We noticed you were riding Tonto, but you didnt have any gloves on, Running Wolf said. Bring that pipe back when you visit us and well smoke it.
December 31, 2016: 30-year-old female allegedly stabbed by a 28-year-old male outside of Glasgow, resulting in the womans death. The man admitted to consuming meth prior to the stabbing.

January 25, 2017: 31-year-old male shot and killed in a Helena motel parking lot. A pound of meth was found at the scene.

February 19, 2017: Two men lead law enforcement on a two-day manhunt near Big Timber following a traffic stop that resulted in the assault of a Highway Patrol Trooper. The men are suspected of trafficking meth.

Stories like these are all too common in Montana, and their frequency is growing. There is simply no ignoring the fact that the prevalence of dangerous drugs and substance abuse is crippling our state at an alarming rate.

I know firsthand that law enforcement at all levels of government in Montana are dedicated to combating the use and distribution of narcotics. My office has partnered with law enforcement across the state to make drug interdiction a top priority, focusing an enormous amount of time and effort on this front. But the fact remains that the overwhelming amount of illicit drug use outpaces current efforts by law enforcement. And this wave of dangerous drugs comes at an enormous cost.

During a time of lean state revenues, the upward financial pressure on Montanas budget caused by illicit drug use is much more noticeable and impactful. More children involved with Child and Family Services, a greater caseload moving through our judicial system, rapidly growing populations in our corrections facilities  the list goes on and on. And with each additional dollar spent on growing populations for these reactive services comes a reduction in valuable resources elsewhere.

But while the dollars and cents cost is staggering, the financial toll to government budgets and economic activity pales in comparison to the lives affected by illicit drug use. Its the little boy and girl who will never know their mother or father because of an overdose or homicide. Its the parents who lost a child to drug fueled violence. Its the teacher who lost a student due to drug stimulated abuse at home. The ripple effects of dangerous drugs touches each of our lives in some form or another.

On February 18, state senators Eric Moore, R-Miles City, and Diane Sands, D-Missoula, organized an informational meeting intended to elevate the solution discussion for combating dangerous drugs. I commend Senators Moore and Sands for their pro-active approach to bring stakeholders and policymakers together to curb Montanas drug problem. Its discussions like these that will produce results.

Over the next two years, my office will be spearheading an effort to develop a strategic plan that aims to combat the effects of dangerous drugs in Montana. The Department of Justice will work with a broad coalition of stakeholders to ensure the strategy actually produces results, rather than simply putting words on paper. And weve already started this process.

Last fall, I directed my staff to begin identifying state programs that focus on illicit drug use prevention, enforcement, treatment and monitoring. This comprehensive report, which will be available this fall, will be vital to pinpointing deficiencies in how we deal with addiction, identifying duplicative or wasteful efforts and developing a statewide, holistic response to these problems so lawmakers in the 2019 legislative session will have clear direction as to how my offices strategic plan can be implemented.

Fighting the effects of dangerous drugs should be immune from partisan politics, as I believe we each have a moral obligation to do our part. I look forward to working with policymakers at every level of government to find solutions, and I encourage all Montanans to join me in this fight. When lives are at stake, we cant move fast enough.
Having never sponsored a tax bill in my 12 years as a state legislator, I find myself in a new strange place. However, as I watched nearly $90 million in services for senior citizens and people who have disabilities, including children, being cut from the state budget, I had to do something.

Fortunately we have a mechanism to help restore these programs and positively impact the health and welfare of Montanans. Through my bill, called the Save Act, we will increase the tobacco tax by $1.50 a pack. I fully understand that this may be considered excessive, but know it will take a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, a Band-Aid wont do.

As a state legislator, I am very aware that Montana is a graying state  I can see it on the faces of my constituents and I confront the needs of our aging population every day in my committees. For years Ive heard from Montanans about the desperate shortage of direct care workers due to low pay and the long waiting list for in-home care.

Caring for an elder or a child who has a significant health condition is a huge challenge for families. Its disturbing that in this legislative session, the budget for long-term care services serving seniors and people with disabilities has been cut $90 million over the next two years. These cuts make no sense when the number of people aged 65 and over in Montana is projected to rise 55 percent over the next 15 years.

It is the norm and expectation by people who have disabilities that they will be fully integrated in the community. Working, going to school, raising families, attending local churches, like everybody. With supports, people will avoid segregated settings and enjoy opportunities like everybody else.

The proposed budget cuts will hit Montana communities hard. If implemented, these cuts will make it even harder for families to find someone to care for their loved ones, risk putting rural nursing homes out of business, and make life next to impossible for people who are need our support.

These budget cuts have driven me to sponsor the Save Act: A long-delayed increase in the states tobacco tax that will save critical health services, save young people from the perils of smoking, save health care dollars, and save lives which might have been lost as a result of tobacco use.

I do not take increasing a tax lightly. However, after evaluating all the evidence, I see this proposal as a win-win for Montana. Let me leave you with these facts. The continued economic toll of tobacco use and addiction cost our state more than $440 million in health care spending each year. Every Montana household contributes over $700 a year as a result of tobacco use.

This tax will not only impact cigarettes but will tax all other tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes. Empirical evidence proves that a tobacco tax increase is one of the most effective ways to encourage users to quit and prevent young people from starting. This evidence would suggest that the Save Act would decrease youth use by 15.8 percent, which is so important considering that 90 percent of all adult smokers started when they were kids. Finally, perhaps the most compelling statistic is that we can prevent an estimated 3,900 tobacco-related deaths.

Please join me in supporting the Save Act! Please call your legislators and ask them to support the Save Act, (406) 444-4800.
Imagine what you could do with $972,000! What the federal government wants to do with it is subsidize the Stonewall timber sale and burning project, which will destroy about 5,000 acres of big game, lynx and grizzly bear habitat northwest of Lincoln, in violation of federal laws.

$972,000 to destroy wildlife habitat on public land? Most Montanans believe the federal government should be spending taxpayer money protecting fish and wildlife habitat on public land, not destroying it  and theres plenty of restoration work that needs to be done due to past logging damages.

Just to be clear, the $972,000 is what the Forest Service says in the environmental impact statement that the federal government will lose on the timber sale.

The timber sale may well be bought by RY Timber of Townsend and Livingston, which is owned by the billionaire Yanke family from Boise, Idaho. RY Timber has been getting most of the timber from the Helena Lewis and Clark National Forest lately. $972,000 isnt a lot of money to the federal government or a billionaire, but it is a lot to you and me. So why should we spend almost a million taxpayer dollars destroying fish and wildlife habitat on public lands? After all, how much money does a billionaire need? Isnt a billion dollars enough?

Much to its credit, wildlife biologists with Montanas Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks were so concerned that they wrote the Forest Service during the travel planning process for the Blackfoot area that although elk populations have generally increased in hunting districts that include Helena National Forest land since adoption of the 1986 Forest Plan, the number of elk that spend summer and fall on the Lincoln Ranger District have not. FWP recommends that land managers provide enough secure habitat during fall to meet annual bull survival objectives while maintaining general bull harvest opportunity. Neither public land populations nor bull ratios in the Lincoln valley have increased despite the near elimination of antlerless harvest opportunity and the adoption of spike-bull harvest restrictions.

Montanas big-game management agency also warned that due to degraded habitat on public lands, elk are now spending more time on private lands, which causes conflict with land owners as well as increasing the difficulty of managing the herd size due to loss of hunting opportunities on public lands, writing: The number of elk that spend the majority of the year on some nearby private lands has increased dramatically between 1986 and 2013. FWP has consistently urged the [Helena National Forest] to increase functional fall habitat security on the Lincoln Ranger District.

For $972,000, Montana hunters are going to find fewer elk on public lands in the Lincoln Ranger District since they will flee to inaccessible private lands after the federal government has destroyed their habitat on public lands.

We think it makes no sense to sacrifice public elk, lynx and grizzly bear habitat to subsidize the timber industry with nearly a million taxpayer dollars, which is why the Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Native Ecosystems Council filed suit in federal district court challenging the Stonewall Vegetation Project.
Police reports

TRIO ARRESTED AFTER CAR CAPER

A vehicle stop resulted in three arrests Thursday afternoon, police said. Not everyone arrested came willingly.

Charles Clement, 31, of Butte was arrested for misdemeanor criminal contempt for operating a vehicle with a suspended license after officers stopped him at Oregon Avenue and A Street. The vehicle belongs to James Wasson, 29, of Butte, who arrived to pick up the vehicle after police called him.

Wasson was arrested on a warrant out of city court, but not until after he fled the scene on foot after hitching a ride to the scene with Nova LeClair, 29, of Butte.

Undersheriff George Skuletich said Wasson, on foot, entered a garage and was eventually apprehended after he was found hiding in a parked vehicle. He was charged with obstructing a peace officer, criminal trespass, criminal trespass of a vehicle, and criminal contempt, all misdemeanors.

LeClair, meanwhile, who drove Wasson to the original scene to collect his vehicle from Clement, did not flee. But she was arrested on an outstanding out-of-county warrant, said Undersheriff George Skuletich.

FENCE HIT, DUI

Jeremy Darr, 24, Butte, was arrested on the 500 block of North Montana Street around 2 a.m. Friday after his vehicle struck a fence after he attempted to turn onto Woolman. He was charged with careless driving, failure to show proof of insurance, and driving while under the influence after he failed all sobriety tests, police said.
HELENA  Some seasonal outdoor workers like rafting guides or horse tour leaders might see a drop in pay if the proposal of a Laurel legislator is supported by the Montana Senate as it was in the House.

House Bill 496 would exempt employees of "seasonal outdoor recreation providers" from minimum wage and overtime laws. It passed the House last week on a 55-44 vote with four Republicans joining Democrats in opposition.

Republican sponsor Rep. Vince Ricci said those rules don't make sense for some temporary jobs where businesses have to provide training to unskilled, often young, employees.

"This is not intended to do away with minimum wage," Ricci told the Senate Business, Labor and Economic Affairs Committee during a Friday hearing. "You value your employees and are not going to try to bring harm to them by reducing their wages."

Leaders from the Montana Outfitters and Guides Association said current law forces them to pay some workers more than they deserve given their inexperience and other benefits provided, such as room and board or tips. If the bill passes, the group's members suggested they could instead raise pay for veteran workers and would be freed from a pinch on margins of profit that deter them from hiring more people.

President Pat Tabor, who owns several companies in the Flathead Valley, including one that provides horse rides in Glacier National Park, insisted the bill was not about greedy business owners looking to undercut workers, noting that market forces likely would set most wages higher than minimum wage anyway.

"You can't pay people ridiculous wages. Nobody is going to come work for you for $2 an hour," he said.

Jobs on dude ranches or as outfitting assistants often don't fit the "9-to-5" model, he said, with long or irregular hours often without clear delineation between when someone is working and when they are simply sitting around the campfire. Many employees, he said, see the experience as more valuable than monetary considerations.

"They come in effectively with no training, no skill set. Most of them are kids that come in. They're looking for a wonderful time, to make a little money," Tabor said. "It makes sense to pay them something right-sized to the contribution they're making."

He noted that some employers would like to pay a monthly rate rather than by the hour, which would be easier for all involved and might not change overall pay by much.

The Montana Department of Labor and Industry as well as the state's largest union opposed the bill.

"I don't see any folks who would be directly impacted by this here in front of you saying, 'Reduce our wages,'" said Montana AFL-CIO Spokesman Chris Cavazos, comparing the proposal to a similar bill last session requested by religious summer camp workers. "This is a bad idea."

Sen. Frank Smith, D-Poplar, echoed the department, arguing the language was too broad and might inadvertently allow other types of seasonal businesses, such as carnivals and ski resorts, to pay workers less than minimum wage.

Tabor said he would support amendments that would exempt businesses of concern but warned that simply listing eligible employers could be overly restrictive. He said that is, in part, the problem with existing state and federal labor laws that recognize only some outdoor recreation businesses as "amusement providers" exempt from some rules. He said Ricci's bill would complement reforms to federal law that national industry groups think are likely to be implemented this year.

Sen. Tom Facey, D-Missoula, was skeptical that the employees were as inexperienced as described by some supporters and questioned whether commercial permits issued by the U.S. Forest Service or U.S. National Parks actually would prohibit them from hiring new employees because of caps on the number of trips they can provide.

Recreation companies already have enough flexibility under current law to defray some costs, such as by counting tips toward wages or charging employees for room and board, Sen. Gene Vuckovich, D-Anaconda, said.

The committee took no action on the bill Friday. If approved, it would move to the full Senate for consideration. Democrat Gov. Steve Bullock, however, indicated he was not supportive of the idea but did not directly say whether he would veto the proposal if it landed on his desk.

"Exempting seasonal outdoor recreation workers from basic rights is harmful to the hard-working Montanans who support Montana's $6 billion thriving outdoor economy," Spokeswoman Ronja Abel said in a written statement.
BILLINGS  A former Billings Senior High School teacher convicted of raping a 14-year-old student who later killed herself will be released from the Montana State Prison to California on parole.

Stacey Dean Rambold, 57, was sentenced in September 2014 to 15 years in prison, with five years suspended, after the Montana Supreme Court overturned a lower courts sentence of 31 days in prison.

Rambold had a hearing before the Montana Board of Pardons and Parole on Jan. 30, said Department of Corrections Communications Director Judy Beck. During the hearing, Rambold proposed a plan to be paroled to California, which the parole board accepted. The proposal was submitted to the Interstate Compact Unit, which sent the request to California.

That proposal was approved March 6. He is scheduled to be released from the Montana State Prison on March 21.

Rambold has spent about two and a half years in the Montana State Prison.

The 14-year-olds mother, Auliea Hanlon, was not aware Rambold was up for parole, she said last week. She was not present at Rambold's parole hearing and was not able to object to his release.

Montana Board of Pardons and Parole Executive Director Kristy Cobban said Rambold was denied parole in 2016 so that he could complete sex offender treatment. He returned in 2017 after completing the treatment and submitted a plan to be paroled to California, Cobban said.

Rambold, a former business and technology teacher at Senior High School, was charged in 2008 with raping Cherice Moralez. The girl reported she had sexual contact with Rambold three times, including once in Rambolds office.

Prior to Rambold being sentenced, Moralez died by suicide on Feb. 6, 2010, 20 days before her 17th birthday.

After Moralez's death, Rambold signed a deferred-prosecution agreement that required him to attend a sex-offender treatment program.

He was booted from that program for not disclosing a sexual relationship with an adult woman and having an unauthorized visit with the children of his relatives. He was prosecuted for those violations.

In 2013, Judge G. Todd Baugh sentenced Rambold to 15 years in prison, with all but 31 days suspended, for sexual intercourse without consent.

During Rambolds sentencing, Baugh made statements suggesting the victim may have been partly responsible.

"It was a troubled youth, but a youth who was probably as much in control of the situation as the defendant, one that was seemingly, although troubled, older than her chronological age," Baugh said.

Baugh was roundly criticized, including being the target of a protest on the courthouse lawn.

The judge was later censured and suspended for 31 days over his handling of the case. Soon after, he retired under public pressure after almost 30 years on the bench.

The Montana Supreme Court reversed Baughs order after the court determined Baughs sentence was improper and went on to criticize Baugh for comments he made about the victim's age and his misunderstanding of the relationship that existed between an adult teacher and a minor pupil.

Another judge in Yellowstone County District Court resentenced Rambold to 15 years with five suspended.

Hanlon sued School District 2 over her daughter's death and in 2012 settled the suit for just under $91,000.
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Les emplois a Rennes sont abondants et varies. Il y a quelque chose pour tout le monde. Que vous soyez a la recherche dun emploi []
Les blattes ou cafards (Blatta orientalis) sont des insectes qui appartiennent a la famille des Blattoptera. Ils se caracterisent par leur forme allongee, leurs ailes []
In August of 2008, on a cruise ship heading to Alaska, I sat glued to my cabin TV set; nothing on that luxurious ship couldve enticed me to leave that cabin as I watched the Democratic candidate, back then, Senator Barack Obama, speak. He had me captivated, but I was not alone, for Obama always held his audience spellbound, coming across as articulate and genuine.

Early on, his foreign policy pledges were undeniably bonafide. He vowed to disentangle the US from Afghanistan and Iraq, and close off Guantanamo; no more Iraqs had gained him many voters. And he became the 44th American president; his being the first black presidency exemplified diversity and acknowledgement of the other.

Then he chose Egypts Cairo University as the venue from which to speak to the Muslim world, and again I watched in awe. I have come here to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world; one based upon mutual interest and mutual respect.

The Holy Koran tells us, continued Obama, O mankind! We have created you male and a female; and we have made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another. No other American president had extended the reconciliatory olive branch of peace in that fashion. It was like a new beginning, and I, like millions, was hopeful that Obama would deliver on his promises.

Today eight years after Obamas heartening start, we look back and assess his legacy in the Arab World, indeed, a legacy of failure.

Iraq

Though President Bushs invasion of Iraq remains one of histories most tragic disasters, President Obamas role in the Iraqi war may have surpassed Bushs jaded blunder. In 2011, Obama ordered US combat troops to withdraw from Iraq. Regrettably they left behind an open playing field for the Islamic State, Al Nusra Front, and other insurgencies to move in. Not only did Obama forsake the Iraqis but he also renounced the USs role in generating the Iraqi plight.

Iraq today remains at the mercy of Islamist militants. And to this Obama comments, The ability of ISIL to not just mass inside of Syria, but then to initiate major land offensives that took Mosul [in Iraq], for example, that was not on my intelligence radar screen."

Syria

Syria will remain the thorn in Obamas legacy in the Arab World. Siding with the opposition against President Asaad then seems irrelevant today in the large scheme of things. As the opposition gained momentum, it got infiltrated by militants and factions from across the world.

The ongoing war left Syria with a humanitarian calamity: over 400,00 dead, a devastated wasteland, and the foreboding title of the worlds largest refugee crisis.

President Obama adopted a faint and indecisive role calling the fight against IS long-term. He dithered, leaving the door wide open for a multitude of countries to get involved. Neither Syria nor the Syrians themselves truly mattered.

Robert Ford, who resigned in 2014 as U.S. ambassador to Syria over policy disagreements, said, Im personally sad that after we thought we had learned lessons in places like Sarajevo, Srebrenica and Rwanda, it's in fact very clear that this administration doesn't really care.

Today a ceasefire in Syria is holding as a Russian-backed truce that the US played no role in takes effect.

Libya

Intervening in Libya and toppling Gaddafi left Libya with a vacuum similar to that that was created in Iraq. President Obama made sure that the intervention was led by a NATO coalition, and in October of 2011, NATO pulled out of Libya. This vacuum was immediately seized by IS.

Once Libya was Africas richest state; today Libya is in chaos, torn by civil war, split between Misrata militias on one side and General Khalifa Haftar on the other.

While Obama was for the change in leadership and saving the lives of innocent Libyans, he never completed the task he initiated. When asked about his failures, Obama responded that failing to prepare for the aftermath of the ousting of the Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, was the worst mistake of his presidency.

Whether in Libya, Iraq, or Syria, ISIS emerged as the successor after the toppled or targeted regimes left these countries easy prey. Obamas strategy re IS failed; it never seemed wilful or deliberate enough, and yet his administration continued its rhetoric on how it is destroying IS.

The repercussions to this stance are felt across the Arab World.

Egypt

An orderly transition must be meaningful, it must be peaceful and it must begin now, announced President Obama declaring the end of President Hosni Mubaraks reign.

After Mubarak stepped down, Obama and Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, sided with ex-President Morsi but were never willing to stand with President El Sisi. As retributive measures, the US withheld the F-16 fighter jets, cancelled joint military exercises, and the final straw, suspended, even if temporarily or partially, the 1.3-billion-dollar aid to Egypt.

President Obama had invested much in the Muslim Brotherhood and their leader, and he couldnt forgo that investment without a fuss. Muslim Brotherhood members blatantly raised the Rabaa sign in the White House even after Egypt designated the MB as a terrorist group.

President Obama gave President Sisi the deliberate snub. Egypt was left to fend for itself against terrorism and economic hardships with the US oblivious to its capacity to assist. Soon Egypt was drawing on other allegiances and partnerships such as Russia, China, and France, in addition to the Gulf States, and maintaining an aloof and distant relationship with the US.

The one and only decision made by President Obama which, at face value, sided with the Arab World came too late and, alas, immediately backfired. On the eve of Obamas leaving office, the US abstained from a UN vote that allowed the UN to demand an end to Israeli settlements. This was followed by a vow from Israeli officials to build thousands of new settlements on Palestinian occupied land in defiance.

President Obama failed miserably in the Arab World, and it is no wonder that Arabs awaited his exiting the Oval Office with anticipation, and are, rightfully or wrongfully, awaiting to see how President Trump handles Obamas legacy in the coming days.
During IDEX-NAVDEX, held from 19th to 23rd February in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, British company MSI Defence Systems Ltd was showcasing the latest addition to its remote weapon systems (RWS) range: The Seahawk Multi Weapon Station (MWS). It was specifically design by MSI Defence to be the most compact lightweight remote controlled naval gun system available. The MWS is ideal for small fast boats covering a range of operational missions from maritime interdiction to law enforcement patrols.

Talking to Navy Recognition during IDEX 2017, an MSI Defence representative explained that the Seahawk MWS was launched at Euronaval 2016. It is canon agnostic, designed for M2 (12.7mm) - 7.62mm and 40mm grenade launcher. The whole system weight is 200-250Kg. "We received a tremendous amount of interest since the launch at Euronaval" the representative added. Unlike other RWS manufacturers who usually navalize a system originally designed for land application, MSI Defence designs systems for naval applications exclusively.



The modular design of the Seahawk MWS enables a variety of external deployable mounting options for fast boat designers. The compact size and single arm construction uses the minimum amount of deck space and keeps lines of sight clear for the crew and gunner.
50,000 YEARS IN A HAIR

Jeremy Eccles | 11.03.17

Author: Jeremy Eccles

News source: Press Release



Here is how the prestigious international magazine, 'Nature' announced one of the most fascinating scientific projects revealing Australia's extraordinary Indigenous past on March 8th:

Aboriginal Australians represent one of the longest continuous cultural complexes known. Archaeological evidence indicates that Australia and New Guinea were initially settled approximately 50 thousand years ago (ka); however, little is known about the processes underlying the enormous linguistic and phenotypic diversity within Australia. Here we report 111 mitochondrial genomes from historical Aboriginal Australian hair samples, whose origins enable us to reconstruct Australian phylogeographic history before European settlement. Marked geographic patterns and deep splits across the major mitochondrial haplogroups imply that the settlement of Australia comprised a single, rapid migration along the east and west coasts that reached southern Australia by 4945 ka. After continent-wide colonisation, strong regional patterns developed and these have survived despite substantial climatic and cultural change during the late Pleistocene and Holocene epochs. Remarkably, we find evidence for the continuous presence of populations in discrete geographic areas dating back to around 50 ka, in agreement with the notable Aboriginal Australian cultural attachment to their country.

These are the first results from the Aboriginal Heritage Project, led by the University of Adelaides Australian Centre for Ancient DNA (ACAD) in partnership with the South Australian Museum. The Project drew on data and collection material collated by Joseph B. Birdsell and Norman B. Tindale during anthropological expeditions from 1928 through to the 1970s, during which 5000 hair samples were collected with their subject's permission, and meticulously recorded.

It was anthropologist and linguist, Peter Sutton who drew this horde to ACAD's attention, and the SA Museum has collaborated throughout this 12 year project. The ethical protocols involved were quite extraordinary  contacting descendants of each subject; a factor that has limited the Project so far to just three areas  two in SA at Point Pearce and Koonibba, and Cherbourg in Queensland.

Permissions obtained, researchers analysed mitochondrial DNA from 111 of the hair samples. Mitochondrial DNA allows the tracing of maternal ancestry, and the results show that modern Aboriginal Australians are the descendants of a single founding population that arrived in Australia 50,000 years ago, while Australia was still connected to New Guinea in a landmass known as Sahul. Populations then spread rapidly  within 1500-2000 years  around the east and west coasts of Australia, meeting somewhere in South Australia. Three out of the four haplogroups chose to come down the eastern side, some later following the Murray/Darling system.

Amazingly, it seems that from around this time the basic population patterns have persisted for the next 48,000 years - showing that communities have remained in discrete geographical regions, says project leader Professor Alan Cooper, Director of ACAD. This is unlike people anywhere else in the world and provides compelling support for the remarkable Aboriginal cultural connection to Country, reinforced through Songlines and Dreamtime narratives. Were hoping this project leads to a rewriting of Australias history texts to include detailed Aboriginal history and what it means to have been on their land for 50,000 years  thats around 10 times as long as all of the European history were commonly taught.

A central pillar of the Aboriginal Heritage Project is that Aboriginal families and communities have been closely involved with the project from its inception and that analyses are only conducted with their consent. Importantly, results are first discussed with the families to get Aboriginal perspectives before scientific publication. The research model was developed under the guidance of Aboriginal elders, the Genographic Project, and professional ethicists. Having established the model, this is the first phase of a longer project that will allow people with Aboriginal heritage to trace their regional ancestry and reconstruct family genealogical history, and will also assist with the repatriation of Aboriginal artefacts. Were really keen to get in touch with more Aboriginal communities and families, to get them interested in participating in the Project, Alan Cooper added.

Reconstructing the genetic history of Aboriginal Australia is very complicated due to past government policies of enforced population relocation and child removal that have erased much of the physical connection between groups and geography in Australia today, says Dr Wolfgang Haak, formerly at ACAD and now at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany.

This Aboriginal Heritage Project is able to exist because of the extensive records collected by Norman Tindale and Joseph Birdsell, which are held in trust for all at the South Australian Museum, says Brian Oldman, Director of the SA Museum. They include detailed information about the birthplaces, family history and family trees, film, audio and written records  allowing a wide range of approaches to be used by this project to reconstruct history.

Peter Sutton wants to make it clear, There are five Aboriginal co-authors on the 'Nature' article, plus a host of geneticists, mathematicians, an archivist, an archaeologist and an anthropologist/linguist (myself). This work took all the guts and social skills and family connections of the Aboriginal co-authors to have even been thinkable. In 2005 it was a question of political timing to get it going, with some key Aboriginal leaders giving us support in taking the plunge, Mick Dodson and Marcia Langton in the main.

The research will be extended to investigate paternal lineages and information from the nuclear genome, also to examine how the longevity of Aboriginal populations in different habitats across Australia has shaped the remarkable physical diversity found across modern Aboriginal Australians.

URL: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/acad/ahp/



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SATELLITE BEACH, Florida  An arrest has been made following the brutal rape of a woman who was reading a book in her car last month at Hightower Beach Park in Satellite Beach, Florida.

The Satellite Beach Police Department has confirmed that Harry Claude Adam Page of Winter Haven, Florida has been arrested and charged with Aggravated Sexual Battery.

An arrest warrant was issued on Friday after Satellite Beach investigators received confirmation from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Crime Lab that evidence collected from the crime scene matched Pages DNA profile. Page was arrested without incident in Polk County on Friday at approximately 6:30 .p.m by the Polk County Sheriffs Office, who was working in cooperation with Satellite Beach investigators.

Page is a registered, violent sexual predator, who has an extensive criminal background. On Sunday, February 12, 2017, a woman was sitting in her car at the north end of the parking lot reading when Page allegedly pulled the woman from the car, pinned her to the ground, and hit her several times in the face and head. The woman told police that the suspect threatened her life multiple times and sexually battered her in the parking lot.

Our investigative team worked nonstop on this case, following up on nearly a hundred leads, said Satellite Police Chief Jeff Pearson. Ultimately, this arrest came down to good police and forensic work. Further information will be released as our investigators continue to follow up on leads and use every resource available to make sure this case is successfully prosecuted and this man wont harm anyone else again.

Page is being held on No Bond at the Polk County Jail until he is transferred to the Brevard County Detention Center.

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